Bones

So I was looking for easily digestible no-brainer reading material for early morning bart rides. I recently came across a book called Secrets of the Tomb Skull and Bones, the Ivy League, and the Hidden Paths of Power. Perfect bart reading material. It's totally Star Magazine in book form--it reads like a news article, and no surprise as its author was a former NY Times reporter. Why the hell would i care though? Why can't I just finish Animals in Translation before skipping to another book? What is wrong with me?

Like many people (probably none who read this blog...) I am fascinated with secret societies. Not because I feel I'm missing out, but more for the sociological/psychological aspect. Some of the things I've read in this book reminded me of certain aspects of a quasi-secret "society" I was involved with a long time ago. And when I say quasi-secret, I'm referring to secrets told under oath that aren't worth guarding for life, nor repeating. And it led nowhere near paths of power, paths of homosexuality and other debauchery, but not power. And when I say a long time ago, I mean ancient Penny history. Don't even ask me about this.

About the book: Skull and Bones is the ultimate old boy's club at Yale. It started in the early 1830's by a Yale student who studied in Germany for a year. This student befriended the leader of a secret society that used a skull as it's logo. Apparently this group was an outgrowth of the 18th century Illuminati, but that's another story. So the American student then returns to the States and starts up Skull and Bones at Yale.

A few grisly facts about Skull and Bones:

-Some of the artifacts of the Bones tomb include: Nazi memorabilia, Hitler's silverware, the skull of Geronimo and Pancho Villa, more skulls, coffins, and skeletons

-Members are guaranteed financial security for life and have access to an exclusive island retreat complete with a luxurious mansion and women at their disposal

-Many "Bonesman" have been Supreme Court justices and Presidents (George Sr. and Jr., and John Kerry among others )

-Skull and Bones created the American Psychological Association, the American Historical Association, and the American Economic Association and place their own members as presidents

-They didn't admit women until 1990

-Skull and Bones provided financial backing to Adolf Hitler

-Members founded the law firm that represents the NY Times and control the wealth of the Rockefeller, Carnegie, and Ford families

-Initiation involves mud wrestling and lascivious acts in coffins

I guess one could ask, which American institution is not controlled or influenced by Skull and Bones? It's like the question of Britain, name one country they haven't colonized? They're not so secret are they? And who are the others? I think I may have met a member back in '96 but that's another story...

To find out who may be a Bones member around you, simply call out, "Skull and Bones." Members take oaths to immediately excuse themselves whenever and wherever they hear this.

The Catholic church and the Bones have a lot in common. Both bring few into the inner circle, need to control and possess, have extensive influence, need lavish costumes, and a lifetime of security. Both are completely deluded and equally reprehensible. Gross.

Who are you, recent reader? I can hear your mouse clicking through the blog... What are you thinking of this blog so far? Silent judgement, amusement, disgust, boredom, indifference? And i know what you're thinking, who writes "bulgari" as one of her interests? There's a long story with that one, mate, je te jure!

Anyway, my next possible forage into despicability: Scientology.

Clutter

In general, I hate clutter. When I look around and see mounds of things stacked, piled, and crammed together it makes me feel nauseous. Seriously--when I'm around it, I can be near short of breath. A deep unsettled feeling overtakes me. I don't suffer from OCD, it's more of a phobia. I'm clutterphobic. What's up with that?

Somehow, somewhere along the way I developed a fear of acquisition. Some people are afraid of cockroaches or spiders. With the exception of tiny rodents, the only other thing that frightens me is clutter. Stuff. Lots of it. Mounds of disorganised clutter. Quite frankly, I'd rather see a spider on the wall. Or a cockroach. Really. Well, only if it were very small and wingless.

A major clutter offender was my homestay mother in Japan. The mayor of the town I lived in felt that the town English teacher should spend one month in a homestay before living independently. Since it was the first time I had lived in another country on my own, the idea didn't really bother me. It was actually a wonderful experience. Wonderful, except for the clutter.

The Usuki's had a lovely two story house in the Japanese countryside. It was similar to the house pictured above. Mr. and Mrs. Usuki were in their late 40's, and had one one child called Chess, an 8-year old Shiba Inu. Inside, it was a lovely disaster. I stopped count at 5 calendars in or around the living room area. The room next to the kitchen was stacked high with books and boxes. There were two dish cabinets on the wall. There was actually a leather sofa in the living room area, but it was buried under books, magazines, and small boxes. Despite the heavy clutter however, it wasn't messy. There's a difference between organised clutter and a real mess. After a month, the clutter became invisible. By that point, I was on my way out to my own apartment.

