Tuesday, May 31, 2005

And still a disorganized mess…

Seven years! Where does the time go? Today marks The BradLands' seventh anniversary at this domain, and nearly 11 years on the web total. So, happy anniversary to us.

Things are still a mess around here, with gaping holes in the archives where I still haven't managed to import everything into the Movable Type database. (And by "import", I mean "cut and paste from entries composed way back when using state-of-the-art Adobe Pagemill".) I haven't done a decent, consistent and personally satisfying site design in ages (y'all read this as a news feed anyway, though, right?), although I restored some bits and bangles from the old design because I missed the typewriter-like typeface and the purple.

The purple! Gah, folks will probably think I'm trying to imitate Anil now. Heck, I already post nearly as often as he does.

(For posterity, I have managed to get a few of the early months back online. Here, for example, is day one of this weblog, June 1, 1998.)

This site—including this weblog and The Daily Brad—for all that I abuse and ignore it, has been one of the most positive additions I've ever made to my life. It is the indirect cause of too many adventures and friendships and opportunities to grow (some I took, some I did not) to count.

This spring when I made my annual pilgrimage to Austin for South by Southwest, I was extremely flattered to hear two friends talk about how I had touched their lives. Kevin Smokler mentioned that his last-night dinners were a bit inspired by my annual Break Bread with Brad shindigs. And Bryan J. Busch told the crowd at Fray Café that it was at a BBWB post-prandial karaoke party he first considered singing in a band.

Not to get all George Bailey on you, but always it surprises me just how much influence one person can have on others, usually without even knowing it.

What I do know is how much influence the folks I've had the distinct privilege of meeting—often only "virtually"—as a member of the personal publishing communities that arose from a handful of weblogs and journals back in the late 20th century have had on me. A lot, and an overwhelmingly positive influence at that.

Thank you. Truly and sincerely, thank you.

I promise I'll get this place organized somewhat better before it turns 10.

Sunday, May 29, 2005

The new hotness equation

I don't know why I never figured this out before. I was watching The Late, Late Show with Craig Ferguson the other night and it suddenly hit me.

( + ) - 1' =

That is, (Lane Becker + Stewart Butterfield) - about 1' in height = Seth Green.

Now that we know how to make diminutive hot men, we just need more raw materials. Commence the cloning of Lane and Stewie!

Saints preserve us!

I do it several times a week, but given how awful and awkward the experience can be, it's a wonder I do it at all.

No, not that.

I'm talking about purchasing products or arranging travel online. Now, to be clear, the experience is significantly easier than it ever was and for certain things—media and travel especially—the majority of my commerce is e-. One of my biggest peeves, though, is that I can't seem to convince anyone that I live in St. Louis.

This problem crops up most when I'm trying to make hotel reservations or buy airline tickets. I go through the process with relative ease until the time comes to pay. I enter all of my particulars: name, phone number, e-mail address, frequent flyer info and credit card number. Then, to validate that last bit, I'm asked for the billing address for my Visa or MasterCard. I fill it in, click "Submit" and...

Well, one of two things usually happens. Either the site insists that I've erred and provides a way for me to go back and "correct" the information, or it fails spectacularly, pitching up an inscrutible error message with no way to recover except to begin the whole process again.

The mistake? The site requires that I enter my billing address and, when I typed "St. Louis" into the City field, it is rejected.

It seems what it wanted me to say (and this varies widely across a number of sites) was either "ST LOUIS", "Saint Louis", "SAINT LOUIS" or "St Louis". The computer on the other end can't deal with punctuation or abbreviation, despite the fact that there is no indication of such on the web form I'm filling in, nor is there any indication in the resulting error of exactly what I've done wrong or why.

This is especially annoying if I've been asked to enter the address to which the bank sends my monthly statements and I'm looking right at one that shows it was sent to "St. Louis". I wonder if the folks in St. Paul or Sault Ste. Marie have the same problems.

Related peeve: Being told to enter my name exactly as it appears on the charge plate (BRAD L GRAHAM, incidentally) and then being provided with only fields for First Name and Last Name. Or a single field that, like City, won't accept periods and chides me for typing "Brad L. Graham".

Thursday, May 26, 2005

Bookmark Now

Sometimes I feel as though I'm killing the American theatre.

