| Wil Wheaton on Big Bang |
[15 Apr 2010|09:33pm] |
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Just watched the episode of Big Bang Theory with Wil Wheaton guesting. Not one of the funnier eps, but WW fans will want to check it out. With his beard he looks more like Johnny Depp than I would have ever expected.
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| my brain must be out of shape |
[28 Oct 2009|02:00pm] |
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I'm working on decluttering some junk piles in my house, and it runs my brain out of decision making ability surprisingly fast. Ughh!
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| Finding the antidote... which is not swallowing it all |
[15 Oct 2009|10:46pm] |
The antidote to the raving Salon letters about the dangers of parents homeschooling their children turned out to be the raving Salon letters about the dangers of parents letting their darling kiddos play with plastic guns. Very feeble personal opinion was enough to firmly state that dire, DIRE I tell you, outcomes would be obtained if kids ever put their itchy little fingers on colorful plastic triggers. Well, I'm pretty sure that's crap. And now I'm taking the other letters with a bigger grain of salt.
I'm still not sure why predicting dire outcomes is such a compelling hobby for so many netizens.
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| Salon piece by a homeschooling dad |
[04 Oct 2009|02:46pm] |
I read many, many of the letters about the recent homeschooling article in Salon (O'Hehir?) and this one is my favorite, to date:
"Straw man! I think homeschooling is where hummus was in 1994, kind of on the cusp of acceptance, but your uncle still wonders what the hell is that stuff next to the vegetable tray. You explain, they wrinkle their noses, fine.
There's a vibe I get from all these homeschooling articles (like the ones referenced in the article), which I don't get from folks I've met that homeschool. It's defensiveness, sure. And some measure of annoyance. But there's this condescension underneath it all. "You don't instantly validate my choice? How dare you?"
You live in Brooklyn. Dude, Brooklyn. You've got fancy "flexible" schedules that most folks just don't have. You have the financial ability to let an adult stay home and guide your kids. Accept the fact that you're a freaking alien being to those quizzical GSP rest stop people. If they have a few ignorant questions, well, you're the alien here, right?
An alien:
Q: Are you going to destroy the planet and enslave humans?
A: Of course not. We just want to live our lives like you do.
Real Answer: What is it about aliens that makes you think we all want to enslave you, puny human? We have jobs to do and galaxies to visit. Why would we want responsibility for such a small, fragile people when we have our own issues. Why do humans think all aliens can do is enslave them? We have complicated lives just like you do.
-- goldenplum
[Read goldenplum's other letters]
Permalink Flag Tuesday, September 29, 2009 08:30 AM"
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| Virtual censorship on Kindle |
[27 Sep 2009|02:41pm] |
(ganked from a column by CmdrTaco)
"Recently, one of many nightmare DRM [digital rights management?] scenarios reared its ugly head; a bookseller released the George Orwell classics “Nineteen Eighty-Four” and “Animal Farm” to be sold by Amazon.com for use on its Kindle ebook reader. Amazon sold many copies of the books, only to find that they’d purchased stolen merchandise: The bookseller in question wasn’t actually the legal copyright holder. When the true rights holder figured out its books were being sold illicitly, it contacted Amazon.
You probably already can see where this is going. The Kindle is a closed device. Amazon owns the operating system. And when the dust settles, even though you have paid for the books that it hosts, they have a kill switch that they were all too happy to flip. Suddenly, anyone who had a copy of “Nineteen Eighty-Four” residing on his Kindle found in its place a hole: Amazon had reached into the devices owned by individuals and deleted the ebook’s file. "
It's bad enough that they can delete it... but they can also rewrite the ending.
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| R. Gervais |
[16 Sep 2009|08:45pm] |
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I enjoyed Ricky Gervais on The Daily Show riffing about how much he likes cakes.
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| Radical Acceptance |
[16 Aug 2009|12:16pm] |
I'm reading a book called Radical Acceptance. While this book would be filed in the self-help section, it finally penetrated my brain that this title of the book is NOT Radical *Self* Acceptance. It's about accepting everything, including other people, not just about accepting my own flaws.
In the spirit of acceptance, I'll link this NYT article about not getting divorced, that was reprinted in The Week. (I think this woman was also studying the concept of radical acceptance at the time she chose to roll this way.)
Even if we might not chose to handle our own potential divorces this way, it does sound like a tranquil way to deal w. other people's divorces.
http://www.theweek.com/article/index/99512/The_last_word_He_said_he_was_leaving_She_ignored_him
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| Book enjoyment! |
[09 Aug 2009|05:11pm] |
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I am loving Martha Beck's book, Finding Your Own North Star: Claiming the Life You Were Meant to Live. And since I am trying to read too many library books simultaneously, I just bought myself a copy. Will probably also inflict some passages on my husband, (if I can corner him in a room with no exits).
