Path: mit-eddie!snorkelwacker!tut.cis.ohio-state.edu!ucbvax!goldfarb@ocf.berkeley.edu From: goldfarb@ocf.berkeley.edu (David Goldfarb) Newsgroups: alt.callahans Subject: Re: Grenades a la Creme Message-ID: <35036@ucbvax.BERKELEY.EDU> Date: 20 Mar 90 08:32:00 GMT References: <9003191401.AA27560@fsdcupt.csd.mot.COM> <35034@ucbvax.BERKELEY.EDU> Sender: usenet@ucbvax.BERKELEY.EDU Reply-To: goldfarb@ocf.Berkeley.EDU (David Goldfarb) Organization: University of California, Berkeley Lines: 32 "Whew!" After a good deal of mopping, wiping, and general cleaning, Zach finally has that mess of pies dealt with. "I tell you," he says, "having a familiar with a warped sense of humor is *murder*." He turns to address Mike. "I mean, the second my back is turned," Suddenly he whirls, jabbing the air with two fingers of his right hand, crying, "*No*, you don't!" The pie that was just about to impact the back of Joelle's head takes a sudden veer upward. It flies over to a nearby empty table. Those sitting nearby can see that it's strangely amorphous; their eyes hurt just looking at it, as though they're seeing something different out of each eye. Zach walks over to the table with the pie. "If this goes on," he remarks, "I'm going to have to change my name to Simple Simon, to go with the Pieman here." He jerks his thumb, indicating nothing visible. "Well, all right!" Zach says, examining the pie. "This is the very latest in pies, a Schroedinger-Heisenberg Special! It has the unique prop- erty of being in a "mixed flavor state". It isn't decided exactly what flavor it is until someone actually cuts a slice. The advantage is that if nobody looks at his or her slice until they're all cut, you can work things so that everyone has a *different* flavor--whatever you want! One person's slice can be lemon meringue while someone else has apple. Plus, the size retroactively adjusts exactly to fit the number of eaters." "So gather 'round, and let's have dessert!" "Ummmm...anyone got a knife?" David Goldfarb goldfarb@ocf.berkeley.edu (Insert standard disclaimer) "Appears life is a fractal in Hilbert space!" "Ah, well. I knew it had t'be sometin' like dat. I knew dat couldn't be right, about de bowl of cherries." -- _Big Numbers_ #1 Path: mit-eddie!mit-amt!straz From: straz@mit-amt.MEDIA.MIT.EDU (Steve Strassmann) Newsgroups: alt.callahans Subject: Re: Grenades a la Creme Message-ID: <1933@mit-amt.MEDIA.MIT.EDU> Date: 20 Mar 90 09:20:22 GMT References: <9003191401.AA27560@fsdcupt.csd.mot.COM> <35034@ucbvax.BERKELEY.EDU> Organization: MIT Media Lab, Cambridge, MA Lines: 12 In-reply-to: goldfarb@ocf.berkeley.edu's message of 20 Mar 90 07:49:53 GMT > The rain washes the food off of Zach's body, collecting in a layer > of brown water at the bottom of the cylinder. A word stops the water, and The new guy suddenly stops and stares. His lower lip starts to quiver, and a tear starts to roll down his cheek. "Sacrilege. Such... such a senseless waste of... chocolate syrup!" he croaks in a barely audible whisper. He takes his two drinks off to a solitary table in the dark and quietly sobs. Path: mit-eddie!mintaka!think!zaphod.mps.ohio-state.edu!tut.cis.ohio-state.edu!pt.cs.cmu.edu!andrew.cmu.edu!jf2z+ From: jf2z+@andrew.cmu.edu (John Charles Fiala) Newsgroups: alt.callahans Subject: MUD Message-ID: Date: 20 Mar 90 10:10:53 GMT Organization: Class of '92, Carnegie Mellon, Pittsburgh, PA Lines: 24 Not to interrupt the genial gloominess, but, as the man said, he like's a place that's MERRY! I thought I'd tell you all about something I've run into, called a MUD. It's a multi-user interface, that you move around and can create objects and rooms in. It's a lot of fun. There are a few that are releatively empty, such as Icelandia and McGill University's. In both of them I am Leona. In Islandia, look for me in room 607 in the hotel with the SF con. If enough of us get on one of these, we could have a real-time Callahans! To get to islandia, type telnet 128.32.152.202 2323 To get to McGill Universities, type: telnet 132.206.3.30 4200 See You! John Fiala jf2z@andrew.cmu.edu "You ELOPED??" "Don't say "Eloped"...! Can't you be more ROMANTIC?! 