Triumph

I return! I apologize for having been gone so long. I have been busily attending to my studies of late, as well as:

• making a stop at the Society for American Archaeology meeting in St. Louis, MO; 
• working with the National Forest Service division of the US Department of Agriculture as a volunteer at a historical preservation project in Mark Twain National Forest; 
• Right: The historic saw mill at Falling Springs recreation area  ------------>
• presenting a paper entitled Japonisme: The Influence of Japanese Edo-Period Ukiyo-e on Printed and Painted Arts of late 19th-century Europe at the Springfield Intercollegiate Art History Symposium;
• presenting a paper on the Late-Pleistocene overkill theory debate, titled The Megafauna Myth: Has mankind been hogging all the credit?
• actively searching for employment of any sort

Since this hellish burst of engagements is at an end, and all that remains is finding the motivation to complete the rest of my assignments and attend class for the next two weeks (until graduation, May 14th!), I have decided to return to my ridiculously minuscule number of devoted readers. As a treat (well, rather, a sort of offertory bribe) I have not one but THREE! excellent music videos on which to feast your eyes.

I would also like to announce the creation of two new pages attached to the Modern Synthesis: one is a page about myself (vanity prevails), and the other (coming soon!) is a page about Anthropology itself, cleverly titled: So what is Anthropology?

Without further ado, here is today's quote:

Guard well within yourself that treasure: kindness. Know how to give without hesitation, how to lose without regret, how to acquire without meanness.

- George Sand 


Mark Twain National Forest, Missouri

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Music videos for your enjoyment:

Kelis: Acapella





M.I.A.: Born Free

Marina and the Diamonds: I Am Not A Robot

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And here's a few other tidbits of enlightenment floating around cyberspace:

How We Became White People

via CNN

New Law Would Ban Marriages Between People Who Don't Love Each Other

via TheOnion

and...

Hawai'i Lawmakers Pass Civil Union Bill

       via CNN

Legislators in Hawaii have passed a civil unions bill that would give same-sex couples the same rights as heterosexual couples.

The state House of Representatives passed the bill by a 31-20 vote late Thursday. Gov. Linda Lingle has until early July to decide whether to sign the bill into law, CNN's Hawaii affiliates reported.

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Well, I guess that's it for today. Stay tuned for new updates!

wildcoyote

After-birth

That's right: AFTERBIRTH. Placenta and gobs of vaginal secretions. Doesn't it just make you want to procreate?

Let's check out some of the latest juicy bits of culture vomit I have found particularly stimulating in the past week:

Kelis: Acapella

From the new album Fleshtone





Gorillaz: Stylo
Featuring Bobby Womack and Mos' Def
Music Video featuring Bruce Muthafuckin' Willis
From the new album Plastic Beach

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A few more songs/bands you might want to consider checking out (aka I made a badass playlist that I feel deserves to be shared with the world):

1. Yakuza O-ren 1, Kill Bill Volume 1 OST
2. Ironside, Kill Bill Volume 1 OST
3. Stylo, Gorillaz, Plastic Beach
4. Shake Shake Tambourine (Black Tambourine) [Adrock Remix], Beck, Guerolito
5. Acapella, Kelis, Fleshtone
6. About Her, Kill Bill Volume 2 OST
7. Broken Drum (Boards of Canada Remix), Beck, Guerolito
8. The White Lady Loves You More, Elliot Smith, Elliot Smith
9. My Lady's House, Iron & Wine, Woman King EP
10. Ain't Got No--I Got Life, Nina Simone, Anthology
11. Never Forget You, The Noisettes, Wild Young Hearts
12. I Feel It All, Feist, The Reminder
13. Magic Powder, Minitel Rose, The French Machine
14. Ladyflash, The Go! Team, Thunder, Lightning, Strike
15. Underwater Love, Jack Johnson, Thicker Than Water OST
16. Lebanese Blonde, Thievery Corporation, Garden State OST
17. Super 16, Kill Bill Volume 1 OST
18. The Lonely Shepherd, Kill Bill Volume 1 OST

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Movies you should have already seen:

PARTY MONSTER

PERFUME: The Story of a Murderer

HEAVEN

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Es todo.

wildcoyote

Birth

So today is my birthday... yay birthdays... although I must admit, 22 is pretty anticlimactic. Ah well.

So, today, here's a list of famous people you may or may not recognize who were born on April 6:

Raphael
Nadar
Hans Richter
Andre Previn
Merle Haggard (I don't claim this one.)
Paul Rudd
Zach Braff

It also turns out that Isaac Asimov and Tammy Wynette died on April 6. Huh. What a strange, random bunch of people.

That's all.

wildcoyote