#fonz viewer

[fitsofgloom]

"Aaaaaaayyyyyyy, baby, ever wanna be in pictures?"

[tuttle-did-it]

It's an interesting discussion, @freezerspace. I did both fan art and political statements.

For me there is a distinct difference-- political rebellion was painting Winchester realising there's a bullet hole through his hat, and fan art was putting up a portrait of Fonzie.

I did both. I enjoyed both.

A fan portrait was done with the intent to make someone smile-- 'oh, how funny-- someone sprayed Fonzie up there on the building. Random.'

A political piece was done with the intent to protest. It was done with the intent to assault your eyes, to make someone stop and stare. To make you think-- even just for a second-- of all the bloodshed that our governments continue to fund, and never seems to stop. The images were meant to disturb your day. Meant to offend.

Motive mattered to me when I was putting it up there. But, for anyone who saw it, that motive may have been lost. So if it was a political statement and someone fails to get the protest, is it still a protest? I'm not sure. But I did it anyway.

Back in my misspent youth, I was a graffiti artist. And I went around spraying buildings with M*A*S*H images. Here is one such image. I know it's hard to gauge size, but these stencils were about the size of a small car.

I may post a few more if anyone is interested.

[aboysbestfriendishismum]

Chapter 61 - Shirts, questions and the Fonz with a moustache

In the previous chapter: Jerry goes on his blind date and meets Heather. Surprisingly, she too reveals that she's not interested in meeting guys at the moment. Realizing that they are very similar and in the same situation, she convinces Jerry to pretend that the two of them are dating so as to be left alone by their respective friends. During a question-and-answer game between Stone and Grace, the two discuss how she hasn't let him sleep with her in her bed yet due to her insecurities. In the end Stone manages to calm her down and convince her to take this step with him. Eddie and Angie finally manage to spend an evening together, with pizza and horror movies. Eddie tries again to make her change her mind about Cameron Crowe's film and reveals that for him it's a special occasion: exactly one month has passed since their first kiss. Angie feels guilty because she hadn't thought about the anniversary at all, not being used to this type of things in her past relationships.

***

He fills me up, he gives me love More love than I've ever seen He's all I got, he's all I got in this world But he's all the man that I need

To a casual observer this scene might seem surreal, I must admit. If my life was a TV series and today's episode began with this scene from this morning, as a viewer, a thousand alarm bells would go off for me, ranging from "It's an alternative reality resulting from time travel gone wrong” to “A catastrophe is just about to happen.” Because me, Angie Pacifico, making pancakes on a Wednesday morning, still in my robe despite having class in just over an hour, dancing to the top 100 on the radio and singing (destroying) Whitney Houston is not something you see every day. I actually turned the volume up for Eddie because I suspect that I-never-sleep-I-only-live-at-night-in-san-diego-I-went-surfing-at-the-crack-of-dawn guy has no intention of getting out of bed. This morning I opened my eyes before my killer alarm clock and I promptly deactivated it to let him rest. I took the fastest and quietest shower ever and now I'm here. Since we are always in a rush and don't spend time together regularly, it seemed like a nice thing to prepare a nice breakfast to spoil him a little and be able enjoy a few more minutes together, sitting at a table, talking and joking, rather than sharing the usual quick bye and go each their own way. And I'm also including Meg in this because, with the end of school approaching, the tattoo thing and all the side jobs she's taking on to supplement her income, even having a nice chat with my roommate has become complex. I thought the smell of breakfast and coffee would be enough to give Ed a sweeter good morning than my hated alarm clock, but I was wrong. I pour another big scoop of dough into the pan and smile when I hear the sound of the shower water running, thinking that my melodious chanting has done its duty, but I immediately change my mind when I hear Meg's voice singing along to the chorus of Freedom 90. Well, if I didn't make it, she'll take care of throwing him out of bed with the help of George Michael.

I take the plate with all the pancakes and put it in the center of the table, the bottle of chocolate syrup is already there. Since I don't want to be seen as someone who only eats junk, I decide to also get some yogurt and fruit, which always goes well on pancakes. I head towards the fridge dancing, but not before shouting EVERYBODY DANCE NOW! together with the radio. I stick my head into the fridge and when I back up and close the door I almost have a heart attack and almost project yogurt and berries on to the ceiling.

"EDDIE!"

"Hey," he says to me, leaning against the doorframe, sleepy and smiling.

"WHAT THE FUCK" I leave everything on the table safely and regain color.

"Good morning to you too, kitten"

"Fucking kitten, you appear like this out of nowhere, you scared the fuck out of me!"

"Forgive me, I didn't want to scare you. It's just that… you were all focused on dancing, I couldn't interrupt you" he explains with that adorable stupid face that… nothing, I have class in an hour, I can't think about these things .

“How long have you been there?”

"A little while" he's still standing at the kitchen door. Still standing there in just his boxers and his black and red plaid button down shirt. I repeat, Angie , YOU CAN'T THINK ABOUT THAT NOW.

"You could have found an alternative and gentler way to announce your presence, right?" I go back to the unlit stove and pretend to turn it off, then move to the sink and pretend to fiddle with something else until I feel his hands on my shoulders.

"And miss this show? I'm not that stupid" he kisses my cheek and then rests his chin on my right shoulder.

"The ideal show for a traumatic awakening. Hey, be careful or you'll get burnt, it's still hot" I warn him when I see him reach out for the pan, perhaps to put it to wash.

"I'm already on fire anyway" he puts everything in the sink and then hugs me from behind, leaning on me again.

"Eheheh what?"

“Do you have any idea how sexy you were?” he whispers as his fucking grabby hands do the work.

"Am I sexy in the kitchen? At the stove? In one of the stereotyped roles in which the most vulgar sexism imprisons women?" I turn towards him in an attempt to get him off me, but with little success.

“I actually meant dancing in a robe, but honestly this is even fucking better” very poor considering now he's just grabbed at my ass and his mouth is getting dangerously close to my sweet spot on my neck.

"Oh ok so… years of struggles for women's emancipation reduced to a fetish? Feminism that exists only for the sexual gratification of you, straight white man?"

"Stop it or I'll have to fuck you here and now" he backs away from my neck just long enough to point this thing out in my ear, and then goes back to his actions.

"Eheh, you can't anyway" I push him away perhaps too impulsively, I turn around again and start filling the sink with water and then take the dish detergent.

"Why?" please, Eddie, you're not helping right now.

"Because… because Meg is over there…" and again, his hands on my hips "And then we have to eat and I have to go to class"

"Ok, wait," Eddie turns off the tap, takes my hand and, pushing me into a sort of pirouette, forces me to turn towards him again "point A"

"Haha, you even have points ready first thing in the morning!"

"I was born ready. Point A: Meg is over there, she's not here" first he looks towards the door, then directs his eye back towards me and winks.

"But she can arrive at any moment" I reply, but I'm not as quick to fight against his hands, which start unbuttoning my robe.

"We just need to pay attention when we hear Mariah Carey coming over," he jokes, making fun of the song she's singing now.

"What if we're too distracted?" I close a button, he unbuttons two.

"Point B:" he continues, not caring about my objections, "we can still eat... after..."

"After what?" he just looks up to smile at me, without a word.

"Point C: I'll give you a ride to class so you won't be late" and there go two more buttons.

"But-" I try to protest, not so strongly. He silences me by kissing me, softly, but with a certain firmness, and now my robe is completely open.

"Come on, let's go to your room, five minutes"

"It will never be five minutes, Eddie"

"Wanna bet?" my robe is on the floor and his hands are under my pajama top, threatening to send that flying too. Until a detail belatedly catches my attention.

"Eddie, da-… um, sorry, but what are you wearing?"

"I'm overdressed, right? I'll fix in a sec!" he wiggles his eyebrows like an idiot, starts to take off his shirt, but I stop him.

"No, I mean, don't you see what you've got on? Didn't you notice?" I start laughing and this very moment he start to give in a little and lets go of me. I take the opportunity to pull myself together and retrieve my dressing gown from the floor.

