Just a brief post to say that B and I parted company over the weekend. Yes, the timing sucks. No, I haven’t got a clue what comes next. As we slip from one decade to the next, I shall be single, homeless and jobless. Ok, so it’s not as dramatic as it sounds, but in the wee hours it sure feels like that! It’s an opportunity, or so I’m told, to do anything, to go anywhere. Here’s hoping, right?!

Thankfully I am surrounded by wonderful friends to whom I owe bucketfuls of thanks.

Here’s the most recent photo of the piglets, to end on a good note:

Pinky, Curly and the piglets - 13 December 2009

I love going to the movies. No, I mean I love going to the movies. Sure, the convenience of DVDs mean that I can take breaks for urges such as food or bladder relief, but nothing beats sitting in a cushy theatre staring at a screen the size of a fucking building and being mentally transported to another place.

However, this (like almost anything enjoyable in the world) can be spoiled by the existence of other people. I have been to see over thirty films this year (micro reviews and best of 2009 list coming soon!), and nearly every time I have had to move because some jackass thought that it would be cool to disobey the cardinal laws of the movies.

To better help people understand the unspoken rules that going to the cinema creates, I have created ten ‘movie commandments’; five for avid Movie-goers, and five for Socialising people who don’t take the movies too seriously.

Socialiser v.s. Avid Movie-Goer

CURLY GEEK’S FIVE COMMANDMENTS OF THE CINEMA (SOCIALISERS EDITION)

1. It’s perfectly fine to talk during trailers. By all means, get it out of your system. When the movie starts, keep it down. I assume you are a reasonable person and paid your money so that you could watch the movie. For God’s sake, don’t prove me wrong.
2. If you arrive late, arrive quietly. Don’t immediately start whining to whoever you’re with and loudly debate the differing merits of sitting in different rows. Find a seat and enjoy.
3. If you’re bringing in food, make it inaudible, and odourless. There are a lot of different foods included here, so I’ll break it down into the good, the bad, and the ugly:
   1. The Good – Includes any kind of drink that is in a non-squeezable container, ice creams, other frozen treats (post unwrapping) and any confectionary that comes in a cardboard carton (e.g. Malteasers).
   2. The Bad – Includes anything in collapsible plastic packaging (chiefly potato chips) and squeeze bottle drinks. If you have these, open pre-movie.
   3. The Ugly – Includes any hot foods such as fast food (e.g. MacDonald’s or KFC), nuggets/hot chips/scallops or the worst offender, curry. These are easily detectable by smell and will affect other people’s movie experience. If you partake of these, go die in a fire.
4. If you’re bored or uninterested in the movie playing, leave! Do NOT:
   1. Start texting/playing games on your phone.
   2. Make snarky comments to your buddy about the movie.
   3. See if you can get that last 0.5 millilitres of Coke out of your cup and suck louder and harder than Transformers 2.
   4. Audibly try and figure out what else the lead actor or actress has been in.
   5. Put your wrappers/container/gum in the bin on your way out. This doesn’t really bother me that much, but I do have close friends in the cinema industry and I know this bugs them.

Talking in movies = fail.

CURLY GEEK’S FIVE COMMANDMENTS OF THE CINEMA (AVID MOVIE-GOERS EDITION)

1. Pick your arrival time carefully. Getting to the cinema too early can leave you having to adapt to everybody else’s seating arrangements and may even lead to the classic ‘getting up and moving without making eye contact with the people who realise that you moved because of them and now think you’re the asshole even though they clearly had no intention of shutting up’ manoeuvre. You know the one. It’s best to arrive about 5 minutes before the beginning of the session, or if you’re not fussed, after the trailers have started.
2. Pick your seating carefully. Here’s how the different sections of a theatre break down:
   1. The Front – An unattractive option for most Movie-goers, the hidden potential of this section lies in increased degrees. The closer you sit, the better your experience.
   2. The Middle – The most attractive option for most Movie-goers, the middle is fraught with danger for those who mis-time their arrival. The most common hazard of the middle includes small groups of friends, as well as parents and children. If you insist on sitting here, arrive at the last minute, so that you may make the optimal seating choice. Otherwise, you will almost definitely be disappointed when a group of teens decides to sit exactly in front of you. If you insist on sitting in the middle, I urge you to move to the very edges of the row. Socialisers are seemingly allergic to asymmetry and will shun walls.
   3. The Back – The centre of the Socialiser’s Domain. Make no mistakes, this is their territory and should you choose this section, be prepared to encounter all the unforgiveable sins I have mentioned previously. You have been warned
3. Pick your choice of drink/food carefully. Conscientious Movie-goers will no doubt know about the inaudible/odourless rule previously mentioned, but beware other hazards like having large drinks in long movies. Always ‘evacuate’ yourself prior to the film starting to avoid missing parts of the movie or distractive seat-squirming.
4. If faced with unavoidable experience ruining, move. There is nothing wrong with moving from your seat to another if your current situation is affecting your experience. Better your attention momentarily diverted when finding a new seat then continuously distracted by people around you. NOTE: The best prevention tactic to this problem in to get into a conversation with the Socialisers around you prior to the session’s beginning. Connecting with those around you politely will establish a ‘micro-relationship’ between you and them, so it won’t be some faceless jerk asking them to ‘keep it down if they’re talking during the movie, but you.
5. Relax/ Develop Movie Tolerance. Unless you exclusively watch art house movies, you’re going to run into Socialisers. Even avid movie-goers want to see the latest blockbuster, and that means growing a thicker skin when it comes to people breaking movie commandments. Remember that the majority of people going to the movies don’t mean to be loud or annoying jerks, but are just looking to have a good time with friends. So the next time you arc up because someone dared whisper to their friend during Zombieland, take a chill pill. Have some Coke or something. Odds are even the most diehard Movie-goer has himself been a Socialiser one time or another.

