awww, Emp, so cute

Empowered, by Adam Warren. As much is was completely not what I was expecting at all, I was very pleasantly surprised. I've always loved Warren's art and clever writing, ever since I read that first bit of Gen13, and while this was in a kind of black and white digest form, I wasn't disappointed. Told in many small episodes, interspersed with often-times metatextual (but not cloyingly so) title pages, Empowered is ironically (for it being as silly and satirical as it is) one of the most 'real' feeling comics I've ever read. Sure, it's tongue-in-cheek throughout, and just plain eye-rolling-inducing at times, regardless it's still utterly adorable for every moment in it.

Mmm, pesto!

this is for you, Penguin

Heh, I don't even know why I write out these comic reviews, as I know exactly one person who gets as big a kick out of comics as I do, and who would have any idea what I'm talking about....and who doesn't read this. So for you, awesome random possible person in, say, uh, Antarctica who gives a crap, even if you're a penguin (or maybe especially), this is for you, buddy! High five!
X-Men 197 continues to impress with Bachalo's art and an intriguing combination of characters and story (though I seem to be in the [vocal] minority given reviews I've read); this issue seemed to be a character-building interlude at first, but quickly became make-you-look-over-your-shoulder-creepy. I can't get enough of the kind-of-painted art of X-23 4, and this is a solidly fast-paced issue on top of that, establishing Laura as a total badass and Kimura as a horrible bully (which makes Frost's eventual horrible punishment of her that much more palatable). Worldstorm 2 helped cement the new Wildstorm universe as awesome for me, with two stories introducing the rebooted - and very different - Voodoo and Backlash. Like The Boys, Barracuda 2 is not for children to read, but damn, if it isn't funny; even this issue that's purely set-up for the next is hilarious. But Cable & Deadpool 39 topped even that for me, I was actually laughing out loud at a few points - re: "You just never get tired of the panicked screams of expendable minions. 'Minions' truly is a great word. On par with 'chimichanga.'" And Pirates of Coney Island 5 I just didn't even know what to make of, but it was certainly original and fun - like cotton candy and cheeks being slashed open all at once - good times!

trivia.....ball! waBAM

An interesting interview about cinematography in Lost


Sheesh, even the announcers began to get irritated at the referees in the Air Force vs Clemson game, there were just several blatantly not-called fouls

From the amazing Denis Kang, a nice entrance to a cervical lock

Random quote! An interesting, idealistic tangent on William Gibson's interesting posits on the nature of celebrity:
"Heroes are known for their achievements; The Celebrities for their well-knowness. The Hero reveals the possibilities of human nature; the Celebrity reveals the possibilities of the Press and the Media. Celebrities are people who make the News but Heroes are people who make history. Time makes Heroes but dissolves Celebrities. Heroes symbolize the receptive and open and prepared mind. They considered that mankind is capable of things that have not been revealed in the past". - Daniel Boorstein

aw, people crying

Big Fish, with Billy Crudup and Ewan McGregor. A lovely movie. And, yes, it's about storytelling, so of course I liked it. And there were definitely at the very least misty eyes for I'm guessing nigh everyone in the room. I didn't cry, of course, I wouldn't want to worry Mathilda. Anyway, it's the kind of movie that's just all around good, and I'm sure I could put further thought into it, or read much closer, but....I don't really feel any need or desire to; it's just nice.

-From Ms Connie, The Adventures of Brisco County, Jr: I've never even seen it, but it's the best tv show ever! Just look at the description of it! And Bruce Campbell!

-does anyone else find honeypot ants horribly creepy? To me, they're kind of tangent on the axlotl tanks of the Dune novels, but as I don't know a single person who would get that reference, imagine humans in a worse position, times ten.

-odd trivia, after the fun virus vs gums experience I had (still need to gain some weight back after the involuntary fasting), apparently calcium is a huge help in avoiding odd conditions like that - damn you, forbidden cheese!

