Watching

KFC
Lê Bình Giang
Vietnam, 2016

Daily Painting

William Blake
JACOB'S DREAM (1804 or 1805)

What's good for the goose is good for the gander.

Playing

Miles Davis
IN A SILENT WAY

DONALD TRUMP
Campaign Policy Speech - June 22, 2024

No water in your faucets. You ever try buying a new home and you turn on. You want to wash your hair or you wanna wash your hands. You turn on the water and it goes drip, drip the soap. You can't get it off your hand. So you keep it running for about 10 times longer. You trying, the worst is your hair. I have this beautiful luxuriant hair and I put stuff on. I put it in lather. I like lots of lather because I like it to come out extremely dry because it seems to be slightly thicker that way. And I lather up and then you turn on this crazy shower and the thing drip, drip and you say I'm gonna be here for 45 minutes. What? There's so much water. You don't know what to do with it. You know, it's called rain. It rains a lot in certain places. But, now their idea, you know, did you see the other day? They just, I opened it up and they closed it again. I opened it, they close it, washing machines to wash your dishes. There is a problem. They don't want you to have any water. They want no water.

Watching

EARTH VS. THE FLYING SAUCERS
Fred A. Sears
USA, 1956

Watching

THE TERRORNAUTS
Montgomery Tully
UK, 1967

Weird, creepy, controlling.

Don't forget christian extremists who don't believe shit about anything they spew and crashed Grindr during the RNC.

Not weird at all.

Playing

Billy Bragg
BREWING UP WITH BILLY BRAGG

BILLY BRAGG
“Strange Things Happen”

All winter long while I was locked in my room
Your face at the window and my hair on the floor
I was thinking of you
All winter long while I was locked in my room
Your face at the window and my hair on the floor
I was thinking of you
But the phone rang all night long
To tell me I was wrong
And I watched while the officer
Wrote all their ages down

Strange things happen
When you're not around
Our love is so strong
It moves objects in my house
Strange things happen
When you're not around
Those magical moments
Have found their way back home again

All winter long while I was locked in my room
Your face at the window and my hair on the floor
I was thinking of you
All winter long while I was locked in my room
Your face at the window
And that book of old spells
I was thinking of you
And all the spells we cast
Have lately come to pass
And the flowers in the garden have all fallen down

Strange things happen …

Daily Painting

Ganesh Pyne
THE LAUGHING ANIMAL (2001)

Currently Watching

THE SURVIVALIST
Stephen Fingleton
UK, 2015

Weirdos.

Definitely not a cult.

Playing

Dinosaur Jr.
GREEN MIND

MARGARET ATWOOD

The Handmaid's Tale

It was after the catastrophe, when they shot the president and machine-gunned the Congress and the army declared a state of emergency. They blamed it on the Islamic fanatics, at the time.

Keep calm, they said on television. Everything is under control.

I was stunned. Everyone was, I know that. It was hard to believe. The entire government, gone like that. How did they get in, how did it happen?

That was when they suspended the Constitution. They said it would be temporary. There wasn't even any rioting in the streets. People stayed at home at night, watching television, looking for some direction. There wasn't even an enemy you could point your finger at.

Newspapers were censored and some were closed down, for security reasons they said. The roadblocks began to appear, and Identipasses. Everyone approved of that, since it was obvious you couldn't be too careful.

Daily Painting(s)

Artists Unknown
From COMPENDIUM RARISSIMUM TOTIUS ARTIS MAGICAE SISTEMATISATAE PER CELEBERRIMOS ARTIS HUJUS MAGISTROS (1775)

[A VERY RARE COMPENDIUM OF THE WHOLE ART OF MAGIC SYSTEMATIZED BY THE MOST FAMOUS MASTERS OF THIS ART]

Watching

THE HATCHET MAN
William A. Wellman
USA, 1932

LADY FRANCIS

Dearest Gentle Reader,

I'm about to step on some toes in regard to the Opening Ceremony at the Paris Olympics.

The headless woman was Marie Antoinette. She ruled over France and was found guilty of treason, conspiracy, and stealing from the country.

Sound familiar?

Also, it was not the Last Supper. It was a depiction of an ancient Greek Bacchanal. Because, you know, the Olympics are ancient and Greek. Surprise!

