Epic Win

First let me start with an apology. I don't normally whine as much as I did yesterday. I try to keep this a mostly positive place, other than the occasional rant about some pet peeve of mine. And reading back through my post yesterday I realize just how much of a downer it was. I'm not normally the type of person to use words like regret and trapped, in any sense. I did feel better after posting yesterday so it must have been cathartic for me. But I normally only go for constructive whining. :-)

Now, on to the fun stuff. I'm feeling much better today. I had a fantastic therapy session this morning including some work with the boot off. I'm so excited for Monday with the hope that the doctor will tell me I don't need it anymore. Than again I'm just happy to be able to walk comfortably without crutches. I have dinner with an old friend who I haven't seen in a while. I have a nice lunch planned with a coworker. It's going to be a great day.

Even better are the two new pieces of book art that I happened to find on Epic Win. If you are not checking out Epic Win, you need to. It has to be one of the most enjoyable daily websites out there. I'm constantly inspired by the type of art that people create. Or the situations that are captured in photo. Much of it is geek based but all of it is incredible. The only issue I have is that the website doesn't list the source. I've seen a number of artists whose work I follow (Peter Calleson, Terry Border....) without any citing of source. That part bothers me quite a bit. I know after reading the comments on each piece that it bothers other people as well. Normally someone will mention in the comments who the artist is.

For example this incredible Alice piece below is done by Su Blackwell.

But on the same note I have no idea where this fantastic door is. One of the commentors mentioned that it might be the Bodleian Library at Oxford, library of my dreams. /drool

Most of the posts have nothing to do with books. I'm in love with this dragon made entirely out of plastic forks and spoons. Apparently it took the artist (toge-NYC) 80 hours of work to create this amazing piece. I WANT this.

Bad Work Day Blues

Warning: Today is a downer of a post. I'll understand if you want to skip my pathetic whining. I would.

I should have stayed home this morning. I woke up exhausted which is never a good thing. I took forever to get dressed because I couldn't seem to concentrate long enough to make any decisions, or even figure out what I was doing. I thought about calling in sick for the day (something I rarely do) but couldn't think of a reason. I can't bring myself to not go to work because of a bad brain day.

But now that I'm here I'm wondering if I made the right choice. I can't seem to concentrate on any of the multiple projects. Nothing has a strict deadline so I'm not feeling the rush of adrenaline. Even the caffeine isn't helping. It's pretty clear that I don't want to be here and am slacking off because of it. This has been one of my least productive days in quite a while.

It certainly doesn't help that things have changed so much around here. About a month ago my boss got fired (for something he didn't do) and with that went my reason for being here. I took the job because of my boss. He mentioned that I should apply for it. I thought it would be interesting to work with him. I left a job I loved (the skipping to work, can't wait to get there, kind of love) and instantly regretted it. The money was better but the job wasn't. It was a step away from what I really wanted to be doing. But I stayed. I didn't want to leave too quickly. After two years I started looking at new jobs and didn't get them. I started job hunting big time. So far with no luck. It's been four years now and I'm starting to feel trapped here. Add onto that the fact that my reason for taking the job is gone and you can see my level of motivation.

I'll still do a good job. I always have. But I haven't been giving 110 percent in a while and that bothers me. I feel like I'm not doing enough. I've been ingrained with a work ethic and to let that slide a bit, makes me sad. I'm still applying. Still looking. And still working. But today is just a little harder than other days. Today I really have to rev myself up just to stay in place. Today is just a really bad work day.

A Strange Disconnect

I'm not sure if I'm feeling proud or a bit ashamed when I say that I went the entire weekend without spending any real time on my computer. I read comics each morning but that was it. I never once checked email. I didn't read any of my blogs. I didn't even check Facebook. I was almost completely disconnected. And I have to admit that it was wonderful.

My in-laws arrived at 6ish on Friday night and we quickly went out to dinner. I had some amazing vegetarian sushi while everyone else had fish. Jeff's parents are Catholic so they were avoiding meat because of Lent (since when are fish not meat?). Then we just headed back to their hotel to watch UNI lose to Michigan State. :-( Oh well, can't win them all.

