Musings and Ravings

Between the Swimming Pool and the Whirlpool...

Wed, 09 Dec 2009 22:21:12 GMT

I have just spent around half an hour between the swimming pool and the whirlpool here at the Southway Inn.

After the day I had and the weather here in Ottawa today, and the fact that the Greek language oral exam is tomorrow, it's nice to have some of the stress washed away by the exercise and sheer muscle relaxation in the whirlpool.

Off to have a cup of mushroom soup, and read a bit before supper.

Weather and Work

Wed, 09 Dec 2009 15:56:33 GMT

Well, I'm here. I managed to get in to the office today for both the last day of Greek language classes, and a bit of work.

Donna came by with the carpool, but she made me drive from the Southway Inn to work today, given the horrible weather. In case you missed it, Ottawa is experiencing its first blizzard of the season. The temperature is currently -7⁰ C, with a windchill of -16⁰ C, going to a high of -3⁰ C. There is a lot of snow falling, with very windy conditions at the moment, and the snow is supposed to fall into the night. Expecting about 25-30 cms. of the white stuff. Oh joy, oh bliss...NOT!

So, anyway, I drove the car from the hotel downtown to work. The trip which normally takes about 25 minutes took almost an hour and a half. Needless to say, I was a bit late for Greek class, but then again, most of the other students weren't there.

Anyway, it's time now for a break. Need to find something hot to drink. Hope there's some Chai tea left. Then it's back to the office to do some regular, translating-like work.

Once I get back to the hotel today, got to bone up and study for tomorrow's final Greek oral exam.

Greek Written Exam Time, Part Beta

Tue, 08 Dec 2009 17:15:15 GMT

Out of the Greek written exam, finally. That was the longest four plus hours of my life to this point, to be sure. I think I did pretty well on the exam, but will find out some time later this afternoon or tomorrow morning.

Time to find some lunch somewhere or other, and then do a couple of hours of work at the office today.

Last Night's Game of Tales of the Arabian Nights

Wed, 02 Dec 2009 22:52:20 GMT

Last night, my goddaughter, Ellie, and I played a game of ZMan Games reprint of the classic Tales of the Arabian Nights board game here at the hotel. Ellie has loved this game since she first saw the 1st Edition of it that I have, and so she played a game with me last night while staying with me overnight at the hotel.

What follows are the written notes that I took about the game (at Ellie's insistence), as she wanted me to post it up in the blog for all - well mostly her mom and dad - to see. :)

So...

**********

This is the tale of Ali Baba (JohnK) and Zumurrud (Ellie), and their travels across the lands of the Arabian Nights.

Zumurrud would be best described as a pious woman. While she was also skilled in storytelling and in the arts of (minor) magic, her religious nature and choices woujld largely determine the course of her life. On the other hand, Ali Baba was very much a thief, skilled in stealth and sneaking, but also was familiar with quick thinking and thinking on his feet, and with the use of weapons. Their adventures would become the stuff of legend.

Ali Baba set out from Baghdad seeking a mysterious woman who was to be his true love, one who dwelled far distant from the City of Light at the heart of the world. Travelling into the wilderness heading for Bulgars, Ali came upon a small artifact but was blinded by it! Undaunted, he continued his quest.

Meanwhile, Zumurrud set out from fabled Baghdad in an attempt to help a wealthy merchant find a suitable spouse. The merchant promised a hefty reward, though of course Zumurrud acted too out of the goodness of her heart. She set out for the far-off city of Su-Chou, where there was reported to be a slave market of extraordinary quality. The merchant hoped to marry a slave that Zumurrud would purchase for her. Encountering a small village with strange customs, Zumurrud married a man but when he died, discovered they had the custom of burying the surviving spouse with the dead mate! Caught attempting to escape, Zumurrud was beaten and then thrown into a pit, crippled. Encountering another woman in the pit who would not share her food, Zumurrud fell into a sleep like death, but was retrieved by a grave robber who took her for dead, and stripped her of her belongings. She managed to crawl out of the pit, dazed, with no memory of who she is, and penniless.

