Blended Living

SoC #32

John — Tue, 22 Dec 2009 07:26:53 +0000

Its seems such a long time since I’ve aimed my camera
besides the occasional social snap of a birthday or an out of towner visiting
I mean the more artistic, and less practical usage of the time freezing megabit logger
that is, my trusty Lumix
hoping its like the proverbial bike, rusty but not forgotten
upgraded my google storage space
mostly to get the free Eye-fi card
but what to do with that 200 gigabytes of space now?
after the left brain logical thoughts of archiving, and facilitating wealth accumulation
I spent a few minutes exploring Picasa
and I’m back at the first thought, I really need to play with that camera more
bought some new gadgets, a HDTV for my mom and sis
(yeah they got it already and I don’t wrap presents or feel compelled to give them on the day)
another larger monitor for my charts and the sporadic movie
and the thing that I’ve been waiting the most for…
a ebook reader
decided on the Sony Touch, it has expandable memory via cards, a touchscreen, renders many formats including PDFs, CHMs, and will be able to download free content off NYPL
so no excuses for many more pleasurable reading hours in 2010
and importantly I can reuse a lot of shelf space at home, as I gradually manipulate paper books to digital formats
it will either be time consuming or costly
not much that I have thought of in terms of getting around that…
Oh good, Picasa allows different levels of content sharing
finished a hutch or shelf for my desk, so got another 42 inches of monitor and computer gadgets space
I actually timed that one well
the window seat /work bench/ spare bed project got fouled up
as I need more lumber, and the mattress arrived already
but its hard to get those 2×4s home in a snow storm
the 24 inch monitor should arrive in the next 48 hrs and I got the spot ready for it
got a good DK photography book out of the library but we’ll see if it lives up to its name
“absolutely everything” is pretty bold
and is an example of types of books that wouldn’t be as suitable for an eReader
since its grey scale and not color and a small screen
but very portable and battery lasts for 2 weeks at a time
next to search through the freely available content out there
and start making a list
as well as a virtual book budget as I have put off buying books for quite some time now
I’m starting to like the dark stain on the bench 2 projects ago
and yes I should note somewhere to not saturate the wood with the stain
like I did basically while in a rush to get it done
still wondering what to do with Wave, Voice is kinda cool but not utilizing it well yet
and I’m itching to get my hands on that Sony reader, and hoping it ships before the long weekend
so much to do, so little energy and free time and that shy sun isn’t helping my mood
but I’m feeling like we turn a corner here soon, and is it coincidence that the winter solstice is upon us
its late and I’m hungry and imagining smells of food
but breakfast is a few hours away.

