Candy for Dreamers

THE MOST IMPORTANT FIND OF THE MILLENNIUM

2009-04-09T21:05:00.009-04:00

... and I'm just finding out now?

So, apparently life does exist in outer space. It's not carbon-based, but if you have a problem with that, then you're a carbon-chauvinist and we aren't friends. Anyway, inorganic, acytotic life has been discovered in nebulae. Actually, it was discovered some time before August 14th, 2007. I read the academic paper (published in the New Journal of Physics, a peer-reviewed, open-access journal), and it checks out.

This is real. I repeat: This is real.

Physicists Discover Inorganic Dust With Lifelike Qualities

Excerpt:

So, could helical clusters formed from interstellar dust be somehow alive? "These complex, self-organized plasma structures exhibit all the necessary properties to qualify them as candidates for inorganic living matter," says Tsytovich, "they are autonomous, they reproduce and they evolve."

From plasma crystals and helical structures towards inorganic living matter

Excerpt:

Figure 5. (a) The observed grain convection surrounding the cylindrical grain crystal. Different colors correspond to different grain velocities [18], The velocities vary from about 0.4 cm s-1 (blue) up to 1.5 cm s–1 (red). (b) The dust convection obtained in numerical simulations [19]. (c) Sketch of the model for helical structure duplication (reproduction). See details in the text.

The original article is much more technical, less sensational, and really actually real. Here is a .pdf version, full text. Here is the online abstract.

Finally, the disclaimer:
The definition of life is arguable. There are organic acytotic systems (prions of Mad Cow Disease fame, as well as other non-cellular life) which aren't universally considered alive. If these systems do not fit your definition of life, then no extra terrestrial life has been found, and you can consider these articles philosophically relevant to the arbitrary aspects of "definitions" and specifically the definition of life. In either case, this is a huge discovery, equivalent to finding amino acids on Titan or Enceladus or Europa.

Imagine that!

2009-03-03T14:47:00.004-05:00

I just wanted to watch some science tv, you know, like NOVA or The Universe or NASA tv or whatever. Nothing's on, so I scan the other channels. Normally, this isn't a channel I pay attention to, what with being Christian TV and all, but lo and behold, Leroy Jenkins!

Obviously, this is not Leeroy Jenkins of internet fame and my cat's namesake. This is Leroy Jenkins: arson threatener, poisoner, and televangelist. Not a role model I'd like to show to my little Leeroy, but I think Loki has bad role-modeling covered.

Gelatinous thought monsters

2009-03-01T13:25:00.004-05:00

Quite a month it's been.

I'm getting better at visualizing stuffed animals to make, but getting worse at making time to make them. I'm sure I'll get another up this weekend.

I'm accepted to 3.5 grad programs. I'm waiting to hear back from 2.5 (the .5 in both cases is UCLA, which is really stressing me out.) I have no idea where I'm going to go. Northwestern wined and dined me, and they really seem idyllic, but I can't make an informed decision without visiting other places, so I'm working on that.

Speaking of work, named entities are so much fun. I've gone from telling people "I'm teaching computers to love" to saying "I read communist propaganda all day", both of which are obviously true. I've also realized hulu is a terrific site for all occasions.

I'm almost caught up on Battlestar, and fully caught up on Lost.

It's snowing, which means fake-spring is officially over. Winter 2.0 is beginning. I really hope it takes a hiatus in April so we can squeeze a real spring in before May. May is so cold and rainy. And then? Then, it's August for 4 months. By the end of August (both calendar-wise and season-wise), I'll be moving. As I said before, I don't know where, but moving might actually be fun this time. I will actually get rid of junk I don't need!

I'm also considering a nerdy tattoo to commemorate my struggles and triumphs as an undergrad and linguist. It may or may not happen (hence considering), but it's something fun to think about. There are a lot of nerdy tattoos out there, btw.

