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November 2006 Archive 29 November - Is it a Civil War? I confess that I stand with the Administration on this question - of course it isn't a civil war. It isn't a civil war because it has no civil war reenactors. I'm surprised that none of the other pundits have figured it out, yet. link home 29 November - The End of Civilization... ...As overheard at the public library, and reported by Ref Grunt: Father to young son:link home 26 November - Helpful Shopping Tip  Horsey set with an Aeronca 7AC Champion by Hans Groenhoff from Animals Aloft Just a friendly reminder that copies of Animals Aloft make splendid presents for the entire family, friends, casual acquaintences, and total strangers. Avoid the great steaming neanderthal crush of humanity at the malls and the homicidal traffic on the poorly-kept roads to the malls by buying multiple copies here. And remember, it's a well-known scientific fact that used books are terrible sources of infection - if you care about your family's health, you'll purchase new copies only. And no, Animals Aloft has not been remaindered, yet. link home 26 November - Continuing Cephalopod Menace Continues  Not for the faint-hearted is this terrifying video of a giant squid dueling to the death with Cats Leroy and Natasha: Everyone needed a nap after the filming. link home 25 November - The Continuing Cephalopod Menace Reacting to the squid vs. sub posting of the other day, Friend of the Museum Mario Rups sent a link to a terrifying National Geographic video of a terrifying struggle between an octopus and shark. And what with the global situation as it is, I doubt that our statesmen are dealing adequately with the Cephalopod Menace. Really, I'm now in such a nervous state that I doubt I could even face:  ... A terrifying plate of fried squid with basil. Well, maybe I could, just. link home 23 November - Struggle to the Death  Squid vs. Submarine by Brian McCarty A terrifying but strangely compelling photograph of the titanic struggle to the death by a giant squid and a submarine, as photographed by Brian McCarty, via Squid, a terrifying but strangely compelling blog (not to be confused with Squidblog), via Boing Boing. link home 23 November  Happy Thanksgiving! Myself, I'll be working the cash register of the Janus Museum's gift shop all day. Then I'll try to eat a turkey loaf I picked up yesterday at the dollar store. What a glorious day. link home 22 November - A Date to Remember Lest we forget - today is the anniversary of the day on which I came down with the mumps. Of course, the only reason I remember it is that I associate it with JFK's assassination, which happened on the same day. And also the death of Arthur Sullivan, of Gilbert and Sullivan fame, which happened on the same date some years before the events in Dallas and the mumps and all. Not only that, but here's a fact that'll make you stare - William S. Gilbert, also of Gilbert and Sullivan fame, died on May 29th - which is the date of JFK's birth. Makes one think, doesn't it? And it's also the day on which Constantinople fell to the Turks, but you knew that already. On another subject entirely, it occurred to me today that the offspring of an octoroon and a Scottish person could be called a macaroon. link home 18 November - Tableau Militaire  Dear me, how the years roll on... An old friend, the photographer and historian Bob Lyon, sent me some old snaps from our Revolutionary War reenactment days, which inspired me to hunt up my own shots from that far-off time. Above, some of the lads of the 1st Maryland Regiment frisk about a basin at Versailles during our trip to France back in '83. I might post some more, if I don't become crippled by nostalgia. link home 17 November - Going to the Pentagon I recently attended a rather grand retirement ceremony for an old Friend of the Museum, the historian and author Dr. Richard Hallion. Formerly a curator at the National Air and Space Museum and Historian of the U.S. Air Force, Dick had been working for the Secretary of the Air Force, mainly on interesting stuff that he couldn't talk about. The ceremony took place at the Pentagon, and involved a large number of flags, plenty of brass both foreign and domestic, the Air Force Song, the reading of orders, and speeches. Dick's own remarks were at once witty, thought-provoking, and moving. Among other things, Dick revealed that he's in favor of western civilization! And there was pretty good grub at the end. I didn't take any pictures because cameras are banned from the Pentagon. I hadn't been to the Pentagon in years; not since Gulf War I, when I was a fairly frequent visitor there on business that cannot be discussed here or elsewhere. I knew that security had been smartened up since September 2001, but I was still surprised at the hoops I had to go through to gain entrance. The most curious part of the ordeal was that I was told by a security officer to hike up my trousers so that my ankles could be inspected. Our maintenance man Gus Norbeck reenacts the odd procedure:  ... as Cat Natasha looks away in embarrassment. What was the purpose? To make sure that I didn't have a piece concealed in an ankle holster? Checking to see that my socks matched? I knew enough not to ask questions - I just showed off my ankles, and thought of the Empire. By the way, Dick Hallion is frequently to be seen as a talking head on programs on aviation - most recently on the PBS Warplane series and on a Nova program on Alberto Santos-Dumont. link home 11 November - Job Satisfaction  Cat Leroy gazes at the great leaf piles in The Circle, Washington Grove, and reflects with satisfaction that none of the labor that went into raking the piles was his. link home 11 November - JM's Sketchbook  The Brains of the Army by JM Not much is known of JM, except that he served in the artillery in the British Army during World War I. Two of his sketchbooks are in the University of Victoria's Special Collections Library. Via growabrain. link home 11 November - The Great War  German Aviators of the Great War, with Dog A good site to visit today, it being Armistice Day, is the superb The Great War in a Different Light site, a huge compendium of photos, illustrations, and articles from contemporary magazines - absolutely fascinating. Too many treasures, in fact, to detail here, but one must visit the Animals at War pages.  By the way, there are now only 14 American veterans of World War I. link home 11 November - Dropping the Pilot II  Sinking Ship, Steve Bell in the Guardian Friend of the Museum Grahame sent this superb cartoon by Steve Bell, riffing on the famous cartoon "Dropping the Pilot" (1891) by Sir John Tenniel, which commented on Bismark's forced resignation as chancellor of Germany by Kaiser Wilhelm II. I have myself often mused on the similarities between the Kaiser and his disfunctional court and our current administration - most striking - something to think about. In the days before the 1918 Armistice, the chief of the German General Staff suggested to the Kaiser that it might be a good moment for him to fall gloriously at the front at the head of his troops. Wilhelm, known for his bellicose, blood-thirsty, sabre-rattling rhetoric, replied - oh, gosh - great idea - super idea - would absolutely love to; but sadly his position as head of the German Lutheran church prevented him from considering the possibility of undertaking such a glorious but possibly painful step. I wonder if anyone's suggested to the president that he might ought to lead a patrol or an IED hunt in Baghdad or in Anbar Province? Note the cute little suicide bomber fish swimming near the Pres, and also the vice-presidential octopus. link home 10 November - Pushing the Culinary Envelope What could possibly be wrong with a brilliant idea like chicken-fried steak ice cream? Via Slashfood. link home 9 November - Oh! What a Lovely War  Arriving just in time for Armistice Day is the newly reissued DVD of Richard Attenborough's 1969 Oh! What a Lovely War, a musical based on the songs of the Great War. I remember it from when it was on the big screen: loved the good old songs (here's The Bells of Hell - streaming Real Audio - from the soundtrack); felt that I had been clubbed on the head by the heavy irony. But can there ever be a non-ironical treatment of World War I? Above, the 1914 Christmas truce.  Maurice Roëves gathers poppies in a shell hole. link home 8 November - Dropping the Pilot  AP Photo Hubris invariably brings Nemesis. Or, as Donald himself memorably put it, "Stuff happens." link home 5 November - Still More of Autumn's Colorful Palette  Yesterday was the Museum's annual Fall Color Stroll. I shot the Old Footbridge yet again so regular readers, if any, can check the progress of the season - here's what it looked like last week. link home 5 November - Best Costume of an Aeronautical Nature  This was my favorite get-up among the trick-or-treaters on Halloween - a cute little kamikaze pilot, complete with a set of Zero wings. Yes, I gave him candy - didn't want him to sink my fleet carriers as a trick. link home 5 November - Why Are These Men Smiling?  Sad, really... the future was once so rosy, once upon a time. Now, the liberal hounds (like the Army Times) are baying for the Secretary's job, and Saddam is sentenced to be scragged - was he actually found guilty, by the way? - not that it matters, much. As the line in Beggar's Opera goes, There is nothing moves one so much as a great man in Distress. And I am very moved, all right. link home 4 November - Flying Saves Lives  Flying Saves Lives, watercolor by Anton Zhetikov I was signing copies of Animals Aloft at the National Conference on Aviation and Space Education convention the weekend before last, and took a few minutes to browse through a little art show for students sponsored by the Fédération Aéronautique Internationale (FAI) and Embry-Riddle University. My favorite work was from the 2004 competition - the watercolor shown above by 15 year old Anton Zhetikov. A Beriev Be-200 amphibious fire bomber drops fire retardant on a raging forest fire, thus saving a moose (foreground) and a kremlin. It's a bit reminiscent of the works of Komar and Melamid. Congratulations to Anton, who won third prize in the Senior Category. Here's the FAI page with all of the paintings. Apologies once again for the gap in postings. I've been much taken up with the annual production of the famous Janus Museum fruitcakes - don't forget to get your order in promptly to avoid "disappointment". I'm informed that last year's slight problem with ergot contamination will not be repeated. And thanks once again to the thoughtful Friends of the Museum who have been doing their Amazon.com shopping through one of our convenient links. It's very pleasant to watch Museum revenue pile up without any exertion on our part. link |
