Episode CCCXXI: Choke on it, Breivik


Anders Breivik said he really hates the song, “Children of the Rainbow,” by Pete Seeger. So what do the Norwegians do? Tens of thousands of them gather in a square in Oslo and sing…”Children of the Rainbow”.

(Episode CCCXX: Make ‘em sweat.)

Comments

  1. Brother Ogvorbis: Advanced Accolyte of Tpyos says

    In other news: fried eggos are surprisingly delicious.

    Do not grok. So I will ask for more information.

    You mean the pseudo-waffle thingies in the frozen almost-food section at the grocery store? Those things? Fried? Deep or pan? Butter or vegetable oil (or lard)? With batter?

  2. Esteleth, Who is Totally Not a Dog or Ferret says

    Nutmeg, is that “The Hedgehog Song,” as in the song whose chorus includes the line the hedgehog cannot be buggered at all?

  3. Esteleth, Who is Totally Not a Dog or Ferret says

    Yes, Oggie, those eggos.

    And, “pan-fried in bacon grease.” No batter.

  4. Brother Ogvorbis: Advanced Accolyte of Tpyos says

    Yes, Oggie, those eggos.

    And, “pan-fried in bacon grease.” No batter.

    I am impressed. I lived for years with parents who always saved their bacon grease. They never actually used it, but they always saved it in a coffee can on the stovetop. Now I know what the bacon grease is for.

  5. Nutmeg says

    Esteleth: Yes. I know the wording is questionable, but, well, it’s Pratchett.

    If I knew my dinosaurs, I’d have half of the Dimetrodon Song composed by now. But I am a bad biology student who never went through a dinosaur phase. *hangs head in shame*

  6. Esteleth, Who is Totally Not a Dog or Ferret says

    Bacon grease is also excellent for making grilled cheese.

  7. says

    Bacon grease is fab for cooking eggses, too. That’s a habit that goes waaaaaay back, when people fully expected to go from ‘doing okay’ to ‘fucked completely over’ in the blink of an eye. Besides, no need to waste. I grew up with grease saving and do it myself.

    Americans in particular are incredibly wasteful, why waste something so useful?

    Also, if you have dogs, they love some bacon grease poured over their dry food and mixed well. Lovely, greasy food.

  8. says

    I haz clay! Just spent a lovely afternoon back on the wheel practicing some forms, making plates and cups, throwing slabs and generally getting dirty. I probably won’t even keep any of it, but that is better than xan/\x for my mood.

    (/happy MikeG)

  9. carlie says

    Caine – how so? It never got an elevator put in, so I don’t think it can be accessed from anywhere else in the building. Just a long drop down.
    (or exhibitionist as in “I have too damn much money so I built something expensive and stupid”?)

  10. says

    I probably won’t even keep any of it, but that is better than xan/\x for my mood.

    Yay! for Happy MikeG. :)

    Carlie:

    Caine – how so?

    The idea of it is exhibitionist. I can go with that sort of thing to a degree, but the idea of sticking a see into bathroom over an elevator? Too much. There’s some stuff I wouldn’t care to see or have others see. That goes for peoples who live with me, too. ;D

  11. says

    Carlie:

    I was too preoccupied with thinking it was all about the fear of heights, because that’s the part where my brain shut down

    .

    Oh. I’m not afraid of heights. Or glass elevators or glass floors.

  12. localnebula says

    @Brother Ogvorbis: Advanced Accolyte of Tpyos

    two Ommegangs and a neat scotch

    I must commend your fine taste, and thank you for reminding me of the bottle of Talisker sitting in my pantry.

    @Esteleth, Who is Totally Not a Dog or Ferret

    “pan-fried in bacon grease.”

    The only way to fry anything. The only question is what kind of bacon grease. Regular? Maple? Pepper? Red chile?

    I imagine maple is the way to go with Eggos. Have some in the freezer, will replicate the experiment and report findings.

    @carlie

    On the plus side, constipation would never be a problem — just look down.

  13. Esteleth, Who is Totally Not a Dog or Ferret says

    localnebula, you left out the only kind of bacon that is worth discussing – applewood smoked.

  14. carlie says

    Esteleth – true. I’m thinking I’d need a nice area rug to be installed in there.

  15. localnebula says

    @Esteleth, Who is Totally Not a Dog or Ferret

    I eat too much bacon to afford that gourmet stuff on the regular. I’d be forced to choose between bacon and booze, and you just can’t ask me to do that.

  16. says

    E,

    And, “pan-fried in bacon grease.” No batter.

    Oh.
    My.
    God.

    I think I just drooled on my keyboard.

    (Aside: I made brunch for the in-laws today. I asked my sister-in-law to pick of bacon and what does she get? Canadian bacon. *sigh* If I wanted ham slices, I would have asked for ham slices!)

  17. says

    Awesome, yet another atheist with his head up his ass w/r/t women’s rights.

