Ever notice how it's the little things in life that amuse us so much? More to the point, ever notice how it's the silly little idiocies in life that amuse us more than anything else? Well, this is not as much ''the little blog that could'' as it is ''the blog that enjoys going up the down escalator in your local mall.'' Will it have anything of real importance? No, probably not. But enjoy the ride never the less!

 
Art Begets Art

Every so often a day comes along that happens to wind up being very low-key. Today was such a day. I must also add that I wish my current ill health could have also been low-key.

On a brief tangent, I have been suffering the most grievous back & neck pain thanks to checking the no less than 150 pieces of luggage that are in our store. Bear in mind this luggage on one wall runs floor to ceiling. And some of the heavy not-so-little buggers have anywhere from 1-4 other smaller pieces of matching luggage inside of them, so carting them up and down and twisting them all around to make sure they had a store SKU tag did not sit well with my spinal cord.

Compounding that has been what I can only describe as near blinding, oh-dear-God-I-think-I-can-see-God-and-He's-in-Old-Testament-Wrath-and-Pain-Mood migranes, which naturally have not been helped by my back and neck. It could very well have to do with what I think is a developing sinus cold. In any case, when I wake up with my neck feeling like hell and fall asleep with my temples banging their own taiko drums inside my skull, I don't have much left in terms of mobility, stamina or cheerfulness.

Which brings us to the real motivation behind this little bit of nowhere. Today marks one of the few true days off I've had in...oh, about 2 months. For once there was no one to see, and nowhere to race off to. Mel & I slept in, and for the most part stayed in; I for one enjoyed the quiet. Granted I would have enjoyed it a great deal more had there not been the urge to rip out the offending vertebrea and muscles from my spine and drill holes in my skull to make the migraine-loving pain go away.

Then along came this link, courtesy of Neil Gaiman's journal. It's an Italian short, wholly CG (at least that's my guess here), and is based off one of M.C. Escher's mobius-twisting woodprints. The graphics and visuals are beautiful. The accompanying piano is beautiful. In a day hampered by pain-induced grimaces, this made me smile.

I pass it on to you. It's nothing extraordinary, but perhaps that's exactly what does make it so. Presenting The Link of the Day:

http://www.etereaestudios.com/docs_html/snakes_htm/snakes_movie_index.htm


posted by Phillip at 6:23 PM

 
Inspired By True Events

Today found me oddly inspired as I enjoyed a quiet morning before work as I cleaned out my Email Inbox, listened to the new Meatloaf CD, and conspired in some writing ideas. Which does beg the immediate question: just what the hell kind of muse inspired me to do what you're about to read of?!

I'll be short and succint for Today's Lesson: you cannot breathe Calvin Klein's Contradiction for Men colonge as you would air.

The altercation happened as I was getting ready for the afternoon/evening work shift. There I was, just having finished shaving. And very happy to now have a bottle of cologne (thanks to Mel at Commercialmas), I lifted the nozzle towards the underside of my chin, and tilted my head up.

Perhaps I should have seen this coming. I've never been great with hand-eye coordination. All my projects in Shop class had small rippling curves whenever straight lines were called for. Even rulers or those braces for tablesaws couldn't save me.

Getting back to the offending spray nozzle, I spritzed some nice-smelling cologne onto my neck and the underside of my chin. The rest of the nice-smelling cologne was spritzed right up into my nose. In all honesty, having Contradiction sprayed up one's nasal passage is a rather unique experience, and I highly recommend you to never try it unless you're really, really bored.

I hacked and gagged and made ridiculous faces, and remarked things like, "Oh, that's not right!" And after laughing at my predicament for a good two minutes, Mel finally asked if I was all right. By then my nostrils were smelling more fragrant than any other man's on the planet. I was still not impressed.

At the very least, I can rest assured that while glue-sniffing and gasoline-sniffing are still dangerous & easy ways to get high, I doubt that cologne-sniffing will ever be an avenue addicts turn to.

I'm always a guy who will try most anything at least once. With any luck, the almighty lightning bolt of stupidity will not strike this proverbial tree twice the next time I pick up that bottle....




posted by Phillip at 7:17 PM

 
And the prognosis is....

Apparently it's a retail faux pas to introduce a customer to earmuffs by saying to them, "And here we have three basic styles: zebra-stripes, black, and chicken pox."

But in my defense, the earmuffs are white with red spots all over them. If they're not contagious, I'll be greatly surprised. Come to think of it, perhaps this explains why I've been feeling ill at work lately. I wonder if Workman's Compensation will buy the notion that an employee has been infected by a pair of earmuffs....

Thought of the Day: if you're attending a Catholic church that is patently lying to its congregation, does that mean you're a member of a Church of the Immaculate Deception?


posted by Phillip at 8:02 AM