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Wednesday, October 31, 2007
Hey! It's Halloween!
Be safe.
Look scary.
And enjoy consuming large quantities of things that are bad for you in jovial company.
Monday, October 29, 2007
Worth Signing
My thanks to Sam Hamm for bringing this petition to my attention. The people who drafted it are hoping to collect 100,000 signatures and they're nearly there. Put them over the top and treat yourself to a good magazine!
Sunday, October 28, 2007
WHITE CHALK by PJ Harvey
Saturday, October 27, 2007
Slumming with Karloff on VOODOO ISLAND
VOODOO ISLAND (1957) is a case in point, if not a classic one. Even the film's one-sheet poster (pictured above) presents us with a haggard, unhappy-looking Karloff who appears to have been bullied into the artwork with a cattle prod. A new blog by Arbogast on the subject of VOODOO ISLAND prompted me to sit down last night and actually watch that legendarily turgid film for the first time since I turned it off, about halfway through, in my discerning childhood. I've always had a special liking for scenes involving women in the clutches of man-eating plants (see KONGA, THE LAND UNKNOWN, and the AIP Karloff film DIE, MONSTER, DIE! for far juicier examples), and Arbogast promised a good one, so I was there. I didn't feel the scene was quite the highlight that he believed, but I'm grateful for his powers of persuasion anyway. You see, I had grabbed TCM's recent broadcast with my Dish Network DVR, and that's the copy I watched -- having completely forgotten that I already owned the film as part of a Midnite Movies "double feature" DVD paired with THE FOUR SKULLS OF JONATHAN DRAKE! Had I not decided to blog about this screening and done a little preliminary online Googling, I would have surely burned a copy of the movie I didn't need.
But to get to the point of VOODOO ISLAND itself... like THE CLIMAX, THE STRANGE DOOR and THE BLACK CASTLE, it's really not as bad as people claim. It's certainly not very good, at least not in the dry manner it was executed by director Reginald LeBorg, but it seems to me that the script by Richard H. Landau hoped for better and the performances (including the always reliable Elisha Cook, Jr.) are decent, though Karloff suffers from miscasting and perhaps also from the rigors of location shooting. Karloff is also clean-shaven here, revealing quite a long upper lip, and the look seems to take more away from him than just a mustache.
Landau's script deserves special credit on two counts, specifically. The first is that the role of Claire Winter, played by Jean Engstrom, is surely the most pronouncedly lesbian character to figure in a horror film of the 1950s; considering how oblique the matter of lesbianism is in movies like DRACULA'S DAUGHTER (1935) and VOODOO ISLAND's near contemporary BLOOD OF DRACULA (1958), Claire is possibly the first undisguisedly lesbian character to appear in a horror film, or in any kind of fantastic film since the tuxedoed women in Fritz Lang's DR. MABUSE THE GAMBLER (1922). The other point of interest, and it's a related one, is how the script attempts to parallel the character of Karloff's assistant Sarah Adams (Beverly Tyler), a young woman who is all about work, with that of Mitchell (Glenn Dixon) -- a man who has fallen victim to a zombie curse and spends his entire time onscreen in a kind of "living death." The dialogue ventures several comments, some of them in the form of seductive comments from Claire, about how "Adams" (as she's called) shouldn't be so intent on work twenty-four hours a day, how she should let her hair down and live a little. To put it bluntly, her work drone ethic is delineated as another form of living death.
The film buys back some of its bonus points by depicting Adams as someone who, in the course of dedicating herself to work and armoring herself against the temptations of a personal life involving men like our hero Rhodes Reason, might inadvertently fall into the clutches of a same-sex affair... but, nevertheless, I appreciate the time taken by Landau to layer his themes when the project didn't exactly call for it. One thing I wasn't expecting from VOODOO ISLAND was craftsmanship, so its thematic resonance came as a pleasant surprise.
POSTSCRIPT 6:31 pm. Robert Cashill writes: "VOODOO ISLAND was shown as part of TCM's Gay and Lesbian Fest in June. The co-host with Robert Osborne, Richard Barrios, has written a new book on gay and lesbian cinema that gives prominent attention to VOODOO ISLAND... a film that he said he hadn't heard of, much less seen, till a friend alerted him to a TCM telecast some years back."
Thursday, October 25, 2007
He Has Eyes Like Steve McQueen
Though McDowell has continued to work steadily, this once prominent star of IF..., A CLOCKWORK ORANGE, O LUCKY MAN! and TIME AFTER TIME -- whose stardom (some have said) was derailed by his participation in the Bob Guccione XXX production of CALIGULA -- has only recently begun to recapture his former authority onscreen with captivating performances in GANGSTER NO. 1 (2000), RED ROSES AND PETROL (2003), EVILENKO (2004), and as the current incarnation of Dr. Loomis in Rob Zombie's remake of HALLOWEEN. Of course, he also killed off William Shatner's Captain Kirk in 1994's STAR TREK: GENERATIONS and, in one of his stranger castings of recent years, he was the second "Mr. Roarke" in an ill-fated 2002 TV relaunch of FANTASY ISLAND. (Can you imagine the kinds of fantasies Malcolm McDowell might stage for his visitors? The mind boggles.)
But 2007 has been the year of McDowell's advent into the realm of DVD audio commentary, which make the rest of us very rich indeed. They began earlier this year with Criterion's extraordinary release of Lindsay Anderson's IF... (which, as of this moment, still has the inside track as my favorite DVD release of the year), and they have continued this month in triplicate with Image Entertainment's CALIGULA and Warner Home Video's A CLOCKWORK ORANGE (also available in HD and Blu-ray) and O LUCKY MAN! Furthermore, the two Warner titles both include O LUCKY MALCOLM!, Jan Harlan's highly entertaining and absorbing feature-length (86m) profile of the actor. Part of the pleasure of Harlan's film comes from McDowell's own participation in it (we get a clear sense of the man, not just his performances) and part comes from sharing in the fulfillment he must feel from his current wave of recognition. The film loves him for who he is, not just for what he's done, and we feel happy for the ornery devil.
McDowell's audio commentaries confirm a clear and excited memory about his participation in each of his early key works (and the film maudit), as well as his reputation as a masterly raconteur. A word to the wise filmmakers in my audience who may be in a position to hire him: put it in Malcolm's contract to participate in your movie's DVD commentary, turn him loose on it, and you're guaranteed better reviews.
To move only slightly off-topic in closing, Warner's Kubrick titles (which I've bought in the snazzy Blu-ray format) appear to be ideally mastered and assembled. Last night I went through all the supplements on A CLOCKWORK ORANGE (the first film I ever reviewed, though that review remains unpublished * ) and it cheers me to no end to know that I have other British television documentaries to look forward to on the other Kubrick discs. A CLOCKWORK ORANGE offers an excellent Channel 4 documentary about the film's 28-year suppression in the UK, as well as a pretty good American "making of." (You can tell it's American because nearly every sound byte has its Mickey Mousey visual counterpart -- e.g., someone says Malcolm was exhausted during the filming and we cut to a clip of the beaten, rain-soaked Alex slumping to the floor of the writer's home.) The British TV doco, on the other hand, is content to be authoritative, informative, enlightening, and smart rather than merely witty -- and to spend an hour or so in its presence is to emerge sickened by what American television has become in contrast.
* Originally written in hopes of a sale to CINEFANTASTIQUE, this typewritten relic is now being saved for my next volume of collected writings -- which I hope to compile and publish within the next year or two.
Wednesday, October 24, 2007
Cover Story & Twitch
And over at Twitch, Dave Canfield presents his own ATCOTD interview with yours truly.
Monday, October 22, 2007
GRADUATE Thoughts
The Hoffman/Ross commentary is historic for its repairing of one of the most charismatic screen couples of the 1960s, as the two have never worked together again. Hoffman admits several times to having a huge crush on Ross during the filming, which makes sense for an actor who studied under Lee Strasberg, which elicits a silence from Ross whenever it's brought up that is impossible to read. Either it makes sense to her too, or she simply doesn't know what to do with such a confession, but she doesn't return it in kind. It makes one wonder what their onscreen chemistry might be like, were Hoffman's pet project of a GRADUATE sequel ever to be made. But the track's most valuable aspect is the appreciation shown by both actors for the phenomenal widescreen photography of Robert Surtees, which opened my eyes to what an amazing feat of cinematography this film represents.
This Month's No Zone: THE THIRD SECRET
Sunday, October 21, 2007
Happy Birthday to Édith Scob
Truth be told, Édith Scob is no less remarkable in her non-fantastic roles. I recently had the pleasure of seeing her splendid performance as Oriane de Guermantes in Raoul Ruiz's Marcel Proust adaptation TIME REGAINED, opposite Johnny Hallyday in Patrice Laconte's THE MAN ON A TRAIN, and in Andrzej Zulawski's epic-length FIDELITY, in which she embraced with great gusto the opportunity to act against type as an slutty and obnoxious alcoholic. She has also been busy as the recurring character of a Mother Superior in the successful French teleseries SOEURTHÉRESE.COM. It's wonderful to see this sublime actress continuing to be so visible in what we get to see of modern day French cinema over here. Her latest project -- Olivier Assayas' L'HEURE D'ETÉ ("Summertime") -- stars Juliette Binoche, so there's a very good chance that we'll be able to see it too.
Saturday, October 20, 2007
Happy Birthday to Bela and Arlene
Memorably, Bela (born Béla Blasko in Lugoj, Romania) and Arlene (born Arline Kazanjian in Boston, Massachusetts) once shared the screen in Universal's MURDERS IN THE RUE MORGUE, directed by Robert Florey and released in 1932. Arlene played a "woman of the streets" in her screen debut, lured by Lugosi's Dr. Mirakle into his coach and abducted to his secret laboratory where he seeks to make her "the bride of science" by mating her blood with that of his pet orangutan, Erik. The admixture doesn't take and, condemning her "rotten" (read syphillitic) blood, he consigns her to the murky depths of the River Seine. It's one of the most hard-hitting sequences to be found in the Universal horrors of the 1930s.
