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All right then AGA, I'll know for next time. Glad you liked it.

Psst, everybody read my Mittens Report. It's called "Mittens 2007: Melting the Limit." Now you absentees can share the in-joke! Hooray!

Speaking of strange things captured on film...

For all the fun we had at Mittens, I can't believe we're arguing about group stuff now. Those of you who went know what a fantastic week it was, we had plenty of group activities, and I also had plenty of chances to talk to everyone individually. I for one don't really want to spoil that by arguing small points over the internet. Everyone play nice!

As for France, I went to Paris this year, but I'd love to go back and see more of the country. If we travel outside the big cities, though, there's less chance that the locals will speak English. Can we do a quick show of hands of people who actually speak French?

*raises hand*

I played translator for my family this year, but it was exhausting by the end of the week. It'd be nice if we had a few other speakers along too (Radiant, I'm looking in your direction ).

HAHAHA! Grundislav, you are my hero. Too bad you can't hear it when I say, "Who invited that guy?"

Anyway, I love your panoramas, Matt ... wondered what you were doing standing there taking several photos at a time 

And as for a couple of Ivy's hot tub pics ... the less said the better!

Ditto on both counts.

Well, here are my fantabulous photos for the week. For some reason they uploaded in reverse chronological order, so you might want to go through them backwards. Enjoy! 

I arrived home safely at 3am and scared the bejeesus out of my housemates. Hope everyone had as much fun as I did...I really can't put into words how awesome it was to meet so many of you. I'll put together a flickr album of my pictures soon. We'll have to see about the Jacuzzi ones though.

Hm, actually, maybe I should go through Scummbuddy's laptop now that I have it here...

Whoa, I feel loved! Great issue, I'm looking forward to seeing the next ones (provided Scummbuddy doesn't post a cammed version of Nanobots ).

All right, so the AGS bus is coming to Yorkdale at around 5:30pm?

I have Clone High on DVD, if someone wants to bring their laptop.

Edit: Also, Kevbot and I will plan on being at the Indigo store at Yorkdale mall after 4pm. BaRoN, what time do you think the AGS bus will be arriving there?

Sounds good to me. The only issue would be if we had all our luggage with us; obviously it would be a bit crowded, but we also wouldn't want anything to get stolen.

Niagara Falls? That's a bit of a hike. But a day trip or even two to Toronto sounds awesome. I'll offer as much of my 'tour guide' expertise as I can...and maybe I'll make up some funfacts about the city. Kevbot knows the city better than I do and I'm sure there will be other locals to look out for us. This is shaping up to be an awesome trip!

Oh, and for those of you scratching your head about Kevbot, he's my bodygua-- I mean significant other.

Wow, lots of replies! Being part of team Gilbert is awesome.

Thanks very much Nacho, ProgZ, Vince, Peder, and everyone else who likes the 'new' Blackwell style. The support is wonderful to hear; this is certainly the most ambitious project I've been involved with. I've been working pretty hard to get the sprites and backgrounds looking consistent with 'Legacy' (with some help from ProgZ ). The hardest part was abandoning big brother's amazing sprite palettes and trying to find new ones that worked.

Anyways, back to spriting for now. I'm looking forward to this game as much as anyone.

Ooh! Now's my chance to post my favourite muffin recipe!

Best Damn Chocolate Chip Banana Muffins Ever

3 large bananas (the spottier the better)
1/2 C white sugar
1 egg
1 tsp baking soda
1 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp salt
1 1/2 C all purpose flour
1/3 C melted butter or canola oil
1/2 C chocolate chips

Mash bananas. Add sugar, egg, and oil and mix together.

Mix the dry ingredients in a separate bowl.

Ad the wet ingredients to the dry and stir just until moistened. Stir in the chocolate chips.

Bake at 375F for 20 mins. Makes 8-10 muffins and lots of friends.

Hey Ali,

Nelly Cootalot was all kinds of brilliant. I literally loved everything about it: the character design, the unique animations, the colouring, the music, the premise, the puzzles, and the humour. I showed it to one of my friends and he said it would be a crime if you weren't a professional graphic designer.

There were so many great moments in the game...and a lot of jokes that almost made me fall out of my chair.

Spoiler

The appearance of the cat burglar, the "leper colony", the adorable spoonbeaks, the Cockney duck hunt guy...everything was so well executed and totally unexpected.

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The game felt a little slow getting started, but after the first few puzzles I was totally hooked. I have a feeling I'll be playing it again before too long.

Do you mind if I put a link to this game on my website?

Loraine621,

Spoiler

Try picking up the tie. Mortia doesn't know it's a 3-headed monster yet.

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Maybe marriage is more a legal matter than people think?

Dun dun dunnnnn!

Should somebody tell God?

Yes, the marriage penalty is one very good example of discrimination being written into a policy. Heh, don't get me started on healthcare. Millions (around 40 million, last time I checked) of low wage individuals can't even get coverage, never mind their families. Finland's system sounds like it would make "family" much less of a political battlefield. Sounds like a better solution to me.

Ironically enough, along with the push for equal marriage for gays and lesbians, there's also a movement to "de-legalize" the status of marriage. That is, let it be a religious institution, and a nominal one, but don't let it change the way the government chooses to view or tax you. Gay marriage introduces the possibility that maybe there doesn't have to be a "his" and "her" work dichotomy in the household...and the idea that two people might be entirely equal in their marriage is certainly a new one for the institution. 

I'd also add that, with two men or two women raising a child, the kid may get a sexist slant on things because of both parents, or in some cases, may not even grow up with good role models (just imagine if you were a girl growing up in a house with two men raising you). 

I dunno, I've got some single parent friends whose kids are just fine.