Interests Meme

[avad]

Hmmm...not a bad one. I learned a lot reading the notes to her entry so i'll put it out there as an invite:
taken from boxcarbecca

1. scan my interest list and pick out the one that seems the most odd to you.
2. i'll explain it.
3. then you post this in your journal so other people can ask you about your interests.

Comments

Re: i like your interests

[avad.livejournal.com]

The Moomins are from a series of children's (well, older children i guess?)books written by the Finnish author Tove Jansson. I loved them growing up and I love them still to this day (own a few).Here is a link (http://virtual.finland.fi/netcomm/news/showarticle.asp?intnwsaid=27031)
They are SO wonderful and surreal and the characters (all fantastical)have such funny personalities. YOU WILL LOVE THE ILLUSTRATIONS!!!!scroll down on that link if you haven't yet, to see one example.The language usage absolutely delights me. Moominland was brought to life in my mind from these books and I keep a room of it to this day mentally as a sweet escape.

Re: i like your interests

[viciated-wilkin.livejournal.com]

I remember the Moomins! they were wonderful!
now I'll have to hunt for books!

Re: i like your interests

[avad.livejournal.com]

[fragiletender.livejournal.com]

'Deery-lo' - just because I have no idea what this is.

[avad.livejournal.com]

Deery-Lou is my favorite character by sanrio, the company behind the genius brainwashing marketing of hello kitty. Attempting to veer away from the whirlpool gravitational pull of hello kitty I landed right in the Deery-Lou pond, trapped, mesmerized and hypnotized by the insiduous cuteness.
I cannot escape. I covet objects like the pink deery-lou snowglobe I saw once (swooooon) and the pink plush keychain I missed on ebay (waaaaah!).
I know I am infected, but it makes me not care. NEEEED DEEERY-LOU CUTENESSS!!
He is usually surrounded by some hallucination-induced forest scene with perfect color cut-outs of rainbows, birds and ladybugs..
He has a brown incarnation (a la bambi) and a pink one.
Here's the pink:


I know that this and moominland (above) have effected the style of my sparkleworld artworks....as I try to articulate the somewhat scary wonderland allure...

[artisticdork.livejournal.com]

sufism and cyburbia

[avad.livejournal.com]

:) ok, let's start with Sufism,which is often referred to as Islamic MYSTICISM, in great contrast to 'fundamentalism':
"Essentially a Sufi is one who recognizes that an aspect of truth is contained in all the authentic religious traditions. Therefore the various spiritual teachers of humanity are equally respected by one who lives from this belief. Hazrat Inayat Khan envisioned the Sufi as a person who appreciates the beautiful diversity celebrated in the various paths while discerning in them an underlying unity. The Sufi's way of life is to continually seek to recognize the divinity contained in all human beings and the inherent sacred oneness of life.

There are, of course, many who live according to this essential definition of a Sufi, who have never heard of the name but who are a living expression of this spirit. According to Hazrat Inayat Khan, the Sufis have no official date or place of origin, for in essence they represent those mystics who have sought the truth in all ages. However at a certain time in history the name became associated with various orders which developed spiritual disciplines.

The Sufi Order International accents the note of universal spirituality found in the teachings of many of the Sufi masters of the past while seeking to make the teachings and practices of the past relevant to the needs and consciousness of our time. Our universal perspective goes beyond traditional Sufi Order Internationals as exemplified in our inclusion of spiritual practices gleaned from various traditions. Our prayers and Universal Worship service are a new expression of a vision of unity so necessary now as humanity begins to awaken to a planetary consciousness. In sharing a message of love, harmony and beauty, the Sufi Order International hopes to foster a vision of one human family." from risingtideinternational.com (http://www.risingtideinternational.org/sufism.htm)

Both Rumi and Hafiz are Sufi poets and I love their works and find them very inspirational. I also loved the book Awakening by Pir Vilayat Inayat Khan (http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/tg/detail/-/1585420387/qid=1106612125/sr=1-1/ref=sr_1_1/104-2234855-6079155?v=glance&s=books) and if you read the first few pages that are offered in the 'search within this book' section..you might see why. so beautiful. I relate much to the sufi path/philosophy and find it one of the most inclusive.

[avad.livejournal.com]

cyburbia is a term I've heard once or twice and that fits something I'm referring to in much of my artwork...the mimicking of familiar spaces and communities in cyberspace but with greater connectivity and freedoms inherent in the new medium. Issues of density and organization online fascinate me and I can find ENDLESS inspiration in just contemplating this aerial map (http://www.digitalspace.com/avatars/book/chtu/bigal.gif) of the online virtual world 'alphaworld' and it's growth patterns over the years.
Parts of secondlife.com (http://www.secondlife.com) have been built in this way attempting to control and order growth in certain areas to achieve a specific aesthetic...much like suburban planning in real life. Similar concerns come to the fore. Zoning etc. interesting to watch.

[pinkarmadillos.livejournal.com]

global brain, but really your whole interest list confuses me.

I'm Not weird, I'm Not! ok, maybe a little...

[avad.livejournal.com]

The global brain refers to the concept that with the evolution of the internet....WE are the neurons to a larger brain that is developing.
If one looks at the development of the brain of a fetus....:

"The embryonic human brain passes through two major phases of development. The first is a massive explosion in the number of nerve cells. Starting eight weeks after conception, the number of neurons explodes, increasing by many millions each hour. After five weeks, however, the process slows down, almost as rapidly as it started. The first stage of brain development, the proliferation of cells, is now complete. At this stage the fetus has most of the nerve cells it will have for the rest of its life.

The brain then proceeds to the second phase of its development, as billions of isolated nerve cells begin making connections with each other, sometimes growing out fibers to connect with cells on the other side of the brain. By the time of birth, a typical nerve cell may communicate directly with several thousand other cells. The growth of the brain after birth consists of the further proliferation of connections. By the time of adulthood many nerve cells are making direct connections with as many as a quarter of a million other cells.

Similar trends can be observed in human society. For the last few centuries the number of "cells" in the embryonic global brain has been proliferating. But today population growth is slowing, and at the same time we are moving into the next phase–the linking of the billions of human minds into a single integrated network. The more complex our global telecommunication capabilities become the more human society is beginning to look like a planetary nervous system."
taken from The Global Brain by Peter Russell (http://www.peterussell.com/GB/Chap8.html)
Other authors take a similar yet even more inclusive viewpoint seeing the 'global brain' as the self-maintaining interconnectedness of all planetary life...see Gaia hypothesis (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gaia_hypothesis)...of which we are perhaps only a passing experiment....

Hey and if you want, feel free to ask me about any other ones!This is actually good for me I think...to reinforce these things..I might start posting the 'answers' in separate posts so they're readable to all. hmmm

Re: I'm Not weird, I'm Not! ok, maybe a little...

[dankamongmen.livejournal.com]

that was the one I'd planned to ask about, as well; thanks for the great explanation! heh, we were talking about Gaia and Daisyworld (albedo lab from an environmental sciences class far, far away) the other day.

anyway, saw you on lorigami's journal and followed the smell of physics. nice to meet you!

Re: I'm Not weird, I'm Not! ok, maybe a little...

[avad.livejournal.com]

I smell of physics? *checks*
hmmm eep maybe I do.;)
Nice to meet you too. Now praytell what IS going on in that icon of yours??!