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if-you-fan-a-fire · 3 years

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Possibly the single most heavily bombed city on earth is somewhere you’ve very likely never heard of, unless you’re Vietnamese. Vinh, a town on the north side of the Cold War border between South and North Vietnam, was bombed so consistently by the United States air force between the mid-1960s and the early 1970s that by the end, there was almost nothing left — most of its built fabric had long since been destroyed and its residents evacuated, and so the bombs were raining down on nothing but rubble; the insane culmination of the air force’s declared aim to bomb North Vietnam “back into the stone age,” bombing for the sake of bombing, terror for the sake of terror.

But by the early 1980s, the center of Vinh had been completely rebuilt as a series of social housing blocks in parkland, designed by East German architects working on site. This is the story told by the American anthropologist Christina Schwenkel in her book Building Socialism: The Afterlife of East German Architecture in Urban Vietnam.

It is too often forgotten today how much the regularly ridiculed anti-imperialist movements in Europe and North America in the ’60s were motivated by disgust at what was being done to places like Vinh — what Kristin Ross in her book May ’68 and Its Afterlives describes as “the reality at the centre of third-worldism, a reality nowhere mentioned” by the United States’ polite liberal apologists: “the three thousand bombs dropped every minute on Vietnam by the United States for three years.”

But this reality meant something quite specific for those countries — nearly all in the so-called “socialist camp” — which gave aid or arms to North Vietnam in its struggle against the Americans. China, the USSR, Cuba, and the states of Eastern Europe all sent machinery, experts, weapons, and food at various points during the consecutive wars against France and then the United States, but within this they were often keen to prove that they weren’t just giving charity, but something more concrete: solidarity. As Schwenkel points out, the country whose help is most remembered today in Vietnam is one which no longer exists, and is routinely demonized — East Germany.

While Chinese and Soviet advisers were often found to be haughty and imperial, the East Germans built a lasting connection in their projects in Vietnam. They were clearly dedicated — when most foreign “experts” fled as China invaded in 1979 as punishment for Vietnam’s overthrow of the genocidal Khmer Rouge in Cambodia, most experts fled, with only the East Germans and the Cubans insisting on staying.

Schwenkel explores the main built legacy of this alliance, the Quang Trung housing estate in Vinh. It’s unfortunate that her book is marred by excessive academic citations in the current American style, because the story she has to tell, and the research she has undertaken in several years living on the estate, are so much more interesting than whether the buildings prove or disprove the theories of Michel Foucault or James C. Scott. She begins with the horrific “techno-fanaticism” of the US bombing campaigns — extensively documented in the museums of Vinh — then moves from the buildings’ design to their construction to their very swift decline, and the complex way in which they’re seen by residents of the town today. It’s informative, surprising, and often very moving.

Why East Germany? Schwenkel explains that their close involvement had something to do with the North Vietnamese’s identification with the DDR as a small, divided country, lacking the arrogance of the giants like China and the USSR, but also with German experience of terror-bombing by the RAF, constantly stressed in East German propaganda — the link was incessantly made between Dresden and Vinh. She does not romanticize the East Germans — there were Stasi informants among the experts — but she does make clear that the solidarity and enthusiasm were genuine, and were understood as such by their Vietnamese partners. A lapse into casual racism would get an East German expert instantly reprimanded and sent home, a striking and obvious contrast with the conduct of the Americans.

The way the estate in this collaboration was designed — under the slogan “Việt Đức,” (“Vietnam-Germany”) emblazoned as a logo on some of the blocks — was complex, entailing a dialogue that wasn’t always easy between the utopian ideas of the Germans and the Vietnamese need to rehouse and rebuild their devastated town quickly, in a manner that would be at least in some way familiar to its residents. The Vietnamese were always on watch against any lapse into charity. When one German expert wept on seeing the scale of destruction, she was told by her Vietnamese interpreter “we need your solidarity, not your pity. Go home if you are here to cry.”

Quang Trung estate looks superficially like a typical Eastern European concrete panel housing estate of its era — five-story walk-ups, rectangular, in green space with day care centers and schools interspersed with the flats — but was actually built of brick, by a mainly female, rural workforce. Some of the original ideas were dropped, and there was some tension between the Vietnamese planners and the German architects, but the main problem with the estate was how wildly overambitious it was for such a destroyed country, whose basic infrastructure had been torn to pieces.

Food was scarce, so residents kept pigs on their walkways, in bathrooms, and on balconies. Water supply was sporadic, with lower floors much better served. Rubbish collection was so bureaucratically organized that most formerly rural residents ignored it and chucked trash out of the window into the green spaces. Divides emerged between the socially mixed groups in the blocks — mostly workers, but with a large contingent of cultural and political elites. Rather than being celebrated, the blocks are part of what the rare Western travelers now lament as the ugliest Vietnamese city, a depressing stop on the train between Hanoi and Hue.

But Schwenkel is keen to complicate the familiar story of utopia and decline. Looking at one of the most obvious images of dilapidation, for instance, the balcony extensions residents have built onto the five-story flats, she finds an astonishing diversity of different spaces, from computer rooms to bedrooms to even a small poetry museum. Public spaces might not have been used exactly as the Germans imagined they would be, but they are in constant sociable use.

She finds that the blocks remain popular with their original residents — less so with more recent incomers — and that they strongly oppose their privatization. As the estate was a “gift” from the East Germans, they frequently ask, how can it be bought or sold? The place is by now extremely dilapidated and under pressure from developers, but as she ends the book, public pressure has resulted in a more careful mix of rebuilding and renovation. Most recently, she writes, “some advocate valuation of the blocks as a heritage site, similar to Hanoi’s Old Quarter, to commemorate East German solidarity and the built environment that emerged from that period.” Or as one resident puts it, “the issue is not use value, but value to humanity.”

That preservation might be unlikely now. But with the rising interest in recent years in modernist social housing, the architecture of the “socialist world” and the building projects of the non-aligned movement, maybe eventually the time will come when this monument of solidarity is given the respect it deserves, and the way that resistance and comradeship stopped the effort to throw Vietnam back “into the stone age” is properly remembered.

- Owen Hatherley, “International Solidarity Rebuilt Postwar Vietnam.” Jacobin. May 17, 2021.

#vinh #thành phố vinh #vietnam war #bombed back into the stone age #international solidarity #rebuilding #after the war #american empire #bombing campaign #terror from the air #aerial bombardment #east germany #vietnam #socialist republic of vietnam #việt nam #deutsche demokratische republik #cold war #state socialism #communist camp

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80s4life · 3 years

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Character/Movie List

Below is movies and TV shows I like personally and are lsited as a reference. If you don't see something you're interested in, it is not that I don't like it, it is because I most likely forgot it because I love so many movies/shows tbh. Just ask, and I'll answer! And, from the Rules and Regulations page, what I had meant by "mostly" is that I can dabble outside of the acting world and into actors/actresses themselves and/or singers, popstars, etc.

{Another side-note, I am not so much into shows, but mostly movies! Although, there are some exceptions that I love beyond belief!}

MOVIES

Back to the Future Series:

Biff Tannen

Griff Tannen (Maybe, he wasn't the best of the Tannen's imo)

Buford Tannen

Marty McFly

George McFly

Doc Brown

Lorraine Baines

Match

Titanic:

Rose DeWitt Bukater

Jack Dawson

Caledon Hockley

Brock Lovett

Rabrizio De Rossi

Thomas "Tommy" Ryan

Karate Kid Series {1/2/3}:

John Kreese

Mr. Miyagi

Johnny Lawrence

Daniel LaRusso

Tommy

Dutch

Bobby Brown (not so much; don't know him too well)

Ali Mills

Lucille LaRusso

Chozen

Kumiko

Terry Silver (duh lmao)

Mike Barnes (also duh)

Jessica Andrews

Stand By Me:

Vern Tessio

Billy Tessio

Gordie LaChance

Chris Chambers

Eyeball Chambers

Ace Merrill

Teddy Duchamp

Goonies:

Brand

Mikey

Chunk

Mouth

Data

Andy

Stef

Jake Fratelli (he was kinda hot ngl)

Ferris Bueller's Day Off:

Ferris Bueller

Jeanie Bueller

Cameron Frye

Sloane Peterson

License to Drive:

Les Anderson

Dean

Mercedes Lane

Charles

Toy Soldiers:

Billy Tepper

Joey Trotta

Snuffy Bradberry

Ricardo Montoya

Hank Giles

Derek/Yogurt

Scream Movie Series {1/2}:

Billy Loomis

Stu Macher

Dwight "Dewey" Riley

Ghostface

Randy Meeks

Tatum Riley

Sidney Prescott

Gale Weathers

Cotton Weary

Derek Feldman

Mickey

Predator:

Dutch

Blain

Yautja

Escape Plan:

Emil Rottmayer/ "Victor Maheim"

Ray Breslin/ "Anthony Portos"

The Expendables:

Barney Ross

Lee Christmas

Toll Road

Tool

Gunnar Jensen

Bao Thao/ "Yin Yang"

Hale Caesar

Trench

Church

Divergent Movie Series {1/2/3}:

Divergent-

Beatrice "Tris" Prior

Caleb Prior

Peter

Tobias "Four" Eaton

Christina "Chris"

Eric Coulter

Will

Insurgent-

Marcus Eaton

Allegiant-

Matthew

Terminator Series:

T-100/"Uncle Bob"/Terminator

T-1000 "Austin"

John Connor

Sarah Connor

Grace

Dani Ramos

Dazed and Confused:

David Wooderson

Fred O'Bannion

Randall "Pink" Floyd

Ron Slater

Don Dawson

Mitch Kramer

Benny O'Donnell

Rocky Series:

Rocky Balboa

Apollo Creed

Captain Ivan Drago

Zombieland {1/2}:

Tallahassee

Columbus

Berkeley

Witchita

Little Rock

Madison

Lethal Weapon Movie Series {1/2/3/4}:

Martin Riggs

Roger Myrtaugh

Rianne Murtaugh

Leo Getz

Goodfellas:

Henry Hill

Jimmy Conway

Tommy DeVito

Karen Hill

Marvel:

Avengers Heroes-

Iron Man/Tony Stark

Thor

Ant-Man/Scott Lang

Hulk/Bruce Banner

Captain America/Steve Rogers

Hawkeye/ Clint Barton

Quicksilver/Pietro Maximoff

Scarlet Witch/Wanda Maximoff

Black Panther/T'Challa

Vision/Victor Shade

Black Widow/Natasha Romanoff

Mantis

Spider-Man/Peter Parker

Doctor Strange/Stephen Strange

Avengers Anti-Heroes/Antagonists:

