i love the smell of pizza.
is it the perfect food?
contains every food group, and belongs to the round.
the round group of donuts, grapes, chocolate chip cookies, swedish meatballs,...a wonderful group!
all the lunchtime diners in pizza chef are men.
large men. with their winter jackets on.
no wait. in that booth, the white haired people sunk into their down jackets, eating pizza.
a couple? male and female. so completely overlookable.
what are they doing eating lunch in pizza chef on a weekday?
my eyes blur as i watch them until, omg! her hair is a smooth brown pony tail and her smile is bright red lipstick!
her sweater is buttoned up the back, and, honest-to-god, a poodle skirt??
and he -- whoa, a hunk in a t-shirt, sleeve rolled up to hold a softpack, hair combed back like a young elvis. is it the same couple?
she grins at him, her toe taps his foot under the table, in time to -- where'd that music come from? -- "gonna make a chain of paper clips, and chain us together as i kiss your lips..."
what a strange vision.
POP! it's gone. and there are two old whitehaired people hunkered in their down jackets sitting in a booth eating pizza. her toe is tapping on his foot under the table...and LOL see them grin at each other?
Feb 18, 2010
Feb 17, 2010
haiku from mars and venus
i told Al i had condensed his poem into a haiku as follows:
our tracks up the hill -
my long sweet life with deb
even as new snow falls
he responded that it might be more like this:
Rabbit ripped from life
Fox dripping blood
My love is not like that
this reminds me of trying to create a skit with HBA, best described in this:
http://xkcd.com/611/
our tracks up the hill -
my long sweet life with deb
even as new snow falls
he responded that it might be more like this:
Rabbit ripped from life
Fox dripping blood
My love is not like that
this reminds me of trying to create a skit with HBA, best described in this:
http://xkcd.com/611/
Feb 16, 2010
Valentine poem
every year my friend Al writes a valentine's day poem for his wife, Deb. he graciously gave me permission to blog it. like me, he walks the same trails hills fields near his house year after year always finding things to be interested in.
For Deb
by Al Alessi
The prints are legion on the fresh few flakes
That dropped unbeknownst in the night
To the coyotes' delight
For the clean clear tracks will help their task
Of returning the owner to their maker
Taker wins all
In the call of the wilderness behind our home
It is the way of all time
This reading of lines on the white canvas
To know what chances are there to live or die
A storyboard screed for all to read
The grouse the turkey the hare
Their trails lay bare for the predator
Or tourist to decipher
The wild ridge where men can not easily live
Giveth and taketh away
Deer moose mouse and owl
Painting their lines of whence they came
And to where they would hope to go.
I do not look back to see our own trail
as we climb as we are able
To the lichen-lathered picnic table placed so long ago
By old Mr. Apple when his then spry prints
Of Vermont boot tread crisscrossed the ridge to be read
As surely as ours do today.
Do we in any way make sense
Of where we have been and what we seek
In this meander on our home hill
Where we must neither kill or be killed
We have not seen the risk of each step
As though it was our last
We are afforded contemplation
And the temptations that from there derive
As we drive on nearly to the top
With but our precipitous decline in line
To fall back untouched and unscathed
To the valley floor to our humble door and the hearth within
We have traveled many such paths together
And we know this small valley well
We know where the deer herd dwells
We know where we are headed
And if we turned about we'd see our prints in the snow.
We were there! And there!
We can see it stretch past the stoney ruins of the shepherd's hut
Our presence is as proven as calligraphy on linen
We were here
But it's clear that time will soon wash this sign of our boots
Down into the roots of maple trees and June's wild flowers.
How is it we can feel so lost and yet know our path so well?
Did we forget to choose something along the way?
Though if I chose nothing much ever very well
I am blessed that it is with thee I journey and dwell.
♥
For Deb
by Al Alessi
The prints are legion on the fresh few flakes
That dropped unbeknownst in the night
To the coyotes' delight
For the clean clear tracks will help their task
Of returning the owner to their maker
Taker wins all
In the call of the wilderness behind our home
It is the way of all time
This reading of lines on the white canvas
To know what chances are there to live or die
A storyboard screed for all to read
The grouse the turkey the hare
Their trails lay bare for the predator
Or tourist to decipher
The wild ridge where men can not easily live
Giveth and taketh away
Deer moose mouse and owl
Painting their lines of whence they came
And to where they would hope to go.
I do not look back to see our own trail
as we climb as we are able
To the lichen-lathered picnic table placed so long ago
By old Mr. Apple when his then spry prints
Of Vermont boot tread crisscrossed the ridge to be read
As surely as ours do today.
Do we in any way make sense
Of where we have been and what we seek
In this meander on our home hill
Where we must neither kill or be killed
We have not seen the risk of each step
As though it was our last
We are afforded contemplation
And the temptations that from there derive
As we drive on nearly to the top
With but our precipitous decline in line
To fall back untouched and unscathed
To the valley floor to our humble door and the hearth within
We have traveled many such paths together
And we know this small valley well
We know where the deer herd dwells
We know where we are headed
And if we turned about we'd see our prints in the snow.
We were there! And there!
We can see it stretch past the stoney ruins of the shepherd's hut
Our presence is as proven as calligraphy on linen
We were here
But it's clear that time will soon wash this sign of our boots
Down into the roots of maple trees and June's wild flowers.
How is it we can feel so lost and yet know our path so well?
Did we forget to choose something along the way?
Though if I chose nothing much ever very well
I am blessed that it is with thee I journey and dwell.
♥
Feb 15, 2010
??
(just stopping in to dust a bit and pick up the old newspapers from the floor. maybe i'll leave this lamp on just in case)
Feb 10, 2010
when writing skills turn to the dark side
(take a deep breath!)
We write to officially notify you of this award as we congratulate you over your success in the following official publication of results of the e-mail electronic online Sweepstakes organized in conjunction with the Bid South Africa 2010 Football Local Organizing Committee and expatriate registered Telecommunications companies for the promotion of BID-SA 2010 FIFA FOOTBALL WORLD CUP that was held recently held here in Johannesburg.
We write to officially notify you of this award as we congratulate you over your success in the following official publication of results of the e-mail electronic online Sweepstakes organized in conjunction with the Bid South Africa 2010 Football Local Organizing Committee and expatriate registered Telecommunications companies for the promotion of BID-SA 2010 FIFA FOOTBALL WORLD CUP that was held recently held here in Johannesburg.
Feb 8, 2010
Feb 7, 2010
letter to ms f
someone i know, who graduated from college quite awhile ago, came across some memorabilia from her college days, and thoughtfully sent a list to the university archives offering the items. here's the reply she received (names omitted):
Ms. F
Thanks for your kind offer, but I believe that we already have most if not all of the items you mention.
xxx xxxxxx
Associate University Archivist for Research Services
xxx@xxx.edu
------------------------------
not even dear ms f, or kind regards or anything! some of her friends felt this was astonishingly rude, and one of them composed what she felt would have been the correct response, which made me laugh so hard! here it is:
-------------------------
Dear Ms. F,
Thank you so much for your kind offer to donate memorabilia from your years at xxx. We enjoyed having you here and are pleased that you have preserved some of the artifacts of your time here, an important time in the history of xxx University. We would love to house your items here and showcase them as part of our history, but unfortunately we have no space to preserve them or showcase them as we would like. As xxx archivist, I have put together a plan to build a museum on campus to house such memorabilia and the administration and Board of Trustees have agreed, provided that I can secure funding. If you could send your memorabilia together with a check for, say, $100,000 to kickstart the project, the University would be happy to consider naming rights for the museum, provided that you also solicit additional funding, say $600,000, from your fellow classmates. I appreciate your initiation of this project that is near and dear to my heart and yours and I look forward to working with you towards our shared goal.
