Some days, you just need to chill. If today is that day for you, consider this three-hour timelapse and related article.
‘Why are 500,000 people watching paint dry?’ The man behind YouTube’s DIY sensation
* * *
Archive for the ‘Other’ Category
If You Need Chill
Posted in Other, tagged #365Ways, #365Ways2023, Thoughts on October 1, 2023| Leave a Comment »
Another One Bites the Dust
Posted in Other, tagged #365Ways, #365Ways2023, #insertblankie, home on September 29, 2023| Leave a Comment »
Before today, I couldn’t say that I had ever had a furnace condemned.
No longer.
In our ongoing saga of appliance fails, our seventeen-year old furnace has developed an unfixable crack. And now we wait until we can get a replacement.
I swear we’re not doing this on purpose.
What I do appreciate is that we discovered this problem before the snow starts. Because now our fireplace is on the fritz too.
* * *
Irresponsible Speculations in Art History, or, Lady Giselle’s Night Watch
Posted in Other, tagged #365Ways, #365Ways2023, art, art history, inspiration, Rembrandt, Rijksmuseum, Rijksstudio, Thoughts, wild musings on September 22, 2023| Leave a Comment »
Let me preface this musing with the statement that I know very little about art, art history, Rembrandt, Dutch social history of the 17th century, or most related issues.
I do, however, know that dead chickens and fashion don’t usually mix.
Two of my parental units visited the Rijksmuseum this summer and saw The Night Watch, which inspired a recent discussion about the painting’s history, size and purpose. I pulled up the digital version on the museum’s website so that we could examine the details. The page was still up on my phone when I opened my browser today, and I decided to zoom in on the strangest element in the picture: a well-dressed woman in the midst of a group of heavily armed and armored men, her figure, clothing and purse, all glowing as if under a spotlight.
I take that back. She wasn’t the strangest thing about this picture. The strangest thing was that the aforementioned well-dressed woman was wearing… a chicken?
One thing I love about the move to digitize many museum holdings is that you can see details not usually visible, unless you are viewing the art in person. Using the Rijksmuseum’s Rijksstudio, I was able to zoom in on the subject in question and inspect her unusual accessory. Here it is:
That inspired this exchange with my father:
Again, I know very little about art history and am probably wrong about every single bit of this. I am having fun speculating on the importance of that well-dressed woman, her prominently featured silk purse, and of course, her chicken.
* * *
That Day, and After
Posted in Other, tagged #365Ways, #365Ways2023, 9/11, heroes, inspiration, memories, Thoughts on September 11, 2023| Leave a Comment »
On this day in 2001 I was home in Pennsylvania, getting ready to fly back to Boston. At least that was the plan, until I got a call telling me that all flights had been grounded.
For more on what was behind the cancellation of my flight, and all the others, check out this article from Now I Know:
In all, Ben Sliney’s initiative makes for an incredible story. When Universal Pictures decided to turn the heroism of the passengers of United Flight 93 into a movie, they did not overlook Ben Sliney’s role — they even asked him to play himself in the movie…
Here’s to all the heroes from that day, and after.
* * *
Just Say Yes
Posted in Other, tagged #365Ways, #365Ways2023, inspiration, nature, Thoughts on September 10, 2023| Leave a Comment »
The weather today was perfect for a walk. We headed out to the southwest of Ottawa, found a new cafe, then spent quality time on a new-to-us path along a converted railroad bed.
Years ago, Mr Man and I found ourselves in the northern Ontario wilderness. After a long day of fishing, we realized that we are always happier when we say yes to nature. So today, that’s what we did.
If you’re looking for new trails too, you might find this site useful:
Browse to see options for walking, hiking, running, biking and more, complete with maps and elevation. Here’s the list for Ottawa, and an example that includes the lovely Fletcher Gardens near Dows Lake:
Wikiloc | Hartwells, Fletcher Garden and Morris St Trail
Did we exert ourselves enough to balance out the cheesecake we’ll be having for dessert?
Maybe?
I mean, yes.