The next day we grabbed an earlyish breakfast and then drove them around the city a bit. They had been predicting rain all day so we stayed in for most of the afternoon. Jeff had two movies that he had to watch for his Reproductive Law class so we ended up watching one of those Saturday afternoon. We watched Waitress which wasn't a fantastic movie but did make me want to learn how to bake pies. That night we met my parents downtown for dinner and then went back to my parents house for an evening of cards and pie and talking. It was a nice night.

Sunday was an incredibly lazy day. After brunch Jeff's parents headed off and we went home. Jeff watched the second of his movies (Knocked Up) and I tried to ignore it. I think I got stupider just watching that film. I absolutely hated it. So I immersed myself in a book. I just started Middlesex by Jeffrey Eugenides and could not put it down. It was one of those books where I walked to the kitchen to make dinner while still reading. I lay on the sofa for the rest of the day, just devouring the book. It was amazingly well written. I left it at home this morning so I wouldn't be tempted to read at work. It's that good.

So today I'm back at work after a late physical therapy session and am feeling a bit disconnected. I know that I'm addicted to my computer but it was nice to take some time to step away this weekend. I feel incredibly refreshed and even though I didn't get a ton done, I feel like a I didn't waste as much time this weekend. A fantastic weekend, relaxing and long. Now I just have to catch up.

Poetry Friday

Last week I reviewed Alexander and the Terrible, Horrible, No Good, Very Bad Day for my other blog. It's one of my favorite stories from childhood and I've read it over and over again. What I hadn't read is many of the other works by Judith Viorst, whose children's books have graced my shelves for years now. So when I was on Poets.org recently I happened to notice that they had a poem or two of hers. I love this one. The repetition, the humor, the childlike rhymes. I simply had to share it.

Mother Doesn't Want a Dog
by Judith Viorst

Mother doesn't want a dog.
Mother says they smell,
And never sit when you say sit,
Or even when you yell.
And when you come home late at night
And there is ice and snow,
You have to go back out because
The dumb dog has to go.

Mother doesn't want a dog.
Mother says they shed,
And always let the strangers in
And bark at friends instead,
And do disgraceful things on rugs,
And track mud on the floor,
And flop upon your bed at night
And snore their doggy snore.

Mother doesn't want a dog.
She's making a mistake.
Because, more than a dog, I think
She will not want this snake.

Literate Cities

It's not fair!

One of the big parts of my job is looking at rankings of states and cities to create marketing pieces for the state of Iowa. It is one of my favorite parts of the job and I find myself seeking out other rankings in my free time.

So I found one just recently that really interested me. Central Connecticut State University produces a list of the Most Literate Cities in the country. The school uses six factors to create the ranking: booksellers per 10,000 population, education level, periodical publishers, newspaper circulation, libraries (holdings, number, govt spending...), and Internet resources. Since my goal is to live in a highly educated city, this ranking is right up my alley.

Here is the issue. Two of the cities on the list are cities that I should be living in. Minneapolis and St. Paul have made the list for the last 10 years (the number of years the ranking has been done). These two cities consistantly rank at the top for affordability and education. I have a large number of friends in The Cities and truly love the atmosphere. Of course there is a catch, there is always a catch. The snow and the winter would be terrible for me. I'm not a fan of cold and winter and snow. And they tend (note I say tend) to be worse than we are in terms of total inches and number of storms.

So it's not fair. I originally wanted to move to the cities but the older I get the more I resist the winters. I've blatently said that this is the furthest north I plan to go. But we have friends in The Cities who try to convince us to move up. I know that this is just more fodder for them. I keep planning to go south one of these years. Perhaps Atlanta. It made the list.

For those of you interested, here are the rest of the Top 10 for 2009.

1. Seattle, WA
2. Washington DC
3. Minneapolis, MN
4. Pittsburgh, PA
5. Atlanta, GA
6. Portland, OR
7. St. Paul, MN
8. Boston, MA
9. Cinncinati, OH
10. Denver, CO

Alexa Meade

Okay I just found the coolest new artist and I had to share. I got the idea from the fantastic blog lines and colors and am now completely fascinated by this woman's work. I know you're shocked. Me fascinated by an artist. But this one is spectacular.

Alexa Meade is a young artist with a fascination for trompe l'oeil painting. For those who don't know trompe l'oeil is about creating illusions with art. I had highlighted a mural artist a while ago named John Pugh (ironically another lines and colors inspiration) who created three dimensional illusions from a two dimensional surfaces. Alexa's illusions go the other way. She creates two dimensional images from three dimensional forms. More specifically people.

She paints people with broad brushstrokes to make them look like paintings. They are then posed among other painted objects and painted backgrounds to create what looks like a fully painted image. The people are then photographed to complete the illusion. I have included some examples above of the paintings. Here is Alexa with her earlier subject Jaimie.

And here is the gallery showing of Natura Morta. It is tough to believe that the paintings above are not just that...paintings. A beautiful and innovative type of illusion. I look forward to seeing more of Alexa's work.

Crutchless

Wow, one letter off and this might have been a very different post. A reminder to always check your spelling. :-)

I am officially crutchless. As most of you know I've been slowly weaning myself off the crutches for the last two weeks. It was slower than I expected but then again I never was good at just diving into something. I had gone from two crutches to one sometime last week and that felt good. Jeff and I were even able to go out and do some window shopping on Friday without too much trouble. And although I moved to the single crutch I noticed that I was starting to pick that crutch up when I walked. I realized how little I needed it. So last night I stuck my crutches into a corner and went to dinner without them. This morning I surprised my physical therapist by appearing in her office without them. I've been walking all over the house today without them and even managed to get out to lunch without them.

The thing that amazes me about this transition is how comfortable and natural it feels (nothing else in this entire process has seemed natural). It struck me as I stood outside our house talking with one of my neighbors. I hadn't seen this neighbor since December so she had no idea that I'd even broken anything. We were standing in front of the house catching up and I realized just how comfortable I was without having anything to hold me up. I stood with my feet at equal weight and I was perfectly balanced. I didn't even have any pain. It felt amazingly good.

For the first time in months, I can carry things. I put all my stuff back into my purse last night and no longer have to carry the backpack. I can even get into the car like a normal person now. I was originally terrified of getting rid of the crutches. Now I find it exhilarating. I never realized how normal I would feel so quickly. The physical therapy has really made the difference for me. I'm well on my way to recovery.

Hypersensitive

One of the things that amazed Jeff after he broke his foot was how incredible everything felt after he got his foot out of the boot. He told me that the first time he was able to touch his foot to the carpet, every sensation was heightened. The carpet just felt bizarre. He said that the sensations lasted for a while as he relearned to walk. Occasionally he would have to stop just to rub his foot on the floor to feel how odd it felt.

I'd been having similar feelings. Since I'm able to take my foot out of the boot earlier I noticed how the bottom of my foot was much more sensitive. The carpet had a roughness and texture that I simply didn't notice with my other foot. The throw blanket we have on our couch was almost painfully soft. The first time I draped it over my bare foot, I gasped. It was wild.

I mentioned this to my physical therapist and her eyes got wide. She asked me to describe the sensations. I said that things just "felt more...just more" (I'm so eloquent sometimes). She immediately followed up that she was glad I had mentioned it. Apparently when limbs, particularly feet, are unused for too long the nerves become hypersensitive. At the early stage this is not a terrible thing. Sensations are heightened and the person tends to find this interesting rather than scary. But if hypersensitivity is left unchecked, the sensations quickly become painful. Suddenly just touching a fabric to the foot would be like stabbing it with pins. Too much sensitivity is apparently not a good thing.

So part of my physical therapy is to rub my foot on any texture that feels heightened. I've been rubbing the bottom of my foot along the carpet, the walls, the linoleum, blankets,... pretty much anything. I recently noticed that our bath mats felt amazing so I spent ten minute rubbing my foot along them. I'm sure it's starting to make Jeff a bit concerned about me. It's a bit odd to be working to make myself less sensitive. But I have noticed that since I've started walking more, these sensations are growing. Nerves are an amazing thing. Hopefully mine decide to function properly again. At least once I get my boot off.