I should explain. For a couple of decades now, there have been dire pronouncements that, with the advent of expanding home entertainment options—movies on demand, video games, personal computers, the internet and such—and an increased emphasis on an active lifestyle, with the 80-hour work week and the tendency of we humans in our off-hours to cocoon ourselves in our homes, theatregoing was in a not-so-slow and inexorable decline.

I thought about buying a bumpersticker for my car: "I [heart] my dying industry."

See, it's my job to extol the virtues and unique qualities of the live theatre. More than my job, it's my passion. And although I work for a reasonably healthy regional theatre, supported by a loyal and enthusiastic base of patrons, the audience is changing. Gone are the days when we could depend almost entirely on a subscriber audience—folks who sign up for a whole season of comedy, drama and music. They're being replaced by cherry-pickers who choose one or two productions each season. Actually, they're not being replaced. They're the same folks who used to go to the theatre all year. Replacing them with new theatregoers is hard, and getting harder all the time.

And I'm part of the problem. A few weeks ago, near the end of a long day at work, I knew there were two plays being produced in town I really wanted to see. One included a good friend's stage debut, the other was a seldom-produced work that was getting good notices that I wasn't sure I'd have the opportunity to see again for years.

All I wanted to do that night, though, was go home and fix a little supper then curl up with a warm DVD.

I returned to work the next day and wondered anew how to convince people to come to the theatre in an age when fewer and fewer people can be coaxed from their homes.

It was with considerable interest, then, that I received my pal Kevin Smokler's new (and first) book, Bookmark Now: Writing in Unreaderly Times, a collection of essays by young authors that looks at the publishing industry and the writer's life in an age where popular literature is facing the same dire predictions as my own professional world: a steep audience decline.

I must also guiltily admit that, having committed to write a bit about it here today, I haven't read it yet.

Oh my. I'm killing American literature too!

OK, that's not entirely true. I have read a good bit of the book, although it'd be unfair to give it anything approaching a review without having completed it. The book came to me at a particularly busy time and while I was in the midst of reading another, quite different book I have been trying to finish for a couple of weeks. But I have known Kevin for a few years now and I have made my way through about a third of his book and I can therefore tell you these things by way of encouragement to run out and purchase it when it goes on sale next week:

1. I hang with a pretty well-read crowd and I can say confidently that I know no one more passionate about new lit and publishing and the potential of new technologies and social networks to encourage them than Kevin Smokler. He clearly edited this book infused with an excitement to share that passion with as many people as possible, and it thoroughly deserves that audience.

2. Even from the modest amount I've read so far, I can see that this book has the potential to enlighten and enthuse writers about their craft and about a publishing landscape that is not as barren as some would have you think. In short, if you're considering a career as a writer, you need this book.

3. If you are not a writer or considering becoming one, you have a lot to glean from Bookmark Now anyway. The essays are thoughtful considerations of reasons for entering and strategies for surviving a changing literary world, and many of those considerations apply to any industry—theatre, say, or even sales or service—being forced to reshape itself in this modern world.

4. For readers—consumers of literature, in the vernacular—Bookmark Now is a feast of voices, many of which will be new to you, from which you can sample and discover new writers to seek out and gorge upon. (Here endeth the strained metaphor.)

Kevin is on one of his whirlwind Virtual Book Tours this week, so have a look at some of the other sites around where he's guest-writing for certain popular webloggers or submitting to grillings by other writers. There's also a distinct possibility he'll be coming to your town or showing up at a bookstore near year sometime soon to pimp his book.

No quixotic quest, this. Kevin simply believes with all his heart that books neither will nor deserve to die, and we could all use a sip of that Kool-Aid.

Wednesday, May 25, 2005

Linkies! Get yer linkies here!

A few things I've noticed, read, bookmarked or found otherwise of interest in the past week or so...

• Sidenote, an OS X Stickies replacement. [praise be to Snarkout]
• bigmuscle.com: Adam Grey—Oh me. Oh my. Oh...WOOF! [caution for timid browsers: naked guy]
• Beta test the new Dew
• Use Tiger Automator to set folder views forever. [Creative Guy is an all-around good read]
• Make a custom RSS screensaver using Tiger XCode tools.
• Why we shouldn't pay that much attention to box office gross [thank ye Jason]
• MacWorld: Ejecting DVDs in external drives
• Neon signs along Wilshire Boulevard (and other places in Los Angeles). A collection of photographs, part of a larger website dedicated to public art in LA. Also: MONA, the Museum of Neon Art. (Metafilter discussion here)
• Everything You Thought You Knew About Grilling is Wrong. Huh. So it is. [DanSays the darnedest things]
• Once almighty arbiters of American taste, critics find their power at ebb tide. Is it a dark time for the arts, or the dawn of a new age? [thanks to the lovely and talented Kris]
• As if I didn't have enough puppy lust already. Now I need a new canine companion just so I can buy this. I already have one to match. [via Lance Arthur's Conspicuous Consumption, where else?]
• Mail Factory—better labels from Address Book and/or Eudora.