Choose carefully...

I’ll be posting again soon, but I still hope everyone has a Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year!

Flat irons may become a thing of the past as researchers for L’Oreal in Paris say they’ve identified what causes curls.   According to their findings, the answer lies below your scalp in the hair bulb — which is hook-shaped for curly hair and straight for straight hair.

It’s believed that those bulbs could be altered using hormones, meaning that a simply pill may one day be able to turn curly hair straight and vice versa.

“I think this could be potentially revolutionary if it actually changed the shape of the bulb within the hair follicle,” said Dr. Diane Berson, a dermatologist at New York Presbyterian Hospital.

L’Oreal said its findings could also lead to a pill that reverts gray hair back to its original color.

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Uncertain Instruments at South Shields Customs House

May I take a few minutes of your time to recommend a visit to the Customs House at The Mill Dam in South Shields where I spent a very reflective afternoon away from Christmas shopping today. If you, like me, are now and then looking for some sort of escape route from your toils and tribulations then this oasis of art is an ideal haven for reflection and thought. Right now there are some excellent exhibitions being shown in the Sandford Goudie Gallery including one or two which are particularly fascinating.

David Kemp’s “Uncertain Instruments” are a cornucopia of recycled items gathered over years of scouring old tin mines, scrap yards, car boot sales, and jumble in Cornwall. David has taken to the ultimate recycling in using these items to create a miscellany of artistic wit and invention, some of which would certainly make it into the props room of Dr. Who! I marvelled at the way that ancient old keyboards, motherboards, wheels, bogies, tea trollies etc. had been fashioned into wondrous works of art evoking a variety of emotions.

Also, having marvelled at the “Coat for a Boat” exhibition this summer, I found that some of the same group of knitters from South Tyneside have got together to create a “Victorian Christmas” all knitted from a variety of materials, I was absolutely fascinated and amazed at the creativity, and to top it all we have an avenue of white Christmas trees as we enter, all fully decorated yet made entirely from recycled plastic milk cartons!

If you have a spare hour when you are in South Shields town centre or Market Place then do have a walk across, you won’t regret it.

Which reminds me, I’ve just recycled an image of the Customs House director Ray Spencer in his alter ego “Tommy the Trumpeter” in what I consider to be an extremely creative style, it will be on show in my own gallery, South Shields Daily Pictures, in a few days time.

I hope he likes it.

:: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: ::

Leading South Tyneside Labour councillor dies suddenly

Curly wishes to note this sad moment and pass on his thoughts, prayers, condolences and wishes to his family.

A big man with a big sense of wit and humour he was difficult to ignore, and he served a term as Mayor of South Tyneside too in 1988, I often bumped into him in Morrisons in Jarrow and he always had a smile on his face and time for whoever wished to pass a few words.

Despite being very “old school Labour” he was one of those local politicians who did not find it difficult to put politics to one side and genuinely interact at a human level with his opponents.

The Leader of South Tyneside Council, Councillor Iain Malcolm, said: “I was terribly upset to hear of Barrie’s death; not only has the council lost a very good Cabinet member but I have lost a very dear and valued friend and the people of Jarrow have lost a councillor who assiduously defended their interests.”Barrie was a larger-than-life character, noted for his deep knowledge and love of local history as well as his wit, warmth and charm. As Mayor, he presided over council meetings with fairness and good humour, and was respected by both sides of the chamber. Our thoughts are with Barrie’s family and friends at this very sad time.”

