Archive for 9/4/2008 - 4 Elul, 5768

October 18, 2005 7PM

St. Louis County Library Headquarters
1640 S Lindbergh Blvd
St. Louis, MO 63131
(Directions: 314-994-3300)

Harper Barnes
Eileen Dreyer
Michael Kahn
Shirley Kennett
Christine Matthews
Susan McBride
Frances Nevins
Ridley Pearson
Scott Phillips
Robert Randisi
John Carney, KMOX, Host

A group of mystery writers will read to you from their works. A $10
donation is suggested, and will allow you to select one hardback or
two paperback books donated by the authors. They’ll sign the books,
too. 100% of donations will go to Reading is Fundamental (RIF), the
nation’s oldest and largest non-profit children’s literacy program.
RIF’s hurricane relief program has both short and long term goals. The
first is to get books into the hands of displaced children now, and
the second is to rebuild damaged libraries.

My favorite definition of Filk Music:

Filk == Folk, especially for very round values of ‘i’ or very skinny values of ‘o’.

Here’s what Wikipedia has to say about it.

Filk is a form of music created from within [science fiction] fandom, and performed generally late at night at science fiction conventions.

Generally SF-related folk music. Often humorous, but not necessarily.

  

7:00pm  (wherein I miss another Archon Opening Ceremonies because they schedule a panel I want to attend up against it.)

 

GC - Illini B   (Writing) So, You Wrote A Book - Getting Started In Publishing In The New Millennium: Rebecca Meluch(M), Cindy Appel, Haley Elizabeth Garwood, Caitlin Moriarity, Warren Lapine  

 

8:00pm  (coin toss #1)

 

GC - Illini B   (Media) "Who’s On Again - A Discussion Of The New Doctor: Steve Swope, Mike Evans, Jenny Evans, Robert Levy, Mike Dugan

GC - Mississippian   (Fan) Play - The Kryptonite Caper

 

9:00pm (undecided…maybe get a drink or two in the hospitality room?)

 

GC - Mississippian   (Filk/GoH) "Pink Tennies and All": Eric Coleman

 

11:00pm                 

 

FRIDAY

 

 

GC - Mississippian   Paranormal - The SF Of The Romance Genre - Crossing Genres: Robin Owens(M), Rae Morgan, Elizabeth Donald, Leigh Wyndfield, Haley Elizabeth Garwood

 

1:00pm  (Coin Toss #2.  It looks like guest panelist Ryu Cope will also be tossing a coin)

 

GC - Marquette A   (Writing) Home Grown SF&F - St. Louis Area Writers: Cindy Appel, Marella Sands, Ryu Cope, Lloyd Kropp, Mark Tiedemann

 

HI - Calhoun   "There Once Was A Girl From St. Lou…"; Poetry Really Belongs In SF & Fantasy: Joey Froehlich(M), Elizabeth Barrette, Ryu Cope

 

2:00pm  

 

GC - Mississippian   (GoH) Overlooked And Underappreciated Authors You Should Know But May Not: M.R. Sellars(M), Stephen Hickman, Glen Cook, Jim Bakke

         

3:00pm   

 

GC - Mississippian   On The Wrong Side Of Uncle Sam: Elonka Dunin, Barri Bumgarner

 

4:00pm  

 

GC - Marquette A   The Fantasy Phenomenon - Use Of Telepathy & Other Phenomenon In Fantasy: Robin Owens, M.R. Sellars, Cullen Bunn

    

5:00pm   (Roll a 4 sided die)

               

GC - Illini A   (Writing) Doing Your Homework - Research Techniques For Writers: Susan Squires, Susan Baugh, Richard White, Bill Clemente

GC - Illini B   Fan Fiction - Turning Your Favorite Characters Into Your Own Fantasy: Cindi Gille-Rowley

     

6:00pm  (Coin Toss #2 … I may try to find a way to do both)

               

GC - Mississippian   (Media) The Obligatory Star Trek Panel: Cindy Appel(M), John Novak, Doug Ferguson, Mike Cole, Sam Maronie, Judi Cook

