Tuesday, July 29, 2008

End of a Long Day....

Hello all,

This will be a short post, as I want to get home and see my Kitties, and perhaps clean the darn place up a little. WHO gets it that messed up??? I mean, I live alone...Could this be the Bengals???? It seems beyond them, but you never know....

I did some agility with Cabal, then came in for a bubble bath which went completely out of control when the jet things came on. I had to kind of dig my way in and out, and thought that this was perhaps a fitting end to a day when so many things went wrong, it was beginning to feel like a Comedy of Errors.

And my intentions were so good....

I did get a lovely package from Spacelaw, which I think has lovely herbs for making tea, which s JUST what is called for tonight. And maybee a little Bat Watching Bengal Walking.

And I am certain there will be adventures tomorrow, promise!

Blogger seems not to allow me to delete comments anymore, I've asked Malena to fix that, and I am certain she will. I am sorry for the nastiness, but until it is fixed,which will hopefully be shortly, let's not feed the Trolls.

Love and Nighttime, Lorraine

69 Comments:

At 7:59 PM , Blogger AletaMay said...

:hugs:

Tomorrow is another day -- as they say.

 
At 8:21 PM , Blogger Fabulous Lorraine said...

Tis. I came home and my internet was down. Fixed that but now it is the turtlenet and goes really slowly and my Mousie isn't working so good, I have to hold it like a video game.

Venus got into Spacelaws package and is now running around like she is a wild beast NUTJOB.

This this often occurs, I don't know for certain if it was the herbs or not.

Malena fixed the "Able to delete" button, by telling me something had already told me eight times, I just get confused with all these me's. I bet I get a new picture on the post too, hee-hee....

 
At 8:46 PM , Blogger Rubius said...

Yep, there's our own changeable Quiche!

Some days were just not meant to be.

May you sleep well and dream of good things to come.

 
At 8:49 PM , Anonymous Anonymous said...

Foam Party at Lorraine's! lol

Tea is definitely in order (though I'm going with iced 'cause it's HOT here).
Did Spacedlaw send you any kind of mint? Catnip is in the mint family, and some cats like mint. Or maybe she's just being her spazzy self and needs to go for a walk.:)

heeheehee.."turtlenet"..I'm so gonna use that!

 
At 9:06 PM , Blogger Fabulous Lorraine said...

Made it up myself! Proud of that one, I was.

No catnip, we have it everywhere, and I would tell you what it is, but the package is now, safely, out of reach, and I am too tired to move.

I can tell you it tastes good, tho I ccan't remember iy's name, it doesn't grow here, I don't think..

 
At 9:38 PM , Blogger Dread Val said...

Enjoy your tea, and get lots of rest tonight! The bubble bath sounds delightful, though how did you have to dig your way in and out? Dig through bubbles? A wall of water? That is an Adventure. ;)

 
At 9:42 PM , Blogger ariandalen said...

Trolls are not your fault. This is only the second time this blog has been visited by a troll, so I think you're doing pretty good as far as that goes. :)

Would you believe that I didn't know that The Three Billy Goats Gruff was a Scandinavian folk tale until I was in third grade? My maternal great-grandmother would tell us stories before we went to sleep when we visited, and it was one of the stories she told. I thought it was just one of her stories, I didn't know anyone else knew the story until I read it in a school book.

And yet another non sequitur from Ariandalen. ;)

 
At 10:24 PM , Blogger spacedlaw said...

Glad to know the package made it safely. That is until the wee beastie got at it. My cats were not interested and the verbena has been drying for two days on my dining room table so I can only imagine the accident is only a random act of Venusness.
I had to laugh when I read that you have put it out of reach though: Those clever kitties have been prone to burglarize your units for catnip - have you ever had any thought about securing one of those heavy duty safes for your kitchen?

I hope you can get a nice night of sleep and tomorrow is treating you better - MUCH better - than today.

 
At 11:54 PM , Blogger Lexocat said...

Hmmm, I'm not so sure that anything is *completely* beyond the Bengals. ;)

Turtlenet. Hee! Perfect.

Here's wishing you better times tomorrow and beyond. Tea and baths (or bats) fix almost anything.

Oh, I've been meaning to tell you ... a friend of mine is columnist for a dog magazine and an agility buff. Quite the wealth of info should you ever need such a thing.

