A Tale of Two Xmas Cards

The new thing in higher education holiday celebrations appears to be the e-card. I've received two in the last couple weeks. Truth be told, I find the e-card an excellent alternative to the paper holiday card. Considering how many holiday cards get sent out by institutions on an annual basis, the e-card is a winner all the way round. Fewer trees meet their doom passing on a greeting that quickly gets tossed in the circular file, although it should go in the recycling bin, and the low cost delivery system that is email probably saves schools a goodly amount of money.

Keeping all this in mind, I welcomed the two cards I received. I opened one, viewed/listened with pleasure, and felt a bit of holiday cheer emanate from my usually bah humbugish bones. When I opened the second I felt, well, like I'd been asked to pay for the card I received. One card seemed to advance the spirit of giving; one card seemed to promote the spirit of getting.

Magical Christmas.

Forever Green.

Which school would you rather attend?

Weekly Reader: Frankenstein, Forbidden Planet, and Fire from the Sky

A while back, I saved these links as a draft and never got around to posting. Now that the semester is essentially over (I have a few tests to grade but should have those finished by tomorrow afternoon . . . and I'm grading at a very leisurely pace), I hope to have some extra blogging time.

Frankenstein. The Prometheus myth has to be one of the most prevalent cultural narratives, doesn't it? When humans play with the fire of the gods, someone always gets burned.

Forbidden Planet Soundtrack? Excellent stuff. Forbidden Planet is one of my favorite classic science fiction films.

Fire from the Sky. Interesting piece about ethics in wartime. What does the firebombing of civilian population centers say about the Allies?

Light Up and Be Cool

Despite what almost everyone and their mother says these days, smoking is cool.

Smoking in the Movies

You might get cancer, but you'll look damn cool in the process. Have I mentioned how much I miss smoking?

Just a Goth Darn Minute

Amusing and surprisingly accurate.