The Sundance Channel has some cool stuff

So, I don't have a TV. Not at all. I got out of the habit of watching TV while in grad school partly because I didn't have any time for it and partly because I moved out and didn't own a TV any more. Now, whenever I go places, the ugly black box most rooms are organised around just doesn't interest me. Or, well, not nearly as much as it used to. I am not compelled to watch television any more.

Which makes me miss out on some really interesting stuff, like horrendously bad hockey, or the Olympics, or television news, or CBC TV's Being Erica (which I watch online from time to time, it's too good to actually miss out on!) or things that we don't get in Canada anyway like the Sundance Channel.

I only just discovered the Sundance Channel today, via BITCH magazine. I realise that this connection may seem strange, and, well, maybe it is. But I have discovered so much new media, new knowledge in general, really, from feminist media like BITCH and BUST magazines. ... including relearning how to knit, actually.

... which ties back into the whole television business, since not having a TV actually makes it more difficult for me to knit because I need SOMETHING to distract me enough that I feel like my idle hands are a problem. And, well, that doesn't really happen when I'm watching a movie with my boyfriend (I think he'd be insulted)... and my bus rides are too short to do much more than a few knits or purls, maybe a full row if I'm lucky... so I've run out of knitting time. ... which makes me miss television ever so slightly, and I need to find a way to fill that void other than reading blogs on the internet (because, despite the great enjoyment I get out of reading all sorts of blogs (food, knitting, crafting, satire etc.), none of that perusal allows me to knit while I'm passing time).

Anyway, the point of this blog post: the Sundance Channel. I need to explore this website more! Not only did it give me this:





a, uh, "useful description" of my seduction style, but it has the most fantastic video collection ever: GREEN PORNO short films by Isabelle Rossellini. ... her fantastic accent adds so much joy and titillation to these enormous paper sculptures and human-interactive films about copulation. That's right, they're all about sex. ... if you're a whale or a barnacle, or a bee, or the most erotic-seeming of all: a snail. They're hilarious short films! And so fantastically made. After watching the Science of Sleep, I'm enamoured with the paper sculpture idea, and the dream-like quality of these shorts (I wasn't so enamoured of the Science of Sleep... like Waking Life, I think it's a movie that requires on to be half-asleep in order to accurately understand it). Anyway, they're fantastic little films, and supremely educational... like how awfully non-aerodynamic whale penises are, or why hermaphroditism is such a good thing for earthworms!

Surprisingly enough, televsion sometimes has gems hidden amongst the awful advertisements, loud, obnoxious sportscasters and "reality" shows.

on trains and memories

I still haven't rectified the lack of March photos...

But I've been busy. And I've been catching myself thinking about things from long ago. Maybe it's the fact that I'm now staring my future in the face and I can't figure out what to do, maybe it's just that I can hear the train at night while in my room, trying to go to sleep.

I miss the train. Trains and water bodies...


Okay, so granted, that's not the correct water body, but it's still a train. Our family cabin, on a tiny speck of a lake between Edmonton and Edson, was on the CN Rail main line. ... which means there's constant train traffic. Or, well, not CONSTANT, but... you get the picture, there were a lot of trains. I loved the train. I loved hearing the horn sound, and the echoed rush of cars and wheels over steel tracks. I loved the way the sound was amplified as it rung out across the lake. And every time I hear a train, I think of that.

Thankfully I don't think of my poor cousin, who, at the age of two, couldn't hack it with the trains. Sure, everything was fine during the day, we were playing, and there's so much fun to be had in the sand piles and grassy lawn of the Lake that your average toddler hardly bats an eye at the sound of the train horn. BUT at 2am, it's a different story, there's nothing saving you from that awful "twain" and oh did we all begrudge him his fear. There's nothing quite like being woken up by a 2-year-old with an irrational fear of trains EVERY TIME the train went by (and it went by more than once an hour some nights. Eventually we would be able to convince him that the train wasn't going to hit our cabin since we weren't on the track, but it took a lot of talk sometimes, and a lot of tears and anguished screams too (which kept us all up).

But, as I said, thankfully that's not what I remember. What I remember when I think of trains is the absolute stillness of everything. That twilit calm that settles over prairie water bodies. The cackle of grebes and the distant clunking of what I always assumed was a coffee urn over a fire (I never did find out what the sound was)... That and the clunk of our wood stove. I think of those memories when I think of trains. And I miss them so much, and want to wrap them around me like the greatest of all blankets. But I can't, they float in my head like so much flotsam on the shore of the lake. And I want to chase after them, scoop them out, with each sounding of the train horn, but, like the horn call itself, every memory is fleeting, living but for a moment in my mind, before it is flushed back amidst the other scurf washing up on shore. And I drift off to sleep in a mixture of indistinct memories and thoughts of what's going to happen in the coming months.

Where has time gone?