 
At 3:59 AM , Blogger Dan Guy said...

The Bengals have a little help from the Bees, not that they need it. They have your house all rigged up now so that they can trash it at the pull of a lever. (It took months of remodeling work by the finest Bengal carpenters, but the secret slide into the Alliance Command Center now retracts into the wall properly.)

 
At 9:10 AM , Blogger FabulousLorraine said...

Well, imagine a huge bath FILLED to twice it's height with bubbles...One digs.

I love the 3 Billy Goats Gruff. I too heard it as a child, and then found out it was very old, Like Baby yaga..

Cabal will never be Mr Agility, he's too big, but we have fun, and it's something to do that gives us both a work out. Doggie Owners Booktcampe. My pants are starting to fall down, which could give it an entire new flip...

My Cable overheatered again last night, saying it needed a "More open Space"

Mighty uppity for a cable box I thought, but when I took the ENTIRE System, cable, internet, dvd, router out of the MASS of tangles it had become.....

(perhaps Dan guy could tell us a little bit about how that happens? Eh? And I know there was building going on at my house, it's all a front this 7:00am street re-construction!)

..I couldn't help but notice with mass of CAT HAIR covering something that was no doubt the cooling fan...

Long story short, cleaned it all then moved it all, then got the cable back...

And lost the internet again.

 
At 9:32 AM , Blogger Dan Guy said...

You should delete all of your extra yous so that doesn't happen anymore.

 
At 9:41 AM , Blogger ariandalen said...

I cleared this with Ms. Fabulous, because it really isn't my intention to offend anyone. This little filk/trope has been stuck in my head for almost a week, and I thought I'd share. ;)

Please swallow anything you may have in your mouth and move any liquid away from the computer. ;)


Ready?


Glory be to the Fodder
and Theobroma
and to the Wholly Grain!
As it was in the beginning,
Is now and ever shall be,
Feast without end! Amen!
Amen!

 
At 9:56 AM , Blogger FabulousLorraine said...

Yes, those other identities are rather strange...Very strange....

Wonderfully done, Ariandalan, tho, sad it is to be ignorant, I don't know the original.... Do tell!

I like it where ever it came from..

 
At 10:07 AM , Anonymous Anonymous said...

Ariandalen, I love it! LOL

 
At 10:11 AM , Blogger gaypet said...

The Three Billy Goats Gruff is one of my favorite stories too. My Grandmother would read it to me (she was married to a Swede but was French herself) and I read it to my son now. The characters are great for doing fun voices.

My cable box tells me it's too hot sometimes if I don't have the air conditioner on. It's a little high maintenance. Although the hair in the fan is also a problem here.

IT'S HOT!

 
At 10:12 AM , Blogger Rubius said...

I don't know the original either but I am assuming it comes from a religious-type prayer... is that right?

sounds delish... Amen.

 
At 10:16 AM , Blogger Dan Guy said...

It's the Gloria Patri.

I can recite it in Latin.

You people have weird cultural blindspots. =9

 
At 10:26 AM , Blogger Rubius said...

I am EXTREMELY PROUD of my christian/catholic/religious blind spots.

Not getting into a debate here, but I am not a fan of religious institutions so I am happy to be in the dark about commonly known prayers, etc.

I did a bit of religious studies in Uni so I thought I recognized that one. I couldn't remember the second line though. Thanks for the link Danth.

 
At 10:32 AM , Blogger Rubius said...

I suppost that I don't consider them blind spots so much as 'lack of indoctrination' gaps.

Not trying to offend anyone. This is just my pov.

 
At 10:37 AM , Blogger Dan Guy said...

This comment has been removed by the author.

 
At 10:37 AM , Blogger Dread Val said...

Oof, Dan -- I'm hoping you didn't intend to sound quite that uncharacteristically arrogant. Dude.

 
At 10:40 AM , Blogger Dan Guy said...

Whatwhat? Which bit? No, no arrogance intended.

What do I have to be arrogant about? I didn't write it. And I offered the fact that I know it in Latin as evidence that I'm a fruit loop, not as a boast.

 
At 10:41 AM , Blogger Dan Guy said...

Oh!
LOL
That was totally a typo.

It was meant to read:

You DON'T have to be indoctrinated to appreciate centuries of art.

