moods of the day

TED

Have you all heard of TED: Ideas Worth Spreading? (www.ted.com)

This news source is one that I'll keep following. If you'd like a sampling of some of the kinds of talks and educational opps. they have on there, here are two that I find inspiring:

http://www.ted.com/index.php/talks/elizabeth_gilbert_on_genius.html

http://www.ted.com/index.php/talks/jill_bolte_taylor_s_powerful_stroke_of_insight.html

quote of the day

"Guess what: God created beings not to act in a morality play but to
experience what is unfathomable, to elicit what can become, to descend
into the darkness of creation and reveal it to him, to mourn and celebrate
enigma and possibility. The universe is a whirling dervish, not a hanging
judge in robes."

- Richard Grossinger, *On the Integration of Nature: Post 9-11 Biopolitical
Notes*

Three pop culture items I'm excited about.

I'm cautiously optimistic about S. Darko: A Donnie Darko Tale, and more than willing to give it a shot (which I am tonight, as I picked it up at at the video store before work). Hey, I'm no remake or sequel snob, and this "companion" film looks like a real screwed up faerie tale & road trip saga, kind of Wizard of Oz on acid with time travel thrown in.

Christopher Pike's Last Vampire series (6 books total) is being released in two volumes, rechristened Thirst. This is a great way for you to dive into Pike's mythos about vampires, and to see Krishna (yes, that Krishna) square off against an evil vampire in a snake-charming contest involving flutes. Check out the first installment when it hits the shelves later this summer. There are some amazing spiritual philosophies woven throughout these suspenseful stories.

The 90210 "reboot"? You had me at...."Brenda's back."

A sampling of the best scary movies I've seen since moving to Portland.

mood of the day

(*And you all DID pick up your copy of Tori's Abnormally Attracted to Sin, right? It was released today, after all....)

FLB's Dating Guide

Amazon's Book Description --

From bestselling author Francesca Lia Block, an imaginative new guide to dating based on the timeless wisdom of myth, folklore, and fairy tales.

Navigating the world of dating can be like wandering an enchanted forest, full of creatures with peculiar habits and baffling behavior. In Wood Nymph Seeks Centaur, Francesca Lia Block provides a guide to this often-treacherous terrain, classifying all those mystifying men and women into various types of mythical forest fauna — Fauns and Werewolves, Mermaids and Banshees.

After answering questions to determine your own type, you can learn to identify others — with the help of illustrations from artist Fumi Nakamura. By reading up on the various types’ favorite activities, likely professions, sexual preferences, and parenting styles, you’ll gain insight into compatible creatures. If you’re a Wood Nymph (like Block), you could get your heart broken by a fickle Satyr, but if you can track down the strong, soulful Centaurs of the forest, you just might be on the path to true love. Clever and insightful, Wood Nymph Seeks Centaur is an invaluable guide for any dating creature.

These Two Guys Can (New) Moon Me Anytime.

Brothers & Sisters

Have any of you watched this amazing show? The dialogue is pitch perfect, the characters flawed, heartbreaking, and hilarious, and I love that there are a million moments where I go, “Huh, this is exactly how my family acts together!”

In a way, it’s kind of the anti-Six Feet Under (another of my favorite shows). Instead of burying feelings deep inside – and letting them rise up once the soil can no longer hold them – the family in B&S is constantly bickering and letting each other know how they feel. Thus, their quiet moments, those joined echoes of solace, are few and far between – and all the more poignant because of it.

And who can beat the casting, right? And who is as impressed as I am with ABC for actually portraying a gay couple as intimate, flawed, wounded, sexual, and real as the rest of the Walker clan? I’m already itching for the next season on DVD.

Welcome to a wonderful "discussion" through this show about: 9/11 and our wars in the Middle East; fidelity and infidelity; guilt and regret; hope and birth; lust, love, and loss; friendship; secrets; failed relationships; new relationships; substance addictions; career changes; roles (and role reversals) that siblings enact; aging; and forming families--blood and non-blood ones--through the battles of everyday living.

