Sunday, October 31, 2010

Mondoetry: i'll be just a ghost to you soon

if there's a way that we could stay together
i don't know that i would choose you
i will miss you dearly
but i think i'm ready
and you're
already moving on

you are
your own
moments unknown
sometimes i
don't even speak
your language
sometimes it's
just me in the room
you are
your own
moments unknown
well i'll be just a ghost to you soon
i'll be just a ghost to you soon
i'll be all alone

sun has set and it's the colder weather
but i don't think that i would change it
you seem to know what's going on
but you're still walking with me
like you don't
plan on the beyond

you're still walking with me
like you
won't be moving on

i'll be just a ghost to you soon
i'll be all alone
~
Abandoned
(c) 2010 Stephanie Mma

Friday, October 29, 2010

Friday Foto I: Apocalypse Rising


Time-Lapse this week, with some lovely music to go with it. Visit Albert to see some of his other stuff!

Because it's Halloween weekend this is just Part I. Part II will occur in a day or two.... Muahahahaha.

Wednesday, October 27, 2010

Connecting ...

It's probably actually in the throes of what might be called a death rattle, but the 6 degrees of separation game (particularly the version involving Kevin Bacon), if various interesting personalities are involved, never gets old.

When we meet someone from a place we have spent time, the "name game" inevitably gets played, even if the conversation goes something like this...

he: oh, you're from new york?
she: yeah i interned there for two years.
he: i knew an intern who lived in new york.
she: what was their name?
he: fnu mnu lnu!
she: i have no idea who that is
he: he interned the same time as you, maybe you guys took the same bus
she: ...
he: ... subway? tall guy with brown hair, glasses, ??
she: ...
she: ... *awkward...

Even more exciting, and possibly less awkward, is when the two conversationalists discover that there is some sort of connection between her old hometown and his one facebook friend that he hasn't ever met. Probably the most amusing to me is when we all start trying to show off our connections to famous celebrities... in a big enough group there's always someone with a ridiculously awesome story about how they drove the parade car for king so-and-so from some European country or ran a marathon with Zachary Levi... (what?!)

Our tendency, however, within the humanitarian maze that is society, is to not make these connections with strangers on the train, bus, sidewalk, grocery store line, restaurants... The isolationism, whether it comes from the individualistic American and/or Western culture, easily puts up invisible walls between people. Unless a connection is made.

I was just reminded of it tonight. I took an introductory acting workshop at a local theater, and the instructors stressed the focus needed to be completely within the exercises, but also the need for myself, as one of the players in the situation, to connect somehow with the other players. One of the exercises was particularly revealing of very personal moments that ranged from insanely comical to almost-i-cried-maybe-a-tear-or-two. After the workshop was over, I felt very connected with the other participants, and I feel safe to say that many of them also felt the same way.

Sometimes there are little nudgings to engage with others that I pass by on the street, on campus, in the neighborhood, etc. Most of the time I ignore the nudge. Why? Maybe someone needs to hear a friendly hello. I keep telling myself that one day I will designate an entire day to obeying those nudgings. I am scared to commit to that. But I believe that everyone is an extraordinary person, and you never know what is going on their life that may be changed by a genuine attempt at connecting. Or maybe the world just needs to be smaller. It's not going to get that way on its own.

This is the last time I drink coffee at 10pm!
i think the sky be getting lighter so perhaps time for a little shut-eye...

Ok but before I do, some rando fun things:
a light calligrapher.. I kid you not. his work is amazing.

look inside a street artist's sketchbook. Also super interesting. Utrecht on ptree has this book, I definitely read pretty much the entire thing one afternoon...

tamyo: a lovely trio that i had the privilege of playing with at 2 venues in Seoul last spring. recently found this website. some live vids on the yootoob too. MMM! amazing. xo

And I know it's not friday but thought i'd put up a phot from of-late.

Abandoned
Not creepy at all!

Monday, October 25, 2010

Mondoetry: Canvas by Imogen Heap

Ripley
~~

Slow hard dark weighed-down love, black canvas
Revolve within, you understand
Fragile earth where cracks in the temperature
Keep it cool to give, you understand
Keep it cool to give, you understand

Cause I just can't find the strength to pull you up and keep you taut
No I just can't find the strength to hold you up and keep you taut

Hijacked lost track light fades another day left
Its long shadows lure you in
The more you look the less you see
So close your eyes and start to breathe
Oh, you said yourself, this wasn't easy
Mm, you said yourself this wasn't easy

Oh, I just can't find the strength to pull you up and keep you taut
No, I just can't find the strength to hold you up and keep you taut

Cause I just can't find the strength
To keep you taut

~~
: painting by Ripley Torres :

Friday, October 22, 2010

Friday Foto :D

Rosie Hardy

I really love Rosie Hardy's work. Please visit her actual flickr page or website, or check out the original photo. Really enjoying the reds and blues in this, as well as the texture of her hair. Have a good weekend!! =)

Wednesday, October 20, 2010

Breathe!

