Gone Fishin'
Due to a canoe trip with my kids in Florida, this site will be unedited for about 3 weeks. Yes, I will be getting paid cash money to go on a canoe trip you ho(s). Your job sucks.
Wednesday, March 31, 2004
Friday, March 26, 2004
Come Buy Some Commodified (commoditied?) Navajo Sand Paintings
I've been paying attention to Cap'n Pete's musings on his art not for sale (along with a Gauche's and Adam's discussion on music, and Jared Sinclair's thoughts on the self), and I was reminded of an article I read a while back in the Fall 2003 issue of Parabola. Entitled "Painting With Sand," it described the Navajo tradition of sand painting--a painstaking process meant to restore balance or order to the community when this order has been disrupted, say by an encounter with a ghost or contact with belongings of the dead--some sort of "brush with evil." Though the process itself is intriguing, the most interesting aspect of these paintings is that they are erased at the end of the ceremony--usually at the end of the day.
As I did a quick search for Navajo Sand Paintings, the majority of sites were selling some sort of permanent painting of sand glued to plywood. Quoting the article's author, Sara Jane Sloane, " . . . gluing sand to a board is a far cry from the dispersion ceremonies that are supposed to end sacred Dine (Navajo) drypainting rituals: the wind blowing the sand back to its original entropy, the grains settling into a desert punctuated only by rabbit brush and pinon trees. In their dispersion they represent the fundamental groundlessness of life."
From my own experience, and from what I read of others, there is a sort of guilt about positing oneself creatively, whether through writing, music, art, etc. For some, perhaps this guilt stems from doubting if one's creation is "good enough." For others, the guilt may be from striving to create something that is appreciated by an audience rather than creating art in and of itself. Yet again, perhaps one feels guilt for having the gaul to even posit oneself.
Many musicians describe the muse--the finicky fickle spirit that bestows brief creative genius and beauty. These are the songs I always like the best. When the self is only posited by something outside the self (there is something outside the blog . . . or perhaps not). It's easier to put up with something that I didn't have much of a role in creating.
I've always thought that playing live, even or especially around a beer-can strewn camp fire, is much more enjoyable than jotting voice and guitar down on a piece of plastic. The self is posited not that much and all at once. The moment lives for less than a day. The ephemeral holds the eternal (from the Greek ephemeron, mayfly). A glimpse of the train of the robe. A shrub that burns but is not consumed. I guess that's why people keep asking when my CD is going to be done and my answer for the last year has been, "I'm still working on it." Maybe I'll record myself in some live situations. Can you lessen the commodification of the commoditied compact disc?
I don't know.
Damn.
I've been paying attention to Cap'n Pete's musings on his art not for sale (along with a Gauche's and Adam's discussion on music, and Jared Sinclair's thoughts on the self), and I was reminded of an article I read a while back in the Fall 2003 issue of Parabola. Entitled "Painting With Sand," it described the Navajo tradition of sand painting--a painstaking process meant to restore balance or order to the community when this order has been disrupted, say by an encounter with a ghost or contact with belongings of the dead--some sort of "brush with evil." Though the process itself is intriguing, the most interesting aspect of these paintings is that they are erased at the end of the ceremony--usually at the end of the day.
As I did a quick search for Navajo Sand Paintings, the majority of sites were selling some sort of permanent painting of sand glued to plywood. Quoting the article's author, Sara Jane Sloane, " . . . gluing sand to a board is a far cry from the dispersion ceremonies that are supposed to end sacred Dine (Navajo) drypainting rituals: the wind blowing the sand back to its original entropy, the grains settling into a desert punctuated only by rabbit brush and pinon trees. In their dispersion they represent the fundamental groundlessness of life."
From my own experience, and from what I read of others, there is a sort of guilt about positing oneself creatively, whether through writing, music, art, etc. For some, perhaps this guilt stems from doubting if one's creation is "good enough." For others, the guilt may be from striving to create something that is appreciated by an audience rather than creating art in and of itself. Yet again, perhaps one feels guilt for having the gaul to even posit oneself.
Many musicians describe the muse--the finicky fickle spirit that bestows brief creative genius and beauty. These are the songs I always like the best. When the self is only posited by something outside the self (there is something outside the blog . . . or perhaps not). It's easier to put up with something that I didn't have much of a role in creating.