Things of Note - A No Day But Today Weekend

-first of all, many thanks to Ms Kim for the idea of going to get the rush tickets for Rent - that was amazing
-three hours sitting in line, plus an hour or two for downtown strolling and dinner at the Grill = $20, second row, center seats (in the orchestra pit!)...which is a not even a few feet from the actors, which is right in front of the $80 "front row" regular-bought tickets
-we did meet some interesting people of sometimes ambiguous sexuality, and placed bets on skateboarders falling in the pools (it came down to, does only the skateboard itself falling count?)
-and also, braved very belligerently angry homeless people screaming at everyone with dubious logic
-the frontyard has been cleared of piles....and the middleyard now has the biggest potential compost heap ever...mmm, delicious soil...in other news, Mattie has white fur again after being cleaned, industrial-style
-the triumphant, periodic return of Hot Potato - though, our performance was kind of dismal, we only got up to 35 or so (even with Wyatt's "high pants for high performance" enhanced waistband)
-the debate is still up as to what exactly 'women's work' is, and whether vaginas should be put away or taken out

go ninja go ninja go!

TMNT, with several famous voices (including Buffy and Silent Bob). Just go into it kind of half-expecting a kid's movie, and you're fine. That is, it's certainly not exactly for adults, but it's still quite entertaining at the same time. It's nicely put together, and the animation is great; one scene between Raphael and Leonardo is wonderfully tense with emotion, just in their animated body language, for example. It was fun. Though I was saddened there were no Vanilla Ice references, it was fun. And it was okay in this movie that everyone was ninjas. It balances out movies where everyone becomes a pirate. In other news, there were large groups of emo kids abounding, on opening night. Let the jokes ensue.

I always thought systema was interesting in the seeming originality of the concepts it pushes, though I've not really had occasion to try many of them

Some classic but interesting judo principles

lots of wow's

The Void Captain's Tale, by Norman Spinrad. Now, this is what science fiction should be. A wonderful creation of an expanded world, intriguing and very original ideas explored, layers and layers of dualities and symbols and semantic webs, it's got all of it. I'll admit - I bought the book for two reasons: one, that it can only be bought used, but for about a dollar or less. And two, for the base reason that I was led to believe it would basically be science fiction with a veneer of erotica. Instead, I'd rather say that if I were to go back to the idea of teaching English, and were to be so lucky as to teach a rare science fiction class, this book would certainly be in the curriculum for everything from general semiotics to gender studies to cultural sexuality. Like the interesting film Code 46, there's also an interesting note of the multiplicity of languages used, in this case various smatterings of German, French, Spanish, and Sanskrit, and mirroring that last language, it would help (but not be necessary) to have a solid understanding of classical Indian conceptions of consciousness. Of course, on the other hand, this story would be a great, if disguised, introduction to the same. Seriously, great stuff, for less than a dollar, people!

Agustina de Aragón - wow, an interesting historical figure

and Aleksandr Suvorov, a guy who did some amazing things, in my opinion

if this meteor video is real, just...wow

triviaball

I have to say, I was already interested in the new Nova series, but now that I know it's being written by Dan Abnett, I have to get it

Random interesting phrases of the day:
"paradox noir"
and
"chilled to the coeur"

Wow....I have to say, kind of tempted to go visit at least one of these trees

Besides having an interesting name, Eurosia is the patron saint of those who are possessed by demons - fun times!

even I'm hard pressed to find connection with these

-"HBO just acquired the rights to make a series out of George R.R. Martin’s A Game of Thrones novels." I'll note the sic that that should be Song of Fire and Ice novels, but who cares! HBO is really the only one who could pull that off, anyway, and there's no way it would ever fit into a movie. Wooooo!

