Bits & Bobs & Bits.

"After learning my flight was detained 4 hours, I heard the announcement: If anyone in the vicinity..."

Wed, 08 May 2013 01:19:13 -0400

“

After learning my flight was detained 4 hours,
I heard the announcement:
If anyone in the vicinity of gate 4-A understands any Arabic,
Please come to the gate immediately.

Well—one pauses these days. Gate 4-A was my own gate. I went there.
An older woman in full traditional Palestinian dress,
Just like my grandma wore, was crumpled to the floor, wailing loudly.
Help, said the flight service person. Talk to her. What is her
Problem? we told her the flight was going to be four hours late and she
Did this.

I put my arm around her and spoke to her haltingly.
Shu dow-a, shu- biduck habibti, stani stani schway, min fadlick,
Sho bit se-wee?

The minute she heard any words she knew—however poorly used—
She stopped crying.

She thought our flight had been canceled entirely.
She needed to be in El Paso for some major medical treatment the
Following day. I said no, no, we’re fine, you’ll get there, just late,

Who is picking you up? Let’s call him and tell him.
We called her son and I spoke with him in English.
I told him I would stay with his mother till we got on the plane and
Would ride next to her—Southwest.

She talked to him. Then we called her other sons just for the fun of it.

Then we called my dad and he and she spoke for a while in Arabic and
Found out of course they had ten shared friends.

Then I thought just for the heck of it why not call some Palestinian
Poets I know and let them chat with her. This all took up about 2 hours.

She was laughing a lot by then. Telling about her life. Answering
Questions.

She had pulled a sack of homemade mamool cookies—little powdered
Sugar crumbly mounds stuffed with dates and nuts—out of her bag—
And was offering them to all the women at the gate.

To my amazement, not a single woman declined one. It was like a
Sacrament. The traveler from Argentina, the traveler from California,
The lovely woman from Laredo—we were all covered with the same
Powdered sugar. And smiling. There are no better cookies.

And then the airline broke out the free beverages from huge coolers—
Non-alcoholic—and the two little girls for our flight, one African
American, one Mexican American—ran around serving us all apple juice
And lemonade and they were covered with powdered sugar too.

And I noticed my new best friend—by now we were holding hands—
Had a potted plant poking out of her bag, some medicinal thing,

With green furry leaves. Such an old country traveling tradition. Always
Carry a plant. Always stay rooted to somewhere.

And I looked around that gate of late and weary ones and thought,
This is the world I want to live in. The shared world.

Not a single person in this gate—once the crying of confusion stopped
—has seemed apprehensive about any other person.

They took the cookies. I wanted to hug all those other women too.
This can still happen anywhere.

Not everything is lost.

”

- Naomi Shihab Nye (b. 1952), “Wandering Around an Albuquerque Airport Terminal.” I think this poem may be making the rounds, this week, but that’s as it should be. (via oliviacirce)

comedycentral: This was magical. If you ever needed a reason to...

Fri, 03 May 2013 17:24:52 -0400

comedycentral:

This was magical.

If you ever needed a reason to follow @TheDailyShow, this is it.

Here’s the original segment, in case you missed it.

Jon Laing Studios: How NOT to get work as an illustrator or designer

Fri, 03 May 2013 16:33:11 -0400

Jon Laing Studios: How NOT to get work as an illustrator or designer:

jonlaing:

I recently received this email from my website (emphasis mine and edited to protect people’s privacy):

Hi Jon,

This is [REDACTED] from [REDACTED] and we are fascinated by your work. Congratulations! I’d like to extend a personal and exclusive invitation to you to join our […] Studio platform.

Aisha Tyler To Gamer Trolls: GFYS | Techcitement*

Thu, 02 May 2013 18:00:31 -0400

Aisha Tyler To Gamer Trolls: GFYS | Techcitement*

Playing The Shellhead Game With Iron Man 3 | Techcitement*

Mon, 22 Apr 2013 17:06:11 -0400

Playing The Shellhead Game With Iron Man 3 | Techcitement*

littl3-0ld-m3: showmyspine: ishsweeney: myintriguing: My...

Mon, 22 Apr 2013 01:16:04 -0400

littl3-0ld-m3:

showmyspine:

ishsweeney:

myintriguing:

My friends decided to take a lovely pic for the Westboro Baptist Church. They’re not gay but they support gay rights

This is the most gangsta shit I have ever seen on tumblr

Not even a little bit sorry for posting color to my uncolored blog. This is amazing.

Literally the third time reblogging this, no regrets

CISPA Passed This Week Against Objections, Pleas, And Rationality | Techcitement*

Fri, 19 Apr 2013 15:58:34 -0400

CISPA Passed This Week Against Objections, Pleas, And Rationality | Techcitement*

When Bad Things Happen To Awful People: Anonymous Takes On Westboro Baptist Church | Techcitement*

Wed, 17 Apr 2013 22:25:41 -0400

When Bad Things Happen To Awful People: Anonymous Takes On Westboro Baptist Church | Techcitement*

What Are Bitcoins And Why Should You Care? | Techcitement*

Wed, 17 Apr 2013 11:21:05 -0400

What Are Bitcoins And Why Should You Care? | Techcitement*

Photo

Thu, 11 Apr 2013 13:48:14 -0400

katiewoodger: DISNEY HAVE STOLEN MY ARTWORK I don’t know what...

Tue, 09 Apr 2013 21:27:38 -0400

katiewoodger:

DISNEY HAVE STOLEN MY ARTWORK

I don’t know what to do. I am so upset. Can anyone help me?

My painting was created back in 2010, (see it HERE) and since then so many people have expressed their love for it, not just on tumblr, but in many places. At least 9 people had it tattooed on their bodies. It’s one of my favourite images I created at University and I was proud of it in many ways.

Disney have used it on a cosmetics bag HERE (look at the back)
and they have produced a Tshirt HERE with a really similar design clearly modeled from my painting

I’m so mad because I have no chance at getting Disney to do anything about it. I had so much respect for the company and now I am just SO upset and disappointed.

Any help, advice or signal boosting would be amazing. And thank you so much to the kind person who messaged me about this.

So fucked up.

Photo

Mon, 08 Apr 2013 15:08:34 -0400

obi-wankenblowme: inothernews: 19-year-old science education...

Mon, 08 Apr 2013 14:45:15 -0400

obi-wankenblowme:

inothernews:

19-year-old science education advocate figures out how to smack down a conservative economist calling for cuts to scientific research: by telling him “You’re not a scientist.”

(Real Time With Bill Maher via Upworthy)

Yesssss good.

Sick burn.

Photo

Tue, 02 Apr 2013 19:59:25 -0400

You like deez pix?

Tue, 02 Apr 2013 19:56:23 -0400

You like deez pix?

Like a writing desk.

Tue, 02 Apr 2013 19:54:59 -0400

Like a writing desk.

The Canyon they call Grand.

Tue, 02 Apr 2013 19:51:15 -0400

The Canyon they call Grand.

Photo

Tue, 02 Apr 2013 19:48:49 -0400

Photo

Tue, 02 Apr 2013 19:46:58 -0400

Photo

Tue, 02 Apr 2013 19:40:55 -0400