What’s new, you may ask, in funeral and burial services?

Even funeral homes must embrace new technology. The Greenwich Village Funeral Home Inc. is one of many homes which will offer live-streaming memorial services. For those mourners unable to attend in person, technology will be in place for up to 3,000 guests to remember and honor the deceased – streaming live on the funeral home’s website.

With families and friends spread out globally, gathering for traditional in-person services is no longer always possible. Streaming the event allows for the participation of those far away. (I get it, but it feels oddly voyeuristic versus in-person  support.)

In the bigger picture, with the population living longer – and cremation becoming more popular – funeral homes have seen profits dip considerably. Many homes have added a host of new tribute services for the deceased, and more support services for the families, in order to stay competitive:

• Video tributes
• Slideshows
• Custom funeral propping (in lieu of flowers, one family placed a saddle on the casket to honor their beloved rider)
• Digital candle lighting, and
• Grief support.

If you’ve never experienced recognition of your achievements while alive, fear not, you can have your 15 minutes in death. And for those who read the obits, make way for the next new: a YouTube channel featuring the wakes of the day.

And lastly, create eternal memories of your loved one – read Perpetual life: A virtual memoir.

What do you think about virtual memorial services, is this the way of the future?

How far is too far to commute to work?

If you think traveling downtown to uptown, or Bay Ridge, Brooklyn to Manhattan, or even Philadelphia, PA to Manhattan is a stretch, then you’re a commuter lightweight. More than 4,000 commuters travel to and from New York City – get this – BY AIR for work. They are part of a tiny but rapidly growing group known as “super-commuters.”

The times, they are a-changin’. Enabled by technology and fueled by economic necessity, these frequent flyers take the car to the plane to the train to the subway to the office. Three days on-site, two days off. Studio living in Manhattan, then single-family home living in cities far and wide. I’m tired just thinking about it.

A day at the office has a whole new meaning as our work lives (ergo our personal lives) are rapidly being redefined. Workplace flexibility is a gift for some, and a nightmare for others. Listen to Transportation Nation’s Andrea Bernstein explain the full story.

What’s your maximum commuting radius? What kind of job would entice you to commute via airplane to get there?

Animation: © 2012, Janet Giampietro

I’ve added a new section for anyone who is curious.

It features the most popular (and evergreen) posts from the launch of the curious g to the present. The posts are organized by category:

• art,
• culture,
• travel,
• just curious, and
• something for everyone,
• and will be updated monthly.

Let me know if you have a favorite post, and I’ll add it to the Best of.

The first time I was fortunate enough to travel to the Dark Continent was in 1997.

Five friends and I did a walking safari across the Crater Highlands of Eastern Tanzania. As we prefer to book locally – keeping the money in country – our accommodations were down and dirty. It was one of my most memorable adventures.

During that time, the area was experiencing a severe drought. Water for washing was at a minimum. After eight days trekking with no showers (our Wet Ones had evaporated by week’s end), we were beyond grubby.

When we returned to Arusha after the trek ended, drinks were more than welcome. That’s when we discovered the local drink – the amazing Stoney Tangawizi. No soda lover here, but when traveling in developing nations, sometimes drinking soda (or beer) is a safer bet than drinking the local water.

Quelle suprise! I’ll never forget that first hit of Stoney Tangawizi in the back of my throat. It was pleasant and painful at the same time. This is a gingery, burning, highly-potent concoction that, once tasted, can never be forgotten.

“Imagine an intense Gingerale, a ginger sensation that seems like it was injected with fierce steroids, combining a solvent and reactant that fosters a potent chemical reaction. The recipe is beyond brilliant!”

I found a fellow Stoney lover (check out his great post for the full story of Stoney) who summed it up this way “a soda so powerful it can make you cry.” And he’s not exaggerating.

What’s the most unforgettable discovery you’ve made in your travels?

Photo © 1997, Janet Giampietro archive, bottle cap from my first Stoney

In addition to the many newspapers, books and publications that have gone the way of the pixel, another heavyweight (both literally and figuratively) joins the club.

The presses have stopped after 244 years on the Encyclopaedia Britannica. The 2010 edition is its last.

Don’t be sad – there’s mulitmedia
Encyclopaedia Britannica Inc.’s president Jorge Cauz said this about the cessation of the print volumes: “Some people will feel sad about it and nostalgic about it. But we have a better tool now. The Web site is continuously updated, it’s much more expansive and it has multimedia.

