I went to my exercise class again (aerobics) -- serene in the knowledge that I could handle this Brazilian trainer's programme -- only to discover the NEW programme had kicked in: I am shattered.

quote:

Originally posted by editengine:
I completely forgot the bartender will paddle you with a leather paddle if she finds out it is your birthday. I don't mean funny love taps either. I mean bent over the pool table humongous WHACKS with a leather bondage paddle. Of course the one guy who knew it was my bday opened his big fucking mouth.

He and the door guy then tried to hold me in place for the bartender to paddle. I fought my way out the door but just barely. The kid they have working there door there fights like an octopus, if my girl hadn't helped me I don't think I could have gotten away.

Tonight I will go back and take it I guess. I don't care for being paddled in front of the whole bar is all.

AP Tampa - Six Dead in Attempted Birthday Paddling

Ah, so that's what that was about...

Happy belated birthday EE. Your tattoo looks great so far!

happy (late) birthday, Edit, my fellow Vancouver-explorer and chosen reciever of my "uhm" texts. i like the tattoo so far, looks great!

Happy birthday edit.

Happy Belated Birthday, Edit!

Your post reminded me of grade school, where everyone's birthday was celebrated in gym class by having them go through the "spanking machine".

For those of you unfamiliar with this, and don't want to risk seeing unfiltered Google images of the search term, a spanking machine is performed by all of the kids lining up in a row with their legs spread. The birthday child crawls between their legs and as he/she passes underneath you, you spank their bottom.

*******************************************
Further proof that gym teachers are sadists.

can't believe i'm at work right now...
this is proof that i love my friends.
shift swap for a Sunday morning on a long weekend.
blaugh.
there will be much boredom.

I went to a fountain pen show today! It was fab! I now own a black Parker 51!

I've been to Star Wars conventions, Comic conventions, Beer festivals and Folk festivals, but I can't imagine what goes on at a Fountain Pen show. Are cross-shady deals done in the car park? Is Biro denounced as a class traitor?

I put together an infant's vibrating bouncy chair.

quote:

Originally posted by symmetry:
I went to a fountain pen show today! It was fab! I now own a black Parker 51!

I am jealous.

quote:

Originally posted by Kradlum:
(...)

I put together an infant's vibrating bouncy chair.

You'd tell us wouldn't oyu? If anything is happening?

quote:

Originally posted by Aisha:

quote:

Originally posted by Kradlum:
(...)

I put together an infant's vibrating bouncy chair.

You'd tell us wouldn't oyu? If anything is happening?

Nothing is happening! We promise! Well, other than insomnia, heartburn, discomfort.. *laughing* And some much needed nesting from both of us *l*

If theres time for pre-warning.. I promise to post.. otherwise, I expect symmetry or remote will break the news in here as they're both on the "text announcement" list!

quote:

Originally posted by Kradlum:
I can't imagine what goes on at a Fountain Pen show.

There are lots of fountain pens laid out on tables by various vendors. You walk around and buy them as they take your fancy. There is also a couple of tables with ink if you are also into that sort of thing (which if you are into pens, you are).

There was also a bloke doing nib grinding and adjusting and I had my L2k adjusted while I was there.

Biros are declasse and that goes without saying but there were a few here and there.

quote:

Originally posted by MrsK:

quote:

Originally posted by Aisha:

quote:

Originally posted by Kradlum:
(...)

I put together an infant's vibrating bouncy chair.

You'd tell us wouldn't oyu? If anything is happening?

Nothing is happening! We promise! Well, other than insomnia, heartburn, discomfort.. *laughing* And some much needed nesting from both of us *l*

If theres time for pre-warning.. I promise to post.. otherwise, I expect symmetry or remote will break the news in here as they're both on the "text announcement" list!

Only that you had gone awfully quiet, and Krad unusually posty :-))))

quote:

Originally posted by symmetry:

quote:

Originally posted by Kradlum:
I can't imagine what goes on at a Fountain Pen show.

There are lots of fountain pens laid out on tables by various vendors. You walk around and buy them as they take your fancy. There is also a couple of tables with ink if you are also into that sort of thing (which if you are into pens, you are).

There was also a bloke doing nib grinding and adjusting and I had my L2k adjusted while I was there.

Biros are declasse and that goes without saying but there were a few here and there.

mmm.. Ink... pens..

quote:

Originally posted by Aisha:
Only that you had gone awfully quiet, and Krad unusually posty :-))))

*lol* Oh, I can assure you if anything were happening, Krad won't be posty either *lol*

Yesterday, we went to F.A.C.T.S., a science fiction / fantasy / anime / cosplay convention in Ghent Belgium (and in fact, the only convention in Belgium).

