Freedom Friday 2/10/17 Love Your Melon!
Today, as it's occasionally known in this space, is Freedom Friday. And, as is my prerogative here, every so often I like to highlight a company or brand funneling communal effort into a community positive. By doing so, it multiplies the effect of a sale and spreads the expenditure across a wider and more positive base.
In that vein, this is Love Your Melon. Love Your Melon primarily makes very warm beanies. They've since expanded to other forms of apparel, but they began with headwear.
Beginning that way was fitting because they're based out of Minnesota (also where my wife was originally based out of). It's very cold there very often which makes a high-quality, warm hat appropriate. However, even if you never need to brave numbingly cold weather they now offer plenty of less intense alternatives.
What they do with the money you exchange for the goods is what set them apart. They donate 50% of their profits "to non-profit partners who work in the field of pediatric oncology, fund cancer research initiatives and provide immediate support for families of children battling cancer." Two friends founded the company in college. After achieving the "goal of donating 45,000 hats - one for every child battling cancer in America - Love Your Melon set a new goal of donating 1 million dollars to pediatric cancer research and providing immediate support to children and their families...To date [they] have donated over 2.5 million dollars and over 90,000 hats." (Info taken from Loveyourmelon.com on Feb. 9, 2017)
So, I take my hat off to these purveyors of the positive by putting one of their hats on!
US - 9 Decisions, decisions
US - 8 Deep in thought
2017
US - 7 Dark deception
Lame-ric: Island in the Sun
This alternative set of lyrics looks at the meaning (from my perspective) of a song and, by outlining a sentiment (from my perspective), highlights the actual intent (from my perspective).
I wrote this "Lame-ric" (like a limerick and a lyric but then not) for "Island in the Sun," by Weezer. (Island in the Sun music video.) I have had this one song in my head for days and days. I don't know why. Even when I worked on the last lameric I kept thinking about this song. Humming its tune. Sure, it could be taken on its face as a poppy, sweet song about going away on vacation, but I read into it deeper.
I read it to be a song about the danger of escapism. I think every person encounters numerous events in life it would feel good to just avoid and run away from. I know I have. But in the song the protagonist "can't control [his] brain." I took that to mean that time spent "on the island in the sun" leads to loss of self-control. The idea that "we'll never feel bad anymore" sounds extreme and scares me a bit. How does anyone know "good" if they no longer have "bad" for comparison? Chemical means of escape, like drugs and alcohol, dominated our past and now technological means threaten to dominate the future (see Ready Player One; Wall-e). Basically, to me, it seems the song deals with the alluring nature of drugs specifically, but as a whole more generally escapism too. Crazily however, the song does so in a completely palatable way. Here's a possibly less palatable alternative:
Shoul-der
Shoul-der
Shoul-der
Shoul-der
On a break from your hard life
away from all the crazy strife
Some fools gold just for the soul
I could fit into that hole
In the perfect place to be
No more cares and it's all free
It's just so wonderful that
nothing else matters here
Shoul-der
Shoul-der
At the perfect little place
Who cares about a face?
As long as you can stay
Long enough to slip away
It's almost perfect you see
You don't care, it's mostly free
It's all pretty nice
So now just worry less
Just follow me to somewhere
Trust in me that you will not care
A place where you are always good
Shoul-der
Shoul-der
Shoul-der
It's not the same it used to be
It's so far from being free
Now it's such a scary place
it's all I think about
Just follow me to somewhere
Trust me that you will not care
A place where you are always good
Shoul-der
A place where you are always good
So good
A place where you are always good
So good
A part of the solution, apart from the problem
The events of the election made many happy and also many unhappy. Speaking specifically to those who are unhappy - I'm familiar with receiving unhappy news - it might be a natural inclination at first to deny it. But that ultimately won't change anything. That's just crossing your arms and pouting like Violet Beauregard. I wasn't a huge fan of Violet in the original Willy Wonka so I didn't really mind her turning violet - it's hard to sympathize with a pouter. Life doesn't always work out your way.
I think that in order to help understand the variation in our country, and in the world, it's necessary to realize that we probably create a bubble of sameness for ourselves. We criticize the "opposition" as some generalized scapegoat to others who think the same things as us. We preach to the choir about "them" being all one thing, all the same. Look at your feeds on Facebook or Twitter. Do they reflect a diversity of thought or have you expelled any questioning?
