diabola in musica

I Have a Bedpost Anyway

Amber Ying — Thu, 14 Aug 2008 13:32:08 +0000

If I ever got one of these trophy rings, there will be so little silver left, it will look like a wedding ring.

Never going to get one, but I still want it anyway for the novelty.

(via Boinkology)

Just Like Riding a Bike

Amber Ying — Sun, 10 Aug 2008 03:33:03 +0000

Me: There’s an art to cunnilingus just as there is an art to fellatio. Reed players are especially good at it.
Byrnes: What? They don’t even use their tongues that much. It’s all about the brass.
Me: When’s the last time you played?
Byrnes: Baby, that’s one skill that never goes away.

Individual Results May Vary

Amber Ying — Mon, 04 Aug 2008 12:42:09 +0000

Byrnes: I think we took out the Internet with our sex.

It’s All in the Stride

Amber Ying — Sun, 03 Aug 2008 20:47:05 +0000

Demetrus: Listen, man. I was in Cambridge, and I saw this girl in a white dress coming out of the Harvard T Station. The way she walked into Harvard Square, she looked like she owned the fucking place.
Byrnes: That’s my Amber!

This is What Made Me Fall in Love With McKillip’s Writing

Amber Ying — Thu, 31 Jul 2008 11:47:45 +0000

“You knew me the moment you saw me. You said I see with the wood’s eyes. That’s why you turned to Laurel. You were afraid of me.”

“Rois—” He was trembling; I could hear the leaves rustle around him. “Yes. You seemed to live in the borderlands of the world I tried to escape. You tossed your heart after every passing breeze. Even after light. You did not seem—”

The word pushed through my throat like two hard stones. “Human.”

[...]

“Corbet.” I swallowed something bitter. “Do you care for me at all? Or do you only need me?”

He breathed a word: yes, or no, or Rois. His hand opened to my face; I felt only cool invisible leaves. I lifted my own hand; in the light our shadows touched.

“You come to me,” he whispered. “Into every dark place. Into every memory. Into the empty places of winter. I go alone and find you with me. Why do you care for me?”

I did not know until I spoke. “Because you are making me human.”

– Winter Rose, Patricia A. McKillip

Happy (Belated) Birthday to Me

Amber Ying — Thu, 31 Jul 2008 00:57:14 +0000

A lion for a lion.

Analogy, You Fail

Amber Ying — Mon, 21 Jul 2008 23:03:34 +0000

The Bush presidency is like being married to a sociopath. A McCain presidency would be more like being married to a drug addict — however badly he behaves, he could always sober up.

– Jonathan Chait, “A McCain Presidency Wouldn’t Be So Bad”

Except continuously making the excuse that your drug addict spouse could sober up leads to the continuation of an unhappy marriage.

We’d Be Surprised on How Much More We Agree Than Disagree

Amber Ying — Sat, 19 Jul 2008 23:05:33 +0000

I’m not sure if this is a new lesson, but [campaigning for the American presidency] reinforced my belief that we’re not as divided as our politics would indicate. You meet with the average person—I don’t care whether they’re Republican, Democrat, conservative, liberal—they don’t think in labels. They’re not particularly ideological. Everybody is sort of a mix of what you might consider some liberal ideas, what you might consider some conservative ideas. But there is a set of common values that everyone buys into: Everybody thinks you should have to work hard for what you get, everybody believes that things like equal opportunity should be real, not a slogan.

– Barack Obama from “A Conversation with Barack Obama”, Rolling Stone

New Yorker, Take Notes

Amber Ying — Fri, 18 Jul 2008 17:03:08 +0000

Left: Bad magazine cover. Right: Good magazine cover.

Proper English is How I Roll

Amber Ying — Thu, 17 Jul 2008 14:17:01 +0000

(via the rut)

Time For Some Campaignin’

Amber Ying — Thu, 17 Jul 2008 13:10:02 +0000

Nine years later, JibJab still has it.

(via all that glitters)

They’re Shiny, Too

Amber Ying — Wed, 16 Jul 2008 22:44:46 +0000

New shoes. I adore them.

Ode to a Heroine

Amber Ying — Wed, 16 Jul 2008 21:16:04 +0000

Julia Alison, you have done something amazing: You have made it onto my radar. I am absurdly myopic when it comes to Internet celebrities—unless they become targets of criticism on the Huffington Post. All those updates about your crazy lives just fly right over my silly head.

But then haven’t I seen your name tossed around on the Post? Didn’t you write a few columns? About the Emmys or somesuch? Oh dear. I just haven’t paid attention! I’m very sorry. But now that you are lifecasting your crazy and different adventures on NonSociety, I can keep up without a problem. Isn’t that great?

Oh, oh, I have to talk about that horizontal layout. Genius. Not only can you scroll up and down to read your blog entries, you have to scroll sideways to see new ones! There are scrollbars vertically and horizontally, and you need to use both to get around on your blog. No, girl, AJAX is not for you. (Even your geekette Meghan doesn’t use it.) You’re being so crazy and different. You’re really getting your readers to live outside the box.

