Sunday, October 21, 2007
Playing Catch-Up
We've had rain, rain, and more rain in central Minnesota. It makes me think back to high school French class, where I learned to say "Il pleut," which means "It's raining." You say "pleut" as "plu" - kind of a short "u," but with some "e" mixed in. It almost sounds like rain when you say it, especially the sort of gray, plodding rain we've had. My mom told me that she had heard that if all the rain we've had lately were snow, we'd have 180 inches. Bring it on, baby! The white stuff, please, not more rain. Have we turned into Portland or Seattle?
Labels: family, french, friend, jeffrey eugenides, knit whimsies, knitting, logorrhea, middlesex, minnesota, mom, portland, rain, seattle, snow, weather, wired magazine
Thursday, October 11, 2007
All Better
Labels: birthday, brother, children, family, husband, love, mom, sister
Monday, September 17, 2007
The Wedding
It's finally official, but not without some chaos first. My sister had a plan - at least I'm pretty sure she did - but she didn't communicate it to anyone prior to the wedding. Where do the tents go? How do you want them arranged? How about the table and chairs? The table for the unity candle? What time are pictures again? Where do you want the grill for the pig? The food tables? When are we eating? Are we eating? Some of us simply had to take charge and get things done. To complicate things, it was extraordinarily windy and cold that day. The bridesmaids (including me) were dressed in sleeveless gowns and we were goose-pimply and teeth-chattery.
My sister and her youngest daughter left to have their hair and makeup done on Saturday morning and didn't return until about noon. The wedding was scheduled for 2 o'clock. We had to figure all of this stuff out, plus get dressed in about 4 hours. I think it was a good thing my sister was away. She gets so stressed by these sorts of events - even when she's not the center of the activities - that she would have wound herself up into greater knots. The rest of us did what we had to do and things were pretty much ready by 2. Except Mom, who decided she had to use the bathroom at the last minute. Not a big thing, except you have to understand that we were walking a huge, bumpy, farm field distance between the second backyard, where the wedding was being held, and the house. The wedding itself went without a hitch - except for that one REALLY IMPORTANT hitch. My husband's sister performed the ceremony. She's a UCC minister, you know. My sister was gorgeous - naturally - and the groom was handsome in his tux with camo vest and hunting boots. (It was hunting opener, so only true love could have forced the hunterly guys to show up for this event.)
As soon as the wedding was over and the guests were all properly received, my sister and her husband went elsewhere for a visit with a granddaughter they rarely get to see. The wedding party changed into more sensible clothes - including a winter jacket for me - it was that cold - and we set up the food. My hubby had been roasting a pig all day, the one that my sister and her hubby had been raising for the occasion. It was delicious. Once the happy couple returned, after some prodding to get them to come to the meal, we ate. Food was followed by wedding cake, music, a bonfire, visiting, and clean-up. Then, blessed sleep.
Labels: brother in law, cold, family, filter and splice, husband, minnesota, mom, pigs, sister, sister in law, weather, wedding
Monday, August 27, 2007
Minnehaha Falls
Go away for a day and you come back to find that I've gone away for a day. The whole family, including cousins, aunts, uncles, and grandparents, went to Minnehaha Falls yesterday. We were celebrating the grandparents' wedding anniversary. Seems they used to do some courtin' around about these falls. You know, back in the day. (Back in the day when a body could walk behind the falls, according to Grandpa.)
We brought a picnic lunch and had a fabulous day. Perfect weather and all that. I was smart (for once) and brought the camera. Between the children and I, we took over 100 pictures. What you see above is three of them. The top one, taken by moi, is of the falls from a nice three-quarters angle. The bottom two, taken by Daughter, is of the statue of Hiawatha (he's the guy) and Minnehaha. I knew nothing of the story of these two, other than there was a poem called "The Song of Hiawatha." My sister-in-law told me that they had to memorize this Henry Wadsworth Longfellow poem in school. Hubby and I missed out, but the whole thing is online. One portion of it talks about Hiawatha wooing Minnehaha. The statue is an illustration of this section:
- Pleasant was the journey homeward,
- Through interminable forests,
- Over meadow, over mountain,
- Over river, hill, and hollow.
- Short it seemed to Hiawatha,
- Though they journeyed very slowly,
- Though his pace he checked and slackened
- To the steps of Laughing Water.
