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fishmech · 4 years

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DaNcInG-iN-yOuR-dUsT.nEt

.x.Welcome.x.

Welcome

to Dancing-in-Your-Dust.net. The name comes from the AFI song Paper Airplanes (makeshift wings). This is just a place to express my thoughts and ideas, if you don't like it..simply leave. If you do however, stick around and enjoy =D

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Lizzy. Arizona. sXe. Vegetarian. Sarcastic. AFI. Tiger Army. Nekromantix. <3 <3 Davey Havok. Make-Up. Music. Movies. <3 Johnny Depp. HUGE Dork. Despair Faction. TNBC. Lock, Shock & Barrel. Jack Skellington. Halloween.

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Since:

June 20th, 2003

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.x.About the Layout.x.

This is the 9th layout for DIYD. It features the Movie Sleepy Hollow ! =). The pictures are from

johnny depp online

and google image search.

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<3 Sadey

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<3 Cristal

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<3 Alyssa

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<3 Carol

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<3 Ashley

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<3 Krista

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<3 Karla

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.x.Current Events.x.

08-11-03: My B-Day 09-09-03: Jeanelle's B-Day 09-10-03: Work @ Merch Booth 4 the Starting Line 09-20-03: EdgeFest 03' 09-24-03: Seeing AFI/Hot Water Music/Bleeding Through in Fresno 09-26-03: Seeing AFI/Hot Water Music/Bleeding Through in Las Vegas 09-27-03: Seeing AFI/Hot Water Music/Bleeding Through in Utah 10-13-03: Kevin <3 <3 & Ashley's Birthday 10-14-03: Nightfall 10-30-03: Seeing AFI/Hot Water Music/Bleeding Through in Universal CA for Halloween Eve show 10-31-03: Halloween AFI'S Halloween Show??

.x.Playlist.x. Smile--AFI Jack of all Trades--Hot Water Music Unstoppable--Death by Stereo The Power of Moonlite--Tiger Army True Romance--Tiger Army Who Killed the Cheerleader--Nekromantix A Single Second--AFI Darkangel--VNVNATION Dirty Magic--The Offspring Anabelle Lee--Tiger Army The Man Who Sold the World--David Bowie Can I Say?--Dag Nasty .x.CD Player.x. Art of Drowning--AFI Sing the Sorrow--AFI Shut your mouth and open your eyes--AFI Moonlite--Tiger Army Can I say?--Dag Nasty Empires--VNVNATION War of all Time--Thursday .x.Stalker.x.

DancingInUrDust

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.x.At the Moment.x. Date:October 1, 2003 Mood: Tired Eating: Nothing Drinking: nothin Watching: nothin Hearing: Transplants Wearing: Night of the living dead Shirt and duck pj's Thinking: AFI IS ONLY 28 DAYS AWAY!!!!!!! Talking to: nobody Drooling over: Davey Havok Wanting: The 30th to get here! Surfing: Nothing .x.Tagboard.x. Name: URL: Message:

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I believe in ¤

Aliens, Ghosts, and Magic

Horror Movie

The Lost Boys & The Bride of Frankenstien

REAL men paint their nails.

AFI is my obsession

Morningstar by AFI is MINE

My Song::Morningstar

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October 6, 2003

Hello all..thought I'd write in here since I have pretty much nothing else to do. I've been up to pretty much nothing. Sadey and I went to the mall and bought our AFI limited edition Art & Artisha dolls..which cost an arm and a leg. We also talked to kevin..just him tho cuz Bobby-o wasn't there today. It was hilarious because when we were leaving I go to hug kevin and I accidentally hit his nose...he's all like "oh great she's trying to beat me up too!" good times man, good times. Anyway in other good news, Sadey's mom is thinking about opening a store sorta like Hot Topic @ the mall..and it's gonna be hella rad cuz well, I can work there =D We'd carry much more cooler things than Hot Topic..I mean I like that store at times but, they never really carry anything that cool now. Speaking of HT im gonna start working there prolly in mid november. Im putting my 2 weeks @ Target in tommorow. Anyhoo while I was at HT I saw this rad velvet black dress with like flared sleeves and I want it for the show in Universal but I checked the price and its like 90 bucks so I was like hell no..so Im gonna have my mom make one for me and im adding shit on it like red laced trim...its gonna be so super awesome =D Im trying to think of what else that has happened..Oh I was sick this weekened and I called in for work and Nickey (the LOD) got all pissed and told me im not taking my job seriously anymore and all this other BS and she hung up on me...so she basically called me a liar....and im telling you, I was really sick! So I woke up the next morning and it was already like 11:00am and my shift was supposed to start at 9 and I was like shit...they're gonna fire me. So I called Nickey and she apologized for hanging up on me and that she doesnt wanna lose me as an employee and that she values me and shit..I was just like yea, well you're in for a rude awakening cuz im quitting haha..no I didn't say that but I was thinking it..so she told me to just take the day off. I was like cool ok. So I guess thats all that really happened...I went to this wedding party thing on Saturday night w/ sadey a whole bunch of Italians from brooklyn...awesome as hell im in love with their accents..lol. There was this annoying kid there that was trying to impress Sadey and I by acting all drunk and telling us how much he had to drink when in all reality he wasn't really drunk he was just pretending because all his mom would let him have was one drink..little does he know we're sXe..haha loser. Alright anyhoo I guess thats all for site news.. my wonderful katie (rapturous voice davey fansite) is leaving me ::cries:: she bought a domain,

davey-havok.net

Ill miss you much Katie =D Go visit her now BTW. But the good news is that I got a new hostee,

Barbara

. She's gonna open the fanlisting for AFI's

Morningstar

which I am very happy about..it's about damn time someone decides to make a fanlisting for that song cuz it is such a beautiful song =D Alright so..enough of my rambling im out, later =D --Lizzy--[Deadjournal] | [Plug]

(8) are dancing in the dust

October 1, 2003

[EDIT]

Ok Im taking my blog down because it was wayyy too long and for some reason my ftp is not letting me write anything else on to my notepad sorry kids..if ya wanna know what happened just drop me a line on AIM @ dancinginurdust or email me at [email protected] and ill be sure to tell you everything...you can still click the pics and look at those if you like =D

[/EDIT] Happy October..new layout in spirit of Halloween..ill have loads more halloween ones than this..being as this is my fave holiday =D

1,2,3,4,5,6,7,8,9,10,11,12,13,14,15,16,17, 18,21, 22, 23, 24, 25 click here for autographs =D --Lizzy--[

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(7) are dancing in the dust

#2003 #old internet #old computer #long post

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saraschriefer · 5 years

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SIRI HUSTVEDT Notes on Seeing

1 To look and not see: an old problem. It usually means a lack of understanding, an inability to divine the meaning of something in the world around us.

2 Cognitive scientists have repeatedly conducted the following experiment and, without fail, they come up with same results. An audience is asked to watch a film of two teams playing basketball. They are given a job to count the number of times the ball changes hands. I have done this, and one has to be very attentive to follow the motion of the ball. In the middle of the game, a man wearing a gorilla suit walks onto the court, turns to the camera, thumps his chest and leaves. Half the people do not see the great ape. They do not believe that he was actually there until the film is replayed and, indeed, a gorilla strolls in and out of the game. Nearly everyone sees the gorilla if he is not given the assignment. This has been named inattentional blindness.

3 Writing at my desk now, I see the screen but this sentence dominates my attention. In fact, my momentary awareness that there is much around the words distracts me: the blue screen of the computer beyond the white edge of the page; various icons above and below; the surface of my desk cluttered with small Post-it squares which, when I turn my head, I can read, “Habermas 254-55”, “Meany et. al, implications for andrenocortical responses to stress” scrawled on pink paper (residue of arcane research); a black stapler; and countless other objects that enter my awareness the moment I turn to them. What is crucial is that I don’t turn to them. For hours every day, I have little, if any, consciousness of them. I live in a circumscribed phenomenal world. An internal narrator speaks words and dictates to my fingers that type automatically. There is no need to think about the connection between head and hands. I am subsumed by the link. Were another object suddenly to materialize on my desk and then vanish, I might well have no knowledge of either its appearance or disappearance.

4 Once, in an unfamiliar hallway, I mistook myself for a stranger because I did not understand I was looking in a mirror. My own form took me by surprise because I was not oriented in space. Expectation is powerful.

5 There are days when I think I see an old friend in the street, but it is a stranger. The recognition ignites like a match and then is instantly extinguished when I understand I am wrong. The recognition is felt, not thought. I can’t trace what created the error, can’t tell you why one person reminded me of another. Was the old friend a subliminal presence in my mind on that particular day or was the confusion purely external—a jut of the chin or slope of the shoulders or rhythm of a walk?

6 We do not become anesthetized to horrible photographs of death or suffering. We may choose to avoid them. When I see a gruesome image in the newspaper in the morning, I sometimes turn away, registering in seconds that looking too long will hurt me. People who gorge on horror films and violent thrillers do it, not because they have learned to feel too little, but because they indulge in the limbic rush that floods their systems as they safely witness exploding bodies. It seems that these viewers are mostly men.

7 We feel colors before we can name them. Colors act on us pre-reflectively. A part of me feels red before I can name red. My cognitive faculties lag behind the color’s impact. Standing in a room my eyes go first to the vase of red tulips because they are red and because they are alive.

8 My mother once told me about coming home to find our cat dead on the lawn. She saw the poor animal from many yards away, but she said she knew with absolute assurance that it was dead. An inert thing. An it.

9 Photographs of the beloved dead draw me in. I am fascinated. There is the good, dear face, one that changed over time. It is the picture that preserves the face, not my memory, which is befogged by the many faces he had over the years. Or is it the single face that grew old? Sometimes I cannot bear to look. The image has become a token of grief. And yet, there is nothing so banal as the pictures of strange families. After my father died, I found Christmas cards with photographs of unknown people among his papers—happy families—grinning into an invisible lens. I threw them away.

10 Galvanic skin response registers a change in the heat and electricity passed through the skin by nerves and sweat during emotional states. People in white coats attach electrodes to your hands and track what happens. When they show you a picture of your mother, your GSR goes up. Meaning in the body.

11 Is our visual world rich or poor? There are fights about this. People do not agree. Philosophers and scientists and other academics ponder this richness and poverty question in papers and books and lectures. Human beings have very limited peripheral vision, but we can turn our heads and take in more of the world. When I’m writing, my vision is severely limited by my attention, but sometimes when I let my eyes roam in a space, I discover its density of light and color and feel surprised by what I find. When I focus, say, just on the shadows here on my desk, they become remarkable. My small round clock casts a double shadow from either side of its circular base, one darker than the other, a gray and a paler gray. There is a spot of brilliant light at the edge of the darker oval. As I look, this sight has become beautiful.

12 Why is a face beautiful?

13 If an image is flashed too quickly to be perceived consciously, we take it in unconsciously and we respond to it without knowing what is happening. A picture of a scowling face I can’t say I’ve seen affects me anyway. Scientists call this masking. Blindsight patients have cortical blindness. They lose visual consciousness but not visual unconsciousness. They see but don’t know they are seeing. If you ask them to guess what you’re holding (a pencil) they will guess far better than people who are truly blind. Words and consciousness are connected. How much do I see of the world that never registers in my awareness? When I walk in the street, I sometimes glimpse a scene for just an instant but I cannot tell you what I have witnessed until a fraction of a second later when the puzzling image falls into place: that furry thing was a stuffed animal and a little boy was dangling it from his stroller. The lag again.

14 We are picture-making creatures. We scribble and draw and paint. When I draw what I see, I touch the thing I am looking at it with my mind, but it is as if my hand is caressing its outline. People who stopped drawing as children continue to make pictures in their dreams or in the hallucinations that arrive just before they go to sleep. Where do those images come from? I dreamed grass and brush and sticks were growing out of my arm, and I got to work busily trimming myself with a scissors. I wasn’t alarmed; it was a job handled in a matter-of-fact way. If I painted a self portrait with bushy arms, I would be called a surrealist.

15 Some people who go blind see vivid images and colors. Some people who are losing their vision hallucinate while awake. An old man saw cows grazing in his living room, and a woman saw cartoon characters running up and down her doctor’s arm. Charles Bonnet syndrome. Just before I fell asleep, I saw a little man speeding over pink and violet cliffs. Once I saw an explosion of melting colors—green, blues, reds, and then a great flash of light that devoured them all. Hypnogogic hallucinations. Freud said dreams protect sleep. At night the world is taken from us and we make up our own scenes and stories. When you wake up slowly, you will remember more of that human underground.

