BrDevon
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Posts posted by BrDevon
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Jamaican Blue is one of my favorite beans, but next time we might have to do Hawaiian Kona, or maybe meet halfway with a Kenyan Estate AA. Why did you hire a mule, when we could have paid off Fawzo? I'm sure for a small share of the coffee beans, he would have carried them. Of course, a hyper Alpaca could be interesting.
Looking forward to that first cup.
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/point
/laugh
(I can get away with that cuz Devon knows I like him.)
No it's cuz we have free coffee in the Mod lounge... Hey! Who broke the coffee maker?!
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I think you missed someone.
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I am so sorry for your loss. If you want to talk, vent, whatever, I am as close as a PM.
There is never a good time to lose anyone, but on this eve of All Saint's Day, I will be in extended prayer for all who have passed over the last year.
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You make me miss my cuddle fuzzy. He had a basso profundo purr that you could actually feel across the floor. He was double pawed and had thumbs, so his "hands" resembled Garfield's (actually, his overall markings were close to Garfields, other than he was white where Garfield was yellow). When I had migraines, he used to curl up with his tummy against my forehead and use the heat of his tummy and the vibration of the purr to soothe the pain. Then once the pain started to fade, he would knead my temples with those enormous paws and nimble fingers. He had a gift.
Once he went deaf, he became very close to me, and moreso when he went blind in his right eye. He used to sleep with his right arm on mine, placing his head in between our arms. I think he knew he could sleep safely that way, since anything that would try to "get" him would have to go over the human to get there. I never realized how much I came to appreciate having a living teddy bear until my ex-roomate and I parted company and the cat went with him (he was the human that started with him, so I had no claim). My furry friend died a year ago, and I still dream about him. I can honestly say he was my closest non-human friend, and one of the few friends I had who would listen with interest when I signed a conversation. (Anyone who thinks a cat can't learn Sign Language, should see videos of that cat when I would sign "[PLAY] [KICK]", which was "our" term for a soccer match. He had a little kitty sized soccer ball (his favorite - he would ignore the basketball, baseball, tennis ball, and others). He would bat it between the legs of his opponent, scoring a "goal." Funnier still is later on he learned to do a "paw pump" (fist pump) in mid air after scoring a goal. If the human got one between his legs, he would flatten his ears and give a look like "darn it!" I used to love watching him run up and down the hallway dribbing his soccer ball. He had incredible coordination and could dribble for hours without missing the ball once. Incredibly amazing for one with sight in only one eye, since that will affect depth perception.
He lives in my memory now, but he will always be part of me, and loved.
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It is a heartbreak that I can relate to. Each time I raised a puppy to become a guide dog for a blind person or a signal dog for a deaf person, it meant giving away part of my soul once that dog became old enough to go into formal training and finally be placed with her person who needed her (all the service dogs I raised and trained were female). Friends would ask me how I could part with these special dogs, but I always remembered one thing that made the goodbyes worth it: if it were not for volunteers who are willing to have their hearts broken just a bit, there would be no service dogs, and so many people would have less independence. So yes, I will allow myself to hurt and to heal because it is for the greater good.
Know that she is with people who love her - if you are lucky, perhaps they can send you pictures or a video of her playing - something that won't throw her off.
It is the heart that can break that feels love most.
