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I am very sorry to report on a loved and respected member
of
our community. [8thof7] passed away Feb 15. The news
was passed to me this morning by his longtime friend, a
woman whom I believe was his roommate.
I'm crying as I write this and I don't know what to say.
Someone I corresponded
with regularly, weekly emails on a
broad range of topics, an individual I'd never met but whom
I
deeply respected and even loved as a pen pal, email
buddy.
[8th] was a hugely knowledgeable individual and also a
smartass but with a huge streak of humanity and I loved
him
for all of that.
I don't know what else to say. I can't see through the tears.
profile
https://www.halfbak...m/user/8th_20of_207
[Loris, Mar 02 2021]
Cat Whackers
https://archive.org/details/CatWhackers
Audio play hosted on the internet archive. [DrBob, Mar 03 2021]
I_27m_208th_20of_207
[xenzag, Mar 04 2021]
Verey fireworks
https://www.warring...limit-for-jonathan/
Old but good [DenholmRicshaw, Mar 04 2021]
Salutations from the Outer Darkness ....
https://forums.linu...wtopic.php?t=342641
He posted on this Linux forum on the day he died. The title of his post is prescient. [xaviergisz, Mar 04 2021]
dangerous properties
https://onlinelibra.../10.1002/0471701343
[pertinax, Mar 05 2021]
Variation on a Theme
https://questionabl...view.php?comic=4476
Here is another avatar of a sinister, technologically advanced hive intelligence - except this one is gender-ambiguous and loves cats. [pertinax, Mar 08 2021]
Etymology of wich.
https://www.etymonl...#etymonline_v_40178
Nothing to do with witches or ducking stools. (see also -wic) (just in case anyone believed pocmloc). [DrBob, Mar 09 2021]
Babakiueria
https://www.youtube...watch?v=NqcFg4z6EYY
"So what's that place called then?" [AusCan531, Mar 10 2021]
A_20ring_20of_20Harriers#1615256172
[FlyingToaster, Mar 18 2021]
Police Sieze Explosives, from the Borg?
https://www.cheshir...-explosives-5292455
[bs0u0155, Mar 18 2021]
Death Notice - Jonathan Fowler
https://www.winsfor...65.Jonathan_Fowler/
[xaviergisz, Apr 04 2021]
Funeral
https://www.northwi...65.Jonathan_Fowler/
[DenholmRicshaw, Apr 06 2021]
Tom Lehrer - We Will All Go Together When We Go
https://www.youtube...watch?v=frAEmhqdLFs
[Voice, Apr 08 2021]
See Also...
Never_20To_20Grow_2...er_20-_20_5b8of7_5d
[FlyingToaster, Jun 11 2021]
Please log in.
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Description (displayed with the short name and URL.)
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Shocked doesn't cover it. It's like a punch in the
gut. [8th]! |
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This is terrible news and a huge loss to this
community of a highly creative and animated
character. I'm really shocked to hear this. For my
entire time here, 8th has been a constant
presence, who's company I particularly enjoyed.
His half-baked ideas along with his annotations are
his lasting legacy here, and he'll be greatly missed. |
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I am shocked. That is very sad news. |
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no,no,no,....i had wondered where he was....oh
dear |
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Fucking fuck. Why are all the good ones taken away? |
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One day someone will post who the 'real' 8th is? |
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RIP. GNU 8th. I'm so sad. |
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We have exchanged emails so I know who he is,
but like myself and many others, 8th chose
anonymity here and until something changes, that
should be respected in my opinion. I know the
bakery is a much lesser place without his active
presence. The loss of Max and now 8th are hammer
blows and I still recall and miss the brilliance of
Bristolz. |
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Oh no. With both [8th] and [MB] taking a powder, now who will get the Sir Pterry references? |
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Should've known something was wrong when my 'Split happens' comment on his Talking Condiment Bottle idea went uncommented on on 15 Feb. I like to think he read that comment, smiled a satisfied smile, turned to Death and said "Huh. Lots of sand. What's that cubey representation on the horizon?" |
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My 2nd favorite Halfbaker is gone? Max now 8th? |
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What the hell is going on? |
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Do we know what happened? |
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Although I guess it doesn't matter does it? Shit! |
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RIB buddy. (rest in Borg) |
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I have (accidentally) seen very early annos of 8th on HB, when it seemed the newbie 8th was getting a rough time all around. The early HB seemed to be even more cowboy, with even more shootouts. So it would be helpful to know how much of the larger-than-life 8th collective was a persona built for protective purposes. |
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same here [Sgt] I purposely made a terrible remark
on Dip Socks, just waiting for his retort that never
came. February 16th...I knew something was
wrong then. |
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He took his place as a star of this site. Un-
flappable, unique sense of humor and at times
absolutely brilliant. In his own way a very positive
person. Always looked forward to his posts. |
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[4 and20] When I joined the hb in 2005, it was
rather brutal for newbies. Dr. Curry and Una Bubba
were the stars then and alwaysClamping down on
us poor little newbies! it only made me stronger
and wanted to stay here! They trained me well,
and made me strong, it made me realize what is a
good invention and what is not! I thank them both. |
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And yes I would like to
know who the real 8th was, go along way back I
remember seeing a picture of him in a military
uniform. |
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Of course he was a person who would put his life on
the line for his country. I had gathered he served
through various comments he's made. |
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Oh. Bugger!
