Yes, this picture links, as indicated in this post’s lame title, my dissertation, a symbol of postmodernism and consumption. Not very ingenious, I know, but that is, once again, the subject of a post to this blog: got nothing to blog about, as I need to concentrate on writing.
Seriously, I’ve got nothing. I could tell you that I found it exciting that Smuckers now sells their strawberry jelly in a squeezy-bottle, which makes the road to PB&J time even a little shorter. In fact, it was PB&J time just right now. Just finishing the coffee I made to go with it and then it’s back to work. Figured I’d post really quickly while I finish the coffee. Good coffee, by the way. Rainforest Blend from Caribou. Fair Trade. Means farmers get a nice pat on the back after a hard day of being exploited, or something. You know, to show them we care. Always feel very close to the farmer anyway when I go to Caribou. After all, their motto is “a worn flannell coffee shop in a heavily starched world.” Yep, they really care for the working man. Even the yuppies that make up 99% of their clientel always have this look of genuine concern for the flannell-people of the world while ordering their latte. I like working class people, too. They’re so fluffy and cozy. Flannelly. Especially snuggly in the winter.
Other highlights from my recent life: figured out that Quilted Northern is my favorite toilet paper, realized that I prefer 0.5 mm pencils over 0.7 mm ones while notetaking (apart from writing down marginal notes in very old books with bad paper–you have to put the 0.5 on the page in a small angle to avoid getting it caught in the fibers)–you get the idea.
One thing I can recommend: a graphic novel series called Ex Machina. Quite good.
Oh, and a piece of sad news (just making sure you are aware of it): Jean Baudrillard died today at the age of 77.
Really.
Sorry for that.
Coffee’s empty. Blogging must end. Back to work. More news on toilet paper soon.
*** EDIT: since I’ve been writing so much about Baudrillard the last few days I feel like I should not deal with his death by merely putting up one sentence. Here, thus, the link to the article that first informed me of his death–note to cool picture. What could be better than ending your life like that? Being a rockstar critical theorist hanging out in Paris the last years of my life, smoking cigarrettes, writing and reading books? But that is just how I quite problematically romanticize the life of radical academics when I see this picture. Sadly, the reality usually seems to turn out quite differently. As for Baudrillard, he died, as was announced, following a “long illness.” So sorry. Still, I feel like I should actually post that picture. Take care Jean. Even though you did some questionable things to Marxism, thanks for bitchslapping everything from consumer capitalism, to Disneyland to Foucault’s idea of disciplinary power.
Here the picture:
Here the link:
http://www.lefigaro.fr/france/20070306.WWW000000430_jean_baudrillard_est_mort.html
Here the link to an obituary in the NY Times that is actually not half bad (except for the fact that it starts by mentioning The Matrix–guess that is the difference between France’s persistent culture of public intellectuals and the US’ exclusion of academic dialogue from the public apart from those debates that can be made into a movie). For an example of this, visit the now declassified FBI files of Hoover’s surveillance of the Brussels Tribunal in France where it in fact says in the margins: “must find out who this Sarte is.” When I heard about this first I could not be lieve it. It’s true, however. Baudrillard surely chuckled at this quite a few times.
http://www.nytimes.com/2007/03/07/books/07baudrillard.html?_r=1&oref=slogin
***
Cerebral Jetsam 