FIND AN OLD HARDCOVER BOOK, SAY FROM THE SALVATION ARMY, GLUE IT, PIERCE IT, CUT IT, ADD COLLAGES, PAINTINGS, POEMS, PICTURES.....

and you have "Altered Book Art". I found myself early the other morning on the web reading the list of Meet Up Groups and came across, yep an altered book art Meet Up group . At least an hour or more had passed as I got lost in the ABA (altered book art) world of blogs and web pages. The example below is from one of many online.



OR USE FOR STORAGE ONLY.........

I tear photos of architecturally interesting buildings out of magazines and I've accumulated a rather thick pile of these pages. I've tried every way possible to keep these pages both organized and easily accessible, and making a visit to a thrift shop and picking up large used books, as in used atlas's for a couple of bucks each, using a wrinkle free paste glue and placing the magazine pages right to the book pages gives me a fast and easy filing system. Note, every few pages I take out a few of the books pages by using a utility knife and cutting right down at the binding of the used book.

"The Recovering Hero Proclamation"

I have no need to save others.

I have no need to rescue others.

I have no need to outshine anyone.

I have no need to out-think, out-perform, out-produce anyone –
including myself.

I do not need to know anything.

I do not need to be an expert.

I do not need to fix anyone, or change anything.




I do not need to dazzle, impress or inspire anyone.

I do not need to be the hero of my own story.

In truth, I am organic, evolving, and fallible.

I allow things to unfold naturally, and I trust the flow.

I joyfully accept and experience my humanity.

I need nothing.

All already is.

THREE TRAVELING ART SHOWS OF THE AVENUE

This last Sunday as I was driving on Palace Avenue, I passed a classic 40's pickup all dolled up in sunflowers. In my rear view mirror I saw the sunflower truck pull into a driveway, I did a U-turn and parked near the driveway where the sunflower truck had parked. However by then the driver and passenger had entered the house. I knocked and a very pleasant and genial man opened the door, I asked a few questions and while doing so an equally pleasant open and smiling woman came up behind the man and identified herself as the owner and artist of the sunflowers on the truck.



I asked for permission to photograph the truck, was happily given permission by the lady, Susan, and as I was snapping with the camera phone, Susan casually mentioned another “art truck” with painted chilies parked behind the house. We walked back and I took this photo.


and again as I was taking the photo, Susan mentioned yet another truck parked a few blocks away at her studio. This one she called her “Carro de la Muerte”, or Cart of Death, a common theme in Mexican Folk Art. Drove to the Camino del Monte Sol location and took this photo. Actually was unable to get a good pic because of lack of sharpness using the camera phone, the painting images on the truck were not as distinctive as the other two trucks, plus the sun was glaring intensely directly on the truck . The side of the truck has a Carro de la Muerte painted on it with several bones, skulls, flowers and funereal icons spread about. The wonderful addition was the curtain type effects over the wheel wells pointing to casket bedding?



The auto as art is not uncommon in the Latino Community, all well and good, yet I yearn for the purely mythical thoughts of Andy Warhal somehow somewhere wafting like a fog in cyber space, his riff being the American Automobile, untouched from Detroit, as The Premier American Art Icon of the of the 20th Century.

^^^^^^^FOR YOUR EARS ONLY!^^^^^^^

THEY'RE TOO CLEVER. WE'RE DOOMED

written on the post-it attached to the following newspaper clip which arrived in snale mail yesterday, thanks to Phil Curtis.



Tobacco’s Miracle in China
Cigarettes are miraculous, says the Chinese government, which monopolizes the world’s largest tobacco market, with 360 million smokers, according to an article in The Globe and Mail, the Canadian daily.
Cigarettes, according to China’s tobacco authorities, are an excellent way to prevent ulcers.
They also reduce the risk of Parkinson’s disease, relieve schizophrenia, boost your brain cells, speed up your thinking, improve your reactions and increase your working efficiency.
And all those warnings about lung cancer? Nonsense....
If you believe the official Web site of the tobacco monopoly, cigarettes are a kind of miracle drug:
solving your health problems, helping your lifestyle, strengthening the equality of women and even eliminating loneliness and depression.
“Smoking removes your troubles and worries,” says a 37-year- old female magazine editor, quoted approvingly on the Web site. “Holding a cigarette is like having a walking stick in your hand, giving you support.
“Quitting smoking would bring you misery, shortening your life.”
The number of Chinese smokers is growing by three million a year, despite an estimated 1.3 million tobacco-related deaths annually.

