MERCEDES-LACKEY Digest 1018

Topics covered in this issue include:

  1) Re: Viruses et al
	by Melanie Dymond Harper <mel>
  2) Lurking for a while...
	by jc-+AT+-crosfield.co.uk (Jerry Cullingford)
  3) D&D/Good Omens/Tolkein
	by Glithoniel-+AT+-aol.com
  4) Re: electricity/ Road through Sorrows/ GIFs/ Pirates/ Ship Who Sang/ Restoree/ Wrede/ Gaiman/ Tolkien/ SATs in Velgarth?/ SATs/ M&Ms 
	by Ken Hyde <kenny-+AT+-UDel.Edu>
  5) teasing the elf (fluff)/Miss Saigon/Wrede
	by "Emily L Cartier" <ecartier-+AT+-engr.udayton.edu>
  6) Beginnings, journeys, and ends
	by Wintershard <peallen-+AT+-naz.edu>
  7) Not again!
	by Deniz<dsarik-+AT+-po-box.mcgill.ca>
  8) brain size vs. number of folds...
	by Khenta Blaufalk <bhanel-+AT+-aixterm1.urz.uni-heidelberg.de>
  9) Re: Not again!
	by nme848-+AT+-hecky.acns.nwu.edu (Nina Ehgartner)
 10) Reply to: Re: electricity/ Road through Sorrows/ GIFs/ Pirates/ Ship Who Sang/ Restoree/ Wrede/ Gaiman/ Tolkien/ SATs in Velgarth?/ SATs/ M&Ms
	by Rozanna McNeer <rozanm-+AT+-wow.com>
 11) Re: Not again!
	by davidt-+AT+-cet.com (D H Tiffany/Shawn Marie Walker)
 12) Re: Poll/Wrede and fluff
	by Randi Skjaeran <rskjaran-+AT+-sn.no>
 13) Electricity / Companions / Gripe
	by Shdwflt-+AT+-aol.com
 14) Books!  Books!
	by "JAIME HATHAWAY" <jsjahath-+AT+-future.judson.edu>
 15) Re: Poll 
	by Chris & Sean Talbot <brujah-+AT+-idirect.com>
 16) Re: Rosenberg\OoUL/L\Gambit\Viki Nelson\filk
	by Chris & Sean Talbot <brujah-+AT+-idirect.com>
 17) Re: Healers channeling/Lee/Luck/Song
	by Chris & Sean Talbot <brujah-+AT+-idirect.com>
 18) fwrd from Rainwood --bye for Christmas
	by singer-+AT+-iglobal.net

----------------------------------------------------------------------

Date: Fri, 13 Dec 1996 10:28:57 GMT
From: Melanie Dymond Harper <mel>
To: mercedes-lackey-+AT+-herald.co.uk
Subject: Re: Viruses et al
Message-ID: <199612131028.KAA09866-+AT+-vanyel.herald.co.uk>


Firemist said:

> And before you say it, Jake, you CAN recieve a virus via email -- the person
> has only to attach the virus in an encolsed file and the minute you open the 
> message your hard drive is mince-meat.
>

Well, yes and no. If you're daft enough to open up a random executable file 
that someone you don't know has sent you, then yes, it can do bad things to
your disk -- if it happens to be an executable file for the right platform.
Technically that's a "Trojan Horse" rather than a virus, though. Note that it
will do absolutely nothing at all if, for instance, someone sends you a
malign PC executable file and you open it on a Mac, it won't do anything. The
motto is, if someone sends you an email message with a file included, and you
don't know who they are, then don't open the file. Ff your mailer opens
attached files automatically, run, don't walk, to the manuals or the technical
support staff and find out how to disable that facility; an executable file
need not be labelled as such, so relying on the filename won't necessarily
help.

(Real-world example; a couple of months back, someone sent J. Michael
Straczynski, Babylon 5's Great Maker, a file which they labelled as a picture
of a Starfury that their youngster had drawn. He opened the file and found out
that it was in fact a Trojan Horse file, as it started to delete chunks of
his hard drive; luckily he takes backups and had the presence of mind to switch
the computer off as soon as he realised something was wrong, and could then
sort the damage out. He still lost several hours of working time while he put
it back together though. (The other file left a little message on his hard
drive; "Trek Rules!". Pathetic.))

You _cannot_ _get_ _a_ _virus_ from an ordinary text e-mail message. It can't
be done. It won't happen. (I wrote an article for the Herald newsletter about
this a couple of weeks back, specifically mentioning the Good Times hoax, this
being before I'd seen a copy of the Penpal Greetings hoax; 
http://www.herald.co.uk/blazon/b11/fact_fiction.html, if people are interested)
One of our other listmembers (Hi Dan!) has sent me a comprehensive list of
the virus warnings currently circulating, which I'll throw up on the Web (and
possibly also into the list archives) later on.