16 Deprived of sight, we make visions. Seeing is also creating.

There are things in the world to see. Do I see what you see? We can talk about it and verify the facts. Through my window is the back of a house. One of its windows is completely covered by a blue shade. But if I tell you I see a flying zebra you will say, Siri, you are hallucinating. You are dreaming while awake.

18 Sometimes artists can make a hallucination real. A painting of a flying zebra is a real thing in the world, a real thing to see.

19 Why do I not like the word “taste” when applied to art? Because it has lost its connection to the mouth and food and chewing. I don’t like the way this picture tastes. It’s bitter. If we thought about actual tastes, the word would still work. It would be a form of synesthesia, a crossing of our senses: seeing as tasting. But usually it is not used like that anymore so I avoid it entirely when I talk about art.

20 Looking at a human being or even a picture of a human being is different from looking at an object. Newborn babies, only hours old, copy the expressions of adults. They pucker up, try to grin, look surprised, and stick out their tongues. The photographs of imitating infants are both funny and touching. They do not know they are doing it; this response is in them from the beginning. Later, people learn to suppress the imitation mechanism; it would not be good if we went on forever copying every facial expression. Nevertheless, we human beings love to look at faces because we find ourselves there. When you smile at me, I feel a smile form on my own face before I am aware it is happening, and I smile because I am seeing me in your eyes and know that you like what you see.

21 I am looking at a small reproduction of Johannes Vermeer’s Study of a Young Woman, which hangs in a room at The Metropolitan Museum here in New York. It is a girl’s head and face. I say girl because she is very young. From her face I would guess she is no more than ten years old. When I look up the picture in one of my books on Vermeer, I see that there it is called Portrait of a Young Girl, a far better title. We should not turn girls into women too soon. She is smiling, but not a wide smile. Her lips are sealed. My impression is that she is looking at me, but I cannot quite catch her eye. What is certain is that she is answering someone else’s gaze. Someone has made her smile. She is not a beautiful child; it is her looking that is beautiful, her connection to the invisible person. There is shyness in her expression, reserve, maybe a hint of hesitancy. I think she is looking at an adult, probably the artist, because she has not let herself go. She looks over her shoulder at him. I have great affection for this girl. That is the magic of the painting; it is not that I have affection for a representation of a child’s head that was painted some time between 1665 and 1667. No, I feel I have actually fallen for her, the way I fall for a child who looks up at me on the street and smiles, perhaps a homely child, who with a single look calls forth a burst of maternal feeling and sympathy. But my emotion is made of something more; I remember my own girlhood and my shyness with grownups I didn’t know well. I was not a bold child and in her face I see myself at the same age.

22 In some of Gerhard Richter’s painted-over photographs, he painted over his wife’s face and parts of her body. He covered the bodies of his children, too, in snapshots of them as babies and growing children. In these gestures, I felt he was keeping them for himself, keeping the private hidden. Other times, he framed them with swaths of color, turning them into featured subjects. I love those pictures.

23 Mothers have a need to look at their children. We cannot help it.

24 Lovers have a need to look at each other. They cannot help it.

25 Several years ago a friend sent me a paper on mirror neurons. They were found in the brains of macaque monkeys. When one monkey makes a gesture, grabs a banana, neurons in his premotor cortex are activated. When another monkey watches the gesture, but doesn’t make it, the same neurons are activated in his brain. Human beings have them, too. We reflect each other.

26 Looking at pornography is exciting but loses its interest after orgasm.

27 Reading the end of James Joyce’s Ulysses when Molly Bloom is remembering is erotic because she gives permission, gives up and gives way, and this is always exciting and interesting because it is personal not impersonal. Isn’t it strange that looking at little abstract symbols on a white page can make a person feel such things? I see her in his arms. I am in his arms. I remember your arms.

28 When I read stories, I see them. I make pictures and often they remain in my mind after I have finished a novel, along with some phrases or sentences. I ground the characters in places, real and imagined. But I always remember the feeling of a book best, unless I have forgotten it altogether.

29 I do not usually see philosophy with some exceptions: Plato, Pascal, Kierkegaard, and Nietzsche because they are also storytellers.

30 Some people cannot make visual imagery. They do not see pictures in their minds. They do not turn words into images. I didn’t know such a thing was possible until a short time ago. They see abstractly. They remember the symbols on the page.

31 “I see” can also mean “I understand.”

32 There is a small part of the brain called the fusiform gyrus that is crucial for recognizing faces. If you lose this ability your deficit is called prosopagnosia. It happens that a person with brain damage looks at herself in the mirror, and believes she is seeing, not herself, but a double. It seems that what has vanished is not reason, but that special feeling we get when we look at our reflections, that warm sense of ownership. When that disappears, the image of one’s self becomes alien.

33 I look and sometimes I see.

#siri hustvedt #notes on seeing #writing

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cutiecrates · 5 years

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Cutie Reviews: Kawaii Box Oct 18

Hello! Welcome to the October 2018 Kawaii Box review :3

Before I begin I wanted to let you guys know that I will finally be making a purchase at Blippo.com -the official shop relates to Kawaii Box- this upcoming month. I don’t really have any plans in mind as to what I’ll be getting, but my goal is to spend over $25.00, as this is the limit needed to obtain a “free gift” and I’m curious to see what it pertains. I’ll be making a follow-up blog post about the whole experience, items, etc, when it comes.

Without further ado, let’s get on with the review!

This months theme: Kawaii Halloween!

This months word: Kabocha - Pumpkin

Kawaii Neko Pocket Mirror

Our first item is this ultra-cute pocket mirror with an adorable kitty in a cup with Please written on it. I’m not sure what the writing on top translates as- but isn’t this the cutest thing ever~?

From the book and Blippo website, I assume there was various alternate designs/colors you could receive, I couldn’t find this exact model on there but they had a bunch of cute ones like it ranging from $3.90-$4.90.

The mirror is very clear and easy to clean, and because there’s two sides of it you can easily see whatever angle you’re trying to get.

Rating: ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥

Besides being really cute, I was actually surprised by this. In the past, a long time ago I’ve gotten a couple of folding, flimsy, plastic mirrors. They got the job done and they were really cute too- but there was always that risk they would break you know?

This mirror is perfect! The outside feels very sturdy, I’m not sure what type of material it is but I’m not nearly as worried about it breaking in comparison to my others. I’ll definitely be putting it in my purse and taking out the other one.

Kawaii Neko Bag Charm & Kawaii Onigiri Plush Charm

(they look a bit alike, right?)

Our first item is the neko bag charm, the perfect little companion to cutify the day (and your purse/bag/pouch/pants loop/etc). These are available in 3 different styles, and each costs $4.50 <_< I was a little surprised to find that out, I assume it’s a material thing?

Besides being an adorable charm, there is also a big slit on the back. Now, the booklet nor Blippo mention this, but usually that means the charm can be used to discretely hold change!

Rating: ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥

I just want to mention that as a warning if you would try to use this or something similar to hold coins, BE CAREFUL. While feeling around I discovered a sharp pointed piece on the inside of the top area, which is connected to the keychain. That makes it really sturdy- but it’s not worth using if you’re worried about harming yourself. It’s perfectly safe as a charm though.

Anyway, I think it’s very cute (I love its cheeks x3) and the detailing is really good. This would be ideal if you prefer smaller, non-plush charms but still want the appeal of a cute character.

Next to go with the neko charm, we have a plush onigiri (rice ball) charm. It came in 4 various expressions, and each costs $2.90.

Rating: ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥

I love rice, so this would be the perfect charm for me ♥ It’s also very soft, and the details are stitched on and look very clean (except for one little strand on the one blush). It’s just precious~

I should have bought the other three, then I could’ve swapped them out to fit my mood.

Halloween Ghost Squishy

This little cutie is perfect if you’re an avid squishy collector and want something for the holidays :P It was available for $4.90 on the Blippo website, but it’s no longer listed. This doesn’t seem like a hard squishy to find though if you’re interested in it; and they did have some other cute Halloween squishy (and ghosties) there.

It’s mentioned to be scented and it is- exactly like most other squishy. I think it would have been adorable if it smelled like vanilla, or pumpkin.

Rating: ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥

It’s very cute and ultra-soft. But I noticed mine has a bunch of shedding areas, the “lining“ is very messy and could use a trim, and there are a few tiny coloring issues, but I have seen way worse squishy and it isn’t really that bad; especially if you just want something soft to squeeze. This is amazing.

Halloween Stickers

Continuing our adorable ghost and Halloween trend, we got an adorable family of ghost stickers! On Blippo these were available for $1.90, they kind of remind me of dollar store stickers.

The sheet was full when I got it, don’t worry. I used some of the stickers to seal some wrapping in a package I was preparing for my friend because I was in a position where I didn’t have the time to look for my tape and I had to hurry up.

Rating: ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥

They’re very cute and I love the various poses and styles. I’m not too crazy about repetitive sticker sheets like this- but when this happens it’s at least nice knowing I don’t have to feel sad for using a sticker I liked.

I’m not the only one who gets like that right...?

I wish they were a little big bigger, but at the same time there is something to be said for adorable little stickers, although they can be a tiny bit hard to get off the sheet. Stickiness is 10 out of 10.

Kanahei Sticky Notes

I’ve noticed the Usagi and Piske duo beginning to show up a little more often in the boxes as of late. I don’t mind though, they’re pretty cute.

These are available in both sticky note format or the one I got which is called “foldadble message fusen notes”, both types for $2.90 in a few different styles.

I finally understand how these work because of the “tutorial“ on the back. Basically you write something in the middle, then you take the paper and fold it so the middle is hidden by the top and bottom of the image to create a seamless note that looks like there isn’t anything there. Then you open it to find the note.

Unfortunately... by the time I got mine folded properly, the note was so beaten up I decided to trash it. For such an easy concept it’s actually a little hard >3<

Rating: ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥

Despite that issue, I still think these are ultra-cute~ Especially this breakfast themed one, it would be perfect for inviting someone to breakfast or wishing them a good morning x3

Sanrio Sticky Bookmarks & Ciara Unicorn Card Protector

(In hindsight I should have put the sticky bookmarks with the message notes...)

Our first item in the picture is a set of Sanrio themed bookmarks based on a specific character. Each set costs anywhere from $1.90-$2.90 and includes 2 thin bookmarks, 2 mediums, 1 large, and 1 horizontal one, for a total of 90 bookmarks!

There was a huge variety of sanrio characters these were available in.

Rating: ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥

I usually don’t use these as I have bookmarks for the novels I read and I don’t have any sort of files or binders or anything in need of organization. BUT these come in handy for make-shift labels, which I have been putting them to use for :3 I love the variety of colors and sizes these come in too, usually I don’t see too much variety in one pack.

The other item is an adorable Unicorn Card Protector, available in 4 adorable pastel colors, each with it’s own unique unicorn drawing. Beneath the Ciara logo is the words “Make a girl more kawaii somewhere on a rainbow”, and on the back is a single chibi wing drawing. The front has tiny wings and stars covering it.

The protector has a flap on both the back and front, but the back flap is translucent. Each one costs $1.90.

Rating: ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥

I love unicorns, and the second I saw this I knew I would need to use it for my cards, which I will be doing after I finish this review. The one I’ve been using is pretty old and beaten up, so I figured it was time for a change.

It’s very easy to put the cards in and out of the two sides, and I was able to put about 5 cards in there with little effort. I feel like I may have been able to put in one or two more, but I didn’t have anything else nearby.

Halloween Umaibo

Our snack/food item for this box is an Umaibo, which I have no complaints against. I love these x3 although this one was extremely broken up... I’m not really sure if it was like that before I got it or after, but I’m going to assume before because I don’t throw my boxes around and beat them up like this stick was.

I wouldn’t ever turn down an Umaibo (unless it’s an intimidating flavor...) though, and it was still perfectly edible. It was corn/corn potage flavor, my favorite!

They can be bought on Blippo for $2.50 and you get 5 per purchase! But I saw a handful of them were sold out right now, I’m sure they will get more in soon though.

Rating: ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥

I’ve already made it clear that I’m obsessed with this umaibo flavor. It’s my #1 favorite, I wish they sold them in large boxes~

I also like that they gave us a Halloween packaged one... but I sorta feel like this might have been a missed opportunity. They should have chose a fall flavor, or something more associated with Halloween like pumpkins, squash, etc. I’m sure I saw something like that before.

