Saturday, January 31, 2009

Though I May Vanish


Skating and lunch today were very enjoyable. While I was down there, I thought I'd take the opportunity to wander the Freer for a bit. I was very taken by this translation of a Chinese inscription on a scroll:

Like the dew

that clings for life

on hare's foot fern

so I, too, rely on you,

though I may vanish.


[photo by John Serafin]

Tuesday, January 20, 2009

The Gift

I watched WETA in HD. This isn't as good quality, but still lovely and meaningful. The piano was incidental, which breaks up this week's theme, but whatever, it was The Inauguration.

John Williams' Arrangement Air and Simple Gifts

Monday, January 19, 2009

Bach + Inspired Artist = Joy

Before we begin, I'd like to thank our source, muz1kf0rever, for providing this evening's delightful performance. I'd also like to highlight the Glenn Gould quote from the channel page linked above:

I believe that the justification of art is the internal combustion it ignites in the hearts of men and not its shallow, externalized, public manifestations. The purpose of art is not the release of a momentary ejection of adrenaline but is, rather, the gradual, lifelong construction of a state of wonder and serenity.
- Glenn Gould

The recording's mangling of the orchestral part at the beginning is annoying, but the rest is beautiful enough to forgive it:

Keyboard concerto in D Minor (Part 1 of 3):


(Part 2 of 3):


(Part 3 of 3):

Sunday, January 18, 2009

Debussy Evening

Courtesy of mdbownds...

(you might want to get a glass of sherry before we begin, I'll wait)


Reverie

Valse Romantique

Arabesque

Ballade


Now how do you feel?

Thursday, January 15, 2009

Synchronicity


Wow. January 14-15th must have been "Grateful Meme Day." Who knew? Steph shared about what Steve Jobs' medical leave reminds us of, and check out this delightful essay Will posted on thinkbuddha.org, which I quote part of here:

...I came to realise that indebtedness is not optional, that we are indebted whether we like it or not, and that we can never repay these debts. There is no straightening of accounts in which we can suddenly see ourselves as being separate and free. Realising this, my sense of life shifted. I started to recognise that, given that I could not balance the accounts, I had no choice other than to be grateful.

Could it be Jobs' announcement that kicked this meme off? Dude must be a god. I wish him well.

The photo above was swiped from here. The link there to the video of the Stanford commencement address is broken, so I'll just post it here, shall I?

Wednesday, January 14, 2009

Thursday, January 8, 2009

Lucky


Flying squirrel update: Although Angelina's little sniffy dog is still sniffing randomly around the living room in places the flying squirrel was running around to keep away from me, it appears that he or she did take the hint and escape out the windows we left open. I haven't heard any rustling, no one's touched the peanuts on the hearth (behind the screen, so the dogs can't get to them), and the panther-dog has lost interest, which means he's not hearing anything, either. Peace be with you, little flying squirrel. Try not to fall down the chimney again, please.

Monday, January 5, 2009

Thousand Arms


This is the Thousand Armed Chenrezig. That's how many arms I would need to have a hope of catching the flying squirrel that has fallen down the chimney and landed in our living room (again). I chased the poor thing around awhile trying to catch it with a towel and a fishtank net. So much for my pride in my wildlife removal skills. Utterly defeated, we opened the windows and left it alone. I'm going to take some peanuts in there and put them just outside the windowsills. (And hopefully not attract anything else from outside.)