Urban Sites

Storm Warning

It's been mild here and yesterday you could taste spring. Today however a storm warning is in effect. Okay why not.

wiggling plus rose petals equals school of fish

This article in the Guardian about the savant Daniel Tammet of England is really interesting. It's not just that Daniel can do amazing mathematical calculations but the process by which this occurrs.

Since his epileptic fit, he has been able to see numbers as shapes, colours and textures. The number two, for instance, is a motion, and five is a clap of thunder. "When I multiply numbers together, I see two shapes. The image starts to change and evolve, and a third shape emerges. That's the answer. It's mental imagery. It's like maths without having to think".

He knows seven languages and is attracted to languages with many vowels. He is in the process of inventing his own language called Mänti"

The vocabulary of his language - "Mänti", meaning a type of tree - reflects the relationships between different things. The word "ema", for instance, translates as "mother", and "ela" is what a mother creates: "life". "Päike" is "sun", and "päive" is what the sun creates: "day". Tammet hopes to launch Mänti in academic circles later this year, his own personal exploration of the power of words and their inter-relationship

Because of the way his mind works ordinary things like a trip to the grocery store are overwhelming. He never goes to the beach because there are too many pebbles which he is compelled to count."There's too much mental stimulus. I have to look at every shape and texture. Every price, and every arrangement of fruit and vegetables. So instead of thinking,'What cheese do I want this week?', I'm just really uncomfortable."It's a fascinating window into another way to receive the world. I wonder what kind of world we would live in if all of our minds worked like Daniel's. Would we have even survived as a species or would we have developed completely different sorts of societies.

"When I looked at the numbers I 'saw' images. It felt like a place I could go where I really belonged. That was great. I went to this other country whenever I could. I would sit on the floor in my bedroom and just count. I didn't notice that time was passing. It was only when my Mum shouted up for dinner, or someone knocked at my door, that I would snap out of it."

Stuff

Walking Luna today I saw a woman waiting for the bus. She had a bright blue shoulder bag with the Pepsi logo on it and the words "The Joy of Pepsi", except the word Pepsi was crossed out with black marker and Coca-Cola was scrawled next to it. What a strange thing to have such strong convictions about that you want everyone to know.Why not just a Coca Cola bag or a neutral non-cola bag? Why am I writing about this even.

On the news I just heard that the Pope felt ill while writing some Sainthood decrees. Can you imagine that being your job. "What are you up to James?", "Oh not much just writng up some sainthood decrees, walking the dog, the usual.

Is there something going on between Bush and Putin that needs to be said?

L'l Mod Squad

I came across these photos of my sisters and I in our too funky to be true clothes in the 70's. Man I would have been so ahead of the fashion curve if I'd been wearing that Adidas hip-hop outfit ten years later instead of in the 1970's when it was the school uniform.

Young Steve entertains us with some grass.


So Hunter S. Thompson sent himself off into the big sky. It was two years ago this past weekend that we all said goodbye to Steve. The thing about death is we all gotta go. It's the door at the end of the hall that you walk through once, at least as the who you are now. I was reading a book this evening called "Shanty, Forest and River Life in the Backwoods". It was published in 1883 and tells one man's story of life in the lumber camps and villages west of Ottawa. There is one passage that spoke directly to the occasion this evening. A man named James was on his deathbed as his brother John stood at his side

"Do you see the bright star, John?"
"No James, I cannot see it."
"Ah, John that's my home."...Reader when you and I come to die may we, with as much simple faith and assurance, and with our eye fixed bright on some bright star above, be enabled to say 'that's my home'. "

If i could relive selected days of my life, the days I spent with Steve would be with out a doubt among them: to wake up on Grandma's farm in the blue dawn tired from laughing all through the night, knowing that the day to come would be just as great as the days that came before. To take the long bus rides downtown and sift through records, see the 'Naked Gun' and the old farting man who kept shuffling past us to go to the washroom, defacing Grandma's stack of Maclean's magazines creating new definitions of obscenity in the process. Shooting out all the lights in Granpa's barn with the pellet gun, making our own comic books with soundtracks and effects on cassette tape, making fun of all the inane sitcoms and ads that TV endlessly spewed out and asked us to consider as meaningful statements in the world. Absurdity was our religion and our sanctuary. I guess it was a pretty stupid 'religion' but we had our fun."So did you drove or did you flew?"

