Thums Up!
Man, I could really go for a rum & thums up:
Thums Up is a betel nutty cola drink from India. Apparently, it's perceived as a "macho drink." I wonder if they sell it anywhere in Albuquerque. It's doubtful, but possible. When I first moved here, I went to the only Indian grocery I could find to stock up on spices. I ended up chatting with the owner and he told me that his was indeed the only Indian shop in the city. "Because I am the only Indian in this town!" he cried. While he was obviously just being dramatic (and hilarious), there are only about 3700 Indian Americans in the whole state of New Mexico.
The advertisement is from this gallery of vintage ads from India.
2009-03-20 15:17:30 UTC
The Terrfiying Secret of Youth: Part 2
Want to know the secret of eternal youth?
Don't worry, it's not baby horsies! Just horse placentas! And thanks to the good folks behind Placenta-Pro 30,000, you don't have to procure your own horse placentas! You can buy it in delicious soft drink form. That's right. Sit back and enjoy a cool, refreshing glass of afterbirth soda! It's made from "100% undiluted horse-origin placenta," so it's extra horsey. This ain't no horse placenta from concentrate-- it's freshly squeezed! Nor is it loaded with artificial flavors and sweeteners. Now if the idea of drinking pure horse afterbirth is tickling your gag reflex, rest assured that the company has "carefully formulat[ed] the reduction of placenta smell, the greatest obstacle, as closely to zero as possible." See? Totally not gross! It's got all the great equine placenta benefits with almost none of the disgusting odor!
And don't even think about trying those other, inferior placenta products. Did you know that horse placenta soda contains 300 times the amount of amino acids found in pig placenta drinks? And these are no ordinary horses. They're happy horses that frolic freely in the alpine meadows of the Kyrgyz Republic, until someone comes along and harvests their placentas.
It's still not as effective as baby foreskins though. Please refer to The Terrifying Secret of Youth: Part 1.
I think I'll just stick with Pearl Cream.
2009-03-19 17:34:55 UTC
MarÃa Daniela y Su Sonido Lasser
MarÃa Daniela y Su Sonido Lasser is an electro pop band from Mexico City. They're one of the most popular bands on the excellent Nuevos Ricos (New Rich) label. Nuevos Ricos is based in Mexico City and while the bands vary from techno to pop to punk, they all tend to focus on creative, high energy performances and embrace irony and kitsch. I kinda think of the Nuevos Ricos bands as musical versions of Tim & Eric's comedy, but in Spanish. In other words, they are awesome.
MarÃa Daniela and one of her favorite hand gestures
MarÃa Daniela y Su Sonido Lasser consists of Emilio Acevedo and MarÃa Daniela Azpiazu. Their cheesy techno pop is super catchy and their videos are a blast.
- Pobre Estupida
- Chicle de Menta
- Miedo
- Duri Duri
I love how MarÃa Daniela dances. She repeats her signature moves like she's performing mini-routines.
This is my absolute favorite. It's very funny, especially when the gum-chewing biker starts dancing at 0:50. I also love the goofy synchronized aerobicizing.
Screengrab from the retro videogame-inspired "Chicle de Menta" video
This video makes me want to roller skate. It also makes me wish I had a suitcase filled with tiaras!
This is a video of a television performance. The song is so retarded and fun.
"Duri Duri" is actually a cover that was originally recorded by the fantastically cheesy 80s Mexican band, Click. Click was one of those girl groups in which none of the members actually played any instruments. They all had incredibly big hair and performed hilarious synchronized dance routines. This is simply a must-see concert performance of Duri Duri (Baila Baila) by Click. The blonde's spastic head swinging cracks me up. I think MarÃa Daniela has definitely been inspired by them. I know I will forever be inspired by them.
Stay tuned for more Nuevos Ricos bands.
2009-03-18 14:50:40 UTC
Jemez Mountains
My parents came for a visit this weekend, hence the posting lull. We took them out to Jemez, or more accurately, had them drive us out to Jemez. It's so beautiful out there. I would never let anyone leave Albuquerque without spending a day there.
The drive through the deep red mountains is spectacular and there are interesting sights all along the route.
The road never strays too far from the Jemez River, so wherever you pull over it's just a short hike to the river (which eventually falls 15 feet through the bizarrely gorgeous Soda Dam).
This time we also checked out the Jemez State Monument, which preserves a crumbling 17th century Spanish mission built from the surrounding rose-colored rock. You can wander unrestricted through the mission and look out at the surrounding forest through the main entryway and windows.
2009-03-16 18:03:40 UTC
My Favorite Castelbajac Piece
Check out this trench coat:
And the close-up:
It's an amazing color and it has cats on it.
See the rest of the Castelbajac 2009 Fall collection here.
2009-03-12 16:00:53 UTC