battle for your earholes

Books and Barn Owls: What Do Books Do?

All The Colours, Including Grue: How Languages See Colours Differently

A War over Reality - Trailer

Bizarre Particles Keep Flying Out of Antarctica's Ice

shrinking attention spans

mental midgets? Exactly... why I wrote about it... in a short book... get it? (see sidebar for a preview)

Emblematic of the genre is a 2015 Microsoft report that claimed the average human attention span had shrunk from 12 seconds in 2000 to eight seconds in 2013 (even shorter than the nine seconds of focus maintained by the notoriously distractible goldfish), presumably on its way to zero. [1]

read the buzz

Lighting the Path

Gypsy (English Version)

PLENTY!

We live in a world of abundance. There is enough air, water, and food for every person, animal, and plant on the planet. We have the resources and ability to make our existence here a paradise, to continue to develop socially, intellectually, emotionally, and spiritually. It is within our power to create a true golden age on this blue oasis floating through space and attain wondrous levels of development on a personal, family, community, regional, and global level while creating this paradise. READ

Crow: The Legend

Oprah Winfrey and John Legend Bring a Native American Tale to Life in Crow: The Legend (during Native American Tale Native American Heritage Month)

TODAY

John Legend and Oprah Winfrey are joining forces for a moving animated film Crow: The Legend.
Crow, the most beautiful animal in the forest risks everything to save those around him from an everlasting winter.
Crow seeks The One Who Creates Everything by Thinking, played by Winfrey, to reverse the cold and bring warmth to his community.
When Crow finally finds The One, he sees that she is encased in a glass home in a comatose state. In an effort to wake her up he sings to her and manages to rouse her from her sleep.
“I remember that tune, it was stuck in my head for weeks,” she says as she thinks up a treadmill to stretch her legs. “I’ve been sitting here way too long.”
Already predicting what he wants, she says, “You want me to unthinking the cold.”

Crow: The Legend, Baobab Studios )People Magazine Image(

Surprised, he replies, “Exactly.”
“So your friends pick you to be their big hero because of what? Your sweet voice and pretty feathers?” she asks him.
Despite his singing skills, Crow makes it clear he’s got more going for him than his voice.
“I’m more than just a voice with feathers,” he tells her to which she says, “You’d better be, for their sake.”

The film is based on the teachings of Native American culture and oral history and is being released in honor of Native American Heritage Month which is in November.
This is Winfrey’s first foray into VR animated storytelling and she and Legend join a cast comprised of Constance Wu, Randy Edmonds, Diego Luna, Tye Sheridan, Liza Koshy and Sarah Eagle Heart, the CEO of Native Americans in Philanthropy.

Legend said the “Native American storytelling tradition inspired the genesis of this project.”
“The film’s narrative is incredibly important and, in light of what’s going on in the world today, it’s themes of self-sacrifice and community are as pertinent as ever,” he continued. “I’m honored to be involved in sharing this message.”
Crow: The Legend is available on YouTube and Facebook on November 15. The VR experience will be available via The Oculus Store.

"black start scenario"

DARPA uses a remote island to stage a cyberattack on the US power grid

It enacted a worst-case, "black start" scenario: swaths of the country's grid offline for a month, battery backups exhausted.

SOUND CANNON? People Problems? Crows

National Grid Using Sound Cannon ↑in North ↑Adams to Disperse (or scare) Crows

NORTH ADAMS, Mass. — Residents near Brown Street should be prepared to hear some booms and pops over the next few evenings. 

National Grid will be using a sound-emitting propane cannon to dislodge a murder of crows that's been roosting around its Brown Street facility. 

The sonic cannon will be aimed at the flock beginning Tuesday and through Saturday between 4 and 6 p.m.

"The crows tend to return to our facility at that hour. We want to make them think this is a not a place they should go to," said Bob Kievra, a spokesman for National Grid. 

The area is fairly quiet — it's adjacent Joe's Field at Massachusetts Museum of Contemporary Art (MASS MOCA) and near Hill Side Cemetery — and has a line of trees that the crows find attractive. 

