[TimovieMan]

15 minutes ago, Sea-to-sky said:

mind you Doug Jones would make a fabulous old school full suit werewolf act. He js fabulous in all his parts

Doug Jones is indeed god-tier in acting while in full make-up. On par with Andy Serkis in motion capturing.

And I always loved that David Hyde Pierce went uncredited for his work in the first Hellboy film, because he felt that Doug Jones' performance added far more than his voice did. And then doubled down by outright refusing Hellboy 2 to allow Jones to voice the role as well.

[Sea-to-sky]

2 hours ago, TimovieMan said:

And I always loved that David Hyde Pierce went uncredited for his work in the first Hellboy film, because he felt that Doug Jones' performance added far more than his voice did. And then doubled down by outright refusing Hellboy 2 to allow Jones to voice the role as well

Didnt actually realise it was a different actor for the voice. David hyde pierce is a cracking actor and i feel they made a pretty epic combo for that part

[Laghail]

TW for the poem below, it uses domestic violence as a metaphor, and the poem is gorgeous and devastating. But domestic violence is a hard no for some folks. 
 

Spoiler

 

[Whisper]

8 minutes ago, Laghail said:

TW for the poem below, it uses domestic violence as a metaphor, and the poem is gorgeous and devastating. But domestic violence is a hard no some folks. 

A love poem for balance

 

 

[Whisper]

Does this count as poem?

 

[Sea-to-sky]

This is my favourite translation of catulluses very famous poem known as catullus 5 or da mi basia mille 

this one admittedly takes a little creativity with the translation but sometimes thats needed or the soul get lost in between the words of a different language than the original latin.  

 

out of catullus by richard cranshaw

 

Come and let us live my Deare,

Let us love and never feare,

What the sowrest Fathers say:

Brightest Sol that dies to day

Lives againe as blithe to morrow,

But if we darke sons of sorrow

Set; o then, how long a Night 

Shuts the Eyes of our short light!

Then let amorous kisses dwell

On our lips, begin and tell

A Thousand, and a Hundred, score

An Hundred, and a Thousand more,

Till another Thousand smother

That, and that wipe of another.

Thus at last when we have numbred

Many a Thousand, many a Hundred;

Wee’l confound the reckoning quite,

And lose our selves in wild delight:

While our joyes so multiply,

As shall mocke the envious eye

 

Spoiler

 Its all about ceasing the moment and living in it. not letting what others say hold you back. Which i love

 

[Laghail]

Traveling this evening and tomorrow, back Friday night. Please keep the poetry coming and also don't watch the 2022 "Speak No Evil". Or do. It was quite good and very disturbing and I had to hide my face from some of the violence, but it landed its points very effectively. Was the Danish producer saying that civility is being abused to produce dictators and tyrants while good people are rendered impotent by their polite manners? Or was he saying that Syrian refugees and Mexican immigrants are going to destroy white civilization? Dunno. Probably makes it an even better piece that both these readings exist in uneasy tension, but it certainly wasn't a fun movie to watch. 

 

Apparently there's a 2024 American version that renders the upsetting movie into pointless masturbation of American egos. The Danish version has the main characters politely accommodating microaggressions and social faux pas against themselves that escalate into them becoming impotent bystanders while their child is kidnaped and mutilated and they themselves are murdered. Deeply uncomfortable to watch but razor sharp. So, of course the American version has the 'MURICA FUCK YEAH twist where the male main character turns into Rambo in the last 20 minutes of the film and murders the effete Dutch and Pakistani villains. Honestly, can anyone but an American even be a real man?? ??? 

[Whisper]

1 hour ago, Laghail said:

Honestly, can anyone but an American even be a real man?? ??? 

Listen, according to a well-known documentary, the Brits think "men, manly men" wear tights. That whole continent is ruled out of being real men just based on that!

 

 

[Snarkyfishguts]

 

3 hours ago, Laghail said:

Honestly, can anyone but an American even be a real man?? 

We make an exception for Gerard Butler and Chris Hemsworth. 
 

Seriously though, even reading your brief description of both movies, I’m gonna pass on both. Thanks for the warning.

[Whisper]

5 hours ago, Laghail said:

Traveling this evening and tomorrow, back Friday night. Please keep the poetry coming and also don't watch the 2022 "Speak No Evil".

