anotheranon | Entries tagged with history

Because cruising the internet is more fun than packing/waiting for Olympic fencing to grace my tv screen:

Christian Bale's physical transformation - I've always been in awe of Bale's ability and willingness to turn himself physically inside out in order to vanish into his various roles, but hawtness aside: it can't possibly be healthy to go through cycles of such extreme weight loss/muscle re-buildup.* I echo the commenter who would like to see him live long enough to get more Oscars.

The Geek Zodiac - I'm a wizard, which is alright, but is it possible to be a wizard/ninja hybrid (wizard with ninja ascendant)? 'Cos ninjas are cool.

Henry 8.0, in which Bluff Prince Hal discovers the internet and Top Gear, featuring BRIAN BLESSED in the role he was born to play (and his name must always be in all caps, because he TALKS LIKE THIS).

More Henry VIII weirdness in Henry the Superstar [YouTube] put out by the UK's Royal Palaces. Right up there with CDC's Zombie Preparedness Guide for Best Educational Use of Pop Culture by a Government Entity.

*While repelled I'm simultaneously fascinated by the willpower it must take to control food/exercise to the extent that it gets these kinds of results. But then, Bale has the resources to get trainers/nutritionists etc. to keep his nose to the grindstone - he's like Bruce Wayne that way.

As a tongue tied college radio DJ my hero was John Peel, the legendary BBC Dj who would play anything and everything as long as it was new and fresh, from major labels to nameless cassettes sent in the mail. I first heard him on BBC World Service on my dad's staticky shortwave and his dry humor between records only added to the thrill of discovery. Oh, to flip through his record bins....

And through the joys of the internet WE ALL CAN! Peel's entire 65,000(!) record collection will be going online! Not only preserved but accessible to everyone!

Meanwhile, Tate Modern's photographic archive was narrowly saved from the garbage, while the V&A's is long gone(!). The moron at the V&A should surely be haunted by the ghosts of librarians and curators past!

Current Mood: blindsided

Any of you who have been reading me for awhile knows that I'm a firm believer in better living through science and therefore the whole current (and recurrent) debate in the U.S. political scene about birth control is on the face of it a non-starter for me. I've been saying for years that it's the 20th (21st!) century, get with the program already!

Turns out I've been naively optimistic. Sara Robinson's article Why Patriarchal Men Are Utterly Petrified of Birth Control -- And Why We'll Still Be Fighting About it 100 Years From Now is a sobering reminder of how slowly the wheels of progress turn.

Given that it's been available my entire life, it's easy for me to forget that the existence of safe, effective birth control has created huge changes in the roles of women, of family, of sex, and in the power dynamic between men and women. We're only 50 years into this huge change so while I think resistance is ridiculous, I shouldn't be surprised that conservatives are still trying desperately to put this genie back in the bottle and will be for [sigh] hundreds of years to come.

I like to marvel at how far people have come in just my lifetime, and it's dispiriting to be reminded how much further there is to go.

Current Mood: melancholy

The theme for the weekend was chocolate :)

On Saturday D. and I went to a historic chocolate sampler event at a local historic home. Their foodways historian prepared examples of 17th-20th century chocolate recipes accompanied by an informal lecture on the history of chocolate from harvesting to end product, and the improvements in quality control and seasoning that took it from a bitter, watery drink for the wealthy in the 17th century to the democratized sweet everyone knows today.

Most interesting discoveries:
( chocolate trivia )

Sunday was the ChocoTherapy fencing open. No chocolate was in evidence but I had a good time anyway, and did surprisingly well. Probably the best I've ever done at a C and under event, I wound up finishing in the middle of the pack instead of towards the end, and there were some very good and difficult fencers there! I stayed as long as I could after I was eliminated to watch my clubmates keep going.

So clearly tons of chocolate is the ideal, nay, PERFECT preload for quality fencing! I'll have to test this again in the future. Lemme just get a slab of lightly sweetened Baker's chocolate and I'm good to go :P

The Renaissance Society of America is holding their annual shindig close to home in 2012. I've never been, but a quick look through the past meeting agendas suggests that it's like Kalamazoo, only covering ~1300-1650.

