1. Hairstyles of The Damned by Joe Meno (1.12)
12.27.2009
2009 Reading List (Final)
1. Hairstyles of The Damned by Joe Meno (1.12)
11.25.2009
Reading, Writing, and Resolutions.
In January, Dallas resolved to read at least 52 novels before the end of the year. In a well-intentioned-but-fallacious attempt to 'improve her mind',* she planned to read a lot of musty, canonical "masterpieces."
Around the same time, she also started seriously working on her novel, a Sci-Fi/Fantasy story for Young Adults. Her goal is to finish said novel by the end of January, 2010.
In April, someone helped her remember the name of the series of books she fell in love with as a child (The Obernewtyn Chronicles), but was too broke to order them. Instead, she decided to try and actually finish** Ulysses because:
1. it's widely hailed as THE definitive work of Modernist Literature;It took her a month to finish 110 pages, at which point she realized that:
2. Lots of authors, musicians, and films she genuinely enjoys are somehow inspired by Ulysses; and, most importantly,
3. she already owned a copy.
1. she is a college drop-out, which means that she doesn't even need to know what a literary movement is;
2. her enjoyment of things inspired by Ulysses in no way hinges upon her having actually read Ulysses; and, most importantly,
3. she fucking hates Ulysses.
* Those were her exact words, which just goes to show that she'd already been spending too much time with the likes of Austen and Tolstoy.
** Marking her 3rd attempt to read it
get diagnosed with cancer, get hit by a car, get in a car accident, go to jail, knock her teeth out while walking up or down stairs, run over a dog, spill a vat of acid on her face thereby horribly disfiguring herself and marring her soul, contract conjunctivitis, or get eaten alive by ants.†††††† And for all that, she's grateful. Happy Thanksgiving.
10.14.2009
You know that period between the day someone dies and the day their family finally changes the answering machine, when you can call & pretend they're just on vacation? So you call, just because you know in a week or so, you'll never hear that person's voice again, and there is something horribly final in that thought? Even if you weren't very close with that person, but remembered him or her fondly, as someone who was always... well, always so fucking nice?
That's a weird period.
9.04.2009
8.01.2009
Bitch & Moan.
Am stuck in a Greyhound station. They overbooked the bus by ONE FUCKING PERSON (me), and I have no connections to make, so I'm the lowest priority. There you go.
Of course, this is par for my life, so I'm not really surprised...
This week sucks.
7.08.2009
Re-Entering the 'Sphere.
As you may have noticed, I'm blogging a lot less these days. This is partially Twitter's fault, in that a constant stream of 140-character-or-less updates more or less eliminates the need for a longer, weightier update. But and also furthermore, it's summer, which means: if the sun is shining and I'm not at work, chances are, you'll find me on a quilt, surrounded by a stack of books and a journal, hanging out in a park somewhere. I like writing outdoors, and since I've been trying to write-write by hand, it's kind of happened that I'm journaling by hand again as well. As it happens, it's overcast and raining today, so I'm blogging.
The other reason I've disappeared from the blogosphere is that I've been trying cut down on extraneous writing and focus on The Novel, whis is moving along splendidly. Well... perhaps not splendidly. I'm writing at a leisurely pace, to be sure, but with fewer major hurdles than before. I understand my characters now, which eliminates the aggravating hours spent trying to figure out their motivations/how they would react, etc. The plot is decided, so the question of "what happens next?" only pertains to minor sub-plots. Names have been given, attributes fixed, conversations planned. So, as far as I'm concerned, things are splendid. From here on out, it's just actually writing (and minor details) that stand between me and its completion.
I'm beginning to wish that I had paid more attention in my (earth) science classes, or that I had taken a college-level geology class; as it turns out, rocks and their formations are entirely foreign to me. Thus therefore, a lot of my time is spent researching. "Roadside Geology of Montana" is an amazing read for the similarly afflicted (read: for those whose knowledge of geology is limited to "That rock is brown"), in that it's incredibly informative while simultaneously being incredibly readable.
In other news, I'm currently obsessed with the Nomura's Jellyfish.