MURDERS IN THE RUE MORGUE has always been regarded as one of Universal's problem titles, suffering as it does from overly florid writing (though the script is co-credited to John Huston) and awkward pacing. Though the details were always somewhat vague, it became known through books like Gregory William Mank's KARLOFF AND LUGOSI that studio executive Carl Laemmle Jr., then 23, was responsible for ordering that changes be made to Florey's director's cut of MURDERS prior to its release. In VIDEO WATCHDOG #111, I published an article called "Re-arranging the RUE MORGUE," in which I proposed how the extant version might be recut to restore Florey's most probable original intentions. Having written that piece on a deadline, I wasn't able to take the time to actually cut together the version I was proposing, but it made sense to me by playing the scenes in my reordered sequence using my Search button. (I was delighted to discover that my attempted "reconstruction" merited mention in the recently published Second Edition of UNIVERSAL HORRORS, the classic reference by Tom Weaver, Michael Brunas and John Brunas.) VW contributor/reader/horror film scholar Gary L. Prange did take the time, however, and, by doing so, he found that my article accounted for maybe 90% of Florey's intentions, while proposing a few additional, crucial tweaks in a letter that we published in VW #114.
Since that article and letter appeared in VIDEO WATCHDOG, I've seen bootleg discs of the recut for sale at film conventions and other copies freely circulated by fans. I was hopeful that someone at Universal might consider Gary's and my findings of sufficient interest to offer a recut version on DVD, either as a newsworthy stand-alone or as a fascinating supplement. Alas, it hasn't happened yet -- but I remain hopeful. I think a director's cut of MURDERS IN THE RUE MORGUE would attract as much popular interest as David Skal's recovery of the Spanish DRACULA did, a decade or more ago. This 60m re-edit makes for a more enticing, innovatively structured, and effectively scary movie -- moreso than the extant version, a far better tribute to the memory of Robert Florey and his two stars, born this day in October such a long time ago.
New Bava Discs Street Next Tuesday
Wednesday, October 17, 2007
"A Staggering Achievement"
Also now online, Chris Alexander's review of Anchor Bay's THE MARIO BAVA COLLECTION VOLUME 2 at Fangoria.com.
Tuesday, October 16, 2007
In the Presence of Don Quixote
The Taft is a smaller auditorium with the look of a moderately scaled movie palace of old. The aisles flow down to the stage, so the likelihood of people standing wouldn't be so much of a problem as it was on the floor of Columbus' Value City Arena, and the seats were more comfortable without being plush. The ticket taker guided us to a pair of seats on the right center aisle, with a more or less dead-on view of the stage; they were slightly pricier tickets than the ones we'd had for the previous show, and they were better seats. We were happy. The crowd was all-ages, from children to geriatrics, but the prevailing mood was one of excitement -- a lot of people were smiling -- long before the lights went down.
Amos Lee's warm-up set was pitched at a more introspective, intimate level than the arena show, which gave me a fuller idea of what he and his band are capable of achieving musically. It was interesting to me, because I was seated and paying attention, but the group took the stage promptly and had to contend with a lot of late arrivals, flashlights in the dark leading people to their seats, incoming folks blocking the view of the stage -- so I had the sense that Amos and company were doing their best to win over a crowd that was often paying only half attention, even if they wanted to pay fuller attention. He left "Careless" -- Donna's favorite song from the previous show -- out of the set, but he added "Arms of a Woman" and saved "Black River," their ace in the deck, for a point when the room seemed most settled and receptive. He closed with an inspired choice, Sam Cooke's "A Change is Gonna Come," which Amos sang in a manner that revealed the extent of Cooke's influence on his own vocal mannerisms. Once again, I thought they were a talented, solid act.
As the lights went up between sets, one of the ushers asked to see my ticket and informed us that we were in the wrong seats. We were shown to our new seats, which were in a short aisle against the right wall of the auditorium, but it turned out that these were also excellent seats. It's a local legend that there is no such thing as a bad seat at the Taft, and it would seem to be true.
Donna brought binoculars, so our already good seats could be additionally enhanced with close views of Dylan and company. The band -- Tony Garnier (bass), George Recile (drums), Stu Kimball (rhythm guitar), the remarkable Denny Freeman (lead guitar), and multi-instrumentalist Donnie Herron -- were wearing different suits this night, all of them light gray jackets and slacks and dark gray shirts, inverting the color scheme worn by Bob, which was the same silver-studded shades-of-gray outfit he'd worn in Columbus. The blue feather I thought I'd seen in his hat was apparently a lighting trompe l'oeil; the hat was actually a light gray with a slightly darker band with a few feathers in the band, one of them orange. He was no Doctor Phibes: the pencil-thin mustache worn since "LOVE AND THEFT" was gone and he looked like no one other than Bob Dylan. He attacked the set list with a taking-care-of-business poker face that smiled only briefly and occasionally to lend weight or inflection to his lyrics. Occupying a place of honor to Dylan's right was a gleaming golden object: his Oscar for "Things Have Changed," the song he wrote for the movie WONDER BOYS. (The Grammy he won for "Gotta Serve Somebody" was nowhere to be seen.)
As I suspected, the set list featured a number of songs not performed in Columbus, beginning with a rousing "Leopard-Skin Pill-Box Hat" and followed by an exquisite "Don't Think Twice, It's All Right" accompanied by lap steel guitar and stand-up bass. Dylan once again retired his center-stage stance and electric guitar after "Watching The River Flow" and moved over to electric keyboard for "Love Sick," accompanied by Donnie Herron's electric mandolin. As the music slowed to a bluesy, reggae-spiked mood for this number, the standing crowd took their seats to drink the performance in. Dylan gave a gripping reading of it, and got everyone back onto their feet by the end of it. And they stayed there, for the most part, as they steamrolled into an exciting cover of Hambone Willie Newbern's "Rollin' And Tumblin'." This raucous blues standard (Canned Heat did a great version) has been standard for the current tour, but to witness the two performances I saw was an object lesson in the difference between playing it and meaning it. I could feel the sweatslipping off the notes, and it made me want to work with it, and I found myself clapping my hands through the whole number. "When The Deal Goes Down" allowed the band to catch their collective breath, and the audience response throughout the song showed many attendees were knowledgeable and appreciative of the song's lyrics.
Then came the evening's first "oh my God" moment with a sublime and heartfelt performance of "Blind Willie McTell," with Herron on banjo. After the show, I compared my memory of this performance to an earlier one from Melbourne last August, and -- again -- the difference I heard was the distinction between playing it (possibly even learning how to play it as a unit) and meaning it. Before the song was even over, I knew that this was the finest live musical performance I'd ever seen, of one of the most moving songs ever written. It was rewarded with one of the most enthusiastic ovations of the evening. And what better way to lift an audience from the depths of the heart than to follow through with something as wonderfully wise and whimsical as "Stuck Inside Of Mobile With The Memphis Blues Again"? This selection clearly hit a few people in the front rows the way "Blind Willie McTell" hit me, because they stood and danced and waved their arms through the whole number -- and it only added to the show, not impeding anyone's view of the stage.
A righteously crunching "Workingman's Blues #2", followed by another great bluesman tribute "High Water (For Charlie Patton)", and a typically playful "Spirit On The Water" (a song in which I feel the musical spirit of Stéphane Grapelli looms large) followed, with Dylan using the lyric "You think I'm over the hill?" to milk loud audience denial. Then the pace of the show pressed the pedal to the metal with a thrilling "Highway 61 Revisited" that had a number of people thrusting their index fingers into the air and twirling them whenever Dylan got back to "Highway Sixty-One!"
Though a more deliberately paced number, "Ain't Talkin'" -- a song with an alternately poignant and lacerating lyric -- was developed by the band as an absorbing groove that was at once a Sisyphusian parallel to the lyric and also, as with all the best groove songs, seemed to cut deeper and sweeter with each repetition. I remember looking through the binoculars at Dylan during this performance, seeing one of the most famous profiles in contemporary history looming over his keyboard while half-singing/half-speaking the lines "All my loyal and much trusted companions / They approve of me and share my code / I practice a faith that's been long abandoned / Ain't no altars on this long and lonesome road." At that moment, I felt that I was looking at the Don Quixote of Rock & Roll, and then I got the even stronger feeling that he just might be the real Don Quixote, too -- or at least the living man Cervantes knew, the inspiration for his immortal creation -- determined to walk that road to the end of his days, telling the capital T truth to every cockeyed windmill town on the map. And when he sang the chorus "Ain't talkin', just walkin' / Eatin' hog eyed grease in a hog eyed town / Heart burnin', still yearnin' / Someday you'll be glad to have me around," I felt every heart in the theater pour open. I know mine did.
The Fifties-style sock-hopper "Summer Days" brought back the spirit of carefree fun before the lights intensified to a pregnant blue for a menacing yet magisterial performance of "Ballad Of A Thin Man," which ended the concert proper. A huge, stomping, howling ovation brought Dylan and his band back for "Thunder On The Mountain" and the evening's second "oh my God" performance, an unexpected band arrangement of "Blowin' In The Wind." No one in the audience seemed to know what was coming, as the band wended its way through the introductory passages, until Dylan leaned forward to sing the song's opening question -- and, at that moment, you could hear and feel the awe coming from the crowd, travelling from one person to the next in gooseflesh. Though Dylan has written countless songs, even countless masterpieces since this early anthem, it somehow remains the quintessence of his being in ways one can't fully appreciate until one sees it performed live by the author. This song carries so much baggage -- and the association of so many other voices from Peter, Paul and Mary to Pete Seeger to Dylan himself -- that it can be impossible to isolate and get at its core importance, but it stands there naked when Dylan is singing it to you, no matter what arrangement it's given.
