New

Your success and happiness lies in you.  Resolve to keep happy and your joy and you shall form an invincible host against difficulties.

~ Helen Keller

- - - - -

I found this upon reviewing drafts for my blog.  I think I had intended to post it on January 1st, 2013.  Instead, I'll post it today.  E's birthday...

I struggled with what to write for this New Year's Day post.  I wasn't sure if I should be reflective, philosophical, cynical...  And then I saw this picture of Elizabeth at the beach.  I love the ocean.  And I love Elizabeth.  And so I decided to go with this for a post...

A new year's day is a chance to look ahead differently.  To see things in a new way.  It's our annual "do-over."  Our "this year I'm gonna..." moment.  The time when we haven't made any mistakes this year, yet.  And we are working toward a set of sometimes ambiguous and sometimes unachievable goals.

I don't think the symbol for New Year's should be a baby.  A baby can't do anything - besides wear a sash and a top hat, I guess.  I know it's supposed to represent possibility.  But it is possibility without capability.

I think the symbol for New Year's should be a 12 year old.  Obnoxious at times, but with enough knowledge to know that some of the things the rest of us don't think are possible ARE possible.  Not only are they possible, but each 12 year old is the one person who can achieve those possibilities.  Kind of like the political candidates caucusing in Iowa around this time.

With most 12 year-olds, you don't know for sure if they'll use their powers for good or for evil.  Same thing with each new year.  You don't know if it's going to be good or super-sucky.

Also, I think that the New Year's symbol should probably be a 12 year old girl.  Because most pre- and early-teen old boys, as I have mentioned before, look and act like Shrek and there could be copyright issues if we used them.

Parenting

You don't really understand human nature unless you know why a child on a merry-go-round will wave at his parents every time around - and why his parents will always wave back.

~ William D. Tammeus

- - - - -

I can only imagine how much of a shock it was for Luke Skywalker to learn that Darth Vader is his father.  Oops.  I should have given a spoiler alert in case people haven't seen Star Wars.  Or at least for those who haven't seen The Empire Strikes Back.

I have to believe that Mr. Vader was doing what he thought was best for his family.  Right?

I don't think people should tell other people how to raise their kids.

(pause)

Well, I did tell that one guy that I thought he ought to use BOTH hands to raise his infant daughter over his head. 

Bridge

The grave is but a covered bridge,

Leading from light to light, through a brief darkness.

~ Henry Wadsworth Longfellow

- - - - -

I really like bridges.  You may have already realized that if you have read some of my other blog posts.  This is one of the covered bridges in Madison County, Iowa.  I need for you to understand that while I like bridges and I even enjoy seeing the bridges in Madison County, I did not enjoy reading The Bridges of Madison County.  Actually, I'm not 100% sure that I read the entire book.  I did see the movie. 

I like Meryl Streep.  She was in the movie.  While I didn't see her on my recent trip, I like to think that she probably was there.  Admiring me from afar.  Too nervous to come up and ask for my autograph.  I think I get that a lot from celebrities, but of course I can never be sure.

Curious

I have no special talent.  

I am only passionately curious.

~ Albert Einstein

- - - - -

I have written blogs like this before, but sometimes I find notes I have written and have no idea what they mean.  I assume they were possible prompts for the blog, but I am  not always sure.

Today, I found a Post-It brand post it note with the following on it:

"Fly in the car.  albatri pl of albatross.  coral sex."

Albatri is NOT the plural of albatross.  Albatrosses is.  Or albatross is also acceptable as plural.  However, I guess that albatri is Italian for albatross.  

I like to try to find ways to link disparate ideas.  This is a challenging one, though.

Coral reproduces asexually.  All three are living beings - fly, albatross, coral.  An albatross can fly.

I just tried an anagram generator for "fly albatri coral," but don't want to share what it generated.

Coral is the symbol of Florida.  An albatross is a symbol for a psychological burden.  A fly is a symbol for evil or mortality.  The state motto of Florida is "The Sunshine State."  It used to be "The Land of Good Living."

I think we have it.  An albatross is killed in the Rime of the Ancient Mariner.  A fly is a symbol of mortality and "The Land of Good Living" as a motto is dead to the state of Florida.

(pause)

I really wish I could remember what my blog ideas were for those things.

Communication

The single biggest problem in communication 

is the illusion that it has taken place.

~ George Bernard Shaw

- - - - - 

Communication is difficult.  It's difficult in person, in writing, over the phone.  It's more difficult with some people than others.  It is affected by emotions on the part of the sender and the receiver.  It is affected by one's surroundings.  It changes all the time from one moment to the next.  

You know the conversation about, "What if red doesn't look the same to you as it does to me?"  Well, words are the same way.  What if "love" doesn't mean the same to you as it does to me?  Or "sunshine."  Or "Flag Day."  Or "puppy."  We have to navigate these kinds of things all the time.  It's difficult.  