- Over wide and rushing rivers
- In his arms he bore the maiden;
- Light he thought her as a feather,
- As the plume upon his head-gear;
- Cleared the tangled pathway for her,
- Bent aside the swaying branches,
- Made at night a lodge of branches,
- And a bed with boughs of hemlock,
- And a fire before the doorway
- With the dry cones of the pine-tree.
Labels: children, dauther, family, henry wadsworth longfellow, husband, minnehaha falls, minnesota, picnic, poem, song of hiawatha, statue, weather
Friday, August 10, 2007
Caterpillar
My family scattered to the four winds.
Sounds so ominous, but it's not really. Everyone is off doing something they enjoy. I'm blogging, checking my emails, reading the various blogs I follow, getting hungry. Will feed myself shortly, so don't worry your pretty little head on my account.
I went for a walk today during a work break. My work location is very near a state park and it's simply glorious to head out for a woodland stroll and warm myself up from the chill of air conditioning. As I was making my way back, I saw a huge light, but vibrant, green caterpillar on the ground, making its way across the path. It had to be between two and three inches long and it was fat. I tried to get it to crawl up on a twig so I could get a better look, but it winced and folded in half when I touched it with the twig. Why am I telling you this? No cosmic reason. Just an observation, an interesting interaction.
Labels: blogging, caterpillar, family, hunger, walk, woods
Monday, August 06, 2007
My Queendom for a Meme
A Harmless Meme . . .
10 Firsts
First best friend - Amy
First screen name - mosiewarner
First pet name - Edward - a black cat my sister gave me when I went off to college - I couldn't take him with me, though.
First piercing - one of my two ears - I forget which
First crush - Middle School - C.L.
First CD - Are you kidding? Let's try vinyl albums, baby. That'd be Mickey Mouse Club or Sean Cassidy. I got them around the same time.
First school - Lincoln - funny/tragic story about that - when walking to school one day, I saw a dead blackbird and felt sorry for it, so I put it in my school bag and brought it home later - my mom about died when I showed her.
First house location - We moved a lot before I was in kindergarten, so I don't remember. I was born while we were living in St. Cloud and I do have a vivid memory of a storm from when I was 6 months old.
First kiss - My darling husband
First car - My own? Volkswagon Quantum
9 Lasts
Last time you smoked - Never, never, never! Yuck! Unless you count second-hand smoke - a couple days ago.
Last food you ate - Grapes - red ones, three of them. I didn't peel them though.
Last car ride - to grocery store and Mom's house this morning
Last movie you watched - My Big Fat Greek Wedding - required for my hubby's Sociology class
Last phone call - My mom's landlord
Last CD you listened to - Dave Matthews Band - Everyday - it's in right now, last song
Last bubble bath you took - Don't take them for fear of irritation down there
Last song you listened to - Everyday - see above for last CD
Last words you said - I say so many, I can't remember specifically - hubby and I did discuss dinner a bit ago
8 Have You Evers
Dated a best friend - absolutely! It's hubby! My bestest friend in the whoooooole world.
Been arrested - nope
Been on TV - Does local access channel count? If so, yes.
Eaten sushi - yep - a dinner treat once from my brother - mmm, mmm, good
Cheated on your b/f or g/f - nope
Been on a blind date - nope
Been out of the country - yep, if you count Canada as being out of the country
Been in love - yep - see that dated best friend entry
7 Things You Are Wearing
2 shoes
2 socks
shirt
undies
shorts
6 Things You've Done Today
1. Washed dishes
2. Taken Mom on errands
3. Answered several phone calls
4. Started a new blog
5. Created a banner for that blog - yeah! art projects!
6. Kissed my hubby
5 Favorite Things (not in any order)
1. My hubby
2. My three children
3. Reading
4. Writing
5. The music of Dave Matthews Band
4 People You Most Trust
1. My hubby
2. My children
3. My siblings
4. My in-laws
(Yes, I cheated. When you count them up, that's more than four.)
3 Things You Want to Do Before You Die
1. Write a book that gets made into a movie
2. Write a song
3. Work on a project with the Dave Matthews Band - because it sounds like an impossible goal
2 Choices
Vanilla or chocolate - chocolate
Hugs or Kisses - Yes, please
1 Person You Want to See Right Now
My hubby - I think I'll wander down to the living room and give him a kiss.
