french new yorker

Yes We Can

2008-02-03T23:23:00.000-05:00

We Are Here: The Pale Blue Dot

2008-01-01T02:28:00.000-05:00

Happy New Year to all the women and men of good will living on our little pale blue dot.

Good night, and good luck.

2007-09-05T01:22:00.000-04:00

Keith Olbermann channeling his Edward R. Murrow. And he's doing a pretty great job at it (just like last year).

Battlestar Robot Galactica Chicken

2007-08-26T17:08:00.000-04:00

From this week episode of Robot Chicken with the real voices of Katee Sackhoff (Starbuck), Tahmoh Penikett (Helo) and Michael Hogan (Tigh)

NASA News

2007-08-24T16:52:00.000-04:00

With Space Shuttle Endeavour safely back on the ground since Tuesday and after a near spotless mission to the International Space Station (except for a few tiles...), here's a look at some incredible high-definitions pictures shot during the past two weeks. The rest of the high-def gallery can be found here.

Jeff Buckley - Velvet Jungle Concert

2007-08-23T17:37:00.000-04:00

Triple threat today with back-to-back-to-back awesome performances of Dream Brother, So Real and Last Goodbye for the tv show Velvet Jungle (1995).

Heroes

2007-08-23T14:20:00.000-04:00

Can't wait for Season 2! Season 1 is relesased next week on DVD and HD-DVD.

No love (handle) for Sarkozy

2007-08-22T13:27:00.001-04:00

French news magazine L'Express is reporting that another French magazine (with close ties to the newly elected president) decided to give Sarko the full top-model treatment with some photoshoping... (left: the original photo of the president during his recent vacations in the US published by Reuters, right: the new improved Sarko)

The World Without Us

2007-08-22T08:56:00.000-04:00

I just started reading The World Without Us by Alan Weisman. It's a fascinating look at how fast all of our infrastructures (buildings, roads, tunnels, ...) would collapse in a matter of years (not decades) if we were all to disappear from the surface of the planet tomorrow. Weisman was last night with Jon Stewart, very uplifting interview... for planet Earth. And oh, invest in bronze, it's apparently one of the most time-resisting alloys we have.

New Serenity Collector Edition out today!

2007-08-21T08:05:00.000-04:00

Universal is releasing today a brand new 2-disc Collector Edition of Serenity, the 2005 Joss Whedon movie (sequel to the excellent but short-lived tv show Firefly, following the adventures of Capt. Malcom Reynolds and his crew) with tons of new extra features (extended scenes, cast/director commentaries, documentaries, ...). If you never saw the movie, get it! It's probably the best sci-fi movie of these past 20 years (can we say better than Episodes 1-2-3 of Star Wars? hmm, yeah we can). If you already have it on dvd, get it! (and give your old copy to friends or to a total stranger on the subway to help spread the word). The more copies of this dvd being sold (it's already #1 on Amazon) the more chances we'll get to see a Serenity 2 :) Here's a link to 25 Reasons Why You Should Buy the Serenity Collector Edition DVD.

Hamburger and Hotdog

2007-08-16T08:53:00.000-04:00

But who's who? And 423 vacation days in 6.5 years of presidency for George?? That's... 65 vacation days a year!!! So French of him...

Where No Computer Has Gone Before

2007-08-15T17:42:00.001-04:00

If you like watching the stars on a warm summer night, you might enjoy Celestia and Stellarium.

Celestia allows you to wander through the Universe in three dimensions, from small scale objects such as the International Space Station orbiting Earth to our supercluster of galaxies. You can also download a lof of add-ons for Celestia (like the Space Shuttle or... the Millenium Falcon :) ).

Stellarium is your own private planetarium on your computer and is a great way to find objects (planets, stars, nebulaes) in the sky.

No need to be a rocket scientist to install and use them right away, they are pretty intuitive to use. Oh and they're both free :) These two great pieces of software give you a pretty good idea as to why astrophysicists can say there are more stars in the Universe than there are grains of sand on Earth...

Rapplestar Galactica

2007-08-14T02:59:00.000-04:00

Only 3 months to wait until Battlestar Galactica: Razor the tv movie coming out this November both on Sci-Fi Channel and on dvd...

The Educator in Chief

2007-08-10T07:59:00.000-04:00

In other words...

NASA News

2007-08-08T11:13:00.000-04:00

Watch the launch of Space Shuttle Endeavour (the last of the three shuttles left to fly since Columbia's accident in 2003) tonight live at 6:36 pm EDT on NasaTV! Mission STS-118 is a multi-purpose mission to perform assembly, repairs and resupply on the International Space Station. This will be the first shuttle flight for astronaut/teacher/mission specialist Barbara Morgan and a happy bookend for the space program as Barbara was Christa McAuliffe’s backup in the Teacher in Space Project when Space Shuttle Challenger was lost in 1986. Most of the mission (including the spacewalks) will be broadcasted live on NasaTV for the next 11 days.

Sugarshock!

2007-08-07T18:25:00.000-04:00

A brand new initiative by Dark Horse Comics, Dark Horse Presents offers monthly e-comics including the very funny, very pop-culture-y and whedon-y Sugarshock by Joss Whedon.

Tim Buckley - Song To The Siren

2007-08-06T19:39:00.000-04:00

Like son, like father. A great DVD of live performances by Jeff's father was released a few weeks ago. There's also a pretty good compilation of both his folk songs from the end of the 60s and his more experimental work at the beginnin of the 70s.

