Hester

Rough Trade http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Fw3aGZhtrjc "It hit me like a slap..."

Oh, there's an understatement! Mr. H. is walking around this morning singing "I wanna live with a Valium girl..." to the tune of Neil Young's "Cinnamon Girl": http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fOCnDAwqWyg Thanks for the travel tips, Jenny!

Thanks, Gigi! I'm working my way through my airline's website guidelines on carry-on luggage right now: http://www.channelgroup.org/wjpassengers/m...main_search.htm No mention of dental floss, so I guess I'm safe. No mention of piano wire either, though. (That must have been an oversight.) But, they do state that pinatas are banned. Oddly, cologne is okay, but "perfume containing alchohol" is not (even in checked luggage). Um... last I checked, cologne has a pretty high concentration of alcohol. Not sure what the rational is there. Not sure where "body mist" fits in. So, I packed perfume oil instead. Other prohibited stuff: Bear spray Billy clubs Blasting Caps Bows and Arrows Catapults Cattle Prods Chainsaws Christmas Crackers are not allowed, even in checked baggage, but shotguns and ammunition are allowed in checked baggage with approval. Go figure!

Can I bring dental floss in my carry-on luggage, or is it considered a lethal weapon these days? Can you actually garotte someone with dental floss, or would it break first?

Here's a video for the song, using a montage of clips from various pirate movies: Part One Part Two http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=I6N6JGZ1hTQ (Yikes, the audio seems a bit shrill!)

Ooooh... I thought that Cutthroat Island was lots of fun. I even got it on DVD. (And it is by far NOT the worst pirate movie I have on DVD!) And look, someone else must like it too, because they put together a fanvid of it, to a very silly but catchy Danish pop song:

Intoxicated iguanas imitating Icarus

Mercury Rev, "Car Wash Hair": http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sabvhjhVj-8

Elves enjoying exotic entertainment

^ My summer don't end until the Equinox!!! And then, I get to see Nick Lowe... < Valium's worn off. Mr. H. noticed too. V Best travel survival tip?

Rolling Stones, "Mother's Little Helper" http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=j3Hf_OclE8U "And though she's not really ill, There's a little yellow pill... Doctor please, some more of these!"

The Replacements, "Waitress in the Sky" http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HXtY17BTvS4 (No offense meant to Tina, my nudist flight attendant friend.) "Don't treat me special, don't kiss my ass, Just treat me like the way they treat 'em up in first class!"

Oh, what a shame!

The Ramones, "I Wanna be Sedated": http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8FxaJKm9sdI "Twenty, twenty, twenty-four hours to go, I wanna be sedated! ... Just put me in a wheelchair, get me on the plane, Hurry, hurry, hurry ... before I go insane!"

Awww... thanks for the sympathy, Briar Rose! You're such a sweetheart. And I need to get things into perspective -- there are much worse things to worry about than a too-short haircut! However, I think I might just start trimming my own bangs and letting the rest grow for the next year or two. Guess I'll just have to channel my inner flapper in the meantime. On the up side, I don't seem to be having any adverse reaction to the Valium ... so it should be safe to use on the plane. And I'm listening to The Jam, which always makes me feel better. [And hey -- Paul Weller's had some pretty awful haircuts in his day, and he still always managed to look sexy despite it.]

Valium Too much of my hair on the salon floor Antonio ... who has an odd interpretation of the phrase "no layers"! Hollie ... who was sick

Test-driving my Valium -- for the flight on Friday morning. I just got my hair cut and it's a nightmare. My regular hairdresser was off sick. I asked her replacement for "just a trim" -- a shoulder-length pageboy, with no layers. I wound up with a chin-length flapper-bob, with little wispy bits all around my face. Crap! This is going to take forever to grow out! Too short to even pull it back in a ponytail. And it will be a puff-ball when my natural curl kicks in. So far, the Valium's not making me feel any calmer about my hair. I suspect that means I'll need a double dose to manage the flight. And I could really use a drink! (Although that wouldn't be wise.) Bugger! Double Bugger!

The Skids, "Hurry on Boys"

Egg roll Very little that I liked at the mall Dr H. -- who prescribed Valium for my flight on Friday, bless her! Jude Law -- who apparently wants to film a movie in my house.

Cherry Pie

Drunken doxies droning ditties

Yikes, Mats, you missed "Y"! But, now we're back to "A" -- times 4! Amicable Arawaks absconding from the Antilles

An x-rated xylograph of a xebec

A hot dog Live parrots Geordie Telfer, author of Real Canadian Pirates http://www.lonepinepublishing.com/cat/9781894864701 Karen, who was not dancing in the park today

Well, I spent the afternoon at the Pirate Festival today. It was good fun, and perfect weather -- sunny but not too hot. We browsed all of the vendors' stalls, but I spent most of my time in the pub. I was pleased to see they even had rum at the daytime events, although I wasn't actually able to indulge today because I had an English Country Dance to attend early this evening and thought it best to stay sober. So, I made do with lemonade. At the Pirate Festival I watched two sets by the band Ceol Cara: http://www.ceolcara.com/default.htm ... and one by the duo Two Roads Home: http://www.tworoadshome.com/ I recognized many of the folk songs and shanties in their repertoire and happily sang along. Next year, I hope to be able to attend a "Night of Jolly Rogering".