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

Rumor has it that another storm front is set to sweep from the West coast to the East coast.

ooooh Nice Moon River sound and visuals!I do love a classic DG video with those changing colours, mmm I see the notes as blue and turquoise and lime green now.



We have relatively new Freeview channel called Sky Arts. Don't know why its free, long may it last! Its really good!

Last night they showed a very arty film about David Lynch called The Art Life. He was talking about the early experiences that led to the way he sees the world. I'm not greatly connected to his output in fact, but I found him to be a very engaging chap.

He remembered a life-changing moment when he was a student. He was creating a painting, but then he saw the image becoming animated in front of his eyes, quite unaided by him, and he also heard it! He heard the sound of the painting. So that shaped his artistic direction.



The colour of sound, these thoughts are all prompted by your video. All your fault, you made your hands go lime green .. heheh.

Awww yes!

Great details here paul, about George Burns and Gracie Allen and the hats! I love it! Now I have to acquaint myself with this TV show and Gracie. As usual, I know nought ..

Tis true in fact, men usually wore a hat. What do you call those type of hats? Are they called a Homburg?

Actually I just Googled 'what do you call a Humphrey Bogart type hat?' Seems that Humphrey wore a Borsalino.

An authentic felt hat by Borsalino.

Tis true, mvp.

I've never been a fancy hat person, my recent rainhat is a bit of a departure.

I've never been to a wedding where the wearing of a smart hat is expected. I don't know what I'd do if I had to.

Fortunately such an invite is not that likely. I'd be OK wearing a Bogarte Borsalino (incredibly pretentious statement ) but not a lady wedding hat.

I wear a beanie hat in the winter, and a baseball cap in the summer.

I've often wondered about a panama sunhat. Might try one this summer. Trouble is, Brighton is so windy, most days you have to hold onto your hat.



Headscarves! Now there's a thought. Thelma and Louise. Lipstick, shades and a headscarf. Would I wear a headscarf if I looked like Susan Sarandon or Geena Davis? heheh.

I used to wear a bandana on my head, tied at the back, I liked that look in fact. Went nicely with flared jeans.

I remember my mother in her headscarf. She was a very beautiful woman.

Ah yes, panama hats. A lot of guys wear panamas as sunhats, I think.

I can imagine you in a wide brimmed bush hat, Willem. Essential I'd say, but rather handsome also.

You have a hat collection, Mister?

How very delightful. Do you wear them all? Not all at once, obviously.



I lived with my cousin in Edinburgh for a year in the 70s, our flat was soooo cold we wore beanie hats, gloves and scarves in bed.

C used to wear a Sherlock style deerstalker when he was at university. He prefers to forget this particular event, but I think deerstalkers are very handsome hats. And practical.

http://vintagedancer.com/1950s/the-styles-of-1950s-mens-hats/

Fedoras were very popular, as were porkpie hats. Straw hats in the summer.

http://vintagedancer.com/1940s/1940s-mens-hats/

Fedoras, trilbies, homburgs, porkpies

http://vintagedancer.com/1930s/mens-hat-styles-of-the-1930s/

Fedoras, bowlers, boaters, homburgs

Ah, Hat Heaven! Thanks paul!

Of course, the Fedora.

I adora Fedora.



Eat my hat
Mad as a hatter
A feather in your cap
Old hat
To pull something out of a hat
Mad as a hatter
To put a thinking cap on
Pass the hat around
Keep it under your hat



The history of hats, plus associated idoms, events, contexts, and everything else. This could become an entire study.

Harvey! The two holes in Elwood's (or Harvey's) hat.

Ah yes!

Post 10000! Mister D!

Oh, I forgot to say, the person who fills post 10000, which you did, about ten postings ago, I just happened to notice, becomes immediately promoted to being The Person Who ...

The Person Who what??

Um.. well ..

What this role implies I have yet to realise, I think it could be to do with numerical happenings. The Person Who orchestrates numerical musical magic.

However, I'm making all this up on the spot, and being quite stupid really, so there might never be an answer.

Well, at least I didn't say you become The Person Who makes the tea.

Yes please!

Oh, you're off to make numerical musical magic. OK then ..

I like that story about David Lynch. Thank you for telling it.

About hats: there's a kind of hat called a trilby. The name comes from a play that was based on a novel that used to be really, really famous, but which almost no one has heard of now. 'Trilby'.

Trilby was an artists' model. Svengali played piano. The story is unbelievably weird. Here's a sample: A88007295 You would like this book.

George Burns, aka Nathan Birnbaum, was a vaudeville performer who ran into another young vaudeville performer, one Gracie Allen. She was supposed to become the 'straight man' for the act, but George realised that Gracie was funnier than he was. They got married over the opposition of her Catholic family. They adored each other.

Gracie was an important woman in entertainment. In 1940, she 'ran for president' on their radio show, as a joke. The response was tremendous: women all over the country writing in with their concerns.

