A Frozen Fallen Angel, a Girl and Her Unlikely Instrument, and One Monstrously Huge Cube
A Frozen Fallen Angel, a Girl and Her Unlikely Instrument, and One Monstrously Huge Cube
Five oddballs for your eyeballs
Hello!
As you may have noticed, I made a shift in direction. Nothing too drastic, yet a bit… odd.
I’ll be sharing with you five oddities - things that are strangely askew in our lives and the world around us. My goal is to give you something interesting to ponder, share with others, and rev up those brain juices.
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So, without further ado, here are five oddballs for your eyeballs!
A FALLEN ANGEL FROZEN IN TIME?
Workers in Siberia were digging (because that’s what workers do) and they found this stone statue of an angel buried in the earth. Not huge news - statues are probably littered all over this planet. But get this, this one has incredible detail and was preserved perfectly with no damage.
Could this be a fallen angel that was turned to stone as a punishment and is hibernating? While I’m totally on board with the notion of fallen angels and such (“Book of Enoch”, et al), I, personally, am not convinced that it’s an actual fallen angel. Yet it’s hard to explain the craftsmanship. I’m stone-cold flummoxed!
INSTANT CLAYMATION VIDEOS
Technology is advancing quickly. Does Moore’s Law even apply anymore? (See what I did there?) Here’s an example of technology moving faster than my Luddite heart can withstand. A company called Runway Research has created something called Gen1 which they claim is “The Next Step Forward for Generative AI.” This Gen1 can instantly turn your videos into a stylized reproduction. The one that got me was the claymation.
As a fan of claymation - the painstaking process and artistry - I’m tempted to take this as an affront. Yet, is not digital development a painstaking and artistic process in and of itself? Still, it’s a bit too technologically advanced for me. Put on the brakes, tech geeks! I’m still awaiting the next “Wallace and Gromit” (set for 2024!).
REN AND THE ART OF NEGATIVE SELF-TALK
Sometimes, that which is odd turns out to be right on the money. The performance artist known as Ren is such an outlier. And while I’m not familiar with the vast majority of his music, I can say that “Hi Ren” is astonishingly way out there, yet may hit home for many of us. The song does have expletives so be prepared for some salty language sprinkled in and about.
I find “Hey Ren” to be a raw, eclectic, emotional performance piece that stands out from the crowd yet, in a strange way, speaks to the crowd from within; if that makes sense. Is this dude an oddball or is he more real than the average dude?
A SUCCESSFUL MUSICIAN WHO PLAYS THE… WHAT???
Speaking of musicians, meet Lucie Horsch, a successful musician who plays the recorder. Yes, the RECORDER! That plastic flute thing they gave you back when you were a kid to play “Three Blind Mice.” This young lady blows three blind mice out of the water!
I know what you may be thinking, she’s some novel act; a quirky girl who plays indie music about rainy days in Portland. But no, she’s the real deal. She plays classical music. That’s the tough stuff, not this three-chord horseradish from those punk whippersnappers!
I found her on Spotify while listening to a classical station. Look her up. She’s amazingly talented. I never thought anyone could make a living with a recorder… well, maybe this guy. But her style is better. Goes to show you, eh?
A GIANT CUBE THAT CAN FIT 20 EMPIRE STATE BUILDINGS INSIDE
OK, so last but not least (not least at all!) is Saudi Arabia’s Mukaab - a proposed architectural project of ginormous proportions. The dimensions are 400 m X 400 m X 400 m (that’s roughly 1,312 feet cubed for us US folks). And it’s not just a big cube of offices or apartments, the core of it will house an immersive holographic dome!
You may be asking, “Why?” Well, for tourism. From what I understand, Saudi Arabia is wanting to move past oil and into tourism and hospitality. Regardless of their reasons, this idea is so big and bold that it may be impossible. You tell me, is there room for squares?
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Until next time, stay oddly beautiful!
Jason
