Snog-A-Thon in London

Kiss-In Protest April 15, 2011, in London U.K. The protest took place after two gay men, Jonathan Williams and James Bull, were asked to leave the John Snow pub in gay district Soho - for kissing. (I first saw this on J.M.G.)

We should´ve been there Apmel, my bosom buddy! We could have shown them a trick or two, dontcha think?

Ughhh I just remembered you´re one of those heterosexicals... or whatever they are called.

What Makes A Good DJ?

Bock looking at Ars

I have spent most of my second life hanging around with - and surrounded by - some of the best DJ´s in SecondLife; Ars, Andrey, Sarco, Harley, Martial, Yannis, Zno and the rest of the Sarco Sound (link not active) crew and many of their DJ friends.

Over the last year I have mainly stayed in the Swedish clubs in SecondLife and there are some good DJ´s here too, the first names that pop up in my head are Frost, Lucien and sirhc, at Erotes I enjoy the music of Butch Diavolo and Arc - but I am not making a list so if you don´t find your name here don´t be sad.

My Ars used to say "Everyone thinks they are a DJ in SecondLife" by which he meant that playing records isn't all there is to it. Now first listen to what a real DJ can do, just lean back and enjoy. This remix was made by DJ Markus Schulz.



I found this summary on What Makes A Good Club DJ? by ElGringoSalsero;

Each year, DJ Magazine publishes its list of the top 100 DJ's based upon public votes. I would consider the top ten identified DJ's to be reliable experts on what it takes to be a good DJ. Here's what they have to say on the subject: 

#1 Armin Van Buuren - "Timing and character."
#2 Tiësto - "A great DJ can adjust to the crowd, make them go crazy but still be able to do his own thing."
#3 David Guetta - "A great crowd."
#4 Above & Beyond - "Good taste in music, an open mind and experience."
#5 Paul Van Dyk - "The confidence of knowing what your own sound is. And not being a snobby ass and playing for yourself."
#6 Deadmau5 - "Their taste in music. It's a little bit of technical know-how, but 90% of it is the music you play."
#7 Ferry Corsten - "Knowing how to entertain the crowd. You're not there to educate. You should present new music without forcing it down people's throats." 
#8 Markus Schulz - "Unique style and understanding of the momentum in the room."
#9 Gareth Emery - "Knowing the crowd is a fundamental requirement and looking like you're enjoying it."
#10 Sander Van Doorn - "A lot of interaction with the crowd. Playing a set is about educating on one hand, but also playing music that the people are there for."

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My own two cents on this subject, from my perspective as part of the crowd:
1. Be prepared, for Gods sake plan your set! Adapt the music you choose to the event that is planned and the crowd you expect to be there. Always make sure you have enough music to go overtime if something should happen that requires it and enough to adapt your set if it should be needed.
2. Be aware of the crowd and work with it (it´s not a wanking session after all). Being arrogant and snotty is a definite no-no, you are there to entertain not to be a condescending s.o.b. This also means do not badmouth any other DJ´s, words spread.
3. By all means take requests if you wish to do so. It isn't necessary to play the requests straight away. play it later if it fits better there and if it doesn't fit tell them.
4. If you don´t have charisma or a personality don´t bother!
5. Most important of all be true to yourself; If you don´t like the music, don´t play it!

The technical stuff can all be learned as you go along.

Bock Gets Banned

This blog was today informed by a friendly reader that The Much Honored Bock McMillan, Laird of Southern Charm and CEO of the BMcM Corporation has - for the first time ever - been banned from a sim in SecondLife (see picture).

When the blog contacted the McMillan household for a comment on this surprising news Mr. Wild Zepp, spokesman for the clan McMillan, gave the following statement:

"Laird McMillan is proud and honored to receive such singular attention from a minor shopkeeper and club owner in SecondLife, especially since neither he or his family have any intentions of ever visiting that particular avatars establishments for reasons which he choses not to elaborate on. The Laird however extends his regrets to all other shop owners on that sim that he and his household cannot grace them with their business."

And the Winner is Comus

Thank you, Comus Sideways, you nailed the Japanese film despite the fact that I remembered some things totally wrong! Noodle soup /ramen) not sushi and it was the womans dream not the mans.

Please enjoy this trailer of Juzo Itami´s wonderful film Tampopo (1986)!



I would have gone totally crazy (well some say I am already, but don´t you believe them) thinking about which film this was, now I can try to buy it and watch it over and over and over again...

Urulaikizhangu Roast

I was asked by one of my readers to provide him with some roots porn, I will comply to his wishes but in my own singular way.

Feast your eyes on this dish and then cook it and have another feast eating it.

I found the recipe and the picture on the blog Chitra Amma's Kitchen. She provides a variety of delicious,traditional, vegetarian, South Indian recipes.