The other day Leslie and I were talking on the phone and I realized that I was not understanding what she was trying to convey.

Me:  Either you're not communicating well or I'm not tracking.

Leslie:  (pauses)  Whichever one is bad for you.

See how we communicated?  I identified a problem - poor communication, and she identified the cause - me.  It's good to talk through communication problems.

Dreams

It takes a lot of courage to show your dreams to someone else.

~ Erma Bombeck

- - - - -

When I was a kid I had a recurring dream of being on a train and being chased by a witch through the train.  I would get to the caboose and jump off in a tunnel and the witch would stand on the back of the caboose shaking her fist at me as the train sped away.

I'm not sure what that means.  First of all, other than in the movies or cartoons, I have never seen someone so angry that s/he shook her or his fist at another person.  That seems an unusual gesture.  Second, I guess it's good I was able to escape the witch, but now I'm stranded in a train tunnel in the middle of who knows where?  Third, I don't remember other people being on the train, but if there were other people, seriously?  They couldn't help a little kid out?  Finally, you might think that maybe the witch represents my mom and I was mad at her because she was trying to boss me around.  But you forget about the dream where I discovered that my mom was really Wonder Woman and she came to speak at a school assembly, so I don't think I thought she was the witch.

Why don't you like my mom?

Words

Words are, of course, the most powerful drug used by humankind.

~ Rudyard Kipling

- - - - -

I am confident I probably mentioned in my blog before that my least favorite word is "conglomerate."  It sticks in your throat, gag-like and ends too gently to clear the feeling by the time the word is done.  I hate that word.

I decided recently that my favorite word is "our."  I think that using that word unifies people psychologically which can lead to connecting us literally - emotionally, in terms of purpose, with a focus on the common good.  It is about sharing.  About care.  About partnership.  About togetherness.

It's as if the word is saying, "Oh, you are one with me.  We are together in this.  We share something."  And it is interesting that "our" is spelled "Oh, you are."  O - U - R.

Crazy, huh?  

P.S.  I love how this is our favorite blog.  Don't you?

Distance

We should not judge people by their peak of excellence; but by 

the distance they have traveled from the point where they started.

~ Henry Ward Beecher

- - - - -

There is a guy in town whom I have seen twice at the Hy-Vee parking lot.  He walks around with his boom box booming, "Slow Ride" by Foghat.  I like him.  I only see him at the Hy-Vee parking lot.  And I only hear him playing that one song.  

And I only like him from a distance.

This might be unusual.  But it isn't.  Because from a distance is how I really like most people.  And by "a distance" I mean about half the width of the Hy-Vee parking lot.

Dad

To me clowns aren't funny.  In fact, they're kind of scary.  

I've wondered where this started and I think it goes back 

to the time I went to the circus and a clown killed my dad.

~ Jack Handy

- - - - -

A clown never killed my dad at a circus.  But clowns are still scary.

The only real circus memory I have is the time we went and Erik got a root beer and then a wasp or a bee was flying around his root beer cup.  Some woman walked up - allegedly to help.  She swatted at the wasp, which flew away.  At the end of her swat, however, she knocked the cup of root beer out of Erik's hand and it spilled all over the ground.  And the woman looked at Erik and then walked away.

I also kind of remember those little gun things that made sparks when you pulled the trigger.  Maybe we got some of those that day.  

My point, though, is that I called my dad LAST Sunday to wish him Happy Father's Day.  Last Sunday was NOT Father's Day.  I think it just goes to show that I probably love my dad more than you love yours if you haven't called him to wish him Happy Pre-Father's Day.

Vending

He was as uncommunicative as a vending machine.

~ Lewis H. Lapham

- - - - -

Sometimes when I am looking at photos and thinking of ideas for blogs, I try to learn a little bit about whatever is in the photo.  In the process of writing this blog, I learned that the first recorded information about vending machines was based on the work of Hero of Alexandria who was an engineer and mathematician in the first century.  He designed and built a vending machine to sell holy water.

Then there was a lull in vending machine activity until the 1880s when they re-surfaced in London to sell postcards and shortly thereafter in the U.S. to sell gum for the Thomas Adams Gum company.  Coke had the first soda vending machines.  The vending machine is also an ancestor of gumball, pinball and slot machines.

In a lot of ways what I do in judicial affairs is kind of like being a vending machine of justice.  Except without having to put coins in first.  And without getting to choose which "flavor of justice" you want.  Though if you could choose a flavor you should choose Skittles justice - no matter what Sara says.  Because Skittle justice affords you a variety of justice in one package.  As opposed to Cool Ranch Dorito justice which is all just Cool Ranch Dorito-like.

(pause)

I have made my peace with the fact that some blogs are better than others.

Art

The purpose of art is washing the dust of daily life off our souls.