    …It’s like the christian fuckers saying that homosexuality is a choice and is unnatural, all the while ignoring the fact that homosexuality has been displayed in almost every species. That argument is completely invalid.

    The argument that men have all the rights is also invalid, because you don’t acknowledge the fact that women have several important rights that men don’t.

    If you don’t listen to the nonsense coming out of your mouth, you’re no better than those republicans who spew bullshit from their faces like a fucking fire hydrant.

    Yes. Women are discriminated against, but you aren’t nearly as bad off as other people.

    Don’t act like you’re special, cause you’re not. Women are just one part of the many groups in this country that are vastly discriminated against.

    Feminists linked him to the Finally Feminism 101 post about the myth of “female privilege,” and the result was more whining about “hating men” and “reverse sexism.”

  18. John Morales says

    David @460:

    Would it be weird to get a life-sized tattoo of the Emperor Moth as kind of a symbol of my transgenderism?

    Why would that be a symbol of transgenderism?

    Katherine already explained that upthread:

    I know everyone and their mom says “butterflies are prettier!” and that they should be the symbol of transition and metamorphosis, but you know what, screw that noise. Moths are prettier IMO. And butterflies (and moths) don’t hold the monopoly on transition. Frogs transition. Newts transition. Tch… moths can be as much a symbol of transition as a frog can.

  19. says

    Daisy, speaking of sexist assholes, Misogyniraj was back, briefly to scream about us icky wimmins being able to completely control all the men in a supposedly *male-dominated* society. He’s run off now.

  20. says

    Cop funerals tend to not feature […] crowds of people with signs wearing jeans, and laughing.

    So I take it you’ve never been to L.A.?

  21. Brother Ogvorbis: Advanced Accolyte of Tpyos says

    Boy wants to know if the Eggos were chocolate chip.

    Boy also pointed out, during dinner, that he has decided on the martial arts form he will learn. He wants to become an idiot savate.

  22. A. R says

    I must commend your fine taste, and thank you for reminding me of the bottle of Talisker sitting in my pantry.

    10 y.o.?

  23. ibyea says

    @Caine
    Once again, bigots seems to exaggerate the power that the group they hate have. Apparently, you guys are using your womanly charm to mind control me or something. Now I am waiting for the claim that women will cause the apocalypse or something.

  24. Brother Ogvorbis: Advanced Accolyte of Tpyos says

    Talisker.

    Nothing that good. 12-year-old Johnny Walker Black Label. Nice and smokey.

    And the Ommegang was their Dubbel (which I strongly recommend).

  25. Part-Time Insomniac, Zombie Porcupine Nox Arcana Fan says

    Boy wants to know if the Eggos were chocolate chip.

    Mmmmmmm chocolate chip. Too rich for every day, but too good to resist completely.

    Boy also pointed out, during dinner, that he has decided on the martial arts form he will learn. He wants to become an idiot savate.

    . . . OK then!
    ——————————————

    Hooray for Zombie Duckie! I can’t wait to see what Bender Duckie looks like brought to life (so to speak)!

  26. says

    ibyea:

    Apparently, you guys are using your womanly charm to mind control me or something.

    Of course we are, my dear. Why on earth would you care otherwise? ;)

    Hekuni Cat, thank you! ♥

    PTI:

    Hooray for Zombie Duckie! I can’t wait to see what Bender Duckie looks like brought to life (so to speak)!

    Heh. :D Thank you. I’m doing the fluorescent bits on Bender’s Duckie now. Very cool thread, but a major pain in the arse to work with.

  27. localnebula says

    @A. R
    Yep, 10 year.

    @Brother Ogvorbis: Advanced Accolyte of Tpyos
    Johnny’s easy to hate on for wannabe scotch snobs (ooh, blended, so terrible), but it’s a solid choice IMHO. Green Label is amazing, but it’s like $200 a bottle, so I recommend befriending a bartender at a place that has it.

  28. Brother Ogvorbis: Advanced Accolyte of Tpyos says

    localnebula:

    I actually prefer blended scotch. I like JWBL, Pinch and Chivas. My dad likes single malts and, to me, some are good, some are meh, some are bad. I like the consistency of the blended.

  29. chigau (副) says

    idiot savate

    I may need to call an ambulance.
    I can’t stop *snorffling*.
    Brother Og, can you give Boy a big, sloppy kiss from me?

  30. localnebula says

    Brother Ogvorbis:

    The great thing about Green is that it’s the best of both worlds: a blended malt (a.k.a., pure malt), a blend of only single malt scotches. You get consistency and depth.

    That’s really it with single malts, though, is that it’s a crapshoot if you haven’t had it before. I’ve found that I really don’t like most single malt Highlands (probably the most common, at least in the States), but most Speyside or Islay I’ve liked.

  31. David Marjanović says

    Full outbreak of summer today. I should have brought my sandals and my conference hat instead of leaving them in Vienna.

