Lacuna

BaltiCon Pics are up at last

2009-08-05T07:11:19Z

I need help identifying some people. Please shoot me an email or message here or on FB. Thanks!

www.flickr.com/photos/12606665@N03/sets/72157621826098303/

Enjoy!

June 16th

2009-07-17T03:45:30Z

I can say this here because none of her friends read this, as far as I know. My daughter just got engaged today. Shhhh. It's not public yet but a ring is on her finger and her mum is rumored to be so pleased, she can hardly breathe.

Oh, I just realized my son can read this so I cannot post it until tomorrow. This will make no sense by then but that's the way it rolls..

Dunn by Numbers #8

2009-05-31T20:11:38Z

Charts -- my dear friend Charlotte Cremin

Dunn by Numbers #7

2009-04-19T02:43:56Z

Tinhorn: the incomparable Dave Shukan

Dunn by Numbers #6

2009-04-12T00:18:19Z

Lily at age 5

Lily is my son's sweetheart's daughter. The original was taken at our holiday celebration. This is my first attempt with using the Mask feature in Photoshop.

Dunn by Numbers #5

2009-04-07T00:32:13Z

Jeffurry and Qaqaq
aka Jeffrey Schwartz and Trip Payne

This was a threesome but the third Musketeer did not want to be cartooned so I edited him out. Enjoy.

Dunn by Numbers #4

2009-04-04T22:24:28Z

Tablesaw aka Tony Delgado

Conorado 2008

Dunn by Numbers #3

2009-04-04T14:32:40Z

Mr. and Mrs. Shaw.

Two of my closest friends. Madly in love after all these years.

Dunn by Numbers #2

2009-04-03T06:57:52Z

FULDU aka Scott Purdy

Conorado 2008

Dunn by Numbers #1

2009-04-01T23:56:23Z

An Unemployed Old Woman Occupies Herself

I'm on A Way With Words -- podcast!

2009-02-16T19:02:27Z

www.waywordradio.org/l-u-r-v-e-love/

A Way With Words is a wonderful show about language and slang and words and all that yummy stuff! Hope you enjoy it. I'm about 30 minutes in and every show they have a member from the National Puzzlers' League (npl ) play a little game with them. This was my week. I did about as well here as I did on Jeopardy!.

I should also mention that Greg Pliska (gnatural) and John Chaneski (chainsaw) do a puzzle segment on the show and in "my" show, Greg has a great game where you remove a unit of measurement or length from a long word that leaves another word. Go NPL!

SF 96 Hours Cover for Briana!

2009-01-22T18:33:38Z

Woot! Link to Article.

Bri thinks she likes like a man and Thien doesn't like his face in this picture. What's new?

Someday I'll get a life

2009-01-22T05:44:18Z

But until I do, here's something you and your kids will like that artners Thien and Briana are doing in conjunction with the Market Street Poster Project now on view on Market Street in SF.

Sunday, January 25
1 to 4 pm

YOU DO IT workshop at San Francisco's Cartoon Art Museum

You don't have to know how to do anything artsy. Just come on over and Thien and Bri will walk you through a fun experience where you will do your own skilcreening and try your hand at creating a comic panel.

More info?

http://www.cartoonart.org/

655 Mission Street
San Francisco CA

Dracula on Fire in Oakland CA

2009-01-08T18:43:24Z

My son, lucaskrech lit this play. It is at The Crucible in Oakland where they play with fire. This is amazing. Two nights are already sold out. It's different and so worth the cost of admission. Go here for ticket information. The Crucible is across the street from the West Oakland BART station.

And here's a little clip to enjoy.

And here is another bit from ABC News: http://abclocal.go.com/kgo/video?id=6587977

nplloquacious @ 2008-12-27T06:28:00

2008-12-27T15:07:19Z

The economic tsunami has hit home. I knew it was coming and they were decent (or I made it easy for them, depending on how one might look at it). Four people in my office of 16 were laid off. I have word that at least one person from each of the other two offices also lost their jobs. We are all old-timers (some with more than twenty years) who were well-paid. As many of you know, I had an incredibly easy gig, and it always surprised me that they were okay with that. But last Monday, the 22nd, it came to an end. Even though I knew it was coming, It's been a whirlwind of emotions since Monday evening.

I was laid off at 7:45 a.m. on Monday, came home, and applied for for unemployment. I didn't charge them for the almost three hours I had been in the office awaiting execution. I selected a black outfit with a red shirt in homage to Mary, Queen of Scots. I thought that was appropriate both for the season and the reason.

