I first heard this Essex hip-hop duo on BBC Radio One’s, Zane Lowe show, with ‘The Beat That My Heart Skipped’ and instantly liked the song and their sound.

Unfortunately this song is ruined on the album by a ’speech’ like introduction added on to the beginning. Although once the shouting has passed, it is a very good, catchy song.

The band don’t fit into one particular genre, but all tracks contain Scroobius Pip’s spoken lyrics, which is surprisingly what I like least about them. I like the music in the majority of the album but the ‘talking’ seems the same on every song and becomes quite boring, where as on tracks such as ‘Look For The Woman’ a different voice is used which sounds better. I think the singing voice should have been used more throughout the album to break-up the spoken words.

My favourite track is ‘Letter To God From Man’, which features a sample of Radiohead’s ‘Planet Telex’.

I like this album mainly because of the Dan Le Sac side of electronic beats and mixes, and some of the tracks are overall great, but the opinionated and witty lyrics just do not work for me all of the way through.

I’ve been working on this drawing of Catherine McEvoy for my watercolor class. It’s been problematic because my photo reference is so bad. I took it in class last year at Friday Harbor Irish Music Camp. Really, the photo is mostly just the idea for the painting, and a brief reference for Catherine’s face.

My teacher, Steve Curl, brought up something that has helped me with the drawing. “Think about the angles,” he said. “That will give you the dynamism you need to show the intensity the has when she plays the flute.” Steve is a musician as well as a painter, and right off he recognized  the dynamic force with which Catherine plays the flute. That force is what I’m trying to capture.

So I put the drawing in Adobe Illustrator and picked out the angles and the line of action to better understand the drawing. The purple lines are the dominant angles, the light blue lines secondary, and the orange lines are the lines of action. I still don’t have it quite right. I’ll have to spend some time in front of a mirror with a flute (holding it backwards since Catherine plays left-handed) in order to understand the pose. It’s times like these I wish I could afford a model. And I’ll have to spend some more time watching Youtube videos of Catherine. Darn.

We can still see glimpses of Christ’s glory & exaltation, even though He was born into the most humbling circumstances. Luke 2: 8-11, tells us about the shepherds & angels at Jesus’ birth.

Angles are servants of God; they worship God, & God alone. Angles worshiped Jesus before he came. A choir of angles announced Christ’s birth. They worshiped Him while He was here on earth, & they are worshiping Him now in heaven. God will not allow an angle to remain in heaven without adoring & submitting to Christ, & He will not allow us into heaven unless we do the same.

An angel of the Lord appeared to shepherds living out in the fields, and the glory of the Lord shone around them, making the night like day. The angel said, “Do not be afraid. I bring you good news of great joy that will be for all the people. Today in the town of David a Savior has been born to you; he is Christ the Lord.”

He is the Messiah; the Prince of Peace; the Mighty God, the Lord of all.

Those who overcome, that accept the free gift of life through Jesus Christ our Lord, will know that God is the Alpha & the Omega, the beginning & the end. And to those who hunger for righteousness, holiness & uninterrupted communion with God, He will give the blessedness of heaven, in His presence, forever.

Prejudice must be replaced by love & tenderness; lusts overcome & distained; vain imaginations must be replaced with honesty & truth; human reasoning & achievement must be seen for the foolishness that it is; pride must be utterly crushed & humbled. Only God, through the work of Jesus Christ, can pull these things down & change a heart of stone into a heart of flesh, tender & receptive to His Word & His lead.

What about you this Christmas? Is your focus on spiritual things, or worldly things; your soul, or your presents? I hope & pray that it is first, foremost & forever on spiritual things, for the glory of God & our dear Lord Jesus Christ. He is the way, the truth & the life.

There has been some talk on the YALSA listserv recently about angels becoming the new vampires in YA lit.  Some recent and upcoming angel/fallen angel books for YAs:

Mortal Instruments series by Cassandra Clare  (currently being adapted into GNs and headed for the big screen and Clare is working on a prequel trilogy)

Fallen by Lauren Kate  (Disney just bought the movie rights for this, the first in a 4 book series)

Hush, Hush by Becca Fitzpatrick

Angel Star by Jennifer Murgia

And a trilogy beginning in Fall 2010 by 17 year old Australian girl (this is her SECOND published trilogy,) Halo, Hades, and Heaven.

Can you think of others?  Have you seen any demand in the branches for angel/fallen angel books for teens?

Angels that staple themselves to my tables are no longer welcome at anything I’m able to think of that could ever possibly be. A sign at the door will say, Angels – Leave and even though with their make-up and outfits and wings they look honestly like the most beautiful things that God Itself could ever create – if they should ask me I will not hesitate to say, “I do not care if you wear divine glow – You staple yourself to a table, you go.”