Memory Loss

2007-08-02T08:20:00.000-04:00

After Alberto last week, there should really be a study conducted on the impact of exercising power or working for CNN on memory loss. There's a paper wating to be written here...

Wednesday Poll: summer '07 blockbusters

2007-08-01T13:45:00.000-04:00

All the summer blockbusters are out, which one did you enjoy the most? (vote in the right column)

Jeff Buckley - Forget Her

2007-07-31T08:51:00.000-04:00

How cool to find Jeff Buckley AND Paris in the same video? Forget Her is an amazing Buckley song that was supposed to be on Grace. It was replaced at the last minute by Dream Brother which Jeff thought was a better fit with the rest of the album. The studio track was later released on Grace (Legacy Edition) (2004) and So Real (2007) (there is a rare live audio performance of the song floating around the interweb) (lyrics in the comments as usual)

D'oh!

2007-07-30T08:24:00.000-04:00

In conjunction with the just-released Simpsons movie, this new website turns you into you own unique Simpsons character (you just need to upload a picture, here's the result with mine on the left which is not too far from reality...). Just saw the movie yesterday (it was a rainy sunday New York afternoon) and it's a treat for every Simpsons fan. After that many years on the air (18) a tv show is not a tv show anymore, it becomes a cornerstone of pop-culture. And if the tv show in itself might not be as funny as it used to be. the transition to the big screen totally revitalized the Simpsons family and had me laughing for a good part of the movie (something which is usually pretty hard to accomplish for a movie...). So, d'oh!

Hearing Problems

2007-07-26T15:41:00.000-04:00

Oh Alberto... you were so close this time...

Random Paris

2007-07-26T07:39:00.000-04:00

Okay... I don't want my hometown to be jealous, so here's a pic of Paris from my old bedroom window.

Random New York

2007-07-26T07:22:00.000-04:00

(East Village, 5am)

Nothing like wandering in Manhattan at 5am, when (most of) the city is still asleep, in this short period of time when it's not really night anymore and not day yet. (well, perhaps Paris at 5am too... even more so when you add the early smell coming from the corner bakery)

Henry 'Indiana' Jones Jr, PhD is back!!!

2007-06-22T15:41:00.000-04:00

And he still looks great with his fedora on. Yesterday was the first day of shooting for the movie. with a worldwide release date of May 22, 2008. Can't wait for this one, it's been waaaayyy too long since the Last Crusade (19 years).

Nasa News

2007-06-08T16:02:00.000-04:00

Watch the launch of Space Shuttle Atlantis tonight live at 7:38 pm EDT on NasaTV! Mission STS-117 resumes the construction of the International Space Station by adding a new pair of solar panels on the starboard side of the space station. Most of the spacewalks will also be broadcasted live on NasaTV for the next 12 days.

Frak

2007-06-01T08:06:00.000-04:00

Frak! Executive Producers Ron Moore and David Eick just announced that Battlestar Galactica's 4th season will be its last (their decision, not the network's). And that totally frakking sucks. I'm a bit conflicted actually: on one side I'll really miss what is despite its hokey name imho the best show on tv (and the best sci-fi show ever) but if Moore and Eick think that's how it should be done and that they have enough time with the 22 remaining hours to wrap the story, I totally trust them, they haven't disappointed us so far. So if you haven't watched it yet, watch the video below to get an idea and you have until next January to catch up on the first 3 seasons. And for those who already have and can't wait until next January for the beginning of the end, there's a new 2 hours tv-movie (Battlestar Galactica: Razor) coming this November centered around the Battlestar Pegasus and Admiral Cain's character. So Say We All.

Google Streets

2007-05-31T16:06:00.000-04:00

A pretty cool new feature was added to Google Maps: Streets View. Only available for now in a few select cities, it allows you to navigate at street level (click on the arrows in the photo) and rotate the camera 360 degrees (by dragging the mouse). Here's Nasa in NYC, which happens to be also Tom's Restaurant in almost any episode of Seinfeld AND the original place that inspired the uber popular Suzanne Vega' song Tom's Diner, you know! the famous "too-too-loo too too-too-loo loo...".

Rufus Wainwright - Memphis Skyline

2007-05-29T12:35:00.000-04:00

A great tribute song to the memory of Jeff Buckley by Rufus Waingright. (lyrics in the comments section)

10 years ago...

2007-05-29T07:33:00.000-04:00

Jeff Buckley (November 17, 1966 – May 29, 1997). Light a candle for Jeff. And here are all the previous clips I posted on this blog.

Satisfied Mind (live @ The Knitting Factory)
How many times have you heard someone say,
"If I had money, I would do things my way."
But little they know, that it's so hard to find
one rich man in ten, with a satisfied mind.

Money can't buy back all your youth when you're old,
a friend when you're lonely, or peace to your soul.
The wealthiest person, is a pauper at times
compared to the man with a satisfied mind.

When my life is over and my time has run out,
my friends and my loved ones, I will leave there's no doubt.
But one thing's for certain, when it comes my time,
I'll leave this old world with a satisfied mind.
But one thing's for certain, when it comes my time,
I'll leave this old world with a satisfied mind mind mind, mind mind,
satisfied mind.

Joss Whedon

2007-05-20T19:40:00.000-04:00

"[...] Because it’s no longer enough to be a decent person. It’s no longer enough to shake our heads and make concerned grimaces at the news. True enlightened activism is the only thing that can save humanity from itself. I’ve always had a bent towards apocalyptic fiction, and I’m beginning to understand why. I look and I see the earth in flames. Her face was nothing but red. [...]"