"What is it? Did I put it on backwards?" he looks at his shirt without understanding, and then looks at me, sulkily, when I put my robe back on.

"No, you put it on just right, but it's mine, can't you see?" I reveal by caressing his chest (Jesus!) with the excuse of pointing out the pockets on the front of my checked shirt, very similar to his "Yours doesn't have these"

"Oh shit, in the daze of waking up I must have taken yours instead of mine, they look the same"

"How did you not notice? Can't you see that it's a girl's shirt? The buttons are on the other side" I button up a couple of them and in doing so I notice how comfortable my shirt looks on him. Very comfy. Too comfy. He swims in it. It's obvious he didn't notice, if I was a nice size SMALL or EXTRASMALL he wouldn't be able to fit a single arm in this fucking shirt. But no, he didn't pay attention to it, because his girlfriend is a heavyweight. Well he should have noticed for the opposite reason, that is that he could fit his whole band in that shirt.

"Ah! That's why I couldn't fucking button it up! I felt stupid, for a moment I thought I was stoned or was having an aneurysm or something hahaha"

"You're insane" I shake my head and take the plates to put them on the table, turning my back to him to not to show him my face, darkened by the previous thoughts. Why does my brain always have to ruin the best moments?

"I know, I know. Anyway it's comfortable and it smells like you, I think I'll keep it. Can I?" I turn around in puzzlement and when I look at him he takes the hems of the shirt and closes them tightly over his chest, miming a hug. Then he shoves his nose against the fabric of the sleeve and pretends to be inebriated by my perfume, emitting a dramatic satisfied sigh.

“Which shitty romantic comedy did you come from, can you explain?” I look at him perplexed and on the inside I thank him for making me forget my fucking negative thoughts in a second.

"I'm not romantic and I'm not funny" he replies very seriously.

"And in any case the cliché should be the other way around: in any self-respecting romance flick, it's the girl who gets up in the morning and puts on her man's shirt or t-shirt. And he obviously enjoys the view"

"And since when do you respect gender clichés? Why is it always the male eye only that needs to be pleased?" he leans back on the kitchen counter and as he does so the edges of his shirt widen again.

"Shut up or I'll have to… um… jump on you here and now" I half-quote his line from earlier.

"...said the girl, giving him an excellent reason not to stop at all." Eddie walks up to me again in a threatening way (yeah, okay…), but this time it goes badly for him. I think I've never loved and hated Mariah Carey at the same time as much as now.

"Somedaaay Hey Heeeey! Oh hi guys, good morning" Meg enters the kitchen and I don't know if she doesn't notice me and Eddie because her attention is all on the table or if she's just pretending.

"HI"

"Good morning Meg" Eddie and I drift apart like two magnets placed in front of each other. He turns around trying to fasten the remaining buttons on his/my shirt, even though they're backwards, while I dedicate myself to distributing the pancakes on the plates.

“Did I interrupt something?” I correct myself, she noticed and doesn't even pretend she didn't, while she squeezes chocolate onto her pancakes.

“Yes, a debate about feminism” Eddie gives me a flying kiss on the cheek and sits down at the table.

"You can't just flirt like normal couples, huh?" Meg winks at me as I sit down too, resigned to her comments.

"We're not normal individually, let alone as a couple" observes Eddie and he's not entirely wrong. He also goes for the chocolate syrup, so the only one who will give a change to the yogurt will be me, obviously.

“Anyway, when are you going to ask him him to move in here with us?” Meg looks at me first and then, this time, the wink is for Eddie.

"What??"

"So we'll have the cool breakfast every morning"

"If you want pancakes, just ask, no need to get Eddie involved" I mutter as he and Meg laugh loudly at my expense.

“Did you call Crowe?” Meg gives me another jab when she's halfway through her pancakes and it's clear that I'm her favorite target this morning.

"No, I didn't call him"

"And when will you call him?"

"Well, I don't know, I-"

"If you want, I'll take care of it," Eddie saves me in every sense, intervening in the conversation and pouring me some more coffee into the half-empty cup, "I'll tell him when I see him"

"You tell him Angie accepts?!" Meg remains with her fork in mid-air in front of her open mouth and is about to have a bitter surprise.

"Actually, no. I mean, I understood no, or maybe I'm wrong?" Eddie looks alternately between my roommate and me.

"No, you're not wrong, as I already told you, I have decided to refuse" I reassure him and prepare for hell.

"WHAT THE FUCK?" Meg drops her fork on her plate and looks at me reproachfully.

"Because, as I already, told you multiple times, it's not for me"

"And you? Don't you have anything to tell her?" Eddie, who evidently appreciated my culinary efforts because he has already cleaned his plate polishing off every crumbs, pauses for a few seconds, keeping the napkin over his mouth before speaking.

"Um? Me? Why? What should I say?"

"What should you say?! Convince her, right?" Meg looks at both of us like we're idiots.

"Well, we talked about it. Personally I think it's a great opportunity, but if Angie doesn't feel like doin'g it, then she shouldn't do it. I don't want to put pressure on her or anything like that." Eddie gets up, puts the plate in the sink along with the cup, after finishing his coffee.

"I, on the other hand, really wanna put all the pressure on you. I mean, without an external push you would never do a damn thing, you wouldn't even be here! And then I think you're making a huge mistake by saying no! And you should tell her too, if you care about her" my friend shuffles in her seat, she didn't expect to find herself in the minority.

"I do care. And since I care I want her to be free to choose what to do. If she took part to the movie just to make us happy, it would be useless. At least, that's what I think." Eddie explains his thesis and then approaches me again and gives me another quick kiss on the lips "I'm going to shower and get dressed. With the right clothes this time"

I look at him dreamily as he leaves the kitchen and walks away, until I meet Meg's questioning gaze.

"Hehe it's because he wore the wrong shirt, he wore mine instead of his... because in the dark they looked the same to him eheh"

"This is not the explanation I'm looking for"

"What do you mean?"

"What did you tell him?"

"Him who?"

"Eddie! He's suddenly so careful not to offend your feelings, what did you say to him?" he crosses his arms and looks at me defiantly.

“What makes you think I said anything to him?”

"I know you. And, even if a little less, I know him too"

"Can't it be that he just believes what he said?"

"No. He didn't believe it when he forced you to play basketball with the band, play drums at Cameron's party, go up the Space Needle, make out in front of an entire club full of people for two hours. I don't see why he would have changed his mind now, unless you intervened in some way" Meg aggressively counts my adventures on her fingers.

“Aren't you going to finish your pancakes?”

"No, I won't give you the slightest culinary satisfaction until you speak" and she knows that it bothers me a lot, she's using strong methods.

"But I have nothing to say"

"What did you tell him?"

"Nothing"

"What did you really tell him?"

"Hahaha NOTHING!"

“Did you promise him sexual favors?”

"He's my boyfriend, he already has my favors, I don't need to promise anything to him"

"Maybe favors that are... a little kinkier than usual?"

"No!"

"Just tell me then or these pancakes are gonna end up in the bin" Meg takes the plate, gets up and stands in front of the dustbin.

"You wouldn't dare"

"Wanna bet?" maintaining eye contact with me, she slowly puts her foot on the bin's pedal and the lid opens up with a click.

"Well, it's not like I told him anything specific…"

"HA! You did say something to him, then?!" the lid closes, but she doesn't move.

"I talked to him about the fact that I wouldn't be comfortable being an actress"

"Mmmm"

"And that I would have too many lines to memorize"

"And?"

"That the presence of Tim Burton would have put me in difficulty"

"Okay... and?"

"And that I would have been hypercritical and would never want to see that film again if I had been in it… Maybe, due to the trauma, I would never set foot on a movie set again"

"Only that?" Meg's little foot still rests on the pedal of the dustbin.

"Only that?! I basically told him that it could put my entire career at risk."

"Okay. And then, what else did you tell him?" Meg doesn't give up and I feel I'm about to capitulate, I have no other choice.

“And well, I may have added some plot details…”

"THERE YOU GO. Tell me about these details" Meg realized she finally had me in her under her thumb and she sits back down at the table, placing the plate in front of her.

