Train Derailments, Delays and Distractions

done

schmone.

But the other thread was only 200 messages. I've seen our threads go much longer before someone moves it to a new thread. I feel like the train left without me!

*hops into flying car to catch up*

*well, maybe I should have been gentlemanly and have let JP it (but if she's in a flying car she might have forgotten us!!!)*

Meh. I don't mind. I was just surprised to see the other one end already, since so many of our threads go over 300. :o)

*the flying car overshoots the train and lands in the Whomping Willow, which swats the car and sends it careening back over the train and halfway back to the station.*

*Eris wakes up, yawning, then looks at the calendar and her clock* GAZOINKS! I'm two days late for Hogwarts! How did I manage to sleep this long (must've been the butterbeer)?

*runs outside to her pet unicorn, Bonecrusher* Okay, Boney, we're going to have to run! *jumps on and races to Hogwarts*

OoooooKaaay, from now on I don't care how long the bloody thing gets!!!
Someone else can do it.
:-)

Oh, chg! Thanks for moving the thread. It keeps us on our toes. :o)

I smell chocolate chip cookies. Have I mentioned how much I love my daughter? *swerves away from the train to race back home*

CHOCOLATE CHIP COOKIES?!?!?!?!?!?!?!?!?! Turn around, Bonecrusher, turn around! *chases after JP*

*throws carrots to distract Bonecrusher*

Bonecrusher will only eat pig's blood! Onward, my fine steed!

Huh. That must be one tough unicorn. *decides it might be safer to share the cookies and passes the platter to Eris*

Ah thank you, JP! You're awesome! *takes a cookie*

And for you, here's some of my mom's moist and textured carrot cake covered in creamed cheese icing. And also a glass of freshly squeezed lemonade, made from the lemons in our backyard. (All of which we have, by the way! ^_^)

You have carrot cake and creamed cheese icing in growing in your backyard?!? Sweet! *grabs a basket for picking*

It's just like in Narnia, where you have a toffee tree growing!

Sweets growing on trees, unicorns...truly you live in a magical realm!

That's because I live in Narnia. It says so on my LibraryThing profile. :)

Why on earth did I have the Train Derailment threads set to "ignore?" I didn't mean to ignore anyone -- honest! Now I am going to have to go look at my other ignored threads to see what sort of things I might be missing.

Ignoring trains. Very dangerous.

I'm lucky I didn't get run over!

Look out!................just kidding

Careless clicking costs lives, folks!

Careless clicking costs considerable casualties. Ignoring inevitably insults indigenous idiosyncratic idealists instituting initial items.

Clicking pens?

>24 MrAndrew:

Hey say, 'atta way to play Mr. A!
(alliteration - the repetition of sounds, especially initial consonant sounds in two or more neighboring words ..)

I've never seen a sign that says "Second Aid".

Why are there seahorses, but no deehorses?

I've never heard of a hearhorse either. Weird.

Why do bugs always fly at your face? If they flew at that spot you can't reach on your back between the shoulders, they would live longer.

hollybeee sent me the link to this cool book related clothing site. If you, like me, love awesome, geeky, book-related t-shirts, you should check it out!

I now want that Poe shirt, so bad! And the Wuthering Heights one. And the Animal Farm t-shirt. And the Mike Mulligan and His Steam Shovel. Thanks biblioholic - now I'm leaving drool all over my computer.

OK, someone please explain Pinterest to me. I haven't been so confused and overwhelmed since I joined Facebook. Maybe it just intimidates me because I was never good at getting my photos into albums.

It's kind of like a visual bookmarking/favorites site. You create boards (like bulletin boards) of ideas you want to save for later. The pins are links to the original site you found the idea on. You can view others pins, or create ones of your own.

Ah. OK. I think I can manage if I think of it as a bookmarking site. I was thinking more like the door of my refrigerator, which is massive chaos.

30: That site is dangerous and I will soon be the owner of a P&P fleece! And a child gets a new book!!

>35 Mandy2:

Thanks for the tip; now I know where NOT to go... (but then I don't do online financial stuff).

34: It is very addictive.

