likethebeer

mostly the patterns of the plaids,..glad it was a good party,..:)

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I knew the Scots had different patterns (and more people managed to find something plaid to wear, than, say, an Irish dancing outfit), but I didn't think the Irish had plaids. It was a good party. Along w/throwing big logs around, there was the bocci field. And the host made Scotch eggs and there was also some pretty good corned beef (no cabbage, though, not that I could find).

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yeah i'm running on old data i'd have to look up more to be more definitive, but i believe the scots, it was a family mark (the patterns) and the irish it was more a banner of rank,..mmmm corned beef n cabbage,..okay i've got a craving going now,...:)

From: (Anonymous)

WI-C here, erisreg. Don't have me own lj yet, so I come to you anon. Anyhoo, I wanted to reply to your post re: chives, but I'm doing it here in the cabage zone on likethebeer's dime because you've disabled anonymous posting.

So my question is: do you like to eat the chive flowers? Cuz they taste freakin' great (if you like that sharp, oniony sort on bite.) I concocted a salad last year of chive tops, arugula ("rocket" in Italy - how cool is that?), cantaloupe and grilled sausage (brats as it happens because this is WI and they always seem to just be lying around). It was pretty damn good.

Nice to make your aquaintance. WI-C

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ah, yes , but most of them go into a crock of vinegar to make purple chive flavored vinegar i use at the table,
i like salads with variety, so your concoction sounds good
i like food that looks good too,.. ever use nasturtiums as garnish they have no taste but pretty up a salad very nicely

i'm pleased to make your acquaintance too,..
get an lj, dammit,.:D

From: (Anonymous)

No cabbage? WHat the hell is cole slaw??? ;) WI-C

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No cabbage as in "corned beef and..." Many a fall evening I've slurped down that slightly mushy stuff w/my corned beef from mom.

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seattleforge.livejournal.com

Well... all that tartan and plaid nonsense was more or less made up by nationalists in the late 17th century anyway.. invented out of whole cloth.

It didn't mean anything to William Wallace, is what I'm sayin'.

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yeah it's hard to watch fashion with that kind of a gut ache,..o.o

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Your mention of Schroedinger's Cat made me think you might appreciate this. I don't know if you know of Terry Pratchett and Discworld. If not, I implore you to go find a book and read it immediately. I generally recommend that you start with one of the Watch books or one of the Witch books, which are my favorites. I am on a personal mission to introduce everyone I know to Pratchett. If you already know of the Discworld and love him, then as you were.

Anyway, here is a link to a short story written by Pterry. It involves Death, one of the most fun recurring characters on the Discworld, coming to a philosopher.
http://www.ie.lspace.org/books/dawcn/dawcn-english.html

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No, I've not heard of it. Is it alternative world fantasy or science fiction? [Science fiction where Death is a character] Is it inspired by Ringworld at all?

The talk of Shroedinger's Cat came from some talk of Illuminatus and Rosicrucians, in which I mentioned that I could have done w/out all the acid taking and blowjobs in the Illuminatus trilogy, and WI-C described Schroedinger's Cat as "If you have a cat in a box and shoot it, you don't know whether it's alive or dead." Close, but not exactly. In this case, the cat screaming in pain and blood might give you a clue as to whether a cat is alive or dead.

From: (Anonymous)

I further described the cat as existing in two distinct "Eigenstates" until an observer opened the box (assuming the box was sound and leak proof as well). Two points here: 1) It's a dimestore explanation of how something/one can exist in simultaneous multiple planes of reality and 2) it's a cheap and easy way for physicists to explain that an observerless system is necessarily different than an observed sysytem. The process of viewing bombs the object with photons, changing the very nature of the object itself (thanks to Ken of the UW's Space Time Lab).

WI-C

Neither have I heard of

From: (Anonymous)

oooops.... as I was saying:

Neither have I heard of Terry Pratchett (sp?). I'll keep my eyes open. Of course if it's in a box... WI-C

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You read Pratchett too then. Everyone MUST read Pratchett. I demand that everyone read Pratchett!!!!

'scuse me while I sit in a corner muttering about reading Pratchett...

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Since Pratchett accepts the multiple planes of the universe theory, the books are in the box, outside the box and sometimes are the box, depending upon which side of the trousers you have gone down...

From: (Anonymous)

Upon further reading:

Your recollection of my explanation is that if you put the cat in the box and shoot through the box, "you don't know whether the cat is alive or dead". What the "Schroedinger's Cat" principle/theory/whatever suggests has to do with the cat, not with our perception: Until we look in the box, the CAT is BOTH dead AND alive. WI-C

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Oh, yeah. Forgot that part. I just remember "shooting..." ;>

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Discworld has nothing to do with Ringworld. It is kind of fantasy. The author says that he set out to write a parody of the fantasy novels available at the time (the series started in the late 80's/early 90's). They just became wildly popular in England and grew from there to parodies of just about everything you can think of. The Discworld itself is a disc-shaped planet that glides through space on the backs of giant elephants who ride on the shell of a massive tortoise. This sounds weird, I know, but trust me on this one (OK, you have no reason to trust me whatsoever, but trust me :-) The world is populated by Wizards, witches, trolls, dwarves, werewolves, zombies, vampires, and so on. Pratchett's writing is littered with the most achingly wonderful puns. He is kind of a cross between Douglas Adams, Shakespeare, and Monty Python. I could go on and on (as you have probably guessed), but I will just tell you to get a book and read it. I have yet to meet anyone who did not like them after reading them. I don't generally like fantasy (I used to but kind of got bored with it), but a couple of years ago, a friend of mine "forced" me to read some of the books, and I have been hooked ever since. If you want to start at the beginning of the series (there are about 25 books so far), you can start with The Color of Magic, but it isn't the best book in the series by any means. A lot of folks like the wizards best, but I don't. I always recommend that people start with the City Watch books, which are Guards!Guards!, Men At Arms, Feet of Clay, Jingo, Fifth Elephant and Night Watch (in order). Or the Witch books Equal Rites, Wyrd Sisters, Witches Abroad, Lords and Ladies (one of my favorites), Maskerade, and Carpe Jugulum. There are also his childrens books, which are by no means less fun for adults. There is The Amazing Maurice and His Educated Rodents, The Wee Free Men, and A Hat Full of Sky (the newest book).

You may have to order them because they are not as widely popular here as they are in England, where they have reached cult status with conventions and everything. But it is seriously worth it. I hope my overwinded blathering has not turned you off, they really are wonderful books.

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