Peace flags

2009-02-08T17:16:00.005-05:00

What a project! It took two weeks of intermittent sewing, buying a sewing machine, and coaxing coworkers to teach me their native alphabets, but it's done. I am completely willing to make more, but I'm charging what they're worth. No more of this working for the love. ;)

Click on a picture to view it in detail. If you want a string of flags or just one, let me know! I'd be happy to make more. :)

Catch up

2009-02-03T22:25:00.003-05:00

Grad School:
Northwestern: Flat out accepted, very warm emails
Berkeley: Not accepted, nice declining email
UPenn: Phone interview, not very warm

Art:
Commission: one more panel, pix soon
General: working on patterns, bought a sewing machine

Fake school:
Field methods: awesome, I am going to measure vowel space
Syntax 2: fun, but not as up-my-alley as phonology. :P

First two installments

2009-01-19T00:48:00.005-05:00

So, sew! I've been sitting on some ideas for a while, and I finally got my act together. Both of these are more or less on the fly, although I knew I was going to make a Hershey's Kiss body and I bought those buttons expressly for teeth in that style mouth. In any case, I'm relatively happy with the way they turned out. I know the resolution is crap, but my actual camera is upstairs and my phone is here. Plus, it's late and I'm tired. So here is your first glimpse at what I might actually end up doing: art. I haven't figured out how much I'll sell things for, especially since I don't have a sewing machine. If they were "Fine Art" each would be over $50, but no one would buy these for that much.

The Impotent Similing Duck stands on its own at about 6" tall. It's made of yellow fleece and gray felt, with matching button eyes.

The Deranged Heart Monster is 5" tall, with hand made (by the Amish) glass button teeth and mismatched button eyes. The body is yellow fleece (I have a lot) and red corduroy, with blue cotton at the back of the mouth and green fleece behind one eye.

Both are completely hand sewn - quite literally. Even if they don't quite look they way I hoped, they are certainly a good trial and a lot of fun. I'll take real pictures sooner or later.

Fake space

2009-01-15T23:09:00.004-05:00

I am totally loving my Wii. I'm not sure I'm using it to its full potential yet, but since it just arrived, I'll take it a step at a time. Right now, I'd like to rave about Super Mario Galaxy. I know it's been out for quite a while, but I am just so blown away by the beautiful visuals.

My new favorite shape is a pudgy star. I love midnight blue. I love this game. I love the Wii controls and the connectivity of the console in general. Hurray for Nintendo!

Try CHICKEN!

2009-01-10T00:32:00.003-05:00

A wonderful sight near Zack & Cristi's place. It's not blurred out in real life, so I might take a phone-camera picture.

View Larger Map

Otherwise, the conference is superfun, San Francisco is gorgeous, people are awesome.

LSA 2009

2009-01-07T18:28:00.003-05:00

So I head out to CA tomorrow. I'll back on Monday morning/early afternoon. I'm bringing some sewing stuff, and hoping that I don't run across anyone who is a TSA zealot. Needles and pins and small scissors are allowed as carry-on, but the security employees are given some discretion. PLEASE don't throw out my stuff.

The cuttlefish is wrapping up, and I'm looking for a new project. I might make a generic monster for potential selling. After all, I am arting "part-time". Wouldn't it be awesome if I could actually do this as a source of supplementary income? Yes, yes it would.

Happy New Year

2009-01-03T11:54:00.004-05:00

Well, it's not quite been a month, so I think I'm still in the clear for blogging. The good news is that I'm arting up a small storm, my graduate applications are mostly in, and everyone's happy and healthy. However, my recent parking ticket is confusing the heck outta me. It seems it doesn't exist, so I don't want to pay it... but I don't want to get in trouble for not paying it. Anyway, so I was on the city's cite, trying to figure out whether it actually exists, and voilá! A map of Boston with Logan Airport, East Boston, Boston Proper, and South Boston highlighted. Holy cow - Boston is small than its own airport. Don't believe me? Look!

Yep, it covers Downtown, the North End, the West End, the South End, Back Bay, and most of Boston Proper - with a little redistribution, it would be all of it. That's incredible. If you fly into Logan with your destination as the city of Boston, you land on a single entity that is larger than your destination. Logan Airport doubles the size of the city. Think about it.

