Days are Short and Nights are Long

 

 

Days are short and nights are long
Warmth in my body, where art thou gone?
Six months ago, warm porch I walked along
When will I see an early bright dawn?

Days are short and nights are long
My coffee was warm and hiking was on
Five months ago, no coat was not wrong
When will I remove the warm long john?

Days are short and nights are long
Warm Sun shone on my green lawn
Four months ago, I joined a throng
When will I sit again in a salon?

Days are short and nights are long
Clearing snow is a conclusion foregone
Three months ago, I heard a bird-song
When will the warmth return in my bone?

Days are short and nights are long
All day long, a warm blanket is on
Two months ago, flowers were strong
When will I drink a warm Wonton?

Days are short and nights are long
Summer I wait for; winter is a con
Since a month ago, I yearn for days to prolong
When will the nature’s warm lights turn on?

Nights will be short and days will be long
Days are still days and some lights anon
This month, for next day I long
Long days are away, but some light is thrown.

National Mississippi River Museum and Aquarium: Mihir’s Memoir

If you have been reading my articles, than Mississippi river’s enchantment on me is no secret. I had mentioned before about the Great River Road, a scenic byway that passes through ten states on both sides of the Mississippi River (https://experiencemississippiriver.com/). When I traveled through the Great River Road, I experienced Mississippi culture: ancient, old and new, river wildlife, natural beauty, fish, art, influence, history and unique geographical landscaped. All these come together at the National Mississippi River Museum and Aquarium. I have not been to any other museum dedicated to a river and its system. The museum was comprehensive. However, it primarily described the upper Mississippi River valley.

“Let us permit the nature to have her way: she understands her way better than we do.” A quote by Michel Eyquem de Montaigne was one of many in the museum. The museum had 37 permanent exhibits.  The first set of exhibits had many such quotes sprinkled all over. One thing that touched me emotionally was all those quotes and what different explorers, authors, leaders, and visitors felt about the Mississippi river. I urge you read Mark Twain after visiting this museum and you will realize why he fell in love with the mighty Mississippi. Read my favorite quotes from the museum on my blog: http://mihirjaiswal.blogspot.com/2020/03/river-quotes-from-national-mississippi.html.

Dubuque was a unique location for the museum. Most of the residential area in Dubuque was on cliffs with picturesque views of the river. Airbnb I stayed in had a spectacular view of the river from the windows of my room. The museum was on the banks of the river spanned over two large buildings and an outdoor area. Unlike other obscure museums I have been to, the National Mississippi River Museum and Aquarium was bustling with people.

The highlight for me was exhibits describing different features of a river and specifying how those features look on the mighty Mississippi. Flood table and erosion table let me run simulations of different flood and erosion events and their effects on riverbeds. In addition, planks surrounding the board explained Mississippi’s flood and erosion plains, and how human activities and environmental factors affected them over the years. Bayou and backwater marsh were even more interesting. They had alligators and turtles, which frequent bayous and marshlands. Backwater marshlands, a type of wetlands, have been seriously decreasing in area due to urban development posing a serious risk of flood, erosion, and pollution. Main channel, down in delta and Gulf of Mexico aquarium exhibits highlighted different aquatic wildlife habitats of the Mississippi. Flooded forest and the otter habitat dived deeper into diverse wildlife.

As I entered the museum, a large river map of the United States greeted me on the left wall, while a floor map of the Mississippi river guided through the landmarks of the river. A cool screen with a dial enabled me to travel from headwaters to the mouth. I could rotate the dial to adjust the speed of my travel, point of view being a low flying aircraft. I was hooked to the museum after that very first exhibit. River alterations exhibit explained different types of alterations, most common being dams as well as their positive and detrimental effects on the river. The museum also had first people exhibition outlining ancient civilizations of Mississippian culture. On the other side, several stories of explorers shed light on old and modern history.

