Apple rumor blog subscribers are all in a tizzy over recent MacBook Touch buzz. I, like most of the world, don’t know shit about what’s going on in Apple’s R&D. But in May MacLife came up with some pretty snazzy digital illustrations of the concepts that could be. They’re really fun to look at, and would surely be really cool toys to own.
Wouldn’t a Mac tablet be sweet? (What the Hell is up with that MacBook Air, anyway?) After the jump, MacLife’s eight reasons why such a dream may someday become a reality.
If you like looking at the concept designs of consumer goods, check out Core77’s video of Michael DiTullo’s iSomething sketch. DiTullo is the Design Director at Converse (Although, really, what could you possibly design for Converse? A slightly more tilted star? That was rude. I’m sorry.) and moves his paper around when he sketches! Insanity.
It’s always fun to see time lapses of creative minds at work. I especially like how DiTullo added reflection to his iSomething. Check it out! (I’d embed it here but WordPress is racist against Flash. Kidding again!) Read the rest of this entry »
Do I seem like the type to be prepping a Princess Leia costume for a comic convention? No, I don’t. And I’m not.
Tomorrow we’re trekking down to San Diego for Comic Con, and I don’t know what I am going to do there. For sure I won’t be the only female there. For sure I won’t be the only Asian there. For definite sure I won’t be the only blogger there. (Did I even just align myself with being a blogger when I’ll be in the company of people who for reals blog for a living? [And actually have something to say?] I am a FOOL.) But I’m probably one of a small fraction of randomly attached attendees of the weekend’s festivities. One of a minority who can’t name a single character from The Watchmen. (Until now, of course.) I don’t have a plan for how I’m going to use my Plus One privileges except that I think I’ll want to stop by Martin Hsu’s booth (Ni Hao Kailan, which I feel I really should watch.) and will have to try really hard not to accumulate an excess of random prints for an apartment I plan on leaving in 1.5ish months.
Half-Baked Plan No. 1: Network to become a voiceover professional.
As I read through some of the event panel descriptions, I am 99% convinced that I want to be a voice for a totally whacked out cartoon. (Did you know that Powerpuff Girls is ten years old?) Have you ever heard me revert to my comfortable self? I make strange sounds and I bark like a seal.
Half-Baked Plan No. 2: Buy lots and lots of things.
This is never a good idea.
I recently purchased a pair of Steven by Steve Maddens which satisfies my months long search for a perfect pair of either booties or peeptoes. Thanks to Nordstrom’s semi-annual sale, I got them for half off! And who doesn’t like combining two things they’ve been looking for into one item? Anyway, shopping should be a big “no” for me. Must exercise will power and collect cool postcards and business cards instead.
Half-Baked Plan No. 3: Pose as a booth babe.
I’m Asian and female, I could totally pull this off, right? Plus I just got a new pair of heels. And own lots of neon clothes. They might have really cool wigs for sale there! This could be easier than I thought…
Half-Baked Plan No. 4: Act like I have a right to be there.
They have some truly cool-sounding sessions going on. I’m a huge fan of comic-to-film adaptations, and I’ve been feeling an obligation to start exploring the original world of print that these films come from. Comic Con seems like a good place to start, doesn’t it? Stan Lee will be speaking about the film adaptation process, and they have some mainstream television producers (including Josh Schwartz of Gossip Girl) scheduled to talk about the show creation process. Entertainment Weekly has even gathered Kevin Smith, Frank Miller, and Judd Apatow in the same room. Crazy! (And all those events are on Friday. Imagine the Saturday schedule!)
Half-Baked Plan No. 5: Collect souvenir SWAG and jump into the backgrounds of people’s photos.
Goes without saying.
I have so far only been able to access Comic Con’s schedules online, but by the looks of it the physical, paper version of the program is going to be a fucking tome. In case I can’t hold my own at the Con, I may just hit up all the non-Con San Diego sites to see as recently listed by Design Sponge. I must remember that San Diego is an entire city, and once I find the public transportation and get past all the retirement communities, I might have a great time getting lost amongst the surfers. And retired people.
So I’m going to be at Comic Con. Your suggestions as to what to do are welcome.
