Welcome, Newcomers Neophytes! (February 2008)

Closed to comments, but still readable.

Speak, Friend, and Enter! If you’re new to the blog, come on in for a little orientation and some pie.

Please read The Rules. You might also glance at The HG2MB (Hitchhiker’s Guide to MuseBlog), which contains helpful hints regarding local customs, lingo, and other peculiarities of the blog; smiley information included.

February 2008 “Happy Birthday” Thread

Known Muser birthdays this month:*

02-02 groundhog22’s birthday (1989 – denim blue)
02-02 Shadow Gallery’s birthday (1993 – psychedelic)
02-12 Dot Keet’s birthday (1991 – bright orange)
02-13 The Tominator’s birthday (1996)
02-14 Gingersnap’s birthday (1993 – purple)
02-21 Karrdash’s birthday (2000 – red)
02-22 Shotgun #10’s birthday (1995)
02-24 tralalalolly’s birthday (year? color?)
02-26 Ötzi’s birthday (1993 – cerulean)
02-26 KaiYves’s birthday (1993-purple)

You turn 5,000 days old this month if you were born between May 26 and June 23, 1994.
You turn 6,000 days old this month if you were born between August 30 and September 27, 1991.

*Note: Listed MBers who have been inactive for several months won’t appear on next year’s birthday calendar unless they show up again.

When They’re Not on the Blog, Album 2

More offline ventures of our irrepressible MuseBloggers. See also the previous album.

Grant took advantage of a strong wind to get some photos of the Union Jack rippling in full glory. The flagpole, which he is making, is not yet finished.


And here we see Midnight Fiddler in her natural habitat.


Happy 176th Birthday, Lewis Carroll!

‘In that direction,’ the Cat said, waving its right paw round, ‘lives a Hatter: and in that direction,’ waving the other paw, ‘lives a March Hare. Visit either you like: they’re both mad.’
‘But I don’t want to go among mad people,’ Alice remarked.
‘Oh, you can’t help that,’ said the Cat: ‘we’re all mad here. I’m mad. You’re mad.’
‘How do you know I’m mad?’ said Alice.
‘You must be,’ said the Cat, ‘or you wouldn’t have come here.’

The Reverend Charles Lutwidge Dodgson, logician, fantasy novelist, stutterer, High Victorian, and nonsense versifier supreme, was born on January 27, 1832. He concocted his famous pseudonym by Latinizing his first and middle names (to Carolus Ludovicius), reversing their order, and de-Latinizing them. Though he died 100 years before Muse came along, we daresay he would have approved. Thanks to lifewithoutacellphone for reminding us that today is his day.

National Pie Day (January 23)

As Gingersnap has just pointed out, today, January 23, is National Pie Day.

It’s true! You can read all about it on the website of the National Pie Council at www. piecouncil.org/national.htm . The Council’s list of “Random Acts of Pieness,” however, seems woefully incomplete…

An Early Valentines from Unintended Pun, Alice, Midnight Fiddler, c+q, kiwimuncher, Go Bananas!!!!, Cinnamoon, treble_cone_freeeskier!, La Mort, speller73, Gaea, Beavo, Cat’s Meow, NerdAndProudOf It, Red Hed Em, Nora the Violist, Kari, groundhog22…

Unintended Pun says, “Not everyones’ names are on there, but it’s for the entire MB, including the newbies who come after it.”

See inside.

Unintended Pun says, “Not everyones’ names are on there, but it’s for the entire MB, including the newbies who come after it.”

Full-size editions of the valentines may be viewed by clicking on them individually, or you can browse the whole album.

MuseCast 8

The indefatigable podcasters Purple Panda and Taiwan Hippo Fan weigh in with their longest MuseCast yet, entitled Life on Mars.

The indefatigable podcasters Purple Panda and Taiwan Hippo Fan weigh in with their longest MuseCast yet, entitled Life on Mars.

Previous MuseCasts are still available:
MuseCast 1
MuseCast 2
MuseCast 3
MuseCast 4
MuseCast 5
MuseCast 6
MuseCast 7

“Happy” 199th Birthday, Edgar Allan Poe!

Hear the splatting of the pies,
Apple pies!
What a world of misery their crusted warmth belies.

Yes, on the whole it’s a good thing that Mr. Poe didn’t write about Muse. He was an unhappy soul, but his poems and stories have given us many hours of diversion. So we hope that he’ll be of good cheer (in a foetid, sepulchral way) wherever he is (which we shudder to think about).

Happy 302nd Birthday, Benjamin Franklin!

“The only president of the United States who was never president of the United States,” as the Firesign Theater once called him, was born 302 years ago today (January 17). Hail to one of the most fascinating, down-to-earth, and likable Americans to have trodden the continent in recorded history.