Thursday, March 31, 2005

whoops! a couple more

okay, I'm very guilty.... even more so than usual! :-P Not much blogging substance but lots of blogging fun for a minute or two... sorry about that. I'll stop now:

Melanie... was very cute. But... I wanted to be Joni Mitchell... but I can't play.

:-(




Take the Which Heart song are you? quiz from Laura



I always loved Heart. I wanted to be Ann Wilson when I grew up... well, actually I wanted to be a killer combination of Ann And Nancy... well actually that brings me back to wanting to be Joni Mitchell again... ah well, gotta run... er hobble...

Later Beautiful People!
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---------------oOo--------------- another lovely one for the road!

Ummmmm, YES, it seems I knew how to answer the questions in order to get the answer I wanted.... if only it were that easy to end up with the real thing... HA! Anyway, here's another quick and instantly gratifying (well, for me at least ~ life is good) quiz result.

Which great guitarist are you?

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---------------oOo--------------- dazed and confused: not a revelation :-)

I'm so sorry for the complete and total lack of posting the last couple of days. I've been trying to get stuff done while hobbling around on the knee that I obliterated a few days ago; I hobbled off to volunteer yesterday and by the time I got back from cleaning cages I was pretty much done in... and tonight I'm starting a new class so I've only got a minute... but here's something lovely (the image I mean); as for the quiz result? Spot on and not a bit of a surprise. lala!




Whats your Led Zeppelin Theme Song?
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---------------oOo---------------

Tuesday, March 29, 2005

the weekend movie round-up

As always, I can't resist posting our latest at-home movie screenings and as always, we are probably the last people on earth to see them, but I'm just delighted when we do finally see them!

This weekend we watched SpongeBob SquarePants ~ the Movie! and Finding Neverland; the movie trailer can be found here.

Finding Neverland was wonderful but I cried buckets before it was all over; it was just an enchanting and moving film and now I can see why Johnny Depp was nominated again for an Oscar. I love just about everything he's ever done and I know that someday he's definitely going to win because he's an incredible actor. I still think Jamie Foxx's performance was appropriately awarded this time around though. Next time Johnny! Kate Winslet broke my heart in this movie. She's really wonderful in everything she does also but I think that this performance was incredible.

SpongeBob was sublimely, ridiculously funny and my only real regret is that we watched it before we watched Finding Neverland. I really could have used that movie as a lighthearted follow up... I don't know what we were thinking... but anyway, it was lots of movie fun last weekend. Maybe this upcoming weekend we can actually go to a theatre instead though; we still have movie gift cards with balances still on them from Christmas...


Depp and Winslet enjoying the young lads play
Image found at Yahoo Movies
Photo © Copyright Miramax Films
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---------------oOo--------------- on the art of aging gracefully

I found this lovely thoughtful post about being a woman of a certain age (which I can totally relate to since I am one at age 47 and counting!) at a just discovered really wonderful blog-read, Twilight Cafe via The International Cavorting Day Hall of Fame where my journal is registered.

I also found this fun quiz there as well:


You are Egyptian Licorice tea! Only the daring pick
you up at the market and sample a taste. You
have a unique taste and are not for
everyone..yet once someone is attached, they
seem to stick around for the most part.


Which flavor of tea are you? (with images)
brought to you by Quizilla
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---------------oOo---------------

Monday, March 28, 2005

8.2 quake off sumatra coast

report here.

Unbelievable. :-( A tsunami warning has been issued in much of the same areas that were hit in December. My hopes and prayers and my heart goes out to these poor people for a much better outcome...
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---------------oOo---------------

Sunday, March 27, 2005

peepsteroids

Oh my gosh this is so much fun... although the 2nd level bunny peeps make an awfully cute sound when you hit them :-( but after all they're only just pretend sticky candy thingies so what the heck! Found the game via iflopflop who found it via Susan's Suburban Guerrilla. I've only played peepsteroids so far but I wanna try Peep Invaders later on today too. Go have some fun!!!
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---------------oOo--------------- celebrating renewal and rebirth

The Spring Equinox heralded in the change of seasons, bringing us Ostara and now Easter.

May each of you find renewal, rebirth and joy in this new season!



(mini-banner created with Photoshop CS using bunnies and flower image from my Big Box of Art 800,000)
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---------------oOo--------------- hitchens come through

I know, I know... but Hitchens really gives Scarborough what he deserves:

here.

And, if in fact the duplicitous Scarborough actually allows Hitchens to come back again on Tuesday and actually speak about this travesty, I will be stunned and amazed... and immensely gratified. Guess will just have to wait and see what happens.

Found at crooksandliars.com via Atrios' Eschaton.
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---------------oOo---------------

Saturday, March 26, 2005

how many more times????

Bush's approval rating hits an all time low and as Chepooka's post illustrates here, it's a really small wonder as to why ~ what alot of us would really like to understand is why now and not before.... say perhaps, before November 2nd????
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---------------oOo--------------- the world wide panorama

Found this very cool site via Hope for Serenity Journal.
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---------------oOo--------------- silly vanities

I've been in the mood to play with Photoshop alot more lately ~ something I really haven't done very much since I stopped making sig tags for my Superdudes sub-clan |di:va| last year. But the mood has hit me again and I also actually updated my poor little all-too-often neglected journal as well.

I'd forgotten how much fun that used to be and how much I miss going there but it just got to be too much after awhile. But now, I don't have a reason to post my sigtags anywhere. (silly but that was pretty much half the fun of it, for me anyway... LOL!)

This is really junky of me, I know but I just have the urge to post a couple of them here, just so I can look at them after so many months of them collecting dust in my photobucket. So if you can just indulge my vanity, it will all be over in a moment! ;-) BTW, the images used to make the sigs were found at boyis.com an exhaustive resource of amazing anime and other art and wallpapers; copyright to the artists, all rights reserved to them.




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---------------oOo---------------

Friday, March 25, 2005

What Book Are You?

Another fun quiz! YAY! Also found at tsuredzuregusa, a lovely blog especially full of wonderful things today!!!

You're Watership Down!

by Richard Adams

Though many think of you as a bit young, even childish, you're
actually incredibly deep and complex. You show people the need to rethink their
assumptions, and confront them on everything from how they think to where they
build their houses. You might be one of the greatest people of all time. You'd
be recognized as such if you weren't always talking about talking rabbits.


Take the Book Quiz
at the Blue Pyramid.

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---------------oOo--------------- from The Star: reflections on Good Friday

The Star has some Reflections and food for thought we can all benefit from.

Easter is a good time to reflect on these observations. Why indeed is it so difficult to learn from the Gospels? Christ died a violent death yet he opposed all forms of violence. "Peace I give unto you," he said. It is a gift that has to be earned but is often ignored.

The Gospels report Christ as teaching his followers to "love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you so that you may become the sons of your Father in heaven". If that instruction alone were to be obeyed, warfare would cease.

He told people not to judge others "so that God will not judge you". Yet judgmental attitudes prevail. When he preached the Sermon on the Mount, he told the crowds who came to listen: "Happy are those who work for peace for God will call them his children..." Yet, unfortunately, war often takes precedence over negotiation.

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---------------oOo--------------- god hates shrimp

8-)

Found via Tsuredzuregusa's Easter Treat Bonanza post.
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---------------oOo--------------- slate laments the demise of the moderate republican

and gives a little background on the once (but lately not-so) fantastic four:

"They are the Senate's plucky band of Republican moderates: Lincoln Chafee of Rhode Island, Susan Collins and Olympia Snowe of Maine, and John McCain of Arizona.

