4 AM News

another segment I'm developing, inspired by the astounding Rives and his 4 AM TEDTalk, I'm happy introduce 4 AM news - one image, one article, and one other, unlikely to make it onto the evening news or CNN frontpage, but deserve credit for their inspiration, entertainment, or importance. So the message is: here are the news I've found during bouts of insomnia that you may not come across that my interest you in your watercooler conversations and awkward silences at dinner parties... if you don't use digg. and if you didn't click on the 4 AM TEDTalk link above, forshame, but here it is again, because I'm going to mao it down your throat. 

let's begin! (and don't forget to watch out for the liberal, progressive bias)

X number of items today:

This is an article of the White House Increase in Terror attacks since 9/11

This is a photo of the border between San Diego and Tijiuana

This is a photo... and an article! of China's e-waste

Rep Yo City - Adios Pantalones

So I'm gonna switch the format of this blog up a little bit, in the style of the colbert report. That is, I'm going to have recurring, thematic blog entries.  But they won't be scheduled regularly. So this is like "Tip of the Hat, Wag of the Finger" or "Better Know a District" but NOT like "the Word".

make sense? hopefully....

So this is Rep Yo City, an unscheduled recurring blog segment. This is where I try to do things in my city (aka, my metropolitan area) Boston, in the hopes that I'll build up enough stories, experiences, and credible recommendations whenever I talk about where I'm from.Inspired by the staycation, my inability to give directions in boston, and all of those moments when people visit and you have no idea what to do with them. 

Rules: 

1) Becoming a regular someplace doesn't count UNLESS something cool happens because of it.

2) multiple entries are allowed for the same location IF they are hosting two distinct events.

3) the price of the event should always be listed. I should be given more xanga props (haha! remember those?) for events that are not expensive. I should be given double xanga props for word of mouth events.

4) I can only rep my city (slash-metropolitan area). This means that there will no New Orleans blogging, at least under this category.

Let's Begin.

Rep Yo City! No Pants? No Problem!

I spent the morning hungover from drinks and wings and missing brunch with a friend (which turned out to be for naught irregards) and was about to spend my internet time figuring out what to do for the day, when out of the blue, i happen upon this website. By now, this blog should be filled with pictures, video, comments, and stories of the like, but to brief you (shazaam!), it is a link to what is better known as No Pants Day. What is No Pants Day you ask? It's the day you wear no pants, stupid. 

But more specifically, the idea is this: organize a group of people; get onto a subway;  take your pants off; look serious; enjoy everyone else's reaction. don't believe me? well...

Now, given my lack of preparation, and my inability to convince anyone else to go and take off their pants on a subway with me (life after college just isn't the same), I grabbed my hat and gloves and trekked out to park street to witness this for myself. I get down to the davis T station pretty late (I bring a camera, but then decide not to use it, because I don't want to be *that* sketchy guy... and I figure there should be tons of pictures online anyways... and my camera battery dies) and I step onto the train into a mass of of people reading books, taking notes, chatting about their day... sans pants. I have to say, I was pretty intimidated by the whole scene, and just kind of grabbed a pole and gripped it for dear life - it was one of those scenarios where I knew what was going on, but they didn't know that I knew what was going on, and I didn't want to ruin everybody's "surprise" so I just kind of played along, but I really wanted to be a part of their club and take my pants off; but then the transit authority guy was there, and I already had a battery-less camera concealed underneath my trench coat, and it could've all gone really sour. 

So I just contented myself with their chatter and quietly walked off at the Park Street station, turned about and got a Dave's Fresh Pasta Sandwich. however, on the inside, I was thinking....

 OH MY GOD THIS IS HILARIOUS AND AWESOME and only people without sticks up their arses would enjoy it - so many pantless people! so many people walking by! one transit authority officer stone faced! so many drunken dudes from the boston bruins game whiplashing! so many families with small children from the boston bruins game giggling! I was incredibly impressed by the sheer number of people who particiated, how global it is (i think it's 8+ countries in 13+ subway systems; nyc having over a thousand participants last year) and how long it's been around (this is the 8th annual event!)

Needless to say, I will be participating next year - or more precisely, on the actual no pants day.  I encourage people to join... and also to figure out if their companies will sponsor it... or if they'll get fired (either one)

 and Rep Yo City!

just look - Rally for Palestine

minor post, but I put a mini album (re: less than 10 shots) of one of the rallies for Palestine that I happened to find myself in. Look to the 'just look' section in the middle column. It's around the green area by Copley Square (the site of my favorite summertime farmer's market) - ironically, these pictures are from my trip to the library to figure out how to use my digital camera.

needless to say, I took the pictures before getting to the BPL. 

Also, just a few logistical items, the 'just look' portion of this web page will consist of the random photographs that I take, and it's brought to you by the great people at Google's Picasa, a photo-sharing site in the vein of flickr and webshots. I like Picasa because I can link all of these items (youtube, blogger, picassa, gmail) together in one seamless, google's-going-to-know-everything-about-me-anyway, enterprise.

I also figured out how to embed their slideshows first. yeah synergy!

I'm as old as the day is long

***editor's note***

I went heavy on the links in the post. you've been forewarned.

***/end note***

Today (or at least, sometime during the 48 hour period between the beginning of January 2nd and the end of January 3rd) marks the 24th anniversary of my season premiere in this life.

yes yes, I'm 24 years old. there's that right wing television show, rims have hit inflationary pressure (up to 24's from 22's), the iconic women's curvature is 36-24-36, 24 karat gold, christmas eve, the intergovernmental group of 24... exciting. depressing. ohmygodwhatthefuckamidoingwithmylife-ing. 

To mark this special occasion, (besides eating and drinking my face off) I've decided that this year (unlike all of my previous years.... psssh) will be a year marked with destiny, foolish decision making, and big events. 

So this basically means compiling a Top n list of great/awful accomplishments by great/awful people when they turned the age of a full earth's rotation (measured in hours... or jack bauer episodes... or teeth... you get the idea). All of my fellow 1985 brothers and sisters should be inspired. or very afraid. 

probably both. 

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

when they were was 24...

...Michelangelo carved the Pieta

...Cindy Lou Hensley met a 42 year old John McCain

...Pablo Picasso painted his Boy with a Pipe, sold at Southeby's for $104,168,000

...Senator Robert Byrd of West Virginia joined the Ku Klux Klan

...Tracy i'maTuftsalumna Chapman released her first album

...Thomas Beattie decided to switch sexes

...Ian Thorpe retired from competitive swimming

...Biggie got shot