:(
//Why are all the good ones taken away?//
Not ALL.
;) |
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I knew I should have just gone to work without checking in this morning. |
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He had disappeared for a time after Max passed and I
feared the worst due to this covid thing. I remember
being absolutely exuberant when he popped up alive
and well. |
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I'll treasure the memories of what I guess I'll think of
as those bonus months. |
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Absolutely every word, every person here has said here, I
echo. Yes, he was challenging, but that is exactly what made
me love him. I'm in shock. |
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Max and 8th are sitting somewhere having an engaging talk
about what really happens after life on this dimension, and
saying "...see, I told you so, I posted an idea just like this back
in 2010." |
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:-(
He was one of the pillars of this nuthouse. I'm hoping the
roof doesn't cave in...
You will be missed, [8th of 7]. Travel well among the stars. |
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OK, Max and 8th were our go to brilliant science
guys. Anybody else here ready to try to step into
their shoes? I never even finished high school so I'm
out. Without those guys here to review all this
crazy
stuff from a grounded, science educated technical
background this place is really taking a hit.
The Halfbakery collective IQ just took a dive. I
wouldn't mind trying to replace these guys,
irreplaceable as they were. |
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Maybe it's time to send invitations out to places
like MIT, Stanford, Max's college, Oxford or
whatever. We might start with 8ths replacement. |
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Wanted: Creator of quirky ideas for small web
community. Must be willing to critically (very
critically) review other ideas posted on this
website. Please note that it's OK to be insulting on
your
resume. It
might even help you get the job. |
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Must be nerdy. (Big on Star Trek. No, I mean
REALLY big on Star Trek.) |
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Pleasantly tubby preferred but not necessary. |
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Must, despite not putting any effort into it, and
indeed not caring the slightest about it, be
charming and lovable in a very... original way. |
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Must be a free thinker who evaluates the world
from their own, often times original perspective
without a care of being judged by society for their
views, and in fact, loves going against the
flow. |
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Must delight in poking fun at the virtue signaling,
self appointed morally superior mindset by
relishing in dark humor about mayhem, violence,
pandemonium and destruction. If you might say
something like: "Let's look at the bright side of
armageddon." you might be the person for the job. |
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Must, despite his best efforts to not even be liked
by his fellow posters, be well loved by all. Well,
most anyway. |
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And perhaps most important, must hate cats. (this
is not optional) |
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(8th would roll his eyes and shake his head at my
attempting to write a eulogy for him so that's not
what that is at all. It's something completely
different.) |
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I'm one of the few lucky ones who got to know the real guy
over email for the past couple years, mostly 'cause he got
sick of me yelling at him probably. I was one of the ones
early on who would always try to smooth over his rough
edges with the goal of not leaving so many dents in the
community walls, as we had a fair share of ruffians back
then but had members who were better at culturing them
than I apparently was. |
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I miss all of them. MightyCheese, Bris, Max, 8th, csea, Dr.
Fowler, runforrestrun and the hundreds who left here when
the noise got to be
too much. |
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Maybe there's an obit somewhere? |
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Maybe there's enough of his implants remaining in silicon
purgatory somewhere? |
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That is fucking horrible news. |
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I really, sincerely, hope he's happy, in whichever collective
has assimilated him. |
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bloody hell - this is horrible |
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I hope that whichever collective assimilated him knows what
they're in for. |
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With luck, he's having a drink with Max. |
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I don't feel like posting any ideas for a while,
without Max and now 8th. |
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We all know our last day will come,
For some sooner than others,
And written will be eulogies,
By our HB 'baker brothers. |
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I fought with [Max] and [8th] a lot,
Or so believed the purists.
In truth it was a comic act,
We put on for the tourists. |
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It's been not quite a year now,
Since [Max] set sail for heaven,
And we said goodbye to Rentisham's,
Now the Grand Eighth Earl of Severn. |
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Remember [8th] in your own way,
From wherever you may hail.
