I would like to be beautiful when written

**************************

Well, just like that, Thanksgiving has passed and it's almost December...December! I feel like such an old-timer when I say this, but time really does fly.

Thanksgiving was full of family-- aunts, uncles, grandma, cousins, second cousins! Little babies I got to meet for the first time, food, relatives I don't see enough, games of Taboo and Spinner, baby shower, food, bday parties for the two 1 yr-olds, food, 007 old school Play Station, and to top it all off: the classic "How to Speak Minnesotan" video (from key phrases like "You Bet" "That's Different" and "Whatever", to the good ol' fashioned Minnesotan goodbye; "Oh hey now, have you checked your tire pressure? We have hot dish on the stove, you may as well come in and eat up before you leave....and by that time it'll be dark. we have an extra bed, may as well stay the night...").

Now to pull the ultimate cheese, but I mean it: Nothing is better than family. We tend to get all caught up in our own lives that it can sometimes be far too easy to lose sight of what's actually important during our time on earth. FAMILY, friends, meaningful relationships, and being aware of and grateful for the the miracles that occur within these circles. OK, I said it. But it's true.

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Think I'll be going to this!

http://graphicdesign.parsons.edu/2009/11/26/networked-design-3/

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Film for NZ Book Council Produced by Colenso BBDO Animated by Andersen M Studio



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http://www.ilovetownhouse.com/?p=817


Townhouse Zurich teamed up with Zurich based design office Fries&Zumbühl and created this modern bedside lamp. The Townhouse lamp can be set up in three different positions to regulate the light intensity and can thus be used as a reading, mood or night light. Like Japanese Origami the lamp is folded from a singular sheet of metal and held together without any screws. A 2 mm plexiglass is inserted to ensure a soft glow.

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Ah, simple, beautiful design makes me tingle with delight. Check out this fabulous Serif Tote Bag...

http://www.core77.com/blog/news/serif_tote_bag_15334.asp?utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+core77%2Fblog+%28Core77.com%27s+design+blog%29

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Big things a brewin'!

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The BassJump...and it's actually somewhat affordable!

Designed exclusively for MacBook, BassJump is a USB-powered subwoofer that turns your MacBook into a mini sound system. One single USB cable delivers power and sound. Custom software blends the music coming out of your built-in speakers with the sound output of the BassJump for dramatically enhanced audio performance.


http://twelvesouth.com/products/bassjump/

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Jez Burrows, a terrific designer and illustrator, has a new site:

http://www.jezburrows.com/

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The poo-up office...work from wherever you are! ...I mean, if you're into that kind of thing

Pop Up from abw on Vimeo.

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Watch what happens with these diamonds (no camera tricks or special effects used here…just an optical illusion):



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The National Book Awards, where they're all about the literature, man, seemed to have skipped the live blog this year. This year's entirely respectable winners are:

Fiction: Colum McCann for Let the Great World Spin

Nonfiction: T. J. Stiles for The First Tycoon: The Epic Life of Cornelius Vanderbilt

Poetry: Keith Waldrop for Transcendental Studies: A Trilogy

Young People's Literature: Phillip Hoose for Claudette Colvin: Twice Toward Justice

Distinguished Old Git: Gore Vidal

Distinguished Young Whippersnapper: Dave Eggers

*************************

...and some Keith Waldrop, while we're at it:


Light Travels

by Keith Waldrop and Rosmarie Waldrop

1


common time I follow you un-
kept secret on
a basic undersound







2


common time I follow you un-
kept secret on
a basic undersound


this is the first part of the rhyme
allow for sequences of overheard







3


this is the first part of the rhyme
allow for sequences of overheard


close the curtains but
playful elaborations of other-
wise arrogant variations keeping
the window open







4


close the curtains but
playful elaborations of otherwise
arrogant variation keeping
the window open


as it's wrong to shut
one's eyes to dream
it's raining while it is in fact raining







5


as it's wrong to shut
one's eyes to dream it's
raining while it is in fact raining