Dinner 

 

7:00pm 

               

GC - Marquette A   Charity Auction (2 hours)

 

9:00pm  

               

GC - Mississippian   (GoH) Sex & Science Fiction - How Far Can You Go?: Rae Morgan(M), Elizabeth Donald, Robin Owens, Jen Schumacher, Elizabeth Barrette

         

10:00pm  

               

GC - Mississippian   (Writing) Aesthetics Of Horror Fiction - How Do We Write Fear?: H.R. Knight, Thomas M.K. Stratmann, M.R. Sellars, Mike Oliveri, Barri Bumgarner, James C. Bassett

 

11:00 pm (find my friends, which will be easy, since they should be roaming around the Holiday Inn Room Parties by now.)  

 

SATURDAY

 

11:00am 

               

GC - Marquette A   (GoH) What’s New At Baen Books (slide show, door prizes; 2 hours): Toni Weisskopf

 

Noon     

               

GC - Illini A   Fiction With An Agenda: Richard White(M), Bill Clemente, Lynn Stranathan, Donna Bakke

          

1:00pm  

 

2.00 pm       

               

GC - LaSalle   (Media/GoH) Q & A: Marc Singer, Joanna Cassidy, Melody Anderson

               

               

GC - Illini B   (GoH) Vampires & Werewolves & Zombies, Oh My!: Tom Seymour(M), Sherri Dean, Susan Squires, Elizabeth Donald, Melissa Tatum  

               

GC - Illini B   (Art) It’s Not Your Grandpa’s Comic Book - Graphic Novels: Mitch Foust, Paul Daly, Jen Schumacher, Caitlin Moriarity

 

9:00pm   (Hey!  Luke Ski’s coming?  This wasn’t advertised!  He must either realllly like St. Louis, or he’s trying to hawk his latest album…)

 

HI - Ballrooms C, D   (Filk) The Great Luke Ski Special Concert (some time during the dance): Luke Ski

 

10 pm

 

SUNDAY

 

11:00am  

 

GC - Illini A    What A Fool Believes - Religion, Politics, & SF: Lloyd Kropp(M), Steven Antczak, Joseph P. Martino, Rebecca Meluch, Tom Meserole, Vic Milan

       

Noon (get out my tired coin)  

              

GC - Illini A   Alternative Publishing - Self Publication, E-books, Etc.: Elizabeth Donald(M), Ruth Souther, Leigh Wyndfield, Warren Lapine

GC - Mississippian   (Media/GoH) Genre TV - All The SF That’s Fit To Show (And Some That’s Not): Susan Baugh(M), Melissa Tatum, Linda Wyatt, Jody Lynn Nye, Sherri Dean, Jim Bakke, Donna Bakke, Judi Cook

              

GC - LaSalle   (Filk) The Great Luke Ski In Concert: Luke Ski

  

Great way to end the day…tho Closing Ceremnies is at 4.  Since I missed opening ceremonies, maybe I’ll attend.       

 

  

7:00pm  (wherein I miss another Archon Opening Ceremonies because they schedule a panel I want to attend up against it.)

 

GC - Illini B   (Writing) So, You Wrote A Book - Getting Started In Publishing In The New Millennium: Rebecca Meluch(M), Cindy Appel, Haley Elizabeth Garwood, Caitlin Moriarity, Warren Lapine  

 

8:00pm  (coin toss #1)

 

GC - Illini B   (Media) "Who’s On Again - A Discussion Of The New Doctor: Steve Swope, Mike Evans, Jenny Evans, Robert Levy, Mike Dugan

GC - Mississippian   (Fan) Play - The Kryptonite Caper

 

9:00pm (undecided…maybe get a drink or two in the hospitality room?)

