Alright, here's the dish! - it has come to my attention that today is the day before New Year's Eve. It has also come to my attention that this day does not have a name. This needs to be remedied! I challenge anyone who's willing to participate to help come up with an appropriate name for today!
Contenders so far are:
Antenovannual day
PLUR!
Tuesday, December 30, 2008
Wednesday, December 17, 2008
Misheard Lyrics
I've never been a huge Avenged Sevenfold fan - in fact, my first exposure to them was playing "Beast and the Harlot" on Guitar Hero II.
Apparently my hearing isn't that great, because for several months (until I actually looked up the lyrics), I was grossly misinterpreting the chorus. Here's what I thought I was hearing:
"She's a fey and peaceful dreamer
She's everything she wants to be
But only when she's in her dreams, and when the morning comes, and she wakes to the daylight
All she was will fall beside the way."
Here is the actual chorus:
"She's a dwelling place for demons.
She's a cage for every unclean spirit,
every filthy burden, and makes us drink the poisoned wine to fornicating with our kings.
Fallen now is Babylon the Great."
Curious isn't it? The real chorus makes more sense, but I still almost like mine better...
PLUR!
Apparently my hearing isn't that great, because for several months (until I actually looked up the lyrics), I was grossly misinterpreting the chorus. Here's what I thought I was hearing:
"She's a fey and peaceful dreamer
She's everything she wants to be
But only when she's in her dreams, and when the morning comes, and she wakes to the daylight
All she was will fall beside the way."
Here is the actual chorus:
"She's a dwelling place for demons.
She's a cage for every unclean spirit,
every filthy burden, and makes us drink the poisoned wine to fornicating with our kings.
Fallen now is Babylon the Great."
Curious isn't it? The real chorus makes more sense, but I still almost like mine better...
PLUR!
Tuesday, December 9, 2008
Veritas
It seems that, especially over the past 5 years, I've increasingly found that to establish the truth of a thing, one doesn't need to believe it....but merely to convince other people of it.
This is growing a mite unsettling.
PLUR
This is growing a mite unsettling.
PLUR
Sunday, November 16, 2008
Dalai Lama
Although admittedly under-informed, I've always been sympathetic toward the movement within Tibet to achieve autonomy under (if not independence from) Chinese rule. A good friend shared this article with me that disheartened me somewhat.
New York Times article
I wish there was something I, personally, could do, that would affect real change to the situation at hand...
PLUR.
New York Times article
I wish there was something I, personally, could do, that would affect real change to the situation at hand...
PLUR.
Wednesday, November 12, 2008
Mmm...
I think grapes are delicious. They're sweet and bite-sized, and an excellent food to snack on, both frozen and room-temperature. I would be terrifically happy if someone passed a law stating that every public place had to have a bowl of fresh grapes for employees and patrons to munch on throughout the day. Think about how much people get irritated when they're out and about taking care of their business. How much of that do you think is tied to hunger? I know I get grumpy when I'm hungry. A bowl of grapes in every house and public building would make the world a happier place...and they're healthier than chips or chocolate, too!
Of course, I'm also in love with pomegranates, but I know those aren't as universally loved - some people don't like the dryness, or the tartness of them. That's okay, though, 'cause that means there are more pomegranates for people like me!
PLUR!
Of course, I'm also in love with pomegranates, but I know those aren't as universally loved - some people don't like the dryness, or the tartness of them. That's okay, though, 'cause that means there are more pomegranates for people like me!
PLUR!
Tuesday, November 4, 2008
Commentary
In light of the election results, and since it's on my mind, I feel that I should take this opportunity to make a political statement, and offer some of my own opinions about the future of this country.
In lieu of that, I'm going to post lyrics to the song "Let It Ring" by Amy Ray (of the Indigo Girls). This song is more powerful than any speech from any politician, orator, or public speaker I've ever heard.
When you march stand up straight.
When you fill the world with hate
Step in time with your kind and
Let it ring
When you speak against me
Would you bring your family
Say it loud pass it down and
Let it ring
Let it ring to Jesus 'cause he sure'd be proud of you
You made fear an institution and it got the best of you
Let it ring in the name of the one that set you free
Let it ring
As I wander through this valley
In the shadow of my doubting
I will not be discounted
So let it ring
You can cite the need for wars
Call us infidels or whores
Either way we'll be your neighbor
So let it ring
Let it ring
in the name of the man that set you free
Let it ring
And the strife will make me stronger
As my maker leads me onward
I'll be marching in that number
So let it ring
I'm gonna let it ring to Jesus
Cause I know he loves me too
And I get down on my knees and I pray the same as you
Let it ring, let it ring
'Cause one day we'll all be free
And here's a link to a YouTube video of Any Ray performing the song live at the Manchester University Student Union.
