When Recycling Fashions Isn't Enough

Sandi Griffin is oh-so-not pleased to present us with America Recycles Day. We must view her at a distance for she will smash us with that garbage can lid if we get too close. And can you believe it, I found not one, not two, but three Daria fanfics in which recycling is a major topic! Miracles never cease.

The magnificent Guy "Decelaraptor" Payne was born this day 54 years ago. He passed away last March, but he will long be remembered in our fandom for his touching and hilarious stories, and his humor and warmth on the message boards. The link above goes to his DariaWiki page, which further links to his online story collections. He was a master of the reinvention fanfic, of emotional realism, and of the unexpected twist.

What are your favorite Decelaraptor stories? Mine would be "Home Is the Sailor," "Beneath a Copper Sun," "Kadhimiya," and "A Star in the East Window." And "Daria: 1830," the one where the Morgendorffers have a Donner Party of their own in the Old West. That one is beyond priceless. It always gives me a smile.

Thank you for everything, Guy. You were and still are The Man. Perhaps November 15th should hereafter be Decelaraptor Day in your memory. You gave us such wonderful memories of our own.

Kn00Z

• Alter Egos That Should Have Been: a thread to spark your artistic streak!
• Since the start of November, the New Ideas thread in PPMB's Creative Writing has really moved along. See if anything appeals to the writing monster inside you.
  

PPMB

• NEW! Daria: Hunter—The Love Triangle, by Jim North (continued): "Oh, oh no, baby!" Jeffy said, putting his hand on Quinn's face just below her bruise. "No, no, I don't want to hurt you. I'm sorry about punching you, I swear I didn't mean to, I just got a little carried away. It won't happen again, I promise. I don't want to hurt you..."
• NEW! Finn Morgendorffer 14: Going Medieval, by HolyGrail2007 (COMPLETE!): “Now, this class lecture is going to be about issues that come up for sensitive, struggling teenage boys,” said Mr. O’Neill. “Because these issues can often be... well... a little yucky, we’ve separated the girls so that you can speak openly without being judged.”
  
• Hell on Wheels, by Roxanne M (Part 6): Angier spoke up. "Son, your mother and I were discussing this. We like Daria, and don’t get us wrong, but are you sure she is the girl for you? A proper young lady would not be crawling around bars in the worse part of town, let alone getting shot." Tom was pulled out his exhaustion by a spike of anger. He glared at them and said, “What are you getting at?” It was his mothers turn to speak. “If the media finds out that she is connected to us, it would cast a bad light upon you, this family and your father's firm. His clients do not like that kind of notoriety.”
  

American Venus

This is quite the party day for film buffs. We start with showgirl, dancer, writer, fashion model, and movie actress Louise Brooks (at left), born 103 years ago. She was at one time amazingly famous and still has fan clubs. The MTV artists did an alter ego of Ms. Li as Ms. Brooks, in black and white like her many movies. (American Venus was one such film.)

The choice of model for the alter ego confounds me, as one alert superfan (Scissors) has pointed out that Jane Lane looks a heck of a lot more like Ms. Brooks than does Ms. Li. Well, whatever. The image of Ms. Li at right (thanks, Pinhead!) can be blown up to almost pin-up size by clicking on it, if you think you won't be visually or emotionally damaged by doing so.

Ms. Brooks, by the way, gave us the bobbed hairstyle. She made it popular, anyway, so Ms. Li and Jane Lane both owe her a debt. A quote from Ms. Brooks: Most beautiful dumb girls think they are smart and get away with it, because other people, on the whole, aren't much smarter.

We also honor the birthday anniversary of actress Veronica Lake, whose peekaboo hairstyle is so well and so often used by Sandi Griffin.

The dwarf planet Sedna was discovered six years ago today. It was mentioned only once in Daria fanfic, and then only in passing. A shame.

Last, but not at all least, Mrs. Johanssen probably knows that today is World Diabetes Day, which is something for us all to think about. Watch the sugar.

Looking for something to do while the MBs are offline? See what's new at DariaWiki. Maybe add a new page of your own. Couldn't hurt.

Nuuz Plash! PPMB & SFMB ARE BACK! HOORAY!

And now for the fanfics.

PPMB

• Daria: Hunter--The Love Triangle, Jim North (continued): "Ready?" Quinn asked once they'd taken a few moments to soak in the ambiance. "Almost!" Stacy said cheerfully as she slipped on a pair of wide-lens glasses.
• Finn Morgendorffer 14: Going Medieval, by HolyGrail2007 (Parts 1 and 2): “So the school is throwing a Renaissance Faire?” Finn wondered to his friends at the lunch table. The news had been delivered just before lunch. “Yeah. Doesn’t it sound stupid?” Jamie stated. Finn agreed. He had never been to one of those before, but it involved wearing those dreadful outfits in a time where people didn’t bathe very often. What could be so fascinating about that, aside from the primal, visceral pleasure of eating meat on a bone?
• Reusably Complex, by Ajar (Part 7): "Consider if you will one Quinn Morgendorffer. A girl whose concern doesn't go far beyond the neatness of her hair, the painting of her face and the style of her clothing. This is a girl who has lived a charmed but empty life of popularity, boys, and diet soda. However, she's going to have to relive the memory of when her almost sister ruined it all in... The Twilight Zone."
• Unnamed story, by Trscroggs (Part 1): If our hypothetical observer was capable of seeing more clearly through the fog, the would have been able to see that the shape was not running to something, but rather running from a much smaller shape. A hypothetical male observer might have stuck around long enough to try to see the pursuing figure before retreating. Anyone from outside of Lawndale would have described the pursuing figure as a teenage girl wearing a stylized Chinese-style dress far too skimpy and short to be decent. Anyone from Lawndale would have called the pursuing girl a magical girl.
  

