Potluck Quote of the Day (3 of 10): Friedrich Nietzche

For those of you in New York, Film Forum is screening the Joan Crawford film "Sudden Fear" with nightly showings at 7:00 or 9:20 p.m. Of course, the way life works, even if you live in the same neighborhood as Film Forum, someone will talk you into seeing "Bad Moms" instead. Well, Christina Applegate of "Married with Children" sitcom fame (she is now 44 years old) is a good antagonist in the bawdy comedy.

Here is today's quote from the late Friedrich Nietzsche (1844-1900):

"It is impossible to suffer without making someone pay for it; every complaint already contains revenge."

http://www.filmforum.org

20-Word Fiction: The Bird Watcher

When I was with a bird-watching group in Highland County , Va., the smallest county in our state, we came across bird-watchers from Raleigh, NC, and Washington, DC. But, after the day was over with I realized my idea of bird-watching involved Woody Woodpecker cartoons on Youtube.

Here is tonight's 20-Word Fiction entry:

"The bird-watcher got obsessed with a yellow-billed oxpecker. That was before the bird crapped on his bald head."

The link below is for those who like to go bird-watching in Central Park in New York City:
http://www.birdingbob.com/

Tweets Regarding the Revolutionary Stand Against Right-Wing Government in Turkey

Protestors have taken to the streets not only in Istanbul, but in Ankara, Izmir, Bursa and even the eastern Black Sea city of Samsun following police crackdowns against citizens bonding to protest plans to build on Gezi Park, the last remaining open space in Istanbul. The protests are also largely aimed at Turkey's right-wing government lead by Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan.

Here are some tweets regarding these events:

1) Hurriyet Daily News: #US and #EU concerned by violent raid against #Taksim Gezi Park protestors.

2) Gigi Ibrahim (a leader of the Tahrir Square movement in Egypt): Latest from a comrade in #Taksim Square: The movement is raising the slogan: "Turn Taksim into Tahrir!".........we support you.

3) Goksen Asia: "Watch Turkish people crossing the bridge for #occupygezi"

4) Zeynep Tufekci: "NYT has Turkey protests on cover. Turkish paper Sabah, not. Why social media matters."

5) Global Revolution: "Everyone has to watch this. All of #Istanbul flashes their lights in solidarity with #occupygezi protestors."

6) Heather Marsh: "More than 40,000 people are now crossing Bosporus Bridge in #Istanbul to join protests."

7) Simge Yarayici: "NYC! Tomorrow! Zuccoti Park! 12 pm! We will be in solidarity with #occupygezi occupiers."

Tweets of the Day_ Politics, Weather and Halloween Zaniness

Trick or Tweet! We are surprised that our other blog "The Daily Vampire," which turns four years old today, is popular in Israel and Algeria at the moment?!

36 years on this date, I dressed up as Underdog for Halloween back home in Salem, Va.; it should be pointed out that I was six years old in 1976.

Here are today's tweets:

1) @washingtonpost ("The Washington Post"): Skeleton from Colonial times found when #sandy uproots historic tree (the tree is in New Haven, Conn.).

2) @severeplains (Jayson Prentice, a Kansas City meteorologist): "Fact: In the 12 hours before & after landfall, there were nearly 2.7 mentions of #Sandy on Twitter (including retweets)."

3) @NadiaNeopytou (she is a South African journalist living in New York): "Limited subway service in New York to resume on Thursday."

4) @motherjones ("Mother Jones" is a liberal magazine): "Supreme Court Catch 22: Can the government violate your rights as long as it does so in secret?" (Yes, that is the reason why we have an image of Justice Clarence Thomas, the most arch conservative member of the Supreme Court).

5) @davidfrum (David Frum is a center-right pundit who used to be George W. Bush's speech writer): "How much of the white vote will show up on Nov. 6?"

6) @HuffingtonPost (Huffington Post): "Sen. Chuck Schumer (D-NY) on climate change: I don't think the federal govt. has done enough. A group of people in Wash. right now deny the truth."

