h2g2 The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy: Earth Edition

Welcome to the Atelier. Do please read our forum page at A304354 and acquaint yourself with our habits and customs. We continue to aspire to the best in netiquette, come what may.

It has long been our custom to initiate a new thread after about a thousand posts, which generally takes about three weeks. This time we find ourselves approaching two and a half thousand posts in the same period. Courtesy was our scribe for this past conversation; he did a fantastic job, and I wish I hadn't whistled up his notes so soon, because circumstances -- real life and a whole lot of webjello -- kept me from launching a new thread till now. I apologose for that, because some things that happened have not, after all been recorded.

But Z has volunteered to scribe for this conversation, and for that I am as ever, grateful.

This past conversation has been extremely difficult at times, with both hardware and negative emotion running amuck. Your hostess was deeply gratified to know that her position on netiquette and forum behaviour was endorsed by Italics attending the meet, and is delighted by the implementation of the BBC/New Mexico Entente Cordiale. I intend to appoint Billy the Kid as plenipotentiary.

Here's what happened in the last conversation, or in most of it. So much happened that much of this is necessarily in list form. Again, my thanks to Courtesy for his help! *Chloe appears translucently at Lil's side, and presents Courtesy with a Scribe's Plume, a pen in a quartz holder with 64X carved on the side*

New and Returning Researchers

logicus tracticus philosophicus (a.k.a. Tracky)
Hands in the Sky
Nog the Noggin
PJCheyD

Reappearances

GreyDesk reappears.
Egon reappears in another form.
Styx the Rat, who had popped up at the very end of the previous thread, again made a cameo appearance in this one.
sea reappears.
eatsmice reappears
ox reappears
Demon Drawer reappears and promises to find another script where he can have his wonted starring role. Not ~too~ suave, though.


The last conversation spanned the end-of-year holidays and we celebrated with a freshly-caught goo spruce, which Amy delivered with appropriate flair, and which was decorated rather eclectically with humorous ornaments. The tree, which had been collected in the usual way with a hayride, was removed on Twelfth Night and is currently being taken back up the mountain by a crack, hand-picked team of questers.

Everyone wants to know -- has abcBen succeeded in her latest attempt to stop smoking?

There was a meet in London, during which scores (as many as 80, we hear) of HooTooers gathered to celebrate Egon's height. Photos were taken to attest to this. Your hostess was thrilled to see such a grand representation of Salonistas in one physical place. It was enough to get the Amurricans muttering, enough to make Affi nearly drop his impenetrability. The southwesterns seem to know each other in person, but a grand coast-to-coast meet? Could it happen?

New articles -- Z finished a guide entry on gliding.

Quizzes

Most found out how much global hectares they used. As a whole, we are an environmentally friendly lot, consuming less than the average for each person's point of reference. Smurf names were also determined.

There were also birthday celebrations for Gw7en.

Courtesy and MR rode out a 6.5 earthquake in California. MR did it in an MRI machine.
Continued reports from Return of the King, general concensus is that its a fantastic movie, full of drool-worthy actors.
Marv had an MRI machine prove he did have a brain.
Lil was called to jury duty and a discussion on how the time could be spent ensued. Apparently homework is out as public nudity is frowned on in the courthouse.
MR experimented with different hair colors.
Munchkin stuck the heater permanently on to Handel's Halleluiah Chorus. Clearly the wrong Handel.
Several salonista's joined nation states while others unveiled their countries.
MR's little one learns about trash bags, charity, and not writing on furniture.
Solnushka left Moscow, returned to England, and commenced a job in London.

Z dealt with the issue of too many things in a confined space, suggestions were offered and discussed. This led to different Salonistas' views of living conditions, from slob pit to organized.

It was found that blood pressure is usually higher at a doctor's office. Doctors were much on our minds, since a lot of people fell ill during the holiday period.

Z had an interesting encounter with a lemonade bottle and a knife and, as Courtesy put it, "wackiness ensues. Apparently Z's lemonade is the equivalent of Sprite (who knew, besides Lil)."