Yondu Udonta

Loki Laufeyson

Winter Soldier/Bucky Barnes

Whiplash

Thanos

Mysterio

Kaecilius

Ronan

Hela

Ultron

Wolverine/Deadpool:

Wolverine/Logan Howlett

Sabretooth/Victor Creed

Bolt/Chris Bradley

Gambit/Remy LeBeau

Cyclops/Scott Summers

(Younger!)Professor X

Deadpool/Wade Wilson

Cable/Nathan Summers

Colossus/Piotr "Peter" Nikolayevich Rasputin

Dopinger

Weasel

Negasonic Teenage Warhead/Ellie Phimister

DC Universe:

Superman/Clark Kent (Henry Cavill)

Batman/Bruce Wayne (Affleck, Bale versions)

Aquaman/Arthur Curry

Wonder Woman/Diana Prince

Harley Quinn

Joker (Leto, Ledger, Phoenix versions)

Deadshot

Captain Boomerang

Enchantress

Rick Flagg

Bane (Tom Hardy)

TV Shows

Stranger Things:

Mike Wheeler

Nancy Wheeler

Will Byers

Joyce Byers

Johnathan Byers

Maxine "Max" Hargrove

Billy Hargrove

Dustin Henderson

Lucas Sinclair

Robin Buckley

Jim Hopper

Steve Harrington

Sex Education:

Erric Effiong

Aimee Gibbs

Adam Groff

Ola Nyman

Rahim

Otis Milburn

Maeve Wiley

Hannibal (Show):

Hannibal Lector

Will Graham

Dr. Alana Bloom

Jack Crawford

Abigail Hobbs

Orange Is the New Black (OITNB):

Piper Chapman

Nicky Nichols

Suzanne "Crazy Eyes" Warren

Galina "Red" Reznikov

Tasha "Taystee" Jefferson

Dayanara "Daya" Diaz

Gloria Mendoza

Lorna Morello

Tiffany "Pennsatucky" Doggett

Alex Vause

Joel Luschek

Big Boo

Maritza Ramos

Poussey Washington

Yoga Jones

Gina Murphy

Brook Soso

Sophia Burst

George "Pornstache" Mendez

Larry Bloom

Polly Harper

Stella Carlin

The Boys:

Billy Butcher

Starlight/Annie January

Hughie Campbell

Homelander

Kimiko Miyashiro

Queen Maeve/Maggie Shaw

Mother's Milk "M.M."

The Deep/Kevin Moskowitz

Frenchie

Stormfront

Becca Butcher

The Walking Dead (TWD):

Daryl Dixon

Merle Dixon

Rick Grimes

Carl Grimes

Lori Grimes

Maggie Greene

Beth Greene

Glenn Rhee

Negan Smith

Michonne Hawthorne

Carol Peletier

Shane Walsh

Paul "Jesus" Monroe

Eugene Porter

Sgt. Abraham Ford

Outer Banks (OBX):

Sarah Cameron

Rafe Cameron

Ward Cameron

John B

Topper

Pope

Kiara

Shameless:

Frank Gallagher

Fiona Gallagher

Lip Gallagher

Ian Gallagher

Debbie Gallagher

Carl Gallagher

Kevin Ball

Veronica Fisher

Mickey Milkovich

Mandy Milkovich

Svetlana

Jimmy "Steve" Lishman

Karen Jackson

Cobra Kai

Miguel Diaz

Eli "Hawk" Moskowitz

Robby Keene

Demetri

Carmen Diaz

John Kreese (baby version & old version)

Terry Silver (baby version & old version)

Tory Nichols

Samantha "Sam" LaRusso

...AND MANY MORE!

If there is something or someone you like not on this list, feel free to ask or direct message me! For movies like the DC Universe and Marvel, if there is multiple actors of that character and you want a certain one, please make sure that you add that detail!

Rules & Regulations

Masterlist

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leguin · 3 years

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...by the early 1980s, the centre of Vinh had been completely rebuilt as a series of social housing blocks in parkland, designed by East German architects working on site. This is the story told by the American anthropologist Christina Schwenkel in her book Building Socialism: The Afterlife of East German Architecture in Urban Vietnam.

It is too often forgotten today how much the regularly ridiculed anti-imperialist movements in Europe and North America in the ’60s were motivated by disgust at what was being done to places like Vinh – what Kristin Ross, in her book May 68 and its Afterlives describes as ‘the reality at the centre of third-worldism, a reality nowhere mentioned’ by the US’s polite liberal apologists: ‘the three thousand bombs dropped every minute on Vietnam by the United States for three years.’

But this reality meant something quite specific for those countries—nearly all in the so-called ‘socialist camp’—which gave aid or arms to North Vietnam in its struggle against the Americans.

#the title oversells it but this is really interesting!#schwenkel's book sounds fascinating....wonder if i can get the library to order it #vietnam

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ninaraise2020 · 4 years

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2020 Book List

For 2020, I made a new years resolution to read 52 books by the end of the year.... which is one of the first new years resolutions I’ve actually kept!! Here are some of my favorites, and my thoughts about everything I read.

As a note: I know audiobooks // ebooks aren’t everyone’s thing, but I read most of these through the Brooklyn Public Library using Libby, and through HOOPLA, the LAPL app. HOOPLA has a ton of stuff, and all you need is to write down an LA address to get a virtual library card. (And just saying, they don’t do anything to confirm that’s your actual address...)

MY LIST with favorites bolded (in the order I read them)

The first bad man, Miranda July

Can’t we talk about something more pleasant, roz chast

Killing and Dying, Adrian Tomine

The Idiot, Elif Batuman

Bad Friends, Ancco

Fully coherent plan: for a better society, David Shrigley

Through a Life, Tom Haugomat

A Body Worth Defending, Ed Cohen

The Hospital Suite, John Porcellini

Excuse Me, Liana Finck

Ongoingness, Sarah Manguso

The Romance of Tristan, Beroul

Two Kinds of Decay, Sarah Manguso

Unfinished Business, Vivian Gornick

300 Arguments, Sarah Manguso

No one belongs here more than you, Miranda July

Anti-Diet, Christy Harrison

Women, Chloe Caldwell

Romance or the End, Elaine Kahn

How to Murder Your Life, Cat Marnell

Rubyfruit Jungle, Rita Mae Brown

A Body Undone, Christina Crosby

Delta of Venus, Anaïs Nin

Sick, Porochista Khakpour

Autobiography of Red, Anne Carson

Eros the Bittersweet, Anne Carson

Norma Jean Baker of Troy, Anne Carson

Hunger, Roxanne Gay

Grief Sequence, Prageeta Sharma

The Undying, Anne Boyer

Illness as Metaphor, Susan Sontag

Gut Feminism, Elizabeth A. Wilson

Come as You Are, Emily Nagoski

Practicalities, Marguerite Duras

The Soft Life, Bridgette Talone

Look at Me, Anita Brookner

The Cancer Diaries, Audre Lorde

Zami, Audre Lorde

Fearing the Black Body, Sabrina Strings

Unbearable lightness, Portia di Rossi

The Art of Cruelty, Maggie Nelson

The Marriage Plot, Jeffrey Eugenides

The Red Parts, Maggie Nelson

Jazz, Toni Morrison

The Virgin Suicides, Jeffrey Eugenides

Motherless Brooklyn, Jonathan Lethem

Pain Studies, Lisa Olstein

The Left Hand of Darkness, Ursula k. Le Guin

Song of Achilles, Madeline Miller

Catalogue of Unabashed Gratitude, Ross Gay

Coeur de Leon, Ariana Reines

On Earth We’re Briefly Gorgeous, Ocean Vuong

TOP 10 Books (in no order)

The Cancer Diaries, Audre Lorde

Song of Achilles, Madeline Miller

Eros the Bittersweet, Anne Carson

Unfinished Business, Vivian Gornick

The Marriage Plot, Jeffrey Eugenides

Autobiography of Red, Anne Carson

Zami, Audre Lorde

Catalogue of Unabashed Gratitude, Ross Gay

Come as You Are, Emily Nagoski

Coeur de Lion, Ariana Reines

Favorite queer books

Song of Achilles, Madeline Miller

Rubyfruit Jungle, Rita Mae Brown

The Cancer Diaries, Audre Lorde

Zami, Audre Lorde

Autobiography of Red, Anne Carson

On Earth We’re Briefly Gorgeous, Ocean Vuong

Catalogue of Unabashed Gratitude, Ross Gay

Favorite books about illness

Sick, Porochista Khakpour

A Body Undone, Christina Crosby

The Cancer Diaries, Audre Lorde

The Undying, Anne Boyer

Gut Feminism, Elizabeth A. Wilson

Pain Studies, Lisa Olstein

Two Kinds of Decay, Sarah Manguso

Favorite graphic novels

Through a Life, Tom Haugomat

The Hospital Suite, John Porcellini

Excuse Me, Liana Finck

Can’t we talk about something more pleasant? Roz Chast

Killing and Dying, Adrian Tomin

Favorite nonfiction

Fearing the Black Body, Sabrina Strings

Anti-Diet, Christy Harrison

The Art of Cruelty, Maggie Nelson

Gut-Feminism, Elizabeth A. Wilson

Come as You Are, Emily Nagoski

A Body Worth Defending, Ed Cohen

AND..... if you’re interested in seeing my thoughts on each book.....

A Complete List of Every Book I Read in 2020 and My Thoughts (listed in the order read)

The first bad man, Miranda July

This book is absolutely wild, and I greatly enjoyed it – I don’t think it’s everyone’s cup of tea, but if you’re looking for something very funny, surreal and visceral, I’d recommend. I described it to my friend as like if my psyche wrote a book, or like a very true dream. I enjoyed her collection of short stories, No One Belongs Here More Than You, more - but they’re both excellent.

Killing and Dying, Adrian Tomine

This was the first graphic novel I read this year. Zadie Smith said about this book, “Adrian Tomine has more ideas in twenty panels than novelists have in a lifetime,” so I was very intrigued. It reminds me a lot of Nick Drnaso’s Sabrina which is one of my favorite (if not my favorite) graphic novels. I love the book’s minimalist style, and bits of it felt like getting punched emotionally – so I’d recommend if you’re looking for that!

Can’t we talk about something more pleasant? Roz Chast

Roz Chast’s memoir about her parent’s final years is incredibly funny and beautifully done. I think New York Jews will especially enjoy – but I’d recommend to anyone!

