adamant

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Huny
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Postby Huny » Sat Aug 12, 2006 12:09 am

Bailey, as usual, you have something interesting to say. I had no Idea about adamant being referred to as a hard precious stone. I managed the fine jewelry department of a MAJOR department store ( for I love to surround myself with precious things) for a while and never came across the the word used in reference to the pretty show pieces. As usual, it must have gone right over my head. :roll: I like it though. I will file it away, in what I hope is a useful part of my brain, for later use. Thanks!

Huny-Who once knew someone that was such a tight wad, that if you stuck a piece of coal between his butt cheeks, he could produce a diamond.Those are the kind of friends to keep, but only as long as they keep production up. :wink:
"What lies behind us and what lies ahead of us are tiny matters compaired to what lies inside us." R.W.E.

Palewriter
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Postby Palewriter » Sat Aug 12, 2006 12:25 am

Huny, your signoffs are becoming almost as entertaining as Mark's. :D

-- PW
"Life is not a journey to the grave with the intention to arrive safely in a pretty and well-preserved body, but rather to skid in broadside, thoroughly used up, totally worn out, and loudly proclaiming: Wow!!! What a ride!"

Bailey
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Postby Bailey » Sat Aug 12, 2006 1:25 am

Naw, PW, Huny has far surpassed my poor offerings, she is a thing of beauty.
Actually huny, and psst here's the twenty I promised, It was Gail who broke the news about adamite, I wish I had though.

mark huny-really-cracks-me-up-much-like-PW-who can't-be-topped Bailey

Today is the first day of the rest of your life, Make the most of it...
kb









Huny
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Postby Huny » Sat Aug 12, 2006 9:28 am

Huny, your signoffs are becoming almost as entertaining as Mark's. :D

-- PW
Nah, Mark- the one who inspires huny- Bailey deserves all the credit, for he is a true muse to my creative, yet scattered mind. :wink:



Huny- one who has learned a lot about the human heart over the last few days. :wink:
"What lies behind us and what lies ahead of us are tiny matters compaired to what lies inside us." R.W.E.

Bailey
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Postby Bailey » Sat Aug 12, 2006 11:40 am

golly gee, please! I just can't argue with a Lady, but.....

mark kicking-feet-in-the-dust-aw-shucks-ma'am Bailey

Today is the first day of the rest of your life, Make the most of it...
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eberntson
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Real Scifi

Postby eberntson » Mon Aug 14, 2006 10:59 am

Mark;

Sci-fi is real if you wait long enough, haven’t you heard the theory that sci-fi is what is driving our technological development now. A sci-fi writer researches and finds out plausible inventions and pushes them a degree or two farther. A nice science geek reads the stories and files it away somewhere, and when he gets some grant money or gets to add a feature to a gizmo later brings up that idea as his own and tries to implement it. That is how we get from gunpowder to chewing gum to cheesy-poofs to Dr. Moreaus Island Institute of Stem-cell Research.

Is there a word for this affect on technological advancement by literature? The best example I can think of is “20,000 Leagues Under the Sea”, or Orwell's “1984.”

Eric
EBERNTSON
Fear less, hope more;
eat less, chew more;
whine less, breathe more;
talk less, say more,
and all good things will be yours.
--R. Burns

Bailey
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Postby Bailey » Mon Aug 14, 2006 11:21 am

I'm an avid fan of the real Sci-fi but so much nowadays is mere fantasy, an adolescent's flight of fancy. Much of which is bloody and vampirish, no, I won't credit that, Asimov and Sturgeon are not the popular fare anymore.

mark no-fan-of-plain-nuttiness Bailey

Today is the first day of the rest of your life, Make the most of it...
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eberntson
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Gray, more Grey!

Postby eberntson » Mon Aug 14, 2006 1:45 pm

I agree with the degrading of sci-fi in media, it seems that all American sci-fi is gray painted over with a good coating of GREY... I do like Farscape & Red Dwarf because they have a lot of color and some plots, humorous is anything. I saw some hope in Firefly, but as we all know it was extinguished. Aeon Flux was beautiful to watch but same old plot. I just saw something that was much more interesting but I can't remember what it was...

I think that Hollywood must have a surplus of battleship paint. And although I like a good bug hunt, i.e. Aliens, they bore me mostly. Why does every life form in the universe seem to have read "How to server man"? :(

I'm sure it will get better in 20 years or so. But kids today... :D

Eric
EBERNTSON
Fear less, hope more;
eat less, chew more;
whine less, breathe more;
talk less, say more,
and all good things will be yours.
--R. Burns

Palewriter
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Re: Gray, more Grey!

Postby Palewriter » Mon Aug 14, 2006 2:13 pm


I'm sure it will get better in 20 years or so. But kids today... :D

Eric
I see little reason to expect that anything will get better in 20 years or so, either with regard to sci-fi movies or much else. Hrmph.

Interestingly, browsing the AFI's published selection of greatest American movies, only FIVE were made in or after 1986. Even taking into account the "fuddy-duddy, things were better back in the 40s" factor, you'd still expect a somewhat better turnout.

