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The Great American Cop-out

popupstorybook — Mon, 20 Apr 2009 22:44:54 +0000

I don’t really care about the Miss America pageant—actually, I think it’s kind of weird—but an article caught my attention today about Miss California Carrie Prejean, who believes her anti-same sex marriage opinion cost her the Miss USA title on Sunday.

Scanning through, one statement caught my attention:

“I was raised in a way that you can never compromise your beliefs and your opinions for anything.”

This is a common enough statement to make. In fact, it seems to be the most common statement made by anyone disagreeing with anything controversial. Today it rubbed me the wrong way.

Seriously? Is that the message you got growing up? “Never compromise your beliefs and your opinions for anything”?

I mean, I get it. There are some core beliefs that people have a right not to compromise. And I’m certainly not trying to knock her for standing up for what she believes in. But aren’t there any opinions or beliefs out there that should be open to compromise?

What kind of world would we live in if no one stopped to examine his or her opinions/feelings about something? What kind of person refuses to consider changing his or her mind about anything—even if there may be good reasons to at least consider it?

Let me be clear: I realize this isn’t a frivolous issue, and I don’t want to assume she hasn’t thought her opinion through. I’m really not trying to address gay marriage.

I’m simply questioning the fact that “I was raised not to compromise my opinion” is a suitable answer in our culture—an answer corresponding to a position that seems to be valued and prized. To me, it sounds like the most acceptable cop-out in America right now.

I’m certainly not going to raise my kids that way. I want them to be able to think critically and be open to the possibility of change when necessary.

WHAT? WHO’s got talent?

popupstorybook — Fri, 17 Apr 2009 21:47:59 +0000

If you’ve spent any time on the internet this week, you’ve probably seen clips of, or at least heard of Susan Boyle (If not, watch the clip of her performance here), and her rendition of “I Dreamed a Dream” on “Britain’s Got Talent.”

The Today Show describes her as “47, unemployed, lives alone with her cat and has never had a date or been kissed.” Her appearance lines up with this stereotypical description. So, when she walked out on stage the audience snickered and cringed, and apparently had zero expectations.

When she started singing and people realized she actually had a voice, everyone went nuts. The judges are described as “gaping in disbelief.” The audience went crazy. The internet has been abuzz with talk of the performance. She has received more than 20 million clicks on YouTube.

I’m intrigued by people’s reaction to her. It all seems a tad weird to me. Don’t get me wrong—she really does have an amazing voice. It’s nice that people are taking notice of her talent. She should certainly be recognized for her abilities. But why are people so touched and surprised? Why so shocked? Because someone who doesn’t look like a model actually has talent?

Doesn’t it seem a little insulting? What does this say about our society? About the music world? I might be wrong about this, but I imagine if she were younger and better looking the internet wouldn’t be buzzing quite so much.

On the other hand, I’m intrigued by the extent of many people’s reaction. Why do so many people say they actually cried while watching the clip? Have our expectations of the art/entertainment world become cynical, even resigned? Does the recognition of Boyle’s talent provide some momentary relief from the typical, superficial requirements of our culture?

In any case, I hope Boyle will not just serve to give us a touching underdog story, but as a reminder—however brief—that music is an art form, and that artists come in many shapes.

Communal Paint

popupstorybook — Sun, 04 Jan 2009 00:51:35 +0000

I like to paint. I could spend hours painting and not even realize time is passing until I start to get hungry and discover that I skipped lunch. And dinner. The problem is that I also love to be around people. So, while I’m hidden away painting for hours I sometimes get lonely. Also, opportunities to socialize will sometimes keep me from painting. The best possible situation for me? Painting with friends! In the same room is good, but on the same canvas is the best. The sweet thing about communal art is that there’s no pressure to create something amazing–the point is just to create something together–so it can be fun for friends who don’t feel like they’re “good” at painting. Everyone just adds a little bit at a time.

Here’s a time-lapse video of Will, Tim H. and I painting together. We did this while all the fires were burning and everything smelled like Mordor. I think it influenced our subconscious.

Click here to view the embedded video.

Snowbeing

popupstorybook — Sat, 20 Dec 2008 02:56:19 +0000

At home in Walla Walla. So much snow! What do we do with all of it? We tried to build a sneaky snowman peeking around the corner, but the snow wasn’t packing well so we made a big pile instead. Then we shaped it into a snowbeing with glasses.

What are you doing with your snow?

Election Night

popupstorybook — Wed, 05 Nov 2008 22:36:25 +0000

Here’s some time-lapse photography of our election night shindig. The camera didn’t capture our initial celebration, but believe me–it happened. You CAN see us excitedly texting our friends and family. And you can see our celebratory jam session. The Friends: Tim, Niki, Alan, Chris, Janelle. The food: tacos, cookies and pumpkin pie.

Click here to view the embedded video.

Spew your Soul

popupstorybook — Sun, 02 Nov 2008 20:35:53 +0000

We went to Silverlake recently and came across a building covered in graffiti. I’m currently taking a class about hip hop culture, so I was especially intrigued.
The most dramatic graffiti was around the back of the building. I had climbed through a fence to get around back, and as I spent more time there I felt more and more like I was trespassing.
No, it wasn’t the ‘No Trespassing’ sign. It had more to do with my sense of what tagging and graffiti is for. Somewhere in my psyche it’s connected to an ominous social tension–to gang violence and territorial warfare. I didn’t care about whoever put the “No Trespassing” sign up–I didn’t want to get caught back there by whoever created the graffiti.
At the same time, I couldn’t help but appreciate what I was seeing. It was beautifully intense and dramatic. Whoever these people were–whatever purpose the graffiti served, whatever situation had caused them to leave their mark–these peopel were artists. I was reminded of something someone in a documentary had said about the first time they saw graffiti art on a subway car in New York: “It was like somebody let their spirit explode all over that train.
I have a tendency to put street artists like Banksy and Os Gemeos in a higher artistic category than that of people who tag buildings. But is that fair? The intent is certainly different, but shouldn’t that mean we judge it using different criteria? What makes one thing vandalism and another thing art?