The Idiot, Elif Batuman

For whatever reason, this book really grated on my nerves and I was not a fan. Batuman writes about a freshman at Harvard studying linguistics and writing emails to this man I wanted to punch. A lot of people love this book, so I definitely wouldn’t say not to read it – perhaps it just triggered too much of my anxiety from freshman year of college to be pleasurable. I find it similar to Jeffrey Eugenides’ The Marriage Plot, but I liked The Marriage Plot significantly more.

Bad Friends, Ancco

Content warning for abuse/violence – this graphic novel is really dark, and the violence is quite graphic. But overall, I thought it was beautifully done – and I really love the author’s drawing style.

Fully coherent plan: for a better society, David Shrigley

I love David Shrigley – this book is really silly, and I honestly just picked it up from the library because the outside looks fun. It’s a quick read mostly made up of minimalist drawings – so if you want something not-too-serious that will make you laugh, I’d recommend.

Through a life, Tom Haugomat

I also grabbed this from the library because it looked pretty (oops). I absolutely love this illustrator (he’s worth following on Insta even if you don’t read this book). It’s a series of illustrations of a boy that wants to be an astronaut, and it’s one of the most astoundingly beautiful things I’ve read this year. There are no words, and I nearly cried at the end.

A Body Worth Defending, Ed Cohen

This book discusses the history/construction of autoimmunity, and how the idea of a body “attacking itself” is inherently biopolitical. As someone with an autoimmune disorder, I found this book fascinating, but it’s also really dense so I’d just recommend if you have a particular interest in autoimmunity.

The Hospital Suite, John Porcellini

Done by the author of King Cat, this graphic novel follows the protagonist through a series of different severe medical problems. I thought it was really well done and would recommend if you’re interested in art about chronic illness.

Excuse Me, Liana Finck

I’m obsessed with everything Liana Finck does – if you don’t follow her on Instagram you should! – and this book was no exception. It’s very funny and poignant – if you like her cartoons, you’d definitely enjoy!

Ongoingness, Sarah Manguso

My friend recommended this to me a few years ago, and I recently reread. Sarah Manguso writes about her lifelong pursuit of keeping a hyper-meticulous diary, which fascinated me as someone who used to do this, too. It’s a very quick read and made me think more deeply about the desire to constantly record ones’ life as a protection against passing time.

The Romance of Tristan, Beroul

This book is wild – I read it for a class. It’s a medieval book that doesn’t really make sense and I do not think you should read it unless you are also taking a class on Medieval Drugs.

Two Kinds of Decay, Sarah Manguso

Here, Manguso writes about her autoimmune blood disorder, and her suicidal depression, relating the experience of her first flare when she was in college. Big content warning for graphic depictions of hospitals/illness/needles etc., as well as depression. I found it interesting, but I cannot overstate how graphic and upsetting this book is.

Unfinished Business, Vivian Gornick

Absolutely one of the best books I read this year. I saw Vivian Gornick talk at Pomona and was floored. Here, Gornick writes about being a chronic-re reader, and discusses some of her favorite books and how her relationship changed with them throughout time. I found myself underlining everything, her prose is just so wonderful. I think everyone should read this.

300 Arguments, Sarah Manguso

I like Sarah Manguso, so I ordered this. It’s a set of interconnected aphorisms like “Bad art is from no one to no one.” Manguso is clearly brilliant and this book is very well written – it’s just a bit too minimalist for me. I would definitely recommend Ongoingness if you want to read something by her.

No one belongs here more than you, Miranda July

I am obsessed with this short story collection. Again, don’t think Miranda July is everyone’s cup of tea, but the stories were so viscerally weird in a way that really resonated with me.

Anti-Diet, Christy Harrison

I’ve listened to Christy Harrison’s podcast Food Psych for a while now, so was very excited when her book came out. The book focuses on (in Harrison’s words) “Reclaim[ing] your time, money, health, and happiness from our toxic diet culture.” As someone in ED recovery, this book/Harrison’s work in general have changed my life (which I do not say lightly!) – anyone who struggles with body image/their relationship with food should absolutely read this.

Women, Chloe Caldwell

I read this because a girl on Tinder told me too (lol) – it’s about a woman’s sexual awakening and relationship with this woman, Finn, who reminds me of a lot of hot women I follow on Tik Tok that wear suits and look mean. It takes a minute to get into. I overall enjoyed it, and was touched by the book at the end, but found a lot of the prose to be pretty clunky. So, would I recommend – I don’t know, maybe?

Romance or the End, Elaine Kahn

My friend recommended this book of poetry to me. Elaine Kahn is so talented and writes so beautifully – another book where I found myself underlining everything. Would definitely recommend!

How to Murder Your Life, Cat Marnell

Cat Marnell’s memoir recounts her struggles with bulimia and addiction while working as a beauty editor. I found it enthralling and hard to put down. I recommended it to a friend who had to put it down because it was too stressful. I think it’s a great book, but not for everyone.

Rubyfruit Jungle, Rita Mae Brown

If the meaning of the title intrigues you, I would definitely recommend. This coming-of-age story follows Brown’s childhood, and relationships with women. I thought I liked Women by Chloe Caldwell until I read this book. Very gay, very good!!!! I could not put it down!

A Body Undone, Christina Crosby

In this memoir, Crosby writes about queerness/disability through the lens of her experience after a bicycle accident that left her paralyzed. If you want something gay with lots of theory, this book is for you! Fun fact: Crosby is the friend Nelson writes about in The Argonauts. As a heads up, though, the descriptions of pain can be pretty graphic/triggering.

Delta of Venus, Anaïs Nin

I wanted to read something by Anaïs Nin and this is absolutely NOT what I should have read. Nin wrote this erotica for a man who didn’t like romance and wanted her to skip to the sex – the foreword is basically her ranting about the man who commissioned her to write this work. There’s a lot of (unsurprisingly) incest, as well as depictions of rape/assault. I do not recommend.

Sick, Porochista Khakpour

Sick is a memoir about Khakpour’s experience living with lyme disease, and her struggle to attain a diagnosis and proper treatment. I didn’t know anything about lyme, so found this book very enlightening. I’d add it to your list if you’re interested in memoirs of chronic illness.

Eros the Bittersweet, Anne Carson

I read this book because a character in the L Word talked about it (oops….). But wow, this is truly one of the best things I’ve ever read (thanks Marina!). Even Carson’s prose is breathtakingly poetic – she stitches together Sappho’s writing, Greek myths & critical theory so seamlessly. I felt like a different person when I finished.

Autobiography of Red, Anne Carson

I absolutely loved this book. Autobiography of Red is a love story between two men based on a Greek myth. It feels surprisingly epic, despite being a pretty short read. It feels a bit like the long-form-poem version of Song of Achilles. (If you read this book and enjoyed it, absolutely read Song of Achilles).

Norma Jean Baker of Troy, Anne Carson

I love Anne Carson, but I didn’t enjoy this book as much as the others. Maybe it’s because it’s a performance piece and I read it rather than watching it be performed, or maybe I just didn’t get it.

Hunger, Roxanne Gay

In this memoir, Roxanne Gay writes about her rape (so content warning for that, as there are very graphic descriptions), and her relationship with her body. This is one of the most brutally honest books I’ve encountered about food, body image and eating disorders – Gay does not sanitize her self-blame and self-hatred – and it’s an important counternarrative to how fatness is commonly represented in the media. I would not recommend it if you’re in the depths of an ED or early on in ED recovery because it’s pretty triggering. I think it’s an important read, but I wouldn’t feel comfortable just telling anyone to read it off the bat.

Grief Sequence, Prageeta Sharma

Prageeta Sharma is a Pomona professor who is wonderful, so I was very excited to read her book. Grief Sequence is an evocative, moving, and incredibly powerful story of Sharma losing her husband to cancer. It made me even more excited to work with her, and I would definitely recommend especially if you go to the 5cs!

The Undying, Anne Boyer

I’m not sure exactly what to call The Undying – maybe memoir, maybe autofiction? But Boyer combines narrative about her own experience with breast cancer with cultural criticism, drawing on both her experience as a poet and an essayist. This book was definitely one of my favorite works about illness I’ve read this year.

Illness as Metaphor, Susan Sontag

I found this book interesting, but not my favorite of what I’ve read about chronic illness. Sontag writes about how tuberculosis and cancer take on particular cultural symbolism – did you know that tuberculosis was associated with sexual desirability? I did not! Perhaps the piece wasn’t as interesting to me because people don’t tend to get tuberculosis anymore. If you’re particularly interested in TB/cancer, or if you’re writing your thesis about chronic illness I would read, but otherwise, not sure I I’d recommend.

Gut Feminism, Elizabeth A. Wilson

This book discusses depression through the lens of the gut, arguing for feminists to incorporate biological data into their analysis. It’s pretty dense, so I’d only recommend if depression, anti-depressants, and the politics of the gut are particularly interesting to you. But as someone interested in those things, great read!

Come as You Are, Emily Nagoski

Here, Nagoski discusses female sexuality and arousal in a way that made me realize I actually knew nothing about how female arousal works. For example, did you know wetness ≠ arousal? I didn’t! This book truly revolutionized how I think about sex/sexuality. The only caveat is that the book does center on the experiences of cis women (which the author does admit in a disclaimer at the beginning), so I hope that there are future works that touch on the same ideas in more inclusive ways.

Practicalities, Marguerite Duras

I really like Marguerite Duras – The Lover is one of my favorite books – but this book didn’t really do it for me. Duras is brilliant, but parts of it felt a bit mundane/dated. A lot of people love this book, though, so I feel like it’s just me!

The Soft Life, Bridgette Talone

I made a goal for myself to read more poetry this year, since I usually read mostly prose. This is an example of the kind of poetry I struggle reading – l am less drawn to poetry that completely strays away from narrative – and this book was a bit too abstract for me. There’s beautiful imagery, it just felt like it went over my head. But it was recommended by a friend whose taste I greatly respect, so maybe it’s for you and just no for me!

Look at Me, Anita Brookner

This book took me a while to finish. Look at Me follows a librarian and aspiring novelist in her friendship with a glamorous couple. It’s very dry, witty, observant, and brilliantly satirical. I’m very glad I finished it, but it took a while to get pulled in.

The Cancer Diaries, Audre Lorde

Lorde writes about loving women, and her experience with breast cancer. It’s a collection of entries from her journal, combined with meditations on these entries. So, so very beautiful! Also very heartbreaking. This might be my favorite book I’ve read about illness.

Zami, Audre Lorde

Lorde’s wonderful coming-of-age novel covers her life growing up in New York, and her relationships with different women. It took me a bit to get into it, but once I did it was addictive to read. Certain scenes are just so breathtakingly vivid, and I don’t think I’ve read anyone who writes as well as Lorde about loving women. Also, she went to my high school, so that part was very wild to read – definitely recommend in particular to fellow Hunterites!