Time for tagging. You know the routine. If you've got a blog, use it. If not, use the comments. I tag O.W., A.K., Rianna, Jody, if she's reading, and Kim at Knit Whimsies. I'd tag Joanne at Poppy Seed Heart, but she's a little busy with her baby right now. We're still thinking of you, Joanne!
Labels: children, dave matthews band, dmb, family, husband, knit whimsies, meme, poppy seed heart, reeva dubois
Sunday, July 15, 2007
Observations from Away
While at MHS, workshop participants were given a chance to go through the exhibits, which were interesting to me not just from a content perspective, but from a design and construction perspective. I had three favorites. One was the exhibit on our State Capitol. The Capitol can be seen from a large window in the central hall, where the exhibit is located. MHS has kindly provided those tourist viewer glasses/binoculars so that visitors can peek at the details. People always talk about the golden horses and the golden peak on the Capitol, but I was thrilled to find that there are eagles encircling the dome - looking very much like friendly gargoyles. The Capitol was designed by Minnesota architect Cass Gilbert, who not only designed the building, but the furnishings as well.
Another favorite exhibit was Camera Ojibwe, which is a compliment to a new book by historian Bruce White. The book is called "We Are at Home: Pictures of the Ojibwe People". The exhibit, which was mounted in three months, if I'm remembering correctly, shows photographs of the Ojibwe in posed shots and in every day shots. There are also bandolier bags and other related artifacts on display in the exhibit. It will only be up until early August, so if this interests you, high-tail it to MHS.
The other exhibit I loved, especially from a holy-crap, how'd they do that perspective, was Open House: If These Walls Could Talk, an exhibit that shows the history of one particular St. Paul house and the people who lived there. The exhibit is set up like a house, with a parlor, bedroom, bathroom, den, attic, living room, basement, hallways, and garden. As you walk through, there are all sorts of interactive features that enhance your knowledge about the house. There's a bed that has the words "Sit Here" shining on it. When you sit, the voice of a woman who lived in the house explains how the bed kept breaking - and then the bed breaks. Whomp! While you're on it. The really impressive part of the exhibit was the basement, which can be seen through a small window near the floor. When you look in, you see a staircase with boots and a thermos on the stairs, and below, a record player and suitcases and what looks like a child's scooter/bike. Here's the kicker. If this were truly a basement, the room would be hanging down in the MHS library below. It isn't. Can you guess how they accomplished this room? This exhibit recently won an award from the American Association for State and Local History and I'd like to think that basement had a little something to do with it.
On my last day of the workshop, I decided to walk around the outside of the History Center, which is gorgeous inside, but I'd already seen much of the inside and the day was too beautiful not to enjoy. When I got to John Ireland Boulevard, I saw the Capitol, and then looked over my shoulder and saw St. Paul's Cathedral. The two buildings are ornate and domed and book-end the boulevard most purposefully. I asked Marcia Anderson, Head of Museum Collections of MHS, which building was constructed first. She said that the Capitol was and indicated that the church didn't want to be outdone as far as view and grandeur, so they built the cathedral. Marcia assisted in mounting the Camera Ojibwe exhibit and has been studying Ojibwe bandolier bags and other handcrafts for years. She's very knowledgeable and gracious.
Obviously, there was a lot to observe at MHS, but the observations didn't end there. On the evening of July 11, there was a reception for an art show called Reworks at The Minneapolis Foundation in the IDS Center. My husband's motorcycle table was accepted into this show of art made from recycled stuff. I'm so proud! His table fit right into the scheme of the office, so much so that we caught people setting their glasses on it. The food was to die for and all organic; we were introduced to the music of Ron Cheese; and there were loads of people in attendance. It was fun to be the wife of an artist, rather than to be the artist myself for a change.
And then there was the hotel . . . the Holiday Inn River Centre, which is a few blocks down the hill from MHS, kitty-corner from the Excel Energy Center. Have you ever noticed that you can feel entirely alone in a hotel, not seeing a soul on your floor while coming and going? You can hear 'em, but you can't see 'em. Spooky. Also, there's the issue of bathroom tile. After having tiled our own bathroom and kitchen, I'm forever checking out tile jobs. Hotel bathrooms are notorious for having poorly executed tile jobs, where tiles are cut unevenly, or don't match up quite right at the corners.