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I miss having "cuddle fuzzies" in the house, but since I live in a motel room, it would not be fair to have any companion animal that wasn't stuffed with a tag on it's tushie. All the pets that I have shared a household with were family members with more hair and different needs, and were treated as such. All were rescues. The two toughest rescues were the cat who never got a name - the poor thing passed before we got a chance to name her, but at least she passed in the hands of friends. A child decided her tail was a carrying handle and dragged her up a fight of stairs, letting her head smack against each tread on the way up. What kind of parents allow their child near a living creature without proper supervision?! I wanted to drag the child face first up a flight of stairs, so she could understand what kitty felt. My other big rescue was a dog that was in training to be a guide dog, and then was discovered to have mental issues. The dog would literally run in circles and scream in an octave that resembled a young girl having her hair pulled (so I was told). My next door neighbor gave her a nice quiet home, where she was welcome to play when she wished, and was separated from other animals, strangers and other things that would stress her to confusion. Intorducing her to new people was a process: they first would have to surrender a clothing item that bore their scent so Smudge could get comfortable with the scent, then over a slow process, the new person would be introduced, supervised and bearing treats, and instructed to sit on the floor in a totally passive pose and allow Smudge to come to them, sniff, and take the snack, which would be placed just over an arm's length away, while speaking softly and offering encouragement. Few people came into Smudge's life, because she was easily confused and scared of changes, but we were fortunate enough to be able to give her an environment that made her happy and she learned there were people she could trust and have fun with. I am proud that because of my neighbor and the few volunteers that were able to help raise Smudge, she lived to be just shy of 11 (the vet never thought she would live that long, due to her issues, and had recomended "the big blue shot.") I am not a major believer in karma, as such, but I hope that if I ever have a health issue that affects my quality of life that I will be surrounded by those who love me and will care for me and not think I am a nuisance that needs to be euthanized.
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Sun remains asleep -
in darkness I must travel:
Autumn morning shifts.
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Another way to "make scents" and save money is to do it yourself with potpourri. When I had an apartment and cats in the same place, I used to simply simmer a small pan or pot of water with a sprinkle or two of cinnamon and a pinch of clove. Smells like someone's been baking, and totally nontoxic - even edible! If I happened to have an apple core or orange peels from a snack, even better, just chuck it in the simmering broth and let nature do the rest. I have also used lemon peel, vanilla beans, various spices that I associate with baking, and so on. One way to get great fragrance for cheap is to go to dollar stores and the like and instead of shopping the fragrance aisle, pick up cheap spices. I wouldn't necessarily eat them (often not so fresh and tasty), but they are edible, so much less toxic, and if it smells decent in the store, it will smell decent when simmered. I used to use off brands for simmering, so they weren't confused with my cooking spices, but a permanent marker or sticker on the packaging will do well to differentiate them. I found the simmer method gave me much milage and a great smelling home for a lot less than candles or incense. Also, you can cool and refrigerate your simmering "broth" and reuse it a few times. Simply add more water as it evaporates, and give it a light sprinkle of fresh herbs or spice as needed.
Enjoy.
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A lot of the coffee habit can come from having something to do with the smoking hand (raise the mug take a sip, instead of raise the butt take a drag). Remember, you can also do the bottled water habit from time to time... it'll help flush toxins out.
Too much coffee isn't good for you (yeah, I know... look who's talking!), but I wager it's less damaging than smoke, so at least if you have to replace one addiction for another, you are headed the right direction.
Congratulations on a sucessful three weeks and counting. You have only begun, but the sucessess are very real.
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Therein lies the key.
My former neighbor and I used to raise black lab puppies to be trained as seeing eye dogs for the blind and hearing dogs for the deaf. Once in a while, circumstances would arrise where we would come to see the dogs again. It is stranger to see the dog's reaction in that case, because they are trained that when in harness or in the service vest, they are strictly business - no playing, their only attention is to their person's commands or signaling as trained. But take that harness off, or let them out of the vest for time off, and it's wags and doggie kisses all around. The dogs we trained would act like "Duuuuude! Where ya been?! Gimme a biscuit and let's play!" But the good thing is with their training, when play time is over, you can simply give them the appropriate command, and they snap back to business.
It was a bit of a heartbreak each time we had to give up a dog for final training and adoption, but it becomes a lot easier when you think that it is the efforts of raisers who host and shape these puppies for a year or so that form the foundations that allow blind people or deaf people to have more independence and enjoy day to day life.
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A little caffeine will also keep you from suffering headaches while the body gets used to not having nicotine. You are doing well, sir.
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Fight the power, man! Don't let big tobacco win. They have taken enough of your money.
And no, you may not take up smoking by lighting the computer on fire.
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Way to go, Murph! Don't let little things distract you from the big goal. You *will* win this challenge. Fairly soon you should start to notice some decent savings. Smoking is a rather expensive habit.