 
At 10:42 AM , Blogger Dan Guy said...

There, see what you've made me do now? I've disappeared another poor, poor post. ^_^

 
At 10:51 AM , Blogger Rubius said...

It is true, I agree with you Danth. Art may be appreciated by anyone.

 
At 10:55 AM , Blogger ariandalen said...

I learned it as the Doxology in the Presbyterian Church, and I think it's referred the same way in the Methodist and Southern Baptist Churches. In the Episcopal/Anglican church it's the Gloria Patri. One version of the tune is listed as "Old Scottish chant," though that's not the tune I grew up with. The tune I grew up with was written by Henry W. Greatorex in 1851. It is hymn 546 in The Hymnbook copyright 1955 and published by Presbyterian Church in the United States, Presbyterian Church in the United States of America, United Presbyterian Church of North America, and Reformed Church in America. Lyrics as follows:

"Glory be to the Father,
and to the Son,
and to the Holy Ghost.
As it was in the beginning,
Is now and ever shall be,
World without end. Amen.
Amen."

Yes, I'm Pagan. Yes, I have Christian hymnals. My mother had several and when she died I kept two. They are wonderful sources for tunes, often in four part harmony, and the two I kept date the tunes and lyrics. This can come in handy if you want to write a trope for the Society for Creative Anachronism.

Anything can be taken too seriously, including Paganism. The Chocolate Ritual is an irreverent example of not taking your religion too seriously. I believe there may also be a ritual to the Goddess Caffeina, but I'm not sure. It is a long held belief of mine that if you can't poke fun at your religion, you have a problem. I am not trying to be offensive, just irreverent.

 
At 11:03 AM , Blogger Dan Guy said...

Yes! I am all about reappropriation, too.

The are a lot of great, completely irreligious works that take on a deeper meaning, or at least feel more weighty, when regarded in the context of the general Judeo-Christian climate of their time, in terms of understanding how those works either answer facets of that climate, unintentionally mimic them, or reappropriate them for completely new ends.

I tease, lovingly, when I refer to them as blindspots. In truth, given the shift in culture, we're probably reaching the end of the era when an understanding of the basics of Judeo-Christianity is a necessity in literary analysis and the like.

I'm interested to see what art continues to grow out of completely seperate traditions and belief systems. I think the application of Marxism to cultural anthropology and literary criticism over the past twenty years gives us a little hint of what it'll look like.

 
At 11:13 AM , Blogger FabulousLorraine said...

We like it that Danguy knows Latin, and we all agree he is an Evil Genius and a fruitloop.

Looking in the book of Fod , it seems to say that any and all religions are welcome, if the people practicing them have only good in their hearts.

It's all different ways of feeling that same love.

And art is a way of showing that love, and can and should be appreciated by anyone. And changed , and grown and shared.

Fod's cool, no matter what name you find it under.

Fods, it's HOT!!!!! The poor garden, Hans and I have the hoses out, tho I know one isn't meant to water in the day, the poor wee grass we planted is dying...

 
At 11:15 AM , Blogger Dread Val said...

Oh good! I am so glad. ;)

 
At 11:19 AM , Blogger EmilyLady said...

I'm sorry you're having such a sad time. Let the comments and the tea cheer you!

~Emily

 
At 11:21 AM , Blogger FabulousLorraine said...

Yes. It's all good. Even my cable box is happy, tho Fod knows what it will want next "a more airy space indeed!"

 
At 11:27 AM , Blogger FabulousLorraine said...

My picture seems to have changed back again. Does this ever happen to anyone else?????

I think it's kind of like Last Fm

(Which we are going to talk about some tonight!)

It sort of decides what I feel like "Dark Gothy Witchy Creature, " or Red Hair Very Wise One"

 
At 11:32 AM , Blogger Rubius said...

You are switching accounts again, Fablo. I agree with Dan, the only way to fix this 'switching accounts' thing is to delete your other accounts.

 
At 11:39 AM , Blogger Dan Guy said...

You don't even have to delete them (though it *would* be wise to consolidate down to one), just remove the duplicates from the list of permitted blog authors. Then you'll only be able to post as the one, true Quiche.

 
At 11:40 AM , Blogger FabulousLorraine said...

I would delete myself completely, hee-hee....At least my trash can is back.