It's been nerve-wracking waiting for the ax to fall but now that I know that I have COBRA for my medical coverage, I am a bit relieved when I am not gripped with complete fear.

I'm not someone who has a lot of money. I must generate some somehow, but at least I have health coverage and enough to survive for maybe three years with no other income coming in. My life feels like one rug after another being pulled out from under me and I seem to have gotten quite good at handling these big blows. This one had me by the tail because they weren't sure if Kaiser accepted COBRA. I just don't know how I would manage my not insignificant health issues without coverage. So, as long as I can pay for the $550 monthly premium, I have coverage. My rent was raised effective January 1. I may have to move but without a job, that's not quite so easy around here (Oakland, CA).

I am massively confused about how to do all of this. I will be balancing unemployment, social security, withdrawing from a 401K, etc., and I don't have a clue about what goes with what and how to do this. I so grateful I pulled all my money out of the market last March. I may not be earning interest but I have not lost anything either. So much better than everyone I know. That was one good decision in a sea of bad decisions that I have made in my life.

I know I am very lucky to have what I have. I think I will manage somehow. There is much to be grateful for. When my head stops spinning, I'll be able to name them.

I had to prepare for the first christmas in nine years with both my children and their SOs and struggled with lots of emotions. So grateful to my daughter for coming over and being my sous chef. She prepared a scrumptious feast for all of us and was a solid rock of support throughout the prep time. I am happy to report that on the 24th, we had a joyous evening. Pics are here and here, if you'd like a look-see.

If anyone has any leads for any work as a researcher, librarian, any kind of basic computer stuff (power user, not programming and such tho able to handle simple HTML, javascript, basic stuff), anything with teaching, training, project management, organization, I don't know what..., please keep me in mind. I'm stumped as to how to be 64, a bit disabled, and unemployed.

Another cog, I know. I also know that I am in a much better position than so many Americans right now. I have no debt. I pulled out of the market last March so have not lost any money there. I do not have children to feed, clothe, and house. I can cut my spending, my car is paid for. I am so lucky in all that and feel for those who are really left with nothing when they lose their job. I have been there in my life and that is truly terrifying. I am not in Darfur. My children are healthy and both are deeply in love with people I like.

I have a lot and I know I am okay at least in the short term, but I get very scared. There is so little that is stable for all of us right now. Please let me know if you have any ideas about any options. I'm not a big LJ contributor, and I think this is sort of silly to write out here, but who the heck knows. Certainly not me.

And now for some news about my daughter

2008-12-09T14:44:06Z

It's not like I'm trying to be a show biz mother; it just works out that way -- in part because mum never advertises herself, ever. And yet, they find her...

San Francisco Bus Kiosk Poster Exhibition: A romantic comic book story about The Might Defender unfolds across four repeating series of six poster designs installed in consecutive order in 24 triangular kiosks on Market Street between Van Ness and the Embarcadero from December 22, 2008 until March 19, 2009. The posters, designed by artists Briana Miller and Thien Pham, were commissioned by the San Francisco Arts Commission's Art on Market Street 2008 Program.

Artists Miller and Pham set out to create a comic book story that can be read in both directions, so that pedestrians can read the story regardless of the direction they are walking on Market Street. Both the first and the sixth posters were designed as comic book covers, each with a different title: the first poster begins a story titled Love’s Unsung Hero and the sixth poster begins a story titled The Mighty Defender . The stories, which include a hero, a sweet romance, and an encounter with dastardly villains, both unfold in San Francisco with images of the Golden Gate and the Bay Bridges, the Ferry Building, and The Mint.

More at: http://www.sfartscommission.org/pubart/about_us/press_releases/2008/11-25-08.html

Briana/mum did the drawings and her artner Thien did the color and backgrounds. They both do the silkscreening. There are some nice pics and video of them working on silkscreening some other projects on Briana's Flickr page. You'll have to go to Market Street and ride the streetcars if you want to see and read the comic.

The America Play (San Francisco)

2008-12-08T13:53:26Z

My son, lucaskrech , was the lighting designer for The America Play, now at the Thick House Theater in San Francisco. I should have gotten this up sooner but didn't catch the review until today.

On Thursday, I'm going to see it, so I cannot give you my opinion, which I'm never short of, much to the occasional annoyance of my children. But if you are free and want to see some good local theater, I think you will enjoy it. Lucas's lighting is usually so beautiful -- lush and saturated -- and from the review it sounds like the lighting will be featured, they way lighting is a dancer in a ballet. Lucas says that the best lighting is when the audience doesn't notice it, except for ballet. So this might be of particular interest to theater lovers from a production point of view. It helps that the play is good.

