"Enter the building pants up"

Explain the story behind the sign in 250 words or less.

(Need inspiration? Read people’s stories about the “Parakeet Found” sign I posted last week.)

Explain the story behind this flyer in 250 words or less.

The pillow design is by Glasgow artist Christine Berrie, and it made me think of my friend Kate, who loves to play with funny plastic cameras, like this one:

This is apparently the Diana Mini, and it’s apparently a reproduction of a 1960s classic (so says MoMA). How many other reproductions might I mistake as originals? How many references do I miss on a daily basis? I’ve got Lost on the brain, and I’m thinking — without reading Doc Jensen’s recaps of Lost each week (and I’m sure there are better ones out there), I’d miss the show’s many religious references…

I was an English major; I like to explicate. In high school, my English teacher, Mrs. Butler, said:

“Amanda, you come up with the weirdest interpretations of things. But you always back them up.”

High school English makes me think of Sylvia Plath, which makes me think of Ariel, the book of Plath poems that my friend Liz once gave me:

Ariel makes me think of The Little Mermaid. “Mermaid” makes me think of the Coney Island Mermaid Parade…which makes me think, again, of Kate, who documented last year’s parade in photos:

…which makes you think of….?

From the New York Times:

Would you be happier if you spent more time discussing the state of the world and the meaning of life — and less time talking about the weather?

It may sound counterintuitive, but people who spend more of their day having deep discussions and less time engaging in small talk seem to be happier, said Matthias Mehl, a psychologist at the University of Arizona who published a study on the subject.

This certainly resonates for me — I can’t stand small talk, and I feel restored when I’ve had a real heart to heart with someone. On the other hand, too much intense conversation leaves me exhausted…my brain can only process so much at once.  I imagine a day filled with back to back “deep” conversations and my head hurts.

Luckily, the study seems to categorize “deep” conversations pretty broadly – a conversation about a television show counts, for example, as long as it’s a substantive conversation about the characters or ideas from the show.  I think the big idea here is having conversations you give a shit about, and really connecting with people…which is really just another way of saying, “communicate mindfully.” Amen to that.

Read the full article (“Talk Deeply, Be Happy”), and/or read the study itself, titled Eavesdropping on Happiness.

(Image by Marxpix on Flickr)

Image of 59 Rivoli by "Fanch the System" on Flickr

Last weekend, this item in the New York Times Travel section caught my eye:

“On the Rue de Rivoli, one building stands out amid the busy boutiques and department stores. Inside a colorful interior, the place buzzes with shoppers and tourists — and young people covered in paint.

This is 59 Rivoli, the latest of Paris’s legalized art squats.”

-“In Paris, Art Fills the Void” by Alice Pfeiffer (read the full article)

I immediately wondered: Does such a thing exist in the US of A? Based on some quick Google research (good old Google), there are a number of artist squats throughout Europe, from the UK to Berlin (check out this quick video tour of Berlin’s Tachles Arthouse), thanks to support from nonprofits and government. But here in the US? There’s this article from New York Magazine in 2006: “The Last East Village Art Squat,” which hardly paints a pretty picture of squatting life; and this one, from the Baltimore City Paper, way back in 1999 – making me wonder if squatting is as common in that city now as it apparently was a decade ago.

So, does anyone know of active artist squats in the U.S.? I’m sure they exist, and I’m sure it’s no accident that they don’t have websites announcing their presence… I’m just curious to hear what cities they’re in, and if anyone has any personal experience living/working in one. Also, are there actually any groups advocating for legal artist squats?

Enlighten me!