7) @capitalweather (Capital Weather Gang, a Washington, DC-based weather outlet): "Due to #sandy, our winter outlook release- scheduled for Nov. 1_ delayed until after the election. Who is disappointed?"

8) @UWGymnastics (University of Washington gymnastics, former Huskies' gymnast Haley Bogart is pictured above): "Happy Halloween! Show us your costumes? Anyone a gymnast for Halloween! Go Dawgs!"

Remembering Sept. 11th on Its' 11th Anniversary

Today, we remember the 2,977 victims of Sept. 11th with the images of Sen. Al Franken (D-Minn.), one of the most liberal members of the U.S. Senate, and Sen. Rand Paul (R-Ky), the son of Ron Paul, who tried to seek the Republican nomination for president, who is considered to be one of the most conservative member of the senate chambers, to show that even in this time of great political differences, we can all come together to remember what happened on that day and the memories of those who lost their lives on this day 11 years ago.http://www.wtcmemorial.org

http://www.nyc.gov/fdny

http://www.pentagonmemorial.org

http://www.alfranken.com

http://www.paul.senate.gov

http://www.georgetowncupcake.com (A cupcake place in Washington, DC)

Quote of the Day/Week-Thomas Dewey

Today, we conclude our series with quotes from party nominees who did not win presidential elections with a quote from Thomas Dewey (1902-1971) who had the unfortunate distinction of losing two consecutive presidential elections.

Dewey was considered a 'liberal Republican,' which seems like an oxy moron today, especially given that many centrist Republicans including Sen. Olympia Snowe (R-Maine) are stepping down this year.

Dewey ran first ran for president against President Franklin D. Roosevelt in 1944. But, he is most known for his loss to President Harry Truman. He was falsely projected to be the winner of the election which prompted "The Chicago Tribune" to post the dubious 'Dewey Beats Truman' headline. A gleeful Truman posed for the cameras with that newspaper in what would become the most famous photograph of him.

Dewey also managed to get 46 percent of the vote against Franklin D. Roosevelt, which made him the most-successful challenger to America's longest serving president.

In addition, Dewey was the 47th governor of New York, a post now held by Andrew Cuomo (D).

Here is Dewey's quote:

"We need not be afraid of the future, for the future will be in our hands."

Quote of the Day/Week- Diego Rivera

Today's quote of the day comes from Mexican artist Diego Rivera (1886-1957) who was the companion of fellow artist Frida Kahlo:

"Through her paintings, she breaks all taboos of the woman's body and female sexuality."

SIDEBAR: One of our favorite punk bands Gogol Bordello is playing Rome, Italy on Friday night before heading to Paris, France, for a Dec. 13 gig. But, they will be coming back to their hometown of New York for a series of 'traditional' New Year's Eve shows on Dec. 30th and 31st at Terminal Five.

Happy Thanksgiving from Lucy van Pelt

As is our custom, we are wishing everyone a Happy holiday from a cartoon character, though at times, we've used obscure celebrities or politicians (I think we said "Merry Christmas from Bob Dole" once).

Today in New York, an estimated 3.5 million people watched the Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade from the streets alone. Among the balloons were Snoopy, who debuted at the parade in 1968.

As for Lucy van Pelt, we found out while researching that not only is Linus her younger brother, but so is Rerun, an infrequent "Peanuts" character. Lucy is a nemesis to Charlie Brown, and we're not sure if Snoopy and Woodstock like her either.

Lucy, who is known for pulling the football and her five cents psychiatry booths, actually made her "Peanuts" debut a year and a half after Charlie Brown and Snoopy on March 3, 1952. But, she joined them in the final original strip for "Peanuts" on Feb. 13, 2000, which was published right away the series' cretor Charles Schultz
(1922-2000) had died.

Amazingly enough, Lucy actually liked Charlie Brown at first!