Continuing his travels, Ali came upon a terrible sight - a demonic 'efreet! Fleeing in terror, Ali was pursued by the creature but was able to fend it off, and gaining stories to tell in the process. However, in the process, Ali came upon his true love in the city of Yalta, and married her becoming a vizier (he also gained courtly graces and wisdom). Heading back to Baghdad by the long route, Ali came upon a pitiable sight - a creature like unto a wax statue of a man whose legs were transfixed in a pillar of basalt. While he could not aid the wretch, he felt pity and continued on his way.

Zumurrud's travels towards Su-Chou had her encounter a captain during a caravan trip, wherein he offered to split the profits if she aided him in robbing them. She prayed to Allah for help, and chose to refuse his offer, but in the process regained her sanity and sense of purpose. Continuing her travels, Zumurrud came upon a small kohl pot that allowed her to see miraculous treasures all around her, but her religious wisdom enabled her to see the truth in these shadows. She discarded the pot for a small fortune and a good story to tell, and then continued her travels to Su-Chou.

Continuing on his travels, Ali came upon a multitude of brigands. As they counted their loot beneath his tree!, Ali fell out of the tree, and fled into the forest. The brigands, for some reason, did not follow. Travelling on, Ali came upon a hypnotic beggar who proved to be of the cult of Magian, and decided to kill the evil man. Ambushing the magian and his bodyguards, Ali slaughtered them with ease, his weapon prowess increasing dramatically.

Arriving in Su-Chou, Zumurrud came upon a mad enchantress, but she was less than that, and when she attempted to follow her, Zumurrud beat her off until she learned her lesson. Travelling with another sea captain, she attempted to avoid him, but found that with the vessel trapped in a whirlpool, it was better to swim for shore, and that is what she did. In relation to her quest, Zumurrud found that the slave market exceeded her highest expectations, and she selected a slave who seemed perfect in all ways. In fact, despite her intentions to return the slave to the merchant, she found that she had fallen in love with him herself. Knowing that she would be stricken with grief if they were forced to part, she shunned the generous reward offered by the merchant and chose to marry the slave herself. Zumurrud was unfortunately pursued by the angry merchant who had planned to marry the slave, but this small shadow was unable to mar Zumurrud’s marital bliss, especially as she didn’t have much trouble staying ahead of her pursuer. She also managed to increase her wealth during this time.

Still heading for Baghdad, Ali came upon an infidel temple, and with a band of trusted men, attacked the temple. Making their way to the inner chambers, Ali and his men foiled a number of traps, and searching the outer chamber, discovered the treasure was hidden in plain sight! Gaining more wealth than he knew what to do with, Ali's quick thinking became legendary among the men and others. Returning finally to Baghdad, Ali Baba met a wise sage and learned a good deal from the man. He decided the time had come to return to see his wife and tend to the lands that he now owned, and vowed to head for Yalta.

Leaving Su-Chow in pursuit of some travel opportunities, Zumurrud came upon a farmer and helping him, stumbled on a chest full of coins. Having a religious change of heart when she first thought of stealing it, she gives the money to the farmer who is delighted to have it as he must ransom his son. As she travelled on, the merchant whom she had robbed of a slave finally caught up with her! Attempting to flee, the merchant caught her and punished her, crippling her severely and leaving her for dead.

While heading for Yalta, Ali came upon a gooleh (ghoul) who had trapped a man in the branches of a tree. Unable to tell whether the man or the gooleh was telling the truth, Ali continued towards Yalta, and his loving wife. On the outskirts of Yalta, Ali came upon a nomadic tribe of Bedouins, obviously brigands, and spotted a large caravan in the distance. Warning the caravan, Ali was well-rewarded for his efforts, and gained some new friends. Travelling back to Baghdad on a mission of some mercy, Ali came upon a dying beggar in the mountains and was rewarded with wisdom and knowledge, and found himself blessed by Allah - his blindness was gone!

Recovering from her wounds, Zumurrud discovered a golden statue of a coiled serpent inside a stone building. As the gold eyes glittered, the statue moved, shattering the rear wall of the building! Zumurrud fled in terror, as the creature lunged at her with adamant fangs. Some time later, while visiting a wealthy man in his home, Zumurrud finds a trapdoor hidden in the library. Carefully opening the trapdoor, she discovers fabulous gems - and the turban of an evil Magian fire-worshipper! She quite cheerfully robs the infidel blind, before leaving the house the next morning.

