Let’s talk about how jealous I am of these muscles. The posted video is a performance of two dancers from the Staatsballet Berlin. Their jumps have been slowed down to show 1000 frames per second. Whaaaa? Amazing. The massive control they have over their body is truly astounding. To make the piece even better, it’s set to a remix of Radiohead’s “Everything in its Right Place.” I think my head might explode.
This morning I finished the short novel The Pearl by John Steinbeck, which would mean I am only five books away from fulfilling my New Year’s Resolution (see Book It page for more info). I This semester provided me with a lighter reading load (insert fist pump), so I’ve had more opportunity to free read. Thus, ten books have been dominated and it’s not even April.
Back to The Pearl. At the end of the novella is a frightening little advertisement from Coalition for Literacy. It says:
By the year 2000, 2 out of 3 Americans could be illiterate.
It’s true. Today, 75 million adults…about one in three, can’t read adequately. And by the year 2000, U.S. News & World Report envisions an America with a literacy rate of only 30%. Before that America comes to be, you can stop it…by joining the fight against illiteracy today.
This edition was published in 1974. Assuming this ad was created around the same time the book was published, the Coalition for Literacy was forecasting a soaring illiteracy rate in only 26 years. That’s crazy. What if that were true? It’s hard to imagine, isn’t it? Society today moves at a startling pace. To survive, you must be able to read. You must be able to communicate, in a current fashion. If you can’t say it in 140 characters and a snarky hashtag, who is listening?
I suppose I am constantly amazed at how fast we are progressing, and I know I’m not saying anything new here when I lament that I don’t always believe we are moving in the right direction. With a jarringly accelerated pace to society and an increasing importance on the meta (“So-and-so is about to become a hyuge star with the release of her new movie”–but how do you know?! it hasn’t even happened yet!) it’s hard to ever really feel relevant.
But, I know I can be thankful for my literacy. Man, I am so thankful.
This video is all Jill. I mean, this is not a video of Jill, but she was the one who shared it with me. It’s so horrifying, but you can’t help but watch as this tiny little toddler playfully hugs and caresses a sweet baby squirrel…a squirrel that is dead. It’s so nasty, but hilarious. Apparently, the family dog killed said squirrel and the three year old is instantly smitten. It’s a short video, and it’s my treat to you on this Friday afternoon.
Just wait til you get to 1:30 when she squeals delightfully that the squirrel is “bobbing his head up and down.” This little girl needs a serious disinfection.
This morning I made a fast and loose detour to Home Goods before hitting Trader Joe’s. I don’t know what I was expecting to find, but man, I think I made out well. I couldn’t be happier about all the bright colors and patterns that seem to be cropping up everywhere. I hope to infuse them more into my wardrobe (just checked and I still have a ton of black, white, and black and white stripes in there), but for now I will cover the living room in them.
I have been trying to think of a way to brighten up the living room and inject a little more pizazz in there. My roommate bought two white couches, which are obviously a stain hazard, but also essentially blank canvases. The dark red pillows were perfect for fall and winter, but it’s spring now and it’s time to Jazz It Up!! <—(trademark still pending on that slogan)
I really like the mix of prints. The floral pillows on the right have the exact same shade of green in them as those on the left so the two patterns look really nice together. I’m keeping two of the dark red pillows there because I like the way they boeuf up the cushion factor. Do you not love the ironing board, fold-up papasan chair, and mismatched blankets in the background? Storage is a wee bit of an issue here in our doll house, so I can’t make them disappear, but I can put a band-aid over them, à la pillows.
Thanks to an overly aggressive, short, squat snot monster, I have been feeling a little out of sorts. Something attacked my head and has been holding on for dear life for the past week. I’m pretty sure it’s allergies, or it might be a vicious cold, but whatever it is, it’s made me lose my voice and left me sounding like I’ve been eating rocks for the past five months. It’s attractive.
Thus, the blogospheric absence.
Some neat things have happened, though. Last week, despite my charming voice dripping right through my nose, I scored a super saweet internship for the summer. Woot! I will be working with a local food magazine in an editorial position. Yeah, I’ll let you digest that for a second, as I still can’t believe my Aladdin-like fortune. SO pumped to get to try my hand at writing for the magazine, as well as learn some components behind administration and daily workings of a magazine. Psyched!
