Miscellaneous | Mid Century

These photos show an idealized vision of midcentury America… with a subtle hint of weirdness

Not much is known about Nina Leen, the Russian-born Life photographer who moved to New York in 1939 and proceeded to spend the next four decades making some of the best — and least remembered —…

Miscellaneous | Interesting Stuff

I'm British, and I experienced the biggest culture shock when I started working in the US

The UK and the US are not all that different. But as a British person living and working in America, I experienced a huge culture shock at work.

I get the differences, but generally, opportunity IS the product of hard work.

Miscellaneous | Interesting Stuff

To Brits with knickers in a twist over Americanisms: don't get your panties in a bunch | Science | The Guardian

Many ‘American’ phrases are actually British but a new book argues why we say what we say reveals a lot about our cultures

Miscellaneous | Interesting Stuff

10 myths about the royal family that just aren't true

Prince Charles does not need seven eggs each morning.

Miscellaneous | Interesting Stuff

10 Ways Americans and Europeans Differ | HowStuffWorks

HowStuffWorks looks at come of the cultural differences between Europe and America, like ice consumption, metric system and portion sizes.

Food & Drink | Travel

The 15 Best Hipster Places in St Louis

Miscellaneous | Interesting Stuff

The Overwhelming Emotion of Hearing Toto’s “Africa” Remixed to Sound Like It’s Playing in an Empty Mall | The Ne

Jia Tolentino writes that editing a song to sound like it’s coming from a specific space—such as “Africa,” by Toto, as if it were playing in a mall—fights against the digital isolation of our times.

Visual Arts | Chicago Arts

A New Exhibit Spotlights a Rarely Seen Keith Haring Mural | Chicago magazine | March 2018

The Chicago Cultural Center displays one of our city’s most impressive public artworks in March.

Music | Music

Quincy Jones Has a Story About That | GQ

Quincy Jones has run with Frank Sinatra. Michael Jackson. Malcolm X. Prince. Tupac. Even Leni Riefenstahl—and the 84-year-old music legend has a tale for every famous name.

The man is a serious legend and a national treasure. On a personal note: I've had a crush on his daughter for a long time!

Miscellaneous | Other Stuff

Whatever Happened to Generation X?

As they head into middle age, the “slacker” generation of Philadelphians — sandwiched between the never-say-die boomers and the all-about-us millennials — is feeling overlooked, overworked and overwhelmed. But their chill, pragmatic approach to li

Sports | Cycling

Ride On Flair

These are one inch flair buttons. There are 8 buttons in this set. Set inspired by Leslie Ashe.

Miscellaneous | Interesting Links

27 fascinating maps that show how Americans speak English differently across the US

A survey of more than 30,000 people, turned into a series of maps, showcase the linguistic quirks that make American English such a fascinating dialect.

Entertainment | Culture/Art/Random cool stuff

Art-topia, Part 3: Everyone’s business

Accompanied by a thriving local economy, this interconnection of neighborhoods can also lend a sense of living in a real city, rather than a collection of suburbs and shopping malls linked by freeways.

Miscellaneous | Random shit

3 Things People Who Served In The Military Do That Make Them Look Like Tools

While it’s great to be proud of one’s service, it’s also the mark of a huge tool bag if he is unable to talk about anything but his time in the belly of the beast.

So true!!!

Miscellaneous | Other Kinds of Whatnot

Generation X had the luxury of being rebel slackers, but Millennials have to be total squares

You know Generation X. The ones who skateboarded through high school with flannel shirts and angry music during a period of economic stability. The ones who criticized the establishment while…

This article is a little bit old, but it is right on target. I wish I had been in GenX!

Entertainment | Culture/Art/Random cool stuff

Diving Into the 1980s Mod Scene with Photographer Paul Hallam

We spoke to Hallam about his new book, Odds & Sodds , a collection of photos from the early-80s mod scene.

