The Text Wall of China

Dear conservatives and Constitutionalists:

This has been an interesting week, in the Chinese sense. Many are kvetching that it is the end of our economy, others are whining "Come, Lord Jesus" over the preponderance of rainbows online (I hold firm with the prayer for the Lord's return, but not as whinging over political downturns. The hymn does NOT say "Whine Up O Men of God....). There is a vast cataract of bloviation on one side, and mean-spirited poor winners on the other.

Here I am, stuck in the middle with you.

What we have seen is a result of a vast stratagem, that of Wearing Down the Opposition. For close to fifty years, the homosexual lobby has worked tactical magic day-to-day, from making Christians look silly by ignoring Biblical context, to having VERY sympathetic and likeable characters on TV shows, to marching their brand constantly before the watching world.

They have lived and put forth supreme effort for their beliefs and lifestyle.

Because of this, 1.5-2% of the population has popularised what used to the sin that has no name by turning it to something akin to civic virtue, and by demanding not mere acceptance, no, but celebration and rights for what has never existed before in 5000 years of history, homosexual marriage being equivalent legally and socially to what Jesus defined as "a man shall leave father and mother, and shall cleave to his wife". (see, Jesus DID talk about it, too!) In doing that they also accrued a large base of supporters, because if you DON'T agree, they will call you made-up names in public. That would be uncool, and you would likely not be invited to the best parties.

How was this accomplished? By unflagging effort to reach the goal.

Dear conservatives, Christians, and Constitutionalists, they BELIEVED, then ACTED unyieldingly to accomplish their tasks. Were we as convinced in our own concerns, we would have stormed cities, state capitols, the very Capitol in D.C., and demanded that those who purport to represent us DO SO. Those who are treasonous would have been arrested, and we would have brought about a renascence of our Constitutional Republic. This is a truth I speak, and you had best hear it. Why did we not fill the streets of D.C.? Why did we not clog the halls of Congress with our demands? Were we so busy that we could not get away? Busy with what? Franklin said that the Founders gave us a Republic, if we could keep it. Was the second car, the bass boat, the vacation so important that we could not be BOTHERED to take back our country?

By all means, let us moan, weep, gnash our teeth, and NOW call on the Almighty to get us out of this mess. OUR mess, for had we the will our fellow citizens had for their interests, we would have won the day by sheer force of numbers. But no, social media, talk radio, "conservative news", all were enough, we thought, we hoped. Someone else will do the heavy lifting. Last year a retired Army guy tried to organise a peaceful siege of Washington D.C. Few could be bothered, and it fizzled.

"Maybe God is judging Amurrica!"  Stop blaming the Almighty for our own almighty sorriness. And as I point my finger of indignation, i am cognizant that three are aimed at me. Nothing short of a revolution will change things, now. I question if we are man enough to even begin to consider thinking about the possibility of debating the need to talk about forming a committee to establish the by-laws for drafting a plan such as we would need.

We have been weighed in the balance, and found sorely wanting. "How can he say this?"

Because we have repeatedly and overwhelmingly lost.

Here endeth the lesson.

Voyage to the Bottom of my Angst

Facebook, why did you put a "Planet Fitness" ad on my page?
YOU DON'T KNOW ME AT ALL!!!!

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Dear e-card makers.
Squashing and stretching clipart and fonts to fit does not increase the whimsy or snarkiness of your product.
It just makes it look like you need your 12-year-old nephew to do your work for you.

Love,
The Aardvark

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Must break out my "The Rocketeer" and "The Wrath of Khan" soundtracks.
James Horner has left us.

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My brain-thinking came up with something terrible. Please to note:
I AM NOT ADVOCATING THIS!
When the Confederate flag is removed from the SC State House, will some genius get before a microphone and say "This makes the Charleston church deaths worth it!"?

While I am not a betting man, I think I know where my money would be. Symbolism ALWAYS over substance. And NEVER let a good tragedy go to waste.

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Just because I have recently used the term "sympathetic magic", and discussed the paranormal, does not mean that I have changed teams.

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When a politician says "the only way", there are likely 437 other valid ways.

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I long to beat Oscar Wilde at the pithy aphorism game. Of course, Oscar Wilde was a hack, a culture whore. Google for Oscar Wilde quotes.

"Consistency is the last refuge of the unimaginative."

He used a Pithy Quote Generator TM .

Blank is the blank blank of the blank.

Nowadays he would write Star Wars novels.

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Environmentalists and animal rights activists seem to come from Planet Four-Year-Old.
Recently, on two continents, supporters of elephants and rhinos burned rhino horns and tusks confiscated from poachers. Beyond making the death of those noble beasts thereby meaningless, what is the downside to this fiery tantrum? Anyone...?
...Bueller?

You there...Susie in the front row, waving your arm wildly!
What? Why YES! The do-gooders have caused the value of rhino horn and ivory to increase, thereby giving the poachers increased incentive to kill the beasts and steal the valuable bits. Reduce supply, and the value of what remains goes UP!
Yes, Tommy, that IS what killed the comic-book industry in the '90s.
Can anyone offer alternatives to incentivising the poachers with greater profits?

