Friday, July 19, 2019

Comic ePistle


Famous First Words: Ladies and gentlemen of the convention: --Geraldine Ferraro Acceptance Speech 1984
It's the week of the National Comic-Con. --Any of you going to Comic-Con? I was going to go, but I was stopped by security for “Possession of a Wife and a Job” --Conan O'Brien / Things to Look For: A Steampuck version of something that should not be steampunk.
..........Lighten up while you still can..........Bernie Leadon & the Eagles …..Take It Easy
There is no easy walk to freedom anywhere, and many of us will have to pass through the valley of the shadow of death again and again before we reach the mountaintop of our desires. --Nelson Mandela
It is a muggy (81°F, 71% RH) Friday morning. The sky is empty of everything except the ghostly image of a waning moon. There is a light breeze that now and then gusts to almost cool. The three little dogs that moved into the corner house are out this morning and the barking is so fierce that Puck and I turn back before we reach that end of the block. It clears the area of squirrels and rabbits but not mosquitoes. It is even half a block before we can hear birdsong again. Puck is into tracking mode this morning and sniffs every clump in every yard and every bump in the pavement. So I walk slowly and take deep breaths of air that smells hot and dusty and scorched. Grass and foliage are still very green and vibrant. Can I feel the moisture in the air or is it sweat? So we return home to hot creamy coffee and a cool people to write to.
My heroes and heroines, I hope you all have super weekends.
This week at New York's Comic-Con, Sylvester Stallone charged fans almost $500 for a photo with him. So far, he's made almost $500. / Things to Look For: Domineering Dad: Join me and you will complete my costume. With our combined cosplay, we can end this destructive imbalance and bring order to the con.
..........Wavin' your banner all over the place..........Brian May & Queen …..We Will Rock You
Trivia Questions: Happy Birthday to Kansas Trains
^ Know which line was the first to reach the Kansas border?
^^ How about when the first rail construction began in Kansas proper?
^^^ Any idea what it took to get a railroad charter in Kansas?
^^^^ When did Lawrence/Topeka get “connected”?
^^^^^ How did the state help the railroads move west?
Funniest Thing I Read of the Week: Donald Drumpf likes his women like he likes his Geneva Conventions … mostly ignored, but regularly violated.
Fake Library Statistic of the Week: 50% of librarians say the glass is half full, 50% say it's half empty; 100% say you aren't allowed to have it in the computer lab. https://www.facebook.com/FakeLibStats/?fref=ts
We started this morning with bagels and then some tequila. --Bill Murray (Day 1 Quotes) / A couple of English guys brought a donkey as part of their costume, but it got lost in the crowd; what a pair of assless chaps.
..........I've done my sentence but committed no crime..........Brian May & Queen …..We Are The Champions
Moonbeam: Free election of masters does not abolish the master or the slave. --Herbert Marcuse
Naturally Occurring Mandela of the Week: Sea Anemone

Big Hello: AccaЛomy aЛeЙkym – Tajik (Tajikistan) https://www.omniglot.com/language/phrases/hello.htm
Next Funniest Thing I Read of the Week: I don't know why people are complaining that Ariel went from white to black, your ex-girlfriend did the same and it was the best decision she made. --Grandma Gertrude
Something or Other of the Week: Late on Wednesday afternoon (4 – 4:30ish) we noticed that our house was getting warmer and was hardly cooler than outside. The air conditioner was running but not the fan and the air may or may not have been as cold as usual. Before noon on Thursday, Cloud had replaced the part, cleaned the coil, replaced the filter and we were cool before it even got hot enough outside to kill us. Thank you to Tom for finding Cloud and to Cloud for making us cool.