A great post signed Joss Whedon. If you haven't seen his speech from last year on the need for equality between women and men, watch it here.

Jeff Buckley - Forget Her

2007-05-10T01:38:00.000-04:00

This song was supposed to be on the first version of Grace. It was later replaced by Dream Brother as Jeff thought it was a better fit with the rest of the album. It's nonetheless a frakking great song. Forget Her was later released on the second cd of the Legacy Edition. (lyrics as usual in the comments section)

Official results of the presidential election in NYC

2007-05-09T07:51:00.000-04:00

The official results give Sarkozy winner in NYC with 65.2% (35.8% for Royal). In the rest of the country he wins LA (63%), Chicago (62%), DC (60%) and Miami (81% !), all way above his national result (53%). Who wouldn't take nice vacations after such a result? Interestingly enough, "only" 51.75% of San Francisco voters elected him as President...

On French Dissing

2007-05-06T21:06:00.000-04:00

From last Friday's Real Time with Bill Maher (one of my favorite tv program, every Friday night live on HBO).

Six Feet Under

2007-02-21T18:57:00.000-05:00

A friend asked me this past week-end which tv show I would get with me on a desert island. I might be a big sci-fi fan but I had to answer Six Feet Under. IMHO the best tv show ever made, period. How I miss you Nate and Brenda, Claire, Ruth, David and Keith :) As a little homage, here are a few promos for season 3, 4 and 5 put up by HBO (respectively using 'A rush of blood to the head' by Coldplay, 'Feeling good' by Nina Simone and 'Breathe Me' by Sia).

Snowy Central Park

2007-02-18T13:41:00.000-05:00

Taken this morning during my jogging in the park, from the Castle overlooking the (snowy) Big Lawn and the (frozen) lake.

Jeff Buckley - Grace (bis)

2007-01-18T23:55:00.000-05:00

Another amazing live version of "Grace" recorded on MTV (1995).

Frangland?

2007-01-18T18:52:00.000-05:00

According to official documents recently discovered by BBC and surprising to a lot of historians, France and England discussed the possibility of merging both countries into one during the 50s after France lost the Suez Canal and at a time when algerians separatists were gaining momentum. If a direct union was immediatly rejected, an entry of France into the Commonwealth wasn't excluded. Would have french people accepted Queen Elisabeth II as a head of state. I don't think so after all these centuries of "Je t'aime. Moi non plus" (I love you. Neither do I). But that could make for an interesting movie in a "What if?" kind of way...

Strangely addictive...

2007-01-16T08:47:00.000-05:00

To file in the "will NOT make humanity progress but highly addictive video moments" category...

Happy New Year '07!!!

2007-01-12T15:10:00.000-05:00

Hello and a happy New Year '07 wherever you are on the globe. Just got back from Paris where I had waaaaayyy too much (good) food (are they really going to forbid the sale of foie gras in NY??? apparently it doesn't seem to work really well in Chicago. Mmmh... I've seen a few nice ducks while I was running along the Hudson River, that could be a solution if they do so...). Anyway take care of yourself, take care of others and take care of our little planet.

Nasa News

2006-12-08T11:53:00.000-05:00

Space Shuttle Discovery liftoff, supposed to take place yesterday, has been delayed until tomorrow Saturday, Dec. 9 at 8:47PM EST due to poor weather conditions over Florida (and over NY for that matter, it's fraking cold this morning).
Watch the liftoff Saturday night live on NasaTV.

George Lucas in Love

2006-12-08T07:53:00.000-05:00

This short movie (which Lucas is apparently a big fan of) answers this eternal question : where did inspiration come from when George Lucas started writing Star Wars? The answer, of course, is from Love. Not so long ago, on an american campus not so far away...

The log lady diaries 6

2006-12-08T07:33:00.000-05:00

Beauty is in the eye of the beholder.

Yet there are those who open many eyes.
Eyes are the mirror of the soul, someone has said.
So we look closely at the eyes to see the nature of the soul.

Somewimes when we see the eyes--those horrible times when we see the eyes, eyes that... that have no soul--then we know a darkness, then we wonder: where is the beauty?
There is none if the eyes are soulless.

Nasa News

2006-12-07T07:59:00.000-05:00

Space Shuttle Discovery launch is a go for tonight at 9:35pm EST!
At least for now... as there's a 60% chance of cancellation due to weather. The 12-days STS-116 mission consists in rewiring a few cables on the International Space Station and connect it to the new solar panels truss structure.
Watch the liftoff live tonight on NasaTV.

Is there still liquid water on Mars?
We knew there was still iced water on Mars. But liquid water??? A recent comparative study of photographies taken 6 years appart revealed new sediments deposited in two gullies by what appears to be liquid water. And who says water says...

In other sad martian news, Mars Global Surveyor(MGS) has probably finished its life as no attempt to re-establish communications with the spacecraft succeeded. MGS was the longest (10 years) and most successful mission orbiting Mars as it returned more than 248,000 pictures of the Red Planet to Earth.

Jeff Buckley - Hallelujah

2006-11-29T08:12:00.000-05:00

Recorded live on Nulle Part Ailleurs, Canal + (1995). And this short but touching interview following the release of his first E.P.:

"... And what do I want people to get from the music? Whatever they want, you know... Whatever you like."

