Like A Box Of Chocolates

This post is like a box of chocolates. You never know what you're gonna get.

What's a Scenester? Do you recognize any apple store indies, perhaps? Do you think it's fair to generalize about others based on fashion, or do you think the portraits are largely accurate? Do you recognize yourself in any of the scenesters? Is there a point where seeking individualism simply becomes a uniform; is it possible to be the non-conforming conformist? And if indivdualism is the goal, to be outside the collective interest, how is adopting a fashion trend, emo, for instance, contrary to this goal--or is it? Can you think of examples where individual expression morphed into a fad?



In fascinating science news, did you know it was possible to help make a reef out of old subway cars? It's happening along the east coast (USA) and these subway reefs are teeming with life, in areas that were once practically ocean deserts. Why are reefs so important? Though the practice has been discontinued primarily, it's only because the subway cars are being built differently and it's not financially beneficial or necessary to dispose of old cars this way. Environmentally it seemed to be a winning solution. Watch a short video here.

In creepy science news, the newly discovered zombie-ant fungus ZOMBIE- ANT FUNGUS, surely takes the cake. (What the heck does the phrase take the cake mean, anyway?)

Because yesterday was International Women's Day and Josephine Baker came up in conversation, read more about her. I think we all found her heroic work with the French Resistance during WWII to be the most intriguing, but by no means is this her bravest act. (You can read all about it here, under the heading Rise To Fame. *There is one bare-breasted photo of Josephine.) It's important to understand, as you read about Ms. Baker, that every ounce of her life was impacted by racism. While she left the US for France and Europe to escape the Jim Crow Laws in the US, her ready acceptance and fame in France was very much due in part to France's then-colonization of Africa (the height of which occurred in the 1920s-1930s, when Ms. Baker arrived in France). African art, images and yes, people were embraced for consumption by the whites, and African-descent people were objectified, so it's important to read about her life, her career and mutual admiration of her and the French people in this context. For another look at her life, view this six-part video of Josephine Baker: The First Black Superstar.