Safe travels! I shall post poetry, I shan't watch the movie.

 

 

The Gods of the Copybook Headings

As I pass through my incarnations in every age and race,
I make my proper prostrations to the Gods of the Market Place.
Peering through reverent fingers I watch them flourish and fall,
And the Gods of the Copybook Headings, I notice, outlast them all. 
2
We were living in trees when they met us. They showed us each in turn
That Water would certainly wet us, as Fire would certainly burn:
But we found them lacking in Uplift, Vision and Breadth of Mind,
So we left them to teach the Gorillas while we followed the March of Mankind. 
3
We moved as the Spirit listed. They never altered their pace,
Being neither cloud nor wind-borne like the Gods of the Market Place,
But they always caught up with our progress, and presently word would come
That a tribe had been wiped off its icefield, or the lights had gone out in Rome. 
4
With the Hopes that our World is built on they were utterly out of touch,
They denied that the Moon was Stilton; they denied she was even Dutch;
They denied that Wishes were Horses; they denied that a Pig had Wings;
So we worshipped the Gods of the Market Who promised these beautiful things. 
5
When the Cambrian measures were forming, They promised perpetual peace.
They swore, if we gave them our weapons, that the wars of the tribes would cease.
But when we disarmed They sold us and delivered us bound to our foe,
And the Gods of the Copybook Headings said: "Stick to the Devil you know."  
6
On the first Feminian Sandstones we were promised the Fuller Life
(Which started by loving our neighbour and ended by loving his wife)
Till our women had no more children and the men lost reason and faith,
And the Gods of the Copybook Headings said: "The Wages of Sin is Death."  
7
In the Carboniferous Epoch we were promised abundance for all, 
By robbing selected Peter to pay for collective Paul; 
But, though we had plenty of money, there was nothing our money could buy, 
And the Gods of the Copybook Headings said: "If you don't work you die."  
8
Then the Gods of the Market tumbled, and their smooth-tongued wizards withdrew
And the hearts of the meanest were humbled and began to believe it was true
That All is not Gold that Glitters, and Two and Two make Four
And the Gods of the Copybook Headings limped up to explain it once more. 
9
As it will be in the future, it was at the birth of Man
There are only four things certain since Social Progress began. 
That the Dog returns to his Vomit and the Sow returns to her Mire, 
And the burnt Fool's bandaged finger goes wabbling back to the Fire; 
10
And that after this is accomplished, and the brave new world begins
When all men are paid for existing and no man must pay for his sins, 
As surely as Water will wet us, as surely as Fire will burn, 
The Gods of the Copybook Headings with terror and slaughter return!

[Whisper]

“There is sweet music here that softer falls
Than petals from blown roses on the grass,
Or night-dews on still waters between walls
Of shadowy granite, in a gleaming pass;
Music that gentlier on the spirit lies,
Than tir'd eyelids upon tir'd eyes;
Music that brings sweet sleep down from the blissful skies.
Here are cool mosses deep,
And thro' the moss the ivies creep,
And in the stream the long-leaved flowers weep,
And from the craggy ledge the poppy hangs in sleep.”

― Lord Alfred Tennyson

[Whisper]

The Walrus and the Carpenter

By Lewis Carroll

 

"The sun was shining on the sea,
      Shining with all his might:
He did his very best to make
      The billows smooth and bright —
And this was odd, because it was
      The middle of the night.

The moon was shining sulkily,
      Because she thought the sun
Had got no business to be there
      After the day was done —
"It's very rude of him," she said,
      "To come and spoil the fun."

The sea was wet as wet could be,
      The sands were dry as dry.
You could not see a cloud, because
      No cloud was in the sky:
No birds were flying overhead —
      There were no birds to fly.

The Walrus and the Carpenter
      Were walking close at hand;
They wept like anything to see
      Such quantities of sand:
If this were only cleared away,'
      They said, it would be grand!'

If seven maids with seven mops
      Swept it for half a year,
Do you suppose,' the Walrus said,
      That they could get it clear?'
I doubt it,' said the Carpenter,
      And shed a bitter tear.

