Antarctica: China plans third facility

China eyes 3rd Antarctic facility
By Sun Xiaohua (China Daily)
Updated: 2007-03-02 06:57


China will research the possibility of establishing a third research station in Antarctica, Vice-Premier Zeng Peiyan said yesterday.

He made the remarks in Beijing at the launch ceremony to mark the country's participation in the International Polar Year (IPY) 2007/2008.

"However, whether or not the country will set up a third station still remains uncertain," said Xia Limin, an official in charge of polar affairs at the State Oceanic Administration (SOA).

The IPY 2007/2008, which started yesterday and will run until March 1, 2009, marks the first time that China has participated in IPY activities, said Sun Zhihui, head of the SOA.

The IPY 2007-2008, which was launched by the International Council for Science in conjunction with the World Meteorological Organization, is the fourth of its kind since the 1882/1883 seasons, when the first joint polar expedition was organized.

Advancing understanding

This time around, the event will focus on advancing human understanding of how the Earth's polar regions affect global climate systems. It is the largest internationally coordinated scientific research effort in 50 years.

Chinese scientists had drawn up plans for the upcoming IPY expedition season, including a plan known as PANDA, which was listed as one of the core research missions, according to Zhang.

PANDA is a multi-goal research plan that includes deep-ice coring at Dome A, the highest point on the Antarctic ice sheet, and a study of the interactions between ocean-ice and the shelf-ice sheet system from Pridz Bay to Dome A via the Amery Ice Shelf.

The IPY is an international event during which scientists' carry out large-scale joint scientific activities.

To date, more than 100 countries and international organizations have put forward 1,200 research topics or suggestions for the IPY 2007/2008 polar expedition season.

China has launched 22 Antarctic expeditions since 1984 and built two permanent exploration stations, named Changcheng (Great Wall) and Zhongshan, in the region.

China also launched two Arctic expeditions and built the Huanghe (Yellow River) exploration station in the Arctic in July 2004.


(China Daily 03/02/2007 page3

Cory Lidle: The vultures gather

As I predicted when Cory Lidle - the Yankee pitcher - died when the plane he was piloting hit a Manhattan building - the lawsuits have begun

Lidle's wife is suing the plane manufactuer for negligence. Why? Lidle was piloting the plane and didn't have enough experience - he's at fault.

Now some millionaire dentist is suing Lidle's wife (or his estate through her) because his home was destroyed. Man - it was an accident - your home was insured anyway - get away from the damn lawyers and get on with your life. Just be thankful you weren't in there when the plane hit.

http://cbs.sportsline.com/mlb/story/10031373

Sea Lawyers

TechnoOcean is a project dear to my heart, which I have been unable to work on for some weeks due to excessive demands on my time from other quarters. My three reviewers are missing in action - and one of 'em had been working on lots of great stuff so I'm not best pleased with that. I think he's got financial difficulties due to family problems, but still it'd be nice if he'd communicate with me once in a while.

But, while the various departments of TechnoOcean haven't been worked on in a while, I did pick up a copy today, for the first time, of Professional Mariner: Journal of the Maritime Industry.

Opened it up, and the first thing that catches my eye is an ad for the SOS Legal Network and Hoffman & Associates - lawyers who specialize in marine law - "getting injured at sea."

"Some lawyers charge 40% maritime contingency fee rate, we only charge 33%!"
No recovery, no fee!
And yet, at the very bottom of the ad: "Fees computed after deduction of costs, disbursements and litigation expenses. If no recovery, ethics rules require clients to remain liable for litigation expenses, costs and dispursements. In NJ, the fee on the first $500,000 of recovery is 33 1/3%, 30% on the next $500,000, 25% on the next $500,000, 20% on the next $500,000, and for greater amounts, as set by the court."

So that's a bit of a contradiction. What does "no recovery, no fee" mean except that if the bloodsucking lawyers don't get you any money, you don't have to pay them. Yet at the bottom it does say you'll be responsible for expenses, costs and disbursements. Apparently because those aren't "fees," but just normal charges.

So plaintiffs who think they're going to be getting legal services for nothing - don't. And yet the ads are so designed to make them think they will. This goes I'm sure for the bloodsucking lawyers on land as well...

Other lawyer firms advertising in this magazine are Latti & Anderson LLP (they're proctors in admiralty, too!), Schechter, McElwee, Shaffer & Harris (no recovery, no fee, they speak Spanish and, I *think*, Vietnamese.

Also advertising was an insuranbce company: MOPS: Marine Maritime License Insurance, and WQIS - advertising Marine Pollution Liability Insurance. Great American. Captain's Coverage: Maritime Officer's Liability Insurance. Smitheick & Mariners Marine Insurance.

Don't get me wrong. Obviously working on barges and tugs and ships is a dangerous occupation, and if someone is injured through someone else's *negligence*, compensation should be made. But why should lawyers get 33% or even 40% of the 'recovery'? Why shouldn't they get paid an hourly wage for the work they do and have done with it.

Of course their hourly wage is probably between $200-500 an hour, charged in 5-minute increments....

Anyway, interesting reading. I need to do more research into the safety of 'some-third-world-country-flagged' ships. I wonder how many shouldn't even be at sea...

Lots of food for thought. (And withal, an excellent magazine.)

Pat Summitt video/ Astronaut Farmer

First...for those who have arrived here in search of a video of Pat Summitt singing Rocky Top during the media time out of the men's game yesterday, go to this page:

Pat Summitt and the Tennessee Lady Vols

where you can see the complete video (from Youtube) and read about Summitt and her teams.

Now, for Astronaut Farmer - this is just a brief entry as I have much to say about this movie but I've got something else to do first...

I didn't care for it. Sure there was some good imagery, some good messages...but also some bad messages. This is the type of movie you could make 20 years ago when we all thought the world was sane and Andy Griffith could build a rocket to take him into outerspace to collect space junk (at least he had a purpose and would be able to sell that space junk for a profit). Today there's no way a man could build a rocket and launch it in his backyard....twice. And for what - to go around the earth accomplishing nothing except 'being there.'

Anyway, more later.

Pat Summitt rocks

Non-sci-fi post today, but got to give props to Pat Summitt, head coach of the Lady Vols, who showed her support for the men's basketball team today by singing Rocky Top and getting on top of a pyramid (albeit a short one) to cheer on the team.

If you're a fan of Pat Summitt, check out my site:

The Lady Vols: WCBB Standard Bearer.

Hopefully I'll be able to update it in another couple of weeks with the news that the Lady Vols have won their seventh straight championship...beating Duke in the process!

Sci fi on BBC 7 - Space Hacks

Space Hacks
The Last Postman: Sci-fi comedy starring Dan Mersh, Tim Key, Prunella Scales and Dan Tetsell. Episode 3 of 4.

is the latest Space Hacks - I seem to have missied episode 2, unfortunately. Well - in one way only. I didn't particularly care for the first ep, but for completeness sake I would have liked to have heard the second ep!

Also on Sunday (and thus running for 6 more days)

The Laxian Key
The mysterious deaths of space tourists on Planet Party gives planet decontaminators Arnold and Gregor a unique job opportunity. Episode 1 of 4.

Fantastic Tales
Hell Screen: A chilling horror set in medieval Japan. A powerful Lord clashes with an arrogant painter leading to tragedy.

Complete Oneira

Broadcast on BBC Radio 7 (repeats) from Monday Feb 19 - Feb 23, 2007

Oneira
The Big Chill: Museum guard Oneira meets a 400 year old Dutchman who invites her on a quest to discover the secrets of the universe. Episode 1 of 5.

Sleight of Mind: Oneira is interrogated by a man from the Electricity Company - but is he trying to help her, or is he an alien? Episode 2 of 5.

A String of Time: Oneira ends up in the Texan Desert with a dead American comic and a thirteenth century Friar. Episode 3 of 5.

The Thing with Two Cappuccinos: When she forgets to pay for a coffee Oneira is chased by multiplying android coffee bar staff. Episode 4 of 5.

Mind the Gap: Oneira ends up talking to herself, literally, and finds her other self very rude. Episode 5 of 5.

Rachmaninoff

Nothing sci-fi-ish to report today, mainly because I've been doing elance work and now that I'm finished I'm winding down by looking at Youtube instead of doing other work that needs to be done....

Anyway, if there are any classical music lovers out there the following clip is supposedly really funny. It is amusing just watching it, but if you know how Rachmaninoff wrote the piece, and how this guy solves the problem of having "small hands" in some sections and "large hands" in others, it's apparently hysterical.



I don't know, but I'm about to go look up the piece at Wikipedia and see what they say about it...

Sunday on BBC 7

Doctor Who
Human Resources: Under fire from an old foe, the Doctor is startled to learn about the true nature of Lucie's fate. Can he save her future? Episode 2 of 2. [Rptd Mon 12.00am].


Beyond the Vortex
Looking Forward, Looking Back: Is this the end of the line for the Doctor and Lucie? A season retrospective with Jason, Barney and Nick. Episode 8 of 8.

Sci fi on radio

BBC 7 has only one science fiction serial going at the moment, called Pattern Recognition, by William Gibson. It's not a dramatised play, simply a reading of the book. All five episodes (Monday through Friday) are now available for listening.