 

GC - Mississippian   (Filk/GoH) "Pink Tennies and All": Eric Coleman

 

11:00pm                 

 

FRIDAY

 

 

GC - Mississippian   Paranormal - The SF Of The Romance Genre - Crossing Genres: Robin Owens(M), Rae Morgan, Elizabeth Donald, Leigh Wyndfield, Haley Elizabeth Garwood

 

1:00pm  (Coin Toss #2.  It looks like guest panelist Ryu Cope will also be tossing a coin)

 

GC - Marquette A   (Writing) Home Grown SF&F - St. Louis Area Writers: Cindy Appel, Marella Sands, Ryu Cope, Lloyd Kropp, Mark Tiedemann

 

HI - Calhoun   "There Once Was A Girl From St. Lou…"; Poetry Really Belongs In SF & Fantasy: Joey Froehlich(M), Elizabeth Barrette, Ryu Cope

 

2:00pm  

 

GC - Mississippian   (GoH) Overlooked And Underappreciated Authors You Should Know But May Not: M.R. Sellars(M), Stephen Hickman, Glen Cook, Jim Bakke

         

3:00pm   

 

GC - Mississippian   On The Wrong Side Of Uncle Sam: Elonka Dunin, Barri Bumgarner

 

4:00pm  

 

GC - Marquette A   The Fantasy Phenomenon - Use Of Telepathy & Other Phenomenon In Fantasy: Robin Owens, M.R. Sellars, Cullen Bunn

    

5:00pm   (Roll a 4 sided die)

               

GC - Illini A   (Writing) Doing Your Homework - Research Techniques For Writers: Susan Squires, Susan Baugh, Richard White, Bill Clemente

GC - Illini B   Fan Fiction - Turning Your Favorite Characters Into Your Own Fantasy: Cindi Gille-Rowley

     

6:00pm  (Coin Toss #2 … I may try to find a way to do both)

               

GC - Mississippian   (Media) The Obligatory Star Trek Panel: Cindy Appel(M), John Novak, Doug Ferguson, Mike Cole, Sam Maronie, Judi Cook

Dinner 

 

7:00pm 

               

GC - Marquette A   Charity Auction (2 hours)

 

9:00pm  

               

GC - Mississippian   (GoH) Sex & Science Fiction - How Far Can You Go?: Rae Morgan(M), Elizabeth Donald, Robin Owens, Jen Schumacher, Elizabeth Barrette

         

10:00pm  

               

GC - Mississippian   (Writing) Aesthetics Of Horror Fiction - How Do We Write Fear?: H.R. Knight, Thomas M.K. Stratmann, M.R. Sellars, Mike Oliveri, Barri Bumgarner, James C. Bassett

 

11:00 pm (find my friends, which will be easy, since they should be roaming around the Holiday Inn Room Parties by now.)  

 

SATURDAY

 

11:00am 

               

GC - Marquette A   (GoH) What’s New At Baen Books (slide show, door prizes; 2 hours): Toni Weisskopf

 

Noon     

               

GC - Illini A   Fiction With An Agenda: Richard White(M), Bill Clemente, Lynn Stranathan, Donna Bakke

          

1:00pm  

 

2.00 pm       

               

GC - LaSalle   (Media/GoH) Q & A: Marc Singer, Joanna Cassidy, Melody Anderson

               

               

GC - Illini B   (GoH) Vampires & Werewolves & Zombies, Oh My!: Tom Seymour(M), Sherri Dean, Susan Squires, Elizabeth Donald, Melissa Tatum  

               

GC - Illini B   (Art) It’s Not Your Grandpa’s Comic Book - Graphic Novels: Mitch Foust, Paul Daly, Jen Schumacher, Caitlin Moriarity

 

9:00pm   (Hey!  Luke Ski’s coming?  This wasn’t advertised!  He must either realllly like St. Louis, or he’s trying to hawk his latest album…)

 

HI - Ballrooms C, D   (Filk) The Great Luke Ski Special Concert (some time during the dance): Luke Ski

 

10 pm

 

SUNDAY

 

11:00am  

 

GC - Illini A    What A Fool Believes - Religion, Politics, & SF: Lloyd Kropp(M), Steven Antczak, Joseph P. Martino, Rebecca Meluch, Tom Meserole, Vic Milan

       

Noon (get out my tired coin)  

              