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I pray constantly that I can find somebody or "somebodies" who can help me develop fluency in Sign before I completely lose my hearing. At my best, because of a combination of being forced to use English all my life and never having routine opportunities to use Sign, I sign "like a hearing person."
One of my best friends, who was born deaf, used to tease me gently about my signing, but I don't think I was too bad... he rarely had to ask me to clarify what I was talking about, and the few times he did it was discussing something detailed and confusing and after so many "he told him that he..." you have to reset and establish who each person in the conversation is again. That part of the language is especially tough when you get tired.
I miss having folks around to sign with daily like I had when I was in school.
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Although it is not American Haiku, this is a literal translation of a poem I wrote in ASL for an interpreter friend of mine:
Her hands: delicate roses
the scent passes me for a moment
then fades away on the breeze
And in gloss for those who know sign:
HANDS HER - FLOWER TENDER ROSE {COMPARE}
FRAGRANCE DRIFT PASSING (ME) PASSING, FINISH
CATCH BREEZE FRAGRANCE {PRESENT REDUCE TO NOTHING}
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If you find yourself going into the garage to smoke, do what my friend did: pick up a tool, wrench, screwdriver, it doesn't matter - whatever is near. Now hold it like a cigarette and act like you're going to smoke it. Feels silly, right? The point of the exercise is to reinforce in your mind that you are breaking the hand-to-mouth habits and motions that go with smoking. The more bizzare the activity, the easier it is to laugh and move on to a different activity.
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There is something about the idea of signing while reciting poetry that feels very right.....
Although this is not Haiku, the Fall 2004 issue of Slope magazine was very special to me.... You can see why by following this link:
http://www.slope.org/archive/asl/
The late Clayton Valli will always remain a legend to deaf poets. Many of his glosses have no literal translation in spoken languages, yet to those who sign, no clarification is needed for the "made up" glosses, that show poetic license is not only for writing.
The flying words project still lives and breathes. I remember it from Deaf Way I, and this issue of slope shows excerpts from Deaf Way II (ten years later). These are cultural icons I embrace and celebrate as an adult because I was not "allowed to be deaf" as a kid (in other words I was forced to use English, not allowed to sign, and expected to swim against the tide of noise I could not interpret into useful sounds).
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I like the challenge of writing poetry in various meter because I not only have to make my English fit the line, but more than half the time, I think in a combination of American Sign Language and English, and have the added challenge of choosing words that convey my thoughts and still fit the meter. (Seven sign glosses is not seven English Syllables, no matter how fast I move my hands).
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no more tears to cry
the heart beats, no one to love
not even for itself
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Within the sea: sadness
I'm floating invisible
yet I'm told to smile
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Sounds like a cool app. Hold onto those numbers and watch them grow. Think of them as a stock market with yourself as the investment. At least your numbers are going the right way!
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Poor Murph...
First you get
Then after a while you feel like
Eventually you get a little bit
But don't
If you start to want to
Just say :no!:
It won't always feel like
You can do this
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When you feel that tingling sensation from the patch, remind yourself your lungs felt that and more with the smoke. It's a physical reminder that the chemistry wasn't your friend. You just got past two major challenges: watching someone else smoke and not joining them, and getting through the first day. Keep going. It's a challenge at first, but so is learning to walk, learning to drive, being an admin.. oh wait, that last one is always a challenge
Agi And Personhood
in Science, Technology & Innovation
Posted
1. How about nonorganic intelligence? The distinction being that the entity manifesting the intelligence is not relying upon living cells to do so.
2. Although the question reflects a bias, I will go with the gist of the question, and say I do not believe nonorganic entities have souls. Others may disagree.
3. At this point, I don't have enough experience with the nonorganically intelligent to form a proper opinion. Personally, I think if they are capable of processes that are on the level of coherent thought, they should be able to determine with what/(insert a pronoun for a nonorganic whom here) they live out their use cycle. Besides, so many computers are currently practicing unsafe interfacing, it would be nice to see a few step up and stop computing "in sin." If they wish to exchange their data with the first computer that comes along, they should at least be required to protect themselves from viruses and other bugs. Can you imagine a health code for nonorganic entities?