Shamelessly plugging for fellow fans, and quoting directly from twitter

"Join the #KorraNation movement! Like #TheLegendofKorra to unlock the premiere online before it airs: http://korranation.com

Do I need to read the book before seeing Hunger Games? I haven't read it yet, because I don't have time for much reading, but I want to see the movie.

I've read reviews by people who have read the books and those who haven't. I seems like you'll understand the story itself just fine without reading, you just might not get some of the why. Like how people who haven't read Harry Potter might not understand quiddich quite as well as people who read the books.

Why does Carly Simon have dreams that there are clowns in her coffee? That sounds like a nightmare to me.

At least it's not mimes i suppose.

Mimes. {{{shudder}}}

Nostalgia Chick has a spoiler-free review of The Hunger Games movie.

http://thatguywiththeglasses.com/videolinks/team-nchick/specials/34664-hunger-ga...

Are there any vowels in Serbian scrabble?

>44 MrAndrew:

If there are vowels in the language, then I would suppose so.

Sleep....I need sleep....

yeah, but what are the chances of getting two "e" tiles?

Better than your chances of getting a "p".

.... 8-S

I take that back. I think MrA just set me up.

I think I got about 2 hours worth of sleep last night. Maybe. Tonight I should sleep like a rock. Wait...how does a rock sleep?

Sedimentary, metamorphic, or igneous?

Sedimentary rocks probably have a very peaceful sleep.

Whereas metamorphic rocks sometimes wake up to find out they have been transformed into a giant bug overnight, and can't figure out how they are going to catch the train to work.

I hate it when that happens.

My dreams are inventive during igneous sleep.

My dreams are creative during sedimentary sleep. Why? Because you have layers and layers and layers to go through. It's just like "Inception!" A dream within a dream within a dream!

It's like an onion. No wait, a parfait!

I'm contemplating starting a "hunger games" thread for people who have neither read the book or seen the movie, but feel entitled to comment about it anyway.

Mmmmm...parfait! It's like whipped cream within ice cream. With nuts.

Ooo! Chocolate! I must go deeper.

>57 MrAndrew:

If you do, I'm a candidate. I've done neither but am somewhat aware of the theme, although I find the premise disgusting.

According to my daughter, who read it, it's based on the story of Theseus and the Minotaur. The Capital is Crete, who asks for the tribute of twelve young men and twelve young women. FYI. I tried to listen to it but couldn't get into it. I tend to need to see the words for a first read.

Some people have said that it's more akin to Battle Royale, as both books revolve around the premise of the government forcing kids to kill kids.

I used to really like The Hunger Games, although I wasn't into the other two books, but now... I've thought about the book very deeply, and the more I ponder it, the more I dislike it. I'll stick with Harry Potter.

There should be a physics police force. They could arrest birds for breaking the law of gravity.

>63 MrAndrew:

Don't worry, there is; you seem to forget that birds are required by the authorities to flap their wings!

Penguins, i salute you for your law-abiding behaviour.

Hello everyone! Kerian posted this on facebook:

"I want everyone to know I've been missing LT so much, & I think of you guys all the time. Life's so complicated lately with stuff I can't talk about. My emotions are a roller coaster still now. My grandma had surgery yesterday, so I have to visit her. But I'm getting back on LT. You haven't been forgotten, nor times when I had only you guys there for me. Love you guys!"

I'm just posting it here for those who don't have/or rarely use their Facebook accounts

Thanks for passing the news Ron.

While reading one of the Minnesota Twins blogs to which I subscribe I came across a book for grade 3 and up that was written by a former Twins blogger who called herself Batgirl. It looks like a book some of you may be interested in for your classes or kids. Called 'Breadcrumbs' Amazon rated it one of the top 10 of last year for the age group. Amazon summary:

Once upon a time, Hazel and Jack were best friends. But that was before he stopped talking to her and disappeared into a forest with a mysterious woman made of ice. Now it's up to Hazel to go in after him. Inspired by Hans Christian Andersen's "The Snow Queen," Breadcrumbs is a story of the struggle to hold on, and the things we leave behind.