It's very odd having adult children. If you have them, you may feel some kinship to this or not; I never seem to quite fit in with the norm so I don't know how other parents are reacting to watching the success of their kids.

It is different for me from the general rooting and support of my children's successes or failures when they were children. Now, it has nothing to do with me -- well, not in any direct manner. I have no or very little input on their work now. It feels very odd to not be needed and I have been flailing a lot trying to fill that part of my life because I was good at it and it took a lot of my time and energy and I miss it.

I worked on Ghost Patrol for the last six months or so and that's at least a whole posting that will never happen but now I am without a diversion and I'm having some struggles with how to fill the void again. I have a history of dropping things and never going back to them so the acting I was doing now seems hard to reach and even puzzles are beginning to lose my attention. I wish I was good at something like I was as a parent.

I Can Lurk on my Daughter's Facebook page

2008-11-20T22:08:37Z

Which means I learn about things like this:

Now, the reasons for my lurking on Facebook instead of joining Facebook are many, and there are moments when I would like to say... Oooo Ooooo I want to know that person... but I have a hard enough time over here in LJland with this weird personal exposure to the whole world paradigm. I'm just skimming the surface of Flickr as a viable way to store images. I ~~don't~~ didn't have a cell phone until two weeks ago when some other people on game control for Ghost Patrol thought it was imperative, or maybe just really a good idea, that I have one to use when we ran the game. But now I keep it in a mylar bag in the hope that the GPS is baffled the same way FasTrak is baffled. FasTrak also freaks me out and I switch between showing it and not showing it, just to feel better about them always knowing where I am and how fast I'm going. I use cash for almost all my purchases because I hate that thing my bank does where it shows you where you used the card and the bank or credit card or store knows every single thing I have purchased and can market to me based on that very accurate information.

I now know that I was an early adapter back in the 80s and 90s -- before there were early adapters and I am now a Luddite. I tell myself I am just trying to maintain some semblance of dignity vis-á-vis my privacy but, really, I'm balking at this changing world. I am rapidly gaining an appreciation fora guy named Jim (maybe) who, back in the early 1970s, traveled everywhere by horseback or walking. I lived in the backwoods (really backwoods) in Humboldt County, doing things with botanical life that would have put me in prison for many years or forever if we had been as idiotic then as we are today.

Anyway, Jim walked his horse every week or ten days down the mountain to Redway to pick up his mail and whatever few things he was unable to manufacture on his own. One day, I stopped my truck to say hello and I asked him why he kept riding a horse when a car was much faster. Well, he said, I got a truck. I'll use it if I have to. Hell, I grew up with them. But I don't like them. Why, I asked. Don't really know, he replied. Just don't. Maybe it's because my horse goes about the same speed as me. (Or something like that. Who the heck knows what he said. This took place almost forty years ago.)

So I think that's kind of where I am with this new world in which I find myself. I just don't like it but I'll use it if I have to. And I am more comfortable with a speed that is more in line with the speed I'm used to. So, I have evolved from an early adapter to a Luddite. Yay for me.

Call in Gay on December 10. If nothing else, it might be a pleasant shock to say it and who knows, maybe we can chip away at another bigotry. One prejudice at a time, perhaps?

It's all about memememememememe

2008-11-05T20:18:54Z

The first time I walked in a civil rights march was in 1958. I was 14. What a day it was.

November 22, ~~1962~~ 1963, our 45 46-year-old, only-Catholic-ever-President was assasinated. Barack Obama was ~~15 months~~ 2 years old. What a day it was.

On November 4, 2008, the United States of America elected that African-American man to be the 44th president of the United States. What a day it was.

On November 4, 2008, I turned 64. What a day it was.

Happy birthday to me. It's the best birthday present I've ever had.

January 20, 2009

2008-11-05T14:18:36Z

We get down to work. There is so much to do. I cannot wait.

Just in case you missed it...

2008-11-05T14:08:32Z

Obama's acceptance speech in Chicago last night.

I'm still in shock.

My Country -- I love you

2008-11-05T04:17:21Z

A whole new world.

I <3 Oakland California

2008-11-04T15:28:27Z

I live up the hill from the Grand Lake Theater. They run first run movies on four screens. The marquee has movies listed on one side of the signage and on the other side? With a tip 'o the hat to elainetyger who loves signs, this sort of thing:

It makes me all warm and fuzzy.

VOTE!

2008-11-04T14:57:43Z

Vote

Vote

Vote

Vote

Vote

Vote

Vote

Vote

Vote

Vote

Vote

Like your life depends on it.

Liberal?

2008-10-27T16:14:13Z

I am interested in the question: Is "liberal" the equivalent of "totally tolerant of everyone"?