On the opposite end of the block from the hotel is Cossetta's restaurant, which serves pizza and Italian food. I ate a chicken penne and asparagus salad the first night, and my husband and I had pizza the second night. Delish! In between the hotel and Cossetta's is this quirky pop culture shop called Maharaja's. Music, smokes, posters, incense, a replica of Han Solo in carbonite (can be yours for only $4999 plus tax!), Buddha statues, KISS dolls, and a black light room filled with fuzzy posters are just a few of the wondrous things that can be found at Maharaja's. While there, I found an old Dave Matthews Band album - real vinyl in the 12" square jacket, folks. I couldn't check the price because it was in a locked cabinet behind a 45 rpm record. When the hubby and I walked back to the hotel from Maharaja's, I looked at the Excel Energy Center and wondered in a half-formed fashion if Dave Matthews Band had ever played there. While online yesterday, playing catch-up, I found a little item on Weekly Dave Speak that was oh so coincidental. Turns out that DMB had played a private concert at the Excel a mere two days before I was ensconced in the River Centre with a lovely view of St. Paul's Cathedral. How's that for weird?
Okay, one more thing and I'll give you a rest. While we (me, the hubby, our children, and hubby's folks and sister) were waiting in the IDS Center for the art show to begin, one of the children had to use the bathroom. There is not a single public restroom in the public areas of the IDS Center. We had to go through the Skyway to the next building to use the restrooms in Barnes and Noble. While I was waiting for the restroom brigade, I found a book on artist trading cards, little hand-made one-of-a-kind cards that artists make and trade with each other. I was taken by the form and now must simply try my hand at it.
Labels: artist trading cards, books, capitol, cathedral, dave matthews band, dmb, exhibits, family, history, hotel, husband, minnesota, museum, workshop
Sunday, July 01, 2007
Bridal Registry
Prior to the wedding, we checked out the happy couple's bridal registry at Target. Very convenient to be able to look it up online. The online list that comes up shows which items have been filled, or purchased, and which are left to buy. That cuts down on repeat gifts. The happy couple also has a chance to pick what they want, which means that things will match their decor. "But we wanted lime green, not day-glo pink!" So then, the bridal registry seems like a good thing, however . . . the ability to see the entire list, fulfilled or not, online certainly cuts down on the surprise of the happy couple while opening those gifts.
My lovin' spouseful and I registered for dishes - at the insistence of my family - and that was it. No one in my family bought those dishes; my lovin' spouseful's parents bought us one set, and everyone else surprised us. It was delightful to open our gifts because of the surprise factor. I suppose that historically wedding gifts have not always had a suprise factor, though. Think about dowries. They were used by the bride's family to purchase a husband. In order to figure out whether the bride-to-be was a good deal dowry-wise, the bride's family had to reveal what that dowry was. Fifteen cows, thirty-two sheep, handmade linens, some prime acreage, etc. etc. "Hey, throw in a dozen quart jars of your mother's canned tomatoes, and we've got ourselves a deal."
Still and all, I like the suprise factor, which we were able to conjure for my step-sister's wedding by viewing the registry online yesterday and popping into Target to purchase the gift just a couple of hours before the wedding. The bride and groom certainly were far too busy thinking of other things yesterday to bother with their registry.
Good luck and many wishes for a long and happy marriage to them both.
Labels: bridal registry, dishes, dowry, family, gifts, husband, internet, surprise, target, wedding
Friday, June 08, 2007
Drawing & Such
This evening, husband and I took Young Son Number Two out for a walk. Pleasant time for it - breezy, but not cold, sunny, not too many bugs.
Last night (I seem to be backing up in time here), I finished a fiber arts piece that I'm thinking of using for the collection of short stories I'm writing. Let's be honest, I'm really working on a book, but if I think of it as a collection of short stories, it seems more manageable. Now that I'm well on my way toward finishing story #8, I have to think about the format the book will take, which includes the cover. That's what the fiber piece is about. My first love, as far as interests go, is art. I've been drawing and doing some sort of fiber art since I was a kid. Now that I'm coming to book layout and design, my fingers will be all over that as well as the writing.
