This image released by George Eastman House is a conserved broken glass-plate interpositive of Abraham Lincoln, taken by Alexander Hesler at the Illinois state Capitol in Springfield on June 3, 1860. George Eastman House International Museum of Photography & Film conserved the glass-plate interpositive, which was used to make copy prints following Lincoln's death. The interpositive is owned by an anonymous collector. (AP Photo/Courtesy George Eastman House)
Daily Freeman Life Editor Ivan Lajara talks about journalism, living in the Hudson Valley, language, the Web, cats and even politics. But he shouldn't.
Saturday, January 31, 2009
High-definition Lincoln
This image released by George Eastman House is a conserved broken glass-plate interpositive of Abraham Lincoln, taken by Alexander Hesler at the Illinois state Capitol in Springfield on June 3, 1860. George Eastman House International Museum of Photography & Film conserved the glass-plate interpositive, which was used to make copy prints following Lincoln's death. The interpositive is owned by an anonymous collector. (AP Photo/Courtesy George Eastman House)
Thursday, January 29, 2009
Bringing home the bacon
As reported by the New York Times on Tuesday, the recipe for the Bacon Explosion, ground pork rolled in pork bellies, is a hit with manly men.
Here's a slideshow.
And here's the recipe.
You'll need this:
I'm totally making a small version of this monstrosity on Sunday (I may even add some cheese) just to anger my veggie-inclined friends, who'll have to content themselves with uncooked broccoli and my special take on a Virgin Mary (vegetable juice).
If I survive, I'll tell you how it went.
What's in a name?
The caveat is that the name has to be mixed with factors like a disadvantaged home life, which I had the fortune of not having, since my name is one of those the study picked as having the biggest chance of creating a criminal.
Then again, I work for the EVIL MAINSTREAM MEDIA!
At least my name is not Adolf Hitler Campbell.
...
I found the paper, which has a March 2009 date, so enjoy the future.
Wednesday, January 28, 2009
Petit vs. Colbert
Is the Tampa Tribune a sleazy newspaper?
Just because you bothered to come here, here's a link about the current state of the weird 6-foot law (just click on it, you'll get it).
And yes, the Tribune does have a strip club database, because apparently, that's the best way to spend scarce newspaper resources.
UPDATE: No. The Tribune is not a sleazy newspaper. But its stripper database is the embodiment of sleaziness.
Thursday, January 22, 2009
Karl Rove is following me
Two days later, I received this e-mail from the site. The subject line started like this:
"Karl Rove is now following you ..."
"... on Twitter!"
Rove, of course, follows most of his Twitter followers.
The Architect's posts usually are full of Rove wisdom:
"Hit on Your World w/ Neil Cavuto cancelled. Sorry!"
He's so dreamy.
Oscar nods in Ulster County
Freeman reporter Bonnie Langston is talking to her as I type this.
Leo is in Park City, Utah, promoting"Predisposed" a film by West Hurley West native Philip Dorling, at the Sundance Film Festival. Dorling directed the film and co-wrote it with his mentor, Ulster County resident Ron Nyswaner, who wrote the screenplay for the Tom Hanks film “Philadelphia.” Nyswaner received an Oscar nod then for that screenplay.
Also of note, the Academy nominated “Man on Wire” for documentary feature. The film is about French artist and Shokan resident Philippe Petit, who in 1974 walked across a wire that had been strung illegally between the twin towers of the World Trade Center. The documentary by British director James Marsh was partially shot in Ulster County.
We'll keep you posted.
Obamamania
Here's a partial transcript:
"You should seriously be ashamed of yourself for printing such junk. If this is the best that you can come up with for our new president, you do not deserve to be a writer — at all."
I remember a journalism teacher who once said that readers who write angry letters to the editor or make unflattering calls have been made really, really angry by whatever was published.
(Think about it. how many times have you read something that angered you so bad you decided you were going to write something to the paper or call — and then didn't?)
But the thing is, the column wasn't about Obama. And because the call was anonymous, I couldn't call the lady to tell her to relax — with an Obama scented candle ($19.99) and Obama tea. ($15.50)!
...
I also received an e-mail from a person who did identify himself, thanking me for the column. Then he proceeded to plug the Obama watch.
Figures.
Wednesday, January 21, 2009
U.S. seal
lii_usc_TI_18_PA_I_CH_33_SE_713
Conclusion? Don't.