SoC #31

John — Mon, 16 Nov 2009 02:14:24 +0000

As I ran aboard the last Ikea bus leaving NYC, just behind the driver and before he closed the door
another passenger proclaimed me “Lucky, I’ve been waiting 30 minutes!”
I smiled and shrugged my shoulders and looked for an empty seat
went back halfway and my subconscious heuristic chose the skinny asian woman
(there’d be more room for my wide shoulders)
I asked if it was free, as I pointed to the seat
didn’t hear her response but her face indicated approval
I sat and caught my breath as I texted my success at catching the last bus
as we got out of the tunnel the setting sun lit up her side of the bus and I noticed her outfit
typical fall knits and tights and boots, at least that seemed to be what every other woman in NYC was wearing
her attractive face with pulled back long hair completed each other well
but her posture said stay away, crossed arms and legs…
as I contemplated my best Mentalist skills, I weighed
the risks of exercising my social skills VS her apparent
desire not to be “socialized” with
later her demeanor stayed firmly knotted, yet there broke the semblances of a smile on her face as I glanced over
I took the mixed signals to mean she was ‘taken’
but didn’t see any rings on significant fingers
the lack of traffic brought us to Elizabeth quickly
only punctuated by 4 texts and 2 phone calls
besides her phone was studded and I couldn’t figure out
whether she was much younger than I guessed, or why would
a woman have such blingy accouterments with otherwise earthy tones and sensible knits?
alas we disembarked before the perplexity allowed me a chance to break the silence
and I was in the hunt for wood
it reminded me of the reality show on Planet Green
I’ve been mildly addicted to
they were accumulating firewood for the season
4 groups of people from California to New Jersey
retired factory worker with his daughters
a computer tech, among others
in “Alaska Experiment”
a show about how these people will survive a winter in Alaska,
roughing it in some cabins and tents, certainly unplugged and in the wild
lumber turns out to be cheaper at Ikea than I can get at lumber stores in Manhattan
I cruised the aisles and activated memories of short cuts but
the Ikea was under renovation so at the second turn past pots and things I started looking at signs
I arrived at aisle 35 bin 36 and was surprised at the quality of the bed slats, it was labeled unfinished wood
but was much better than what I could pick up closer to home
and this was pretty much cut already to size
OK, I changed my plans a bit, but saved myself some noise and sawdust
now to figure out how much to get…
I decided on 3 bunches as well as a few other odds and ends
the skill of picking a fast line proved still with me
but there was only twine at the packing table
i was hoping to make a handle from tape
so it took a while to tie it up and fasten a handle
as I worked feverishly a woman and two small children walked by
she was somewhat out of it, but I didn’t really pause to observe
and instead continued to tie and hope to catch a quick bus back home
as her older child the daughter pulled a sign off the wall and it came crashing down loudly
an Ikea staffer came over quickly and asked her a question but she didn’t respond
I thought whats with these woman today who seem to not have a voice?
then her boy started to bang a cart into the wall and the table I was using, so I shot her a look of WTF?
she just took my stare and let it glance off her
not even making any attempt to corral her charges at all
I made my final knot and rushed out the door
just past the woman I sat next to
she was on her studded cell phone and she stared up off into the distance as our paths intersected
she towards the returns area
me out into the fresh air
and then I sprinted with cart towards the bus for the second time
and the driver indicated that he had to check if there was any seats left
luckily the woman in front of me was waiting for someone and I heaved the stack of lumber into a free spot and boarded the bus
the purple colors were spectacular with the setting sun and the golden rays bouncing off downtown skyscrapers sandwiching the blue waters of the Hudson
I thought to myself how timely was my impromptu trip just as we hit tunnel traffic
enough time to review my To-Do list and send a couple texts
I carried the stuff across the long subway tunnel and my thoughts strayed towards that Alaska Show again
I was carrying 30 pounds of lumber to make some furniture
and they were logging and splitting firewood to the tune of 9,000 pounds to survive the winter
I sweated a new understanding of their predicament
just got snookered on a 4x trade, but it was only for dimes
and I realize that 2 monitors are not enough for all that I want to do
so the new furniture I’m building which will be part custom bed, window seat, and large work surface with plenty of storage underneath
should allow me a spot closer to my multi monitor setup
and I did de clutter about 100 pounds this weekend
despite the 30 more I brought home.

SoC #30

John — Fri, 30 Oct 2009 11:58:03 +0000

How strange to hunger for some pure fiction reading as
I usually devour anything but that
yet nothing yields true in my quest to sate my mental appetite
even some of the Young Adult books borrowed for others
and ebooks is similarly lacking despite the many titles that come up
downloading Karmic Koala now, just 17 more minutes
but its too late to burn and reboot now
weekend you can’t come soon enough!
just one more day for the man
then two for me and mine
found a couple things cleaning, and thought of two things I can’t find
with all the titles in my home, not finding something to read for a few minutes before turning in is well
very unsatisfying to say the least
I go through the motions but don’t put enough of myself into those present moments so
some workouts and other exercises seem hollow
but better than not doing them
and certainly better than putting thoughts energy and time into negatives
one thing to slide trying to hold fast quite another to just run in the wrong direction
trying to build some momentum to slingshot around
the dark winter months
and emerge in the spring ready
rather than have to gather strength then and start from scratch
but running in winter is its own special discipline
dark and cold, dark and cold, step by step but what a way to start the days
with sunrises and serotonin storms in the brain, and those late afternoon lulls are weakening as my body and spirit grows stronger
but such noble habits are fragile and have to maintain the string
Seinfeldian chains and such
Run on S’s and T’s, short of that at least 3 days a week weather permitting mornings
that download meter lies as its still saying 17 minutes now
but maybe I’m in the dark territory of my home WiFi
and those packets keep colliding
an old game appeared in the mail from an ebay auction that thoroughly
entertained us a few years ago (and promptly the disk hid itself thereafter)
hoping its still fun, but not as addicting as it was those 100+ hrs the two last weeks of 2004
maybe I hook up the projector and we can play it on the large screen with the speakers cranked
for the full effect but patience for the right time
it would hardly fit into the schedule now with HW and world series but
there isn’t a game tomorrow night…
it could even be an inventive incentive to get HW done early for some gaming fun
I’d trade game time for TV time but
that Nova episode on Darwin teeters precariously on the edge of extinction on my DVR
and it behaves much better when its only 80% gorged with my TV programs
not much more frustrating than a weeks worth of shows recorded missing the last few minutes of each
so there will be blood, a disgorging of shows
and I finally found something interesting to browse
a book at ebook.nypl about influential characters that never lived
or fictional people that have influenced us like
the Marlboro Man to mickey mouse to Spock, now
morphing those guys together surely would make for a fun dance partner.

