And so it begins....

Let's see:
Internet connection? Check.
Excessive caffeine? Check.
Chocolate Lucky Charms? Check.
Good music? Check.
Sufficient sleep? Too late now, Chucky.
Any clue of what to right about? Um....

Blogathon begins NOW. Bring it on.

Right, then. For the next 24 hours, I will be blogging in support of the International Gay and Lesbian Human Rights Commission, a non-profit organization dedicated to the securing of human rights for those facing discrimination or violence based on sexual orientation, gender identity or HIV status. My goal is $500 in pledges; as of right now, I am past the halfway point at $252. Many thanks, lonita and Anonymous!

Okay. I'm off to lbitw and jenphalian's place, where rafaela and zarhooie (and breakfast) await. It's a-gonna be a long day.

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Goooood morning....

How dedicated am I to the Blogathon cause?

I just got a speeding ticket, out of fear that I'd miss the 9:30 post.

And I thought I'd have nothing to write about. *pfft*

Repose

Fairies abound.

Last night's party isn't over yet, which is a good sign. Keg remnants, bleary hangover conversations, gratuitous coffee, not much coherence. Here on the front porch, we wave sleepily at passing traffic, pretending that this town is worlds smaller than it is. zarhooie is complaining that she needs someone to braid her hair, rafaela is patiently waiting for her breakfast, about a dozen SCA types lounge on the floor where they were sleeping until only minutes ago, and I feel like a small animal has crawled somewhere between my teeth and gums and died a horrid death.

And I didn't even drink last night. It must be Friday.

Miles to go before we sleep, miles to go before we sleep....

(Oh, look, the auxiliary coffeemaker has just arrived, so all is well. If you'll excuse me a moment....)

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Might as well punt

It's entirely too early to be flailing, but since I'm currently in a room with... *counts* eight other people, I'm leaving this entry up to the hoi polloi. "Hey, everybody! What should I say for Blogathon?"

"I like things that go boom."
"Asgar did not pee on himself last night." (This insight brought to us by Asgar.)
"The keg was kicked too early."
"Breakfast almost ready?"
"My kids really like Hellboy."
"And everybody really loves the kittens."
"Give a man a fire, and he'll be warm for one night; set a man on fire, and he'll be warm for the rest of his life."
"The world is crazy. If you don't like it, deal with it."
"[unintelligible] supposed to catch it in my pants."
"ANYway..."

*blink*

Oooookay, thanks, guys. I'll be handling my own content from here on out, thanks.

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Groceries

I have this obscene love for grocery shopping. I don't know why. I'm just in love with the process, and the self-caretaking, and, well, the fooooood. That, and the wonders of the Price Chopper AdvantEdge Card. Yes, I know, it's a crass commercial gimmick, but when you get that little notation on the receipt that you've just saved $12.88 on a $66 cart, you are entitled to a glorious parking lot dance, complete with raise-the-roof-yo hand gestures.

In case you're wondering, and I'm sure you are, here's my last shopping list:

soda
fruit punch
Dinosaurs 'n' Meatballs
mac & cheese
sliced ham
wheat bread
sharp Vermont cheddar
flour tortillas
sour cream
boneless chicken breast
ground beef
mussels in garlic butter sauce
yogurt
soup
frozen chicken cordon bleu
canned corn
Good Humor Chocolate Eclair Bars (couldn't find, sadly)
Chocolate Lucky Charms (proof of a benevolent god)
eggs
chocolate milk
bananas
cat food
cat litter
t.p.
paper towels
garbage bags
dish soap
....and a few off-book things.

Wait, I didn't get any breakfast yet, dag nabbit.... *runs for the dining room*
[EDIT: Nate has officially reported that food is gone. jenphalian said something about cooking more for me. Completely unnecessary, Jen, but thank you from the bottom of my heart.]

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Quote of the Week

"I'd love to do NaNoWriMo, if only I could get rid of NaNoWorkMo." -- daev

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If you're just tuning in....

It seems we have somehow survived until the 3 hour mark. Let's review, shall we? So far, I have received the following:
* a headache
* a speeding ticket
* eggs with cheese, and bacon
* obscene amounts of caffeine
* a total of $284 in support of the International Gay and Lesbian Human Rights Commission. Thank you, all! Special thanks to two new sponsors, the Two Songs, shadesong and tidesong; y'all know how much you rock, don't you? *hugses*

The adventure continues....