Vending Machine Silliness

The website MthruF is a blog that is part of the Cheezburger group of humor sites. MthruF focuses on funny work related pictures. One of today's images was so much fun that I had to share it. It's a light post but it made me crack up laughing. And I'm off work today and not really in the mood to post too much. Enjoy the silliness.

Eddie Izzard

I hardly ever watched stand-up comedians before I met Jeff. I would occasionally watch someone like Jeff Dunham or catch a bit of George Carlin's act but I never consciously sat down to watch a comedian. Jeff on the other hand can spend an entire evening doing nothing else but watching stand-up, comic after comic. After a couple years of marriage I have swung around to Jeff's point of view. Not only do I enjoy watching comedians but I'll actually seek out the routines of my favorite ones.
Such is the case right now with Eddie Izzard. Jeff rented Eddie's Glorious routine a couple years ago and we were hooked. Since then we've been slowly renting more of his material, and I've even found myself heading online to find more routines. Eddie's comedy is stream of consciousness. He basically stands up on stage and says whatever comes to mind with hilarious results. He mumbles, he rants, he speaks in French, and he's absolutely brilliant. What I love about Eddie's stand-up is that it's intelligent humor. He never plays down to a crowd and you really have to be listening to catch all the jokes. He tends to be a very rapid fire talker so you have to keep following along. He discusses religion, history, his life, and occasionally does whole sections in French or German. And even those I find hilarious (without speaking a word of French myself). He's a master of the non sequitor and you'll often find discussion on jam, dogs, and God in the same sentence. He will jump from history of World War 2 to supermarket lines in the same breath. For others it might sound odd, but Eddie pulls it off with laughs.

I've seen Eddie in a number of films over the years and always enjoy his roles. He even made sitting through the horrendous My Super Ex-Girlfriend enjoyable. A while ago I reviewed both The Wild and Madagascar. I hated Madagascar, but The Wild had one memorable saving grace, Eddie as a smart alek koala. I was also inspired by his recent charity work. In July of last year Eddie started running and running and running. He ran 43 marathons in 51 days. All of this with only a couple weeks of training. All done for charity. I keep telling myself that I couldn't run one and he goes out and runs over 40 in less than two months. That shut me up quick. Then I flipped on more of his comedy and started laughing again.

Sadly Eddie's reputation often seems to overshadow his comedy. As one of the only transvestite comedians working out there, it is often his clothing people are talking about. Eddie never really uses his different dressing style in his act and as he puts it, just wears what he likes. But for many it is distracting. Perhaps that's why his recent material has him ditching the heels and eyeliner more often than not. Which is kind of sad for me. I don't find it distracting and actually think he looks rather good en femme. He can certainly walk better in heels than I can. That kind of individualism is pretty darn attractive. But the really attractive part of him is that intelligence. I'm drawn to his comedy because it makes me think. It challenges me. And it makes me laugh.

This picture, which appeared on ROFL Razzi, is what inspired this post today. Not his typical stuff but still very funny.

Delivery Pains

I'm going to get hate mail on this one but it's what's on my mind.

One of the younger guys in my office and his wife had a baby on Monday. The couple had been trying for a long time and news of her pregnancy had been the talk of the office for the last couple months. All the talk was surprising considering that there are plenty of people in this office who I don't even know if they are married or not. I've overheard coworkers who have been working together for 15 years of so asking whether the other has kids. It's not a gossipy office. Most people just go to their cubes and work. So when the father started telling everyone, and I mean everyone, word spread and people got excited.

The baby was born on Monday. It was planned. The office received news that afternoon about the details and a couple pictures. The father was taking the week off to spend time with his new daughter and his wife. So I was a tad shocked when he walked into the office this morning, went to his desk, and started working. Two days after his wife delivers their first child he is back at work, and on a vacation day. Now I can't think of anything in the world that would make me come into the office on a vacation day. Perhaps I'm just not as attached to my job as I should be. But to come in two days after having a baby seems a bit extreme.