Maybe this clutterphobia started when I was young. There was a clutter disaster in the home I grew up in. Between the kitchen and living room, there was a long counter. My brother and I sat at this counter whenever we had people over and there wasn't room at the big dining room table. This was probably the only time the counter was clear.

Whenever we didn't have company, the counter was a repository for anything and everything: my mom's calendar, packets of pictures from the previous summer, recipes, papers, mail.... I can't even remember what exactly cluttered this counter!? A whole lot of nothing, really. When I tried to clean it, I invariably tossed out something out of importance. It was an endless cycle of frustration.

I've contemplated hiring an interior designer who would create a space that is "masculine in design yet feminine in atmosphere," like this place. Ha! But seriously, I'd love to get some swanky interior designers to "minimalize" our space here, but what I'd really be doing is paying them a shitload of money to throw away our stuff!

Blog topics on the horizon:

-The "PF Chang-ification" of Bay Area restaurants
I've been writing down my thoughts on this. A curious experience in a Mountain View Shanghai restaurant convinced me of this phenomenon. I'm convinced that it is sweeping Chinese-American restaurants in the South Bay. Maybe it's not a new phenomenon, maybe it's completely obvious. Regardless, I must give voice to it once and for all!

-My thoughts on The Obake Files Ghostly Encounters in Supernatural Hawai'i
I picked this up in the Hilo Airport back in January. It was meant for light reading on the plane, but lately I've been reading a story here and there before going to bed. This might explain all the strange dreams I've been having recently...

-Back to School?
Am contemplating a return of a life of quiet hours in libraries, talking to people face-to-face in real time, no more business casual attire, etc. Pros: great reading lists, opportunity, rejuvenation, access to a swimming pool, new communities. Cons: endless reading lists, peanut butter and jelly lunches, and the inevitability of being caught talking to myself in libraries. Current status on this undertaking: Undecided and unsure, yet inspired.

Offline

So I've been MIA in the blogosphere for most of the month of March. I'm still enthusiastic about my little cyber vanity piece, but I can't find the time these days. I'd love to say that I've not posted because i've been stuck in the sand at Anse de Source de l'Argent, but the reality is not that spectacular. Lately, I can't be asked to be online much outside of work.

Currently Reading:
Animals in Translation by Temple Grandin, PhD

Recent film seen:
V for Vendetta

New undertaking:
Indoor Soccer at the Bladium in Alameda

Latest i-tunes purchase:
Anything Box "Worth"

Favorite Mash Ups:
Bizarre Light Triangle by New Donna
Mustang Intergalactic DJ Moule

I'm recovering from the drain my intensive 2-day read-a-thon of Dan "It was a dark and stormy night..." Brown's The Da Vinci Code. Have jumped into Angels and Demons against my will, though the cliffhanging chapters are really getting on my nerves. Angels et al is is great bart reading, if i ever get up early enough to take it. With all the track fires and bomb threats, I'm feeling a bit safer navigating ma petite poubelle over the Bay Bridge.

So i've turned instead to Temple Grandin's Animals in Translation. Ever since I finished the chapter called "How Animals Perceive the World," i've been finding myself identifying contrasts that animals and autistics would notice....shadows, shiny glaring puddles on the sidewalk, and yellow signs...

Shrimp

We recently saw Hustle and Flow on DVD. I thought Terrence Howard was brilliant and could understand why he was nominated for best actor. For a week after the film, that Three 6 Mafia song re-played in my head, over and over. So, I've written up some alternate lyrics. For those of you who know me well, you know very well my propensity for the absurd. I'll share those here and now, though they don't translate too well in the written form. I'd have to sing it for the full effect:

It's hard out here for a pimp
No money to get my hair curled and crimped

It's hard out here for a pimp
No money for juice box and shrimp

It's hard out here for a shrimp
All the big sharks think that I'm a wimp

Am nearly 15 pages from finishing The DaVinci Code, a.k.a. adult Harry Potter. Since the whole world has read the book, i thought i'd buckle down and get it over with. And that i've done, in record time. It's McLiterature crack-- i can't put it down. I woke up in the middle of the night to read about 20 pages, it's dire. In any case, it has been a welcome diversion from language acquisition theory and my work in Beijing. All I can say thus far--it's a surprise that Jesus was a mortal man??

