Gary Sharp

Inspired by Diana Abu-Jaber’s terrific talks at two local libraries yesterday, I made a bit of a collage with her new book Origin at the center. It’s an excellent mystery, and her previous books are superb too: Arabian Jazz, Crescent, and the Language of Baklava.

I had a great time getting to know Diana and her husband Scott at both of the readings. I’m wishing them all the best for good times and fine adventures as they travel on to readings in Seattle on beyond, during Diana’s Northwest book tour.

Directors’ Cameos in Films

“For whatever reason, be it a deep-seated desire to act, a lack of a casting budget, or just ‘if you want something done right, do it yourself’, many directors at some point in their careers have stepped out from behind the camera to act. This is typically in a smaller, cameo role, and often with varying degrees of success: sometimes they’re completely natural and sometimes they bring the film to a screeching halt. And sometimes you’d never even know they were there.

The criteria for the examples below is that for the most part, acting is not their first career, so you won’t see Warren Beatty, Clint Eastwood, or Rob Reiner on this list. So, in no particular order, here we go…”

(Via Cineleet)

The Candidates and Beer: “We turn now to our man in Pennsylvania, who has a nice post about the candidates and their beer drinking. (Finally, an issue we can actually use to make a decision.) Since I have no personal insight, I’m turning everything over to Lew:

See the great picture above (from today’s Philadelphia Inquirer’s, taken by Sarah J. Glover) of Obama at Bethlehem Brew Works, teeing up for a beer with Peg Fegley — looks like maybe he’s got an ESB? (Yes, that’s what it was, according to an e-mail from BBW, and the Senator’s reaction was ‘Now that’s a good beer. I like that. That’s good stuff.‘) Hillary had a photo op boilermaker in Indiana — appropriate, in Purdue-land — and is reported in today’s Inky as being fond of Blue Moon with an orange slice (oh my, a Democrat, drinking a Coors product, that’s made in Canada? Oh, the humanity!).

Kidding aside, folks, this is good. Everything that puts beer or whiskey (anyone know what whiskey Hillary drank in Indiana? Ruch, I’m not posting any comments from you…) in the mainstream, as part of a normal person’s life — which it is — is good. Showing national figures drinking one drink without going on a mad binge is good.

And, well, Obama in a brewpub…that’s freakin’ gold, people.

Advantage: Obama.

Bonus pic:

“

(Via Beervana.)

Digital Polaroids:

Notes Buzzfeed: “Polaroid is discontinuing the production of their instant film, but they will be coming out with a hand-size printer that produces color snapshots in about 30 seconds.

We like the way Polaroids have the uncanny ability to make every image look like it’s from 1982. This printer looks pretty cool, but in the meantime, we’ll be buying all the Polaroid film reserves we can get off eBay.”

Best 5 Links:

1. How the Instant Mobile Printer Works
2. New York Times Has All the Info on the New Polaroid Printer
3. A Unique Digital Photo Frame with a Dry Erase Caption Area
4. Digg Users Weigh in on the New Technology
5. Your Own 2×3 Pocket Printer

”

(Via BuzzFeed Latest)

How to Make a Pop up Photograph

Over the years I’ve enjoyed selecting pop-up birthday cards for friends. The colors pop, and the card moves. Heres a set of easy to follow instructions for making your own.

“Making your favorite photo into a pop-up is fun and relatively easy. Pop up your family, your pet, your best friend, or you can invent your own imaginary scene using magazine cut-outs and drawings. Here’s how…”

(Via Coudal Partners Blend)

Burt Glinn, Chronicler of Cold War in Pictures, Dies at 82

Mr. Glinn was one of the first Americans to join Magnum, the international cooperative founded by a group of photographers that included Robert Capa and Henri Cartier-Bresson.

(Via New York Times)

Weekend Explorer: Coin. Smile. Click!: “The original photobooth may now be a relic of 20th century pop Americana but our love affair with it continues. And it began in New York City – in Times Square.”

(Via NYT > Home Page.)

I Need a Virtual Break. No, Really.: “The author tries taking a real day off by fully disconnecting himself from his cellphone, land line and computer.”

(Via NYT > Technology.)

The New Fiver

A cool look at the new five dolar bill from Condé Nast Portfolio on the new U.S. five-dollar bill, including previous designs back to 1861.

(Via Daring Fireball.)

Joshua Micah Marshall’s blog began as a tiny political news operation. It’s great to see his insightful, well-written blog win the George Polk Award. Talking Points Memo started started in response to the presidential vote count fiasco in Florida seven years ago. Read on to learn how it’s grown in stature and size.

Blogger, Sans Pajamas, Rakes Muck and a Prize: “Cited for its reporting on the firing of eight U.S. attorneys, the political blog Talking Points Memo became the first Internet-only news operation to win the George Polk Award.”

(Via NYT > Technology.)

Silly fun. I hope you get a laugh out of this. “Japanese tv is so much better than ours”: Human Tetris. Thanks Richard.

(Via Coudal Partners Blended Feed.)

Obama, Japan: “Guess who they’re rooting for in Obama, Japan?”

(Via Coudal Partners Blended Feed.)

Full Lunar Eclipse: “Best 4 Links:

1. The Last Total Eclipse Til 2010
2. If You Happen to Be an Explorer Caught in a Dangerous Land, Use This Handy Eclipse Trick
3. NASAs Informative Eclipse Page Will Answer Your Every Question
4. Just The Basic Facts

”

(Via BuzzFeed Latest.)

Photographer finds Flickr pics sold on iStockphoto: “Photonapping is on the rise. Recently a flickr photographer found her pics being sold on iStockphoto.”

(Via Coudal Partners Blended Feed.)

Steven Levy looks at BookSnap, a new consumer scanner for digitizing books in

Newsweek’s Rip This Book, Not Yet

(Via Library Link of the Day.)

A sad day when a once-storied company like Polaroid drops out of producing its line of instant film that had lots of practical uses and transformed fine art and commercial photography. I have an SX-70, the legendary instant film camera, with film that could be manipulated by hand into small, original treasures. I also have a Daylab, used in a manual process for transferring the dyes from Polaroid negatives onto watercolor paper, producing unique images with the texture of impressionist paintings. I’ll miss doing that immensely.

Polaroid Abandons Instant Photography - The Lede - Breaking News - New York Times Blog

Seattle Taps Its Inner Silicon Valley: “Many communities dream of becoming the next Silicon Valley. But Seattle is actually doing it.”

(Via NYT > Technology.)

Stones film opens Berlin festival: “The Rolling Stones’ hotly awaited concert movie, directed by Martin Scorsese, kicks off Berlin’s Film Festival.”

(Via BBC News.)

A great profile of the gifted composer Nico Muhly.

Eerily Composed: “Nico Muhly, a composer, was bounding through Chinatown, his hands thrust into the pockets of a black jacket, and a too small Icelandic knitted cap pulled halfway down over his ears, heading for the market under the Manhattan Bridge. Muhly, who is twenty-six, had a violin concerto that needed…”

(Via The New Yorker.)