Doctor Who's Human Resources pt 1 is about to drop off the radio for Sunday.

http://www.bbc.co.uk/bbc7/listenagain/friday/

Part 2 of Space Hacks begins tomorrow:
Space Hacks
Two Men and a Baby Alien: Charlie and Moog risk Korg's wrath when their mission to deliver his nephew to playgroup goes awry. Episode 2 of 4.
---Charlie and Moog are two reporters for an intergalactic news company. A comedy.

www.RadioSpirits.com
The only science fiction offering from Radio Spirits is every Wednesday, with their Superman serial. Right now its on Chapter 3 of Dr. Bly's Confidence Game.

1/3 of the world entertains the other 2/3

That was a prediction of Isaac Asimov in one of his essays. I can't bring to mind which one at the moment, but it was in one of his earlier essays from 1960-1963, and I do have it listed in the quote book... (http://thethunderchild.com)

The reason I bring it up is because he prediced that pre 1964, and today, 41 years later, his prediction has more than come true. People put all kinds of crap up on Youtube, from film of themselves vomiting in a toilet because they're too drunk to stand up, to singing, to sex. And people *watch* this pablum.

Then of course there's the reality shows. And the talk show crap with Maury Povich, where people who would do better to fix their lives in private so it doesn't humiliate their children instead air their disgustingly dirty laundry on TV for audiences around the world to *laugh* at.

And then of course there is the circus that is the death of Anna Nicole Smith. More men claiming to have had affairs with her are coming out of the woodwork claiming to be the father of her baby - and you know they're doing it because of the prospect of getting those billions of dollars of her fortune that the baby *may* inherit - when she's old and grey and all her "dad's" have passed away and the lawyers have finally sucked the well dry.... she might get a few thousand out of it when all is said and done...

So, on to the much cleaner worlds of BBC Radio Listen again, where all this week you can hear: Pattern Recognition. It began on Monday, and that ep will be available for 3 more days before dropping off.

Meanwhile, I listened to the first episode of The Mauseleum Club and found it quite amusing, a pastiche on The Invisible Man called The Inaudible Man.

The Sunday Doctor Who, part 1 of Human Resources, is about to drop off, so if you haven't listened to it yet be sure you do so.

Also on Monday, you can hear Terry Pratchett in a 4-year old interview about his 4th Discworld book Mort, which is pretty interesting.



Pattern Recognition
Lorelei King reads this very 21st Century detective story by 'the godfather of cyberpunk', William Gibson. Episode 1 of 5.

Pattern Recognition
Cayce travels to Tokyo in search of the maker of the online footage. Episode 2 of 5.

Doctor Who
Human Resources: Lucie Miller starts her first day in a new job. Or does she? Is it possible that her time with the Doctor was merely a daydream? Episode 1 of 2.

Beyond the Vortex
Nick Briggs explains how to sound like a Cyberman, without first going through the painful process of conversion. Episode 7 of 8.

The Vultures are Gathering

Things regarding Anna Nicole Smith are getting really ridiculous. Zsa Zsa Gabor's husband - before any paternity tests have even happened, says that he "may" be the father of Anna Nicole's baby daughter, and wants custody. Zsa Zsa's 90 and she's had strokes, etc., I hope she has the strength to dump the guy and take all his money away.

Clearly, all he's interested in is the potential fortune this baby may inherit - that's what every single man in Smith's life was after... it's just a pathetic circus and probably we'll see two competing movies of the week in the next couple of months.

Disgusting. And very sad for the poor baby.

Daniel Radcliffe Gets Naked (But not here!)

A lot of fuss is being made about Daniel Radcliffe starring in Equus, the play by Peter Shaffer. (Or Antony Shaffer, I always get those two mixed up.) That is because in the play, Radcliffe gets totally naked. I can't tell you why, never seen the play, but I'm sure there's some 'legitimate' reason for it.

But the photos that are making the rounds of the internet, of Radcliffe naked (but shot only from the belly up) seem to be made simply to be sexually attractive - they don't say anything about the play, do they? So the nakidity, as Radar O'Reilly would call it...is no longer merely part of the play but actually just a reason to get people into the theater who just want to see naked actors.

As for Radcliffe wanting to break away from the Potter stereotype...this is definitely the way to do it..

For those who want to see them:







Click on the top banner ad for more Radcliffe pics!

Read about him here:
.

Or stock up on Harry Potter movies!
.

"Anna Nicole charmed us"

That's one of the headlines on my Google home page today. Where do they get that crap, I wonder. I had and have no interest in the woman. Indeed, she embodied all that is wrong with women today - marry for money, put your life on TV so everyone can look at it, etc. If she hadn't been in a fight to get billions of dollars from her dead husband's estate - no one would have given her a second look. That's another embodiment of all that's wrong with American culture today. No talent, no intelligence - but if you've money and look good naked, guys'll fawn all over you.

Anna Nicole Simpson died a couple of days ago. Autopsy yet to have occurred, but at the age of 39 how else could she have died except by drug overdose - much as her son did one year ago. She leaves a baby girl - and only a paternity test can tell who the father is. That's a nice thing for a girl to grow up knowing - her mother was so careless with birth control and so popular withthe guys that she has no idea who the father of her child is. Kind of like those crap shows with Maury Povich, or whatever - now we realize it's not just the poor and uneducated who ruin their lives - the rich and uneducated can do it just as well. (Or, in the case of Denise Nowak, the very well off and very well educated.)

Anyway, Simpson's claim to fame is that when she was 26, she married a man who was 89. Not coincidentally, I'm sure, this guy was a billionaire. He died 2 years later, and I guess didn't leave a will, or something - at any rate legal battle was enjoined at once as Simpson tried to get his fortune for herself. I know only the barest details about it because I thought it was a terrible story then and I think it's a terrible story now. Good riddance.

Anyway, end of rant.

TechnoOcean Time

I've been spending the last few days updating my TechnoOcean material, which I hadn't worked on since its inception. I'm working on databases for shipwrecks, submersible and research craft, aquariums, organizations and programs, and reviews.

Popped over to the library and picked up the following books:

Eyewitness Compaions: Scuba Diving, by Monty Halls and Miranda Krestovnikoff
Rough Westher Seamanship for Sail and Power, by Roger Marshall
Great Sailing Ships of the World, by Otmar Schauffelen
The Complete Encyclopedia of Fishing: A Comrehensive Guide to Coarse Fishing, Sea Angling and Game Fishing, by Tony Miles, Martin Ford and Peter Gathercole

I haven't been bothering to read all the articles on astronaut Karen Nowak...I just can't stand them. All that intelligence, all that knowledge - she was supposed to be on the next shuttle mission, too -- and she throws it away because of a love triangle.

Meanwhile, personal responsibility continues to become a thing of the past. Apparently 3 people have recently been killed in New York City because they weren't paying attention, stepped out into traffic, and were run over. Now, people have been using Walkmans since their inception. Walkmans have now been superseded by Ipods. People have these in their ears and so can't hear what anyone is saying, sounds of sirens, etc. So instead of saying, "Hey, people, you should keep the sound down so you can hear when someone yells that a car is coming at you." and letting them have the responsibility to do that simple task, the state is introducing legislature to BAN electronic devices from crosswalks, etc.

Now how stupid is that?

Similarly, IPod and other music machine manufacturers are being sued because they make their machines so that the volume can be turned up to "unsafe" levels which can cause deafness. Never mind that it should be a person's personal choice how loud he wants his tape recorder to be - maybe he's working at one end of a room and the machine's at the other - no, people must not be allowed the opportunity to use common sense, since they obviously have none. Machines must be made so that they can't be turned up very loud.

Rush Limbaugh gets into the act

Just listened to the first few minutes of the Rush Limbaugh show and of course he's all over this astronaut story. Calls her an astronaut "babe." Says her defense lawyer should claim she was driven insane by global warming. What a jerk.

The charges against Lisa Nowak, 43 have been now upgraded to attempted murder - and it does seem like this stupid bitch - I'm sorry, but that's all I can call a woman who has a great career, a husband and 3 kids of her own, and throws it away for "love," was really going to try to kill this other woman because she was a rival in her affections towards the male astronaut. And with all her intelligence, and all the examples of what not to do as seen on hundreds of TV crime shows, she still screwed it up.

Well...maybe in her heart of hearts she didn't mean to kill her? Because all she really needed to do was get a gun...although that could have been traced back to her...

It's just a sad, tragic story on many levels.

A blow to women everywhere

What does it take to become an astronaut? Years and years of training and dedication. As much as it takes to become a B-52 pilot. To throw it all away on a love triangle... to kidnap the woman who is supposedly your rival in affection with a man - -- no no no. If the guy cheats on you, you dump *him*.

Anyway, I am so saddened to hear of this terrible story. How this woman could throw away her future in space - what in the world was she thinking????

CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. - An astronaut charged with attempting to kidnap a romantic rival in a love triangle with another astronaut was ordered released on bail Tuesday under the condition that she not contact the alleged victim.


The judge told Lisa Marie Nowak, 43, she could be released on $15,500 bond, then asked if she understood the conditions. She responded, "yes."

Nowak, a married mother of three, stood in a jail uniform, usually facing down as the hearing was under way.

She faces charges including attempted kidnapping, attempted vehicle burglary with battery, destruction of evidence and battery.

Police said she drove 900 miles, donned a disguise and was armed with a BB gun and pepper spray when she confronted a woman she believed was a competitor for the affections of Navy Cmdr. William Oefelein, a fellow astronaut.

Nowak and Oefelein, 41, were both first-time fliers during separate shuttle missions last year. They trained together but never flew together.

Time Hops (complete) and Doctor Who

BBC 7 re-runs the same stuff over and over again. This can be annoying when you've heard it all 3 times...however in my case I have missed stuff - I record things and, getting a bit careless, I sometimes miss episodes.

