a matter of semantics

I was recalling recently how other kids used to always tell me that I was too serious when I was growing up. And I didn't understand what was so bad that it had to be pointed out. What's wrong with being serious? Didn't it mean that I was placing importance on something? That I was giving it value and attention? 

It took me years to understand what they meant by being 'too serious.' I took a career class at the local junior college and as part of the course, we took several different personality and aptitude tests and one particular measurement stands out in my memory: it placed the word 'serious' on one end of a scale and the word 'cheerful' on the other, and we were to mark where we would say we were. So I finally figured out after all that time that people were telling me to be more cheerful. What they meant by 'too serious' was, oh, too dour or something like that. Which reminds me of another thing people have sometimes said to me: "Lighten up!" Okay, well, now I understand what they were/are trying to tell me. 

Which reminds me of another example of a misunderstanding due to semantics: One of my roommates in college was having relationship problems with his girlfriend. He was feeling confused, but for some odd reason when he tried to communicate this to her, he kept using the word 'smothered' instead of 'confused.' So she backed away and tried to give him more space. Which confused him even more. And then he told her he was feeling even more smothered. So she gave him even more space. And so on... until they broke up.

Communication problems... c'est la vie . 

Italian food

Time for a food thought of the day. Actually, I've had this in mind for awhile:

An appetizer of bread with butter and/or a dipping sauce. 

An entree of cannelloni.

And cannoli for dessert.

Wouldn't this be a fantastic meal? I've always loved cannelloni, one of my favorite pasta dishes along with the shell-shaped ones, and then it seems only fitting to have another similarly shaped dish for dessert. I'm actually not all that familiar with cannoli (okay, okay, according to Wikipedia they are actually Sicilian), except for a famous line in 'The Godfather': "Leave the gun... take the cannoli" but they look delectable. 

******** 

And then, taking a different route with dishes that somehow don't seem to have much in common: 

An appetizer of bread with butter and/or a dipping sauce. 

Pizza.

And tiramisu for dessert.

How great does that sound? Of course, I usually stuff myself so much with pizza, I rarely leave any room for dessert, but I think tiramisu would be worth making room for. Doesn't tiramisu sound like a Japanese word? That always threw me off.

Anyway, something to look for and look forward to the next time I go to an Italian restaurant. 

plenty of bookmarks

I like shopping for books. My favorite gift to get is an Amazon gift card. It used to be a Tower Records gift certificate back when I was buying plenty of records and CDs and sometimes books, but Tower is nevermore and besides, I'd just as soon window-shop at my computer. 

What I like to do is while away the hours browsing the Amazon.com website - does it get any better than seeing virtually everything that's out there, often having the opportunity to read excerpts plus customer reviews? I'm so hooked looking for books and sometimes music, I have to remind myself that there are a whole bunch of other shopping categories there. 

Anyway, last night I was wondering if there was a stack of index cards lying around. You see, they have made my easiest and most affordable bookmarks in the past. What I'll do is get out the paper cutter and cut the cards into inch or so wide strips and voila! Instant bookmarks! I suppose another option would be to simply use sheets of paper and cut them into strips; although that would work fine, the card stock of index cards works perfectly. Yes, I do have a small collection of actual bookmarks, but they are kind of fancy and I'm a little hesitant to use them in a practical sense. 

So, after wondering about the availability of index cards, I had an epiphany: why not cut up greeting cards? I've never quite known what to do with them after initially enjoying them - as part of a gift, for the holidays, or for whatever occasion. Sometimes they might even be thrown into the recycle bin. I had a roommate in college who would open a card, read it, perhaps take out the check that was included, then immediately throw the card into the trash. Well, I'm much too sentimental to ever do that. But what to do with the card? 

And now I'll have in mind to use them as bookmarks! Sure, I'll be cutting them into not-too-thin strips, but I'll still have them in my possession and make use of them. They are the right card stock thickness and I can't wait to see how this all works. Of course, some cards are too nice to cut up, but I have several plain ones that accompanied my latest Amazon gift cards... 

win or lose

Being a Golden State Warriors fan, I've had it up to here with character-building. As in losing. Yet, there are fans of the team that seem to be rooting for them to lose so as to keep a high lottery pick for the next NBA draft. 

It's rather complicated and I don't understand it all that well, but roughly speaking, if the Warriors qualify for a top 7 pick in the 2012 draft, meaning one of the 7 worst win-loss records for the season, then they get to keep that pick; and if they qualify for the 8th pick in the lottery or worse, then they lose that pick due to a trade made previously... something like that. Then again, it can all depend on how the lottery balls fall come that time too.

It's one thing for the Warriors to miss the playoffs, but if they miss the playoffs but not badly enough, then they'll lose their 1st round pick. So they ostensibly need to either make the playoffs (the stated goal by the new ownership) or suck really, really bad. The worst case scenario is to fall somewhere in between. And there are people actually saying, on the radio no less, that the Warriors should therefore 'tank' the season and go for the really, really suck option. 

I can't imagine a professional athlete intentionally tanking the season. If anyone is capable of doing that, I really wouldn't want them on any team I root for. Can you picture a professional submitting to getting posterized (the poor sap in a poster that is getting dunked on?). Wouldn't tanking be on par with wagering on outcomes? Isn't it reminiscent of baseball's Black Sox scandal from a century ago? Losing... on purpose? My gosh, I can't fathom wanting my team to do something like that. Any athlete with pride and ethics can't do something like that.