Tuesday, January 20, 2009
Obamabilia
What follows is a list of Obama merchandise mentioned in "‘Obamabilia’ may save the U.S. economy":
* Water
http://barackobamawater.com
* Wine
http://www.barackobamawine.com/home.php
* Wine glass (one of them. There are plenty of these)
http://www.creationsofcolor.com/obwg1.html
* Here's an article about the much sough after "Barick Obama Cheese"
* Plate (as unfortunately seen on TV)
https://www.victoryplates.com/
Comedian Lewis Black making fun of plate:
Of course, there's a lot more than that. There are condoms, chocolates, beer, shot glasses, soap, playing cards, perfumes, etc. Google "Obama" and a noun, and chances are you can buy that.
Have you found a particularly ridiculous Obama item? Send me the link.
Etsy.com is a good place to start.
Wednesday, January 14, 2009
Word of the Year
2008 Word of the Year Press Release
David Barnhart's 2008 nominations
Here are his nominations.
Barnhart 2008 Word Of The Year Nominations
Finalists
* the craptalicious suffix "-licious," which apparently can be attached to anything;
* "PUMA," via angry Hillraisers after the Democratic primary. It stands for "Party Unity My Ass," which is fitting because the Democrats are represented by the ass (though I have a feeling that's not what they were referring to). "Hillraisers" was now among the finalists; and
* "long photo," which allegedly means "a video of 90 seconds or less." I guess that makes television news "long newspapers."
Tw-, tweet-, twitt- Combining forms all connoting a relationship to Twitter, a free nano-blogging service.
If you are unfamiliar with Twitter, you've probably been at your bunker trying to survive the current economic climate (News Flash: It is still bad, go back underground).
And if you are familiar with it, you might still be wondering what's the use of having a site in which users can only post 140 characters per post. Aren't Facebook's status updates enough?
No.
Because you should know that twitter is great.
If you want to get hacked.
Here are a couple of examples from Jan. 5:
Other twitters hacked that day included Barack Obama, the Huffington Post and Britney Spears.
Needless to say, I started my own - "for research purposes," as I like to name all the projects I'm likely to abandon.
So before I do, visit twitter.com/ivanlajara.
You'll be thoroughly disappointed.
Monday, January 12, 2009
Annoying post
Here are the things that are annoying, on this Monday, Jan. 11, 2009.
* Monday, Jan. 11, 2009;
* $3 coffee;
* $3 coffee on my lap;
* Six stray cats in front of my house that like to pee on my porch and make me spill coffee;
* One indoor cat in said house who likes to get back at the outside cats by peeing on the entrance of the house.
* Annoying bloggers;
* Newspapers that advertise Golden Globe Awards coverage on their front pages and only have partial coverage, and then send readers online for "full coverage."
As in, "Pay to get half the story. Or don't, and get the whole thing for free!" Nice business model.
(The Freeman was the only daily in the mid-Hudson Valley with full Globes coverage, which wasn't that hard to do, since it was a wire story);
* Annoying and infrequently bloggers with cat pee on their porch and coffee on their lap who complain about newspapers.
* Award shows.
...
What are yours?
But, most importantly:
Do you know how to scare six cats away from a front porch?
Thursday, January 8, 2009
Melissa Leo also is not Critics' Choice.
Bummer.
But there's hope.
Leo is also up for a Screen Actors Guild Award for best actress for her role in "Frozen River"
And she has also been nominated for a Spirit Award for the same role in the film by Chatham director-writer Courtney Hunt.
SAG Award recepients often receive Academy Awards.
In January, "Frozen River" won the grand-jury prize for best U.S. drama at the Sundance Film Festival.
"Frozen River" is about a struggling single mother in upstate New York who teams with a Mohawk woman to smuggle people across the Canadian border.
Vera Farmiga is not Critics' Choice
She has told New York Magazine that, "living upstate is nothing but beneficial."
"Man on Wire" is Critics' Choice
The Critic's Choice Award for best documentary was given just now to "Man on Wire" about French artist and Shokan resident Philippe Petit, who in 1974 walked across a wire that had been strung illegally between the twin towers of the World Trade Center. The documentary by British director James Marsh was partially shot in Ulster County.
The award was presented by neighbor Melissa Leo of Accord, who's up for best actress.
One down. One to go.
Wednesday, January 7, 2009
"Other" iPhone materials
That is no joke.
But let's be fair. Here's the full Apple iPhone 3G Environmental Report.
iPhone 3G Environmental Report
The National Association of Professional Organizers
And it has good tips too.
And Get Organized Month is real (a real fabrication), now in its fifth year.
Here are tips on organizing your workplace.
And here's my an old photo of my workplace, which pretty much looks the same today: