Bösekatzebösekatze 


German Human Beatbox-History … I saw a documentary in the Eiszeit-Cinema about “The 5th Element of HipHop (after DJing, MCing, Breakdancing und Graffiti)“ – an amazing and very entertaining film about Berlin subculture, lips, tongues, the deep bass beat of a city and a big community: „Love, Peace and Beatbox“ by Volker Meyer- Dabisch.
I wasn’t interested in German HipHop at all before but this film showed me that there is a huge loving tolerant universe beside all those aggro dumb motherfuckers!
And I loved the scenes where DJ Mesia, a real big bearish Berlin tough & nice guy, teaches kids the basics of HipHop, Beatbox and mouth-percussion in a youth center. That made completely sense to me and touched my hippiesque youth-teacher-heart …

This “Bösekatze“ thing in the headline is a kind of mnemonic – learning beatboxing: your first bursting consonants will be like B, TZ, K the guy in the credits told us directly in the camera (and the audience practised it immediately!!) … B …sss … k … tzz …

Performing a cool & sweet spontaneous Eiszeit-Special after the film show: Bee Low, founder of the German Beatbox Battle, and ….. I’m not quite sure who the other guy is – Wetlipz of 4XSample?? Correct me if I’m wrong 🙂

Season Signs

What is the first sign that now the beginning of a season is irreversible?
The first chestnut for autumn … the first snowdrop (Galanthus nivalis) for pre-pre-pre-spring/end winter … the first crocus and the first singing blackbird at dawn for spring … the first time walking barefoot on grass for summer and the first metallic cold smell of snow at night for winter.

Grumpiness on Kottbusser Damm

Walking down Kottbusser Damm direction Andec (the one and only Super 8 processor in my neighborhood!) to bring them my last exposed film rolls (Californian desert inside 😉 I realize I’m transparent! I look into people’s eyes and they don’t look back! Is it the creeping autumn cold that’s coming too soon this year or is it in our collective Berlin genes? Has LA spoiled me? Did I wander around over there with my mood so high that they couldn’t help but HAD to smile back and normally they’d ignore me?
Who cares. I try to sustain my wabisabish state and the laidbackness I brought with me over the seven seas. LA was therapy!

Dusty Road Karma

I had a strange dream last night and I think it was in black & white: I was driving an oldfashioned car, a convertible, along a dusty straight empty road. The image was like from a time a hundred years ago. I could see all the way straight to the horizon. And then the name came into my mind: La Cienega.

Hahaa! Maybe I was here before 🙂

I am packing my things and fly home to Berlin. But I’ll be back, I know.

 

Happy Birthday My Brother!!

Apart From That … is a film that was shown today in the Film Center. It kind of blew me away. I can’t really express why, but it was one of the best I’ve ever seen. Different threads, everybody lost and a little lonely and wacky. It felt so real. Good actors, were they actors? I need another drink … break … sick America? No home? Who loves me? Good soundtrack, mannomann, respect! Go try to see it somewhere.
Good night – see the moon?!

 

Quesadilla Mamma

The last week of my residency in the Echo Park Film Center has begun … I enjoy every single day, no other than the 4 weeks before. The classes are over, I’m still finishing some short films (I love riding the bus! One film will be called „704“ about my favourite bus from Echo Park direct to Santa Monica Beach. I admire the drivers, did I mention this? Today we got stuck in a traffic jam and crept reeeealy slow. But the driver stayed cool and friendly and announced the next stations (normally a tape is running) plus extra information about connecting buses and a good afternoon & take care to all leaving passengers.  I loved that guy!

Normally I don’t really like tourist attraction but Santa Monica Pier is different. Well, you can of course have your name written on a rice grain and buy t-shirts and ice cream and lose it to the brave seagulls …

… but you also encounter … music. I took a break there at the very end of the pier and listened to the guitar player. Even felt like buying a CD – support your local musicians – and had a nice chat with him about the unbeatable weather and good places for musicians. His name is Stephen Wild.

Back in Echo Park my feet got itchy and whispered: „we need cowboy boots! Now!“ So I stumbled across „American Vintage“ on 1707 Sunset. And I found a pair! I tried them on and they were just perfect. They found me.

Next whisperer (stomach) signaled: hungry! I found a little quesadilla stand on the street (Sunset / Echo Park Ave) run by two women and their children. Delicious! They prepare quesadillas in their pans and you can add anything you like (cactus pieces!). I very much recommend them. One quesadilla 3 $.

Good night everybody and sunny vibes!!!!

Joshua Treehugger

My lovely hosts and I went for a small holiday in the desert of Joshua Tree. (The name Joshua tree was given by a group of Mormon settlers who crossed the Mojave Desert in the mid-19th century. The tree’s unique shape reminded them of a Biblical story in which Joshua reaches his hands up to the sky in prayer.) A night of a zillion stars and many planes and two sputniks and a day of clear heat. No snakes crossed our ways, thanks, Rattlesnakes and Mojave Green!!

We visited Noahs place. A man who collected junk in the desert and made weird monuments of it.
And then we found the World Most Famous and Tiniest Crochet Museum (German friends: Haekeltieremuseum!!) which was unfortunately closed today. Happy Labor day!