I celebrated St. Patrick’s Day at a double 30th birthday party, where crawfish and cocktails were on the menu. I haven’t participated in good ol’ fashion day drinking in a while, so this was truly a gem of an afternoon. The crawfish were finger-lickin’ delicious and the company was excellent as well.
I’ve been doing a lot of prep work for final paper writing. This is without-a-doubt the most thrilling part of my life. It involves scouring the bookshelves for interesting books to beef up my paper, and if you are lucky enough, you can be really sick while you’re doing it and annoy the pants off of everyone in the vicinity as you sniffle your way through the aisles, pawing all the books with your germy hands.
I went to the beach on Friday! I was about 80% through an assignment and my bum just would not sit on my desk chair anymore. So I packed up my dusty beach bag and headed to the beach for an hour and a half. It was amazing. I can just feel long summer afternoons at the beach right around the corner.
And, just because I love you, I’ll share this video with you. This is 100% Adam’s share, and I found it in my inbox this morning. Please give it a watch. It will blow your mind. I mean, once you get past minute 1, it’s game over. Let’s try to coordinate a flash mob to this effect. Our locations will be severely limited, as it has to be done in the dark, but I’m thinking movie theaters, parks at night, those restaurants that are blacked out so you can learn what it feels like to be visually impaired…
Spring Break concluded with a Radiohead concert. I started listening to Radiohead in high school very sporadically. They were never a mega-favorite like Dave Matthews Band, who I saw in concert religiously for a few years, but a group that I listened to every once in a while by way of looking cool. I kind of went in and out of favor with them, I suppose. In any event, I didn’t really have any expectations for the concert, though Adam said they put on a great show. So I went and sat in some really awesome seats and was ready to enjoy the performance.
Cut to me being blown away.
Not only did they play the random couple of songs I really know, but I was so crazy impressed with the rest of the setlist. I was dancing like a maniac at some points, not unlike Thom Yorke himself. That dudes loves to jam.
I particularly enjoyed the part when Thom Yorke said to the crowd after entering for the first of two encores, “We just decided that we have to play this song,” and then they broke out into “Myxomatosis.” Shoot, that was awesome. The whole night, really, he interacted with the crowd, which I always find enhances the show. For being a self-proclaimed fair-weather fan, I was totally enamored with their performance.
The above video is from the Kansas City show the other night. Neat.
This song is so great for Saturday afternoon listening. My Saturday includes brunch (at some point, I hope), enjoying the nice Kansas City weather, a bowling birthday party, and a cookout this evening.
Yesterday whilst I was reading this blog (she posts the most ahhhmazing photos every Sunday) I found an interview with Jennifer Egan, writer of A Visit From the Goon Squad, which I read a little over a month ago and loved. The interview chronicles her journey from aspiring archaeologist to slave for an author to finally being a (mega) successful author herself. I am always interested to hear how writers get their start or how they go about their process as an author. It truly fascinates me. In this article I was most inspired by what Egan had to say as encouragement to future writers. She says,
My advice is so basic. Number one: Read. I feel like it’s amazing how many people I know who want to be writers who don’t really read. I’m not convinced someone wants to be a writer if they don’t read. I don’t think the problem is that they need to read more; I think they might need to readjust their life goals. Reading is the nourishment that lets you do interesting work. To be reading good things. I feel that you should be reading what you want to write. Nothing less.
Did you see that? “Reading is the nourishment that lets you do interesting work.” I love this. I love the idea of believing it is nourishment because that is honestly how I feel about the practice and exercise of reading. It sustains me when I am feeling overwhelmed, frustrated, tired, or even melancholy. I also love to read when I am happy and content. Not really when I am excited. It’s too hard for me to concentrate. But, truly, I feel like reading is such an incredible way to stimulate our systems and enrich our lives.
What are you reading right now that is making you do more interesting work?
“Nothing is more powerful than an idea whose time has come”
This video is nearly 30 minutes. Grab a coffee, take your lunch break, put your jammies on and watch it tonight. Whatever you do,I think you should watch it.
It is terrifically frightening.
I heard of the Invisible Children group in college, but my knowledge about them wasn’t extensive. This video helped clear things up in an accessible and understandable manner. Perhaps you are wary of their approach, which is reasonable, however, I think we can all come to terms with one or two ideas: killing children is wrong. Forcing children to kill others is wrong.
I would encourage you to watch the movie and see how it moves you. And, if possible, share the movie with others to inspire advocacy and awareness, as that is the video’s main mission.
A Broad At Home 