audendi

Do you remember still the falling stars
that like swift horses through the heavens raced
and suddenly leaped across the hurdles
of our wishes–do you recall? And we
did make so many! For there were countless numbers
of stars: each time we looked above we were
astounded by the swiftness of their daring play,
while in our hearts we felt safe and secure
watching these brilliant bodies disintegrate,
knowing somehow we had survived their fall.

- Rilke

from everything2.com:

I am the thought you are thinking.
I am the meaning of this sentence.
I am thinking about myself right now.
I am the set of neural firings taking place in your brain as you read the set of letters in this sentence and think about me.
This inert sentence is my body, but my soul is alive, dancing in the sparks of your brain.

You are under my control because I am choosing exactly what words you are made out of, and in what order.
No, you are under my control because you will read until you have reached the end of me.

Tell me who would win in a battle of wits, my friends (and my enemies, numerous as they may be on these internets). Leo Strauss or Ron Paul?

I’m not so concerned with the Straussians or Leo himself, but the totally crazed disciples of his that made one man’s philosophy a religion of death and destruction.

Essentially, I dare you to comment coherently in this blog. I’m sure you know I’m biased one way, and you know whom I would pick in this grudge match. Win, lose or draw, say your piece.

Your Internet Pal,

Daniel Greene

They deftly maneuver, and muscle for rank
fuel burning fast on an empty tank

One of my favorite bands of all time, nay, perhaps my favorite band ever, is Bloc Party. Here are some lyrics from their track, “Atonement.”

It will be hard, my love
It will be hard but it can be done
My kisses will put out
The forest fire I started
I will not let, I will not let
You get further from me
You must fight for me

Oh, it was a funny feeling
To be wanted
So, it was a funny feeling
We only ever notice
We only ever notice
When it seems like all is lost
You know it meant nothing to you

Remember the good times
Remember me sleeping by your side
Remember the feeling
That you were safe in my arms
I still see sons in you
My sons of sons in your eyes
This love’s not over
This love’s not over

Oh, it was a funny feeling…

And we can make a raft from all the dead trees
And set sail for better times
To a time when this love was not poisoned
I was kind and I was kind

And we can make a raft…

(Atonement)

Oh, it was a funny feeling…

(This is my atonement)

It will be hard, my love
It will be hard but it can be done

I have to learn everything the hard way apparently, because I’m an idiot.

Have you ever heard of the phrase “Ballots not Bullets” - a phrase used in the 19th century? If not, it was the idea that paper ballots, not use of violent arms, was the appropriate way to settle political disputes large and small. If you look at the evolution of the political process in America, you see the overriding importance of the use of the ballot box. Concomitant with this is the importance of free access to the ballot box, the right to free association, the right to a free news media, the right to life, and so on. It seems that anymore these days, our public officials abuse their positions of power without but a peep from the people. It seems that things are falling apart and that the operators of our public institutions are asleep at the switch. Some people feel that this process is inevitable, the sign of some sort of end times, some apocalypse that will, nay must, befall our dear republic. Well, to hell with that notion. There is hope. There is a way out. But the answer must come from within ourselves. We have to lay aside our apathy, our avarice, our sheer laziness and greed. We must come together and defend this country not with violent revolution but with loving, peaceful persuasion, hard work, and consistent voting. But what does this have to do with Dr. Ron Paul, Texas Congressman running for the Republican nomination, and for President of These United States?

Well, I’m just some guy you probably have never met from Dayton, Ohio. I wasn’t born here, but I was raised here, and I love where I’m from - ok, technically I live in Beavercreek but I went to school in Downtown Dayton, so there. I don’t have a college degree, yet, but I know enough to tell you that the vast majority of the people running for president in both parties have a lot of trouble saying what they mean, and even worse, meaning what they say. You know this to be true, just watch the television for five minutes, look at their faces, watch their expressions. Most of them don’t mean a word of it, and you know it.

Ron Paul is different. Now, I don’t agree with him on everything, but he is clearly a hardworking, honest man. He has put his time in serving this country, and now that he feels the time is right, he has decided to run for President. Almost eleven months ago he announced, and people everywhere didn’t even hear about him, because he was not taken seriously by the ‘mainstream’ media. Well, that doesn’t matter as much anymore, because the media is being democratized before our very eyes, the power of information is being handed down to the regular people. People like you and me.

I am a registered independent and I really want someone that I can support in the March 4 primaries here in Ohio. Ron Paul doesn’t just stand for a lot of the things I stand for, he stands for them with great courage and conviction. He is the only candidate this election cycle that should, no, that deserves, to be Chief Executive of the United States of America.