Have you seen Google Earth? Last Friday at work, I was able to drop in on most of the places I've lived. I was even able to spy on the rooftop of my parents' home in Bellevue, Washington. Intriguing and frightening. Is it just me or can Google Earth further enable any stalker or would-be terrorist? If you were one who wanted to inflict mass harm, couldn't you just Google Earth your whole plan? However useful, all I can say is that this new tool left me a bit seasick.

What's next Google? The ability to hear anyone's voice? We'll just type in a phone number and download an audio sample of anyone's 2-minute greeting? Want to know what people are eating? We'll be able to type in a random name and get a live feed of the contents of their refrigerator. How high is your thread-count? Simply type in a number in the 150-1000 range and Google will pinpoint those who slumber with the same amount of softness as you.

Oh, and a co-worker told me that she saw a full recipe for crystal meth in a paper much like the Bay Area's Guardian. It didn't just list the ingredients, it spelled out the exact amounts of each ingredient, as well as why Sudafed was key to the whole recipe. Brilliant!

Happy Near End of the week....

Raves

Lately:

1. Newly discovered Windows Movie Maker on my work computer. I've had this computer for a little over two years and had no idea of this program. Two and a half minute documentaries now fill up my desk top. Good times.

2. Fort Minor's "The Rising Tied"

3. "Tortilla a la Espanola" from Alegria's

4. Great blog, new to me (friend of a friend): http://metropolitician.blogs.com/
Check out his entry about Daniel Henney (!!) and Hines Ward

5. Lonely Planet's The Travel Book

6. Lococo's on Piedmont. Their "Spaghetti with Meatballs and Peas" is a soulful experience.

7. Cooper, the neighborhood Daschund. He no longer resembles garden vermin and has developed the warmest and most endearing personality. He has a major crush on our T.O. but she can't be asked to bother with stubby excitable pups. She's all about opposites--she wants someone heartier, fluffier, taller, and calmer.

Apparently, "the Sun is presently in the most harmonious alignment with revolutionary Uranus. This powerful conjunction has the ability to "dissolve old images and allow a larger, freer self to emerge." Woo Hoo. If you're a Piscean, it says that we must pick up things we began in 1999. I know what that is for me--how about you, my fellow Pisces pals?

Doves

So let me explain what happened the other day...

First i should preface this with an earlier incident:

It was March 1999 when my beloved grandmother passed away. We were very close and I absolutely adored her. She passed away kind of unexpectedly and I've never really gotten over it. So in March, we all flew to Hawai'i. We were pulling out of the driveway to go to her funeral.

All of a sudden and out of nowhere, a beautiful white pigeon appeared. Now, in all the years i spent in Hilo, i NEVER saw this kind of bird, not ever close to the house, actually, not anywhere. This bird stood behind the car as we were reversing out of the driveway. The bird took a few steps back, the car reversed a bit, then it took a few steps back again... As we began our descent down the small hill, this mysterious white bird remained standing at the top. She watched our car go all the way down the hill. I immediately knew it was my grandmother. We all knew.

Fast forward to my birthday, March 2nd 2006. My grandparents were always great about my birthday, they never forgot, even when they got really sick. Lately i've been thinking a lot about them. On this day, I wore a special ring--my grandmother's most treasured piece of jewelry.

So anyway, i'm at work and it's about 3.30 in the afternoon. Cappy calls me in distress. "There are two DOVES that somehow got in!" At first, i thought she said "two ducks." Great, I thought, a field day for the Tubular One--her food source yapping and flapping all over the place. Then I realised she was saying "doves." Me: "Oh my god, open the windows!" Cappy: "I can't they're dive bombing me! They're perched up really high!" Now here's the weird thing, we only had one window open slightly. We've NEVER had birds enter the space in the four years we've been here!

Apparently these two grey doves, one male and one female were flying all over the place, perching here and there. Thankfully, a very freaked out Cappy was able to find a helpful neighbor. She helped her put out some bread and open up the windows.

The male bird was the first to fly out, yet the female bird took her time. She seemed to perch from various places: the track lighting rail, and nearly each exposed pipe and vent. The female bird finally did fly out, but not before having a long lingering look at Cappy.

Later, Cappy realized that the doves weren't really dive bombing, just checking out the space. She said, in retrospect, that they seemed protective and curious. I laughed to myself imagining my grandparents' mischievious year of the monkey spirits. After all the ruckus, some parts of the floors looked like a bridge underpass and the table tops looked like the night after a 70's drag show. Tiny feathers everywhere.

And I absolultely felt that I had a visit that day. It was a wonderful gift.