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      Welcome!   03/05/2016

      Welcome, everyone, to the new 910CMX Community Forums. I'm still working on getting them running, so things may change.  If you're a 910 Comic creator and need your forum recreated, let me know and I'll get on it right away.  I'll do my best to make this new place as fun as the last one!

CritterKeeper

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CritterKeeper last won the day on October 24 2019

CritterKeeper had the most liked content!

About CritterKeeper

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    Taking the long way 'round.....

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    : Greater Chicagoland
  1. This Day In History

    I always wondered why they didn't give the Grammy to whoever did do the singing — if it was a Grammy-worthy performance, don't they deserve the recognition? Shouldn't they have been household names, at least for a while, as the voices of peoples' favorite songs? This after 17 years of campaigning by the editor of Godey's Ladies' Book, Sarah Hale, to make Thanksgiving a national holiday. It's thanks to her that we think of roast turkey, stuffing, and pumpkin pie as the classic Thanksgiving dinner. Hale is also the author of a poem which she titled "Mary's Lamb" but surely no one today remembers it.... *sings* Pinwheel, pinwheel spinning around / Look at my pinwheel and see what I found... A friend was noodling on a piano and started playing "Smells Like Teen Spirit" as a waltz. It fit remarkably well! My favorite musical incongruity is Off Kilter's version of "Johnny B Good" in which a bagpipe plays the guitar solo. *checks....no, Viagra was first approved on March 27....* And why should that stop you? You should see if there's a Unitarian-Universalist church near you. They're the most welcoming church I know of. It's where Jewish/Catholic couples end up. Religious Education (Sunday school) learns about all sorts of religions. You should check out the Seven Principles and see if it seems your style. If not, no biggie, just thought it worth suggesting. An excellent attitude. Not exactly. It's more pointing out that, since we cannot know with absolute certainty whether there is a God or not, declaring that there absolutely is no God is just as much a statement of belief without proof as declaring that there *is* a God. "Atheist" takes "theist", which denotes a belief in God, and adds the prefix "a-" which denotes a lack of, the way asexual reproduction is reproduction without sex. If you are an atheist, you are someone who is as certain that there is no God as the theists are certain that there is a God. If you are not certain, then you are an agnostic, someone who acknowledges that we have no way of knowing with absolute certainty one way or the other (or the other, or the other, or....). You can be an agnostic who leans toward the side of atheism, but you can't be a complete atheist because that denotes a certainty that agnostics by definition do not have. Sorry, but I see far too many people confusing these two terms, and I feel it's an important distinction. And boy does it infuriate some atheists if you point this out to them! They are certain, but they insist that their certainty is logical and that it is impossible to come to any other position without being illogical, but they still can't prove they're right, which means that being so certain is not logical. Agnostics don't disbelieve in the existence or non-existence of God, either. Again, an important distinction. No, it's not "hedging one's bets," it's acknowledging that we cannot be certain in either direction. If you are flipping a coin, the theist is certain it will land heads, the atheist is certain it will land tails, and the agnostic says they don't know which way it will land, including landing on edge or being snatched midair by a raven. A lot more people are agnostic than will admit it. Usually, that's because they've been taught that they are supposed to believe, that good people do believe, and that doubting is a sin (against God or logic). I keep meaning to listen to his stuff, but just never seem to get around to it. Oh, for the days when politicians at least pretended to want to help the poor, instead of pitting them against each other and watching them fight for scraps. I sometimes think one of the most evil fictions in the world is the "zero sum game". And there's the rub. There's still varying mixes of genuinely agreeing with a male candidate more than any of the female ones, and not believing a woman President is a real possibility. (Yes, I know, like the Kinsey scale, that's a great oversimplification, and no one should make assumptions about what degrees of what factors apply to anyone else individually.) That second point can be not thinking they should get the job, but I think a lot bigger factor for a lot more people is doubting that there are enough other people who would vote for a woman, and thus thinking a man is more likely to win. 12000 / 400 = 30 100000 / 6000 = 16.6667 Of course, I suspect Susenyos I had a lot more than 400 troops, that's just the number he lost. Just ask Eleanor Roosevelt!
  2. Things You Find Amusing

    I love how "my cat" seems to be a part of her name! Every reference is to "Explorer, my cat," or "My cat, Explorer," pretty much without fail. Kind of like how my Patrick was never Pat. After the fifth or sixth time one of our receptionists tried to call him "Saint Patrick" and ended up saying "Sir Patrick" instead, that became part of his name, too, his full title being "Sir Patrick the Fuzzy-Mouse Slayer" for his fondness for the little fake-fur cat-toy mice we carried then.
  3. Things that make you sad.

