.
Tuesday, May 12, 2009
two new sites i've recently run-in to, and an older one worth remembering
freerice.com/
Here's a site any word lover could get addicted to and really fast. Luckily your game playing will not only make you smarter, but also serves altruistic purposes. Even if your day's humanitarian deeds are only ten grains of rice per correct answer, it could be just enough of an excuse to validate procrastination. And that warrants an A-OK in my book any day.
omegle.com/
I'm not sure how I feel about this site yet, as the anonymity aspect seems uncannily similar to the primitive, black and white web I surfed at twelve (which is also why I like it). The premise of it is very simple: type in the web address, let the page load, and press connect to be randomly assigned to somebody else who at that instant was also doing the same. It's a minimalist site with a candid motive: talk to strangers. (Right now I'm talking to somebody from Lyon, France about ripping bear flesh apart in Patagonia.)
wefeelfine.org/
This site was hands down my favorite site of 2006. It "harvests" feelings--sentences that include "i feel" or "i am feeling"--from recently published blog posts. The site's interface itself is one of the reasons why the site is so popular, allowing you by a panel to screen feelings by adjective, place, weather, time, or gender (to name a few). Of course this feature just narrows a search by criterion, and to experience the six lenses that help you picture the web's mood, you'll have to take a peek yourself.
¶ 5/12/2009 04:56:00 PM 0 Comments
Thursday, April 30, 2009
the trajectory of thrift nikes with yunnan mud stains and neon tangerine laces
oh and me too. from the 61st story of the macau tower.
the star with the line extending southward is the range where my shoe landed. it was recovered eventually from the grips of traffic, near death. the circle has the shoe inside it and the arrow is pointing at the enormous landing zone, which was a forty by forty by eight feet high air bubble landing pad.
i don't know what to say about the experience in writing. you'll have to ask me about it sometime because it is an in person story.
the star with the line extending southward is the range where my shoe landed. it was recovered eventually from the grips of traffic, near death. the circle has the shoe inside it and the arrow is pointing at the enormous landing zone, which was a forty by forty by eight feet high air bubble landing pad.
i don't know what to say about the experience in writing. you'll have to ask me about it sometime because it is an in person story.
Labels: a m a z i n g, hen hao wanr, intensity, new, pictures lots, travel, worthless words
¶ 4/30/2009 10:11:00 PM 3 Comments
Friday, April 3, 2009
vulvic
vulvic vul·vic adjective
of, relating to, or resembling a vulva
================================================================
i don't like that penis has phallus and vulva is without what is hers respectively. technically phallus could refer to the clit, but that is only the clit; what about the centuries of vulvic imagery out there?
www.vulvic.com
new project. check back in a few weeks for a more elaborate site which will include links, mission statement, goals, etc.
Labels: love, new, she's got ideas, vulvic
¶ 4/03/2009 12:20:00 AM 1 Comments
Thursday, March 26, 2009
lack of posting
...i'm sorry about that. well, not really.
i do have a new website though. right now it's just art, but eventually i plan on adding a resume and some other things.
if you'd like to check it out:
http://www.[insert my name here].com
where the [insert my name here] is, insert my name there. i'm trying to keep my name out of search engines. ¶ 3/26/2009 08:37:00 PM 0 Comments
i do have a new website though. right now it's just art, but eventually i plan on adding a resume and some other things.
if you'd like to check it out:
http://www.[insert my name here].com
where the [insert my name here] is, insert my name there. i'm trying to keep my name out of search engines. ¶ 3/26/2009 08:37:00 PM 0 Comments
Sunday, March 1, 2009
in THE AFTER LIFE
So besides my listening to too much Coast to Coast AM, I've been thinking a lot lately about the big "after college". I feel that unlike most undergraduates I'm not very nervous about the beginning of something new or unknown. I know I have many, many choices and if anything, that's what is most difficult for me. Becoming (relatively) vegetarian was one of the best things I've done in the past few years: without it, I wouldn't be able to choose a dish off a menu. This sounds like a silly problem--being dwarfed by the world of choice--but it was something that did cause serious episodes of erratic and impolite behavior inside restaurants. I must also say that as a Sagittarius I'm inclined towards anything of spiritual or philosophical interest or merit, so the above choice to (relatively) abstain from eating meat catered to my obsessiveness of not only ways of doing things but also some scraps of eco-feminist socio-political ideologies I've digested.
