HardyHarHar’s Neighborhood

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This is my lame attempt to make up for some down time due to illness and Oregon heatwave issues, and so I am struggling to catch up in real life, here and on livejournal... bear with me.

I'll be needing some of this music for my planned gypsy-spirit trek next June. No, it's not gypsy music, it's world music, my vehicles and art workspace all run on world music....

This is a fun site filled to the brim with fun stuff to cruise while sipping your morning coffee... or late night coffee in my case... the art section alone will take you days of skimming. Fun stuff, truly.

The truly cool photography of a young photographer named Eric M. Gustafson, worth a look see, if he keeps turning out photographs like these he is gonna make his own niche in the world.

Monkeysee is a bonanza of how2 videos on everything from cooking, (great international cooking videos btw)... to changing a light bulb to repairing a broken window... and of course there's important stuff like step by step instructions where you can learn how to build your own computer

This is the most amazing tribute by a son for his father, a photo journal of a young man's interactions with his 98 year old father. It is truly a touching tribute as he documents his father's end of life journey with dementia and remembers what he use to be like. Sorta tricky to navigate, scroll down till you see the bottom of the picture and click on it to get to the next page... many of the pics have notations along the left side....

This one's for Ramie Vegan recipes to torment Brian with....lol. The rest of you can use it if vegans come for dinner and you have no idea what to cook for them. Some of them actually look rather yummy!

A fun collection of unusual statues from around the world... shame on them for omitting Portlandia.

And last but not least, THIS, just because everyone should have this bookmarked for future reference.

My 26 Yo daughter just came running into my room to tell me Russia is bombing Georgia, and we are under attack.

ROFLMAO

She needs to get out more.... I had to explain it was a country.... and even then she didn't believe me
Then she said they are talking of bombing the US capital... so I told her "well, that's one way to clean house"....
When she isn't making me insane I think she is here for my amusement

Robert Genn sent out a newsletter today and within it he mentions Professor Jim Horne of the Loughborough Sleep Research Center in England and his opinions on larks and owls, ( aka early birds and night owls).... you can read it here: http://clicks.robertgenn.com/larks-owls.php
Within it he says "It seems that larks have an advantage in concentration and inventiveness"

I tend to disagree with this generalized statement, because the outcome really depends on when you test the owls. Testing the creativity of an owl at 8am is sorta like testing the creativity of a lark at 3am... they probably are not at their top performance, ya know?

If you are at all interested in how the brain functions, you really need to read John Medina's book:
Brain Rules: 12 Principles for Surviving and Thriving at Work, Home, and School

There is a podcast interview with him here to give you an idea of his ideas on things.
Pay attention to the 41:00 mark where the discussion covers owls and larks, and sleep cycles.
The Brain Science Podcast is a great site. The host, Dr. Ginger Campbell, covers tons of topics about the brain, in layman language.

Anyway the article got me to thinking about how I function. I think I have always been a owl, I function better than most on 4-5 hours sleep obtained between 2 and 9pm, my 'pay the bills' job is in health care, where night shift workers who function well on an owl sleep schedule are cherished. Artistically I always get my best ideas and do my best work creatively between 2am and 6am, (the ideas wake me if I am sleeping) my second best function time is between 11am and 1pm. When I try to flip schedules on my days off by trying to sleep at night, I am largely dysfunctional.

I am worthless mentally if I try to sleep at night and then try to get up and function at 8 or 9am. We are wired how we are wired... if an owl functions poorly while trying to function contrary to their natural sleep cycle, it is because they are at a disadvantage....  no different really than trying to get a lark to be fully functional at 3am, that wouldn't work well either.

One of the best advantages to working at night either for employment or artistically is the reduced number of distractions. Thought processes are not interrupted by life, because life is sleeping. The phone doesn't ring, no one asks where their socks are, or if I can drive them somewhere, I don't have to stop what I am doing to cook meals, or to do laundry, I have no appointments to get to... and the quiet solitude of the night is glorious. I get more done in less time, and no one is awake making demands on me that imply I need to justify my time for artistic endeavors. It is a slice of life uninterrupted. Larks never get that. I feel sorry for them.

The colors, sounds, and impressions of the night are different than those of the daytime, everyone who has an ounce of artistic talent in them  should explore them artistically sometime.... the world is a different place at night... and the dawning of a new day, as it seeps into the world starting around 430am... is amazing to watch, and even more amazing to feel, because it is a time of day where everything comes together and allows you to feel the day....and how could that fail to produce great art?

The one disadvantage to working nights? People, who do not understand that working nights and
sleeping days is normal for me....and when they call to chat at 5pm, they are disrupting my natural sleep schedule. It always makes me want to call them at 3am to chat....

For when you are dealing with the recently unemployed ( my youngest daughter, who lives with me, lost her job last Wed):
1) When they ask you to read what they have written and ask you to give them your opinion - they really don't want your opinion, & if you allow them to trick you into giving them one you do so at your own risk.

2) Get use to hearing the screeching words- ''It's easy for you to say "be calm", YOU have a job!'' You are going to hear it often...do not try to calm them down, they will hate you for it.

3) ANYTHING that goes wrong for the unemployed person is automatically going to be your fault, even if you had nothing to do with it....even if you were across town at the time - You will be needing body armor and freaking nerves of steel.

If there is a hell on earth, I know the address, because it's at my house. In fact, I am seriously considering running away from home. I cannot take this for long...

What is the quickest false assumption people make about you?
Submitted by JJ.

That I can be wronged or walked all over. I may look cool, calm and peaceful... but I bite. In fact I go for the jugular vein, sink my teeth and and much like a pit bull, I do not let go.

I can wear my sunfaces! And so can all of you....

Sunface Shoes2

I also designed a second style shown to the left.