A couple of review excerpts from Amazon:

“Devastatingly brilliant and beautiful...Ursu has sculpted a rich and poignant adventure that brings readers deep into the mysterious, magical, and sometimes frightening forests of childhood and change. Breadcrumbs is one of those rare novels that turned me on my head then sat on my heart and refused to budge.” (Ingrid Law, Newbery Honor-winning author of Savvy )

The creepy fantasyland that Hazel traverses uses bits from other Andersen tales to create a story that...is beautifully written and wholly original. It’s certainly the only children’s fantasy around where Minnesota Twins All-Star catcher Joe Mauer figures into the plot. (Publishers Weekly (starred review) )

#69 -- Breadcrumbs was one of my favorite reads last year! I second the recommendation; it's an excellent book.

>#67: thanks Ron! Glad to hear news.

>#69: turned me on my head then sat on my heart and refused to budge... that's not a book, it's a psychopath... or a cat.

Psychopath...cat...there's a difference?

>67 Renald128:

Thanks for the news. I have nothing to do with Facebook. ANYTHING that is online, regardless of changeable privacy statements, is subject to the whole world knowing.

At work. The phone rings. I answer. Caller says, "Yes, am I calling the right place?" then stops talking.

What?!

#74 -- LOL! "The right place for what?" would have been my response. Either that, or "No," and hang up.

You know you spend too much time buying food for your children's pets when you can walk into two different pet stores and when certain employees see you coming they say, "Crickets?"

I should just change my name to Crickets.

Yes. Yes, I am your father.

Yes. It is time to hand over your immortal soul.

Yes. I have your kidney. When would you like it delivered?

No. Now hand over your wallet.

First, answer my questions three...

Bib, you should keep MrA's list near your phone. Just in case the person calls back.

There would have been a long pause before deciding what I should say vs. what I would like to say. I would have liked to say "Perhaps, are you the right person for my answers?" I might have said, "it depends on what you want to know."

I love it when people call my cell phone and insist they have the right number.

Random cuteness for the day:
Everyone knows that Finnegan has doggie ADHD. He's always distracted by butterflies, birds, planes, the neighbors, etc... It's hard to keep him focused on a task when we're outside. Thursday dad had him out trying to get him to do his business. Finnegan saw a butterfly sitting on the grass. He's never seen this before so he goes up to the butterfly and noses it gently. The butterfly doesn't budge from it's spot, but flaps it's wings together which brush Finn's nose. Finn jumps at least 4 feet in the air and runs behind dad. He continued to do this 4-5 times, with the same result each time. Did he get his job done? No. Did he make us all laugh for 30 minutes? Yes. I'm still laughing!

#80 -- I had a similar experience with Sophie the other day! She found a butterfly in the grass, and kept running toward it and away from it. She loves bugs and gets really excited about grasshoppers. She also gets super excited about the neighborhood cats. They all seem to know that she's on a leash, though, so they pretty much ignore her.

Butterflies. Very dangerous. You go first.

Somebody's pet black rabbit has gotten loose. I've spotted it a number of times in the last few months, wandering around the grassed clothesline area near our laundry. This mornng Spike spotted it on our way to the laundery. The rabbit took off with Spike in hot pursuit, i think it escaped through a gap in the fence. Not sure what Spike would have done if he had caught it, they are about the same size... the rabbit probably has the edge.

>82 MrAndrew:

Peter would have been proud

foggi: Finn loves grasshoppers! They play with him. You know...they jump and he chases....they jump again. All he ever does is nose them, but he'll play with them until they're out of reach or I drag him inside.

#80...Dogs are the best!!!

I'm melting from the cuteness in this thread. I love dogs. *squeals* ^_^

sigh.

*JP sits off in a corner by herself as her cats climb all over her.*

Come here, JP! *gives JP a hug* Do you have any touching cat stories? Ones that don't involve your cats trying to kill you? ;)

One of our cats, Merlin, can sit up on his haunches and beg. I trained him myself. Now he does it automatically because he knows we think it's cute and we'll give him food. :o)

Touching cats. Very dangerous. You go first.

Cats. Why did it have to be cats?

