A new aftrlifer in town

All decked out in Frog Pajamas and ready to party, Noah Thomas, son of aftrlifer elzbelita, is looking good. And there ain't no half about that sleep.

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P. Diddy vs Tanuki

In a news item quoted by litbrit at Shakespeare's Sister raccoon dogs aka Tanukis are being used for fur on clothing illegally. P. Diddy's line of clothing had "dog" fur on its collars as unadvertised. Major clothing stores are being cited as selling many lines of clothing with the dead dog skin as an accessory.

On a happier note, Wikipedia says,

A common schoolyard song in Japan (the tune of which can be heard in the arcade game Ponpoko and a variation of which is sung in the Studio Ghibli film Pom Poko) makes explicit reference to the tanuki's anatomy:

Tan Tan Tanuki no kintama wa,
Kaze mo nai no ni,
Bura bura
(Roughly translated, this means "Tan-tan-tanuki's testicles, there isn't even any wind but still go swing-swing-swing".[1] A more precise translation would be "tan tan tanuki's balls, even when there's no wind, go swing-swing" [citation needed]. It then proceeds to continue for several verses, with many regional variations. It is sung to the melody of an American Baptist hymn called Shall We Gather At The River?.[2])

A hymn to Tanuki's big balls.

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Daffy Yum--Page 60

Ah...La Lune...

There is magic afoot tonight...the full moon outside the window shining down upon page 60 where it also shines upon the girls at the Rubber Rose Ranch. This is the true harmonic conversion. And what is the sincronomious harmony we hear so clearly on this moonlit night? It is the ethereal and haunting refrain

Cheese...

Cheese...

Cheese...

:~)

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23 Skidoo

Dynamic Digits: The number 23 has long fascinated the world
Sacramento Bee - Sacramento,CA,USA
It was author Tom Robbins, whose use of the number in the 1984 book "Jitterbug Perfume," in particular, who pointed Barbeau to Robert Anton Wilson. ...

A new film plays to that prime instinct
By Rachel Leibrock - Bee Staff Writer
Published 6:14 am PST Friday, February 23, 2007
It's just a number. Or is it?

You can take your unlucky 13 and your heavenly seven. For some, 23 is the magic number, and for centuries, the digit's die-hards have explored its importance in everything from religion, mysticism and science to pop culture.

Now, a new movie "The Number 23" -- out, yes, you guessed it, today, the 23rd -- explores one man's fascination with the number.

In the Joel Schumacher-directed film, Jim Carrey is Walter Sparrow, a seemingly ordinary man embroiled in a 15-year-old murder mystery after being given an obscure book called "The Number 23" for his birthday.

The actor, like the character, is fixated on the number. Not only did Carrey name his production company JC23, but the actor once admitted to People magazine that "I've been (obsessed) with the number 23 for years. It's everywhere. Each parent passes on 23 chromosomes; Earth's axis is at a 23-degree angle. Psalm 23 is my mantra ..."

Carrey's not the only one chanting "23." Indeed, there's a name for the obsessed: 23rdians.

Those who call themselves such prescribe to the 23 Enigma, a belief that all events and happenings center on the number or some version of it.

As such, 23rdians find the number everywhere.

It's in the Bible, science and literature, reported 23rdian William S. Burroughs, who gave the figure prominence in his books. Any Chicago Bulls fan can tell you 23 is important for being Michael Jordan's jersey number, and "Lost" addicts know 23 is integral to the story -- in fact, the show's producers claim it's the most important of the island-mystery show's famous recurring-number sequence.

What's the significance? Turns out that's a subject ripe for endless debate.

If there's an unofficial patron saint of the 23 set, it's novelist Robert Anton Wilson, whose 1977 book "Cosmic Trigger" explored the number in Burroughs' works as an attempt to connect the digits to the universe on a larger scale.

It was Wilson, who died in January, who inspired screenwriter Fernley Phillips to pen "The Number 23" script.

"I'd always been interested in numbers and math, and how they work together," Phillips says on the phone from L.A. "We all know about (the significance) of seven and 13 -- but we don't know about 23 and how it blends the weird with the scientific."

That's when 23 started popping up all over Phillips' world.

"I'd see it in newspaper headlines, clocks, license plates and street addresses," he says.

The mystery of the 23 seemed tailor-made for the big screen.

"I knew it'd be great to get this into a movie," Phillips says.