There were several nostalgia attacks, in the course of describing how role-playing works in H2G2, and Lil gave a recount of the Pan-Dimensional Safari, that seems to have been an accurate predition of the future of hootoo. We also recollected the vagaries of the last virtual presidential election and wondered whether the Post Team will tighten up the rules next time to forbid kidnapping and murder attempts. By coincidence Demon Drawer, who is remembered for the Affair of the Attempted Poisoning of a Campaign Official, has returned to the atelier. Or is it a coincidence?


Dogs and other Pets

Zeppo has become a shoulder dog, or at least is trying to. Marv's roomate got a new dog, Marv isn't angry with it yet. The question of what house trained genetically engineered pet would you have was posed by Z. Such choices as small elephant, big tiger (but with a cat's disposition), Panda, and of course unau were offered up. A discussion of pumas in the UK ensued. Oetzi's dogs managed to not get sick during the xmas snacking, or when they pilfered turkey, and they also appear to have been the culprit when Oetzi's son found an "itchy creepy thing" in his armpit. Speculation was, however, rampant.


The prospect of a Film Club was bandied around. Z is quite enthusiastic and determined about this. Judging by the discussion that took up a lot of the end of the last conversation, it will do well; we were all composing Film Marathons We'd Like to See. Lists. Ah, nothing quite like lists.


Other Discussions

the real Arthur Dent
who's a dog versus cat person. Decided that most preferred cats, with Zeppo as the obvious exception
Different recipes for tradional xmas food
the commercialism of xmas and how it has affected various peoples perceptions of the holiday
How best to annoy Eatsmice's friend's ex husband by doing things to the BMW.
dockside views and seas, and who has and has not seen the ocean. G7 has not
Internet based LAN attacks -- Ben is suffering some prolonged activity.
the trials and tribulations of different markets and food shopping.
dreaming in languages you don't know and reading books you are currently reading
Irrational fears of air being injected in veins
ladies trouser styles and fits.
stepfamilies and the trials of such
the Underguide and its merits.
pre-mod regarding contentious issues.
different explosive every day materials, from home brew, to soda bottles, to a tin of beans
weight and who's on or planning on going on diets (again!)
the Hay diet, and, separately, quorn
how Z can build a roof garden for little money (which culminated in a shoping spreee for plants under guidance from abcBen)
paraffin heaters and the different colors of available paraffin
what constitutes Finnish xmas food


That was the last conversation. And now, on with the new! Join us in the salon and see what topics lie in store.

* GD reappears a bit quicker this time *


... then promptly goes off to bed

*Matina brings Greydesk a cup of hot cocoa with a dash of brandy in a First-to-the-Forum mug*

ARGH! I was so close! I said "I'm going to post immediately after everyone else so that I don't get behind again."

But then I noticed a choice between this thread and a thread in the Magic Forest. I posted at magic forest first because I said, "Well, what's the harm that can come from letting *two* posts get ahead of me? Ha ha."

Curse You Robert Frost! Why Must You So Often Lead Me Astray???

Hello, everybody ! I have resolved to try not to fall so far behind on backlog in this new thread. Good summary!

"...and miles to go before I sleep..."

Never did like Frost much. I prefer Eliot, myself. And Dante.

I'd like to share a little something with you all. Those of you in academia will likely crack up, and the rest will simply scratch their heads and wonder what drugs I'm on, but if you go here:
http://www.theory.org.uk and click on either the trading cards or the legos, it can be quite amusing. If you know anything about social theory, particularly about Foucault and the postmodernists, it's even funnier. And for our artists in residence, I thought you might like the section under "Artlab," as it's goal is to get people creating things.

The trading cards are my favorite.

As for playing doctor, yes indeed. I kissed my first boy, David McCluskey, at 5, as well. I was a bit precocious back then.

....and there weren't even any XML errors slowing me down....grumble, mumble, grumble....frobnitz, frobnosia, prob fset cond, zmemqb intbl foo....azarath, metrion, zinthos....xyzzyplughplover....ozmoo....

