with my tiny home
loaded up
with bushels of nuts and piles of books
ready for the coming season
you’ll often find me sitting
in the quiet of the early morning
with a steaming cup of coffee
tapping away at my blog
telling the day’s story
reading others’ stories
smiling by the light of the screen.
—
“i blog because i’m not a good rapper.”
-gerry l’crow
we worked hard making
butter
and
savory monkey bread
and
gingerbread cookies
it took a team
lots of
shaking ,stirring, rolling. cutting, chopping, spilling, melting, cooking, waiting, cleaning up
loads of fun
little bits of magic
and
a few mishaps
thrown in for good measure
to make
a perfect day of cooking
tomorrow
we set our fancy table
and
sit down together
to share our feast.
—
“no one is born a great cook, one learns by doing.”
-julia child
The scientific power of live music
We’re all familiar with the sense of wonder and joy we experience when we hear a song or piece of music we love, but there’s something even more magical about hearing that song performed live. Although many artists offered streamed performances online during the pandemic, these didn’t quite leave us with the same enchanted feelings as concerts. So what makes live music different? Columbia associate music professor, Mariusz Kozak explains why live music is so powerful.
Live music allows us to experience what philosopher Alfred Schütz called a “mutual tuning in” This term refers to the phenomenon where we experience the passage of time and emotions with others. This is part of the reason humans need social interaction to thrive. When we attend a concert, we’re experiencing the tone of the music—fast, slow, happy, sad—with others around us. This creates a sense of intimacy with the crowd around us. This is also why babies who are bounced in time to music with an adult display more altruism towards that person.
This pleasurable effect gained from synchronizing with those around us is what makes live music and dance so powerful. Although most people probably relate to this feeling when remembering their favorite concert, this feeling is not limited to conventional music. It can also be experienced through collective visual synchronization. In the deaf community, facial gestures and movements are to convey emotions in music performance. The collective interpretation of the emotions behind these facial gestures also promotes a sense of unity.
The Blackfeet in North America use the same word to refer to music, dance, and ceremony, indicating the essential role of gathering to fully appreciate the benefits of music. Close friends can even experience this synchronization when walking or talking together.
Experiencing music in the presence of others cultivates a feeling of unity and empathy within us which exceeds anything we could experience by ourselves. As we head back to in-person concerts and relish this feeling once again, know that the true power of the music you’re hearing might not come from the artist, but in fact your fellow concert goers.
—
“There is a high that comes from live shows,
a collective energy in a large group of people all gathered for one reason.
The beat slices through the melodies and then drops;
the crowd bounces and undulates like ripples of water.”
—
credits: the conversation, beth daly, Columbia University Mariusz Kozak
they quite naturally
are always busy
little hands
hunting and gathering
collecting, counting, carrying
organizing, sorting,
moving, lining up
until it feels and looks just right.
or until recess ends.
whichever comes first.
and then there is a mad rush
to fill pockets, and mittens, and hands
with as much as they can hold
treasure to be transported home
to go through the whole process again.
—
“we used to be hunter-gatherers, now we’re shopper-borrowers.”
-robin williams
https://www.facebook.com/watch?v=787006252392996
Reindeer under the aurora
—
“i always believe that the sky is the beginning of the limit.”
-MC Hammer
Almost Edible, 106-Year-Old Fruitcake Found in Antarctica
Even the original owners didn’t want to eat it.
Fruit cake found at Cape Adare thought to be from Scott’s Northern Party (1911)
IT’S NOT THAT UNCOMMON RE-FINDING forgotten holiday fruitcake months after the event. More surprising, though, is when it’s over a century old. Conservators from the New Zealand-run Antarctic Heritage Trust found themselves faced with this kind of a figgy phenomenon while recently excavating an abandoned hut some 2,500 miles from the South Pole. Cape Adare, at Antarctica’s northeastern tip, was an important landing site and base camp used by early Antarctic explorers.
Made by the British brand Huntley & Palmers, which still exists today, the cake was wrapped in its original paper and stored in a tin-plated iron alloy box. While the tin had begun to deteriorate, the cake was in near-perfect condition and, according to the researchers, still looked “almost edible”.
In a statement, Lizzie Meek, the Trust’s Programme Manager-Artefacts, described the cake as “an ideal high-energy food for Antarctic conditions, and still a favorite item on modern trips to the Ice.” Despite that, researchers manage to hold off snacking on their discovery, which apparently smelled like “rancid butter”. In fact, the hut contained the best part of a picnic: sardines, “badly deteriorated” meat and fish and some more appealing “nice looking” jams.
In 1910, the British explorer Robert Falcon Scott made an ill-fated expedition to reach the South Pole and, on the way, explore the continent’s uncharted wastelands. The Heritage Trust believes the cake dates from his endeavor, known as the Terra Nova Expedition after the supply ship.
Conservators from the Trust have been working on restoring and documenting almost 1500 artifacts from the Cape for the past year. Once they’ve finished their conservation efforts, everything will be returned to the Ice for future explorers to find and enjoy—though they may want to avoid sampling the fruitcake.
—
“this is true; virtually all edible substances, and many automotive products,
are now marketed as being low-fat or fat- free. americans are obsessed with fat content.
-dave barry
—
credits: antarctic heritage trust, natasha frost, gastro obscura
the tiny drinking fountain in our room
had been shut off for over 2 years
as a precautionary measure due to covid.
this year
one kinder, a young 3
decided he was going to fix it
fidgeting with it every day
without any tools
looking under it and all around it
pushing the button
day after day
he never stopped trying
nothing happened
until
one day we came in
noticed it was working
(perhaps a building elf had stopped by after school)
i took our little fixer over to see it
showed him the water coming out
told him he must have finally fixed it!
hard to imagine
the look of shock and joy on his face
to see it working
after all of his hard work
and refusal to give up
the class now celebrates him as a hero
and use the fountain every day
he proudly checks on it often
his face still amazed every time.
—
“i’m good at figuring out how things work, but I don’t know how this happened.”
-nora roberts, the collector
not olive and i,
but similar to what went down when we wrapped gifts together
i apologize in advance for any cat hair in the tape.
==
“a wonderful gift may not come wrapped as you expect.”
-johnathon lockwood huie
—
photo credit: getty images- 1938
on the very first day
of my new and improved
healthy eating and exercise initiative
a rogue chocolate-covered raisin
emerged from hiding
under a blanket on my sofa
where it had quietly sat
lying in wait
for me to discover it
i stopped
breathless
knowing this tiny temptation
was a test
oh, what a test
who would know
just one
practically a fruit and coffee/cacao product
dark chocolate and fruit are both good for my heart
who cares if there’s a bit of blanket fuzz on it
that’s just added fiber
could this be the gateway
to a slice of triple-layer chocolate cake or velveta-laden nachos?
not today, fuzzy amazing hidden chocolate-covered raisin, not today.
the struggle is real.
—
i looked to the writers to seek their wisdom
they have a difference of opinion on this.
are you on team wilde or team emerson when it comes to temptation?
“i can resist everything except temptation.”
-oscar wilde
“we gain the strength of the temptation we resist.”
-ralph waldo emerson
I didn't have my glasses on.... 