Korean Okitoki Stationery Set

(Note the upside down pencil sharpener and toppers above it :P)

This is a nice little stationery set that provides the essentials needed for writing or a day at school. This is produced by the brand Caramel Popcorn; I’ve gotten a few items from them before. But I couldn’t find this exact set on Blippo, I did see a handful of variants, including a few bigger sets.

This set includes 2 pencils without an eraser or tip (I guess so you can pick?), 2 pencil caps, 1 glittery blue eraser with a non-taped or glued wrapping, 1 pencil sharpener, 1 Ruler with a numbered side and a bumpy side.

Rating: ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥

I actually didn’t expect very much with this set. Looking at the items and the packaging just gives it a cheap quality, but I was pleasantly surprised. The pencils and sharpener work like normal (I got very long strands from the sharpener :3 very satisfying), and the eraser is pretty to look at. You barely need to press to use it too. Ruler is flimsy but works with no problem.

My only noteworthy thing is that the pencil lids don’t seem to want to stay on if you put it on the sharpened side, but it stays fine on the other side. Doesn’t that defeat the purpose though?

♥ Cutie Ranking ♥

Content - ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥ It was a typical case of me being unsure if I liked the box much besides one or two items. I wasn’t very crazy over the abundance of stationery it seemed like we got this time, but I’ve come to enjoy it for what it is by the time I finished the review. Sometimes it’s just how it happens.

Price - ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥ I didn’t count the Umaibo since it’s for a set of 5 on the Blippo website and we only get 1. I’m not good at math so there was no way I could figure that out... I also didn’t count the stationery because I didn’t see it. Without them the box is worth about $24.00, so I imagine it’s around $30.00 in total. Which is really nice since we pay around $20.00.

Theme - ♥ ♥ ♥ They could have done better. Like it was obvious the theme was Halloween, and we only got 3 Halloween items out of 10. Unless you count the 2 neko things, which kind of associate with Halloween...

Total Rank: 6 out of 10 Cuties. I appreciated the box and enjoyed it, but I wish they would strongly follow themes more. I understand they probably don’t want to force it on people who might not celebrate the holiday, but I think it’d be better not to try to enforce a theme if you don’t plan to follow it. The design of Aiko-chan on the front is adorable, but it would imply the Halloween gimmick is stronger than it actually is.

♥ Cutie Scale ♥

1. Neko Pocket Mirror - it’s my favorite shade of pink and includes a super-squishy looking adorable kitty~

2. Unicorn Card Protector - very sweet and delicate looking, and I needed a new one so it was great timing x3

3. Ghost Squishy - it might have some faults, but it’s super cute and perfect for Halloween!

4. Umaibo - I’m living for the Halloween exclusive design x3 they make really cute Holiday packaging.

5. Halloween Stickers - They’re so kawaii, I just wish there was more variations on it.

6. Neko bag charm - it’s face is so sweet and adorable, I just wish it was cuddly.

7. Onigiri Plush charm - So soft and squishy. Do you think it’d be rude to eat Chinese food in front of it?

8. Usagi & Pitske Notes - I love the adorable pancake themed image x3 but it might just be because I’m really hungry right now. . .

9. Sanrio Sticky Bookmarks - I love the pastels and the designs~

10. Stationery Set - It’s very cute, but I’ve never been a blue girl, and the designs are extremely repetitive.

Well, that will be doing it for this review :3 Up next will be the October Tokyo Treat, and hopefully soon my first, official order from Blippo.com. As I said on top I’ll make a post about it to give you guys a look at how it goes and what I got.

Until next time remember to keep opening a box of cuteness every day!

#kawaiibox #onigiri plush #neko accessories #usagi piske #umaibo #halloween squishy

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micaramel · 4 years

Link

Artist: Vincent Fecteau

Venue: Wattis, San Fransisco

Date: September 5 – November 9, 2019

Click here to view slideshow

Full gallery of images, press release, and link available after the jump.

Images:

Images courtesy of Galerie Buchholz, Berlin/Cologne/New York; greengrassi, London; and Matthew Marks Gallery, Los Angeles. Photos by Johnna Arnold and Nicholas Lea Bruno.

Press Release:

1. These sculptures are tools.

Some artists begin with an idea or an opinion, and use it to make an artwork—first comes the meaning, then comes the object. But for Vincent Fecteau, ideas never work. His sculptures don’t come as a result of an idea but are the tools he uses in his attempt to generate ideas and make meaning.

He begins with an initial impulse or desire (the specific trigger quickly becomes irrelevant) and proceeds by folding, cutting, twisting, trimming, adding, leveling, scraping off, smoothing out, carving away, turning over, twisting back, and adding again. He ties knots into other knots. Bit by bit, he locates the sharpest edges of whatever emerges—the parts of an object that cut into meaning in a way that makes ideas nervous or that puts them on alert. Eventually, each sculpture is wound up until it can’t be made any tighter, sharpened until it can’t be made any sharper, and it is released into the wild, perhaps to become a tool for other people as well.

2. These sculptures are abstract.

Everything is abstract. By which I mean—a thick sludge of matter, energies, and consciousness is all there really is, at the end of the day. And these sculptures are simply tools that try to access the abstract. They work at getting a bit closer to it, maybe even to stick their toes in it, to get dirty with it. Fecteau doesn’t invent an abstract form as much as he learns how to find one.

These sculptures don’t believe in distinguishing the abstract from the really real. Abstraction is not a chosen style or a composition but is deeply human—it’s about the lived experience of locating and co–existing with it. Any other artwork, be it a figurative painting or a realistic photograph, is just as abstract as Fecteau’s, only differently so.

That said, these sculptures aren’t anchored to the world by being connected to a recognizable topic, message, or, worse, an instruction for how to think or what to believe. Instead, they communicate by speaking a language art is particularly good at—that of arranged shapes, colors, textures, intuitions, and intentions. I decided not to approach content directly, but to trust that it would follow me as I moved around the room. (Fecteau).

3. These sculptures are made by Vincent Fecteau.

Fecteau grew up on Long Island, went to Wesleyan, studied painting, interned with Hannah Wilke for a summer, didn’t like New York that much.He took time off from college and moved to San Francisco in 1990 to work with ACT UP. He worked as a studio assistant to Nayland Blake for a few years, handpainted ceramics, and ended up as a florist. He had his first show in 1994, consisting mostly of photo–collages of cats. When Blake decamped for the East Coast, Fecteau took over his apartment and has been making his handcrafted sculptures ever since. When I asked him what he was reading these past few months, he mentioned Now the Night Begins, a novel written by the French filmmaker Alain Guiraudie (Stranger by the Lake). He lives near Balboa Park in the Mission Terrace neighborhood. There is a great painting by Tomma Abts in his kitchen. He bikes everywhere.

4. These sculptures are necessary.

Like practically any other work of art, these sculptures are made by someone who needs to make them. The question is not to ask how Fecteau makes them but why he makes them. The answer, always, is somewhat embarrassing or humiliating, since the sculptures end up saying more about the artist than anything else. They reveal too much, because all self–portraits reveal too much. In all they say about his achievements and capabilities, they say just as much about his limitations. They contain his secrets.

But these objects also embody the contradictions that all of us are: they appear calm yet agitated, exposed but also secretive, fully formed but still formless.

5. These sculptures are traps.

Vince sends me a Youtube link. It’s a talk by the artist Don Potts, from 1981.

You go to that feeling, you work on the trap, the trap sucks the feeling in, makes the feeling a little bit more concrete, you go back to the trap, you get rid of the junk, you build a more pure version, you go back to the feeling, and you just go back and forth. And over the course of the whole process, you start sucking this thing in, sucking this thing in—the trap is starting to catch it.(…) And then, one part of this trap becomes very important. No fussing around in this area. Other areas, you know, there’s some glue hanging off it, or maybe an inch too big, it’s not important. (…) What you’re trying to catch is something you’ve never had your hands on. It’s subtler than you can think, than your awareness can comprehend. So the trap has to be subtler than any trap you’ve ever made. You can’t use old trap–making techniques. It will just get you so far, but it won’t take you that last step, to catch that thing. So you’re all alone, well not all alone, mom is always around, [laughter], but you can’t go to history books, you can’t go to past work, you have to just respond to what it is you’re trying to catch. And it gets incredibly exciting. (…) At the last moment, when you put the last touches on the trap, something will happen. It’s not a trap anymore, it is what you’ve been trying to catch. This thing becomes that awareness or that idea, or whatever—you can’t talk about these things with words, you know. And there it is. And you look at it. And there have been times when I’ve just, you know, cried. Not, you know, going– to–lie–down–on–the–bed crying, [laughter] but emotion will just pour out of my eyes. (Don Potts)

6. These sculptures are leaps of faith.

The painter Agnes Martin talked about surrendering the intellect. For many, to allow experience to precede cognition is a scary proposition. It puts us in a vulnerable place—walls need to be down, filters off. But what is art about if not vulnerability? Clicking back to Don Potts: you need to be working right at that bottom edge of your nervous system.

Fecteau never draws and never makes preliminary sketches—he jumps right in.When he makes a cut into a shape, he can’t click undo but can only allow consequences to determine his next set of decisions. There is no safety net. It’s like when you delete that sentence you’ve become really attached to, even though you don’t yet know what will replace it. These sculptures don’t know, they believe.

These sculptures are made the way kids build backyard spaceships, with meticulous attention to detail, a grudging respect for the trash he works with, and no real hope of re–creating what he sees when he closes his eyes. (Dennis Cooper)

7. These sculptures are new.

Even if they resemble others that came before it. They were made all at once, as a group, over the period of a year and a half. Decisions have migrated from one to another, making them siblings, of sorts—related but self–sufficient. They are made of carved foam, painted papier–mâché, and bits of resin clay. Some 3–D scanning and a 5–axis CNC router were also involved at one point in the process, which, for the artist, has been an experiment.

8. These sculptures are evidence.

These sculptures are the physical traces of a desire, an intention, or an impulse. They provide evidence of personal and material limitations. They capture the artist’s present state of mind, putting it on display for all to see.

They are also evidence of a battle between what is and what needs to be. They began on an open battlefield, where possibilities seemed endless. The material made a move, the artist made another, and art made yet another, each maneuvering itself away from, around, but also closer to the other. As they close in on each other, the decisions get smaller and smaller. The grip tightens.

To some of you, these sculptures will resonate, or strike a chord. They will prove that you share something with someone else. They are evidence that you are not alone.

9. These sculptures are here.

They sit on white pedestals, on display in a gallery. They claim space,perhaps even compress space. They are not models or surrogates for something else. They aren’t also elsewhere, the way images can be. They exist in the world irreducibly and uncontainably (Fecteau). Their job is to make manifest, in physical form, some of what is not here, or at least not visibly so—the psyche, the libido, and everything else that remains unsaid and unsayable.

Also here are photographs by Lutz Bacher. She and Fecteau have been friends for many years, often sharing ideas and inspirations. Sometimes, Fecteau would come across an object or a situation and would immediately know—that’s a Lutz. He would have to pull over or stop to take a picture, and send it to her. She would usually respond with an emoji or two. Years later, much to his delight, he would find out that she had turned the image or object into an artwork. Before she passed away, just a few months ago, the two artists had the idea of including some of those in this exhibition—works by Bacher that had originally been images Fecteau had found and sent her. They come back to him now, charged with life and friendship.

10. These sculptures are untouchable.

Which is ironic, because they were made by hand and consist of nothing other than the physical traces of the artist’s own touch. But these sculptures are untouchable in the way sound is untouchable—physically felt but impossible to actually hold on to. They look like what a polyrhythmic piece of music might look like, where many rhythms are made to intersect and overlap, even if they’re all happening at the same time, on top of each other.

I imagine an artwork as a fire that people gather around, Fecteau once said. His sculptures are untouchable not because they might burn your hand but because the “art” in them is located in the energy they generate and in the emotions they mobilize. And, like the warmth of a fire or a melody, these sculptures can’t be photographed. Should you try, most of the object will be absent from the image—and that’s sculpture’s great advantage over other forms of art: it’s always hiding something. As Don Potts said about his traps, if too much of the hook is exposed, the fish doesn’t bite.

P.S. These sculptures are not art.