Here's my little anecdote,
Of my friend from Eastern Wales. |
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Those who've been around a while,
May recall the daunting tale,
Of [8th]'s tussle with a tank,
In some boggy, English dale. |
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He thought he'd like a look inside,
So climbed up on the top,
Positioned himself above the hatch,
And let his full weight drop. |
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The hole, alas, was undersized,
In [8th]'s version of the ballad,
In truth, it was the stodgy food,
And not enough of salad. |
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Six squaddies, armed with levers,
And sweat, and strain, and swearing,
Took an hour to dislodge him,
From the tank he was now wearing. |
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For me, I shall remember him,
With a Purdey on his shoulder,
Marching to a bagpiped dirge,
Never to grow older. |
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I too got a similar email this morning. I'd been emailing back and forth with him for a few months, finally getting to know him as a real person after years and years on here. He was a fantastic guy and I'll miss him dearly. |
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The collective is one down. Farewell & fly safe mate. |
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//Max and 8th were our go to brilliant science guys. Anybody else here ready to try to step into their shoes?// |
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I guess I'm somewhat promoted. Not the nicest way into the gig. |
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Readings at the funeral are to be taken from Sax' "Dangerous
Properties of Industrial Materials". |
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The coffin is to be carried out to The Dam-busters' March, and
buried head- first at great depth prior to detonation. |
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I'd fight you for it, bs0u0155, but I fail literally every one of
the qualifications. You're up. |
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If he's the next prime minstrel, he's going to need a
nickname worthy of the post. I can't possibly argue
effectively with someone named bs0u0155. How's
zero-b-s sound? |
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I'm sorry for my lack of objectivity earlier. |
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I read the email early this morning and just got vapor
lock. An online friend and correspondent had passed
away. People die all the time; so what? Why would this
individual be any different? Was he real? Online is
practically virtual, right? Words on a screen. Where's the
reality? |
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Whatever the source code, after 6 years of halfbaking and
6 months of emailing I felt like I'd met a duplicate of my
own sardonic self, a delightfully twisted individual with a
similarly twisted outlook on people and life, someone
who also laughed at things others wouldn't. A partner in
crime, but someone with a more forceful nature, a hugely
different inventive capacity and better command of the
language. For all that I think he could be forgiven for
rubbing people the wrong way and driving on the wrong
side of the road. |
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Save for his real name and that he was a private pilot
there are a thousand things I still don't know about [8th].
I would give a huge amount to have him back here, and a
duplicate sum for [Max] as well. I think our world was
better then. Mine sure was. |
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I'm sorry if I'm not making any sense. |
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//How's zero-b-s sound?// |
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[whatrock] don't apologise. You're making a lot of sense.
(And thank you for this whole post.) |
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//Why are all the good ones taken away?//
The extraterrestrials only extract the best. |
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I will sadly miss being deflagrated by [8th]'s what's what. |
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^ Well shit indeed. He will leave a gaping hole in the Bakery. |
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[whatrock] you did great summing up [8th]! I, too,
am One of those folks who laugh at weird things
that others don’t. For this reason I think people
don’t understand me or don’t think of me fondly,
as I don’t have the cutting wit and mastery of the
language to make it sound poetic or threatening as
[8th] He said the things the only way he could say
them and that really stood out. |
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He was an individualist. Pure and simple, I think. Both Max
and he. All the really bright and imaginative people are,
thank God. |
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I've officially made February 15th, Frisco's birthday in
homage to 8th. The mere fact that I have created a
memorial for my cat's birthday on his day of death, will
serve to remind me of the cycle of life that we all must
face. And as a day to be grateful that we have literally
thousands of convos between the two brilliant bakers to
browse through. Their legacy lives on. |
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I'm sure he'd like the fact that you think of him
every time you see your cat :-) |
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:D
I shared the above "Cat Whackers" link with 8th many years ago. He enjoyed it & it makes me smile to think of it. So I share with you all too. Enjoy & think of 8th! |
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Dam, neither of them here to point out my spelling errors
either. Crap. |
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I know this much about him: he worked on things
that make a very large and very unpleasant boom. |
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//I've officially made February 15th, Frisco's birthday in
homage to 8th.// |
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The aggressive in-grave spinning, harnessed to a turbine
will provide the UK with a reliable power source for
centuries. |
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//I know this much about him: he worked on things that make a very large and very unpleasant boom.// |
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Not long after I joined the HB , whenever I heard a loud boom I wondered if 8th was responsible for it. No reason to think his impact will diminish. |
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//Dam, neither of them here to point out my
spelling errors either. Crap.// |
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I can't think of any actual examples now but it was never
just "You spelled it wrong." it was always something along
the lines of: |
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"So you like humerus stories? I myself enjoy the occasional
story about femurs. Of course anything about a radius or
unla is always good reading." |
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I've got an ear to ear smile now. First time smiling while
reading about him. That's what memories of people we
cared about do eventually. They turn from tears to
smiles. |
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I nominate everyone who's commented on this idea--and various recent Toaster ideas--in the 'All Together We might be able to Approach A Suitable Stand-in for Max and 8th' category. |
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Exhibit A: my experience as a Contrarian, Grammarian, and Punster. |
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I like that idea. Can we specialize? I like cats so I
wouldn't cover that very well. |
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I'm pretty good at WW2 stuff and I also understand 8th
was a pilot. I'm not one now but I used to be. I know
which part of the plane is supposed to be facing upwards
anyway. |
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I could try my hand at smartass spelling corrections too.
