the kinders celebrate the return of the sun
with no coats and fast feet and smiles a mile wide.
—
“i’m youth, i’m joy, i’m a little bird that has broken out of the egg.”
-james m. barrie
Feb25
Feb24
the kinder nap diaries – so many styles, so little sleep.
the downward-facing up on the wall and on your head style
(includes the mysterious vanishing sheets technique)
the get inside of your sheets and try to camouflage yourself in them
while you creep across the floor and think no one will notice style
the fall asleep by accident in spite of yourself
and all of your best efforts to not to style,
while wrapped up in a sweaty and twisted cocoon
made of your own body and bedding.
—
“life is something to do when you can’t get to sleep.”
-fran lebowitz
Feb23
copper, clay, and complaint.
Among the artifacts at the British Museum in London is this ancient Babylonian customer service complaint that was inscribed on a clay tablet sometime around 1750 B.C. The complaint is regarding problems with two shipments of copper ore, as the museum notes in their description:
Clay tablet; letter from Nanni to Ea-nasir complaining that the wrong grade of copper ore has been delivered after a gulf voyage and about misdirection and delay of a further delivery; slightly damaged.
A full translation from the book Letters from Mesopotamia by Assyriologist A. Leo Oppenheim has provided a view into the customer’s complaint. Turns out Nanni was pretty angry:
Tell Ea-nasir: Nanni sends the following message:
When you came, you said to me as follows : “I will give Gimil-Sin (when he comes) fine quality copper ingots.” You left then but you did not do what you promised me. You put ingots which were not good before my messenger (Sit-Sin) and said: “If you want to take them, take them; if you do not want to take them, go away!”
What do you take me for, that you treat somebody like me with such contempt? I have sent as messengers gentlemen like ourselves to collect the bag with my money (deposited with you) but you have treated me with contempt by sending them back to me empty-handed several times, and that through enemy territory. Is there anyone among the merchants who trade with Telmun who has treated me in this way? You alone treat my messenger with contempt! On account of that one (trifling) mina of silver which I owe(?) you, you feel free to speak in such a way, while I have given to the palace on your behalf 1,080 pounds of copper, and umi-abum has likewise given 1,080 pounds of copper, apart from what we both have had written on a sealed tablet to be kept in the temple of Samas.
How have you treated me for that copper? You have withheld my money bag from me in enemy territory; it is now up to you to restore (my money) to me in full.
Take cognizance that (from now on) I will not accept here any copper from you that is not of fine quality. I shall (from now on) select and take the ingots individually in my own yard, and I shall exercise against you my right of rejection because you have treated me with contempt.
—
“if you make the customer a promise, make sure you deliver it.”
-merv griffin
—
credits: british museum, laughing squid, e. lynch, reddit
Feb22
scouts.
whether they are
next to firewood and a weinermobile at a grocery store
or
in front of a hare krishna drum circle on the university diag
the scouts sell on.
“a scout smiles and whistles under all circumstances.”
-robert baden-powell
Feb21
decisions.
grandies j & b make tough decisions.
in the end
it was
the magic collapsable cup and the fairies
that won them over.
both are helpful in emergencies
and
you never know when you will need them.
brilliant choices.
—
“you know, in life there are only three or four
fundamental decisions to make.
the rest is just luck.”
-raymond aubrac
Feb20
who will be our leader?
“if your actions inspire others to dream more, learn more,
do more and become more, you are a leader.”
-john quincy adams (U.S. president 1825-1829)
–
on presidents’ day.
—
image credit: attackofthecute.com
Feb19
just sat down.
—
credits: buzzfeed, googleimages
Feb18
holdouts.
the last holdouts at the grandies’ slumber party at peaches’ (my) cottage.
–
cousins, cartoons, baby golf, talking dogs, books,
made-up group stories, pizza, mac ‘n cheese, apple juice, suckers,
stuffed animals, laughing, whispers,
sleeping bags, pillows, pj’s, flashlights,
and not much sleep.
—
“no one looks back on their life and remembers the nights they got plenty of sleep.”
-author unknown
Feb17
exchange.
staff members of the slovak and slovenian embassies meet once a month to exchange incorrectly addressed mail.
close enough, but alas, two very different places.
i should organize this with my neighbors.
—
‘i believe that the open exchange of information can have a positive global impact.”
-biz stone
—
credit: mental floss
Feb16
short.
we were an audience of six
(including the organ player)
at the beautiful michigan theatre
where we saw some amazing short films
thus proving once again that
sometimes less is more.
“if you have the audience, that is good, that gives you a good motivation!
if you don’t have the audience, that is good, that gives you a good motivation to try to have some!”
― mehmet murat ildan
I didn't have my glasses on.... 