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Post by Phalon on Jan 5, 2006 7:56:49 GMT -6
The New Year: Twelve more fresh months to ramble on about nothing; a clean slate to scribble upon.
It was a good friend's birthday yesterday. I knew this, and had carefully choosen a card that had special meaning, fully meaning to get it to her on time.
This card sits somewhere buried under piles of stuff on my desk, along with the birthday card for my sister-in-law, whose birthday was two months ago - and my calendar which clearly marks these important dates that I should not miss.
Calendars are important; they measure our time in neatly packaged thirty day - give or take - increments that tick off the time until we start it all over again.
And so, since I've this clean slate to ramble on about nothing packaged in increments, I thought it'd be fun to ramble through the calendar month by month.
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Post by Phalon on Jan 5, 2006 8:02:29 GMT -6
January: Jump out of Bed Month, Oatmeal Month, National Hot Tea Month, International Creativity Month
Which means each day this month, you should creatively jump out of bed, drink tea and have oatmeal for breakfast to be in proper observance of recognized holidays authentically verified by me because the web-site I got them from verifies authenticity.
"This month derived its name from the ancient Italian god, Janus - Januarius being the Latin name. How old the worship of the god may have been cannot be determined, but it undoubtedly dated back prior to the foundation of Rome. Janus was the tutelary deity of doors and gateways – janua is Latin for "door." He was therefore always represented as having two faces, so that, it was explained, he might guard both entrance and exit.
It is sometimes thought that January, being the first month of the year, was so named because Janus was also the god of beginnings. That is not so, however. In the oldest of Roman calendars the year had only ten months, thus accounting for the names of the last four months in our present calendar - September (seventh), October (eighth), November (ninth), December (tenth). Some seven hundred years B.C., the calendar was readjusted and two months were added to the year. The names given to them were Januarius and Februarius; they were, respectively, the eleventh and twelfth months, and they were so named because the first contained a feast day in honor of Janus, and the second included the Roman festival of purification, (februum). March continued to be the first month of the year until long after the Christian Era had begun and March 25th, because that date coincided with the vernal equinox, (the beginning of spring), in the Julian calendar, was the day upon which the civil year began.
It was not until the adoption of the Gregorian calendar that January was accepted in all countries as the first month of the year and that January 1st was generally observed as New Year's Day. This calendar was prescribed by Pope Gregory XIII in 1582, to correct errors in the Julian calendar, but it was not adopted in England and its colonies until 1752."
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Post by Phalon on Jan 5, 2006 8:09:53 GMT -6
And just to add to your January routine of creatively eating oatmeal and drinking tea while jumping on the bed, today you have to do it in used clothing and laugh about what a foolish thing it is to jump on the bed while trying not to spill tea and oatmeal on your second-hand clothing.
January 3-7 is "Someday We’ll Laugh About This Week"
And January 5th is "National Second-Hand Wardrobe Day"
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Post by Joxcenia on Jan 5, 2006 17:11:58 GMT -6
I will not eat oatmeal.... Phal, my Gal... no... never... and I won't make no deal.
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Post by Lesa on Jan 5, 2006 17:14:15 GMT -6
That history of the calendar is interesting. Thanks for posting it! It makes me wonder, why didn't they make/keep the vernal equinox the first day of the year? Then again, maybe the Romans knew by then that spring in the northern hemisphere is actually fall in the southern hemisphere, and maybe this was a compromise of sorts. Hmmm....
I've also often wondered why they decided to make February so short. Wouldn't it have made more sense to give December, January, and February all 30 days each?
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Post by Phalon on Jan 5, 2006 23:05:41 GMT -6
Joxie, Oh Joxie! Dear gal with the moxie,
No, never? No oatmeal. No bargain or deal, (and said with such zeal)
But it's Oatmeal January, Please, don't tarry, Eat it with dairy, a cherry, or berry, Your chest will get hairy, Or so they say.
The hell with iambic pentameter, I am a poetry cheater, typing off the top of my head, to the reader's dread. Without rhyme or rules.
What was I talking about? Oh yes: Oatmeal.
Eat it in a shoe, Eat it 'til you're blue, Eat it though it tastes like glue, You don't even have to chew. Eat some for me too.
Because I hate it. Bluck.
Gig, regarding your questions -
The answers; I've nil: There's a need for drill; the two-minute Internet drill, But later, for now I've my fill, My fingers be still, My quill is out of ink. Though, I think...
...it all started with the Babylonian Calendar, which began on the vernal equinox, and was based on the solar calendar. But because it didn't fall on the same exact day each year, it eventually got all out of sync. Which led to the Romans tinkering with it, but they had superstitions about even numbers, so all months had 31 or 29 days, or something of some such thing. This is fiction vaguely based on fact; I'm pretty much making it up as I babble on. I should have been a Babylonian; then I could blame all this on my heritage. Babbleon Sister...
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Post by Gabbin on Jan 5, 2006 23:07:45 GMT -6
Hmm, berry interesting. That also explains Janus Funds to me now. A duel money portal guarding the incoming and outgoing money.
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Post by lolapunk on Jan 5, 2006 23:14:48 GMT -6
I love the much ado about nothing threads, though our very concept of linear time is hardly nothing. No calendar means we would be floating through a timeless universe and Swatch would never have made the statement it did in the 80's. And I loved Swatch.
Wait, we would still have moons to keep track of the passing time. Come to think of it, we would still have had Dantes marking time on the rock wall, waiting to become the Count of Monte Cristo. Passing moons begat simple line markings begat stick figure art begat grafitti begat gangs marking turf begat laws against such activity... hence mooning is illegal. Begads.
I should work through this stuff before I actually post.
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Post by lolapunk on Jan 5, 2006 23:17:52 GMT -6
So help me with the math, it's late by my Swatch. If the calendar originally didn't start until March, the cold weather fertilization would have resulted in a baby birth boom of which month? I wonder if it's marked who was the first born on the first Jan 1.
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Post by Joxcenia on Jan 5, 2006 23:21:35 GMT -6
No way I'm eating oatmeal... I'll only eat oats in cookies... And you can't make me.
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Post by Lesa on Jan 6, 2006 22:55:05 GMT -6
LMAO Phalon! Interesting Babylonian ya got there, lol.
BTW, are you sure it's not your reed that is out of ink?
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Post by Phalon on Jan 6, 2006 23:27:10 GMT -6
So here goes, Gigs. I was sort of right...about the even number superstition anyway. Gotta take note of my correctness when I can; it happens so infrequently.
"When Rome emerged as a world power, the difficulties of making a calendar were well known, but the Romans complicated their lives because of their superstition that even numbers were unlucky. Hence their months were 29 or 31 days long, with the exception of February, which had 28 days. However, four months of 31 days, seven months of 29 days, and one month of 28 days added up to only 355 days. Therefore the Romans invented an extra month called Mercedonius of 22 or 23 days. It was added every second year.
Even with Mercedonius, the Roman calendar eventually became so far off that Julius Caesar....ordered a sweeping reform in 45 B.C. One year, made 445 days long by imperial decree, brought the calendar back in step with the seasons. This was called the "Year of Confusion". Then the solar year (with the value of 365 days and 6 hours) was made the basis of the calendar. The months were 30 or 31 days in length, and to take care of the 6 hours, every fourth year was made a 366-day year. Moreover, Caesar decreed the year began with the first of January, not with the vernal equinox in late March.
This calendar was named the Julian calendar, after Julius Caesar, and it continues to be the calendar of the Eastern Orthodox churches to this day. However, despite the correction, the Julian calendar is still 111/2 minutes longer than the actual solar year, and after a number of centuries, even 111/2 minutes adds up.
The Gregorian Reform By the 15th century the Julian calendar had drifted behind the solar calendar by about a week, so that the vernal equinox was falling around March 12 instead of around March 20. .....
Pope Paul III ordered the calendar be reformed once more.... Thursday, Oct. 4, 1582, was to be the last day of the Julian calendar. The next day would be Friday, Oct. 15. For long-range accuracy, a formula suggested that every fourth year is a leap year unless it is a century year like 1700 or 1800. Century years can be leap years only when they are divisible by 400 (e.g., 1600 and 2000). This rule eliminates three leap years in four centuries, making the calendar sufficiently accurate.
In spite of the revised leap year rule, an average calendar year is still about 26 seconds longer than the Earth's orbital period. But this discrepancy will need 3,323 years to build up to a single day.