Oh, the Horror, the Horror!

PPMB and SFMB are both down, so if you want to chat about anything, you may do so here in Comments. Have at it. I'll ramble on about nothing, after I get back from going out, and maybe the other guys who can post here will do so too, if they know what's good for them.

That Awesome Awful Day Is Back!

It's Friday the 13th, as per a certain Holiday Island story, and this blogger has picked two pictures off the Internet to show what his conception of the ultra-dangerous Holiday Island teen known as Friday the 13th looks like (when she doesn't have her skull face on, that is). I had thought she looked like Neil Gaiman's Death, but Death smiles too much and doesn't look evil, cold, and frightening. See if these two images do it for you. (They've been slightly modified with the author's limited computer-art artistic skills.) Ignore the crosses and so forth, and instead replace them with a gold necklace with a small 13 dangling from it. These two look most like my mind's eye image of Friday the 13th. Not perfect (thicker hair with no highlights, just sheer featureless black), but close enough. Enjoy.

BTW, can you think of a song that would be Daria's theme song?

PPMB

• Anti-Trope 2, by Pinkminx (Part 2): “I don’t care if you’re trying your best; we need to start winning games.” Ms. Li's eyes narrowed on the school’s football coach, Mr. Gibson. “The P.T.A. is getting suspicious of the distribution of school funds; some are even questioning why the football team is getting new uniforms and equipment.” “Well, the uniforms from last year—” “Are you questioning my distribution of the schools monies?”
• Daria: Hunter—The Love Triangle, by Jim North (Part 1): "Yes, Daria," Quinn said into her commlink, "I swear I read it! I know you still think of me as an illiterate bubblehead, but come on. I write for a living now.... There's no need to get all snippy, Daria. I'll have you know that some of the articles I write are very long."
• The New Girl, by JPAGC (COMPLETE!): Daria walked in the corridors of Stanford University, her boots making a resonant sound down the almost empty corridor, while she enjoyed the calm of the early morning hours and thrived on the ambiance of science that seemed to emanate everywhere....
  
• Stacy Rowe, Seeker (Part III), by jtranser (continued): Dirty grey clouds of cottony smoke erupted from the rusty grimy steam locomotive as it shuddered to an arthritic stop. Stepping out from the triple canopy forest facing the station were a number of K'eckchi and K'iche Maya who converged on the passenger car and rapidly loaded the baggage on their backs and heads. All were dressed in identical black felt jackets, embroidered with the symbolic red keys and dragon of the modern Avignon Papacy and fringed with blue and white strips of yarn....
  
• Two Halves 5: Mall Rat Blues, by Dark Kuno (continued): “So my mom was, like, ‘No more shopping until you bring your grades up young lady’,” complained Quinn as she and the other Fashion Club members strolled down the halls of Lawndale High. “That’s… sooooo unfair,” drawled Tiffany. “I know,” Quinn agreed. “It’s like she expects me to be a brain like Daria and Lex.”
  
• Unnamed story (Iron Chef: Tooth and Nail), by Richard Lobinske (COMPLETE!): "Hey, Mack, can I carry your books?" "Hey, Mack, can I carry your... pencil?" "Hey, Mack, can I carry your, uh, um... got anything else?"

A Pizza Holiday for Daria Fandom!

It's National Pizza with Everything (except Anchovies) Day! Trufen of Our Awesome Heroine, Jane Lane, you know what to do. Even Daria would approve.

One hundred sixty-nine years ago, the greatest sculptor of the modern age, Auguste Rodin, was born. One of his most famous works was parodied in the final Daria movie, Is It College Yet? (It was the gorilla statue Daria was given as an award, posed in the manner of The Thinker.) Rodin has something to do with a certain fanfic, too. Great role model for Jane. For art, I mean, not for his personal life, which was whacked out.

Princess Grace of Monaco was also born this day in history, 80 years ago, but she is mentioned here only because her birthday appears on the Sick Sad Life Planner DVD with a relevant quote from Brittany, who is clearly not well versed in royalty issues.

NuuuZ!

• Pinhead has posted two quite interesting views of Daria, if she had continued to wear the clothing she did while living in Highland (a la Beavis and Butt-head). Weird. Kinda makes you think. The black-and-red outfit works better than the yellow one, I must admit, but the green-and-black was better. Daria's an "Autumn" and pulls off the latter very well.
  
• The great and wonderful Anne D. Bernstein has more artwork to display.

Stay tooned 4 moar. Still early yet.

Always Remember, Never Forget

Call it Veterans Day (USA), Armistice Day (Belgium, France, New Zealand), or Remembrance Day (UK, Australia, Canada, and other Commonwealth of Nations countries), this day was set aside to honor those who honorably served their countries in wartime. The day was also mean to celebrate the end of the War to End All Wars, which sadly did nothing of the kind. World War I ended on the eleventh day of the eleventh month, at 11:00 a.m. Central European Time (six hours ahead of Eastern Standard Time, one hour ahead of London time).

Brother Grimace wrote a great fanfic about this day: "The One Day We Forget." Nemo Blank wrote a story in which the Holiday Island spirit of Veterans Day, Joe, got to meet Quinn Morgendorffer ("Crossover"). The no-nonsense ROTC student known as Veterans Day (from Holiday Island High, of course) appeared on Daria in "Depth Takes a Holiday."