Old News

2008-12-15T01:46:00.004-05:00

You just gotta love those little guys.

Also, grad schools apps are progressing.

Also, work is good.

Also, the cats love their new laser pointer. Video to come.

Grad school

2008-12-08T17:17:00.002-05:00

My parents were right to say I would enjoy my year off. The stress I feel now, during application period, is quite physically painful. I don't remember having this stress all the time as a student, but I do know I have none of it as a young adult in the workforce. Have I mentioned I love my job? It's terrific, plus it's relevant to my interests.

This is not my image, but oh boy, is it cute!

This is what happened:

2008-12-04T00:04:00.003-05:00

Rules:
* Grab the book closest to you. Now.
* Go to page 56.
* Find the 5th sentence.
* Write that sentence as your status.
* Copy these instructions as a comment to your status.
* Don't go looking for your favorite book, or the coolest one you have -- just grab the closest one.

J: "and walked out of his hollow stump and said, "bless you, my little fur grandson.
Me: "He removed his glasses in a practiced, graceful manner, and after lifting the hem of his smock, he put the glasses in the back pocket of his trousers."
D: " 'You've made a mess,' I say. 'Lick it up.' ."
E: "If you plan to play for six hours, for example, then you know before you even begin play that you have to make $72 just to break even."
P: "There is no interior space."

This is one of the few memes I really enjoy. For some reason, it reminds me of that game we played as kids called Hanky Panky Spanky Jumbo Shrimp Homicide. We each got a strip of paper and wrote 5 words in a column. Then, we folded the paper over so only the bottom word was visible, and passed it to someone else. Going on the last word (the visible one), the next person wrote another 5 words. We read them aloud when the column was full. It was really brilliant.

Around and around

2008-11-19T15:40:00.003-05:00

I was unaware it had gotten so cold. I tried to commute today, but it didn't work out. At lease my schedule is super-flexible, and I can make up for today later. I just need to prepare myself better for tomorrow. Go in earlier, while the busses are running regularly. I'll get it... eventually.

Working

2008-11-18T10:33:00.006-05:00

I have a job, and I start today. I am excited, nervous and a little apprehensive.

Feeling flighty

2008-11-11T16:35:00.005-05:00

We're going to get a bird feeder tomorrow. I hope the alert cardinal comes back, I liked him. Maybe we'll find some other species here besides the black birds, blue jays and sparrows. I don't know my sparrows that well, so it'll be good to learn anyhow.

It's all in the journey

2008-11-07T20:25:00.003-05:00

Exploration is what brings me joy, whether it be introspective, academic or geographic. I am doing a lot of exploration these days, and it's turning up some really great things. For one, I am feeling good about grad school applications. Another, bacon chocolate. All in all, things are looking up.

Mr. President, I salute you

2008-11-05T02:08:00.003-05:00

Welcome to the new dawn of the USA. Yes we are!

GO VOTE NOW!

2008-11-04T08:15:00.007-05:00

I just voted.

It was really foggy and pink when we got outside, maybe about 40 degrees. Walking up the hill to the elementary school, it was almost completely still. At the top of the hill, at the intersection, high school kids (cheering for Obama) were unloading from the 57 busses and heading up to the high school across the way. We got to the building around 6:45am, and there were maybe fifty people in line. By the time the doors opened, there were several hundred. I was so proud and excited to be part of this historic election! After all, this was my first time voting in person. Inside, there were several precinct tables, and our street is weird in that it's in several precincts, so that was confusing, but we found our place and voted. Paper ballots and felt tip pens! At least scantrons are hard to mess up, as far as I know. In any case, it doesn't matter that much in the presidential election in Massachusetts, but it's still important. Oooh, hurray!

photo by Getty images

Ian Malcolm would agree...

2008-10-28T23:10:00.004-04:00

I made an art! (Well, it's a few weeks old, but I scanned it today!)

