Sensible Erection | International towel day tomorrow

Monday, 24 May 2010

quote [ Towel Day is an annual celebration on the 25th of May, as a tribute to the late author Douglas Adams (1952-2001). On that day, fans around the universe proudly carry a towel in his honour. ]

I like to give people a heads up on these kinds of things. Feel free to post Douglas Adams related stuff in the comments.

Don't forget your towel tomorrow!

[literature] [by Jack Blue@9:47amGMT] [+10 Good]

Comments

pleaides said @ 10:28am GMT on 24th May
I REALLY wish he hadn't died.

I made him laugh while he signed a copy of H2G2 after a speech in front of TV cameras (which I hadn't noticed) and it was on the telly that night.

That's right, I'm fucking awesome ;)

Seneki69 said @ 12:08pm GMT on 24th May
Still selling it after ... 10 years now?

pleaides said @ 12:15pm GMT on 24th May
12.

Bugger off ;)

Khafra said @ 2:32am GMT on 25th May
Don't listen to him. We cross paths in a bar at any point in the future, and I'll buy you a beer for having made Douglas Adams laugh.

pleaides said @ 3:35am GMT on 25th May
Thanks :)

To be fair, Seneki69 has had to endure the story many times over our long friendship. He still LOVES the German urinal story though.

EPT said @ 11:53am GMT on 25th May
Why do I immediately get suspicious whenever the words "German" and "Urinal" are put together?

pleaides said @ 12:22pm GMT on 25th May
Prescience?

ComposerNate said @ 1:54pm GMT on 25th May
I've yet to meet a German aware of this stereotype.

KropperPrime said @ 5:02pm GMT on 24th May
How?

Nihil said @ 9:28pm GMT on 24th May
I'm guessing a well-timed fart.

pleaides said @ 1:50am GMT on 25th May
I made a joke about tea in the lingering silence caused by a previous ill considered comment made by someone of mine and Seneki69's acquaintance. It was one of those excruciating silences with a large audience which was just dying to be broken, so I said the first thing that came into my head and was startled that everyone laughed. It wasn't even funny.

Still, I remember his genial smile as I shook his hand and thought "he's fucking massive!" and managed not to mention it. Still makes me smile all these years later, I love that guy.

Anyone who's only read H2G2 is missing the best of his work, and should take care to remedy that. I managed to torrent all his audiobooks, mostly read by the great man himself, some by Simon Jones and Stephen Fry, which add a certain something to the books. Richard Dawkins' eulogy at his funeral, and Fry's intro to Salmon of Doubt still make me mist up.

feldenglas said @ 10:44am GMT on 24th May
Thank goodness it's not falling on a Thursday this year.

SnappyNipples said @ 5:22pm GMT on 24th May
I too could never get the hang of Thursdays either.

ComposerNate said @ 11:10am GMT on 24th May [Score:1 Funny]
For extra points, wear it on your head with a fake beard.

Jack Blue said @ 2:25pm GMT on 24th May
I am considering wearing it with a bathrobe and a fish in my ear.

Seneki69 said @ 12:11pm GMT on 24th May [Score:1 Funny]

Silent said @ 12:59pm GMT on 24th May [Score:1 Underrated]
Thanks for reminding me!

aardvark said @ 11:10pm GMT on 24th May
From me too! I traditionally remember it on the 26th of May. This year I'll actually be able to celebrate it.

Roulette1337 said @ 1:54pm GMT on 24th May
All the froody kids are doing it.

clumsy_juggler said @ 2:50pm GMT on 24th May
Bartender, a round of Pan Galactic Gargle Blasters for everybody.

enderite said @ 4:55pm GMT on 24th May
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_ZG8HBuDjgc&feature=player_embedded#!

this is kinda long, but one of the best lecture/talks i've ever heard.

arrowhen said @ 5:31pm GMT on 24th May
I really wish I could enjoy Hitchhikers' the way I did when I was 12. A quarter century of nerds desperately quoting it to prove they belong in the nerd social club has completely ruined it for me.

Fuck you, nerds.

Jack Blue said @ 5:50pm GMT on 24th May
First time I read it I did not know about the cult around the book. I just picked it up because my older sister told me to. I guess I know what you mean.

