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Posts for April 2008
In his 75 creative, prolific years, Willie Nelson has released hundreds of albums and recorded thousands of songs, delivered with a simplicity and sincerity that few artists can achieve. He's logged countless miles on the road, yet he still finds time to campaign for family farms and biofuel, and speak out for causes he holds dear, like peace, pot, and politics. He writes books, hawks his own brand of bourbon, and makes acting appearances -- all without taking himself too seriously. It's hard to imagine an artist who better epitomizes American music, or America itself: idealistic, hard-working, sincere, scarred, and uniquely beautiful.
At the risk of belaboring a sappy metaphor, Willie's music does have a certain melting-pot quality. From his country roots in Abbott, Texas, Willie's sound has evolved to include blues, pop standards, reggae, jazz, and rock. He's covered dozens of artists' songs, from Elvis to Dave Matthews to Cyndi Lauper to The Muppets.
But it's Willie's many, many duets that delight us the most. He's worked with countless country greats, from Waylon Jennings to Kris Kristofferson to Johnny Cash -- including moments of divine cheesiness with Dolly Parton and Kenny Rogers -- and younger stars like Shania Twain and Toby Keith. He's crooned with Sinatra, Norah Jones, Diana Krall, and Sinead O'Connor, and gotten bluesy with Ray Charles and Eric Clapton. He embraced his folk side with Dylan, Arlo Guthrie, and Paul Simon, and felt some Latin love with Julio Iglesias. And he's rocked out with Kid Rock, Sheryl Crow, Steven Tyler, ZZ Top, Keith Richards, and Bon Jovi.
Just last week, Willie appeared with his latest genre-bending collaborator: Snoop Dogg (in Amsterdam, naturally). We can't wait to see what Willie will do next.
Suggested Sites...
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Directory categories:
Willie Nelson, Country Music Lyrics, Songwriters, Biodiesel, Country Music |
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Archived under: Counterculture, Country Music, Energy, Environment, Music, Songs, Willie Nelson, Writers |
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Free greenhouse!
(Photo by tanais) |
Bargains are great, but getting something for free is divine.
To celebrate Earth Day last week, we added new sites to the Freecycling and Free Stuff areas of the Yahoo! Directory. And let us tell you, after experiencing just a little of what our Bay Area community has to give, we're hooked on freesailing!
"What on Earth (day) is 'freesailing?,'" you ask? Well, it's like garage sailing, only you don't have to be mortified as your mother demands that you to try on those "perfectly good" jeans she found in some stranger's driveway. And, you can do it from the comfort of your own living room! In one day, we watched some lucky freecyclers get a pair of leather Crate and Barrel throw pillows (which sounded suspiciously similar to an item spotted on Ebay later that day), a pair of Motorola walkie-talkies, a set of 2" wood blinds, and a hardly-used Rival food processor. And that's not all! Some Flickrers have a freecycle treasures group with lots of pictures and stories of other free seekers who were blessed with some perfectly-priced treasures.
So, do you want some manna from heaven, too? The best way to make sure no one else gets your free goodies is to keep your eye on a couple of different internet freesailing resources. First, the green folks at green.yahoo.com can help you find a local freecycling group that'll send you email notifications whenever someone has an unexpected gift. Also, with literally hundreds of new freebie posts every day, Craigslist's Free Stuff Classifieds can turn a weekend of consumption into one of freesailing.
For more info, direct yourself here. Go ahead, it's free!
Suggested Sites...
- The Freecycle Network - find freecycle groups near you through the "worldwide gifting movement that reduces waste, saves precious resources, and eases the burden on our landfills."
- Freecycle Treasures - Flickr.com - view and post photos of freecycled treasures rescued from the landfill.
- This is Garbage - Flickr.com - a place to find and post photos of garbage that is interesting, gross, or in desperate need of freecycling.
- FreeSharing.org - a large directory of local freecycling groups and a freecycling news forum.
- BookCrossing.com - give and receive books at one of BookCrossing's "wild-release locations" where people leave books so that they can be found again by other book lovers.
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Directory categories:
Freecycling, Free Stuff, Earth Day, Barter and Swap, Waste Management |
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Archived under: Environment, Freecycling, Garage Sales, Garbage, Green Living, Issues and Causes, Recycling, Sustainability |
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Family Ties opening credits |
"You take the good, you take the bad, you take 'em both and there you have The Facts of Life"
"Gentlemen, we can rebuild him." Remember those immortal words? Sadly, the television theme songs and intros we once knew and loved -- good, clean, cheesy, fun -- are a thing of the past.