~ Pablo Picasso

- - - - -

I love unexpected art.  I love finding art where it "shouldn't be."  Which is stupid.  Because art SHOULD be everywhere.  And maybe it is.  If we take the time to look.  If we let the definition of art be broad and more-encompassing.  

I say more-encompassing instead of all-encompassing on purpose.  Because not everything IS art.  Like litter.  Or roadkill.  Or most things involving pipe cleaners.

Patience

Life on a farm is a school of patience; you can't hurry the crops 

or make an ox in two days.

~ Henri Alain

- - - - -

I have more patience than I realized.  I find that I appreciate things more when I have to wait for them.  It doesn't mean I like doing that, but sometimes with some things I am willing and able to be patient.  Maybe as I have moments where I realize Zen I am able to be in the moment and not lurching after the future.

Maybe I have simply grown more patient as I have gotten older.  It seems like it shouldn't be that way.  That as you get older and time slips away you should be less patient.  Or maybe I'm not yet old enough to be impatient.  I'm still out patient.

Exit

I don't believe in dying.  It's been done.  I'm working on a new exit.

Besides, I can't die now - I'm booked!

~ George Burns

- - - - -

Sometimes I'm sad when people die.  I know that death is a part of life and not separate from life.  I know that it is the next phase.  Some people think everything ends when you die.  Some people think you come back for another trip.  Some people think you go to Heaven.  Some people probably think things about death that I don't know they are thinking.

When I was little, they told me that when you die you go to Heaven and everything is perfect there.  At the time, I imagined that Heaven was a big room with lots of bunk beds and a huge swimming pool.  

As I got older, I realized how silly and juvenile that was.  First, I almost drowned which kind of squashed the swimming pool aspect.  And then I found out that bunk beds aren't necessarily ideal.

Does that mean that I was wrong about Heaven as a child?  Or does it mean that Heaven changed as I got older?  Probably neither.  And both.  I actually think that Heaven can be all things to all people.

Let me just add this...  Now that I'm older, I am also sure that "bunk bed swimming Heaven" is separated from whatever my new version of Heaven is by soundproof walls.  Because if it wasn't, it wouldn't be heavenly at all to me.

Jealousy

To jealousy, nothing is more frightful than laughter.

~ Francoise Sagan

- - - - -

I was at a park the other day and I wondered if clouds and trees ever get jealous of one another.  I realize I'm anthropomorphizing these things.  And I am projecting negative human characteristics on them.  But I wondered.

I thought that maybe a tree would be jealous of a cloud because the cloud can just wander and can see things from up on high and can be closer to the sky and the sun and the stars.

And I thought maybe the cloud would be jealous of the tree because the tree is grounded and connected to something and a part of the global ecosystem.

I guess the grass is always greener.

And the grass is probably jealous of the tree because the tree is tall.  But the grass is not jealous of the clouds because the tree blocks the clouds so the grass doesn't even know they are up there.

Cooking

The only real stumbling block is fear of failure. 

In cooking you've got to have a what-the-hell attitude.

~ Julia Child

- - - - -

 

I completely agree with Julia Child.  And let me tell you that when I started cooking with my new pan and the paper on the bottom of the pan started burning I most certainly DID think "What the hell?!"

Music

Music in the soul can be heard by the universe.

~ Lao Tzu

- - - - -

 

I was looking on Craigslist recently and saw a posting for "74 Cassette Tapes."  I went and looked and it looked like my cassette tape collection from when I had cassette tapes.  I am not sure how someone got so many of my old tapes.  Or at least seemed to have gotten them.

 

And then I remembered the time when we had April Fool's Month in the hall where I was a resident assistant.  The pranks culminated in my room being disassembled and moved from in my room to between the elevators.  Loft and all. 

 

That wasn't the worst part.  The worst part was that someone also took my cassette tapes and moved them from one case to the next.  I had them in alphabetical order (because it is how I function best when it comes to music, DVDs, etc.).  At first I thought they had just scrambled them.  I realphabetized them and all was well.  Until I went to play one and it wasn't in the right case.

 

The most brilliant part of this was that they didn't reorganize them in any particular order.  It took me months to get that all sorted out.

 

Not only can music in the soul be heard by the universe, so could my growls of frustration at this entire experience.

But I'm over it now.  I barely remember it at all.

 



Hike

The earth is what we all have in common.

~ Wendell Berry

- - - - -

When Leslie and I hiked the bog we came to this place on the path.  After looking at the marker for a moment, Leslie said, "Where in the world else would you go?!"

I concur that it was pretty apparent that the bridge on the path was the next part of the route hikers would want to follow.

However, if we expand this beyond our own lived experiences, this sign could mean other things.  For instance, if you are billy goat, it might indicate that this bridge is safe to cross.  Or if you are a hobo, this symbol means you should be ready to defend yourself.

If you are a hobo billy goat, I guess you can go over the bridge, but be ready to defend yourself, too.

Creativity

When we all think alike, no one is thinking.