Neither of them is available to buy yet, but they will be available in my Zazzle gallery by tomorrow evening.... you can get to my Zazzle Gallery here.. I could just squeal!!!

On the outer side it holds the quote... "Not all those who wander are lost".

I could wear these out and when someone asks what kind of art I do I can point at my feet! How cool is that?!? (welp, I guess I had better shave my legs) heh

Do not panic, I have not gone mad, I'm not voting for McCain, it's satire....

Hers is the deco girl at the 47 sec mark... the second fabric after the stop screen one showing below. I can hardly wait to see it up close and personal, it looks great on the video, I may have to order some fabric of my own sooner as opposed to later if the quality is good in person...

I am apparently in a foul mood today, the world is pissing me off, perhaps because I have not slept.... I stopped at Miller paint in route home to grab a copy of the "approved paint colors" for this trailer park ( management prefers to call it a mobile home "estate") :o

As I pulled into the parking lot, a woman had her new minivan parked across 3 of their 5 parking places chatting on her cell phone, and since the first space was taken, I had to park in the last one, so I parked inches away from her front end. I got out and she yelled at me that she was not going to be able to get out with me parked there... so I assured her I was aware of that and I would be out in a few minutes to teach her obviously stupid ass how to park. I do not know how she got out before I returned, but she did. Not sure I could have gotten out of there, I thought I had her fenced in pretty well. Oddly enough I didn't hear screeching tires. I bet it is a long time before she parks like that again....

The new limited colors approved by the park are without a doubt hideous.
Approved body colors= white-ish green, white, white-ish yellow, putrid tan, off white, medium tan, baby poo green, white-ish orange. Approved trim colors navy blue, hunter green, rust, burgundy, medium blue, bright green, dark orange, several shades of tan, white, off white. They are NOT pretty colors, they are slum project colors.

I pay rent and utilities totaling $712 a month to live here plus electric.... I also pay the general maint. costs on my home, I trim trees they will not let me remove, trees I hate and that I did not plant, and I am trying to renovate their rocky soil on my dime so something will grow besides weeds. IMHO I should be able to choose my paint colors within reason. I AM an artist and I DO have good taste ( obviously the person who picked these colors does not). If they want my home painted using these obscene, nauseating colors they need to buy the paint and furnish the labor free of charge.... if forced to comply I am painting it the three most conflicting colors I can find in the bunch to show them just how bad their own choices under this new overly oppressive dictatorship can be.

I feel the need to run something over....

There is a natural disaster headed your way. You get 4 standard sized canvas grocery totes to fill with valuables and provisions to bring with you to a safe place. What would you put into your 4 bags and why?
Submitted by dejablu503.

Yay my question, but to be fair I am posting my own 4 bags list, actually the first 2 of my bags are packed, I rotate the food one so the food is always fresh in it. I am a girl scout at heart, ask anyone, my daughter Karina thinks I am weird... maybe I am, but I am always prepared, it's why I continue to land on my feet. If you ever get stranded on a desert island you want to be with me.

Bag 1: 4 dried soup mixes, 4 foil packets of tuna, crackers, a jar of cheese whiz, beef jerky, a bag of nuts, sunflower seeds, corned beef, chicken, smoked oysters and beef stew- 1 can each. 2 packages of instant mashed potatoes, instant oatmeal, sea salt, pepper, a ranch salad spritzer, peanut butter, a baggy filled with powdered eggs, a small box of powdered milk, a bag of dehydrated watermelon and apples, a bag of dried cranberries and cherries, a bag of dried veggies, a bag of hard candies, peppermints and red licorice, 2 boxes worth of asst. trail mix bars, instant coffee, tea bags, tang, a bag of rice, cookies, a baggy filled with single serve condiments from Taco bell, and Burger King, 4 spoons, severel pieces of aluminum foil, a can opener, a bottle opener, 4 straws, a small pan, fire starters, matches and a stack of heat resistant cups.

Bag2: A completely stocked 1st aid kit, ace bandage, toothpaste and brush, Listerine, small bottle of white vinegar and one of canola oil, a thermometer, aspirin, antacid, decongestant, blood pressure cuff, two 12 inch sticks, a hand crank flashlight, candles, my solar charger, a towel, a washrag, 4 rags, roll your own tobacco, a flask of Vodka, deodorant, a razor, scissors, a good knife, a magnifying glass, a few nails in a plastic bottle, a small sewing kit, my art journal and colored pencils, a couple soda can cookers, a fireplace lighter, a bottle of heat for the cooker, a wire coat hanger, a rope, a small hammer, 4 quart sized ziplock bags.

Bag 3: A change of clothes, 2 changes of undies, 3 pairs of heavy socks, a hat, a brush, my wallet, my cell phone and charger, my camera, my keys, 3 pictures of each of my kids, one as a baby, one in grade school, one in HS, my HS graduation pic, the pimp doggie pic of Sheba, one pic of my mom and dad, my divorce papers, car title, insurance papers, address book and birth certificate, my laptop and USB drive, a can of mace, sunscreen, shampoo, bar of soap, 2 black garbage bags, my spare glasses.

Bag 4: My 3 favorite pieces of art rolled up, my sketch pad, 3 favorite paint brushes, 8 tubes of paint, my 2 favorite CDs my 6 favorite books, plus some fabric, beads and paint to play with if there is room. I could wear my afghan as a shawl over my coat. I'd put extra food out for the cats and I'd be good to go.... yes as much as I love them I would leave them unless I was told there were accommodations made for them on the other end, the last thing needed in a crisis is for everyone to land in the same confined area with all their pets in tow... it's all about being practical in regards to the big picture, and has nothing to do with a lack of loyalty. Hard times call for hard choices.