Today's most significant birthday anniversary, given the above, is that of General George S. Patton, Jr., to whom Mack pays homage at right. Mack imitates the opening scene from the 1970 movie Patton, in which the general (magnificently played by George C. Scott, at left) gives a stirring speech to American soldiers before D-Day. This occurred during the even bigger world war that followed the War to End All Wars. The movie Patton is mentioned in a few fanfics, including several chapters of the All My Children series.

General Patton believed he had been reincarnated from the souls of soldiers across history. Kevin Thompson believes something like that, too.

Other Major Daria-related Historical Events Today: Actor Leonardo DiCaprio, who was confused with Romeo by Sandi Griffin and Stacy Rowe thanks to the part he played in the movie Romeo and Juliet, turns 35. (Mr. DiCaprio is also mentioned in "The Lost Girls," and his role in Titanic reappears in "Just Add Water," handled by Mr. O'Neill.) Author Kurt Vonnegut, whose novel Breakfast of Champions is mentioned on Mr. O'Neill's blackboard in "Write Where It Hurts," was born 87 years ago. Fyodor Dostoevsky, whose novels Amy Barksdale almost certainly read as a teenager ("You spent the whole time barricaded in your room, reading those weird Russian novels!"), was born 186 years ago. U.S. Route 66, the famous transcontinental two-lane highway from Chicago to Los Angeles (the star of its own TV series almost five decades ago, and the only highway with its own theme song), turns 83 today. It has a role in this recent fanfic.

teh KNOOZ

• Anne D. Bernstein, the original Jane Lane, shows off some new artwork. I think I can guess who drew all of Jane's artwork from the series. (Relevant webpage here.) All I can say is, when I put my foot in my mouth, I really put my foot in my mouth. Sorry!
  
• "Daria: Hunter" character sketches have been posted on PPMB by Jim North and Pinhead. Win!

FF.net

• NEW! Sinspiration, by Vlora (COMPLETE!): The radio finally began to make the same tinny sounds of a station rather than white noise. "-and after the ad break we'll have an exclusive interview with the lead guitarist and vocalist of the new, the hot, the amazing Mystik Spiral." [The Daria/Trent shipper HAS RETURNED!]
  

PPMB

• ___ Daria, by Trscroggs (COMPLETE but can be expanded!): Daria Morgendorffer, Raft sophomore, pushed her book cart through the empty stacks on Raft’s largest library after-hours. The part-time librarian job was less than ideal, but since it was a relatively easy way to get spending cash Daria worked hard enough to insure she kept it. The job did have a few upsides. One was the keys, and permission, to head into parts of the stacks only dedicated researchers ever treed. Daria admitted she like the idea of the thought of hidden treasures within the faded brown and dull red covers of the library’s oldest general circulation tomes. It during one of these ‘treasure hunts’ that Daria stumbled across a treasure worth far more than words. [Daria/Cardcaptor Sakura]
• NEW! Falling into College 71: Merging Goals, by Richard Lobinske (Part 3): "Purchase Morgendorffer Consulting? Purchase Morgendorffer Consulting? Purchase Morgendorffer Consulting?"
  
• Finn Morgendorffer 13: Desperate Teenage Boys, by HolyGrail2007 (COMPLETE!): Finn walked down the road quietly, completely weirded out by all of the strange occurrences that happened today. He had gone to all three of his best friends’s houses to stay the night, and found himself leaving within a few hours at each of them. And I thought I had it bad, he thought.
• NEW! Invisible Love, by Charliefox2012 (Part 8): “So, no more passengers?” Trent asked, sounding slightly impatient. Jane looked at Trent sternly. “What’s your deal? It’s not like I pulled you away from anything important.” “I was practicing,” Trent muttered. “Uh-huh,” Jane said and turned to Duncan in the back seat. Smirking, she said, “Duncan, would you say sleeping with a guitar in your hands counts as practicing?” (FF.net)
  
• NEW! Sweet Dreams, by Vlademir1 (COMPLETE!): Sandi Griffin watched, smugly satisfied, as her best friend Stacy Rowe rushed around doing her bidding. For reasons she couldn't really explain she got a huge rush having the kind of power she did, and controlling Stacy in particular was even more of a total rush.
  
• Unnamed story (Iron Chef: Tooth and Nail), by Jim North (COMPLETE!): "Oh, well," he finally said into the empty room. "At least there's one person who will always love me."
• NEW! Unnamed story (Iron Chef: Tooth and Nail), by Jim North (COMPLETE!): "Oh, baby..." Mack whispered softly as he beheld the awesome sight before him. Gently, ever so gently, he ran his fingertips along the side of the cool shaft. "You like that?" he breathed. "Yah, you like that, don'tcha? Feels real nice when I do that..."
  
• Unnamed story (Iron Chef: Tooth and Nail), by Ticknart (COMPLETE!): "Mack," said Mr. O'Neill, "what are you doing here?" Michael looked up and said, "Nothing. Just relaxing before class." "So you'll be in here until class starts?" "If it's okay with you?" "Of course," said Mr. O'Neill, smiling. "I'll be right back." [STOP READING NOW BEFORE YOU GO BLIND!]
  

Can You Tell Me How to Get, How to Get to...

This day is the 40th anniversary of the premiere of Sesame Street, and the 234th anniversary of the birth of the U.S. Marine Corps. Pinhead the Great produced the giant-sized images (click on them) used for this day. I think Daria is wearing part of Grover's outfit. Not difficult to guess her opinion of it. And Upchuck... not sure if he's supposed to be Rambo or some other action hero. What does he think of it? Ah, well.

And a brief note from the Sick, Sad Life Planner:

Unchain Your Inner Techno-Nerd!