FuckYeahGarethPugh - self explanatory. If you've not witnessed the deconstructed gothic wonders of Gareth Pugh you've not lived (or undied?)

Ditto Undercover. The current season isn't lighting my fire but Fall 2006 is ample evidence that beige need not be boring.

Badass of the Week - oh yes.

So you'll have something to look at while I work myself up to original content:

A L'allure Garconniere tumblr - some posts NSFW but all are awesome. Favorite: Romaine Brooks self-portrait; link to "Queer Enough": "My woman- self is a lusty warrior. Grace Jones in a James Bond film, power-lifting a full-grown man over her head in haute couture and heels. French novelist, burlesque dancer and body builder Colette, dressed in a 19th century men’s suit."

Apochronaut (FYI, music upon opening), "travel & fashion for the pre/post-apocalyptic nomad". Favorites: Anything by Gareth Pugh.

G. D. Falksen's tumblr fashion posts, hat tip

danabren, almost as good as OMGThatDress.

In honor of the Kalamazoo Medieval Congress just past, Terry Jones' Medieval Lives in their entirety [YouTube]. Actually, just all of BBC Worldwide's channel.

Current Mood: distracted

The first photos from Costume Con are trickling in. H T

kass_rants.

Deconstruct, Alter, and Create and Communing With Fabric, two Miyake fans who faithfully blog their adventures with Vogue and other odd/speciality patterns. Found via MiyakeGroup.

Chic CA chick who will not be wearing pants this year. "I want to make clothes again. I want to do what was the impetus of becoming a fashion designer all those years ago: have fun with clothing." - yes, yes!

50 Photos of Basset Hounds Running, because there nothing as ~~majestic~~ ~~inspiring~~ quite like a basset hound at full tilt. HT H. H., who knows who she is.

SKisM's "Rave Review" [YouTube]. Contains oldskool, dubstep, and sweary language.

Video on the Royal School of Needlework [YouTube], creators of the hand embroidery on Kate Middleton's dress, veil, and shoes [PDF]. If you're near Hampton Court Palace, they do day classes, and if you're not, they're known to come stateside occasionally, like San Francisco in a couple of weeks.

Speaking of embroidery, here's what the results of "1287.5 hours, 1410.5 yards of thread, [and] a new callus on [her] middle finger that will stop bullets" look like.

OMGThatDress seems to be branching into jewelry, but a few weeks back they had a stretch of Vionnet gowns. Want. HT

dustdaughter.

FIT's Vivienne Westwood, 1980-89 online exhibit for those who can't make it in person. Charts her start dressing punks and new wavers through her establishment as fully-fledged designer. Don't miss the extras section that includes interviews and music videos of her early work.

TechieStyle, the owner of which cosplays Senator Leia while throwing down feminist critique of Slave Leia when she's not putting together smart outfits for everyday.

Paul Gorman is... mostly rock/pop fashion/history, including Blokes of Britain men's style and the story behind a famous photo shoot of Westwood/McLaren's "Sex" shop.

"Contemporary Wardrobe is a specialist hire company which supplies vintage street fashion, couture items and accessories to the Film, TV and Fashion industries." You've probably seen bands and movies wearing some of their collection. They had a 30-year anniversary exhibit back in 2008.

10:23:32: RT @WiredFeed: Stained Fabrics Reveal Death's Mess: Sarah Sudhoff takes portraits of material collected at death-site cleanups ... http: ...
10:57:54: Historical photos of science fiction #fandom from Andy Porter's collection: http://tinyurl.com/4nupxbn #scifi #cosplay #costume via @io9
11:50:54: RT @Ecouterre: Sarah Scaturro, Cooper-Hewitt's textile conservator, discusses the eco-merits of...wait for it...polyester. http://bit.ly ...
11:53:33: RT @Kevin_Church: Not a dream. Not a hoax. The return of THE RACK. http://t.co/yR75fQc
13:35:42: Is anyone using NVDA screen reader? If so, any pros/cons to share? #a11y
17:36:43: RT @otdiFASHION: Great perspective on Galliano and fascinating bit of fashion history! @RaquelLaneri Why Dior did the right thing http:/ ...

