Category Archives: the day lee

topologies

the day lee, why artists need math,

my fellow watch-the-floppy-disk-fall-into-obsolescence writer Ander Monson writes often about literary topologies, which is sometimes vaguely described as the science of place. i think a better definition is the study of place over form. Monson says topology is “about electricity or water or anything that flows equally throughout a form, that moves through channels.” in other words (i think) it’s the study of looking at form as if you were water. “Place” then, is not the exact shape of something, rather the way something is put together. for example, (from wikipedia), a circle and a square can be seen as the same thing, they are both one dimensional, and both separate the plane into two parts, the inside and the outside. in a similar way, a coffee cup can easily be confused for a donut.

here, though, is an example of form over form.

treeroot1

dear LACMA

the day lee, ,

when the financial crisis became real late last year a poet friend of mine said to me: when the economy is booming, poets get the short shrift, and now that the economy has tanked, you wouldn’t think poets could get treated any worse…
but tonight’s reading at LACMA was proof of just how low it can go. first of all, LACMA scheduled a poetry reading to be part of a huge party. second, they put the reading in the middle of an enormous gallery space where hundreds of people (there for the beer and grilled sausages, and possibly the art) would be passing through. third, there was no mike for the first half hour—not that the mike was broken, or that there were technical difficulties, but LACMA scheduled a poetry reading without even considering the need for one.

in the meantime, LACMA’s PR staff were photographing and recording the event with great intensity. then, at exactly 10:48, in poet-mid-sentence, the videographer walked up to the podium and yanked her microphone out, packed up and left. “gotta go!”

so here’s Amy Gerstler trying to “go back to her cheerleading days” and scream some poetry at the crowd. (sated sausage eaters/Kiefer admirers in the background).

amygerstler

below is LACMA staff doing what it takes.

lacmastaff

by the end of the evening, August Kleinzahler reads marvelous poetry to no one. “very John Cage” is how he will remember this evening.

august_kleinzahler

ps. the sausages, especially the horseradish mustard, were very good.

copycat aesthetics

food, the day lee, why artists need math, , , ,

On KLCS late night food TV:
Suzanne Goin (from Lucques, AOC, etc.) shared a lovely explanation of why the kitchen at Chez Panisse felt different than any other restaurant. (she did go to Brown, after all):
she thinks it’s because in the kitchen they don’t have the usual kitchenware for prep, just bowls and plates. this maintains the cooking-at-home feel, but it also allows the chef and staff to have the same aesthetic experience as the folks for whom they are cooking.

this show was followed by Lora Brody trying to convince Julia Child that a bread machine was worthy of her kitchen, and she showed how to make a bread/pizza thing she calls “quitza.”
first you put a whole can of refried beans INTO the dough, then roll it out and drop it into a quiche pan. smear some cream cheese on it, then add some canned salsa, and top the whole thing with shredded jack n’ cheddar cheese. bake in the oven.

triple score

the day lee, why artists need math, ,

really liked the Jo Ann Callis show at the Getty,

callis

really liked the garden (as usual),

getty

and really liked star-sighting Thomas Adès going for thirdsies and fourthsies at the free marcona almonds, baby carrots and humboldt fog cheese… though i have to admit if i worked up there the constant view of the 405 would stress me out: “oh no! i’m going to hit traffic when i go home!”

make wine, not dolmas

food, the day lee, ,

the integrity chronicles continues. food-wise, this chef, Koh Kikuchi, has it. Koh says: “You can’t just open a can and call it cooking.”
he once made the most amazing ramen from a package for me by doing something to the noodles, including “blanching it for a few seconds to get rid of the machine oil.” (read a portion of my profile on Koh).
wine-wise, Sean Thackrey has my vote. watch an interview where he says “these same grapes went to Gallo before I started buying them” and see some of his really old books. hey! it’s all about what you do, not what you buy. (plus all his wines are named after bodies in space.)