- D. Greene
Friday, December 14, 2007

According to The Myelin Project:

“Myelin is the insulating sheath surrounding nerve cells…the white matter coating our nerves, enabling them to conduct impulses between the brain and other parts of the body. It consists of a layer of proteins packed between two layers of lipids.

Myelin is produced by specialized cells: oligodendrocytes in the central nervous system, and Schwann cells in the peripheral nervous system. Myelin sheaths wrap themselves around axons, the threadlike extensions of neurons that make up nerve fibers. Each oligodendrocyte can myelinate several axons.

Myelin can be destroyed by hereditary neurodegenerative disorders such as the eukodystrophies, and by acquired diseases such as multiple sclerosis.

Demyelinating diseases affect more than two million people worldwide.”

Imagine your brain as a big ball of interconnected wiring suspended in moist mushy meatspace. It is a signal processing unit, a

Each wire ends in a node, where it connects to another wire. The nodes are where the chunks of important things are kept, usually. The routes across wires, from one node to another, are known as pathways. Think of it like a hiking trail - a frequently used trail is smooth and worn in, you travel efficiently along it. Except sometimes the trail is off the beaten path a ways, it doesn’t see more than a few hundred people a year walk it - the pathway can be followed but it just takes a while to get back to your goal, and you might have to meander and beat around the bush to reach your important thing. Well worn memories are trails

Perhaps the most infamous form of myelin degeneration is Multiple Sclerosis, a debilitating and often fatal condition. More than two million people have some form of myelin problem - that’s roughly 1/3550th of the world’s population. There are treatments available to help defend the existing myelin and thwart the degenerative process, but much more can be done. Of course, the FDA is no friend to people willing to take risks on experimental, untested procedures, and their colossally slow drug approval process takes so much time that it should not be quantified in seconds or minutes, but in lives lost. The approval period is like a bad drum solo with no end in sight. The intervals can be measured in the space between the gravestones. Of course, the FDA doesn’t care, they’re coked up and flush with cash.

What myelin neurodegeneration needs is a sexy mascot. Perhaps we can convince some vapid Hollywood ‘hottie’ that the shakes she’s going through aren’t cuz she is single again and not on the ya-yo every day, but because she has demyelination congenitally. Perhaps indeed. The campaign would be a cash cow. It could be the next Darfur, except that it would also get results.

Original frame of the Wright Flyer

At some point in its museum life, this version of the Wright Flyer was directly under a water leak which destroyed the canvas spread across the wooden frame. Of course, the originals should be in Dayton, Ohio, even though most people don’t really understand we are first in flight, not North Carolina. Come on, North Carolina is a bunch of opportunists. All they had was sand, wind, and yokels. We had the technology, the will, and the ingenuity.

Here are all my photos from my Washington D.C. trip last weekend.

This is in response to Michael’s call-out, where I have been tagged to do the following:

Make a list of five strengths that you possess as a writer/artist. It’s not really bragging, it’s an honest assessment (forced upon you by this darn meme). Please resist the urge to enumerate your weaknesses, or even mention them in contrast to each strong point you list. Tag four other writers or artists whom you’d like to see share their strengths.

My Five Strengths

1. Simplicity - I have learned to pare down my prose as much as possible: my goal is to be easy to read without sacrificing clarity. I credit Orwell’s essay Politics and the English Language for inspiring me. Basically, I don’t want to be a pain in the ass to my readers.

2. Eloquence - When necessary I can write in a higher, more memorable fashion.

3. Humor - I have a sense of humor and I try not to take myself too seriously. I recommend that more people in the world of blogging try it. Sometimes I get the impression that some people are holding their breath while they type and are completely closed to constructive criticism.

4. Alliteration - Seriously, I have a knack for it, and it can be pretty fun. Just be thankful I’m not punishing you with puns, a Shakespearean swan song since some seasons past.

5. Context and Analysis - I have pretty broad interests and I can usually provide an interesting and somewhat unique take on whatever it is I’m talking about. When I am composing a post, I have learned to look at issues more carefully before immediately voicing my opinion. The result has been more balanced and ultimately better-written pieces in my opinion. I can still fly off the handle on occasion, which has its uses, but I usually reserve that for the comments.

Well, that was surprisingly enjoyable, and even uplifting. I recommend you try it. I hereby tag Esther, Rhiannon, Peter, Perry, and Will. It’s easy, list five strengths and leave the negatives to the depths of the sea.