In Memoriam

2008-10-27T17:02:00.002-04:00

Grendel
R.I.P.
X/X/200X-10/25/2008

Grendel was the loudest cat I've ever heard, and I loved him for it. He probably learned it on the streets in his kittenhood. Actually, He might not have spent his kittenhood on the streets, but nevertheless, he was homeless. He acted like he was still homeless. And he was loud. And fat. He stole a french fry right off of Jessie's plate, once.
Very little is know about his past, but John thinks he was adopted at age 1 or 1.5, in 2001, so he might even be from the late 90's. In life, he was fat and cuddly. One had to watch out, though, because he couldn't (or wouldn't) retract his claws (probably from being a crazy homeless cat). He really liked sleeping on my bed and my chair. In fact, I'm still finding his hair on my stuff and I haven't lived with him since May. Anyway, he was a really great companion for me last year, and I really appreciated his company. I'm going to miss him a lot, but he lives on in the hearts of everyone he touched (a lot of people).

Sea side

2008-10-26T23:45:00.003-04:00

I'm too sensitive to movies and tv. If there is an emotion on screen that I feel in real life, it absorbs me and blacks out everything real. This is why I watch action movies. There are no explosions or gun fights in my real life.

Berry happy

2008-10-23T17:28:00.005-04:00

I originally took this in 2006. It reminds me of how much fun it was to feel smart.
Speaking of feeling smart, emails are going well, and I might be meeting with someone with awesome research interests from UMass Amherst. I feel smart and lucky.

A cure

2008-10-22T17:38:00.005-04:00

Doing something beautiful is often as simple as finding something small and delivering it to the world.

Passions for science

2008-10-21T19:17:00.003-04:00

I love water, I love space. This is both.
I got Twitter today, but I'm not sure whether I'm going to use it. I'm just so excited about getting responses from linguistics professors that I am doing silly stuff. Another email, just now! I have had some really in depth responses and some really brief ones. However, I emailed 18 people, and I've already gotten 6 responses! Its so overwhelmingly positive. I think that schools that have people who do both phonetics and language documentation are the most appealing to me. And now I'm finally over location qualms, I will apply anywhere that has a good program regardless of climate, city or personal connections. Cross your fingers for me!

Smells like leaves

2008-10-16T20:15:00.004-04:00

Autumn is upon us, and it's permeating the air. I'm going to Walden Pond soon. There will be pictures.

I applied to some jobs today. Not as moral and wholesome as the last place, but certainly within my stress level requirements and in my areas of interest. Art supply retail sounds good to me.

A new perspective

2008-10-13T22:26:00.003-04:00

Sometimes, all you need is a new perspective, a different point of view. It can change your outlook on life, help you solve a problem, or take you to an entirely new world. Here, I represent all three:

What do you see?

What's black, white, and in Loki's belly?

2008-10-12T13:10:00.006-04:00

(Alternate title: Dusty little cat)
Loki and I have a lot in common. We can be moody, we'll eat anything, we piss people off all the time, and we like perching in windowsills. We also need a safe spot when we feel vulnerable. Loki (age 10 weeks) slept in the newspaper box his first night home. He still loves the box (age 5.5 months), but I think he loves newspaper more. For eating. I might not eat newspaper, but I know how important it is to find your safe spot.

Smokey cold smells and warm sunny grass.

2008-10-11T14:22:00.003-04:00

Autumn is a beautiful time, and I plan on enjoying my weekend to the fullest, in my own ways. Huzzah!

In other news, Rolling Stone publishes this article next Thursday: Make Believe Maverick: The Real John McCain. If half of what they say is true, he is a worse person than G.W. Bush could ever hope of being. I say that with a strong skepticism of the tone of the article, and as fair a mind as possible. It's scary, but at least the polls say we don't have to worry about him becoming president. *cross fingers*

Deep blue beyond

2008-10-10T21:19:00.005-04:00

When you're out canoeing or kayaking on a huge lake, lie on your back so the ground is up and the sky is down. Then fall! it's beautiful.

Reddish

2008-10-08T16:57:00.004-04:00

Fungi are some of the most photogenic subjects I've encountered. Vivid colors, simple shapes, rich textures, unique in so many ways.