GC - Illini A   Alternative Publishing - Self Publication, E-books, Etc.: Elizabeth Donald(M), Ruth Souther, Leigh Wyndfield, Warren Lapine

GC - Mississippian   (Media/GoH) Genre TV - All The SF That’s Fit To Show (And Some That’s Not): Susan Baugh(M), Melissa Tatum, Linda Wyatt, Jody Lynn Nye, Sherri Dean, Jim Bakke, Donna Bakke, Judi Cook

              

GC - LaSalle   (Filk) The Great Luke Ski In Concert: Luke Ski

  

Great way to end the day…tho Closing Ceremnies is at 4.  Since I missed opening ceremonies, maybe I’ll attend.       

 

According to tradition, there are 36 Righteous Souls in every generation.

According to this news story, there are 36 dolphins, armed and dangerous, in the Gulf of Mexico.

Coincidence? Probably.

If you follow this link you will have lots of good luck. If you don’t follow the link, well, you won’t find out what Judaism has to say about superstition and chain letters.

This bloke, named Martin Willett, who apparently lives across the pond, has organized something that looks fun. It’s called The World Quiz League.

The questions range in difficulty, and he actually used one that I submitted for the first round.

Two books on the shelf;
I read the one less read from.
That made the diff’rence.

©Sept 23, 2005. All Rights Reserved.

(I composed it in my head on my drive in to work this morning.)

The Top 15 Religions in the St. Louis Area.

(This includes Clinton County, IL; Jersey County, IL; Madison County, IL; Monroe County, IL; St. Clair County, IL; Franklin County, MO; Jefferson County, MO; Lincoln County, MO; St. Charles County, MO; St. Louis County, MO; Warren County, MO; St. Louis city, MO)

Of the first seven in the list, from 1990 to 2000, six went down in gross numbers, and one went up. Yay!!
Only up by 1060, though. Sigh.
But with Catholics (#1 on the list) dropping by 4742, if both keep up this pace….Jews will surpass Catholics in the area in 1015 years!
——-
Here’s some nice colorful county-by-county maps of the US showing the percentage of residents who are Jewish. Catholic, Muslim, Eastern Christian (e.g. Armenian or Greek Orthodox), or Eastern (e.g. Hindu, Buddhist, Taoist)

But the most colorful map of all is the percentage of residents who claim any religion map. It will either confirm, or not confirm any suspicions you might have. It pretty much depends upon your suspicions. There is one county on the border ot Texas that looks to me like it contains a bunch of atheists (or at least none of its residents claim to belong to any religion). According to this map it is Loving, Texas. Least Populous County in the US. (67 people). It’s possible this might be related somehow.

Yes, all this data is 3-5 years old. But the first map above was posted elsewhere yesterday, and I went in search for more information.

This author states, according to Rabbinic texts, human blood is Biblically permitted. That is, there is nothing in the Tanakh (aka the Old Testament) that prohibits it. It is only prohibited in later Rabbinic texts if it becomes detached from the body (for example, if it drips into food). It’s prohibited then, because someone might see you, and think you are eating forbidden animal blood, or you might accidentally eat animal blood.

If you are surprised by this, the author goes on to say that human flesh is controversial! This is because humans are classified as neither kosher nor non-kosher. Ramban (aka Nachmanides) says if human blood is permitted, so is human flesh. Several Rabbis agree, but one adds that the restriction that it must not be detached from the body applies. (Suggesting the others don’t make this restriction). A couple Rabbis say that the Biblical commandment not to eat non-kosher animals prohibits human flesh, and another Rambam (aka Maimonides) says that the positive commandment to only eat kosher animals prohibits it. This makes a difference because violating a negative (thou shalt not) commandment yields in punishment from the religious courts. So the two most influential Rabbis (Maimonides and Nachmanides) either say human flesh is permitted, or if consumed, there’s at least no Earthly punishment. Yet another Rabbi agrees that technically human flesh is permitted, but one is not allowed to eat flesh from a living animal, and one isn’t allowed to derive benefit from a human corpse, so the issue is moot.