Reform Adopted Gradually The Gregorian reform was not adopted throughout the West immediately. Most Catholic countries quickly changed to the Pope's new calendar in 1582. But Europe's Protestant princes chose to ignore the papal bull and continued with the Julian calendar. It was not until 1700 that the Protestant rulers of Germany and the Netherlands changed to the new calendar. In Great Britain (and its colonies) the shift did not take place until 1752, and in Russia a revolution was needed to introduce the Gregorian calendar in 1918. In Turkey, the Islamic calendar was used until 1926."
Still no explanation though, why the vernal equinox is not the start of the year.
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Post by Lesa on Jan 6, 2006 23:51:11 GMT -6
A whole month added every second year?? I'm always amazed at how badly superstition can get in the way of logic.
It's too bad there's no explanation of why the vernal equinox is not the start of the year, or at least one of the equinoxes or solistices. But here's an idea: Maybe the winter solstice was the first day of the year at some point, while the calendar still didn't match up with the solar year. Winter solstice would be a logical place to start it, since it's the day that the earth is closest to the sun.
Your post raises another question. I wonder why it's called Gregorian when it was Pope Paul III who revised it.
Thanks for all that interesting history. It really must have been confusing back in 45 bce with Mercedonius, and again in 1582 when Oct 15 came after Oct 4, lol. I also didn't know that Turkey used the Islamic calendar until 1926. I wonder if any Islamic country still uses it officially today, or if they use it along with the Gregorian calendar.
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Post by Phalon on Jan 7, 2006 0:22:28 GMT -6
Ooops...my mistake by omission. Pope Paul III started the reform but it was Pope Gregory XIII who actually implimented it. Obviously this lack of papal awareness is one of the reasons I make such a bad Catholic. (rolls eyes)
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Post by Lesa on Jan 7, 2006 0:41:33 GMT -6
I see absolutely nothing wrong with having a lack of papal awareness. (wink)
At least Gregorian makes sense now. Thanks for clearing that up, lol.
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Post by Phalon on Jan 7, 2006 8:22:31 GMT -6
Eroc, have a good one; it's a day for you to celebrate well. Yeah, I know I didn't get the birthday card out on time....what can I say, (damn, it's still sitting somewhere on my desk), but it's not a Happy Birthday I wish you today.
Janurary 7th is "I'm Not Going to Take It Anymore Day", and "Fruitcake Toss Day."
And since you've been stuck with that relentless bouncing fruitcake, today say "To Hell with it!" and toss your fruitcake - not necessarily by eating it and getting sick - no, no, no; wouldn't want that. Throw it out the window, (feed the possums and 29 foot porch snakes), and be in proper observance of the holidays of which their authenticity has been verified.
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Post by Phalon on Jan 11, 2006 1:03:53 GMT -6
This week in January is "Universal Letter Writing Week", and "Intimate Apparel Week".
Intimate Apparel a nice term, I think, and a better one, than "unmentionables", which was once the preferred terminology. And since I got this nifty new book for Christmas, (which what gave me the idea for this rambling thread with the word "January"), about word origins, here is the history behind the word "unmentionables".
"Prudery is always with us, only the subjects about which we are prudish vary. Often it is difficult - even impossible - for a later generation to understand the reason for some particular prudery of its ancestors.
Towards the end of the eighteenth century, for example, it became impolite to mention the words trousers or breeches. Since it was obviously necessary to refer at times to these ubiquitous garments, various euphemistic terms were coined for the purpose...such as inexpressibles, inexplicables, ineffables, or unmentionables. Later, when trousers regained its standing in polite society, it became imprudent to talk about undergarments, especially women's undergarments, and these became unmentionables."
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Post by Phalon on Jan 15, 2006 0:59:56 GMT -6
An important one: January is Cervical Cancer Awareness Month.
I am shocked at the number of women I know that don't get regular yearly exams. I won't list the statistics of the number of cases of cervical, ovarian and breast cancer; I don't know them. I do know though, that early detection is key.
A bit of inconvienence; a few moments of discomfort, and what's it worth? A lot, I think. Think of the alternative.
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Post by Phalon on Jan 17, 2006 7:43:10 GMT -6
I missed Martin Luther King Jr. Day. It was yesterday; the third Monday in January. His actual birth date was the 15th of January.