Anyway, it's only certain parts of certain cats that are dangerous to touch. Two of ours will show their bellies and look so soft and inviting, but if you try to reach in for a rub, SNAP! Their claws close on your arm like a steel trap.

Adore from a distance. Cat ownership guardianship servitude is about respect.

One of my coworkers seems to be wearing some sort of mustard-based perfume. Every time she comes in my office I start craving veggie corn dogs.

Soon, that co-worker will start to look like a big veggie corn dog on two legs.

And then... beware, co-worker.

Silly. Bib wouldn't eat a co-worker. She's a vegetarian. Unless she works with vegetables. Which makes one wonder why vegetables would wear mustard-based perfume. And how they type.

Have you heard about the weird reading question on the NY standardized test? It's a bizarre story that reaffirms my commitment to homeschooling: http://www.npr.org/blogs/thetwo-way/2012/04/20/151044647/the-pineapple-and-the-h...

Same coworker today smells like frosting, but not the good kind. The overly sweet shortening stuff they use at grocery store bakeries.

At least she won't make you hungry today. :o)

Carbonite?

for how long?

#96: Nope, just set my teeth on edge!

Maybe I should've put that statement in the "Favorite movie quotes" thread... but I just had to say it! http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IKNVNe9l3wM

I am thisclose to ripping out all the vines in my yard. They are choking out some of my plants, aiding and abetting the poison ivy, and they are four layers deep in some areas of my yard. I accidentally ripped out two plants and several spring flowering bulbs because the #@%@!$*$%$ vines had roots growing underneath my good plants.

Plus my arms are tired from playing tug o'war with them. :oP *whine*

>102 jugglingpaynes:

there...there....JP. Relax your arms, calm down, collateral damage can be repaired later and GET RID OF THE THINGS!!!

*slows breathing*

Thanks chg. I'm going to sharpen my clippers and take them out!

I think I might be able to fix a couple of shirts! The solution is simple: turn it into the T-shirt it is supposed to be. Now to execute.

How do you execute a t-shirt? It has no head or arms.

You draw and quarter it!

>107 ErisofDiscord:

what a way to go... very painful (and bloody), too; which is why it was used as a method of execution in the Middle Ages (and perhaps before).

I know. Learning about it when I was approximately nine did wonders to my head, thank you Simon Schama.

> 109

yeah, mine also.

I had to look up Simon Schama to find out that he is a British historian and artist. I learned of it at about the same age as you.

I could never eat mandarins again, after i first heard of it.

Of course, you can always keelhaul your t-shirt!

Well that would just be cruel. Poor t-shirts. Never did anything but hang around.

Is there a punishment for Loitering?

Biggles! Fetch...the wire hangers!

*dum dum DUMMMM!*

No! Not the wire hangers!

*Mommie Dearest runs in* NO WIRE HANGERS!

Plastic or wood would work???

>115 jugglingpaynes:

Is that supposed to be the first 4 notes of Beethovan's 5th symphony (like on BBC in WWII)? If so you're missing a 'dum'!

#118 - Nope, I think she meant it to be this: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7g9WjcGdxuM

LOL! What Eris said. That's the sound I was going for. :o)

Here Eris, guess this one:

dummmm, Dummmmm, DUMMMMM! DAH-DUMMM! Bumbum Bumbum Bumbum....

:o)

If she gets it, I bow to her powers of reading written humming.

Also sprach Zarathustra?

I know what it is! i knew the first one too!

Oh, dear, my reputation is on the line! Ummmm, is it this? http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-bzWSJG93P8

Probably not it, but that just shows you where my head is at. :)

MrA wins! Although I don't think it's fair since he usually knows what I'm thinking. I suppose I can only have one of you in my head at a time, otherwise it gets crowded. :o)

Ohhhhhhhhhhhhh! That opening! All hail MrA's mind powah!

Eris, yours would sound more like this, I think:

Dum Dum Dum dum-da-dum dum-da-dum...

True. Too true. I wasn't sure, and I've got Star Wars on the brain so that messed me up! :D

Here's an easy one: Dum dum dum dum. Dum dum dum dum, DAHHHHHHHHHHH!