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good hair day – it happens so rarely that I had to get a pic… and Tis the Season, I’m standing by the tree.

I had the craziest week. I’m doing a Channukah show on Tuesday with the Fox at the Lehi museum right by my house. It’s for fun and a few symbolic shekels. We didn’t really know any of the songs and we’re giving them an original interpretation so we don’t drop dead from boredom. It’s actually quite fun. The audience is going to be filled with really old people, it’ll be funny. I’ve done two other shows in that museum, it’s definitely an amusing experience. Like dropping into another world.

Yair Stern, founder of the Lehi underground movement. My grandmother has still pictures of him around her house

The Lehi museum is a museum dedicated to commemorating the Lehi underground movement that fought against the British before the establishment of Israel. These old geezers (my grandmother amongst them) were bona fida freedom fighters and they’re taking their fighting spirit to the grave. No matter what your political views on the matter, you can’t not stop to admire that.

We’re bringing in a drummer whom I’m going to dub Curly to play the darbuka with us (arabic drum). It’s actually going to be fun I think. She’s the other girl that the Fox is sleeping with. We actually spent the evening together yesterday and it was interesting, but more on that later.

Aside from that, I had the first rehearsal in a studio w ith the new drummer and guitarist. The  bass player bailed out. I’m actually worried about him. He stopped answering phone calls the day of the rehearsal and I haven’t been able to reach him since. I met with the guitarist, I’ll call him the Algerian and I’m sure he would be proud of his nickname, on Sunday. Took a train all the way to Natanya to meet him. He’s an interesting character. He’s 35, born in Algeria. Cute but short. Raised on the circuit between Algeria, Paris and Israel to a poor family, as he described it. He’s been making a living from his guitar since he was 20 but because school in France is free and it was easy for him, he got to doctrates, one in Psychology and one in Sociology.

The Batter of Algiers, the only thing I knew about Algiers until a week ago. Great movie, insightful and warmly recommended

The rehearsal did not go as I planned. I’m kind of back to the drawing board. I thought I wanted something but now I think I’m going to take a different direction, different instruments and a different stylistic direction. Also, I’m going to take the stand at the piano. I’ve been playing for myself during all the rehearsals, and I believe that if I give it another push, I’ll be ready to play for myself. Even on a basic level, and then I’ll add the other instruments according to what I hear. I need to produce the song as a piano player, not just as a singer. Bottom line. This was a good discovery but its going to take a push.

Anyway, I need  to run, but I thought I’d make this one post. Perhaps I’m getting used to this format after all.

KUDOS

A dear pittie friend recently visited Best Friends Animal Sanctuary. I ask her to share her visit and some photo’s with us. Enjoy.

My Mom & I went to Best Friends Animal Sanctuary (Dog Town) a couple weeks ago for 4 days …a girls’ trip. We had the most AMAZING time out there. At first glance, many people are like, “why in the hell would you want to take a vacation at a dog shelter?”  It was absolutely beautiful. I know that not all of you are into rescue, shelter stuff, but you really don’t have to be to actually get this… it is way more than that. If you’ve seen “Dog Town” on National Geographic with the Michael Vick dogs, this is the same place.

To get there, you fly into Las Vegas (closest airport) and then drive about 4 hours through the most beautiful countryside to get to Kanab, Utah where the sanctuary, Dog Town is located.

It is situated on 37,000 acres in Angels Canyon (Kanab) - near Bryce Canyon and Zion National Park. They have about 1,500 animals – including dogs, cats, horses, mules, bunnies, pot bellied pigs, turkeys etc…They give tours, allow people to volunteer whilst out there and also allow people to have doggie overnight stays at your hotel. We had a pit bull “Tuie” for 3 days. He was gorgeous, well-behaved, super chill and loved the down pillows at the Comfort Inn :O) … They send you home with an overnight bag – full of treats, toys, blankets etc… everything you need and then you just bring the dog back the next morning at 8:30AM.

Tuie with her pillows

I got the opportunity to meet 4 of the Michael Vick dogs. Ellen, Denzel, Ray and Curly. They are off limits to the public for various reasons of liability and to protect them. 3 of the 4 were so sweet – Ray has some serious emotional issues, which was hard to see… but they are safe at the sanctuary and very well cared for… Ray was very fearful – as a human going into his kennel meant something bad was going to happen to him. He growled and barked and paced.

