Archive: September 2005

• Art / Graphic design for public transit in street art, visual · Sep 30, 15:33

  If you’re like me, one of your favorite parts of seeing new cities is checking out the logo(s) of their public transit system. Nowadays you don’t even need to travel to these cities to appreciate their variety; here’s a site with an amazingly thorough catalog.

• Fresh Air interview w/ Mike Mills in inside art, tip, visual · Sep 29, 19:09

  Mike Mills is a graphic designer, director of many excellent music videos (among them: “Kelly Watch the Stars,” by Air, the one with the 70’s-looking slow-motion ping-pong players), and all-around aesthetic bad-ass. Terry Gross interviewed him on Fresh Air a couple of weeks ago, and you can check out the archived version on the NPR [...]

• New Yorker cartoon formula exposed! in lit, tip · Sep 29, 15:36

  Take one character each from column A and column B, place them in one of column C’s settings, and voila! You have the makings of a New Yorker cartoon. Supposedly, this was the doing of a group of NYer cartoonists at a recent festival.

• Burgers in SF in mobile, reviews, san francisco · Sep 27, 00:38

  After a chill afternoon at China Beach, we checked out some burgers at Bill’s Place, which made me think about all of the good burgers to be found in San Francisco:

  Bill’s Place (pictured) grinds its own, and names its burger platters after local celebrities. Extra credit for the chandeliers and non-mayo cole slaw. [...]

• Architecture / Seattle library in flickr, visual · Sep 15, 22:10

  I took this picture in a small atrium overlooking the lobby of the Seattle Library, designed by Rem Koolhaas and opened a year ago. As Mara and I enjoyed the cool, green light, we overheard a conversation that went something like this:
  Middle-age woman to her husband: I can’t believe they spent so much money on [...]

• Following the Roberts confirmation hearing in law & order, tip · Sep 13, 16:14

  Law nerds around the country are providing interesting commentary of the Roberts confirmation. SCOTUSblog provides a blow-by-blow account of the posturing and intermittent questioning of the senators alongside interesting legal commentary, but it’s a blog, so you have to scroll down to the bottom and read upwards if you want to read chronologically.
  Balkinization, a [...]

• Termites eat New Orleans in lit, reviews · Sep 1, 15:16

  After Hurricane Katrina, the recent Harper’s magazine feature about the uncontrollable, unfathomed termite infestation of the French Quarter seems downright eerie. Equal parts information and meditation, Duncan Murrell’s “The Swarm” is an effective, moving blend of first-hand reporting on blizzard-like termite swarms, spooky interviews with insect experts, and genuine Southern gothic moments:
  Where the Formosans [...]