The full moon is enormous and beautiful as it climbs into the sky tonight, bathing us in yellow light.
It doesn't look like we'll be bathing in rain anytime soon though. Here's an interesting article about our current water situation here in California. Apparently, water rationing is already happening in nearby Santa Cruz.
What else? Somebody got shot to death a few blocks to the East of where I'm typing this, on the street where one of my stepdaughter's friends lives. That probably explains all of the helicopter noise from last night. People really need to learn to work out their differences in more constructive ways.
Wednesday, January 15, 2014
Tuesday, January 14, 2014
Deflation
Whatever blockage has been ailing one of our aquatic frogs has vanished all on its own, deflating the frog to more frog-like proportions. it no longer looks like a little ball with legs. It's a good thing too, because the remedies Jeanine tried hadn't been producing the desired results.
I imagine it pooping out a small bit of gravel and heaving an amphibious sigh of relief as a series of frantic bubbles wobble toward the top of the tank. This was probably the most overdue frog fart ever. Additionally, this is probably the only time I'll ever blog about frog farts.
I imagine it pooping out a small bit of gravel and heaving an amphibious sigh of relief as a series of frantic bubbles wobble toward the top of the tank. This was probably the most overdue frog fart ever. Additionally, this is probably the only time I'll ever blog about frog farts.
Monday Night Again
My second work week of the new year started with the usual sort of Monday night chaos, and then some. The hose I usually use to put out the campfire still has no pressure, a couple of bathroom doors were inexplicably locked, the cabin leaders didn't have the flashlights and books they were supposed to have, a dad showed up to pick up his kid only to discover that he was at the wrong camp (this happens depressingly often - way to know where your kids are, parents!), somebody lost a tooth, and there was the usual amount of homesickness, and another kid who was waiting to get picked up had to wait a long time because his parents had gotten lost (a teacher eventually drove down the hill to find them). All in a night's work, I guess. Of course, once the initial hurdle of Monday night bedtime is behind me, things usually calm down. Sometimes they stay calm for the rest of the week. Sometimes not.
They stayed calm for most of the night, marred only by a couple of visits from a kid whose stomach hurt because he was missing his mommy, and a girl whose little friend Ralph ascended through her digestive tract and splattered the ground near the door to her cabin. Ralph lay there, glistening in the moonlight, until I covered him in kitty litter to dry him out so he could be swept up and tossed. The girl actually volunteered to clean up the mess herself. How helpful!
Lots of kids puke at camp, usually for emotional rather than physical reasons.
The dawn was dry and blue, which gives me the blues. There is no interesting weather in the forecast at all.
They stayed calm for most of the night, marred only by a couple of visits from a kid whose stomach hurt because he was missing his mommy, and a girl whose little friend Ralph ascended through her digestive tract and splattered the ground near the door to her cabin. Ralph lay there, glistening in the moonlight, until I covered him in kitty litter to dry him out so he could be swept up and tossed. The girl actually volunteered to clean up the mess herself. How helpful!
Lots of kids puke at camp, usually for emotional rather than physical reasons.
The dawn was dry and blue, which gives me the blues. There is no interesting weather in the forecast at all.
Monday, January 13, 2014
Why Did the Chicken Allow Itself To Be Stroked?
The chickens have suddenly become more affectionate, which is odd behavior for a pair of birds who, up until recently, have shown themselves to be very adept at avoiding the descending hand.
Jeanine looked around on an online chicken forum and discovered it's just their way of saying, "fertilize me!"
Ew. Not going to happen, chickens. Sorry. Still, it's nice to be able to pat them without having to chase them first.
Jeanine and I went letterboxing yesterday up at Sanborn park in the hills next to my work. There's a series of 6 bird-themed letterboxes hidden along the trails there, and we found them all. I tried out my new pedometer and it seems to work as described, although according to it, we only walked a disappointing .95 of a mile. The excursion inspired me to plan a series of letterboxes that I can tie into the lessons we teach at camp. Will I follow through? We'll see...
Speaking of walking, I've now walked over 50 miles this month, so I'm halfway to my goal.
It's depressingly sunny outside right now, although I have a feeling that's a statement that runs the risk of causing people living in any U.S. state other than California want to kill me. I guess sunny does trump polar vortex, but we still need rain.
Jeanine looked around on an online chicken forum and discovered it's just their way of saying, "fertilize me!"
Ew. Not going to happen, chickens. Sorry. Still, it's nice to be able to pat them without having to chase them first.
Jeanine and I went letterboxing yesterday up at Sanborn park in the hills next to my work. There's a series of 6 bird-themed letterboxes hidden along the trails there, and we found them all. I tried out my new pedometer and it seems to work as described, although according to it, we only walked a disappointing .95 of a mile. The excursion inspired me to plan a series of letterboxes that I can tie into the lessons we teach at camp. Will I follow through? We'll see...
Speaking of walking, I've now walked over 50 miles this month, so I'm halfway to my goal.
It's depressingly sunny outside right now, although I have a feeling that's a statement that runs the risk of causing people living in any U.S. state other than California want to kill me. I guess sunny does trump polar vortex, but we still need rain.
