the yak occidental

Here is a selection of memorable quotes from The Brothers Karamazov by Fyodor Dostoevsky. Painting above: "The Bewitched Man" c. 1798 by Francisco de Goya Y Lucientes I erred, but I loved the good.  Every moment I longed to reform,  yet I lived like a wild beast. p.750  It is not miracles that bring a realist to faith.  A true realist, if he is not a believer,  will always find in himself the strength and ability not to believe in miracles as well,  and if a miracle stands before him as an irrefutable fact,  he will sooner doubt his own senses than admit the fact.  And even if he does admit it,  he will admit it as a fact of nature that was previously unknown to him.  In the realist, faith is not born from miracles, but miracles from faith.  Once the realist comes to believe, then, precisely because of his realism,  he must also allow for miracles. p.25-26 Stupidity is brief and guilel...

Make it your goal to be prepared for a natural disaster by the end of August! above: from Ponyo ! If you live in the Pacific Northwest, were you aware that we live on a major fault line and are expecting a big earthquake at any moment? I know it's scary and at the time I'm posting this we are in the midst of two public health crises (COVID and opioid crises) already.  The good news is that with even a few moments of reading, you will feel infinitely more prepared, trust me. Below is a collection on good resources, tips and tricks, etc, all about earthquake preparedness here in Canada. Quick Links for Earthquake Preparedness What if I'm in a highrise, stadium, or wheelchair at the time of an earthquake? Don't worry, Get Prepared BC has you covered ! What about my pets during an earthquake? What if I'm out shopping ? The Great Shakeout BC has tons of great resources and fact sheets ! Make an emergency plan over at the CRD! From Surrey to Sm...

I've never been one for the dystopian binge.  Painting above: Flowers c. 1700 by Maria Sibylla Merian Be it books, music, TV, movies, dystopian narratives tend to  dominate  the mainstream, and while it can be cathartic, I would echo  Karol Collymore 's 2016  article  over at Bitch that I personally find such narratives  traumatic to watch .  Some even think the saturation of dystopian narratives are downright  dangerous  at worst, and  rather narrow-minded at best. Hunger Games ?   The Handmaid's Tale ? Count me out, thanks (and yes, I have read Roxane Gay's 'What We Hunger For' in  Bad Feminist  and  The Handmaid's Tale itself ). I think it is rather the duty of art  at times  to present a utopian vision for the future, or even alternate experience, especially at this time (says the person who is definitely not an artist).  So let's talk utopianism as a Way Forward or possible Futur...

Here is a selection of memorable quotes from The Far Cr y by Emma Smith. Painting above: Summer's Day c.1879 by Berthe Morisot He wanted to say: Yes, everything is different; differences are bewildering.  Do not, in order to be rid of your bewilderment,  attempt to reduce what is extraordinary to the limits of your ordinary appreciation.  That is what most people do. They try to commonise, to reduce,  because they are afraid of being bewildered.  Let yourself be astonished. Be small.  That is enough for you, and for me. p. 205-206 And Ruth was able to lift her eyes and regard the blue feathery Naga hills  without pain, for in her hand she held a silence  and a constancy to equal theirs. p. 227 Spiritual gestation, he believed, should not be suppressed,  it should be honoured, and this however feeble or mistaken  its attempts at expression might be. p.295 It is true to say that she married h...

Here are three paradigm shifts that have made a difference in my life. Painting above: The Giantess c. 1947 by Leonora Carrington Okay, so what is a "paradigm shift"? Basically, its change in the way you see and think about things. Originally a scientific term and concept, I first learned about it via reading Stephen R. Covey's The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People . Covey defines a paradigm as, "a model, theory, perception, assumption, or frame of reference. In the more general sense, it's the way we 'see' the world--not in terms of our visual sense of sight, but in terms of perceiving, understanding, interpreting." By extension, a  paradigm shift,  "whether they shift us in a positive or negative directions, whether they are instantaneous or developmental, paradigm shifts move us from one way of seeing the world to another. And those shifts create powerful change. Our paradigms, correct or incorrect, are the sources of our attit...

The Animation Industry in Vancouver is.... 1. Very social and fun, room for all sorts of folks! We are making cartoons, after all. I’ve seen a lot of groups that went through school (for animation) together remain friends years after the fact.  Another thing is that since we often end up doing OT together, you get to know your teammates very quickly just by virtue of spending so much time with them (in what is usually close quarters). It makes for fast bonding, and since it’s such small industry, you often end up crossing paths with folks who you’ve worked with before at other studios! 2. Getting more diverse The diversity I see in animation is just as strong if not stronger than when I was in non-profit and university . It’s also getting better every year. A lot of studios have initiatives for LGBTQ2S folks and supporting more women in leadership roles. 3. Meet and work with people all over the world! There are a few big hubs around the world for animation production...