Denzel high fived us and Ellen *named after Ellen Degenres* rolled on her back for a belly rub. Sadly from her scaring on her face, she looked like she’d been one of Vick’s prize fighters and then turned into a breeder later on, as her teats never went back to normal. She’d obviously been bred a lot. We did not see Georgia. Cherry has since been adopted ).

Denzel

Ellen

They have a cemetery there with over 500 wind chimes, it’s called “Angels’ Rest”. It is beautiful. Many people bring their dogs remains / ashes to be buried there with little notes and collars next to their grave. It was really peaceful, but sad to see the notes from the owners who had to leave behind their babies.

Angels' Rest

As you seen on the show, all of the kennel rooms (Octagon shaped) at the sanctuary have heated floors and are air- conditioned. Toys are everywhere. They have marked off trails to walk them with park benches and water for a break. They have a ”dog park” where you can take a dog for an off-leash romp. The dogs are fed really good food… the Sanctuary doesn’t miss a beat – everything is done “right” and thoroughly. The dogs are safe there, as euthanization isn’t a issue. Most of the dogs there are second chance dogs, there were many Hurricane Katrina dogs still there.

The place is magical. The people LOVE their job and the vibe is beautiful. My mom cried when we had to leave… sad for saying good bye to the dog we had,  ”Tuie” and sad for leaving such a loving place. I highly recommend you go… you won’t be disappointed. It was SO inspiring to go there – totally recharged us and gave me hope and faith in humankind to protect the
voiceless…

- Jenn Aldridge

Update – The Vick dog that I mentioned that was having a tough time… He just passed his
CGC (canine good citizen test) and has made leaps and bounds in his progress and ready for adoption!!!!!!

Jen- Thank you so much for sharing. Sounds like it was a life altering experience. I am so happy to hear that Ray’s condition has improved so drastically. Your dedication and passion for this breed is truly admirable and I am happy to call you a friend. Keep up the good work.

[via my dad's sense of humor]

http://www.formixedhair.com

So it was about  28-30 degrees today and WINDY! Since I dont have a barn winter coat I had on 2 t-shirts and 3 hoodies. I was still cold. Goodness.

Today started off well, I got great sleep and felt fabulous! I got ready and Zoey and I hopped in the car for out 45 min drive to Diane’s barn. Christmas music

I was going to start China and Tempting in English tack today, but my girth was too small! And its a 42! Fatties. Diane didn’t have any girth extenders so sans English saddle for China…she did go in a D-ring french link snaffle though…

China's bit today

As usual, I started out by lunging to warm her up. I’m a big fan of lunging for 5-10 min just to get a horse loose. A lot of trainers think too much lunging is bad for a horse, which it can be, but 5-10  min before every ride is not going to do any damage.

SIDENOTE- the reason many trainers dislike lunging or lunging with sidereins is because they think prolonged periods going round and round and round is degenerative to a young  horses’ (or older) joints. Granted yes if one lunged a horse for 45 min everyday, that would do great damage, but just 10 min before every ride at walk, trot and canter can really loosen a stiff horse up, especially in the winter! The key is to lunge on a larger circle and start off at the walk and trot and only let them canter after about 7 min of walking in trotting. I sometimes like to add sidereins for 5 min of the warmup, but only if the horse understands what they are for-stretching and loosening of the back and neck. I think it is vital to let a horse warm up before the rider ads his/her weight.

But anyways, I started off lunging her, and she seemed to enjoy the lighter English bridle and bit in her mouth. But God was it cold! Anyways after doing our neck stretches I mounted up and let her walk about for a few min. Then I started right back where I left off tues with leg yielding at the halt. Unlike tues, China was not very compliant. She kicked at the girth today when I cinched her up so I deduced that her sides were sore. Sure enough, after experimenting with leg pressure I learned that she would only tolerate light light light pressure today. That was a challenge, esp when practicing leg yields!  However she soon settled and after some fussing with the bit like usual, into a workmanlike trot. I intermittently would stop and ask for yieldsand back-ups in which she complied!

After her I worked Freddy; I wish I could change  him to English tack as well, but he is simple to wide for my saddle. I did though switch his bit to a happy-mouth, french link, 2 ring elevator bit

Freddy's bit

This is the exact bit I used today on him. I LOVE elevators and use a 3 ring on Yankee whenever we jump. However, it is only for experienced hands! When used wrongly this bit can be quite severe. Anyways, I started him off the same way I start China. He was one step behind her though as he didnt know leg yielding well. I put on baby spurs today and really took my time with him. He finally got it!!! I was so happy. He really is one of the smartest I have ever dealt with before. After that, we worked on cantering right when I ask. Seems the baby spurs really helped today as he FINALLY picked up the correct leads. He seems to really be coming into better balance with himself. I was very happy with him today as well!