Art is an ideal. It’s not an actual object. Objects can be evidence of an aspiration to “art,” but I think “art,” as a concept, is something bigger. It’s truth. It’s beyond museums and galleries and even artists. It’s out of our reach. How we use our limited means to try and approach this truth can be very moving. (Fecteau)

Vincent Fecteau (b. 1969, Islip, NY) has had solo exhibitions in prestigious institutions around the world such as Secession in Vienna (2016), Kunsthalle Basel (2015), The Art Institute of Chicago (2008), and The Berkeley Art Museum and Pacific Film Archives (2002), among others. His work was featured in the 2002 and 2012 Whitney Biennials in New York and the 2013 Carnegie International in Pittsburgh, among other major group exhibitions. In 2009, he curated an exhibition of works from SFMOMA’s collection. The MacArthur Foundation named Fecteau a 2016 MacArthur Fellow. He currently lives and works in San Francisco.

Anthony Huberman

Link: Vincent Fecteau at Wattis Institute

Contemporary Art Daily is produced by Contemporary Art Group, a not-for-profit organization. We rely on our audience to help fund the publication of exhibitions that show up in this RSS feed. Please consider supporting us by making a donation today.

from Contemporary Art Daily http://bit.ly/2OXcjN8

#micaramel

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the-record-columns · 5 years

Text

July 24, 2019: Columns

‘Finders Keepers?’

By KEN WELBORN

Record Publisher

In the news recently there was a survey reported on in which wallets were left where people could find them — some with money, some with no money, but all with a name and a way to contact the person who "lost" the wallet.

The statistics were interesting, noting that more folks tried to find the owner of the wallets with money in them as opposed those who were broke.

Go figure.

Then, in the past week or so an armored car on an interstate in the Atlanta area had a side door swing open and $175,000 fell out, making a blizzard of currency. At least 50 cars stooped to help themselves, many posting their finds on social media.

Big mistake there.

The cops are using those posts to track down the money — it is a misdemeanor or a felony, depending on how much you find, if you know who it belongs to.

All this brings me to "Moose" Robinson.

I know no other name than Moose, a ragged sort of character who lived in Wilkes for many years. One fateful day in the early 60’s, I was drinking a Cherry Coke at the counter of the Brame Drug Store and Moose was there as well. For whatever reason, as we talked he said he had some advice for me — to always look down at my feet as I walked, because there was no telling what I might find, and he smiled. "Listen to old Moose," he said, "...you will be glad you did."

He was right.

It may seem silly, but lo nearly 60 years later, I still do what Moose said, and, when I notice a piece of treasure — even a penny — I always look to the sky and say, "Thank you Moose."

Sometimes I even say it out loud.

Which brings me to a story.

In the 1970’s, I worked in advertising for Paul Cashion at WWWC Radio, when it was a little Top 40 station that could be heard almost to Cricket. In those days there was a big Easter Sunrise Service at Mount Lawn Cemetery and we carried it live on the radio. The narrator spoke in hushed tones as he read the script of everything that was going on in front of a huge crowd each year.

Those of is who worked on the event would meet at the then Holiday Inn on 268 in Wilkesboro where they who had 24-hour room service, and would let us in at about 2 a.m. and fix us a big breakfast. There were five of us to meet there and I was the last one in. They were all standing on a rug which said Holiday Inn on it as I came in.

By this time in the mid 1970’s, I had been heeding Moose Robinson’s advice faithfully for over 15 years, and, as I glanced down walking in, I saw what I thought was money folded up. I leaned down and palmed the money and asked if anyone had lost any money. Lo and behold, they had all lost money — at that very moment — one had lost a 5, one a 10, one a 20, and the big loser lost a 100 dollar bill.

Yeah, right.

I turned my back to them and realized that I was holding four neatly folded 100 dollar bills so new they stuck together. I told my cohorts that they were out of luck and walked over to the front desk where the man on duty told me just to give it to him and he would put it in their vault until someone asked for it. I didn't tell him how much I had found either, and gave him my phone number if someone reported losing some cash.

But what to do now. On Monday, I locked the cash in a file cabinet at the radio station and waited for the Holiday Inn to call. I figured no one could lose that much cash and not be retracing their steps. Thirty days went by with me looking at the money about every day, but no call.

Unsure of what to do, when I ran in to the Wilkesboro Police Chief Delbert Wilson in the post office one morning, I buttonholed him and told him my story, and asked him what I should do. He didn't bat an eye and said that after 30 days if no one had come forward, I should just take my kids to the beach and enjoy it.

I took his advice, and, as I paid the room rent at the old Blockade Runner Motel near the Cherry Grove Pier in North Myrtle Beach, I took a moment to look up to the sky and once again say a hearty, "Thank you, Moose!"

Note: Finding $400 in 1975 is like finding nearly $2,000 today.

No kidding.

To the moon and back, from North Carolina

By HEATHER DEAN

Record Reporter

Apollo 11’s 50th anniversary was last week any many a fascinating science fact have been shared.

But did you know that a small town about 35 minutes from where I’m sitting at my desk was integral in the mission? The special nylon material of the U.S. flags that Neil Armstrong and Buzz Aldrin planted on the Moon in1969, was woven at Burlington Mills in Rhodhiss, N.C.

Rhodhiss gets its interesting moniker from John M. Rhodes and George B. Hiss who partnered and built a cotton mill in Caldwell County in 1902 called Rhodhiss Manufacturing Company.

Then they constructed the village of Rhodhiss, which included a horseshoe-shaped dam, electric generator, and mill, general store, and worker houses with Rhodhiss incorporating as a town in 1903.

Workers were offered comfortable housing, some health care, schooling and credit at the company store. A two-room school house was built soon after. Within the next decade, the Town of Rhodhiss would expand into Burke County, courtesy of a new steel bridge that spans the Catawba River, cementing North Carolina’s place in the boom that made our state the textile capital of the world. The small town has a total area of 1.3 square miles, including the river, has only one traffic light, a cautionary flashing yellow light, not a stop light. As of the last census there is only one police officer for the 366 people, (112 families) that reside in the town. It was the perfect place to make a flag representing small town American ingenuity, I would say.

Of course there were some naysayers and critics as these things often go.

Being an employee at a mill that made flag fabric, one tends to focus on the job at hand, not about the next plant the material would end up in. For goodness sakes, they were a supplier to hundreds of companies and agencies, including NASA. It wasn’t until a few weeks after the moon landing that a company memo was put up in the weaving room about the part they played in history. Even then, there were some Burlington Mills employees who thought the moon landing was staged, but that didn’t stop them from partaking of the celebratory steak dinner with all the trimmings for every employee.

According to Rhodhiss Town Historian Sherrie Sigmon, the flag material wasn’t the only item prepared for NASA in the plant. In a magazine article, she wrote that Burlington Mills contracted with NASA and the military for bulletproof vests during Vietnam, and material for the nose cones and heat shields on the U.S. Navy’s Polaris and Trident missiles as well as NASA’s Mercury, Gemini and Apollo spacecrafts.

Burlington Mills closed in the early 80’s.

In 1995, a NASA administrator presented the town with a plaque and a small North Carolina flag that had been flown to the moon and back on Apollo 16, a thank-you for the mill’s many contributions to the space program.

Rhodhiss’ first town seal has an image of an Apollo astronaut standing next to an American flag. Town leaders ordered green signs to place at the town limits that include this picture, along with the words: “U.S. Moon Flags Woven Here.”

Though there is still some historical question about the nylon material coming from this particular plant, the good people of Rhodhiss are not dismayed and even added a little extra to their towns celebration last week, with fireworks beginning approximately the same time that Aldrin posted the flag. These citizens are pretty sure about where the facts of history lie — after all, a National Space Agency simply doesn’t end up in a one- square mile town by accident…

True Christians support Israel

By EARL COX

Special to The Record

The influence of Evangelical Christians - those who regard the Bible as the ultimate guide for life and stalwartly regard their Messiah as the way, truth and life - is declining. Why it is falling is complex, but boils down to accommodating the current culture resulting in confusion concerning matters of faith. Coupled with the rising population of the post-modern generation in an increasingly hedonistic culture, immoral secular education, embracing the faulty concept that there are no absolute rights or wrongs, a lack of respect for authority, a high degree of self-absorption, and the list goes on, leads to the conclusion that society's downward slide toward apostate thinking is practically inexorable.

An internet search today for articles that have “Evangelical” in the search engine is shocking due to the malice the public media has for Evangelicals. Even more jaw-dropping are insinuations of contempt toward Evangelicals from those proclaiming themselves to be Christians.

Such adversity is disheartening because of what it means for both Christianity-at-large, and Evangelical Christianity in particular, and their respective stance regarding Israel and the Jews. Evangelicals are considered pro-Israel whereas many others who claim to be Christians embrace anti-Israel policies and attitudes including anti-Semitism and BDS (Boycott, Divestment and Sanctions).

The Evangelical church has largely repented of the sins and atrocities of Christian history as it relates to hatred of the Jews having come to realize that Christians have not replaced the Jews. The modern witness and revelation that God stills loves His Chosen people, the Jews, and the Holy Land He speaks so much about in the Bible, is undeniable to those who are Evangelical. In contrast, many mainstream denominations hold anti-Semitic views and Millennial churches often have no opinion about why Israel and the Jews matter nor do they understand their importance to God as plainly expressed in His Word. This all stems from the liberal education being taught at many theological seminaries.

The post-modern church totters on its understanding of Jewish-Christian relations including the Jewish connection to land of Israel, and it is certainly not Evangelical in practice. Some mega church pastors are minimizing Hebrew scripture from the pulpit in an attempt to make a case for a more modern, accepting Christianity within their church walls. Such tactics may bring in people and improve attendance, but they are left bereft of the fuller teaching of ethics and morals for life, and judgement awaits those who oppose instructions as taught by our Creator who is the God of Israel.

It’s no wonder that churches, and even whole denominations, support boycott, divestment and sanctions (BDS) campaigns against the apple of God’s eye (Israel) and harbor anti-Semitic attitudes and practices, though many would deny it.

Such teaching about Israel and the Jews is compounded by a failure to understand the history of both sides of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, for example. This is where post-modern thought in the 21st century manifests a major defect, i.e., forgetting that history begins before a person is born. Such forgetfulness and omission results in poor judgement.

Judging by media double-standards and hypocrisy, this will not bode well in the future for Israel and Jews. The non-Evangelical will be less sympathetic to Israel and her people. Regardless of Israel being the sole democracy with freedoms unheard of in the other countries in the Middle East, the self-interests of modernity versus Israel is ambiguous at present.

Today, Evangelical Christians are a tour d'force, influential in the defense of Israel and the Jewish people. They understand God’s love for the Jewish people and the land of Israel. They understand modern history as well as they do ancient history. These are the people who support Israel by visiting the Holy Land by the millions each year. They prayerfully support the Israeli government just as they support their own government. Evangelicals have contributed millions of dollars to help support the return of Jews from all over the world to their ancient homeland. New arrivals are helped in a variety of practical ways by Evangelicals as they integrate into Israeli culture and society.

Because of the sincere and enthusiastic support from Evangelicals toward Israel and her people, an unbreakable bond has been formed. We must be sure that no one breaks it.

The Watermelon People

By CARL WHITE

Life in the Carolinas

You never know for sure what’s going to happen when it comes to an outdoor summer festival in the Carolinas.

It might be clear, it might rain, it might be hot, or it might be hotter, you may have long lines, you might have shorter lines. However, if it’s been going for many years and at approximately the same time every year you have a good idea about what’s going to happen.

Not so long ago I traveled to Pageland, S.C., about producing a segment on the long running Pageland Watermelon Festival.

I met with Tim Griffin, the festival director and Sherri Honeycutt, a committee chair. They are, as are all the other committee chairs and members, volunteers.

The festival has been going for 68 years. For the most part it is a year-long planning process with only a short break just after the festival ends each year. I’m sure everyone needs a break.

My original thoughts were to produce a standard six-minute segment on the festival which would include about a half-day visit. The show had visited the festival for a segment about eight years ago so I had a reasonable idea of what would be happening.

As our conversation progressed, I begin to hear a much bigger story developing. It was more than a festival; it was about a community working together for the benefit of their hometown. A celebration of heritage, agriculture, beauty queens, entertainment and yes, the humble watermelon.

The decision was made to work toward the develop of a special that will highlight the people of Pageland and others who have chosen to be part of this massive project, now and over the past 68 years.

The decision was also made for Life In The Carolinas to go Live for the Parade. This task would require a great deal of support including fiber installation to handle our data streaming requirements. Sandhill Telephone was able to step in and make this happen — once again demonstrating community support.

The 2019 festival would have a few new things and a few older traditions added back to the festival lineup. The watermelon relay race was brought back and would proceed the highly anticipated Watermelon Festival Parade.

A new “dance-off” was added at noon on Saturday, shortly after the parade. Two music stages would feature almost nonstop entertainment on both Friday and Saturday until the festival ended.