In addition, it had a blacksmith shop, an exhibit on boat engine making, a harbor, a theater describing journey on the river, a boat shop, a boat launch, a sand and gravel barge, a conservation lab, national rivers hall of fame, a space wall and many more exhibits. Rivers and Roads exhibit described importance of river as transportation especially before big highways and air travel. The National Mississippi River Museum and Aquarium was comprehensive covering every bit of river soul in it.

Visit Dubuque for this amazing experience. Mississippi river banks have history, nature, serene landscape and culture in areas surrounding Dubuque. Iowa does not come up in conversation often, but you will bring it to the conversation more after your visit Dubuque and surrounding areas. Here is the website to explore some parts of the museum virtually during the social distancing: https://www.rivermuseum.com/all-exhibits. Next week I will describe my visit to the Boeing factory in Seattle.

River Quotes from the National Mississippi River Museum, Dubuque, Iowa

Andrea Kim's Interview Part 1: Motivation for Medical Mixed Reality

Andrea is a mixed medical reality fellow at FDA. When she first introduced herself as a mixed medical reality fellow, I didn’t quite understand, but two phrases - mixed reality and medical – got my attention. Then she showed me her website andreaseung.com and it was mesmerizing. I have met many incredible artists and scientists, but Andres’s website had both scientific and artistic excellence. Since our first meeting, we had talked more about her skills and motivations. Finally, on one fine day she agreed to let me interview her. Here is the first part of it, where Andrea opens up about her motivation.


Tell me about your website and its contents.

I have a personal portfolio website. When you go to the main page, I have an animation in the background, because I think the landing page should be the flashiest. That will make you explore more, right? When you click on my portfolio - which is also flashy. I have a lot of art in there and I like to show off my art. Main page is all my 3-D arts, which are highly rendered using software like keyshot. Very eye catchy. When you scroll down all the way, you will see links to my traditional illustrations. And I have some of my interactive work. Basically, the things that I am proud of being created (by me) I like to put up there. Though, I haven’t updated it in a long time.

Initial purpose (of the website) was to find me a job. Since working here I don’t need that. Now it is more for myself. When I meet new people, I can tell that check out my website and the things that I have made.

What would you like people to remember from your website?

I don’t want to be just another artist. There are lot of artists out there with beautiful arts, but what makes my art special is that it has a focus on biomedical application visualization and also I have a mission to be truthful to scientific accuracies. I have a passion about science and accuracy that has a lot to do with my research side. I am not just an artist making weird art, but I have other aspects to incorporate in my art.

Giraffe Dragon by Andrea Kim

Even when I make something like giraffe dragon, I am always looking at underlying anatomy and making sure that it make sense. You can see some people who begin to learn to draw because they add random muscular structures. I understand anatomy and that (random muscular structure) does not make sense. I have a lot of respect for surreal art that has considerations of how biomechanics work and how certain muscles are attached. The art should be cool and creative, but it also should have restrain.

On that example of random muscular structures, artists may be doing that to please their particular audience. Do you target certain audience with your art?

That is like opening a can of worms. Am I drawing for myself or to create a certain perception of myself? Where is my intrinsic joy coming from? I don’t know if I will ever have answers. In the end, if I create something that I like, I want to show to people. I like what I created and I want other people to see that.

Other part of it is, if I post my art on instagram and I don’t get enough likes in 24 hours than it affects me. (Ideally,) it shouldn’t affect me. I created it for myself and I showed to the world because I liked it. But I also want it to be well-received. My mom is on instagram and she is my harshest critique. She saw the drawing I did this morning and she texted me that it was stupid. I went back at her and I told her, “I don’t care what you think. It is a drawing for myself.” Now I am thinking what if other people also think it’s stupid.

So, I don’t have a clear answer. I think initially it is for my own satisfaction. I want to see what I thought on paper. I want to keep improving.

When you put your art on Instagram, what does make you happy? Number of likes, or likes from particular people, or something else?

