Lords of the rings

While taking a shortcut to the cinema this weekend we have accidentally witnessed the Olympic torch being carried by:

There were two heavily modified vehicles preceding the torchbearer (I couldn't even tell if they were lorries or buses), ruthlessly branded and playing some loud music. Half of the flags, inflatable toys and other stuff people were using to express their impatience were branded as well. Little surprise here as the very Olympic rings are themselves a brand which you're only expected to consume, but not to use.

It might be a lame opinion out of touch with reality, but I find branding of the supposedly public events and elements of infrastructure like Barklays bikes or Emirates dangleway somewhat wrong. I can understand (and sometimes appreciate) excessive branding when you don't pay for the branded thing, but not when you're just paying less (or more precisely you're said you're paying much less). If you are still going to charge people, keeping messing with their heads is just cheeky.

Angels have gone

Walking through the Covent Garden area today we have stumbled upon the recently iconic London couple, the ginger cat named Bob and his master James. Unexpectedly, what we have seen has made me sad - quite an opposite effect comparing to the same encounters two or three years ago when they still used to sell The Big Issue near the Angel Tube station.

The cat was still adorable and calm sporting another colourful scarf, but this time James wasn't selling anything. Sitting on the pavement, he was just repeatedly asking the people crowding around them "to make a donation if they were taking pictures".

There might be a thousand explanations (charity fundraising comes to mind, for instance) and I could easily be too ignorant to notice some important details, but still that almost made me cringe inside. You see, James and Bob are known all over London for their story of honesty and persistence rewarded. Fighting their way out of the street, not begging but working, boasting their distinctive personalities, winning the hearts of Londoners and finally securing a book deal!

Now there were two thing that disappointed me. The first and "the easy" one: well, apparently the book deal and popularity weren't enough to provide for them. That's harsh, but that's also something you can at least try to correct by contributing.

But the second and the most important reason was that this time the whole thing looked much more like an undisguised exploitation of the original idea. Of course the cat was there first to boost sales and not just to cheer the public up (not a problem at all with that) - but today there were even no sales, so the simple fact of taking advantage of the once earned public image became uneasily obvious. And that was done in the simplest possible way, by asking (or should I rather say begging?) for change in a crowded spot. I mean, that ruins the whole story, doesn't it?

That really shouldn't have ended like this, so I do hope I got it all wrong.

China Miéville on the Olympics

I couldn't find any verbose reports from this talk, so apparently I need to write down the points I liked most (although these are not the exact quotes, only as precise as I remember and reproduce them in my ESL):

The Shoal: "That old shopping centre in Stratford was made redundant by Westfield, so let's just hide it and pretend that's art" (also, the same point from diamond geezer)

The Orbit: "I actually liked the architecture first and then I learned that it's called ArcelorMittal Orbit, and that was an instant "no" for me. This changes everything. You know, we don't even have luxury to judge these objects as architecture because of that shameless branding".

Gentrification: "I'm far from romanticising the gutter and welcome changes, but changes may come in different packages. It's like you're opposing your school to become an academy, and then you're suddenly "against putting more funds in the education". No, I am not, that's not what I said".

Moody's report: "There might be different opinions, but look, their job is make rich people even richer, and from what we see, they do it well - and they have made it clear: the Olympics aren't going to be economically beneficial".

Westfield Stratford: "It is a sacred place, the only one that was secured by the Army during the last year riots. There are going to be more soldiers deployed in London during the Olympics than in Afganistan".

Sports: "...oh yes, sports! How could we forget".

Thoughts on possible North London transformation

The transformation of "depressed" North London areas promised soon after the last year riots is apparently going to happen, but in the a questionable way.

Plans were presented for Lea Valley, Seven Sisters, White Hart Lane, etc. all of them boasting glossy photos (or more precisely, smooth rendered images) and offering some some different experience for everyone. Some of the projects have longer history (e.g. Wards Corner restoration has been a debated issue for several years), some were were introduced during the last year only and have already changed their developers, but there is still a progress to observe.

