relright:

there’s always money in the banana stand

Oh god, so funny…and so hard to decide??

wow!

fat-birds.tumblr.com

humpday means baby owls!  because what else does it mean when you’re unemployed?  i’ll stick with baby owls, thank you.

(via fat-birds)

Couldn’t resist posting this.

It’s a really cool modern iteration of the Alvin Lucier piece “I am sitting in a room”- except that instead of recording the resonant frequencies in a room via tape recorder, this guy produced a stripped down (recorded, uploaded, downloaded, uploaded, etc.) version of an original video message, thereby displaying the underlying technical aspect of the video recording process.  Very cool!!!  

8 HOUR SHIFT

First post for the new Francharmaster series, featuring one song per day.  New or old, any genre.  Let the posting begin!!

My contribution for today: Ten-Twenty-Ten, by the Generationals.  Poppy and upbeat- just trying to draw the sun out on a chilly, wet Portland afternoon.  I really like the whole album, actually (Actor-Caster).  

preferablysomethingspecific asked: Dear Charlotte,

I'm sure you've already thought about this a lot, but I'd really like to know what you miss most about Moscow? Is it the kvas (I finally get the point, btw! Street kvas for the win!) and the tvorog? The babushki?

Also, if you have the desire, tell me please what you don't miss about Moscow, or living in Moscow.

wow, tumblr has a new interface so i JUST found this question- 

Goodness- for the first two months there were things that i missed every day: oh my gosh the language!  and the city itself, so much (it is FOR SURE not my favorite city, but i privyiknulad big time), the presence of russian people (hard to describe- sounds funny but it’s true), nelson and my other close friends there (wow, that’s a big one), russian apartments, the food, the insane number of sushi restaurants…

i don’t even know what else to say.  when i think about it, there is so much that i miss.  more than anything, i kind of ache for someone who understands moscow and russia and russian and the things that i miss.  i am trying desperately to visit nelson when he’s in germany- and i am dying to see any middlebury friend that i can talk to about russia, moscow in particular (in an intimate way- and that means you!!)

ever since visiting Peter in early may with my mom, i know that i HAVE to live there at some point.  i fell totally in love, and i can’t imagine not being there sometime soon.  at earliest next year, at latest two years from now.  wanna join?  :) :) 

other things i miss:

-street beers/kvas!  so much fun just to walk and sip on something and explore the city

-the amazing moscow metros

-having to speak in russian all the time.  kaigler called me the other day and i talked with him at top speed for like 30 minutes in russian.  GOD i miss it!!

-silly russian food that i used to think was gross but now love- soup at every lunch, salat olivye, alll sorts of pirogis

-meeting random people in russian “cabs” (total strangers who pick you up- you know) and having some fascinating, silly conversations in russian

-moscow- the city itself!!!  kitay gorod, kropotkinskaya, universitet, chekhovskaya, tverskaya- even sholkovskaya, smolenskaya, and arbatskaya!  gosh i miss moscow hard.  ayayay

-kinosreda- without a doubt.  one of the first times i met really awesome young moscow kids and other non-americans was at kinsreda.  i fell in love with that young moscow scene- totally awesome.

i hope you’re having such a wonderful time there.  i miss you lots, and am wildly happy we got to hang out for a hot sec in the M-cow.  

a new question for you coming OH so soon.

much, much love,

char

preferablysomethingspecific asked: Sometimes I work on a problem for a long time and slowly build toward an answer, while other times there's that one moment when the light bulb clicks and the answer seems to spring, fully formed, like Athena, from my skull.
My question for you, doragaya, is for you to describe one specific moment when that light bulb clicked - When was it? What was the question? Did you trust the answer and go with it, or did you choose another path?

I messaged you the answer!!  Hope that’s ok.  Actually, I wouldn’t mind putting it up butttt…at the moment I decided to message it.