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In Praise of Helena Bonham Carter, fashion tragedy - do check the links. I may not love every outfit, but I LOVE that she wears what she damn well pleases, instead of being another overpolished Hollywood glamour girl. She's a Westwood fan, and it suits her.

StyleLikeU, unrepentant fashion eccentrics each and every one. I can only aspire to be this elegantly cool - they have more time than me, and likely less fussy feet.

Cats adore, manipulate women - and men! Won't someone think of the crazy cat men, and the cats who love them (like my little grey girl who seems to prefer men over women ~~hands~~ er, paws down)? Consolation: evidently our pet cats do like us for something other than working the can opener. They just don't hesitate to throw down the cute when it suits their purposes.

Showtime turns their attention from the Tudors to the Borgias. With Jeremy Irons as Pope Alexander. As with the Tudors, the history is colorful enough that they won't need to sex/gore it up, so I hope they don't.

Current Mood: tired

11:28:55: RT @pimpernel1789: Thinks there should be more gold and silver braid in our lives
12:01:51: More (&!#)( snow.
13:15:06: RT @Jennison: A tangible #Facebook accessibility issue raised & explained by @mattmay http://bit.ly/fIADfb #socialmedia #sm #gov20
16:23:41: RT @EarlyModernNow: Medieval mural of King Henry VIII uncovered in Somerset | BBC News Online http://dlvr.it/FJSPg
19:07:25: RT @BR3NDA: Mohammed Sameer: Egypt, Internet cut off. A massacre will follow. Please help. - http://foolab.org/node/7892
19:12:07: Following #egypt thru Twitter/internet. Cynically, this MUST be huge news if mainstream US news is deigning to take notice :(

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12:08:16: Didn't know Montefeltro's studiolo was on display at @metmuseum: http://tinyurl.com/4nv7ldd . Another sightsee for next NYC visit. #art
19:33:46: RT @danphilpott: For the record, Myrna Loy was the bomb.

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00:04:51: I should probably not be surprised that I have *no idea* where this book is...
00:10:34: Oh.. there it is. My costume book collection is well out of hand.
00:34:32: RT @amandafrench: Interesting -- a virtual symposium on "Virtual Cities / Digital Histories," Dec 3-5: http://virtualcitiesdigitalhistor ...
22:52:43: I want to see a version of Deathly Hallows written from the POV of muggles, as a police procedural. Get on it ficcers! #harrypotter

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12:09:48: RT @saruzza CultureGrrl confirms with what I've suspected - the Brooklyn/Met #costume collab is bs in some ways. http://bit.ly/9YMK96
12:27:10: Ooooh: http://www.nicolao.com/ #costume #fashion #shiny #renaissance #medieval
14:01:08: Gee, sure would be nice if this cold would make up it's mind whether it's coming or going.
15:32:56: Lingering ick seems to be wanting to come home to roost :( I foresee lots of orange juice in my future.
23:29:26: RT @neilhimself: It is already, in England, the birthday of the #GreatestLivingEnglishman. Happy Birthday Alan Moore. Best wizard ever. ...

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08:55:55: RT @TimMorehouse Olympic Champion Mariel Zagunis's New Webpage and FB Fanpage!: http://wp.me/pfSw1-1qH - does she blog/tweet?
08:59:55: RT @museumatFIT: Historic Accessories conference at Colonial Williamsburg in March 2011 http://fb.me/Jw0dVJey
09:13:32: Ok, time to get my self-discipline on and head downtown.
10:02:39: RT @WornThrough: RT @VOTPnews: How You Can Attend the National Preservation Conference Virtually http://ow.ly/2XxhQ

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Nothing of quantity to say, so I give you quality outsourced content:

hrj's tour de force on Cross-dressing in the SCA. Chock full of context about the social realities of women wearing men's clothes in Europe during the SCA time period (~600-1600AD) as well as how it plays in to the context of SCA's persona, person, and presentation. With bibliography!
VA congressional candidate speaks out against slut-shaming: "Society has to accept that women of my generation have sexual lives that are going to leak into the public sphere. Sooner or later, this is a reality that has to be faced, or many young women in my generation will not be able to run for office." HT rm.

