Space is a big place.  The wings, the wild, the vacuum, the nothing, the rant. 

If you teleported to a random point in the galaxy, chances are you would not find yourself inside a planet or even a star.  You would very likely end up in those in-between spots.  Space is mostly empty.  That's why it's called "space", not "stuff".  Stuff tends not to be empty.

Scientists thought they had invented a new medium when they created Hollow Stuff.  It was stuff, to be sure, but was mostly empty.  Then a philosopher realized that it was in fact, bottled space.  Space inside Stuff.  This revolution in philosphical science, this whole new way of thinking, was underwhelming.

Magic is the power of the mind, psionics.  It is the prophecy that fulfills itself.

Angels are curious creatures. Who really created them?  The Judeo-Christian deity?  I don't believe it.  Angels are a class of supernatural or spiritual beings who seem to have a fondness for working with humans. This way of thinking permits their existence and their archetypes without the need for much theological underpinning.

These may seem familiar; I have taken poetic license with some to suit me. I'm polytheistic in an eclectic-agnostic sort of way.

Most of these are Celtic.
( Read more... )

My brain has this unusual way of entertaining itself. I don't want to forget these.

* Recording a video of E. performing Aikido moves from behind a colored sheet (as a shadow). Edit in scenes of E.'s shadow yawning, stretching, and drinking tea to make it all look easy, Globetrotter style.

* Using voice changing effects in Halloween tracks (I know, duh, but it never occurred to me how fun that might be.)

Music: Neophyte - 13 Jaar Terreur De Megamix CD1. It's Gabber crap, but suits my gremlin-mood.

Have you ever been there?  (You = whoever is reading this.)  It's an amateur astronomers' convention. 

http://stellafane.org/convention/2009/index.html

I get a call from my kid (he's in the 7-10 age range) today.  It went a little something like this...

"Dad, don't freak out, and don't call poison control." 
"Ohhkayyy.  Why, what's up?"
"I ate a rattlesnake."
"The whole thing?"
"No, just a piece of it."
"Did you eat the venom sacs?"
"No."
"Was it cooked?"
"Yes."
(Phew.)  "What did it taste like?"
"Now, I'm being serious when I say this.  It tasted like chicken.  Although it was kind of chewy, like steak."
"So it was like chewy chicken?"
"No, it was rubbery."

"So, rattlesnake tastes like rubber chicken."

Just don't smack me with it when I blog nonsense.

My discovery process went like this...

Desire for social expansion > MeetUp.com > Guard Up! Family Swordsmanship... in Burlington, MA > Yahoo! Yellow Pages search for martial arts closer by > Tae kwon do schools (largely Korean, very popular in Lowell) > an American Gyo-Ryu school in Lowell > Wikipedia research + Interest in Japan + Interest in disabling but not harming opponent + Interest in "softer" martial arts > Aikido.

While Aikido Jinsei Dojo sensei Mark Chiapetta does point out some of the attack vectors when teaching, Aikido is largely defensive in nature.  The aikidoka (practitioner) responds to aggression by harmonizing with (redirecting) the aggressor's actions.  The objective is to safely neutralize the aggressor's ability to cause harm.  This safety is the concern of the aikidoka for the self and for the aggressor.

If I ever work in the healthcare field, this could be a very useful skill.  Sometimes patients are violent, especially in Emergency Departments.  Being able to subdue and restrain such a person without causing harm to anyone is a very valuable skill.

On another note, I am quite sore from yesterday's training.  I'm not sure how much I can endure for tomorrow's training.  I plan to go early and at least talk to sensei about getting a uniform and about wishing to be on the mat for reduced training and for practicing etiquette.  When resting during training, it is customary to sit (shikko?) on one's knees and toes at one of the mat's edges.  Unfortunately, I'm not sure how long I could stand to be in that position.

Edit 2009-06-30: I trained in a pair of sweat pants, not jeans.

Oh neg I she moss?  (Onegai shimasu?  The u at the end is nearly silent.)

I arrive at the dojo about seven minutes late.  I sheepishly open the door, hoping that class is not yet in session.  It is not.  I had already changed to my training clothes before arriving, a pair of jeans sweat pants and a T-shirt.  I remove my shoes and socks, empty my pockets, and step onto the mat for the first time.

Sensei Mark Chiapetta and student T. arrive from the changing room.  T. gives me a quick overview of dojo etiquette, a great deal of which I forget.  I am not an audio learner.  I learn to kneel on my knees and toes.  We sit facing sensei and the picture of Osensei (the creator of Aikido).  Students of lower seniority sit on the left side, on sensei's right.