Fearing the Black Body, Sabrina Strings

I’ve wanted to read this book ever since listening to Strings on one of my favorite podcasts (FoodPsych). This book discusses the historical construction of thinness as an ideal tied to whiteness – it’s very well written and illuminating. I feel like the idealization of thinness is something that is often really tolerated and encouraged in liberal spaces (*cough* Claremont colleges *cough*), so definitely recommend. If you don’t have time for the book, I’d definitely suggest checking out the podcast episode!

Unbearable Lightness, Portia di Rossi

This memoir discusses di Rossi’s experience with anorexia/bulimia, and her relationship with her queerness. I read it in a day, I was so engrossed. However, I wouldn’t recommend to anyone in early stages of ED recovery, or in the thrust of an eating disorder.

The Art of Cruelty, Maggie Nelson

If you have read other works by Maggie Nelson and enjoyed them, and are interested in literature about cruelty, I’d recommend! It’s more theoretical than her other works and it’s pretty dense – I’ll definitely have to read it again to fully ‘get’ it. But Nelson is such a brilliant cultural critic that it’s a pleasure to read anything she writes. Like “truth in art is but a feeling”?? Yes!! Go off!!

The Marriage Plot, Jeffrey Eugenides

This is definitely top five of the books I’ve read this year. I was floored when I was finished. It’s set at Brown, but so many of the descriptions of campus life really resonated and amused me. The end was heart-wrenching. The prose is so evocative. I loved it.

The Red Parts, Maggie Nelson

This book focuses on the trial for the brutal murder of Nelson’s aunt by a stranger – it’s very gruesome but enthralling. I couldn’t put it down.

Jazz, Toni Morrison

I listened to the audiobook which Toni Morrison reads, which is great. Jazz is set in Harlem in the 1920s, and though it’s pretty short, it’s incredibly vivid and haunting. It’s one of the most original and intriguing narratives I’ve encountered (not even including the beauty of the prose), and unlike anything else I’ve read.

The Virgin Suicides, Jeffrey Eugenides

I read this because I loved The Marriage Plot so much. I didn’t like this as much as I liked The Marriage Plot or Middlesex. After I finished, I thought I didn’t like it, and then I listened to this podcast called Sentimental Garbage and decided I did like it after all. I was frustrated throughout the book at how obtuse the women are, but after getting over my sadness that we never figured out why the girls killed themselves, I have more appreciation for Eugenides’ vision.

Motherless Brooklyn, Jonathan Lethem

Motherless Brooklyn is different from what I usually read – it’s the only detective novel on this list – but I loved it. It’s set in my neighborhood in Brooklyn, which is particularly exciting (and why my Dad is a big Lethem stan). It’s one of the most original books I’ve ever read, and the descriptions are astoundingly innovative and vivid. It’s also really funny! And he’s a Pomona professor! My mom is reading it too for the WNYC book club, which I believe you can still join if you want.

Pain Studies, Lisa Olstein

Another illness book! Olstein writes about her experience with migraines, and also theorizes about pain. I haven’t read any book exclusively focused on pain, so this was cool! It didn’t resonate with me as much as other stuff I’ve read, but still very good.

The Left Hand of Darkness, Ursula k. Le Guin

I was very excited for this book, which is a work of sci-fi written in 1969 about a world where everyone is gender-fluid and has no sexual prejudice. I didn’t enjoy it as much as I had expected to – perhaps because the main drama of the book is finding out whether this world is going to trade with another world, and I am just not very interested in trade. Sci-fi is also not really a genre I read often, so I wouldn’t do much with the fact that this book didn’t resonate.

Song of Achilles, Madeline Miller

I’ve cried maybe six times this year and finishing this book was one of them. It’s gay. It’s Greek. It’s epic. If you liked Percy Jackson and now, you’re part of the LGBTQ community you have to read it. This is the kind of book that made me worried it had ruined all other books. I think this is a perfect book, or at least the closest I can imagine.

Catalogue of Unabashed Gratitude, Ross Gay

This book is astoundingly beautiful. A friend recommended it and said it made his writing a lot happier - which was exactly what I needed! – and this description rings true. I definitely have more trouble reading poetry than prose but found this book very powerful and engaging. I read it in one sitting.

Coeur de Leon, Ariana Reines

Absolutely one of my favorite books of poetry! Coeur de Leon embodies the exact kind of poetry I really like – the language is accessible, it’s visceral, it has a narrative – and also made me feel seen. I feel like it’s also one of those books made for people that like to write, especially about love. Very much recommend.

On Earth, We’re Briefly Gorgeous, Ocean Vuong

It took me a while to get into this one, and I felt for a while that everything was too depressing to enjoy it. While I do definitely want to revisit in post-pandemic times, I still was deeply moved. Big content warning though for drug abuse, death, and probably some other stuff I’m forgetting.

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dalekofchaos · 6 years

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DCEU Recast

For fun I’ve decided to do a recast of the DCEU and ps in my version everyone gets their movie before Justice League and it’s Martian Manhunter who brings everyone together

My other DC Fancasts

Batman

Batman Beyond

Superman

Wonder Woman

The Flash

Aquaman

Green Lantern

Green Arrow

Justice League

Teen Titans

Justice League Dark

The Dark Knight Returns

Telltale’s Batman

Injustice

Legion Of Doom

Birds Of Prey

Phase 1

Man Of Steel

Josh Hartnett as Superman/Clark Kent

Emily Blunt as Lois Lane

Harrison Ford as Jonathan Kent

Meryl Streep as Martha Kent

Kate Mara as Lana Lang

Tobey Maguire as Pete Ross

Sean Bean as Jor-El

Kate Winslett as Lara Lor-Van

Rupert Grint as Jimmy Olsen

William Shatner as Perry White

Rachel McAdams as Cat Grant

Patrick Warburton as Steve Lombard

Sterling K Brown as Ron Troupe

Billie Piper as Maggie Sawyer

Christopher Meloni as Dan Turpin

Danny Glover as William Henderson

Richard Schiff as Dr Emil Hamilton

Clancy Brown as General Sam Lane

Terry O’Quinn as Lex Luthor

Tao Okamoto as Mercy Graves

Viggo Mortensen as General Zod

Lena Headley as Faora

Robert Maillet as Non

The Batman(in my version, The Batman comes after Man Of Steel, this will be about how The Joker and Harley Quinn kills Jason Todd, yes both Joker and Harley kill Jason. It’s important that everyone realizes Harley is a villain and not a anti-hero)

Karl Urban as Batman/Bruce Wayne

Peter Capaldi as Alfred Pennyworth

Michael Keaton as Thomas Wayne

Kim Basinger as Martha Wayne

Courtney B Vance as Lucius Fox

Kate Mulgrew as Dr Leslie Thompkins

Diane Kruger as Vicki Vale

Mark Pellegrino as Jack Ryder/The Creeper

Jesús Castro as Nightwing/Dick Grayson

Jane Levy as Barbara Gordon/Oracle

Matthew Daddario as Jason Todd/Robin

Morena Baccarin as Catwoman/Selina Kyle

or Odette Annable as Catwoman/Selina Kyle

or Eiza González as Catwoman/Selina Kyle

Bryan Cranston as James Gordon

Michael Madsen as Harvey Bullock

Stephanie Beatriz as Renee Montoya

Jodie Foster as Sarah Essen

Ben Mendelsohn as Dr Jeremiah Arkham

Rockmond Dunbar as Aaron Cash

Joe Giligun as The Joker

Amanda Seyfried as Harley Quinn

And on the Batcomputer we’d see cameos from the other Batman villains

Alfred Molina as The Penguin/Oswald Chesterfield Cobblepot

Liev Schreiber as Two-Face/Harvey Dent

David Tennant as The Riddler

Tobin Bell as Mr Freeze/Victor Fries

Jessica Chastain as Poison Ivy/Pamela Isley

Michael Wincott as Black Mask/Roman Sionis

Adam Driver as Scarecrow/Jonathan Crane

Ben Kingsley as Hugo Strange

Toby Jones as Mad Hatter/Jervis Tetch

Majid Al Masri as Ra’s Al Ghul

Shanina Shaik as Talia Al Ghul

Yasmine Al Massri as Nyssa Raatko

Zhang Ziyi as Lady Shiva

John Lithgow as Arnold Wesker/The Ventriloquist

Adewale Akinnuoye-Agbaje as Killer Croc/Waylon Jones

Pedro Pascal as Deadshot/Floyd Lawton

Kevin Durand as Solomon Grundy

Jackie Earle Haley as Victor Zsasz

Leonardo DiCaprio as Clayface/Basil Karlo

Woody Harrelson as Firefly/Garfield Lynns

Doug Jones as Man-Bat /Dr. Kirk Langstrom

Daniel Radcliffe as Anarky

Conleth Hill as Calandar Man/Julian Day

Tom Berenger as Commissioner Gillian B. Loeb

Michael Weatherly as Detective Arnold Flass

Will Arnett as Lt. Howard Branden

Robert DeNiro as Carmine Falcone

Al Pacino as Salvatore Maroni

Charlie Heaton as Alberto Falcone

Gwendoline Christie as Sofia Falcone

Vincent Karthieser as Mario Falcone

Nick Nolte as Rupert Thorne

Brad Dourif as Joe Chill

World’s Finest(This is not BVS this is World’s Finest. This is not a dumbed down fight scene just to kiss Frank Miller’s ass to adapt the most overrated comic. I care more about Batman and Superman having strong differences and overcoming them and working together in the end to stop a common threat. They are called the World’s Finest for a reason.)

