Bilgemunky

We have another pirate-themed video game on the horizon - check it out at VoodooIslands.com. This one looks to be a third person RPG type. You'll be able to play a pirate, conquistador, voodoo dude (my word, not theirs) or a merchant. The screenshots look fun - not too realistic but not too cartoony either. Kinda remind me of Pirates: The Legend of Black Kat (but with less cleavage.) The website is dark and creepy with lots of skulls and ships - dig around and you can get a couple of music files that are quite fun. It's intended to be a semi-realistic game with lots of pirates, a smidgen of magic, and at least one charmed monkey. They also boast that their water effects will be the most realistic to date.

<drool> I love Galveston, and I loved working as volunteer crew on the Denis Sullivan. To work a tallship IN Galveston? <more drool> Alas, it's too far a commute from Milwaukee. Still, Galveston is top on my list of future homeports, so maybe I'll be in touch one day!

His and Her Vanity Pirate Jewely Boxes - actually this one's pretty cool. Pirate Barbie - 'nuff said. Galleon Tape Measure - I had no idea something like this even existed.

I be playin' it, tho' mine's the PC version (never could get the hang of those control pad thingies.) Indeed a fantastic game!

I don't think I've yet seen it mentioned on this forum, so I thought I should bring everyone's attention to Puzzle Pirates - a new online game in its final stages of beta testing. You get to create a character and basically do whatever you want with'm - go pilligin, join a crew (crews are made up of real people, and work as a team to attack other vessels), own a shop, or just accumulate wealth to buy newer, fancier clothes. Now this game is both a lot of fun and strangely adorable. The pirates bring to mind the old playmobil pirates, and whether you're fighting, sailing, or bilging, it's all done through extremely clever puzzles. This game isn't even remotely designed for realism, but instead embrasses pirate cliche's and such, making for a very unique, very fun experience. Puzzle Pirates is still in testing, as I said, but you can play anyways. Details are at www.puzzlepirates.com. I also discuss it in some further detail on my own website at Bilgemunky.com. HIGHLY recommended. Cheers!

All the questions are actually very easy, IF you're familiar with the proper piratical source - that's the tricky bit. I'd wager that most pirates here could answer a few right off the top of their head - the challenge is finding that right pirate who just happens to be familiar with them all. I encourage people to give it a try, even if you don't know all the answers. If I notice that one or two questions consistently draw blanks, I may have to reconsider them. Monkey-megalomania? nah!

I'd just like to take this opportunity to invite everyone to check out my new pirate-themed website. It's chock full of fun pirate things, some you're surely familiar with and others that you might not be. I welcome comments, so let me know what you think. www.bilgemunky.com Oh, and there's a contest (with prizes)

I'm definitely interested - look forward to hearing more details when the time is ripe!

I had the good fortune to tour her this summer - she was truly a work of art. I'm very sorry to hear this.

I wanted to get a look at this game myself, and found its website here. Looks like this same company has some other pirate-themed games in the works, including a demo out for "Tortuga - Pirates of the New World." I'll have to check it out later.

I'd steer ye first towards ebay. Run a search for "jack sparrow" - usually at least one coat will pop up.

I'm a purist (sometimes) so my favorite pirate screensaver is a basic Jack Rackham flag blowing in the wind. But don't settle for that "3D flying objects" flag that comes with some versions of windows, get this. It renders an absolutely gorgeous 3D flag. It doesn't come with a jolly rogers texture, but you've prolly got a dozen of those already. Here's a screenshot: But believe me, the picture doesn't do it justice - you can actually feel the wind rip past you as this thing flaps in the wind. Oh, and yes, it's FREE.

Burial of the Rats??? I thought we were talking fun-bad movies, not BAD-bad movies That one still gives me shivers. Like bad-bad? Try Orgy of the Dead. Speaking of bad movies, that brings to mind another movie that is widely regarded as a flop, but I think is an absolute work of genius. Anyone else a fan of "Joe vs. the Volcano"?

A couple of months ago, I had the opportunity to work aboard the Denis Sullivan for a week. It's a 19th century schooner based out of Milwaukee. I was able to live onboard and work as one of the crew. Every day we took her in and out of port for one activity or another - I ran sails, coiled rope, steered, stood watch, etc. etc. I'm guessing this sort of experience is more or less exactly what your seeking. I could easily hook you up with the details, but as Milwaukee's pretty far from New Orleans, it's probably not quite what you need. But the good news (for you - sucks for us) is that the Sullivan has headed south for the winter, and offers programs in the caribbean/gulf of mexico region. I don't know if any of them are what you're looking for, but you can check it out at www.pierwisconsin.org. Check the "schooner" and "events" sections. I'm sure there are other ships offering similar programs - I'd think New Orleans would have plenty of opportunities nearby.