The week before the big festival, the plans called for the selection of the official Watermelon Festival Beauty Queens, an airplane fly-in, a golf tournament, and a Sunday Gospel singing. All being administered by volunteers and secured by approximately 50 members of the Pageland Police Department and Chesterfield County Sherriff’s Department.

Tim is the president of the Pageland Chamber of Commerce; he lives in Pageland and has long been a tireless promoter of the good in Pageland. It was Tim who contacted our TV show several years ago about visiting Pageland.

Sherri is the Clerk of Count in Pageland; she is not a resident, but she loves where she works. She said it’s because of the people.

Pageland is a special place and like the Watermelon there is debate as to what it is. Is it a fruit or a vegetable? It really depends on who you ask.

Is Pageland a good place to visit because of the Watermelon Festival, or is the Watermelon Festival a great event to visit because of the people of Pageland?

From my observations it’s the people. So, visit the festival for sure, but then plan your travels to visit Pageland at other times. Slow down and visit with the merchants and maybe catch a movie at the historic Ball Theatre.

Take a little time and get to know the colorful people in this little Southern town with a few hidden treasures worth looking for.

It’s worth the effort, because I think they have figured out a few things along the way, but they will be the first to let you know they are still working on it.

I’ll let you know when we finish the special, I know there will be lots more to share.

By the way, the 2019 Pageland Watermelon Festival was a big success and we had a great time.

See you at the Watermelon Stand.

Carl White is the Executive Producer and Host of the award-winning syndicated TV show Carl White’s Life In The Carolinas. The weekly show is now in its 10th year of syndication and can be seen in the Charlotte market on WJZY Fox 46 Saturday’s at noon and My 12. The show also streams on Amazon Prime. For more information visit www.lifeinthecarolinas.com. You can email Carl at [email protected]

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thatguysamaniac-blog · 5 years

Quote

Flame rounds lets us fulfil our yearning passion to be Frank Skinner, taking on his role as Judge, Jury, and Executioner in Room 101. We will be presenting a case for a particular Trope/Character/Item/UI element that pisses us off and then trying to justify whether this thing should go into room 101 (get flame roundsded?). Richie: Last time on Flame rounds we found a verdict was suspended, due to a creepy revelation. Yo Cunzy, what do you got for us this time? Cunzy1 1: Right, we had a bit of a discussion already about what the collective name for these things are. This week, I want to consider those publisher 'Social Club' type websites that are annoyingly advertised on menu screens (even after you sign up) with the incentive being that your data will be harvested, sold or just leaked logging into this side app (link your Facebook, Twitter, Google and Insta accounts for no reason!) rewards you with 'icons', 'epic loot' and probably a smattering of one of the fourteen in game currencies. It's your Resident Evil. Net, Ubisoft Club, Rockstar Social Club and the fourteen different kinds of Nintendo ones currently out there. Now, here's why I want to Flames Rounds them, it's not the principle of them, it's that with rare exception they're all a bit crap. A bit half-arsed. Often they're completely unintuitive, requiring speculative clicking around to try to find where 'challenges' or 'unlockables' are. There's almost always an extremely limited social element to them as well that rewards Tribes/Clans/Buddies/Friends but ends up being just you and that one random person who requested you and then never logged back in. So why flames rounds them rather than just ignore them all together? Because occasionally, there's some really cool stuff buried in the dung pile of these social platforms or whatever you want to call them, and I imagine a lot of people miss out on them altogether. Richie: Maybe you are just too old to understand how websites work nowadays? Cunzy1 1: I wish that were the case instead I think the obfuscating UI on many of these is a deliberate attempt to mask how shallow they are. Richie: What "really cool stuff" have you missed out on, or had to fight to find? Cunzy1 1: Well in the pre-'share' button era these HADSCA were often the only way to take screenshots and unfortunately I think this is where all my artful photos of dead people are forever stranded thanks to a throwaway email address I signed up with now lost to the mist of time. Resident Evil Revelations 2 has a loot-box-lite thing that rewards you for logging in daily (almost not worth the effort). Although Nintendo have scaled back recently limited edition soundtrack CDs and other high quality merchandise was only available through the Nintendo S.T.A.R.S (not that one) catalogue and we've picked up more than one 'free' game with platinum/gold points points on the My Nintendo account. Then there's all the shiny legendary Pokemon International Tournament giveaways we keep missing on the Pokemon Global Link. You've been looking at Steam Cards and there's a whole Square Enix Members Club. There are some cool tracked stats buried in here, for example I know that my Splatoon 2 lifetime Octoling inking covers the same area as the CERN Large Hadron collider. And these are just the ones I know of/use! Richie: If you could improve one thing about video game microsites what would it be and why? Cunzy1 1: Tricky. It's a toss up between better optimisation for mobile, just general UI improvements or actually invest in them to genuinely have a compelling reason to come back to them. Richie: On a scale of 1-10 how would you rate your experience in this blog post? Cunzy1 1: 3 Richie: As part of our ongoing satisfaction program can you please enter your card details? Cunzy1 1: Sure, do you want my Blockbuster card and expired Subway stamp card too? Can never be sure how much information to give you! Richie: As a cog in our machine what morsel of dopamine type of "epic loot" would keep you hooked be most appealing to you? Cunzy1 1: I'll have to answer honestly here and say probably something that I already have but with a bigger level/damage/rarity number on it Richie: For a chance to enter our prize draw, please let us know, your pet's name, your mother's Maiden name, the town you were born and your CVV number. Cunzy1 1: Oh cool, I've been hankering for a new forum icon since 1996*. Let's see. Robofish, Alexa, Raccoon City and L337. Richie: To reset your password please click here Cunzy1 1: I do need three more Advance Wars Dual Strike wallpapers**. Richie: 100% No brainier, of course these get flame-rounded! Linking your game to any additional site/microsite platform etc. beyond the already compulsory sign-ins is just going to spread discomfort and annoyance. Games don't last forever and these sites just end up poorly maintained holding a silly domain name for some reason. They are a underhanded scummy way to grab your details cuz someone in "marketing" says its important. It is pursued in the name of "engagement" is it bollocks! Fuck these sites. Please also sign in to https://ift.tt/2TJuqdF and express your distaste for these sites, you too can get a wallpaper for your original iphone in a resolution that is no longer pertinent, best part is that its already a picture we used for promo art, but trimmed down to portrait, and called it exclusive wallpaper! * Secretly really glad these existed actually for the images on this post. Err thanks Resident Evil.Net actually. ** I don't. I still have a dozen from the good old S.T.A.R.S (not that kind) catalogue days and I've never used them. Because they're desktop wallpapers for Birkin's sake.

http://www.thatguys.co.uk/2019/03/flame-rounds-half-arsed-data-gathering.html

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erinfickertrowland · 7 years

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Why Custom Framing Art Is Important

"Art washes away from the soul the dust of everyday life" -Pablo Picasso

You just bought the coolest art on your recent vacation. You're home. Unpacked. Now what? You need to get that artwork off its back lying on your desk, and up on the wall. Original artwork is meant to be viewed and enjoyed. That cannot happen if it gets tucked away in a closet. It's time to visit a frame shop and talk to a designer. Fine art needs to be mounted properly, protected from harmful environmental conditions, and hung on a wall to keep it out of harm's way and within viewing range. How do you accomplish that?

Here's a quick guide to walk you through the steps!

Avoid These Pitfalls!

Here's a story of my recent experience buying a limited edition print: I was struck by the vibrant colors, bold composition, and intricate carving of an interior cathedral scene in a linoleum block print created by a student at my son's high school. It was incredible, especially for student work. The aspiring artist had an entrepreneurial spirit and was selling his prints for $20. Always looking to encourage young artists, I sent a request to purchase one print of the edition. When it arrived, I was disappointed. The edition wasn't printed consistently because my print was missing portions of the statue focal point, likely due to poor registration techniques by the artist. Young artist mistake- no problem. I am not a fan of black matting and intended to put new matting on the art to coordinate with my art collection. Upon closer inspection, I realized the student had mangled the art during the matting process leaving his art in very poor condition.

Let's look at what went wrong:

The biggest mistake here, and a huge concern for an art collector, is that the artwork was trimmed to the border of the image itself. This is a problem for three reasons: 1) There is no signature on the actual piece of art- why would anyone want a signed piece of mat board? 2) The only way to display the art now is to put adhesive directly on the paper of the image, which will damage the art, and 3) To mount the art, I will have to touch it directly on its surface which is unfortunate because oil and dirt from hands compromises artwork, especially as it ages.

"Houston, we have a problem. "

Flipping the matted art over, I have a separate issue of improper backing board size and crooked mounting. Bonus: That improperly sized, crooked piece of mat board is what has the artist signature on it. Nice. Would you put a serving tray under your tablecloth before dining at your table? Of course not. Why? Because it would be all lumpy and your dishes wouldn't sit level- spilling that nice wine all over your guests. Boo. Same applies to artwork. It needs to be layered in a level manner to keep your artwork flat so it will shine like a diamond for all to see.

I am going to take this sweet piece of art to my framing ER, and use it as a reminder of sharing the importance of framing to artists and collectors alike. Poor kid- he just doesn't know better, yet. I know because I made similar mistakes as a young artist. However, there are other artists out there that just don't put the care into the mounting and matting of their art. Buyer beware. Educate yourself on the steps of framing, and you will enjoy smooth sailing from purchase to hanging your art on the wall.

Let's look at what should happen when framing your original fine art on paper:

When buying art:

Always look for art signed on the front of the artwork by the artist. Some artists sign their name, some use initials or a trademark. If the art is signed anywhere other than the front, you won't see it when you frame it, and likely won't remember who the artist is in the future. You brought this special art into your home and will want to talk about it to your family and friends! If you are buying a limited edition block print, look for the edition number and title written on the front of the artwork near the signature. For art on paper, the artist should have left a border of paper wide enough around the image to accommodate handling and matting.

You may purchase art un-matted or matted. Artwork that is already matted eliminates one step of hassle and expense and gets you closer to raising that glass to cheers your new purchase. Whether completed by the artist or in a frame shop, the most important consideration of the entire framing process is to make sure your matting and mounting materials are acid free, or "archival". I cannot stress this enough. Your artwork should look beautiful 10, 20, 50 years from now, and not all yellow and brown with burn marks from scotch tape slapped down on the front of it. Ask the artist or gallery directly if you are buying work already matted, and insist on acid-free materials if you take the art to a framer.

Elements of properly framed art:

The primary consideration for framing your artwork will be your frame moulding and matting. Choose colors and styles that match the art and coordinate with your decor. Custom frames give you a wonderful variety of styles and colors. Mat board comes in a huge array of colors, especially whites and creams. At Elysian Studios, I offer a nice selection of wood frame moulding in natural colors, gold, silver, bronze, and black. I coordinate matting for artwork to match each color of art paper that I use for different artwork: watercolors, pastels, and block prints.

Selecting mat board:

Selecting a frame:

Notice how each choice of mat board and frame changes the look of the art? There are no wrong choices. Pick what suits you. I believe keeping framing simple is less stressful for you and keeps the emphasis on the art. A wide, coordinating mat with a simple frame is a timeless and elegant option to display your art.

Glass, mounting board and finishing materials:

Artwork is extremely sensitive to environmental conditions: sunlight, dust, and smoke. Quality framing materials will keep your special memories looking beautiful for many years. Again, acid-free materials which touch the art directly are the first line of defense. Mat board is a wood pulp paper or cotton rag product cut to same outer dimension as your backing board, and a window is cut in the center to reveal the art. The mat board serves two important purposes: 1) it creates a visual border between the art and the frame, and 2) it keeps the glass off of the artwork, preventing adhesion between the art and glass (which is lethal for artwork and photographs). At Elysian Studios, I use mat board that is 100% Virgin Alpha-Cellulose (a paper product) that is acid-free, lignin-free and meets all conservation quality standards set by the Fine Art Trade Guild.

The mounting/backing board is usually a foam core, and provides support underneath the art. The art is sandwiched between the two protective layers of mat board and foam core. At Elysian Studios, I use only acid-free foam core. I stamp "Printed by Hand" with my logo in archival ink on the reverse of the foam core for my limited edition prints. This is just an extra detail that is a nice reminder of where you purchased the art.

UV protective glass comes in a variety of protection levels and reflective styles. All art should have some sort of UV protection on its glass, especially if it will be hanging in direct sunlight. Standard reflection, premium non-glare, and museum quality reflection control options are available to suit your viewing needs.