In Europe, this is Inventor's Day in honor of the techno-nerd lurking inside us all. The day was so proclaimed because it was the birth date of an extremely creative actress. In the U.S. this is World Freedom Day, commemorating the fall of the Berlin Wall (20 years ago today). Thanks to Pinhead, again, for the marvelous alter ego.

Richard Lobinske has once again updated the most excellent 2009 Daria Visual Fanworks Listing. Thank you! And Pinhead once again freaks out the fan base with a mind-blasting "small joke." AND a series of Daria/Watchmen sketches have been posted by thatLONERchick.

FF.net

• Sinspiration, by Vlora (Parts 25 and 26): "Can I ask you something?" Daria preemptively hummed under her breath, her eyes focused on the end of Trent’s bed. They had been sitting there for the better part of the day, staring idly at the television that Trent had received from Jesse a few days back. "No." He paused, sensing Daria had taken him seriously. "I was kidding, ask away," he laughed. The girl turned a bemused look toward him before he sighed out a small apology. "What’re we going to do when I head off to Raft?"
  

PPMB

• Anti-Trope 2, by Pinkminx (Part 1): “You know, I hear that Quinn’s brother has been in a mental hospital, and he escaped,” Joey said. “Well, I heard he’s been locked up in the attic since he was born and the only reason he’s allowed out is because the neighbors saw him when they were moving in,” Jamie added. “You’re both wrong. I heard he was in a military academy, and he got expelled for starting a riot. They say five kids died that day,” Jeffy said in a grave tone.
  
• NEW! Daria: Hunter—Suited for Crime, by Jim North (COMPLETE!): Tom fidgeted with his rumpled collar. "You two haven't... talked to anybody about yesterday's events yet, have you?" Jane's frown matched Daria's. "Only the police," she said. "For six hours. What the hell is going on here, Tom?" Tom sighed and rubbed his face. "Okay," he said. "Okay. I don't know everything, but I've been able to figure out some of it. It seems that shortly after you guys left the station last night, DENA showed up." "DENA?" Jane asked in mild consternation. "The Department of Extra-Normal Affairs? Those nuts who try to protect us from little green men that don't exist?" (FF.net)
  
• Finn Morgendorffer 12: Carnivore (COMPLETE!): “We’re just looking at raw footage right now.” Daria informed. Jane had the remote, so she rewound it and played a little of it for Helen. In particular, the part where Stacy was crying at Mack’s party, and Finn’s subsequent freak out. “Oh my.” Helen seemed astounded by her son’s behavior, though Daria knew it wasn’t because of shock. She knew just how callous Finn could be.
• NEW! Finn Morgendorffer 13: Desperate Teenage Boys, by HolyGrail2007 (Part 1): “What about Grove Hills?” Finn asked as he took his seat at the table. Finn knew the name of the school: It was some prep school where they sent a bunch of geeks to be caged like the beasts they were. “Daria’s been invited to tour the campus,” his mother explained. “Oh.” Finn played it cool. If Daria went to school there, she’d be living in the dorms there. She’d no longer be at Lawndale High, or in the house. He’d be free of her influence once and for all—but he couldn’t say that out loud. Helen would just yell at him, and Daria would refuse to go, simply to torture Finn.
• NEW! In Silence Sarcastic, by Trscroggs (continued): Standing out by herself in the back yard was Daria Morgendorffer, but not the one Jodie had grown used to seeing in class the last few days. This Daria was not wearing the bulky jacket and green skirt that marked the mute girl at school. Instead this Daria was wearing a snug t-shirt and shorts that Jodie knew would get even a cheerleader sent to the office to change. This Daria’s shirt was soaked through with sweat. She spun a wooden stick through complicated patterns occasionally interrupted by a vicious elbowing or kick.
  
• Othello, by Dennis (COMPLETE!): Stacy Rowe was finally happy. It was the first week of her junior year, and she was finally blossoming. One of the hottest guys in the school was interested in her. And not as a consolation date after going out with Quinn or Sandi. Her reflection smiled back at her in her bedroom mirror. No, Mack Mackenzie had finally broken up with Jodie and asked her, Stacy Rowe, on a date.
• Rainbow Disconnection, by Disco316 (Part 6): “Would you be dears and bring my books to Ms. Barch’s classroom?” asked Quinn. “There’s a book for each of you.” The three boys thanked Quinn and started to fight over who would end up with Quinn’s binder over her two textbooks. Quinn knew that they wouldn’t think twice about it, since Ms. Barch had said that having the three of them subservient to a woman was sufficient enough reason to cut them some slack… for now.
• Scarlett the Fairy and the Halloween Party, by Aloysius (COMPLETE!): Yes, it was that time of year when children and adults alike celebrate by putting on costumes more outlandish than anything a cosplayer could even think of. Or would want to. No, it wasn’t Let’s Make a Deal. It was Halloween, and in Lawndale, everyone was in the spirit.
• NEW! Unnamed story (Iron Chef: Innocent Bystanders Screw It Up Again!), by Project Pegasus (COMPLETE!): "Ummm . . . Did Ms. Li finally decide to burn the school down for the insurance money?"
  
• Unnamed story (Iron Chef: Tooth and Nail), by Kristen Bealer (COMPLETE!): As Sandi tackled Quinn, knocking them both into the Brittany-Andrea catfight nearby, Mack finally had enough. Stepping on top of a table, he held his hands up and shouted, "Excuse me!"
• Unnamed story (Iron Chef: Tooth and Nail), by Richard Lobinske (COMPLETE!): "You snooze, you lose."
• Unnamed story (Iron Chef: Tooth and Nail), by Roentgen (COMPLETE!): "Ye-e-e-sss? How can I help you, young man?" Helen asked. "Mrs. Morgendorffer, I'm Mack Mackenzie. I'm here to see your daughter."
  

