Author Archive

Friday Night Tattoos

As an avid reader (gazer?) of ModBlog, I was pretty psyched to see my first suspension cage. I was promised an actual suspension in another hour or so, but there were no takers, and hence, a disappointing lack of pictures here (though at ModBlog you can get your fill of suspensions in much more scenic locations).

This year we were only able to spend a few Friday night hours at the 11th Annual Tattoo Convention at the Roseland Ballroom, NYC. The convention took place from May 16th to 17th, Friday-Sunday, Friday being by far the tamer night. The hall was not particularly crowded and the Best Tattoo of the Day competition had only six competitors. A whole series of competitions was held over the weekend, with the more interesting (such as the Best Overall Tattooed Person contest) held on Sunday.

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2008
06/02
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CATEGORY
Conventions/Festivals
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Superhero Fashion at the Met.

 

Fashionistas, meet the big-screen Superheroes. Not a combination most would find to be most natural, but where there is leather and latex, there must be those who would adore it. “Superheroes: Fashion and Fantasy” is an exhibition hosted by the Metropolitan Museum of art until September 1st and as ridiculous as some of the outfits truly were, it is absolutely worth the suggested admission price.

The exhibition is divided into eight types of bodies, about which you can read at length here. The bodies are: graphic, patriotic, virile, paradoxical, armored, aerodynamic, mutant and postmodern. And they are all jealously guarded from photographers, perhaps due to all those involved besides Marvel and DC: Dolce & Gabbana, Armani, Gareth Pugh and many others whom I list here on equal terms because my knowledge of fashion does not extend very far at all. I can, however, separate the ridiculous from the ridiculously gorgeous and unfortunately, quite a few of the things I saw there were pretty horrible. I get the concept and the intricate design and whatnot, but really, an orange inflatable jacket does not make me think of the Hulk at all. What I did enjoy was the Hulk as an apparent embodiment of fetishism where the outfits involved rubber hoses extending from the crotch, gas masks, and loads of leather. Even Catwoman had nothing on that. Continue reading →

2008
05/19
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CATEGORY
Exhibitions
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My Favorite Things to Read Online

Google Reader was supposed to make me read more news and become more aware of the outside world since I don’t watch TV or read hardcopy anything but books. That didn’t really work out because the only time I turn to the internet is when I want a diversion. So the following are the bits of the interwebz that bring weekly happiness to my life, more or less in order of awesomeness:

Sinfest – webcomic that’s both immature, hilarious, and heartrendingly philosophical. Updated daily.

Coilhouse – A blog/magazine focused on the weird and beautiful. Updated at least daily.

lifehacker – useful hacks for your computer as well as your life. Great DIY instructions that anyone can follow. Updated every few hours.

FreakAngels – a new webcomic by Warren Ellis and Paul Duffield. It’s set in a steampunk post apocalyptic world and I honestly don’t know if I love the story just yet, but the artwork is amazing. Updated every Friday.

XKCD – “A webcomic of romance, sarcasm, math, and language.” The guy writing it is a little bit of a genius so I don’t always get where he’s going with it. But it’s often awesome. Don’t forget to mouse over the comic for a little aside. Updated Monday, Wednesday, and Friday.

Modblog – Not worksafe ever. Offshoot of BMEzine. Focus is on body modifications (piercings, tattoos, scarification, cutting, etc) of often extreme nature. Every now and then there are really great interviews posted. Overall it’s a black hole of disturbing/hilarious/inspiring imagery I generally can’t pull myself away from. Updated at least daily.

2008
03/30
POSTED BY
CATEGORY
Random
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A Wacken Update

I may as well start this thing again! This is a comprehensive outline of Wacken preparations. For last year’s list of things I did as well as a short explanation of Wacken Open Air and why I have to go, click here.

