Are You Generic?

While I was on one of my internet adventures I ran across this website http://www.areyougeneric.org/.
Their tagline is "Giving brand america the finger since 2001".

Of course I was intrigued. I had to find out more.

This is how they define themselves...

Are You Generic? is a group of artists that seeks to protest, to question, and to disprove. Its nemeses are unethical corporations, censorship, the slanted media, hypocrisy, excessive advertising, and plain stupidity. Its heroes are art, discussion, independent thought, and creation.

Are You Generic intends to fuse the cry of protest and demonstration with aesthetic graphic design -- to replace the Tommy/GAP/Nike logos with rallying statements of assertion. We hope to flourish as a grass roots operation -- spreading by word of mouth.

And this is their cause statement...

We want basic things: natural, unprocessed foods; ad-free space; trustworthy news sources; a healthy body image; promotion of the independents; and the spread of knowledge.

Are You Generic is an action; it is movement and activity. Are You Generic is an organization that instigates, that critiques our social environment and the unacceptable things we have grown to accept, that denies the convenient and replaces it with the conscientious, and that fights to reclaim our individuality and regain our space and voices from Big Business.

Are You Generic is a revolving exhibition of shirts, posters, stickers, and action intended to promote these diverse ideologies and to encourage questions.

And what you can do according to them...

What can you do?

Start a conversation. Refuse to let corporations dictate what is beautiful, sexy, or cool. Stuff your ears with your fingers and whistle, or sit Indian-style on the bottom of the pool. Demand your livable space and breathable room -- free of strip malls that interconnect, free of logos plastered all over town like harlots. Communicate silence. Breathe. Empty out. Sanitize your brain. Rebel. Think. Act. And, most importantly, push past the marketing to take the time to learn a bit about the companies you routinely support.

Together we can invert the paradigm, (or eradicate it completely.) We can choose the perspective, (or deny the message entirely.) We can refuse to consume consumerism. We can rid ourselves of their psychological pollutants.

What can you do?

Stand for something. Support an idea. Think independently. If you are feeling especially saucy, help our efforts by purchasing a shirt, spreading some sticker love, culture jamming, and sending in some of your own suggestions and feedback.

nice....

Their catalog of T-shirts are printed in sweat-shop free facilities, have no logo, no brand, and no label. Below are a couple of samples of their T-shirts for sale.

And of course there is some amazing artwork on this site. The community page is a collection of street art listed by city. Having moved to the city after living in the country all my life I tend not to see the street art that I am sure is here. I will try to look at my city home with new eyes.

Birmingham Bullring modification

Street installations from Marc Jenkins.

Dog Diary

8:00 am - Dog food! My favorite thing!
9:30 am - A car ride! My favorite thing!
9:40 am - A walk in the park! My favorite thing!
10:30 am - Got rubbed and petted! My favorite thing!
12:00 pm - Lunch! My favorite thing!
1:00 pm - Played in the yard! My favorite thing!
3:00 pm - Wagged my tail! My favorite thing!
5:00 pm - Milk bones! My favorite thing!
7:00 pm - Got to play ball! My favorite thing!
8:00 pm - Wow! Watched TV with the people! My favorite thing!
11:00 pm - Sleeping on the bed! My favorite thing!


CAT DIARY
Day 983 of MY CAPTIVITY.

My captors continue to taunt me with bizarre little dangling objects.They dine lavishly on fresh meat, while the other inmates and I are fed hash or some sort of dry nuggets. Although I make my contempt for the rations perfectly clear, I nevertheless must eat something in order to keep up my strength. The only thing that keeps me going is my dream of escape. In an attempt to disgust them, I once again vomit on the carpet. Today I decapitated a mouse and dropped its headless body at their feet. I had had hoped this would strike fear into their hearts, since it clearly demonstrates what I am capable of. However, they merely made condescending comments about what a "good little hunter" I am.

Bastards!

There was some sort of assembly of their accomplices tonight. I was placed in solitary confinement for the duration of the event. However, I could hear the noises and smell the food. I overheard that my confinement was due to the power of "allergies." I must learn what this means, and how to use it to my advantage.

Today I was almost successful in an attempt to assassinate one of my tormentors by weaving around his feet as he was walking. I must try this again tomorrow --but at the top of the stairs. I am convinced that the other prisoners here are flunkies and snitches. The dog receives special privileges. He is regularly released - and seems to be more than willing to return. He is obviously retarded. The bird must be an informant. I observe him communicate with the guards regularly. I am certain that he reports my every move. My captors have arranged protective custody for him in an elevated cell, so he is safe. For now ...

Mt Tom Railroad

The first really warm day of 2009 we decided to walk along the old Mt. Tom railroad in Holyoke, MA. This paved road is closed to unauthorized vehicles but is open to pedestrians.

Construction of the one mile rail line began in 1897. With a 21 degree grade, the rail cars had special slanted seats for the passengers. The railway ran until 1938 when it was closed, dismantled and sold for scrap.

Following are links to some great old pictures and history of the area from the turn of century.
Mount Tom RR
Holyoke Mass Mount Tom RR
Wistariahurst Chariots of Change
Catskill Archive Mt Tom RR

At the elevation of 900' there is a memorial to the "Flying Fortress" bomber that crashed at this site in 1946. There were 25 service men onboard when the B-17 slammed into the mountain. No one onboard survived. At the time the road was still dirt and rocks so the rescue effort was difficult. This memorial was dedicated in 1996. Read more about it at Gendisasters.

The view from the memorial was nice and as I am relatively new to the Pioneer Valley it was a chance to orient myself to the terrain and landscape of the area. We had our lunch here, sitting on the rock wall, enjoying the warm weather and sunshine. We weren't the only ones enjoying the beautiful day along the Mt Tom railroad line. There was a gentleman who passed us on our way up and at a rapid pace. He looked like he walks this road often. A young man in camo with a HUGE pack on was setting a good pace up the hill and he was making it look easy. And when we were leaving three young men were pushing their trail bikes up the road. When we asked if there were going to ride back down they said yes, but on the other side. When we reached the bottom of the mountain we heard a lot of yelling and hooting going on from the top of the mountain. I think it is safe to assume they reached their destination and were enjoying the ride back down.

A rather haunting aspect of our trip was the plane parts scattered around the crash area. Over the years people have picked up some of the parts and left them on the stone next to the monument. Standing there, looking at the rusted pieces of scrap metal and thinking about what happened at that spot and the lives that were lost was moving.