-from Wyatt, tiny planes with big pricetags

Caveman, with Ringo Starr and Dennis Quaid (aka Sean William Scott). Um. I'm not sure if this is one of the stupidest things I've ever seen, or whether it was awesome. It walks a razor path. Was it slapstick? Was it a comedy? Was it....dumb? But it was funny. I'm honestly surpised I'm able to put as much thought into it as I can. It would have been crazy if cavewomen really were that attractive. I still don't believe this was made in the 80s. I'm shaking my head, but I'm not sure in which direction.
(I'll note the plot keywords on IMDB are "Hit In Groin/Giant Insect/Anachronistic/Fart Scene/Nudity")

Mighty Avengers 1 pretty much fell flat for me; I was holding out there, for Ares and Ms Marvel, but man, Mr Writer Sir, please lay off the bloody thought bubbles. Just...no. Gen13 6 has great art and fun writing, it's quality. But, alas, it's just not the original. Still, I'm glad they're included in the general Wildstorm reboot. New Avengers 28: I keep coming back to this title, if unwillingly. It's really the writing, it's sasstacular. The Initiative 1 was a "d'oh!" for me, I thought I was getting the first of the new miniseries...this is just a collection of previews, two of which comics I had just bought anyway. Nice cover, though. New X-Men 36 - wham! Bam! Fun action-packed conclusion to 'Mercury Rising.' And the White Queen providing a lovely-tragic ending. Stormwatch PHD 5 isn't exactly necessary to get, though I'd recommend every other issue of this great comic; this one's just some reboot-explanation filler (though it is written and laid out nicely, nonetheless).

Things of Note - A Happy Leprechaun Weekend

-if you're going to charge me $100 to prescribe freaking Eegee's, I damn well expect to be given a pina colada directly in the hospital!
-all that effort of fever'ed movement and driving in the heat, and I forgot to look for the Buffy comic...le sigh
-ways to get out of blatantly checking out a hot chick #46: it turns out you know her!
-apparently hippies hate St Patrick...and like to spin around in 3D geometric star-thingies while decrying him
-I didn't know a quadriplegic person could move so agilely
-that's it...we're getting a dart board (though I'm not sure it'll include a cute lesbian)
-three dollars for a burnt hot dog?!
-whoa...Tiffany's has burly security guys...and horribly surprising clerks (in a good way)
-Beatle art: uh...I don't really have anything pithy to say about it, I guess...ummm...I thought it was dippy at first, but was somewhat won over...yes, that's my 'profound statement' for the day
-
Moshé on Moshé on the Martial Arts - a quite interesting interview, though it's long-ish

some random things

Guide to Investing, by Robert Kiyosaki. Despite its somewhat trite appearance, like Kiyosaki's other texts that I'm familiar with, Guide to Investing is quite valuable in terms of information that can be gleaned from it. I'll readily admit that I agree with some that the writing itself can be repetitive and rambling at times, but there is a certain value in having that repitition in an educational book. It's not about knowing which stocks or bonds or even real estate to pick, as I'd initially expected, but rather (and much to my satisfaction) speaks to more general principles about really understanding what an asset is, and how to structure one's finances towards building and using assets, and on top of that some interesting points about general financial philosophy. The latter half or so of the book is probably not immediately useful to the majority of readers, including me, I would guess, but is the sort of thing that will probably be a useful reference in the future for many, as it is about starting businesses, large and small. Interesting, and useful, overall, and it even randomly coincided with the more yogic financial book I'm concurrently reading in interesting places.

Aw, poor Cap...(not 'poor Cap' enough for me to actually go get that comic, though, I'll note)

A bit of clicking will find you an interesting video of the little-known (dot)Indian martial arts

From a Wyatt - a newly discovered cat!

Things we've learned, of late

Never, ever take various doses of zinc, ashwagandha, fish oil, triphala, and echinacea, which would normally be fine all at once.....if one had actually eaten or drank any water all day. The results can be...ah, messy. And painful.