> Firemist <whose brother who-works-for-defense-in-the-computer-programming 
> -staff-and-knows-these-things told her this>

Mel, background in computer security.

------------------------------

Date: Fri, 13 Dec 1996 10:53:50 +0000 (GMT)
From: jc-+AT+-crosfield.co.uk (Jerry Cullingford)
To: mercedes-lackey-+AT+-herald.co.uk
Subject: Lurking for a while...
Message-ID: <9612131053.AA26221-+AT+-crosfield.co.uk>

I'll be going into more-of-a-lurk-than-usual mode tonight - Once again,
the holidays have piled up, and the year is running out, so I'm going to
be away from work until the second week in January, and I'll have to postpone
any list mail until I get back - otherwise my mailbox will explode!

I may set things up from home if I end up using the computer much over the
hodidays - If not, Happy Yule, and a merry new year, from Me, the Goblins,
and the Killer Penguins - the items are probably disguising themselves as
musical Xmas Tree lights at this very moment...


-- 
   _|_   Jerry Cullingford      jc-+AT+-crosfield.co.uk      (Work)
  / |    Hemel Hempstead, UK    jc-+AT+-selune.demon.co.uk   (Home)
  \_|_                          www.selune.demon.co.uk  (soon)
\__/    Named Deity of Goblins, Killer Penguins, and Annoying Magic Items.

------------------------------

Date: Fri, 13 Dec 1996 10:50:08 -0500
From: Glithoniel-+AT+-aol.com
To: mercedes-lackey-+AT+-herald.co.uk
Subject: D&D/Good Omens/Tolkein
Message-ID: <961213105008_1619191888-+AT+-emout19.mail.aol.com>

Lee wrote:
>>The Xtian & the pantheist I talked to Mon. morning both thought that D&D
has to do with occult rituals, that somehow it revises the history of the
world...I just didn't know what to say.<<

Well, you could say that pig-headed ignorance knows no boundaries!<G>  I mean
really!  My mother worried about me playing D&D for a while, so I made her
roll a character and play with us.  Cured her right quick.  Course Mom tends
to be a little more open about things.  She's even read most of the Misty
books I've handed her.  Still haven't been able to get her to read LHM.  She
has this hangup about the main character's sexual orientation.  Or could be
she's just apprehensive that I'm right and she's wrong<weg>.  

********
Tygriss wrote:
>>Has anyone read Gaiman and Pratchett's Good Omens?<<  
I'm working on it now.  I've gotten about halfway.  And you're right it is
hilarious; but then its Pratchett isn't it?

>>Okay, enough of going crazy!  Who is Pterry?  I keep getting the feeling
it's Pratchett but I think I'm wrong.  Help! ;)<<
Pratchett it is.  Its a nickname form pulled from Pyramids.  Have you checked
out the L-space web?  It is dedicated to all things Pratchett.  It explains
the Pterry thing among others.
*******
Kaatje wrote:
>>There's something about Tolkien's world that is so...bleak.  So  empty.  I
visualize it all in muted watercolor tones, drifted in fallen leaves and thin
sunlight.  And in the end, even though the war is won, Sauron defeated, and
the land restored, there's still that feeling of vague emptiness.  It's not a
"happy ending", really, just an End.  And 
it's the only ending that could possibly be.<<

I agree there is so much that is lost or about to be lost.  Its an ending
with a hope for a brighter future but its not often that Ages end.  Besides,
even the earlier ages in Tolkien tend to have that dark undercurrent of
lurking evil.  Oddly enough, GGK's Fionavar Tapestry is the same way.  I
haven't been able to bring myself to read any of his other stuff(mostly due
to that aversion to having my heart ripped out and shredded) but from what
friends have told me the bleakness is the same.
*******
ObMisty:  On the MOC topic, I noticed in Magic's Price that Vanyel says Jisa
hasn't been Chosen yet because she will be MO therefore her Companion will be
Taver.  I wonder if this was just a special case or if it happens a lot.

Well, that's all for me.  I'm going to see 101 Dalmations.  I hope this one
is closer to the book than the original movie(although I love it anyway).  