Once the glass, matting and mounting materials have been prepped, your art should be secured with acid-free art tape, and installed in the prepared frame. The frame is then sealed with a dust cover to keep dust and debris out of the framed art. Distinguishable by its blue color, I only use acid-free dust cover paper at Elysian Studios. This is superior to brown kraft paper often used in other types of framing. Your framed art should be finished with secure hardware and framing wire (no saw tooth hangers!). I apply an Elysian Studios framing label to the back of a finished piece, and always include a Certificate of Authenticity with any original art. This certificate is sized proportionally to the art so it can be attached to the back of the framing. I suggest adhering it to the dust cover or the hanging wire, whichever you prefer. All you need now is a hammer, nail, a picture hanging hook, and a place to hang your new art!

Now you are ready to enjoy your treasured piece of art for many years to come!

Happy Collecting!

Interested in my original artwork? Please visit my shop!

Can I help you with framing? Please email me

#framing

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melindarowens · 7 years

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Putin Tells Oliver Stone About His Days As A KGB Spy

Russia’s President Putin talked to Oliver Stone not only about politics and international affairs, but also about his family, childhood, and hobbies, as well as the time when he served as an under-cover KGB agent in Dresden in 1980s. These recollections are part of a book of full transcripts that includes material left out of the documentary series The Putin Interviews (which was panned last week by Rolling Stone in its “10 Most WTF Things We Learned From Oliver Stone’s Putin Interviews“).

Vladimir Putin said he joined the KGB, the Soviet Committee for State Security, in 1975, because he had “always wanted to.”

“I entered law school because I wanted to work for the KGB. And still when I was a pupil at school, I went to the KGB office in Leningrad (now St Petersburg) by myself. And I asked them what I had to do in order to work for the KGB. And the workers told me that I had to have a higher education and a better legal education.”

Putin said he did not have “any contact with the KGB” following the visit, so it was “quite unexpected that the KGB found me and offered a job” after he graduated from law school.

When asked by Stone, Putin acknowledged he watched many films about the agency and their intelligence work and was particularly inspired by a Soviet-era espionage thriller called Seventeen Moments of Spring, in which the main character played by famous actor Vyacheslav Tikhonov is a Soviet spy in Nazi Germany. The president admitted to romanticizing about getting a job at the KGB.

Putin served as an under-cover spy in Dresden from 1985 through 1990 and retired with the rank of lieutenant colonel when the USSR collapsed. In the late 1990s, he briefly served as the head of the FSB, the KGB’s successor.

* * *

While Putin’s walk down memory lane with Stone was rather limited, the BBC recently conducted an extensive look on Putin’s days in Dresden. Some excerpts below:

Putin had arrived in Dresden in the mid-1980s for his first foreign posting as a KGB agent. The German Democratic Republic or GDR – a communist state created out of the Soviet-occupied zone of post-Nazi Germany – was a highly significant outpost of Moscow’s power, up close to Western Europe, full of Soviet military and spies. Putin had wanted to join the KGB since he was a teenager, inspired by popular Soviet stories of secret service bravado in which, he recalled later, “One man’s effort could achieve what whole armies could not. One spy could decide the fate of thousands of people.”

Initially, though, much of his work in Dresden was humdrum. Among documents in the Stasi archives in Dresden is a letter from Putin asking for help from the Stasi boss with the installation of an informer’s phone.

And there are details too of Soviet-East German social gatherings Putin attended, to celebrate ties between the two countries. But if the spy work wasn’t that exciting, Putin and his young family could at least enjoy the East German good life. Putin’s then wife, Ludmila, later recalled that life in the GDR was very different from life in the USSR. “The streets were clean. They would wash their windows once a week,” she said in an interview published in 2000, as part of First Person, a book of interviews with Russia’s new and then little-known acting president.

The Putins lived in a special block of flats with KGB and Stasi families for neighbours, though Ludmila envied the fact that: “The GDR state security people got higher salaries than our guys, judging from how our German neighbours lived. Of course we tried to economise and save up enough to buy a car.”

A former KGB colleague, Vladimir Usoltsev, describes Putin spending hours leafing through Western mail-order catalogues, to keep up with fashions and trends. He also enjoyed the beer – securing a special weekly supply of the local brew, Radeberger – which left him looking rather less trim than he does in the bare-chested sporty images issued by Russian presidential PR today.

East Germany differed from the USSR in another way too – it had a number of separate political parties, even though it was still firmly under communist rule, or appeared to be.

“He enjoyed very much this little paradise for him,” says Boris Reitschuster. East Germany, he says, “is his model of politics especially. He rebuilt some kind of East Germany in Russia now.”

The block of flats nearby, where the Putins lived

But in autumn 1989 this paradise became a kind of KGB hell. On the streets of Dresden, Putin observed people power emerging in extraordinary ways. In early October hundreds of East Germans who had claimed political asylum at the West German embassy in Prague were allowed to travel to the West in sealed trains. As they passed through Dresden, huge crowds tried to break through a security cordon to try to board the trains, and make their own escape.

Wolfgang Berghofer, Dresden’s communist mayor at the time, says there was chaos as security forces began taking on almost the entire local population. Many assumed violence was inevitable.

“A Soviet tank army was stationed in our city,” he says. “And its generals said to me clearly: ‘If we get the order from Moscow, the tanks will roll.'”

After the Berlin Wall opened, on 9 November, the crowds became bolder everywhere – approaching the citadels of Stasi and KGB power in Dresden.

The former KGB headquarters in Dresden

Putin and his KGB colleagues frantically burned evidence of their intelligence work. “I personally burned a huge amount of material,” Putin recalled in First Person. “We burned so much stuff that the furnace burst.”

Two weeks later there was more trauma for Putin as West German Chancellor Helmut Kohl arrived in the city. He made a speech that left German reunification looking inevitable, and East Germany doomed. Kohl praised Gorbachev, the man in Moscow who’d refused to send in the tanks, and he used patriotic language – words like Vaterland, or fatherland – that had been largely taboo in Germany since the war. Now they prompted an ecstatic response.

It’s not known whether Putin was in that crowd – but as a KGB agent in Dresden he’d certainly have known all about it. The implosion of East Germany in the following months marked a huge rupture in his and his family’s life.

“We had the horrible feeling that the country that had almost become our home would no longer exist,” said his wife Ludmila. “My neighbour, who was my friend, cried for a week. It was the collapse of everything – their lives, their careers.”

One of Putin’s key Stasi contacts, Maj Gen Horst Boehm – the man who had helped him install that precious telephone line for an informer – was humiliated by the demonstrating crowds, and committed suicide early in 1990. This warning about what can happen when people power becomes dominant was one Putin could now ponder on the long journey home.

“Their German friends give them a 20-year-old washing machine and with this they drive back to Leningrad,” says Putin biographer and critic Masha Gessen. “There’s a strong sense that he was serving his country and had nothing to show for it.”

He arrived back to a country that had been transformed under Mikhail Gorbachev and was itself on the verge of collapse.

“He found himself in a country that had changed in ways that he didn’t understand and didn’t want to accept,” as Gessen puts it.

His home city, Leningrad, was now becoming St Petersburg again. What would Putin do there? There was talk, briefly, of taxi-driving. But soon Putin realised he had acquired a much more valuable asset than a second-hand washing machine.

In Dresden he’d been part of a network of individuals who might have lost their Soviet roles, but were well placed to prosper personally and politically in the new Russia. In the Stasi archives in Dresden a picture survives of Putin during his Dresden years. He’s in a group of senior Soviet and East German military and security figures – a relatively junior figure, off to one side, but already networking among the elite.

Vladimir Putin is standing second from the left in the front row

Prof Karen Dawisha of Miami University, author of Putin’s Kleptocracy: Who Owns Russia?, says there are people he met in Dresden “who have then gone on… to be part of his inner core”.

They include Sergey Chemezov, who for years headed Russia’s arms export agency and now runs a state programme supporting technology, and Nikolai Tokarev head of the state pipeline company, Transneft. And it’s not only former Russian colleagues who’ve stayed close to Putin.

* * *

While Showtime has limited the distribution of “The Putin Interviews”, in the interview below Stone speaks to the FT’s Matthew Garrahan and explains why western world has Vladimir Putin all wrong.

youtube

source http://capitalisthq.com/putin-tells-oliver-stone-about-his-days-as-a-kgb-spy/ from CapitalistHQ http://capitalisthq.blogspot.com/2017/06/putin-tells-oliver-stone-about-his-days.html

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everettwilkinson · 7 years

Text

Putin Tells Oliver Stone About His Days As A KGB Spy

Vladimir Putin said he joined the KGB, the Soviet Committee for State Security, in 1975, because he had “always wanted to.”

Putin said he did not have “any contact with the KGB” following the visit, so it was “quite unexpected that the KGB found me and offered a job” after he graduated from law school.

* * *

While Putin’s walk down memory lane with Stone was rather limited, the BBC recently conducted an extensive look on Putin’s days in Dresden. Some excerpts below:

East Germany differed from the USSR in another way too – it had a number of separate political parties, even though it was still firmly under communist rule, or appeared to be.

“He enjoyed very much this little paradise for him,” says Boris Reitschuster. East Germany, he says, “is his model of politics especially. He rebuilt some kind of East Germany in Russia now.”

The block of flats nearby, where the Putins lived

Wolfgang Berghofer, Dresden’s communist mayor at the time, says there was chaos as security forces began taking on almost the entire local population. Many assumed violence was inevitable.

“A Soviet tank army was stationed in our city,” he says. “And its generals said to me clearly: ‘If we get the order from Moscow, the tanks will roll.'”

After the Berlin Wall opened, on 9 November, the crowds became bolder everywhere – approaching the citadels of Stasi and KGB power in Dresden.

The former KGB headquarters in Dresden

He arrived back to a country that had been transformed under Mikhail Gorbachev and was itself on the verge of collapse.

“He found himself in a country that had changed in ways that he didn’t understand and didn’t want to accept,” as Gessen puts it.

Vladimir Putin is standing second from the left in the front row

Prof Karen Dawisha of Miami University, author of Putin’s Kleptocracy: Who Owns Russia?, says there are people he met in Dresden “who have then gone on… to be part of his inner core”.

* * *

youtube

from CapitalistHQ.com http://capitalisthq.com/putin-tells-oliver-stone-about-his-days-as-a-kgb-spy/

#TrumpNews #CapitalistHQ.com

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wittywordsmithlostingray-blog · 7 years

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Notes from the Underbelly

On my introversion...Well, first off, I feel I must insert the disclaimer that I am treating this blog as parts of my autobiographic manuscript, a loner’s manifesto of sorts. Four years ago, I had a blog here and a surprising amount of followers. Today, I don’t care if anyone sees this, well maybe one or two daring souls because feedback is sometimes nice. I will have to learn how to correct my typos and add flair later but for now, it’s 2 am and I’m on what I call, “manic menstruation mode,” it’s where I can’t sleep and often have rapid cycling thoughts, sometimes scribomania (example being here).

I recently realized a month ago that I am avoidant of people. I hide if I hear my neighbors opening their door at the same time or walking down the hall. There is an urgency in me to not be seen. I think it stemmed from hiding from my Father during his famous rages. He was one for emotional cannibalism and I was trimmed of all the fat I could give. The image of young Jenny from Forest Gump (minus the molesty part) was me. There was no incest but what took it’s place was an emotional predatory incest (a family that fed on itself). I was always on the lookout, always dodging, always in trouble and made like a tree, with no sudden moves.

I realized that I’m hiding from the world because it was ingrained in me that I was not safe in it. I must be a cataclysmic, walking catastrophe with orbs of negative energy encircling my aura. Well, at least that what the education my Father ushered into my life. I try to connect if it’s that I feel that I should not receive attention or acknowledgement because I reside in the shadows where I was appointed. My neighbors to the left of me violate a lot of the home association’s rules and the main lady of the house would bug eyed gawk at me. She has a mole on her chin that most would depict on a witch. She scared me once in the laundry room when she appeared, silent as desertion, glaring and moving her head in an orbital half rotation, like adjusting the aperture on your camera she zoomed in on me and freaked me the fuck out. The whole family walks as if you live in their dominion. The Dad would pollute his cigarettes like confetti and leave openings for non residents to sneak into the property (I live parallel to an alley with a lot of drug activity and schizo’s doing tae kwon do to the wind and banshee shouting their ails). One day the lady’s granddaughter left a non sensical note on my door and I showed it to the lady. She then ordered the girl in, with no time off for redeemed behavior (little girl vandalizes and has a booming boy voice that’s never ends). That was when the family backed off from me, because now they figured, I had something on them, confirmed. All their suspicious, hyper vigilant paranoid gazes now stopped but after all that, I still avoid seeing them again and I race to the elevator every time a neighbor parks at the same time I do. I’m a single person, surrounding by these rule breaking thugs who stuff immigrant family members in their house like a Christmas stocking and ride the Welfare system, with continuos hand outs and pay a rent of 1/4 of mine for a 2-3 bedroom because they have a family size of +1 !!!