It can't be topped. Show over. Onward, my Sancho Panzas, to the next town. Which happens to be Dayton, Ohio -- for Show #2000 on the Never Ending Tour.
It was either more than a concert, or my ideal of a concert, in that Dylan treated us to a evening full of energy and joy and sacred emotions, and one that left us standing in the presence of living history. We rose to the occasion, and so did he. The set was a song longer than the Columbus performance, but it was the power and sincerity of the performance -- not the number of songs -- that made the absence of Elvis Costello from the bill a complete and rather amazing irrelevance. Afterwards, I felt terribly guilty about some of the things I'd said in my previous blog, questioning whether Dylan might still have the ability or even the wish to channel greatness in concert. Why should this man have to channel what he already is? Whether he's performing at half power or full power, he's absolutely not to be missed.
Greencine Daily Profiles Me
The Uncle Forry to a new mutant strain of film fanatic?
D.K. Holm thinks so, and he explains why in an extensive, thoughtful and humbling profile of Yours Truly over at Greencine Daily.
Sunday, October 14, 2007
My First Dylan Show
I love collecting live concert recordings, but I've never been much of a concert-goer. I've seen a number of acts who have mattered to me -- I had a seventh row seat to see Iggy Pop on his IDIOT tour with David Bowie on keyboards, I was once one of maybe 75 people who saw Pere Ubu one rainy night in the 1980s, I saw the original lineup of the Ramones three times -- but I've generally refused to travel very far to see any performer, and it hasn't helped my frequency of attendance that I don't drive, and my wife and I have conflicting musical tastes much of the time.
This year I've spent a lot of time undertaking a thorough self-education in Dylan -- I carry all of his albums, as well as some key bootlegs, on my Creative Zen (think iPod); I've read more than a dozen books about him this year, and seen most of his movies and the Scorsese documentary; and reading Paul Williams' trilogy of books about Dylan as a performance artist has turned me into a compulsive downloader/collector of his live shows from the past four decades. (My present goal is to collect at least one representative show from each live period... but I'm basically grabbing whatever I can find.) So I've been immersed in Dylan for awhile, as Donna well knows, and it seemed the culmination of all this process to actually attend one of his concerts, to see him in the now and hear what he happened to be playing now.
Value City Arena is a big basketball or hockey arena that is converted into a concert hall with temporary flooring and pre-arranged rows of folding (but surprisingly comfortable) chairs, whose only problem is not allowing for much in the way of shoulder room. The sound quality was a bit boomy, given the huge hollows of the arena, but was relatively clear and not overly loud. Amos Lee played for about 40 minutes with his band and was warmly received. He was not the sort of opening act you tune out. Their sound might be filed somewhere between classic period The Band and Dave Matthews, but that's just to give you a point of compass, not a remark on their originality. The songwriting was both heartfelt and capable, and the band itself seemed rehearsed while the music itself remained open to interpretation; they seemed quite flexible in performance, allowing themselves to seize upon moments of inspiration to veer from the charts into undiscovered country. I liked them -- not least of all because they were serious, eager to please, and comported themselves as though still uncorrupted by the record business.
After a ten-minute break, Elvis Costello took the stage, his microphone surrounded by a brace of four acoustic guitars and a table with bottled water and a cup of some other beverage. I was a big fan of Costello in his early years with The Attractions but drifted away after BLOOD AND CHOCOLATE for no particular reason, as I still regard it as one of his finest albums. But as Elvis took the stage, I felt an unexpected flush of happy emotions that he proceeded to earn with a consistently and impressively energetic and passionate performance of songs ranging from the very early ("Radio Sweetheart", "Allison") to more recent songs with a pronounced anti-war theme ("Whip It Up", "The Scarlet Tide"). These songs -- with a few humorous, personable, but pointedly political asides tucked betweeen them -- were torch-bearers for the troubadour spirit of the 1960s Bob Dylan and proved Elvis an inspired choice to share the bill with the original. If only he had launched into "Tokyo Storm Warning," I thought to myself, the Dylanesque resonance would have been complete. On second thought, nothing he was lacking. Elvis Costello was great and fully worth the price of admission.
Bob Dylan and his band took the stage after a somewhat longer break. Donna and I had scored fairly good seats for the show -- the first row of the second group of center seats on the floor -- but, from the moment Dylan took the stage, any benefits of our positioning were queered by everyone rising to their feet -- and they remained that way for 90% of the show. Not because the music was rousing and demanded a steady surge of enthusiasm, because these people in the priciest seats remained standing even during all but one of the ballads, though they could just as well have effectively gawked at the living legend from a sitting position. This caused some inconvenience to me, because I don't enjoy standing in a stationary position for an hour at a time, but even moreso for Donna, who's short and couldn't see much of the show even when standing. So, after driving all the way to Columbus, and paying over a couple of hundred dollars for the tickets and our overnight accomodations, she spent most of the show sitting and listening.
Dylan was wearing a very sharp, dark grey suit with sequins and a broad-brimmed gray hat with a blue feather in the band. He looked like Doctor Phibes, as he would've looked if he had turned up in a later sequel as a riverboat gambler with a Spanish alias. As is his habit these days, Dylan played the first three songs on guitar, then moved over to an electric keyboard for the rest of the show. I didn't mind him playing keyboard, but I minded that he moved away from the forefront of the band to sing and play in the manner of one of his own sidemen. He was seen, from that point on, mostly in profile and it seemed a deliberate cutting-back on the powerful opening impact that he had on the audience. For my money, the concert was at its most effective during the first four numbers -- "Rainy Day Women 12 & 35", "It Ain't Me Babe" (beautifully reinvented and given, in my opinion, the evening's one transcendent performance), "Just Like Tom Thumb's Blues" (one of the irregular numbers from the current tour) and, after the move to keyboards, "Love Sick" (the potent opener from TIME OUT OF MIND that was only recently added to the current tour's playlist).
The rest of the show alternated between flat-out roadhouse rock 'n' roll ("Rollin' and Tumblin'", "Summer Days", "Highway 61 Revisited"), sweet whimsy ("Spirit on the Water"), and dark ballads, including "The Ballad of a Thin Man," which I was especially happy to see performed. That classic song from the HIGHWAY 61 REVISITED album closed the main performance, and an extended stomping/clapping/cheering from the crowd lured Dylan and Company back out for a perfunctory encore of "Thunder on the Mountain" and "All Along the Watchtower." I've heard many different renditions of this song as it has been explored in Dylan's live repertoire, and this performance was not particularly inspired. The lead guitar was Hendrix-like to the point of being overtly imitative and the vocals were so phonetically rendered that Dylan might have been trying to teach the song to a kindergarten class rather than tell a powerful tale of revelation. Despite an extended milking of audience applause, the lights came up -- there was no second encore.
It was strange: the audience seemed to be giving Dylan everything that an audience can give an artist, at least in terms of standing at rapt attention and applauding and whooping like crazy. This was the first concert Donna and I had attended since roughly 1999, and we were surprised by some of the changes made in audience comportment over the years. First of all, no wafting aroma of cannabis. Secondly, we were amused (and a bit horrified) to discover that the cigarette lighters once used to coax encores out of artists have now given way to cell phone screens being held on high. (Talk about scenes that should have been in THE INVASION!) There were hundreds of them -- any one of which could transmit photos or a live recording to a receiving line -- yet people all around me were getting caught with cameras or recorders and being told to turn them off and put them away. Nobody cried "Judas!" either, but Dylan hadn't really done anything to earn such rude treatment -- unless you compare his show to the one he was doing the last time that word was hurled at him. He actually played a very good and entertaining, if a bit by-the-numbers, show, and his band (most of them dressed to the nines as well) was hot, but I believe they left the auditorium a song or two short of satisfied. It was, however, needless to say, a thrill simply to be sharing the same very large space with him, to cheer him, to sing along with him, and to know that he was playing for the two of us and everyone else assembled there.
So there you have it, my first Dylan show. It was neither one of his legendary uninspired shows nor was it one of his legendary great ones, but parts of it could serve as an illustration of both extremes -- so, all in all, a good place to start. I had the sense that he was definitely enjoying it for awhile and giving the audience close to everything he had; his fire is not yet extinguished by any means. But I did sense from the second half of the show that he was deliberately sparing himself from investing his performances with too much pain and acuity or anger -- the very forces that Elvis Costello is still drawing upon to fuel his performances. But they were there in his reading of "Love Sick," which would be a damned hard song for even him to fake.
Reading Paul Williams on the subject has taught me that the show you see is not necessarily the one you hear -- so I'm eager to find a recording of the show and re-experience it more specifically through my ears, away from the smell of the hoagy being eaten by the stranger sitting next to me, removed from all the people standing or milling back and forth in front of us, apart from the raised cell phones -- just the pure, undistracted sound of the music and the receptivity of one for whom it was intended.
Am I coming to Bob Dylan's concerts too late in the game to see a sustained show of greatness? I don't think so, and I hope not. I've got tickets for Monday night's show in Cincinnati -- which I understand to be Show #1999 of the Never-Ending Tour.
Saturday, October 13, 2007
Close-Up Blog-a-Thon #5
Close-Up Blog-a-Thon #4
Close-Up Blog-a-Thon #3
Close-Up Blog-a-Thon #2
Friday, October 12, 2007
For the Close-up Blog-a-Thon
Wednesday, October 10, 2007
Get To Know Your Rabbit
Fred (later Tex) Avery was involved in animating a couple of these Oswald shorts, so we shouldn't be taken too offguard by things like this, but I was tickled when the third example "Grandma's Pet" (1932) incorporated not only Avery's trademark twists on beloved fairy tales -- in this case, "Little Red Riding Hood" -- but a hyperbolically surreal climax in which the Wolf (a perennial Avery character, of course) gains possession of a magic wand and uses it to transform Oswald's environment into a series of hilarious death traps. As if to further cement the cartoon's ties with Avery's later MGM masterpiece "Magical Maestro" (1952), Oswald gains control of the wand and turns the tables on his tormenter.
