Even in absurdity, sacrament. Even in hardship, holiness. Even in doubt, faith. Even in chaos, realization. Even in paradox, blessedness
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"Life expands or shrinks in proportion to one's courage." ~Anain Nin
Bring on the freeze-dried ludefisk: Swedes plan to colonise Moon We always knew the Swedes were a shifty bunch - softening hearts worldwide with a pleasing blend of inoffensive europop, cheap yet effortlessly stylish flat-pack furniture and fun-loving, pnemuatic blonde fillies - but now the horrible truth can now be revealed: they're planning to colonise the Moon thereby ensuring their own survival as the Earth's resources dwindle and lesser nations are returned to a primitive Stone-Age state enslaved to Sweden's galactic ambitions*. The proof comes in the form of the innocent-looking SMART-Centre which, according to various reports, has assembled a consortium of more than 50 partners - including Japan's Shimizu Corporation, US NASA contractor Orbitech and the UK's Cranfield University - to turn the centre's Dr. Niklas Järvstråt's dreams of extraterrestrial conquest into reality. Järvstråt first pitched the idea of colonising the Moon over ten years ago. His plan is to establish a self-sustaining community "where the great circle of life can be sustained in its entirety by lunar raw materials and where all life-sustaining products will be manufactured in situ". jaybird found this for you @ 16:56 in Radical Undertakings | | permalink
I pray to simulacra of self-fulfilling prophecies in the trees: Islanders pray to Jesus image on plant pot Mexicans have set up a shrine at a plant pot on the grounds of a beach resort on the Caribbean island of Cozumel after an image said to depict Jesus appeared on it following Hurricane Wilma a month ago, A receptionist at the Occidental Grand resort noticed the image likened to Jesus' face as shaken guests emerged from a storm shelter after huddling for three days while the hurricane hurled rain and debris. Local media are calling it a miracle and draw a link between the apparition and the fact that none of the 200 guests had suffered so much as a bruise during the storm, which tore up other beach resorts on Cozumel, bit holes in concrete buildings, ripped up sections of highway and flattened trees. The image stands out clearly as a Jesus-like face on the side of the enameled terra cotta planter -- whose plants also survived the storm despite being outside for its duration. jaybird found this for you @ 12:14 in Radical Undertakings | | permalink
reverse immigration I'd be sailing with my eyes open, and what I was seeing would sort of freeze. From then on I was dreaming, but my arm would still steer the boat, and the waves that hit the boat didn't quite line up with the dream waves. They'd hit the boat from a wrong angle and I'd jerk awake, able to see again, and straighten the boat out. I couldn't always tell if I was awake. I thought it would be a good rule to not do anything dangerous in my dreams since I might not really be asleep. Day came and I slept, less afraid of being run down by a ship. I'd wake up a few minutes or hours later and sail again til I couldn't stay awake, it would get dark and the stars would come out, and I didn't really know how many days it had been or if I'd missed some. After sailing for a while and getting really tired, the waves and sails started sounding like voices. I ignored them for a long time, but they didn't seem to do anything scary and they were mumbling anyway. Eventually I started tuning them in, and it was pretty funny stuff. There were some evil aliens that lived in my transom. When I went fast the transom made kind of a hissy alien sound. It was the soundtrack from a cable-tv sciencefiction show. These aliens had landed at a goth disco and were trying to fit in. They dressed up like vampires and looked really evil and talked in scary voices and were the coolest couple at the disco. They were really into evil in theory but they never actually harmed anyone. They said it was a "big-picture" approach to evil rather than a "street-crime" approach. Sea birds made calls sounded like people shouting things at me, I could never tell what. jaybird found this for you @ 15:38 in Radical Undertakings | | permalink
nesting behavior  jaybird found this for you @ 07:43 in Radical Undertakings | | permalink
