Paleo Retiree writes:
A few weeks ago my wife and I attended a modest outdoor show of classic cars. It was a very happy experience for me. I was a car-crazy kid for a number of years … and here were some of my favorites in the flesh: from sexy Jags and Cobras to adorable Studebakers and woodies. A few California hot rods punctuated the grounds with their fantasy and wit. I explored the show feeling like a boy getting a chance to meet his sports heroes one on one. Continue reading
Blowhard, Esq. writes:
The band I blogged about here was in town last night so I headed off to my first concert in two years.
Paleo Retiree writes:
Softcore French porn from the ‘70s by Jean-Marie Pallardy, in a boisterous and rollicking vein. The plot is based on The Odyssey: a couple of truck drivers lose their way and have episodic adventures, mostly of a sexual kind. Meanwhile, the foxy wife of the more handsome trucker remains true to him even as mucho time passes, while presiding at a bar/cafe where her girls and their patrons play games, drink, fight and fuck.
Pallardy has the modest-to-high rep he has among fans of ’70s erotica for some good reasons, IMHO: the landscapes are well-used; there’s a real pagan sensuality to the sun-struck and rustic settings; there’s a real classicism in the themes; and the actresses in the film are sensationally pretty and elegant. “Truck Stop” is like Blier and Borowczyk crossed with “Hee Haw.”
Sir Barken Hyena writes:
Economists are not humans. Reminders are never far away but this is a good one.
“It’s overwhelmingly likely that we’re going to want the public sector to be a larger share of the economy in 10, 20, 30, 40 years than it is today and we need to find relatively growth-friendly ways to make that happen.”
First of all, who’s this “we”, white woman? What’s overwhelmingly likely is bankruptcy, which just might bother a few people out there, like, you know, voters for example. Is the response to that likely going to be an increase in trust of the government? How far up your own bubble can you go? And what a failure of imagination, poised as we are on the cusp of an age of unknowable change from a 1000 directions.
That’s from Matt Yglesias, not himself an economist. I’m also referring to the comments on the post, which are from economists: you can tell by the whiff of Asperger’s wafting off the page. Note how no one questions this premise! Like docile little sheep they follow him into this non-argument.
epiminondas writes:
A good story has a beginning, a middle, and an end. So does a good skyscraper. It should feel well grounded, like it is where it belongs. As you look up at the building, your eye should be enchanted and encouraged to dwell on details as it follows the building skyward. And when you see the top, it should look like the end. It should make a statement, put a period on the sentence. Or an exclamation point. It should end with dignity and grace, not just STOP. In my estimation, the General Electric building in New York City possesses all the characteristics of a truly great architectural masterpiece. It definitely has a beginning, a middle and an end.
Above is a view of the GE building as seen from my hotel room in the recent past. It stands at the corner of Lexington and 51st avenue to the left of the Waldorf Astoria. What is really enchanting about it is the top…
Now this is the kind of elegance and panache you just don’t see any more in architecture. Vibrant, muscular, restrained, and yet flamboyant at the same time. You don’t really notice the spectacular detail from the ground looking up. But from a height (and we were in the 30-range of floors) you can see how dazzling the top of the GE building really is.
At any point you gaze at this structure, you linger to see the details. This is the kind of architecture we once took for granted. It is a masterpiece. Long may it stand as a testament to an artistic vision of the early American skyscraper.
. . . than Facebook.
Glynn Marshes writes:
Michael Wolffe, in USA Today, argues that Facebook will inevitably splinter as people peel off to join other social media services — services set up to reinforce exclusivity and eliminate “the Facebook dross and cacophony.”
Not only is Facebook challenged by its inability to grow advertising revenue fast enough — the primary culprit in its 50% share-price plunge — but now it’s facing a carve-up of the social experience.
This is not just by the high-fliers in its space, Twitter and Linkedin — themselves in danger of fragmentation — but by an ever-growing assortment of specialty players.
He goes on to list several of them.
It will be interesting to see if he’s right. I could see myself being tempted away from Facebook if the right alternative presented itself. Could you?
Fenster writes:
Nice piece on the Ivies, prior home of at least a couple of the writers here. Fave quote:
Trotter thinks the perfect IvyGate post “reveals the tension between the meritocratic connotations of the Ivy League and the plutocratic connotations of the Ivy League.” Both people who’ve been more or less bred to land in Ivies and students who’ve gotten there by hard work are haunted by fears of inauthenticity, he believes.
Thank God I didn’t get in!
Blowhard, Esq. writes:
I was at a charity event last night that featured a number of food trucks. Greek, Hawaiian, Mexican/Asian fusion, American/Asian fusion, Middle Eastern, ice cream, and boba were all represented.
The menu at the Cheer Burger truck.
Kinda expensive. Since it was a charity event, I wasn’t sure if these were their regular prices or maybe a dollar or two more since they were donating part of the proceeds. I got the burger with The Works.
Oh yeah, and I got the strawberry gelato at this truck.
Don’t they mean “artisan”? And doesn’t that look more like ice cream to you than gelato? Because it sure tasted more like ice cream to me than gelato. Oh well, it was good either way.
The trucks were a hit with the crowd. The area filled up quickly.
Any good food trucks in your area? If you tried them, what was your experience?
Fabrizio del Wrongo writes:
Writer-director Rian Johnson has made a name for himself with his latest film “Looper.” I haven’t seen it, but I did catch up with his debut feature the other night. It’s called “Brick,” and I found it too clever by half. It’s an attempt to apply hard-boiled crime trappings to a contemporary teen setting. Joseph Gordon-Levitt plays a would-be gumshoe investigating the disappearance of his ex-girlfriend. That’s all I’ll say about the plot, as it’s too convoluted to synopsize (or follow). Suffice it to say that it involves Gordon-Levitt’s character skulking around his hometown, located somewhere in California, slowly gathering information and regularly getting clobbered by rednecks in wife-beaters.
The Question Lady writes:
In what field do you think the greatest innovations are being done right now?
Blowhard, Esq.
Callowman
Sherbrooke
Eddie Pensier
Enzo Nakamura
Epaminondas
Fabrizio del Wrongo
Fenster
Brundle Guy
Glynn Marshes
Paleo Retiree
Atypical Neurotic
Question Lady
Sax von Stroheim
Sir Barken Hyena
The Mistaken
Uncouth Reflections 