Casting 'Girl Genius'

Zeetha: Megan Fox the Down Syndrome Chick
Dimo: Benicio Del Toro
Ognian: Steve Zahn
Maxim: Leonardo Decaprio OR Johnny Depp
Von Pinn: Joanne Kelly
Lars: Elijah Wood
Calming Pie: Ben Steinn
Master Payne: John Ryhs-Davies
Krosp: Voice of James Garner
Bangledesh Dupree: Vanessa Ferlito
The Baroness: Emma Thompson
Baron Wulfenbach: David Mcallum or Alan Rickman
Othar Triggvassen: Kenneth Braunaugh
Wooster: James D'arcy

This list subject to frequent updates, tweaking and arguments.

How to survive a riot:

Wear long pants, long sleeves, and a cap. Expose as little skin as possible.

Move away from the riot. The more time you spend in the midst of a riot, the greater your chance of being injured or killed. That said, in most circumstances it's better to move out of a riot slowly. If you run, you will draw attention to yourself, so it's usually best to walk. It can also be dangerous to move against a crowd, so go with the flow until you are able to escape into a doorway or up a side street or alley. It may also be advantageous to stay with the crowd until you are certain you can safely escape because it will help you remain inconspicuous and improve your odds of survival if shots are fired.

Think of crowd movement like currents in the ocean. In a large riot, the crowd in the middle will be moving faster than the people on the perimeters. As such, if you find yourself in the middle, you should not try to move in a different direction, but follow the flow and slowly make your way to the outside. This requires patience in order to work properly.

Do not approach police lines to attempt to cross to safety. Police are in place to confine the unrest and prevent its spread. Their orders are usually not to allow anyone to pass. The use of riot control measures, including rubber bullets, tear gas, and water cannons originate from the police line, and the likelihood of injury is greatest there.

Just, you know...FYI.

Ratatouille for kids

My kids, especially the boy, love Disney's Ratatouille. Rocket wants to be a chef when he grows up. So for fun, we made kid-friendly ratatouille and ate it while watching the movie. Lots of fun.





It's just summer squash, calabacita, and tomato sauce with italian seasoning on top. It was really good, although it was more like italian food than french food, I'm sure.

Speaking of food, you should read this

The Doom Room

I feel antsy. Nervous...I feel the need to stockpile. Up till now, the huge insurmountable problem has been space, but something finally drove me off my fat butt to clean out the hall closet (well, mostly).
So here it is:




As you can see, I already have the basics; a box of Alchi-Checkers and a Kokopeli candle holder, but I'm looking to branch out. Only enough for a few weeks, I'm not trying to recreate Ruby Ridge or anything...

Here's what I think I need.

20 gallons of water, or thereabouts.
20 cans of beans
20 cans of tuna
20 cans of fruit
20 cans of veggies
4 cans of propane for the camp stove
1 bag of dog food (let's face it, they can probably forage a whole lot more efficiently than I can)
3 bottles of Old Crow (for, you know...wounds and stuff)
Probably some gauze...
Coffee

It's hot.

Samurai Repairmen

It was they who instructed me in the Way of the Laundry Appliance.
It was they who gave me the confidence to act with...Confidence.
It was they who directed me onto the path of Awesomness.
Bow before the Samurai Repairmen!!!

www.fixitnow.com

Canyon Lake

We got to see a deer as we were driving to our campsite.



Here's the view from our picnic table...It was unbelievably hot, but we set the baby's play pen up underneath the little picnic area and got everything put together.



Pete and the kids went down to the lake and found a nice place to wade. Unfortunately, the water was warm.




We had two barn swallow pairs nesting in our roof, and we got to watch them hunt bugs for their babies. I don't think they were very impressed with us, though...



Pete fiddling with the tent.



Breakfast time! Roland and I didn't actually sleep, so I was up early. I set up the campstove, then realized I hadn't brought anything to heat the coffee water in. So, I used the can from the kid's orange juice. It worked pretty well. Bacon, eggs, etc. were enjoyed by all.



There was some frisbeeing.



And some general silliness as we packed up.



Here's the fishing dock, lying on dry ground next a sign that said "Water levels may vary, watch for obstructions".



Here's a nice picture:



On the other side of that tree, is a big, battered travel trailer, three ATVs, two lounging hound dogs, a guy in his boxers & a wife beater, a woman in a pair of daisy dukes and plaid shirt knotted around her belly. These two were throwing the deer corn, as one of their young sons lounged on the ATVs drinking either Diet Coke or Miller Light. I actuaslly saw him crush the can on his head.
The other kid was sitting on one of the dogs, trying to keep them from scaring the deer, I guess.

It was really surreal.