So all this morning I've been wondering why. Is there just so much stuff to do at the office that he felt the need to come into work? This young man is busy like the rest of us but I can't think of anything that couldn't wait a week or so. Now he's always been a bit of a workaholic but as a woman, I know I wouldn't have let my husband out of the house two days after a birth. If it's not work, is it the fact that he now has to deal with both his wife and his mother-in-law. But then why come into the office. He's on vacation. I would go anywhere except the office when I'm on vacation. The only other thing I can think of is that he is coming to work to relax. A new baby is stressful. There is the lack of quiet and lack of sleep. There is the constant stress of taking care of a brand new life. That explanation makes sense to me. I doubt that this young man gave too much thought to how much his life was going to change after having a baby. I can only imagine that he is here to rest. But I still think that his wife should probably be pissed. I know I would be.

Making a Literary Life

I have a huge listing of books that I've been wanting to review on this blog. I've been reading voraciously in the last six weeks and so many of the books have been wonderful. I keep starting review posts but never finishing them. Apparently I don't want to talk about what I'm reading. Or at least I let so much time elapse that I've forgotten most of the details.

So I'll be skipping the twenty books that I have waiting in my queue and will be talking about the book I just finished, Making a Literary Life: Advice for Writers and Other Dreamers by Carolyn See. I'm not sure why I'm okay talking about this one, particularly since I don't expect anyone reading this to actually go pick it up. It's really only a book for writers (or in my case, people who want to be writers). But for a writer, it is a wonderful book. Carolyn See focuses on all aspects of a writing life, from actually writing to revision to publicity.

The book starts with two big suggestions and these are the basic building blocks of a writing life. The first is to write 1000 words five days a week without fail. Carolyn recommends doing this Monday through Friday although I would probably plan to take Monday and Tuesday off and write through the weekend. My weekends tend to be far more productive than my Monday nights. It seems simple enough, 1000 words a day, that's two single spaced pages. I can write that in an hour. Yet there have been plenty of days where I haven't even come close to 1000 words. There are days that I don't even crack my notebook. But after reading this book I'm going to start. I work better with a bit of discipline.

The second suggestion is to write one charming note to an author, editor, illustrator... whose work you enjoy and send it out, doing that five days a week. These are simple notes of appreciation. They are words of encouragement. They are not to ask for favors or make requests of their time. Just a simple note to let them know that you exist and enjoy their work. This one will be far harder for me. As a bit of an introvert, the idea of sending out notes to random strangers is a bit much. But as Carolyn goes on to explain her reasoning, it makes a ton of sense. If you were looking into breaking into the medical world, you'd want to get to know some doctors. Same for the banking industry. So writers should get to know other writers.

Carolyn says that with those two basic ideas, you can start down the road to a literary life. But she doesn't stop there. This book had some of the best strategies I've ever read for revision. She makes something that has been incredibly difficult for me seem very simple. Carolyn uses a technique called mapping to create a detailed profile of each work. It breaks revision down into its parts and I was actually excited about the process after reading it. And that's saying a lot. She spends a good part of the book on getting published which she describes as a courtship. Think of editors as potential lovers and woo them slowly. No one just walks up to someone and asks them out. That is partially where those charming notes come in and where a well-done thank you note will make a difference. She takes some of the fear out of trying to get published. And then she offers types on creating your own publicity once your book is actually published.

There were so many amazing tips and tricks that I took away from this book. I've already set it up on my writing desk for future reference. Carolyn See takes something that seems like a scary business and makes it seem simple. It suddenly seems more like a game than a profession. The book got me excited about writing, revision, and publishing. Some of them for the first time. An interesting book for any writer.

Alice Art

'Be what you would seem to be'--or if you'd like it put more simply--'Never
imagine yourself not to be otherwise than what it might appear to others
that what you were or might have been was not otherwise than what you had
been would have appeared to them to be otherwise.'"---The Duchess

For those of you who don't know, I'm a huge Alice in Wonderland fan (I know I've mentioned it before). Alice's Adventure in Wonderland and Through the Looking Glass are two books that I re-read regularly. I make it a point to see each film adaption no matter how strange or unusual. For the record I have not yet seen the new Tim Burton adaption yet. I don't do the theaters so I'll have wait until it comes out on video. Although it looks strange enough for me to enjoy.