Sincerely,
xxx xxxxx
Associate University Archivist for Research Services
Ms. F
Thanks for your kind offer, but I believe that we already have most if not all of the items you mention.
xxx xxxxxx
Associate University Archivist for Research Services
xxx@xxx.edu
------------------------------
not even dear ms f, or kind regards or anything! some of her friends felt this was astonishingly rude, and one of them composed what she felt would have been the correct response, which made me laugh so hard! here it is:
-------------------------
Dear Ms. F,
Thank you so much for your kind offer to donate memorabilia from your years at xxx. We enjoyed having you here and are pleased that you have preserved some of the artifacts of your time here, an important time in the history of xxx University. We would love to house your items here and showcase them as part of our history, but unfortunately we have no space to preserve them or showcase them as we would like. As xxx archivist, I have put together a plan to build a museum on campus to house such memorabilia and the administration and Board of Trustees have agreed, provided that I can secure funding. If you could send your memorabilia together with a check for, say, $100,000 to kickstart the project, the University would be happy to consider naming rights for the museum, provided that you also solicit additional funding, say $600,000, from your fellow classmates. I appreciate your initiation of this project that is near and dear to my heart and yours and I look forward to working with you towards our shared goal.
Sincerely,
xxx xxxxx
Associate University Archivist for Research Services
Feb 6, 2010
Feb 5, 2010
you are what they feed you
Last night i watched a movie called Food, Inc.
In some ways I think everyone should watch it.
On the other hand, I'm not sure everyone should.
It is very much like a science fiction tale of the 'future', except that in science fiction you are horrified even though it is not real -- although to some extent you realize it is.
Food, Inc is horrifying in much the same way. Oh, and it is real.
So if you like scary movies...this one's for you!
You need this information.
Not to make you feel bad about yourself and the choices you make, you are the victim not the perpetrator in this story.
Information however unpleasant, provides choices. Knowing more, you can recognize times when you have a choice, and make the one you need to make at the time. Only you know what that is.
It's one thing to decide you are going to eat bacon now and then, despite all you know about it. It's another to ignore and even condone the passage of laws that result in millions of people having no choice but to eat total crap that ultimately sickens them.
Children shouldn't watch this.
You can get a copy here http://www.foodincmovie.com/
In some ways I think everyone should watch it.
On the other hand, I'm not sure everyone should.
It is very much like a science fiction tale of the 'future', except that in science fiction you are horrified even though it is not real -- although to some extent you realize it is.
Food, Inc is horrifying in much the same way. Oh, and it is real.
So if you like scary movies...this one's for you!
You need this information.
Not to make you feel bad about yourself and the choices you make, you are the victim not the perpetrator in this story.
Information however unpleasant, provides choices. Knowing more, you can recognize times when you have a choice, and make the one you need to make at the time. Only you know what that is.
It's one thing to decide you are going to eat bacon now and then, despite all you know about it. It's another to ignore and even condone the passage of laws that result in millions of people having no choice but to eat total crap that ultimately sickens them.
Children shouldn't watch this.
You can get a copy here http://www.foodincmovie.com/
Feb 4, 2010
bring on the ducks, we have water!
we have water!
sunday night we stopped having water.
monday the plumber came.
wednesday the well guys came and we found our well, not where we'd always thought it was.
they dug down through the snow and frozen earth, pulled the fried 40 some year old pump up from 180 feet and replaced it all.
the water is muddy and smells like the pool at the Y
the mud and chlorine are fighting it out i guess.
at least we can flush!
sunday night we stopped having water.
monday the plumber came.
wednesday the well guys came and we found our well, not where we'd always thought it was.
they dug down through the snow and frozen earth, pulled the fried 40 some year old pump up from 180 feet and replaced it all.
the water is muddy and smells like the pool at the Y
the mud and chlorine are fighting it out i guess.
at least we can flush!
Feb 2, 2010
feet on the ground
Good morning! From the Fairbanks Museum in St. Johnsbury this is your feet on the ground gravity report for February 2, 2010.
A widespread area of low gravity will be moving into our area from the south today, heading into Canada. This will bring with it an increase in silliness so be sure to wear your sense of humor. Heavy shoes recommended for everyone, especially the kiddies ... stay away from those backless clogs today. You ladies might want to save that skirt until next week and wear slacks when you head out to work or some shopping.
Groundhogs and other hibernating animals have been known to pop spontaneously from their dens during these gravity lows; skiiers and showshoers be on the lookout! In fact, in 1958, on February 17 during record low gravity, a black bear popped from his den right under Corny Merton, skiiing the back trail at Killington! Merton -- as it happened, a prize-winning bull rider at the Rutland State Fair -- managed to hold on and ride the confused animal to the parking lot of the lodge, where it feasted from the garbage bins before ambling back up the slope!!
The low gravity should be moving out of our area overnight, so enjoy it while it lasts. Dieters, don't forget to weigh yourself today!
A widespread area of low gravity will be moving into our area from the south today, heading into Canada. This will bring with it an increase in silliness so be sure to wear your sense of humor. Heavy shoes recommended for everyone, especially the kiddies ... stay away from those backless clogs today. You ladies might want to save that skirt until next week and wear slacks when you head out to work or some shopping.
Groundhogs and other hibernating animals have been known to pop spontaneously from their dens during these gravity lows; skiiers and showshoers be on the lookout! In fact, in 1958, on February 17 during record low gravity, a black bear popped from his den right under Corny Merton, skiiing the back trail at Killington! Merton -- as it happened, a prize-winning bull rider at the Rutland State Fair -- managed to hold on and ride the confused animal to the parking lot of the lodge, where it feasted from the garbage bins before ambling back up the slope!!
The low gravity should be moving out of our area overnight, so enjoy it while it lasts. Dieters, don't forget to weigh yourself today!
Jan 31, 2010
PMBROFLMAO DUCKS!!
Yesterday afternoon i logged into Second Life for a meeting called by Osprey, the director and creative genius of The Show Must Go On. she wanted to test some new thing she was working on. she asked me to stand on a deserted island, not move, and wear a HUD she gave me. i'm good at this, standing still. after a short wait she shouted (in chat) LUCY, DUCK! and all this horrendous loud quacking noise began and from nowhere appeared well over a dozen GIANT DUCKS-On_BIKES!!! surrounding me quacking like a marshland springtime on steroids and chat-shouting HAPPY BIRTHDAY LUCY!! it might be the funniest thing that EVER happened to me. i'm still laughing! i invented an acronym that is beyond LMAO and ROFLMAO...it's PMBROFLMAO "peed my britches rolling on floor laughing my ass off" feel free to use it if it ever happens to you! Opsrey the duck (LOL) then presented me with my own duck-on-bike avatar and we flew off to annoy and amuse the folks at a Haiti fund-raiser (we all donated), a live music performance, philip linden's house (he wasn't ta home but we broke in and left him pictures) and a lively pub!
