Why 23?

The Number 23 movie comes out today. It’s a creepy story starring Jim “I play creepy guys” Carrey. In it, Jim is a regular guy who receives a book of paranoid ravings about the number 23, becomes a 23rdian,and then ends up in that paranoid world himself.

Where did they come up with that idea? The 23 enigma has been in the underground conscious for quite some time. Some believe that those who see the number 23 around them is a harbinger of new wealth. Some believe that it is a sign of conspiracy or other sign of cosmic consciousness. I know that ideawas spread by Robert Anton Wilson’s book, “Cosmic Trigger,” which also spread the cult of Discordianism. Twenty-three is the number of the Goddess Discordia. Wilson said that he did not uncover the 23 enigma, but that William S. Burroughs did, after 2 disasters happened on the same day: a ferry boat, helmed by a Capt. Clark, sank after 23 years of good luck; and a flight 23 helmed by another Capt. Clark crashed on the same day. Afterwards, Burroughs kept a scrapbook ofthese 23 incidents for years.

Some people have very personal stories of 23. One man found the number 23 all around this death of his father. And another has found that 23 is being used to market Dr. Pepper to us, of all things.
Having studied Chaldean numerology, I’m going to tell you a secret: the number 23 is a good luck number of publishing–like the number 32, which all 23rdians count as a 23. It knows how to get itself noticed!

Well, I’ve googled “23″ here at 23rd Mandalation. We’ve been at this for almost a year now, and so far the number 23 has come up 6 times, 212 and 2012 3 times, and 32 also 3 times. I guess our time of wealth has not yet come.

Valentine’s Day–Geek Out with the One You Love.

Valentine’s Day is here, when even geekiest turn their thoughts to love. It’s a time for proposals and wedding planning–Star Wars wedding planning, that is. But don’t you wish there were a Star Wars wedding planner guide?

While no event planner myself, I can provide some examples, like the S/W cake topper above–which is available in Luke (eeeew!) or Han. The good news is that S/W takes the guess work out of what all the groomsmen should wear:

Hey! I think there are some Klingons in the picture! Must be the wife’s family…

Finally, if you are wondering about how the big day could go, check out this happy family’s big event: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0AnGvBB1zFA

Watch all the way to the end! Anakin transforms into Darth Vader, and the bride looks a little afraid! What is that saying about their marriage, I wonder.

Deja Connu

I must have been 11 or 12 years old, the first time I went to a Pembroke Arts Festival. It’s held in August, and I still remember how the sun coming through the musty yellow tents tinged the art work. In the photography section, I saw an 8×10 photo of the shadow of some stairs making an interesting pattern on a building. A voice in my head said, “You are going to meet that photographer.” I told my voice no way, it was out of its mind–I was only a kid, and that was done by an adult and I wouldn’t know him. The Pembroke Arts Fest features artists from the whole area, not just the town.

About three years later, I developed a crush on a kid in my study hall. He was a junior. We had a competition of who could make the best brownies–which we would eat, hushed in the blue cafeteria-cum-study hall. He invited me over, and I eventually went naked in the woods behind his house to get small branch of an apple tree to make into a magic wand. When we came back in, he showed me his portfolio, including the photograph of staircase’s shadow, which I had seen earlier.

The next time that same voice came into my head was when I turned 19. I had just bought a comic book from a friend who owned a struggling comic shop. I couldn’t leave without buying anything. So, I just grabbed a Fantastic Four Annual, and went to the park to read it. The last story, I believe was about Super Skrull, and  on the last panel was a bunch of kids holding Super Skrull figures.
It was very postmodern. And the voice once again said I was going to meet the person who wrote that story. I said Nah. I had planned to give up my whole comics thing and start a radio show for my college.

But then a month later, my best friend badgered me into going to Marvel with him for an internship. I figured, what the heck. I’ll just go in and see what kind of fun I could have in the interview. I ended up working there for 2 1/2 years, and the writer of that Super Skrull story, Len, became the love of my young life. Even though we were only together for a couple of years, I carried a torch for him for another 10 years.