In recent years these moderates have become heroes to Democrats—paragons of conscience and bravery—and pariahs to conservatives—heretic "Daschle Republicans." As the GOP has moved to the right, the moderates have struggled valiantly to stand firm in the center, voting repeatedly with Democrats on key issues. I've heard some Democrats fawningly dub them the Fantastic Four, after the team of comic-book superheroes who unwittingly acquired supernatural powers from the cosmic ray of a solar flare. OK, McCain may not be much like the Thing, Chafee isn't as hot as the Human Torch, and neither Collins nor Snowe would want to be dubbed the Invisible Woman (crafty as she was!). But by the standards of hyper-partisan Washington, there has been something almost supernatural about the way these senators defy their party's aggressive right wing on behalf of their principles. In the recent past, the Fantastic Four have been a useful check on congressional GOP excesses. Of late, however, their powers are waning."

~~~Michael Crowley, March 24, 2005

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---------------oOo--------------- from the Tool Shed: drag'n'drop fun

Dress Maynard here!

I just did; fer fun :-)


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---------------oOo---------------

Thursday, March 24, 2005

an inspired life

I have two beautiful little spice finches, a 2004 birthday gift, named Kate and Spencer; though I suspect they are both actually the "Spencer" gender and so their nicknames are Heckyl and Jeckyl as they are a bit fiesty with each other on occasion. In other words, they don't so much like to dance cheek to cheek as go at it a bit, "beek to beek". They don't hurt each other but they do get a bit aggressive every now and again.

I am endlessly curious about the sounds that they make; or rather, I think maybe primarily only one of them does most of the talking. There is the rather constant and adorable per-cheek sound that one of them does while hop-flying back and forth in the cage, and also the occasionally loud pi-PEEEEEEEP. The other one, though, is the one whom I think makes an especially enchanting sound which usually corresponds to when the other bird is eating. It's a fast paced pip-pip-pip, trill, trill, trill, oh I can't do it; it starts out rather softly (and actually never gets very loud) but towards the end of the trilling it gets higher... oh its a gorgeously weird little sound.

I'm always trying to find out more about the sounds they make and I may just have to break down and buy this book but I just spent one of my many attempts at trying to find more information about their bird calls by searching. And as usual, I didn't find much.

But today I did find a story about a man who'd spent his entire life devoted to birds and studying their calls and working on behalf of some of their endangered species. I'd never heard of him until today, and that struck me as rather tragic because he is no longer on this planet; but he was someone who understood his life plan, his calling and he applied himself to it very very well.

His name was Luis Felipe Baptiste and in reading about him, it was so clear to feel the passion and joy he had for the work that he did. We should all be so lucky!
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---------------oOo--------------- for what it's worth

meant to post this last night, but I really needed to stop. So I'm sure everybody's already read it but just had to post it here.

But FWIW, via Bob's News Wire Kerry was right about bin Laden's escape from Tora Bora.
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---------------oOo--------------- re-thinking ford

...but maybe not so much his better idea.

I'll admit I don't know much about Harold Ford, but I was pretty well impressed with his ideas as posed on Ed Schultz Show a week or so ago. But upon discovering and reading Black Commentator's post about Ford's track record I realize that a bit of enlightenment on my part, was in order. And I really wanted to post a link to it here.
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---------------oOo--------------- something old, something new: the altered book

from the lemuria writing sanctuary's Shoe-string Publishing Breathe life into old books! Making Altered Books.

I'd heard about this idea from a few of the newsgroups I belong to, and I'd always been curious about it, but I have a sort of a hesitation about using any book in this manner. But the article stresses using a "solid book, diary, directory or magazine that has become redundant and is yearning for new life."

It sounds like an exciting and inspiring little act of creation and I think I'm going to give it a try because we have zillions of lost, lonely books out in the garage just stacked up gathering dust. So I think I'm going to go out there and have another look. It's time to do something with them anyway. Another idea is to see if any of them would be candidates for BookCrossings. I'd finally sent off for some labels to affix to books, but I need to figure out: where to release them and what books would be likely candidates.

Then there are the books I have had forever (some from childhood) and cannot bear to part with and would never alter in any way, of course: The Anne Books, a couple of them actually belonged to my mom, and also her passed along copies of Understood Betsy and The Five Little Peppers to name a few. Those have been passed on to Mina but are currently in storage with all of her other favourite childhood books.

But the altered books idea ties in to giving a beautiful purpose for all those magazines I can't throw away, the cards I can't bear to part with that are stuffed into stacks of boxes and objects I collect but don't quite know what to do with....

Anyway, some amazing examples of altered books can be found at ArtZine's altered book cam, How to make a Mini Altered Book, The International Society of Altered Book Artists and Karen's Whimsey, Tera Leigh's Altered Books Portfolio, Beth Cote's Altered Book Gallery, Jenny's Altered Books and ModernGypsy's the Altered Page.

Also at Dragonhomes Place's Altered Books there are tons of links to examples of lovely altered books! A veritable feast for the eyes... and for the heart and soul!

Among the how-to links: A tutorial for altering a children's board book can be found here and Collaging a Book Cover here.

And a great altered book link resource can be found at The Creativity Portal.
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---------------oOo--------------- terri schiavo: 3 perspectives

I know how painful all this is and I know that everyone is probably so sad about this and so done with it all, but I just wanted to post these three snapshots of perspectives and then hopefully leave it at that on my blog. More than anything else, I pray and hope for all parties who are truly involved (and that means her husband and her family ~ not the politically ambitious opportunists riding this wave of public attention), that this can end as painlessly and as peacefully as possible. Since it hasn't happened in 15 years though, at this point hopes and prayers are about all one can hold onto.

Anyway... from Common Dreams, David Corn writes "Jeb Bush's Expert Undercuts DeLay et. al. on Schiavo...and W's Hypocrisy"

"I hate to say that one document is all you need to read to know what you need to know about the tragic Terri Schiavo case, but the best primer on this episode--which just so happens to undercut the arguments of Tom DeLay, Bill First and the other Republican politicians seeking to exploit this sad story--is a December 2003 report written by Dr. Jay Wolfson. He's a doctor and a lawyer who was appointed as a guardian for Schiavo in October 2003 by none other than Florida Governor Jeb Bush. If you care about the case and the issues it raises--and if you care about Terri Schiavo--you should read the entire 40-page report. NPR, which aired a well-done interview with Wolfson yesterday, has posted a PDF version on its site."

The complexity of the issues arising from the tragic Terri Schiavo case:

William Rivers Pitt Dictators, Tyrants and Fools

"Five-month-old Sun Hudson was removed from his life-sustaining machines by a Texas law signed by then-Governor George W. Bush in 1999. The law allows patients deemed unsalvageable by the hospital to be removed from ventilators and other medical apparatus, with a ten-day window given to the families of the stricken to find another facility before the plug is pulled.

Sun Hudson was African-American, and neither Congress nor Mr. Bush came storming to his rescue before his death last week. Believe this: If Ms. Schiavo were an African American child, a Hispanic mother, an Iraqi wife, an Afghani grandmother, an American soldier suffering massive brain trauma from an explosion in Mosul, anyone from Darfur or the Congo, if she had been anything other than a white woman in a Fundamentalist-controlled state, we would have never, ever, heard of her." ~~~WP, 03-22-2005

via Truthout

And also at Common Dreams, Mary Johnson writes It's Not About Terri Schiavo Anymore:

"This is what the Terri Schiavo circus is all about. We may think it's about political posturing -- and it is that, for sure. But it's about those of us who have scary, messy disabilities, and the fears of the rest of us.

The Texas Futile Care Law, which George W. enacted, gives hospitals the right to cut off life support. The progressive blogs are full of the story of the baby pulled off life support under that legislation this past week, against his mother's wishes. But futile care acts are in place in many states -- so common they aren't even controversial. Are we only upset about them when we see them used against a member of what we see as a traditionally oppressed group, and enacted by a man whose policies we detest? States with liberal governors have futile care policies in place as well. The disability rights movement has been worried about futile care policies for quite awhile -- but nobody else took notice. Until now.

Those who bring up the Texas dead baby story want to make the point that the Republicans are two-faced, but we didn't need a dead baby to figure that one out."

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---------------oOo---------------

Wednesday, March 23, 2005

cupcake chic

Found this craving-inducing link via the delicious Is My Blog Burning? Who knew that the sweet little childhood comfort/party food is the current craze in the big city?

All I know is that I've been seriously jonesing for a cake fix of some kind the last couple of days, and now I'm wondering if I've got any of those little paper cupcake liners around here. Chocolate cupcakes for breakfast anyone; or maybe I can find a muffin recipe and legitimize my insane craving..... those don't require the paper liners anyway, do they????

Here's a winner! Cream cheese is a breakfast food right?


yummy chocolate muffin image
courtesy pelise's gallery at stock xchng.

Her website is Design29
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---------------oOo---------------

Tuesday, March 22, 2005

amy sullivan's "silent femmes"

read it here.

"What researchers found should track closely with memories of your second-grade self. Those are the years in which children learn how to participate in group discussions. The teacher explains that to maintain an orderly conversation and allow everyone to speak, students should raise their hands when they have something to say and wait to be called on. Simple enough. But what happens next? Usually, the teacher poses a question to kick off the discussion, and several children raise their hands with answers. As the conversation continues, one or more of the boys, either overly enthusiastic about his point or merely impatient, calls out his comment without waiting to be chosen by the teacher. She might stop him and remind everyone of the rule—raise your hand and wait to be called first—but often she just lets him go ahead. It is less disruptive, after all, than letting him jump up and down, waving his hand, and yelling, “Oooh, ooh, me!” But if a girl bursts out with a thought, the teacher's response changes. The Sadkers report that teachers almost always chastise girls who violate the rules. After all, teachers rely on girls—their “good students”—to remain quiet and maintain order in the classroom while teachers focus on the boys, keeping them in line by drawing them into discussions. And so, as the conversation races around them, girls sit, waiting to be called on, first holding up their tired arms with the other, then lowering them, and finally not bothering to raise their hands at all."

