Michael Pollen devotes a section in his book "The Omnivore's Dilemma" to what he calls "America's National Eating Disorder."
 
Pollen writes, "America has never had a stable national cuisine; each immigrant population has brought its own foodways to the American table, but none has ever been powerful enough to hold the national diet very steady. We seem bent on reinventing the American way of eating every generation, in great paroxysms of neophila [love of food] and neophobia [fear of food]. That might explain why Americans have been such easy marks for food fads and diets of every description."
 
Case in point, this week's NYT Advice, How-to and Miscellaneous bestseller list. The subjects of the hardcover and paperbacks include:
 
* French cooking (undoubtedly on account of the movie Julie & Julia)
* A book about metabolism (written by a trainer on the weight-loss reality show "The Biggest Loser")
* A collection of 200-calorie recipes from Hungry Girl (and you thought "carb-free bagel" was an oxymoron!)
* A pro-Vegan diatribe (it's all about soy)
* "Cook Yourself Thin" — no further description necessary
* A cookbook featuring DIY versions of "classic" American food from establishments like Arby's and KFC.
 
Ironically our reading habits might be schizophrenic but our national waistline is steady—steadily growing. But instead of getting on my soapbox, I will finish reading "The Omnivore's Dilemma" and encourage you to do so, too, if you haven't already. Pollen's ideas may not be palatable to everyone, however they are certainly thought provoking and are sure to generate discussion around the dinner table.
 
 
P.S. "The Omnivore's Dilemma" and Pollen's other book "In Defense of Food" are numbers 12 and 13 respectively on the Nonfiction Paperback Best Sellers list—go figure.

An already bland MSFT web promo featuring an ethically diverse office trio took a turn for the worse when the image appeared altered on the company's Polish website. The Photoshopper did a real hatchet job, leaving behind the original man's right hand and choosing a shiny replacement head that looks like it's been turned too many stops counterclockwise.

 Regardless of the many ethical and political questions surrounding racial retouching, was there really no time to take 5 minutes to find a different (presumably stock) image for the Polish market? I don't expect Microsoft to necessarily be clever or original, but I do assume it will have more class than a diet pill ad.

Image courtesy of the BBC.
For more: http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/technology/8221896.stm

... here's a classic from the 60 Minutes archives. Frankly I love this piece mainly because Morley Safer manages to out-blasé Wintour, and you get the feeling she likes him all the better for it. Plus he uses the word "toadies" within the first 15 seconds.
 
Other Safer gems include:
 
"She bears a look that says, 'I'm the boss and you're boring.'"
 
"To an outsider, these shows are another planet: part dazzling, part Rocky Horror show. Models that seem as angry as they are emaciated, wearing clothes fit for a cadaver and shoes that make stilettos seem sensible."
 
"...Karl Lagerfeld, who this season favors the Dracula look..."
 
It's long, but worth it.
 
 
 

Since I've already watched this trailer 5 times, I thought I'd post it here to make it an even 6.

 

Note to self #1: Buy "100 Girls on Cheap Paper," a book of drawings by Tina Berning, when Chronicle publishes it in the US next month.
 
Note to self #2: Get lost in Berning's drawings: http://www.tinaberning.online.de/
 
Note to self #3: Resurrect sketch project "9 Cats on Napkins"

A friend of mine recently discovered British artist Su Blackwell's intricate book and paper art. Her delicate, sculptural pieces literally grow out of their source material (including fairy-tales and children's book), creating ethereal, slightly spooky scenes. Judging from her commissions, she has already been tapped by some savvy creative directors to provide magical worlds for editorial and commercials.

 Blackwell has had recent exhibitions in the UK and Asia so here's hoping her work travels to the US soon.

Visit Su Blackwell's site here: http://www.sublackwell.co.uk/

More Martin Venesky / Appetite Engineer designs for SFMOMA!
Moleskin's San Francisco city notebook, featuring a custom embossed cover, will be available soon at the SFMOMA store.

Keep your eye on it here: http://sfmoma.stores.yahoo.net/sfmomaproducts.html

Kurt Andersen wrote an intriguing essay in last weekend's NYT Book Review about the current status of pop culture. He argues that Barack Obama is the penultimate user, creator, disseminator and exemplar of pop culture, and therefore we now live in an age when it makes no sense to segregate the "high" from the "low."
 
Furthering his point, Andersen says that since the old benchmarks of low brow entertainment (he sites scripted TV series as an example) no longer claim an audience big enough to be called "mass" or "popular," our fractured likes and dislikes would be better categorized as being either "well made" or "shoddy."
 
In essence, it's an argument that we should judge something (or someone) by its function and whether it fully delivers and embodies what it is meant to be, regardless of point of origin, purchase price or location, or whether you feel that that the thing in question is necessary and essential. (US Weekly certainly is NOT necessary or essential, but, boy, does it deliver as a tabloid.) Obama by breaking a racial barrier many thought impenetrable, has proven the merits of such thinking in spades.
 
Read "Pop Culture in the Age of Obama" by Kurt Andersen here: http://www.nytimes.com/2009/08/09/books/review/Andersen-t.html