SIDEDISH: I wanted to wish a special congratulations to the Radford University women's volleyball team. The squad, which represents my alma mater, won the Big South tournament over top-seed Liberty University in Charleston, SC, on Sunday. the Highlanders scored the victory in straight sets (25-20, 25-23, 25-22). They will now head to the NCAA tournament. Seedings will be announced this Sunday.

SIDEDISH TWO: We are happy to report that my friend Chris Knight in North Carolina did not get injured when deep-frying his turkeys today, as is his annual Thanksgiving tradition. Because of the high potential risk for deep-frying turkeys, many celebrities, including William Shatner, have spoken out against it. But, that didn't prevented Knight from engaging in his holiday ritual.

The Bakpackers Are Beside BestBuy- Entry 3 of 6 (on both blogs)

It had been a very, very long time since I ventured to the Crystal Springs section of Roanoke, which is close to Roanoke Memorial Hospital (where I was born in 1970).

But, I noticed that one of the outdoor public sculptures for the Art in Roanoke project was in this part of town, which is perhaps best known for being the home of Fork in the Alley, a trendy urban spoon.

The piece is "Jelly Bean" by Brookly, NY, artist John Clement, which was also publicly displayed near The Castle in Grand Rapids, Mich. (pictured here).

According to the Art in Roanoke web site, Clement likes to focus on surface and color as much as form in structure.

I took about 10-12 photographs of "Jelly Bean," which is a bit hard to capture on camera because of the way it is designed.

But, it is quite an exceptional piece which really goes well with the tranquil environs of Crystal Spring Park, where it is located. In fact, I can imagine, even in the technology-zombie culture we live in, that one may well take an afternoon to read either "Catcher in the Rye" or "The Great Gatsby" while gazing at the piece.

SIDEBAR: Are into heavy metal bands like Slipknot, GWAR or Iron Maiden, which are just not being played on mainstream radio to your suiting. Well then, there is always "Chainsaw Rock," which airs at midnight on Friday nights/Saturday morning on WKNC, the student-run college radio station at North Carolina State University.

In fact, if one tunes in tonight, they can request some act like Buckethead. The heavy metal/folk singer (yes, we were confused too) who actually wears a KFC bucket on his head will be performing at the Awful Arthur's (Towers) in my hometown of Roanoke, Va., on Sept. 8, circa 8:00 p.m.

Things We Learned on Twitter Today- Syria is Still a Mess

The following disturbing tweet came from "The New Yorker" this afternoon:

"Reports from inside Syria: "There was nothing but shooting and sound of explosion, no water, no electricity."

Turkey, my late father's country, has brought in 8,500 refugees from Syria so far. Many of the refugees are staying at a camp in Boynuegin in the Hatay province. I was not aware that actress/humanitarian activist Angelina Jolie had visisted the camps back on June 17.

The image above is a mosque in Aleppo, Syria, the country's second largest city.

SIDEBAR: I just finished reading comic writer Jane Borden's debut memoir "I Tottally Meant To Do That," which I got from the Regulator Bookshop in Durham, NC. The book is about Borden's transition as she relocated from Greensboro, NC, to New York. In an interview with "The New York Daily News," Borden said: "Moving to New York City is an adjustment for anyone. But it's particularly a tough transition when you come from the South."

Status Update_ I Wish I Could Go to NYC Just to See a Movie

The Film Forum in New York is currently screening the original 1968 gem "Planet of the Apes" with a rare print, but they are only showing the film until Thursday!

I am a huge fan of the original film, and even like some of the kinky seuqels. And, I must give Tim Burton credit as the 2001 remake was better than I expected. Still, nothing compares to the original.

Closer to home (I live on the Virginia-North Carolina border), Joe Scott will be screening the 1987 film "The Lost Boys," a teenage vampire saga, at the Carolina Theatre in Greensboro, NC, on Thursday night.