'A flight of love in the night'...or something..." --Outlanders, #14 Path: mit-eddie!rutgers!psuvax1!xavier!news From: nap92@campus.swarthmore.edu Newsgroups: alt.callahans Subject: Re: MUD Message-ID: Date: 20 Mar 90 14:56:38 GMT Sender: news@xavier.swarthmore.edu (USENET News System) Organization: Swarthmore College Lines: 46 -Message-Text-Follows- In article , jf2z+@andrew.cmu.edu (John Charles Fiala) writes... >Not to interrupt the genial gloominess, but, as the man said, he like's a place >that's MERRY! > >I thought I'd tell you all about something I've run into, called a MUD. >It's a multi-user interface, that you move around and can create objects and >rooms in. It's a lot of fun. There are a few that are releatively empty, >such as Icelandia and McGill University's. In both of them I am Leona. >In Islandia, look for me in room 607 in the hotel with the SF con. > >If enough of us get on one of these, we could have a real-time Callahans! > >To get to islandia, type >telnet 128.32.152.202 2323 > >To get to McGill Universities, type: >telnet 132.206.3.30 4200 > >See You! >John Fiala >jf2z@andrew.cmu.edu >"You ELOPED??" > "Don't say "Eloped"...! Can't you be more ROMANTIC?! > 'A flight of love in the night'...or something..." > --Outlanders, #14 Nao looks up at the mention of MUDs. She's seen a couple of Callahan's folks in TinyMUD itself. She speaks, but her voice is kind of staticky, and she's not at all sure she can hear herself. (My last post onlyc came through here as my .sig file, but somebody replied to the text..... news has been flaky lately) "Islandia's great! --but I've tried to build Callahan's in TinySWAT. (masada.cs.swarthmore.edu 4201 or 130.58.68.9 4201). I need to work a bit on the description of the room, but I also don't want it too long , in case we should ever have a large number of people in there. To get to Callahan's from Limbo, type down, then east. We do have a guest account, so please use that before creating your own character. Wups! Gotta go back to sleep now...." And her voice mumbles off.... may you never lack in warm fuzzies.... -Nao ------------------------------------------------------------------------- | Nao Parkhurst |"Light is the left hand of darkness | | NAP92@campus.swarthmore.edu | and darkness the right hand of light." | | NAP92@swarthmr.bitnet | -Ursula K. LeGuin | Path: mit-eddie!snorkelwacker!usc!samsung!uunet!crdgw1!sixhub!davidsen From: davidsen@sixhub.UUCP (Wm E. Davidsen Jr) Newsgroups: alt.callahans Subject: Re: My Apology Message-ID: <660@sixhub.UUCP> Date: 19 Mar 90 03:59:52 GMT References: <9062@sdcc6.ucsd.edu> Reply-To: davidsen@sixhub.UUCP (bill davidsen) Organization: *IX Public Access UNIX, Schenectady NY Lines: 24 In article <9062@sdcc6.ucsd.edu> daq@hpesdaq.hp.com (Doug Quarnstrom) writes: | I cannot even promise never to do it again. I am very | passionate and I tend to react to extremes and settle | down in the long run. Certainly I will try never to | do it again. I had never flamed before this, so it | is not as if I do it every day. Certainly I say | some things that people take exception to, but that | is not the same as flaming. But my past few posts | have grown increasingly hostile. I do not know why. I had that problem myself (and still do), but took to waiting a few hours (in some cases days) before saying something nasty. I still can be short with people, and sarcastic to those who post bad information to confuse others, but I am quite good about not making a REALLY personal attack on people. I also hit the 'm' key and read the rest of the group before saying something. Often someone else has said enough. Hopefully this will be of some use to you, and perhaps others, too. -- bill davidsen - davidsen@sixhub.uucp (uunet!crdgw1!sixhub!davidsen) sysop *IX BBS and Public Access UNIX moderator of comp.binaries.ibm.pc "Getting old is bad, but it beats the hell out of the alternative" -anon Path: mit-eddie!snorkelwacker!usc!samsung!uunet!crdgw1!sixhub!davidsen From: davidsen@sixhub.UUCP (Wm E. Davidsen Jr) Newsgroups: alt.callahans Subject: Re: Welcome (back and otherwise) Message-ID: <661@sixhub.UUCP> Date: 19 Mar 90 04:00:45 GMT References: Reply-To: davidsen@sixhub.UUCP (bill davidsen) Organization: *IX Public Access UNIX, Schenectady NY Lines: 7 Always nice to see an old customer! -- bill davidsen - davidsen@sixhub.uucp (uunet!crdgw1!sixhub!davidsen) sysop *IX BBS and Public Access UNIX moderator