If I haven't created a piece of art in a while, I tend to forget how much I like the process. This morning I was talking to Eldest Son and spotted a library book on the floor near his bed (the best place for library books, in my opinion). I asked if I could look at it and got the go ahead from Eldest Son. The book is called "Keys to Drawing with Imagination" by Bert Dodson. What a fabulous book. Even if you're not an artist, it's fun to look through with its acres of whimsical drawings. Should you choose to delve in, Dodson starts you out with a chapter called "Doodling and Noodling," which is a no-stress way to get drawing. And I mean no-stress. Trust me on this. I've taken many a college art class in my day and haven't seen the "Take a Line on a Walk" exercise before. I'm just itching to get out my pencils and good paper.
Addendum (just a wee bit later, same day): Here is the link to Bert Dodson's real-deal website. The one above is for his book on Amazon.
Labels: album art, bert dodson, books, daughter, drawing, family, husband, minnesota, sewing machine busticated, shopping, short story, sons, vacation, weather, writing
Wednesday, June 06, 2007
Washcloth Complete
Here's the hemp washcloth I finished knitting this past weekend. I love the texture and feel of the hemp. It's not as scratchy as you might expect. The texture shows up better in the second photo. I didn't use a flash, which allowed more shadows to show up.
I got the hemp and knitting instructions from my sister-in-law a couple of years ago, but only recently felt confident enough in my knitting ability to tackle the washcloth. Next is the bath mitt, which should be fun. So, then, is it re-gifting if you receive the materials for a project and then give away the finished product?
Labels: family, hemp, knitting, regifting, washcloth
Wednesday, May 30, 2007
Weather & Stuff
Memorial Day didn't feel like a Monday - more like a Sunday - but Monday it was. I added a bit to my latest short story upon waking and it was enough to make me feel productive. Monday holidays tend to throw the whole week off. Next week should be even worse for confusing my calendar. I'm taking three days off. My goal is to finish the story I'm working on, maybe start the next (although I'm not pushing it), and do some yard work. We'll see. It depends on the weather.
Labels: family, holidays, knitting, memorial day, minnesota, mourning dove, rain, vacation, weather, writing
Thursday, May 17, 2007
Ooh, Goody! I've Been Tagged!
8 Random Things About Me . . .
1. I love birds, but free birds, not captive ones, so I won't ever own a bird as a pet.
2. I once gave myself an acupunture treatment - at the direction of a naturopath - to liven up the dead area around my C-section scar. It worked.
3. It is my greatest desire to be musical in some way and my goal is to eventually write a song.
4. When I was in middle school, I had a friend who was the oldest girl among three siblings. Her middle sibling was a boy and her youngest sibling was a girl. I thought that was the best arrangement for children because each was in a special place - oldest girl - middle only boy - youngest girl. I wished for that arrangement of children and I got it - only in the boy, girl, boy version.
5. I was taught not to talk back to anyone and, consequently, openly and verbally disagreeing with someone is something I have great trouble doing.
6. That whole free bird thing? That's the reason I like cats instead of dogs. I don't want to control animals and dogs won't listen to me anyway.
7. Almost every work day for lunch I eat peanut butter and jelly sandwiches. Mostly because they travel well.
8. I've kept a daily calendar journal since 1996 and hope they will be useful when I go down in history. (Is "going down in history" a euphemism for dying? If so, eek! Not to worry. I'm not dying until I'm at least 97.)
As for that tagging part, I don't know too many people who read this blog who also have their own blogs, so I'm going to tag
Rianna - who can answer in the comments section.
I'm also tagging
Kevin at Copyrightings
and
Erich at Dangerous Intersection
although I can't be sure that they check in here. The two people I would tag, Kim and Joanne, have already been tagged, so it'd be kind of silly for me to tag them again.
I'm dreadful at tagging because I read a bunch of giganto blogs that don't take comments. Sheesh! I do enjoy the memes, though.
Labels: acupuncture, birds, blog, cats, copyrightings, dangerous intersection, family, journal, knit whimsies, meme, music, poppy seed heart, tagging
Monday, May 14, 2007
Wool Expo
Yesterday, for Mother's Day, the whole famn damily (another example of our family language) went to a Wool Expo in Lake Elmo, Minnesota. It was held at the Washington County Fairgrounds. There were llamas and sheep and rabbits, as well as fiber arts vendors, in abundance. My children bought me some cute, handpainted Joint Venture knitting needles ("made in Russia from Birch and Maple" - "distributed by Peace Fleece") that were all the rage at the Expo. Practically all of the vendors were selling them. My kids also got me two skeins of yarn. I found myself a set of 5 bamboo double-pointed needles that were a steal at $5 for the set.
