This was my favorite skit from Sesame Street when I was a kid. Unfortunately it doesn’t appear on the Old School dvd sets they just released. But, thanks to youtube, I can learn how to use both hands when I “Give Five.”

I think the giant 1-2-3-4-5 in the background would look good in Little Man’s room.

Posted by Jon on Sunday, May 11th, 2008

Libra and my name is Jon
Now I like a woman who loves her freedom
And I like a woman who can hold her own
And if you fit that description, baby, come with me

Posted by Jon on Sunday, May 11th, 2008

I couldn’t be more excited about my very first post on ILTW!!! I’ve come here for a little shot of joy for the past year or so, and my sincerest wish is that these pics of the Batmobile will bring happiness to fellow readers. I think my favorite feature is the flame that shoots out the back. It’s a tie between that and the chain cutter on the front bumper. Oh-we haven’t met, have we? I feel like we’ve known each other forever! My name is Wendy Tittel, and I live in Cincinnati, Ohio. Located on the Ohio River, in southwestern Ohio, Da ‘Nati was nicknamed Porkopolis in the late 1800’s due to the prolific production of all things pork. It’s also the birthplace of Charles Manson. What’s that? You’re dying for more Cincinnati facts? Well, let’s just review what Mark Twain had to say this about America’s “first major boomtown”: “If the world ever comes to an end, I’m moving to Cincinnati, Everything happens ten years later in Cincinnati.” WORD. So these pics were taken a few minutes ago, down at the corner Whippy Dip ice cream stand. Along with the Batmobile and my oldest daughter, you will be able to enjoy some ‘locals’.

Posted by Wendy Tittel on Saturday, May 10th, 2008

thanks Josh

Posted by René Garcia, Jr. on Saturday, May 10th, 2008

I’ve always been a fan of Frank Lloyd Wright, and only recently came across this full testament to how glorious the Old Imperial Hotel really was. Definitely one of those “if only I had a time-machine” moments. This image was taken near its end, and you can already see modern Tokyo encroaching.

The hotel reined from 1923-1945 as THE place to stay in Tokyo, and managed to survive both the Great Kanto Earthquake of 1923, and World War II. This website, where I scammed the image, has lots of nice vintage pics of various buildings and places that have sadly vanished from the Tokyo landscape in the constant rush for the new and squeaky-clean.

Fortunately, when they demolished the hotel and built the new ultra-modern ’70s version (which is so perfect for an episode of Columbo,) they retained some of the Wright design elements. But best of all, they carefully dismantled and reinstalled the Old Imperial Bar into the rebuild. It’s a must on any excursion to the Ginza, for a very smart, overpriced cocktail in exquisite surroundings. This description is from a UK visitor:

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The bar counter is low, so low, in fact, that it can only be reached by taking a seat on one of the many chairs situated along its length. When sitting on a chair at the squat counter you are face-to-face with the elderly, uniformed Japanese barmen,
all of whom appear to be very small, lacking legs or standing in a trench.
A large, psychedelic mosaic occupying most of the far wall is the centrepiece of the Old Imperial Bar, which is, otherwise, a marriage of contradictions: walls of minimalist brick and walls of traditional wood; leather benches and poufs, sensible tables and armchairs; subtle lamps and brilliant spotlights - the former offer a gentle diffusion of light at the rear of the bar, and the latter project a series of harsh, circular beams along the counter, one for each of its seats.

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The facade of the hotel has been preserved and is on display at the Meiji Mura Museum in Aichi prefecture, sort of an outdoor architectural cemetery for significant Meiji restoration period buildings and other relics which outlived their purpose, but remain of interest.

Posted by Kevin O'Neal on Friday, May 9th, 2008

I think this hangar chair designed by Philippe Malouin is amazing! I’m not sure if the chair is a concept or if you can purchase it, but I love how extra-functional it is.

