Battle "Scars"

1st - Phyrexian Poison (B/G) - 4 matches, 9 games
2nd - Deadspread (B/U) - 2 matches, 7 games
3rd - Myr Of Mirrodin (W) - 2 matches, 6 games
4th (on countback) - Relic Breaker (G/R) - 1 match, 4 games
5th - Metalcraft (U/R) - 1 match, 4 games


L: Digital radio.
R: Johnny Le Carre, Stevo Fry.
W: "Eclipse", "Inception" and "Doctor Who - A Christmas Carol" (2010 the lot).

Bizarre and nonsensical, but I still dig it

"I Saw Three Ships (Come Sailing In)"
[traditional]

I saw three ships come sailing in
On Christmas Day, on Christmas Day;
I saw three ships come sailing in
On Christmas Day in the morning.

And what was in those ships all three,
On Christmas Day, on Christmas Day?
And what was in those ships all three,
On Christmas Day in the morning?

The Virgin Mary and Christ were there,
On Christmas Day, on Christmas Day;
The Virgin Mary and Christ were there,
On Christmas Day in the morning.

Pray, wither sailed those ships all three,
On Christmas Day, on Christmas Day;
Pray, wither sailed those ships all three,
On Christmas Day in the morning?

Oh, they sailed into Bethlehem,
On Christmas Day, on Christmas Day;
Oh, they sailed into Bethlehem,
On Christmas Day in the morning.

And all the bells on Earth shall ring,
On Christmas Day, on Christmas Day;
And all the bells on Earth shall ring,
On Christmas Day in the morning.

And all the angels in Heaven shall sing,
On Christmas Day, on Christmas Day;
And all the angels in Heaven shall sing,
On Christmas Day in the morning.

And all the souls on Earth shall sing,
On Christmas Day, on Christmas Day;
And all the souls on Earth shall sing,
On Christmas Day in the morning.

Then let us all rejoice again,
On Christmas Day, on Christmas Day;
Then let us all rejoice again,
On Christmas Day in the morning.

Rice and vice

Today is my final half a day at periodical "P.", along with being the company's Crimbo do - banquet(?) lunch at a classy Chinese restaurant, followed by an all-expenses paid trip to the nudie bar. I'll need to take it very cheddar-cheesy since I already punched the balls off my immune system on Tuesday by drinking eleventy beers with buds. Can't afford to be crook for the holidays with the clan gathering we have organised, not to mention the indefatigable RS visiting from Seppoland. OK, off to personalise some cute seasonal cards and sticky-tape "Made For Life" scratchies inside 'em...


W: "The Hittites" (2004), "Family Guy: It's A Trap!" (2010), "Solomon Kane" (2009). Ta for #3, SR.

Relatively unproductive w/e

Didn't bake bread, collect my Ashes tickets, take in the Annie Leibovitz exhibition at the MCA or face the bound-to-be-inferior "Tron: Legacy". Did sleep late AND have siestas both days. As well as go to the pub.


L: "Doctor Who - Thicker Than Water" (2005) by Paul Sutton, "D/W - Live 34" (2005) by James Parsons and Andrew Stirling-Brown.
R: "LEGO - A Love Story" (2010) by Jonathan Bender, "Fighters Only #69", "Tom Strong" back issues.
W: "2010 Video Game Awards" (Sci Fi pulled this one out of its bum - was it even advertised?), "Louis Theroux's Weird Christmas" (1998), "Dracula - True Horror" (2009 doco that made a cliche chilling again!), Jean Pascal versus Bernard Hopkins, "Batman - Gotham Knight" (2008). Ta for that last'un, AP2.

Bermuda - Miami - San Juan

Ludicrously good mash-up - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WL5ud5_K-GY

Attempt to rationalise it at your peril. SAN points will be lost! :-)

Rocket surgery

It was a sunny Sunday morning, I was 10 or 11, and I was excited. Firstly, we were at Grandma's house, which was always a special occasion. Secondly, my favourite cousins were due to join us after church (our family had been the night before). Thirdly, and most excitingly of all, I'd heard that T. and G. would be bringing their new missiles. I didn't know if that meant working rockets or just scale models, but in either case, I couldn't wait to see them. When my cousins arrived, I scanned their hands for cylindrical warheads...and saw none. As they said their hellos, I was nearly bursting with anticipation. Unable to stay silent any longer, I blurted out, "I heard you have missiles." They replied that they did and asked if I wanted to see them. Of course I did, but where were these rockets they were so lucky to possess, and that I wouldn't have let go of for a second? "They're out in the car. Come and have a look." If you were raised Catholic, you'll have guessed the twist in this tale. The "missiles" I’d been so excited about weren't flying machines but religious books – Sunday missals. Leatherbound volumes containing readings and responses for each year's masses. Though I was crushed to atoms, there was nothing to do but reassemble myself and pretend to admire the not-missiles with their colour-coded text and placeholder ribbons. There were no glorious launches into space that day, real or imagined. And any fun I had was tinged with disappointment born of an ignorant misunderstanding I was too embarrassed to admit. The funny thing about it is, I ended up begging Mum for a missal of my own, which I acquired a month or so later. Like I said, T. and G. were my fave cousins. And I was a suggestible little tyke.


Listening: "Doctor Who: Hornets' Nest - The Circus Of Doom" (2009) by Paul Magrs, "Purple Rain" (1984) by Prince And The Revolution.
Reading: "An Idiot Abroad - The Travel Diaries Of Karl Pilkington" (2010), "Retro Gamer #84".
Watching: "You're Stealing It Wrong: 30 Years Of Inter-Pirate Battles" - ta for the heads-up, PG.