In lieu of that, I'm going to post lyrics to the song "Let It Ring" by Amy Ray (of the Indigo Girls). This song is more powerful than any speech from any politician, orator, or public speaker I've ever heard.
When you march stand up straight.
When you fill the world with hate
Step in time with your kind and
Let it ring
When you speak against me
Would you bring your family
Say it loud pass it down and
Let it ring
Let it ring to Jesus 'cause he sure'd be proud of you
You made fear an institution and it got the best of you
Let it ring in the name of the one that set you free
Let it ring
As I wander through this valley
In the shadow of my doubting
I will not be discounted
So let it ring
You can cite the need for wars
Call us infidels or whores
Either way we'll be your neighbor
So let it ring
Let it ring
in the name of the man that set you free
Let it ring
And the strife will make me stronger
As my maker leads me onward
I'll be marching in that number
So let it ring
I'm gonna let it ring to Jesus
Cause I know he loves me too
And I get down on my knees and I pray the same as you
Let it ring, let it ring
'Cause one day we'll all be free
And here's a link to a YouTube video of Any Ray performing the song live at the Manchester University Student Union.
Tuesday, September 23, 2008
"...Eventually, over a period of months!"
Heehee! Zombie protest chant as recorded by the Kingdom of Loathing (quoted from Stroker and Hoop, who in turn quoted it from The Great Brain Robbery by Cheapass Games)
"What do we want? BRAAAAAINS! When do we want 'em? BRAAAAAAINS! "
PLUR!
"What do we want? BRAAAAAINS! When do we want 'em? BRAAAAAAINS! "
PLUR!
Tuesday, September 9, 2008
Dear Father...
I've begun to feel more and more that my life is a field full of dandelions.
Do you see flowers in these weeds?
Do you see flowers in these weeds?
Monday, September 1, 2008
Excerpt
Drawing a convincing parallel between the cabbalistic tree of the Sefirot and an automobile.
From Foucault's Pendulum by Umberto Eco, C 1988 Gruppo Editoriale Fabbri Bompiani Sonzongo Etas S.p.A.; English translation C 1989 by Harcourt, Inc; 2007 First Harvest edition, pp. 366-168.
"Last night I happened to come across a driver's manual. Maybe it was the semidarkness, or what you had said to me, but I began to imagine that those pages were saying Something Else. Suppose the automobile existed only to serve as a metaphor of creation? ... It is the Tree of the Sefirot."
...
"... The drive shaft is the trunk of the tree. Count the parts: engine, two front wheels, clutch, transmission, two axles, differential, and two rear wheels. Ten parts, ten Sefirot."
...
"...[I]n certain versions Tefiret isn't the sixth Sefirah, but the eighth, below Nezah and Hod. My axle-tree is the tree of Belboth."
...
"But let's pursue the dialectic of the tree. At the summit is the engine, Omnia Movens, of which more later: this is the Creative Source. The engine communicates its creative energy to the two front or higher wheels: the Wheel of Intelligence and the Wheel of Knowledge."
"If the car has a front-wheel drive."
"The good thing about the Belboth tree is that it allows metaphysical alternatives. So we have the image of a spiritual cosmos with front-wheel drive, where the engine, in front, transmits its wishes to the higher wheels, whereas the materialistic version we have a degenerate cosmos in which motion is imparted by the engine to the two lower wheels: from the depths, the cosmic emanation releases the base forces of matter."
...
"... After the engine and the two wheels comes the clutch, the Sefirah of grace that establishes or interrupts the flow of love that binds the rest of the tree to the Supernatural Energy. A disk, a mandala that caresses another mandala. Then the coffer of change—the gear box, or transmission, as the positivists call it, which is the principle of Evil, because it allows human will to speed up or slow down the constant process of emanation. Fort his reason, the automatic transmission costs more, for there it is the tree itself that decides, in accordance with its own Sovereign Equilibrium. Then comes the universal joint, the axle, the drive shaft, the differential—note the opposition/repetition of the quaternion of cylinders in the engine, because the differential (Minor Keter) transmits motion to the earthly wheels. Here the function of the Sefirah of difference is obvious as, with a majestic sense of beauty, it distributes the cosmic forces of the Wheel of Glory and the Wheel of Victory, which in an unaborted universe (front-wheel drive) are subordinate to the motino imparted by the higher wheels."