Glithoniel
Mistress of Willowhawk, Goddess of Tardiness, Lady of the Pink Wand

"Sister Mary headed through the night-time hospital with the Adversary,
Destroyer of
Kings, Angel of the Bottomless Pit, Great Beast that is called Dragon, Prince
of This
World, Father of Lies, Spawn of Satan and Lord of Darkness safely in her
arms.  She
found a bassinet and laid him down in it.  He gurgled.  She gave him a
tickle."
    --Terry Pratchett, Neil Gaiman (Good Omens)

------------------------------

Date: Fri, 13 Dec 1996 10:57:26 -0500 (EST)
From: Ken Hyde <kenny-+AT+-UDel.Edu>
To: mercedes-lackey-+AT+-herald.co.uk
Subject: Re: electricity/ Road through Sorrows/ GIFs/ Pirates/ Ship Who Sang/ Restoree/ Wrede/ Gaiman/ Tolkien/ SATs in Velgarth?/ SATs/ M&Ms 
Message-ID: <Pine.SOL.3.95.961213104524.11323E-100000-+AT+-copland.udel.edu>

On Fri, 13 Dec 1996, Romylee A. Ejercito wrote:

> Mylee: Can I brag too?  *grin*  Took the SATs in '94, got a 690 in Verbal
> and a 760 in Math.

Well, as long as we are bragging, I got a 2070 composite on my GRE's.  And
that was without studying at all.  So there. =P *giggle*  Actually, this
is not as impressive as it sounds.  GRE's are usually easier than SAT's
(or so I have been told, never having taken the SAT).  Also, numerous
studies by ETS have shown that studying for the GRE (or for the SAT) is
not particularly effective.  The tests are designed especially so that
they are impossible to study for.  One of my best friends works for ETS
writing questions for the GRE and their biggest goal is to come up with
problems that no amount of last-minute studying can help with.  (BTW, if
you are looking at having to take one of these tests in the near future,
save your money on the high-priced intensive study courses--go out and by
the Princeton Review book on test-taking strategies.  It's the only method
of studying for the GRE that has been statistically shown to help raise
scores.)

> >Atropa: *sniffle* really wish I could eat M&Ms... BTW, being allergic to
> chocolate really REALLY sucks... all I can eat is white chocolate... and
> ya, it does kinda taste like white clay... not that _I've_ ever eaten it
> either... ;)
> 
> Mylee: Yuck.  Hmm, are you sure you can white chocolate?  You being the
> Dark Angel and all?

Um, Atropa, if you are allergic to chocolate, how can you eat white
chocolate?  It is real chocolate after all.  Or do you mean that nasty
white food product that passes for "white chocolate" but doesn't really
contain any cocoa products at all?  And if you are going to eat that
stuff, why not just eat carob?  Sure, it doesn't taste like chocolate, but
then, neither does the white confectioner's food product (or whatever the
**** they try and label it as).

May the seas be your solace and the forests a refuge for your spirit,

Cennydd,

Kenneth Allen Hyde     |  No matter how subtle the wizard, a knife
Univ. of Delaware      |  between the shoulder blades will seriously
Dept. of Linguistics   |  cramp his style  -- Old Jhereg proverb
kenny-+AT+-Udel.Edu         |  A mind is a terrible toy to waste! -- Me

**http://www.udel.edu/kenny/ken.html or .../kenny/green.silences.html**


------------------------------

Date: Fri, 13 Dec 1996 11:36:38 -0500
From: "Emily L Cartier" <ecartier-+AT+-engr.udayton.edu>
To: mercedes-lackey-+AT+-herald.co.uk
Subject: teasing the elf (fluff)/Miss Saigon/Wrede
Message-ID: <9612131639.AA02324-+AT+-udecc.engr.udayton.edu>

First order of business: Tease elf
>But how would they get the metal pink?;>
Simple Kory, they use titanium (my preference) and run electricity 
thru it to make it pink, _or_ they use alumiminum (blech, but it's 
cheap) and oxidize it in a funny way (anodized) and turn it pink. But 
anodized aluminum is a really wimpy pink, and titatium turns hot 
pink, so if I _must_ have pink metal, give me titanium.

Elf went on to brag about his SAT scores
You mean you only got a 680 verbal! Jeez, and here I thought you had 
a decent vocabulary... Anyway the ACT doesn't count, cause we're 
bragging about SAT scores here, and the ACT is so much easier. 
(season the previous liberally with grins)
Kory, a 470 is nothing to sneeze at, and you haven't really gotten to 
the fun parts of math yet so don't worry about it. Me, the engineer 
only got a 500 something when I took it (I'd been hoping for at least 
a 600 to go with the 800 verbal... didn't get either).