"I might have told him that, while skimming through the script, I had read of something I didn't feel like doing"

“What the hell of a story did you make up, Angie?” my friend shakes her head and grabs her fork again.

"I didn't invent anything! I just told him that at a certain point I thought I saw a scene with…"

"With…?"

"With a kiss"

"A KISS?!"

"A kiss, a very long one"

"AHAHAHAHAH YOU'RE SUCH A BITCH!" Meg doesn't hold back and laughs holding her belly.

"Look, it's true! There is a kiss! There are several! Just, um, not exactly in my scene"

"WHAT A BAD BITCH!"

“And since I mentioned this to Eddie, he suddenly became very understanding of my insecurities.”

"YOU DON'T SAY?! Who knows why?" Meg dives back into the pancakes, but not before adding some more chocolate syrup.

"You won't tell him anything, right?"

"Look, I would be tempted because for me you are a fool to refuse a part in the film and I would involve anyone to convince you, but…"

"But?"

"But I love your perfidiousness in this thing too much to let you get caught"

"I'm not evil!"

"No, you're just a little budding manipulator who cunningly uses someone else's weakness for her own gain… Little Angie is growing up! I could almost start crying" Meg feigns emotion and wipes away some fake tears with her napkin.

"Ahaha I didn't manipulate Eddie"

"You used his jealousy to make him do what you wanted, how do you call it?"

"I just striked some chords…"

"You pulled the right strings!" Meg gets up and puts the plate in the sink with the rest.

"I don't know if you're trying to play with my conscience to get me to tell Eddie the truth and accept the part or if you actually appreciate my little dishonest ploy."

"Mmm a bit of both!" Meg leaves the kitchen and retrieves her jacket and bag, I join her at the door "Anyway, in the end, even if manipulated, Eddie is right: it's you who decides. It's just that... I would have loved to brag a bit and say Hey, my friend is in that movie!"

"Half the people you know will be in that movie. Anyway, once I become a successful author, you can say Hey, my friend wrote that!"

"I can't wait! Alright, see you tonight at Roxy's"

"Ok see ya"

"Did you follow me to the door to say bye or to make sure I wouldn't go and tell Eddie"

"Hahaha to say bye! You would never do that. At least, not now that he's in the shower"

"Well, I could if I wanted to, you're not the jealous one in the couple" he winks at me and opens the door.

"Bye Meg"

"Besides, I've already seen him in his underwear, so" she's about to leave, but she comes back and shrugs at me.

"BYE" I close the door in her face as a joke and she holds it open with one foot.

"And my friends' boyfriends are all like women to me"

"JUST GO IT'S LATE, SEE YOU TONIGHT!"

The woodworm that Meg has just tried to put in my head about my unfair attitude towards Eddie doesn't even have time to creep into my thoughts when the phone starts ringing.

"Hello"

"…" on the other side just silence.

"Hello?" I repeat and actually I seem to hear noises through the receiver. It's not a noisy line, it's mora like someone is waiting in silence with the receiver in their hand.

"Is anyone there or not?" the moment I clearly perceive a breath I freeze. I look around to figure out where Eddie is, because I can't hear the sound of the shower water anymore, but I don't see him around. I go peek in my room and it's not there, so he's probably finished the shower, but he's still in the bathroom.

"Is it you?"

"…" still nothing.

"Do you need anything? Do you need money?" I ask in a low voice, but without getting any answer, except for an abrupt termination of the phone call.

I exhale deeply, as if I've been holding my breath for a while, and maybe I really have. I drop the phone on the table, take my plate and put it in the sink along with everything else. I glance at the clock. No, I don't have time now, I'll wash them later today.

A new ring of the phone makes me jump, I look at it for a while without doing anything, but then I decide to answer, if only to prevent Eddie from becoming suspicious and coming out here to see what's happening and why no one answers the phone.

"HELLO?!"

"Hey, good morning to you too! What happened? Did you wake up with a bad case of the grumpies this morning?" the response on the other end, this time, puts me in a completely different mood.

"Hi mom! No, everything's ok"

"I mean, it sounded like you wanted to maul whoever was on the other end of the phone…"

"No, it's just… there's someone having fun making prank calls this morning. They call and don't speak, without even a bit of imagination, at least they could come up with something more articulated"

"Like, if you have to bother me, at least use creativity"

"Exactly"

"Okay, how are you? Sorry I'm calling you this early, but at least I'm sure I'd find you"

"No problem, you did well. In fact, you barely found me because I have to go to class soon" I walk up to my room to get the clothes to put on, waiting for Eddie to come out of the bathroom.

"That's it, exactly. I'll end up having to make an appointment to talk to you on the phone"

"Don't worry, I still have time, we can have our fulfilling mother-daughter conversation"

"Good girl. So how are you? How did your holidays go?"

“Well, I worked a lot!”

"It's a shame they're called holidays…"

"Okay, I also rested and did a lot of things that I've had pending for ages! I defrosted the fridge, I cleaned the chandeliers, I washed all the carpets…" I go back to the corridor while I recall all the steps of the great house cleaning.

"What a strange concept of rest"

"Ugh, I went out with Meg and the others too, I haven't been home all day"

"I had no doubts. And how is Eddie?"

"Eddie is-" he almost caught me off guard "Why are you asking me about Eddie? And more importantly, how do you know him?" yeah, how do you know the guy who just came out of the bathroom covered only by a short towel tied not very firmly at the waist that could fall at any moment and who winked at me before slipping into my room.

"Oh your father told me about him"

"Did he tell you about him? What did he tell you?" the guy who slips into the room without closing the door, takes off the towel and… NO, ANGIE, YOU DON'T HAVE TIME AND YOU'RE ON THE PHONE WITH YOUR MOTHER, FOR FUCK'S SAKE.

"Yeah, I mean, he told me that you have a friend called Eddie and that he met him."

“It happened months ago, why are you asking me about my friends now?” and why Eddie, would be the real question. But I don't want to get too carried away and make her suspicious.

"No, I'm just looking at the photos your father took when he came to visit you…"

"Ah, the famous photos that I haven't seen yet" I lock myself in the bathroom and put it on speakerphone, so I can brush my teeth in the meantime.

"Well, because he only developed them now! Forgive him, he's been very busy with work, I've barely seen him too"

"I know, I know, it's just that he told me he would send them to me"

"In fact, he's going to send them to you exactly this morning. Which would also be the reason why I called you, to tell you this"

"Oh great! Thank him"

"And… you know, since I have a photo of you with Eddie right in front of me right now, he came to my mind, just like this"

"Totally random"

"Right. Anyway, how is he?" He's fine, mom, thanks. He spent the night with me and now he is naked in my room.

"Good! From what I know, at least. I mean, the band is recording the album, I don't see them as often as before" well done, Angie. Plural. Go with plural.

“But you told me earlier that you hung out with the guys during spring break.”

"Yes, of course, but I haven't seen them in a while now. However, they're happy, Stone told me that everything is going well." Was using Stone as a diversion from Eddie a good move?

"Ah! So you've seen Stone more than Eddie!" no, it's not good at all.

"I saw them equally, mom, don't get any strange ideas, I thought I made myself clear enough at Christmas" I snort and start taking off my dressing gown and pajamas.

"Very clear! You know what? The pictures are very beautiful, you'll see. Now I'll get dad for you, he has to tell you something"

"Okay?" my father? What does he have to tell me? He won't ask me about Eddie too, will he?

"Bye Angie, call me next time so I don't bother you, okay?"

"You're not mad because I'm talking to you while getting ready and doing something else in the meantime, are you?" I get dressed quickly, the only thing I forgot to take are the boots, but I can put them on later.

"No, but call! Okay, here's your father"

"Bye"

"Hey Angie!"

"Hi Dad"

"Today I'm sending you all the photos I took when I came to Seattle. Sorry if I'm late but it's been a mess. I've practically been living in the darkroom for weeks"

"Don't worry. How did they turn out?" I put my pajamas in the laundry hamper, throw my robe over my shoulder and, with the phone still on loudspeaker in my hand, I leave the bathroom.