Those who actually happen to walk the streets of Tottenham might be given a leaflet issued by local community group and raising some questions:

[click for a bigger version]

I find these arguments valid, but at the same time can't fully agree. I hate big retail centres with identical shops and chain restaurants, and well, not because they "lack their own face". I actually more enjoy, say, buying clothes in bigger stores - the less interaction, the better (doesn't apply to food though, and there is Amazon for everything else). The real problem with mass retail is that one day you realise most of the staff they employ actually hate being there and either hope it's (and you're) being only a short stop on their way to something more decent or live under permanent stress of fines, low wages, rude customers and no perspective.

On the other hand, it's hard to argue that cafes and small stores currently open at Wards Corner are not the cleanest or safest ones, and being honest I wouldn't go there myself. I wouldn't use them as a good small business examples either - they change owners and signs fairly often, and those signs are cheap and don't reveal the best taste.

Back of that "own face" problem leaflet is focusing on, despite all these facts, you can still claim that some of them can only exist there (not the prettiest or most friendly face though), while residential towers and retails centres can be erected absolutely anywhere and be as absolutely identical.

And most importantly they aren't going to accommodate those who live and work there now. The "restoration" is, effectively, not about helping businesses and people to become better off. It is, in a longer perspective, more about replacing them.

A day in Hastings

Thanks to our friends (and particularly their mobility and awareness) we braved the rainy weather and paid a visit to Jerwood Gallery opened in Hastings today.

Hastings appeared to me similar to nearby Folkestone, bigger, but less nice. While the main trade street was fairly cosy there were undoubtedly more identical faceless global brands branches, betting and pawn shops, and what specifically caught my eye, many shop signs were just printed in unnaturally bright colours on plastic banners (just as they do in Russia), and there are very few things that can make a shop more ugly and undesirable.

I liked the design of the gallery building - I don't how how well do those "hand-glazed" tiles reflect the dusk sunlight (which was the idea), but they blend almost perfectly with the black wooden net huts surrounding it.

Building the fancy venue ten steps away from boats, stalls and huts used by local fishermen caused a lot of controversy in the town. It is very hard for me as for a random visitor and a foreigner to judge, but I feel that the real reason behind the discontent wasn't just the obstructed view.

For a honest fisherman or woman that gallery with strange people lazing their time away staring at some childish scrawls must be something that seriously challenges their lifestyle - which has been already threatened by market and regulations:

In London the most most famous modern art museum resides in a former power station which industrial assemblies are now serving as lifeless decorations. Boat huts around the Jerwood gallery are very likely becoming the same.

The collection the gallery started with is hardly able to impress someone who is spoiled with a luxury of visiting countless London exhibitions. Some paintings were still good enough to remember and I've written down their details to publish them later on my tumblr, only to find out upon returning home they're not yet online. Anyway we spent more time near windows apparently, taking pictures of the deserted street:

We also had a quick walk in the drizzle to the spectacular hills offering fantastic views on the seashore. The best part was the thickening fog blurring the horizon out and almost hiding the distant objects - that made the perspective very distinctive, and I couldn't help remembering Flatland I read last year.

There is also my full Hastings Flickr set if you are interested.

"London's Overthrow"

An outstanding essay by China Miéville (and a shorter version in NYT).

Another reason to live in north London - to have the best authors writing about something you know. I saw Miéville once on the literary festival at Stoke Newington (the area which appears, among others, in the piece), and he was the best part of it. I didn't finish his "Kraken" though (the last Miéville's book I read), but still there was an immediate reminiscence of it as the Natural History Museum has also been mentioned.

Christmas starts with posters

There are a lot of arguments about this year's Christmas advertising campaign by the Church of England:

I used to think the controversial posters were only introduced this December and so that's why they're widely discussed. But later when searching for more information I found that the similar campaigns have been launched by the Church every Christmas for several years already.