We visited this Expo years and years ago with the extended family. Our kids were wee ones; our youngest may have been in a stroller. Our daughter, who has a memory like a steel trap, actually didn't remember this event, until we headed over to watch the border collies demonstrate how they round up sheep. That she had a vague memory of. It's quite an amazing feat, with the border collie owners telling us that it takes about 4 years to get a good working dog to effectively work with the sheep. Some people wonder whether the sheep are trained, but three kids were asked to come out and try to pen the sheep without a border collie, just to prove how difficult a task it is. They gave it their best shot, but were unsuccessful until the border collie was called out. The herding instinct displayed by these dogs was fascinating and one of them had a heckuva time letting the others work without her.
A good day was had by all, but I couldn't look at the llamas without thinking of the Llama Song.
Labels: dogs, family, family language, fiber arts, herding, holidays, knitting, llamas, minnesota, mothers day, rabbits, sheep, wool expo
Saturday, May 05, 2007
More on Magical Thinking
Erich Vieth, of the Dangerous Intersection blog, posted about his “trip to the neighborhood psychic store” with his daughters recently. His posts are always quite thoughtful, and this one is no different; however, this particular post left me feeling as though the only enlightened people on earth are those who don’t fall for all that woo-woo stuff like tarot readings, astrology, psychic readings, aura photography, Reiki, and etc. Well, okay . . . .
Let’s just start at the beginning, shall we? I have long been interested in the various woo-woo aspects of life. In elementary school I was checking books out of the library on ESP and my brother and I would conduct tests, one sending thoughts, the other trying to receive them. The results were inconclusive.
My dad, a man who has a chemistry degree, was forever watching programs on the Loch Ness monster and Big Foot and alien encounters. As Catholics, my mom and her mother were equally entranced with the woo-woo. (If you believe in transubstantiation, and a man literally rising from the dead, I think you’re a shoe-in for woo-woo belief.) There was a crystal ball in the house that my sister and I used to try to read. Never could get that thing to work. There was also a deck of cards in the game closet with a witch tending a cauldron and fortune-type sayings on the other side. I now have these cards at my desk.
In high school I went through my astrology phase. I still have the first astrology book that I bought; it’s all marked up with my chart and the charts of friends. I also sprung for an “official” astrology reading, a print-out showing the planets in their various houses and the conjunctions between the planets at the time of my birth. It’s from the American Astrological Association and, if I remember correctly, it cost me the unholy sum of $11 (it was definitely under $20), which was a lot of money for a broke high schooler. During my high school Research Paper class, I wrote a paper called “Astrology and Eleanor Roosevelt: Do They Stand on Common Ground?” Why did I pair Eleanor Roosevelt with astrology? She and I share the same birthday.
Since that time I’ve dabbled in other forms of the woo-woo: aura reading, feng shui, angel readings, Chinese astrology, looking for signs from the universe, meditation, the power of positive thought, reflexology, homeopathy, acupuncture (you might quibble that this is not woo-woo, but come on . . . stick a bunch of needles in your skin and get well?), numerology, dream interpretation, Reiki, and tarot readings. I own two tarot decks and made myself a pack of angel cards. I’ve discovered that a great-aunt, my great-grandmother’s sister, read crystal ball, the very one I had played with as a kid.
This is where I’ve come from, a life filled with magical thinking. And it continues, sometimes in ways that are out of my control . . . .
This past year, two women entered the museum where I work and asked if they could find an obituary. That’s not out of the ordinary, as we assist people with genealogy and obits are a great source of family info. I asked for a name and date, so I could find what they were looking for. One of the women was a little evasive at first. She said she didn’t know a full name or date. All she had was a first name. Finding an obituary using just a first name is almost impossible, and I indicated as much. The other woman, a younger sister of the first, started explaining what had led to their request. It seems that the older woman’s three-year-old son was seeing someone, a woman with a damaged face, and this woman, who had told the boy her first name, was directing him to follow her out of the house. No one else could see this woman. Sometimes the boy indicated that the apparition was in the house. Other times, she was outside beckoning him into the street.
