ASTRO SALAD

Wimmenlbilders are those hyper-detailed, perspective-bending “Where’s Waldo” illustrations that make you look at everything and nothing at the same time. You can see what everyone is doing, but it’s so busy with life and goings-on that it’s hard to tell if one bit has more importance over the other. And yet with the chaos, the fun part is taking time to go over all the details and try to find a visual Easter egg you’ve missed. If that’s not a metaphor for life, then it’s at least a method to get through today. My Parallel Universe by // @paolaciar // Read the full article

The conditions don't have to be perfect to make a move. In fact, if you wait for all of the stars to align, you could be stuck forever. Success requires a little bit of risk and a little bit of luck–two things you can't always control. You might as well roll the dice as long as you got 'em. // "AN ARMY OF RATS IS STILL AN ARMY" Mary-Audrey Ramirez at Galerie Russi Klenner // // "Xenomorph" creature from the movie Alien originally designed by H.R. Giger //     Read the full article

I play the first person shooter, Splatoon 2, on the Nintendo Switch religiously. A lot the game, much like life, relies on your ability to identify the movement patterns of your enemies, as well as your team, to predict the best position for you to be in at any given moment. It's not enough just to be a sharp shooter. Winning requires you to use your skill to problem solve and then create opportunities to take the lead. If the game was solely point and click, it wouldn't be very much fun now would it? "Colossal Squid" by Isopresso who creates animals, plant life and insects using only balloons. The works that has been published on this page are made from all balloon only. (Adhesive, marker pen, seal, etc. are not used at all).  Read the full article

Pretty close is more often than not the final product, you just don't know it. Original plans get shape-shifted and changed, plucked, pulled, and edited. Just make it convincing. No one will notice. Artwork: Luke Skywalker killing it in Return of the Jedi, Perfect combo alert from original Street Fighter game. Read the full article

After a year of living a pandemic, the Associated Press is reporting a surge in attempted suicides in children. From the article: Children suffering panic attacks, heart palpitations and other symptoms of mental anguish, as well as chronic addictions to mobile devices and computer screens that have become their sitters, teachers and entertainers during lockdowns, curfews and school closures.   “There is no prototype for the child experiencing difficulties,” said Dr. Richard Delorme, who heads the psychiatric unit treating Pablo at the giant Robert Debré pediatric hospital, the busiest in France. “This concerns all of us.”   “They don’t say, ‘Yes, I ended up here because of the coronavirus,’” Delorme said. “But what they tell you about is a chaotic world, of ‘Yes, I’m not doing my activities any more,’ ‘I’m no longer doing my music,’ ‘Going to school is hard in the mornings,’ ‘I am having difficulty waking up,’ ‘I am fed up with the mask.’” Talk to your kids, your partner, your friends and family. Mourn a year of paused dreams and lost potential. Get vaccinated. If you need help getting a vaccine through through the City of Austin for any reason, DM me. I use our extra devices to log in so you have multiple chances at getting a slot. The next appointment release date is Monday, 3/15/21 and every Monday (per APH email dated 3/8/21). It opens around 6:00 pm and I login at 5:35pm for best results. Artwork: "Carnival Whirl" by Angela Deane. Read the full article

The Worm Moon shines on Saturday, February 13, 2021. Leave anything behind that did not survive the hard freeze, and allow only the thriving seeds to grow. Pull three cards. Look carefully as each will represent three aspects of your life. Note what they represent, and pull three additional cards, placing each one on top of the first three, burying them. These cards represent the only parts of your previous card that will persevere. Artwork (01) A swag of grapes, hollyhocks, irises, mallow, African marigolds, clematis, a horse chestnut and blackberries with butterflies and other insects suspended before a stone arch, 1681, Rachel Ruysch;  (02) A Still Life with Tulips and other Flowers, Willem van Aelst; (03) Floral Still Life with Hollyhock and Marigold, 1718, Jan van Huysum II;  (04) Still Life with Roses, Peonies and Lilac, 1848, Adriana Haanen; (05) A Still Life, Juan de Arellano; (06) Still Life with Flowers in a Glass Vase, Jan van Kessel. All were found on La Clef Des Coeurs' Tumblr.   Read the full article

Félicette (French pronunciation: ) was the first and only cat launched into space, on 18 October 1963 as part of the French space program as was one of 14 female cats trained for spaceflight. It is unknown if she previously had an interest in aeronautics, but it seems to reason that if a French cat can reach for the stars, then so can you. There is absolutely no penalty for dreaming big. Read the full article

"Inertia" is defined as sluggish or idle in the English language, but in scientific terms, it is the phenomenon of an object's tendency to keep moving even when no forces are acted upon them.  This means that if you are feeling like you are not moving fast enough or have grinded to a halt, that you most likely have not. You are just preserving your present state. Read the full article

