viatorsmith (lifestream)

rocketboom: Improv Everywhere stages reenactment of Princess...

Wed, 14 Jul 2010 13:59:27 -0500

Improv Everywhere stages reenactment of Princess Leia/Darth Vader scene on the subway - http://mag.ma/andrew/680754 #starwars
I especially like that the scene starts at stop 23

jenniferanne: towerofsleep: Protest Lap Dance Best protest...

Mon, 28 Jun 2010 15:09:13 -0500

jenniferanne:

towerofsleep:

Protest Lap Dance

Best protest chant I’ve ever heard.

I have to agree

the bug fix

Thu, 24 Jun 2010 10:31:39 -0500

jenniferanne:

dictionaryofobscuresorrows:
the bug fix n. the satisfaction of updating software, which gains effortless new features inside the cocoon of the progress bar, whereas your personality—a beta version with compatibility issues, unstable memory and a quirky interface—is open source, trusting peers to collaboratively debug your emotional source code until it’s stable enough for official release into adulthood.

This tumblr is lols guys. Follow it.

your personality is open source

"I saw this on the blog of someone in the process of adopting internationally: Mom’s Without..."

Thu, 24 Jun 2010 10:07:52 -0500

“

I saw this on the blog of someone in the process of adopting internationally:
Mom’s Without Boarders.

You know, I don’t really want to live in a fascist grammarian dictatorship where people have to grasp how the English language is used and punctuated before they are allowed to become parents. Except I kind of do. Maybe. Sometimes.

”

- mimi smartypants

I would totally live in said fascist grammarian dictatorship.

(via bluishorange)

I might live there, too. Maybe. But what if it really was “Mom’s Without Borders”? My mom has few boundaries, so maybe this was just a statement of fact. Mom is without borders.

(via me3dia)

Or maybe mom just evicted the people who were renting rooms in her house. And she is now without boarders. Totally plausible. Snobs.

(via successisnotanoption)

And in your scenario it’s a complete sentence to boot. Let’s go with it!
(via bluishorange) She’s just a resentful empty nester. That’s why she is adopting.

bluishorange: yournewfavorite: 06/20/10 11:03 AM Some use a...

Thu, 24 Jun 2010 09:42:07 -0500

bluishorange:

yournewfavorite:

06/20/10 11:03 AM

Some use a fence to corral their dogs, others use a free weight.

See, and everyone’s all “blah blah Chihuahuas are such yappy ankle-biters!” But if tying your dog to a free weight in your yard is emblematic of how you treat it, then OF FUCKING COURSE you’re going to get a yappy ankle-biter.

Boy, I’m really pushing the Chi agenda these days, aren’t I?

I like that there is a Chi agenda to push and that you are pushing it

No Oil is a Problem too, but don't take my word for it

Fri, 18 Jun 2010 15:51:34 -0500

No Oil is a Problem too, but don't take my word for it:

Some of you may have seen my earlier post on de-demonizing the People of the oil industry. This New York Times article goes into more precise detail about the numbers of people/sizes of communities effected. For example, “the moratorium could last well into 2011, directly jeopardizing 50,000 jobs;” and that’s just deepwater work, expand that to include local oil service companies and the estimate rises to 330,000 people in Louisiana alone.

As a lifelong environmentalist, I have advocated just as much as the next person for cleaner energy. The fact of the matter is that shutting down offshore drilling will not un-spill the oil, nor will it get us over our fossil fuel dependence. We need to get to work cleaning up this mess and focusing on alternative energy sources. In the mean time, let the government (NOT the industry) regulate the heck out of drilling and let the People get back to work, to earning a paycheck to put food on their table.

And to whoever claims that the employees are just as guilty: unless you live petroleum free, so are you, so are we all.

NASA Face in Space

Fri, 18 Jun 2010 14:57:01 -0500

NASA Face in Space

6 Ridiculous Arguments That Actually Happened on Wikipedia

Fri, 18 Jun 2010 11:48:34 -0500

6 Ridiculous Arguments That Actually Happened on Wikipedia:

(via rocketboom)

not surprising at all, but definitely quite humorous.