I wouldn’t be surprised if Russell Brand’s character in Forgetting Sarah Marshall was modeled after Devendra Banhart. (Yes, I actually saw that movie and I am not proud.)
“Your infidelity annihilates my ever-loving heart.” - Sounds like something straight outta Episode 2!
Bale, arrested. Ledger, deceased. For reals, consider the intense potential repercussions of playing Batman, The Joker, or even Harvey Dent. I don’t know what Bale’s, Ledger’s, or Eckhart’s methods for studying their characters were. Yet a number of friends and I have concluded that playing such a sinister role as Christopher Nolan’s Joker must, to some degree, take a toll on a person. The themes are complex in Dark Knight, which I love, and I think male emotion and attachment has got to be in there somewhere.
When it comes to the most widely known comic book superheroes, Batman has always been my favorite. He has cool gadgets, his moves are sleek, and everything about his image is just stealthy and sexy. However. He also represents the type of man I always want to see fall. He’s a womanizer, and like so many men are (I’m not talking about aspiring womanizers here.), I will always be unable to fully empathize with them. Maybe it’s envy. Not even “penis” envy, just a simple frustration that someone can get all they want based on looks and access (to money, shiny things, fancy friends).
Batman’s loaded, and that’s cool, but does he really need to flaunt women around and use them like that? I get it, he’s emotionally empty. (Or “retarded,” as Deepak Chopra said on my recent most favorite Daily Show, ever.) I also understand that the girls he gets also play into this game of using and being used. But that’s just weak. It just makes me want to see players get played more and then lose in the game of life. It’s very difficult for me to see the justification for bedhoppers. I have an inexplicably impenetrable moral code, and in my reality sleeping around makes you a slut.
I just called Batman a ho. I think this is a much larger discussion best saved for another time.
At first I thought the hype about Heath Ledger deserving an Oscar for his performance was all a bunch of just that - hype - but after seeing DK, I must say I was really impressed. He was absolutely creepy and has furthered my deep-seeded aversion to clowns.
Really enjoyed the script of the movie. It wasn’t painfully campy as so many comic-film adaptations are wont to be. In fact, it had some awesome gems to it. Just enough one-liners that seemed very easily translatable between cinema and comic book.
Before we jump to potential spoilers, I’d also like to publicly state that I think Maggie Gyllenhaal’s droopy face is reminiscent of that of a Saint Bernard. Particularly her mushroom nose. (It’s cute!) I think she’s a great actress and she gets extra points for being a face for Agent Provocateur (I also wouldn’t be a true pretentious and exclusive 24-year old if I didn’t mention Secretary.), but there’s an undeniable heaviness to her face. Though she smiles, she seems sad - or at least deep. Quite frankly, it’s refreshing to see an unconventional beauty capture Bruce Wayne’s heart. (And she was so close to breaking it! Damn.) She is quite perfect with the stoic and broody Peter Sarsgaard.
I’ve been scouring Craigslist for weeks hoping to find an opening as “Personal Assistant to The Miss Bai Ling,” but I guess she isn’t hiring. Since I last highlighted Hello, Bai Ling has traveled to Bangkok (shooting The Lazarus Papers) and Vegas (shooting Magic Man) and Italy, and in between she’s been reinventing her looks and working on her upcoming studio album. (Is there a way to preorder CD-recorded awesomeness? It seems like it should be impossible.) Sorry I haven’t been on top of her voyages across the sea and into Zumanity, but here’s a smattering of some of her best Blackberry photos, spanning all the way back to the beginning of June. Visual inspiration that she is, it wouldn’t be a proper Bai Ling post without some sort of heralding of her craftiness with the written word, so we’ll kick off with a freeform poem.
What is art?
What is good art?
What is what?
What is ?
What are we?
What is kiss?
Why?
What is making love?
What is love making?
And what is love?
A true love?
……
Its Ridiculous I know but its the truth…….
I have totally taken an on-the-can photo of myself. But I was drunk. And obviously didn’t have a second party to snap the shutter for me.
INTERNATIONAL EDITION.