>Ya' know..I only just realized the play on Taliesen?
silly elves, don't know their Aurthurian myths or phoenetics.... <g>

Mylee gripes:
> Chris is a stupid, idiotic, insensitive, moronic, ARGH!  The fool!
>Grrrrr!  I just came from watching Miss Saigon.  I've had the 
>soundtrack for quite some time now, but this is the first time I've 
>actually seen it. Anyway, Chris is a dolt.  Okay, so he fell out of 
>love with Kim and into love with Ellen.  Does that have to make him 
>so insensitive that he blithely makes decisions without even talking 
>to Kim?  *growl*  
Ah, you _did_ know beforehand that it was based on Madame Butterfly 
right? And you expected (from the soundtrack!?) for Chris to be a 
_good guy_?!?!? <total disbelief> I would've thought that the bit on 
the soundtrack where Kim goes to the hotel room and has a fight with 
Ellen would've made it _quite_ clear that Chris is a total jerkoff 
(besides the fact that he's commiting bigamy). I never really liked 
Ellen either, you think she could at least have some feeling for Kim. 
What _I_ wished would happen is both Kim and Ellen divorce Chris and 
go to America to raise Tam and live happily ever after together (with 
two suitable guys when they find them). Unfortunately I don't think 
that there's much chance that Ellen and Kim would fall in love, cause 
that would be a much neater solution.

>Mel: ObMisty: <snip>"just as electricity won't flow through lead"? 
>There I was, reading along happily, immersed in the story, then I hit 
>that spot and *spoiing*, all I can think is "But it *does*! Lead is a 
>metal, and electricity can be conducted by all metals and some non-
>metals!"
>Mylee: Maybe she got confused between electricity and X-rays?
<g> "Possible. Very, very possible."
    "More than possible. Their fears would prove to be well-founded."
Guess the quote!

>Mylee:  Love her.  I've got the whole Enchanted Forest Chronicles.  I
>think Talking to Dragons is not as good as the others (Mendanbar's 
>def.better than Daystar).  There's also one more book, um, shoot, I 
>can't remember, and the book's 10,000 miles away.  I'll e-mail my sis 
>and ask.  
I only found the one. Maybe one of the others will show up there...

Oh, guess what else I found in the University Bookstore's Children's 
Section. Two books about Arthurian myth as a mystical tradition. I 
don't think that they really belong there (this is a _Catholic_ 
university!), but if I pointed it out, they wouldn't really have 
another place to put them. But they are definitely too heavy for most 
kids... 

Now I need an ObMisty. Hmm. Valdemar doesn't have productions of 
_Madame Butterfly_ <g>. 

Emily the invisible, who is in a Very Strange Mood


------------------------------

Date: Fri, 13 Dec 1996 12:31:42 -0500 (EST)
From: Wintershard <peallen-+AT+-naz.edu>
To: mercedes-lackey-+AT+-herald.co.uk
Subject: Beginnings, journeys, and ends
Message-ID: <Pine.ULT.3.95.961213113149.10056A-100000-+AT+-orion.naz.edu>

Friends, Valdemarans, countrymen, lend me your sheep...

For whomever was doing the first book poll, for me it was Black Gryphon.
That also happens to be my favorite (so far...;).


You know, it's hard to really say how I feel right now. You've all been
such a wonderful part of my life for these past few months... As has been
said so many times before, you're all like family to me right now, and to
be separated tears my heart with loss. But, thanks to Tygriss, I should be
back within a month or so. I hope all of you the best of wishes in your
journies, be they real life, the Moonpaths, or forgotten dreams of long
ago. To all of you, thank you, and may the Lord and Lady aid you in the
coming new year.

Wintershard
  Thy Demon of Crappy Weather


------------------------------

Date: Fri, 13 Dec 96 12:42:45 -0500
From: Deniz<dsarik-+AT+-po-box.mcgill.ca>
To: mercedes-lackey-+AT+-herald.co.uk
Subject: Not again!
Message-ID: <199612131758.MAA07074-+AT+-sirocco.CC.McGill.CA>


TODAY, THE 13th, IS NINA'S BIRTHDAY!

I haven't seen her writing for quite awhile, and I'm REALLY SORRY I forgot to 
warn everybody!  Sheesh, this is becoming a bad habit!

Erm... Nina, on this, thy birthing day, may it please thee to accept this 
humble gifting.  May thy steps fall lightly, and may genuine smiles of 
happiness abound in thy presence.

