I’m currently attempting to organize the ridiculous number of sketchbooks and notebooks I got floating all over the place; came across this stuff I wrote down in Bangkok last year, when I was sorting out a new china visa during the whole olympic visa shitshow.
Notes from the Side of the Soi
looks like johnny depp
There is a massage parlor opposite my hostel. (Of course there’s a massage parlor.) The sign reads “Come get yourself beautiful!!! Special promotion!!!” 7/11’s everywhere. Yesterday I bought a pack of smokes at the “Amazing Minimart.”
As I’m writing this there’s a chubby adolescent boy shuffling by sipping from a straw stuck in a transparent plastic bag filled with ice and what looks like coca-cola. Like a very small grocery bag. He’s wearing a headset with large oval earphones and a bent microphone jutting out one side. I really want to reach out and grab him and demand to know what he’s listening to.
There are large yellow dogs sleeping everywhere. They are huge and most of them female, big saggy nipples hang from massive bellies. The dogs are similar to the dogs in India, although those were more animated and angry, generally much thinner. Fat Bangkok bitches. Read the rest of this entry »
I have a new fixation – ballet dancers. I suppose it’s more of a resurgent fixation. This is something that hits a lot of artists at some point, like Russian poets’ obsession with the sea. The body that needs to be chiseled into perfection like a block of marble, it’s so resistant to change and unyielding, like a thick fibrous canvas – cliche of me to make that comparison, but that’s really it, the recognition of the dancer’s constant siege of their body, like the artist’s struggle with his materials, to materialize the idea. Some might find this to be a negative outlook on the creative process, but I think it’s mostly the truth. The years and constant sacrifice to look like that, move like that. It’s obsession and insanity, but thank god for these people.
chiner bonfire party in progress - can you spot me?
If you’re on facebook, scroll down and click “view original post” to be able to see the audio.
As promised, ladies n gents, the distinctly vomit-inducing chinese techno party mix. This makes a great workout playlist if you want to kill yourself. If you’ve traveled around the old Chiner at all beyond the obvious places you should recognize a few of these timeless classics.
(Note: for most of these I’m not sure who’s responsible, so if you happen to know the ‘artist,’ comment with the name and I’ll edit in the bastard)
This one shall forever remain my aerial portal into the blacklit limbo of BAR CLUB DISCO – the aptly named sole bar, club, and disco in Chengde – the fancy fruit plates, bouncy dance floor, smoke everywhere, and a shit ton of asians with voluminous haircuts in teal and black striped chinglishized tshirts. You can’t claim you’ve been around Chiner properly if you haven’t heard it.
This song is perfect for the Chinese torso-bang: keep arms at sides, feet firmly planted on the floor, your back straight, and bend at the waist from side to side (your head would be drawing half-circles back and forth) really fucking fast. the lower you dip your upper body with each beat, the more impressive you look to the ladies – trust me.
God is a girl, wherever you are, do you believe it, can you receive it? the lyrical brilliance-dripping original version, which is worth a mention if only to observe the oh so chinese remix effect
the chinese remix effect: speed everything up to 150 bpm, make certain the vocals are properly screechy, pepper with samples like “let’s go” and “dj rock that funky beat,” and repeat for about 5 minutes.
I suggest you knock back some baijiu, blast this shit and get down like this-
when in chiner
Let me know if you want mp3’s of any of these. I won’t judge. (EDIT: aight, right-click/save-as)
In other news, I finally made meself a carbonmade folio – http://anakova.carbonmade.com/ It’s super classy and legit, so you can show it to your grandma.
And THIS is making me wish I was a tall skinny dude with fat bank account real bad.
Charlotte NC officially does not suck nearly as much as I thought it did. Oh my god, there’s a gorgeous french bakery/cafe that’s open 24 hours!!! What the hell!! I felt like I was in space.
Go visit them here – http://www.ameliesfrenchbakery.com/
But better yet GO CHECK OUT THE PLACE. I wish I lived closer to NoDa. Amazing cakes, tarts, croissants, and pastries, plus a regular food menu and drinks. There’s also board games, chess, a go set, and cards if you feel like killing a couple hours with some friends over a cup of tea.