 
At 11:50 AM , Blogger Dread Val said...

Didn't you know? The cables need space and air to grow into the tangled snarls they become in adulthood!

 
At 11:58 AM , Anonymous Anonymous said...

Ariandalen you're right about them being good tunes. And I'm pagan too. And my main musical addiction right now is the Mediaeval Baebes, who sing a lot of early church-type music.
I haven't been part of a ritual for Caffeina but I did make up my own "prayer" for her:

Hail Caffeina, full of grace
She keeps me from falling upon my face, Amen.

It is rather schizo that your picture keeps changing Lorraine.

I need to get offa my butt and get one up here.

 
At 12:05 PM , Blogger Rubius said...

I loves the irreverence!!!

Sadly my stomach has been a big ball of acid lately so, as of today, I am trying to live without caffeine in the hope that it will help. This means no more tea for breakfast and brunch. Sigh.

Back to the caffeine free tea.

Unfortunately since I was using my morning tea to keep me awake at work... and since today and tomorrow are (yuck) book-keeping days... I am going to be MISSING my tea... but badly.

Coffee hurts me too badly to be drunk. I avoid it now... but I sure miss the smell of coffee beans.

 
At 1:31 PM , Blogger Fabulous Lorraine said...

THAT'S why they need space. I kind of wondered how SUCH a huge tangle could come about, I mean I certainly didn't SET them up that way, carefully threading them thru each other into one massive snarl....

I love the Mediaeval babes, one of my favorites! I like a lot of old Shaker Tunes as well. They had some odd notions, but made some great music.

OH FOD!!!!!!!

Blogger is, despite the fact this tab has been open all day SUDDENLY asking for my username and password.

Who will I be???

 
At 1:33 PM , Blogger Fabulous Lorraine said...

Hee-hee.

Little early for spooky, but I'll do what I can....

 
At 2:51 PM , Blogger Dread Val said...

It is never too early for spooky, I think. Also, it is never too early for drinking -- soon I will catch up on all the drinking that must be done. There's that whole day spent in bed with a bottle of scotch that needs to happen (though I agree with Paul about taking that to an entirely different place).

I have been untangling my own nest of adult wires as I pack up my house to move. Wow. They bred whole colonies behind my desk and television. Even the blow dryer in the studio spawned an extra cord.

Also, I seem to have sepia ink embedded in a cut in my finger. I wonder how dire this will be. It is a wonder that I have not inadvertently poisoned myself with cadmium paints by now, though -- so sepia ink should be fine. I hope.

 
At 3:06 PM , Blogger Bulfinch's Aglaia said...

I suppose it depends on your definition of "poke fun". And I'm at a loss as to why being ignorant of any particular subject is considered a good thing, or something to be proud of. Maybe that's just the grad school student in me talking, but to me, knowledge is power. I don't have to be indoctrinated into Norse religion and mythology to know about it, and therefore better understand and enjoy books such as Michael Chabon's "Summerland" and Neil Gaiman's "American Gods". I am not of the Jewish faith, but knowing about some of its important tenents and traditions is a help in learning about certain aspects of history. No indoctrination is needed in order to learn about religions.

 
At 3:15 PM , Blogger Fabulous Lorraine said...

Pantagruel, don't die, who would drink for us? hee-hee...

I agree, the more you know of something, the better you can understand not only, it, but the things it effects like books and art and music.

I know some people of the " We are of the religion X and Religion Y is horrible," don't want to know anything, kind of folks, which is a bad mistake.

I think there are more things alike, than different, and maybe they would see them, if they would look.

Emma always used to say that she hated it when people would go on about their "Ancient" religions. She said " I made mine up last Thursday, so there!"

Take the best from each, and what moves you the most, and fill in the blanks. Learn as much as you can about EVERYTHING, I say....

 
At 3:16 PM , Blogger Fabulous Lorraine said...

And you're right, never too early for Spooky...

Off for a walk...In the dark, deep woods. With a Dog, who might be a walk...And. Nothing. Else.

We hope.

 
At 3:59 PM , Blogger Rubius said...

Bulfinches Aglaia - I understand what you mean by your comment and I must admit that I agree. Ignorance is not a good thing.

