I haven’t posted in days, were you worried about me? Please say yes. Please don’t say, “I didn’t even notice.” I like to pretend that you center your life around my blog posts. Let me have my delusions of relevance.
I’ve been on some strange schedules that involve getting early starts, that’s why i haven’t been writing. Even now I’m not home. I’m at WFUV for their spring member drive. I’m writing this right on the WordPress site not on Word so I don’t have access to my macros that make writing easier. I’ll do the best I can. The toughest part is remembering what I’ve been up to.
On Tuesday I went to Experience the Life and Works of M.C. Escher with Gen. I haven’t spent quality time with her in ages. The show is at Industry City in Brooklyn and Gen came from New Jersey so I met her at Penn Station. We have our official place to meet on 7th ave but I ran into her on the way. Our timing was perfect.
I’ve never been to Industry City before. The former industrial space is now Hipster Heaven, including the exhibition space in building 6. I love Escher and couldn’t believe that I didn’t hear about the show until Carolann, Mark, and Felix went. I’ve been obsessing on him since at least college. Lauren, Steven, and i wouldn’t miss something his art was involved in. I read the book Godel Escher Bach: An Eternal Golden Braid, as soon as it came out. I went to see the author Douglas Hofstadter give a talk on it. I was delighted that they had a copy at the show and they played Bach.
The show was a comprehensive review of his work from this naturalistic beginings to his explorations of tessaltions of the plane and impossible objects based on how the illusion of three dimensions is created on a 2-dimensional surface. His later works have deep connections to mathematics. That’s why he is the patron artist of geeks.
I was delighted to discover that Gen, though a different kind of geek, was still a huge of of Escher. It’s so much more fun when you can share your love of something with a person that appreciates it the same way. We could not just look at the art but discuss it. There were interactive exhibits. Video cameras put the viewer into Escher works.
Then we went to the not easy to find food court for lunch. After walking through it ended up at the Burger Joint. That’s the nameless restaurant in the Parker Meridian hotel. I guess they have franchised. After lunch Gen had to go back to the city for a rehearsal for a show that night. I took the train back with her but then continued back up to the Bronx.
My fantasy baseball draft was on Saturday and i had to volunteer at WFUV on Friday so I should have prepared weeks ago. But then i wouldn’t be me. So I headed home and wasted time and still didn’t get much preparation done. About all I managed to do was download some spreadsheets with information i needed. With all that i coudn’t get to bed until two and had to wake up at five. That is not enough sleep. I did get up and made it to WFUV early. It was the first day of the drive and i have to make sure everything is ready for the volunteers.
After 27 years i still love working the member drives. There’s the nice mix of old friends like Jim, and new students that come every semester. My challenge is to learn the students’ names before the graduate. I am working on it this morning, repeating to myself every name as i look at the students and volunteers. Right now I’m in the room with Sophia, Jack, Maddy, Katie, Maeve, and Susan.
I usually leave early on Friday because of therapy but that was moved till Wednesday this week. That’s why I didnt write then. But I took advantage of leaving early to finally prepare for my baseball draft. I was home by one, took a little nap, and started right into preparing at … 10 PM. I’m an idiot. I didn’t finished until 3 AM. Nick was scheduled to pick me up at 7 so I set my alarm for 6:20. At 3 AM i get into bed and hear a knockdown-dragout fight going on. I figured out it was the next apartment over, on the other side of the entrance courtyard. I wasn’t hearing it through the wall but through two closed windows and a considerable open space. I called the cops. As I started talking to them i heard the apartment door open and somebody ran down the stairs. I figured the fight was over and told the emergency operator. I go back to my room and hear shouting, the woman was in the street and saying, “Somebody call the police!” So I did. She was now outside without a shirt on, it was about 40 degrees. She was ranting. It seemed like it took forever for the police to come but it probably was not more than 5 minutes. They came and were talking right under my window until 4 AM. I woke up at 6:00.
I’ll pick up from there tomorrow. I will be volunteering at FUV at 6 AM again and then getting my infusion. I’m not sure when i’ll have a chance to write. I might have to wait till Tuesday when I’ll write from here again.
Wise Madness 