Why Dave Grohl Rocks–besides the obvious…

I have never been a fan of any of the “become a star” talent shows that so many people adore in our country and certain parts of Europe.

In fact, as a visual artist who has also spent a great deal of time on stage and back stage as a performing artist as well as a production manager, I find the whole performing arts geared “reality show” genre an absolute anathema to the true artistic creative process.

The producers behind the scenes prey upon the gullible, the desperate and the unenlightened in our society by first creating - and then force feeding - this poisoned Kool-Aid that they disguise as entertainment on the masses. Unfortunately, for those some people that love it – unwittingly blind to the realities of what it means and what it takes to be true and genuine to your art - it works.

I could spend a great deal of time here discussing why these shows are so damaging on so many levels, but I won’t. Why should I when musician Dave Grohl has already done so so succinctly?



Thank you Dave. You Rock. Seriously.

Recent Work

“Sunset Over the Old Train Track in Lewes, Delaware”
enhanced digital photograph
©2013 Michael Sprouse All Rights Reserved.

Recent Work - “Three Yolks”

Yes – this would work perfectly on the wall of your kitchen café, diner or eatery. Or, for that matter, picture it enhancing the empty wall of your contemporary living room.

Seriously, it would rock on your wall…

Available in a variety of sizes and formats, both framed and unframed, ranging from 16” x 5” to 48” x 16”. 

To see all the fantastic options available: “Three Yolks”

“Three Yolks” ©2013 Michael Sprouse

For More of Sprouse’s Recent Digital Imagery : http://Sprouseart.imagekind.com/.

Easy, Breezy Joy in Under 5 Minutes…

Never underestimate the simple joy that comes from peanut butter and honey on toast…

Super Easy Über Tasty Vegetable Medley

My partner and I, for a variety of good reasons, decided to give up red meat about three months ago.

We’re also slowly moving away from poultry and I can sense that the world of Vegetarianism is probably just around the corner.

To date, frankly, we’ve not missed red meat. In fact, I rarely seem to think about it. Besides the obvious health benefits that come with giving up red meat, sometimes it’s nice to just to shake up your food routine a bit and try something different once in a while.

While the following dish may not classify as a food routine “shake up”, it is incredibly easy, wildly tasty and quite good for you.

It’s something that my partner threw together one night and it has quickly become one of my favorite vegetarian dishes. It’s also one of those divine dishes that only gets better when eaten the next afternoon for lunch.

I’ve even stuffed it into the middle of a cheese omelet on occasion. It transformed it from a pretty good cheese omelet to something that upon one taste makes you want to thrown a crown atop your head, march down your street and toss glitter into the air from your frying pan.

Though, it’s probably best that you don’t lest you end up in a padded cell somewhere.

George (my beloved partner and excellent cook) simply chopped up a mixture of our favorite vegetables (in this case, small red potatoes, fresh red bell pepper, mushrooms, a can of drained and rinsed black beans, fresh broccoli, baby carrots, and frozen corn), tossed them about with some olive oil, salt and pepper and placed them into a cast iron Dutch oven.

Place the lid on the Dutch oven and pop it into a 350 degree oven for about an hour.

What you’ll get at the end of your wait is a big hearty pot of something divine that smells so good, coyotes will howl.

We served ours on top of some brown rice which was generously sprinkled with Louisiana Hot Sauce.



As I mentioned earlier, the leftovers – should they exist – are even better the next day. Here’s an actual photo of the feast that I called lunch today.

I added a side of toasted whole grain bread smeared with roasted red pepper humus – and before you ask – no, I was not wearing a tied dyed t-shirt and shaking a tambourine while indulging in the deliciousness. Though, I have done that before and enjoyed the experience.

 
So, there it is. Easy, healthy, hearty and affordable.

Now, go eat your vegetables! 

Let’s, like, write it right Y’all!

I just came across this sentence being used to describe a product from very popular website geared towards digital design professionals - "All components was created on a 12-grid system, they like fit together like puzzles".

I’m including this actual screen capture of the sentence so you can be equally gobsmacked by its appearance.

The very fact that this sentence was not only constructed by a paid employee, but also - presumably - made it past an editor's gaze, given the OK, and then published on a very public (and heretofore professional) website shows that this is what now passes for professionalism in our culture. 

That ominous deep ringing sound that you are now hearing is the death knell of competency. Get used to it. Make friends with it. You’ll be hearing it more and more frequently as the weeks pass.

I’m not exactly sure how we have arrived at this point, but I have my theories.

I believe that there are several paths that have led us to the big Dumbapoloza complacency party. Complete reliance upon digital ink and the need to crank out snippets of copy at the speed of light in order to attract viewers, our crumbling public school system and the ocean of garbage that revels in ignorance while passing for entertainment are all factors in the dumbing down of America.