Paper airplanes can appear as unto a ball to a dog. Who might rebound off of your chest to follow a loop-de-loop airplane. Regardless, it's pretty awesome to see the little paper construct snatched out of a hard bank, only to be viciously torn in half, its dismembered pieces tossed in the air. Kind of like the UFC combined with that History Channel show, Dogfights, combined with a National Geographic documentary on predators.

An unexpectedly disturbing thing to lose while having chemotherapy done is apparently one's eyelashes. Though, I think losing fingernails would mess with me a lot, which seems it was backed up by another male opinion in that direction, so that's two female opinions balancing that towards eyelashes being the worst. Though only one of those opinions is based on actual experience.

Wow, an upgraded armbar, from GrappleArts (I think it's potentially awesome, personally)

1/8th Mighty Choctaw.

For Your Consideration (a Christopher Guest movie). I think my favorite part about Guest's movies is seeing actors in such unusual roles - for example, Kim and I noted one of our favorite actresses from The L Word (though not in as fun a role as the other actress in Art School Confidential), and another who had also guest starred on the show, and who everyone else recognized from the completely different role in Silent Hill. The movie was pretty funny, and is an interesting collection of character sketches in an unusual context for a movie; it's not laugh-out-loud funny, interestingly, but more casually funny. Like...hm...Bill Murray's The Life Aquatic was like that, I think.

It's interesting to consider this when talking with people, and even more interestingly, when looking at one's self, I think - a posit of stages of moral development

Things of Note - an Artfully Violent Weekend

-seeing 300 twice in so many days helped in appreciating it more fully, I think, like the best martial arts movies, some parts you just want to rewind and watch again - of course, I've also been annoying my girlfriend with questions beginning with "I wonder if the Spartans...."
-I got medieval on the bush...shrub...tree thingies by the west fence; there was a unique little biome going on in there, odd leaveless vines, old growth and composted topsoil, plants expressing three different ways of getting to the light in one individual
-but, now most of them are in piles in the front yard: damn you, once-per-week trash pickup!
-we now have more shelve-age, thanks to my dad's construction skillz; and Kim got interior-decorator-al on the living room, rearranging and setting up for the Great Wall Hanging of '07
-now, I have to rearrange my spatial memory and stop running into things in the middle of the night
-oof...ate exactly one and a half meals on Sunday: a thickass burger, coleslaw, ribs, potato salad, popcorn chicken, rolls, baked beans, then barbecue chicken and corn
-then, basically went to bed at 8pm, which led to feeling rested, but also seemingly an epic's worth of really, really odd, vivid dreams (felt like I was in this pervasive setting which included an Arizonan beach)
-
-a fun painting (heh...phoenix...)

"Rated R for "RAAAAAR!"*

300, with Gerard Butler and Lena Headey. Ok, got to get this out of the way...I just noticed, Headey has a tattoo of a lotus on her back. Whoa. Ok, I won't speak to people trying to force some political symbolism upon the plot, nor whether the violence and sexuality of the movie detracts from its value as a historical (-ly referential?) text, nor even to the quality of the choreography and stylization being better than the majority of martial arts movies. I'm going to throw this out there, that 300 might be a very yogic movie. That is, Leonidas became, over time in my mind as I watched the movie, more and more like what Arjuna becomes by the end of the Bhagavad Gita. He (and his wife, Gorgo) decide their actions based on what basically amounts to dharma, what is right in a very deep sense, he (and the Spartans) are selfless on a basic level and subsume themselves to what they consider their dharmic path as soldiers, and they take a simple joy in doing their absolute best without being attached to the outcome. I could go on with closer examples and details, but I'm sure I've already bored someone out there, so I'll leave it at that.
(also: laconic wit)

Idiocracy, with Luke Wilson and Maya Rudolph. Oh man, was this stupid or was this stupid (it was stupid.). It tried pretty hard to be funny, and somehow the special effects were surprisingly good in a cartoony way, but mostly it just fell flat. The concept is vaguely interesting, and Kevin has already spoken to that, so I'll just leave this with a vague, if apathetic, admonition not to watch it.