The last two Oswald cartoons, "Confidence" and "The Merry Old Soul"(both 1933), both find the Lucky Rabbit rallying to cheer audiences in the grip of the Great Depression. "Confidence" is the most amazing cartoon in this batch, opening with a dark spectral Depression arising from the steaming foment of a public dump and spreading its infectious gloom as it floats above a Fleischer-like, three-dimensional, turning globe. Oswald awakens one day to find his formerly happy farm animals "down in the dumps" and speeds off to fetch the doctor, who points to a posted image of US President Franklin Delano Roosevelt and says firmly, "HE'S the Doctor!" Oswald flies to Washington DC by ingenious means (I won't spoil it for you), where he cartwheels into the Oval Office (how else?) and is greeted by FDR, who stands tall (!) and comes out from behind his desk to swing his fists with gusto while delivering the pep talk of all pep talks. Duly energized, Oswald cartwheels back out and flies back home by even more ingenious means (that would be telling) to spread the miracle cure of "confidence," which he administers by syringe.
"Confidence" is a masterpiece, if a delusory one; one of those fascinating amalgams of animation and patriotism like Chuck Jones' Porky-Pig-meets-Uncle-Sam opus "Old Glory" (1939), but even more interesting because Oswald embodies such trusting, homegrown, corn-fed American optimism while confronting what we now know to be a false, propogandic image of a US President who had, in fact, been bound to a wheelchair since 1921 with paralysis from the waist down.
"The Merry Old Soul" tells the same story in essence, though in a more disguised manner, as Oswald is alarmed by a radio report that "Old King Cole's got the blues!" He scurries off to round up the country's greatest comedic masters -- including Charlie Chaplin, W.C. Fields and the Marx Brothers (big-footed Greta Garbo sits this one out) -- and arrives with them at the castle, where Hollywood's assembled royalty seek to cheer the wan-faced King by any means possible, much to the conniving jealousy of his unfunny jester. When Oswald accidentally discovers that the secret to making the King laugh involves pie-throwing, the cartoon offers a valid historic explanation for the popularity of slapstick comedies in the 1930s and, in its hard-won wisdom about the need for comedy, anticipates to some extent the finale of Preston Sturges' SULLIVAN'S TRAVELS -- in which the laughs were generated, let us not forget, by none other than Walt Disney.
Speaking of Disney, one can't help but notice that there are a lot of little Mickey Mice running around and bouncing off of drumheads in these Universal cartoons. I don't know if Disney just wasn't big enough to be more litigious in those days, or if there existed in those times a greater brotherhood among different studios that made allowances for friendly jabs such as these. Disney's company reportedly recouped the rights to the Oswald character last year, but that doesn't explain how Universal is able to include a trademarked character here that people are now expressly verboten not to paint on their children's bedroom walls. Perhaps they're trading on Oswald's titular (but not always evident) luck?
I don't have the answer to this burning question, but one thing I do know: I want more Oswald cartoons! The list of "Oswald the Lucky Rabbit" cartoons on the IMDb amounts to 152 titles, but it doesn't include most of the titles included in this first set, so there must be even more where these came from. Happily, Walt Disney Home Video plans to release their own two-disc "Walt Disney Treasures" set of Oswalds on December 11, and I'm eager to be further educated and entertained by what it has to offer.
Monday, October 08, 2007
PERSONA: Roots of Captain Howdy
I recently made a retroactive purchase of MGM's INGMAR BERGMAN SPECIAL EDITION DVD COLLECTION box set. Last night, I decided to begin my viewing at its beginning, with PERSONA (1966), the earliest movie in the set. I had seen it once before but, for some reason, remembered only its most soft-edged imagery; I had completely forgotten what a wrenching acid trip of a movie it really is, but I'm unlikely to forget this now. One of the reasons I resolved to write about the movie today is to better remember its traumatic impact, but there is also a more pressing reason for why I'm writing about the movie here.
PERSONA opens with a remarkable sequence deconstructing its own conveyance of images, beginning with the ignition of the carbon arc rods inside a 35mm projector and the rattle of perforated celluloid travelling through its gate. We are shown some subliminal images right away (including, shockingly for a 1966 film, an erect penis) and also during the subsequent main titles (including barely registering glimpses of a Keystone Kops comedy, or perhaps its Swedish equivalent). For some reason, during this procession of images meant to do nothing more than tap on my consciousness, I had the feeling of being in the presence of the same demonic energy I felt the first time I saw William Friedkin's THE EXORCIST -- probably because it, too, made potent use of subliminal imagery, as Mark Kermode and I first explored way back in VIDEO WATCHDOG #6, one of our earliest issues and still one of our best.
And then, about 46 minutes into this very involving but abstract "poem" about the mysterious bonding between a psychologically withdrawn actress (Liv Ullmann) and her attending nurse (Bibi Andersson), I was witness to something amazing. As some of you may recall, there is a pensive close shot of Andersson...
She is standing behind a sheer drape when, suddenly, the celluloid conveying Bergman's poem begins to disintegrate, along with the mind of the character. First, there is a scratch...
It follows the fluid form of the drape, but quickly is reassigned to other areas of the frame. Then portions of the frame disappear entirely...
And then even the anchored left side of the frame becomes unmoored and floats freely, the print seemingly destroyed and past the point of rethreading...
We fear the image has entirely disappeared, but it comes back just long enough to convey a penetrating glance from Andersson's eye that seems to burn from a place outside her performance.
The intensity of her gaze, her madness, seems to burn a hole into the celluloid, which grows like a cancer...
... until the nothingness of the burn engulfs the entire screen, turning it white.
The white lingers on the screen for several seconds. It is then followed by another sudden procession of intensive subliminal images, the first of which is this one:
It is there for no more than one or two frames, but I have a very good eye for subliminals. Many people would not have detected it, but I knew what I had seen. I had to stop the film at once and step back until I found the Devil in the details. My strange feeling, throughout PERSONA, from its opening subliminals and shock images of a hand being hammered to a crucifix, that I was somehow in the presence of THE EXORCIST was vividly explained.
For years, William Friedkin actively denied any knowledge of this subliminal image of Eileen Dietz as "Captain Howdy" in THE EXORCIST, but once the film came to home video and could be manipulated by those in the know, it became undeniable. (I should point out for the sake of interested historians that, even though Linda Blair's Regan refers to her inner voice/imaginary friend as "Captain Howdy" in an early scene of the movie, the epithet is never heard again in the movie and never mentioned in relation to her demonic possession. It was actually me who first identified this face as "Captain Howdy" in VW #6, and I note with some pride that the ID has caught on.) This is not the exact frame of the face as it flashes onscreen in THE EXORCIST, which you can see on the cover of the first edition of Mark Kermode's BFI Modern Classics book on the picture; the face in the movie bears much the same pallid, ogreish look as Bergman's Devil.
The brief appearance in PERSONA by a pasty-faced Devil is not the only instance I found of the Bergman film's influence on THE EXORCIST. Accompanying the flashing image of this Devil is a turmoil of sound effects, most particularly a chaos of tormented voices being played on tape in reverse. It sounds not unlike (in fact, quite like) the tape of Regan's nonsensical speech which is discovered to say "I am No-one!" when played in reverse.
Furthermore, as the culmination of an extended dialogue scene shown respectively as it plays on the face of the listener and then again as was communicated by the speaker, Bergman and his cameraman Sven Nykvist merge a disconcerting close-up of Bibi Andersson's face with an identically measured close-up of Liv Ulmann, combining their faces into one to accentuate their surprising likeness to one another -- indeed, their mutual "possession" of one another.
Thursday, October 04, 2007
THE EARTH DIES SCREAMING reviewed
Wednesday, October 03, 2007
The Women of Buñuel
Buñuel was incorrigeable. Even in his most reverent religious works, L'AGE D'OR and MEXICAN BUS RIDE among them, matters of eroticism cannot help but intrude upon the Sacred. It occurred to me to address this particular level of Buñuel's works after a recent viewing of THE DISCREET CHARM OF THE BOURGEOISIE. Rather like my own idea of Heaven, the Academy Award-winning film puts one in the company of Delphine Seyrig, Bulle Ogier, and Stéphane Audran while a creature no less divine than Milena Vukotic waits on the tables. Enjoying once again the convivial interplay of these women onscreen, I was struck by that uncommon quality which they all shared in common, namely... alas, I have lost my train of thought.
Photos of Buñuel in later life, of course, are impossibly rare but I was able to find this one by Googling his name.
I am reminded of a dream I had recently. I was sitting on the swing in my backyard, enjoying the warmth of the day while enjoying a cool drink and reading a newspaper. I do not usually read the newspaper, but I was drinking the sort of thing I would usually drink until I suddenly became aware that the ice cubes in the glass had become loose, swirling bits of fruit: it had become a sangria. At the same moment I noticed this, I tried to resume my reading but my concentration was thwarted by the sound of castanets. I looked around for signs of Carmen Miranda, who had perhaps lost her hat in my drink, but she was nowhere to be found. My investigation led me to my garage, which was built only two years ago and still looks brand new. Expecting to see nothing inside but our car and the usual bales of hay, I was startled to find a man I had never seen before. He was watching two young boys who were taking turns riding a piebald horse in circles around the inside of my garage. The horse's clacking hooves were the castenet-like sound I had heard.
"What are you doing in my garage?" I demanded.
The man took an exception to my volume and turned toward me. His manner was cordial but firm. "You are not to shout at those boys like that," he told me.
"Look," I said, maintaining my rights, "I don't want my garage to be used for walking horses."
