ShazzerSpeak

How to be a Swede

Shazzer — Sat, 19 May 2012 10:39:23 +0000

As with all great satire, there is more than a little bit of truth going on in this video.

I just wish this lady had been my Swedish teacher.

Sometimes simple is really powerful

Shazzer — Mon, 14 May 2012 07:52:56 +0000

The New Yorker turns the columns of the White House into a rainbow for the cover of it’s May 21, 2012 issue.

Testing SoundCloud for audio blogging

Shazzer — Sat, 12 May 2012 07:22:59 +0000

This is my first attempt at using the SoundCloud to put audio into the blog. I wanted to see how labor intensive it is, as well as how the various players render. This is the Flash player:

Pan flute buskers at Gustav Adolfs Torg, Malmö, Sweden by shazzerspeak

I recorded these guys playing on one of the city’s main squares during my walk home for work yesterday using the iOS app in my iPhone 4S. To be honest, I’m kind of amazed at the quality.

This is the HTML5 player:

Let me know what you think in the comments.

One small step for Barack, one giant leap for the gay kind

Shazzer — Wed, 09 May 2012 19:26:42 +0000

I know this doesn’t change any laws, and probably won’t change many minds, and yet I still can’t help but feel that it changes everything.

What happens when texting while driving is part of the test

Shazzer — Tue, 08 May 2012 17:18:23 +0000

Some clever Belgians decided that the best way to land a message about the dangers of texting while behind the wheel was to require driver’s ed students to compose a text message while maneuvering through an obstacle course.

The results are hilarious and scary at the same time. Not to mention kind of brilliant.

What I’ve learned from 3 episodes of “Oprah Behind the Scenes”

Shazzer — Sat, 05 May 2012 10:05:05 +0000

I realize that I’m WAY late to this particular party, but the “behind he scenes” look at the production of Oprah Winfrey’s final season in 2011 has just now started airing in Sweden.

Having worked in for a time in the broadcast industry, I have kind of a built-in appreciation for the hard work that goes on before, during and after the actual in-studio taping of a show like Oprah. But even I’ve learned a few things from watching just a couple of episodes.

Harpo Studios, headquarters of talk show host Oprah Winfrey. (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

1. “Oprah Behind the Scenes” is way more interesting than the actual Oprah Winfrey Show.

2. Oprah brought her dog to work.

3. Oprah did not wear shoes at Harpo Studios unless she was actually taping in front of her studio audience.

4. The studio audience at Harpo Studios was MUCH smaller than it looked when you were watching the show on TV.

5. The team of producers that Oprah regularly cited as “the best in the business” seemed to screw up on a fairly regular basis.

6. I would have killed to work on the Oprah Winfrey Show.

Saying Goodbye to the Oprah Winfrey Show – Final Episode May 25 on DISH TV (dishtvblog.com)

Upward, onward, FORWARD

Shazzer — Wed, 02 May 2012 19:53:38 +0000

Somebody needs to make me this …

Shazzer — Tue, 24 Apr 2012 11:25:43 +0000

I’ve got a milestone birthday coming up on July 4. The Swede probably ought to get started NOW.

There must be more mayo!

Shazzer — Sun, 22 Apr 2012 11:40:25 +0000

When I lived in the US, I fell squarely in the Miracle Whip camp when it came to the debate over which eggs & oil-based condiment was better on sandwiches. But Miracle Whip is not commonly available in Sweden (though we can buy it in the regular grocery store in Copenhagen for some reason), so I have learned to appreciate mayonnaise much more over the last couple of years. It’s kind of magically delicious, actually.

Which is why it really doesn’t surprise me that there is now a shop in Brooklyn, New York, that sells nothing but mayonnaise. And not just the standard variety, but exotic flavors like White Truffle, Black Garlic, Lime Pickle, Bacon, Saffron and Preserved Lemon. It’s pure genius!

Okay, it’s also a little pretentious.

But I am SO visiting this store the next time I’m in NYC!

Reason No. 347 why I love in the internet

Shazzer — Thu, 19 Apr 2012 15:06:10 +0000

I don’t know much about “the dance” but I have always had a healthy appreciation for people who can move. Plus my oldest niece was part of a competitive dance team in high school, so I tend to “tune-in” whenever I come across something potentially interesting on the dance-front.

When this video of gravity-defying dub-stepper Marquese Scott turned up on BuzzFeed, I figured I’d score some “Cool Aunt” points by passing it along to Niece No. 1. (And I’m pretty sure that part worked.) The moves are remarkable, especially when you consider that the performance is completely free-styled and shot in one take.

What I didn’t figure was how obsessed I would become with the song. It’s called “Feel the Love” by British producer Rudimental featuring some incredible vocals by John Newman, and I very quickly found the original video on YouTube, which charmed me even more. There’s something about the juxtaposition of horseback riding with wild abandon in a gritty Philadelphia neighborhood that I find very moving.

Unfortunately the song itself isn’t going to be released until May 28, which means I had to do a bit of technological wizardry to get it on my iPhone. Because this song HAD TO BE ON MY iPhone IMMEDIATELY.

Welcome to my summer anthem of 2012.