Open Thread: Your Letter to the Next President

Filed under: Slideshow, Sound Off

What would you like to tell the next president?

We'd like to know -- and so would artist Sheryl Oring. Using an old manual typewriter, Oring will be taking dictation on Monday in Bryant Park for letters to the next commander-in-chief, as part of her project "I Wish to Say."

You can get in on it now. Drop your letter to the next president (in less than 400 words, if you can) in the comments. We'll ask Oring to include some of them in work next week.

Laura Conaway

8:21 AM ET | 05-16-2008 | permalink | comments (6) | e-mail post

 

Food, Clothing, Shelter: Caring for Kids in China

Filed under: News, Slideshow

We've seen a lot of painful, horrifying images from China this week, with parents mourning children lost in Monday's earthquake. Reports suggest the death toll from the 7.9 magnitude quake is at least 12,000, perhaps even 15,000. Authorities say thousands more remain buried in the rubble. Mothers and fathers will be grieving in China for a long while yet to come.

For other families, the question now is how to get through the hazy limbo that follows close behind the moment of disaster. This morning, the latest pictures out of China documented the beginnings of that journey.

Full read:
Rescuers reach city at epicenter of Sichuan quake
Art Silverman describes the scene

Laura Conaway

8:13 AM ET | 05-14-2008 | permalink | comments (0) | e-mail post

 

Gallery: Scenes from Myanmar After Cyclone Nargis

Filed under: News, Slideshow

Reports coming in from Myanmar after Cyclone Nargis suggest thousands of people -- even as many as 10,000 -- were killed by the storm.

The nation is set for a constitutional referendum next week. Now the storm has some wondering whether the vote will go ahead as planned.

Another blogger says Nargis hit a major farming region in Myanmar, the Irrawaddy Delta. "The northern and central parts of the delta are major rice-growing areas, producing 40 percent of the national total," writes Jotman. He adds that Nargis struck as farmers are getting ready to plant next year's crop.

Bonus: Global Voices compiles citizen reports from the scene.

Laura Conaway

1:02 PM ET | 05- 5-2008 | permalink | comments (0) | e-mail post

 

Photo Gallery: Putting the T in Internet

Filed under: ROFL, Slideshow

You couldn't swing a LOLCat at ROFLCon without hitting an awesome t-shirt.
If you want to hear what ROFLCon was like, check out our segment from today's BPP.

Ian Chillag

2:08 PM ET | 04-28-2008 | permalink | comments (2) | e-mail post

 

Capturing the Sea . . . Frame by Frame

Filed under: Slideshow

Today, we talked to two crab fishermen featured on Discovery Channel's hit show, Deadliest Catch. The Hillstrand brothers wrote a book about their danger-dodging lives on the high seas, but another D.C. vet we talked to uses his camera to document his experiences on the crabbing circuit.

Corey Arnold -- a bona fide crab fisherman featured in season two -- is also a bona fide photographer. His current project, Fish-Work, is part photographic documentary, part conceptual art -- capturing what he calls his "love/ hate relationship with fishing, manual labor, and the people that inhabit the fish towns of Northern Norway and Alaska."

His work has been featured in museums, magazines and galleries in San Francisco, Santa Monica and Norway, and is currently shown by a high-end New York gallery, Sara Tecchia Roma New York.

Angela Ellis

12:58 PM ET | 04-17-2008 | permalink | comments (1) | e-mail post

 

Where on Earth Is Waldo?

Filed under: Slideshow

Melanie Coles spent hours poring over "Where's Waldo?" books as a child, looking for the stripe-shirted hero. Now a 22-year-old artist, she figured these days people spend hours pouring over Google Earth images looking for things, so why not give them a Waldo to find? She made a giant Waldo, put him somewhere in Vancouver, and now she's waiting for Google Earth satellites to pick him up.

