We all seek alternative states of consciousness.  For some it is drug-free and for others it is drug induced.  Whether it be concentrating on crescendos in your favorite symphony or zipping through the trees on an epic day at Mount Baker - the sounds, sights, and sensations of interacting with the world in a unique way is sometimes frightening, sometimes exhilerating, but always striking in a way that drives us to seek more.  

For Eli, everything is new.  Is there an alternative state when everything is so shiny and so unique that all you can think to do is to put it all in your mouth?  Nevertheless, he has  found a new way of looking at the universe and that is upside down.

When I hold him in my arms he turns his head as far as he can, twisting his body to make whatever he is looking at look different.  Arching his back and giving a series of wiggles, I find the only way to hold him comfortably is with his head hanging straight down.  Cooing and other signals of contentment abound.  I worry that if I hold him that way too long all the blood will rush to his little head and the whole thing will pop off.  Horrible.  So I flip him back upright and he gets upset, but I don't think it is because he has lost his head (or was about to) but was just that he came to realize that everything is back to normal.

At one moment we find everything exciting and new, then we reach the end of the last movement or glide into the massive line at the bottom of the slope or wake up in the morning with a throbbing headache and realize that everything is as it seems, it all just depends on how you look at it.