PIRATE: New Shapes are shapeless?

love maxi INSPIRATION.

creme drapey Emma & Sam top, long navy skirt DIY, black gladiator sandals Nine West

high waisted/drop crotch pants H&M, creme drapey shirt Emma & Sam, dan post boots Vintage

PIRATE: I got an effing INTERSHIP.

After more trials, tribulations, and rejections than I even care to relay, and likely you care to fathom, I have been accepted as an intern for www.loudfarm.com. THANK THE DAMN LORD! (yeah, i said it). Needless to say, I am effing stoked. The premises of the internship are simple; write a preview or so a week on a band that will be playing a show in the Bay Area within the next couple months and post it on the website. A sort of Bay Area music liaison so to speak, rad.

So sleep well parents, sister, brother, family and friends, for all is not lost in the ever-changing saga of my life. phew.

DOSE: check me out.

All the hipster boys and girls check each other out.

stolen: from heavyrockmusic.com

"Subject: hello love

if you have received this message,

it is to inform you that you are an unfortunate member of a clan of douchebags that have come to represent all that is lame in 2008….

…the massive group of quasi-alternative, pseudo-bohemian, no-talent assclowns that have banded together in hopes of conquering the world, and have been multiplying exponentially like some flesh-eating bacteria since 2006/2007. you know who you are: the “djs,” the “nightlife photographers,” the “record label” employees, the “BLOGGERS,” etc, etc. your “lives” consist of traveling to whatever city is “hip” at the moment with a delusional sense of self-importance and perpetual freedom, name-dropping like it’s your job (and let’s face it—it is your job), while doing nothing else in particular.

see, here’s the sad part: maybe at one point you really could have been something, but the reason you all got fucked is because most, if not all of you arrived just a little too late to a scene that was blossoming around early 2005. right as that golden era was coming to a close, a pack of douchebags sprung up from the bowels of LA and you knew at last what you wanted to do with your sad lives. you envied mark hunter (that in itself is pathetic beyond words) and longed to party with the cool kids. you: talentless, (mostly) education-less, (legitimate) job-less…you were just like those kids and knew that you could do what they did, only better. and you set out to do so. all 9,345,924 of you.

at this point some of you are say, “aw HELL naw, i am an OG. i was ‘cool’ back in the day. i was ONE of ‘those kids.’” and to that i say: let’s pretend for a second, just for fun, that you were EVER what an intelligent person would consider genuinely “hip” or even had one mildly unique or intriguing quality about you. ok….and how old are you now, friend?? pushing 30, are you not? over 25 almost definitely. yeaaaah. kill yourself.

and the rest of you say, “but–but– i’m still young! and i’m hot! and i did that remix! and i was in nylon i’ve been to japan blah blah blah blah blah.” save it. save it for one day when you’re telling your bastard grandchildren about that “magical” time in your life and all the cool people you knew and places you went before you and your friends who thought they were famous were thrust into the absolute depths of obscurity in that fateful year of 2009.

then there’s the teeny, tiny, almost unmeasurable fraction of you clowns who were at one point semi-authentic in some small way. but, you sold out. dumbed down. cashed in…well, tried to. the biggest “fuck you” of all goes to you, my friends, because you really might have made it had you not turned out to be a douche after all.

anywho, the point of all this is to warn you….to let you know that, thanks to you, all that was ever truly hip and fresh and pure and young and free and brilliant in the 00s has been perverted…watered down into a mass-marketable product to be consumed by 14 year olds. and the bad news for you is….its all about to end. all about to come crashing down, because there’s about to be a tremendous backlash. i don’t mean a disco-type backlash, where something gradually loses its “cool.” i mean a vanilla ice-type backlash…where almost over night, something once venerated becomes SO hated by the general public with such vengeance that the something is all but obliterated from the face of the earth.

it may not happen immediately, but it will happen soon. so BBM everyone you know, and tell them to enjoy it while they can….to dance like they never danced before, get drunk off their asses and cling to this waning era like its the last remaining shred of their youth. and for many, it is. may God have mercy on what’s left of your soul."

