Maybe some of you already knew this story, but I hadn't heard about it despite being a big fan (as at least several other MvC bloggers are) of this brilliant record. I'm a sucker for these kind of mysteries about successful misanthropes, particularly artists, who shun fame and glory.
If you haven't heard In the Aeroplane, you can check it out some samples here.
By the time magazines started paying attention, toward the end of 1998, Mangum already had one foot out the door. Worn down by months of touring, he grew fed up with discussing himself and explaining his lyrics, eventually declining to accept any calls—yet friends say he still fixated on every word written about him. As his bandmates pressed him to capitalize on Neutral Milk Hotel's success, he withdrew more and more. When R.E.M. offered a chance to open for them, he said no. And for the last decade, that's nearly all he's said.
I'm sure having to constantly self-analyze can be tiresome and thinking up responses to insipid and tedious questioning from self-important journalists could be infuriating, but... as someone who views live music performance as sometimes transcendent experiences (not to mention the more superficial perks of fame - constant ego-stroking, cheering approval, groupies, parties, etc.) I'm not sure I can fully understand totally unplugging like this. I guess thats what intrigues me about people who decide to. Is it lunacy? Brilliance? A superior value system? Incredible insecurities?
Or maybe I just like hearing about talented people dealing with their demons...
Feb 29, 2008
Feb 28, 2008
You may find this very therapeutic: http://glumbert.com/wii/view.php?name=baddayoffice
Feb 27, 2008
Update from the front lines of the secular liberal scientific revolution: So Fresh and So Clear!
Day 3 of the experiment and I decided that it was time to check in on the process. As you can see, so far there is no mold. Tomorrow I will place a glass of fruit juice beside the beer to make a two day comparison.
Feb 25, 2008
Anyone who has chanced to bring up the topic with me knows that I have been on a campaign against Tim Burton for some time now. Recently, as in last night, I got to thinking about Johnny Depp and his association with Tim Burton. Johnny has always gotten carte blanche as a good actor and has been above reproach for his continued questionable relations. That was until he got nominated for best actor in while starring in one of Burton's stinkfests. I thought, upon seeing that, man, how long has it been since Johnny has been in anything good. I could remember when the last time was where he was in a good movie and his role actually made me think 'damn, he's a good actor'.
So I pulled up his IMDB site (and before we go any further, perhaps you should pull up Johnny's and Tim's sites) and checked it out. Turns out Johnny has been in some good movies, and Tim has even directed some good movies (though it's a short list as you will see). Let's go through their respective resumes, shall we?
Johnny Depp:
Good Movies: (note, I am only considering movies already made, and those made after Cry Baby. Also nothing from TV is inlcuded)
Edward Scissor Hands, What's Eating Gilbert Grape, Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas.
Decent or Enjoyable Movies:
Pirates of the Caribbean 1, Blow, Chocolat, Cry Baby, Ed Wood, Corpse Bride, Finding Neverland.
Bad Movies:
From Hell, Secret Window, Sleepy Hollow, Astronaut's Wife, Pirates 2 and 3, Charlie and the Chocolate Factory, The Ninth Gate.
And the rest I haven't seen (notable mentions: Sweeney Todd, Once Upon a time in Mexico, Dead Man, and Donnie Brasco.)
Tim Burton:
Good Movies:
Pee-Wee's Big Adventure, Nightmare Before Christmas, Beetle Juice, and Edward Scissor Hands.
Decent or Enjoyable Movies:
Batman, Batman Returns, and Ed Wood.
Bad Movies:
Big Fish, Sleepy Hollow, Planet of the Apes, Mars Attacks!, Charlie and the Chocolate Factory, Corpse Bride.
And I haven't seen Sweeney Todd (nor plan to) or the World of Stain Boy.
What does this mean? Well it's easy with Burton. Look at the dates and you see that he started off well as all of his good movies were early in his career, and then he faded. Until now where his most recent movies aren't worth watching, except for the fact that he maintains his ability as an artistic director. His movies continue to be visually entertaining, sadly he fails to get much from his actors. Plus he breaks one of my cardinal rules for film making: Never remake a good movie. And he not only broke this rule but did it twice (Charlie and the Chocolate Factory and Planet of the Apes). At this point I have written him off as worth watching.
But what about Johnny Depp? There's no question that he has some skill as an actor, that he is charismatic, and handsome. But does he make good movies? I have to say no. When you have something like thirty movie credits to your name and only three of them are good, that doesn't reflect well on you. At least part of it is he doesn't seem to be very good at picking scripts. While his roles in each of the above movies tend to be entertaining, the movies themselves tend to not be. And it can't be that he doesn't get offers. He also seems to be banking on earlier success, with his last good movie coming out in 1998 (Fear and Loathing). This actually surprised me, and saddened me, but I think I have to declare that Johnny Depp is not a great actor.
Of course this is all opinion and therefore arguable. But if there is one lesson to be learned here
it is this: Don't see movies directed by Tim Burton and starring Johnny Depp.
