It's Poetry Appreciation Time!

I feel like posting a poem by one of my favorite poets, Wallace Stevens, whom I discovered due to my high school Latin teacher name dropping him while we were translating . . . Ovid? Anyway, in my American literature class, we're just getting to modernist writers, and my professor there also name dropped him. I was disappointed to find out that we wouldn't be reading any of his poems, but this has simply led to me reading more of his poems on my own. Here's one that I consider to be my favorite, at least for now.

"The High-Toned Old Christian Woman"

Poetry is the supreme fiction, madame.
Take the moral law and make a nave of it
And from the nave build haunted heave. Thus,
The conscience is converted into palms,
Like windy citherns hankering for hymns.
We agree in principle. That's clear. But take
The opposing law and make a peristyle,
And from the peristyle project a masque
Beyond the planets. Thus, our bawdiness,
Unpurged by epitaph, indulged at last,
Is equally converted into palms,
Squiggling like saxophones. And palm for palm,
Madame, we are where we began. Allow,
Therefore, that in the planetary scene
Your disaffected flagellants, well-stuffed,
Smacking their muzzy bellies in parade,
Proud of such novelties of the sublime,
Suck tink and tank and tunk-a-tunk-tunk
May, merely may, madame, whip from themselves
A jovial hullabaloo among the spheres.
This will make widows wince. But fictive things
Wince as they will. Wink most when widows wince.

Now, I thought I would try to interpret it here, so I postponed finishing this entry, but the truth is I still don't know if I can, so I'll leave it uninterrupted by my squiggling thoughts.

Song of the Moment - "Ambling Alp" by Yeasayer

Such an upbeat song; I lurvs it! I don't care much about the lyrics right now, except for the chorus. The chorus is definitely the best. It's all in the delivery.

Now kid I know I haven't been a perfect man
And I've avoided doing things I know I can
But if I learned one thing the tattoo on my arm
Will burn into my thumb It would be that

You must stick up for yourself son
Never mind what anybody else done
Stick up for yourself son
Never mind what anybody else done
Stick up for yourself son
Never mind what anybody else done

Now Old Man Schlemming was a formidable foe
The Ambling Alp was too at least that's what I'm told
But if you learn one thing then learn this well
In June you must get past yourself
They'll run but they can't hide

You must stick up for yourself son
Never mind what anybody else done
Stick up for yourself son
Never mind what anybody else done
Stick up for yourself son
Never mind what anybody else done

And when those thunder clouds are cryin
(in the sky, in the sky)
And when those fireflies keep shining,
(In your eyes, in your eyes)
Keep your eyes on the shine,
keep your minds on the line,
Keep your feet and slide
(into the sky, into the sky)

Now the world can be an unfair place at times
But your lows will have their compliment of highs
And if anyone should cheat you
Take advantage of or beat you raise your hand
And wear your wounds with pride

You must stick up for yourself son
Never mind what anybody else done
Stick up for yourself son
Never mind what anybody else done
Stick up for yourself son
Never mind what anybody else done

*This song can be acquired free (legally) for the time being at the band's official site: http://www.amblingalp.com/*

Spur of the Moment - Matt Bonner

After our 131-124 win against the defensively challenged Toronto Raptors, there were many high points to celebrate. Richard Jefferson's 24 points, 8 rebounds, & 7 dishes, and not to mention a couple of dunks. Ginobili's line of 36 points, 8 assists, 4 rebounds & 4 blocks. Seriously? 4 blocks? Sounds like we didn't need Theo Ratliff, a respectable Sultan of Swat, if there ever was one in basketball. Then there was George Hill's more than impressive stand-in performance for TP9 with 22 points, 5 assists, 2 rebounds, and only 2 turnovers. McDyess had 7 points & 10 rebounds while being the only Spur tonight with credible interior D. Even the rookie DeJuan Blair, while hampered by 5 fouls (2 of which being totally, completely, absolutely bogus calls. An 8 year old would cry injustice here), put forth a commendable effort with 6 points & 7 rebounds.

But no, I didn't choose any of them as my favorite performer tonight, against better judgment. I choose the Red Rocket. Or, shall I say, the newly christened "Hoagie Hammer," for his love of sandwiches and--what's this?--a drive to the hole for a jam, and an authoritative one at that!

Damn, that Raptor defense is decidely porous, and not getting one iota of mercy from this "binary toxin"

Hmm, I probably shouldn't try making any more esoteric biology jokes. But seriously, their cytoskeleton has done been had.

Anyway, Bonner also had 18 points, 4 boards, & 2 assists, an impressive line in its own right. But really, all I care about is the dunk. Why, you ask? Sure, he's 6'10", and I'm sure he's had his fair share of dunks in high school and maybe college. But for his 3 seasons and counting as a Spur, his role has been as a 3 point shooter, and I can say that I'm 95% confident that he hasn't even have the gumption to attempt a dunk, much less pull one off. In his own words from his recent Planet Fitness commercial appearance, it was a "wicked awesome" way to help remedy our 2 disappointing losses in Utah & Portland just last week.

GO SPURS GO!