Karl Urban as Batman/Bruce Wayne

Josh Hartnett as Superman/Clark Kent

Emily Blunt as Lois Lane

Peter Capaldi as Alfred Pennyworth

Bryan Cranston as James Gordon

Michael Madsen as Harvey Bullock

Stephanie Beatriz as Renee Montoya

Rupert Grint as Jimmy Olsen

William Shatner as Perry White

Billie Piper as Maggie Sawyer

Christopher Meloni as Dan Turpin

Joe Gilgun as The Joker

Amanda Seyfried as Harley Quinn

Terry O’Quinn as Lex Luther

Tao Okamoto as Mercy Graves

Wonder Woman

Gemma Arterton as Wonder Woman/Diana Prince

Ryan Gosling as Steve Trevor

Lucy Davis as Etta Candy

Lynda Carter as Hippolyta

Alexandra Daddario as Artemis

Lisa Berry as General Philippus

Robin Wright as General Antiope

Gerard Butler as Ares

Anne Hathaway as Athena

Lucy Lawless as Hera

Liam Neeson as Zeus

Peter Stormare as Hades

Green Lantern(Basically what the animated movie First Flight was. But Buddy Cop adventures of Hal and Sinestro. Hal Jordan mentoring under Sinestro (who does NOT turn evil at the end of the first, but instead the end of the second movie and in the third movie is when we get Sinestro Corps, however my big change to Sinestro’s character is Sinestro isn't a tyrant of his own people. Have it be that Sinestro used the ring to better his own world and his people love him, but the Guardians saw that as interference and marked Sinestro as a threat)

Chris Pine as Green Lantern/Hal Jordan

Lauren Cohan as Carol Ferris

Luke Evans as Sinestro

Zachary Quinto as Tomar-Re

Ken Watanabe as Abin Sur

Scott Bakula as Alan Scott

Ron Pearlman as Kilowog

Michael Sheen as Hector Hammond

With cameos from future Green Lanterns

Trevante Rhodes as John Stewart/Green Lantern

Diego Luna as Kyle Rayner

Aaron Paul as Guy Gardner

Saad Siddiqui as Simon Baz

Dianne Guerrero as Jessica Cruz

The Flash

Garrett Hedlund as The Flash/Barry Allen

Anna Kendrick as Iris West

David Duchovny as Henry Allen

Gillian Anderson as Nora Allen

Sendhil Ramamurthy as David Singh

Lennie James as James Forrest

Peter Weller as Darryl Frye

Juno Temple as Patty Spivot

Tiffany Espensen as Linda Park

Bruce Greenwood as Jay Garrick

Peyton Meyer as Wally West/Kid Flash

Michael C Hall as Eobard Thawne/Reverse Flash

Aquaman

Alexander Skarsgard as Aquaman/Arthur Curry

Christina Hendricks as Mera

Stellan Skarsgård as Tom Curry

Kelsey Grammer as Nuidis Vulko

Cary-Hiroyuki Tagawa as Dr. Stephen Shin

Nicole Kidman as Atlanna

Michael K Williams as Black Manta

Gustaf Skarsgard as Ocean Master

Teen Titans(I think it’s better to have Teen Titans instead of Suicide Squad in phase 1)

Jesús Castro as Nightwing/Dick Grayson

Ray Fisher as Cyborg/Victor Stone

Sharon Belle as Starfire/ Koriand'r

Natasha Negovanlis as Raven/Rachel Roth

Dylan O'Brien as Beast Boy/Garfield Logan

Peyton List as Terra

Joe Manganiello as Deathstroke/Slade Wilson

Justice League(White Martians will be the villains and J’onn is the one who unites the Justice League)

Karl Urban as Batman/Bruce Wayne

Josh Hartnett as Superman/Clark Kent

Gemma Areton as Wonder Woman/Diana Prince

Garrett Hedlund as The Flash/Barry Allen

Alexander Skarsgard as Aquaman/Arthur Curry

Chris Pine as Green Lantern/Hal Jordan

Giancarlo Esposito as J’onn J’onzz/Martian Manhunter

Phase 2

Man Of Steel 2

Josh Hartnett as Superman/Clark Kent

Emily Blunt as Lois Lane

Elle Fanning as Supergirl/Kara Zor-El

Meryl Streep as Martha Kent

Rupert Grint as Jimmy Olsen

William Shatner as Perry White

Rachel McAdams as Cat Grant

Patrick Warburton as Steve Lombard

Warner Miller as Ron Troupe

Billie Piper as Maggie Sawyer

Robert De Niro as Dan Turpin

Mark Harmon as William Henderson

Richard Schiff as Dr Emil Hamilton

Clancy Brown as General Sam Lane

Terry O’Quinn as Lex Luthor

Ralph Fiennes as Brainiac

Shazam(In title name and Billy shouting only, the choice to call Billy’s hero persona Shazam is a confusing mess)

Channing Tatum as Captain Marvel

Noah Schnapp as Billy Batson

Finn Wolfhard as Freddy Freeman

Rowan Blanchard as Mary Batson

Jim Beaver as Uncle Dudley

Ernie Hudson as Jebidiah of Canaan/The Wizard of Shazam

Jeffrey Wright as Tawky Tawny

Hugh Laurie as Dr. Thaddeus Sivana

Dwayne Johnson as Black Adam

Suicide Squad

Mo´Nique as Amanda Waller

Daniel Craig as Colonel Rick Flag

Pedro Pascal as Deadshot/Floyd Lawton

Jonny Lee Miller as Captain Boomerang

Kristen Bell as Killer Frost

Derek Mears as King Shark

Michael Jai White as Bronze Tiger

Karen Fukuhara as Katana

Holland Roden as Plastique

Wonder Woman 2

Gemma Areton as Wonder Woman/Diana Prince

Ryan Gosling as Steve Trevor

Lynda Carter as Hippolyta

Alexandra Daddario as Artemis

Lisa Berry as General Philippus

Angelina Jolie as Circe

Charlize Theron as Cheetah

Green Arrow

Charlie Hunam as Green Arrow/Oliver Queen

Katheryn Winnick as Black Canary/Dinah Lance

Taron Egerton as Arsenal/Roy Harper

Alona Tal as Speedy/Mia Dearden

Common as John Diggle

Josh Gad as Henry Fyff

Donnie Yen as Yao Fei

Devon Aoki as Shado

Keanu Reeves as Merlyn

Bird Of Prey

Jane Levy as Barbara Gordon/Oracle

Teresa Ting as Batgirl/Cassandra Cain

Katheryn Winnick as Black Canary/Dinah Lance

Eliza Dushku as Helena Bertinelli/The Huntress

Tatiana Maslany as Lady Blackhawk/Zinda Blake

Gugu Mbatha-Raw as Vixen/Mari Jiwe McCabe

Lily Collins as Starling/Evelyn Crawford

Zhang Ziyi as Lady Shiva

Batman Under The Red Hood

Karl Urban as Batman/Bruce Wayne

Peter Capaldi as Alfred Pennyworth

Matthew Daddario as Red Hood/Jason Todd

Bryan Cranston as James Gordon

Michael Madsen as Harvey Bullock

Stephanie Beatriz as Renee Montoya

Michael Wincott as Black Mask/Roman Sionis

Joe Giligun as The Joker

Amanda Seyfried as Harley Quinn

Shanina Shaik as Talia Al Ghul

Justice League:Legion Of Doom

Karl Urban as Batman/Bruce Wayne

Josh Hartnett as Superman/Clark Kent

Gemma Areton as Wonder Woman/Diana Prince

Garrett Hedlund as The Flash/Barry Allen

Alexander Skarsgard as Aquaman/Arthur Curry

Chris Pine as Green Lantern/Hal Jordan

Giancarlo Esposito as J’onn J’onzz/Martian Manhunter

Terry O’Quinn as Lex Luthor

Joe Gilgun as The Joker

Joe Manganiello as Deathstroke

Michael K Williams as Black Manta

Charlize Theron as Cheetah

Dwayne Johnson as Black Adam

Luke Evans as Sinestro

Michael C Hall as Reverse Flash/ Eobard Thawne

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matthewmcvickar · 6 years

Audio

Favorite Sounds of 2018

For the eighth year in a row, I have collected my favorite sounds of the year! Here’s 2018.

Throughout the year, I make a note when something sticks out to me as I’m listening to music. At the end of year I isolate the sounds from their songs, string them all together, and type up these notes.

Press play on the player above and follow along with the list below. There are pieces from 68 tracks in about 12 minutes in this year’s collection.

(Previously: 2011 and 2012 and 2013 and 2014 and 2015 and 2016 and 2017!)

Angélique Kidjo — Once in a Lifetime Vocal chopped and scrambled.

Aphex Twin — T69 Collapse The collapse.

Avey Tare — When You Left Me (Geologist Remix) Delayed, rolled vocal snippets.

Beach House — Black Car Eighth-note echo on the staccato rock-skipping vocal refrain.

Beach House — Lemon Glow Drum rush.

Beta Librae — Just Drift High-pitched rhythmic clicks.

Blawan — Stell Clattering sample slowing and speeding up.

Cavern of Anti-matter — Automatic Morning Polyrhythmic synth guitar-pluck loop.

Christina Vantzou — Sound House Choral sample speed warp.

CHVRCHES — Miracle Doubled-up “oh!”s.

Daniel Avery — Sensation Overdriven synth drenched in reverb.

DBridge — Gen 19 Flanged, gulping cymbal hit.

DJ Koze feat. Róisín Murphy — Illumination Background vocals quick-delayed, horn squeal merging with “whoa-oh” vocals.

DJ Koze — Nein König Nein Rhythmically chopped and panned guitar strums.

Eleanor Friedberger — In Between Stars Sudden key change into a cappella outro.

Fatima — Somebody Else Pitched up vocal chop at the end of the drum loop.

Flasher — Punching Up Rhythmic gate.

Forest Drive West — Nothing Else Overdriven synth bed with scattering fills.

Gacha Bakradze — Stray Hard-panned rising chirps.

Grouper — Driving Multi-tracked harmonic vocal peak.

J Balvin feat. Carla Morrison — Vibras Vocals dramatically side-chained to ghost kick.

James Blake — If the Car Beside You Moves Ahead Pitched-up, time-stretched repeating vocals.

James N. Murray — City of the Comedown Chiming sample.

Jay — Balsam Drum Field recording loop with thrum.

John Hopkins — Emerald Rush Reversed, pining vocals.

Kacey Musgraves — Butterflies Vocoder’d “chrysalis.”

Lena Raine — Quiet and Falling Bubbly arps and white noise.

Loma — Dark Oscillations Chops and stutters.

Low — Fly “Flyyy” vocal sample pitched up and drawn out.

M. Geddes Gingras — Kalapana Volca FM synthesizer’s metronome used as melodic element.

Marcelus — Parenthesis Clipped bits and heavy reverb.

Maribou State — Kāma Quarter rest and inhale.

Mark Van Hoen — Weathered Buried vocal samples.

Mary Lattimore — Never Saw Him Again Swooping delay trails.

Matthew Dear — Bunny’s Dream Chopped-up sample forming the lyrical refrain (”You and I… in this world with you”).

Matthew Dear feat. Tegan & Sara — Horses Time-stretched guitar.

Miya Folick — Stock Image Overblown noise descending into chorus.

Moonface — Minotaur Forgiving Poseidon Rising vocoder litany.

