I know Wikipedia isn't the greatest most reliable source for all things big and small, but it definitely is an amazing resource just to read about whatever you feel like. The one thing about Wikipedia I like is its internal linking system, which of course has become the standard for almost all websites, blogs, news sites, etc. But in the case of Wikipedia you end up spending hours jumping from one subject to the next and by the end you might be learning about something that one would think is completely unrelated but in truth they are, through a long chain of twists and turns and obscure references. Anyways, I started with tornadoes, but then found myself ending somewhere else.

Straight fact information I copied straight from Wikipedia.

A tornado is a violent, rotating column of air which is in contact with both the surface of the earth and a cumulonimbus cloud or, in rare cases, the base of a cumulus cloud. Tornadoes come in many sizes but are typically in the form of a visible condensation funnel, whose narrow end touches the earth and is often encircled by a cloud of debris. I found it very interesting that although tornadoes have been observed on every continent except Antarctica, most occur in the United States.

From there I found interesting references to Waterspouts and Fire whirls. A waterspout is an intense columnar vortex (usually appearing as a funnel-shaped cloud) that occurs over a body of water and is connected to a cumuliform cloud. In the common form, it is a nonsupercell tornado over water, and brings the water upward. A fire whirl, colloquially fire devil or fire tornado, is a phenomenon in which a fire, under certain conditions (depending on air temperature and currents), acquires a vertical vorticity and forms a whirl, or a tornado-like effect of a vertically oriented rotating column of air.

Fire whirls of course led me into the topic of Firestorms. A firestorm is created as a result of the stack effect as the heat of the original fire draws in more and more of the surrounding air. This draft can be quickly increased if a low level jet stream exists over or near the fire, or when an atmospheric temperature inversion cap is pierced by it. As the updraft mushrooms, strong gusty winds develop around the fire, directed inward. This would seem to prevent the firestorm from spreading on the wind, but the tremendous turbulence also created causes the strong surface inflow winds to change direction erratically. This wind shear is capable of producing fire whirls which can also dart around erratically, damage or destroy houses and buildings, and quickly spread the fire to areas outside the central area of the fire.

The greater draft of a firestorm draws in greater quantities of oxygen which significantly increases combustion, thereby also substantially increasing the production of heat. The intense heat of a firestorm manifests largely as radiated heat (infrared radiation) which ignites flammable material at a distance ahead of the fire itself.

Besides the enormous ash cloud produced by a firestorm, under the right conditions, it can also induce condensation, forming a pyrocumulus cloud or "fire cloud". A large pyrocumulus can produce lightning, which can set off further fires.

Firestorm is a term I had heard many times, not only in the course of standard education, history classes, etc, but also because I'm a huge Kurt Vonnegut fan and if you're an avid reader of his works you'll know the war is mentioned many times, along with his own personal experiences in Dresden. The bombing of Dresden by the Royal Air Force and by the United States Air Force remains one of the most controversial Allied actions of the Second World War. The raids saw 1,300 heavy bombers drop over 3,900 tons of high-explosive bombs and incendiary devices in four raids, destroying 13 square miles of the city, the baroque capital of the German state of Saxony, and causing a firestorm that consumed the city centre. 

Of course, by the time they raided Dresden, the calculated act of properly igniting a firestorm through precision organized bombings had most of the kinks already worked out from previous operations. There was another assault two years prior to Dresden that I had never heard about before. One of the most terrifying firestorms resulted from one bombing raid against Hamburg, on July 27, 1943. A number of factors combined to give the enormous destruction that followed; the unusually dry and warm weather, the concentration of the bombing in one area, and that the city's firefighters were unable to reach the initial fires due to bombing from the earlier part of the raid. The bombings culminated in the spawning of the so-called "Feuersturm" (firestorm). Quite literally a tornado of fire, this phenomenon created a huge outdoor blast furnace, containing winds of up to 150 mph and reaching temperatures of 1,500 °F. It caused asphalt on the streets to burst into flame, cooked people to death in air-raid shelters, sucked pedestrians off the sidewalks like leaves into a vacuum cleaner and incinerated some eight square miles of the city.

This one bombing raid was a part of an aerial bombing campaign against Hamburg which destroyed a significant percentage of the city of, leaving over 1 million residents homeless and killing 40,000-50,000 civilians. Most of those deaths happened on this single night. The name of the campaign? Operation Gomorrah.