#-+AT+-!)(*)$&)^!!*_(-+AT+-!(#_*%$#_&^)##-+AT+-_~
You Know You've Been Reading Too Much Cennydd, When:
(help me fill this in, right now I only have one)

 - You hear that Michael Jackson song from "Free Willy", and you point out how 
he's not agreeing in formality. ("I will say to thee.  You are my (?)") 
(somebody, please help flesh the quote out, too.  I never enjoyed MJ)

)%)-+AT+-!*$_#_%*&$#)^&$#)*%-+AT+-_$#-+AT+-_!%(*!+(_%$*&#
Emily wrote:
>Elf went on to brag about his SAT scores
>You mean you only got a 680 verbal! Jeez, and here I thought you had 
>a decent vocabulary... Anyway the ACT doesn't count, cause we're 
>bragging about SAT scores here, and the ACT is so much easier. 
>(season the previous liberally with grins)
>Kory, a 470 is nothing to sneeze at, and you haven't really gotten to 
>the fun parts of math yet so don't worry about it. Me, the engineer 
>only got a 500 something when I took it (I'd been hoping for at least 
>a 600 to go with the 800 verbal... didn't get either).

I'm not going to brag, but with my CAT's, PSSAT's, SSAT's, PSAT's, and SAT's, 
my parents are really surprised that once I hit High School, I stopped having 
a straight-A average.  They don't care how dificult a boarding school it is.  
With scores above 1400, they naturally expect the straight A's.  Well, 
straight B on the B+ side is what they got.  They won't be happy with whatever 
I get this term at University, I know it.

_#$*_-+AT+-#*^)%#&^+-+AT+-!+*%^#&$)^*%-+AT+-#*$-+AT+-#-+AT+-!
Still Emily:
>>Mel: ObMisty: <snip>"just as electricity won't flow through lead"? 
>>There I was, reading along happily, immersed in the story, then I hit 
>>that spot and *spoiing*, all I can think is "But it *does*! Lead is a 
>>metal, and electricity can be conducted by all metals and some non-
>>metals!"
>>Mylee: Maybe she got confused between electricity and X-rays?
><g> "Possible. Very, very possible."
>    "More than possible. Their fears would prove to be well-founded."
>Guess the quote!

I can't guess the quote, but I have another idea.  Maybe Misty was thinking 
magnetism?  'Cause lead isn't magnetic, right?

)*$&&)^&#$*%_!$%*#$)^#$&#_-+AT+-!(%_$#(%
Esmerelda said:
>There's a "last chapter" to the Ship who Sang in, I think, the book
>of short stories "Get off the Unicorn" which is meant to sort of close the
>Helva/Niall saga. 

_GOtU_ was a book of short stories?  I thought it was a novel with Pegasus in 
Flight and To Ride Pegasus, set in the pre-Rowan, beginning of the Primes and 
TK everything stuff on Earth.  Hmm.  Did you know that the title is actually a 
typo?  McCaffrey originally wanted _Get of the Unicorn_, but when it came back 
typo'ed, she laughed and loved it, so it stayed _Get Off the Unicorn_.

#)$*&%)#&)-+AT+-!)#*%_$#*^#^&$#-+AT+-($~_!(!*%($
>Tygriss: Has anyone read Gaiman and Pratchett's Good Omens?  That is the
most hilarious book I have ever read, truly!  The angel and demon being best
friends and trying to stop the Apocaylpse was a wonderful idea.  A better
team to tackle the subject couldn't be found.

>Mylee: Is this Neil Gaiman by any chance?  The topic sounds like something
he'd do.  I love his Sandman stuff, and I'm getting the collections from
SFBC one by one.  *sigh*  Neil Gaiman quit doing Sandman, then Bill
Watterson quit Calvin and Hobbes.  With my luck, Cathy Guisewite is going
to quit Cathy too....

Yes, it's Neil Gaiman.  I absolutely LOVE his stuff.  Actually, GO and all 
your (collective list being the referent) ranting over Pterri are what made me 
go get some.  I still haven't finished "The Kindly Ones" arc, yet, because 
Winter forgot I hadn't read them and didn't live near a comic store.  Can you 
imagine Saudi customs (no pornography) letting in Sandman?  If you think so, 
remember Doll's House, when Rose is talking with Morpheus.  About flying.

-+AT+-)(&%)$#&)!(*_#-+AT+-(!_*%&)$&)
Mylee also said:
>Deniz:In MPromise Van mentions that Bards need to know how to fight.  I'd
doubt that Healers would be into combat lessons, though.  Blues, now...<snip>

I didn't say that.  I responded to it along the same lines you did, actually.