Saturday, January 11, 2014
Estate of Gracelessness
I've been walking every day, although it has mostly been on city streets. I'd rather be walking along a trail in the hills, but usually I end up walking through the local neighborhoods, sometimes with Jeanine, and sometimes alone. Today, while Jeanine was at work, I wandered downtown to get the newest Walking Dead comic book (yeah, the TV show has inspired me to start reading comic books again - it's never too late to have a happy childhood). I picked up a Mexican mocha at the coffee shop on the way home, and then made a detour to check out an estate sale at this monolithic, gray house that we always pass and wonder about. It was obviously built back when buildings were still allowed to have character, and it's one of those houses that looks like it would be a good setting for an upsetting story. I went in more out of a desire to see the inside of it than for any other reason. Plus, I've never been to an estate sale before. We didn't have one after my mom died. Due to the overwhelming amount of stuff, my dad eventually just had someone come and haul the remaining items away (after we'd either donated or claimed the important things, of course).
The house, despite having a small, unimpressive backyard, was interesting, with large rooms and a basement. Much of it was cordoned off though. The original owner of the things being sold seemed to have been an artist with an interest in theater (although I wasn't impressed by any of the art on offer). There was also an old violin and a clarinet amongst the less useful stuff, although they didn't seem in the best of repair. People vultured about, clutching the detritus of someone else's passing, many of them looking elderly enough to be approaching their own personal estate sales. It's sometimes strange and impersonal the way our worldly possessions are redistributed after we're gone.
I only bought this:
I think my stepdaughter will like it, since she's into creepy things, especially creepy dolls. She'll get it for her birthday next month. An elderly lady near me said something about repairing it, or at least reattaching the legs. I replied that it was much more pleasingly creepy in its dismembered condition. She huffed disdainfully. Some people have no appreciation for aesthetically pleasing disrepair.
As with every walk I've taken along city streets, I saw more people exhibiting an inability to follow basic traffic rules. Today, one of them was a cop, who evidently didn't know who was supposed to have the right of way in an intersection. Stupid cop.
At home, Dexter the cat silently expressed his dislike for my music:
The house, despite having a small, unimpressive backyard, was interesting, with large rooms and a basement. Much of it was cordoned off though. The original owner of the things being sold seemed to have been an artist with an interest in theater (although I wasn't impressed by any of the art on offer). There was also an old violin and a clarinet amongst the less useful stuff, although they didn't seem in the best of repair. People vultured about, clutching the detritus of someone else's passing, many of them looking elderly enough to be approaching their own personal estate sales. It's sometimes strange and impersonal the way our worldly possessions are redistributed after we're gone.
I only bought this:
I think my stepdaughter will like it, since she's into creepy things, especially creepy dolls. She'll get it for her birthday next month. An elderly lady near me said something about repairing it, or at least reattaching the legs. I replied that it was much more pleasingly creepy in its dismembered condition. She huffed disdainfully. Some people have no appreciation for aesthetically pleasing disrepair.
As with every walk I've taken along city streets, I saw more people exhibiting an inability to follow basic traffic rules. Today, one of them was a cop, who evidently didn't know who was supposed to have the right of way in an intersection. Stupid cop.
At home, Dexter the cat silently expressed his dislike for my music:
Research and Development
Since she is working a party with a "Frozen" theme today, Jeanine and I went to the movies last night to watch it, making it the first film I've seen at the theater this year. It would have been an appropriate choice if we lived anywhere besides California, since the rest of the country seems to be in a deep freeze at the moment. There are no currently playing films about the imminent threat of drought though, and even if there were, it would be a strange theme for a children's party.
As for the film, it was okay in that "seen variations of this theme a hundred times" sort of way. It would have been better if it hadn't been basically a musical. On the plus side, Jeanine can now make balloon versions of the movie characters and place them into the grasping hands of small children.
I miss the days when we had good local movie houses that showed a nice selection of foreign and cult films. Some of them are still there, but playing other types of films. For instance, The Towne is still open, but only plays Indian films. The Camera theaters are still there too, but seem to lean more toward mainstream fare these days. Camera 7 is where the old Pruneyard theater was, Camera 12 is a relatively new downtown complex showing mainstream fare, and Camera 3, the only enduring original Camera, seems to have tamed down its offerings a bit. Meanwhile, in the rest of the Bay Area, there is little left. I especially miss the University Theater in Berkeley.
In other cinema news, San Jose's iconic dome theaters are endangered. The old Century 25 dome (most recently the home of the Retro Dome, which mostly showed live musicals and family movies from the last few decades) was knocked down recently, no doubt to make way for some cookie cutter assemblage of bland crap. Century 24 is next on the list. The Retro Dome has retreated to Century 21, and Centuries 22 and 23 also remain open for the moment. Developers are eyeballing them though.
I fondly remember being a kid and waiting in long lines at the Century 22 to see movies like Star Wars. They say that the only real constant is change though. I just wish it was never change for the worse. Maybe if we get rid of all the developers, Edward Abbey style, to ensure that the wild places of our childhoods remain sacrosanct...
Not that I'm resistant to change or anything like that. I'm just resistant to stupid change. To some people, financial motivation is the only motivation. Where is the passion in that?
As for the film, it was okay in that "seen variations of this theme a hundred times" sort of way. It would have been better if it hadn't been basically a musical. On the plus side, Jeanine can now make balloon versions of the movie characters and place them into the grasping hands of small children.