"Not to brag, but they turned out great! Both the ones from the concerts and those from the beach party. I got a nice box here, ready to be shipped"

"Fine, now come out of the dark room and spend some time with mom" when I enter the room I waste no time, I put my dressing gown on the chair and run to cover Eddie's mouth before he can make any sound.

"Don't worry, I'll do that!"

"Did you want to tell me something else? Mom already told me about the pictures" when I'm sure he understood and he nods at me, I release my grip on Eddie's mouth and go and sit on the bed to put on my boots, with my back towards him.

"Yes, I wanted to ask you: do you know Nirvana?"

"Yes, they are a band from around here, I even saw them twice in concert"

"Not as a band, do you know them personally?"

“Um well, not really.”

"What do you mean? Do you know them or not?"

"I know them by sight! Mostly the drummer…" damn, why did I say that?? I quickly turn around and see Eddie has stopped right in the middle of zipping up his pants and is glaring at me "and I exchanged a few words with the bassist, I know who the singer is but that's it"

"Oh because they know you"

"What? And how do you know?" Why do I feel he's not about to tell me anything good? And why the fuck did I keep it on speakerphone? I can't take it off now or it would look like I want to hide things from Eddie.

"They played here in Boise a few days ago"

"Really?"

"At The Zoo" the management guys must have thought it was a real zoo and wanted to send Kurt there, for sure.

"And you went to see them? Weren't you busy with work?" after eternal moments I start tying my boots again and Eddie finally zips up his fly.

"You know what they say, too much work and no play…"

"Yes, and then you end up chasing your family with a hatchet"

"Exactly. Great concert anyway, pure energy! I took few photos unfortunately. The next day I bought the album. They also played some new tracks from the album which has yet to be released"

"And what do I have to do with all this?" if he bought Dave a drink too, I swear I'll scream. What the fuck is that? Does my dad have some kind of radar for my exes now? And he has to talk about it right now with Eddie listening?

"Oh because at one point on stage the singer said something about how it was their first time playing in Idaho and that so far they didn't know anyone from around here, except for a girl who's actually from our town. And he said that he will have to find another nickname for their friend, but it was a quick and rather cryptic conversation that I didn't quite understand. Do you know anything about it?"

"Mmm I have no clue honestly" Eddie looks at me and bursts out laughing, I signal him to be quiet and he covers his face with his hands.

"But you're the friend, aren't you?"

"I don't think so," a friend of that jerk?? I'd rather gouge my eyes out with my bare hands "I wonder who he was talking about, there must be other people from Boise who moved to Seattle, I'm not that special, you know?"

"That's why I asked you if you knew them…"

"Yes, but only by sight and they don't know where I'm from, they don't even know my name eheh" Eddie uncovers his face and makes a noise as if to say Yes, of course!

"Oh well, it's just a coincidence then"

"Of course it is"

"Ok, I'll leave you now. I'll go to the post office and then to the editorial office"

"Okay. Bye and good luck with your work"

"And say hello to Meg"

"Alright"

"And Eddie" Eddie looks at me and explodes into a toothy smile, while he waves hello with his little hand in the direction of the phone.

“Go-why Eddie?”

"No reason, he just came to my mind"

“Let me guess: you got one of his pictures right in front of your eye right now, right?” well, now Eddie will think that in my house there is a little altar with a picture of him, flowers and candles and that my parents pray on it every single morning.

"Hehe, actually yes! Say hello to him when you see him, ok? He's a good boy"

"I will. Bye dad"

“Bye Ray,” Eddie replies to himself as soon as I hang up.

"If they had heard you, I would have killed you!"

"Pff overreacting as usual…" now fully dressed, he comes and sits next to me on the bed.

"Ha! Don't even think about it, it's late and we have to rush to the university"

"I don't know what you're talking about, I just wanted to get this" all cocky, he reaches under the bed and pulls out his backpack.

"Sure"

"I'm a good boy"

"Okay, if the good boy is ready, it's time to go"

"Ok let's go"

*****************************************************************************************************

"How do you say Can I have your number in Swiss?"

"There's no such thing as Swiss, Mike" the girl from the staff just opened the door to the dressing rooms, just long enough to tell us Soundcheck in zehn Minuten, and that idiot has already fallen in love.

"What do you mean? So what do they speak in this hell of a country?"

"Where are we now, that is Zurich, they speak German" I just give him the key concept, we have a soundcheck to do and I'm not in the mood to explain Swiss multilingualism to my bass player.

"Okay, how do you say it in German?"

"Ask them in English, you'll see they understand you anyway" Layne gets up and motions to Starr, the only one sitting, to do the same and follow him.

"The whole world speaks English" says Sean the wise.

"You should have learned it by now, after the shitty show the other night in Düsseldorf" Layne opens the dressing room door and goes out, followed closely by us, remembering our nice little mishap the day before yesterday, when Mike al most got us killed. A typical Alice in Chains Monday night, in short.

"AGAIN? Look, I made a fucking comment in a fucking bar full of people, I thought you barely heard me, let alone those guys!" Mike isn't entirely wrong, there was an absurd mess in that karaoke bar. I don't know how the fuck we ended up there, I think it was just the closest source of alcohol on the way between the concert venue and the place we were sleeping at. We were all shitfaced when a guy in a leather jacket and sunglasses, who had just destroyed The show must go on on stage, passed by us. The very second as Mike noticed an unexpected resemblance.

"We all thought he didn't look anything like Freddie Mercury, but we kept it to ourselves instead of shouting it from the rooftops!"

"But it was so him! It was the Fonz with a moustache! What the fuck did I say? I said nothing bad, I didn't call him an idiot"

"Actually the exact words were Such an asshole, rather than Freddie Mercury, he looks like the Fonz with a mustache ah ah ah"

"Okay, he only heard the second part though"

"And thank goodness, otherwise he and his friends would have kicked us all the way inside the hotel, instead of stopping outside"

We arrive on stage and start with the rehearsals without getting lost in further chatter. We're here to play four songs in front of a couple of thousand people who don't give a shit about us and who can't wait for us to get off our balls and enjoy the Megadeth concert, of which we are the support band. But for us it's fucking life, playing is playing, as long as they put us on a stage, we'll do it with anyone and in front of any audience. I mean, we've opened for everyone from fucking Poison to Iggy Pop in just the space of one year. In this Andy and I were really on the same wavelength. I remember the nights spent fantasizing about our imaginary future concerts in stadiums and temples of rock. "Madison Square Garden? I'll even go there with the fucking Warrant just to play there!" I can still hear him say. I miss him so fuckin' much. Well, at least I like Megadeth even though maybe neither they nor their fans like me. We are at the fourth date of this European tour and we still haven't even exchanged a word. Let's say we almost didn't even see them. And the people? Well, if they're cold that's fine, when it's bad then they'll just throw shit at us on stage. If Angie were here, she'd suggest we put up a protective net like in the Blues Brothers… Well, thank goodness the soundcheck is over because I'm getting melancholic as fuck and I need a fucking beer. Without speaking we all leave and go out in the same direction, straight towards the nearest bar, hoping this isn't karaoke too. When I see a phone booth on the other side of the road, however, I can't help but take action and take a small detour.

"I have to… um I have to make a phone call, see you later"

“Can't you call from the bar? I'm pretty sure they have a phone there too”

"Oh no, Mike, he can't! Can't you see the young gentleman here doesn't want to be heard? It's so obvious!" Sean is already on the starting blocks of taking the piss out of yours truly.

"But who do you have to call? The same girl from yesterday?"

"From yesterday and the day before yesterday…" continues the drummer.

"But what about minding your own business?"

"And who is this girl? Aren't you going to tell us?"

"Layne knows her, she's a friend of Dem" Kinney is super informed on the facts, as I imagined Layne held back, but not completely and let the minimum slip. Excellent.

"I cultivate the noble art of minding my own fuckin' business, so I don't know anything"

"Well done Layne!" I pat my buddy on the shoulder and start to walk away again.

"Well done my ass, we're worried about you!"