Wow, it's almost mid-march. And here I am hoping to go see Caesar before the Ides are upon us (ha, lovely, Julius Caesar is playing here, with some of my favourite local actors up until exactly the ides...). At any rate, I don't know where time has gone. I passed my thesis defense, ran into a mad scramble of editing and printing and submitting before the submission deadline not two and a half days later, and then got hired a week and a half post-defense on a six week contract... of which I am now smack in the middle. And it's going, and I'm... writing a paper. deja vu.

I don't know what's happened to time. I feel like I have time, and then suddenly three days have passed and I have no socks or underwear to speak of, nor time to do laundry. I am sleepy and still wanting to hibernate, much like that poor, reluctant Punxatawney Phil. Alas, I am no "groundhog" and instead of hibernation, I have to pay bills... so work! On a cool contract, and with some fun people and great subject matter. Who'd've guessed I could possibly ever contribute to a report on national biodiversity? awesome!

But anyway, that's not the point of this post. The point of this post is to show that I have taken all of three photos in February. And NONE in March so far. NONE! Okay, so I took more than three in February, but there were only three subjects, and I don't like most of them, so it ends up being three photos. They show you a bit of what I was up to, but not much, to be honest. Basically it says I took time to look at the sky at least once, and then there was a lot of cake. Lots and lots of cake. Seriously. Just look:


Early February gave us a lovely full moon, that showed itself before sunset. ... which is nice. I like looking at the moon on the background of a periwinkle sky...

And then cake:

For my boyfriend's birthday. He said he liked chocolate zucchini cake, and since it's MY FAVOURITE, who am I to refuse? :)

and...

The weirdest cake ever, for my roommate. The roomies conspired to make an enormous ginger spice cake and I was in charge of turning it into an insect... hence sklaarbog, the cake. (or pill bug, for those of you who don't know of the IKEA plus toy...) He has shoestring licorice antennae and feelers, and candied ginger eyes. And there is enough cream cheese icing there to probably cause a diabetic coma if you aren't careful!


But seriously, that's it. Three lousy pictures. And March, so far: NONE. I have to do something about that... namely do something worthy of photographing, or be outside when it is worthy of photography (which is difficult with an office job, let me tell you!). *sigh* I never realised how nice it was to have the flexibility of grad student life! hahaha, except the pay stunk and the hours were horrible... And, to be honest, on this contract, I can work when and wherever I want, so long as the work is done on time. So who am I to complain? I just have to WORK!

totally coveting

so... I went to IKEA last weekend with two of my friends who REALLY wanted to deck out their places in high style. Or, more to the point, they needed things like picture frames, a chest of drawers and curtains, and I was the car driver with trunk space to spare. So... we went. And I bought stuff too, of course, because who goes to IKEA and doesn't buy anything, really?

I bought plates that are "decidedly 70's" according to everyone, but they go so perfectly with the decidedly 1970s green-flower-trimmed white corelle dishes I already owned (and are ubiquitous in all the thrift stores), so how could I resist, really? ... add to that the fact that my FAVOURITE colour in the whole world is just about exactly that colour and it was a surprise I left with only 8 mid-sized plates and one big serving bowl!


The ubiquitous olive-flowered "crazy daisy" Corelle dishes...
and my new IKEA Trivsam plate


The things I really intended to purchase: a knife sharpener and a bedspread, I had significantly less luck with, but I eventually did find a knife sharpener, and the bedspreads, well... I'm torn. I bought one and took it back. It was too bland, and disappointing in its coarseness. The one I truly covet is just a little too expensive and doesn't go with anything else I own (most particularly the bed sheets that it MUST go with, because I am not buying any more bed sheets for a very long time!), but it is oh so gorgeous. ... so I am left with nothing, and feeling the absence a little too much I must say. I did, however, score some rather impressively outrageous fabric, though. ... which I intend to make into pillows.


The duvet cover I want, but will likely never own due to price and colour compatibility ("Andrea Satin")

IKEA's Saralisa fabric, aka my new pillow covers.

And, in my search for the care instructions (online IKEA wandering = temptation beyond all reason) for washing said outrageous fabric, I came across this and now really want to make it into a bedspread... why didn't I think of THAT when I was in the store running my hands across it adoringly?

the newly coveted fabric:

the bizarrely named Stokholm Blad. Seriously, I think this is love. Line drawings of leaves?? How could I NOT buy this? And it's only $7/m, and 150m wide, which will end up being less than my muchly coveted $70 gorgeous purple duvet cover non-matching pre-made option.

I should just never talk

So, I was watching this:



and thought it would be great to post it on my facebook page... So I did, saying something along the lines of "thankfully I don't have computer problems, but I do still feel like 'whoopa whoopa whoopa whoopa' right now." And lo and behold... with two days until I practice-present my exit seminar (1/2 hour presentation on my WHOLE THESIS) to my lab group, and one week and two days until my actual official thesis defense, my laptop power cord has decided to make strange noises and produce excessive amounts of heat (versus normal).