Right now I'm having to make a big choice: to do or not do Peace Corps. I currently have a completed application in for a volunteer term of spring 2010 to 2012 (a rough estimate). My application adviser has told me that there are no opportunities for somebody of my candidate profile in China--a definite point in the against circle.
Why am I thinking about not doing Peace Corps? Well, with the housing market down I'm too pragmatic financially to not consider buying a house.
Kara, my dear, you are just a college graduate, how are you going to purchase a house?
Here's the thing: If I get the antarctic position that would span from October 2009 to April 2010, then during my stay at the US base there I would not only get free room and board, free insurance, free haircuts, free gym membership, etc, but I would still be compensated for in hourly wages as well as a possibility for a bonus "upon successful completion of contract and extraordinary performance." So, I haven't had an interview yet, and I don't currently know how much those hourly wages are, but if I were to actually get the position, I'd guess with a mandatory "6 days a week, 9 hours a day," and a national base minimum wage of $7.25 for about six months, I'd expect to have: $9,396
Houston's Third Ward is a great example of affordable real estate and great location: a fifteen minute drive from the Houston Heights' Value Village, Sand Dollar, and Junior Forum; ten minute drive to Montrose's Numbers Night Club--yes mom, teen night every friday--and Bissonet's MFAH; five minute drive to downtown's Alley theatre--not that I have the money, when mom and dad move back they buy me a season ticket for family bonding time--and Angelika film center. Not to mention, this area is right next to University of Houston which would make it totally easy to go back--while working, of course--and get a real degree once I know which is the best way for me to make money. Full tuition for one entire academic year is only $6,459 at U of H. Anyways, I could get a great old house for $30,000 to $60,000 very easily. I suspect in the next year these prices will only further drop and the selection will only increase.
Also, if I wanted to splurge, I could get a condo in the Montrose area for as low as $60,000!
The problem is that part of me wants to settle down and the other wants to be nomadic forever. The pragmatic me raised by my financially astute parents is ingrained to want to realize this intelligent and amazing opportunity of buying a cheap house in an area on the verge of rejuvenation. The nomad me would like to visit every area on the globe and experience everything all the time and trust/know that infinite will give me paths I could never have planned.
But, I'm split: a little bit neurotic and erratic. The planner in me wants to buy a house. And If I bought a $40,000 house, that $9,000 could easily pay for the down payment. I could also further take out a loan for $20,000 to invest in solar panels, spray-in foam insulation, double-insulated windows, and energy-saving appliances. This would not only increase the value of the home but If I bought a small enough home (which most of the homes for $40,000 in the 3rd ward are) I could run completely "off the grid"! Also, if I bought a two or three bedroom house, I could have one or two roommates to almost cover the mortgage and energy loan.
I don't know. I tried drawing my astrological birth chart before, but I was too hyped-up to actually concentrate on the mathematics. I'm thinking about paying like $40 to get somebody to draw my birth chart up and tell me which choice is more auspicious. The good thing about this would be that I'm kind of sure that I wouldn't regret either. I just need a r e m o t e turn of the head. Just a little direction, please. There's also this book called "Courage: The Joy Of Living Dangerously" by the 70's spiritual cult-leader deported from the US, OSHO,that I REALLY need to read right now. Unfortunately, I'm in Chiner and I can't actually get a hold of obscure books.
I love ways of doing things, so the ingrained financial pragmatic, obsessive planner in me wants to buy a house. I appreciate efficient ways of living too much to not seriously consider this. My spiritual and metaphysical side wants to leave it up to the universe, and the imp in me wholeheartedly supports this notion. Travel: two votes. That lover part of me needs a person to share some livin' with and wants that now. If I were traveling, the chances are that I would not be meeting people who want to be "tied down". The lover of knowledge sees both routes fit. In Houston I would not only have access to universities near, but I could have access to libraries and an amazing international community. If I were traveling I could have endless foreign language practice, and obvious other educational opportunities. Aye Aye Aye...