As I'm sure most of us know, for the sins of their inhabitants Sodom, Gomorrah, Admah, and Zeboim were destroyed by God. In Christianity and Islam, their names have become synonymous with impenitent sin, and their fall with a proverbial manifestation of God's wrath. I guess that says a lot about what the Allies thought of themselves, and of their actions. Not too unlike today how our government likes to slap us in the face with "spin" names on military operations. Like, Operation: Just Cause and Operation: Enduring Freedom whose actual code names were BLUE SPOON and POLO STEP, respectively.

See... I start with something as benign as tornadoes and I end up somehow with Operation: Enduring Freedom. Well, at the very least I never really know where my path of the pursuit of knowledge will take me. It really is interesting to see where each little step takes you. You might start out with one thing, and end up learning about something you've never even heard of. Its not really restricted to Wikipedia either. For example I was looking at craigslist one day and somehow I ended up reading about Shadow People, but thats better saved for another post.

Namaste guys,
-Moniker Vise
"24 Then the LORD rained down burning sulfur on Sodom and Gomorrah—from the LORD out of the heavens. 25 Thus he overthrew those cities and the entire plain, including all those living in the cities—and also the vegetation in the land. -Genesis 19:24-25

"Any moron with a pack of matches can start a fire. Raining down sulfur takes a huge level of endurance. Mass genocide is the most exhausting activity one can engage in, next to soccer." - Loki, Dogma

Sou um grande fã dos Mutantes. Não da novela, meu caro. Da banda. Fizeram a minha cabeça na infância, na adolescência, na juventude e, agora, na maturidade. Sou ainda mais fã de Arnaldo Baptista, o homem por trás da banda. O verdadeiro gênio. O mais inventivo, original e criativo músico brasileiro do século 20.

Eu o conheci há dois anos, quando os Mutantes - sem Rita Lee - apresentaram-se em Londres, no Barbican. Matei ali um desasossego juvenil que me atormentou durante uns 20 anos. Assistir a uma apresentação da maior banda de rock'n'roll brasileiro.

Soube neste final de semana, por um grande amigo, que Arnaldo ganhou um documentário do Canal Brasil. Mais do que merecido, necessário. Intitulado Loki, uma citação evidente ao disco homônimo do eterno mutante, lançado em 1974, o filme foi ovacionado em sua premiére, ocorrida neste final de semana, no Odeon, Rio.

Aguardemos a sua exibição. Assim que tiver maiores informações sobre o documentário, cujo trailer você assiste acima, coloco as informações aqui.

Meow?
Loki invading Nazca's territory - the bed. Uh-oh kitty.

What's this? Yes, the kitty loves to play around in and around my books - talk about distraction from work ;)

Purrrrrr! Somebody definitely enjoys being loved on...even though he just threw that damn bamboo off the bookshelf for the second time tonight...what is that about long bamboo stick thingies in vases making it such a reeeeeeeeeeeeeeally interesting kitty toy?

Welcome hurricane Loki. Yup, the name fits...

The place was well defended, a keep on a little island, isolated by many miles from the nearest neighbor. He'd set off alarms, of course, but that was to be expected. It'd taken him a bit to get the pattern of the automated turrets, but once that was mastered he had no further trouble with them. He'd pocketed the younger researcher to draw out his target; the taller, more muscular man had appeared on the keep walls brandishing a large weapon. He'd destroyed most of the keep, backing his target into a corner, and was approaching to grab him, when...

Pain. White. Heat. A scream. His body, dimly, far way, arching, writing. A smell of ozone.'

He couldn't move! Prometheus was silent. He was trapped inside a small, dark chamber, breathing stale yet sterile air, small monitor before him dark and lifeless.

"Prometheus?"

"PROMETHEUS?!"

"...please, don't go..."

Sunlight poured into the chamber as Ares, barely conscious, was dragged from it by strong, muscular arms. The warm sunlight didn't reach his numb core. He was dimly aware of his targets carrying him inside, and of a brilliantly happy face shining clearly through the haze with long brown hair and bright violet eyes. Then the face was gone and he was left alone.

For the first time in his life, Ares hugged his knees, bowed his head, and cried in silence.

I really enjoyed this year's fringe show, it was so easy going and unpretentious. The location of the show was a back alley studio and indie gallery called RedSpace. We dressed it up with old furniture and put beer in coolers and let everyone feel at home.

I did a small intro and slagged off some of the art people brought and then our artists came down stairs and got to work, spraying, painting, sticking and stenciling on each piece. At the end we hung everything up and it all looked amazing. Thanks to everyone that came along and the talented artists that pimped the work.

Here's some YouTube footage from the second night.