~ Walter Lippman

- - - - -

My mom is very creative.  She helped create me, after all.  

I remember when I was a kid she used an old tackle box for a first aid kit.  It was huge and all the compartments came in handy for different things - bandages, ointments, tweezers, whatever.  She was a nurse and so she knew a lot of first-aidy kinds of things that would be good to have on hand.  The cranial saw did take up a lot of space in the tackle box, though.

Time

Time is but the stream I go a-fishing in.

~ Henry David Thoreau

- - - - -

 

My birthday is a month from today.  People think I make a big deal about my birthday because I mention it frequently.  It is a pretty important day.  At least in my life it is important.  It is kind of the starting point.  Not in an abstract metaphysical sense, but in a literal sense.

 

This year my birthday falls on a Saturday.  I was also born on a Saturday.  "Saturday's child works hard for a living," the saying goes.  That is true.  I do work pretty hard most days. 

 

You can also sing, "Works hard for a living" to the tune of Donna Summer's "She Works Hard for the Money." 

 

I just accidentally typed, "She Works Hard for the Monday."  That's interesting. And would be true if either someone worked an extra job on the weekends and the job she had on Monday was easier OR if she worked weekends and got Mondays off.

 

Anyway, you could also sing, "You work hard for my birthday," to the same tune.

 

My point is that hard work is important. 

And hard.

 

And my birthday is a month from today.



Days

Monday Monday, so good to me,
Monday Monday, it was all I hoped it would be.

~ John Phillips

- - - - -

 

Yesterday morning (Tuesday), when I was walking in to the Memorial Union from the parking ramp, I was greeted by a man who said, "Good Monday morning!!"  I was messing around on my phone, so I looked up briefly and said, "Yes."

 

Then I realized it wasn't Monday. 

 

I followed him (because we were headed the same direction not because I was creepering him) and heard him say the same thing to the front desk staff at the MU hotel.  Then I saw him go to a room and look in. The lights were off.  There were no tables set up.  No one was in the room.

 

Then I saw him look at the daily events schedule bulletin board.  Then he pulled papers out from his bag - as though he were checking to see where his 7 a.m. Monday morning meeting was being held.

 

I think he really thought it was Monday. 

 

It reminded me of The Office episode where Dwight thought it was Friday, but it was really Thursday.

 

Now, I don't know what meeting the man missed - if indeed he missed a meeting.  I have to believe, though, that it is better to miss a Monday meeting and take an extra weekend day than it is to think Sunday is Monday and show up to work and wonder where everyone is.

 

And maybe I was creepering him a little.  I just watched him, though.  I didn't stray from my predetermined route in the process.  Is that still creepering?  Not to me.

 

(pause)

 

But maybe to him.

Reflection

Magic Mirror: Prepare to be amazed beyond all expectations.  After all it is what I do.

~ Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs (1937)

- - - - -

I think that sometimes movies do not send good life lessons.  Take Disney movies with princesses, for example.  There is a lot of talk about how they don't portray relationships in a very realistic or healthy way.  Like relationships with evil step-mothers.  But I think there is more to it than that.  I think if we really, really examine these films we can find other incredibly dangerous messages.

To my point, if someone was getting ready to go out somewhere and a bunch of birds started flying around trying to wrap ribbons and things around his or her neck or if the birds were pecking and pulling at the person's hair, I think freaking out and screaming is a better response in the real world than standing still and smiling and singing. 

Alone

I don't want to be alone, I want to be left alone.

~ Audrey Hepburn

- - - - -

I think it is good to be alone sometimes.  Or at least left alone.  I think reflection and quiet are important.  And we don't get enough of that.  Between people and the busyness of life and the constant connection of electronic engagement, there are few times we can find quiet and peace and calm.

I saw a man walking alone the other day.  I had stopped at the gas station.  He was walking.  By himself.  He wasn't looking at a cell phone or listening to something on earphones.  He was just walking.  By himself.  I don't know what sorts of thoughts he might be thinking or how he might be enjoying (or not) his aloneness.  I just thought it was interesting to see someone walking alone.  Without distraction.

Of course, he was wearing a shirt which read, "I fart on the first date," so that might have had something to do with it.

Nature

Green is the prime color of the world, and that from which its loveliness arises.

~ Pedro Calderon de la Barca

- - - - -

I have started trying to take a walk each day - either in the morning as the sun comes up or in the evening as the sun goes down.  The other night I walked over by the local swimming pool which is not yet open.  There is a large green, grassy field next to the pool and parking lot and a wooded area next to the field.  I have seen deer there lots of different times.

So on this particular walk I saw nine deer and three bats. I saw five people with five dogs. Then I saw three people with zero dogs. And two bicyclists on two bicycles. I saw zero armadillos. I saw zero bolts of lightning. I saw zero poisonous snakes.

It's scary that the armadillos and lightning and poisonous snakes are invisible.

Loop

People are always making rules for themselves 

and always finding loopholes.

