Serge @ 312
I was at that panel (we few, we pathetic few)
I was already packing up my bag and getting ready to leave the room when Patrick walked out past me. I actually paused for a moment, because I didn't want observers to think I was leaving *because* of Patrick - rather, I was leaving for similar reason.
And, yes, after I stepped out, I stood around talking in the hall and saw several other people leave the room over the next few minutes.
Good Friends, Good Food, Good Times
- Titus Andronicus
- Reverend Armitage
- Dr. Frank N. Furter
- Valentine Michael Smith
- Robert Thorn
- Vic & Blood
Seeing the list of names in the program, I worried that the panel was overbooked -- too many cooks, and all that. But when I arrived (late), only a few participants were at the table and they didn't seem terribly concerned about the missing bodies.
It was a fairly casual panel: old pros sharing war stories while they shared a meal. A lot of cooking tips, including tenderizing tough cuts of meat and flakier pie crusts.
[Note for the gripe session: they need to turn up the A/C - I was broiling in there!]
A poem dedicated to our lovely host and hostess:The Abridged Disaster:
Cultural Mem'ry, Resilience and Change:
Alas! none would dare to arrange,
A panel quite so bizarre and strange,
As the last Worldcon day of 2009,
Which will be remember'd for a very long time.
'Twas twelve-thirty in the afternoon,
And the fans took their seats in the room,
And the introductions were made,
And conversation began to degrade,
And one Panelist was heard to say-
What do we mean by Cultural Mem'ray?
So the filker ask'd his girlfriend to play,
Though the panel was barely midway,
And the editor stalk'd away,
Left the room without a delay!
Others felt they could not stay,
For ninety minutes to be spent this way,
As the last Worldcon day of 2009,
Which will be remember'd for a very long time.
As soon as fen from the coop had flown,
Rumor from mouth to mouth was blown,
And the tweets rang out all o'er the net,
Good Heavens! the strangest panel yet.
Shock'd witnesses to this Epic Fail,
Wonder'd who would believe this astonishing tale,
That ninety minutes could be spent this way.
Sensible programmers discuss and dismay,
How the disaster happen'd on the last Worldcon day of 2009,
Which will be remember'd for a very long time.
Well done, sir. Bravo.
Nice takedown (and frankly, quite interesting in and of itself)
Lee @ 250: As has been stated before, the list of things that women are advised to do "to avoid rape" ends up being a list of anything most people would consider that they have every right to do as part of living a normal life!
This reminds me of a Golda Meir quote:
Once in the Cabinet we had to deal with the fact that there had been an outbreak of assaults on women at night. One minister suggested a curfew. Women should stay at home after dark.No curfew was imposed.
I said: "But it's the men who are attacking the women. If there's to be a curfew, let the men stay home, not the women."
Over in Peter David's thread on the movie, a commenter directed folks to read the last paragraph of this review, which seems relevant to this discussion, as well:Instantly forgettable as the contemptible piece of garbage it is, The Spirit is an arrogant movie. It believes that it's better than its source, smarter than its audience, and clued in to some great secret about the mechanism of adaptation that no one else is. It fancies itself insightful when the only insight it offers is that Miller doesn't seem to know what it is about his work that resonates. The misogyny herein, for example, doesn't reveal greater truths about gender relationships in noir (as, arguably, Sin City does), nor does it understand machismo in a useful way; it doesn't treat its subject matter with any kind of respect whatsoever, which makes Miller a whole lot like Danny Boyle in that he appears to hate genre pictures but not enough that he's above making money off the people who don't. The Spirit is a giant dump that Miller has taken on the very thing responsible for his success, and it's not done with spite, I don't think, but rather with an almost complete ignorance. Strong to say feckless, closer to the bone to say clueless: Miller is an arrested adolescent, and I'm suspicious that his interpreters (including his fans--including me) have given the work a kind of insight into the human condition that Miller doesn't himself enjoy. Judging just by The Spirit, Miller's world is a gummy place of pages stuck together with spunk and pictures from GUNS & AMMO splitting time with old pulp-novel cover art. His genius might be that he never had the misfortune of outgrowing the pleasure of a moment when the Octopus assaults The Spirit with a toilet while proclaiming that he loves toilets, or when someone who looks like Mendes, oops, drops the towel she's wearing at the hero's command. But it never seemed pathetic until now.
Lee, #126: Yeesh. Was this crap actually written by the same guy who did Dark Knight?
Keep in mind, that in Batman Year One (written shortly after DKR), Miller retconned Catwoman to make her a dominatrix-prostitute.
Following up to Leah Miller #117, here's an overview of his recent take on Wonder Woman, turning her into a man-hating dominatrix.
Avram @ #29
Since then, [Frank Miller has] largely descended into self-parody.
It's worse than that.
Frank Miller has become a bad parody of Ben Edlund's parody of Frank Miller.
Ben Edlund, 1988:The City calls to me...
It cries to me of its need...
I see the City for what it is...
I'm a superhero.
And the City needs me.
Frank Miller, 2008 (The Spirit teaser trailer):My City.
I cannot deny her.
My City screams.
She is my mother.
She is my lover.
And I am her Spirit.
Edlund wrote that 20 years ago.
Come to think of it, I'd be much more interested in Ben Edlund's Spirit than Frank Miller's. At least it would be funny, rather than grim'n'gritty.
Obviously, I posted too soon.
While googling, I found a Pail and Shovel Party archive site
Elise @ 58
Oh, I remember the Pail & Shovel party.
I was still young, but we lived in Madison for their antics.
