Cultural Revolutionary

The photos below are of Tony in his SpiderMan sunglasses.

There are lots of solar cookers that you can build from simple plans available all over the Internet. There are also plenty that you can purchase. The one below (in the CNN video) might just be one of the most interesting I’ve seen.

http://www.cnn.com/video/#/video/tech/2008/05/06/allgire.hi.sun.cooker.kitv

I posted a brief update on the gardening page. I will also be adding a page within the next few days to show off some pictures of the Chicken Little Family. The Chicken Little’s are our small flock of bantam hens (4 golden phoenix and one adorable old English) and our one little cocky bantam rooster (a silver duckwing). They are all doing quite nicely. My latest plans involve adding some honey bees to the mix. But, I am going to house their hive at my parent’s farm (it’s less than a 1/4 mile away). I have two kids with severe insect sting allergies. So, even though I am not allergic, I have no intention of putting the kids at risk with an active hive anywhere close to where they might want to play. Luckily, my Dad is being more than generous and will allow me to have it at the farm.

I think at this point in the process, Tony was laughing mightily after just managing to get his big sister soaked with the watering can…

-That the people who claim to hate me the most stalk me all over the internet and make it their life’s mission to make me miserable instead of getting past the anger and working with me to make everyone’s life better? It’s quite sad really. All of that animosity could be channeled into something productive.

A few important notable quotes from Randy Pausch:

“I never found anger a way to make things better.”

“When you are doing something badly and no one’s bothering to tell you anymore, that’s a very bad place to be. Your critics are the ones still telling you they love you and care.”

“Don’t bail: the best gold is at the bottom of barrels of crap.”

“It’s very important to know when you’re in a pissing match and it’s very important to get out of it as quickly as possible.”

“Decide if you’re a Tigger or an Eyeore. I’m a Tigger.”

“Brick walls are there for a reason. The brick walls are not there to keep us out. The brick walls are there to show how badly we want something. Because the brick walls are there to stop the people who don’t want something badly enough. They are there to keep out the other people.”

AND LASTLY… “When you do the right thing, good stuff has a way of happening.” Of course, this is also something my Dad always says. But, I have only learned in the past few years that he has a valid point.

Music really is a huge part of my life. While I can’t sing or even hum on key, I adore so many types of music. Honestly, each period of my life seems to be attached to certain songs. I can hear those familiar tunes and instantly be transported back in time and the memories, good or bad, flood back into every inch of my being. Of course, there are the songs I associate with particular people. And songs I just associate with myself since I identify so strongly with them. I asked a musician who was in my life at one point in time what he liked about certain songs. He identified more strongly with the music than the words. Although I can read music thanks to my countless years of piano lessons (and, yes, I still can’t play), I have to identify with the lyrics in order to like a song. Yes, there is occasionally a random “beat” that gets stuck in my head but for the most part it’s all about the words and how I identify with them.

I met my parents for coffee this morning because they were coming through town on their way to look at some of our ancestors graves. As an aside, some my find grave “looking” odd, but I certainly don’t. I love graveyards. I love the attachment to the past. And I am always interested in where my “people” have been laid to permanent rest. Anyway, back to music… As we were talking and savoring our coffees (only my second coffee in three months), one of the Burger King employees started singing along with the music. “Winter, Spring, Summer or Fall… All you have to do is call, and I’ll be there. You’ve gotta friend.” Then my Dad, in a joking and friendly manner started singing along too. Of course, the song stuck in my head. After I left them and was driving home, the song was still being played over and over again through my feeble brain. I could hear James Taylor in my brain just as clearly as if he was sitting next to me. And I began to think of what that song means to me. I’ve got several friends in my life that have been through thick and thin with me. I’ve done the same for them. And that song always makes me smile. When I hear it, I am reminded that no matter what happens or how far apart we might grow in some ways or be distance wise, there are a few people (non-family) that I could call crying at 3am and they’d actually answer and listen. That, in itself, is comforting. The song reminds that no matter how alone I feel sometimes, honestly, I never am.