    *long hug for CC*

    So I know it was a discussion that didn’t go well and had some argument, but thank you for bringing it up, because it let me dance with my grandpa.

    :-)

    And if you wanna see the lion, I put up a ton of picks on my crafts blog

    It is cute.

    You need to teach your #1 that purple is clearly a better color than pink :D

    Seconded ^_^

    Last night I lost a whole day’s work with one click.

    Fuck fuck fuck

    Stupid question: Ctrl+Z didn’t work, did it?

    All I can think of is… candirú.

    /shudders

    Fortunately I didn’t think of that.

    A neighbor friend found out she’s having a boy and rather than give her pale blues or sports shit, I picked a super cute material that’s full of brightly colored lizards that any kid would like to make a blanket. (Hell, I like the fabric now.)

    Too dark and too much red for my taste… :-/

    I had a very vivid sex dream the other night that involved fingering Robert Pattinson’s asshole […] My own twisted subconscious is blameless, here.

    …I don’t quite understand.

    (And what exactly is cosplay? I don’t want to google it.)

    Gasp! You take that back. Onion Girl will be maaaad!

    Oh, so that’s why Sili is suddenly covered in glitter. *nodnod*

    Did his asshole sparkle, btw?

    X-D

    But insisted on equal rights, then she adopted men’s clothing, and also went into a state of undress. American men and women, repent and turn back to God.

    But not before he’s done with hoggling.

    The documentation and specimen provided indicate a fish that was 133.5 mm in length and had a head with a diameter of 11.5 mm.

    *contract*
    *convulse*

    Someone wake me up, please. That’s… almost like a hyena giving birth!!!

    Samad claimed the fish had “chewed” its way through the ventral wall of the urethra into the patient’s scrotum. Spotte notes that the candiru does not possess the right teeth or strong enough dentition to have been capable of this.[20]

    OK. That proves it. It’s all made up. *lalalalalaaaaa*

    (Condoms alone have a 15% per annum failure rate.)

    Calculated on what frequency of sex?

    Weeellll…I read somewhere (Wikipedia?) that you push it further forward/inward, so as to disengage the spines, and then turn it around and bring it out.

    :-D :-D :-D :-D :-D

    If you actually get it all the way into your bladder, you can’t possibly turn it around! You’d have to wait for it to decide it wants out on its own!

    Yay for getting unexpected good news! *high fives to slignot*

    Thirded. :-)

    Cute overdose

    *dies*

    The fool Norwegians…they can’t execute the fucker as he shits on them bragging that he would do it again.

    Who cares what he brags? He won’t do it again. There are methods to ensure that.

    All they can do is sing a song he doesn’t like.

    Apart from, like, throw him either in jail or in an institution for the criminally insane.

    All they are fit for is occupation by a superior power.

    That would be you? Excuse me while I glue my ass back on. I just laughed it off.

    The Senate later passed the bill by a 68-31 vote after defeating three proposed amendments. Every male Republican voted against it.

    This now reads:

    The Senate later passed the bill by a 68-31 vote after defeating three proposed amendments. The no votes consisted entirely of male Republicans.

    In other words, only male Republicans voted against it; everyone else behaved sanely. Bold in the original.

    I was pretty uncomfortable around her for a long time after I became an atheist, but tonight I felt like the old friendship was back. We’ve both changed a lot, but somehow it’s worked out okay. Old friends are precious, and I’m glad I don’t have to lose this one.

    :-) :-) :-)

    I’m kind of happy with this corollary to Poe’s law: ‘If parody and the real thing are indistinguishable, the real thing exists. You fuckwit.’

    Yes, the ‘you fuckwit’ part is necessary.

    + 1

    People have a hard time understanding that, in just about any endeavor, you have to be really good before you can start breaking the rules and going off on your own. Whether photography, music, history, palaeontology, whatever, until you know the rules, the fundamentals of common practice, stepping outside of them is usually a recipe for disaster unless you really, really, really know what the fuck you are doing.

    Now I’ll spend a long time wondering if there are any such rules in paleo, other than the scientific method which really is better not broken… have I internalized the rules so much that I don’t even notice them anymore…?

    “Shirtless Matthew McConaughey”

    Damn. What was he investing in (so I know to avoid it)?

    :-D :-D :-D :-D :-D

    Why, precisely, am I the only adult in the house who is thought to have the genital configuration necessary to clean out the refrigerator when it smells?

    Are you sure it’s about genital configurations? When anything vaguely computer-related breaks, the whole nuclear family considers it my personal job to fix it, no matter if it’s way beyond my meager knowledge. Sometimes that’s even the case when I happen to live in, say, Paris.

    – the whole topic gives a new flavor to the Talmudic and Roman Empire prohibitions on women spinning in public. (The treadle wheel did not exist then, but perhaps the MSF inspired those ancient prudes with His Ineffable Knowledge of What Was to Come™.)

    Huh.

