it’s been two years
—
“and the sunflowers are an eternity in themselves.
let them embrace our dreams and invigorate our hope evermore.”
* bhuwan thapalia
*Bhuwan Thapaliya is a nepalese poet writing in english.
he is an economist and is the author of four poetry collections.
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photo credit: hollie adams, getty
saw one of my hitchcock favorites for yet another time
a psychological thriller
that never gets old
but does continue to get creepier.
—
“i’m a typed director. if i made cinderella, the audience would immediately be looking for a body in the coach.”
-alfred hitchcock
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art credits: warner brothers pictures, 1951
“look, i made a map! and it goes right to my house!”
—
‘the most expressive part of the body when it comes to art.
for a child, their hands often become their voice.’
-the art of creativity
not my salad, but what i sure was hoping for
—
craving a fresh greek salad
cut and chopped
the ingredients
added
a lovely greek dressing
mixed it all together
dug in
ready for this fresh taste
but somehow not as good
as when i get it made
by my fav greek coney restaurant
even though
i use the same ingredients
put it in the bowl the same way
something is lost in translation.
—
the korean word son-mat describes the specific, irreplaceable flavor of someone else’s cooking.
it’s what was missing when we attempt to recreate our favorite dishes at home.
apes playfully tease each other just like humans
Joking around is a key element of human interaction — one that starts emerging in babies as young as 8 months old, before they can even speak. Now, a new study is suggesting that the human instinct to play goes further back than previously thought.
An international team of cognitive biologists and primatologists documented playful teasing in the four species of great apes: orangutans, chimpanzees, bonobos, and gorillas. They identified 18 distinct teasing behaviors, indicating that “the prerequisites for humor evolved in the human lineage at least 13 million years ago,” per a press release.
“Similar to teasing in children, ape playful teasing involves one-sided provocation, response waiting in which the teaser looks toward the target’s face directly after a teasing action, repetition, and elements of surprise,” explained lead author Isabelle Laumer.
The concept of playful primates isn’t new — Jane Goodall previously documented such behavior — but this is the first study to systematically analyze it. “We hope that our study will inspire other researchers to study playful teasing in more species in order to better understand the evolution of this multifaceted behavior,” Laumer said.
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“the very essence of playfulness is an openness to anything that may happen,
the feeling that whatever happens, it’s okay…
you’re either free to play, or you’re not.”
-john cleese
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source credits: Proceedings of the Royal Society, Laumer, Winkler, Rossano, Cartmill
photo credit: anup shah, getty
dealing with a bad sciatic nerve episode
over a few days
i tried waiting it out
only getting worse instead of better
to the point where it affected my leg
shooting pains
hard to even sit down
a knee refusing to bend
after trying many strategies to solve this
all to no avail
i sought out an expert
a therapeutic massage and body work practitioner
did a lot of reading
found just who i needed
a strong eastern european therapist
with a small practice
close to home
personalized for each client
luckily she had a spot for me
when i arrived we talked for a while
she explained
what she could offer
how she worked with olympic swimmers
and others whose lifestyles or vocations or circumstances
led them to have body pains and challenges
how the body is all connected
one thing impacts the others
it would not be easy
but i would find relief
me explaining
my medical history
current issues
goals for the visit
she assessed
how i
walked, moved, sat, stood
then we began
in a quiet and warm room
calming music and dimmed lighting
i had booked an hour and a half visit
knowing that i needed a lot of work
like nothing i’ve ever experienced
she was very physically strong
moving and realigning my body
in ways that i didn’t know it was possible to do
some of it hurt, as expected
she told me to tell her if it felt like too much
but i really wanted relief
so knew i had to try to endure it
i fell into a kind of relaxed state
lost all sense of time
in spite of the intensity
when it was all over
she mentioned a few things:
she had gone a little over our planned appointment
it had actually taken 2 1/2 hours
my body was so resistant
that i fought her much of the time
why she had to take water breaks
i had even inched up off the table
trying to escape?
survival instinct?
i asked if it was like wrestling with a bear
she laughed
covered me with hot towels to relax my muscles
i’m quite sure she must have been exhausted
told me all of the places that she could tell were tense
including my feet
not even mentioned in our conversation
also clear that i drink a lot of coffee
i now should feel better
when i stepped off the table
it was like a miracle
i was no longer hobbled
i could bend my knee
put weight on both legs
move without pain
all pain was gone
we had a conversation after
where she told me
the best ways for my body
to sit, stand, walk, run, eat
to keep it healthy and strong
told me to drink water after this long session
no extra charge
for the hard work, extra time, or helpful conversations
she had me stand again
i thanked her profusely
for taking my pain
changing how i treat my body moving ahead
i almost cried
maybe i’ll even become an olympic swimmer.
——
“massage is the study of anatomy in braille.”
– jack meagher
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photo credit : catster
like me when driving at night, or writing, if you added in a pair of glasses and fingers crossed,
knowing i’ll get there somehow, not sure exactly when, and just trusting the process
—
‘writing is like driving a car at night.
you can see only as far as your headlights,
but you can make the whole trip that way.”
-e.l. doctrow
always enjoyed bob marley
the new biopic musical film about him
was a bit disjointed
but
leads were very good
his message stood strong
music was a great bonus
especially loved the real footage at the end.
—
“love the life you live, live the life you love.”
-bob marley
—
image credit: paramount pictures
happy it’s friday
and have everything i need for my *book club with friends tomorrow.
(*we love books, sometimes read the same ones, and enjoy sharing our real life stories)
on my way…
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“it wasn’t until my fifth or sixth book where i realized i’m trying to do the same thing in every story I tell,
which is bring everybody together in the same room.”
-Kate dDiCamillo,
*kate is an american children’s fiction author. she has published over 25 novels, including Because of Winn-Dixie, The Tiger Rising, The Tale of Despereaux, The Miraculous Journey of Edward Tulane, The Magician’s Elephant, the Mercy Watson series, and Flora & Ulysses. John Newberry Medal winner.
while kate’s books are geared toward children and young adults, her books appeal to all ages. i find her writing incredibly beautiful and she is one of my favorite authors.
—
photo credit: etsy vintage
how interesting to see how different cultures/languages might start their books. the last one is pure fun.
how do stories start in your culture/language?
—
how some have responded:
Hungarian tales mix a lot of them, but my favourite is like: “Once upon a time, where it wasn’t, far beyond the glass mountain, where the short-tailed piglet roams, there lived a(n)….”
My mother used to say “When Donkeys wore high hats and Hyde Park was a flower pot “
Romanian : “There was once, as if never, because if it weren’t, the story wouldn’t be told”
—
“we are the storytelling animal. “
-salman rushdie
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source credits: StoreyBook reviews, erma bombeck writers workshop
I didn't have my glasses on.... 