My brain is fuzzy

2008-10-07T02:54:00.004-04:00

I've been forgetting words a lot lately. A lot. It's probably from recent stressors, but it reminds me of the time I spent volunteering in nursing homes. Please visit your elderly relatives. They need you more than you know, maybe more than they know. Even those who can't remember your name still need that human contact.

Juicy

2008-10-06T15:12:00.003-04:00

I got a new bunch of photos edited and uploaded. This one is from EIC. I took a walk around the island on the last morning, and the light was just so perfect through the trees. Everything was illuminated. It was perfect for getting up close and personal with my macro lens. This is one of three mushroom portraits I shot, red-orange-yellow.

Amazing

2008-10-04T12:25:00.003-04:00

There is no reason anyone shouldn't see this.
TRANSLATION: WATCH!

Pen and ink

2008-10-03T12:17:00.003-04:00

Brag: I have made ink my bitch. There is nothing I can't do with it. I can make black pens draw blue, red and yellow. I can make paper into wood and bone with a single stroke. I can create worlds out of random fibers and stain. I know pens. They are an extension of my body.

Shame: It has been so long since I worked with them, I'm losing my touch. Sure, I can use a cheapo ball point to draw like an art nib, but it doesn't mean I've gotten back to my past standards of accuracy. My latest art (of a vertebra) works, but mostly by accident. I didn't plan it out well and I didn't differentiate well between shadow and bone. Too many highlights and too many similar middling tones. i have some strong shadows, but too little too late.

However, I have a mat-cutter now, so I matted it. I will photograph it and post it eventually, but I'm definitely planning so big stuff. I am going to to a skeleton series - leaves and bones. Perfect for ink! I'm so excited.

Kitchen tables and bay windows

2008-10-02T12:01:00.003-04:00

Sometimes, I really long to be "home": at my parents' house, waiting for dinner to be served, sitting next to the giant orange tabby in the window. It always smells like food there. So does my mom's hair; it just soaks up the aroma of whatever she cooks. The best part is that she works as a big-cheese executive from 7am (or earlier) until 6pm (or later), and then cooks to have fun. She is truly my hero. I can't say that she's broken any glass ceilings because it seems whenever something good happens, it's just as controversial among her coworkers as the previous promotion. Maybe she is the glass ceiling. She lives inside of it.
Recently, she was a contender for a VP spot in the company. She didn't really want it - she likes her group now, but she did think it would be an honor. Secretly, I hoped she would get the offer and then turn it down to do something she enjoyed.
And every night, she comes home and cooks. My dad works longer hours, or at least encounters more traffic. He cooks, too, but just gets home later.

Garlic, sauteed onions, ginger, and honey on bak choi; tandoori chicken with fennel and chives; wild rice. Yum.

Portrait of a roommate

2008-10-01T20:31:00.005-04:00

"Poesia!" spoken by the ancestral artist, pregnant with inspiration. Modeled on a real-life poet who is currently crafting a fine apple pie.

Self, in bones

2008-09-30T11:52:00.004-04:00

I love doing creepy stuff - stuff that shocks before it captures. This, sadly, is not like that. I doodled this skeleton for a while before I figured out how it was supposed to look or who it was. It's graceful and limbless, but mobile. It doesn't make sense in the real world. Hey! But look! It's not in the real world, it's in a speeding landscape of color. How sad that it's alone, but any other skeletons there would crowd out the beauty.

Take a Weight Off

2008-09-29T15:47:00.006-04:00

I'm quitting my job because it hurts me more than it helps my clients. It's hard because I feel so much duty, but I can't fulfill my duty whether I'm employed there or not. So, life goes on.

I'm voting republican

2008-09-25T14:06:00.003-04:00

Thank you, Peter, for opening my eyes as to why I should vote Republican:

Oh god what have I done

2008-09-23T00:26:00.002-04:00

I am a terrible person and love playing intelligent design.