So, anyway, Time Hops begins again on Monday, and you can listen to it for 5 days before it drps off the radar.

Time Hops - complete
Once Upon A Time: A scientist mouse called Eek escapes from the future and enlists the help of three children to save her planet. Episode 1 of 5.

Killing Time: The children catapult further back in time and find themselves in deep water. Episode 2 of 5.

Time After Time: Steph stumbles across an unexpected part of the puzzle to help Eek in the mission to save her planet. Episode 3 of 5

Long Time No See: Time-hopping seems to have brought the children nothing but trouble. Could a dodgy robot really make things better? Episode 4 of 5.


Time's Up: The children are convinced that the 'man from the BBC' will help them. But is he really what he seems? Episode 5 of 5.

There's a new Doctor Who

Doctor Who
No More Lies: The Doctor and Lucie gatecrash a posh party, and get more than they bargained for. Namely vortisaurs and a crumbling spaceship.

Beyond the Vortex
Barnaby Edwards talks about the musical elements in 'No More Lies'. Episode 6 of 8.

When do girls become sexually active?

There's a new law being passed in Texas which says girls at the age of 10-11 have to be injected with an inoculation against a *sexually transmitted* disease that gives women cervical cancer.

"The federal government approved Gardasil in June, and a government advisory panel has recommended that all girls get the shots at 11 and 12, before they are likely to be sexually active."

So if they have to get the shots at 11-12, does that mean that at age 12-13 they become sexually active? Scary...but probably true.

This is because, in my opinion, girls are taught from day 1 of their existence that they exist only so that they can be sexually attractive to boys. Wear the make up, dress in shirts that reveal your belly button and shorts that ride right up to below your butt, so that they can all get a good look. You're only worth anything depending on if you have a boyfriend - and even if you don't have a boyfriend - if you can get pregnant you can prove that at least a boy thought you were worth having sex with....

I'm not advocating that girls should be ashamed of their sexuality and wear burhkas and other crap like Muslim women are forced to do, I'm just saying that girls don't have enough respect for themselves and it's mass media -- commericals -- that must shoulder a lot of the blame.

Those who do not learn from history are doomed to repeat it

Today is the 2nd day of outrage at Turner Broadcasting. They are the people who hired a PR firm to promote a cartoon on Adult Swim called Teenage Hunger Force - or something similar. The PR firm got the bright idea of putting battery operated signs on newspaper vending machines - the sign looks like a smiley face with a hand with an extended middle finger. (Extended middle finger. What taste. What class. Yes...I want to watch this cartoon!)

Anyway, people in Boston panicked, thinking they were bombs. Police were called. Packages were detonated. Two people placing the things were arrested.

And I'm thinking to myself...how stupid is this? To do this type of thing in a post 9-11 world is just asking for trouble. I mean, it's one thing to be a bus driver on a Greyhound making a joke that he's going to take his passengers to the Taliban (he'd had to take a detour and the passengers wanted to know what was going on and asked in a rude manner - last joke was on him of course as the cops came and arrested him, thanks to cell phones.)

But to place things with batteries, wires and flashing lights on newspaper vending machines? And expect people not to panic?

But...and here's the thing...this is not the first time this has happened. It was last year that a similar advertising campaign was conducted... in New York, I think it was. On that occasion, the objects were actually inside the vending machines. I think they were advertising 24 or some similar television show. And there was a panic, and the devices were removed.

So why didn't the PR firm this time, or the bright bulb at Turner who signed off on their idea, know about that???

It's a case not only of learning from past events, but also just plain old common sense.

Having said that, I don't think the guys who were placing the devices should have been arrested. They were doing an *advertising* job, not something illegal. If anyone should go to jail, it should be the people who thought up the idea in the first place. (But of course, they're the "suits" - ie people with money, so nothing will happen to them. Meantime the worker bees, who have no money, will be fined and sent to jail, most likely. But maybe they can sue afterwards and give some lawyers employment for a few years.)

Sci fi on BBC 7

http://www.bbc.co.uk/bbc7/listenagain/sunday/

Remember each program is on the site for 7 days from the day of its posting, and you can listen any time you like.

Doctor Who
Doctor Who is running every Sunday in BBC 7 for the next few weeks - although you've missed 3 eps already. Instead of serials, each episode is 45 minutes long.

Doctor Who For extreme sport nuts, the fear is part of the rush. But the Doctor and Lucie are about to learn the true meaning of 'Phobos'.


Beyond the Vortex Nick would rather not do it but Barney loves it. How do you cast the right actors for radio? Episode 5 of 8. (Interviews with the people behind the McGann radio productions).

On Monday is a 1-off called Beast.

Beast
Is a creature pulled from the sea near a fishing village harmless or a threat? James Fleet stars in Nick Warburton's play. 45 minutes.

Mimsy

Went to see Night at the Museum again with a friend - I've really got to write a review of this soon! and once again they showed a trailer for a movie called Mimsy. This movie is clearly based on a short story called Mimsy Were the Borogroves. The title of the short story is based on a line in a poem by Lewis Carroll, but the way the trailer was playing out, Mimsy is the name of a doll that "teaches" the girl character "everything."

I didn't really care for the short story, but will probably go see the movie.

Rise of the Silver Surfer trailer was the kind that really didn't give you any idea of what the story was about - if you don't know who The Silver Surfer is, you won't know who the Silver Surfer is, if ya get my drift. Ends with the Surfer up in the atmosphere, choking Johnny so he loses consciousness and falls backwards, presumably toward Earth and death (or mebbe its because he's flown up too high where there's no oxygen).

Anyway, I don't like one of the powers they've given the Surfer, which is that he can apparently fly through buildings without hurting them, just kind of 'exudes through' and I'm thinking why, why, why give him that power?

Spiderman 3 looks kind of grim. Spiderman was my favorite comic book character growing up, but I stopped buying it around issue 200, partly because of price and partly because of the fact that the stories were just getting too grim.And this movie looks pretty grim.

January 27, 1967

Gus Grissom, Edward White, and Roger Chaffee - three heroes in mankind's quest for the stars.

The Annotated Terry Pratchett

I love Terry Pratchett's books. I don't like his novels featuring the wizard Rincewind, but all the others are "cherce."

www.lspace.org/books/apf/

It hasn't been updated for 2 years, which is rather worrying, but there's lots of good stuff there.

It's been a while since I looked at this website, and I did so today because I'd been reading an Asimov essay (written in 1960), and found a reference to a Greek story which reminded me of an incident in the book Small Gods.

So I went to this site to see if it had already been put in, and it wasn't mentioned, so I emailed them.

Most of Pratchett's books pay homage to all kinds of legends and earth history. Small Gods has quite a bit of references to the Greek philosophers.

There's one scene where Brutha - the lead character - is on a ship heading toward Omnia. The evil Vorbis causes the captain of the ship to kill a dolphin. In order to propitiate the sea god, someone on the ship has to be sacrificed, and the sailors decide it might as well be Brutha. Brutha requests that he be allowed one last prayer. The sailors grant his wish, and his god (for the great god Om has been turned into a tortoise and travels with Brutha) arranges for the storm to stop.

When I was reading Asimov's essay called "Now Hear This" (collected in VIew From a Height, he tells of the Greek's fondness for dolphins and of the story of Arion. Now, the Greek sailors were going to throw him overboard because they wanted to steal his baggage, but still, elements of the story are the same.

So...a bit of serendipity there!

The War of the Worlds musical

This is the ad, in England, which came out a while ago, in England, regarding the War of the Worlds musical CD.

A couple of days ago I emailed them and asked for a review copy, and they agreed to send me one. Silly me, I should have asked for a DVD of the play as well. Oh, well, too late now.

What I didn't realize is that the song Forever Autumn, which I thought came from The Time Machine remake a few years ago, is actually from this album.

Back to science fiction!

Some of my readers have been complaining that I've been spending too much time ranting about sports and not enough time on the purpose of this blog - science fiction. And ya know, they're right.

So I've moved my sports ranting over to my other blog, "MLB Survivor Strategies". I'd created it last year to chart my success [or lack of it] on th MLB Survivor Game (each day, you had to select a winning team. You could use the same team no more than 3 times in a single game.)

It's been on hiatus since there's no baseball right now, so I decided to revive it a few months early and do my sports commentary there.

strategiesformlbsurvivor.blogspot.com

is the URL.

And now, back to science fiction.

Tonight's your last chance to hear Horror of Glam Rock at BBC Radio 7. It's actually not that original of a story. A group of Earthlings are trapped in a cafe in 1974 by a snowstorm, and there's creaturs outside trying to get in and eat 'em up. But Stephen Gately sings a song...

Well, well well, part 2: The madness continues

Last night I had created a new screen name and signed on to the Summitt. It was perhaps an obvious screen name to anyone who had seen the Incredibles, and although all I did was a test post...the tone of that post, "Just want to see if I can post here," perhaps rather gave the game away.

Not that I was trying to be secretive.

Anyway, just tried to access the whole Summitt today and now it seems my entire ISP has been banned. Can't access *any* of the Summitt, even when I'm *not* logged in -- from this computer. And although I got an automated message to this new screen name that I had been banned...they didn't bother to tell me *why.* What did I do that was so terrible that I deserved to be banned? I never used foul language. Never told this one particular woman that she was an idiot - though she gave me ample opportunity to prove it. And the post that precipitated this nonsense...to tell people I was writing a book and would share "what goes on" on fan message boards... is what goes on there so terrible that it must not be shared?