Here is more information on the passage referenced above. It goes into more detail on whether it is permitted to suck or swallow blood. Unfortunately, it maintains a focus on one’s own blood.

I am a reader of science fiction, fantasy and horror…and I am a writer of fiction. So the concept that a major Earth religion isn’t solidly against drinking human blood and eating human flesh is instantly creating several possible story ideas in my mind. (That this is MY Earth religion makes the concept juicier, so to speak.)

It needs to be said very quickly, that the ‘Sixth Commandment’ still exists. If you need a refresher, that’s the “Thou Shalt Not Kill” one. A negative commandment. Most vampires in most fiction kill their victims. There are probably commandments (I’m not sure, but it’s likely) against disturbing gravesites. So there is a thin layer of opportunity between death and burial for the “Concerned Vampire.” And that is if we choose to ignore those who say that the commandment not to derive benefit from a human corpse applies.

Even if the vampire doesn’t make a kill, there are commandments against assault and battery. Consensual? That’s a possibility. You probably won’t find a human who will consent to you eating their flesh…but drinking their blood’s just a bit kinky. And some people like kinky. Is there enough blood for a vampire to survive on from ‘love bites’? Well, that’s up to the author. But without going that route, it looks like to me that the vampire will need to hang out around hospitals and funeral homes.

It gives deeper meaning, though, to the scene from the Roman Polanski movie, Fearless Vampire Killers, where someone holds up a cross at a Vampire, who responds, “Oy! Have you got the wrong vampire!”

The email going around says that a huge amount of charges were registered within minutes of the above photograph being taken. Apparently, According to Snopes, Mastercard says it took 8 hours. Either way, I am fairly sure Mastercard has given the evacuee a new debit card, and the above numbers are no longer valid.

They can’t decide whether they mean Millions or Billions.

…they propose to “eliminate attache positions in the Foreign Agricultural Service.” And this they claim they’ll get more than $37 billion of savings just next year. More $347 billion over ten years….

If you look down into the explanation section, it notes that the savings are in millions, not billions, on this and the item below on cuts at the Department of Education. Yet, they push this transcription error through the whole document. So about half a trillion dollars worth of savings they claim don’t even exist.

Of course, I’m sure, we shouldn’t nitpick over such minor errors.

According to reports from someone who’s seen a sneak preview, you will not have to have seen any past episodes of Firefly to enjoy Serenity, which will be released next week.

However, in case you don’t want to buy/rent/borrow/steal the DVDs and spend 12 hours watching the episodes (minus the commercial breaks), but still want to know what went before, Local blogger Brad Hicks is summarizing the information across a series of posts in the next few days. He’s seen a sneak preview, but is actively trying not to include any spoilers. He’s summarizing only that which has led up to the movie. (Including a 3 issue comic book that filled in a small part of a gap between the episodes and the movie)

Melancholy is the pleasure of being sad.

An elementary school student wanted to sing a religious song in the school talent show. The school wouldn’t let her. The ACLU is coming to her aid.

“We are getting involved because we believe it is important to support this second-grader, and individual religious expression in general,” said Ed Barocas, legal director for the New Jersey ACLU chapter.

The Attorney for the Alliance Defense Fund, another party defending the student, expressed surprise:

“Typically they are anti-religious speech in the public square.”

As I said 3 years ago about school prayer:

I often did pray. Yes, silently, to myself. No teacher stopped me. And I can guarantee no teacher would stop someone praying in that manner today. And if a teacher did try to stop a student, that student should go running to the nearest branch of the ACLU. They would love the publicity they’d get in taking that school to court.

Are you, like the attorney above, unable to see the difference between the cases the ACLU are famous for and this one? I’ll quote my old blog post again:

Can’t the critics see the difference between voluntary, and forced? It’s the same difference between the concepts of love and rape. If someone doesn’t want to swallow something, it shouldn’t be forced down their throats…

If students are allowed to sing any songs in a talent show (as long as they are G rated), then they can sing religious songs. It’s the student’s choice, and completely voluntary.

