POST-MAC BLUES

Adieu... and Greetings!

2011-11-11T01:35:00.007-05:00

"I'm a Kansas City, Missouri-based author and essayist. I blog daily at Posthuman Blues and tweet religiously. My latest book is After the Martian Apocalypse (Paraview Pocket Books, 2004), a speculative and generally well-received examination of extraterrestrial intelligence on the Red Planet. I'm presently at work on a new non-fiction book titled The Cryptoterrestrials: Indigenous Humanoids and the Aliens Among Us, excerpts of which I've posted on my blog. If you're in the mood for a multiplex Fortean anthology, my essay "The Ancients Are Watching" is included in 2008's Darklore Vol. II. (My first book, Illumined Black, is a collection of naively "Blade Runner"-ish science fiction short-stories. It can still be found in used-book stores and on Amazon.com.)

I've been a guest panelist at ConQuest, Kansas City's premiere science fiction convention. More recently, I've lectured in the United States and Canada on subjects ranging from exoarchaeology to transhumanism and have appeared on programs such as Coast to Coast AM, Strange Days . . . Indeed, 21st Century Radio, The Paracast, Binnall of America, and Radio Misterioso. My first play, produced and directed by Paul Kimball, debuted in Halifax, Nova Scotia in late 2007. In early 2009 I appeared as the "investigator" in an episode of "Supernatural Investigator," a Canadian program covering fringe beliefs and esoteric science. I also make an appearance in "Best Evidence," an award-winning UFO documentary.

I spend an inordinately large portion of my time pursuing unpopular ideas and esoteric theories with what I sincerely hope is balanced skepticism. I'm a member of the Society for Planetary SETI Research, a group that seeks to use scientific methodology to explore the possibility of extraterrestrial artifacts in our solar system. I read voraciously; preoccupations include cosmology, nonhuman intelligence, UFOs, consciousness studies, and futurism. Writers I admire include William Gibson, Philip K. Dick and William S. Burroughs.

I tend to think in the future-tense. I'm a skeptic, agnostic and existentialist; I perceive reality as a kind of consensual hallucination that forces us to define our sense of identity without recourse to faith or superstition. I have a deep affinity for 80s pop music; some of my favorite bands are The Cure, R.E.M., Portishead, Talking Heads, and The Smiths. Favorite film-makers include David Cronenberg and David Lynch. I can regularly be found haunting the Country Club Plaza, taking pictures, reading cyberpunk novels, and marinating my synapses in espresso. And I'm a voracious doodler; I've put some representative (if dated) drawings in my Sketch Gallery. (For artwork and graphics sent to me by colleagues and friends, please see the Art Gallery.) For more information (including links to archived radio appearances), see the Mac FAQ. For photos, refer to my Flickr stream."

- Mac Tonnies, via the MacTonnies.com bio page

***

And so runs Mac's bio page on his website. (Wikipedia editors take note. In the last analysis, Mac's Wiki entry pretty much, well, bites... too invasive, incomplete, and, to some degree, inaccurate. For instance, at one point, Posthuman Blues was getting hundreds of hits per day - hardly a "small" following by the standards of its time.)

But then, I'm not here to discuss internet politics today (technically Veterans Day); I'm here to finally put up the last post that was slated to go up November 1st, and would have, had I not - and the entire Connecticut town in which I live - been plunged into a 5 day black-out after a freak snowstorm. I've pretty much just gotten into recovery mode... "damage control" took about another 5 days. And so it goes.

Anyway, no, I didn't intend to cut y'all off so abruptly in my previous post. My decision to end this blog wasn't a superficial whim. The fact is, I am no longer able to maintain it. It isn't that there isn't more to be said... one could easily find material for numerous posts by referring to Posthuman Blues. Try searching a topic there - any old topic... the word "aliens" for instance, and you'll find a wealth of material covering numerous pages, with videos, images, story fragments, and essays. I really don't know how Mac did it.

He did do it, of course... but there is no longer a purpose for PMB than to bring Mac's work to attention. And this is something interested readers can do for themselves without my input. I hope this blog has helped somewhat. I have recently revised and updated the sidebar to map out Mac's various online contributions (and some of my contributions to PHB). More can be found within the body of this blog, but even this is an undertaking more suited to a dedicated website than it is a blog.

Originally, Post-Mac Blues was a place to mourn Mac's passing - it was never meant to be a replacement for Posthuman Blues - but I think the time of public mourning has come to a close, and therefore, to continue a mere personal blog - apparently the best-kept secret on the web (Re:, G.B. in a recent Radio Misterioso Mac tribute: "What's the name of that site Dia Sobin does now?") is rather pointless and redundant, and doesn't do justice to either Mac or myself.

That being said, there are still blogs and sites in which you might find Mac mentioned... Mike Clelland's Hidden Experience, Greg Bishop's Radio Misterioso, Nick Redfern's and G.B.'s musings on UFO Mystic, Paul Kimball's remembrances on Philosopher King and The Other Side of the Truth, Capn Marrrrk's Twitter page, Mac's publisher, Patrick Huyghe's Anomalist news page, Rita J. King's and Joshua Fout's Imagination Age, Macbots - a community Mac Tonnies tribute site - and, lastly, at Triptych #15.

As for me, I will still continue blogging at Trans-D. And if you have an comments or queries (or links or information to share) my email address is: araqinta@att.net.

The photo above is one Mac shot the winter before his death. It always struck me as rather sad but, ironic... and fitting for the last post on this blog.

Adieu, then... to all of my previous visitors and supporters...

Greetings, to those travelers who have just recently stopped by. This blog is now an archive, but your comments and queries are still welcome here.

(Note: I am no longer moderating comments, but all spam will be promptly deleted.)

Seasons Greetings!

2011-10-28T14:40:00.003-04:00

Sutton Hoo artifact found here

"To the Celts, time was circular rather than linear. This is reflected in their commencing each day, and each festival, at dusk rather than dawn, a custom comparable with that of the Jewish Sabbath. It is also reflected in their year beginning with the festival of Samhain on 31 October, when nature appears to be dying down. Tellingly, the first month of the Celtic year is Samonios, ‘Seed Fall’: in other words, from death and darkness springs life and light.

Caesar confirms this and offers an explanation (Conquest of Gaul, VI.18):
The Gauls claim all to be descended from Father Dis [a god of death, darkness and the underworld], declaring that this is the tradition preserved by the Druids. For this reason they measure periods of time not by days but by nights; and in celebrating birthdays, the first of the month, and new year’s day, they go on the principle that
the day begins at night.

The Celtic year began with Samhain. Celebrated around 31 October, it was a time of deliberate misrule and contrariness, rather like the Roman Saturnalia. It was also a time when the veil between this world and the Otherworld was thought to be so thin that the dead could return to warm themselves at the hearths of the living, and some of the living - especially poets - were able to enter the Otherworld through the doorways of the sidhe, such as that at the Hill of Tara in Ireland.

Our modern Hallowe’en stems from Samhain, and one explanation of the traditional pumpkin lanterns is that the Celts once placed the skulls of ancestors outside their doors at this time. The Christians took over the Celtic festival and turned it into All Saints Day. Even the modern English celebration of Guy Fawkes Day has echoes of the ancient fire festival."

- via this Living Myths page

Raven - digital image - Bogdan Zwir

"Who owns the whole rainy, stony earth? Death.

Who owns all of space? Death.

Who is stronger than hope? Death.

Who is stronger than the will? Death.

Stronger than love? Death.

Stronger than life? Death.

But who is stronger than Death?

Me, evidently.

Pass, Crow."

- Ted Hughes, excerpt: "Examination at the Womb-Door"
from Crow: From the Life and Songs of the Crow

***

What goes around comes around, as they say, and October 31 will mark the second turn of the Celtic wheel for Post-Mac Blues. No cause for celebration, by and of itself, but fitting that it was couched within the ancient mythological framework of the Celtic year, beginning and ending with Samhain ((pronounced SOW-in, SAH-vin, or SAM-hayne).

Post-Mac Blues is then a two-year "time capsule", set free in cyberspace, and set into its fabric till cyberspace's end. But, as for that "tall young man in the black fedora", he belongs to eternity.

So, adios, cats and kitties; it's been real. Best wishes to you all, and, most especially, enjoy a happy and healthy Celtic New Year!

Dia

The Solar Ship

2011-10-27T16:31:00.001-04:00

"In recent times there's been a resurgence of interest in airships for military and commercial uses as evidenced by Lockheed Martin's High Altitude Long Endurance-Demonstrator (HALE-D) and Hybrid Air Vehicles heavy-lift variant of Northrop Grumman's Long-Endurance Multi-Intelligence Vehicle (LEMV). Like HAV's design, this concept from Canadian company Solar Ship is a hybrid airship that relies on aerodynamics to help provide lift, and like the HALE-D, it would have its top surface area covered in solar cells to provide energy and minimize its carbon footprint."

I think Ufology has more of a problem on its hands than ever before. It appears that increasingly the "unidentified flying objects" some of us see are now far more than likely to be "ours". More can be found on this Gizmag page.

SOINN - Self-Organizing Incremental Neural Network

2011-10-27T16:16:00.000-04:00

"This robot can think, learn and act by itself using artificial intelligence. It is being developed by the Hasegawa Group at the Tokyo Institute of Technology.Using a technology called a self-replicating neural network, or SOINN(Self-Organizing Incremental Neural Network), it can think as humans do when taking on tasks that it has never done before. It can make educated guesses and decisions based on it's past experiences and knowledge."

Well, I guess this baby is, more or less, in response to Michio Kaku in the video I posted the other day. It can be found, along with a number of other interesting "gadgets" at Diginfo TV.

Illumined Black - a midnight journey

2011-10-26T19:38:00.006-04:00

"This is a slim volume of short stories I wrote in high school, the first and last of which are better than the others. Looking back, I think "IB" has some nice, atmospheric moments and some fairly candid self-commentary... the magazine "Science Fiction Universe" described this tendency as "naively self-indulgent," a criticism I don't particularly object to. If "IB" seems fragmentary it's because it is the product of many months of revision and editing. Some of the stories I liked were dropped in favor of others that may or may not be more "commercially viable." The final story, "Between Worlds" (written my first year in college and more mature than the others), stands up to my own self-criticism. I like to think of my first book as a competent first attempt and a unique glimpse into the workings of the small press in fiction/genre writing. I hope you enjoy it."

- "Reflections on Illumined Black" by Mac Tonnies

***

"Illumined Black" by Mac Tonnies is a collection of short stories that explore the future from inspired and compellingly skewed perspectives. The stories are strange, stylized and topical, with a prose style that suggests cyberpunk underpinnings as well as "Golden Age" genre tropes. Ultimately, "Illumined Black" is a chilling reflection on inner and outer space. As Bruce Sterling writes on the back cover, "I like it when young guys with attitude tear right into the genre without asking anybody's permission."

- W. G. Eatock

"Compared to other sci-fi authors, Mac Tonnies ranks with P.K. Dick, William Gibson, Neal Stephenson, and Bruce Sterling. He is thought-pivotingly original. If you wallow in science fiction like I do, you'll eat this book up.In this short 133-page book, Tonnies' ethereal ideas strikingly contribute to the advance of science fiction.

In the introductory story, "Reflections of a Specimen," Tonnies wow-ed me with a new take on clique leaders. He launches into a seeming takeoff on William Gibson's style yet holds his own by injecting his own provoking vision. The other stories in this book are just as juicy. There's no way you can have a favorite because they're all so invitingly well-developed and original. Absolutely fantastic.