I live on the coast and don't confront issues similar to the middle of the country (like snow or ice or mosquitos ha, or rain or distinct seasons boo). If I hope to understand them and their lives then I must be open to hearing their thoughts. Only by exposing myself to those mindsets can I hope to begin to understand them. And maybe, by engaging them instead of silencing them, I can hope to shed some light on where I'm coming from too - because we're obviously quite far apart! (Notice how I wrote "apart" instead of "a" space "part" to signify a separation rather than a belonging. The latter happens a lot on social media, creates confusion, and demonstrates a lack of concern and also a lack of attention - thus undermining the importance.) By engaging we're afforded the opportunity to play the ambassador of the ideas we hold. If challenged to articluate a defense then we must examine our own reasoning too.
If losing puts you at a loss, you may well wonder
what to do now?
What to do now?
I don't know, does that help somehow?
Read a book.
Sing a song.
Take a picture.
Write a blog.
Do whatever you would normally do.
Just a little more
and a little better.
If the world feels to have conspired against you
rage hard, rage back.
Answer the world with you.
You be you and
I'll be me,
and together we'll be we.
Free to be who we are
inspite of the craziness.
It's the simple answer
to this fantastic, tremendous mess.
You being you
is already all up to you.
But because of this very fantastic, very tremendous mess,
you mean even more.
You being you is essential to do,
and being you rages back
against any lack,
against any sameness or attempted conformity.
Against this really fantastic, really tremendous mess.
You being you combats the idolatry of he.
So you should inject a bit more in your you
in the face of this fantastic tremendous mess.
And hopefully the you and the me will eventually meld into a we.
In any case, you'll be someone we need desperately.
And just as importantly,
what not to do.
Don't quit.
Be true to being you.
But have a little awareness too
that you aren't everything.
You don't know everything
just like those in charge don't either.
We have to work with people with whom we disagree.
We might have to coax others to accomplish anything.
Don't push them away,
show them the right way,
by living how you want the world to be.
Losing still provides an opportunity.
Changing anything is always slow
but it provides the opportunity to show
and hopefully a chance to lead by example
and ultimately a chance to grow.
The sadness and despair of everything
might end up a good thing,
might end up a motivation,
might end up ultimately a catalyst,
for a stronger, a more informed, a better you.
You be you and I'll be me.
Together, you and me, and many others make we.
And together, we can!
US - 6: Tricky treat
Lame-ric: Tonight, tonight
This alternative set of lyrics looks at the meaning (from my perspective) of a song and, by outlining the opposing sentiment (from my perspective), highlights the actual intent (from my perspective).
I wrote this "Lame-ric" (like a limerick and a lyric but then not) for Smashing Pumpkins' "Tonight, tonight" (Tonight, tonight music video). I faintly heard this familiar song playing in the other room and couldn't escape the repeating tune in my head. I kept replaying it over and over and over. I wanted to interact with it in some way but didn't know how. Then, in the shower, maybe one of the many drops also contained inspiration for the means. I followed up and the more I learned the lyrics the more drawn in I felt. The last few years have made carpe diem more immediate for me and made me particularly ripe for this song because of it.
The song's video looks like Tim Burton directed "Nosferatu." Fitting for nearly-Halloween. The video also provides access to the original work. The song itself promotes seizing the day (or seizing that night). And while the song lyrics do dismiss the excuse of the status quo, they do not say:
Long
You have so very long
Every choice that you make
Means so little in a life
Makes no difference at all
You’re who you always were
You know what’s not really you
Don’t trust
Don’t trust unless you see
Don’t trust
Don’t
try a new approach
or drive in a new lane
We are just who we are
Al-way-s, always
Always
Clouds
Al-way-s, always
And you mostly never can
And you still can’t this time too
A look at the very base of you
Shows you are always the same
In the same place that you’ve always been
Since the day you arrived
Don’t trust
Don’t trust unless you see
Don't trust
Don’t trust
Just one thing can't change a whole life
If you think this will mean anything
Al-way-s, always
Always
Clouds
Al-ways, always
You’ll be exactly the same you were, always, always
Doesn’t matter what you say, doesn't matter the way, always, always
Tomorrow it’s still you that meets the day, always
Just another picture in the series, always, always
Things are still the same in the end, always, always
We both know who we both are,
Always
Always, always
Always, always
US - 5 Who's there?
US - 4: Framing the issue
US - 3: The Song Remains the Same
US - 2: Dog days of summer 8.22.16
US - 1: Life's a puzzle 8.2.16
Theatre Thursday 5/19/16
“You should watch ____. It’s great. You would love it.” I often hear this about a tv show. They are known and popular because people continue watching them and because they are great and because they do love them. But there’s only so much time in the day and there's just too much great stuff to watch. It would require more than an actual full time job’s worth of time dedicated to watching to watch everything “great.”