Schools just can’t require students to sing religious songs (like at a Christmas Pageant). That makes it no longer voluntary. And the excuse: ‘oh, they can just mouth the words’ or ‘they can just stand and do nothing while others sing’ isn’t sufficient. If the former, they’re being asked to sing it silently in their head. And if the latter, they are being asked to distinguish themselves from their peers at a time when peer pressure makes all kids want to conform.

It appears Google Print has a few small ‘errors’ in their library

An Example.

Ultimately, I am sure, this will be fixed. So for those who follow this link in future days after that fix.

The title of the book is “Marathon Training” by Joe Henderson.
At least, that’s what the copyright page says.
The book scanned in is “Victor Hugo”, a biography by Graham Robb.

Google has been sued for copyright violations, with respect to their Google Print program.

They are scanning in library books, and allowing users to search them. However, only a small section of text around the search term is displayed, unless the publisher allows more. And there will be links to purchase the book.

It’s not comparable, as some have claimed, to p2p. You won’t be able to read entire books this way.

Google’s comparing it to a Library Card Catalog, which isn’t accurate either. Most card catalogs I’m familiar with allow you to search by author or title.

This would allow me to conduct a search for vampire pickles, and discover any book in their catalog with both of those words in it within whatever proximity is required.

There are no books in their library yet with the phrase, but there are a few that have both of the terms. Including a work of fiction with this wonderful dialogue “Vampire, get me a double cheeseburger, no pickles.” And Louisa May Alcott’s “Little Women”, which has ‘pickles’ on page 101 and ‘vampire’ on page 102.

An excellent research tool.

Child looks out of airplane window, “Mama! There’s a huge bunny on the mountain below.”

Mother: “Don’t be silly, we’re too far up to see a rabbit.”

Child: “But I see it! It’s pink! Look!

In the Test Preparation book for the LSAT there’s a comic book question

In a trend that must remind practitioners of the 1950’s, the news media are criticizing the adult orientation of comic books, especially the increase in violence and sexual themes. A New York Times Magazine article questioned the judgement of comic book publishers, noting that “comics have forsaken campy repartee and outlandishly byzantine plots for a steady diet of remorseless violence.” Time went a step further, explicitly linking violence in comic books with a rise in juevenile delinquency. Such visible public criticism does not escape the notice of mainstream producers.

If the information in this passage is correct, which of the following statements is necessarily true?

A)Contemporary criticism of comic books appears to be similar in tone to 1950’s criticism.

B)The New York Times linked violence in comic books with juevenile delinquency.

C)Violence in comic books is a cause of juevenile delinquency.

D)Comic book publishers exhibit poor judgement.’

E)Comic books have outlandish repartee and outlandishly byzantine plots.

—-
Now, what’s the ‘correct’ answer?
I have no clue.

Answers B through E are wrong for what should be obvious reasons.
(B) - Time said that, not the New York Times
(C) - Time suggests the link, but the link isn’t proven
(D) - This opinion is never stated in the paragraph, and would be an opinion even if it were.
(E) - The New York Times actually says they no longer do.

But (A) as it is phrased is incorrect too. Nothing is said whatsoever about the 1950s criticism. So I have nothing to compare the current criticism too, except the word of the author of the paragraph, which I have no reason to trust.

If (A) read “The author of this paragraph feels that contemporary criticism of comic books appears to be similar in tone…” then I’d sign on to that answer immediately.

(link found on Near Mint Heroes)

You are a Social Liberal (86% permissive) and an… Economic Liberal (28% permissive) You are best described as a: Strong Democrat Link: The Politics Test on OkCupid Free Online Dating

I’m described as a ‘Strong Democrat’, but on the graph it looks like I’m an anarchist.

I think I shall add that I’ve taken tests like this before and fallen near the Socialist camp. My opinions on economic issues depend on my mood, how they’re phrased, and the time of day. It would be easy to trap me, I suspect, in contradictory beliefs. If someone took some time and educated/brainwashed me on what some of the economic issues are, you might actually place me more solidly in the Anarchist or Socialist camps or somewhere inbetween. But I am so permissive socially, with very little fluctuation, you aren’t going to get me to vote differently in this two-party system nation.

