Some more amazing omphalo-themed poetry here. (I just can't help myself:-)

So now, I think I'm suffering from chronic omphaloskepsis:

omphaloskepsis -- the practice, observed by some mystics, of contemplating their navel to generate religious visions.

Some say that the yogi is just an old fogey
As he sits and he stares past his chest.
He glares at his navel, though it doesn't seem stable,
But I guess that he knows what is best.

Vision religious, though perhaps not prodigious,
From the ones of nirvana are sent.
Well, I sat down and tried it, but I'm afraid I awried it,
For all I discovered was lint.

....written by Michael Sirois, sometime after
the birth of color tv, but before PC's

The Belly Button Chronicle...

Hey, that sounds like it would make a great name for a bellydance newsletter or something...but that's not the reason for this post. I bought myself an early birthday present today at Hot Rod on the South Side: a pierced navel. I promised myself that after losing so much weight, I would do something like that as an incentive to keep it off. Lost 33 lbs. so far.

Testing, 1, 2, 3...doing some crazy freaky styley things with my blog....

Scenes from Switzerland/Germany:

The Aachen Dom The throne of Charlemagne. The Cologne Cathedral The Roman Gate Luzern: The Lion Monument Bridge Mt. Pilatus: A view from the cable car going up Swiss farmstead with cows View from the top--the cogwheel train

The Longest Day

So, we (Khafif, et al) did not busk afterall. It might have been the longest day of the year, but it was cold and damp here in the 'Burgh. I think we've had a total of seven sunny days in three months, but hey, it's Pittsburgh. We ended up doing the other thing we do when it's not playing music and dancing--we watch movies. Usually with some theme in mind, for example, we were on a "sexploitation films of the 70s" kick for a while, but today I managed to convince half the group into watching a Japanimation film: Spirited Away. I thought it was quite good but I think the rest thought those who made it were on drugs. We also watched Monsoon Wedding and The Guru--which had us in stitches most of the time. I can't understand why it got mixed reviews, but I guess you have to be us to appreciate that sort of thing.

Attention Khafif Fans, this Weekend...

We are busking at the Three Rivers Arts Festival, Sat. June 21, 3-6 PM. This is the last day of the Arts fest so it's your last chance to check it out!