Your Mileage May Vary

You take pictures of Odd Things

Background Noise: California Stars
Last Visited: the T round: Snorg, Noisebot, Threadless
Random Thought: that's the way I roll
Mood: flirting with the edge

I, apparently, take pictures of odd things; or, rather, some people think the things i take pictures of are odd subjects: coffee cups, flowers, barbed wire, grasses, other people's children, portions of statues, stickers, mirrors, fries, strangers, other people's jewelry, random performance art, etc, etc, and so forth.

I would argue that these things aren't odd to take pictures of at all; that they're quite normal, and all in their own way quite beautiful, and descriptive of the world i live in; or, rather, the world i live in when i have my camera with me (which is not entirely the same thing).

Anyways. I suppose i'm saying i generally like my pictures. Sure, some of them may be strange, but, well, whatever. I have a digital camera with usually more storage than i need: i can take whatever pictures i want to. (Golly i'm petulant this week.)

Sort of along these thought lines, I ordered about 70 prints of pictures i've taken recently last night. Partially because 4x6s are $0.12, partially because i realized the most recent pictures of mine that are up in my apartment are practically 5 years old (with one exception). And while they won't all end up on a my walls (well, maybe), I'm heading to Aaron Brothers tonight to pick up a ton of cheap frames and using them to add color and depth to my apartment.

Because i've been places, man, and it's time my home space reflected that.

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Frames, Take 2

Background Noise: Random tv crap, again (still)
Last Visited: flickr; figured i'd change it up a bit
Random Thought: $64 in change -> $64 starbucks card; at least i know my coffee is covered for the next 2ish weeks
Mood: ready to relax

You know what goes really well with an Election? Season 7 of the West Wing.

But i digress; i promise, this is probably, most likely, lord i hope, the last version of this little picture book of mine. Well, at least, the last version of this book until 6-9 months from now when i attempt to put one together for the Spring; i wonder where i'll have been by then.

Regardless... here we go:

Today at lunch i espied someone i once knew; at least, i'm pretty sure he was who i thought he was. I've been running into people more frequently lately who i used to be close with, and now, when faced with them, i don't know what to say. Small talk only saves me sometimes. And i find myself distracted, remembering why it's so hard to speak now; remembering them then, them now; me then, and me now.

Time plays interesting tricks; perhaps that's why i like the idea of having a picture book for each half year to remind me who, where, and when i was - and who the people are who were there with me. Then again, i could just be looking for any creative outlet i can find. Or i'm bored.

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Frames: Fall into Winter, 2007

Background Noise: Iron Chef America
Last Visited: iPhoto and Grab
Random Thought: i should have bought my camera months ago
Mood:must stay up... must stay up...

Happy New Year! (um, officially). So I have a few problems at the moment: a) i'm exhausted but, b) i have to stay up enough to fully get on pacific coast time (for real), and c) i have all of these pictures from my (fabulous!) new camera that i have to get into a book of some variety. Now, besides the fact that i don't have the whale watching pictures on this particular laptop (therefore i can't exactly press the "order" button just yet), i think i have a decent start so far:

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... hopefully i'll remember before ordering this to actually add some actual comments, or at least remember to remove the text for the default ones.

Um... yeah.

I wish i had had my camera earlier in the year - i would have loved to actually be able to put together a more complete retrospective including the weddings from this summer, the boat, the little white house, and my various wanderings in california, chicago, and new york. Also, i wish i had more pictures of the people i see and interact with every day - perhaps i'll attempt to throw some of my iphone shots in a page, see how those go.

Oh, and, judges? Truffles are never a mistake. Just for the record.

*denotes a page in flux.

Expression:

Run

Background Noise: Run, Snow Patrol
Last Visited: "...but Ms. Rowling refuses to be content with simply rejecting the old order and championing a morally vague multiculturalism. The pure-bloods here are blinded by their pride, but Harry and his friends see something more profound, a threat that goes beyond self-interest and identity. This is why Dumbledore’s supposed gayness is ultimately as unimportant as Ron’s shabby clothes. These wounded outsiders recognize the nature of evil, and finally that is what matters."
Random Thought: light up, light up; as if you had a choice ; even if you cannot hear my voice, i'll be right beside you dear
Mood: yesterday? was a very good day

I've just noticed that i have a tendency not to blog when i'm a) unhappy b) annoyed c) cranky or d) all of the above. Now, on the one hand, that does leave major holes in my archives, and leaves whoever relies on this blog to know what's going on with me pretty much solidly out of the loop. On the other hand, it means that when i'm going back over my time here in Cali, i've minimized as much as possible documenting those worst of times; which, you know what? I think on the whole is good. I don't *like* being in a bad mood; i certainly don't thrive when i'm too stressed and actively annoyed; and i don't need a reminder of how often i actually am in any of those states.

