> Life is like biryani. You move the good stuff towards you & you push the weird shit to the side.  

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August 28, 2025 -- 5:40 PM
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go back to maingo to old version

June 08, 2006 -- 12:03 AM
posted by Par

hell is not a furnace-like burning place. hell is full of blood-sucking insects that leave you itching and on the verge of insanity but no closer to actual death.
...

I was ready to commit mass murder last night, and/or burn the forest to the ground... if it would've slowed the mosquitoes, noseeums and other biters...

Then perhaps hell actually is the furnace-like burning place, created in desperation by the people whose blood is being sucked by the insects?


I'm not sure what to make of all this superstition stuff
If you mess up your precise ritual, the hockey (or the applicable sport) gods get upset, and your team loses. It's really quite simple. I'm not sure where the disconnect is.

Seriously though, the superstition is probably just where our need to take control of a situation meets our inclination to find patterns in life. Logically, of course, the ritual is meaningless; is Marc-Andre Bergeron less likely to fuck up because of my choice of breakfast cereal? Unless my choice of breakfast cereal is "not his cat, unless he ignores my ransom note and goes ahead with the fucking up anyway," the answer is probably no.

Sports aren't the only situation in which our need to "do something" overpowers our logical perception of helplessness with respect to the results. (Look no further than the infectious disease expert's pet peeve of antibiotics prescribed to treat the common cold, because taking a pill makes you think you're making a difference.) I guess when the home team's fate is on the line though, the "something" just becomes that much further estranged from rational thinking, and the faith in it becomes that much more crystallized.

June 07, 2006 -- 11:31 PM
posted by alison

noseeums are really tiny biting bugs that you can't really see. they're slightly larger than, um, the head of a pin. but they leave you itchy all the same. and crawl around on you a lot more than mosquitoes... since they can fit under your sleeves etc. quite a lot easier.

yeah, I know what you mean about the superstitions and rituals... I'm sure it is simply a fan's way of keeping the faith and getting involved, 'cause they sure can't climb onto the ice. my brother's rather more superstitious than I am, and he's the one who really insisted on the photo removal, as well as our family's pseudo-tradition of watching the games together. but whatever happens happens. obviously what I do has no bearing on the success of the Edmonton Oilers.


though, i am bound to superstition when it comes to things like talking about bears before heading into the field for the day... because that stuff usually does come true. we saw tracks, likely fresh, but no furry creatures while out walking. So, hopefully that'll be the trend for the rest of the summer. High Level's about as close as we got to the bears, and we were on quads.

June 07, 2006 -- 11:03 PM
posted by Jess

What's a noseeum?

I'm not sure what to make of all this superstition stuff (ie the Shawn Horcoff picture) - is it a way that fans can feel like they are contributing to the team effort? A way to validate the "we" in "We won!" when the fan had nothing to do with it? I can better understand the superstitious rituals of the players - whatever gives you that little extra boost of confidence, right? I have a pair of lucky socks I wear only to shows. When I got to move up a division at the latest show (yay!) I was very nervous so I wore them the first day, took them home and washed them, and wore them the second day too. Maybe I am just not a big enough fan.

And congratulations Mary!

June 07, 2006 -- 10:41 PM
posted by alison

well, i took the Shawn Horcoff picture off the wall here at home, maybe he'll start scoring again...

and, uh, maybe i need to watch the telly when they're playing. they don't seem to do all that well when i'm not watching. hmm... so much for getting back to edmonton in time for the game, baseline road was bumper to bumper.

Just in case anyone was wondering, hell is not a furnace-like burning place. hell is full of blood-sucking insects that leave you itching and on the verge of insanity but no closer to actual death. I now know how a person could be pushed over the edge. It may have something to do with what other people have done to them, but it most definitely has something to do with the number of mosquito bites that person has received in the past fifteen minutes. I was ready to commit mass murder last night, and/or burn the forest to the ground... if it would've slowed the mosquitoes, noseeums and other biters...




CONGRATULATIONS MARY!!! I guess that means we can commiserate/celebrate our grad school woes and wonders in the next year or so. sweet!

June 07, 2006 -- 8:14 PM
posted by P

?

June 07, 2006 -- 8:11 PM
posted by Beck

um... fuck fuck fuck

June 07, 2006 -- 7:57 PM
posted by Beck

fuck

June 07, 2006 -- 6:22 PM
posted by Beck

fuck

June 07, 2006 -- 4:35 PM
posted by Jere

Congrats mary! and to ed for his wounded knee?

Everyone's welcome to watch the game at my place, it will give me an excuse to clean up the appartment for when dana gets back. Don't worry it's not that bad!

Anyways, I'll be home around 5:30 if you want to stop by then. Bring snacks if you want, I'll pick up a few oven pizza's.

See you then,

June 07, 2006 -- 4:17 PM
posted by Par

News Corpse Stalking Points Memo. They've taken the subconscious (?) textover from Stephen Colbert's "The Word" and applied it to Bill O'Reilly's talking points memo. Slightly more antagonistic, but just as entertaining.

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