I'm a little worried about these grey hairs. Up to now they've been rashly persuaded into a different color by the likes of peroxide, ammonia & co. Certainly, these short views were themselves alarming (hence the rapid intervention), but the brevity (of the view and the hair) kept hysteria at bay, or perhaps gave a feeling of control. Now, though, I am forced to watch them grow millimeter by millimeter as they seem to inspire the growth of further hairs of similar hue, a party of like-minded age barometers toasting my 40 years.
Then again, these new hairs are not mousy blond, so that is something to celebrate. I suppose we will have to wait and see what the future brings.
Monday, May 27, 2013
Monday, April 29, 2013
Totally thrown, obviously.
Curve Ball
Out of nowhere
A vibration
A burning
A pull.
Have you ever felt your atoms dancing?
You should.
It doesn't kill.
The old remains
Stronger than ever.
Deeper than before.
Because we are more than atoms
Dancing on air.
Still it begs the question:
What is love?
I say
It's a creator.
A crayon.
A cement.
That binds us all.
Out of nowhere
A vibration
A burning
A pull.
Have you ever felt your atoms dancing?
You should.
It doesn't kill.
The old remains
Stronger than ever.
Deeper than before.
Because we are more than atoms
Dancing on air.
Still it begs the question:
What is love?
I say
It's a creator.
A crayon.
A cement.
That binds us all.
Friday, January 25, 2013
How to preserve those lovely fall leaves: puzzle glue
I wanted to create tree costumes with real fall leaves. So I looked up how to preserve leaves. I found several websites/blog posts that described how people did this, such as
http://craftyteacher.blogspot.de/2007/09/6-ways-to-preserve-autumn-leaves.html
or
http://gardening.about.com/od/craftsanddecor/ss/Preserve_Leaves_4.htm
I was apparently too late for the glycerin, where you allow the leaves to suck up the glycerin, thereby dooming (or deeming immortal) the leaves to perpetual natural beauty. I thought laminating would give an artificial look. Dipping them in wax sounded, logically, difficult, as liquid wax is, necessarily, HOT and destructive to fragile tissues. So I decided just to press them in books for a start and then decide after how to continue.
Into the books they went, for about two weeks. Then I pulled them out and they looked wonderful. Flat, unbroken, not yet brittle. Seeing them like that, I decided go for what sounded like the most natural-looking result: wax them.
I went to the trouble of getting waxed paper (they seem to not have this in Germany) and proceeded to iron them between two pieces of waxed paper. With this method, you leave the leaf between the two sheets of waxed paper and cut around the leaf. This looked like crap: the colors were muted and the feeling of the leaf was lost. So I removed the paper and discovered that the wax left on the leaf from ironing was enough to preserve it (albeit for an unknown period of time). And since I was left with just a leaf, it looked completely natural, as if I had picked it directly from the tree.
However, since it was going to have to live a little as a costume, I wanted to give the leaf a bit more strength. After wandering around my house a few times looking for inspiration, I thought of the puzzle glue we had once used: it was a milky liquid that dried clear and flexible. Sounded perfect.
And it was. Quick and easy, with the natural-looking result I wanted. Everyone complimented our costumes - some people even thought our trees were REAL TREES!
Just kidding.
http://craftyteacher.blogspot.de/2007/09/6-ways-to-preserve-autumn-leaves.html
or
http://gardening.about.com/od/craftsanddecor/ss/Preserve_Leaves_4.htm
I was apparently too late for the glycerin, where you allow the leaves to suck up the glycerin, thereby dooming (or deeming immortal) the leaves to perpetual natural beauty. I thought laminating would give an artificial look. Dipping them in wax sounded, logically, difficult, as liquid wax is, necessarily, HOT and destructive to fragile tissues. So I decided just to press them in books for a start and then decide after how to continue.
Into the books they went, for about two weeks. Then I pulled them out and they looked wonderful. Flat, unbroken, not yet brittle. Seeing them like that, I decided go for what sounded like the most natural-looking result: wax them.
I went to the trouble of getting waxed paper (they seem to not have this in Germany) and proceeded to iron them between two pieces of waxed paper. With this method, you leave the leaf between the two sheets of waxed paper and cut around the leaf. This looked like crap: the colors were muted and the feeling of the leaf was lost. So I removed the paper and discovered that the wax left on the leaf from ironing was enough to preserve it (albeit for an unknown period of time). And since I was left with just a leaf, it looked completely natural, as if I had picked it directly from the tree.
However, since it was going to have to live a little as a costume, I wanted to give the leaf a bit more strength. After wandering around my house a few times looking for inspiration, I thought of the puzzle glue we had once used: it was a milky liquid that dried clear and flexible. Sounded perfect.
And it was. Quick and easy, with the natural-looking result I wanted. Everyone complimented our costumes - some people even thought our trees were REAL TREES!
Just kidding.
Resolute
A new year, a new post. I guess I figured I've got 12 months in this "new year" - so why hurry??
I just told my daughter that if she practices singing with the karaoke player, she'll get better. WHAT AM I THINKING??!!
Just kidding. I love it that they want to sing. Those voices will not frustrate me. The screaming and fighting voices, though, I could do without. So I will support the lesser evil.
No, this post will not be about the lesser evil. Although, it's true, I've got that "gun guntrol" post that I am working on/haunts my brain, and I'm sure there's a "lesser evil" theme in that one somewhere. But it's not even CLOSE to being finished yet.
Hmmm...So what will this one be about?
Rambling nonsense. Could be a good goal. Should probably keep it brief, then.
That's it. I'm still alive. Still writing. Schimpfwörter on my phone for the gun rights people, mostly. But writing.
So you'll hear from me soon.
I just told my daughter that if she practices singing with the karaoke player, she'll get better. WHAT AM I THINKING??!!
Just kidding. I love it that they want to sing. Those voices will not frustrate me. The screaming and fighting voices, though, I could do without. So I will support the lesser evil.
No, this post will not be about the lesser evil. Although, it's true, I've got that "gun guntrol" post that I am working on/haunts my brain, and I'm sure there's a "lesser evil" theme in that one somewhere. But it's not even CLOSE to being finished yet.
Hmmm...So what will this one be about?
Rambling nonsense. Could be a good goal. Should probably keep it brief, then.
That's it. I'm still alive. Still writing. Schimpfwörter on my phone for the gun rights people, mostly. But writing.
So you'll hear from me soon.
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