This is what the Internet thinks of me. While everyone else gets stupid fake mini license plates at Disneyland, I have entire fucking snack brands. Take that, all you Christine/Kristin/Kyrstinas! Told you I’m multicultural. (Hermaphrodite porn stars not included.)
U.S.A. - CUTE AND CUDDLY!
The best, and most disturbing, find: You can host your very own Mayka Cuddly party! Because I am Mayka. I am so Cuddly, and my Kits make for fantastic Home Parties.
U.S.A. - OMFG I LOVE PUMA.
If ever there was any doubt, here’s proof that Puma thinks of me whenever they design new product: The Puma Cell Meio. That’s right, for Mayka Mei-o.
GERMANY - ZE SNACK ATTACK.
Got the munchies? Live in Germany? Like squirrels? I gotcha covered. Okay, well, since the last time I checked up on mayka.de, they’ve redesigned the squirrel out of their logo, but still, look at how happy these bakers are!
In fact, I am SO beloved, you may know me as UBER MAYKA:
Twisted and delicious! And I’m guessing I’m also somewhat “natural.”
Though the original deadline for finding Michelle Maykin a potential bone marrow donor has come and gone, the search continues. More bone marrow drives took place this past weekend, a good three weeks after the original “June 21st” must-find date. Efforts continue, but hope is not lost (can not, should not be). A number of “commercials” to reach out to more communities that could aid Michelle’s (and the larger) cause have been created, including a YouTube spot that features a number of Asian American icons and (major surprise here) prime endorsement on MTV via America’s Best Dance Crew.
Thanks to Bionic of Supreme Soul, Michelle Maykin’s/Asian American’s/All Minorities’ plight got some attention on MTV. (Of all places! I’m still impressed.)
Just three days after Project Michelle passed the June 21st marker, another leukemia patient and friend of Michelle’s passed away. Other friends I worked with on the Project Michelle campaign volunteered for Vinay’s campaign, as well. That makes it tough. It’s a couple of degrees away from me, but still very real. Puts things into perspective. And just generally reminds us why we should get off our asses and at least rejoice in the fact that we can cognitively complain about things once in a while. It implies that we have more control of our situation than good people to whom truly bad things are happening. If you need some explanation on why anything from Project Michelle appears here, take a look at some of my thoughts after a day’s work of volunteering.
On a backstage politics note, remember Jabbawockeez? The second part of their schtick (The first being their masks.) was their love and dedication to the late Gary Kendall. (Does it color things more to know that Gary Kendall died from HIV? And lived the end of his life somewhat removed from those he used to spend so much time with? I’ll stop there.) Supreme Soul does varsity jackets, and now they’re backing up Michelle Maykin.
Ain’t nothing wrong with any of the above, but it sure is interesting.
Have you read Nickel and Dimed? It’s a sociological case study done at the micro level. (Or is it macro? Or is it an undercover journalistic investigation?)
In it, Barbara Ehrenreich takes on the charge of (Not) Getting by in America. On minimum wage. I never signed up to be a part of the book. I did not read the entire thing. But I find myself nodding in agreement to the experiences within it.
From her site:
She was inspired in part by the rhetoric surrounding welfare reform, which promised that any job equals a better life. But how can anyone survive, let alone prosper, on $6 to $7 an hour?
And one job is not enough; you need at least two if you intend to live indoors.
Despite the uniquely saturated-ly morose tone of too much time for introspection, I am not caught in an inescapable situation or dire strait. My thinking is simply temporarily changed. After all, shouldn’t all major life changes/milestones rewire your thinking a little bit? My brain has moved out of the “for granted” box. “Money isn’t everything; not having it is,” as Kanye says. (Damn, that’s the second time I’ve quoted Kanye in this blog. Boo!)
I think of each hour as a block of dollars, as if I’m the waitress and the asshole customer has piled a small tower of coins at the edge of the table: “Here’s your tip. For every mistake you make, I take one away.”