Music | Music

Goth So White? | Black representation in the Post-Punk scene

Before post-punk and Goth in the early days of Punk, British film director, DJ and musician Don Letts pretty much ran the scene at The Roxy in London, spinning primarily reggae…

Visual Arts | Visual Arts

Surreal Collages Revealing the Absurdity of Popular Culture | AnOther

A new exhibition by Belgian artist Sammy Slabbinck turns clippings from vintage magazines into witty compositions

Miscellaneous | Interesting Links!

What's the Truth About the First Thanksgiving?

Should Americans celebrate Thanksgiving as a day of gratitude? Or should they mourn it as a day of guilt? Michael Medved, author of The American Miracle, shares the fascinating story of the first Thanksgiving.

Miscellaneous | OTHER STUFF

Photographing Eastern Europe's Fading Jewish Architecture – Tablet Magazine

Photographer David Kaufman looks at the world through a historical lens. Quite literally, in fact, as he shoots with bellows, the folding attachment used on cameras since the Civil War. Though Kaufman is fascinated by the past, his old-fashioned equipmen

Some of these photos are beautiful. I had no idea that any of the Warsaw Ghetto buildings still exist. These sites must be preserved. They are remnants of an extremely rich society destroyed by the most nightmarish example of genocide in American history.

Miscellaneous | Interesting Links

Where the Small-Town American Dream Lives On | The New Yorker

As America’s rural communities stagnate, what can we learn from one that hasn’t?

Politics | Politics

No gracias, La Gracia

What she loves is a purified, whitewashed version of our culture—a safe and romanticized Mexico she built for herself while vacationing in resorts and wintering in Sayulita. Then she tried to sell it back to a community.

Another thought provoking article by Alex Zaragoza.

Entertainment | Culture/Art/Random cool stuff

Critiki’s Ten Best Tiki Bars in the World 2017

These are the ten best tiki bars found in the world today, as rated by the best tiki experts around: the members of Critiki. Critiki is a travel guide and historic archive of Polynesian Pop culture…

Politics | Politics

A Chicano Community In San Diego Is Outraged Over A White Woman's Attempt To Open A 'Modern Fruteria'

Jenny Niezgoda clearly didn't do her homework. The travel blogger and self-proclaimed "barefoot bohemian" released a now-canceled Kickstarter campaign and accompanying video for her next passion project - a "plant-based cocina" and "modern fruteria"

If you take the time to actually watch the video, it is truly understandable why the community is outraged.

Politics | Education or Indoctrination?

NO MORE SHAKESPEARE: Yale ‘Decolonizes’ English Department After Being Accused Of Too Much ‘Whiteness’

Yale has successfully “decolonized” its English department, and some lucky students are now enrolled in a new course created by the department to ward off claims of departmental racism. Better yet, new standards have been implemented to guarantee a mo

Politics | Politics

Breaking Bread: Appropriation or Appreciation? The Case of Mexican Food

This article is three years old but it's extremely relevant to now, especially in the past couple years.

Miscellaneous | Other Interesting Stories

How We Killed Expertise - POLITICO Magazine

Average Americans have never much liked eggheads. That’s not a bad thing in itself: Americans are a skeptical but level-headed people

Miscellaneous | Mid Century

Photographer Compares 1960s Postcards Vs. How These Places Look Today, And The Difference Is Unbelievable | Bored Panda

Not long ago an old matchbook laying on photographer Pablo Iglesias Maurer's desk caught his eye. Or rather, it was the postcard-like picture on it, of a resort

This is completely fascinating.

Miscellaneous | OTHER STUFF

Paying the price for breakdown of the country's bourgeois culture

These basic cultural precepts could be followed by people of all backgrounds and abilities, especially when backed up by almost universal endorsement.

This is one of the best editorials I have ever read about the reasons for the decay of American society and the, too many of us, obvious solution.

