Two sites to get lost in
Carter's American Junk. Carter hunts for "junk" at flea markets. Make sure you check out her Junker's Journal.
Path to Freedom, a site chronicling and an urban homesteading project. Make sure to look at some of their recent pictures.
Friday
Wednesday
Some Thoughts on Plagiarism
After some of the recent scandals involving the "p" word, I've had a disquieting feeling. Obviously, when someone steals your words and gives you no credit, that's one thing. But what about inspiration? Responding to other writers and books? Isn't that what's been going on for centuries?
So here are few things I've stumbled across that reveal some subtleties about the issue. They don't say, "plagiarism is bad," and leave it at that.
>>>
"Early in my attempts at fiction, I was paired with a Generous Writer at a conference and had submitted, among other things, a little two-pager thing that included a paragraph describing a mom driving in the evening with two young boys in the back seat. They hit a swarm of lightning bugs. Bugs smeared under the wipers and the windshield glowed and everyone gasped, of course. I'd been inspired by a similar thing with a single lightning bug one evening.
The Generous Writer explained patiently that a lot of writers had used lightning bugs. I nodded and took note.
Some of you, at this point, may know where this is going."
The rest is here.
>>>
"Stories don't belong to anyone. Only in America–and England, I guess—do we suffer the anxiety of influence and sue each other for traces of one story in another. Hello?! This is the way stories work."
The rest of the interview with Julia Alvarez is here.
>>>
"Then I got a copy of the script for 'Frozen.' I found it breathtaking. I realize that this isn't supposed to be a relevant consideration. And yet it was: instead of feeling that my words had been taken from me, I felt that they had become part of some grander cause."
The rest of Malcolm Gladwell's "Something Borrowed" is here.
After some of the recent scandals involving the "p" word, I've had a disquieting feeling. Obviously, when someone steals your words and gives you no credit, that's one thing. But what about inspiration? Responding to other writers and books? Isn't that what's been going on for centuries?
So here are few things I've stumbled across that reveal some subtleties about the issue. They don't say, "plagiarism is bad," and leave it at that.
>>>
"Early in my attempts at fiction, I was paired with a Generous Writer at a conference and had submitted, among other things, a little two-pager thing that included a paragraph describing a mom driving in the evening with two young boys in the back seat. They hit a swarm of lightning bugs. Bugs smeared under the wipers and the windshield glowed and everyone gasped, of course. I'd been inspired by a similar thing with a single lightning bug one evening.
The Generous Writer explained patiently that a lot of writers had used lightning bugs. I nodded and took note.
Some of you, at this point, may know where this is going."
The rest is here.
>>>
"Stories don't belong to anyone. Only in America–and England, I guess—do we suffer the anxiety of influence and sue each other for traces of one story in another. Hello?! This is the way stories work."
The rest of the interview with Julia Alvarez is here.
>>>
"Then I got a copy of the script for 'Frozen.' I found it breathtaking. I realize that this isn't supposed to be a relevant consideration. And yet it was: instead of feeling that my words had been taken from me, I felt that they had become part of some grander cause."
The rest of Malcolm Gladwell's "Something Borrowed" is here.
Monday
Catch-up Entry
1.
We've been working in the yard, though we probably need to do more. I need to weed, for example. But in the past couple of months, we've cleared and planted two new beds and sodded about half of the back yard. What remains: sodding the second half of the back yard, clearing and planting three additional beds (one in the back and two in the side yard), and regular maintenance. Our front yard is rockin'. We killed a bunch of stuff last year because we'd never had a yard or garden before and didn't really know what we were doing. This year, most plants seem to be thriving. A gardening tip: water. I know it's basic, but shows you how little we knew a year ago!
2.
I expect to be doing a fair amount of traveling and hosting this summer. Within the next month or so, two weekend trips (one to Brazoria county and one to Austin to meet an old friend from Chicago), and my birthday. I'm thinking sangria party, but that's still open for suggestions. In July both Nate and I might have to travel for work. In August, we plan on going to New York.
3.
Babies. Lots of babies. My boss returns from maternity leave this week. Nate's boss is currently on family leave to welcome a recent addition. And two different couples/friends of ours have recently told us they are pregnant. Another couple is actively trying.