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(And a reminder to tune in to shadesong and llama_go_moooo, who are also Blogathonning today. Hi, you too!)

A poser, while I'm still able to pose

As we drift into the afternoon hours, zarhooie is flea-combing the kittens, lbitw has retired out back with the rest of the heavy-armor fighters to whack each other with sticks, jenphalian has passed out in her room for a half-hour nap, and rafaela has claimed the sofa in the name of Mars. I think we're reaching a bit of a lull.

In which case, I'd like to take this opportunity to present the following problem that I sent in to Will Shortz for the Sunday Puzzler, of which I'd heard nothing since:

Name a word meaning "entrance"; swap the second and fourth letters, and get a word meaning "exit."

First person to respond correctly will win, um, I dunno. Somethin'.

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10 Greatest Music Videos of the '80s

This is one of the very few things I had planned in advance, so might at well do this now:

Adam's 10 Greatest Music Videos of the '80's
*confetti* *streamers*

God bless YouTube.

Note: For the following list, I purposely avoided more obvious choices (e.g. "Thriller," "Sledgehammer," "Boys of Summer," "Where the Streets Have No Name," "Need You Tonight/Mediate") in favor of rarer material, mostly stuff that I hadn't seen since their original release until the Internet made my life a joy.

In no particular order:

1) "Dear God," XTC
My current favorite. Moving, understated, brilliant, not necessarily in that order.

2) "When I Grow Up," Michelle Shocked
Short Sharp Shocked was one of the formative listening experiences of my teenage years. The video's kind of a companion piece to "Dear God," now that I think about it.

3) "Close to the Edit," Art of Noise
Anna hates this one. I adore it. Still freaks me out.

4) "Missionary Man," The Eurythmics
Speaking of videos that freak me out...

5) "Road to Nowhere," Talking Heads
This is the video that got its director the job helming "Sledgehammer," with special dispensation to "be silly." Love it.

6) "Manchild," Neneh Cherry
Unjustly forgotten.

7) "Airhead," Thomas Dolby
Yes, I'm enough of a dork to recall that a) this clip was named an MTV Breakthrough Video at the time; and b) it deserved it.

8) "Cloudbusting," Kate Bush
Donald Sutherland as an inventor, Kate Bush as his eight-year-old son(!), and some of the best videocraft of pre-1985 MTV.

9) "Oh Father," Madonna
David Fincher/Madonna collaborations that aren't "Express Yourself" or "Bedtime Stories." Why did this one get brushed aside?

10) "Leave Me Alone," Michael Jackson"
Proof that Michael Jackson actuall does have a sense of humor.

Did I miss anything important?


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I should be getting combat pay for this

Evidently, getting pulled over was the establishment of a theme: zarhooie has just given me a black eye, by whacking me in the face in her attempts to drop an ice cube down my shirt.

You see? Do you see the sacrifices I'm making for the greater good? Ai yi yi. I'm going to need four days to recover from this weekend.

[EDIT: She insists that it's just circles from sleep deprivation. Feh.]

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A few bits of explanation

About my LJ name:
"Slipjig" was the first user name I ever used for an Internet account a decade ago, and it somehow stuck. A slipjig is a traditional Irish dance in 9/8 time; it sounds like a waltz done by someone with a wooden leg, which is wonky enough for my tastes. (I've since learned that it's also traditionally done by women only. Oh, well.)

About my LJ title:
"Get that wasp off my sandwich" is a horrendously random line for a horrendously random song, "Hay Wrap" by the Saw Doctors. Apropos of nothing, that was the last song I played on my last radio show back in 1993.

About my info page quote and reply link text:
"The best of men is only a man at best / And a hare, as everyone knows, is only a hare," is from the book Masquerade by artist Kit Williams, a beautiful children's book that also contained one of the most elegant puzzles ever created, the solution of which led to the location of a golden hare buried in England. "Dance in time, if you like" is from the same book, from my favorite illustration therein:


Ooo! Lunch has arrived!

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Holding pattern

I am typing this with the assistance of an adorable black kitten, who is none too happy about being evicted from a nap on the keyboard for this. This is probably why said kitten isn't contributing any content ideas.