The cost of making a Hollywood movie today (not least the effects-heavy sci-fi sort) probably means that many of the 'creative' decisions are being made by bean-counters and folks unlikely to want to risk their zillion bucks. That means trying to make safe bets. "Hey...grey worked great in Brazil, Bladerunner and 1984....let's stick with the formula..."

Of course, paint IS cheaper if you buy in bulk, so we might be looking at another 20 years of gray/grey.

-- PW

Who will SCREAM if he has to suffer through another full-length cartoon about cute little ants, racing cars, fish, farmyard animals or dinosaurs. I don't care if the the Risen Christ Himself does the voice of the endearing squirrel....
"Life is not a journey to the grave with the intention to arrive safely in a pretty and well-preserved body, but rather to skid in broadside, thoroughly used up, totally worn out, and loudly proclaiming: Wow!!! What a ride!"

Bailey
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Re: Gray, more Grey!

Postby Bailey » Mon Aug 14, 2006 2:34 pm

I do like Farscape & Red Dwarf because they have a lot of color and some plots, humorous is anything. I saw some hope in Firefly, Eric
I was one of those fans who demanded that they bring back or at least finish Farscape(Moya wasn't grey) And Firefly had great potential. I was sad to see it die, I campaigned for it; threatening to never watch USA again, but.... Those three shows just had so much originality. I am reminded here of my childhood days, as soon as I could read, I read every Sci-fi book and magazine there was. Back in those days it was actually possible.

mark I-was-Sci-fi-LONG-before-sci-fi-was-popular.

Today is the first day of the rest of your life, Make the most of it...
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eberntson
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Mystery Science Theater 3000 (MST3K)

Postby eberntson » Mon Aug 14, 2006 4:58 pm

We'll as for sci-fi there is always Mystery Science Theater 3000 (MST3K) to make you laugh. Also, I think that the movie industry is stuck in Hollywood, but once & a while something new still comes along and revitalizes everything. The Fifth Element was very entertaining, and I did enjoy Aeon Flux. I have tried to get into Anime, but frankly it strikes me the same way the StarTrek cartoon & D&D cartoon struck me... they were to limited by convention when they could have done anything.

As in anything, something new will come along after degeneration, and a new genesis will take place. Right now, the special effects has taken over, but they will figure out that stories & character development matter.

Oh, I remember what I saw that gave me some home, the new Doctor Who, it was entertaining. They still cut short here & there but it still has the old flavor with a lot of character & better special effects. Try it!

Eric
EBERNTSON
Fear less, hope more;
eat less, chew more;
whine less, breathe more;
talk less, say more,
and all good things will be yours.
--R. Burns

Bailey
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Postby Bailey » Mon Aug 14, 2006 5:28 pm

the mystery Science theater is only reruns now and I really like the new Dr. Who.

mark looks-forward -to-the-best-shows-each-week,family-time Bailey

Today is the first day of the rest of your life, Make the most of it...
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Huny
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Postby Huny » Mon Aug 14, 2006 7:52 pm

I like Sci-Fi's new Eureka. I think it has a lot of potential. It's "quark"y and funny, yet the things they experiement on in this quaint little town of self proclaimed scientist has usually been explored in space, not so much here in earth in present day. But, as usual, the government and homeland security is behind most of the goings-on in this "it never happened" town. They have many directions they can travel in with this one--not to mention the new sherrif is easy on the eyes. :wink:
"What lies behind us and what lies ahead of us are tiny matters compaired to what lies inside us." R.W.E.

Bailey
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Postby Bailey » Mon Aug 14, 2006 8:54 pm

Huny, thanks for bringing Eureka up, I like it a lot too.

mark

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gailr
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Re: Gray, more Grey!

Postby gailr » Mon Aug 14, 2006 10:48 pm

Who will SCREAM if he has to suffer through another full-length cartoon about cute little ants, racing cars, fish, farmyard animals or dinosaurs. I don't care if the the Risen Christ Himself does the voice of the endearing squirrel....
Based on current animated trends, wouldn't the endearing squirrel's face be modeled on the image of the voicing actor? Would marketing of such a character violate the 2nd commandment? If he gets paid by direct deposit, with no 'image' on the 'coin', would he feel obliged to pay taxes on it? So many questions...

One of the many advantages of not producing children and living far away from your relatives when their kiddies are small: you miss out on this genre. :D

Eureka is quite entertaining so far. This dooms it to one of three disturbing fates:
1) market "failure" and abrupt cancellation in 2nd season / replacement with a heartwarming series featuring pathologically stupid yet lovable adults and smart-mouthed yet undisciplined kids;
2) market "success" and a rash of Eurekaesque knockoffs on every channel, each one more tragic than the last;
3) the series lasts for 10+ years, getting stranger (and not in a good way) each season, until we could care less [sic] what happens.

-gailr

"In a novel of ideas, the ideas have to work." -- Carl Sagan


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