Music | Music

The Best Mod Bands/Artists

in the 1950s and 1960s, mod culture dominated most of what was going on in the UK in terms of culture. Mods were hip and cool, and it was reflected in the trend setting fashion and music to come from that time period. Though originally named after those w

Entertainment | Culture/Art/Random cool stuff

The Best Tiki Albums To Get You In The Mood For Tiki Oasis

Swingers, light your tiki torches! On the eve of this year’s epic Tiki Oasis festival, in San Diego, we thought it would be prudent to kindle the beacon fire with a little Tiki 101 list. For our selections, we will be focusing on the nittiest and gritti

Tiki Oasis is over for this year but you can always use this link for next.

Music | Music

Elvis & ‘Cultural Appropriation' - Music Works Best When Borrowed

If cultural appropriation is a crime, charge Elvis Presley. Culture thrives when it’s all shook up ...

Elvis left the building 40 years ago today. I remember that day well. I was on summer vacation and in the car with my dad going to his office. It is a SHAME that people believe that Elvis was a racist or "stole" music from another culture. Rock n roll is an American art form. It's comprised of blues, country, and some other elements. People of ALL races and cultures created the forms of music that became rock n roll.

From the article:

"His first big hit, ‘Maybellene,’ adapted an old melody that had been recorded by country-music performers like Bob Wills and His Texas Playboys. Berry combined the ‘hillbilly’ sound of white country with the African-American rhythm and blues that he imbibed in his native St. Louis.” For this, he was heckled in Harlem."

This is why history, even music history, is so important.

Politics | The Hall of Idiots

Why Professional Cuddling Is Booming Under Trump - Rolling Stone

In the wake of Donald Trump's election, people struggled to figure out how to cope – and some found the answer was as simple as human touch.

Why ot would be hard for anyone on the left not to admit that many of them are, in fact, babies. This is PATHETIC.

""What this means is that we will feel more connected, empathetic, content, [have] lower stress, anxiety and depression," says Samantha Hess, owner and professional cuddler at Cuddle Up To Me. "We will sleep better, have higher metabolic function, increase our immune response, and even decrease our impulse behavior – like drinking because the world is doomed."

"At times, the cuddle party Wyatt leads in Venice turns silent. Along one wall, participants sit stacked snugly in between another person's legs, one person using another's body as a support pillow; in the middle of the room is a spooning train; others sit side-by-side coloring. Just as touch is optional, so is speaking."

Yeah. Ok Jack, whatever you say. It's time to grow up jackass.

Entertainment | Culture/Art/Random cool stuff

Hong Kong Hustle best blog in HK | Hong Kong Hustle

Hong Kong Hustle - the best blog about music, fashion, nightlife, art, film, culture and cool in HK. Your guide to the city!

Entertainment | Culture/Art/Random cool stuff

Antigravity Magazine

New Orleans Alternative Music and Culture

Entertainment | Culture/Art/Random cool stuff

Jaded In Chicago

Originally a printed zine from 1998 – 2004, Jaded In Chicago has returned exclusively online. Our goal is to provide coverage of Chicago’s expansive independent

What's happening in Chicago.

Entertainment | Culture/Art/Random cool stuff

Classic San Diego Tiki - ClassicSanDiego.com

Polynesian-themed restaurants and tiki bars from the San Diego area’s past and present. How many of theses classic San Diego tiki joints do you know?

Entertainment | Culture/Art/Random cool stuff

The Mod Generation

Where mods of all generations get together to swap stories, share photos and videos, and keep up to date on the latest mod events and sounds

Entertainment | Culture/Art/Random cool stuff

Modern day Mod UK - BBC News

Extraordinary photographs of the style and community of the contemporary Mod scene

Miscellaneous | Other Stuff

The average American has only one close friend — here's how we got to this point

Stanford psychologist Emma Seppala says Americans are experiencing a crisis of loneliness, and it's partly a result of our desire for independence.

This doesn't surprise me. What surprises me is that it's common. And, I have always known that social media does not cause loneliness, I am happy to see that demonstrated here.

Entertainment | Culture/Art/Random cool stuff

This Teen Took Candid Photos of the 70s' Biggest Rock Stars

Photographer Brad Elterman relives his glory days of shooting David Bowie, Joan Jett, Bob Dylan, and KISS.