And I wonder why that needs to be: honor someone on their birthday on a day that is not their birthday. President's Day - I remember when Lincoln's birth date, and Washington's birth date were two separate dates of honor on the calendar and actually fell on their date of birth. I don't remember exactly when they got lumped together for the purpose of appliance sales.
Today's quote.....
"January brings the snow, Makes our feet and fingers glow." ~ Sara Coleridge.
Still waiting....
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Post by Phalon on Jan 24, 2006 8:14:42 GMT -6
Happy Birthday month to all the Aquarius' out there. What is correct way to say that? Aquariuses? Aquarium? Aquarians? Quite the aquandry, no? But never dry; Aquarius has everything to do with water. And this is their time.
Stolen from an old thread, I'll bring this to the surface again without watering it down.
From The Scope of this Horror. Or was it, The Horror of this Scope? One or the other.
'Time is ticking. The sign Aquarius runs from January 21 to February 19.
Whoo-boy. Taxing two minute drill. Had to expand it to three minutes. Such work. So much information, so many sites. Weird ones too. One, I checked, had all of Aquarius’ attributes and symbols listed. Body Part – the Ankle. What kind of joint was that? I’m talus you, very strange indeed, and I had to get out of there quick. Ankles away….
So I had hone in my search a bit - marrow it down. No anklebones about it. Zodiac Sign+Aquarius+Greek Mythology-Body Parts. What I found is a third version of the origin of Aquarius.
Ganymede was the son of Tros, who the city of Troy was named after. Troy’s boy. Zeus took a liking to him, and made him “cup bearer to the gods”. Cup Bearer, (I thought that was Justin’s job, working for Janet), did not quite hold the esteem the title “Water Bearer” did. Basically, all he did was refill wine glasses. This position though, was previously held by Hera’s daughter, Hebe, whom Ganymede replaced. Gives me the Hebes just thinking about what happened next. Hera got angry over the demotion of her daughter from De Cup Bearer to just A Cup bearer, and given the breast for tat theory of retribution, set about to bra-zenly cause brassiere bodicely harm to Ganymede. If mammary serves me right, Zeus intervened, and Ganymede, like so many others, got the constellation prize. He was thrown up into the skies to become forevermore Aquarius.
Now that I’ve done all the bodily harm to this post that I could, I’ll make one brief prediction here. I know it’s late, and I’m just getting underwire, but Aquarius, this month, should stay away from Ice Skating Rinks. Weak ankles and too much exposure.
So long as youth is green and testy old age is far off. Horace'
(Left my old quote at the bottom there, cuz damn, I still like it.)
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Post by Phalon on Jan 30, 2006 23:28:56 GMT -6
Yesterday was the start of the Chinese New Year celebration which runs until the 12th of February. 2006 is the Year of the Dog.
I think there are twelve animal signs which repeat; I'm not sure. Something I should probably look up before pass on misinformation. I don't really know a whole lot about the Chinese culture.
Like Feng Shui. I've been reading bits and pieces of the ancient art of placement here lately. Brushing up for work when customers request plants that will give off good chi. A chi-a pet, maybe? Low maintence and you can run your fingers through its hair; oh-so-pleasing.
Slow dancing, Feng Shui-ing to the music, and I just don't get it. Not discounting it works for those who believe; it is afterall, an art that is centuries old.
To me though, a lot of it is just common sense, and aestetics. And some of it makes no sense at all to me. Earth. Earth is one of the five elements that must be represented in a Feng Shui garden. Easy, right? Afterall what does a garden start off as but earth?
But no, no, no. Earth can not be represented by earth. Earth must be covered up with other things that give the feel and appearance of Earth. Huh?
Again....I crawl back into my cultural hole.
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Post by Scrappy Amazon on Jan 31, 2006 0:10:09 GMT -6
The Chinese Calendar
Chinese New Year is the main holiday of the year for more than one quarter of the world's population. Although the People's Republic of China uses the Gregorian calendar for civil purposes, a special Chinese calendar is used for determining festivals. Various Chinese communities around the world also use this calendar. At right, a large dragon lantern glows at a festival for Chinese New Year at the Chiang Kai-shek Memorial. Taipei, Taiwan.