&)(*$#-+AT+-&%)$#&)%*!)*%$#(*^_)#(*%&)$#&)
M&M's?  Oh, my God! (Mat, of course) I haven't had M&M's in months.  Well, 
only one way to remedy that situation.  Also, I thought that blue replaced the 
light browns, which I didn't appreciate, because light browns were my second 
favorite color, while blues are at the bottom of the list with red.  I didn't 
know you could get bags with both lt. browns and blues!

love,
Deniz Sarikaya, High Priestess of |"Perhaps today IS a good to die!"-- Worf
Procrastination, Holy Custodian of|"You told him about the statue?" -- Riker
the B-Day List, Dame of the OoAM, |"I'm a doctor, not a doorstop." -- EMH
and Demon of Deceitful Aliases.   |"Definitely not Swedish." -- Lily
      >dsarik-+AT+-PO-Box.McGill.CA< >freakola-+AT+-geocities.com<
         >http://www.geocities.com/CollegePark/9359/<

------------------------------

Date: Fri, 13 Dec 1996 19:07:13 +0100 (CET)
From: Khenta Blaufalk <bhanel-+AT+-aixterm1.urz.uni-heidelberg.de>
To: Misty mail <mercedes-lackey-+AT+-vanyel.herald.co.uk>
Subject: brain size vs. number of folds...
Message-ID: <Pine.A32.3.91.961213183909.43043A-100000-+AT+-aixterm8.urz.uni-heidelberg.de>

I hope this doesn't come out with all kinds of odd characters in it again...

Glith wrote (responding to Lee):

re: brainsize and intelligence

>I should have thought about the fold complexity issue(which is always my
>arguement for sentience in Dolphins and whales but thats another 
>discussion).
> However will you concede that when comparing the Companion brain with 
>the bond-bird brain that a Companion due to the sheer size of the brain 
>has a better chance for higher intelligence?  Even if the two groups 
>brains were folded with the same degree of complexity, the Companion 
>posses more folds just by way of brainsize. (Somebody hand me my 
>hipboots. Its really getting deep!<G>)

Hmm, well, it's not the brainsize that matters, actually. If RL biology 
applies to Velgarth as well then you can't really compare bondbirds to 
Companions, 'cause the former are birds and the latter are based on 
horses. Birds have a differently (simpler, IIRC) structured brain than 
mammals. They don't have as much grey matter<?> or neo-cortex (if any at 
all, I'm not sure on that one, we haven't done that yet in class) as 
mammals. I'm completely blanking on the proper terms right now, but that 
means that they don't have as much capacity to learn new behaviour 
'cause they're running on instincts, mostly (sorry this sentence sounds 
somehow wrong, but I hope you all get what I mean), whereas mammals have 
to learn most of their behaviour, being ruled by instincts to a lesser 
extent than birds or reptiles. 
The only thing that needs to be clarified now is whether a rat or a 
mouse is more intelligent than, say a bird-of-prey or a swan or 
something the like. I realize that this is mostly a matter of how you're 
going to define intelligence.

Oh. <light-bulb over her head>
Now that's what Misty means by "enhanced intelligence of the bondbirds"! 
The Tayledras increased their mass of grey cells! But I still think 
that Larry's pictures don't look like it, looking more like ordinary 
birds.  
There once was a point to my post. Apparently it's got lost somewhere on 
the way. So I'll quit droning on a favourite topic of mine (I'll admit 
to being a biology nut in spite of my rather horrible teacher -she's the 
reason why I have the Bart Simpson quote in my sig-) and wish you all a 
nice weekend.



Walk in beauty

Khenta Blaufalk                          bhanel-+AT+-ix.urz.uni-heidelberg.de
aka Skyfire k'Vala, Goddess of Incomplete Vocabulary and Garbled Grammar 

I will not expose the ignorance of the faculty...           Bart Simpson





------------------------------

Date: Fri, 13 Dec 1996 12:25:07 -0600
From: nme848-+AT+-hecky.acns.nwu.edu (Nina Ehgartner)
To: mercedes-lackey-+AT+-herald.co.uk
Subject: Re: Not again!
Message-ID: <199612131822.AA151791362-+AT+-hecky.acns.nwu.edu>

>
>TODAY, THE 13th, IS NINA'S BIRTHDAY!
>
>I haven't seen her writing for quite awhile, and I'm REALLY SORRY I forgot to 
>warn everybody!  Sheesh, this is becoming a bad habit!
>
>Erm... Nina, on this, thy birthing day, may it please thee to accept this 
>humble gifting.  May thy steps fall lightly, and may genuine smiles of 
>happiness abound in thy presence.
>
Thank you very much for you the birthday wishes and your gift.  With a b-day
on friday the 13th, it's no wonder my brother thinks I'm possessed (now, you
don't think I'd do anything to reinforce that notion, now would you?)

I have been lurking a bit lately, but that's because we've gotten really
busy at work--we've been processing several thousand applications since the
beginning of the month (and this is only the 1st deadline!)

Anyway, for the poll, my first Misty book was AFlight.  My favorite is BTS
with BGryphon a close second.