The "humerus/humorous" example wasn't too horrible. |
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Maybe we tag it as "channeling 8th" or [Max] something
like that. |
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I think bs0s taking on the science portion of the burden. If
we pool our talents we might be able to fake it good
enough. |
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//All Together We might be able to Approach A Suitable
Stand-in for Max and 8th// |
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Certain aspects, cat rants for example, are actually quite
amenable to automation. Come to think about it. There's a
good chance they were already automated. |
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Looks like he has some of the snark too. |
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Don't forget the casual death threats. I was immensely pleased
and honoured when he threatened to burn me inside the
Saimhain Wicker Man alongside [xenzag] after I tagged him
with a bit of a 'zinger'. |
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I was constantly on the receing end of his threats
which were encouragd through the use of a few
key words and phrases that 8th couldn't resist. I
keep hoping this is just one of his stunts, as he,
along with Max, was one of my main reasons to
post ideas here in the last few years. Their
responses meant more to me than anyone else's.
Wonder if Wagster, Dr Curry, Bungston and Ben
Frost know. Where are the great half bakers?
See "I'm 8th" link posted when he went sideways
last year. Would love it if it worked again..... |
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Ooh, an 8th of 7 conspiracy theory. He'd like that. Actually, now that I think of it, wasn't he on that Beatles album cover??? You never saw Ringo & 8th in the same room together, did you! |
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We could rebuild him. We have the technology... |
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Reprogram a chatbot with some death
threats, knowledge of bombs and airplanes, references to
Star Trek, a dislike of cats, Wales,
children, and the like, and there you go. He never was fully
human anyway... |
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Smack a cat's tail on the back and give it a "meow" soundtrack
and it's a go. |
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We could create a virtual 8th of 7 halfbaker we all have
the
login info for and create posts in his memory to the best
of our abilties. For instance, somebody writes "Self
heating sandwich" as an idea, one of us might log in under
our community shared "8th of 7 Bot" login and anno with
"Bun pending if you replace "heating" with "exploding" and
"sandwich" with "cat". |
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Probably have to get the OK from Jutta for that but might
be interesting. It really would be a kind of Borg hivemind
thingy. |
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I think an 8thof7 bot works better as a speculative
halfbakery idea than it would as an actual implemented bit
of AI |
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Considering dumping a bunch of his works into OpenAI and seeing what pops out. |
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How did you get access? I asked to get on the waiting
list but so far, no AI for me. |
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Better to keep the AI limited. We don't want to cause a
bomb-enabled, explosion-infatuated singularity. |
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I confess I did email him the last time he disappeared; something to do with China and
India having a border "discussion". I now regret not asking him about fireworks because I
had found a really old news report from 1999 (linky) that perhaps hints at what was to
come. |
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"Mr Fowler admits that when it comes to preparation, the sky's the limit, with the team
using everything from chemistry to electronics to plan the perfect display." |
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"And although Mr Fowler no children of his own, his successful sideline has earned him
some young admirers." |
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"My friends' children do seem to follow me around," he said." |
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Deceased and death notice search reveals no results. Does anyone have details. I would make a donation in his memory, provided it wasn't for some Third Reich appreciation society of course. He was posting annotations right to the 14th Feb, with no indication of any impending demise..... whatever happened must have been unexpected. |
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goddammit, away for a couple of weeks and this . |
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I may not be quick on the uptake or in a downdraft, but is 8th also this 'Mr. Fowler', or is that for the birds? |
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I found out, via email, that J A Fowler and 8/7 were one and the
same. |
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I wish I'd found out more |
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By my calculations, we have, if we assume as we might, that
8th commented or posted every day of his haflbaked life, we
most likely have over 9000 gems to read and reflect on. |
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We might also admire his resilience in holding up the fort
when many of us had taken up residence on other platforms,
opting to not bake, or even comment here leaving the place
for him and Max to maintain. (For the most part) |
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True. I always felt Max and 8th were sort of the minders of
this
madhouse. Not that they weren't a bit mad themselves. |
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// I would make a donation in his memory// |
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Battersea Dogs' Home*?
Royal British Legion**?
|
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*A shelter for the stray dogs*** of London
**A veterans' organisation |
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***Wait; I've just found out that, in 2002, this Victorian
organisation started sheltering cats, too, so maybe [8th] wouldn't
approve after all, but would instead be cursing politically correct
inclusiveness. Not that that should stop us. |
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I understand his death was sudden, and there is no
information yet as to cause of death. |
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[doctorremulac3]; the halfbakery is pretty much the test
case for "the nuts taking over the nuthouse". |
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I just checked. I have posted 1,455 ideas in the 15
years I've been here, and made 5,375 annotations.
