Rules: Once you’ve been tagged, you are supposed to write a note with 25 random things, facts, habits, or goals about you and post it. At the end, choose 5 people to be tagged. If I tagged you, it’s because I want to know more about you.

Thanks, Gerard! Thus…

1. I’m a leftie.

2. I’m an INTJ, which probably explains why I’m not entirely comfortable fulfilling this task.

3. My favorite color is grey. No, not gray, grey…

4. I have a Snowshoe Siamese cat named Claire Monet. It’s really annoying when I take her to the vet and they file her information under my last name; she has her own.

5. I was raised loosely Roman Catholic, but I wasn’t baptized until I was six, so I got to pick my church; I chose St. Nicholas in Gdansk, which was built in the 14th century.

6. Growing up, I was an only child. My sister was born when I was almost 16 and, a few years ago, we learned that we have an older brother. So, I’m actually a middle child who acts like a princess.

7. When I was 19 and my sister 3, I threw a fit because she got a Paddington bear for Christmas, so I ended up getting one, too.

8. I played the tuba in Band for a while. Yeah, that’s right…

9. I’ve had at least one cup of coffee every day since I was 14, except for one really, really bad day about ten years ago, when I slept for 40 hours straight.

10. Remember those red/blue 3D pictures back in the 80s? They’re called anaglyph images, and I can’t see them. My eyes can’t process the effect.

11. When I was a kid, I wanted to become an architect. Nowadays, I’m happy circling around issues of architecture and being friends with grumpy architects.

12. I once jumped off the garage roof holding an umbrella; I didn’t break anything, but I got in trouble anyway.

13. I’m at least a fourth-generation urbanite so, if I sometimes come off as arrogant or presumptuous, it’s because that sense of urban entitlement courses through my veins.

14, I don’t know how to drive. There’s no reason why I couldn’t learn; it just never happened. I’m really good with public transit, though.

15. I’ve been to six motor sports events — Indy 500 [twice], motorcross, sprint cars, monster trucks, and a tractor pull.

16. When I went off to college in upstate New York, I thought the rest of the state was Westchester. But, no, there are cows and farmers and plenty of people who don’t care about the city. Who knew?

17. Another shock came during my one and only cross-country road trip, when I learned that you get on 80 in Erie, PA and get off in Oakland. It’s too damn simple.

18. I was 19 when I first experienced a suburban subdivision. “Shock and awe” might describe my reaction.

19. I’ll eat anything; the craziest thing I’ve ever eaten was a deep-fried cow brain sandwich. It was really good.

20. Over the years, I’ve been told that I look like Molly Ringwald, Winona Ryder, Parker Posey, and Angelina Jolie. I don’t think these comparisons would help you recognize me on the street.

21. I’m really accident-prone; I’ve had three on-the-job injuries over the years: a concussion, a torn ligament, and a busted back. Imagine if I were, say, a construction worker instead of a graphic designer?

22. I was really homesick while I lived in California, so a friend took me to Noah’s Bagels, where I burst into tears over their steamed bagels, “shmears,” and fakey-fakey NYC/Jewish references. Sorry, not everything’s better on the West Coast.

23. My first concert was Yngwie Malmsteen at L’amour. Yngwie who? Yngwie fucking Malmsteen, that’s who.

24. My coolest brush with fame was meeting Joey Ramone at CBGB, when I was in high school. I was so flabbergasted that I called him “Mr. Ramone, sir” which, in turn, left him speechless.

25. I’m in this video. If you blink, you’ll miss me.

And now it’s my turn to tag five innocent bloggers! Here are my victims:

Anne of Wit, Wisdom & Food, whose once-excellent food blog has lapsed in recent months
Craig of Cinemasparagus, an esoteric cinemacentric blog
David of 12th & Republic, who writes among the mad and marginal
Danielle of Generous Adventure, whose blog touches on art, design, and nature
Matthew Gavin Walsh, whose blog is an ongoing experiment with analog typography, illustration, and doodles

Poland’s 1970 shipyard protests occurred on 17 Dec. Janek Wiśniewski, the subject of the song above, was actually named Zbigniew Godlewski. He was 18 years old, lived in Elbląg, and worked at the Paris Commune Shipyard [now Gdynia Shipyard].

