Laura Veirs - July Flame

I wish woodland creatures would toast marshmallows with me, but that lemur seems out of place. Here's "July Flame" by Laura Veirs.

Mossy Goodness

Every time I walk through the woods and see moss I can't help but touch it. It's nature's fuzzy carpet.

I like the use of moss in the green street art of Edina Tokodi...

Hahaha, SEPTA got mossed!

...and Anna Garforth.

Poetry by Eleanor Stevens.

FW:

Even feminists love lady bugs!


This text from @AJF185 just made my day!
Click here to peruse the contents of the Spring 2011 issue of Bitch.

Well, my deer bone search was a bust, but I did stumble upon these itty bitty bones. I found a parietal bone, temporal bone, and three vertebrae. Unfortunately, my zooarchaeology texts are not readily accessible. Blast!

The Last of the Mohicans

The theme song for one of my favorite movies, The Last of the Mohicans, was adapted from Dougie MacLean's "The Gael." I received the soundtrack for my birthday a few years ago and loved playing it as I drove through the Tennessee side of Great Smoky Mountains National Park. Although the plot takes place in upstate New York, the movie was filmed in the Blue Ridge Mountains of North Carolina and since the Great Smoky Mountains are part of the Blue Ridge Mountains, it just felt so fitting and dramatic!

I generally avoid films that are depressing and violent, but I'm a sucker for this love story. My favorites are Uncas and Alice. I flove the 1992 film but damn, James Fenimore Cooper, your 1826 novel is boring!

Best quote from the movie:

Duncan: "There is a war on. How is it you are headed west?"

Hawkeye: "Well, we kinda face to the north and real subtle-like turn left."

Caledonia

I've always loved Dougie MacLean's "Caledonia." So beautiful.

I wish I had spent more time in Caledonia aka Scotland, but here's a glimpse of some of what I saw during my brief visit. Lovely, just lovely.

Princes Street, Edinburgh.

View from Edinburgh Castle.

Someone's creep-ass Chucky doll in Edinburgh.

Hamish the Highland Cow.

Sheeps!

At least all of that rain produced a rainbow!

As a predictable tourist, I ate haggis, and as a Pennsylvanian German, I liked it. But I'll pass on the black pudding next time.

Elphaba

Deer Bone Scavenger Hunt

Today's find courtesy of Ali's eagle eyes is Odocoileus virginianus or the white-tailed deer. Thus far, Ali has found a humerus, vertebra, and articulated ulna and radius and I've found a mandible and fur clump. Tomorrow's goal is to find more of the skeleton, which will be difficult since scavengers have dispersed it.

The proximal epiphyses of the radius and humerus are still fusing and the teeth are still erupting, so this deer is maybe somewhere between 1 and 2 years old?

Gnaw marks from rodent activity.

Gossip - Heavy Cross

In 9th grade geometry class, I needlessly smothered my poster project with glitter and my neat-freak teacher was not pleased. The point is: I ♥ glitter (especially when not associated with Ke$ha), and this song "Heavy Cross" by Gossip.

Mister Ed's

Mister Ed's Elephant Museum isn't much to look at on the outside, but if you like elephants and candy (like me), you'll love it! It's tucked along Route 30 between Chambersburg and Gettysburg and recently recovered from a devastating fire. After 15 years, I just updated my Mister Ed's t-shirt!

Mister Ed has a bit part in the movie Route 30. I haven't watched it, but having spent much of my life traveling on this particular road, I'm amused that there's a movie named after it. And they're making a sequel.

**If you're in the area, you need to visit Gettysburg National Military Park because that shit's important!

Lenka - Trouble Is a Friend

Skeleton shadow puppets = awesomesauce. I give you Lenka's "Trouble Is a Friend."

Balloon Wiener Dogs

Today is Courtney's birthday (yay!) and before I mailed my belated card I felt the need to decorate it with wiener dog balloons because a) Courtney's dog Phoenix is part wiener, b) Courtney is the only person I know who can make balloon animals, and c) I had a whole bunch of crayons nearby.

The left doggy is better than the right.

If small party balloon wieners are cool, gigantic art sculpture balloon wieners are even cooler. Jeff Koons created 5 "Balloon Dog" sculptures of high chromium stainless steel with transparent color coatings in blue, magenta, yellow, orange, and red for his Celebration artwork series.

"Balloon Dog (Yellow)" spent some time on the roof of the Metropolitan Museum of Art in 2008.

"Balloon Dog (Magenta)" popped up at the Palazzo Grassi in Venice in 2006.

Apparently, Koons was born in my hometown. Who knew? I sure didn't. But trying to claim intellectual property rights to all balloon dogs is a special form of douchebaggery, so let me clarify. He's from Dover (same county), the place that had that whole Intelligent Design bruhaha several years ago.

from Lili for my favorite Lily

Because I couldn't find the movie (with sound anyway) on Youtube today when I wanted it and all the other versions pale in comparison. Thank you Romania for this particular instance of copyright infringement.