A Strangeloop Production

This amazing video was made by the great Dr. Strangeloop, a VJ who's friends with one of my favorite beat producers, Flying Lotus, and part of the whole Brainfeeder movement, which is absolutely the only reason why I might ever be willing to live in LA. The music by Austin Peralta is just as great as the video, although I can't say I know much about him, because this is my first time experiencing his music. As for the video, well, there's nothing like watching kelp, cuttlefish, various ctenophores, and a seahorse disguised as coral to put your mind at ease.

I suggest you watch the video in HD. It's just that much better. Enjoy!

What makes a chair a chair?

In case you re as clueless as I was, here are a couple definitions. Too bad our feeble minds can't comprehend *sad face*

1) a seat, esp. for one person, usually having four legs for support and a rest for the back and often having rests for the arms.

2) something that serves as a chair or supports like a chair: The two men clasped hands to make a chair for their injured companion.


Okay, I scrounged up a picture of a chair for us to wrap our minds around. This should help, right?

Umm, what?

Yes, that's a chair, at least to the Taiwanese woman who made it. It amazes me how creative we continue to be. Here's a more convincing image of the "breathing chair" as she calls it.

The article says the chair's creator, Yu-Ying Wu, made it so that she could place less stress on her knees when she stands up from it. I think she might need more help that just a chair. Nevertheless, I'd like to try out one of these and see if there's any "wrong" way to sit on it. I'd even like to buy one, but, as it's made from some eco-friendly robo-foam, or something like that, it ought to cost mad crazy money. Here's the link to the original article, since I don't feel like rehashing the rest of the write-up.

Square chair in action!

For Your Viewing Pleasure

Another reason to love Japan. Maybe.


I found this on a blog I visit from time to time. Apparently, it's a Japanese advertisement for a food website called Hot Pepper which I'll assume is like the Food Network and looks pretty interesting, but I'm a unilingual kind of guy. I think I just created that term. Anyway, I think it was a unique advertisement, but it made me wonder why Japanese people would take to the Peanuts crew. Is it popular there? I have no clue, but it seems this might lead to some internet sleuthing. . . .

Where the Wild Waves Are

click image to view in full

I saw Where the Wild Things Are in massively lovable IMAX format (totally worth the extra 2 or 3 dollars) on it's opening weekend with a few friends, and boy was that fun. I prepared for the movie a few weeks earlier by finding scans of the book and reading it online for the sake of my enjoyment and edification, of course (something I managed not to tell my friends, because they would be like "WTF, mate?").

I'm not entirely sure if people consider the book a classic, but the story really isn't special at all. Max's mom punishes him for misbehaving, and sends him to his room without dinner. While in his room, he imagines an escape to a land of strange creatures and makes himself their king. He only returns when he realizes just how hungry he is, and that supper is waiting for him. As simple as it gets. What is special is the illustration, and that's something that filmmakers nowadays are more than capable of elaborating, even in lousy movies (the remake of The Day the Earth Stood Still readily comes to mind), as long as the budget is big enough. This is a moment where the movie outshines the book, but that really wasn't too difficult due to the book's lack of substance.

Now, back to the film. I loved the depth of personality they gave the individual wild things and how Max developed relationships with them, something that was nonexistent in the book, which averaged about a sentence a page. Also, the movie displays a sense of the island's grandeur that wasn't shown in the book, although readers are free to imagine such things.

I can't really find anything wrong with the movie, except maybe how Max's mom was completely ignoring him when he wanted her to see his fort is his room and gave full attention to her man-friend. If she wants to be on a date, why not hire a babysitter and go out? Instead, this causes Max to run his ass out of the house and into the woods, which leads to his adventure. This is probably the only point where people could possibly bitch about the story detracting from the original. Instead of imagining that his bedroom transforms into a forest, he simply runs into one and sets sail from there. I personally didn't have a problem with that part changing because instead we see Max being caught in a storm at sea and get to wonder how the hell he doesn't end up drowning. This also allowed me to make the picture up above, and by make, I mean downloading the picture from the WtWTA site, editing the title out from another picture, and changing "things" to "waves" by scavenging letters from the rest of the title. Anyway, I don't think I should explain the whole movie or give it an analysis that you could probably find elsewhere and leave the rest for you to discover the kid in you, if you aren't aware of its presence.

Blair Force Juan!

Here's a rendition of my current hero, who also goes by Grizzly Blair and Heavy D.

This guy is going to help bring us our fifth title!

Of Porcelain

Here's an interesting album I recently came across on the netz by a man who goes by the name Of Porcelain. It's understated sounds are built of glitchy IDMness. Also, the album cover is a sky full of clouds, which basically means it belongs on my blog.

Now, you can stream the songs on the website, or if you like them as much as I do, you can download the whole album. It's at a price if you're feeling generous, or you can simply ride the free-train. It's available in an unnecessary array of file formats, but of course doesn't offer my preferred format, WMA lossless. Of course, it's not a very popular one, since most people don't care to lose so much hard drive space. Anyway, you've read enough of the useless jabber-jawing, so click the damn picture.