Week of the Week: Hemingway Look-Alike Days (18-21) --Paula Deen's (Yes, the racist fired from the Cooking Channel) husband won a Hemingway Look Alike Contest. ~~This is not a joke. https://www.dailybreak.com/break/paula-deen-husband-wins-hemingway-lookalike-contest
Tomorrow is the start of Comic-Con. You can tell because San Diego prostitutes are holding up signs advertising a “First Timer Special” --Conan O'Brien / The Fibonacci Panel was sold out. This year's was as big as the last two years put together.
..........Are you happy, are you satisfied ..........Brian May & Queen …..Another One Bites The Death
^ The Hannibal-St Joseph line, completed in 1859, was the first railroad to reach the border of the Kansas Territory.
Almanac: It is Friday, July 19, 2019. The moon was full (Buck) last Tuesday (7/16) and is in Pisces. It is Flitch of Bacon Day** and Laos celebrates Independence Day (1949).
Among those born on this day were Edgar Degas (1834), Lizzie Borden (1860), Charles Mayo (1865), Herbert Marcuse (1898), George McGovern (1922), George Hamilton IV (1937), Vikki Carr (1938), Roy D. Bridges (1943), Bernie Leadon and Brian May (1947), and Kathleen Turner (1954).
On July nineteenth the presumed start of the Egyptian calendar (2781 BCE), Lady Jane Grey was deposed (1554), the first US women's rights convention opened (1848), the railroad finally reached Kansas (1860), the first Wimbledon championship was held (1877), the San Francisco public library began lending books (1880), Ty Cobb got his 4,000th hit (1927), fiberglass sutures were first used (1939), the Apollo 1 went into lunar orbit (1967), the Moscow summer Olympics opened (1980), Geraldine Ferraro won the nomination of Democratic VP (1984), and the Richard Nixon library opened (1990).
Night Sky, 7/19: The tail of Scorpius is low due south, the farther south you live, the higher it will appear. Look for the two stars especially close together in the tail. These are Lambda and fainter Upsilon Scorpii, known as the Cat's Eyes. They're canted at an angle; the cat is tilting his head and winking. The Cat's Eyes point to the right by nearly a fist-width toward Mu Scorpii, a much tighter pair known as the Little Cat's Eyes. http://www.skyandtelescope.com/observing/sky-at-a-glance/
**A flitch* of bacon was awarded to married couples who could swear to not having regretted their marriage for a year and a day. *A flitch is a side of unsliced bacon.
Max Picture of the Week: Max re-imagines great works of art: Jean Baptiste Simeon Chardin: Cook, washing the dishes

This Week: Saturday, July 20 – Moon Day & Space Exploration Day & Strawberry Rhubarb Wine Day
Night Sky, 7/20: Once the Moon does rise in the east-southeast, contemplate the moment 50 years ago today when a man took the first step onto another world. The sunset terminator tonight is approaching Tranquillity Base, and everything there must be casting long shadows.
Sunday, July 21Anne Hutchinson Memorial Sunday
Monday, July 22 – Casual Pi Day & Global Hug Your Kid Day & Spooners aka Spoonerism Day
Night Sky, 7/22: If you have binoculars or a telescope, it’s fairly easy whenever Jupiter is visible to see the giant planet’s four largest moons. They look like pinpricks of light – like tiny “stars” – all on or near the same plane crossing the planet. They’re often called the Galilean moons to honor Galileo, who discovered them in 1610.
Tuesday, July 23 – Gorgeous Grandma Day & Hot Enough For You Day
Wednesday, July 24 – Cousins Day & Tell An Old Joke Day
Thursday, July 25 – Hire A Veteran Day & National Intern Day & Red Shoe Day
According to a poll, about 1/3 of couples who attend Comic-Con met there. And the most common pick up line they used was, “your parents basement or mine?” --Conan O'Brien / At the Math Booth there was a table with some bags filled with math related items...Pi pie, Hypotenuse mouse, etc. So I went to the table to grab one, however, no matter how hard I tried I couldn't reach them. Then I saw the sign: Asymp Tote Bags.
