Author: Jeff Milner

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Mr. Harper Goes to Washington

A friend of mine is interning at the Smithsonian Institute in Washington DC. She works next door to 1600 Pensylvania and though it’s only been a few days the interesting stories are already flowing:

“The street right outside of my workplace is closed off because [Prime Minister] Stephen Harper is coming to the White House. There was a little protest demanding that the US not buy dirty oil. Protestors wore costumes resembling dirty oil barrels and one person in particular was dressed like Chewbacca in a hockey jersey wearing a Harper mask. Is Harper, or are Canadians in general, known for their love of Star Wars?

My guess is he was trying to look like a sasquatch, or possibly it was just a long haired hippie protester that only looked like Chewbacca.

Alberta tar sand protest

Update: Now that I’ve seen the photo, I think the point of the furry custom was to say that Canada’s carbon footprint is LARGE like Bigfoot.

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Overheard

Overheard in my Art History class:

“I don’t like how they teach conceptual ideas at this school. I wish they would focus on the more technical aspects, because I don’t want to be an artist—I just want to teach art.”

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Naomi Klein on Q

Author/activist Naomi Klein on Q critiquing the Toronto Internation Film Festival’s spotlight on Tel Aviv. Filmmaker Simcha Jacobovici takes up the other side.

A political and artistic debate is being waged at this year’s Toronto Film Festival. An open letter of protest from the Toronto Declaration protests TIFF’s City-to-City Spotlight, which is focussing on the work of Israeli filmmakers from Tel Aviv. The signatories, which include Q guest Naomi Klein, actor Harry Belafonte, Jane Fonda and writer Rawi Hage, argue TIFF is complicit in Israel’s Rebranding campaign that aims to shift emphasis away from the occupation, especially in a year where the conflict in Gaza resulted in over 1,000 deaths of Palestinians. TIFF denies any ideological pressure was applied. On the other side of the debate, filmmakers like Q guest Simcha Jacobovici, David Cronenberg, Ivan Reitman, and Robert Lantos argue that judging films by their country of origin rather than the quality of the artistic product, is a kind of censorship.

Noami explains that the letter is not about politics and censorship but about trying to separate the propaganda from the films:

“We’re not asking for anything—that’s what’s so amazing. The reports today, in response to the statements from Norman Jewison and David Cronenberg, are kind of amazing to me because they’re all denouncing censorship. I’m against censorship. I’m not trying to censor anything. None of the thousand people who signed this letter are trying to censor anything. Even on CBC, sorry to say, they are reporting that we have a problem with the ten films. We have no problem with these ten films. I have seen some of the films—I think they are terrific and I think they are so good they deserve to be part of the regular festival programming and not politicized as part of this celebration of the State of Israel, of the city of Tel Aviv, because that’s not about art, that’s about politics.

(Q: The Podcast for Friday, September 11, 2009)

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A Glimpse

The man behind the counter explains that he’s going to run to the back to get some more chicken for the small sandwich. I shrug and smile but I’m in a bit of a hurry. I will need to eat and walk if I don’t want to be late. I’m not even sure of the room number.

I watch as people of all shapes and sizes collect their various orders of coffee and tea. The petite blond, the tall brunette, then a skinny guy with braces, they are each in their own world. They take their turn, grabbing beverages while I wait. My fascination with people watching begins to lose its appeal; my mouth waters as I stare at the incomplete toasted chicken sandwich.

Finally, the man with the chicken returns. He throws some bacon on for good measure and it’s complete! I decline a bag. I’m anxious to rip into that sandwich that I’d been thinking about since I left the house.

I unwrap the paper, ready to dig in when suddenly, in a moment of gross miscalculation, half the sandwich falls—it’s much smaller than anticipated and the prospect of recovering it vanishes before the thought is fully formed.

I stand dejected amongst a crowd of disconnected people, bacon, tomato, and chicken strewn out before me.

I will have plenty of time to find my class.

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Back to School

I’m back at the university today for my first day back at school. I am considering joining the swim team and applying for a position as the Fine Arts Rep for the Students Union. I’m about to go to the welcome lunch with my friend Kelly Sushinsky.

I spent the afternoon attending my Painting 1 class, which was brief due to the fact that we don’t have any supplies yet. Afterward I slipped into the Swim Team’s orientation meeting and decided that maybe joining the swim team again is too large a time/money commitment.

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Lego Brick House

I remember one Christmas being certain that I wanted the basic lego set that I saw advertised so that I could build a giant house out of Lego. My older brother, typically, knew better and asked for Space Lego.

Luckily after a short while all the lego got mixed together and I could leave the giant multicoloured lego blocks for the more esthetically pleasing whites, greys, and blues required for intergallactic travel.

Not everyone has given up on the basic blocks:

One man is building the dream, or at least wild fantasy, of many children. James May, a toy fanatic, is constructing a two-story house out of LEGO bricks. He’s using 3 million bricks constructed out of 272 LEGO pieces each. As an added bonus, the house is located in a beautiful vineyard.

Check it out.

Lego Brick House

Update: Geek Sugar has a more comprehensive gallery of the place, taken in various stages as it’s being built.
(via)

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The Bad Review Revue

G.I. Joe: The Rise of Cobra: “So, now you know, G.I. Joe: The Rise of Cobra is about as uncomfortable to sit through as running in a marathon with a bad case of the trots – and knowing is half the battle.” — Adam Tobias, Watertown Daily Times

The Final Destination: “It’s exactly like Final Destination 1, 2 and 3, but in 3D. Unfortunately, three-dimensional images do little more than show up the one-dimensional characters.” — Christopher Tookey, Daily Mail [UK]

The Time Traveler’s Wife: “Rarely does a movie make me so dearly wish I could come unstuck in time.” — Gregory Weinkauf, Huffington Post

Taking Woodstock: “While many of the characters are getting satisfactorily high, audiences are unfortunately left with a movie that’s only half-baked.” — Matt Brunson, Creative Loafing

The Goods: Live Hard, Sell Hard: “It’s not that I was offended. It’s that I was bored by the attempt to offend me.” — Ken Hanke, Mountain Xpress (Asheville, NC)