Ian Chillag

8:43 AM ET | 04-16-2008 | permalink | comments (10) | e-mail post

 

Slideshow: A Red Sox Fan in Twitter Nation

Filed under: Slideshow, Sports

About a year ago, Jordan McKible got what a certain set of people would call a bright idea. McKible decided to follow his beloved Boston Red Sox on Twitter.

He opened a Twitter account called Redsoxcast and started calling balls and strikes. By the end of the first game, he had picked up a dozen followers. Today Redsoxcast follows every game, with a crowd that tops 400 and includes one of my personal favorites, Bryan Person.

In honor of our own 800th Twitter follower, here's the story of a Red Sox fan in Twitter nation.

Bonus: Detroit Tigers Twittercast

Laura Conaway

12:24 PM ET | 04- 3-2008 | permalink | comments (1) | e-mail post

 

The Writing on the Wall

Filed under: Slideshow

Steve Featherstone was headed to Afghanistan to do a story on a new army unit when he found himself stranded at an airbase in Kuwait for a week. For lack of anything better to do, he started reading the graffiti on the latrine walls.

In the graffiti, soldiers expressed their growing fatigue and anger-mostly with each other. When they weren't scribbling Chuck Norris jokes or questioning the fighting ability of other units, they were slamming soldiers who dared give voice to their dissatisfaction.

Featherstone began photographing the graffiti when he realized it would soon be erased by the cleaning crews who regularly swabbed the walls. He visited every latrine trailer on base and took more photographs at his next stop Bagram Airfied in Kabul, Afghanistan.

We spoke to Featherstone on the show today, and you can read an essay he wrote to accompany his photographs in The Walrus.

Caitlin Kenney

5:43 PM ET | 03-26-2008 | permalink | comments (1) | e-mail post

 

Scenes from a Cuban Exhibition, in New Jersey

Filed under: City Living, Slideshow

The latest cool thing to bring back from Cuba (if you can get there) isn't a cigar but a painting.

On today's show, Ben Rodriguez-Cubenas, a collector and co-founder of the Cuban Artists Fund, talks about the hot market for art from the island nation.

Meanwhile, the Hunterdon Museum of Art in Clinton, N.J., shares the images in the slideshow above. Its exhibit, "Cuba: Artists Experience Their Country," stays up through March 30.

Laura Conaway

9:50 AM ET | 03-26-2008 | permalink | comments (2) | e-mail post

 

'Star Wars' Merchandise You Cannot Buy

Filed under: Slideshow

Steve Ross and Jason Geyer had these great ideas for Star Wars merchandise. Click the picture for a catalog of what didn't make the cut. (Big thanks to Ian Chillag for putting this puppy together.)

Challenge: In the comments, pitch your own idea for Star Wars merch.

Laura Conaway

7:12 AM ET | 03-25-2008 | permalink | comments (24) | e-mail post

 

Newtown Creek: Eerie, Beautiful and Teeming with Oil

Filed under: News, Slideshow

It's been 19 years since the Exxon tanker Valdez coated Alaska's Prince William Sound with 11-million gallons of oil. Today on our show, we revisited a bigger plume of oil closer to home: New York City's Newtown Creek.

Basil Seggos, chief investigator for the environmental advocacy group Riverkeeper, told us how 17-million gallons of oil got there and what's being done to get rid of it.

Recently, I took a bike ride along the creek -- the slideshow above is what I saw.

Laura Silver

1:42 PM ET | 03-24-2008 | permalink | comments (2) | e-mail post

 

Slideshow: I Like Paintings

Filed under: Slideshow

Last week on the show, Rachel Martin spoke with Jeremiah Palecek about his paintings of Internet memes. Above, he walks us through some of his work, from YouTube to canvas.

Ian Chillag

8:45 AM ET | 03-18-2008 | permalink | comments (2) | e-mail post

 

Gallery: The Arc of Eliot Spitzer's Career

Filed under: News, Slideshow

AP sends this photo gallery from N.Y. Gov. Eliot Spitzer's career. Monday, after reports that a federal wiretap had caught him arranging a Feb. 13 meeting with a prostitute in Washington, D.C., Spitzer apologized for an unspecified wrong and said he'd report back shortly.