    Who cares whether it has one or two or four flagella. Wait !!! Flagella ?

    For silly historical reasons, eukaryote appendages of constant shape used for movement bear the same name as the bacterial flagellum – unless they come in huge amounts and cover the whole cell, or animals have them; then they’re called “cilium”. Lynn Margulis’s attempt to change the name to “undulipodium” hasn’t gained much acceptance.

    And yes, their number (and arrangement and shape and composition…) is important in phylogenetics, and doesn’t vary much.

    yarn as a side effect

    I just love this wording. :-)

    It was the flagella that first led to the conclusion that not only were fungi not plants, they were actually far more closely related to animalia than plantae.

    Oh no. Most unicellular green algae have flagella. What Animalia* and Fungi, together called Opisthokonta, share is that they have one flagellum per cell** and that it’s attached at the rear end of the cell (relative to the direction of movement) – most or all other flagellate eukaryotes have at least one that is attached to the front end.

    Having only one flagellum is shared between Animalia, Fungi and Amoebozoa, the group that includes most classical amoebae and almost all slime molds. All together are called Unikonta.

    * Some people, as I found out yesterday, avoid this term nowadays and only use Metazoa (multicellular only) and Holozoa (Metazoa + Choanoflagellata).
    ** Well, only chytrid fungi have flagella, and even then only on their gametes. Their sister-group, which consists of all other fungi, has completely lost the flagellum. – In animals, the skin and the gut were originally lined with cells that bear several cilia each (in rare cases just one). This condition was lost several times; most animals nowadays only have cilia on their sperm cells and (in modified forms) various sensory cells. Some animals, the nematodes for instance, have lost even the flagellum of the sperm; their sperm cells are amoeboid.

    For instance, the excavates are probably not monophyletic

    Reminds me… I finally have to read the paper that says otherwise. It’s been sitting around on my hdd for at least two years now.

    and the chromalveolates are probably only monophyletic if the haptophytes and cryptomonads are excluded.

    Srsly?

    (BTW, haptophytes are awesome. And coccolithophores – chalk – are haptophytes. But I repeat myself.)

    Yes, but that might have been an english as a second language problem.

    If they come from a vaguely Christian place, they already know the spelling Satan are much more likely to mispronounce it in English than to misspell it.

    There are definitely pipettes that are designed for single-celled organisms

    Wow. I had no idea. They don’t teach you that in undergrad molecular biology.

    **Is what we call “German chocolate” actually based on anything German or is it like Americanized Chinese/Mexican dishes?

    Neither nor! It’s named after the inventor, a Mr. German!

    I still want the archetypal archaeopteryx fossil tattoo

    A PhD student here has the Berlin specimen tattooed on her shoulder.

    Her birthday party, with BBQ, is supposed to be right when we come back from the dig, and apparently it’s going to take more than one day… I’m just saying.

    What we need more of is science

    :-o Awesome. Is there a transcript anywhere?

    The true mad scientist does not make public appearances! He does not wear the ‘hello my name is” badge.

    …Iñigo Montoya. You killed my father. Prepare to die.

    After that GAC speech…

    when someone sneezes, I now say “Science bless you.”

    With vigor.

    spondee

    ps- Yes, replacing the word “god” with “science” plays into ‘their’ “faith in science” bs, but hopefully ‘they’ will realize ‘their’ heart doesn’t stop when ‘they’ sneeze.

    When I sneeze, just don’t interrupt me. I hate that, because them I’m supposed to thank you – but I can’t speak, because I (usually) sneeze a second time!

    *insert full-on Asperger’s rant about how arbitrary, useless and annoying politeness is here*

    And to go with my new dinosaur sheets, I also received my used (and very cheap) copy of Mesozoic Vertebrate Life from 2001.

    That’s a great book. You’ll love it. ♥

    Motorhead

    Motörhead. Possibly pronounced à la française: moteur

    Funny… ’round here, at least, I tend to do the opposite: Absent a conspicuously masculine nym or conspicuously (not to say egregiously) masculine content within postings, I tend to assume everyone is a woman, unless/until they say otherwise.

    Surprises me, to be honest.

    But then, I always start from the assumption that everyone is not just male, but like me in several other respects… and I very easily (mis)interpret names as feminine.

    Isn’t there some kind of SLAPP-suit law for legislatures?

    Ha! Of course not! That’s because nobody ever imagined legislatures could be that stupid!

    rDNA genes

    Heh. Redundant. “rDNA” is short for “genes for rRNA”.

    Contrary to this summary, the bikont-unikont split might not be a true divide (2009).

    I just downloaded the pdf. :-) The paper says the bikonts are paraphyletic. Collodictyon would apparently stay a close relative of Unikonta.

    I wish Israel, the world’s one and only Jewish nation did NOT face an existential threat from the Ayatollah’s and Ahmadinhejad.

    It doesn’t. It’s all empty rhetoric.