Greg led me to this test.

After my post this weekend, I realized I was seeing half-mast flags all over, not just my neighborhood. In front of Postal Offices and other places that should definitely know what they’re doing. So I’ve done some more research, and I’ve figured it out.

President Bush, did indeed appropriately proclaim that flags were to be at half-mast for 10 days to honor Chief Justice Rehnquist, ending at midnight Sept 13th.

But on the exact same day he proclaimed a 17 day period for Hurricane Katrina victims, which will end on Sept 20th.

I should have thought of this possibility.

A pirate walks into a bar with a massive ship steering wheel attached to the front of his pants.

The bartender says “Hey pal, isn’t that wheel uncomfortable?”

The pirate replies, “Gyarrrgh, it’s drivin’ me nuts.”

The Google Blog has a post about the well-known GoogleBombing of the WhiteHouse website, attaching it to the phrases “Miserable Failure” and “Failure”.

Apparently, Google gets complaints from people thinking they’re being partisan.

It’s interesting, because this means those who are complaining either
1) Are unaware of the #2 website for both of those searches
2) Consider the #1 result partisan, but the #2 result not partisan

(It’s Michael Moore’s website.)

It just shows that there are individuals with similar senses of humor on both sides of the political aisle.

The flag in my neighborhood has been flying at half-mast for almost 2 weeks.
I know originally it was for Rehnquist.
But the Chief Justice gets 10 days.
And Rehnquist died on the 4th.
Today is the 17th.
17-4 = 13.
13 > 10.
So I can only assume there’s been an overlapping death I’m unaware of.

Here’s a recent, humorous review of Neil Gaiman’s Coraline.

I’m not sure if this makes me want to read it or not, but I’m enjoying his Sandman comics. (I’ve now finished the first fifteen issues, I’m now nearing the end of the Doll House arc.)

A few weeks ago I mentioned a friend lent me two things to enjoy. The first was the Firefly DVDs. A stack of Sandman was the other.

I have two friends in my writer’s group who are huge Neil Gaiman fans. Angela has been trying to get me to read his stuff for several years. Anna took a more direct approach. “Here, read these.”

If I looked for a commonality between the three of us, it wouldn’t be too difficult. But it’s probably slightly misleading. Spirituality is important to all three of us. In different ways, and different religions. While Sandman is definitely infused with a lot of religious metaphors, there’s more to it than that. (And while I know about Gaiman’s background, if I didn’t, I would have no idea what religion he was, and if I had to make a guess, I wouldn’t guess correctly from the Sandman issues I’ve read.)

I grew up on the horror of Stephen King and Peter Straub; the dark, horrific nature of the comic also appeals.

And it’s well-written. The fact that the content is appealing adds to the experience, but the most important thing, as in all fiction, whether illustrated or not, is the characterization and plot. And Gaiman does that well.

The Garlic Farm on the Isle of Wight sells “Transylvanian and Vampire pickles and relishes”.

In addition to the guests mentioned in the announcement a couple weeks ago, the Artist Guest of Honor for ShowMeCon IV (April 21-23, 2006) will be John E. Kaufmann.

I visited his website, and recognized several of the art pieces from various Archon and ShowMeCon art shows in the past. He’s quite good. I know I’ve gazed appreciatively at his ‘Elf Maiden’ several times. I’d show you an image, but I don’t wish to steal his bandwidth, or his artwork, so visit his site. You can purchase prints directly from there for as low as $10.

He lives in St. Charles, though he displays his artwork at conventions all over. For example, it was on display at the 2005 Worldcon in the UK, Aug 4-8.

“The next stage is I’ll find out where she lives and show up there.”

Mrs. Sir Paul McCartney is stalking Jennifer Lopez.

I can’t wait to hear about the restraining order.

If you wanted to know every blogger who has posted something about “vampire pickles” you can now go to Google’s BlogSearch and conduct a search on “vampire pickles”

You’d get a complete list — since they’ve been keeping track, which is somewhere around June.

Now, when I conducted the search a few minutes ago, it was a null set.