of comp.binaries.ibm.pc "Getting old is bad, but it beats the hell out of the alternative" -anon Path: mit-eddie!mintaka!yale!think!zaphod.mps.ohio-state.edu!usc!cs.utexas.edu!mailrus!iuvax!noose.ecn.purdue.edu!mentor.cc.purdue.edu!gtz From: gtz@mentor.cc.purdue.edu (Eric C. Garrison) Newsgroups: alt.callahans Subject: Punday Night Keywords: puns Message-ID: <8643@mentor.cc.purdue.edu> Date: 20 Mar 90 17:17:49 GMT Organization: Purdue University Lines: 72 It was a Punday night, you see, and the last thing I thought would happen was that I'd get into a battle of wits with Doc Webster. I mean, I'd always thought I was small potatoes compared with the Doc. But somehow, I'd opened my my mouth, and out came...puns! Having made my toast at the fireplace, somehow the topic had become computers. You'd be surprised at the baud-y jokes that resulted from that topic! Jake started off the round. "Well, now that we're all assembled..." Long-Dring McGonnigle riposted, "oh, that was low-level. why I ada..." "Gentlemen, gentlemen," entered Mike, "wire you doing this? I run a user-friendly joint. Not some first-come-first-serve sorta brouhaha!" It was then I let out my stinker. "Ya know, I caught a cold from my keyboard the other day. A real virus." I waited for someone, anyone to byte. Fast Eddie, ever the straight man said, "from yer keyboard? How's ya figger dat?" "Well," sed I, "ol' Doc Webster said it was a *terminal* illness." Everyone looked on in horror for about five seconds, then the groans and sounds of shattering glass attempted to drown one another out. A few peanuts bounced off my arms - I covered my head quickly. The Doc, I am proud to say, was impressed. "Yep, I recall the case. Boy's gotta Wyse up and be ADMandt, or I'll have to sic a Regent on him." I rocked from the blow. "I may have had a fever, but I Gould off the very next day. Stick to the Vax, pal!" Jake pointed out that my remark was out of Sequents. "If you got yourself some more SUN, you might be able to come back for an Encore, boy." The Doc was in his usual excellent form. I was running out of ideas fast. If this kept up, I'd have to pay my tab for the night. "Watch your manners, Mac! IBM doing everything you said, you can even ASCII my mommy." "EMACS me sick. VI, I bet you even saw your EX that night. I should have a WORD with her..." Doc's return was lethal. But that night, I had the last laugh. I am sure no one else was laughing but me. "Well, if you are going to monitor my activities, you could at least quit looking in my windows. Why, I bet you even have spies at my workstation! Here I am, as polite as a mouse, and you want to paddle me. Well, commondore, do it once more, and I'll put your bill in the TRS. And no peripheral arguments. No ifs, ands or buts." The topic did go on for a bit more, and when it was chewed to pieces, Mike suggested a new subject for pun-ishment. Now I may not have won Punday night, but I went head-to-head with the Doc...and lived! Eric ----------------------- Eric C. Garrison ericg@ei.ecn.purdue.edu ----------------------- Path: mit-eddie!snorkelwacker!usc!cs.utexas.edu!uunet!microsoft!ellene From: ellene@microsoft.UUCP (Ellen EADES) Newsgroups: alt.callahans Subject: I agree with the Cynic! Message-ID: <53651@microsoft.UUCP> Date: 20 Mar 90 18:31:56 GMT References: <9060039@hpfcso.HP.COM> Organization: Microsoft Corp., Redmond WA Lines: 84 Reply-To:ellene@microsof.uucp (Ellen Eades) >Greetings Joelle. I hope you stay a long time. I hope you and Taldin >provide each other with the happiness you seem to have found for >a very long time. But your wishes for my happiness are hurled into >a void. I have given up on happiness. What I want now is diversion. >What I want is amnesty and amnesia. I want fullfillment. Ellen looks up, a little sternly. "I'm a kind of private person underneath a rather exuberant outside, and while I appreciated Joelle's and Taldin's wishes for all of us to find the kind of happiness they share, I found it more than a little ... invasive. They seemed to me to assume that OF COURSE everyone wants a soulmate ... OF COURSE everyone wants to be part of a couple ... and OF COURSE this is the crowning point of everyone's existence." She looks at the Cynic. "Doug, I didn't find your actions at all offensive. I am not yet