May 14th, 2008
Mal was found in the garden, unhatched, and incubated by a black chicken. She came later than the rest, towards the end of the summer, once they had already fledged and left the hen house. It was clear she was a mallard, not a muscovy, and with that the decision was made. A week later she was standing in our kitchen, peeping and looking around curiously, the hen house replaced with a Japanese apartment. We nervously welcomed her, like new parents, attempting to erase the chicken imprint and raise her with an affinity towards people (or at least us).
Mal loved the camera from day one.
Read the rest of this entry »
May 6th, 2008
Things that are bizarrely out of proportion give me the weebie-jeebies. As a kid, weird images would pop into my head as I was drifting off to sleep, like a massively over-sized tire, and I’d go all weebie-jeebie. Usually I could counteract this by shifting position - laying with my face on the pillow and my butt in the air - which generally normalized size and stopped the spin. I’m drawn to Salvador Dali’s ‘The Elephants’ because it induces a very similar effect, and also euphoria, making me secretly want to own a copy so I can careen by it in bliss.
Read the rest of this entry »
May 2nd, 2008
It’s been two years and one month (give or take) since my last blog post. I took a break for a while though I’m not exactly sure why. In retrospect it might have been the silencing effect of button-down shirts, or maybe there just wasn’t much to say. If I wanted to be really self-deprecating I’d tell you I forgot how to talk. The truth is, as always, more mundane than that: I had a bad case of tunnel vision. You know the kind, so bad that even your mind huddles to the front of your head, right behind the eyes, and you feel like you are running all the time? I don’t think I have to remind anyone of the fact that it’s damn hard to write while running, and I’m nobody to buck convention. In the meantime, two years have slipped by with nary a peep, until this spring, when I remembered how to mosey.
Read the rest of this entry »
April 30th, 2008
August 21st, 2006
I think we can all agree that magnetic coupling is pretty cool. But in popular culture, when you say ‘transformer’, people automatically think of robots that turn into cars or dinosaurs and battle each other for control of the universe (which is also pretty cool). In an effort to bring the other kind of transformer some pop-culture recognition I drafted up a t-shirt and submitted it to threadless but it was, not surprisingly, rejected. I’ll probably silkscreen this by hand, unless more people might be interested in the shirt. Here is the current concept:
Along the same lines, I think bunnyhero should put his Snakes On A… design on a t-shirt as well.
August 7th, 2006
Andy is our resident batcow who also doubles as small demon in our tabletop Vampire sessions (he even has his own stat sheet). I first stumbled across Andy sitting on a table in an innocuous homegoods store in downtown Hamamatsu. The moment I saw him I knew he was coming home with me, that cute little belly and expressive little face were just irresistible. He generally wanders around the house being cute, enjoys movies, and sometimes goes a little ballistic if chocolate is around. Oh, and he likes margaritas.
Read the rest of this entry »
July 17th, 2006
The rainy season has come and gone, replaced by a blazingly hot, humid, and repressive summer. The days are now averaging around 35º C, hot enough to render yours truly into a lifeless piece of flesh lounging about in her underwear in front of two electric fans. Cold showers provide temporary relief from the oppressive heat, as does a trip to the local combini, where we can bask in the coolness of regulated temperatures while browsing for chocolates and canned oxygen. For extended relief we head to the river, where cooling waters have an undisputed and rejuvenating effect on tired summer bodies. As it’s too hot to continue typing, the narrative will henceforth be strictly visual.
Read the rest of this entry »
July 16th, 2006
July 9th, 2006
It’s been quiet around here, and I only have World of Warcraft to blame. I still bathe on a regular basis and haven’t given up my day job (yet), but I forget to eat and am incredibly moody when the server is having problems (more often than not on Khaz’goroth).
Read the rest of this entry »
June 27th, 2006
The West has always lagged behind Japan when it comes to technological innovation, especially in the realm of robots and heated toilet seats. Humanoid machines and warm bums are indeed exciting, but pale in comparison to the unsung combini (convience store), whose shopping experience Japan has elevated to an artform. And the Pièce de résistance? Canned oxygen.
Read the rest of this entry »
