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

Happy Birthday Kerr and David

*raises glasses to vetrans everywhere*

Now that's a beer I miss, Lentilla. Dixie Blackened Voodoo. Can you remind me of the brewer, so I can see if we have a distributor?

Mardsous...the mad monk. It's definitely a belgian. I'm not actually a fan of belgians -- they tend to be a bit too sweet for me. I tend towards the brown ales and porters. Fullers London Porter -- yum!

10/10 on the grammar. But that may be because I teach it...

7/10 on the grammar, and I agree with Ben that that particular answer was wrong. The actual problem was a punctuation error!

9/10. The couple one got me, though I should know it. As for the Mrs Brown and Mrs Jones question it needn't be ambiguous in context - perhaps we've been told that the ladies share a house, or that they don't want to somewhere where they might meet one or more of their neighbours. Mind you, I think it's more important for writers to watch out for stuff like that than for stuff like less/fewer.

Amy's comment about a punctuation error confused me; I wonder if she means it should be "Mrs." but that's a style that's going out over here. Guide house rules say no dot, and the Oxford Dictionary of English gives it without.

Happy birthday Kerr and David!

David, here is a pair of tap-shoes, very carefully made to fit owl-claws and designed to be removed and replaced with a beak.

Kerr, here is a beer mat. No, wait, it is a special beer mat. Any beer mug you put on it will suddenly become 23% fuller, getting you more beer for your money. How this works when the mug/ glass is full already, I don't quite know. You'll have to experiment.

Armistice Day - I went out just before eleven to get coffee, realised the time, and stopped on the street corner to bow my head and think for the two minutes.

Whereapon some absolute in a charity tee-shirt 'chugged' me - 'hey, do you have a few minutes to talk about [charity's name]? Sure you do. Yeah. Come on, talk to me, I won't bite. It's for a good cause' etc etc. I silently set fire to his clipboard with my Patented Glare of Librarian Doom, but he carried on oblivious, clearly decided I was WEIRD with a capital WEE because I was just standing there without saying anything, and went and chugged someone else. And when the two minutes were up, I did infact very very nearly go over and rip his ears off and stick them up his nostrils, but weediness, the cold wind, and undercaffeination talked me out of it. Unsatisfied with self for rest of entire day.

I was wearing a poppy and everything. GRRRRRRR.

[GDZ]

Yet another difference between British and American English, huh? I'm currently (well, not today, because there's no school today) helping to drill into students' heads that you need a period at the end of abbreviations.

Night, everyone.

B

Lil said, "*raises her glass* A toast to those beloved salonistas serving in the Sandy Places -- Peripatetic Warrior Monk, eatsmice, and Seth! And a toast to those who have served their country. Whether or not we approve of war or the foreign policies pursued by our respective leaders, there is no doubt that national service is a sacrifice which deserves our greatest respect."

Every year, I called my Dad on Veteran's Day, to thank him for his service in WWII. He died in February, and I can't call him anymore, but I like to think he knows I'm still thanking him.

And thank you to all the servicepersons, and veterans -- past, present and future -- for your service and your honor, in defense of your countries. I salute you.

Lil said, "I hope that stays up (referring to the article Hyp posted on the 90th Anniversary of Armistice Day). And I think poppies are a better symbol of the day than flags."

My dad used to get a poppy for his lapel every year; I haven't seen poppies in the US in quite some time -- does anyone in the US know where they might be available, these days? I don't have a VFW hall in my area, at least I haven't seen one; pretty sure that's where my dad used to get his.

*joins in the toast*

That's actually one of the grievences I have with my mother-in-law--she does *not* agree that those serving should be honored, regardless of how you feel about where they may be serving

Defending the realm is a tough job, i have the same grievance; people are happy to honour the "Great Fallen" from the first warbut seem to turn a blind eye to the people serving their countries right at this moment.

They said this mystery never shall cease:
The priest promotes war, and the soldier peace.

-William Blake, "To God" [The Rossetti Manuscript], 1810

LOVE that Blake quote, thanks Lofty!

Happy birthday, of the belated variety, to David and Kerr... and , what could be better?

*Drinks an for Kerr, drinks an for David, drinks an for those who have fallen around the world defending what (one hopes) they believed was right.*

*stumbles*

I had some presents here to give out. Where were they?



Hmmmm. No tags on? Um... I guess you can each pick. One is a backlog pass, stolen during my great Lincoln County adventure. The other is a pound of coffee from the Café. Not sure which is which.

Your welcome SpaceCadette, now i'll just watch see what you and Amy have got when youve unwrapped those presents

sausage aint i? Worst


can i still watch you unwrapping what you got?

Happy birthday David and Kerr .
A for all of our war dead .
Ben your description of builders tea is spot on . I like mine no sugar in a slightly chipped and stained mug . Sophistication is not in my vocabulary .

Montana, that's the Dixie Brewing Company, based in New Orleans, LA. The Flying Saucer has it here in Ft. Worth, so it's not impossible to get.

Happy birthday, David!

Happy birthday, Kerr!

Drinks all around, for the birthday boys and for our guys and girls who serve in the military.

Lil,
Yes, I served twenty years in the Air Force. A long and particularly undistinguished career. I ~did~, however, learn a lot about electronics, teamwork, and people along the way. Did I ever see action in a war zone? No. I always had a support role in providing telephone and computer comm. I'm thankful to God that I didn't have to make the ultimate sacrifice--lay down my life.

If that had happened, the circumstances surrounding my German grandmother's escape from East Prussia during the Russian invasion would all have been for naught. Oma (Elisabeth) took all three of her daughters [my Mom was the middle child] to the seaport at Danzig to board the refugee ship Wilhelm Gustloff, as she had papers authorizing the family aboard. When they arrived the docks, the city was in chaos, a veritable sea of humanity seeking exodus to safety. By that time, the Wilhelm Gustloff had already been filled to overflowing: the ship would normally accommodate as many as 3,000 passengers, though records indicate she was packed with about 10,000 people. My Oma and her daughters were diverted to a U-boat--a newer model called an Elektro-Boot--and they commenced travel underwater. At some point, the captain ordered the boat to surface and allowed some passengers to come 'topside' to see what they'd heard on sonar. Evidently a Russian submarine was hiding just off the Stolpe Banks in the Baltic Sea, and had sent three torpedoes straight amid-ship into the refugee liner. The Wilhelf Gustloff sank within half an hour, dumping almost all hands into the icy waters of the Baltic, in the dead of winter, January, 1945. If my Oma had secured passage on the ship, our family would likely have perished and you folks would never have known me. Your call if that's a good or bad thing...

This whole era is a story I'm ~still~ working on, and should eventually be published as "Empty Cocoons." It's a love story about Arthur and Elisabeth (my German grandparents) that just happens to have a war breaking out all around them. I'll let y'all know when it's available at the booksellers. Might make an engaging movie, as well.

My father did put his life on the line, in Korea and in Thailand, during the Cold War period. He was an Air Traffic Controller early in his career, then swapped to a maintenance job in Doppler and Inertial Navigation systems. In his latter years in the Air Force, he became an instructor for this radar equipment, and after he retired he went back yet again as a government contractor to continue to teach. It was his profession until the day he passed away, almost four years ago.

My gratitude goes out to him for his service to his country, and for the stability he brought to our family. I salute the man: father, husband, friend, military man. Here's to you, Dad!

B4icryinmybeer&makeaspectacleofmyself

My stepfather served in Korea and Viet Nam, and was injured in the latter. I called him earlier today. My grandfather was *on* Midway when it was hit.