We're attempting to get in touch with engagefriction, who is professing boredom, which we can fix, because we're wacky like that.

Sandwiches. Sandwiches goooood.

This is roughly how I look right this very moment, except a little sweatier and a little less coherent.

Um....

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It's only the 25% mark? You're serious?!

Six hours down, and all's well.

Current pledge total in support of the International Gay and Lesbian Human Rights Commission: $309
Wow. Just...wow. Many thanks to mgrasso and mendoza for your generous contributions. *hugs all around*

Much to my shock, I am well on the way to meeting my personal goal of raising $500. Y'all are the bestest friends' list ever.

In other news, this backache done not bode well. 18 hours to go.... *sigh*

In the meantime: monkeys with iPods. Discuss.

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First Snow

The following is taken from the Lemmings Encyclopedia, the ongoing WIKI project to catalog the people, places, events, lingo and injokes of one subgroup (mine) of those at and around the U of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign circa 1989-1993:

An annual ritual/tradition to celebrate the first snowfall of the winter season. First Snow was begun by Lauren Leach as a solitary meditative exercise in the mid 80’s. Later, she began bringing her significant others into the the tradition (such as Mike Chan), and still later, other friends. The size of the groups celebrating the First Snow began to grow rapidly in the early 90’s; the 1990 celebration consisted of Lauren, Ken Sarno and Jay Obermark, but 1991’s event included nearly a dozen people.

The criterion was that, for it to be the official First Snow, the snow had to completely cover the ground and remain for 24 hours. Since there is something of a grey area as to whether a given snowfall meets those standards, people would often make excited phone calls to Lauren, the unofficial arbiter of such things, asking, “Is this it? Is this it?” When it was determined that, yes, this was indeed the first snow, a time and place was chosen (usually in Lauren’s home; it was held in the Landmark Apartments home she shared with Kathy T, Dave Ehrensperger and Adam Fromm in 1991, and in Mulligatawny in 1992), and everyone was notified via informal phone tree in fairly short order.

Early incarnations of the ceremony took place outside in the snow itself, but since this often wasn’t practical, the convention began of holding it indoors, with a plate or bowl of snow brought inside as a centerpiece. The participants would gather in a circle around the snow, and a drink was brought out for toasting. Lauren had originally used blackberry brandy when celebrating alone, but this gave way to non-alcoholic drinks; by the time the ritual became a community event, the traditional quaff had become Martinelli’s Sparkling Apple Cider, served in a handmade double-handled ceramic goblet owned by Lauren. The ceremony itself consisted simply of the celebrants in turn raising the goblet, making a toast (to anything they liked), taking a sip, and passing the drink on, clockwise. The toasts could sometimes be poignant and heartfelt, but more often than not ended up being very silly, and increasingly so as the night wore on, whether alcohol was being consumed or not.

When it became clear that the ceremony had run its course, it would be closed with a final toast “To the Snow,” and the bowl of now half-melted snow would be carried outside, along with the last few drops of cider. The snow and the cider would be tossed onto the ground to great cheers, and the participants would go on to celebrate however it seemed appropriate.

Some of the more memorable toasts over the years included:

* “To that star up there, and that little star over there.” (Jay Obermark in 1990, when it was held on Lauren and Ken’s balcony)
* “To crushes, and to everyone we have crushes on.” (Ken Sarno in 1990. He suggested that everyone then list all of their crushes individually, but it was decided that this would take too long.)
* “To oral sex!” (Kathy T, annually)
* “To change.” (Lauren Leach in 1993. This was the first year that First Snow was held without her presence in CU, spearheaded this time by B.A. Davis-Howe; since she was missed, the participants called her in Oneonta, NY to make the first toast long-distance.)



Yes. I think the practice needs to be revived

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Audience participation time!

[Poll #781069]

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Looks of Death

There is bathing of cats going on.

Before
After
(Photos by zarhooie.)

Poor jenphalian. Poor jenphalian's arms. (The cats I don't much feel sorry for.)

