According to the article on Thanksgiving, the first recorded Thanksgiving in the United States was held by Spanish explorers in 1565 in what is now St. Augustine, Florida. That's right down the highway from where I live! I'm sure you couldn't care less!
Why are you reading my blog? Go eat some turkey!
Wednesday, November 26, 2008
Monday, November 24, 2008
Entry: Muggles (recording)
[A quick note of interest before I start the entry: I've just started twittering, if you care to follow my microbloggable exploits. --Regina]
"Bitch, please," I can hear you saying. "I've read Harry Potter. Or at least seen one of the movies. I know what muggles are. And I can tell from your sense of humor that you're a grade-A nerd, so you obviously do too, and have ever since that fateful summer in high school that you were volunteering at a summer reading program for kids at the library and picked up HPatSS to stay on top of things."
No, friend. You do not know what "muggles" means, and neither did I.
In the 1920s and 30s, "muggles" was a slang term among jazz musicians for cannabis. Louis Armstrong, who was "an enthusiastic user of marijuana," to quote the article, wrote a song called "Muggles" about his beloved pastime, which is what the article in question is about.
Here's a link to the song, courtesy of Songza.
Now, I'm not saying that J.K. Rowling is trying to get children addicted to anything beyond Harry Potter merchandise. I just think it's a hilarious coincidence, or perhaps a sly (and by "sly" I mean "obscure to the point of being nonsensical") reference.
"Bitch, please," I can hear you saying. "I've read Harry Potter. Or at least seen one of the movies. I know what muggles are. And I can tell from your sense of humor that you're a grade-A nerd, so you obviously do too, and have ever since that fateful summer in high school that you were volunteering at a summer reading program for kids at the library and picked up HPatSS to stay on top of things."
No, friend. You do not know what "muggles" means, and neither did I.
In the 1920s and 30s, "muggles" was a slang term among jazz musicians for cannabis. Louis Armstrong, who was "an enthusiastic user of marijuana," to quote the article, wrote a song called "Muggles" about his beloved pastime, which is what the article in question is about.
Here's a link to the song, courtesy of Songza.
Now, I'm not saying that J.K. Rowling is trying to get children addicted to anything beyond Harry Potter merchandise. I just think it's a hilarious coincidence, or perhaps a sly (and by "sly" I mean "obscure to the point of being nonsensical") reference.
Wednesday, November 19, 2008
Entry: Mongolia
It turns out that falling asleep for the last 15 minutes of a movie can spark a learning opportunity. That having been said, I still don't know how Mongol ended. I mean, I can guess, but still.
Anywho: Mongolia has a unique style of sport wrestling called Mongolian wrestling. Crazy name, I know. The cool part is the ranking system, which is only used for competitions held during the national holiday of Nadaam. Depending on how many rounds a competitor lasts, he gets a title for an increasingly badass animal. Surviving through the fifth round gets you the title "hawk," seventh and eight rounds get you "elephant," tenth and eleventh get you "lion," and the last man standing is named "Titan." On top of that, if a reigning Titan wins any subsequent Nadaam wrestling competition, his title is adorned with awesome epithets. (The example given by the article is "Invincible Titan to be remembered by all," but I think I could come up with something better. I wonder who gets to choose the epithet?) In any case, it's a lot cooler than a gaudy belt.
Anywho: Mongolia has a unique style of sport wrestling called Mongolian wrestling. Crazy name, I know. The cool part is the ranking system, which is only used for competitions held during the national holiday of Nadaam. Depending on how many rounds a competitor lasts, he gets a title for an increasingly badass animal. Surviving through the fifth round gets you the title "hawk," seventh and eight rounds get you "elephant," tenth and eleventh get you "lion," and the last man standing is named "Titan." On top of that, if a reigning Titan wins any subsequent Nadaam wrestling competition, his title is adorned with awesome epithets. (The example given by the article is "Invincible Titan to be remembered by all," but I think I could come up with something better. I wonder who gets to choose the epithet?) In any case, it's a lot cooler than a gaudy belt.
Monday, November 17, 2008
Entry: THX 1138
George Lucas' debut feature film THX 1138 was made for a budget of $777,777 and 77 cents, as set by producer Francis Ford Coppola.
A few comments spring to mind:
- Did George Lucas make a concerted effort to use it all? I have this mental image of him towards the end of production at a convenience store, counting out Slim Jims for the crew and periodically consulting a calculator.
- THX 1138 was released in 1971, but still, that's a hell of a low budget! I think cantankerous old people should use this information when lambasting youngsters: "You damn kids don't know the value of money! In my day, a cup of coffee was a quarter, and you could make a polished science fiction film with top-notch special effects for less than a million dollars!"
- It's a good thing they didn't go 6% over budget, because then they'd have to scrap the whole project.
...
Well, it's funny if you've seen the goddamn movie...
A few comments spring to mind:
- Did George Lucas make a concerted effort to use it all? I have this mental image of him towards the end of production at a convenience store, counting out Slim Jims for the crew and periodically consulting a calculator.
