thanks for not being a zombie

This just in:

The Preliminary Programme for the upcoming SHARP (Society for the History of Authorship, Reading, and Publishing) conference in Halifax, Nova Scotia on July 14-17, 2005 is now available for viewing at the conference website. An exciting line-up of papers, international panels, keynote speakers, receptions, and other events awaits registrants. The 2005 conference will be a memorable meeting where scholars from around the world will address and debate many aspects of "Navigating Texts and Contexts."

Four people from my institution will be there: two professors, and two current or former grad students.

Posted by at 8:13 AM | Permalink

I came across this memorable quote from Albert Lord's The Singer of Tales, reading for my seminar tomorrow night:

The method of language is like that of oral poetry, substitution in the framework of the grammar. Without the metrical restrictions of the verse, language substitutes one subject for another in the nominative case, keeping the same verb, or keeping the same noun, it substitutes one verb for another. In studying the patterns and systems of oral narrative verse we are in reality observing the 'grammar' of the poetry, a grammar superimposed, as it were, on the grammar of the language concerned. Or, to alter the image, we find a special grammar within the grammar of the language, necessitated by the versification. ... The speaker of this language, once he has mastered it, does not move any more mechanically within it than we do in ordinary speech.

When we speak a language, our native language, we do not repeat words and phrases that we have memorised consciously, but the words and sentences emerge from habitual usage. This is true of the singer of tales working in his specialised grammar.

Posted by at 6:00 PM | Permalink

It would seem that somebody, not me, landed a job in a state that touches the ocean. I am not leaving my current position, but for the foreseeable future I'll be spending a lot of time in a city hundreds of miles away from where I currently live. I'm on leave from teaching in the fall, and I'll be commuting back for my classes in Spring 2006.

Posted by at 11:00 AM | Permalink | Comments (12)

On the way to school this morning, we passed the Sonic we pass every morning. This is the Sonic to which we look for lunatic inspiration. A couple of years ago they had a sign out for "Cheesy Coney & Tots," which inspired an entire, imagined 1970s-style television cop drama. Cheesy and Coney were the two cops, always doing things their own way, just outside departmental regulations, and Tots was their informant. "You're a loose cannon, Cheesy! I'll have your badge for this!"

This morning there was a a sign for their "Lenten Special."

L: "What kind of Lenten Special could they have at Sonic?"

G: "I have no idea."

L: "Maybe people are giving up tots for Lent."

G: "Yeah, I guess...Bring out your tots."

L: *laughs*

G: *rolling down window, shouting in my best Monty Python voice* "Bring out your tots!...Bring out your tots!"

Construction workers building a house nearby look up with curiosity.

Posted by at 8:00 PM | Permalink | Comments (3)

"16 Days" (mp3), from Whiskeytown's 1997 album Stranger's Almanac.

MP3 files are posted for evaluation purposes only. Availability is limited: usually 24 hours. Through this site, I'm trying to share and promote good music with others, who will also hopefully continue to support these artists. Everyone is encouraged to purchase music and concert tickets for the artists you feel merit your hard earned dollars. If you hold copyright to one of these songs and would like the file removed, please let me know.

Posted by at 8:29 AM | Permalink | Comments (2)

I came across this and thought the stuff on using PHP to generate images might help with this.

Posted by at 12:30 AM | Permalink | Comments (1)

Not much on the blogging burner, but here's "Sunken Waltz," (mp3, 3.5MB) by Calexico.

Oh, and thanks for all the good wishes about my health. My throat is scratchy and sore, but my body feels better.

MP3 files are posted for evaluation purposes only. Availability is limited: usually 24 hours. Through this site, I'm trying to share and promote good music with others, who will also hopefully continue to support these artists. Everyone is encouraged to purchase music and concert tickets for the artists you feel merit your hard earned dollars. If you hold copyright to one of these songs and would like the file removed, please let me know.

Posted by at 10:00 PM | Permalink

I haven't been sick in over a year. Today I'm at home, in bed, feeling icky.

