On Second Thought...

I don't know what I was smoking the other day, but clearly my idea to write about all my interests individually is quite a silly one. I'm not 12, and this isn't MySpace. If you have any questions about my interests, you can always email me.

I Like Art

With the hundreds of thousands of profiles on Blogger alone, it seems that a good majority of them list 'art' as an interest. Of these, I'm betting that 95% of those people have an ameturish appriciation at best. But that's really not the point. Since most of us aren't art historians or critics this is not really surprising. What is awesome is that so many people derive some kind of satisfaction or enjoyment from creative enterprises. I myself make no claim to knowing much (if anything) about art, and sometimes I get the sneaking suspicion that the so-called 'experts' are really just making it up as they go along.
Indeed it's probably trite to say that each and every one of us would probably define art in a different way, and still art has a way of eluding all these attempts to pin it down.
In college, I took a course on, "the philosophy of art" which was quite interesting even though I have forgotten the majority of what I learned. What I remember is that there are many competing theories about exactly what art is. For example, if you were to say you liked Motzart's fifth symphony, what is it exactly that you are saying that you like? Do you like a particular performance of it that you heard in concert? Do you have a CD that you listen to regularly? Or do you like picking up sheet music and hearing it's contents in your head? In other words, is the artistry in the notations on the paper, the performance, or the recording?
Or consider that our contempory notions of art have their roots in a very specific period of time. DaVinci didn't think of his work as art in the same way we do. His objective was to represent real objects (and people) as realistically as possible. He was a tradesperson whose intention was to make realistic depictions, a mathematical and technical problem. With the invention of the camera, however, our ideas about the mechanics and aesthetics of art changed. So when Duchamp signs his name on a urinal and declairs it art, what exactly is he trying to tell us?
Food for thought. There are, of course, entire spectrums of ways to relate to art. Be that emotional, aethetic, or otherwise. You can love or hate a peice. People of VanGogh's time thought his paintings were ugly and he never sold a single piece. Yet now he is widely regarded as a genius.
I like art for a lot of reasons. But then again, that's just me.

Enough about Me, Let's talk about You

Just kidding, let's talk about me some more. Unless I know you personally, about the only thing I can say about you is that if you're reading this blog you obviously have great taste, beyond that I'd really be out on a limb.

It's a really nice day here in the Hague (partly cloudy and about 50) so I'm going to fire this post off and go for a walk (I need to find a hot dog vendor). I'm thinking that, in an effort for my readers to get to know me better I'm going to write a post on each one of my 'interests' listed in my profile. I'll do these as often as I can, but with all of the things I have coming up in the next month, promising one a day is a little beyond what I will be able to deliver. Peace.

Yep, I'm a Real High Roller

Hummers. Nothing quite says, "I'm an asshole," like driving down the street in a knock-off military vehicle. "Yes sir, I took out a second morgage on my house just so I could let you all know how small my penis is." Any kind of vehicle that requires a person to use steps to get into it should be confined to strictly military or industrial use and not endangering the rest of us on public roadways, end of story.
This reminds me of a friend of mine who owned a Dodge Ram pick-up for a while. I got to drive it once, and it was so large it hardly fit down a two lane side-street. It was so wide that I was surprised there wasn't an intercom system to communicate with anyone sitting in the passenger's side, probably would have fit at least four people comfortably. What's really obnoxious are those crew-cab jobs with the 'dooly' tires and fifth wheel mount. You know, n'case ya wanna' haul some dirt er pull a semi er sumthin'.

Stupid Plastic Grocery Bags

This post is in response to something Lucy Pepper wrote on her site Blogriza. It's amazing to me just how many of these damned things accumulate over time. Can you recycle them? I guess I just assumed you couldn't, my bad. But what Lucy says is definitely true, they are evil and wrong. I'll admit that when I lived in the States I had a cache of them in my pantry, waiting for the end of time I suppose since that's about how long it takes for one to degrade. However, since I've lived in the Netherlands I always bring a canvass bag with me when I go grocery shopping. Part of my conversion was fueled by the necessity of having to pay for plastic bags at the store, but I've come to really treasure my little canvass bag and the slight moral superiority (imagined of course) that it affords me. In the U.S. one might get the impression that there is some sort of monetary incentive for shops to give the things away judging by the trigger like reflexes the clerks and cashiers have when it comes to whipping them out. Bought more than one item, then you're sure to get a "do you want a bag with that?" For a pack of smokes and a coke, no thanks, I think I can handle it. Then there are the baggers a the grocery who always double bag everything as a matter of course. Drives me nuts, when the guy has just used two bags for a loaf of bread and another two for my eggs. But not anymore, I've got my trusty canvass bag. I would like to see grocery stores in the U.S. implement a cost per bag scheme, perhaps the money could go to landfill management or something. Stupid things.