O Oysters, come and walk with us!'
      The Walrus did beseech.
A pleasant walk, a pleasant talk,
      Along the briny beach:
We cannot do with more than four,
      To give a hand to each.'

The eldest Oyster looked at him,
      But never a word he said:
The eldest Oyster winked his eye,
      And shook his heavy head —
Meaning to say he did not choose
      To leave the oyster-bed.

But four young Oysters hurried up,
      All eager for the treat:
Their coats were brushed, their faces washed,
      Their shoes were clean and neat —
And this was odd, because, you know,
      They hadn't any feet.

Four other Oysters followed them,
      And yet another four;
And thick and fast they came at last,
      And more, and more, and more —
All hopping through the frothy waves,
      And scrambling to the shore.

The Walrus and the Carpenter
      Walked on a mile or so,
And then they rested on a rock
      Conveniently low:
And all the little Oysters stood
      And waited in a row.

The time has come,' the Walrus said,
      To talk of many things:
Of shoes — and ships — and sealing-wax —
      Of cabbages — and kings —
And why the sea is boiling hot —
      And whether pigs have wings.'

But wait a bit,' the Oysters cried,
      Before we have our chat;
For some of us are out of breath,
      And all of us are fat!'
No hurry!' said the Carpenter.
      They thanked him much for that.

A loaf of bread,' the Walrus said,
      Is what we chiefly need:
Pepper and vinegar besides
      Are very good indeed —
Now if you're ready, Oysters dear,
      We can begin to feed.'

But not on us!' the Oysters cried,
      Turning a little blue.
After such kindness, that would be
      A dismal thing to do!'
The night is fine,' the Walrus said.
      Do you admire the view?

It was so kind of you to come!
      And you are very nice!'
The Carpenter said nothing but
      Cut us another slice:
I wish you were not quite so deaf —
      I've had to ask you twice!'

It seems a shame,' the Walrus said,
      To play them such a trick,
After we've brought them out so far,
      And made them trot so quick!'
The Carpenter said nothing but
      The butter's spread too thick!'

I weep for you,' the Walrus said:
      I deeply sympathize.'
With sobs and tears he sorted out
      Those of the largest size,
Holding his pocket-handkerchief
      Before his streaming eyes.

O Oysters,' said the Carpenter,
      You've had a pleasant run!
Shall we be trotting home again?'
      But answer came there none —
And this was scarcely odd, because
      They'd eaten every one."

[Whisper]

Prayer poems, morning and evening

Spoiler

Let each day begin with prayer

praise and adoration

On the Lord cast every care

He is your salvation

Morning evening and at night,

Jesus will be with you

Save you from the tempter's might

With his presence cheer you

 

 

My loved ones rest securely

For God this night will surely

From peril guard you heads

Sweet slumbers may he send you

And bid His hosts attend you

And through the night watch o're your beds.

 

 

and something less explicitly religious.

 

On Waking

by John O'Donohue

I give thanks for arriving
Safely in a new dawn,
For the gift of eyes
To see the world,
The gift of mind
To feel at home
In my life,
The waves of possibility
Breaking on the shore of dawn,
The harvest of the past
That awaits my hunger,
And all the furtherings
This new day will bring.

[Laghail]

Monday October 14

 

 

Autumnal Pretentious Poetry Winners

Most pretentious nerds: 

1. ??????????Whisper 

2. ??????Sea-to-sky 

2. ???‍♀️???Sylph

3.  ????Sarakingdom

 

Honorable Mentions

?Everstorm

?Jarric

?Sepherina

?Sovalis

 

The Challenge Itself

This challenge was a shape-shifter with new categories of goals emerging and me editing the challenge a few times as it progressed. Here's the specific results, along with notes for next time: 

 

Avery's Athletics Endeavors 

• Time in bed averaged 8.09 hours during this month, with a steady trendline. In lieu of more exacting data, I'm going to translate Hours in Bed -1 = Actual Sleep, and this sets the goal for next month to aim for 9 hours in bed, with a requisite 11PM bedtime on Weekdays and Midnight-ish on Weekends.  