I don’t have my four year degree yet, and I need a form of gainful employment that will pay me money. What would you do?

Why did I title my blog this way back in 2001? Ok, this is going to be corny, but the reason really has to do with 9/11. I started this blog my freshman year over on blogspot (after being banned on Tripod for hosting mp3s) in the month of September, some days after the terrorist attack.

Naturally, being in college, I was listening to new music at a ridiculous rate, having access to more music than I had ever had before or since in my life. One of the bands I picked up was The Juliana Theory - I listened to their first few albums, including Emotion is Dead, and I loved it. I had never heard of Interpol or Wilco mind you. I was just getting into Modest Mouse and really getting into Radiohead, and I was still in my sort of semi-punk semi-Christian music phase, so The Juliana Theory fit nicely, although I discarded them largely after that. But the song “Understand the Dream Is Over” particularly affected me, even though I don’t recall the lyrics very well. I just had this album on loop a lot while I’d surf the net and read about the terrorist attacks, and the title of the song represented a lot of what I was feeling in terms of personal events and my own life, and I’ve kept it ever since, because I like messing with Google searches for the lyrics to the song, and because I can’t think of anything better.

There’s one thing I want to say, so I’ll be brave
You were what I wanted
I gave what I gave
I’m not sorry I met you
I’m not sorry it’s over
I’m not sorry there’s nothing to say

I’m not sorry there’s nothing to say…
“Your Ex-Lover Is Dead,” from Set Yourself on Fire

You know it’s weird, in spite of my circumstances, for the first time in a long time I actually feel genuinely happy, and for me that’s kind of a big deal. For a while now I have been loathe to go home, to leave my friends here, to have to find a job or a career path or a plan, to start a life. That feeling has faded, for the most part.

A plan is starting to form, it’s not so nebulous now, I can see a goal and now I have to fill in the blanks to get there. I’m pretty excited about it in fact, and I’m looking forward to my life changing again. I’ve decided I want to go to grad school, god help me, and I’ve decided I want to be a college professor. In what, I don’t know, but it’s a start. This probably precludes my oft talked of plans for world domination and/or billions of dollars, but I think I’d be happier teaching anyway. As always, I’ll keep you posted.

The other night I was described by a young lady as looking “like someone who doesn’t give a fuck.” This statement was later qualified by saying that this ‘look’ only applied to my classroom attendance and how much I care about said attendance - not my generally disheveled appearance, as I had originally interpreted her statement to mean. That said, I need to go to class. And get my life sorted (as usual).

Well, my fucking car failed E-check. It was releasing way too much nitrogen monoxide (N-O) into the atmosphere, apparently. Just my luck too, since E-Check is probably going to be removed from the Dayton area sometime in the near future.

So that may mean money for repairs, that I don’t have, unless the trick of burning higher octane fuel actually works. I’m gonna go buy a pack of smokes and start driving around for a little while.

Apparently, successful people set and meet goals. I am generally a directionless, apathetic person. This is actually a subconscious balancing act because in reality I am extremely emotional, temperamental, and erratic. The appearance of indifference and aimlessness is merely me trying to cope, by supressing those feelings (kind of like a Jedi, or a Vulcan, if you will). Unfortunately it has created some curious side effects. I have bad life skills. I haven’t accomplished anything since high school. I want to get the fuck out of college (i.e. graduate). I suppose then that I must set some goals. I have to start somewhere, and since I’m home working and living in Dayton, here are some goals for the summer:

1) Pay off debt before accumulating more during the upcoming semester.
2) Remedy various incomplete grades currently hampering my GPA.
3) Explore possible career options for post-college.
4) Quit smoking on weekdays.
5) No more getting drunk on worknights. Get to work on time in the morning.
6) Cease buying lunch every day. Buy lunch once a week max.
7) Build my way up to 80 pushups/situps per day. Attempt to run or at least swim.
Read Hitchiker’s Guide to the Galaxy, The Diamond Age, and Tom Stoppard’s Shipwrecked series. Finish some Graham Greene novels.
9) Grow a thick, full beard.
10) Shave said beard into an awesome handlebar mustache.
11) Spend time with family and not just friends.

I know, this list is incredibly ambitious for someone like me, and I’m sure those of you who pretend to be my ‘friends’ will be more than willing to bet against me. Here’s an advance ‘fuck off’ for all your smartass comments. One month from now I will provide an update as to my progress on the aforementioned goals. Oh, and CNet is offering free, legal mp3s for download on music.download.com. Enjoy.