Have I Told You

that Videogum's Hunt for the Worst Movie Of All Time is one of the funniest things to read on the internet??


The best is when Gabe covers a movie that, while you are well aware is not Palme d'Or cinema, you honestly kind of enjoyed watching; but then, as he is explaining the plot, you're like, Yes! holy crap that movie actually was horrible!

And, some of them are so obviously horrible you would've killed to get the 60 seconds back that the filmmakers stole from your fleeting life when you were cruelly subjected to the movie's trailer during a perfectly innocent commercial break.

Make Me Happy: Photo for the Day

from the Big Sur series (lovely lovely lovely!) by Akasha Rabut

through Design for Mankind

When Photoshop Disasters Aren't Funny Anymore

Below is a photo printed by the Honduran newspaper La Prensa. It shows the now-famous 19-year-old Isis Obed Murillo--who, sadly, was killed--being carried away by his friends after falling victim to the violence of the recent coup:



If the photo looks somewhat different than what you remember seeing everywhere else on the news, you're not going crazy. The unadulterated photo is here. Warning: mildly gory; hence my not pasting it directly into this post.

Freedom of the press, indeed.

Cut-Offs

Get out the scissors and an old pair of uniquely-patterned dress pants, gentlemen.
Prada says so!

Unconvinced

It's become my new catchphrase.

("Life motto" sounds over committed...and cheesy.)

----------

It is not that I disagree; I am just...unconvinced.

Unconvinced that most of the religious rituals I was--or any of us were--raised to perform are, while good at producing self-discipline, anything more than well-intentioned superstition.

Unconvinced that many of the things I was taught are wrong--as in, "sinful"--are actually so.

Unconvinced that I know what "God" wants. Unconvinced that I can get "God" to do things.

The problem with discussing topics like those above with religious people (of any faith, really, but I mainly interact with Christians) is that religious people are so completely convinced.

People will say they are 'edgy' and see themselves as revolutionary relative to their more conservative fellow-worshipers; but in my experience most people are not willing to consider the possibility that they themselves could be misled, or even just a little off.

I was one of those 'edgy' people. And I knew better than I knew anything that I was still right. More right than the Right and, of course, more right than all the non-Christians too.

How arrogant of me.

We think we are shaking things up when we ask the hard questions of those around us. But do we ever really challenge ourselves?

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I am learning to begin each thought with these words: What if

On Being Wrong

"The people we pay attention to aren’t the masters of doing what’s “right;” they’re the misfits who have the courage to be wrong."
--Jonathan Morrow, c/o copyblogger

Read the whole article here (it'll prove insightful if you're trying to figure out where the hell this crazy "Cellar Door" lady is coming from.)

Image created by yours truly at JacksonPollock.org

Visualizing Time

A real "jumping hour" watch from Urwerk.

Apparently, the 'linear' concept was first introduced in 1958 but never made it past the prototype stage. Click here to read more about how it works and what a feat of engineering it really is!

found @ boingboing...and also lead to a ultra cool blog about timepieces. So many things I never knew I wanted to know!

What Might Have Been

In a not-so-different life, I think I might have been an illustrator-slash-graphic designer.

But I don't know if I could have ever come up with book covers as kick-ass as these...

Make Me Happy: Photo for the Day

by Cristin Sloan

via Booooooom

Feel the Joy!

home-made day bed.

i want to go to there.

discovered @ Apartment Therapy

Dirty Words

"Atheism" is a dirty word where I come from.

It conjures up images of glary-eyed people standing with all kinds of attitude in shadowy corners; or black, rotting hearts. People who feign the highest level of intelligence but who are, in fact, very very stupid. Only those with a complete lack of personal and intellectual integrity could go around pretending they believe there is no god, right?

Well.

As I said yesterday, I am not an atheist. But I no longer take offense to the term. In fact, I'd like to take a moment to write about something I greatly admire about atheism--something I discovered as I teetered on the brink of a godless existence (though I've yet to go over.)

