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It was around 15 years ago that I stumbed into the world of real-time virtual interaction in the context of MUDs. Back then, it was simply disembodied text floating by on a black background, as I banded together with other adventurers to hack away at monsters for fun and xp (experience points of course). A lot has happened since then, and these days, it’s evolved into things like the hugely popular MMORPG World of Warcraft. But it was from those roots that I became interested in the possibilities of the internet, virtual communities, and useful applications of the virtual experience.

So it was with some interest that I observed the rise of communities like Second Life and other similar ventures. In some respects, it’s extremely exciting: as the space continues to mature, the possibilities it presents are genuinely intriguing. However, I can’t help but think that at this stage, tremendous amounts of energy are going into things that don’t really add true value to your real life. As Second Lifers are spending and earning their virtual dollars to buy clothes, animations, houses and land, dancing their avatars in virtual nightclubs and concerts to flirt with other pixels, a feeling gnaws at me: so is this it?

This should and could be so much more that just a giant game of “The Sims”.

Are you doing something cool in Second Life? Let me know! (SL: Kaiman Oh)

Not owning a PS2 or a XBox 360 (or knowing anyone who does), I hadn’t had the opportunity to play the game Guitar Hero… until today. While killing some time at a local electronics store, I wandered over to the XBox 360 demo kiosk to see what the guitar hero hype was about. Man, I was totally sold after the first 5 minutes and about a frenzied half-an-hour later, I started getting some looks from the floor staff of the ‘are you going to buy something or what?’ variety. I was rocking out. I reluctantly put down the plastic axe and left. Easily the most fun I’ve had playing a video game in quite a while.

I just finished this graphic novel American Born Chinese today. While it’s intended for a younger audience, and a pretty quick read, I just wanted to offer it out there as a recommendation. It’s a really well written graphic novel and one of the few that deals specifically with asian-american culture and integration. And, of course, it has toy robots and the Monkey King, so what more could you want really? ;-)

Amazon’s review:

Indie graphic novelist Gene Yang’s intelligent and emotionally challenging American Born Chinese is made up of three individual plotlines: the determined efforts of the Chinese folk hero Monkey King to shed his humble roots and be revered as a god; the struggles faced by Jin Wang, a lonely Asian American middle school student who would do anything to fit in with his white classmates; and the sitcom plight of Danny, an All-American teen so shamed by his Chinese cousin Chin-Kee (a purposefully painful ethnic stereotype) that he is forced to change schools. Each story works well on its own, but Yang engineers a clever convergence of these parallel tales into a powerful climax that destroys the hateful stereotype of Chin-Kee, while leaving both Jin Wang and the Monkey King satisfied and happy to be who they are.

Well, it took a long time, but more people seem to have awoken to the fact that America needs a change from the GOP business as usual. I, for one, am quite relieved – it’s been a difficult time, politically, for progressive-minded people, seeing us launch headlong into an ill-planned war, the continued erosion of Constitutional civil liberties, loss of seats on the Supreme Court, and general governance by continuously raising the spectre of fear. It has been hard to bear, and one of the main reasons I left the need to leave the country after Bush’s reelection in 2004.

But there seems to be some hope yet. Mosh anyone?

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I hadn’t heard of the “Music Genome Project” before, but I stumbled upon a site that they’ve put together that really seems like a cool idea. Basically, the idea is that you plug in a song or artist that you like, and they put together an online radio stream for you with music that they think you’ll like based on your taste. And as they keep playing music, you can enter feedback on their recommendations, which they use to keep fine-tuning their selections. You can even set up multiple “stations” seeded with different songs, since (if you’re anything like me) your taste can vary quite widely. Anyway, it’s definitely a great way to find new music. Give it a try at Pandora.com.

A while back, a Japanese guy name Dyske Suematsu contacted me about using some of my photographs for a little cultural experiment he’s set up called All Look Same?, a site which tests people to see whether they can distinguish Japanese, Chinese and Korean faces, places, and art, among other things. An interesting question – some people can claim that they can tell the difference, others insist that it’s not possible. I’ve always been of the mind that most of the time it is possible, but there are always cases where you get surprised. But then again, I am constantly mistaken for being Chinese or Japanese by native Chinese and Japanese people, so I guess I am could be one of those ambiguous types. Anyway, think you’re up to the task? Take the test and find out…

Just in case you’re not one of the 1.5 million people (and counting) that seem to have already seen this video, I thought I’d pass it along (thanks GE) as it’s worth watching and not just a little bit inspiring. Oh yeah, if you like the music, courtesy of The Sick Puppies, you can check out their website.

Juan Mann, the subject of the video, is giving out Free Hugs in Sydney, but he may have gotten his idea from Jayson Littman who gave free hugs in Washington Square Park in NYC on Sundays a few years ago. Zoe and I saw Jayson on the subway one day, I wonder if he’s still out there…

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On a whim, Zoe and I decided to go to the Dashanzi Art District of Beijing, an old factory and industrial park, which has since been squatted by artists and converted into a number of galleries and artists’ studios. It reminded me a bit of Christiania in Copenhagen in its vibe, minus the open drug commerce. It’s a great part of town and I highly recommend it to anyone seeking a little alternative art culture in the cauldron that is Beijing. Quiet and relaxed, a peaceful sanctuary that has some pretty interesting art as well. While we were there, we walked into a gallery owned by Pop Zhao, an apparently very well established Chinese artist who took the time to discuss some of his work with us (Thanks Zhao!). His latest work involves the juxtaposition of Mao’s “Little Red Book” iconography with the logos and slogans of large corporations, evoking a sense of the paradoxical overlap between the propaganda of both the communist and capitalist machines as well as the identity crisis facing China today. Very interesting stuff.

A humorous anecdote was relayed to me recently by our friend T, we have gotten to know here in London. He attended one of the first showings of Who’s Afraid of Virginia Woolf, which just opened at the Apollo Theatre in London with Kathleen Turner last week. He sat in Row G next to an older gentleman and during the interval had a conversation with him, which went something along the lines of this:

Man: Are you enjoying the play? T: Yes, I am. Man: Yes, I was noticing that you really seem to get it. T: (puzzled) What, do you mean the diction? I don’t really have trouble with the North American accent because I’m Canadian – Man: No, no, I meant you really seem to be getting a lot of the ironies in the play. T: Oh, yes, it’s great. I’m enjoying it a lot. Man: Are you familiar with the play? T: Well, actually no, I’m not. Are you? Man: (a pause) Well yes actually, I wrote it. T: …

A pretty nifty little experience. Although I’m not sure if it beats me sitting down the row from David Schwimmer at Julius Caesar last year.

I ventured out to South Kensington this afternoon to see the new Diane Arbus exhibit that’s being hosted at the Victoria & Albert museum through January. As a long time fan of her photography, it was wonderful to finally see her prints. I highly recommend it, it’s an excellent show, featuring all of her iconic photos as well as her unseen work, several hundred prints in all. Even more fascinating were displays of her photo journals, notes, contact sheets, cameras and some of her darkroom equipment, documenting a bit of her working process. Maybe this is weird, but on seeing her well worn 35mm Nikon and Rolleiflex cameras on display, a shiver went up my back. To look into the same lens as all of her subjects across time… pure magic.