~~~A Sullivan, Washington Monthly April 2005

Rox Populi has the above link and a whole lot more.
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---------------oOo--------------- too ludicrous to pass by

Well, I thought that was it for me tonight but when I found this Media Matters Report which (once again) busts these asshats on parade; found the link via Oliver Willis and MaxSpeak.

This would be as ludicrously funny as the good stuff on my previous post, except for one. sad. little. fact. These shameless charletons and shills are willfully deceiving their Fox viewers... AND THEY ARE GETTING AWAY WITH IT!

How in the name of decency and integrity do these duplicitous people at Fox sleep at night???? I don't believe in Hell; not their version of it anyway, but if their version exists, they ought to be quaking in their boots at the prospect of meeting their maker.
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---------------oOo--------------- stuff that made me laugh

I'm kind of punchy and have been all day; not enough sleep, I guess... But earlier today I ran across some silly gems that had me laughing so hard I was crying! I literally ran across these pretty much one right after the other and I had a stomach ache from laughing so hard by the time I was done.

Now, for those who might have missed these in their internet travels, I happily pass the linkloads of fun to you.

Note: these are of the variety that tend to tickle me the most, the kind where your appreciation for the lowest common denominator and the absurd is firmly in place! ;-)

Simon at Bluetealeaf links to this site which provided non-stop (admittedly often mean) ridiculously silly fun.

My favourite place was here because I have a really hard time understanding lyrics too; oh the delightful absurdity!

Eucalyptus found this place where a star is born with a click of a mouse! But when I saw the star he posted I just about wet my pants!

But if Jar-Jar can have a star, then so can I darn it! Here's mine:



(I'm ready for my close up Mr. de Mille)

Leave it to Stupid Beautiful Lies to come up with the thoughtful ruminations that make up this ode to...er, excrement. If I haven't lost you yet, you have to read this. The way this guy writes... seriously, he can make poety out of... waste. No kidding. He's brilliant. OK, well, that's my take on it. And he makes me laugh.
Go on. Read it. You know you want to...

Now if you can handle digesting anything, go sink your teeth into Joey, the Accordian Guy's funny-food find entitled Rejected Wedding Cake Idea #1!

Kim at Bacon and Eh's has the scoop on the number of f**ks in Deadwood. Hint: it's alot. If you really wanna know, you can get your FPM info and everything. And... If you really wanna know what FPM is you can get your answer there as well. :-P

This post from Defective Yeti is the one that pretty much sent me into that dangerous laughing-so-hard-I-cant-breathe zone, but keep in mind that I had been judiciously prepped by the previous posts. Yes, I'm actually listing these links in the order they were found, and I found them, pretty much one after the other, so by the time I landed on Yeti's doorstep the well of laughter's pump was realllly primed.

Ahhh, life is good! Then, I went here! No, I'm not posting to a particular entry and once you are there you will know why. It's all pure gold. It's kinda sorta mean gold maybe, and maybe it's kinda fool's gold too when you are especially vulnerable coz you haven't had enough sleep (I mean by this time, I'm wondering if you can die from laughing too hard and if you are laughing at someone else's expense when you die, well isn't that kinda bad karma or something????), but it's gold nevertheless.

And since I was doomed anyway, I knew that if I was gonna go, Bryanboy should do the honour of giving me the witty lethal injection that would surely do me in because he never fails to hit me where I live!

And as always, he was brilliantly funny. But, brilliant as he is, that post wasn't the one that did me in.

This post from Piglatin is the one that lethally busted my gut.

So that's it for awhile; I need some serious recuperation in a no-laugh zone (because it hurts too much) and... also I think I need some sleep...
Posted by etherealfire :: 7:11 PM :: 0 Comments:   

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---------------oOo--------------- our man in hanoi on the life of a volunteer

This is a moving reflection on the realities and challenges of volunteer work.

He works as a volunteer for KOTO, a group that actively works to find and provide skills to Vietnamese street kids so they can find viable stable jobs.

"You look around at the well-nourished, happy kids that you spend your days working alongside. You can't fail to love them all but you worry. Are we helping the right kids? It's an easy trap to fall into to where you forget just how much KOTO does for these kids."

Posted by etherealfire :: 6:58 PM :: 0 Comments:   

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---------------oOo--------------- Donkey Rising: live from the Brookings Event

...on New Media; Ruy gives an interesting bit of play-by-play here and links to the blurb about the event here.

"Perhaps that's the real news here: blogging has now developed a high enough profile and plays a big enough role in society that it can be the subject of a very pleasant and characteristically earnest Brookings event." ~~~RT

Posted by etherealfire :: 6:52 PM :: 0 Comments:   

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---------------oOo--------------- a virtual passage to india

as lived vicariously, through Karma, who had "three full days in Hyderabad" and thanks to the internets we can relive it with her here!

A little bit more about Hyderabad including a brief history and Hyderabad on the net here.
Posted by etherealfire :: 7:44 AM :: 0 Comments:   

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---------------oOo--------------- which religion is right for you?

You scored as Paganism. Your beliefs are most closely aligned with those of paganism, Wicca, or a similar earth-based religion. You may also follow a Native American religion.

Paganism 83% Hinduism 83% Buddhism 79% Islam 71% Satanism 71% agnosticism 54% Christianity 46% atheism 42% Judaism 29% Which religion is the right one for you? (new version) created with QuizFarm.com

Another fun quiz, found via .it's a wyrd world.
Posted by etherealfire :: 4:58 AM :: 0 Comments:   

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---------------oOo--------------- welcome spring equinox

Found some great links and information via Garnet's Breathing Room.

Another lovely link about Ostara. Also a trio of lovely spring meditations found here, here and this one designed specifically for private reflection and meditation.


beautiful purple tulips: a welcome sign of spring
courtesy of aerogurl's gallery at stock xchng.
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---------------oOo--------------- virginity pledges ineffective

feministing.com has the links and the story. And it really comes as no surprise that the pledges don't work but the devastating results of the predictable workaround technical virginity is a tragic side effect of this whole abstinence and ignorance agenda.
Posted by etherealfire :: 12:52 AM :: 0 Comments:   

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---------------oOo---------------

Monday, March 21, 2005

conjuring up the goddess within

Found this very cool site via this post at ebc.

I also found this very cool blog thanks to ebc as well!

I came up as a Persephone archetype via this quiz and other quizzes in the past as well (looking but not finding a particular site to link to but, oh well), but I always find it amusing since I am on the verge of cronedom, in physical age, if not so much in appearance and probably not nearly so much in wisdom!

:-P

It's all fascinating stuff, this study of archetypes!

Now for a completely unscientific, oldie but goodie quiz, I got this result (rather than Persephone for a change):


You are Kwan Yin, the goddess of compassion. Your
caring nature and healing touch make you
extremely popular as a counsellor, source of
happiness and great friend. But beware of those
who will try to take advantage of your kind
nature.

Reveal the Goddess in You

brought to you by Quizilla

And finally, a fascinating piece found at Archeology.org about Asherah, The Lost Goddess of Israel.
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---------------oOo--------------- prepackaged news brought to you by....

our administration; the New York times has an article about the propoganda that is the kind of thing that we have to try to counter-act and sift through right within our local so-called MSM. Found via the AirAmerica Radio Al Franken blog.
Posted by etherealfire :: 6:06 PM :: 0 Comments:   

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---------------oOo--------------- and speaking of sideshows

Wish I'd said this but I'm so glad that she did and so eloquently too!