Another man who walked a great distance The initial motivation was that the world is not so big after all. Also, like most young people I suspect, I had the desire to make a mark on the great tree of life, although eventually this became overladen with a desperate need to return home and be with my young family. I always loved England and children. In this respect it changed, grew, as I got deeper into it and wondered whether I would ever get out of it alive. The gent who crossed South America on foot first (I was second), the late Sebastian Snow, put it this way: It has not been done, and it ought to be done. It was a wonderful challenge! jaybird found this for you @ 12:16 in Radical Undertakings | | permalink
 One man dances his way around the world [.wmv 36MB]. This singular dancing man's blog about his walk around the world is here. [via MeFi] jaybird found this for you @ 20:34 in Radical Undertakings | | permalink
jaybird found this for you @ 20:12 in Radical Undertakings | | permalink
Brilliant: Academic turns city into a social experiment The fact that he was seen as an unusual leader gave the new mayor the opportunity to try extraordinary things, such as hiring 420 mimes to control traffic in Bogotá's chaotic and dangerous streets. He launched a "Night for Women" and asked the city's men to stay home in the evening and care for the children; 700,000 women went out on the first of three nights that Mockus dedicated to them. When there was a water shortage, Mockus appeared on TV programs taking a shower and turning off the water as he soaped, asking his fellow citizens to do the same. "The distribution of knowledge is the key contemporary task," Mockus said. "Knowledge empowers people. If people know the rules, and are sensitized by art, humor, and creativity, they are much more likely to accept change." jaybird found this for you @ 12:01 in Radical Undertakings | | permalink
A Winding Path: Why a microbiologist turned to the New Age art of building labyrinths -- by hand, out of dirt. (via homunculus) Champion, 62, was once a microbiologist, and is now one of the most recognized names on the shortlist of modern labyrinth builders in the world. He dug this structure himself, with just a shovel, two decades ago, but the design -- a seven-ring-style labyrinth named after the Greek island of Crete -- is ancient. These patterns have appeared through the ages in art, architecture, literature, myth, and religion; this particular one represents the labyrinth at its most primitive. The spiraling form appears in etchings and artifacts of cultures around the globe -- from native North Americans to the indigenous peoples of Scandinavia. The shape appears everywhere to Champion -- in knotted wood grains and constellations, in cloud formations and DNA. And it appears here, a few hundred yards from the front steps of his home in the hills above the Anderson Valley near Philo, its waist-high walls made from a few hundred thousand pounds of dirt, the whole structure a few hundred feet wide. jaybird found this for you @ 18:00 in Radical Undertakings | | permalink
One man, lots of helium, and tons of chutzpah: Ballooning into the Sky There's a sense of anticipation as the balloons are attached to you, and you grow lighter and lighter. The balloons are so big, it's like being a child again, and small. You're paying attention to the details, making sure everything is being rigged correctly. But even after you've done it many times before, there's still something a bit unreal to it. You wonder: am I really doing this? (related: Cloudhopping) jaybird found this for you @ 17:43 in Radical Undertakings | | permalink
 You're a peace bomb... Thai military drops "peace bombs" Hundreds of Thai school children and air force recruits have loaded an estimated 100 million origami birds onto military transport planes in preparation for a "peace bombing" of the violent Muslim south of the country. The little pieces of folded paper, to be dropped from the air on Sunday to mark the birthday of Thailand's revered king, Bhumibol Adulyadej, are meant to sow peace, harmony and goodwill in the three southernmost provinces, where an 11-month insurgency has claimed nearly 500 lives. jaybird found this for you @ 08:36 in Radical Undertakings | | permalink
See it, believe it: i'll find my frog jaybird found this for you @ 14:07 in Radical Undertakings | | permalink
Six days later, I was finally back home. The first thing I wanted to do was to change clothes and take a shower. But when I took off my sweater, to my amazement, I could see something sticking out of my belly button! I couldn’t believe it: something was growing in there! jaybird found this for you @ 20:52 in Radical Undertakings | | permalink
