(Geek Alert) Stack the Memory To The Sky!

From the Sniper Twins.

Yak-Trax, Hell 'bent and Lesbian Pulp-Fiction

At 5:50 a.m. it was still pretty dark outside and my thermometer said 9F. Hot coffee and the internet were the first orders of the day.

Even though it's too damn cold and icy for ME to ride, the group of us, or at least a small sub-set, are still 'Hell 'bent for Breakfast'. I had decided that I would walk the 2.6 miles to Webb's Cafe and Diner and so I had to warm myself and get psyched for the trek.

After glancing to see who was alive and on Facebook at that hour, I drifted over to my NewsGator and noticed a new post on a blog I follow, dykestowatchoutfor.com titled "Do you know what bonk-buster means? I didn't" Well, I didn't either, so I definitely had to go read THAT one.

That discussion of course led me to urbandictionary.com and to the OED and ultimately to a fascinating article in Slate by June Thomas that talks about why Secret Service Agents are such a popular character in Lesbian Pulp Fiction.

Who even knew there was such a genre?!!! Or that bonkbuster refers to novels with lots of sex?!!!

So I had lots to ponder on my walk home from breakfast with the guys. And as I pondered, I crested Monroe Ave at Cobbs Hill on icy sidewalks and a jogger approached. She struggled to maintain her grip on the hard slick pebbled surface in running shoes that looked very out of place for the conditions. I climbed a snowy bank to give her room to more safely pass and as she did, I lifted one foot and pointed to my sole and said, simply, "Yak-Trax". Her nod of ascent told me she appreciated the advice.

RAAM & the TeamType2

Yeah, our good buddy Denny Voorhees of Sayre, PA will be racing across America in June with seven other racers all of whom have Type 2 Diabetes. And just to be sure it's tough enough, he's gotta do it on a DF. Ouch!

Luckily Den's got the right stuff.

And speaking of the right stuff, Tommie Blecher has stepped up to the plate.

Each of the racers in the team has to recruit 2 people for support crew and our man Blecher has answered the call. Traveling in a van for 7 days across America, helping with driving, navigating, spotting, cooking and etc. Sponsors for the team provide enough resource so that transportation to and from the race start and finish, accommodations and food for team support members is paid.

If the dates didn't conflict with the R2k, I'd seriously consider it. Sounds like a hoot!

Well, we'll be pullin' for ya, Den! And you know you'll get plenty of sympathy in this corner for your sore nether regions!

TeamType2

Afghanistan, Musical cross-currents

An American experiences a musical journey in a land far away and now inextricably linked to our own.

Courtesy of GlobalPost.com

That Facebook Thing

At the invitation of my Peruana amiga, Eli, I joined Facebook about a year ago. I hooked up at that time with one other 'friend' we had in common, Natasha (Natou) in France.

But it never clicked. My Facebook page just sat there. Every now and again, I'd get an email from some unknown individual wanting to 'friend' me. Into the trash they went. That was the extent of my Facebook involvement.

Until recently.

Teresa and then Dave, in rapid succession, added me as friends. And then, two days before our mutual birthday, my (hmmm... 15 year old?) niece, Courtney added me.

Now Courtney, due in part to her age, and then also to her very sociable nature, is part of a much larger Facebook social network containing, in addition to her school chums and the like, many of our family members as well.

So I've been quickly drawn up into the chatter of Facebook, now with nieces and nephews, friends here at home and abroad. It's fun! I got chatted up by another niece, Marcella, last night before we both had to head off toward homework.

So what's all the hubub about? A waste of time? Perhaps. But I'm connecting more with family and friends and even though in a largely and seemingly superficial way, still I get the feeling that there's something there, something useful. So for now, I'm going with it, I'll see where it leads.

Rochester-iana

One of the sites I enjoy is Shorpy.com, "Always Something Interesting." Every day, this site offers anywhere from one to four vintage photographs of Americana, many of everyday things, sometimes by famous photographers, frequently culled from the archives of the Library of Congress.

Today's offering was by the famous and fabulous Lewis Wickes Hine and portrayed none other than our own fair city. In this case, a group of newsies in 1910 shooting craps.

It looks for all the world like the Court St. Bridge in the background.

Judy said, "Is your dad in there?", but of course in 1910, it would more likely have been my grandfather. Alas, as near as I could tell, he was not to be found. In fact, he didn't live in Rochester until at least the 1920s, I think.

Cool Gear from Recycled Bike Stuff

Eco-Velo Blog already covered this, but I thought it was too cool not to try to spread around more. Too bad my birthday just passed, some of this stuff would have been on my list!

Alchemy Goods

While you're at it, check out Steel Toe Studios for more cool recycled stuff.

¡Bienvenidos a mi mundo!

Today I am taking off from work for my birthday and I will try to do nothing productive all day and see if I can survive that. :-)

Last night our latest Peruana, Rosa Canales, arrived to begin her two-month stay with us while she does clinical rotation at the U of R. As I write, Judy is taking her and Katia, who is staying with another family in the neighborhood, both to Strong Hospital for their first day there.

Rochester is cold and gray and very icy this morning, and they walked to the bus stop together... well, actually, they stumbled there... Katia wore heels and Rosa had the thickest leather coat I've ever seen. They called me to come bring the car because it was too much adventure for their first lesson in Mass Transit in Rochester.

SCORE! (Mikey Wanted More Music)

Seth Augustus learned Tuvan Throat singing at the feet of the legendary Paul Peña. Then he traveled to Tuva to build upon and deepen his skills. Finally, he returned here and grafted that style onto American blues to come up with a highly original sound, one that's earthy, moody and ethereal. His self-published CD is called To The Pouring Rain. You can hear some tracks streamed from his website here.

Normally I Detest The 'Year-End-Look-Back'

However, when Uncle Jay Explains...




Thanks to Karen Managan who shared this one with me.