Monday, August 16, 2010
Sunday, August 15, 2010
New York City Midnight Writing Competition
I am currently participating. Round 1 is underway!
http://www.nycmidnight.com/2010/FFC/Challenge.htm
The challenge: write a story 1,000 words or less between Friday, August 13th (midnight) and Sunday, August 15th (midnight). My assignment is: genre - ghost story (yes!), location: bakery, object: jump rope.
Got it. Written. Edited. (I actually wrote 3 stories.) Gonna sleep on the final version, re-read tomorrow, then upload.
Phew!
http://www.nycmidnight.com/2010/FFC/Challenge.htm
The challenge: write a story 1,000 words or less between Friday, August 13th (midnight) and Sunday, August 15th (midnight). My assignment is: genre - ghost story (yes!), location: bakery, object: jump rope.
Got it. Written. Edited. (I actually wrote 3 stories.) Gonna sleep on the final version, re-read tomorrow, then upload.
Phew!
Friday, August 13, 2010
How to Train Your Monkey
Or any monkey for that matter. Monkeys can be taught to point, to convey messages about their feelings and desires, at least we assume that’s what they’re doing because it matches with our communication style. If monkeys can be taught to point, I can assume they could likely be taught to point, with a mouse, on a computer. Therefore, I don’t see any reason for a monkey not to be employed in the IT industry with a big fat salary, not to mention promoted to top tier level rankings. They should get off their butts and start working in the real world, which apparently, they already are. The zoo in which I show my face has made the request I train a monkey how to approve or reject an electronic document, which requires the click of a mouse. Every now and then I set up a series of documents that goes out to the animal kingdom requiring their approval or rejection. One monkey, a recent promotion from another phylum, was very clear that I was to train it in ‘the process’ by which one approves. Not the process by which I create said documents, but the approval itself. It was very clear on this matter with its finger pointing and hand gestures.
…
…
Are we all clear? I’ve been asked to relay ‘the process’ of how to click. Monkey gets a document. Monkey sees the document. Monkey sees link that says ‘Approve’ or ‘Reject.’ Monkey clicks.
…
…
I’m obviously doing things all wrong. My evolutionary regression has gone in reverse and I am plummeting too far outside the sphere of top tier monkeydom to ever hope for my own roosting branch. My fingers are too delicate, my body hair too short and odor free and I refuse to ingest bugs and grubs. The only piece of sign language I know I use frequently though, when they’re not looking.
…
…
Are we all clear? I’ve been asked to relay ‘the process’ of how to click. Monkey gets a document. Monkey sees the document. Monkey sees link that says ‘Approve’ or ‘Reject.’ Monkey clicks.
…
…
I’m obviously doing things all wrong. My evolutionary regression has gone in reverse and I am plummeting too far outside the sphere of top tier monkeydom to ever hope for my own roosting branch. My fingers are too delicate, my body hair too short and odor free and I refuse to ingest bugs and grubs. The only piece of sign language I know I use frequently though, when they’re not looking.
Monday, August 9, 2010
Indisposed
I've had the flu the past week, so my brain isn't fully functional at the moment. Does anybody else have this when they get sick? There comes a point when you get really depressed and down about your life - which doesn't help since you're a pseudo-invalid? Anyone else? I hope it's not just me. I also have this happen when I get sick. For some reason, things I haven't thought about in forever, and I don't even know why I think about them, start to sift to the front of my mind. They're not particularly anything interesting, for instance, maybe a birthday party when I was little, but it's never a happy memory that comes up. It's not like oh, birthday party, presents, etc., it's something like the moment when my Dad decided to say something to me that made me feel about as small as I actually was. So... I guess bad memories! I dunno. Being sick sucks. It does odd things to my head. It must be the fever cooking it. Almost fully well however, so getting back on track. I did have an amazing rant I needed to post but that was the night I also happened to get sick so it's still sitting in my head. I might post it later, but of course it will have lost some of its energy.
P.S. Vampire Academy is a series written by a local author (Seattle transplant) Richelle Mead that sounds like I might actually like it. It's being considered for a series of movies also. Maybe they could get the people who did Harry Potter to do it, then I think it would be pretty cool. I haven't actually read the series, but I appreciated the premise of it, it sounds pretty cool.
P.S. Vampire Academy is a series written by a local author (Seattle transplant) Richelle Mead that sounds like I might actually like it. It's being considered for a series of movies also. Maybe they could get the people who did Harry Potter to do it, then I think it would be pretty cool. I haven't actually read the series, but I appreciated the premise of it, it sounds pretty cool.
Tuesday, July 27, 2010
Capturing the world's oldest living things
This was just too amazing not to re-post from CNN. I have some photo books in the back of my mind I'd like to do also in the not-too-distant future. I think Rachel Sussman definitely deserves as much attention as possible with this project - what a fabulous idea and work she's doing!
Capturing the world's oldest living things
By Dean Irvine, CNNJuly 26, 2010 3:48 a.m. EDT
(CLICK LINK ABOVE TO SEE THE PHOTO SLIDESHOW!!!)
STORY HIGHLIGHTS
Rachel Sussman photographs the world's oldest living things
She has traveled across the world to shoot plants over 2,000 years old
She says her project is a celebration of our past and "a call to action now"
Oldest organism she has photographed is 500,000-year-old bacteria in Siberia
(CNN) -- Rachel Sussman is a time traveler. For the last few years, the American photographer has journeyed across the globe on a mission to bring back images of the world's oldest living organisms.
In her ongoing project, Sussman has traveled to the primal landscapes of southern Greenland, the timeless high-altitude Andean deserts of South America and even under the ocean.
"[The project] is a celebration and record of our past, a call to action now, and also a barometer of our future," she told CNN.
Sussman began her time-traveling trips in 2004 while visiting the island of Yakushima in Japan to see a reportedly 2,200-year-old tree. On her return to the U.S., the idea to photograph an example of other long-living ancient species germinated and grew.
"It's been a fantastic learning experience and so unexpected," said Sussman. "[These organisms] have never been cataloged in this way; there isn't a global species longevity catalog."
They live where many other species couldn't even survive, let alone thrive.
--Rachel Sussman, photographer
Sussman's ancient organisms are continuously living and are genetically identical individuals.
So far, she has shot more than 25 different species of plant or organism, each being older than 2,000 years -- "I wanted to start with the idea of 'year zero' " -- with the oldest being actinobacteria from the permafrost of Siberia estimated to be around 500,000 years old.
After initial research on the Internet to track her subjects down, Sussman contacted scientists who were studying the species she wanted to photograph.
"Nine times out of 10, they're thrilled that someone outside of their field is interested in this esoteric work that they're doing," said Sussman.
"Then once the word got out there, people started contacting me."
Sussman discovered the llaretta in the Atacama Desert -- a relative of parsley that resembles a large green rock-- from a comment left on her blog after announcing she was going to Chile.
Plants like llaretta or the welwitschia in Namibia live in extreme conditions, a common theme Sussman discovered while tracking her subjects down.
"They live where many other species couldn't even survive, let alone thrive."
Her next trip will take her to the coast of Spain, where she'll dive to see sea grass estimated to be a mind-blowing 100,000 years old.
"That's really one of the most exciting things about this project; you get to encounter these things that are incomprehensible to our sense of time. What does 100,000 years feel like? It's something we can consider for a moment, but hard for us to hold on to it and for it to be meaningful."
As well as the metaphysical contemplations evoked by her pictures, there is an environmental message from her work. Many of the organisms she has photographed are not in protected areas or are in places experiencing a potentially damaging change in climate.
"It really varies, from really well protected to being not protected at all and having some sense of peril in fact. In some cases like the Siberian bacteria ... it lives in the permafrost. But if the permafrost isn't permanent, it's a climate change issue and it will die.
"The welwitschia is in national parkland, but that being said, there are mining companies that actually operate in the park. In the U.S., the clonal Mojave yucca and creosote are on land designated for all-terrain vehicle use. There are fences around them, but you have people out four-wheeling around from LA for the weekend."
With 10 more organisms on her list to capture with her lens, Sussman would like international recognition for each of the species she shoots.
"Ideally, I would love it if each of the oldest living things could be afforded UNESCO designation. That's actually become a secondary goal that's come out of the project. They really do deserve our attention and protection."
Capturing the world's oldest living things
By Dean Irvine, CNNJuly 26, 2010 3:48 a.m. EDT
(CLICK LINK ABOVE TO SEE THE PHOTO SLIDESHOW!!!)
STORY HIGHLIGHTS
Rachel Sussman photographs the world's oldest living things
She has traveled across the world to shoot plants over 2,000 years old
She says her project is a celebration of our past and "a call to action now"
Oldest organism she has photographed is 500,000-year-old bacteria in Siberia
(CNN) -- Rachel Sussman is a time traveler. For the last few years, the American photographer has journeyed across the globe on a mission to bring back images of the world's oldest living organisms.
In her ongoing project, Sussman has traveled to the primal landscapes of southern Greenland, the timeless high-altitude Andean deserts of South America and even under the ocean.
"[The project] is a celebration and record of our past, a call to action now, and also a barometer of our future," she told CNN.
Sussman began her time-traveling trips in 2004 while visiting the island of Yakushima in Japan to see a reportedly 2,200-year-old tree. On her return to the U.S., the idea to photograph an example of other long-living ancient species germinated and grew.
"It's been a fantastic learning experience and so unexpected," said Sussman. "[These organisms] have never been cataloged in this way; there isn't a global species longevity catalog."
They live where many other species couldn't even survive, let alone thrive.
--Rachel Sussman, photographer
Sussman's ancient organisms are continuously living and are genetically identical individuals.
So far, she has shot more than 25 different species of plant or organism, each being older than 2,000 years -- "I wanted to start with the idea of 'year zero' " -- with the oldest being actinobacteria from the permafrost of Siberia estimated to be around 500,000 years old.
After initial research on the Internet to track her subjects down, Sussman contacted scientists who were studying the species she wanted to photograph.
"Nine times out of 10, they're thrilled that someone outside of their field is interested in this esoteric work that they're doing," said Sussman.
"Then once the word got out there, people started contacting me."
Sussman discovered the llaretta in the Atacama Desert -- a relative of parsley that resembles a large green rock-- from a comment left on her blog after announcing she was going to Chile.
Plants like llaretta or the welwitschia in Namibia live in extreme conditions, a common theme Sussman discovered while tracking her subjects down.
"They live where many other species couldn't even survive, let alone thrive."
Her next trip will take her to the coast of Spain, where she'll dive to see sea grass estimated to be a mind-blowing 100,000 years old.
"That's really one of the most exciting things about this project; you get to encounter these things that are incomprehensible to our sense of time. What does 100,000 years feel like? It's something we can consider for a moment, but hard for us to hold on to it and for it to be meaningful."
As well as the metaphysical contemplations evoked by her pictures, there is an environmental message from her work. Many of the organisms she has photographed are not in protected areas or are in places experiencing a potentially damaging change in climate.
"It really varies, from really well protected to being not protected at all and having some sense of peril in fact. In some cases like the Siberian bacteria ... it lives in the permafrost. But if the permafrost isn't permanent, it's a climate change issue and it will die.
"The welwitschia is in national parkland, but that being said, there are mining companies that actually operate in the park. In the U.S., the clonal Mojave yucca and creosote are on land designated for all-terrain vehicle use. There are fences around them, but you have people out four-wheeling around from LA for the weekend."
With 10 more organisms on her list to capture with her lens, Sussman would like international recognition for each of the species she shoots.
"Ideally, I would love it if each of the oldest living things could be afforded UNESCO designation. That's actually become a secondary goal that's come out of the project. They really do deserve our attention and protection."
Monday, July 26, 2010
Learning to brag (just a little)
As of today, I’m putting this on my list of goals for… life. There is a huge difference between arrogance and learning to (moderately) sing your own praises. Personally, I find it difficult to put myself out there, to tell everyone all the work I’ve done, or am doing. I think it’s classy to keep your hand close to your chest instead of holding all your cards out for everyone to see. Yet, those pangs of jealousy roar up in me when someone announces something they’ve achieved or done when a.) it’s something I have also done but didn’t think it needed announcing, or b.) it’s something I am working on achieving. Not sure which entices the hyenas in me to start howling more…
Yes, yes one should rather feel happy, glad for the other person, there’s enough success to go around, but let’s get real. We all feel this. A good remedy for this, particularly within one’s own self, is to sing your own praises in the face of your jealousy. For instance, I logged onto Facebook today and saw that several people had commented enthusiastically in response to another friend’s status who stated she’d written nearly 1,000 words that day! My first thought was, huh, me too. The difference is, she decided to post about it, whereas it never crossed my mind to do so. And why shouldn't she? 1,000 words is a lot of words to write. Does she write 1,000 everyday? Maybe, maybe not. I write between 500 and 1,000 a day, almost everyday. I've never posted about any of my work. So, the fact that someone else should see that their hard work deserves a little praise made me stop and think, why has it never crossed my mind to do this for myself? Because after all, it's these little milestones, these exercises we do everyday that contribute to a larger work that is gestating as we create and mold it every time we sit down to work on it. Art, after all, particularly pieces on a grander scale such as a novel, a sculpture, a movie, etc. aren't just plopped out in one afternoon (although some can be), but for those of us working on larger scale works, it's the moving a mountain tale that represents our undertaking (i.e. there's a story about an old Chinese man who decides to move a mountain, which he does with his family by moving stones everyday). That's what we do everyday, move a stone (or two). The mountain still looms high overhead, but one day the pinnacle won't be so far.
This little issue also reminded me that sometimes it’s not enough to praise yourself, to tow the line believing in yourself, being an army of one. It really does help having a little support network, a few (or many, lots, tons!) people there to sing those praises back to you. Even though as artists we belong to the same community, which means that we get jealous of each other from time to time, there is nothing like having the support of other artists, of talking with other artists because they are going to be the only ones who truly understand what it's like to be an artist, to do what we do everyday. Nowhere is this more obvious than when you are with 'non-artistic' type people that you really savor the safety and sanctity of your community, where you are sheltered from questions such as, 'Are you published yet?' and 'If you're not published, then how do you know your stuff's any good?'
Little grenades of venom such as that are just a good reminder that eventually you’re going to have to present yourself to the world, all your hard work, your vision, your art, and when you do, then more than ever you will need your support network. Not to mention, the ability to brag about how awesome your stuff is! Because it is - of course it is.
I still find this very difficult, the word ‘braggart’ keeps scuttling through my head like a wild rat, but I am going to make my best effort to make friends with this fuzzy little creature and squeak a few praises about myself every now and then. There’s no time like the present, so here’s my little squeak: I’m on page 156. Bitches.
Yes, yes one should rather feel happy, glad for the other person, there’s enough success to go around, but let’s get real. We all feel this. A good remedy for this, particularly within one’s own self, is to sing your own praises in the face of your jealousy. For instance, I logged onto Facebook today and saw that several people had commented enthusiastically in response to another friend’s status who stated she’d written nearly 1,000 words that day! My first thought was, huh, me too. The difference is, she decided to post about it, whereas it never crossed my mind to do so. And why shouldn't she? 1,000 words is a lot of words to write. Does she write 1,000 everyday? Maybe, maybe not. I write between 500 and 1,000 a day, almost everyday. I've never posted about any of my work. So, the fact that someone else should see that their hard work deserves a little praise made me stop and think, why has it never crossed my mind to do this for myself? Because after all, it's these little milestones, these exercises we do everyday that contribute to a larger work that is gestating as we create and mold it every time we sit down to work on it. Art, after all, particularly pieces on a grander scale such as a novel, a sculpture, a movie, etc. aren't just plopped out in one afternoon (although some can be), but for those of us working on larger scale works, it's the moving a mountain tale that represents our undertaking (i.e. there's a story about an old Chinese man who decides to move a mountain, which he does with his family by moving stones everyday). That's what we do everyday, move a stone (or two). The mountain still looms high overhead, but one day the pinnacle won't be so far.
This little issue also reminded me that sometimes it’s not enough to praise yourself, to tow the line believing in yourself, being an army of one. It really does help having a little support network, a few (or many, lots, tons!) people there to sing those praises back to you. Even though as artists we belong to the same community, which means that we get jealous of each other from time to time, there is nothing like having the support of other artists, of talking with other artists because they are going to be the only ones who truly understand what it's like to be an artist, to do what we do everyday. Nowhere is this more obvious than when you are with 'non-artistic' type people that you really savor the safety and sanctity of your community, where you are sheltered from questions such as, 'Are you published yet?' and 'If you're not published, then how do you know your stuff's any good?'
Little grenades of venom such as that are just a good reminder that eventually you’re going to have to present yourself to the world, all your hard work, your vision, your art, and when you do, then more than ever you will need your support network. Not to mention, the ability to brag about how awesome your stuff is! Because it is - of course it is.
I still find this very difficult, the word ‘braggart’ keeps scuttling through my head like a wild rat, but I am going to make my best effort to make friends with this fuzzy little creature and squeak a few praises about myself every now and then. There’s no time like the present, so here’s my little squeak: I’m on page 156. Bitches.
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