ready to say that you're my friend -- but I don't say that of anyone here except my net-sister Kathy. I *am* ready to say that I think I might have a little in common with you." Back to Taldin and Joelle. "I'm glad you're happy. I really am. But I don't know you, and you don't know me. Please don't make wishes for my happiness -- since you don't know me, you can't make them me-specific, and hence they become meaningless. As we come to know one another better, though, I would welcome the support of good company, and perhaps someday, friends. But I use that term sparingly, and it makes me uncomfortable to have it cast willy-nilly over such a wide area. *My* friends must know me for a long time before I give them such license. They know how I feel about men and women, government, religion, circuses, advertising, sexuality, music, racism, leather, and fixing my car, and I know some of the same things about them. Otherwise, what is 'friendship' but vagueness, and not the kind of heart-strong camaraderie that I really seek?" >I may not be fun, but I am interesting and easy to talk to. What's >more, I am independently wealthy. But I am black, cold, and alone. >I am also nearing 30. I read posts by people in their early >twenties about how they have not found anyone yet, and I so "Yeah, Doug, I agree. I'm 27. I'm Japanese. I consider myself fun and interesting to talk to. But sometimes it really astonishes me how differently some people -- especially, I have to admit, some of the 'younger' people here --" Ellen turns red as she hears herself say it, and hears the giggles from many corners where folks over thirty are sporting wide grins -- "see the world. Maybe some of it is that they grew up white and you and I didn't. Maybe some of it has nothing to do with that at all. But if you're not looking at the world through sunshiny lenses every day, it can get awfully draining to be around people who are. "But I'm not leaving, and I don't think you should either. Sometimes it's good to hang around the sunshine folks -- the mood can, occasionally, rub off. Sometimes they want shadows to keep themselves from losing all touch with reality. Sometimes you CAN trade places -- no one is completely light or dark. I was pretty dark in November, but I'm moving back now. You might want to do the same some time. >Again, I really do not wish ill upon anyone, but I guess I really >am just different than even most of the posters in Callahan's. >I feel a great deal of frustration toward all of this exclusive >soul mate business with its inherent implication of, "hey, I >got mine, where is yours?" "That's what I meant, up in my first paragraph. Now that Taldin and Joelle have spoken again, I know that's not what they meant -- but I don't want their sympathy, or their empathy either. Sympathy is for people who are hurt, and I'm not hurt. I'm just NOT LIKE THAT. As I said once, I don't have time for soulmates -- I'm just for taking and giving love when and where I find it, not looking for The One For All Time. I'm a traveler. Maybe someday ... but maybe not. And life will be rich, either way. "Doug, maybe you are different from most of the Callahan's folks, and maybe you aren't ... but there *are* things you can share. Maybe you can share different things with different people here. Maybe you'll decide there are only one or two folks here who interest you, and you'll go off and find an email corner or two. Being different doesn't mean you shouldn't stay, and you should stay because YOU want to -- no matter whether the rest of us want you to stay or not. "Having said that, I'm not going to tell you to stay or go. But I'll buy you a drink, here or elsewhere, any time you care to ask." She pushes her dulcimer aside and steps to the line for the first time. "To caution, to the gradual growth of trust, and to long comradeship." >>>CRASH<<< The soundboard rings in reply. Path: mit-eddie!bu.edu!lll-winken!uwm.edu!zaphod.mps.ohio-state.edu!samsung!caesar.cs.montana.edu!milton!blake!unicorn!n8946177 From: n8946177@unicorn.WWU.EDU (Melissa Tabbifli) Newsgroups: alt.callahans Subject: Tabbifli wakes up. Keywords: it's *rather* long, actually.... Message-ID: <602@unicorn.WWU.EDU> Date: 20 Mar 90 19:08:42 GMT Reply-To: n8946177@unicorn.wwu.edu (Melissa Tabbifli) Followup-To: alt.callahans Distribution: alt Organization: Western Washington Univ, Bellingham Lines: 105 "Miaupurrrrrrrr." The Tabbifli stretches on her pillow, then looks up at whoever is holding her now (gee.. why do I feel like a doll?) and jumps out into the air, hovering just at the spot her feet would hit the floor if she were Melissa... .. and then she is. Wearing a black blouse and boots, along with jeans and (oddly enough) makeup, she looks rather less upset than she did last time she spoke. Collecting her wineglass from the table, she begins her small trip to various people right there. "Taldin, Joelle.. you both know how I feel about your match. If you two *dare* break up before I meet you both... !" She smiles and kisses them both gently. Moving over a short distance to Jilara and Alaric, she smiles in happiness to see them together. "I'm not really suprised. Good luck. *But* you mean to tell me that Alaric and I *both* were in Seattle at the *same time* and NO-ONE bothered to point this out to me??! I'm vaguely insulted. Even more so that Jilara apparently came to visit.... oh, well." Moving over to the Cynic, she puts her arms arond him, and gives him a gentle, but honest, hug. Looking at the room in general, she says quitely "No, I don't understand, either. But I've talked to him for a little while, and he's a wonderful person. Shall we all agree that we really don't want him to leave, and get on with it? That particular topic has really gotten thrashed out by now." She kisses Doug gently on thetemple, and reminds him that he's always welcomed by her. She simply looks at Chris Davis in amusement, until he does the expected and laughes while blushing slightly. "I'm most certainly glad that I wasn't by the fire when you popped in with the truck! Are you sure it's safe in Pluto's orbit? I've seen you drive that thing. It steers like a... like a... well, like a *truck*!" Passing by the tiger's tail on the way to the fireplace, she gives it a small skritch and a gentle tug. Looking up, she replies "Well, I'm a Cat, too. I'm allowed," and moves on to Nick Chopper. She doesn't say anything to him, just puts her arms around him and hugs. Going at last to the table at which Silverblack and Eric sit, she speaks first to Eric. "It seems, dearling, as if you've found your friends to be with. There's not really any comfort in hearing that things really do get better, but believe me, they honestly do. You never get over being scared, but you learn how to work with and around it after a while. And there's usually at least a little sunshine after the rain falls." Turning to Silverblack, she continues "Actually, I suppose the same could be told to you, but I somehow doubt it'd be quite appropriate from me to you. I saw your qualifications, and I, at least, was impressed. There has to be something for someone with the talents and skills you have, and I have every confidence that you'll find it. And make the best of it, too." Finally she moves over to the chalk line. From here she can see most of the room, and she looks into the corners to the patrons that don't mind being seen. To Shadow, Austin and Silver she sends quiet, gentle hugs. Looking at Robin and his wife, she smiles softly and sadly, and wishes them luck and love in their new family. To the older lady watching (mostly) quietly, she smiles and points out "Some of us *are* content to wait for our time to come. But many of us know what pain is, too. I certainly do. Please don't say that all of the younglings are impatient... maybe we want now, but we shall most certainly wait for then. "Several people wrote to me, or called me, after my last couple of posts. The support you wished to me was wonderful, and I thank you for it. I have (at long last) finally finshed writing snail-mail replies, and the e-mail which actually got replies should have made it. Those that sent mail and *didn't* get a reply - it got lost, I'm afraid to say. My mailer core-dumped on me in the middle of answering. A few things I wanted to reply to or save got lost in that dump.... "At any rate, I am about to move out of my house. This is a great relief to me, although quite nerve-wracking. I shall be leaving Thursday the 22nd of March to catch my train, and will be arriving in Pittsburgh on Sunday the 25th at some