..........Easy come, easy go..........Brian May & Queen …..Bohemian Rhapsody
^^ On March 30, 1859 the first rail was laid in Kansas. By April 23rd they had five miles of rail wandering down to Wathena.
'Nother Funniest Thing I Read of the Week: Do you think that the person who invented vibrators heard voices saying...if you build it they will come! --Submitted by rc of ks
Original Joke of the Week: I tried that aging face app but my just screen turned into a mirror.
Moonbeam: The problem before us is so to exchange information and so to educate people through travel that there shall develop a final, cosmopolitan system of medicine which will combine the best elements to be found in all countries. --Charles Mayo
Late Night Snacks of the Week: I don’t know what’s worse: the fact that the president thought it was acceptable to say go back to where you came from or the fact that he said it to people who are already where they came from. --Trevor Noah / If that strikes you as a little racist, you do not know the meaning of the word little. --Stephen Colbert / Lindsey Graham is the closet Trump has come to owning a dog. --Jimmy Kimmel / The only way you could support Drumpf without lying at this point is if you have the part of your brain that’s responsible for memory replaced with the brain of a goldfish. --Seth Meyers
Not So Late Night Snacks of the Week: The Supreme Court said, no, we can't do it. And so apparently, the last week has been people trying to convince the president that you can't just ignore the Supreme Court. He had plans, though, for the whole census. He wanted to redo the whole thing. Under race, the Trump census would've had only two options - white and loser. And you only count your spouse if she's a 10. He's given up the fight. Instead of the census, he's just going to get Jeffrey Epstein to guess everyone's age. --Peter Sagal Wait, Wait, Don't Tell Me 7/13/19
For to be free is not merely to cast off one's chains, but to live in a way that respects and enhances the freedom of others. --Nelson Mandela
Due to the drought, officials are urging people in California to take common-sense measures like showering less. However, they might change their minds on that after this weekend's Comic-Con. --Conan O'Brien / I went to the Solipsists Panel last Comic-Con, but I was the only one who showed up.
..........With fiery eyes and dream no one could steal........Bernie Leadon & the Eagles .….Lyin' Eyes
^^^ In 1886 any person could obtain a charter to build any amount of railroad, anywhere in the state by asking and paying $1.
Worthless Fact of the Week: After only nine days as the monarch of England, Lady Jane Grey was deposed in favor of her cousin Mary. The 15-year-old Lady Jane, beautiful and intelligent, had only reluctantly agreed to be put on the throne. The decision would result in her execution.
Preantipenultimate Funniest Thing I Read of the Week: Time is an illusion, only back pain is real. --ad of ??
Wicked Funniest Thing I Read of the Week: If you boil a funny bone it becomes a laughing stock. --Submitted by msh of bc
Obsolete Word of the Week: Curglaff – The shock one feels upon first plunging into cold water. (1800s). https://www.buzzfeed.com/lukelewis/27-delightful-obsolete-words-its-high-time-we-revived
Antipenultimate Funniest Thing I Read of the Week: Bad News. It turns out we can't leave our bodies to library science. --rl of ??
Wacky Uses for Common Products: Prevent car doors from freezing in winter. Rub the gaskets with Wesson Vegetable Oil to seal out water without harming the gaskets. http://www.wackyuses.com/wacky/wesson.html
I accidentally went to my first Comic-Con dressed as Chewbacca. Wookie mistake. / I stopped by the Flat Earth booth at Comic-Con. Come to find out they have members all around the globe.
...........You ain't getting' no younger........Bernie Leadon & the Eagles …..Desperado
^^^^ In 1865 a line was completed from Kansas City through Lawrence into Topeka.