If you missed 'Art Raid' during the Dublin Fringe Festival in 2007, I'm bring it back for one night only. But this time it's to raise money for a young graffiti artist called Konk that has been fined €13,500 by the courts. The artist is back in High court on 20th Oct and may face jail.

Tickets are available from All City Records on Crow Street, Temple Bar. €20 will give you a chance to get your hands on some of the best work by International and Dublin street artists like Asbestos, Maser, D$, xpir, Motorboy, Turtlehead, I Love Lamp, Loki, An?, Jim Fitzpatrick, Canvaz, Will St Leger, Konk, Jor. Even celebrities like Jonthan Rhys Meyers are giving work for free.

PLOT:

The film opens with an old man looking at the ocean from a New Jersey boardwalk, outside a skee ball arcade. He is then set upon by three teenagers that beat him into a coma with hockey sticks.

Two fallen angels— Bartleby (Ben Affleck), a watcher, and Loki (Matt Damon), formerly the Angel of Death— were banished from Heaven by God after Bartleby convinced Loki to stop killing humans. Forced to live out their lives in a place worse than Hell, Wisconsin, the two see their salvation when a church in Red Bank, New Jersey, celebrates its centennial anniversary with a plenary indulgence. By passing through the doors of the church, their sins would be forgiven, and upon death they would regain access to Heaven. However, by doing this, Bartleby and Loki will overrule the word of God (Alanis Morissette in a cameo role). Since the fundamental basis of existence is that God cannot be wrong, to do so would destroy existence itself.

In order to stop this from happening, the angel Metatron (Alan Rickman), the Seraph who acts as the Voice of God, appears to abortion clinic worker Bethany (Linda Fiorentino) and gives her the task of preventing Bartleby and Loki's return. Though reluctant at first, she changes her tune after she too is attacked by the same three teenagers and saved by Jay and Silent Bob (Jason Mewes and Kevin Smith), two prophets whom Metatron said would appear. In addition to them, she is aided by Rufus (Chris Rock), the thirteenth apostle who was left out of the Bible because he was black, and Serendipity (Salma Hayek), a muse with writer's block turned stripper. Along the way to New Jersey, Bethany finds out that she is the Last Scion, the last living descendant of Mary and Joseph, and thus the last living relative of Jesus Christ.

On the way to New Jersey, Loki decides to kill the entire board of a company whose mascot is a golden calf named Mooby for idolatry and various personal sins. They are hoping to get back on God's "good side" before their return. The duo leave only one board member alive because she was "pretty much a good person," but Bartleby has to stop Loki killing her for not saying "God bless you" when he had sneezed. The demon Azrael (Jason Lee), a former muse, convinces them to be more subtle in their attempt to reach New Jersey, claiming that both the forces of Heaven and Hell are attempting to kill them (since God won't let them succeed and undo creation, and Satan won't let them succeed for fear they'll make him look bad), and that Loki's killing sprees are not helping. The two sides meet on a train unaware of the identity of the other, where a drunk Bethany reveals the consequences of proving God wrong to Bartleby. When their identities are revealed, Bartleby and Loki are thrown off the train by Silent Bob.

Bethany's revelation drives Bartleby insane. When Loki discovers what their success would result in he becomes reluctant to continue, but Bartleby rants on the unfairness of God's rule and decides existence would be better off destroyed. Loki comments that Bartleby's rant reminds him of Satan. Elsewhere, Metatron reappears and the group ponders over who could have orchestrated the duo's plan. Admitting that God cannot be contacted, Metatron explains God had gone to Earth in human form to play skee ball and they have been unable to contact Him/Her; apparently, someone knew enough to incapacitate Him/Her and leave Him/Her alive but unable to return to Heaven of His/Her own will. During this time Rufus and Metatron also tell Bethany of her lineage and how previously, Jesus similarly took until age thirty to come to terms with his.

When Bartleby and Loki reach the church, Bartleby goes on a killing spree as a ploy to lure police to the scene, intent on letting them kill him after he enters the church. Watching from a nearby bar, Azrael explains to Bethany that he is the mastermind behind their return to Heaven, wanting to destroy existence rather than spend eternity in Hell. He is dispatched when Silent Bob hits him with a golf club blessed by the Cardinal of the church. They reach the church before Bartleby and Loki (who has cut off his wings and become mortal), can enter. Bartleby kills Loki and then fights Rufus, Serendipity and Bob. When all hope seems lost, Jay mentions John Doe Jersey, a comatose patient in a hospital across the street who was beat up outside a skee ball arcade, and who is being kept on life support because of pro-life protesters. Realizing that this is God trapped in mortal form, Bethany and Bob race to the hospital as Jay foolishly shoots off Bartleby's wings with a submachine gun, turning him human.