There was more to it, but this is going nowhere; and, as they say, there is a time and a place for such stories. Suffice to say that Luís Buñuel was splendid. Besides his many noteworthy professional accomplishments, he is said to have read DON QUIXOTE many times and would hold accidental acquaintences spellbound for hours at a time by recounting the details of his favorite chapters and improvising new ones that typically involved needlepoint, matadors, priests, footwear, terrorism, and even toilets.
In closing, I was able to locate (also by Googling) this obscure retitling of Buñuel's VIRIDIANA. I have read a great deal about the Argentina-born director over the years, and I have also seen the documentary THE LIFE AND TIMES OF DOM DE LUISE BUNUEL, but never before have I discovered any reference to him casting Catherine Deneuve and Claudette Colbert in the same film in the same role. Still, I wouldn't put such a thing past him.


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OpenTuesdays–Sundays,10 AM–5 PMThursdays until 8PMClosed Mondays
Special Hours
Admission is free. For more information, call 607-255-6464 or send an e-mail to firstname.lastname@example.com.
NOTE: This electronic record is compiled from historic documentation which may not reflect the Johnson Museum's complete or current knowledge of the object. Review and refinement of such records is ongoing.

subset: commoncrawl


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The Association's Cocktail Classes - "Class By Association"
The Association
Friday, April 10, 2015 at 7:00 PM - Friday, September 25, 2015 at 8:00 PM (PDT)
Event Details
CLASS BY ASSOCIATION offers cocktail enthusiasts an opportunity to delve deeper and refine their knowledge. Classes explore bar basics, tools and techniques as well as individual spirits, their history and use in classic and contemporary cocktails.
The Association's head mixologist, Sofia Szabo, hosts the one-hour class every other Friday. Class begins at 7:00pm and lasts for one hour. Open to the public at 8:00pm.
Special Update: Starting 9/11, classes will be taught by Scott Cushman.
Classes are $20 per person and include:
• 1-hour PRIVATE cocktail class
• Industry guest speakers
• Tasting of 2 craft cocktails; one classic, one modern take on featured spirit
• One complimentary cocktail off our signature cocktail menu
• Personal composition book to keep on premises for future classes and recipes
For optimized enjoyment, we limit classes to 16 seats.
Registration is required for participation.
For additional inquiries, please email email@example.com.
When & Where
The Association
110 E 6th Street
Los Angeles,
Friday, April 10, 2015 at 7:00 PM - Friday, September 25, 2015 at 8:00 PM (PDT)
Add to my calendar
The Association
The Association's cocktail menu, conceptualized by San Francisco based consultant Kent Howard and owner Ashley Joyce, consists of an impressive list of classic concoctions such as America's first-ever created cocktail, the "Sazerac".


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This authoritative guide to sleep medicine is also available as an e-dition, book (ISBN: 1416003207) plus updated online reference! The new edition of this definitive resource has been completely revised and updated to provide all of the latest scientific and clinical advances. Drs. Kryger, Roth, and Dementand over 170 international expertsdiscuss the most recent data, management guidelines, and treatments for a full range of sleep problems. Representing a wide variety of specialties, including pulmonary, neurology, psychiatry, cardiology, internal medicine, otolaryngology, and primary care, this whos who of experts delivers the most compelling, readable, and scientifically accurate source of sleep medicine available today. Includes user-friendly synopses of important background information before all basic science chapters. Provides expert coverage of narcolepsy * movement disorders * breathing disorders * gastrointestinal problems * neurological conditions * psychiatric disturbances * substance abuse * and more. Discusses hot topics such as the genetic mechanisms of circadian rhythms * the relationship between obesity, hormones, and sleep apnea * sleep apnea and arterial hypertension * and more. Includes a new section on Cardiovascular Disorders that examines the links between sleep breathing disorders and cardiovascular abnormalities, as well as the use of sleep related therapies for congestive heart failure. Provides a new section on Womens Health and Sleep Disorders that includes information on the effects of hormonal changes during pregnancy and menopause on sleep. Features the fresh perspectives of 4 new section editors. Employs a more consistent chapter organization for better readability and easier navigation.Kryger, Meir H. is the author of 'Principles and Practice of Sleep Medicine', published 2005 under ISBN 9780721607979 and ISBN 0721607977.[read more]
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Product FAQs
How do I install my USB video adapter in Windows Vista / 7 / 8 / 10? (.exe method)
Note: Do not physically connect the USB video adapter to your computer until you are instructed to (Step 5).
Prior to installing this device, please ensure that your operating system is up to date (for example, you have installed the most recent service pack).
To install the driver:
- Download the latest drivers from the StarTech.com website (http://www.startech.com/Support). You can find the part number and product ID on the product's packaging.
Note: Windows will typically save the files to the Downloads folder that is associated with your user account (for example, C:\Users\your_name\Downloads).
- Once the download is complete, right-click the zip folder that you downloaded, select Extract All, and follow the on-screen instructions.
- In the list of extracted files, right-click the Setup.exe file and select Run as Administrator.
Note: If the Run as Administrator option is not available, you might be attempting to run the installer from within the zipped file. Extract the files using the instructions in Step 2.
- Follow the on-screen prompts to install the device drivers and restart the computer when prompted.
- Once Windows has restarted, connect the USB video adapter to your computer.
- Your computer will automatically complete the driver installation and your device should be ready to use.
Note: Installation may take several seconds to complete. During the installation your display might flicker; this is normal. Once the installation has completed you will see your Windows desktop extended to the additional monitor.


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A wine trail around Dublin that is steeped in local flavour. Soak up the amazing atmosphere and enjoy what this cobble-stoned, charming city has to offer. Taste an exciting line up of wines and tapas style bites in a fun and social environment.
Wine trails are designed not only for those who are already in love with the world of wine but also for those who would like to learn and discover more. This guided trail of Dublin's finest wine spots is the perfect way to meet local wine heroes and taste wines that have been carefully chosen for you. As well as wine, you will sample delicious tapas style light bites along the way. What's not to love?!


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The most advanced summer soft top solution found on the market today, the new Pocket Island Topper. This new design features tough diamond fabric combined with a pair of zipper front pockets and one large rear pocket on 2007-2013 Wrangler for the ultimate full featured top. Unlike other summer tops on the market, the Rugged Ridge design features wider side hook and loop fastener straps, a reinforced front section and extra heavy duty nylon tie down straps.
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Dumpster Rentals, Portable Toilet Rentals and Portable Storage Rentals in Valdosta, GA
Will there be waste collection services on holidays?
For information on waste collection services on holidays, please see our Holiday Waste Collection Schedule page.
What is the difference between a commercial dumpster and a roll off dumpster?
The size and function are the primary difference between the two types of dumpster. Commercial dumpsters can be used to dispose of regular waste (MSW), recyclables and organic wastes which include green (yard) waste and food waste. Commercial dumpsters are smaller, ranging from a 2 cubic yard to and 6 cubic yard dumpster. These are the dumpsters you typically see behind a business complex, gas station, restaurant, apartment complex, or other businesses that need permanent scheduled services. Such services are almost always scheduled anywhere from once every other week to seven days per week.
Roll off dumpsters on the other hand are larger and generally hold anywhere between 10 cubic yards and 40 cubic yards of waste. They are generally used for temporary needs such as a home remodel project, garage clean out and construction related projects such as building and demolition of roads, homes and office spaces. Roll offs get their name because they "roll off" the back of a truck when delivered to customers.
We have pictures and dimensions of all roll off and commercial dumpsters available to help you with what you need.
How do I determine which dumpster size is best for my project?
If you are a business owner and you seek scheduled weekly services on a permanent ongoing basis then you need to schedule commercial dumpster services. If you are seeking dumpster services on a temporary basis for a clean out, home remodel, construction project or any other temporary project, then a roll off dumpster is the correct choice.
Ensuring you select the correct dumpster size for your project can save you time and money. A dumpster that is too small will cost you more by requiring you to schedule additional hauls to remove all of the debris while a dumpster that is too large will cause you to incur initial unnecessary expenses if a smaller one would have been enough. Please see our dumpster dimensions and sizes to help you select the best dumpster for your needs. Please note that each cubic yard will hold roughly 15 (thirteen gallon) kitchen-sized trash bags or about 6 (thirty gallon) large trash bags.
Please feel free to contact one of our customer service representatives at 229-375-5380 for additional help in selecting the right dumpster for your project.
How do I order a permanent commercial dumpster?
To order a permanent commercial dumpster, simply enter your zip code for vendors in your area. Select the appropriate commercial dumpster size and complete the requested information. An ASAP Site Services customer service representative will contact you with a quote and to complete your order.
How do I order a temporary roll off dumpster?
To order a temporary roll off dumpster, simply enter your zip code for vendors in your area. Select the appropriate roll off dumpster size, request a quote.
Or directly contact one of our ASAP Site Services representatives for a free quote at 229-375-5380.
How much space is required for the dumpster?
You will find dumpster dimensions listed on this site for each dumpster type. It is recommended that you provide space to accommodate double the amount of the width and height of the dumpster to assure adequate height and space clearance. Also consider an additional 10' for the door that swings open at the back of the dumpster.
Will a roll off dumpster damage my driveway or pavement?
A full roll off dumpster can be very heavy depending on its size and the type of materials that are placed inside the container. Thus, we highly recommend customers take any necessary actions to prevent any potential damage to driveways and pavements by placing a 4' x 8' sheet of plywood on the driveway where the container will be placed. The customer affirms that any right-of- way provided by customer (disclosed in delivery questions) for the roll off container is sufficient to bear the weight of all contractors' dumpster equipment and vehicles required to perform the contracted service. The customer assumes all liabilities for damages to private driving surfaces, pavement or road surfaces and entire roll off container placement site. The ASAP Site Services and its affiliates shall not be responsible for any damages to any private driving surface, pavement or accompanying subsurface of any route associated to perform the service that was contracted.
Can the dumpster be placed on the street?
Permits may be required. Please check with your local municipality for specific rules and regulations.
