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| 25 February 2003 |
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Snow Day!
Well, ice day, actually. But who cares? I don't have to work! Heh heh.
So, we've got about a quarter to half an inch of ice out there, covered by an icy layer of pseudo-snow, which is the best we can hope for here in Dallas. Not nearly as bad as the Northeast's been getting recently, but it's good enough to keep us shut indoors for a day. After all, we don't have the good road crews they've got in New England. I'm not sure they'd know what to do with a sanding truck if they had one here.
And so, no work for today, which pleaseth me muchly. But for those of you who must be out, please be safe. You know how Dallas drivers have issues when it looks like the road might be wet. Ice is like the end of the world to them. |
Jelly Pinched Wolf 9:19 AM
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| 24 February 2003 |
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Another fun link posted on the Corner:
http://bettnet.dyndns.org/blog/comments.php?id=P641_0_1_0
Peace in Middle Earth in our time
MINAS TIRITH (Gondor News Network) - Thousands of peace activists took to the streets of Minas Tirith and other cities of Middle Earth today to protest what they termed a rush to war with Mordor.
“We need more time for diplomacy,” said a key member of the Middle-Earth Security Council, Saruman the White. “I am not convinced by the evidence presented by my esteemed colleague, Gandalf the Grey, or that the Dark Lord Sauron presents an imminent danger to the peoples of the West.”
Many of the people protesting war in Mordor agreed with Saruman’s remarks. “Sauron says he’s destroyed his Rings of Mass Destruction (RMD) and that’s good enough for me,” said one fellow carrying a sign that said “Elrond is a Balrog.” Another demonstrator urged, “Give the RMD inspectors more time. There’s no reason to rush to any judgment just because Mount Doom is belching lava, the Dark Tower is rebuilt, and Osgiliath has been decimated.” A third protester piped up, “I haven’t heard a single bit of convincing evidence connecting the Nazgul with Sauron. I think they destroyed Osgiliath on their own initiative without any support from Sauron. Besides, it’s understandable they’re angry with Gondor. We haven’t done nearly as much for the Orcs and Goblins and Easterlings as the Nazgul and Sauron have. It’s understandable they throw their support to them. It’s our own fault really.”
As the protesters continued their march through the city, they chanted, “No blood for Mount Doom,” voicing a common sentiment that the leaders of the Western peoples are really seeking to get their hands on the powerful Mount Doom, where the One Ring of Power was allegedly forged.
Gandalf the Grey was unavailable for comment. A spokesman said he was in an undisclosed underground location, which sources have revealed is codenamed: Moria. |
Jelly Pinched Wolf 4:27 PM
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| 18 February 2003 |
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Had a thought the other day, and I meant to post it, but alas, it skittered out of my head for a wee bit. Perhaps it wandered off for a nip of brandy or a spot of tea. Who can tell where thoughts go when they galavant out of our brains? Thankfully, it came back to me yesterday.
The thought is this: Wednesday is often the worst day of the week. If something bad is going to happen,
if you're going to have a truly execrable day, it's most likely going to happen on a Wednesday. It's not true for everyone, but it seems so for a lot of people. After all, no other day's been saddled with an unpleasant nickname like "hump day." It's a trial to get through, and we're all happy once we're past it, 'cause we're on the downhill side.
So, wondered I, why is it that Wednesdays do honk so egregiously? This is what I came up with:
Wednesday gets its name from Woden, Germanic version of Odin, chief god of the Norse. According to the mythology, Odin hung from a tree for nine days. During this time, he gained great wisdom, but suffered greatly as well. Not to mention the fact that Odin's often depicted as having a fairly grumpy demeanor. Of course, I'm sure anyone who hung about on a tree for nine days might be feeling a bit sour. But could this have something to do with the evil of Wednesdays? The connection of suffering is just too strong for me to deny.
It's a wiggy theory, to be sure, but I like it. |
Jelly Pinched Wolf 3:52 PM
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| 14 February 2003 |
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It's no real surprise about this year's Oscar nominees. I confess, I haven't seen most of the movies that are up for awards. Heck, I haven't really been to that many movies this year. But I'm not at all surprised that Two Towers, as good as it was, has only been nominated for technical awards. The Best Picture nod actually did surprise me a bit, considering the Academy's proclivities towards the more star-powered movies. It won't win, though. If LOTR is going to get any Best Picture award, it'll be for the final installment, Return of the King. Or at least we can hope that Peter Jackson will score Best Director for it.
What I think bothers me the most about this group of nominees is actually the snub to Howard Shore's Two Towers score. His score for Fellowship was wonderful, but the TT score is absolutely amazing. Darker, but the underlying themes are still there. As my lovely wife noted, the music from Fellowship focuses on the group of travellers themselves as they move from place to place. Here, though, the score is devoted more to the places themselves, and the land of Middle Earth truly sings. Maybe it's just me, but it's a bit offensive that it was ignored. At least John Williams' pathetic score for Chamber of Secrets didn't make the cut. He did really well with Sorcerer's Stone, but my goodness, there's barely a new note on the new score. So lame.
