John & Belle Have A Blog

All Star Superman Day

Finally, the trade of the Morrison-Quitely All Star Superman vol. 1 is out. But first I'll show you Zoë's b&w version of the cover.

Tell me that isn't the most awesome thing you've ever seen. I like how Superman has sort of a vaguely Toulouse-Latrec dissoluteness. Like he just spent the night on a cloud knocking back black kryptonite-and-absinthe cocktails:

You can see the original under the fold.

Dolchstosslegende, Evil Diplomats Edition

And we would have won, too, if it hadn't been for those meddling kids, and that dog of theirs!

Just what we needed. Just when we are winning the war, arresting Iranians daily, and destroying their Sunni and Shi'ite proxies, the appeasement lobby snatches a new defeat from victory's jaws. Probably the deep thinkers at the White House are telling each other how this will deflect any criticism from those who accuse them of planning war with Iran. I hope they enjoy it, because Iran is planning a lot more war with us.

Ah, Michael Ledeen. You never let me down. Still, though I realize it is pointless, this passage makes me wonder about a few things. Is it really the case that Iran is throwing its weight behind both Sunni ultras and their co-religionist Shiite militias, or is that something so stupid that only the US can manage it? Also, in days to come, will people who currently think the war is going badly later decide that, in retrospect we were winning at this point? I mean, clearly the die-hards represented in the conservative blogosphere think we're currently winning, so no mental gymnastics are needed there beyond the astounding plasticity they already show, which compares favorably to that of a Chinese acrobat who has been subjected to a brutal training regimen since infancy. But am I going to have to have deeply irritating conversations years from now with people who know right now that we're frakked six ways to Sunday but who will convince themselves of this stab-in-the-back theory in the future? I fear that I'm going to have to cock-punch some people in the nursing home.

 

Home Sweet

Weelll, the house is coming along, and I feel that we will be box-free by next weekend. You may all goggle at the tasteful uncluttered minimalism ridiculous over-the-topness. More pix under the fold.

Catfight at The Appletini Pitcher!

Now, if I were a blogger whose actual political beliefs were allegedly liberal, this kind of thing from the commenters (and its air of unchallenged obviousness), would give me pause:

Typical liberals trying to find fault when there is no fault in our republican candidates (?!--Belle).

Thanks for being on top of this Althouse. The service you provide by detailing liberal lies is invaluable to our conservative cause.

I don't know if I can vote for Rudy because of his liberal social issues. You have seem to found your winner though and if it is between him and any defeatacrat I am there with you!

Althouse and Atlas Shrugs two strong conservative women, who are nice to look at, helping our conservative cause. you can't beat that!

You know, an Atlas/Althouse video would be quality entertainment.

Robber of Widows and Children Made Good

Woo, the Mephistopheles of Wall Street comes in at number nine on the all time richest list!  I still maintain that I should be really rich right now, but if it had been me managing that money in the twenties and thirties, I probably would have flown all my friends to Paris for some costume ball, too, so I sympathize with my great-grandmother. There's a link to a pdf of the NYT obituary in the mouseover text on Gould. It was...fulsome.

Harry Potter Day!

While daddy sat down to read the last book, Zoë decided to illustrate the opening chapter of the first book. Here is Dumbledore, taking out his Put-Outer, after appearing on Privet Drive. (It's mixed media. She has some cat stickers and decided to press one into service as McGonagall, on the fence.)

Oddly enough, I too have often thought that Dumbledore should be played by Gregg Allman.

Get Well, Grandma!

Zoë has drawn a get-well card for Grandma. So: Get Well Grandma!

That's Zoë, dancing ballet in the middle, with Mei Mei by her side. Grandma is off to the right, and an unidentified bystander behind her ('that's someone walking by on the pavement'). Dad and Mom are to the left, looking on proudly.

Feel better, Mom (from John)

Notes

Mei Mei doesn't get enough credit on this blog, what with big sister shining in the art department. (Mei Mei draws lots of circles and is often seeking daddy's approval for her circles, so she's coming along.)

Funny story: Zoë used to crack us up by referring to 'persons', as if she were a baby Derek Parfit. 'There are two persons at the door.' Mei Mei tops that. She calls them 'humans'. She was riding on my shoulders up the escalator and she evidently turned to look behind, then leaned over and whispered to me: "Daddy, the humans are following us." She also looks out the window at home and says, hopefully: "There are humans on the playground."

Apropos of nothing: do you remember that Simpsons episode where Bart is trying to do well in school (for some reason)? And we see a series of fast cuts, with Krabappel asking a question and Bart's hand shooting up, eagerly, to be called on. And then, after about six of those Krabappel says [something like] 'wrong, wrong, wrong, wrong,' in annoyance? Then tells him not to raise his hand anymore unless he knows the answer. I was thinking maybe "Bart the Genius", from season 1, or "Bart Gets An F", from season 2. Apparently not. Which damn episode?

I Think I'm Feeling 'Testy'

See where you fall on the Dick Cheney Emotional Chart. I had an annoying experience today--our helper Tena has been having swelling and pain in her arm and it really wasn't getting better, so I took her to the 24-hour clinic in Holland V. (She's going back for more tests and may have--arg--gout, but we all hope not.) I had some other errands so I said I'd come back when I was done and check on her. Of course, this being Singapore she was done and out by the time I came back from the wet market (cherries! 18 dollars a kilo, though.) I looked around the waiting room and asked if Tena was in with the doctor, and the receptionist said "yes." I waited for 20 minutes or so, and finally went up to ask again, at which point she said "oh, your maid? Gone long time already!" This is one of the few things that bothers me about Singapore. There are expats who hate Singapore, and complain about every aspect of it all the time. I even hear people complaining about the taxis, which is insane. This one thing does bother me, though: if you ask someone a question and they don't understand it or know where to find the answer to your question, they will say 'yes'. It seems more polite, and they hope the problem will fix itself somehow. The results are not uniformly good.

UPDATE: also, although the house is starting to come together, I lost my phone charger in the shuffle and it's been dead since last night. God only knows how many text messages and calls I totally missed. Crap! I emailed explanations to my friends ("I'm alive! And I apparently have some sort of landline!) but it seemed cumbersome. And naturally I haven't memorized their numbers which are all conveniently stored in my phone.

Wildlife

More Zoë art.

Mommy and Daddy Lions.

Pikachu eyeing a Pokeball. (Or whatever the hell those things are called.)