Shawn Pfunder

Medicine cabinets, apparently, are the best way to figure out who somebody is. The trick goes something like this: get an invite to a party, drink a little too much, ask to use the loo, lock the door, snoop.

I’m a little sorry to say that the first time I heard about this, I tried it. Sorry because I’m really easy to influence. I probably read about it in a magazine and tried it that night. Doesn’t take much. Unfortunately, I was still in high school (and so was she) so I didn’t discover anything juicy. I found out that she thought she had acne, chewed her vitamins, used men’s razors, a pink deodorant, and obviously had a nervous habit of collecting hair scrunchies. See? Nothing juicy (except for maybe the bit about the men’s razors–that might have something fun to it).

So, I’m not sure it really works, but I love the idea. This idea that you can look at a slice of someone’s life and figure out who they are: the books they read, the music they listen to, the crap they keep in their car. read more…

If that title isn’t enough of a warning for those looking forward to a live-action cartoon that will remind them of their childhood, let me warn you that it’s not a Michael Bay rendition. If you go expecting that–if you go expecting something like Transformers or Fraggle Rock, you’re not going to be happy. If you go expecting Dave Eggers–if you go expecting Spike Jonze, you’ll see a powerful and settling movie.

I talk a lot about there being two types of art (music/books/performances/paintings): those things that make you excited in the moment (think Batman), and those that you chew on and have to digest (think The Darjeeling Limited)–those that stay with you for days, weeks, years. I think a lot of people I know went to Where the Wild Things Are thinking they’d be getting the first kind of experience. When they were confronted with the second, they felt a little bit like they were watching Adam Sandler going punch drunk during a song about Hanukah. read more…

We’re a generation of grazers. We watch clips of TV shows, download songs instead of albums, and turn the channel even if it’s something we might want to watch. I’ve been in the car with someone who would scan for a new song on the radio after each and every song. Every single long-haired slow jam. It’s like we were putting together a mixed tape on the go. Well, pieces of a mix tape at least. I can’t say we ever listened to a full song. She would scan until she heard something by Poison and then stop and say, “Oh yeah” and then when the song ended, we would begin the adventure again. read more…

Swimming can be hard. Here’s why:

Your muscles need oxygen to work. You probably use your muscles a lot when you swim. Sometimes, when you swim, it’s impossible to get oxygen (like when your head is underwater).

So, you basically have three options when you swim (if you want to go any considerable length in the water): you can figure out a way to get more oxygen, you can figure out a way to use less energy, or you can do both. read more…