Mama T

I opened her boxes today. They've been sitting in the corner of the study since October 2008, untouched, taped shut, contents unknown to the extent that I did not know what to expect among the things I knew would be in there. It would have been more fitting to do it on her birthday, or mother's day, or some special day... But the sun is shining, and I was cleaning the kitchen, and rearranging the study to turn it into a semi-studio, and the boxes were just...sitting there, waiting oh so patiently. So I got my scissors and cut the tape. I actually did it. And instead of crying, like I expected, I find myself smiling. The boxes smell like her. I stuck my head inside them and just breathed in, taking her in, remembering her, loving her.

I only unpacked a few things. I don't know what to do with all the crocheted sweaters and tablecloths yet. Books and games no longer reside within the cardboard confinements, however. Things I took out: the Great Masters' Drawings book I bought Max for his birthday, Monopoly, Clue (oh, how many times we played!), Scrabble, Set, Uno, and the "Woman's Home Companion Cookbook." And Brutus. I brought him downstairs, to be put with her hutch and other things, as he always was.

Ticketmaster can bite me

She & Him sold out in two minutes. TWO MINUTES. Is that even POSSIBLE? Both shows? And now scalpers are selling tickets for $100+ which is ridiculous. Good news though is that they'll be coming out with another album in March (the songs of which, I'm sure, would be performed at their shows). Maybe I'll swing by the theater on that Monday night after class anyway, maybe someone will be selling tickets, or something. Maybe. SO lame Ticketmaster, you laggard.

Oh yeah. Other good news: I got my ticket for The Flaming Lips show in April (which was NOT available through Ticketmaster, and probably why I was able to get a bloody ticket), which is awesome, and they're sold out too (which DOES make sense). Still need to get a Spoon ticket, though...

*Update 1/31*
Aaaaaaaand there are no longer any two seats together for the Spoon concert. Oh well.

Salinger Post on the Go (+Zinn)

The world awaits with bated breath.

*Update, later*

I'm more upset about Howard Zinn's passing than I am Salinger's. I am morbidly intrigued with Salinger's, maybe now we'll finally find out what he's been up to these last 45 years...if he had a secret room full of unbound sheets of paper containing unpublished works that have yet to see the light of day. Thus the bated breath.

Back to Zinn. Zinn was the shit. The bomb diggity. It is thanks to him (well, and Mr. Barker, of course) that I developed the incredible appreciation I have now for history. "A People's History of the United States" has traveled with me everywhere, from New York, to Ohio and Oregon, to Florida, Holland, and Japan. The world truly lost a remarkable human being with his passing.

March is Music Month

OK. Of COURSE Joanna Newsom's sold out already. Pfft. Already got tix for Akron/Family, She & Him goes on sale the 29th, still need to get Spoon & Magnetic Fields. And in other musical news: Oh No Oh My is apparently coming out with a new album Mid March (!) Eeeeeep! March is going to be bananas, music will be coming out of my ears (and pouring into them).

*Update later same day*
And to ADD to the ever-growing list of concerts in March, there will now also be The Flaming Lips and Air. Oh my goodness, I just don't know what to do with myself!

Shows to See

Sooo many favorite bands are coming into town! Joanna Newsom, Josh Ritter, Spoon, and The Magnetic Fields, oh my!

I absolutely MUST see Spoon. I've been listening to them since high school, have not seen them live once. Same with The Magnetic Fields. Must must MUST see at least those two.

*Update 1/24*

Aaaah! She & Him! She & Him! (!!!!!) She & Him have a show now, too! OK. Absolute necessity to see She & Him. Are you kidding? The last time they toured was in North Carolina or somewhere not near me at all, and oh my goodness, there's no way I'm going to miss their show.

RIP Zeken

One of the first friends I ever made in Oregon has been robbed of his life. Old friends are gathering. I'll be joining them soon.

Zeken was one of the first people I met after my move across the country. He was part of the whole crew of kids I would hang with day in and day out. He left school after junior year, and while I never saw him again, his death is a tragic loss felt by all of us.

Victim named in Hwy 30 fatal collision

Haiti Devastated, Pat Robertson a Dick

Visit msnbc.com for breaking news, world news, and news about the economy

The Conservative Heritage Foundation thinks Obama should bring W. in to help with the Haiti crisis in a bi-partisan effort. Yeah. Look at his track record with Katrina. He's just what we need. Meanwhile, Clinton has already addressed the United Nations.

Pat Robertson: Haiti 'Cursed' By 'Pact To The Devil'

The inconsiderate idiocy of this man. How does he have his own show. How does he not feel any guilt over saying such things. I thought Christ taught compassion.



I don't know if Berthil's family is there or not. Goodness gracious I hope not.

Puketacular

The Repubs need to get their act together, they're starting to forget things, flip-flop, and go back to stereotypically dirty tactics.


Rudy Giuliani: 'We Had No Domestic Attacks Under Bush; We've Had One Under Obama'


Role Reversal: Lieberman Defends Obama From McCain

Excerpt:

Sen. Joseph Lieberman (I-Conn.) offered a rare defense of Barack Obama on Sunday -- and an even rarer rebuke of Sen. John McCain (R-Ariz.) -- after the Arizona Republican accused the president of "leading an extreme left-wing crusade to bankrupt America."

In what was a reversal of the role he played during the presidential campaign -- when he stumped on McCain's behalf and spoke at the Republican convention -- Lieberman said he disagreed with the anti-Obama radio ads McCain is running in his home state.

