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I don’t know about you, but I enjoyed the halftime show last week. It was energetic, brightly lit, surprising (all those guest appearances), and it definitely pumped up the mood. Granted, I didn’t expect the vocals to be amazing or the dancing (the Black Eyed Peas aren’t known for their stellar voices or fantastic choreography) and perhaps I was heavily influenced by the people I was watching the show with who felt energized by the pumping music, but call me crazy and I didn’t mind the show as much as most people did, apparently.

The comments on the performance range from displeased to downright caustic, with every analysis and word meant to indicate a sneer and looking down upon at the pop group.  Take this editorial by an LA Times writer who called the Black Eyed Peas’ Halftime Show “pop absurdity at its finest”.  Ouch.

For me, it’s not so much the overall quality of the performance that caught my attention but rather the striking similarity in concept to that found in the 2008 Beijing Olympics.  The use of a large uniform group of people that performs in sync is a concept seen heavily two years ago by the Chinese, not to mention the  similar use of the light suits to create colorful and bright contrasts between the darkly clad BEP and draw attention to the lit elements of the show.

It just goes to show that art can be found everywhere– who would have thought that the world’s biggest sporting event that took place in China could generate subsequent copying and changes in the halftime show for what is now probably America’s greatest pastime event (the Superbowl)?  Did anyone ever imagine that sports would inspire creativity and serve as muses for other artistic endeavors?!  Probably not.  But the halftime show this year was a witness to the fact that art is truly a powerful tool, able to influence the way people think, act, and express themselves.  Even during the Super Bowl.

Today, I finally got to try lab, a coffee, tea, and yogurt shop on E. Liberty. I’m usually more of a tea girl, but I decided to be adventurous and tried a cappuccino. I have to say it was a good choice. It was by far the best cappuccino I’ve ever had  – not too sweet, not too strong, and just the right amount of foam.  To make it all better, the cappuccino was served with a pretty design in the foam, much like that in the image above from lab’s tumblr page.

The atmosphere inside the cafe is very unique. The decorations are mostly white and grey, with some lime green accents, and there is a projector playing silent videos on the wall behind the counter. The baristas are very nice and willing to help customers navigate the menu. The shop has only a few tables and a small bar, so seating is limited, but it gives the place a cozy feel that is very nice.

With midterms coming up, this place is a great option for refueling during a study break.

Flash games are a dime a dozen. They proliferate across the internet, especially if one knows where to look. Some, however, are so well-constructed and intricately designed they are a work of art unto themselves. One such is 6 Differences. Although it has already been online for several years and is by no means new, it is certainly worth a look if you have never seen it before, or a revisit for those who have. Even those who do not usually care for flash games (such as I) might find this one interesting if nothing else. Recall, if you may, those side-by-side nearly identical illustrations one used to find in puzzle books or in the back of the daily paper. As its name suggests, Ivoryboy’s 6 Differences takes this classic and transforms it into something entirely new and worthwhile.

The game holds a strange and distinct atmosphere in a way that is difficult to lay a finger on. It is clear, however, that both visual and aural elements work in concert to create the slightly eerie ambiance that permeates the game. The sets of images appear largely photorealistic, sometimes mixed with vector-style rendering. Each set depicts a cold, empty nighttime scene. Some are urban, some are fantastical, some are industrial, and some look very ordinary but for the darkness, the only light the yellow wash of a street lamp somewhere off to the side. Everything, after all, looks different in the dark. All have a surreal, desolate air to them, some more than others.

Every time the player finds a difference, he or she is rewarded by a clear, piano-like tone that moves progressively up the scale with each subsequent find. One or two of the scenes, however, jolt one out of whatever calm, complacent place into which they have been lulled- the scale suddenly takes a unusual turn, something which, when paired with the surrealism of the image, can be decidedly disconcerting in effect. Another clever feature: however many things the player has left to find, there is an indicator of the number remaining, somewhere. Graphically, everything is almost seamlessly integrated. Animations are also built into the scene, natural regardless of how surreal everything else is. Many of these are meant to be distracting; others, environmental and repetitive, but they all do so well.

None of this, however, would have half the impact it does without the soundtrack, something so subtle one would hardly think to notice it at all. Every scene is backed by a subtle, sparse music that is augmented by the individually insignificant but integral white noise. The harsh caw of a crow. Wind. Crickets and cicadas. The sound of the smooth stream of traffic flowing down the highway a block over, unidentifiable environmental noises. The music consists of a slow, heavy rambling of piano, an electronic beat and faint drone insinuating themselves into the mix of sounds. In fact, the music sounds positively upbeat in comparison to everything else. It turns out the track comes from the Nine Inch Nails’ Ghosts album, an experimental collection filled with other pieces of similarly mesmerizing and eerie quality.