Posted by at 2:00 PM | Permalink | Comments (3)

My friend, Kevin Hawkins, is on a Fulbright in Russia. His most recent post mentions smarty-pants phones:

I sent and received my first SMS messages yesterday with another Fulbrighter. You see, in Russia and Europe it's much cheaper to send SMS messages than actually talk on the phone (which, I'm finding, can become quite expensive), so people communicate that way a lot. Since people only think I'm a techie, they have no idea that I'm a total cellphone novice. So, as with most text messaging systems, it guesses what word you're trying to type based on the combination of keys you press. As it turns out, mine only has a Russian vocabulary no matter what language you set the interface to. Yesterday I couldn't figure out how to override its guesses, so I had to improvise when it guessed something other than what I wanted to write. Figured it out now.

Posted by at 8:33 AM | Permalink

Oh, yeah: I have used a scanner before to scan slides and transparencies, but is it possible to scan microfiche using a regular scanner (one with a slide/transparency attachment) without having to use something like the Minolta MS 6000 (which I don't think we have at my university)?

Posted by at 5:17 PM | Permalink | Comments (1)

1. What would cause the front tires on the car to wear unevenly such that the inside edge of each tire is worn down much faster than the outside edge?
2. If I publish an entry in MovableType with a link to an entry on another blog, how do I make changes to that entry without sending an extra trackback?
3. How do I add additonal search engines to Firefox? When I click on the "add search engine" option in the drop-down menu, I am taken to a page that tells me it's possible to add more without telling me how. Can I add my university library?
4. What's the best way to kick yourself out of inactivity and start exercising regularly?
5. How can I add a "Post to Del.icio.us" function to Firefox (other than just using a bookmark)?
6. Is it better to buy a new car, or a late-model used car with a warranty from some place like CarMax or a dealer? I'm leaning toward the latter, given that one can get a good deal on prices, but I'm also wary of getting a car with problems.

Posted by at 10:00 AM | Permalink | Comments (13)

It's snowing, and we're having chili for dinner.

Makes 4.5 cups; serves 4 to 6

2 tablespoons vegetable oil
2 cups chopped onions
6 cloves garlic, minced
one-quarter cup of chili powder
1 tablespoon paprika
1 teaspoon ground cumin
1 teaspoon dried oregano
4 cups chopped tomatoes
1 bay leaf
one-half teaspoon sugar
one-half teaspoon salt, or to taste
one-eighth teaspoon ground red pepper (optional)
3 cups cooked kidney beans (cooked from dry; or canned, drained)

In a 4-quart saucepan, heat the oil over medium-high heat. Add the onions and garlic; cook, stirring, until softened, about 2 minutes. Stir in the chili powder, paprika, cumin, and oregano until absorbed.

Stir in the tomatoes, bay leaf, sugar, salt, and red pepper; bring to a boil. Reduce heat and simmer, covered, 20 minutes, stirring occasionally.

Add the beans; simmr, covered, 15 to 20 minues longer or until chili is slightly thick, stirring occasionally. Discard the bay leaf.

Variation: Add 1 cup chopped green bell peppers when you add the onions.

From Carol Gelles' 1,000 Vegetarian Recipes. ISBN: 0-02-542965-5.

Posted by at 6:29 PM | Permalink | Comments (1)

Challenged by Amardeep, I offer you the following:

1. Total amount of music files on your computer.

4768 songs, or 22.34 gigabytes.

2. The CD you last bought is...

Beautiful Dreamer: the Songs of Stephen Foster

3. What is the song you last listened to before reading this message

"Until the Led," by Vic Chesnutt.

4. Write down 5 songs you often listen to or that mean a lot to you.

Just five? Okay...

• "Umi Says," by Mos Def
• "Skip Tracer," by Sonic Youth
• "Moonshiner," by Uncle Tupelo (and covered by Cat Power)
• "Rosa Parks," by Outkast
• "This Is How It Goes," by Aimee Mann

5. Who are you going to pass this stick to?

Anyone who reads this and wants to participate.

Posted by at 11:00 PM | Permalink | Comments (6)

If you're after gettin' the honey,
Then you don't go killin' all the bees.
--Joe Strummer

Posted by at 8:30 AM | Permalink | Comments (1)

I'm hoping that some of my readers, particularly those who have taught at the University of Maryland, can point me in the direction of essays that present definitions as arguments. At different points in time, particular terms come under debate (e.g. marriage, patriotism, justice); what I'm looking for are essays that argue for or against a particular definition of some term. It doesn't matter so much what the term is.

Posted by at 6:31 PM | Permalink | Comments (10)