"You know every now and then John McCain and I disagree sometimes, and that's one of the cases," Lieberman said on CNN's "State of the Union." "So I don't agree with that. I think the president understands the importance of bringing our government back into balance. Look he came in, in a most difficult economic time, inheriting a national debt that had doubled in the preceding eight years.

McCain: I'm 'Arizona's Last Line Of Defense'

AD NUMBER 1:

NARRATOR: He's lived through a battle or two, vanquished many a foe. But perhaps but no battle in our lifetime is more vital than the one John McCain fights now. A battle to save America, save our jobs. John McCain leads the charge to slash government spending, bloated bureaucracies, and ridiculously unaffordable ideas like government run health care.

MCCAIN: President Obama is leading an extreme left wing crusade to bankrupt America. I stand in his way every day. If I get a bruise or two knocking some sense into head in Washington, so be it. I'll keep fighting for jobs and economic growth for Arizona as long as I'm in the Senate.

NARRATOR: John McCain is Arizona's last line of defense. Character matters.

AD NUMBER 2:

NARRATOR: We know what he endured, turned down a chance to go home early. It was against the prisoner's code. John McCain has spent his life representing Arizona, fighting for the little guy, standing up to titans, afraid of no man, saying yes to jobs and small business, no to big government. John McCain is leading the fight against President Obama every day, standing tall and outspoken, helping Arizona families.

MCCAIN: My lot in life has been to wage war against wrong, like today's massive spending at the worst possible time. Send me back to the Senate. We will win that fight for Arizona.

NARRATOR: John McCain is Arizona's last line of defense. Character matters.

George Will Battles Liz Cheney On Racism And Terrorism (VIDEO)

So Obama played golf. At least he addressed the nation about what happened in between putts, Bush didn't even have the decency to do as much with the shoe bombing incident.

And Harry Reid isn't racist, he was acknowledging that Americans are racist, and that that is what Americans truly think. He was insulting Americans, not African Americans.

No Pants Subway Ride

This makes me laugh:

Sunday, January 10
* Ninth Annual No Pants Subway Ride, Manhattan
* Third Annual Pro Pants Rally, Manhattan


Guess not everyone likes it when people ride pants-less!

Avatar

Avatar is, aside from the incredible visuals and technology, nothing new plot-wise. It is essentially 'Ferngully' meets 'Dances with Wolves' meets 'Nausicaa,' 'Pocahontas,' and 'Gorillas in the Mist.' Beautiful, yes, and awesome, especially in IMAX 3D, all those glowing lights in your face and the depth of the distance below the trees and floating mountains, glorious. But entirely predictable, absolutely. I knew what would happen hours before it happened, not that I wasn't pleased to see I was right, or that I wasn't happy with what happened, but no surprises. This movie loves foreshadowing, like whoah.


And this isn't to say I didn't love it, obviously, I've seen it more than once already, and could see it again. But that's because I like where it takes me, and the aesthetic pleasure and feelings I derive from watching it. Also, I love nature kicking ass. My favorite LotR was the second for the longest time because the Ents kick so much ass (nature, yay!).


From Huffington Post: 'Avatar' = 'Pocahontas' in Space




Anyway. It's a damn good movie, and the anti-war (Giovanni Ribisi and the Colonel were deliciously diabolical) pro-nature (I want to 'plug-in' to nature and ride a giant bird!) themes are very much appreciated, but aside from the technology it ain't nothing new. But what movies nowadays don't pay homage to some plot of the past? Whether it's Jane Austen, Homer, Shakespeare, or apparently Disney, it's how it's used that matters. The bit of originality I will give it is the idea of the avatar itself, and being a big blue being that looks like a combination of a deer, an elf, and a monkey. I couldn't help but think of "little green men" when looking at the humans, that we are them, smaller than the indigenous peoples, with our scary futuristic technology, using their bodies to communicate, and just so darn cute and small.

Fabulous Muppets videos

Deliciously perverse Shel Silverstein song:



Human Sacrifice + The Beatles + Muppets = Spectacular



The Count Censored:

Moon Colony by 2025

This excites me terribly: Moon hole might be suitable for colony

Excerpts:

The vertical hole, in the volcanic Marius Hills region on the moon's near side, is 213 feet wide and is estimated to be more than 260 feet deep, according to findings published in Geophysical Research Letters, a journal of the American Geophysical Union.

More important, the scientists say, the hole is protected from the moon's harsh temperatures and meteorite strikes by a thin sheet of lava. That makes the tube a good candidate for further exploration or possible inhabitation, the article says.

"Lunar lava tubes are a potentially important location for a future lunar base, whether for local exploration and development, or as an outpost to serve exploration beyond the Moon," writes the team, led by Junichi Haruyama, a senior researcher with the Japanese space agency JAXA.

"Any intact lava tube could serve as a shelter from the severe environment of the lunar surface, with its meteorite impacts, high-energy UV radiation and energetic particles, and extreme diurnal temperature variations."

Lava tubes have previously been discovered on the moon, but the scientists say the new hole is notable because of its lava shield and because it does not appear to be prone to collapse.

...

NASA is reportedly working on plans to return to the moon by 2020 and to set up a temporary lunar colony by 2025 as part of the Constellation Program. Funding for the program, however, remains somewhat in question.

The American space agency could not be reached for comment.



Also read: Lunar Outpost Wiki




Space exploration FTW. Evacuate the earth much?