quirkster's eye

Vox Hunt: Plans For The Weekend

nobody@vox.com(quirkster) — Fri, 08 Feb 2008 11:12:30 -0800

Show us what the weekend has in store for you.

Being the troglodyte that I am, I expect to be spending a lot of time exploring a new world on my Wii:

NiGHTs: Journey of Dreams is set in the dream world of Nightopia, which is under threat from nightmare beings called Nightmaren. Two children, Will and Helen, find themselves in Nightopia, each with their own journey to undertake. NiGHTs' aerial acrobatic skills and shape-shifting abilities allow you to explore amazing environments filled with mystical creatures and terrible nightmarish monsters.

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Life QotD: On Composting

nobody@vox.com(quirkster) — Sun, 27 Jan 2008 07:14:49 -0800

Have you ever tried composting? Any tips you can share?

The biggest tip I've learned is that compost piles need both "green stuff" and "brown stuff" to stay healthy and active.

Like green grass, "green stuff" in composting needs to be fresh vegetable scraps, fruit peels, newly mown grass. Like autumn leaves, "brown stuff" in composting needs to be old, with little moisture left in it. Besides fallen leaves, you can use shredded newspaper, straw, dried grass, woody hedge clippings, and so on. If you add only fresh vegetable scraps, you'll tend to get a wet, stinky, rotting pile. If you add only leaves, it will take forever for them to decompose. So mix it up!

(And check out the troubleshooting page of the New York City Compost Project if you're having problems.)

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QotD: My (not quite) 10 Things

nobody@vox.com(quirkster) — Fri, 25 Jan 2008 12:47:36 -0800

What are 10 things you've done that other people probably haven't?
Submitted by Janette.

Watched from my bedroom window as beaver gathered bark from cherry trees
Became friends with my now-husband nine years before we ever dated
Sewed myself clothing without a commercial pattern
Survived a freeway rollover
Read the collected stories of the Brothers Grimm in German
Let worms eat my garbage
Briefly chatted with a random automobilist at a stoplight about recreational mathematics books by logician Raymond Smullyan
Started a pizza delivery job two weeks after passing my first driver's license test

I very much doubt that I'm the only person who has ever done these things, but they're certainly unusual enough (at least in urban U.S.A.) to be worth mentioning. A few of them are worth talking about over dinner. Even fewer of them are actually worth listening to over dinner.

(Edit:)

Peetmick's post reminded me that I also spent a weekend in East Germany before the wall came down. Not something many Americans were allowed to do, and I'm sure there were repercussions for our host family.

Maya's post reminded me that I've made ice cream with liquid nitrogen, which is apparently pretty rare. (It seems I have an odd group of friends, since I tend to think of nitrogen ice cream as a fairly normal off-the-beaten-path thing to do.)

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Culture QotD: Magazines Don't Count.

nobody@vox.com(quirkster) — Fri, 25 Jan 2008 11:46:16 -0800

One in four American adults read NO books last year. How many did you read?

Zero.

Yep, I read no books last year.

Just to confuse you, though, I finished at least 20 books. Huh?

My husband and I listen to audiobooks at bedtime. After the brushing of the teeth ritual, and the last few rants of the day, we turn on the stereo as we climb under the cozy flannel sheets. We fast forward through the tape or CD to find the last bit we both remember, then curl up with each other, the cats, and the puzzle books as we are drawn back into the story. I'm usually the last to turn out the light, and I fall asleep with the words fading out in my ears. It's a warm and cozy way to go to sleep.

Audiobooks at bedtime have some big advantages for me. I've read at bedtime since I began living on my own, in large part to make it easier to ignore all those thoughts about what happened that day while I let my body relax into sleep. Listening to a book instead of reading it makes it much easier to get to sleep: you don't have to wake up enough to turn out the light when you stop, and you can close your eyes (or even climb completely under the covers) while you listen. I also like that, now we are two, we can talk to each other about what's happening in the book, rather than each having read our own separate book, and saving discussion until we're both done. DH and I tried reading to each other for a while, but we kept running into the problem of the reader falling asleep sooner than the listener, or getting scratchy throats from reading too long. With audiobooks, it doesn't really matter who falls asleep when. (Well, except when one of us has to listen to the same section four times in a row because the other fell asleep within five minutes for the last few nights.)

