Hurray for Hedonism
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One of the cool things about living in a town like Seattle is sometimes there are some pretty interesting things you can do around here. Like, how about going to a reading of a new book about food and sex by a former sex worker this Saturday evening at 7:30pm at Eliot Bay Book Company? There is no way that can be boring.
From the press release:
In Sex and Bacon: Why I Love Things That Are Very, Very Bad for Me (Seal Press / May 2008 / $14.95) Sarah Katherine Lewis tears down boundaries in a tribute to her lust for larder and lovemaking. In her uninhibited vignettes, Lewis exposes all that is deliciously nasty and delectably uncouth when it comes to her bountiful appetite. A follow-up to her first book, Indecent, which chronicles her time in the sex industry, Sex and Bacon is her homage to the culinary and the carnal.
Sex and Bacon is full of Lewis' snippets of wisdom accrued from her life, her reflections on pop culture icons, lots of talk about sex and her experiences as a sex worker, thoughts on female body image, Seattle weather (Lewis is a Seattle resident), Lewis' recipes, and more. Almost every paragraph is a little statement of Lewis' philosophy, or a naughty tidbit of her career in the sex industry.
I have a bag of fun size Reece's peanut butter cups in my cupboard. It's nearly Halloween so I'm allowed. I'm also allowed every other day of the year because I'm a grown-up, and if I want to have ten fun size pieces of candy for dinner I can.
Ah yes, we do indeed have the freedom to do stuff that is bad for us as adults like eat candy for dinner, but how far should we take it? Lewis took it pretty far, and I enjoyed reading about her thoughts on her life experiences. Sex and Bacon doesn't hold back when it prominently proves that Lewis is "an authority on the sins of the flesh, both culinary and carnal." Definitely adult reading material.
Location: Elliot Bay Book Company (map)
Date and Time: Saturday, May 10, 7:30pm
Comixtravaganza
The Seattle Public Library is hosting an afternoon which celebrates comics this Saturday at the Central Library. The event appears to be marketed towards teens, but I strongly doubt I will be the only adult in attendance. Comics have long since evolved from a media reserved for the pimpled youth. Like many adults, most of my pimples are gone now, but my love of comics is still strong. The schedule for Comixtravaganza is:
2:00pm - Comic Workshop: make your own mini comic.
3:30pm - Panel of experts discusses what it's like being in the industry of comics.
4:30pm - Cartoonist Ellen Forney talks about stuff.
Speaking of Ellen Forney, Fantagraphics has released a new book with Ellen Forney's illustrations called LUST: Kinky Online Personal Ads From Seattle’s The Stranger. It features Forney's artistic renditions of those zany personal ads in The Stranger's LustLab; definitely not marketed towards teens. You can view samples of the personal ads and illustrations on her blog. The book release will be at Fantagraphics on February 9 from 6-9pm, and the party will include a multimedia presentation of the book by Forney. Forney is not only funny and witty on paper, but she has a great sense of humor in person, too, so I highly recommend seeing her speak either at Fantagraphics on February 9 or this Saturday at the Seattle Central Library.
Crispin Glover!
I generally fear celebrities because they are nuts, but there is one celebrity who I like. Granted, he is also a little strange, but I am in love with him and his work: Crispin Glover.
Crispin Glover is famous for being an actor in cult classics such as River's Edge and Rubin and Ed, and he has also played key roles in the blockbusters Charlie's Angels and Back to the Future. He is one of few artists who has been able to maintain his indie status while trying out his craft in the mainstream. He is also known for his quirkiness. I have heard rumors that he is a collector of glass eyes.
Aside from a successful acting career, Crispin Glover also performs spoken word, and this weekend he is performing live at the NW Film Forum in Capitol Hill and presenting his movie, It's Fine! Everything's Fine. Everything's Fine is a horror movie and sequel to What is It? Beware: this movie looks really disturbing, so leave the kids at home if you want to see it, m'kay? Or bring the kids, but only if you are a lousy parent.