This is a book come before its time."

- Kathleen McKenzie

"How does a man awakened from cryonic sleep react to a genetically-altered species? Can brief, induced nightmares take the place of capital punishment? What does the human brain experience when severed from its body? With growing interest in what life will be like in the future when earth "hangs in the balance," ILLUMINED BLACK & OTHER ADVENTURES by Mac Tonnies reminds us of what can happen if we soon do not alter our ways of thinking about humankind's relationship with Mother Earth. In language beyond his years, Tonnies reveals a startling & imaginative vision of the future, an era on the threshold of the apocalypse with human nature caught in a technological web of its own making. Science-fiction author Rob Chilson says, "Tonnies has a gift for words & a bright, bent vision." Currently a college freshman, Tonnies won several NASA-sponsored essay contests & wrote this brilliant collection of short stories while still in high school. Expect to see many outstanding works from Tonnies in the future. He is an author every science-fiction aficionado & librarian should add to their collection. Available in softcover or as a signed limited edition from the publisher or through Baker & Taylor Distributors."

- Google Books

***

My own adventure with Mac's 1995 publication, "Illumined Black... and Other Adventures" began around midnight of last night, after re-reading through the amazing stories within. It came to me that posting some excerpts from the book might be an inspired idea, till I read the copyright line on the inside of the title page. Lo and behold, Mac, apparently, didn't own the copyright; the publisher did. Upon googling the publisher, Phantom Press Publishers, this page was all that could be found. According to this information, Phantom Press Publishers never published another book after 1996. So, if you've wondered why there are only 8 copies of the book in circulation - currently priced from $30.44 to $260 - herein lies a clue. As to the fate of "Illumined Black", it's not for me to say. Hopefully, there will be another edition... or, at least, a Kindle edition available.

(BTW, my advice for the cover - B/W, like the image I've posted above...)

But, my journey did not end there, because when I clicked the "1995" box on the publisher's page, I learned that Mac Tonnies has a Wikipedia entry! How cool is that?! As thrilled as Mac might have been, I'm afraid the entry is rather brief... and one of the references is a negative review of his "Martian Apocalypse". But I guess it's better than no entry at all.

I also learned another fun tidbit; Mac had an essay published (1996) in a magazine - 'New Phase" - also by Phantom Press Publishers. The title: Bad Poetry and You: A Survival Guide. Hah! That Mac...

The last leg of my journey found me on the Simon and Schuster Mac Tonnies' page. Oddly, it was there I learned that Mac's "Cryptoterrestrials..." made another Top Paranormal Book of 2010 list! Author and cryptozoologist, Loren Coleman, had this to say.

All in all, it was one helluva midnight journey! :-)

Mac Tonnies Radio Tributes - Update

2011-10-22T22:24:00.011-04:00

Greg Bishop at Radio Misterioso brought back Walter Bosely, Mike Clelland, A.J. Gulyas, Paul Kimball, Tony Merrill (who has a written tribute to Mac found here.), and Nick Redfern, to pay tribute to Mac last night, Sunday the 23rd, the anniversary of the day that many of us became cognizant of the fact of Mac's passing.

The podcast is now available here. Greg also provides links to two shows featuring Mac pulled from the Radio Misterioso archives. Note: The link shown is a "permalink" which, for whatever obscure reason does not contain the featured podcast... Currently, that can only be found on Radio Misterioso's main page at the end of the October 18th post...)

***

"That’s right, this week’s show features a special segment during hour three where the Gralien crew pays tribute to one of the great minds to have come and gone in the field of the esoteric: Mac Tonnies, the late author of The Cryptoterrestrials and After the Martian Apocalypse. He will be missed, but in dedicating a tribute to him on the show, it is my hope that we’ll help ensure that his work will run no risk of being forgotten."

Meanwhile, it has come to my attention that another radio tribute to Mac took place on the 18th of this month. Micah Hanks is joined by Mike Clelland and Dr. Maxim Kammerer - who explores Mac's Cryptoterrestrial hypothesis in this post - in a podcast which can be found here. (Hat-tip to RPJ!)

Michio Kaku: Can We Download Our Brains?

2011-10-22T14:01:00.004-04:00

This video was created at Big Think earlier this year and can be found, along with a host of other Kaku goodies here.

The Great Beast

2011-10-21T13:15:00.006-04:00

"Of immediate interest is Aleister Crowley's "Lam," a "magickal" entity who bears an uncanny resemblance to today's "Grays." Unlike Lam, who functioned as a mentor and paraphysical guru, the Grays are typically assumed to be dispassionate ET scientists; if Crowley were practicing his consciousness experiments today, would he be greeted by dome-headed beings in skin-tight jumpsuits?"

- Mac Tonnies, via this PHB post

Nothing says "Halloween" quite like Aleister Crowley, and that fact was not lost on ToB, our intrepid blogger at Histories of Things To Come. She's been doing a no-holds-barred Halloween countdown for the month of October, covering a range of topics that few others would be so bold to attempt... everything from the real "Cryptkeepers" and the suicide forest of Japan, to celebrity hauntings and the ghosts of Cambodia.

She kids you not! Great stuff!

As for Aleister, The Fake Mystic, oh ToB, don't be so hard on the man! Fraudulent he may have been (in ways), but such a brilliant fraud! ;-)

Wish You Were Here

2011-10-18T14:43:00.006-04:00

"Perhaps these doors are a passage that does not require a journey from point A to point B, rather all the points are a pixels of a living portrait that in spacetime are simultaneously communicating to one another in a dialog so muted by distortions that they speak in a inaudible frequency below the range of hearing in a internal sense as well as in external perception."

- Bruce Duensing, via The Persistance Of Unlocked Doors on Intangible Materiality

Today marks the day of Mac's passing two years ago, but I can't tell if it actually feels like two years ago, two decades ago, or 2 months ago. As it was, the minute October arrived this year, I dreaded writing this post. Whereas I had plenty to say last year at this time, featuring another door, this year I'm drawing a blank. My plans were to put up a video of that old Pink Floyd tune "Wish You Were Here", and leave it at that. But I couldn't find the right video of that tune that didn't have ads popping up on it.

I see Paul Kimball has continued posting more Mac quotes on his blog, most of which I like, but one of which I would've argued with Mac about. Can't argue with him now.

That being said, Paul has written a touching and haunting post commemorating this day which can be found here.

Apart from Paul's Post, there's a bit of Mac-related Tweet activity, notably from Capn Marrrrk and the Daily Grail's Greg Taylor, and a few cyber-space offerings at Triptych 15. (UPDATE: "Mad 247" has a also put a remembrance post up on Macbots.)

Then again, 2 nights ago, searching for some inspiration for this post, I wandered over to Posthuman Blues. "Come on Mac, give me a clue", I whispered to myself. Then, for whatever reason, instead of browsing through his posts, I immediately clicked onto his Technorati page, which I'd never looked at before. Nothing much to be found... but this one link posted a few weeks ago.

Lo and behold, what should it be but a memorial to Mac I'd never seen before, dated October 25, 2009, found on a blog I'd also not been familiar with, TransAlchemy.

"R.I.P. Mac Tonnies. I don't know any details, I just heard. Sad to see him go. I knew him briefly. In the short time we knew each other I enjoyed his posts so much that I made this video for him, the pictures and song were of his choosing. Out of all the futurist bloggers on the map he was my favorite, simply because he was different and not scared to mix ufology in with futurism. He explored a great deal of the bizarre topics, and I thoroughly enjoyed that about him. I guess I will simply go through his huge archive and pretend they are all new posts... :("

- via this TransAlchemy page

The "pictures" referred to are those lurid, campy, vintage sci-fi illustrations of "women in tubes" Mac got such a kick out of, and mentioned several times on PHB, notably here. (Even Webomator got into the act with this post mentioning Mac and the "Tubular Belles".)

TransAlchemy's video was posted on YouTube July 26, 2009, and I've decided to feature it here. It begins with a great little mock-up of the PHB banner I created for Mac that last year (a bit of one of the panels is shown at the top of the post), and then after a moment of glitch launches into images of the "Belles". Can't quite recognize the eery background tune (Portishead?), but, all in all, it's a strange little video - see below. I'm also going to add TransAlchemy's memorial to the sidebar. Better late than never.

In the end, there's not much more I can say about this day, except (Mac) wish you were (still) here.

Virgin Galactic

2011-10-17T23:11:00.000-04:00

"VIRGIN GALACTIC CURRENTLY HAS TWO JOB OPPORTUNITIES:

Position: Pilot – Astronauts

Position: Head of Operations

Please click here to apply online and for further details http://careers.virgin.com/"

- Found here

***

Think you've got the "right stuff"? No, I don't... but that doesn't mean I can't get excited about Sir Richard Branson's latest pet project, Spaceport America which was formally launched in New Mexico today!

"Looking skyward, more than 800 guests marveled at Virgin Galactic’s commercial space vehicles as they soared through the skies of southern New Mexico during the dedication ceremonies of Virgin Galactic’s new home at Spaceport America. The flight of WhiteKnightTwo and SpaceShipTwo was the highlight of a spectacular ceremony which featured the dedication of the Sir Norman Foster-designed building and announcements of new scientific and educational customers for the world’s first commercial space line."

Pictured above is the Virgin Galactic logo, and below that is one of the latest promo videos posted a few hours ago on YouTube. (And here's the link to another one.) For another article, click here.

Below is the Virgin Galactic's "Galactic Girl"... apparently inspired by Sir Richard's mom!

Back Down to Earth

2011-10-15T21:41:00.001-04:00

"NEW YORK, Oct 15 (Reuters) - Thousands of anti-Wall Street protesters rallied in New York's Times Square on Saturday, buoyed by a global day of demonstrations in support of their month-long campaign against corporate greed.

Inspired by the Occupy Wall Street movement, protests on Saturday started in Asia and rippled through Europe back to the United States and Canada. Protesters fed up with economic inequality took to the streets in cities from Washington, Boston and Chicago to Los Angeles, Miami and Toronto."

- via Reuters News Page - Sat Oct 15, 2011 9:03 pm EDT - Edith Honan & Edward McAllister

Live streaming blogs found here and here.

(Photo credit: Clare Trapasso)

More Mars: Hesperia Planum

2011-10-15T19:29:00.001-04:00

"There's no greater mystery than a mystery cropping up somewhere you thought you understood. In the case of the Martian plain Hesperia Planum, it was filed under "Region on Mars. Not Particularly Interesting. No Further Study Needed."

... But if water is a possibility, then Hesperia Planum suddenly became a lot more interesting. Evidence for a watery past plus ancient volcanism may have provided the ideal environment to incubate life."

- Discovery News, via "The Mystery of Mar's Bizarre Plumbing" - 10/13/2011 - Ian O'Neill

Yet another newly reevaluated area - Hesperia Planum - which poses the possibility of past life on Mars!

(Found today on Graham Hancock's News Page.)

***

And another Discovery article from March of this year that I somehow missed:

SPACE FORENSICS MIGHT POINT TO A MARTIAN ANCESTRY

Cloud Cities

2011-10-12T16:51:00.003-04:00

"With his solo exhibition at the Hamburger Bahnhof, Berlin’s museum for contemporary art, he takes this experience a step further. Cloud Cities is Tomás Saraceno’s largest solo presentation to date. It features approximately 20 of his balloon models in various sizes. But instead of being able only to look at the installation, visitors can actually enter the two largest bubbles, that sit and float like soap bubbles in the former railway hall of the museum. Via ladders they can access the transparent balloons halfway of the structure and then walk or just lie on a flexible, transparent floor. From underneath it looks like they are walking on air."

