With the writer’s strike in the US, television has quickly deteriorated as all the networks switch to an overdose of reality-TV shows. But here’s one I wouldn’t mind watching. It’s hands-down the most insane game show you’ll ever read about.
Set in Moscow (where else), the show is essentially a real-life version of Grand Theft Auto, the video game in which you’re a professional carjacker. In the television version, contestants have a chance to win an actual car. The catch is they have to outrun the police for more than 35 minutes in a live car chase. There’s also another catch–the police have a GPS tracker on your stolen car. And did I mention that they think you stole the car?
It was huge in Russia before getting nixed, garnering twice the number of fans as American Idol on its most successful night. And why not. Did I already say that the episodes sound ridiculous? For instance, in one, an ingenious thief drives his car onto a moving train and in another, the thief drives it onto a raft which floats into the middle of a lake.
For other insane game shows from around the world, check this out.
If you’re looking for a show to see on Broadway, why not pick one that won’t be there after June 1? “Rent” is closing after a 12-year-run. [via New York Times] This has me thinking that perhaps I ought to head to NYC to see it once more myself. I saw this show several years ago when the Broadway touring company was in Columbus. I can vouch that there’s not another show out there with so much heart.
For anyone who has struggled to find ones place in the world, make a difference, and be heard, you’ll relate. Even if you know someone like that, you’ll relate. The musical, based on Puccini’s opera “La Bohème” was written as a partial response to the AIDS crisis, as well as the gentrification of many New York City neighborhoods.
Since the mid-1980s there are neighborhoods in NYC, once affordable and a bit edgy, that have become more and more boutique drenched with nifty little eateries only middle class folks and those with deeper pockets can afford. My brother’s neighborhood near Mark’s Place is one of them. One of my favorite restaurants, Rectangles once served a wonderful Middle Eastern appetizer plate, but it closed because of not being able to afford the rent anymore. This was only two or three years ago, but it was affected by the change.
Some critics wonder if “Rent’s” message has passed, similar to the criticism of the musical “Hair” that made a small comeback this past year (I know of two productions.) Personally, I don’t think so. Regardless, the lyrics and music are absolutely wonderful. Now that it’s closing, this opens up the possibility of more regional theaters staging a production. Already the song “Seasons of Love” has made it into school choir concerts.
I think the story remains pertinent. There are always people who struggle, make friendships, get disappointed, feel hope and looking for fantastic lyrics to sing their heart out (at least to themselves.) In “Rent’s” case, the singing–boisterous, often joyful, and mostly hopeful–comes in the type of songs that you’ll actually remember once the curtain has gone down and you are back in your own life searching for your “one song” that lets you know that you’ve made a difference. Here’s a You Tube video that includes “One Song Glory.” Switch the in the word “post” for “song” and there is the blogger’s version. I always keep my guitar on hand.
The world’s largest snow globe wouldn’t fit in a carry-on bag even if TSA said you could hand carry-it on a plane. This globe hails from Ontario, Canada. This past December it made its appearance in New York City’s Bryant Park. I became obsessed with finding its subsequent appearances. Who wouldn’t? It’s big enough for people to fit inside thus turning its winter scene to life. What a great concept. This globe is marketing genius.
Considering that I merely came across its picture in regards to an event that already passed–and that compelled me to go on a personal hunt, indicates the power of the largest snow globe in the world.
The quest led me to the WinterinOntario.com Web site that highlights Ontario’s winter wonders. This is exactly what the creators imagined. Created as a promotional tool for Ontario Travel, the snow globe is still on its advertising circuit. These are the places and dates where you can find an Ontario Snow Globe event. [via Gothamist]
January 18-20, 2008 – Winterfest in Hamilton January 26-27, 2008 – Niagara Falls during the Niagara Ice Wine Festival February 2-4, 2008 – Bon Soo Carnival in Sault Ste. Marie February 9-10, 2008 – WinterWorld in Mississauga February 22-24, 2008 – IceFest in Toronto’s Bloor-Yorkville area
I would never have imagined that the glitz of India would want to leave their mansions and Mercedes to ride in bullock carts, milk cows, feed chickens, bathe in ponds, play traditional village games and fly kites.
Apparently there’s a potential market of 25 million middle class Indians who may be willing to do so. This desire is being catered to by a “native village” built in Hessargatta, just outside Bangalore in southern India, where you pay US$150 a night for the experience to live traditionally like peasants in rural India. Indians who take such trips want to reconnect with their culture and live a life they don’t know of but have heard of from their parents and grandparents.
In most real Indian villages, people live in harsh environments with less than a dollar a day; the irony is that the wealthy are paying a comparatively exorbitant price to get a taste of the “cultural” part of that life.
I’m undecided whether I should be happy that rich Indians — who know not much more than AC cars and shopping malls — want to get grounded and cultured by experiencing the simple life of 750 million poor Indians; or upset because instead of them spending a modest holiday in some real, poor village that will genuinely benefit from their money, they choose to pay a ridiculous price to live in an artificially recreated rural village.
The brain-child of the CommonCensus Map Project, the map to the right shows some alternative boundaries to US states, ones based more on culture than politics. To draw the boundaries, the website is polling US citizens throughout the country in order to find out how far various major cities’ “spheres of influence” extend. Here’s more from the “About” section of the website:
“By combining the votes from people all over the country, the CommonCensus Map Project is showing how the country is really organized. People vote about which city they belong to, what they consider to be their local area, and which major city most influences their area, as well as what areas they most identify with personally.”
Be sure to check out the National Map (click to magnify), which was drawn using the input of tens of thousands of votes. There are also similar maps of the regions surrounding New York City and San Francisco.
Want to give your input? Go the main page and have at it.
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