I miss the days when we had good local movie houses that showed a nice selection of foreign and cult films. Some of them are still there, but playing other types of films. For instance, The Towne is still open, but only plays Indian films. The Camera theaters are still there too, but seem to lean more toward mainstream fare these days. Camera 7 is where the old Pruneyard theater was, Camera 12 is a relatively new downtown complex showing mainstream fare, and Camera 3, the only enduring original Camera, seems to have tamed down its offerings a bit. Meanwhile, in the rest of the Bay Area, there is little left. I especially miss the University Theater in Berkeley.
In other cinema news, San Jose's iconic dome theaters are endangered. The old Century 25 dome (most recently the home of the Retro Dome, which mostly showed live musicals and family movies from the last few decades) was knocked down recently, no doubt to make way for some cookie cutter assemblage of bland crap. Century 24 is next on the list. The Retro Dome has retreated to Century 21, and Centuries 22 and 23 also remain open for the moment. Developers are eyeballing them though.
I fondly remember being a kid and waiting in long lines at the Century 22 to see movies like Star Wars. They say that the only real constant is change though. I just wish it was never change for the worse. Maybe if we get rid of all the developers, Edward Abbey style, to ensure that the wild places of our childhoods remain sacrosanct...
Not that I'm resistant to change or anything like that. I'm just resistant to stupid change. To some people, financial motivation is the only motivation. Where is the passion in that?
Thursday, January 09, 2014
I Paint With Particulates
Particulate matter in the atmosphere sure makes the sunsets pretty. This one, I noticed because of the fact that the window in the bathroom was glowing orange. A quick step out the front door and a handful of photographs later, and yet another sunset is freeze-framed forever, or for at least as long as there is an internet. After all, nothing is forever.
Last night, which started with poop, ended this morning in blood. Writing that makes my job sound dramatic, when in truth it was just another boy with a bloody nose. He managed to get blood all over the place though. So, I guess I could say my night was book-ended by bodily fluids. The thing with blood on cement is that you've got to get to it before it fully dries.
As I type, I'm cynically wondering when my burst of writing energy will dissipate. I only managed to write 38 posts here in 2013, and this year, in slightly over a week, I've already done more than a quarter that many. Now that I'm back to work and back to my strange sleeping schedule, I can already feel my initial burst of 2014 energy settling down somewhat, but I'm determined to hang onto at least some of this strange momentum and ride it out. I feel like I've been in a creative slump for quite awhile now, and blogging regularly should be the bare minimum of what I accomplish creatively this year. I have other plans too, and I'd like to see them develop beyond being mere plans.
Speaking of creative, Mrs. Charles laid another egg, again by the bougainvillea. Jeanine plans to hack the plant back a bit, enabling us to reach our breakfast without spiking ourselves on thorns. Since the eggs are now becoming a daily occurrence, I'll stop writing about each and every one.
Last night, which started with poop, ended this morning in blood. Writing that makes my job sound dramatic, when in truth it was just another boy with a bloody nose. He managed to get blood all over the place though. So, I guess I could say my night was book-ended by bodily fluids. The thing with blood on cement is that you've got to get to it before it fully dries.
As I type, I'm cynically wondering when my burst of writing energy will dissipate. I only managed to write 38 posts here in 2013, and this year, in slightly over a week, I've already done more than a quarter that many. Now that I'm back to work and back to my strange sleeping schedule, I can already feel my initial burst of 2014 energy settling down somewhat, but I'm determined to hang onto at least some of this strange momentum and ride it out. I feel like I've been in a creative slump for quite awhile now, and blogging regularly should be the bare minimum of what I accomplish creatively this year. I have other plans too, and I'd like to see them develop beyond being mere plans.
Speaking of creative, Mrs. Charles laid another egg, again by the bougainvillea. Jeanine plans to hack the plant back a bit, enabling us to reach our breakfast without spiking ourselves on thorns. Since the eggs are now becoming a daily occurrence, I'll stop writing about each and every one.
Egg Hunt and Soiled Clothing
Mrs. Charles has decided to lead us on her version of an Easter egg hunt. Jeanine found an egg behind the bougainvillea today. Who knows how many other eggs await discovery in the wilderness of the backyard?
At camp, a boy soiled himself during the night hike, and his clothes are currently in the dryer. One more week during which poop ended up in the wrong place. The bathroom is pretty frightening right now too. Alas. Several other kids, not wanting to feel left out, crowded the hub with a variety of minor complaints. One boy came in holding his tooth, which had escaped his mouth. I gave him a ziploc bag to contain the wayward thing. A girl complained of a stomach ache. Diagnosis: missing home. Cure: sleep. Another boy hobbled in from the night hike with a foot/ankle injury. He'd had a preexisting injury exacerbated by stepping on a tree root. After getting it iced for awhile, he went to bed too. And usually night hike night is so quiet... I'm glad that a couple of coworkers and a bunch of teachers helped with the chaos.
There was a heavy mist this morning, as if the sky was teasing us by almost raining. Not funny, sky. Either rain or don't.