Hmmm...is that Beethoven's 5th? I'm not sure about the DAHHHHHHHHH at the end.

Close with the Beethoven's 5th. This theme was based off it.

************************************************

I don't use sound on this machine- and don't miss it either. I use this thing mostly for research but this is one of the few "fun" threads that I use

*************************************************

We're not using sounds. We're writing our hums. :o)

And thank you for making us one of your fun threads! We appreciate your input!

So what sounds like Beethoven's 5th but isn't? I am stumped. I feel like I should know this, but I don't.

I'll give you a clue: Los Angelos.

It's the theme song for Born in East L.A.?

Nope! Should I just tell? ;)

Maybe. Unless someone else wants to guess it. I wouldn't want to ruin the game!

(Hey 135... send JP a private e-mail)

OOOOHHH! See I would never have gotten that one without help. Thank you, Eris. I was on a completely different track.

Heh. Track. Derailed train....

Okay now tell the rest of us......

I had gotten thrown off by the rhythm of the dums. Let me see if I can help clarify:

Dummm dadum dum. Dummm dadum dum DAHHHHHHHHH!

Yeah, that seems more realistic. I have a terrible ear for these things.

Here it is! http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Hj-qhIGTXdU One of the best TV shows that has ever existed in my opinion. :)

Jack Webb's Dragnet was one of my favorites. A favorite parody/homage to Dragnet is a 1987 film comedy starring Dan Aykroyd and Tom Hanks. There is an entry on Wikipedia.

Full Blown Panic Mode! Tomorrow is my National Board exams and I'm panicking. I always get nervous before an exam, but this time I think it's worse!

Just breathe, kirby. Everything will be fine. ;o)

Yeah Kirby, you'll be o.k. like JP said, do some stretching, relax and breath deeply. Think confidently.

I like that our china is made in China. It seems balanced.

Not so happy with the origin of our manchester, though.

Unbalanced china. Hmmm. Must be cracked.

"egg"ing on again, eh JP ?

I did not crack that egg. :oP
For that matter, I did not crack the china. And as anyone knows, MrA is a tough nut to crack.

*JP sits back to think up more puns*

Hey JP- here's some help...

why did the duck fly upside down ?

So it could QUACK UP

(bad 'crack'...)

You crack me up. :o)

Am I the only one who thinks that this is one the coolest things I've seen? This guy takes factory made dolls and repaints them to look like the real thing! I thought that the one of Hermione was pretty realistic. http://www.buzzfeed.com/donnad/unsettlingly-detailed-repainted-dolls

Wow! Those were beautiful! And now all I want to do is find some dolls and give them makeovers. :o)

I have a question: why do gangsta boys leave the sticker on their expensive sports hats? Don't they know that it looks a little dumb? It's like leaving the tag on a dress and letting everyone see the tag.

That's the idea: snob appeal (think for example Saks Fith Avenue or Neiman Marcus in a different venue) for the "in'' crowd.

*lurking*

*lurking behind the lurker*

>156 Renald128: & >157 jugglingpaynes:

Your tags are showing

*escaping the lurker behind the lurker*

*splurking*

walks by all the lurkers and splurkers, looking at them curiously.

#160 -- You'll need to clean that up before you leave the thread!

#162: *laughs lurkily and hands MrA a mop. Slips back behind the lurker lurking behind the lurker who is lurking behind the splurking lurker.*

sounds like a dr suess book.

anyway Polly looks around the floor carefully for any wet splurk lying around.

ETA: how do you laugh lurkily?

Who knows (not even "the Shadow " can get this one) ??? ....

Hmmm...Think Vincent Price at the end of Michael Jackson's Thriller. :o)

The words "career" and "careen" are very similar. Coincidence? In my experience: no.

There are many words like that, but who likes the dizziness of careening careers and what's a careering careen?

The train is careening out of control! There are derailments all over the other discussion threads!

Good job, people. Keep up the good work!

aardvark.

Gesundheit.

Gaslight

antacid?

seaslugs

I ended up getting up an hour earlier today because the cat reset the clock in our room again. She does this by sitting on the buttons. I didn't realize it until I could get my eyes to focus on a clock in the living room.
An hour early.
On a Saturday.