Returning to Baghdad, Ali met what appeared to be at first a foolish sage, but when he attempted to converse with the man, discovered him to be a numb witted fool in truth, with nothing to teach of value.

Travelling through Herat, Zumurrud comes upon a very large house fire, people running back and forth, the cries of several victims keening in her ears. She cries out, but a man tells her to stop her keening and shoves her in among the women and children who wail and lament the blaze.

**********

And thus concludes the description of last night's game. I dearly love this game, a game about storytelling at its heart, with the winners and losers secondary to that aim. Ellie had a terrific time playing the game last night with me, and she dearly wants to do a five- or six-player game when her folks and the rest of the Friday night gaming group are around. In the meantime, great evening, and I got to relax with my goddaughter and take my mind off my own troubles.

Made today seem just that bit brighter.

Early Morning Start

Wed, 02 Dec 2009 17:21:36 GMT

Busy morning so far, and I'm not even at Greek class yet.

Ellie, my lovely goddaughter, is being cooperative this morning (on the condition that she a) gets to play another game of Tale of the Arabian Nights soon; and b) gets to swim in the Southway Inn pool again), so we're just heading down for breakfast before I take her to school and then head for school myself.

I promise that I will post a summary of last night's game of Tales of the Arabian Nights here on my blog when I get a chance today, but lots to do and places to go.

Later, everyone.

A Princess of Mars Trailer

Tue, 01 Dec 2009 17:38:29 GMT

For those who have not seen it yet, here is the trailer for ERB's A Princess of Mars.

I still don't quite know what to think of this. Especially with the casting of Antonio Sabato, Jr. and Traci Lords...

Song of the Day

Wed, 25 Nov 2009 16:36:05 GMT

One of my favourite songs from that particular decade. Love to drive down the highway to this one, but it tends to make me drive a bit fast... :)

Enjoy! :)

The Rest of Sunday Report

Mon, 16 Nov 2009 16:42:09 GMT

Had a pretty good day for the most part yesterday.

The game session of Hollow Earth Expedition went pretty well. spross and Tammy completed the first scenario of their new campaign, and had a pretty good time overall. We had to cut the session short a bit earlier, as Tammy needed to get home before the roads in her part of town got closed off because of the Santa Claus Parade, but the two of them managed to wrap up the basic plot, and this gives me the chance to prepare the next scenario for them. Living in the hotel is not making gaming easy.

I ate in the Shallows restaurant of the Southway Inn for supper, and had a good meal. If there is any real problem for me with eating at the hotel restaurant, it's the limited number of dishes and the fact that a lot of the food is not diabetically good. After supper, went up to the room and watched Smallville and Desperate Housewives. Read some more of Stross's The Jennifer Morgue before crashing somewhat early.

Needless to say, I couldn't sleep again last night because of the hip and leg pain. The problem is finding a comfortable position that doesn't make the pain too intense. And that lets me rest through the night. So far, no luck.

A Sunday Morning

Sun, 15 Nov 2009 15:34:38 GMT

Dinner at the Southway Inn last night was excellent. I had the Prime Rib au Jus, with a baked potato and salad, and it was a wonderful meal.

The restaurant was so packed last night, that I had to eat my meal in the bar area of the Shallows. What happens when one is single, I suppose. Things worked out rather well, as I was seated next to an attractive lady my own age who was eating in the bar as well. We started talking over dinner, and that got extended to about an hour or so after dinner, and it was quite pleasant.

Got back up to the room around 9:45 pm, and wasn't ready for bed yet, so sat back and read another chapter or two of autopope's The Jennifer Morgue. Really enjoying this Laundry novel so far.

Woke up this morning to a foggy, cold, rainy day. The fog has lifted finally, but the cool temperatures remain. I am hurting quite a bit this morning from the back, hip, and leg business. This morning, I ate breakfast in the Shallows, and have been feeling somewhat aimless and rather tired for some reason. I have to get ready to run Hollow Earth Expedition on the Sunday gaming group, so hopefully that will cheer me up. As will lunch today, depending on what I eat.

