Peeps Show 2010

The result from the Washington Post's Peeps Show Diorama contest are in.

See videos of the top five, or Pictures of the 37 favorites.

The Three Emperors

Miranda Carter discussing her latest book, George, Nicholas and Wilhelm: Three Royal Cousins and the Road to World War I. I read about one chapter so far, and it is very engaging.

Here is the New York Times review of the book.

Maryland (North or South)

From the article "Are we Northern? Southern? Yes." in the Baltimore Sun.

In 1956, a Tennessee woman wrote to the State Department of Information asking whether Maryland was a Northern or Southern state. The department told her to draw her own conclusion based on the following (which was reprinted in The Baltimore Sun at the time):

1. "Maryland lies south of the Mason and Dixon Line."

2. "Only eleven states in the country produce maple syrup; Maryland is the southernmost state that produces this product."

3. "Almost all Southern states have cypress swamps. Maryland has the northernmost cypress swamp."

4. "Many Northern and Southern states produce tobacco; so does Maryland."

5. "Virginia pines grow in most Southern states; hemlock trees grow in most Northern states; Maryland produces both."

6. "The mockingbird is considered a Southern bird; there are many in Maryland.'

7. "Fried chicken is considered a Southern delicacy; Maryland fried chicken is world famous."

8. "During the War Between the States, sometimes called the Civil War, Maryland had troops in both the Union and Confederate armies."

9. "Maryland's 175th Infantry is authorized to carry the Confederate flag."

10. "Maryland belongs to the Southern Governor's Conference."

11. "Maryland belongs to both the Northern and Southern Regional Park Conference."

12. "Maryland belongs to the Federal Government's Eastern Coastal Migratory Bird Flyway."

13. "At Gettysburg, there are monuments to the Maryland Regiment, U.S.A, and the Maryland Regiment, C.S.A."

14. "At Antietam battlefield, sometimes called Sharpsburg, there is a monument to the memory of the men of Maryland 'who died here
for their convictions.' "

The department added at the end: "Most Marylanders find it difficult to answer the question. Some consider themselves Southerners; others as Northerners. Perhaps the truth lives between the extremes."

Cherry Tree Rebellion

Just in time for the Cherry Blossom Festival, an article from the Washington Post about the controversy surrounding the building of the Jefferson Memorial. I did not know anything about this until I read the article. The picture below is from last year.

Some cherry trees gave their lives for Jefferson Memorial

A Worn Path

Today a short story. Eudora Welty's story "A Worn Path" was first published just over 70 years ago in The Atlantic Monthly.

Here is an interviews with her about the story.

Ridenhour Prize goes to graphic novel

Joe Sacco's "Footnotoes in Gaza" has become the first graphic novel to be awarded the Ridenhour Award. The Ridenhour prizes are awarded for striving to "protect the public interest, promote social justice or illuminate a more just vision of society."

Ridenhour Prize goes, for first time, to graphic novel

Obama's Speech

I think Obama could have done a lot more last year to see that Health Care reform passed, and he is now lucky that he has Nancy Pelosi save the day for him. That being said, I think the speech he gave today to the Democratic Caucus was probably his best speech ever.

Here is the speech in three parts.

The Demon Pass

The House has apparently decide to pass the health care bill with two votes, instead of using the "Deem and Pass" option, which would have passed both bills with one vote. I have to wonder how much of the uproar over this has to do with the fact that when you hear anyone talk about this it sounds like the Democrats want to use the "Demon Pass" for health care. Makes it sound like Nancy Pelosi has been possessed by the Devil.

Ghosts in the Hollow

A multimedia video by Jim Lo Scalzo. NPR has a recent blog post on his work.

Ghosts in the Hollow from Jim Lo Scalzo on Vimeo.

DeDannan @ The Kennedy Center

A couple photos from DeDannan's appearance at the Millennium Stage today. The light was too bright, so they did not turn out very good, but I did get a couple other pictures of the Kennedy Center and around DC.

You can watch the entire concert here.

DeDannan @ The Kennedy Center

Aqua - 2009 Skyscraper of the Year

This news is a couple weeks old, but in February the Aqua in Chicago was named 2009 Skyscraper of the Year by Emporis, a company that sells data about tall buildings.

Here is a photograph I took of the building last year. At the time I did not know what the building was, but it certainly stands out. Given the way the balconies curve around, at first I could not figure out what I was seeing.

As an answer to a future trivia question, this the tallest building in the world by a female architect.

