Wed, Jun 16

» The Long Way Round: Website chronicling Ewan McGregor (on the left) and Charley Boorman's 20,000-mile motorcycle trek across Europe, Russia, China and the US. They started on April 14, 2004 and according the the website updates, as of May 1-15 they were in Kazakhstan. Another pic of the pair on their bikes. Another pic of the adventurous duo on their bikes. FYI, Charley Boorman is also an accomplished actor and the son of director John Boorman of Excalibur fame. You might remember him as the young Mordred in Excalibur.

» The official website for the upcoming King Arthur movie is pretty cool. Casting Ioan Gruffudd as Lancelot was a really great decision that I am really looking forward to. Nicholas Clay was pretty good as the tortured and love-sick Lancelot in John Boorman's 1981 Excalibur, but I'm somewhat biased in favor of Ioan—ever since I saw him as Horatio Hornblower I've been a huge fan!

» Archaeology.org reviews the movie "Troy": "So we might expect some unity in the archaeological setting, with things matching what we know about material culture in the Aegean world ca. 1200 B.C., but instead we get a chronological train wreck." I love it when archaeologists get snarkey.

Mon, Jun 14

» The Viking Inn B&B - "Central Minnesota's Nordic Inn Medieval Brew and Bed
A Viking interactive dinner theater and a bed and breakfast makes this Inn one of the most unique night's stay you'll ever have." Looks a wee bit cheesy but I bet it would be a ton of fun.

» New squirrel pics: Taken this morning during their breakfast time.

Wed, June 9

» I went and saw Troy on Saturday and it was really good but it made me want to learn more. So...I went out and bought the the new 1996 translation of The Iliad by Homer. I've also been re-reading my copies of Age of Bronze; Vol. 1 A Thousand Ships graphic novels by Eric Shanower. If you have any interest at all in the battle of Troy or that time period in general, you HAVE to check out these graphic novels. The research is impeccable and the art is top-notch.

» I finished my first pair of knitted socks! The stripes don't match up, but hey, that's the whole point of using "crazy color" yarn.

Tues, June 8

» Dorkus Maximus: Sven the Viking King Circa 1100 A.D. Circa the Land of the Lame in my opinion. What really scares me is the last line in his bio that says "he also does educational lectures, bringing history to life for children." Yikes...hide your kids and call the Historical Accuracy Police! But I do give him a little bit of credit for noting that "...the cow horns [on the helmet] were only worn by kings in ceremony." How do you say "Oi vey" in Norwegean?!

» Venus Transit: From chiff.com: "It's the astronomical event of the year, maybe the century.The Venus Transit of June 8, 2004 has astronomers, the media and even spiritualists buzzing. Rightly so, too, since the Venus Transit is no ordinary event. It hasn't occurred in 122 years. No one alive today has ever experienced it before."

If you're on the East Coast of the US like I am, then you would have been able to see this rare event today at sunrise. Chiff.com has a map showing when and where you can see this spectacular once-in-a-lifetime event. Another good site with TONS of info on the event is transitofvenus.org

» I'm listed on a white squirrel site!: Bob Glesener of the Ecology Program at the White Squirrel Research Institute of Brevard College, NC has me listed as a contact for sightings in the Short Pump, VA area along with my neighbor Andrea. He even linked to my site! More hits for dilettante, more hits for dilettante... bwaahhaahahhhaa!

Sat, June 5

» BIG Viking settlement found in Ireland: Reported on Online.ie: Archaeologists have stated that a newly-discovered Viking settlement near Waterford City may be the historical find of the century. Here's another article from the Waterford News & Star. I wanted to post this to prove to some skeptics with the first name beginning in "R" and ending in "b" that Ireland was heavily populated and influenced by Scandinavian settlers.

Fri, June 4

» Bizarre knitting and other artful interpretations of "crafty items": Greg Kucera Gallery in Seattle. Knitted superhero costumes? Beaded baseball cards?? Embroidered comic book covers??? Thanks for the link Rob O.

Tues, June 1

» A guy with too many Legos and too much time: The Brick Testament by The Rev. Brendan Powell Smith. Thanks for the link Hrothny!