Gotta add a few: ------------- A Polish Vampire in Burbank: I don't even know where to begin with this one. The tale of a young vampire coming of age, but unwilling to take his first victim. Sounds touching? Well, maybe. Highlights include Judo for Jesus, plastic skeletons with bad wigs, EDDIE DEEZEN, and my favorite, try this quote from the "queer-wolf" "Years ago, I was bitten by a queer. And now, whenever the moon is full, my wrist gets limp, my eyelashes get fuller, and worst of all, the next morning I wake up with the worst pain in my backside." ------------- Cannibal! The Musical: Just see it. From the creators of Southpark, long before they were famous or had a budget. It's spadoinkal. Indians played by japanese (they even fight with samarai swords), rousing musical numbers ("hang the bastard, hang'em high!"), and a giant cyclops that squirts goo out of his eye. If you pay close attention, you can even hear the voice of Cartman, years before he was invented. -------------- Orgazmo: Also from the southpark guys - a comedy about a mormon who becomes a superhero while working in the porn industry. Not for the timid, while the movie features no actual nudity or sex that I recall, it has tons of explicit language, rocket powered sex-toys, and Saaancho. -------------- Raising Arizona: Yes, he's done bigger flicks since then, but I still think Nicholas Cage's career peaked when he was running through the city with a box of pampers under his arm and pantyhose on his head while hillbilly music played in the background.

Sea puke - there's nuthin' like it in the world! I remember shore leave in the Navy - I was on an aircraft carrier, which meant we were too big to dock, so they often made us anchor outside the harbor and ferry in and out on longboats. No problem going out, but just imagine coming in... at three in the morning... through storms and swells... with 50 drunk guys crowded onto a tiny little boat... ... the whole thing was slick with puke by the time we reached the ship. And THEN we had to get from the boat onto the ship, which was no small task in itself. But I digress, this thread is about vomit. No one's answered the original question. Do I have any tips fer ya? Not really - I'm sure you already know to keep your eyes on the horizon, to try to stand upright and let the ship rock beneath you, and to take your motion sickness pills at least an hour before hand (so's you don't puke 'em back up.) But I do have one more tip, that might work, or might backfire royally. I was recently working on the schooner Denis Sullivan. Mostly I did just fine, but we did have one sail with particularly large swells that got me feelin' a little (lot) queasy. This happened to be a cruise full of school kids, and a good half of them were leanin' over the edge (properly harnessed, of course) and pukin' their guts out. I finally got to feelin' so bad that I went to sit down when a little girl upped a whole load of cookies right at my feet. Well, somehow, I suddenly felt a whole lot better! Don't ask me why. So next time I start feeling seasick, I might just start looking for someone who looks like they're about to spew, and give them a nice smack on the back to help them along

Not sure if this's been posted elsewhere, but today's onion has an amusing editorial on parrot raising, written by one Captain Crimson Banister. Check it out here.

So there's been an ongoing discussion about each of our forum names, but how about everyone's avatars? Some are pretty interesting - who made their own, who stole them (no shame in that, we're all pirates here)? Is there a link where we can see them up-close? My own was actually made by my brother, back in a day when I went by "spydermunky" online. Since switching my name, I added the red pirate hat and earring, and boom! Instant avatar.

I've read a few "general pirate history" books, but the names and events all tend to blur together over time. I think next I'd like to tackle a few bios that focus a bit more on a specific pirate (or group of pirates, if they tended to hang out together.) Any suggestions? I'm pretty open to which pirate to start with, but I want the book to be both interesting and historically accurate.

Before you get too hard on me, m'swords only in the very early stages of rust - I'm doing my best to nip it in the bud. Thanks for the advice!

I was given a cutlass for my birthday a while back, but it's gradually rusting up on me. I've spent a good chunk of my life caring for knives of one sort or another, but I've never had a carbon steel knife rust up like the handguard of my cutlass. Any ideas how I can get rid of the rust without scratching up the surface of my sword? And how I can better care for it in the future?

Hey Capt. Roberts!!! I think you meant to link us to www.thedarkangel.com. www.darkangel.com is the homepage for some sadomasachistic spirituality site

Now THAT is an idea with real potential!!! Do keep us posted.

I seem to recall hearing once that if the metal on the mast started to glow a pale blue, it meant a prosperous voyage. The unfortunate reality, though, was that the blue glow was a precurser to the ship being STRUCK BY LIGHTNING

I'd make "Blackbeard vs. Captain Kidd: The Hunted Hunter," complete with matrix style fight scenes (including one where blackbeard jumpkicks an incoming canonball back at the enemy gunner.) I'm not just tryng to be goofy - tell me you wouldn't pay good money to see everyone's favorite pirate wrestle - not one, but TWO - beautifully rendered cgi great white sharks with his bare hands? If done properly, schoolkids around the world would have their heads filled with the idea that Blackbeard wasn't so much a historical figure as a mythological mix between Hercules and Godzilla. Kidd, on the other hand, will be the former pirate-turned-hero, haunted by his past and guided by the wise ghost of Sir Francis Drake (a'la Obi Wan.) Screw realism, I wanna be entertained!!! For the final battle, I think Blackbeard will develop a custom-made cannon that will fire - not a cannonball - but Blackbeard himself (the ultimate weapon.) Ironically, Captain Kidd will have had the same idea, and so they both get fired out of their respective cannons at the same time and collide in midair. Locked in each other's death grips, they'll slowly sink into the inky depths, fighting for eternity (kinda like those two black and white faced dudes in the original Star Trek.) Yeah, that'll do it :)