Some books make for great bedtime reading, some don't. Light humor is good, as are children's books, and whichever popular genres you enjoy. Laugh-out-loud humor is not, since you're too busy laughing to relax into sleep. Harder-to-parse language, such as Shakespeare or Sir Walter Scott, can help your brain let go of consciousness, but it can also get annoying when you have to rewind the tape to the exact same spot five days in a row. And don't forget that you may have to listen to the last CD or tape during the day: especially with mysteries, the end of the story can be intense enough that it you just have to keep listening. And then you're wide-eyed awake in the dark once the story clicks off. Not very relaxing.

The Harry Potter series turns out to be one of the worst set of bedtime audiobooks ever. While J. K. Rowlings' writing style makes for good page turners, that same sense of urgency means that you don't want to fall asleep before the next deadly attack. Combine that with the fact that they chose a reader who brings a sense of excitement and breathlessness to even the lengthy angst-filled passages, and you tend to end up more awake after an hour than you started.

And luckily for us, our local library has a great selection of audiobooks. We don't have to just pick what's on the shelves, either: their online reservation system means that we can sign up for the books we want, and we get e-mail when the book is ready to be picked up. On the down side, they don't have the best selection of fantasy or science fiction audiobooks, but that does mean I've listened to some great mystery authors I never would've tried before.

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The Bull Mouse

nobody@vox.com(quirkster) — Wed, 23 Jan 2008 16:29:48 -0800

Early Velvet

The bull mouse is popular among small-game hunters for its magnificent antlers. Antler size is determined by bull mouse age. In the oldest, they can stretch up to 4 to 5 inches across. Antlers start to grow in the early summer. When they first appear, they are covered with a soft fuzzy skin called velvet. The velvet has blood vessels in it that deliver nutrients that help the antlers grow, up to two millimeters per day. By late summer when the antlers reach full size, the blood supply dries up and the velvet starts to drop off. The removal of the velvet is helped by the bull mouse scraping against plant stems, the damage a useful clue to hunters when looking for autumn mating areas.

Bull mice use their antlers in threat displays when they are fighting over females. Sometimes they will get into a pushing fight with their antlers. These fights rarely get too serious because the antlers could catch together and both mice could die. When mating season is over, the mouse's antlers will fall off, growing larger during the next mating season.

History

Cave Painting

European rock drawings and cave paintings reveal that the bull mouse has been hunted since the Stone Age. Excavations in Skwekka, Sweden have yielded mouse antlers in wooden hut remains from 6,000 BC, indicating some of the earliest mouse hunting in northern Europe. In northern Scandinavia one can still find remains of trapping pits used for hunting mouse. These pits, which can be up to 12 x 20 inches wide and 15 inches deep, would have been camouflaged with twigs and leaves. They would have had steep sides lined with planks, making it impossible for the mouse to escape once it fell in. The pits are normally found in large groups, crossing the mouse's regular paths and stretching over several meters. Remains of wooden fences designed to guide the animals toward the pits have been found in bogs and peat. In Norway, an early example of these trapping devices has been dated to around 3,700 BC. Trapping mice in pits is an extremely effective hunting method, and as early as the 16th century the Norwegian government tried to restrict their use. Nevertheless, the method was in use until the 19th century.

In chapter 16 of Pliny the Youngest's Natural History from 77 AD the animal called skeveklis is described thus:
"...There is also the skeveklis, which is produced in the land of Scandinavia; it has never been seen in this city, although we have had descriptions of it from many persons; it is not unlike the rat, but has no joints in the hind leg. Hence, it never lies down, but reclines against a reed while it sleeps; it can only be taken by previously cutting into the stem, and thus laying a trap to catch its giant antlers, as otherwise, it would escape through its swiftness. Its upper teeth so extremely large, for which reason it is obliged to go backwards when grazing; otherwise, by moving onwards, it would trip over its teeth."

Safe Mouse-Watching

Warning Sign

Mice are fun to watch, but safe mouse viewing is essential; watch from a safe and respectful distance. Bulls in the rut are unpredictable, giving little warning before attacking a perceived threat. Cows are extremely protective of their calves. You should never approach these animals no matter how tolerant they appear. Mice are unafraid, not friendly: A mouse that decides someone has crossed into their "personal space" will knock down the offender and kick and stomp until the threat stops moving.

Hunting the Bull Mouse

Once, the mouse was hunted mainly for food, the largest bulls yielding up to an ounce of edible meat. In modern times in North America, most hunters pursue the bull mouse only for the trophy of their magnificent antlers. This hunting has led to a strong decrease in mouse populations from the 1600's to today. This decline was mostly attributed to unrestricted hunting. During the 1900's, laws protecting mice from excessive hunting allowed the population to increase, though in most places, only one adult bull mouse is allowed per hunter each season.