Bram Stoker's Gone with the Inkblot

Three famous people whose writings surface in Daria episodes were born this day in history. They are:

• Bram Stoker, horror writer, who shamelessly plagiarized Sandi Griffin's Dracula from "Aunt Nauseam";
  
• Hermann Rorschach, psychologist-superhero and inventor of the Rorschach test, which Daria flunked in two different episodes ("Esteemsters" and "Boxing Daria"); and
• Margaret Mitchell, who wrote a novel about wind that was made into a movie that Daria and Quinn watched for sisterly bonding purposes in "Aunt Nauseam."

All of the above died before they could see their works parodied on Daria. A shame, but probably for the best.

What next... I still think the inkblot above looks like a Balrog crying because he dropped his Valentines. Angst, oh the angst. And now... moar gnuz!

• New PPMB Iron Chef: Innocent Bystanders Screw It Up Again!
• And another Iron Chef: Tooth and Nail!
• A new fanfic, "Lawndale Tokyo," is coming soon from Vlademir1. Stay tooned.
• And Sick, Sad World has updated again! Hooray for Wraith! Wow, I missed a lot of updates there. Sorry!
• NEW! The Daria Fan Club is up to 1,477 members, and a lot of new content is being added. I anticipate that as we get closer to the release of the official Daria DVD set, interest in Daria will rise. Hope it stays at a sustainable level afterward.
  

PPMB

• Daria: Hunter, by Jim North (continued): Daria dove to the right and crouched behind one of these units as Jane laid down suppressing fire from her own spot of cover. After making sure Daria had made it up safely, Jane ducked down and started pointing off to her left. Daria glanced out quickly and saw Taylor, her hands glowing brightly even in the midday sun, wending her way around in an attempt to flank Jane's position.
• Falling Into College 71: Merging Goals, by Richard Lobinske (Part 2): Daria paced back and forth in her apartment and grumbled, "Why didn't I just go ahead and do it instead of having Mom to ask her to officiate at the wedding?" "Meow?" Bump said, curled on the sofa and watching her human with bemusement. "Maybe we should've gotten married in Vegas when we had the chance and avoided all of this hassle." "Meow." "After all, what could be more romantic than a ceremony performed by an Elvis impersonator?" "Meow."

Billions and Billions...

Today, you can think big about space, because it's Carl Sagan Day.

Pictured at the right is a model of a Voyager probe, one of the many projects to which Dr. Sagan contributed. Voyager 1 and 2 were famous for carrying the golden record, "Murmurs of Earth" to the stars to tell others about humans and how to find us. Artie doesn't think this was a good idea.

"Cosmos" was Dr. Sagan's groundbreaking television series and something still worth watching decades later. He was a founder of The Planetary Society. Among his books was the Pulitzer-Prize winning treatise against psuedo-science, "The Demon Haunted World," where he introduced his Baloney Detection Kit. Something I think Daria would put to good use.

So, take a look at the sky tonight and try to think of what words of wisdom Daria would've wanted recorded on Voyager's record. I think it would probably be something like, "Even we can't listen to these things anymore, how does anyone expect you to listen to it?"

"Is that thing radioactive?" "Isotope so!"

Today is the 142nd anniversary of the birth of Marie Curie, who studied radioactivity but wasn't as careful with her samples as she should have been. DON'T TRY TO FIND OUT IF RADIATION HAS A TASTE! DON'T CARRY RADIOACTIVE ITEMS IN YOUR POCKETS! That should do it. (Thanks to the almighty Pinhead for the image.)

Albert Camus would be 96 today had he not died in order to avoid seeing himself mentioned in "Quinn the Brain":

Quinn: By the way, do you know what existential means? Because today someone told me my writing was existential, so I thought I should coordinate, you know, with wardrobe.
Daria: Yeah, that's what Camus would have done. For your purposes, existential means "pseudo-intellectual poser with accessories from the street fair."

Camus was also mentioned in a Daria essay by Guy Wheatley. Good show.

Engineers celebrate this day for its value in teaching us about bridge building (as in, how not to). Love that video!

And you should know that this is an important date in a fanfic in which Jake Morgendorffer and Amy Barksdale conduct a torrid secret sexual affair that causes Daria to have brain damage. So, Amy likes his "fortitude," is that it? Yeah, right.

ART GNUZ

• In almost no time at all, Jim North produced a superb rendering of Albino Quinn from "In Silence Sarcastic." Click to the pic and tell him he is an awesome dude.
• NEW! Pinhead's "Strange Dream." 'Nuff said!
  

PPMB

• Anti-Trope, by Pinkminx (Part 6): “Self-esteem is important because..." Mr. O’Neill read the first question tentatively and glanced up at Dean. “It's a quality that will stand us in good stead the rest of our lives.” Dean replied in perfect monotone. (FF.net)
• Apocalyptic Daria: Scarlett's Tale, by Doggieboy (Part 14): Within fifteen minutes of starting their walk, Scarlett and Roger lost sight of the church or anyplace remotely familiar. The teen stopped briefly, looked back, then turned around and walked on ahead. (SFMB)
  
• Chances, by Coonassblondie (Parts 3 and 4): “So Jesse gave you his jacket, huh? Guess he’s pretty serious,” Trent said as he turned toward his sister as they sat at a traffic light, smiling softly at her. “To tell the truth, Trent, I don’t really know. I don’t know that much about him. Until tonight, I wasn’t aware he could form coherent sentences.” Trent only laughed in response, ending in his hacking cough. “Guess you learn something new every day, huh?”
  
