Where in the World is Alf? (Part XIV)
Following Part XIII
May 1-9, 2003
Reader M.S. from Isle of Melba, Scotland writes:
"That picture that you posted: the one of the man with his left eye ... along with its smashed bone-socket structure and the ripped apart nerve-ganglia gel ... yes, all of it ... anyway, all that chunked-out face which was blasted open and laid bare and made oozy-bloody-raw and slimy-drippy by an out of control Champagne cork was really vile. Let's have a swing back to the wholesome ... something we can take a sandwich to without bringing up a wet meaty gag-flex."
Dear M.S.,
Yesterday THOCBDC was honored with an all-time record number of hits and byte transfers. So, somebody out there must like to dip their fingers in the gross pie. But just for you, how about something gentle?
Starting with Fort Lauderdale at night ... Las Olas Boulevard:
And, a Fort Lauderdale waterway at night:
All of tomorrow and for most of Sunday Fort Lauderdale will be the host to the Air Show. This will be the most spectacular exhibition of military air finesse this side of last month's Baghdad. And peppered in will be a bunch of amazing air stunts.
For the event on the 4th ... the biggest day of the two day bash ... Stephani and Robin are going to drive over to our house and then the four of us will walk up to the beach ... along with about 750,000 other people. All vehicular traffic will be banned and the entire stretch of route AIA from Las Olas Boulevard to Sunrise Boulevard (about 1.5 miles or 2.4 kilometers) will be just a sea of flesh, beer and junk food. The sky will have all the action ... oh, and the beach, too.
Today I walked to the beach to catch part of the practice session: in the sky and on the beach.
Today is the first day of the Air Show.
If you look at the horizon ... yes, over in the direction of the sea ... see, it appears that there is a huge white floating sludge out there. 
OK, 'click' forward for a second or two ... to 6 power then to 12 power ... what do you see now? Boats, boats and more of them. You can almost walk on them. That line is about a mile long, and ... well, a dozen or two dozen boats wide; at least, maybe even three score deep. So, I'd guess there must be a thousands of them out there ... all loaded with people.
But, even before coming to the beach ... while crossing the Intracoastal Waterway ... you can see boats hanging around 'inland'. For sure the car traffic is so intense that the only sane way of getting to the beach is by walking or by floating.
And the world famous Elbo Room has spilled its clients out onto the road. Are most of them looking at the planes or something else? Let's check:
And it doesn't end until the fat lady suns.
Reader H. B. from Morristown, Pennsylvania (a big rust belt spot near New York) writes:
"Sir, my great uncle was a Doughboy, my uncle fought right up the toe of Italy, my step-uncle landed at Inchon, and another uncle was lost in Canada during the Vietnam incident. So, I came to your site to see and worship the tools that these men used ... not to see a bunch of beach bunny cracks."
Reader Dr. L. T. from 1-800 CAN CERS writes:
"To see that youth is still in love with the sun gladdens my heart."
See folks, THOCBDC can't satisfy everybody all the time. Yesterday and the day before we gave it to the friends of melanoma. Today we look to the skies.
What is this?
This is it.
PS: This just in from my friend Dan who lives in Taiwan...notice the Yahoo search engine.
Apparently there is a book on everything!
... and the women who love them.
A tame day at the beach ...
This is very niche. Only Ray Russell will look at all 18 photographs.
Yikes! An unusual crime not far from our up-country house:
Less than charming behavior
AYUDHAYA: A junior monk at Wat Jedi Daeng, in Ayudhaya town, got drunk and decided to see if the protective amulets worn by the temple’s assistant abbot were as powerful as they were reputed to be – he did so by stabbing the senior monk repeatedly with a sword.
The experiment was a failure. The victim, 45-year-old Phra Payap Kantalak, was rushed to hospital after sustaining deep slashes to his head, arms, legs, and body. Doctors at Ayudhaya hospital managed to stop the bleeding in time and save the monk’s life, but almost 100 stitches were required to put him back together.
His attacker, Phra Sommart Tassankij, 31, staged a getaway – but didn’t get far. Ayudhaya police soon captured the drunken monk, who was wearing only his monk’s bathing garb. Phra Sommart’s body was covered from head to toe with tattoos and he was wearing his own arsenal of beads and protective amulets, which apparently failed to protect him from the effects of alcohol, let alone a police manhunt.
A police investigation revealed that, after drinking on the night of April 7, Phra Sommart went to see his victim, who owned a set of kreuang rang takreut reputedly even more powerful than his own, as they were said to have been given to him by the highly-revered Phra Luang Jamlong, one of the most famous amulet-making monks in the province.
Many Thais believe in the power of such amulets, which are often carved from wood into the shape of a phallus and are worn either hung around the neck or swinging from the hip. They are said to provide protection from physical danger and to bring good luck.
The next test for Phra Sommart’s tattoos and amulets will be in the courtroom. He has been charged with attempted murder.
Next: Part XV