The World Book remains the only printed, general-interest encyclopedia in the US. Tick-tock.

Read the complete NYTimes article here.

Image: Ángel Franco/The New York Times

Bonfires, luscious color and a wild party
The Hindu spring festival of Holi is upon us. Known as the Festival of Colors, Holi is primarily observed in India and Nepal. In many areas, it lasts two to four eye-popping days.

Holi is celebrated at the end of the winter season on the last full moon of the lunar month. It celebrates the beginning of the new season – welcoming spring’s abundant, luscious colors and bidding a farewell to the drab of winter.

Over time, the focus of Holi has changed to a more secular celebration rather than a religious one. Although prayers are shared – camaraderie, delicacies, and a general sense of mischief take over as revelers douse each other with brightly-colored powders and water. Many participants start the festivities with a bonfire on the eve of Holi – and party hard.

But the festival changes with each successive generation. Traditionally, one aspect of Holi was intended to break down class barriers, uniting society for the festival’s duration, but many say that mores have changed its hue. Urban celebrations are insular rather than inclusive, and liquor replaces the traditional thandai and bhang (a mixture of milk and sugar, various seeds, spices, plants). Rural celebrations tend to retain more of the centuries’ old merriment: Traditional food, drink and mayhem. Holi activities vary from region to region and economic changes have greatly modified the scope of the festivities.

Making an eco-friendly Holi
In earlier times, Holi colors were prepared from the bright flowers of trees that blossomed during spring. They provided the raw material for the brilliant Holi shades. Many of these trees also had medicinal properties, so the dyes were actually beneficial to the skin.

With the disappearance of trees in urban areas, and the commercialization of Holi, these natural colors were replaced by industrial dyes. A 2001 study on the marketed pastes, dry colors and water colors revealed that these three forms of chemical Holi colors were toxic.

There’s a great movement to encourage celebrants to move from toxic colors to eco-friendly, natural substitutes. Here’s how it’s done.

Wishing all celebrants a happy + colorful Holi.

Images: 1/Bonfire > Flickr image: By wonker; 2/Powdered faces > Rafiq Maqbool/Associated Press; 3/Powders

As the curious g readers know, I cannot resist a camel story.

What’s a bactrian camel doing in Austin, TX, USA? Giving camel rides of course. Caesar, a 14-year old double-hump, has his own Facebook page, All American Camel, a legion of fans and he’s mastered the art of not spitting.

As splendid as that is, Animal Protection has shut the riding operation down. It has stepped in to make sure that Caesar is safe and well cared for.

Who could make this up? Read the full story about Caesar and Snell, his owner, here.

Photo: Alberto Martinez/American-Statesman

Another year of Oscar is in the books. The show seemed shorter than usual (I guess omitting the two best nommed songs helped), but dragged on for 3+ hours. It should have been over by 11pm.

On my predictions, well, I had a middling 15 correct out of 24. Not my best year – Streep trumped Davis and Hazanavicius surpassed Scorcese. I did predict all the Film Shorts correctly though.

Here were the highs and lows as I saw them.

Telecast: Not very funny, overly sentimental, nostalgic, draggy – bad, tinny sound that seemed to go on forever. Not an especially good return for Billy Crystal.

It felt kind of funerial. The ceremony was held in the usual Kodak Theater, but since Kodak has filed for Chapter 11, they couldn’t use the name. It seemed like the celebration of a dying art form, and in some ways, I guess it is.

Best acceptance speeches: Christopher Plummer was simply elegant, and Octavia Spencer was genuinely touching.

Best dressed: Michelle Williams, Octavia Spencer, Penelope Cruz (although not the hair)

Worst dressed: Sandra Bullock, Livia Firth (Colin’s wife, who normally looks eco-stunning) looked poufy and dated, Jennifer Lopez

Best surprise: Esperanza Spalding singing What a Wonderful World for the In Memoriam segment.

No surprise: The Artist wins for best picture.

Best lines: Billy Crystal “Nothing takes the sting out of these tough economic times like watching a bunch of millionaires giving golden statues to each other.” And one from Colin Firth, as he saluted Meryl Streep, “Meryl. Mamma mia!”

Missed her on the red carpet (and everywhere else during the night): Mother Dolores Hart, where was she?

What’s your take on Oscars 2012?