• Finn Morgendorffer 12: Carnivore, by HolyGrail2007 (Part 2): “You owe me big for waking me up at 9 AM.” Jane’s eyes were bleary and tired looking. “You get up earlier to go to school.” Daria reminded. “The keyword for that is school.” Jane returned. “And the keyword in your earlier speech is AM. It’s a sin to wake a Lane before lunch.”
• In Silence Sarcastic, by Trscroggs (continued): Wednesday afternoon, three days after the Morgendorffer move was official, Quinn gingerly stepped out onto her back porch. While she would never admit it, Quinn was silently glad that the bulk of the house blocked light from the descending sun. Regardless, her prescription sunglasses were firmly in place as she looked out over the back yard. Standing in the middle of the yard Daria swung a bokken through a complicated weapon kata. Coming to a stop, Daria looked over at her sister.
• Iron Chef: Daria is Raven's Apprentice, by Project Pegasus (continued): "You're going home to visit your demon family for the holidays, aren't you?" "Maybe." "Let me go too! It'll be fun!" "No! I'm going alone. It'll literally be Hell enough going down there by myself." [Thanksgiving comes....]
  
• Regifted, by Ajar (Part 22): “Calm down, Stacy,” Quinn said. “We're almost to the bathroom. No one will even know that we're going to see that blemish.” “Blemish?” Stacy was confused. “What blemish?” “You know, the thing we're seeing in the bathroom.” “Ohh... that blemish.”
• NEW! Unnamed story (S-crap-s), by Raskolnikov (COMPLETE!): —Daria? What are you doing in my dream? —Excuse me? What are you doing in MY dream?
  

Let's Celebrate National Nachos Day!

Various Internet sources inform us that today is National Nachos Day. It is a fact that Daria is not known in canon to eat nachos, though her very close and special friends Beavis and Butt-head ate them constantly. Above is their recipe for Nuclear Nachos from one of their books. (Click on the image to enlarge it.) These guys sure know how to have a good time.

I just received news that two long-time webrings, the Daria Webring and the Other Daria Webring, have been merged into one. If you have a Daria site and would like to join, please do.

Lynn Cullen = Guy Fawkes? Bollocks!

Curiously enough, Canadibrit's Lynn Cullen, Daria's half-sister, happens to have been born on the day of Bonfire Night, better (but incorrectly) known to Daria fans as Guy Fawkes Day. We don't have Lynn's birth year, but we do have her fanfic in The Look-Alike Series (TLAS). Her birth date was announced, among other places, here. Loads of pictures of the occasionally violent Ms. Cullen can be found here. The Daria character called Guy Fawkes Day, from Holiday Island High, is a classic late-1970s or early 1980s English punk rocker, per the Sex Pistols. The original Guy Fawkes was not a punk rocker. A Daria fanfic was written making use of the Guy Fawkes meme ("Remember, Remember").

Was making Lynn Cullen's birthday on Guy Fawkes Night some kind of message? Given Ms. Cullen's behavior, possibly so.

Oh, and don't mistake the fandom's Lynn Cullen for the real-life talk-show host. They aren't the same person. Duh.


Odd. I just noticed that the Facebook Daria fan site has almost a quarter of a million members! Where the heck did they come from? Why aren't they at PPMB, for crying out loud?

NEW! The Ringbearers "Skippy" list has been revived!

What else is up... oh, right.

PPMB

• Anti-Trope, by Pinkminx (Part 5): As Dean listened to the teacher talk, his brow furrowed. The teacher wasn’t making any sense. "Realizing your actuality"—what the hell was that supposed to mean?
• Behind the Mystik, by Kristen Bealer (COMPLETE!): Narrator: "And now back to VH1's Behind the Music with Mystik Spiral."
  
• Finn Morgendorffer 12: Carnivore, by HolyGrail2007 (Part 1): “Oh, Finn, there you are!” Jake called when he noticed the truant boy in the doorway. “Hi, Dad,” Finn smiled. “What’s on the tapes?” “Old home movies!” Jake eagerly exclaimed. “I get to relive all the wonderful memories of you kids' childhood!”
• NEW! ill, by Jim North (COMPLETE!): Knuckles knocked. Door opened. Jane stood on the other side, looking concerned and wringing her hands on a small can. "I came as soon as I heard," she said. (FF.net)
  
• In Silence Sarcastic, by Trscroggs (continued): “So both the Morgendorffer children are a little odd,” said Jane. “Did that have anything to do with you taking on the football team?”
• Unnamed songfic, by Respite (COMPLETE!): "My name is... Jane-Zula. The art-rula, The highschoolah..." [Daria/Aqua Teen Hunger Force]
  

Birthday Girls

According to a certain popular fanfic, today is Daria Morgendorffer's 27th birthday! Thanks to Austin Covello for that date and the story.

In the real world, actress Wendy Hoopes (at right, a.k.a. Jane Lane, Helen Morgendorffer, and Quinn Morgendorffer) turns 37. Here is Ms. Hoopes as Jane, here she is as Quinn, and here as Helen. Thank you, Ms. Hoopes! You rOoL!!!

Fifteen years ago today, Daria appeared in the Beavis and Butt-head episode, "The Trial." Wonder if it was based on the Kafka novel. Hmmm, apparently not. (Click, copy, save, say no more.) That's Daria laughing in court at something Butt-head said, by the way. The prosecuting attorney is not amused. So this ninth-grader likes courtroom kibitzing? Daria was a heck of a kid, wasn't she? (The interesting images from the episode are displayed here.)

Kristen Bealer has raised the terrifying specter of a Midwest Dariacon 2010! Read and reply!

