Monday, December 02, 2002

Need to make some changes to the Dinner with the Dead list.  Doug pointed out that I neglected to include Rasputin, which is shameful of me.  Rasputin moves into the top ten, as he will bring mystery and an unkillable persona.  Almost literally unkillable--it took poison, stabbing, a bunch of gunshots, some strangling, and eventual drowning before the guy died.  That's a guy I want to have over for dinner. I also have to include Roger Patterson, who shot the famous Patterson film of Bigfoot.  I am a Bigfoot devotee, and I want to know if that thing is a hoax or not. Patterson and Rasputin in, Newton and Roosevelt out.  How can a meal go wrong when you have three great writers, the son of God, the Prophet, the Buddha, Christopher Columbus, the Bambino, a Mad Cleric, and a Bigfoot hunter?   8:53:41 PM    Let's hear it. []

Cold rainy day here.  Seems like a good day for THE LIST I'm into lists, in a major way.  I just really enjoy seeing things ranked--Best of this, Worst Ten that, Strangest Thing, Most Unusual Whatsit.  I have a ton of books of lists, including the Books of Lists 1-3 and even The 90s Edition.  I also own The 100 Most Influential People in History, the Greatest 1000 Albums Ever, The Top 500 Poems, etc.  You get the picture.  So I'll be using this space to include some of my favorite personal lists.  Today: The Top Ten Famous People I'd Like to Invite to Dinner--Dead Only (idea for this taken from The Book of Lists) Jesus Christ--I'm not religious in the slightest, but I'd like to chat with this guy.  He's got to be a heck of a lot cooler than the people who do a lot of stupid crap in his name.  Mohammed--See above.  Buddha--Not too many terrible things done in Buddha's name, for the most part.  I'd like to see how he interacts with Jesus and Mohammed, and generally chat him up. Mark Twain--Interesting guy.  Brilliant writer.  Funny, cynical, plus he's probably the life of a party. JRR Tolkien--I'm a huge fan.  I mean, there are fans and there are fans when you're talking about Tolkien, of course, and I don't speak  Elvish or anything, but here's a guy who created an entire world.  Gotta be interesting. Sir Isaac Newton--How smart was this guy?  I want to know. He discovered or invented everything.  William Shakespeare--pretty easy to understand this one.  Solve the mystery of who he is, plus he'd be entertaining. Babe Ruth-- An absolute guarantee of a fun time, though he increases the size of the food and liquor bill quite dramatically.  The lack of women at the table would really piss him off. Christopher Columbus--This is a late edition to the list, on the strength of a New Yorker review of a book about him that I just saw this weekend.  He was apparently quite crazy, and a poor seaman, and had absolutely no idea what the hell he was doing.  I find that intriguing enough to want to meet him. Teddy Roosevelt--I have to include a US President, and Teddy seems like the most fun.  Plus I want to hear what he has to say about the environmental policies of the Republican party.  Or lack thereof. No women on the list, which is a statement about history and not a statement about women.  My list of the living dinner guests will include women. If you have ideas for lists, or other suggestions, email me.  I have a ton, but suggestions are welcome.  3:57:06 PM    Let's hear it. []