There Was This Lion, See ...

Damn Your Scrofulous Eyes, BBC!
I read a long and interesting interactive article on the Beeb's website about the problems that will arise should that Trump chap get the border wall he's been crowing about.  It had a lot of detail, pictures and maps - yes, yes, this borders* on Current Affairs, sue me if you don't like it - about the cost and consequences involved.  The cost itself is widely variable, depending on whom you ask.  

Evocative, eh?

The Horny One reckons the total will be about $3.75; others estimate from $3 billion to $40 billion, which is quite a difference.  There's the geography to take into account, given that a lot of the border region is mountainous or river valley - we are talking 4 South Canadian states after all - and a lot is so inaccessible there would need to be major road construction to get wall construction underway -
     "Why are you telling us this?  Just add a link!  "Pointless" is on soon," I hear you quibble.
     Because I cannot find the story any longer!  Despite a 10 minute search, it isn't there any longer.  Bah!

Oops.  Found it <coughs in embarassment, blushes, leaves room>

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/resources/idt-d60acebe-2076-4bab-90b4-0e9a5f62ab12

     It's a very interesting read, and it gives one a sense of just how LARGE South Canada really is.

The Rio Grande - of course.  Recognisable thanks to hundreds of cowboy films

     Normally at this point I would yell OH LOOK A FLYING SAUCER to divert attention from my embarassing mistake, but it's too hot for that.  Instead we will proceed with the motley!

Doctor Who - "Eaters Of Light"
Hmmm.  Conrad was quite amused at Bill's stunned realisation that she was able to comprehend and speak Latin - mirabilus! - and Pictish - wa hae! - which mirrored one of the Seventies re-enactments.  Why, I once wrote a fan-fiction <Mister Hand redacts several pages of boasting self-adulation> Leningrad dialect!

Bill and Ben*

     That title is a misnomer - the monster here eats people, thousands of 'em, more than it eats light. 
     Good points of note; about sexuality - yes, the Romans were certainly comfortable with people expressing an alternate view, one might say.  The sometimes forced political correctness is actually also realistic here; the Romans weren't racist (although they might well conquer and enslave and impose their law) and one thing they made sure to do was post soldiers very far away from where they'd been conscripted.  The Sinisters also used to do this - on the grounds that you'd not be happy at having to chop up your local mates, but a bunch of weird foreigners?  Yes please!

Case in point*

     What didn't come across at all well was The Doctor's determined self-immolation and what actually happened - see how I avoid spoilers? - which seemed to go on for half the programme.  Enough!  Enough already!  Conrad is impatient!

Nardole totally rocking the bathrobe look.  Not sure about the bobble-hat.

     The trailer for next weeks re-enactment looked, frankly, awesome.  Bring it on!

"The Lion And The Unicorn"
We did touch on this nursery rhyme yesterday, didn't we?  Well, now we touch on it again.  I can do that if I like, it's my blog.  

To refresh your memory

Don't complain, nobody asked you to pay for this scrivel, did they?  Let us have the rhyme again, because your memories are short**, and we here at BOOJUM! will subject it to a rigourous critical examination:

The lion and the unicorn

I have argued that the weasel is a far more fitting creature for British heraldry that the indolent and non-native lion

Were fighting for the crown

Disgraceful behaviour!  Really, a sit-down negotiation through ACAS would be far more appropriate

The lion beat the unicorn

I suppose the lion has an advantage here: claws and fangs, versus a spike.  Hooves nowhere near as good as paws full of prongs.

All around the town

Do you mean to say nobody stepped in to intervene?  Or called the police?  Or even the RSPCA?  What a sad indictment of society.

Arbitration Conciliation and Advice Service

     
Did You Miss It?
Yesterday was National Day in Iceland.  Iceland, which is the somewhat surprising setting of "War On Everyone", and also much less surprisingly the home of one of Conrad's favourite bands, Siggur Ros.  This is because they are Icelandic.  So is Bjork, another interesting musician.  And Mum, and the very excellent Apparat Organ Quartet, whose CDs are ruddy hard to get.

The Quartet (yes, yes, I know there's five of them!)

     The population of Iceland is only 333,333, which is about 1/9th the population of Greater Manchester, so it was with considerable hilarity that Conrad watched Strakanir Okkar (their national football team) kick the stuffing out of the indolent English team in UEFA 2016***.

The Iceland team's reception in Rejkjavik

The England team's reception at Gatwick

*  Do you see what I did there?
**  And I have a count to reach.
***  I can do this. I'm an alien.  Got no loyalty.