Today's wanderings (walking an hour to my destination instead of taking the Metro). A thread ...
Bangkok canal cats
Whatchu lookin at?
Beautiful walk along the canal. It's publicly accessible and you often see moto-taxis driving along the narrow walkway, but you're also essentially walking through peoples' backyards which they've thoughtfully adorned with all sorts of beautiful plants.
Canal alley cat. Looks like a wise old blind sage!
Exposed pipes and wires. The veins of the city.
Exposed roots of a tree growing over the concrete and reaching into the canal for a drink.
Absolute highlight of my walk. Saw an Asian Water Monitor (Varanus Salvator) climb up out of the water, up the roots and continue along its way into someone's backyard. My camera could not react fast enough to catch it on the roots, but the image is seared into my brain!
You could be just a block away and never know that there's a whole community built around this canal. That's how huge Bangkok is.
Dead tree over drainage. You can see where the roots used to reach into the water.
Sometimes a texture map is enough. You don't have to model every little bit of the environment, especially if it's not meant to be accessible to the player in the first place.
Lunch at "Florida Restaurant." This place is a hidden gem. Some of the best ribs in all of Thailand. The recipe was passed down from 100 years ago. Originally American style wet ribs, but adapted to local tastes. Fusion food at its finest--naturally evolved over time!
This was absolutely worth the hour long walk.
Actually the walk itself was its own reward. I'm so thankful to be able to go about safely in such a beautiful city.
Side note: it would have taken me 40 minutes via metro to get to my lunch meeting so I opted for the hour long walk instead. I highly recommend making this kind of trade off whenever it's convenient/possible for you. Walking is really good for you!
I know not everyone has the luxury of being able to insert a nice hour long walk into their day. I'm very grateful to be able to do any of this. If you're reading this, I hope you have a good day too ✌️✨
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🧵The Western take on Yoshitoshi is that he was a tragic figure waging a lone war against industrialization and modernization. A war that he lost and thus the traditions he championed died with him. It's a romantic notion that also satisfies tons of biases.
🧵But it's so far from the truth. Yes Ukyo-e fell out of favor for more modern methods of reproduction like photography. But it never died out. For instance there was the Shin-hanga (新版画) movement of the early 20th Century, whose purpose was to keep Ukyo-e alive and evolve it.
1. Manga has been more popular than Marvel or DC comics in the west for decades now
2. Marvel & DC =/= All American comics. Dog Man is one of the best selling books (not just comics) in the US. Americans definitely still enjoy reading American comics!
In fact, there have been times where Dog Man has been the #1 best selling book in the US overall!
Dog-Man is the most popular comic in America, outselling any manga. But for some reason it's not really considered a comic by most, i guess cos it's for kids? Where are the articles about how Dav Pilkey is a threat to Superhero comics lol
Listening to this nice piece on the film "Living" and how the author, British novelist Kazuo Ishiguro was inspired by the Akira Kurosawa film "Ikiru," an internationally beloved classic whose title means "To Live." npr.org/2023/03/06/116…
The piece drops the ball at the end tho, when the narrator says that the film "is not just a remake" and they have a Brit critic that goes "'Ikiru,' by Kurosawa, seems to be a film about Japan, 'Living,' by Ishiguro and his colleagues. seems to me a film about humanity"
Like WTF
What does that mean? Ikiru has been widely regarded as one of the "great films" internationally for decades. It's obviously very universal in its appeal. How is it that "Ikiru" being set in Japan makes it "about Japan" but "Living", being set in the UK, makes it "about humanity"?
Sometimes I think about when Hail To The Thief dropped & this one music critic called it pretentious pap saying Thom Yorke simply screams the words "PENETRATION" over and over in 2+2=5. But the actual lyrics are "we are not even PAYING ATTENTION" lol
Oh man this album rules. It brings back so many TERRIBLE MEMORIES lol. But in a good way!
I think There There is one of Radiohead's best singles. Such a rich, downbeat, groovy, anxious sound. And what a perfect message for the times. "Just cos you feel it, doesn't mean it's there." Tough pill to swallow. But sometimes you really need to hear it
I'm overdo for a food post! I hit up some nice places in Chiang Mai recently. #ArtEaterEats
Dirty Mocha from ... Google Maps has them listed as "Cutlater Cafe" but I could swear they had a Japanese sounding name. Probably rebranded without updating google. Anyhow it was a very good cup of coffee and a beautiful cafe! #ArtEaterEats
In addition to great coffee this place specializes in wagashi, traditional Japanese sweets, which go perfectly with a hot drink (really I should have just gotten an Americano or cappuccino instead of a sweet drink to go with these!)