Over the Hedge, with a bevy of famous voices and whatnot. Kind of a ditto on this one, though I also vaguely wonder whether I've become jaded to kiddie movies. But...no, I think this one just pretty much also fell flat, as it really didn't make any effort to rise up out of a stereotypical moral-of-the-story plot and characters. The ending did make me laugh a little, though, I mean, when is a van crashing into a house aerobatically not funny?
-
"Secretary star Maggie Gyllenhaal is in final talks to replace Katie Holmes in the Batman Begins sequel. "
-Ok, tell if I'm crazy, but I'm sure there's at least three other people who would immediately imagine Gyllenhaal getting spanked by Batman after reading that quote. And like it.

*see Phil Villarreal's fun review ("The Spartans are a super-human elite squad of lumberjack pirates who were trained by the the great-great-grandpa of Chuck Norris' paternal ancestor" - it's so true!).

quantum physics connects somehow, I'm sure

This one I'm putting because it reflects upon the conversation about existance-of-good-and-bad and whether-those-are-inherent conversation we were having last night, and also because maybe magically one of the other few people who've made it all the way through Herbert's novels to Chapterhouse: Dune might read this and will be similarly thunderstruck, as I was, upon gaining a whole new understanding to Duncan's visions and the end of the novel:
“The real world is beyond our thoughts and ideas; we see it through the net of our desires, divided into pleasure and pain, right and wrong, inner and outer. To see the universe as it is, you must step beyond the net. It is not so hard to do so, for the net is full of holes." - Sri Nisargadatta

This one I found interesting because it seems a commentary on a concept that seems to crisscross across several cultures and philosophies in various fashions (re: Jesus' mustard seed parable, or my favorite remark of Kabir's, "The drop merges in the ocean, where do you search for the drop? The ocean merges in the drop, where do you search for the ocean? The end of the search is the realization that each is in the other"):

“The emperor of China asked a renowned Buddhist master if it would be possible to illustrate the nature of self in a visible way. In response, the master had a sixteen-sided room appointed with floor-to-ceiling mirrors that faced each other exactly. In the center he hung a candle aflame. When the emperor entered he could see the individual candle flame in thousands of forms, each of the mirrors extending it far into the distance. Then the master replaced the candle with a small crystal. The emperor could see the small crystal reflected again in every direction. When the master pointed closely at the crystal, the emperor could see the whole room of thousands of crystals reflected in each tiny facet of the crystal in the center. The master showed how the smallest particle contains the whole universe.”

ding!

“When a bell rings, is it the bell we hear, the air, the sound at our ears, or is it the brain that rings? It is all of these things. As the Taoists say, ‘The between is ringing.’”

I think a natural reaction to this statement might be to throw some science at it, to contain and quantify and define by saying that the physical waves of the sound vibration are translated into sensory information, etc etc. But I think it's important to take into account the context and purpose of the thought; that is, as a paradox (how can one thing be all of those things at once?) it points beyond itself. And so, a purpose of it is to give us an opportunity to go beyond the boundaries of our normal understanding, beyond where we comfortably (complacently) and reflexively (unthinkingly and unfeelingly) act.

Tangentially connected, a quote from the same text, at Trinity

interesting image-
"Preferring death over surrender, every man, woman and child leapt from the castle walls to the raging river below. The torches they carried traced their paths in the sky, resembling a night of falling stars."

I want one in my backyard, so I can say, hey, let's go check out my pingo (ker-wink)

Adventure: Tucson

Waaay down Nogales Highway, there's a towing yard. The first question I have is, if they have so many cars in there, does that mean that that many people just never got to pick up their cars? I mean, I get the difficulty of having to get all the way down there, and the exorbitant price, so I could understand that, but damn that sucks. Second question: why the hell did they have ostriches? That's so random.

