heathervescent

debone

debone
Originally uploaded by Splat Worldwide.

How can I not love this photo? Splat does it again!

My Friend, Reality

The line between fact and fiction is blurry. How many stories am I telling, do I participate in - at this one moment? So many. I can barely keep up with the activities of all my personalities.

I spent the weekend reading fiction by Jeffrey Ford about his Mrs Charbuque. I accept her eccentric characteristics as if she really existed. Requesting a portrait by a painter who has and will never see her? Oh it's so cliche - reality is stranger than fiction - as a writer you often have to water down reality for the masses to exist the possibility. But what about when you create possibilities and they emerge dripping wet, even more stranger than fiction that you could have never thought? I guess that's your children for you.

Anyway, that is just to say that people and things in my life are stranger than fiction - and that tends to skew my world view. But that's ok, cause I prefer to have a skewed view on this world - and it's really no more skewed than anyone else's, just in a different direction.

Dreaming the best

What I like in an event/activity

• something captivating - new, novel, exciting
• interesting people - to look at, to talk to, to learn from
• creative, passionate, authentic
• beautiful location, connecting
• subcultural

The way to the mainstream is by any subculture. Once in the mainstream, that subculture....

I'm really excited about my upcoming trip to Tuscan Arizona. I'm going to the Science of Consciousness Conference. Chicken John gave me the lowdown on the best place to stay and one of my friends from the Bay Area is going to be there. I'm leaving town next Sunday and will drive through the desert I love. Not quite passing my new rachcita, but dreaming of it and which possibilities to manifest first. Then on my way back I've detour through Amargosa to visit another dream come true. Ah, the desert, I can already feel your refreshment.

Not Feeling Enlightened

A few months ago I had a dream where I was cleaning out these long hollow pipes in my garage. There were a lot of them and they were stuffed with grease, lint, dead insect carcasses. Just the usual delightful stuff you find in your garage. I realized that the dream was telling me that it's time to clean out all the reminding bits of junk.

I've been surrounded by the dust and dirt of my own Karma and I'm getting dirty cleaning it out. It's frustrating sometimes.

All the while I have been inhaling several books. I finished Jonathan's Narcisa - Our Lady of Ashes (it's not publicly available yet). And then straight on to Dharma Punx by Noah Levine. Both talk about addiction, doing crazy shit and in the case of Levine's Dharma Punx, a path of service and redemption. That's Jonathan's story too. I remember talking with a friend about AA and being intrigued at the 12 steps and AA support. It sounded a lot like the stuff I have learned on my own spiritual path. In some ways I wish my path had taken me down and up into the AA realm. The work is hard stuff, but the path has already been laid out.

Anyway, so here I am in my own pile of shit, sorting and sifting, cleaning and attempting to replace mechanisms and processes that have built up over 30 years. I've done the processes before, but it's on bigger, smaller, trickier, twistier stuff.

Would I want it any other way? This is what I've chosen.

Differentiation

"Care for nothing in yourself but what you feel exists nowhere else."

I've been pondering this part of my favorite phrase. Does it mean, if someone else can do something better than me, I stop? Does it mean, I stop when someone does things that I also do? What if they suck at what I do? What if they are better than me? At what point is the line drawn? Do I continue to do those things that others do, but care nothing about what I am doing?

These questions don't matter if this one is answered: Am I passionate about it?

Purple Tornado Sponsors ROFLcon

I like to put my money where my mouth is and support things I think need to happen - ROFLcon is one of those things, so threw down some of my cold hard earned cash (from PT, my company) to help make it happen.

Anyway, here’s another triumphant and relevant coup for ROFLCon - Purple Tornado, a great marketing company in LA, is helping us out for realz! They focus haaardcore on internet marketing and have a real solid understanding of the potential for new media advertising and PR. They’re also just cool people, and will be coming to the ‘Bridge to schmooze and mingle with all y’all in April. Just six weeks to go. Yeah seriously. We’re so stoked, and you should be too. Link.

Maybe see some of you there.

Why I will never switch to a mac

First - I think the whole "think different" marketing campaign is just that - marketing and I can't stomach the hype. I'm a contrarian at heart, and so I think differently and use a Thinkpad.

Second - It's all about the keyboard.

In interface to my computer through the keyboard. There is no keyboard I love more than the Thinkpad keypad with red mouse button. (I also HATE touchpads!) My index finger on the red button and I am at home.

Third - no right click.

A could years ago I decide to get over my anti-mac attitude and try on. So I went out and bought the black macbook. I got some software and started getting to it. Within an hour I was *YEOUCH* - what is with this horrible keyboard? Square keys with horrible pop-up ness. Required to use the hated touch pad when I wanted to mouse. And where the f*ck is the right click button. WTF? So you have a shortcut menu but you require me to figure out the ctrl, alt, apple, ???? button plus that hated touchpad button? What is the point of optimizing.

And then I realized - macs are slow. S-L-O-W. Sure they boot up fast, but it takes me forever to do something on it. I could only get about 30% of the stuff I do done if I only used the Mac. Mostly because they hide the right click and they require that I used the hated touchpad which is slow slow slow! And I can't type as fast on the Mac because the keyboard is not ergonomic. Square keys? And what's up with this square outchiness totally horribly designed unless I want to slit my wrists slowly back edge?

I thought that I just needed to use it and get used to it - optimize myself and be more open minded. But screw that. I've had it for a year and half and my opinion has not changed. I use the mac as a glorified CD player - and I don't even like iTunes. Even the built in video camera sucks.

What was this hype about Macs never crashing? I have managed to freeze/crash the mac more times each month than my Thinkpad in 4 years!

Sorry apple - you do not have my eye. Maybe if you were named grapefruit I would like you better.

We are Connected and Individual

Appealing to my more enlightened self - this TED talk blew my mind. I suggest you watch this right now - and then choose from where you want to live. (Thanks Ralitza for sending the link!)

Neuroanatomist Jill Bolte Taylor had an opportunity few brain scientists would wish for: One morning, she realized she was having a massive stroke. As it happened -- as she felt her brain functions slip away one by one, speech, movement, understanding -- she studied and remembered every moment. This is a powerful story about how our brains define us and connect us to the world and to one another.

For unHappy Rainbows

From the -"It appeals to the 14 year old boy in me" files - I occasionally like to surf the delightful art at RainbowPuke.com. Here is a typical piece. Are you loling yet?

File your papers the GTD Way

Welcome to the next episode in my Kicking Ass at GTD series - this topic is one we all love and procrastinate. Filing.