Penultimate Funniest Thing I Read of the Week: The only difference between a KKK hood and a MAGA hat is that the hood is made in the USA. --Submitted by ae of mo
Science Fiction Convention of the Week: Avalon Expo 2019 (19-21, St. John's NL) Newfoundland's summer fan convention. Fun, friendship, and all things geek. https://www.avalonexpo.com/
Actual Science Convention of the Week: Global Navigation Satellite System (GNSS) International Summer School (15-26, Vila Nova de Cerveira, Portugal) Build on innovative ideas and take into account the planning of the novel product or service. https://ec.europa.eu/jrc/en/event/training-course/international-summer-school-gnss-2019
Puck the Brave Episode of the Week: Here's our fearless Puck mulling over the clues in the case of the Hiding Havapoo.

I went to a fan convention once. It was very interesting with a large range of fans including metal, plastic, and even wooden. Quite frankly, I was blown away. / Come to the convention for irregular and non-quadrilateral shapes...be there or be square!
..........If it all falls to pieces tomorrow........Bernie Leadon & the Eagles …..Take It To The Limit
^^^^^ Aid granted to the railroads in Kansas was in the form of land grants, amounting to 6400 acres per mile of road constructed.
Month of the Week: July is National Picnic Month –Yogi Bear, driving his Furrari, was misunderstood. He was only looking for the bear necessities in those picnic baskets. Face it, unless you're at a picnic, life is no picnic.
Final Funniest Thing I Read of the Week: Bastille Day celebrates the storming of Louis XVI's airports. --Andy Borowitz
Grammar Joke of the Week: Don't run on, come to comma con. Comma on. It's for a good clause! Comma, Comma, Comma, Comma Chameleon.
Today's Peace of History, July 19, 1958: Several black teenagers, members of the local NAACP chapter (National Association for the Advancement of Colored People), entered downtown Wichita’s Dockum Drug Store (then the largest drugstore chain in Kansas) and sat down at the lunch counter. This was the first instance of a sit-in to protest segregationist policies. And they eventually won.
Every time I go to Comic-Con in my normal clothes, people ask me who I'm going as. Thanks to Marvel, I finally have an answer...I'm a Skrull in disguise. / If Grammar Nerds had a convention they'd call it LexiCon.
..........And I know you won't let me down........Bernie Leadon & the Eagles …..Peaceful Easy Feeling
Masthead of the Week: Friday ePistle, July 19, 2019, Comic ePistle. Online at: http://fridayepistle.blogspot.com/ Laughs, Peace, & Cosplay. Exclusive editor: Christine Smith. 2511 Morningside Dr. Lawrence, KS 66047
Moonbeam: The highest patriotism is not a blind acceptance of official policy, but a love of one's country deep enough to call her to a higher standard. --George McGovern
Cost of War:
As of 7/18/19 Military Costs of War since 2001: $2,941,945,047,011.
As of 7/11/19 Military Costs of War since 2001: $2,939,966,891,510.
As of 7/18/19 Homeland Security Costs since 2001: $908,690,720,586.
As of 7/11/19 Homeland Security Costs since 2001: $907,346,494,300.
As of 7/18/19 Interest on War Debt since 2001: $692,011,106,020.
As of 7/11/19 Interest on War Debt since 2001: $690,321,485,897.
As of 7/18/19 Veterans Care since 2001: $312,911,601,111.
As of 7/11/19 Veterans Care since 2001: $312,527,595,490.
As of 7/18/19 Total Cost of Wars since 2001: $4,855,559,975,006.
As of 7/11/19 Total Cost of Wars since 2001: $4,850,163,525,470.
I think that if the world was a bit more like Comic-Con, we'd all be a little happier. --Matt Smith (11th Dr Who)
..........You make the rockin' world go round..........Brian May & Queen …..Fat Bottomed Girls
I tried to sneak into a Star Trek convention disguised as a doctor, but Security suspected I wasn't the real McCoy. / This year's convention for English Teachers is called Comma, Con.
Famous Last Words: ...women an equal participation with men in the various trades, professions, and commerce. Declaration of Sentiments aka the Seneca Falls Declaration --Elizabeth Cady Stanton
May Peace inform your graphics
And Joy flood your text
prairie mama
christine


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