purpleglitter asked me to make one of my photographs from yesterday's set into a desktop wallpaper for her. I figured I'd go ahead and post it in case anyone else wanted it. I may go through and do the same to other photographs.



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I've been to Mount Auburn Cemetery twice this weekend. Yesterday, I went with Ila. We walked up the winding paths and climbed to the top of the tower. The sky was overcast, which served to deepen the reds, gold and purple that extended to the horizon in one directions and to the Boston skyline in the other.

Today, Skye had her bi-weekly lupron shot. After the shot, purpleglitter and I took her to Mount Auburn. This time we drove to the tower, and I walked Skye to the top. Today was sunny and bright and Skye was treated to what some have called the best view on the continent. She loved every minute of it up there. Skye in the sky.

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I've been very impressed by how many Boston area liberals have gained a sense of rebellion in recent days by rallying around mega corporation Turner and their corporate lackeys who planted the devices. It's almost surreal that commercial culture has taken such a grip that even rebellion against authority has a corporate edge. None of the myriad of REAL abuses of authority since 9/11 have garnered such a tremendous response. Fail to give a favored marketing firm free reign to do whatever they please in the city, especially if they're advertising an important cartoon network show, and you have a massive outcry.

I went out on a coffee house crawl with Heather this evening. Saint Charles has changed a lot. It's got a much more vibrant artistic community than it had when I lived in the area. I was impressed by the variety and quality of the local artists.

One of the coffee houses was in the New Town at Saint Charles development. It is a planned sustainable community with mixed income levels and a focus on pedestrianism and environment. Narrow streets laid out on a grid and shops and residences within easy walking distance from each other, it's a great alternative to suburban sprawl. Even though it is still very much being built, it already has a warmth and a personality. If I were planning to move back to this area, New Town would be at the top of my list.

My flight from Chicago to Saint Louis was delayed and took place after the sun had gone down. In the air, I looked down and saw all the cities lit in the bright yellow street lights that are most commonly used now. I thought to myself... "shining cities of gold". I could not think of a more accurate description of what I saw below me. I was struck in awe.

The sight is grand, and in part it is such sites that lead humans to believe they are above nature. Above the All. Much like Yzordderrex, these cities of gold are an imitation to the Great City of Gold that is both God and God's city, that is the Universe of a uncountable number of shining suns. It is a pale imitation we have built here on our rock, and even the smallest of those suns far outshine all of our cities together.

Many would fashion humanity collectively as the new demiurge, above the All as true masters and creators of the universe surrounding them. But, humans only have the ability to change what is already here, we cannot create. We are but a small part of the Everything and therefore cannot rival the Universe, we cannot be greater than Everything. When we look in awe at the works of humanity, it is important to keep in mind the scale of the Universe and our place in relation to it.

I accidentally banged my staff against the curb, and in the winter's cold it snapped roughly in the same place that it broke last time. It is a reminder to keep mindful and not to take things for granted as this happens again when I am becoming lost.

I will put my staff back together again, as I have put myself back together so many times. I have again used gorilla glue, and it is setting in the playroom clamped with the færie wire. I plan to put a bolt through the fracture in the very near future to better secure it. My staff will then be a merging of the city and the wild. A unity in nature.

The is no boundary between the "human world" and the "natural world", they are one and the same. Humans are natural, are part of nature, therefore anything we do is a natural occurrence. A car is no less natural than a tree. A city is built from nothing that did not come from the Earth. All we build and do is in nature, is of nature, is part of nature.

Look at the city. It is alive. It is a breathing thing and it is not just a human place. A host of animals make it their home. As I walk around Boston, I see the geese and the squirrels and the raccoons and the skunks. They are all part of the living city.

Look at the pigeon. Pigeons are type of dove and they are things of beauty. We are blessed by the Universe to have our cities filled with doves. How could that wonderment not make one smile?

How can one look upon a city and think it is solely the work of humans? Where has the ore come from for the steel? Humans could not create anything, we do not have the power of creation, we can only use, modify, and adapt that what is provided for us. The Universe is the only thing that has the power to provide for us.

It is in its glory enough for us to look on and give thanks to simply have been allowed to glimpse upon it. Look upon the vastness a sunset, the complexity of a simple grain of corn, the towering skyline of a great city. They are all the All. To truly look upon such greatness, one is humbled. Not humbled because of fear of some token God, some vengeful idol. Humbled because at the site of the All there can be no other response.

The immenseness and greatness and wonderment of the Universe is so grand that it is a blessing just to be a very small part of it. It is a blessing to look upon any piece and know that that piece was meant for you to see. That that glory was meant for you, in your own small part, to be witness to.

God is not some thing watching from the sky. God is the sky and the dust and the road and the grain. God is All and All is God.

I'm extremely scared for New Orleans right now. This could be very nasty. I've been reading the journals of the members of neworleans and I get a very real sense of fear and panic. Too many people have no way to evacuate, and is is the way of this world the poor will likely suffer the most from this. Even those that are able to leave face the possibility of losing everything.

I'm waiting for the bible thumpers to start ranting that this is God's wrath for Bourbon Street. Pat Robertson likes to stick his foot in his mouth, and I would not be surprised if he or someone on his show will utter such a proclamation.

The Weather Channel just announced as I am I typing that winds are down to 165mph (265km/h, 145 knots, 72m/s). While that is still Category 5 winds, it is somewhat better than the 175mph (281 km/h, 154 knots, 77m/s) winds it was packing just hours ago. I hope it continues to weaken, but it doesn't sound like they expect it to.