At the hospital, Bethany removes the life support from God's human form. God manifests at the church and neutralizes Bartleby, then brings back to life all the people that had been killed. Silent Bob shows up with Bethany's corpse, injured in the manifestation of energy when God had been freed. God heals Bethany, and at the same time conceives a heir inside her, to carry on Sion's line. All the heavenly beings return to heaven through the Church doors, leaving Jay to crudely hit on Bethany.

REVIEW:

As you can guess with a film based in Catholic dogma, there was some controversy surrounding this film. In a disclaimer at the beginning of the film, Kevin Smith specifically states that this is a satire and should not be taken seriously. Guess some people are just don't read.

This is not my favorite film in the View Askew universe, but I do like it. There are plenty of funny moments, and the usual references to other Kevin Smith movies as well as Star Wars. It is obvious while watching this, that Smith has grown as a director, because this is a long way from Clerks and Mallrats.

 There is not much I have to say about this film. If you're easily offended by religous satire, then this isn't for you. However, if you're not offened by such things, then you should enjoy this movie.

4 out of 5 stars

I'll have to say I'm loving this anime so far. I have to say the kid named Loki is really cute and the girl named Mayura is funny. The first episode has this spooky suspense theme. It's about this doll who's owner died in a fire and she thinks she's abandoned. Mayura loves suspense and Loki thinks she's just weird. The ending of the episode was funny. I loved it and you should seriously watch this :D

I will be starting Matantei Loki Ragnarok. Here is the synopsis.

Loki, the Norse god of mischief, has been exiled to the human world for what was apparently was a bad joke. Along with being exiled, he's forced to take the form of a child. He's told the only way he can get back to the world of the gods is if he can collect auras of evil that take over human hearts, and so to do this he runs a detective agency. Loki is soon joined by a human girl named Mayura who is a maniac for mysteries, and she soon helps out in her own way. However, soon other Norse gods begin to appear, and most have the intent to assassinate Loki for reasons unclear. (Source: ANN)

[caption id="attachment_240" align="alignleft" width="158" caption="O homem superior, corrigindo sua posição, consolida seu destino."][/caption]

IIUUUPIII!!!!!

IIEEBBAAA!!!

Lá

vamos

nós

para

a

VIDA NOVA!

IIIUUPPII!!!!!

IIUUUPIII!!!!!

∞ IIEEBBAAA ∞

Na tradição dos Sangomas Thokosa não podemos jogar a Bhula (búzios) para nós mesmos, a menos que estejamos realizando um ritual de iniciação. Por isso, hoje tive uma surpresa desagradável em minha casa e recorri ao I-Ching e `as Runas para ter certeza sobre a reação que eu deveria tomar.

Como de costume, um oráculo confirmou o outro e, ainda bem, ambos confirmaram minha intuição. Já não fico mais pasmo com estas sincronicidades, mas resolvi partilhar.

Ambas respostas falam de mensagen divina. No I-Ching (50-Caldeirão) vem através de sábios e santos. Nas Runas (4-Ansuz), quem traz a mensagem é o mago Loki do panteão dos Deuses Escandinavos, que pode ser visto como um Heyoka: palhaço sagrado dos Nativo Americanos. Ambas dizem que chegou a hora da mudança e que teremos a ajuda de auxiliares fortes e competentes e de um novo sentido de família e solidariedade.

]]> http://bluffcatcher.wordpress.com/?p=154 Sun, 14 Sep 2008 18:16:40 +0000 Loki http://bluffcatcher.pl.wordpress.com/2008/09/14/erstmal-urlaub-2/ Der September läuft sehr durchwachsen..momentan stehe ich wieder beim downpeak. Aber jetzt gehts erstmal 10 Tage nach Ägypten ins 5* Hotel zum Sonne tanken und Tauchschein machen. Pics giibts dann auch mal wieder.

Also haut rein, cya, Loki.

Loki plays his part covering the veil of truth!

My Rating:

Download this manga from eternal

Hier gibts wie immer den dazugehörigen Graph.

Naja...bin nicht der einzige der da grad drin steckt..u.a. Heglaf, Michi, Kobeyard...

So..jetzt haut rein un bis bald, so long, Loki.

