Not cold enough - Listen to this now and Little people eyes not falling out!
After 5 years of winter in Canada, dreading the snowfalls that require the straining of my lower back to clear, I am now in a strange position - we have a little snow but I need more, I crave more, Not because I feel the need to clear the snow, but because the clean cold white stuff that falls from the sky is the ideal - in fact, its the only - glue that can hold together 12inch by 10 inch by 8 inch solid ice blocks in whatever shapes I decided to build them into this holiday season. I have made a good start to this years sculpture (Is sculpture correct - The definition online states - Sculpture, an artistic form in which hard or plastic materials are worked into three-dimensional art objects. The designs may be embodied in freestanding objects, in reliefs on surfaces,
I don't know if sculpture is correct - Maybe construction would be better?
Anyway as I said, I have made a good start - I have 37 plastic bowls, that in colder weather, would crack as the water inside freezes too fast. But in the gentle winter, we have experienced thus far - lows of minus 10 or 12, the water takes a few days to slowly freeze, the bowls are able to cope with the stress and after 37 bowls were emptied of the first 37 blocks, I still have 37 bowls left for the 2nd round of freezing. So now I have another 37 blocks under a plastic sheet to keep out the dust, dirt and leaves. This means I will have 84 blocks before I lose any bowls to breakages -- which is unbelievable when I normally lose about 30-50 per cent to the deep cold.
Anyway, this means that by next week I should have 74 blocks ready to go and however many bowls survive the 2nd round will be cleaned and refilled - Hopefully giving me around 100 blocks. Compare this to last year when the wall I built had around 75 blocks with the strengtheners I use near the bottom. I should be able to build my structure really big and tall this year - hopefully smashing the 10 foot/3metre height from last year.
You may remember that during the summer I introduced a podcast that I had found and especially one particular episode of that podcast that very cleverly used sound and silence to create a beautiful almost out of body experience as I drove my car across the sunny Canadian prairie.
Well, since then I have listened to about 60 of the 171 episodes of the best podcast I have ever heard - The Memory palace is described as:-
'Short surprising stories of the past, sometimes heartbreaking, sometimes hysterical often a little bit of both.'
It is a history podcast but not in the way that history bores some people to death. The podcaster a guy called Nate Dimeo, take tiny snippets of stories and builds beautiful, inspiring, hilarious or tearjerking short stories around them. The longest stories are between 10 and 20 minutes but some are as short as 90 seconds. The average is about 8 or 9 minutes, meaning that, even if you have a short drive to work, or a quick bus ride or even take a few minutes for a constitutional every morning, you always have time to listen.
Recently I listened to one about the man who would have been the first Black astronaut and the reasons it never happened. As the story expands, we learn that he became a sculptor almost by accident and now in his 80's he has created many statues in the USA and his latest includes a statue of the actual first black astronaut.
I can't tell tales with the timing, the art and the unusual perspective that Nate brings to these stories. You listen for 4 or 5 minutes and get drawn into thinking where the story will end but by the use of stunning background music, and the art of misdirection he leads you down the garden path and then pulls the proverbial rug from under your feet. He has had me weeping with sadness and screaming out in surprise as he completes the amazing narratives. Then more often than not, I reach for the screen and press repeat and listen again. It is now my un-guilty pleasure and I wish I had the opportunity to sit with someone more often and enjoy the experience together
One of the reviews of the podcast reads like this....
The Memory Palace podcast is among the most potent pieces of audio being produced today; the show’s short tales are so emotionally concentrated that, upon listening, they bloom in the space between one’s ears, like a single drop of dye propagating through an entire glass of water. Nate DiMeo, the show’s sole creative force, often seems to be operating on a level wholly separate from that of other podcasts” and Nate thought that was nice.
I really cannot recommend it enough. Stop reading this now and go listen to one of the episodes, really do it. Click this link.
I would recommend episode 115, A brief eulogy for a commercial radio station, or Episode 90, a white horse. Episode 74 craning and Episode 61 Glowing orbs are both space-based and brilliant. Episode 16 is a good fun one too.
Just listen to a couple. If you hate it, well you won't, but if you do, you have wasted just a few minutes. But I really hope that someone out there discovers something that will change the way you listen to stories, and how you think about a lot of things. Just like I have. It's just the best. You may have noticed that I like it. I hope you do too.
Anyway, that was all written a few days ago - Its now Saturday 5th Dec and United have just beaten West Ham United. Hannah is asleep so its time to update you on the family side of stuff!
So whats changed? Oliver is still growing -who would have thought it? He was really small and now he's a little bit larger than previously reported. Most parts of him have grown, his legs, his head and his feet. Apparently, his eyes don't grow - I don't know if tat is true or now, but I don't believe it, because if his eyes are the same size and his head grows, his eyes would eventually fall out of the growing holes in his head. He is a very smiley person now, especially when farting at 5am. We spend lots of time on te floor farting at each other. I fart, he farts, we both smile. Its pretty cool and so is he.
It was time to take his 3-month photo a coupe of days back. Buffy did a great job as normal and Hannah wanted to get in on the action as normal!
Hanny is just awesome still. Yeah, she can be a pain when she falls down the stairs or bangs her toe, as she did earlier today. But she is so fucking strong minded and the first thing she did after falling down the 3 bottom steps is to push us away and go back to the stairs to climb them again - no fear - she as hard as nails!
Hannah and Oliver have been having a wonderful time recently staying at Grandmas and Grandpas house for 3 - 4 days a week with me and Buffy, this is to childcare while Buffy works and when I work I go home to work in our basement, all by myself,
You can see how much fun they have been having recently. Hannah especially making Snow Angels and being swung around. She also sleeps much better at the Grandparents place!
Hannah has also started to make up her own songs.... this one was whilst balancing on a rock out in the snow! We have no idea where she gets the words from for this song but its cool.
Every day she grows a little as does Oliver (Her eyes haven't fallen out yet either) They are going to be so great together when they grow up. Oliver is taking in so much around him day and night and as he starts to sleep a little more at night and less during the day he just gets better and better.
I think for now, I will leave you all there. I have waffled as much as I need to do about our great kids and the weather, as well as introducing you to my favourite podcast. I do urge you to take a look at it and listen to it. I promise you will not be disappointed. Let me know if you enjoy it or not - I hope you do.
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