ungodly hour of the morning. I will also be in Chicago on Saturday (the 24th) between 2:57 pm and 6:40 pm. It's been over ten years since I was last in Chicago.. any company that would like to keep me is more than welcome. Just e-mail in advance, so I know, please. "After due talking with Moonchilde, we've agreed it's okay to post the information on how to get hold of both of us here. It is he that I shall be living with, now, so one address and telephone number works. It is: Melissa Tabbifli (Kell)/Joseph Traub 403 Oakland Ave, Apt. 5A & 5B Pittsburgh, PA 15213 (412) 687-4561 There is an answering machine, so if we don't pick it up, leave a message. It really would be best if you did.. I screen calls at times, and I might just be sitting there, waiting to pounce on the phone at *any*moment* .... "At very long last, my toast. It's fairly self-explanitory, actually... I just wanted to remind some people of it. "To the Future!" THrowing her now empty glass into the very neatly cleaned fireplace, Melissa shimmers into Tabbifli just as it hits, and returns to her lap(s). -- **Never try to outstubborn a cat - L. Long** **especially not one with wings! - M. Tabbifli** e-mail to - n8946177@unicorn.wwu.edu Path: mit-eddie!snorkelwacker!tut.cis.ohio-state.edu!ucbvax!fsdcupt.csd.mot.COM!jane From: jane@fsdcupt.csd.mot.COM (Jane Beckman x4030) Newsgroups: alt.callahans Subject: Axing around Message-ID: <9003201128.AA07607@fsdcupt.csd.mot.COM> Date: 20 Mar 90 19:28:55 GMT Sender: daemon@ucbvax.BERKELEY.EDU Lines: 50 Jilara humbly accepts Cynic's tokens of repentance. "There are some awfully good people around here, and we should be intensely grateful for all of them. I know they've done me a lot of good, when I was pretty far down in the dumps. I've made a career of being damnably strong and independant, myself. And let me tell you, true humility is the ability to accept help when you REALLY need it, and it isn't easy. Some of us know about this, because we've really been there." She and Alaric exchange a look and he nods. She shrugs. "He and I ended up together because we both finally let loose of enough pride to accept support from each other." Nick clanks by the table, shuffling out with some broken glass from the fireplace. He does a slight double-take to notice that what is currently slung across Alaric's back is not a greatsword, but his ax. Alaric motions Cynic to sit down at the table. "I would invite you to share a brandy with us. Friends need to share some company, now and then. Or, if not brandy, whatever you prefer. The company, though, is constant." Cynic pulls up a chair at the table. Nick returns from taking the glass out to the trash and goes down on one knee again. "I'm humble! I'm really humble, and now I'm asking---please, please, please, let me have my ax back." He clasps his metal hands and holds them up beseechingly. "I've given warm fuzzies to all sorts of strange people, and I think Cynic said the horses acting up gave him a bit of an edge in losing the horsemen. Now, CAN I PRETTY PLEASE WITH SUGAR ON IT HAVE MY AX BACK?" Jilara holds up a finger. "A warm fuzzy for Cynic, first." Nick picks up a nice blue one and hands it to Cynic. Something odd happens to it. He'd warned that warm fuzzies would turn into cold pricklies if people gave them to him. This isn't a cold prickly, though. Jilara picks it up curiously. "I'll be damned! It's a koosh-ball! Koosh-balls are kind of fun! Hey, we're getting there!" She tosses it up in the air a couple times. "Alaric, give Nick back his ax." Alaric stands up and pulls the ax off his back and ceremoniously hands it to Nick. "With our complements. Just be careful with it." Nick Chopper does a clomping jig that might be better suited to his friend the Scarecrow. "Oh thank you, thankyouthankyouthankyouthankyou!" He carresses it lovingly. "And now, Mike, I'm going to go cut you some firewood! Lots of firewood! Oh, it's SOOOO good to have my ax back!" He heads out to the woodpile, leaving Alaric, Jilara, and Cynic playing catch with the blue koosh-ball. ----------------------------------------------------------------------- Jilara the Exile jane%fsdcupt.csd@urbana.mcd.mot.com "If I'm not home accepting what can't be changed, I'm out changing what I can't accept." ---Ashleigh Brilliant