Długotrwały efekt puszystości

Ultra delikatna pianka nadaje się do codziennego układania włosów dodaje im więcej objętości i puszystości.
Specjalny kompleks chroniący łuskę włosa - składający się z ceramidów i polimeru kondycjonującego - oraz filtr UV i czynnik AVC ze szczególną troską pielęgnują włosy, zapewniając im zdrowy wygląd i piękny połysk.
Mocno lub ekstra mocno utrwala fryzurę, zachowując jednak efekt naturalnego ułożenia, zdrowy wygląd i blask.

Egypt

Cold blocks of granite stared back indifferently as the warm light of a passing torch caught their edges. The flame pushed back the darkness, growing and dying with lost breaths of air escaping the passageway ahead. Sand, kicked aside by the steady strut of sandaled feet, parted with the ancient floor and took to the air, playing in mad swirls. A luxurious length of material dragged behind. Its dye was richer than the summer sky at dusk and heavy, pulling the shoulders of its wearer back so that they stood a few inches taller.

The man's face strained as he forced a gold bangle over his large, masculine hand. The beaten object hung beautifully against his sun-worn skin, covering a scar of pale pink that zigzagged over his veins. Another thin band, striped with Lapis, knocked against it as Atum's arms swung by his side giving pace to his stride.

Atum's chin and nose stood equal in silhouette. His ornately woven false beard continued the jarring line, protruding like a horn. Several layers of necklaces swung over his bare chest, the longest and most delicate reaching his waist where a tight knot of linen covered his hips.

Suddenly his cloak billowed past him and the torch flames flattened, starved of fuel. Atum heard heavy breathing but found nothing when he turned and peered into the blackness.

The temple had gone quiet.

The corridors of Heliopolis should have been lit for the meeting of The Nine, bustling with slaves - but they were not. He was near the main chamber and so hurried past the elaborate walls depicting the past victories of his rule. The bodies of Tau'ri drowned in the Nile with jewel-set eyes set into the stone.

He found the entrance to the room and waited before entering, smelling a bitter odor. What remained of the alliance lay draped over their thrones with the contents of their bloodied chests dripping into their laps. A gold artifact protruded through each member's neck - the sacred Ank severing the Goa'uld serpents in half. Slaughtered, they watched as Atum crossed to the centre of the room, lighting each of the torches as he passed.

Soon, the room was aglow and the painted ceiling sparkled like the sky it pretended to be. Its navy expanse was held up by sixteen blushing columns, each with a swirl of gold hammered around their girth. Nine statues stood behind the thrones, some with a vague likeness to the broken bodies beneath. Three thrones were empty. His own, the meek half wit Seth's, and that of Osiris.

"I know you shadow," said Atum, his voice pouring from the edge of his mouth like a silken liquid. He dropped the torch in his hand, exposing the hand device snaked over his palm. The amber stone at its centre warmed. "Traitor," he breathed, hearing the same sliding footsteps reach the entrance.

"Your time is finished," replied the beast that had been tracking him. The words were difficult to form in the host's primitive mouth, forced through the throat and only vaguely moulded into speech. The Unas bound Goa'uld clutched an Ank in his fist as he approached. Blood that wasn't his stained the cloth around his waist.

"They will not give you anything, Ba'al." Atum turned to face his executioner, ready for the fight.

500 000 years ago : PROCLARUSH, Atlantian Outpost Taonas

"Say again, say again?"

A small man with the beginning of a balding head reached over and collected his radio. Blowing a layer of dust off it, he swiped his hand over the inactive display, bringing the device to eerie blue life.

"I said, we're going to need another ZPM. This one's had it, well and truly."

The lights were flickering as the power sequence weakened. By the sudden drop in air temperature inside the small outpost dome, Enrod figured he had about a day's worth left. It was neglectful, he thought, how command had left something as important as this until the last possible moment. The outposts were an important part of their exploratory division. Sure, the signature ship Atlantis under Commander Pegasus had discovered a way to travel to an entirely new galaxy, but that didn't change the reality in which this galaxy still had plenty to offer. They'd barely ventured into its edges, still following the old seeding line - not bothering to explore new planets and spread Stargates there.

Enrod sighed heavily. He was not an explorer, no matter how strongly he desired to be one. The lights flickered so he hit the power device with the heavy screwdriver in his left hand. Fixing things was his specialty, with brute force if necessary.

"Behave," he growled, before he rolled off the platform and went in search of a jacket. The failing ZPM stuck out from its hiding spot in the floor, a dangerous hazard for anyone using the control chair behind. There were four potential victims working nearby. The other scientists were planted in front of their respective machinery, running a sequence of tests for the third time, confirming that their calculations were correct. Only one of them snored quietly, unconscious and curled up to an equipment container.