"Speak for yourself, I'm very calm and I just want the booze" and this too was predictable from Sean. By now I could write everyone's parts in our dialogues, I know them like the back of my hand.

"Don't listen to him, you are our brother! You just miraculously emerged from the disaster with Angie, you know... and now you're going to get yourself in trouble in yet another serious affair with someone else??"

"Who told you this is serious?"

"If it's worth three intercontinental calls, it's serious for me"

"Come on, she's someone he's just met, she's fresh and he wants to keep her interested, right?"

"I see you already know everything so I have nothing else to add, see you later" I walk away amidst the shouts and whistles of my companions and I see them proceed shuffling towards the bar from inside the booth.

I take the small address book from the inside pocket of my jacket and obviously I open it to the first page, to the letter A. I know I should flip on through it, but I can't, it's as if I'm stuck, as if I'm short-circuiting for a few seconds . I put what I think it's the equivalent of our tonight's salary in coins into the phone and dial the wrong number on purpose. What time will it be the now? Like 9 or 10 in the morning, maybe she's not even home.

"Hello" but she's fucking there instead.

"Hello?" she repeats and at that point I realize that I haven't spoken, because in reality I thought I'd answered and told her that it was me and that I'm in a break between soundcheck and concert and that I called her because, for a change, I was thinking about her .

"Is anyone there or not?" I think I can hear myself telling her about the Fonz with the moustache, about the more than necessary protective net for our stage, about Mike who last night was about to pick up a girl who told him she was in her third year at Gymnasium, thinking it meant she was a gym freak, before I saved him by explaining that she was a fucking high school student.

"Is it you?" I'm panicking because I got caught like an idiot. After all, who else would call her and then give her the silence treatment? And from abroad too… I'm such an asshole.

"Do you need help? Do you need money?" at this point it's as if I wake up from some kind of fucking hypnosis and suddenly hang up the phone. Money? Why would Angie think I'm calling her for money? The answer is simple: she didn't catch me at all and she thought I was someone else. But who? Who could call her in the morning asking for money? What kind of mess did she get herself into? When I leave the phone booth I remember that I forgot to call Heather like we agreed, but who cares after all? The guys think I did it, in the end it's the gesture that counts. I join the band at the bar counter with a head full of questions.

The questions run through my head until the concert and even during and after that. In the end the show didn't go bad at all, apart from a few painless coins thrown, the audience also reacted well. You can see that the Swiss are more polite! And I was proven wrong twice tonight because, as soon as we got off the stage, we were immediately intercepted by David Elleffson and Marty Friedman of Megadeth who complimented us, confessing that they had no idea who the fuck we were before they heard us and that in their opinion we rock the asses, even if our name doesn't sound very good to them. We all spent the evening together drinking, smoking and talking bullshit, especially them, because at a certain point Marty said that they want to propose us as the opening band for the mega tour they will do with Slayer and Anthrax once they return home and in my opinion it was the drugs talking. Not that we don't deserve it, on the contrary! Well, I'll wait and see what happens, it would be cool, but I don't want to day dream for nothing. I prefer to take things as they come, day by day. But who the fuck calls you to ask you for money first thing in the morning? Maybe it's just a friend in need that Angie is helping because she always has to help everyone? Or maybe not…

[peashooter85]

The Origins of the Phrase “Jumped the Shark”.

So after Season 8 Episode 5 of Game of Thrones all but perhaps the most hardcore fans are in agreement that the show has “jumped the shark”. Overall Season 8 has a Rotten Tomatoes audience rating of 43% and episode 5 has an audience rating of 49%, the worst in the show’s history. Many would probably say the show has “jumped the shark” long before then.  The phrase “jumped the shark” has been used to describe a number of other shows, and has actually been in use for a relatively long time in pop culture history. “Jumped the shark” is an idiom typically describing television shows that have lived past their golden age, it’s writers having run out of ideas, and the show resorting to gimmicks and absurdities in a vain attempt to maintain viewership.  Writing quality drops significantly, characters no longer act like themselves and will often do things that seem ridiculous or done only for shock value.

The idiom originates back to September 20th, 1977 with the season 5 premier of the popular comedy Happy Days. In the episode the main characters visit Hollywood, where the legendary character Fonzie takes up a stunt challenge in which he is to jump a ramp on water skis over a confined shark.

The stunt was actually performed by The Fonz’s actor Henry Winkler, who was an accomplished water skier and pretty much just wanted an opportunity to show off his mad skills. Thus the stunt was performed, and I kid you not he did the stunt wearing his trademark leather jacket and a pair of swimming trunks.

For most avid viewers of Happy Days the stunt seemed out of place for the show, which is basically a high school teen coming of age sitcom. For many others it was a ridiculous and absurd gimmick that was down right silly. At the time Happy Days was at it’s peak, being the number one show on TV with the highest ratings. However, by season 5 the show began to lose viewership and it’s ratings began to slip. With season 6 the show went into a full nosedive, dropping from number 2 in the rankings to number 4, by season 7 it had dropped to 17, and by it’s final season (11), it was in a dismal 63rd place ranking.

While Fonzie jumping the shark was certainly not the end of Happy Days, it symbolized the beginning of the end of show and it’s popularity. By the 1980′s people began to refer to the episode when describing other TV shows that had passed their peak. In the 1990′s the phrase became a common idiom, popularized by shock jock Howard Stern and other comedians. Today, it is a staple colloquialism of entertainment and pop culture, with few who use remembering the time when The Fonz jumped the shark.

The Fonz jumping the shark

[uwmarchives]

The Red Fonz

Most people know the 1970′s TV Show Happy Days depicted life in Milwaukee in the 1950s. However, it’s doubtful viewers saw this squeaky-clean rendering of white Midwestern life for what it was--Socialist propaganda.

OK, we have no evidence that Happy Days was about the virtues of Democratic Socialism, but the show was set during the the tenure of Milwaukee’s last Socialist mayor, Frank Zeidler.

Frank Zeidler was born in Milwaukee on September 20, 1912. He attended the University of Wisconsin, Extension Division; Marquette University; and the University of Chicago. Mr. Zeidler closed out the era of socialist mayors in Milwaukee---an era that began in 1910 and was interrupted only twice---when he served as mayor from 1948 to 1960. His three terms in office were marked by large-scale construction of public housing; the construction of the first educational television station in Wisconsin; city beautification programs; strong statements on behalf of civil rights; and the quadrupling of the size of the city. After his retirement from public office, Mr. Zeidler remained active in socialist parties on the national, state and local levels. 

Was Zeidler’s leadership the reason for Milwaukee’s “Happy Days”? We can’t say for sure, but this poster from the collection of the Socialist Party of Milwaukee certainly makes that claim. Either way, it’s undeniable that Milwaukee was built on socialism--boasting three socialist mayors...so where’s Ziedler’s bronze statue?

[whereareroo]

OPIE

WF THOUGHTS (1/8/21).

Today, I need to decompress. Don't you?

Let's talk about something meaningless. Let's talk about Opie.

If you were born before 1960, you definitely know Opie. If you were born after 1960, you probably think that you don't know Opie. You're probably wrong. Keep reading.

When I say the name "Opie," everybody that's older than 60 knows exactly who I'm talking about. There aren't that many Opies.

From 1960 through 1968, one of the biggest shows on TV was The Andy Griffith Show. Andy Griffith, the famous actor, played Sheriff Andy Taylor in a town called Mayberry. His son was Opie Taylor. Everybody loved Opie. Opie was on the show from when he was 6 until he was 13.

After 1968, when the Mayberry show ended, whe didn't see Opie for a while. He reemerged, with a new name, in 1974. If you were born after 1960, you probably know the "new" Opie.

Starting in 1974, Opie became Richie Cunningham. Remember him? He was the goody two shoes teenager on "Happy Days." He was on that show from 1974 until 1980. If you don't remember Richie, I bet you remember Henry Winkler's portrayal of Fonzie. I'll have more about "The Fonz" in a minute.

