RUSSIA! and the likes

Once my brother Erik and I went to an exhibit at the Gugenheim called "RUSSIA!" And for the next week we couldn't finish a sentence without it building up to a pumped fist and mock yelling "RUSSIA!". This is how I feel today. I used to live with my now very dear friends Martha (POLAND!) and Laura (UKRAINE!) in New York. They subtly and not so subtly gave me a glimpse into the world of ex-soviet women. Laura once told me about her sisters pre-marriage persona of "i give you sexiest sex, yes?" The hard up gypsy who has to know what she's doing. The deep passion, unspoken magic etc. One of the stories that peaked my interest was baba yaga. She's an old witch that fly's around in a mortar and pestle eating children and cursing people. This got me mostly because the scariest thing in the forest is an old woman.

good ol' karl what's his nuts

One of my favorite look blogs is http://justbuit.blogspot.com/, her style is brilliant, clever, and appropriately youthful. Recently she sported a shirt that said "KARL WHO?", which reminded me of the time my friend Emilie sent me a picture of Yves Saint Laurent (after having a chat about the brand) with no text. I was confused and thought it was a "your team!" joke. So I sent her back a picture of a pug wearing a yoda costume. Turns out it was a memorial picture...::releases steam from collar::

The point being 1. awesome shirt 2.awesome picture of Karl Lagerfeld holding similar bag 3. Karl Lagerfeld had a truly awesome team for pre-fall 2009. I LOVE the tzarist head pieces, the building, deep red carpeting, the looming darkness of the impending doom of the fall of Tzar Nicholas II captured by this line. I'm not positive that's what they were going for but that what it says to me.

all a flutter

I just discovered this amazing designer. I seldom wear jewlery, but these are now all I can think about. The talon is a bracelet,it comes in gold or silver, but i like the gold best. If they were mine, I would want two on one arm and a single one on the other. Also look at these delicate magnificent bullet gem necklaces! I couldn't find the individual designers but I found these on: http://www.bonadrag.com/shopmain/shopmain.html

pregnant looking men

So your metabolism has been really awesome all your life you say? Welcome to the future skinny dudes!

oh. that's metal.

this is lemmy kilmister and some fun facts:he's the founder singer/bassist of the band motorhead, singer/bassist. He's been voted one of the ugliest men on earth as well as notorious sex legend bedding somewhere between 1200 and 2000 women. It's also been reported he has to take amphetamines everyday or the withdrawl will kill him. Now, I wouldn't put any metal band anywhere near my top 25... but sometimes, metal wiggles it's way into my heart, usually in the summer. This, I owe to the fact that when I was 13 or so I played bass for a metal band called TANIS (the tanis root is what they fed the devil baby in, Rosemary's baby). It makes me think of offroading and cut off shorts. Anyways I was shown this sweet comparison: Enter the sandman covered by Motorhead. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TzpOnFgjc5Q It sounds heavier, which is funny for a few reasons.

ERHU DEMAND

There are few things consistent with every major city. There's always a University district with green peace thugs attacking you on every corner with the grace of Krusty the clown. Followed in circuit by the non conforming crust punks yelling really innovative and thought provoking slams on the man. Then, like clockwork, there he sits: The exhausted, completely bored erhu player, with or with out cream colored, ill fitting and tattered baseball cap. Looking up occasionally irritated like a cat that's too lazy to stop you from fussing with it. Playing something moaning and screeching that no western ear can make heads or tale of. True, you get the trustifarian who stands in faux appreciation while nodding, but we all know that kid is faking it, like he's faking everything else. There's a nitch for every kind of street performer, I suppose in Seattle where I live, the range is wide indeed. However today while in the Public market, there were four of these guys in ear shot of eachother. I ask "Is there really this much of a demand?"

DRIED GOODS

So the idea of this blog is to catalogue good antique stores, unusual finds, and lovely and unsettling curios. As of yet I still need a good working digital camera so I thought I'd start with my favorite curios. The first tiny achiever is the Thai water elephant. He is a holy little beasty that is only 3 inches long and about 2 inches tall. My first reaction was, I want one! As is my reaction to all cute things. Not only is this petite pachiderm holy (magic?) it loves to swim! The catch? Poisonous toothpick tusks. No one has lived to tell the tale except supposedly some Thai monks who won't give on where they live. Technically an unsolved mystery, but mostly likely mummified elephant fetus. I hope they do exist.
The second brat faced creature is the Fiji Mermaid, who snatches people from the ocean and devastates their bodies. It was first on exhibit with the Ringling Brothers. Eventually it was discovered to be a mummified monkey sewn onto a trout.