jeblog

phoku.35

I was staying with a friend (Leslie) on the Delaware shore this past week, at a house that was loaned to us while Leslie was in town for a story-telling tour (I was the chauffeur). I took a nap in the bed of the woman who owned the house, which she had assigned to me. But my nap proved that the bed was too small (I napped anyway) and when I awoke I glanced at my feet, sticking out of a quilt at an oblique angle, and I thought of the bed Lincoln died in, which made me think of Lincoln logs, and so on, and I wrote a poem, in my head, while I took pictures of my feet. The result was the phoku above.

I ended up spending the week in the pull-out couch in the living room, which worked out fine.

the bag-knot remedy

The more I get into technology, as a web and graphic designer and media maven, the more I feel a need to counter-balance it with more simple ways of doing things, resorting to home remedies and do-it-yourself solutions--Whole Earth stuff.

Like my latest home-remedy/invention. I now have a solution to a very new and modern problem, caused by excessive computer use.

You know that knot you get in your back, in the middle of the back shoulder of your mousing arm, after you've been on your computer too long? My remedy/invention deals with it.

It also helps by getting you away from the computer for a while. In fact, it encourages outdoor walking and exercise.

Here's how you do it: you find a cloth bag like the one pictured (it's from a Tibetan shop; also available in most fair trade shops).

Then tie a knot in the strap of the bag, in such a way that when you put it on, with the bag in front, knot in back, directly over, and digging into a little bit, the shoulder-knot caused by too-much mousing (pictured).

Then you go on a long walk through your neighborhood and town. As you go, if you keep the knot in the same place, you'll get a little massage as you walk.

You'll have to experiment with tying the knot a few times before you're able to place it just right over the shoulder-knot.

You'll have to experiment with what you put in the bag. You need to weigh it down with heavy books (flutes, sketch-books, fruit also allowed), in order to give it the weight it needs to dig into and massage that shoulder-knot in your back.

I give this remedy/invention a name. It is called "the bag-knot remedy."

It also has a verb form: "to tie a knot in the strap of a cloth bag and wear it in such a way that the knot massages the shoulder-knot caused by excessive mousing."

(You like my pseudo-monk drag?)

mr. smith goes to the internet

Another media milestone. On July 4, for the first time, I googled for a movie, found it at a legal movie download site, and downloaded it. I was able to access a movie when I wanted it, when the thought crossed my mind, as the mood hit me. Media on demand from the great database of the (OK, mostly corporate) world: this is our great media dream! I thought this day would someday come, but, like so much in media these days, it came before I noticed--like a hacker in the night.

It's kind of scary, actually. Our world is quickly becoming one in which we need never leave our desks. I'm sure that's exactly what our corporate overlords want.

Still, I like the idea of, on July 4, being able to download an old time patriotic movie, and watch it. To be a media patriot, I guess. Not that I'm super patriotic. Super-nostalgic is more like it.

I first thought of Yankee Doodle Dandy, with Jimmy Cagney, which they used to air on WGN, in Chicago, on July 4. But then I decided that was a little too patriotic. Then I thought of one of the opening scenes of Mr. Smith Goes to Washington, when Jeff Smith, now an appointed Senator, wanders off to visit the monuments, ending up at the Lincoln Memorial. It's not the first thing I did when I came to DC 19 years ago, but I've always loved that scene.

Besides it's a Frank Capra film. Gotta have a Frank Capra film for July 4, to go along with the one for Christmas (It's a Wonderful Life). Maybe Meet John Doe for Election Day and Mr. Deeds Goes to Town for Tax Day?

I enjoyed it. I agree with the basic idea of the movie,which is the basic idea of democracy: that any of us can make a difference. Though I believe more in the power of organizing and empowering groups of people, rather than one-man-holding-out-against-all scenarios. Anyway, it was a satisfying July 4 film.

The site where I downloaded the movie is cinemanow.com. It's a little clunky, and not a lot of choices at the moment, but it's a good place to start. (And I probably show my techno- innocence when I make a big deal out of these sorts of things: many folks out there have been downloading movies (tho illegally) for years.)

world cup fever 1

I must be an official soccer fan now. I practically made myself a public nuisance today in order to watch the Germany-Italy World Cup semifinal at Busboy and Poets, a funky, activist-friendly bookstore/restaurant/bar/performance space on 14th St. (near U. St.), in Washington, DC. I was sitting in a chair right in front of the bar, a lot of traffic going by, drinking my Sprite, my hummus in my lap (they make good hummus, which figures for a restaurant run by an Iraqi-American, Andy Shallal), completely mesmerized by the match.

The Italians won, scoring two gorgeous goals in the last minute of overtime (I thought, like the Germany-Argentina and England-Portugal quarterfinals, we were going to penalties). Both teams played according to their national profile: the Germans were very precise, with their footwork, passing, heading, in a way that was not in any way boring; the Italians were more erratic and energetic, making mad dashes towards the German goal, and wonderful, fancy footwork, passing, heading, etc. Most of the time was spent on the German side of the field, though both teams had opportunities, with at least three shots going off the cross bar or post.

I think what I like most about soccer is that it is the most deceptive sport I know. This is especially true of the faked falls and injuries in attempts to convince the referees to call a foul or issue a yellow card. Here is where soccer gets operatic in its drama--and the Italians, not surprisingly, excel at it (I won't get into here the Juventus scandal, involving officials from that club accused of bribing refs).

But the deception goes deeper than that. Deception is at the heart of the game. The goal is not only to put the ball in the net, but to fool as many of your opponents as possible in doing so. Fancy footwork, yes, but also sneak fouls, pushing your opponent, and making it look like it was your opponent interfering with you! Not to mention feinting players in a formation, and set-piece deceptions such as a penalty-kick phase, after overtime, when it all comes down to fooling the goaltender into leaning the wrong way, away from your shot.

There's faking in basketball, and in American football, but its not as artful as in soccer, not so central. Which is why I like soccer, I think, more than those two sports: soccer's artful deception allows for a more satisfying, suspenseful narrative. It's based more on good storytelling than brute strength. But then it has some of that too: lots of tackling and heads banging against each other as two players go up for a header, etc. Luckily the officials today where not whistling fouls as much so we got to see a lot of good tackles.

About narrative: I was a little disappointed by Germany's loss because they had a good story going on. I was getting into the Germans-finally-allowed-to-be-patriotic story line (see the articleby Mike Wise in the Washington Post today). The Italian narrative is not as strong, unless you consider the clouds of suspicion hanging over the final because of the Juventus scandal. That story line or no, the Italians play a very exciting and inventive game.

I'm also sad that there are no American teams in the final. That's always an interesting story line: America (usually Argentina or Brazil) against Europe.

Maybe I'll root for France, with its one-more-for-Zinadine story line, or Portugal, with its first-time-here-and-it-should-have-been-Spain-but-it-never-is story line.

Whatever the story line, I'll be watching tomorrow and Sunday.