Must see TV, fall '06

2006-11-27T19:11:00.000-05:00

Although I don't watch much TV during summer, it can be nice to get addicted to a few good tv shows especially during the long and cold winter nights. And that might includes evil cylons, a cheerleader, a serial killer, a few refugees and other new yorkers:

1) & 2) Battlestar Galactica (SciFi, Fridays at 9pm) and Heroes (NBC, Mondays at 9pm): in a close tie, my two favorite shows these days, Battlestar Galactica (BSG in short) is a post-9/11 re-imagining of the late-70s scifi series following the last survivors of the human race on their quest to planet... Earth. More than a scifi show, BSG is an extremely well crafted, well acted (Mary McDowell and James Edward Olmos as President Laura Roslin and Admiral William Adama are fantastic!!) drama that happens to take place in space. Heroes, the new (only?) hit show on NBC, is basically a superhero comic-book on tv filled with high-octane tightly written plots and attaching human characters, regular people all over the world discover their new talents (a time/space binding Japanese office worker, an indestructible cheerleader, a telepathic cop, a dual-personality hooker, a flying corrupt congressman, ...) and their place in the universe. Save the cheerleader, save the world!

3) Dexter (Showtime, Sundays at 10pm) Dexter is a brand new show starring Michael C. Hall (David from Six Feet Under, one of my favorite character from my favorite show but then again was there any character I didn't love on this show?) as forensic expert (just like in CSI) Dexter who happens to be... a serial killer. But a good one. You see, Dexter has urges, urges to kill and his late adoptive father, a cop, taught him how to canalize these urges to do some good and get rid of people (criminals, other serial killers) that the justice system or police won't deal with. The show takes place in the sweaty, dirty side of Miami and Michael C. Hall is brilliant as usual.

4) Lost (ABC, Wednesdays at 9pm): still good, still too many questions unanswered (but there of course lays the genius of the show), a few answered ones (why the plane crashed, who are the Others) and while a bit slow in the first seven episode of this mini-season 3, the show ended on a cliffhanger and resumes in February with 15 episodes in a row

5) How I Met Your Mother (CBS, Mondays at 8pm): a good ol' fashioned sitcom a la Friends about love and life in New York City. Not really original but funny. Plus the characters live in a building a block away from mine (on w75th St.) which adds to the list of sitcoms taking place on the Upper West Side: Seinfeld and Mad About You (both at 129 w81st St), Sex and the City (Charlotte lives at 275 Central Park West) or Will & Grace (both living at 155 Riverside Drive).

What about you? What are your favorite shows these days?

Charlotte Gainsbourg - Songs That We Sing

2006-11-20T19:31:00.000-05:00

Charlotte Gainsbourg's (daughter of legendary french singer/songwriter Serge Gainsbourg and Jane Birkin) new album 5:55 was co-written by Jarvis Cocker (Pulp) and Neil Hannon (The Divine Comedy) for the lyrics and Air for the music and produced by Nigel Godrich (producer of Radiohead). That's some nice people gathered here and the resulting mix is working quite well with Charlotte's personality and voice.

Bill Clinton and Vaclav Havel

2006-11-15T22:23:00.000-05:00

Today I went during lunch break to a discussion panel at Columbia University (which is about 100 feet north of Nasa) between former US and Czech presidents Bill Clinton and Vaclav Havel entitled The Challenges Of New Democracies. Clinton made a touching tribute to Vaclav Havel reminding people that along with Gandhi and Nelson Mandela, he had been the only person to radically change the course of a country in a non-violent way. The discussion topics between the two ex-presidents ranged from democracies around the world (differences between democracies and majoritarian republics, should every country be a democracy?), positive and negative interdependencies, the status of the US as #1 superpower as a "way overrated concept", Iraq (surprisingly, Clinton doesn't share the optimism of the current administration "we need to get people out of the killing business and back into the politics business"), the price of freedom and civil liberties, Hilary ("I can't say too much. I have a wife in the Senate, so whatever she says, I'm for"), post-communism and the after-presidency life where Clinton seems to really enjoy what he's achieving with his foundation.

Now Bill Clinton is one of my favorite person on the planet (a bit of a "clintonista" as my friend Jayson would put it) so it was a real treat to see him live for the first time (even more so after watching a conference press with W. this morning on CNN the differences between the two are even more striking, for one, one of them knows actually how to speak). And I couldn't help myself during the full hour wishing the 22nd Amendment (which limits every presidents to a maximum of two mandates) to be abolished. Bill seemed to somewhat share my views on that point ("Fortunately for you, there's the 22nd Amendment or else I think I could still be there if office!").

A video of the conference is now online on Columbia's website (RealPlayer video) and a podcast of the event will be available this week-end on iTunes.

Improve your Firefox

2006-11-14T08:05:00.000-05:00

A list of very useful extensions and themes (all of them compatible with the brand new Firefox 2, which is still better imho than the new Internet Explorer 7) to customize and improve your internet browsing:

DictionnarySearch: looks up selected word in an online dictionary
ForecastFox: get international weather forecast and displays it in status bar or any toolbar
Foxmarks: synchronizes your bookmarks across machines
GooglePreview: inserts web site previews in google and yahoo search results
IE View: open pages in Internet Explorer via Firefox menu
Image Zoom: adds zoom functionality for images
Map+: view a map of selected address
Tab Catalog: shows thumbnail-style catalog of tabs
Tabbrowser Preferences: enhances control over some aspects of tabbed browsing
DownThemAll: download manager/accerlerator
Sage: lightweight RSS/Atom newsfeed reader/aggregator

Here's also a list of cool themes compatible with Firefox 2: Noia, iPox, Aluminium Kai and iFox. There are tons and tons of other extensions and themes available on the Firefox add-ons website.

