We are the World

On the night of the Olympics opening ceremonies, We Are The World 25 For Haiti (it's a remake of the original that was written 25 years ago to raise funds for the crisis that took place in Ethiopia) premiered to raise money for the reconstruction of Haiti. The video and song were downloaded at our household that very night and one or the other now plays almost around the clock. I get chills every single time I listen to it. Every time. Las woke up during the middle of the night and couldn't go back to sleep for another hour and a half because it was stuck in her head. She couldn't stand it the next day but I'm sure she'll be over it by the end of today. I'm not tiring of it yet. Because we sing it so much around the house, we now can imitate the different mannerisms and voice variances of the individual singers. You may say we are big fans around here but I must correct you by saying that no, we are not big fans, we are the world. Watch the official video below to feel the love. How fitting for this Valentine season!

Note: It's better to watch it in a larger frame. Click the four arrows on the bottom of the clip or watch it on youtube HERE.

Jackson Pollock

Ever heard of Jackson Pollock? Hopefully the answer to the question is "yes". There is a cool website that you can visit and waste, I mean, spend time making cool imitations of his works. I couldn't figure out how to save my creation as a picture to post so you'll just have to check it out yourself HERE.

Note: If you want to change colors during creation time, right click the mouse.

Love Poem

This is a favorite poem of mine. During high school a friend barked to me about doing a homework assignment on it so I took a look to see what the problem was. I liked it, a lot. It struck something in the back of my mind/heart. Maybe it was because it caught me off guard or maybe because it was nontraditional in the love poem sense. This poem could easily be sung to a child from a mother or from any human being carrying that deep, binding connection to another. It's such a pure expression and not flowered with lovey-doveyness (not that a little lovey-dovey isn't welcome every once in a while). In the Greek language there are four different words for our one word "love". They represent the aspects of physical, friendship, affection, and charity. This below poem goes for the charity, I'd say. Whad'ya think?

Sonnets from the Portuguese

XLIII

How do I love thee? Let me count the ways.

I love thee to the depth and breadth and height

My soul can reach, when feeling out of sight

For the ends of Being and ideal Grace.

I love thee to the level of everyday's

Most quiet need, by sun and candlelight.

I love thee freely, as men strive for Right;

I love thee purely, as they turn from Praise.

I love thee with the passion put to use

In my old griefs, and with my childhood's faith.

I love thee with a love I seemed to lose

With my lost saints,--I love thee with the breath,

Smiles, tears, of all my life!--and, if God choose,

I shall but love thee better after death.

-Elizabeth Barrett Browning

Tauntaun Ta-Da!

Oh man. This has got to be the grossest, funniest thing I've seen all week. For all you Star Wars lovers out there, rest assured that on your coldest, wintry nights you too can have your very own Tauntaun to keep you safe and warm. To purchase one from Think Geek, click HERE. Below are a couple other product pictures. Notice the innards of the sleeping bag look just like the squiggly Tauntaun guts from the movie? Gross, but glorious, sort of (it would be glorious if you were about to die)....

Must find warmth for Luke...

Aaaahh.

Friday Freebie!

This swell guy is brought to you by Etsy. All squirrels are hibernating now, except for the stuffed Kaibab one at our school library (see a Kaibab Squirrel HERE). With a glove, stuffing, and a few simple stitches you can have your very own.

Note: The Etsy how-to Title describes him as a chipmunk but he is clearly a squirrel, right? No? Ah nuts. Who cares? It's a freebie. The step-by-step directions can be found right HERE.