GHETTO HOUSE

Merry Krampus

Growing up in a family with German values and traditions, Chirstmas was a bipolar holiday for the toddlers. I'm not talking about North and South poles, but salvation and damnation, gifts and beatings. Santa in our family went by the name St. Nicholaus (my name sake) he was much like any other santa I meet in my time. He was loving, full of joy, dressed in red... an overall wonderful symbol of the holiday spirit. Western tradition has Santa delivering coal to the bad and gifts to the good.

In pre-Christian Alpine tradition (what most Germans follow) Santa's job was split, the jolly old elf still came with gifts but he was accompanied by an escort, Krampus. An evil, boozy, goat-horned, 7foot tall incubus was santa's sidekick. Santa gave a gift and Krampus was right there with a beating and a bad dream for the child. On our families Christmas Eve Grandpa Herman was Santa and Uncle Wally (RIP) played Krampus. This tradition was survived in our family for just a few years, my older brother James and I experianced it. Our parents once pregnant with their third son decided to boycott the family party on account that beating their 8-year old (James) and 3-year old (me) was not the best way to spend the holiday.
Today the tradition of Krumpus morphed into a holiday bacchanal, where scaring kids takes a back seat to heroic bouts of drinking. Krampus festivals throughout Alpine communities kick off the holiday season with townspeople dressing in Krampus costumes, running rampant through the streets and putting a scare in the youngsters. After the children have been given a proper fright to ensure they stay on the straight and narrow, the rowdy Krampus are rewarded with booze. The fest then changes to an adult affair inwhich thousands of drunken goat-men roam the town's streets, harassing the town's young women.

X-mas wishlist

Now before going into this know that I'm broke. I have no intent in getting you a gift nor do I want you to get me one. However, if you are one of the privilaged ripe with green pocketbooks and want to see me open gifts, my friend this list is for you.

The gift of knowledge.

More than 640 pages devoted to black letter, showcases 333 typefaces collected by Judith Schalansky, accompanied by a CD of 150 usable fonts. Four of them were created just for this book. At $75 this is not an easy purchase in times that call for frugality, but there is no denying me my bible.
Fraktur Mon Amour
Available at Quimby's

How about something that will stand the test of time.

Stickler's Odds 'N Ends tattoo studio in Rockford. Andrew Stickler's custom flash style suits my needs, but parking tickets and gas bills are are cleaning the bank. I'm thinking The term "CORN FEED" across my knuckles, twin rooster in rampant stance fighting each other with blood and sweat pouring out, or and ear of corn husk peeled back revealing radiant kernals.
Stickler's Odd 'n Ends


For you big spenders.

Drivers East, High Performance Driving for Motion Pictures. This school was formed to train new Stunt Drivers who need not only to slide a car, but to be able to hit a mark consistently and safely. They do this on a closed circut, I want to bring this to the street.

Day 1:
Forward Slalom, Use of mirrors/reverse slalom with mirrors, Braking, Threshold braking, 4 wheel braking, Braking to a mark, Forward 180º left, Forward 180º right, 90º right, 90º left
Day 2:
Reverse slalom and use of mirrors, Lane change 90's / Drift 90's, Box 90º's right to a mark, Box 90º's left to a mark, 180ºs right to a mark / 180's left to a mark, Reverse 180º's, Skid Turns (Fish Tails)
Two day course costs: $1775 Plus I'll need to been flown to New Jersey
Drivers East

Actually all I want is to fuck an athletic girl I respect.

Betty Page RIP

Once again an American-treasure is taken away by the sandman.

"With deep personal sadness I must announce that my dear friend and client Bettie Page passed away at 6:41pm PST this evening in a Los Angles hospital. She died peacefully but had never regained consciousness after suffering a heart attack nine days ago. She captured the imagination of a generation of men and women with her free spirit and unabashed sensuality. She is the embodiment of beauty."
Statement by Mark Roesler, business agent for Bettie Page

Dance of Passion:


Rattled Roosters


Bettypage.com

"I've got this thing and it's fucking golden"

Several days late on this topic, but generally speaking if corruption goes all the way to the top, isn't it at the bottom as well?

A friend recently asked, "How much would an FBI agent pay to conduct the arrest?" That was an excellent question summing up the amount of corruption around and our inability to ever rid our lives of it.