Vezi mai multe video din muzica

Cutting Crew - (I Just) Died in Your Arms Tonight

When you work in a concrete building with no windows and a bazillion archaeological artifacts how do you break the monotony? By singing '80s power ballads to each other, of course! A particular favorite of Juliette and I was Cutting Crew's 1986 hit "(I Just) Died in Your Arms Tonight." To watch the music video and see Nick Van Eede's creepy flasher trench coat go here.

"She's loving by proxy, no give and all take."

I Love You, Z!

After reading about the loss of doxie Fred and his death's similarity to the death of our previous sheltie, I started thinking about the mortality of my beloved Zadie.

When I moved into a pet-friendly apartment several years ago, I knew I wanted to get a dog. I wanted a furry best friend who would love me unconditionally. I also knew I wanted to adopt. I visited the two shelters in my area, but didn't get that "she/he's the one" feeling. Then, I looked on Petfinder and saw this picture:

Sassy, as she was named, was a 6-month-old dachshund mix living at a shelter in Smith County, Tennessee. I placed an inquiry call that day (a Thursday I believe) and arranged a visit that Sunday. Courtney's dog Phoenix and I made our way into the hollows of middle Tennessee. With dirt roads and crude wooden "street" signs I was half afraid I'd drive by two guys on a porch strumming a banjo.

View Larger Map

I knew the moment she walked around the corner that she was the pooch for me. After giving sixty dollars and the promise of a good home, Phoenix and I took her home that afternoon.

Sure, she has a penchant for escape. Several poor souls aside from myself have experienced the chase. My roommate Courtney acted as a traffic guard when Z decided to run with traffic on our busy street; Courtney's boyfriend (at the time) pursued her across the street into the mall parking lot barefoot (at least he was good for something); my friend Katie ran after her when she slipped her collar; my uncle Mel lost his cell phone tackling her in his neighbor's yard; Ali and Dad have tracked her across the neighborhood and through the woods with ineffective food bribes.

And she has her quirks like not wanting anyone to mess with her feet. She gets her nails trimmed at the vet's because she's too difficult for me to handle with the squirming, ear-piercing yelps, and occasional piddle.

But I love the way her tongue peeks out of her mouth when it's closed as though it's too long. I love the way she whimpers, growls, and twitches during her daily dreams. I love the way she becomes an obsessive nut-case about new toys. I love that she lets me endlessly play with her ears.

On March 6th, Z will be 4 years old. My little girl's growing up fast and it scares me to know that my life expectancy is far greater than hers. So, let's make it count Zadie Sue Ellen-Zazu-Short Stuff-Sassage-Nuppy-Ginger-Falkor-Dirt Devil! I love you!

Did you try turning it off and on?

You know that variety of procrastination where, instead of working on what you're supposed to be working on you watch an entire TV series until you run out of available episodes?

Welcome to my world.

Introducing my new favourite television series, The IT Crowd, a brilliantly written, laugh-out-loud funny (seriously, I keep getting chided to be quiet) combination of two of my favourite things: Britishness and nerdiness.  (I'm slightly ashamed to report that I ONLY got 92% on the official IT Crowd quiz.)

I stumbled upon it on Netflix (remind me to rant about their unruly habit of making all the seasons available instantly save one), where it's introduced as follows:

Enter the glamorous offices of Reynholm Industries, then take the elevator to the basement, where you'll find the decidedly unglamorous IT support team: slacker Roy (Chris O'Dowd), social misfit Moss (Richard Ayoade) and technically ignorant supervisor Jen (Katherine Parkinson). Together, they find nerd-tastic adventures in this hilarious British sitcom from the producer of "The Office." The program won a 2008 International Emmy for Best Comedy.

As it turns out, IFC is currently airing the original episodes.
(I picked a clip at random -- it's so hard to choose:)

 

Which is a far, far better idea than NBC's ill-fated (the pilot never aired) American version, which used the same scripts and 1/3 of the original cast. As Chris O'Dowd explains in this 2007 interview:

"They approached us all around the same time to do it," says O'Dowd, "and I couldn't do the pilot, so I couldn't really do the show, because I was shooting something else. I was gonna play American and Richard was gonna play English, but I'm not sure how they're doing it now. And I'm not 100% sure it's still gonna go, to be honest... [They] commissioned it, and then a new head of the network came in, and I don't think he's so sure about it...The guy in the pilot, I saw the press shots for it, and he's wearing the same T-shirt I'm wearing. It's quite creepy."

He's not kidding. RTFM, indeed.  In NBC's defense, they DID change the color.

Chris O'Dowd in the original

Some other dude in NBC's unaired pilot

Apparently, NBC is going to have another go at it.  As reported by Comedy Central UK, the show’s creator Graham Linehan said in a webchat for The Guardian:

‘They’re working on [a remake] at the moment. I’m waiting to see the first script. I have encouraged them to do their own thing and not try to slavishly copy the original...As long as there’s no hugging, no learning, and big set piece moments, I’ll be happy...But if the show moves too far away from what I consider to be the IT Crowd ‘brand’, I’ll be asking them to change the title.’ 