"We don't just read left-wing resources. We find that we have to read damn-near everything to find out what's going on. That makes it impossible to rely on our local newspapers, because we know that the facts come out in dribs and drabs in newspapers and magazines all over the nation - indeed, all over the world. Why should we have to rely on the Guardian to find out what the United States is doing? Why aren't these things on the front page of The Washington Post and The New York Times? Why are some stories - legitimate, important stories - left to Salon and The New Yorker, rather than covered by the major papers? Why is it that I can find the right-wing spin in The Washington Post but don't even find out what the liberal response is until I read The Nation?"
~~~Avedon Carol 03-20-2005

Read all about the Dumb Media at the Sideshow.
Posted by etherealfire :: 5:53 PM :: 0 Comments:   

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---------------oOo--------------- semidi weighs in on schiavo controversy

Read all about his on-target take on the political shenanigans that are shamelessly being used to exploit this poor woman's plight for the sleazy purpose of furthering a small faction's agenda:

here, here and here.

Semidi on the LA Times op-ed about this legislative sideshow:

"This op-ed really undercores the fact that the Republican Party does not represent the American people, just a small group of extremists."

Posted by etherealfire :: 5:38 PM :: 0 Comments:   

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---------------oOo--------------- playing dollz

I've been playing around at putting together cyberdollz from eLouai's Candybar Dollmaker off and on all weekend. Soooo much fun but I'm not really all that good at them. I finally finished a pair of them more or less to my liking, but I think I may still go back to the drawing board and tweak it a bit, later on. I think the one that I made for my sister came out pretty good though!



The one I made for me, I'm not so sure of though:



Actually I think that most people would be able to do this without much thought or effort; but maybe that's my problem.... I think about it too hard then my hand gets in the way and messes it all up... LOL!

In any case, I've become completely addicted to it! I discovered the Dollmaker via one of my blog reads, several days ago, actually, but never took the time to go back and start making them till this weekend. In the meantime, lots of the blogs I read have jumped in and created beautiful dollz of their own and I'd like to reference them here but offhand I don't remember exactly who else has them... sorry about that! But you can find the dollmaker here and links to all kinds of other fun stuff at eLouai's main page.

Another fun site is La Maison de Candydoll a french site that has lots of dollmakers include one that makes "teenies". So fun but very addictive!
Posted by etherealfire :: 12:58 AM :: 0 Comments:   

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---------------oOo---------------

Saturday, March 19, 2005

Jimmy Page leaves some Physical Graffiti

on the pages of the May 2005 Guitar World Classic Rock Special! Just picked up a copy when I made a run to the grocery store for the missing items to make tonight's dinner ~ along with this month's Vogue which I never buy, but couldn't resist getting for Mina (and one for Suzanne too, who does buy the mag when she can) because the cover features an enchanting Drew Barrymore posing with a gorgeous lion photographed by legendary photographer Annie Leibovitz ~ but I digress as usual.

The series of interviews JP has done about each Zep album over the years with Guitar World have been a godsend for longtime fans and new fans alike, with wonderful little details and memories about those halcyon days that make the music even more meaningful. Even with previously covered territory like this, it is just great to hear Jimmy put his personal spin on these timeless classics, some of the greatest rock music... EVER!!!

Here's a little snippet from the interview with Mark Blake:

"...when we did the third album, the record label was like, Well, there's no 'Whole Lotta Love' on there. And when Houses of the Holy came out, they were like, Well, there's no 'Stairway to Heaven' on there. Our attitude was, Well, of course not, because we were moving on and on. We arrived at songs like 'Kashmir' because we kept moving forward and didn't try to recreate the past. The approach to each album was radically different every time. Many bands would have some success and, because they were locked into having a single -- something we didn't have to worry about -- they had to make sure there was something similar on the next album. In that way, something that may have been quite vital at first sounded stale the second time around. That was never the idea with Zeppelin. The goal was to keep that spark of spontaneity at all times." ~~~JP, May 2005

Ah, great music, great times, great memories... and a great interview! Sometime last year, Jimmy hinted about writing an autobiography, primarily, I believe, about the music. I really hope he does that because there is so much more to Led Zeppelin than the legendary stories about the decadence, drugs and groupies. Led Zeppelin was one of the greatest live bands AND studio bands of all time. I really would love to here it all chronicled by the Man Himself; and though, I know it is probably way too much to hope for because I get the impression that he feels it is highly personal, I really would love to hear more about his personal spiritual journey, which I think has been highly misunderstood. But then, I guess it really isn't anyone's business but his own....

Well, one can hope and dream anyway....

Also found via Tight But Loose, this BBC article from last May about JP's William Burges designed Tower House and a subsequent visit to Cardiff Castle and a series of BBC 1 interviews with famous guitarists, included Jimmy; just scroll down and listen!

The book, BTW, is apparently simply called William Burges and was written by Cardiff Castle Curator, Matthew Williams and might be a bit of a trick to find here in the US; perhaps, not surprising, since most of us have never had the pleasure of viewing Burges unusual and imaginative work. You can find a bit more about it here, here and here. Looks both whimsical and lovely at the same time, doesn't it?


Matthew Williams and Jimmy Page holding the illusive book?
inside the beautiful William Burges' designed Cardiff Castle
found courtesy of the Press Release Page from May 20th, 2004.

(Just one of the many reasons I LOVE the internet... THANK YOU, INTERNET!!!)

And... I was looking everywhere for a link to the Drew cover because it is just so beautiful but no luck. But I did find a couple of sites devoted to the lovely Ms. Barrymore:

Drew Smiles
The Drew Collective
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---------------oOo---------------

Thursday, March 17, 2005

lab fireball 'may be black hole'

Report at BBC News found via this post at Posthuman Blues.

A fireball created in a US particle accelerator has the characteristics of a black hole, a physicist has said.

Posted by etherealfire :: 11:59 PM :: 0 Comments:   

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---------------oOo--------------- the mandala project

Find out more about the mandala project and then you can look at some beautiful examples submitted by people all over the world here.

I have this book and I spent many small blocks of fun free time with my coloured pencils and this colouring book and enjoyed my results.

I can't draw to save my soul but the focused activity of applying colour to the images in the book really was both relaxing and a simple satisfying form of creative activity!

A bit more about mandalas here.

Another very cool Mandala Gallery!

And finally, here's a link to a free online Mandala Colouring Book courtesy of June Moon Visionary Art.


Just one of the many beautiful mandalas found at
this Mandala Gallery!
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---------------oOo--------------- "why do republicans hate Jimmy Stewart?"

This was the musical question asked in jest yesterday afternoon by Sam Seder while filling in as host on the Randi Rhodes show.

His question was in regard to the sudden denouncement by Republicans of the time-honoured practice of using the filibuster as a form of last-ditch protest some of the more objectionable aspects of the status quo of the empowered party.

Oliver Willis has posted a re-cap of that famous Jimmy Stewart speech from that wonderful old chestnut, Mr. Smith Goes to Washington. Mr. Smith was considered naive even back then. But I wonder sometimes if he would even recognize the political landscape we currently inhabit.


where are you when we need you most, Mr. Smith?
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---------------oOo--------------- hate groups state by state

Tolerance Org has set up a map that tracks hate groups state by state. A sad and startling fact: only two states in our great nation can boast the complete absence of any hate group. Those two states are Vermont and South Dakota.

They also have a page devoted to exposing sites that promote hate on the internet. If you can stand trying to get through this muck, it is an alarming eye-opener.
Posted by etherealfire :: 4:32 PM :: 0 Comments:   

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---------------oOo--------------- bad news, good news

I'm a glass half full kind of person in my heart so the bad news first: by a narrow margin yesterday, the Senate voted no to protect the Arctic Refuge from needless and pointless drilling. As the Conservation Action Network explains, "The government estimates that only six months of economically recoverable oil exists in the coastal plain of the Arctic Refuge and it would not be available for 10 years."

Six months worth of economically recovered oil in exchange for irreversible damage to the environment and ZERO monies invested in trying to find long term solutions to our ever-growing energy crisis. I really want to be optimistic but not only is that bad news, that is pretty darn short-sighted (and I suspect extremely greedy) and stupidly short-termed kind of thinking there.

The good news? We the People are speaking out in impressive numbers and our voices WILL be heard. Here is a synopsis via an email received from John Kerry, letting those of us who signed our name to the Citizens Roll Call know what the result was:

Dear Dolores,

Yesterday, we saw a relentless Republican attack on one of our most treasured natural wonders sneak through the Senate on a 51 to 49 vote. But, we also saw more than 260,000 Americans act in less than 24 hours to add their names to our Citizens' Roll Call in favor of protecting the Arctic Refuge.

It was the first time ever that I or anyone else could stand on the Senate floor and announce that, in a day's time, a quarter of a million Americans had gone online to express their passionate support for a given course of action.

That awesome display of grassroots power rattled our opponents. They even railed against my e-mail message on the Senate floor and entered its text into the Senate record. So, think of it this way. The Republican leaders of the Senate have 51 reasons to celebrate today, but you and I have 260,000 reasons to do the same.

If we keep working together - committed pro-environment Senators and a powerful grassroots movement all pulling in the same direction - we can still stop the plan for drilling in the Arctic from making it the rest of the way through Congress. And we can win the larger battle over two very different visions of America's energy future.

George W. Bush and the Washington Republicans have a plan to sell off our public lands to powerful special interests. As a result of their ruthless drive to undermine America's most beautiful natural treasures, the oil rigs are closer to the Arctic Refuge than they have ever been. But, the Bush administration's own scientists and economists admit that the Republicans' plan will not make us less dependent on foreign oil and will not lower prices at the pump. We have to put America's energy future in the hands of Americans - by inventing our way to real energy independence and having energy sources that create jobs and lower prices.

With your help, we will continue to wholeheartedly resist their special interest-funded partisan agenda. And, if we act with the same energy and determination as we have on this critical Arctic Refuge vote, sooner than later, our power and commitment will carry the day. I know you will be with me every step of the way and I thank you for the passion and energy that you bring to our work together.

Sincerely,

John Kerry

P.S. I told you that more than a quarter of a million people signed our Citizens' Roll Call in the first 24 hours after we launched it. Actually the news is even more impressive. As of this moment, there are over 400,000 signers to our Roll Call, including tens of thousands who signed after the vote to express their determination to keep fighting. Let's keep working.