Somewhere a boy in Malaysia works days making tables for girls to slam when they say, “Why don’t you give a fuck about me? What did I do? Tell me and I’ll leave – I won’t scream or cry (until you can’t see), just answer me answer me answer me- please”. But boys in Malaysia don’t dream of the wagers of proving your love through orders of danger, through haphazard staples at all the wrong angles, always repeating in that private language your most cherished phrases, always repeating them in that one voice.

Tomorrow there is a test

Reconnaître des configurations ou les angles sont égaux. Le texte suivant comporte des trous.

lecon-incomplete-angles

Deeper Than Rap. DOPE.

This piece is called Sweet Dreams/Blue Angel. She is the one that takes us into the dream state were we can float calm and peaceful. 

If you would like a print click on:

Her Walk., originally uploaded by kamikaze productions.

I shot my first wedding not too long ago. I didn’t have any of the camera equipment that a pro would recommend, nor the experience for that matter. I just came with my love of the camera and the art of finding the right shot. Why was I able to do this? Well quite frankly – this wasn’t a paying gig.

It had to be one of the great opportunities I’ve ever had. Being at a friends wedding and being able to capture some not so contemporary, not so cookie cutter, not so yearbook shots…making the wedding into you’re own personal artistic rendition. If you ever have the chance to do it, please do by all means. Sitting in the audience is boring anyway, so get up and try it out!

The picture above illustrates what I meant by artistic. Most wedding shots, and event photos for that matter, concentrate on a subject – in sports it’s the players and at a rally the orator. But how you capture an event is really the fun part. How do you transcend the subject so that the meaning becomes less simple?

The best advice I can give is step outside the comfort zone. Apply your street photography sense to the situation, in my case a wedding. The baseline, there is more than one way to skin a cat. (Is that the right adage?) In this picture, I shot the subject from the diagonal rear. The focus is her, but you get a sense that you may feel what she’s feeling as she is escorted past her friends and family by her loving father. You feel her regalness as all eyes are on the groom’s Queen, she is holding court. This isn’t a feeling you could capture by shooting her dead on center. Also consider the crop, which is tight in this case but encompasses enough of the supporting cast to draw you into her mind.

Trial and error always wins in my head…so just shoot and don’t be afraid to take the unnatural, the less normal of shots. Good luck and good shooting!

Here is what we have been waiting for! This is dope! .. I’m guessing this is off his new mixtape “Enemy of the State: A Love Story” .. Which will be dropping on Thanksgiving!

Download

Wolff, Tobias. La Vella escola. Barcelona : RBA : La Magrana, 2005

L’acció se situa el 1960 a Nova Anglaterra, en una prestigiosa escola privada de nois. Malgrat que l’escola es regeix per valors democràtics (el valor de cadascú resideix en el que sigui capaç de fer per si mateix) i que el seu rector lluita per ampliar cada any el nombre d’alumnes becats, és una escola elitista.

La institució destaca per la importància que concedeix a la literatura. Periòdicament rep la visita d’un escriptor famós que ha de triar un relat escrit per un alumne.

Ser escriptor és el somni de la majoria dels alumnes. I si el pròxim convidat és Hemingway l’angoixa i la competitivitat es disparen. Els millors situats per rebre l’honor de ser seleccionats són els membres del grup que dirigeix i edita la revista literària del centre, alumnes de l’últim curs, un dels quals és el protagonista i qui ens explica la història.

El narrador, un noi becat, conscient de la sort de poder estudiar i viure en una bona escola, té por de perdre el prestigi que ha guanyat amb el seu talent si parla amb franquesa de les seva grisa vida familiar fora de l’escola. Aquesta por l’ha resolt fins ara comportant-se amb un cert esnobisme.

S’apropa el dia de l’entrega del treball i el noi encara no ha escrit res. D’on treu la inspiració un escriptor? de la imaginació? de les experiències viscudes? dels models que més admira? … L’opció que tria farà desencadenar uns esdeveniments imprevistos.

Tobias Wolff, a La Vella escola ens parla amb una intel·ligència brillant de la passió d’escriure, de la influència de la literatura en el desenvolupament de la personalitat, de les mentides, de l’amistat i de la vocació d’ensenyar.

E. Domínguez

Una exposició sobre Jane Austen a la Morgan Library & Museum de Nova York , A Woman’s Wit: Jane Austen’s Life and Legacy (fins el 14 de març del 2010), intenta explicar per què ella i els seus escrits segueixen captivant i inspirant-nos gairebé dos-cents anys després de la seva mort.