The beginnings of the Chinese calendar can be traced back to the 14th century B.C.E. Legend has it that the Emperor Huangdi invented the calendar in 2637 B.C.E.
The Chinese calendar is based on exact astronomical observations of the longitude of the sun and the phases of the moon. This means that principles of modern science have had an impact on the Chinese calendar.
Boar Rat Ox Tiger Hare/Rabbit Dragon Snake Horse Ram/Sheep Monkey Rooster Dog
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Post by Scrappy Amazon on Jan 31, 2006 0:14:27 GMT -6
Do you want the zodiacle meanings for those as well?
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Post by Phalon on Feb 1, 2006 0:41:04 GMT -6
If you'd like, Scrappy. I really just wanted to know so I could, out of curiosity, find out what "the Year of" I was born in.
It explains a lot. The Year of the Dragon. This is why, I'm sure, at times I feel I'm dragon ass, dragon my heels, or dragon on and on and on in that rambling sort of way that I do.
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Post by Scrappy Amazon on Feb 1, 2006 20:47:52 GMT -6
And I'm sure the youngins think you capable of breathing fire on occasion....
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Post by Phalon on Mar 14, 2006 23:16:54 GMT -6
March 15th: The Ides of March. One of my favorite Xena episodes, though I'm not sure it quite went down like that.
Or like this....(A blast from the past, courtesy of Zena. Haven't seen her about in quite a while; hope things are well with her.)
Zena 1 Zena Scrolls Host Posts: 886 (2/14/04 7:29 am)
Re: The Distant Messaging -- Sail Mail Game
To: Emperor Gaius Julius Caesar The Eternal City to which all roads lead Italy
From: The Tailors Guild Originators of The Rent-a-Formal-Toga Across from the temple of Mars that was built last year with the tribute from the Gallic Campaign and next to the Inn of The Gladiator on the street with the stables that overcharge tourists to rent horses that are on their last legs.
Date: March 14
Re: Invoice XIV
Dear Majestic and Sovereign Emperor and Conqueror of the Known World Whose Name Is Hailed By All Right Thinking Romans and Just A Few Barbarians..(but what do they know, they're barbarians)...etc.
Hail Caesar!
We Respectfully inform you that the iron lined Toga you ordered will not be ready tomorrow as promised. Please do not reply to this scroll as we will be moving our shop today today to a yet undetermined location.
May the gods look favorably upon any chicken entrails you may wish to consult on this matter.
Fides tua, Cassius the Tailor
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phalon1 Registered Member Posts: 1986 (2/15/04 7:29 am)
Re: The Distant Messaging -- Sail Mail Game
To: Cassius, the...uhm...the Tailor Undisclosed, Undetermined, Secret Location Upon which was agreed upon until after the Ides have passed. Rome
From: Brutus Laying in Wait The Roman Senate
Subject: Secretly Laid Plans, which would have both of us crucified if they were found out by a certain, but unnamed ruler about to declare himself emperor.
Dearest Cassius,
I trust you sent the scroll as discussed? The Ides of March are almost upon us.
Hope to see you later, Brutus.
P.S. the certain, but unnamed ruler about to declare himself emperor asked me what meaning the phrase, "Beware the Ides of March" would have. I have advised him he must have heard wrong and the phrase was actually "Beware the Tides and Starch", having to do with laundry day. I think he bought it.
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Zena 1 Zena Scrolls Host Posts: 892 (2/23/04 1:06 pm)
Re: The Distant Messaging -- Sail Mail Game
To: Brutus Laying in Wait The Roman Senate
From: Cassius, the...uhm...the Tailor Undisclosed, Undetermined, Secret Location Upon which was agreed upon until after the Ides have passed. Rome
Most Honorable Brutus!
This instant scroll messaging is maximus! Why, you only have to wait 4 or 5 days to get a response!! I have indeed sent the scroll and have heard that his royal puffed-up-with-himselfness is quite put out that the "Half-Price Tailor's Shop" we set up has disappeared. He will be wearing last year's model of toga and tunic to the senate on the Ides in March. Just no fashion sense!
Meanwhile, see to Caesar's wife as she tends to speak her mind, unlike a woman of good reputation and may persuade her husband to take a day from work to frolic at the markets on the important day.
