Courtesy Times Online UK

Before Banksy, there was Blek (Le Rat). Parisian born Xavier Prou is generally considered the grandfather of Stenciled Art (Stenciled Graffiti). Born in 50s Paris, he began his art work projects in the early 80s.

For most of his career he has worked out of the shadows, gladly putting up his art throughout major metropolitan areas without anyone knowing his true identity. Much of his work is driven by social satire and often carries a political commentary. Born into bourgeoisie, his first contact with people outside of his social sphere was when he began studying at L’Ecole Nationale Supérieure des Beaux-Arts. This is perhaps where he began to develop a social conscience which would influence his art later on.

“At university,” he explains, “my teachers were Trotskyites, revolutionaries; they taught me much more than pure art. I was learning about another world.”

What is however apparent is his influence on current world famous graffiti artist Banksy. According to Banksy:

“every time I think I’ve painted something slightly original, I find out that Blek Le Rat has done it as well, only twenty years earlier”.

Below is a small collection of Blek Le Rat art.

Courtesy of Wikipedia Media Commons

Courtesy The Independent (UK)

NYGB

When it comes to landscape changing, over the top, urban transforming art, very few can surpass the slightly megalomanic duo of Christo and Jeanne-Claude. A career spanning more than 50 years has seen these artists wrap famous buildings, bridges, parks and trees; they’ve put up umbrellas and torn down gates.

Below is a list of some of the more famous temporary works by Christo and Jeanne Claude:

Christ & Jeanne Claude Surrounded Islands
The Umbrellas
Wrapped Reichstag
The Wall
The Gates

The duo have also been featured in popular culture on a few occasions, most notably in a Simpson’s episode entitled Mom and Pop Art (Season 10 Episode 19 Total Episode 222) as well as in a Peanuts comic strip by Charles Schulz From November 20th, 1978. As an ode to Peanuts creator Charles Schulz, Christ and Jeanne Claude offered, in 2003, a wrapped dog house to the Charles M. Schulz museum.

Christo and Jeanne Claude Official Web Site
Christo and Jeanne Claude on Wikipedia

Umbrella Project Japan from Wikipedia Commons

Christ and Jeanne Claude The Gates from Wikipedia Commons

Christo and Jeanne Claude Wrapping of the Reichstag courtesy of AmericanMagpie on Wordpress

NYGB

This video is awesome. We just had to share it with NYGB readers. All of us at Not Your Grandma’s Blog would like to commend this granny for her initiative. And for contributing to the NYGB cause.

NYGB

The perfect girlfriend

How and who is there to say or judge a perfect girlfriend. Well let me be the first to say that it is “YOU” the guy, the boyfriend. The sucker that fell for the wrong one and the lucky bastard that found the right one. Girls will probably get upset by my article; some will cry, some will laugh and some will take my advice. And make their men happy, instead of always thinking about themselves. Funny thing is most of you don’t even know your doing it, or do you?

Whatever the case may be we notice it a lot. And the worst thing is that when we tell you that your doing it, you sit there and start defending yourselves. And you try to blame the men. Why not just admit it, it’s a lot easier for all of us.

You do the same thing with lying. When you get caught in a lie you invent and try to defend a lie. Why bother? When you get caught admit the truth; men will get mad but if they really want to be with you, they will get over it. But it all depends on the lie as well, of course. So if you take anything from this article, a good thing would be don’t lie and then wine about it.

A big problem that guys also have is that when we start a relationship with a girl she is always nice, tolerant and active. Why is it that all girls change after a few months and then start gossiping with their girlfriends. “He is not happy any more”. “Why this, why that”.

Wake up we feel lied to, we started dating the person we wanted not the one you turned into. Oh and of course your answer to that is well because YOU changed. “WRONG”!

You (the girl) changed and we are just unhappy. We sit there like idiots wondering what happened; maybe we did something wrong. But at the end of the day we can’t find an answer so we start thinking other things. Some guys blame themselves, some just give up. Whatever the case analyze yourselves. Try looking at both sides before finding an answer to everything.

You cry about attention well, “give and you shall receive”. Pay attention to your man and he will pay attention to you. Be sexual with your man; don’t always wait for him to make a move. These are just a few things that you should take into consideration. Another thing is when you are out with your man don’t look at other guys because it makes you look bad and us too. Then the wheel will turn and the guy starts looking to get revenge and it all ends in a fight if you are lucky. Some guys even end up cheating on their girlfriends thinking well if she is looking around why bother being faithful.

Well these are just a few things to keep in mind and correct. There are other things but there is no more room or time for all of them. So here it is the perfect girl/girlfriend:

- Sexy and good looking: Don’t get me wrong now every woman is beautiful. Every woman has a man like every flower has a leaf.
- Smart: you need education and manners because we need a conversation once in a while.
- Funny and happy: if you are happy so are we. And being positive and in a good mood makes everyone around you feel the same way.
- Spontaneous and dangerous and also crazy in a good way.

Other aspects of being a perfect, girlfriend includes the following:

- Practice good hygiene, looking good and smelling clean is obviously an important part of your image. Make sure you take good of your body, your hair, your teeth and your nails. Trust me no one wants to taste what you had for breakfast. Remember to wash your face every night with a mild soap. And keep your hands off to avoid brake outs. Also don’t forget to moisturize, and never go to sleep with your make up on.
- Don’t be someone your not. Be your self and don’t try to copy others.
- Don’t be a show off. Be proud of your accomplishments, but don’t shove them in peoples’ faces.
- GET YOUR BEAUTY SLEEP.

