I almost forgot to mention that I got to have lunch with Manya yesterday! I haven't seen her since April in Tucson, so it was fun. We had lunch at Legal Seafood in Burlington. We overate, as we always do together; gossiped, talked of esoteric things and exchanged gifts. She gave me a new tarot deck - both decks I have are from her, come to think of it - and I have her a set of Pagan Prayer Beads I made for her. I'm grateful that she seemed to love them. It was worth my meditating on them, as the turquoise and charms I used really seemed to mean something special to her!

Busy day getting ready for Nana Mickie's surprise 80th birthday party tomorrow. Jen and I made dozens of cupcakes, decorated them, put together a money tree, rand errands and got lunch! Thankfully Matt and Jeremy took the kids to Chuck E. Cheese's to keep them entertained. I really hope Nana has a great time tomorrow!

I had a lovely day at my parent's house, getting ready to celebrate my grandmother's birthday. She'll be 80, and Saturday we are having a surprise party for her. We looked through old photos to find some nice ones of her to scan and share at the party. It's funny how you mis-remember the stories of your childhood, or how the cool ones develop and burrow into your memory, while the ones not of interest to a child's mind disappear. I've always thought of my great-grandfather as a typical Irish jack-of-all-trades, it turns out he also ran a successful antique store.

You'll find only a little of that here. This is my personal site, a place to try things out, practice, find my voice. If you're interested in my professional activities, check out my blog at Synaptica Central. Enjoy!

:)
Christine

I was searching creative commons today and it occurred to me that it was all about traditional media. Then for some reason I finally looked up the etymology of "free as in beer" on Wikipedia. (I've been in a Brewer's Dictionary kind of mood all day.)

Is there a site on which you can post things like algorithms? Not like sourceforge, which requires code around an idea; but just the idea, so someone else can build on it? For all of us non-technical types. To monetize or not. Given recent court cases supporting CC, it could me time to open up the invention/patent process.

When you die, only three things will remain of you, since you will abandon all material things on the threshold of the Otherworld: what you have taught to others, what you have created with your hands, and how much love you have spread. So learn more and more in order to teach wise, long-lasting values. Work more and more to leave the world things of great beauty. And Love, love, love people around you for the light of Love heals everything.

~François Bourillon

Kevin Kelly at the Entertainment Gathering, December 2007, talks about the web's first 5000 days, and his thoughts on the next 5000 days.

I have been trying to determine what exactly I did wrong at Intuit - why couldn't I make it work there, be happy? I think, had I stayed in Tucson, I would have achieved career "happiness" eventually. Personal triggers were the ultimate reason I chose to leave, but I have still been bothered about what I considered a less than successful stint.

In the end I believe it comes down to risk - I was not taking the level of risks that I normally do. This may sound backwards, but for me, it's what works.

I was recently reminded of a 2007 article in the Washington Post. Poignant for me on several levels: as a mother, as a lover and supporter of the arts, as the sister of an executive at Strathmore.

Time. Priorities. Beauty. Awareness.

What do you think?

Pearls Before Breakfast

My friend Manya follows Austin Govella on Twitter. I know Austin by name, but have not yet had the pleasure of meeting in person. Recently Austin twittered one of those rhetorical questions that has had me pondering: "communities require shared conversation + shared memory. agree? disagree?"