Anyway, this plays into my attachment style too. I have a “pre-occupied,” attachment style. I’m not sure what that means. I interpret it to mean that I usually see myself through the eyes of someone else (my therapist calls this co-dependent). I’m also a therapist and say, no, while I do have co-dependent traits, I don’t enable behaviors and don’t exist for other people, even though the servitude I was force nominated into (with being caretaker to my Mom who is in a toxic masculinity relationship, to which it became physically abusive) would tell you otherwise. Maybe I was primed this way and it gives me a special skill set to work and serve the underserved and wounded but since career takes up the same amount or more of your sleep life, wouldn’t that be a set up for someone like me to date and attract client like material? Don’t get me wrong, I’m a consumer to mental health myself. I would like to eliminate the use of the word, “disorder,” and replace it with something more accurate like, “Hey, change your neuroplasticity and you’re good to go!” or deficit, deviate _x_ amount of degrees to left on negative side of spectrum (well there’s that word, negative). I don’t know, I can only speak for myself and it does’t sit well with me to be, “disordered.” It reminds me of musical chairs, fun game sifting and shifting and sorting through a line up of people, till the seat is pulled from under you and now you have added the disorder, when the system involved chaos.

Either way, this is not to identify myself as a victim. I noticed that when people leave (like in a job) and they were one of the many people that I could connect with on a deeper level, I suffer the loss. I actually mourn them. The landscape changes and suddenly, my job becomes something I’m reporting to instead of engaging in. I don’t take well to change but change has it’s way of making you adapt, whether you’re ready to or not. This is another reason I hide. The people that instilled life in me took off and so I feel abandoned for something better and I feel empty, not as filled as when they graced the campus with their presence. I work on de-personalizing things and de-sensitizing myself. I’m afraid I don’t have it down to a science yet. I operate in two extremes, 1) You’re in my line of view or 2) You’re not. I guess that can sound arrogant, cold or detached but I’m none of those things. On the contrary, if I like you, I can exude too much, I can be too giving and attentive and devote and it can be off-putting. Once I have tried in relationships to the point of where the person amputated my feelings for them, I can’t come back. For example, if I give people, “another shot and then another... well one of us ends up metaphorically dead.” As in my romantic relationships. Once I tired and gave it my all and the person activates on the cycle of insanity (dong the same thing over and over, expecting different results), I may still love them but it’s an altered love, a frugal one that used to see the as a full and bright picture and now they are dimmed and dusty. I don’t like this in me. Like a Borderline, I can idealize and devalue a person. It just goes back to my boundary and limit setting. If I’ve put in too much effort an practically carried the relationship, I might build resentment so week one of, “trying to work things out, a.k.a the end times,” might have me making up excuses for their behavior, softening up their unaccountability and putting in the work to land at solutions. Week 2 or 3 rolls around and I lose interest (thanks AD/HD) and feel almost taken advantage of, victimized because my efforts were not enough to prevent the relationship from suffering. I attribute this thinking pattern to the role my Mom put me in. From the age of 14 to 17, she vented and justified my Dad’s abusive behavior, I would sing her praises and raise her self esteem to where it should have been, only to her going straight back to him after all the work I put in (yes, I was parentified). Here was a women, eldest of 8 children who incessantly complained of a robbed childhood, doing the same to her daughter. SO yes! I have issues with trusting women because like my Mother, many girls who confided in me repeated similar patterns and I just dropped the drama entirely. I hide from girls now. I was raised with two brothers. My older brother raised me and I raised my younger one because t.v. took precedence to everything for my Dad who was supposed to be watching us while his wife worked two jobs to sustain her suburban life with her material possessions.

Because my older brother was funny, drew, liked Legos, He-Man, GI Joe, Thundercats and all things cool, I confided in him. I even jumped in his bed when I couldn’t sleep (Star Wars sheets). I idolized him. He was protective over me (we had neighbor boys and I had the biggest crush on the one that was his best friend). The one that was my age came off as a sissy and was babied by his Mom who wanted a girl but stopped attempted after 3 boys. I loved my older brother. People thought we were twins, like, “Escape to Witch Mountain.” He was alpha. He had the toys, he had the baseball cards to trade and the Lacoste shirts to tote. The boys flocked to him and I was in there with that cluster. Boys haze you. I was hazed into being accepted into their group and they would give me the girl figurines even though I really liked Boba Fett. I had to watch some chubster get to play with him, while I got Scarlett or Teela (of whom my brother ironed off her tits for some reason). In this sense, I became alpha, as a female within groups of alpha men or what they would coin, “One of the boys.”

My younger brother, consequently had the misfortune of having to succumb to being beta (being 8 years younger than my older brother). Now, my younger brother could kick my older brother’s ass. He’s like cross fit craze buff and he emerged as a strong, silent type. A lot of my care giving and maternal side comes from my interactions with my kid bro. Subsequently, this rolled into my relationships too. I am in the middle, always, odd one out. I can be with an alpha but they can be the meathead variety or I can go for a nerd beta, who’s muscles are literally atrophying and complain when a grocery bag is a scotch over 10 lbs. Ideally, a glance would be both, right? We are supposed to exercise our female and males sides but how often do you come across that in society? So what am I attracted to? Anomalies, misfits, people at a house party not wanting to be there as much as I don’t, rebels, freedom fighters, civil justice warriors, hippies, etc. That is just the personality base, there is the looks factor and intellect and humor and ability to be emotionally intelligent and literate. Yeh, basically, a unicorn. Interestingly, I feel like a unicorn so I’m sure my tribe is out there. A lot of posers and people passing off things as, “love,” “honesty,” etc. So, I acquiesce. I stay in a fortitude of solitude. I don’t see it as hiding, and not necessarily avoidant. I see it as, I gave you air time, you gave me an impression and vice versa. I only dip/duck when someone has hurt me or shown themselves to be someone I can’t respect. Even then, I’m polite. The conundrum I’m in is that I don’t like to be so visible but sometimes, I want to be seen and sometimes it can be one right person and sometimes any contact can fill in and it’s right. I do feel exposed and I guess I feel the world is not a safe place. I’m trying to connect the dots between my fear and what lies underneath it. Like an introvert, being around people depletes my energy and then I have to recover on my own. Sometimes it’s because they are takers and sometimes I just need to raise my vibrations around people I am grounded with (that’s about 3 people I know and one lives in Sonoma, the other 2 came to mind but are probably best left in the past) so that leaves me and this is why I am a lone wolf. I have a low threshold/tolerance for bullshit and I read energies and see behavior and experience it and well, I instead flee and that’s my way of dealing with it.

#underbellyscribowarsnotesfromascorngirlnotesfromanempoweredwoman

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iftekharsanom · 7 years

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The Lord of the Rings: The 10 Worst Movie Book Shifts

The art of adaptation is a cruel business. For a beloved property like J.R.R. The trilogy of The Lord of the Rings Tolkien is not limited to being victims when they move from page to screen. Peter Jackson calmly led the attack to bring Tolkien's rich Middle-earth world to life by adding some of his own artistic flowers. The King's Return Ring Society, Jackson has taken the highest of high fantasy concepts and translates them into three thrilling adventures. He just won three Academy Awards in 2004 for Best Picture, Best Director and Best Adapted Screenplay.That is, the films are not flawless. Fans of the books know how much Jackson left from Tolkien writing, especially his adaptation of the two towers. The characters are distorted, omitted from the underestimated key elements and important events, often to the less effective substitute. Here are the 10 worst book changes to Lord of the Rings movies. 1. To a joke Gimli

Unlike trilogy to his portrayal in Peter Jackson, Gimli is a tough warrior and a dwarf only. Although he is a fool in films essentially Tolkien put him as "an obscure character, usually only occasionally, to laugh, and although in some rare cases, entertainment, but never a joke." He certainly is not the idiot who thinks he can break the ring with a single blow from his ax. If in the laughter of the community conversion to Gimli, it undermines the dwarven moments of gravity. Take the darkest moments of the Battle of Helm's deep links, which is the Battle of Normandy beach from Middle Earth substantially. Although Aragorn and Theoden prepare their men and their bark orders, Gimli is on the edge how to make cracked strength and laughing. There is room for humor, even in the most difficult situations, but not at the expense of Gimli's character, approaching caricature throughout the filming. 2. Pass the Shire Wash

Long before J.R.R. Tolkien wrote at the end of The Return of the King, he planned to bring the epic circle of fantasy. Amidst the destruction of mighty Middle-earth, the region was not spared. Tolkien noted that "an image of the last decrepitude of the old flour mill, with its pool, which seemed so important to me." The picturesque image was Tolkien's own Shire, and he also had the hounds were destroyed. When the Hobbits return home (in the books), they discover that their homes have changed their own lives so much. Saruman and his servant Wormtongue moved to Frodo's facility in Bolson, and the evil forces of Mordor moved to Shire. The last battle of the War of the Ring found in Bilbo Baggins's backyard, and sees that the hobbits bravely fighting and Saruman is the death he has always deserved. Although Hobbits are peaceful short of Shire's tongue Snake's neck and his master will distribute dead by a shower of arrows. These sequences have added the already epic runtime of the film, but have the omnipresence of the evil Sauron demonstrated inspired. Without them making the movies that region than practically unchanged despite the apocalypse around them, which not only reduces the risks, but raises the question of whether Bag-end was out of danger, should not Frodo simply stay at home? Tolkien hanging entire story on this penultimate chapter because it represented during the war, even the most sympathetic people or the field are safe. 3. No Closure For Saruman

Saruman is a central character in The Lord of the Rings, so why was the ending so unsatisfactory? Sauron may be the most difficult of all bad guy, but is caught in an eye presence for the whole trilogy. This leaves Saruman as the main enemy to take shape in the flesh, and once all the chaos caused in Middle-earth, you would think that Peter Jackson would have enjoyed the opportunity to take his death in the final movie. In the theatrical edition of The Return of the King, all we say (by Tree Beard) is that the twisted wizard was locked in his tower, disappearing, until death comes to him. When the Ents had under her command, certain that she would be unhappy some form of punishment, instead of imposing a prison sentence. The species decimated the population, after all. Unfortunately, Jackson decided not to close for the White Magician to give to save for more cut of his death, in Isengard. As the director himself admitted, "I reluctantly decide to save this sequence for the DVD The selection based on was made that most people assume that Saruman was defeated by the events of deep and Helm's Ent. End appropriate, it is strange, "take over", the fate of Saruman in the film. Trimming to Shire: This inconsistency can be explained by the lack of other key element books. 4. Escape ARAGORN a hero in HAMBRIENDO CAR

If there was no model to compare with Aragorn movies, you can think of it as the ultimate hero. He is discreet, (relatively) early, and if you are struggling to convince bravely in the battle. This is all very well, but Aragorn as you can imagine from J.R.R. Tolkien is much more pronounced. More self-abominable in the movies, the Aragorn books unkempt, and almost reluctant leader is poised for leadership. More than any other man in history, Aragorn is the bearer of heroism. He does not withdraw his fate, nor does he question his role in the fate of Middle-earth. No, he embraces his role as Isildur's warm heritage. In movies, it always seems to have a foot out the door. A shining example of heroism confused his decision Aragorn the heads unarmed emissary Sauron in the Black Gate. Although the creature is uglier than the sin and mocks Aragorn, Legolas and should never the heir of Isildur get his moral code broke and a messenger of peace killed Gandalf on the fate of Frodo, the "Mouth of Sauron." Tolkien would be such an act reserved only for the most famous characters in Middle-earth. 5. HUMANIZING GANDALF against the Witch King

Speaking of King Warlock, if you have a scene to add in the fight with Gandalf, you can not let him win. Or if you are going to put the Wizards knees, do so after a glorious battle, love the kind of writers of fan fiction to create. For some reason, the extended version of Peter Jackson has the Return of the King a scene in Minas Tirith where the Witch King walk to stop Gandalf with Pippin flies. Though one of his greatest enemies in the present, Gandalf did not move, and instead sits on his horse to the shudder expecting Nazgul. Kill. Witch King sends a magical force field from Gandalf to destroy and then thrown from his horse in a really humiliating way. It is a pointless moment that not only adds value to the film again but has zero relationship with Tolkien's books and reduces Gandalf's omnipotent power without even a chance to respond, to give. 6. Neutralization THE IMPORTANCE OF Merry and Pippin