The Omega Point

My weekend was "UFC Magazine #8", Peroni, "World Of Boxing Vol. 18 No. 12", M:TG Worlds coverage (Aussies finished 9th and 10th/351, and our team was 2nd/57), back issues of "Runaways", "Jack The Ripper In America" (Discovery), "London - The Greatest City" (History Channel), "Restrepo - The Deadliest Outpost" (Nat Geo), Cadbury Dairy Milk Bar Of Plenty Berry Fruit & Vanilla Shortcake, "UFC #124", "Doc Who: Hornets' Nest - The Dead Shoes", the "Journey" trailer and Xmas shopping (95% complete). Why isn't there a prog-metal band called Qualinesti?

By the light of the moon

My friend DL likes to talk about wrestling and comics -
http://kirbyyourenthusiasm.libsyn.com/

My workmate "S" prefers photographing bicycles in Asia -
http://sweetbikesofsoutheastasia.blogspot.com/

Who needs "Fortean Times" when you've got Wikipedia?

"Mata Hari's body was not claimed by any family members and was accordingly used for medical study. Her head was embalmed and kept in the Museum Of Anatomy in Paris, but in 2000, archivists discovered that the head had disappeared, possibly as early as 1954, when the museum had been relocated. Records dated from 1918 show that the museum also received the rest of the body, but none of the remains could later be accounted for."

"AOTS" chose wrong

This message brought to you by the HLF (Haislip Liberation Front).

Libation

As I've just discovered, the risk with opening whisky that's been shelfbound for dusty ages is that the cork may have perished, causing the top half and its fancy plastic crown to break off in your grasp... and leaving the bottom wedged firmly in the neck of the bottle. Then, unless you're willing to employ the port tongs or cavalry sabre methods, you must screw out the remainder of the crumbling phellem with the kind of precision rarely seen outside the combined "Operation"/"Jenga" world championships. Otherwise, there's a danger of imbuing your spirit with woody notes of an unwanted variety. (Yes, these fragments can be removed via filtering, but what a hassle and grog will inevitably be wasted). Job done and brow mopped, simply replug the jug or transfer its contents to a decorative crystal decanter. Except you're fresh out of 1950s glassware, and neither of the plastic stoppers in the useful drawer fits snugly - probably because they are cheap rubbish, you tightwad. Your best defence against evaporation now seems to be creating a temporary seal using one of the unsatisfactory stoppers and some waterproof tape, then buying a bag of assorted corks on the morrow and hoping the angels don't imbibe more than their fair share.

Drunken masters

My weekend was "Prognosis #6" on repeat, Mac's Brewery Sassy Red (NZ), "Inside MMA Vol. 2 No. 5", "Fables GN #14: Witches", "Bleach #33", "The Truth About Zombies" (Nat Geo), "MMA Sports #28", "Scars Of Mirrodin Player's Guide" (backstory = pure gibberish), "Dylan Moran - Like, Totally...", "Dylan Moran - What It Is", "Iceman: My Fighting Life" by Chuck Liddell with Chad Millman, "Doctor Who: Hornets' Nest - The Stuff Of Nightmares" (Tom Baker!), "Iron Maiden" by Ross Halfin (though it's 98% photos), PowerBar Gel Blasts Raspberry Flavour (free with one of the mags), Cascade First Harvest, "The Science Of 'The Hitchhiker's Guide To The Galaxy'", DL's podcasts, "Canabalt" and "I Won University Challenge" (terrific - YouTube it).

"Postal" service

Terry Pratchett fans with Foxtel and UKTV have this to look forward to on Christmas Eve - http://bit.ly/g4LmzK


PS. In hindsight, "trash trailer" woulda been a better nickname for yesterday's junk-food cart. I blame brain lag.

Jadis: you would

The biggest surprise about "The Chronicles Of Narnia: The Voyage Of The Dawn Treader" wasn't Gary Sweet and his Irish(?) accent, the clever plot alterations and embellishments, the heightened religious overtones (that epilogue...), the sheer number of SPFX or the charming end credits. It was the fact a junk-food cart was wheeled into the cinema during the ads and previews to tempt those peckish patrons too lazy to walk to the candy bar. I'm dubbing it the "trailer trailer".

Dissenter

The readers of Dictionary.com have voted "serendipity" the most euphonious (beautiful-sounding) word in the English language. Me, I'm quite partial to "Zanzibar". As the likes of "Elysium", "Venezuela", etc. were nominated, I'm assuming it's allowable.

Repeat all

It's unseasonably cool and will be unseasonably cooler when The Lemonheads take the stage at the Metro later to perform their 1992 album "It's A Shame About Ray" in its entirety (followed by a greatest hits set). Bit of a musical trend this. The Cult did a similar thing with "Love", which made for a memorable concert, despite the inconvenient Luna Park locale. And I note that Primal Scream and Public Enemy are revisiting "Screamadelica" and "Fear Of A Black Planet", respectively. (We won't mention Rush's Time Machine tour, which features "Moving Pictures" in full, and which will sadly never come to Oz.) But I'm getting sidetracked... Evan Dando and co. are being supported by Smudge - an appropriate choice since that band's Tom Morgan co-wrote songs on "Ray". I've heard no reports of Juliana Hatfield reprising her bass and backing vocals, though she and ED still do shows together in the States. Time to scarf a bowl of noodles, then rockin' stroll to the Metro!