Of course if they don't tell you why you've been banned, you can't come back and sue them, which is the reason why they do it. Also, you can't single out what person...although I'm thinking that the crazy lady has powers of banishment and did it herself...

I've got to admit its pretty funny.

So...I just created a new screen name on my laptop and went over to the boards and looked. The thread that last night was locked - is unlocked this morning. I didn't bother to check to see if the post that had precipitated my banishment is still there, but if it is...it does give one to wonder. But the upshot of it all is that people can still talk about thread, and make critical comments about me, and I am no longer able to defend myself. Rather a cowardly thing to do, in fact.

I won't post anything with my new screenname, of course. Any comments that someone's being a poor sport - even if they clearly are - will identify me *immediately*. Nice to be known for a signature style... I wonder if any new saps who go there and take offense to some of the things said, and says so, will also be banned immediately in mistake for me? After all, "it's their boards and we're just guests."

Which is true enough. But the inmates are running the asylum.

And of course, it's all grist for the book mill.

But for now, on to more urgent matters.

Well, well, well!

Looks like I just wore out my welcome on the Lady Vols message boards! I've just been banned!

Now that is just too funny!

All I said - in a thread today - was that I was writing a book about the Lady Vols, and hoped people would sign releases so that I could use stuff on the message boards. [I actually just said that as a dig, in response to some trash talking that had been happening earlier in this thread. I certainly wouldn't want to include the childishness that goes on there in a book about such a great program as the Vols...but I wanted them to give a thought to the fact...what if someone were writing a book and did come to that place to check out things being said - would they really want their conduct known to the world at large? As large as the Vols world-at-large would be, of course.]

A certain woman whom I will not name said no, no permission would be given, because Scout and Rocky Top News held copyright. So I said I'd deal with those head honchos when the time came. Or, do "fair use."

And that's all I said!

And now I've been banned!

Which accomplishes absolutely nothing at all because I just created a different screen name and I can get on and post again with no problem. So how stupid was that?

I'd really like to know who banned me, and why. I was given absolutely no warning. I don't see that I posted anything that was so terrible. Didn't call this particular woman a moron. Didn't call *anyone* a moron. My final post before I was banned merely said that someone *with* a book deal might check it out, and they might want to think on that before dissing one of Pat's friends on the boards - which they do periodically.

In the past, certainly, once in a while when someone would say something childish or unsportsmanlike I'd comment on it...is that a reason to ban me? Because I was spoiling the fun of other people who didn't like to be told they were poor sports? I haven't made any comment of that nature for over a week, and only sporadically prior to that, because I've got to admit that it was pretty damn obvious that there was no point trying to raise anyone's consciousness there, so I just gave up on it.

The thread today started because I posted a paragraph about what Nancy Lieberman had said about the Vols, NC and UConn. And the woman whose name I won't mention just bitched into me...and I responded to her politely...

Well...my book project has just moved to the head of the list of things I'm going to get done this year. Talk about incentive! I'm going to write a book about the Lady Vols [history of the rise of the WCBB as told through a history of the Vols], I'm going to get it published (easily done in this day and age) and I'm going to make a few stern remarks about the denizens of the Lady Vols message boards!

And I'll be laughed at by the denizens of all the other sports boards everywhere who behave in exactly the same way... but it will still make me feel better...

Of course any book publication is contingent on the Vols winning another Championship. If they don't win, no one will care about any book so there'd be no point anyway! So come on, Vols, you've got to win!

IN the year 6565

I am not the happiest of campers today. I'd been sicker than a dog 2 days with a severe cold. Stuck in bed most of the time. Last night, from about 3 pm to 10 pm, I felt great and assumed the cold was over. Not so. Went to bed at 10 pm, woke up with a sore throat - which had been what started my first cold to begin with. Now the sore throat is gone but the nose is running, eyes running, ya da ya da yada and I am *not* pleased. I've got too much to do but I simply can't concentrate on anything long enough to do it justice.

So, hopefully this will be just one more day wasted.

It's true I hadn't changed my bedclothes after I got over the cold the first time, but I honestly didn't think it was possible to re-catch a cold from germs you'd already had.... I have now washed all the bedclothes even though it's too late to do me any good.

So, unable to think, I've been putzing around. Listened to the Lady Vols beat Mississippi State, without Candace Parker. Messed around on the Vols message board discovering that the reading comprehension of various people sucks. (More on that anon, if I ever get well enough to write about it.)

Also visited Youtube and found a video of in-a-gadda-da-vida, which I confess I'd never heard about before. It is obviously a slurring of In the Garden of Eden. I do like the famous guitar 'riff' that it uses...

Also found the video of Zager and Evans doing In the Year 2525. They wait until the year 6565 to claim there'll be no need for wives or husbands, because children will be chosen by test tube...we're gonna get to that by 2525, the way the world is going...

And, aha! I haven't yet see Children of Men..and probably wont go see it - too grim, but I wonder if the scriptwriters forgot about test tube babies and cloning...

Anyway, here's the video. First written in 1964, apparently, but hit the charts in 1969.

IPOwer powerless again

For the second straight day, I am unable to log into my website to do updates. I cut 'em some slack yesterday, because it was MLK day and I figured lots of people had an opportunity to be online at the same time and maybe they were clogging the system.

But today everyone should be back to work, and *I* should be able to get back to work also, but I can't, because I can't log in!

My mood is not helped by the fact that I've got a cold that is bringing me down...

I've been remiss in commenting on what's on at BBC Radio 7 - a 9-part reading of Richard Matheson's I Am Legend. I should be listening to it...but I'm not in the mood.

Doctor Who, Horror of Glam Rock is on Sunday (and will be available for 3 more days):

Doctor Who
Horror Of Glam Rock: The Tomorrow Twins are all set to conquer the pop world of 1974. But will their dreams survive an encounter with the Doctor? Episode 1 of 1. [Rptd Mon 12.00am].

The Doctor is played by Paul McGann.

18:50-19:00

Beyond the Vortex
Director Barnaby Edwards takes us behind the scenes of the Doctor's journey to The Decade That Taste Forgot (the 1970s). Episode 3 of 8. [Rptd Mon 12.50am].

IPower powerless

For the third time in the last 7 days, I am unable to log onto my server, IPower, in order to add updates to The Thunder Child.

This is really, really starting to annoy me. On the previous two occasions I didn't have anything time sensitive to put up, today I do. And I can't do it.

I'm going to have to give some thought to moving to a new provider, because this is getting ridiculous.

So, today, there's a new GAAK webcomic up. This is a new feature on The Thunder Child, I'm "tooncasting" from a remote site. Groovy Ass Alien Kreatures. It's not really my cup of tea, but I thought I'd put it up and see if anyone bit. So far, no one else is interested either. One problem might be that it's only updated once a week - that's way too long. I take a look at The Order of the Stick occasionally - and that's updated 3 times a week, plus its in color.

Oh, well, far be it for me to suggest to the GAAK people that they increase their speed and do some colorization. I'm sure they would if they could...

I'm also working on a chronological history of sci fi movies from 1950 onward, using Bill Warren's Keep Watching the Skies as a base, but of course it'll contain that inimitable Thunder Child touch.

http://thethunderchild

Check us out!

Deep Rising

I was watching the Bears vs the Seahawks today (and am glad the Bears won), but during commercials I'd channel surf and came across Deep Rising on one of my movie channels. They've been showing this movie every day for the past month, it seems.

It's all about heavily armed hijackers who take over a liner intending to loot it. The hijackers apparently use a boat captained by Treat Williams and his comic sidekick. Once on the boat, they discover that some "deep sea creatures" have invaded the ship and are eating all the people, leaving behind only red gore.

It's a stupid move. I just checked the IMDB and it has a 5.8 rating. I don't care about IMDB ratings all that much, some movies I like have bad ratings, but it is interesting to see that most people dislike this movie.

For one thing, of course, the man-eating deep sea monsters were justs stupid. 99% of the time it was CGI, and bad CGI. Impossible to tell what they were...but I wonder if Peter Jackson saw this movie because one scene is of Wes Studi (Cherokee actor, star of the Joe Leaphorn series on PBS) being sucked while still alive into the belly of the beast...not much different than Andy Serkis in King Kong being devoured head first by an eyeless tentacle.

Anyway, I watched bits and pieces of it - I have no desire to see it from start to finish - merely because I was fascinated by how bad it was. How by-the-numbers cliched and bad it was. Everything was predictable, from the action of two heartless killers pointing there guns at each other in a "stand-off" which you only ever see in the movies. In real life the first guy to point his gun is gonna shoot, guaranteed.

I've only seen Treat Williams in a couple of movies - saw him in the first half of The Phantom starring Billy Zane, which I have to admit I walked out on...and he does nothing for me. The sole female character starts out in a slinky cocktail dress (she's a passenger on the boat) and then, thankfully changes into jeans and a t-shirt so she can move around, but of course the t-shirt is nice and clingy...but at least it never got strategically ripped so the adolescent boys could get off on seeing her belly button for most of the movie - as they did with Princess Amaldala in the 2nd Star Wars sequel, and Mary Jane in the first Spiderman, and heaven knows how many other movies made since that style began.

Well, enough of a rant for today. There's another football game going on that I'd like to watch, but I've got too much stuff to do so I'm upstairs trying to get in the mood to do some work.

Meanwhile the Lady Vols beat the Georgia Bulldogs in a very low-scoring game. Yay!

The Plot Zone at The Thunder Child

The Plot Zone: Plot and critical analysis of short stories.

