Monday, October 30, 2006
October in Central Park
After a magnificent lunch of chicken alfredo with sundried tomatoes, we wandered over to the south end of Central Park on a beautiful Saturday afternoon.
Cait and I went for a stroll through Central Park last weekend, so I'll get some of the pics up for you guys. This was at the beginning of the Mall.
We proceeded to be very lazy and hang out by the fountain at the Bethseda Terrace for a nice long while.
Then we found this guy, Thoth, doing solopera under a bridge span singing in a very strange language, and in very different pitches, while playing single notes on his violin. He danced and jiggled his ankle tamborines and generally put on a very comedic show to his impromptu audience.
And I'm having difficulty getting all this in the order I want. Fred! How do you get your photo blog so nice and organized?!
When light was falling, I grabbed some shots of the incredible angles on 47th street.
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Cait and I went for a stroll through Central Park last weekend, so I'll get some of the pics up for you guys. This was at the beginning of the Mall.
We proceeded to be very lazy and hang out by the fountain at the Bethseda Terrace for a nice long while.
Then we found this guy, Thoth, doing solopera under a bridge span singing in a very strange language, and in very different pitches, while playing single notes on his violin. He danced and jiggled his ankle tamborines and generally put on a very comedic show to his impromptu audience.
And I'm having difficulty getting all this in the order I want. Fred! How do you get your photo blog so nice and organized?!
When light was falling, I grabbed some shots of the incredible angles on 47th street.
Friday, October 27, 2006
New Blog
Hey guys--I've started a blog for my writings called "Soggy Peanut Shells." Don't know how often I'll be posting but it seems like it would be a useful thing to have a link I can send peops to who are interested in my writing. I think you also should be able to get to it using cmsteeves.blogspot.com Happy reading!
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Happy Roomie Moments....
Johnny dancing to staying alive, knees too old to jive, throwing his lanky-ness all over the living room....
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breakfast
I found a quail in my peanuts this morning. Or rather, a quail-shaped peanut. It was so cute and little, with a fat little bottom and an itty bitty sloping head. I haven't eaten it yet. It's resting amongst the peanut shell graveyard that's spilling over my plate. I'll probably eat it soon. Peanuts--even quail-shaped ones--are meant to be eaten. Apparently there are lots of things you can do with peanuts, but I still think their most important use is to be eaten. How many peanuts are too many? 15? 30? The whole bag? Someone told me that eating the papery skins is good for you--fiber? I don't like to eat the skins. When I eat a peanut, I like to squeeze one end of the shell so it splits, then I pull the two halves apart and dump the (hopefully) two little nuts into my hand. The big ones are the most satisfying to crack open, but sometimes the little ones are extra tasty--I don't know why. So anyway, I like to pop the nuts out of their skins, sometimes shooting them across the table so they have to be retrieved prior to ingestion. What remains just adds to the little peanut shell graveyard. I have to dig amongst the bones and whispery skins to find more nuts, find the live ones. Peanut shells don't seem like regular garbage to me. I imagine them all getting together somewhere---peanut Heaven??--piles and piles of the stuff. Dry and light and skittering over blacktop, pooling in potholes. The saddest sight in the world is a wet, soggy peanut shell.
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Friday, October 20, 2006
Another Poem If You Can Stand It...
Night Journey - Theodore Roethke
Now as the train bears west,
Its rhythm rocks the earth,
And from my Pullman berth
I stare into the night
While others take their rest.
Bridges of iron lace,
A suddeness of trees,
A lap of mountain mist
All cross my line of sight,
Then a bleak wasted place,
And a lake below my knees.
Full on my neck I feel
The straining at a curve;
My muscles move with steel,
I wake in every nerve.
I watch a beacon swing
From dark to blazing bright;
We thunder through ravines
And gullies washed with light.
Beyond the mountain pass
Mist deepnes on the pane;
We rush into a rain
That rattles double glass.
Wheels shake the roadbed stone,
The pistons jerk and shove,
I stay up half the night
To see the land I love.
Makes you want to cross-country, doesn't it? I love the 6th-9th lines. They perfectly capture the motion and the mood of staring out a window and travelling at great speeds. The way you see everything but only for an instant before it blurs into oblivion and the next object, and the next object, and the next... Our minds, in these situations, tend to mirror the passing landscape, with one thought giving way to another, each idea fading quickly as it appeared. I love the fact that he is the only one awake on the train. Oh, how we dreamers like to stay awake past the hour when all the pragmatists have taken their rest. It is Then and There that the secrets, spirits, serpents and lyrics unveil themselves to us. If we are zen enough, perhaps we return to the waking world with a lesson for life in hand; if we are quick enough with pen, perhaps we capture an aspect of this ether-realm to share with the disbelieving daylight.
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Now as the train bears west,
Its rhythm rocks the earth,
And from my Pullman berth
I stare into the night
While others take their rest.
Bridges of iron lace,
A suddeness of trees,
A lap of mountain mist
All cross my line of sight,
Then a bleak wasted place,
And a lake below my knees.
Full on my neck I feel
The straining at a curve;
My muscles move with steel,
I wake in every nerve.
I watch a beacon swing
From dark to blazing bright;
We thunder through ravines
And gullies washed with light.
Beyond the mountain pass
Mist deepnes on the pane;
We rush into a rain
That rattles double glass.