See for yourself: FBI agent's affidavit. "Client 9" shows up around page 34.

Laura Conaway

6:57 AM ET | 03-11-2008 | permalink | comments (0) | e-mail post

 

Slideshow: What Do You Wear to Feel Powerful?

Filed under: Slideshow

Tiffany Ludwig and Renee Piechocki asked nearly 600 women in 15 states one simple question: "What do you wear that makes you feel powerful?"

The result is their new book, Trappings: Stories of Women, Power and Clothing, a study of women and their clothing choices. This week, Ludwig and Piechocki walked us through some of the answers they got.

Replay: The authors on the Bryant Park Project.

Laura Conaway

7:46 AM ET | 03- 7-2008 | permalink | comments (1) | e-mail post

 

Slideshow: The Bible Gets A 'Manga' Makeover

Filed under: Slideshow

You might know "manga" as a style of Japanese comic book full of big-eyed, gangly-bodied action figures.

One artist in the U.K. used the storytelling genre to recreate one of the oldest known texts - the Bible. It's called ""The Manga Bible: From Genesis to Revelation," and was authored and illustrated by Nigerian-educated Ajinbayo Akinsiku (pen name "Siku"). The latest edition of the graphic novel, including both the old and new testaments, was published in the United States this month.

Listen to a live interview with Siku on our show.

Pauline Bartolone

12:53 PM ET | 02-29-2008 | permalink | comments (3) | e-mail post

 

Slideshow: Legless Photographer Stares Back

Filed under: Links From the Show, Slideshow

Kevin Connolly has spent his life being stared at. He was born without legs and these days gets around mainly by skateboard. On a trip to Europe, he snapped a picture of someone looking at him. He liked what he saw and decided to stare back. The result is a collection of photographs he calls "The Rolling Exhibition."

Caitlin Kenney

8:17 AM ET | 02-20-2008 | permalink | comments (3) | e-mail post

 

Slideshow: Visual Artist Shirin Neshat Gets Personal

Filed under: Slideshow, Video

We had Shirin Neshat on Monday's show - her videos and photographs are on exhibition at the Gladstone Gallery in New York City. The gallery provided us with images of her work over the past couple of decades, so we made an audio slideshow with her narrative and music from her video installations. Click on the image.

What do you think?

Pauline Bartolone

8:27 PM ET | 02- 6-2008 | permalink | comments (0) | e-mail post

 

Slideshow: A Cool Dip for a Warming Planet

Filed under: News, Slideshow, Video

St. Mary's College students filled their campus waterfront with splashes and shrill laughter on Thursday afternoon -- not just for fun, but to show concern about global warming. As part of their second annual "polar bear splash," over a hundred stripped down to their swimsuit and plunged into the freezing cold St. Mary's river.

Continue reading "Slideshow: A Cool Dip for a Warming Planet" »

Pauline Bartolone

1:31 PM ET | 02- 1-2008 | permalink | comments (5) | e-mail post

 

Slideshow: Xtreme Knitters Rock the Yarn

Filed under: City Living, Slideshow

On today's show, Sabrina Gschwandtner introduced us to the world of extreme knitting -- guerrilla artists who leave knitted "tags" as a new form of graffiti, people who knit with weird stuff like fiberglass and lead, people who get together for massive knitting parties and cover entire park benches with yarn. Wow.

Gschwandtner is the editor KnitKnit, a zine, and the new book KnitKnit: Profiles and Projects from Knitting's New Wave.

Laura Conaway

9:59 AM ET | 01-31-2008 | permalink | comments (19) | e-mail post

 

Romeo Update: Wolf Photographer Checks In

Filed under: Slideshow, Stuff We Love

Got this image and the one after the jump from the person who took those photos of Romeo, the
legendary wolf of Juneau, Alaska. He asked if he could remain anonymous, because he has taken more guff than he'd like over photos of Romeo running off with a pug.

