Jesper Juul has posted a fascinating GIF, Tweeted by Brendon Sheffield on his page at the Ludologist. The GIF, “beating-snake,” is instantly recognizable to anyone who has played a variation of the simple game. In my case, I watched with rapt fascination as the game progressed to its conclusion. The GIF promised something that I … Continue reading
A year ago a student borrowed our university library’s copy of Dennis O’Rourke’s classic film, Cannibal Tours, and never returned. The film is out of print and it has been tough to find a replacement—a big inconvenience because this film is so well done. I know of few films that so effectively make viewers aware of … Continue reading
Last week while looking for a book on my bookshelf I happened upon a slim, blue-covered pamphlet wedged between two larger books. The moment I pulled it out I recognized it as something I hadn’t seen in many, many years—the Report on Putting Down Anti-Government Riot (关于反政府暴乱的报告). It was the official government account, in English, … Continue reading
“Types of machines are easily matched with each type of society—not that machines are determining, but because they express those social forms capable of generating them and using them.” —Gilles Deleuze “All play means something.” — Johan Huizinga When I was growing up, a boy in the upper midwestern United States in the final decades of … Continue reading
In China, pretty much everyone knows that the Internet is heavily policed. The people know. The government knows the people know. The people know the government knows the people know. In fact, the “open secret” of the Great Firewall is surely an important part of the way censorship works in China. Precisely because people know … Continue reading
Clearly massive hard drives are becoming like attics—places where forgotten things wait to be rediscovered. Yesterday while talking with a friend about the Oroqen people in China, I vaguely remembered that six or seven years ago a visual anthropologist in China had shared with me an old Communist-era ethnological film about them. I had saved … Continue reading
Tonight we decided to have a little fun with our food. Inspired by a photo of sausages connected by spaghetti, we were inspired to go one step further—to create a pastafarian meal in honor of His Noodliness, The Flying Spaghetti Monster. It went well with a glass of Hey Mambo Sultry Red. Click on the photos for … Continue reading
Last November a film blog that I regularly read shared a short documentary video that touched me in an unexpected way. It featured Christopher Dennis, a guy whose alter ego is Superman on Hollywood Boulevard. I had never heard of him before, but given my fascination and often adoration of people who create elaborate costumes … Continue reading
I can think of no better souvenir of a place of natural beauty like Big Sur than a vintage, commemorative, flask keychain shining with reflections of American heritage. A keychain. For car keys. For a car. For driving. With a flask. For alcohol. For Drinking. Seriously. This mystery object sends so many messages on so … Continue reading
Just a few days after the New Year, while in Los Angeles, we visited Hollywood Boulevard. While I don’t imagine the beautiful people do a lot of hanging around in that particular neighborhood, it is sacred ground for the global mythology of Hollywood. Visiting the “walk of fame” is, after all, what tourists are expected to do … Continue reading
