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Monday, 17 July 2006

Comments

Paul

Somewhere, there is a website where some geeks (probably MIT students) have made the appropriate calculations and determined the average wingspeed of an unladen sparrow. I don't remember if it was the European or African they based their work upon.

rick

Deftly phrased answers.

And if someone wants to disagree with Sam McGee's epic status then they can talk to me when you're done with em.

Holly Capote

Simon, I really, really, REALLY like this answer: "To the pope, I’d ask that the pedagogues of the Catholic world, from now unto eternity, propagate the doctrine of Christ using Love, rather than Fear, as the impetus. That’d be nice."

Linda

You just continue to get awesomer all the time, my good man.
And what you thought and wrote on your lunch hour would take me like a week. And still would not be nearly as eloquent or expressive...

Tasha

Hee. You make me laugh.

Also, I notice you have Brad Pitt's birthday. It's funny, cuz I have Angelina Jolie's, right down to the year.

Mark

Nobody's going to be a complete arse and say, "I would have answered it like this..." Come on, is EVERYBODY who reads Simon's blog nice?

Loved your Pope answer most of all, and I'm not even Catholic. Never read Beowulf? Oy. Read it, and then read the book called Grendel, a great account of the story from the other side.

If you've seen The 13th Warrior, then you've seen a bad rip-off of Michael Crichton's fairly good Beowulf rip-off, called The Eaters of the Dead. I recommend that book, for certain, if you aren't going to brave the epic poem itself.

Mark S

Actually, Simon, my question was from The Simpsons, but, of course they got it from the Mouse/Lion fable. Moe asks it of Lenny:

Moe: So Lenny, let's say you pull a thorn outta the Pope's butt, and he
grants you one wish, what'll it be?
Lenny: Hmm, only one, huh? Well... I've always wondered what it'd feel like to
wear something that's been ironed.
Carl: [whistles impressed] That'd be sweet. What about you, Moe?
Moe: Ah, gee, I was gonna say a night with Joey Heatherton, but an ironed
shirt... damn, that's tempting.

I had just watched the episode recently and thought it was a fitting question for you.

As for Epic poems, Beowulf was ok, but I did like Paradise Lost by John Milton.

the Mater

Brilliant epic of your own.

Sorry I missed this Q&A but hope you do it monthly. It's a great mental exercise for your readers and for you :>)

The reply to the Pope was spot on!

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