To be totally honest, I checked the date when I first wrote this answer and it was 3/21/11- over a month ago!!  I think I wasn’t sure that the answer conformed appropriately to the question, but here is my connector: My lightbulb moment was realizing that what I was doing was ok, and that I had become more myself for deciding to do what I did.  I was afraid that I would always wonder about whether or not I had made the right decision, but it was so clear and I’ve never looked back once!  And that is my connection.  Does that make sense?  Now go check your fbook messages!!!  xoxo

p.s. new question coming soon.  don’t be a slow-butt like me!!!

preferablysomethingspecific asked: Sorry this took so long. I wish I could say that I've been thinking about what question to ask you for the past week, but I've really been thinking about the economic implications of medieval fairs... (That is the last time I'm going to complain about that subject. Ever.)

So my question for you has to do with.. murder! Specifically, if you could go back in time and assassinate any one historical figure, who would it be?
Bonus: Could you actually kill someone? Or would it be one of those climactic scenes where the would-be killer, who the audience sees as completely justified in his or her reasons for taking another person's life, looks deep into the victim's panic-stricken eyes, slowly puts down the gun, and walks away?

Ok, so my belated answer on this question is due to a mix of genuine consideration, exhaustion from class prep, and just a smidgen of laziness.  I’ve discussed the question with a few people actually, and honestly- I still don’t have a good answer.  

As I was reading the question, my mind immediately jumped to Hitler- is this a universal response?  I suppose I could have easily thought of Stalin as well.  I grew up in a town that has the highest concentration of Jews in America, and learned about most of the genocide-driven activities in the world specifically through the post-holocaust declaration of “Never Again.”  Although as far as I know I never had a relative directly affected by the holocaust, many of my friends did. 

I remember having several discussions with my best friend at the age of 10, trying to connect our friendship to her identity, and her identity to the holocaust.  Specifically I remember asking her how she could be absolutely sure that she would only marry a Jew, and if we could still be best friends if I was somehow, even distantly related to Hitler (for the record, I am not and the answer was “absolutely not.”)  I don’t know why I was so curious about these things, but it gave me the sense very early on of how serious the issue was if, to my young mind, it could stop my best friend from caring about me or marrying someone outside of “the tribe” (“even if he isn’t jewish but you love him?” “no.”  “but what if you, like, really, realllllly love him?” “NO.”)

On the other hand, I tend to live my personal life with a strict policy of not regretting anything (too much, anyway).  Life as I know it tends to work itself out if I let it.  It’s not a karma thing, but more of a “with everything that happens you grow and change and it’s important to move forward”…thing.  I’ve made stupid mistakes, but I like to think I’ve taken something positive out of every situation (even if that positive thing is the understanding that “sweet jesus, I am never doing THAT again.”)

As much as I like to think that this rule is clean and neat and universal, it’s hard to accept and proclaim that others’ suffering is ever warranted, even if the situation ultimately leads to some positive change in the world (prevention of other suffering?).  Oh lordy this is getting all philosophical- and I’m flipping back and forth between utilitarian reasoning and gut emotional response…oh you and your making me think, Lydia!!!  One of the many reasons I love you.  My mama would say that you’re one smart cookie. 

OK, so короче:

Pros to killing leaders of mass genocide movements:

-Potential saving of many lives and lessening human suffering

Cons to killing LOMGM:

-That whole killing thing…

Oh god, every other con leaves me so conflicted!  I wrote like 5 things down then erased them.   

OK so here’s my answer: I would kill Rasputin.  But only after he was poisoned, shot, beaten and chased…just so that people could say “Damn that Rasputin was like, an invincible badass…too bad Charlotte was even MORE badass!  Charlotte Gund…the new Chuck Norris.”

p.s. OH MY GOD look at the picture of Rasputin on his Wikipedia profile- it’s hilarious.  Imagine him saying “yes…so tell me more about this future supposed ‘communist revolution’”… or better yet “Russia’s Greatest Love Machine, you say?…Yes, yes I will accept that title.”