1. Upload several plain black images to Facebook.

2. Tag ‘em. Any tagged friends-except those with (understandably) high privacy settings–will get a”censored” photo on their profile page album.

3. BONUS POINTS Caption the photo to explain why it was censored. Maybe one of you was wearing a mickey mouse shirt. Maybe you were watching a music video. Maybe you’re at Disneyland.*

*Why all the Disney hate? Google the Copyright Term Extension Act sometime.

In this context, I watched Carl Sagan’s “Cosmos,” and found amazing similarities between Sagan’s and Dickinson’s appreciation of the scientific beauty in nature.  I began to take down quotes that struck me as particularly Dickinson-esque, and transcribed them in her style.

Today is Carl Sagan day, so I’ve arranged a few of his words in a way that echoes Dickinson.

Our ordinary measures of Distance – fail us.

The cosmos is full – beyond measure -
Of elegant Truths -
And exquisite interrelationships.

Music of cosmic Harmonies -
Perfect – as a snowflake -
Organic – as a dandelion seed -
It will carry us to worlds of Dreams
And worlds of Facts.

The Surface of the Earth
Is the Shore of the cosmic Ocean -
Ankle-deep – and the Water seems inviting.

This is where we came from -
and we long to return.
We’re Made – of Star-stuff.
We are a way for the Cosmos
To know itself.

We float – like a Mote of Dust -
In the morning Sky.
Our ordinary Measures
Of Distance – fail us -
Here in the Realm of the Galaxy.

Galaxies are born, they live – and die -
A tumultuous Adolescence -
Their cores may explode,
Seen in radiographs.
Great jets of energy – Echo
Across the cosmos.

In the Pegasus cluster – there’s a Ring -
A splash – in the cosmic Pond.

A swarm of Bees – bound by gravity -
Every bee – a sun,
its Spiral arms – slowly turning.

Worlds of ice – and stars of Diamond,
Atoms – as massive as Suns -
Universes – Smaller than Atoms -

The most frightening face.

Roger Zelazny, The Changing Land, 1981.

I love everything about that horse.

Recently, I had overwatered the basil and it was getting a little droopy. So I opted to let the soil dry out for a few days.

I think the monkey looks guilty, don't you? (image from epSos.de)

On this hot, sunny day, I come home to find the topsoil freshly moistened. I think that I must be imagining things, but I see that the seedlings were neglected (when I water, I really get those little guys), and the soil near the hose is also moist. I have not watered the garden in three days.

Who watered it? T doesn’t deal with the garden–the only person who could have done this would be a neighbor or passer-by who might have thought that the droopy plants were dried out instead of soggy, and took it upon themselves to help out by watering. On one hand, this is considerate, but on the other it is prideful and a bit controlling. This person thought that they knew my garden needed watering, and acted upon that idea. I appreciate the gesture, but in the end I had to do extra work because of it.

I’m irked, but it’s hard to be mad at someone who meant well. The overwatered plants were easy to transplant, and they’ll probably survive. All this fuss reminded me of an Eastern parable I picked up from James Shea while I was studying poetics. The translation varies, but it essentially goes like this:

Here, let me help you,
said the monkey
as he put the fish in the tree.

Each spider actively endeavoured to extract nectar.
With legs I and II flexed sharply, spiders sometimes
lowered their cephalothoraces and brought their mouthparts
against free nectar encountered on flower. Other
times, they positioned their chelicerae around flowers
and inserted their fangs. Feeding tended to be in a series
of bouts, with the duration of bouts varying from as
short as 2 s to as long as 4 min. Grooming, especially of
the mouthparts, was common between bouts. During
feeding bouts, spiders usually kept legs lowered and
pulled in close to the body, with faint side-to-side and
up-and-down abdominal movement being routine,
sometimes accompanied by quivering of chelicerae.
Spiders sometimes pushed nectar toward their
mouths by using palps and legs I. Appendages were also
used to sop up nectar. To do this, one palp at a time was
dipped into a drop of nectar, then placed between the
chelicerae. Closing the chelicerae around the palp,
nectar was squeezed off the palp and into the spider’s
mouth. Infrequently, legs I were used in a comparable
way except that only the tip of the leg tarsus was dipped
into the nectar.

(Jackson, R.R. et al. (2001). Jumping spiders (Araneae: Salticidae) that feed on nectar. J. Zool., 255, 25-29.)

Put a jumping spider next to a flower and she will drink eagerly. She will wipe her mouth and face.

Sometimes she will dip a palp or leg in and lick the nectar off, like a cat dips a paw into water.

Do you like the poster? I based it on Maggie Sichter's designs for the festival. Her work is beautiful.

Come see my cohorts and I read at 11a.m.-1p.m.

Manifest is an annual arts festival at Columbia College Chicago that occurs just before commencement. It features work from graduating students, as well as many other things. Every year I’ve attended, it’s become more impressive and exciting. I care about this far more than I care about the commencement ceremony. It’s an eclectic show of what Columbia does best, and it also offers intimate gatherings for the student communities. We get to share some of our best work with our peers and professors, and it’s certainly something to be proud of.

Plus, those hors d’oeuvres are no joke. Delicious.

Never underestimate the power of a little Google-fu. I just found this video of Iwao and Hanaye Matsushita at Mt. Rainier.

They were later imprisoned with thousands of other Japanese Americans under Executive Order 9066. Iwao was categorized as “potentially dangerous to the public safety,” (partly for his leadership of the Seattle Photography Club) and interned at Fort Missoula, MI; Hanaye was held at Minidoka Relocation Center.

Mountains and nature were very important to Iwao and Hanaye. While in the camps, they found solace in the presence of these things.

Made no sound.

Planes swarmed inside the clouds.
It was mating season, and near a lake,
which is why there were so many of them.

Photo by Flickr user Alex Shultz, Creative Commons Attribution License

I load bacon into eggs, and I’ve saved the fat in a jar in the fridge so I can use it on my cast iron pans. I’d saved up 4 ounces, and considered making bacon brownies. Then I realized I could attempt to put bacon in alcohol–two vices in one! After looking up various ways of infusing liquors with flavor, I decided to try fat-washing. I had all that bacon grease saved up and the process looked very simple and quick. So, I picked up a little rum and got to work. Here’s what I did:

1. Put 5 ounces of bacon fat and 1/2 teaspoon black peppercorns in a microwaveable container. Cover with plastic wrap and microwave for thirty-second increments until transparent and hot, stirring in between. (You could also just heat this on the stove top, but I had the fat in a glass container to start with).

2. Stir 3 tbsp maple syrup into bacon fat mixture, then microwave once more.

3. Pour bacon mixture into rum while it’s still hot. Stir well.

4. Cover and place in fridge overnight. (I gave mine about a day)

5. After it’s done in the fridge, place it in the freezer for another 30 minutes.

6. Take it out of the freezer, puncture the fat layer, and pour through wire mesh or cheesecloth into a clean container.

7. Filter this through the coffee filters. I placed a filter in a funnel and let it sit for a while. It took me four filters.

I’m delighted with the results. The rum is a little oaky and sweet, so it blends wonderfully with the other flavors. The whole thing tastes like pancakes with peppered bacon and syrup. The flavor came out stronger than I expected. It’s also much sweeter than I expected, so I might use less maple syrup next time.