Currently listening to: Contrastate "Throwing Out the Baby With the Bathwater"
At camp, a boy soiled himself during the night hike, and his clothes are currently in the dryer. One more week during which poop ended up in the wrong place. The bathroom is pretty frightening right now too. Alas. Several other kids, not wanting to feel left out, crowded the hub with a variety of minor complaints. One boy came in holding his tooth, which had escaped his mouth. I gave him a ziploc bag to contain the wayward thing. A girl complained of a stomach ache. Diagnosis: missing home. Cure: sleep. Another boy hobbled in from the night hike with a foot/ankle injury. He'd had a preexisting injury exacerbated by stepping on a tree root. After getting it iced for awhile, he went to bed too. And usually night hike night is so quiet... I'm glad that a couple of coworkers and a bunch of teachers helped with the chaos.
There was a heavy mist this morning, as if the sky was teasing us by almost raining. Not funny, sky. Either rain or don't.
Currently listening to: Contrastate "Throwing Out the Baby With the Bathwater"
Wednesday, January 08, 2014
Above the Smog
This is my first night back at work since December 19th, and after my time away I find that the air smells especially clean and the stars shine especially bright up here in the hills. We're above the nasty layer of particulate matter that forms during long periods of no rain, and the light pollution mostly only hinders my stargazing when I look to the north and northeast.
I wish it would rain though. This has been one of the driest years in memory, so much so that sometimes I expect the air itself to crumble to the earth in an avalanche of dust. That said, I'm sure most of the country would disagree, with their blizzards and lethal windchill. Everything is milder in California.
We have more kids at camp this week than ever before, with not one but two extra cabin rooms added. That's 13 cabins full of fifth graders. They're sweet kids, exhibiting the usual sort of charming helplessness expected from modern 10 and 11 year olds. One girl got stuck in her jacket, while a boy ended up having no idea which cabin he'd moved into earlier in the day (although he is a special day class kid, and seems to operate at the level of a 4 or 5 year old). I only have to wake up two kids for middle of the night bathroom breaks though. Sometimes I have to wake up as many as five. One of the teachers opined that this increase in nocturnal incontinence is due to a societal increase in babying our offspring. Could be. These kids would have had trouble if they'd grown up as part of an earlier generation.
It's good to be back, although as usual for the first night of the work week, I'm spending around 24 hours awake as I adjust back to my nocturnal schedule for the majority of January. Starting at the end of the month, I'll be back in the field for most of the rest of the school year, hiking and teaching kids. That will mean a more human sleep schedule.
Currently listening to: Current 93 "A Little Menstrual Night Music"
I wish it would rain though. This has been one of the driest years in memory, so much so that sometimes I expect the air itself to crumble to the earth in an avalanche of dust. That said, I'm sure most of the country would disagree, with their blizzards and lethal windchill. Everything is milder in California.
We have more kids at camp this week than ever before, with not one but two extra cabin rooms added. That's 13 cabins full of fifth graders. They're sweet kids, exhibiting the usual sort of charming helplessness expected from modern 10 and 11 year olds. One girl got stuck in her jacket, while a boy ended up having no idea which cabin he'd moved into earlier in the day (although he is a special day class kid, and seems to operate at the level of a 4 or 5 year old). I only have to wake up two kids for middle of the night bathroom breaks though. Sometimes I have to wake up as many as five. One of the teachers opined that this increase in nocturnal incontinence is due to a societal increase in babying our offspring. Could be. These kids would have had trouble if they'd grown up as part of an earlier generation.
It's good to be back, although as usual for the first night of the work week, I'm spending around 24 hours awake as I adjust back to my nocturnal schedule for the majority of January. Starting at the end of the month, I'll be back in the field for most of the rest of the school year, hiking and teaching kids. That will mean a more human sleep schedule.
Currently listening to: Current 93 "A Little Menstrual Night Music"
Tuesday, January 07, 2014
Stop the Presses!
The chickens are finally paying their rent. This is the first installment.
They had been a bit clucky this morning, with Mrs. Charles entering and exiting the coop. Henrietta, who gets lonely pretty easily, was feeling abandoned and let the world know. I kept going out and checking on them, since clucking sometimes means that the neighborhood cats are getting too bold, but didn't think to check inside the coop until a short while ago.
Just when we'd run out of eggs too!
Walking To School
During 2013, I only logged 580 miles using Dailymile, which is better than my 2012 mileage, but nowhere near as far as I walked in 2011.
Yesterday, I walked from home to Willow's school and back, for a total of 11.44 miles. It took me roughly and hour and a half each way. Thankfully, the middle chunk of the walk was along the creek trail. Here's the view from the pedestrian bridge as I left the creek trail:
At Willow's school, I helped supervise Willow and the rest of the cast of her upcoming school play as they rehearsed. Some of the kids were obviously worn out from the shock of transitioning from vacation back to school. One boy tried to go to sleep under a table. Several others were dragging their feet a bit. There is a boy named Simeon in the cast, but whenever the director said his name, I heard "simian", and wondered why he hadn't been cast as one of the flying monkeys. That would have been more appropriate.
On the walk back, I saw this:
I can't resist a good sunset. Of course, by the time I made it back to the creek trail, it was mostly dark, and by the time I got home, my feet hurt. I even got a blister. Looking out over the freeway from the pedestrian bridge, I was thankful that I don't have to deal with rush hour on my commute.