And the best part? You are already so well-known on the Internet! There’s an entire site dedicated to watch you. There’s even a parody site! After only a day! You’re a sensation!

But if you see or hear a few hurtful things, just ignore them, girl. Follow your heart. Live how you want to live. Be who you’re meant to be. You are a special, special star who is going to change the world with your crazy life in Manhattan. You’ve got the shoes, and you’ve got the attention. What woman wouldn’t want to be you?

Congress Overrides Bush Veto of Bill That Would Prevent Cuts in Reimbursement

Amber Ying — Wed, 16 Jul 2008 15:41:10 +0000

Yesterday, the House and the Senate voted to override Bush’s veto of a bill that would cut Medicare reimbursements to physicians. Cuts in reimbursements are correlated to the decrease of physicians who see patients on Medicare, leaving the elderly less access to health care. The funds to support this bill will come out of the budget for private Medicare plans—which seems to upset Human and Health Services Secretary Mike Leavitt. But the government pays more for private plans that result in additional financial burden on the elderly, and there is no evidence that private plans are necessarily better. (Not to mention the profit-seeking and ethically questionable behavior of private insurers and their agents.)

This, by no means, is a long-term fix for Medicare spending and coverage. But it is a necessary move. Leaving people unable to get health care while you fix the system is not the way to go.

If you’re one of those strange people who care for legalese (like me), you can read the proposal of and the revisions to the bill that was passed yesterday.

The Girl Effect

Amber Ying — Tue, 15 Jul 2008 22:33:03 +0000

What happens when you give a girl a chance? She can change her community and her life.

Learn how to contribute at GirlEffect.org.

(via Laurie, Servant of Chaos)

We Don’t Need Metaphysics to Be Wondrous

Amber Ying — Mon, 14 Jul 2008 22:28:42 +0000

Our very dualistic nature [where we believe that our minds are separate from our bodies] has also been a stumbling block on the road to unlocking the mechanisms of consciousness. There are those who feel that the essence of consciousness cannot have a physical explanation, that it is so wondrous that it can’t be explained by modules and neurons and synapses and neurotransmitters. We will soldier on without them. There are others who think that it can be. I find that being able to explain consciousness with modules, neurons, synapses, and neurotransmitters is even more wondrous and fascinating. It may not be glamorous and transcendent, but it sure is captivating.

– Michael S. Gazzaniga, Human: The Science Behind What Makes Us Unique

Food Rampage on the Horizon

Amber Ying — Sat, 12 Jul 2008 12:49:21 +0000

My brain finally got tired of four hours of sleep every night. The last thing I remember was my father calling me to dinner. (Never made it downstairs.) Fourteen hours later, I wake up feeling greatly refreshed but also terribly hungry.

But I Never Thought of Love as Risk Either

Amber Ying — Thu, 10 Jul 2008 21:09:48 +0000

When it comes to falling in love there are, I think, two kinds of people. The first one who has a well-laid plan by which they seek a partner that possesses certain preferred qualities and characteristics. Upon finding such a person, they pursue a cautious and measured courtship, waiting for signs of reassurance before giving in to feelings of attachment, never taking too much risk, slowly and incrementally revealing more about themselves, until a respectable time has passed and a sense of comfort has been attained, before ever coming near uttering those three powerful words, “I love you.”

The second kind has no such plan or patience for caution. They will think nothing of the risk being taken when investing in someone, nor will they bother to proceed carefully, but will choose instead to reveal everything about themselves to whomever wishes to know them. These are the people who believe in serendipity, who trust their feelings and are led by their heart, who are on a relentless quest to find, earn, and keep love in their lives. These are the people who do not tiptoe into love, but instead know only to dive in, head first, with abandon.

- Why I Love You by Gregory E. Lang

Why are there two types of people—the careful and the carefree? Isn’t there a third? Or even many more? By being too cautious, you will always miss opportunities. By being too careless, you will always make mistakes. Why can’t you be a little bit of both?

There is always a courtship, when you get to know each other to see if you’re compatible. After some experience, you can create a list of traits that work (or not) with you. With more experience, you can more easily detect those traits in other people. Once you find someone who is compatible, you can then (or not) throw caution to the wind, stay over every night, and take showers together in the morning.

There have been times when I’ve been cautious, venturing carefully into love. There have been other times when I dove in and haven’t looked back.

But I prefer the abandon. It’s so much less work, and—frankly—so much more freeing.

(via Weenie’s World, The Chicktionary)

Look! Up in the Ceiling!

Amber Ying — Thu, 10 Jul 2008 19:24:37 +0000

This was hanging above our heads at The Pour House. I don’t know either.

Of Milkshakes

Amber Ying — Thu, 10 Jul 2008 19:19:11 +0000

Me at The Pour House. I had a sudden desire for a milkshake. I spent most of my time enjoying it by licking the whipped cream off my fingers.