The Floating Island

Aug 26

UFO Response Team

by Ken | No Comments | No TrackBacks

So, I saw these guys driving east on Lincoln this morning, around 9:15 AM or so.

Photo by Timoni

This isn't the actual car that I saw; I tried to get a shot of it myself, but of course my piece of shit WinMo phone camera chose that perfect moment to crash, as it so often does. The shot in fact is from a Flickr user - and if you search for "UFO Response Team," you'll find a whole lot more. Not just from San Francisco, but from all over the place. The one I saw was nearly identical, though - a refurbished police cruiser, the top having been spray-painted a matte black to try to match the rest of the car, Response Team decal on the back, UFO "tally" on the bumper.

In fact, they seem to have their own website. A privately funded organization, clearly, if they can't afford a better than a blogger site. ;)

Either they're crazy enough to actually be trying to find UFOs, in which case my hat's off to them - or it's an art stunt. If it's the latter - what do you feel they're trying to say?

Aug 10

Artist aggro

by Ken | No Comments | No TrackBacks

All of we Island denizens are creatives, covering the range from hobbyist to amateur to semi-pro to professional. On a regular basis, we take these creative activities that we love - writing, drawing, mixing, designing - and we ask ourselves, "Is there any way I could do this all the time, and support myself with it? Can I find a way to get by in this world, doing these things I enjoy? And if so, how?"

That being the case, I've been idly clicking back to this thread, which has been generating quite a buzz among Deviants and other creatives on the net.

Continue reading Artist aggro.

Aug 3

Sucker Punch

by Ken | No Comments | No TrackBacks

My favorite Youtube comments so far:
"It's as if DeviantArt became a movie!"
"This is going to make so much sense."

Jul 25

Let Me In

by Ken | No Comments | No TrackBacks

For the record, you should probably see Let the Right One In first, as it's a remarkable film. But there's some good buzz hovering around this remake, so you may want to keep an eye on it.

Jul 11

Beginnings and Endings

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Lali Singh of Sanai Sampura, India, was born with two faces, and lived for two months, according to the Wikipedia entry. Somewhat different than the condition of being a conjoined twin, Lali's condition was caused by an overabundance of a type of protein involved in the development of facial features.

How might our lives be different if we could look in two directions at once? How might language be different, if we could express two things at once? How might our lives be different if we could sing with two voices, smile with two smiles, cry twice as hard?

After she passed, it is said that they planned to build a temple in her memory. Here in the western Empire, we do not build temples to honor those so marked by difference. Mainly we bury them, and construct powerful dreams from their ashes. It's a different tradition.

Jul 9

Create the world

by Ken | No Comments | No TrackBacks

Like puzzles, games, logic, fantasy, and world-building? Or perhaps, like me, you just have a god complex? Either way, you should go and play Doodle God. Like, right now. Frighteningly simple, frighteningly creative, frighteningly addictive.

Jul 4

Test Pattern

by Ken | No Comments | No TrackBacks

My humblest apologies for the dearth of content. There were a couple of weeks of serious crunch going on at work, and a couple of weeks of visiting a strange and pleasant world. More updates to come. In the meantime, spend a little moment with the Sad Cow.

Jun 7

The Mysteries of the Crypt of Sansevero

by Ken | No Comments | No TrackBacks

Now, as to the "black legends" surrounding the Prince of Sansevero, there are many, each stranger than the last. That he was a mysterious figure, multilingual, an inventor of wonders, a Mason, an artist - to these things we can attest, and speak of publicly.

But as to the darker rumors - the whispers that he experimented on human subjects, could create blood from nothing, and authored a process by which men could be transmuted into marble - of these things we cannot know. The path of deeper inquiry is open to you, should your -- unusual curiosities provoke you in that direction. As for us, we shall retreat to safer climes. Some stones are best left unturned.

-K

May 31

B Side: Lift Me Up

by Ken | 2 Comments | No TrackBacks

Half-hidden by shadow and starlight, the paths of the Floating Island at night form a labyrinth that is neither straightforward, nor entirely real. You attempt to retrace the path you followed out to the Garden, without success. Many times, you feel that you're starting to recognize the terrain around you -- and just as many times, you take a step into reverie instead of a step towards home.

A glimmer of hope appears, in the distance. Torchlight. Before long, you have followed it into an ancient plaza strewn with chunks of coral, as well as marble pulverized by the relentless grasp of vine. In the center of the plaza, you discover a device. Laying hands upon it, you hear a fast, repetitive, relentless beat. It makes your nerves go crystalline with adrenaline, and with each beat of your heart you can feel the distinctive hum of electric bass.

Continue reading B Side: Lift Me Up.

May 18

Rubber

by Ken | 1 Comment | No TrackBacks

All I know about Rubber is that it is the story of Robert, a homicidal killer tire with psychic powers.

Now, I don't want to oversell this thing. But, purely based on the plot synopsis, I feel we may be looking at the most amazing movie ever.

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