* * *
Slowly, and Then Fast
Posted in Other, tagged #365Ways, #365Ways2023, beauty, Canada, fall, fall foliage, home, inspiration, nature, poutine, Thoughts on September 7, 2023| Leave a Comment »
Canada is a global leader in many arenas: friendliness, humor, dishes featuring cheese, gravy and potatoes.
Come fall, it also leads the way in terms of natural beauty.
The leaves on the maple across the street are beginning to turn. Thanks in part to my father falling in love with the Appalachian mountains on a job interview, I’ve watched this dance most of my life. First the green fades into yellows and orange and reds, slowly and then fast, until every vista is filtered through a rainbow-colored lens.
The change depends on a number of factors such as precipitation and temperature, but check out this map for a prediction:
2023 Fall Foliage Map & Nationwide Peak Leaf Forecast
More on the map and how it was made:
See When Brilliant Fall Foliage Will Peak With This Interactive Map
According to the map, fall foliage season began on September 4 and will end on November 20.
For comparison, here’s the Farmers’ Almanac weighing in on dates by state: Fall Leaves: America’s Top Destinations.
When will peak fall happen for you? Soon, the trees whisper. Soon.
* * *
World’s Oldest Cat Door
Posted in Other, tagged #365Ways, #365Ways2023, history, Thoughts on September 2, 2023| Leave a Comment »
From the folder entitled Random Things You Might Like To Know:
Exeter Cathedral’s Working Cat Uses the World’s Oldest Cat Flap
In medieval days, cathedrals would have been overrun with mice and rats without a feline prowling the premises. To keep vermin in check, the magnificent Exeter Cathedral—known formally as the Cathedral Church of Saint Peter in Exeter—has employed cats for centuries.
* * *
How to Choose Well
Posted in Other, Writing, tagged #365Ways, #365Ways2023, inspiration, life, purpose, Thoughts on August 29, 2023| Leave a Comment »
“To live is to choose. But to choose well, you must know who you are and what you stand for, where you want to go and why you want to get there.”
— Kofi Annan
* * *
That Day
Posted in Other, tagged #365Ways, #365Ways2023, endings and beginnings, fall, summer, Thoughts on August 27, 2023| Leave a Comment »
To say it was a beautiful day would not begin to explain it. It was that day when the end of summer intersects perfectly with the start of fall.
— Ann Patchett
* * *
An Interesting Find
Posted in Other, tagged #365Ways, #365Ways2023, home, interesting creatures on August 24, 2023| Leave a Comment »
You know how I’m always going on about how nice it is to not mow because duh, mowing is a drag, but also because it creates space for plants and insects we don’t usually see in your average suburban lawn? Well, the good news is that my backyard is busy. Not only do I have lemon verbena and apple mint and milkweed popping up from previous years’ seeds, along with aster and grapes and lamb’s quarters and sorrel and the like, yay, but I just met something new.
Meet the pigeon horntail, which is not a pigeon and not a dragon but is instead a giant insect native to these parts. I’ve never seen one before and I certainly didn’t expect to meet one while out refilling the bird bath.
Halfway into the yard a loud buzzing caught my attention. It sounded like a phone on vibrate, but no. It was instead a very large (and somewhat scary looking) wasp-like creature, about two inches long with a ginormous stinger-like protuberance (not a stinger, but I didn’t know it at the time). It appeared to be freshly born as the buzzing was from its sole moving wing. The second wing was still stuck to its body. I happened to have clear pitcher with me and popped it over top of the thing to get a photo, then looked it up.
Pigeon Horntail (Tremex columba) · iNaturalist Canada
Let’s see:
— Tremex columba, species of wasp also known as the horntail wasp or wood wasp
— native to eastern and western North America (good, so I don’t have to kill it like a lantern fly or murder hornet)
— does not sting or bite (phew, seriously, that tail thingie is no joke)
All good. They like decaying wood so I’m guessing its parental figure was attracted by the stack of wood we acquired after trimming the trees.
I’m not a bug person but it was an interesting new find. I watched until it freed its second wing. And off it flew.
* * *
-
Recent Posts
She Said, He Said
-
-
Favorite Posts
Archives
Categories
It’s All So Random
What I’m Reading
You must be logged in to post a comment.