Wheels shake the roadbed stone,
The pistons jerk and shove,
I stay up half the night
To see the land I love.
Makes you want to cross-country, doesn't it? I love the 6th-9th lines. They perfectly capture the motion and the mood of staring out a window and travelling at great speeds. The way you see everything but only for an instant before it blurs into oblivion and the next object, and the next object, and the next... Our minds, in these situations, tend to mirror the passing landscape, with one thought giving way to another, each idea fading quickly as it appeared. I love the fact that he is the only one awake on the train. Oh, how we dreamers like to stay awake past the hour when all the pragmatists have taken their rest. It is Then and There that the secrets, spirits, serpents and lyrics unveil themselves to us. If we are zen enough, perhaps we return to the waking world with a lesson for life in hand; if we are quick enough with pen, perhaps we capture an aspect of this ether-realm to share with the disbelieving daylight.
Tuesday, October 17, 2006
Don't Get Arrested...
...even on a misdemeanor. Private database companies are buying criminal records from the courts and various law-enforcement agencies and selling the information to employers, property-owners, and interested parties of any sort. So, a petty offense that the courts and police have erased from their records could still exist on a private database available to any private or public entity that thinks its worth the price to search your name. Got arrested for peeing in public in 1999 going to present a problem buying a condo down the road? Of course, not. Misdemeanor. Expunged from my record years ago. Really? Your application to buy is returned by the Condominium after they view outdated personal information sold willy-nilly by public institutions to private vultures.
Check out the article.
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Check out the article.
Saturday, October 14, 2006
Party time again baby!
I was actually trying to post from school yesterday, but the server we were using wasn't letting me upload photos, so that'll get up here soon.
However, we do have another party I wanted to share about: The Steeves' house engagement party! The entire family is involved in cooking, cleaning, and taking care of yard work last night and this morning in preparation for the festivities today. There'll be so much good food to eat! And papa Steeves and I hand picked a case of wine last night, so bring your appetities! We're looking to extend the party deep into the evening so if you boys have the time / interest to stay the night, please do.
Yesterday was exactly 1 year to the date before the wedding and today is exactly 1 year to the day. We woke up to a beautiful sunrise and noticed that the lawn was covered in frost! So, next year this time, when we'll all be out on that lawn, we're gonna have to make sure we're bundled up and have plenty of firewood to keep us warm - that and lots of alcohol. The morning after should be a good recovery too, with mamosas and a catered brunch!
We'll take a look over at the wedding site this afternoon sometime too to check out the colors and give you boys a look at what the inside of the Playhouse is -- and to give you an idea as to where you'll be making your toast from!
See you soon!
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However, we do have another party I wanted to share about: The Steeves' house engagement party! The entire family is involved in cooking, cleaning, and taking care of yard work last night and this morning in preparation for the festivities today. There'll be so much good food to eat! And papa Steeves and I hand picked a case of wine last night, so bring your appetities! We're looking to extend the party deep into the evening so if you boys have the time / interest to stay the night, please do.
Yesterday was exactly 1 year to the date before the wedding and today is exactly 1 year to the day. We woke up to a beautiful sunrise and noticed that the lawn was covered in frost! So, next year this time, when we'll all be out on that lawn, we're gonna have to make sure we're bundled up and have plenty of firewood to keep us warm - that and lots of alcohol. The morning after should be a good recovery too, with mamosas and a catered brunch!
We'll take a look over at the wedding site this afternoon sometime too to check out the colors and give you boys a look at what the inside of the Playhouse is -- and to give you an idea as to where you'll be making your toast from!
See you soon!
Friday, October 13, 2006
Excuse Us, But We Were Experiencing Technical Difficulties For The Past 6 Weeks!
Uh, hello? Anybody out there? What's going on, my fellow hill-dwellers? Where's the optimism, the pessimism, the humor, the insight, the passion? It's been well over a month since anyone has published. It's probably been closer to two months since anyone other than I has published and I know how much y'all hate my poem posts....So, get on it.
Damian- I would like to know how Game 1 of the Mets/Cardinals series went C'mon, this is a magical sport being played by a magical team in a magical time! Is there nothing you would like to share with your fellow hill-dwellers and our enormous online audience?
And Jesse/Catie- How was Cider Day? Was it any different from other years, now that the two of you are engaged to be wedlocked? How about the Party? Is there any message you would like to send out to all of your lovely friends who showed up and represented like rock-stars in honor of your love?
Jesse- new position?
Catie- new home?
Johnny- is there anything going in your life worth sharing with the hill-dwellers?
I'll get back to you on that. I'm a little busy right now and it's so much easier to put pressure on you guys to write something than to come up with something myself.
Peace!
Love!
Showtime!
Damian- I would like to know how Game 1 of the Mets/Cardinals series went C'mon, this is a magical sport being played by a magical team in a magical time! Is there nothing you would like to share with your fellow hill-dwellers and our enormous online audience?
And Jesse/Catie- How was Cider Day? Was it any different from other years, now that the two of you are engaged to be wedlocked? How about the Party? Is there any message you would like to send out to all of your lovely friends who showed up and represented like rock-stars in honor of your love?
Jesse- new position?
Catie- new home?
Johnny- is there anything going in your life worth sharing with the hill-dwellers?
I'll get back to you on that. I'm a little busy right now and it's so much easier to put pressure on you guys to write something than to come up with something myself.
Peace!
Love!
Showtime!
