I have been listening to this station via the Public Radio app on my iPhone for a few months. I just found out that they have released a dedicated app for their station and it is great.
You can listen to the two streams they have, set the app to act as an alarm clock to wake you in the morning and there is a buy button that will take you to the iTunes store to buy whatever you are listening to. It also has a quick link to a quicktime web stream of each broadcast so you can use safari to listen to the station. "So what?" you say... well, safari is one of the few apps that can have a background thread so when you launch the web stream you can leave the app and go launch another app, as long as the second app doesn't use safari.
Tuesday, March 16, 2010
Thursday, February 4, 2010
A couple of things...
NPR had a story this morning that discussed the oil speculation taking place in Uganda. The story opened up with what the reporter characterized as an old Ugandan joke, "When the White man came, he came with a Bible. And they told us to close our eyes and pray. By the time they opened their eyes, their land was gone." funny, and seemingly accurate of the British occupation of Uganda - justified in part with bringing "God" to the "Godless". If the joke really is an indigenous joke, it really says a lot of the self awareness of the people and culture that gave birth to that view point.
American media, and cinema, and schools (at least the schools I attended) are regularly reinforcing a narrative of how the Native American was displaced by the invading European (well, that's what I took away from my American History classes). History is constantly being re-written and, depending on your definition, there definitely was something of a genocide perpetuated on the indigenous population of North America, hell, of all the America's. Of course that was way before, I believe, genocide was part of the popular vernacular.
And I have to ask, was any less done in Africa? or parts of Africa? Is it too much to suggest that the "joke" presented in that NPR article hints at just such a tragedy? culturally if not literally. I will confess I have never studied African history. I did an IS course in college on Traditional African Beliefs but I did not go so far as to compare how those belief systems were impacted by historical events and vice verse. The classes in Islam and Islamic history I took only briefly covered the Islamic crusades to convert northern Africa which ended in the occupation of much of Spain. There was only one course in modern Christianity that ever mentioned Africa and that was only when discussing the European successes and failures in spreading the state sponsored religion that was appropriate for the territory claimed by the occupying power.
The point of that little detour down days of college past, is that I am in no way an authority on African history of any kind. If anyone has an opinion on my musing and feels inclined to point me towards some good source material, please do. I am a slow reader and do not have a lot of free time but I will digest anything sent my way...
Now, on to the other thing in my couple of things. I just finished watching two episodes of "Life Unexpected" on the CW website. My first comment is that the CW video player works much much better than Hulu on my eeePC and at what seems to be a similar resolution - whats up with that Hulu - I thought streaming video was supposed to be your forte?
My other comment is that, "Life Unexpected" has strangely captivated me for two'ish hours and I don't feel the time was wasted (as I often do when I get mindlessly sucked into some shows). Sure, the show is filled with "pretty" people and the characters are drawn with telegraphed flaws that (hopefully) will not (but probably will) turn into perpetual excuses for conflict and tension. But the setup is good and someone cared enough about the material to flesh out the main characters (and a number of the supporting characters) so that each character is more than the sum of his or her cliches.
And in two episodes the writers have raised some interesting discussion points on the effects of adoption and foster care on all parties involved. On responsibility and what that means and how different people manifest responsibility. And, like in all the shows I seem to really like, each episode adds to the history of the narrative - the shows "universe" does not "reset" when the credits roll like in so many lesser shows. Which, if the writers maintain this trend, will lead to some interesting moral choices. It is not Firefly or Lost in terms of well developed characters and contigious storylines but it has the potential.
American media, and cinema, and schools (at least the schools I attended) are regularly reinforcing a narrative of how the Native American was displaced by the invading European (well, that's what I took away from my American History classes). History is constantly being re-written and, depending on your definition, there definitely was something of a genocide perpetuated on the indigenous population of North America, hell, of all the America's. Of course that was way before, I believe, genocide was part of the popular vernacular.
And I have to ask, was any less done in Africa? or parts of Africa? Is it too much to suggest that the "joke" presented in that NPR article hints at just such a tragedy? culturally if not literally. I will confess I have never studied African history. I did an IS course in college on Traditional African Beliefs but I did not go so far as to compare how those belief systems were impacted by historical events and vice verse. The classes in Islam and Islamic history I took only briefly covered the Islamic crusades to convert northern Africa which ended in the occupation of much of Spain. There was only one course in modern Christianity that ever mentioned Africa and that was only when discussing the European successes and failures in spreading the state sponsored religion that was appropriate for the territory claimed by the occupying power.
The point of that little detour down days of college past, is that I am in no way an authority on African history of any kind. If anyone has an opinion on my musing and feels inclined to point me towards some good source material, please do. I am a slow reader and do not have a lot of free time but I will digest anything sent my way...
