March 2004 Archives

The environmental themostat got turned down, today. Rain and dim skies chilling the vibe. I've been muzzy and ill-focused -- but still loving the extended light...

Right now it is dark: a deep rainy black. But tomorrow is April, already. This weekend we will be turning our clocks one hour ahead here, and the days will stretch even longer. I'm ready for some warmth, greenery and open windows. Tall blue skies and light clothes.

Springing ahead. That's always cool with me.

Happy Almost April.

A big "Welcome back to the 'Burgh" goes out to Kelli, who rolled in from Vegas last night -- just in time for rainy Spring weather and such. It's good to have you back, Butterfly. ;-)

At the moment, I'm fiddling around with some css stuff -- but I am probably going to take a coffee break soon...

Today has a thin water filter over it. A sheen of rain. It dims down things a bit -- and shines up the roads and flowers. For some reason, the rain-tint makes the growing green stand out more. The sky is the color of wet paper, but the birds are still tweeting.

So that's cool.

It's near mid-day, and I need more coffee. I like the way The Allurium is looking (and running). I keep restraining myself from cluttering up the pages. Tangerine, on the other hand, needs a remake. Still tossing around ideas on that one...

Right now, though, it's java and lunch for me.

I feel like I should be happier today. It's beautiful, full-on Spring -- tall skies and bright days. I should be up and at it. Out and about. Free and clear.

But I feel like sleeping.

How cheesy is that?

The Spring light is pouring in, patterning a new design on my floor. Wall glowing. Skylight passing through trees easily because they have no leaves. But that is coming; the bloom held in buds for now. And birds, of course. And crocuses: purple, yellow and white.

Sunday, and I'm for coffee and car washing...

Bon voyage to Kelli, who is winging her way to Las Vegas today. I hope you have a safe, fun and cool trip, Honey!

As for me, well, I have the windows open to the Spring-warm air, Wilco playing on my dusty stereo, and have yet to comb my hair.

But, hey, it's Saturday. ;-)

The morning is smooth and almost warm enough to forget your coat. Under pale sky and bird tweets, I walked Kelli to the bus stop.

At some point, I have to get myself a good digital camera. Something small but with excellent image quality. I see all sorts of stuff I'd like to get pictures of (and really enjoy working on photos that I've taken). Not to get all Andy Warhol-ish, but it really is easy to always carry around a good camera now-a-days. I think it would be fun to have something like that. It'd be cool to get some good imaging software, too.

And a Macintosh. :-)

What can I say? I'm all "artsy" 'n stuff, today...

The afternoon turned beautiful, today. Warming and brightening.

I went out with the dogs and wandered. Played around a bit with the camera in my cell phone. Even now I have my window open (though the air is getting cool) and a white, flower-scented candle is glowing. A pretty wind-down, to a pretty day.

Right now, though, I think I'm going to grab a tall glass of water and pop in a movie. Catch you later...

I have a thing with music. A little mental DJ that often loops songs (or fragments of music) in my head. At the beginning of the weekend, it was the title music from the anime, Haibane Renmei. Later on, a snippet of a Rufus Wainwright song was in heavy brain rotation.

Today I have (of all things) "I Can't Smile Without You" by Barry Manilow floating through my head.

I have no idea why.

But, hey, Spring has sprung. So that's cool...

Winter has a day left.

And right now all is still, and dark. Frosted earth, shiny black streets.

Spring will be highlighted by snow. Maybe some chilly rain.

But it will be Spring.

In a few hours...

Once, I looked up through a vast array of leaves. They were so dense they almost obscured the sky. Layers and layers of green, translucent from the light of the sun. Moving in the breeze. I remember, too, light pouring down through water -- making it glow a hazy emerald. The color of young grass, peeking out of muddy ground, lingers in memory as well. And the near-black green of seaweed, tossed and tangled on the beach.

Today, though, the most visible green is that of the pine trees, still frosted with white -- and framed by a scattering of snowflakes, gently drifting down.

I've been having these dreams lately...

(Ha.)

Dreams remembered, after-the-fact. Hours beyond awakening some little bit of the day jogs an impression chain -- and I remember what I dreamt the night before. Then I get a kind of a oh yeah moment.

Remembering that I wanted to remember that.

Now here's something that is pretty darn cool. Philips Electronics has created a Fluid Lense that focuses like the human eye and has no mechanical moving parts. They are talking about using it in digital and cell phone cameras, medical devices, and a bunch of other things. I wonder if a version of it could be used as part of an actual prosthetic eye?

Nifty!

Oh yeah, I've added some new photos to The Allurium's random corner pic thingie. Hope you like them. (And another new batch will be served up shortly, in time for Spring.)

:-)

I dreamt I was a dog, driving a shiny black, early 80's type sports car. Really fast. At one point, I passed a tank parked in someone's driveway. I took a shot at it, just to hear the inconsequential "plink" that the bullet made when it bounced-off the armor. Later, I faded, while trying to figure out how to drive the car down a very steep hill.

There was more too it, of course. But the mind starts to edit and forget as soon as it wakes -- and I've been awake for a while...

I have been on a bit of an anime kick of late. After watching a few classics (Spirited Away, Ghost in the Shell, Ninja Scroll and Akira) I've started sniffing around to see what else is good. At the moment, Haibane Renmei is at the top of my "sounds pretty interesting" list (and the website is very neatly done, too). I may grab the first volume this weekend...

Just doing some site tweaking, today. (Which, now-a-days, usually involves sniffing around to see what else I can do/add/customize in MovableType -- and that is often quite a lot!) This time around, I added Jay Allen's MovableType "Blacklist" plugin to my installation to try and cut down on the comment spam that has been popping up in Tangerine. I've also been toying with some new designs for my online journal. Once I get something I really like, I will be updating Tangerine's look. Again. :-)

Other than that, things have been slow today. And chilly.

Boo.

Just sort of winding down with a glass of Merlot. It is a soft and quiet night, after a bright day.

I really would like to get some new photos up (especially on the various "section" pages of The Allurium). Gotta get crackin' on that.

Right now, though, I think I'm going to wash up and get ready for bed...

Here's to happiness, health, good times and a great year ahead.

Happy Birthday, Kelli!

:-*

So I'm feeling kind of low-keyed, on the first day of the new month.

It's warm and drizzly -- but the light is holding on longer, and if things are mostly silvery at the moment, there are also flashes of brighter skies to enjoy. And the promise of greening.

All-in-all, not too shabby.

:-)