Plurals

2008-09-18T19:36:00.005-04:00

Most language innovation and paradigm leveling doesn't bother me. So why can't I stand that someone on NPR today said "indexes"? I know it's wrong, but it's also following a vastly more common pluralization pattern. Language does this.

My dad always points out when news anchors use the words "a parameter" to mean "a perimeter" rather than correct definition of "a variable term or measurable aspect". I bring this up because it reminds me of his irrational hatred of the regularization of irregular plurals.

"Data" is the plural of "datum"; "dice" is the plural of "die"; "indices" is the plural of "index" and "stimuli" is the plural of "stimulus".

That last one has been causing me trouble, too. Some people at my work have been using "stimuli" as singular. It sounds so bizarre to my ears, and I don't understand how this came about. We use stimuli in our daily work, but everyone there has some sort of degree - often in psychology - and they must have encountered the singular form before now. Is it stored in a separate locale in the brain from the real term, almost like how an idiom is not the same as its words? I don't know.

And it bothers me a little.

Liar, liar pants on [hell] fire

2008-09-17T19:30:00.009-04:00

Sarah Palin claims to be Christian, but I see her as a hypocrite to top all others:

1: Lust - Okay, fine, I can't think of something directly related to this, but she did make women pay for their own rape kits. While rape is not a psychologically lustful crime, it's pretty hideous. If you can think of a better example of Palin's lust, let me know. (Don't tell me about how hot she is, even I can't disagree.)

2: Gluttony - Her consumption of natural resources is gluttonous. Ravenously hunting animals critical to the ecosystem (eg: wolves) is ridiculous. While I approve of hunting out of necessity (food, clothing/protection from the environment, protection against debilitating population booms), I personally disapprove of hunting to "indirectly control" populations. There are too many variables in an environment, but back to the point: it wasn't her place to instate bounties.
Then, there is drilling. I know it's controversial, and I understand (and rarely agree with) reasons for expanding drilling sites domestically, she takes it too far. Fighting for polar bears to remain off the endangered species list in order to expanding drilling projects in Alaska is just weird. Who does that? Sarah Palin.

3: Greed - It's a well-known fact that she kept the money. Also, so much for the Republican ideals of keeping government out of states' affairs. But did you know that she spent tens of thousands of tax-payers dollars on personal expenses while being paid a salary of $125,000?

4: Sloth - She never even had a passport until 2006, and... didn't let anyone know about important financial decisions until they took effect. And, as of September 6th, she hadn't met the press.

5: Wrath - When a family member was going through a bad divorce, she took it out on her ex-brother-in-law by trying to get him fired. Despite the reports that she had legitimate reasons for his dismissal, her stories are sketchy at best.

6: Envy - One word: cronyism.

7: Pride - She refuses to take responsibility for her actions on the bridge to nowhere and rash implementation of her pet projects. Hubris, I say! (Also, why is her college life so secret?)

In any case, she scares me. If she doesn't scare you, you need to do some fact checking and get back to me.

Word works

2008-08-21T08:06:00.004-04:00

I just realized that the answers to "How much?" are often really lame in English. Some include "sort of", origin of "sorta", and "kind of", origin of "kinda".

How angry are you?
I am a type of angry.

This makes so little sense. It's not "What angry are you", although if it were, the answer were still be non-specific and uncooperative. It's not really a very good answer in any possible case I can think of, yet it has become so full of nuanced meaning. True, a lot of this meaning is gleamed from prosody (intonation), facial expression, and environment, but does that really make the answer any better?

Even "somewhat" is unsatisfying. Etymonline gives "somewhat"'s history as such:
c.1200, "a certain amount, to a certain degree," from some + what. Replaced O.E. sumdæl, sume dæle "somewhat, some portion," lit. "some deal."
But we don't say "some portion" or "some deal", we say "somewhat", which uses a WH-Question word, which is a placeholder in this context.

Another possible explanation is that the question originally asked to get the response "somewhat" was not "How much?" but "In what manner?", which is often also phrased with "how". This makes some sense, but it still doesn't explain why it is logically okay to answer a "How much" with an "In what manner" answer.