But, here’s the thing. See there’s this show, Mr. Robot, and it’s great. You would probably love it. If you have a chance you should watch it. It airs on USA during the summer time. It’s purposely inspired by a particular movie from my teen years (I don’t want to say which because I feel it might reveal too much, and I put your well-being at a premium).
The show deals with a lot of seemingly very relevant issues in the current world like technology and democracy and corporate culture and mental illness and terrorism etc. Basically it’s very relevant. You would love it. It’s great. You should watch it. In preparation for your already guaranteed interest here’s the season two trailer and also an interview with the show’s creator and show runner, Sam Esmail. But because you’re made of time you should probably watch the first season before listening or watching, otherwise you’ll know what movie it resembles (which is somewhat obvious in the watching of the actual show as well so you'll probably figure it out anyway).
(Updated: August 2017 Link to video no longer works but at least now it won't spoil it!)
So, with that important information provided, I will also inform of a hiatus for me from updating this particular blog for awhile. I may do a separate blog for a period of time dedicated to more personal things (we shall see) under this same domain (because I already have this domain). Stay tuned!
Wildcard Wednesday 5/18/16
It seems unlikely that I wouldn’t care about hockey. Hockey fans absolutely love it and, at the base level, I seem perfectly positioned to actively support hockey as well. I enjoy most sports and I came from the north where hockey is prevalent. But, no NHL team calls my State home and the cost of participation precluded me as I grew. Those factors combined to make me agnostic when it came to hockey, despite my other predispositions.
I arrived to college a hockey blank slate. Smooth, like the zamboni just cleaned the ice between periods. While the fantastic cheer of my college’s fans (“that’s debatable,” after the arena announcer declared that both teams were “back to full strength” with the finish of a power play for our side) alone urged me to vehemently cheer for my college, other factors did not.
Enter other factors. Most people know a "crazy" person. Not someone dissociated with the world, but kinda. In my definition, crazy people don’t care about consequences. That complete absence of concern makes them imposing adversaries if the circumstances warrant. It just so happens that the craziest (least concerned with consequence) person I knew from high school visited someone else I went to college with (obviously he wasn’t a fellow student himself since that would conflict with the crazy status). I was happy to occupy Senior Loco’s good graces which made us allies rather than adversaries.
Sorry, this is a long story, but I worked at a bar in my college town. Friends, including Loco that evening, came to the establishment while I finished working. When I finished work we would all head for another establishment on a meaningless but, at the time seemingly very meaningful, escapade.
Back to direct relevance, I worked with a member of the hockey team. Some of his teammates also visited the bar. A bunch of hulking He-men, whom although they might compete with their skates for intelligence, still retained more cognizance than Loco.
Somehow a disagreement developed over who would win a fight between our Loco and the present hockey loco (because apparently there’s some way to differentiate them - I would have guessed all the hockeys were more or less crazy). It doesn’t really matter how the conversation came to be, all that matters is that it was. The two locos exchanged some coarse words and some coarse looks but after significant efforts from others, including myself, blatant conflict was avoided. ‘Whew,’ I thought with relief.
After I finished my shift our small group, 5 or 6 or so normal humans, began our trek through the mean streets to our next destination. Unfortunately our little group unintentionally led another. A second set of at least as many hockey players…people WHO PLAYED COLLEGIATE HOCKEY and regularly athletically trained and basically fought for fun…were in tow. While I had confidence that our one crazy David could defeat their one crazy Goliath, no matter sizes, I possessed little confidence in our ability as a group to defeat their numerically and physically superior group of giants.
They followed us, not saying anything, not needing to say anything. Just following, and in the manner of following strongly implying a desire to fight. I think that team rules probably prohibited them from clearly provoking a fight but did not prohibit them from self-defense. So, they aimed to provoke self-defense.
I had helped avoid an outright fight earlier while I worked. Now the work induced abstinence served me well by tempering my ego. Those of us aware of the unfavorable odds guided our group into the first business possible for a drink. Where didn’t matter as long as it was somewhere that did not involve being tailed by a bunch of long-haired, thick skulled behemoths.
As if their purpose wasn’t obvious enough, the sudden absence of prey to provoke quickly led to traveling hockey mob's disappearance. “Poof” just like that, like Kaiser Soze, they were gone.