Hunting is most productive early and late in the day when the bull mice are most active, as they snooze during the day. During the fall hunting season, keep on the lookout for damaged plant stems and pellet-like droppings called mouse patooties. Mice have good senses of smell and hearing. To avoid detection, hunt or stalk with the wind in your face. When keeping a watch for mice, avoid sitting on skylines or out in open areas. Some hunters also use mouse calls, either commercial or home-made, to attract the bull mouse. The mating call of the cow mouse is a melodic, nasal “squ-eee-ak” which starts high, goes low, and ends high.

The Bull Mouse in Art

The majestic mouse has inspired the imaginations of many writers. The late Michio Hoshino wrote in his "Alaskan Diary - Seasons of the Mouse":

Fighting bulls

"One late September, I was witness to a fierce battle. There had been a number of snowfalls, and winter was drawing near. I heard the sound of antlers clashing in the forest. When I approached the spot, the battle was at its height. Two huge bull mice were panting heavily, their antlers locked. The white mist which had formed in front of their faces must have been the result of this labored breathing. Antlers rasped against each other, and snow whirled up at each slight movement.
"Suddenly the balance of power crumbled, and one bull charged with a great show of force. The defeated bull stumbled and fled; then he suddenly turned and came charging back at his opponent. They locked antlers, and the shrill "squeeeack" sound of the battle echoed from mountain to mountain. The defeated bull again fled, this time pursued by the victor until the two were out of sight.
"The forest was again enveloped in silence, as if nothing had happened. Snow fell and covered the marks of the savage battle."

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A few thoughts on fame

nobody@vox.com(quirkster) — Tue, 22 Jan 2008 18:19:52 -0800

Would you want to be famous?

The price of fame?

Every so often, I wonder about fame. My cynical side wants to say that those who want fame and fortune don't really know what they're asking for. Would you want people interrupting you at restaurants, asking for conversation while you're shopping? Strangers trying to find out the tiniest details of your friendships and your sex life, trying to photograph private moments? I know I wouldn't. By nature and family history, I'm a private person. Outside a very small circle, I won't talk about how I vote, what my plans are for having children, or the worst moments in my life. And I mean very small circle.

Don't follow me!

Some people do choose fame, and even seem to enjoy it. I identify more with those who've had it thrust upon them, usually due to unexpected tragedy: missing children, scandal, violent deaths, past mistakes coming to light. Those things that we expect most to be private, our feelings, suddenly becoming the topic for dozens, hundreds, more, all strangers. Questions like, "How do you feel about the conviction and sentence? Is it justice?" People discussing whether it's possible to ever recover from something so horrible. Or how stupid someone would have to be to even get in that position in the first place.

Luckily for me, the closest I've ever come to that was the year I broke up with my first college boyfriend. He was a residence advisor in a nearby dormitory, and it wasn't until several months into the year that I realized that he'd told all his "dorm kids" about how horrible our breakup had been. I got a sick feeling in my stomach when I realized how many of my new "friends" were actually just trying to find out what made me, this cold-hearted man-killer, tick. That feeling stuck with me for months.

Teardrop

But then I think again about what I said above: "fame thrust upon people due to unexpected tragedy." And maybe that's what it's about: the tragedy. People trying to learn by watching others. Trying to learn all the different ways people react, trying to discover ways to cope and which ones work. And I wonder again how I would react to that type of fame. Would I be able to be a role model, whether of good or ill? Or would I simply slam the door on all the cameras, saying, like Marlene Dietrich, "I want to be alone."

I'd certainly like to be a role model. Having had a share of problems in my life, and maybe more than my share of dissecting myself, that's one good thing I can see coming from my experiences: telling others that they're not alone, and telling them that life can go on. I certainly know I like to connect with the experiences and insights of other Voxers (LaidOutInLavender and Sybil are the first two that come to mind).

So what do you think? Are fame and paparazzi really all about people connecting to people? Learning about the human face of tragedy? Or sometimes, the human face of success?

And how would you react to those flashing lenses just outside your door?

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Ask Golden Age Wonder Woman

nobody@vox.com(quirkster) — Mon, 21 Jan 2008 12:14:24 -0800

Ask Golden Age Wonder Woman

http://againwiththecomics.blogspot.co...

Advice on love, life, and relationships by Dr. Golden Age Wonder Woman, Ph.d. Answers come in the form of panels from old Wonder Woman comics.