Three rooms away, the massive circle of stone at the centre of the gate room groaned. One of the chevrons on its uppermost arch lit up and almost at once, the inner wheel began to spin.

Enrod, now cosy beneath the extra layers of material, glanced over his shoulder. The grumble of the gate room told him that the engineering team were arriving with the ZPM early. It was the first good news he had heard all day.

A whoosh of air and quantum particles surged into the outpost as the wormhole engaged. That eerie sound of disturbed dimensions accompanied a familiar blue glow - like water in a cave as a diver prepared to surface. Enrod didn't hear the heavy footsteps that followed, each one sliding over the smooth, Atlantianstone floor leaving a trail of wet shadows.

The creatures assembled in silence along the opposite wall either side of the entrance to the next room. As the last of them stepped through, the wormhole shut down and the blue glow was replaced by a faint white from the battery powered lighting system. A pair of eyes glowed, liquid gold, and the creature raised a finger over his horned skin to his interned lips. Follow he said silently, beckoning the others.

"Better late, I guess..." said Enrod, clearing off his work bench. Satisfied that the room looked half decent for guests, he headed straight to the kitchen where he set some mugs on a tray and tapped the 'hot water' option on the internal computer system. It didn't matter that the action would drain power now that they had arrived. Besides, he'd been dying for a hot drink for days. "I'm in the far room," he called out, figuring that they were lost. The command team always sent the newbies to the outposts, none of which had any experience.

The Unas followed the sound of the Atlantian's voice. Hands clasped over their weapons in expectation, they reached the door of the third and final room in the outpost. Above, the domed ceiling held back the unfavourable atmosphere. The sky outside was choking as three black peaks spewed the planet's core into the air. This outpost clung to a flat stretch of land in the centre of an ancient asteroid crater. The heavy metals in the soil were of an unknown composition - but early indications showed an energy yield higher than any other terrestrial based fuel. Naquada would be a way forward. A refined lump of it sat pride of place in the power room, on display behind a glass and lead container.

The snake infested Unas picked off the scientists in the chair room. Their fragile necks snapped and their bodies returned to the floor. Now the intruders approached their final target, assured of victory.

Enrod, with his back turned, was unaware of the danger inching closer. It wasn't until the hairs on the back of his neck stood up that he heard the first laboured breath.

He ducked as a blade whizzed past, clattering on the wall in front and hitting the ground at his feet. Without a chance to gasp, he retrieved it and ran toward the far kitchen door.

"What the hell!" he screamed, catching sight of one of the approaching Unas heading his way.

Enrod jiggled the handle desperately, finally opening the door and slamming it behind him, turning the feeble lock. Enrod had never seen such creatures. Their skin was horned and rough, possibly aquatic in origin. They moved with a swagger, pulling their body forward with the motion of their arms.

He didn't have time for further thought as Enrod took off down the service tunnel, ducking his head to fit through the places where each pre-fabricated section was welded together. At the end of the hundred metre dash was a spin lock door, and behind that, a stasis chamber.

The kitchen door hit the ground, kicked in by the lead Unas. They wasted no time beginning their chase of the escaping Atlantian, touching the walls of the tunnel with both their hands as they groped along. The creatures gained ground, growling or laughing - Enrod couldn't tell which.

Enrod reached the hatch and spun the lock. It seemed to go round forever as the creatures lumbered closer. Finally, just as he was able to make out the smell of their breath, the door clicked and swung inward. He pushed on it with all his weight and clambered into the room. It shut automatically, spinning back to the locked position. Not that it would hold those creatures for long. His only hope was the stasis pod, powered by the chemistry that made him unique. A gene bound to his blood pulsed around his body as he raised his shaking hand to the device's control panel.

The first creature hit the door at a run, slamming into it in the hope that his force alone would crumble it inward. The door held firm, re-enforced with steel.

Enrod jumped with the sound of the creatures pounding the door. He could already hear them turning the wheel, desperate to get in. Enrod waved his hand over the control panel but it was unresponsive.

"Slowly, Enrod, slowly..." he reminded himself.

He tried again, keeping his hand steady as the wheel of the door continued to spin. The panel responded, illuminating with a surge that brought his eyes to tears. The shell of the stasis pod slid gracefully open and Enrod stepped in, seeing the door opposite click open and a hand creep around its edge.