Lucidity

John — Thu, 29 Oct 2009 16:04:22 +0000

Beautiful idea

Momentous clarity astounds

The bloom whithers

SoC # 29

John — Thu, 29 Oct 2009 09:51:53 +0000

That Yankee game was a bummer in both senses that they lost and it wasn’t so enjoyable to watch
wanted to go for a run but no breaks in the rain
still its great to have the local team in the big show this year
have to make time to try that vietnamese sandwich (bahn mi?) soon
flipping thru a lifetime fitness book and it seemed to offer nothing new on first glance but
further reading has chanced upon a couple new ways to look at things
it seems to be geared towards fitness professionals and I’m thinking if that profession
could have a sea change like say meterologists have had in the last decade
what a momentous turn society could take in this next generation
but the stats are agin’ us with over 60% fat or obese
yet if many people chose to balance out their lives with some stress busting exercise
say over the next 2-3 years
which I believe will be quite taxing on our nerves
as the economy see saws a bit
and we won’t know to be optimistic at just the wrong times and
hopes will be dashed as things seem to be recovering and its safe to wade out into the deep areas of the economic waters again
experimenting with dawn simulation and white and blue lights on a timer
its supposed to ward off SAD but sitting in front of lights seems like such a bore if you can’t fit in some other activity
so with dawn simulation I’ve got a timer and some LEDs fashioned together to light up the bed area about 30 minutes before my alarm goes off
it does seem to work, I awake better and sometimes I don’t need the alarm
but I have it aimed up and reflected back down on me off the ceiling so that its not so intense, but after another week or so
I might turn it around and see how shining directly feels
funny how its something from a 1960’s spy movie that I found so cool as a kid
and now I get to play with it
the jet setting, woman in each port, world saving lifestyle could be cool to live for a few months too
but that’s hollywood
NYC is a pretty good approximation of the world, but without airport delays
and we get most of the climates
I gave a girl a christmas present today as
I am notorious for present giving without temporal relevance
or in other words time and dates are such an inconvenience when you discover a great present
and in the other cases you get inundated with presents anyhow on your birthday, holidays, etc anyway
and the lack of a present then is nothing compared to the addition of a random present on say any given Wednesday in October
and its the type of present that lets her create presents for others
so some advance timing before christmas works out too
hmm is that Euro turning down or is it gonna break upwards?
that’s what makes it so interesting – it takes on a personality for a while
then morphs into something else for a while
or sometimes runs along in one direction for months
missed a great move this week as work intrudes on my focus
but there’s always another train leaving the station
just that that train produced 150% in the span of a lunchtime
liked Peaceful Warrior, both the book and the movie
what was it again? Mystery, humor, and change…
reading a couple books I bought a while ago but neglected when life got busy
one on kaizen, and another on mindfulness
and realizing I really need to write down things more…
as I had one of those moments when seemingly disparate things came together in
a true moment of clarity
well here’s to new trade setups, meeting some new and interesting people, letting go of the need to control the future, and maybe some natural sunlight tomorrow
but the blue dawn comes up right on schedule over my bed now.

SoC #28

John — Fri, 02 Oct 2009 05:58:02 +0000

Its cold and late and dark and many things seem out of sorts
not simply the physical but others
in my newly reorganized bedroom I replugged in my DVD recorder
and haven’t updated the clock so the blinking 12:00 beckons
by the second and the rational side of me knows that its just another
chronological display and I just haven’t found my way to do it and the spare 5 minutes to punch in the correct time
but its like a symbol for how things are lately
it could just take a few minutes but its not really urgent
so let it blink…
its little visual addition to the otherwise dark room dimly lit by the glow of a small netbook is just enough to be noticed on my periphery
I wrongly over react and try to reign in my awareness
to pull in my antenna so as to not notice the incessant calling of noon or midnight but
such little things can teach us to narrow our view like when our brains don’t get enough oxygen
and the tunnel starts to cave in on us
except this is our attention to the here and now
and contributes greatly to the enjoyment of life
or lack thereof
such little acts of attention towards ourselves and others
tip our emotions between those that add to our energy
and those that tear it down
I wish to have the words and deeds that could enlighten my comrades in their harsh times
my thoughts that go in and out with each of my slow even breaths
perhaps they can fill in the blank thats in my little packet of intention with the words or thoughts
or feelings that would envelop them like a warm blanket
a spiritual hug if you will
that says it will be OK
and its just a blinking light.