10:05:12: RT @neilhimself: Tix to CABARET starring @amandapalmer went onsale today http://bit.ly/dlshcj - I expected Palmer= Bowles; MC is surprise
11:28:49: RT @librarianbyday: Death of the Phone Call: http://bit.ly/aWhqbq - justification for my phone phobia!
14:14:33: RT @racheline_m: The psychic wages of straightness http://ff.im/-oHi2T
16:58:16: RT @joyomama: Woot woot! Judge Walker has ruled Proposition 8 unconstitutional http://nym.ag/9lNW4y #prop8 :) :)
18:01:02: Victory 4 equality! District court in CA declares #Prop8 unconstitutional! Send note of thanks to the plaintiffs: http://bit.ly/91cjXA @hrc
18:20:52: Just found object I lost over the weekend... sitting right out in the open. My brain, it is so small...

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Prop 8 struck down: Chief U.S. District Judge Vaughn Walker ruled that the state constitutional amendment imposes a private moral viewpoint without a legitimate governmental interest and tramples on the equal rights of gay and lesbian couples.

I know this isn't the end of the story, but man, it's a step in the right direction!

Current Mood: pleased

A bit late for the 40th anniversary, but after the "medical emergency on Mars" sim at Balticon, I felt the urge to rewatch "Apollo 13".

I'd forgotten how good it was. I don't usually seek out space exploration stories but whenever I happen across one I'm always blown away by the enormous talent and work and patience that went into manned space flight, especially when things went wrong.

Tor's article calls it "competency porn", and with good reason: it's an emotionally intense film but the story isn't about people falling apart, it's about keeping it together - "what do we have that's good?" people doing what they do best under unbelievable pressure and complexity. How many of us have, or ever will be, tested that way? How many of us could rise to the occasion?

YouTube's got the 40th anniversary John Glenn Lecture in it's entirety, and UniverseToday has a series on 13 things that went RIGHT with the mission.

Local Jedi throwing it down for charity. Saw these guys at Balticon, and the epic geekery just tickles me :)
Digital Archive/Photographic documentation: Conservation of the Medici Burial Clothes - product of the 2008 Florence costume colloquium, if you want to see how an apparent pile of scrap fabric can be revealed as lush 16th century court garments, this is your one stop shop. Searchable in English and Italian. Courtesy firenzekat, a fellow colloquium attendee.
Oxbow/David Brown Books latest costume books sales flyer (PDF) - get yer Renaissance/medieval clothing, textile, jewelry and even armor on right heaya! Future purchases should offset any savings made by not attending Kalamazoo for the past couple of years (whimper).
Windjamming AND knitting! Sailing in beautiful vistas AND you can play with fiber as well. Via shemhazai, whose interest in tall ships and textiles is noteworthy :)
LOLManuscripts, or more accurately LOLWoodcuts and the like. Bit of an inside joke but rich for those who get it.
Eliz I's favorite may have been behind wife's murder - this old-but-new-to-me news is likely only of interest to Tudor history buffs, but is explosive if you are.
Open Thinking Wiki - self-contained cabinet of curiosities about digital literacy, storytelling, Web 2.0 and other media and internet miscellanea.

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anotheranon

Inspired Melancholy

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Page generated Sep. 20th, 2017 12:27 am

it's like the eye of a duck

but some people juggle geese

Entries tagged with history

the linkage that shot Liberty Valance

archiving: how to do it and emphatically how not to

why we're still having this )*()&! conversation

ChocoWeekend

linkage ahoy

tumbling along

for your perusal

linkage

From Twitter 03-01-2011

more link dump. well, more of a link sprinkle

From Twitter 01-28-2011

From Twitter 01-25-2011

From Twitter 11-20-2010

From Twitter 11-17-2010

From Twitter 10-22-2010

links of note

From Twitter 08-04-2010

one step closer to a civilized country

rewatch: Apollo 13

cabinet of curiosities

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April 2017

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