And in the hour it took me to get back into Tucson and then across the city - first of all, why were there little cholos slouching in a car with US Government Use Only plates? And how the hell did a car hit a telephone pole and streetlight pole hard enough to shatter one and knock down the other so it would somehow amazingly balance precariously on the cables? I suppose the woman in the nice blue convertible did get catcalled by those kids in a relatively pleasant, flattering way while we were stuck interminably behind the emergency crews. Oh, and were those people really sending a poor beagle out into traffic to fetch something from the street? That's just sick, unless they were strangers trying to call it back out of the road, I really couldn't tell which it might be.

And why the ostriches?

politics, sort of, and quickquicks

Man of the Year, with several generally comedic people in generally serious roles. But it also generally works. This is the second time I've seen Laura Linney in a movie where her character just...disappointed me, though. I mean, her acting is fine, it's just the coincidence of the kind of character. Back to the movie, I'm still pretty torn, overall. There were a few points which we found just implausible, but all the same something about the main character was horribly plausible in that it was more 'real' somehow than the ending I would have wanted. I say horribly plausible because I think some idealist aspect of me was rebelling against the reality of the situation and the truth of the character, but ah well. I didn't think it was an amazing movie, but it had some interesting things going for it.

Wisdom 3: "You're going to be pushing your bollocks around on a trolley." Also, on the cover, it appears he's just beaten down a dragon with a cricket bat.
Pirates vs Ninjas 2 is funny, but I was really hoping for some extravagant art; ah well, I'll settle for lines like, "Taste Squickie's SEA-MIDGETY WRATH!!!"
Interestingly, GI Joe: Special Missions: Antarctica (which I'd gotten for Wyatt) had its own humorous moments, most image-based, but also: "It's summer! A balmy -30 centigrade. What do you want to do first? See some whales? Pet a penguin?"
The fourth issue of the new Gen13 actually caught me quite off-guard, there's a quite determined subtext going on about modern voyeuristic and youth culture, and even one moment that was sad enough to actually give me pause. It did also have this, though: "Leviticus 1:6 says, 'And she shall lay with the beasts of the field, and then throw them off the tree, then hit them with a big stick and some rocks, too, maybe.'"
The Lost Books of Eve 1:1 is a fun concept, with a quirky style of art, I'm intrigued; like a kid's book, but with a lightly sardonic style of humor -
cherubim: "For starters, you can't go around like that."
Eve: "Like what?" [she's nekky]
cherubim: "You know..."
Eve: [perfectly innocent] "No, I don't know."
X-Men 196 is what I really went to the store for in particular, though. And I completely disagree with a review I read, as much as I normally like clean, clear art, I thought the art in this was perfectly suited to the frenetic, page-turning action going on, and to the dark, dark characters. Damn cliffhangers, though! Badassery-oriented as it was, however, there was still a bit of humor:
Cannonball: "You're not looking so hot, Creed."
Sabretooth: "You shot me out of a damn torpedo tube."
And I relented and bought The Boys 6 before it just becomes impossible to find, but I won't explain the moment that precipitates this moment unless you ask me, because I'd want to see your face:
the Frenchman: "Q'est ce que c'est?"
Wee Hughie: "Oh...EEEEWWWW!"
Mother's Milk: "That's some truly appalling shit."

-wow, there's some interesting symbolism in gravestones, the list is a little ways down

-the coat of arms of Warsaw is awesome

:P

Get it? It's a tongue, and this is about language? Ahh, so maybe that's a bit of a stretch. Anyway. This is one of those topics that I could write an essay on, but just want to touch on here, and that's the idea of learning the language of something being the most important part of learning it. For example, there's the overt technical terms in everyday yoga and jujitsu class, like the Sanskrit (anjali mudra, savasana) or Japanese (tai sabaki, ki, kote gaeshi), but there's also more subtle jargon that goes almost unnoticed - the inside and outside of one's body, different meanings of the words open, close, forward, and back. In beginning to teach yoga, that's the area I've ironically noted the confusion appearing in - where a martial artist coming to a yoga class is already keyed into the alternative meanings of those words, a completely non-athletic person is suddenly thrown off by trying to apply a more common definition to something it never applies to, in general life.