Nina Ehgartner
Admissions Assistant-Office of Admissions and Financial Aid
J.L. Kellogg Graduate School of Management
email:  nme848-+AT+-hecky.acns.nwu.edu
Phone: (847) 491-3308
Fax: (847) 491-4960


------------------------------

Date: Fri, 13 Dec 1996 14:25:57 -0500
From: Rozanna McNeer <rozanm-+AT+-wow.com>
To: "mercedes-lackey-+AT+-herald.co.uk mercedes-lackey-+AT+-herald.co.uk" <MERCEDES-LACKEY-+AT+-HERALD.CO.UK>
Subject: Reply to: Re: electricity/ Road through Sorrows/ GIFs/ Pirates/ Ship Who Sang/ Restoree/ Wrede/ Gaiman/ Tolkien/ SATs in Velgarth?/ SATs/ M&Ms
Message-ID: <199612131426_MC1-D21-F6A2-+AT+-compuserve.com>

~~Electricity~~

>Mel: ObMisty: <snip>"just as electricity won't flow through lead"? There
I was, reading along happily, immersed in the story, then I hit that spot
and *spoiing*, all I can think is "But it *does*! Lead is a metal, and
electricity can be conducted by all metals and some non-metals!"

>Mylee: Maybe she got confused between electricity and X-rays?

Misty? or Rose? somewhere/sometime/someone said that Misty
is an electrical engineer, so she should *know* these things. She'd
have been *much* better of saying "just as electricity won't flow through
WOOD or DIRT," after all, even Rose would have known that...

Firemist

------------------------------

Date: Fri, 13 Dec 1996 11:50:42 -0800
From: davidt-+AT+-cet.com (D H Tiffany/Shawn Marie Walker)
To: mercedes-lackey-+AT+-herald.co.uk
Subject: Re: Not again!
Message-ID: <grasywHqhhma088yn-+AT+-cet.com>

Deniz<dsarik-+AT+-po-box.mcgill.ca> wrote:
>_GOtU_ was a book of short stories?  I thought it was a novel with Pegasus in 
>Flight and To Ride Pegasus, set in the pre-Rowan, beginning of the Primes and 
>TK everything stuff on Earth.  Hmm.  Did you know that the title is actually a 
>typo?  McCaffrey originally wanted _Get of the Unicorn_, but when it came back 
>typo'ed, she laughed and loved it, so it stayed _Get Off the Unicorn_.

Actually the way the story goes is that this started out as a book by
somebody else called "Get of the Unicorn" who then didn't deliver. As
the title moldered on the unfulfilled contracts list at Ballantine it
got typo'd (one of my earlier triumphs) to "Get off the Unicorn." The
editor responsible for the book, meanwhile, was taking heat about when 
it would be ready so she (Judy-lynn del Rey) asked Anne Mcaffery to put
something together and Anne obliged. That's all from the foreward.
It's a good collection, if you can find it! In addition to the first 
flight of the NH-834 it has such gems as "Lady in the Tower" (1959) 
which is the original story about the Rowan, "A Meeting of Minds"(1969) 
the original Damia story, "The Thorns of Barevi"(1970) Anne's attempt
at soft porn which recently prouted into "Freedom's Landing." a Pern
short story ("The Smallest Dragonboy")and several other fine old short 
storys.

OBMisty: SB still hasn't come<sob>. If Van & Stef & 'ffandes ever leave 
Sorrows, how long would be before the locals noticed they'd gone? Or would
they just maintain the "haunted forest" legend?

David Tiffany, God of Poytsville

Scrap-book, n. A book that is commonly edited by a fool. -Ambrose Bierce


------------------------------

Date: Fri, 13 Dec 1996 00:29:51 -0800
From: Randi Skjaeran <rskjaran-+AT+-sn.no>
To: mercedes-lackey-+AT+-herald.co.uk
Subject: Re: Poll/Wrede and fluff
Message-ID: <32B113FF.2570-+AT+-sn.no>

My first was AFlight, favourite (by a hair) By the Sword. Impressive how
the story jumps several years in the middle og the story and it does not
matter.
Rereading Oath as a prelude to enjoying BTS again soon. Christmas
cookies coming out real good (1st time without mum as boss) - a happy
taste to all and especially you with a birthday today!