Because Richard Hatch would be there (Lee Adama in the old Battlestar Galactica, Tom Zarek in the new version), we made FRAK!!! t-shirts on friday, and wore those as a kind of tribute.

Upon arrival, we swam through the crowds - and their typical geek stench - to look at the merchandise. There were a lot of dealers, offering whatever you could possibly want or imagine. Meru got a cute orange foxy hat, i got a plush Giardia microbe.

After some quicky lunch, we queued up for the Q&A's. We got there early, and when the doors opened Meru pushed her way through the crowds so we could have seats in the front row.

The first Q&A was with some cast members of Stargate Atlantis: Paul McGillion (the scottish dude), Cliff Simon (who plays Baal in SG1) and Morena Baccarin (who i didn't know was in Atlantis, but whom we of course all know from Firefly as Inara Serra):



After the Stargate Q&A, it was finally time for Richard Hatch! From the moment he came at the front and asked how everyone was doing, Meru started yelling and pointing at the FRAK!!! shirts. Richard picked up on this, and gave us mad props and told us to stand up. Then he asked why the FRAK was positioned that way on the shirt, to which Meru replied "it's FRAK on a rack!" and pointed to her own fine rack. This got a good laugh from Hatch.

The man is a great speaker. He first talked about how he tried to get the studio to do a continuation after the original series was cancelled. He actually put together a trailer for it in his own free time and with his own money, showing what ideas he had. He brought this trailer to the Q&A and showed it to us (it looks suprisingly good!). He then opened the floor up for questions and Meru asked him who would win in a fight, the old Apollo or the new one. His reply: "If you've ever seen Jamie Bamber with his shirt off, he can kick my ass any day. But when it comes to vipers, I'm the man! Because i play video games!". And then he listed a bunch of games he plays online. He's a true geek!



He brought some more videos to show. One was a music video for "All Along The Watchtower" with scenes from the climax of the third season. The other was another home made trailer from a new story he's working on. It's called "The Great War of Magellan" and is another great space saga. He has published a manga, as well as a few books, and is currently developing an RPG based on that story.

His final part of his talk was about his ideas for setting up a dedicated sci-fi community online which he would then try to evolve into an internet based TV-channel solely for quality sci-fi (so not for horror and fantasty tales which seem to make up the bulk of the Sci-Fi channels). He truly has some great ideas and is very dedicated to the sci-fi community. So in short, the man is f'ing awesome!

As he walked out, Meru led to way to go up to him and after a short chat we managed to get a picture with him!

Whoa.

quote:

The other was another home made trailer from a new story he's working on. It's called "The Great War of Magellan" and is another great space saga. He has published a manga, as well as a few books, and is currently developing an RPG based on that story.

I thought he was just an actor. Now he sounds like, well, what I wanted to grow up to be. Comics, books, RPGs, epic space-opera. He's hit all the bases.

quote:

Originally posted by Wanderer:

Meru, you are so cute!
looks like a fun time, guys

Great post wanderer!

I just got the third degree from my father when I mentioned I had begun drinking in moderation again. My mom told him to shut up. They got used to me not drinking at all I guess and they worry that I am going to get drunk all the time.

Not really sure what is going on in the old man's head sometimes.

So Saturday I noticed my girlfriend was very stressed. I asked her what was going on and she let slip that my bdy gift had her stressed. I told her I didn't want a 'gift' and she had better not spend a dime on me. She assured me she wouldn't and told me I would get the gift Saturday night. And she told me to shut up and accept whatever she gave me.

So that evening I arrange to meet my friend in Ybor. I let the girlfriend know I was going and she was stuck at her place with the baby so we would meet later. I sat in a bar with my friend for a couple of hours (the same bar where I was to be paddled, the bartender is waiting to get me when the humiliation is at maximum) He was texting some people that he was going to meet out and eventually he left to meet them at an Irish pub down the street. I hung out and waited for the girl who showed up presently. I asked where my gift was and she smacked her head and said she had left it at the house. She mentioned we should go down to see our friends at the Irish pub (the James Joyce).

I walked in and saw that about ten of my friends were clustered around a back booth and a cake.

Those sneaky bastards. My friend's job was to keep me occupied while everybody else gathered. He and my girlfriend had been calling around for a week to get things set up. The cake was topped with a picture of my ugly mug and "Don't I look sexy in frosting?"

Much beer and vodka was consumed that night. In the middle of the chaos I got a couple of texts from our own Blueshift. Suffice it to say we wound up sleeping on a bare mattress on a friend's kitchen floor down the street since neither of us could drive. There we were sprawled half naked on the kitchen floor when his roommate came through to use the bathroom. She was good enough not to turn on the light at least.

Good times.

All I can say is happy birthday, and you're less hirsute than I was lead to believe. By you.