So... PANIC! I am now off to see if London Drugs stocks a reasonable facsimile for me to use in the interim while I contact (*ahem* find) warranty people, and finish my thesis... 9 days... AAAAA!

if only procrastination was a feasible form of employment

I should be working on my exit seminar. But instead, I am going to copy and paste a meme I've read on countless blogs over the last little while... Except I think the line "things you haven't done and don't want to" is a little harsh. There are often things that I just don't think about doing. ... like I would never have said I absolutely WANTED to go to Hawaii, but having gone was really lovely. ... so I'm not shutting the door on my plain font listings. I've also added [square bracket comments].

Things you’ve already done: bold
Things you want to do: italicize
Things you haven’t done and don’t want to - leave in plain font
I've double-fonted some stuff... things that I've already done, but want to see/do again. Because sometimes once just isn't enough!

1. started your own blog
2. slept under the stars
3. played in a band
4. visited hawaii
5. watched a meteor shower [again and again and again!]
6. given more than you can afford to charity
7. been to disneyland/world
8. climbed a mountain
9. held a praying mantis
10. sang a solo
11. bungee jumped
12. visited paris
13. watched a lightning storm at sea [wanting to see it depends on how close I am]
14. taught yourself an art from scratch [woo hoo knitting!]
15. adopted a child
16. had food poisoning
17. walked to the top of the statue of liberty
18. grown your own vegetables [have in the past, want to again]
19. seen the mona lisa in france
20. slept on an overnight train [more like tried to sleep]
21. had a pillow fight [... broke the record player needle too!]
22. hitch hiked
23. taken a sick day when you’re not ill
24. built a snow fort
25. held a lamb
26. gone skinny dipping
27. run a marathon
28. ridden a gondola in venice [though I'd like to try actually poling it too]
29. seen a total eclipse [lunar, yes, solar, no]
30. watched a sunrise or sunset
31. hit a home run
32. been on a cruise
33. seen niagara falls in person
34. visited the birthplaces of your ancestors
35. seen an amish community
36. taught yourself a new language [Italian, by immersion, it was great!]
37. had enough money to be truly satisfied [oh, to not be a poor, starving student!]
38. seen the leaning tower of pisa in person
39. gone rock climbing
40. seen michelangelo’s david in person [want to go back!]
41. sung karaoke
42. seen old faithful geyser erupt [from the middle of the forest no less!]
43. bought a stranger a meal in a restaurant
44. visited africa
45. walked on a beach by moonlight
46. been transported in an ambulance
47. had your portrait painted
48. gone deep sea fishing
49. seen the sistine chapel in person
50. been to the top of the eiffel tower in paris
51. gone scuba diving or snorkeling [and I should again]
52. kissed in the rain [snow, yes, rain, no]
53. played in the mud
54. gone to a drive-in theatre
55. been in a movie
56. visited the great wall of china
57. started a business
58. taken a martial arts class
59. visited russia [particularly Volgograd, for some odd reason]
60. served at a soup kitchen
61. sold girl scout cookies
62. gone whale watching
63. gotten flowers for no reason
64. donated blood [though I'm not sure they'd take me, and I'm pretty scared actually]
65. gone sky diving
66. visited a nazi concentration camp
67. bounced a cheque
68. flown in a helicopter
69. saved a favorite childhood toy
70. visited the lincoln memorial
71. eaten caviar [does roe count? if not, I guess I'm lying!]
72. pieced a quilt
73. stood in Times Square
74. toured the everglades
75. been fired from a job
76. seen the changing of the guard in london [I'd like to pay better attention if I see it again]
77. broken a bone
78. been on a speeding motorcycle [that'd be fun once]
79. seen the grand canyon in person
80. published a book
81. visited the vatican
82. bought a brand new car
83. walked in jerusalem
84. had your picture in the newspaper
85. read the entire bible
86. visited the white house
87. killed and prepared an animal for eating
88. had chickenpox [so PLEASE, no shingles, it's terrible]
89. saved someone’s life
90. sat on a jury
91. met someone famous
92. joined a book club
93. lost a loved one
94. had a baby
95. seen the alamo in person
96. swum in the great salt lake.
97. been involved in a law suit
98. owned a cell phone
99. been stung by a bee [wasp yes, bee, no.]


Interesting... This could lead to all sorts of introspection!

But, instead, I'm going to leave you with this:

random blog survey thingy

I just stumbled across this poking my nose in on the other blogs that participated in the Week of Colour (I love looking once all the photos are up!).

It was a short survey, and regardless of my misgivings has some interesting commentary... but of course my "rainbow" is shaded brown, I'm all about nature and getting my hands in the dirt!

Your rainbow is shaded brown.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

What is says about you: You are a deep thinking person. You appreciate the roughness of nature. You feel closer to people when you understand their imperfections.

Find the colors of your rainbow at spacefem.com.