Archive for March 2007
Hogwarts Ripoff of the Day
This showed up in my mailbox today. Harry who? I am looking forward to the inevitable sequels: "Magic Academy and the Wizard's Rock""Magic Academy and the Room of Hidden Stuff""Magic Academy and the Reformed Convict Godparent""Magic Academy and the Flammable Thermos""Magic Academy and the Organized Group of Smartypants""Magic Academy and the Biracial Teacher""Magic Academy and…
Read MoreA momentary pause between centuries
For a moment, I was back in the 19th Century. Just sitting at the computer, checking mail, this morning. No traffic sounds, no people sounds, just a nice quiet Queens morning. (For those who don't visit Queens, I promise, it happens.) And then … the distinct sound of clop-clop, clop-clop. A pleasant, easy sound ……
Read MoreStuff I learned today
Dead Soldiers Thing I did not expect to be doing this evening: Cleaning egg off of the ceiling fan. I'll save you a lot of time, in case you were thinking of experimenting: If you leave eggs to boil and don't come back for an hour, they will look like this. I left mine for…
Read MoreMethodology to the madness
Swedish meatball alert: Equality gives you cancer. So, there you have it. Feminism causes cancer. According to American journalist, Naomi Schaefer Riley, it also makes you more likely to be raped and murdered because feminists go out in the evenings and drink more than we should. (And, laughably, we think that whatever we wear and…
Read MoreHave a little patience
Gah. Gah, I say. So, I sent off the packet to the Murder in the Grove contest a little over a week ago. Their literature said they'd contact me once they received it. But I hadn't heard anything back, and the deadline was approaching, and since I'd sent it priority I thought it was OK…
Read MoreSo far away … yet so near
Stuck at Jfk … Delta blows! Update: A 6:45 pm flight to Austin boards … around 7. Sits on tarmac. Diesel spills everywhere. Cleanup crews with whirly orange lights are called. Cleanup begins. We de-board (never a good sign) around 7:30. We sit. And we sit. And we sit. And around 9:30, the news comes:…
Read MoreOver a barrel about pork
In honor of my impending trip back to Austin — twice in a month is some kind of record for me, of a visit to any state, much less Texas — I am taking up my good buddy and all over wise woman Lynda's request and writing a blog entry about something I like about…
Read MoreI Mess With Texas, Part 19
The Mess With Texas Sign They're at it again…. NEW BRAUNFELS, Texas (Reuters) – A Texas legislator has proposed that pregnant women considering abortion be offered $500 not to end their pregnancies. Republican State Sen. Dan Patrick, who also is a conservative radio talk show host, said on Friday the money might convince the women…
Read MoreThe dangling conversation, the superficial sigh
I think I'm having an argument at work. Can you argue with someone you've never met, and never directly communicated with? It started yesterday afternoon; I went into the kitchen to clean up some dishes and saw someone had posted a scare notice next to the sink about why you shouldn't microwave plastic or freeze…
Read MoreSobering thoughts, Part 2
How do you know? A question that can apply in so many areas, but in creative endeavors specifically it has many applications: 1) How do you know where to start?2) How do you know where to end?3) How do you know if you're any good?4) How do you know if you should bother trying to…
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