Organic HTML

Here's a freaky little thing I stumbled upon called Organic HTML Type in a url and watch as it is'magically' converted into a plant. I'm not sure what happens but it seems like it's converting the URL html code into a visual. And now to bed...

Mill of Kintail

Today I took a trip with some friends to the Mill of Kintail conservation area. The Mill was built in the 1830's and is located near Almonte in Lanark County where my first ancestor in Canada, also named James MacDougall, arrived from Ireland in the 16th Century. The last time I visited this place I was 14 years old on a school trip the fall I lived with my grandmother. I was still able to find the apple trees by the cloister where we had an apple fight. It was nice to get out of the city, something I would like to do permanently. Luna was extremly happy running on the trails. Since I stopped to take pictures my friends were always ahead of me. Being part border collie Luna would run after them to see where they were, then run back check on me, then once more run after them. She is exhausted now and sound asleep.

















Finally a cow faces a horse on a farm we passed. Taken from a long way off hence the strange photo quality.

brrrr says it all

I might go hiking this weekend but tonight it's so cold that the air feels like it's cutting your flesh. So cozy warm fresh out of the dryer laundry is kind of nice. I've pulled out all these old lp's by ELO, Bob Seger, the Cars, Supertramp, Van Halen, Cheap Trick, Boston, Rush... oh the childhood memories. Talk about guilty pleasures, except it sounds so good when you crank it that I don't feel any shame whatsoever. I also cracked open some Anchor Steam Ale a very good beer brewed in San Francisco, which doesn't hurt.

Mondegreens

I experienced a mondegreen with the U2 song With a Shout this evening while playing October really loud while doing the laundry. For years I always heard Bono singing "ter-ror-s I've-had". I decided to check the actual lyrics on the internet and was surprised to discover that he was singing "Je-ru-sa-lem". I like my version better. When I was a teenager I could really relate to him singing "terrors I've had".

Simply put a Mondegreen is the mishearing of a song lyric.

"The term was coined in a 1954 Atlantic article by Sylvia Wright, in which Ms.Wright recalled hearing a folk song that went "They had slain the Earl of Morray and Lady Mondegreen." Actually, no one else was slain with the Earl of Morray, they had "laid him on the green."

Another one was the Aerosmith lyric "dude looks like a lady" which I thought was "do the lucky lady" for some time. And as a kid I was amazed to here Wings sing "we can send it fucking skywards" on the radio in the song "With a Little Luck". Turned out it was "We can send it rocketing skywards.", but no matter how closely I listened I heard Paul McCartney cursing on the airwaves.

There are lot's of good mondegreens archived on-line.
Some of my favourites. Can you identify them?

1. 'Scuse me while I kiss this guy


2. and there's a wino down the road - I should have stolen Oreos


3. Beelzebub has a devil for a sideboard


4. The ants are my friends, they're blowing in the wind


5. The girl with colitis goes by


6. no dogs orgasm in the classroom


7. There's a bathroom on the right


8. stuffing my face with his fingers


9. I really don't like him... Doctor Cashpot, Doctor Cashpot


10. Hold me closer, Tony Danza

Answers

Okay I think the laundry load is dry.

eSt Week 06

To the Beginning >

What is the Platypus?

It has fur, lays eggs and has poison spurs

The effect of the platypus poison on humans has been documented a few times in history. It is not a pleasant experience. There are at least 25 elements in platypus venom. When the poison enters a victim, one protein in it causes blood to flow to the area of the sting. Acid in the venom causes a burning sensation. Another protein lowers blood pressure, causing shock and fainting, and certain components dissolve tissues and blood vessels, allowing poison to spread more rapidly. The strongest element of the poison works directly on the receptors to nerves that register pain.