Thoughts?

Beads

2008-08-19T21:17:00.002-04:00

I made a bunch of necklace pendants today. Some are good, some are prototypes, some are crap. All of them were fun. I might get a chance to sell stuff at a craft fair in September if my coworker needs help filling her table. That would be cool. Photos eventually, when I get off my lazy ass.

Tax-free is the way to be (this weekend, anyway)

2008-08-17T17:42:00.005-04:00

Amandeep, Roxy, and I bought lots of beads and jewelry equipment today! Hurrah! Then we went to Best Buy, where I got a router, and Target, where I got pant-loads of clothes for work. Har har. Roxy's been making cool stuff, like a collage and cartoons and stuff. I think she'll be making more tonight. I got a bunch of beads for selling on jewelry as well as incorporating some into my paintings, if I ever get back to them (I will). If Tom's job goes well, which it will, I'm going to see if I can get some of my art up in the store's gallery for one of their month-long displays. That would rock so hard. So hard.

The place where Boston comes to relax

2008-08-14T17:56:00.004-04:00

I make good play-doh animals and foods. I made a reindeer, a dinosaur, two bananas, a pear, a camera, and spaghetti. I also apparently "do really well" with kids. I might even have a request by a client to have another kid in my caseload. Awesome. Most importantly, 99.5 WCRB is the best radio station to listen to in traffic. Totally awesome.

The sound of cicadas actually raises the perceived temperature 10%

2008-08-01T22:13:00.004-04:00

That's not even close to proven, but I think it's true.

In any case, NJ is nice, as always, and my family is weird as normal. My mom likes ATHF, my dad and brother were rocking out on piano and electric guitar my brother won the guitar at an air-guitar contest at his school. Awesome.).

Beach tomorrow, job Monday. Mundane existence is better than no existence.

Metapost

2008-07-29T21:25:00.004-04:00

I've renamed my blog, I've changed my goals, and I'm never going to stop using the Oxford comma. From now on, I will stop limiting the scope of my posts and make sure I share more things of all types.

In other news, Jurassic Fight Club is nowhere near as interesting or brutal as advertised. It's not about pitting dinosaurs against each other - it's like dinosaur forensics. Don't get me wrong, I love forensics shows, but I wanted to watch dinosaurs brutally mauling each other. Maybe another day.

I love "subtle" burns

2008-07-29T21:00:00.005-04:00

Colbert destroys O'Reilly on his own Show. 1/18/07

Not only do most right-wing celebrities not realize Stephen Colbert is liberal, they don't realize that every single thing he says on his show is satirizing their points of view and culture. Now the question is: do they actually not know, or are they playing dumb to get saps like me to watch shows like the O'Reilly Factor and boost their ratings?

It's going slow

2008-07-28T00:23:00.002-04:00

So, art really hasn't been going. Sorry, I guess. I have a job. I'll make time to photograph an upload stuff tomorrow or the day after.

Posting

2008-07-10T17:21:00.003-04:00

Okay, so I'm not great at posting every day. However, I have some new paintings in the works. I think I'll stop trying to post daily, and just post frequently, as my creative side permits. The Eternal Poet and Nostalgia for Home Cooking are finishing up now, so they will be posted soon.

Drum solo

2008-07-07T19:30:00.002-04:00

I'm really bored. Here's an art.

Trolley whistle

2008-07-06T15:33:00.003-04:00

Here is a painting, finally!!! It's my synesthetic reaction to the T whistle, specifically when it sounds at the St Mary's St stop, near Marsh Chapel Plaza.

Oops

2008-07-06T14:50:00.003-04:00

I promise to post some new art soon. It's been an awesome week - cats, geohashing, birthdays, fireworks, and pub trivia.

Sick day

2008-06-30T20:27:00.003-04:00

I feel sick and really icky, which is the perfect excuse to not upload something new. Instead, here is another Duke Gardens photo:

New subjects

2008-06-29T20:10:00.003-04:00

Now I have cats. Kittens, to be exact. That means - if they'll stay still, I have new models for art. I probably won't get back into the groove for a while (can you tell I'm just fishing for stuff now?), but when I do, kitties will be there to inspire me. Yay!