You can see posters from the previous years by following this link (click the pics to zoom in).

I am personally an atheist but I can appreciate this liberal attitude, especially as that seems to be not a random probe but rather a shaped strategy. So many other religious institutions should take a note.

P.S. Noticed there are our reflections at the photo above. In case you're wondering, they're not a part of the composition!

#movember

Today is the last day of Movember, and so it's time for us fellow moustache brothers to share results. Truth to be told, in my case that wasn't precisely a "no shave" month - rather a "no trim" one - but anyway, here are the fruits of my labour:

As you probably know, besides just being funny, this competition is supposed to raise awareness of prostate cancer. Certainly just growing your facial hair has nothing to do with fighting cancer, and I wasn't raising the money specifically because of being not sure I'll make it to the end of November at all (last two weeks were terrible as every meal I ate was seasoned with moustache).

Still if you decide to donate to a cancer related charity, I'd be very glad and also thankful.

Below are some charities you might consider:

• General donation to Movember - convenient as you can enter your own amount to donate (and that's our dedicated Movember resource, chaps!)
• The Prostate Cancer UK charity - £10, £20 or £50, or your own amount accepted - and that'd probably be a more direct way for your money to reach the destination
• Cancer Research UK - monthly, quarterly or yearly donations accepted if you aren't comfortable with an idea of helping to fight only one type of cancer

These are of course the most obvious and general choices so if you know any more targeted organisation that could be a better option.

To my Russian readers: I failed to find reputable Russian charities taking donations online (bank transfers are more common), but if you know one, consider that please.

Cheers!

Laurie Penny on riots

There are lot of opinions on what's going on in London and some other cities these days. That's what I recommend you to read: http://pennyred.blogspot.com/2011/08/panic-on-streets-of-london.html

Riot in Tottenham

I heard a police helicopter an hour ago, then opened my Twitter to complain about the noise and found that:

http://yfrog.com/h4yu8gpj
http://yfrog.com/h79y8roj
http://yfrog.com/kjrmmdmj
http://yfrog.com/kfcf8tfj
http://yfrog.com/kjji3jej

(sorry for the lack of original pics, I wasted my chance to become a famous reporter and stayed at home)

First coverage from BBC is also available by this moment (and more).

My first idea about the reason of the riot was obviously that recent Ferry Lane shootup when supposed gangster was shot dead by police (BBC, local Indy).

Earlier anonymous witness told Evening Standard that the man was shot at point blank range pinned to the ground. I don't know if that's true and what exactly happened as there is no official release from Met yet (at least as far as I know) due to internal investigation launched, but anyway most likely that very information has triggered the rioting.

I believe things were not like that especially given the fact on which everybody seems to agree that the man shot first wounding an officer. Also, that place is usually crowded as a huge retail centre is just across the road plus buses to local IKEA stop nearby - so there should have been many people witnessing the operation, and only one stepped out with that version. Still, that information cannot be immediately discharged as total nonsense as the similar thing happened at least once.

So far no reports on wounded or injured people tonight, hope it stays like that.

A dedicated bus

Spotted this inscription today while waiting at red lights:



Later at home I also found a picture of the plaque from inside that bus: http://anonw.wordpress.com/2011/03/21/should-buses-be-named/

Apparently Dave wasn't an outstanding hero (at least, nothing about that on the internet) - just a nice chap passed away too soon remembered by his fellow drivers. Attitude like that makes the world a better place.

A very special day

As we assumed that Royal Wedding would receive enough coverage anyway, today we attended a street party organised by British republicans.





A typical street party with souvenirs, some attractions, food, drinks and talks:



The place wasn't very crowded but there were more people than I first expected:





Interviewers didn't look like representing top titles:



Later, musicians arrived:



I liked the event. No aggressive speeches (at least while we were there), decent amount of irony, smiles, nice music.