INGREDIENTS:
Baby potatoes – 1kg
Salt – 3/4 tbsp
Sambar powder – 1 tbsp
Mustard seeds – ¼ tsp
Split black gram dal (urad dal) – 1 tsp
Turmeric powder – ¼ tsp
Curry leaves – a few
Cooking oil – 4 tbsp 

METHOD:
1. Wash the baby potatoes well. Take some water in a pressure cooker. Take the potatoes in a separate vessel, and place the vessel in the pressure cooker, over the water. Avoid adding water directly along with the potatoes. Cook for one whistle on High Flame, and one on Medium Flame, and then switch off the cooker.
2. Thoroughly cool and then peel the potatoes, one by one, taking care not to mash them up.
3. Leave it in the fridge for half an hour until they cool down and become a bit firm.
4. Heat oil in a thick bottomed pan and add mustard seeds.
5. When it splutters add the black gram dal.
6. When the dal turns golden in colour, reduce the flame.
7. Add curry leaves, turmeric powder, sambar powder and the salt.
8. Now drop in the cold potatoes and gently turn them around with a spatula, until they are entirely coated with the oil and spices.
9. Increase flame and stir for a few more minutes.
10. Now again decrease flame and let the potatoes get roasted slowly.
11. Roast until they acquire the desired crispness (about 40 minutes). Stir now and then for even roasting and to prevent the potatoes from getting burnt.

Relish the urulaikizhangu roast while still hot and sizzling. Crispy spicy crunchy on the outside and soft on the inside - it is sure to take you to soaring heights!

Variation: These can be made with regular potatoes as well, by chopping them into small pieces. They need not even be pressure cooked, and you can simply begin with Step 4. This takes longer to get cooked and roasted, but tastes wonderful.

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Writing this post made me think of a wonderful Japanese film I saw only once, maybe 15-20 years ago, I don´t remember it´s name or who the director is and the actors were all unknown to me.

The film shows us two parallel stories. The main story - as I remember it - is about a mature woman who lives alone with her son. The woman meets, falls in love with a man and eventually they become a loving family. The man has a dream to get his own sushi stand or restaurant and during the course of the film the mans dream is realized. The second story is about a beautiful young couple who both turn out to be members of a Japanese  criminal gang, the woman is the mistress of the gang leader, Every time we see them they are having passionate food sex in every imaginable way without being pornographic. I especially remember a scene where they kiss and while kissing pass an egg yoke from one to the other, back and forth, until they finally crush it between their lips and the yoke splashes down their chins and necks. In the end they are both (or perhaps it is only the young man) killed by the gang leader who has discovered the illicit love affair.

If anyone recognizes the film from my description and knows the name and the director I will be very grateful if you told me.

The Gay Caveman

Archaeologists in the Czech Republic have found what they believe to be a "gay" caveman near Prague. The reasons for this theory is that the 5000 year old skeleton of a male was found buried in a way normally reserved for women during the Copper Age (around 2900-2500 BC.).

This male skeleton was buried facing east and surrounded by jars, instead of facing west and surrounded by hammers, knifes and other weapons which was the customary way to bury men.

Archaeologist Kamila Remisova Vesinova said, according to Time.com, "From history and ethnology, we know that people from this period took funeral rites very seriously. so it is unlikely that the positioning was a mistake.  It is much more likely that he was a man of a different sexual orientation, that he was gay or transsexual."

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Reading this story I was struck by two things.Firstly that the cavemen seem to have been more accepting and respectful than some of my contemporaries, and secondly by the narrow-mindedness of the archaeologist in believing that being a gay male means you are something in-between a man and a woman or even that you are more of a woman than a man.

I wonder what Ms. Remisova Vesinova would have made of "The Sacred Band of Thebes", which was a troop of picked soldiers, consisting of 150 gay male couples that formed the elite force of the Theban army in the 4th century BC.

The Sacred Band was originally formed of hand-picked men who were couples, each lover and beloved selected from the ranks of the existing Theban citizen-army, the rationale being that lovers could and would fight more fiercely and cohesively than strangers with no ardent bonds.

As a gay man myself it is totally horrendous being told that I am somewhere in-between because I sure as hell am not. I am a masculine man who falls in love and am emotionally and sexually attracted to other men who also are masculine men. Neither of us ever fall in the category of being in-between.

To me it is quite obvious that the caveperson was a transsexual, but there is not enough basis to draw any conclusions concerning her sexual orientation.

Playing with Fruit

Well, while trying to stay out of SecondLife today, I got obsessed with fruits and found a new favorite website copyranter - you will find it in my blog roll.

I started thinking about the by now very famous banana penis picture and one thing leads to the another - especially when surfing on the Internet.

My mother always told me not to play with my food. Perhaps the "fruit artists" mothers should have told them the same thing about fruits. I am not yet sure if I will be able to eat strawberries or raspberries in the near future.