After him I worked Tempting. I’m pretty sure she  was possessed by the devil today, because she was an absolute hellion. She started off in the barn terribly (I was able to jerry-rig the saddle in place….not sure how to explain how, but it was very secure-enough for lunging, no rider could have sat in it), spooky and nervous the whole time I was grooming. Diane thought it was because she’s only worn the saddle 5 times now, and hardly was ever groomed before I started orking with her. I blame it on the wind. Pleh. I don’t know why I thought she would improve…

She pretty much looked like this all day, literally.

Well she didn’t. Tempting normally is very mindful  and well behaved, taking voice cues well and all that jazz. But she was turning a deaf ear today, along with flipping of the tail and running madly around like a hooligan. I couldnt help but get frustrated…and I started to doubt myself for not being able to get ehr attention… I really didnt know what to do! I asked her to HALT adn I stood there a bit and regained my composure. Giving up on working her in the icy wind, I resulted to working with her on giving to the bit on the ground. Epic Fail. I just coudldnt work with her today. Back to the barn.

After lunch, I got on Curly. We went for a lovely trail ride, and I’m very glad I left him for last. He was an ANGEL! I used the same bit on him as freddy and he really responded well to it. I trotted and cantered a bunch on him today and really worked he hills. Maybe he’ll lose some chuz

I was pooped after that but I still had another 45 min drive to go work with Jasmine, the mustang. As usual she didnt want to come down out of the pasture ( I bribed her with oats!), but once she did, all was well. I first practiced picking up her feet and brushing her. She is really learning fast! I tacked her up and sent her out on the line-which she is unafraid now! Also practice halting and turning with hand signals. Later, about 20 min, I put my feet in the stirrup and hopped up and down. She was un-fazed by the whole deal. I hope I’m not too heavy to ride her when the time comes!

But I have been working out

The next installment in my series on people!  I visited the Kensington Kinetic Sculpture Derby in the Kensington neighborhood of Philadelphia this past spring and was taken for quite a wild ride!  The sculptures were absolutely crazy and the whole derby had a cool bohemian vibe to it.  Luckily, I brought my camera!  Granted, I brought it so that I could better show my mom exactly what this “thing” was, but I got some cool shots as well.  As the crowd was beginning to line up at the finish line, I noticed this little curly-haired girl enjoying a solitary stroll down the street with her balloon and little stuffed puppy.  Fortunately, she wasn’t walking down the lane for too long, as that was the exact street that served as the final leg of the derby.

Of course, this photo was taken with the Canon Powershot G7!    I used Adobe Photoshop CS3 to remove the company logo that was splashed across the balloon (it was so distracting!).  I also enhanced the contrast and lighting in the photo for a slightly more dramatic “solitary” feel.  Enjoy!  Stay tuned for more in my “People Series”!

1. Wash hair at least 1x per week (the other days just rinse)
2. Detangle hair each day
3. Put in a leave in conditioner. Whatever helps detangle and leaves hair feeling soft. SheaMoisture Shea Butter Leave-In Conditioner is great for this step.
4. Saturate hair with Black Earth Protective Mist Bodifier
5. Put Treasured Locks Locks of Curls Curl Defining Pomade & Gel or other styling gel in hair
6. Apply a little hair oil
7. Let air dry if possible (you can put your hair in a ponytail to stretch it a little or just let it air dry
8. In the winter- use a blow dryer on the lowest temp, gently stretching the hair as you dry it.

More Advice, and Q&A: http://www.treasuredlocks.com/biracial-hair-care-guide.html

I really don’t want to overload your brain with all the latest trends and want to give you the opportunity and the time to try out some of them, that’s why I would like to present you today just a summary of pictures with trends I was blogging the last few weeks about.

Just lean back and find your way in my favourite pics collection.

Source: Google images:Stylefizz

Source: Google images: Photobucket

Source: Google images: Girldir

Source: Google images: Shopping Liga

Source: Google images: Yatego

Source: Google images: Spiegel

Source: Google images: Bestweekever

Source: Google images: Modern Hairstyle

Source: Google images: AAA fashion

Source: Google images: Romance fire

Source: Google images: Stylenews

Source: Google images: Sistyle

Source: Google images: Daz

Source: Google images: Friis company

Source: Google images: Trendmill

Source: Google images: Gossipteen

Source: Google images: Girldir

Source: Google images: Girldir

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