Two short films

I found this great short film called Palindromo, telling the story of a man who has lost everything. The neat part about the film is that it's shown in reverse, so throughout the film you piece together the backwards dialogue. Great film.


The second film: La Paradoja de Arrow takes its' name from the Arrow Paradox, or Arrow Impossibility Theorem Demonstrated by Kenneth Arrow. Understanding the Arrow Paradox is a very involved process which took me the better part of an hour to get the basics. You can read about the Arrow Paradox here. The film itself is a visual play on this theory through downright beautiful cinematography and seamless graphic effects. I feel as though I can relate to the film, especially the intro, as it is a telling take on day-to-day life. Pay very close attention to the seemingly innate details spliced in, each one evoked familiar feelings for me.

Turkey Week

Thanksgiving is a time where loved ones come together to remember the amicable feast hosted by the Pilgrims, shortly before they all but wiped out the native population of Eastern North America. Having the last 5 days off from classes stretched time out into a strange but entertaining collection of experiences with friends and family.
When: Tuesday night.
Where: Syracuse, NY
Two friends call me up in search of some fresh herbal supplements In the early evening. I am of no help to them, but instead ask to join the search in hopes of adventure, and maybe even finding a little shrubbery for myself.
Our Journey begins with a quick safety discussion in the parking lot of a local ski hill. Switchboard then lights up with a frenzy of calls to help us find our way into the forest. Failed phone calls abound, a lucrative whim finds it's mark, and we are on our way to the Bro-levards of Syracuse University. Warm weather and torn overleaves cannot stomp the spirit of the night, and everyone goes their way happy.
When: Wednesday afternoon.
Where: Toggenburg Mountain Ski Center
I meet up with the Mcginnis brothers, Matthew and Michael, for a quick brief on this year's terrain park. We are antsy throughout the meeting, as voluptuous piles of man-made snow lie a mere twenty feet (6.096 meters) from our current location, inside the lodge. The meeting is done! Quick half hour drive to pick up a pair of skis, and we're back. Always the visionary, Matt transforms one snow mound into an undervert quarter pipe, with a steep landing down the reverse. Velocity check after velocity check shows us that speed is what we need. After finally getting that speed dialed, the session is on! the first spins of the season are spun and the first grabs, grabbed. Off axis rotations find their way into the mix, some intentional whilst others not. I am eventually put out of action by a tragic case of whiplash on a failed switch landing, and forced to retreat home in time for dinner...but before I left, I decided to randomly yell "visit matt's site an& buy his clothes at an& Clothing"
When: Wednesday night.
Where: China Road oriental cuisine, Mattydale, NY.
The owner of China Road, Simon Teng is standing next to the table where I am joined by my brother and parents. "Who ordered the Pig Intestines", asks Teng, a former proprietor of several very successful chic NYC Chinese food joints. My family turns their amused stares my way, as I announce with appropriate brevity, "IT WAS I". Most patrons are now craning and straining to see the poor fool who must have clearly misread the menu. I maintain my steely reserve (lame 40oz reference?) and shake Simon's hand while he explains that I am the first to have ordered such a delicacy in months. After many greasy noodles, green tea, and several bouts with an unidentified pepper that was basically hot as SHIT, my (or rather the pig's) intestines arrive.
A small army of oriental chefs deliver the intestines in several components, first a small sterno stove, next a bowl and stack of napkins, and finally a steaming hot saucer of what the menu had led me to believe were pig intestines. Said chefs stand back and join the owner in watching me cash in my pig-intestine v-card. The intestines themselves were small rubbery pink chunks of what I had always imagined intestines to be like (not that I had ever lent much thought to the texture and consistency of intestines before). I finally indulge myself and to my delightful surprise, pig intestines are downright tasty. I eat everything on my plate and also steal from my family's plates while they aren't looking. Stealing is too fun not to do all the time.
When: Thanksgiving; all day
Where: The fiery kitchens of hell
Giving thanks for what? Not getting to spend the day with my family? That was Beat

Vitamin Water

What if vitamin water didn't have a narrative about the name on the back. Suppose it was sold in a rusty tin can. Would it taste as delicious?