Darn cat.

cat's bums. Is there anything they can't do?

LOL! Apparently not. :o)

Cats 9and their bums) are not afraid to go where no man has gone before! (cats of course have been there lots)

This is interesting... an item on cats for this weekend on my daily "Urban Myth" calendar concurrent with this discussion... the upshot is that small cats (pets) purr while both inhaling and exhaling while big cats only purr on exhale.

(as if you couldn't live without such critical knowledge)

Found a recipe for snickerdoodle muffins. Must try out on my family.

I find that it's best to try new recipies on complete strangers.

Yes, but often complete strangers don't want to try recipes from complete strangers. The best place to try out new recipes is at school, but we're out of session for the summer.

She's right, you know. I won't even take free samples of food at the grocery store.

Awesome!

Oh my God, that is too cool! Even dolls know who Harry Potter is!

Wow! So cool!

I agree with JP. Who knows what the (alleged) food the
"FOOD MANUFACTURERS" (I thought that only nature could do that...) are trying to shove down our throats?

>184 justjukka:

Wow..A Fistfull of Potters! Clint Eastwood has nuthin' on you!

Time for a sing along!

nana nana nana nana nana nana nana nana....Batman!

Come on! Join in. You know the lyrics! :o)

Bam! Slam! Thud!

HOLY DERAILMENTS, BATMAN!!!!!!

(from The Riddler)

Q: Why did Batman stop at the gas station?

A: So he could go to the BAT-room!!!!!!!! (Big Laugh....)

How about a magic trick? I'm going to make this pencil dissapear...

Ah. I was going with the campy Adam West Batman. More laughs than darkness. :o)

Slanty camera angles and comic strip sound effects galore!

When Gotham is ashes you have my permission to die. Bwahahahaha! Christopher Nolan forevah!

>193 jugglingpaynes: That's what it's all about

>194 ErisofDiscord: you're too young to understand.

The hokey pokey...THAT'S what it's all about. Everyone knows that, right?

Put your right hand in
Take right hand out
Put your right hand in...

Don't do the Hokey Pokey - do the Batusi! http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=exhNT2_bHs8

(Seeeeeee, I do know about the Adam West TV show. ^_^)

Adara wanted to play acrobat today. all I could think was "JP would be so proud"

>198 ErisofDiscord: That's cool;,,, hey. Utube is actually GOOD for SOMETHING!!!! (It is a repository history of all the mindless TV that some of us actually lived through {Among the 'cute cat videos, etc...}!!!!).

>197 jugglingpaynes:,199- Yeah, JP!!!

I am so proud of Adara. :o)

My garden is becoming productive!

#202 -- Congratulations! One of my tomato plants is blooming.

I'm hoping dad will take care of our plants while we are gone. The veggies and fruits are just now starting to come in.

We are finally getting to our strawberries before the chipmunks!!!

We have some really bold stray cats around here. Or perhaps they just realize that Sophie is not a threat. One of them followed us around today when I was trying to get Sophie to do her business outside. We had to go back in because she was so traumatized by it. It came up to her, touched noses, then took a swipe at her with its paw! She came over, huddled down by my feet, and trembled. My dog is such a wimp. :-)

#206: Wimp dogs are great. The ones I've met are so lovable and cuddly!

Why do the weeds and wild plants grow twice as fast as the plants I planted? I've tested this, and I know it's true. I tried to transplant a tree the planted itself near our house. For years I've tried to cut all its branches to the ground but it simply sprouted new ones, so I finally decided to dig it out and move it. Two days after moving it, it withered.

Do I need to transplant every weed in my yard to kill them?

I don't think so, but like dandelions you must Get the taproot

Yep, tis very important to get the roots of weeds, otherwise they just stubbornly grow back. Cutting just the tops never kills them. Also, my mom is fond of killing ants in our backyard, because they can grow and contribute to the weeds, thanks to the fungi they cultivate.