Feb 23, 2008
At a recent social event, Moon Tramp and I found ourselves engaged in meaningful conversation and, as is often the case with these situations, the topic drifted toward scientific theory. Now it must be said that, while the Moon Tramp and Space Zombie schools of scientific theory find many similarities, there are some fundamental differences in our approaches to the subject. Science Schmience... Book-Learnin' Mmmm....yummy! Science in Action--Day 1
This particular discussion was on the antiseptic qualities of alcohol--particularly beer--and my hastily formed hypothesis that beer is sterile enough to be resistant to bacterial contamination. Moon Tramp muttered back some gibberish about evaporation rates and aerobic processes. Needless to say our discussion was going nowhere--Moon Tramp refused to accept my opinion as scientific fact, no matter how loudly I voiced it or how often I repeated it and I had no idea what he was talking about. Even after, in a heartfelt show of support for blind faith in opinion against logic, Mr. and Mrs. Mailman consumed the contents of a putrid bottle of curdled Bailey's Irish Cream 
Therefore, I resolved to undertake the following experiment:
For the next five days, I will leave a glass of Coors Light (4.2% abv) 
Feb 22, 2008
A while back I was talking to Mrs. Milkman, we were discussing two television shows, both canceled and both formerly on Fox. The two shows in question were Freaks and Geeks and Arrested Development. Mrs. Tramp and I had just finished Freaks and Geeks and were just starting Arrested Development. I was telling Mrs. Milkman that I thought that Freaks and Geeks was great and that there was no way in which Arrested Development could be as good. She disagreed. Here's the problem; neither one of us had watched more then a few episodes of the other series. So as a solution I said I would watch the first season of Arrested Development (there was only on season of Freaks and Geeks before it got canceled) and then write a review of the two of them on MvC. So, as promised, here it is.
Freaks and Geeks:
Premise: Follows Lindsay, who is a sophomore in high school. In the first episode we learn that her grandma has just died, an event that has driven Lindsay to reevaluate her young life. She finds it lacking and so decides to hang out with cooler people. In short we watch her trying to make the jump from a geek (she was a mathelete) to a freak (or in other words a pot smoking "wastoid"). The show ends up focusing on two groups of friends. First you have the Freaks, who Lindsay hangs out with, who consist of Nick, Daniel, Ken, and Kim. Second you have the Geeks, who are made up of Sam (Lindsay's little brother), Bill, and Niel. Episodes generally focus primarily on one of those characters, and some various drama that they are going through as the try and grow up.
Review: Really a quality show. It was a terrible disgrace that it got canceled after one season when shows like Everybody Loves Raymond or King of Queens go on and on and on. It delivers on multiple levels. Since it follows the lives of freaks and geeks (both of which your's truly might have been at one time or another), and does so with great accuracy, watching the show can be somewhat of a cathartic experience. I found that most everything that occurred had either happened to me in high school or at least to a friend of mine. Some times it's painful, but mostly it's enjoyable watching someone else have to fight through what you did. It is done in such an up beat fashion that it avoids wallowing in the misery that some of the events portrayed could lead to. It alternates through a full cycle of emotions. At times it's hilarious, others it's tragic and touching. And still are embarrassing or thought provoking. Really I could not recommend it more (unless of course high school was the best time of your life, and then it might not be fore you).
Arrested Development:
Premise: Follows the Bluth family. A rich family that owns a company that manufactures track homes. In the first episode George Bluth, the father and CEO of the company, is arrested for embezzling funds among other offenses. The story then focuses on Michael Bluth, the only sane and at least somewhat functional member of the Bluth family. It falls on his shoulders to try and hold the family together, while also trying to get his father out of prison, and trying to keep the Bluth Corp. solvent and functioning. The family consists of George Sr (father), Lucille (mother), Gob (oldest brother), Michael (sane brother), Lindsay (sister), Tobias (Lindsay's gay husband), Buster (youngest brother), Maeby (Lindsay's daughter), and George-Michael (Michael's son). Each member of the family is crazy in a different way. The show primarily revolves around each members hair-brained schemes and the family dynamics.
Review: A very funny show. It builds upon itself and so fairly complex story lines develop. Mostly it errs on the side of the ridiculous. The show works because each of the characters are unique and strong. The actors that play them are skilled and work well off of each other. The plots tend to be so ridiculous that if it weren't for the quality of the writing I'm not sure it would work. Nothing here that will change your life, just a good solid funny show.
Head to Head: Well, they are very different types of shows. In the end I have to say that Freaks and Geeks is the better of the two. What it comes down to is that Freaks and Geeks has more depth. There is more going on. The characters are more realistic, and the plot lines are things that actually happen. While I enjoy Arrested Development, and will most definitely finish the series, all that it leaves me with is a good laugh, whereas the stories in Freaks and Geeks stick around a little more. So really, it depends on what you are looking for. I would recommend both shows, but for me Freaks and Geeks is the better of the two.
Feb 20, 2008
Haha Frenchies! Try taking the legs off of this bastard.