Waaay back a couple of years ago, when I first started The Thunder Child, I was making good progress with my Plot Zone - critical analysis of sci fi short stories. Then, for reasons which still rankle to this day, I lost all that work. I managed to recover the data on about 10 stories...

And I've finally gotten around to putting that data back up at The Thunder Child. My hope is to institute a more disciplined way of working so that I can add about 2 stories a week to the database. Of course that'll only be about 100 stories a year, which is not nearly enough, but hey, it's better than nothing.

Friday fixin's

Not much going on today. I have got to go through my entire website and doublecheck lnks for book reviews and various articles, as I have been very neglectful in putting new review/article links on the appropriate sitemap and index pages. Shooting myself in the foot. I really need to get a content management system, but I'm not making enough money yet to justify that expense.... and I do like the freedom to modify various pages when I need to.

But the amount of time I waste trying to fix these lost links...it's annoying.

Started to read a book called Shanghaied to the Moon, by Michael Daley. It took me a few pages to get used to the narrative, first person present tense, but now I'm really enjoying it and will be writing a review for The Thunder Child.

Any Asimov fans? I've started a new Asimov quotebook - better than anything else you'll find because it contains the title of the essays from which the quotes come, which is something the other sites don't do.

If you've never heard old time radio drama, you should give it a try, and start with the classic program, Suspense. Hear Jack Benny as a Martian, William Holden as a hysterical astronaut, as well as Richard Widmark, William Powell, Orson Welles and Agnes Moorehead. I list all the sci fi Suspense episodes in a new article.

http://thethunderchild.com

Should Jason Kidd be afraid of his wife?

A day after Jason Kidd claimed in divorce papers to be a victim of spousal abuse, his wife's attorney said the New Jersey Nets point guard had no reason to fear the diminutive woman.

"He says he's threatened by her? He's a star athlete. She's 5-foot-2, I think, and 105 pounds," said celebrity New York divorce lawyer Raoul Felder, one of the attorneys representing Joumana Kidd.

The perception by this lawyer is that a big man has nothing to fear from a tiny woman. And it's certainly true that if a man slaps a woman, he could break her jaw, whereas if a 5 ft 2 woman slaps a man, it might well feel like a pinprick.

But it's still physical abuse, and unfortunately women do slap "their man" and when he hits back - as more and more guys these days do - it's they who are up for assault.

I don't know the ins and outs of this case. I do know that I have always hated to watch Jason Kidd shoot free throws because of that stupid "blowing a kiss to his wife" schtick before hand.

It's very easy for a 5 ft 2 woman to verbally abuse a 6 ft 4 man. I have a friend, admittedly only 5' 8, who puts up with a verbally abusive wife every day. He's an old school guy which means he'd never hit her, and never leave her, but I think he'd be a lot happier if he left and his life would be extended for a few years.

There seems to be a perception - indeed, one I had myself at one time - that it is only men who physically abuse women, and only men who verbally abuse women, and that simply isn't true.

Women can hit men all they want, because men aren't allowed to hit back. And women nag and nag and nag until they drive the husband up the wall. Alternatively, they put the hubby down by demeaning his job, etc. etc.

This is why I have always hated such shows as Everybody Loves Raymond, with the roles played by Doris Roberts and Peter Boyle of the bickering, verbally abusive couple.

As far as I'm concerned, when you date a guy, or a gal, and they do something you don't like, dump them right then and there. Because they/you will never change. If a guy persists in throwing his clothes on the floor despite your constant requests for him not to do so, dump him. If you like to dump your clothes on the floor, have no intention of stopping, and wish the woman would just shut up about it, dump her. Don't make sacrifices that will eat away at you and eat away at you such that 10 years later you just snap, and look back on 10 years of hell.

THere's so many people out in the world that you'll be able to find someone who likes what you like, etc. and that's who you should try to find. It's the only way anyone is going to have a happy life.

New look of The Thunder Child

I'm constantly tinkering with the front page of The Thunder Child. Right now I've decided to have two new weekly features - highlight photos of the Max Fleischer Superman cartoons, starring with 3 a week of The Mad Scientist (the very first adventure), and 2 a week of Buck Rogers, the Buster Crabbe 1939 serial.

I've had the Buck Rogers DVD for a year now, and am finally going to watch it, just for this!

Also changed around the actual links to Latest Articles and Latest Reviews.

Now, if only my reviewers would send me stuff. The guy who'd irritated me so much is still with me and has sent some good stuff. Of the other 3 guys, haven't heard from 1 at all and so will not contact him again. He and the other 2 didn't do what I'd asked 'em to do, which was send me a list of books they'd wanted to review so I could get them sent to them. Annoying. But we'll see what can be done.

Meanwhile I have to read Shanghaied to the Moon by Michael Daley, it's been on my desk for 2 weeks or more...

Back To Science Fiction

Nothing science fiction on BBC Radio 7 today - but that doesn't mean there isn't sci fi stuff to listen to there. They have 7 days of radio shows to listen to there. There still isn't any sci fi there, except the last 3 episodes of Out of the Silent Planet, and the last few episodes of Silver Chair.

I railed a few days ago about Radio Spirits having changed their website and gotten rid of their Archives and Schedule to Come, but they appear to have fixed that little problem.

So, lots of good radio to listen to, but only 1 hour a day, of course. And not much sci fi until:

Saturday 1-13
X Minus One
A Wind is Rising
Original Air Date - 10/3/1957
X Minus One
Prime Difference
Original Air Date - 1/2/1958

and Superman is coming:

Wednesday 1-31
Adventures of Superman
Dr. Bly's Confidence Gang, Chapter 1
Original Air Date - 9/4/1945

Saturday 2-3
Dimension X
Report on the Barnhouse Effect
Original Air Date - 4/22/1950

Wednesday 2-7
Adventures of Superman
Dr. Bly's Confidence Gang, Chapter 2
Original Air Date - 9/5/1945

and if anyone here is a fan of Vincent Price, there's going to be an interview with him, along with an airing of one of my favorite radio programs, Three Skeleton Key (in which Price starred several times):

Tuesday 2-6
Escape
Three Skeleton Key with Vincent Price
Original Air Date - 3/17/1950
Speaking of Radio
Vincent Price and Chuck Schaden (Interview)
Original Air Date - 9/8/1971

Incompetence in America

Yes, I know I promised to get back to reporting science fiction here, but a couple of things have happened that really tick me off and I feel like venting.

My parents are in Germany. Today is the day that they are flying back to the States. Germany is 6 hours ahead of us here in the Eastern time zone. I got a call about 10 am from a mechanical voice telling me that 'my flight had changed.' My parents flight was supposed to leave Frankfurt Germany at 11.10 am, now it's leaving at noon, and the subsequent flight from Atlanta has also been changed.

Now, that's all well and good except at the time they called me, it was already about 4 pm in Germany. My parents had already left for the airport, already been waiting an extra long time for their plane (although they would have anyway since you're supposed to get their 2 hours eary for an international fligh), etc.

So, me, being in the States, I'm getting old news. There's no way I can call and tell my parents about the the time changes because they're probably already on the plane. This phone call should have been made the night before.

Then, I popped out to a store and was listening to the radio. Had it on a different station than I usually listen to, so I don't know who was talking, and on the two times he came back from a commercial break he never announced his name. He said he was the third most listened to radio show in America, whatever that means.

Anyway, he was talking about the work week and the work year of politicians. And apparently this was reported in the Washington posts.

Politicians - Members of the House of Reps, work a 3-day work week. They fly in from their homes and families on Monday, work from Tuesday to Thursday, and then fly home to spend Fri-Monday with their families again.

And for this, how much are they paid? By OUR tax dollars! $300,000 a year? More?

But it's worse than that, of course. Way back when there was no air-conditioning, Congress didn't meet in August in Washington DC because it was the height of summer and it was too hot. There's no excuse for that today, but they continue to have the WHOLE month of August off.

There's also a 6 day holiday during Memorial, instead of the 3 day weekend that most Americans get.

And apparently they get a 2-week break in April.

ANd according to this guy, they've taken today off, because TONIGHT, the Ohio State college football game is taking place. So the whole House of Representatives is not working today because there is a college football game TONIGHT.

And what is the average American going to do about it? If this story propagates from the Washington Post to every newspaper in the country, so that every literate person in the USA reads it, what are they going to do about it?

I'd say a country-wide refusal to pay our taxes until the government starts working for what we pay them. They are supposed to be working for us, after all. We are supposed to be their employers. Since when do employees get to decide that they'll give themselves a raise, and make it retroactive? Politicians do that all the time.

Scary.

Anyway, science fiction today. What's on at BBC7's Listen Again? If you haven't been tuning in daily you've been missing Out of the Silent Planet by C. S. Lewis, being read by Alex Jennings. An interesting book. A Christian allegory. And I'll just mention one scene. An 'eldil' or angel appears at a boat in which is the human Ransom, and two hrossa, intelligent beings who worship Oyarsa, their chief Angel. (He's not God.) The eldil tells the hrossa to take Ransom to Oyarsa, and then leaves. At this very moment, a gigantic fish-like creature that they'd been searching for breaks out of the water, and they go after it. And they catch it. And everyone is happy. And then a gunshot rings out and one of the hrossa, Ransom's friend, is killed. "It's my bent people who have done this," says Ransom sorrowfully.

No, says the hrossa. "He was killed as a punishment. The eldil told us to take you to Oyarsa and instead of leaving immediately, we continued with this hunt. So Oyarsa punished him by killing him." [I paraphrase.] Nice Oyarsa. Somebody gets caught up in the moment, delays coming to you by a couple of hours, and to punish him you kill him. Well, he'll certainly never do *that* again, will he.

