Sunday, October 31, 2010

Fall-la-la-la-la

I hope the weekend's been gorgeous wherever you are. Nights here have turned frosty, but the days have been warm & sunny. It's not going to last, though; snow's in the forecast for late next week. Grumble, bitch, swear...

Nobody, however, can accurately predict what the political climate will be after Tuesday. Even hoping for the best feels kind of like I do when I go to the dentist and aspire to merely get a tooth filled, versus full-blown root canal.

In the meantime, I've dusted off an old poem, shined it up a little, and posted it at my poetry blog, Word Art. Check it out!

Friday, October 29, 2010

funky friday, frankenstein edition



Wow. I forgot how freakin' long this tune is. Used to have it on a 45.

(Crazy drum action at 4:20 for certain drum action afficianados.)

Still haven't decided who I want to be for Halloween. What about y'all?

Wednesday, October 27, 2010

a matter of perception

intellikid and yours truly at MIT's Stata Center

I have been pretty succesful in my recent efforts to turn a blind eye and deaf ear to the electoral circus, but while I can easily change the channel on the TV or exit out of a web page that threatens to raise my blood pressure, my upbringing makes it very difficult for me to walk away from real-life dialogues that venture into matters politic. I stumbled into a conversation with my mother recently where, miracle of miracles, we both agreed that special interests and corporate entities exert too great an influence in matters where their own interests are served before those of we the people.

However, due to her exposure to toxic levels of Fox shit, my mother has lost her ability to think critically and craft informed opinons relating to many matters. For example, when I went on to say that I was unhappy with the Republicans for repeatedly supporting policies that favor big business and the wealthy at the expense of the health & welfare of everyone else, including the critters on the planet, however, Mother took exception. That's all Obama's fault, doncha know (and global warming is a figment of another Democrat's imagination).

While the media is holding a funhouse mirror up to reflect what's what in the country, it's easy for folks like my mother, I suppose, to focus on the piece of the vision that is most appealing, most entertaining. But it's not reality. I know that my reflection in the Stata Center doesn't accurately depict my physique. Why can't my mom see that Fox News' reporting is just as distorted?

Sunday, October 24, 2010

please stand by


Or sit, if you prefer.

Been busy here the past 2 weeks transforming half of the downstairs into a temporary gallery (more on that later), keeping on top of school work (translation: falling asleep while reading up on the scintillating differences between direct & indirect assessments!), and getting ready to depart, this afternoon, for a conference in Greensboro (where some very famous sitting took place).

At least it's a lovely day for a 3-hour drive....

Friday, October 15, 2010

Funky Friday



If this doesn't make your feet tap and your booty shake, then you'd better get to the doctor quick.

Monday, October 11, 2010

My October Thing

A number of posts back, I wrote about celebrating my 50th year by doing one new "thing" each month. September didn't present many opportunities for wild-n-crazy adventures, but I did manage, for the very first time ever, to cook a perfect steak on the stovetop (gotta have a cast iron pan!), so I'm counting that as my September "thing."

Having already devoted almost 15% of my annual income to vacations and dental procedures this year, there wasn't much in the budget for October's new "thing," but this past weekend's Indigenous People's Autumnal Warming meant I just had to get outside and enjoy as much gorgeous weather as possible. I decided to head out into the hills of Bubba County to be in the sun and catch the fantastic show the trees are putting on.

Now, I had already attended the Shady Valley Cranberry Festival a few years ago, so viewing Tennysee's native cranberries (all three of them) no longer holds a strong attraction for me. Instead, I drove past the festival grounds and found myself motoring toward Backbone Rock, a spot that I'd never gotten around to visiting in the 12 years I've lived in these parts, most likely because of intellkid's propensity for car-sickness when traveling certain winding roads in the county.

Admittedly, Backbone Rock is no Mount Rushmore, but it is a very lovely spot to stop and get a few lungsfull of Autumn air tinged with the scent of foliage that's just past its prime. (I need to work on that description.) I hadn't bothered to educate myself about the rock before my visit, but I spotted a number of trail markers and some stone steps up the hillside, so in spite of the sign advising of steep drop-offs, unprotected ledges, and uneven footing, I presumed the hike to the top of the rock was very do-able.

And so, it was. But once at the "summit," I remembered that although I'm not afraid of heights, per se, I am extremely and ridiculously afraid of falling. Nervous, I sat down a safe distance from the edge of the rock and tried to figure out which would cause me less angst, walking back down the steep, uneven, leaf-covered stone steps:...or continuing across the ridge to see where the trail led:I told myself that I was being ridiculous, and of course I could walk across. What was the point in being there if I didn't go all the way, so to speak? Luckily, there was nobody else up on the ridge at that moment to witness my utter lack of bravery, so I figured that even if I had to crawl across on my hands & knees, I'd make it. And so I did. Walk, I mean. Didn't need to resort to crawling!

On either side of where the arch crosses the road -- which is maybe 12 feet wide at the top (I didn't stop to measure) -- there is a 75-foot drop, just high enough to be exciting without being terrifying (see top photo). Nevertheless, my knees were shaking while I stopped long enough to snap a picture of the road, then walked on to see if there was a way down from the other side.

Much to my relief, the stone stairway on the opposite side of the arch was much shorter than the route I took up, and was also supplemented by an iron handrail most of the way down. I took my time walking back to the car, congratulating myself for my bravery while simulatneously ridiculing myself for being such a chicken. I thought of rewarding myself with an ice cream cone, but got lemonade instead, and enjoyed the rest of the drive home while pondering what my November "thing" might be...Any suggestions?

monday meh

Because meh is gender-inclusive, here's a male Mehtisse.

Friday, October 8, 2010

Funky Friday, Academic Version



Listening to Professor Longhair teach some New Orleans blues piano is a good way to start the weekend.

I got some academic blues, myself. I'm taking a graduate class in which I had to give a presentation last evening. Lo and behold, the finely crafted PowerPoint presentation that I intended to use to mask my lack of knowledge on my topic was not the PowerPoint presentation that was saved to my USB drive...

Fortunately I had printed out the final presentation and could use that as my "script." I blustered through the presentation, and when it was done I congratulated myself for not bursting into tears or letting out a flurry of cuss words upon realizing my presentation was not going to go the way I planned.

Now, to find out where my PowerPoint is really saved...

Monday, October 4, 2010

monday meh

The first monday of a new mehnth.

Friday, October 1, 2010

Funky Friday



Oh, the silly. Oh, the hair. It rained all week. People are nasty. I just want to smile a little...

...and walk the dinosaur.

Happy Friday.