The boy’s mother was a bit sheepish in describing the boy’s behavior. Whenever he mentioned the woman’s name, she would try not to lead him on in conversation and she never brought up the woman’s name herself. She didn’t want to encourage something that was a figment of his imagination. Unfortunately, her son kept seeing the apparition and was doing whatever he could to get out of the house in order to be with her. Extra locks were put on the door to keep the boy in, but the situation wasn’t resolving itself, so the women decided to try to find answers. They wondered, because of the apparition’s damaged face, if there had been some sort of accident involving a woman with this particular first name.
Deep breath. Now, at this point I could have told the woman that I thought she was full of it and left it at that. I’ve never experienced ghosts or apparitions and am completely neutral as to their existence. That means that while I’ve never seen a ghost, I’m not going to deride someone else for claiming to have done so. Regardless of whether this apparition was real, it was obvious that this boy was seeing something and it was having very real consequences, so I decided I would do what I could, all the while thinking this was going to be like finding a needle in a haystack.
I entered the first name and our county into the state’s death database and came up with three hits, which was strange in and of itself. Only three people with this first name had ever died in our county? No way. Of the three, one was quite young. With death date in hand, I went to the newspapers and found the obit. Turns out this woman had died in a car accident that had killed several other people in a spot not far from where the mother and son lived. Coincidentally, she had the same last name as the mother and son, was the same age when she died as the mother standing before me, and had a young son with the same first initial as the boy now seeing her.
The eerie, prickly feeling that overcame me at the time still comes over me today when I think about it. I don’t know how to explain this situation and I don’t even want to try. It simply is what it is.
It’s very easy to think of people who believe in magical thinking (like me) as crazy, overly-susceptible crackpots. We aren’t living in the real world. By golly, if it can’t be proven with a double-blind test, why it simply isn’t so! Unfortunately, a good share of life is subjective and difficult to explain. We cannot drag that three-year-old into a laboratory and prove what he is or isn’t seeing. (By the way, since when has life ever mimicked a laboratory setting, except in a laboratory?) That doesn’t mean his visions weren’t having an effect; they were. It doesn’t mean that somehow we’re “falling” for something when we believe such things. Most of the people I know who believe in or have experienced the woo-woo, are not extreme about it. We chalk such things up to the “Very Interesting” category of life and fit them into our personal schemas without having a need to have them fully explained. My husband once had an out-of-body experience and he is extraordinarily skeptical about most woo-woo phenomena.
Those who attack the world view of magical thinkers are trying to negate some very personal experiences. That disdain is not useful, even if some of us go off the deep end periodically. (What happens when you force someone to let go of something? They hang on tighter, right?)
Rather than approach these various woo-woo subjects as things that must be explicitly proven or chucked as utter hogwash, why not question the origins of them? For example, Ben, who posted this comment on Erich’s Vieth’s post, said, “Why are there only 12 zodiac signs, and how the heck can even ONE person have the EXACT SAME horoscope as me, let along 1/12 of the population?” Why, indeed? Why are there twelve months in a year? Why are there twelve signs in the Chinese zodiac? Why are there twelve inches to a foot? Why are there
As for the veracity of astrology, I think the origins of the system have some pretty solid roots. The sun and moon have an effect on earthly life; why is it such a stretch to believe that the other planets in our Solar System might also affect us? Isn’t it amazing to think that our ancestors recognized these effects (in fact, they were probably much more guided by them than we are) and codified them into a system to show us our similarities? Even if the predictive functions are useless, this is something worth noting.
Tarot cards as a future-divining tool are derided in Erich’s post, yet they have another purpose. They can be used by an individual to tap inner resources in solving a sticky problem. That’s how I use them, anyway. In addition, they are fascinating artifacts from the standpoint of the artwork and the use of archetypes. Once again, here is something of intense complexity developed by our forbearers.
I can’t go without mentioning the Akashic Records, which were also brought up in Erich’s post. I’ve talked about this before, but for those who don’t know, the Akashic Records are supposedly the record of all thoughts, words, and deeds of life written in the ether. Don’t ask me where this ether is kept, or how this stuff gets recorded, but someone imagined this thing they called “Akashic Records” and, I’m telling you, if the Internet isn’t the best example of making this idea real, I don’t know what is.
Ultimately, looking at the origins of the woo-woo will lead us to wondering why human beings are driven to magical thinking. On an evolutionary level, there was probably some advantage to our species in doing so, but don’t ask me to prove that. I don’t have my laboratory or double-blind studies set up.