Photo: guardian.co.uk

Prior to the upcoming Oscar telecast, more than a few eyebrows have been raised over revamped rules and omissions. But a few other stories have been making news or making waves.
••••••••••••••••••••
From the king to God

Former Hollywood starlet turned nun, Mother Dolores Hart, is the centerpiece of the nominated documentary short, God is the Bigger Elvis.

During her brief career in the late 1950s and early 1960s, Hart was nominated, and even won a few prestigious awards. At 19, she gave Elvis his first on-screen kiss (in Loving You). Thus the doc short title.

The documentary chronicles her life as a nun after a Hollywood career where her costars included Presley, Anthony Quinn and George Hamilton. Her last appearance on the big screen was in 1963. It also focuses on the day-to-day life of the nuns at the Abbey of Regina Laudis, which is also a working farm and produces artisanal cheeses.

I’m guessing that one reason the head of the abbey has allowed this intrusion into the nuns contemplative life is because the abbey is in disrepair. The sisters are looking at $4 million worth of work, from structural to ADA compliance for the aging nuns in order to maintain living standards.

What’s a bit of pimping if it’s all for a good cause? I’m looking forward to seeing Mother Dolores walking the red carpet. She’ll be the only person who won’t get asked, “Who are you wearing?”

God Is the Bigger Elvis airs April 5 on HBO. There is no trailer available, but here’s an interview with Mother Dolores Hart.

••••••••••••••••••••
The sound of [stolen] music

I don’t even understand this one, known as “The Kim Novak Controversy.” It’s an artistic argument versus a legal choice.

A slice of the film score for The Artist originated in the film Vertigo. Kim Novak, co-star in Vertigo, alleges that the music was a creative collaboration between composer Bernard Herrmann, co-star Jimmy Stewart and herself. Her contention: That piece of music is so specific to that scene within that film, that it should never have been repurposed elsewhere.

Novak refers to the music’s use in The Artist as a “rape.”

Director Michel Hazanavicius released this statement in response.

“The Artist was made as a love letter to cinema, and grew out of my (and all of my cast and crew’s) admiration and respect for movies throughout history. It was inspired by the work of Hitchcock, Lang, Ford, Lubitsch, Murnau and Wilder. I love Bernard Herrmann and his music has been used in many different films and I’m very pleased to have it in mine. I respect Kim Novak greatly and I’m sorry to hear she disagrees.”

While the use of Hermann’s score has been slammed by some film critics for recalling Vertigo – thus out of place in his film, Hazanavicius did nothing wrong.

He told CNN:

“I used music from another movie, but it’s not illegal. We paid for that, we asked for that and we had the permission to do it. For me there is no real controversy… I feel sorry for her, but there’s a lot of movies with music from other movies, directors do that all the time and I’m not sure it’s a big deal.”

Welcome to Hollywood, Michel! The full text of this bizarre ad was placed in Variety by Ms Novak. Decide for yourself if the choice of music should have been rethought.

••••••••••••••••••••
No joy in Muppetville

The last petty tale before the 2012 Academy Awards^® are presented – dissed Muppets!

That’s right. With only two original songs nominated this year (Man or Muppet and Real in Rio), the Academy chose to shorten the show by scrapping the performances.

Charming as the Muppets are, they could not change the minds of the show’s producers. Personally, anything to shorten the ceremony gets my vote. But in case you didn’t see the film and feel cheated, here’s the clip.

Will you watch the ceremony this Sunday, or just catch up the next day? Don’t forget to check out my predictions.

The most fun of awards season is fashion-watching, and mostly laughing at the choices made. The second best part is attempting to predict the winners. In a lackluster year of films and nominations, they are only some of the reasons to pay attention to the Academy Awards.^®

So here we go, my predictions for the top categories and why they’ll win. (And if they don’t, no whining here, there’s always next year.) You can cast your votes the old-fashioned way, or The New York Times interactive way.

BEST PICTURE >
Of the nine (they couldn’t make it 10, or go back to five?) nominated films, I think it’s a two-horse race: The Artist and Hugo.

Forget Extremely Loud…, War Horse, The Tree of Life – they have no chance. While the performances in The Help are good, the movie is Lifetime-ish. Neither Midnight in Paris or The Descendants are weighty enough to satisfy the “importance” factor for voters. Moneyball – baseball and stats? Not so much.

The Artist and Hugo are both homages to the movie biz, and films and filmmaking. Hugo veered offtrack from the story of an orphan into a leaden story about film preservation. I’m giving the edge to The Artist, judging by how many awards it has already picked up.