And this concludes my article. I will follow up with answers if you guys have any questions.

P.S. And this will contradict some things I have said. Just remember there is no such thing as a perfect girl. But you can improve yourself and become a better person. But you have to understand that everyone has flaws.

VALENTINO

It’s time for another installment in our series T-Shirt of the Week. The T-Shirt of the Week is a new segment showcasing either cool, retro, awesome, fun, classic T-Shirts for your enjoyment.

Every week we at NYGB strive to bring you a new T-Shirt to sink your teeth into. Why? Because we love T-Shirts! That’s why. And when we run out of interesting tidbits to blog about, we throw in one of these to pass the time.

Keeping up with Star Wars Addiction we present you some swag no SW Fucktard could live without. Your very own Han Solo retro tshirt.

NYGB

Apparently they exist and they’ve congregated on the web; where else would they? It’s not like they have social lives.

We decided to Google the search term “Star Wars Addiction” and we came up with an actual site called Star Wars Addiction Dot Com (http://www.starwarsaddiction.com). No surprise there. Among interesting links on their site, they’ve got their very own SWAC bar (whatever that is).

Another website, SFGate - The San Francisco Chronicle (yes, an actual printed press media respected newspaper) has a quiz allowing you to find out how addicted you are to Star Wars: Starstruck / How Serious is your ‘Star Wars’ Addiction?

It would appear that these FuckTards (Star Wars Addicts, not the press) have found a way to get respected news organizations to pay attention to them. If any of you NYGB readers know of any way we can do the same for Not Your Grandma’s Blog, please Contact NYGB and let us know. We’d love to get some massively serious exposure here and create or very own brand of NYGB Addiction.

Or, if you are an above stated SW FuckTard, let us in on your little insidious secret and we promise you massive free Star Wars swag!

Peace! NYGB

Interesting Tidbit…

According to the Encyclopedia Dramatica (currently usurping Encyclopedia Britannica as the leading voice of knowledge), the term FuckTard is defined as:

A fucktard is a special variety of retard whose condition arises not from clinically demonstrable neurological impairment, but from buttersnap shitfuckery of the mind.

We @ NYGB would just like to say “Thank You ED”, that definition is priceless.

Thus, we will be MIA for a few weeks. Until then, bow down before us and worship us incessantly.

Regards,
NYGB

In Yoda Speak…

Going to be taking a short break from nygb for the next few months, we are. Been brought on by a series of events involving some guys from that place doing that thing, this hiatus has.

Thus, be mia for a few weeks, we will. Until then, bow down before us and worship us incessantly. .

Regards,
Nygb. Herh herh herh.

Yoda Speak Generator

It’s time for another installment in our series T-Shirt of the Week. The T-Shirt of the Week is a new segment showcasing either cool, retro, awesome, fun, classic T-Shirts for your enjoyment.

Every week we at NYGB strive to bring you a new T-Shirt to sink your teeth into. Why? Because we love T-Shirts! That’s why. And when we run out of interesting tidbits to blog about, we throw in one of these to pass the time.

Last week we spoke about The Social Sphere that NYGB is part of. And we mentioned an off handed remark about Idaho.

So, we thought we’d offer that off handed remark to you, the reader, so that you may wear it proudly wherever you go.

Enjoy! NYGB

He will write about topics that concern the everyday guy from an “Everyday Guy’s Perspective”. Themes on relationships and dating, automobiles, women, cars, women in cars, cars that drive women, women driven cars, and why Chrysler is better than Chevrolet. Oh, and sports of course.

Unless of course GM sues us in which case I’m sure he will change his mind and state that indeed Chevrolet is better than Chrysler.

Valentino has jet grade fuel coursing through his veins as opposed to blood. He is permanently attached to a kerosene supply intravenously administered to his body. We’ve actually had to adapt to his surroundings and provide him with a custom built office at the race track.

The length to which we go to satisfy our staff, authors and contributors is unparalleled and unmatched in the blogosphere.. Stick that up your pipe and smoke it Arianna.

Here is an artist’s impression of what Valentino looks like.

Will you Twitter my Facebook while I Digg your Myspace? The convergence/divergence of the Social Sphere has us multiplying our efforts in order to “pollen-ize our horizontally integrated leveraged markets” to better “cross-brand in a multi-lateral synergistically balanced marketplace”.

What the fuck does it all mean? We’re not really sure, but our corporate overlords tell us it’s a good thing. And we like good things, unless those good things come from Idaho. Fuck Idaho!

So, in an effort to fulfill the above stated “mission statement”, we signed up all over the web to keep in touch with everyone while everyone keeps in touch with us 24×7x365.

You can stalk us on the web as follows:

On Twitter (”the twittersphere”): http://www.notyourgrandmasblog.com/twitter

On Myspace: http://www.notyourgrandmasblog.com/myspace. Please Note; Tom Hates us.

On Facebook: http://www.notyourgrandmasblog.com/facebook. Please poke us, we’re lonely.

On Digg: http://www.notyourgrandmasblog.com/digg. Digg us once a day, otherwise we’ll digg you!

And more to be added soon, as we invade the rest of the Social Sphere.

NYGB