Wright Model B

1912 Model "B" Wright

The birth of the airplane began with Orville and Wilbur's Flyer I in 1903.  Seven models later, the Wright brothers redesigned their airplane to create the Model B.  The new design incorporated rear elevators that allowed easier control.

Wingspan: 39 ft (11.9 m)

Length: 28 ft (8.5 m)

Height: 8 ft, 9 in (2.7 m)

Motor: 8-cylinder 75 horsepower
Speed: 45 mph

Sources: Wikipedia; http://www.456fis.org/THE_WRIGHT_BROTHERS_MODEL_-_B.htm; http://www.flickr.com/photos/floridamemory/

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Wild and Free

Art Appreciation

Located in front of the Texas Memorial Museum at the corner of San Jacinto and 24th Street on the University of Texas campus, Alexander Phimister Proctor's sculpture of mustangs captures the freedom of the frontier American west.


Source: Wikipedia; http://www.utexas.edu/tours/statues/mustangs.html; http://www.answers.com/topic/alexander-phimister-proctor

Lady Gaga - Born this way

Music Appreciation
 Many have criticized Lady Gaga as steeling from Madonna.   Perhaps, but so freaking what! 

My generation saw our Madonna and enjoyed her music.  I'll be the first to admit that I stayed up way past my bedtime to watching Madonna's Justify My Love. Yes, I love it all.

But why should we deprive our next generation from their "Madonna?"  Lady Gage may not reach the Madonna stature, but that's not for us to judge.

Salt-N-Pepa - Push It

Music Appreciation

Who else could make leather jackets, gold chains, and black spandex look cool? Cheryl James (aka Salt), Sandra Denton (aka Pepa) and Dee Dee Roper (aka Spinderella). Yes, Salt-N-Pepa, "the godmothers of rap," introduced the world to "Push It" in 1987.

So what was going on in the world when "Push It" was released? U.S. President Ronald Reagan addressed the American people on the Iran-Contra Affair, and U2 released their Joshua Tree album.




Source: Mother Jones Magazine, 1990; Wikipedia

Woman Reading

Photography Appreciation

Woman Reading, circa 1890

National Media Museum, Kodak Gallery Collection

Gin Blossoms - Hey Jealousy

Music Appreciation (A Retrospect)

From Temple, Arizona, the rock band Gin Blossoms hit mainstream rock with Hey Jealousy.  Written by Doug Hopkins about his old girlfriend, the upbeat tempo was contrary of his life.  Hopkins struggled with alcoholism and depression which eventually caused him to commit suicide.

The hit single from their first studio album New Miserable Experience, caught the attention and admiration of alternative-rock-loving-teens like myself. I recall listening to this song driving around McAllen, Texas in my blue Pontiac Sunbird with my close high school hoodlums: Drew, Wendy, and Cathy.




Sources: Wikipedia; songfacts.com

Frieseke's "Reflections (Marcelle)"

Art Appreciation

Born in Michigan, Frederick Carl Frieseke, was an impressionist painter who lived in the same town as French painter Claude Monet north of Paris, France. 

The painting below, titled "Reflections (Marcelle)," was done in 1909 in France.

You can read more about his background here and here.

Source: http://www.huntfor.com/absoluteig/frieseke.htm; http://www.hollistaggart.com/artists/biography/frederick_carl_frieseke/; wikipedia