WASHINGTON (Reuters) - It was the biggest, baddest, meanest froggy ever to have hopped on Earth.
Scientists on Monday announced the discovery in northwestern Madagascar of a bulky amphibian dubbed the "devil frog" that lived 65 million to 70 million years ago and was so nasty it may have eaten newborn dinosaurs.
This brute was larger than any frog living today and may be the biggest frog ever to have existed, according to paleontologist David Krause of Stony Brook University in Stony Brook, New York, one of the scientists who found the remains.
Its name, Beelzebufo ampinga, came from Beelzebub, the Greek for devil, and bufo -- Latin for toad. Ampinga means "shield," named for an armor-like part of its anatomy.
Beelzebufo (pronounced bee-el-zeh-BOOF-oh) was 16 inches
long and weighed an estimated 10 pounds (4.5 kg).
It was powerfully built and possessed a very wide mouth and powerful jaws. It probably didn't dine daintily.
"It's not outside the realm of possibility that Beelzebufo took down lizards and mammals and smaller frogs, and even -- considering its size -- possibly hatchling dinosaurs," Krause said in a telephone interview.
"It would have been quite mean," added paleontologist Susan Evans of University College London, another of the scientists.
Their findings were published in the journal Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences.
Even though it lived far away, Beelzebufo appears to be closely related to a group of frogs that live today in South America, the scientists said. They are nicknamed "Pac-Man" frogs due to their huge mouths. Some have little horns on their heads, and the scientists think Beelzebufo also may have had horns -- a fitting touch for the "devil frog."
Beelzebufo was bigger than any of its South American kin or any other living frog -- "as if it was on steroids," Krause said. The largest one today is the goliath frog of West Africa, up to 12.5 inches long and 7.2 pounds (3.3 kg).
The presence of Beelzebufo in Madagascar and its modern relatives in South America is the latest sign a long-lost land bridge once may have linked Madagascar to Antarctica -- much warmer then -- and South America, the scientists said.
That would have let animals move overland among those land masses. Fossils have been found of other animals in Madagascar from Beelzebufo's time similar to South American ones.
KING OF FROGS
The first frogs appeared about 180 million years ago, and their basic body plan has remained unchanged. Beelzebufo lived during the Cretaceous Period at the end of the age of dinosaurs, which went extinct along with many other types of animals 65 million years ago when a huge space rock clobbered Earth.
Beelzebufo did not live an aquatic lifestyle, hopping among lily pads, the scientists said. Instead, it lived in a semi-arid environment and may have hunted like its modern-day relatives, which camouflage themselves and jump out at prey.
Its first fragmentary fossils were found in 1993, and the scientists have since assembled enough fragments to piece its remains together like a jigsaw puzzle, Krause said.
While it was the king of frogs, Beelzebufo is not the largest amphibian ever to have lived. Many reached truly astounding dimensions, such as the crocodile-like Prionosuchus that grew to an estimated 30 feet during the Permian Period, which ended about 250 million years ago.
Feb 15, 2008
The state of Oregon purchased 650 acres on Eight Dollar Mountain yesterday for $849,000.
The reason I am posting about this, for those who aren't in the know, Eight Dollar Mountain is in the Illinois Valley (Cave Junction area) where Zombie, A Joker, Obie-one, and I crash landed our spaceship many years ago. It is an amazing place, known for its rare plants, some of which live nowhere else on earth. One of those rare plants is the Darlingtonia, pictured below.
They are planning on adding hiking trails and informational signs for visitors. This place is special to me and I am so happy to know that it will be protected for the future.
Read the article here.
Feb 12, 2008
Check this out.... A cat that was born with two faces.
I guess this happens once and awhile, but they usually die. This cat, however, is perfectly healthy. He only has one mouth, but has two noses, and 3 eyes (although only two of the eyes work).
The coolest part is that the lady gave him two names, one for each face... Frank is the left side and Louie is the right.
Here is the original story.
the sloth clued me in on this one:
BREMERTON — A woman told police she mistakenly deposited a bag of methamphetamine into her account at an ATM in Bremerton.
She says in charging papers that she accidentally put the drug in the envelope when she reached into her pocket for money.
An employee of the Kitsap Credit Union told police that a bag showed up in a deposit envelope for the woman's account. It tested positive for meth.
She was arrested Thursday and charged Friday with felony drug possession.
--Seattle Times, Monday
Feb 8, 2008
Apparently George Bush's approval rating has hit some sort of all-time low at 30%. My reaction is not "Man, thats low!", but WTF are these 30% of people thinking. Is 30% of the country really that stupid? Generously, I'll grant 5% or so a pass an assume they are just really rich people who are thinking entirely in their own short-sighted self-interests. But the other quarter of the country?!? Is the criteria of doing a good job just entail bothering to show up to work to these people? Does successfully appointing conservative justices to the supreme court outweigh all the economic, geopolitical, and legal screw-ups. Sigh.
Feb 6, 2008
jesus-is-savior.com
Not only is the subject matter idiotic, but the design is atrocious.