Why stop now just because 8th ran out of juice?
(can't resist dangling the bait in the water....) |
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//I understand his death was sudden, and there is no
information yet as to cause of death. |
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If so, I'm absolutely sure that's the way he'd have wanted to
go. |
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^ Or, the way he would've wanted somebody else to go, anyway. |
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Looks like he really might have been an explosion artist. Is
that a new term? Shouldn't be. |
|
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// //I understand his death was sudden, and there is no
information yet as to cause of death. |
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The email I received stated that they're waiting to find out
the cause. Explosions are usually not so mysterious. |
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Perhaps he invented a new kind. |
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That would not surprise me. |
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Having often confused the Five Stages of Grief with the
Seven Sages of Greece, I'm currently going through
Bargaining, Depression and Periander of Corinth. |
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//Perhaps he invented a new kind.// |
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He certainly dropped a bombshell on us. I kinda assumed he
would be immortal. |
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//waiting to find out the cause// Well if the explosion is big enough it can destroy a lot of the evidence of what caused it. |
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//Dam, neither of them here to point out my spelling errors
either. Crap.// |
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It's spelled 'Damn' Blissy. Unless you're holding back a flood
of bad spelling or something. |
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(Sorry, it's the best I could do). |
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We could set off an explosion wave around the
world! in his honor it could be choreographed
starting in jolly old England And go successively
around the world. We all have something we could
blow up! Though he might prefer I blow up my cat
I actually have an old truck back in the woods that
I would love to destroy by explosion! |
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You are right, Aus, I corrected the others that were glaring
blatantly at me. As for damn, Well, 8th, today I'm in the
*Damn it* stage of grieving for you. |
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The interwebs are currently remarking on a sudden uptick in worldwide earthquake intensity and occurrence; [8th] speaking from beyond the veil? I heard recently that we've got it oriented wrong: heaven is down, and hell is up. Maybe [8th] is down there, trying to confirm. |
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And did anyone get a sign from [Max]? |
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prediction: HB quantum-computing physicists and near-death medical professionals (hospice workers, not old docs*) will create the delicate machinery required to follow energies throughout life and death. Ghosts and spectres are clearly remnants of localized energy pools. Ergo, when an explosions expert dies, earthquake incidence rises. Energy is neither created nor destroyed and all that. |
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*although being near(er) death yourself, and knowing about the physics of near-death experiences , may be a leg up in the field. |
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There was a time a year ago or so when 8th went
silent for a few months here. He was just very busy,
or so he said on email. |
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The bakery was very different in the time before Max
and 8th. Mainly in that it wasn't filled with 50% of
current annotations being theirs. |
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//Dam, neither of them here to point out my
spelling errors either. Crap.// |
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It's spelled 'Damn' Blissy. Unless you're holding
back a flood of bad spelling or something. |
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(Sorry, it's the best I could do).
— AusCan531, Mar 05 2021// |
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Well, it's good, but kind of missing the exuberant
"gotcha" vibe that 8th's had. |
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Eh, I take that back. Well done Aus. |
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You’re right Doc. I can be snarky but haven’t a
hope of emulating his special flavour of snark. |
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LOL, oooh yea. You could just feel the "I gotcha!"
in his writing. |
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And hey, I've had to take my medicine many times
being such an awful speller but I did so stoically
because it came with the territory. Plus he'd take
the dull job of correcting a misspelling and make it
almost... poetic. |
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Max was also a champion of turning a misspelled
word into a little comedy sketch. One of the
reasons we
loved 'em. |
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Wait, did I spell sketch right? I may never know. |
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I had hoped not to see another of these so soon, & certainly
not 8th as well as Max, now I have reason to regret my most
recent long absence, I think I need a drink. |
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I think I'll join you.