~ William Rotsler

- - - - -

I like the idea of loops - as in "keep me in the loop."  The idea of roundness and wholeness and completion.  The idea that we are all part of something larger - separate but attached.  The idea that without each of us the whole would be severely compromised and not whole at all.

Keeping people in the loop is usually a good idea.  It should not, however, be confused with "Keep me in the noose."  While also round and about connection, there is a reason that saying never caught on.

Garden

A good garden may have some weeds.

~ Thomas Fuller

- - - - -

The other day I stopped by to see Rose and Jean.  Poor Jean was doing a bunch of work and running around while Rose just sat there at her desk.  Rose has a gigantic plant that is slowly taking over the entire office.  It reminded me of the plant from "Little Shop of Horrors."  Jean was trying to work without stepping on it.

I said, "Rose, you need to get that thing under control.  It's taking over the office.  Jean can hardly get her work done."

Rose nodded dismissively in that patronizing, "I hear you but I'm only nodding so you'll stop nagging me and I'm really ignoring you" kind of way.

I finally said very sternly, "When you started working here, they didn't promise you a garden, Rose!"

(pause)

I seriously crack myself up.  Jean and Rose both laughed.  And then Rose barked at Jean, "DON'T YOU HAVE WORK TO DO?!!!!"

Rose is a little intense.

Generations

What nobler employment, or more valuable to the state,

than that of the man who instructs the rising generation?

~ Marcus Tullius Cicero

- - - - -

 

Joe:  I was reading an article Sara showed me.  Guess what the generation from 1860-1882 was called.

 

Sara:  (laughing)  Joe, you are ridiculous.

 

Me:  I don't know.

 

Joe:  The "Missionary Generation."  Do you know why?

 

Me:  Because they didn't have cable?

 

Joe:  (laughs)  I wonder when the "On the Kitchen Table Generation" will be.

 

Sara:  I bet that wasn't the first thing that went through your head.

 

Joe:  Oh no.  The first thing was much worse.

Writing

A letter does not blush.

~ Marcus Tullius Cicero

- - - - -

 

 

I think it is interesting to learn about writers.  How they do what they do.  How they think.  Create.  Capture moments.  Tell us their stories.

 

Sometimes I listen to writers reading their work.  Some, you can tell, are really just writers - not readers.  But some are amazing readers of their writing.  Their tone and pace and inflection are perfect.  And draw you deeper into their tales.

 

Everyone writes in his or her own way, I guess.  When I write my blog, for example, I mostly just dump things on the page and let the words and punctuation sort themselves out.  It's what works for me.  Or at least what I do.  Maybe I'm not to judge if it "works" or not. 

 

But I am living my life with a writer now, and I get to learn from her.  She has some interesting quirks of her own when it comes to writing.  Like proofreading.  And conveying a message.

 

I don't always get bogged down with those sorts of specifics.

Smirk

There are only two styles of portrait painting; the serious and the smirk.

~ Charles Dickens

- - - - -

I think that the same holds true for portrait photography.  The above is probably the smirk.  I don't like having my photo taken.  When Leslie suggested this shot, though, I thought it was very clever.  And it's only sort of a portrait.

I wish that there were more styles for emoticon portraits, too.  There are the serious and the happy, but not enough smirk emoticons, if you ask me.  Most of the smirking ones I've seen just look creepy.

Squirrel

Living is no laughing matter: you must live with great
seriousness like a squirrel for example - I mean without
looking for something beyond and above living.
Living must be your whole occupation.

~ Nazim Hikmet

- - - - -

Joy:  Good morning!  How are you?

Me:  I took a nice picture of a squirrel this morning.

Joy:  I know.  I saw that.

(She saw it, but did not LIKE it on Facbeook.  Not sure why.)

Joy:  The damn squirrels are getting in my bird feeders again.

Me:  Oh.

Joy:  I'm about ready to get the b.b. gun out.  But I'd end up shooting --

Me:  One of the boys.

Joy:  Myself.  (laughs)  Or, you're right, one of the boys.  I guess that's why Steve hid it from me.

Me:  He is a wise man.

Joy:  But I wish people didn't think I'd do things like that.

(pause)

Me:  But you just said that you would do something like that.

Joy:  I know.  But I don't want other people to think that and wonder about me.

Me:  Joy, we've all been wondering about you for a long time.

Joy:  I know. 

Dreamt

A dream doesn't become reality through magic; 

it takes sweat, determination and hard work.

~ Colin Powell

- - - - -

I don't know why, but my Gmail doesn't recognize the word "dreamt."  It has - wait!  My blog doesn't recognize it, either.  That is sad to me.  Is technology trying to take away my dreams?  Or at least the dreams of my past?  Or is it jealous because it does not dream?

I think that sometimes people who haven't found their dreams or who are scared of their dreams try to squash the dreams of others.  I think most of the time this isn't even a conscious act.  Most people are afraid of their dreams.  Even those who pursue them, I am guessing, are scared about what might happen if they achieve their dreams.