• I didn't write a single word about lifting this challenge, and I don't think I missed it. I worked out as much or more than normal, with Liam now working out on weekends too as his job makes him chose between lifting or BJJ on weekdays, and it's pretty easy to tag along and get a 5th or 6th lifting day on a non-Mayo trip week. In theory, not adding the lifting sessions here means I'm getting less input on that facet of my life, but I think I've been growing more in Druid-y shit lately with NF. Can't cross a river twice and NF articles were critical to me learning how to lift in 2014-2015, and then the NF cheer squad helped keep me alive during a messy coming out process 2016-2018. I think re-engaging NF post-covid in 2024 has been more about community context around mental health and artistic growth, with lifting still a steady part of my life but not a super fruitful engagement angle. Meh. Thanks for being here for the rambling and expect more next month. 

Verona's Artistic Messes

• The observe vs extract performance distinction was helpful as it emerged over the course of the month. I don't have great data on drumming, but I adapted to a slim tipper and had a pair of great jam sessions with the drum circle. I think I'm going to keep the observation-only methodology and track practice minutes for the next month.  
  •  
• I sat in meditation 15 times during the last challenge. I think I want some extra rigor for the next month. Setting myself a goal I can't meet is worst case scenario, and observation-only yields mediating as a half-time habit. If I asked myself to sit 4x a week over the 5 week challenge, I'd yield 20 days and that certainly counts as growth for the practice. Lets see about that for this next month.
• Similar outcomes on journaling with 13 entries for the month. Copying the above approach, if I ask myself for 3 entries per week, I'd see 15 entries total in the next challenge and another growth point. Implicitly asking myself to journal or sit every day, which sounds both helpful and doable.  
• I read kids stories or news articles every day of this challenge. It felt mildly intrusive but my reading comprehension grew for sure. I think I'm going to track the number of words I'm looking up every day in my reading, and keep requiring a reading every day. Nakedly changing the goal to yield better data, but gamifying personal growth is supposed to be the NF forte. 

Lucy's Bulletproof Presentation

• I never defined a task list and I think that was a pretty good fit for this month. Three Mayo trips happened during this challenge, with both the normal disruption and the enraging realization that 1.5 of the 10 hour round-trip journeys were assigned to us purely by a white-coat's ego trip.  I'm giving the task list a careful think for next challenge, since I've historically done poorly obligating myself into creative output, but I have a craft fair on December 4 to get ready for and I want to balance intentionality and kindness.
  • The Morris legacy I inherited around art is these manic outbursts of execution the night before an event. I have so many memories of my talented and very unmedicated mother doing incredible things late into the night before some event that she'd committed to months ago; a birthday in the early years when she could engage as a mother, or one of the weddings in the middle years, or one of her endless childbirths, or her even more frequent snake oil business ventures. She was/is such a gifted human with such tragic blind spots to the costs of the projects she took on. All this to say I am her, and I also am trying to count the cost and protect myself from the worst parts of that legacy.

 

 

[Whisper]

6 minutes ago, Laghail said:

Meh. Thanks for being here for the rambling and expect more next month. 

Ramblings are so much more fun than lift numbers. Looking forward to your next challenge. 

[Everstorm]

2 hours ago, Laghail said:

Can't cross a river twice and NF articles were critical to me learning how to lift in 2014-2015, and then the NF cheer squad helped keep me alive during a messy coming out process 2016-2018. I think re-engaging NF post-covid in 2024 has been more about community context around mental health and artistic growth, with lifting still a steady part of my life but not a super fruitful engagement angle.

 

I would venture to say that the forums have evolved over roughly similar lines.

[Sea-to-sky]

20 hours ago, Laghail said:

but I adapted to a slim tipper and had a pair of great jam sessions with the drum circle

High recommend fiddle bow tipper if you can get one. Even better if with a weighted end. If you can get moises tippers anywhere near you, they are amazing and well worth the money. 
 

20 hours ago, Laghail said:

Setting myself a goal I can't meet is worst case scenario, and observation-only yields mediating as a half-time habit

None of us can see the future. I usually shove things into my challenges on the understanding i may not manage them. Life is full of unseen complications (both good and bad) and sometimes we just cant manage everything we plan for ourselves (or, if your me, take a bigger bite than you can chew ?). Accepting we cant do it all and siding in favour of not overloading ourselves is also important. Winter is coming and then lots of indoor time perfect for meditating (or rain watching, also good). Every month has its own flavour and some just don't match up with certain things sometimes. 
 