Noir Désir - Le Vent l'Emportera

2006-11-13T23:21:00.000-05:00

A bit of french rock for tonight. One of my favorite song from french rock band Noir Désir recorded live in Evry (2002).

Note to self

2006-11-13T07:58:00.000-05:00

Note to self: don't forget to sue Warner Bros for a blatant copy (parody?) of my Halloween costume. Warner just released this pic of the soon-to-be-released director's cut DVD of Superman 2. Just wait for my Wonder Woman costume next year...

A Fox News Moment

2006-11-13T07:47:00.000-05:00

From the always entertaining but not so bright Bill O'reilly of the always entertaining but not so bright Fox News network:

"Halloween is a $5 billion industry in the USA, second only to Christmas in consumer sales? And the Eve of All Hallows has now spread to many other countries. But France is rethinking the trick-or-treat situation. According to the magazine "Le Monde," the French have begun to reject Halloween because of the rise of anti-American feeling in that nation. And that's fine with me. I'm still boycotting France. Besides how would you like to say Bon-bons ou batons all night long? That's "trick-or-treat" in Francais. Bon-bons ou batons, bon-bons ou batons.
Ridiculous? You make the call."

We've made the call, Bill, we have. Besides a Bill O'reilly boycott should always been taken as a compliment.

Nasa News

2006-11-10T18:06:00.000-05:00

Space Shuttle Discovery (isn't she beautful?) is currently gently rolling out to Launch Pad 39B in preparation for launch on mission STS-116 to the International Space Station. The shuttle's payload includes the next space station components: the P5 integrated truss segment and the SPACEHAB module The launch window for mission STS-116 opens Dec. 7.

This amazing new view of the Orion Nebula (a composite of visible and infrared light) was created using both NASA's Spitzer and Hubble telescopes. (click on the pic for more info and a larger high-def image) In other shuttle and Hubble (shubble?) news, a new 900 million dollars mission was decided last week to go and repair the aging Hubble Telescop. Great news for all astronomers around the world as this telescop brought unprecedented discoveries about the origins and the inner mechanics of our lil' universe.

No, it's not an inside view of my stomach after the last Halloween party but a really frakking big storm on Saturn captured by orbiting spacecraft Cassini (this spacecraft is navigated, between pregnancies, by my dear friend Julie at JPL where I used to work): 8,000km (5,000 miles) wide with winds up to 550km/h (350 miles/h)... (click on the pic for more info and a movie of the storm)

Cat Power - The Greatest

2006-11-09T13:58:00.000-05:00

Cat Power (stage name for singer Charlyn "Chan" Marshall) is a strange little lady. I saw her recently live in NYC and she seems really shy and to have her own world (which is a good thing) but she's a real artist with a warm, original and evocative voice. She just released a new album (The Greatest).

Midterm elections (updated update)

2006-11-08T08:06:00.000-05:00

It's this time of the year again! Votes recount days are coming! The people have put the Democrats back in charge of the House, and--as of this writing--are two seats away from retaking the Senate.

Hearing people talking on the subway or at a coffee shop, most of them seemed rather suprised and happy about the Dems victory, but then again we're in NY...

A good news never coming alone, Bush just announced Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld resignation.

It's raining today outside. But it's a nice day.

UPDATE: it's now 50-49 for the Democrats as they just won Montana. Only one race left in Virginia where Jim Webb leads by 3,000 votes over the prett much racist republican Sen. George Allen. In case Webb is declared winner of this race, Democrates will have control over both houses.

UPDATE 2: and done. Now the Congress is in the hand of the Dems. Hopefully they'll know what to do with it. A nice day indeed. ;-)

The Log Lady Diaries 5

2006-11-07T03:07:00.000-05:00

I play my part on my stage.
I tell what I can to form the perfect answer.
But that answer cannot come before all are ready to hear.
So I tell what I can to form the perfect answer.

Sometimes my anger at the fire is evident.
Sometimes it is not anger, really.
It may appear as such, but could it be a clue?
The fire I speak of is not a kind fire.

Nina Simone - For A While

2006-11-07T01:50:00.000-05:00

Effortlessly beautiful.

Halloween in NYC

2006-11-02T15:15:00.000-05:00

A few random shots of Halloween in New York City... really creepy (left-click for larger pictures)

A story in six words? Wow!

2006-10-26T15:31:00.000-04:00

Wired hired writers for short stories.
The rule is: only six words.
Hemingway was first, SciFi writers now.
OK, I stop. (no seriously now)

A few of my favorites here:

Vacuum collision. Orbits diverge. Farewell, love.
- David Brin
Gown removed carelessly. Head, less so.
- Joss Whedon
Longed for him. Got him. Shit.
- Margaret Atwood
From torched skyscrapers, men grew wings.
- Gregory Maguire
With bloody hands, I say good-bye.
- Frank Miller
It’s behind you! Hurry before it
- Rockne S. O’Bannon
The baby’s blood type? Human, mostly.
- Orson Scott Card
Tick tock tick tock tick tick.
- Neal Stephenson

Not that difficult? Try it yourself!

Jeff Buckley - What Will You Say

2006-10-05T00:54:00.000-04:00

A great song, What Will You Say was never released in studio version. Jeff's father, Tim Buckley was a famous folk singer/songwriter at the end of the 60s and early 70s. He died at 28 of a drug overdose. Jeff, who never got to really know him, still clearly had issues with his dead father as evidenced in this song:

"...Father do you hear me?
Do you know me?
Do you even care?..."