Next we perform some serious stretching exercises.  I extend my knees just beyond their normal limits and bend into uncomfortable situations.  I am very much out of shape, and I have low endurance, so I start panting during the stretches.  Sensei admonishes me to take slower breaths, because this is the part of the lesson that is supposed to be relaxing and meditative.  But to me, it feels like low impact aerobics.

Sensei moves on to instruct me in performing safe falls.  I learned how to fall from a sitting (on knees) position and to roll gently onto my back.  We then learned some basic maneuvers:  walking, turning, and defense against an attacker who is trying to grab one of the defender's wrists.  We practice many techniques for the wrist grabbing.

Near the end of the lesson, I feel very dehydrated.  It affects my ability to concentrate and practice well.  I believe sensei noticed this, and moved us to the ceremony that marks the end of the lesson.  After that, T. practices sword techniques with sensei while I literally bow out.

When I get home, it is difficult to climb the stairs.  My muscles won't move.  Rising from a seated position is difficult.  It is not (yet) a matter of pain, but of the new rigidity in my muscles.  I actually fall on my face after trying to get up from the couch.  I find the situation very, very funny.  My partner kotarusromanus is very concerned, but I assure him that I am OK.  For the rest of the evening, I am careful when I stand up.

I suspect I will be sore tomorrow.

Overall, it was a good experience.  I have some trouble with the one-way communication style of traditional Aikido training.  As long as the instructor and my fellow students are patient with me, I think it will be fine.

"Onegai shimasu" is roughly translated to "let us train together to improve our futures".  Students usually say this to a partner before practicing a technique.  Every such encounter occurs many times in the dojo during a lesson.

I'm off to my first Aikido lesson. Supposedly I'll learn etiquette and body mechanics. More after I get back.

This one didn't put up much of a fight until it was over land. It broke the line while kotarusromanus was trying to remove the hook! It then flopped around and landed itself in a small hole in the ground. I didn't know what to do... kotarusromanus immediately knew that we had gardening gloves buried in our gear. He expertly used them to recover his catch.

We eventually managed to remove the hook and return it to the river. It darted away, healthy.

This is the biggest one kotarusromanus has caught in Massachusetts so far. I would be surprised if we catch another of this size today. That would be excellent.

Kota caught this little guy and threw him back. Awww. :-)

I added a whole bunch of local people (mostly strangers) as LJ-friends.  If you are reading this, you are likely a victim.  :-)

Does anyone want to share what they think of mass-adding?

Update June 26, 2009:  I will no longer honor requests to remove people from my friends list.  Odds are, I'll just add you back again in the future.  If you are listed as one of my friends, that means I might be reading and/or commenting in your public journal.  If this upsets you, please research the concepts of being a friend of someone versus having someone as a friend, the friends page, journal- and entry-level protection, comment screening, and banning; and then see if it still bothers you.  Thanks.

I've always been an introvert.  I prefer the company of fewer friends with whom I share a deeper connection.  Parties make me nervous.  Being alone in a new group of people can be nervewracking.  I'm not antisocial or socially inept, thought.  Hit the right topic (say, faster than light travel versus special relativity), I'll get a gleam in my eye and might even become chatty.

I had some very good friends in high school and college.  I was homophobic then.  The ones I was closest to were also the most homophobic due to our religious and political affiliations.  We didn't want to annihilate gays, but we didn't want them practicing their love, either.

I had always been a somewhat effeminate boy, but when I came out as pansexual (some would say bisexual) and presented more androgynously, it made a lot of friendships tense and uneasy on both sides. 

Most of my friendships since then have seemed more temporary.  I'm not yet comfortable to explain that, but it had a lot to do with distance, rising gas prices, and having my unofficial domestic partner move in.

There is so much more I could write on this, but I need to get going.

It has been a couch potato kind of day ...

Battlestar Galactica (2005)
Cosplay Cuties
Sabrina, the Teenage Witch (1995 film)
Stupid Videos

... with Faerie Solitaire and my partner to further keep me company.

I awoke early this morning and decided to sink my roots a bit deeper into LiveJournal.  I searched for people nearby with similar interests and added them as friends.  I completed my profile.

I uploaded some userpics.  At present, none of them are images of myself.  This is especially true of the pictures in the Japanese manga/anime style.  :-) 

... River. Enjoy.

(Yes, I am testing my new ability to upload photos and post immediately to LJ.)

