Argh. It’s the little things that trip you up when you’re trying to focus on some huge project like a thesis. For example, I’ve realized that if I don’t nibble something every four hours or so, my blood sugar crashes. This would be no biggie, except my behavior also changes in such as way as…
I recently participated in a photo shoot with some friends and classmates. The photographer (also a classmate) was experimenting with women’s perceptions of themselves, to write a paper for the Metaformic Theory class (for more on that fascinating subject, please read more at Metaformia.org). She asked us to bring to the shoot our choice of…
There were a number of very nice “grace notes” in the story which I rather liked. The panel of Butterfly whispering her safeword, “Jamaica,” to the violent (and bad) dominant — after she’d killed him in self defense — was creepily elegant. I was unsurprised to see archaic crosses on his shirt, in fact; it…
Thinking about it, there are a number of religious themes running through Butterfly’s story, as well as some extremely common (and unfortunate) tropes. The narrator is, of course, raped by her father as a child, then years later has a sexual bondage game go badly wrong, with the strong implication that this is why she…
I’ve been told I tend to ramble quite a bit in my book reviews, and that they’re consequently more interesting… so I thought I’d try doing one as pure train of thought. The “book” in question is the comic book titled “Punisher MAX: Butterfly.” Because this work is train of thought, there will be spoilers…
The closing symphony was by Prokofiev. The music was expertly performed, and it was clear by the end of the piece that the musicians were playing their hearts out and, at its conclusion, exuberant at having successfully performed a passionate and technically difficult performance. Consequently I find myself feeling faintly guilty at not really caring…
Just got back from the Richly Russian program performed by the Symphony Silicon Valley — that’s the reason this blog entry is on the 21st instead of the 20th, as is usually scheduled. I wanted to include a review of the performance I heard today… yeah, that’s my story and I’m sticking to it. Ahem….
Reflections To sum up: if you (generalized you) have not thought through why you believe something, it may well be difficult (although not impossible) for you to explain your reasoning — especially if the belief is not based on logic. Also, if you hold conclusions based only on emotion, you will most likely find it…
In effect, as a friend pointed out, they expected me to manage the conversation for them, so they didn’t have to take responsibility for their fear of confrontation — which was how they saw a good argument. Curiously, they often then stomped angrily off to yell at someone else about how they were right and…
or: “Collie, you’re just so intimidating!” (Originally posted January 2005) To Bob, Dave, & Lou, who aren’t intimidated… or so they say. ;) As those who know me are aware, I love a good argument. By “argument,” of course, I don’t mean screaming and verbal fisticuffs. I mean a thoughtful, mentally challenging discussion where two…