Cultura
It’s Not News to Us
LatinoUSA w/ @SaraChicaD: Latinas in Tech, Live @ SXSW (audio)
It can be hard for Latinos to break into the field of tech, they often lack social capital and funding.
Tech writer Sara Inés Calderon (photo) and DIY Girls founder Luz Rivas join Latino USA host Maria Hinojosa for our live show in Austin to talk about these obstacles and why they believe being a Latino is actually an asset in the world of engineering and innovation.
Screw Dora the Explorer and her pinche monkey too
I’ve got a problem with Dora the Explorer. I know you do too.
What the hell is the matter with television’s longest running bilingual toon whore?
This passive-aggressive little cow yells too much.
She asks a question, then waits silently for the answer while staring at you like a creep. I swear she can see me through the TV screen!
This unemployed bitch has been on air for almost 13 years now and she hasn’t figured out why her backpack is on acid and why her pet monkey stole her boots.
Ask the monkey, it fucking talks, dumbass!
Lalo Alcaraz: How to draw a cartoon character (video)
POCHO Jefe-in-Chief Lalo Alcaraz offers a quick lesson in creating and drawing your own cartoon character.
PREVIOUSLY ON LALO DRAWS:
Expectation Management: Secret path to happiness (video)
Elise Roedenbeck (@Buttronica on the Twitter) reveals the one little secret to happiness that can change your outlook forever. After all, the lower your expectations, the less chance you have of being disappointed.
PREVIOUSLY ON @BUTTRONICA:
Mas…Expectation Management: Secret path to happiness (video)
The Idiot’s Guide to Smart People: ‘Politics’ (video)
Did you know that “politics” is the smart person word for “yelling about the government”? Watch and learn.
PREVIOUSLY ON POLITICAL SCIENCE VIDEO THEATRE:
Rare color footage from the 1940s: Frida Kahlo dances (video)
Although Frida Kahlo was seriously injured in a traffic accident as teenager, she never let her physical challenges hold her back. “I was born a bitch. I was born a painter,” she said. In this recently-discovered color footage, most likely from the 1940s, the artist revealed herself as a provocative dancer — with a signature style.
PREVIOUSLY ON FRIDA KAHLO:
Mas…Rare color footage from the 1940s: Frida Kahlo dances (video)
Retro rockers Cutty Flam go to the prom: ‘Robot Heart’ (video)
Suburban band Cutty Flam, the Rock n’ Roll sound track to a 1950’s B-Movie starring Ritchie Valens opposite Betty Page directed by Quentin Tarantino, offer this new video for Robot Heart. It’s about life, loss, death and going to the prom, plus it’s easy to slow-dance to. (Video by Jose Emmanuel Varela for BrotherScienceTV and Cutty Flam.)
PREVIOUSLY ON CUTTY FLAM ROBOT HEART:
Mas…Retro rockers Cutty Flam go to the prom: ‘Robot Heart’ (video)
Our quest for photos of cactus cakes and cupcakes
Alana Jones-Mann’s DIY: House Plant Cupcakes (photo) were the first to prick our interest when we saw them last week, so we went on a quest for more cactus cupcake photos. (Alana, by the way, is unsurpassed in capturing the true desaturated green-blue color nuances of actual cacti.)
This succulent-looking delectable is on Craftsy.com via Lola T.:
Lowe’s Home Improvement, Latino style (Vine video)
It’s Rudy Mancuso, for Lowe’s. [Hover and click on the top left corner of the image to hear the audio.]
PREVIOUSLY ON RUDY MANCUSO:
Comrades: Do not ash what Cuba can do for you (video)
In Havana late last month, Cuban cigar smokers competed to determine who could maintain the longest (unbroken) ash.
PREVIOUSLY ON CUBA:
Can you dance like a Mexican? Here’s how! (video)
California cultural ambassador Joseph Alvarado wants you to learn How To Dance Like A Mexican.
PREVIOUSLY ON DANCE:
Chipotle warns of climate-change-caused avocado shortage
If the Planet Earth continues to heat up, that’s bad news for avocados, the Chipotle Mexican Grill people warn. Bottom line? Your guac might be fuacked.
The fast food chain goes through 97,000 pounds of avocados every day, and they’re concerned.
From The Smithsonian Magazine:
Mas…Chipotle warns of climate-change-caused avocado shortage
12-second educational video: How to say ‘Chicano’ in English
It is important that one pronounce “Chicano” properly, is it not, Sir?