Labels: a mad variety of woo woo phenomena, akashic records, astrology, belief, crystal ball, dangerous intersection, erich vieth, family, ghost, husband, magical thinking, museum, tarot cards
Sunday, April 22, 2007
Major Tom
Our kids wondered about this song and the Major Tom story. For those who don't know, Major Tom was a character in at least two songs by David Bowie - "Space Oddity" and "Ashes to Ashes". Major Tom is an astronaut who leaves his space craft and floats into space. Listeners are left to wonder what happens to him and what has to be going through his mind as he realizes he's a goner. (I'm admittedly not an expert on Bowie's music, so if Major Tom showed up in any of his other songs, let me know.)
In my opinion, Peter Schilling's Major Tom song is more melodic than Bowie's songs, although Bowie's leave me feeling infinitely more unsettled, which I think was the point. If Schilling had written his song in today's copyright climate, Bowie's music industry representatives would have slapped him with a cease-and-desist order or sued him. Thankfully, Bowie didn't get his undies in a twist and one of his characters led to further creative exploration. Does anyone know whether Major Tom has shown up in anyone else's creative work?
The only other song I can think of with this strange astronaut imagery is Peter Mayer's "Astronaut Dreams." (Sorry, I can't find a recording of this for you to listen to online.)
Labels: astronaut, computer, copyright, creativity, david bowie, family, husband, major tom, music, peter mayer, peter schilling, songs, youtube
Wednesday, February 14, 2007
Candy Hearts and Dogs
Labels: candy hearts, dog show, dogs, family, holidays, husband, marketing, technology, valentine's day, wedding
Monday, January 01, 2007
What's Unusual
I'm sitting here listening to a new CD while I blog & surf & sweat. I broke down and bought 2 new CDs for myself, Dave Matthews Band's The Central Park Concert (currently playing) and The Killers' Hot Fuss. Those who know me well know that I'm tight-fisted and have great difficulty spending money on myself. This is a direct result of having grown up in a household that was perpetually short on cash. I was well indoctrinated in scarcity thinking & it's pretty hard to break out of that rut to move into abundance thinking. I keep trying. Buying myself CDs, books, or fiber arts materials is the way I manifest abundance thinking when I can stop myself from worrying about the bills. (Ever notice that there's always one of them due?) I decided to buy these particular CDs after having checked them out of the library & giving them a listen. (See, music biz executives? Sometimes a free listen turns into a purchase.)
My other recent purchase was a nice wooly skein of yarn, hand-dyed, I believe. It cost about $7 for the skein. I also got some circular knitting needles. (I'm going crazy with the Cheese Whiz on this abundance thinking thing. Don't worry, it won't go to my head.) I've decided to knit a hat using a pattern from a book I got for Christmas. I've never knitted in the round before, so it's an adventure. Knitting was one of the last fiber arts forms that I learned. As such, it's been the most difficult for me to master. The hat is going well so far, once I got past figuring out how to join the stitches in a round. (Thank you, sister-in-law!) The next obstacle will be decreasing for the crown, which involves switching to double-pointed needles. If I can lick this, I may just be able to tackle a pair of socks. (Crossing my fingers on that.)
By the way, Happy New Year, readers, and thanks for reading my blatherings.
Labels: abundance, blog, dave matthews band, family, holidays, killers, knitting, minnesota, money, music, scarcity, weather, yarn
Friday, December 29, 2006
Social Computing
In a related story, there was a discussion on MPR today about the changes in media and news broadcasting brought about by the shift to digital media. The prediction was that people would only seek out the stuff they were interested in if there weren't newspapers or broader TV programs that gave people a well-rounded bunch of stories. While I could argue that much of what is presented as news today isn't particularly well-rounded, what strikes me about this is the lack of faith in the ability of humans to search for stuff outside their direct interests. People get bored really quickly, so once something gets old, it gets old, and we start looking for new stuff. Also, as mentioned above, we are social creatures. If I don't happen to hear a particular news story, there's a sure bet that my husband, my children, or my friends have heard it and will pass it along. We're talking the Internet, here, folks. We are not living in fully separated cardboard boxes with blinders on and earplugs in. The news will get through.
Labels: computer, daughter, family, house hunters, husband, media, mpr, news, technology
Thursday, December 28, 2006
Lovely Time
Labels: family, holidays, lefse, swedish meatballs, writing
Tuesday, December 26, 2006
Boxing Day
Labels: boxing day, children, family, gifts, husband