In general, Comic Relief is managed throughout the trilogy The Lord of the Rings and Peter Jackson and co-writer Philippa Boyens. Bring out Bilbo's 111th birthday to the end, Merry and Pippin laughing with their intrusive and audible. Unfortunately, the two hobbits are the Middle-earth puppet theater depicted far beyond the Tolkien borders. His wit and courage, unfortunately, lost in the shuffle. If for Merry and Pippin, Frodo and Sam were not they would never come with success in the region in the first place. Although they are out of their league long history, Merry and Pippin are quick to accept and learn as they go. In the movies, but Merry and Pippin are presented as accidental warriors who come to the community in a fantasy. In the books they need Frodo to come on the trip and, although hot Elrond to protest against his presence, Gandalf who insists on being accepted is. Finally, it is argued in value that it has been neglected by the death of Éowyn important against the Witch King, the Merry contribution. Without his dagger and his mystical wave of daring, Nazgul did not weaken to such an extent that a single strike would end. Although the Cheerful films show the dagger on the side of the spectrum to bring down, he received no credit in the episode. 7. Notes ENTS Daft

Despite the many missed opportunities, Peter Jackson's adaptation of The Hobbit achieved its calmer scenes, especially in moments of music. When the dwarves of the "misty mountains," a haunting and hypnotic Braman theme, all majesty in Tolkien's mind seems to thrive. It is particularly strange that Peter Jackson several minutes running precious time to see Thorin Shield of Oak hum an output melody when you consider that the rest of the movie is consumed by the CGI high frame rate. It is not until Bart tree hobbits on a walk in the afternoon when he finally got the decimation of his colleagues testify Ents. Like Eowyn, he uttered a cry from Darth Vader-lite of the sadistic magician knows that his days are numbered. This is a slap in the face that created Tolkien's character for the first time. In the books, the arrival of Merry and Pippin comes just before Entebate where Barbary and Co. quickly decide to bring ruin to Saruman. There is no need to think about it because they are intelligent, experienced and proud of their people. The movies show the Ents have little or no agency, but rather serve as the filling time, while the rest of the plot unfolds kills. 8. Reduced almost all songs and POEMS

Despite the many missed opportunities, Peter Jackson's adaptation of The Hobbit achieved its calmer scenes, especially in moments of music. When the dwarves of the "misty mountains," a haunting and hypnotic Braman theme, all majesty in Tolkien's mind seems to thrive. It is particularly strange that Peter Jackson several minutes running precious time to see Thorin Shield of Oak hum an output melody when you consider that the rest of the movie is consumed by the CGI high frame rate. This moment is just one of the many songs and poems written throughout the text of The Hobbit and The Lord of the Rings. Pippin Music in The Return of the King is one of the most prominent in the Lord of the Rings trilogy, and Jackson used it with great effect. If only the original songs of Tolkien object of frequent use. Without suggesting that the trilogy a full-length music film would have benefited from the song Frodo in the Bouncing Pony or Aragorn's poem about Gondor. This is of great imagination, which Tolkien wrote after all for the same reason of such a long list of songs in the first place. 9. MAKING HEROES IN PRACTICAL ELAS

For many fans of the film, the battle of the Abyss of Helm, the highest mark was two towers in the water. It was a confrontation in the rain of Uruk-hai furiously against an army of men and elves. It is a scene that is opposite to the best fights of Game of Thrones, but it is a pity that Peter Jackson strongly to interpolate the raw material and wrote basically the whole nature of the war. The most notorious of all, he relied on warrior Elven to fight against the Dark Army. To be clear, there were no elves for the Abyss of Helm in the books when the film a team of five hundred archers shows from Lothlórien to sent the scene of the fight. Army Theoden consisted largely of "soldiers [I have seen many winters or very few." Of course, this does not mean it describes the presence of immortal popular Elf. In the battle of Horburg, Theoden did not shoot the luxury of a battalion of experienced archers dozens of bloodthirsty Saruman warriors. This is a recurring theme in The Lord of the Rings, the world of men shows that they strive to survive in a universe where everyone, even the elves flee to safety. This subtly benefits Theoden and Aragorn's deep Helms allows elves to save the day. 10. CASTING Hugo Weaving AS ELROND

When we meet Elrond in the Fellowship of the Ring, which is about 6,500 years old. JRR Tolkien describes him as "noble and just as an elf-lord, as strong as a warrior, as wise as an assistant, as venerable, as king of the dwarves, and just as in summer." Briefly, Elrond is the total package . His debut on the big screen can be described as something of a sage, but pushes Elrond in a much more humane way than his elvish nature area can withstand properly. To be sure, he is as mortal as she is eternal, he can not quite god-like in appearance and be in nature. Hugo Weaving, despite his entire talent and screen presence, may not have been the ideal role for an actor. His dullness and his ridiculous "Mr. Anderson" make him more militant than he probably thought Tolkien. Although dressed in the best clothes and insignia, the fabric looks more like a front-warriors than an old-fashioned board. It actually looks right at home in flashback scenes during the Battle of Dagorlad.

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ds4design · 7 years

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Where Are the Autonomous Lawnmowers?

It’s impossible to know when society began to manicure its front lawns. Truth be told — cutting the grass was, and still is a necessity. But keeping the weeds at bay, trimming, edging and so forth is not. Having a nice lawn has become a status symbol of modern suburbia all across the globe. When the aliens arrive, one of the first things they will surely notice is how nice our front lawns are. This feature of our civilization could have only been made possible with the advent of specialized grass-cutting machines.

Reel Mower [Public Domain]

It could be argued that the very first lawnmowers were live stock. The problem was they were quite high maintenance devices and tended to provide a very uneven cut, which did not bode well for families striving for the nicest front lawn on the dirt road. Coupled with the foul odor of their byproducts, the animals became quite unpopular and were gradually moved out of site into the back yards. Other solutions were sought to maintain the prestigious front yard.

The first mechanical lawnmower was invented in 1830 by a man named Edwin Budding, no doubt in an effort to one-up his neighbor, who still employed a Scythe. Budding’s mower looked much like today’s classic reel mowers, where a rotating cylinder houses the blades and rotates as the mower is pushed forward. Budding was granted a patent for his device by England, much to the dismay of his fellow neighbors — most of whom were forced to buy Budding’s mower due to the fact that everyone else in the neighborhood bought one, even though they weren’t actually needed.

By the early 1930’s, the cold war started by Budding and his neighbor had spread to almost every front yard on earth, with no end in sight. Fast forward to the modern era and the lawn and garden market did 10 billion in sales in 2014 alone. Technological advances have given rise to highly advanced grass-munching machines. For smaller yards, most use push mowers powered by a single cylinder IC engine. Many come with cloth bags to collect the clippings, even though everyone secretly hates using them because they gradually fill and make the mower heavier and therefore more difficult to push. But our neighbors use them, so we have to too. Larger yards require expensive riding mowers, many of which boast hydrostatic transmissions, which owners eagerly brag about at neighborhood get-togethers, even though they haven’t the slightest clue of what it actually is.

Us hackers are no different. We have front lawns just like everyone else. But unlike everyone else (including our neighbors) we have soldering irons. And we know how to use them. I propose we take a shot-across-the-bow and disrupt the neighborhood lawn war the same way Budding did 85 years ago. So break out your favorite microcontroller and let’s get to work!

Will the REAL Autonomous Lawnmower Please Stand Up

Firstly, let’s put one thing to bed. Those ridiculous “robotic mowers” that use a boundary wire and cut in random paths are not what we’re talking about. Any hacker worth their weight in 0.1uf capacitors knows it needs positioning. “How’s that?” , you ask? Well, just watch one of those things scurry about like some stupid bug running from the wind and you’ll say to yourself — “You know, this thing would work a lot better if it knew where the heck it was”. And that’s what we’re going to do. In order to make a real autonomous lawnmower, we need positioning. If we can locate our mower on an XY Cartesian plane, then the automation part is much easier to do.

Yes, there are other ways to achieve autonomy for our lawnmower and I highly encourage you to discuss them in the comments. But this article will focus on autonomy via positioning. Specifically, positioning provided by satellites.

GPS, RTK and Differential GPS

When it comes to getting a fixed position on something outdoors, the first thing that comes to mind is GPS. The second thing that comes to mind about 25ms seconds later is accuracy. We all know that GPS has an accuracy of about 15 meters or so. And that’s not going to work for our autonomous lawnmower. There are two other options, however: RTK and Differential GPS. Both have the accuracy we require.

Standard GPS

Image Source: 3 Burdens to Society

Before we get into the other systems; let’s do a quick review of plain old GPS. The GPS in your phone is measuring the distance between it and at least three satellites. This allows it to find its location via trilateration (not to be confused with triangulation). The accuracy of course is determined by the accuracy of the distance measurement to the satellites. This distance is determined by atomic-clock-precise time stamps coming from the satellites. The receiver simply takes the difference between the time of transmission and time of reception and multiplies it by the speed of light to obtain the distance between it and the satellite.

Along with a time stamp, the satellite also transmits its position. Armed with the distance from the satellite and the position of the satellite, the receiver essentially knows the radius of a circle — with the satellite at the center and the receiver on the perimeter. Once three of these circles come into contact, BAM! You’ve got your location via trilateration.

There are several things that limit accuracy; one of the biggest being the atmosphere. The ionosphere can slow the signals, causing problems. The more atmosphere the signal has to go through, the greater the effect. So a signal coming from a satellite on the horizon will be affected more than from a satellite directly overhead. This type of interference is constantly changing and introduces an unavoidable margin of error in positioning — up to 10 meters.

RTK and Differential GPS

Diagram via Penn State GEOG862

Now that we know how GPS works and its fundamental limitations, we can understand how to remove those limitations to obtain a higher level of positioning accuracy. This can be done with the introduction of a second “fixed” receiver. Fixed meaning it doesn’t move and its location in known exactly. The mobile receiver (the one that needs positioning) must be relatively close to the fixed receiver, so the two receivers can compare signals from the same GPS satellite and then talk to each other about it.

The fixed receiver looks at the GPS signal received, and then looks at the signal received from the mobile receiver. Because the fixed receiver already has a known position, it can see any error in the signal, and send the correction over to the mobile receiver. This is how both Real Time Kinematic (RTK) and Differential GPS work.

Differential GPS can get down to about 10cm accuracy. RTK looks at the analog part of the signal along with the digital part, and can get down to 2cm accuracy. Which is plenty accurate for our automated lawnmower.

Free Market Options

There are some options available to purchase hardware for this type of positioning accuracy. They’re not inexpensive, but also not out of reach for anyone (or group) who wants to take a serious bat to this project. REACH RTK is the cheapest we can find at abotu $570, but the kits sell out quickly every time they come back into stock. There is also Swift Navigation’s Piksi setup, a more expensive option (that we’ve covered before) which rings in at about $1k. If you know of any more RTK setups out there, be sure to let us know in the comments.

Using an RTK GPS setup for an autonomous lawnmower is now within your or your team’s grasp. If you know where the thing is in real time, writing the code and doing the mechanical engineering are problems with common and straightforward approaches. So why hasn’t it been done? What are you waiting for?

We’re Talking Lawn CNC

Maybe this will charge your capacitor banks… What happens when you combine an autonomous lawnmower and gcode? Mind-blowing awesomeness? Give your mower the ability the turn the blades on/off and you could be CNCing your grass instead of just cutting it.

The picture I’ve painted makes sense or larger turfs where the relatively small and battery operated robomowers are less effective. With a large enough land area it becomes less reasonable to install a perimeter wire and makes the GPS setups more desirable (although there are ways to fake the perimiter wire signal which could make for an interesting GPS hacked onto an existing robot mowers).

At a consumer level there are kinks to work out for large scale autonomous mowing, like safety, obstacle avoidance (fallen limbs, people or livestock), fuel level monitoring and the like. But for hackers, this concept is too fun to pass up. We’d love to hear about your adventures in automated mowing, and fully expect we’ll one day see a 1-acre sized Skull-and-Wrenches carved into a grassy field. Send us a tip with your story and it might end up on the front page.

Filed under: Featured, gps hacks, Interest, robots hacks

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