Toren Atkinson

QUIZ

So you’re an American soldier in Iraq. You’re in a tank, and you see a wall with a mural of Saddam Hussein on it. Do you:

a) Leave it be.
b) Shoot the wall with your big tank gun.
c) Paint a new mural over it.
d) Ram the wall with your tank.

Well if you’re Some Guy I Saw On The News Last Night. You chose (d), of all things, and not only that, but most of your body was outside of the tank itself, so when the wall toppled on you, you became paralyzed. Sir, that really sucks for you, but you’re dumb.

Oh yeah, and I got an email yesterday confirming shipment of the Two Towers extended DVD set, so…movie night soon.

Last night Yvonne and I went to see some Francey animation shorts at the Pacific Cinematheque. The block we saw was “taking flight” – not my first choice but I was very pleased, as it turned out. There was only one incredibly dreary short. We got to the theater quite early, and we bought our tickets. The guy selling the tickets told us we could go into the theater and watch the remainder of the last show, but as we strolled over to do so, the lady at the concession turned us away. I was MORTIFIED. Disheartened and disconcerted, we walked around town for a bit and then returned when the time was right – or so we thought. We walked into the theater (loudly, of course) during a question and answer period with a bunch of…well, authorities I guess, and many people were giving us the evil eye. And I spilled my hot chocolate. And I dropped one of my Wunderbar pumpkin candies -which had nothing to do with pumpkins except that the wrapper had jack o’ lanterns on them, and in fact looked more like a dinosaur egg – which rolled down the theater floor several rows in front of us. We drew the audience’s headbacks (that is to say, the back of their heads – there should be a single word for that. After all, you don’t call it the front of your head, you call it your face. Perhaps anti-face or reverse-face will do?). The films were good, especially The Monk & the Fish but I have all my usual problems with the PC: painful seats as you well know, plus….$3.00 for a small hot chocolate that tasted like coffee. Regardless, I recommend you go and see them while you can – they’re only here for a few days. And while you’re at it take me with you. There are five different blocks.

So that was pretty much the night except then I hanged out at Yvonne’s for a bit, yakked it up and snooped around, and then walked from home (from Alma and Point Grey Road – took about an hour I would say) at midnightish.

And HOLY SMOKES I got a Deeeeeeeeeeeluxe scrabble board that I am going to break in tonight! Thank you Mike & Bev!

Meanwhile, Not far away…..
We’re trying to sell the Thicket tour van, just in case anyone is interested:

1982 GMC Vandura (black)
Fully loaded
350 cubic inch engine
setup to haul trailer
air conditioning, cruise control, power everything
engine recently rebuilt (within last 3 years)
$3500
604-845-0646 (Chilliwack)

Free stuff in Vancouver:
ENTERPRISE 30″ almond gas stv, everything wrks, incl clock, broken dr hinge. Vancouver Tel: 604-736-4977

HOTPOINT dw, gd wrkg cond. West Vancouver Tel: 604-921-9700

KENMORE stv, 30″Wx36″H, wht. North Vancouver Tel: 604-929-7798

LARGE old, light brown, solid wooden desk, w wht laminate top, 3 drwrs ea side, 32″Hx60″Wx34″D. New Westminster Tel: 604-526-5509

MOTOROLA TV record player, radio, in lge cab. Burnaby Tel: 604-299-8799

PULL-OUT sofa, matt 3 yrs old, ugly orange but gd cond. Vancouver Tel: 604-916-4843

QUEEN sz boxspring, matt & frame, Beautyrest, gd cond, w some bedding. Burnaby Tel: 604-421-7948

SHELF 1.3m x 1m W x 23cm D, dk stain; (2) Ikea kitch chrs, birch veneer. Vancouver Tel: 604-224-9214

TRADITIONAL style chfld, gold & wht patt, clean cond, you PU. Vancouver Tel: 604-263-9945

WHIRLPOOL dw, wrks. Surrey Tel: 604-583-4425

Would anyone with a vehicle be willing to help me pick up a couch, should it come up?

No time for linking today.

The Voyager I spacecraft was approaching the “termination shock,” a turbulent region near the edge of the solar system. Lawyers at the Environmental Protection Agency announced that they were dropping lawsuits against 50 power plants for violating the Clean Air Act, because newly weakened enforcement rules have undermined the cases. The state attorneys general of New York, New Jersey, and Connecticut, which are downwind from many of the plants, promised to sue the polluters directly. The Federal Communications Commission decreed that after 2005 all digital television receivers must respond to a “broadcast flag” copyright mechanism to prevent unauthorized redistribution of movies and TV shows; computer scientists predicted that the mechanism will be defeated and that the copy protection will simply prevent legitimate uses. Bush alluded to the fact that the US has for sixty years supported dictatorships in the Middle East but said that, “in the long run, stability cannot be purchased at the expense of liberty.” The Department of Defense informed 43,000 additional reserve and national-guard troops that they should prepare for battle. The Bush Administration was looking to fill vacancies on local draft boards, although Pentagon officials denied that the government plans to reinstate the draft. Bush, surrounded by ten smiling white men in dark suits, signed a bill outlawing the rare abortion procedure known as “intact dilation and extraction.” He said that America “owes its children a different and better welcome.” [News flash, Georgey – abortion is not a welcome, it’s an unwelcome.] Federal judges in Nebraska and New York blocked enforcement of the ban.