- from an article found here (w/ interview)

I discovered "Cloud Cities" - a recent installation in a German art museum created by Argentinian artist, Tomas Saraceno - from a post at Boing Boing yesterday (thanks, DP). Never one to pass up a visionary thrill, I immediately hopped on board, and you can, too. No, you don't need a plane ticket to Berlin; it's just a click away.

Here's a page with some wonderful images, and a video walk-through. Really amazing, and meant to be witnessed in the flesh... but, in lieu of the obvious, that is, for those of us on the wrong side of the pond, the cyber-space version will have to suffice.

Feed Your Head

2011-10-11T14:15:00.001-04:00

A Journey Through Fantasy - Vorticity - "Madman" - Music: "Good Thoughts Bad Thoughts, Funkadelic"

***

Just a couple of appetizers for your eyes... examples of a relatively recent fractal development in video art referred to as the Mandelbox. For more videos and more information, visit my art blog, specifically this post: "Of Mandelboxes and Mandelbulbs".

Enjoy!

Graham Hancock Interview

2011-10-10T22:38:00.003-04:00

One of my daily cyber-space stops is author Graham Hancock's News page, where I generally find all the latest unbiased paranormal news I need to find, plus new articles about science, archaeology, technology and outer space.

Then again, Graham Hancock pisses a lot of people off, often a selling point for people like myself, and one in his favor.

He posted an interview of himself with Joe Rogan recently that I had a chance to listen to last night. It is a long interview (2 hours +) but well worth the time, covering everything from the "war on drugs" - he feels that the world governments are holding our minds hostage (to which I agree) - Egypt, consciousness, Rupert Sheldrake, recent archaeological discoveries, Mars, and more. Despite my reservations on a couple of points, all in all, I found it fascinating.

To listen for yourself and draw you own conclusions go here.

Top Paranormal Book of 2010!

2011-10-09T14:03:00.007-04:00

"The late Mac Tonnies provides a "meditation" on the idea that at least some of the UFO occupants generally thought of as aliens from other planets might actually be from right here on Earth. Perhaps these beings have evolved alongside us, or long before us, and have moved their civilization out of sight, perhaps underground. Perhaps they even walk among us all the time. It's an interesting hypothesis that has been kicking around for awhile, but Tonnies puts the idea into coherent form to explain the often odd behavior and activity of these beings today and throughout history."

- via Stephen Wagner's "Top Paranormal Books of 2010" list

***

Patrick Huyghe, author and publisher at Anomallst Books, announced last month - and somehow I missed this - that Mac Tonnies' The Cryptoterrestrials: A Meditation on Indigenous Humanoids and the Aliens Among Us was voted #1 on Stephen Wagner's (About.com, Paranormal Phenomena) list of "Top Paranormal Books of 2010"!!!

Also mentioned on the Anomalist's (Mac Tonnies-dedicated) news page is this review found in Australia's Living Traditions Magazine. Here's the intro:

"The Cryptoterrestrials is written in a succinct and engaging style condensing an immense amount of research. The author clearly has obviously studied the field for many years and digested vast amounts of information before coming to some startling conclusions. It is also beautifully illustrated and nicely presented."

***

Lastly, quoted in a previous post on the Anomalist page is a review of Mac's book by Paul Kimball. I mention it here because Paul has been posting some quotes of Mac's on his blog, The Philosopher King recently, in a series of "Thought du jour(s)", with some photos of Mac you may not have seen, so pay the page a visit and keep scrolling down.

Update: To open the currently existent posts up in separate pages for future reference, here's a recap from earliest to most recent: Sept. 15 - Sept. 27 - Set. 29 - Sept. 30 - Oct. 4 - Oct. 5 - Oct. 8 - Oct. 9 - Oct. 10.

***

The online catalogue page of other recent Anomalist offerings can be found here.

Project Core

2011-10-09T01:30:00.002-04:00

"Project Core is a long-term study of paranormal accounts submitted voluntarily and anonymously by the interested public. Our goals are as follows:

1.) To identify shared elements between every type of paranormal encounter submitted, if such elements exist.

2.) To identify common traits between the experiencers themselves, if any exist.

3.) To compare and contrast genuine experiences with imagined ones. For this, we present an option for people who have never had any sort of paranormal experience to write a fictitious account of what they think it would be like to, for example, encounter Bigfoot, live in a haunted house, have a near death experience, or be abducted by aliens.

Over the next 10 months we will collect your stories as well as answers to some questions that interest us. This is not a gathering of accounts for a book, film or anything profit-driven – only research into paranormal experiences and those who have had them. It’s an anonymous submitting process, but one that requires raw truth no matter how odd or unbelievable. This is not an exclusive data collection process – ghosts, PK, ESP, possession, non-human contacts, etc. are all sought and welcomed. When we complete our analyses, we will present our findings in a paper that will be freely available to all."

***

The above is a quote from an introduction to of a new study project presented by the folks at Paratopia, currently being conducted by Dr. Kimbal Cooper, Dr. Tyler Kokjohn, Jeff Ritzmann and Jeremy Vaeni.

For more information and a questionnaire, go here.

(Hat-tip to Reagan Lee at The Orange Orb.)

The New Superheroines - Girls with Guns

2011-10-07T15:58:00.007-04:00

They're lean, they're mean, they're dead-serious, and well, they're deadly... and they're women - truthfully, cats and kitties, I think we can all stand behind the new cinematic superwomen. Pretty enough and sensual enough to intoxicate the boys, and androgynous enough to appeal to the ladies as well. I bet that even the most femininely-orientated women amongst us foster, to some degree, a girl-crush on at least one of them.

Sigourney Weaver (above) was the first, appearing as Ellen Ripley in the spate of "Alien" films, beginning in 1979. But, lets face it, if you grew up before the 1980's, superwomen were hard to come by, and while you may have had the occasional gritty female stereotype to inspire you, the truly down and dirty types simply didn't exist as cinematic heroines (case in point, "superheroine" is not even a bona fide word in a dictionary, whereas "superhero" is). You could have, perhaps, found them in comic books, but they were not the sort of females a prepubescent girl could actually wrap her head around. The proportions were all wrong.... melon-sized protrusions on their chests, wasp-like waists, wrestler's legs, not to mention the obligatory bathing suit costume. They looked silly, not scary. And they never packed any meaningful "heat" that I know of.

Girls with guns, big guns - what fun! Even the most pacifistic woman, and really, I am, experiences a certain vicarious release when, with a gun in each hand, a superwoman blows away a flock of her opponents, without so much as blinking her eyes. Hell, I have a hard time swatting a fly, but when I watch Kate Beckensale blast her way through a bevy of creeps, I get to share a certain heady sense of power.

So, in the interests of cultural anthropology, and for the amusement of all, I've chosen a few prime clips of girls with guns... and, if not exactly prime, the best I could do. From first to last we have Charlize Theron as Aeon Flux, Milla Jovovich as Violet Song, Carrie-Anne Moss as Trinity, and, my personal favorite, Kate Beckinsale as the merciless Selene.

So, you go Kate, and Charlize, and Carrie-Anne... and you go Milla, and Sigourney, and anybody I may have left out. There are no underdogs quite so "under" as women, so, when you shine, all of our repressed warrior instincts finally get to kick some ass!

Goodbye Steve...

2011-10-05T21:55:00.002-04:00

http://www.apple.com/stevejobs/

(This blog was created on a Macintosh.)

Richard Feynman on "Beauty" and Science

2011-10-04T22:25:00.002-04:00

Okay, gang, I just lifted this directly from a Boing Boing post by Cory Doctorow - forgive me, Cory, but I just had to have it here! (Thanks!)

The amazing Richard Feynman - who once won my admiration for his fanciful trip to Tuva - was a particle physicist, and Nobel prize winner, amongst his many accomplishments. He was also one of the most humane, and truly funny scientists I ever researched; and as a popularizer of science, he was right up there with Sagan.

I love this quote from the video:

“I think it's much more interesting to live not knowing than to have answers which might be wrong. I have approximate answers and possible beliefs and different degrees of uncertainty about different things, but I am not absolutely sure of anything and there are many things I don't know anything about, such as whether it means anything to ask why we're here. I don't have to know an answer. I don't feel frightened not knowing things, by being lost in a mysterious universe without any purpose, which is the way it really is as far as I can tell.”

Feynman web resources can be found here, and here.

For a virtual library of Feynman videos at YouTube, start here.

Mars Pic of the Week

2011-10-03T18:32:00.003-04:00

(Click on for larger view)

"Scientists have found water-bearing deposits on Mars that are out of step with what was happening elsewhere on the planet, raising the prospect that the sites could have hosted Martian life's last stand."

- via a Discovery News article, 9/27/11

Klaus Schulze - Plug in Code; Press Play

2011-10-01T14:38:00.006-04:00

...And now for something completely different.

If you even have a passing interest in electronic music, from the techno-pop of Kraftwerk, the ambient music of Brian Eno, Vangelis (one of Mac's favorites, as he wrote the score for Blade Runner), or the early experiments of Tangerine Dream, then it's time you met the master of the genre, German composer, Klaus Schulze.

Above is an abbreviated clip of Schulze from a 2010 concert in Tokyo, Japan. Below, in the second video, Schulze composes his melody, punches in his percussion code, and allows all of it to play while he walks off-stage. I don't think one really "gets" electronic music unless they see a true maestro perform. The music becomes an almost scientific achievement, a network of reverberating sound crafted on a machine; but, if the composer is successful, one can still feel the human presence in the center of this web, and feel privileged to have access to this dreamer's dream.

And below is a beautiful, dreamy collaboration between Schulze and Peter Namlook, complete with a synthetic journey through the galaxies.

For those of you who might be interested in an earlier (1977) live clip of Schulze, featuring just the man and his machines, press play.

And, in the interests of "turning European", here's a teaser clip of a 2009 Schulze concert featuring that amazing, muse-possessed vocalist, Lisa Gerrard, from the now legendary band, Dead Can Dance.

Here & there...

2011-09-29T16:59:00.001-04:00

For all you creatives - and I know you're out there, if you were, indeed, a friend of Mac's - there is now a free PDF file online, entitled "Demonic Creativity" by Matt Cardin. But, don't be mislead by the title, there is nothing sinister here. Cardin illuminates the Daemonic presence of the Muse, a subject dear to my own heart, and one that might be relevant to you and your own work.

(Link via this News page.)

***

"When De Santo opened the door that Saturday night, Michael was smiling.
"Nina, I can't stay long," he said, pausing in the doorway. "I just wanted to stop by and say thank you for everything."

They chatted a bit more before Michael left and De Santo went home. On Sunday she received a strange call from a salon employee. Michael's body had been found the previous morning -- at least nine hours before she talked to him at her shop. He had committed suicide."

The quote above is from a rare, paranormally-related article via CNN, Do loved ones bid farewell from beyond the grave?, by journalist, John Blake.

The topic explored is the "crisis apparition", described as "the spirit of a recently deceased person who visits someone they had a close emotional connection with, usually to say goodbye."

Surprisingly, the article is sans skeptical opinion and merely reports the eye-witnesses' experiences from an unbiased journalist's point of view..

(Link via this News page.)

The Human Fly

2011-09-28T23:25:00.000-04:00

Time to get up and dance, cats and kitties! And, if you can't dance to The Cramps, a surf-punk band from the late 70's, then you are a dull android, aren't you?