A Southern Summer's Breeze

Ouroboros

Since I haven't posted in a while, I figured I'd put this up. I didn't originally write this for the blog, just for myself. I can't even say exactly when I wrote it, but it was roughly two years ago. This is a summation of my religious beliefs, at least at that time. I say that because I'm not entirely sure I feel the same way as I did then, but to some degree it explains a bit of what I still believe. Nevertheless, I thought it would make for a good enough post in it's own right, without me updating it. I also realize that I worded things strangely, and if I were to write something like this now, it would have a very different tone to it. Well, here it is, in whatever degree of coherency it might be:

Many say that they believe God is omnipresent, omnipotent, and omniscient. I'd say that, too. However, I don't think most really take the time to try to fully understand what those words actually mean. God is the universe and even more so. These are my own assumptions, but even so, I would say that their validity is not to be compromised. Man, in his spiritual yearnings, has come to describe the expansiveness of our universe in terms that he can relate to. That is to say, he compares the idea of God to himself, anthropomorphizing God, and essentially limiting God to this image. God is life. God is death. God is animate. God is inanimate. God is the ouroboros, but calling all of this God is confining, just as imparting the title “Father”. So by me calling God “ouroboros," I should think more about its representation rather than the simple image of a snake eating its own tail. It represents the constant flow of the universe and that the universe is self-sustaining.

Yet, considering God to be the universe, for however expansive it may be, is still a limitation. These beliefs of mine are encompassed by the religion of sorts called panentheism. The literal translation of the term is "all in God" and comes from the Greek language. This means God is imminent and also transcendent. This correlates somewhat with the belief of many Christians that Jesus was both man and God. I agree, but I also say it goes far beyond Jesus, whomever he might have actually been. God's "fingerprints" are all over the universe, and all that spawns from God remains a part of God, "universal DNA," if you will. We will never be able to truly describe or understand God, because, again, description and understanding are limited by our own experiences. I don't exactly "worship," instead I revel in the thought of being a part of God and try to better understand what this means.

Your Fire Starter

I never thought I’d be the one
With matchstick fingers
And a breath of kerosene
Yet, here I am, your fire starter

Poetry By Me, Entry #Uno

So, here's the first poem of mine that I'm allowing folks to lay their eyes upon here. It's by no means my first poem; I selected it at random.

"Entropy of the Soul"

A poet's soul
Is not without movement
A poem of the soul
Is not without movement
This is why, at times,
It becomes lost
This is why, at times,
It loses composure
In a state so dynamic,
How can it not but
Become entropic, at times?

The Ever-Daunting Dead Week *Finals Looming*

Yes, it's true. It has actually been true for five days. Classes are over for this semester. I'm in the PCL right now, flanked by numerous volumes of Bangladesh Bank Bulletins (O_o). I'm about to get back to studying for my four final exams, each having it's own unique scent of doom that fills my nostrils every time I open a book, read notes, step inside a building, step outside a building, scratch my head, sit on a toilet, or breath. . . . Basically, I'm going to be setting a personal best for number of times spent headdesking. I'll try stuffing my nose with Kleenex, but that will likely be for naught.

All I have left to say is WHEEEEE!!!!!

Song of the Moment - "I Don't Wanna Grow Up" by Tom Waits

Dude is my hero. A straight up G.

When I'm lyin' in my bed at night
I don't wanna grow up
Nothin' ever seems to turn out right
I dont wanna grow up
How do you move in a world of fog
Thats always changing things
Makes me wish that I could be a dog
When I see the price that you pay
I don't wanna grow up
I don't ever wanna be that way
I don't wanna grow up

Seems like folks turn into things
That they'd never want
The only thing to live for
Is today...
I'm gonna put a hole in my TV set
I don't wanna grow up
Open up the medicine chest
And I don't wanna grow up

I don't wanna have to shout it out
I don't want my hair to fall out
I don't wanna be filled with doubt
I don't wanna be a good boy scout
I don't wanna have to learn to count
I don't wanna have the biggest amount
I don't wanna grow up

Well when I see my parents fight
I don't wanna grow up
They all go out and drinking all night
And I don't wanna grow up
I'd rather stay here in my room
Nothin' out there but sad and gloom
I don't wanna live in a big old tomb
On Grand Street

When I see the 5 o'clock news
I don't wanna grow up
Comb their hair and shine their shoes
I don't wanna grow up
Stay around in my old hometown
I don't wanna put no money down
I don't wanna get me a big old loan
Work them fingers to the bone
I don't wanna float a broom
Fall in love and get married then boom
How the hell did I get here so soon
I don't wanna grow up

A Certain Lightheadedness . . .

dancefloordale.com

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I just found out about Adsense.com, so if there is at least one person that reached this blog somehow, please click my ads. I need some $$$, or at least some ¢. But really, all I can see myself really getting from this is a sense of feedback from this tiny little blog of mine.

"Saturday Morning Watchmen"

I'm sure most people have already forgone the Watchmen hype, but I just found this cartoon parody of the comic on youtube and it's hilarious. Hey, I have to start with something, why not a youtube video? Enjoy!

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