My thoughts could go on--as they do in my head--but I must do homework.
Right now I'm having to make a big choice: to do or not do Peace Corps. I currently have a completed application in for a volunteer term of spring 2010 to 2012 (a rough estimate). My application adviser has told me that there are no opportunities for somebody of my candidate profile in China--a definite point in the against circle.
Why am I thinking about not doing Peace Corps? Well, with the housing market down I'm too pragmatic financially to not consider buying a house.
Kara, my dear, you are just a college graduate, how are you going to purchase a house?
Here's the thing: If I get the antarctic position that would span from October 2009 to April 2010, then during my stay at the US base there I would not only get free room and board, free insurance, free haircuts, free gym membership, etc, but I would still be compensated for in hourly wages as well as a possibility for a bonus "upon successful completion of contract and extraordinary performance." So, I haven't had an interview yet, and I don't currently know how much those hourly wages are, but if I were to actually get the position, I'd guess with a mandatory "6 days a week, 9 hours a day," and a national base minimum wage of $7.25 for about six months, I'd expect to have: $9,396
Houston's Third Ward is a great example of affordable real estate and great location: a fifteen minute drive from the Houston Heights' Value Village, Sand Dollar, and Junior Forum; ten minute drive to Montrose's Numbers Night Club--yes mom, teen night every friday--and Bissonet's MFAH; five minute drive to downtown's Alley theatre--not that I have the money, when mom and dad move back they buy me a season ticket for family bonding time--and Angelika film center. Not to mention, this area is right next to University of Houston which would make it totally easy to go back--while working, of course--and get a real degree once I know which is the best way for me to make money. Full tuition for one entire academic year is only $6,459 at U of H. Anyways, I could get a great old house for $30,000 to $60,000 very easily. I suspect in the next year these prices will only further drop and the selection will only increase.
Also, if I wanted to splurge, I could get a condo in the Montrose area for as low as $60,000!
The problem is that part of me wants to settle down and the other wants to be nomadic forever. The pragmatic me raised by my financially astute parents is ingrained to want to realize this intelligent and amazing opportunity of buying a cheap house in an area on the verge of rejuvenation. The nomad me would like to visit every area on the globe and experience everything all the time and trust/know that infinite will give me paths I could never have planned.
But, I'm split: a little bit neurotic and erratic. The planner in me wants to buy a house. And If I bought a $40,000 house, that $9,000 could easily pay for the down payment. I could also further take out a loan for $20,000 to invest in solar panels, spray-in foam insulation, double-insulated windows, and energy-saving appliances. This would not only increase the value of the home but If I bought a small enough home (which most of the homes for $40,000 in the 3rd ward are) I could run completely "off the grid"! Also, if I bought a two or three bedroom house, I could have one or two roommates to almost cover the mortgage and energy loan.
I don't know. I tried drawing my astrological birth chart before, but I was too hyped-up to actually concentrate on the mathematics. I'm thinking about paying like $40 to get somebody to draw my birth chart up and tell me which choice is more auspicious. The good thing about this would be that I'm kind of sure that I wouldn't regret either. I just need a r e m o t e turn of the head. Just a little direction, please. There's also this book called "Courage: The Joy Of Living Dangerously" by the 70's spiritual cult-leader deported from the US, OSHO,that I REALLY need to read right now. Unfortunately, I'm in Chiner and I can't actually get a hold of obscure books.
I love ways of doing things, so the ingrained financial pragmatic, obsessive planner in me wants to buy a house. I appreciate efficient ways of living too much to not seriously consider this. My spiritual and metaphysical side wants to leave it up to the universe, and the imp in me wholeheartedly supports this notion. Travel: two votes. That lover part of me needs a person to share some livin' with and wants that now. If I were traveling, the chances are that I would not be meeting people who want to be "tied down". The lover of knowledge sees both routes fit. In Houston I would not only have access to universities near, but I could have access to libraries and an amazing international community. If I were traveling I could have endless foreign language practice, and obvious other educational opportunities. Aye Aye Aye...
My thoughts could go on--as they do in my head--but I must do homework.
Labels: i n t o the future, new, she's got ideas, threshold
¶ 3/01/2009 08:55:00 PM 0 Comments