The reason I thought of this at all was in learning the immense vocabulary of 'financial literacy' as the books I've been reading have advised me to, I've noticed a good few points where just knowing that different 'language' have almost made me shiver, because in driving past businesses I hardly took note of in the past, or looking at my own finances, everything suddenly looks different...not unfamiliar, but different with better understanding. The funny thing is, none of it's really concepts I was unaware of, I already understood most of it. It's the having it within a framework and system of language that's really starting to give me access to this new perspective and world, that's the real key.

From Wyatt, MAKE:blog, a collection of unique and interesting things that were...uh...made

I bet Phryne was totally hott (or, hawt, if you will)

Watch out, might be spoilerific, but would also be good for those trying to catch up...the Battlestar Galactica story so far

Things of Note - A Weekned

-contrary to popular belief, Garduno's is not actually a factory that produces margaritas, though they really do pull off the Southwest-art-times-steampunk-equals-whoa effect pretty well
-but...why was the mariachi band playing "It's a Small World" over and over?
-I'm sorry, pugs just look like someone was trying to play golf with a sledgehammer and mistook a small dog for a ball
-and what is up with vizslas' lips and/or psychotic personalities? Seriously, people!
-I went an entire day not realizing someone was stone-deaf, it was amazing...she got skillz
-Frank/Mathilda 'sploring-log, Great Gale of...uh...March: we braved billowing clouds of dust, exploding Mexican families, precariously tipped bins, and precariously tipping trees to find (dun dun dun) a secret stash of kumquats!
-I feel like I should somehow save all that desert wasabi I 'harvested' (aka weeded); and all that tombstone rose covering the house? It was all one plant! wtf.
-Mattie gets ten points for being the most well-behaved dog ever this weekend, bringing the ball back each time (and dropping it on the ground!) and guarding my back from the neighbor's dog (and not barking!)

Kind of morbid, but interesting, especially if you're hungry - last meals

story(commentary)time!

I just noticed in one of the yoga textbooks I've been reading that there've been a few stories that aren't the common traditional or apocryphal tales-of-yore, but involve more modern 'characters' and contexts. That's not to say it's referring to some specific person I could google or something, but I was surprised to note, for example a character who was referred to simply as 'an American,' with some attending connotations but thankfully no reliance on over the top stereotyping. Long story short, as it were, it was interesting to see that a useful story didn't have to be something out of antiquity, but could just as easily occur in contemporary times; it seems reassuring in some small sense.

Sidenotewise to that, I know I've said it before, but I'll say it again, I think stories and anecdotes are a wonderful way to learn. Hell, look at Jesus and his parables...and yes, I am aware of the 'balance' in that syntax, thank you. But anyway, not only do they make the information more interesting to hear, but perhaps also easier to retain as it's not just a cold, dead fact or sterile idea, but a story that can become alive with characters and meaning that actually matters to them. Once I was accused of turning conversations around to talk about my self and my friends and family and my work, etc, basically of being egotistical, and oof, did it hurt at first, and I clammed up about any of those things for while. But after a lot of self-checking, I think a lot of it was telling stories and anecdotes out of my experience (what else am I going to base my stories on - purely other people's stories, or just synopsizing movies?), because I love storytelling and hearing stories and learning from people in that regard. But I get so excited I think I would sometimes end up seemingly just talking about myself or my relations a lot, because I want to share in the goodness of...well, sharing. So from that point I resolved to better make sure I was getting stories out of the people I'm having palaver with. So, in the end, I think I just gained another long-term benefit out of the issue in that insurance that I get to learn. Woo!

And just because we've been tossing around JC lately (heh, not ass-backwards but Jesus-backwards, don't make an ass out of Jesus...), a shout-out to the wonderful Sinfest

Stormwatch PHD - certified