The resulting film, he says, raises an important 23rdian question: Is the number a blessing or a curse?

"That's part of the interest -- for some it's a good thing, but for others, it's not."

For local singer-songwriter Anton Barbeau, the number is a creative inspiration.

Barbeau, now touring England, started thinking about the digits after a 1993 conversation with another local musician in a band called, naturally, 23.

"After a long, detailed explanation about the significance of this number, it made strange and perfect sense to me," Barbeau says. "Once he got me started, I couldn't stop seeing the number everywhere I went."

It was author Tom Robbins, whose use of the number in the 1984 book "Jitterbug Perfume," in particular, who pointed Barbeau to Robert Anton Wilson.

"(Wilson) connects the number to the Beatles and then uses it (to) connect the Beatles to Carl Jung -- how is that not intriguing?"

These days, 23 figures prominently in Barbeau's work -- sometimes unintentionally.

The pop singer's latest album, "In the Village of the Apple Sun," is "filled with digital 23s," including one track named after the number. Another song, "Six Hours Later," features numbers in every verse that, of course, add up to 23.

"That wasn't intentional," Barbeau says. "I'm not that clever or motivated ... (but) there have been so many times when 23 seemed to jump back into my field of vision -- it's just a pretty fun and bizarre thing to get hung up on."

Aron Price sees 23 as a fascinating glimpse into how we attach meaning to seemingly unimportant concepts.

Price, a cognitive sciences student at Ohio State, also found himself drawn to the number via Wilson's works. Turned off by the "cult" atmosphere of other 23-related sites, Price started Frequency23.net for fun. The site features forums, articles and chats on all things 23.

"Frequency23 is something of an artistic experiment," he says on the phone from his Columbus, Ohio, home. "I'm interested in how the mind works and how people interact with each other."

Does Price actually believe there's something special about 23? He hesitates a moment, and then: "My interest is both personal and observational."

But while it sometimes feels like 23 turns up everywhere, Price adds, "if you think about any number a lot, then you'll see it anywhere."

And, just because it's there doesn't mean it's important.

At least not according to San Francisco-based numerologist Sally Faubion.

Faubion, author of "Motivational Numerology" (Seven Locks Press, $14.95, 204 pages), calls 23 a "good fortune" number that fosters communication, creativity and imagination. But, she adds, its significance is nowhere near the importance of, say, a 13 or seven.

If anything, Faubion says, the 23 mystery has just turned into something of a mind game.

"When people think about any number they can become obsessed with it and see it all day," she says. "The human mind is powerful."

Maybe it's more about personal philosophy.

"Is there a special significance to 23? I don't know," says Phillips, "The Number 23" screenwriter. "I think that's a question like 'do you believe in God or aliens.' "

In other words, if you believe, then it all adds up.


It's all a number's fame
How does 23 add up? Let us count the ways -- just don't blame us if you start seeing the number everywhere.

ATHLETICS

Sports enthusiasts can find 23 everywhere. It's the legendary Michael Jordan's jersey number, and Cleveland Cavalier phenom LeBron James chose 23 as a tip of the ball to his idol. Other players who sport the number: Sacramento Kings guard Kevin Martin, British soccer star David Beckham and Chicago Bears defensive back Devin Hester -- the first player in NFL history to return the opening kickoff of the Super Bowl for a touchdown.

ADS

Dr Pepper has long called its sugary soda a "unique blend of 23 flavors." Not only will you find the number on the company's soft drink label, but a recent TV commercial shows the number turning up in seemingly random places.

MUSIC

Several bands sing the number's praises: The Gorillaz put the number in every video, and the Posies' first album is called "Dear 23" (the band also named its publishing company Number 23 Songs). Also of note, "Her Majesty," the last song ever recorded by the Beatles, was just 23 seconds long.

LITERATURE

In addition to William S. Burroughs and Robert Anton Wilson, two writers who wrote extensively about the number, William Gibson made several references to 23 in the book "Idoru." Several comic book series, including "The Invisibles" and "Tank Girl," also highlight the digits.

ODDS AND ENDS

The first Morse code transmission (May 24, 1844) was "What hath God wrought" -- taken from the Bible passage Numbers 23:23.