And, my good friend Jason Garnett will be presenting "Jaws" at The Shadowbox Cinema in Roanoke, Va., on July 23rd.

SIDEBAR: I was wondering just how many Republicans were trying to run for president. As it turns out, the official number, which does not include possible candidates like Sarah Palin, is 17. The most established candidates at this juncture appear to be Mitt Romney, Jon Huntsman, Newt Gingrich and Tim Pawlenty.

But, there are plenty of secon-tier candidates, including the radical, far-right Michele Bachmann who has supposedly promised to ban pornography and 'cure homosexuality.' This batch also includes former Pennsylvania senator Rick Santorum, who is also known for making over-the-top statements regarding gays. Then, there is the Godfather's Pizza baron Herman Cain, one of two African-Americans in the running.

This brings us to the no-name candidates, which includes the other African-American Jimmy McMillan, a Vietnam vet who established an activist group called The Rent is Too Damn High. There is also Tom Miller, a career flight attendant with no political experience (we're not making this up!) and the radical lunatic activist Anyd Martin who tried to sue the state of Hawaii in regards to President Barack Obama's birth certificate.

Finally, there is a gay rights activist (?!) named Fred Karger who may very well have eggs thrown at him, given the extreme nature of today's Republican Party. But, we wish him well.

Of course, it will be up to a car mechanic in Sioux City, Iowa, and a janitor in Manchester, New Hampshire, to determine who gets the party nomination.

Even though I'm a Democrat, I have no doubt that it will 'get interesting.'

Quote of the Week- Walt Whitman

Today's quote of the day is Walt Whitman (1819-1892) as National Poetry Month comes to a close.

Like Robert Frost, whom we quoted on our other blog, Whitman has two museums dedicated to him. Whitman's birth place in West Hills, NY, is a museum that is open to the public. There is also the Walt Whitman House, his last place of residency, in Camden, NJ.

Both museums would make for a quite field trip for students at Belgrade High School in Belgrade, Montana (a real place!).

There are also several high schools named for Whitman in the United States, including Walt Whitman High School in Bethesda, Maryland. The school where Alan Goodwin is principal and the Vikings are the school nickname is the alma mater of many famous people, including film director Spike Jonze ("Being John Malkovich" and "Where the Wild Things Are").

A different Whitman quote that the one used here is actually at the start of Joseph O'Neill's much-acclaimed 2008 novel "Netherland." I was surprised to find that the Irish writer is actually half-Turkish, as am I!

Here is the quote from Whitman:

"I find no sweeter fat than sticks to my bones."

Remembering Sidney Lumet (1924-2011)

Since Sidney Lumet, one of the best film directors of the 1970s, died over the weekend (he made many great films before and after that decade as well), I thought I would simply tell this one story about how I saw "Serpico" (1973) at an outdoor Turkish cinema in the resort Kushadasi in 1985, some 12 years after the film was released in America.

In Turkey, the film was actually "Serpiko," and it was dubbed in Turkish! Today, virtually all foreign films are shown in their language of origin with subtitles in Turkey. I had assumed that was now the practice in every country except India until I went to Azerbaijan in 2008 where I saw a Russian-dubbed version of the Will Smith action comedy "Hancock" that I could not understand.

Thankfully, I can speak Turkish so even as awkward as it was to see Al Pacino, who is very popular in Turkey perhaps because he is in a lot of violent/gangster films, I could undertand the film about the plight of a New York police officer Frank Serpico (b.1936) ok. Though several years later, I was happy to see the film again on video, and it is among the films I have wanted to rewatch again (this was even before Lumet's passing).

The cinema was quite packed that humid night in Kushadasi where mostly men were watching the film, and few of them seemed to have any dates. As is custom whenever someone in Tukey sees an American film with a lot of violence or grit, the spectators asked me 'Amerika hakikaten, oyle mi?/Is American really like that?"