I joked in a previous post about how wearing a Warriors tee shirt is almost like wearing a Washington Generals (the team that plays the foil of the Harlem Globetrotters) tee shirt, especially when I thought about the Warriors playing the Lakers - but I was just kidding. I want the Warriors to strive for victory each and every game and let the draft order fall as it may. 

in the armor

Some thoughts about the brouhaha surrounding the most unfortunate choice of headline accompanying a story about Jeremy Lin and the New York Knicks' recent loss to the New Orleans Hornets: 

Many things come to mind from this; I recall some years ago a man whom I respect and admire, retired General Colin Powell, once referred to Chinese people as "Chinamen" in a comment about the global economy and home shopping. And one of my favorite sitcoms ('Everybody Loves Raymond') used the word "Chinamen" and no one corrected the character Frank Barrone for saying it. In the former case, if Gen. Colin Powell says he didn't know it was an offensive word, then that's good enough for me since I believe he was genuine in his explanation. As for Frank Barrone, well, that certainly sounded enough like his character to say it, but I would have liked another member of the family to correct him with "Chinese soldiers" or something like that. I found it kind of offensive, but I don't think it was an intentional slight on the show's part. 

Now I don't know much about the ESPN editor who came up with the "Chink in the Armor" headline, but apparently he insists he wasn't aware of the racist implications of the word "Chink" and that word has been used freely in that particular phrase many times before as being synonymous with "Achilles heel" (which would have been a much better choice of words in this instance!). It is unfortunate that this editor lost his job if he was truly completely unaware of the gaffe; is he of a younger generation that has never seen the word used derogatorily before?

I've read some comments to this news story and I'm sure many people feel it's such a common phrase ("chink in the armor") that any racist connotations are completely imagined. However, even when it's been simply used to refer to a point of weakness, I've cringed a little. I hate to see or hear the word, no matter how it's used. 

As an example, which also is more than a little uncomfortable, here's another word that makes me bristle... in fact, I'll begin with its definition from a dictionary first: "grudgingly mean about spending or granting; BEGRUDGING" - the word is niggardly. I once saw it used on TV by a sports commentator and then later heard him having to explain and defend his use of the word. Used in context, sure, it may take several other words to say the same thing, but still, it sounds enough like a truly despicable word that it's perhaps best not used at all. Now imagine the word 'niggardly' used in a large headline right next to a picture of an African-American athlete. Maybe the word is being used correctly, but it would still be a slap in the face to see something as abhorrent as that.

From my own experience, I look back to my 21st birthday. Luckily my birthday fell either on a Friday or a Saturday that year and I had family come down to San Luis Obispo to help me celebrate. We were walking downtown as we went looking for places for me to try a few new drinks when we found ourselves walking towards a small group of other students, none of them 'racial minorities.' And one said so we could all hear him, "Looks like it's getting a little nippy out here." At the moment he said it, I didn't take offense because it was my birthday, but my brother-in-law at the time knew it was a pointed comment at our ethnicity. Looking back, yes, it was. I can even picture the guy, wearing his tractor hat. This all happened over 25 years ago, on my 21st birthday and I still remember it. 

This stuff hurts, folks. 

orchids

There was an article in today's newspaper about orchids. Yes, they are uniquely beautiful - it's easy to see why they have captivated humankind for thousands of years. Even now, orchid enthusiasts collect them, some even creating hybrids and letting them take over their homes! 

Still, I wonder if instead of focusing on aesthetics, what if people were to put their attention on other attributes? Oh, say... nectar production? If I had an environment that was conducive to growing orchids, I could see myself becoming obsessed with creating a tropical paradise with the intent of attracting as many hummingbirds as possible. And I imagine that would mean lots of the color red in the plants and flowers, and more importantly, copious amounts of nectar. 

Nectar from flower blossoms is a much more satisfying way to feed hummingbirds, considering how it just looks more natural, wouldn't you say? And I believe the opinion that flower-produced nectar contains enough trace amounts of minerals, or whatever, that makes it more nutritious than the sugar water that fills the typical hummingbird feeder.

So, my ideal garden would contain the plants that are most suitable to both my climate and attracting hummingbirds (food, shelter, perching and preening, etc.), and then perhaps a bonus of an orchid garden with a mix of the most simply beautiful varieties, plus the ones that produce the most nectar. Aside of course with me working to produce a native plant garden that best serves a thriving ecosystem with little demand for 'intensive care.'

the willows

Yesterday I had lunch with a couple of my siblings. We went to a local shopping center for some delicious Indian-Pakistani food. What caught my attention outside were the landscaping choices: plants that are suitable for the Mediterranean climate, many of which are California natives and several that I have in my garden too: Chaparral currant (flowering currant), Ceanothus 'Concha' (California lilac), Salvia spathacea (hummingbird sage), and perhaps some I have forgotten. There were also various other natives such as a Manzanita, which I hope flowers since mine haven't yet.

What was also impressive were the signs that were posted in each planting area that described the different plants, all of which were designated as UC Davis Arboretum All-Stars. I've been up to Davis, about an hour away, and visited their splendid arboretum, which was a peaceful and yet vibrant space to walk through. I'd heard of their list of All-Stars before, so I was pleasantly surprised to see them featured in one of the spaces of Concord's Willows Shopping Center. 

I don't know how long ago this space was planted, but the plants looked young so I will be curious as to how well they do as the seasons go by. Their demands will be much lower and I hope that they don't get overwatered or overfertilized. Too much of either would actually be detrimental to their health. They should also attract lots of insect and bird life, which will further enliven them. In my experience, the bees, birds, etc. keep to themselves and have never bothered me, so they shouldn't bother the shoppers. 

One note though to whomever it may concern: I noticed also the hummingbird feeder near one of the plantings. The nectar was dyed red... food coloring is not necessary and there may even be a slight chance of harming the little birds' systems. The red coloring on the feeder itself is enough to attract our little friends! 

I am so excited to see a shopping center go in the direction I have been a proponent of... or to use a popular catch phrase: "That's what I'm talking about!"