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

Bowling alleys? You frequent those dens of inequity? Tsk, tsk!

Only when forced by 'friends'.

Bowling. Ugh. I'm horrid at it. My absolute all-time best score is 15.

I'm terrible at bowling and darts (any projectile throwing really - luckily for my long suffering hubby). The last time I played darts, I cleared the pub!!!

Speaking as someone who is reasonably proficient at bowling, what always narks me is those amateurs who knock all the pins over after bouncing it between the lane buddies six times and then shout out 'Oops, I've knocked them all over. Is that bad?'

I'm not even that lucky! I have very little co-ordination and sense of direction - its a wonder I ever get anywhere in one piece when I'm driving!!!

Hmmm. Sounds like a stereotypical female driver. That is in fact one of those stereotypes which is completely unfounded, as my mother is the best driver I know.

My mother is an abysmal driver. Luckily, she realizes this enough to avoid the freeways; she always travels them as a passenger.

Ooh, I don't think I'm THAT bad as I've been a driver for nearly 36 years and haven't had an accident - seen hundred though - all in my wake! (I'll probably go out and crash the car today having said that). I'm aware of my limitations and keep within them, especially if I don't know where I'm going, having a terrible sense of direction!

On this subject, I heard a really interesting article on BBC Radio 4 last week on how females' brains are indeed different to the male of our species. Apparently, women are genetically programmed to have little "spacial" ability (ie: map reading) but have, as a rule other attributes which are necessary to rearing children etc. Men, being slightly colour blind is something to do with assisting hunting as most major predators have monochromatic (gosh - that's a long word for moi) vision, i.e. cats and dogs. While the "hunted" species have a vast spectrum of colours available for vision. Of course, there are always exceptions and this is just a theory that has been proposed after analysing the human brain..... ("dicing" it I suppose...)

Our lack of color perception just may explain the collection of furniture in my old apartnmet, and over half of my wardrobe. And that bit on spatial relations should be posted on my passenger-side sunshade. Every time a girl thinks I'm lost and I need to stop for directions, I'll flip it down for her.

I hate map reading for John as we always end up having an argument and my throwing the map at him! Nowadays, I just play the dumb housewife, smile sweetly and tell him to pull over and read the map. It saves friction!

If it's run under that sofa, beware! Pull back the comfy chair and reveal the four-foot tall arch in the wall: you've got SHEEP!

Fruitbat

Pelagianism, within the context of The Eagles Brood anyway, is the doctrine espoused by a bloke called Pelagius. I don't know if he's real or someone the author made up to provide a foil for the small group of Pope-wantabees who were changing the Church doctrine at the time and excommunicating a lot of people who didn't agree with them.
Pelagius was one who didn't agree with them. He was excommunicated and his teaching, which made sense to eveyrone who heard it, was banished on pain of excommunication.
When this doctrine hit Britain, where Pelagius's teachings held sway for at least a generation, the people were terrified for their immortal souls (although they cared less about their mortal bodies; being killed in battle happened a little too frequently in this story).

Whether this is true or not, it makes a bloody good read.

Fruitbat

Maggie may not get a state pension, but given that she was elected twice, and the people had some idea of what she was doing to them, she might come back as a televangelist...or one of those network-marketing people out to sell you on selling someone else something that may or may not be worth buying.....

Really makes me wonder, though, since most televangelists fit into another quotation that I found, attributed to a five year old boy "God lives in a box all week and comes out on Sundays, dressed in funny clothes, to talk about money."

Fruitbat

My parents seem immune to this sort of thing, as both are Guide and SCout leaders and so have excellent map-related skills...

Hello? We seem to have got back on topic....

This sounds interesting. Where did you read it?

Hmmm...

loved the entry.. but you forgot the "laying of the hand" onto the TV screen, as if god was going to heal you throught the air waves

Don't we need aid in solihull. hopefully the church will come and demolish the town to make it more bareable for all of us

Then move to the Coast!