Tag: whimsy

could this scene take place in a hot air balloon?

Well. Aren’t we the lucky ones? The summer cumulus clouds and fire-lit sunsets have been amazing. The various outdoor picnics, slumber parties, and dance parties on rooftops have begun.

Collected things that I have been wanting to share:

– Erno Rubik talks about how the inspiration for the Rubik’s cube stemmed from how water looks as it moves around pebbles.

– Speaking of Rubik’s cubes, I visited the FAO Schwarz store in Manhattan for possibly the last time before it closes its doors in July. Toys are still pretty magical. Also, we encountered the most expensive slinkies (gold) and etch-a-sketches (crystal) that I have ever seen.

– I enjoyed these humorous bits of advice from famous writers. I really liked the Donna Tartt quote on Tom Hanks characters, but I especially loved Murakami’s:

“Every time you write, ask yourself: Could this scene take place in a hot-air balloon? If the answer is yes, then it probably should.”

– In anticipation of Father’s Day- Harry’s On Fatherhood.

“A father must be many things to their children, but it really boils down to this: The role of a Father to a Son is to teach him how to be a good man. The role of a Father to a Daughter is to give her a model of what a good man is.”

– I train a lot more than I talk about here. I enjoyed thinking about the weird rituals of training that we all have. I’ll have to think about what rituals I practice every time I train. I liked the mention of Usain Bolt’s love of Chicken McNuggets.

– Next time your exercise instructor barks at you to get into plank position and hold it, maybe think about how the Guinness world record was broken last week by a former Marine officer, who held plank position for a total of 5 hours, 15 minutes and 15 seconds.

– From here:

When Chase was eight [years old], a woman approached us at the grocery store and said, “What a handsome boy! What do you plan to be when you grow up, young man?” Chase looked at her and said, “I plan to be kind and brave, ma’am.”

june whimsies

Are we seeing off May already? My favorite month starting today.

And look, it’s beginning to rain.

Long overdue whimsies:

READ

Books-

This month I finished/am reading:

Things-

  • “Rap Quotes” posted in their real-life locations on twitter.
  • NPR on Nostalgia:

For an individual, nostalgia is a function of memory. But for a culture, nostalgia is a kind of travel. It is about somewhere else, somewhere different but vaguely recognizable, another place to look at the sunset. If we were really looking for a time when things felt easier, after all, we wouldn’t love times of war and social upheaval; we’d be making shows about the dot-com boom. But we don’t, because it isn’t different enough yet. It has to be elsewhere; it cannot be here, because we cannot be here, not always, not every day.

What’s eternal about nostalgia is the same thing that’s eternal about travel: It will always happen, not because what’s out there is so special that it will pull us out through the windows, but because what’s in here is, at least some of the time, so difficult that it will push us out through the door.

LISTEN

  • I enjoyed this reddit thread on Bach/Beethoven/Mozart:

    “Beethoven tells you what it’s like to be Beethoven. Mozart tells you what it’s like to be human. Bach tells you what it’s like to be the universe.” (Douglas Adams)

    Here is the super super super short version
    Bach = The Rules
    Mozart = The Rules In-practice
    Beethoven = The Rule Breaker

    I heard someone once use the allegory of Bach as the Father, Mozart as the Son, and Beethoven as the Holy Spirit of music. Seems to work well even if you disagree with the Christian correlation. Another phrase I found which sums it up well: “Bach gave us God’s Word. Mozart gave us God’s laughter. Beethoven gave us God’s fire.”

COVET

VISIT

Japanese architectural firm Kengo Kuma and a team of students at UC Berkeley’s College of Environmental Design created ‘Nest We Grow’, an elaborate timber community food hub recently constructed on the island of Hokkaido.The structure’s timber frame actually mimics the vertical spatial experience of a Japanese larch forest. The team added plenty of beams for hanging fish and produce and a central tea platform with a sunken fireplace. The building is supposed to bring people in the community together to store, prepare and enjoy local foods.

EAT

 Memorial Day weekend’s daily diet: 

– small servings of whatever Dean Young poems I could find on the internet and that only served to make me hungry for more words (even poetry isn’t free)
– sticky marshmallows and concoctions of chocolate
– red meat and wine of similar hues
– “vegetables will likely get you kicked out but I got some here for you anyway.”
– lavender and peppermint tea, sage in our hands
– a curious absence of kale
– pistachios carelessly shelled
– bluegrass and blue grass and looking into other things of similar hues
– Mozart rising and harmonica accompanying, finally Bach to even out the score
– whipped up doses of cotton candy clouds
– crisp bites of mid-morning sunlight and shadows
– grains of dust (accidental)
– icy river water (purposeful)
– berries in different forms
– rocks and hearts skimming surfaces and skipping beats
– more Beats as in: egg omelettes, headphones, old men drumming happily along to “I can’t get no satisfaction,” Kerouac, the West, and the whole Generation