But that's not what I was really trying to say. I studied a number of different belief systems in university and mythology has been a lifelong fascination for me. I love Neil's books precisely for that reason.

However, I have had far too many negative encounters with people of religious persuasion, too many people who have told me how I am going to hell because I don't believe in their version of Fod, and I have to admit that I have grown touchy on that score. Because I live in North America the predominant religious groups that I run into are Christians and Catholics and therefore I clash with them most often and I object to their indoctrination the most.

What I was trying to say is that I am pleased that my parents raised me atheist/agnostic (allowing me to make my own decisions) and I am glad that religious chants and prayers were not drilled into my head, like they were to so many other people.

I am not saying that I am proud of ignorance, I am saying that I am proud that I had the CHOICE to learn of that prayer and that set of beliefs or not.

I don't like organized religion and I detest religious indoctrination. The more it is pushed on me the more I will push back. The Judeo-Christian mythology has been pushed on me by others so often in this society that I can't help but push back. I am happy that I don't have to know a set of prayers, therefore I am proud of my lack of indoctrination.

I am also proud that, despite my dislike for organized religion, I have read as much as I could find about the bible and the koran so I could understand all those literary references.

 
At 4:28 PM , Blogger Fabulous Lorraine said...

Rubious,

I can see what you are saying, and choice is the important word here, to follow, or not or make up your own mind..To do what makes you happy.

If you don't mind an un-solicited suggestion tho ( and it being my blog, I will off them as I see fit, hee-hee )

You say, "The Judeo-Christian mythology has been pushed on me by others so often in this society that I can't help but push back. "

Don't push back. Why bother? You won't change anyone's mind. They won't change yours. Walk away from 'em. Go do something that makes you happy.

To lines pop into my head...(Both from 80's movies, let's see who remembers them, yes?)

"The only way to win, is not to play"

and

" I talk to God all the time sir, and frankly, he hasn't mentioned you"

I had this talk with my sister a while back, she would get in terrible row's with our Father, who is a LITTLE bit to the right of the far right wing. I would ask her why? You won't change him. Walk away. I saying things like "What an very interesting point you , yourself have made! Say, I have a new cd coming out...."

Or to the people who come to the door "Made I just read you something from the Bible" No, I say, but how thoughtful, but me and God, we're like so tight, I tell him you asked, want to meet my dog, he's full blooded wolf..."

Makes for a quick and easy end.

See? You will wear yourself out, emotionally and physically if you try and fix every problem and fight every person who needs fighting. Do your part to make things Better.

Pick up every starfish you can.

You will be happier.

 
At 4:42 PM , Blogger Rubius said...

Thanks Lorraine.

Perhaps I should clarify, by 'pushing back' I mean that I tend to say very clearly and firmly something along the lines of 'back off' to people who try to push their belief systems on me. You are absolutely correct that you will never change someone's mind about something like this by getting into an argument or aggressive discussion about it. Unfortunately what I object to is them continually trying to change my mind.

I dislike indoctrination and blind faith because I think it promotes ignorance.

Both of those lines ring bells in my head... for some reason I picture Whoopi Goldberg saying the second line... was it in Ghost? hmmm... can't place it for sure.

but... Lorraine... I live on the west coast... we have a LOT of starfish.. and it hurts them to be picked up!!! I wouldn't want to hurt them.

:-)

 
At 5:09 PM , Blogger Dan Guy said...

Right on, FabLo. Hating something just allows it to have power over you.

 
At 5:12 PM , Blogger Fabulous Lorraine said...

Nope not Whoopi, a young Mathew Broderick.

When they tell them you are going to Hell say something like "Have you ever wondered what it would be like to come back as an Alpaca? I mean, it's possible...."

LOTS of ways to amuse yourself, and end it without any stress.

Like the Top Ten Things To Say to Telemarketers....

Now there is a blog waiting to happen....Shortly perhaps.

(and anyone who doesn't know the Starfish Story, google it)

 
At 5:12 PM , Blogger Dan Guy said...

And, personally, rejecting organized religion entirely because of a few fruitbats is like rejecting democracy because of the current Republican Party.

There are a lot of homeless, sick, and impoverished people being helped by various tentacles of organized religion, some of which are not even judgemental. Don't throw the whole Cthulhu out with the krakken-water!

 
At 5:15 PM , Blogger Fabulous Lorraine said...