Typical of the psychoticness displayed by the God of the Old Testament. It never fails to astonish me how people today can read that book and not shake their heads and say, "If this is God, I refuse to worship him because he is clearly a psycho!"

Okay, enough prosletyzing about the joys of rational thought.

There's also Silver Chair, by CS LEwis, more of the Chronicles of Narnia. HAven't been listening to it.

The Museum of Everything started on Wednesday, that's a bit of a fantasy show but amusing.

Museum of Everything
Wander around our many galleries and experience the history of everything, including the real identity of Jack The Ripper. Episode 1 of 6.

The Sorcerer's Apprentice
Peter is young, eager to please and impatient. When he is left alone with a book of spells, it all goes a bit wrong.

ON Saturday is the 2nd and final part of Man and His Time by Brian Aldiss, and the 4th and final part of Celebrity Mummies (which I suspect was the inspiration for Night at the Musuem:

Celebrity Mummies
The comedy horror set in the British Museum continues. How to get 8,000 angry body parts back in their cases before opening time? Episode 4 of 4. [Rptd Sun 12.00am].


Man in His Time
To mark sci-fi master Brian Aldiss' 80th birthday, his award-winning story about space travel and its impact on life back home. Episode 2 of 2. [Rptd Sun 12.30am].


Sunday is the last episode of Blood of the Daleks, a 2-parter. For some reason I missed the first part. Annoying,

Doctor Who
Blood of the Daleks: Lucie realises the true intentions of their 'saviours'. But could the Doctor really want the same thing as the Daleks? Episode 2 of 2.


Beyond the Vortex
Nick Briggs offers lessons in how to sound like a Dalek, without gargling with coal.

Message Boards and More

As I've said before, I've been surprised and disappointed - perhaps naively - that the fans who inhabit the Lady Vols message boards are just as low class, silly, childish, hypocritical, poor sports, etc., as anyone on any other message board, whether it be the college message board sytem called Scout, or on usenet. (Where I am sad to see that women's basketball, college or otherwise, has no presence.)

Of course I'm talking about 5 or 6 out of the 20 that post there regularly...or mebbe 10 out of 30.. obviously not every fan is a jerk...but those that aren't jerks will very rarely call out someone who *is* being a jerk. I've done so on occasion and been informed that I should leave the moderating of the boards to others, or that I'm too "self-righteous."

And that's annoying. Let's just validate their behavior on the boards, why don't we! Let's not teach these guys manners, they're just having fun!

But there's a wider problem with the behavior exhibited on message boards, and that is that these people probably bring these attitudes into 'real' life, into their work and their relationships at home and work.

And it's not just the poor sportsmanship, it's the ability to comprehend what they read, the eagerness to go ballistic over a perceived slight, the inability to see that when they complain about something on someone else's message board, and then do the exact same thing on their own...I would think they'd see how hypocritical and stupid that is but apparently they don't.

Still, the thing is not to let the actions of fans disenchant one against the team. UConn may have great people and great fans - but I'll always root against them just because of Auriemma. Similarly, even though I'm not too impressed with Tennessee's fans, I will root for the team because I like Pat Summitt...

and I think I'll stop going to the Vols message boards because they're really starting to irritate rather than amuse me now....

More Fun After The Game

Sooner or later I'm going to get back to reporting science fiction news here on this blog, but for today...just a few more comments about fans of sports teams

Just checked out The Summitt and of course there's always the posters with class who say "Good game," and the gus from the other boards who visit and comment: "Opponent played good game," etc. etc., but now the other types are coming out, who have to get in their slams against Geno and the players and what the UConn fans are saying *on their own board*, about how the dunk is no big deal, how UConn beat themselves, etc.

I wish there was an alternate universe where UConn won so I could see how all the posts would be different, and yet the same - just coming from different people.

But, I'm glad Tennessee won. Simply because I don't really like Auriemma.

It was not a very balanced game, on either side. Candace Parker scored 30 points, next closest person was Sidney Spencer with 14. No one else in double figures. Well...whatever it takes to win. And its not like Alexis Hornbuckle didn't *try* to score 20 points, but her shots just didn't go in.

And as far as Dallas Cowboys football...Tony Romo bobbled the snap on a potential winning field goal. You've got to feel sorry for the guy. No matter what his team says to prop him up, you know he knows that they'd like to kick him, instead.

Lots of football today. I absolutely can't watch it. I have stuff to do!

Lady Vols defeat Uconn Huskies - barely

I watched the first half of the Vols game and enjoyed it - they took a 12 point lead into the locker rooms. Loved the first few minutes of the 2nd half - Candace Parker dunked. And that fired up the Huskies and they started cutting into the 18 point lead. When they got it down to 5 points, I turned off the TV. I just couldn't stand it.

But, they won by 6.

Of course, the Vols boards is saying that Candace was being singled out by the refs for *bad* calls. Meantime, the Huskies boards is saying that the refs gave her special consideration! You've just to laugh.

Unfortunately, I can't give any opinions one way or the other, since I wasn't watching the games when the fouls against her started being called! A friend will be sending me a DVD of the game, I hope, so I'll be able to watch it at that time and make my decisions.

In other sports news, Colts beat the Chiefs. I'd like to see Peyton Manning win a superbowl this year. Well - really it's Tony Dungy whom I'd like to see win it - but it's Peyton Manning - and more obviously their defense - that has to get them there.

I'm going to spend some time watching the Cowboys. I don't really have time to watch them - I've pretty much wasted the whole day today when I have so much other stuff to be getting done - but, heck, I'm gonna do it anyway.

A tale of three games

Jan 6, 2007. Today, in a few interminably long hours, the Tennessee Lady Vols are going to match up against the Uconn Huskies.

The game is going to be on TV, so I'll be able to watch it and see for myself how each of the players play, and how the referees call the game. Since it's on a major station, I'm hoping that we'll be able to see all kinds of replays of fouls called, which is usually not the case when WCBB plays on other stations.

In addition to watching the game, I'll be keeping track of it on the Lady Vols and UConn message boards. These message boards are the two most active in WCBB, it seems, each with a game thread for every game thread so viewers can comment (and share info with those unlucky enough not to be able to watch.)

In the past, when I have read these gamethreads after having actually seen the game, I usually feel like they were watching a different game from the one I watched. They complain about fouls that *were* fouls, they complain about fouls that *weren't* fouls, etc, while for the most part I saw it completely differently.

Each of the boards seems to think that the referees are biased against the other team. [Of course, that's so in lots of college sports, I think, and women's refs generally do have that reputation. I don't understand why it's never been addressed by the NCAA.]

Anyway, as a Pat Summitt fan, I'd like the Lady Vols to win the game. I was moved for a while to wish they'd lose. Childish of me, you'll think it, but a couple of idividuals on the Lady Vols boards were 'talking smack' about certain things, which annoyed me as exhibiting poor sportsmanship, and I wanted them to be shut up. Of course, they 'talk smack' on the UConn boards as well - but Pat Summitt is a classy coach and it always surprises me when people who profess to admire her don't follow her example of classiness.

But, I read an article in the Courant earlier tonight: The article in which Geno Auriemma had some things to say that I can only describe as.... ugh. Just ugh. Plus, he made a jeer at UT being the leader in the world in foul calls - I guess he's preparing for tomorrow and if the Vols win it'll be because the refs are biased in their favor.

I can't remember Summitt ever excusing a loss by saying that the refs caused it. She yells at them alot during games - as do all coaches - but afterwards? To the media? IF anyone *has* ever seen such a quote in a newspaper, please tell me!

The funny thing about the refs is that both fan bases hate one named Sally Bell. The Vols fans says she hates the Vols and always makes calls against them. The Huskies say that she's a Vol lover! Now how can that be, I wonder?

Anyway, from all that I've learned about Geno Auriemma over the past two years, and especially what I read tonight, I have to say that, despite the fact that his players are gonna play hard, and they have loyal fans, I think the man is an extreme jerk and I seriously hope the Huskies lose by 40 points!

And I hope the Terrapins lose as well. They are *finally* playing a ranked team, although the Spartans are only ranked 19th...however, I am happy they are on TV as I will be able to watch Sa'de Wiley-Gatewood, who has a history with the Vols. I'd like to be able to compare her style of play with that of the Vols...just to see what's so different.

Mind you, I don't like the Vols style of play! I like to see a motion offense with every player on the move all the time, running through screens and making cuts. That's fun to watch.

Well, we'll see how it goes.

If the refs let the ladies play, and if the ladies on both sides handle the pressure of this national stage...it should be a good game. And sorry to the Huskies, but I will visualize you losing by 40 for the next several hours! The thought is the will is the deed.

Go Lady Vols.

The Timelash!

I've got so much to do, and so little time.

Saw Night at the Museum yesterday, liked it, have to write a review for it. I want to write an article on Nikola Tesla from The Prestige - a movie that I didn't really care for at all, but I liked Bowie's Tesla...

I've got 3 gigs from Elance that I have to work on so I can get paid some money, so I can pay my new clippings person, and a new person to do some typing for me...

I've got a book to read and review ....

Too much, too much, dahling.

Well, I've added a 'tooncast' to The Thunder Child. A webcomic called Groovy Ass Alien Kreatures. It's only updated once a week, which is too bad. Three times a week would guarantee more readers, *I* think, but then they probably don't have time to do more than one a week, either!