MDetector5's most excellent Fashion Club art is all the rage on PPMB's art channel. And Pinhead's "small jokes" just keep on rockin'!

Amusing photographs that could be of Quinn's Fashion Police have appeared at PPMB.

JPAGC has started a new Iron Chef based on a single screen capture from "I Loathe a Parade." See what you can do with it.

I was reminded of a great car-lovers' webpage that our own D. T. Dey helped create. It is the best!

PPMB

• Falling into College 71: Merging Goals, by Richard Lobinske (Part 1): "So, since you know him better, are you going to call Mr. Morgendorffer?" "I suppose I should." "What, his wife wouldn't appreciate him getting a call from a stripper?"
• Finn Morgendorffer 11: Man of Honor, by HolyGrail2007 (COMPLETE!): “Finn, you know you aren’t supposed to drink champagne. Alcohol isn’t for the under 21's. Put the glass down,” Helen instructed. “Finn, you don’t have to put it down as long as you’re staying here,” Rita returned. “Rita, Finn’s my son, not yours.” Helen’s eyes narrowed as she regarded her sister. “And I’m sure that makes you proud,” Rita replied.
• In Silence Sarcastic, by Trscroggs (Part 2): “My name is Daria Morgendorffer,” the sheet began. Before Jodie could read the next line Daria held her whiteboard up. “Daria Sunbeam Morgendorffer,” the board said.

• Invisible Love, by Charliefox2012 (Part 7): “Um, is Jane home?” Duncan asked tentatively. Trent only stared at Duncan impassively. After a moment, he sighed. “Yeah. She’s home,” he said and moved back from the doorway to let Duncan in. (FF.net)
  
• Unnamed story (Scenes That Should Be: Brains for Rent), by NightGoblyn (COMPLETE?): Daria sat on her bed and tried to read, but the stifling heat of the room distracted her and ruined her concentration. With a frustrated growl she tossed the book onto the nightstand and walked across the room to open a window. She had already stripped down to cut-off sweat pants and her sports bra, and only the thought of having someone walk in on her prevented her from trying to read in the nude.
  

Sandwich Day!

Let's see what's on the Daria Calendar... today is All Souls Day, and it is Bean Day if you live in North Dakota. (Think about this kid in Holiday Island High. What's he best known for? Right.) It is the 66th birthday of 1988 presidential candidate Michael Dukakis, whose bumper sticker graces the refrigerator of the Morgendorffer home (per The Daria Database). And it is the 52nd anniversary of the launch of Sputnik 2, which put the first dog in space: Laika. Cute little thing.

And it is National Sandwich Day, celebrated because the man for whom the sandwich was named—John Montagu, the 4th Earl of Sandwich—was born this day 291 years ago. An episode of 30 Rock was named for Sandwich Day, and a scene from that show provoked a hunt for the most famous sandwich in that episode. People are weird. The image at upper left is a peanut-butter sandwich drawn by the MTV staff, the same sandwich Jane peeled from Daria's butt in "Road Worrier" (upper left). Those crazy kids.

Y chromosomes? Y not?

Hey! I still post on this blog, too! Where have I been, you ask? Well, I could tell you a story of international intrigue and mortal danger, but then I'd have to kill you. Plus I'd totally be lying.

Anyway, if you've spent any time in the Creative Writing forum at the PPMB lately, you've probably noticed a recent explosion in gender-bender fan-fiction. John Lane has been around for awhile, but now we've got Finn, Dean, and Duncan Morgendorffer joining the party. Honestly, you can hardly breathe in there for the testosterone!

What's the reason for this trend, you ask? (You're just full of questions today, aren't you?) One explanation may be the shortage of decent male characters on the show. Creating a male character from a female one gives authors more options not only in terms of plot development and character traits, but also relationships, be they romantic, platonic, or antagonistic. For example, Daria doesn't have to worry about failing Ms. Barch's science class, but Dean and Duncan might. Quinn has to fend off veiled insults and passive-aggressive jabs from Sandi, but Finn may have to fend off her romantic overtures.

Another reason may be that there are simply more male fanfic writers than female at the moment. After awhile, I would imagine guys get tired of writing from a female perspective and want to try writing from a male point of view. In the wise words of Jake Morgendorffer, "This place could do with a little scratching and sweating now and then."

Of course, HolyGrail2007 has already written excellent first-person fanfics about Tom Sloane and Jeffy, but as mentioned previously, options are more limited for canon males than for canon females. Sometimes, to get a good story, you've just gotta play God with people's DNA.

So, who's next? Joe Landon? Alexander Griffin? Or how about that goth dude, Andrew what's-his-name?

Rah! Rah! Sis Boom Bah!

Cheerleading as an organized sport/activity began 111 years ago today. The first cheerleader was a guy. Wonder what Brittany thinks of that.

"Wraith's Ramblings" rambled into "Lane Miserables" territory nine years ago today. He said it was his favorite episode of the third season and remarked that perhaps Jake is not as clueless as is supposed.

Those familiar with my own ramblings know of my fondness for trying to think up a post-canon series in which certain Daria cast members (and maybe crossover folks) are hired on to fly a giant cargo aircraft around the world, sort of a poor man's Star Trek. The largest flying boat ever built, Howard Hughes' "Spruce Goose," made its only flight 62 years ago today with millionaire movie director, aircraft manufacturer, and test pilot Howard Hughes himself at the controls. The mighty Goose is now housed at the Evergreen Aviation & Space Museum in McMinnville, Oregon.

McMinnville was the site of a famous UFO case, by the way, and now hosts an annual UFO convention to rival those in Roswell, New Mexico. Party town!