PREVIOUSLY ON PRONUNCIATION:
Mas…12-second educational video: How to say ‘Chicano’ in English
Mexican immigrants wash Chicago’s glass houses in ‘Paraíso’ (video)
Dangling from ropes on the sides of Chicago’s tallest skyscrapers, a crew of immigrant Mexican window washers faces death every working day. That’s why they embrace life. They’re both Paradise (Paraíso.) [Spanish with English subtitles.]
Art ‘Chicano Soul’ Meza loves the ‘Lowriting’ (audio)
POCHO’s favorite photographer — Art Meza AKA Chicano Soul — tells KCRW’s Lisa Napoli about his first book, Lowriting. Lowrider culture, the Echo Park native says, reflects pride in your heritage and pride in your community.
Los Angeles Mayor Eric Garcetti likes his Art Meza photo of the iconic Sixth Street Bridge:
Brazil team preps for next Winter Olympics (video)
While the rest of the world focuses on Carnaval in Brazil, and the upcoming World Cup, dedicated Brazilian athletes have begun training for the next Winter Games.
How to dance to Norteño wearing pointy boots, Stetson (video)
Botas picudas? Check! Cowboy hat? Check! Norteno music? Check! Let’s dance, but not too much. A minimalist dance.
PREVIOUSLY ON BOTAS PICUDAS:
Mas…How to dance to Norteño wearing pointy boots, Stetson (video)
John Vargas looks like a Mexican who could disembowel you (video)
Standup comic John Vargas looks Mexican (whatever that means) but he talks funny. [NSFW language.]
So did you hear about George Lopez at the Oscars? (toon)
Based on a Matt Groening toon Tweeted by The Simpsons. [Click on the image to enlarge.]
PREVIOUSLY ON MATT GROENING:
Mas…So did you hear about George Lopez at the Oscars? (toon)
To live outside the law you must be honest: ‘Border Stories’ (video)
“To live outside the law you must be honest,” Bob Dylan wrote. For two guys crossing into the U.S. from Mexico without papers, that’s easier said than done.
PREVIOUSLY ON BORDER VIDEO:
Mas…To live outside the law you must be honest: ‘Border Stories’ (video)
How popcorn (hecho en Peru circa 4700 BCE) pops [video]
Popcorn — palomitas de maíz — was discovered-invented-perfected in Peru circa 4700 BCE, the very first domesticated corn product. Watch how the corn pops, up close and personal.
Chilango hipsters turn trash into music: Orquesta Basura (video)
In Mexico City, the cool kids are making their own instruments — and music — out of discarded items with the Orquesta Basura.
Pac-Man puppets in Mexico are ‘Victorioso!’ (video)
What does Pac-Man say? In Mexico, Pac-Man says “Juaca Juaca,” of course.
PREVIOUSLY ON MEXICAN VIDEO GAME THEATRE:
NPR Audio: Flaco Jiménez and the Legacy of Conjunto
NPR writes:
Flaco Jiménez is in his seventh decade as a performer. He’s played with Ry Cooder, Dwight Yoakam, and even The Rolling Stones. Jiménez’s newest album, Legends & Legacies, is a collection of songs that illustrate the legacy of the Latin music style for which he is so well known: conjunto.
Forget Los Oscars: Mira Los Hectors©! POCHO’s Annual Awards
Behold, The Hectors©, bestowed for Excellence in Mockability.
The Hectors© are named for POCHO Jefe-in-Chief Lalo Alcaraz’ cousin Hector (photo), who is excellent at ruining family gatherings, especially when he has downed his third 12-pack. He hasn’t seen a film since Blood In, Blood Out.
And the Hector© goes to:
Mas…Forget Los Oscars: Mira Los Hectors©! POCHO’s Annual Awards
Grandmother: What a big beatbox you have! (video)
When this Mexican abuelita gets to beatboxing, no one is safe!
Where in the US is Carmen Sandiego? And WTF is she saying?
Courtesy of Tio Sam’s United States Census.gov is this screen capture of Mexican-American distribution in the USA. Click here for an interactive map of other “Latino/Hispanic” ethnicities. Spoiler: Most Cuban-Americans are in Florida. [Click image to enlarge.]
Mas…Where in the US is Carmen Sandiego? And WTF is she saying?