Coffee Klatch

Tonight I discovered another cool website. It’s called Omniglot. It’s a website focusing on writing systems and languages of the world, but the part that I really like is the “Useful Foreign Phrases” page. The webmaster, Simon Ager, has assembled tons of useful phrases and gotten them translated into many different languages (usually over 50). Some of the phrases even have sound clips attached. There’s also a nice collection of links to OTHER sites that have collected phrases in various languages.

And to show his sense of humor, one of his “useful phrases” is “My hovercraft is full of eels.”
[tags]languages, translation, useful phrases, linguistics[/tags]

Okay, fine. Here are a couple more games that I found that are pretty cool. The first is challenging and fun and is called Kick_Off. It’s a soccer (or European Football) goal shootout contest. You take turns kicking and defending. Try it out: http://allthingsflash.com/files/games/Kick_Off.swf

The second is Mini-Golf.

Here are some fun online games that I’ve come across lately. When you find yourself with some extra time on your hands, you may want to check out some of these.

• http://allthingsflash.com/files/games/curveball.swf
• http://allthingsflash.com/links/files/games/Canyon_Glider.swf
• http://www.miniclip.com/games/ping-pong/en/
• http://www.transience.com.au/el/elgameo.html
• http://allthingsflash.com/links/files/games/Animal_Bridge.swf
• http://www.miniclip.com/games/stackopolis/en/
• http://www.nata2.info/humor/flash/bowman.swf
• http://artscool.cfa.cmu.edu/~lee/deanimator.html

[tags]online games[/tags]

You Are Incredibly Logical

Move over Spock - you’re the new master of logic You think rationally, clearly, and quickly. A seasoned problem solver, your mind is like a computer!

[tags]logic, personality tests, blogthings[/tags]

This just in from FoxNews.com: Drunken Man, Panda Tussle in Chinese Zoo. Apparently the guy (Zhang Xinyan) had just drunk “four jugs of beer” at a local restaurant, then went and saw Gu Gu the panda. His overwhelming urge to pet the creature (not to mention all the beer) got him to go into the pen and pet the sleeping panda. Gu Gu was startled by the action and bit him on the leg. He got mad and kicked the panda, so it bit him on the other leg! The drunk guy didn’t think that was fair, so he bit back. ON the back. “Its skin was quite thick,” he said. The Beijing Morning Post said that after that, “a tussle ensued.”

“No one ever said they would bite people,” Zhang said. “I just wanted to touch it. I was so dizzy from the beer. I don’t remember much.”

Moral: Beer and Pandas don’t mix, but if you find yourself drunk and getting bitten by a panda, BITE BACK!!

[tags]pandas, Gu Gu, Beijing Zoo[/tags]

Arrrrr!! Our favorite pirates, Cap’n Slappy and Ol’ Chumbucket, have posted a short video on YouTube to help people learn how to talk like a pirate, including “The Five A’s.”

Check it out:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2cKCkbWDGwE

They also have a Pirate song there.

[tags]pirates, talk like a pirate, ahoy, avast, aye, arrr[/tags]

Avast, me buckos! Today be National TALK LIKE A PIRATE DAY! Yarrrrr!!

Here be explanation about the day along with some tips on celebrating it and a list of recommended words and phrases: http://www.talklikeapirate.com/howto.html
And also a Pirate Glossary.

Are you a teacher? Here is a great resource for encorporating Talk Like A Pirate Day into your classroom. Unless you’re in Indiana and have to spend the day doing ISTEP testing.

You Are A Pirate! What Type Of Swashbuckler Are You? brought to you by Maddog Varuka & Dawg Brown

My pirate name is: Mad Tom Read Every pirate is a little bit crazy. You, though, are more than just a little bit. Even through many pirates have a reputation for not being the brightest souls on earth, you defy the sterotypes. You’ve got taste and education. Arr! Get your own pirate name from piratequiz.com. part of the fidius.org network

Some men are born great, some achieve greatness and some slit the throats of any man that stands between them and the mantle of power. You never met a man you couldn’t eviscerate. Not that mindless violence is the only avenue open to you - but why take an avenue when you have complete freeway access? You are the definitive Man of Action. You are James Bond in a blousy shirt and drawstring-fly pants. Your swash was buckled long ago and you have never been so sure of anything in your life as in your ability to bend everyone to your will. You will call anyone out and cut off their head if they show any sign of taking you on or backing down. You cannot be saddled with tedious underlings, but if one of your lieutenants shows an overly developed sense of ambition he may find more suitable accommodations in Davy Jones’ locker. That is, of course, IF you notice him. You tend to be self absorbed - a weakness that may keep you from seeing enemies where they are and imagining them where they are not.

What’s Yer Inner Pirate?
brought to you by The Official Talk Like A Pirate Web Site. Arrrrr!

Note: If ye be one o’ them lucky lubbers who plays Sid Meier’s Pirates, be sure to play it today, as all the characters will be specially speakin’, if ye be catchin’ me drift!

[tags]pirates, talk like a pirate day, holidays[/tags]

Okay, I wasn’t going to go off on another tangent, but I just read a headline that made me react with a blog post. This just in from Fox News: Homicide Bomber Kills at Least 20 in Iraq. I remember a few years ago when suicide bombing were becoming a more frequent form of terrorism and somebody came up with the idea that calling them “suicide bombers” was somehow dignifying them. Or at least helping forward their cause in some way.

I’m sorry, but “homicide bomber” is not a good substitute. Of COURSE they’re homicide bombers! They’re trying to KILL people! If they were just trying to blow up an empty building, I could see calling them just “bombers,” but we know their intention is to take their own lives while killing as many other people as possible. In that sense, “homicide bomber” is redundant. They’re SUICIDE bombers because they’re taking their own lives while bombing. For Fox News to use this term in all their headlines and stories related to this form terrorism makes the company seem less intelligent. Or maybe more conservative. Is that it? Are they using this term because more conservatives would like it and they’re trying to appeal to them?

Hmmm….

[tags]terrorism, suicide bombers, semantics[/tags]

So, for those of you who don’t know and haven’t seen me in a month or more, I’ve gotten a haircut.
A SHORT haircut. The shortest haircut a person can have.
All summer, my haircuts were getting shorter and shorter. Until finally in early August I decided to try shaving it altogether. The last haircut had been so short that it was almost practically like sort of having it shaved, and I decided it didn’t look too bad. So I finally took the plunge and grabbed the razor. The first day I went to work after actually shaving it, I had three different people tell me it looked good. A different look to be sure, especially while keeping the beard, but I’m keeping the beard short because I don’t want to look TOO much like a biker. And either way, it definitely isn’t a stereotypical “librarian look.”

Don’t have any pictures yet, but as I get them I’ll post something here.

For what it’s worth, I figure if your hair is thinning, you’ll eventually reach a point where you will look like you’re balding. I don’t think I’d reached that point yet, but was probably getting close. And I figure, if your head is shaped in a way that it doesn’t look bad shaved, it’s better to have a shaved head and look semi-stylish than to be balding and look rather UNstylish. And BOTH are better than comb-overs, which are ANTI-stylish and which I would never in my life be tempted to do.

[tags]haircuts, shaving, hair, style[/tags]

Today was Alaric’s team’s SECOND football game! They’ve made a ton of progress in the last week. Today the defense really stepped up. They were able to hold the other team a couple of times and make them punt. They also stopped a couple of 2-point-conversion attempts and ended the game with an interception. They still didn’t score, but their opponents got less than half the points that last week’s opponents got.

Definite improvements! They actually looked like they knew what they were doing anyway. And for a team where 2/3 of the boys are playing their second-ever official game, that’s pretty good!