Rethinking Multiculturalism

While perusing some of the clips at 3 Quarks Daily I came across an article by Ted Cantle on the Eurozine website. I thought the article was good so I commented on blogger Robin Varghese's decision to include it on the 3 Quarks site. Here is that reply:

Excellent and timely post Robin. I used to think that xenophobia was the specialty of a socially conservative America, but having lived in the Netherlands for a year, it is evident that issues of immigration and nationalism have once again become divisive political topics even among the notoriously tolerant Dutch. With the murder of prominent and controversial film director Theo van Gogh at the hands of a Moroccan man in 2004, many people have come to question the Netherlands' liberal immigration policy. Moreover, some people in this crowded country have expressed concerns that the growing Muslim population here may at some point politically threaten Dutch policies such as homosexual marriage and legalized prostitution. Officials of the European Union have also reported on the growing influence of racial hate groups and neo-Nazism, especially in former Eastern Bloc countries. With the continued integration of these nations into the EU, it seems likely that these trends will continue. On the other side of the Atlantic, G.W. recently signed the bill authorizing the construction of a fence stretching the length of the U.S. border with Mexico. These are just a few examples of the disturbing increase in intolerance and xenophobia in the western world. Clearly it is necessary to rethink our definition of "multiculturalism" if we wish to build pluralistic and democratic societies of the future.

Perhaps even more disturbing however, was the comment left after mine by one Luke Lea. It's hard to say just where Luke stands on the issue since his (I'm assuming it's a he) rather incohate bile spewing suggests that he didn't even read the original article which was actually about the loss of meaning in the word 'multiculturalism' as a result of its being bandied about so much. Thankfully, this person clarifies their position by beginning and summarizing with an insult. A real class-act. If you have a spare moment you may want to read it for yourself. One of my favorite sentances is, "Realism is the first requirement of moral responsibility." Perhaps "Cool Hand" should take some of his own advice and Wiki 'realism.' In any case this is why I try to stay away from politics in my blogging since it tends to degenerate into this type of thing. I'll stick to politically incorrect, intellectually elitist humor instead.

A Request...

Does anyone have any good book recommendations? I would really like to read some more Nabokov, but the American Book Center (just about the only place with a good selection of print in English) only has Lolita which I've already read. I'm a little sad that all of my books are in storage near Park Rapids, Minnesota which renders them somewhat inaccessable to say the least.

"Babel"

This weekend I went to see Mexican director Alejandro González Iñárritu's latest film. The essential plot structure is a blending of 4 separate but related stories, giving us the "six degrees of separation" theme that appears to be more and more popular as of late. I had mixed reactions to this film as it seemed to have a great deal of potential at the outset that failed to completely materialize towards the close.
The title of the film alludes of course to the mythical "tower of Babel," the construction of which supposedly so angered the God of the Bible that from that moment on the people of the world spoke different languages as punishment. However, miscommunication and misunderstanding, while evident in most of the scenes, does not play as significant a role in driving the plot as the name might suggest. Some may argue that it is exactly the director's subtle use of this device that makes the film so masterful, but in this case I would point out that subtlety does not equate to effectiveness.
I also felt that while several scenes were emotionally gripping, not all of the characters were as well-developed as they might have been.
What this movie excels at is its audio-visual complexity. In this category it is quite stunning, if not quite exactly ground-breaking. In fact, it is ironic that these aspects, NOT dialogue, are the biggest strengths of a film with this title. Perhaps that was intentional.
Although there are narrative and thematic parallels with last year's blockbuster "Crash," I felt that "Babel" lacked the intensity and character tension of the former.
Overall, it seemed to me that "Babel" was perhaps trying to accomplish more than it was able to deliver through it's methods. Having said that, I would recommend this movie to those who are looking for more in a film than just visceral stimulation, as it is complex enough to support a variety of opinions and interpretations.