My dictionary of choice (Merriam Webster 11) equates "liberal" and "tolerant" only in the most broad sense, highlighted in bold below. It is unlikely one would read the entire entry (given its dense visual nature) and it should be noted that this is just the adjectival use (the nominative form is much shorter but does not address tolerance at all in this dictionary) but if you do, you will not find the terms liberal and tolerant to be synonymous.

In this definition, a liberal person is one who is free from dogma. If I were a liberal and held that some people are worthy of intolerance, I suggest that means I am a liberal. I have long claimed this adjective, especially when it was anathema but these days, the conflation of liberal with complete acceptance of any behavior (like circumcision, as an example [the practice of female circumcision is indigenous and therefore none of my business. The practice of religious circumcision is the result of a belief and therefore not only permitted but off-limits to challenge]), I have moved off that identifier to something closer to Social Democrat.

FWIW:

From Merriam-Webster 11:

Main Entry: 1liberal
Pronunciation:*lib(*)r*l
Function:adjective
Etymology:Middle English, from Middle French, Medieval Latin & Latin; Middle French, from Medieval Latin & Latin; Medieval Latin liberalis of or constituting liberal arts, from Latin, of freedom, of a freeman, noble, generous, from liber free + -alis -al; akin to Old English l*odan to grow, l*od poeple, Old High German liotan to grow, liut person, people, Old Norse lothiun shaggy, Gothic lindan to grow, Greek eleutheros free, Sanskrit rodhati, rohati he climbs, grows; basic meaning: growing

1 a : of, belonging to, being, or consisting of liberal arts or one of the liberal arts *the studies are liberal, not in one of the technical fields* b archaic   : of, belonging to, or befitting a man of free birth; also   : of, belonging to, or befitting one that is a gentleman in social rank c : of, belonging to, or befitting a free man *the liberal occupations of the gentry of ancient Rome*

2 a : marked by generosity, bounteousness, openhandedness : not stinting *a liberal giver* *a man of liberal nature* b : bestowed in a generous and openhanded way : ABUNDANT, BOUNTIFUL, AMPLE *a liberal donation* *a liberal quantity* *receiving liberal rewards for the risks they took American Guide Series: New Hampshire* c : LARGE, FULL *possessed a liberal lip* *a liberal bosom*

3 a : free from restraint or check : unchecked by a sense of the decorous, the fitting, or the polite *possessed a liberal tongue that was always offending people* b obsolete   : lacking significant moral restraints : LICENTIOUS

4 a : not strict or rigorous *a liberal attitude toward one's children* b : not confined or restricted to the exact or literal *a liberal translation of the Greek text*

5 a : not narrow in mind : BROAD-MINDED, OPEN-MINDED b : not bound by authoritarianism, orthodoxy, or traditional or established forms in action, attitude, or opinion *a man of liberal views who would not mind making significant changes in the social or economic structure if he felt it was for the best* *liberal in his interpretation of his duties as a governor* *theologians, even the most liberal, will rally to the defense of theology A.L.Gu*rard* c [French lib*ral, from Middle French liberal] : of, favoring, or based upon the principles of liberalism *the liberal theory of progress M.Q.Sibley* *the issue of liberal constitutionalism G.H.Sabine* *the liberal emphasis upon the inalienable rights of the individual J.H.Hallowell* *the Prussian monarchy was not liberal, but it was progressive and enterprising Stringfellow Barr*

compare CONSERVATIVE, RADICAL 3a d usually capitalized   : of, belonging to, or constituting a political party advocating or associated with the principles of political liberalism: as(1) : of or constituting a political party in the United Kingdom evolving from the Whigs and associated during the period of its status as one of the two major British parties of the 19th and early 20th centuries with ideals of individual especially economic freedom, greater individual participation in government, and constitutional, political, and administrative reforms designed to secure these objectives *the English Liberal party was rent asunder by the explosives of modern nationalism C.J.Friedrich* *Liberal representation in Parliament has been reduced to a tiny handful Henry Slesser*

compare CATHOLIC, CONSERVATIVE, LABOR, RADICAL 3c(1), TORY, UNIONIST, WHIG(2) : of or constituting a major political party in another member nation of the British Commonwealth *the Province of Quebec T is the stronghold of the Liberal party C.E.Silcox* *launched the Liberal government's policy in Australia's federal election campaign A.E.Norman* *Liberal opposition to Labor proposals in the New Zealand parliament*(3) : of or constituting a minor political party active chiefly in New York and associated with social reform and support of policies favorable to organized labor *the anticommunist stand taken by the founders of the Liberal party*

synonyms PROGRESSIVE, ADVANCED, RADICAL agree in application to a person or thing freed from or opposed to what is established or orthodox.