My dad always told me to dream bigger than anything I thought I might ever achieve.  He said he had set goals in his life and had achieved them when he was young and then wasn't sure what to reach for next.

So I have big dreams.  I dream of a life full of laughter and love and creativity.  I dream of winning an academy award.  And a Pulitzer Prize.  And the Nobel Peace Prize Of course, at some point I'm going to have to actually do something to get those things.  I'm going to need to write.

And be peaceful.

Stuff

Life is pretty simple: You do some stuff. Most fails. Some works. You do more of what works. If it works big, others quickly copy it. Then you do something else. The trick is the doing something else.

~ Leonardo da Vinci



- - - - -

I think I've said this before, but I like looking at ads on Craigslist.  What people sell and their marketing strategies are interesting.  And I like it when they use creative spelling.  I'm assuming they misspell words as an attention-getter, not because they don't know how to spell.  Or when they sell several things all at once and you wonder what kind of person would own that particular collection of items.

That said, it's not like I have all day to sit around and look at Craigslist.  I have to manage my time.  So when I see something listed as, "Artwork--- Balloons in Paris.  $35," I know that I don't have to spend my time reading that listing.

For the record, I am not sure da Vinci really said the quote above.  I found it online which already casts it in a suspicious life.  I'm not sure he would have used the word "stuff" very often (or "roba" in Italian.  Yes, I'm fluent.  In Google Translate.). Though he invented a lot of stuff and did a lot of stuff and painted a lot of stuff. 

Maybe I should go back and reconsider that "Balloons in Paris" artwork.  What if it something da Vinci painted?  Me getting it for $35 would be the deal of the century!

(pause)

Yeah.  So, I went back and looked at it.  It's not a da Vinci. 

(pause)

I really am not that good at managing my time.

Kid

- - - - -

I like little kids.  They make up realities because they haven't been forced into thinking a certain way, yet.  They are still making meaning of the world around them without having belief systems or laws of physics or social norms forced upon them.

I think I have some pretty good ideas now, but if I could go back to my little kid self, I think I'd have some really amazing ideas.  I think that little kids should write books for little kids.  Except maybe some of them can't spell so well.  Which means I'm privileging the social norm of and "rule" of spelling.  Which I am.  Because I don't want to sit down with a pile of kids book and read something like:

"AHnd oadd m dnne..."

Which is how some kids would type, "Once upon a time..."

(pause)

Of course, only if they had the fairytale norms of storytelling already ingrained in their kid brains.  They might start a story with:

"SDfoii asssdii adfoicu as ufuf ... weid zozdim."

But who knows what that means?  And I think zozdim should be capitalized.

Talking

If you talk to a man in a language he understands, that goes to his head.  

If you talk to him in his language, that goes to his heart.

~ Nelson Mandela

- - - - -

I really like Leslie.  She is hilarious.  She says multiple things every day that make me laugh.  Often on purpose.  I like to share those things, but sometimes she doesn't want me to.  Sometimes I double check with others to see if I should share them or not.

As an example, I blogged a while ago about something she said that was hilarious.  Probably one of the funniest things I've heard.  I wanted to blog about it, but she asked me not to.  So I sent it to my brother and his partner Jared.  The humor involved Jared, actually.

When I texted it, Kirk didn't respond right away.  But then he did.

Me:  You didn't write back so I was worried L was right and you two were offended.  Had to share.  She doesn't want me to blog it...

Kirk:  I agree on the blog part.  Jared's not here so not sure what he thinks.  I'll let you know.

(Later)

Kirk:  Jared laughed when I showed him...  Also, agreed...  Don't blog.

So, in the end I guess Leslie was right.  What she said - while funny - wasn't something I ought to have shared.  I'm glad I got a second opinion from Kirk and third opinion from Jared - the target of her humor.  

The moral of the story is, not everything needs to be shared.  Some things should be kept private.  Or at least out of my blog.  I'm glad I know where those boundaries are. Or that I have people around me who tell me where those boundaries ought to be.

Art

A fool's brain digests philosophy into folly, science into superstition, 

and art into pedantry.  Hence, university education.

~ George Bernard Shaw

- - - - -

This is some art outside of Ames.  I love this kind of thing.  The artist used real people as models.  And now there are images of them around the state.

I think art is a good idea.  It gives us something to look at.  And think about.  And something to inspire us.

You can find art in a lot of things...  In ARchiTecture, in your heART, you can put some of it on a shopping cART.  You get the idea.

And, yes, I realize you can find ART in a fart.  But that kind of lowbrow observation just proves you can't appreciate art as good as me.

Values

Values are not trendy items that are casually traded in.

~ Ellen Goodman

- - - - -

I wonder if most people see their values has valuable.  As having literal value.  I don't mean something on which you put a price tag.  I don't mean something with which you barter for other goods, services, or values.  In effect, they are priceless.  You can't put a dollar amount on the things which comprise your essence or being, can you?