Let's give a loud shout out to Wesley Autrey, the 50-year old black construction worker in New York City who saw a guy fall on a subway train track, and WHILE A TRAIN WAS COMING, jumped down onto the tracks, and held the guy down in the little depression between the train rails, saving his life while the train ran past them.
Talk about a real life super hero.

NIght at the Museum

Still haven't seen it, so I'm going to go today!

I don't have time. I've got 2 gigs for Elance that I've got to do, I've got my stuff for The Thunder Child and various other projects...but I don't care. I'm going to go see it!

New at The Thunder Child:

An interview with Adrian Sherlock, creator of Damon Dark, a character in the mold of Commander Straker of UFO or The X-Files. He's made several shoestring mini movies about the character which are all available at Youtube.

Also several articles on the 1967 Casino Royale. They were intended to be published to coincide with the release of the Daniel Craig movie, so they are a wee bit late... but better late than never.

Also an article on the soundtrack for The Seven Faces of Dr. Lao.

http://thethunderchild.com

Darn I wish I had a cellphone

Finally looked at my phone after about 4 hours and saw I had a message. The guy- who does have a cell - had called from the tunnel at 2:30 to say he was running late...presumably because he was stuck in the tunnel.

Of course by that time I had already left, but at least he made the effort.

Still believe he cheated me, though. There is absolutely no way it took him *10* hours to type 20 500-600 word articles. There is just no way.

But most of my anger is not really at him but at me, since I should have known better than to let either of these two situations develop (the clipping and this).

Oh, well. Lessons still learned.

I'm now alternating between Sleepy Hollow and CSI (which has just ended) on TV, while working on my laptop. I don't care for gore so it's kind of hard to watch CSI, each time they show something graphic I switch to Sleepy Hollow...and of course there we've got Johnny Depp digging into someone's decapitated neck with one of his forceps or whatever...still if you can ignore the gore in Sleepy Hollow most of it is pretty good...don't really care for the ending but what can ya do?

I will go see Night at the Museum tomorrow and write a review of it.

Rant pt 2

I ended up not going to the movie today...as the guy who has just stolen $56 from me also kept me waiting 30 minutes before he did it.

He lives in Norfolk, I live in York County. To make sure we both didn't have to drive a heckuva long way, we compromised on the Casemate Museum inside Fort Monroe, a well-known landmark just as you get off the tunnel from Norfolk over the James River. (Or whatever that particular body of water is!)

THe first day we were supposed to meet there, so that I could give him the stuff to work on, he never showed up. I waited for 30 minutes before leaving. He said that he hadn't realized that Fort Monroe was still an operating fort...and apparently didn't try to go inside and look for the musueum. (I had forgotten it was called the Casemate Museum and just called it the Civil War museum - but there is only one museum, period, inside the fort, so he should still have been able to find it.)

But, I'm easy going. So I decided to meet him there the next day. This time he was 15 minutes late. But he flourished a couple of maps that he'd used to try to find his way inside the fort (it's a big fort, and there's a building you can stop off at to pick up such maps, and the signs to the museum suck), so I cut him slack again. (Although to my way of thinking if you're meeting someone at a place you don't know, you leave early so you can get there early, in case you need some extra time. But, that's just me.)

So, today, I'd arranged to meet him at 3 pm. 3 pm in the Norfolk tunnel is not a good time, especially on a Friday...but I'd forgotten about that and he who lives on the other side of the bloody tunnel should have taken it into account.

Anyway, I waited for 27 minutes. (Actually, I waited for 45 minutes. I know Fort Monroe and the location of the museum well, but I'm always 15 minutes early for any meeting. If I'm not familiar with where I'm supposed to meet someone, I'm usually there *30* minutes early, just because I leave myself enough time in case I get lost.

So, I started driving away, was on the 'home stretch' out of the fort, when he drove past. He waved, so naturally I had to turn around and drive back to the Museum. Have to admit I was swearing. I'd been tempted to leave 2 minutes earlier than I had actually done - if I had done so I would have missed him entirely and could have saved my $56 - because I would have told him via email that he could keep those articles in lieu of payment and to heck with him.

Anyway, he did say he'd been caught in the tunnel - and I had turned the radio on on my way out and it had said that there was congestion in the tunnel so I knew he was speaking the truth....but if you've got an appointment to meet someone, and you know a certain tunnel is a b*tch at a certain time of day, you leave early, just in case.

So, he gives me the box I had given him, and a red binder. All of the articles were in plastic sleeves, and I'd told him as he finished each article to put it in the binder. (Why else would I have given him the binder?) Well, he hadn't done that. He'd put everything back in the box.

Where did you stop at? I asked. I wanted to take hold of the pages he'd typed, howsoever many there might be, and say, "It took you 10 hours to type this?" (Sure, each page was 8 X 10. But the article in question on each page took up, at the *most*, 2 columns of the page, and none were more than 600 words each, if that.)

Anyway, he starts paging through the sleeves, going deeper and deeper into them, and I'm just thinking...Christ. But, I just said, "Never mind." And handed him $80. So, he in essence stole $56 from me, because there is no way in hell that he worked 10 hours on that project. He worked 3 hours - at about 30 words per minute. That's what I think.

So, obviously I shouldn't have paid him the money...but I just wanted to close the situation and move on.

So, I've learned a couple of lessons now. Expensive, but I've learned 'em. Later on tonight I'm going to work on my newspaper clippings for exactly 1 hour. At the end of that hour I will know exactly how many pieces were done, and I will type up instructions for my next person which will state that I expect her to get that many pieces done each hour. She'll have the option to disagree with that production rate and decline the job - but if she agrees to it, then that's how I will pay her.

As for the typing... I've got to earn a few more bucks from Elance before I can have someone work on that project again. Then I'll advertise it in Craigs List again at a flat rate of $24 - 3 hours at $8 an hour, for someone who can type at least 70 wpm. If someone takes it, fine. If not, fine also. (And at the end of three hours however much that person gets done will give me an idea if I'm justified in my rage right now, or not. I'm thinking I'm quite justified, but we'll see.)

From now on, that's the way I'll be working.

So, sorry for the rant. I feel better now.

Hard to get good help these days

Today I'm just going to vent about what's been going on in my life recently. I am not a happy camper.

I am so busy running my various websites that I don't have time to work on my own projects - my newspaper clippings and a shipwreck database. Since I've got some extra money coming in these days thanks to Elance, I decided I'd go ahead and advertise for help on my local Craigs List and pay some entry level people to do the work for me.

So first I tried my newspaper clippings project. Woman did 9 hours before she said she had to stop as her husband was being transferred. (Military). So I came and picked up the material I'd given her - several boxes, etc, with instructions to separate out pages that had articles on both sides (since she didn't have a copier). Well, she'd filed things in appropriate files as I'd asked her, but she hadn't separated out the pages. And, from my experience doing the same work, there wasn't 9 hours of work there. 5 hours, maybe. *Maybe*

I didn't say anything, I just paid her for 9 hours and took the stuff away. Then I re-did the ad and lowered the pay rate, and got someone else who is going to start after the new year. I'll institute a few more controls - telling her exactly how many pieces of paper I expect to be done in an hour, etc., so she knows what to shoot for.

Then, there was the illustration fiasco, which I believe I talked about here. I do have someone lined up but since I'm about to have to overpay on yet another project I'm not sure if I'm going to go through with this one.

I've got a notebook full of shipwreck articles. Each one about 500 words long, if that. I wanted them typed into a word processing file. From there I'd take the information cotained within, massage the data (since to upload articles "as is" would be to violate their copyright) and then upload them onto the web.

I counted out those articles, and there were 60 of them. The guy who I chose for the job said he could type 70 words a minute. As I handed over the stuff, I said, "It shouldn't take you more than three hours." And I agreed to pay $8 an hour.

So, two days later he calls me and asks me if I want him to continue with the job, as he's worked for *10* hours and is only half way through. There's 116 articles there, he says.

And I was just flabbergasted. I wouldn't have minded so much paying this guy $80 for the project if he'd actually finished it, but to tell me he's worked for 10 hours and isn't even halfway through - that is just plumb ridiculous.

Obviously, he should have stopped work at 3 hours, seen how much longer it was going to take him, and called me then, not done 7 extra hours and *then* called me.

And he's sent me everything he's done...and it's obvious from that as well that there's not 10 hours worth of work there...at least not for a typist who can type 70 wpm.

I was extremely tempted to tell him to keep all the stuff I'd given him and whistle and wait for his money, but finally I thought, no, just pay him off and take this as a lesson. Either he's deliberately cheating me or he simply has no idea how to conduct business. If someone expects a task to take only 3 hours, and you can tell at the end of 3 hours it's going to take much longer, you contact the person THEN. You don't do an additional 7 hours work. Or if you DO do an additional 7 hours work, you finish the job in that time.

So, I'm not too happy right now. On top of that I've been redesigning my The Thunder Child site, and since I don't have a content management system I'm having to redo each page separately and that's taking forever. I didn't want to have the expense of a content management system - also I like the freedom of being able to modifying the layout of a particular page if it's necessary for the look of the article - but the time I've wasted --- I'm changing my header to remove the banner advertising I'd put up there, which I've decided looks tacky, as well as not generating any money-- is just too much.

I'm going to have to go see Night at the Museum this afternoon to cheer myself up. 3 hours out of my day that I can ill-afford, but I need a break!

Granny Basketball

If you're a woman in your 70s, or know of one who is, then you've got to show them this clip!

Merry Christmas!