Crows have been a problem in several areas of the city over the past few years. A large noisy flock, possibly the same one (this is funny), frequents the Steeple City Plaza in the evenings, leaving droppings on cars. (Crows do this if they don't like you)

The birds in general can cause outages through contact or bridging energized equipment, Kievra said. Plus, their droppings can be corrosive. (oh poo)

The hundreds of crows have been roosting in the area of the facility for at least a couple years. Kievra said there have been other attempts to shoo them that were unsuccessful.

The cannons do not eject projectiles, only make sounds, and are not dangerous for the birds. They are often used in agricultural settings and at airports to scare away flocks. 

"We want to have them go somewhere else ... to disperse," Kievra said. (Like where - China?)

The city was advised that the sound cannons would be in use and the Police Department posted an alert on its Facebook page Monday noting "there may be multiple attempts with the cannon between 4 and 6 p.m. daily."

"We're hopeful for a successful outcome, but if not, we will look at other avenues for dispersing the large flock," Kievra said.

(I know it won't work - I know crows) 

and this: the canopy of color becomes the carpet | crow talk

 

knock on wood

Superstitions.

We knock on wood for good luck because our ancestors believed elemental spirits (i.e. faeries) inhabited trees. This superstition likely comes from the belief it could either drive away evil spirits or seek blessings from benevolent ones within the wood. It's likely throwing salt over one's shoulder after spilling it has faerie-related origins as well—salt was feared by the good folk. The saying of "God bless you" following a sneeze, while often attributed to Pope Gregory I, just as likely traces its source to the notion that sneezes allow an opening for evil spirits to enter ones body. In Irish tradition, a sneeze was an opportunity for the faeries to take a child away; the pronouncement of "God bless you," especially if the child was unbaptized, helped to mitigate this possibility. The boogeyman takes his names from the Middle English "bogge" or "bugge," meaning "hobgoblin." And don't even get me started on Santa's elves and Krampus, because that's a whole blog entry of its own.
read more

Mental Midgets | Musqonocihte (11-11-2018)

Confessions

✻Dear White Priest in Black Robe, 

Forgive me for I have sinnedlived.  It's been like a quarter-century since my last confession. These are my ___ (errors in judgment, I suppose).  I confess I had to make up confessions when I was a kid, forced into this dark tight wood booth with a priest who often drank too much with my parents on weekends. (That same priest who wanted to marry my mom.)   I can't even remember how to go to confession (lapsed Catholic that I am) and this will cost me 10 Hail Mary's, right?  I confess I will not confess to a priest ever again (which should cost me four Our Father's.)  I confess I am a fire monkey (you might have to read up on Chinese horoscopes to figure that one out).  I confess that I read books and blogs and work on other stuff when I should be fighting dust bunnies and making beds or dinner.  I play spider solitaire a lot more than I should (but it helps me think and time travel).  I confess I used to play Angry Birds on my Kindle. 

I confess everything in my new book:

Mental Midgets | Musqonocihte: “…it’s a miracle we’ve survived this far…” Kindle Edition

LINK

ISBN: 9781731074010

 

in the realm of possibility

DEAR NEIGHBOR:
Hi, George, this text message is from Richard, next door. I've got a confession to make. I've been riddled with guilt for a few months & have been trying to get up the courage to tell you face-to-face.  At least I'm telling you in this text, & I can't live with myself a minute longer without your knowing about this. The truth is that, when you're not around, I've been sharing your wife, day & night.  In fact, probably much more than you.  I haven't been getting it at home recently & I know that's no excuse. The temptation was just too great. I can't live with the guilt & hope you'll accept my sincere apology & forgive me. Please suggest a fee for usage, & I'll pay you. 
Regards,

Richard

NEIGHBOR'S RESPONSE:
George, feeling enraged & betrayed, grabbed his gun, went next door, & shot Richard dead. He returned home, shot his wife, poured himself a stiff drink & sat down on the sofa. George then looked at his phone & discovered a 2nd text message from Richard.

2nd TEXT MESSAGE:
Hi, George, Richard here again. Sorry about the typo on my last text. I assume you figured it out & noticed that the darned  Spell-Check had changed "wi-fi" to "wife."  Technology, huh?  It'll be the death of us all.