So, a little more than a year later, when the school's Hockey team won the National Championship, I cheered. On a school pride level I was very happy. But on a personal level, not as happy as I might have been had a group of lunatics not attempted to instigate a fight involving me the previous year.
To summarize, I don’t really follow hockey because it never held a significant place in my childhood. That, and the one group I would naturally cheer for were jerks. While I would take those hockey jerks above any other school’s hockey jerks, it might take me a while longer still to overcome the personal difficulty of it. Maybe this was just a minority clique on the team. Maybe this small faction's actions shouldn't represent the entire larger group but, like most things in life, that’s debatable.
Slap Shot 1977 Universal
Taco Tuesday 5/17/16
Speaking of things that help immerse into an environment, I use EaterLA constantly. It’s a little difficult to see me here I’m so immersed in LA. There’s an Eater particular to LA, but there are also numerous Eaters specific to many individual areas as well as an umbrella, national publication.
I find the maps the most useful feature Eater provides. Two specifically, the Heat Map and Eater 38. Heat = Popular at the time (according to them), and 38 = a list of the best restaurants at the time (according to them). The maps show where each location exists within the city as a whole. Great for planning a trip around your usual town or your current town.
Sometimes Eater also publishes other relevant maps on a myriad of topics like, but not limited to, pizza slices, coffee, quick service, burgers… They’re incredibly useful and using them, like yesterday’s Eclectic 24, makes you seem cool. Just another way for you to squeeze into the cultural zeitgeist (At least you'll be able to squeeze into something after using Eater). So once you get hungry from all the head bobbing and toe-tapping you’ll know where to find the best food wherever you are (provided it’s a major metropolitan location that hosts a specific Eater website).
Musical Monday 5/16/16
By habit, either the car or house radio almost always reflexively gets tuned to KCRW. KCRW is the local NPR station. 89.9 FM locally. On Weekdays, in the early morning, KCRW plays news. Mid-morning to noon is a popular music show called “Morning Becomes Eclectic.” MBE provides a variable and veritable smorgasbord of musical output that keeps listeners on the cusp of the new while continuing to also steep them in the previously admired. From noon to night lots of different talk shows air to explore the various viewpoints and elements of life in LA and beyond. Then the rest of the evening is more music.
Weekends host so many great shows that some have become a part of the fabric of existence. “Good Food, This American Life, The Moth…” There are just so many and they’re always so good. It’s like me but better, if that even seems possible? Weekend afternoons and evenings have more music. KCRW basically provides the means to live an examined life in L.A.
KCRW also provides an all music online channel, “Eclectic 24,” that blends the various djs’ tastes into one continuous stream. Just incase you desire an unending flow of tunes to make you appear cool or to extend your already existing cool - however you choose to couch it. Perfect background for a dinner party or most other things life involves.
I enjoy KCRW tremendously because actively listening to it signals involvement in the community. It signals that you intend to continue operating life in the specific environment. KCRW plays a significant role in LA’s environment.
Freedom Friday 5/13/16 (It's Friday the 13th Woo ooo)
I remember watching the movie “Independence Day” over and over when it came out. The year? I don’t know. Awhile ago? Oh, they call it the War of 1996 so I would venture a guess of around 1996. Yup, and it’s the 20 year anniversary (!) so, again 1996 makes sense. The movie was the type of big, meaningless, summer blockbuster that doesn’t exist much anymore (or maybe it does and I don’t see them). It was fun filled, entertaining, and action packed. Also, it contained one of the most inspirational motivational speeches ever, the Independence Day speech, given by Bill Pullman playing the President. I had fun watching and my expectations didn't extend beyond that because most childhood expectations never do.
But now, a new film is coming out which raises kind of a valid question. What would the world look like in the aftermath of events like those portrayed in the original “Independence Day?” I don’t know. I must say that I never really considered it, but I’m interested to see the film’s take on the subject. Hopefully it’s just as fun filled, entertaining, and action packed as the, now 20 year old (?), 1996 film was. Hopefully I enjoy watching this as much, or close to as much as the original.
Sadly I doubt I will. But, one can hope. I can hope to suspend my now grown-up-disbelief (twenty years later!). In turn, I can also hope that the film meets me halfway, providing something worthy of that suspension of disbelief. That’s actually a lot to ask. Something that can return me to a time with fewer cares. A time with fewer burdens. A brief resurgence of the bliss of ignorance? For me, that's the resurgence being sold here. I'm skeptical but we'll see.
