green car of the year

from the Environmental News Network:

At the L.A. Auto Show this year, there were two separate award ceremonies for the Green Car of the Year 2008. Inside, at the "official" award ceremony, the Chevy Tahoe Hybrid was announced the winner. Outside, at an "unofficial" ceremony staged across the street, the Plug-In Toyota Prius Hybrid won the prize.
So which is the greenest car of the two? The Chevy Tahoe gets 20 mpg. The Plug-In Toyota Prius gets 100 mpg.

wow. i never thought a car could be considered "green" if it got 20 mpg. on the other hand, can any car be considered "green"?

untitled 3

you are my fleeting
overwhelming
idealized phantasm
and i lovemiss you: i've hidden it, i know.

last night after the glossy sky passed over my eyes
and the stars were serenely not the backdrop but the stage
of our dreams
you, resurrected, looked at me the way i always wanted;
your eyes everything but gentle (but they were gentle)
reminded me
why i can not forget you, can not
leave you
there

you are my idealized phantasm.
i lovemiss you- the idealized
you.
not the real you.

someday we both will walk again
among the gods of the stars,
between the legs of pegasus
holding nebulae captive
but my eyes will open and imprison me
and i'll convince myself that i idealized you again

Need new music???

My hard drive is currently having difficulties, and the music with which I'm familiar is (hopefully temporarily) unavailable. The only music I can listen to is what I download, so I'm getting introduced to a lot of new music.

Here are some bands I recommend, according to broad genre categories:

post-rock, ambient, etc.
Eluvium. By far some of the most beautiful music I've heard in a while. Imagine electronica slowed to a crawl- on the edge of drone- but, before you can lose interest, Satie-style piano melts your heart and brings a sense of peace and joy to each song. This description is the trajectory through the cd, not simply one or two songs.

This Will Destroy You. I think these guys have been around for a little while, but I'm just now getting into them. Explosions-esque post-rock. I don't mind the similarity, though, because they always keep you guessing, always hitting the emotional strings at precisely the right moment, and just barely enough form an identity of their own.









The Dead Texan. Ambient that makes a case for its own music by branching into drone. A very solid soundscape, though.



Colleen. Holds a special place in my heart now.













freak folk, new weird america, etc.
Castanets. Awesome one-man band from San Diego. Keeps things exciting throughout the cd. The weakest part, however, is the last track on the cd, where he tries some sort of electronic-dance style. As unfair as it is to make comparisons, his style lies in the realm of early Devendra Banhart, but absolutely does not remain there.

The Skygreen Leopards. Oh me, oh my, are these guys worth checking out. They gave me that feeling of joy when you first hear a band that steals your heart. Of course, that also happened to me when first listening to Silversun Pickups, before I burned out on them. Last.fm currently describes them as "magical psych-folk".

Stereo Total. Awesome.

Frog Eyes. Awesome.

the battle of algiers

This winter break I haven't watched nearly as many movies as I would have liked. I'm mostly spending my time on other things. For instance, my thesis proposal is about ready to be sent out again, hopefully for the second-to-last time. I'm reading two books: "In the Space of Theory", a geographic book by Matthew Sparks at the University of Washington, and "The Nick Adams Stories" by Ernest Hemingway.

The other day I watched one of the most incredible films, though, and thought that it would be worth 4 blogs if I could write that much on it. I won't attempt this, but hopefully this blog will effectively convey the wonder of this film.

"The Battle of Algiers" documents the resistance fighters in French-colonized Algeria of the late 1950's. While we often look back on Europe's colonial history with disdain, one of the most striking connections one could make with this movie is the parallel with current colonization: our occupation of Iraq. This blog is about the movie, however, so I must not digress.

This movie is effective in making you understand the fighters' imperative mission, while at the same time highlighting the reason their goals are so elusive. The French have barricaded Muslims into a particular area of the Algerian city, increased police enforcement, and even instituted a curfew. The freedom fighters have some advantages, though: the women can never be touched and rarely are searched, and the maze of the Muslim quarter's buildings allows for easy retreat from attacks.

What I really liked about this movie, aside from its documentary-style shots and impressive special effects, is its appeal to the watcher's emotions. Close-up shots (which I learned to love from Ingmar Bergman) show the honest desire for freedom, the fear of being caught, and the angst of those tortured prisoners. The closing scene is perhaps the most emotionally charged group-scene I've watched in a very long time.

Parallels to current events are incredible. I think most who support the war in Iraq should watch this movie- you can easily replace the French with Americans, and the Algerian setting with one of Iraq. Making this connection allows you to understand why Iraqis fight, and one of the reasons there is so much violence.

I would highly highly recommend this movie to film lovers and history-buffs alike. Wonderful film.