Romeo lives alone near Mendenhall Lake, outside Juneau, and he frequently approaches people and their dogs on the ice. Three times in the last year, Romeo has grabbed a smaller dog. The first two, a beagle and the pug, he turned loose. The third, a Pomeranian, is still missing.

Thanks for the pictures, Anonymous.

Continue reading "Romeo Update: Wolf Photographer Checks In" »

Laura Conaway

7:25 AM ET | 01-25-2008 | permalink | comments (14) | e-mail post

 

About That Wolf: A Romeo Update

Filed under: Biking the Iditarod, Slideshow

Snow cyclist Jill Homer told us the story of Romeo, the legendary lone wolf of Juneau. Several of you wrote in with ideas for getting Romeo a little companionship.

Now a listener named Harry R. has added a few details. Harry says that the pictures of Romeo with the pug were taken by a local man. (UPDATE: I just talked to the man, and he still wants to be anonymous.) Here's the redacted message from Harry R.:

Romeo is a male Alexander Archipelago wolf, approximately 5 1/2 to 6 years old. I've known him well for 5 of those years. It is thought that he and his (dead) mate were the sole survivors of a pack that had been locally trapped. His mate was subsequently killed after being hit by a cab while pregnant with four almost born pups. Wolves often only have one mate in their lifetime. Solitary wolves are rarely accepted into a strange pack, but sometimes, several strays will band together for companionship.

While rarely seen in the summer, Romeo does live in the Mendenhall Valley area year round... he's just much more visible in the winter. His name was derived from his friendly disposition, and his well-known love for playing with dogs.

Though rumors have circulated, there is no evidence that any dog has ever been injured by Romeo. The pug shown being carried in the picture was owned by the daughter of a local [man]. He had brought the pug and two other dogs into the Mendenhall Lake area hoping to attract Romeo so he that could photograph him. The photographs in question are his... taken by a very fast and expensive Canon camera. In truth, Romeo picked up the pug in his mouth, carried him for about a 1 and half seconds, and then dropped him completely unharmed. The pug flipped to his feet and Romeo traveled about another 10 feet and stopped... end of story. [The man] (minus the pug) was out doing the very same thing the next day with the other two dogs. [He] later submitted these pictures to the Juneau Empire (anonymously) and to the Anchorage Daily News (where he was credited).

Romeo is a true wild wolf, and should be respected as such... but in reality, is far better mannered than many of our local dogs. Over the years, his presence has captivated hundreds of visitors and local Juneau residents. Concerned about his well-being, local Romeo supporters have formed a group called "Friends of Romeo" that look out for his interests and publish up-to-date news concerning his activities. Interested parties that supply an e-mail address can receive a free copy of their latest bulletin.

If anybody has any questions concerning Romeo, I'd be happy to answer them to the best of my ability...

Laura Conaway

6:15 AM ET | 01-24-2008 | permalink | comments (6) | e-mail post

 

Slideshow: 'American Born Chinese'

Filed under: Slideshow, Video

Graphic novelist Gene Luen Yang is the author of American Born Chinese, the first graphic novel to be nominated for a National Book Award. On the show this week, and in the slideshow above, he talks about growing up inside and out of the culture.

Pauline Bartolone

1:57 PM ET | 01-23-2008 | permalink | comments (1) | e-mail post

 

Gallery: Kibera in Ashes

Filed under: News, Slideshow

Ken Okoth sends these images through his relatives in Kenya. They live in the Kibera slum of Nairobi, Kenya, and have fled to Tanzania. Okoth checked in this morning with news of his family. He writes:

They are glad to be out of immediate danger in Tanzania, but they are also shocked and scared at how fast their lives changed and how vulnerable they felt. My little niece is helping everyone keep a high morale through her playfulness. She saw destroyed buildings, fires, and heard lots of gunshots, but I am told she did not see any dead bodies or other really traumatic things as the troubles unfolded. For her, age 5, all this is now a great adventure because she does not understand what exactly is going on. She has been told it's just a special vacation trip.