I've always thought that playing live, even or especially around a beer-can strewn camp fire, is much more enjoyable than jotting voice and guitar down on a piece of plastic. The self is posited not that much and all at once. The moment lives for less than a day. The ephemeral holds the eternal (from the Greek ephemeron, mayfly). A glimpse of the train of the robe. A shrub that burns but is not consumed. I guess that's why people keep asking when my CD is going to be done and my answer for the last year has been, "I'm still working on it." Maybe I'll record myself in some live situations. Can you lessen the commodification of the commoditied compact disc?
I don't know.
Damn.
Monday, March 22, 2004
Around a Campfire
It's been a while since I've enjoyed a beer around a campfire. It was a bit chilly last night, but we decided to drink outside anyway. I like the fact that I'm always good for a fire. Seems like when I drink with my friends/co-workers (my friends are my co-workers), I'm always the one building the fire. Makes me feel like Jason Holmes a little bit. He's a good egg.
I think most serious drinking should be done around a fire.
It's been a while since I've enjoyed a beer around a campfire. It was a bit chilly last night, but we decided to drink outside anyway. I like the fact that I'm always good for a fire. Seems like when I drink with my friends/co-workers (my friends are my co-workers), I'm always the one building the fire. Makes me feel like Jason Holmes a little bit. He's a good egg.
I think most serious drinking should be done around a fire.
Sunday, March 21, 2004
I Need You
I'm starting a band. I need a drummer, a bass player, a cellist, a lead guitar player, and someone with dreadlocks.
If interested, please move to Manson, N.C.
I'm starting a band. I need a drummer, a bass player, a cellist, a lead guitar player, and someone with dreadlocks.
If interested, please move to Manson, N.C.
Friday, March 19, 2004
The Angst of Not Thinking
Reading Robinstein and Kotsko and Bienko and whoever Jared Sinclair is, I find myself feeling that I am not very thoughtful these days . . . at least thoughtful in a directed academic, literary, philosophical, theological sort of way. My first inclination is to say that I don't have enough time--which is literally a good excuse (I'm at work 5 days a week, 24 hours a day). I have stayed up later at night reading in my tent, but I always seem to have little energy the next day. Believe me, I need energy in my job/life (my job is my life). I have two days off a week in which I could do some concerted reading and thinking. But hell, I can't drink for five days a week, so I gotta get my drink on. And I use these days to pay bills, run errands, and rest up for the next week. Still, I read Christian Science Monitor, Harper's, National Geographic, and a book every now and again. I'm lucky if I read a few articles a day, though. Sure, I could be doing better.
Back when I was involved in a creative, artistic, thoughtful community (121 Old Farm Midcourt), I was doing some good reading and depth of thinking. However, back then I always had the angst of thinking and reading about what I should or could be doing with my body. Now I'm doing it.
The angst of not thinking is not as great as the angst of not doing. Perhaps I just need to be a little more thoughtful about what I am doing.
Reading Robinstein and Kotsko and Bienko and whoever Jared Sinclair is, I find myself feeling that I am not very thoughtful these days . . . at least thoughtful in a directed academic, literary, philosophical, theological sort of way. My first inclination is to say that I don't have enough time--which is literally a good excuse (I'm at work 5 days a week, 24 hours a day). I have stayed up later at night reading in my tent, but I always seem to have little energy the next day. Believe me, I need energy in my job/life (my job is my life). I have two days off a week in which I could do some concerted reading and thinking. But hell, I can't drink for five days a week, so I gotta get my drink on. And I use these days to pay bills, run errands, and rest up for the next week. Still, I read Christian Science Monitor, Harper's, National Geographic, and a book every now and again. I'm lucky if I read a few articles a day, though. Sure, I could be doing better.
Back when I was involved in a creative, artistic, thoughtful community (121 Old Farm Midcourt), I was doing some good reading and depth of thinking. However, back then I always had the angst of thinking and reading about what I should or could be doing with my body. Now I'm doing it.
The angst of not thinking is not as great as the angst of not doing. Perhaps I just need to be a little more thoughtful about what I am doing.