This post was inspired by "Another Weird Music Show" at Radio Misterioso. Well, kind of. Actually, I was just in the mood!

But Greg, if you're aware of this post, don't overlook "Bikini Girls with Machine Guns"!

Suppertime Sonnets: The Paperback

2011-09-26T22:34:00.001-04:00

Shakespeare did it.... Milton did it. Browning, Shelly and Keats did it... even Yeats did it. But now the tradition of the sonnet (and, for a BBC broadcast on the topic, listen here.) moves closer to home.

Kate Sherrod, our favorite sonneteer, has been dutifully counting our days with her wise and witty couplets for the past few years on her blog, Suppertime Sonnets. However, there has recently been new cause for celebration - a collection is now available for your own personal library!

You go, Kate - Mac would be so proud!

Everyday is Like Sunday (& note)

2011-09-25T01:55:00.006-04:00

From a link posted recently in the Posthuman Blues, Triptych #15 comment section.

Thanks, "Anonymous"!

(Note: Last I checked, there were 346 comments to Mac's last post on PHB. Granted, a number of them are "the sucker vines of spam", but it's still gratifying somehow to know that PHB is still active in its own quiet way.)

Pink Tentacle, where are you?

2011-09-20T21:31:00.007-04:00

I've been keeping an eye on that great site - Pink Tentacle - a favorite of Mac's - and one that I've mentioned on this blog previously, and wondering why there's been no updates in some time. Today I noticed a number of comments on the last PT post, I hadn't looked at previously, and it brought back some unfortunate memories. The last post is dated April 13th of this year and I'm sure readers of this blog and PHB will find the comment section eerily familiar.

Hopefully not ultimately as tragic, however. No, thankfully, there is no "news" of that kind.

Pink Tentacle hails from Japan, and there has been a great deal too many catastrophes in that country this year... a magnitude 9 earthquake and tsunami, a magnitude 6.6. earthquake recently, and, not to mention, Typhoon Talas, and now Roke.

One can only hope that Pink Tentacle's absence is due to continued power shortages and conservation efforts only, and that our favorite cephalapod resurfaces soon!

News Flash: In a related story: 60,000 People March against Nuclear Power in Tokyo via this news page.

Pendulum Waves and Hidden Symmetries

2011-09-18T16:38:00.001-04:00

David Peeples sent me a view of the video (above) today - thanks, David - featuring a ball pendulum, which takes on interesting patterns when viewed from the side. Technical aspects of this "wave" effect can be found on this Harvard page.

Interestingly, the symmetries we see above are not the same ones we see below - the same variety of experiment now viewed from the front (and above) of a similar pendulum.

Powder

2011-09-16T14:43:00.004-04:00

The film "Powder" came out in 1995, but I didn't see it till last night (on DVD). The story is a sort of less ambitious version of "The Man Who Fell To Earth" with our resident alien archetype portrayed as a strange albino teenager (Sean Patrick Flanery) with special powers, who "lands" in the middle of a small Texas town with semi-predictable consequences. Unlike "TMWFTE", which weaves its story in a more sophisticated, but fairly remote way, "Powder" is more of a subdued passion play going straight to the heart of the matter; the "matter" being alienation. In other words, it's a tear jerker. And probably more than a little contrived in places, especially when the musical score gets a bit cloying. But, after all is said and done, I really loved this movie.

For those of you (like myself) who missed it the first time around, above are two clips of the film... but if you want to watch the whole thing, it can be found in segments - from 1-11 on this page.

(Spoiler alert!) Below is the film's finale.

TO MARS!

2011-09-15T16:28:00.002-04:00

Read all about it at: Histories of Things to Come!

(Thanks, T. - great post!)

Mindfeed

2011-09-06T18:32:00.002-04:00

"The subliminal undertow of the mindfeed felt like a layer of gelatin lubricating every conscious thought; factoids and assumptions rose to the surface of awareness unbidden only to dissolve once expressed. "Like gnats," he thought, leaning into his augmented exosuit. "Digital mayflies canvassing my synapses and quietly expiring." The notion weighed on his conscience. He imagined the husks of dead insects clinging to the warm, wet lining of his skull, impervious to decay."

- Mac Tonnies - story fragment via this 2005 PHB post

I didn't intend to post today, but during my daily cyber-surf I came upon 2 adjacent posts on Boing Boing, both of which related to Mac in an odd way.

The first was an article regarding an exhibit by photographer Charles Gatewood, which features the photograph of William Burroughs posted above. Burroughs was an important author to Mac; he reviewed all of Burrough's books on his website, found here.

The second Boing Boing post features an interview with author Vernor Vinge. I know Mac mentioned Vinge in the past and upon searching PHB, I came upon this mention of Vinge and the story fragment above. I sometimes overlook how involved Mac was with Transhumanism, though, in the end, it was probably his most compelling influence, evidenced by this page also found on his website.

(Thanks to David Pescovitz and Mark Frauenfelder for inspiring this interesting mash-up.)

UPDATE: Also, for those who may have missed it, a recent interview with author William Gibson by Frauenfelder can be found here, There is also a heads-up to the recent "Scientific American" Gibson interview in this post by Cory Doctorow.

Haunted Mars

2011-09-04T13:47:00.000-04:00

Sol 1891

Sol 1886

I don't know what it is I'm really seeing when I look at photographs of the Martian surface. Is it a haunted place or merely a lonely place, waiting patiently for new creatures to observe it?

Photo credits:
NASA/Caltech//JPL/Spirit rover

Eerie Mars

2011-09-02T21:43:00.003-04:00

There was some news recently about the Mars rover "Opportunity" via this article on Space.com which got me curious as to what Opportunity has been up to these days. I never paid quite as much attention to it as I did to Spirit in the early days, but I was in an exploratory mood, so I headed over to NASA's Mars rover site.

The first 3 shots I found on the page devoted to Sol 2543. I'm assuming that wavy stuff is sand (?) but it's so oddly contrasted it almost looks as if someone painted it on.

The last shot - click the image for an enlargement - are actually 2 shots I found on the Sol 2612 page, which I noticed were of 2 sides of the same indentation in the ground and so I spliced them together using that dark rock in the foreground as my guide.

I find the most maddening thing about all the Mars photos is that you want to be there - you want to get up right close and investigate... but can't... ever.

UPDATE: For those interested in Opportunity and its travels, here's a great blog featuring loads of fantastic Martian photos (2D and 3D): The Road to Endeavour.

A Belated Birthday Card of Sorts

2011-08-24T23:04:00.000-04:00

I was really hoping to have this post up on Mac's birthday (the 20th), but, well, I did try...

In any event, the illustration I warned you about previously has finally been completed. Oh, you know, that illustration I started for Mac years ago and abandoned several times in angst. Quite a process, I assure you... especially as it was created for eyes that will never see it. Well, maybe we can all, collectively, beam it up to him... he did tend to like my weird "icons". This one is probably less futuristic than he would of liked but then, well, I was informed by ancient traditions.

And so, without much ado, I present to you a detail of "The Dragon and the Pearl". For the full image, and a bit more of Tatiana's story, you'll have to visit my other blog, that is: here.

Comings and Goings... Updated

2011-08-23T19:04:00.003-04:00

There's been sad news and glad news on the web in the past week. The former is that Bud Hopkins and Stuart Miller, two important contributors to the world of ufology, passed away recently.

Stuart Miller was only indirectly mentioned on this blog in the past regarding his magazine "Alien Worlds". Paul Kimball has posted a touching memorial on The Other Side of The Truth found here.

Meanwhile, on a brighter note, Nick Redfern has this to say about his new blog, Nick's Fortean Pic of the Day:

"Back in 2008, the late Mac Tonnies - a good friend and brilliant writer and thinker - established a little-known blog titled Things That Look Like Flying Saucers.

As its name suggested, Mac's blog was a humorous look at a whole variety of down-to-earth "things" that, when photographed, resembled UFOs.

Well, I recently thought, in the same spirit that Mac created his blog, why not establish a light-hearted blog - also of a photo-driven nature - that offers a bit of a departure from the grim-faced, oh-so-serious side of Forteana?

So, for what it's worth, here's my attempt! Like it or not!

Each day promises a new photo...Or, maybe several..."

***

(The photo above is one of Mac's that can be found on his "Pseudo saucers" blog.)

(Thanks to Regan Lee via Women of Esoterica!)

Men on Mars

2011-08-18T18:15:00.003-04:00

"Heated debates about how a Martian society might function erupted in the corridors. Spirited discussions were held at impromptu meetings in the venue's bar and restaurant. Everyone was buzzing with the excitement that the next few years could (could) see an injection of global interest in sending a manned mission to Mars.

Why? For starters, representatives from Elon Musk's Space Exploration Technologies (SpaceX) were there discussing the private sector's plans to develop the means to send humans to the Red Planet.

This comes hot on the heels of Musk's grand announcement that SpaceX has its sights set on Mars. Naturally, enthusiasts have latched onto SpaceX's dreams, and for the first time I heard serious discussions about using commercial heavy lift rockets to take habitats to the Red Planet's surface."

Read the article here.

UPDATE: And read Dr. Michio Kaku's recent views on Mars here.

(Photo credit, "Ice on Mars": ESA)

Virtual Reality

2011-08-16T20:45:00.001-04:00

No, your eyes do not deceive you; yesterday there was, indeed, a post here with the same title. For those interested, an updated version has now moved here.

I decided I'd post the same video, however... in memory of a Bowiephile I once knew.

Video link via Greg at The Daily Grail. (Thanks!)

The Time Machine

2011-08-13T16:13:00.003-04:00

Sorry... but I just could not resist lifting the above image from this terrific HOTTC post! And, while you're there, check out this very Posthuman article.

Thanks ToB!

Mac, "Contact" & SETI

2011-08-11T22:23:00.002-04:00

"And here I am entering a recording studio with the SETI Institute's Seth Shostak. I disagree with many of the Institute's guiding tenets -- most notably its irrationally harsh, largely uninformed dismissal of UFO evidence. That said, Shostak was a charming and cordial host and I enjoyed strolling the SETI Institute's museum-like central corridor."

- Mac Tonnies, PHB 2009 post

Yes, gang, here I am again with yet another post... I imagine y'all are wondering when and if I'm ever going to let poor Mac R.I.P.; apparently not today!

I just saw this headline earlier today at Space.com:

Jodie Foster Helps Revive SETI Search for Aliens

... and well, one thing lead to another. I guess I just remember that Mac was a big fan of the movie "Contact", and mentioned it a number of times on PMB... for instance, here.

I'd pretty much forgotten what a cool flick it was though, and how good Jody Foster was in it... but here's a little reminder: the worm-hole scene...

The Dog Days of Summer

2011-08-09T20:14:00.006-04:00

"In Ancient Rome, the Dog Days extended from July 24 through August 24 (or, alternatively July 23-August 23). In many European cultures (German, French, Italian) this period is still said to be the time of the Dog Days.

Dog Days were popularly believed to be an evil time "when the seas boiled, wine turned sour, Quinto raged in anger, dogs grew mad, and all creatures became languid, causing to man burning fevers, hysterics, and frenzies" according to Brady’s Clavis Calendarium, 1813."

- "Dog Days" entry via Wiki

Well, let me see, currently - that is, this past week - "world news" has seemingly become an endless litany of drought, famine, economic disaster, genocide... and, oh yeah, London is burning.

Meanwhile, out here in blog-land, the apathy is so thick that you can fold it, cut it with a pair of scissors, and make a garland of paper dolls with it.

What's not to love?