*Glances at MR's site. The bad mood vanishes as he laughs uproariously*

Oh, that's hilarious! If Hari Seldon were done as a comedy, we'd get this website! How did you find this place?

Look Zeppo, we get the Eigth to the Forum water bowl again.

Affy failed to mention that the book he mentioned in the last thread was authored by one of the people responsible for Mystery Science Theater 3000.

I'll have to look at that theory site later. It's loading far too slowly tonight. From what I've seen so far, I know several people who will appreciate it.

Thank you Chloe.

*gladly gives the scribe duties to Z*

Courtesy

An update on the Dog Situation.

That damned dog is chewing up everything in our living room. Granted it is not much of a living room, but I would much rather not have a bunch of stuff chewed to shreds all over the place.

Hilarious MR !

I am not particularly objecting to the Dog yet, but I do forsee problems down the road. One is I'm fairly confident the dogs owner will do little to clean up the piles of "dog scat" already beginning to accumulate around the yard.

The Orange Cat is having to adjust to the new resident in the house. The Dog persistently chases him, trying to nip him. Mysteriously, the cat has refrained from full use of claws. We had to place the cat's food on a shelf, because the dog would eat it all.

I found it while doing a google search on foucault. I think I added something like theory and summary to the limiters, and this popped up.

I personally like the trading cards. This is my favorite one...
http://www.theorycards.org.uk/card18.htm

Affy, do you like Foucault's dungeon?

Blast, I am filled with anticipation for something that will not happen till Wed night. I am going to a meeting at my church that is for the lost generation of nearly every church. From the moment you graduate highschool, till the day you bring your infant in to the church it is a fairly bleak exsistance. Jim, our new associate pastor, is having the young adult crowd (20s-30s) gather to discuss what we would like to see in a ministry aimed at that age group.
Jim has quite a lot to do with why I have become an active member again. The last few years I have rarely gone to church, but now I am always there (and have been roped into becoming an Usher by GDZ's dad). The fact that we have a minister who is interested about more than the number of kids in my family or teh size of the donation I am makign to the restoration fund is vary nice.

In other news I just had to shoo the dog out of my room. Is there any way short of physically barring the canine from my room by closign the door, that I can train him to not wander in here?

Just spoke with my sister. You may recall that she has temporary custody of my children. She was saying that we need to start thinking about custody at the end of the school year. The school year ends in 5.5 months.

The X and I had an agreement before that definitely was in her favor, as it was never put on paper, that agreement does not exist. So, I have a task, come up with a custody plan that favors me but looks to her like it favors her. The reason for that last statement is fairly simple: my X is not a very good parent, her idea of parenting seems to be: put the kids in front of the TV and then go talk to her friends.

If anyone has any advice, I will gladly take it under consideration.

I must take exception to something you said Marv.

"From the moment you graduate highschool, till the day you bring your infant in to the church it is a fairly bleak exsistance"

I have two kids, as you well know, and I still feel much the same way you have Marv.

GDZ, I don't know. I guess the whole question is, why does your sis have custody? Because if she has custody because they were removed from your X, you have a stonger leg to stand on. Family ties and all that.

Ah, so the dog has turned out to be a hot button, eh? As it happens, I had just fed the outside cat, turned away for a couple of minutes, and turned back to see one of the next door dogs finishing off the food. "Annie, you obese little s**t!" I yelled, and she scampered off.

Annie is one of those dogs that you look at and can't figure out how anybody could like it. Her coat is a sort of gray steel wool in texture and color, unpleasant to the hand. She's lapdog-sized and fat, with spindly little legs, completely spoiled, and has just one trick which she exercises to death, namely a sort of Elvis sneer. "Oh look," says her owner fondly, "she's smiling at you!"

But Annie and I know that she is sneering at me. I know she's a vaguely dog-shaped weasel, and she knows that I know, and she knows there's nothing I can do about it, and so she puts her paws up on my leg with her back to her owner, and sneers at me.

Now that's a dog.

And here am I trying to decide whether we should take a dog or not.

[T&R]