here's Osprey's story from her blog of how she came up with it all, plus you can see the propellers spin in some rough video footage she shot during all the chaos and excitement! http://www.atomic-raygun.com/2010/01/back-in-december-i-started-hatching.html
Jan 30, 2010
i heart winter
as cold as the moon was ginormous
and the sun as bright
blinded from snowshine
we transparent ice
even colder
to stagger inside
and melt into fire chairs
and the sun as bright
blinded from snowshine
we transparent ice
even colder
to stagger inside
and melt into fire chairs
Jan 29, 2010
i can't tell you that
i hardly ever remember to send them, but love to receive birthday cards! so impractical, and besides our time frame for remembering to do something is now Just In Time. the only defense is, it's FUN to get real mail! this was my favorite card i got this year...don't bother to open it, that's it. no explanation, no punchline...unless "I can't tell you that." is the punchline. i find this hilarious. almost as funny as the card that says "my bologna has a middle name" on the front, and you open it and it says "it's marie." LMFAOJan 28, 2010
LBJ's of deep winter
(LBJ is a technical term birders use meaning 'little brown job')
i just made up this little waltz, but amazingly, i'll bet if you try to sing it, a melody for it will just apply itself by some magic.hello little birdies
where did you go?
i haven't seen you
since December's big snow
did you hide in the woods
where the deer make their bed?
and snuggle together
in the pines overhead?
chorus:
hello little birdies
the winter's so long
i'm so glad to have you
to chirp me a song
the winter's so long
i'm so glad to have you
to chirp me a song
hello mr cardinal
your're bright red today
first time that i've heard you
since you went away
you're whistling so loud
are you calling your mate?
i hope she won't sleep through
your valentine's date
chorus:
hello little birdies
the winter's so long
i'm so glad to have you
to chirp me a song
come to think of it, a mug of beer or an oompah band would work here too!
Jan 27, 2010
shined shoes guys
2 guys from 'wealth management'
a 401K plan
arrived at the meeting
to explain the economy
they did a good job
energetic and knowledgable
they do love their work
wearing shiny black shoes
blindingly shiny
through the january thaw
the mud and the road salt
their shoes glowing brightly
how the hell did they get here?
did they fly? do their shoes fly?
are their cars shiny too?
i didn't think to look.
do investment guys all
wear shiny black shoes
or is it just them?
in rural new england?
a 401K plan
arrived at the meeting
to explain the economy
they did a good job
energetic and knowledgable
they do love their work
wearing shiny black shoes
blindingly shiny
through the january thaw
the mud and the road salt
their shoes glowing brightly
how the hell did they get here?
did they fly? do their shoes fly?
are their cars shiny too?
i didn't think to look.
do investment guys all
wear shiny black shoes
or is it just them?
in rural new england?
Jan 25, 2010
Co- latha-breith sona dhuibh!
january thaw
turns snow to water flooding
the frozen land
january night
turns flood to solid frozen
clear and deadly ice
happy birthday to
robert burns and virginia
woolf and *blush* me too
turns snow to water flooding
the frozen land
january night
turns flood to solid frozen
clear and deadly ice
"o western wind, when wilt thou blow
that the small rain down can rain?
christ, that my love were in my arms
And i in my bed again."
happy birthday to
robert burns and virginia
woolf and *blush* me too
Jan 24, 2010
xmas is over?
christmas decorations
when do you take them down?
i used to wonder why vermonters left the evergreen wreath on the door until spring.
until i moved to a house.
i can't get to the front door until spring! and when i do, i'll scrape off the frozen smoosh of the jack-o-lantern, too.
as for those colorful outside lights...well, by then, might as well leave them up for the few months until they're needed again!
my mother has a childhood memory of the year all the kids were sick and her father had tb and the xmas garden stayed up until easter.
we were always late to put up a tree and long in taking it down.
12 days of christmas? epiphany? how about when the recycling center has their day for chipping up the trees? the modern official end to christmas.
not having a tree, my official end is when the batteries die in the candles in the windows.
and that is today.
when do you take them down?
i used to wonder why vermonters left the evergreen wreath on the door until spring.
until i moved to a house.
i can't get to the front door until spring! and when i do, i'll scrape off the frozen smoosh of the jack-o-lantern, too.
as for those colorful outside lights...well, by then, might as well leave them up for the few months until they're needed again!
my mother has a childhood memory of the year all the kids were sick and her father had tb and the xmas garden stayed up until easter.
we were always late to put up a tree and long in taking it down.
12 days of christmas? epiphany? how about when the recycling center has their day for chipping up the trees? the modern official end to christmas.
not having a tree, my official end is when the batteries die in the candles in the windows.
and that is today.
Jan 23, 2010
surviving virtual horror
when i was at the imax watching-- experiencing Avatar-- and the battle part heated up, it was so loud i could feel my bones vibrating.
the little girl next to me put her hands over her ears and stared at me instead of the screen.
what the fuck was a 3 year old girl doing there!
it was so horrible and violent, i put my earmuffs on, plugged up my ears, took off the 3D glasses, and closed my eyes.
i could still hear it and feel it.
the realization came to me that this could be like the bardo, after you die, total terror, confusion and chaos. unable to think or comprehend, that's where you choose, amidst the howling mindless chaos, out of your reflexive habit of thought and desire, the situation that determines your next life.
wow. serious shit.
so for practice,in the theatre, amid the mind-numbing howling chaos,i chanted to myself may all beings enjoy happiness and the root of happiness. may they be free from suffering and the root of suffering. may they never be separated from the great happiness devoid of suffering. may they dwell in equanimity free from passion agression and prejudice.
an amazing thing happened. it worked! my mind cleared of confusion. i found i was wishing happiness even to the arch villain! i understood that all the bad peope in the movie were really trying to be happy!
it was like i stepped up a few rungs and looked down on it all and saw there was no right and wrong. it was all wrong and sad and unecessary.
the little girl next to me put her hands over her ears and stared at me instead of the screen.
what the fuck was a 3 year old girl doing there!
it was so horrible and violent, i put my earmuffs on, plugged up my ears, took off the 3D glasses, and closed my eyes.
i could still hear it and feel it.
the realization came to me that this could be like the bardo, after you die, total terror, confusion and chaos. unable to think or comprehend, that's where you choose, amidst the howling mindless chaos, out of your reflexive habit of thought and desire, the situation that determines your next life.
wow. serious shit.
so for practice,in the theatre, amid the mind-numbing howling chaos,i chanted to myself may all beings enjoy happiness and the root of happiness. may they be free from suffering and the root of suffering. may they never be separated from the great happiness devoid of suffering. may they dwell in equanimity free from passion agression and prejudice.
an amazing thing happened. it worked! my mind cleared of confusion. i found i was wishing happiness even to the arch villain! i understood that all the bad peope in the movie were really trying to be happy!
it was like i stepped up a few rungs and looked down on it all and saw there was no right and wrong. it was all wrong and sad and unecessary.
Jan 22, 2010
boomslang airborne
more old pictures found on work computer! barney as a siamese cat flies us around in one of his famous airships that he generously shared... you still see them around, with their distinctive pink madras balloons.
in the second picture we are checking out steampunk city, a huge city he helped create in the air above caledon.
i am soooo lucky!
no one seems to know what they were doing here this time of year, but there they were! the best guess was that they stop over at GMHA on their travels, kind of like a horse hotel. what a beautiful sight. i couldn't believe my eyes. trotting along hitched side by side not pulling anything...where was the driver standing? ginormous budweiser clydesdales excercising in the field right by the road, the red coats they were wearing so bright against the overwhelming white of the fields and hills, and a little dog in a red coat trotted along beside them. i let out a spontaneous cheer for the beauty of it all. most amazing, the valley glittered like a snow globe. the morning sun lit up the ice crystals in the air just right to make them sparkle.