LIBERAL, the most general term, suggests an emancipation from convention, tradition, or dogma that extends from a belief in altering institutions to fit altering conditions to a preference for lawlessness; on the one hand it suggests a commendable pragmatism, tolerance, and broad-mindedness and on the other a highly questionable unorthodoxy, experimentalism, or positive irresponsibility *a liberal Episcopalian, preferred a non-Gothic auditorium in which the congregation could hear well, rather than merely view distant ritual Robert Berkelman* *the prevailing liberal movement of the time was Benthamite in its emphasis on legal and social reform, and denounced tradition as the chief obstacle to progress Michael Polanyi* *don't let us be hampered by routine and red tape and precedent, let's T put a liberal interpretation on our duties W.S.Gilbert* *if liberal, in respect to language, means *tolerant of change*, this book is liberal. If it means *not strict*, the book is not liberal, or at least not intentionally so J.B.McMillan* *the strict school of rabbis allowed divorce only on the ground of adultery; the liberal school, on almost any ground J.C.Swaim*

PROGRESSIVE implies an opposition to the reactionary or backward, a willingness to forsake past methods or beliefs in the interests of improvement or amelioration *one progressive publisher is now experimenting with plastic bindings Third Degree* *the party direction must be moderate and yet progressive and dynamic New York Times* *the struggle T between the conservative and the progressive mind G.G.Coulton* *to progressive leadership * a leadership which has sought T to advance the lot of the average American citizen F.D.Roosevelt* *much progressive economic and social legislation designed to benefit the masses and to break the power of the privileged A.C.Gordon*

ADVANCED usually applies to something high in a scale of development or ahead of its time often suggesting mental daring. It can favorably suggest the extremely liberal or progressive or unfavorably suggest something new and experimental to the point of foolishness or bizarreness *the economic interests of the advanced and backward peoples J.A.Hobson* *the most advanced nuclear weapons V.M.Barnett* *the continuing notion among many advanced writers that only difficult writing is good writing F.L.Allen* *to her own generation she seemed advanced in realism and in daring F.L.Pattee*

RADICAL usually suggests extremeness to the point of a sharp break with the already established and especially in its political application a desire to uproot and destroy; it is often interchangeable with revolutionary *radical innovators, challenging the authority of the past G.C.Sellery* *radical and experimental music Humphrey Searle* *of mild nature and inclined to oppose radical changes in the established order American Guide Series: Maine* *radical and revolutionary view of the state*
synonyms

GENEROUS, BOUNTIFUL, BOUNTEOUS, OPENHANDED, MUNIFICENT, HANDSOME: LIBERAL suggests openhandedness and lack of close stinting in giving *liberal gifts to his nephews* *a liberal legacy to his servant* *liberal grants from the legislature* *a liberal serving of pie*

GENEROUS may suggest some pleasing personality trait like magnanimity, warmheartedness, willingness to aid, altruism, or forgetfulness of self *he ladled out food with such a generous hand that the Indians named him *Big Spoon* American Guide Series: Maryland* *if she gave a friend a present * and this must have happened every day, for she was generous beyond the dreary bounds of common sense Osbert Sitwell* *such a kindly, smiling, tender, gentle, generous heart of her own, as won the love of everybody who came near her W.M.Thackeray* BOUNTIFUL suggests lavish, abundant, and unremitting giving or providing *spare not now to be bountiful, call your poor to regale with you T give your gold to the hospital, let the weary be comforted, let the needy be banqueted Alfred Tennyson* BOUNTEOUS has about the same suggestion as BOUNTIFUL but seems somewhat less likely to be applied to persons *the bounteous yields of cotton, alfalfa, small grains, sorghums, melons, lettuce, dates, and citrus fruits for which the state is noted American Guide Series: Arizona* OPENHANDED suggests free and unguarded generosity; its antonym is closefisted *openhanded to all appeals for charity* MUNIFICENT may suggest princely or lordly lavishness and richness in giving *had been most munificent to his soldiers. He had doubled their ordinary pay. He had shared the spoils of his conquests with them J.A.Froude* *guaranteed by the United States government in terms of munificent land grants Irving Stone* HANDSOME may imply either that a gift is large and impressive or that the giver is magnanimous or gracious *final decision to join the Allies was based on their favorable military position T as well as on the handsome prizes which she was offered C.E.Black & E.C.Helmreich* *this method of dealing with her, if not lavish, was suitable, and in fact handsome Edith Wharton*