Saw the Doctor

Mon, 26 Oct 2009 18:29:58 GMT

Still feeling like crap. I hate not having a fever, since I know I'm feeling like crap, if you get what I mean.

Just got back from the doctor's office, and the good news is that he doesn't think it's flu. After listening to my chest, and going over the symptoms I've had, he's convinced it's a bad chest cold. He told me that he wants me to get both flu shots, the seasonal and the H1N1, when I'm over this bug. I just dropped off the prescription for Biaxin that he gave me.

I also stopped off at Chapters, where I picked up copies of Terry Pratchett's Unseen Academicals and Jack McDevitt's The Devil's Eye. The book that I wanted which they didn't have yet was the second book in the second series about the orcs, Orcs: Army of Shadows by Stan Nicholls.

Going to spend the rest of the day in relaxing and catching up on sleep. Well, other than having to pick up the prescription at the pharmacy. *Le sigh*

Defying Gravity Final Episode Thoughts

Sat, 24 Oct 2009 15:33:16 GMT

Watched the thirteenth and final episode of Defying Gravity last night on Space.

What a terrific episode to end the first season. What a terrific episode to end the series on - some issues and elements resolved, a whole series of new things raised, and a story and plotline that just never had a chance of being fully explored by the network. Sure, the science was iffy, if not lacking in this episode, same as it was in the previous episodes of Defying Gravity, but when all was said and done, "Kiss" was an episode of the series that I really liked, that closed some doors, opened new ones, and gave us a glimpse of the sheer promise and potential of the series. With the relationship between Donner and Zoe about to take a whole new turn, with the truth about Paula's "hallucination" finally revealed, with insight into the Rollie-Jen and Eve-Ted relationships, and with some laying of pipe for a couple of sub-plots back on Earth, Defying Gravity could have been great in its second season, having gotten its legs under it, but the networks have shut the series down.

Defying Gravity has taken a lot of flack from various fans of the genre. It really didn't deserve such kicks in the pants, except on the part of folks who want to watch a show about accurate science and not the characters themselves. The real shame is that we, the viewers, will never find out what the story was all about, what was really going on, and how things resolve. This show deserved a better fate.

*sigh*

Figures...

Fri, 23 Oct 2009 21:33:40 GMT

And so, it has come to pass.

I am sick.

I have spent pretty much all of today lying ar ound the house in pajamas and a house robe, sick as a dog. Stuffed head, clogged sinuses, itch-at-the-back-of throat, congestion and phlegm dripping down my throat, and hacking away somewhat. The whole bit. No fever, according to the thermometer.

Needless to say, gaming is off for tonight.

Goodnight.

Absentee JohnK

Tue, 13 Oct 2009 17:22:42 GMT

Haven't posted anything here in a few days.

The reasons for this are 1) Nothing much is going on for me right now; and 2) Been busy with work, getting ready to go to Montreal for rpg and gaming convention, Draconis, and doing a bit of reading.

Trying to take it easy and give my right hip and leg a chance to heal up somewhat. The pain is still there, still pretty severe, but such is life. In the meantime, I continue to soldier on.

Happy Birthday, Fabien Cousteau!

Fri, 02 Oct 2009 15:14:10 GMT

Happy Birthday, Fabien Cousteau!!

May he swim with the sharks, film aquatic life, and explore the oceans for many more years to come.

Primeval Resurrected!

Tue, 29 Sep 2009 15:42:24 GMT

For those who have not heard the news...

ITV Saves Primeval From Extinction

ITV has resurrected hit science fiction drama Primeval for two new series in 2011, after agreeing to a ground-breaking co-production deal that will see UK TV have the first run of the fifth series.

Under the deal, Primeval will return to ITV1 in early 2011 for the fourth series, which will then be shown on Watch. Later that year, Watch will premiere series five, followed by ITV1. The two series will comprise 13 episodes total.

The official ITV announcement can be found here.

While the news of Primeval's resurrection pleases me no end, I just hope that they take the series back to what made it great, the study of the Anomalies, and why they are occurring in the first place.

DwtS Season Premiere, Part Trois Thoughts

Thu, 24 Sep 2009 15:10:11 GMT

Caught Dancing with the Stars last night, and the first elimination show of the season.