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When in doubt, make an arbitrary list

15 Things I Miss

1) Papa Del's Pizza, Champaign, IL
2) Lunch under the tree at the Marshall Field's Walnut Room during Christmas shopping
3) Sheep in the Big City
4) Hypercard programming
5) College
6) Going to the Autumn Cafe four nights a week
7) Rolling down the hill behind our Park Forest home
8) Green River soda in 2-liter bottles
9) Kaboom! for the Atari 2600
10) Sacajawea dollar coins
11) Jim Henson
12) MTV 120 Minutes
13) Endless games of Turbo Hearts
14) Christmas Eve with both sides of the family
15) Fruit Stripe gum

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A realization

Y'know something? I know that the scene never appeared in the book. And I know I've seen it several times already. But the frozen waterfall scene in The Lion, The Witch and the Wardrobe? Makes my breath catch in my throat every damn time.

'Nuff said. Back to the couch with me.

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9 hours down, way too many to go

Still holding at $309 in pledges for the International Gay and Lesbian Human Rights Commission. Still holding at mostly awake.

malefica_v just asked me a good question, which lbitw had asked me in other phrasing earlier: why would Adam the More-or-Less Straight Guy be working so hard in support of this particular charity?

The answer is that I'm fed up.

In the past few weeks alone, the highest courts in five different states, including a few traditionally liberal states, have shot down gay marriage in varying ways, all of which will take more than a little doing to undo, if undoing ever gets done at all.

In Russia, a Gay Pride march turned to chaos when it was set upon by thugs, who began indiscriminately beating the parade's participants, while the police assigned to crowd control did nothing (until the participants began to defend themselves, at which time the police turned on them).

Fred Phelps continues to picket not only the funerals of gays and lesbians with signs reading, "DIE, FAG, DIE," but those of soldiers as well, under the premise that the war deaths are the cost of a nation that permits such "perversions."

And that's just the tip of the iceberg. And I can't stand it any more. And I'm frustrated by my inability to do anything to stop these people from persecuting and harming perfect strangers, for aspects of their lives that are frankly no one's business. And I know that this will someday be a non-issue, and I want that day to come faster.

That's the best answer I can give. And here I am.

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Gethsemane

I was going to post some of my own lyrics, but I think separating them from the music is probably unwise, in a big way. I was also considering putting the song itself up on yousendit or some such, as it's one of my favorites, but I'm not at home. (Remind me later, when desperation sets in.) So, take it away, Richard:

Gethsemane
by Richard Thompson

Among the headstones you played as boys
Crypts and tombs like a roomful of toys
Just up the river from the smoke and the noise
Gethsemane
And there’s war-whoops and secret signs in the trees
Estuary smells coming up on the breeze
O perfect endless days like these
O Gethsemane

Sailboat on the Cadie, pushbike on the quay
In your eyes there’s fire, in your hand destiny
‘O be something, be something fine!’

Just down the river, into the noise and the smoke
Being daring with the staring, uncaring folk
Who laugh with you, laugh at you, you’ll never get the joke
Gethsemane
And they broke your spirit there in the marines
Flushed your head down in the latrines
Frozen in your sacrement, derailed in your teens
Never saw the enemy

And those bosses betrayed, soon let you go
The fire in your eyes, how could they know
‘O be something, be something fine!’

Now you’ve got your own boys, hell bent for leather
Dead before they’re 18, or bitter old men forever
They never saw the halo moon rise over the river
Of Gethsemane
Now there’s a pain in your head puts lead in your shoes
Better get it seen to, it’s going to be bad news
How did the perfect world get so confused
O Gethsemane

Who sucked out the freedom, days without end
Under the weight of it all you must bend
‘O be something, be something fine!’

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*test pattern*

BEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEP

This is a test of the LiveJournal Blogathon System. If this had been an actual entry, the preceding tone would have been followed by actual scintillating content, wit, eloquence and excitement, instead of some 35-year-old guy waving his hands in the air in lieu of something to say.

Hey, fellow Blogathonners? shadesong? zarhooie? How y'all holdin' up?

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Um, oops.

The parade of disasters continues.

See, I was trying to be helpful, honest. Really and for truly. And drying dishes while lbitw washed seemed pretty straightforward at the time. I certainly didn't mean to let the stoneware tumble over onto the glass coffee carafe like that. At least it wasn't Jen & Jason's glass coffee carafe, which means I won't be around when the news is delivered to the, um, owners. *cough* Can I go to bed now?

Oh, and if anyone's interested, rafaela and I will be home within the next half-hour, if anyone needs to reach us. See you then!

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Home sweet *znrxxxxx*

Home again, home again, Slipjiggety-flop. Many thanks to lbitw and jenphalian for their wonderful hospitality, and for throwing a bitchin' party. Raise the roof, indeed!

If anyone wants to say hi, I'll be leaving AIM on for the duration of the ordeal (AIM ID is Slipjig852). Or if you have our phone number, that works, too. And don't forget, pledges are still being accepted below:

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I have a collect call from a correctional facility. Will you accept the charges?

In my job, I am required to handle collect calls from prisons. In these calls, the inmate is allowed to give pretty much any name s/he likes, and often does. The following are several I collected in my first two years on the job:

( A list within )

I think my all-time favorite is still Frankie the Thumb.

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Well, so much for the EASY half....

12 hours down, 12 to go.

I can'[t imagine anyone not knowing at this point, but on the off-chance: I am participating in Blogathon 2006 in support of the International Gay and Lesbian Human Rights Commission, a non-profit organization dedicated to the securing of human rights for those facing discrimination or violence based on sexual orientation, gender identity or HIV status. 24 hours, 9 a.m. to 9 a.m., a post every half-hour, seeking pledges of donations.

So far? $309 in pledges. I think I've stalled out on the pledging thing, and I'm hoping beyond hope to kick things back into gear. In the meantime, kick back, relax, and let's board the Silly Train as the icy fingers of sleep deprivation gradually clutch at my fevered brain, and I start using words like "garbanzo" and "Boogertastic!"

'Round about 4 a.m., I'll likely be typing with my face. Should be fun.

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Voice Post:

(Good luck transcribing this thing.) [EDIT: daev? You are an amazing individual, and clearly out of your mind. Thank you! *hugs*]

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Have I mentioned how much I hate YouSendIt?

I printed the lyrics somewhere in the early afternoon. At long last, here's the song itself (after a loooooong wait for the transfer:

"Gethsemane," Richard Thompson (mp3)

Hope you like!

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Three Connections: a movie game

Haven't played this one in ages, but it sprung to mind for some reason. We used to play with two names, but that left too much room for alternate answers.

The game goes like this: given the names of three film actors, name someone who has costarred in different movies with all of them.

For example, if you were given Shelley Duvall, Hugh Grant and Hilary Swank, you would answer "Robin Williams," who costarred with them in Popeye, Nine Months and Insomnia, respectively.

So with that in mind, kindly for to be answering the following:

1) Bill Murray, Kevin Spacey and Judi Dench

2) Sissy Spacek, Lisa Kudrow and Rosanna Arquette

3) Mickey O'Rourke, Rob Reiner and Sigourney Weaver

4) Peter Coyote, Anthony Michael Hall and Whoopi Goldberg

5) Arnold Schwarzeneggar, Brad Pitt and Jon Voight

6) Mae West, Steve Martin and Dana Carvey

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Hey!

[Poll #781256]

This is where the paranoia sets in. Are the Blogathon organizing folks aware that nobody reads blogs on Saturday nights?

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Poem of the moment

Say Water

Say birds instead of water
because birds are signing
to each other
in the fluttery
language of water.

Or say deer and lift your head
as if you sense my mouth
drinking from your glass
because deer have trampled the water
and left it nervous.

Or pines, say pines,
their needles brushing
across my body must by now
know something of trembling.

No, say water in that limpid voice
you once used to draw the icy bath
when I, wild-tongued, was burning up
and you were beautiful.

—Rad Smith, 1999

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Randomness at midnight

Goings-on:

daev just called for the sole purpose of keeping me awake ('cuz he rocks!), but he also managed to transcribe the untranscribable voice post, which I lack the energy to find right now.

Meanwhile, zimarra has been sending me random links, like a random interactive map of Japan, instructions on how to wear a kimono, the RP mortuary, and a She-Ra coloring book. She makes me dizzy!

And knotwork made a most generous contribution to the Blogathon, bringing the pledge total up to $334. Thank you so much! *hugses*

Oh, and why am I so tired, I wonder? Could it be that I stayed up 'til 2 a.m. playing Blob Twist? No, not that! Heavens forbid!

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