Librari[d]an

I had the opportunity to go see Dale Chihuly’s installation the other day at the Phipps Conservatory & Botanical Gardens. (Good thing, too, because it’s heading out.) Chihuly shapes, colors, and textures glass in some pretty remarkable ways. Whether it’s futuristic neon lights made to resemble a tree’s canopy (in abstraction) or a pillar of glass that seems to be inspired by the kelp from the Sargasso Sea, his designs a treat for the eyes. I had resisted going during the day because I heard the illuminated glass was so remarkable at night.

Photos:

• Phalanx of color / movement in the Palm Court.
• Neon brambles / creepers (also, me) in the Thai Tropical Forest exhibit.
• Aqueous, bioluminescent clam forms in the Sunken Garden.
• Verdigris fairy tale-scape in the East Room.

Special thanks to Kat for snapping the photos and meandering with me.

Finished Murakami’s Dance Dance Dance back on the 10th. For being one of his earlier novels - it was first published in 1988 - I felt that it was vastly superior to Kafka on the Shore. Here are a few passages from pages that I dog-eared. (My commentary follows the page number.) I didn’t include any part of the Kiki finale because none of the diction struck me as particularly noteworthy. However, the culmination of the “crying” dream is rather impressive in terms of atmosphere, mood, and imagery.

Now on to the fair use quotes / copyright infringement. (Circle one.)

“But as she got out, she asked if I would see her to her door. Probably no reason for concern, she apologized, but every once in a while, late at night, there’d be a strange man in the hall. I asked the driver to wait a few minutes, then accompanied her, arm in arm, up the frozen walk. We climbed the two flights of stairs and came to her door marked 306.” (51) Just a shout out to the stacks folk.

“You can ask the cabbage moth, you can ask the alfalfa. There’s not a human alive who keeps promises better than me.” (163) Japanese proverb? Pop-culture reference?

“Evening was gathering, darker and deeper.” (201) Nice - if a bit common sounding - turn of phrase.

“All of a sudden, I was wandering through the labyrinthine viscera of a large organism. Long-dead, cracked, eroded. By something beyond reality, beyond human rationality, I had slipped through a fault in time and entered this . . . thing.” (269) The maze is an important motif in Murakami’s “progressively post-modern” writing. (Lee) This is more for Googlers than anyone else.

“That was when I noticed a third presence in the room. Someone else was here besides Gotanda and myself. I sensed body heat, breathing, odor. Yet it wasn’t human. I froze. I glanced quickly around the room, but I saw nothing. There was only the feeling of something. Something solid, but invisible. I breathed deeply. I strained to hear.

It waited, crouching, holding its breath. Then it was gone.” (323) Creepy! I love to be thrilled like this. That penultimate sentence made my hair stand on end.

“I’m solid with deep inner meaning and pragmatic spirit.”(333) I’d love to hear someone actually say this aloud. The pluck reminds me of Huckleberry Finn and Pollyanna.

“Whenever I’m with you, I feel so relaxed. I never feel the gap. You don’t know how precious that is.” (355) Great use of the word “precious”. I also like how you can read into “the gap”, relating it to the following:

“For darkness terrifies. It swallows you, warps you, nullifies you.” (387) Again, motif driven quotage. I also like just the first sentence. Does a good job of standing alone, no?

:: Bibliography ::

• Lee, Jin Y. Murakami Interview, Part 2. http://selfdivider.com/base/?p=40 (20 February 2008). (Note: A “hasty and imperfect”, unofficial translation by an anonymous blogger. Originally appeared in the January 2007 issue of GQ Korea. See also: Part 1, Part 3, Part 4. Thanks to Ryan for sending it my way.)
• Murakami, Haruki. Dance Dance Dance: A Novel. Birnbaum, Alfred, trans. Tokyo: Kodansha International, 1994. ISBN: 4770016832.

…but instead I’m watching installment after installment of Herping with Dylan (while staying toasty under my electric blanket).

For the uninitiated, herping is a slang term derived from herpetology, the study of reptiles and amphibians. Dylan, unlike yours truly, is willing to go all out when scouting for specimens. Rain, midnight, mud–none of it seems to phase him. I was like that back in the day, when I would go herping in the creeks near Armstrong Park and near my grandparents’ house in Upstate New York. However, now you’ll find me inching around Panther Hollow Lake with a face warped by disgust.

So my interaction with creepy crawlies is now mediated by a computer monitor. Goodbye nature, hello House of Slime.

I am a pretty unabashed fan of the Indian Jones films. Yes–even that terrible one where they’re not looking for a Biblical relic. (That would be Temple of Doom for all you non-believers. Tut tut for not remembering it.) Something about banding together to defeat the Nazis has always resonated with me, especially if there are zeppelins and fancy period costumes involved. (I’m probably going to have to rent The Rocketeer one of these days, if only for the set and costume designs.) In my interview for my financial aid/internship, I actually talked at length about how this scene - in which Indy confronts Elsa at a book-burning - made quite the impression on me. (In all honesty, not the book burning itself, but the subtlety with which they were developing Elsa’s character.) For some reason, after this they still decided to give me a job and gobs of money. Bizarre.