Initially, it used to be number of likes, but I realized that depends on the hash tags I put. So likes affect me less. Sometimes my friends direct message me ‘Hey, it’s cool’, and that means a lot more to me.

When you are over exposed or redundant, people care less. There’s a term for that, I am not recalling. When someone sees my art first time, they are like wow. For my friends on Instagram, who have seen my art for many years, for them it is like, ‘Yeh, she draws.’ So again, number of likes don’t matter. When I make new friends and they appreciate or especially when other artists appreciates my art, that has real impact on me. The other day a friend who had never liked anything on my instagram before, mentioned how much he liked my art. Things like these, when someone brings it into a conversation makes me happy a lot.

What about reaction from a total stranger?

Yes. I sketch on the bus. I always have my sketch book with me. I was shy about my art to start with, but then I got over it and started sketching in public. Few commuters look at it and say, “Wow. This is great.” And I say, “Yeah! Thank you!” At this point, I know my drawings are above average. It may sound a bit conceited. Most people are not spending the time every day I spent drawing and so of course, my drawings are better. You are never going to get worse by practicing more. It is a skill. One can only get better.

What was the last compliment you received?

We had a foreign visitor last three days in our lab from university of Ghent, Belgium. While we were discussing future collaborations, I got to know him personally as well. We shared each other’s arts, because he also draws for fun. It was good to share art interests with someone doing research with you. He showed me his drawings, and he was definitely talented, but he was not pursuing it as seriously. When he saw my work, he said, “That’s really refreshing. I needed someone to motivate me.” That was a nice compliment. By seeing my work, he decided to get back to drawing.

The Flying Bride

A shotgun wedding was set by a lakeside

Groom was ready, where was the bride?

Spring flowers were blooming, bridallers had arrived

Wait was not over, missing was the bride.

Pastor was restless, he could not chide

Waiting for him were another groom and bride

Pointing at his watch, he asked the groom

Wait was not over, missing was the bride.

Hands were shaking, butterflies were flying inside

Carrying his child, nuptial stress she had not survived

Thin air separated the groom and the maid of honor

Wait was not over, missing was the bride.

Bosom friends they were, what she could not confide

Maid of honor she was, her anger was amplified

Showing more outrage than her was the groom’s father

Wait was not over, missing was the bride.

Sympathetic to his son, he simply sighed

His actions or inertia, everyone will deride

Bridal party was shaken, all but bride’s mother

Wait was not over, missing was the bride.

A request of her daughter, she had complied

Bemused faces all around, she was satisfied

A noise broke the silence, she was not surprised

Wait was almost over, flying was the bride.

A tiny plane grew larger, everyone cried,

The groom smiled, a scare he had survived

The plane glided, door opened, the guests were mesmerized

Wait was over, the beautiful bride had arrived.

Sculpting Revenge: Excerpt

Chapter 1

“Happy New Year!”

Everyone else in the room shouted. But Dave just mumbled. Instinctively he looked to his right, half-expecting Arianna to show up just as she had the previous year. Then he turned back to his almost-empty glass of beer. His friends asked him to join in with them a few times, then accepted defeat and left Dave to his thoughts. Ever since his last, unceremonious, date with Arianna, Dave had been searching for ways to reach her. He‘d been rehearsing: apologies, flatteries, flirts, excuses, anything to keep Arianna with him. He’d neither asked for Arianna’s address or email, nor connected with her on social media. In the final analysis, though, any and all success felt empty without her.