Oh and if you are interested to know how our Senate voted (I certainly was; two of the three votes we needed were denied to us by a pair of Democrats voting no... WHY??????) you can get the answer by going here.

A final bit of really heartening news. Former Republican and currently Independent James Jeffords and some Republican Senators like John McCain, Susan Collins, Olympia Snowe, Norm Coleman, Gordon Smith, and Lincoln Chafee all did the right thing and (apparently) acted from the consciences rather than just toeing the Party line and voted Yes with all but two of the Democrats. I think they deserve some credit and some thanks for that. If you do too, you can let them know by emailing your thanks!

You can find all of our US Senators phone #s and contact information here!
Posted by etherealfire :: 3:06 PM :: 0 Comments:   

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---------------oOo--------------- common ground~lowering abortion rates

Heidi at Virushead has posted some information about something that most everyone should be able to support no matter what side of the abortion issue you are on: Help Lower Abortion Rate. Please go read it and follow the links to send your support this amendment ~ and spread the word!!!
Posted by etherealfire :: 2:54 PM :: 0 Comments:   

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---------------oOo--------------- The St. Patrick Center in Downpatrick Ireland

claims to have the graveyard that contains the remains of both St. Patrick and St. Brigid.

Some great photos can be found here which is part of a site called Britain & Ireland ~ In Depth and it is a fascinating place listing all kinds of interesting links within its portal to some of the most intriguing places located in the UK!
Posted by etherealfire :: 5:20 AM :: 0 Comments:   

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---------------oOo--------------- not irish news exactly

but I received links and information about the Callanish' Standing Stones located on the Isle of Lewis, Scotland. I had no idea there was another circle of stones (very similar to England's Stonehenge evidently) located in the British Isles, or even much of anywhere else.

But these stones are referenced as the Stonehenge of the North and are a pretty compelling site. Anyway, here are a couple of really great links:

callanish standing stones on the Isle of Lewis, Scotland

callanish standing stones panaromic views.

The Panaramic views website was a lot of fun to play with and really has a very lovely view.
Posted by etherealfire :: 5:02 AM :: 0 Comments:   

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---------------oOo--------------- of corn beef, cabbages and kings

I've been (mostly) not eating meat the last several months. I try to stick to a vegetarian diet but I do occasionally fall off the wagon when that dreaded craving for meat pretty much overwhelms my senses.

Part of me is wishing today would be a day to give in so I could really enjoy the traditional meal of the day: Corned Beef and cabbage. Oh well, if nothing else I can pore over the recipe and dream about it.
Posted by etherealfire :: 4:53 AM :: 0 Comments:   

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---------------oOo---------------

Tuesday, March 15, 2005

the art of japan

Something visually beautiful from ThinkQuest: the art of japan covers origami to sculpture.

And Japanese Art.org is self-described as the only portal devoted to Japanese Art.

Another site with alot of beautiful art and information is Asia-art.net.

And finally, my favourite for last; a tour of the various types of the Japanese Garden with quicktime virtual tours of each one; I think I like this one the best!
Posted by etherealfire :: 4:42 AM :: 0 Comments:   

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---------------oOo--------------- glimmers of hope

In the aftermath of the devastating Indonesia Tsunami, Patricia Monaghan gives us some "glimmers of hope" and The Sense of the Story in the Imbolc 2005 MatriFocus.
Posted by etherealfire :: 4:15 AM :: 0 Comments:   

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---------------oOo---------------

Monday, March 14, 2005

minimum wage hypocrisy

Please go read Bohemian Mama's post touching on the hypocrisy of the haves and have mores as they further deny all hope and promise for a secure future to the already overburdened have-nots.
Posted by etherealfire :: 11:50 PM :: 0 Comments:   

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---------------oOo--------------- a shark tale

This was a bit of a grueling weekend due to a looming class project deadline and a dead router yesterday, but there were some definite high spots! Another Symphony Concert (which I posted a little bit about in my latest journal entry) and a first time home viewing of A Shark's Tale which really was a cute movie and a welcome break from some of the more stressful moments the last couple of days. As ususal, we are probably the last family in the US to see this cute movie.

The one I really would like to see that is actually out right now is Robots.

Who knows, maybe we will actually see this one before next year sometime! But then again, I won't hold my breath because something always seems to end up being a bigger priority or one or more of us doesn't want to venture out when we have a block of time...
Posted by etherealfire :: 10:52 PM :: 0 Comments:   

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---------------oOo--------------- Ford has a better idea

Heard about the Congressman from Tennessee's really smart plan from the man himself, on the Ed Schultz Show this afternoon. I really was impressed with this idea and I hope it gains some momentum and support in Congress. This brilliant little BiPartisan Plan was co-sponsored by Congressman Harold Ford (D-TN), along with Representatives Patrick Kennedy (D-MA), Thomas Petri (R-WI), and Phil English (R-PA)!
Posted by etherealfire :: 10:28 PM :: 0 Comments:   

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---------------oOo--------------- Wolf Daemon

Looks like Joel at Pax Nortona and I are exchanging fun quiz test finds! I think this one that I found at his blog is especially cool:


Your WOLF DAEMON shows that you are solitary,
ferocious, and often intimidating, but not
without your sufficient loyalty and poise.
People tend to misunderstand you, but you
prefer your own company, anyway.


What Animal Would Your Daemon Settle As?
brought to you by Quizilla
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---------------oOo---------------

Saturday, March 12, 2005

moonstones

One of my very favourite pieces of jewelry is a moonstone pendant I received for my birthday a couple of years ago; it is set in silver and has is offset by a garnet and amethyst, two of my other very favourite stones. There is something special about moonstones; you can actually feel it. Moonstones are supposed to be especially good for promoting intuition and sensitivity and a host of other good things.

Probably one of the reasons I have a strong affinity to this particular stone these days is because it seems to carry the best properties of the feminine nature.

My dear old friend, a well-used crystal handbook called Love is in the Earth states:

"It is a stone for hoping and wishing; it allows one to absorb that which is needed from the universal energies, not necessarily, however, furthering that which is wanted. It hels one to recognize the "ups and downs" and to gracefully acknowlege the changing cycles. It can assist one in sustaining, and understanding the destiny one has chosen. It works to bring the galactic evolved energies from other worlds to accessibility."

Even, if the metaphysical aspects of this book, sound like so much blarney to some, it is still an amazing book with an exhaustive listing of crystals, stones and minerals. I really love this book!

I had never seen a moonstone, or even knew there was such a stone, until a few years ago, but when I saw it, something about it called to me and I asked for one for my birthday. For those who have never heard of them or seen them before, here's an example of what they look like:



Some moonstone links:

properties of moonstones
Gem by Gem Moonstones
Mystic Eye Crystals moonstone info
Posted by etherealfire :: 3:16 AM :: 0 Comments:   

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---------------oOo--------------- in remembrance (one day late)

I can't believe I missed this but I wasn't online much at all yesterday. Found a lovely heartfelt tribute over at a favourite read, i FlipFlop in memory of last year's tragic Madrid train bombing.

Our thoughts and prayers go out to the people of Madrid; I'm just sorry I didn't catch this yesterday.
Posted by etherealfire :: 3:13 AM :: 0 Comments:   

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---------------oOo--------------- 2005 rock and roll hall of fame

This year's inductees are a particularly stellar lot imho! I'm looking forward to watching this year's ceremony.

Especially gratifying is Buddy Guy's inclusion this year. He's an amazing guitarist and one of the great blues heroes of all time!

The other most worthy recipients (all great choices) are The O'Jays, The Pretenders, Percy Sledge, and U2.

It should be a really great show. VH1 will be airing the show next Saturday, March 19th.

Check out a really nice Buddy Guy tribute site here.

And here's a little blurb about Buddy's upcoming induction with a nice pic.

Some other site for these great inductees:

The O'Jays Bio at SoulTracks
Percy Sledge's Official Site
The Pretenders' Official Site and The Pretenders' Archive
U2's Official Site
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---------------oOo---------------

Friday, March 11, 2005

DFW ice storm adventure

I'm catching up on some journal reading and I've just gotta share the link to this really funny journal entry from a favourite journal read Picky-Eater. I can't stop laughing....
Posted by etherealfire :: 6:26 PM :: 0 Comments:   

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---------------oOo--------------- Music for Inner Healing

Last night I stumbled upon an interview at news for the soul with New Age Composer Steve Halpern that took me back to a special time in my life... and rediscovering the music and that time once again, has made me realize that I need to reconnect to it and to my very hungry and anxious heart and soul.

I posted a more detailed entry about it at my online journal.

I'm currently zenning to the sounds of his 1988 Crystal Suite, which I can't find listed at his site, but I'm beginning to think that maybe it is one of the CD's listed there but with a different name. Haven't figured out which one it is yet, though.

I haven't felt this relaxed in a good long while. I just hope that I can energize enough for the homework session I'm going to be engaged in with Suzanne in a couple of hours. I feel like I'm about to float away, but who I am to argue with this kind of ethereal bliss. :-)
Posted by etherealfire :: 3:58 PM :: 0 Comments:   

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---------------oOo--------------- The Cost of Privatization

The Common Wealth Fund's Report on The Cost of Privatization: Extra Payments to Medicare Advantage Plans.

Overview

This issue brief updates an earlier analysis published by The Commonwealth Fund that examined Medicare payments in 2004 to Medicare Advantage private plans relative to the costs of traditional fee-for-service Medicare. Using data from the 2005 Medicare Advantage Rate Calculation Data spreadsheet, the authors calculate that payments to Medicare Advantage plans in 2005 will average 7.8 percent more than costs in traditional Medicare—or $546 for each of the 5 million Medicare enrollees in managed care—for a total of more than $2.72 billion. These figures are similar to the findings reported for 2004. Although the stated objective of policies to increase the enrollment of beneficiaries in private plans is to lower total Medicare costs, provisions in the 2003 Medicare law explicitly increase Medicare costs in 2005 and for future years through at least 2013.

Found via the always informative AirAmerica Radio Al Franken Blog.
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---------------oOo---------------

Thursday, March 10, 2005

an observation: the death of romance

I don't know how, or why I missed this beautiful post before, but I did. If you've never read anything from Stupid Beautiful Lies before, now is your chance. This is great writing, great story-telling and I predict you won't be able to stop reading after just one entry!
Posted by etherealfire :: 1:37 AM :: 0 Comments:   

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---------------oOo--------------- a confirmed hippie chick