But once you give up or sell-out on your values, are they really gone?  Are they gone forever in a way you can't get them back?  If one's values can change over time, can they be retrieved if you have compromised them in some way in the past?  Maybe they are always in flux and adapting to the moment, the experience, the situation at hand.

If there was a store called "Values Mart" I would go there.  It would be interesting to see what values they had for sale.  And what the packaging looked like for the values.  And what the costs would be for different values.

Though, I think they ought to change the name to "Values Emporium" to make it more alluring.

Brain

The human brain now holds the key to our future.  

We have to recall the image of the planet from outer space: 

a single entity in which air, water and continents are interconnected.  

That is our home.

~ David Suzuki

- - - - -

I have heard people say to other people, "If you had a brain, you'd be dangerous."  I don't know that anyone has ever said that to me.  Maybe.  Or maybe about me when I wasn't around.  

Anyway, it made me think of how the Tin Man was the same way.  Except that the Tin Man had an axe. Which already made him dangerous.  Oh, wait.  He didn't need a brain he needed a heart.

(pause)

But then, someone with an axe and no heart is pretty dangerous, too, I suppose.

Puzzle

Who in the world am I?

Ah.  That is the great puzzle.

~ Lewis Carroll

- - - - -  

I like puzzles.  I may have mentioned this before.  I like taking chaos and putting it back in order.  Making sense of pieces.  Seeing how things fit together.  Creating order.  Organizing.

Of course, it's a man-made created chaos.  Since someone took a photo, put it on cardboard and cut it into pieces.  Then took the pieces apart and mixed them up.

Maybe all chaos is man-made, though.  Maybe if we left things alone, they would make sense on their own.

Except for clowns.  Those will never make sense.  Putting on a disguise to hang out with children is creepier than almost everything.  

I sure do hate clowns.  But I like puzzles.  So what about a puzzle of a clown?  Would I like it or hate it?

Easy.  I would hate it.

Ideas

We need to give each other the space to grow, to be ourselves, to exercise our diversity.  We need to give each other space so that we may both give and receive such beautiful things as ideas, openness, dignity, joy, healing, and inclusion.

~ Max de Pree

- - - - -

Sometimes I get ideas about how to be more sustainable.  I think about biorenewable resources.  I think about using what is in nature to our benefit without wrecking nature.  I think about mutually beneficial measures to increase not only energy and productivity, but livability on our planet.  Seriously, my mind goes like a mile an hour.

(pause)

That sounds slow, but I was comparing it with running in a race.  An idea race.  And I'm not a very fast runner.

Society

A society grows great when old men plant trees 

whose shade they know they shall never sit it.

~ Greek Proverb

- - - - -

The other day I was waiting with Cameron and Jenny for a Downton Abbey lecture to start.  Jenny said to Cameron, "Did you ever go to school when this was a thing?" and showed him a black and white picture of a young woman.  Cameron laughed.

I said, "I think that's me in the picture."

It was a photo of a woman looking through a card catalog drawer.

And I thought, "Wow.  She really hasn't ever used a card catalog."  And then I thought, "Wow.  I hope she was talking about card catalogs and not libraries."

Wonder

He who can no longer pause to wonder and

stand rapt in awe, is as good as dead;

his eyes are closed.

~ Albert Einstein

- - - - -

 

Sometimes I go through the world and miss things.  We aren't paying attention.  Sometimes things are even offered to us and we miss out because we don't take the time to appreciate them.  A flower, a sunset, and beach, a nice rock.  Amazing things are all around us.  And sometimes we don't even imagine that such amazing things could exist until they are put right in front of our faces.

 

For example, the other day I was looking at Facebook as I do most every day.  I saw a post which read, "Ever wanted to see a cat in a shark costume chasing a duckling while riding a Roomba?"  Little did I know I HAD always wanted to see that.

 

The world is full of miracles.

Future

Every saint has a past and every sinner a future.

~ Oscar Wilde

- - - - -

 

The other day I read my horoscope.  It started with, "Stifle outrage for now."

 

I didn't know I was outraged.  Or that I am going to be outraged.  Some days I think I shouldn't read my horoscope.  I just am always interested in what the universe thinks it has in store for me.  Silly universe.

 

So, I'm stifling my outrage.  For now.  I channel it elsewhere.  Like into my art.  This blog.  At least until my horoscope says, "Let that outrage loose upon the world!"

Rooms

There is a big difference between what I do onstage and what I do in my private life.  

I don't put my living room on magazine pages.

~ Annie Lennox

- - - - -

I was looking at Craigslist the other day and I saw an ad for some "leaving room furniture."  It got me to thinking about perception and how we create realities in our minds about space.  I guess the person posting the ad had always envisioned the main room of the house as a room from which people leave.  I wonder if that had an impact on his or her interactions with others.  Was the person always focused on the departure?  Maybe some kind of abandonment mentality?  It was very interesting to me.