Although I prefer Jeff's voice, you should definitely try some of his father's works. There is a great anthology available released a few years ago. UPDATE: here's a link to a Tim Buckley's video. Try also here and here.

This clip was filmed during the Glastonbury Festival in 1995 (rest of the lyrics in the comments).

The log lady diaries 4

2006-10-05T00:45:00.000-04:00

Even the ones who laugh are sometimes caught without an answer:
these creatures who introduce themselves but we swear we have met them before.

Yes, look in the mirror. What do you see?
Is it a dream or a nightmare?
Are we introduced against our will? Are they mirrors?

I can see the smoke. I can smell the fire.
The battle is drawing nigh.

Good night, and good luck.

2006-10-02T21:03:00.000-04:00

After Bill Clinton impassionate reply to a moronic Fox News journalist last week, Keith Olbermann (journalist at MSNBC) channels Edward R. Murrow. I know the whole journalists-have-to-be-objective thing but this made my day. It's time some people (and that includes journalists) wake up and start talking out loud.

If you haven't seen it, I would really recommend that you watch George Clooney's second movie as a director (which proves that you can actually be good looking AND smart) Good night, and good luck. This movie (shot in black and white and set in the 50s) depicts CBS journalist Edward R. Murrow as he opposes Senator Joseph McCarthy and the House of Un-American Activities Committee. With a desire to report the facts and enlighten the public, Murrow, and his dedicated staff--headed by his producer Fred Friendly (played by Clooney himself) and Joe Wershba (Robert Downey Jr) in the CBS newsroom--defy corporate and sponsorship pressures to examine the lies and scaremongering tactics perpetrated by McCarthy during his communist witch-hunts...

After this segment, I think Murrow would have been proud of Olbermann.

Who are we?

2006-09-20T09:34:00.000-04:00

Putting things into perspective.

Jeff Buckley - Grace

2006-09-13T08:11:00.000-04:00

Amazing (live version of) Grace on NPA, Canal+ (1995).

The log lady diaries 3

2006-09-11T02:45:00.000-04:00

There is a sadness in this world, for we are ignorant of many things.
Yes we are ignorant of many beautiful things--things like the truth.
So sadness, in our ignorance, is very real.

The tears are real. What is this thing we call a tear?
There are even tiny ducts--tear ducts--to produce these tears should the sadness occur.
Then the day when the sadness comes--then we ask:
'Will this sadness that makes me cry--will this sadness that makes my heart cry out--will it ever end?'

The answer, of course, is yes. One day the sadness will end.

Quick summer movies reviews

2006-09-10T17:51:00.000-04:00

This week a movie about some mofo snakes on a mofo plane, one about a pageant contest for little girls, one about the very friendly world of fashion publishing in NY and the last one about the even friendly-er world of caving in the Appalachians.

Snakes on a plane
With: Samuel L. Jackson, Julianna Margulies, ...
Directed by: David Richard Ellis
Release date (France): august 30th

OK not the best movie ever but better than what I expected. I guess I don't need to tell you the story, the title is kinda self-explanatory, no? You have to see this movie preferably in a crowded theater as (just like for the "Rocky Horror Picture Show") the reactions of the audience are almost as important as the movie itself. Samuel Jackson overact just the right way, the fake CGI snakes are not so scary but whatever... just enjoy the ride. Don't forget before the movie to go and buy some fake plastic snakes to throw on the crowd at the right time... ;-)

Little Miss Sunshine

With: Greg Kinnear, Toni Collette, Steve Carrell, ...
Directed by: Jonathan Dayton & Valerie Farris
Release date (France): september 6th.

A dysfunctional family (the grand-father is a drug abuser near the end of his life, the father is a loser in his professional life, the son won't talk until he manages to enter the air force academy and despise everybody on earth except Nietzsche and the uncle has suicidal tendencies - actually only the mother and daughter seem to not be that far gone) decide to help the 6 years old daughter to achieve her ultimate dream: participating in a pageant contest called "Little Miss Sunshine". To do so they have to cross the country in the old familial van. IMHO one of the best movie released so far this year, the kind of movies, like Amelie, where you exit the theater with a big smile on you face just because you feel happy. I don't know why but I just love road movies. A road movie (and the best one for me would be Thelma & Louise) is a great vehicle (no pun intended) for a story and its characters. This movie is packed with love, the dialogues are great and the cast is perfect (Carrell as a gay Proust-literate with suicidal tendencies is another demonstration of this guy's talent). I don't need to say "Go and see it!", just... go and see it!

The devil wears Prada
With: Meryl Streep, Ann Hathaway,...
Directed by: David Frankel
Release date (France): september 27th

When Andy (Hathaway) arrives to take the position of Assistant to Miranda Priestly (Streep) the most powerful woman in the fashion world, she has to decide between her love life and mental health or a promising carreer in the fashion biz. Definitely more creepy than the snakes on a plane, Meryl Streep shines in this movie as the viper-like editor of Runway Magazine and perhaps won a new nomination for the Oscars 2007. Between the prospect of a flight in a 747 filled with snakes and being seated besides her character in this movie in another flight, I think I'd take my chance with the first one, survival instincts.

