In the Land of the Kickass Womenfolk
Posted on June 28, 2009 Posted by John Scalzi 36 Comments
It was time for Athena’s bullwhip lesson. Why did Athena need a lesson in how to wield a bullwhip? I’m sorry, I don’t understand the question there. As it turns out, Athena’s pretty good with a whip, as is her mother, and our friend Yanni, the woman administering the tutorial above. Kodi is not very good with the bullwhip, alas; something about a lack of opposable thumbs. But it turns out she has a range on other weapons to employ, so don’t you worry about her. She’s fine.
How has your Sunday been?
(Obligatory Devo reference.)
Just chilling, reading the last of the Hugo nominees before casting my ballot, doing laundry. A pretty lazy Sunday.
It’s a beautiful, sunny day here on Canada’s west coast. Not much planned for today, I like it that way on Sunday.
Bullwhip lessons FTW! If I wasn’t sure I’d pull an Indy and smack myself in the face with one, I’d give it a go. One more l33t skill on the way to becoming the kewlest children’s librarian EVAR.
Sunny here, 83 degrees, and the bonsai need watering.
Wasn’t there a 50s or 60s TV Western featuring a character with a whip rather than a gun? Or am I making that up?
It’s a gorgeous (if slightly too hot) day outside. Too bad I’m stuck inside cleaning out my room.
-kat
Was the bullwhip made from kangaroo hide?
It’s finally sunny here, so I went and picked strawberries, and then bought a whole bunch more fruit at the farmer’s market. Mmm, summer.
Crashing out watching glastonbury on the intertubes after knackering myself out on a bouncy castle at a 3-year-old’s brithday party.
Good day.
Another fun Sunday down here…slept late, cleaning the bathroom & bedrooms & doing laundry. Little bit of reading coming up.
Really too hot at 94F with a heat index of 100F to even walk across the street to the complex’s pool. Besides, thunderstorms are brewing for the next couple of hours, clouds will be here shortly.
aha! Now that might keep the drug dealers away when I walk the dog…..
Next they practiced Thrashing Baby Attack!
Today is pretty quiet. I spent yesterday in the mud with a bunch of people dressed up like fairies, though. That was fun.
Well Billy Mays Died, so…
The trick to bullwhip practice is to get a full face shield and wear long sleeves and jeans. Things have a tendency to come back and bite you if you don’t flick them right.
Wish I knew what box my bullwhip is in — always good for demonstrating sonic booms.
Dr. Phil
I took my two nieces to the bookstore. One is mad about vampires the other one likes princesses. Both found books they liked, as did I.
Excellent! My dad taught me how to crack a bullwhip at around Athena’s age, too. It was fun then (I loved Indiana Jones movies) and fun in later life – people really don’t know what to make of a girl who can crack a whip!
Well, make sure they have revolvers as well…for when the big guy dressed in black and wielding the sword comes up, they’re feeling like hell from being sick, and they just don’t have time for this crap. :-)
House-sitting for friends, doing loads of laundry (fabrics & clothing in mice-infested storage – long story), and watching Free Showtime Preview weekend. Currently watching ‘Stardust’ – lovely movie, made from Neil Gaiman’s lovely book.
Not as exciting as your weekend, but they have 3 lovely dogs, so I get my doggie fix. And their dogs and my cat get along fine. When she’s here, she’s the boss, even though she only weighs 7 lbs, and they’re all big dogs.
#4 Linkmeister: You’re not having heat hallucinations..it was “Lash Larou” (sp??) in the 50s TV genre. (It is terrible having a velcro memory…)
Nice and warm here. My wife took our daughter to a baby shower, and my son and I have been hanging out and relaxing, playing Wii and other stuff. Transformer 2 tonight with my brothers, and more blogging will be committed.
Oh, Scalzi, you have no idea of the horrors ahead of you. Not very far ahead of you now, either.
On your daughter’s twelfth birthday, you will be visited by a number of mysterious men and presented with your very own Father’s Pre-Dating Shotgun. And on her fourteenth birthday, the same men will come back with special rock-salt-filled ammunition for said shotgun.
You will then be required to carry that weapon to the front door when her dates roll up. Of course, her dates might be rather — creatively — dressed if she makes that bullwhip skill known around school…
Bullwhip lessons are a very good idea. If you don’t know how to crack one of those things appropriately you can get hurt. I mean, at least, that’s what I heard.
“Why did Athena need a lesson in how to wield a bullwhip?”
Why would Athena not need a lesson in how to wield a bullwhip?
The real question is who’s the baby on Krissy’s hip, and when is her bullwhip lesson scheduled for?
(I also note that Krissy hasn’t lost the whole bent-knee baby-balance weight shift thing. I think that must be like riding a bike.)
I love the picture (it’s inspired me to comment for the first time).
The sky is such a pretty blue, and the grass is beautifully green…and the women look so relaxed after successfully invading Teletubby Land to rescue that poor baby in the sun…
J Elaine @ #19, Thank you. According to this bio LaRue was a movie actor who had roles on several Western TV series (Judge Roy Bean!) but never headlined a show himself.
Linkmeister — there also was an Australian western(?) called Whiplash that was broadcast in the US in 1961.
(obviously later in Canada)
I went to the Pittsburgh Zoo (and PPG Aquarium) with an old friend.
I am so jealous. I spent the day at a baby shower followed by hanging out with some cool people and being smothered with kisses by two precious Keeshonds. That’s great and all, but it would have been a thousand times better if I’d also gotten a bullwhip lesson.
Sunday here has been rather nice, what with putting in our offer on the quintessential Vermont farmhouse and all. Fingers crossed.
No bullwhips, though. Bullwhips are optional. Blood, of course, remains compulsory.
I loved learning to throw a whip. So much fun. I’m glad to see them wearing glasses, and I recommend adding a hat as part of the protective gear.
You actually have an awesome western arts/whip expert living not that far from you. http://www.gldenterprises.net/home1.html
I love how Krissy is standing on top of the hill with the baby and there is absolutely no doubt that she could take you down while holding the infant and without endangering it.
Ditto what Mary said. That was my first thought. She’s the woman I’d want in my Oregon Trail caravan.
Yes, “Why does Athena need bullwhip lessons?” is really an impossible question. If you are the sort of person who’d ask it you are also the sort of person who is incapable of understanding the answer (which is, I think, “Durr. Bullwhips! Hello!??!?!”)
And I spent my Sunday recovering from running the Double Dipsea trail race on Saturday. A couple more days and I think I’ll be able to walk down stairs without wincing.
I spent my Sunday wearing mostly sunscreen and green body paint. I told people I was fulfilling a lifelong dream of being a green Orion slave girl, but actually I was part of a ‘human rainbow’ for Pride weekend. All six of us had a great time. So did most of the onlookers, based on the observed reaction. Except for the bus driver, who did not want to let us on the bus. And we had even brought dropcloths. Geez.
Are not most females naturally good at cracking the whip? I know my wife is…
Very cool information. Thanks for this. Keep up the good work.