I have to admit that I was very shocked and surprised that Ashley Hamilton (son of ever-tanned star George Hamilton) was eliminated, while Tom Delay got to hang around for another week. The American viewing audience has such a strange taste, almost masochistic in this regard.

On the other hand, the departure of Macy Gray from the show was one that I hoped and prayed for, as she really did not dance all that well, and the expression on her face at times was one that seemed to indicate she wished she weren't there. I had actually worried that Kathy Ireland would be the one eliminated, and was glad that she stayed.

Loved the Patrick Swayze tribute from the professional dancers, thought the Lion King stuff was delightful, but could have done without the Adam Carolla sketches and the Miley Cyrus debut video.

DwtS Season Premiere, Part Deux Thoughts

Wed, 23 Sep 2009 17:07:35 GMT

And so the second part of the three-part season premiere of Dancing with the Stars happened last night, with the female celebrities taking to the dance floor for the their routine, and for the Relay round.

Overall, I think that the women danced much better than the men, and I still say that Tom DeLay will be the male star voted out tonight in the first elimination show. That said, I was pleasantly surprised by how well Kathy Ireland danced last night, despite the comments of the three judges. Melissa Joan Hart did a pretty good job on her two dances, the Viennese Waltz and the Chacha as part of the Relay round, but the real surprise to me was model Joanna Krupa's performances. She was very beautiful, more athletic than I expected her to be, and quite good dancing her two performances, and made only a few mistakes (as the judges commented on).

Tonight's a busy tv night. Aside from Dancing with the Stars and the elimination show, there is also episode four of Expedition Africa on History Television (in answer to a question asked of me, I won't be posting any more thoughts or comments about the series, as no one seems to care about my reviews of stuff, so no big deal), and the premiere of the new series, Mercy,which is about nurses, and may or may not survive. In any event, lots of stuff to watch this evening.

Back to work.

Avast, Mateys!!!!

Sat, 19 Sep 2009 15:07:26 GMT

Soo, as p'r the usual, 'tis the annual Talk Like a Pirate Day!

Therefore, me hearties and mateys, this be the day when ye all haf ta talk like the scurvy pirates that ye are!!

Good wishes an' raisin' a mug o' froth to all me LJ salty sea dogs and lovely, briny wenches!

Arrrrrrrrr!! :)

Save Defying Gravity Petition

Thu, 17 Sep 2009 22:01:28 GMT

For all the fans of the tv series Defying Gravity, there is a petition out there to save the series. If you were or are a fan of the series, please follow the link and do your part.

Save Defying Gravity Petition

Book Reading: Poseidon's Steed

Thu, 17 Sep 2009 15:32:10 GMT

One of the more fascinating marine creatures, and among the most elusive, is the seahorse.

I've always been fascinated with marine biology, and I was pleasantly surprised when I recently learned of a book that has just come out, Poseidon's Steed by author and marine biologist Helen Scales. (You can check out the book on Amazon right here.)

I'm about three chapters into the book at this point, and have to say that this is a fabulous, fascinating read on the subject of the reality and the mythology of seahorses by an expert in the field. What is so neat about the book is the readability and accessibility of the book. You can actually read an in-depth review of the book here, on the National Greographic website. The review even has some neat video of seahorses and stuff!

Excellent read so far, highly recommended.

Running HEX at Draconis in Montreal

Tue, 15 Sep 2009 15:44:39 GMT

Due to luck, good karma, whatever you want to call it, I will be running games of Hollow Earth Expedition (HEX) at Draconis, the roleplaying and board game convention in Montreal, Quebec, the 16th-18th of October, 2009. This is the link for the Draconis Convention.

Here's the list of the games I'm running.

The Secret of Lake Qechacua
Game: Hollow Earth Expedition RPG
Number of Players: 6
Times:
Friday 7-11 pm
Description: Stranded in a strange, fantastic prehistoric world, your group of intrepid adventurers hear of a possible means of escaping the Hollow Earth. But what deadly secrets does this Lake conceal? And is there truly a way to return to the Surface World?

The Lost City of Crystal Graveyards
Game: Hollow Earth Expedition RPG
Number of Players: 6
Times:
Saturday 2-6 pm
Description: As your group of heroes travels through the Hollow Earth, what starts out as a mission of mercy to rescue some tribesmen from what appear to be Surface Worlders turns into the discovery of a mythical, ancient city! But the residents harbour a dangerous heresy, and a riddle and moral dilemma await your characters.