Jan 21, 2010
Precision unicycle and knitting drill team
i'd better get out my unicycle and practice up, hoping we have a routine for this year's show!
Jan 19, 2010
more grammies
more advice for brenda this time from experienced grammie pat:
The wisest woman I ever had the joy of being "mentored:" by was my next door neighbor in NJ -- (guess i'd best not blog her name). She was about our age when we moved in, so retired from school teaching shortly thereafter. She had raised 8 children......2 adopted since her first husband had a pelvic cancer and 6 step kids since Paul's (her second husband) first wife had died of breast cancer. Over the 22 years we lived there she had many grandchildren. The great grandchildren came after we moved away, but we talked often until she died shortly after my husband did and her "rules" still seemed to work. I actually visited her in the hospital a few weeks before she died and when the nurse asked her if I was one of her children, she said not by blood, or paperwork, but by love. It was one of the loveliest compliments I've ever received.
In addition to living her life by the two greatest Biblical commandments, she had her own two: give no advice unless specifically asked for it; and in choosing what to really worry about, first decide if in the name of all eternity, will it really matter? I paid strict attention over all those cups of coffee at her kitchen table and have tried to live my life by those same 4. Doesn't mean it will always be smooth sailing or that the inside of your mouth won't have a huge sore from biting it.......but there is a lot to be said for peace. pat
Jan 18, 2010
the grammies
brenda is a grandmother! she asked for advice via email from far-flung friends.
last year when candy had a new grandchild she wrote this:
My newest grandchild is being born today! His mother is laboring to deliver him, and it’s hard work I know, but he has no idea what is going on. So when I have held each of my children and grandchildren for the first time after birth I have told them how brave they are, and courageous like super heroes, to be born. And how much fun they will have in this new world, and it has always amazed me that they seem to understand, even though they don’t know the words I’m saying, and they settle in my arms with a newborn smile, as if to say “You haven’t seen anything yet”. And they’re right- I haven’t
candy's message to brenda's new grandchild:
Welcome to Lydia, a brave and valiant girl who fought hard to be born and is a beautiful precious baby who is so lucky to have such a brave and valiant mother and grandmother. God bless you all!
and candy's advice for new grammie brenda:
What I have learned from grandmothering is that the greatest joy for the grandchildren is that they get to boss you around, sort of like the dog, and that you will still always love them for it- it's actually very entertaining for them, since they have so few people to boss around, and they know that you are a VIP by way of being their parent's parent, so that makes it all the more fun for them. Oh, and as far as stepping in to give your children advice- forget about it. Just concentrate on being Grammie (i.e., relating to your grandchild one on one) and let them do the parenting. If they ask for advice, then tell them what you would do, but if they don't ask, don't tell.
Jan 17, 2010
Avatar the movie
did i mention i'd seen Avatar? over a week ago in 3D at the Imax.
i'm glad i saw it in 3D at Imax. the technology is awesome, and the first part is art showing off a new medium. absolutely gorgeous and enchanting.
i'm sorry to say there was nothing new or satisfying about the story. unless it was to point out that technology gets better and better and people...well they still suck.
even the natives of pandora and all their oneness with their planet and its flora and fauna...turned out to be zenophobic from the get-go and quite good at mass slaughter of other beings.
i'm not a fan of movies that try to teach a lesson, and yet i believe every movie does just that on some level. some understanding or confirmation is absorbed by the viewer as if, Pandora-like, they had woven their tendrils together with the filmmakers.
could be it's just me, but i'd have liked a story that modeled for us a better way, especially when it portrays beings so much like humans, but just a little better, capable of amazing feats of union with forces we might almost be ready for.
the story as it is may breed many sequels, but none that i'd go see.
i would go see Avatar again, the first part is worth it! i'd just quietly sneak out when it gets to the part where half the audience has their eyes closed and their hands over their ears.
i'll be curious to hear what HBA says because altho he himself has a gentle heart, he revels joyfully in subjects that i find horrifying!
Jan 15, 2010
worm and beetle lovers! come out of the woodwork!
ziggy lives across the street.
i meet him up at the store sometimes. he has friends all over the village, and often stops in at back yards for a happy romp with a tethered neighbor.
he'll join dog-walkers or families out for a stoll down the street.
not everyone in the village has a black lab...it just looks that way with ziggy going along for the outing.
dogs and cats used to live outside with lives of their own.
they hated and loved according to their own scheme of things, sometimes right on the sidewalks downtown, and had interesting litters of puppies and kittens that had to be given away or drowned.
dogs had enemies to play serious games with...cars going by! the plumber! the milkman! the postman!...all of whom had to work out their strategies of dog treats or pepperspray. it was part of the job.
cats have retained their freedom to a greater exent. cats born and bred inside often don't even know how to kill a mouse! their mum has to teach them, it isn't innate; they may figure it out on their own given enough opportunities.
now there's alot of pressure to keep cats inside, especially strong from bird-lovers.
the worm and beetle lovers would just as soon have the birds kept inside, but they don't get much press.
not everyone in the village has a black lab...it just looks that way with ziggy going along for the outing.
dogs and cats used to live outside with lives of their own.
they hated and loved according to their own scheme of things, sometimes right on the sidewalks downtown, and had interesting litters of puppies and kittens that had to be given away or drowned.
dogs had enemies to play serious games with...cars going by! the plumber! the milkman! the postman!...all of whom had to work out their strategies of dog treats or pepperspray. it was part of the job.
cats have retained their freedom to a greater exent. cats born and bred inside often don't even know how to kill a mouse! their mum has to teach them, it isn't innate; they may figure it out on their own given enough opportunities.
now there's alot of pressure to keep cats inside, especially strong from bird-lovers.
the worm and beetle lovers would just as soon have the birds kept inside, but they don't get much press.
Jan 14, 2010
january snowshoe to the river
tuesday at lunchtime Sandy and i snowshoed out to look at the river. i took my new camera, since it was warmer and up into the 20s F. Sandy forges ahead while i fumble around with my camera. (click the pictures to make them bigger - you'll feel like you're there! - put your hat on)
The river is frozen solid at the ford where the tractors drive across in summer. some critters have been here recently.
Jan 12, 2010
let them wear hats!
sometimes at work liz and i wear gloves, because even with the heat going, hands get cold!
when she forgot to bring her fleece vest, i said "put on your hat!" since everyone knows that "90% of heat loss is through your head."
turns out she doesn't believe this! (could it be something her mom always says?)
i admit i never gave it much serious thought.
apparently it only works if the rest of you is well clothed.
according to Liz, a naked person would not feel much warmer if they put on a hat.
if you are nekkies, 90% of your heat loss is NOT through your head.
according to liz.
she did not say if she had tested this. is she just going by COMMON SENSE?
which works most of the time, but i for one don't trust it. COMMON SENSE has turned out to be WRONG WRONG WRONG too many times.
please someone try this...stand out in the cold with nothing on, then see if you feel noticeably warmer when you put on a hat...a nice wool tuque pulled down over your ears.
for the sake of science.
and please don't send pictures, just your subjective conclusions.
when she forgot to bring her fleece vest, i said "put on your hat!" since everyone knows that "90% of heat loss is through your head."
turns out she doesn't believe this! (could it be something her mom always says?)
i admit i never gave it much serious thought.
apparently it only works if the rest of you is well clothed.
according to Liz, a naked person would not feel much warmer if they put on a hat.
if you are nekkies, 90% of your heat loss is NOT through your head.
according to liz.
she did not say if she had tested this. is she just going by COMMON SENSE?
which works most of the time, but i for one don't trust it. COMMON SENSE has turned out to be WRONG WRONG WRONG too many times.
please someone try this...stand out in the cold with nothing on, then see if you feel noticeably warmer when you put on a hat...a nice wool tuque pulled down over your ears.
for the sake of science.
and please don't send pictures, just your subjective conclusions.