Your play on words was well conceived. You might also try, should he ask again, "See where we ride and march" - a salute to the many campaigns he has led.
Send Marc Antony out for pasta just before the luch break so that he won't be around when it happens.
Semper Fidelis, Cassius the ummmmmm Tailor
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phalon1 Registered Member Posts: 2014 (2/25/04 10:11 am)
Re: The Distant Messaging -- Sail Mail Game
To: Cassius, the...uhm...the Tailor Undisclosed, Undetermined, Secret Location Upon which was agreed upon until after the Ides have passed. Rome
From: Brutus, the Always a Bride's Maid and Never a Bride. Impatiently Laying in Wait The Roman Senate
Dearest Cassius,
Consider it done...killed two birds with one stone, so to speak, (if only - but first thing's first), and sent both the wife and Marc Antony out together to first frollic through the market, and then do lunch.
And you are so right in saying his pompousness has absolutely no sense of fashion! I keep trying to convince him that the laurel wreath he's been wearing is much too small for his big head. Did he listen? Does he ever? Nooooooo...of course not. This trusted advisor stuff is just not all it's cracked up to be. Heard him muttering something about "the irritating side-kick" the other day. I am starting to feel a real kinship to that blonde...hhhmmm, what's her name again...Oh yes, that Gabrielle, whom is always traveling with Xena. I should look her up when all this is over. I can't seem to nail down where she is, though. Have you seen her hanging about?
Semper paratus, Brutus
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Zena 1 Zena Scrolls Host Posts: 893 (2/25/04 9:40 am)
Re: The Distant Messaging -- Sail Mail Game
To: Brutus, the Always a Bride's Maid and Never a Bride. Impatiently Laying in Wait The Roman Senate
From: Cassius, the...uhm...the Tailor Undisclosed, Undetermined, Secret Location Upon which was agreed upon until after the Ides have passed. Rome
Ave Brutus!!
Marc Antony and Cornelia out to lunch together! A brilliant stroke of genius! Be sure to send a scroll ahead for reservations since lunchtime can be crowded. Starbuckstus is usually a good choice. I love their roasted lamb..sorry, I digress. At least that's one detail that will not trouble us.
I do however have one tiny little issue that has come up.
It would seem that the XXIV daggers we ordered are not quite ready for the day. We may be forced to use some other device. What say you? Rope, poisen, mad dogs, Greeks bearing gifts??
As for his overly-confidentedness and his fashion sense, have you looked at his sandals lately?? Last years model for sure!
Ah yes, I remember the blonde one. Go carefully my brother, where you find the blonde there the dark haired warrior will also be (and her sword!)
Ave Pax Romanum, Cassius
*** *** *** *** *** phalon1 Posts: 2025 (2/28/04 8:15 am)
Re: The Distant Messaging -- Sail Mail Game
To: Cassius, the...uhm...Tailor Under the Climbing Rose Bush Undisclosed, Unnamed Location Where All is Considered Sub-Rosa
From: Brutus The Palace Kitchen Rome
Inter nos, Cassius, eh?
Dang, those blacksmiths! Where are all the good ones when you need them?
I've taken your alternate suggestions into consideration. Good ones, they are. I've also thought perhaps the bite of an asp would be a suitable means to the end. Quite fitting, I think for the pain in the asp we are discussing, no? Then I thought he's most likely recognize a fellow snake in the grass and all our well laid plans would be for not. Perhaps, I will keep this in mind though for future...uhm...use. I am planning an upcoming trip to the Land of the Pharohs, and this may be useful in that respect. Asp me about it later, adder we take care of the business at hand.
I've been scrounging the kitchen cutlery for something that can be used in place of the daggers. Not quite the XXIV we originally planned on, but I've rounded up enough knives to be able to take a stab at our original plan.
Oh, and thanks for the warning about the blonde. Advice heeded.
Ave atque Vale, Brutus.
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Zena 1 Zena Scrolls Host Posts: 900 (3/2/04 8:01 pm)
Re: The Distant Messaging -- Sail Mail Game
To: Brutus The Palace Kitchen Rome
From: Cassius, the...uhm...Tailor Currently hiding in plain sight in the Senate
My Dear Brutus,
You may put the cutlery back (Caesar's not having a salad for lunch so they'll need the knives). Praise to Jupiter, our order has arrived!
