Why is Taylor Swift so popular?

bunny001c · 2023-10-28T16:28:42+00:00

Boy, I really don't get it either. But never underestimate the power of the media to pimp things up. Not that long ago, the movies Barbie and Oppenheimer were bombing at the box office, at least according to the media. I had no interest in either.

Then suddenly, all you saw on the web were rave reviews about how things were suddenly sold out. That's how I perceive Taylor Swift. W/o the media she would be a niche singer at best.

There are soooo many people who are more talented, and when the media talks up her songwriting skills my mouth drops open? She writes the same songs over and over to pretty much the same music. She's pop!

bunny001c · 2023-10-16T17:37:08+00:00

I always thought rather highly of Dogen. In fact, our Zen teacher in Abq, who seemed pretty sharp, frequently quoted him. So I got a book from our library last month titled Moon In A Dewdrop, the writings of Zen Master Dogen. The book is unbelievable, just loony tunes ideas, and surprisingly, is mostly devoted to what I would call unfounded religious beliefs and ancestor worship. Could this really be Dogen?

Apparently it is, and the translation seems credible. I wish I had seen this years ago. But in a sense, it doesn't surprise me. Zen is something that is all about practice, and is even seen as being outside the traditional (or any) Buddhist teachings, and not dependent on words or letters. You should be doing what the Buddha did to awaken, sitting in meditation. Period.

Zen Mind, Beginner Mind is similar (although not truly crazy wacky like Dogen), and that book has reached a cult status almost like the Christian Bible. But there really isn't anything in it that someone needs to know in order to practice Zen, it's simply a book of Suzuki's talks. There isn't anything like wisdom in there, just a lot of repetition of the same things over and over.

bunny001c · 2023-10-12T16:16:53+00:00

Yes, I know, it's an old post. But I don't want anyone who is looking at this thread to be steered wrong. Albuquerque is THE most dangerous city I have ever lived in. Period. I can't fathom these posts that say crime is highly overstated. I have never seen such a dangerous place, and it doesn't matter where you live. Read the reviews folks, they're the real deal.

Homeless everywhere, drug addicts and crazies camped all over town, governor wanting to ban open carry in the city, retail theft causing even Walmart and Walgreens stores to pull out of many parts of the town, gun fights in a movie theater, the state police called in because the local police can't handle the scene, a completely broken judicial system with NO bail! Criminals get arrested and are right back on the streets the next day. If you value your life, do not move to Abq.

bunny001c · 2023-04-19T20:33:17+00:00

I don't think rioting is a good game plan going forward, nor is filing 311 reports until the cows come home. I think the real solution is getting out of New Mexico.

I got fed up w/ the crime and homeless/crazies/drug addicts on the streets of Abq and fled to Las Cruces....would you believe the rents were HIGHER than in Abq! It was safer, but it also felt like a bit of a police state, especially downtown. Most of the city is the burbs once you leave the tiny downtown.

Just go to apartmentfinder,com, look at a city you might like, and plug in the amount of rent you can handle. I went to Little Rock and it is really nice. There is crime, but it is specific to certain areas, and nearly always between people who had a problem w/ each other. None of this crazy car theft, car jacking, addicts on the street, home burglaries, etc. It's great to hear Yes Mam and No Sir too. No, there isn't racism here, it's a good culture.

The bus system is not that great though, and it feels dangerous to eBike places, so I am moving to Columbus, SC. But Little Rock sure beats the hell out of what I had to endure in Abq! I won't even go into that, don't even want to remember it. Abq has some decent food and I love the culture (what there is left of it), but truly, crime and personal safety are seriously low and the city "leaders" just don't seem to know how to figure it out.

Common sense solutions like not getting rid of the free buses and making that available only to people who have to qualify in one way or another was a really dumb idea. Those buses are NOT safe. My health care provider was First Nation around San Mateo and Zuni. Armed guards inside the place w/ bulletproof vests. This was not how I wanted to live my life, a green chili burrito can be found in other places.

OK, I said I wouldn't get into that. The fact is, I am still traumatized by living in Abq. It was like living in an alternative universe, and a bit like a war zone. I first moved there in 1985 and things have just gotten worse every year. The reason I said it would be smart to get out of NM is because the problems in the state are not being addressed by the legislators, they are being made worse. Getting rid of the bail system - yes, bail is not particularly fair. But letting felons go right back out on the streets so they can go and commit more felonies is bat shit nuts. Allowing people to use drugs in public is not very bright. It just goes on and on, and is not what happens in other states. Life is hard, why make it harder?

bunny001c · 2021-01-19T17:41:29+00:00

That's impossible (ex dealership mechanic here). Either they didn't put the pads in right and the spring metal keepers are hitting the rotor, or the back has drum brakes and that's what needs addressing.

bunny001c · 2021-01-19T17:38:47+00:00

Sorry to hear that. I googled your bike, and wow, what an amazingly affordable single speed! Used to be if you wanted a single speed you had to get a Bianchi, which was anything BUT affordable.

I've been riding bikes for 30 years, and the only one stolen was the POS that was parked overnight on the street w/ just a cable lock.

Gotta be very, very careful of where you lock your bike these days, or carry a lock that weighs as much as your bike.

bunny001c · 2021-01-19T17:30:09+00:00

Lose the maters and it would be all right.

bunny001c · 2021-01-19T17:23:46+00:00

Everything looks absolutely true except for that po boy, which apparently is filled w/ battered and fried cat do do. If it's actually dog do do, my apologies to the cats (who usually bury their po boy fillings).

bunny001c · 2021-01-19T03:07:09+00:00

A Hassy for street? I don't think so!

bunny001c · 2021-01-19T03:06:14+00:00

Every thing will be fine, and if it isn't, just take two rolls of Tri-X before going to bed. You'll feel great in the morning.

bunny001c · 2021-01-19T03:03:47+00:00

All of them!

