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Park a park

This may be the single most interesting idea I've come across this year. And that's rather impressive given it's almost the end of the year. Well, either that or it might just be that good ideas, beside my own naturally, don't come my way very often..

Nevertheless, here's a group of people who've found the Achilles heal of real estate and property prices. Imagine the sponsorship potential and socio- economic benefits at hand. Besides parks which is in itself a brilliant idea, why not donate parking space to house other activities?

Like mini on- the- go shelters for homeless people?
Or little al- fresco love- studios for expressing exhibitionistic and amicable feelings to one and other?
Or very tiny public pools for instant refreshment on hot summer days?

Oh, just don't take the car.
I hear parking's become quite a problem..

mini chameleons & pool- dwelling women

Recently saw the trailer for M. Night Shyamalans new movie and, enticed with Christmas spirit, I have to say that it was pretty darn refreshing. Instead of the conventional accelerating- clips- combined- with- pompous drums approach, this caught my attention with its rather humble & pleasant vibe..

On a side note, the spell- check recommends replacing "Shyamalan" with the words "smallness" or "chameleon". In my experience, never has a little spelling program been so outspoken and opinionated..

I mean come on, that's just not nice, is it?

Bamwho?

Winter's here.
And with a vengeance..

Around here, winter tends to be rather determined to make an impression this time of year.
Can't really see why, as we're all rather familiar with it by now and see it as somewhat of a regular..

There's really not very much else to do than accept it. And in contrast to what the majority of people here seem to think, avoiding to change to winter tires until the very last minute is not a clever way of tricking winter into delaying it's entrance.

This for instance, is what it did to the pond. A mirror reflection of the bamboo, not entirely comfortable with the ice canopy surrounding it..


Oh, and speaking of ponds.. Frogs are brilliant aren't they?
And for no particular reason at all, it's also worth mentioning that Amsterdam is a truly remarkable city.

People there probably always change their tires in time..

In dust we trust

Spike Jonze is familiar in some circles for knowing a thing or two about revolutionizing the video- format.

Apparently, he's found a Gap in the market again.

"If god wanted us to be vegetarians, then why did he make animals out of meat?"

You can't argue with logic like that, can you..
Nevertheless, if you're a militant vegetarian who'd like to express an alternative opinion directly, here's a useful source for finding out where this guy lives.

Just watch out for the dog. Oh, and grandpa..

Birthday Box

When I reached the mature age of One, my grandfather gave me a set of wooden cubes that he'd painstakingly handcrafted since the day he heard he soon would become a grandfather. The cubes were beautifully crafted and pedagogically came in several different sizes. Obviously, I thought they were a complete bore and didn't give them any attention what so ever.

Initially.

As the batteries gradually ran out on the blinking, flashing other toys, my attention slowly turned to the wooden cubes. I soon realized the alternatives were endless and developed a fascination for testing what could be built and what would instantly tumble to the floor. The parquet flooring never looked the same, but those wooden cubes did enable me to establish a genuine interest in construction and architecture. Something my grandfather in all his windom probably intented in the first place, the old engineer..

Now, to many of you this may seem a trifle irrelevant, and in all honesty it most probably is.
My main point is, I'm just glad I'm in good company..

Love is in the airwaves

Sunday mornings celebrating excessive drinking habits of the night before, have found a new partner.

Entourage.
The series is simply put a package combining the writing of Seinfeld and the authenticity of Curb your Enthusiasm with the feel- good cleavage frenzy of Baywatch. In other words, a rather watch- worthy series..

Co- produced by Mark Wahlberg and inspired by his rise to stardom, the series illuminates the Hollywood we want to see and the Hollywood we suspect lurks in the background too.

It's Sunday in the sofa again, so let's hug it out, bitch.

Extras! Extras! Pod all about it!

Apparently there is this new phenomenon called an "iPod", produced by what seems to be a form of organisation with affiliation to New York City..

Anyhow, this product is apparently creating somewhat of a stir in certain areas of the community, and especially so within contexts where sound is popular. As a result Ricky Gervais, who is without a doubt one of the most brilliant comedians alive, has chosen to present a series of podcasts via The Guardian.

For those of you who appreciate sound or humor for that matter and are also vaguely aware of what is generally defined as podcasting, this may be worth a closer listen..

Three is a charm

Aviation is a fascinating industry.
Not only is it in my humble opinion the most aesthetically pleasing industry around, it is also subjected to the most spectacular forces and fantastic risks. On a daily basis.
Don't get me wrong, I love flying, it's just that things have changed..

The perils of aviation have over the years become somewhat of a rare commodity, at least compared to the adventures travelers experienced a hundred years ago. This is something which is rather neatly encapsulated by Harold C. Brinsmead, the head of Australia's Civil Aviation Department in the early days of commercial aviation.
More precisely, in 1931.

Brimsmead took a flight from London in order to arrive swiftly and safely in Australia, and thereby demonstrate the reliability of modern airplanes to his fellow countrymen. The plane from London flew elegantly for approximately thirty seconds, then crashed, still during take- off. No one was seriously hurt but the plane was written off and no replacement plane could be found. Instead, Brimsmead boarded a flight with another carrier, the new Dutch airline KLM. This flight almost instantly, with admirable devotion and elegance, also crashed while taking off. This time, five people were killed and Brainsmead suffered injuries of which he never recovered. Instead, he died two years later, never making it to Australia.

Meanwhile, the surviving passengers of the KLM flight, determined to reach their destination, carried on in a new replacement flight. This plane instead chose to crash during landing, effectively killing the remaining survivors of the two previous crashes.

Brings a little perspective to modern dilemmas of flying doesn't it.

6 -2 isn't that bad either. My estimate held an impressive 1 minute 4 seconds too..
Yep, quite an oracle aren't I?

They did wear gloves though.

The bets are on, the gloves are off.
Well technically, the gloves will be put on as a matter of fact, but nevermind.

Tonight's the night, at least in terms of my hometown hockey team playing ruthless northern rivals.
While Henke is over playing for the Rangers, we're all hoping they'll find their stride and secure the title this year too.

I'll update you on the score tonight, but I'm predicting 3 - 0.
Remember, you heard it here first..

Boxing day

Just a little note.
The Tate Modern is running Rachel Whiteread's exhibition Embankment until the 6th of April. As far as a collection of boxes is concerned, this one is really quite spectacular.

If you're already in London you probably already know this. If not, I'm not entirely sure you fully master the alphabet, as I just told you.

Nevertheless, it's worth a trip.
The closest tube station is Southbank but taxi- drivers need only verbal direction. A great option for that illiterate cultural- elite crowd, who desperately wan't to make an entrance.

Go.
It would be a shame to write it off, don't you think?