Over the past few months, he’d been drafting an email to her. He’d also located her email address, but he still couldn’t work up enough courage to push the ‘Send’ button. Dave emptied the last few drops of beer from his glass and put the glass down beside his phone; touched his phone to stop it going to sleep. Maybe she was still angry with him or – worse – she’d totally forgotten about him. After all, Arianna had his number. If she called him now, he wouldn’t have to send that email. He could just say to her all those things he’d put into the email. On the other hand, she might not have forgotten him; she just might be waiting for him to apologize. His brain fought a yes-no battle over pressing ‘Send’. He swiped his finger over the screen once again, keeping the phone alive. His brain was getting tired. He couldn’t construct any more arguments, either in favor or against sending the email. He closed his eyes and pressed his hands together. He opened his eyes and touched the phone. It displayed 12:07 PM in a big font in the middle and January 1, 2018 in a smaller font below that. Dave typed in his password. Without any more thought, he pushed ‘Send’ and let out a sigh of relief. He chuckled looking at his phone. His mind was numb.

Against the wishes of his friends at the party, Dave left for home soon after. The D.C. streets were dark and empty. New Year’s partygoers were still at their parties and non-party goers were comfortably tucked in their beds. The cops were warming up to their first task of the New Year –catching miscreants and drunk drivers. Dave did not like driving inebriated, as he wanted to avoid cops. Although Dave did not usually drink much, tonight his alcohol level was above the legal limit. He droveI-66 towards Virginia.

"Hey Jude!..." was playing. Not the Beatles, but Elvis was singing. Dave’s thoughts had settled. He was relieved after months of anguish after sending the email. A car passed by on his right. Dave did not pay attention. He was singing with Elvis. He was Elvis. Ah, the New Year, he thought. It’s all in place. Any minute he’d be getting a reply from Arianna. And his work for the past six years was about to bear fruit–immense success. He’d already signed the deal. Unlike so many who had tried before, Dave was millimeters away from success, success without much risk. Many had failed. In those six years, Dave himself had been responsible for the failure of many. The world is full of cutthroat competition, he thought. In order for him to win, others had to lose. That was the way it worked. Lost in his thoughts and Elvis’s charisma, Dave wasn’t aware that a car had been following him for the last 10 minutes. He sang "Suspicious mind..." even louder.

Bright lights in the rearview mirror snapped Dave awake from his trance. A cop car was flashing its lights behind him. Dave wasn’t too disturbed. He was in too much of a good mood to fear the cops. He slowed down, drove to the right shoulder and stopped. As he’d been trained, he kept his hands on the steering wheel. Waiting for the cop to get out of his car and approach him, Dave’s brain, in calculator mode, quickly started working out why he’d been pulled over. Perhaps, he had been driving 4 or 5 miles above the speed limit. Surely, the cops didn’t have time to stop people driving 5 miles over the limit. Could it be a random check for alcohol? If that was the case, Dave was confident. He’d drunk four beers total and the last one...more than an hour ago, except for those last few drops. Four beers would not affect his judgment or motor skills. He could easily walk in a straight line, if asked to. He saw a beam of light. It was getting closer in the rearview mirror. Elvis was still singing. To make a good impression, Dave switched off the music.

A knock on the window prompted him to lower it. The flashlight pointed at Dave’s face, into his eyes, blinding him. Dave could not see the cop.

“Hello officer, could you please lower the light a little? It hurts my eyes.”

The cop lowered the light. As his eyes adjusted, Dave saw the cop’s face. Dave’s eyes lit up, his back muscles relaxed, his feet stretched and he laughed.

“Oh! It’s you. Didn’t you recognize my car?” Dave took his left hand off the wheel, rested it on the driver’s side door, and looked up at the cop. “Just because you know me, that doesn’t mean you don’t have to say your disclosure. I know you’re recording me. I’m not drunk and I wasn’t speeding. I guess now you want to see my license, hmm?” A car zoomed past. Dave looked up at the cop, pointing ahead. “See, he’s speeding. Instead of wasting time with me, you should go after him.”

The cop stared at Dave with an inanimate face. While he was speaking, Dave had not followed the cop’s right hand. Before Dave could understand what was happening, the cop took out his gun. Its safety clasp was off. The cop pointed his gun at Dave and shot, right through Dave’s heart.