Meet: Leeroy (left) and Loki (right), 10 week old ~~demons~~ kittens.

Emotion to sight

2008-06-26T23:24:00.003-04:00

Here is something I am in the process of painting (very slow progress). It depicts how the emotion 'uncertainty' looks to me. I'm a synesthete, which means certain stimuli are interpreted in my brain through unrelated senses. Emotion, smell, taste, touch, music, speech, other nonmusical sounds, letters/numbers/symbols and days of the week all evoke abstract images of varying complexity. I like having it, but I don't know what it's like to not have it, its been around for as long as I remember.

Fake art

2008-06-25T21:05:00.004-04:00

>[chocolate]<         Here have a chocolate bar.

(OvO)
()     ()         Or, an owl.
""  ""

Nothing

2008-06-24T23:36:00.004-04:00

Nothing today, too much tutoring. Code code code code java java java java. It's computer-math art?

Art science art science electrolytes powerlytes!

2008-06-23T23:05:00.003-04:00

I made this using the application LiquidMac. While the program isn't my creation, I feel like it's a similar art to photography: chance plus the right light/subject/conditions/intuition. Plus, it's simulated science and science rocks.

Seamless

2008-06-22T16:14:00.003-04:00

From the airplane window, we couldn't see the horizon... and not for the usual reasons!

The sun is peeking

2008-06-21T17:19:00.002-04:00

Still no paintings. I'm sticking to my photography for now, since it's easier. Again, this isn't fully touched up, nor my best, but it's something to show, and I like it. That seems to be the theme of my work: it's mine and I like it, so nyah. Haha, man I'll never get anywhere.

Bahamian travels

2008-06-20T21:32:00.002-04:00

Sure it's got its flaws, but I like it, its got sweet colors, and that shadow is awesome.

Bizarre day

2008-06-20T03:58:00.001-04:00

Well, my day started out on the wrong foot, but when Tom came home from his bartending exam, everything got awesome (Thanks Roxy!).

Since I slept all day, then had a pub adventure, I wasn't up to painting tonight. Something newly painted in the afternoon.

The sun is rising now...

Improvements

2008-06-18T10:36:00.000-04:00

So I know there are problems with this photo. The lens flares are distracting, especially in the lower left corner, but I really like it the way it is. Okay, maybe that one stray flare could go. In any case, it's a photo and it's nice.

Rain, mud, trees, snow

2008-06-16T14:49:00.000-04:00

Now for something slightly different. This was taken on New Years Day in the Sourland Mountain Preserve. I was looking up a good link for that, when I stumbled on the etymology section in the wikipedia article. It really describes the area well - undeveloped, rough, complex. I think that's what I love about it. It's part of a glacial moraine that stretches through my hometown. South is rich, clayey soil. North is rocks and pebbles. I've heard this area described as a temperate rain forest, but I don't think we meet the rain qualifications. It's close.

Supple succulents

2008-06-16T00:41:00.000-04:00

Another Duke Gardens picture, until I upload my most recent trip photos. No post yesterday due to the housewarming plus Flag Day party preparations.

Catching up

2008-06-13T17:11:00.000-04:00

Here is one of my recent-ish photos to kick off the blog. It was taken in Duke Gardens in New Jersey. The indoor display gardens, open for 43 years, will be dismantled tomorrow, June 14th, permanently. I'm glad I got this trip in beforehand, the Gardens will be sorely missed.

First post, oy

2008-06-13T14:14:00.000-04:00

After graduating from Boston University with a BA in Linguistics, I have no idea what to do with my life. So, here I am. I'm going back to my art in full force. My first project is to paint some of my synesthetic experiences on the nice new canvasses I bought yesterday. I have no idea how to show them in public, where I could go with them, how to enter art shows, or anything. Therefore, I'm turning to the great internet. Maybe they'll be seen if I get them on the tubes. Here goes nothing!