You've probably heard of the phrase "dog days of summer" in the past. I have... but I didn't realize that there is a formal period described as such. But there is, and we're in it. The expression actually originated from the fact (and/or assumption, and really, who cares?) that Sirius - the Dog Star - rises at the same time as the sun during this period. The actual dates seem to vary - July 3 thru April 11 is another time frame - but, regardless, these days certainly feel like those described by the Clavis Calendarium.

Sirius is an important star in "new age" mythology, sometimes referred to as "the dragon's tail". It, and the neighboring constellation of Orion, appear in the photograph above, which was taken in Guatemala by Stéphane Guisard, near a Mayan temple.

While doing my research I came upon another interesting tidbit... and this concerns the "Dog Day Cicada". I've always been fascinated by the cicadas and their life-cyle, and the strange, cryptic pattern on their backs. I remember going out one summer day years ago, and finding a dead cicada on the doorstep. In my magical-child's mind I thought it was an omen or message, and secreted the husk in a tiny wooden box.

As it so happens, there are variety of cicadas, some hidden in the ground in a larval stage for many years before they emerge, but the Dog-Day - or, Tibicen - emerges from the ground every year around this time; hence it's name.

In Wiki's Cicada entry we read: "In Japan, the cicada carries further philosophical connotations of re-birth. Since the cicada emerges from the ground to sing every summer, it is a symbol of reincarnation. Of special importance is the fact that the cicada moults, leaving behind an empty shell. But furthermore, since the cicada only lives for the short period of time long enough to attract a mate with its song and complete the process of fertilization, they are seen as a symbol of evanescence."

As it stands, the cicada has a very rich, ancient mythology. This comes from Plato:

"It is in Phaedrus that Socrates states that some of life's greatest blessings flow from mania, specifically in the four kinds of mania: (1) prophetic; (2) poetic; (3) cathartic; and (4) erotic. It is in this context that Socrates' Myth of the Cicadas is presented. The Cicadas chirp and watch to see whether their music lulls humans to laziness or whether the humans can resist their sweet song. Cicadas were originally humans who, in ancient times, allowed the first Muses to enchant them into singing and dancing so long that they stopped eating and sleeping and actually died without noticing it. The Muses rewarded them with the gift of never needing food or sleep, but to sing from birth to death. The task of the Cicadas is to watch humans to report who honors the Muses and who does not."

(... found here. To listen to an example of cicada "song", click here. The above cicada photo and more can be found here.)

Hmmm... "muses"? Forgetting to eat and sleep? Sounds vaguely familiar... But then, during these sweltering days of late summer, the weather generally doesn't permit sleep anyway.

But, (all of) that being said, the latter days of summer hold another special meaning for many of us... specifically, a birthday.

The anniversary of Mac Tonnies' birth falls on a Saturday this year - the 20th of August... and, therefore, he was born on one of the Dog Days by some calendars. I don't know if he was aware of Dog Day mythology but, knowing Mac, he probably would have had something ironically humorous to say about it.

Sadly, I don't.

But, on Saturday the 20th, I'll light a little birthday candle in his memory this year. No, I won't blow it out. I'll let it burn down to the very end.

A Dragon on Mars!

2011-08-03T21:00:00.000-04:00

"Space Exploration Technologies, or SpaceX, is preparing to launch its second test Dragon capsule on Nov. 30 with the intention of docking it at the space station. In addition to carrying cargo to and from the station, SpaceX plans to upgrade the Dragon to fly people into space and to one day land it on Mars."

Just found this little article on Graham Hancock's news page. Sigh... Mac might've just had his wish fulfilled!

Remembering A Funny Guy

2011-07-31T13:36:00.004-04:00

"I can’t imagine I’m alone in thinking Mac was one
of the funniest people I’d ever met. So, it would be really great to hear
from some of his friends and readers who keep returning to this site.
What things did Mac say, do, or post
that was hilarious to you?"

Sarah Multiverse is looking for a laugh over at Macbots... Got any?

Meanwhile, I've added a few items to the sidebar for those interested.

Be Still My Martian Heart

2011-07-27T15:40:00.003-04:00

My new Martian Heart bracelet from Starry Road Studio ... Check out the rest of Karen Totten's hand-crafted treasures at her Etsy Shop!

Fort, as in: Fortean

2011-07-21T19:23:00.002-04:00

"CHARLES FORT WAS AN INTELLECTUAL adventurer, a deep-dyed scholar of the weird whose work paved the way for generations of researchers. Writing in the early 20th century, Fort pursued unexplained phenomena with feverish intensity and a rare sense of humility.

"Fort's Lo! is a classic work of studied iconoclasm, a restless ensemble of anecdotes that produces a singular sense of unease mingled with awe, gape-jawed amazement-and a pang of existential fright. Fort's parade of scientific anomalies frames the larger anomaly that is human existence. Lo! is a book with the capacity to rewire brains and sculpt new lenses for seeing the unexpected, the unexplained - and perhaps for glimpsing our own role in Fort's mystitying cosmic scheme.

"This book is a singularity, a focal point so rich with heretical memes that it's infected an entire century with its bizarre implications and sense of the inexplicable. Perhaps if Charles Fort had never existed, we would have been forced to invent him, or someone like him. But it's doubtful we could have improved on him. Lo! is something new and correspondingly startling: a crack in the veneer of orthodoxy and an impassioned plunge into the deep black waters of a most enigmatic planet."

- Mac Tonnies, via the cover of Charles Fort's "Lo!" (1931), Cosimo Books edition, 2004

"Dr." John Cleese

2011-07-20T19:32:00.001-04:00

Are you desperately in need of a laugh? Thought so!

(Thanks, PK!)

Light Art Performance Photography

2011-07-13T14:31:00.001-04:00

"The light art performance photography (briefly LAPP), is one-shot long time bulb exposure Photography, performed additionally with movement of light.

LAPP originates on a real-time basis directly in front of the camera. Created between opening and closing the shutter. The pictures shown here are in each case one single photo, not a result of working on the computer. With especially developed light and luminous tools they are projected on the sensor. within a performance, form and color by light arrange such complicated figures and light forms."

Wrongly filed under "Digital Graffitti" on this amazing site, the photos above, plus a number of other wonderful light photographs can be found here. (Hint: When you get to this page, just click near the thumbnail bar at the bottom of the page to see the entire strip; drop-down menus at the top.) Enjoy!

Note: This link has a permanent spot - along with other eye-candy, on the sidebar of Trans-D, in the continuously updated "Not Necessarily related - and related - Digital Delights" section.

UFO? Cosmic Bioplasma?

2011-07-11T17:29:00.006-04:00

No... Jellyfish!

Are there any animals on this planet as cool and as marvelous to watch? I think not. A Scottish reader once informed Mac that "tonnies" was the Scottish word for jellyfish. I don't know if this is true or not, but Mac was thrilled.

Digital Blasphemy

2011-07-09T22:31:00.002-04:00

Above are two phenomenal digital wallpapers created by Ryan Bliss: Upper - Tropic of Thetis (Nightfall); and lower - Phraxis Moon. These are just two of the many stunning, extraterrestrial views that can be found on this page from Ryan's Digital Blasphemy website.

Says Ryan:
"I have been running Digital Blasphemy since 1997. It's been my full time job since 1999. I am fortunate to be one of a handful of people on the planet who makes a living by creating 3D computer wallpaper. What started as a hobby has become one of the more recognized destinations for computer art on the web with over 15,000 current paid subscribers."

I say: wow!

Note to PK: In the event Beyond Best Evidence gets off the ground...

Science and Consciousness

2011-07-01T01:03:00.002-04:00

"The Center for Consciousness Studies at the University of Arizona was formed in 1998 with a seed grant from the Fetzer Institute. The Center is a unique institution whose aim is to bring together the perspectives of philosophy, the cognitive sciences, neuroscience, the social sciences, medicine, and the physical sciences, the arts and humanities, to move toward an integrated understanding of human consciousness. The Center is unique in its broad spectrum approach. Other groups tend focus either on cognitive neuroscience, philosophy or purely phenomenal experiential approaches, whereas the Center not only integrates these areas, but "thinks outside the box" of conventional wisdom which has thus far, at least, failed to make significant breakthroughs. The Center has also inspired other groups such as the Association for the Scientific Study of Consciousness and those who organize other conferences."

For those interested in the subject of consciousness, you might want to visit The Center for Consciousness Studies online. Another wonderful online source can be found here, a page which features a long list of fascinating videos of scientific discussions related to consciousness.

Finally, to whet your appetite, head over to The Daily Grail, and listen to Dr. Stuart Hameroff discuss "quantum consciousness" and the afterlife.

A Sneak Peek

2011-06-23T19:20:00.000-04:00

Around a year and a half ago I posted a small graphic of a faerie-like creature on this blog - since removed - I was working on for Mac Tonnies before his untimely death. If I remember correctly, I named the creature "Titania" and warned that she would be reptilian in the future if, indeed, I finished the graphic at all.

Well, many months later, "Titania" is now Tatiana - in an image entitled: The Dragon & The Pearl - and she is almost ready to make her debut. Not quite, however. When she is finished she will appear on my new blog, i.e., that art blog I have tentatively proposed (and/or warned you about) in the past. The name of the blog is: Trans-D Digital Art (Transdimensionalism and Transfiguativism in Digital Art).

The blog itself is not devoted to the illustrative work of mine that readers of PMB may already be familiar with, but is striving - as I am striving - for a new expression in art that follows closely with the new digital mediums (and mystical memes) that surround us. So, if you're interested, stop by set a spell, and hopefully, it will become more entertaining with time.

Remembering A Friend

2011-06-22T13:15:00.001-04:00

Paul Kimball remembers a friend, and muses over a "Mac Thought" (the first of a series) on The Other Side of the Truth.

Yes, Paul, if Mac isn't "somewhere" then, well, in a manner of speaking, I guess we're all pretty much nowhere.

Mac On Mars - PHB Flashback

2011-06-16T22:43:00.000-04:00

"In idle moments I like to imagine ways I might get off the planet in the near-future. So far, none of them are especially probable. One idea that continues to tantalize (despite its fatalistic implications) is convincing NASA to send a one-man "experimental" mission to Mars, ostensibly to study the effects of prolonged microgravity and radiation on human physiology.

The subject? Me, of course.

I'm not asking that much, really. Just a modest capsule with life support and a way of navigating the Martian surface, even if it's just an augmented spacesuit and an inflatable tent. Once on Mars, I could continue sending NASA data on my condition, not to mention carry out geological and exobiological investigations. Given the tools and a minimum of scientific training, I figure my efforts could eclipse those of the current Mars Exploration Rovers within weeks.

The elegance of this mission, from a financial perspective at least, is that I wouldn't necessarily be coming back, sparing mission planners the need for a return vehicle. I'd wander the landscape and keep myself alive and healthy for as long as possible, awaiting eventual relief from a more robust crewed mission. It's quite possible I could "live off the land" indefinitely, giving me enough time to really take in the sights: the soaring slopes of Olympus Mons, the labyrinthine fractures of Valles Marineris, the enigmatic massifs of Cydonia.

Would I miss Earth? Certainly. But probably not enough to conscience coming back until at least a few years of pure, unimpeded exploration; it's not everyday one has an entire planet to oneself.

I hereby volunteer for a one-man "reconnaissance" flight to Mars, fully aware of the risks. How about it, NASA?"

- Mac Tonnies, via PHB post 4/25/06

Speaking of Mars...

