*Michelle's Mental Clutter*

Newsflash: "Restoration gets far-out in Venice"

ANSA.it - Restoration gets far-out in Venice

Categories: Venice

A "Funnest" but Useless Quiz!
Which Action Hero Are You?

I had been holding out for "Neo"... but I suppose I can live with this as a calling instead! (They could use more women heroes here, eh? Maybe I can swap for "beautiful men"...)

"You scored as James Bond, Agent 007. James Bond is MI6's best agent, a suave, sophisticated super spy with charm, cunning, and a license to kill. He doesn't care about rules or regulations and somewhat amoral. He does care about saving humanity though, as well as the beautiful women who fill his world. Bond has expensive tastes, a wide knowledge of many subjects, and his usually armed with a clever gadget and an appropriate one-liner."

James Bond, Agent 007

79%

The Amazing Spider-Man

71%

Lara Croft

67%

Neo, the "One"

67%

Indiana Jones

63%

Batman, the Dark Knight

58%

Captain Jack Sparrow

58%

El Zorro

50%

Maximus

50%

The Terminator

42%

William Wallace

33%

Which Action Hero Would You Be? v. 2.0

(from "Dappled Things")

Categories: Film, Fun&Games, Tests

"Baby Bush Toys"

Okay, I try to lay off specific political commentary in my blog (mostly because in life I want to foster communication, not shut it down...) but I can't resist this one, cuz the "products" are so funny (and I don't think you necessarily have to be politicized to get a chuckle outta 'em!)

Especially because not just lil' kids play in boxes... Tee hee!

Just in time for your holiday shopping:
Baby Bush Toys: Brain Food For the Average Child

(from MonkeyFilter)

Categories: Humor

Living Venice and Disneyland

Great to see fellow Venetian transplant Nan McElroy blogging regularly again! Her insights about the life of a foreigner come to live in Venice are always insightful!! In fact, great post yesterday on whether Venice is a kind of Disneyland.

Actually, there's been talk for a while about whether or not all of America has already become "Disneyfied," "artificial, superficial, soulless," and not just, as Shannon Essa writes of Venice, being overrun by high prices and crowds of tourists...

"Embedded in middle class ideology are two contradictory values: the desire for authentic experience and the desire for security and comfort. Disney successfully combines these two values. Its theme parks provide safe secure landscapes under the guise they provide experiences from distant lands and different periods of history both past and future. Disney achieves this integration by taking signifiers from organic cultures and redesigning them to provide leisure experiences in rationalized spaces...." (from American Icons: Mapping the
American Cultural Landscape)

"This sort of thing is what social critics denounce as the Disneyfication of America, strip-mining history to market a version of the past that seems to have a special appeal as we race headlong into the future. This is not re-creating the past, they say, so much as distorting it: back when life in these towns was real, it wasn't always quaint—yet quaint is what sells now. Create a time that feels sweet and simple, and you don't have to smell the horses or die of cholera." (from "The Pulse of America," in Time Magazine)

And I concur with Nan and Shannon that Venice isn't at all at its heart Disneyland... What better evidence than this absolutely splendid photo by Nan herself from what must be the window of her new Venetian apartment!

Problem is, the city seems ever poised these days to slip into that ignoble fate! But it's the devotion of its residents (including adopted Venetians like Nan and myself!) that is the best antidote to the city becoming a merely crumbling reflection of a Las Vegas casino or Epcot Center! Follow Shannon and Nan's advice on a visit to this fair city, and you'll be doing a lot yourself toward seeing (and maintaining!) the real Venice. (Thanks, Shannon & Nan!!)

Categories: Venice, Travel

UPDATED:
Advent Angel: 22 Days 'til Christmas!

Long before Chevy Chase in "Christmas Vacation," my family would periodically go "Christmas-Light Looking" in December. (Since I grew up in Florida, Christmas lights on the palm tree would often be your only outdoor hint that we were in the Christmas season!)

In Tampa, there was one particular street that always beckoned, gleaming for miles around in the night: Braddock Street! Gaudy but enthusiastic electric splendor radiated from every possible surface on this guy's property (and the unfortunate neighbors who found themselves competing with him!) Back before people were really energy-conscious, part of the fun every year was watching their electric meter spin like a top!

Nowadays--and probably rightly so--the residents of Braddock Street have apparently scaled back... but not everybody lets a pesky global energy crisis dampen their holiday spirits! :-)

"Houseblingers" (from MonkeyFilter)
And then (via Metafilter) the amazing video of this house, which would make poor ol' Braddock Street look practically stone age... (Don't forget to turn on your sound!)

Enjoy!!

UPDATE (Dec. 4): Seems that the latest place to see a 25,000 light display in the Tampa Bay area is at 8664 92nd St., N. Seminole Florida. Here, you can see images from the 2004 display.

Then, of course, there's UglyChristmasLights.com... and the Christmas Lights and Display Web Ring.

Categories: Fun&Games

ULTRA BRAND NEW even more wicked cool Guestmap!

Ah, winter house cleaning here at "MMC"... Today, I'm tinkering all over the place with the blog!

Including installing an even more wicked cool guestmap!

Divinely inspired once again by "Dappled Things", I've switched to "Frappr!", a "mashup" between the free online mapping service GoogleEarth and the free online photo-sharing service Flickr!