Something I was impressed with on the nominee list--animated films. Noms read as follows:
ICE AGE
LILO & STITCH
SPIRIT: STALLION OF THE CIMARRON
SPIRITED AWAY
TREASURE PLANET
I didn't get to see the first three, though friends have said Ice Age was good. And my wife confirms that Lilo & Stitch was cute, and the backgrounds of the animation lovely. But it's the last two with which I'm most pleased. First, Treasure Planet, of which my wife has already made much mention on her blog. Best thing Disney has done in a long while, and I hope it fares better in the awards than it did in the theatres. And then there's Spirited Away. Wonderful movie, but I never would've expected to see it nominated--such a happy surprise. Did Mononoke even get nominated? I don't remember. How cool would it be for Miyazaki to win? Methinks very cool indeed. |
Jelly Pinched Wolf 4:28 PM
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So, today is Valentine's Day, and I've got no flowers, no chocolate, no trinkets for my wife. And she knows this. With her headed to animation school, me in a lousy job, and she not yet able to find a lousy job, we're being exceedingly frugal. Super-frugal. Über-frugal, you might say (if you happened to be partial to phrases that are a mite bit silly, or even nonsensical, as I happen to be). So no gifts this year. And I'm okay with that. Even though finding rare or unexpected gifts for her is one of my favourite hobbies, and I don't think there are nearly enough gift-giving occasions in the year, I recognise that mere "things" are not necessary. Especially on an overly-commercial day like this. Especially when I love her as much today as I do any other day, and do not need to prove it with some bauble. Though I bet she wouldn't say no to a Final Fantasy action figure. Or maybe the new super-posable Magneto that's out.
Still, I can't help feeling bad. We're doing this forced frugality for a good cause--one of the best, in fact. Her going to animation school is a huge step toward following her dreams. It's going to cost a lot, and so we're tightening the belts. No unnecessary going out. No buying of exotic foods all willy-nilly. No sudden impulse buys. Heck, my grandmother's getting married at the end of May and we're not even sure we can make it to that. We're going to try, of course, but our finances are in quite the delicate balance right now. And it's all totally worth it. But I still wish I could take her to some nifty restaurant now and again. Or surprise her with flowers on a random day. Forget V-Day, I want to do that all the time. Every chance I can surprise her, catch her off guard.
And of course, I know I can still do that. We don't need money. I've got the poet's skill on my side. Not that the novel is letting me be inspired much. This close to its end, it has me well in its clutches. But there are stirrings in my mind. New words are just waiting to come forth. And for now, they must be in this form. Not my ideal venue, but hey, we work with what we've got. So, trinkets or no, one day or all of them, I still feel the same way, and would shout it to the world if only my words would carry. Though she may be even now blushing like mad, I love you, Kathy. In the end, I have that to give you every day, and it's okay if my pockets are empty, because I seem to have an endless supply of love for you in my heart.
Cheesy ol' me loves beautiful you, and I hope that's far better than an action figure. No matter how many points of articulation it may have. Even if it's Magneto. |
Jelly Pinched Wolf 8:36 AM
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| 06 February 2003 |
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Check out this post on The Corner.
10 more European countries (Albania, Bulgaria, Croatia, Estonia, Lavia, Lithuania, Macedonia, Romania, Slovakia, and Slovenia) have come out to officially show their support for the Bush administration's position on Iraq. That's 18 now. Why are we still belabouring this? That's a huge chunk of Europe that's saying yes, Hussein needs to be removed forcibly if he's not cooperating, and it's obvious he's not cooperating.
Let's get going already! |
Jelly Pinched Wolf 4:44 PM
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| 05 February 2003 |
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Okay, going to post this, but not publish for a while, because I know my lovely wife will be posting about it, and the last thing I wanna do is steal her thunder.
Today she met with someone at the Art Institute of Dallas, having just sent her application to their animation school yesterday. Well, it was more than just an informative meeting, apparently. She starts classes in April! Just a few administrative things to deal with, and she'll have to meet with their financial aid person so we can figure out how to pay for it, but that's all technical. She's finally following one of her dreams, and I couldn't possibly be happier for her.
Congratulations, my beloved! Go get 'em! |
Jelly Pinched Wolf 11:32 AM
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| 04 February 2003 |
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Followed the link from me wife's blog over at Synonyms and Sugar, and figured a post is a post so I might as well post me results. Not sure why I'm bein' all Irish-like today. Jus' am.
which art movement are you?
this quiz was made by Caitlin
Founded by a bunch of Englishmen in 1848, "The group popularized a theatrically romantic style, marked by great beauty, an intricate realism, and a fondness for Arthurian legend." (artcyclopedia.com.) Creative license is taken here; not all Pre-Raphaelite art was dark, mediaeval, and deathly serious, like you are. But there were a lot of drowned maidens, and you'd like that. Famous Pre-Raphaelites: Waterhouse, Millais, Rossetti, and You. |
Jelly Pinched Wolf 2:05 PM
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