Crispin Glover will be doing an introduction and live dramatization of the movie in conjunction with Crispin Glover's Big Slide Show.
I saw a version of Crispin Glover's Big Slide Show about 10 years ago in San Francisco, and it was quite entertaining. It included a short movie, starring Crispin Glover as a small town boy who wanted to win the local talent show by singing along to a boombox while in drag as "Olivia Neutron Bomb." Then there was a slideshow, and I remember there being some sort of emphasis on pelts, which was a topic of his book being released at the time. Beaver pelts. You must be open to the quirky and offbeat to enjoy this show.
More information about the show on KEXP's blog. On the KEXP blog post, you can also play a short audio clip of Crispin Glover explaining some details of the show. Note how he introduces himself as "Crispin Glover Dot Com."
Location: NW Film Forum (map)
Dates and Time: January 10, 11, 12 (What is It? will be playing), and 13 at 7pm
Price: $17/NWFF Members, $20/General CASH ONLY
Henry Rollins Spoken Word
Henry Rollins is doing his spoken word thing on Halloween at the Moore Theater.
Once upon a time in the 1980s, Henry Rollins was the lead singer of the hardcore punk band, Black Flag. One of the most famous of all of the hardcore scenesters of that era, Henry Rollins later formed his own band called Rollins Band and performed to huge audiences and had mainstream success. Remember the song, Liar?
I love that song. Boy, he sure is intense.
Aside from his music career, Henry Rollins has spent the past 3 decades writing books and performing spoken word, and he now hosts his own tv show on IFC. He has also been in several movies, including one of my favorite movies, The Chase. You can see his discography here.
Henry Rollins is intense, but his spoken word can actually be very light-hearted and funny. Although he is a big superstar now, he has humble beginnings and his spoken word includes stories about his life in a down-to-earth manner.
On a side note, I hear he has worn a halloween costume for his halloween performances in the past, and I'm hoping he wears one on Wednesday's show.
Salon of Shame
Salon of Shame tonight, Tuesday September 25, at the Lower Level in Capitol Hill. Here is a chance to embarrass yourself in public by exposing your innermost thoughts as a teenager immortalized in your old journal entries. It is free to attend if you read, otherwise the cost is $7. This event almost always sells-out, so get there when the doors open at 6:45pm if you want to get a seat, unless you are reading, and then you are guaranteed entrance.
Although most sign up ahead of time to read, spontaneous readings are also encouraged, so if you show up with your old journal entries, you will be warmly welcomed on stage.
Reading Old Journal Entries in Front of a Crowd: Painful Fun
Who would have thought that reading my old journal entries in front of a large audience of strangers could be so fun? Painfully embarrassing, yet somehow fun.
In light of tonight's Salon of Shame and my recent trip to California for my 10 year college reunion, I shall share one of my most embarrassing treasures: my teen angst poetry.
<ahem>
In the adumbration of darkness
I feast
on the comestible of your
flesh
as you count away the
minutes
until your death
because you are not as wonderful
as you think you are
because you are not divine
because you are not immortal
so you waste your life
waiting to die.
Photo by Gabrielle Fine. More photos here.
As I read my old goth poetry (there is a painfully large amount of goth poems in my journals), I am noticing I used a lot of big words. That's because I used to read the dictionary. However, the dictionary is really big and I only got as far as the c's, so all of my impressive words begin with the letters a, b, or c.
Also, how is it possible that I had so much time to spend on my goth poetry? I remember doing lots of stuff as a teenager and being very active and constantly freaking my parents out by my constant questionable activies. Where did I find the time to fill up these journals? DId my teenage self have better time-management skills than my adult self?
I guess I didn't have yoga, snowboarding, biking, THE INTERNET, work, more work, yard work, house work, etc. I just had my notebook, a pack of Camel Lights, my Docs, and a bottomless cup of coffee in a hole-in-the-wall coffee shop.