At home, I discovered that the spider had molted. The old exoskeleton now forms part of his (or her, more likely) doorway, looking like a strange bio-awning, like something H.R. Giger would come up with. Here's a crappy (due to the red light over the cage) pre-molt photo of the spider:
I go back to work tonight. There are supposed to be over 200 kids this week, which means that our usual staff room will be full of campers.
Yesterday, I walked from home to Willow's school and back, for a total of 11.44 miles. It took me roughly and hour and a half each way. Thankfully, the middle chunk of the walk was along the creek trail. Here's the view from the pedestrian bridge as I left the creek trail:
At Willow's school, I helped supervise Willow and the rest of the cast of her upcoming school play as they rehearsed. Some of the kids were obviously worn out from the shock of transitioning from vacation back to school. One boy tried to go to sleep under a table. Several others were dragging their feet a bit. There is a boy named Simeon in the cast, but whenever the director said his name, I heard "simian", and wondered why he hadn't been cast as one of the flying monkeys. That would have been more appropriate.
On the walk back, I saw this:
I can't resist a good sunset. Of course, by the time I made it back to the creek trail, it was mostly dark, and by the time I got home, my feet hurt. I even got a blister. Looking out over the freeway from the pedestrian bridge, I was thankful that I don't have to deal with rush hour on my commute.
At home, I discovered that the spider had molted. The old exoskeleton now forms part of his (or her, more likely) doorway, looking like a strange bio-awning, like something H.R. Giger would come up with. Here's a crappy (due to the red light over the cage) pre-molt photo of the spider:
I go back to work tonight. There are supposed to be over 200 kids this week, which means that our usual staff room will be full of campers.
Monday, January 06, 2014
Back To School, But Not Quite Back To Work
Today is Willow's first day back to school after the break, meaning my alarm went off before it was fully light out. Peeking out the window, I could see that the streetlights were still on. Willow, to her credit, woke up easily enough. She claims to like Mondays.
Lately, one of the first things I've been doing every morning is opening the door to the chicken coop so the chickens can resume ravaging the yard. If we sleep in, they will impatiently rake their beaks back and forth against the wire mesh of their coop, making a metallic ratcheting sound. This morning, they were barely awake when I let them out.
Pretty sunrise though:
The chickens, as they usually do, followed me over to the back door. They know food comes from that door, and they didn't want to miss out on any potential snacks. I obliged them.
I don't have to go to work tonight because camp only runs from Tuesday through Friday this week, and since I don't have to worry about tiring myself out today, I plan on walking to Willow's school later to help supervise the kids during after school play practice. This will definitely be a big jump toward my 100 mile goal for the month.
Currently listening to: Denovali Records Label Sampler - Nordic Lake Sounds Vol. V (free download! Click the link and get your copy now!)
Lately, one of the first things I've been doing every morning is opening the door to the chicken coop so the chickens can resume ravaging the yard. If we sleep in, they will impatiently rake their beaks back and forth against the wire mesh of their coop, making a metallic ratcheting sound. This morning, they were barely awake when I let them out.
Pretty sunrise though:
The chickens, as they usually do, followed me over to the back door. They know food comes from that door, and they didn't want to miss out on any potential snacks. I obliged them.
I don't have to go to work tonight because camp only runs from Tuesday through Friday this week, and since I don't have to worry about tiring myself out today, I plan on walking to Willow's school later to help supervise the kids during after school play practice. This will definitely be a big jump toward my 100 mile goal for the month.
Currently listening to: Denovali Records Label Sampler - Nordic Lake Sounds Vol. V (free download! Click the link and get your copy now!)
Sunday, January 05, 2014
Inspiration
One of my goals for the upcoming year is to spend less time online, or at least less time doing useless things online. We all seem to need periods of time with our brains in neutral. Some people achieve this state by drinking or doing other types of drugs, some people sink into their couches and gaze upon the vast wasteland of so-called reality shows, and some people mouse and click their way across the hinterlands of the internet. I'm one of the latter, and since this is my chosen method of wasting time, I scorn all of the others I've mentioned. That doesn't mean that my way is necessarily any better, although it's a little less passive than the others. Also, I have a feeling that many people spend pretty much every waking minute in neutral. I base this on observation.
Every once in awhile, I come across something online that I find inspiring. A short video about a young woman named Zina Nicole Lahr is one of those somethings. Watch it on YouTube or click here and scroll down to watch it on Vimeo. What I think impresses me most about her is her energy. In the video, she diagnoses herself with "creative compulsive disorder", which seems about right, and then takes us on a whirlwind tour through a variety of projects and her room, which is jam-packed with the results of her aforementioned disorder.
Tragically, shortly after this video was shot, Lahr lost her life in a hiking accident. I wonder what she would have gone on to accomplish had she lived out a normal lifespan, but I know that in the short time she was here, she accomplished more than most of us will no matter how long we live.
Here's a clever little stop-motion film by Lahr about the secret lives of items on the kitchen table.
Take inspiration from Lahr and go create something. Anything.