Len, an internet and zine aficionado of the early ’90’s, walked in the door carrying the mail. The gang of us moochers, (roommate, roomie’s gf, and me) were lounging around, drinking and watching bad sf on the big tv. We looked up as Len proudly did show and tell with a zine on newsprint with some kind of black fetus art on the cover: “See this zine? This is not about UFo’s–this is about who believe in UFo’s! Hah hah!” and he retired to his room to enjoy.

Fourteen years later, I met the love of my adult life through an ad I placed online. We were in his bedroom, and he showed me a zine he had edited (and to a large degree written) in the early ’90’s. The cover of it showed a large black fetus. He said, “This is not only about UFo’s–this is about people who believe in UFo’s!”

And I said, “I’ve seen this magazine before…”

Does this happen to other people? What do these wrinkles in the fabric of my life mean? Where do these voices in my head–which I also seldom believe–come from?

Why Are We Here?

No, I mean why are WE here, the Methylaxis Boradaclumens? We are here to recruit around 50 (maybe more if time permits) humans to voyage with us through time and space to discover the soul of the universe. If you think you could embark upon such a journey, please send us your c.v., detailing any previous experience you might have had in hyper light speed travel, advanced quantum mechanics etc, or whether you have any other skills that might be useful during the journey, such as making a nice cup of tea. A suitability test will be posted on this page soon. Until then, as we say on Methylaxis Boradaclumen (pictured), “Jizz!”

UFO Trivia

Ha, I only got two wrong (I wish I could get this stuff surgically removed from my brain.) Here’s the link.

Giving the Police Their ‘X-Files’ Due.

I thought that police would be in denial of UFo’s–even if one abducted a patrolman’s behind, he’d rather say his ass was simply “stolen”, but in Xalapa, Mexico, even the governor witnessed a massive ufo fleet, and journalists apparently witnessed him witnessing it, and, in Memphis, members of the MPD tactical squad saw a giant one over a golf course. There are even more UFo sightings by policemen listed at ufoevidence.org

One police man put a call regarding a UFo to the FAA–now that’s who I would call, not the police. I have to make a note to put that on my emergency contact sheet next to my phone–and put it in my cell.

British Skies UFO-Free For Past 30 Years

LONDON (AFP) – None of the numerous UFOs reported over Britain in the last 30 years was a flying saucer, the government said as it released previously secret defence files probing mysterious aerial sightings.

The declassified study — “Unidentified Aerial Phenomena (UAP) in the UK Air Defence Region” — concluded that such UAP do exist and are “usually described as coloured lights and sometimes as shapes”.

“Very occasionally they are reported with sound and even with smell,” it added.

But it noted that “reports occur because they comprise unfamiliar and unexpected lights, shapes and patterns, in the context in which the observer sees them. The phenomena occur on a daily, worldwide basis”.
Rest of article here.

When You Get Your Ass to Mars…

…this will alow you to tell time on the Red Planet. A useful tool for Sci-Fi Living.

23rd Mandalation Jokes

I was thinking about what kind of humor might be appropirate for a blog like this. So, I’ve taken the liberty to scratch together a few jokes with a 23M theme:

Q: What do you call a stupid South American mammal with delusions of divinity?
A: Rama Llama Ding Dong

Q: How many black operators does it take to change a light bulb?
A: Lee Harvey Oswald changed the light bulb, and he acted alone.

The Real Reason behind UFOs:
UFO witness Robert Lazar said that the grays worked with the United States government because that country had something, of which no other nation in the world has an abundant supply: boron. The only known commercial use for this element is to soften water, an effect that makes clothes whiter than white. This fact led an ufologist named Campbell to quip “That could be really important, if you’re a gray.”

For Crowleyans:
Aleister and Rose were having a marital spat. In frustration, Rose screamed, “You make me so mad, I want to kill myself!”

Replied Aleister calmly, “You know the law.”

For American esoterics:
Marjorie thought that her husband was intoxicated because L. Ron told her Jack was “sky high.”

Old Henny Youngman gag:
I’m a water sign. My wife’s an Earth sign. Together we make mud.