Saturday, September 30, 2006
Do I Amuse You?
Low self-esteem checking in to ask you, fair readers, if the blog's up to snuff. Am I boring you? Too much whining and psychological introspection? Too much talk of dogs? Not enough hot gay porn? What do you think? Holla at me!
Friday, September 29, 2006
Halloween Help
I've never been much into Halloween, even as a child. I love candy and all, but getting dressed up and hoofing about the neighborhood just didn't appeal to me. I stopped dressing up years ago. This year, for the first time in a long time, I have a Halloween party to go to and I need a costume. I've had one good costume idea in my life (I was a calendar one year) and that's about it, so I'm at a bit of a loss. Anyone have any creative suggestions?
Thursday, September 28, 2006
Self-Awareness
Admitting you have a problem (self-awareness) is, supposedly, the first step to fixing it. I pride myself on my self-awareness. Frankly, I think I'm too self-aware at times. Certainly, there seems to be something to be said for self-delusion and oblivousness; unaware hypocrites and non-reflective people sure seem to be having a hell of a better time than I do, at any rate. But self-awareness is only a first step in conventional wisdom. I seem to be unable to get past it.
For instance, my bibliomania and OCD wed within the bowels of my neuroses-ridden psyche to produce an obsession for "perfect" books. The merest flaw in spine, board, binding, or dustjacket is enough to send me into a tizzy. In the irrational seas of my subconscious, I feel that, unless each and every book is perfect, it will fall apart and all of its knowledge will be lost to future generations. My library is the bulwark against a new Dark Age following the inevitable Hollywood-type Mad Max apocolypse destroys modern civilization. Only the "fittest," most flawless books will survive to illuminate our descendants and bring them back to a civilized state. Alternately, in fifty years, one of my books will be worth lots of money, but I'll go to sell it and, because the spine has a dent or the dustjacket a wrinkle, they'll tell me it's worthless. And, no, I'm not making this stuff up; I really do believe it (or, I should say, a really nutty part of me does; the rest of me knows this is a crazy, narcissistic notion). I try to assuage my anxieties by purchasing multiple copies of books I deem particularly important. But, since all but a few books can meet my exacting standards, this leads to a cycle of spending and returning that I can ill-afford, considering my poverty-level income. I know that it's crazy and unnecessary, but I can't help it! If I don't "scratch the itch," my anxiety levels jump and I'm mentally tortured into revisiting old patterns. I'm aware of all this, but the awareness doesn't help me in any way. In fact, it only makes me feel worse, since I know I shouldn't be doing it and I'm spending money I don't have and torturing myself. Sometimes, I just feel like taking a torch to the entirety of my book collection and having done with it.
The book thing is only one of several similar conditions involving sex, relationships, social interaction, body image, and more that plague me and that I've touched on before on this blog (ad nauseum, perhaps). So I have all this self-awareness, all this intellectual appreciation of just how irrational and futile all these neuroses are, but I can't seem to hop over Hadrian's Wall to actually defeat the damn barbarians. What can I do?
For instance, my bibliomania and OCD wed within the bowels of my neuroses-ridden psyche to produce an obsession for "perfect" books. The merest flaw in spine, board, binding, or dustjacket is enough to send me into a tizzy. In the irrational seas of my subconscious, I feel that, unless each and every book is perfect, it will fall apart and all of its knowledge will be lost to future generations. My library is the bulwark against a new Dark Age following the inevitable Hollywood-type Mad Max apocolypse destroys modern civilization. Only the "fittest," most flawless books will survive to illuminate our descendants and bring them back to a civilized state. Alternately, in fifty years, one of my books will be worth lots of money, but I'll go to sell it and, because the spine has a dent or the dustjacket a wrinkle, they'll tell me it's worthless. And, no, I'm not making this stuff up; I really do believe it (or, I should say, a really nutty part of me does; the rest of me knows this is a crazy, narcissistic notion). I try to assuage my anxieties by purchasing multiple copies of books I deem particularly important. But, since all but a few books can meet my exacting standards, this leads to a cycle of spending and returning that I can ill-afford, considering my poverty-level income. I know that it's crazy and unnecessary, but I can't help it! If I don't "scratch the itch," my anxiety levels jump and I'm mentally tortured into revisiting old patterns. I'm aware of all this, but the awareness doesn't help me in any way. In fact, it only makes me feel worse, since I know I shouldn't be doing it and I'm spending money I don't have and torturing myself. Sometimes, I just feel like taking a torch to the entirety of my book collection and having done with it.
The book thing is only one of several similar conditions involving sex, relationships, social interaction, body image, and more that plague me and that I've touched on before on this blog (ad nauseum, perhaps). So I have all this self-awareness, all this intellectual appreciation of just how irrational and futile all these neuroses are, but I can't seem to hop over Hadrian's Wall to actually defeat the damn barbarians. What can I do?
I'm Not QUITE Nerdy Enough...