Interestingly for Daria fandom, it was 52 years ago today that the Levelland, Texas, UFO event took place. Levelland is near Lubbock, in West Texas, where Highland is thought to be. (Some of my fics place Highland near Lubbock.) You gotta wonder if the Levelland UFO had anything to do with Beavis and Butt-head. I mean, you really gotta wonder. It would explain a lot.

An off-the-cuff remark by Losdia in the PPMB thread on social class and economics has spawned a series of projections by various fans of where the Daria characters are today and how they have fared in the last decade. A lot of fun is being had.

Why isn't MTV doing more to promote the Daria DVD coming out a year from now? Your thoughts, please. I mean, this cartoon hit the big time, seriously. Why no promo?

PPMB

• Finn Morgendorffer 11: Man of Honor, by HolyGrail2007 (Part 2): “Amy? How delightful," said Rita. "I didn’t think you were going to attend.” “Well, I couldn’t miss the opportunity to watch the two of you put aside years of resentment. Or try to poison each other. Either way, more exciting then the plans I had fall through. Looks like Jake and Roger are hitting it off well.”
  
• John Lane 43: We're on a Mission, by Richard Lobinske (COMPLETE!): "You have to admit that what Ms. Ruiz did was fun." "Yeah, and now everyone wants one of her 'Get Out Of Class Free' cards."
• Reaped Out II: Sickle Sad World, by Pinkminx (Part 10): A sense of foreboding took over Daria as she approached the entrance of the mall. She had ten minutes to claim her reap, and the congregation of approximately fifty people surrounding the front doors was going to make it hard. Daria edged her way closer to the front of the crowd to get an idea of what was going on. (FF.net)
  
• The Revanche Chronicles: Touching Ground, by Silver (Part 1): Charles Ruttheimer III stared over the starboard side of the airship Revanche, occasionally calling directions out to the wheelhouse. Over the engines, Nicholas could occasionally be heard snapping about how much of a headache the Revanche was to land.
• Stacy Rowe, Seeker (Part III), by jtranser (continued): "Yeah, that's what you get for busting Dr. Korsakov and his bioluminescent menagerie of badgers, pandas, porcupines and wildebeests." "Well, Jane, he was warned and he did have it coming. Did he really think he could get away with manufacturing glow in the dark wildlife?"
  

Speaking of novel things...

...it's National Novel Writing Month!

It's that time of literary abandon when fanfic authors throw caution to the wind and sit down to peck out that 1,000-page DeMartino/O'Neill shipper everyone's dying to see. Are you going to write a Daria novel, novelette, or novella this month? If you did, what would your novel be about? Let's hear some answers.

Role Model

Today is the 37th birthday of model and actress Jenny McCarthy, rumored to have been the actual role model for Brittany Taylor. Given Ms. McCarthy's recent forays into medical science... no, I won't say it. Too easy. Sorry.

Today is also World Vegan Day, which is curious because Ms. McCarthy is a vegan. When it rains, it pours, I guess.

AND... today is Samhain, All Saints Day, the Day of the Dead, and a bunch of other things. Tiffany's alter-ego costume at left is exactly that for Mexico's Day of the Dead. Nice multicultural touch, there. Wonder what Samhain and the others are like at Holiday Island High.

Hope you remembered to set your clocks back an hour today, if you live where they do daylight savings time. Enjoy the extra hour of sleep.

PPMB

• Beasts, by Legendeld (COMPLETE!): “Did you just kill Fluffy?” Sandi Griffin said oddly calm tone. Her ears were ringing from the gunshot blast that was echoing around them in the small store. Quinn Morgendorffer flipped her hair over her shoulder with a small shrug. “How am I supposed to know?” She pumped the 12-gauge shotgun. “It was the size of dog and had large teeth, now it’s in pieces.”
• Dinnertime, by Doggieboy (COMPLETE!): "Scarlett, dear, you have to come out of your room sometime." The voice of her mother caused the girl to open her eyes and look at the closed and locked door. "I can't do it," she said. "I won't do it." "You cannot stay in there forever."
• Finn Morgendorffer 11: Man of Honor, by HolyGrail2007 (Part 1): “I’ll make sure my tuxedo matches the dresses.” “I’ve already contacted the bridal store, you can see them there.” Rita instructed. “Also, Daria’s going to be one of the bridesmaids.” “Really?” Finn tried to hide his disappointment. Daria was not cheerful enough to be in a wedding. She hated dresses anyway.
• Halloween Treats, by Brother Grimace (COMPLETE!): The kids at the front door of the Morgendorffer house took a step back in unison as the door opened to show a hulking, hooded figure, holding a large bowl of candy. The voice beneath the overly large hood was distinctly feminine, although raspy; it was slightly breathless, with a throaty timbre to it. "Yes...?"
• Late Bloomer, by Legendeld (COMPLETE!): Daria sat upright in her bed cover in sweat. She could feel the flames still licking at her skin. Oh my god, that was a little too realistic, she thought as her heart tried to beat its way free from her ribcage. Her arms actually ached from where they had been bound in the dream. With a sigh of relief she dropped back down to her pillow. My hands were tied to something and I was on fire. That was the worst dream I’ve had in a long time. [Begs for more!]
• Slow Night, by Legendeld (COMPLETE!): “The Vampires have been forced back and the Lycans are wiped out. The Zack outbreak was pretty minor and I’ve got it cleaned up already. I’m tired and I want to go home. I’ve spent most of the night chasing crazy teenagers who like to dress up.”
• Unnamed story (Scenes No Daria Fanfic Should Have: Hump Day), by thatLONERchick (COMPLETE!): "Destroy all that is evil," spoke the elder. "So that what is good may flourish," replied the younger.