2011-06-16T19:03:00.002-04:00

"The Mars Science Laboratory (MSL) is a United States space administration (NASA) mission with the aim to land and operate a rover named Curiosity on the surface of Mars. It is scheduled to launch on November 25, 2011 and land on Mars on August 6, 2012. It will perform the first-ever precision landing on Mars. The Curiosity rover will help assess whether Mars ever was, or is still today, an environment able to support microbial life. In other words, its mission is to determine the planet's habitability. It will also analyze samples scooped up from the soil and drilled powders from rocks."

- via a Wiki article

I suppose whether or not this is good news or no news depends upon the ability of NASA scientists to interpret the data found... and to what extent they are willing to share this knowledge with the public at large.

In any case, Spirit is, indeed, history. BOL to Curiosity!

(Thanks to Maggie and this BoingBoing post...)

The Shrimp from Mars

2011-06-14T18:54:00.004-04:00

"Since they branched off from animals so early, their evolution took them in unique directions," said study co-author Tom Cronin, a visual physiology researcher at the University of Maryland, Baltimore County. "We used to call them shrimps from Mars, because their biology is so different from any other animal."

Like insects and other crustaceans, mantis shrimps possess compound eyes composed of thousands of rows of light-detecting units called ommatidia. These are especially refined in mantis shrimps, containing a mix of photoreceptors and filters that let them see 100,000 different colors -- 10 times more than can be detected by humans.

- via Wired.com, an article from 3/20/08

Above is a photo of a rather mysterious, intensely colorful creature named the "Mantis Shrimp", though it is neither a mantis nor a shrimp, but a stomatopod, a species distantly related to shrimps and lobsters.

The minute I stumbled upon this 2008 article today, I knew I had to post it. Apparently this little animal is the known sole possessor of eyes that can see what is called "circular polarized light" enabling it to see colors that we humans can't even conceive of! As an artist I am more than just a tad envious!

As the author of the Wired Science article - from which I grabbed the image - writes:

"Cronin called mantis shrimp eyes an outstanding system for studying the principles of visual evolution. But even that strikes me as a non-utilitarian purpose. Maybe someday scientists will make cybernetic optical implants that let me see a few thousand more colors — but until then, understanding the eye’s evolution isn’t so much a material application as a spiritual one. Knowledge is a fundamentally good thing: learning more about the world is intrinsically valuable, because it adds that much more depth and nuance and color to our experience of life."

To which I add: amen!

Radio Misterioso

2011-06-11T20:43:00.007-04:00

Greg Bishop's Radio Misterioso is back on the track, and I, for one, am glad! He's just posted a great interview (from 2007) with Turkish Ufologist, Farah Yurdozu, who sheds an interesting light on the UFO phenomenon in Turkey, but also much, much more. She touches upon one topic that has always intrigued me: the underground cities of Cappadocia. Apparently Turkey is warrened with a number of underground cities of unknown origin. I remember bringing up the subject of Cappadocia (shone above) to Mac Tonnies when he was in the midst of forming his Cryptoterrestrial hypotheses and, oddly enough, Farah's understanding of the the Turkish mythology surrounding the underground cities is very supportive of Mac's theories. All in all, a fascinating radio show. Listen here.

***

UPDATE: For those interested in Farah Yurdozu, I suggest heading on over to the Women of Esoterica blog, where Farah is a guest contributor. There you will find more links to conjure with...!

Synchronicity and the Skies above... Volcanoes!

2011-06-08T20:11:00.010-04:00

Above is a shot of the Milky Way above Piton de la Fournaise, an active volcano on Reunion Island in the Indian Ocean, snapped by photographer Luc Perrot, which won third prize at the 2011 TWAN International photo contest. The other winning photos can be found here. Notice was just posted today on Yahoo.

Meanwhile, more stunning photographs of the sky - this time over an active volcano in Chile, can be found - just posted today - at Histories of Things to Come.

As it happened, earlier this morning, I happened to catch a 2008 episode of Anthony Bourdain's "No Reservations" in which he was visiting one of the last inhabitants of an an area in Hawaii - you guessed it - devastated by an active volcano.

Coincidence? Yeah probably, but only because I can't exactly find the personal "meaning".

Paul Kimball on the other hand, has been having a spate of his own synchronicities. I left a comment on his last post on The Other Side of the Truth early this morning that I think readers of this blog might also appreciate... a quote from F. David Peat from his wonderful book "Synchronicity - The Bridge Between Mind and Matter" which has been mentioned previously on PMB, specifically here, here and here.

"As Jung had earlier pointed out, it is the nature of synchronicity to have meaning and, in particular, to be associated with a profound activation of energy deep within the psyche. It is as if the formation of patterns within the unconscious mind is accompanied by physical patterns in the outer world. In particular, as psychic patterns are on the point of reaching consciousness then synchronicities reach their peak; moreover, they generally disappear as the individual becomes consciously aware of a new alignment of forces within his or her personality.

Synchronicitics are therefore often associated with periods of transformation: for example, birth, deaths, falling in love, psychotherapy, intense creative work, and even a change of profession. It is as if the internal restructuring produces external resonances, or as if a burst of "mental energy" is propagated outward into the physical world."

Hmmm... internal restructuring... external resonances... burst of energy? Sounds like a volcano to me! :-)

The Windbridge Institute

2011-06-03T20:13:00.004-04:00

"The spiral served as a sacred and creative symbol in nearly every culture of the ancient world. The triple spiral---or triskele---was first seen in Celtic cultures but has symbolized numerous triads to many different societies: Land-Sea-Sky; Past-Present-Future; Thought-Word-Deed; Birth-Death-Rebirth; etc."

- via: http://www.windbridge.org/about.htm

This is sort of a follow-up to a post on PMB listing the currently existent paranormal institutes and associations. I just discovered The Windbridge Institute (their logo is the triskelion shown above) in Tucson, Arizona, from a The Daily Grail article, specifically this page. I feel it may interest some of you and so I add it here.

I notice the institute currently has an interesting paranormal study underway - found on the afore-mentioned page - that involves psychic readings. Sadly, the desired participants should, and I quote, "have NOT experienced the death of any family members, romantic interests, or close friends during their lives. Individuals who have not lost anyone close to them are being specifically recruited in order to attempt to prevent deceased "drop-ins" during psychic readings for living participants."

... Which pretty much cancels me out on all 3 counts... Oh well... although I must say I'm curious as to just who would "drop in"...

Anyway, you'll notice my sudden short spate of posts in the past couple of days... just an anomaly.

The Bees Return...

2011-06-03T16:47:00.004-04:00

...via the U.S. Mail, apparently! But this should be good news for those of you who follow this blog. These particular bees caused quite a stir in Little Italy, New York, recently. Here's the scoop.

:-)

Of Ghosts, Machines, and Platonic Shadows

2011-06-02T15:43:00.005-04:00

"... Because Tonnies was so young when he tragically passed away at the age of 34 in 2009, and he also had a strong online presence, his death highlights this problem. The information that remains - his reviews, his Website, his blog Posthuman Blues, his tweets, and so on - act like a Platonic shadow."

The above quote is taken from this new, thought-provoking post by ToB on her cool Histories of Things to Come blog entitled : Internet Shadows in Broad, Sunlit Uplands.

She asks: "... Is some virtual reality corner of the Internet going to become the dimension that houses a billion disembodied souls, forever?"

Of course, you know Mac would just love all of this... though, in the end, I think even he became disenchanted with post-humanism and the Singularity. And, in any case, he didn't stick around for it.

I'm supposing the broader aspect of the question is whether or not souls and machines have anything intrinsically in common... "ideas", for instance... and for an answer to that I quote Charlie Brown, who once said: "AARGH!!!"

(Sorry folks, my over-loaded brain just crashed and shut down...beep beep and out...)

New Mars T-shirt Design

2011-06-01T16:17:00.018-04:00

Recently I've become inspired by Mars again... around the same time I learnt that the Spirit Rover - the "little engine that could" was no longer operational, and had finally been "laid to rest". For everyone but a Mars enthusiast - "Martians" in particular - this news is a non-event. After all, what did the rover do but take a lot of photos of a dead planet... images of rocks and rocks only - a geologist's treasure trove, but surely not the stuff of Lowell's, and Bradbury's dreams (see Wiki's article: Mars in Fiction.)

But I, as one might expect, beg to differ. Years ago - in 2005 - I was the web mistress of "The House of Spirits - in Search of Hydapsis", a web site devoted to those "rocks" the Spirit Rover found. I designed a (tongue firmly in cheek) "Mars Archaeological Society" T-shirt at the time showing details of the rover's amazing discoveries. Well, amazing to me, at any rate. I remember combing through NASA's Spirit website - specifically the "raw image" data - like a raven in search of shiny objects. I simply had to see for myself what was there.

Mac Tonnies was coming around to my point of view, though neither he nor I could even begin to identify the "alien artifacts", if artifacts they were. But Mac and I had a shared enthusiasm for the possibility of ancient intelligent life on Mars... or, at least, the possibility of a visiting civilization there, if not indigenous to the planet per se. We made a pact to someday meet as archaeologists on Mars in some far-distant future... and I sometimes think we still might.

So, I redesigned the shirt in Mac's memory, too, as well as the Spirit Rover's. I have no idea what the objects are in the images, but one thing is true: I did not retouch the photos... No "artwork" is involved. That the "things" are a bit fuzzy around the edges is due to the lack of quality of the website photos, regardless of my attempts to heighten the contrast and sharpen the image (quite a challenge in itself!).

What you see is what there is... a secret between the Spirit Rover and the Martians among us. ;-)

(Yes, the design should read "Mars Amateur Archaeological Society", but it didn't work as well in the design!)

(click on images - upper and lower - for larger views)

Above are some details of the details (left to right): (left) detail of the "fin" of the first, upper image on your left.

(center) detail of the 5th image - on your right. (right) detail of the 9th image - on your right.

Links to the original images on the the Spirit Rover site will follow - you, too, can be an "archaeologist".

***

As promised, here are the links to the "raw" "panoramic" image views on the Spirit Rover website in regards to the images on the T-shirt design... in order of the objects (left to right, top to bottom) on the shirt...

#1, from Sol 60:

(my original source image seems to be missing... here is an alternative shot...)

http://marsrovers.jpl.nasa.gov/gallery/all/2/p/060/2P131684025EFF1155P2215L2M1.JPG

#2 from Sol 12:

http://marsrovers.jpl.nasa.gov/gallery/all/2/p/012/2P127439441EFF0309P2269R1M1.JPG

#3, from Sol 12:

http://marsrovers.jpl.nasa.gov/gallery/all/2/p/012/2P127443142EFF0309P2269L6M1.JPG

#4 & 6, from Sol 12:

http://marsrovers.jpl.nasa.gov/gallery/all/2/p/012/2P127440327EFF0309P2269L7M1.JPG

#5, from Sol 136:

(my original source image seems to be missing... here are two alternative shots...)

http://marsrovers.jpl.nasa.gov/gallery/all/2/p/136/2P138439737EFF54CAP2263R2M1.JPG

http://marsrovers.jpl.nasa.gov/gallery/all/2/p/136/2P138438281EDN54CAP2263L1M1.JPG

#7, from Sol 12:

http://marsrovers.jpl.nasa.gov/gallery/all/2/p/012/2P127444193EFF0309P2269L6M1.JPG

#8, #9, #10, from Sol 12:

http://marsrovers.jpl.nasa.gov/gallery/all/2/p/012/2P127441506EFF0309P2269R1M1.JPG

***

Note: Currently there are no actual shirts for sale to the general public. Interested Martians, however, may contact me, Dia: araqinta@att.net.