In her blog sweet|salty, kate writes--very beautifully and with humbling honesty--about the aftermath of losing her son who was born prematurely and lived for only six weeks. Given that context, let me preface this quote of hers from mid-June by saying that I am in no way claiming that what she means by these words is what I'm getting from these words. Her statement triggered a memory of my own recent musings. That is all.

She wrote:

Atheism is a compassionate day pass in its prescription of meaningless shit luck. Nobody let you down. You can’t stay mad at dust. Randomness causes a seed to fall into a bit of earth that happens to have an opening, and that seed either grows or does not grow thanks to a wealth or drought ordained by nothing but chance.

So here is what I admire about atheists: they can't really be whiners.

When I am believing in God and operating off of what I've been taught my whole life about the power of prayer and God's goodness and God's power--well, what do I do when nothing of what I've asked for actually happens? Or, when shit happens instead? Throw a tantrum, that's what. I go into existential crisis. I mean, I've been without permanent employment for almost a year now. What the hell is up with that?

But atheists have no one to be mad at. You just keep going. There is no possible sense of entitlement. You do the best you can with the life you've been given--you take responsibility for yourself (something I was never taught in church, and find an exceedingly difficult lesson to learn as an adult)--you learn to grieve and you learn to rejoice--and you live.

I am close with only a few atheists, really. So if you are an atheist, and I have misrepresented your worldview, I apologize. Please chime in and let me know what I'm missing.

Make Me Happy: Photo for the Day

via Ffffound

A Heretic's Follow-Up

Christian philosopher Arthur F. Holmes wrote that "All Truth is God's Truth."

What I wrote in my previous post is not in disagreement with this statement (the statement as I take it, as it stands, unqualified--I have never read Holmes' book) IF, and only if, we do not mean by it that the "truth" found in other belief systems in ultimately Christian in nature and eventually they'll all come around.

All truth might belong to God, but God does not belong to us.

"God" is so much bigger than "us"! Is that not what the Christian church professes? So much bigger that I can't even take myself seriously when I use words like "so", "much", and "bigger."

And so when a Christian says that "all truth is God's truth," I hope she does not mean that all truth is Christian truth. If she does not, then I will gladly agree.

If only we could let go....

I Just Woke Up One Morning, and

suddenly, I realized, I had become one of those people.

One of those people...

...who thinks that all religions probably do lead to "God." Because, let's be honest, religion is culture, and culture is circumstantial. When Jesus said he was "the way, and the truth, and the life" (John 14:6), I seriously doubt he was implying that the only vehicle toward God is the Christian church.

It's not that Christians (and I focus on Christianity here as it is the religion in which I was raised) are wrong, per se, but I cannot see how they are any less wrong--or any more right--than any other people who might subscribe to differing religious practices. Let us stop and think about how ridiculous it sounds to say that 'my people,' of whom 'I am a part,' have an in--the in--with the divine. Anyone would say that; and for what reason would any one person be more inclined to be "right" in this regard?

I do not reject Christianity, outright. It is a way of doing things (though usually not a very Christ-like way, if one simply reads the Gospel stories and embraces the irony of what "the church" has become.) And I think I will stick with theism; I can't seem to help being grateful to (or angry with, depending) whatever is out there. However, I can no longer assume the erroneous or irrelevant nature of the many different ways people from all over the globe have found fit to think of and worship "God."

There is truth in everything.

------

I realize I write this at the risk of scaring some people who love me dearly, and maybe of confusing those to whom I've preached in the past. Still, I do not find it virtuous to put a halt to all our exploring for the sake of comforting those who stay ashore.

This is merely where I find myself today.

I imagine it is not where I will stop.

Enlightenment is at our fingertips, I think, if we're willing to face the blank slate. Perhaps that is what Jesus really meant by being "born again."

A Way of Putting It

found through nevermind the bricolage

Dating in the Downturn

I did it.

I hesitate now to admit what "it" is because I realize that there will be consequences to my confession such as having to face the people to whom I said I would never do "it"...and to whom I said such things with much scoffing and pride.

Deep Breath.

okaysoisignedupforanonlinedatingsiteit'snoteharmonyoranythingsodonteventhinkiwouldpayforsomethinglikethatbutijustwantedtogooutonsomedamndatesalreadyokay!?!?!

