this is not the Onion

A Nebraska senator is suing God. Nuf said.

play with your hands

distraction.distraction.distraction.
i've been on an odd technology/diy/design/make it with your own two hands kinda kick for the past brief while. in my head those things all go together in some way or another.
herein follows a random list of craziness:

at work while searching for a decent photo release form, i came across lifehacker, a plethora of technologically relevant information so gi-normous that to absorb every tip given, you would have to live your entire life on the puter.

and then i met clocky, the mechanical counterpart to my personality: sleepy, cute, and squirmy. he ingeniously runs away and starts incessantly beeping when you try to snooze him more than once. he's the soulmate for someone who doesn't even realize she's hitting her alarm clock any more.


note to others: whenever you are considering purchasing anything for me, this, along with a wide angle lens, is what i want. (i am shameless.)

and yet another find, thanks to my dad's crazy connections, is the neat design blog core 77. i plan to build myself a light tent , after which i will stand with one foot on top of the kitchen table and declare myself some sort of conqueror.

on top of this, i've also been strangely drawn to a lot of dj-mixed music, recently in particular the genius of MSTRKRFT. their remix of block party's two more years is brilliantly danceable.

my life has become a series of blips and bleeps.

weathering the storm

for those who misconstrue.
you do, somewhat. but that's really mostly my fault. i've been delinquent in my writing for the past week because i've been a busy bee. you see, it all started when i finally met some people my own age. for the first time in months, i was able to exhale and sit on someone's couch and drink a cider and listen to old friends talk about their brother's awful cars and how they rode to school in winter in a convertable. and it was nice to be accepted into that. it felt so very normal that for a moment, i forgot that i'm the odd man out. that combined itself with the next evening of intense inspiration, sitting again, listening again, but this time to two artists who i was only so lucky to see. and again, it was so normal, and so beautiful, and it made me want to make beautiful things with myself. and then on top of that the next night i make strides in being that person, pittering away with senora, practicing my trilling rs, adding a little spice into this pale sea-water eyed body of mine. and then yet the next night i ran to another piece of me, this time with the dogs and the children and their eyes lit up, despite the pain they were going through and i knew that this was just as important as the other things and something that made me feel deeply. and yet the next night i was in another new place, with other friends, for them, eating free food and looking at totally foreign design elements that i could never afford. but i was recognized. i was the director they had met before and oh what a good job i was doing and what wonderful work i do. i was that somebody, that difference in someone else's life, beginning to be that person i strive for. and i sat on the porch at night and said, very loudly for all to hear, that if ever there was a need i would be there in an instant. and i was. and i wanted to be. and oh lord, where does this go now, but that was the most normal thing of the week, despite being quite oppositely so. so i proceed cautiously, but with true intent.
oh dear, maree's week has been extraordinary, to say the least.

for loves sake.

maree's week has been extraordinary. period.

below picture of me looking ratty taken by a child i work with.

but, hey--it's still a new picture of me.

i need a haricut.

Reflections

words of wisdom.

It's opener there
in the wide open air.

Out there things can happen
and frequently do
to people as brainy
and footsy as you.

And when things start to happen,
don't worry. Don't stew.
Just go right along.
You'll start happening too.

Working for the weekend.

My personal inspiration for getting through today:

1) Tomorrow, I am finally getting myself to a record store. Am expecting to become totally overstimulated and spend way too much money. And then I am roaming the city. My adventures to be updated next week...

2) Christian Bale. Cowboys. What's not to love? (Am I the only one who is freaking out a little waiting for the new Batman movie?)

3) Farm Aid has always been one of my favorite organizations because they support individual people so essential to this country. We've forgotten where our food comes from. And how better to spread the word than to use music? This weekend they host their concert in NYC.

4) If you've been reading my blog, you've seen how much I love Charles Vess. Well, he's here on Monday, (*little dance to myself*) so I have something to look forward going back into the week.

What book are you?

You're One Hundred Years of Solitude!

by Gabriel Garcia Marquez

Lonely and struggling, you've been around for a very long time.
Conflict has filled most of your life and torn apart nearly everyone you know. Yet there
is something majestic and even epic about your presence in the world. You love life all
the more for having seen its decimation. After all, it takes a village.


Take the Book Quiz
at the Blue Pyramid.

A Day in the Life

the idea is not new, but it's never old. the latvian embassy just sponsored "one day in latvija," on August 31st, an anniversary celebration of the original effort 20 years ago that captured the then-soviet state over the course of 24 hours.
I'm jealous that I missed it. (though, some of the photos more than make up for it).

Jamie T - Brand New Bass Guitar

A good week overall.

Musically, i've come across a lot this week. Been listening to some old cds pulled out while moving, and some new things, thanks to derek's links that he sent me. Here's a little list:

Satisfact-I bought their self-titled a long time ago in college. "Demonstration" is my favorite. "I'm in a bad way" is also a good song. Although no longer together, they were the pre-cursor to the dance-oriented indie music, though a great deal more dissonant.

Black Lips-(see previous post)

The Spits-Old fashioned (punk, that is) and just as sweet as candy corn.

Jamie T (above post)-listen to "Salvador," the opening wail reminds me a lot of jonathan richman. unfortunately couldn't find the video for it, so i gave you the gem above.

The Panthers

MSTRKRFT-awesome dance music out of canada. love their remix of the panther's "thank me with your hands"

new Interpol-they're dirty, and make me ashamed of myself, but i love them

Elvis Perkins-"While you were sleeping"-in the vein of Mason Jennings

More to follow...

Wish I was there.

One reason I miss NY