Aqua makes waves as world's best

St. Patrick's Day @ the Movies

From the Chicago Tribune, 10 great St. Patrick's Day movies. I think I have seen at least six of them.

10 great St. Patrick's Day movies

Harbor @ Night

A couple pictures from the Harbor tonight.

Harbor @ Night

I Am a Poor Wayfinding Stranger

Slate has a series of articles on Environmental Graphic Design. i.e. Signs. It is very interesting to see the similarities between guiding people through 3-dimensional space, and guiding them through web space.

The Secret Language of Signs

I Love a Parade

Here are some pictures from today's St. Patrick's Day Parade.

Baltimore's St. Patrick's Day Parade - 3/14/2010

Whose on the $50

I am appalled by the idea that Grant should be replaced on the $50 bill by anyone, let alone Reagan. I just happened to be reading Grant's memoirs right now, so maybe that makes me more upset than I otherwise would be.

Reagan already has an airport and the largest building in the Federal Triangle named after him. Isn't that enough?

Here is a very good op-ed from The New York Times on this subject.

Who’s Buried in the History Books?

Busby Berkeley Dreams

Under the category of they don't make movies like this anymore, here is a video montage of scenes from several Busby Berkeley films. Just image if he would have had 3D.

New Arrival

As of March 10 the National Aquarium in Baltimore has a new dolphin. Below is a video of the birth, and you can read more on the Aquarium's Blog.

The Eighth Wonder of the World

The guardian.co.uk has a video from inside the Thames Tunnel. Built by Marc Brunnel and opened in 1843, this was the first tunnel in the world to go under a river.

The Thames Tunnel

The Missing Link

An article from the AP about the identification of the mummy of King Tut's Father, Akhenaten. Akhenaten is most interesting because of the similarity between his religious beliefs and Christianity. There were 1,300 years between Akhenaten and Jesus, but many believe there is an, as of yet, undocumented connection between them.

Mummy of Egypt's monotheist pharaoh to return home

Why Sleep?

An interesting entry on the National Geographic Blog about sleep.

Why do we Sleep?

Born of Hope

Born of Hope is a prequel to the Lord of the Rings Trilogy. Produced for less than $40,000, it tells the story of Aragorn's parents. This may be a little more romantic than Tolkien would have written, but it does show that if you have a good script, good actors and a good director, you do not need a lot of money to make a really good movie.

He is an article from the Guardian about the film, and you can watch the entire film at the link below.

Born of Hope

Water Wheel Powered Trash Interceptor

I found it. Here are some pictures of the Water Wheel Powered Trash Interceptor. It had been located where the Jones Falls empties into the Harbor, but it has been gone for a while and I did not know what happened to it. When I was out taking pictures Saturday, I found that it has been move to the outlet of Harris Creek, which was once a navigable stream, but has now been completely paved over, and is only visible where it empties into the Harbor.

Anyway the Water Wheel Powered Trash Interceptor is a water wheel powered contraption that lifts trash out of the water on a conveyor belt and empties it into a dumpster for more appropriate disposal. I am not sure why it was moved from the Jones Falls to Harris Creek, but I am glad it is being used somewhere.

Also this set includes a couple other pictures I took at the Harbor.

Water Wheel Powered Trash Interceptor

First Forsythia

I saw my first blooming Forsythia of the season in DC today. It seems like just yesterday that we had a couple feet of snow. Here are some pictures that I took on my way to work this morning.

First Forsythia

Alice, et al

A short post on the movies I have seen recently. (Well, now that I have re-read it maybe not so short.)

Since the Oscars are tonight, I would repeat what I said back in my January 3 post, The Hurt Locker was the best film of last year. I would add here that Kathryn Bigelow should get best director, and I would give best actor to Jeremy Renner, although I won't be upset if Jeff Bridges wins, as everyone expects.

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I went out Friday and saw Alice in Wonderland, in 3D, but not in IMAX. I was disappointed. Instead of a Tim Burton film, it is 1/2 a Tim Burton Film and 1/2 a Disney film. Not that I have anything against Disney, but if you go to a Tim Burton film that is what you want to see. I suspect the Disney know this, because all of the trailers and clips that I saw before the release were scenes from the Tim Burton half. The Disney half includes a huge battle scene with Alice turned into a warrior princes. This does not fit at all with the tone of the original story, but I guess it had to be added for the sake 3D. To quote from Anthony Lane's article in the current New Yorker, "Third Way: The Rise of 3-D":

Lewis Carroll’s tale is as brisk and bright as the Victorian child at its heart, more anecdotal than plotted, and Burton, spotting this, overcompensates by trading the domestic for the apocalyptic.