    One of my favorite podcasts, SpeakBeastie, had a thoughtful essay and later a discussion about JKR's tweets, which included multiple LGBTQ+ perspectives as well as a straight white cis woman like me. The general consensus was that the situation sucks, but that the Harry Potter universe and all that's great about it has grown beyond its author, and it's done far too much good, including helping people come out or come to accept themselves, for us to discard it all now. They also figured that it's pretty hard to find any work that isn't problematic for at least a group or two. Personally, I tend to be willing to continue loving a work if the work itself merits it, but at the same time I don't want my money to go to bigots. I didn't go see Ender's Game in the theater, nor will I be buying new copies of any of the books Card publishes, at least not until he's passed away. I will, however, read a copy from the library or a used book store, where none of my money will be going to support such attitudes and actions. I suspect I'll do the same for Harry Potter and Fantastic Beasts. I've been known to buy a ticket for one movie, and then go watch another, for example. I'm kind of glad I got copies of the series, including the "grown-up" editions of the HP series (with Philosopher's Stone!), before any of this came to light....
  4. Things That Are Just Annoying

    If any of it is in good enough shape, perhaps you can convince them to let you have it. Technically, they'd have to throw it away, and then you could take it from the trash, but perhaps they'd be willing to help you haul it into your place once it's officially discarded....
  5. What Are You Ingesting?

    So you'd get the joke here?
  6. The coolest thing I've seen in a while.

    Or a wooden time/space ship?
  7. Friday, November 8, 2019

    The Dresden Files has had more than one occasion when Harry stuck the end of his staff into a mop bucket because he couldn't just carry it around. A cane, a baseball bat, a conductor's baton, knitting needles, a "Sirius Black's Wand" from the Franklin Mint or wherever, a jai alai or lacrosse stick....in the upcoming winter season, you could use a wooden-handled windshield scraper/brush combo or snow shovel. As for other, ah, toys being used for such purposes, wood is indeed a questionable choice. But, we don't know the magic-retention properties of other materials, such as plastic, silicone, batteries in the core, glass, steel, etc. Such a choice would rather defeat the goal of being inconspicuous and easy to carry around. On the glasses front, I was always told that we get less nearsighted as we age, generally becoming farsighted instead. Hence the cliche of someone who's aging, but in denial about needing glasses, holding what they're reading out at arm's length. I always hoped that somewhere along that transition, there would be a sweet spot where I'd have 20/20 vision....
  8. Monday, October 28, 2019

    I thought that trying to kill each other was a family tradition in most royal lines! That's where the "act of heroism" comes in. How could I forget Princess Leia? And she *is* born daughter to Queen Emeritus Amidala, as well as being an adopted Princess (or did she get elected to that position?) so it's only being live-action that keeps her out. I don't think Disney would *dare* claim adoption doesn't count. I must confess I haven't seen the movie Vanellope is in yet, so I can't comment on her.
  9. Monday, October 28, 2019

    According to Disney, to qualify as an official Princess, one must be born royal, marry royal, or perform an act of heroism. (That last is generally acknowledged to have been added for Mulan.) They also have to be human or human-like, be a protagonist in a feature (which must be completely animated, no live-action segments allowed), and not introduced in a sequel. Many of these rules seem to exist to explain why other potential Disney princesses don't qualify (Giselle, Alice, Wendy Darling, Maid Marian, Jane Porter, Jessie, Vanellope, etc.)
  10. Monday, November 4, 2019

    And of course the 100th ninja will be an orphan. (Or claim to be...) Tragic backstory is a prerequisite for ridiculously overpowered characters, isn't it?
  11. Monday, November 4, 2019

    The pirate would take out 99 of the ninja, but the Law of Conservation of Ninjutsu tells us that the 100th ninja would be badass enough to take on a whole ship full of pirates. (Unknown if pirates get to get better the fewer of them there are left or not, though....)
  12. Video Game Discussion 4

    I've been getting into Ingress more, but still playing Wizards Unite, too. I guess I like the fact that Ingress involves interacting with other players, while WU is mostly a solitary pursuit. Even if "interacting" sometimes means cursing as you see them take out a portal within minutes of your claiming it. These days, I just figure that means more chances to take out enemy portals and build experience points, getting me that much closer to reaching level 10 and being able to recommend new portal/gym/inn sites!
  13. Political Discussion Thread (READ FIRST POST)

    Wait, did we need to specify *successful* business experience? Did we really need to spell out a "no bankruptcy" clause?
  14. This Day In History

    I actually knew about this one, because I had a summer camp counselor from Dominica years ago. Charming accent, very musical! Yeah, that does seem a rather appropriate description, doesn't it? Be fair, it was on the way to a German supply route. And we got such a great poem out of the Second Battle of Ypres, maybe they were hoping for another iconic one from the Third.
  15. This Day In History

    Now, now, Prince Charles hasn't even ascended to the throne yet, and already you're discounting the possibility of a Charles the Great? And between that and his American holdings, he was said to rule "the empire over which the sun will never set." Gosh, what a memorable phrase! Surely it will be associated with the Holy Roman Empire forever! Sure, he tried to get people to call him Charles the Great, but it never really took for him....he did get several beers and a popular Mexican chocolate bar named after him, though! We eliminated rinderpeste a few years ago, too! That one was in cattle, but it's believed to be what measles evolved from around 1000-1100 CE, so what we learned about it may help get that scourge next. If we can bring down the percent of idiots, anyway....