BOOK REVIEW: Disgrace by J.M. Coetzee

A Cynical Account of a Man's Sexual Appetite and Addiction to the Oppression of Women

The ideas connoted in this text are of the sort one would expect from an 18th or 19th century novel and certainly not one written at the turn of the 21st century. Therefore, I am thoroughly disgusted by the conveyance of women as passive and dependent within this text and the utterly regressive ideas J.M. Coetzee presents throughout his novel, Disgrace. Even the strongest of female characters encountered in this works are not only repressed and dominated by either Lurie or other males but also dependent upon one male or another for some form of sustenance, whether financially or emotionally.
The standard for women brought forth in the novel, of them not being able to “hold their own” so to speak, is not only an archaic notion but also feeds into the inequality that the progressive women of today are striving against. If texts such as this are continually circulated they will effectually validate the horrors that constitute a patriarchal society.
The first female character that we meet, Soraya the female prostitute, exemplifies the helplessness of the subtly symbiotic relationship between a whore and her fare. While the man needs the woman in order to satiate his innate need for regular sexual satisfaction, the object of satisfaction is ambiguous. By this I mean, it could be any woman, a horny man is not a picky man, thus putting the male in the position of power by allowing him to pick and choose where to go for sex, while the prostitute takes what she can get. Soraya is not simply a professional prostitute; she is also a mother, and thus a provider. Her dependence on the male sexual desire in exchange for money opposed to creating her own service or cultivating a more creative talent outside of exploitation of her physical self, which we must admit is a profession anyone with a vagina can succumb too, forces her into a parasitic position of oppression. Soraya’s only saving moment of female power was the termination of her “relationship” with Lurie upon his overstepping of prostitute-client boundaries. However, the fact that she only terminated the relationship because it crossed from the professional into the personal conveys her shame and “disgrace” with her job, thus nullifying any strength this scenario could portray.
Melanie is the most pathetic case throughout the novel. Here, we have a college age woman, my age, that is supposedly so incredibly apathetic and naïve that she cannot ward off male advances. What attractive twenty-something female has never said “no”, and meant it? The fact that she lays apathetically while he has his way with her diminishes any credibility she may have. And not only that, but she runs back to him, crying, trying to at least get an ‘A’ out of the whole experience. Melanie is dominated and manipulated by Lurie, and her only defenses are her father and her boyfriend, both of which males, pushing her even further into a position of helplessness and dependence on her patriarchs. Sick, sad, and unfortunately, realistic. At least she brings him to court in the end and doesn’t hole herself up in her room in hysterics for the next five years lamenting on how she “coulda woulda shoulda” said “no”.
The saddest case, in my opinion, is Lurie’s daughter Lucy, who begins the novel as a strong-willed lesbian farmer that doesn’t need nothin’ but her own two hands, and ends the novel as a beaten down woman, “married” to the brother-in-law of the man who disgraced her and pregnant with the child of her rapist. Lurie attempts to try and help Lucy out of the muck she calls her life, and with the only ounce of feminist courage found in this book, she refuses. However, her “marriage” to Petrus completely overrides any speck of feminism this book may hold.
All in all, it is a poignantly disgraceful book. A good read for masochists, male chauvinists, anti-feminists, and possibly those wishing to explore the repercussions of patriarchy and oppressive attitudes towards women in South Africa. That being said, it did win the Booker Prize and is an accepted and well-respected works from a tumultuous place during a tumultuous time.


Just a simple journal entry I am turning in to my Literature of Exile class that is edgy & short enough to post. FP.

PIRATE: MID-TERMS WEEK

dont expect any new posts from 3/16-3/19. I am effing SWAMPED with 3 papers and two massive tests, one of the latter is giving me nightmares. wish me luck!

PIRATE: stuck on winter & Oakland Steez

Vintage brown suede coat

STREET: Ariel & Friend, San Francisco

STREET: Aviv, Oakland

DOSE: 5:00 am PST, LITTLE JOY..thanks christine.

STREET: Nik, San Francisco

From Contributing photographer and author, Galen

STREET: Dee, San Francisco

MUSIC REVIEW: Horace Raymond & the Gnarly Cactus packs the Velo Rouge Cafe

Horace Raymond and the Gnarly Cactus truly packed the house as vintage clad and cigarette smoking hipsters spilled out the front door and crowded the sidewalk in front of the Velo Rouge Café in the Richmond District of San Francisco on Friday night. A raw folksy tune featuring Chris Greeley’s raspy unfiltered voice and passionately simple guitar riffs followed them onto Arguello Boulevard. Inside the venue, twenty-somethings stood shoulder to shoulder in barely 20 x 20 square feet of space surrounded by red walls littered with old photographs, every inch occupied by pixie boots, flannels, and dirty hair. The crowd swayed slowly as Greeley sang and played, David and Aaron strummed and Steven slammed his tambourine to their country-esque ditties of girls and love. The band evokes a rustic southern whiskey rock sound with a San Francisco Indie scene twist, reminiscent of Devandra Barnhart or the Moldy Peaches. While talking to Greeley after their set, I learned that this was their first “real” show, prior performances consisting mostly of open mic nights. I have a feeling that was the first of many. Their short, poignant, acoustic songs were well received by the crowd and myself, and I assure you I will be attending their next performance.