...
"You have but to look with the eyes of an initiate. The supreme engine lives by an alternation of intake and exhaust. A complex, divine respiration, a cycle initially based on two units called cylinders (an obvious geometric archetype), which then generated a third,, and finally gaze upon each other in mutual love and bring forth the glory of a fourth. In the cycle of the first cylinder (non is first hierarchically, but only through the miraculous alternation of position), the piston (etymology: Pistis Sophia) descends from the upper neutral position to the lower neutral position as the cylinder fills with energy in the pure state. I'm simplifying, because here angelic hierarchies come into play, the ditributor caps, which, as my handbook says, 'allow the opening and closing of the apertures that link the interior of the cylinders to the induction pipes leading out of the carburetor.' The inner seat of the engine can communicate with the rest of the cosmos only through the meditation, and here I believe is revealed—I am reluctant to utter heresy—the original limit of the One, which, in order to create, somehow depends on the Great Eccentrics. A closer reading of the text may be required here. The cylinders fill with energy, the piston returns to the upper neutral position and achieves maximum compression—the simsun. And lo, the glory of the Big Bang: combustion, expansion. A spark flies, the mixture of fuel flares and blazes, and this the handbook calls the active phase of the cycle. And woe, woe if in the mixture of fuel the Shells intrude, the qelippot, drops of impure matter like water or Coca-Cola. Then expansion does not take place or occurs in abortive starts. . . ."
"Then the meaning of Shell is qelippot? We'd better not use it any more. Fron now on, only Virgin's Milk . . ."
"We'll check. It could be a trick of the Seven Sisters, lower emanations trying to control the process of creation. . . . In any case, after expansion, behold the great divine release, the exhaust. The piston rises again to the upper neutral postition and expels the formless matter, now combusted. Only if this process of purification succeeds can the new cycle begin. Which, if you think about it, is also the Neoplatonic mechanism of Exodus and Parodus, miraculous lialectic of the Way Up and the Way Down."
From Foucault's Pendulum by Umberto Eco, C 1988 Gruppo Editoriale Fabbri Bompiani Sonzongo Etas S.p.A.; English translation C 1989 by Harcourt, Inc; 2007 First Harvest edition, pp. 366-168.
"Last night I happened to come across a driver's manual. Maybe it was the semidarkness, or what you had said to me, but I began to imagine that those pages were saying Something Else. Suppose the automobile existed only to serve as a metaphor of creation? ... It is the Tree of the Sefirot."
...
"... The drive shaft is the trunk of the tree. Count the parts: engine, two front wheels, clutch, transmission, two axles, differential, and two rear wheels. Ten parts, ten Sefirot."
...
"...[I]n certain versions Tefiret isn't the sixth Sefirah, but the eighth, below Nezah and Hod. My axle-tree is the tree of Belboth."
...
"But let's pursue the dialectic of the tree. At the summit is the engine, Omnia Movens, of which more later: this is the Creative Source. The engine communicates its creative energy to the two front or higher wheels: the Wheel of Intelligence and the Wheel of Knowledge."
"If the car has a front-wheel drive."
"The good thing about the Belboth tree is that it allows metaphysical alternatives. So we have the image of a spiritual cosmos with front-wheel drive, where the engine, in front, transmits its wishes to the higher wheels, whereas the materialistic version we have a degenerate cosmos in which motion is imparted by the engine to the two lower wheels: from the depths, the cosmic emanation releases the base forces of matter."
...
