crucial

I was in a bar a few weeks back, drunk, talking to some people and listening to this girl tell us about growing up in East Germany. Just to paint a picture: she was very attractive, blond, very lively and also a bit drunk. She mentioned the dolls that they used to have, an Eastern German version of the Barbie Doll and I accidentally joked something like "were the dolls named Helga ?" — she slapped me. Lightly, but to ...

I never get tired of watching this. No-one is sure of what to do tonight here in Berlin. I suppose just wander around and look for random and true emotion.  The planned actions seem too planned, though I will drop by the mauer-mob project. What might happen if we riot against the banks:   One more crowd pleaser, this from Goodbye Lenin. The mother has been in a coma and missed the fall of the wall and re-unification. Under doctor's ...

Achtung Taxifahrers ! Radio - that thing that you hear when you are in the taxi. I'll be playing on it on the newly set up Herbstradio UKW-Frequenz 99,1 MHz this Friday night in Berlin. You can also listen online: http://www.herbstradio.org/ On Thursday, no wait ... right now ! 1 AM Thurs Sept 17 : they are playing Rupture's excellent Mudd Up! show (originally broadcast on WFMU), DJ Zhao at 3 am, Awesome Tapes from Africa at 4, Hakim Bay ...

Berlin TV tower - lift off from Fabian Tischer on Vimeo.

My NY fam here being interviewed for XLR8R:

In case you all hadn't noticed, the world is falling apart. I posted here back on September 11th, 2007 that the finance world was going to fall apart. http://crucial-systems.com/For_those_of_you_that_dont_pay_attention_to_the_world_of_finance The reason I fled New York was that I could see quite clearly that the wheels were going to come off that wagon and the US may very well collapse into chaos. Alarmist, yes. That's what alarms are for. The solid truth is that the financial markets always precede the real ...

This is the green card that they give foreigners when they land in the Great US of A: Do you have a communicable disease; physical or mental disorder; or are you a drug abuser or addict ? (Well that eliminates half the planet right there) Have you ever been arrested or convicted for an offense or crime involving moral turpitude or a violation related to a controlled substance; ... or are you seeking entry go engage in criminal or immoral ...

For some reason all the cool people are hating on the new Will Smith vehicle. People who haven't even seen it declare that they don't like it. I liked it. So there. As a former New Yorker its awesome to see New York totally devoid of people. I'm not quite sure where the lions come from. Any movie that features the near total extinction of mankind is usually somewhat enjoyable. You get to see Will scrunch his face up and ...

POV video from STS-124.  No film director or composer could make anything this epic. Even Stanley Kubrick would tone it down or try to resolve it to edits and angles. The adrenaline builds, and at 2 minutes your mind beings to blow. The ending is truly beautiful, don't miss it. A camera gets lost in Aruba on November 11, 2009. A turtle finds it on January 15, 2010, films this refreshing shoegazer video and becomes a YouTube celebrity. The camera ...

Google Trends "dubstep"   But soon the vuvuzela will be forgotten about, right ?

From Jozi and Cape Town, South Africa 2010 Lloyd is from Zimbabwe and lives and works in George, SA.  Every 3 months he goes home.  His wife works in the US embassy and might go to India next year.  He's trying to build his house, brick by brick, so eventually when he moves back he'll have some place to retire in. We chatted a bunch during the night bus.  Lloyd is from Zimbabwe and lives and works in George, SA. ...

I must admit that while I walked across the bridge to Zimbabwe Bob Marley started playing in my head. Sunny, windy, I'm smiling to myself. But they wouldn't let me in because the visa sticker is too big for the remaining space in my passport. I walked back to Zambia; they wouldn't let me in unless Zim stamped a denial. Back to Zim. Self-important immigration guy is on break, lady wants to gossip with friends and not listen to confusing ...