Uncouth Reflections

Couldn’t Do It Today

Posted on July 12, 2014 by Fabrizio del Wrongo

Fabrizio del Wrongo writes:

The amusing thing about this is that it’s intended as pro-woman. Tex even preemptively scolds men for being turned off by the idea of women avoiding work in order to give them massages and make coffee. 1967.

Related

Posted in Music, Politics and Economics, Sex, Women men and fashion | Tagged couldn't do it today, it was made to think up clever little things to do to surprise her man, Joe Tex, soul music | 1 Comment

Naked Lady of the Week: Katya Clover

Posted on July 11, 2014 by Fabrizio del Wrongo

Fabrizio del Wrongo writes:

Some people seem born to take their clothes off. The golden-toned Russian known as Katya Clover is one of them. Her work seems to announce, “Tah dah! I’m naked!”

Looking through a bunch of her photos while pulling together this post — the things I do for your people! — I was struck by how rarely she looks unbalanced or diluted. There’s scarcely a snap in which she doesn’t command the camera, in which she isn’t fully “there.” Lord knows what someone has to have in order to achieve that kind of . . . radiant physical presence. Possibly one has to be a bit of a performer. Maybe something of an exhibitionist as well. Whatever it is there’s no denying Katya’s generosity: she clearly enjoys granting us access to everything she’s got.

According to her official site she started her career as a bikini model, then started doing nude stuff upon starting a relationship with a photographer. There’s something sweet about this passage:

We realized that both of us are fond of active sports and sporty style of life – we travel a lot, we catch adventures, we like to wonder and make wondering others! We take a lot of pictures, and now video and we like to share them with other people, as I am a nudist and naturist I believe people should not make secret from their bodies…

No shame, no secrets. That’s a pretty good philosophy for a nude model to have, don’t you think? Possibly it’s what led her to do hardcore shoots, all of them with a guy who I presume is her photographer boyfriend.

That brings me to an interesting question: Does it bother those of you who are fans of erotic photography when a favorite model does hardcore stuff? Does it take something away from her work or tarnish her in some way? This seems a constant subject of debate around the forums I visit while researching these models. Some are eager to see their favorites do the deed, others are appalled when they do.

I can see both sides. Lord knows the porn industry can be a hard and merciless mistress — one capable of grinding the freshness out of the most seemingly innocent of personalties. But . . . but . . . isn’t engaging in sex for the camera just another kind of erotic performance? If we can accept posing nude for the camera as a worthy and stimulating cultural exercise, why can’t we accept having sex for the camera using the same rationale? Besides: If Katya and her boyfriend derive something from getting it on in front of an audience, why shouldn’t we be happy to help them out?

Katya has appeared under a host of sensual and gustatory aliases, including Caramel and Mango. (One of the commenters at Met-Art compares her to fruit salad. I’ll cosign that remark.) These low-res sample images come from Met-Art, DOMAI, Goddess Nudes, and Watch4Beauty. You can find lots more of Katya at those sites as well as at others around the ‘net.

Bright and well-tanned nudity below the fold. Have a Katya-inspired weekend.

Continue reading →

Posted in Photography, Sex, The Good Life | Tagged Katya Clover, naked lady of the week, nude photography, nudism, Russia, sorry Peter | 2 Comments

“Orange is the New Black” Notes, Season 2, Episode 2

Posted on July 11, 2014 by Blowhard, Esq.

Blowhard, Esq. writes:

1. Ahhh, the old peanut butter and dog story. A staple of suburban folklore.

2. Doesn’t that mousy female CO, Fischer, look a lot like Kate Micucci from Garfunkel and Oates?

3. I really like Healy’s arc. He started out as the good guy and slowly changed into Chapman’s nemesis. Didn’t realize that Michael Harney was in TRUE DETECTIVE.

4. Litchfield is a federal prison, right? I don’t know how any prison system works, but it’s weird how the warden — at least the person with that title — has never appeared on screen. Instead, Natalie is the de facto head of the prison.

5. We got the funny scene with Larry and his father at the gay bath house (“It was a Groupon”) thereby providing some man-on-man action and full-frontal male nudity. Hope you enjoyed it, ladies!

6. “I made her come vaginally, do you know how hard that is to do?”

7. Really enjoyed the scene between Red and her son on visiting day. Do you think Captain Janeway’s Russian accent is convincing or are we in John Malkovich in ROUNDERS territory?

8. Liked all the shots of Polly’s boobs, too.

9. This is the second episode in a row where shitting was a significant plot point. I have to think the writers are doing that intentionally, i.e. people crapping — and especially women crapping — is not something that’s dealt with in TV much so they’re bringing it into the foreground.

10. Good Lord, Pennsatucky’s pre-dental work teeth were gross. Hats off to the makeup people.

11. Is it racist for me to say the black characters are my favorite?

Posted in Television | Tagged Kate Micucci, Kate Mulgrew, Laura Lapkus, Maria Dizzia, Michael Harney, Orange is the New Black, peanut butter and dogs, really bad teeth, vaginal orgasms, white guilt | 1 Comment

Friday Music Wildcard: Persian Classical with Sahba Motallebi

Posted on July 11, 2014 by Sir Barken Hyena

Sir Barken Hyena writes:

Damn that’s some picking!