The slang phrase "23 skiddoo" means to quickly leave a place. Speculation as to the term's origins include a Death Valley town that reportedly had 23 saloons in the early 20th century, and Charles Dickens, whose "Tale of Two Cities" protagonist, Sydney Carton, was the 23rd person to be executed on the guillotine.

Also: The human genome contains 23 pairs of chromosomes, and it takes blood 23 seconds to circulate throughout the body.

Sources: AllMusic.com, Wikipedia.com, The Mirror, DrPepper.com, About.com

About the writer:
It's just a number. Or is it? You can take your unlucky 13 and your heavenly seven. For some, 23 is the magic number, and for centuries, the digit's die-hards have explored its importance in everything from religion, mysticism and science to pop culture.

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

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Blog Talk

give me one reason to be beautifulBy shadowmeursault(shadowmeursault) --both from Tom Robbins' Fierce Invalids Home From Hot Climates Giants Orbiting. still-shot from Neil Gaiman's Mirrormask. * 'we' refers to me and the mouse in my pocket. the mouse in my pocket, by the by, fully endorses and agrees with ...
Without Mercy or Malice - http://shadowmeursault.livejournal.com/

Relaxing in Robertson’s rock poolsBy Cat He hoped we were enjoying our VD (Valentine’s Day) and we talked literature (he actually had pretty great taste in books - Tom Robbins, Paulo Coelho), travel, spirituality, youth work (he teaches art to “disadvantaged black South ...Traveling Cat - http://www.travelingcat.com

Rache gets EU nod to export biltongRache gets EU nod to export biltong By Tom Robbins Cape Town - ... to start exhibiting the product at food trade fairs in London and Germany from next ...EU Politics Today: EU South Africa... - http://eupolitics.einnews.com/news/eu-south-africa-trade

Still Life With Woodpecker by Tom RobbinsBy pagepassage(pagepassage) "Inessential insanities are a brittle amalgamation of ambition, aggression, and pre-adolescent anxiety--garbage that should have been dumped long ago. Essential insanities are those impulses one instinctively senses are virtuous and
Page Passage - http://community.livejournal.com/pagepassage/

'ne mozaigi lan?'*By Erinc Salor(Erinc Salor) (For a taste, I recommend Tom Robbins' Jitterbug Perfume) This is a reason, I suspect, to love Brussels. Maybe not as much as London, but still, the subway is shabby an dirty enough to be worthy of a real city and one can still eat one ...

Still Life with Woodpecker by Tom Robbins, because it has stuff like "Elmer, the Greek god of glue" and "playing octogenarian mermaid". 5. One book that made you cry. Jane Eyre by Charlotte Brontë. They were buckets, I tell you. The Daily Inquibbler - http://inquibbler.livejournal.com

Book meme (and okay, my last post today :p)By Fil of the Future(Fil of the Future) Still Life with Woodpecker by Tom Robbins, because it has stuff like "Elmer, the Greek god of glue" and "playing octogenarian mermaid". 5. One book that made you cry. Jane Eyre by Charlotte Brontë. They were buckets, I tell you. ...The Daily Inquibbler - http://inquibbler.livejournal.com/

chromemagpie @ 2007-03-01T21:35:00By chromemagpie(chromemagpie) 2. jPod - Douglas Coupland 1. Even Cowgirls Get the Blues - Tom Robbins This was another gifted book from my (now former) Little Boss. The entire thing is handwritten, with drawing and sketch throughout. Cool book.Ooooh! Shiny! - http://chromemagpie.livejournal.com/

Still life with Woodpecker by Tom RobbinsWriting on inside cover or fly. Worn cover. Spine creased. $3.00.

Before Christmas I was talking to a friend about what I was ...By themusk\n\nI realized the Bible was much more like a Tom Robbins novel than I ever imagined. In fact, Thomas Pynchon couldn’t be more abstract and strange than Revelations. I’m always open to any possibility or idea, but the more I seek in any ...
Lorem Ipsum Books New Arrivals - http://www.loremipsumbooks.com

Before Christmas I was talking to a friend about what I was ...By themusk I realized the Bible was much more like a Tom Robbins novel than I ever imagined. In fact, Thomas Pynchon couldn’t be more abstract and strange than Revelations. I’m always open to any possibility or idea, but the more I seek in any ...Spent Elemental Ratios - http://themusk.wordpress.com

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Rain gone down

My ISP is down today temporarily. That's why you can't get into the Aftrlife website. Thanks for trying though.

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