sherlocked - jeremy brett vs. robert downey jr.

i really like robert downey jr. and the new sherlock movies are terrific testaments of hollywood blockbusterism, in most all the ways i like.
however, i can't help but favor alpha-brit jeremy brett in the role.
while the new films have jude law and a major advantage in the area of budget, jeremy brett is taller and so outstandingly british...



plus, brett's low key drug use is kinda cool...



this whole thing brought out a rare childhood memory:
as a small child i told my grandmother that i liked jeremy irons. but i really wasn't familiar with his work, i just thought i liked him because we were both named jeremy. similarly, in that same period, i tried to convince myself and others that i liked diet dr. pepper, but i really didn't. i just liked the can, because at that time, it looked the regular dr. pepper can, except it was blue.


everybody knew i really didn't it, but would still give it to me knowing full well that i wouldn't drink more than a sip or two. 


this memory makes it pretty clear that i have no idea what i'm talking about, and discounts any judgement i might attempt to pass on the subject of sherlock holmes.

assemble / disassemble

putting things together and taking things apart. i'm a big fan of both. these two themes keep popping up lately. 


todd mcclellan:
i've taken many things apart, for many different purposes. it's fun to see all the parts, and it's fun to have a reason to use break out those tools that never really get much use, like those tiny screwdrivers that are usually required when disassembling machines.

however, i've never achieved the level of beauty seen in this series of work by todd mcclellan. for fans of design and tiny parts, this is it.

check out the full set:
http://toddmclellan.com/


thomas thwaites: 
"the toaster project" addresses many larger questions and things about the modern world, but the part i really like is the actual attempt to build a toaster from scratch. 

here's some words someone else wrote about it, and a ted talk video below.




website:
http://www.thomasthwaites.com/the-toaster-project/

the family fang

fiction fiction fiction, say what you will. a lot of folks say it's a great thing for the wintertime. 


since it's appears that wintertime is closing in, i thought i'd bring up this book. "the family fang" by kevin wilson. it's the best piece of fiction i've encountered in ages. 

i feel like i'd be terrible at literary review and have no intention of starting...so i'll just leave it with some stolen words from the author's website, http://www.wilsonkevin.com/:


Mr. and Mrs. Fang called it art. Their children called it mischief. 
 Performance artists Caleb and Camille Fang dedicated themselves to making great art. But when an artist’s work lies in subverting normality, it can be difficult to raise well-adjusted children. Just ask Buster and Annie Fang. For as along as they can remember, they starred (unwillingly) in their parents’ madcap pieces. But now that they are grown up, the chaos of their childhood has made it difficult to cope with life outside the fishbowl of their parents’ strange world.
 When the lives they’ve built come crashing down, brother and sister have nowhere to go but home, where they discover that Caleb and Camille are planning one last performance—their magnum opus—whether the kids agree to participate or not. Soon, ambition breeds conflict, bringing the Fangs to face the difficult decision about what’s ultimately more important: their family or their art.
 Filled with Kevin Wilson’s endless creativity, vibrant prose, sharp humor, and keen sense of the complex performances that unfold in the relationships of people who love one another, The Family Fang is a masterfully executed tale that is as bizarre as it is touching.

this book was delivered to me from mrs. mary steffens, wrapped in a pair of canvas fangs handed out as part of a performance art project called "aliens of the devil". clever and thoughtful, and excitement on my part, as the book was just recently added to my read list. 

perfect timing. a lot of things in this that i needed to read, even a few close to home things, like a detailed bit about an art project almost identical to one that we, (knee shy), had planned. 

and even though i often say that i don't really care for illustrators, the cover art by Julie Morstad is pretty cute, and apparently tattoo-worthy for some...

...it's seems as though nicole kidman has gained the film rights for this...hopefully this doesn't end up giving me a new reason to dislike her.