ears busied with hearing more than
one voice the stream our tears unmirror







6


ears busied with hearing more than
one voice the stream our tears unmirror


or mere error as if
naturally hard of
divided
noise rings in our fears







7


or mere error as if
naturally hard of
divided
noise rings in our fears


expands danger within our
long thin hands contract
across quiet gravel







8


expands danger within our
long thin hands contract
across quiet gravel


narrow fruit tin cans
loss of the white of other eyes







9


narrow fruit tin cans
loss of the white of other eyes


song out of mind







10


song out of mind


or am I
tethered
so blind a coloring of thought







11


or am I
tethered so
blind a coloring of thought


intrinsically fuzzy the sound as
pavement







12


intrinsically fuzzy the sound as
pavement


whereas tenses
are
a later
development







13


whereas tenses
are
a later
development


limits of a body open
sea the great sea
journey







14


limits of a body open
sea the great sea
journey


how different the grammars of
to think or swim







15


how different the grammars of
to think or swim


reminiscence and extinction




The Luxury of Hesitation [excerpt from The Proof from Motion]
by Keith Waldrop

things
forgotten
I could


burn in hell forever


set the glass
down, our
emotion's moment


eyes vs sunlight


how removed
here, from
here


towards the unfamiliar and


frankincense forests
against the discerning light


everybody
sudden


frightful indeed, the sound of
traffic and
no appetite


the crowd


I would like to be
beautiful when
written

***************************

Delectable

[shall use this if/when I get into work late]

********************************

I stumbled upon this blog earlier today and haven't stopped drooling since:

http://whisk-kid.blogspot.com/

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15 uses for news-print!

http://www.thepencilfactory.org/

*********************************

Chris Niemann on bio diversity. Brilliant!

http://niemann.blogs.nytimes.com/2009/11/17/bio-diversity/

*********************************

Off to see the Philip Glass opera!

Biz <3

Sparkles

...I shall grow my own, organic donuts.

**********************

Oh yeah, remember back in April when I professed my love for Philip Glass? [see link below, if you forget]...I get to go see him on Friday at BAM!

http://teemingtigress.blogspot.com/2009/04/when-words-cannot-step-up-to-plate.html


*********************

Ok, I just had to mention that...

<3

Chronologically Speaking

Woke up suddenly thinking I heard crying.
Rushed through the dark house.
Stopped, remembering. Stood looking
out at bright moonlight on concrete.

*****************************
Just learned about House Industries (http://www.houseind.com/) and I'm likin' it.

One of my favorites is the.............

Maple ampersand: http://www.houseind.com/objects/accessories/mapleampersandprint

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All the single ladies...be prepared for the best dating advice of your life...all the way from 1938:

http://www.sadanduseless.com/2009/10/tips-for-single-ladies-1938/

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Found this a few minutes ago while...um...procrastinating, maybe?

Also, I have totally spent 30 min. looking for the right pen. In fact, that may or may not have happened this morning...





****************************


MoMA Video interview with Tim Burton. Discussed: drawing, themes in his work, favorite movies & why he wears striped socks:



**************************

Work time! Now where was that pen...

I know how you feel

********************************



*********************************

Listening to this song while at work today. Something soothing and oddly familiar about it...

*********************************


Eternal helium balloons:

http://www.etsy.com/shop/clementinehenrion

They are entirely made of fabric and there is in fact no helium in them. They are stuffed with kapok, and feel like a soft pillow. A tiny flap fixed at the top allows mounting it to your ceiling. It is key to hang them up as high as possible, in order to recreate the magic illusion of a real flying helium balloon! The most beautiful effect is obtained in setting a bunch of balloons together, forming a “balloon bouquet”. All these pieces are delicately handmade in my own workshop in Paris, in limited edition.

*********************************

Professor Steve Jones takes a skeptical look at the evidence for and against the new science of evolutionary psychology. Author of The Language of Genes: whether humans are socially closer to crows than primates, the "useless" attempts to communicate with chimps, E.O. Wilson, Steven Pinker, whether the science justifies sexism and racism... Ah, the BBC.


http://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/b00nk0wz

**********************************

biz

It was in the silent night that I learned to listen

****************************

Sweet!

http://printsociety.com/275--poster-litho/in/new

...and the making of:

http://vimeo.com/5975142

Did you know?

The ampersand was first seen in the 1st century AD and the short text below in Irish and English charts its history and role in the English language.

http://conoranddavid.com/old/projects/andposter/images/000003B.jpg

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I think paper weights are worthless, but I would totally use this one:

http://www.brooklyn5and10.com/Weighty-Word-Paperweights-Pile-to-File-p/pw-3868.htm

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A new favorite:

Alastair Levy

http://www.alastairlevy.net/#

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I've really been wanting to read this book...I'm just afraid it may turn me into a vegetarian and I don't know if I'm ready (or ever will be) to give up the mighty burger...

Jennifer Reese reviews Jonathan Safran Foer's Eating Animals:

"Having little exposure to animals makes it much easier to push aside questions about how our actions might influence their treatment," Foer writes. "The problem posed by meat has become an abstract one: there is no individual animal, no singular look of joy or suffering, no wagging tail, and no scream." He is correct. But I would also argue that having little exposure to animals makes it much easier to issue smug, ill-informed judgments about their proper treatment. The everyday challenges posed by responsible animal husbandry—and slaughter—become abstractions.

http://www.doublex.com/section/arts/jonathan-safran-foers-annoying-argument-against-eating-meat

********************************

Hey, hey, my author speaks up! Daniel Alarcon, editor of "The Secret Miracle", which comes out in April...

