12.22.16

'Do you hear the snow against the window-panes, Kitty? How nice and soft it sounds! Just as if some one was kissing the window all over outside. I wonder if the snow loves the trees and fields, that it kisses them so gently? And then it covers them up snug, you know, with a white quilt; and perhaps it says "Go to sleep, darlings, till the summer comes again."'

(lewis carroll, from through the looking-glass, and what alice found there)

Along with many other members of the Standing Rock community, [tribal chair David] Archambault has steered the encampment in a nonviolent direction. The camp’s direct-action group, Red Warrior, has maintained a discipline and humility that still speaks powerfully to people all over the world. A recently published photo of a person from that night of November 20th, covered in ice and praying, illustrates the deep resolve that comes from a philosophy based on generosity of spirit.

(louise erdich, from "holy rage: lessons from standing rock")

Although a common pain response, whether swearing alters individuals' experience of pain has not been investigated. This study investigated whether swearing affects cold-pressor pain tolerance (the ability to withstand immersing the hand in icy water), pain perception and heart rate. In a repeated measures design, pain outcomes were assessed in participants asked to repeat a swear word versus a neutral word. In addition, sex differences and the roles of pain catastrophising, fear of pain and trait anxiety were explored. Swearing increased pain tolerance, increased heart rate and decreased perceived pain compared with not swearing. However, swearing did not increase pain tolerance in males with a tendency to catastrophise. The observed pain-lessening (hypoalgesic) effect may occur because swearing induces a fight-or-flight response and nullifies the link between fear of pain and pain perception.

(r stephens et al, from swearing as a response to pain, neuroreport, 2009)

03.13.09: curiouser and curiouser

have you read "in the blood," the feature in this week's new yorker on why vampires "still thrill" (A: because they are, as strong bad would say, still awesome)? read it immediately, for it's studded with exotic vampire factoids (as opposed to the generic and now fairly discredited vlad-the-impaler stuff) like this:

Matthew Beresford, in his recent book “From Demons to Dracula: The Creation of the Modern Vampire Myth” (University of Chicago; $24.95), records a Serbian Gypsy belief that pumpkins, if kept for more than ten days, may cross over: “The gathered pumpkins stir all by themselves and make a sound like ‘brrl, brrl, brrl!’ and begin to shake themselves.” Then they become vampires.

this has absolutely happened in our apartment, and also explains those ghostly white pumpkins you see every now and again.

got a blog post roundup from bust yesterday that mentioned the 1985 made-for-tv alice in wonderland:

This was one of my favorite movies growing up, I even remember the soft white light bulb commercials that came on when she was falling down the hole. Ringo Starr and Sammy Davis Jr kill it, plus Scott Baio* is adorbs! Does anyone else remember this?

i hadn't until that very moment, but damn if i didn't remember right then that natalie gregory (alice) was in my french class when i was a freshman in high school. for reasons still buried in the sands of time, i believe we ended up watching part of that crazy movie in class, to see ol' natalie in action (alas, we did not get to screen her episode of magnum, p.i.). she was better at being alice than she was at speaking french, as i recall - but who hasn't felt that way at one time or another? man, growing up in southern california was weird.

if the lovely weekend weather we're promised shows up on schedule, we plan to photo-safari across the brooklyn bridge for pizza at grimaldi's (which would knock down two 101 in 1001 {II} list items in one fell swoop - hey hey progress!). and you?

*as "pat the pig."