LOA- sort of

[Alys Kinch]

I didn't post this the other day, but I should have. I posted it in staff though...

 

So with school and my sister's wedding and work, I need to take an loa until exams are over. I will be in and out at random for various lengths of time, so who knows if I'll see you guys much for the next two weeks....

 

Anyway, I am following this semester with a three week session and then a fourish week session then! I finally get to graduate stuff. This summer will be hectic, but if anyone neeeeeeeds me, PM me and I should respond relatively quickly. If you'd prefer e-mail, just write your dm handle in the subject so I don't delete you. that's kat_landers@yahoo.com.

 

anyway, thought you guys might also appreciate this....

 

Cannon Balls

 

It was necessary to keep a good supply of cannon balls near the cannon on

old war ships. But how to prevent them from rolling about the deck was the

problem. The best storage method devised was to stack them as a square based

pyramid, with one ball on top, resting on four, resting on nine, which

rested on sixteen. Thus, a supply of 30 cannon balls could be stacked in a

small area right next to the cannon.

There was only one problem -- how to prevent the bottom layer from

sliding/rolling from under the others. The solution was a metal plate with

16 round indentations, called a Monkey. But if this plate were made of iron,

the iron balls would quickly rust to it. The solution to the rusting problem

was to make Brass Monkeys.

Few landlubbers realize that brass shrinks much more and much faster than

iron when chilled. Consequently, when the temperature dropped too far, the

brass indentations would shrink so much that the iron cannon balls would

come right off the monkey. Thus, it was quite literally, cold enough to

freeze the balls off a brass monkey. And all this time, you thought that was

a vulgar expression, didn't you?

[Alys Kinch]

tornado sirens are going off, we've had two touch down near here... ummm, stuck in the halls... someone post so i am not bored while we wait it out????

[SBoydW]

stay covered

[Alys Kinch]

we are being held hostage in the college building. they won't let anyone near doors or windows. we'll be fine, but we are hella crowded.

[Daetirion]

Aaaaand youve got net access which is the main thing

 

dammit but our weather aint any where near as interesting as yours - just bright, sunny, warm with a nice cooling breeze....

 

:P

 

Good luck Alys, im sure it wont be for that long

[SBoydW]

Bright sunny days with a slight breeze.. makes me wanna go riding

[loki redfern]

riding who?

 

can you ride ducks?

 

what about if there like huge mutant ducks?

[Barmacral]

Dangit Alys, why cant I get that kind of weather?

[loki redfern]

we get tornados too :look

[Thorum]

the only ones I've ever seen were on national geographic :(

[Alys Kinch]

now, i done told y'all to git on down 'ere! it wasn't too bad. all seem to have been f-1's  but they got worse as they moved east. :( i believe there were some fatalities...

[loki redfern]

gastritis?

[Thorum]

it was on our news too: a dozen deads due to tornadoes in arkansas (and yes, that's east of texas) :(

 

You were spared the worst

[Alys Kinch]

how about myanmar? that's even worse.

[Thorum]

I don't think it were tornadoes there

 

[loki redfern]

you mean burma? cyclones it was there

[Thorum]

Burma is the old name. Strangely enough nobody uses Upper-Volta (Burkina Faso), Persia (Iran), or Rhodesia (Zimbabwe) any more, but Burma sticks around :(

 

And cyclones, that's just a hurricane in Asia.

[Daetirion]

'cause very few countries actually officially recognised the name change when it happened in 1989. Compared to almost all officially recognising the others - its a bit like the Kosovo situation in some ways

[loki redfern]

probably because there all easyier to say too