Right on to you too, Dan Guy, sort of exactly what I was trying to say. Not worth it.

(And I can't believe no one knows two of my favorite movie quotes EVER.....)

 
At 5:17 PM , Blogger Fabulous Lorraine said...

"Don't throw the whole Cthulhu out with the krakken-water!"

Snorting tea.....

Again a fine point.

(tho I haven't read Lovecraft, alas. Tried. Boss says it is because I was never a 13 year old boy. Or was that Lafferty? My mind goes these days...)

 
At 5:24 PM , Blogger Dan Guy said...

Oh, we were supposed to guess.

They're WARGAMES and LADYHAWKE!

 
At 5:27 PM , Blogger Bulfinch's Aglaia said...

But I love Lovecraft! And I was so never a 13-year-old boy. Nice Boss probably meant Lafferty, who I just haven't gotten my head around. Yet. :-) (not even sure I spelled his name right, eeek...)

Rubius, out of my great respect and growing affection for Fablo, I won't continue to argue here, even though I disagree with a number of your points as I currently perceive them, and I could be wrong as to how I'm interpreting them. Plus, I think this is a better, and more interesting, discussion to have face to face (more motivation for a big get-together for all LAMmie fans!!) as blogger entries are too slow a means of communication and we start talking past one another and misunderstanding, etc. Suffice to say, I like Lorraine's way of non-arguing. But I can't identify the movie quotes, sad to say. And I'm old enough that I should know!

 
At 5:36 PM , Blogger Fabulous Lorraine said...

Knew you knew those. Ladyhwake is STILL one of the best movies going...

I think he did mean Lafferty. Where do I start with Lovecraft?

And thank you ladies, for agreeing to disagree, at least here, and at least on this subject (You can take it outside tho if you want, hee-hee) It does us good to remember that it is true, too easy to misinterpret, and we are all friends here.

Fods, I just had the image of myself of that guy from Black Adder, who is he, with the blonde hair, sort of super hero? Took Bob away from Black Adder? He was always wowing the ladies, well of me as him, jumping in and saying "And you all love ME!"

It's entirely possible that I walked too much in the heat today....

 
At 5:55 PM , Blogger Lexocat said...

Lorraine, your people skills rock. I love your adivce to your sister SO much I'm making up my own imaginary sister and pretending she gave the same advice to me!

My professional training left me a tad, er, let's say confrontational ... even when it's not needed. This is a much better way to strike the right balance.

Thank you. :)

 
At 6:02 PM , Blogger Dread Val said...

Quiche, you're thinking of Flashheart, played by Rik Mayall. Woof!

 
At 6:11 PM , Blogger Fabulous Lorraine said...

That's 16 years as a PA, Lexo, hee-hee. And being on Stage. And darn Airlines. LOTS of time on the phone with Airlines. I can get them to do anything for me....

And I don't always use this power for good, mmmmwmwhahaha!!!!!!

Mind you, if getting into it is necessary, I'll do it. I generally get flowers when that happens....

THAT'S him, thanks Val!!!!!!

 
At 6:29 PM , Blogger Rubius said...

Well Bulfinch's Aglaia, I am glad that we can agree to disagree and I am looking forward to meeting you and continuing the conversation. I bet we aren't all that far apart in our opinions as I always enjoy reading what you have to say. This is a bit of a passionate subject for me, as I am sure it is for a lot of people, so I find it hard to express myself clearly here.

...and I thought this WAS a friendly discussion.

Danth - the fruitbats aren't the whole reason I reject organized religion. The fruitbats are just the in-your-face and personally annoying side of it. Primarily it is the corruption in the system and the damage that has been done to lots of people by organized religion (the First Nations of Canada just received a formal apology for all the crap that the church and state put them through, for example, and no apology is ever going to make up the difference). I don't hate. I just disapprove, heartily. More blood has been spilled over religion than any other thing in history. Of course there are a lot of religious groups that do good for others... but that brings up a whole different debate. One that I think I will avoid here.

How does that line go... something about how I like my religion quiet and personal, not standing on the street corner on the top of a soapbox (there's an archaic word for you... has anyone here ever seen an actual soapbox that you could stand on?).