My prediction to win: The Artist
My preference: The Descendants or Moneyball

BEST ACTOR IN A LEADING ROLE >
This one’s tough, all five actors turned in wonderful performances.

While Demian Bichir’s performance in A Better Life was heartbreaking, this newbie on the circuit has no chance. Gary Oldman’s excellent, restrained performance in Tinker, Tailor, Soldier, Spy got him his first nod – but it’s not his time, and he’ll win for a mediocre performance in the future. Brad Pitt was terrific in Moneyball, but a jock-turned-manager is not a significant enough guy for the voters.

The international race is between established Hollywood in George Clooney – in his best performance to date in The Descendants – and the French-newcomer-to-Hollywood, Jean Dujardin, in a fine performance in an old Hollywood story in The Artist.

I’m on the fence on this one, The tipping point may be the subject matter of the films. I may change my mind before Oscar night, but a Hollywood story trumps family angst for these voters

My prediction to win: Jean Dujardin (by a pencil-thin mustache)
My preference: Gary Oldman or Brad Pitt

BEST ACTRESS IN A LEADING ROLE >
The a two-race here is between Meryl Streep and Viola Davis. Glenn Close – not sure why she got nominated for Albert Nobbs – weird and bland character.

Rooney Mara turned in a gutsy performance in The Girl With The Dragon Tattoo, but the character is probably too weird for the conservative academy voters. Michelle Williams was both sexy and vulnerable in My Week With Marilyn, but the film was slight.

I’m picking Viola Davis for her strength of character in The Help. Meryl’s 17th nomination as The Iron Lady may not be the charm for playing a person disliked by many.

My prediction to win: Viola Davis
My preference: Viola Davis works for me, or Michelle WIlliams

xxx

DIRECTING >
Previous Oscar winners and legendary directors Martin Scorsese (Hugo) and Woody Allen (Midnight in Paris) are formidable nominees. Allen won’t win, he’s too far out of the insider’s circle and usually a no-show anyway. Alexander Payne got the nod for The Descendants, but he’ll leave with the nomination only. Terrence Malik (The Tree of Life) may be too far out there even within the industry.

Michel Hazanavicius is a serious contender for The Artist since he’s already picked up the award from the Director’s Guild. [Bias alert: The Hazanavicius/Dujardin/Bejo trio teamed up previously in one of my favorite comedies, OSS 117: Cairo, Nest of Spies].

I’m on the fence here too. But I’m going with the heavyweight.

My prediction to win: Martin Scorcese
My preference: Michel Hazanavicius or Alexander Payne

BEST ACTOR IN A SUPPORTING ROLE >
The Oscar goes to Christopher Plummer for his late-out-of-the-closet, life-loving geezer in Beginners – that’s all folks.

BEST ACTRESS IN A SUPPORTING ROLE >
Octavia Spencer will bring Oscar on home for her rebellious, crowd-pleasing maid, Minny, in The Help.

xxx

OVERLOOKED AND UNDERLAUDED >
Alan Rickman is Severus Snape in Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows, Part 2.  I get why he would never have been nominated (the film is 1/8th of a film series, with an ending, while the beginning and middle are long past), but come on, a great role played to the hilt over 10 years. When will we ever hear pauses like those again? Sectumsempra this academy.

Joseph Gordon-Levitt plays a young writer diagnosed with a rare form of cancer in 50/50. Levitt turns in wonderful portrayals in every film he’s in, and this one walks a fine line between comedy and near tragedy. Show the guy some nom love.

Vanessa Redgrave turned in a fearsome performance as Volumnia, in Ralph Fiennes’ Coriolanus. She was one scary mother. Now that’s a best supporting actress nom if ever I’ve seen one.

Michael Fassbender’s brave and raw portrayal of a sex addict in Steve McQueen’s Shame. Forget about the full frontal, it takes a lot more balls to be that unemotionally exposed on screen.

I could go on for days, but this post is long enough. Your predictions please?

Images: The Artist © 2011 The Weinstein Company; The Help © 2011 Dreamworks LLC;  Martin Scorcese © 2011 Golden GLobes / HFPA; Beginners © 2011 Focus Features; Harry Potter and The Deathly Hallows, Part 2 © 2011 Warner Bros.; 50/50 © Summit Entertainment LLC; Coriolanus: Photo by Larry D. Horricks  © 2011 The Weinstein Company; Shame © 2011 Fox Searchlight Pictures