The Wreck of the Haruka Maru
Game: Hollow Earth Expedition RPG
Number of Players: 6
Times:
Sunday 9 am - 1 pm
Description: The passengers and crew of the seaplane Flying Fish embark on a rescue mission to a remote South Pacific island and discover a terrifying secret! Can they save the islanders and themselves from a terror from a lost world??

Really looking forward to running the games of HEX at the convention. Hope to see some of you folks there! :)

Africa Happens

Mon, 14 Sep 2009 20:13:52 GMT

For those who think that scientific expeditions into the wilderness just have to deal with the dangers of the wild and all, there are also the more...pedestrian, more country-oriented elements.

As witness with Mireya Mayor's current trip on behalf of National Geographic to the Congo, noted in her MireyaTracker blog entry this afternoon.

Africa Happened

I'm just glad that she's safe and all, given the river disaster that happened as well, and all.

Heatley Trade Thought, v2

Sun, 13 Sep 2009 15:32:46 GMT

Morning, all.

A beautiful morning here in Ottawa, and time for me to get down to stuff and get ready for this afternoon's roleplaying game session.

That said, I've cleared my head about the trade that Ottawa made to San Jose, sending them Dany Heatley and a draft pick for Milan Michalak, Jonathan Cheechoo and a draft pick. I think the trade will be good for the Ottawa Senators, and I think that between Kovalev, Michalak, and Cheechoo, the Senators' offense will be better this year. If they can make another deal or get one of the free agents still out there (if the budget can handle that), it could be an interesting season in Senators country.

The fans just have to calm down, and regain that faith in the team that they've had for all these many years. Heatley was a good player for the Ottawa Senators, but he's been divisive most of the summer, and the trade will finally give resolution to the city, the fans, and the team, and allow the Senators to move on and get their hockey season in gear.

Go, Sens, Go! :)

Expedition Africa, Episode 2 Review

Fri, 11 Sep 2009 22:45:18 GMT

Now that the ideas and all have sunk into my brain, I thought that I would finally share my thoughts on the second episode of Expedition Africa, "First Victim". You can read what I thought of the first episode here.

Right off the bat, I was a bit disappointed to see that at the start of the second episode, three days had gone by and the four explorers and their retainers were at the base camp near the Uluguru Mountains. That said, I thought it was an intriguing an interesting move to decide to take the route over the Ulugurus, as I know that Stanley didn't do so as that is quite some formidable terrain. While watching the bit in the base camp, I couldn't help but wonder how difficult it must have been to choose what to take with and what to leave behind. Going up into mountains usually necessitates one leave a few things behind.

It was interesting to watch the interaction of the four explorers as well as how they dealt with the pressures of the environment they were in, and some of the other social interplay. I thought it was quite fascinating to watch Kevin Sites and his concern for the porters. Poor Julius, the head porter, looked out of his depth at several points during the early part of the journey into the Ulugurus. While Kevin's concern for the porters was heartening (especially in the light of Pasquale Scaturro's seeming disregard for them and his "expedition comes first" attitude), it started to feel as if the porters were leading the expedition at one point, an element mentioned and dealt with by Mireya Mayor and the others later on.

There was some really lovely and witty dialogue from time to time during this episode as well. One of my favourite bits was when Pasquale wanted to know which of the porters was slowing the group down, and Mireya inquired as to whether he was going to fire them.

I also was rather fond of the Mireya Mayor-ism: "This is as typical as it gets on an expedition. You plan and plan and plan...and then Africa happens."

About halfway through the episode, I realized that like some of the folks on the expedition, I could really hate the word "tweende" (Swahili for "let's go"). On the other hand, Pasquale Scaturro really likes that word! :)

Then there are the Maasai. There are two Maasai warriors accompanying the expedition, and they have been a joy to watch. Sure, they're staying relatively in the background, but I love the talkative Maasai warrior, and his insights on situations and events has been quite good to watch. Wish I knew his name.