Starting in the late 1970s, Opie started to focus on directing and he moved away from acting. That's when people started to call him by his real name, Ron Howard. You've probably seen some of the movies that he directed: Grand Theft Auto; Splash; Cocoon; Parenthood; Backdraft; Apollo 13; and A Beautiful Mind. Opie won the Academy Award for Best Director for his work on A Beautiful Mind. Little Opie from Mayberry had become a big deal in Hollywood.

For this blog, I keep a running list of things that I should talk about. On December 28th, I put "Opie" on the list because there was a story about him in the news. I hadn't thought about Opie for years. Then, on December 29th, there was a different Opie story in the news. On January 3rd, there was yet another Opie story. It seems that the blog gods want me to talk about Opie. Maybe the gods knew that we'd need a silly distraction in January.

One of the recent stories was about the Mayberry era. When the series started, Ron Howard was only 6 years old. His father would stay with him on the set. For the first few episodes, Opie was a smartass kid. Ron's father approached Andy Griffith and suggested that the show might work better if Opie was respectful and obedient. They quickly moved the show in that direction. Thanks to his real life Dad, Opie became the most famous little angel on television.

By the time he became Richie on Happy Days, Opie had grown accustomed to being the center of attention. Happy Days was built around his character, Richie Cunningham. After two seasons, there was a problem. Even though Arthur Fonzarelli was supposed to be a minor supporting character, the viewers loved "The Fonz." The producers told Opie that they wanted to rename the show "Fonzie's Happy Days." The producers tried to bribe Opie into accepting the change. They offered him more money, and they said that he could direct a few episodes. Andy Griffith always told Opie to reject bribes. Opie stood his ground, rejected the bribe, and said that he would leave the show if they changed the name. That's why Fonzie's name never got added to the title. I don't know why this was in the news in December of 2020. Maybe Fonzie was feeling down and he leaked the story to boost his ego.

The day after the Fonzie story, there was another Opie story in the news. This time I'll use the name Ron Howard, because the story relates to Opie's life as a director.

In the early 1980s, Howard was getting ready to direct the movie Splash. On a whim, Howard decided to play in a charity softball game with the folks from Happy Days. The game was in Oregon, and they took a bus from California. Tom Hanks was on the bus because the team needed an extra player and one of the Happy Days people knew Hanks. Howard sat next to Hanks on the bus. That's how Tom Hanks got the leading role in Splash. That bus ride helped put Tom Hanks on the map. I like Tom Hanks. Don't you? Thanks, Opie.

This weekend, we should all watch some Opie episodes. We need a break. I'm popping my corn right now.

[portcitywire]

Help Name the National Zoo's New Cheetah Cubs

Smithsonian’s National Zoo Seeks Help in Naming Four Cheetah Cubs

The Smithsonian’s National Zoo and Conservation Biology Institute is asking the public to help name the litter of four cheetah cubs born April 8 at the Smithsonian Conservation Biology Institute (SCBI) in Front Royal, Virginia. The births were streamed live on the Zoo’s new cheetah webcam, and virtual viewers have been watching them grow ever since. Keepers currently identify each cub by a small shave mark on their left shoulder (male), right hip (female), left hip (male) and base of the tail (male). Voters can select their favorite names from May 22 to May 27 on the Zoo’s website. The names were selected from a list submitted to SCBI’s cheetah animal care team by staff from across the Zoo, SCBI and Friends of the National Zoo (FONZ), the Zoo’s membership organization. There are three possible name choices for the female cub and five choices for the three male cubs. The names that receive the most votes will be bestowed on the cubs. Keepers will assign the winning names to the individual animals. The winning names will be announced May 28. The name choices for the female cub are: Amabala: Zulu for “spots” Vivace: A musical term meaning short, lively and brisk Iambe: One of the two daughters of the mountain nymph, Echo, in Greek mythology The name choices for the three male cubs are: Jabari: Swahili for “fearless” or “brave one” Hasani: Swahili for “handsome” Phoenix: A mythical bird associated with the sun that regenerates or is otherwise born again from its own ashes Erindi: A protected reserve in Namibia where many cheetahs are re-released. Tolbo: Mongolian for “spot” The cubs were born to first-time mom, 5-year-old Echo and sired by 4-year-old Scott. Staff have been closely monitoring Echo and her cubs via the webcam. Keepers approached the cubs for the first time April 14. Less than a week later, the cubs were sexed and weighed. The cubs had their first vet exam May 20. Follow #CheetahCubdates on the Zoo’s Facebook, Instagram and Twitter to stay up-to-date on cheetah cub milestones. The cheetah webcam is one of six live animal webcams hosted on the Zoo’s website. A downloadable animal webcam educational activity packet is available. As the cheetah cubs continue to grow, they will spend more time outside the den. If the cubs are not on the cam, the public can check out the photos and videos located on the cam’s page. SCBI is part of the Cheetah Breeding Center Coalition—a group of 10 cheetah breeding centers across the United States that aim to create and maintain a sustainable North American cheetah population under human care. These cubs are a significant addition to the Association of Zoos and Aquariums’ Species Survival Plan for Cheetahs, as each individual contributes to this program. Earlier this year, SCBI experts performed a successful in vitro fertilization resulting in two cubs. Cheetahs live in small, isolated populations mostly in sub-Saharan Africa. Many of their strongholds are in eastern and southern African parks. Due to human conflict, poaching and habitat- and prey-base loss, there are only an estimated 7,500 to 10,000 cheetahs left in the wild. The International Union for Conservation of Nature considers cheetahs vulnerable to extinction. As a public health precaution due to COVID-19, the Smithsonian’s National Zoo and Conservation Biology Institute is temporarily closed to the public. Animal keepers and veterinary staff remain working on site at the Zoo and SCBI to provide the usual highest quality care for the animals. Due to the public closure, a COVID-19 Emergency Fund has been created as the Zoo is no longer receiving important funds on which it relies. Additional information on the Zoo’s COVID-19 response is posted to the Zoo’s website. During the closure, the Zoo is sharing animal updates from behind the scenes using the hashtag #NatZooZen on Facebook, Instagram and Twitter. Read the full article

[investmart007]

LOS ANGELES | 'The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel' finds the Emmy Awards marvelous

New Post has been published on https://www.stl.news/los-angeles-the-marvelous-mrs-maisel-finds-the-emmy-awards-marvelous/171554/

LOS ANGELES | 'The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel' finds the Emmy Awards marvelous

LOS ANGELES  — “The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel,” a new sitcom about a 1950s homemaker turned edgy stand-up comedian, took an early lead at the Emmy Awards.

Series star Rachel Brosnahan was honored as best comedy actress, Alex Borstein earned the supporting trophy and the series creator, Amy Sherman-Palladino, nabbed writing and directing awards.

In an awards ceremony that started out congratulating TV academy voters for the most ethnically diverse field of nominees ever, the first awards all went to whites.

“I want to say six awards, all white winners, and nobody has thanked Jesus yet,” co-host Michael Che said, referring back to his earlier joke that only African-American winners do.

Brosnahan used the end of her acceptance speech to give a shout-out to the show’s celebration of women power.

“It’s about a woman who’s finding her voice anew, and it’s one of the things that’s happening all over the country now,” she said. She urged viewers to exercise that power by voting.

Bill Hader collected the best comedy actor award for “Barry,” a dark comedy about a hired killer who stumbles into an acting career.

Henry Winkler, aka “The Fonz,” won a supporting actor award for “Barry,” four decades after gaining fame for his role in “Happy Days.”

“If you stay at the table long enough, the chips come to you. Tonight, I got to clear the table,” an ebullient Winkler said, with an equally delighted auditorium audience rising to give him a standing ovation.

To his children, he said: “You can go to bed now, daddy won!” The ceremony opened with a star-studded song celebrating the historical diversity of this year’s Emmy nominations, including nominees Kate McKinnon and Sterling K. Brown. Others who Ricky Martin, Andy Samberg, RuPaul and John Legend. “SNL” faux news anchors Michael Che and Colin Jost were hosts and mocked many of the nominated shows and actors.

They noted that NBC has most nominations for broadcast outlet. “Kind of like being the sexiest person on life support,” Jost joked. (Netflix has eclipsed all broadcast channels).