Moonface — The Cave Matana Roberts’ saxophone arpeggio.

Neko Case — Pitch or Honey Barely audible discordant tone that calls back the lyrical refrain: “I hear overtones/that make this another song.”

Nils Frahm — #2 Tightly clipped and echoing ‘ah—’ vocal sample.

Perfume Genius — Braid (mmph Remix) Backing vocals staggered before the lead vocal (isn’t arranged that way in the original).

Perfume Genius — Just Like Love (Jam City Remix) Silence to orchestral rush

Persuasion — In the Atrium Panned, syncopated, woody clacks.

Positive Centre — Composite Particles Syncopated, textured, distorted beep.

Rival Consoles — Phantom Grip Xylophone hit ringing out, then damped.

Robyn — Human being Echoed background cry.

Rosalia — Pienso en Tu Mirá Squealing percussive hit, auto-tuned “mm-mmmm” embellishment.

Ross from Friends — Thank God I’m a Lizard Volume dip.

rRoxymore — Run… Feet Backwards snare to crowded kick pattern.

Second Woman — Instant II Randomly tapped strings with miles of reverb.

serpentwithfeet — bless ur heart Rising whistles into the chorus.

serpentwithfeet — messy Ping-ponging “Each-each-each-time!” vocal embellishment.

Sevendeaths — SH4A Delayed, filtered synth stabs.

Shy Layers — Gateway Wailing vocoder’d background vocal embellishment.

Shy Layers — Midnight Marker Sudden low-end cut and loop transition.

Skee Mask — Rev8617 Chopped and reversed melody repeated in high bell tones.

Sudan Archives — Nont for Sale Heavy side-chain + snap off-beat.

Sylvia Kastel “Lay back—”

Takecha — Factory 141 Stretched factory-floor sample.

Tangents — In the Beginning Morass of delay with looping piano figure and drums.

The Fourth Wall — Infinite Other Shimmering reverb.

Tirzah — Do You Know Rhythmic loop that interrupts and syncopates the song itself.

Unknown Mortal Orchestra — If You’re Going to Break Yourself Light synth wash and garbled vocals.

Witch Prophet — Weight of the World Echoing, pitch-shifted drum loop.

Young Thug — High Thug’s voice dipping during the sample.

Yumi Zouma — Crush “Fl-flame” echo.

Yves Tumor — Economy of Freedom Filtered, pitched-down three-note vocal sample.

#music #sounds #2018 #timbre

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nikkiruncks · 8 months

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The way Bertram and Jessie were more like parents to the Rosses than Christina and Morgan. BERTRAM, who’s supposed to be a lazy bum who doesn’t like to work, is more of a parent than EITHER OF THEM

#Poorni speaks Jessie #jessie #jessie prescott #bertram winkle #anti christina ross #anti morgan ross #I get the parents being busy but like…#you can’t have 4 children and barely be around for them

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therapybg · 5 years

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RE-UPLOAD — AWK News 1.2.20: The Anti-Benghazi. [DS] novices no match for @realDonaldTrump

Noble Gold Investments Discover more about precious metal IRAs and 401(k) rollovers with Noble Gold Investments …Give them a call at 877-646-5347 or you can hit the link below and get the free gold and silver investment guide. Gold & Silver IRA Google ———————————————————————– Source: https://qanon.pub/ https://qmap.pub/ Tom Fitton Judicial Watch show Obama/Clinton aware of Benghazi: https://bit.ly/2u9DmOp SICK. Democrat Lawmaker Blames President Trump After Iranian Proxy Groups Attack US Embassy in Baghdad https://bit.ly/36gCVzX Giuliani Says Ukraine Corruption Came From ‘Highest Levels Of Obama Administration’; Wants To Testify, Try Case https://bit.ly/35auuVG Special Purpose Marine Air-Ground Task Force – Crisis Response – Central Command https://bit.ly/2ucVIy7 Trump prepares for battle as he deploys 4,000 troops after embassy attack https://bit.ly/2MNi7IM Iran-backed militiamen withdraw from siege of US Embassy in Baghdad as more American troops deployed https://fxn.ws/37xn4xs Iran-backed militiamen withdraw from siege of US Embassy in Baghdad as more American troops deployed https://fxn.ws/2QDZIPJ Vid: Giuliani: https://bit.ly/35j6gbG Pastor talks about POTUS supporting community: https://bit.ly/2MNxT6q Joe Biden tells coal miners they’re basically going to lose their jobs and they should learn to “program”. https://bit.ly/2FfJxCZ Did you know Badr Corps chief Hadi Ameri, who led today’s raid on the US Embassy in Iraq, was once invited to the @WhiteHouse by @BarackObama ? https://bit.ly/2ubWJGJ Juliun’s Rum POTUS misspelling alert: https://bit.ly/2ZKJ0Cr Replying to @JuliansRum The Ah Ha! moment heard the world round: https://bit.ly/36jDI34 ———————————————————————– NEW WEBSITE: https://www.andweknow.com/ Support this channel on Patreon https://www.patreon.com/andweknow PayPal: paypal.me/andweknow410 And We Know Shirts and gifts https://teespring.com/stores/and-we-know-828 Backup Channel: Bitchute: https://www.bitchute.com/channel/1uDxpDogKMs9/ Twitter Tweets by andweknow Facebook https://www.facebook.com/andweknow828/ Instagram https://www.instagram/andweknow8_28 DropSpace https://drop.space/@Andweknow ——————————————————————————————— Special Thanks to Patreon supporters: https://www.patreon.com/andweknow Dr. Lori Smith; Rene Cooperstein; Lucinda Randolph; Mona Callender; Kay Parker; Abber Lee; Christina Golden; Pimolpan Hanner; Therese Wong; Mary A. Potraza; Dianna E. Kelley; Elaine Weitz; Nic McCormic; Dexter Price; Fred Johannsen; Carla Henry; Jan Walton; T.J. McCall; Delmer Oran; John & Lynn Markward; Delmer Oran; Sylvia Curry; Amélie Renée; Moses Clay; Sharleta Bassett; Joy Ruffle; Rande A Leonard; Robert Poole; Alison Opdahl; Robert Durant; Susan Liberty Hall; Mary Lapp; Trevor Eyster; Wilma Fields; Robert Durant; Dr. Mary M. Lapp; Susan Liberty Hall; Brad Hulquist; Linda R. Partridge; Maroan & Marlena Maizar; Gregory Campbell; Jeff Titterington; Edmond Johnson; Brad Hulquist; Edmond Johnson; Elaine Danan; Red Pill,Christian Warrior; Jan Stickler; Patricia McQuaid; Dale Box; Steve Cameron; Tony Pugh; Rebecca Miller; Rusty Hann; William Kalligher; Timothy Aguirre; Nancy; Patricia Perkins; Fred Ceschini; Kjerstin; Marina Michel; Ross D. Morris; Beth Kearns; Larry Kelly; Lynel Hill; Cheryl Mounter; Rebecca Williamson; Gilbert C. Sanchez; William Kalligher; Rebecca Williamson; Cheryl Mounter; Barbara Hill; Kathleen Robinson; Barbara Hill; Kathleen Robinson; Vincent Paretti; Ron Boggio; Jeffrey Heimbigner; Melissa Messner; Vivian Turrentine; mHIS; Nelsi Ayala; Dana Gilkison; Elise Ross; Kim Hanna; Øystein Solum; Just Ducky; John Wesley; Jill King; Ben Ganther; Deborah Garland; Patrick Bristol; Sal Fernandez; Erik Vereczkey; Sal Fernandez; Michael Law; Rick Nugara; Kip; Janice Gist; Pat Caulfield; Linda Traylor; Billy Jacks; Deborah Hawkins; David W Gruehn; Sherry Carson; Suzann Bang; Jennifer Diaz; Sherry Workman; Karen Kaufman; Maria Sullo; Patricia Wynn; Thomas Sonderman; Fisun; Marianna Schwartz; David Nycz; Jim Cavanagh; Jeffery Belk; Dan Schumann; Sal Fernandez; Janet Bonillo; Joyce Jones; Todd & Lona Arnold; Ann; Lorrie Ross; Joe Drozdowski; Terri Rodriguez Thomas; Tom and Kathy Sherry; Rose Branderhorst; Miranda Blum; Paul Reoch; Luke Moreton; Rebecca Stair: Janice Olmstead; David P. Hall; Peggy Lee; Loretta Walker; Anita Hendershot; Katherine Caldwell; David Florence; Kathyrn Bye; Linda Mohr; Amanda Cornell; Anna Raymond; Cheryl Rodriguez; Brian Harrington; Sheryl Phillips; Jeff Sokol; Dave & Tammy Wynn; Mary Poffenbarger; NK; Marco Garcia The post RE-UPLOAD — AWK News 1.2.20: The Anti-Benghazi. novices no match for @realDonaldTrump appeared first on AD 360. Read the full article

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blackcontemporaryart · 8 years

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[SUBMISSION] Please read & share Hannah Black’s open letter to the curators and staff of the Whitney Biennial

To the curators and staff of the Whitney biennial:

I am writing to ask you to remove Dana Schutz's painting "Open Casket" and with the urgent recommendation that the painting be destroyed and not entered into any market or museum.

As you know, this painting depicts the dead body of 14-year-old Emmett Till in the open casket that his mother chose, saying, "Let the people see what I’ve seen." That even the disfigured corpse of a child was not sufficient to move the white gaze from its habitual cold calculation is evident daily and in a myriad of ways, not least the fact that this painting exists at all. In brief: the painting should not be acceptable to anyone who cares or pretends to care about Black people because it is not acceptable for a white person to transmute Black suffering into profit and fun, though the practice has been normalized for a long time.

Although Schutz's intention may be to present white shame, this shame is not correctly represented as a painting of a dead Black boy by a white artist -- those non-Black artists who sincerely wish to highlight the shameful nature of white violence should first of all stop treating Black pain as raw material. The subject matter is not Schutz's; white free speech and white creative freedom have been founded on the constraint of others, and are not natural rights. The painting must go.

Emmett Till's name has circulated widely since his death. It has come to stand not only for Till himself but also for the mournability (to each other, if not to everyone) of people marked as disposable, for the weight so often given to a white woman's word above a Black child's comfort or survival, and for the injustice of anti-Black legal systems. Through his mother's courage, Till was made available to Black people as an inspiration and warning. Non-Black people must accept that they will never embody and cannot understand this gesture: the evidence of their collective lack of understanding is that Black people go on dying at the hands of white supremacists, that Black communities go on living in desperate poverty not far from the museum where this valuable painting hangs, that Black children are still denied childhood. Even if Schutz has not been gifted with any real sensitivity to history, if Black people are telling her that the painting has caused unnecessary hurt, she and you must accept the truth of this. The painting must go.