(Click through to play original with larger resolution)

Cooking is my safe haven.  I enjoy washing, dicing, cutting, pealing, sizzling, stirring, baking, and yes of course, eating.  I had a few friends over the other night and I prepared a new dish called Incredible Baked Cauliflower and Broccoli Cannelloni that I found off the cooking channel.  The ‘incredible’ preface is not deceiving.  This dish will make your mouth water and leave you wanting more.  Here’s what you do.

Total Time:                         1 hr 30 min

Prep:                                     20 min

Cook:                                     1 hr 10 min

Yield:                                     4 to 6 servings

Level:                                     Intermediate

Ingredients:

Sea Salt

1 pound broccoli, washed, florets and stalks chopped

1 pound white cauliflower, washed

Olive oil

7 cloves garlic, peeled and finely sliced

1 small bunch fresh thyme, leaves picked

2 cups tomato sauce

2 cups crème fraiche (found at Trader Joe’s)

7 ounces Parmesan, finely grated

16 cannelloni tubes

7 ounces mozzarella cheese

Directions

Preheat the oven to 375 degrees.  Bring a large saucepan of salted water to a boil and drop in the chopped broccoli and cauliflower. Boil for 5 to 6 minutes, until cooked, then drain.

In a new saucepan dribble some olive oil and the garlic.  Stir around for a few minutes before adding the cooked broccoli and cauliflower.  Add a couple tablespoons of water.  Stir everything together and then cook slowly for 15-20 minuets.  Mash up the veggies with a potato masher and season with salt and pepper.

Find a baking sheet and coat the bottom layer with the tomato sauce.  Then to make the white sauce, add the crème fraiche with half the Parmesan, salt and pepper and a little bit of water and stir together.

Fill your cannelloni tubes with the mashed veggies.  Place them on top of the tomato sauce and then add the white sauce over them.  Season with salt and pepper, add the remaining Parmesan and place the mozzarella on top.  Drizzle with olive oil and bake in oven for 30 to 40 minutes.

There you have it!  Enjoy and happy cooking!

Last year, I waited until after the Superbowl to write my blog post, certain that the annually awaited football game would exhibit something worthy of mention, and doing the same this year ended in similar results.  The only problem is, now I have too much that I want to talk about.

I will first start with the commercial that emphasized a city neither near nor dear to many people’s hearts in Michigan: Detroit.  The Chrysler commercial featuring Eminem and our Motor City itself was a poignant message of solidarity and strength, as well as hope for the dying D.  Eminem rides around Detroit in a Chrysler sedan and, after getting out to listen to a church choir belt out a hymn, stares directly at the camera, saying, “This is the Motor City.  This is what we do”.

But, indeed, what do we do, Eminem?  Just this past Friday, I took to the streets of Detroit to enjoy a little Mexican dinner and delight myself in the artistic festivities offered by the Detroit Institute of the Arts (DIA).  I hadn’t been to Detroit in the past few years, and suffice it to say, had hardly ever driven around the city, save for the trips into and out of the DIA.  Memories of those trips coupled with the worn and torn down images of what used to be the thriving city (as seen in its abandoned train station and crumbling facades) led me to develop an image of Detroit that rendered my heart more sad than afraid.

Imagine my surprise when I discovered a whole new side to Detroit after driving down Woodward Avenue to the city’s new center.  Filled with new parks, new stadiums, new high rises, and new casinos, downtown Detroit was ablaze with fire and bustling with people even after ten at night.  Here, the people walked freely in the streets, seemingly unafraid of street violence, shops were filled with customers, and laughter filled the air.  Only minutes earlier had we passed by abandoned buildings covered with graffiti, shops with faded signs and few customers, and nary a person on the street that looked as carefree as those who walked in the security of the lights flashing from the nearby casinos, business buildings, and parking structures.  This was the New Detroit, where only the rich and fabulous can buy tasty baked goods from the thriving bakery and play Blackjack inside a plush casino.  Now, I know that every city has its segregation between the haves and have nots, but honestly, Detroit doesn’t seem to have any real “haves”; many people come from outside of Detroit and few actually live inside the city.

I understand that the commercial strives to present Detroit in a positive light: yes, Detroit is capable of so many things and can offer so many talents and abilities.  And while Detroit may have been to hell and back, I’m not sure if we’re out of hell yet.  There is still so much to be done in the city, so many people to partner with, so many businesses to help grow.  But who is doing the helping?

Watching the advertisement, part of me wondered how or what Eminem or Chrysler had done for the D.  Just how much of the commercial reflects the involved parties’ true attitudes and actions toward the Motor City?  The Detroit represented in the 2-minute clip and the true Detroit that exists in reality seem to be from different worlds.  The commercial captures all the industrialization, urbanization, glitz and glamor of the New Detroit.  Viewed with pictures of the D in decline that portrays Detroit in its beauty and sadness, the ad pales in comparison.

