What Else Can You Do In A Hotel Room?

Bored with the generic art hanging in your hotel room? Think you could do better?

Maybe someone already has.

Take a peak behind the ugly, boring, useless framed art on the wall next time you are checked into a hotel room, see if there is anything like this:

http://www.secretwalltattoos.com/

Secret Wall Tattoos! My favorite is the one done on the bathroom tile, a miniature of the open bathroom door with Munchs' 'The Scream' in the shower...that or the chalk outline under the bed. :)

It's an outsider art project begun by the lead singer of the rock group Queens Of The Stone Age, and his buddy who is a tattoo artist, while on tour. The complexity of each piece reflects the amount of time they had to spend in each room while in that town.

Here And There...

While I'm thinking of it, a few random bits and pieces...

Found a really cool site and new interest that I didn't even know I had, courtesy of Preservation magazine, a mag devoted to the national trust for historic preservation. There is a new photographic hobby, taking pictures of what are called 'Urban Ruins'--abandonded, decaying buildings, whether businesses, factories or homes. If you do a web serch on 'urban ruins' you'll come up with scads of sites, but I REALLY like Rob Dobi's work, here:

http://photos.dobi.nu/

Check out the Tumblr section, which is futher subdivided into various areas for insitutions (mostly hospitals and asylums), factories and homes. He never discloses where these places are or their real names, so that they will remain undisturbed (Go, Rob!). The photos are the kind that pull you in, and make you want to know what is behind that tantalizing, half-open door.

CoolHunting, a site devoted to all kinds of art--and anything else you can think of. Each entry has a short description and a link to the page of the artist:
http://www.coolhunting.com/

There are pages and pages to go through, check it out and find cool art projects and pieces!

PostSecret, an online/snail mail art project that collects and posts anonymous postcards sent in that each share a 'secret'--be it a wish, a hidden need, a secret, confession, fear, fantasy, regret or hope. Their only rule is keep it brief and that you have never revealed it to anyone. Updated weekly, it's fascinating:

http://postsecret.blogspot.com/

Street art that fools the eye into thinking it's 3D:

http://www.redjellyfish.com/fun/street-art.html

My favorite is the one that looks like someone has cut a chunk of bricks out of the sidewalk, leaving a large square hole. People are actually walking around it!

Grrr...

...and so NOW the Plymouth has decided that today--oh yes, it must be TODAY is the day for a new transmission.

She decided this, considerately enough, AFTER I had parked at N.'s school to pick her up. When I got us all strapped in and ready to go home, there was an ominous 'bang' when I put the car in reverse--almost as if someone had hit my bumper--and the car wouldn't move. When I looked in my rearview mirror and saw no other cars around, my heart sank, and I had a sneaking suspicion that this was going to be expensive.

It will be, never fear.

My mechanic tells me, though, that he is currently looking for a 1969-70 convertible for himself, and was shocked at the price of even fixer-upper Camaros and GTOs. I told him he couldn't have picked more popular cars--heck, everyone wants a Goat, for cri-yi! He told me that my car was well worth repairing, since it is very rare and worth (even in it's present seen-better-days condition), around $30,000 to $40,000 dollars. I had recently learned this so it was no surprise, but it was nice that someone else praised my (accidental) automotive accumen.

Especially since it's currently sucking my purse dry in huge gulps...

So Cal Bad Fashion!

In line at the bank the other day: twenty-something guy, black spiky hair, slouched into line while chatting on his cell, OBVIOUSLY thinking he was hot stuff. I think he forgot to change out of his kick-around-the-house-on-laundry-day duds, though:

Old, torn white (once upon a time, eew!) long underwear shirt with equally eldery light blue T shirt mercifully worn over it...
khaki cargo longshorts, pockets stuffed to the gills with who knows what...
.
.
.
...beige Ug boots, complete with fleece!

Even the little old lady in line behind me stared.
*snicker*

Batch 'O Fun...

A few recent discoveries via the good old Jib Jab site that gave me the giggles:

http://www.engrish.com/
A site devoted to badly translated Asian (mostly) to English instructions, menus, product packages, signs--you name it. They even sell Tshirts, coffee mugs and other items emblazoned with the more outlandish stuff. You'll laugh till you cly!

 http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bHNczNvOnGc
The Llama Song! To quote one reviewer: "We can safely say this song is about llamas with other subjects thrown in; like ankles, oranges killing rakes, and a duck. Put on your headphones and see how long you last. I was found two days later, drooling on myself, hugging a paper shredder."

'Nuff said. I'm going to show it to N., she'll insist on us singing it tonight at bedtime.

For those who have never experienced Jib Jab, it's a site devoted to mostly political humor, using Flash movies done in Monty Python style. Well worth a visit!