To quote Mom, "Here lies Luna, after a hard day at the office."

quote of the day

Nobody is destined
To be perpetually wedded
to doubt and suspicion.
Indeed, it is a matter
Of personal choice:
Doubt or faith.

~Sri Chinmoy~

My Wonderfalls email exchange with Brenda

Hi Nathan,

We watched Wonderfalls while Isabella was recovering from having her wisdom teeth out. That series is trying to restore the balance between imminent and transcendent, sides of the divine coin. The educated intuitive heroine is already in the trailer park, she knows that the entire society is going over the falls. She is several years ahead of anticipating events of societal collapse. The content was outrageous and bold, regarding the questioning of religion, which I enjoyed very much. I think that the Catholics would have been up in arms if the series would have continued. Thank you so much for your generosity in lending that series to us from your wonderful library. I want to return it as soon as possible.

All the best,
Brenda
~~~~
Hi Brenda,

Thanks for your intelligent -- and warm -- thoughts on Wonderfalls. I agree completely with everything you said....The show is deeply compassionate -- and hilariously irreverent -- at the exact same time. Kind of like all of us! Yes, Jaye was/is very in-tune with the fact that everyone and everything carries energy, and it's our mission -- our SOULS' mission -- to honor and respect the connection between and amongst everything. Life is mysterious. And answers -- little tidbits of wisdom -- are tucked around each corner, inside every wax lion, and between every hug with a loved one or stranger.

Thanks again for your powerful insights.

Best Regards,
Nathan

Moods and Other Odds & Ends

I've been feeling so many different emotions on any given day lately, but in a flowing, wave-like way that feels right and natural.

Some of my moods lately have been:




Getting lots of reading done. Currently on Wally Lamb's The Hour I First Believed. Just finished up Laura Whitcomb's A Certain Slant of Light.


Really enjoyed Mister Foe, which Jo recommended.

Thinking lots about Grandma Lilly lately, and if I'll go visit her grave when I'm back in the Midwest in August. Not sure how I feel about this. Am looking forward to seeing Justin -- and to meeting my "nephews", Dante and Wesley -- when I'm out there.

Other things on my mind and heart:
Hoping Aaron and Stephenie are doing okay
Hoping Jordan has a safe flight to Alaska and that he settles in nicely
Hoping Mom starts to feel settled within her own heart
Hoping Jess has a nice visit with her old college flame
Hoping John starts to feel some healing after losing his father
Hoping Gretchen can find comfort in her own skin in her home
Hoping Alice is doing well, in Wisconsin and in Wonderland
Hoping my characters feel I do the end of their story justice
(But there's never an end, is there? Just an end to a cycle maybe.)
Hoping Charlie finds happiness and satisfaction with his decision about school
Hoping Jerry finds solace now that he has the home back to himself
Hoping Tara is well on the coast
Hoping Glenn swirls up his magic for his 40th birthday today
Hoping Karla and Steven find peace in this difficult transition
Hoping Robin has a nice week off to clear her mind
Hoping Meagan can breathe a little more easily now that the move is done
Hoping springtime continues to bring on these wonderful feelings and vibrations
Hoping I connect with what is making me restless, and why
Hoping you're well!

And there you go, a little bit of what's on my mind.

Hugs and Love,
Nathan

Pizza as Metaphor

Lately I've gotten back into the habit of eating pizza with my hands, which makes me quite happy. For too long I've been using a fork and knife, and -- while I will certainly do this again, many times -- it's starting to feel way too dainty and clean for me overall. I'm really loving getting my fingers and nails filthy with sauce and grease and cheese, and even that burning when you grab a slice and it's way too hot, right out of the oven.

I was thinking about this while at Mississippi Pizza for lunch today. And it's a perfect metaphor for how I'm feeling about Life in general: forks and knives have their place, certainly, but we can't really get to the (artichoke) heart of the matter without beautiful messes sometimes.

Abnormally Attracted to Tori

Another wonderful interview with Tori Amos about her upcoming album, Abnormally Attracted to Sin:

http://undented.com/news/1659/outcom-interview-may-5-2009

p.s. I love the lioness discussion....

Movies I've seen the past three weekends -- and thoroughly enjoyed for different reasons