Forbidden Planet

Seeing as today is Halloween , I thought I'd share an early childhood memory. I have a quite a few memories from before the time I was 4 years old - perhaps they are easier for me to remember because I emigrated (along with my parents) from Great Britain to Canada - so it serves as a sort of demarcation point. This one goes back to when I was around two years old or so. I don't remember my sister (who was born a few months after I was two), so that is why I think I was two, but hey! I could have been three years old for all I know. Anyhow ... I remember waking up and going to one of the bedrooms in the house. Seated on the edge of a bed was a young women with long raven hair. Her face was buried in her hands, crying plaintively. I approached, seeking to see what was the matter. When I got close, she looked up at me. Her face was old and twisted, her eyes burned with fire, long taloned fingers shot forward grabbing my pajama top , while she screamed, "I'm going to kill...

A friend sent me this on 07-July-2005. I thought it would be nice to share. Beautiful Life You need Power Point to view it. Windows Version here or MacIntosh version here . The file is hosted on www.sharemation.com . You get 5Mb of storage and 5Mb per 3 hours bandwidth. It is free.

Yes, a long title, but here I am 3 days before November slowly filling with anticipatory dread. Why? Because like some foolish child whose eyes were bright with wonder, I signed up for NaNoWriMo . I was partially inspired by Ingrid who apparently survived last years NaNoWriMo. And partly because of an over inflated sense of my own grandeur and the desire to write something outstanding. Now, I just stand (sit, actually) here and wonder what in the world am I going to write 50,000 words about, during the month of November. sigh. I have no ideas (well, not practical ones, anyway), no plot, no focus, no direction, no plan - sort of the way I live my life. Will the Muses not take pity on me? Calliope. Erato. Melpomene. Polyhymnia. Thalia. Will none of you fly to my aid? I have ruled out doing something Doctor Who themed - even if the new series was fantastic!

I first came across the International Club as I was heading to a different campus club with clear intent to argue (I had been earlier taken aside by one of the leaders and told I “would not fit in” – so I foolishly intended to go and be disruptive). Anyway, I passed a poorly scrawled sign (I’m not sure I was even able to make out what it said) hanging on a door, with some bored looking people inside (at least they weren’t hostile). I asked what it was about and was told a social club for international students, but anyone was welcome to join. Ok, I was game, definitely sounded more interesting than engaging in stupid arguments. In the end, I wound up being in charge of PR - which was kind of cool. I like exercising my offbeat creativity. My first ad campaign ran the the following two posters (these are recreations and far more sexy than the originals, since the originals used line graphics instead of a cool picture): I thought it was very successful. We got a number of really interesti...

schizoid Which Personality Disorder Do You Have? brought to you by Quizilla SCHIZOID: Believe it or not, but people are likely quite scared of you. You are the classic Crazy Old Hermit in the Woods type. But it's not because you’re actually crazy; you just prefer to be alone. People take you the wrong way, anyhow, because of your distant, emotionless persona. I think you’re pretty cool. Others, however may whip out their crucifix’s/revolvers whenever they see you emerge from hiding … you know, just in case. Protector The ULTIMATE personality test brought to you by Quizilla PROTECTOR: You are the rock, the keystone of your friends and family. They look to you for support and leadership. You don’t push for devotion or attention, but when the situation is dire, even the Idols and Exhibitionists will turn to you. You are the trusted, the loved. You have the capacity to love more deeply than any other type, and are fiercely devoted to your friends and lovers. Highly idealistic, you ...

I have always harboured a secret desire to be more artistic - a quiet, private secret that I usually don't share. Perhaps out of embarrassment about wanting to pursue something impractical. Three months ago, or so, I borrowed a book from the library called "Drawing on the Right Side of the Brain" by Betty Edwards. Happenstance? Destiny? Who knows? I have picked up, over the years, various books on drawing. None have ever made me believe I was capable of doing more than simple scrawls on a piece of paper. This book is different. Within 30 minutes of getting home with it, I started a drawing exercise - copying Pablo Picassos' 'Portrait of Igor Stravinsky'. About an hour later, I looked at what my hand had wrought and saw that, while not perfect, there was more resemblance than I could have ever imagined. Sadly, I didn't have time to do any more exercises and returned the book. I did, however, buy my own personal copy of the book. This past weekend, I chose ...

Development and Peace is currently running a campaign against the privatization of a fundamental and essential resource - water. While I believe that everyone has a right to private property and space. I also strongly believe that fundamental human needs and requirements must not be denied or taken away from people. Water is definitely one of those. No one person, no one organization has a right to exclusively monopolize a fundamental resource so essential for life. Water must be available to all. No one must be denied their right to it. No one has the right to monopolize it. No one has the right to make it unfit for others (pollution). No one has the right to deny it to others (diversion, damming). I have no problem with people offering a service and charging for it, but I do have a problem with someone taking and controlling something that should be freely available to all.