I'm toast

All the recent posting lately has drained the creative reserves for the moment so tonight it's just banal stuff that doesn't require me to think. I recently passed the 100 post mark and forgot to celebrate so....yea for me. I've also found quite a few new and interesting blogs. As always you can share the joy by clicking on the links to the right. I still don't comment on people's stuff as much as I should even though people are almost always appreciate the feedback. That reminds me. Thanks to all the people who have been faithfully reading my blog over the past year, I'm looking forward to new beginnings in 2007. Hope to see you there!

It's Official

Kim and I shall be arriving in Minneapolis on the 17th of December, two days after the movers place all of our stuff on a slow boat to the Motherland. Before that, a quick trip to Florence next week, and a weekender to London to get down with Messy and his crew.

Just to make sure I'm ready for the cold when I get back home:

1. Hats and gloves-check

2. Parka-check

3. Gore-Tex boots-check

4. pasty, pale complexion-check

Looks like I'm set..... chimney-voo!

Where's the Suggestion Box?

"How did I get into the world? Why was I not asked about it, why was I not informed of the rules and regulations but just thrust into the ranks as if I had been bought by a peddling shanghaier of human beings? How did I get involved in this big enterprise called actuality? Why should I be involved? Isn't it a matter of choice? And if I am compelled to be involved, where is the manager—I have something to say about this. Is there no manager? To whom shall I make my complaint?"            
-Soren Kierkegaard

For the Lonely

"Deep within every human being there still lives the anxiety over the possibility of being alone in the world, forgotten by God, overlooked among the millions and millions in the enormous household."
-Soren Kierkegaard

On Agriculture

I felt the need to comment on a recent post I found on the Twin Cities Metroblogging site entitled, "Why Super-sized Farms Don't Work." The post in itself was a response to an article from Grist magazine online.

I would like to begin by saying that I am (and have been) interested in agricultural issues of this type. A great non-profit resource on this topic is the Organic Consumers Association. I have even had the opportunity to meet and speak with the director, Ronnie Cummings, a number of times.

Anyway I think I first started thinking about agriculture when I was in high school. Not sure where the actual influence came from but it was something to do with my amateur interest in archeology and ancient civilization. What I came to in my own deductions was that roughly 12,000 years ago humans began cultivating food rather than obtaining it by hunting, gathering, and animal husbandry. The whole process was not overnight of course, but the effects of this agricultural revolution stimulated one of the most profound sociological shifts in human history.
Without getting into too much history let me just paint a picture for you. 12,000 or so years ago our ancestors got it into their heads that it is possible to make food by putting the seeds in the ground. Probably had something to do with food sprouting up in former refuse heaps. Anyhow, methods were crude at first, perhaps just sprinkling some seeds on the ground before they migrated on to another spot and then coming back the next year to find more food. Well, certainly this was seen by some as a better idea than searching for food or hunting it down. Eventually, for whatever reason, primitive agriculture WAS adopted. This led to a lot of developments and changes. A reorganization of the division of labor (notably a shift from matriarchal to patriarchal society). Rise of the warrior class (to protect the food), sedentary lifestyle, food surpluses, population growth, waste management issues, and of course the rise of civilization.

So what does this have to do with contemporary food production in the rural Midwest?

Well, one thing that I learned a while back is that economically, food has some interesting qualities. Most of us are familiar with the inverse relationship between supply and demand. Supply up (assuming demand constant)= price goes down, otherwise known as a surplus. Demand up (assuming supply constant)=price goes up, otherwise known as a shortage. This is how things work according to free-market ideology assuming once again that there are no other variables exerting an influence. Well, as we all know, life doesn't lend itself easily to math quite so readily. Which brings me to the point about food. In food production it's usually desirable to produce a surplus (which of course fuels population growth, thus requiring more food production) in case of plagues, famine, natural disasters, theft, etc. Interesting to note that keeping track of surplus, as well as it's exchange for other goods led to the development of writing, private property and ownership, and class inequality, among other things. However as we just learned, having a surplus (with a less elastic and hence more static demand) drives prices down. Lower prices means that producers (farmers) need to produce more to make up for the loss in price, and a vicious circle ensues. Add a few thousand years to the equation and we get to a very complex system of economies of scale, subsidies for farmers to NOT grow food (in order to avoid glutting the market), commodity crops, world trade agreements, diminishing returns, large-scale industrial farming, and maybe most importantly the infrastructure that supports it all. So we're starting to see how complex the problem is and how it requires complex solutions as well.