Then again... You never enjoy books like when you are 12.

cool_drool said @ 6:21pm GMT on 24th May [Score:1 Funny]
I still enjoy many magazines in the same way, and just as much, as when I was 12 :)

arrowhen said @ 8:22pm GMT on 24th May
I don't, because they stopped printing Omni.

lateniter said @ 3:24am GMT on 25th May
...because the articles are so good. ;)

arrowhen said @ 6:42pm GMT on 24th May
Not a book, but Krull is exactly as awesome as it was when I was 12.

Wadysseus said @ 5:58pm GMT on 24th May
Yes, how dare everyone enjoy the things I enjoy!

arrowhen said @ 7:42pm GMT on 24th May
Nerddom isn't about *enjoying* nerdy things, it's about *getting each other's references* to nerdy things so you're not kicked out of the nerd hive.

steele.ero said @ 7:53pm GMT on 24th May
As it turns out, that's pretty much how all the hives work.

Todomanna said @ 9:18pm GMT on 24th May
At least it's not geekery, where people attempt to prove that they're better at getting each other's references than their fellows.

I prefer dorkism, where people just enjoy the various medias, and pop out with a quote or paraphrasal to get a chuckle from friends and comrades once and a while.

arrowhen said @ 11:29pm GMT on 24th May
Geeks take pride in their knowledge, and most will share that knowledge with a genuine and infectious enthusiasm. You have to respect that.

Caffeine said @ 10:31pm GMT on 24th May
Is that what it's "about"? Really? So what group of people are you part of that's "about" being a self-important caustic asshole? Because you must be one of the core members.

And if you are, I'll need to see your membership ring, because I haven't seen you at any of the meetings.

arrowhen said @ 11:31pm GMT on 24th May
Isn't it obvious? l'm a Muggle.

sacrelicious said @ 6:03pm GMT on 24th May [Score:2]
I sympathize. overly-zealous fandom, or poor fan representation, can often ruin a good thing for ya. best to just block out the fanboys.

but yeah, it's kinda like LotR: people all over the internet hailing it as the high-water mark for fantasy, giving themselves cheesing usernames based on the franchise...

crom said @ 6:36pm GMT on 24th May
+1 subtle

sacrelicious said @ 6:38pm GMT on 24th May [Score:1 Insightful]
simmer, Ian.

arrowhen said @ 7:11pm GMT on 24th May
LotR is fun bit of world-building paired with utterly shitty storytelling. The worst schlocky Dragonlance novel has a better plot and you don't have to read a 15 page description of a character's cloak-pin before you get to it.

Nihil said @ 9:30pm GMT on 24th May
True, but that's a pretty weak criticism. One doesn't read Beowulf for the plot either.

arrowhen said @ 9:52pm GMT on 24th May
No, you read Beowulf as advice on how to be a good leader of Scandanavian warriors.

So what's that make LotR? A wildly impractical travel guide?

sacrelicious said @ 9:54pm GMT on 24th May
I want the Lonely Planet guide to Mordor!

brat#3 said @ 12:05am GMT on 25th May
I hope there's a section entitled 'Walking into Mordor'.

sacrelicious said @ 2:47am GMT on 25th May [Score:1 Funny]
One does not simply walk into Mordor! not when a local taxi can be hired for mere pennies. The orcs driving them can provide useful information on local dining and advice on when to visit many of the key attractions to avoid the crowds. But be careful: local hotels often pay them a commission based on how many tourists they direct there, so take their advice with a grain of salt when it comes to local accommodations.

klingon_fodder said @ 9:55pm GMT on 24th May
i've got a wet one

klingon_fodder said @ 4:07am GMT on 26th May
it's still wet

Caffeine said @ 10:26pm GMT on 24th May
Feh. I celebrate it with my very existence. I was BORN on International Towel Day in 1984, the year "So Long, and Thanks for All the Fish" was published.

lsdbeta said @ 2:13am GMT on 25th May
I like how douglas adams died on his birthday.

Jack Blue said @ 12:09pm GMT on 25th May [Score:1 Informative]
Born: 11th march 1952, died 11th may 2001.

klingon_fodder said @ 4:07am GMT on 26th May
everyone should die on their birthday
the very next one, hopefully
overpopulation: solved

maryyugo said @ 2:13am GMT on 25th May
A towel may not be enough for some worlds. A condom might help.