The Descent
With: Shauna MacDonald, Natalie Mendoza, ...
Directed by: Neil Marshall

One year after a tragic accident, six women go caving in the Appalachians. When their way back to the surface is blocked they have to find a way through an unexplored cave. Creepy. While Snakes on a Plane can be considered as a "horror movie" it draws more laughs than screams from the crowds. Not so much with this one as it's definitely one of the scariest movies since the first Alien. Note to self: consider not going back caving in the near future...

The log lady diaries 2

2006-08-28T03:04:00.000-04:00

Sometimes ideas, like men, jump up and say 'hello'.
They introduce themselves, these ideas, with words.
Are they words? These ideas speaks so strangely.

All that we see in this world is based on someone's ideas. Some ideas are destructive, some ideas are constructive.
Some ideas can arrive in the form of a dream.
I can say it again: Some ideas can arrive in the form of a dream.

NASA News

2006-08-24T10:08:00.000-04:00

This week a demotion, a new name and did we really go to the moon?

D'oh! Sad news for our fellow plutonians, and I know there are lot of them out there reading this blog, the International Astronomical Union stripped Pluto of the planetary status it has held since its discovery in 1930. To be even consider a planet, under the new definition, one has to be "a celestial body that is in orbit around the sun, has sufficient mass for its self-gravity to overcome rigid body forces so that it assumes a nearly round shape, and has cleared the neighborhood around its orbit" which de facto restrict the membership in our solar system to the eight "classical" planets in the solar system: Mercury, Venus, Earth, Mars, Jupiter, Saturn, Uranus and Neptune.

Orion is the new name of the new Crew Exploration Vehicle (it's a bit more sexy than CEV) which will replace the aging space shuttle as the new manned spacecraft to get us back to the moon and beyond. The name was leaked to the press during a transmission between the International Space Station and Earth. Still I would have preferred a name like... Serenity...

Finally, 'cause I've been asked by a few people, no I didn't steal the original tapes (which are 4 time better quality than the pictures we know) of the moon landing for my own private collection. They're merely... lost/misplaced somewhere in the huge warehouses at NASA Goddard Space Flight Center in Greenbelt, Md. And by the way for all those of you conspiracy theoricist, yes once and for all: we've been to the moon ;-)

Jeff Buckley - Lover you should've come over

2006-08-22T13:08:00.000-04:00

My favorite Jeff Buckley song. Effortlessly beautiful. Recorded live in Chicago (1995)

"...Sometimes a man gets carried away,
When he feels like he should be having his fun
Much too blind to see the damage he's done
Sometimes a man must awake to find that, really,
He has no-one..."

Random New York

2006-08-21T23:45:00.000-04:00

The log lady diaries 1

2006-08-20T23:18:00.000-04:00

I carry a log - yes. Is it funny to you?
It is not to me.
Behind all things are reasons. Reasons can even explain the absurd.
Do we have the time to learn the reasons behind the human being's varied behavior?
I think not. Some take the time. Are they called detectives?

Watch - and see what life teaches.

Scene on a New York subway train

2006-08-19T18:13:00.000-04:00

Friday evening, 1 train downtown, on the seats face to me:

Girl #1 (listening to Ipod #1 really loud): (loud) hey that's,like, a new Ipod you have there!
Girl #2 (listening to Ipod #2 really loud): (loud)What?
Girl #1: (louder) What?
Girl #2: (louder) what??
Girl #1 (removing one earpiece, almost screaming): I said that's, like, a new Ipod right? (put the earpice back in her ear)
Girl #2: what?
Girl #1: what?

It's like, whatever, you know?

Freedom fries no more...

2006-08-17T12:13:00.000-04:00

So as it turns out, as of august 2nd, 2006, freedom fries and freedom toast are now called again french fries and french toast!

What was in my humble opionion the House of Representatives greatest achievement under the Bush administration has been turned into ashes... fried ashes that is.

Ohio Representative Bob Ney and North Carolina Representative Walter Jones (both republicans) devised back in 2003 (when tensions between the US and french governments were at their highest) the important legislation to change food products names in the House Cafeteria from french fries and french toast to Freedom Fries and Freedom Toast.

Michigan Rep. Vernon J. Ehlers (a republican too) took it upon himself to overturn the legislature and to make fries and toast officialy french again.

A few years ago back in LA, an... agitated republican guy asked me if I wasn't pissed off that french fries and toasts had now to be called something else. I just replied him that if the only synonymous word they could find to replace "french" was "freedom"... well that was fine by me.

(by the way french fries are actually from Belgium and the first time I had french toast was in the US... interestingly enough french kissing is really french).

Random New York

2006-08-16T12:19:00.000-04:00

So why do you create these strong female characters?

2006-08-14T23:55:00.000-04:00

or why I love Joss Whedon.

A rabbit? A frakkin' rabbit???

2006-08-14T18:23:00.000-04:00

So I discovered this week-end that my chinese zodiacal sign was "rabbit". I always thought (being born in 1976) that I was a dragon. See, dragon is cool. Rabbit, meh... not so much. On the other hand, being a rabbit might now explain a few things...

Trying to... curb... my.... enthusiasm...

2006-08-11T17:20:00.000-04:00

... but I can't!!! "Curb your enthusiasm" the best comedy on american TV has just been renewed for a sixth season! More of Larry David's nevroses. Good. Pretty Good. Pretty, pretty good.

My summer '06 soundtrack

2006-08-11T17:11:00.000-04:00

Mmmh... two of the best albums created these past few years released on the samed day (in the US), a coincidence? Probably, but a good one as I was desperately looking for my summer '06 soundtrack. Two great albums to listen to at different times of the day ("The Eraser" works better in the middle of the night when I can't seem to find sleep).