Make no mistake here, I’m not overreacting at the sight of one small, poorly written sentence, I’m responding to the clues that are becoming more and more prevalent with each passing day in this country. The public appearance of this one simple sentence (though you could pick from a plethora of others) shows you that the door to complacency and ignorance is now open and serving as a portal to it’s becoming an accepted way of life in this country.

You can see it reflected in American media, in entertainment, and perhaps most disturbing of all – at the voting booth. There are members of Congress that say absolutely moronic things. Smart people don’t vote for morons unless they have a plan to use them for some kind of purpose.

In that context, visualize the offending sentence as one of those loose threads that is pulled off of a suit in a slap-stick comedy routine. The thread is quickly pulled and the next thing you know, off comes the sleeve. Insert the comic slide whistle sound here.

Of course, my kvetching won't change the ever devolving professional standard. I am simply here to shine the light of awareness on this situation. It is my hope that others will do the same – though I realize that each time I turn on my proverbial flashlight, I am moving deeper and deeper into the forgotten land of “old school”.

But so be it, eventually the pendulum will swing back into enlightenment. It always does. But I’m afraid there will be a very long – and dark – path to tread before it does.

CNN’s Yellow Journalism Slip Is Showing

I came across an article on CNN this morning that reeks of sensationalistic yellow journalism.

While I don’t like to spend my time - or fill the digital pages of my blog – with posts of a negative nature in general, some rationalizing part of my psyche suggested that by calling the article out, some person somewhere may recognize it as what it is and, in turn, they may be more wary of such schlock in the future – or better still – make someone else aware of the practice.

I know it’s a large order - but if the majority of people called out the many instances of yellow journalism/sensationalism/infotainment that the news media tries to pass off as news, then perhaps they will stop doing it.

Here’s a screen capture of the article on CNN that I came across this morning.



I actually saw this article “evolve” to its current state. Just yesterday morning , the article on CNN.com had a title that read something like “Rare Kennedy family photos released” and a sub-header mentioning that they were taken at Camp David.

They were very nice and innocuous photos of JFK, Jacquelyn and the children. Some were of Carolyn on horseback, other were of the couple and the children visiting with family and friends and a couple of them showed a young JFK Jr. in the cockpit of Air Force one.

And it is those two photos that some web news producer - desperate to raise the hit count on the article - rebranded the very next morning as “Eerie JFK Jr. photos released”. 

What??

As you can see from the screen cap above, they even used one of the two so called “eerie” photos to highlight the article. Ironically, you’ll find no mention of the word “eerie” in the actual article. In fact, it’s the exact same article as yesterday which consists of a slide show of about eight photographs with some short captions.

It’s total bullshit.

In this context, every photo of every person ever taken in a car that later went on to perish in a car accident can now be considered eerie. Or, perhaps any photo of a person ever seated at a table of food must now be known as eerie should that same person sadly choke to death years later.

My partner George said it best in my opinion when he stated that because of this 24 hour news cycle/circus that has been created, new media is desperate for stories to fill every second of the space that will capture viewers attention first. And that is what throws the doors open to the shellacked garbage that is now passing for news.

The trick is to be aware. Be circumspect. Be not so ready to swallow everything that comes across the screen as valid. Be ready to pass on the paper cup filled with Kool-Aid until you’ve read the ingredients.

The rebranding of the Kennedy Camp David photo story by CNN is the perfect example. There is nothing eerie about a photograph of a little boy excited to be sitting in the cockpit of a plane. Most kids would leap at the chance. Even if that same boy eventually died in a plane crash years later as an adult, it only make the photo a coincidence. What you have in that circumstance is the opinion of an editor being disguised as real news for purely sensationalistic purposes.

It’s an editor looking to lure viewers -  the same way a Venus Fly Trap lures its prey.

Whole Foods Market Says Know the GMO

An article in The International reports that Whole Foods Market has launched a new labeling requirement on all GM foods to take effect by 2018. This is the first national grocery store to enact a deadline for labeling, and the decision will affect its 339 stores in the U.S. and Canada.


While the FDA and most researches in the field have deemed GMOs as safe, the well written article (linked to below) does a good job of clarifying the controversy, with these three lines, "Growing resistance among weeds is forcing farmers to use larger quantities of herbicides and pesticides. A recent study published in Environmental Sciences Europe estimates that GMO crops have resulted in an additional 404 million pounds of toxic pesticides form 1996-2011, a 7% increase. This suggests that GMOs are not effectively reducing the need for pesticides, for which they are bred to do."

To learn more about the GMO debate and how it may affect your food purchases : Questioning the Necessity of GM Labeling — The International