For the most part, this blog isn't about me
per se, but about those things that strike me so hard that I feel inspired to share them. Be it the arts, politics or science, Mall of Me has been built slowly since 2006. I have no aim to blog every day. Expect quality over quantity. Here's a quick intro...
Right: On our right, you'll see the tags (causatives) for the site. I'll go into details on each tag a little farther down. The archive of posts is just below the tags, followed by my Top Three picks from the worlds of the written, the seen and the heard. "The List" is just below those, filled with books on personal development that can actually be applied to life as a praxis. Posts that have been deleted (as well as the reasons for deletion) are listed in the Pathic Purges. My signature and the Polyamory Awareness and Acceptance Ribbon round out the right column.
Left: No Speaken El Engles? No problemo. Clicka da flag most close to your language and Google will translate for you. I should mention now that I'm offensive and speak (badly) more languages than are likely healthy. I click the flags anyway... mostly because I love cultures and I can learn from them by reading what I've written in other languages. We do large features for very specific artists (some music, some visual). I have one lined up who's art was writing. The list shifts around as they are updated and as new ones are added. Below the features are blogs that may do guest posts here or who we just like in general. You can find places where Mall of me has been cataloged in the WW.Infektions area, then track visitors on the world map below it.
Here is a brief description of each label used as causative:
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Audio: Any entry focused on music, an opera or a speech would all go under audio. If it goes in the ear as a foci, it gets labeled as such.
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Code: Code is the software side of technology, and can be related to the memetic coding of the human creature or of a computer. There's no differentiation, but technology is the manifest symptom of the code.
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Comedy: Anything that makes me laugh and tends towards the lighter side of life is going to get the Comedy label.
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Experience: If you have to experience "it" to understand "it" (or if it requires physical action--dancing, climbing, building), then it goes under "Experience".
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Mathematics: Don't ask.
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Mythology: Anything that taps into a mythos or religion of the world will be labeled with the "Mythology" causative. Because these are so ingrained in our cultural coding, mythos has a huge affect on both art and science.
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Objective: While there's no attainable objective-view, I use the "Objective" causative when I'm presenting the work of another without my own commentary or judgment call directly expressed. I leave others to decide for themselves.
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Philosophy: Anything that taps into the intellectual sensations and beckons the mind to ask, think and act will be quickly labeled as "Philosophy". It's one of my favorite drugs.
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Politics: If it has to do with war, economics or government, then it is going under "Politics". As everything is political, my use of this is in the global, ruling sense.
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Subjective: If I'm reviewing or expressing heavy opinions, it goes under subjective. I'm a hard judge. The Austin poetry slam scene refers to me as "the Russian judge". Most things on Mall of Me will not be lowly rated unless my aim is to deter. Five out of five is the highest rating.
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Technology: I'm a technophile and actively participate in movements coordinated in bringing about the replacement of this species thru technology. As such, anything I post having to do with cyberpunk, human enhancement or anything else having to do with technology will be labeled as such. h+
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Tragedy: Tragedy can have humor, but its path lies in the pain and joy born from passion and desire. Catharsis is my favorite form of tragedy.
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Transcendent: Very rarely there comes along something that transcends the genre it was formed in. It is no longer "just a movie" (e.g., "The Fountain"), no longer "just a book" (e.g., "House of Leaves"), no longer "just a party" (e.g., "Burning Man"). These things often defy description and they'll likely come with the "Transcendent" causative.
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Video: If it teases the eye (no matter whether a pictures or animation), it goes under video. As a fire wyrm, I have a particular weakness to videographic sources, and so there's a lot of "eye candy" under this label.
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Walkthru: Walkthrus are guides that I've put together. They're designed to take a portion of how I operate with a tool and explain how others can apply it. While potentially useful, they are completely subjective and may not be for everyone. As such, I suggest that none should follow them.
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Written: While technically translated via the eye, "Written" causatives are meant for the psychology of the being--in grades of intellectual and emotional. Written can cover news feeds, books or just a quote.
A Note on the Forth Turning: This is the forth evolution of Mall of Me since 2006. Besides basic layout changes, there are now options to share as well as express various states of like and dislike. I may be phasing out the idea of temporary posts (previously, the causative "temp.post"), but may retain this facet. I'm moving more towards the idea of large features and mini-features and keeping my "self" out of it even more.
Long gone are the days of Google Ads on this blog and there hasn't been a shout widget since the third evolution. No more feeds from Fark or Dilbert... and Last.fm hasn't had a quality sound player for years. Deleted. Sending mad shout outs in love to all the artists who've shared their amazing works here and to every one of you who have stopped by from the far corners of the world.
If you're an artist and would like to be featured,
contact me. Be sure to include links to your galleries, audio players or writings. Also, include permission to re-post content as well as the titles of pieces or songs that this permission applies to (if it's limited). I can't guarantee a full feature, but I also can't resist promoting anything that I love.
[trade paperback]
To those readers strong in spirit, who seek that rare strength found only in facing an even stronger fear: "Seek ye, in the House of Leaves, a forge to form or break your spirit." To all else: "Seek ye, elsewhere, your salvation."