SoC #27

John — Tue, 22 Sep 2009 11:23:35 +0000

its strange to wish for somethings and have them appear so regularly sometimes
it makes you think that you should have been more ambitious
I envisioned scrap wood and acrylic pieces and they appeared on my walks
that weekly metrocard that appeared when my legs got tired
the exact piece of plywood I’m using now as a base for a lightbox
perhaps I should be more selective in my visions
that white translucent # 2447 plexglass arrived a day early and I cut and assembled the
back and sides of the lightbox – I wish I could cut a straighter line
with the jigsaw, but given the limited woodworking projects so far
its not that bad, or the sander straightens what the jigsaw wrought
its fun to make something that involves LEDS, acrylic and wood working
which really is a foundation for future projects and
I don’t know if this something new and can’t be bought elsewhere
or if it will in the end prove to be something that just seemed a great idea
still as lightboxes go, this will be fairly cheap compared to pre mades
next steps are to check spacing and quantity of flat white LEDs and to figure
out how to assemble them – either use PCBs or just connect them
directly to the plywood base somehow
picked up a shop vac that will connect somehow to the lightbox for vacuuming away
tiny glass and acrylic dust which is harmful if breathed
which reminds me I didn’t pick up masks
the Euro just woke up and in typical 6AM Greenwich fashion but there
appears to be resistance around 1.4730
which reminds me there are a few AHK projects I wanted to do on the computer
that got hip checked out of the way by the woodworking projects
and somehow I want to fit in some running and Yoga now
that I rearranged and have more floor space
but how to blend all this into a week and still get 7 hrs sleep a night?
oh, there she blows! - Euro breaking out above resistance
bouncing off the 10 daily SMA today
FOMC is this week, I doubt there will be any changes for the next few months
but the tone could send a jittery market a flutter
falling back from 1.4745 now, but it looks like it will travel all the way up to the 4hr UBB
that is the Upper Bollinger Band around 1.4755
now to figure out how to fit in that running, so that the sleeping is better, so I have more energy
so that I can focus better, and trade more actively, so that I can have more time…
if it wasn’t so late I’d reach for the camera and snap a few shots of the unbuilt lightbox
figure out if the minute chart is resetting to bounce up here while the stochastics is running down below 20
but I think its enough for today.

SoC #26

John — Thu, 17 Sep 2009 11:56:25 +0000

the twilight run in Central Park tested my focus which was not that sharp today
like a dull ache longing for crisper times
of a mental edge that cut through crap so well
but I was mildly amazed at my ability to hold a serene thought and
allow my body to work out its kinks and let
the motor go on for a while longer than
some days when my mind (or ego) can’t sustain the pace and it yells louder or just loud enough
so that my legs slow down to a walk
however tonight fueled by many runners and 64F weather and that
fun run coming up in 36 hours was just enough to get me
down by the lake in good time and just a couple pauses
soon after my legs propelled me automatically and minutes later
my left thigh seized like an engine that lost valve oil
but just for a moment as a couple stretches and yoga like deep breathes
flowed some necessary body ingredients to sore areas
playing with my new toys
I don’t doubt that neighbors are wondering if a dentist has moved in their midsts
so I need to think about soundproofing a bit
or relegate my craft activities to the locked bathroom until
I do figure out something
“easy glass etching” seems an oxymoron but it isn’t the first such title I’ve gotten out of the library
I wonder if that cheap Ikea glass stuff is worth testing some etching on
and I remind myself I need to order facemasks
before I read about glass dust dangers and scare myself out of that side of the hobby
but that light box/table I’m gonna make should ameliorate dust enough
so that I won’t obsess about it
still I need to read and educate myself some more and practice on cheaper and less toxic acrylic first
the forex chart shows a nice trade I missed while showering
and the LED I implanted into a yellow ping pong ball makes a nice light
no glare, bright enough and it looks like a bulb albeit
with two little thin wire legs coming out of it
maybe I should take a marker and anthropomorphisize it somehow
or maybe I’m just a bit lightheaded after running about 6-7 miles tonight
my Cstream wanders into a neat short Kafka-esque story of an inventor with lots of LEDs and ping pong balls
but perhaps with a happy ending
and I wonder if there is such a thing as childrens pop up book with LEDs used in an imaginative way to “hi-lite” the story
or in some other way educate and involve the reader enough
to have them interact so that they finish the circuit
in order to complete the multi-ending story
that last idea has enough ‘oomph’ to think about more
but alas we do live in such a virtual society already and would
such a blended concept take hold?
maybe there is some magic in taking the old and new and creating something just a little different
that Euro is taking off into 1.47xx land
as the daily chart looks like its about to climb K2
with a short stint at base 1
the 4 hour charts show hesitation at 1.4730 ish but
as usual 6am greenwich time has some early Euro bull risers
will it linger in the 1.48 area and come back down with the upcoming US stock market pullback?
go with the trend, go with the trend
I need to make that mantra into a song
is there a word that means “song-ify”?
the active voice is so much more well active
me thinks I have drained that last bit of caffeinated adrenaline out of me
but a quick glance at the etching book before ping pong out.