Every once in awhile, I come across something online that I find inspiring. A short video about a young woman named Zina Nicole Lahr is one of those somethings. Watch it on YouTube or click here and scroll down to watch it on Vimeo. What I think impresses me most about her is her energy. In the video, she diagnoses herself with "creative compulsive disorder", which seems about right, and then takes us on a whirlwind tour through a variety of projects and her room, which is jam-packed with the results of her aforementioned disorder.
Tragically, shortly after this video was shot, Lahr lost her life in a hiking accident. I wonder what she would have gone on to accomplish had she lived out a normal lifespan, but I know that in the short time she was here, she accomplished more than most of us will no matter how long we live.
Here's a clever little stop-motion film by Lahr about the secret lives of items on the kitchen table.
Take inspiration from Lahr and go create something. Anything.
Saturday, January 04, 2014
Erasing the Horizon With Internal Combustion
Today (and for that matter, the last week or so), the air looks like a giant carpet was shaken out nearby. We're talking billowing dust and general griminess, so think that it nearly obscures the nearby hills. We need wind. We need rain. Now.
It's the kind of air quality that makes a person have second thoughts about walking. The only problem is, when people have second thoughts about walking, they get in their cars and drive. I walked around 7 miles yesterday, the last couple of them after dark with Willow, but I felt grimy by the end of it all. At least the smiling crescent moon was nice.
It's the kind of air quality that makes a person have second thoughts about walking. The only problem is, when people have second thoughts about walking, they get in their cars and drive. I walked around 7 miles yesterday, the last couple of them after dark with Willow, but I felt grimy by the end of it all. At least the smiling crescent moon was nice.
Friday, January 03, 2014
Republicans Seem To Be Regressing
Obviously, people can believe whatever they want to believe. I can believe that we're prevented from floating off into space by strong magnets under the dirt, or I can believe that the strange stain on the floor near my desk is my deity, but that doesn't make it the truth.
Republicans, according to this poll, are increasingly choosing not to believe in evolution. So, basically, as a political party, republicans are choosing to have their beliefs shaped by a book written a couple thousand years ago, although I'm betting that only a small percentage of them have actually read it cover to cover, in which case their beliefs are shaped by a book they haven't even read.
Of course, I'm making a lot of assumptions here, but I'm betting I'm more or less right. People really need to take more time to self reflect.
Here are some more thoughts on this topic. Poor math skills? Blame politics.
Republicans, according to this poll, are increasingly choosing not to believe in evolution. So, basically, as a political party, republicans are choosing to have their beliefs shaped by a book written a couple thousand years ago, although I'm betting that only a small percentage of them have actually read it cover to cover, in which case their beliefs are shaped by a book they haven't even read.
Of course, I'm making a lot of assumptions here, but I'm betting I'm more or less right. People really need to take more time to self reflect.
Here are some more thoughts on this topic. Poor math skills? Blame politics.
Thursday, January 02, 2014
Chicken Snacks and Another Symptom of the Imminent Failure of Society
I noticed the chickens staring forlornly up at the persimmon tree, so I went and got a couple of squishy, overripe persimmons down for them. They didn't bother to thank me before they dug in.
I think the crows were jealous, but then again they can fly, so they don't have to wait for some human to take pity on them. They can have persimmons whenever they want.
Also, I think the chickens have taken secret jobs as sign makers. That would explain the photo below. There's no way crows would have let something like this get past the planning stage:
I think the crows were jealous, but then again they can fly, so they don't have to wait for some human to take pity on them. They can have persimmons whenever they want.
Also, I think the chickens have taken secret jobs as sign makers. That would explain the photo below. There's no way crows would have let something like this get past the planning stage:
Walking
Just to get the blood flowing, I'm starting the year off with a walking challenge. I need to walk 100 miles before the end of January in order to succeed. So far, I've walked around six miles, although the challenge page on Dailymile indicates nine because it started counting before the beginning of the month. I find that short-term challenges are more inspiring than long-term ones like the Walk To Mordor challenge I've been working on for over a year now. So far, I've walked 804 miles on my way to Mt. Doom, with only 975 remaining before I can fling the ring to its destruction. My goal this year is to finish that challenge before the end of December. That means I've got to get stepping.
Tuesday, December 31, 2013
Days Flow By Like Hours, Hours Vanish In Minutes, and Suddenly Another Year Turns To Dust
The last sunset of 2013 is nigh, and I'm looking out the window at a pair of chickens perched near the saddest kale plant in the universe. Sad because the chickens strip it bare, not giving it a chance to grow actual leaves. It's almost biblical in its cruelty.
Nearby sits the crow tree, or at least that's what it seems to be. The trunk splits into branches, and the branches support numerous crows. Actually, it's a persimmon tree, and the crows have decided that persimmons are the best fruits in known existence, so they flock to the tree murderously.
I haven't been to work in around a week and a half, and I have around a week of idleness left before I'm expected back. Christmas has come and gone, and all went as planned. Greg and Kat came down from Berkeley on Christmas day instead of Christmas eve because this year Willow spent Christmas eve with her mom and Christmas day with us. Presents were exchanged, and everybody seemed happy. We had all planned to go see the second Hobbit movie, but Greg and Kat got an irritated phone call from their cats, reminding them that supper time was imminent, Eva was busy watching Chucky movies, and Willow was getting over being sick, so Jeanine and I ended up going to see it by ourselves. It was good, in the usual over-the-top Peter Jackson sort of way.
