sodium drama, words, Basquiat and cultural capital, Dancing In The Streets cover

Thing number 1; who replaced the cajun-seasoning salt (the one my family lovingly refers to as 'the kick') that i keep in the kitchen at work with a lower sodium version? It appears that the former container was used up (okay, no worries, glad others are enjoying it), but is this a comment on their or my sodium intake? Folks, it's 90 degrees outside and i run. Please do not worry about my sodium levels. (Annnd, that concludes my bit of work-related drama for the day. Hopefully.) Furthermore, exactly what are we to call that room? It's a room where we have lab meetings, as well as a microwave/toaster, fridge, and various coffee-related paraphernalia. The PI across the hall, who did his post-doc in England, refers to it as the 'tea room'. i call it the kitchen, or break room. i think our lab manager calls it the conference room, and my own PI refers to it by the room number.

Speaking of words, one that has come up with surprising frequency lately is 'bombastic'. It's from the Mideaval Latin bombax, or cotton, originally referring to padding. The contexts in which one now usually hears it is as a description, when something is heavily elaborated or padded, as it was used to direct how a prelim should be presented (err, i don't agree with that, necessarily, but that's how it was used), or to describe JayZ's latest album in an NPR article. In the complicated arc that my lunchtime online rambles take, that JayZ article mentions another describing that Jean-Michel Basquiat is name-dropped a lot on aforementioned album. First (with apologies), i had to google Basquiat, a notable artist whose stuff i recognized once i saw it. The man got his start as a graffiti artist, evolving into both current and historical commentary, usually poetic in nature (using the tag SAMO, for Same Old). Anyway, take-home message is that apparently the album is partially JayZ reconciling his beginnings with his current affluent status while recognizing culture in which he grew up. i particularly appreciated the link to the idea of cultural capital; " On a somewhat obvious level, they serve Pierre Bourdieu's theory of cultural capital: that one can establish his or her social class not just by the things he or she can afford, but also the cultural artifacts one is familiar with, such as art, music, cinema and fashion. ". Super interesting. And logical.

This list, of "30 Signs you're almost 30", is hitting pretty close to home, particularly (#2) all the pictures on your facebook feed are of babies or (#3) or of marathon times. (sigh) Congrats to all those currently or recently pregnant, and to all my athletic friends!

Keira Knightley got married in early May, in what appears to be a 'recycled' wedding dress. i can respect that.

While looking around during lunch today, i came across this incredibly baffling version of Martha and the Vandellas' Dancing in the Streets as covered in 1985 by none other than Mick Jagger and David Bowie. Amazed, i gchatted Lauren, who has a flair for music and fashion.

Lauren:  wow

and that mouth

 me:  sheesh

the mouth, the clothes, the whole business

 Lauren:  yes

they look like kids

 me:  skinny indie youth

 Lauren:  yes

 me:  i guess they were, kinda

well, David Bowie was 38

(in that clip)

 Lauren:  huh

 me:  and Mick was 42

i'm gonna credit heavy drug use

 me:  for the whole thing, actually

 Lauren:  ha, yes