Monday, July 20, 2009

Lunatics.

Two great things are happening today.



1) It's the 40th anniversary of the Apollo 11 moon landing. You need to have been living in a moon cave to not have heard this, as it's been plastered all over the Earth print and the web and TV for the past few days. A highly fantastic anniversary. Sadly, we still don't travel by jetpack these days, but we do have this book to compensate.



2) In a nutty homage to #1, Google's Street View's typical little yellow man has turned into an astronaut. Also newsworthy is the fact that Street View has now become much more streamlined; I've noticed it's moving faster and more smoothly with the zoom-in feature.

Another Street View Easter egg, for those interested, is the picture of the Google (Street View?) team along the headquarters at Charleston Rd in Mountain View, CA.


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One of my favorites is a Googler dressed up as Link at 1650 Charleston.


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Right next to Link is a homemade astronaut poster in honor of today. But what is up with the Canadian and French flags? 'Xplain yourself, you international lunar kniggit.


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And what would a Google Team pic be without a marriage proposal (at 1644 Charleston)? It just wouldn't be the same, I tell you. Not the same at all. Goofy Googlers.

Thursday, July 16, 2009

Current Loves: Janelle Monae's "Many Moons" Official Short Film



Thanks to a imabrazenhussy, I came across this fabulous "Many Moons" video by Janelle Monae. My ignorance of pop culture has kept me from her music, and my jury is still out on her as a musician. BUT the art & style direction of this video is top notch. Whoever crafted this fine little jewel are mastsers of the craft. I love the crazy retro hairdos the singer is stylin' (reminiscent of Little Richard, IMHO, see below) and the weird plasticky look the androids have, complete with consumerist price tags popping up during the auction. The video is rife with modern cuts of retro fashions, and Monae cops a perfectly kooky Lucille Ball wide-eyed look aimed directly at the viewer. It's fun to watch; check it out for yourself!



Little Richard & James Brown. Payin' some tribute.