I'm going game-shopping tomorrow. :-)

From www.gameratio.com/nds/topgames.php:

1. Chrono Trigger	93%
2. Castlevania: Dawn of Sorrow	92%
3. Bangai-O Spirits	92%
4. New Super Mario Bros.	92%
5. Legend of Zelda: Phantom Hourglass	91%
6. Mario Kart DS	90%
7. Advance Wars: Dual Strike	89%
8. World Ends With You, The	89%
9. Castlevania: Portrait of Ruin	88%
10. Meteos	87%
11. Elite Beat Agents	87%
12. Kirby Canvas Curse	87%
13. Ultimate Spider-Man	86%
14. Castlevania: Order of Ecclesia	86%
15. Super Mario 64 DS	86%
16. Dragon Quest Heroes: Rocket Slime	86%
17. Planet Puzzle League	86%
18. Tony Hawk's American Sk8land	86%
19. Mario & Luigi: Partners in Time	86%
20. Trauma Center: Under the Knife	86%
21. Metroid Prime: Hunters	85%
22. Rune Factory: Fantasy Harvest Moon	85%
23. Contra 4	85%
24. Final Fantasy IV	85%
25. Pokemon Diamond	85%
26. Pokemon Pearl	85%
27. Tony Hawk's Downhill Jam	85%
28. Tetris DS	84%
29. Ninja Gaiden: Dragon Sword	84%
30. Ninja Town	84%
31. Advance Wars: Days of Ruin	84%
32. FIFA Soccer 09	84%
33. Spider-Man 3	83%
34. Etrian Odyssey II: Heroes of Lagaard	83%
35. Final Fantasy XII: Revenant Wings	83%
36. WarioWare: Touched!	83%
37. Metroid Prime: Pinball	83%
38. Sonic Rush	83%
39. Clubhouse Games	82%
40. Yoshi's Island DS	82%
41. Animal Crossing: Wild World	82%
42. Final Fantasy Fables: Chocobo Tales	82%
43. Lunar Knights	82%
44. Trauma Center: Under the Knife 2	82%
45. Mega Man ZX Advent	82%
46. Worms: Open Warfare 2	82%
47. N+	82%
48. Shrek The Third	82%
49. Tiger Woods PGA Tour 08	82%
50. Professor Layton and the Curious Village	81%
51. Age of Empires: The Age of Kings	81%
52. Nintendogs: Chihuahua & Friends	81%
53. Star Fox Command	81%
54. Nintendogs: Lab & Friends	81%
55. Disgaea DS	81%
56. Nintendogs: Dachshund & Friends	81%
57. Viva Pinata: Pocket Paradise	81%
58. New York Times Crosswords	80%
59. Picross DS	80%
60. Civilization Revolution	80%
61. Apollo Justice: Ace Attorney	80%
62. Mega Man ZX	80%
63. Bleach: The Blade of Fate	80%
64. Dementium: The Ward	80%
65. Final Fantasy Tactics A2: Grimoire of the Rift	80%
66. Kirby: Super Star Ultra	80%
67. LEGO Star Wars: The Complete Saga	80%
68. Hotel Dusk: Room 215	79%
69. Age of Empires: Mythologies	79%
70. Dragon Ball: Origins	79%
71. Dragon Quest IV: Chapters of the Chosen	79%
72. Lock's Quest	79%
73. Phoenix Wright: Ace Attorney	79%
74. Guitar Hero: On Tour	79%
75. LEGO Indiana Jones: The Original Adventures	78%
76. Contact	78%
77. Sonic Rush Adventure	78%
78. Tony Hawk's Proving Ground	78%
79. Puyo Pop Fever	78%
80. Meteos: Disney Magic	78%
81. Anno 1701: Dawn of Discovery	77%
82. GRID	77%
83. Final Fantasy III	77%
84. Mario vs Donkey Kong 2: March of the Minis	77%
85. Dragon Quest Monsters: Joker	77%
86. Nintendogs: Dalmatian & Friends	77%
87. Brain Age: Train Your Brain in Minutes a Day!	77%
88. Horse Life	77%
89. Phoenix Wright: Ace Attorney - Justice For All	77%
90. Geometry Wars: Galaxies	77%
91. Bust-A-Move DS	77%
92. Brain Age 2: More Training in Minutes a Day!	76%
93. Over The Hedge	76%
94. Final Fantasy: Crystal Chronicles - Ring of Fates	76%
95. Chibi-Robo: Park Patrol	76%
96. Super Princess Peach	76%
97. Speed Racer	76%
98. FIFA Soccer 08	76%
99. Drawn to Life	76%
100. Feel The Magic: XY/XX

76%