What items are not allowed to be placed inside the dumpster?
Hazardous waste, dirt, industrial waste, chemical products, radioactive material, oil filters, herbicides & pesticides, solvents, paint (except completely dried latex paint cans, no liquids), other flammable liquids, aerosol cans, propane tanks, motor oil, transmission oil/lubricating/hydraulic oil/oil filters, contaminated oils (mixed with solvents, gasoline, etc.), antifreeze, petroleum contaminated soil/lead paint chips, tires, appliances, fluorescent tubes, batteries, computers, monitors, televisions, microwaves, railroad ties, medical waste, asbestos, animals, barrels and all liquids. Material must be level at the top of the container; nothing can be sticking out of the top. Additional requirements may apply based upon locality. The liability for appropriate waste remains with the customer as agreed to in the terms and conditions when contracting with ASAP Site Services.
Is it necessary for someone to be on location when the dumpster is delivered or removed?
It is not necessary to have someone onsite for delivery or removal of the dumpster. However, please be as detailed as possible when answering the delivery questions, as the driver will use their judgment and place the dumpster in the safest accessible area. If an onsite contact is not available for delivery, you will be responsible for all charges involved with relocation of the dumpster should it be necessary. For removal; customer agrees to provide unobstructed access to the dumpster on the scheduled pick-up day; if dumpster is inaccessible, customer is subject to additional pick-up charges, as terms and conditions apply.
What if I need an extra haul?
You can have additional hauls with your order. Additional charges will apply
Will I be billed for extra weight?
Yes, if your tonnage goes over the included tons quoted in your initial order you will be charged additional costs, as terms and conditions apply.
Porta Potty Rental Throughout Valdosta, GA
Can I rent a toilet for just one day?
Yes! Our Standard Portable Units are perfect for weekend parties or even a one-day event. Please order at least 2 days prior to your event whenever possible to ensure availability and delivery convenient to your schedule.
Will the toilets be clean for my event?
Absolutely! VIP Flushable Portable Restrooms are reserved only for special events and parties, and are not used at construction sites.
How far in advance do I need to order my toilet(s) and/or trailer(s)?
To ensure ASAP Site Services can provide you with the services you need, we ask that you contact us at least 2 days in advance of your event. For large special events or job sites, a week or more lead-time is encouraged. However, if you require same day delivery, ASAP Site Services can accommodate you.
Where does the waste go after the restroom has been serviced?
The waste is transported to a local wastewater facility and disposed of according to the regulations and procedures required by the local governing laws.
How do you keep the waste from freezing in colder climates?
Anti-freeze is typically mixed in with the deodorizing water that is placed in the tank. It works to keep the water liquid and unfrozen in colder climates. All products used are acceptable to local wastewater facilities.
Am I required to have a portable restroom on my construction site?
Most city ordinances specifically detail the requirements regarding portable sanitation on construction sites. Generally, inspectors require that a portable toilet is ordered and on site before approving the inspection. Additionally, OSHA requires a portable toilet on a construction site, as listed under the Safety and Health Regulations for a Construction Site (1923.51 (c) (1), 1926.51 (c) (3), (I), (ii), (iii), (iv)). For information regarding specific city or country ordinances contact your local Preferred Vendor.
How often will my portable restroom be serviced?
The standard service is once a week so that the units are fully stocked with supplies, cleaned and sanitized. The standard fee includes once a week service. We can provide service more frequently if required.
What happens if my portable toilet gets tipped over?
Contact ASAP Site Services as soon as possible to report the incident. We will then dispatch a driver to come to the site to clean the unit or provide another unit. We will make the necessary adjustments depending on the situation.
Does a portable restroom on my construction job site really cut down on expenses and time?
By providing a portable restroom on your job site, you can reduce employee downtime by providing a convenient alternative to your employees spending invaluable time searching for a restroom because no close restroom has been provided.
The following chart was developed in a study conducted by the Portable Sanitation Association International (PSAI).
The annual cost of 10 minutes of wasted toilet time per employee, per day:
|Hourly rate
|5 Employees
|10 Employees
Formula: Hourly Rate divided by 60 Minutes Per Hour x 10 Minutes x Number of Employees x 255 Days Per Year.
For more information regarding this study, please contact the Portable Sanitation Association International at 1-800-822-3020.
What are the rules for the ADA restrooms?
ASAP Site Services offers portable wheelchair restrooms that are ADA compliant for use on your construction site or special event. ADA units are large enough and obtain the proper elements to meet the standards that have been outlined by the Americans with Disabilities Act.
Specifically, the statute states that for single user portable toilets clustered at a single location, at least 5% but no less than one toilet unit shall be installed at each cluster whenever typical inaccessible units are provided. Accessible units shall also be identified by the International Symbol of Accessibility. The exception is that if portable toilet units are used exclusively by construction personnel who do not require the use of an ADA unit, you are not required to comply with this statute. (Federal Register/Vol. 56, No. 144/July 26, 1991/ Rules and Regulations/ 4.1.2 Accessible Site and Exterior Facilities: New Construction).
For a complete set of ADA guidelines relating to portable restrooms, please contact ASAP Site Services.
Where can my portable restroom be placed?
ASAP Site Services will place your units at your event or job site per your instruction. They will make every reasonable attempt to accommodate your desire for specific placement on the unit. However, we will relocate the unit and notify you if it becomes necessary, so that we may service the unit safely.
How do you cut down on the odors and germs within the unit?
ASAP Site Services have highly trained employees that will not only pump out the holding tank, but will clean the inner bowl of the unit and provide thorough janitorial service inside and out of the unit. They clean and sanitize the portable restrooms at each service, as well as provide a special sanitizing detergent in the water that also acts as a deodorizer to keep the unit smelling pleasant while reducing your exposure to germs.
Mobile Storage Rental Throughout Valdosta, GA
How much does portable storage cost?
Our pricing is straight forward and clear. Cost is dependent on how long you keep the unit and your choice in where to store. Please visit our Free Quote form to request a customized quote in your hometown.
How long can I use your service? What if I only need it for a few weeks?
The beauty of our portable storage options is the flexibility you have for your storage needs. Whether it's a short term weekly rental or a longer term monthly storage need, we can service your request today.
How do I access my stuff?
If you choose to store on site, your unit is available to you 24 hours a day, 7 days a week. If you use our Storage Center, simply give us 24 hrs. notice for an appointment to access your unit – as often as you need. We can also deliver your unit to you whenever you need it on site.
I don't want my things to be damaged. Where will my unit will be stored?
Our Storage Facilities are secure and climate controlled for both temperature and humidity. Coupled with our 24 hour surveillance, your items will be both safe and protected from damage and loss.
When should I place my order?
Request your free quote and place your order today. Your unit can be onsite and available from 24 to 72 hours.
Do I need to be there when the unit is delivered?
Yes, someone over the age of 18 needs to be where the unit is to be placed. When the unit is delivered, your driver will go over all the paperwork and show you how to properly use the unit.


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Hello Moda Bake Shop readers. I am Anshu from Blooms And Bugs. I mostly sew little girls clothes. Today I'll show you how to make this pretty layered skirt with 2 half-yard fabrics. I chose Kate Spain's Good Fortune collection for this skirt and I loved how the fabric brought out the best in the skirt.
2 half yards of coordinating fabric (there will be quite a bit of leftover)
1 jelly roll strip for Bias tape at the hem of inner layer
1 jelly roll strip for ruffle at the hem of outer layer
1 jelly roll strip for belt loops
1.5 yard Grosgrain ribbon for belt (about 1.5 inch wide)
For making the skirt in a 2 year old size:
Cutting and preparing the layers:
Cut two rectangles of length = 11.5 inches and width = 36 inches from two coordinating fabrics.
Sew both rectangles into a tube by sewing raw ends together along the length (right sides together).
Now place the outer layer fabric so the seam lies in the middle
Fold one-third of the width over itself from one side.
Fold one-third from the other side.
Mark on the fold on both sides. Basically, we're trying to mark the thirds on bottom of each side of this tube.
Once we have our marks, sew a U shaped seam (about quarter inch apart) of 6 inches starting from the bottom of this tube and going up vertically at each of the marks. I have shown the seams by the ugly black lines above. Leave some thread hanging at both ends of these seams. We will use them to gather the top layer vertically.
Making Belt Loops:
Cut 4 pieces of 4 inches from a jelly roll strip.
Fold in the in half along the width with right sides together and sew a seam along the length. The width of strip is actually too wide for the belt loops so I recommend a sewing margin of half inch for these.
Turn out and press so the seam is in the middle.
Your belt loops are ready.
Assembling the skirt:
Please read the instructions carefully here. This skirt is assembled a little differently than other skirts so make sure you follow the instructions, or you will be cursing me and reaching for your seam ripper very soon.
Place the outer layer tube inside the inner layer tube so the right side of outer layer touches the wrong side of inner layer. Make sure you keep the bottom part (where you had sewn vertical seams earlier) at the bottom. In the pic I have shown the outer layer peeking out, but that is just to show you how to place them. While sewing, the edges should be perfectly aligned.
Now insert the belt loops between the two layers. Here, be careful to place belt loops so that:
1. The raw end of the loop is at the top, lined up with the raw edges of layers. Here I have shown it sticking out a bit just to show you what I mean and also because the length I chose is a little longer than required. You can also let them hang out half an inch or so to make it easy to place them.
2. The seam should be facing the right side of outer layer.
3. Although you could the placement of loops yourself, I found it very easy to use the vertical seams in the outer layer as a guide for belt placement. It gave me perfectly spaced belt loops.
Now sew all around the edge of the skirt layers, while inserting the belt loops as you go (or just pin up everything before you sew):
This is how mine looked after sewing.
Cut the extra from the belt loops.
Sew another seam just above the other end of belt loop, so the belt loop gets sewn down and elastic casing gets prepared all at once. Leave a gap of one inch for inserting the elastic.
