Up and Coming Weekly is a weekly publication in Fayetteville, NC and Fort Bragg, NC area offering local news, views, arts, entertainment and community event and business information.
Issue link: https://www.epageflip.net/i/90780
NEWS OF THE WEIRD by CHUCK SHEPPARD For September's Digital Design Weekend at the Victoria and Albert Museum in London, artists Michiko Nitta and Michael Burton commissioned soprano Louise Ashcroft to sing, altering pitch and volume while wearing a face mask made of algae. According to the artists, since algae's growth changes with the amount and quality of carbon dioxide it receives, Ashcroft's voice, blowing CO2 against the algae, should vary the growth's "taste" as to bitterness or sweetness. After the performance, the audience sampled the algae at various stages and apparently agreed. The artists said they were demonstrating how biotechnology could transform organisms. [V&A Museum press release via io9.com blog, 9-27-2012] TAURUS (April 20-May 20) You may fi nd that those who depend on you have grown too relaxed, leaving you to perform even the sim- plest of tasks for them, tasks they easily could perform themselves. You are not doing anyone any favors by fostering the dependency. GEMINI (May 21-June 21) You may be advised to "just be yourself" or "stay true to yourself" or similar unhelpful recommenda- tions. You need more concrete steps to follow and a leader who really knows the way. Seek specifi c instruction from truly worthy, learned individuals. Chuck Sheppard CANCER (June 22-July 22) The better angels of your nature — your capacity for love and compassion — far outshine whatever mistakes you make along the way. Keep in mind that people who know they are fl awed are actually less fl awed than they think they are. The Entrepreneurial Spirit Jordan and Bryan Silverman's start-up venture, Star Toilet Paper, distributes rolls to public restrooms in restaurants, stadiums and other locations absolutely free — because the brothers have sold ads on each sheet. (Company slogan: "Don't rush. Look before you flush.") Jordan, with 50 advertisers enlisted so far, told the Detroit Free Press in August that he came up with the idea, of course, while sitting on the can at the University of Michigan library. [Detroit Free Press via USA Today, 8-21-2012] First-World Problems: After an international trade association reported that women bought 548 million pairs of shoes in 2011 (not even counting those used exclusively for sports), the manufacturer Nine West has decided to start its own cable TV channel with programing on "various aspects of footwear," according to an August New York Times report. Programs will feature celebrities rhapsodizing about their favorite pair, women who hoard shoes (purchasing many more than they know they'll ever wear even one time), tips on developing one's stiletto- walking skills and shoe closet designs. It's about a "conversation," said a Nine West executive, "not about a shoe." [New York Times, 8-21-2012] Among the least-important effects of last summer's drought in the Midwest: Officials overseeing the annual Wisconsin State Cow Chip Throw said there would be fewer high-quality cow patties. Said chairperson Ellen Paulson: "When it's hot, the cows don't eat as much. And what was produced, they just dried up too quick." A few patties had been saved from the 2011 competition, but, she said, "It's not like you can go out and buy them." [Wisconsin State Journal, 8-23-2012] COPYRIGHT 2011 CHUCK SHEPHERD WWW.UPANDCOMINGWEEKLY.COM LEO (July 23-Aug. 22) You'll feel like a character playing out a scene in a familiar and yet somehow unreal setting. That's because a part of you is watching and seeing how easily the dynamic could be changed. You're also the director and at any time can strike this set and change the scenery. VIRGO (Aug. 23-Sept. 22) You like being a part of a team, because even when it doesn't go the way you want — or especially when it doesn't go the way you want — you learn something. You are committed to the work, not just to the fruits of the work. WEEKLY HOROSCOPES BY HOLIDAY For the Week of November 4, 2012 ARIES (March 21-April 19 You prefer not to deal with pushy people, but you must admit: As irritating as they may be, they make things happen. You could stand to be a little more as- sertive in your own life this week. ADVICE GODDESS LIBRA (Sept. 23-Oct. 23) You'll feel yourself changing once again, morphing into the person you're going to be. In this transitional phase, you may latch on to a stereotyped role. It's not who you are, but it's something to try on while you fi gure out your true identity. SCORPIO (Oct. 24-Nov. 21) You've been known to work very hard for something and then, once you get it, decide you want some- thing else. You're not fi ckle; you just enjoy a challenge more than you do possession. SAGITTARIUS (Nov. 22-Dec. 21) In order to make room for the good fortune coming your way, you'll have to let go of this history. Sometimes it seems that self-love requires constant forgiveness. The very act of acknowledgment says there's more goodness in you than you comprehend. CAPRICORN (Dec. 22-Jan. 19) What once caused inner turmoil is now second nature to you. With your attention freed up, you can now handle the practical and external details of realizing one of your long-held aspirations. Act swiftly, as the early week offers the least resistance to your wishes. AQUARIUS (Jan. 20-Feb. 18) Play things through in your head before you attempt them in real time. Give thought to what you're go- ing to say before you say it. It may be slightly more challenging to get your message across this week. PISCES (Feb. 19-March 20) If celebrating is an art form, you'll be an exuberant artist this week. You need little provocation; you fi nd or invent reasons to pause for fun. And the best part about your revelry mission is that you'll inspire others By Holiday Mathis WE'RE ALL year, and we're so happy and proud to be the creators of the most adorable creature either of us has ever seen, but our marriage is tanking. We aren't naive; we expected change. But we're both stressed and exhausted and we never have sex. Our lives seem like one big dull, diaper-changing, kid-focused routine. The scariest thought keeps crossing my mind: What if our marriage can't survive our having a kid? — Bundle Of Worry Four Wettings and a Funeral My hubby and I had our fi rst child last The good news is, about 40 percent of your happiness is within your control, through how you think and activities you can do (like date night). The bad news on the good news is something called "the hedonic treadmill," which is not a new form of torture at the gym. It's researchers' cute name for how we quickly adapt to both positive and negative changes in our lives and pop right back to our baseline level of happiness or mopeyness. This means it might not be enough to drag your weary, bleary parental cabooses out to dinner every Wednesday night. Sure, that's better than sitting home fretting that your kid won't get early admission to Harvard, but research by positive psychologists Dr. Kennon M. Amy Alkon EARS Questions? Comments? Story Ideas? Let us know how we're doing. Your opinion is something we always want to hear. Call or email us your feedback. 208 Rowan St. Fayetteville, NC 28301 910.484.6200 Sheldon and Dr. Sonja Lyubomirsky fi nds that variety — "a continual stream of fresh, positive experiences" — is key in increasing and sustaining happiness. So, you need to go out on a variety of date nights — changing up your activity every week and taking turns planning it so one of you will always be surprised. You don't have to do anything elaborate or expensive. You can borrow a Wii and ski the Swiss Alps from your living room rug, have a picnic dinner and then ride the Ferris wheel, or just go get hot dogs and make out in the car. Like many new parents, you probably think you're too exhausted to have sex, but maybe you're just too exhausted to have the spontaneous sex marathons you had before the kid came. You should also redefi ne sex as something along the lines of "doing things together naked." (Think of it as a snack-sized version of your former sex life.) According to the research, another way to be measurably happier is expressing gratitude — taking moments throughout the day to appreciate what you have and to express appreciation to each other. Put in some effort to be happy and maybe you'll not only stop fretting about divorce, you'll start having reckless sex (with each other), and before long, your husband will be taking time off from worrying that your 2-year-old doesn't have enough extracurriculars to read Dickens to your womb. Amy Alkon all rights reserved. OCT. 31 - NOV. 6, 2012 UCW 31 www.upandcomingweekly.com