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

Me I'll be at a party with friends. The same bunch of people I've spent the last few new years with in fact. Let's see, I've been in a bunkhouse in N. Wales (and the nearest pub of course), a campsite in the midlands, peoples houses. Never some public square or taking lumps of coal to the neighbours.

Hi, Phil.
Actually, Munchkin, I'll be in .......GLASGOW.... for Hogmanay
At me mothers. So should be reasonably rowdy. Then one week on, I should probably be able to make it. So 'Huzzah!' all round
As for the pain, well, driving is still the hardest.

A friend of mine is considering going to Glasgow again for hogmanay. His problem is getting there with the trains in such a shambles

Yes, the being in public squash zones lost it's appeal for me a long time ago. As for the coal, Phil, some people still do it!

I tried Edinburgh a couple of times, but I spent far too much time lost to make it fun Hence I have spent the last few years in Glasgow, normally out west trashing some unsuspecting poor souls flat The centre of Glasgow is always a bit of a let down, a couple of years ago the fireworks didn't go off until one in the morning!

Oh and my parents still do the first footing thing. A small piece of coal, a slice of shortbread and a bottle of whisky are the usual items. Of course the aim is to do as many houses as you can, while still making it back with all three. Avoiding eating the coal is advised.

Well after a bottle of whiskey, perhaps a small amount of coal wouldn't seem too odd a thing to do. I'm sure shortbread burns well...

I remember when I used to live on Islay (small island off the west coast of scotland for those of you who don't know), New Year and Fitst footing was huge. Start off by going round to a few peoples houses with the obligatory 'carrie-oot' ie bag full of bottles, shortbread, chocolates, lump of coal or peat (peat was easier, because you broke a bit off and put it in the fire). Then everyone would come round to ours for soup and rolls, then off out to somebody's house for the rest of the evening/night/wee small hours.
many's a time I had to carry my father home

[WM]

*Affy bounds up the stairs, carrying a large red bag, and wearing a big Santa Clause hat. He grins a huge grin, and a twinkle enters his eye, not unlike the twinkle seen when he's about to snatch up a rare treasure while on an adventure. He motions to the bag that he's carrying*

CLI is going to launch its own line of toys! Until I think of a better name, they'll just be Crater Toys, but I'll improve that later. I've got a lot of stuff, and because it's so early that I will only get sales from people who enjoy the thrill of last minute shopping, I'll be able to corner the market for after Christmas sales! I've got the Calcu-Gator (does your homework, and then eats it for you! Invented by Afgncaap5.), Prolonged Absence Gum (Gonna be gone for a while? Just stick a wad of this in your mouth, and you follow the story along without needing to reply! Invented by Garius Lupus.), giant toy soldiers (the perfect butlers for a Christmas Party, combining patented Perpetual Clockwork Technology with that of a player piano, as they fulfil Christmas duties and march to "March of the Wooden Soldiers (last feature is optional).), toy snow cannons (the new age of snowball fighting), and much, much more! I've always wanted to break into the toy buisiness!

BTW, speaking of clockworks, does anyone know where I might find Chloe? I've got a special color of paint that she requested.

Unfortunately, we - at least my circle of friends - have lost many of the New Year's traditions. We have spent the last couple in our apartment, drinking and laughing at the nes casts.

Last year's was the best for this. We saw just what happens when you keep a talking head up past his bedtime. Speaking of New Years...

...Matina, a please. Thank you.

G7

Unfortunately, we - at least my circle of friends - have lost many of the New Year's traditions. We have spent the last couple in our apartment, drinking and laughing at the nes casts.

Last year's was the best for this. We saw just what happens when you keep a talking head up past his bedtime. Speaking of New Years...

...Matina, a please. Thank you.

G7

Unfortunately, we - at least my circle of friends - have lost many of the New Year's traditions. We have spent the last couple in our apartment, drinking and laughing at the news casts.

Last year's was the best for this. We saw just what happens when you keep a talking head up past his bedtime. Speaking of New Years...

...Matina, a please. Thank you.

G7

Hey Loony.

When my rota says RDO it usually means Rota'd Day Off. So you've got Christmas Day and Boxing Day by the look of it. Plenty of time to get pissed as a parrot.

As to the other acronyms, I haven't the foggiest. But you're not working a single 8-hour shift on any of those days, so sounds like a good job

Ah.

Didn't a reply used to go next to the post you clicked on?

I was catching up with the thread, you see, and erm...well...sorry.

*shuffles feet, looks embarassed*

(two dots back, where Loonytunes queried his rota for New Zealand Airlines)

*Has found Chloe, quiety dusting the library. He walks up to her and hands over the special shade of mauve that she requested, and can't help but notice a strange looking book. "The History Of TIme Tunnels In H2G2." He picks up the book, and notices that it's written by Billy Blaze. Always eager to hear about some new postulate, Affy goes to the veranda to peacefully look over the book*

Right, now I've caught up.

New Year in Edinburgh is a huge event, but probably only enjoyable if you're 18 and like being jammed in Princes Street with two hundred thousand other 18-year-olds whose raison d'etre is to snog everything that isn't a bus stop, to climb on top of it if it is a bus stop, and once on top of the bus stop, to launch themselves and their bottle of vodka onto the people below. If you're lucky, they won't be sick in mid air.

This didn't matter in the Olden Days, when it was so cold at Hogmanay that everything froze on contact with the air, and a small pile of Artex was all that resulted. With global warming what it is (and let's be honest - you know it's a fact when you can't even have an ice rink that stays frozen in Edinburgh in December), flying vomit is a real hazard these days. Gone is the gentle tinkling sound of someone releiving themselves in the cold night air, or even the spectacle of someone stuck atop an icy column of translucent green until the thaw.

So now that I've turned into Victor Meldrew, I never go near Princes Street, and only first-foot people who have the same type of living-flame gas fire, so that we can exchange the same type of artificial coal.

*floating in*

Finally made it... hi all!

Matina, a Y please...

*Springie, champagne bottle*

*pours herself a *

Lil, I discovered a new (to me) artist today, and I just love her drawings/paintings!
http://elfwood.lysator.liu.se/loth/j/a/janet/elfqueen.jpg.html

*Affy continues flipping through the book*


Hmmm, time tunnels in h2g2 are more common than we think. Odd. I've been looking for a while, and not found many.

Oh, wait. For the easiest to find time tunnel in h2g2, go to page 964.

*Affy flips through the pages, and looks shocked at the rift in the space time continuum that's in the book. He considers it for a second, then decides that he needs to borrow the book for a thorough examination of it. He closes the book, and heads downstairs to the lab*

Be careful, Affy. You might end up in a time before books were invented, and then you won't have the book to get you back...

Okay, I'm new here, but I see sharing links to art on the web is encouraged. Here's one about the Scottish Colourists, an exhibition of whose work is currently showing in my home town of Edinburgh. It's been one of the most popular shows the gallery's ever run.

http://www.royalacademy.org.uk/www-f.htm?http%3A//www.royalacademy.org.uk/p-ex-scot.htm

Enjoy!