Yes, I wish everyone a merry Christmas - this regardless of your religious affiliation. I myself am an atheist, but it's the idea of the Season that I wish for everyone - peace on earth, goodwill to Men. (As in, all people, men and women.)

www.bbc.co.uk/bbc7 is the link for BBC radio 7. I've been remiss in daily listing the Sci fi stuff they've got on offer. You've missed part 1 of Out of the Silent Planet. You've also missed Parts 1 and 2 of the Paul McGann Doctor Who Chimes of Midnight. I'd enjoyed the War of the Worlds takeoff they'd done, but this one was just too grim - all about the murder of a servant in Edwardian London - and I decided I wasn't in the mood for it.

www.radiospirits.com is the home of American Old time radio. Stan Freberg (not Frieberg, or Freiberg, which is how I thought this was supposed to be spelled, even though I must have seen it spelled properly dozens of times. It's like Quartermass vs Quatermass - we see what we expect to see) hasn't been the host since October 6, 2006, according to Wikipedia, but it doesn't say why he's no longer there. COnsidering that he is 80 years old and was still broadcasting, I'm assuming it's ill health rather than a desire to retire that has made this occur.

Classic radio bit, which Freburg put on his record album is most famous for a bit in which, through the magic of sound effects, Freberg drained Lake Michigan and refilled it with hot chocolate, whipped cream, and a cherry, saying, "Let's see them do that on television!"


Anyway, looks like they're changing the Radio Spirits site. It's been a month since I've been there, and I no longer see the Archives and the Upcoming Schedule! How stupid is that?

Uncommon courtesy

Since courtesy doesn't appear to be common anymore, "Uncommon courtesty" is a more accurate title of this entry. There's all too little uncommon courtesy out in the business world these days.

If you go to any usenet board discussing sports, film, whatever, you'll find that rudeness is the order of the day. There's always at least one person on any board who likes to stir up trouble, and there are always a few others who will respond to newbie questions with sarcasm, etc. etc. People like to put other people down in order to puff themselves up.

And that's annoying, not so much that they're rude as that it heightens one's curiosity - are they as big-mouthed in their private lives as they are in the anonymity of cyberspace? I'd really like to know!

Anyway, my tale today is of two people, both of whom are just starting out in their careers, both of whom have just lost any chance of employment from me.

A couple of weeks ago I decided I wanted to find an artist to draw illustrations for a young adult book I'm writing. So I placed an ad in Craig's List, in the one for my local area.

I got one response with samples enclosed, from an artist who did good work but not in the way I liked. His work was more of a "hang on the wall" static, variety. So I said thanks but no thanks.

Then I got an email out of the blue from someone who was just the epitome of a conceited young man. (The kind who thinks he knows it all and can do it better than anyone else in his field, despite the fact that others have 30 years experience and he's just out of college -- I've seen them several times in my various places of employment.)

Anyway, I had offered $10 per illustration, and wanted 10 illustrations, of which 5 would illustrate action from the book, and the others would be simple generic drawings like fish or shells. And I specified I wanted line drawings. Not too time consuming, I thought. I'd seen caricaturists in malls draw people in five minutes, for that price, so I assumed it'd be a good 'entry-level' wage.

This guy didn't see it that way. "Takes 2-4 hours to do a decent illustration, and you want 10, that's not even minimum wage."

Now, if he had said just that, and that alone, I would have emailed him back and said, "Okay, I hadn't realized. Send me some samples and tell me what you'd like per each, and let's discuss it."

But that's not what he did. His entire message to me was redolent of sarcasm, as he accused me of trying to get something for nothing, and told me I should "dip a finger in some lampblack, draw as best I could, and tell my readers it was abstract art."

And I'm looking at this message and feeling kind of shocked. If the rate of pay isn't up to snuff for you, just laugh, shake your head, and move on. But this guy chose to contact me and bawl me out, and so I'm the one shaking the head.

So I emailed him back and said, "Hey, thanks for educating me, I hadn't realized. Had you done so in a professional manner, we could have discussed it and you might be looking at a job right now. But since you chose to be a smartass about it, you're not getting this job, you're not getting any jobs from me in the future, and you won't be getting any jobs from my friends whom I could have steered your way."

And, heck, potentially that could have added up to ("added up" being the operative phrase) some big bucks for this guy. I have several websites to which I'd like to add illustrations, and if I'd liked this guy's work he could have had those jobs. I know other people with websites, or who want books published and need illustrations, and he could have had *those* jobs.

But because he just *had* to put down a total stranger and exercise his cleverness and wit, he lost out on it all.

Then I got another response, from a young woman this time, who didn't have a problem with the $10 per illustration. But, the samples she sent me were of murals, not of actual illustratiuve art. So I sent her an example of a woman diver - who looked the way I wanted this woman's stuff to look, and said, hey, this is a test, redraw this for me very quickly (because I didn't want her to have to spend a lot of time on it).

And she misunderstood what I wanted, and thought I was going to send her clipart for her to redraw, and she thought she'd be cheating if she did that.

And, if she had voiced this concern in a professional manner, I could have said, "No, you misunderstood, it was just a test."

But she didn't. She went all ballistic and sarcastic on me, and I'm reading her illiterate rant and just throwing up my hands thinking, "Is no one teaching these kids manners or common courtesy or how to communicate in a professional manner any more?"

These kids have been watching too much American Idol, or sitcoms in which the people sit around exchanging verbal abuse, and think that they can get away with it in real life as well.

So, anyway, I emailed the woman back and said "Good luck in your future career."

The ad has another two weeks to run. I wonder who will email me next?

December articles at The Thunder Child

The Thunder Child has changed from a monthly ezine to a daily/weekly ezine - with new articles, reviews etc. being uploaded on a regular basis.

For December so far, here's what's been uploaded.

Critical Mass:

Atlantis Found, by Clive Cussler

Atlantis and Cold Nazi Gold, in Clive Cussler's Atlantis Found

Book review:

James Bama: American Realist, by Brian M. Kane

In Memorium:

Nigel Kneale. A summary of his science fiction work, complete with Five Million Miles to Earth trailer!

Book review:
Fledgling, by Octavia Butler


Movie Music:
The Music's By Barry. John Barry.

Movie Review:
Casino Royale, 2006

TV:
British Sci Fi: 1992

New Store For Christmas:

Science Magazines for Kids and Adults

TV:
Voyage to the Bottom of the Sea: A Retrospective


Books:
The Honor Harrington Series: A Checklist

Book Reviews:
Armageddon's Children, by Terry Brooks

Fat vs Hair

I'm staying up way past my bedtime, watching a show called The King of Queens. I've only watched bits and pieces of it before...but I've never cared for it. Basically, an overweight guy is happily married to a slender, beautiful woman. Anyone ever see a sitcom where a plain, overweight woman is happily married to a handsome, in shape man?

The episode tonight that I'm going to watch til its conclusion is one in which the husband Doug had intended to lose 25 pounds to go to his high school reunion. But he can't stand to drink lite beer so he says, I am what I am, and he gives up on his weight loss plan. So he tells his wife that she'll have to look good for the both of them. But, he doesn't like her new hair style - she's got it up in a bun, and doesn't want her to go to his reunion looking like that.

So the wife asks Doug's friend what he thinks of her hair, he tells her its ugly, and so she decides to wear it down, despite the fact that she likes it and her female friends tell her it looks good. She goes to her husband's reunion, where he shows her off as a beautiful woman, and she cooperates to show off her body to his ex class mates.

So what's the message being given out by this particular episode? The guy has a lousy job but because he's got a beautiful wife he can hold his own with the other guys who makes tons of money? [We see no old female classmates whom can comment on how much extra weight he's put on to the wife...] So the fact that *he* is a fat slob makes no nevermind.

And the show has just ended and because the late librarian at the school used to wear her hair in a bun, and looks like a bad tempered spinster, the wife decides to remove the bun.

Exactly how I thought this predictable episode would end.

Piece of crap.

Bad Orson Welles

Just saw this in the news today.

There was a spoof announcement, on a major Belgian television station = that the French speaking portion of the country had separated from the rest of the country. Thousands of people took it seriously and news stations and websites were inundated with questions.

http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/europe/6178671.stm

Considering that Belgium is part of the EEC - at least, I think it is - I don't know what the big deal is. There is no Belgium anymore, surely, it's all Euros and Europeans...

And now for something completely different - sci fi!

This is a science and science fiction blog, and I've been talking about other stuff recently...

So thought I'd better have something sci fi...

Went to see The Prestige today. Didn't much care for it. But it is sci fi, or perhaps steam punk would be a better word....so I'll be writing up a review of it for this blog shortly...for all that it's been out for at least a month already!

I've never seen Blake's Seven, but I like a guy who starred in the show, Paul Darrow. He guest-starred on a Colin Baker Doctor Who, Timelash, in which he portrays a character who looks remarkably like Richard III. And funnily enough, many years later I was walking around the Renaissance festival held in Minneapolis and came across a poster stall, and saw a Richard III portrait which used Paul Darrow as the model. P.D. Breeding-Black is the artist.

Anyway, did the ol' search on Youtube and came up with this 4 minute clip of a Monty Python song by Eric Idle set to Blake's Seven. IT is really hilarious. But I'm going to have to get this series soon and check it out.

Bruce Lee

I've only seen Bruce Lee as Kato, in Marlowe with James Garner, in Longsteet, and Enter the Dragon.

There's plenty of stuff at Youtube, so I thought I'd put three of 'em here.

First one is silent, and he's showing moves out of a horse stance. The next two have sound.