Playbill & TheaterMania

Tonight is the first night of rehearsals for Eye of God with Theatre East. Check out the write-ups in:



and



Also check out Recession This! to figure out which Metrocard to buy.

Pulp Fiction

Found Thomas Allen's online gallery thanks to Very Short List. I think this one is my favorite:Also check out today's Recession This!

A Walkable NYC = A Liveable NYC

This past weekend I stopped by the Earth Day Green Festival at Grand Central and picked up a brochure about vision42 - a plan to replace traffic all along 42nd Street with pedestrian zones and light rail transit.

This sounds a little bit like Bloomberg's plans for Broadway (read about those here and here).

Granted, I no longer own a car, so I may be biased towards pedestrian-centric city planning, but the thing is: it works. According to this article, "...when planners in Seoul tore down a six-lane highway a few years ago and replaced it with a five-mile-long park, many transportation professionals were surprised to learn that the city’s traffic flow had actually improved, instead of worsening." [via VeryShortList]

Sign the petition for vision42 here.

For more about this kind of stuff, check out these articles from GOOD magazine's latest traffic-centric issue:

• How to overcome the haters of congestion pricing
• Bogotá has the world's modernest bus system
• Learn how to do your own street redesign

And check out today's Recession This!

[Photo by Randy Levine]

Free Earth Day Book at Grist.org

Check out this free book download from Grist.org. Register with Grist for free and get tips on how to live green every day.

Not only will you get the free e-book, but you will also be registered for a free trip to Bonnaroo '09!

And check out Recession This!

[Photo by SouthernPixel]

Periodic Table

Though a geek, I am not enough of a science nerd to know much 'bout chemistry. And yet, the Periodic Table of Elements holds a vague fascination for me. A while ago I came across this series of videos that show what each element does, via science experiments performed by people who sound like Monty Python and have hair like Phil Spector. Although I would like to do the experiments myself, I am A) too lazy and B) reluctant to destroy my kitchen, so these will have to do.

Check out the Gallium Beating Heart. And also check out these WNYC Radiolab shows (this one and I think this one too) that feature the Periodic Table.

[Photo by denn]

For other non-chemical Periodic Tables, check out Mental Floss. And check out today's Recession This!

Turning Out the Lights

I actually saw a Mythbusters episode* about this a while back, but now here is Concrete Proof from the Internet: It is almost always better to turn out the lights when you leave the room. "Start-up" energy surges are not that huge, certainly not enough to justify leaving the lights on. There are differences between traditional incandescents, fluorescents, and compact fluorescents; read the full skinny here.

As always: don't forget to check out Recession This!

*for the record, I am not as huge a fan of the show as my pal, Kmack.
[Photo by Jago Pauwels]

Gimme 5 (Recycling's a Pain)

In New York City, the only plastics they recycle are #1 and #2. The rest = landfill. Recycling's a pain. I realize this. Ideally, municipalities would make it easier to recycle, so you could throw your soda can or water bottle* in the trash and it would end up recycled**, not in a landfill.

There is an alternative: Gimme 5, from the folks at Preserve.

Granted, you still have to collect your #5 plastics and bring them somewhere else (in this instance, Whole Foods), but at least you won't have that stomach-turning feeling when you throw a #5 yogurt container in the trash. You can also recycle the Brita filters you are using to filter the water you're pouring into your reusable bottles (see below).

More tips for hard-to-recycle items coming soon!

* Actually, I would recommend not drinking bottled water in the first place - it's a scam! Get yourself a reusable bottle from Sigg or Klean Kanteen. If you have multiples, you can fill them in advance, leave them in your fridge, and save yourself some money on your energy bill (not to mention the money you are saving on bottled water).

** I also realize that very few things are actually recycled, but rather are only downcycled: that #1 Poland Spring bottle doesn't become a new water bottle, it becomes some weird carpet or parking lot barrier. It's still going to end up in the landfill eventually, leaching toxins into the ground and water table. Ironic, isn't it? how the bottle of water you drink today because it's "pure" will poison your water tomorrow?
[Landfill photo by D'Arcy Norman]

Vulcha Watch

Check out today's Recession This! for the Vulture Alert.

[Photo by Lip Kee]

Spent

Dude, it was all I could do to post to Recession This! So you'll have to check that out.

And check out my updated website.

Phonoharps + Koto

Saw this article about Walter Kitundu in the January/February issue of the Utne Reader.
This guy takes turntables and incorporates them into stringed instruments of all stripes.
Check it out on San Francisco Public Television via YouTube:


At about 5:24 he plays something that looks like a koto. I first heard the koto in my student days at Augustana College. Jeff Wichmann was a senior my freshman year, and he still plays it and the trumpet combined with loads of other instruments; check out his MySpace page.

Also check out today's Recession This!

One Hit Wonders of Sundance

Being an actor, I thought it might be a good idea to keep an eye on the new prodigies coming out of this year's Sundance Film Festival.

Then I got an e-mail from Sundance listing the 25 Top Directors Who Haven't Done Anything Since They Were All That in Park City (or something like that).

On the one hand, this justifies any laziness on my part; on the other, it's a little saddening.

Also: don't forget to check out Recession This!

Photo by Pedrojperez via Morguefile.com

Yes He Could, Even Then

President Obama is foregoing the brush-clearing in Crawford, TX and instead heading right into the brush-clearing in Washington, DC. My sister made me aware of these college photos of student Obama. [via Time]

Also, check out yesterday's Recession This! blog post.
Photo by kakisky [via Morguefile]

Golden Global Tacos

The wife and I had some of the Urban Tribe - Queens contingent over for Taco Night and to watch the Golden Globes. It was actually more entertaining than I had expected, especially Ricky Gervais. I am not a slobbering RG fan, but his impromptu bit as a presenter was pretty hilarious. The only video I could find is kinda crappy and does not include the whole bit, but it gives a taste:


[thanks to Tim N. for pointing out the old video was down]

Also, check out Recession This! to learn how to get the latest book from Suze Orman for free.