Some Numbers and some fun timewasters!

#######
2: number of times i've woken up before 7am this week
1: number of meetings i completely forgot about
239879: pieces of data i'm trying to juggle (approximate)
7: months until my thesis is due

New Restaurants I've been enjoying:
- Pizzeria Vesuvius: brick-oven pizza, relaxed vibe, and even a ping pong table in the music venue in the basement! Also the yelp page says there is all-you-can-eat pizza and salad from 6-12 on Sundays. WHAT!
- Quickly: newly opened cash-only neighborhood asian snack/food and bubble tea shop. i've tried the royal mlk tea and the taro milk tea, and want to go back to try their little dian-xing menu! First need to stop by the atm...
- The Midway: still a new-ish restaurant. :) standard pub fare, with crazy chicken tenders and a decent burger. And you can get your own tots! The drink selection is pretty good also. And ... I love their outdoor patio - freakin awesome!

What I waste my time reading during the day:
365 New outfits for $365 dollars. So far it seems like only for the ladies but guys you could take inspiration too? maybe?

Reading shmeading. Still Addicted. Evil!

and my favorite bedtime reading: the story of the ages.

Speaking of... it's time to get some work done. :)
xo

Sunday, October 17, 2010

Mondoetry: medium

inside moving disbelief
a darkbox in the square
make faraways so deafening
for ears in disrepair

looming brightness from a hundred million eyes
urban scrawling up above a hundred million spies
your fears transformed into
a beautiful delight
send off star flights beneath
the lashes holding tight

the others made it real
by drawing colors from still life
popculture caused its deadening
before it had its time

the rumble comes and goes
and the silence stays to deal with
mishap thoughts inside
this drowning dried up pose

swirly beats take form beside the memories
roads traveled laid over inside these enmities
you speak words still unformed
but cannot say a thing
and try to shape the light
into a song to sing

this journey hasn't ended
but has only made its start
expanses lay before the sun
where the open road

departs
inclines
winds winds

water water
water for
world inside

Wild garden
mmanateeblog_eyes1

Friday, October 15, 2010

Friday Foto: OPA!

This act consists of some talented fire poi handling, fire swallowing, and awesomeness in general. I always try to see these guys, The Imperial Opa, when I get a chance. It's been amazing to see the acts and characters develop over this past year. OPA!!!!

Night of the Living Circus
Click Photo to go to the flickr page.

Thursday, October 14, 2010

Hmm. Thursday.

Lately I've been having some trouble organizing my thoughts. I feel like to just throw something together it wouldn't be my best work or true thoughts. Frustrating, because I want to be sharing from my heart, but I feel like this:
howifeelsometimes
If you've seen that movie (Disney's The Sword In the Stone) it's the scene where Merlin is attempting to pack his entire house and livelihood into the little carpet bag at his feet in this screen capture. And halfway through things get a little messy.

My friend Esther wrote a sweet blog entry on making time for the things you care about. It's nice, and I think I might either check out the book or stop wasting a few minutes here and there on things that I really don't care about. Something decent to think about on Thursdays.

It's coming down to my last few days with my little pup (she is moving to my old roommate S's new place. we adopted her together when we first moved to Atlanta and S was hoping to keep hanging with her. With my sporadic and often spontaneous schedule it is probably best, and pup will have less alone-time this way.) and I thought i'd share a photo of her:
Bailey
And my favorite worst-best stories. :)

Worst: One night I was home relaxing kept smelling poop. Fresh poop. I cooked dinner and handled several phone calls in this manner, and kept on trying to figure out where the smell was coming from. In the midst of a phone conversation I realized that pup had sharted on me (look it up if you're not sure what that means) and basically flipped out while on the phone w/ my buddy D. D quickly and awkwardly ended the phone conversation and I did some laundry. Oh Bailey.

Best: If you've seen me recently or kept up with me on facebook you've probably already heard the story. Bailey likes to chew on her little gorilla toy (or is it a bear), and I was taking some pictures of her whilst on the phone w/ my mum, because the light was perfect - it was right at sunset. I realized after a few shots that she was falling asleep with her jaws still stuck in the toy. My laughing, talking on the phone, and constant shutter clicks were enough to make her try to open her eyes and stay awake, but not enough to keep her awake and she fell asleep. It was too cute.
baileysleep
Anyway, I will miss my little pup and her waking me up in the morning, and keeping me company when I'm home alone, but I know she's going to be with some awesome peeps who will take good care of her. :)

x0

Monday, October 11, 2010

A Little Love on Monday

I forgot today is a federal holiday. No wonder there wasn't too much traffic ! :) Does this mean I don't have to be here? * looks around * Well it is Columbus Day, and oddly enough he did spend some time in a ship on the open seas. So perhaps this week's poem is fitting.

