The other night I finally got around to seeing Apollo 13, and it was the most enthralling and satisfying film experience I've had in a very long time. Damn, I'd almost forgotten we used to make movies like this; gripping accounts of actually worthwhile true events, focusing on intelligent, mature, professional men working to solve … Continue reading Flash ‘Apollo 13’ Reaction
History
Friday Flotsam: Mostly On Halloween
1. "The spirit of wickedness in high places is now so powerful and so many-headed in its incarnations that there seems nothing more to do than personally to refuse to worship any of the hydra's heads."-J.R.R. Tolkien (from a letter written in late 1969) 2. Our problem with Halloween is that we miss half the … Continue reading Friday Flotsam: Mostly On Halloween
Feast of St. Boethius
There are a surprising number of people whom even knowledgeable Catholics don't realize are Saints, and Boethius is one of the more prominent. While secular scholars loftily debate whether he was even Christian (which seems to me absurd given even a cursory reading of De Consolatione), the Church has recognized him as a Saint and … Continue reading Feast of St. Boethius
Friday Flotsam: Bl. Karl, Lasik, Tolkien, and Anime
1. First and foremost; today’s the feast of Bl. Karl of Austria, whose prayers we desperately need today as the wreckage of Christendom spirals ever more wildly out of control. Just learned of a quote of his that has immediately become one of my favorites: “We are bearers of culture even in the land of … Continue reading Friday Flotsam: Bl. Karl, Lasik, Tolkien, and Anime
‘Good Ole Rebel’ at the Everyman
My latest piece is up at the Everyman: I’m very fond of the postbellum Confederate song ‘Good Ole’ Rebel’. Dating from the bitter days of Reconstruction, it offers a defiant rejection of the new order: Oh, I’m a good ole’ rebel, now that’s just what I am For this ‘fair land of freedom’ I do not … Continue reading ‘Good Ole Rebel’ at the Everyman
Friday Flotsam: Another Content Strike, History, and Gross Sex Scenes
1. First and foremost: The Wisdom of Walt Disney got another content strike against it. I sent Amazon a reply with the case number of the previous content strike and the fact that they cleared it. So, hopefully it'll get cleared up again soon, and in the meantime only the Kindle edition is available for … Continue reading Friday Flotsam: Another Content Strike, History, and Gross Sex Scenes
Columbus Day
Once again, posting the Admiral's response to his critics And, courtesy of Riders of Skaith: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=26dlYEzOtog&t=929s
George Foreman vs. Michael Moorer
In 1994, an aging, slow, well-past-his-prime George Foreman challenged Heavyweight champion Michael Moorer, a fighter twenty years his junior. The result was the following fight (it's rather long, but should be watched in its entirety for the full impact) https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5v-R-JVl5TY&t=2433s
When Presidents Met Popes
I've started posting daily trivia questions on the Catholic chat channel at work, as a way of making the days pass a little quicker. This, of course, is just in time for me to leave for another job, but that might be just as well: I'm running a little dry on interesting trivia. In any … Continue reading When Presidents Met Popes
Almost Missed It
A more cheerful anniversary: September 12, 1683. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CxlRJsQ7p2k https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KPzCE4HmbGM
Serpent's Den 