...to exclaim, "'CMS 15 CD-ROM OMG!!!'" to the news that the Chicago Manual of Style will be released on CD and on the web, especially since I don't have the money or the need for either, but it's still kinda cool. The Chicago is the granddaddy of style guides and really is a fascinating book, full of interesting tidbits. I got a copy from my editorial mentor upon my college graduation.
(Via Bookslut)
(Via Bookslut)
Wednesday, September 27, 2006
Welcome To The USA!
Now I've Seen It All
A mass-murdering teddy bear. Okay, it was a bunch of troubt, but still. Makes one wonder what really caused Paddington to flee from deepest, darkest Peru to Britain. A lack of extradition treaties between the two countries, perhaps?
(Via Gawker)
(Via Gawker)
Fall Has Fallen
Fall's here and it's gorgeous. The sky is blue, the sun is warm, and the air is cool. Perfectly delightful.
On a related note, I'm not the only devotee of autumn out there. It's funny, I, too, still associate Fall with school bulletin boards, too. I also always think of colonial America in perpetual autumn; I guess that's because November was always all about Thanksgiving and the Pilgrims. Interesting explication of the Persephone myth, too, BTW. I'm ashamed to admit that, even though I'm a mythology buff, I never questioned the old "and this is why there's winter" explanation.
On a related note, I'm not the only devotee of autumn out there. It's funny, I, too, still associate Fall with school bulletin boards, too. I also always think of colonial America in perpetual autumn; I guess that's because November was always all about Thanksgiving and the Pilgrims. Interesting explication of the Persephone myth, too, BTW. I'm ashamed to admit that, even though I'm a mythology buff, I never questioned the old "and this is why there's winter" explanation.
Tuesday, September 26, 2006
Monday, September 25, 2006
But Can The Cat Play The Banjo While Narrating Classic Christmas Tales?
Okay, the original observation is kind of a crazy cat lady sort of notion, but damn if you don't start to see the resemblence when you look at the pictures side to side.
Will Wonders Never Cease?
Do you guys remember those stupid bracelets that started out flat, but when you slapped them onto your wrist they curled up? I remember I was in like elementary school when they were all the rage and schools banned them because some stupid-asses hurt themselves by snapping them on too hard.
Anyway, turns out they may be at the foundations of future flexible electronics. Isn't that wild? What next, will those "Live Strong" bracelets unlock the secrets of artificial intelligence?
(Via Towleroad)
Anyway, turns out they may be at the foundations of future flexible electronics. Isn't that wild? What next, will those "Live Strong" bracelets unlock the secrets of artificial intelligence?
(Via Towleroad)
Sunday, September 24, 2006
Saturday, September 23, 2006
America Is NOT Rome
Well, it just isn't! Though Western civilization is indelibly marked by Roman civilization, and the Founding Fathers and the following generations have been influenced by their notions of what Rome was in shaping this country, comparing the Roman Empire to modern America (with the implication that the American Empire is about to fall right now!) is just silly.
Humans continue to grapple with the same sorts of problems today that they did two thousand years ago. It's therefore easy to see parallels between today's America and the Roman Republic/Empire; the same applies, however, to virtually any culture in human history.
We should certainly study how our predecessors dealt with similar problems and shared similar challenges (we should pay particular attention how well their solutions did, or did not, work), but we must always keep in mind that such study is, at best, study of analogy, not Fate. For all the similarities between us and a past culture such as Rome, there are just as many differences. History can be a guide and a counsellor, but, in the end, we have to realize that we live in our own moment, different from that of any before, and, in the end, we have to decide, to the best of our abilities, how to act and what choices to make.
(Via rogueclassicism)
Humans continue to grapple with the same sorts of problems today that they did two thousand years ago. It's therefore easy to see parallels between today's America and the Roman Republic/Empire; the same applies, however, to virtually any culture in human history.
We should certainly study how our predecessors dealt with similar problems and shared similar challenges (we should pay particular attention how well their solutions did, or did not, work), but we must always keep in mind that such study is, at best, study of analogy, not Fate. For all the similarities between us and a past culture such as Rome, there are just as many differences. History can be a guide and a counsellor, but, in the end, we have to realize that we live in our own moment, different from that of any before, and, in the end, we have to decide, to the best of our abilities, how to act and what choices to make.
(Via rogueclassicism)
Friday, September 22, 2006
Thursday, September 21, 2006
Pup Portraits
A museum to visit if I ever get back to NYC. Who could resist a gallery full of cute pooch pics? Not I!
(Via Gentlemans Canine Society)
A Tolkein Two'fer
A one...
A review of a fascinating-looking new book on Tolkein and the OED.
And a two...
Tolkein's son, Christopher, will be publishing a "new"-ish book next spring.
A review of a fascinating-looking new book on Tolkein and the OED.
And a two...
Tolkein's son, Christopher, will be publishing a "new"-ish book next spring.
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