Jamaica Kincaid is an American novelist. A writer of life, her pieces reflect the freedom of being young.

In the video above, she re-reads her published article in the New Yorker.  Written as an inventory of the book reception for the late Economist Milton Friedman, Kincaid was upset that Friedman was an adviser to the Chile government.

Here are some quotes to add to your email signatures:

“Be arrogant and vain when you’re young,” she advises her audience. “That’s the only time it looks appealing — and it’s also the only time it’s forgivable.” – Jamaica Kincaid

Reading her work and listening to her video makes me want to be a writer. I want to sit down on cushion and just watch her write. She’s that good.

Maud Newton

That’s what I said.

“…the vocoder (invented in the late 1920s) took human speech and broke it up into its constituent frequencies, thus allowing that voice to be transmitted electronically, and reassembled and synthesized at the other end, reproducing the words, if not the sound, of the original speech. The vocoder was developed as a means of encrypting speech, of protecting transmissions from prying ears. But, over time, it found other uses, in movies, television, and music (if you want to imagine what it sounds like, recall the Cylons from the original Battlestar Galactica). Eventually, what began its life as a tool for cryptology became a pop-culture icon…” – David Pitt

Preview a selection of songs using a vocoder. I recognized some classics. Flavorwire

How to Weck a Nice Day at the Beach: The Vocoder from World War II to Hip Hop, The Machine Speaks by Dave Tompkins

That being said, the festival is takes place this weekend, April 24 & 25 at the UCLA Campus. The event is free and parking is a small fee with a free shuttle to transport you from those far far far away lots.

Festival of Books

Today is a tight day. Very busy at work. But I wanted to drop a few links for you to check out and bop your head to.

MUSIC: Jay Electronica’s Electrochemical album is the business. He is rhyming over some tracks by the late producer J Dilla and more.

BOOKS: The blog - Curious Pages, features Recommended Inappropriate Books for Kids.  (Pictured)

FOOD: BlackboardEats – The Delicious Deal. Sign up to receive a free bottle of wine and junk-food platter at Simon L.A. FYI: BlackboardEats also round up savory discounts for those in the New York area.

CULTURE: Los Angeles Conservancy annual Home Sixties Tour – Sixties Turn 50 is here again. Sunday, April 18th between 10am and 4pm see up close the 1966 Franks House designed by Raul Garduño and the 1961 Frankel House designed by Ephraim Baran, AIA and Fred Rochlin. Get those tickets. Almost sold out.

FASHION: Really, Really want Proenza Schouler’s strappy, sculptural wedge shoes wore here by Jessica Alba.

VOLUNTEER: Lighten up someone’s day today.

The Daily Beast sets their eyes on bringing recognition is other Russian classics.

The Daily Beast

Left: Benoit Jalion and Umberto Napolitano of LAN [Local Architecture Network] (Photo by: Benoit Linero)

I guess….

More after the jump.Benoit Jalion and Umberto Napolitano of LAN (Local Architecture Network) says so. And they published two books to prove it, “You Can Be Young and an Architect” (how-to for and about young firms, 2008) and “Welcome to Saint Memes” (a monograph on LAN’s creation of the Marchesini French headquarters, 2009).

Read their entire article here.

LAN Architecture

The 100 Best Books of the Decade is a must have list for every bookworm or aspiring bookworm out there. I might even give it as a Christmas gift.
The 100 Best Books of the Decade.