Entertainment | Culture/Art/Random cool stuff

Where the Cocktail Party Came From

It has surprisingly feminist origins.

Entertainment | Culture/Art/Random cool stuff

BrooklynVegan

No this is NOT a blog about veganism.

Entertainment | Culture/Art/Random cool stuff

We Had a Teen Interview High Schoolers About Their Music Tastes

The biggest takeaway is that trap music can help with your homework.

I saw this in my FB feed and I gotta say it's kind of refreshing. Several of these teenagers like music that's well before my time (Louis Armstrong). While I haven't heard of several of the bands/artists mentioned I looked them up and i can truly say not bad. It's nice to see much younger generations still liking music that uses real instruments. There is hope.

Politics | Politics

It feels like America is descending into chaos | New York Post

I turned 7 in 1968, and though my memories are necessarily fuzzy, I can still sum up a queasy sense of the chaos that pervaded the year as it streamed out of...

Solid article by the always eloquent John Podhoretz.

News | Interesting Stuff

How Old is "Old"? The Answers Vary by Age | Money

Definitions of "old" and "young" vary depending on your age, a new study by U.S. Trust shows.

Politics | Politics

Actually, hate speech is protected speech - LA Times

Here are the most popular slogans about speech, and why they're wrong

I couldn't agree more. Just because something may be offensive, does not mean that it is not protected!

Miscellaneous | OTHER STUFF

How to Smoke a Cigar Like You Actually Know What You’re Doing

Wondering how to smoke a cigar without looking like a greenhorn? In this guide, we'll teach you how to puff one like a seasoned pro.

Music | Music

The genesis of punk rock.

Punk rock is considered a product of the ’70s, when bands like the Ramones, the Sex Pistols and the Clash propelled the style into the mainstream. But punk really has its roots in the early ’60s, when three chord bashers with attitude first establishe

Sports | Cycling

The SheWolves pedal for empowerment

Three years ago, Angie Beaulieu and Magz Lemaster came together to build a biking community for female-identifying individuals.

This is an awesome group!!

Music | Music

The Damned on the Dawn of U.K. Punk, Getting Back at the Beatles

The Damned's Dave Vanian and Captain Sensible reflect on their 40-year career, from releasing the first punk single to gigging with Motörhead's Lemmy.

Miscellaneous | Interesting Links

The Possible Origins of 7 Instantly Recognizable Visual Clichés | Mental Floss

Test your knowledge with amazing and interesting facts, trivia, quizzes, and brain teaser games on MentalFloss.com.

Entertainment | Culture/Art/Random cool stuff

Black Flag documentary on artist Raymond Pettibond

Documentary which largely focuses on the artwork side of Black Flag. Interviews with Keith, Chuck, Henry, Raymond and for some reason Flea. If you're into fl...

Entertainment | Culture/Art/Random cool stuff

British Mods and Rockers of the 1960's

An entertaining and informative one hour BBC program about the 1960's Mods and Rockers. Clarifying the relationship between the two youth groups. The documen...

Entertainment | Culture/Art/Random cool stuff

The Story of Skinhead with Don Letts

No racists of fascists are welcomed here! : )

No skinhead does NOT automatically mean aryan white brotherhood. It floors me how so many people don't know this.

Entertainment | Culture/Art/Random cool stuff

East LA Youth Culture mini doc

This mini-documentary is a student project by Pilar Tompkins Rivas, prepared for the Visual Research Methodologies Course at Claremont Graduate University. I...

Interesting short doc on the history of East LA youth culture and East LA punk rock..

Entertainment | Humor

Jonah Ray Heads to Boston in the First Episode of ‘Hidden America’

Today's a big day for early series premieres -- first IFC uploaded the season 5 Comedy Bang! Bang! premiere a week early, and now Seeso has released the first episode of Jonah Ray's travel show parody Hidden America ahead of its debut next Thurs

Music | Music

PSYCHOBILLY: A Cancer on Rock 'n' Roll (2004) A film by Mike Decay

Join the party: http://www.phantomcreep.com Director: Mike Decay - Producers: Ronni Thomas & Mike Decay - Editor: Jay Bones

Full documentary on the European psychobilly scene and it's history.