I don’t mean to present the city as being helpless and certainly not hopeless; no, I firmly believe that it is changing and that further change is possible.  I just want to raise the question of what exactly it is that “we do”.  What do Eminem or Chrysler do for Detroit?  What do I do for Detroit?  What do you do for Detroit?

We spend so much time focusing on the orphans in Africa or the poor in Southeast Asia, but we have a city that needs us and is only forty minutes away.  It is my sincere hope that neither the rapper nor the car company will fail to act in this part– that the commercial wasn’t just for show and that they are taking advantage of a city that needs much more than an ad featuring them.  But I really do hope that this will motivate them to take a greater part in renewing the city– not by rebuilding it and making a New Detroit, fit for the high life, but by restructuring it so that those who have had a place in its history will also maintain a place in its future.

Last night I went to see Dancing Americas, a dance production performed by students and faculty from the School of Music, Theatre and Dance. This was my first time going to a show focusing solely on dance, and it was amazing.

The show consisted of four distinct dance segments – each unique and beautiful in its own way. The performance began with a MinEvent that showcased modern dance and eclectic music. The musicians sat in front of the stage, and their instruments included a drill, a candy wrapper, a saw, and a cat statue. The music mixed electronic sounds, fragments of melodies, and sound effects from the various household instruments. When the curtain opened, there were only two dancers dressed in leotards on the stage holding a pose.  As the dance progressed, the number of dancers ranged from just one to a large ensemble.  In the program it said that the choreographer, Merce Cunningham, believed that music and dance “may occur in the same time and space, but should be created independently of one another,” and you could see that philosophy in the dance. The music had no real structure or beat, and the dance had no apparent correlation to the music, but somehow they complemented each other.

The second dance is entitled Towards a Sudden Silence, and was greatly different from the first.  The curtain opened on a group of dancers dressed in bright colors: some sitting on a bench, some standing, and some sitting on the ground. The choreographer, Melissa Beck, was inspired by poems by Marge Piercy, according to the program, and the performance consisted of 4 movements entitled (I) “My worst enemy is encoded in my body,” (II) “Old punishments still smoulder like a tire dump,” (III) “Of the patience called forth by transition,” and (IV) “Core memory.” A song with lyrics about loneliness accompanied part of the dance, and you could feel the idea of loneliness permeating the performance. The movements of each dancer seemed to suggest ideas of longing and fighting the self. This dance was emotionally charged in a way that invited the audience into the performance.

Tango con la Vida was the third performance of the night. Most of the costumes were reminiscent of traditional Spanish dress, and the music had a strongly Latin feel. This performance included some ballroom dance, though most of the performance was more contemporary. One detail that I found particularly lovely was that, at the beginning of the performance, several of the dancers were wearing half masks made from what appeared to be rose petals. As the dance progressed, the dancers slowly removed one petal at a time and dropped them on the stage. In the program the choreographer, Sandra Torijano, said that “Tango con la Vida is a celebration of life,” and that celebration became greatly apparent at the end of the piece. The dance ended with a dancer running up a flight of steps, jumping in the air, and being caught by the rest of the dancers. The energy of that final move really expressed the idea of celebration and joy.

The final dance of the show is called The Summit, and according to the program, the choreographer, Dianne McIntyre, was inspired by a piece of music by Dizzy Gillespie called “Kush,” “in which he recalls that ancient African civilization also known as Nubia.” This dance was quite possibly my favorite of the evening. This performance was more story driven than the others, and it began with one female dancer on stage in a large cape-type costume. The first dancer seemed to serve as some sort of power-figure in the dance’s story. The dance progressed with two groups of dancers, one group dressed in blues the other in shades of brown and red, who were apparently at odds with each other.  The original dancer brought one person from the blue group and one person from the brown group together, and the two groups seemed to cooperate for a while, dancing together, but then the two groups separated again, and the dancing grew correspondingly more hectic, until the original dancer collapsed on the stage, and the two groups had to join together again to revive her. The music for this dance seemed to play a large part in the production.  The band was set up on-stage, and the music was an interesting mix of instrumental jazz, traditional African-inspired melodies, and at the end wordless vocals. The music really complimented the dance and highlighted the emotional complexities of the story.

If you’re curious about the show, you can see pictures from the performance on the School of Music, Theatre and Dance’s website here, or, better yet, go see one of the two remaining performances for yourself at the Power Center this Saturday at 8:00 pm or Sunday at 2:00 pm. Ticket information is also listed on the SMTD’s website here.