Now, on to the other thing in my couple of things. I just finished watching two episodes of "Life Unexpected" on the CW website. My first comment is that the CW video player works much much better than Hulu on my eeePC and at what seems to be a similar resolution - whats up with that Hulu - I thought streaming video was supposed to be your forte?
My other comment is that, "Life Unexpected" has strangely captivated me for two'ish hours and I don't feel the time was wasted (as I often do when I get mindlessly sucked into some shows). Sure, the show is filled with "pretty" people and the characters are drawn with telegraphed flaws that (hopefully) will not (but probably will) turn into perpetual excuses for conflict and tension. But the setup is good and someone cared enough about the material to flesh out the main characters (and a number of the supporting characters) so that each character is more than the sum of his or her cliches.
And in two episodes the writers have raised some interesting discussion points on the effects of adoption and foster care on all parties involved. On responsibility and what that means and how different people manifest responsibility. And, like in all the shows I seem to really like, each episode adds to the history of the narrative - the shows "universe" does not "reset" when the credits roll like in so many lesser shows. Which, if the writers maintain this trend, will lead to some interesting moral choices. It is not Firefly or Lost in terms of well developed characters and contigious storylines but it has the potential.
Tuesday, February 2, 2010
27 days later
So it has been 27 days and not much has changed. I still have not made any progress on esrphotos, I still need to decide on the copyright notice, and I still have photos to finish processing. usually when I hit a block like this I sit and talk it through with one or two of a small group of close friends who have some interest in what I am talking about but, sort of like installing gentoo on a eeePC 1005HAB, doesn't seem anyone I know or can find is interested in the subject.
Sure I know people who will sit patiently and let me ramble but that doesn't do me any good and I end up wasting both our time. I wish I could still pick up a phone and make that call but my Ka is still on a separate path and I can no longer see where that path is - let alone...
I think of all the relationships I let go... well I keep telling myself there is a fine line between support and co-dependence. :)
Sure I know people who will sit patiently and let me ramble but that doesn't do me any good and I end up wasting both our time. I wish I could still pick up a phone and make that call but my Ka is still on a separate path and I can no longer see where that path is - let alone...
I think of all the relationships I let go... well I keep telling myself there is a fine line between support and co-dependence. :)
Wednesday, December 30, 2009
Op-Ed on Xmass
The week of Christmas, during a present wrapping session, I was asked why I "hated Christmas?" I was at some loss to respond at first. I do not "hate" Christmas but I am not wild about the invasive marketing and commercialization of all American holidays that has increased with intensity every year since i became aware of it sometime in my adolescence.
It is my view that the spirit of the holiday is about hope and sacrifice, at least for the Christians. It marks the birth of the God/man/rabbi that the people of Abraham were preordained to crucify in some sadistic and masochistic symbolism to atone for what the Christians perceive as Man's original sin, disobedience. It also, from a Christian perspective, added an addendum to the contract Abraham has signed with his God.
Sidenote - I am aware that there are other holidays observed during or near this time period by members of other Faiths but I was raised Christian and that tradition has colored my views and tinted my perceptions of the back and forth that occurs at the end of each calendar year in America. That said, let me continue.
I have no problem with the religious aspect of the holiday. I do have an issue with the commercialization of the holiday. America is a mass marketed society, I understand that. But that mass market approach seems to have taken every belief, every superstition, every aspect of cultural sentimentality and twisted it into a marketing campaign aimed at making the consumer (me and people like me) equate their commercial participation in the American economy as a public testimonial of their active participation in the realization of the spirit of said holiday. Each season it seems I encounter more and more individuals who do not accept a verbal expression of holiday spirit as a genuine token of that spirit. It is no longer an adequate expression of the holiday to gather in large groups, feast, trade stories and acknowledge the recognized birth event of the God/man/rabbi unless there is the exchange of impersonal mass manufactured goods wrapped in traditional colors.
That is what I hate about the end of December.
Of course, my wife vehemently disagrees with me. For her the nature of the gift is not important. What is important is the gift itself and the gesture the gift represents, it demonstrates that you have taken a moment out of your normal existence to think about this person. And she sees that act as being the embodiment of the holiday theme.
I don't know that she is wrong. Maybe i am just a cynic, but if I am a follower of the God/man/rabbi's teachings, shouldn't I strive to be mindful of the condition of my neighbor everyday. And if I do strive for such a goal, is it romantic nonsense to hope that such a choice will be recognized by my neighbor, thereby doing away with the need for an annual demonstration?Complicating any esoteric interpretation of the holiday is the secular reality that is Christmas. Mass Media has adopted and currently markets the "Meaning of Christmas" with celluloid morality tales and advertising their holiday sincerity by draping their storefronts with images taken from a multitude of religious and cultural traditions that have come to represent Christmas for many Americans. How does one keep the secular aspects of the holiday separate from the non-secular. With the omnipresent marketing via audible, visual and aromatic stimulation, what hope does a person have in maintaining a firm boundary between the spiritual aspects of the holiday and the commercial. Should an individual embrace a tale of fellowship, such as that found in "Rudolph and the Island of Misfit Toys", but reject the post tale marketing of the characters and sets of the tale that are constantly manufactured?
