Gone To The Doges

Prior To The Internet Era -
There would have been only one way to interpret the above title, as referring to the titular head of the Venetian city-state, back when it had an empire.  Here's one of them:

A Doge

     He looks like he was busy sucking a lemon when the wind changed, doesn't he?  I wonder how many pens he had.
     Anyway, now that we live in the era of DARPA's grandchild, "Doge" refers to that hilarious internet meme about a dog.  Art?

The spelling offends me -

     - but I'll put up with it for the sake of generating a bit of content.
     "What does this have to do with anything, Conrad?" I hear you bleat.  Stop bleating!  You're not sheep.  
     "Me And My Dog: The Ultimate Contest" on the Beeb, is what, because although Conrad is still not a dog person, he has shaded over into being an Edna person (although she is currently cross with me because the door to my Sekrit Layr is firmly shut).  Art, illustrate Edna, please.

The scamp in question

     She is a Border Terrier, and what provoked interest at The Mansion in MAMDTUC is that one of their contestants is a Border Terrier, too.  I wonder if we can cattle-prod Art into another photo -

Another scamp, and his dog, too

     She is by far the smallest dog of the eight competing but makes up for diminutiveness with her unquenchable spirit, and a bit of cheek.  I shall let you know how she gets on.

Excuse me for a minute as I need to go get my cup of tea topped-up -

     - there we go, more Darjeeling to cheer and not inebriate.   Okay, next!

"Termagant"
This was the Wordsquare word in yesterday's M.E.N. which Conrad spotted instantly, I have to say with a bit of justifiable gloasting.  How many of you out there would have got it?  WITHOUT resorting to internet cheating?
     The ratings were 21 words = Good; 28 words = Very Good and 36 words = Excellent.

Meet 31

     This is all done without reference to either the internet or a dictionary, which I think is pretty impressive for one of my advanced years (157 at last count).     Well now, that's part 1.  My next question is, do you know what a "Termagant" is?
     As most of you won't, I have to inform you that it's a bad-tempered and shrewish woman, not a species of seabird.
     That was part 2.  My next question is, do you know where the term originates?  I didn't and the story is rather interesting.  Medieval Christians believed that Muslims worshipped a god known as 'Termagant', who was cruel and evil-tempered.  Ol' Termie subsequently turned up in morality plays and got transposed into The Mother In law.

I'm not sure what this is, but it came up when I Googled "Termagant"

     Which, as it borders on Religion, means it is time to move on -

A Clerihew For You
I don't have to look far for one of today's targets.  I refer you to the first article ...

The Doge of Venice

Exuded menace.

He said "The secret to looking stern

Is to have a mouth full of mealy-worm."

     Which is quite disgusting, unless you like mealy-worms, or are a bird.

Er - Chaps - Consider What You're Thinking
John Wyndham  - or, more properly, John Wyndham Parkes Lucas Benyon Harris - was quite the prescient chap.  Consider his novel "The Kraken Wakes" (which was published in South Canada as "Out Of The Deeps" because apparently South Canadians cannot comprehend anything allegorical, analogical or metaphorical) which deals with an invasion of your wonderful blue planet, an invasion that goes unrecognised at first.  The invaders, you see, occupy the abyssal depths of the very deepest parts of Earth's oceans     Now, let us abruptly jump topics, to the latest on the Beeb's website.

"Jets of water spew from the south pole of Enceladus"

     Let me add in the frightening tagline beneath this photograph.

Saturn's ice-crusted moon Enceladus may now be the single best place to go to look for life beyond Earth.

     NO!  Because those invaders in TKW were postulated as coming FROM ONE OF THE MOONS OF SATURN!!!
     As yet they don't know about Earth, or at least not for certain.  If you go poking about then you're going to lead them right back here!

I'm warning you ...