An interesting and intriguing tribute to your hometown, Maaike.

Too far

That's hard -- I really hope she enjoys the States.

I've observed the same phenomenon. Many people who believe they were re-incarnated claim to have been powerful, rich, high status folks in their previous lives. ("I was the queen of Egypt" etc.) Virtually nobody claims to have been -- say -- a lowly serf toiling in the fields whom died young and possessed no power, money or status at all. Lol.

Love Shack -- Bananarama (I believe)

STH from TSRTS

I don't mean to intrude on a "woman's only" thread, but as lipslikecherries and SozoZoso pointed out, it's interesting how the perception of tanned skin and social class has changed over the centuries. ("Ladies" once prided themselves on their pale skin, etc.) I would suggest the women here be careful not to over-expose themselves to the sun. Skin cancer is a real threat to all of us, and skin damage due to sun overexposure is too: It's not attractive to see a 30 or 40-something year old woman with the tough, leathery, lined skin of an old, veteran sailor.

Geekfreak, it sounds like you have good taste in opera and ballet.

As usual, an excellent description and analysis, Strider. I've visited Bayreuth and am a passionate admirer of Tannhauser and Lohengrin. (btw, I once heard The Flying Dutchman in the famous Sydney Opera house)

Ebk, it sounds delicious. I'm looking forward to hearing how the rest of your trip goes.

I've heard that "The Whisperer in Darkness," is fun, although I've never seen it.

Arguably the most brilliant philosopher of them all.

The Invisible Man

Moon River -- Andy Williams

I was wondering about the cutout as well.

Geekfreak, which operas do you prefer?

Virginia is a gorgeous name.

Lovecraft is a fine author, but he hasn't been left off the radar these days, at least not in the States. He has a dedicated following. I've read two of his works, including "At the Mountains of Madness," which I enjoyed.

My appetite just disappeared

Thanks for posting, STZ

Led Zep III

There is a school of thought which maintains that most people have a latent ESP capability, but that most of us either won't or can't tap into it further.

I really just meant that I was too young to understand some of the band's nuances, mysteries and dichotomies.

I know these sensory deprivation tanks were very popular at one point and many people were using them. I would try one if given the opportunity. However, when I see the subject mentioned, I initially always get a creepy feeling because it reminds me of the torture/interrogation scene in one of Tom Clancy's books (the Cardinal of the Kremlin?) where a super-sophisticated sensory deprivation water chamber is used by the KGB to extract information from a perceived enemy of the state. Clancy's description of the chamber and of the victim's ordeal is harrowing and anyone who reads it will never again view sensory deprivation tanks in quite the same way.

I saw Zoso live last summer near my home, and I largely agree with Ddlladner's assessment. What I'm still waiting to see, though, is a tribute band who can faithfully recreate one of Zep's live performances complete with improv's, etc. When I saw Zoso, they largely played the album versions of the songs note for note