Then, after dropping of some packages to be shipped, I heard another song that’s near and dear to me. Interestingly enough, an online friend of mine also mentioned it in her blog today. Billy Joel’s “You May Be Right” always makes me sing alone. Yeah, in some ways I am a certifiable nutcase- although I am assured by my friends in the psychiatric professions that it’s a healthy lunacy. But, so is Rick. Truly, we’ve always been lunatics together. The biggest part of the craziness is that it took us so many years apart to figure out what was always meant to be. I mean, just look at these lyrics…

Now think of all the years you tried to
Find someone to satisfy you
I might be as crazy as you say
If I’m crazy then it’s true
That it’s all because of you
And you wouldn’t want me any other way

You may be right
I may be crazy
But it just might be a lunatic you’re looking for
Turn out the light
Don’t try to save me
You may be wrong for all I know
But you may be right

And while we’re on the subject of relationship songs for me, Journey has a few that always make me sob. Still. I remember years ago going to meet Rick and pick him up when he was coming to visit me for my 21st birthday (yeah, a lifetime ago). I heard Journey’s “Faithfully” on the radio and just started bawling. And from then on, whenever I heard it, that song has made me think of only one person. Granted, Rick was never a “music man” and never could be since his singing skills suck as mightily as mine do. But, for so much of our relationship we’ve been separated even when we’re “together”. Rick seems to pick jobs that keep him away from home a lot. Somewhere along the way, I learned to accept that. Interesting enough, he’s home now more than ever before in the last 13 or so years. Still, his five week home and five week gone schedule would leave a lot to be desired for some people. And, I must admit there are times it gets to me. It works for us though… And I still usually listen to “Faithfully” after I drop him off at the airport. Here are those lyrics:

Highway run
Into the midnight sun
Wheels go round and round
Youre on my mind
Restless hearts
Sleep alone tonight
Sendin all my love
Along the wire

They say that the road
Aint no place to start a family
Right down the line
Its been you and me
And lovin a music man
Aint always what its supposed to be
Oh girl you stand by me
I’m forever yours…faithfully

Circus life
Under the big top world
We all need the clowns
To make us smile
Through space and time
Always another show
Wondering where I am
Lost without you

And being apart aint easy
On this love affair
Two strangers learn to fall in love again
I get the joy
Of rediscovering you
Oh girl, you stand by me
I’m forever yours…faithfully

Oh, oh, oh, oh
Faithfully, I’m still yours
I’m forever yours
Ever yours…faithfully

Then there are other songs…. “Bridge Over Troubled Water” makes me think of my grandmother. “How Great Thou Art” reminds me of my other grandmother. Corrosion of Conformity and Motley Crue songs rock my world and remind me of my long gone youth. Grateful Dead songs always make me smile. Every ring tone on my cell phone has special meaning for some of the special people in my life. Nat is “Mrs. Robinson”. Lorraine is “867-5309″. Rick is “I Remember You”. And the list goes on….

Earth Day came and went and I posted nothing exciting or ever vaguely interesting for the occasion. Of course, I full realized the significance of the day. I even read through tons of posts on my Yahoo groups about all sorts of Earth Day shabizzle.

Unfortunately, I am seeing Earth Day turn into more and more of a corporate holiday. This year at the evil empire of Mal-Wart, Earth Day shirts and even Earth Day greeting cards were big sellers. Yes, I saw them with my own eyes while using the evil empire to buy some of the only supposedly organic produce available in this town (actually Mal-Wart has the only decent produce selection here… but I digress). Freecycle™ even sold out (yet again) to Yahoo and allowed some sort of corporate BS about special Earth Day prizes for some groups. I didn’t allow the corporate Admin post from Freecycle™ founder Deron on my Freecycle™ group because it was, quite simply, a marketing gimmick. Don’t even get me started on the other ways the Freecycle™ network has veered WAY in the opposite direction of the supposed original aim of the group.

Anyway, while I am pretty “earthy” in a lot of ways, I find it rather disgusting the path that Earth Day seems to be taking. It appears to be becoming another Hallmark holiday. I admit to celebrating the Hallmark holidays just like most other people (yes, I like Valentine’s Day as much as the next person). But truly, Earth Day should be everyday. It’s not just a day for soccer mom Barbie in her gigantic SUV to dress up her kids in shirts with cute environmental slogans (yes, my kids also have those) and then talk about conservation for one day. There should be a bit more to it…

I’ve had the video for this song on my MySpace page for awhile now. I actually have several songs on there. Anyway, I had the iPod on shuffle mode this morning while taking Tony to get his hair chopped off and it happened to pop up… Gotta love the truth in this one.

High School Never Ends
Bowling for Soup