January 26, 2012

You Are What You Eat

I have a lot of favorite cereals, but I'm not really a brand loyalist. I tend to buy whatever is on sale, whether that be Kellogg's® Rice Krispies® or Johnny Generic's Crispy Rice. Admittedly, most of the time I'm pretty much just scanning the prices, but as a fan of parody and kitsch, I do take a minute to peruse the crazy names of generic cereals. Typically, generic cereals are named what they literally are - Puffed Rice! Sugar Flakes! Bunch O' Cinnamon Squares! Here is honey nut toasted oats in all its lowercase America Generica's Choice glory:



Boring? Sure, but I know exactly what I'm getting for $1.99 with my A&P Bonus Savings Club Card. 

Sometimes the generics thrown in a wacky word that add nothing but the potential to capitalize on a similarly named cereal (I guess you could mistake "Scrunchy" for "Cap'n Crunch")... 


...but as silly as they want to get with the text, the name of the cereal still tells me exactly what I'm investing in without having to read any fine print--Peanut Butter Crunchy things. 

Now when I came across this box, I was at a loss:


Essentially You? Is this made of, essentially... me? They either hastily came up with some corny new age name targeting the organic market, or they have finally created The Cereal For Cannibals: Delicious, Nutritious, and Malicious.


Brings out the Dahmer in You!

January 19, 2012

Subway Melt!

Some NYC subway graffitti that I visualized on the train, but only executed in the comfort of my home. Note to self: start carrying a red Sharpie. 


January 17, 2012

The Bored Statues of Newark, NJ

Last Friday the 13th, I found myself at the Essex County Hall of Records. Outside, I spotted the two most bored looking statues I'd ever seen--a lion and a lioness.


I guess in reality, chillaxing is what lions are usually up to most of the time anyway (according to various internet sources, they sleep 16-24 hours a day), so kudos to the sculptor for keeping it in real up in the field. 

Little did I know that just a block away is Gutzon Borglum's tribute to Abraham Lincoln's downtime: "Seated Lincoln." C'mon Abe, the War's over. Look alive!


Behind Thinkin' Lincoln is another pensive statue. This is one of two bronze guards to the Essex County Courthouse, designed by Cass Gilbert:


From what I've read, that statue is the allegorical representation of Truth, Power, and Hangin' Out. I think they captured it well. 

After this mini-walking tour of Newark's sculptures, I felt myself quickly growing tired and headed back to NYC early. Next time I hope to catch some more of the best artwork Newark has to offer, like "Washington Crossing the Delaware Whenever He Gets Around To It," "Mount Rush-Less," and "Venus De Milo Before She Lost Her Arms From Playing Too Much Nintendo."