    What’s serious is Iran’s support for Assad.

    I have my reasons for that. Whole big argument here. Let’s just say there are people who deserve the death penalty particularly on an overcrowded planet with overcrowded jails.

    This is fractally wrong.

    Martin Bryant. Anders Breivik, Osama bin Laden & suchlike individuals strike me as very good arguments why we need it.

    “Need”???

    I also think we should prioritise the wishes of victims of crime over the wishes of the worst of criminals.

    Why should you have the right to have someone killed just because you’re a victim?

    Thinking that a war with Iran is necessary is even more idiotic than merely wanting one. The Iranians know Israel is a nuclear power. MAD is still a viable deterrent for use of WMD. The Iranian government may rattle its sabers and deny the Holocaust all they want, they’re not going to start a war with a nuclear power.

    You’re still an idiot.

    All seconded.

    I wish Obama was doing what I hoped he’d do in this area rather than what he has done.

    What he has done… like… nuclear disarmament… the utter minimum of universal healthcare from 2014 onwards… nah, screw that, the richest 1 % should just flee to the moon? Is that what you mean?

    Can you, like, smuggle him along to the dig?

    …Or her even.

    DDMFM: I just this week read a poster that was about some gekkonids from S. Poland. Is that area like some kind of treasure trove of fossils?

    It’s dotted with treasures ^_^

    I fell on my bum while skating, and since I’m a responsible adult and good role-model™ and also not stupid there are now some deep scratches in my protective gear and not in my hands.

    + 1

    Is that where they’ve been finding the tetrapod tracks 395MYA?

    No, but it’s close by Canadian standards!

    (And it’s still not clear whether those tracks were really made by tetrapods. Discussion hidden in this open-access paper which, incidentally, also drives the point home that Eusthenopteron is overrated.)

    Zombie Duckie, xe is done! Now onto Bender’s Duckie.

    Yay!

    The beak is so adorable…

    Hmm. “The Dimetrodon Song” doesn’t have quite the same ring to it as “The Hedgehog Song”, but maybe we can do something with it.

    Di-me-tro-don, creeping in the uplands, causing a commotion, cuz they are so awesome…!!!

    From Tex-ass to Germanee, they stop Eryops eating ye!!!

  32. chigau (副) says

    When I first started reading The Endless, I thought that David Marjanović comments were very strange and pointless.
    Boy, did I learn.
    Lurkers and Newbies: if you are falling behind and want to know what is going on, read a DDMFM loooong comment.
    Read all of his comments.
    He is one smart cookie.

  33. David Marjanović says

    Uplands… I’ll have to read up on those sites in Texas again. IIRC, there’s the eminently aquatic Trimerorhachis and Diplocaulus in them. Anyway, Dimetrodon teutonis lived far away from water.

    Read all of his comments.
    He is one smart cookie.

    ^_^

  34. carlie says

    Wow. I had no idea. They don’t teach you that in undergrad molecular biology.

    I assume it was developed for IVF, if cell biologists hadn’t gotten to it first. Need to be able to manipulate single sperm.

  35. says

    David #42, no, it did not work. I was foolishly working online and it appears that the Internet server had a spasm just as I was trying to click a few finishing touches. I should have realized when nothing responded for a moment and copied to save in that moment, but I am too ignorant about computer stuff to have thought of that quickly. May not have worked anyway. :( anywayblarrrr

    Caine, I am loving the duckies!

    Carlie, I share your horror of those heights. Shudder!

  36. Brother Ogvorbis: Advanced Accolyte of Tpyos says

    Now I’ll spend a long time wondering if there are any such rules in paleo, other than the scientific method which really is better not broken… have I internalized the rules so much that I don’t even notice them anymore…?

    In the case of palaeontology, I guess that would mean that you spend you bachelors, masters and (possibly) PhD time figuring out what the field is about. Once you have your PhD, as long as you have the evidence, you can become a Bakker or Ostrom (if you so desire). Does that make sense?

    That’s a great book. You’ll love it. ♥

    I am currently reading Dal Sasso’s book on Italian dinosaurs and am also reading another one on Sauropods. I like them. I’ve browsed the new one and am looking forward to it.

  37. Brother Ogvorbis: Advanced Accolyte of Tpyos says

    From Boy (who is taking a Medievel Russian history course this semester):

    “Dimetrodon. Isn’t that the guy who defeated the Mongols at the the Battle of Kulikovopol in 1380?”

    And Wife says that the dinosaur sheets should improve our Rex life.

  38. Esteleth, Who is Totally Not a Dog or Ferret says

    Boy wants to know if the Eggos were chocolate chip.

    I do not grok. Chocolate chips belong in cookies. Waffles, pancakes, and simulacrums should contain buttermilk.

  39. Brother Ogvorbis: Advanced Accolyte of Tpyos says

    Also from Boy:

    What starts with the letter ‘F’ and rhymes with ‘duck’?