They were made in Jappa so I'm not sure they are of the best quality but they were delivered by a charming girl named Akemi. The company is owned by her family and they were a real bargain at 2 gold coins for each. I did discover however, that the handles were extra and so I had to reorder XXIV handles by express freight. Do you think it will make it by the Ides?
Meanwhile, I am taking my seat in the Senate as always to avoid suspicion and because his royal pain in the gluteus maximus is only here when he wants praise. Out of sight out of mind I always say.
Can we meet soon for lunch and plotting?
Amor vincit omnia, C
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phalon1 Posts: 2082 (3/13/04 10:53 pm)
Re: The Distant Messaging -- Sail Mail Game
Dearest Cassius!!!
I’ve heard you were back in town. I trust you had a pleasant holiday? Haven’t seen you since that two-bit tailor skipped town.
The timing of your return is most perfect. I have an important announcement to make on the morrow, and your attendance in the Senate would be greatly appreciated - required even. I will count on you being present.
Brutus tells me there is to be a big production in town that day – that it’s something I shouldn’t miss. He says its one of those crime shows that seem to be so popular with the people these days. I so love theatrics, and am most disappointed that it coincides with my calling the Senate to order. Most Honorable Brutus assures me though, that it is probable I’ll be in attendance to this performance. I’m thinking, possibly after work. I wonder who’s starring and if it's someone I've heard of? I hope it's a murder mystery. Those are so entertaining.
See you on the morrow then.
Veni, vidi, vici. Gaius Julius Caesar.
P.S. What do you make of the phrase, “Beware the Ides of March”?
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Zena 1 Zena Scrolls Host Posts: 912 (3/14/04 6:50 pm)
Re: The Distant Messaging -- Sail Mail Game
Most Noble Lord of the Known World! Imperial Emperor and (just lately) Divine!
How good it is to hear from you again! Why I was just telling Brutus that I hoped we would meet tomorrow at the Senate.
I do so love those cutting conversations we have with their remarks which are so to the point! Shall we have a stab at another after the session is over? I will meet you at the base of the statue of Pompeii (sorry to bring up his name but the statue is to heavy to be moved to storage and does make a good meeting place).
As for some sort of entertainment in Rome the noble Brutus must know something I don't for the town seems very dead of late. Now that you are back I'm sure things will be enlivened again. Or not.
Until tomorrow..oh, I do believe it's the Ides. That phrase you quoted, "Be where the brides are harsh" refers to that new Greek play that just opened. In the first act the wife is a real harpy. Perhaps we can catch it after work.
Until tomorrow, oh he who is above all in fashion sense, Cassius
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phalon1 Posts: 2088 (3/15/04 10:02 am)
Re: The Distant Messaging -- Sail Mail Game
To: Gaius Cassius Longinus The Roman Senate The Imperial City to which all roads lead.
From: Gaius Julius Caesar a.k.a. Your Most Beloved Dictator, Monarch, Emperor etc, etc. The Imperial City…blah, blah, blah
Ave Cassius!
So here it is – The Ides of March. This morning, I again bumped into that young lad who keeps repeating “Beware the Ides of March”, and I said to him, “The Ides are upon us.” I think that you are right – the phrase in question is “Be where the Brides are harsh”, because he responded, “Ah, the day is not over”. I’m pretty sure he meant, “The play is not over”, knowing I’d like to catch the encore performance. Poor boy, I think he has a head cold and can not speak clearly. This place gets pretty drafty at night, and I should do something about it.
I tried to track down the palace central heating repairman, (do you know of someone with expertise in this area? The one I usually use seems to have gone the way of that unreliable tailor). While I searched, I ran into Brutus. What is up with people around here lately? They seem to be avoiding me like one avoids Medusa on a really bad hair day. Brutus is no exception. He quickly passed muttering something about having some sharpening to do. Et tu, Brutus? I really hope he is talking about sharpening his mind, because I think the old boy is going daft. He is quite skiddish and jumpy of late. I think I shall find him a nice far away land to conquer. I’ll mention it to him today while the Senate has convened. Get him off my back for awhile.