Of course, many people here have asked me if Turkey is like "Midnight Express."
(1978, d. Alan Parker), I respond to the later by saying: "I've never been to a Turkish prison." And, I tell people who see American films like "Serpico" that New York is a lot different than Roanoke, Va.- my hometown.

I learned from the IMDB, that "Serpico" was shot in 104 different locations in New York. And, the film was shot in reverse order with Pacino starting off with a beard and long hair, and then ending up clean shaven.

The director and tandem would team up again in "Dog Day Afternoon" (1975), and then Lumet directed "Network" (1977) with actors like Robert Duvall and William Holden. Some have suggested that "Network" predicted the rise of televanglism and the Tea Party movement.

Hmmmm.....if we get a chance, we'll ask Noam Chomsky what he thinks!

But, in all seriousness, virtually film buff except the somewhat notorious David Thomson (who I recall disdaining Lumet for some reason or another), will assuredly miss Lumet, but we have many films to remember him and his exceptional work.

Things We Learned on Twitter Today- Kim Kardashian Updates

Here are the latest tweets, as of 10 p.m. New York time, from our favorite Armenian-American (it should be pointed out that I'm half-Turkish, but I assure I would still be making fun of Ms. Kardashian any way!):

Kim: Watching The Notebook. I think I'm gonna cry.........I just had some cookies n cream and it didn't taste any good. I think I'm starting to not like sweets! This is an amazing day!

Today is My 41st Freaking Birthday

I should point out that even though my name is Tilly Gokbudak (would it be obnoxious to post myself at the end of this? Oh, it's my birthday, why not!), that I am not a woman.

Secondly, we put in the words 'rain Paris,' 'rain Istanbul,' 'rain New York, 'rain Chicago,''rain Budapest' and 'rain Moscow in the Google search engine. We even tried 'rain Roanoke' since my hometown is Roanoke, Va.

Finally, we found this image after googling 'rain London.' Yes, I'm not Chasity/Chaz Bono (Sonny and Cher's daughter who became a man; he is celebrating his 42nd birthday) in reverse, but we like this image, so by golly, we're sticking with it.

For years, I had assumed the B.J. Thomas song "Raindrops Keep Falling on My Head" was the Billboard number one song in America the week I was born in 1970. But, as it turns out, it was the Simon and Garfunkel tune "Bridge Over Troubled Water."

Hence, the reason why we are using the image of the English woman getting soaked in the rain. We certainly hope she didn't catch a cold, but if she did as Michael Moore showed us in his documentary film "Sicko" (I am to the right, but to the left of everyone here in Mount Airy, NC)* the Brits do have a better health care system than we do, so even if she got sick assuredly she is ok now!

PS (March 5): In the Ooooopppps Department, we forgot to mention that the star (*) besides Mount Airy, NC, means we don't really live there. But, we gather, it's a very nice town!

Road Trip USA (1 of 20)_ A Night at the Opera

While we were listening to WVTF, the NPR station in Roanoke, Va., yesterday, I thought it was interesting that we heard the last minutes of "Wait, Wait, Don't Tell Me," which was being broadcast from Spartanburg, SC. Then, the next NPR show that aired was a live broadcast of the contemporary opera "Nixon in China," by the New York Met Opera.

All of this made me wonder how long it would take to get from Wade's Family Restaurant in Spartanburg (a city that is relatively close to Clemson University), which was mentioned in "Wait, Wait..." to the famed opera house (the opera pictured here is actually one of my favorites "Rigoletto.")

And, you get to take a guess here as to that answer...

Is it?:

a)10 hours and 17 minutes
b) 11 hours and 49 minutes
c) 12 hours and 28 minutes
d) 13 hours and 42 minutes

You would actually go through Roanoke while taking this trip!

