It's Christmas time in the city!

[vulgarweed]

Message from your local Grinch to out-of-towners shopping on the Mag Mile: wide crowded sidewalks like the one on North Michigan have lanes just like roads do. Northbound. Southbound. Fast lane. Slow lane. (Yes, I'm talking to you, huge family strolling slowly and erratically six abreast. Nuh-uh.) Meanderthals will, sooner or later, get kicked. Aside from that though, yay! I do like this time of year, I really really do. I even found the last Walgreen's downtown that still had tree lights left.

Because of the nature of our jobs, neither my SO nor I get vacation time at the holiday season. Both sets of our parents came to accept long ago that they simply will not get visits from us anywhere near the Winter Solstice or birthday of Mithras or any of that. Travelling is not one of our options (although it's fine in November and it's fine in January and we'll gladly do it then). This used to make me sad. Now it makes me gloat.

***

I don't make New Years' resolutions either. But apparently two of my favorite characters do! (Geez, am I the last person in the Good Omens fandom to link to that today already?)

Brilliant. That's the last word on Intelligent Design and "core values" as far as I'm concerned.

but the most disturbing revelation...Hell is non-smoking?!

*curses*

*thinks well of COURSE it would be - imagine a nic fit for eternity!*

*considers repenting of many things*

...oh...Heaven is too?

*is glad to not be part of Abrahamic-monotheistic-paradigm either way then.*

***

The SO says, "Don't get me anything, I know you don't have much money."

I persist.

He says, "OK, a book on ancient Persia."

I love.

Comments

[celandineb.livejournal.com]

I love the idea of sidewalk lanes... that totally needs to be implemented!

And the C & A resolutions are a total hoot. Esp. the Intelligent Design ones.

[vulgarweed.livejournal.com]

In theory, sidewalk lanes are already done. It's one of those unspoken but understood things. The trouble with those is when they are not understood.

"...because it upsets everyone." Hee!

[murasaki99.livejournal.com]

Wait, wait, wait, I thought in the fundy christian hell all you *did* was smoke? Also bake, fry, simmer... >D

Interesting that the Inuit always thought in the bad netherworld it was freezing cold.

[vulgarweed.livejournal.com]

Just like someone (was it C.S. Lewis?) said of mosquitoes and men, a hell for non-smokers and a heaven for smokers could be very conveniently combined.

And why does that not surprise me at all?

[murasaki99.livejournal.com]

Hee-hee, you mean a reciprocal agreement between Upstairs and Downstairs? Too funny!

For years I kept a Far Side cartoon on my desk corkboard: "Welcome to Heaven, here's your harp", says an angel to a new arrival. Meanwhile in Hell, a demon is saying, "Welcome to Hell, here's your accordion." >D

[vulgarweed.livejournal.com]

But I like the accordion.

They'd have to issue me a piccolo. Now that's an offensive instrument.

[murasaki99.livejournal.com]

I played the flute, but the piccolo IS pretty shrill. An off-tune sax is pretty annoying, too.

[vulgarweed.livejournal.com]

I played the flute too. The piccolo is like all the possible bad qualities of the flute condensed without any of the good ones. It should be banned for cruelty to dogs.

[quantum-witch.livejournal.com]

Nah, I haven't posted the link yet, so you're not the last ;) Hmm, if they're both wondering about the smoking policy... does that mean they BOTH smoke?? Crowley I can see because, duh, it makes him look cool and encourages vice (he probably created Joe Camel). But Azi? No way. It's unhealthy, it's nasty, and it would damage his rare books.

I totally get why both sides would be for Intelligent Design (loves Azi's little aside about that!). But I think I missed out on the whole "core values" thing. I presume it's something stupid, and rings of statements made by our current Dictator...?

*Snicker* Meanderthals. That's brilliant.

[vulgarweed.livejournal.com]

Heh, that link spammed up my flist good this morning. Not that I mind. I could see Azi smoking a pipe from time to time (though, no, not around the books), easily. But he's probably just annoyed at the crowds of smoky angels and saints clustered around the Pearly Gates when he just wants to get his errand done quickly.

"Core values" has become a political buzzword of late, one both sides like to fight over, ascending to ever new heights of rhetorical meaninglessness.

I love it. It's not original to me, I think it was in the New Yorker. I'm just trying to spread the meme. :)

[quantum-witch.livejournal.com]

Hmm, thinking of Azi with a nice tweed jacket and a pipe. *giggle* For some reason that makes me very happy :P Oooh and he does collect snuff boxes, so maybe he used to use them for actual snuff? So long as he sniffed it, rather than using it orally because that is just unbelievably disgusting (know this firsthand, as my father did for years).

[vulgarweed.livejournal.com]

AND...now we know the true meaning of that "snuff film" joke that triggered the latest bout of eye-roll calisthenics at l_t. XD You know, I have a little can of Tube Rose brand snuff on my bathroom windowsill that has never been opened and never will be, but I love the way you can get them in the grocery stores back home and they all have these label designs that have clearly not changed since the 19teens.

[divinetailor.livejournal.com]

wow. i would love him too if he said that to me! as it is, i'll just have to request that you hug him with my name attached. :) if you don't mind, that is.

i'm not getting anyone anything. however, i did loan Jim some money so he can pay his rent. is that a gift?

[vulgarweed.livejournal.com]

Isn't he the greatest? I'll be very glad to attach your name to one of my hugs.

Only if he doesn't pay you back. :P

[divinetailor.livejournal.com]

pthbbb. har har!

you know, i read the above as "i'll be very glad to attach your name to one of my legs", which offers mental images that are both compelling and confusing.

[vulgarweed.livejournal.com]

See, I wouldn't mind that, but then I'd have to decide who to dedicate the other leg to.

[forodwaith.livejournal.com]

First: I love your icon. Second: Thank you for "spamming" with that link, because you're the only GO fandom person on my list, and if it weren't for you I'd have missed that delightful piece!

[vulgarweed.livejournal.com]

Thanks! thesuthernangel made it; she's done a ton of lovely seasonal Narnia icons.

I'm so glad it was of use to you! Yes, that's a real day-brightener, isn't it? Sure worked for me.
but wait...if Crowley Googles himself all the time...that means he must know about the...uh oh.

[forodwaith.livejournal.com]

Presumably, if he objected, you'd have heard about it already. ;-)

[fyrdrakken]

I have to second the thanks because you're also the only GO person on my friends list! :Goes to check on the Narnia icons:

[waxbean.livejournal.com]

hahhahha! thanks for linking me to this... reading this was so wonderfully satisfying!

xoxoMary

[vulgarweed.livejournal.com]

Wonderful, isn't it? WOuldn't want you to miss it!