As I understand it, Nomura's Jellyfish can grow to over 6 ft in diameter and weigh over 200 lbs. Recently, they've become to Japanese fishing waters what rabbits are to Australia, in that they're overpopulating and completely taking over formally fertile fishing grounds. And hunting them doesn't help. From Wikipedia:
The problem with combating the jellyfish is that when they are under attack or killed, they release billions of sperm or eggs which connect in the water and attach to rocks or coral formations. When the conditions are favorable the creatures detach from their home, millions at a time, and grow into more jellyfish.
Don't ask me why, but this Jellyfish could be my new favorite animal. I think they're amazing.
Let's see, what else? Um... Someone dumped a vat of hot grease on my arm today; I have a pretty little blister bracelet to show for it. Woot woot. Annie got married. I'm completely in Love (capital "L") with Yellowstone National Park. And my cat, with whom I'm not very popular at the moment: Moy rolled in something stanky, which necessitated bathing him. Thus, the blister bracelet is actually covering a series of scratches... Here're some pictures of said feline:
Oh, and I want this:
Ok. That's all, that's it. Have a nice day.
6.30.2009
On Jokes Not Understood.
I said, "Where's Epona when you need her?" And then started humming "Epona's Song."
Mel and Sue looked at me like I was insane.
(Pretend that Death Mountain is Queen's Laundry Geyser and you'll have a pretty accurate portrayal of the field Mel, Sue and I got lost in. Also, instead of Poe, pretend the bison materialize out of nowhere.)
That was my trip to Yellowstone.
More when I get pictures from our adventure, I imagine.
6.22.2009
Chain of Blame.
Writing is how I justify not working.
Blogging is how I justify not writing.
Tweeting is how I justify not blogging.
I get very little done these days.
6.21.2009
Inspiration Beard.
Sometimes (like today), I get really down about not being able to grow a beard. Ok, honestly now: I'm never really down about not being able to grow a beard. I lied. But I do want to write a book compiled of short stories: one story for each of these men.
From Matt Rainwater's "Beardfolio" via NOTCOT.
6.20.2009
Wait... What?
Does that mean they slept together? Because if so, I may never listen to She & Him again.
[P.S. Ok, now I feel like a crazy, stalker-ish type fan. So I want to make it clear that I'm kidding. And also, this song is in my head right now:
But, to be fair, that's been in my head for a couple of days.]
6.03.2009
To the Morbidly Obese Lady Who Lectured Me at Work Today:
Where the fuck do you get off preaching to me about how I've defiled the sanctity of 'my temple' by getting tattoos? I'm sure that the giraffe on my upper arm is far less 'offensive in the sight of god' than the fact that the fat curtain that is your upper arm is playing a never-ending game of 'hide the elbow.' The temporary pain I suffered through to get my tattoos pales in comparison to the damage the 300 extra pounds you're carrying around is having on your joints and organs, to say nothing of how much it's going to hurt when you have to go in for your third triple bypass.
And don't insult my intelligence by telling me you have a fucking thyroid problem. You don't have a thyroid problem. You ordered over 3 pounds of food for lunch, not including the three sides of sour cream you want to go with it. You're a fucking fat-ass with an eating disorder, not someone with a legitimate medical problem. God also hates liars, you know.
Here's your Macho Diet Coke. Enjoy your fucking lunch.
-Dallas
5.17.2009
This Week's Inspiration Board.
Shit I love this week. Click images to see 'em larger.
J. Morgan Puett's Chicken Coup:
Amanda's Autopsies:
The Selby:
The Malplaquet House (Photographed by Barry Lewis):
These images (which I would cite if I could, but saved without putting the source in the file notes):
And these websites (that I can't be bothered doing photo-collages for):
Thierry W. Despont at The Marlborough Gallery
Oh, and whomever loves me the most can buy me this.
5.16.2009
It Seems Like
the second the sun goes down, I start making bad decisions.
And I don't stop making them until the sun comes up.
5.15.2009
On My Fingers, Please (April Showers, May Flowers).
Soap knuckles from Spye Designs.
"Growing Jewelry" from Hafsteinn Juliusson