Sidenote - Question; By exchanging mass manufactured products during the holiday, have we, as a society, devalued the older tradition of exchanging hand-made items? If you received a gift that was of dubious quality but had been created, designed, made, by the giver - do you value that gift less or more or no differently than you would say a gift card for Lowe's or a sweater from J.Crew?
It is funny, but as I write this I have realized something. I am leaving out something in my response to the original question. There is no simple and pat answer but also in the mix I should note that at some point over the past few years I started to resent the expectation I perceive that I must spend a certain amount of money per person on my list. I resent that I must make a list of select people that will receive a gift, excluding others and I hate that the number of people on that list is influenced by how much money I have set aside or have on hand.
I want a better, more inclusive way to celebrate the birth of the God/man/rabbi that will free me from secular guilt and the taint of commercial exploitation. Anyone have any ideas?
It is my view that the spirit of the holiday is about hope and sacrifice, at least for the Christians. It marks the birth of the God/man/rabbi that the people of Abraham were preordained to crucify in some sadistic and masochistic symbolism to atone for what the Christians perceive as Man's original sin, disobedience. It also, from a Christian perspective, added an addendum to the contract Abraham has signed with his God.
Sidenote - I am aware that there are other holidays observed during or near this time period by members of other Faiths but I was raised Christian and that tradition has colored my views and tinted my perceptions of the back and forth that occurs at the end of each calendar year in America. That said, let me continue.
I have no problem with the religious aspect of the holiday. I do have an issue with the commercialization of the holiday. America is a mass marketed society, I understand that. But that mass market approach seems to have taken every belief, every superstition, every aspect of cultural sentimentality and twisted it into a marketing campaign aimed at making the consumer (me and people like me) equate their commercial participation in the American economy as a public testimonial of their active participation in the realization of the spirit of said holiday. Each season it seems I encounter more and more individuals who do not accept a verbal expression of holiday spirit as a genuine token of that spirit. It is no longer an adequate expression of the holiday to gather in large groups, feast, trade stories and acknowledge the recognized birth event of the God/man/rabbi unless there is the exchange of impersonal mass manufactured goods wrapped in traditional colors.
That is what I hate about the end of December.
Of course, my wife vehemently disagrees with me. For her the nature of the gift is not important. What is important is the gift itself and the gesture the gift represents, it demonstrates that you have taken a moment out of your normal existence to think about this person. And she sees that act as being the embodiment of the holiday theme.
I don't know that she is wrong. Maybe i am just a cynic, but if I am a follower of the God/man/rabbi's teachings, shouldn't I strive to be mindful of the condition of my neighbor everyday. And if I do strive for such a goal, is it romantic nonsense to hope that such a choice will be recognized by my neighbor, thereby doing away with the need for an annual demonstration?Complicating any esoteric interpretation of the holiday is the secular reality that is Christmas. Mass Media has adopted and currently markets the "Meaning of Christmas" with celluloid morality tales and advertising their holiday sincerity by draping their storefronts with images taken from a multitude of religious and cultural traditions that have come to represent Christmas for many Americans. How does one keep the secular aspects of the holiday separate from the non-secular. With the omnipresent marketing via audible, visual and aromatic stimulation, what hope does a person have in maintaining a firm boundary between the spiritual aspects of the holiday and the commercial. Should an individual embrace a tale of fellowship, such as that found in "Rudolph and the Island of Misfit Toys", but reject the post tale marketing of the characters and sets of the tale that are constantly manufactured?
Sidenote - Question; By exchanging mass manufactured products during the holiday, have we, as a society, devalued the older tradition of exchanging hand-made items? If you received a gift that was of dubious quality but had been created, designed, made, by the giver - do you value that gift less or more or no differently than you would say a gift card for Lowe's or a sweater from J.Crew?
It is funny, but as I write this I have realized something. I am leaving out something in my response to the original question. There is no simple and pat answer but also in the mix I should note that at some point over the past few years I started to resent the expectation I perceive that I must spend a certain amount of money per person on my list. I resent that I must make a list of select people that will receive a gift, excluding others and I hate that the number of people on that list is influenced by how much money I have set aside or have on hand.
I want a better, more inclusive way to celebrate the birth of the God/man/rabbi that will free me from secular guilt and the taint of commercial exploitation. Anyone have any ideas?
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