Hear them @ www.myspace.com/gnarlycactusgoescamping








The Bearded Ladies, who performed before Gnarly Cactus, were in feather moustached attendance

FP.

NEWS: God Forbid Hipsters Can't Buy Clothes

American Apparel Joins the Ranks of Those Enjoying all the Free Money the U.S. Government Seems to Have on Hand

stolen from The Cut

"American Apparel came thisclose to filing Chapter 11 bankruptcy today. The chain either had to renegotiate the terms of its loans or raise at least $16 million by today. Thankfully, at midnight the company finalized a loan of $80 million, enabling them to avoid a Chapter 11 filing, the embarrassment thereof, and immediately pay off a $51 million loan. By paying off that loan American Apparel avoids penalties and enjoys breathing room on a separate $60.6 million line of credit from Bank of America, terms of which were tied to the other loan.

American Apparel has been struggling with financing for months, despite breakneck expansion and strong sales (fourth-quarter earnings will be reported Monday — can't you hardly wait?). Since December, founder and CEO Dov Charney has been forced to make two loans totaling $6.5 million from his personal bank account to his hipster empire to keep merchandise flowing and ensure that new stores continue to open. In 2008, American Apparel opened 81 stores, and last month it opened three more, for a total of more than 260 stores. And new stores are on the way in Newfoundland, Dublin, New Haven, and Dresden, Germany"

Another Example of our government's completely whack priorities.
FP.

DOSE: Words.

Things arent what they seem once awakening to aimlessly juxtapoz pen to paper, scrawling out that reoccurring dream. Climbing out of the beautiful, beautiful mountain mist into the crispness of clarity, and the freezing twang of snow gracing your lips so carelessly, carelessly reminds you of reality, bringing you back to all that was and is and all that will be. Again, hints go unnoticed, swept away like the last cookie crumbs hidden guiltily under the rug, tempting you to ask yourself, did you simply forget, or try and run? All that was and all that is changed so temporarily, as you attempted to find a new face in a new place and now watch that subtle unspoken dream come undone into a tangled half-finished blanket, draped by your half-drank coffee mug.

bringing back some older words
FP.

NEWS: SFSU Students WALK-OUT to Protest Budget Cuts

When the sun reached high noon, an energetic crowd erupted into chants of "Walk-out SF State, Shut it down like '68", as banners were raised around the Malcolm X Plaza on the San Francisco State University Campus. A turnout of over one-hundred students and faculty swarmed the quad in a whirlwind of banners, bullhorns, cameras, and beating drums to peacefully protest the California state budget cuts that took $63.3 million from the CSU system for 2009-10, crippling the state universities. Protesting was staged through a school-wide walkout and a march to the City College of San Francisco, which included a planned coalition with fellow sympathizers, the San Francisco Parks and Recreation Organization.
The event was coordinated by a student association, Student Unity & Power, a group formed this semester (Spring 2009) out of anger over the current fiscal state of the CSU system after many classes were cut due to the re-appropriation of the California government’s funds. These passionate students gave educational and empowering speeches throughout the protest. Ryan, a member of S.U.P, delivered an inspiring speech that evoked cheers from the crowd with words such as, “[I’m] sick of banks being bailed out while students foot the bill”, a response to the billions of dollars in bail-out plans given to U.S. Banks since the end of 2008. He talked about how if there is money to give these large corporations, giving the example of Chevron’s forty-five billion dollar gain last year, there should be money for public education. Ryan professed, “[This] is not a money problem, this is a political problem”.
One of the focuses was on how slashed departments and the firing of professors resulted in limited classes, creating difficulties for senior year students trying to take courses necessary for graduation.
Francis Mead, a 23-year-old ringleader of S.U.P, and student of cinema and women’s studies here at SFSU has been personally affected by the budget cuts:
FashionPirate: Have the budget cuts affected your class selection this semester?
Francis: Yes! I have been here for three years and getting classes has always been difficult, but this year has been the worst. I couldn’t even get into two classes that I need to graduate
FP: So, in your experience, even necessary classes are being reduced?
Francis: Most definitely.
FP: What would you consider to be possible alternatives to cutting funding from education?
Francis: Money should go straight to education! We need to cut the administration and form empowering councils of students and teachers that will make the right decisions. There is power in choices, we need power in choices.
Once the crowd was sufficiently electrified, and the clock struck 12:20, the S.U.P announced the commencement of the march to CCSF, led by a banner proclaiming “Student Unity & Power” , and the aggressive but telling chant of a struggling student body, “No cuts, no fees, education should be free”.