Whew. Glad that's over with.

Yes, it's true. I joined a dating website. With no expectations for finding a spouse or anything, mind you. It is just remarkably hard to find people who actually want to date in Los Angeles, let alone men who want to go out with intelligent, confident, socially conscious women. And all my friends were doing it. (I'm generally very good at resisting peer pressure, but I figure it's healthy to give in once in a while.)

Here's why I bring all this up: about a month into my time on this site, the job I had fell through and I am still looking for new employment while trying to maintain sanity in a very precarious financial situation. Given what I see around me, I know I cannot be the only one in this position.

There are people who would say--and even parts of myself that say--that now is not a good time for me to be dating. I understand. I mean, really, I'm kind of freaking out; and it's not the sort of emotional state one wants to be in when just getting to know a potential love interest. At the same time, however, dating proves a good distraction. Go out, have someone else pay for your food/drinks/good times for the night, laugh (or kiss) it all away....

And then there's the fact that I am a particularly relationship-oriented person. I find it incredibly difficult to focus on the practicalities and logistical tasks of my own life when I don't feel that I have people--or a special someone--close by, supporting me and committed to me and wanting to be where I am. As you can imagine, being single and unemployed is not my cup of tea.

So should those of us poor (literally, poor) singles who want to find that special someone but who also really, really need to find a job in this wretched economy put off our romantic endeavors until we're stable?* In some ways, that feels like punishment. I mean, it's not like we're all slackers. Plenty of hard-working, well-educated, highly motivated people (ahem) have fallen victim to the downturn. Does that mean we have to give up on our efforts to make what we want out of the other parts of our lives, too? At the same time, is it fair to ask someone who barely knows you to be supportive in such trying times?

Maybe it's just me. What I mean is, maybe it is up to me (or you, whoever you are, poor jobless wannabe dater) to determine how much I will let my job/financial situation affect my state of being, and therefore how much I actually need to ask of others in terms of sharing my burden. And maybe it is also up to you (you, employed [for now] potential date) to not judge the field based on employment status or perceived (and haven't we learned, it's all perceived) financial stability at the moment.

What do you think?

*There is, of course, the issue of guys usually having (and often, wanting) to pay for the date...so this is a concern.

Sunglasses That AREN'T Ray Bans

Multiple optometrists have told me that I have extra-large pupils. Consequently, I'm supposed to wear sunglasses anytime I go outdoors. Like, ANY time.

Not wanting to go blind by the time I'm 50--or at any time at all, really--I try to comply with the doctors' orders. Good thing sunglasses are a kick-ass accessory anyway, and one of the most underrated, in my opinion.

Sure the summer's almost half-way over, but it's never too late to invest in a new funky pair, especially in L.A.: Summer, schmummer. What's the difference?!?

Check out these lovelies from Supreme in NYC (they do have a store in LA, btw, on N Fairfax)...




found at Kitsune Noir

A Short Story

About three months ago, I kinda stopped running.

My shin splints started acting up, the pain was just too much, and I had to take some time off.

My shin splints started acting up because I had just started walking quite a bit: to the bus stop and back twice a day.

I started walking to the bus stop and back twice a day because I got a job.

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Around the same time, I stopped blogging.

I stopped blogging because I got the job and was too tired from walking to the bus stop and back twice a day to muster the energy to do any writing.

Recently, I felt it was time to start running again. I thought to myself: 'three months? pshh. No biggy. 5k is my minimum run. I can't not do 5k.'

Well, let me tell you. I can 'not do 5k.'

-----------

I figured I should maybe start blogging again. Since I do want to make a living with my writing, this is probably a good idea, no?

While not as physically painful as attempting a 5k run after 3 months of no running, it is similarly difficult to take that first step back into the habit.

All that to say, I'm working back up to where I want to be.

Also, if you know of any writing-ish jobs, please let me know. If I haven't made it obvious, I don't have that non-running, non-blogging job anymore.

Happy Belated Easter!

AAAAAAAAAAhahahaha!

........

HAHAHAHA!



Brilliant, Bobby.

Brilliant.