Archive for January 2012
International Indie
There is a risk in posting a referral that already has millions of views (was over 9 mil, now almost 24M!), that the reading audience will have already been there, done that. In my case, I’m taking the chance that at least a few of the usual visitors here at Relative Something have yet to experience this one.
Several times in the recent past, my ear has been grabbed by one particular song on my radio station, 89.3 The Current. The artist is a Belgian-born Australian named Wouter “Wally” De Backer who performs under the stage name of Gotye. The song is, Somebody That I Used To Know, and features New Zealand singer/songwriter Kimbra.
However, they aren’t the ones who finally connected me with this song. That honor belongs to a group of Canadians performing as Walk Off The Earth, who have recorded a cover version of the song, with all five members playing the same guitar simultaneously.
Watch the video on youtube.
Take some time to explore the variety of videos that Marshall & Gianni and friends have posted at the Walk Off The Earth (WOTE) site. They demonstrate a good playfulness and fine sense of humor, a bit reminiscent of the videosong art of the duo Pomplamoose that I was shouting about last year.
Who Cares
It truly amazes me how some events draw so much passionate attention from what can appear to be a universal audience, but which is not a universal audience at all. Some people will be entirely consumed by the Republican primary election being held in New Hampshire today. Media is offering minute-by-minute analysis. News reports cover it like there is nothing else worth talking about. I will be among those who don’t give it any attention.
Last night, college football held their BCS National Championship game at the Superdome in New Orleans. The pregame broadcast made it appear as if everyone who is anyone had made their way to the city they call ‘the big easy’ to be a part of this event. They mentioned that tickets for a seat in the stadium to see the game were going for $1800 – $5000 each. How does anyone but the top 1% income bracket afford that!? Even though the broadcasters rev up the hype, if a person wasn’t in New Orleans, and didn’t turn on a television, they could easily miss the fact that there was even a game last night. Those folks who missed it can be satisfied that they didn’t lose out on any dramatic entertainment. It was a lopsided, no-contest blowout.
Everyone should have a passion. Just don’t mistake your passion for something that all people share. It is a valuable exercise to keep that in mind about things that have the capacity to become all-consuming personal passions. There are plenty of people who have no interest in the things that can matter most to us.
A Week
It has now been a week since Cyndie returned to Boston, leaving me on my own again in our house. It doesn’t feel quite so extreme to me any more. I’m already adjusted to living here alone. That became glaringly obvious to me from the shock I experienced trying to negotiate having her stuff in my space for 10-days over Christmas and New Year’s.
It is a little frustrating, coming off the recent excitement of seeing Cyndie work with horses, then so soon after, having her back working for the school district in Boston. The two scenarios are so unrelated. But there are opportunities for me to get excited by the stories Cyndie shares of her school work. We caught up with each other last Thursday and I learned she had been through two days with almost no sleep, but her diligent efforts lead to some dramatic progress toward what she is there to accomplish. She educates people in a way that changes lives.
Meanwhile, I am taking advantage of the fact that she didn’t take a car with her. I have learned that the nasty burning-smell-symptom of my car is due to a leaking head gasket which will cost more to remedy than I want to spend on the trusty old beast. My first thought was that it is time to buy a new vehicle, but I have no idea what to choose. Is it time for a truck, if we want to move to a horse farm? Should I get a high-mileage car for commuting to the day-job? Cyndie suggested a simple solution to buy time: just drive her car for the time being.
Isn’t she brilliant?
Equine Energy
I am not as attuned to the messages offered as Cyndie is, so I don’t know what he was conveying when this picture was captured, but I think the image depicts the exciting energy available in a visit with horses.
Favors Exchanged
There is no question about the mutual benefits available in horse-human relationships. I’m one-person removed from the actual activity, and I experience great energy when I accompany Cyndie on her visits to the horses. Here are a couple of shots I took while Cyndie spent a few minutes pulling burrs out of the mane of this appreciative fellow.
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After a while, he demonstrated an urge to do some grooming of his own, and reached out to return the favor.
Shadow Cat
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For the image below, I took advantage of the sun in my face to capture this friendly feline in silhouette, perched on the top rail of the fence. My first try, in the sunlight, ended up a bit too blurry, but then I got just the shot I was after…
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Horse Fix
I’d been waiting over a week since Cyndie got home to have her take me out to visit the horses of her friend. We finally found a chance on Saturday. It was a real treat to witness her interact with the animals again, and very special to see how the horses responded to her presence.
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It was a relatively sunny day for the period of our visit, and, unfortunately, I was forced to shoot into the sun for most of my photos of the horses. I caught one shot of Cyndie in the sunlight, just entering the paddock to see if the horses would cross the distance for some attention.
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Ever so slowly, the horses began to make their way over toward us.
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At about this moment, I realized that the horses, after very methodically making their way across the field, moving with guarded purpose, now were politely lined up to take turns interacting with Cyndie. It was really sweet.
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Relative Something 