Carl also discussed his work with releasing legal documents to the public domain to allow all citizens access to law resources. Open Government data has been an ongoing talk at this conference. I’m looking forward to seeing more mashups and effects of this transparency.

Here’s a sample video that is relevant for the recent incidents. It’s a mine safety video.

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Now the guys that opened Pandora’s box have a new creature to celebrate: the Axolatl. My sister had one of these crazy critters and they are almost as cute as a pug.

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I’m in Romania today to give a lecture to a university group on using Yahoo! Boss for building search applications. Imagine my embarrassment when I noticed the PowerPoint was filled with Budapest instead of Bucharest… arggggh. I feel like a nincompoop.

I tried to prepare for the trip by watching Romanian films. Unfortunately the selection on Netflix was a depressing story about two college women arranging for a illegal abortion during the communist era, a documentary about prostitution at the train station, and a vignette of peasant life in the country before the revolution. Somehow Netflix overlooked the happy go-lucky, feel good movie of the Romanian century.

First impressions of Bucharest

• Some stretches reminded me of the area between Seattle and Canada, minus the mountains.
• There are lots of stray dogs and my hotel room has a blurry painting of an angry dog running at me.
• Everyone speaks perfect English, as well as 5 other languages. Americans speak English and Loud English.
• There’s a big mixture of architecture. I’ve seen abandoned shacks, Victorian, Romanesque, Classicism, Communist Block, Las Vegas Glitz, and Hollywood ala Sunset and Vine.
• While everyone tells me there’s no vegetarian food and to look for Indian restaurants, I had a great meal at an old communist soup kitchen type place. I had a sauerkraut/potato soup, polenta, marinated mushrooms, and a rice/vegetable dish. It wasn’t fancy, but tasted great, was inexpensive, and great fun. I’d go back in a minute.
• There are way too many cars. It reminds me of the song “nobody walks in L.A.” by the Missing Persons.

I’m looking forward to seeing more of the city tomorrow and the art museums on Saturday. Now, if I could only stop calling it Budapest…

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Back to Sordid Lives. This film didn’t get much attention when it was released years ago. However, it was a smash hit in Palm Springs, where it played non-stop for about 95 years. It was practically a law in the dessert city that you had to memorize at least 5 lines of the film. One didn’t want to flub something of such importance.

This new soap opera looks really good. It’s got almost all of the original characters and even brings Blanche Devereaux back to the warm embrace of the aging gay populace. Rue McClanahan now plays the dead mother harlot that is thankfully alive and raising heck.

If you have no idea what I’m talking about… watch the following preview.

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To quote Crispin Glover: “My cat can eat a whole watermelon.”

Sigur Ros is particularly stretching the video genres with their epics to the contemporary world environment and faith. “Untitled“, directed by the amazing photographer Floria Sigismondi reminds me of the Nirvana’s “Heart Shaped Box.” However, Sigismondi removes the kitsch and concentrates on the mood, colors, and story as we follow a post-apocalyptic world and the possibility of salvation. Glosoli follows a child leader, who looks like Charlie from Willie Wonka Factory, who leads a group of children across the open landscape to their eventually lemming-like dive off a cliff. However, faith carries them into the wind, or does it?

Black Heart Procession went the Tommy route with their musical/video/album Amore Del Tropico

On the lighter side:

• I saw this video for Lucky #9 after watching the Moldy Peaches perform at the Casbah. I can’t imagine a more appropriate representation of them and their music.
• Goblin Cock is the latest project from Rob Crowe (Heavy Vegetable, Thingy, Johnny Superbad and the Bulletcatchers, Physics, Lactose Adept, Pinback…). How does a band spoof death metal, Dungeons and Dragons, the Mentors and not look like amateurs? Make “Stumped” and relish the amateur look.
• When Rocket from the Crypt had their first video on MTV(Sturdy Wrists), it was more than a band making it big. It was a celebration for all San Diego bands and those associated with them. So, what did they do for the video? They invited everyone to a San Diego Luau! The MTV site sucks, you’ll need Internet Explorer to see the Rocket Video! After jumping through their hoops, watch Ditch Digger as well

Et tu, Brute?

What are your favorite music videos that are not MTV rotation items?

I travel regularly to Paris and find myself staring out the metro windows, watching the blur of wires, pillars, cracks of light, and yes, the reflections of other riders. I’ve often thought it would be great to somehow create a moving visual experience for the riders. I tried to figure out how images could be placed on the walls to mimic the crude movies of early cinema.

Artists in New York have added a new twist to subway graffiti. Parasite (.mov movie) is a portable computer/projector that attaches to the outside of a train. It projects movies onto the walls as the train travels through the tunnel. This is exactly what I was visualizing and bravo to the artists for bringing it to life.