Not only do we get to add photos now (only if you want!), but it's now easier than ever to leave your mark! Before, you'd have to zoom in and click repeatedly... now, all you have to do is enter your U.S. zipcode or international city, and the map then does all the work for you!!

Please take the new map for a spin! I can't wait to see it fill up with all you friendly readers!! :-)

(BTW, anybody looking for the old map can still go here!)

Categories: Blogs, Fun&Games

The Jimi Hendrix of Ukulele's 1st Nationally Televised Live Performance!

I first posted about Jake Shimabukuro back in September, with a link to a video of him playing an absolutely smokin' version of "While My Ukulele Gently Weeps."

Now that he's got a new nationally-released album, Dragon, he looks poised to hit the big time! So, don't miss his nationally-televised debut live performance coming up soon!!

"Watch NBC's 'Late Night with Conan O'Brien' on Tuesday, December 13, 2005 to see Jake play live in his first nationally televised performance! Support Jake along with the millions of viewers who will be watching.Time: 12:35 AM EST (check local listings for time in your area)."

For more info, see the 'Late Night with Conan O'Brien' website & jakeshimabukuro.com!

Categories: Music

More Useless but Fun Quizzes:
"How Machiavellian Are You?"

Blogthings - How Machiavellian Are You?

You Are Somewhat Machiavellian

You're not going to mow over everyone to get ahead...

But you're also powerful enough to make things happen for yourself.

You understand how the world works, even when it's an ugly place.

You just don't get ugly yourself - unless you have to!

Categories: Fun&Games, Tests, Books

QUOTE OF THE DAY

"All journeys have secret destinations of which the traveler is unaware."

-Martin Buber, philosopher,

interpreter (1878-1965)

(Clark Howard's Travel e-Scapes - 11 October)

Categories: Quotations, Travel

Ode to PVC

"MAKE's Mostly Under $100 Gift Guide 2005" is out! There's lots of fun stuff here, but my favorite's got to be the unbridled endorsement of PVC piping!

What: PVC pipe
Where: Your local hardware store
Cost: $2 or so per foot

"Is there anything PVC *can't* do? I know at first it sounds like a bum gift, but there are sooo many cool projects you can make with with PVC pipe. Imagine the surprise (and fear) when there's a 10-foot-long present all wrapped up (or stuffed) with pages of printouts for PVC projects like..."

Marshmallow Shooter

Furniture (incl. dog beds)

Bagpipes

Underwater ROV

And much, much more!!

Categories: Fun&Games

Advent Angel: 23 Days 'til Christmas!

Continuing this month's tradition of the Advent Angel... how 'bout a little mood music?

Brought to you by the same Yahoo! LaunchCast Streaming Radio that brings you my very own personalized station "Radio Clutter," here's the sounds of the season for your listening-while-surfing pleasure!

Enjoy!!

Categories: Music

Even Better Interactive, Virtual Advent Calendars!

The first one may well be my favorite... Enjoy!

(from Metafilter and Yahoo! )

Categories: Fun&Games

Advent Angel!

When I was little, my mom wanted to make sure that the Christmas season didn't lose its religious significance in the midst of all the holiday hubbub, so she introduced the tradition of the "Advent Angel" in our household.

Every morning during the month of December, we'd wake up and discover that the "Advent Angel" had visited us during the night and put up a new decoration celebrating the impending arrival of Christmas. It was fun hunting around in the morning to find what new surprise the Angel had left for us overnight!

I'm now proud to bring this time-honored family tradition to "Michelle's Mental Clutter"! Everyday I'll post a fun, silly or unusual link to celebrate the arrival of the advent season... And even if you may not be Christian and celebrate this time as the arrival of the Messiah or whatnot, I'd like to hope that most folks wouldn't mind commemorating the life of someone who was a great soul, and whose call to the love and service of humanity is itself worth celebrating!

For starters, the "Advent Angel" always left out first and foremost our Advent Calendar, lovingly crafted by my mom from ribbon and styrofoam, and adorned with peppermints that counted down the days until Christmas. Here, for your personal enjoyment, is a link to an interactive "virtual advent calendar" at the Guardian Unlimited! Enjoy!! (Plus, there's an update...)

Categories: Fun&Games

QUOTE OF THE DAY

"You see now... that divine justice, unlike the earthly kind, pays in advance, although over time it collects its return."

-Arturo Perez-Reverte

in Captain Alatriste (2005)

Categories: Quotations, Books

"New Strange Things Will Happen"

I first saw Howard Finster's work for R.E.M. (right) and the Talking Heads (left) back in the '80s, not to mention his unforgettable cameo appearance in "Athens, Ga.: Inside/Out" (celebrating what had to have been one of the greatest college towns and creative communities ever on the face of the planet!), when he recounted his vision at the age of 60 of seeing one of his own fingers, dirtied with tractor paint, speak to him and instruct him to "make sacred art."

I don't personally see eye-to-eye with much about Finster, but I have to admit that I can't help but love his art: glimpses of the everyday infused with such an intense spirtuality that reminds me much of the genuine faith permeating early medieval art... Enjoy!

"Everyone loves the Reverend Howard Finster: Finster was the creator of Paradise Gardens Park & Museum, a product of all his folk art and Chattooga County's largest tourist attraction..."

(from growabrain)

Categories: Art, Music