The Flying Man (via Reality Carnival) jaybird found this for you @ 12:44 in Radical Undertakings | | permalink
Probable Discovery Of A New, Probable Discovery Of A New, Supersolid, Phase Of Matter "Solid helium-4 appears to behave like a superfluid when it is so cold that the laws of quantum mechanics govern its behavior... One of the most intriguing predictions of the theory of quantum mechanics is the possibility of superfluid behavior in a solid, particularly solid helium-4, and we have strong experimental evidence for this behavior..." jaybird found this for you @ 09:44 in Radical Undertakings | | permalink
Berlin bear's break-out bid fails  Berlin bear's break-out bid fails A bold amphibious escape bid by a bear at Berlin zoo has been foiled... Juan the Andean spectacled bear first paddled across a moat using a log for a raft, then scaled a wall. Finally he appeared to commandeer a bicycle, before zookeepers with brooms cornered him, and a colleague picked him off with a tranquiliser gun. jaybird found this for you @ 07:22 in Radical Undertakings | | permalink
I love this guy: Turkmen I love this guy: Turkmen leader orders ice palace President Niyazov of Turkmenistan has ordered the construction of a palace made of ice in the heart of his desert country, one of the hottest on earth. "Let us build a palace of ice... big and grand enough for 1,000 people... Our children can learn to ski... we can build cafes there, and restaurants." As well as the ice palace, there is to be a vast aquarium. The projects tend now to be sites of recreation for the people, like a Disney-style theme park instead of state palaces. jaybird found this for you @ 11:27 in Radical Undertakings | | permalink
It's extreme kitten Friday! Boaters
Boaters find kitten swimming 3 miles offshore in Gulf of Mexico When Maggie Rogers spotted something bobbing in the water three miles into the Gulf of Mexico while on a scalloping trip with friends, she assumed it was a turtle, or a piece of sea kelp. But as the boat got closer and slowed down, she found it was a tiny, apricot-colored kitten. Nine inches long and screaming at the top of its lungs, the cat was paddling furiously. jaybird found this for you @ 15:57 in Radical Undertakings | | permalink
Man Tries to Get Rid Man Tries to Get Rid of Million Pennies A man is trying to get rid of his pennies - all 1 million of them. Ron England bet his brother 30 years ago that he could save a million pennies in exchange for a dinner in Paris. And he did, eventually stacking up 20,000 rolls that fill 13 boxes in his garage. Now that he's moving, England wants to cash in the $10,000 in coppers, which weigh 3.6 tons, but is having a tough time finding someone who will take them without a price. jaybird found this for you @ 17:48 in Radical Undertakings | | permalink
US chihuahua wows Japanese crowds US chihuahua wows Japanese crowds A wheelchair-bound chihuahua from the US is on a tour of Japan with his owner to tell his story of hope. Wheely Willy was crippled and abandoned before being rescued by Deborah Turner and helped to gain mobility by using a specially-designed wheelchair. jaybird found this for you @ 15:31 in Radical Undertakings | | permalink
I don't really link much I don't really link much to sports, but this qualifies for an entirely different reason: Jumbo footballers take on Thais Huge footballing talents are on show at the Euro 2004 championship, but in Thailand the star players are just huge - jumbo-sized, in fact. Ten elephants took on a Thai prison team on Sunday in a game that officials hoped would show playing football is more fun than gambling on it. jaybird found this for you @ 20:19 in Radical Undertakings | | permalink
Tomorrow is the World Naked Tomorrow is the World Naked Bike Ride, with Asheville listed as a participant city. Woo-hoo, but alas, my bike is out of comish. jaybird found this for you @ 12:08 in Radical Undertakings | | permalink
Nomad vagabonding along the backroads Nomad vagabonding along the backroads of America On the spur of the moment I drove from Maryland to Nevada and Oregon to South Carolina back to Maryland over 5 weeks and 9500 miles. For the majority of the time I lived in a Toyota 4Runner SUV camping in the outdoors. Except for the first week the trip was on back roads and off the highways, the less direct and more difficult the road the better. I had a laptop and GPS and real-time navigation software as a guide in finding off-beat routes. jaybird found this for you @ 22:19 in Radical Undertakings | | permalink