This one amused me endlessly.. at the time. Oh lord.
This one was fun to draw. I felt like I was just understanding perspective SO MUCH ohmygod.
I suppose the trick is not to get in the habit of drawing ONLY while intoxicated.. OR it could be really awesome and you could be like the drunken kungfu master except it’d be the drunken artist. OR NOT.
Jassi Fidhu feat. Aman Hayer – Ki Kehne (i do try to pick relevant tunage lol)
Christ, I love food.
I never realized how much I love food the past 4 years in college because I was smoking a pack a day of these babies and eating the same friggin sandwich every day twice a day (if you’re still at davidson, get chicken salad, muenster, lettuce/tomato/pickles, plus honey mustard on pumpernickle at the union.. it’ll get you through the day). However now that I’m all healthy and whatnot, holy shit I can actually TASTE THINGS. Every raw vegetable has a delicious subtle flavor, not even talking about mad indian spices.
So, in the spirit of the resurrection of my taste buds, I’ve been making all kinds of fun foods. Last night for instance I really wanted some indian, so guess what I dun made some. And prep time only took about 30 minutes (though not counting all the dishwashing after.. but I know yall americans just pile everything in yalls fancy dishwashers and still manage to complain abt it. note: we do have a dishwasher at our house, but we’re principally opposed to it)
spicyyyyyyy
gatta have my cucumber (plus mango chutney omgg)
In any case, the curry I made can be called the Cauliflower, Potato, and Eggplant Spicy Curry in Tomato Gravy.
That sounds really awkward and long, but wtf I don’t know what else to call it. Suggestions?
HOW TO MAKE (or how I made it, rather..obv you can improvise to suit your own prefs)
Over the past couple of weeks I’ve been doing small drawings in blue ink, or ink and a splash of watercolor. I’m branching off into slightly unfamiliar territory here, which is great. I’m experimenting with patterns and photoshop more. Also, drawing in ink on white paper is forcing me to pay closer attention to my lines, since there are no do-overs.
I’m not sure what came first, the idea to do a series of blue ink drawings, or the creepy thin people who decided to take over the series. Watevs. Here are the two I’ve made so far:
I used these to practice manipulating images in PS. You can see the results at my DeviantArt gallery here and here.
I’m thinking about doing a post on Jerusalem Restaurant. This is hands down my favorite spot in Charlotte to relax, smoke some hook with friends, not to mention the amazing and cheappp gulf grub. I feel like doing a small tribute to the place. Like Stairway to Love cafe in Beijing, Jerusalem Restaurant is my haunt, my sanctuary, and my escape when I’m in Charlotte. I’ll miss it dearly next year.
I remember discovering it sometime back in 2006, when it had only just opened. Bored to tears at Davidson and starved for a dose of authentic culture, my friends and I were in constant search of hole-in-the-wall food spots with real character.
Before there was Jerusalem Restaurant, there was Jerusalem Cafe on Independence. It was a cheap middle-eastern joint with kabobs, wraps and hookah that cropped up inside one of those old house-shaped restaurant venues; the place looked like a decrepit “old-fashioned southern home-cooking” diner. It was also right next to an ugly car dealership (what can ya do, you’re on Independence Blvd). Service was proper un-american, surly and impatient – proper bad you could say (but we loved it). One time we got a scary big arab dude with a shaved head and a droopy, mean gaze that seemed to say “I’d kill you, but right now I’m too tired” as our waiter; he refused to give us menus when we asked (”No menus. You want kabob sandwich or you want mixed grill?”) then snarled angrily when we asked why our order was taking long (”I told it was coming soon no!?”). Despite the food being very good, the place was always empty and eventually closed down. We’re hoping they didnt actually go out of business, but had just been laundering money or fronting a contraband operation, because it’d be really sad if they did.
Thankfully, we soon discovered Jerusalem Restaurant, just a few minutes down the road. Hookah was only $6 then, now $9.99 – but this is still fair, compared to the rest of hookah places in Charlotte where it costs at least $15 to smoke. It’s been great to watch the place gradually gain the popularity it deserves. Hooray Jerusalem! A more detailed picture post coming soon.
