Pirates vs. RL

As I grow older, war makes less and less sense to me, and seems to contradict particularly what Christ taught, precepts that are not meant to be revered for only an hour on Sunday. My father was a veteran of World War II, as was my uncle. I love and honor them. And yet...

( Why of course the people don't want war... )


( Facing It )


Borrowed from penknife...

( I 'listed at home for a lancer )


And from matociquala...

"When I was a boy, all the people of all the nations which had fought in the First World War were silent during the eleventh minute of the eleventh hour of Armistice Day, which was the eleventh day of the eleventh month.

“It was during that minute in nineteen hundred and eighteen, that millions upon millions of human beings stopped butchering one and another. I have talked to old men who were on battlefields during that minute. They have told me in one way or another that the sudden silence was the voice of God. So we still have among us some men who can remember when God spoke clearly to mankind."

~ Breakfast of Champions, Kurt Vonnegut, 1973



Dulce et decorum est pro patria mori.

Was very depressed last night as I totally 1) missed signing up for merrypirates, and 2) suddenly realized I'd forgotten to send the photography company the list of our employees for the photo shoot today. *woe* But this morning there was, among other happy things on the flist, this...

As others have said before me, bullet points make a post.

• Yay for another three-day weekend!!!!!!
• Gen Battle going on atfox1013 's journal, PotC prompts are here, posts go here in comments and must be no longer than the permitted length of a comment (4300 characters). Go to it!
• There is a 'Love' challenge atkahva 's Yahoo Group, Black Pearl Library. I think every one of us can write to that theme (but remember that BP Library is non-slash and limited to soft 'R' like Sails).
• hseas_challenge  #3 has yet to be answered. Ye writers of smut, get thee to it!
• HUGE storm here today, the grapevine (pass through the hills from the San Fernando Valley to the San Joaquin Valley) is closed already due to snow, and alas I can't stay in the house by the fire, I am meeting friends for lunch, and going to dinner and the library with daughter (good things both, but what if I melt in the rain?). Must write the next bit of AEB first, however, and hopefully a couple more by the time I get too tired to write tonight (about 8:30 P.M. lately. Argh.).

I'd best get writing. Barbossa has things to say.

I'm OK, but there are far too many on my flist and at work here that are being threatened by the many brush fires in Southern California. The winds are horrendous, 80 to 90 mph gusts. No wonder I lost my poor tree.

Prayers and good vibes to all of you that are effected, evacuees and otherwise.

I have been watching the fannish kerfluffle, and joined right in, establishing a Greatest Journal and an Insane Journal in case all my PotC fannish peeps abandon LJ, but I have to say I think it's going to be the same thing, wherever we go, when it comes to work that skirts the edges of legality. We who work in public schools are all too aware of how very ready parents are to sue for anything that they consider has harmed their little prince or princess. Even if someone starts their own fannish site that permits anything and everything, there's a legal risk to them, personally. Kids are smart, and they're computer savvy, and they can find their way around safeguards, if they're determined to do so. And parents can sue individuals, not just big companies, or school districts.

We're all still feeling our way here. It wasn't very many years ago that the internet was all a new thing. I know LJ has been heavyhanded in dealing with this latest fandom issue, and even insulting, and surely there is no excuse for that in a business environment. But on the other hand, the timing of the posting of the two pieces of fanart in question could have been better, what with the fifth Harry Potter movie and the last book just coming out and quite literally attracting the eye of the world.

It's supposed to be in the high 70's to low 80's here today, sunny with a slight breeze.

Just wanted you to know. ;)

ETA: Wow. Just noticed I had California spelled wrong. Made the correction, but I think I need a weekend. A THREE DAY WEEKEND!!!!! Bwahahahahahah!!!!!

I've been fooling around with the layout of prettygoodfood today -- I think the one I came up with is prettier, and more legible. I posted a few recipes, too, and hope to work on it a little each day, and get the rest of our family cookbook posted. I know, I know. I've said that before. But this time I mean it. Not that I didn't the other times. Many thanks to all the friends who've joined and posted their family favorites there, too. Everything is tagged, and saved to memories.

Took a few days off to commandeer viva_gloria from LAX last Monday. We drove many miles in search of beaches, good seafood, and Disney adventure (for which gingersnapps was our kind hostess -- many thanks to her!), and had a small but lively pirate gathering on Halloween evening with choose2live, hippediva, and smutcutter, with a brief appearance by hazelhawthorne and company. viva_gloria was an ideal guest, and I hope she had as much fun as I did (in spite of jet lag).

Here are pix of the PotC pumpkins that gingersnapps and weemonkey6 made for us. Just like some that were posted awhile back at arrrrr, but these are OURS! They're made with those craft pumpkins, so we'll have them for years to come (if Wee Monkey will bring them home from work -- she took them in to show her co-workers).

( Piratical Pumpkins )

All right. It's after 5. Still have to go to store, make out bills, make dinner, and watch Deliverance with gingersnapps and weemonkey6. Haven't seen Deliverance since I was an impressionable 19 year old. Should be interesting.

Y'all have a great week!