Fellow photogs document the scene, "Fuck the Cuts" was one of the early cheers of the protest


students crowd around malcom X plaza before the march


Francis Mead, 23, Student Unity & Power Organization


A group of students performed on drums and other various musical instruments throughout the protest and march


Many students were frustrated with the fact that large corporations that employ millionaires are being bailed out while those in the middle to lower classes (aka the majority of the country) are trampled on


"You're not walking out on your education, You're walking out because your education is walking out on you!" -S.U.P Member and Speaker


The event was not without a bit of personal style


various signs conveyed the feelings of the students


while the protest was peaceful, it was not without passion


The march begins.


students marching through campus towards CCSF stop as the band plays a revolutionary riff


A local elementary school, also affected by the budget cuts, joined in the protest.


FP.

NEWS: SFSU STUDENTS WALK-OUT AGAINST BUDGET CUTS

BUDGET CUT PROTEST
Walk-Out and March to CCSF
starts @ 12 noon
Caesar Chavez Student Center

(Pictures and story to come later)

PIRATE: kicks, thrifts &...chicks?

What I wore:



Millau checkered bat-wing top, UO pull on jeans (black), Nine West black suede booties, J Crew gold braided bangle (thanks mom)

school girl chic:


Medallion of Power necklace, scavenged from the belly of a dragon (aka Forever 21)


navy blue blazer: vintage, grey v-neck:AA, dan post boots: vintage, white jeans: vigoss


American Rag Military Coat, GLAM mod dress, UO tights, Vintage jazz shoes, DIY pocket watch necklace, Erica Weiner Whale Necklace

EVENTS: Gnarly Cactus & 1-2-3-4 Go! Records Party

FRIDAY, March 13th:
Horace Raymond and the Gnarly Cactus
7-9 p.m.
FREE!!
@ Velo Rouge Cafe
798 Arguello & McAllister
San Francisco, CA

SUNDAY, March 15th:
1234 Go! Records One-Year Anniversary
w/ NoBunny, the Pets, Shannon and the Clams, & Street Eaters
Price: $5
Time & Date: Sun., March 15, 9 p.m.
@ The Stork Club
2330 Telegraph Ave.
Oakland CA 94612
Oakland: Downtown
510-444-6174
StorkClubOakland.com


Be there, have your picture taken, and hear some good shit.







psssttt...

It's a Partyyyyy!!
Saturday March 14th @ la casa de Danny Santos
G-Funk Party
you'll see me there

DOSE: Shakespeare & Bloom

"And every object that might make me fear
Misfortune to my very ventures, out of doubt
Would make me sad."
- Shakespeare, The Merchant of Venice


"Influence cannot be willed."
-Harold Bloom

STREET: Camera Mission Day 2: EPIC FAIL, sort of.

I set out with my camera again today with the intention of dazzling the internet world with my keen eye focused on runway and couture trends hitting the streets in an unusual way, and once again completely wussed out when my potential subjects got within 3 feet. Dammit. Alas, tomorrow is a new day, hopefully I'll seize it. I refused to come home completely empty handed however, so I got a few gems in and around my neighborhood.

This is what I saw:


reading hipster, hipster reading


cool painting near my house


"Hey, can I get my picture on that camera." -verbatim


mama girl wants a cigarette, she lives at BART, says life tough out there


ghetto hipster chic?

BEAUTY: Lindsey Lohan has something intriguing to say?

When I first read in New York Magazine's Fashion blog, The Cut, that Lindsey Lohan was launching a self-tanner line due to come out on April 15th, my first thought was, "Who cares?, another vain celebrity selling another product of vanity". And then, I thought a little deeper. I thought of my own skin baking in the sun throughout my teen years, face and all, lathered in baby oil and tanning oils for days and days laying on the beaches of Maine. I thought of the moles (beauty marks, as I like to call them) spotting my light skin in various places, and the danger that comes with those ten years of tanning juxtaposed with those little potential cancer epicenters. And I realized that at 22, there is still time to save my skin from the suffering others may undergo as skin cancer becomes more and more rampant. Now, dont get me wrong, I slather SPF 15 all over my face every morning, and my body with the same for days at the pool or the beach. But maybe it is time to take the extra step to keep myself safe and spend less time wrecking the only skin i'll ever know. Maybe for once, Lohan has something to say, and maybe we should listen.



photo cred. nymag.com/thecut

STREET: LIFE

while sashaying through the streets of oakland i stopped and snapped a few signature shots. <3