June 13, 2012

There were 3 posts published on June 13, 2012 (this is page 1 of 1).

Fake “morgue shooting” headline

"17 remain dead in morgue shooting spree"


A blurry image shared by the George Takei Facebook page showed an edition of the News and Observer that had a story headlined “17 remain dead in morgue shooting spree.” It looked fishy, so I went hunting for the source.

Turns out, Andy Bechtel already did the legwork:

So where did the fake N&O page come from? A Facebook friend points to the Brunching Shuttlecocks, a defunct comedy website, as the source of this image. If you happen to know more, please add a comment on this post.

Good job, Andy!

(For those who are curious, here’s the real front page appeared on September 7, 2001. [PDF] )

World music

AfroCubism


I kicked myself when I found out the world music supergroup AfroCubism played at the North Carolina Museum of Art on Sunday and we missed it. I’ve been on a world music kick for a few years now and it doesn’t get much better now than AfroCubism.

In surfing the art museum’s concert page, I noticed it was sponsored by a group called Friends of World Music. I’d never heard of this group but was delighted to learn it is a Raleigh-based non-profit that works to bring live world music to the Triangle. I’ve often mused that my “second career” would be being a world music promoter and Friends of World Music seemed like a serendipitous find.

On a whim I called the number listed, began leaving a rambling message on their machine, and soon the longtime executive director, Jessie Cannon, picked up and spoke to me. It turns out I may be just the person the group is looking for, she said, telling me the group used to put on more shows in prior years but haven’t been able to keep up that pace in recent years. Jessie and I are meeting for lunch on Friday to discuss the possibilities.

Kelly tells me I need another project like a hole in the head and she’s got a point. I see this one as a long-term thing that I’m happy to be patient about and grow at my own pace.

Again, I’m open to the possibilities. We’ll see where it leads.

South Meck reunion

After my friend Mitchell Franseth invited me a few months back, I decided to attend the South Meck High School Class of 1987 reunion later this month. I left South Meck near the end of my junior year to move to Great Falls, VA, so I’m not officially a part of the class of 1987. Even so, I spent more time at South than I did at my last high school, Herndon High School in Herndon, VA.

My time at South Meck was a challenging one. I was a poor student, feeling hopelessly and embarrassingly lost in my math classes (due to my laziness coupled with my frequently-interrupted educational experience, I think). I was a geek before geeks ruled the world. The closest friends I had moved away before I did. My best friend attended a different school. It was also the first time that my older sister, Suzanne, didn’t attend a school before me, which I think tended to help me know what to expect. Charlotte in those days wasn’t as accepting of newcomers as it is today – certainly not as welcoming as the Northern Virginia suburbs where I’d soon live. I found it challenging at South to find my identity.
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