Yeah, I'm not holding my breath. In the meantime, I love you Richard Ayoade. Wikipedia would have you believe that he is the son of a Nigerian father and a Norwegian mother.  As for me, I'm convinced he's the love child of Jemaine Clement and Malcolm Gladwell.

	Do you see the resemblance?

I'm thinking Moss for Halloween this year. 

On a final note, I made the theme song B's personalized ringtone. Between the theme of the show and the badass synthesizer, it's kind of perfect, except that I feel compelled to let most of the song play before I actually pick up the phone.

note to self

Lady Bug Note Generators

Emily Wells - Symphony 1 In the Barrel of a Gun

I'm naturally inclined to support anyone named Emily, although it helps that I like this song. Check out Emily Wells's "Symphony 1 In the Barrel of a Gun" from her 2008 album The Symphonies: Dreams Memories & Parties.

Banksy + Knitting

I wanna be like these ladies when I get old and wrinkly, assuming arthritis and/or carpal tunnel doesn't destroy my knitting abilities. This image is a product of Banksy, a mysterious British artist best known for his satirical graffiti street art. I say 'mysterious' because his real identity is unknown. True, street art is technically vandalism, but Banksy actually has talent and his work is socially relevant. Then again, I don't own property nor am I responsible for any sort of building maintenance. I have yet to watch his documentary Exit Through the Gift Shop, but in January it was nominated for a 'Best Documentary' Academy Award.

Adele - Rolling in the Deep

Go pick up Adele's new album 21 (available in the U.S. today) and thank me later. :)

It's BABY time!

It's baby time! I knit a vintage bobble baby hoodie (corrections here) and strappy baby booties using Lion Brand Cupcake yarn in Sugarplum (magical!) for my friend Katie's daughter Lily (the first of three new babies on their way).

My favorite part of this sweater hoodie are the bobbles, of course! Bobbles are fun!

Theoretically, the hoodie has a scalloped bottom edge as a result of folding and sewing the hem at the eyelet row; however, pinning my sweater allowed me to see a poor excuse for scallops, leading to several WTF moments. I could not for the life of me figure out why my sweater did not look as it should! So, I decided to blame it on the yarn and its lack of stiffness.

Foregoing my folded hem, I decided to utilize the eyelet row by threading white scalloped ribbon through it.

Seaming is not my strong suit. In fact, I hate it. And yet, here I was seaming this sleeve at 4-something in the morning. After both sleeves, I may have gotten a little sloppy with my hood seam, but I think it would take a trained-eye to notice. ;)

I chose bone-shaped buttons for the booties because Katie likes bones (as do all of my biological anthropologist friends). Granted, it's one of those indistinct blobby bones that is maybe supposed to be a humerus, but who really knows.

And every baby needs a blanket, so Ali crocheted this rockin' skull blanket! Yeah, we anthropologists are a strange bunch. :-)

Datarock - Computer Camp Love

I like the beat in Datarock's "Computer Camp Love" and the lyrics make me laugh. Oh, and those tracksuits these Norwegians are always sporting look pretty comfy.

*Note: I've participated in both Spanish Camp and Yearbook Camp, but sadly, did not find my true love.

An interview with myself

Question: How do I know I (for once) have money to burn?

Answer: Because I impulsively buy things I don't really need.
 
Question: How do I know spring is on it's way?
 
Answer: Because there's cute ladybug merchandise everywhere I turn!
 
Question: Why do I love ladybugs?
 
Answer: Because they're red and black and adorable and good luck. (Remember the little girl I took care of the other week? The reason I have money to burn? Her Mom had done her nursery in ladybugs... it was heavenly!)
 
Question: How do I know I'm obsessive-compulsive?
 
Answer: Because yesterday, inspired in part by this photo of Emily's, I decided to arrange and photograph a sampling of my ladybug stuff, showcasing the ladybug lunch bag that I'd bought impulsively at Jo-Ann Fabrics the week before. (Also in the picture is this over-priced but awesome ladybug bookmark that I bought, again impulsively, in line at Borders. It's hard for me to resist the tempting call of the ladybug.) And note, this isn't ALL my ladybug stuff 1.) Because I left out certain blue-dominated articles and 2.) I forgot about the awesome memento board my Aunt Dodie made for me many Christmases ago (when I first exhibited symptoms of ladybug-mania) until after the camera was put away.

Question: How do we know that I'm a HUGE ladybug-obsessed dork?

Answer: Because in the midst of this little project, Emily says "You know, you're even dressed like a ladybug." At which point I asked her to take a picture of me WITH my ladybug stuff.

Maybe I should have left the red-eye alone!

Potato Portraits

On another potato note, I like Lebanese visual artist Ginou Choueiri's Potato Portraits.

"Human beings and potatoes have much in common. We both come in different shapes, sizes and shades of color. Our skin is porous, scars, freckles, and both inevitably wrinkle and age with time."