Just in case anyone wonders about those times when i'm not blogging like a fiend, well, that's a possible reason. That or i'm just really freaking busy. Like, really busy. Like, "I swear Mom, i'll call ____, i promise, but i'm really really busy right now and don't have time for dinner with them; i'll get to it. No really. Mom, i have to go, i'm sorry. Love you", busy.

16 Billion Bits: The Last Supper

[In other news, i have a new hobby. Or, a new pseudo-hobby: seeing friends i've known forever dressed up for the first time. Because, seriously? Seeing some of these guys cleaned up puts the biggest silliest grin on my face ever. We're adults, i swear! ]

So Michigan pulled out another win this weekend against Minnesota, keeping the Little Brown Jug safe for the next few years and silently continuing a 7-0 record over the last 7 games (for a current season of 7-2). Which also brought us back up to #12 in the BCS. Not that the BCS is worth the paper it's printed on, but it's nominal progress.

... and... um... i'm sorry, but i did that thing again... that getting up in the middle of a post and coming back completely forgetting how to finish this post thing. Again. So sorry, but since i can't remember what i was going to say next, i just won't say anything at all.

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I dunno... Philosophize with him!

Background Noise: Hip Hip Chin Chin
Last Visited: facebook
Random Thought: maybe running in the morning *is* a good thing...
Mood: coffee kicking in

So apparently one of my pictures from Ann Arbor a few summer's ago is on the short list for a photo competition for... descriptive pictures of Detroit, i suppose, run by this interesting little mapping company called Schmap.

... Which is cool, considering they found me and not the other way around. Their email was cute "While we offer no payment for publication, many photographers are pleased to submit their photos, as Schmap Guides give their work recognition and wide exposure..." since, really, i'm not a photographer - but it's nice that they're calling me one! So thanks Steve for letting me steal your point and shoot canon for an hour to run around A2 so i could grab some pictures that day; you know, i really should get prints of these, come to think of it.

Completely off topic, we have a little competition going on in the office right now to name some conference rooms. And once again, though they aren't offering a prize per se, it's still a fun game to come up with 14 names revolving around a centralized theme that can sort-of eventually be tied back to Pro App type activities. So last night B and I had a bit of a brainstorming session coming up with a bunch of different themes and trying to boggle our way towards 14 items that wouldn't be totally girly, too geeky, or completely inappropriate when used in the sentence "i'm going to ___" or "the meeting's in ___". And while i don't want to give away all of our ideas, by far my favorite theme is: Bill and Ted's Excellent Adventure

Rufus, Socrates, Beethoven, Freud, Lincoln, Joan of Arc, Ghingas Khan, Napoleon, Billy the Kid, Phonebooth, San Dimas, Steps, and Columns

Now, before you scream at me "wait! you didn't list Bill and Ted! Or the Princesses! and what's up with 'Steps' and 'Columns'?" to which i have the following replies:

a) including bill and ted as rooms is just too obvious and too generic - though we could use them later i suppose and,

b) the first thing the Princess's actually say is "Rufus introduced us to a place called 'the mall', and something called, 'credit cards'" and i don't know about you, but i don't want Engineering using that phrase ever or have it ever be implied. Heck, i don't want Marketing to have rooms that imply that either. Really. No Princess's. Besides, "Princess's" will be shot down as girly and no one actually remembers the girls names (Elizabeth and Joanna) enough to have them make sense in context. OH! And Bill and Ted never actually bring them into the phonebooth - Rufus does that. Enough reasons? I have more but... naa, i'll stop. ok, and,

c) when Bill and Ted are describing Ancient Greece they compare it to Houses of the Holy - "there were many steps and columns - it was most tranquil", and since "Houses of the Holy" as a conference room name isn't exactly, um, appropriate, and "steps" and "columns" can be used as and represent computer engineering terms / actions / objects, they seemed appropriate.

... and now i really have to get back to my self review before yet another day of meetings starts. Oh! And Cathy is flying in today! Hurray! K, Bye!

Expression:

Juxtaposed

Background Noise: Lying is the most fun a girl can have without taking her clothes off
Last Visited: Cool Hunting
Random Thought: nothing but good times ahead
Mood: please, please, please stop blowing holes in my ship

Now that everyone is on the same level...