Jan 11, 2010
Jan 10, 2010
bring back my stuff dammit!
omg! i'd started to shut the car door, and there between the seat and the edge of the door were...my favorite blue drugstore glasses i'd lost a few weeks ago.
this was just before xmas. i'd looked everywhere for them!
what was that...someone giggling?
over xmas week we had elves, or maybe mischievous spirits (mom? dad?) in our house. things we searched high and low for would weirdly be found right where we looked!
a ring of my mom's that i'd lost (i thought) at the movies last xmas turned up in my drawer! and the glasses turned up! the missing piece to the jigsaw puzzle was found days later ...on the floor right by the puzzle! zinnia's sock, eaten by the dryer, turned up days later inside 5's pajamas (which he had been wearing nights).
sometimes when my dad dropped a nut or screw in his workshop, it would totally vanish.
he told me he'd search the floor with a flashlight, then sweep the floor, and finally he would say out loud "ok that's it. i'm not looking any more." and turn to switch off the light and start to leave.
that did it. they brought it back. whatever they were. have they moved in with me? or were they just visiting for xmas? i swear i heard giggling.
this was just before xmas. i'd looked everywhere for them!
what was that...someone giggling?
over xmas week we had elves, or maybe mischievous spirits (mom? dad?) in our house. things we searched high and low for would weirdly be found right where we looked!
a ring of my mom's that i'd lost (i thought) at the movies last xmas turned up in my drawer! and the glasses turned up! the missing piece to the jigsaw puzzle was found days later ...on the floor right by the puzzle! zinnia's sock, eaten by the dryer, turned up days later inside 5's pajamas (which he had been wearing nights).
sometimes when my dad dropped a nut or screw in his workshop, it would totally vanish.
he told me he'd search the floor with a flashlight, then sweep the floor, and finally he would say out loud "ok that's it. i'm not looking any more." and turn to switch off the light and start to leave.
that did it. they brought it back. whatever they were. have they moved in with me? or were they just visiting for xmas? i swear i heard giggling.
Jan 6, 2010
Virtual Light by william gibson and Well of Lost Plots by jasper fforde
loved Virtual Light! (once i got over the slow start).
somehow i read All Tomorrow's Parties first, then Idoru, and never Virtual Light.
totally the wrong way to read a series, but it worked out well, since i don't like suspense.
i still think All Tomorrow's Parties is the best one, the one that got me into the series.
then i read Idoru because i felt like i was one in Second Life.
the ending of Idoru made it all worthwhile.
since then i've read those two at least one more time maybe more.
before 5 lent me Virtual Light, i had just finished #3 of the Thursday Next series, Well of Lost Plots.
same thing...bored for a few chapters, thinking it wouldn't be good, but then it got better and better and in the end...oh just read it sometime if you haven't already.
happily there are two more in that series to look forward to. i hope Gibson does more on the bridge series, i love the stories of the bridge culture.
somehow i read All Tomorrow's Parties first, then Idoru, and never Virtual Light.
totally the wrong way to read a series, but it worked out well, since i don't like suspense.
i still think All Tomorrow's Parties is the best one, the one that got me into the series.
then i read Idoru because i felt like i was one in Second Life.
the ending of Idoru made it all worthwhile.
since then i've read those two at least one more time maybe more.
before 5 lent me Virtual Light, i had just finished #3 of the Thursday Next series, Well of Lost Plots.
same thing...bored for a few chapters, thinking it wouldn't be good, but then it got better and better and in the end...oh just read it sometime if you haven't already.
happily there are two more in that series to look forward to. i hope Gibson does more on the bridge series, i love the stories of the bridge culture.
Jan 4, 2010
scenes before sunrise
already the sky lights up earlier!
i stand at my big kitchen window, teabag in hand, watching a young teenage boy, bent over like a wood-cutter's child with a huge pack strapped to his back. he walks up the hill to get the schoolbus.
my mug of water goes round and round in the lighted microwave. i can tell how cold it was in the night by how long the water takes to boil. the mug, the water, the machine all cold this morning.
a teenage girl comes up her driveway across the street, heading right towards where i, inside, stand in my bathrobe, framed in my lighted kitchen. we don't acknowlege each other. like the japanese and their paper walls, she doesn't see me thru my window and i don't see her through her curtain of hair.
one morning a few years ago i watched a woman walk her dog up the pre-dawn street; a strange square hung down in the middle of the length of the leash. next time i saw her i asked her why she was using pantyhose to walk her dog! (one toe tied to the collar, one toe round her hand) she thought no one had seen her, but probably half the street did, standing in their kitchens holding hot mugs of coffee or tea, watching the dawn break over the hills. between getting kids to school, and herself to work,and the leash not to be found, it was the closest thing to hand! we laughed and laughed, and still laugh about it sometimes!
i stand at my big kitchen window, teabag in hand, watching a young teenage boy, bent over like a wood-cutter's child with a huge pack strapped to his back. he walks up the hill to get the schoolbus.
my mug of water goes round and round in the lighted microwave. i can tell how cold it was in the night by how long the water takes to boil. the mug, the water, the machine all cold this morning.
a teenage girl comes up her driveway across the street, heading right towards where i, inside, stand in my bathrobe, framed in my lighted kitchen. we don't acknowlege each other. like the japanese and their paper walls, she doesn't see me thru my window and i don't see her through her curtain of hair.
one morning a few years ago i watched a woman walk her dog up the pre-dawn street; a strange square hung down in the middle of the length of the leash. next time i saw her i asked her why she was using pantyhose to walk her dog! (one toe tied to the collar, one toe round her hand) she thought no one had seen her, but probably half the street did, standing in their kitchens holding hot mugs of coffee or tea, watching the dawn break over the hills. between getting kids to school, and herself to work,and the leash not to be found, it was the closest thing to hand! we laughed and laughed, and still laugh about it sometimes!
Jan 2, 2010
tripping on no-trip
my friend Jeffrey wrote this great poem after experiencing Warrior Assembly. perhaps it is only meaningful to those of us who have gone through this 2 weeks of Shambhala Buddhist training. but i really like it and hope it resonates in some way with anyone who happens upon it.
True Harlequin Romance
by Jeffrey Slayton
The trip of no-trip is the biggest trip of all
No-trip is the case but not for you
Not for anybody
Here we are on a trip
We long for the release of no-trip
But that’s just another trip
We can’t avoid our sad and tender heart
It is so sad, so beautiful
We are so, so sensitive
From the grossest barbarian
To the subtlest yogi
We turn away
But in this place
On this particular trip
We cannot escape the razorblade-thin path of warriorship
Moment by moment
The shocking glare of the Great Eastern Sun doesn’t stop
Being scared shitless and enjoying the bliss of luminosity is our heritage
Thank Heaven for providing no-trip
But do not disparage the trip that Earth demands
This gives birth to the Sakyong Warrior
Jan 1, 2010
Dec 30, 2009
virtual skiing
Dec 29, 2009
what else can you do?
play the cards you're dealt
serious play, what is that?
make up your own rules
serious play, what is that?
make up your own rules
Dec 27, 2009
what did you do for christmas?