Ants are weeds? Huh. I thought they were insects. :o)

In general, we don't kill anything unless it comes in and makes a nuisance of itself. Otherwise we are strictly catch and release. I don't use weed killers or pesticides as I have made my yard a backyard habitat. And I do know about getting the taproots, but some of these weeds have taproots that go on for days. I've pulled out about three feet of root from bindweed and still it broke off. The dandelion weeder tool just can't handle that!

Huffington Post has an interesting article about literary characters and Myers-Briggs personalities.

#211 -- Interesting! I would never have pegged Laurie from Little Women as a character close to my own personality type, though.

My youngest is like Mr. Darcy. I can see that. My husband and I are like Laurie from Little Women, too, foggi! Cat and her brother are like Anne of Green Gables. (I had us all do the Myers-Briggs awhile ago.)

I'm an Anne as well.

I am like Mr. Darcy

I couldn't figure it out

I don't know how things work in Silicon Valley, but back on Earth, when even the wind has been warm, I'm going to be on my guard when a chilly breeze sweeps through my window!

“Puckle,” Hermione Granger’s original surname, “did not suit her at all,” J.K. Rowling once commented. Deciding that her heroine needed a name that was more appropriate for her serious nature, Rowling eventually came up with something that doesn’t make you think of that taste you get in your mouth when you eat Sour Patch Kids.

From Mentalfloss

I just found out that there is a new Thursday Next book coming out this October (in the US; I think it's already out in the UK) -- The Woman Who Died A Lot. So exciting!

I never realized that Daniel Radcliffe's birthday is so close to the one of His character Harry! Happy Birthday Dan!

I talked to @Espeon200 today -- he says hello!

LOL! I just messaged you and asked about him! I guess I should have read this first!

Still working through Star Trek: TOS; wishing death and/or pants upon most of the female characters.

#223 - *snicker*

This one's for you, Rozax. Enjoy...

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-vKN7ZvmvBw

J.K Rowling is building (well, commissioning; I'm pretty sure she's not picking up hammer and saw) magical-looking treehouses in her backyard. I want them!

Woohoo!! Joss Whedon confirmed he will write and direct Avengers 2!!!

Check it out

If my patronus was a cuttlefish, could it change colour?

See anything interesting about this book?

Art is Every Day

(Hint: look at the author's name...)

Interesting career path for Snape's mom...

On Tuesday, my writing was criticized because I used the passive voice.

I think of my passive voice as an improvement over my passive aggressive voice. :oP

Woops!  I've been away from this thread for too long!

225:  Thank you for sharing that!  
I can't say I think much of the shrieking (season 2) that replaced the instrumentals (season 1) during the intro.

231:  Sometimes, the passive voice is just necessary - I don't care what is written in some arbitrary set of rules!

Thank you. That's how I feel. :o)
The person who told me this is a magazine editor. I'm imagine for a magazine article you would want to be more concise, but she was critiquing a story I'm working on. (Note to self: never allow yourself to be pushed into submitting works in progress for critiquing.)

I've recently complained about journalism vs...do we have a verb for writing novels?  The author for Three Cups of Tea is a journalist, and the reading is painful.  My favorite example (I apologize if you've seen it in another thread, already):

"But ahead of him, through the windshield, with its spidery web-work of fissures, he saw the sixteen-thousand-foot-high panorama of the Karakoram’s foothills tearing at a blameless blue sky with its fearsome assortment of brown, broken teeth, and felt unaccountably happy." (pg 86)

This one sticks out in my mind because it was the first time in the story, after similar, jarring offenses, that I really stopped to analyze what was going on.  I read it several times, first trying to understand the spidery web-work fissures ("Oh, the windshield is cracked.  Okay.") and then trying to figure out if we're supposed to be happy for Greg.  Sounds like those teeth want to tear him limb from limb.  I also wondered what a "blameless blue sky" meant, in or out of context.  I guess it's just supposed to be really, really blue.

Off-topic, I'm now noticing that the "blameless blue sky" above me is going to assist the sun in killing off my plants if I don't go water my garden.

>235 justjukka: Noveling????

(is it time to change to a new thread??)

*hee* I was thinking that, too!

About noveling or a new thread? :o)

I'll start a new one for you. Hang on...

ETA: Done! http://www.librarything.com/topic/141132