Ongoing debates on the appropriation of Black culture by non-Black artists have highlighted the relation of these appropriations to the systematic oppression of Black communities in the US and worldwide, and, in a wider historical view, to the capitalist appropriation of the lives and bodies of Black people with which our present era began. Meanwhile, a similarly high-stakes conversation has been going on about the willingness of a largely non-Black media to share images and footage of Black people in torment and distress or even at the moment of death, evoking deeply shameful white American traditions such as the public lynching. Although derided by many white and white-affiliated critics as trivial and naive, discussions of appropriation and representation go to the heart of the question of how we might seek to live in a reparative mode, with humility, clarity, humour and hope, given the barbaric realities of racial and gendered violence on which our lives are founded. I see no more important foundational consideration for art than this question, which otherwise dissolves into empty formalism or irony, into a pastime or a therapy.

The curators of the Whitney biennial surely agree, because they have staged a show in which Black life and anti-Black violence feature as themes, and been approvingly reviewed in major publications for doing so. Although it is possible that this inclusion means no more than that blackness is hot right now, driven into non-Black consciousness by prominent Black uprisings and struggles across the US and elsewhere, I choose to assume as much capacity for insight and sincerity in the biennial curators as I do in myself. Which is to say -- we all make terrible mistakes sometimes, but through effort the more important thing could be how we move to make amends for them and what we learn in the process. The painting must go.

Thank you for reading Hannah Black Artist/writer Whitney ISP 2013-14

Co-signatories/with the support of:

Amal Alhaag Hannah Assebe Anwar Batte Charmaine Bee Parker Bright Vivian Crockett Jareh Das Aria Dean Chrissy Etienne Hamishi Farah Ja'Tovia Gary Juliana Huxtable Anisa Jackson Hannah Catherine Jones Devin Kenny Carolyn Lazard Taylor LeMelle Tiona Nekkia McClodden Sandra Mujinga Precious Okoyomon Emmanuel Olunkwa Imani Robinson Andrew Ross Christina Sharpe Misu Simbiatu Dominique White Kandis Williams

#whitney biennial #Dana Schutz #Hannah Black #Open casket (2016)#submission

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bullets · 7 years

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I've been tagged by the lovely @three-cheers-for-ryan-ross 1. Name: whoops I don't wanna reveal my real name but call me Omair (my fathers name) 2. Nickname: call me whatever 3. Zodiac sign: Virgo sun, Taurus moon and Leo ascendant 4. Height: 5'5 I think, idk but it's 170cm 5. Orientation: straight, I think. I'm confused leavemealone lol 6. Ethnicity: middle eastern, but my ancestors are Turkish 7. Favorite fruit: grapes are nice 8. Favorite season: that time between fall and winter 9. Favorite book series: I don't like any book series, but I like anything by Paulo Coelho or Chuck Palahniuk 10. Favorite flower: Alchemilla probably 11. Favorite scent: this is gonna sound weird but the perfume of anyone I love 12. Favorite color: yellow 13. Favorite animal: big furry dogs, and dolphins are pretty cool 14. Coffee, tea or cocoa: if I want to focus, coffee. But if I want to be hyper, cocoa 15. Average sleep: either 3 hours or 12, no in between 16. Favorite fictional character: Christina yang, from grey's anatomy 17. Number of blankets you sleep with: two 18. Dream trip: New York at Christmas time 19. Blog created: two to three years, but started posting a Couple of months ago. 20. Number of followers: around 50 I'm tagging: @wirespulled @amazingcheskaonfire @uuuuuuugggggggghhhhhhhhh @urieplease @drowning-in-stardust @brohecking @panicforsnacks @anti-sjw-anti-angstyteenagers @god @iamprettyodd @is-dallon-still-underappreciated @afeveryoucantsweatoutofficial

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fvamissoula · 6 years

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Related Group’s Jorge Pérez Talks Real Estate, Lawsuits and Donald Trump

Jorge Pérez. Photo: Andrea Fremiotti/ for Commercial Observer

Jorge Pérez does not mince words.

First, there’s his hotel. He didn’t enjoy his recent stay at the Viceroy in Manhattan.

“This [Viceroy] is like, oh my God,” the 69-year-old chairman and CEO of Miami’s Related Group said. “You know, the carpets going through the hallways are horrendous, the rooms are tiny…The only reason I guess we stay here is because it’s like a block away from the Armani people who we are meeting with.”

He and his son, Jon Paul, a 34-year-old vice president at the company, were visiting from the Sunshine State to meet with Giorgio Armani, who was in from Italy, to talk about their collaboration at Residences by Armani/Casa in Miami.

Jorge Pérez and son Jon Paul Pérez. Photo: Andrea Fremiotti/ for Commercial Observer

Armani/Casa will be a high-end residential condominium with 308 units averaging about 3,500 square feet and prices ranging from $3 million to $18 million. About 80 percent of the building is already spoken for, Jon Paul said. The topping out is slated for this summer.

That’s just one of 70-plus properties—from condominiums and rentals to mixed-use—the company has in the works. Since 1979, the 300-person firm has built, renovated or managed more than 90,000 units.

In a year or two, the senior Pérez, called Miami’s “condo king,” plans to relinquish the CEO title to Jon Paul, but will remain the company’s chairman. (Jon Paul’s brother Nicholas, 30, is also a vice president at the company, since joining a year ago. Their sister Christina, 35, is a social worker.)

Residences by Armani/Casa. Image: Related Group

Outside of work, Jorge Pérez collects art and hobnobs with the upper echelon of society including the Trumps and the Clintons. (“[Donald] Trump was a very good friend,” the Argentine-born developer told Commercial Observer last month. “We talked every two weeks. You know we’ve done several Trump buildings—I think five or six towers—and we were friends. I saw him once a month.”) But Pérez’s friendship with Trump took a hit when he became president. Pérez rejected two invitations from the president to serve in his cabinet and has scoffed at Trump’s demands for a wall along the U.S. border with Mexico. (Pérez, who became a U.S. citizen in 1976, is developing three large projects, and recently completed one, in Mexico.)

Here’s what Pérez had to say to CO on a whole host of issues last month.

On new construction in Miami…

Well, let me break that down into the different aspects of real estate. I have a pretty good pulse of the market and what you’ve heard is that there’s been a lot of condominium development in the last five years, in particular the higher-end condominium product. There is starting to be an oversupply. So, while we were selling anywhere between say, four or five units a month on average, after the large presales that launched the project, today those sales have dropped substantially. That is mostly because of the problems in Latin America.

[At] our condominiums on the water and downtown, 70 percent-plus [of sales] were coming from Latin American buyers. The main Latin American economies—Mexico, Argentina and Brazil—have been in a state of flux. So, there is a certain amount of fear in the business sector. Miami suffers from that.

Because of these huge [currency] devaluations in [Latin America], the condominiums that we had in Miami have become much more expensive and that all has led to a decrease in demand while at the same time we’re building a lot of condominiums. Nevertheless, there are certain areas that we have in South Florida that we think are still strong—Fort Lauderdale on the water, Pompano, Boca [Raton].

On who is replacing Latin American homebuyers…

I think you’re getting a lot of people from the Northeast, particularly in high-tax areas with the Trump tax laws. I think people are coming to Miami—in addition to the sun and fun and business and so forth—because of taxation. Barry Sternlicht is the perfect example. He’s moving his company there. [Sternlicht will be moving his firm, Starwood Capital Group, to Miami Beach from Connecticut by 2021.] We’re seeing people coming in from different countries in Europe, but it’s not making up for the drop in Latin America.

On developing rentals…

The condominium demand has been supplanted by rental demand. In areas that we think there’s supply in we [have] changed our resources to the development of market-rate rental projects, which we’re doing a lot of. And we have a huge affordable-housing division.

On the lawsuit against Related at Parque Global in Brazil…

We’ve been in a case in court [since 2014]. It was an environmental lawsuit, which is a frivolous lawsuit. As a matter of fact, in one of the court cases they showed [an image] of us knocking down trees and they didn’t show our site. Our site was junk. Really.

Parque Global. Image: Related Group

So, we go to Brazil. Everybody tells me [for my five towers, its] a nice site, not the greatest site, but a nice site. And we do a marketing campaign, second-to-none in the world [with the tagline] “Rediscover Sao Paulo.” We bring an English designer, United, we bring architect Arquitectonica—one of the great architects here—[and] beautiful landscape [architect] from Switzerland, Enea. I line up the brokers and….we do great. I do my thing and sell over 80 percent of the first three towers. People couldn’t believe it. I mean, we were popping the champagne. The lawsuit happens. You know what you have to do in Brazil when they sue you? Return all deposits to the buyers. And we had used all the money—20 percent deposits—to do piles. We were already digging piles.

[The project has] been stopped. So now even if I win I have so much money on this piece of land that I never win. I might win a little battle and get some money back and make some money, but it’s disastrous.

We’ve won all the old battles so we’re going to Brazil next month. [There will be a] partners’ meeting to determine whether the market has come back. Remember when we sold, [the market] was good. And then Brazil has dropped in the last eight years.

On the differences between himself and Steven Ross, the chairman and founder of Related Companies, who co-founded Related Group with Pérez…

He’s different than I am. He is New York. I’m Latin American. You know when I first came, the way of doing business was very different for me. I had to really adapt myself to a totally different way of dealing with people. New Yorkers are very in your face; they tell you exactly what it is. We’re much more “let’s go to lunch.” Not as bad as the Japanese, never [getting to] say, “no,” but we’re not confrontational. I’ve become much more like Steve is. People will tell me I am very “I don’t have any time to waste.” [In working with our] Mexican partners in Argentina—it drives me insane; everybody’s like, “mañana, mañana.”

On Trump today versus Trump pre-presidency…

It doesn’t compute. I mean he was a guy that was just not political at all. So as a matter of fact, we had talked about going to Cuba to build golf courses and, all of a sudden, he’s anti-Cuba? Trump was an internationalist. He went all over the place trying to build condominiums. I don’t know if this was all the time his politics or not. We never discussed politics. We just knew him as a very, very generous good friend. I mean he was always courteous, great with my wife. We like spending time with him. But I’m just diametrically opposed to everything that he stands for.

On a future friendship with Trump…

I mean he was a very kind nice guy. We got along really, really well. And I hope that after all this stuff we can talk again…but not about politics. That doesn’t mean that you can’t be friends. I mean, it’s not like these guys are criminals. They believe in certain things that I just think are wrong.