And if you didn't know, a Bacchanalia is an uncontrollably promiscuous, extravagant, and loud party. The parties often spanned several days which honored the god of wine, Bacchus - the blue guy covered in grape vine. He is also known as Dionysus the Greek god of fertility, later known as the god of wine and pleasure.

And finally, it was not Death on a pale horse. It was Sequana, Goddess of the Seine, the river in which the boat precession took place. She is the representation of the Olympic spirit.

If some of you weren't so busy trying to end the Department of Education, you might know some of this.

Loosen the clutch on your pearls.

Yours truly,
Lady Francis

-

Disclaimer: Lady Francis is far more generous than I am.

Nothing to see here. Just a real man responding to the white evangelicals calling his wife "curry cunt."

(Still) Playing

World Party
ARKEOLOGY
Diary and Music Collection

MARGARET ATWOOD
The Handmaid's Tale

Ignoring isn’t the same as ignorance, you have to work at it.

-

MARGARET ATWOOD
The Handmaid's Tale

Better never means better for everyone… It always means worse, for some.

-

MARGARET ATWOOD
The Handmaid's Tale

A rat in a maze is free to go anywhere, as long as it stays inside the maze.

Currently Watching

MARTIN ROUMAGNAC
[American Title: THE ROOM UPSTAIRS]
Georges Lacombe
France, 1946

I Understand the Assignment.

I understand the assignment.

Playing

CLUB MOD on allclassical.org

Hosted by Andrea Murray

Playing

World Party
ARKEOLOGY
Diary and Music Collection

DONALD J. TRUMP
West Palm Beach, Florida - July 26, 2924

Christians, get out and vote! Just this time – you won’t have to do it anymore. You know what? It’ll be fixed! It’ll be fine.

You won’t have to vote any more, my beautiful Christians. I love you. Get out – you gotta get out and vote.

In four years, you don’t have to vote again. We’ll have it fixed so good, you’re not gonna have to vote.

-

WHAT THE ACTUAL FUCK?

Daily Painting

Richard Powers
COVER ART FOR PHILIP K. DICK'S THE MAN IN THE HIGH CASTLE (1974)

Watching

LOVELY, DARK, AND DEEP
Teresa Sutherland
USA, 2023

Reading

Albert Camus
LYRICAL AND CRITICAL ESSAYS

Edited and with Notes by Philip Thody
Translated from the French by Ellen Conroy Kennedy

Playing

GOLDEN AGE OF COUNTRY
Volume One - Waltz Across Texas

Hank Williams, George Jones, Loretta Lynn, Ernest Tubb, Conway Twitty, Roger Miller, Patsy Cline, Buck Owens, The Everly Brothers, Kitty Wells, Bill Monroe, Tom T. Hall, Bill Anderson, Webb Pierce, Kitty Wells, Johnny Cash, Patti Page, Wilburn Brothers, Roy Drusky, Jerry Lee Lewis, Osborne Brothers

VICE-PRESIDENT KAMALA HARRIS

We have to know that sometimes people will open the door for you and leave it open. Sometimes they won’t. And then you need to kick that fucking door down.

Daily Painting

Hieronymus Bosch
EXTRACTION OF THE STONE OF MADNESS OR, THE CURE OF FOLLY (ca.1505) 

Watching

SORCERER
William Friedkin
USA, 1977

Reading

Halldor Laxness
THE FISH CAN SING
[Brekkukotsannáll[

Translated by Magnus Magnusson

Fucking coward.

Playing

Nina Simone
HIGH PRIESTESS OF SOUL

Playing

Nina Simone
I PUT A SPELL ON YOU

DONALD J TRUMP

After lengthy deliberation and thought, and considering the tremendous talents of many others, I have decided that the person suited to assume the position of Vice President of the United States is Senator JD Vance of the Great State of Ohio.

-

SENATOR JD VANCE of the GREAT STATE OF OHIO

When you go to the polls in this country as a parent, you should have more power, you should have more of an ability to speak your voice in our democratic republic than people who don’t have kids. Let’s face the consequences and the reality. If you don’t have as much of an investment in the future of this country, maybe you shouldn’t get nearly the same voice.

Now people will say - and I’m sure The Atlantic and The Washington Post, all the usual suspects will criticize me about this in the the coming days - doesn’t this mean that non-parents don’t have as much of a voice as parents? Doesn’t this mean that parents get a bigger say in how our democracy functions?

Yes. Absolutely.