Sandra Oh, who could become the first actor of Asian descent to win a lead acting trophy played along from her seat: “Thank you, but it’s an honor just to be Asian,” said the Korean-Canadian star.

While Emmy nominees nervously wait to hear their name called, or not, there’s more on the line at the ceremony on NBC than personal glory.

“Saturday Night Live” creator Lorne Michaels, producing his second Emmy telecast in 30 years, is tasked with turning viewership around after the 2017 show’s audience of 11.4 million narrowly avoided the embarrassment of setting a new low.

The ceremony clearly bears his stamp, with Che and Jost as hosts and familiar “SNL” faces, including Kate McKinnon and Alec Baldwin, as presenters and nominees. The long-running NBC sketch show, already the top Emmy winner ever with 71, could snare up to three more.

The pressure’s on Michaels because NBC and other broadcasters are increasingly reliant on awards and other live events to draw viewers distracted by streaming and more 21st- century options.

The networks, which air the Emmy telecast on a rotating basis, are so eager for the ad dollars it generates and its promotional value for fall shows that they endure online competitors sharing the stage.

It’s Hulu’s “The Handmaid’s Tale” that’s the defending best drama series champ, with HBO’s two-time previous winner “Game of Thrones” the top rival. NBC’s “This Is Us” is the only network nominee in the category. On the comedy side, the front-runners are FX’s “Atlanta” and Amazon Prime Video’s “The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel,” with ABC’s “black-ish” the only network show in contention. The telecast could see a number of record nominations for people of color converted into awards, some historic.

Issa Rae of HBO’s “Insecure” or ABC’s “black-ish” star Tracee Ellis Ross could become the second African-American to win as best comedy actress, following Isabel Sanford (1981, “The Jeffersons”) by 37 years. The field, including Rachel Brosnahan of “Mrs. Maisel,” is wide open, with six-time Julia Louis-Dreyfus and her HBO series, “Veep,” sitting these Emmys out for scheduling reasons.

If the show hits a lull there’s a good chance politics will shake it up. “Weekend Update” anchors Che and Jost regularly traffic in political satire on “SNL,” and awards ceremonies have become a routine forum for celebrities to share their views on current events. It’s a trend embraced by Hollywood, at least publicly.

Politics already came up on the red carpet, with Jenifer Lewis of “black-ish” wearing a sweatshirt adorned with a metal-studded Nike “swoosh,” pushing back against criticism of the brand for featuring former San Francisco 49ers Colin Kaepernick in its new ad campaign.

“I want to speak to the millennials today to let them know they are not alone when they speak out,” said the 61-year-old Lewis.

Yeardley Smith, an Emmy winner for voicing Lisa on “The Simpsons,” said she doesn’t object when winners use the spotlight to say more than “thank you.”

“I don’t think it’s inappropriate,” Smith said. “I think that you do need to strike a balance. I think if you’re truly passionate about something, anything, that if you have a platform, you almost have a moral obligation to speak up.”

By LYNN ELBER, Associated Press

[otaku-twist]

The TWIST Review: “Haven’t You Heard? I’m Sakamoto”

“Haven’t You Heard? I’m Sakamoto”, also known as “Sakamoto Desu Ga?” (“坂本ですが?”) , is an anime adaptation of the Japanese manga series written and illustrated by Nami Sato.

Haven’t you Heard? I’m Sakamoto is a show that is able to take the mundane and make it incredibly hilarious. The anime focuses entirely on one character named Sakamoto, who is apparently the Japanese bishonen equivalent of the Fonz, as everything he does his classmates fan over. He’s good-looking, smart, athletic, and in some ways out of this world. However by no means does this guy have any super powers or special abilities, unless you count his apparent lack of self-doubt as one.  Instead, Sakamoto’s real talent lies in his ability to improvise his way in and out of situations. From turning bullies to friends to saving a bird from a typhoon, Sakamoto always seems to know how to handle things.

Despite the slow start, this anime has a lot of good features to it. However what makes this anime worth watching isn’t just the absurd plots and smooth animations. Rather, it’s the perspective.  All the story-telling is done through the eyes of his peers and people he encounters. What we learn about Sakamoto is never directly through him, but through his interactions with others and their perceptions of him. We never learn where Sakamoto lives, his first name, or anything you could account towards being part of a main character’s backstory unless the supporting characters discover it. It makes for unique story-telling which inadvertently places the spotlight on various other characters in and outside the classroom, giving them a chance to develop their own identities and personalities (as well as their infatuation or infuriation for Sakamoto).

Although there are one or two episodes that may be a bit beyond absurd, the show overall has a good flow and humor to it. In addition, each “episode” is technically made up of two, which helps keep the story moving and maintain a level of intrigue for the viewers. Overall, Haven’t you Heard? I’m Sakamoto is definitely the anime for someone who is looking for a show reminiscent of that nonsensical, “Adult Swim”-style humor seen in western cartoons like Harvey Birdman: Attorney at Law, with the flair and intensity of JoJo’s Bizarre Adventure. Plus, with only 13 episodes, this anime is an easy escape for anyone looking to unwind after a long day’s work.

[jackhurstillustration-blog]

Assessment: ‘Say Hello’ Cont. Part 2 - Postcard Boogaloo

Last we left off in our soon to be weekly installment of blogging-gone-slightly-wrong, i’d done some letters, and some colouring, and maybe even a little bit of drawing, but my quest to pilfer from the American Postal Service and the Beano had only just begun.

Hold on to your ice-cream sundae bucko, we’re going back in.

There’s me! Or at least, an exaggerated facsimile of me with a frankly ridiculous over-sized hand. Hanging out in my little circle like I think i’m Porky Pig or something. The nerve. 

I think cartoon self-portraits are awfully masturbatory, which is why I draw myself as the handsome devil that I know I am in reality. I keep to the facts, see? The idea was to have my over-sized hand pointing or thumbs-upping at the camera like the Fonz (who I resemble very much), but I couldn’t quite get it right. Perspective is a tricky mistress, so instead, I opted for some sort of clicking motion but it still wasn’t quite working out...

Enter the magnifying glass! The issue was that whilst I wanted some sort of perspective, with my hand reaching out of the circle, the hand itself wasn’t really doing anything relevant to the theme of the postcard. After a little thought, and no small number of detective thrillers, it occurred to me that my avatar could be lifting an ocular magnification device, inviting the viewer to inspect his head closer with its miraculous x-ray powers.

You’ll also notice that I finalized my mini-me’s design, having him look up through the magnifying glass, delivering a wry smile and wearing a fetching hawaiian shirt. The pattern admittedly comes from a google image search, which i’m not especially proud of, and in the future I’ll likely take a photo/scan of one of my many (many) hawaiian shirts and use that pattern instead.

After a touch of shading, completing the magnifying glass by copying and distorting my avatar’s eye to mimic the effect of a lens, I decided it was time to get back to the great big head-shaped elephant in the room (or postcard, in this case). 

[mrmichaelchadler]

Did HR Blogging “Jump the Shark”?

For those not in the know, the term “Jump the Shark” originated when the character Fonzie, on the TV show Happy Days, water-skied over a shark. I know, pretty far-fetched, even for this over-the-top hit series that ruled the airwaves in the 1970s. Others refer to Bobby Ewing and the famous shower scene from the TV soap “Dallas” as the first Jump the Shark moment on television.

Urban Dictionary defines Jumping the Shark as:

A term to describe a moment when something that was once great has reached a point where it will now decline in quality and popularity. Origin of this phrase comes from a Happy Days episode where the Fonz jumped a shark on waterskis. Thus was labeled the lowest point of the show.

Now let’s look at the origins of HR blogging. A few of my FOT family members have been successfully blogging for a decade, and a couple of them have been around even longer. Dunn, Herbert, and Dingee led the way on this site. Sackett, Rapp, and a slew of current and former folks (alumni) have been writing for years as well. I started on a Google platform in 2007 and switched to a WordPress platform in 2014. I deleted most of my early content as I was embroiled in C-suite paranoia over my writing on social media and concern for litigation if I slipped and said something that could be used against the organization. For more on that, I will discuss in a separate post on another day in the future.