You know what bugs me about patriotism? Everything.

Patriotism is your conviction that this country is superior to all others because you were born in it. – George Bernard Shaw

During times of war, hatred becomes quite respectable, even though it has to masquerade often under the guise of patriotism. – Howard Thurman

The love of one’s country is a splendid thing. But why should love stop at the border? – Pablo Casals

I’m getting acerbic, astringent, belligerent, biting, bitter, caustic, churlish, crabby, cranky, cross, irascible, irate, mordant, petulant, rancorous, spiteful, splenetic, tart, testy, and trenchant. But mostly tart. I think I’m watching too much TV.

Check out Pramas’ blog today (link to the left).

All artwork by (c) 2022 Toren Atkinson

Busy as a wasp.

I have been quiet over the weekend. Busy working. Sometimes these things must be done. What did I do? Played Call of Cthulhu for the first time in a long time. My character has an insanity, the details of which are unknown to the other players, though they know I’ve got something. It’s hard to work it into the game, however, without constantly derailing the “mission” – which is to stop a film from being premiered.

Everyone’s busy. Busy busy busy. I’m busy too. I wanted to go see The Cremator today, but nobody took me up on the e-offer. We didn’t play D&D on Sunday yet again because we didn’t have enough people to play – everyone’s busy, I reiterate. Depressing.

Day 2988: Spam still plaguing inbox

Today I met in person a gal I met on one of those awful online dating services quite a while ago. She (Rhonda) has been living in Yellowknife. We chat on MSN from time to time. We went to City Square mall (Cambie & 12th) and tried out India’s Flavour. It’s a new joint in that mall, as Stephane pointed out on Friday on our way back from Costco. Speaking of which – more Hot Chocolate was acquired thereat. Digressor, I, again. They have India’s Flavour in the food court at Tinseltown so by proxy I now have warm feelings for City Square. Then we browsed a couple stores in the mall, did some shopping at Safeway, then I gave her the grand tour of the apartment and introduced her to Kodos and Stewie. We played cards and I lost almost all the games. Through the course of the afternoon, however, I became reacquainted with an old friend – The Werner Universal Educator: A Manual of General Information and Complete Cyclopedia of Reference Historical, Biographical, Scientific and Statistical Embracing the Most Improved and Simple Methods of Self-Instruction in All Branches of Popular Education (New Revised Edition). This is a massive tome that was published in 1901 (yes, 1901). It’s got a chapter on phrenology, another chapter on etiquette – it’s quite fantastic, actually. You can teach yourself German, and learn history from the pre-world war(s) perspective. I’ve had this book for years – I think I picked it up while I was working at The Book Man in Chilliwack. We used it to look up the rules for poker. It would be a great book to fall asleep with if it weren’t for the chance of being crushed under it’s ponderous weight (both literal and literary – haha). After the card games and chitchat Rhonda took off so I could get some work done. I’ve been drawing all night, and I was hoping to get some writing (not counting this) done, but no such luck.

I’ve been thinking about throwing a Christmas Party, but I’m worried that as soon as I announce one, I’ll get an email from a friend about their hexmas party happening on the same day, and I’ll have to miss it, because I’ll be here. I’d rather go to someone else’s Christ o’ Mas party, because then I could leave whenever I wanted. That’s only a half-joke. And it’s the bottom half. All the parties I’ve been to lately have been my own. I am, after all, a party animal.

For American Thanksgiving: I’m thankful I live in a time when messy hair is considered stylish.

It is my policy, and I think it should be everyone’s policy, to ask questions. Particularly if you’re having a conversation with someone and they use a word or a term that you haven’t heard of, or don’t know the definition of. I don’t mind seeming foolish and ignorant – I spend all day doing it. I like words, and I use them because I like them, not to appear pretentious (though sometimes I’m sure I do) or superior (though I do have a book called The Superior Person’s Book of Words). I like reading new words and hearing them. I like to assimilate them into my vocabularium. So I’ll make you a deal – please don’t smile, nod, and pretend you know what a word means – ask for clarification. I’ll do the same, and the world will be a better place for it.

Speaking of asking questions – what is the preferred salutation on Remembrance Day? You don’t say “happy Remembrance Day” do you? Because really, what’s there to be happy about? I’m curious about this.

Next trivia question: What is the Kuiper Belt?

You got your Sendak in my Lovecraft! You got your Lovecraft in my Sendak!
Several years ago I did this homage to both Maurice Sendak and H.P. Lovecraft. I call it Where the Great Old Ones Are.

(click here for a bigger version)

Timothy Emrick recently took it a step further and made fantastic felt dolls based up on it.

Neat, huh? To see more pics you’ll have to go to the Thickets yahoogroup.

Congrats to Sid for being a smarty pants. Next question (related): what’s an aphelion?

Trivia: What is an Oort Cloud?
No looking it up.