The initial location proposed for the party was somewhere in Camden, but then it has been rejected by the council. Still, the Red Lion Square turned out to be very relevant to republican ideas with its memorials to Bertrand Russel and Fenner Brockway:



P.S. Also to note, Guardian.co.uk's front page was absolutely awesome today.

P.P.S. The Guardian on this party: http://www.guardian.co.uk/uk/2011/apr/30/not-the-royal-wedding-republicans

Tube strike and social media

When emerged to surface in a couple of kilometres from the destination today I thought of taking a bus from the station first but frightened by the length of the queue I only took a photo of the place and decided to walk instead.

Later I was contacted by CNN iReport producer in connection with those photos taken while walking to office - she had found my pics on Flickr and then called my mobile.

As a result, here is the post: http://ireport.cnn.com/docs/DOC-489207

Speaking of which, it made think of big brands adopting social content. The first thought of every lucky amateur is to agree, and only few can resist the anticipation - myself I certainly couldn't this time. On the first glance it is a win-win situation for either side, but on the other hand people deliver the product to corporations while nothing in the internet really makes them to - unlike the real world, internet provides an opportunity to reach every author if you really want that without a middleman involved. Still, people easily sacrifice their independence for things that hardly really matter letting others speak on their behalf.

Please don't misunderstand me - I don't mean that "people are robbed" or something of that kind. Pics and stories like these are really cheap (if worth anything at all) even if made by a professional. What I mean is that it is not necessary to share using the corporal services while we don't really need them to communicate, even after the real net anarchy has surely ended.

Been there, done that

Had visited PhotographerNotATerrorist.org event today:




[clickable]



Sketches are really inelegant and petrified this time. Still, that was my fist experience of capturing something while in a flickering crowd.

"The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo"

A day or two ago I had finally finished the first book of that hyped Larsson's trilogy.

It maybe explains something about modern culture, when in the same story the negativity of some filthy character is emphasized (in addition to other facts) with a scene of him having sex with an underage girl - and only a page or two later, appearance of the positive character is described by mentioning among other epithets her "childlike breasts".

I was rather thrilled with the plot on the middle of the story, but the outcome was weak. Also, almost all the characters are flat and hence, predictable. Especially Salander is nothing more than a stereotype fair of a "vigilante girl" type: black leather, tattoos, tough childhood, autistic-but-talented (and talented in hacking computers, of course) etc.

Still, this book makes great introduction into Swedish way of life, laws and customs (well, at least for a person like me who had never been to Scandinavia). Summarizing: not a must, but probably you won't regret.

Global cooling

Turning back to Frankenstein, I came accross the fact that this book was started at year 1816 which was memorable enough to earn its own name, Year Without a Summer.

Can't help sharing this link with all those climate scandals and contexts.

By the way, speaking about climate, here is a footer of email that I've received recently:



"Okay, we all are trying to be green, but hey, you're cutting corners off!"

"One nation under CCTV"

Yesterday I spotted a vehicle with a strange message on it:



Later at home, I've looked through company website. Alas, behind that promising orwellian name, commonplace mobile networking solutions were offered. Nevertheless I remained excited and only after I while I understood that the definition which is so unusual and full of contiguities for a newcomer's ear is used to mark expert witnesses, 3rd party analysts providing expertise to the court.

Still, some pieces close to the intuitive interpretation can be found.

Mind the gap

Looks like this ad was specially designed for Russians: this poem becomes enormously impressive for a person brought up on The Plum Stone by Leo Tolstoy.

Reader's comment

Working at the public library, a friend of mine has found this handwritten note enclosured in a book about IRA:

One step right from Russian immigrant results in bumping the wall

Recently, I had stumbled upon a livejournal post questioning about UK nuclear arsenal. Of course, the discussion followed (as the question itself) was predictably naïve but actually it isn't an issue in UK livejournal.

He who really astonished me was the user who appeared with curses and Rand quotes. Quite an occasion for the Europe! Look, I said to myself, stereotypes aren't true, but some doubts resisted -

- when I clicked this user nickname, his journal was found to be in Russian.