Dullicious.net

Dino found this personal dna test. Mouse over the squares to see what the colors are supposed to mean.

Apparently I am feeling trusting and spontaneous today. Low empathy though — see, I’m not as nice as people think I am! Though I am respectful I guess. Upon reflection, I think I’d rather be respectful than nice any day.

Your reserved nature, understanding of the world, and faith in others make you RESPECTFUL.

You trust those around you to do the right thing, so you tend not to get involved in other people’s affairs.

You have fewer friendships than some, but the relationships you do have are very meaningful and important to you.

Your careful and practical observation of your environment has led you to understand that others’ situations can be very complex.

The results are flattering, as these kinds of tests tend to be (my favorite personality test is the color test which I tend to take occasionally and which tends to tell me things which are less flattering but more accurate).

The dna test does sort of go off the rails a bit by saying that I’m calm and centered and it contradicts itself a bit, by venturing:

…you aren’t likely to rush into things—this patience allows you to see many different perspectives and options.

You tend to do things on the spur of the moment, not sticking to a set schedule.

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That’s me, spontaneously not rushing into things. Anyway, a fun test (what kind of accuracy does one expect from a online test) and pretty colors. I’d love to see what results others get as well.

Recent events involving the cat’s genitalia made me think of a good curse for Harry Potter and fellow wizards and witches:

Ablatio!

The song by Tiffany crept in my head last night at dinner, for some reason. Amy and I were having a nice meal at the Bistro. I just can’t see what in the world brought this song into the conversation. Anyway. YouTube has everything, both the 1987 video clip and some 2006 footage of a concert by Tiffany. Enjoy, people.

[2:29pm]
[2:29pm]

They [house plants] were huge and green and glorious, with shiny, healthy, lustrous leaves.

This was because, once a week, Crowley went around the flat with a green plastic plant mister, spraying the leaves, and talking to the plants.

He had heard about talking to plants in the early seventies, on Radio Four, and thought it an excellent idea. Although talking is perhaps the wrong word for what Crowley did.

What he did was put the fear of God into them.

More precisely, the fear of Crowley.

In addition to which, every couple of months Crowley would pick out a plant that was growing too slowly, or succumbing to leaf-wilt or browning, or just didn’t look quite as good as the others, and he would carry it around to all the other plants. “Say goodbye to your friend,” he’d say to them. “He just couldn’t cut it…”

Then he would leave the flat with the offending plant, and return an hour or so later with a large, empty flower pot, which he would leave somewhere conspicuously around the flat.

The plants were the most luxurious, verdant, and beautiful in London. Also the most terrified.

“Good Omens”
By Terry Pratchett and Neil Gaiman

From the ever-wonderful Dark Roasted Blend:

Fractal virus and bacterial colonies

cabbage

Also from Dark Roasted Blend, 60’s Glamour Beauty section, Claire from Vintage Commercial Aviation Promotions: Flight Attendants.

A few years ago Dean, the person who, for as long as I’ve known him, has introduced me most often to new music and most often to what soon becomes my favorite music (and movies, and TV — though, to be fair, it’s Max who has been the one to introduce me to favorite books and Coralie to favorite concerts), introduced us all to KEXP Seattle, 90.3FM. I listen to kexp online for most of my working day via iTunes and what new music I don’t hear via Dean, I find there (currently playing, for eg: is “Safe From Harm” by the awesome Massive Attack). I keep a text document open so I can note down songs to get later.

Lately the list consists of:

Hot Chip: And I Was a Boy from School
The Twilight Singers: Live With Me (Featuring Mark Lanegan)
The Smiths: Ask me
Electric Six: Danger!
Sol Seppy: Loves Boy
Okkervile River: Another Radio Song
Damien Rice: 9 Sins
Gomez: How we operate
Kings of Leon: On Call
The Fratellis: Ole Black ‘N’ Blue Eyes
Built to Spill: Car
Lyriccs Born: Callin’ Out
The Fratellis: Whistle for the Choir
Elvis Perkins: Ash Wednesday
El Perro del Mar: Candy
Eleni Mandell: Perfect Stranger

So in conclusion, if anyone wants to make me a mixed CD of the above (hint hint) or has other music to suggest, I would be ever-so grateful. It’s certainly possible there are ++ to be had and maybe Dean can be challenged as my reigning King of Musical Influence, or perhaps his power is absolute — who knows? All I’m sure of is that if you’re not listening to kexp, you should try it and if you’ve got CDs you want to send me, that’s ok too.

I learnt a couple days ago, after a visit at the New England Aquarium, that a group of jelly fish is called a smack. Amy and I got curious about other funny animal groups names. Since she is too busy at work and I’m actively vacationing, I got tagged to blog about the ones I like.

A congress of baboons
A sleuth/sloth of bears
A flock of cocks
A rainbow of butterflies
A coalition of cheetahs
A peep of chickens
A cartload of chimpanzees
A quiver of cobras
An intrusion of cockroaches
A murder of crows
A gang of (scurvy) dogs (hi gang!)
A duet of doves
A team of ducks
A swarm of eels (eek!)
A parade of elephants
An army of frogs (yay!)
A thunder of hippopotamus (uh-huh)
A tribe of humans
A mob of kangaroos (hop, hop!)
A pride of lions (that’s right!)
A mischief of mice
A buffoonery of orangutans
A pandemonium of parrots (brrrrrrak!)
A huddle of penguins
A plague of rats
A scurry of squirrels
A regatta of swans
An army of wombats

The NY Times has a powerful editorial “must-do list” for the new Democratic majority in Congress. The new Congress is challenged to correct the erosion of ‘founding principles of American democracy’ and ‘assaults on civil liberties.’

The list includes:

• Restore Habeas Corpus
• Stop Illegal Spying
• Ban Torture, Really
• Account for ‘Ghost Prisoners’
• Ban Extraordinary Rendition
• Ban Secret Evidence
• Respect the Right to Counsel

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Another heart-breaking story I read today was of a 9 year old Canadian boy who has been locked up in a Texas detention center with his family (seeking asylum from Iran where the father was arrested and tortured). He wrote a letter to the Prime Minister:

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write to your Congressman | Amnesty International | Human Rights Watch