- THX 1138 was released in 1971, but still, that's a hell of a low budget! I think cantankerous old people should use this information when lambasting youngsters: "You damn kids don't know the value of money! In my day, a cup of coffee was a quarter, and you could make a polished science fiction film with top-notch special effects for less than a million dollars!"
- It's a good thing they didn't go 6% over budget, because then they'd have to scrap the whole project.
...
Well, it's funny if you've seen the goddamn movie...
Friday, November 14, 2008
This blog is important to the nation's stability
I forgot to mention something: I was listening to a press conference with Barack Obama last week, and he was talking about how his family wants to adopt a shelter dog, but one of his daughters is allergic and requires a hypoallergenic breed.
Mr. President Elect, TILfW is here to help.
(Yes, I realize he's probably had an aide figure all of this stuff out for him already. Shut up, I'm awesome.)
Mr. President Elect, TILfW is here to help.
(Yes, I realize he's probably had an aide figure all of this stuff out for him already. Shut up, I'm awesome.)
Linking to me has just become easier and more fun!
My friend Greg, proprietor of Art History, LOL, was kind enough to make a graphic for TILfW:
Hooray!
"Oh my God Regina, that's so cool I'm going to link to your blog right away!"
I know it is. And you can do so thusly:
<a href="http://thankswiki.blogspot.com"> <img src="http://i363.photobucket.com/albums/oo78/thankswiki/tilfwbutton.jpg" /> </a>
Hooray!
"Oh my God Regina, that's so cool I'm going to link to your blog right away!"
I know it is. And you can do so thusly:
<a href="http://thankswiki.blogspot.com"> <img src="http://i363.photobucket.com/albums/oo78/thankswiki/tilfwbutton.jpg" /> </a>
Wednesday, November 12, 2008
Entry: Stony Awards
High Times has its own annual award ceremony, the Stony Awards, which recognizes excellence in marijuana-related media. The Stonys have been held every year since 2000, except for 2004, when the judges wandered off to 7-11 for some snacks and couldn't decide between Cooler Ranch Doritos and Sour Cream & Cheddar Lays.
Most of the categories change from year to year (slight tangent: I am 100% in favor of the 2005 award for Best Queer Guy going to Ted Allen. He rocks.), but a handful remain constant.
The debate as to how cannabis effects the user's mind is currently unsolved, but I really have to wonder about anyone who declares Jennifer Aniston "best actress," no matter how you categorize it. (Okay, maybe best actress on Friends. Maybe.)
Most of the categories change from year to year (slight tangent: I am 100% in favor of the 2005 award for Best Queer Guy going to Ted Allen. He rocks.), but a handful remain constant.
The debate as to how cannabis effects the user's mind is currently unsolved, but I really have to wonder about anyone who declares Jennifer Aniston "best actress," no matter how you categorize it. (Okay, maybe best actress on Friends. Maybe.)
Monday, November 10, 2008
Entry: Julie Taymor
Sometimes I say to myself, "Hey, this director made a movie that I really liked, I wonder what else s/he's been doing recently?" And sometimes I don't want to know the answer.
Julie Taymor (Frida, Across the Universe) will be directing a Spiderman musical. No, really. Bono and the Edge have reportedly composed the music. No, really. I promise this isn't a throwaway joke from Family Guy.
Julie Taymor (Frida, Across the Universe) will be directing a Spiderman musical. No, really. Bono and the Edge have reportedly composed the music. No, really. I promise this isn't a throwaway joke from Family Guy.
Wednesday, November 5, 2008
Entry: Panama Canal Zone
Yesterday's presidential election was a historic first, and no, it's not because we elected the first non-white president, or the first Catholic vice president. Well, okay, those were historical firsts, but not as interesting as what I'm about to reveal.
This was the first presidential race where both major party candidates were born outside the continental United States. Obama, as is common knowledge, was born in Hawaii, and John McCain was born before plate tectonics separated North America into one continent.
I kid, I kid. McCain was born on a naval base in the Panama Canal Zone, a territory in Panama (of course) that was controlled by the United States from 1903 to 1979. Other notable natives of the PCZ (or "Zonians") include baseball player Rod Carew and Stephen Stills of Crosby, Stills & Nash[, & Young].
This was the first presidential race where both major party candidates were born outside the continental United States. Obama, as is common knowledge, was born in Hawaii, and John McCain was born before plate tectonics separated North America into one continent.
I kid, I kid. McCain was born on a naval base in the Panama Canal Zone, a territory in Panama (of course) that was controlled by the United States from 1903 to 1979. Other notable natives of the PCZ (or "Zonians") include baseball player Rod Carew and Stephen Stills of Crosby, Stills & Nash[, & Young].
Monday, November 3, 2008
Entry: Zoom schwartz profigliano
When I play a drinking game, it's usually something classic and simple, like Beer Pong or Another Round Until I'm Brave Enough to Hit the Dance Floor. But this one, Zoom Schwartz Profigliano-- or as the article describes it, "a verbal 'tag' game,"-- seems like something that would be fun to try the next time I feel the need to create an excuse to get likkered up.
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