Before Godlewski’s identity was discovered, the image of his body being carried on a door through the streets of Gdynia became a symbol for the striking workers. He was given the “John Doe”-type moniker of Janek Wiśniewski and inspired poems and songs, most notably Janek Wiśniewski Padł by Mieczysław Cholewa [his rendition is here]. Cholewa’s version of the song is slow, its anger rising to the surface toward the end.

The version of Janek Wiśniewski Padł in the clip above is sung by Krystyna Janda at the end Andrzej Wajda’s 1981 film Man of Iron; she later performed the song at Solidarity’s 25th Anniversary Concert. Man of Iron is a slightly fictionalized version of some of Poland’s tumultuous events of 1968, 1970, and 1980, told from a very recent historical perspective and in a way that could be approved by censors. Here is a shot of Zbigniew Godlewski’s body from the film:

This is an actual photograph of the event:

The subtitles in the clip above are a bit misleading. I’ve noted the main lyrical differences between Cholewa’s and Janda’s versions in the brackets below. Janda sings of a red ribbon, while the ribbon is black in Cholewa’s version. He also includes a more direct indictment in the verse that Wajda omitted from his film.

Boys from Grabówek, boys from Chylonia
Today the military used arms
Bravely we stood, accurately we threw
Janek Wiśniewski fell

On a door we carried him along Świętojańska
Against the cops, against the tanks
Boys, shipyard workers, avenge your comrade
Janek Wiśniewski fell

The bangers sound, the gas spreads
Blows fall on the workers
Children, elderly, women are falling
Janek Wiśniewski fell

One is wounded, another killed
Blood was spilled at dawn in December
It’s the Party shooting at the workers
Janek Wiśniewski fell

[Bloody Kociołek is the Tricity's executioner
Because of him the children, women are dying
Wait, you bastard, we're going to get you
Janek Wiśniewski fell]

Shipyard workers of Gdynia, workers of Gdańsk
Go home, the battle is over
The world learned about this, and said nothing
Janek Wiśniewski fell

Don’t cry mothers, it wasn’t for nothing
There’s a black [red] ribbon above the shipyard
For bread and freedom, and a new Poland
Janek Wiśniewski fell

But, the most important difference between the lyrics and the subtitles is that the song actually names different towns. Yes, “the boys” came from “all over” but, more significantly, they were different sorts of workers from very distinct communities. What makes this folk song so powerful and beautiful, in my opinion, is that it acknowledges Poland’s strong regionalism, and manages to indict everyone in the face of this unification of provincial factions.

The reality, of course, was not so simple. Lisa DiCaprio explained some of the events of the time, and those depicted in Man of Iron, in her essay in Jump Cut. But, an effective protest song touches the soul and rallies people together, and Janek Wiśniewski Padł still makes the hair on the back of my neck stand every time I hear it.

On 13 Dec 81, Prime Minister General Wojciech Jaruzelski declared Martial Law in Poland, closing the borders, instituting military patrols, imposing a strict curfew, and censoring all media. Food and other necessities were scarce and rationed, and any travel without a permit was prohibited.

These photographs of Gdańsk are by Bogusław Nieznalski, from the exhibit Stan Wojenny [or Martial Law; literally "state of war"]. You can read some eyewitness accounts of that December here, as well as a brief summary of the events of the time. More photos here.

I always root for the underdog.

SI-Bashing Pol a Real Beach Bum: OMFG, the Jersey shore has words with Staten Island!

Shipyards to Sheratons in Gdansk: is it a coincidence that I designed the Sheraton hotel chain’s first web site at my first real job? I no longer think so.

“Poster Boy”: Artist, Vandal, Maker of Funny Things: is this the next Banksy?

Fading Fast: Painted Wall Signs Are Disappearing, But Is Restoration the Answer?: on preserving [or not] ghost signs in the Bay Area.

Great Lakes Urban Exchange: GLUE is an information clearinghouse “founded to promote the power, aid in the positive transformation, and address the shared challenges of similarly-storied older industrial cities situated in the Great Lakes watershed.”

A Locally Grown Diet With Fuss but No Muss: chronicling the emerging “lazy locavore” movement.

Missed Connections: maps of Craigslist’s Missed Connections; lots of Missed Connections in stores across the country; what does that say about people’s social outlets?