Take The Short Way Home

The other night I had to go meet some people and I decided that the most convenient bus stop was the one across the street. It was convenient to get to the stop, but the bus itself wound it's way like an inhebriated snake through the east end. Vanier looks a lot like parts of Montreal. It's not a coincidence since it's traditionally a francophone part of the city. The homes pressed against the streets and the catholic churches all said Quebec to me. I was missing Montreal as the bus slinked it's way through the dark streets. I was headed for a shopping mall of all places. I hate and have always despised shopping malls. they make me physically ill. I won't elaborate on that. It's just a fact. It took 45 minutes of wending our way and we arrived. As I went to get of the bus I asked the driver which bus route I should take home. "The 18?" He held back a laugh. "The 95. It'll take you 8 minutes to be downtown." I took the 95 home. It only took 5 minutes.

Long Day

Fluffy muffled snowfall morning
Lavender twilight afternoon
steely cold sharp cutting evening
and half a shining moon

This gorgeous painting by Ms Allard came in the mail last week. It was in exchange for being such a great guy and doing some web work. I love it.

Catholic Horror

Was the Passion of the Christ one of the best horror films of 2004? According to this review from something called E-Splatter it is:

For any horror fan, it's impossible to watch this and not think of "The Exorcist" or "Rosemary's Baby."

The reviewer interestingly enough points out how Christianity, particularily Catholicism has played such a large role in the horror genre; Satan, demonic possession, crucifixes,holy water, hell all come out of a Christian mythos. Christianity in general is a belief system or set of belief systems that give credence to the supernatural through a set of well established stories,imagery characters and doctrines. Afterall Christianity is largely a story about a struggle between darkness and light, good and evil, the sacred and the profane. What could be scarier than eternal damnation?

The Water Gnomes

Dangerous Gnomes

Underwater gnome threat 'returns' says the headline from the BBC.

Clearing House

A little spring cleaning today. Here is a silly doodle I did while on the phone:



here is a picture my mother took of l'l Lu last summer at the cottage.






This is a book I picked up for $2.99 at the Heritage Mall in Owen Sound last Christmas. I've always had an interest in the history of spectacle: Coney Island, roadshows, circuses, zoos, carnivals,rock festivals, museums, freak shows, country fairs...

It's unfortunate that the authour of this book doesn't do a good job in documenting what the 1939 world's fair was like. He is a computer scientist who turns the recounting of events into a diatribe against what he sees as a present day loss of faith in science, progress and a valorized "Future". He sets up a rhetorical rhythm that instead of being hypnotic or engaging is the equivalent to being smacked. What we are supposed to learn from this beating is that crime and a loss of moral good sense is directly tied to our loss as a society in faith in progress. We are a cynical hopless society. I'm not the first person to point out that there was a discourse of science and progress that had messianic overtones, but this book was written in the 1990's and here he is mourning the loss of the reification of science. I can only guess that there is something personal at stake for the authour.


A long time ago in San Sebastian Nikki and I were walking along the seaside when I saw some kids playing cards. They weren't the cards I was used to seeing with Hearts, Spades, Diamonds and Clubs. These looked more like Tarot cards. I asked Nikki what they were and she said that they were a kind of card popular in the Mediterranean countries of Europe. When we got back to Milan I went to a game store and bought a pack of these Carte Napoletane.

We have 4 suits: Copa (hearts), Spada (spades), Moneta (diamonds) and Bastone (Clubs).
These cards are indeed the precursors to our modern deck but also to the Tarot. Copa=Cups, Spada=Swords, Moneta=Pentacles, Bastone=Wands.

One interesting thing is that the cards depicted above are Knights. We have knights in Tarot but not in our regular deck of playing cards. Here they replace Queens. No women in the Napoletane deck. Tarot however does have Queens.

Finally here is the original oicture of the mystery photo below



I'm off to go pick up VA's painting. I can't wait to see it!