Of course, buying locally produced food is a good first step, but it's not one that alone will be able to halt the decline and disappearance of the midwestern family farm. Perhaps the title of the post I'm responding to should have been entitled, "Why Super-sized Farms Work, and Why We Need a Better Solution."

My Take on Dutch Food

Dutch food. Um… not my favorite ethnic cuisine. Moreover, I've found that most expats here feel the same way when it comes to strictly Dutch eats. Perhaps this explains the apparent lack of “Dutch” restaurants outside of the Netherlands?
I shall begin with the salads. While the normal varieties of lettuce are easily obtained at the local grocer for some reason when one orders a salad at a Dutch restaurant you get a plate of lettuce that appears to have be denuded of the actual leaf part of the vegetable leaving only the veins. Perhaps I am just not refined enough to know what this is all about. It's even quite possible that this is not lettuce. I would go so far as to say that perhaps this kind of thing is quite common in restaurants throughout continental Europe and I'm just singling out the Dutch here as the target of my frustrations. Whatever the case, I'm not to big on anemic lettuce. If that wasn't enough there always seems to be some odd pickled item thrown in to boot. The Dutch have some odd fascination with combining ingredients that just don't belong together in a salad.
Of course, the Netherlands, being a coastal nation, consumes a lot of fish. This is good, I eat a lot of it and it's widely featured on menus. I even enjoy pickled herring with a good cracker now and then. The Dutch like pickled herring as well. Apparently, during the warmer months when it's in season, stalls hawking this delicacy pop up everywhere like so many tulips. As I haven't tried this item yet I can't say how I feel about the taste. What gets me is the way they eat it. The preferred method is to grab one by the tail, dangle it above your head, open your mouth and let 'er go!! Yes, folks, head and all, just let it slide. Wow, I'm giddy with anticipation. I would also have to warn people about the fish quiche as well. Hmm… egg and fish, I think not. Kim and I bought one on accident and I tasted it to see whether or not it was fully cooked. Flat out gross. We threw it away without even taking a bite.
Dutch beef, now here's a real treat for you, about as flavorful as chewing on a piece of cardboard. I've been told that the reason for the lack of taste is due to the cows being only grass-fed. Sounds like a fair explanation, I'll stick to chicken.
Then there is bitterbollen. Little fried balls that contain… well just about anything really. Bollen as it were, come filled with everything from fruit to fish to cheese to heaven knows what. Of course regardless of the ingredients the filling always comes in the form of a puree. I have yet to try the Oliebollen (oil balls?!) Perhaps I'll pass.
Oh, funny story. I was at the supermarket buying various things when I came to the dairy section. Right next to the regular milk cartons there were brightly colored cartons containing, I assumed, flavored milk. So I grab one that indicates caramel. I think: “awesome, I've never tried caramel flavored milk before!” I bring it home, set down a glass, open up the container and begin to pour. “Plop, plop,” goes the substance into my glass. It's pudding. Pudding… IN A CARTON!! Crimony! It was tasty pudding as it turns out but after you've poured out all you can pour out, there is still quite a bit of yummy pudding still in the carton. Maybe it's just my hang up but I would think that at this stage of human evolution it would be possible to find a more suitable container for pudding. Again, that's just me.
Potato chips, confusingly known as crisps to the British are very common here and they come in all of two flavors, plain and paprika.
But is not all Oliebollen and herring heads ladies and gentlemen. There is a bright side, and that side is the stroopwaffle, translated as butter-syrup waffles. Essentially a small wafer-like disc pressed into the shape of a waffle. Crispy on the outside, decadent on the inside, sugar the whole way through!! Eat them by THE TRUCKLOAD!! Sell your grandma for some stoopwaffles if you have to. Seriously.