"I've got this thing and it's fucking golden, and I'm just not giving it up for fucking nothing, I'm not going to do it. Front pages nationwide, radio and television of you escorting fucking G-Rod. You have nothing of fucking value to offer, I'll take this opportunity my-fucking-self."
-Head of FBI

What does Foxxy Cleopatra have to say about this:

PUMP IT!!!!

Cold Remedy

Runny nose? Scratchy throat? Lazy ass?
Chicago's brutal winter got motherfuckers catching colds left-n-right and getting mad lazy.

Not to worry, Dr.Dieter's hot toddy family-recipe is here to the rescue. Guaranteed to knock the shit out of the cold, and get you drunk enough to hit those streets.

What you'll need:
* 1 Irish breakfast tea bag
* 1/2 glass of Maker's Mark (any whiskey, scotch, or bourbon)
* 1 heaping tablespoon honey
* Boiling water
* 1 slice lemon

Directions:
In a coffee mug, place the tea bag and honey. Add enough boiling water (fill it half way), add the lemon, top off the coffee mug with your booze, and steep for 5 minutes. Remove the tea bag, inhale the steam, and guzzle the Toddy.
Your gonna want to repeat this process until the desired effect has been achieved.

Friends, try and take care of yourself, this winter
It's tempting to try the latest remedy, but colds are unavoidable the best thing you can do is drink. Also remember to wash up after smashing, God knows who the person under was tap-tap-tapping earlier, they may have had a cold.

It's gotta be the shoes....

Vice buggs out with Barry McGee

"this trend of graffiti in galleries will pass and something truly more horrific will replace it" - Barry McGee





http://www.vbs.tv/

NAGI NODA Rest in Peace

Easily the greatest artist of recent times passed away on Sunday, September 7. She was 35. Noda had experienced ongoing complications related to a bad car accident last year that resulted in chronic pain.Noda's body of work also included short films, sculpture and even character art like Hanpanda, the half panda/half other beast who appeared in her art exhibits and was also part of a collaboration with L.A./N.Y. fashion brand Libertine. Last year, she collaborated with painter Mark Ryden on her own fashion label Broken Label.

Her last video:




Ad for Coke:



All of her work can be view here:
uchu-country.com/

MAN, I want my PERFORMER back

My night in Grant Park

Thoughts on Sarah Palin

Manson says "I don't realy care for Alaska"

U.S. Murder Capital: CHICAGO

Chicago, whose population is dwarfed by New York City and Los Angles, posted 426 killings through Tuesday, compared with 417 in New York and 302 in L.A.

On the UPSET blog early this spring I predicted this year to be one of the worse. March/April to current day Chicago is murder crazed I constantly hear of shots, see guns brandished, and read of 30+ murders per week.

Check Your Boobies

Two prospective Eagle Scouts explain how they are preventing breast cancer by helping women examine their breasts.

Obama Camp Plans Major Celebration in Chicago on Election Night

Barack Obama's campaign has revealed plans for Obama's election night rally in Chicago.
It will be held in Grant Park the night of the election, Tuesday, Nov 4th. The Grant Park event will be free and open to the public. Hundreds of thousands are expected in the park and its surroundings.

Hit me up, let's get there!!!

Cut & Paste/55DSL challenge

55DSL Logo Remix challenges graphic designers, illustrators, and typographers, as well as all-around creative types, to take the iconic 55DSL Shield logo and spin it into a remix that reflects 55DSL’s culture and spirit, its origins and its future.The Grand Prize winner of the 55DSL Logo Remix will receive 1,055€ in addition to seeing his/her logo design produced by 55DSL.* During the contest period, all designs submitted for the Logo Remix will be showcased in Cut&Paste’s online gallery for public viewing, commenting, and voting.

Chicago's legendary Carlos Segura will participate as one of the judges in the Cut & Paste/55DSL Logo Remix challenge. The contest runs from October 20th until December 5th, 2008.

UPSKI interviewed by IN THESE TIMES

Billy Wimsatt founded The League of Young Voters in 2003 to organize and empower youth – particularly young people from low-income communities who haven’t attended college. Known by his graffiti tag name “Upski” while growing up in Chicago, Wimsatt has been writing and organizing for social change since dropping out of college more than 15 years ago. The author of Bomb the Suburbs and No More Prisons, in 2004 Wimsatt co-edited How To Get Stupid White Men Out Of Office, a collection of essays written by youth organizers around the world.