So there’s a new one coming out: Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull. Watch the teaser trailer for it here. This promotional peek is so jam-packed with action that I’m not sure what to think. (I know they’re just using it to sell the film, but it all seems too flashy and sensationally shot.) For me, Indiana Jones was never about the action. Dodging deadly, ancient booby traps in the grail temple in The Last Crusade was pretty awesome, but it was a lot more fun watching Indy puzzle out the solutions to these archaeological trials. Plus, Indy isn’t the spring chicken any more. I don’t want to see Harrison Ford gallivanting around, bull whip in hand, as if he was still 35 (or even 45). I felt myself wince every time I saw any stunt work in the trailer. Was this because I was afraid he’d get a hernia, or because it so unabashedly shatters our willful suspension of disbelief? (Funny, that I can handle ghosts making Nazis’ faces melt and a false grail dessicating a man, but can’t stomach Ford’s geriatric acrobatics.)

So, strike the plot stuff that I love: Nazis, Europe (apparently this one is set somewhere in Central/South America), Biblical artifacts. Insert stuff that I am ambivalent toward: that kid with the weak chin from Transformers (Shia LaBeouf), tons of action, tons of kinetic cinematography, tons of cgi, the Russkies. (Communism? Come on! It’s not evil. It can’t hold a candle to Nazis.) Now can you see why I’m a bit worried?

There are, however, two women who can save the film: Karen Allen and Cate Blanchett. Karen has a bunch of stuff going for her; her character from Raiders of the Lost Ark, Marion Ravenwood, is certainly the most plucky and popular of Indiana Jones’ love interests. However, she’s mainly coasting on nostalgia. (And did she get some plastic surgery? Or just get old? Her face looks different…) Cate Blanchett is just really, really good at acting. I know she’ll give a solid performance even if her character - Irina Spalko - isn’t particularly sexy or interesting. (However, despite her frump uniform costume and bob coiffure I think she may end up being both.) Happily she seems to be the main villain and is getting considerable screen time in the trailer. (Hooray for Communism! Equality of the sexes! Finally a villainess that isn’t subservient to a man!) However, the same can’t be said for Allen, who is only in a few shots.

So I guess I’ll just have to wait and see how it goes (on 22 May 2008). Mark your calendars, my little Short Rounds.

My grandmother was of dubious character, as partially evinced by her decision to go by the name Mimi (rather than her Christian name) and her extraction (The Bronx). Despite these grave errors in preference and pedigree, she did make a damn good fruit pudding.

:: Mimi’s fruit pudding ::
Makes approx 3 cups

Ingredients:
1 3 oz package vanilla pudding
1 3 oz package tapioca pudding
1 20 oz can pineapple chunks
1 11 oz can mandarin orange slices
2 bananas (sliced)
1 tablespoon frozen orange juice concentrate

1. Drain fruit and reserve liquid.
2. Add water to make 3 cups.
3. Cook pudding with 3 cups liquid + orange juice until thick.
4. Cool.
5. Add fruit and stir.

I’m going to feed this to the Lost clan tonight. Liz has promised us heart-shaped pizza, as it is Valentine’s Day. What a sweet pea, that one!

Bananas go in just before serving.

Pittsburgh is hiring a Bicycle Pedestrian Coordinator. I hope the poor sap who gets the job knows what she’s in for.

Poor sap? I was wrong. She will be loaded with a “$45,347 per year” salary. Other benefits include:

• Health, Dental and Vision Benefits
• Pension
• Voluntary Deferred Compensation Plan
• Tuition Reimbursement
• Paid Holidays
• Paid Vacation
• Personal Days

Yinz have until 29 Februrary 2008. Start revising those curricula vitae now.

:: Bibliography ::

Employment Announcement for the position of: BICYCLE PEDESTRIAN COORDINATOR. City of Pittsburgh. https://www.city.pittsburgh.pa.us/pers-depo/Announcements/BIKEPEDCOORD.HTM (11 February 2008).

There’s nothing quite like refining a recipe you already know and love. It’s the same type of pleasure that you get after crafting a masterful sentence. The recipe for Confetti Bites (known in my household as “Veggie Pizza”) is delicious. However, I found myself constantly thinking about what I could change to make it healthier.

I recently took my highly edited version of this recipe to a potluck, and although it didn’t stand out among the many excellent dishes, everyone was well pleased. (I had to compete against homemade pasta and cheesecake! Gone are the simple days when my culinary skills wowed the entirety of the Stacks department.)

:: Hummus and veggie squares ::

1 Container garlic hummus
2 Eight ounce packages of refrigerated crescent rolls
Salad Supreme
Basil
Chopped vegetables (carrots, red peppers, broccoli, cauliflower)

1. Press the contents of each crescent roll package onto a 15×10x1″ baking sheet to form crust. (No need to grease the sheet.)
2. Bake in a 350° F oven for 12-15 min. (They burn easily. Be vigilant.)
3. Spread hummus over the cooled crust.
4. Top with: Salad Supreme, basil, chopped vegetables.

I used Tribe brand hummus, but I think a more finely puréed one, such as Sabra, might taste better. (I had tried to make my own, but alas, it wasn’t very good.) It may also be advisable to experiment with a plain or flavored hummus if you plan on changing the vegetables. I chose these based on color, then taste. Other flavors may require a slightly different spread.

In the future, I’m going to try mushing the crescent roll dough into a ball and rolling it out. Hopefully this will prevent the final crust from breaking along the dough’s original perforated lines (despite my efforts to blend the dough into one mass on the sheet).

Note: Salad Supreme (and most likely the crescent roll dough) is not vegan; it contains Romano cheese. To create a vegan substitute mix: salt, sesame seeds, poppy seeds, paprika, celery seeds, garlic powder, black pepper, and red pepper. (You’re on your own when it comes to making a vegan crust!)