4.
Running is going well. Working on having three miles as my base. Out of the past six runs, four were three miles and two were two miles. So, I'm getting there.
5.
Recently seen and enjoyed Murderball, a spelling bee documentary, An Evening with Kevin Smith, and a friend's 5-minute video that had to be conceived and completed within 24 hours.
6.
I'm officially Texan again. The other day I was talking about a work project with a colleague and said, "I'm fixing to ..." This means "cain't" isn't far behind.
7.
I love lists, but they're probably boring to read so I'll stop now.
8.
Well, ok, one more. An interesting (and saddening) story about the decline of the Guadalupe Cultural Arts Center in San Antonio.
9.
This one is for the ladies. Ladies, meet Chad White.
1.
We've been working in the yard, though we probably need to do more. I need to weed, for example. But in the past couple of months, we've cleared and planted two new beds and sodded about half of the back yard. What remains: sodding the second half of the back yard, clearing and planting three additional beds (one in the back and two in the side yard), and regular maintenance. Our front yard is rockin'. We killed a bunch of stuff last year because we'd never had a yard or garden before and didn't really know what we were doing. This year, most plants seem to be thriving. A gardening tip: water. I know it's basic, but shows you how little we knew a year ago!
2.
I expect to be doing a fair amount of traveling and hosting this summer. Within the next month or so, two weekend trips (one to Brazoria county and one to Austin to meet an old friend from Chicago), and my birthday. I'm thinking sangria party, but that's still open for suggestions. In July both Nate and I might have to travel for work. In August, we plan on going to New York.
3.
Babies. Lots of babies. My boss returns from maternity leave this week. Nate's boss is currently on family leave to welcome a recent addition. And two different couples/friends of ours have recently told us they are pregnant. Another couple is actively trying.
4.
Running is going well. Working on having three miles as my base. Out of the past six runs, four were three miles and two were two miles. So, I'm getting there.
5.
Recently seen and enjoyed Murderball, a spelling bee documentary, An Evening with Kevin Smith, and a friend's 5-minute video that had to be conceived and completed within 24 hours.
6.
I'm officially Texan again. The other day I was talking about a work project with a colleague and said, "I'm fixing to ..." This means "cain't" isn't far behind.
7.
I love lists, but they're probably boring to read so I'll stop now.
8.
Well, ok, one more. An interesting (and saddening) story about the decline of the Guadalupe Cultural Arts Center in San Antonio.
9.
This one is for the ladies. Ladies, meet Chad White.
Thursday
The First Time
Katy and I ran together on Tuesday after work. It was a yellow ozone day, which I think might have affected her breathing, and really hot and humid to boot. Today seems like it will be a lot better. Cooler, with a nice breeze. It's always interesting when you know someone in one context, like work, and then see them in others. You get a different layer of the onion when you see a different side of someone. I'm thinking of friends, too.
You know your friends or family in a social setting, usually. But what are they like at work? Are they take charge? Divas? Slackers?
Exercise is interesting because you see how people react to things like pain and discomfort. Also, how will they react if you're not feeling well and they have the upper hand?
Example: I ran with a group a few years ago. Our runs were at 7 a.m. on Sunday mornings. One Saturday night, Nate invited me to go play pool. We were just friends at the time, but starting to flirt. I drank three beers that night and knew I would regret it the next day. Around 7:15 a.m., I told my friends I felt dehydrated and exhausted and I never should have gone out the night before. "Oh really?" they said, and started running faster. Bastards. But it probably helped me sweat out the beer.
Katy and I ran together on Tuesday after work. It was a yellow ozone day, which I think might have affected her breathing, and really hot and humid to boot. Today seems like it will be a lot better. Cooler, with a nice breeze. It's always interesting when you know someone in one context, like work, and then see them in others. You get a different layer of the onion when you see a different side of someone. I'm thinking of friends, too.
You know your friends or family in a social setting, usually. But what are they like at work? Are they take charge? Divas? Slackers?
Exercise is interesting because you see how people react to things like pain and discomfort. Also, how will they react if you're not feeling well and they have the upper hand?