  40. A. R says

    And Wife says that the dinosaur sheets should improve our Rex life.

    I see what you did there!

  41. localnebula says

    And wow, I missed that lovely spat last night/this morning/whatever. JustI don’t

    I don’t even know where to begin. A theocracy must be protected from a wholly imagined threat from another theocracy because the first theocracy is the right kind and the second is the wrong kind? And the only way to do that is a war mass murder? And we need the death penalty as a form of population control? Anders Breivik is apparently on the loose killing again, because without the death penalty that’s what happens? Desire for revenge and desire to live are completely equivalent?

    This is satire, right? Right? Please tell me this is satire.

  42. Brother Ogvorbis: Advanced Accolyte of Tpyos says

    And the answer to #53? Fire truck, what else could it be?

  43. Rey Fox says

    Caine: I got the usual praise for your lovely embroidered duckies, and the alien-ese stitching, but I was curious about what the “xx” in your signature means. I’m guessing it’s not “kisses”.

    In other words, only male Republicans voted against it; everyone else behaved sanely. Bold in the original.

    Yeah, an important distinction. Under the previous misapprehension, I was doubly surprised to find out that one of my home state senators, male and Republican, voted for reauthorization.

  44. Nerd of Redhead, Dances OM Trolls says

    Lurkers and Newbies: if you are falling behind and want to know what is going on, read a DDMFM loooong comment.
    Read all of his comments.
    He is one smart cookie.

    QFT.

    *Hears beep, runs off to retrieve dinner*

  45. Cassandra Caligaria (Cipher), OM says

    Oh Caine. The pine needles. And the ones with the water with the rocks under. ♥ Those make me miss taking real pictures so much.

    kristinc, THANK YOU SO MUCH. Trying them out slowly and not worrying about the “twitch” thing helped me to really concentrate on what muscles I was using – and surprise surprise, I was using the wrong ones. (I was using, like, my knee, rather than the back of my thigh. Which, naturally, was making it hard for me to isolate the movement.) Also, I can’t do hip tilts without going up on the ball of the up side foot either, if we’re thinking of the same thing.
    I woke up with Russian Roulette by Rihanna stuck in my head and had to practice to it because I couldn’t stop listening to it. :P

    Hi David! *tacklehug in response to long hug*

  46. says

    David:

    I only just discovered the homepage of the Darkheart Duckie project! The apple-like duckie on Nerd Duckie’s laptop is just beyond words :-}

    :D :D :D Gotta have good gear, right? Thank you.

    Niftyatheist:

    Caine, I am loving the duckies!

    Thank you. ♥

    Rey:

    I got the usual praise for your lovely embroidered duckies, and the alien-ese stitching, but I was curious about what the “xx” in your signature means. I’m guessing it’s not “kisses”.

    Actually, you guessed right. A close friend and I have been signing our emails to one another that way for close to two decades. It’s evolved into meaning love.

  47. says

    Nutmeg:

    Pretty rain! I like the pine needles one best.

    Thank you. I have a long ongoing fascination with raindrops on pine trees. Looks like someone dressed them in diamonds.

    CC:

    Oh Caine. The pine needles. And the ones with the water with the rocks under. ♥ Those make me miss taking real pictures so much.

    Aaaaaaw. {mega-hugses} ♥

  48. Cassandra Caligaria (Cipher), OM says

    Aaaaaaw. {mega-hugses} ♥

    Eeee! *hugs*

    Dear Romans, I am sick of your creepy, creepy misogyny. I think next quarter I’m going to make a point of staying out of my actual area of study, just to get a break from the women-as-property mentality.

  49. says

    Glad I could help, CC! My teacher does tell beginners to use their knee if that’s what helps it click for them: she describes the sort of twist in your front foot/leg as squashing a bug or grinding out a cigarette. It kind of pushes the hip through its correct movement and then later once you know what it feels like you can engage more specific hip and oblique muscles.

    As far as hip tilts, visualizing my knees as pistons helped a lot, I just had to watch out not to slam them too overenthusiastically back and forth. That gets you a fairly crude hip tilt powered by the knees, but it’s an intermediate step to being able to isolate them mostly in your butt and thighs, which is what I’m working on refining. It involves a LOT of squeezing my tushie. A lot.

  50. says

    Ugh, has anyone else’s kid brought home one of those “Dork Diaries” books? I wanted to spit. The things are basically primers for girls to freak out about what screwups they are and obsess over what the “right” boy thinks of them. And they’re supposedly for ages 7 and up!

  51. birgerjohansson says

    “Dimetrodon. Isn’t that the guy who defeated the Mongols at the the Battle of Kulikovopol in 1380?”

    Hmm. When I set up my second internet account, I chose Dimetrodon as a ‘nym.

    BTW Dimetrodon was not a dinosaur, it was one of two “finbacks” -reptile and amphibian- back before good out-of-water hearing had developed and visual displays were more important for winning a mate than mating calls.

