CRAIG CONLEY (Prof. Oddfellow) is recognized by Encarta as “America’s most creative and diligent scholar of letters, words and punctuation.” He has been called a “language fanatic” by Page Six gossip columnist Cindy Adams, and a “cult hero” by Publisher’s Weekly. An eccentric scholar, Conley’s ideas are often decades ahead of their time. He invented the concept of the “virtual pet” in 1980, fifteen years before the debut of the popular “Tamagotchi” in Japan. His virtual pet, actually a rare flower, still thrives and has reached an incomprehensible size. Conley’s website is OneLetterWords.com.
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Abecedarian personal effects of 'a mad genius'
A Turkish Delight of musings on languages, deflations of metaphysics, vauntings of arcana, and great visual humor.
Today — March 11, 2010

Two Sides / Same Coin (permalink)
* Inspired by Jeff Hawkins.  Parchment texture by pareeerica.
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Staring at the Sun (permalink)


Grotto Viewpoint at Portmeirion, Wales.
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Is Today The Day? (permalink)
11
March 2010

“Today is the day to address [your] faults, no matter how big or small they are.”

—Justin Herald, What Are You Waiting For?, 2004
From the outrageous to the inspirational to the hilarious, here’s a daily reminder to break out of the old grind and do something unexpected, for the fun, the challenge, or the heck of it.

If today simply isn’t your day, click here to have a different day.

Music Box Moment (permalink)
Do you deserve a nostalgic breather?  Through the delicate workings of the music box, even the most dramatic compositions seem to play only for you.  You’ll hear even a very familiar piece in a whole new way.  Courtesy of home recording pioneer Ken Clinger, here’s today’s music box selection.  It will sound surprisingly good even through built-in computer speakers, and it will cut through the ambient noise of the office without being distracting.

Featured in Today’s Music Box:
Prelude op.28 #16 (Chopin)
performed by Ken Clinger

Today’s Color Palette: 4 Prof. Oddfellow (more info)
4 Prof. Oddfellow is the name of the color palette featured today, created by ajeanne. The palette consists of the following colors:

• hex #464449 — Cosmic Silhouette
• hex #92A756 — Emerald City Green
• hex #A59C84 — Kansas Cyclone
• hex #FEF5C8 — Portmeirion Sunrise
• hex #FFDBC4 — Cloudy Chariot

The palette name refers to my avatar Professor Oddfellow.
> learn more about this palette at ColourLovers . . .


There’s a Signpost Up Ahead (permalink)
One's life path is marked by crossroads and signposts.  If you are confronted with making a choice today, perhaps the signpost displayed here will help to characterize your situation and guide you to make a decision.  If you need more guidance, refresh this page for another symbol.  If both signs are the same, perhaps any choice will lead to the same outcome.

The signs are inspired by a system of symbols entitled "Spiritual Diagnosis," developed by Dr. Robert McNary of Montana.  Dr. McNary actually creates nine-faceted mandala charts for people and interprets the symbols with uncanny accuracy.  Dr. McNary's web site is RockyMountainAstrologer.com.
> view a larger version of your signpost . . .
Yesterday — March 10, 2010

Puzzles and Games (permalink)
Imagine a retail store's Open/Closed sign.  Now imagine that it's printed on only one side.  With just two words and a detachable apostrophe, how can the sign indicate that the store is open or closed for business?

For our answer, click here.
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Annotated Ellipses (permalink)

 
* Ellipses don’t merely omit superfluous words or mark pauses.  Far from it!  In an astonishing number of cases, the ellipses illustrate a narrative, inviting the reader to “connect the dots.”  Learn more about Annotated Ellipses at Amazon.com.
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March 9, 2010

Go Out in a Blaze of Glory (permalink)

Heinrich Füger, "Prometheus Brings Fire to Mankind," c. 1817
"[William Blake's] vision of the infinite in everything is common to East and West; what is distinctly Western, out of the Jews, is the voice of honest indignation against every institution which would deny or demean the infinity within each human soul.  The release of our full human potential—to let the light of Prometheus shine everywhere—is the distinctly Western mystic tradition and does not appear in Hinduism, Buddhism, Taoism, or any Eastern religion."
—Robert Anton Wilson, Prometheus Rising
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Puzzles and Games :: Which is Funnier (permalink)
Which word is funnier: house or condo?

Clue:  This is according to the book Drawing on the Funny Side of the Brain

Answer:  Condo, as it is “more specific”  (The answer is in black text on the black background.  Highlight it to view.)

Citation:  Christopher Hart, Drawing on the Funny Side of the Brain (1998), p. 107
(Thanks to Jonathan Caws-Elwitt for inspiration!)
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March 8, 2010

Staring at the Sun (permalink)


Prof. Oddfellow basks in Lloyd Wright's mountaintop memorial to Emanuel Swedenborg in Rancho Palos Verdes.
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