... perhaps we could have a conversation.

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Urge to Etch Rising

Background Noise: Say It Somehow
Last Visited: Bricks without Clay
Random Thought: must find image to etch onto my laptop...
Mood: dear lord this is cool

  

Yeah, i have to do this... especially since Squid Labs in Emeryville appears to have an etcher available for use. Now the only question is: what image should i tattoo onto my laptop? While i can appreciate the humor of an Adam / Eve image... i'm not sold.

Hmm. Maybe something like this?

I like it.

ETA: Tom Cruise Must Die: the Prologue is up!

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It's Not Nirvana But it's On the Way

Background Noise: The Beauty Is
Last Visited: U of M News Releases
Random Thought: There is no story; there has never been a story, and there never will be a story. Seriously. No story.
Mood: fighting off annoyance

Well, i suppose it's time for a quick perusal of what's going on at U of M. Why? Um... because i got an email this morning and clicked around. Do i need a better reason?

Let's start with the Fire Up Downtown! program, because it involves kids and paint and the City being silly. From the horses mouth:

This is a street level cultural movement created to highlight the talents of Ann Arbor's student artists and ignite economic vibrancy downtown. Students painting fire hydrants throughout the downtown area bring art and community together!

Odd, maybe, but cute and moderately entertaining none the less.

Next: Physicists have finally proven that if all drivers were polite, they would get where they're going faster. Obvious? Yes. But it's nice to have quantifiable proof. Cool math, too.

And finally, are you a wolf or a sheep?Yes, while i agree that the wolf / sheep analogy isn't quite sound, the discovery that

Losers without this non-conscious drive did not show a hormonal stress response. In other words, being defeated is stressful only for those who want to be powerful, but not for those who are not even interested in power in the first place.

Interestingly, winning the contest had the opposite effect. As expected, power-motivated individuals responded to a victory with a drop in their stress hormone levels. But individuals low in power motivation had an increase in cortisol after they won, suggesting that they were stressed by coming out on top.

while, once again, obvious to the very observant, it's nice to have a study to back up the idea that some people just flat out don't enjoy competition. As a side note, i think it's hilarious that this particular study came out of the competitive capital of the midwest, U of M.

Ok: have i managed to distract away my annoyance? Not really. But lunch is coming up, so there's another opportunity. Hopefully i won't blow that one too.

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The Venus, Obsessive Order, and Naked Perfection

Background Noise: Skiksa Godess
Last Visited: How Art Made the World
Random Thought: Thank goodness for Go Fug Yourself: without them i wouldn't have known Aaron Spelling passed away. Well reported, ladies, and thanks for the tribute.
Mood: science awes

I was lucky enough to catch the first episode of PBS's new series How Art Made the World last night: More Human Than Human, an episode which dares to ask and answer the question:

Why is our world so dominated by images of the body that are unrealistic?

    

To call our obsession with body image popular would be like calling the Pacific a pond, the Grand Canyon a hole, Harry Potter a cult hit. This series takes an interesting route through the history of art, using science to get to the heart of the art of our ancestors. It's one hell of a ride.

From the The Venus of Willendorf's exaggerated beauty, to the Egyptian's Obsessive pursuit of Order and Persistance, to the Greek's search for realism then their equally obsessive quest for Naked Perfection (see: The Riace Bronzes), this episode meticulously tracks the course of our art, and what it says about human evolution.

The most interesting example, i found, was the Greeks and their lightning fast progression of the desires of their art. Always searching for the Gods among the men, initially they strove for exact replicas of the human form in their statuary. But once they had achieved that goal, they quickly found they didn't want their Gods to look like men. The Greeks dream for God-Like, physically unatainable, aestetic perfection in their statues was quite unlike their original goal of realistic human images; though the Greeks created the perfect human statue and didn't like it, didn't want it - they wanted better than human.

    

And like the Greeks, we to strive for a perfection that isn't attainable; our idea of beauty is an exaggerated dream where we emphasize different body parts based on the state of our culture. Be it breasts or lips or butt muscles or the torso, we are hard wired to want more than we have. So a woman's obsession with being thinner, prettier, with blonde hair and electric blue eyes, huge lips, huge breats, a golden tan and the newest latest clothes isn't trivial; it's an instinct as basic as breathing. But, does knowing that this behavior is instinctual help justify the lengths we go to to achieve this dream?

Interestingly enough, technology has gotten us to a point where we don't have to use our art to encapsulate our desires, we can perfect ourselves instead. For better or worse.

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