Tuesday, May 24, 2005

The news isn’t greeeaaatttt…

Thurl Ravenscroft—best known as the voice of Tony the Tiger and as the singer of "You're a Mean One, Mr. Grinch" from How the Grinch Stole Christmas and "Grim Grinning Ghosts" from Disney's Haunted Mansion—has died.

And another big part of my childhood recedes into the past.

Monday, May 23, 2005

A boy and his tiger…are back! (Sort of.)

"Calvin and Hobbes" will return to newspapers later this year, and its reclusive creator, Bill Watterson, will answer questions.

Before fans of the renowned comic and cartoonist get too excited, it should be quickly noted that it will be reruns of "Calvin and Hobbes" that newspapers can publish from Sept. 4 to Dec. 31. And Watterson will reply to queries in a controlled way via Andrews McMeel Publishing.

Here in The BradLands, for our C&H fix, we've had this darling (possibly copyright infringing) feed in our NetNewsWire subscriptions. We recommend it to you too.

Saturday, May 21, 2005

Preach, brother!

Respect the TiVo!

Thursday, May 19, 2005

Well, there you are…

OK, this one is for the musical theatre geeks in the audience. (I know you're there.) Although, frankly, I doubt you'd really even have to be an acolyte of the thespianic persuasion to spot the error in this eBay listing.

On the other hand, perhaps it's not a mistake at all. Which would make this copy of an already rare commodity rarer still indeed. No bids so far. Here's your chance to score!

Wednesday, May 18, 2005

Two great tastes…

Heartwarming story of a man and beloved pet reunited despite long odds? Thinly-veiled shill for consumer electronics? Both? You decide.

Friday, May 13, 2005

Yes, I know what this says about me…

How much joy could a piece of machine-molded plastic possibly bring to my life? (Shut up!) Ask anyone in my office how I squealed last week when my Flipfold arrived by parcel post. I was giddily running around demonstrating perfect shirt folds to everyone who couldn't shut their door quickly enough. Seriously, it may be the best $20 I've spent in a long time, judging by the amount of fun it's brought me. Certain of my friends will understand: You need to get one right now!

Last night, after a much-needed laundry binge, I had the best time folding my dozens upon dozens of t-shirts and stacking them neatly according to color and the occasions for which they are suitable.

Yes, I know.

Don't blame me. I learned it by watching him!

Tuesday, May 10, 2005

Tony Nominations 2005

Watching the Tony Award nominations announced this morning didn't really yield any stunning surprises, and despite having enjoyed a rather good Broadway season, I can't really muster much enthusiasm for the doling out of the awards themselves this year.

Herewith a few handicapping notes and picks:

Doubt, hands down, for Best Play. Frayn is just too, too for the Tonys, The Pillowman is way too severe and Wilson, well...I'm just tired of Wilson plays. I think he ran out of things to say four or five titles back. Spamalot will be the Best Musical winner. The 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee is a lot of fun, but there's no there there. The Light in the Piazza has a gorgeous score and there's a lot of there there, but it's really too gentle to take a Tony. (It'll get a lot of regional play in the years to come, so don't worry it'll go unseen.) And Dirty Rotten Scoundrels disappointed me. I love the story, but the music often sounds like Full Monty trunk songs and the staging lacked elan. I'll say of Spamalot what I said a few years ago about Hairspray: It's not great art and probably not the best musical on Broadway this year, but it is hands down the most fun I had as a theatregoer this year. Give 'em the medallion and tell 'em to back the truck up to the stage door for a few more.

The other musical awards: Best Book to Craig Lucas and Best Score to Adam Guettel. Best revival? Neither La Cage aux Folles or Sweet Charity were in any way remarkable remountings. I give the edge to Pacific Overtures and hope the Tony voters have long memories. I certainly enjoyed the Roundabout's production, although it didn't top the Chicago Shakespeare staging from a couple of years ago. All of the leading actor nominees are pretty damn good, but give Norbert Leo Butz the trophy. He was a head-and-a-half better than Lithgow (and that's saying something) and he's an old college chum. Alums stick together.