BIRTHDAY: A DAY OF REMEMBRANCE FOR ALL OPPRESSED PEOPLE

xLes>en Googlec

xLes>en Googlec

xLes>en Googlec

Andrew Sullivan gives a brief note. Alan Turing, a
homosexual, is considered to be the father of computer
science and speculated about creating AI.

"Alan Turing said that if intelligent machines were to
become a reality, they would have to learn and grow
... like children."

RIP our tormented Brother.

ANOTHER TAKE ON TOM FRIEDMAN'S "The World Is Flat"

BOISE TEMPLE PRODUCES GENIUS ONE AFTER ANOTHER




Lalit K. Jha (Hindustantimes.com)

Boise (Idaho), May 19, 2005

A Hare Krishna temple in Boise, Idaho has suddenly started generating interest among the local community. Its home school has been producing genius one after other. At least three from here have graduated at just 17 and many more are in queue.

The latest being Ayush Goyal, son of an Indian hydrology technician, who on May 14, became the second-youngest student to graduate from the Boise State University.

A devotee of Lord Krishna and an active member of the International Centre for Krishna Consciousness, Ayush (17) who spent most of his time at Boise temple home school after being taken out of the elementary school when he was eight, earned Bachelor's Degree in electrical and computer engineering on Saturday.

He has been declared among top 10 scholars, besides being ranked one of the country's four top electrical engineering student for the year 2005 by the Eta Kappa Nu, which is the national honour society for electrical and computer engineering.

Being modest, both Ayush and his parents - father Sudhir Goyal, who works with Idaho Department of Water, and Shyama Goyal, house wife and has a Masters in Economics - attribute it to the home school of the Hare Krishna temple.

The temple priest, Arun Gupta, claimed" "Many others like Ayush were likely to achieve the similar feat." Prominent among them include Shatakshi, who at just 13 is taking BSU classes this year, and Ian Walls, an American who at 10 is good enough for eight and 10th Grade. Then there is a Jain family.

It all began in 1999, when Ravi Gupta, his son, was the first one to graduate at 17. This was followed by his brother Gopal Gupta in 2001 at the same age. Ravi went on to achieve his Ph.D from Oxford in theology and religion at just 22 years of age.

"Initially, it was thought these were genius and it is because of individual capabilities of Ravi and Gopal. But after Ayush, local people have begun recognizing role of our home school in a child's development," Gupta told Hindustantimes.com.

At any time there are 20 child in the home school, started by his wife Aruddha Gupta in 1989. "The studies revolve around Bhagwad Gita, which is nucleus of all knowledge," he said.

exactitudes

The list of photographic subjects available to a camera could almost trail off into infinity. From the most exotic of, well, anything, to the most familiar of, well, anything, the list can only expand as mankind expands. But for me keep it simple. I have 2 files for photos and those files are labeled humanity on the first one and humanity's shelter on the second. With this web site I'm in heaven on the first count. Photographs of people. And at this site its with some added delights. Everyday clothing. Huh? You'll see.
Since 1995 photographer Arie Versluis and stylist Elly Yttenbroek have worked together on the project 'Exactitudes'. Exactitude is a contraction of the words 'exact' and 'attitude'. It concerns a long-term photo project in which a wide-range of different groups of people are portrayed in an identical frame, in the same pose and with strictly observed dress codes. A typographics of clothing presentation. Each 'exactitude' consists of twelve distinct portraits in grid format.
DIVE IN.
You won't regret it.


Meet the Gabberbitches. Shake hands with The Gentlemen of Rio de Janeiro. But, maybe, steer clear of the bouncers. Sidle up to Exactitudes and spend some quality time with a sampling of the world's citizens. With this work, Arie and Elly have captured the uniforms of teens, grannies, and leathermen. They've also classified as Massalas, "Mister Wangs", and the Musulmen of Casablance. The project draws primarily from the streets of Rotterdam, but still travels far and wide to document people by dress and stance. In the process, it shows off the distinct style of many of the world's citizens. Forget Vogue -- this is true fashion.

A FAVORITE SMALL WEBART SITE

Explore
Marvel
Be Inspired

ALL HERE