SIDEBAR: Since I am a huge college gymnastics fan, I thought it would be interesting to mention that long-time powerhouse The University of Utah will be hosting Michigan on Friday. And, the Utes have a very unique promotion called Short Person Appreciation Night. Anyone who is under five feet tall gets in free! Today, happens to be the 19th birthday of sophomore Fumina Kobayashi of the Utes who is 5'2. Her teammate Nansy Damianova, a Canadian freshman from Montreal who speaks Bulgarian (?!), is 5'1.

Quote of the Week- Ludwig van Beethoven

Gazooks! It has been almost a full week since we last posted a blog entry, but I am still here.

We continue with a quip from German composer Ludwig van Beethoven (1770-1827) whom we all know from "A Clockwork Orange" (I know classical music people will hate me for saying that!).

For those interested, the Beethoven music in Stanley Kubrick's classic 1971 film is "Beethoven's ninth symphony, fourth movement."

Beethoven was also portrayed by actor Gary Oldman in "Immortal Beloved" (1994).

Here is our quote from Ludwig:

"Anyone who tells a lie has not a pure heart, and cannot make good soup."

One can listen to classical music 24/7 on WCPE (89.7-FM) in Raleigh, NC.

"A Clockwork Orange" will be screened at the Bardavan Opera House (ironically enough) in Poughkeepsie, NY, on Jan. 28.

Things We Learned on Twitter This Week- Southwest Airlines Thinks We Still Like to Fly

Ahh, yes, the good ole days before 9/11 when it took less time to get through the airport in Albany, New York*, than it did in Tashkent, Uzbekistan. Oh well!

With the advent of the new full body scanners which has undoubtedly increased ACLU memberships, people from Portland, Maine, to Portland, Oregon, are moaning and of course, I am one of them, even though I was not on an airplane this holiday weekend.

But, Southwest Airlines tweeted on Wednesday that they were looking for some positive tweets for their passengers, and amazingly enough people seemed to be giving them just that:

"I LUV all the travel tweets coming in this morning! Let us know how we're doing on this busy travel day! Where are you headed today?"

In other airplane news, British comic actor Neil Morrissey reportedly made an ass of himself on a British Airways flight from Singapore to London Heathrow by going on a profanity-laced tirade while under the influence of alcohol.

And, according to "The Daily News," an English-language journal in Pakistan, the country's leading airline Pakistan International Airlines (PIA) was completely unprepared for the massive numbers of Muslim pilgrims travel on hajj to Mecca, as there were long delays in most flights from Saudi Arabia to Pakistan last week during the Muslim Eid Mubarak holiday. The journal reported that some 100,000 pilgrims were flying out of Jeddah back to major Pakistani cities, including Karachi and Lahore.

*-Albany is one of the many airports, a surprising number of which are in smaller markets, that has started using the full body scanners.

Quote of the Week- Franklin D. Roosevelt

The night is getting late kids, but we thought we'd leave you with this quote from Bill O'Reilly's favorite president (nudge, nudge, wink, wink) Franklin D. Roosevelt:

"A conservative is a man with two perfectly good legs who, however, has learned to walk forward."

The FDR Library in Hyde Park, NY, is currently holding a special exhibit to commemorate the 75th anniversary of social security.

On our other blog, we quipped Ronald Reagan. I remember once in the "Charleston Gazette" (Charleston, SC, newspaper) I saw a "Mallard Filmore" (right-wing comic strip with a duck by Bruce Tinsley) comic strip suggesting that Ronald Reagan replace FDR on the front of our dimes. That was almost enough to make me order a certain menu item from a Chinese restaurant!

Things We Learned From Twitter Today- Pee Wee Herman is Shopping

My personal favorite narcissictic celeb Pee Wee Herman (well, Paris Hilton is a close second) has tweeted that he was shopping in The Big Apple this afternoon:

"Heading to try on some jewels at Jacob the jeweler! 48 e and 57th near madison. Be there in 10 mins!"

It is sort of refreshing to see a famous person who is tottally comfortable providing info that would-be stalkers might find useful over the Internet.

Assuredly, we expect the like of Halle Berry will never let us know such things about herself.