Cannabis

Unquestionably THE most misconstrued plant on the face of the earth. What motivates people to see herb as a destroyer? I was recently met with criticism over a research paper I am writing on the social effects of decriminalization of Cannabis. My opponent was significantly less open minded and unbiased than myself. Her use of circular logic was frustrating, and eventually I gave up fighting my point and let her walk away smug with what she saw as a victory. The backbone of her argument was that Cannabis is illegal. This point holds no merit whatsoever, and I refrenced how only a few hundred years ago, Heliocentric theory was also considered criminal. Her reaction proved that history only repeats itself. I am a firm believer that when the world is ready to accept Cannabis for the versatile plant it is, it will take a place in history among other controversial ideas. This belief is already mostly true, as a large portion of the world smokes or ingests Cannabis in some way, shape or form.
The people who can't see Ganga in this way have become unapproachable to me. There is so much of the world that they are ignoring and refusing to subscribe to, simply because they believe the lies they are fed. I enjoy provoking these types into talking about weed, and most become very uncomfortable in talking with someone who "does drugs". Through my discussions I have realized that since Cannabis is classically referred to as a drug, many opponents of the plant view users as though they have a problem. Cannabis is neither habit forming, nor has it ever proven to be harmful to the body. The studies whose results provided the "brain damage claims" consisted of giving rhesus monkeys the equivalent of several pounds of marijuana at once through a gas mask. The brain damage reported was not from THC, but rather from the smothering effect of only being able to breathe smoke. Please, before you hate, think long and hard about what you are hating on, and if one day you will go down in history as an idiot who fought in court to protect the notion that the Earth was the center of the universe...

A little side note, I try to refrain from using the term Marijuana as it was the name given to the plant by the Government during the criminalization process..

Chris Dennis photo

Ski season has arrived!

Ski season begins! After a copious snowfall last night. Today I met up with some friends from Ithaca to find some handrailage. After checking out a few spots, our lack of a drop-in led us to a 60ish foot down rail on the left of 36 wooden stairs. Before setting up the rail we sessioned a knoll packed into a butter pad by some local sledders. After that got old, we moved over to the rail and the session was on. We were situated on a hill over looking Syracuse and the weather created a surreal backdrop. It was sunny over the rail for most of the day, while black snow squalls rolled by in the distance over the City. One of my buddies from Ithaca, Chris, did the most unbelievable thing I have ever seen on a rail anywhere; wait for the footage, it will blow your mind. Another kid from Ithaca named Alex cleaned the rail without moving a muscle, and then came super close to a frontside 270. I ended up with a frontside 270 out but had to quit after catching a ski under the rail and taking a stair to the mouth. My camera batteries were dead but Alex and Chris were taking pictures all day so I should have some shots at some point. Day 1 of the 2008/2009 ski season was a monster success.

Snow

Today: Snow showers. High near 25. West wind between 7 and 10 mph. Chance of precipitation is 90%. Total daytime snow accumulation of 4 to 8 inches possible.

Tonight: Snow showers. Low around 16. West wind between 7 and 9 mph. Chance of precipitation is 80%. New snow accumulation of 6 to 10 inches possible.

Saturday: Snow showers, mainly before 1pm. High near 25. West wind between 6 and 13 mph. Chance of precipitation is 80%. New snow accumulation of 3 to 5 inches possible.

Ski season begins on saturday. Pics to come...

#1

I've been toying with the idea of making a blog for a while now, and I finally got the time to get one going. It's not the first blog I have made, but with each attempt, I always get stuck with what to post first. I'm not too sure what the purpose, if any, of this blog is, so I'm going to be taking it one step at a time. So for my first post, I'll let music do the talking. Simply put, this song bangs.

Zion I & The Grouch- Hit 'Em ft. Mistah Fab