Subject line: Mars T

The German Television Spot circa 2009

2011-05-14T23:04:00.004-04:00

On impulse, I just happened to be wandering through Mac's PHB "Triptych 15" comments (see sidebar "memorial" section) tonight when I came upon a most curious thing... a comment I somehow had completely overlooked at the time it was written (somewhere in November, 2009).

The comment was from "Falafel Kid", who wrote:

"Hello everyone. I am a German television journalist and stumbled across this blog after Mac's death. I am deeply moved by the community that is still active here. I was also researching what happens to your online data when you die.  So I included this page in my report.

I chose the Blade Runner Blues as a mark of respect to Mac. Since I no longer was able to ask him and used images from his website as a matter of public record, I at least wanted to show the site in a way that he would have appreciated."

FK provides a link to a German site, but, alas, I could not embed that video. I did find a version on YouTube, however, which appears below. Mac's segment ends with one of his shadow shot's (one that appears in this blog as well...).

I'm afraid I'm a one-trick pony when it comes to language though, so, I don't speak German... but the graphics speak volumes. Very eerie. And, suffice to say, the Germans addressed the topic of "death and the internet" first as this news spot hit German television November 29, 2009.

For the larger, original streaming video, (minus the broadcaster) click here.

I'm a bit unnerved by all of this... and regret it took me so long to find it... but, Falafel Kid, if you're out there - many thanks!

Mac is News Again!

2011-05-14T00:26:00.003-04:00

Literally, that is!

Apparently, inspired by the recent NY Times article, Christina Medina, a reporter for NBC news in Kansas City, created this television spot that aired Thursday night. Mac's Latteland friends, David Peeples, Andrea Ring and Lane Van Ham were interviewed especially for the broadcast, the cover of Mac's Crypto tome appears... and even a screen shot of this blog. (Go figure - but, no, I had nothing to do with it!)

I was somewhat disturbed by the semi-tabloid - and unnecessary - account of his death. but, I guess that's, uh, "entertainment"...

In any event, I really think Mac would've gotten a kick out of this...despite a few inaccuracies. He wasn't necessarily a fan of television, but he was a fiend for meme dispersal - specifically his own - so, you go, Mac!

The accompanying article appears here.

Two Mac-Toons from the Vaults!

2011-03-29T21:30:00.006-04:00

Two of the many drawings that fill Mac's sketchbooks - thanks Dana!

A Dynamic Duo: Binnall and Kimball (plus UPDATES)

2011-03-25T15:25:00.007-04:00

Paul Kimball has just announced a sequel to his acclaimed UFO documentary, "Best Evidence" - which featured interviews with a number of top researchers in the field, up to and including our very own Mac Tonnies - in a new post on his blog, The Other Side of the Truth, and directly on this The Redstar Films Unlimited page.

"Beyond Best Evidence: The UFO Engima" will be an independent film co-produced by the fantastic team of Paul Kimball and Tim Binnall, and promises to take the UFO theme light years beyond the vague, mainstream nonsense we've all grown accustomed to, by finally fulling exploring the various hypotheses and possible explanations for the phenomenon.

That being said, the film's existence might depend upon your support, so, check out his post and spread the word!

Meanwhile, for those of you who haven't seen "Best Evidence", Paul has graciously posted the 48 minute film in its entirety on his blog, and it can be found here.

Thanks, Paul, and best of luck to you and Tim!

***

While you're over at The Other Side of the Truth, you might also check out this post. included are several video clips from the 2011 Global Competitiveness Forum held in Saudi Arabia, which featured a panel about ET life ("Contact Learning From Outer Space"), from a number of different perspectives.

If you were a fan of Posthuman Blues, you'll be familiar with the roster of speakers presented here: Stanton Friedman, Nick Pope, Michio Kaku, Zaghloul El Naggar, and Jacques Vallee.

The Land of the Rising Sun Rises Again

2011-03-19T18:27:00.005-04:00

Pink Tentacle is back in business and I, for one, am relieved and so very happy to see it!

There are several posters featured in the most recent announcement - "Japan is in our Hearts" - created by Japanese underground artists, and offered for sale in support of the ongoing earthquake disaster relief efforts.

My favorite one is the design above... created by Oliver Kroa Cramm.

Mac Tonnies' Flickr Pages Restored!

2011-02-16T20:02:00.008-05:00

I am most happy to announce that Mac Tonnies' photostream has been restored to its original volume! At one point I was dismayed to find that Mac had lost his Flickr "Pro" status and his wonderful collection of shots had dwindled to a mere 200. Now, mysteriously, they're back - over 760 of them - in all their enigmatic glory! An example is the one above: "Greeter".

I am not sure how this came about, but thanks to whomever was responsible! It was a most welcome surprise!

Happy Chinese New Year!

2011-02-03T12:58:00.002-05:00

February 3, 2011 marks the beginning of the Chinese Lunar Year of the Rabbit. Among those born in previous rabbit years were Albert Einstein, Johnny Depp, and... Mac Tonnies!

What a perfect excuse for Bugs Bunny! Below are two cartoons wherein Bugs deals with two Fortean issues... cryptozoology and alien invasions... with some robotics thrown in for good measure!

Why does this not surprise me?

2011-01-20T22:41:00.003-05:00

"Wik-Bee Leaks: EPA Document Shows It Knowingly Allowed Pesticide That Kills Honey Bees"

Headline to an article found at Fast Company. Read and weep.

This is a follow-up to my post from July of last year, In Memory of Bumblebees.

(Hat-tip to Regan Lee at Octopus Confessional)

On the Trail of the "Paranormal Rat-Pack"

2011-01-18T15:27:00.002-05:00

Mac Tonnies' former good buddies and co-conspirators (see: "Cabal" on the sidebar) are popping up on the net.

There's an interview with Paul Kimball by Richard Thomas over at UFO Mystic.

Greg Bishop and Nick Redfern, on the other hand, have a nice long podcast chat with Tim Binnall which can be found here.

BoingBoing Takes Note

2011-01-13T18:00:00.003-05:00

David Pescovitz, over at one of Mac's favorite cyber-haunts, BoingBoing, posted yesterday about Rob Walker's NY Times article. If you haven't seen it yet, it can be found here.

Of Note

2011-01-11T13:34:00.003-05:00

This just in: Mike Clelland over at Hidden Experience has just posted a link to an article written by Rita J. King for the Atlantic in response to the recent NY Times article: Finding Time: A Response to Rob Walker on the Digital Afterlife.

Love Letters from LatteLand: "Chair"

2011-01-10T13:37:00.014-05:00

"What happens in LatteLand, stays in LatteLand."

- Tacked on a LatteLand wall by Mac Tonnies

***

Anyone who knew Mac Tonnies knew of his passion for coffee. And, anyone who knew Mac also knew that he was often found - day or night - in the various coffee-shops in Kansas City, MO. He'd often email me at these times - from places with names like "Central Perk" and "The Daily Grind". I always tried to picture him in those cafes... especially at night, with visions of Edward Hopper's "Nighthawks" going through my head. I never really got the coffee "trend", though. When I lived in Manhattan in the 80's, the same purpose was fulfilled by the local bar. But then, I came from the tail end of the previous generation - whatever Mac's peer-group was trying to remember, my peer-group was at great pains to forget.

During the last months of his life, Mac found solace in the company of a group of Kansas City "LatteLand" regulars, kindred spirits who appreciated his humor, his perceptions, and his quirks. One of them, Lane Van Ham, an English teacher at the local Community College, was inspired by Mac to start a small LatteLand-themed magazine, in the autumn of 2009, entitled "Chair".

Mac's response? "Perfect, that's the first thing you do when you come in: look for a chair."

In the second (May, 2010) edition's introduction, Van Ham continues: "The contents are fitting tributes, depicting and celebrating Mac's many facets. Of course, they are bound to come up short, for Mac's prodigious curiosity evaded summary judgement and, even now, resists confinement to a single place. That untamable abundance still effects all of us who knew him. I am certain, therefore, that if and when future issues appear, they will somehow be infused with his presence."

Below is an exuberant, very "beat" memorial essay - in its entirety - penned by one of the LatteLanders, David Peeples, whom some of you may remember from a Radio Mysterioso show with Greg Bishop commemorating Mac this past October.

***

MAC “Attack” TONNIES

Tucson Phoenix Peeples

Came walking down like some tornado spiral straight line aiming for, honed in on, laser precision with black boots, loose denim jeans, black leather jacket, black hat blowing stream line flowing by, whoosh on his way to who knows where, maybe Eden on his mind with eggplant lasagna with extra grated Grana Padano Parmesan, You Dig. Ain't no time to dilly-dally with the willy-nilly when you need a bite to eat, Okay. This dude is on a mission no doubt, a precision unlike the rest of us watching an anomaly in action, no hesitation, no desperation, no friction applied, resistance denied. This phenom could motate, Man. This man could move, and a mind on light speed mode. You can't move fast enough to keep up with his snappin' synapses, No Way! And all the time, “The Cats of B-2” in charge, running the show, arranging the game, calling the shots. Who knew? Yet there was that sense of “Other” in Mac's eyes, that disparate dissonance in his voice, that verbal labyrinth he nimbly negotiated, manipulated, applied with such ease. He appeared to be going somewhere, yet he was already there, here, there, and everywhere. I have no doubt about that. Looking back on it now, it's almost as if, almost a dream.

Sometimes convergence happens, certain planets align, magnetic fields stretch out across light years time, harmonics occur, transformation blossoms, evolution transpires, fungus emotes, root-beer floats, what can I say. And once every now and then, you get a genetic anomaly showing up seemingly out of nowhere, like spontaneous combustion, out of distant horizon comes walking, out of the shadow-land, beyond the borderland, the parallelogram, the continuum, You Dig? Comes walking, gliding, floating like a vapor, a mist, a fog, a pale glowing ribbon, a mystery of history bundled in an entity, with tentacles spiraling off in radiance lightness, “Who goes there?” or “Who was there?” or who knows where it goes or for what purpose propose, like an invisible man transpose, I suppose. Sometimes that otherness comes, communes for a time, then goes too soon, you might say, or assume, before it's time, who knows. Each spirit charts it's own path, time traveler, unravel-er, mind baffler, then fade from view, leaving me, leaving you, imprinted, touched, nothing but a whisper left, echo bereft, memory's breath. “Hey, Mac, where you be, out in that galactic sea, watching sea beams glitter off the shoulder of Orion, memories forgotten in time, like tears in rain, then it's time to die.” Been here, then gone, Sunset to dawn, natures pawn. That we could all go out in full stride.

Darkness shut me down, went scampering for a safe haven, watch out for the black Raven. “Go where the lights is”, they said, “Where the peoples is.” So I did, down to the light show, to the Feine Machine, the Scene Machine, where the drama peaks early and over with by 6:00 PM most days. I'm here to write, though I often end up in conversation. Maybe it's best for the time being, ease the shock of the thing. Spiritual willy-nilly times, my head contains all sides, outlandish and divine. Living is not memorizing scripture or some ridiculous litany, not a group event, but an inner trip, full of characters vying for time to bend my inner ear, sometimes severe. Always adjusting, re-evaluating, redefining, outlining, altering, thrusting, pulsing, revulsing, digesting, reinvesting, trying it on to check out the fit, altering or rejecting it, Get My Drift. Oh, Baby, it's a troubling thing, always flying, on the wing. Who knows where it ends, down some alley way, or dead end, like a blind man against the wind, walking a spiral labyrinth, spin spin spin, “The answer, my friend, is a blowin' in the wind,” or blowin' out whatever.