Once I moved to New England, I discovered few locals heard of them, so I'm usually the one having to explain their backstory.
Of course, I've only heard some of their exploits, and never heard about your tale.
Somebody (possibly somebody in the party) really ought to write the definitive history of their administration. I believe one of them "grew up" to become one of the founders of MST3K.
[PS: Though out of date and out-of-print, Neil Steinberg's book If at all possible, involve a cow is a fun history of college pranks, including a chapter on the Pail and Shovel party.]
Lila @ 43
Starbucks isn't the only one rewarding voters.
Ben & Jerry's scoop shops will give away has free ice cream tonight from 5 - 8 pm.
Krispy Kreme is handing out free donuts, Chick-Fil-A... even a sex toy store is offering... toys.
[I compiled a list of giveaways on my blog last night, sadly, few of them are in my area]
Now, many of these (though not Starbucks or Ben & Jerry's) require customers to show an "I Voted" sticker.
I have never gotten a sticker at my polling place.
So I'm wondering whether that's something specific to our precinct, our city, county, or state (Massachusetts).
So, do you get stickers when you vote?
PS: Regarding turnout, I voted @ about the same time as I did in 2006 (before work). Then, mine was the 111th ballot dropped in the scanner. This year, #233, meaning over twice the turnout. [And over thrice the turnout of the February primary, where I was #84.]
Is the Boston Tea Party like the Pail and Shovel Party?
Wow, blast from the past.
It figures that denizens of Making Light would be familiar with Pail and Shovel. Been a while since I've heard somebody else raise their name.
[I lived in Madison during their reign]
Oh, and speaking of amazing scents that I recommend...
If you're ever in Venice, stop at Rivoaltus -- a store on the Ponte De Vecchio which sells handcrafted books.
Two scents with positive associations (for me): leather and books/paper -- blended together.
When I walked in the door, I was captivated, and wish somebody would bottle that scent.
On a more personal note, I also love the smell of lilacs in the spring.
As a child, our house was surrounded by humongous bushes, but then my family moved to a climate too warm for the plants to produce flowers (they need a hard freeze).
I now live in New England, and the proliferation of lilacs is one of the reasons. Looking forward to seeing and smelling lilacs in bloom is definitely a motivator during hard winters...
Based on this entry, you might be interested in The Scent of desire by Rachel Herz, an academic expert in the sense of smell.
I read it recently: it's quick and totally fascinating.
Among other revelations (and it was a library book, so my pardon inaccuracies as this is coming from memory)...
The amygdala, considered the locus of human emotion in the brain, is not only closely linked to olfactory processing centers, but may have evolved out of them. And emotion may fulfill the same function in humans that smell does for more "primitive" creatures. Animals use smell to evaluate direction -- moving towards good smells and away from bad ones. Similarly, humans are motivated by pursuit of happiness* and an aversion to that which makes us feel bad.
FWIW, research on scent-evoked memories have shown that they are no more accurate than memories triggered by other things, but they tend to be much more vivid emotionally.
_____
*yes, I know that the meaning has shifted since that phrase was coined...
I've seen those at Arisia (in Boston).
It really needs one addition, though -- an upward-pointing arrow which says "Eyes up here"
That's cool, but got me thinking about Abe Vigoda
Lupin's getting Sirius,
While Potter's going stag,
Fawning after any dear
Who might give him a shag.An' it's who'll slash ye this timeTish provokes her Gomez,
Who'll slash ye noo?
The lass who slashed ye last, lad,
She no will slash ye noo.
exhorts him to molest 'er.
Pugsley does his own Thing,
And Lurch is doing Fester.An' it's who'll slash ye this timeLast Tuesday, Wednesday Addams
Who'll slash ye noo?
The lass who slashed ye last, lad,
She no will slash ye noo.
Hooked up with Thursday Next.
Friday Baldwin menaged to prove
They're not the weeker sex.An' it's who'll slash ye this time
Who'll slash ye noo?
The lass who slashed ye last, lad,
She no will slash ye noo.
Cap'n Jack is on the deck,
A wicked scheme he's plannin'.
If he's the first to Will and James,
They can also fck with canon.An' it's who'll slash ye this timeDumbledore and Grindelwald
Who'll slash ye noo?
The lass who slashed ye last, lad,
She no will slash ye noo.
Are sowing wild oats.
And that annoys poor Aberforth,
They always get his goat.An' it's who'll slash ye this timeHagrid likes wild animals,
Who'll slash ye noo?
The lass who slashed ye last, lad,
She no will slash ye noo.
While Dobby goes for socks.
Minerva's out tomcatting,
And the Giant Squid's with Fawkes.An' it's who'll slash ye this timeSlashy smut wreaks havoc
Who'll slash ye noo?
The lass who slashed ye last, lad,
She no will slash ye noo.
In the hallowed Hogwarts halls.
Trelawney, she prefers to watch
While fondling crystal balls.An' it's who'll slash ye this timeThe new OC, it's plain to see,
Who'll slash ye noo?
The lass who slashed ye last, lad,
She no will slash ye noo.
Is such a Mary Sue.
She'll make the rounds with everyone,
And you, and you, and you.An' it's who'll slash ye this time
Who'll slash ye noo?
The lass who slashed ye last, lad,
She no will slash ye noo.
| Year | Number of comments posted |
|---|---|
| 2009 | 5 |
| 2008 | 37 |
| 2007 | 53 |
| 2006 | 89 |
| 2005 | 99 |
| 2004 | 52 |
| 2003 | 22 |
| 2002 | 1 |
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