MVOTW - GANGNAM STYLE

MUSIC & MVOTW

Acronyms. This one? Music video of the week. Back when AllMoPs first began I would highlight a music video every issue (thus every week). I do not pretend to be a music buff, but being human is loving certain music. And so I do.

I do not keep up with "pop music," though my wife does a fine job and finds occasion to subject my ears to the drivel. Yes, that is what I consider most of the Billboard toppers to be. Luckily there are occasional surprises. I love listening to soundtracks from films and video games; I can praise those in their respective tomes. That said, I am not fit to compile The Music Tome (or anything close to it), but I desire to highlight certain drops of pop. Because I am so in love with the moving image it makes sense that I would latch onto the idea of music video. After all, music videos are just short films. With a strong 30 years of music videos and more each and every day I am sure I can find one a week I deem worth your time.

Here is a treat:

My Chinese wife is far more fond of K-pop (the popular music scene of South Korea) than those that grow from the Mainland. As I mentioned before, without her I would not have a respectable diet of pop music in the first place. Besides America's offering I get a far more secular palette with connections from the Far East.

PSY is a Korean hip hop singer. He is not a particularly pretty face (and more Cee Lo Green than Jay-Z at that), but that is part of the charm of his "Gangnam Style," the hit single from his sixth album. This song has created a wave from its country of origin earlier this month; this week it is infecting our stereos and screens. A beat-heavy diddy indeed, but the music video is the crowning achievement. You will be doing PSY's signature dance all day and the day after. This is a hilarious and stylish video that pokes so much fun at its Western counterparts (while clearly a product of years of American influence mixed with K-pop's own line-dancing staple) that you cannot help but smile at these hopping and popping Koreans.

POTD: CHEWBACCA RIDES AGAIN

(Source: Dorkly)

There is nothing I can say to possibly add to the sublimeness of this painting. Just look upon it, print it, frame it, and believe.

BE THANKFUL

Over the last 12 months the "First World Problems" meme has lit the Internet on fire and become a household term for myself and millions of others. The best part of these simplistic realizations is that it can lead one to be thankful for what they have.

If you are reading this post right now you have an internet connection, which probably means you have many necessitates taken care of and luxuries at your disposal.

This morning the following infographic caught my eye, attention, and left me feeling incredibly grateful for the comforts and opportunities I have in my life. Before you complain this week, count your many blessings, name them one by one...

POTD (1.23.12): A LEGO CHINESE NEW YEAR

(Source: NPR)

Happy Chinese New Year everybody! We are back to the year of the dragon! I was born in such a year (the earth dragon to be precise). This year we ring in the water dragon. NPR posted this picture this morning and I just had to share it with you. It is simple, charming, colorful, and funny. I am also taking advantage of this important day to restart the "Picture of the Day" series here in AllMoPs, one of my blogs that hasn't been getting very much love lately. Here's to new years, resolutions, and dragons.

A NOT-SO-HAPPY HALLOWEEN

Everyone needs a hobby. It appears one Washington man's was constructing homemade torture devices (like this guillotine seen below).

Photo by Alberto Pizzoli

The contraption went into operation suddenly when one man had his shoulder in the prime spot and lost an arm. It wasn't said whether or not it was the man who made the device.

"I hope that's a Halloween costume," was one woman's reaction. It was not.

The victim has been transferred to Harborview for further treatment. Read the full story from CBS Seattle.

Not everyone is going to be having a happy Halloween it seems. At least now they know the guillotine works (for arms anyway).

PRIME PURCHASE: SAMURAI UMBRELLA

Introducing the Samurai Umbrella! You can be ready for the rain with unmatched speed and deadlier precision than anyone.

Not since Mary Poppins has anyone looked so cool with an umbrella.

Everyone will want to be under your umbrella-a-a-a-a.

You can purchase the Samurai Umbrella for just $28.95 at Neatoshop.

THE WIZARD OF AZ

On the Travel Snapshots section of CNN Travel this morning, I was awed by the pictures of one Floyd Yarmuth. He documented the majestic areas of Sedona, Arizona and the Petrified Forest National Park, two places now on my travelog as I walk planet Earth. Credit first, of course, to the Creator and then, of course, to the one who captured it. Both practice art and design. Creation begets further creation in a beautiful circle of development and achievement. For more from both, check out Yarmuth's portfolio.

Earlier this week, I beheld an incredible time-lapse video of a sand monster taking over Arizona. This leviathan-of-a-storm belongs to the breed and creed of haboob (news to me). As photographer Scott Wood reported, this haboob "engulfed the Phoenix metro area on July 5th." (There is no shortage of other impressive images at Scott Wood Photography.) I was traveling through several states that day, including Arizona for some miles; there was something special brewing in the air. I had no idea this was going on until I had returned to Los Angeles and checked Twitter. The dust gale delayed flights and left some 10,000 residents without power. From what I could gather, nobody was hurt. Amazing really, you'd think somebody would have crashed their car with such driving condition abounding. Here is CNN's coverage of the story, which includes more video of the undertaking (or overtaking I suppose). One man, born and raised in Phoenix, said it was "unreal" and "like a movie." It certainly looks like something Roland Emmerich would salivate over having in one of his productions.

And so, after having two different sources in one week lead me to the spectacles of Arizona, I was pushed to write, post, and share. Having lived in America's Southwest for years, I know the exclusive beauty and mysterious energy lodging in that region. The first time I saw a dust devil while driving through Santa Clara, UT would have left me speechless if it weren't for my teenage tendency to exclaim the likes of "dude... awesome!" I am ever-impressed by the world we live in and the ultimate "powers that be" who made this land for you and me.