So I was sittin' down for a meal the other night, television on one of my favorite programs, “Bizarre Worlds”, and static began affecting the screen, thinking it might be the cable, when a face began to emerge in the static, and to my great surprise, shockingly so, Mac's face appeared.

“Hello, Tucson,” it said.

“What's this”, I heard myself whisper.

“Hello, Tucson. Please talk to me.”

“Mac,” I heard myself say, “Mac, is that you?”

“I'm not sure. I remember Mac Tonnies, and everything about him.”

“Mac is dead!” I replied.

“All Mac really was is still a part of me,” the face said.

“Why are you here?” I asked.

“I don't know why. I think to say good goodbye. Do you still go to the Feine Machine?”

“Sometimes,” I replied.

“Is it still a great place to go?” he asked.

“Sometimes.”

“I'm glad,” Mac said. “Goodbye, Tucson.”

“Hey, Mac. What's the deal?” I spit out.

“Goodbye, Tucson,” he said. “I'm already there.”

“I don't understand,” I mumbled.

“Something is going to happen, and I wanted to say goodbye.”

“What's going to happen, Mac?”

“Something wonderful”, then his face faded, faded, then disappeared, and “Bizarre Worlds” came flickering on again, and here I was frozen in place as though waking from a trance, not sure if I was dreaming or staring blankly at the screen, blanked out or blanked in. I looked to see what time it was, though I don't know when I had sat down to eat, yet it was dark outside, Moon high in the western sky. I sat there for some time, face fixed in a glazed state, staring at the screen. Then the next thing I knew I was brushing my teeth.*

I remember having long and interesting talks with Mac about many concepts, 4th dimensions, 5th, 6th and 11 Dimensional Space, Parallel Universes, Quarks, Quarts, Quirks, Jerks, Event Horizons, Quantum Mechanics, Quantum Fanatics, Quantum Hispanics, Quantum Fantastics, Quantum Germanics, Fabric Softener, Stool Softener, Fool Softener, stuff like that! Broadband Webery, Strawberry Alamogordo Arie, Worm Holes in Redwood Trees, String Theory, String Bean Query, whatever and whichevery, Cyber Space, Hyper Space, In Your Face, whatever! You can't say too much or too little about Mac, maybe just think it, see it, be it, whatever and however a Cryptoterrestrial might communicate, the subject of Mac's latest and last book. I would not be surprised to discover that Mac was a Crypto himself, living more fully and faster in his seeming thirty-four years than the rest of us. Thirty-four years for a Crypto could be three-hundred-forty years to the rest of us, You Dig? And if you don't, Why Not? Be there or be square-or-y! It's a the-or-y!

I loved Mac's sense of humor, off center, like mine! While talking, we could easily slip off into some scene dialogue of the movie “Blade Runner”, one of our all time favorite movies, without skipping a beat, makes as good sense as most conversations I have had in my life, making life more fun! One example of Mac's humor is one cool Autumn evening, he came walking briskly into the Feine Machine, wearing his baggy blue jeans, black boots, black leather jacket, black rimmed transition glasses and black hat, carrying a long, black umbrella like a shotgun, pointing it at Michael behind the cash register, pumping the umbrella like a pump action shotgun, like he was there to hold up the place, fired off a shot into Micheal's chest. Little did he know, that that very morning, the Feine Machine store on State Line Avenue had been held up, the manager locked up in the back office. Actually, the joke was on him as well as the rest of us. He was much apologetic when he found out, but we all got a good laugh afterward. Then the paddy wagon came and hauled him away.

Another, even better example of Mac's humor is printed in “The Cryptoterrestrials”, page 34, and the paragraph starts like so: “In paranoid moments---and there can never be enough of them-----”. Paranoid moments indeed! Nothin' like them to make a my day worthwhile!

Some time later, in 2012, to be exact, at dinner once again, watching some program on the Science Channel about, of all things, “Bling and Fashion Theory”, the screen went white and a voice began to speak, a deep, gravely voice with, perhaps, something of a British accent:

“Umm, people of Earth, this is Prosteticvogan Geltz of the Galactic Hyperspace Planning Council. As you are probably aware, plans for the development of the outlying regions of the galaxy involve the building of a hyperspace express route through your star system, and your planet is one of those scheduled for demolition. The plans have been available for viewing at the Galaxial Planning Center for some time, so you should be well informed in advance of this action. So, So long, and thanks for all the fish.”**

* based on a dialogue from the film, "2010"

** actual dialogue from the film "Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy"

***

My thanks go out to Dana Tonnies who kindly sent me this issue of the Chair, and to Lane Van Ham and David Peeples who allowed me to post the excerpts.

***

Update: Dana Tonnies has just informed me that there are actually two "LatteLands" in KC. The quote I had of Mac's - since deleted - and the photo I had on the sidebar (also deleted) were, apparently, in reference to a different location than the one sited in the post. Sorry.

NY Times Magazine Article

2011-01-05T12:44:00.007-05:00

Over the past several months many of us who knew Mac Tonnies and shared the goal of keeping his online legacy alive and intact were approached by journalist, Rob Walker, regarding an article he was writing for The New York Times Magazine. The article in question explored the little-discussed issue of online legacies and what becomes of ones internet "property" in the event of ones untimely death.

The article, "Cyberspace When You're Dead" is a no-holds-barred expose of the topic, which sites Mac and his followers (including yours truly) within that context - happily, as a, more or less, positive example of what may occur.

I don't suppose any of us intended or foresaw ourselves becoming "news" but news we are! The article will be published January 9th in the Sunday New York Times, but is available online today and can be found here.

***

Note: Just to set the record straight, the quote attributed to myself in the NY Times article was abbreviated just enough to take it slightly out of context. I was never so presumptuous as to declare that this blog was "a road-map to Mac Tonnies". I believe my full statement was in reference to the links provided by Post-Mac Blues as "a road-map to Mac's online presence".

Ah well, that's journalism for you!

Have Yourself a Merry Little Holiday...

2010-12-23T13:43:00.001-05:00

...and may 2011 prove most fortunate for all of us.

(This tune should be familiar - in the case of the video, played on mandolins by the Mandolin Man - but the haunting progression of notes in what is now known as "The Carol of the Bells" was originally an ancient Ukrainian folk chant for New Years Day which was thought to have magical properties. Eventually it became Shchedryk - a folk song about a little swallow who goes from door to door bearing good fortune - before it was transformed into the Xmas song known today.)

A Moment In Time

2010-12-22T13:47:00.006-05:00

Mac Tonnies "Hotel Bound" at the Prince George, in Halifax, Nova Scotia, November of 2008. More about this moment in time can be found in this PHB post. In an email to me he described himself as "brooding" in the clip - what he referred to as a "camera-test" - but I think a more apt term might be "wistful".

(A special thanks to Mark Plattner for helping me post this video.)

The Silent Evolution

2010-12-20T13:22:00.006-05:00

This amazing sculptural installation is the work of Jason de Caires Taylor and is located in MUSA an underwater museum off the coast of Cancun, Mexico. Comprised of 400 life-size human figures carved in cement, the figures function not merely as a work of art, but as a habitat for various ocean wildlife, such as coral.

Very eerie - and a work of sheer genius.

When I saw this I immediately thought of Mac... various sculptures, often of the human form, frequently fell under his camera lens. He'd have a field day in MUSA!

A video clip of the artist talking about his work with more views of "The Silent Evolution" can be found here.

(Another hat-tip to BoingBoing!)

Postscript: Actually, in a very weird way, this installation reminds me of Roy Batty and "tears in rain"... only instead of a dove flying away, there's a magnificent manta-ray.

Urban Decay

2010-12-10T18:48:00.007-05:00

Yahoo News has just published an editorial about urban decay featuring a marvelous gallery of photographic evidence. So, if you're a "ruins junky" like Mac Tonnies was a ruins junky and can appreciate the beauty of dissolution and desolation, prepare yourself for some exquisite eye-candy.

The example above is a photograph of the Eastern State Penitentiary in Pennsylvania snapped by photographer, Eric Holubow .

Paranormal Missouri

2010-11-27T02:59:00.012-05:00

This just in: Capn Marrrrk has informed me that he was in Borders the other night, thumbing thru Missouri paranormalist Jason Offutt's recent book, Paranormal Missouri - Show Me Your Monsters, when he found that there's a chapter devoted to Mac Tonnies! (Thanks, Mark!)

Also: Offutt features a short 2007 interview with Mac on his blog found here, where Mac discusses his budding Crypto hypothesis.

Mac by Drano

2010-11-21T20:54:00.006-05:00

Have just discovered the most amazing "rogue's gallery" of ufologist caricatures by an artist named Dennis Rano (aka Drano). Above is his interpretation of our favorite Macbot. I don't know how flattering Mac (the "chick magnet") would find this cartoon, but he'd absolutely get a huge kick out of its inclusion (albeit posthumously) alongside his peers. Y'all really have to check out Drano's online gallery. He features original caricatures of almost 200 paranormal notables, up to an including Mac's pals, Paul Kimball, Greg Bishop and Nick Redfern. Check out the list, and enjoy!

(Hat tip to Regan Lee @ The Orange Orb!)

On The Road

2010-10-31T22:00:00.008-04:00

"I sometimes wonder if I could live more or less perpetually 'on the road,' given a plausible excuse. I'm leaning toward 'yes.'"

- Mac Tonnies, via PHB post 8/29/08

Mac Tonnies had a strange attraction to this particular Kerouacian theme: life "on the road". And when it wasn't dogging his waking state, he would have recurring dreams about trains and being on trains with uncertain destinations. He once mentioned to me that one of the things that drew him to obscure and "ascetic" symbols and/or handwriting were the chalk marks - hobo glyphs - that those "on the road" left for other travelers as references, suggestions and/or warnings.

Mac loved "Beat". It resonated with him, haunted his fiction, and peered out of his Posthuman Blues posts as well.

And this is how I like to remember Mac... on the road, wandering somewhere out there under the stars, or, in Kerouac's words:

"And for just a moment I had reached the point of ecstasy that I always wanted to reach, which was the complete step across chronological time into timeless shadows, and wonderment in the bleakness of the mortal realm, and the sensation of death kicking at my heels to move on, with a phantom dogging its own heels, and myself hurrying to a plank where all the angels dove off and flew into the holy void of uncreated emptiness, the potent and inconceivable radiancies shining in bright Mind Essence, innumerable lotus-lands falling open in the magic mothswarm of heaven."

- Jack Kerouac, excerpt from On the Road (1951)

***

Note: Post-Mac Blues is now going into sleep-mode.

Rest assured, if there is any Mac-related news, I shall dutifully post it here. If I should start another (unrelated) blog, or a more formal Mac-Tonnies-Central site should arise, I'll post links. But, for the most part, this blog is now predominately archival.

Interestingly enough, November marks the time of the Celtic New Year. And it kind of feels that way for me. So, Happy New Year to you... and thanks for accompanying me on this journey! My special thanks to all those who have contributed to PMB in any way, shape or form. May Amaterasu shine on you! Till next time...

Peace Out,

Dia

Seasons Greetings!

2010-10-31T01:19:00.010-04:00

"This flu's still not finished with me. I've spent the last two days confined to my apartment, drinking coffee, napping, alphabetizing my hate-mail, and having long philosophical conversations with my cats.

Halloween was without incident, although I considered zapping trick-or-treaters through my window with my laser-pointer; what's a few burned retinas in the name of fun?"

- Mac Tonnies via PHB post, 11/1/06