SoC #25

John — Wed, 16 Sep 2009 06:18:40 +0000

it bugs me that I haven’t been adding photos here as much as I imagined
but I am pleased about the pace of many other hobbies
and the confluence of some
excited about a light box I’m designed in my head
and should really capture more ideas onto paper or in the computer
before some ideas fall off the ends of my mind
white plexiglass #2447 is what is used for lightboxes or X-Ray viewers
or light installations which is funny how I found out
as I wondered about what the best way to search that was
as I ‘gestured’ by accidnet on my laptop’s touch panel and it jumped to the bottom of an Ebay listing and there it was
a few clicks later ordering a piece of #2447 sized to the plywood I picked up earlier last week
and hoping that a 16 x 19 inch lightbox is sufficient for my needs and that
1/8th inch plexiglass will be thick enough
and calculating whether I’ll need to glue it down
or allow it to float there
and how many bright white LEDs and what spacing will be best to illuminate the box
yet not have hot and cold spots
and trying to figure out how to attach some kind of netting or plastic to keep dust from flying out when etching, or other dremel like activities
and sizing shop vacs
and thinking about angles for other lights but not introduce glare onto clear arylic
then the Cstream thinks about other projects made do-able by the perfect lightbox with
a debris vacuum, and under and over lighting, and raised edges, and some kind of plastic netting to keep dust down.

SoC # 24

John — Tue, 15 Sep 2009 11:56:22 +0000

rearranged my laptop stand and monitor in my bedroom and its not quite right yet
which feels much like everything lately
not inertia but a step sideways perhaps to a new perspective
but not quite comfortable or feeling better yet
was a sports milestones weekend as
Jeter eclipsed the Yankee hit record
Serena yelled her way out of the semifinals
last second scoring in the Broncos included a tip and lucky TD catch
Federer looked like he was master in command only
to be surpassed himself the next day
which leaves me wondering how to feel about it as
I admired his fitness and strategy and mental fortitude
only to read it online that he lost after I gave up watching the second set thinking
that it was all but over and tired of
watching the Federer vise close in on his opponents
now I wish I recorded the match
but that is how chance is sometimes… like
the friend that almost ran into me with his car turning on 86th street
as I stared up at my fantasy home
contemplating the staggering sums of money to fulfill that dream
and wondering why I stopped running regularly this summer suddenly
but have to concede to the idea of the fun run being the start of my fall running season
rather than the goal at the end
the news lately accentuates a sense of things not being quite right
with the Yale student’s latest creating doubt about many things
yet this is the precise moment to renew faiths and beliefs
but the mind wanders as I try to exercise some mind control
my own mindfulness that is, not over someone else while
I fold clothes but the touch of cotton
and the smell of detergent and sights of colors isn’t
enough to keep me here and now without struggle
still the clothes are folded sooner than expected and further down
my stream I think about the Broke American whom I
know only as an avatar in a forum
but his blog about consumerism and addictions and weight loss
clues me into how much he is trying to do and all at once
the setting sun looked marvelous from my neighbors roof deck
as we consumed some moderately priced beer from Whole Foods
and we spoke of many varied things and it struck me that I felt so strongly
that our near future, that is the next few years will test all of us
yet things will come out OK as I remain
on the optimistic side of realism
but many events do trouble me.