Lorraine - Those are great lines. Yes, that was the best line in Ladyhawke, now that you remind me. Actually I haven't seen Wargames (that I can recall) so I must have heard that somewhere else as a quote from the movie.

 
At 10:46 PM , Blogger spacedlaw said...

What! I go out and party all night and come back to 50 odd comments?
You guys have been busy...
(need more sleep)

Nice poem, Ariandalen.

 
At 10:47 PM , Blogger spacedlaw said...

Oh and I meant to say this ( Told you I needed more sleep): It's great that you are loosing your pants, Lorraine.
Besides it's to hot to wear any.

 
At 11:56 PM , Anonymous Anonymous said...

Dang, I get here late and miss all the fun:).

Rubius: Maybe you should change to peppermint tea? Peppermint is a stimulant, not quite as strong as coffee, but it might help.

Lorraine, I bow before your mastery in Verbal Fu. I'm learning not to waste my energy by pushing back.

Lord Flasheart..one of my favorite episodes.

Oh! And the quote from Emma..PRICELESS.

 
At 3:46 AM , Blogger Dan Guy said...

I loosed my pants yesterday, but today I was able to tighten them again, so I guess it was just some weird lunar activity.

In this kind of heat, though, I much prefer to lose my pants when I get home from work.

[This playfulness brought to you by the Committee for the Correct Usage of Loose/Lose Online.]

 
At 4:04 AM , Blogger spacedlaw said...

Drats! I've done it again!
I always make that typo!

 
At 4:55 AM , Blogger Dan Guy said...

You also said "it's to [sic] hot to wear any".

Both very common typos.

If I was Mike Ford I could turn that entry into something fantastic.

 
At 5:10 AM , Blogger spacedlaw said...

Which clearly shows that I haven't been sleeping nowhere near enough last night - as well as every single one for about the last two years - (I think I managed to actually make a typo on every single word of that previous sentence too).
Time to go away from work and SLEEP.

 
At 5:58 AM , Blogger Dan Guy said...

More blood has been spilled over religion than any other thing in history.

I hear this a lot, and used to just accept it as common knowledge. I mean, look at the various global conflicts today, how can it not be obviously true?

It always kind of bothered me, though, because, while I have never been much of a history, what I can remember of it from school seems to disagree.

Running the numbers, starting just with the condemnation of witchcraft: The Inquisition burned 59 women as witches in Spain, 36 in Italy and 4 in Portugal. The Salem Witch Trials murdered 19.

Meanwhile, in Europe the civil justice system tried 100,000 women and burned 50,000 of them. Germany murdered 26,000 alleged witches.

Yes, you might say, but even the "civil" court system in Europe at the time was thoroughly Protestant. Which I assume is true. So if we want to count all those as religiously-motivated, that's 76,118 strikes against religion.

Opening it up further then, at their most liberal estimates, the four Inquisitions each resulted in the death of tens of thousands. (And the true number is likely much lower. Recent investigations into the Spanish Inquisition estimate about 3,000 deaths total. Historians have found records for just under 2,000 deaths in the Portuguese Inquisition.) During the Protestant Reformation, thousands of English and Irish Catholics were put to death. The twelve Crusades are estimated at between 1 and 5 million dead.

So sixteen terrible religious wars, plus the counter-reformation, plus all of the alleged witches killed, and you've got, at most, about 5,200,000 dead.

Which is really, REALLY horrid.

By comparison, though, Hitler, Stalin and Mao collectively murdered at least 100 million people.

The Armenian genocide, which saw the death of 1-1.5 million, is more representative of the grey area that most wars of that sort fall into: at various points individual massacres were lead by theological students, while throughout the dispute seemed more about taking over land and property. The Young Turk Revolution that kicked it off was lead by secular liberalists and nationalists. Was it a religious clash or run-of-the-mill greed and mistrust between ethnic groups?

Point being, even if we count all of the grey-area wars against religion, I think it has a hard time matching the death toll from non-religious conflicts.

In short, to quote Dr. Horrible, the status is SO NOT quo. The world is messed up and I just need to... rule it.

 
At 9:12 AM , Blogger Rubius said...

An excellent argument Dan.

One might make the comment that deaths caused under Hitler and Mao were partially religiously motivated and that they could be considered to have a place in the grey-area.

Kali-licious - I'll give it a shot.

Verbal-Fu... I love it.

 

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