To make a ruffle for the outer layer, fold and cut a jelly roll strip in half along the length. Sew together two short ends (right sides together) to make a long narrow strip.
Now hem it at one long edge. I serge the edge and then fold and sew a seam, but any technique – rolled hems or folding twice would work as well. What we really want is a thin strip that is hemmed on one side, and we'll ruffle it on the other side.
Now we will ruffle this strip by setting machine tension to highest and stitch length to longest. Note that I didn't hem my strip before ruffling and it was a big pain to do it afterward, you don't want to do it like me. Just hem it first.
By the way, isn't that fabric so pretty…?
Now pull the thread of the vertical seams gently to gather the skirt vertically. Adjust with hand until you get a shape you like. Now sew a narrow zigzag seam to fix the gathers.
Now attach the ruffle you just made by sewing a seam at the raw ends (right sides together)
Use another Jelly Roll strip to make a bias tape. This is not really a bias tape since these strips are not cut on the bias, but for this project it won't matter because we are using it on a straight fabric.
Inserting elastic in the skirt:
Remember this space you had left while sewing the waistband. Lets insert the elastic here.
Using a safety pin, insert elastic here and go all the way round and back to the opening. One rule of thumb I follow to determine elastic length is to measure the waist of the child and cut an elastic 3-inches shorter than that. You could also tie the elastic around her waist and see what length is comfortable on her.
Sew both ends of the elastic by overlapping them about half inch.
Cut a grosgrain ribbon that is long enough to be looped through the belt loops and tied into a bow in front. Cut diagonally at the ends and seal with a lighter flame, or with fray check to prevent fraying.
Size 2T Belle Layered skirt that is ready for a little one!
Anshu Jain


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New 2020 Kia Sorento LX AWD
- Stock: K7494
Basic Info
Transmission:6-Speed Automatic with Sportmatic
Interior:Satin Black
Fuel Efficiency:21 CITY / 26 HWY
Key Features
3rd Row Seat
Android Auto
Apple CarPlay
Automatic Climate Control
Backup Camera
Blind Spot Monitor
Heated Seats
Interior Accents
Keyless Entry
Side-Impact Air Bags
21/26 City/Highway MPG
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Vehicle Details
- Wheels: 17" x 7.0" Alloy
- Tires: P235/65R17
- Wheels w/Silver Accents
- Steel Spare Wheel
- Compact Spare Tire Stored Underbody w/Crankdown
- Clearcoat Paint
- Body-Colored Front Bumper w/Black Rub Strip/Fascia Accent
- Body-Colored Rear Bumper w/Black Rub Strip/Fascia Accent
- Black Bodyside Cladding and Black Wheel Well Trim
- Chrome Side Windows Trim and Black Front Windshield Trim
- Chrome Door Handles
- Body-Colored Power Heated Side Mirrors w/Manual Folding and Turn Signal Indicator
- Fixed Rear Window w/Fixed Interval Wiper and Defroster
- Deep Tinted Glass
- Variable Intermittent Wipers
- Fully Galvanized Steel Panels
- Lip Spoiler
- Black Grille w/Chrome Surround
- Liftgate Rear Cargo Access
- Fully Automatic Projector Beam Halogen Headlamps w/Delay-Off
- Front Bucket Seats
- 8-Way Driver Seat -inc: Manual Recline, Height Adjustment, Fore/Aft Movement and Cushion Tilt
- 4-Way Passenger Seat -inc: Manual Recline and Fore/Aft Movement
- 40-20-40 Folding Split-Bench Front Facing Manual Reclining Fold Forward Seatback Rear Seat w/Manual Fore/Aft
- Manual Tilt/Telescoping Steering Column
- Fixed 50-50 Split-Bench 3rd Row Seat Front, Manual Fold Into Floor and 2 Fixed Head Restraints
- Front Cupholder
- Rear Cupholder
- Remote Releases -Inc: Power Fuel
- Cruise Control w/Steering Wheel Controls
- HVAC -inc: Underseat Ducts, Headliner/Pillar Ducts and Console Ducts
- Illuminated Locking Glove Box
- Driver Foot Rest
- Interior Trim -inc: Metal-Look Interior Accents
- Full Cloth Headliner
- Urethane Gear Shifter Material
- Day-Night Rearview Mirror
- Driver And Passenger Visor Vanity Mirrors w/Driver And Passenger Illumination
- Full Floor Console w/Covered Storage, Mini Overhead Console w/Storage and 4 12V DC Power Outlets
- Front Map Lights
- Fade-To-Off Interior Lighting
- Full Carpet Floor Covering
- Carpet Floor Trim
- Cargo Space Lights
- FOB Controls -inc: Cargo Access
- Driver / Passenger And Rear Door Bins
- Delayed Accessory Power
- Systems Monitor
- Redundant Digital Speedometer
- Outside Temp Gauge
- Analog Display
- Manual Adjustable Front Head Restraints and Manual Adjustable Rear Head Restraints
- Front Center Armrest and Rear Center Armrest
- 2 Seatback Storage Pockets
- Perimeter Alarm
- Engine Immobilizer
- 4 12V DC Power Outlets
- Air Filtration
- Radio w/Seek-Scan, Clock, Speed Compensated Volume Control, Steering Wheel Controls and Radio Data System
- Streaming Audio
- Fixed Antenna
- 2 LCD Monitors In The Front
- Engine: 2.4L GDI Dual CVVT DOHC 16V I4
- Transmission: 6-Speed Automatic w/Sportmatic
- 3.648 Axle Ratio
- GVWR: 5,490 lbs
- Transmission w/Driver Selectable Mode
- Electronic Transfer Case
- Automatic Full-Time All-Wheel
- 54-Amp/Hr 600CCA Maintenance-Free Battery w/Run Down Protection
- 130 Amp Alternator
- Gas-Pressurized Shock Absorbers
- Front And Rear Anti-Roll Bars
- Electric Power-Assist Speed-Sensing Steering
- 18.8 Gal. Fuel Tank
- Single Stainless Steel Exhaust w/Chrome Tailpipe Finisher
- Permanent Locking Hubs
- Strut Front Suspension w/Coil Springs
- Multi-Link Rear Suspension w/Coil Springs
- 4-Wheel Disc Brakes w/4-Wheel ABS, Front Vented Discs, Brake Assist and Hill Hold Control
- Side Impact Beams
- Dual Stage Driver And Passenger Seat-Mounted Side Airbags
- Blind-Spot Collision-Avoidance Assist-Rear (BCA-R) Blind Spot
- Tire Specific Low Tire Pressure Warning
- Dual Stage Driver And Passenger Front Airbags
- Curtain 1st And 2nd Row Airbags
- Airbag Occupancy Sensor
- Rear Child Safety Locks
- Outboard Front Lap And Shoulder Safety Belts -inc: Rear Center 3 Point, Height Adjusters and Pretensioners
- Back-Up Camera
Tech Specs
- Array
- LX I4 Convenience Package
- 6 Speakers
- AM/FM radio
- Radio data system
- Radio: AM/FM/MP3 Audio System
- Radio: UVO eServices
- Air Conditioning
- Dual Zone Automatic Climate Control
- Rear window defroster
- Power steering
- Power windows
- Remote keyless entry
- Steering wheel mounted audio controls
- Four wheel independent suspension
- Speed-sensing steering
- Traction control
- 4-Wheel Disc Brakes
- ABS brakes
- Dual front impact airbags
- Dual front side impact airbags
- Front anti-roll bar
- Low tire pressure warning
- Occupant sensing airbag
- Overhead airbag
- Rear anti-roll bar
- Brake assist
- Electronic Stability Control
- Exterior Parking Camera Rear
- Delay-off headlights
- Fully automatic headlights
- Panic alarm
- Security system
- Speed control
- Bumpers: body-color
- Heated door mirrors
- Power door mirrors
- Spoiler
- Turn signal indicator mirrors
- Apple CarPlay & Android Auto
- Auto-Dimming Rear-View Mirror
- Carpeted Floor Mats (7-Passenger)
- Driver door bin
- Driver vanity mirror
- Front reading lights
- Illuminated entry
- Leather Wrapped Steering Wheel & Shift Knob
- Outside temperature display
- Overhead console
- Park Distance Warning-Reverse
- Passenger vanity mirror
- Rear seat center armrest
- Tachometer
- Telescoping steering wheel
- Tilt steering wheel
- Trip computer
- 10-Way Power Adjustable Driver Seat
- 3rd row seats: split-bench
- Front Bucket Seats
- Front Center Armrest
- Heated Front Seats
- Split folding rear seat
- YES Essentials Cloth Seat Trim
- Cargo Net (Floor)
- Passenger door bin
- Roof Rails (Silver)
- Alloy wheels
- Wheel Locks
- Rear window wiper
- Variably intermittent wipers
- 3.648 Axle Ratio
- Driver Air Bag
- Passenger Air Bag
- Front Side Air Bag
- Front Head Air Bag
- Rear Head Air Bag
- Security System
- AM/FM Stereo
- Cruise Control
- Rear Defrost
- Child Safety Locks
- All Wheel Drive
- 4 Cylinder Engine
- Gasoline Fuel
- Keyless Entry
- Power Door Locks
- Heated Mirrors
- Power Mirror(s)
- 3rd Row Seat
- Pass-Through Rear Seat
- Cloth Seats
- Bucket Seats
- Power Steering
- Adjustable Steering Wheel
- Tires - Front All-Season
- Tires - Rear All-Season
- Temporary Spare Tire
- Traction Control
- 6-Speed A/T
- Aluminum Wheels
- Power Windows
- Intermittent Wipers
- MP3 Player
- Privacy Glass
- Variable Speed Intermittent Wipers
- Steering Wheel Audio Controls
- Engine Immobilizer
- Automatic Headlights
- Integrated Turn Signal Mirrors
- Driver Vanity Mirror
- Passenger Vanity Mirror
- Driver Illuminated Vanity Mirror
- Passenger Illuminated Visor Mirror
- Rear Spoiler
- Transmission w/Dual Shift Mode
- Tire Pressure Monitor
- Trip Computer
- Bluetooth Connection
- Back-Up Camera
- Stability Control
- Brake Assist
- Auxiliary Audio Input
- Rear Bench Seat
- Passenger Air Bag Sensor
- Blind Spot Monitor
- Smart Device Integration
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On Friday journalist Paul Mason published a fairly long article in the Guardian entitled 'The End of Capitalism Has Begun.' It features some interesting thoughts, and will hopefully help disseminate some ideas which have been floating about in academia for quite a while to a broader audience. That said, there are a few things in the piece which I think are somewhat naieve and require a response to.
The main thrust of Mason's argument is that capitalism is inevitably on the way out because of several social changes being wrought by contemporary networked information processing technologies. Firstly, Mason argues that because of the increased levels of automation brought by digital systems, there will be a dramatic reduction in the volume of work required within a society. Secondly, he argues that the fundamental laws of economics have been broken by an information economy within the contemporary state of informational abundance. Finally, he argues that 'cognitive capitalism' is predicated on a mode of collaborative and networked social production which itself is contradictory to the type of individualised wealth production associated with capitalism.
The first of these points is hardly new. The displacement of labour from humans into various forms of machinery is, of course, something which has occurred for at least a couple of hundred years, as was presciently observed and described by Karl Marx (in the Fragment on Machines, a text which Mason cites later in his essay). Alongside the ongoing historical transformation of production processes, there have always been the claim that technology will make everyone's life better by reducing the need for arduous and boring labour tasks, instead freeing humanity to enjoy increased levels of leisure time accompanied by a higher level of material wealth and comfort. And whilst there are certainly some humans who are in that situation today, we could also point to the increasing precariousness of work, particularly within neoliberal economies where full employment has never been an important goal, as a reminder that decreasing the overall level of manual labour does not necessarily entail benefits for all.
Rather than seeing work and wealth equally being divided amongst citizens, today we instead find millions of unemployed or underemployed humans who are effectively used as an industrial reserve force to reduce any demands for increased wages, reduced working hours and other kinds of benefits which were associated with the collective action of the twentieth century trade union movements. Whilst a relatively small number of humans become more materially wealthy than any of their predecessors, this occurs alongside a growing inequality between the global super rich and everyone else. As research last year found, the richest 85 individuals on the planet now own more than the poorest 50% of the global population, around 3.5 billion people.
Additionally, in a 'creative' 'digital economy where communicative acts are themselves commodified over corporate social networks, what does and does not count as productive work is itself problematised. Theorists ranging from autonomist Marxists such as Franco Berardi through to cyberutopian capitalists such as Clay Shirky have argued that what used to count as leisure time is now a key motor of wealth generation, as your online 'leisure' activities are used to tailor personal, location-aware advertising to your behaviour.
Which brings us to Mason's second point, that economics is predicated upon scarcity, and that the current abundance of information demarcates that we have entered an era where traditional economic theory cannot adequately function. Again, rhetoric surrounding the end of the economics of scarcity is not new, but such thinking fundamentally fails to grasp the dynamics of scarcity surrounding informational systems, and systems is a key word here, because economics is about circulation and flows, not a single thing (be it information, energy or anything else). Information is certainly a crucial component of digital networked ecologies, and the volume of contemporary information – what Mark Andrejevic and Berardi have both described as information overload – is certainly not one of scarcity, but the key is to think in systemic terms as to what type of scarcity is generated as a consequence of the abundance of information. The answer, is that human attention is what become scarce when information is abundant.
Indeed, the notion of the attention economy is not that new, with early versions of the term being deployed by authors such as Michael Goldhaber and Georg Franck around the turn of the century. For an excellent overview of contemporary debates surrounding economies of attention I would suggest reading this article by Patrick Crogan and Sam Kinsley. The key point, is that far from rendering the economics of scarcity redundant, what we instead find is that the abundance of online information means that human attention is increasingly scarce and thus becomes a desirable and lucrative commodity, which is why heavily targeted online advertising is a booming multi-billion business, one which ventures such as Google's search engine, Facebook, YouTube and other major online players are almost entirely dependent upon for their revenues and astronomical market valuations.
The third point Mason raises, that online networks are predicated upon modes of social cooperation and collectivity which are contradictory to the mode of capitalism they are located within, and thus contain the seeds of a new social system which will eventually replace capitalism itself, is arguably the most complex and interesting point he raises. However, this too is hardly a new statement, as it is one of the central tenets of Michael Hardt and Antonio Negri's triad of books Empire, Multitude and Commonwealth, as well as being an argument which has been raised in differing forms by theorists such as Bernard Stiegler (via the economy of contribution) and Michel Bauwens (via peer-to-peer production). I wont go into these positions in much detail here, but what I do think is worth highlighting is that many of these claims about biopolitical production, economies of contribution and peer-to-peer production were originally made quite a while ago (Empire was released in 2000), and that since those times, there has been the emergence of the the big corporate social media players whose financial model is entirely predicated on the exploitation of the free cooperative labour of their users.
This isn't to say that people don't get anything from Facebook (basically some cost-free server storage, a fairly clean user interface, and access to the billion-plus strong Facebook network), but that Facebook's market valuation of over 250 billion US dollars is entirely built upon its ability to commodify the social relationships of its users. Far from existing outside of, and in opposition to a capitalism which is wrongly assumed to by monolithic and rigid, we see the way that capitalism (which depends upon finding new areas to provide growth) has found a way of extending what it understood to be a commodity, so that many aspects of our social lives, which were previously thought to be intangible, unquantifiable and thus could not be monetised, are now major players in global financial markets.
Indeed, whereas during the early days of the internet, the underlying technology itself and the modes of cooperation it made possible such as the distributed mode of production that underpins Free and Open Source software were seen as radical new technologically-enabled alternatives to neoliberal capitalism, what we have seen more recently has been the way that capitalism has been able to find novel ways of reintegrating these innovations into financial markets, such as the way that Google utilises open source software outside of search in areas such as Android and Chrome. Indeed, one of the most interesting analyses of contemporary capitalism comes from Jodi Dean, who argues that our current era is marked by a stage of communicative capitalism, whereby far from forming alternatives to global capitalism, participation in networked digital telecommunications has become a central driver of the capitalist economy.
Mason surmises his argument by stating that:
The main contradiction today is between the possibility of free, abundant goods and information; and a system of monopolies, banks and governments trying to keep things private, scarce and commercial. Everything comes down to the struggle between the network and the hierarchy: between old forms of society moulded around capitalism and new forms of society that prefigure what comes next
This presents a straightforward binary opposition between network and hierarchy, between the new, good digital ways which point towards a postcapitalism and the bad, old ones which represent our capitalist past and present. However much I might wish this to be the case, and it would be really lovely to think that current technologies will inevitably lead to the replacement of a system of gross global social inequalities and catastrophic climate change with something better, I find the kind of technological determinism present in Mason's essay to be blinkered at best. As Gilles Deleuze and Felix Guattari remind us in the introduction to A Thousand Plateaus, it is not a case of opposing hierarchical models with networked and decentralised ones, but a case of understanding how these two tendencies occur in different ways in actual systems which are almost always a combination of the two.
Thinking this way means mapping the new hierarchies and modes of exploitation associated digital technologies whilst also looking for the lines of flight, or positive ways of transforming the situation that the new technological formations present. That doesn't mean that there can be no hope for change that involves technology, but that positing this situation as a good/bad binary opposition, or suggesting that technology itself holds essential characteristics which will necessarily transform society in a particular direction is a misguided approach. Indeed, some of the most interesting materials coming out of the P2P foundation recently have argued that openess is not enough, that just making things open or collaborative can lead to growing inequalities as the actors with the most attentional, algorithmic and economic resources are ususally those best placed to leverage open data, open culture and open source ventures. Alongside openess, they argue that we need to think about sustainability and solidarity in order to bring about the type of social and ecological transformation that would mark the end of capitalism. That to me sounds like a far more productive call to action than simply gesturing towards the digital technologies whose introduction has not thus far been accompanied by a more egalitarian and sustainable global society.


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Top flight deals to Pointe-à-Pitre (PTP)*
Fly to Pointe-à-Pitre with KLM
Together with our global network, we as KLM Royal Dutch Airlines offer flights to Pointe-à-Pitre, serving Pointe-à-Pitre International Airport (PTP). If you need any assistance with your booking, our customer care team are available to help 24 hours a day, 7 days a week. Just connect with us on Twitter, Facebook or WhatsApp. Customer care is at the very centre of everything we do.
Top Pointe-à-Pitre attractions
- Memorial ACTe: a museum specialising in Caribbean and African slavery atrocities.
- Bel'Mangrov: a water sports facility.
- Église Saint-Pierre-et-Saint-Paul: a gated structure nicknamed the "iron cathedral".
- Golf Municipal Saint-François: an open golf course.
- Anse Maurice: a beach within the alcove of a cliff.
Dreaming of a Central American getaway? Pointe-à-Pitre could be the perfect destination for you!
What's the best way to get around Pointe-à-Pitre?
Hire a car or motorbike to explore Pointe-à-Pitre. This is probably the most efficient, reliable and cost-effective method of transport. If you are not in a rush and wish to blend in with the locals, you can also catch public busses. Your other option is taxis, which can end up being very costly!
What's the weather in Pointe-à-Pitre?
It's always hot in Pointe-à-Pitre, so you can leave your woolly jumpers at home! It can be very rainy, however, especially between April and December - the official "wet" season. If you want to enjoy Guadeloupe without the rainfall, head to Pointe-à-Pitre in February when the chance of rain is lowest.
Weather in Pointe-à-Pitre
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