"... After the engine and the two wheels comes the clutch, the Sefirah of grace that establishes or interrupts the flow of love that binds the rest of the tree to the Supernatural Energy. A disk, a mandala that caresses another mandala. Then the coffer of change—the gear box, or transmission, as the positivists call it, which is the principle of Evil, because it allows human will to speed up or slow down the constant process of emanation. Fort his reason, the automatic transmission costs more, for there it is the tree itself that decides, in accordance with its own Sovereign Equilibrium. Then comes the universal joint, the axle, the drive shaft, the differential—note the opposition/repetition of the quaternion of cylinders in the engine, because the differential (Minor Keter) transmits motion to the earthly wheels. Here the function of the Sefirah of difference is obvious as, with a majestic sense of beauty, it distributes the cosmic forces of the Wheel of Glory and the Wheel of Victory, which in an unaborted universe (front-wheel drive) are subordinate to the motino imparted by the higher wheels."
...
"You have but to look with the eyes of an initiate. The supreme engine lives by an alternation of intake and exhaust. A complex, divine respiration, a cycle initially based on two units called cylinders (an obvious geometric archetype), which then generated a third,, and finally gaze upon each other in mutual love and bring forth the glory of a fourth. In the cycle of the first cylinder (non is first hierarchically, but only through the miraculous alternation of position), the piston (etymology: Pistis Sophia) descends from the upper neutral position to the lower neutral position as the cylinder fills with energy in the pure state. I'm simplifying, because here angelic hierarchies come into play, the ditributor caps, which, as my handbook says, 'allow the opening and closing of the apertures that link the interior of the cylinders to the induction pipes leading out of the carburetor.' The inner seat of the engine can communicate with the rest of the cosmos only through the meditation, and here I believe is revealed—I am reluctant to utter heresy—the original limit of the One, which, in order to create, somehow depends on the Great Eccentrics. A closer reading of the text may be required here. The cylinders fill with energy, the piston returns to the upper neutral position and achieves maximum compression—the simsun. And lo, the glory of the Big Bang: combustion, expansion. A spark flies, the mixture of fuel flares and blazes, and this the handbook calls the active phase of the cycle. And woe, woe if in the mixture of fuel the Shells intrude, the qelippot, drops of impure matter like water or Coca-Cola. Then expansion does not take place or occurs in abortive starts. . . ."
"Then the meaning of Shell is qelippot? We'd better not use it any more. Fron now on, only Virgin's Milk . . ."
"We'll check. It could be a trick of the Seven Sisters, lower emanations trying to control the process of creation. . . . In any case, after expansion, behold the great divine release, the exhaust. The piston rises again to the upper neutral postition and expels the formless matter, now combusted. Only if this process of purification succeeds can the new cycle begin. Which, if you think about it, is also the Neoplatonic mechanism of Exodus and Parodus, miraculous lialectic of the Way Up and the Way Down."
Conspiracy Theory: Nothing New Under the Sun
"The Unanimous Declaration of the Thirteen United States of America" (i.e., the Declaration of Independence) was adopted on 4 July, 1776, mere days after the 2 July vote by the Second Continental Congress to declare independence from Great Britain. (Despite the Declaration's adoption on this date, the famous document on display in the District of Columbia wasn't drafted until after 19 July, and most of the representatives didn't sign until 2 August).
By this point, the American Revolutionary War had been going on for more than a year already (incidents sparking the war including the Boston Massacre and the Battles of Lexington and Concord between British troops and American militiamen. The American regular army was established (on paper, if not actually in practice) in June of 1775).
On 1 May, 1776, the secret society that would become known as the Bavarian Illuminati was founded with the dedication to "the systematic and stealthy conquest of nations, one by one, and ultimately the entire world" (Link. Further reference: Payson, Seth, Proof of the Illuminati, The Invisible College Press, LLC, 2003 (first published in Charlestown: Etheridge, 1802), ISBN 1931468141)
Ignoring, for the moment, the obvious Masonic symbolism inherent in many of the most notable symbols of the United States, does the confluence of these dates - 1 May and 4 July 1776 seem suspicious to anyone else? During the 1770s, the British Empire was one of the strongest nations in Europe, with it's colonial Empire stretching from the new world to India and Asia (serious inroads into Africa had not yet been made). The 1763 Treaty of Paris had effectively ended France's participation as a viable colonial power in the New World, and increasing political turmoil would lead to the French Revolution less than a decade after the American one ended.
Bavaria was, after the resolution of the Thirty Years War, one of the strongest states of the Holy Roman Empire (the Prince-Elector of Bavaria was essential in selecting, and was second in power only to, the Holy Roman Emperor), of with Prussia was also a part. Prussian soldiers fought on the side of the Colonists during the American Revolution.