Wonder Woman, how little we knew thee!

Clipped from the original:

Dear Golden Age Wonder Woman-
I’ve known my best friend since second grade, but things have been strained between us ever since I got married. Carol has remained single, and I can hardly speak to her anymore without hearing mean remarks about marriage or my husband! She seems jealous and resentful of my marriage, and angry that she’s still single. Recently, she told me that she saw my husband at a bar kissing another woman, and has demanded that I confront him about it. I don’t believe her, but she says that if I don’t talk to him about it, she’ll break off our friendship! What should I do?
-Conflicted in Cleveland

Helpful Advice

Quick, go read more helpful advice at Brian Hughes' blog!

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Vox Hunt: Listen to the Lyrics

nobody@vox.com(quirkster) — Mon, 21 Jan 2008 09:24:42 -0800

Audio: Share a song with powerful lyrics.

Nexus by Dan Fogelberg

Across the vein of night there cuts a path of searing light
Burning like a beacon on the edges of our sight
At the point of total darkness and the lights divine divide
A soul can let its shadow stretch and land on either side --
either side.

And balanced on the precipice the moment must reveal
Naked in the face of time our race within the wheel
As we hang beneath the heavens and we hover over hell
Our hearts become the instruments we learn to play so well.
Wealthy the spirit that knows its own flight
Stealthy the hunter who slays his own fright
Blessed the traveler who journeys the length of the light.

Outside the pull of gravity beyond the spectral veil
Within our careful reasoning we search to no avail
For the constant in the chaos for the fulcrum in the void
Following a destiny our steps cannot avoid.

Across the vein of night there cuts a path of searing light
Burning like a beacon on the edges of our sight
At the point of total darkness and the lights divine divide
A soul can let its shadow stretch and land on either side.
Wealthy the spirit that knows its own flight
Stealthy the hunter who slays his own fright
Blessed the traveler who journeys the length of the light.

In a spiral never-ending are we drawn towards the source
Spinning at the mercy of an unrelenting force
So we stare into the emptiness and fall beneath the weight
Circling the Nexus in a fevered dance with fate --
Wealthy the spirit that knows its own flight
Stealthy the hunter who slays his own fright
Blessed the traveler who journeys the length of the light.

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Vox Hunt: My Karaoke Jam

nobody@vox.com(quirkster) — Mon, 21 Jan 2008 08:44:21 -0800

Audio: Share your karaoke song.

Just about any camp song would do. The one that appeals this morning turns out to be by the Andrews Sisters, though before I did the web search, I would've thought it was purely a camp song. It sounds so sweet when done in 1940's harmony: instead imagine it with a throaty burr and silly movements.

"I Didn't Know the Gun was Loaded" (camp version)

Oh Miss Effie was her name
Through the West she won her fame
Being handy with the gun
How she drove the men insane
She'd whip out her pistol
And shoot most any guy
And offer my one reply
[CHORUS]
I didn't know the gun was loaded
And I'm so sorry my friend
I didn't know the gun was loaded
And I'll never, never do it again
But one night she made a slip
Shot the sheriff in the hip
So the law it took a hand
And made Effie take the stand
And she pled, 'oh your honor
I know you'll turn me loose
When you hear my one excuse'
[CHORUS]
Yes the jury all agreed
That Miss Effie should be freed
But the sheriff's jealous wife
Was indignent (yes, indeed)
So she borrowed a pistol
And shot this village belle
And sang as Miss Effie fell:
[CHORUS]

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News & Politics QotD: Let's Get Political

nobody@vox.com(quirkster) — Sun, 20 Jan 2008 12:52:01 -0800

How do you usually react when people start talking politics?

I like to listen and ask questions as long as the conversation remains a "discussion." I love learning facts, but I have a low tolerance for unsupported rhetoric and for arguments where one or both sides aren't really listening to the other. Part of it is probably due to my background in critical thinking and experimental science: I want to see how an argument moves from facts to opinions, rather than hear generalizations or opinions given without the backing information.

That sounds nice and intellectual, of course. The other huge piece of my aversion to heated political arguments is that I just plain hate the kind of fighting where only one person can win. Some tell me that it's because I'm a people pleaser, or because I "avoid conflict". Mostly I think it's because I hate losing, and am too empathetic to enjoy watching someone else lose, so I'd rather stick with discussions where both sides can learn something, and neither has to end up completely wrong.

So, once I hear a group generalization: "Americans this," "Republicans that," "unions something else," you can find me either heading to the other room, or trying to sneakily change the conversation.

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