    Also, it was one of the most primitive reptiles ever, just after the stem-amniotes had split int four groups of reptiles. Surprisingly Dimetrodon was in the group from which proto-mammals would evolve. This reptile group was the second superdynasty of land-living vertebtates, the first being amphibians and the third “proper” dinosaurs.

  52. says

    Dan Savage offends xtians. Boo hoo fucking hoo.

    Caine:

    Misogyniraj was back

    Yeah, I saw him in action. I find him so ludicrous, and everybody else so adept at flaming him, that I didn’t say anything.

    Lovely photos you’ve taken. Also, for you: Most of my duckie collection. (The picture to the right is Vittorio’s 100 Cats and a Mouse.)

    David, cosplay is costume play, which is fairly common in the fandom world.

    Also, based on that exchange I had with Jules, I think there should be a new My Little Pony, named Butthole Sparkle.

  53. birgerjohansson says

    “Screw the dimetrodons. Gorgonopsids are cool.”

    And possibly at least partly warm-blooded. They lived when a period of glaciations would have provided an incentive for metabolic experimentation.
    — — —
    Is there any futuristic (or at least post-1945) Hugo Boss uniform for us who strive for world domination? The Star Wars gear was a bit clunky. The Baddies from Superman’s home planet had the right idea.

  54. says

    Daisy:

    Also, for you: Most of my duckie collection.

    I love the little one with the red ribbon! I have that same devil duckie, except mine is teeny, it can fit on my fingertip. It came in my tin of devil duckie bandages.

  55. John Morales says

    Rey:

    And does anyone remember that “dork” means penis?

    And ‘sheesh’ means ‘Jesus’.

    (Your point?)

  56. says

    John:

    (Your point?)

    I expect it was plain old curiosity, John. After all, if a person sees dork and remembers it meant penis, it might be a tad jarring to see a little girl’s book called Dork Diaries. Or at least make a person wonder if anyone else remembers that particular meaning.

    Language changes and depending on a person’s age, they may or may not know past meanings of any given word, particularly when it’s used as slang.

    Seems to me you could have figured this out yourself.

  57. says

    The craziest thing about that elevator shaft/vertigo bathroom is: it kinda has the look of a ground floor/powder room/guest bathroom type thing to me.

    Seems to me that’d weed out which of your dinner guests have hard-core acrophobia pretty quick.

    (/On the bright side, I guess it’d also be one hell of a conversation starter.)

  58. says

    Markita Lynda:

    Caine, those are beautiful embroideries! So precise. You’re a star.

    Aaaw, thank you. :) One of these days, I hope to be able to learn a whole different level of embroidery. I’m very jealous that the UK has a Royal School of Needlework. This woman is getting a degree there. She does stuff I can’t even dream of doing right now. Same with this woman.

  59. Esteleth, Who is Totally Not a Dog or Ferret says

    Dork does not just mean “penis,” it means “whale penis.”

    Nuance!

  60. Esteleth, Who is Totally Not a Dog or Ferret says

    But yet, kristinc, it is true.
    A dork is a whale penis.
    A geek is someone who bites the heads off of chickens.
    A nerd is someone who knows the above facts.

    And I, Esteleth, am all three. And rather preposterously drunk.

  61. Nutmeg says

    I have a Very Important Question.

    Where do I start watching Dr. Who?

    I get the impression it’s something I might enjoy, but I’m not interested in starting with the episodes from the 60s. I gather from the Wikipedia page that the Doctor changes every few years – is a change a good place to start? Opinions on what’s semi-recent and a good introduction?

  62. Esteleth, Who is Totally Not a Dog or Ferret says

    You could start with New Who, Nutmeg.

    That is, the start of Chris Eccleston as the Doctor.

  63. Nutmeg says

    All right, Eccleston it will be. If I enjoy the series I’ll go back and watch the older episodes eventually. Thanks for the advice!

  64. says

    Yep, I really like Eccleston as Nine (the ninth incarnation of the Doctor). I mean, I like all the NuWho doctors, but Nine is my Doctor and well worth watching. Good place to come in. Nine only lasts one season, the first season of NuWho, and don’t be put off by the cheesiness and low production values at first, it’s still a lot of fun. Production values go up steadily till s5, where they are positively cinematic and lush.

    The s5 finale is my most favorite season finale of anyything ever. When I’m feeling down I watch it. Or — if I’m pressed for time — I watch the YouTube video of all of s5 set to the Can-Can in slightly over 2 minutes. It’s a thing of magnificence. (and contains SPOILERS. duh)

  65. ibyea says

    @Nutmeg
    Having watched stuff from the 60s, trust me, it is not a good idea to start there. Not all of them are bad, but a lot of them are tedious, silly, and boring. Plus, most episodes from the 60s are missing due to BBC’s policies back then, so you would be missing out on a lot of good ones anyways. So yeah, what everyone else recommend.