L’exposició, feta a partir del nombrós material d’Austen que es guarda en aquesta institució, comença amb una carta escrita en 1796, quan Austen tenia vint anys, i acaba amb un curtmetratge sobre el seu llegat.

La versió en línia de l’exposició, amb la que ens hem de conformar els que no la podem visitar a NY, inclou:

• El vídeo The Divine Jane: Reflections on Austen, un documental produït especialment per a l’exposició, examina la influència de la narrativa d’Austen i la seva fama a través d’entrevistes amb destacats escriptors, acadèmics i actors.

•Les set primeres cartes de l’esborrany de la novel·la epistolar ‘Lady Susan‘, l’únic complet de les seves novel·les que es conserva.

• Per acabar podem veure una selecció d’imatges de l’exposició presencial.

També a la Morgan Library es pot visitar l’exposició William Blake’s World: “A New Heaven Is Begun”, amb una part d’exposició en línia.

The first time crystals came into my life I was a not so happy divorcee. I was suffering from migraines, anxiety, panic attacks, melancholic attacks, spasmodic colitis attacks, ex-husband attacks, line-manager attacks and several other ailments. Until then, I had no idea crystals could be used for healing such diseases. So my very first choice of treatment was an aromatherapy massage. My friend Chiara was a trained aromatherapist and she volunteered for the job. I arrived at her house rather late. Absentminded and with a severe disability to concentrate on anything practical, I forgot to take with me the GPS. It was no coincidence that I ended up miles away from my destination and in the middle of a golf course. It took me hours to find the right way (physically as well as spiritually). In the end, when I entered Chiara’s house, I was already exhausted and low in spirits. She took pity on me and she led me immediately on the massage bed. Only there have I managed to catch my breath and observe the surroundings. The room was full of candles, flowers, exotic lamps, a fountain, hundreds of semi precious stones and a very modern ipod speaker. The full body massage was a bliss that lasted well over an hour. Once I felt unable to move from my relaxing experience Chiara surprised me with the question: Can I use some of my crystals on you? Initially, I thought that in my dreamy condition I heard wrongly but she was kind enough to repeat the question. I was intrigued more than anything else and I decided to accept. Several crystals were placed on my body and around the bed, while I tried to lie there absolutely still. This was the turning point for me. I felt warmth enveloping me and a sense of calm surrounding my head. At the time, the skeptic in me denied the power of the crystals but they were so potent that I decided to submit myself to the sensations they caused. And then…. It happened. While I was relishing the new experience and Chiara was meditating nearby, I sneezed!!!! I have no clue where that came from. The next thing I remember is a frightened Chiara jumping from her seat and me trying to calm her down. And that was my first mishap.

"Olympic National Park", Photograph.

Jason Pennewell

6 a.m.-10 p.m.

Black Dog Coffeehouse
12815 W. 87th St. Pkwy.
Lenexa, KS
913.495.5515

Hours: 6 a.m.-10 p.m. Monday-Thursday, 6 a.m.-11 p.m. Friday, 7 a.m.-11 p.m. Saturday, 7 a.m.-10 p.m. Sunday
Runs through: Nov. 30

Gallery site: http://www.bdcoffeehouse.com

In the first few seconds after walking into Black Dog Coffeehouse, it might be easy to dismiss Jason Pennewell’s show as a collection of pretty pictures, taken in places where it’s hard to get any other kind.

That’s just one more example of why it’s bad to rush to conclusions and make snap judgments.

There’s a difference between not taking a bad picture and taking a good one. (Hint: The second one’s a lot harder.) Pennewell comes down squarely on the side of good, especially when he breaks the rules.

From Italy to Alaska, to Rocky Mountain and Olympic national parks, Pennewell’s well-traveled camera has recorded its share of gorgeous imagery.  He has an eye for composition and color (both bright and subdued) … and knows when to focus on the latter and skew the former.

Usually, a significant tilt in a shot is reason enough either to crop it or discard it entirely.  Some  of Pennewell’s most effective pieces, though, are off not by a few degrees, but a few dozen. It’s the difference between a nagging flaw (Doesn’t he care how this looks?) and a bold visual step.

The beachscape above, one of several from Olympic National Park, is a prime example. At a 45-degree tilt, the horizon, surf and waterline take on the appearance of long brushstrokes in an abstract painting, making the photograph appear less about the scenery and more about the colors and lines that make up the scene.

The photograph develops a different rhythm and direction, too. Instead of evoking the steady pulse of waves, it takes on a sense of dynamic, purposeful motion from lower left to upper right.

