7 posts tagged “qotd”
Who is your favorite wizard of all time?
Perfect example of why I avoid the QotD.
But I will answer.
Ged, from Earthsea. Duh.
If a waiter stopped by right now to take your order, what cocktail or drink are you having?
Beer. Domestic. Local.
Grain Belt.
What is one of your favorite poems?
Submitted by marvel is my pen name.
I have never been a big fan of poetry. I think there is a block in my brain that keeps me from enjoying the printed verse.
The only poem I have ever memorized any portion of was Samuel Taylor Coleridge's Rime Of The Ancient Mariner. Serious dork poem, I guess. I suppose it's quite famous for it's imagery and pacing, which became common for seafaring stories and poems (even basis of the Gilligan's Island theme). I think also the fact that Coleridge was a madman and a druggie (before it was cool) that made a teenaged me take interest.
But mainly, it's just fun to say out loud. Try it. Even use your pirate voice, with some hearty ARRRR!s.
The gist is: Some old sea dog is boring people at a wedding with his story of woe on a sea trip. Starts out well enough with them having navigation problems that are solved by some magical albatross that brings them good fortune. Of course, the mariner promptly drops it with a crossbow. Which is what any reasonable crew member would do with a head full of narcotics.
This is my favorite section. Right in the middle of the story, after the mariner kills their 'good luck' albatross and causes the sea and elements to punish them.
Day after day, day after day,
We stuck, ne breath ne motion,
As idle as a painted Ship
Upon a painted Ocean.
Water, water every where
And all the boards did shrink;
Water, water every where,
Ne any drop to drink.
The very deeps did rot: O Christ!
That ever this should be!
Yea, slimy things did crawl with legs
Upon the slimy Sea.
About, about, in reel and rout
The Death-fires danc'd at night;
The water, like a witch's oils,
Burnt green and blue and white.
Then later, after they make him wear the dead bird as a sign of his sins...they are visited by Death and her BF. Who decide they all need to die except the mariner, because he needs to bear witness to what he caused. And then, another good part...
One after one by the star-dogged Moon
Too quick for groan or sigh,
Each turn'd his face with a ghastly pang
And curs'd me with his eye.
Four times fifty living men,
With never a sigh or groan.
With heavy thump, a lifeless lump
They dropp'd down one by one.
...and, a little later...after a fever dream involving the moon and snakes and other druggie nonsense, the dead bird falls off him and he sees the dead sailors rise and leave their bodies and other such nonsense. Then, alone on the ship, he does some more freaking out as the ship zooms all over the sea from pole to pole at what could be described as 'ludacrious speed'. Finally the spirits get tired of yanking his chain, and send him home.
But they punk him right by the shore and sink the ship, left to be saved by some hermit pilot that's just as daft as he is. The hermit tells the mariner that to redeem for his sins, he has to become a wedding crasher and bore people to tears with this story. And to promise not to shoot things with a crossbow.
It would make a great movie, with maybe a Pink Floyd soundtrack and some Terry Gilliam animations. Terry could direct and fill it full of midgets and his usual whatnot.
What are five books that changed your life?
Inspired by Ms. Genevieve.
Life-Changing is a pretty bold statement, so I'm just going to go with books that were merely 'significant'
1. Little House Of The Prairie. Not so much for it's story, characters, or writing...For me its about 2nd grade in a new school. My teacher decided that the best way for the new kid to break the ice with the other kids was to read aloud to them every damn day from the Alcott book. In hindsight, just pinning the word 'DORK' to my chest would have worked as well.
2. Lord Of The Rings trilogy. It's kind of cliche now, but it was the first 'major' literature that I read. I think I was in 5th or 6th grade. The idea that someone would go so far to create a world for their characters set a blueprint for nearly all of my later obsessions in life.
3. The Lathe Of Heaven - Ursula LeGuin. This one came out of nowhere. I read it by pure accident when I was about 13 or 14. I had read her fantasy-based Earthsea books and picked this up thinking it be along the same lines. Instead I got a head full of adult themes of self-awareness, responsibility, sex, self-control, and power. George Orr is always a part of me.
4. I Have No Mouth, And I Must Scream - Harlan Ellison. I think this was the first time I fell in love with stories for their language and pure honest emotion in literature. Harlan's stories always give me a feeling that it's ok to show emotion and it's ok to live a little. The title story makes you feel that it's ok to die in some situations as well.
5. The Gunslinger - Stephen King. I know, yet another genre book. But hey, I am what I am. It's another that I fell in love with the language, and with the world it created. It's the reason I read most of King's books, to see if they reach this level (most dont. some do.) Where George Orr is the sensitive, over-thinking part of me....Roland is the Quixotic, idealized hero part of me.
What are your top 25 most played songs?
Submitted by Cooxie.
Ok...this list is a little skewed due to the fact I recently wiped out and rebuilt my iTunes library and also that the kids play music on this computer quite often....but here it goes anyways....
I blame the kids for the Doughty/Soul Coughing/Plain White T's selections. I can only blame myself for The Time.
- Madeline And Nine - Mike Doughty
- Hey There Delilah - Plain White T's
- Good Day - Paul Westerberg
- Soundtrack To Mary - Soul Coughing
- Your Misfortune - Mike Doughty
- Laminated Cats - Loose Fur
- Love You In The Fall - Paul Westerberg
- When The Stars Go Blue - Ryan Adams
- Unsingable Name - Mike Doughty
- The Kids Are Alright - Matthew Sweet & Susanna Hoffs
- Message To The Boys - Replacements
- Girl Inform Me - The Shins
- Jenny Says - Cowboy Mouth
- Jungle Love - The Time
- It Takes Two - Rob Base & DJ EZ Rock
- Sweet Illusions - Ryan Adams & The Cardinals
- Pulling Mussels From A Shell - Squeeze
- Hurricane - Golden Smog
- Rio - Duran Duran
- I Like Birds - The Eels
- Makes No Sense At All - Husker Du
- Commie Drives A Nova - Ike Reilly
- At Least That's What You Said - Wilco
- Tears Don't Matter Much - Lucero
- As Far As I Know - Paul Westerberg
When you were younger, were there any game shows that you religiously watched and wanted to be a contestant on?
I watched a lot of Match Game....because it was sooo dirty. Well, for 1976. But I always wanted a shot at Jeopardy.
Give me a good run with the right categories and I'll put that Ken dork to shame.
What is your favorite cover song?
Question submitted by Ray.
I like a lot of cover songs, so this is a tough one. I suppose the ones I like the most are the ones done by artists that seemingly have nothing in common with the original song......examples:
Sonic Youth - Superstar (Carpenters)
Soul Asylum - Sexual Healing (Marvin Gaye)
Sublime - Scarlet Begonias (Grateful Dead)
Ben Folds - Lost In the Supermarket (Clash)
Cowboy Mouth - Don't Come Home A Drinkin' With Lovin' On Your Mind (Loretta Lynn)
Eels - Never Take The Place Of Your Man (Prince)