20 hours ago, Laghail said:

I read kids stories or news articles every day of this challenge. It felt mildly intrusive but my reading comprehension grew for sure. I think I'm going to track the number of words I'm looking up every day in my reading, and keep requiring a reading every day.

Whoo! Way to go with the reading fluency. 
 

 

[Laghail]

Tuesday October 15

Treating this as zero week and trying on different shapes for the challenge ahead before it's "official", and I'm a disciple at the feet of @Mad Hatter re: challenges need to serve my needs and we get to re-define challenges towards that end any time we need to.

 

I think we have a punch-list defined and a fun color scheme. I'm vacillating between a few options for a fun theme that can lean spooky for weeks 0-2, then pivot to pure cozy in weeks 3 and 4.

• I think my fear of failure self likes when I don't code things daily as red or fail, but instead aim at end of challenge metrics computations and compare month over month trends. Working theory anyway, but we'll see.
• Also experimenting with filling in an event calendar, partly because fun things are fun to look forward to, but really to give context to data behavior. Like lower sleep than normal today, no shit, I had an early meeting and I'm never able to fall asleep early on those nights prior.
• Prooobs should throw in a mood column under observations. Lets use the butterfly emoji and input something numeric on a 1-5 scale so I'm not overthinking things, maybe to be assessed as of the next day? Just seems like something end of challenge Laghail would like to have when he's comparing trends around sleep, creative output, and nutrition. 

 

Outside of challenge planning, I had a finance & budgeting date with Liam and he continues to be a solid gold partner, but money chats are inherently stressful. Thank god for carbs and cannibalism.

• Pic goes here

The 2018 movie "Freaks" sabotaged my banjo practice time last night, where it was supposed to be a trashy superhero flick and it turned out to be muuuch much more interesting. It's not horror and the child is not hurt in the movie, but no other spoilers since unraveling the mystery is a big part of the fun. 

• 

Finished Gillian McAllister's "Wrong Place Wrong Time" over the weekend and it was a lovely yarn. A nesting doll of a family story that unfolds in a reverse chronology in this time travel novel.

• 

[Everstorm]

21 minutes ago, Laghail said:

• I think my fear of failure self likes when I don't code things daily as red or fail, but instead aim at end of challenge metrics computations and compare month over month trends. Working theory anyway, but we'll see.
• Also experimenting with filling in an event calendar, partly because fun things are fun to look forward to, but really to give context to data behavior. Like lower sleep than normal today, no shit, I had an early meeting and I'm never able to fall asleep early on those nights prior.
• Prooobs should throw in a mood column under observations. Lets use the butterfly emoji and input something numeric on a 1-5 scale so I'm not overthinking things, maybe to be assessed as of the next day? Just seems like something end of challenge Laghail would like to have when he's comparing trends around sleep, creative output, and nutrition. 

 

I really love all of this: looking at context and trends instead of cold, isolated data.  

[Laghail]

Sorry, cannibalism pic

Spoiler

 

[Whisper]

2 hours ago, Laghail said:

Just seems like something end of challenge Laghail would like to have when he's comparing trends around sleep, creative output, and nutrition. 

Much value in remembering to do favors for our future selves. 

 

 

36 minutes ago, Laghail said:

Sorry, cannibalism pic

Love the top! It just screams "This here is a fun guy!"

[Snarkyfishguts]

I wasn't sure I wanted to click for cannibalism, but I'm happy I did!

[Sea-to-sky]

13 hours ago, Laghail said:

orry, cannibalism pic

I have questions. What even is that? Im assuming food of some sort, but food on sticks isnt really our forte in Cornwall. 

[Harriet]

Dammnit why can't I separate the quoted text into different blocks? Anyway, could you count the number of desired actions as an accumulating hoard of wealth, like I meant to do but didn't? Why have a fail condition at all?

Also, the blue poster for that movie, freaks, looks like a fish-eyed lion if you squint.

[Everstorm]

3 hours ago, Harriet said:

Dammnit why can't I separate the quoted text into different blocks?

 

Maybe an issue with the new servers?  They did say we might lose a few things along the way....