"Come on," he muttered, trying to type a stasis time into the panel but his hand shook so heavily he could barely make the panel. Panicing as four creatures stepped into the room and caught sight of him, Enrod slammed his hand on the 'start' button and shut his eyes as the freezing liquid hardened over him. The last thing he saw was a pair of glowing eyes, picking him out for death.

The pod locked itself, impervious to the beating of the creatures. A timer began at its top corner, counting down from five-hundred thousand.

Flag Ship : Atlantis

Commander Pegasus crossed the bridge of his ship which was in stable orbit around a sad looking planet. A plume of black rose, joining the clouds of the upper atmosphere above what remained of the outpost.

Someone approached and handed him the latest report on the mysterious destruction of their exploratory outposts.

"We've lost another one," the young man said, clasping his hands behind his back as the Commander scanned the list.

"How many is that now?"

"Sixteen," he replied. "All within the month."

The Commander sighed and handed the information terminal back. "No longer accidents then, I'm guessing. And all have reportedly had their Naquada deposits taken. Something sinister is certainly go on. You better alert the rest of the fleet. Once they've cleaned up here, we'll attend to whatever's left of Proclarush."

"Of course."

"I'm sorry," said Pegasus, lowering his voice. "I know your father was part of that expedition."

PB2-908, Atlantian Outpost and Hall of the Five Races

The Stargate burst into life, thrusting forth until it reached the crowd of people. They spoke in rushed voices, unconcerned with the void of energy sweeping past their feet and then sucking back toward the stone circle. Personal belongings littered the floor where they were suddenly swooped onto shoulders or dragged forward toward the gate.

A thousand Atlantians left the outpost with a deep sadness. The beautiful hall had been inhabited for more than a century and over this time housed a wealth of knowledge, combining the teachings of the five great races. The books remained on their shelves and sheets were laid over the conference room. Eventually, the tame smear of blue on the horizon would edge forward, clawing at the land until the ocean waves lashed against the rocks and sucked the outpost into the ocean, burying it forever.

The thought of this place being lost was too much for some to bear. They hung onto each other, and slipped into the event horizon.

Lurking at the edge of the crowd, one of the people brushed their hand curiously along the stone wall. He had never seen a place like this. Caught in the swell of people, he soon he found himself stepping out into the open air as the crowd dispersed, crossing a small field. Past this, the beginnings of a city crawled up the rolling mountains. Feathered clouds slipped in front of the sun while a light breeze nipped at his hood.

His cold gaze shifted as he spun around, taking in the glowing symbols on the dialing device.

"So this is where they go..." he whispered, pulling the hood over his head. The Goa'uld quickly disguised himself amongst the crowd, following them to across the Earth's fragrant field.

Thor, the Norse god of thunder, is one of the three sons of Odin, the chief god of Norse paganism. He yields the mighty hammer Mjolnir to fight off Giants and has to wear Megingjord, a magic belt, and Jarn Griepr, the iron gloves, to be able to lift the hammer. The short-handled hammer has become one of the most iconic signs in Norse paganism. Adding to that image of a Pagan God is his chariot that is pulled by the two goats Tanngrisnir and Tanngnjostr. With a lot of ruse and cunning, Thor solved the challenges posed before him (he once had to dress like a woman to trick the king of the Giants). But at the end, when everything else failed, he could rely on his strength and his mighty weapon.

Thursday was named after Thor, along with other Norse gods whose names were used to form the days of the week. Friday is named after Freyja. Wednesday is named after Odin (Wodanaz / "Wotan" in German).

With all the heroic stories of mythological gods, it is not really a coincidence that Stan Lee, Larry Lieber and Jack Kirby got the idea to turn Thor into a comic character and superhero.

Graphical Thor

Marvel Comics first introduced Thor in Journey into Mystery #83 in August 1962. After that he continued his journey in "The Mighty Thor", a 13-page feature.

The young god Thor is sent to Earth by his father, Odin, to learn how to be humble and therefore is placed in the human form of the partially disabled medical student, Donald Blake, with no memories of his divine abilities. Thor later on discovers his powers and discovers his compassion and loyalty for the human race. He sees himself as the protector of Midgard (Earth) and has to fight all kinds of supervillains, like the Destroyer, the Midgard Serpent or Mangog. His nemesis remains to be his adopted brother Loki, who has hated Thor since they were children. In his fight against his enemies, Thor manages to find allies and becomes part of the group called "The Avengers".

Thor's adventures have later on, after discovering his true identity and powers, been of epic proportions and therefore his enemies were in a different league than those an earthly hero like Spider-Man, Flash or Iron Man had to face.