Example: I ran with a group a few years ago. Our runs were at 7 a.m. on Sunday mornings. One Saturday night, Nate invited me to go play pool. We were just friends at the time, but starting to flirt. I drank three beers that night and knew I would regret it the next day. Around 7:15 a.m., I told my friends I felt dehydrated and exhausted and I never should have gone out the night before. "Oh really?" they said, and started running faster. Bastards. But it probably helped me sweat out the beer.
Tuesday
Runnin'
I used to hate running. I played sports growing up and that meant running. Miss a free throw? Run a lap. Have an attitude? Run a lap. Show up late to practice? You get the idea. To me, running = punishment. Sometime in college, that changed. I had a couple of friends who jogged and I started joining them. The summer after I graduated from college, I ran regularly, until my daily run was up to three miles.
A year or so later, I started dating someone who was really into running. His regular run was more like 7-8 miles, and it inspired me to up my game. I worked at a publishing company at the time and there were a lot of joggers in the office. and Five of us decided to run a marathon relay together. I don't remember what the distance breakdowns were, exactly, but I ran the final and longest relay, which was 8 miles. It was the longest distance I'd run to that point.
A couple of years later, I decided to run a marathon. For no good reason. I joined a running group and had fun with my fellow masochists, I got into really good shape, and I also managed to mess up my knee and ankle. But I finished in my time range and that was good enough for me. (4 hours, 24 minutes or something like that. I was hoping to finish under 4:30.)
My knee and ankle have given me problems ever since, sadly. But I've more or less tried to keep running, even though there are long periods of not doing anything in between. Recently, a friend and I decided to try to split a marathon and each run half of the White Rock race in December. Again, for no good reason.
Will my crotchety old knees make it? I hope so. Because a half-marathon is my favorite distance to run. Today Katy and I plan on running together for the first time. Wish us luck.
I used to hate running. I played sports growing up and that meant running. Miss a free throw? Run a lap. Have an attitude? Run a lap. Show up late to practice? You get the idea. To me, running = punishment. Sometime in college, that changed. I had a couple of friends who jogged and I started joining them. The summer after I graduated from college, I ran regularly, until my daily run was up to three miles.
A year or so later, I started dating someone who was really into running. His regular run was more like 7-8 miles, and it inspired me to up my game. I worked at a publishing company at the time and there were a lot of joggers in the office. and Five of us decided to run a marathon relay together. I don't remember what the distance breakdowns were, exactly, but I ran the final and longest relay, which was 8 miles. It was the longest distance I'd run to that point.
A couple of years later, I decided to run a marathon. For no good reason. I joined a running group and had fun with my fellow masochists, I got into really good shape, and I also managed to mess up my knee and ankle. But I finished in my time range and that was good enough for me. (4 hours, 24 minutes or something like that. I was hoping to finish under 4:30.)
My knee and ankle have given me problems ever since, sadly. But I've more or less tried to keep running, even though there are long periods of not doing anything in between. Recently, a friend and I decided to try to split a marathon and each run half of the White Rock race in December. Again, for no good reason.
Will my crotchety old knees make it? I hope so. Because a half-marathon is my favorite distance to run. Today Katy and I plan on running together for the first time. Wish us luck.
Wednesday
What good is a fence?
"Here's a fact you don't hear much about: Between a third and a half of the nation's illegal immigrants — at least 3.8 million people — entered the USA legally. That's right. They didn't slip across the border in the dead of night. They came from all over the world, stayed longer than their visas or entry documents allowed, and melted into society."
...
"Fixes for the nation's out-of-control immigration problem aren't easy in any case, but they'll prove useless as long as those who write the laws respond solely to stereotypes. A fence in the backyard isn't the solution if as many as half of the illegal immigrants are walking in through the front door."
Read the whole editorial here.
"Here's a fact you don't hear much about: Between a third and a half of the nation's illegal immigrants — at least 3.8 million people — entered the USA legally. That's right. They didn't slip across the border in the dead of night. They came from all over the world, stayed longer than their visas or entry documents allowed, and melted into society."
...
"Fixes for the nation's out-of-control immigration problem aren't easy in any case, but they'll prove useless as long as those who write the laws respond solely to stereotypes. A fence in the backyard isn't the solution if as many as half of the illegal immigrants are walking in through the front door."
Read the whole editorial here.