The Meme of Seven
I have been tagged by the mighty General of the Hordes. So be it!
Here are the rules:
1. Link to your tagger and post these rules on your blog.
2. Share 7 facts about yourself on your blog, some random, some weird.
3. Tag 7 people at the end of your post by leaving their names as well as links to their blogs.
4. Let them know they are tagged by leaving a comment on their blog.
5. Present an image of martial discord from whatever period or situation you’d like.
Here are the facts:
1. I own an authentic, WWII era Gunto sword as well as a Red Army cavalry sabre, an Indonesian katar, an Arab, possibly Yemeni dagger and a fair number of replicas of various edged weapons. The katar could easily be used to punch through a car door and the sabre, while too heavy for sword fighting, was cast to slash through unarmed crowds. The flat would be an effective bludgeon. Nice guys, those Soviets.
2. I played golf on and off through my twenties, never playing particularly well despite lessons, dedication and endless buckets emptied at the driving range. Then, in my early-mid thirties I was on a trip to California and played 18 with a borrowed set of clubs that were too long for me on a fairly tough course. I shot an 82 that day and handily beat several much better golfers. I have not played a round of golf since.
3. I save a great deal of time not caring a whit about professional sports. Most sportswriters and TV commentators come across to me as undersized, ill-informed louts who vastly underestimate how physically talented even the mediocre players are at that level. Or how hard most of them worked to get there. I keep hoping that one of the ex-athlete, color commentators will just go postal someday and strangle one of them on live television. I’d also settle for George Foreman punching out Larry Merchant.
4. I find that sipping excellent liquor, smoking a good cigar and having intelligent company is a high point of civilization.
5. I met my wife on Match.com.
6. My two educational regrets are not opting to study Russian in college and not taking at least a minor in physics. I did not take Russian because I needed a language program that could be done in a year ( I should have just gone straight through to the MA or PhD but that’s a different issue) and my interest in physics did not begin until later.
7. I’ve wandered through the halls of the Capitol building and enjoyed a Diet Coke outside the office door of Rep. David Obey (D-Wis.).
I herby and irrevocably tag the following unfortunates:
June 15th, 2008 at 11:28 am
Though I almost always disagree with him, I think Obey is probably the best parliamentarian in the congress. If you catch C-Span at just the right time you can see him make fools of other congressmen by forcing them to stumble through Rogers Rules.
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And I see your Yemeni dagger and raise you an 1852 flintlock carbine with ramrod and inlayed mother-of-pearl in the stock. Bought it off a Pashtun carpet merchant for $60 in Afghanistan. Maybe the reason the Ruskis lost in Afghanistan in the 1980s is because they brought cav sabres to a gun fight. Or perhaps Charlie Wilson’s Bic pen was mightier than the sword.
June 15th, 2008 at 1:17 pm
[…] Mark Safranski has tagged me with this. The rules are […]
June 15th, 2008 at 5:03 pm
Okay you got me, I passed it along with love ;O)
Also, noted that we have a few things in common.
1. I also have a collection of old weapons. swords, firearms. mostly 19th century.
2. Haven’t played golf in years.
3. Professional sports, ???
4. See my answer #6.
5. Good cigars, best companion to an adult beverage and good conversation.
best,
June 15th, 2008 at 11:45 pm
[…] have been tagged by the mighty morphing pundit the one and only zenpundit. Let loose the dogs of war and the mighty […]
June 16th, 2008 at 3:56 am
Hi Smitten,
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Agreed. It may be why Obey is less than popular though, even in the Dem. Caucus. 🙂
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Ah, I envy you re: the flintlock. Wife # 1 talked me out of the purchase of a 19th century Mooroccan flintlock the length of a Kentucky rifle in 1990 and I have regretted it ever since.
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Hi HG99,
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Re# 6. I think there’s a definite blogospheric trend toward fine Scotch.
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Let me know if you pass through the great O’Hare "hub" and we’ll down a glass or two.
June 16th, 2008 at 8:12 pm
[…] have been exhorted by His Excellency Safranski to propagate the ‘randomness meme’ […]
June 16th, 2008 at 11:04 pm
I’ll have a cognac with my cigar, if you please. Though a fine scotch is an excellent second best. And the ritual of closeknit friends sipping spirits, chomping fine tobacco and letting a night glide by through easy conversation, well there are few finer.
June 17th, 2008 at 12:59 am
Re: Cigars:
I’m always a sucker for a cuban (who isn’t?), but one of my traditions with my Marines is to find out who in my unit will be having a child while deployed. Then break out the good "Congrat’s, you’re a dad" cigar and have a smoke with the lad. Usually said cigar is dry from the desert, but then again, everything tastes better when you’re in the field. So nobody really cares.
Cigars have a way of leveling the field between the Corporal and Lieutenant. Rank mercifully disappears, and in the end, it’s just two men having stogies. Good times. And then back to work.
June 20th, 2008 at 1:21 pm
I am honored by the tagging.
I hereby make the heroic stand of earnign the wrath of fortune, rather than infect others with this meme virus. 🙂
Still, it has been cool to watch! 😀