<pours shot of tequila>"Here's to fallen comrades. May we meet them again in another life. Cheers." |
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And 8th, it you're watching, yes, I meant to spell it
that way. |
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What if brain transplants have been perfected and only select intellects get chosen for the procedure but you must cut all ties with your former life for the chance to get to learn as an immortal and they're cherry-picking halfbakers of exceptional brainitude? |
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That sativa really packs a punch. |
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Felt more than a little ghosty replying to one of his annos, just now. |
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If you scratch and sniff your screen on his hb home page, you can smell his socks. |
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But probably only if you've snuck into his house & are using
the computer in his room. |
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Curious, no death notices yet on UK sites. I suppose it takes
awhile? Has anyone who was emailed heard anything
further? |
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Either I've forgotten how to use Google or [8th] was quite
adept at flying under the radar. Probably the latter. I've
learned that he was 3 months younger than [Max], so he
was 3 months younger than me as well. A few other
tidbits... would it be appropriate to speak them here or
not? |
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//Has anyone who was emailed heard anything further?// |
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No, I replied. Haven't heard anything back. |
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//was quite adept at flying under the radar. Probably the
latter.// |
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Definitely, that article about the fireworks display business
puts it in Northwich, Cheshire. I used to work in Northwich,
yet even in almost a decade on here, I can only remember a
couple of instances where he even got as far as mentioning a
familiarity with the North West. That's pretty amazing given
the sheer comment volume. |
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//A few other tidbits... would it be appropriate to speak them
here or not?// |
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Anything you'd be happy to share with friends would be fine. |
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From my quick Googling I found his birthday was 7 July 1962
(which lines up with your stated age gap to [Max]). I was kind
of surprised it wasn't 8 July since that would make his moniker
more apt. |
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//A few other tidbits... would it be appropriate to speak them
here or not?// |
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I have a picture of him with a casual elbow on his Piper
Cherokee. I'm not going to post it anywhere but I can't see any
harm in sharing it by email. |
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emailed you, [bs0u0155]. As in Max's case, for 8th it was a bit
harder than usual to grieve for someone whose face I don't
have a memory of. So thank you and if anyone else has
anything they could send me I would be ever so grateful and
will keep to myself. |
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[bs0u0155] I'd sure like to see the pic you mentioned, to finally be
able to put a face with the personality. |
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The other tidbits include birth in Nantwich which is sorta east of
Wales, and a sizable domicile in Northwich which is sorta north of
Nantwich. I believe a relative lives in Norwich, which is Northwich
minus the "th" and is located to the east over by the Channel. Lots
of wiches in that country. |
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[bs0u0155], I see you and [8th] in my minds eye at a cafe, a table
apart, laptops open, each responding to the same anno and
oblivious to one another's identity. I'm sure we've passed one
another, members in our community, without even knowing it. |
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//Lots of wiches in that country.// |
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Thankfully we had the good sense on this side to burn them
all a long time ago. A toasted 'wich is pretty tasty, after all. |
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//[bs0u0155] I'd sure like to see the pic you mentioned,// |
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Nantwich, Northwich, middlewitch. There's a lot of them,
and an awful lot of canals. I'm from Macclesfield, an
altogether more sensible place that had the good sense to
install some hills. Northwich is already quite a flood-y
place, but they also had the great idea to extract the
rock salt that's underneath the whole area. To do this,
they pump in water and suck out brine. No-one knows
exactly where the salt is coming from, and every now and
then some sinking happens. Either locally, i.e. a house
disappears, or the whole town shudders downward a few
cm. |
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But, the drive in past Jodrell Bank is a hoot on a nice day. |
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"wich" comes from "wic" which is a jetty or harbour side. Named as such because that was where the ducking stool to duck the witches was built. Sandwich is of course named for the jetty or harbour side in the sand, the combination of soft sand and hard jetty being the inspiration for the bread and butter in a sandwich. The witch presumably represents the gherkin or Branston pickle. |
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I had always thought wich was the Brit version of stan, as in Pakistan,
Afghanistan, Turkmenistan, Uzbekistan, Thisistan and Thatistan. But I
stan corrected. |
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[Waits eagerly to discover what Stan corrected] |
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//Named as such because that was where the ducking stool to duck the witches was built.//
Quack, quack!
-wic is from old English, meaning settlement or village. -wich is a modification of this applied to salt producing areas. Both originate from the Latin, 'vicus'. No witches. No jetties. And definitely no ducks! |
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And the "Nant" part of Nantwich, meaning "stream", is actually
Welsh, I think. |
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I always assumed stan just meant either country, land or
kingdom [what], so the Kafiristan in the man who would be
king would be something like 'the land of the heathens' if
translated. |
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Online etymology tells me that -stan is Persian for 'country'. So, Hindustan, for example, is the country of the Hindus. |
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[[Idly wonders how many mountains hills & whatnot in
maps of the British Empire have been named 'what did you
say' or 'I don't understand you' in the local vernacular] |
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[Imperial cartographer to locale] |
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"So what's that place called then?" |
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[Local in his native dialect] |
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"Sorry mate but I haven't a clue
what your saying with that foreign lingo of yours" |
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[Cartographer cheerfully jots down what he's just heard as
a place name] |
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Thank you [bs0u0155]. Bless you! (waves hands around
importantly, invoking various blessings from invisible
god(desse)s assumed to inhabit this area of space. |
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I can see how he might get stuck in a tank. |
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So... Borgistan, shirley? |
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No, the Borg are a nation (if nation they are)
without territory (permanent territory anyway) ..
a bit like locusts asset stripping (aka "assimilating")
their wary around the universe. |
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As the Borg say "Home is where the cube is" & since they got
warp tech that can be almost anywhere. |
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[Skewed] You MUST watch the first minute or so of the linked
movie Babakiueria |
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(Also, I'm enjoying how this solemn posting is drifting off topic.
How Halfbakery-like) |
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Oh that's brilliant [Aus] exactly what I was trying to conjure &
the reversal is an added sweet touch. |
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I don't think it would be unreasonable for [whatrock] to ask
the longtime friend and roomate for more details. |
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There's no sign of a death notice or funeral details
resulting from a search using his alternative name.
I sent Max some pieces of my work when I knew he
was ill, and would have done the same for 8th. I'd
certainly light a celebratory candle. (sulphur of
course) - only the best for 8th. |
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Umm, I do [xav], this has got to be a distressing time for
her
& we may just be a bunch of random online nuts
to her, just because
he appeared to live here doesn't mean she's had any real
prior
awareness of any of us, maybe a little later, for now the
only
thing that would be acceptable would be to ask where to
send
flowers or the like, an interrogation at this time (no matter
how
politely made)
from what may be to her essentially random strangers re
the
circumstances may not be welcomed. |
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It's much too late of course, but I'm thinking about a sort of
Viking ship burial, but with a spaceship. An atmospheric re- entry
ship burning, perhaps. |
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I love that idea, Pert. And maybe a mid-sized Puss 'n Boots
replica to command the craft...maybe. |
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//An atmospheric re- entry ship burning// |
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Followed by the obligatory 14 days of Quarantine naturally.
Nothing to do with Covid - just the fact that it's [8th] |
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//atmospheric re- entry ship burning//
One of those flights taking
someone's ashes into space should then bring [8th]'s back/ |
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I think of "A Ring of Harriers" as a tribute : a take on the "missing man" formation <link> |
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He's probably just stuck on that massively complicated
roundabout at Swindon, driving endlessly in circles in his
nuclear-powered tank, scaring other road users, guzzling
30yo Scotch and living on his winter reserves. |
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It feels so unfair... I'd always hoped to meet him one day. |
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I had too... I think many of us... so many... the
conversations would have overridden work and time and
obligations, pausing only for food and the loo. |
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Under the guise fo being cranky and anti-social, he was an
incredibly positive and gregarious guy. Very not into virtue
signalling, had his own views, didn't care what people
thought about them. Like a lot of us are saying, one of the
two big stars of this place. Him and Max. |
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Like 8th, a great British tradition. Surprising, to me at least, the Muppet show was British, in part. ABC passed on the pilot and Henson moved to the UK where it was picked up by Lew Grade and filmed/produced by the people responsible for the Thunderbirds etc. |
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I'm pretty sure this is also our guy... <link> |
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Yep, that's him, [bs0u0155]. |
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I recall him telling me about that little snafu. |
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That article is amazing and completely cements my
understanding of 8th. |
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"fireworks and special-effects have always been something he
is very enthusiastic about."
"He has got all sorts of diplomas in the subject." |
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Quell your curiosity. I only knew him through the .5 Bakery, but I have a good idea of what killed him and it wouldn't make you happy. |
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No way any method is going to make me happy... but I am curious, and sometimes raging at fate is constructive. |
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Welcome back [bigs] - you were missed. |
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Donate to a dog charity (linky)... |
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I was just composing a message with details of
8th's funeral etc.......wonder will any HB member
be present? It seems to me that the Halfbakery
was an important outlet for himself as few days
would pass without him posting some comment on
something. Perhaps this will feature on the day. |
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Is there a cat home that could be donated to in his honor? |
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I agree, [xenzag]
His home away from home most definitely. Wow,
over 900 people have viewed his obituary. That's a very large
circle surrounding him. Sweet. |
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I vote we somehow set up a donation site where we can pay
via Paypal or something generally used by both sides of the
pond, and see that it is donated to an animal shelter that is
non-euthanasia in nature. That way we can support his wish
for dogs and his love for felines. Maybe we could find a
shelter that has PayPal and would set it up for us. They
probably would. Gotta be near his home, I would think. |
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Thoughts, comments, belittlement? Uhm...whatever your
feeling. I'm feeling weary of sending our fellow bakers off to
the great mystical after-death. It's kind of hard to visit
without a shadow of either Max and 8th in attendance. |
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//details of 8th's funeral etc.......wonder will any HB
member be present?..// |
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I bloody well would have if travel was possible in any
reasonable way. It's a 20 minute drive from my parent's
place, and while I usually visit in July/August, I'd have
happily brought that forward to pay my respects to the
bloke, very frustrating. |
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Still, when he sent me the picture of him with his plane, I
expressed my frustration that I couldn't send my own
picture of an 18yo me standing next to the plane I soloed
in. Because it's in a drawer 3000 miles away, and I can't
get to it. He responded with: "Patience; this too will pass
.." like the sort of nice chap he was. Well, it's not passing
bloody fast enough, and now I'm missing my 3rd funeral. |
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Dammit... I was holding onto the hope that he'd just done a runner or something. |
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Oh Amos, how sad it is to see you only in times of great grief. I
miss you and thought you might have been gone forever. 8th
would be touched by your remembrance, I believe. |
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// 8th would be touched by your remembrance, I believe.
// |
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Yeah. 8th was one who pretended that my halfbaked goods
had some merit. He will be missed. |
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//Quell your curiosity. I only knew him through the .5 Bakery, but I have a good
idea of what killed him and it wouldn't make you happy.//(Voice) |
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//No way any method is going to make me happy... but I am curious, and
sometimes raging at fate is constructive.//(2 fries shy of a happy meal) |
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I've been thinking about this.
You know how Viking warriors (supposedly) wanted to die with a sword in their
hand?
I think 8th might have wanted to be holding a detonator.
Then again, there are these guys in Mad Max:Fury Road who would spray their teeth
silver, tell their mates "Witness Me!", then jump from a moving car to attack
another car with an exploding lance.
I reckon 8th would have appreciated that as an ending. Perhaps more so if there
were cats on the target.
Maybe he'd have preferred explosive jousting with a lion?
I never did ask whether he disliked big cats more, less or the same as small ones,
and I guess now we'll never know. |
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I'm assuming it was cardiovascular, heart disease, that's
what kills most people. COVID has the most publicity of any
killer currently but people dying from are mostly the elderly
and
those with underlying conditions. He might have had some
that
made him succeptable I guess. I think he would have let us
know if
it was
cancer. |
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Ah yes, the cool way to go out. Tempers the sadness at
your
funeral with supressed giggles. |
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And kudos to the cultured wordsmith that came up with
the
term "autoerotic asphyxiation" to replace "jerking off
while
hanging yourself". Sounds almost elegant, like the title of
a
famous oil panting, or a ballet. "Autoerotic asphyxiation"
sounds like a ballet that is,
not "jerking off while hanging yourself". I don't think a
ballet titled the latter would be one I'd care to see.
It'd pose an interesting challenge for the
choreographer though. |
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I just came across these words of James Thurber on Harold
Ross (founder of the New Yorker): |
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"Harold Ross died December 6, 1951 [...] In November the
following year the New Yorker entertained the editors of Punch
[...] I was in Bermuda and missed the party, but weeks later met
Rowland Emmett for lunch at the Algonquin. 'I'm sorry you didn't
get to meet Ross,' I began as we sat down. 'Oh, but I did,' he said.
'He was all over the place. Nobody talked about anybody else. '" |
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Oh. This is what happens when I don't stay in touch. :-( |
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My favourite words from James Thurber are: "ta -pocketa-
pocketa- pocketa- pocketa- pocketa." I kind of think that
[8th] would have a passing similarity to Walter Mitty. |
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" I’m betting on autoerotic asphyxiation.-[a1] Apr 24 2021" |
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Now I automatically feel a whole lot better. And so did 8th, briefly, I will wager. As for his family, or his coworkers, whoever found him first, probably less so ;-) |
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// Max and 8th are sitting somewhere having an engaging talk about
what really happens after life on this dimension, and saying "...see, I
told you so, I posted an idea just like this back in 2010." |
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By law of conservation of information, they must be, they are, just need
to be decrypted. |
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See, we have to join our forces to build life ensurance (not insurance)
systems, removing causes of death like aerospace industry is removing
the causes of crashes, do it systematically, ASAP, or we will all end up
like that. |
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//we have to join our forces to build life ensurance
(not
insurance) systems// |
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[8th] already had the right idea, Musk is working on it,
well,
not working on it personally, he's funding the research on
it's
precursor though, but it's a way off yet. |
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With a hive mind you never die, just lose a few neurons
every
once in a while that you can replace faster than you lose
them
by banging bits of you against other bits of you. |
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I used to get hives every year when I was a growing
boy. As soon as they stopped, I knew I was fully
fledged. |
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//banging bits of you against other bits of you// |
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So would that count as masturbation if two bits of the
same hive mind did that for fun without any intention of
procreating? |
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Two bits would, all too soon, lead to bytes. |
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He wasn't a two bit sort of space zombie. |
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//He wasn't a two bit sort of space zombie// |
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Fair enough, but a disturbed mind still wants to
know, is it still an orgy when all the 'participants'
are from the same collective? ;) |
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Aw geez. I come back for a look around only to read about
Max and now 8th. |
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At least, thanks to Jutta, I've got pages and pages of their
writings here to read back over and reminisce. |
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Even more virtual hugs to all and sundry. |
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And you can add Farmer John to the list of living legends no
longer among the living. |
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