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| watching my tiny tree grow |
[21 Jun 2009|08:58pm] |
We have a semi-dwarf fig tree that wasn't more than a sawed-off broomstick with two twigs when we bought it. Over a few years, it has grown slowly, and sideways, so that it didn't achieve much growth, staying at a height close to three feet.
This year it has forty leaves instead of twenty, and the transformation feels miraculous, reminding me of watching Charlie Brown's scrawny Christmas tree become plump and luscious.
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| smiling |
[14 Mar 2009|10:17am] |
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What's amusing me this morning is really retro magazine ads from the early Seventies. It's mostly the visuals, and the major changes in my perspective over the decades that makes this tickle my funnybone.
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| a quote I like |
[12 Mar 2009|07:58pm] |
This was posted on a relationship list that I subscribe too, and I like it enough to share it.
**"If I accept the fact that my relationships are here to make me conscious,
instead of happy,
then my relationships become a wonderful Self-mastery tool that keeps
realigning me with my higher purpose for living."
~ Eckhart Tolle**
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| The Breakdown Lane |
[06 Mar 2009|11:35am] |
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I'm listening to J. Mitchard' book The Breakdown Lane on tape. The author (and voice actor) both *really* capture the voice of a middle aged woman pissed at her husband with great accuracy. (Sometimes makes me wince in recognition.)
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| teen pregnancy, the Palin years |
[21 Feb 2009|08:04am] |
In an article about new mom Bristol Palin's interview with Greta V. S., Rebecca Traister on Salon highlights this telling quote. (Bristol getting vague about whether she supports birth control, but still making a good point.)
""Everyone should be abstinent or whatever, but it's not realistic at all.""
[My comment, as a decision making species, we can ponder the "should" and live in the vagueness that is "whatever", but eventually reality bites us and we have to live with what's "realistic".]
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| happiness meme |
[12 Feb 2009|04:48pm] |
Yay, my brain chemistry was actually producing plenty of happiness chemicals this morning. Random nothingness was enough to "make" me happy.
Things that made me happy today
- A wheeling flock of redwing blackbird right in front of me on my walk.
- My own mental joke that Jane Austen stole the plot to Persuasion from Sk8ter Boi.
- A sweeping view of the delta from the freeway, extra decorated with puffy clouds.
- Making fun of people in my guild when they behave childishly.
- Weightlifting
- That other one that I forget... (oh, singing along to Night Moves in the car)
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| happiness meme |
[08 Feb 2009|03:45pm] |
Things that made me happy today
- Sunshine breaking thru clouds.
- My kid being happy enough to sing and dance a bit.
- Funny Eddie Izzard bits on BBC America
- U2 blasting from the computer
- Combining pommegranite/grape juice with cola to create something much like Dr. Pepper
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| the happy meme |
[18 Jan 2009|11:04am] |
Things that have made me feel happier in the last three days:
- Balmy spring weather, in January!
- Delicious stirfry dinner made by my spousal unit.
- Spouse seems to be feeling peppier on his new meds.
- Dramatic river views when out walking.
- Amazing stuff to see at the aquarium.
- Wait, Wait, Don't Tell me on NPR, esp. the whacked out rhymes on the limericks.
- Monkey socks! I crack myself up. No laugh is too cheap for me.
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| Mission in Life |
[11 Jan 2009|09:43am] |
I am reading Richard Bolles' book How to Find Your Mission in Life. It is far too religious for me comfort level. However, I hit a page this morning that made me think (which is the point anyway).
from p. 58 "Your unique and individual mission will most likely turn out to be a mission of Love, acted out in one or all of three arenas: either in the Kingdom of the Mind, whose goal is to bring more truth into the world; or in the Kingdom of the Heart, whose goal is to bring more beauty into the world; or in the Kingdom of the Will, whose goal is to bring more perfection into the world thru service."
The concepts of "Mind" and "Truth" really resonate for me. But I want to head for an ideal that integrates all 3 of his Kingdoms. I refuse to choose just one.
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| Gacked from The Happiness Project Blog |
[29 Dec 2008|02:31pm] |
worth repeating
[quote]
4. Realize that anything worth doing is worth doing badly.
Challenge and novelty are key elements of happiness. The brain is stimulated by surprise, and successfully dealing with an unexpected situation gives a powerful sense of satisfaction. People who do new things — learn a game, travel to unfamiliar places — are happier than people who stick to familiar activities that they already do well. I often remind myself to “Enjoy the fun of failure” and tackle some daunting goal. [unquote]
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