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---------------oOo--------------- good karma

You Have Good Karma

In general, you like to do the right thing when it comes to others. Your caring personality really shines through. Sure, you have your moments of weakness - and occasionally act out. But, all in all, you're karma is good... even with those few dark sports.

Posted by etherealfire :: 12:07 AM :: 0 Comments:   

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---------------oOo---------------

Wednesday, March 09, 2005

pictures of dubai

Faiza at Pictures in Baghdad has just updated the blog with new photos of Dubai. Go check them out!!!
Posted by etherealfire :: 4:31 AM :: 0 Comments:   

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---------------oOo--------------- animal control?????

found at Dogma; UNBELIEVABLE!!!! I share her sentiments completely.

Now I'm a bird-lover, no question. But the idea of anyone using this excuse to take potshots at cats disgusts me to no end. I just wanna echo the sentiment at Dogma: if you are in an area to be affected by this odious idea, please, please for the safety of your cats, keep them out of harm's way.

And if this repugnant idea becomes legal, it will be just one more sign of the heartless, inhumane society we seem to be ever devolving into...

"Of all the animals, man is the only one that is cruel. He is the only one that inflicts pain for the pleasure of doing it."
~Mark Twain

"He who is cruel to animals becomes hard also in his dealings with men. We can judge the heart of a man by his treatment of animals"
~Immanuel Kant

Posted by etherealfire :: 4:06 AM :: 0 Comments:   

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---------------oOo---------------

Monday, March 07, 2005

a bird's eye view: Downtown Toronto

This is a very cool view! From The Adventures of Accordian Guy in the 21st Century.

And here's an even better view!
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---------------oOo--------------- a trip to Touba

Matt at Benn loxo du taccu has an entry with really lovely pics of a trip to Touba, Senegal. Enjoy it here!
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---------------oOo--------------- Wangari Maathai's Green Belt Movement

This vibrant, fascinating, courageous woman is currently being interviewed by Al Franken and Kathryn Lanpher right now. I heard the links were up so I had to go check them out and post them here. If you can't hear the interview, you are missing something special, but you can find out more about 2004 Nobel Peace Prize recipient Wangari Maathai and her most worthy and honourable Green Belt Movement to get more details on this brave woman's most worthwhile cause.

Found the links at Al Franken's Blog.
Posted by etherealfire :: 11:25 AM :: 0 Comments:   

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---------------oOo---------------

Sunday, March 06, 2005

a sucker for romance



You scored as Romantic Comedy. What the fuck?
You scored Romantic Comedy. You love sappy shit.
You're oblivious to what's happening as long as you have
some guy for eye candy and a happy ending you wish you
could happen in your own life. Time to rent some new movies.

My Comment: Ummmm, nooooooo. not. gonna. happen. :-P

Romantic Comedy		80%
Artistic		75%
Sadistic Humour		65%
Drama/Suspense		55%
Sci-Fi/Fantasy		50%
Mindfuck		50%
Mindless Action Flick		20%

Movie Recommendation.
created with QuizFarm.com
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---------------oOo--------------- a lovely evening

That's what I had last night! We went to Memorial Auditorium last night and listened to the lovely sounds of The Chapman University Chamber Orchestra and had a really wonderful time. For a bit more detail, check out my entry in my poor little infrequently updated journal.
Posted by etherealfire :: 4:56 PM :: 0 Comments:   

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---------------oOo--------------- a bit of amazing visual history

found via NYC a Paris, a link of photographs circa 1910 Paris that captures the overwhelming flood that inundated the city.

The original url source, Photos of the Paris flood, 1910, can be found here.
Posted by etherealfire :: 1:08 PM :: 0 Comments:   

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---------------oOo---------------

Saturday, March 05, 2005

hope comes to Niger

found via a fav blog read, Virushead, there is hope for the end of slavery due to a recent anti-slavery law! Original report at Antislavery.org
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---------------oOo--------------- 58877241 ~ NEVER FORGET

Found at The Daily Kos via Upper Left.

It is so easy to intellectualize things so "far" in the past; things that we may never have personally experienced. That's why the stories of those that have are so precious and so very significant to the world. They give the gift of their experience to us as real opportunities to bear witness and carry that story and to pass it on to others. And most of all, they provide us with a very real opportunity to learn from it so we can avoid repeating the same terrible tragic mistakes, if only we will listen.

May we never ever forget! And... May We wake up dear America... PLEASE WAKE UP!
Posted by etherealfire :: 6:02 AM :: 0 Comments:   

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---------------oOo---------------

Friday, March 04, 2005

a few reasons to love australia

(if you are me, anyway...)

Australia arguably has the most diverse and fascinating wildlife in the world.

Australia also boasts a rich and fascinating geological history:

Australian Museum Online
Australia's Lost Kingdoms

The Aborigines of Australia hold claim to having "the longest continuous cultural history in the world, with origins dating back to the last Ice Age".

Check out the Aboriginal Australia Art Culture and Didgeridoo.

Two of the 7 natural wonders of the world are The Great Barrier Reef and Uluru aka Ayers Rock.

Some beautiful images of The Great Barrier Reef courtesy of National Geographic.com can be be found here.

Some beautiful images of Ayers Rock can be found here.

One of the most beautiful gems in the world is found in abundance in Australia; some opal linkies:

Gem by Gem Opals
The Australian Museum National Opal Collection
Australian Gem Gallery
Costello's Opals
Wellness Journey Stones and Crystals

Some beautiful images of Australia can be found here.

Former University of New Mexico Lobo (YAY Lobos!!!) and NBA Basketball Star (Timberwolves, Bulls, Suns) Luc Longley hails from and now lives once again in beautiful Perth, Australia.

Australia is the home of some really great rock/pop musicians:

AC/DC, INXS, Jet, Nick Cave, Silverchair, and The Vines to name a few.

And you get a whole new night-sky perspective from the Southern Hemisphere


the beautiful Sydney Opera House
image courtesy Marcel Nieuwpoort
found at the Stock Xchng
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---------------oOo--------------- a history of the bush admin in one sentence

courtesy Will Pitt via truthout
Posted by etherealfire :: 3:32 PM :: 0 Comments:   

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---------------oOo--------------- and just so everyone is on the same page

You can find the listed 14 Characteristics of Fascism right here and right here. And right here:

The 14 characteristics are:

1. Powerful and Continuing Nationalism
Fascist regimes tend to make constant use of patriotic mottos, slogans, symbols, songs, and other paraphernalia. Flags are seen everywhere, as are flag symbols on clothing and in public displays.

2. Disdain for the Recognition of Human Rights
Because of fear of enemies and the need for security, the people in fascist regimes are persuaded that human rights can be ignored in certain cases because of "need." The people tend to look the other way or even approve of torture, summary executions, assassinations, long incarcerations of prisoners, etc.

3. Identification of Enemies/Scapegoats as a Unifying Cause
The people are rallied into a unifying patriotic frenzy over the need to eliminate a perceived common threat or foe: racial , ethnic or religious minorities; liberals; communists; socialists, terrorists, etc.

4. Supremacy of the Military
Even when there are widespread domestic problems, the military is given a disproportionate amount of government funding, and the domestic agenda is neglected. Soldiers and military service are glamorized.

5. Rampant Sexism
The governments of fascist nations tend to be almost exclusively male-dominated. Under fascist regimes, traditional gender roles are made more rigid. Opposition to abortion is high, as is homophobia and anti-gay legislation and national policy.

6. Controlled Mass Media
Sometimes to media is directly controlled by the government, but in other cases, the media is indirectly controlled by government regulation, or sympathetic media spokespeople and executives. Censorship, especially in war time, is very common.

7. Obsession with National Security
Fear is used as a motivational tool by the government over the masses.

8. Religion and Government are Intertwined
Governments in fascist nations tend to use the most common religion in the nation as a tool to manipulate public opinion. Religious rhetoric and terminology is common from government leaders, even when the major tenets of the religion are diametrically opposed to the government's policies or actions.

9. Corporate Power is Protected
The industrial and business aristocracy of a fascist nation often are the ones who put the government leaders into power, creating a mutually beneficial business/government relationship and power elite.

10. Labor Power is Suppressed
Because the organizing power of labor is the only real threat to a fascist government, labor unions are either eliminated entirely, or are severely suppressed .

11. Disdain for Intellectuals and the Arts
Fascist nations tend to promote and tolerate open hostility to higher education, and academia. It is not uncommon for professors and other academics to be censored or even arrested. Free expression in the arts is openly attacked, and governments often refuse to fund the arts.

12. Obsession with Crime and Punishment
Under fascist regimes, the police are given almost limitless power to enforce laws. The people are often willing to overlook police abuses and even forego civil liberties in the name of patriotism. There is often a national police force with virtually unlimited power in fascist nations.

13. Rampant Cronyism and Corruption
Fascist regimes almost always are governed by groups of friends and associates who appoint each other to government positions and use governmental power and authority to protect their friends from accountability. It is not uncommon in fascist regimes for national resources and even treasures to be appropriated or even outright stolen by government leaders.

14. Fraudulent Elections
Sometimes elections in fascist nations are a complete sham. Other times elections are manipulated by smear campaigns against or even assassination of opposition candidates, use of legislation to control voting numbers or political district boundaries, and manipulation of the media. Fascist nations also typically use their judiciaries to manipulate or control elections.

Copyright © 2003 Free Inquiry magazine
Reprinted for Fair Use Only.
Posted by etherealfire :: 3:13 PM :: 0 Comments:   

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---------------oOo--------------- conservatives lament fascism within GOP

More informative reading found at the Franken blog posted by pasquino; three well worth reading articles from Conservatives who are alarmed by the latent Fascism that is overtaking the GOP:

From The American Conservative, Hunger for Dictatorship:

"But Rockwell (and Roberts and Raimondo) is correct in drawing attention to a mood among some conservatives that is at least latently fascist. Rockwell describes a populist Right website that originally rallied for the impeachment of Bill Clinton as 'hate-filled ... advocating nuclear holocaust and mass bloodshed for more than a year now.' One of the biggest right-wing talk-radio hosts regularly calls for the mass destruction of Arab cities. Letters that come to this magazine from the pro-war Right leave no doubt that their writers would welcome the jailing of dissidents. And of course it’s not just us. When USA Today founder Al Neuharth wrote a column suggesting that American troops be brought home sooner rather than later, he was blown away by letters comparing him to Tokyo Rose and demanding that he be tried as a traitor. That mood, Rockwell notes, dwarfs anything that existed during the Cold War. 'It celebrates the shedding of blood, and exhibits a maniacal love of the state. The new ideology of the red-state bourgeoisie seems to actually believe that the US is God marching on earth—not just godlike, but really serving as a proxy for God himself.' "