On Trump’s kids…

His kids are all really well-behaved, good [people]. You know they’re very honest, very hard workers. Somebody did a good job with them!

On the number of homes he personally owns…

You know how many units I’ve got? Lots. We built a hundred thousand units. I own units in seven of my buildings. I’m proceeding to sell all those because I thought at one point that my children were going to use some and they’ve all been buying their own houses. I’m moving into this new unit that Rem Koolhaas is designing—a penthouse in another one of our buildings, called Park Grove, which is a very luxurious building in Coconut Grove.

On remaining on the Forbes list of the 400 richest people in America (Pérez was ranked 316 on the 2018 list with a net worth of $2.6 billion)…

I haven’t gone broke yet.

Source Article

The post Related Group’s Jorge Pérez Talks Real Estate, Lawsuits and Donald Trump appeared first on FVAMISSOULA.

Read More At: http://www.fvamissoula.org/related-groups-jorge-perez-talks-real-estate-lawsuits-and-donald-trump/

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kevinmoyer · 7 years

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How to Choose Your Ceremony Readings

At Karen & Jeff’s wedding, two friends performed a speech written specially for the day. Photo: GIULIA SANTARELLI.

Our Managing Editor Christina and I got to talking the other day, and she admitted something that totally shocked me – she and her husband didn’t have any readings in their ceremony. Nope, that wasn’t the shocking part, it was why! “Back then, I thought readings would be boring, and I didn’t think that they would be a significant part of our ceremony”, she told me. (Though if you’re an avid Snippet & Ink reader, you’ll know her thoughts have changed since then!) The words you say to each other on that day can truly impact your marriage, so it makes sense to choose them carefully. These days there is inspiration everywhere, and people pick what is right for them for all sorts of reasons – maybe you want to use a reading that your parents had on their wedding day, or maybe you both have a favorite song and want to include the lyrics. The options are pretty much endless… which can be its own problem! Unless you want to use super traditional readings, it’s normal to feel a bit lost. So we’d love to help you decide whether to include readings in your own ceremony, and if so, how do you choose? (And for some seriously fantastic inspiration, even if we do say so ourselves, be sure to check out our very own readings archive from our fabulous couples who share their readings with us!)

Ceremony Readings – for the win!

So I just can’t hide my own feelings here. I love ceremony readings, and I’m a huge believer in their importance. I think picking the right ones help you and your partner solidify what you both see marriage as. And they also do a beautiful job of conveying the way you both see love, and your relationship, to your guests. Having said that, deciding on them is definitely not an easy job, so here are some tips I hope will help!

At Rayn & Ryan’s wedding, they didn’t want their ceremony to feel too traditional, so chose to include, among other things, excerpts from Winnie the Pooh! Photo: ASH CARR.

Tip #1: balance the tone of your readings: one tragic, heartbreaking reading can honestly be a beautiful inclusion in your ceremony. Some of the most wonderful things ever written about love are also about death, after all (cheerful, right?) But two or three of them? We’re not at a funeral! Equally, even if you both value humor and want to have a light, fun ceremony, you probably don’t want your wedding to seem like it has a two drink minimum! It’s really important to think about the overall tone of your readings so that they are reflective of you both, and also keep your guests engaged.

For our wedding, we started off with the longest and the teariest reading because it said best what my husband and I think of love. It was an excerpt read by my dad from one of my favorite childhood books he used to read to me when I was little. Photo: Jonas Peterson.

Tip #2: keep an eye on the length of the readings: and speaking of keeping your guests engaged – don’t let readings go too long! My husband Dan and I had four readings! I know, I know, we were worried about guests getting bored… but we kept two of them really short (and followed tip #1).

Tip #3: only include readings that really speak to you: the entire point of including readings is to represent your thoughts and beliefs. If you half-heartedly pick something you’re not that interested in, what’s the point? Only include readings if it says something you think is important enough to include in your ceremony. If you are a religious couple, for instance, it may be more important to you both to have readings representing your faith than your love for one another. Equally, maybe choose a secular reading if your faith is not going to form a central part of your marriage.

Allison told us “we didn’t choose readings that were directly about marriage, but more about what it means to be a good person and what God asks of us in daily life – readings that spoke to us.” Photo: ALEA LOVELY, from Allison & Brad’s wedding.

Ceremony Readings – not for us!

If you think you’re anti-readings… well hopefully by now I’ve change your mind, ha! But if not, I respect that too. I just want to be sure the only reason you’re not including them is because you’ve never found one you love!

For Katie & Anthony’s wedding, they chose not to have readings at all, and had friends tell stories about their relationship. Photo: ABBY ROSS.

Tip #4: don’t include readings just because “it’s tradition”: no part of your ceremony (or your entire wedding day) should be done just because it’s tradition, if you don’t want to do it! Maybe one of you is very shy and wants the ceremony over and done with the minimum of fuss. Or maybe you don’t like the idea of including words someone else has written when your ceremony is about the two of you. Both perfectly fair points! But equally, don’t feel like you’re bored or unmoved by ‘traditional’ readings when there really are so many options for you to find something you truly love. Which brings me to…

Tip #5: you can use almost anything as a reading: please don’t think “I’m not religious and I hate poetry, so I guess it’s no readings for us.” If we break it down, a reading is really just a part of your ceremony that says something you believe about love and marriage (and hopefully in more beautiful words than most of us non-writers could ever come up with!) Think about your favorite books, movie quotes, song lyrics… my husband is obsessed with The Muppets, so he googled Jim Henson quotes until he found one we both loved!

So what do you think? Do you plan on including readings in your own ceremony? Which ones? And if you’re already married, did you decide to include any? And if you want to include some and are looking for inspiration, be sure to check back next week when we publish a round up of our very favorite readings!

The post How to Choose Your Ceremony Readings appeared first on Snippet & Ink.

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plasticgivens · 8 years

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OPEN LETTER

OPEN LETTER // PLEASE SHARE IF YOU FEEL LIKE IT // IN RESPONSE TO SOME HELPFUL CRITICISM IM NOW ONLY INCLUDING BLACK CO-SIGNS // NONBLACK PEOPLE SUPER VERY WELCOME TO HELP GET PAINTING DESTROYED THO IN OTHER WAYS :) // REMEMBER CONTEMPORARY ART IS A FUNDAMENTALLY WHITE SUPREMACIST INSTITUTION DESPITE ALL OUR NICE FRIENDS SO MOST OF WHAT HAPPENS IN IT IS POLITICALLY MEANINGLESS // BUT THE PAINTING SHOULD STILL BE DESTROYED THO // THANKS To the curators and staff of the Whitney biennial: I am writing to ask you to remove Dana Schutz's painting "Open Casket" and with the urgent recommendation that the painting be destroyed and not entered into any market or museum. As you know, this painting depicts the dead body of 14-year-old Emmett Till in the open casket that his mother chose, saying, "Let the people see what I’ve seen." That even the disfigured corpse of a child was not sufficient to move the white gaze from its habitual cold calculation is evident daily and in a myriad of ways, not least the fact that this painting exists at all. In brief: the painting should not be acceptable to anyone who cares or pretends to care about Black people because it is not acceptable for a white person to transmute Black suffering into profit and fun, though the practice has been normalized for a long time. Although Schutz's intention may be to present white shame, this shame is not correctly represented as a painting of a dead Black boy by a white artist -- those non-Black artists who sincerely wish to highlight the shameful nature of white violence should first of all stop treating Black pain as raw material. The subject matter is not Schutz's; white free speech and white creative freedom have been founded on the constraint of others, and are not natural rights. The painting must go. Emmett Till's name has circulated widely since his death. It has come to stand not only for Till himself but also for the mournability (to each other, if not to everyone) of people marked as disposable, for the weight so often given to a white woman's word above a Black child's comfort or survival, and for the injustice of anti-Black legal systems. Through his mother's courage, Till was made available to Black people as an inspiration and warning. Non-Black people must accept that they will never embody and cannot understand this gesture: the evidence of their collective lack of understanding is that Black people go on dying at the hands of white supremacists, that Black communities go on living in desperate poverty not far from the museum where this valuable painting hangs, that Black children are still denied childhood. Even if Schutz has not been gifted with any real sensitivity to history, if Black people are telling her that the painting has caused unnecessary hurt, she and you must accept the truth of this. The painting must go. Ongoing debates on the appropriation of Black culture by non-Black artists have highlighted the relation of these appropriations to the systematic oppression of Black communities in the US and worldwide, and, in a wider historical view, to the capitalist appropriation of the lives and bodies of Black people with which our present era began. Meanwhile, a similarly high-stakes conversation has been going on about the willingness of a largely non-Black media to share images and footage of Black people in torment and distress or even at the moment of death, evoking deeply shameful white American traditions such as the public lynching. Although derided by many white and white-affiliated critics as trivial and naive, discussions of appropriation and representation go to the heart of the question of how we might seek to live in a reparative mode, with humility, clarity, humour and hope, given the barbaric realities of racial and gendered violence on which our lives are founded. I see no more important foundational consideration for art than this question, which otherwise dissolves into empty formalism or irony, into a pastime or a therapy. The curators of the Whitney biennial surely agree, because they have staged a show in which Black life and anti-Black violence feature as themes, and been approvingly reviewed in major publications for doing so. Although it is possible that this inclusion means no more than that blackness is hot right now, driven into non-Black consciousness by prominent Black uprisings and struggles across the US and elsewhere, I choose to assume as much capacity for insight and sincerity in the biennial curators as I do in myself. Which is to say -- we all make terrible mistakes sometimes, but through effort the more important thing could be how we move to make amends for them and what we learn in the process. The painting must go. Thank you for reading Hannah Black Artist/writer Whitney ISP 2013-14 Co-signatories/with the support of: Amal Alhaag Hannah Assebe Anwar Batte Charmaine Bee Parker Bright Kai Clancy Vivian Crockett Jareh Das Aria Dean Kimberly Drew Chrissy Etienne Hamishi Farah Ja'Tovia Gary Juliana Huxtable Anisa Jackson Janine Jembere Hannah Catherine Jones Justin Francis Kennedy Devin Kenny Carolyn Lazard Taylor LeMelle Tiona Nekkia McClodden Sandra Mujinga Precious Okoyomon Emmanuel Olunkwa Ari Robey-Lawrence Imani Robinson Andrew Ross Christina Sharpe Misu Simbiatu Shani Strand Dominique White Kandis Williams

#Dana Schutz #Emmett Till #Hannah Black #Painting #Abolition #Art #Negation #Petitions #Destroy... she said

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