these days of leiderhosen

The number of people I'm truly fond of is very small.  They include many people I've never met face to face and people I've known my entire life. When one goes missing or passes on, I feel this vortex in the space they used to occupy. I wonder if I miss them more because my circle is so very small. It's getting smaller all the time. I'll be looking into this: Line by Line .

From WNYC: R adioLab Episode: Colors! Dogs have two color receptors (blue and yellow), humans have three (red, blue and green) and the mantis shrimp has 15! Fifteen! And look! Isn't he pretty? http://planetanimalzone.blogspot.com/2012/05/mantis-shrimp-amazing-beautiful.html

In a fit of brilliant generosity The Steven took us away for an extended long weekend to beautiful Lake Tahoe, right in the crook of the Nevada/CA border. Two things were resolved: 1. The rest of the state is much cleaner than our neighborhood. The filth and despair of the environment is quite crushing. 2. Neither one of us very much likes company of people when we are trying to relax. Even the opposite espouse can be a bit trying while hip-deep in a good book. The lake was glorious, icy and perfectly clear. The sky went from all kinds of weather but once we were parked, the sun shone, the breeze was mild and the air was sweet.

Researching: Luchessa Boots. Holy... people pay a lot for those. I've always wanted a pair of red boots, but this is beyond belief. And the ankle to calf ratio is not quite right.  Daily Craving: hot chocolate around 11 AM  Tortured by: Cold feet and hands when everything else is balmy goodness.  Status of the Porch Cat Lola: In her house, mostly snoozing. Still too skinny.  Currently Loving: Periodicals on the Kindle Fire. Perfect use of the media and for midnight reading in bed.  Today's best thing about California: Citrus in abundance.  The Bum Brigade Status of People's Park: damp and slightly more unhinged that usual. Deeply Loving: CrankyPressman's Guide to Letterpress.

Hi, Da. I cleaned the house today a bit more thoroughly than I have lately. It's not a great priority, but I hauled out my cleaning toolkit and went to work. That little yellow Fuller brush with its locking green dustpan? I use it every day, probably as much as you use the back scrubber cloth. I love that thing. I probably would not have owned that thing if you didn't think it good enough to spread onto your kids. Therefore: Thanks, Da. I've a little less disgusting grit in my life, thanks to you. - Mme.

Random thoughts: A word I often think in Berkeley, but would never/ever say: Hag! The Magnum Double Caramel Bar is waaaaaay too sweet. Too sweet to the point of being inedible: McDonalds' Sweet Tea. Before my first mouthful I had never spat out anything in the street, in public. Oh, awful. I love my new bed. Love, love, love. Links to look into later. Contrariwise: Literary Tattoos . Ray Bradbury short autobiographical story . The Steven rented Source Code last week. Jake Gyllenhaal, Jeffrey Wright, the lovely Vera Farmiga. I did not even remember it hitting the theaters or hearing anything about it. We ditched the cable outside of basic about eight months ago when money started getting tight and have been Netflixing/Amazon Download/Hulu-ing our media lately. Other than my one click of Jon Stewart Fix, I'm not missing it much. (Call me when The Kardashians/Hiltons and Housewives fall out of programming.) I'd actually add this to the growing list of Zen movies. For those w...