~~~Scott McConnell, 02-14-2005

From LewRockwell.com, The Brownshirting of America:

"In language reeking with hatred, Heritage Foundation TownHall readers impolitely informed me that opposing the invasion of Iraq is identical to opposing America, that Bush is the greatest American leader in history and everyone who disagrees with him should be shot before they cause America to lose another war. TownHall’s readers were sufficiently frightening to convince the Heritage Foundation to stop posting my columns.

Bush’s conservative supporters want no debate. They want no facts, no analysis. They want to denounce and to demonize the enemies that the Hannitys, Limbaughs, and Savages of talk radio assure them are everywhere at work destroying their great and noble country. "

~~~Paul Craig Roberts, 10-16-2004

From Counterpunch, Abandoning Liberty; Gaining Insecurity:

"Defenders of the new American police state emphasize that the government's new powers only apply to terrorists. This is disingenuous. The government decides who is a terrorist and does not need to present evidence to back its decision. The person on whom the arbitrary decision falls can be held indefinitely. This is a return to the pre-Magna Carta practice of executive arrest.

Are Americans in such danger of terrorist attacks that they needed to give up legal protections won over eight centuries of struggle against the arbitrary power of governments? Surely not."

~~~Paul Craig Roberts, 02-01-2005

Posted by etherealfire :: 2:34 PM :: 0 Comments:   

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---------------oOo--------------- this blog needs a little more COWBELL!

Found this hilarious link via a post by Vestibule, an Al Franken Blog regular and all around funny guy.

I haven't seen this sketch in a really long time but I gotta say I think it has only improved with age...

BTW, the blog regulars there are some of the smartest, funniest people I've ever had the pleasure to read! Which probably only makes sense considering that it is the blogging home of AirAmerica Radio's Al Franken Show.

If you've got "a fever" for the cowbell; I've got your prescription right here! Enjoy your Friday, beautiful people!
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---------------oOo---------------

Thursday, March 03, 2005

trainspotting: webcam style

Who knew that our own Fullerton station had its own railcam! Here's a couple more.
Posted by etherealfire :: 9:01 PM :: 0 Comments:   

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---------------oOo--------------- the revolution will not be televised

In the last few weeks I've reached a point where I am struggling with my ever-increasing outrage, anger and frustration over the political scene in this country and the apparent lack of interest in our MSM to do their jobs and report it.

As always, Michael at Spontaneous Arising, speaks to my heart and soul at that serendipitous moment that I most need a clear perspective and a little re-direction; this time with a beautiful little essay called Masters of Non-Violence Prescribe a Better Way.

I've perceived that maybe alot of people are feeling this same burnout and frustration and are probably struggling with how to best deal with it all. I've noticed some of my favourite blog reads haven't been updated in quite awhile and some have begun to change the post content to other things besides politics.

I can relate to that and I can also relate to the frustration that goes with the territory of posting and blogging about stories that should be covered intensively by the MSM but instead is completely ignored or given lip service to along with a decidedly skewed spin by the so-called MSM.