If the '60s gave us classic tunes like Bonanza, Hawaii Five-O, and Batman, then the '70s brought on a whole new era of show openers. In many cases, these theme songs were far better than the shows themselves.
In those bygone days, two families named Partridge and Brady would play that funky music while The Jeffersons were movin' on up. Those were Happy Days for all Diff'rent Strokes, like the romantics on the Love Boat or even roomies Laverne & Shirley, who were working One Day at a Time at the brewery in Milwaukee. Mork escaped Ork as the Battlestar Galactica was steadily approaching, while the Duke boys ditched the CHP and S.W.A.T. (Although we're betting they wouldn't have minded being handcuffed by Charlie's Angels in Dallas.)
When the '80s rolled around, we were saved by our Greatest American Hero and the no-holds-barred A-Team -- if KITT or Airwolf didn't get there first. Crockett and Tubbs never left Miami, so they'd hire a Fall Guy instead. And the Growing Pains decreased in our Full House, what with Charles in Charge.
So here's a toast to all the classic TV themes of yesteryear: Cheers!
Suggested Sites...
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Directory categories:
TV Downloads and Video, TV Theme Songs and Soundtracks, TV Show History |
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Archived under: 1970s, 1980s, Entertainment, In Character, Music, Sitcoms, TV |
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The consumption of a hot pepper is really more of a whole body experience than the mere intake of nourishment.
First your tongue protests with a burning sensation, and then you might find your face and ears flushing. Perspiration follows, and sometime later your digestive system might protest in its unique way. Less-adventurous eaters will call these sensations pain, but fanatics will tell you this experience quickly bypasses pain and turns to pleasure. Be careful though, as you may find your taste for the heat growing to the level of addiction.
The Capsicum genus is the guilty party, with the perceived level of "heat" ranging from zero (the bell pepper) to atomic (the Naga Jolokia) on the Scoville Scale. Common hot pepper varieties include cayenne, habanero, serrano, Scotch bonnet, and Anaheim. They are used as ingredients in recipes and condiments, and have even inspired a festival or two. Some even claim Capsaicin, the compound found in hot peppers, is full of medical benefits -- if you can stand the treatment.
So step up to the salsa bar, and if you're feeling brave, head straight for the hot section. Just remember, if the experience starts to overwhelm, don’t chug water or beer: they'll only spread the heat. Milk and other dairy products alleviate the reaction much more effectively.
Suggested Sites...
- The Chile Pepper Institute - nonprofit organization dedicated to capsicum research around the world.
- Pepper Fool - includes spicy chili recipes, information on chile seeds and plants, restaurant reviews, and chile pepper photos.
- Chile Pepper Magazine - offering recipes, product and book reviews, and travels to destinations where the chile pepper reigns.
- Chili Salsa Recipes - features an assortment of recipes with interesting additions like cucumber and red peppers, basil and mint, corn and jicama, or green tomatillos.
- Peppers.com - chicken wing hot sauces, peppers and seasonings, salsas, Bloody Mary mix, and BBQ sauces with jalapeno, chili, and habanero peppers.
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Directory categories:
Chiles and Peppers, Chile and Pepper Products, Hot Sauces, Salsa Recipes, Salsa |
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Poster for William Castle's
House on Haunted Hill |
Most film directors admit that once they ship their film to theaters, it's out of their hands. This was not the case for B-movie horror legend William Castle: Getting his films to theaters was just the beginning.
For his first horror film, "Macabre," he offered a $1,000 life insurance policy to each patron -- in case they should die of fright. He promoted this gimmick more than the plot of the movie itself, and it worked. The movie was a success, and thus, William Castle the showman was born. Later films featured goodies like skeletons on wires, buzzing seats, cardboard axes, and ghost-viewer glasses to invite audience participation with his films. One of his most ambitious attempts was with the 1961 thriller "Homicidal," which included a Fright Break near the end of the film. If a member of the audience felt they couldn't take any more, they were invited, by Castle himself onscreen, to a Coward's Corner in the theater's lobby. Once the film was over, they could cash in their coward's certificate for a refund.
Today, Mr. Castle would have been 94 years old, had he lived a full life. Although he died of a heart attack at the young age of 63, we're betting he didn't die of fright.
Suggested Sites...
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Directory categories:
William Castle, Horror Movie Directors, Horror Movies |
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Archived under: Directors, Entertainment, Filmmaking, Horror Films, Marketing, Movie Theatres, Movies, William Castle |
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