A second life story:
last year after christmas i was walking around in some of the winter builds...they are gorgeous, cities, forests, mountains, all snowly with ice skating places and warm fires and sparkly ice. I thot it would be fun to have x country skis, so I went to a ski resort -- Austria -- to find some, and had this conversation:
Stranger: are you here for the discussion?
me: who me? I am just looking around. what is the discussion?
S: On what did you do for christmas and new years.
me: (thinking this is the lamest discussion topic i have EVER heard of in Second Life, and feeling a little sorry for her) Well, i have to leave soon, but how was your christmas?
(i sit down on the bench with her)
(i sit down on the bench with her)
S: Oh it was fun! We had carolling and everything. Where are you from?
Me: vermont
(this led to a discussion of where that was, how much snow we had, the temperature, etc.)
Me: where are you?
S: India
we explored christmas customs in India and in the US for a bit. I said when i went carolling people were watching TV and dint even know we were there. She said "We make them come to the door, and we give presents to the children and tell them stories of Jesus."
(I sensed from pauses in her typing that she might be translating)
S: And everyone makes a big crib for their house.
after some confusion i realize this means what we call a creche or manger scene. I told her we did not put them in parks or schools because not everyone was christian.
me: and actually I am buddhist.
S: I am Hindu, but i love jesus.
me: i love jesus too!
Dec 26, 2009
turkey dreams
5:45 am xmas morning.
the alarm flashes; plays a jaunty tune.
3/4 asleep i hold it over his face so the tune and the light pour down on him.
his eyes open.
"put the turkey in the oven" i mumble.
"already did" he replies.
i wake up a little more, suspicious even in my sleep.
"you did?"
"i woke up thinking about it, so i just got up and did it."
"you sure you dint dream it?"
"i'm sure"
"did you turn on the oven?"
"yes"
"should i go down and check"
"no"
worried, suspicious, he probably dreamt it, 10 people no turkey...but too late i am asleep.
later i wake up smelling turkey...he really did it!
all is well.
the alarm flashes; plays a jaunty tune.
3/4 asleep i hold it over his face so the tune and the light pour down on him.
his eyes open.
"put the turkey in the oven" i mumble.
"already did" he replies.
i wake up a little more, suspicious even in my sleep.
"you did?"
"i woke up thinking about it, so i just got up and did it."
"you sure you dint dream it?"
"i'm sure"
"did you turn on the oven?"
"yes"
"should i go down and check"
"no"
worried, suspicious, he probably dreamt it, 10 people no turkey...but too late i am asleep.
later i wake up smelling turkey...he really did it!
all is well.
Dec 23, 2009
sing noel!
what was that?
bang!
out of the dark pre-solstice evening a snowball hits the front porch storm door.
...carollers!
oh i forgot --'tis the night for town carrollers.
we shivered for them in the open storm door making breath clouds.
hope they sing a short one!
out on the main road, all were crammed in warm and - comfortable?- in a big wooden cart pulled by 2 ginormous shaggy horned oxen beasties.
the ox-driver and a few others walking beside with lanterns, adults and kids.
we got a spirited rendition of Rudolph, and funny asides shouted out by the kids.
did they think how sweet, these 'old folks' (me and hubby LOL) maybe remembering caroling in the "old days"
well, yes, we do!
we carolled these streets for few years, with a group of all adults, while baby-sitters watched our flocks by night.
we walked and sang real Christmas carols, about Jesus and angels, and stuff like that...and we knew the words!
our singing improved with each block... we had a few bottles of jack daniels buried in the snow at strategic corners.
'in goes my hand into that wool-white bell-tongued ball of holidays' and out comes Jack Daniels!
bang!
out of the dark pre-solstice evening a snowball hits the front porch storm door.
...carollers!
oh i forgot --'tis the night for town carrollers.
we shivered for them in the open storm door making breath clouds.
hope they sing a short one!
out on the main road, all were crammed in warm and - comfortable?- in a big wooden cart pulled by 2 ginormous shaggy horned oxen beasties.
the ox-driver and a few others walking beside with lanterns, adults and kids.
we got a spirited rendition of Rudolph, and funny asides shouted out by the kids.
did they think how sweet, these 'old folks' (me and hubby LOL) maybe remembering caroling in the "old days"
well, yes, we do!
we carolled these streets for few years, with a group of all adults, while baby-sitters watched our flocks by night.
we walked and sang real Christmas carols, about Jesus and angels, and stuff like that...and we knew the words!
our singing improved with each block... we had a few bottles of jack daniels buried in the snow at strategic corners.
'in goes my hand into that wool-white bell-tongued ball of holidays' and out comes Jack Daniels!
Dec 18, 2009
how to get a dog
what if you were walking along, minding your own business, and saw a man hitting a young dog that was barfing in an alley?
what would you do?
if you were nancy, you couldn't just walk by -- you'd start a conversation with the guy about his dog.
and it would end like this: "lady, you want this dog? here, it's yours."
sick puppy!!
i've often wondered what happened when he got home.
"where's the dog honey?"
dog gone!!
nancy and sara do get their dogs in unusual ways.
once, driving, they saw a dog running in the median.
they pulled over, opened the door, and in it jumped.
new dog!!
currently they have two. one's a big, typically bumbly black lab that used to belong to a neighbor.
week after week the poor critter was tied out in the heat, ignored, unwatered, not quite bad enough for officialdom to intervene.
one morning he got off his chain, and ended up at their door.
they opened the door, let him in, and he's been theirs since...shhhhhhhh!
secret dog!!
all the other neighbors conspired in this; no one told where the dog had gone.
after a week or or so in hiding, it just became their dog...another of those ubiquitous black labs, and eventually, the previous owner moved away.
whew!!
this reminds me ... my hairdresser once stole a horse from a neighboring farm! the horse was not being fed and was skin and bones.
beth was unable to get the authorities involved fast enough, and fearing it would die, she drove her trailer up one day, and took it!
she actually ended up in jail, mostly for punching the policeman who came to get the horse back.
funny how compassion can make you daring.
what would you do?
if you were nancy, you couldn't just walk by -- you'd start a conversation with the guy about his dog.
and it would end like this: "lady, you want this dog? here, it's yours."
sick puppy!!
i've often wondered what happened when he got home.
"where's the dog honey?"
dog gone!!
nancy and sara do get their dogs in unusual ways.
once, driving, they saw a dog running in the median.
they pulled over, opened the door, and in it jumped.
new dog!!
currently they have two. one's a big, typically bumbly black lab that used to belong to a neighbor.
week after week the poor critter was tied out in the heat, ignored, unwatered, not quite bad enough for officialdom to intervene.
one morning he got off his chain, and ended up at their door.
they opened the door, let him in, and he's been theirs since...shhhhhhhh!
secret dog!!
all the other neighbors conspired in this; no one told where the dog had gone.
after a week or or so in hiding, it just became their dog...another of those ubiquitous black labs, and eventually, the previous owner moved away.
whew!!
this reminds me ... my hairdresser once stole a horse from a neighboring farm! the horse was not being fed and was skin and bones.
beth was unable to get the authorities involved fast enough, and fearing it would die, she drove her trailer up one day, and took it!
she actually ended up in jail, mostly for punching the policeman who came to get the horse back.
funny how compassion can make you daring.