Another article on Americans' lack of interest in translated fiction (below): it's not that we're disinterested or ignorant, we'd just like an American context when we're reading about other countries. Ha! Typical.

As the ­Peruvian-­born writ­er Daniel Alarcón ob­serves, Americans would rather read stories by an American about Peru than a Peruvian writer translated into English. “There’s a certain curiosity about the world that’s not matched by a willingness to do the work,” Alarcón said in a phone interview from his home in Oakland, California. “So what happens is that writers of foreign extraction end up writing about the world for Americans.”

http://www.wilsoncenter.org/index.cfm?fuseaction=wq.essay&essay_id=502808

*********************************************


<3

For what noble cause?

I do enjoy when the Universe sends me notes like this:



The Universe
to me

3:59 AM


Julia, everyone keeps asking me what's happening on earth....

Do you think they mean besides all the breathtaking, nonstop, everyday and everywhere miracles?

Probably not.

Glad you see 'em,
The Universe

Whim

Race you to the top!

********************************

The New York Review of Books has condensed Thoreau's 14-volume journal into one abridged book, edited by Damion Searls. He talks to the NYRB bloggers about the monstrosity of the project, the selection project, and his love for Thoreau.

http://nyrb.typepad.com/classics/2009/11/a-conversation-with-damion-searls-about-thoreaus-journal.html

There have been selections from the Journal, but they all feel like grab-bags of the good bits, not the way reading the Journal really feels. Especially with Thoreau, snippets can feel sententious or bossy or crabby, and the Journal isn't. You have to leave in the "boring bits"-because first of all, they're not boring, and second of all, they're what make the excerptable snippets as great as they are. There was no edition both big enough and holistically enough edited to capture the feel of the thing.

*************************************



An 11th grade teacher is suspended after giving his students a copy of Chuck Palahniuk's short story "Guts" to read in class. You may remember the story from the hyped up faintings that occurred when Palahniuk was reading the story on his book tour. I think I am on the school's side for this one...The story's available online:

http://chuckpalahniuk.net/features/shorts/guts

**************************************

Pretty Japanese barcodes...leave it to them to have well-designed barcodes:

http://www.fastcompany.com/blog/cliff-kuang/design-innovation/japan-even-barcodes-are-well-designed

**************************************

I heart typography

http://fashionablygeek.com/t-shirts/i-love-typography/

****************************************

Ok, now things are getting crazy. A mustache for...your...BIKE! What?!


http://www.etsy.com/view_listing.php?listing_id=33586942

****************************************

The minimalist's tea cup. So pretty.


http://www.baileydoesntbark.com/shop/index.php?main_page=product_info&cPath=306_337_350&products_id=291

****************************************

<3

Nets of Moonlight

***************************************

XXXIII

And why is the sun such a bad companion
to the traveler in the desert?

And why is the sun so congenial
in the hospital garden?


Are they birds or fish
in these nets of moonlight?


Was it where they lost me
that I finally found myself?

--Neruda, from The Book of Questions

An unwanted jigsaw puzzle

Pushed from the branches


*************************************

Lunch time means I have goodies for you!

*************************************

3D house numbers made out of solid concrete:

http://www.magazin.com/Produkt/189412/1445828/0/HausnummerConcrete.html?articleId=709&idx=0

*************************************

Hotel in a bag! Cool

http://www.magazin.com/Produkt/0/1446305/Taschenhotel.html


*************************************

I am so into this "Learn Something New Everyday" site. YES!

Did you know that humans share about 50% DNA with....drumroll please....BaNaNaS?


http://www.learnsomethingeveryday.co.uk/

*************************************


Perfect gift for the Helvetica obsessed .....:::cough cough:::

http://www.dadadastudio.eu/shop/?i=29

**************************************

Google Dashboard...know what Google knows about YOU


http://mashable.com/2009/11/05/google-privacy-dashboard/

**************************************

Seed Magazine has a slide show of images from No Small Matter: Science on the Nanoscale, including tiny little insect robots and mysterious sea creatures.


http://seedmagazine.com/slideshow/no_small_matter/

**************************************

Cookie heaven?


http://elsylee.com/

***************************************

I was to tell you all about Eaarth, by Bill McKibben. [not a typo]

We're publishing it in April and I read it over the weekend. It...is...shocking.

