Monday, May 27, 2013
What To Do With All Your Old CDs ?
Some time back I posted some article about WHY VINYL SUCKS . Yep, I took a great stance against the new perceived elitist record buying status quo and went into great length on why buying CDs is better than vinyl, that is, if you are one of those people who still actually buy records.
A quick summary is thus: vinyl is making a comeback, which seems cool- but CDs still have more capacity, sound quality, cost way less, have more selection, are lighter and easier to store, and so on. If you are inclined to disagree, details are in the article so read it!
So it was safe to say I was all for CDs and very anti-vinyl right? Not entirely. I still admitted vinyl artwork was larger and nicer many a time, and there is this certain thing called 'vinyl magic' that CDs just don't have, just some auric kinda mojo. Nostalgia maybe, maybe something much more. Also, even though CDs TECHNICALLY have better sound in terms of clarity and frequency response, vinyl has more of a 'warm analog' sound that is conducive to great listening when it comes to such things like classic rock. If there happens to be hiss or clicks or pops on a used vinyl record,so be it, maybe that's part of the charm. If I had my way I'd enjoy BOTH vinyl and CDs, but you wouldn't catch me getting caught up in dumb hipster fads,shelling out typically 30 dollars and upwards for some new vinyl (you're lucky if you can go as cheap as $20). At least know what you're getting into. The companies will do whatever they can get away with for ca$h in their pockets. First vinyl wasn't good enough according to them, and now suddenly it was the best all along? C'mon!
Aright, and let's say nothing I could say could convince you of liking a CD, you are a 100% HARDCORE vinyl purist. Fine, to each their own. But you gotta do something with all those old CDs (if you still have 'em), and you can't always make much money selling them unless they are super rare. Here are some ideas:
Sunday, May 26, 2013
Art Dump Raid #1 ~Saturday Morning
IF you are looking for some cool new art or eye stimulation you could chance yourself upon some books about art in the library or do online searches, say. A bit more random and thrill- of- the- hunt-exciting or in your face is to go to a local art gallery. Another idea is to raid a paper recycling dump, or do both by checking out the paper recycling AT the gallery. All sorts of weird pics and promo flyers are chucked out, and you can discover something you likely wouldn't have seen normally. So much is under the radar.
Here's one painting I like that I found in such manner, 'Saturday Morning' by Cliff Turner. To check out more of his stuff, visit
http://cliffturnerfineart.squarespace.com/
http://www.gallery78.com/cturner.htm
Wednesday, May 22, 2013
Tuesday, May 21, 2013
Badass Crepe Recipe
DETAILED RECIPE FOR crêpes:
(with pancake ingredient comparisons..)
______________________________
*EQUIPMENT:
1 egg-beater/hand blender
1 whisk
2 spatulas
1 ladle
1 tablespoon (tbsp.)
1 teaspoon (tsp.)
2 mixing bowls
1 skillet (or 2 if you would like to cook 2 crêpes at once)
1 large plate______________________________
*INGREDIENTS:
Wet Ingredients~
MILK __________________1 cup
EGGS_________________ 2 (in comparison, pancakes would only use 1 egg.)
BUTTER________________2 tbsp.
Dry Ingredients~
FLOUR_____________________ 1 cup
SALT_______________________1/4 tsp.
(SUGAR-optional)_____________1 tbsp. (in comparison, pancakes would use 2 tbsps.)
(BAKING POWDER-optional)____a pinch (in comparison, pancakes would use 2 tbsps.)*makes one recipe/approx. 6 crêpes
______________________________
1.Mix wet ingredients in a mixing bowl, using some form of egg-beater or blender. Milk should not be too cold (preferably room temp.), and butter should be melted and blended in well with the eggs and milk. Beat vigorously to a fine consistency.
2.Mix dry ingredients in a separate mixing bowl, using a whisk. Almost any type of flour can be used but wheat flour is preferred for sweet crêpes and buckwheat flour for savoury crêpes. Sugar adds some flavour and a bit of golden brown color in the final cooking, though not traditionally part of most crêpe recipes. A pinch of baking powder can add a little stability and texture.
3.Begin preheating a skillet to high temperature, and add a trace coating of butter or oil on the bottom.
4.Very carefully add the dry ingredients into the bowl with the wet ingredients. Do not stir too much. Let the dry mix soak a bit and gently work out the clumps. Once you have a consistent batter, you are almost ready to start cooking.
5.Test the temperature of the skillet. If you put a few drops of water on it and they 'dance around', the skillet is probably an ideal temperature.
6.Ladle some batter into the center of the skillet. Quickly lift skillet and tilt around, spreading the batter into a thin large circle as best as you can. Wait until air bubbles are seen and the edges begin to curl and brown on the crêpe, then flip it with a grill spatula in a quick motion. Give the crêpe a few seconds to cook on the new side, roughly about half the time it took for the first side.
7. Scoop crêpe up, fully cooked, and put onto a clean plate. Repeat step 6 until you are at the last of your batter. Use a thin rubber spatula to scoop the batter out and make your last crêpe. Serve your crêpes with your choice of fine toppings- for example fruit, chocolate, whipped cream, ice cream, rum, cinnamon, cheese etc.
Ain't none rilla!
Penny Dreadful
Back in Victorian England there were these sensationalist comic stories usually in the form of horror, murder mysteries, adventure and so forth called 'penny dreadfuls'. They actually cost one penny (which of course was worth more then). They would evolve into dime novels and pulp fiction and full on comics and all the like. This particular cover struck me as...hmm..maybe the oldest inspiration for Batman? At least visually. Spring Heeled Jack himself was a folkloric figure/urban legend/some say real person. They described him as kind of diabolical looking and able to make great leaps and bounds, shoot fire etc. He was known to jump out randomly and attack people and just be an all around shit-disturber. Some claimed to have been him but later on upon further evidence this seemed not to be the case. It is said he was never really caught, but then again if he was just made up how do you catch a mere phantom of the mind?
Monday, May 20, 2013
Bimbo Cakes
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| I'd love to own this truck! |
Haha. Bimbo is like some Mexican bakery company and they happen to sell products in many Latin communities in the U.S. In Spanish 'Bimbo' is supposed to be a pretty innocuous name but in English it's hilarious since it means like, skanky whore girl!
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| I.E. ... |
Here are some pics of some fine Bimbo products, available at a bodega near you!
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| These Bimbunuelos actually taste pretty good, I tried 'em |
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| 'Negrito'. Uh...it won't offend any blacks, honest. Plus why does the cake look like a TURD? |
PS. 'Bimbocakes', besides the company, could be an endearing/insulting term rolled into one when you address someone like your girlfriend. I.E. "hey bimbocakes, want to see a movie tonight?" ...
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