I got Jeanine one present sort of early. It arrived right before the Winter Solstice and I didn't feel like trying to hide it somewhere, so I gave it to her. It's a small Gooty Sapphire Ornamental Tree Spider. At the moment, it's about the size of a Wolf Spider, but with proper care, it should grow to have a 6 to 8 inch leg-span. It will also become a beautiful metallic blue. Owning one of these is kind of like owning a fish though, since they're speedy and their bites are "medically significant". In other words, look but don't touch. It's captive bred, of course, since apparently wild populations are critically endangered due to habitat destruction. One of my friends is excited that it's the Metallica spider. Next on my list is to track down a Cthulhu spider.
I'm not making any vows or resolutions as such for the coming year, but I really do need to cut down on the amount of time I sit in front of the computer. That said, I don't feel bad sitting here typing this because writing is a form of creativity, and creativity should always be encouraged.
I've found the fountain of youth too, in the form of tea. Apparently, this tea ages for you:
The last musical event I attended this year featured the same band I started the year with. Here's what I said about the show at the beginning of the year, and here's what I said about the one at the end.
Greg and I went to Portland mid-month to hang out with friends and buy art at The Big 400 event. It was good to see Howard and Matt again, and then buy their art too. I ended up buying 7 pieces of original art, and giving two of them away as Christmas gifts. I always like visiting the Pacific Northwest, and I think that if I were to seriously consider moving out of California, I'd probably want to live in Oregon or Washington.
Happy ending and beginning to everybody. The years keep cycling by, and we may not be getting wiser, but we're sure getting older. Or something like that.
Nearby sits the crow tree, or at least that's what it seems to be. The trunk splits into branches, and the branches support numerous crows. Actually, it's a persimmon tree, and the crows have decided that persimmons are the best fruits in known existence, so they flock to the tree murderously.
I haven't been to work in around a week and a half, and I have around a week of idleness left before I'm expected back. Christmas has come and gone, and all went as planned. Greg and Kat came down from Berkeley on Christmas day instead of Christmas eve because this year Willow spent Christmas eve with her mom and Christmas day with us. Presents were exchanged, and everybody seemed happy. We had all planned to go see the second Hobbit movie, but Greg and Kat got an irritated phone call from their cats, reminding them that supper time was imminent, Eva was busy watching Chucky movies, and Willow was getting over being sick, so Jeanine and I ended up going to see it by ourselves. It was good, in the usual over-the-top Peter Jackson sort of way.
I got Jeanine one present sort of early. It arrived right before the Winter Solstice and I didn't feel like trying to hide it somewhere, so I gave it to her. It's a small Gooty Sapphire Ornamental Tree Spider. At the moment, it's about the size of a Wolf Spider, but with proper care, it should grow to have a 6 to 8 inch leg-span. It will also become a beautiful metallic blue. Owning one of these is kind of like owning a fish though, since they're speedy and their bites are "medically significant". In other words, look but don't touch. It's captive bred, of course, since apparently wild populations are critically endangered due to habitat destruction. One of my friends is excited that it's the Metallica spider. Next on my list is to track down a Cthulhu spider.
I'm not making any vows or resolutions as such for the coming year, but I really do need to cut down on the amount of time I sit in front of the computer. That said, I don't feel bad sitting here typing this because writing is a form of creativity, and creativity should always be encouraged.
I've found the fountain of youth too, in the form of tea. Apparently, this tea ages for you:
The last musical event I attended this year featured the same band I started the year with. Here's what I said about the show at the beginning of the year, and here's what I said about the one at the end.
Greg and I went to Portland mid-month to hang out with friends and buy art at The Big 400 event. It was good to see Howard and Matt again, and then buy their art too. I ended up buying 7 pieces of original art, and giving two of them away as Christmas gifts. I always like visiting the Pacific Northwest, and I think that if I were to seriously consider moving out of California, I'd probably want to live in Oregon or Washington.
Happy ending and beginning to everybody. The years keep cycling by, and we may not be getting wiser, but we're sure getting older. Or something like that.
Tuesday, December 03, 2013
Home Schooling
Earlier, while we walked back from the ice cream shop, Willow half-jokingly said that she wished she could be home-schooled, to which I responded (also half-jokingly)that home-schooled kids sometimes grow up to be socially awkward due to lack of exposure to other students. Sure, there are plenty of exceptions to this, and I'm not at all opposed to home-schooling, as long as it's done right, but I have a feeling that it's often not done right (parents are likely to be busy slaving away at various paying jobs in addition to their noble attempts to play educator), leaving students under-prepared for real world interactions and other stressful situations.
When I arrived at work tonight, a couple of the volunteer cabin leaders were having emotional meltdowns due to the fact that a) science camp is very structured, and b) they were expected to be responsible leaders.
Both of them proved to be - you guessed it - home schooled.
Currently listening to: Natural Snow Buildings "Daughter of Darkness"
When I arrived at work tonight, a couple of the volunteer cabin leaders were having emotional meltdowns due to the fact that a) science camp is very structured, and b) they were expected to be responsible leaders.
Both of them proved to be - you guessed it - home schooled.