As far as 3D goes, I don't like the fact that you have to wear those sunglasses that dull all the color in the film. I think I would have preferred 2D with full color.

Of course, both Johnny Depp and Helena Bonham Carter gave great performances. Anne Hathaway, as the White Queen, could have been channeling Glenda, the good with of the North, which seemed a bit amateur to me.

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As far as fantasy films go, I much preferred Terry Gilliam's film The Imaginarium of Doctor Parnassus. This is the film that Heath Ledger was in the middle of when he died. Three other actors had to finish the filming of his role, but if you did not know otherwise you might think it was planned this way from the beginning. Much like Alice in Wonderland, part of Imaginarium takes place in the real world, and part on the other side of a mirror. Ledger had filmed the real world segments of the film, and the other actors filled in for the behind the mirror scenes. It is fairly complicated, and I think I need to see it again to fully appreciate it. I liked it a lot, but not as much as Brazil, which is my favorite Terry Gilliam film.

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I also saw "Inglorious Basterds" on DVD. I had not seen it in the theaters, because I was afraid that I would not like it. I actually liked it much more than I thought I would. Quentin Tarantino is not one of my favorite directors, but I think I have learned that you just cannot take his films too seriously. The entire premise of this movie is implausible, but if you get over that, it is easier to appreciate the film. The opening scene, with Christopher Waltz as a Nazi official hunting for Jews on a rural farm, is probably one of the best scenes of the year. I did a have problem with Brad Pitt's performance. I don't know if his southern accent was really as bad as I thought, or if I just could not accept it coming out of his mouth. To quote Michael Sragow from the Balimore Sun, Pitt seemed to be doing a "Foghorn Leghorn" imitation. I was most impressed with the performances of the two main female characters in the film, Mélanie Laurent, playing a cinema owner plotting to burn the entire Nazi high command as revenge for the death of her family, and Diane Kruger, playing a German actress running a separate plot to do in the Nazis.

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Finally, I saw Fish Tank. This is a British film that will not do much business in the United States. It is like a Mike Leigh film without the humor. This is not a criticism, but it is a pretty heavy film. The acting in it is all outstanding. You could say it is Precious light. Like Precious it is about a young girl in a bad situation, but the situation in Fish Tank is not quite as bleak.

Kazimierz Pulaski

Kazimierz Pulaski was born 265 years ago today in Poland. Pulaski, one of the heroes of the American Revolution, is credited with saving the life of George Washington at the Battle of Brandywine. Known as the "father of the American cavalry", he was named "Commander of the Horse" by the Continental Congress. Wounded in battle in October 1779, he died from his injuries.

There are monuments to Pulaski in both DC and Baltimore. Here are pictures of both monuments that I took this week.

Following the link to the Pulaski pictures, is a link to a second set of pictures. I had to have AM light to photograph the Baltimore Pulaski Monument. Since I am rarely out taking pictures in the morning, I took some other pictures of Patterson Park while I was there.

Kazimierz Pulaski

Patterson Park, Baltimore - 3/6/2010

Aubrey Bodine Picture Gallery

A photo gallery from The Baltimore Sun with some of Aubrey Bodine's photographs of Baltimore and Maryland.

The photos of A. Aubrey Bodine

Granny O'Grimm's Sleeping Beauty

I went to see the Oscar nominated short animated films today. Of course, the new Wallace & Gromit was my favorite. But this was my second favorite, Granny O'Grimm's Sleeping Beauty directed by Nicky Phelan.

This To Shall Pass

It is almost impossible to believe that this was filmed in one continuous take.

Here is an article from Wired about the making of the video.

Alice in Wonderland (1903)

I am disappointed to see that Todd McCarthy at Variety has give the new Alice in Wonderland a less than glowing review. But even if what he says is true the movie will still have to be a lot of fun.

Since Tim Burton's movie does not open until Friday, here is the 1903 version of Alice in Wonderland, restored—as much as possible at this point—by the British Film Institute.

Earthquake Shortens the Day

My only question: If the days are now shorter, does that mean that we will live longer?

Chilean Quake May Have Shortened Earth Days

Hollywood Turns 100

The Hollywood film industry is 100 years old this year. In early 1910, director DW Griffith was sent by the Biograph Company to the west coast to take advantage of the Californian sunshine. Here is a picture gallery of the early years of Hollywood from the Telegraph.

A History of Tinseltown in Pictures