The connections between these facts should be clear - imbittered by the weakened state in which the Thirty Years War left the Holy Roman Empire, Catholic militants from Prussia, under a Bavarian directive, assisted revolutionary American colonists in defeating the British forces in the American colonies, thus weakening the strength of Protestant-led Britain, thus pursuing the "systematic and stealthy conquest of nations" as intended by the Bavarian Illuminati.
Unfortunately for the Illuminati, their actions were curtailed. The Elector Palatine, Karl Theodor came to power in Bavaria and in 1785 created "The Secular Edict" which, in part, banned all secret societies from operating in Bavaria. No longer able to operate in public, the Bavarian Illuminati could no longer be as bold in their actions, and (according to most reputable sources) experienced its downfall shortly thereafter. Further, the unexpected aftermath of the French Revolution that led to the Napoleonic Wars (which resulted in the French conquest of much of the old Holy Roman Empire) further weakened the Bavarian tradition.
PLUR!
By this point, the American Revolutionary War had been going on for more than a year already (incidents sparking the war including the Boston Massacre and the Battles of Lexington and Concord between British troops and American militiamen. The American regular army was established (on paper, if not actually in practice) in June of 1775).
On 1 May, 1776, the secret society that would become known as the Bavarian Illuminati was founded with the dedication to "the systematic and stealthy conquest of nations, one by one, and ultimately the entire world" (Link. Further reference: Payson, Seth, Proof of the Illuminati, The Invisible College Press, LLC, 2003 (first published in Charlestown: Etheridge, 1802), ISBN 1931468141)
Ignoring, for the moment, the obvious Masonic symbolism inherent in many of the most notable symbols of the United States, does the confluence of these dates - 1 May and 4 July 1776 seem suspicious to anyone else? During the 1770s, the British Empire was one of the strongest nations in Europe, with it's colonial Empire stretching from the new world to India and Asia (serious inroads into Africa had not yet been made). The 1763 Treaty of Paris had effectively ended France's participation as a viable colonial power in the New World, and increasing political turmoil would lead to the French Revolution less than a decade after the American one ended.
Bavaria was, after the resolution of the Thirty Years War, one of the strongest states of the Holy Roman Empire (the Prince-Elector of Bavaria was essential in selecting, and was second in power only to, the Holy Roman Emperor), of with Prussia was also a part. Prussian soldiers fought on the side of the Colonists during the American Revolution.
The connections between these facts should be clear - imbittered by the weakened state in which the Thirty Years War left the Holy Roman Empire, Catholic militants from Prussia, under a Bavarian directive, assisted revolutionary American colonists in defeating the British forces in the American colonies, thus weakening the strength of Protestant-led Britain, thus pursuing the "systematic and stealthy conquest of nations" as intended by the Bavarian Illuminati.
Unfortunately for the Illuminati, their actions were curtailed. The Elector Palatine, Karl Theodor came to power in Bavaria and in 1785 created "The Secular Edict" which, in part, banned all secret societies from operating in Bavaria. No longer able to operate in public, the Bavarian Illuminati could no longer be as bold in their actions, and (according to most reputable sources) experienced its downfall shortly thereafter. Further, the unexpected aftermath of the French Revolution that led to the Napoleonic Wars (which resulted in the French conquest of much of the old Holy Roman Empire) further weakened the Bavarian tradition.
PLUR!
Saturday, August 9, 2008
Time-Out Box
I've been holding onto this scrap of paper in my wallet since my senior year of high school. I only vaguely remember the circumstances surrounding the creation of the rhyme, but I always thought it was make a great hook, or part of a chorus of a fun, poppy song.
"That's what happens in the time-out box
Socks come off
People get kicked
Some people never return"
If anyone is actually inspired enough to try to use this bit of sillyness, please let me know beforehand - I'd love to hear your work!
PLUR!
"That's what happens in the time-out box
Socks come off
People get kicked
Some people never return"
If anyone is actually inspired enough to try to use this bit of sillyness, please let me know beforehand - I'd love to hear your work!
PLUR!
Sunday, July 20, 2008
Magic, Science, and Religion
My last semester at Guilford, I finally took my IDS class - an interdisciplinary course required for all senior liberal arts students before they would be allowed to graduate. That course provided me with about a page worth of really profound and really amusing quotes, and since I don't think I'll have a chance to share them with people any other way, I've decided to put them out here in my blog. I believe that all quotes are credited to their original speakers, unless the speaker was unknown.