Music | Music

How a St. Louis neighborhood called the Ville helped define Chuck Berry's art

Chuck Berry was to St. Louis what Prince was to Minneapolis, what Elvis was to Memphis and what Sinatra was to New Jersey: Its citizens didn’t agree on much, but Berry was sacrosanct.

My mom's family is from St. Louis. But my connection to Chuck Berry comes from The Beatles, The Stones, The Beach Boys, and hearing Chuck himself. As a kid, I rode my bike to a small market near my house to buy a record with a bunch of people on it including Chuck Berry doing "Reelin' and Rocking" (which I thought was "Around and Around" - which I was introduced to via The Stones). I got it because of that song. Then I got a copy of "The Great Twenty-Eight." I still have both records. His influence on music is very obvious. It's interesting though how shaped he was by his home town and the neighborhood he lived in.

Music | Music

These Photographers Captured Blondie, Joan Jett, and the Women of Punk

Music | Music

David Byrne's New Doc 'Contemporary Color' Shows Off 'Art Sport' And Indie Stars

The newly released trailer teases a film where dance troupes from across the country pair with some of independent music's biggest stars on a (big) Brooklyn stage.

Food & Drink | Coffee

Angry Catfish Bicycle + Coffee Bar, Minneapolis, MN

Angry Catfish has the best coffee and bicycle sales and service in Minneapolis, MN. We offer bikes made by such great manufacturers as Salsa, Moots, Niner, All City, Surly, Lynskey, Shinola, Foundry, and Parlee. We also carry top of the line bicycle cloth

Food & Drink | Bars/Restaurants/Venues

HandleBarSTL | HandleBar

Cool hipster bar geared towards the cycling community in St. Louis. Geared, get it?

Entertainment | Radio

KCRW 89.9FM | Music, NPR News, Culture Los Angeles

KCRW creates & curates music discovery, NPR news, cultural exploration and informed public affairs. From Los Angeles to around the world, KCRW.com.

Curretnly the best radio station Los Angels has.

Entertainment | Culture/Art/Random cool stuff

9 Reasons To Bring Back Cocktail Parties (PHOTOS) | The Huffington Post

Your grandparents probably enjoyed one trend that has sadly since died a thousand deaths: The cocktail party. These gatherings dominated the 1950s and 19...

I didn't know they went away.

Music | Music

We Were There: Voices from L.A. Punk’s First Wave | An Oral History hosted by Alice Bag

(Originally run in Razorcake #79, April / May 2014) My name is Alicia Velasquez, but I’m better known as Alice Bag. I grew up in East L.A., the daughter of Mexican immigrants. In the late 1970s, I …

Food & Drink | Travel

Takanakuy: Fistfighting in the Andes

Once a year around Christmas in the Peruvian Andes, the whole town gets together to dance, drink and beat the hell out of each other. Christmas festivities v...

Think of this as a giant drunken Festivus celebration.

Entertainment | Culture/Art/Random cool stuff

The 100 L.A. Things Every Angeleno Should Do at Least Once - Los Angeles Magazine

How many of these have you done?

Miscellaneous | Other Kinds of Whatnot

60 Minutes, SNL, and the Normalization of Trump -- Vulture

This is what the mainstream media does.

Sports | Snowboarding/Skiing

Foothills: The Unlinked Heritage of Snowboarding

Foothills: The Unlinked Heritage of Snowboarding, from pro snowboarder and Patagonia Ambassador Alex Yoder and production company WRKSHRT, is a new film about the origins of snowboarding unlike any you've seen before. Petranboarding began as a cultura

News | News

Study: Baby boomers don't work harder than younger generations

New analysis by psychologists revealed no significant differences in work ethic among different generations.

As a baby boomer, I can say it's time for other baby boomers to get over themselves.