While there may be some sad implications for the person focused on the "leaving" part of any interaction, I do think it is better than calling a room a "coming room."  Though "arrival chamber" has a nice ring to it.

Bridge

The grave is but a covered bridge leading from light to light through a brief darkness.

~ Henry Wadsworth Longfellow

- - - - -

People deal with change differently.  I know this is not profound.  Much of what I say is probably more common and made even more common by my reiterating it.

But think about this...  Two people - once friends perhaps, or relatives - have a conflict.  There is a rift.  There is distance created that they have problems overcoming.  And one person feels it is done and there is no going back.  He burns the bridge between the two of them.  The other person, however, feels that time heals all wounds and that what happened is simply water under the bridge.

If the second person develops her perspective first and communicates it with the first person, then the bridge need not be burned.  If, however, the first person makes his choice first and the bridge is burned, then there is no bridge for the water to go under.  Water under a burning bridge, as it were, is too little too later.  And water under a burning bridge cannot put out the fire.

Throw into the mix a third person who is bungee jumping off the bridge and you have tremendous chaos.  Comedy or tragedy or just bungee.

Magic

Magic is believing in yourself. 

If you can do that, you can make anything happen.

~ Johann Wolfgang von Goethe



- - - - -

I vaguely remember that perhaps I have used this image before.  If I had it in front of me, I would spin it so it could tell me if I've used it.  I don't.

Anyway, the other day I was walking across campus.  It was a beautiful day.  Lots of students were lying on the grass or studying outside with friends or playing frisbee. 

I passed two young men engrossed in conversation.  This is what I overheard, ""I was initially calling him a magician, but he's not really a magician."

That's all I heard.  I wonder what "he" really is.  Some possibilities:

* A wizard
* A Magic Eraser®
* A flower pot
* A tea pot
* His roommate
* A dog
* A calendar
* A coffee table book on staplers

Some magical mysteries are meant to remain just that, I suppose.  Like where thunder and babies come from.

Creativity

(art by Andy Magee)

To live a creative life, we must lose our fear of being wrong.

~ Joseph Chilton Pearce

- - - - -

I write my blog posts when the spirit hits me.  I have found that I can't just sit down and blog on a whim.  I can try, but if I'm not in the right mood, I won't come up with much.  But when I AM in the mood, I can fly through and write a lot of blogs all at once.  

In my haste, however, I find that I sometimes make errors.  I don't always catch them until after the blog is posted.  When I notice them, I go back and correct them.  I'm sure there are some I have missed.  I'd rather have errors and get caught up in the wave of creativity than never make a mistake and not know the feeling of riding ideas and inspiration.

Basically, my blog entries examined individually are something less than the set of entries as a whole.  Each piece can be dissected and examined, but I think you miss some of its meaning if you look at it in isolation from the other entries.  Mistakes happen and mistakes make contribution.  They aren't necessarily bad things.  Well, except maybe in a dissertation. Then you need to fix those suckers!

But I digress...

So, if you encounter a blog entry with an error, either it is a good entry or there is a good one coming.  Okay?  And if you encounter a blog entry with no errors, it is a good entry or there is a good one coming.  Okay?

Education

Live as if you were to die tomorrow.

Learn as if you were to live forever.

~ Mohandas Gandhi

- - - - -

Me:  Maddie, I think I'm actually going to finish my Ph.D. this spring.

Maddie:  Really?  That's good.  What's next?  A master's degree?

Me:  No.  Ph.D. is the end unless I study something different.

Maddie:  What does a Ph.D. mean?  What can you do with it that you can't do now?

Me:  (pause)  Um, I can apply for some jobs I couldn't before.  (pause)  And I can teach at a university.

(long pause)

Maddie:  It seems like you should get to do more than that after all that work.

(longer pause)

Me:  (quietly)  Yeah.

Support

 

Truth stands, even if there be no public support.

It is self-sustained.

~ Mahatma Gandhi

- - - - -

The other day I got to have lunch with my friend Terry.  He was celebrating my successful dissertation defense with me.  We talked about our doctoral experiences and the challenges we overcame and the support that we had through our processes.

I said, "You know, I actually found Facebook to be a place where I got a lot of support.  Sometimes it was positive comments on my posts about my progress.  Other times it was just seeing that someone else posted, 'I can't believe I'm in the library on a Saturday night working on a literature review,' and I would be relieved it wasn't just me."

He said, "That's great.  Of course in my day we didn't have Facebook, we just had carrier pigeons."

I then went on for about ten minutes about this story I had heard on NPR over the weekend about carrier pigeons in World War II and how they are monogamous.  And then I realized that communication is very, very important during your dissertation - and we all find our own way to access it and use it and figure out who is on our support team. 

And also that I might listen to too much NPR.