Intolerance As Political Leverage

As of late Conservative Party leader Stephen Harper has been on a campaign against allowing marriage for gay couples. His party has been producing advertisments directed primarily at 'ethnic' Canadians (ethnic in this case means new Canadians of non-European descent I presume). The assumption is that 'ethnic' Canadians are more conservatice in their social values and would leave their traditional support for the Liberal party over this issue. According to an in-house survey undertaken by the Conservative Party "A full six percentage points of Liberal supporters said they would consider exiting their party. By contrast, Tory support dropped by only two percentage points when supporters were asked whether they would drift away should the caucus oppose the bill."

It's extremely cynical to rest your attempts to form a government on an issue that chooses to go against the Charter of Rights and Freedoms. This article by Anthony Reinhart in the Globe and Mail questions the assumption that 'ethnic' citizens vote as a block.

Nostalgia

And you may find yourself living in a shotgun shack
And you may find yourself in another part of the world
And you may find yourself behind the wheel of a large automobile
And you may find yourself in a beautiful house, with a beautiful
Wife
And you may ask yourself-well...how did I get here?

Sidewalk Moonwalk

No Means I Don't Know

This exchange took place between Bob McKeown and Anne Coulter recently on the CBC program the Fifth Estate:

Coulter: "Canada used to be one of our most loyal friends and vice-versa. I mean Canada sent troops to Vietnam - was Vietnam less containable and more of a threat than Saddam Hussein?"

McKeown interrupts: "Canada didn't send troops to Vietnam."

Coulter: "I don't think that's right."

McKeown: "Canada did not send troops to Vietnam."

Coulter (looking desperate): "Indochina?"

McKeown: "Uh no. Canada ...second World War of course. Korea. Yes. Vietnam No."

Coulter: "I think you're wrong."

McKeown: "No, took a pass on Vietnam."

Coulter: "I think you're wrong."

McKeown: "No, Australia was there, not Canada."

Coulter: "I think Canada sent troops."

McKeown: "No."

Coulter: "Well. I'll get back to you on that."

McKeown tags out in script:

"Coulter never got back to us -- but for the record, like Iraq, Canada sent no troops to Vietnam."

The Video

It's remarkable how you can see that she is trying to bluff her way through this hoping that insisting will stand in for not knowing what she is talking about.It seems to me this is symptomatic of a lot of the punditry that passes itself off as journalism on TV. A stance is taken and the facts are irrelevant to that position. Stubborn assertation is substituted for facts and knowledge. Where have I seen that before.

The Weird Thing is They're All Republicans!

The New York Times reports on the three to four fold increase in US citizens applying to immigrate to Canada

a small loss of residents, many of whom cite a deep sense of political despair, is a significant event in the life of a nation that thinks of itself as a place to escape to.

I think Prince started the trend when he moved to Toronto a few years back. Maybe William Shatner will finally come home (if he doesn't have a house here already, who the @$&% knows).

Slamming into a Paper Wall

I've got too much energy to be sitting at a computer in a chair all day. I should be out climbing and jumping and running. Then again there are bills to pay. Aw.

Small Vacation

Yesterday there was a thaw. You could hear the bird caws,cheep-cheeps and whut- whut- whut's through the day. Then everything froze overnight. What this means is that the sidewalks are like ice rinks today. Luna and I went for our usual walk taking care not to slip. Most of the ice is uneven and spattered with gravel which gives you some sort of grip. We came to a driveway where the owner had cleared the ice from the sidewalk. Or had they. There was a thin layer of ice smooth and invisible and as I stepped on it surf music twanging on my walkman Luna pulled me across the ice as I wavered trying to stay upright. For less than one second I was in Maui. It was an absurd conjunction of circumstance that left me laughing.

I spoke with Sophie this morning. She's still got her cough from influenza, her rib is healing but she went to the dentist yesterday for a filling and he cracked her tooth in two. Rough. Hope your feeling better by April (at least).

eSt week 05

The beginning -->

Blog in a Blog in a Blog

Winterlude

North Canal


South Canal


Crystal Garden


Luna Takes a Break


'Skiers, Slow Down' or is that 'Slow Down, Skiers'