olfaction

Reading this account of how one person’s loss of her sense of smell, partial recovery and dealing with dysosmia—though far from suffering in complete solitude (27ᵗʰ February is Anosmia Awareness Day sponsored by the UK charity The Fifth Sense, which advocates for people with smell and taste disorders), left her a sort of shut-in (now rehabilitated) and made us appreciate our noses and taste buds and the even the crudest, simplest bouquet for all its worth.
Not only does a deficit in smell affect diet, routine and hygiene—as well as potentially posing a safety risk bereft of certain warning signals—it also steals away associative, sentimental memories. The author’s determination wrestle back that blessing through training and exercise, despite the rather bleak prognosis, is admirable and we’ll by searching later for our old vials of essential oils—lemon, eucalyptus, rosewater and clove, we knew they would be useful again one of these days—and starting on a vigorous regiment.

howdy arabia!

The tendency of leadership of the oligarchical petrostate to accrue all attention unto itself does result in the inability to divert one’s focus and to entertain elsewhere the idea of support tempered with criticism. The tribalism and polarisation that has become America’s chief export has blinded the diplomatic corps to the norms of sovereignty and international cooperation and advances the old spectre of nation building, rejecting the idea of policing the world as the US abdicates its position of taking the moral high ground while at the same time embracing the imperialism—both petty and expansive that is a natural consequence of a rising class of oligarchs. As public coffers globally run dry with the consolidation of wealth to a few dynasties that pride themselves in tax-avoidance and garner the clout necessary to ensure that laws are favourable to preserving their status, governments turn towards hard-won public institutions as a way to make up for that revenue and auction them off wholesale—as the rich and powerful brokered for control of formerly state-owned means of production after the dissolution of the Soviet Union.
While the phenomenon is certainly not original nor exclusive to America (neither limited to Republicans but to all illiberal and reformed elements as well), it is leading the way in dismantling foundations created and sustained for the benefit of all, in the public lands, the education sector, research, national defence, etc. and this clutching cannibalism has globally transmuted to acceptance and even willingness to rally against publically-held institutions and state run businesses. Oil is the last refuge of scoundrels and a dying industry that only the uncreative want to have truck with, but as Venezuela’s only valuable commodity—and we’ve created strictures within banking and lending system to make sure that such places cannot diversify when faced with challenges—halved in value as global demand flagged and the world pivots towards more sensible and sustainable, corruption and mismanagement were bound to ensue, only exacerbated by sanctions against the country. Pushing unrest to the breaking point, as America has done in Nicaragua, Colombia and Panama, the US is persuading the international community to recognise a usurper whose signalled intent is friendlier to US business interests in the region. What do you think? If America is willing to disregard the concept of self-determination and stoke rebellion and anarchy, it would follow that one has no expectation of trust and stability in other dealings or institutions.

7x7

squala mater: a definitive Latin translation of Baby Shark—via Super Punch

sonovox: watch Lucille Ball demonstrate the “voice-box” technique that Peter Frampton popularised

amplifying random noise: regional terms for carbonated beverages in the United States

the wandering earth: big budget scifi movie from author Liu Cixin (previously) has excellent New Year’s debut

from snowman to gingerbread man: the surprisingly flat dimensions of Ultima Thule (previously) baffles researchers

gregg-ruled: edition of Alice in Wonderland transcribed in shorthand—with illustrations to help the reader keep his or her place

embroidered stories: an exhibition of samplers (previously) from Scotland

暖簾

Thanks to the always brilliant Present /&/ Correct, we learn that the traditional curtains that hang in the threshold of Japanese restaurants and shops are called noren.
These bold dividers that also separate rooms as well as covering doorways and windows usually have vertical slits cut in them for easier passage. Hanging them in the morning and taking them down at the close of the business day and signal opening and closing hours and are often decorated with corporate logos—associated by extension with brand-recognition. More to explore at the link above.

point par pouce

From Kottke’s Quick Links, we are directed to a little routine that will convert any image into a mosaic consisting of emojis, matched for shape and colour. There is not quite the level of granularity present to make for a pointillist image and probably works better where it does not have to compensate too much for changes in contrast.
Up close, the results look like a chaotic jumble but at a distance, it does rather capture quite well Georges Seurat’s iconic A Sunday Afternoon on the Island of La Grande Jatte, the Bathing Women of Hippolyte Petitjean and the self-portrait of Vincent Van Gogh when viewed from a distance, just as the original technique prescribed.
Click on the pictures to see more details and resolve what glyphs are representing each brush stroke. Though the term carries no negative connotations now, pointillism was originally coined by critics to ridicule the style and the artists who experimented with it. Try it yourself with what you think might take well to the mosaic treatment—and take a step back before judging the creation—at the link above.

disclaimer

During opening remarks to commemorate the fortieth anniversary of the Islamic Revolution that exiled a Western-supported monarchy and installed Ayatollah Ali Khamenei as Supreme Leader, the marja defended the continued use of his provocative catch-phrase, “Death to America,” saying that the sentiment only applies to Trump and his warmongering associates and not the American people as a whole. Khamenei adds that European leaders are not the most trustworthy lot either.

extended character set

Via Nag on the Lake, we were very pleased to learn that the latest batch of emojis to be released over the course of the year was not only inclusive of people with disabilities, having the vocabulary available and therefore not feeling like outsiders or othered, the combinations of couples, counting the gender neutral and the non-binary, numbers upwards of seventy permutations—to make sure all sorts of relationships are represented. I caught the end of a very clever commentary the other day that really anchored perspective and identity—I think it was through the lens of minorities depicted in superhero films but it’s also universally true: those depictions of a minority character on the screen is not just for those that look like and recognise something of themselves in the portrayal but it’s also for those in the majority who are used to seeing themselves in the movies to help them understand that others can be there too. There’s also underpants, a banjo and an otter.