___________________________________________________

APPARENTLY NECESSARY BREAKING NEWS:

The transcript of the craven, dangerous, and misogynist idiocy and christo-fascism pf a scumbag like JD Vance is not just agreeing with him and could even [gasp] be pointing out the lethal threat he poses to ALL WOMEN as well as making his hatred of women known to the general public. In the immortal words of Marcia Bauer, “Say that comment aloud three times before you type it.”

Daily Painting

Michael D'Antuono
A TALE OF TWO HOODIES (2012)

Watching

JEKYLL
Parts 3 and 4
Giorgio Albertazzi
Italy, 1969

Playing

Nina SImone
FOUR WOMEN

NINA SIMONE
"Four Women"

My skin is black
My arms are long
My hair is woolly
My back is strong
Strong enough to take the pain
inflicted again and again
What do they call me
My name is AUNT SARAH
My name is Aunt Sarah

My skin is yellow
My hair is long
Between two worlds
I do belong
My father was rich and white
He forced my mother late one night
What do they call me
My name is SAFFRONIA
My name is Saffronia

My skin is tan
My hair is fine
My hips invite you
my mouth like wine
Whose little girl am I?
Anyone who has money to buy
What do they call me
My name is SWEET THING
My name is Sweet Thing

My skin is brown
my manner is tough
I'll kill the first mother I see
my life has been too rough
I'm awfully bitter these days
because my parents were slaves
What do they call me
My name is PEACHES

Daily Painting

William H. Johnson
FOLK SCENE - EVICTION (1942)

Watching

JEKYLL
Parts 1 and 2
Giorgio Albertazzi
Italy, 1969

Playing

RHAPSODIES ON BLACK
Music and Words from the Harlem Renaissance

-

Including:

Ethel Waters, Eubie Blake, Mamie Smith,. Ida Cox, Rosa Henderson, Bessie Smith, Trixie Smith, Cleo Brown, Ma Rainey, Margaret Johnson, Gladys Bentley, Alberta Hunter, Victoria Spivey, Eartha Kitt, Georgia White, Blind Willie Dunn, Fats Waller, August Wilson, Betty Carter, Fletcher Henderson, Louis Armstrong, Duke Ellington, James P. Johnson

VICE PRESIDENT KAMALA HARRIS

Before I was elected vice-president, before I was elected United States senator, I was elected attorney general of the state of California, and I was a courtroom prosecutor before then. And in those roles, I took on perpetrators of all kinds: predators who abused women, fraudsters who ripped off consumers, cheaters who broke the rules for their own gain.

So hear me when I say, I know Donald Trump’s type.

Daily Painting

Norman Rockwell
THE PROBLEM WE ALL LIVE WITH (1963)

-

From The Kennedy Center website:

This is what actually happened to Ruby Bridges on her first day at William Franz Elementary School in New Orleans on November 14, 1960. Ruby was the first African American child to attend the school after a federal court ordered the New Orleans school system to integrate. The public outcry was so great that white parents withdrew their children from school so they would not have to sit with a Black girl. Ruby spent an entire year in a classroom by herself.

Artist and magazine illustrator Norman Rockwell is known for his idyllic images of American life in the twentieth century. But his work had a new sense of purpose in 1960s when he was hired by LOOK magazine. There, he produced his famous painting The Problem We All Live With, a visual commentary on segregation and the problem of racism in America. The painting depicts Ruby’s courageous walk to school on that November day. She dutifully follows faceless men—the yellow armbands reveal them to be federal marshals—past a wall smeared with racist graffiti and the juice of a thrown tomato. The canvas is arranged so that the viewer is at Ruby’s height, seeing the scene from her perspective.

Rockwell’s painting, created a few years after Ruby made her fateful entrance at school, was produced at the height of the Civil Rights Movement. It is now considered a symbol of that struggle. Bridges never met Rockwell, but as an adult, she came to admire his decision to tell her story: “Here was a man that had been doing lots of work, painting family images, and all of a sudden decided this is what I’m going to do…it’s wrong, and I’m going to say that it’s wrong…the mere fact that [Norman Rockwell] had enough courage to step up to the plate and say I’m going to make a statement, and he did it in a very powerful way…even though I had not had an opportunity to meet him, I commend him for that.”

Watching

PROJECT WOLF HUNTING
Kim Hong-sun
Korea, 2022

Reading

Adam Zagajewski
A DEFENSE OF ARDOR - ESSAYS

Translated by Clare Cavanagh