"The anti-technology revolution always fails." - Eric M.
"It's hard to tell." - Eric M. (these words themselves don't sound too impressive, but Eric always said this instead of "I don't know" or something similar. The way in which he said it convinced me every time that nothing was unknowable, as long as I was willing to put forth the effort to discover it.)
(this was all that remained of a lesson from another class that had been left up on the blackboard, and only partially erased. I am intensely curious about what it originally intended to say!)
"...DESIGN
...BROUGHT UINTO BEING"
"Dang! I could really use some flippers!" - Don S.
"Ignorance more frequently begets confidence than knowledge." - Charles Darwin (hey...not all the quotes came from my classmates and professors!)
"Take New Zealand for example, it's full of birds." - Beth T.
"Why do we teach kids to stop, drop, and roll when they catch on fire? 'Cause they might." - Eric M.
"That's why this class is called 'Magic, Science, and Religion', and not 'cat'." - Beth T.
"Correspondence theory: 'the truth is out there'." - Eric M.
"In conclusion - snakes." - Danielle P.
And sadly, the semester ended before I could record any more. I miss that class.
PLUR!
"The anti-technology revolution always fails." - Eric M.
"It's hard to tell." - Eric M. (these words themselves don't sound too impressive, but Eric always said this instead of "I don't know" or something similar. The way in which he said it convinced me every time that nothing was unknowable, as long as I was willing to put forth the effort to discover it.)
(this was all that remained of a lesson from another class that had been left up on the blackboard, and only partially erased. I am intensely curious about what it originally intended to say!)
"...DESIGN
...BROUGHT U
"Dang! I could really use some flippers!" - Don S.
"Ignorance more frequently begets confidence than knowledge." - Charles Darwin (hey...not all the quotes came from my classmates and professors!)
"Take New Zealand for example, it's full of birds." - Beth T.
"Why do we teach kids to stop, drop, and roll when they catch on fire? 'Cause they might." - Eric M.
"That's why this class is called 'Magic, Science, and Religion', and not 'cat'." - Beth T.
"Correspondence theory: 'the truth is out there'." - Eric M.
"In conclusion - snakes." - Danielle P.
And sadly, the semester ended before I could record any more. I miss that class.
PLUR!
I wish I had the other half
I was flipping through my journal (for Christmas last, I "gifted" myself with an authentic Moleskine journal - it was a vanity to be sure, but a guy's got to splurge every once in a while, right?) a few days ago, trying to find a page where I'd been doing some character planning for Beckett, who is one of my two favorite characters to play with (I'm a roleplayer, and completely unapologetic on that point!), when I came across a few excerpts of text from my IDS class last semester.
Although I'm on the cusp of (or perhaps even comfortably into) adulthood, I still derive a simple pleasure from passing notes to people. In my journal was half a note that I'd passed back and forth with MJ, a lovely and talented young woman that I didn't take nearly enough opportunities to try to befriend before we both graduated. I believe we started out talking about majors. Unfortunately, while I remember the situation, I can't remember a word that was written, aside from what I jotted down in my journal.
But I do have a tendency to ramble. On to the content.
"So, what you're telling me is that you think art is silly? And how does that make you feel?
[response]
I'm psych. Wanna switch? (smiley face)
[response]
That's really funny, because I love bad art!
[response]
In the town I grew up in, there were 3 churches - a Baptist, a Methodist, and a Jehovah's Witness.
[response]
BECAUSE THEY'RE AWESOME"
I WISH that I could remember what we were talking about, and I wish I had the other half of the note!
PLUR!
Although I'm on the cusp of (or perhaps even comfortably into) adulthood, I still derive a simple pleasure from passing notes to people. In my journal was half a note that I'd passed back and forth with MJ, a lovely and talented young woman that I didn't take nearly enough opportunities to try to befriend before we both graduated. I believe we started out talking about majors. Unfortunately, while I remember the situation, I can't remember a word that was written, aside from what I jotted down in my journal.
But I do have a tendency to ramble. On to the content.
"So, what you're telling me is that you think art is silly? And how does that make you feel?
[response]
I'm psych. Wanna switch? (smiley face)
[response]
That's really funny, because I love bad art!