Posted in Music | 2 Comments

Today’s Lunchtime Reading: Christopher Alexander v. Peter Eisenman

Posted on July 10, 2014 by Blowhard, Esq.

Blowhard, Esq. writes:

Via Paleo Retiree, a legendary debate between Christopher Alexander (pictured above, left) and Peter Eisenman (right) from 1982 at the Harvard Graduate School of Design on traditional v. postmodern architecture.

CHRISTOPHER ALEXANDER: The thing that strikes me about your friend’s building — if I understood you correctly — is that somehow in some intentional way it is not harmonious. That is, Moneo intentionally wants to produce an effect of disharmony. Maybe even of incongruity.

PETER EISENMAN: That is correct.

CHRISTOPHER ALEXANDER: I find that incomprehensible. I find it very irresponsible. I find it nutty. I feel sorry for the man. I also feel incredibly angry because he is fucking up the world.

Related

A few of us are fans of Alexander’s A Pattern Language. From Wired magazine, here are Alexander’s 15 Rules for Rebuilding the World. And here’s Michael Blowhard’s 5-part interview with Nikos Salingaros, a close associate of Alexander.
The official website for Eisenman’s firm. His web page at Yale’s School of Architecture. His Wikipedia page which contains a list of his buildings and works. Fenster flagged an Eisenman design here.
Philip Bess, professor of architecture at Notre Dame University, writes at Front Porch Republic on traditionalism v. modernism.

Posted in Architecture, Art, Philosophy and Religion | Tagged christopher alexander, Peter Eisenman, postmodernism, traditionalism | 6 Comments

Architecture Du Jour

Posted on July 9, 2014 by Blowhard, Esq.

Blowhard, Esq. writes:

Somewhere on the Upper East Side of Manhattan.

Click on the image to enlarge.

Posted in Architecture | Tagged New York City, traditionalism | Leave a comment

“Orange is the New Black” Notes, Season 2, Episode 1

Posted on July 9, 2014 by Blowhard, Esq.

Blowhard, Esq. writes:

Everyone else does TV recaps, so why not me? I just started season 2 of the Netflix series and I know a few other URers are fans, so I thought I’d blog it as I go along. Without further ado, here are my observations for the first episode. Should go without saying that there are SPOILERS AHEAD.

1. On a lot of these shows the creator-head writer will direct the first and last episodes of the season. Joss Whedon did so on BUFFY, Vince Gilligan did so on BREAKING BAD, and Matt Weiner follows this practice on MAD MEN. Jenji Kohan doesn’t seem to have the directing bug, tho, so she handed over the reins to Jodie Foster, who directed an episode or two last season.

2. When we last saw Chapman she was beating Pennsatucky to a bloody pulp. Taryn Manning does a great job with that character.

3. During the first flashback to Chapman’s childhood we see children jumping out of the back of a 5 MPH bus as part of some local tradition. If that happened today the bus driver and school district would be sued into oblivion.

4. Nice to see Lori Petty pop up during the CON AIR scenes. You ever see the movie TANK GIRL? It was terrible. I think the failure of that film pretty much killed her movie career.

5. “Are you famous or something? You’re Lindsay Lohan!”

6. Taylor Schilling has a tough job on this show: how to make a spoiled, overeducated, rich, skinny white girl sympathetic. The writing helps by giving her a repressive WASP background to fight against– everyone hates WASP repression and hypocrisy — but Schilling gives the character a dose of self-awareness and self-deprecation.

7. Like the shout-out to MARCH OF THE PENGUINS in the prison yard. That was a cute documentary.

8. “Did you get to feel the bones crack?” “Yes, actually.”

9. Chapman’s four-day panties, her cellmate’s four shits a day while singing “Natural Woman.”

10. I was wondering why Laura Prepon was billed as “special guest star” in the opening credits and, by the end of the episode we know why. I dislike the Alex character so much I think it shades over into my opinion of Prepon’s work. She’s very attractive, sure, but is she much of an actress? The rest of the supporting cast is so good, but I’ve never quite bought Prepon in this part. Maybe it’s all the bad memories from watching THAT ’70s SHOW a sitcom I never liked.

Posted in Television | Tagged four shits a day, four-day panties, Jenji Kohan, Jodie Foster, Laura Prepon, Lori Petty, Orange is the New Black, Taryn Manning, Taylor Schilling | 2 Comments

Wimmin Singin Wednesdays

Posted on July 9, 2014 by Fenster

Fenster writes:

What the heck does become of the broken hearted?

Posted in Music | Tagged Joan Osborne, What Becomes of the Broken Hearted? | 1 Comment

Choose Your Own Caption

Posted on July 9, 2014 by Eddie Pensier

Eddie Pensier writes:

Dearest readers, do kindly take a long, appraising look at the recently revealed opening ceremony uniforms for Scotland’s Commonwealth Games athletes.

Observe what has been done to this group of fit, attractive young people. Let it sink in.

Now, vote in our photo-caption poll, if you choose. Submit your own in the comments too, if the given options ~~aren’t snarky enough~~ don’t suit you.