There are some blogging veterans out there who you might say have covered it all over the years. Or maybe not as there is always something new and different that pops up. It is, however, challenging to come up with new content or to go to places that have not been covered ad nauseam. So kudos to the veteran writers!

In the early years of blogging, there were no rules set and creativity reigned. It was often crude, sometimes long-winded (no word count limits), no legal or marketing oversite, and for some, no spell check. Like the rock bands U2 and The Police, before they signed with major labels. Raw and energized!

But the medium is old and due for an evolution of sorts.

Some folks believe that this already happened a couple of years ago and we are just now noticing. Video and podcasts are being used all the time and are being blended with traditional blogging. Sometimes, even just “vlogging”.  FOT has been using video for quite some time, mixed in with the daily posts.

Some of the outliers who introduced us to blogging and social media in the HR and Talent space have gone heavy with audio. Can you say “Chad and Cheese” or Laurie Ruettimann??? These folks led the charge in HR social media a decade ago and have switched gears in their content delivery. Podcasts, which have been around for years, are finally starting to be adopted in the HR and Talent space.

And HR blogging, which was once a place for those that were innovative and on the edge of HR, has now gone mainstream. HR tech company blogs and SHRM bloggers are now at all the major conferences. Like music that goes from edgy to popular, the rough surface and the creativity gets watered down as consumption goes up.

But, to be fair, I am contradicting myself in that more bloggers equates to more viewers or consumers, at least initially, even if the quality erodes.

I have recently done a few podcasts as I have embarked on my Last HR Jedi speaking tour. I have to say, I really like the medium a lot. My favorite being “Drive Thru HR” with Michael VanDervort (click here to check it out). However, 30 minute interviews are very long and I don’t know the appetite or the attention span of folks to handle this on a daily basis.

Some things in life have sustainability. The morning paper and the car radio are two that I can point to immediately. So maybe HR blogging hasn’t jumped the shark just yet. It takes about 3 to 4 minutes to get through an average 700-word post (did you set your stopwatch when reading this?) You could consume 3 or 4 of your favorites in the morning in the time it takes to finish off your Starbucks before work.

Maybe HR blogging hasn’t Jumped just yet….Still reading?

The post Did HR Blogging “Jump the Shark”? appeared first on Fistful of Talent.

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[otakunoculture]

By Ed Sum (The Vintage Tempest)

The variety of nerdy interests represented at Fan Expo Vancouver every year will differ. They have certainly become the crossroads of where all kinds of pop culture can converge, hence the X in their #FXV hashtag. While previous shows may feel more jam-packed than recent, this year’s event only affirms what I suspected from 2016 — this local event is getting connected with various television productions which film around the Lower Mainland of British Columbia. This event is settling into a groove most will approve and I can only imagine it will get better. Although years away, I’m sure the organizers will have something grand planned when year ten hits. But that’s four years away.

This festival moved from April to November two years ago, making the expense of staying at hotels a touch better during the offseason and offering to both exhibitors and fans a chance to rest before setting up for the next show. Epic Photo Ops deserves special mention for effectively managing the lineups for those seeking a memento with their favourite group of (or with a particular) performer.

Grant Gustin does not appear at many conventions so those hoping to meet him will have to do so at this show. As The Flash in The CW‘s flagship show, I can imagine he’s not easy to meet. To see both him and the entire STAR labs team (minus Jesse L. Martin) on stage is usually a San Diego Comic Con Hall H scale event, and fans of the show got it at Fan Expo in Vancouver, BC Canada! This panel was packed, and anyone there saw the sweet chemistry he has with Candice Patton in real life too. The star of this panel, however, was Zoe Patton, a cute canine which no doubt won many hearts. Viewers who saw this week’s episode, “When Harry met Harry,” got to understand what the Council of Wells was about, and Tom Cavanagh talked about how this segment was pieced together.

When considering the number of television and film productions going on in this corner of the world, folks hoping for a celebrity sighting will find attending this event better than to wait during a film/television shoot. A chance to interact with a star is never guaranteed when the set is a workplace. From the massive list of CW comic book based shows (Riverdale, Arrow, The Flash, Legends of Tomorrow, Supergirl and iZombie) to movies like Deadpool 2 — which ended production the month before — just who will attend are decided months before. Attendees will have to hope there are no sudden changes the week before due to work (or family, like Stephen Amell had) obligations coming up last-minute. I’m sure there were attendees hoping to spot Ryan Reynolds or Kevin Smith (who did appear in 2016).

But to have an opportunity to meet a huge celebrity is not what defines these shows. Other talents include the writers and artists behind that comic book or a voice over maestro. The organizers do a remarkable job at knowing who to bring back like Veronica Taylor, the original voice of Ash Ketchum of Pokemon, and which talents to spotlight. Mike Zeck is best known for Marvel Comic’s Secret Wars and be the first to put the black costume on Spider-Man. John Beatty, the inker for these issues was also in attendance. Zeck also worked on Kraven’s Last Hunt (Amazing Spider-Man). This year had three talents who worked on Archie Comics (Dan Parent, Gisèle Lagacé and Fernando Ruiz) since CW’s Riverdale is helping to bring this brand back to the fore.

New to this year is the Traveller’s Bazaar which offered Steampunk styled goods and panels to discuss what this subgenre is about. When considering their section was right next to the photo ops section, anyone who wanted to know more was able to ask what this is about instead of heading to the second floor where panel discussions were held. This type of strategic planning in where to place exhibitors is important, especially when considering not every nerd is aware of this subculture.

On the exhibitor side, the show floor requires at least half a day to truly explore. Regulars like Imperial Hobbies and Toy Traders are always welcome to see when considering it’s not easy to get to their warehouse operations. Others like Jigglypig and Metropolis Comics do not define this show as I see them at every convention I’ve been to. Although, I did notice Tower of Shirts and the LEGO group were not present this year.

Playstation (Sony) is a regular presence and Electronic Arts were recruiting beta testers as usual. I like to see this game company do more, but their resources must be limited. Perhaps do not want to play favourites with which console to spotlight. They missed an opportunity to not show off Battlefront II, due out November 17th, at this event. On the other side of this gaming spectrum, Synnex Corporation and Kingston’s HyperX brand was showing off the latest in computer technology peripherals.

Virtual reality gaming demos were available at more tables than usual, and playing Doom VR certainly had me testing my shooting skills and wishing this product was a room scale game than a sit down one. To offer this on the show floor can be problematical, but there was plenty of space on the second floor. Getting used to the look and click interface to move around will take time because it goes against how virtual reality should work. Maybe one year, some vendor will bring in those roll cages or introduce a tech like in Pacific Rim to let players truly navigate around.

This demo does show how personal a game can get, as it had me nervously looking around a few times since I was not fast with my trigger finger to find those monsters!

To shuffle between here and the main ballroom was relatively quick. When leaving the latter, especially after a popular panel, to get back to the exhibit space requires someone to manage traffic. I much prefer the west building and the exercise to get back inside than the east. During the wet months of Autumn, I can understand wanting to keep as much of this show indoors, but eventually, as this event grows, to section off the hallway so people can navigate better will have to be looked at.

As a regular to this exposition, I find this event is a great one to regularly attend. The event organizers are settling into a niche which I highly approve of and can not wait to see them expand upon. Next year will most likely see more talents from CW’s Supergirl and Riverdale swing by, even if it’s just for a day.

I was very happy to be able to walk around and converse with vendors and the many talents (when there’s no big lineup) who were present. This aspect has been consistent throughout the years I have been attending. When they are very accommodating to nerds like me who revisits more than thrice because I’m really drawn to their work (props to Gisèle Lagacé, Henry “The Fonz” Winkler and Jive Communications for their patience), all I have to say is thank you, Namaste and we shall dance again!

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Reflections on Fan Expo Vancouver 2017 #photogallery #virtualreality #yvr #editorial #thecw By Ed Sum (The Vintage Tempest) The variety of nerdy interests represented at Fan Expo Vancouver…