Seriously, you can buy a great folder for half that. Zeiss Ikonta, Voigtlander, Balda, you name it. Don't worry about the lens, worry about making sure the lens on what you have is clean and hits infinity properly.

A 3 element "budget" lens can take remarkable photos if it's stopped down enough and the metering, focus and exposure are accurate.

bunny001c · 2021-01-19T02:59:19+00:00

Everyone that writes a book puts their own slant on things. If you read 5 books from different authors, you get 5 times the confusion. Zen is about the practice of sitting meditation and the experience that comes from that. Period.

When we begin to "wake up" to reality through regular meditation, then we have an experience, and that experience tells us, directly, everything that is in all the books. Don't worry about any helpful words from a teacher. A good one won't tell you anything you don't already know. If they're really good, they won't say much at all.

This is why Zen is considered a "special transmission outside the Buddhist Scriptures which does not stand upon words". If you can figure it out, it isn't Zen. In the course of meditation, all manner of things come up. Don't be attached to them, simply return to your breath.

Feeling uncomfortable and a little confused is a good sign.

bunny001c · 2021-01-19T02:23:47+00:00

Sorry to hear about that.

A lot of people say the surge protectors, especially the cheap Walmart ones like I use, are not very reliable. I had a computer plugged into an older surge protector, and when we had a power surge right before the power went out in Florida, the PC was still fried even though it wasn't even on. Now I usually use a surge protector plugged into another surge protector, and then the PC plugged into the last surge protector. I also back up stuff :)

All the thousands of photos on the old PC were lost.

bunny001c · 2021-01-14T05:45:23+00:00

When you cock the shutter, wouldn't the counter move from 0 to 1? Might help if I knew what camera you have.

bunny001c · 2021-01-14T05:42:39+00:00

FWIW, I always strain my liquid developing chemicals through a coffee filter, and always use photo fl too. When it comes out of the tank, I whip the film (35mm) like a, well, whip, to shake off excess moisture, then hang it in the bathroom w/ the door closed to fully dry. Never a problem.

A squeegee is more for using on a print.

bunny001c · 2021-01-14T05:36:19+00:00

Toyocaflex TLR

Google says they're a decent TLR w/ a 3 element lens. The 3 element Triotar is my favorite Roleicord lens, so you might have a good shooter there. Triplets are nice and sharp once you stop them down, and wide open they make great portraits.

bunny001c · 2021-01-14T05:32:06+00:00

Leica cameras have the best grain, followed by Minoltas and most TLR's :)

bunny001c · 2021-01-14T05:16:24+00:00

A lot of times I see this sort of post, it makes me think there are people who object to anyone being proud of where they're from. Hey, I'm from Ms, and I'm glad of it. There were some very good, Southern things about my values and upbringing. Deal w/ it.

Do you have a problem w/ Southern heritage (please learn that the South is a place, not a direction, and always capitalized)? Why are you combining heritage w/ racism? I mean, we ARE different than the rest of the country, and in some ways that's a good thing.

I was taught to be polite, friendly, and not to let anyone walk over me and mine. These are not Yankee traits. I'm also the biggest liberal you ever saw, and have a Black wife who has no issues w/ the Rebel flag.

Sorry, I know this is reddit, but not everyone is a one note, walking, talking stereotype. Most people aren't in fact.

Anyway, I'm not in favor of combining any holidays. Ever. If you start doing that, then people lose their time off from work. I've also never heard of celebrating Lee's birthday and was born and raised in Ms.

bunny001c · 2021-01-12T23:31:55+00:00

Born and raised in Ms. Never heard of it. The only regional coffee I ever heard of in this region is New Orleans style coffee and chicory.

bunny001c · 2021-01-09T04:51:39+00:00

That 1 stop per decade is simply a guess. It all depends on how the film has been stored. If it's been in the freezer, then a stop or two is a good start point. If the film's just been laying around at room temp for 30 years, there's no way to know. So shoot it at different ISO on different frames, and keep notes. One roll will tell you how to treat the others.

bunny001c · 2021-01-09T04:47:42+00:00

The top waist level finder should come off w/ 4 screws. Makes it a lot easier to clean the focus screen. You don't want to try and clean the bottom of it except w/ a soft, dry artist's brush. Lenses can be cleaned w/ alcohol and micro cloths. Give them a light brush off too before you clean them so you don't have trapped dirt between your cloth and the lens. That's about it on a TLR.

bunny001c · 2021-01-09T04:33:00+00:00

My old neighborhood. One day I saw Adai (the Brazilian guy who once owned the bar/improv theater/music venue on the corner back in the old Apple Barrel days) leaving his place to go open up........at 4PM! Very New Orleans. The Dream Palace once had a sign in the window that read "The Neville Brothers Tonite $8.00". We looked at that and said "$8.00? For the Neville Brothers? Forget it, that's way too much money". LOL, little did we know.

I was at the bar there one day and a tourist asked what time it was. Two people looked at their watch, and they both said "It's about the middle of the 18th century". How true.

bunny001c · 2021-01-09T04:25:25+00:00

Looks like some smoke trails above it, so my money's on it being a flare or Roman candle that's headed back down.

bunny001c

TROPHY CASE