House of Urban Angst

I’d like you to wake up now please. (at House of Urban Angst)

Andrew Cantillo, resident assistant, University of Southern Maine

Andrew is a senior at the University of Southern Maine (USM), Class of 2014, where he has also served as a resident assistant and admissions ambassador in the Office of Undergraduate Admissions.

From 2005 - 2009 Andrew was a student at David Glasgow Farragut (high school) in Rota, Spain.

Today’s themes are: The O.C., having a “social media timer,” and on not Keeping up with the Kardashinans.

As with most of my interviews, what you’ll read here is a greatly condensed version of our conversation.

What was your first experience with social media?

“My first experience with social media was AOL instant messenger. I think I was in the seventh grade. I was kind of behind the times when I got it. All of my friends already had it. Where I grew up in midcoast Maine they held regular seventh and eighth grade dances and people would meet up and exchange AOL screen names. I never had one, so I finally made one up. I found it hard to keep up. Talking with twenty people at once can be overwhelming. My icon was a show like The O.C. or something like that. That show was really popular at the time. It was also the first time I ever remember seeing a GIF. It was a GIF from The O.C.” (MORE)

Dialogue.

at The VIA Agency

The fourth season of the television comedy series Arrested Development is set to premiere on Netflix next weekend, May 26. This season serves as a revival to the series after it was canceled by Fox in 2006. For rabid Arrested Development fans like myself, May 26th will be like an early Christmas Day and the buildup this week like a prolonged Christmas Eve. From the chicken dance, to the banana stand, to the Bluth stair car … hundreds of Arrested Development gags have embedded themselves into the memories of millions of people around the world. Even NPR got into the spirit on Saturday by creating an info graphic guide to the running gags from the show. Needless to say, there have been no shortage of Arrested Development tweets.

As an obsessive Twitter user (I’ll admit to it being my favorite social media channel), every week I notice at least a handful of tweets that grab my attention for a variety of reasons. They might be funny or insightful or, on occasion, even smart. In honor of next weekend’s season four debut, what follows are some of my favorite Arrested Development tweets, from major news outlets, ordinary tweeters and even the official Arrested Developmentaccount.

Tweets of the Week would be infinitely more interesting if I heard from you about what tweets you’d like to see featured and why. Send them to me on Twitter at @bobbbyg and I’ll consider them for the next Tweets of the Week.

Here we go again … tweet, tweet.

Today’s themes are: Never-nudes, Army, and “there’s always money in the banana stand.” 

(MORE)

drink local.

For you? 

Already thinking about how quickly they’ll be gone … 

Stratton Place Park, Portland, Maine

I had a dream about this painting 

Jackson Pollock, One: Number 31, 1950 (at Museum of Modern Art (MoMA))

With all of that said, lots of moms are on Facebook and all sorts of other social networks. They’re “tweeting” and “liking” and “pinning” and “checking in” all over the place. Apparently, some of them are even really stressed out about it. Don’t stress moms, it’s just Pinterest.

Anyway, in honor of Mother’s Day, I thought I’d leave you with some facts about moms and social media. And, with a photo of me and my mom. She is, without a doubt, the woman I love more than any other in the world. Easily. Happy Mother’s Day Mom. I love you. (MORE)

Cary Barbor, host and producer, BookTalk, NYC

BookTalk is a new podcast which features intelligent, candid conversations with leading authors about their new books. There’s a new episode every week.

Cary Barbor is a seasoned arts producer, based in NYC, who has worked on such public radio shows as “The Leonard Lopate Show” and “Studio 360.” She hosted her own popular show, also known as “BookTalk,” onSiriusXM. Also a writer of fiction and nonfiction, Cary’s work has been published in New York magazine, Salon, More, and many others.

Facebook as a gateway drug, disconnection heaven, and the serendipity of Twitter.

As with most of my interviews, what you’ll read here is a greatly condensed version of our conversation.

What was your first experience with social media?

“I suppose Facebook was my gateway drug. I dipped my toe in very gingerly to social media. I’m very private, so the thought of broadcasting my intimate thoughts and activities horrified me. It still does. Also, I could foresee how it would be a giant waste of time. But as I got the hang of it, I began to see how it could also be fun and useful.”

What do you like about social media?

“I really like the “in the know” feeling I get from Twitter. There is so much great information to be had on there. I fell in love with Twitter during the Arab Spring. I feel very attached to Egypt — my in-laws live in Cairo and I have visited many times – so I was following that story obsessively. And I was tremendously grateful for the accurate and timely information I got from reporters like Evan Hill (@evanchill) and Ben Wedeman (@bencnn). It truly gave me a picture of what was happening on the ground in Tahrir Square and around the city. The newspaper reports supplied good overviews but there was nothing like the thrill of an instant tweet from someone in the thick of it. The same thing happened after the Boston Marathon Bombing, when the reporter Seth Mnookin (@sethmnookin) happened to be standing in Watertown, tweeting what was going on with the manhunt, right in front of his eyes.” (MORE)

Pre-MECA Art Honors with my “brother-by-choice” Josh Yurges.

Big, huge love for this guy. 

Portland Eye Candy (at Stratton Pl Park)