By morphing the function of the hanger with that of the folding chair, a new hybrid is born: a Hanger Chair that has a function, even when not in use, to store our clothes in an orderly fashion.

Posted by Holly Rhodes on Thursday, May 8th, 2008

www.menwholooklikekennyrogers.com was featured on the art blog The World’s Best Ever today and I almost peed my pants laughing about it because we totally have a man who looks like Kenny Rogers in our family!

I submitted this picture of Carl and I hope it makes it because David dressed like a pirate in the background is priceless.

Posted by René Garcia, Jr. on Thursday, May 8th, 2008

Holly put Bob James‘ Take Me to the Mardi Gras on one of her iPhone playlists recently and I can’t get enough of it. When we were down in Indio for Coachella we listened to this song while I made breakfast cocktails at our condo, then picked up a 2 disc anthology of Bob James music at a record store in Pasadena for the drive home. Apparently Bob James’ version Take Me to the Madi Gras is one of the most sampled songs in hip hop history. I’m sure all the people who’ve sampled it probably groove to it while they make breakfast cocktails too. I can see this becoming my feel good anthem for the summer. I’ve been loving most of the stuff on the Bob James anthology we picked up. He gets progressively smooth jazz, but his earlier stuff is super groovy. His song “Angela” was the theme for TV’s Taxi. It kind of surprised me when it came on during out drive home, but then it made perfect sense, and its actually a pretty cool song to listen to while your driving on I-5.

Posted by René Garcia, Jr. on Thursday, May 8th, 2008

I was waiting for Lina G. to send me her pictures before I wrote about Friday Night Fun Skate, even though I sort of mentioned it already in my previous post. I’m so glad that there are still old school roller rinks around. Cal Skate Milpitas is pretty far away from us (about an hour drive from Fan Francisco), but its well worth the trip. Little has changed at Cal Skate Milpitas since the glory days of the 70’s roller renaissance. Everything from the smell of the skate rentals to the nachos and cherry Icees at the snack bar are just as it should be. The only noticeable difference between Friday Night Fun Skate at Cal Skate Milpitas and the last time I hit the floor at Riverside’s Roller City 2001, is that couples skate is no longer set to Foreigner’s I Want To Know What Love Is. I can’t remember what they played during couples skate on Friday, but Holly knew all the words, so I suspect it must have been something by Chingy. We made it down there pretty late, but they let us in despite arriving after the box office closed. We got in a good hour of fun skate, and Matty even got some private lessons in roller boogie. I sat next to Lina G. to take off my skates after the session ended, and she reminded me about the unique feeling of taking those first steps across the carpet in your socks after taking your skates off. I anticipated it with giddy enthusiasm, rushed to get my laces undone, and savored that feeling as I crossed the room to drop my rentals at the return counter. It’s unlike anything else in the world.

Holly, Matty and I already discussed having a joint birthday party there this summer.

Posted by René Garcia, Jr. on Thursday, May 8th, 2008

Holly, Jon & Matty originally uploaded by René Garcia, Jr..

We went to Dave & Busters on Friday night because thats what people in Milpitas do after Friday Night Fun Skate ends and they kick you out of the roller rink.
I’d never been to a Dave & Busters, but I figured if it’s good enough for Brett Michaels, it’s good enough for me and Holly, Jon, Matty, and Lina G.
Well, it turns out Dave & Busters isn’t really good enough for me. I’m all for an arcade with a bar, but where I come from a dollar is equal to four quarters, or in some cases four tokens. Dave & Busters has a really complicated credit card system with multiple cards, activation fees and different credits for different types of games. I never really figured it out, so I didn’t get to shop for a soccer ball eraser or a Dave & Busters shot glass at the end of the night. Holly and I did manage to figure out the “your photo here” machine, although I still have no idea how much each play really cost, and for all I know we spent $50 on half a dozen pictures. Good times.

Posted by René Garcia, Jr. on Wednesday, May 7th, 2008