Well, first off, you have to sacrifice something big enough for He-With-No-Name to take note and allow your credit card to be accepted at Metaltix. My Amex credit card kept getting rejected (something about a transfer not going through), and Metaltix did not deign to reply to any of my pleas or queries. Finally, I just used my Visa debit card and within days I got an e-mail informing me that my ticket was shipped. An agonizing month later I got my Wacken ticket (as well a set of bewildering coupons to a German McDonald’s), in the mail. Good thing too, since Wacken has been officially sold out since 3/8/08.

This year is going to be astonishingly good X 2, because I’m not going by my lonesome — fathful d42 got her ticket too. Good things have been happening for W:A:O also. They got the Live Entertainment of the Year Award this year which only confirmed their awesomeness. Now I’m just sorry I didn’t get an extra ticket since selling it on E-bay would probably pay for the plane ride there.

Transportation to Hamburg: So, I have my ticket, great. But that’s only half the battle. Now I have to afford plane tickets from NYC to Hamburg, and finally get from the airport to the festival grounds. The sites that have been more helpful with(cheaper) plane tickets so far are sidestep.com and studentuniverse.com. Continue reading →

2008
03/26
POSTED BY
CATEGORY
Conventions/Festivals
Music
Random
8 comments

The Sternum Piercing Saga

A surface piercing is one that is done on a part of the body that is not really hospitable to piercings, a place that is not flat and hangy (like the earlobe) or even concave (like the belly button). It requires the creation of a canal underneath the skin where the jewelery is inserted. The particular one I chose for myself is called the “sternum piercing” and is a fun misnomer. I’m not so nuts about body mods that I would put holes through my bones, but I like the shocked look it gets out of a person who knows where the sternum is.

See! sternum! My piercing lies on the fleshy part above that– pic brought to you by Wikipedia

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2008
02/29
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CATEGORY
Random
23 comments

Winter 2008 Restaurant Week: Late Lunch at Osteria Del Circo

3 PM is the no man’s land of dining. It’s too late for lunch and much too early for dinner. That is probably why we (Beelzy and I) were able to get same-day reservation at Osteria del Circo: our gimmick restaurant pick of Restaurant Week advertising “traditional Tuscan home cooking with an array of superb ingredients!” and “dessert all day long!”

The restaurant was fairly empty. A few businessmen sat across from our cozy corner booth. The atmosphere was not as merry as I wanted it to be considering the circus theme. However, there was an uncanny sense of being inside of a circus tent, while simultaneously being in an elegant restaurant. This was achieved through, for example, marriage of perfectly white tablecloths, and festively decorated menus. The restaurant was also shaped in a rough circle, with the bar in the center, and troupes of toy clowns and trapeze acrobats adorning the vaulted ceiling. Continue reading →

2008
02/15
POSTED BY
CATEGORY
Food
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Winter 2008 Restaurant Week: Dinner at Orsay

When making our restaurant choices for the first and second weeks of the misnamed Restaurant Week (Jan 21st — Feb 1st, excluding the weekend), we decided we would go for a French restaurant and then something with a gimmick. Gimmick, because that’s fun. French, because during the hectic days d42 and I spent in Paris, we ate every cuisine but the most obvious one.

We failed you a bit by forgetting to bring a camera along

Orsay is without question a French restaurant. The receptionist with whom I confirmed my OpenTable reservation even had a French accent. The place is situated in a prime uptown location on Lex and 75th. It is characterized by dim mood lighting, dark mahogany, Art Nouveau arches supporting the high light ceiling, and an appropriately extensive wine list.

Upon arrival, in our business casual attire, we were helped out of our coats and shown to our table despite the fact that our party of 6 was yet incomplete. The downstairs space soon became quite crowded and a woman in furs womanhandled an adjacent table directly into us. “What do I have to do to get a decent table around here?” she stereotypically asked/demanded to our delight. Whatever the murmured reply of the waitress was, the woman and her bespectacled escort stayed sourly where they were seated. I suspect making a reservation would have been the recommended option. Continue reading →

2008
01/27
POSTED BY
CATEGORY
Food
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