Dec 16, 2009
heeheehahahoho!
we wait for years to use some jokes.
i'm always trying to work Kipling into the conversation, hoping someone will ask me if i like Kipling.
but only once in my lifetime, or maybe twice, has it happened!
and i was ready!
i replied in an off-handed manner, "I don't know. I've never kippled."
life is good sometimes!
i'm always trying to work Kipling into the conversation, hoping someone will ask me if i like Kipling.
but only once in my lifetime, or maybe twice, has it happened!
and i was ready!
i replied in an off-handed manner, "I don't know. I've never kippled."
life is good sometimes!
Dec 14, 2009
HIDE HIDE THE COW'S OUTSIDE!
All families have their running gags.
(indian boy - "Mrs Gag, can little Running come out to play?")
One of ours is a kind of tourette's joke. It results in involuntary shouting.
Based on a truly stupid joke, it just sticks in your brain and never goes away.
Here's a version of the joke:
A kid is watching a drummaker and asks what the tops of the drums are made of.
The drummaker replies "Hide."
The kid looks around nervously "WHAT?"
The drummaker says impatiently "Hide! Hide! The cow's outside"
The kid says "I'm not afraid of a cow!"
OK. dumb joke. but the ongoing effect is...
whenever you hear the word HIDE
you have an overwhelming urge to shout "HIDE HIDE THE COW'S OUTSIDE!"
This has happened to me, and to my son (not a child) and perhaps others in the family.
People mostly ignore it
and try to pretend you didn't actually shout anything
or at least not at them.
(indian boy - "Mrs Gag, can little Running come out to play?")
One of ours is a kind of tourette's joke. It results in involuntary shouting.
Based on a truly stupid joke, it just sticks in your brain and never goes away.
Here's a version of the joke:
A kid is watching a drummaker and asks what the tops of the drums are made of.
The drummaker replies "Hide."
The kid looks around nervously "WHAT?"
The drummaker says impatiently "Hide! Hide! The cow's outside"
The kid says "I'm not afraid of a cow!"
OK. dumb joke. but the ongoing effect is...
whenever you hear the word HIDE
you have an overwhelming urge to shout "HIDE HIDE THE COW'S OUTSIDE!"
This has happened to me, and to my son (not a child) and perhaps others in the family.
People mostly ignore it
and try to pretend you didn't actually shout anything
or at least not at them.
Dec 13, 2009
cat meets xmas tree
got this email from 5 the other day...
Cricket's new bass player, KC, recently acquired an 8-month-old cat. The cat, a girl-type, has been friendly and sociable and well-behaved and he (KC) is very happy with her.
KC also loves Christmas. He used to play bass in a band that only played Christmas songs. So, naturally, KC brought home a Christmas tree early this week.
Well...
The cat went under the bed, dug a hole up into the box spring and went in there and didn't come out to eat or to pee or anything for days. I told KC about some of the remedies we know to help calm down our freaked out little beings, and I offered to come over and talk to her for him.
He was very grateful for the advice, and after careful consideration of the various products available to deal with cats, cat pee, and so on, he went home and got rid of his Christmas tree. The cat came out from under the bed, began eating and being sociable and peeing in her box again. Problem solved.
Except that KC loves Christmas and he wants a tree! I told him to get a Norfolk pine and raise it and the cat together.
Cricket's new bass player, KC, recently acquired an 8-month-old cat. The cat, a girl-type, has been friendly and sociable and well-behaved and he (KC) is very happy with her.
KC also loves Christmas. He used to play bass in a band that only played Christmas songs. So, naturally, KC brought home a Christmas tree early this week.
Well...
The cat went under the bed, dug a hole up into the box spring and went in there and didn't come out to eat or to pee or anything for days. I told KC about some of the remedies we know to help calm down our freaked out little beings, and I offered to come over and talk to her for him.
He was very grateful for the advice, and after careful consideration of the various products available to deal with cats, cat pee, and so on, he went home and got rid of his Christmas tree. The cat came out from under the bed, began eating and being sociable and peeing in her box again. Problem solved.
Except that KC loves Christmas and he wants a tree! I told him to get a Norfolk pine and raise it and the cat together.
Dec 11, 2009
get up and dance!
instant messages fly back and forth "Komuso is playing at XYZ"!
blues to dance to, gruff voice, electrifying harmonica -- quick! change out of your 18th century ball gown and butterfly wings and into fave jeans and halter, change updo to ponytail, no shoes needed -- and teleport to the venue!
i've been to Komuso gigs where i had to tp next door and try to walk or fly in, because the place filled up so fast!
once there, search your inventory for your favorite dance animations, click on your music and out wails Komuso's live music...where is he anyway? his bedroom somewhere? Japan or Australia? who knows!
the gravely voice and unique style of his St James Infirmary has everyone up and dancing!
more avatars arrive, dragons, tinies, furries, nekos, elves, winged people, bedside tables (LOL that's Barney), nearly naked people, people draped in bling, all moving to the beat, w00ting and howling.
linden dollars drop into the tip jar...always a good night for Komuso!
and then...and then...AND THEN...when no more avatars, no more bling, no more music, no more dance animations can possibly be stuffed into one sim...BANG !!!
we crash!
YAAAAAAAAAY!
Komuso Tokugawa is one of my favorite musicians to see 'live' in Second Life. If you go to this link you can listen or download some of his blues cuts - play them and don't just sit there tapping your foot -- GET UP AND DANCE!
Free! Poor Boy (Extended Bluestronica Cut) now available @ http://tinyurl.com/yjjq5tv Live SL cut, 10 min 18.6mb 256kbps
blues to dance to, gruff voice, electrifying harmonica -- quick! change out of your 18th century ball gown and butterfly wings and into fave jeans and halter, change updo to ponytail, no shoes needed -- and teleport to the venue!
i've been to Komuso gigs where i had to tp next door and try to walk or fly in, because the place filled up so fast!
once there, search your inventory for your favorite dance animations, click on your music and out wails Komuso's live music...where is he anyway? his bedroom somewhere? Japan or Australia? who knows!
the gravely voice and unique style of his St James Infirmary has everyone up and dancing!
more avatars arrive, dragons, tinies, furries, nekos, elves, winged people, bedside tables (LOL that's Barney), nearly naked people, people draped in bling, all moving to the beat, w00ting and howling.
linden dollars drop into the tip jar...always a good night for Komuso!
and then...and then...AND THEN...when no more avatars, no more bling, no more music, no more dance animations can possibly be stuffed into one sim...BANG !!!
we crash!
YAAAAAAAAAY!
Komuso Tokugawa is one of my favorite musicians to see 'live' in Second Life. If you go to this link you can listen or download some of his blues cuts - play them and don't just sit there tapping your foot -- GET UP AND DANCE!
Free! Poor Boy (Extended Bluestronica Cut) now available @ http://tinyurl.com/yjjq5tv Live SL cut, 10 min 18.6mb 256kbps
From the cotton fields to the asteroid belts, a raw improvisational elektrik koolaid space bluestronica enhanced version of poor boy, recorded live in sl on the12th Dec 2009 at "Up The Creek" club.