[response]
In the town I grew up in, there were 3 churches - a Baptist, a Methodist, and a Jehovah's Witness.
[response]
BECAUSE THEY'RE AWESOME"
I WISH that I could remember what we were talking about, and I wish I had the other half of the note!
PLUR!
Friday, July 4, 2008
American Independence Day
This excerpt comes from Jeffrey Rowland, who's cynicism and caustic frustration toward American government are sometimes off-putting to me. The commentary that accompanies today's webcomic entry seemed extremely poignant to me.
"Happy Independence Day America! Remember that the people that made up the Declaration of Independence were alive today, they would probably declare independence from what most of America has become."
Normally I'd provide some commentary, but I don't feel that I need to. I'm not asking you to agree or disagree with this quote. Just...think about it.
If you want to hear more of Rowland's opinions, or read his webcomic OverCompensating, the website to go to is www.overcompensating.com.
PLUR!
"Happy Independence Day America! Remember that the people that made up the Declaration of Independence were alive today, they would probably declare independence from what most of America has become."
Normally I'd provide some commentary, but I don't feel that I need to. I'm not asking you to agree or disagree with this quote. Just...think about it.
If you want to hear more of Rowland's opinions, or read his webcomic OverCompensating, the website to go to is www.overcompensating.com.
PLUR!
Monday, March 31, 2008
Re-re-re-revisited
I've decided that, since I have a tendency to forget otherwise, that I'd make a list of all the movies I've been told I have to see (or see again). If you know of another one, or want to suggest another one, please feel free and I'll add it to the list!
The Lost Boys
Eragon
Hot Fuzz (Thanks everybody 3.5.07)
Flushed Away (thanks sis 3.5.07)
Pirates of the Caribbean: At World's End (thanks everyone, esp. Rachel 11.6.07)
Trainspotting
Lawnmower Man
Pride & Prejudice
Children of Men
Pan's Labyrinth
Donny Darko (thanks sis)
Battle Royale (thanks Jerry)
Boondock Saints (thanks Roommate-Dan)
300 (thanks...um, just about everybody!)
El Mariachi/Desperado/Once Upon A Time in Mexico (thanks Pirate House denizens 3.5.07)
Elizabethtown (thanks Megan 3.5.07)
Love Actually (3.5.07)
Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind (thanks...Rachel? 3.5.07)
Meet the Robinsons (Thanks sis 3.5.07)
Little Miss Sunshine (thanks Amanda B. 11.6.07)
Sin City (thanks Kyle 11.6.07)
Shaolin Soccer (thanks Kyle 11.6.07)
Snatch (thanks Jay 11.6.07)
Finding Neverland (thanks Jay 11.6.07)
Canadian Bacon (thanks Jerry 11.6.07)
Idiocracy (thanks Alison 11.6.07)
Casino Royale (thanks Samantha 31.3.08)
Hairspray (thanks sis 31.3.08)
Stardust (thanks sis and Ribbons 31.3.08)
Blazing Saddles (3.31.08)
The Last Unicorn (3.31.08)
...And that's all I can remember at the moment. If you remember more or want to suggest a new one, please do and I'll add it to the list!
PLUR!
Trainspotting
Lawnmower Man
Pride & Prejudice
Children of Men
Pan's Labyrinth
Donny Darko (thanks sis)
Battle Royale (thanks Jerry)
Boondock Saints (thanks Roommate-Dan)
300 (thanks...um, just about everybody!)
El Mariachi/Desperado/
Elizabethtown (thanks Megan 3.5.07)
Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind (thanks...Rachel? 3.5.07)
Meet the Robinsons (Thanks sis 3.5.07)
Little Miss Sunshine (thanks Amanda B. 11.6.07)
Sin City (thanks Kyle 11.6.07)
Snatch (thanks Jay 11.6.07)
Finding Neverland (thanks Jay 11.6.07)
Canadian Bacon (thanks Jerry 11.6.07)
Idiocracy (thanks Alison 11.6.07)
Hairspray (thanks sis 31.3.08)
Stardust (thanks sis and Ribbons 31.3.08)
Blazing Saddles (3.31.08)
The Last Unicorn (3.31.08)
...And that's all I can remember at the moment. If you remember more or want to suggest a new one, please do and I'll add it to the list!
PLUR!
Friday, January 11, 2008
Magic: The Gathering - Junk Diver
A wacky format I wanted to run by my Magic-playing comrades.