I think I’m really due for a change. A new hairstyle maybe. Perhaps, like Medusa, it is my hair that turns people off? A good cut can do wonders - little whack here and there, possibly some off the top. What do you think? Hhhmm….adding new hairstylist underneath finding a new tailor and new heating repairman on my list of to-dos.
Need to run – lots to do and so little time.
Warmest regards, Your Exulted Imperator for Life Caesar
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Post by Phalon on Mar 14, 2006 23:20:48 GMT -6
Oh, and tomorrow, the 16th, is Lip Appreciation Day. So appreciate those lips and all they do for you.
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Post by LMV's Old Account on Mar 15, 2006 1:06:14 GMT -6
hmmm i hate my calender *rips it up*
*cherry* *%*LMV*%*
LitL Ms VaMp: *KIM'S No#1 B*tch: "*All Tied down.... Bound and Gagged*"
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Post by Scrappy Amazon on Apr 29, 2006 16:28:33 GMT -6
On this day in history.....April 29th
1429 - Joan of Arc arrives to relieve the Siege of Orléans. 1672 - Franco-Dutch War: Louis XIV of France invades the Netherlands. 1770 - James Cook arrives at and names Botany Bay, Australia. 1854 - The Ashmun Institute is officially chartered, becoming the first college for African American students. 1861 - American Civil War: Maryland's House of Delegates votes not to secede from the Union. 1862 - American Civil War: New Orleans falls to Union forces under Admiral David Farragut. 1882 - The "Elektromote" – forerunner of the trolleybus – trialed by Ernst Werner von Siemens in Berlin. 1903 - A 30 million cubic-metre landslide kills 70 in Frank, Alberta, Canada. 1910 - Andrew Fisher becomes Prime Minister of Australia for the second time. 1916 - Easter Rebellion: Martial law in Ireland is lifted and the rebellion is officially over with the surrender of Irish nationalists to British authorities in Dublin. 1944 - "Dancing Romeo," the last Our Gang film, premiers. 1945 - World War II: The German Army in Italy unconditionally surrenders to the Allies. 1945 - World War II: Start of Operation Manna. 1945 - Adolf Hitler marries his long-time partner Eva Braun in a Berlin bunker and designates Admiral Karl Dönitz as his successor. 1945 - Holocaust: The Dachau concentration camp is liberated by United States troops. 1946 - Former Prime Minister of Japan Hideki Tojo and 28 former Japanese leaders are indicted for war crimes. 1965 - Pakistan Space and Upper Atmosphere Research Commission (SUPARCO) successfully launches seventh rocket in their Rehber series. 1967 - After refusing induction into the United States Army the day before (citing religious reasons), Muhammad Ali is stripped of his boxing title. 1969 - Jazz musician Duke Ellington receives the Presidential Medal of Freedom. 1970 - Vietnam War: United States and South Vietnamese forces invade Cambodia to hunt Viet Cong. 1974 - Watergate Scandal: President Richard Nixon announces the release of edited transcripts of White House tape recordings related to the scandal. 1975 - Vietnam War: Operation Frequent Wind – The last U.S. citizens begin evacuation from Saigon prior to an expected North Vietnamese takeover. United States involvement in the war comes to an end. 1986 - Roger Clemens sets a major league baseball record with 20 strikeouts in nine innings against the Seattle Mariners. 1992 - 1992 Los Angeles riots: Riots in Los Angeles, California, follow the acquittal of police officers charged with excessive force in the beating of Rodney King. Over the next three days 54 people are killed and hundreds of buildings are destroyed. 1992 - The Legion of Net. Heroes is formed. 1996 - The musical Rent premieres at the Nederlander Theatre. 1997 - The Chemical Weapons Convention of 1993 enters into force, outlaws the production, stockpiling and use of chemical weapons among its signatories. 2002 - The United States is re-elected to the United Nations Commission on Human Rights, one year after losing the seat it had held for 50 years. 2004 - Dick Cheney and George W. Bush testify before the 9/11 Commission in a closed, unrecorded hearing in the Oval Office. 2005 - Syria completes withdrawal from Lebanon, ending 29 years of occupation. 2005 - Apple releases Macintosh OS X 10.4 (AKA Tiger).
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Post by Scrappy Amazon on Apr 29, 2006 16:47:50 GMT -6
Check it out...it's National Rebuilding Day.....I'm off to rebuild my sanity.
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