Pennewell goes the semi-representational, semi-abstract route in several close-up pieces, most notably a texture-intensive  shot of iron pyrite (better known as fool’s gold).

There’s no parallel to be drawn here between the mineral and Pennewell’s work, though. It’s true that not everything shiny is valuable, and also true that not every glossy photo of a picturesque building/glacier/collection of tide-polished stones has any lasting visual value.

But when beauty and artistic skill coincide, as they do in Pennewell’s photographs, the result is far more than just a pretty picture.

From: bluvertical

You’ll see as we move on that I use the Nodes a great deal, particularly in synastry. Experience has taught me that the Nodes are active, vital, almost magnetic points in the chart, and behave much the way the angles do, drawing in experience and processing it. However, where the angles are primarily about identity, the Nodes have a different task. The Nodes are the gateway between our past and our present. The Nodes represent nothing less than the evolution of our consciousness. Anything that touches them directly, whether within a chart or between charts, helps us to evolve.

We often forget, in discussing the Nodes, that the Nodes we commonly refer to are the Nodes of the Moon. (Other planets have Nodes, too, which you can discover on all the major astrology programmes.) So we must begin at the beginning, with the Moon. The Moon sums up all we have arrived with in this life, all we have been, done, thought, experienced. It represents our essential Self, in this lifetime and many others (If you’re inclined to believe that way; it isn’t necessary). The Moon represents our body, and the way our body reflects our consciousness, our prior experiences. It contains our psychic sheath, our aura, our chakras and energy points, our physical and metaphysical selves. It is the summing up of all that we are and all that we have been. It is our primary consciousness, and all that we carry within our inner world, both conscious and unconscious. It isn’t too difficult to see why, to the Greeks, the Moon represented Soul.

In our lives, this lunar energy works hand in hand with the Sun. The Sun is the engine of our being and becoming. It creates and consolidates experience for our growth. It moves us forward. Throughout our lives, our Sun and our Moon are in a dialogue, even if there are no aspects between them. (With no aspects, the phasal relationship between the Sun and the Moon becomes more important, as does the progressed Soli/lunar cycle– progressed Sun and progressed Moon creating progressed new moons, full moons, squares, etc.) The Nodes represent this dialogue between past and present, what we’ve been and what we will be. As we mature, the Moon incorporates the experiences the Sun has created, and we move on.

Technically the Nodes indicate the points where the orbit of the Moon crosses the ecliptic, the path of the Sun. The symbolism is clear. The South Node is reflective of the Moon’s past, in both positive and negative manifestations. The North Node symbolizes where we need to grow, what type of understanding and energy we need to bring in and develop. The South Node, like the Moon, is familiar and comfortable on the whole, even with difficult things affecting it–we are comfortable with that discomfort. The North Node is where we have to do our work, what we have to take in, what we need to learn in order to grow. The rulers of both the South and North Nodes tell us more about the story of where we came from and where we’re going. As we will see, it isn’t always an easy ride. Deeply entrenched patterns may be difficult to change, preventing our growth. Our identity may be so tied up with the South Node that we can’t move beyond it. Challenges to the South Node ruler will make the transition even more difficult, and often describe the very thing that is blocking our progress. Planets affecting the North Node ruler will either help or hold us back on our path, and may slow us down considerably. (Some of this dynamic was described in the piece about Anthony Perkins, “The Man Who Was Norman Bates.”

There are a lot of good books on the Nodes out there, so I won’t bother getting into much detail about Nodes in signs and houses. But we will examine some of these Nodal ’stories’ via rulership, and in particular, their relevance in synastry. Because the Nodes belong to the Moon and involve its relation to the Sun, they directly reflect the soli/lunar dynamic of male/female, yin/yang, earth/sky. They are, in fact, about the way we relate, the way we give and take, the way we unite, and are related symbolically to the conjunction of the Sun and Moon. Often the most telling thing about the Nodes is that they describe the way we interact with others. They are about the way we find balance through ‘other.’

In synastry, contacts to the Nodes and the nodal rulers are acute and intense. They can act like a magnet to draw the most unlikely people together in the most unlikely circumstances. One of the most powerful contacts is Nodes conjunct angles. I have read research that claims that the most common contact in long term marriage is Node/angles. I’ve certainly seen enough evidence in synastries to know that, whether they are marriage indicators or not, Node/angle contacts are often present in the most profound relationships. It makes sense. When the Moon’s Nodes conjunct angles, psycho-spiritual development and integration is unavoidable. My developing identity is forever tied intertwined with your spiritual integration. We have a different objective, but the same path.

So, how do the Nodes play out in relationships? Over the next few weeks we will do some exploring, and discover the relationship dynamics of the Nodes both within charts and between them.