Happy February!

February is thought of as a month to appreciate love and loved ones. In celebration of that theme, I am posting the video of the Free Hugs Campaign event that I was a part of back in June 2012. The campaign reaches out to others under the premise that,  “Sometimes, a hug is all what we need.” Free hugs is a real life controversial story of Juan Mann, a man whose sole mission was to reach out and hug a stranger to brighten up their lives. Ultimately, his campaign was successful and my friends and I replicated that in a smaller form in Blue Back Square, West Hartford. That day was one of my top five most memorable days of the summer and of the year. Enjoy!

 

Nature Is Amazing In Slow Motion

Have you ever taken the time to think about what really happens around us when living things- insects, cats, people move? There is more than meets the eye in these seemingly simple movements. These three videos by The Slow Mo Guys on YouTube show you exactly why that damselfly may have flown off, what really happens when your cat jumps off something, and the tiny saccadic movements of your eye that happen whenever you look at an object. Check it out. It’s brilliant work and it’s amazing to see all the things you don’t see all because they happen too quickly to notice.

 

Related articles

• Why Humans Love Slow Motion (buzzfeed.com)
• This is why humans love slow motion (digitallife.today.msnbc.msn.com)
• Slow Motion Ballet (neatorama.com)
• Snakes on a brain (mindhacks.com)

Berimbrown is back in Connecticut

Reblogged from José R. Feliciano:

Yesterday, I attended my first Berimbrown concert at Central Connecticut State University. I have managed to be too far away every time they have visited the United States, but was able to catch them part way through their current 12-day visit.

Berimbrown is an internationally acclaimed Brazilian Congo pop band.  The name of the group references the berimbau, the Afro-Brazilian musical bow associated with…

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This is a reblog from my professional blog.

Happy Beltane/MayDay!

Happy Beltane/May Day, everyone!

In celebration of May Day, I’m posting up a bawdy little song about May celebrating that is straight from the Renaissance. I used to sing this and other madrigal songs when I was in madrigal choir in high school. Really though, pay attention to the words and you’ll see what I mean about it being risqué.  Hint: The “fa la la” in this song is more like the modern day edit for some Top 40 Radio pop songs. You’ve gotta love Elizabethan England for that one.

Hope you enjoy Thomas Morley’s,  “Now is the month of Maying.” I’ll be singing it and smirking all day.

(Oh, and for those of you who are interested in music theory, “Fa La La” can also just be an insert, monophonic repetition that is representing of cheerful music. Then again, there might be a reason other than food and drink for why everyone is so cheerful.)

Gundam Revisited - Odaiba

Reblogged from Tokyobling's Blog:

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I don't know exactly when they put the giant Gundam statue up again in Odaiba, but it's now officially open to the public and yesterday when I was there was even a rock band singing songs of praise to the giant! You might remember the last time Gundam was in Odaiba, back in the summer of 2009. I can't wait to go back and check on it during the evening as well!

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I had to reblog this post. I am always a fan of giant 1/1 scale statues. (Is it really a statue. I'm waiting for it to come to life and defend Tokyo.) I missed this by two years the last time I was in Japan and I used all my money to move for grad school, so I was never able to see it in 2009. My brother got to see part of it since it was being taken down by the time he visited. He will be going to Tokyo soon so I'll have to live vicariously through the pictures he takes there. When he does, you can expect to see a blog post with some of his pictures.

Related articles

• Gundam Front Tokyo (myaukun.wordpress.com)
• Rostarr - Ikonoclysm Exhibition | Tokyo (freshnessmag.com)
• 5 Things I've Learned on My First Day in Tokyo (christopherquiroz.wordpress.com)

33. Cozy Connecticut

Reblogged from 50 States Design Project:

Connecticut. With the 4th highest population density, it's the place to live. It may not have the flashiest cities or the biggest mountains, but Connecticut is a thriving state than sustains a high standard of living. So let's hear it for this state of well being. Won't you be my neighbor? Buy Prints Here.

What do you think of Connecticut? Leave a comment below.

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I couldn't help, but reblog this having been a CT resident for roughly 90% of my life. The image is part of a series by the creator to make a custom poster design for every state. 50 states, 50 weeks. Check it out!

Children & Art >> Sunday Sense

“Every child is an artist. The problem is how to remain an artist once we grow up.” Pablo Picasso  (Spanish Artist and Painter: 1881-1973)

Here is one of the first Sunday Sense posts I’ve done in a while. I hope it inspires all you readers with children in your lives. I think we sometimes take for granted how imaginative, creative, and generally ingenious children, especially young children, can be.

The reason I picked this quote? I’m eating breakfast in front of “little kid art”  and thus being inspired by it. On the refrigerator there are scribbly images held up by magnets. (Refrigerators are like the Louvre of little kid art, aren’t they?) In front of me sits this:

Santa's Workshop: A post modern study of Christmas

Yes, that is a sugar and candy version of Santa’s workshop that The Fiancée’s (and by extension my)  two little nephews designed on one of the nights we babysat. (Don’t worry, the house is for show so they didn’t end up eating the whole thing. That sugar paste dries into the equivalent of sweet cement.)

Another project, we worked on was this house made of rice crispy treats and candy. This one, they were able to eat, albeit, not all at once like they wanted to.

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As you can see, it’s pretty good! Of course, I may be a little biased since I made this on Thanksgiving when they weren’t looking. (Don’t worry, I ate mine. That was the best part.)

Stuffing island with broccoli tree and a view of sweet potato lake and a string bean boat

So, remember, creativity and art can be found everywhere! Even in broccoli, gum drops, or refrigerator art.

Related articles

• Introducing Your Child to the Arts: Media Literacy (education.com)
• How to make santa stars (guardian.co.uk)
• CubeDudes: by the Pablo Picasso of block builders (lostateminor.com)
• Book Review: Rembrandt (Art for Children Series) (caterpickles.com)