That is exactly what I really like about the Thor comics. Thor being a god, you could not just send the Green Goblin or the Mandarin after him. He would crush them in the blink of an eye. A god needs devine enemies, like the God Eater, Thanos, Mephisto, Ego the Living Planet and the Dark Gods are much scarier foes than we are usually used to in the Marvel universe. The Thor's battles against these adversaries are often epic- the ideal material for a blockbuster movie in the times of Iron Man, The Incredible Hulk and The Dark Knight.

Thor - The Movie

It took nearly 50 years to bring Thor to the big screen and I hope it will not disappoint. In 2010, the blond Norse god and his hammer Mjolnir will have their feature film. There is not much information available on this project. And the discussion about the actor to play Thor has already started. Next to Brad Pitt, Christian Bale and Karl Urban, actors who have played a mythological hero, the dark knight and a Norse fighter (all very important characteristics of Thor), the wrestler HHH (brute vampire in Blade:Trinity) was considered to play the main character.

I personnally would have liked a young Vladimir Kulich to play Thor. I have never seen a Norse clan chief die with such dignity on his own throne as Kulich in "The 13th Warrior". But with his 52 years, he might already be too old for the part. I guess that depends on what part of Thor's life will be shown. Or why not have Til Schweiger (King Arthur), the German Hollywood actor, have a crack at it. We'll see...

Malik

With my medication, I have to track my mood, and I'm noticing a pattern of getting down feelings with every paycheck.  The day before, the day of and the day after, I tend to feel low energy.  I have debts, I have bills to pay.  Like everyone else, I am being sucked dry of my life energy by willingly participating in my own oppression.  I try and try to take actions to relieve myself of it, and my partner gets fed up with my despondency about money. 

The spirit of money seems to be Loki, actually.  The Norse trickster God who hates and hates and hates and hates and hates.  It is difficult to attract M(L)o(o)n(k)e(i)y into my life.  It is difficult for me, who is "ready" to be famous but not as yet willing or able, to be able to deal with this essential aspect of our lives today.  Yes, I pray collapse of the banking/extractive system/sacral-authority-military-industrial-entertainment complex, etc., but in the meantime I do stil have to live this reality even as it implodes around us all.

I spoke with the spirit of the house last nast night.  Gunder definitely wants to keep me there, as do the spirits of the land and Little Italy neighborhood.  I add some inchoate something to the area, a hidden and valuable asset waiting to flower and bloom.  The pain of keeping my heart open at my job, and in the rest of my life too really can get me down. 

I just worked a bit of kala on this scarcity/debt thing, and an image hit me.  I need to go out and find myself some green cloth and drape it over some panels in my work area.  I need to create a "hidden altar" at my desk, that emphasizes green and rainbows.  I need to find a picture of a woodpecker and of Ganesha.  And if I can find some ways to do it, burn a couple of green candles perhaps anointed with cinnamon.

All these things are available to me.  I might as well and go out and acquire them.

I must admit, I am completely taken aback by how people are reacting to this. If you had been in the dark for the past week and just went on observations, you would think WWIII was about to happen and people were stocking their bomb shelters. I know it is better to be safe than sorry, but really, it is pretty amazing to see first hand. We have started going through our "emergency procedures" at work, including filling all the gov't vehicles with gas and parking them as far away from the phone poles as possible. Emergency contact lists have gone out, and our emergency evacuation procedures have been established. The University of Florida has just cancelled all scheduled move-ins from 6pm tomorrow until Thursday.

The red cross has already trucked in hundreds of disaster relief kits from Virginia, and the National Guard has arrived and is ready to go into disaster recovery mode. Maybe my lax attitude about storms comes from the 21 years I spent in upstate NY, where multiple ice storms were a common occurance, and nobody questioned weeks without power. I have been hit with 90 mph winds (albeit I couldn't stand up on my own) and pelted with ice balls.

I guess like everyone else, George and I would rather be overprepared than underprepared, so we are off to buy water and batteries tonight. If our power and water go out, I would like to at least be able to brush my teeth. I need to get all my plants off the porch so they don't go catapulting through our glass door, or better yet catapuling through our porch screen (which I am pretty positive is going to get blown in yet again).

I am hoping we get hit at night, as Loki HATES storms and tends to have some... bowel issues... when he gets scared and no one is home. It is moving slower than previously thought, but that could easily change once it is over open water. It now looks like we should be getting the eye about Wednesday. I'll keep you posted!

Here is the current trajectory: