gre SHAMBOLLIC: November 2007 gk

Friday, November 23, 2007


IN PIC: Columbia Street Building designed by French-Brazilian architecture firm Triptyque for an ad agency called Loducca
On the other hand, mathew & gosh architects sounds more promising than what they've put out so far. what were they thinking of? desert homes? it's Bangalore - i dont think the city needs people who want to make a dubai out of it. they can of course, still change. their current style is more welcome in a more crowded market with numerous breathing alternatives. in their homes, i can picture my skull cracking in an unremarkable fall on one of their hard edges. Their work for Malabar escapes is much nicer though - which I suspect is because they weren't creating from scratch and a lot of the charm was irrevocably in place. The good news is that Bangalore has a sweet outfit called Total Environment.
posted by Finny Forever at 4:16 PM 0 comments

Thursday, November 22, 2007

Yes, Publishing. How important? This important.
posted by Finny Forever at 8:53 PM 0 comments

Tuesday, November 20, 2007

This one goes out to my sis - Buggles 'Radio Star'

I heard you on the wireless back in Fifty Two
Lying awake intent at tuning in on you.
If I was young it didn't stop you coming through.
OwwaOwwa
They took the credit for your second symphony.
Rewritten by machine and new technology,
and now I understand the problems you can see.
OwwaOwwa
I met your children
OwwaAwwa
What did you tell them?
Video killed the radio star.
Video killed the radio star.
Pictures came and broke your heart.
Oww-A-A-A-Oww
And now we meet in an abandoned studio.
We hear the playback and it seems so long ago.
And you remember the jingles used to go:
'OwwaOwwa'
You were the first one.
OwwaOwwa
You were the last one.

posted by Finny Forever at 3:24 PM 0 comments

Monday, November 19, 2007

Also posted to bngbirds


Hi - I was finally initiated into birding after years of static interaction with the g&i 'birds of south india' (the book was enough to please me). however, i got round to a kind of professional birding only yesterday in zwin - with a passionate birder from Manchester. He lent me a pair of 8x24 binoculars, let me view through the telescope and provided top-class commentary on everything birds. This was a dream initiation. To get to the point, here are the birds we spotted mostly all on the same stretch of marsh-like land:
little egret; lapwing; shellduck (uses rabbit burrows for nest); starlings; jakdaws; starlings; red shanks; oyster catchers; curlews; waders (either grey on golden. not certain); grey plover, ringed plover; greater crested grebe; little grebe; mallard; gadwell; pochard; greylag goose; buzzard; kestrel
; herring gull; less black back gull
blackheaded gull; cormorant (very happy to spot; last time i saw one was in kerala)
Since it was right there, we went to the bird enclosure in the reserve; and i hope the birds within are there only because they were injured or ailing; i would be sorry otherwise; i dont think its doing anyone a favour if the proposers thought it would be a helpful crash course. I saw a rook, night heron and stork there. And then the very striking eagle crow.
Thats all. The total experience really picked up a stale period in a retentive country. And reaffirmed something I never doubted: the unique and thrilling urge among birders to share and discover with anyone. This is a fine religion.
posted by Finny Forever at 5:51 PM 2 comments

Saturday, November 17, 2007

From last weekends guardian review, the evocative story and art of edward burra, and the sparkling *The Bridge of the Golden Horn by Emine Sevgi Ozdamar* reviewed by Jaggi. And I was going to pull up The Big E on something, but I didnt get the damn special report to the damn cafe.
posted by Finny Forever at 6:15 PM 0 comments

Friday, November 16, 2007

If ur wasting urself on a charmless life-wife-butterfly fiction, first of all, its an insult for u to stop by here, secondly if you see the chink of redemption, listen to Juan Enriquez on 'growing new energy'. He makes a reference to Normal Borlaugh - read about him here.
posted by Finny Forever at 4:54 PM 0 comments

Thursday, November 15, 2007

Neil Gershenfeld on Fablab & Stefan Sagmeister on why design

posted by Finny Forever at 7:54 PM 0 comments

I'm not going to blame the brun bier but i slipped on the floor of an internet cafe and broke nothing thanks to my fitness and running . running tmmrw mornign also after foot heats since my left foot's been feeling broken for some time. In other news, decided on UL and MD...Can you see the impassioned ambition in BM's first albums - first the work always.
posted by Finny Forever at 12:04 AM 0 comments

Friday, November 09, 2007

Hyperbolic-paraboloid surfaces - notorious

posted by Finny Forever at 9:58 PM 0 comments

Tuesday, November 06, 2007

Africa - Do business there


And a good ambassador - though the speech is not incontestable.
posted by Finny Forever at 7:14 PM 0 comments

Monday, November 05, 2007

posted by Finny Forever at 10:02 PM 0 comments

I'm curious about John Banville. The Sea.
and W G Sebald;
also left was mentioned by newly appointed cd at om belge.
posted by Finny Forever at 8:31 PM 0 comments

I've never been able to separate a person's attitude from what they have to say. They may make a really good argument but be perfectly hateable as persons; and I would never put my vote with them. Like Naomi Klein - unbearable. If I would have to list people to back up an argument, I'd go for someone else, less smug, shallow and botheringly cocksure. Like the Edwards Saids and Chomskys who aren't spending time on their eyebrows, freetrade lipstick, or a commanding voice. Making a point without being ungracious, messily combative, unbearable and over-the-top. On the whole, men have the composure for it; like favourite sons who have always been sure of their authority and strength. Dignity and sense.
A few good women are around though, they're just so hard to find I think they have to take a conscious effort to develop a kind of composure in strength. The package of both good content and matching form I'm afraid is so important and hard to come by.
posted by Finny Forever at 7:16 PM 0 comments

Thursday, November 01, 2007

Not for nothing is Brussels celebrated as the most boring city in Europe, I had my suspicions but I suppose its only decent to reserve/commit opinion till after the first wave. Predictably as a city aware about the bitching, its put in place some red herrings like gay/lesbian bars, which I suppose those at desperation visit to see something genuinely seamy. Will be going there very soon. I also reserve my suspicion that police turn on their sirens only to remind that theyre beign dutiful and reassuring taxpayers. Considering I have to keep myself amused, here are the other nice facts Ive been entertqined by: telephoto lens to be less intrusive in filming of the drumming monks; the federql reserve interest rqte cut sounded wrong; oxfams concern of the regularisarion of use of biofeuls leading to a land rush in africa and asia (this has to be weighed); rebound effect; the significance of significant figures.
We shall leave this decent morning with a Bakhtin quote used by AKR in his essay Towards a countersystem:
"Every thought senses itself to be from the very beginning a rejoinder in an unfinished dialogue. Such thought is not impelled towards a wellrounded, finalised systematically monologic whole. It lives a tenselife on the borders of someoneelses consciousness."
posted by Finny Forever at 5:27 PM 0 comments