Currently listening to: Natural Snow Buildings "Daughter of Darkness"
Saturday, November 30, 2013
Holiday Madness
Tomorrow the numbers reset themselves back to one again, and it becomes December. Another lengthy span of time has passed without any new words appearing here, but life goes on.
Thanksgiving, which marks a fictitious moment in American history but nonetheless provides an excuse for family get-togethers, came and went. Greg and Kat joined us for dinner, although their train was a little late due to the train ahead of theirs hitting a car. This ended up turning the waiting area at the local station into what is crudely known as a clusterfuck. Still, we emerged victorious and a nice dinner followed.
Yesterday was the anti-holiday known as Black Friday, during which hordes of consumers battle amongst themselves in the aisles of big box stores over crap that nobody really needs. See the damage here. A commenter pointed out on Facebook that a thorough documentation of day to day shopping incidents might put this into perspective, so more study might be needed. Maybe this sick trend isn't as confined to Black Friday as one might think. I usually don't buy anything on Black Friday, just out of sheer disgust at the depraved antics of my fellow citizens, but I ended up going to the local Harvest Festival with Jeanine (which, counter-intuitively, is held inside a convention center) and bought a few things from the booths of independent artists and crafts-people, including yummy peanut brittle from one of Jeanine's friends, some soy-based candles, and a Woodrow Old Time. If I'm going to buy things, it's going to be from small businesses and individuals, not from big corporations that whip consumers into violent frenzies over piles of poorly-made crap. It has also been pointed out that this kind of insanity is just a reaction to being stuck in an insane society, and my gut (as well as my sociological training) tells me that there is more than a grain of truth to this observation.
Speaking of this, Willow is done with soccer for the season now. Her team played well, winning some and losing some. During the final tournament, they played especially well. Sometime during the season, I overheard one of the other parents mentioning that he paid his daughter for each goal she made. I think she got $20.00 for each goal, or something like that. In my opinion, this is almost like training your child to become one of those frenzied idiots battling it out in parking lots and big box aisles across the country during the holiday season. It's like saying that, no matter what else you're doing, money and winning are the two most important things in life. I hope these little girls don't grow up to die in a Black Friday fight because they're determined to win in a battle over a parking space or or come out on top during a tense confrontation over a deeply discounted Blu-Ray player. Parenting fail. If enough parents fail, then we're heading for full-blown society failure. From the looks of things, we may be there already.
But enough about our sick society. Here are a few photos of Autumn, which is perhaps my favorite season:
Partially enabled by the fact that I've had the week off work, Jeanine and I have been walking a lot over the past week. We've found seventeen letterboxes in a couple of different parks. It's good to get out.
Finally, we've had one rain storm so far this season (not counting the one back in September during our camping trip), and as always, it brought out the salamanders:
Thanksgiving, which marks a fictitious moment in American history but nonetheless provides an excuse for family get-togethers, came and went. Greg and Kat joined us for dinner, although their train was a little late due to the train ahead of theirs hitting a car. This ended up turning the waiting area at the local station into what is crudely known as a clusterfuck. Still, we emerged victorious and a nice dinner followed.
Yesterday was the anti-holiday known as Black Friday, during which hordes of consumers battle amongst themselves in the aisles of big box stores over crap that nobody really needs. See the damage here. A commenter pointed out on Facebook that a thorough documentation of day to day shopping incidents might put this into perspective, so more study might be needed. Maybe this sick trend isn't as confined to Black Friday as one might think. I usually don't buy anything on Black Friday, just out of sheer disgust at the depraved antics of my fellow citizens, but I ended up going to the local Harvest Festival with Jeanine (which, counter-intuitively, is held inside a convention center) and bought a few things from the booths of independent artists and crafts-people, including yummy peanut brittle from one of Jeanine's friends, some soy-based candles, and a Woodrow Old Time. If I'm going to buy things, it's going to be from small businesses and individuals, not from big corporations that whip consumers into violent frenzies over piles of poorly-made crap. It has also been pointed out that this kind of insanity is just a reaction to being stuck in an insane society, and my gut (as well as my sociological training) tells me that there is more than a grain of truth to this observation.
Speaking of this, Willow is done with soccer for the season now. Her team played well, winning some and losing some. During the final tournament, they played especially well. Sometime during the season, I overheard one of the other parents mentioning that he paid his daughter for each goal she made. I think she got $20.00 for each goal, or something like that. In my opinion, this is almost like training your child to become one of those frenzied idiots battling it out in parking lots and big box aisles across the country during the holiday season. It's like saying that, no matter what else you're doing, money and winning are the two most important things in life. I hope these little girls don't grow up to die in a Black Friday fight because they're determined to win in a battle over a parking space or or come out on top during a tense confrontation over a deeply discounted Blu-Ray player. Parenting fail. If enough parents fail, then we're heading for full-blown society failure. From the looks of things, we may be there already.
But enough about our sick society. Here are a few photos of Autumn, which is perhaps my favorite season:
Partially enabled by the fact that I've had the week off work, Jeanine and I have been walking a lot over the past week. We've found seventeen letterboxes in a couple of different parks. It's good to get out.
Finally, we've had one rain storm so far this season (not counting the one back in September during our camping trip), and as always, it brought out the salamanders:
