Be a dandelion puffball in a sea of monkeygrass

Do not pour liquid into the angry 'vagina'

Or so the comments on YouTube indicated. :)



Thanks YKWIA for the link!

What the...?

Kentucky law requires Homeland Security credit God (link good for a few days)

And I quote:

Kentucky's Homeland Security office must publicize God's benevolent protection of the state in its reports under the 2006 law that organized the department.

Under the law, Homeland Security's religious duties come before anything else the department does, including distribution of millions of dollars in federal grants and analyzing possible threats.

The law lists the office's initial duty as "stressing the dependence on Almighty God as being vital to the security of the Commonwealth."

I'm a ninth-generation Kentuckian; I'm very proud of my heritage and I think my state is often unjustly maligned. But then there are cases like this. Sometimes I think the people (and leaders) of the Commonwealth of Kentucky are just loopy as a bowl of fruit, to use a phrase that's become popular amongst my circle of friends.

Odd

A Spanish artist has created a writing spoon that uses coffee or soup as ink. See the video here:



Got that one from an article on Gizmodo.

Brain HURT!

'Chainsaw Maid' from Takena (as featured on YouTube)



Brains! Brains!

Strange Christian thing of the day

Okay, I have trouble remembering when Easter is, since it's not one of my holidays, but for a wonder I remembered not only that Easter is Sunday, but today was Good Friday. But even so, I was not prepared for what I found as I was cruising down Chinoe this afternoon. I looked in my rear-view mirror and the woman in the car behind me is holding a large (10-12 inch) crucifix out of her window. My first reaction is that she somehow recognised the Hekate figure on my car and was calling upon God to smite the evil idol-worshipper. (Not that I worship idols, but that's another topic). My second thought was that she was just going along with a literal 'Jesus is my co-pilot' thing. Weird, but there are weirder things in the world. She turned at Gainesway and kept it out, so it wasn't aimed at me. Let's face it, 9.5 out of 10 Christians would not recognise Hekate even if She were blatantly shown. So, later I realised that this might be some sort of cognate to the pilgrims who go to Jerusalem and carry life-sized crosses (or some other places where they go through mini-crucifixions) along the path Jesus was reported to have done so they can better understand what he did for mankind. I could see where driving a similar route could at least make you more mindful of your Saviour's trevails, but I don't see where toting a 2 lb cross whilst behind the wheel is really going to get you into the mindset of the suffering he reportedly endured. You just look silly. And what if you drop it and some car runs over it? Or worse, what if you're in an accident? That's got to be pretty distracting, especially if you're praying as well. People, this is something you do whilst *walking*.

Just my musings. I hope I haven't offended anyone. I don't mind if you believe that Jesus was the son of God (there were many in the ancient world...my favourite was the whole Zeus appearing as a shower of gold story). I don't mind if you believe he resurrected (again, several cases reported). But the whole one-hand-on-the-wheel-one-hand-on-the-cross is a little creepy. Next time, just put it on your grille like people do wreaths at Christmastime.

Anyway, for those who are sane who are merely marking this important holiday of your faith, happy Easter. And for those of you who have thrown this sadness followed by joy thing to the wind and just gone with the very pagan theme of coloured eggs and chocolate bunnies, happy Easter too.

(I didn't say Happy Spring (my holiday, known as Ostara to some, Alban Eilir to others)--Eilir being rather recognisable to readers of this blog as it is my middle name and means spring, rebirth, or (as a different but related word), butterfly. Anyway, Happy Spring!)

Also, the full moon tonight is very pretty. That's why Easter is as early as it is. It has to fall on the first Sunday after the first full moon of spring (note the word 'after'--if the full moon is on the first Sunday after the vernal equinox, then Easter is the next Sunday. Got it?) Passover, meanwhile, begins on the 15th of Nisan (at sunset, as the Jewish day goes from sunset to sunset, the month from new moon to new moon). This year it's much later than Easter, beginning at sunset April 19th this year. (Note: In Israel and amongst Reform Jews, the holiday is seven days long...amongst the Orthodox and Conservatives outside Israel, it is eight, to be on the safe side and make sure the whole period is commemorated, as days are based on the moon and not on some clock.)

Okay, there's my splurge into spring holiday lore.

My precious...(sorry, wrong series)

I have a copy of Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows, courtesy of the Tates Creek Kroger, which was selling them tonight at 40% off. I have not opened it yet, but even though I have to get up in five hours I may have to read the first chapter at least. There is something wonderful about completing a series of books in your collection. I am very excited about reading it, but I want to savour it rather than run right through it, especially as it is the last.

I also went to Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix tonight. I enjoyed it immensely. I thought it flowed better than the others, for one, rather than getting bogged down like some of the other films did. They handled Sirius' death a little different from the book, which I found interesting. The Weasley twins' farewell to Hogwarts was different than I imagined, but still fun. And despite not being quite toad-like enough, Imelda Staunton was excellent as Dolores Umbridge--perky, insane, and evil all at once. And speaking of madness, Helena Bonham Carter was perfect for Bellatrix Lestrange. Evanna Lynch was perfect as Luna Lovegood, too. Whoever did the casting did an excellent job.

The other day I mentioned a trailer for The Golden Compass. I'd also been shown one for Stardust, which looks interesting--and certainly it looks like Michelle Pfeiffer steals the show. It was on the trailer reel tonight, too. Here it is:



It's based off a graphic novel by Neil Gaiman and Charles Vess, so hopefully it will be quite good.

There's also my favourite fantasy series of all coming to the big screen--no, believe it or not, it's not the Harry Potter books, but rather Susan Cooper's Dark is Rising series. Here's the trailer that I suppose is supposed to appeal more to modern kids (the original sequence was set in the 70s):



A second one has more emphasis on the fantasy aspects, I suppose.

Obviously there has been some mucking about with the story. Will is supposed to be English, for one thing. This Will Stanton is not. I'll reserve judgement, but I rather unsure of how I'll react to the changes they've made. Still, it's worth a look.

Today was nice, full of Harry Potter and tofu goodness. Strange thing of the day: appaerntly someone has sent me a not-so-subtle hint by signing me up for a subscription to Glamor magazine. I thought I had someone else's mail at first, but lo, it had my name on it. Despite the fact that I rarely put product in my hair I have a secret fondness for makeup tips and the like (I subscribed to Seventeen as a teenager, for example), so I'm okay with it. But I wish I knew who gave me the subscription. Weird.

Well, I have four-and-a-half hours now to sleep, and a chapter of Harry Potter to peek at. Good night.