  66. Esteleth, Who is Totally Not a Dog or Ferret says

    For me, the Family of Blood two-parter always tugs the ol’ heartstrings.

    He could have been happy with her. *sniff*

  67. Jules says

    Threadrupt.

    Talisker! ♥

    But I likes all smokey scotches.

    I’m completely exhausted. I did 12 hours of hardcore feminaziing today. My speech went really well. I was nervous because I decided to talk about feminism’s erasing of the transgender community. But the crowd was very supportive and responsive. Who knew Alabama was so transgender-friendly? Sure, it was a small group, but it was such an encouraging, enthusiastic response that it gave me hope.

    I’ll catch up soon. I love y’all. </snuggliness>

  68. ibyea says

    @Kristinc
    Eccleston is really good. He lasted too short. WHYYYYY??!!! Also, I agree with you that series 5 finale is the best of all the new Who finales.

  69. cicely. Just cicely. says

    Hi, Minnie!

    Zombie Duckie is awesome.

    It was a good wedding, but that was unquestionably the worst Screwdriver I’ve ever drank. *bleh!*


    I want no part of a bathroom over a visibly long drop.

    If you actually get it all the way into your bladder, you can’t possibly turn it around! You’d have to wait for it to decide it wants out on its own!

    Ah, but you see, this is for a candiru that has inserted itself vaginally. Whole different kettle of fish!

    If you’re a good little freudian, everything means “penis”.

    But sometimes, a penis is only a cigar.
    :P

    Eccleston.

  70. says

    Animalia are opisthokonts.
    OK, we don’t think of ourselves as organisms with flagella. But most mammals still have flagellated sperm. And we have cilia, so I’m told, on the cells that line our lungs, which move mucous and dust out of them. That’s one of the harms of smoking: it paralyzes your cilia for about an hour, so particles stay in your lungs all day.

    rDNA genes = redundant.
    I’m not not confident enough about that kind of thing to start editing people’s letters to science journals except for the non-technical parts.

  71. says

    My take would be that rDNA is a molecule and ‘genes’ are functional subsets without obvious physical boundaries.

    I’m not even sure if they meant ‘ribosomal’ or ‘recombinant’ DNA.

    I’m pretty sure they didn’t mean the Reformed Druids of North America.

  72. says

    Esteleth (@PreviousPageThisEpisode):

    The parade you witnessed may have had something to do with unions: Several of my political friends were today attending union memorials, at which the names of deceased brethren were read, and I know of at least one such that had pipers. I’m guessing (but only guessing) it’s to do with the fact that May Day is coming up in a few days.

    ***
    DrDMFM:

    Funny… ’round here, at least, I tend to do the opposite: Absent a conspicuously masculine nym or conspicuously (not to say egregiously) masculine content within postings, I tend to assume everyone is a woman, unless/until they say otherwise.

    Surprises me, to be honest.

    But then, I always start from the assumption that everyone is not just male, but like me in several other respects

    The key words in my comment were “’round here, at least”: I’ve just learned, over the years, that there are plenty of women on teh intertooooobz who, for perfectly cromulent reasons, don’t go out of their way to advertize their sex, while men (esp. straight ones) usually don’t bother to conceal it. Ergo, when someone new pops up with a non-name nym (e.g., Nutmeg or opposablethumbs) or a gender-ambiguous name as a nym, I just figure female is the better bet, pending evidence one way or another.

    In other situations, though, I’m like you: My default assumption about unknown others is that they’re more or less like me, except for the specific differences I know about.

    Of course, that way lies unacknowledged privilege: Mitt Romney’s problem (well, one of his 4,735,652 problems) is that his default assumption is that everyone can borrow from their rich parents… just like he did.

  73. Ichthyic says

    …er that last was supposed to be in resp to the comment on whale penises. That is all.

  74. says

    Hello! I have just seen the Pirates! movie, had lunch at a lovely bakery, and been for a walk around the little lake in Shenton Park. Ducks and egrets and swans aplenty, and even some very nice looking ibis. Totally unlike the usual sickly Sydney scavengers. Walking! Yay me!

    And now I am back at my hosts’ place and have discovered that I forgot to turn on the power to the iPad charger so I have to sit with the cord attached and that means the sun is in my eyes. Oh noes! #/firstworldproblems

  75. 'Tis Himself says

    Esteleth, Who is Totally Not a Dog or Ferret #91

    A dork is a whale penis.
    A geek is someone who bites the heads off of chickens.
    A nerd is someone who knows the above facts.

    And I, Esteleth, am all three.

    You’re a whale penis? Do you detach from the rest of the whale’s body? And where do you keep the teeth to bite the heads off of chickens?

    This brings about a whole new meaning to “Totally Not a Dog or Ferret”.

  76. localnebula says

    You’re a whale penis? Do you detach from the rest of the whale’s body?

    Great, now that’s going to be stuck in my head all day.