My iCal may as well convert from time of day to number of dollars accrued. I justify my sit-down lunches, their accompanying tips, and their sometimes desserts, thinking “Sure, I could make my lunch ahead of time and bring it with me, but I was tired after work last night and my job is paying for this right now.” Those over-the-counter but almost prescription eyedrops I so depend upon every morning? One hour of work. That outdoor parking pass? Saves me from kissing away 20% of the bucks I earn from my shifts.
The niceties of life are actually more accessible this way. Their prices more tangible, their worth better understood. And evaluated.
Paying off car insurance is a lotta hours.
Gas prices are much more than they should be.
One ride on BART takes a significant chunk of my hourly paycheck.
Taking advantage of those discounts more than justifies itself when dealing with more than three irate customers in one day.
Also a payoff: working with energetic, positive people; customers who show appreciation for what you do; sending a customer out without making them spend money on unnecessary purchases. Being encouraged to be real. Getting to kick out assholes. Exciting days full of hype.
Busy-ness. It gets your mind off of the pennies hopefully making their way into your purse.
If ever you questioned my resolve, how I’m holding myself up in a time of unemployment, part-time jobs, low income, I assure you I have my grey times. Last week I had two bowls of pho (my comfort food of choice). I’ve put down a couple of bucks at gas stations for Cup Noodles. On the way home from work tonight I went through the drive-thru and clicked on South Park to accompany my Chicken McNuggets and fries.
The other day I was pulling my laundry from the dryer, a very mundane task, and suddenly a wave of “I am a lone female” thoughts streamed through my head.
I am a woman. I get paranoid that male laundromat visitors might see my thongs when I pull them out of the pile. I only wear them because they make my ass look good without leaving telltale pantylines. I don’t wear them to attract lingering eyes that like to hover around belts or low-rise hems where belts should be. I’m pulling them out of the dryer because I need them clean, not because I want anyone to notice the lacy detail of the Costco-bought underwear. ATTN: Girls On A Budget: Six in a pack!
I’m a girl. I push my face as close as I possibly can to my bathroom mirror so that I can focus on the blackheads on my nose, target the ones that might be poppable, even though my aesthetician friend tells me not to. But we all do it, all girls. I obsess over the imperfections of my skin, the split ends of my hair. I revel in the way my hair fades in color at the ends but also becomes increasingly crispier the farther down I run my fingers.
I feel human. I’m self-conscious. I second guess my efforts and wonder what I’m headed toward. It’s humbling and it’s an open door all at the same time.
I read articles about the non-recession recession. About a lack of jobs. About the statistic I’ve joined in being (somewhat of) a professional who has joined the “working class.” Who may be left there (here) indefinitely.
I’ve just clicked off Ryan Seacrest’s face because the Angelina Jolie E! True Hollywood Story has ended. (First time I’ve watched E! in years.) I threw away my McDonald’s bag and I wonder why I’m here. What I’m doing and what’s next. What’s the point of being 24 and living on your own if you’re 24 and making rent depends on a part-time job.
I’m not in high school and I’m working a part-time job. It is my second consecutive part-time job in months, and though I was overqualified for my first and I love the culture of my second (current), the fact is I’m more of a 9-to-5 person. I don’t see myself as corporate. I have a personal goal to always work at a company where I will never need to buy “work clothes.” But I’m not a lifetime retail worker. I love the type of people I work with, but I do not want to be “stuck” here. There will come days where I will feel like I have to fend off the feeling of being stuck.
The bags under my eyes will droop, redness will creep in from the inevitable crows’ feet on my face, and I will just want to “put my feet up.”
I don’t know how long I’ll be here. I sense change on the horizon. I am destined for bigger and better things. I have been the workaholic. I have stressed myself to illness. I’ve put myself through 40 straight days of work before, and look where it’s gotten me…? But I suppose it’s what I get, for being so privileged before and comfortable and taking things for granted. What more should a once-spoiled child expect?
I don't have a theme! Isn't it great? 24. Female. Bay Area, California. American Asian. Dancer. Et cetera. I typically edit my blog posts multiple times after initially hitting "Publish," so don't be surprised if content is added, removed, or otherwise revised when you return.
Music discussed in this blog is aggregated here on iMeem if you ever want to listen.
If you have goodies to share, please send them to theMaykazine (at) gmail (dot) com.
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