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"Slab pie" sounds SO much better than "dump cake".
Saw BOTH of those dreadful recipe books at Dollar General: "Dump Cakes" and "Dump Dinners". That establishes the level of the cuisine quite handily.

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I'm not a "woo woo" guy, but I was talking with a friend in an old building that he uses, just visiting, when I felt the precise feeling, movement and pressure of a cat rubbing against my right leg. I immediately looked down, and nothing was there. It was not a muscle tremor or anything like that. I do not believe in "Aunt Maude waiting to pass over" and stuff like that, but I DO believe that as there are critters in the woods that are part of the physical ecology, there are also "critters" in the spiritual ecology as well, that perform whatever service they exist for, just as natural creatures do. The ancients may have seen or felt them, and superstitiously worshiped them as nature spirits. I do not speak of angels or demons, here, but of the lesser "airish beasts" that Chaucer referred to.

In short, I may have had an encounter with the local wildlife.

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Just realised that Michael Savage reminds me of the Evil Movie Producer in "The Wizard of Speed and Time".

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The Gospel of Jesus is the surest road away from living as a victim.
Worked for me.

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If you want to truly leave an historical legacy, get a 35mm camera, and start taking B&W film images. I am of the opinion that color gets in the way of the image (and in movies, the story).

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STOP with the "dark heart of America" stuff, Esquire magazine. We do NOT need to "talk about it". For the past decade we have talked about little else, or at least we have been talked AT about it. I do not have this "dark heart", and I am an American, yea, an American with firearms. I have killed no one, frankly, have only ever considered two targets in my lifetime, and they were evil abusers of kin of mine. Even with such provocation, I killed no one.
I have guns, and I have killed no one.

I WILL NOT own the savagery and insanity of the demonised man who killed nine church attendees in Charleston. His jacket in one picture had a Rhodesian flag, and the apartheit flag. Not normal fashion gear. He acted from his hate, and from his violent nature.
No one else did. He stands alone in his guilt. America is not guilty for this. Even the asses' heads who have beat the drum of racial divide and anger are not guilty of THIS crime.
Only the man. Ecce homo.

The Hivening

From Saturday:

We are splitting a hive, late in the season, and the thought of exposing and handling 50,000 nervous bees is a tad daunting. Smoker at the ready.

As a wild ass in the desert go I forth to my work...
The honey must flow!!

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The Hivening is done! Nary a sting! LOTS of bees!
I had apparently neglected the poor dears. Overbuilding of honey cells. Had I had a super on, we might have had an actual harvest. As it stands, we had to trim some comb off. Honey-filled comb.
Poor us.

We put four brood frames into the new hive, and six empty ones, for growing room. Put 4 new frames in the older hive.
If anyone sees a flaw in my logic and practise, feel free to message me.
We brought the scrapings in, and got a couple of spoons to taste the bees' wares.
Eye-rollingly fantastic. We tasted the honey...smooth, light flavor, no throat-burning like many honeys.
We immediately went out to the hives to thank them, bless them and pray for their continued fruitfulness. I have a very St. Francis relationship with my bees. I love the little things. If not for their apiary stewardship, there would be few, and hungry humans on our world. The weak, the small, granted such responsibility for good.
Seems a parable, yes?

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The honeycomb we trimmed from the hive wound up having eight bees in it. Herself rescued seven and returned them to the hive. Number eight had buzzed its last. I had a fatality last night whilst tending the li'l darlin's. A worker landed on my right leather glove, and took umbrage at the fashion statement. I watched her sting and then pull away, leaving stinger and a small trail of her inwards on my glove. I felt bad for her. But she died protecting The Hive. For Queen and Country! Brave little thing.

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The Queen is dead. Long live the Queen.
Our new queen is not merely pining...she is pushin' up the daisies.
This is an ex-queen bee.

Must acquire a replacement pronto.

Oddments from the Battlements

I hear he is running on the Democrat ticket against Hillary and Bernie.

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ONOES! Hunters killing animals!!
Top of the food chain. Deal with it.
Wolf or rabbit. The choice is yours.
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This makes me so happy, says the man who until recently ALWAYS slept under the covers!



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Spelling bee coverage is more gripping then televised golf.
Except for the clapping.

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I believe that I shall announce my candidacy for the President of the United States of America.
I could do with a colonoscopy, and this seems as good a way as any.



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...on a Crisp Ritz Cracker!
Mmmmmmm...MM!

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The Waffle House hash browns menu options sound like a Mob hit:
scattered, smothered, covered, chunked, diced, peppered, capped, topped.


-------------------------That moment when you know that you concern yourself too much with typography:

I got an email from Grand Rapids Comic-Con. I ACTUALLY saw "Grand Rapids Comic Sans".

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Did I ever share this thing I did?



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Teletubbies 1984:




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My latest, in celebration of Thunderbirds 50th anniversary!




Tatty-bye!