Permit Me Voyage
by James Agee

From the Third Voyage of Hart Crane
Take these who will as may be: I
Am careless now of what they fail:
My heart and mind discharted lie
And surely as the nerved nail
Appoints all quarters on the north
So now it designates him forth
My sovereign God my princely soul
Whereon my flesh is priestly stole:
Whence forth shall my heart and mind
To God through soul entirely bow,
Therein such strong increase to find
In truth as is my fate to know:
Small though that be great God I know
I know in this gigantic day
What God is ruined and I know
How labors with Godhead this day:
How from the porches of our sky
The crested glory is declined:
And hear with what translated cry
The stridden soul is overshined:
And how this world of wildness through
True poets shall walk who herald you:
Of whom God grant me of your grace
To be, that shall preserve this race.
Permit me voyage, Love, into your hands.

Friday, October 8, 2010

Pix n Bikez


It's Friday and you know what that means... :D


Original here.

I love this photo. I have never been to Burning Man but I can only imagine the creative zany and possibly ridiculously awesome bikes that people build and bring to this event. Sometimes I go to flickr just to look at this photo. I have it saved in my favorites. Wish I could have seen these live and in 3D :)

have a great weekend! x0

Thursday, October 7, 2010

Smörgåsbord

This was supposed to be a pretty meaningful and depth-filled entry, but my brain is just too scattered! (perhaps due to the heavy fat/starchy diet I've been consuming of late, and also the reduction in sleep, water, and veggies, all very bad things to do to one's body, in addition to a practically complete removal of any type of exercise from my schedule)

And yes I will be changing that lifestyle very soon. But have been very busy lately and cannot resist the mac and cheese they serve at the student center...

So this week's thoughts will be a collection of random things that have gone through my brain in the past few days.

on Men: do we (ladies) like to be with a rebel so we can know that we are the ones that tamed him? And if this is true, can it be justified by attributing it to subconscious behaviors? Or are we more drawn by the fact that he wanted to leave his rebel ways to be with us? It used to be Prince Charming who won the heart of the princess... Or perhaps that was just what his administration wanted the history books to say. Is the opposite true?

on Hipsters and scenesters: they always have the coolest sunglasses. I don't know if I could be called a true hipster for various reasons, but I do appreciate some of the fashion stylings brought to the alternative mainstream by hipster fashionistas. This includes urban outfitters. Sometimes due to the volume of hipsters the styles can seem monotonous but this is because you are zoomed out to the 10,000 ft above sea level altitude. you need to come down to the 10 or maybe 7 foot level so you can appreciate homemade embellished (bedazzled) sweaters and tattoo-style t-shirts with inked angel wings. and chucks. i also appreciate the indie-green attitude that is added to lifestyles. recycled art, community unity building through art walks and festivals, and indie-rock Haiti benefit concerts.

on Friendships: there is a line between an enabling friendship and sacrificing for a friend vs being a stand-in mother. i think the change must begin with you, and not forced on you by someone who is trying to help... But if you do wish to change and make steps toward that, a true friend will be there to pick you up when you fall and keep urging you to make and reach your goals.

on Fall: My favorite season. I miss having 4 seasons around for this one. :) loved raking leaves w/ my family on a sunny sunday afternoon, love the cooling weather after a hot summer, and love the idea of getting back in the grind after a little relaxed time at work/school. something I CAN still enjoy south of the mason-dixon line, however, is the myriad of pumpkin-flavored cookies, muffins, coffee, beers, breads, etc. that become available right about now. WIN!

on Angry Birds: ...just...need...to...beat...this...one...more...levelllll....

also one more thing: my sister passed the bar! (yay for her!)

Random stuff for you to check out:

Pandora: Ratatat Radio
YouTube: Explosions in the Sky "Waking up after coma"

She is here tonight. But i waited too long and it sold out. So we will commence instead. :)

Monday, October 4, 2010

Monday Poem

The Other Side of the Clouds

Under
Over
like the drip drop cleared
and now you can breathe
but the heavy lingers
lingers

drifting through with clammy
fingers
fingers

Backwards
Forwards
like the sun you've known
that you know is there
but the truth still lingers
lingers

Heavy
Over
Feather
Soldiers

mm, but
nothing can redeem
the time running down
in rivers
through the falling leaves

close
eyes
closed

just
....keep
..........running

Friday, October 1, 2010

Friday Foto


We all love Friday. Most of us, at least, I would say, ... I can only speak for myself on this point, but sometimes all I want to see is a darned good photo. Especially if the week has been difficult. With the rise of digital media and increased accessibility to higher end cameras for the common consumer (read: non professionals, incl. myself) I've realized that there is a difference between a well-taken photo, and a photo taken by a nice camera. What I will try to stick to is the former and not the latter :) Sometimes they will be mine and sometimes not. I'll list the source so if you are interested you can look at other works of theirs. if you do fall into the common consumer category I would challenge you to cease with the persistent photo-documentation of your life, if you have been so inclined, and take a moment before you snap a photo to figure out a better way to take it.
If you are still learning, as I am, you might be interested in this.

And now on to the Freakin Dope Friday Foto.
i was taken by this one.
Original here.