ITT:
In 25 words or less, what makes you so special? (Keep in mind that humility, while admirable, is boring.)

BILLY:
Yikes!… Chicago hip-hop kid turned journalist political organizer. Proud founder of League of Young Voters, but didn’t vote ‘til age 27. Never heard of me before? Your life just got better.

IN THESE TIMES

The Devil's Playground

Located at Damen two blocks south of Grand, I shot this on December 30th 2006. Posted it to my flickr account in April of 2007, it since recives hundreds of views daily. Thusly making it by far the highest viewed photo in the stream, today it is at 7,621 views. Chicago Gang graffiti from the INSANE GANGSTER SATAN DISCIPLES.


History Channel's GANGLAND gave a decent on the street insiders view to Chicago's IGSD.

PART 1


PART 2


PART 3




PART 4


PART 5

Fuck your cute pumpkin.

Extreme Pumpkins

The Set Up!!!

C-H-I-C-A-G-0 Crucial Conflict
Double Loss... Twisted Hats... Bushie Pussy...One Way... M16s... Augusta... Stick Up... Gone With the Wind

My stolen bike. Please Read...

As of twenty minutes my bike has been stolen. If you happened to have taken it and want to return it, no worries police have not and will not be involved, just put it back in front of my place. I use it a lot, hell we'll split a six pack for changing your mind. If you are a friend with my contact info and see someone riding this or it locked somewhere, hit me up... I have you on dinner and drinks, if the info results in me getting this back. If you notice this bike on Craig's list, let me know. It's a Blue Specialized Hardrock exactly like the one above same model, nothing sweet about it... paid $180 for it 5ish years ago. For the rest of the night I'll be on the SE corner of Western and Chicago, hammer down my pants... knives in my pockets... and several other goodies. Just for that off chance your god smiles at me and lets dude ride by on my bike. If you, a friend ride by the corner drop me a beer, I'm a real thirst guy.

Saturday proper

Wesley Willis @ CIFF 44 also Milton Glaser!

Rest In Peace friend.

Raised in a broken home in one of Chicago's most dangerous neighborhoods, Wesley Willis sought refuge in art and music, creating thousands of extraordinarily detailed ink drawings of the city and its expressways, and producing more than 50 albums. Joyrides is a highly personal, deeply engrossing look at the life of a man who, despite incredible odds, became a prolific artist, underground icon, and an individual thousands dearly loved.

Wesely Willis's Joyrides:




Playing:
Friday, Oct. 17th @ 8:40P AMC RIVER EAST 21
Saturday, Oct. 25 @ 2:15P AMC RIVER EAST 21
Monday, Oct.27 @ 4:00P AMC RIVER EAST 21

Milton Glaser: To Inform & Delight

For many, Milton Glaser is the personification of American graphic design. Best known for co-founding New York Magazine and the enduring I ♥ NY campaign, the full breadth of Glaser’s remarkable artistic output is revealed in this documentary portrait, MILTON GLASER: TO INFORM AND DELIGHT. From newspapers and magazine designs, to interior spaces, logos, and brand identities, to his celebrated prints, drawings, posters and paintings, the documentary offers audiences a much richer appreciation for one of the great modern renaissance men.

Playing:
Monday, Oct.27 @ 4:10P AMC RIVER EAST 21
Tuesday, Oct.28 @ 8:30P AMC RIVER EAST 21

chicagofilmfestival.org

Snoop's Blackass

Our Frieghtening Reality... is Real

Alex Blumberg and NPR's Adam Davidson explain what happened last week, including what regulators could've done to prevent our financial crisis from happening in the first place. Ira Glass with This American Life takes us there.

Free full episode: This American Life #365

You Weren't There

Chicago's absence from the household-established history of punk that tends to lean towards New York, London, and Los Angeles is what leads to a such a raw story at a late date. Three decades later and this history is stil new to so many. In 2007 husband and wife Joe Losurdo and Chris Tillman, aka Regressive Films released the first ever documentary of Chicago punk and hardcore from ’77 to ’84.


www.regressivefilms.com