Oh, that Best Actress category! I was a little amused to see Christina Applegate nominated but, hey, what were they going to do? Give Eden Espinosa a pity nom? A wail-belt does not a robust performance make. Anyway, Applegate is fun and flouncy and if Charity isn't a very good production, she's got charm by the bucket and could grow into the part by the time the curtain's rung down. (Besides, I haven't seen a more feminine Applegate on Broadway since Victor Garber did Damn Yankees.) Anyway, Victoria Clark deserves the Tony. Little Women didn't really challenge Sutton Foster and Sherie Rene Scott was really just playing Sherie Rene Scott in Dirty Rotten Scoundrels. I haven't seen Chitty Chitty Bang Bang and I do like Erin Dilly, but I think this is Clark's category in a walk.

I think Christopher Sieber's probably a lock for Best Featured Actor in a Musical, and while all of the women in the Featured Actress category are swell, I nod to Joanna Gleason. After Norby, she was my favorite thing about Dirty Rotten Scoundrels.

Best Scenic Design: Sight unseen, I'd guess Anthony Ward will get it for Chitty and Tim Hatley will probably win Best Costumes for Spamalot, although I though William Ivey Long's clothes for La Cage were a lot of fun. Best Lighting Design is no question: Christopher Akerlind for Piazza. The light for the show is, after all, the title character, and he made it a role to remember.

For the plays, the rightly legendary John Lee Beatty leads for Best Scenic Design with Doubt, and while I didn't see The Rivals, none of the other costume nominees were particularly stretched by their assignments, so I'll give the edge to Jess Goldstein, whose work I've appreciated in the past (those towels in Take Me Out!) and who probably deserves something for surviving Good Vibrations. I really liked Brian MacDevitt's lights for The Pillowman, and that's the only one among the nominees that stood out for me, so there you go.

Best Leading Actor in a Play: I bet Billy Crudup gets it for The Pillowman, but I'd give it to Brian O'Byrne for Doubt, while passing the Best Actress trophy to Cherry Jones with the other hand. (I haven't seen On Golden Pond nor Sight Unseen, but Bill Irwin and Kathleen Turner were awful—horribly miscast and poorly directed—in Virginia Woolf, and I like Bill Irwin and Kathleen Turner!) Best Featured Actor: Who the hell knows? All of the Glengarry Glen Ross guys were fantastic, even Liev Schreiber who I ordinarily can't stand. Edge to Alda, I suppose. Either Adriane Lenox or Heather Goldenhersh could take Featured Actress and I'd be happy; they gave solid performances and (have you guessed?) I loved the play.

Best Direction: Mike Nichols (musical), Doug Hughes (play). Best Choreography: Jerry Mitchell, probably for La Cage aux Folles (poor fella, if he wins, he loses). The Piazza should take Best Orchestrations; could they possibly have crammed in more strings?!

Hmm...I sat down to jot a few notes and I think I hit all the major awards. Maybe I'm more enthusiastic about the season than I realized.

Monday, May 9, 2005

Friday, May 6, 2005

Obviously, the gays aren’t big on consensus…

Today, after having heard a report on the radio wherein a conservative commentator railed on the evil inherent in the "gay agenda", a friend asked me point-blank: What is this gay agenda I keep hearing about, and who makes it up?

Well...

According to Mark Fiore, this is the gay agenda.

On the other hand, according to porn adult entertainment site Badpuppy, this is the gay agenda.

Meanwhile, McSweeney's Internet Tendency contends that this right here is the gay agenda.

An alledged homosexual named Doug Neff avers that this is the gay agenda.

And a site called Lusty Devil archives a popular fram message asserting that this is the gay agenda.

So which is it? Who knows? Trust me, as I've long maintained, there's enough shit flying around out there in political circles, there's a reason we call it a civil rights "movement".

Anyway, for my money, when it comes to defining the gay agenda, no one comes close to the elegance and elan of Lance Fucking Arthur who articulates—at length—the gay agenda. Like all good things in life, it's attractively presented, it's all-too-true, it's funny and it's very long: Part 1, Part 2, Part 3, Part 4, Part 5.