Everyone likes a good independent short film, right?
Well, here’s the best I’ve seen in a long time. Alive in Joburg is an interesting piece of work that I could write for hours about attempting to dissect it. Or- you could just watch it for yourself. Awesome film directed by Neill Blomkamp in association with Spy Entertainment.
Gabe Sawhney has mentioned that there will soon be free Wi-Fi access in Dundas Square, Toronto. The volunteers at Wireless Toronto have also brought us Toronto’s largest outdoor hotspot at Dufferin Grove park. Find out where else you can get free access, and how to use the service.
What do John Stewart, Bill Clinton, Ken Burns, Mike Mussina, Bob Dole, and The Indigo Girls all have in common? No- they aren’t all people who hate George Bush. In fact, they are part of the 50,000,000 people who actually enjoy doing the crossword in the newspaper.
Seems hard to believe, I know. But, a new film is trying to show audiences just why these people find it so intriguing filling letters into boxes. According to the Director, the movie is an attempt to, “show this world to people who aren’t crossword people and try to explain to them why it’s so fun, and why it pulls you in every single day.”
This quirky film will focus on anything from specific celebrities (Mussina, anyone?) to the difference between pens and pencils. According to the official website, however, the film mainly focuses on the man most associated with crossword puzzles, Master Will Shortz.
Now, I’ve always been more of a Sudoku fan myself- but this film might just change my mind.
Don’t you just love misleading pictures?
It’s all about the hearing these days. I remember those crazy sound-tests when I was a little kid. They put these enormous headphones on you, and told you to raise your hand whenever you heard something. Fun at first- but simply annoying after listening to high-pitched frequencies for a full ten minutes. I remember going back to class with the ringing still in my ears.
Little did I know that I was hearing frequencies most adults probably could not of. According to research, children and young teenagers can hear higher frequencies then adults. Well, a shopkeeper in Wiltshire, England has decided to utilize this information. The man developed a mosquito-type noise that plays outside of his shop to keep away troublemakers. Apparently, the noise is unbearably annoying for anyone under the age of 25. You can even try listening to the soundwave yourself.
(Something to note about the BBC article above: The caption on the picture of the mosquito reads, “A Mosquito, yesterday”. Whatever happened to pictures actually relating to the articles?)
Anyways, someone who noticed this article decided to create a sample of different frequencies to test their own hearing. Test it on their website for yourself. See how high up you can get before you can’t hear anything at all! The highest I can hear is 17,000 Hz- and I challenge you to beat it.
(Note: Try this around animals for extra fun :D)
The Toronto Star has a feature from the set of Saw 3, which is currently filming in Toronto. “We’re gonna push the envelope as far as we can this time.”
After debating, a fake press conference, and numerous speeches, Desmond Cole ended up winning the Downtow-East City Idol finals, and will be running in Ward 20 for the elections this fall. Confused mainstream coverage on 680 News.
I went to round 2 of the City Idol competition last night at Kathedral at the corner of Queen and Bathurst. 24 of the 26 candidates made it out, and each was given the opportunity to give an 60 second opening speech, a 20 second prepared answer (on the subject of public engagement), 3 impromptu questions collected from the audience, and a closing speech.
Dave Meslin MC’d the slightly ad-hoc event over the rumbling from the passing streetcars with only a slight mix-up with the candidate ordering. Many of the candidates were running for Wards 19 and 20, and the issues talked about reflected mainly downtown-related issues.
The crowd was on the progressive side, with supporters of Bicycle lanes, public transit, gender issues, pedestrian days and safe drug use centres. Ryan Hayes suggested the idea of a city forum, similar to the one set up in London. Paul Harrison took an idea from a town in Brazil and suggested giving points for recycling that could be redeemed for free or discounted rides on transit. Adam Clare just wanted to make everyone feel warm and fuzzy that things were good. HiMY SYeD suggested Toronto introduce its own currency, to empower local businesses and organizations. Ari Goldkind wanted to introduce short-term accountability measures, including kicking out councillors that do not live up to their election promises. A couple of Kennsginton-area candidates dropped out to pool their support behind Michael Louis Johnson, who spoke at length about the crisis of air, energy and water.
There were lots of shouters, and a few dramatics, but by around 11, 6 people moved on to the final round, which happens tonight at the Lula Lounge at 8 pm. This includes my friend, Desmond Cole.
The AGO is presenting an interesting exhibit starting on July 1 titled, “In Your Face”. They are going to attempt to break a record for the largest collection of portraits. To help, the general public is invited to submit portraits, and they will be incorporated into the exhibit.
To enter, you can mail it in along with the form provided on their website, or visit in person to make your contribution, where they will be offering demonstrations by artists. Entries will be accepted until December, so try dropping by sometime this summer.
As always, general admission is free on Wednesday starting at 6.