The really wonderful thing about Alice is that there are so many adaptions to choose from, both print and film. More illustrators, filmmakers, and artists have tackled Alice over the years than almost any other book in history. It is rife with possibilities. And each new version offers something new. There is the original manuscript, available online as part of the British Museum's Turning the Pages series. That version includes black and white illustrations drawn by Lewis Carroll himself. See below.

There is the original published version which included the work of the amazingly talented Sir John Tenniel (still considered the authoritative work on Alice).


But there are others who have tackled Alice with differing effects. This poster by Honor Appleton is one that I've been looking to purchase for years now but didn't know the artist.

We all know this particular version of Alice. Disney may be a child's first introduction to these classic works but it tends to be the one that was the least faithful to the book.



For film versions I own the star-studded 1999 television version directed by Nick Willing. This offered us Gene Wilder as the Mock Turtle, Peter Ustinov as Walrus, Ben Kingsley as Caterpillar, Martin Short as the Mad Hatter, Miranda Richardson as the Queen of Hearts, and Whoopi Goldberg as the odd choice for Cheshire Cat. It was also one of the more faithful adaptions I've seen.


I recently reviewed the new SyFy version of Alice here which strayed so far from the book that only character names were identifiable.

What got me thinking about this post was a new website that I found on Monday. Lauren Harman is an illustrator and designer who also has a passion for Alice art. She has put together one of the most impressive collections of Alice artwork that I've ever seen. Much of the images here came from her site. If you are even remotely interested in the Alice motif, I would recommend stopping by. If nothing else it was amazing to see the sheer variety of styles and images. Everyone from Barry Moser to Arthur Rackham have tried their hand. And Alice will continue to inspire artists into the future. I can't wait to see what they come up with.

A Late Valentine

I'll be posting a proper post this evening but I stumbled across this photo and figured I had to share it in the twenty minutes of free time I have today. Sorry work has decided to kill me (or maybe just maim) and I don't have any time until tonight. So this will have to brighten your day until later.


Source: Epicute, oh and everything here is edible.

Sea Shanties and Celtic Sounds

I go through stages with music. For a period of time in high school I listened to a lot of country. In college it was folk. When I first met Jeff I listened to a lot of eighties. Currently I'm on an Irish/Celtic kick with some old fashioned sea shanties mixed in. It's kind of an odd choice for me but I'm loving it.

It started when I was listening to Jonathan Coulton on Pandora.com. If you haven't listened to Jonathan you need to check him out. He doesn't do Irish music, Celtic music, or sea shanties but he does create some of the funniest and smartest music out there. If you combine the nerdiness of Weird Al with the humor of Barenaked Ladies, and throw in some fun tunes, you have Jonathan. He's hilarious and intelligent and fun. Great stuff.

So you're probably wondering how I got from the geeky stylings of Jonathan Coulton to sea shanties. I'm not really sure how either. That's the beauty of Pandora. It always seems to recommend the right thing. In this case, the program happened to play Great Big Sea, a band that plays sea shanties. Particularly it played The Mermaid, which is a downright hilarious song about the problems of trying to have sex with mermaids. It was catchy and fun and I remember writing down the band's name for future reference. I didn't have to wait long to hear more from them as Pandora decided to play Old Polina, off the same album, a couple hours later. Now I was interested. I created a station with Great Big Sea (did I mention I love Pandora?) and suddenly found myself immersed in sea shanties, old Irish songs, and Celtic sounds.

I've been listening to bands like The Chieftains (the classics), the Pogues, The Dubliners, Gaelic Storm, and Flogging Molly and am having a great time. So much of the music is bouncy and lively that I find myself tapping my feet and dancing in my chair. I've been buying tons of songs from iTunes and keep finding new ones to add. The moment the fiddle and the Bodhran starts up I'm happy. So far I've only found one or two bands I don't enjoy as much on the channel but all the rest are bands I'd happily own. In fact I've owned one of Gaelic Storms albums for years and it's been one of my favorite albums. But now I have a whole selection of new titles to add. We all need music and right now mine sounds better with a mandolin and a tin whistle.