Music | Music

PUNKTASTIC

Home

Punk blog

Food & Drink | Travel

Route 66's Best Kitschy Roadside Attractions

After it was replaced by the Interstate System during the 1950s and 60s, Route 66 has now become home to numerous kitschy monuments, hotels, and rest stops that give a glimpse into a bygone era of American history.

Entertainment | Culture/Art/Random cool stuff

The Real and the Fake: Polynesian Culture and How We Perceive It

A piece from NPR asking if tiki bars are “harmless fun or exploitation” started making the rounds yesterday—it’s good timing, as I’ve had an article brewing in my head for a…

While the article going around from NPR lately has been thought provoking, this one better articulates the true facts and how it should be treated.

Food & Drink | Coffee

Episode 15 - Laurie - Spoke Bicycle Cafe

Laurie is a forward thinker and entrepreneur that has harnessed her optimism into creating a haven on the bank of the Los Angeles River known as Spoke Bicycl...

Food & Drink | Coffee

Australian Coffee Culture Is Inspiring a New Wave of American Cafes

Not every cafe needs Wi-Fi.

News | Israel & The Jewish Community

A Response to Yesterday’s Anti-Semitic Hate Crime from a “Whiny Brat Jew”

By now you’ve probably already heard that on Tuesday night students discovered swastikas graffitied in McCabe. I’m not sure what’s

Antisemitism is never going to fully go away. We all know that. But it must be recognized, acknowledged and confronted. That means confronting it both on the right and on the left. The left has been getting a free pass for many years. It shouldn't (and obviously neither should it on the right).

"The apathy and, at times, antipathy of many on the left when it comes to anti-Semitism is a deep betrayal of the Jewish people. We see it when Stanford students argue that propagating the Nazi conspiracy theory of “Jews controlling the media, economy, government, and other societal institutions” is not anti-Semitic. We see it when the Vice-President of the UC Santa Cruz Jewish Student Union, a member of student government, is asked to abstain on a vote relating to Israel because of his “Jewish agenda.” And we see it most virulently on anonymous forums, when students on our own campus’s Yik-Yak assert that Jews should view their ethnic heritage as akin to being “descended from a Confederate officer” and that anti-Semitism itself is a conspiracy invented by the Rothschild banking family to let Jews oppress people of color."

Sports | Cycling

Bike travel and adventure

Good info for bike traveling.

Entertainment | Culture/Art/Random cool stuff

Real Mod World

Website in English and Spanish dedicated to Mod culture: its history, music, scooters, fashion, news and events.

History of Mod culture.

Music | Music News

Could This Be the End of Paul Simon’s Rhymin’? - The New York Times

Mr. Simon, 74, said in an interview that he was ready to give up music, despite the popularity of his latest album, “Stranger to Stranger,” and his current tour.

I am sorry to see him retire. I hope he changes his mind. Soon.

Entertainment | Culture/Art/Random cool stuff

Huck Magazine – Radical Culture

HUCK is a global magazine exploring the many facets of radical culture, be it surf, skate, snow, music, art, activism, pop culture, the environment and the world beyond.

Entertainment | Miscellaneous Disney

How World War II Changed Walt Disney | TIME

How two crises— a crippling strike and the Second World War— changed the Disney studio (and Walt himself) forever

Architecture & Interior Design | Threatened History & Preservation

Preservation Roundup: 13 Historic Places We Are Thankful For - Los Angeles Magazine

From Frank Lloyd Wright to Clifton's Cafeteria, this was a great year for old buildings in Los Angeles

This is pretty pathetic considering how much history LA had, but hopefully it is getting better about preservation.

Miscellaneous | Other Kinds of Whatnot

17 Horrifying Vintage Pictures of Disneyland Characters | Mental Floss

Yikes. Since its opening in 1955, Disneyland has been synonymous with childhood wonder and magic. Often called the "happiest place on Earth," the park gives children a chance to meet their favorite Disney characters. But one can imagine that the experience was a whole lot less magical in the '50s, when the characters were more creepy than cute.

Yikes!