Some of the vistas and panoramic views from the Uluguru Mountains was just phenomenal. They were definitely emphasized and contrasted with that first blustery, noisy, very windy night at camp. I know for certain that I would not have been able to sleep that night, with all that hullaballo going on around me. That said, the camera crew deserves a lot of credit for some of the shots they took during this sequence.

One of the most irritating things I find at times is Pasquale's tendency to lecture when he talks to the camera during the interviews. While the information that he imparts is very much informative, it's too like being in a schoolroom setting and all.

I loved Pasquale's line, "We're taking the '1 hour to the top' pace" when asked about this at one point.

When the expedition entered the old-growth forests, and the oldest - 25 million years old!!! - forest, it was truly awe-inspiring stuff. There was some very cool stuff in this segment of the episode, and I loved it for the inspiration and sheer magnificence of its aura and its feel.

I have to admit that when "Mireya and Benedict Allen stopped and were discussing the maggot that she had found on the trail they were following, at first when he ate a bit of the plant he found, I had actually thought he had eaten the maggot!

The magnificent view of the epiphytic trees and vegetation was just wonderful and well photographed. Benedict's espousing on the subject and then his discussion of various properties of plants and the discussion with the porters and Maasai about plants was lovely. After he took the plant for use in expunging stomach contents, and noted it in his botanical journal, Kevin Sites had a wonderful line, "So, if you die, we wanna get your notebook, right?" Great stuff.

Another lovely moment was once the expedition got to the heights of the Ulugurus where they were in the clouds at times, Mireya Mayor made some lovely observations about the group living in the clouds, and it was a very surreal moment for me to watch. Such a contrast with the mangrove swamps from Episode 1.

When the group was getting ready to start the descent from the Ulugurus, Pasquale made an interesting point: "Going up a mountain is optional. Getting down a mountain, that's mandatory."

Note to Self: When in the wilderness, always take a woman's tampon with you for helping to light fires under damp conditions.

During the morning when everything in the camp was wet due to the moisture in the air, I really felt the group's being dispirited, hungry, wet, and tired because they couldn't really light the fires or anything. I sympathised with Benedict about wearing the damp, wettish clothes.

When the group faced the fact that they might possibly have to deal with climbing and descending cliff faces, I was somewhat surprised at Kevin's fears, until I remembered that he wasn't really an explorer or established expeditionist. I was quite pleased that this element of the early part of the voyage was actually left in. Wonder if there will be any reference to this later on?

The find of the village in the Ulugurus came as a bit of a surprise to me, although I guess it shouldn't have. People seemingly live everywhere, in all sorts of locations and terrain in this crazy world of ours. Bananas, pineapples, and goats, oh my!

After Benedict convinced the others to purchase the goat, and one saw the Maasai warriors' almost licking their lips at the thought of it, I was somewhat grossed out with the business with the goat kidney. I have to wonder what "Mireya really thought about the taste of goat kidney. Her expression when she was eating it said...a lot. Ugghh! That said, given the situation and all, I probably would have eaten a bit of it, too.

The final sequence of the episode, with the musicians showing up, the dancing with the pythons, and the entire sequence was fun to watch, and gave me a slight taste of how the immersion into the African tribal culture must have felt. Besides, after the tough time the group had had up to that point in the Uluguru Mountains, a bit of exhilaration and enjoyment like that must have been welcome.

All in all, the second episode of Expedition Africa rocked, and was quite good. A lot of contrasts, juxtoposition, and a few surprises and delights. Looking forward to the next episode.

Eight Years Ago...

Fri, 11 Sep 2009 17:09:17 GMT

Eight years ago today, a terrible series of events occurred. We call it 9/11.

It occurred to me today that I was at the sf bookstore I owned and ran back in those days, Basilisk Dreams Books, getting paperwork done for the morning and getting ready to open the door, when the kind lady who owned the store next door (a video store that also sold tvs, vcrs, and dvd players) knocked on the door, and said that I needed to come to her store and see the terrible tragedy that had occurred and was still ongoing.

Needless to say, the complexion of the rest of that day was forever changed. And the world changed that day forever as well.

I want to also offer my condolences to those who lost loved ones on that day, and my heartfelt thanks for those who toiled and struggled and bravely survived that day.

So, where were you on 9/11?