The Weekend Off, Whooooo Hoooooo
Typically I work every weekend because my camp has "cook out" on Saturday and Sunday. This is where my kids stay in campsite and cook all of their own meals over and open-fire grill. This is referred to as an "altar fire." During the previous week, the kids create their own menus, referring to a price guide to calculate the costs of food. They plan for nutritional requirements and make sure that the portions are adequate for the number of people in our group. They must add up the total cost of the menu, and then use their long division skills to calculate the cost per person. Talk about experiential education! They're practicing their math skills, learning organization, planning balanced and hopefully tasty meals, and they get to cook it and eat it in the end. Nice!
We always split up into inside and outside crews. The inside crew is in charge of washing all of the dishes, setting the table, and cooking the meal. The outside crew is doing some sort of work around campsite--chopping wood during the winter, washing a top tarp for their sleep tent, fixing trail rocks, tying lashings, etc. etc.
The last two weekends I have had to work cook out on my own in group. Since the weekend is usually a pretty stressful time, the absence of my co-counselor makes it even more so. Running two crews is not as easy as it may sound--especially when at any moment you have kids throwing rocks, pushing each other, running out of boundaries in the woods, etc. You gotta love 'em though.
All of this to say that my kids went home today on their home visit--a privilege they get every 5 weeks. I am off from Friday afternoon until Tuesday at noon. My list of things to do:
--drink beer
--pay my bills
--watch college basketball
--drink beer
--record some music
--walk around the woods aimlessly in search for meaning
--drink whiskey, then beer
--watch a couple of movies
--catch up on the recent Harper's
--go to a bar to drink beer
Peace my brother and sisters
Typically I work every weekend because my camp has "cook out" on Saturday and Sunday. This is where my kids stay in campsite and cook all of their own meals over and open-fire grill. This is referred to as an "altar fire." During the previous week, the kids create their own menus, referring to a price guide to calculate the costs of food. They plan for nutritional requirements and make sure that the portions are adequate for the number of people in our group. They must add up the total cost of the menu, and then use their long division skills to calculate the cost per person. Talk about experiential education! They're practicing their math skills, learning organization, planning balanced and hopefully tasty meals, and they get to cook it and eat it in the end. Nice!
We always split up into inside and outside crews. The inside crew is in charge of washing all of the dishes, setting the table, and cooking the meal. The outside crew is doing some sort of work around campsite--chopping wood during the winter, washing a top tarp for their sleep tent, fixing trail rocks, tying lashings, etc. etc.
The last two weekends I have had to work cook out on my own in group. Since the weekend is usually a pretty stressful time, the absence of my co-counselor makes it even more so. Running two crews is not as easy as it may sound--especially when at any moment you have kids throwing rocks, pushing each other, running out of boundaries in the woods, etc. You gotta love 'em though.
All of this to say that my kids went home today on their home visit--a privilege they get every 5 weeks. I am off from Friday afternoon until Tuesday at noon. My list of things to do:
--drink beer
--pay my bills
--watch college basketball
--drink beer
--record some music
--walk around the woods aimlessly in search for meaning
--drink whiskey, then beer
--watch a couple of movies
--catch up on the recent Harper's
--go to a bar to drink beer
Peace my brother and sisters
Thursday, March 18, 2004
On My One Day Off
I'm watching the "100 Greatest Rock Bands" on VH1 while listening to The Wu-Tang-Clan "Enter The Wu-Tang: 36 Chambers" I think I need to check out more Thin Lizzy and Living Colour. Other albums I've listened to today: Super Furry Animals "Rings Around The World", Robert Johnson "The Complete Recordings", 2-Pac "Greatest Hits", Hank Williams "The Ultimate Collection", and The Immortal Lee County Killers "Love Is A Charm of Powerful Trouble". I think my next album to buy is going to be a Faith No More album . . . why the hell not?! I also think I'm going to start using a slide on my guitar. Damn.
I'm watching the "100 Greatest Rock Bands" on VH1 while listening to The Wu-Tang-Clan "Enter The Wu-Tang: 36 Chambers" I think I need to check out more Thin Lizzy and Living Colour. Other albums I've listened to today: Super Furry Animals "Rings Around The World", Robert Johnson "The Complete Recordings", 2-Pac "Greatest Hits", Hank Williams "The Ultimate Collection", and The Immortal Lee County Killers "Love Is A Charm of Powerful Trouble". I think my next album to buy is going to be a Faith No More album . . . why the hell not?! I also think I'm going to start using a slide on my guitar. Damn.
Monday, March 01, 2004
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