Twenty years ago, with The End of Nature, Bill McKibben offered one of the earliest warnings about global warming. Those warnings went mostly unheeded; now, he insists, we need to acknowledge that we’ve waited too long, and that massive change is not only unavoidable but already under way. Our old familiar globe is suddenly melting, drying, acidifying, flooding, and burning in ways that no human has ever seen. We’ve created, in very short order, a new planet, still recognizable but fundamentally different. We may as well call it Eaarth.

On April 13, 2010, a week before the 40th anniversary of Earth Day, Times Books will publish EAARTH: Making a Life on a Tough New Planet by Bill McKibben —a manifesto on the new economic and cultural realities on a changed planet and suggestions for the kind of change we’ll need in order to make our civilization endure.

That new planet, Eaarth is filled with new binds and traps. A changing world costs large sums to defend—think of the money that went to repair New Orleans, or the trillions it will take to transform our energy systems. But the endless economic growth that could underwrite such largesse depends on the stable planet we’ve managed to damage and degrade. We can’t rely on old habits any longer.

McKibben argues that our hope depends on scaling back—on building the kind of societies and economies that can hunker down, concentrate on essentials, and create the kind of community (in the neighborhood, but also on the Internet) that will allow us to weather trouble on a scale humans have never seen before. Change—fundamental change—is our best hope on a planet suddenly and violently out of balance.

Bill McKibben is the author of The End of Nature, Enough: Staying Human in an Engineered Age, and Deep Economy. He is a scholar in residence at Middlebury College and lives in Vermont (woot!) with his wife and their daughter.

Bill McKibben brings a much needed sense of urgency to the issue of climate change and offers his advice on how we can build rewarding lives in this new reality. As Barbara Kingsolver asserts, “Read it, please. Whatever else you were planning to do next, nothing could be more important.”

*******************************

On that note, READ IT IN APRIL. Ok, back to work!

xo

A poet never takes notes

****************************


Starlings in Winter

by Mary Oliver


Chunky and noisy,
but with stars in their black feathers,
they spring from the telephone wire
and instantly
they are acrobats
in the freezing wind.
And now, in the theater of air,
they swing over buildings,
dipping and rising;
they float like one stippled star
that opens,
becomes for a moment fragmented,
then closes again;
and you watch
and you try
but you simply can’t imagine
how they do it
with no articulated instruction, no pause,
only the silent confirmation
that they are this notable thing,
this wheel of many parts, that can rise and spin
over and over again,
full of gorgeous life.
Ah, world, what lessons you prepare for us,
even in the leafless winter,
even in the ashy city.
I am thinking now
of grief, and of getting past it;
I feel my boots
trying to leave the ground,
I feel my heart
pumping hard. I want
to think again of dangerous and noble things.
I want to be light and frolicsome.
I want to be improbable beautiful and afraid of nothing,
as though I had wings.

****************************

Happy November, so suddenly. I feel like I barely greeted October, but it'll be back next year. New moon tomorrow and new goals for this month. I have been neglecting my moleskine, for one. Unacceptable! Need to get back into the writing groove. I think that'll be my November resolution.

****************************

I had a dream of snow and it was glorious! I cannot wait for the smell of snow to freeze my nostrils and for that smooth, glittering blanket of white to cover the city. Even more than that, I cannot wait to be in Vermont in December. I can crunch my way into the woods, lie on my back, and be oddly warm as I rest in my snow bed and look up through the branches. To me there is nothing more peaceful than being alone in the woods in the winter. The quiet envelopes you and I am always so humbled by the power of winter.

*****************************


A dear friend sent this to me quite some time ago and it popped up on my itunes today. I think I like it.

*****************************

You learn something new every day. From an interview with Lise Eliot, author of Pink Brain, Blue Brain:

In 1982, a high-profile study that made Science suggested that the corpus callosum, which is the white matter that connects our two brain hemispheres, is larger in women than it is in men. That finding was supposed to explain why women are better multitaskers and why they are more empathetic. A slew of follow-up studies followed. By the end of the 1990s, a couple of scientists did a meta-analysis. That’s where you do a comprehensive search of the scientific literature to find every study that’s been done, and analyze for effect size. This way, you have a huge population, and you can create an enormous study. In 1997, a meta-analysis of the studies on the corpus collosum found no difference in size between men and women. That’s been edited out of the neuropsych text books.

******************************

What beautiful leather bike seats.....one day, one day:


http://www.karaginther.com/

******************************

My gigantic pile of laundry is calling my name, so I had better tend to it.

Then I'm going to book-slut it up. Aka: devour a book while my laundry gets sudsy and clean

xo