"The Eraser" is the first "solo" project from Radiohead leader Thom Yorke. "Solo" because most of the sample sounds and bits of electronic he used on it come from the Radiohead library that his regular bandmates created during the "Kid A" and "Amnesiac" sessions, kind of "Kid B" when you come to think of it. For once, Thom's voice is at the foreground, pure and beautiful as usual and sings of his usual demons and fears: "the fences that you cannot climb/the sentences that do not rhyme/in all that you can ever change/the one you're looking for/it gets you down" (Analyse). Harrowdown Hill in Oxfordshire is notable for being the place where the body of Dr David Kelly, a british weapon expert who opposed the Iraq war, was found in 2003. Apparently a suicide. Apparently. Yorke said that Harrowdown Hill is "the most angry song I've ever written in my life. [it] was kicking around during Hail to the Thief, but there was no way that was going to work with the band." Those expecting a Radiohead album might be disappointed. Instead, Thom invites us inside his personal bubble, a sometime nice, sometime scarry place.
Favorite tracks: Analyse, The Clock, Black Swan, Harrodown Hill and Cymbal Rush

"Black Holes & Revelations" is Muse's fourth album. Where the first three album were "pure" rock, Muse succesfully incorporates some electronic bits here and there, kind of their own "Kid B" in fact ;-p So, passed the first surprise, from the very political opening song Take a bow ("Corrupt, You're corrupt, Bring corruption to all that you touch/Hold, You behold, And beholden for all that you've done/And spin, Cast a spell, Cast a spell on the country you run/And risk, You will risk, You will risk all their lives and their souls" hmmm, I'm wondering who he's talking about... S or G?) to the very Prince-like Supermassive Blackhole, the inspiring Invicible, the western-like Knights of Cydonia and the radio-friendly Starlight, Matthew Bellamy (please stop the comparisons with Thom Yorke or Jeff Buckley, Muse's leader has definitely earned the right to not being compared to other people) covers a lot of different musical styles with his sometime powerful sometime touching voice and weaves once again a very epic in scope tapestry, an heroic rock album (heroic rock? heroick? I have to copyright that!). It's refreshing to see a band evolve as they do. I saw them live for their first concert in Paris back in 99 (they were really young and totally unknown at the time) but they totally rocked da house. Fast forward 7 years and four albums later on the other side of the Atlantic: last week in Hammerstein Ballroom in New York, a little bit less young, more experienced but still the same amazing energy on both old and new material (Butterfly and Hurricane is still one of the best piece of opera rock ever written and watching it live is a pure joy).
Favorite tracks: all!! (with a special mention for Map of the Problematique and Invincible)

Both albums need to be played a few times. After that, it gets really difficult to listen to something else... (hopefully not until my Summer '07 Soundtrack).

Jeff Buckley - Dido's Lament

2006-08-10T01:05:00.000-04:00

I thought I knew and had every Jeff Buckley songs and live perfomances but I just discovered this amazing cover 2 weeks ago!!!

This is a piece, for a soprano voice, from "Dido and Aeneas", an opera composed by Henry Purcell in 1681. Jeff performed it live at Meltdown festival, London, on july 1, 1995.

Dido's lament
Thy hand, belinda, darkness shades me.
On thy bosom let me rest.
More I would, but death invades me.
Death is now a welcome guest.

When I am laid in earth, may my wrongs create
No trouble in thy breast.
Remember me, but ah! forget my fate.

Jeff had the voice of an angel. Hopefully, he's singing for them now.

The following are on notice this week

2006-08-10T00:51:00.000-04:00

To make your own Stephen Colbert "on notice" board, go to: www.shipbrook.com/onnotice/

Tony

One year in the Big Apple!

2006-08-09T13:53:00.000-04:00

Friday will mark my first year in NY, and it went like the city is, very fast.
I have to say I'm getting pretty addicted to this city.

Sure I miss Paris, my family and friends there, the (sometime rude) parisians and the smell of croissants being baked at 4 in the morning when I come back home.

Sure I miss LA and the friends that I left there. The beach life, being shirtless on the beach in january, Joshua Tree and the waves.

But overall I have to say that NY and I... we pretty much fell in love really fast (well except for the $1.5 billion you have to pay at the end of each month to live in your own private shoebox). This city is just... unique. You have to spend a lot of energy to keep the pace, but that's worth it.

My californian friends warned me that new-yorkers were rude and cold. Nothing further from the truth. I made a lot of great new friends here. And sure you can meet some assholes from time to time but so can you in Paris, LA or everywhere on planet Earth.

I started last week my new permanent position here in NY which is a good indication to me I'll spend the next 2-3 years in the neighbourhood. After that, who knows? ;-)

Thanks, NY, that was a great year.
Here's to many more :-)
Tony

Welcome to my world!

2006-08-09T13:21:00.000-04:00

Hello/salut and welcome to my brand new blog!
If you're here it's either that:

a) I know you and I sent you the link

or

b) you were just browsing and found this by luck(?) (oh and btw you have too much time on your hands)

I started this blog because a lot of my friends back in France were asking me to describe what life's like in New York City. So I'll try my best to keep you up-to-date to the latest trends in the Big Apple lifestyle. I'll probably also use this space to review my favorite new albums, movies, restaurants or just for rants ;-p

Anyway, old (a) or new (b) friends, make yourself here at home, help yourself in the fridge, let me know what you think or just say hello and let's just enjoy the ride together!

Tony