They shared the mail with the real president, FDR. Her party was the Surprise Party.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PZ7xCrWr8ZQ

Apparently, according to this podcast that C was listening to, its not advisable to make one's bed immediately after getting up. Its better to leave it for an hour or so to air it, and to let out all the dust mites and things.

Things?? Yes. Many things.

I always make my bed immediately I get up, because I went to boarding school, and some disciplines cannot ever be reversed. Or can they? I am going to try.

What about fountains then?

Up until now I've never been a fan of ornamental fountains. Its not that I don't notice them, in fact they can be really awesome works of art, its just that I always want to get in them, or at least drink from them.



Presumably the fountain began as a source of drinking water for a community. Not for bathing though, I don't think. Who knows though? Must find out more.



Anyway, there's this little fountain in the central area of the apartment development where we live. Its outside the dentist, and the hair salon. Its more like what's known as a Water Feature in fact.

Well, to be honest, I've never much noticed it till lockdown. Now I pass it often on my way to the grocery store, and I'm in love with it.



I stop and stare at it in wonder, and watch the cascading water, and listen to it bubbling, and it soothes my soul.

To me, it could be one of the Seven Wonders of the World. Well, an Extra Wonder.

I always did wonder why the Wonders of the World were confined to Seven, I see many Wonders every day.. but that's another story.

Its a Wonder! I love my fountain. I have a photo of it in my phone, so I can talk to it even when I'm back in my room and not beside it.

(Where's the water smiley? )

For me, this is one of the benefits of lockdown. The small, previously unnoticed things, are becoming Wonders.

I will always love and thank my little fountain, even when the world wakes up again, and there's other places to go.

Trilby!!!

Of course!!

I knew the word because of the connection to Daphne du Maurier, but I didn't know more, this is completely awesome!

I am going to study this Guide Entry.

Sample?? You called a Guide Entry a sample. And I am currently and nerdily engaged in the world of samplers. When I'm not seeing God in Water Features. Now I understand!! A written sample! Ooooh I'm just soooo evolving.

What?? If you understand that last paragraph ... oh, you do.

Ah! Gracie Allen! Thankyouuuu again! I learn I learn.

I am even further evolving.

That's not a guide entry, it's a Post feature. I edit samples of public domain writing. I wrestle OCR (=Optical Character Recognition) into submissibility. So people can read it and see if it's worth their trouble.

I like fountains, too. I think the oldest one I've ever seen is a Roman fountain in Aachen. It was an old spa thing. An elderly lady was fetching water from it in a jar. The water is supposed to be medicinal.

I was horrified. I could smell the sulfur from where I was sitting. It smelled like my grandparents' well when the water table was low...

I'm diligently watching the episode of the George Burns and Gracie Allen TV show (1950-1958). I've worked my way through seasons 1-3. There might be a Guide Entry in it some day.

"Gracie, a love story" mentioned that Gracie ultimately admitted that her presidential campaign wasn't real. Nevertheless, she polled 40,000 votes, one of which was that of her husband.

She also went on a concert tour with a piece written for her, that was for one finger. She would play a scale, and the last note was wrong.

"For me, this is one of the benefits of lockdown. The small, previously unnoticed things, are becoming Wonders."

I think this is true. We have been going on a short walk from our house which takes us along by a stream. Beside the stream there is a line of Italian alders. We noticed them because they kept their leaves on until well into the winter, and the female catkins resemble small pine cones, which are rather attractive. I had never heard of Italian alders before. Now I shall look out for them.

Yes indeed, MVP - I do a 'commute' on workdays, and take a walk to the village, and it is fascinating what I notice that I didn't see when I didn't take that route so often, such as this A88008140

Fascinating consideration of hats. I have a lightweight fedora hat for summer, and I have a knitted beanie for winter. I did have a lovely deep purple homburg with a lilac trim, but it just made my head look even more massive than usual, so I didn't like to wear it, only to look at it

I also like fountains DG's Roman Fountain in Aachen reminds me of the waters at the City of Bath Spa that I visited many moons ago - being disablified, I was awarded a free glass of sulfurous water to drink for medicinal purposes. The Spa attendant drank a whole glass while I watched, to prove it was possible, but I only managed a few sips Very mineral rich, so it might do people good if they had a particular deficiency, but the sulfur was pretty overpowering!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OLAOak4309E

I first learned about fedoras thanks to Walt Disney.

I was a little kid. I don't remember whether my father wore fedoras or any other typical sort of hat.

I can imagine you looking like Vita Sackville-West in your rain hat, cc . Sissinghurst is lovely - the White Garden is particularly inspirational

I had heard that about leaving the bed for an hour or so to air it, too - I used to make the bed immediately when I was at university, because it doubled as a sofa, but these days I do fold the duvet down to let the air in. I can’t say I noticed any dust mites or things at uni, though, so it’s not too bad.

I found the Sky Arts channel on Freeview, too - I like the Artist of the Year competitions