And our neighbors did. An entire infrastructure of a city crashed last week when NO ELECTRICITY = no water from treatment plant = no grocery stores = no heat for electric heaters = pipes bursting in homes = people dying. NO ROADS CLEARED = no propane deliveries for gas heaters, no driving for water = no fixing water mains bursting = no gasoline or diesel at pumps = no gas in the car for those trying to stay warm = people dying .NO WATER = dehydration = no cooking = people dying. While the state did nothing, the local grocery chain, HEB, did their best to stay open. They paid their employees who could not come in a full wage, gave those who could come in time and half, plus gave them water and 10 gallons of gas so they could make it home. We gave away stacks of firewood to our neighbors, our earthquake water jugs, and in return we got tomatoes, girl scout cookies, help charging our electronics. No state, city, or private media came close what r/Austin did by curating updated threads on every utility, grocery store openings, and where to get food from restaurants like SeoulJu who made free meals. Where the state failed, the community succeeded. This is the part we should remember. Read the full article

It's the start of Chinese & Lunar New Year! By now you should have finished your Cosmic Vision Board which most of you got in the mail as my Christmas card. If you didn't, you aren't alone. Due to the elections, the USPS swallowed many into a black hole last November when I mailed them out. May they find you when the universe decides to spit them back out. This is good time to #reapwhatwesow. Look at your vision board, or sketchbook, or post-it note and see what moves you've made to accomplish your goals. It may not be much and still in the hot garbage phase, but just looking at your goals today can help you put in the back of your mind what you need to do tomorrow, or the next day, or the next month if need be. Read the full article

Meticulously plan out your life with the power of the Zodiac's cosmic robot - Aquarius. Even those who are not organizationally-inclined can use this energy by focusing on balance. Back when the pandemic started, I created a Google Sheet to track my son's activities to see if the tasks I gave him would amount to a well-rounded human being. It made me set reminders to do the things he enjoyed as well as things he needed to do. It does not track productivity or success. The first version had that data and it truly wasn't helpful to either of us. The current spreadsheet only calculates what is missing based on values we define. Make a copy of of the Life Balance Tracker and follow the instructions in the red boxes. Include the things you want to do. Give your interests the same worth you would give your laundry. Read, sketch for 20 minutes, teach the dog a new trick, nap, whatever. When every color of the category rainbow has been filled, you know you at least tried to make it a "productive" day. - Sexy Robot Artwork with unknown title by Hajime Sorayama - Life-Balance Tracker by Kim Phu & Excel Ninja, Nikola Grujicic Read the full article

I've been reading about and listening to many stories about Texas since I moved here in an effort to integrate although sometimes I wonder why I bother. My first week on an Austin road, the car next to me seeing my plates felt the need to roll down her window, mouth the word, "California" to me and make a vomit motion with her fingers before driving off. This was not the first, nor will it be the last time, some one will decide I am an easy target (female ✔️, minority ✔️, unaccompanied by my male, white counterpart ✔️) to make public whatever grievance they have with the world. It is a reminder I get about every six months, no matter where I live, that while I am interested in becoming a helpful part of the community and doing no harm, the fact of the matter is, there are many people who want to keep me out of their community and do harm to me. However it's not without irony. Back around Thanksgiving 2020, a neon sign when up in Marfa, Texas, stating "Everyone here hates you". Local artists Chris Ramming and Rob Brill were addressing tourists traveling to Marfa, which was a COVID-19 hotspot and doesn’t have a hospital. However this little West Texas town relies on those tourists dollars and without visitors during the pandemic, institutions like the Lost Horse Saloon have shuddered along with its public access to its owner Ty Mitchell and his stories, which are legendary. Am I part of the solution or am I part of the problem? I’ve lived in enough places to know that I am both. That it is better to define my community in a new place rather than try to integrate in an existing one with finite rules on what I can and can’t be. And that doing no harm includes not taking offense to the prejudices I do not yet fully understand. Read the full article

Somehow, in some way, you are loved and #grateful for that #love. Don't wait until next week to show it. Artwork from vintage set of #Madballs #valentines. The balls incorporated gross-out humor and each was given a character synopsis and an odd name.  https://www.instagram.com/p/CK3vKkrhX3Q/?igshid=1fvu1rhum8n64

Oh gurl, last week was a struggle. Sometimes no matter how hard you try or how hard others try to help, failure is inevitable. And that’s ok because it’s the best way to learn (or at least the most memorable). What matters is your resilience and ability to get back up on the proverbial horse. #practice #failure #take naps #eat girl scout cookies

Wolf image by Jill Garcia

Dolly Parton has joked that she modelled her look on the local town hooker. ‘I swear that’s true,’ she says proudly. ‘I thought she was just so glamorous.’ Parton is never not glamorous. She will not answer her door without full make-up on. ‘When I’m in LA I go to bed like this. If there’s an earthquake, I don’t want to have to run outside my hotel without my hair and face in place. No way Jose.’ During this time of extended lockdown, there’s no reason not to curl your hair, wear structured clothing, or walk around in heels even if it’s only to impress the dog… who thinks you’re a whore.  Dolly Parton with a shotgun in 1987 photographed by John Seakwood #dressforthejobyouwant #glamourous #fullbeat #shotgun #dollyparton #dolly #lockdown #fashion #happiness #affirmations #werkethic #glamour #selflove https://www.instagram.com/p/CKWOh53Mx9Q/?igshid=1wmfmb1xoaffo

Artwork features drag queen, @akaisha.drag, from the first season on RuPaul’s Drag Race.