But depending upon how much time elapses between this post, and your attempt….and how long it takes for Google to update….

Assuming a replacement is confirmed for Rehnquist, and another nominee is confirmed for OConnor’s position, can OConnor withdraw her resignation?

If she does withdraw her resignation, and then someone else, say Scalia, resigns, what happens to the confirmed nominee? Does he or she take Scalia’s place?

Can a member of Congress resign conditionally, upon the election of a mid-term replacement? (And if they don’t like the results of the election, can they then withdraw their resignation?)

If a Supreme Court justice can retire conditionally upon a replacement
being confirmed….

does that mean the President and Senate can nominate and confirm
justices conditionally upon current justices resigning?

You know, create a waiting list of already confirmed justices all
ready to move in as someone retires.

I’m pretty sure this wasn’t in the infamous book, so I’m labelling it the

102nd use

And inventor has discovered a way to turn dead animal carcasses into diesel fuel.

Now…I’m not suggesting that everyone follow Stephen Lynch’s suggestion, and “kill a kitten”….but….what if there was a place people could send their pets who died of old age so they could be converted into fuel? And what does the Humane Society do with all the carcasses from the pets they euthanize on a daily basis?

Yeah, I know. This is diesel fuel and not unleaded, so it won’t have an effect at the pump for most people. But every little bit helps.

Move Labor Day back to May 1st, and have the American Day of Mourning the first Monday in September. Of course, we’d have to convert a national day of BBQs to a national fast day, which might be difficult for some Americans to appreciate, but we’ll finally be celebrating Labor Day again with the rest of the world. (Except Canada, but I suspect if we return to May 1st, they will too.)

A columnist for the Jewish World Review suggests

Sept 11th should be the American Tisha b’Av.

According to tradition, [Tisha b’Av] is the date of the destruction of the First Temple in Jerusalem and the beginning of the Babylonian exile. It is also the date of the destruction of the Second Temple by the Romans and the beginning of the Diaspora. And it is the date of the decree expelling the Jews from Spain in 1492.

It is a day Orthodox Jews mark by fasting and mourning. Tisha B’Av is a chasm on the calendar.

The idea is if we observe everything bad that has happened to us as a nation on one day, the rest of the year is easier to bear.

The columnist goes on to say that since Aug 29th is so close to Sept 11th, the destruction of Katrina could be observed as well. Of course, Aug 29th is much closer to August 24th.

Americans have a short memory, though, and its hard for us to remember five years ago, much less 190 years ago.

You scored as Comedy Gamer. You like games to be funny. If you arn’t able to tell jokes and have a laugh during the game, what is the point?
You’ll like: Red Dwarf, Toon, HOL and Paranoia

Comedy Gamer		70%
Fantasy Gamer		70%
Cyberpunk Gamer		45%
Beer & Prezels Gamer		45%
Horror Gamer		30%

What sort of Gamer are you?
created with QuizFarm.com

A Thing of Beauty

The above is a great post on how a form of taxation can result in a thing of artististic beauty. Or at least of humor.

According to FoxNews: Dems Used Katrina to Raise Funds

Sen. Charles Schumer (search), a New York Democrat and the head of the Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee, issued an appeal Thursday urging people to sign an online petition to fire the Federal Emergency Management Agency’s director over his handling of the Katrina response.

After an inquiry from the Associated Press, the DSCC quickly pulled down the page and said they would give the Red Cross any money raised by the anti-FEMA petition.

When recipients clicked on a link to the petition, the top center of the screen — above the call to “Fire the FEMA director” — had asked for a donation to the DSCC.

I’m not sure, but I have a suspicion the ‘top center’ of the page they’re referring to is the “Contribute” link in the menubar on the DSCC website. The menubar is on every single page.

Head on over to the RNC website, and you will see they too have a “Donate” button on the top of every page on their website, including several articles dealing with Katrina.

Are they using Katrina to raise money for themselves? Not any more or less than the DSCC.

Now, if I see a screenshot of the petition, and there turns out to be a separate contribution link they were referring to. That would be different.