Pay what you like in L$ or paypal to paul@sonicviz.com
Cu in the bitstream,
kt
Pay what you like in L$ or paypal to paul@sonicviz.com
Cu in the bitstream,
kt
Dec 10, 2009
whiter and brighter
out of the drizzle and gloom
i asked the universe
please don't leave us here
in november darkness -
fourteen inches of snow fell
WHOMP
and the world is bright!
i asked the universe
please don't leave us here
in november darkness -
fourteen inches of snow fell
WHOMP
and the world is bright!
Dec 8, 2009
a tale of two weddings
this is the first wedding i went to in Second Life. a couple of years ago.
the groom, Squiddy, was one of the first friends i made in SL, and the first avatar to hug me.
i was so surprised to find that when someone hugs you in SL you actually feel like you are being hugged!
the wedding vows were beautiful, as was the ceremony. it didn't last a year, but he did eventually find his true (SL) love.
last time i heard from them, he was professor of dark arts at Hogwarts (in SL).
this weekend i went to another wedding. also one of my early SL friends.
we first met when we showed up at the wrong time for a peace protest march, and had a long discussion about Yosemite's decision to use a wheelchair in SL, as she does in real life.
we spent a hilarious noobie afternoon trying to get a boat to work on what turned out to be the wrong kind of water.
Yosemite has gone on to work with designers fashioning better wheelchairs in SL and to push for SL venues to be wheelchair accessible.
she and her partner have a lovely house that Yose keeps remodeling -- one of her partner's vows was to put up with all the remodeling! -- and they are expecting a baby soon (in SL). they've never met in real life and don't plan to!
Dec 7, 2009
working within the law
Liz does not allow her cats to put their feet on the table. yes, this raises many questions, but i'm thinking cats don't have that much imagination.
in fact, cats believe that if a tree falls in the forest and no one is there to hear it, it's because at that moment no one actually exists.
one morning last week, Liz spilled a bit of milk on the table while having breakfast.
one morning last week, Liz spilled a bit of milk on the table while having breakfast.
she has way more imagination than a cat, and was able to pick up her floppy cat, not her stiff cat -- that never would have worked -- and holding it like a football, or maybe a bagpipe, use it as a sort of vacuum cleaner.
she held all its feet under it, not touching the table, but tipped it's head down to the milk so it could lap it all up.worked great she said!
Dec 6, 2009
Gift Giving - the New Health Craze?
The final word on gifts may be this New York Times article on giving. We know gifts may be a mixed or a mis-communication to the receiver, but for the GIVER -- it turns out it's GOOD FOR YOU!
GIVE EARLY AND OFTEN.
~_^
the perfect gift?
once upon a time, before EVERYTHING was made in China, back when Amazon meant a one-breasted woman warrior, i gave a friend a gift of a wind-up painted metal duck with a propeller on his head, riding on a tricycle. just for the absurdity of the thing!
it came in a funky chinese box. this may have been common on the west coast, but around here it was totally insane.
we loved our duck-on-a-bikes and we actually played with them sometimes! such an object was not to be had in the city she lived in. so each time i visited i'd bring her one and it became her ritual gift.
new house? duck-on-bike.
birthday? duck-on-bike.
retirement party? duck-on-bike.
xmas yankee swap? duck-on-bike.
once she called me in desperation. "LUCY i need a duck for this weekend!" luckily someone i knew was traveling to that city, and left a brown paper wrapped package at their hotel desk FOR VICKI. an emergency duck-on-bike! by now everyone she knows has one. but if she meets some new people i may get the call again.
it came in a funky chinese box. this may have been common on the west coast, but around here it was totally insane.
we loved our duck-on-a-bikes and we actually played with them sometimes! such an object was not to be had in the city she lived in. so each time i visited i'd bring her one and it became her ritual gift.
new house? duck-on-bike.
birthday? duck-on-bike.
retirement party? duck-on-bike.
xmas yankee swap? duck-on-bike.
once she called me in desperation. "LUCY i need a duck for this weekend!" luckily someone i knew was traveling to that city, and left a brown paper wrapped package at their hotel desk FOR VICKI. an emergency duck-on-bike! by now everyone she knows has one. but if she meets some new people i may get the call again.
the store that sold them no longer sells them, but i've seen them in the store across the street.
Dec 4, 2009
may we reach enlightenment at the same time
waiting to use the narrow bridge
are 2 huge horses with a wood wagon.
the driver, tall handsome grey haired
stands in the wagon reins in hand
as our group of cars goes by.
some physics law makes cars go in clumps
on these 2 lane country highways.
no cars pass our house for an hour
then 7 in a row.
we joke that 25 minutes ago the light changed in Springfield.
the same law makes bottlenecks behind tractors,
makes walking meditators
circumambulate at the pace of the slowest walker,
makes families start and stop to the rhythms
of the sickest or the craziest.
are 2 huge horses with a wood wagon.
the driver, tall handsome grey haired
stands in the wagon reins in hand
as our group of cars goes by.
some physics law makes cars go in clumps
on these 2 lane country highways.
no cars pass our house for an hour
then 7 in a row.
we joke that 25 minutes ago the light changed in Springfield.
the same law makes bottlenecks behind tractors,
makes walking meditators
circumambulate at the pace of the slowest walker,
makes families start and stop to the rhythms
of the sickest or the craziest.
Dec 3, 2009
more more on gifts!
a friend and i have exchanged many gifts over the years.
a few years ago she said "how about if we give each other back gifts we didn't really like?"
she said "the person who got it for the other, REALLY liked it, thought it was special, and would probably appreciate it!"
hmmmm
this seemed quite sensible at the time.
i was fascinated by my reaction when she returned one of my gifts!
i thought "this? she didn't like THIS? this is so wonderful!" and i felt a little hurt.
then i thought "i REALLY like this! i'm glad she gave it back to me instead of giving it to the thrift shop."
and i treasure it still.
a few years ago she said "how about if we give each other back gifts we didn't really like?"
she said "the person who got it for the other, REALLY liked it, thought it was special, and would probably appreciate it!"
hmmmm
this seemed quite sensible at the time.
i was fascinated by my reaction when she returned one of my gifts!
i thought "this? she didn't like THIS? this is so wonderful!" and i felt a little hurt.
then i thought "i REALLY like this! i'm glad she gave it back to me instead of giving it to the thrift shop."
and i treasure it still.
Dec 2, 2009
Dec 1, 2009
continuing thoughts on gifts
gifts are personal, and/or gifts are ritual.
there used to be rules for when to give, what to give, how much to spend, based on the kind and degree of relationship.
i think that's gone, for most of us modern folks.
now gifts are personal. what does this say about me, what does this say about you.
the two get mixed up.
i know how to make soap.
so i make you some special soap to give you on a ritual occasion.
i am giving you my time and my talent.
you take it as a personal gift, not a ritual gift.
you think maybe i think you don't wash enough.
you think i didn't care enough to buy you something.
i think you will think i am cool because i can make soap.
there used to be rules for when to give, what to give, how much to spend, based on the kind and degree of relationship.
i think that's gone, for most of us modern folks.
now gifts are personal. what does this say about me, what does this say about you.
the two get mixed up.
i know how to make soap.
so i make you some special soap to give you on a ritual occasion.
i am giving you my time and my talent.
you take it as a personal gift, not a ritual gift.
you think maybe i think you don't wash enough.
you think i didn't care enough to buy you something.
i think you will think i am cool because i can make soap.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)