It's enough to make one crazy. And I find that I can't live like that day in and day out, days on end, with little hope that the people who need to pay attention are going to do so, and with no alternative other than roll over and forget about it (still completely impossible for me at this point) or pop a coronary over it all.

So I'm trying, for my own sanity, to balance out the political posts with links to the things that bring me joy, enlighten my mind and broaden my horizons.

That doesn't mean that I won't stop posting political items, and when I do, that doesn't mean I will be able to contain my frustration and outrage over alot of it. It just means that I've got to give myself a reason for hope and for inane fun and so I am making this very pointed effort to find things to link to that make me happy. I don't know why I'm saying this, I don't know if anybody really cares or not.

It is just that I'm at this place and I feel a need to express that I'm at this place. I think it would be a big mistake to my psyche to stop posting the political; we can't depend on the MSM to educate anyone, it is going to be up to the grassroots, We the People to find and report and link to reports about what is really going on in this country; it is going to be up to ourselves and each other to feed our heads and work towards an internal revolution of the heart, the mind and the spirit, to bring back real democracy in this country. Somebody has to bear witness to what is going on, so I will be a part of that as much as I can. Gil Scott-Heron who said it so long ago, was incredibly prescient, so very right on target: The revolution will not be televised. The people who courageously and doggedly speak out and keep us informed have to do so despite the corporate bought and owned media, if only to counter-act the complete and total disservice that the media has done to the often uninformed and/or misinformed masses.

But having said that, having acknowledged it, accepted it and in full support of it, I have come to the conclusion that if I don't actively work to celebrate the good that can be found around me, and perhaps share that which can be found as common ground with others at least some of the time, I'm going to become so demoralized and bereft of any hope that I'm afraid I'm going to cease to function.

The truth is that when I began blogging in 2001 (which has long since been purged but in any case...) it was always and only about linking and discussing all the things that interested me. I've always posted about political items along with everything else, but the political focus grew stronger and stronger with every passing day because since 2000, more and more outrageously stupid, morally bankrupt and ethically challenged ideology was rearing its ugly head and it was impossible not to point it out. Somewhere along the way, mainly because of an urgency to try to somehow report and speak out about the increasing madness that our political landscape was taking on, it became the primary focus of most every post I made.

Our political situation remains critical and plenty of good people are addressing that, and far better and more eloquently than I ever could, and so I will continue (probably on a daily basis since I read them faithfully most every day) to point to links of the best of them to help spread the word and keep myself well-informed; and occasionally, because I'm human, I'm guessing that I'm going to go on a rant about the most unbelievable and frustrating news that I come across.

But for the time being, I'm really going to make an effort to go back to the original purpose of my blog and that is to record the adventures of discovering the diverse links that pique my curiosity, feed my spirit and reflect my journey. Just felt the need to address it somehow.
Posted by etherealfire :: 4:46 PM :: 0 Comments:   

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---------------oOo--------------- colmes challenges morally vacuous coulter

and you are there, thanks to Daily Kos' link to Crooks and Liars Video Capture; found link via a fav read, Shameless Agitator.

Savor the moment!
Posted by etherealfire :: 4:18 PM :: 0 Comments:   

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---------------oOo--------------- deconstructing coulter-speak on jeff gannon

Read Genia's clear-eyed analysis over at Sisters Talk.
Posted by etherealfire :: 3:23 PM :: 0 Comments:   

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---------------oOo--------------- the eason jordan debacle

A thoughtful commentary found at Majikthise.
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---------------oOo--------------- cloak of many colours!

bird on the moon posts about yet another great science find!!!
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---------------oOo--------------- long ago and far away

Check out Ang's post about this very cool NASA item!
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---------------oOo---------------

Wednesday, March 02, 2005

queen meets guitar gods

but.... er, um.... how shall I say? DOESN'T. HAVE. A CLUE!!!!! Oh ok, then, maybe that shouldn't be such a shocker....

But... Why, Lord, oh whyyyyyyyyyy couldn't it have been me instead????? Afer all, I know very well who Britain's most priceless national treasures are and fully appreciate the gifts they have given the world... :*( oh well...


Your Majesty, may I introduce you to 4 of the finest guitarists
that have ever graced this planet???? Please????
HRH Queen Elizabeth shakes the hand of the great Jeff Beck
while Eric Clapton, Jimmy Page and Brian May look on


HRH shakes the hand of Jimmy Page, lucky lady!

Found via the lovely and talented and always in the know Led-Zeppelin.com
absolutely the best fan-run Zep site on the planet!!!!
Posted by etherealfire :: 12:37 AM :: 0 Comments:   

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---------------oOo---------------

Tuesday, March 01, 2005

alexandra stoddard: a beautiful life

I discovered Alexandra Stoddard in the mid-80s at the library where I stumbled upon this book.

I felt that I'd found a kindred spirit, and a more self-actualized persona of the soul inside of me longing to get out, a guru, if you will, or maybe a celebrant of that juicy essence of life. I devoured every single book she ever wrote and I collect them like precious gems to this day.

But it looks like I've gotten a bit behind on them, because I don't have this one yet:


Looks like a good one!

A little of the Stoddard wisdom that won me over so completely (from Living a Beautiful Life):

"Instead of rushing through our lives to get somewhere - instead of saving up real living for later - I think it's important to remember that each single day is all we have. Single days experienced fully add up to a lifetime lived deeply and well. Today is your life - not yesterday and not tomorrow. If we have tomorrow, it will be a gift, but what we do today, right now, will have an accumulated effect on all our tomorrows." ~~~A. Stoddard

Posted by etherealfire :: 6:02 PM :: 0 Comments:   

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---------------oOo--------------- anthropologie~summer dreams

Got the summer catalog today. I wish I looked as young and fit and tanned and lovely as the cover girl, I rarely spend that kind of money on clothes and so I don't know how I ended up receiving it.

But I've got to admit I spent several minutes daydreaming about trading places with cover girl, in the middle of summer, in the middle of some exotic and beautiful locale... sigh....

And I really want this ensemble ~~~ um, and I'm talking about the pricey pants and top BTW, not the two accomodating fellas flanking the model, though I'm sure they are very nice guys; though I wouldn't complain if morphing into the model was part of the deal, while I'm wishing... LOL! Mostly, though I found myself wishing I could trade places with her and be sitting there soaking in the environment.

Then I read the last page of the catalog and it states:

"Anthropolgie had the opportunity to photograph this catalog in one of the most magical places we've ever visited: the town of Galle and a nearby fishing village called Unawatuna, on the southern coas of Sri Lanka. We departed three days before the devastating Indian Ocean Tsunami.

The people we met there opened their hearts to us. Our local crew showed us the beauty of their home and imbued the photographs with their innate peace and generosity. We departed with extraordinary memories and genuine new friendships.

We have been in regular contact with the people we worked with, and thankfully, they are safe and working to rebuild their lives; Anthropologie is helping. We know it's a long Journey. This book is dedicated to them and to the people of Sri Lanka."

The images in the catalog are beautiful and Sri Lanka has always been a place I've wanted to visit. Seeing the people and the locale in its beauty and serenity is both moving and heartbreaking. It is gratifying to know that these courageous people persevere through this tragedy. Bless them all...
Posted by etherealfire :: 5:17 PM :: 0 Comments:   

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---------------oOo--------------- Rumsfeld face torture lawsuit

Suit Alleges Rumsfeld Approved Torture

The suit against Rumsfeld focuses on an order he signed on Dec. 2, 2002 that authorized new interrogation techniques for detainees in the "war on terror" being held at Guantanamo Bay in Cuba. These included "stress positions," hooding, 20-hour interrogations, removal of clothing, exploiting phobias, prolonged isolation and sensory deprivation.

When evidence became overwhelming that prisoners were being tortured, Rumsfeld turned a blind eye, the suit alleges.

Posted by etherealfire :: 5:10 PM :: 0 Comments:   

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---------------oOo--------------- budget critics: what would jesus cut?

Commentary from Christian Scientist Monitor Economic Scene's Weekly column.

"Groups critical of the proposed cuts forecast widespread social damage. They say some 300,000 people will lose food-stamp benefits, a cut in child-care assistance will affect 300,000 children, large reductions in housing assistance will leave more people with disabilities and AIDS out in the cold, and 600,000 will be hit by cuts in a supplemental nutrition program. The list goes on." ~~~David R. Francis

Posted by etherealfire :: 4:15 PM :: 0 Comments:   

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---------------oOo---------------