De-Demonizing the People of the Oil Industry

Mon, 14 Jun 2010 12:39:00 -0500

An Open Letter to Those Who Would Boycott BP

Given the crisis in the Gulf, as the media has called it, I can understand some people’s knee jerk reaction to boycott BP in a show of disapproval of the oil company and solidarity with the Gulf. What they are not considering is the broader ramifications of such actions; namely, the effect of their boycott on local economies already devastated by a loss of fishing grounds. What is perhaps not common knowledge is that, unlike other commercial chains, not all gas stations are owned by the company whose oil they sell*. These Dealer Owned, Dealer Operated (DODO) stations are franchises owned by a local member of the community who is in turn employing other members of the community**. To boycott DODOs is to further ravage communities, particularly in the Gulf States, which are already weary from the weakened economy and whose situation has been exasperated by the toll taken by the destruction of miles of coastline and acres of fishing grounds.

I would also argue that boycotting Corporate Owned, Corporate Operated (COCO) stations, while siphoning monies away from BP, also negatively affects local economies and ultimately serves no purpose than to take a perceived moral high road. A boycott of a chain of gas stations is in no way similar to boycotting a mega-box-store. You are not forgoing the lure of low prices to support the local mom and pop shop or to protest the ways employees are treated; you are foregoing one mom and pop shop for a different teat on the oil supply. It is also in no way comparable to boycotting produce; you are not improving the lives of any workers by boycotting a gas station.

If you really feel a boycott is necessary, what would be more effective would be to get corporations to cancel direct orders from BP. And if we move beyond boycotting gas stations and discuss boycotting BP in general, you must also consider the towns, large and small all over the Gulf Coast, who are economically supported by the oil industry. They are homes to oil company employees from roughnecks to managers, from executives to assistants. But, they are also more than that. Entire intricately interlaced industries have risen up to support our yearning to suckle at the teat of oil.

If one town does not have employees of an oil company, they have employees of the oil industry; and because of all of this, you have to acknowledge what effect your choice to take a moral high ground will have on these People.

They are people. They are not nameless suits in an executive office in some downtown foreign capital. They are Americans from the Gulf Coast. They are mothers, fathers, daughters, sisters, husbands, friends, neighbors. You are not bringing down tyranny by boycotting one oil company, you are affecting lives.

Boycotting one oil company for another says nothing and does nothing. If you want to make a statement, live petroleum free. But until you can do that, please give my family, friends, neighbors and the entire community of the Gulf Coast a break. You are not without the sin of oil, and they are just trying to make a living, just like you. Could management have instilled a better corporate culture? Sure. But one need only look to ExxonMobil for proof that with great tragedy comes great change. Should it have come to this? No. But it has, and we all have to make it right.

*Not to mention the fact that the gasoline being sold is not exclusively refined from oil produced by the brand it is sold under. BP produces oil, but produces much more gasoline, conversely Shell produces lots of oil, but refines less gasoline. When you buy gas at BP it is not necessarily made from BP oil, it could come from any oil producer in the world. Similarly, it is possible that if you purchase from a Shell station, it might be likely you’re getting Exxon or BP gasoline.

**In the last two years BP has transitioned its convenience store channel of trade to a fully franchise owned and operated market. With the exception of a few sites, mostly on the West Coast, all the sites are owned and operated by dealers, jobbers and franchisees who are independent business operators. Unfortunately, any boycott of BP retail sites will impact the small business operators of these BP sites.

if you don't get it, I don't know you

Thu, 03 Jun 2010 16:27:02 -0500

if you don't get it, I don't know you:

bluishorange:

shooshee:

[11:52] : here’s something you’ll appreciate
[11:53] : @bigandawesome signed up for twitter and followed ~1000 people in the transmedia scene with http://bigandawesome.com in their user info… but they DIDN’T REGISTER the domain before doing so

NOTE: Visit bigandawesome.com for the punchline. In the geek world we would call this PWNED.

Illustrations of Women Scientists Improves Girls' Test Scores on Chemistry Test.