Sherpa sets record Everest time Sherpa sets record Everest time A new record for the fastest ascent of Mount Everest, government officials say. Pemba Dorje Sherpa climbed the mountain in eight hours and 10 minutes on Friday, tourism ministry official Purna Bhakta Tandukar confirmed. jaybird found this for you @ 16:53 in Radical Undertakings | | permalink
Extreme Peace: On January 1st, On January 1st, 2004, four Israelis and four Palestinians (two women and six men) will set off on a sea and land expedition to the distant reaches of Antarctica. Their goal is to summit and name a previously unclimbed mountain. Their expedition is called : 'Breaking the Ice'. This journey combines the spirit of adventure with a quest for understanding. It will force people separated by deep political and religious differences to cooperate in pursuit of a shared goal. jaybird found this for you @ 13:24 in Radical Undertakings | | permalink
French 'love' artist discovered France French 'love' artist discovered France has solved the mystery of the graffiti artist who has been covering the walls of its capital city with the word Amour, or Love, for months. jaybird found this for you @ 14:51 in Radical Undertakings | | permalink
You can do it on You can do it on a snowy mountain top, underwater, or falling from the sky. Liberated from being yet another menial chore, let's consider the vast new leisure-time possibilities of [extreme] ironing. jaybird found this for you @ 11:11 in Radical Undertakings | | permalink
Extreme Pumpkin Carving We will We will carve that sumbitch into something ugly and plop it on the front porch. October 31st we will light it brightly enough to give visiting children suntans. jaybird found this for you @ 18:10 in Radical Undertakings | | permalink
Solo flight record attempt Sir Sir Richard Branson and Steve Fossett are announcing the launch of the first solo-piloted aircraft to fly non-stop round the world without refuelling. jaybird found this for you @ 06:39 in Radical Undertakings | | permalink
I'm posting this just so I'm posting this just so I can say 'harrowing ordeal:' Woman falls overboard, swims to oil rig After falling overboard Tuesday from the shrimp boat where she worked, Lopez swam and floated until she reached safety at an oil platform, spray-painted a distress signal and managed to activate an alarm system to summon help. jaybird found this for you @ 19:32 in Radical Undertakings | | permalink
An A.D.D. Huck Finn: Boy's An A.D.D. Huck Finn: Boy's adventure ends safely After two nights away from home, Ryan McAniff [12]was wet, cold, and hungry, surviving on cheese slices and Capri Sun drink packets from his new residence inside someone else's $100,000 boat. jaybird found this for you @ 21:42 in Radical Undertakings | | permalink
Shoeshine man donates $89,000 in Shoeshine man donates $89,000 in tips to hospital Lexie goes to an office building about three blocks from the hospital and hands over his weekly donation — shoeshine tips, gifts from customers and contributions — to the hospital’s Free Care Fund. jaybird found this for you @ 17:18 in Radical Undertakings | | permalink
Man encased in a plastic Man encased in a plastic box over the River Thames. He will spend 44 days suspended beside the London river. During that time he will apparently go without food and will only have access to water fed through a tube. jaybird found this for you @ 21:01 in Radical Undertakings | | permalink
On teaching summer school: Failing On teaching summer school: Failing at Living / It's a blackboard jungle out there: It's bad enough when the students don't want to learn, but when they can't even spell dirty words correctly, can a teacher really expect them to grasp Stephen Sondheim? jaybird found this for you @ 16:37 in Radical Undertakings | | permalink
Injured Dog Amazes By Taking Injured Dog Amazes By Taking Self To Vet Scooby... somehow walked miles to a local animal clinic and was waiting on the doorstep when employees arrived for work. After proving just how smart he is, he is petitioning to change his name to something less stupid. jaybird found this for you @ 16:00 in Radical Undertakings | | permalink
Oh F***! This could be Oh F***! This could be the best legal defence, EVER! jaybird found this for you @ 18:02 in Radical Undertakings | | permalink
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