Junk Diver
Number of Players: 2 or more
The Gist: Make your opponent play the worst deck you can build.
The Rules: While the theme of this variant is to make everyone play the worst junk possible, the keyword is "play"; the decks need to be playable, so there are some deckbuilding guidelines.
Each deck should contain exactly 60 cards. With the exception of basic lands, you may not play more than one copy of any card. Speaking of which, this deck needs to contain exactly 25 basic lands - five of each type - no more, no less.
Each deck must have 20 creatures that attack for some damage - no "all wall" decks. Landhome creatures are also banned. All your creatures must have combined power of at least 40, so you won't be able to build a deck filled with nothing but 1/1s.
To make sure the deck has a fighting chance, five cards should be dedicated to creature removal. Good examples are Terror, Lightning Bolt and Soul Burn. These don't need to be great, but - in the spirit of fair play - each should remove a creature without too much hassle. This leaves the deck with 10 card slots to be filled with whatever you desire. Gems like Great Wall, Camel, and Avoid Fate work best. Really scrape the bottom of the barrel. Here's your chance to put Sorrow's Path in a deck!
Once the decks are built, distribute them among players randomly. Who will reign as the cream of the crap?
Ideal Decks: Just about anything your twisted minds can think of.
The Verdict: It's all about the player, not his tools. Which MacGyver among you can turn your peashooter into a bazooka?
I think I've already mentioned this format to David L., and maybe to Paul, but here it is for the rest of you! I want to play a huge Junk Diver game sometime before the end of the month!
PLUR!
Junk Diver
Number of Players: 2 or more
The Gist: Make your opponent play the worst deck you can build.
The Rules: While the theme of this variant is to make everyone play the worst junk possible, the keyword is "play"; the decks need to be playable, so there are some deckbuilding guidelines.
Each deck should contain exactly 60 cards. With the exception of basic lands, you may not play more than one copy of any card. Speaking of which, this deck needs to contain exactly 25 basic lands - five of each type - no more, no less.
Each deck must have 20 creatures that attack for some damage - no "all wall" decks. Landhome creatures are also banned. All your creatures must have combined power of at least 40, so you won't be able to build a deck filled with nothing but 1/1s.
To make sure the deck has a fighting chance, five cards should be dedicated to creature removal. Good examples are Terror, Lightning Bolt and Soul Burn. These don't need to be great, but - in the spirit of fair play - each should remove a creature without too much hassle. This leaves the deck with 10 card slots to be filled with whatever you desire. Gems like Great Wall, Camel, and Avoid Fate work best. Really scrape the bottom of the barrel. Here's your chance to put Sorrow's Path in a deck!
Once the decks are built, distribute them among players randomly. Who will reign as the cream of the crap?
Ideal Decks: Just about anything your twisted minds can think of.
The Verdict: It's all about the player, not his tools. Which MacGyver among you can turn your peashooter into a bazooka?
I think I've already mentioned this format to David L., and maybe to Paul, but here it is for the rest of you! I want to play a huge Junk Diver game sometime before the end of the month!
PLUR!
Wednesday, January 2, 2008
Preludes & Nocturnes
I'm not really a big comic book reader. I'm sure almost anyone who knows me will rightly tell you that almost all my knowledge about comic book characters and superheroes comes from the movies or from second-hand smoke exposure. So, consider it a capital-B capital-D Big Deal that I hunkered down under a blanket on the living room couch this morning and read the first volume of Sandman.
In spite of whatever Jerry (just teasing, Jerry!) may have to say about it being mainstream and trite, I rather liked it. I look forward to reading the next volume sometime.
Winter break is breaking my mind. I haven't gotten to bed before 3:30 am since Christmas day, and I haven't known the day of the week since...well, since Christmas day! (which was on a Tuesday. I remember because that struck me as being a weird day for a Christmas).
That is all.
PLUR!
In spite of whatever Jerry (just teasing, Jerry!) may have to say about it being mainstream and trite, I rather liked it. I look forward to reading the next volume sometime.
Winter break is breaking my mind. I haven't gotten to bed before 3:30 am since Christmas day, and I haven't known the day of the week since...well, since Christmas day! (which was on a Tuesday. I remember because that struck me as being a weird day for a Christmas).
That is all.
PLUR!
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)