Tue, 01 Jun 2010 16:37:33 -0500

Illustrations of Women Scientists Improves Girls' Test Scores on Chemistry Test.:

rocketboom:

Researchers from Rutgers University gave a short chemistry exam to local 9th and 10th graders—29 male and 52 female. The students read three pages of a chemistry text and then took the test on the material. All the texts were the same, but they were illustrated differently. One third of the students saw pictures in which everyone was a man. For another, there were only women in the illustrations. And a third group had a text with pictures of both male and female chemists.

Girls who read the text with all-female pictures scored a great deal better than girls who got other versions. In fact, girls who saw only women chemists in their text scored better than boys. Boys did best with the all-male images, though not by much. And mixed-gender images didn’t alter the usual gender gap.

via: rocketboomtech: Mind Hacks

for our anniversary, my husband got me exactly what I...

Mon, 24 May 2010 15:24:00 -0500

what I thought I asked for

a better representation of the item

for our anniversary, my husband got me exactly what I wanted!
unfortunately, what I wanted and what arrived were two different things. even though it was the exact item I picked out online. this is the second time a lack of scale has gotten the better of me. I may have finally learned my lesson and will no longer pick out jewelry online.

unfortunately I could only find a bad resolution image of the gold version of the watch I wanted, but what is important is that it looks dainty.

what arrived could be used to bludgeon people to death. i.e. not dainty. in fact, the exact opposite. it’s a man’s watch with the words “sweetie pie” on a sparkly sliver and pink background. honestly, I’m not even sure it would appeal to my gays.

teehee rocketboom: The N in ESPN looks like Boba Fett. ...

Mon, 24 May 2010 14:01:33 -0500

teehee

rocketboom:

The N in ESPN looks like Boba Fett.
Cannot be unseen.

via brownpau

CFP Ancient Drama in Performance: Theory and Practice (Due June 18)

Tue, 11 May 2010 13:35:05 -0500

CFP Ancient Drama in Performance: Theory and Practice (Due June 18):

Call for Papers
Ancient Drama in Performance: Theory and Practice will coincide with the 2010 Randolph College Greek Play: Euripides’ Hecuba, an original-practices production. The play and response…

Rice Summer Dance Camp for Children and Teens (JULY)

Tue, 04 May 2010 18:26:34 -0500

Rice Summer Dance Camp for Children and Teens (JULY):

Know a child or teen who loves to dance? Enrollment for the Rice Summer Dance Camp for Kids is now open!
Summer Dance Camp (Ages 9 - 11)
The Rice Summer Dance Camp is a week of dancing and creative…

60 Cycle Hum

Tue, 04 May 2010 18:24:34 -0500

60 Cycle Hum:

60 Cycle Hum
(click above link to open)
Workshopped as a part of Fieldwork Houston and presented as a work in progress at the Spring 2010 Showcase, 60 Cycle Hum is the constant, unavoidable noise…

NEA grants announced

Tue, 27 Apr 2010 00:16:22 -0500

NEA grants announced:

“The latest round of NEA grants for Access to Artistic Excellence, American Masterpieces, Arts on Radio and Television, Learning in the Arts for Children & Youth and Partnerships is out, and Texas…

DUE May 1 2010 Summer Internship for any Rice Undergraduate

Thu, 22 Apr 2010 17:44:53 -0500

DUE May 1 2010 Summer Internship for any Rice Undergraduate:

“An exciting fellowship is being offered in the summer of 2010 for Rice Undergraduates of any discipline. The program, The Engineering and Design for Art and Artifact Conservation Program, provides…

DUE May 1 Houston Fringe Festival

Mon, 19 Apr 2010 12:33:21 -0500

DUE May 1 Houston Fringe Festival:

Houston Fringe Festival Call for Entries
The Houston Fringe Festival is a four weekend event in which both emerging and established performers and companies from any city or country present artistic…

Welcome

Fri, 16 Apr 2010 17:29:57 -0500

Welcome:

Hello,
Welcome to my newly renovated site.