Bonus:
Gallery: Kids share a haunting view of Kenya
Okoth's Facebook gallery
Okoth's Red Rose Nursery and Children's Centre
The Children of Kibera Foundation

Laura Conaway

12:50 PM ET | 01- 7-2008 | permalink | comments (0) | e-mail post

 

Gallery: 6,572 Miles of Biking in Alaska

Filed under: Biking the Iditarod, Slideshow

Jill Homer hit a snag last week in her preparation for February's human-powered Iditarod. An old knee injury flared up, forcing her to take a break from her day-long rides through the snowy mountain woods -- just as she was about to enter the peak phase of her training for the 350-mile ride.

After a few days off, Homer reports, she's back on the bike. But she did use the break to calculate her miles in 2007. Try 6,572, and that's with an extended layoff for the original knee problem. If that sounds unimaginable, just check out the photos above. Happy trails, Jill. Keep pedaling.

Bonus:
Up in Alaska, Jill Homer's blog

Biking the Iditarod: The NPR series

Laura Conaway

7:21 AM ET | 01- 7-2008 | permalink | comments (2) | e-mail post

 

Gallery: Kids Share a Haunting View of Kenya

Filed under: News, Slideshow

Ken Okoth grew up poor in Kibera slum of Nairobi, Kenya. Now a history teacher in Virginia, he still spends summers in Kibera. Okoth runs the Red Rose Nursery and Children's Centre, an orphanage for neighborhood kids.

In the summer of 2007, Okoth gave disposable cameras to kids from three local schools. The result, "Kibera Through My Eyes" is enchanting, ghostly, beautiful.

The gallery above give the barest glimpse of the project. Okoth links to all the images from the Red Rose website. You can learn more about Okoth on our show today, where he talks about helping his family escape the current violence there.

Laura Conaway

2:48 PM ET | 01- 3-2008 | permalink | comments (0) | e-mail post

 

Gallery: 6,572 Miles of Biking in Alaska

Filed under: Biking the Iditarod, Slideshow

Jill Homer hit a snag last week in her preparation for February's human-powered Iditarod. An old knee injury flared up, forcing her to take a break from her day-rides through the snowy mountain woods -- just as she was about to enter the peak phase of her training for the 350-mile ride.

After a few days off, Homer reports, she's back on the bike. But she did use the break to calculate her miles in 2007. Try 6,572, and that's with an extended layoff for the original knee problem. If that sounds unimaginable, just check out the photos above. Happy trails, Jill. Keep pedaling.

Bonus:
Up in Alaska, Jill Homer's blog

Biking the Iditarod: The NPR series

Laura Conaway

8:50 AM ET | 01- 3-2008 | permalink | comments (0) | e-mail post

 

Gallery: Fun with Science Tattoos

Filed under: Links From the Show, Slideshow, Stuff We Love

Science tattoos are the rage among the brainy set. We here at the BPP are sticking with butterflies and "Mama Knows."

Carl Zimmer Flickr'd up a bunch of the other (read: intellectual) kind. Hit the image up there for the pictures. Or read about it on his blog.

Laura Conaway

8:47 AM ET | 01- 3-2008 | permalink | comments (1) | e-mail post

 

Slideshow: Flash Protests in Pakistan

Filed under: News, Slideshow

Awad Alvi, a dentist in Pakistan, sends these pictures of a flash protest outside a grocery story in Karachi last week. The idea is get a few people together, make your political point (in their case, that President Musharraf should go) and get out of there before the army shows up with tear gas and flailing batons.

Dr. Alvi, who asked that we obscure the faces in the photos in order to protect the protesters, came on our show today and explained how it works. Check out the audio slideshow; and the radio segment.

Win Rosenfeld

8:50 AM ET | 11-12-2007 | permalink | comments (0) | e-mail post

 

Slideshow: The California Wildfires

Filed under: Slideshow

Laura Conaway

3:18 PM ET | 10-23-2007 | permalink | comments (0) | e-mail post