Wrede: I have 'Talking to Dr' and adore it. How many are there? Several
other of her books I've snapped up as they very seldom pass by, but
collection has huge holes. <sigh>

ObMisty: Oathbreakers - Jadrek seems older than Kethry by quite a bit -
is how much ever clarified? Since he was Arch when Idra left and we meet
him 'again' 27 years later it should be quite a bitt...
-- 
kids make life worth living - but have them after 30...
Randi  :-)



------------------------------

Date: Fri, 13 Dec 1996 21:53:28 -0500
From: Shdwflt-+AT+-aol.com
To: mercedes-lackey-+AT+-herald.co.uk
Subject: Electricity / Companions / Gripe
Message-ID: <961213215327_640882281-+AT+-emout06.mail.aol.com>

<<>Mel: ObMisty: <snip>"just as electricity won't flow through lead"? There
I was, reading along happily, immersed in the story, then I hit that spot
and *spoiing*, all I can think is "But it *does*! Lead is a metal, and
electricity can be conducted by all metals and some non-metals!"

Mylee: Maybe she got confused between electricity and X-rays?>>

Well, PENCIL lead (which is graphite, not real lead, reallly) conducts
electricity too.  Don't believe me?  Trace pencil circles around key
components on your motherboard and then turn on your computer. *weg* I've
done that to someone...

--------------

I said: I spent sixty on a Companion Stuffed Sculpture--I'd buy a gryphon if
I had the cash.

Kory asked: What're the Companions like? 

They're real nice.  Come with a tack and everything.  I bought the Companion
Mare.. when I brought it to work to wrap it, everyone said it was beautiful.
 And these were non-fantasy people.  Took FOREVER to get it though..

------------

Hey New People, remember that we don't NEED to see fifty lines of message for
a twenty line reply.  Use the delete key... Mel thanks you, the list thanks
you, and I thank you.

- Jake - 




------------------------------

Date: Fri, 13 Dec 1996 18:36:35 CST
From: "JAIME HATHAWAY" <jsjahath-+AT+-future.judson.edu>
To: mercedes-lackey-+AT+-herald.co.uk
Subject: Books!  Books!
Message-ID: <31C896A22-+AT+-future.judson.edu>

To all of you looking for misty's books...
go to www.amazon.com
It's the "Earth's largest bookstore", or so they claim...they have 
over 1 million titles, 64 of which are Misty's.  You can order, and 
they even have books that haven't been released that you can be put 
on the waiting list for, inc. the Valdemar anthology that'll be 
released soon.  You can search by author, title, keyword, subject.  
it's very cool, and you don't have to pay by credit card, although 
you can.  There are a whole horde of reviews that people wrote in on 
MPawn, etc, most of which are good.  They also discount their books 
ten percent from the regular bookstores, or the publisher, (or 
something like that :)  )
Just thought I'd pass the info along...it's a really great site.
Jacquelle
This is its own obMisty, isn't it?  :)
"You broke your little ships."
Lily to Picard
Star Trek: First Contact

------------------------------

Date: Sat, 14 Dec 1996 00:19:47 -0500
From: Chris & Sean Talbot <brujah-+AT+-idirect.com>
To: mercedes-lackey-+AT+-herald.co.uk
Subject: Re: Poll 
Message-ID: <199612140519.AAA01027-+AT+-nemesis.idirect.com>

At 12:14 AM 12/11/96 GMT, you wrote:
>  
>
>Hi all
>
>  This is my first post and it is responce to a poll.  My frist Misty book
>was Magic's Pawn fallowed by Promise and Price.  I read the paper backs
>untill they were falling apart, and now I have the sci-fi 3-in-1 and it is my
>favorite book.  It lets me read all three storys back to back with out my
>husband saying you just finished a book do you have to start another one now?
> 
>
>Firefly182
>

I have not replied to the poll messages before.  My first Misty Book was By
the Sword and my favorite was Arrows of the Queen which was my 3rd book of
hers I read followed then.  I read Arrows FAll first of that series and then
Arrows Flight last.

Aistes


------------------------------

Date: Sat, 14 Dec 1996 00:19:50 -0500
From: Chris & Sean Talbot <brujah-+AT+-idirect.com>
To: mercedes-lackey-+AT+-herald.co.uk
Subject: Re: Rosenberg\OoUL/L\Gambit\Viki Nelson\filk
Message-ID: <199612140519.AAA01038-+AT+-nemesis.idirect.com>

At 03:13 AM 12/12/96 GMT, you wrote:
>On Wed, 11 Dec 1996, Romylee A. Ejercito wrote:
>
>> Mylee: There's this one series (I don't remember the title, I've only
>> started on it) where 6 college kids get transported to a diff. universe
>> while doing RPG.  And Jon-Tom, in the Spellsinger series, was an ordinary
>
>The Guardians of the Flame series, by Joel Rosenberg.  I liked them when I
>first read them, but I can't stand to reread them.  Ick.
What is wrong with the Gaurdians of the Flame.  There is also a 7th book out
now by him for the that series and has been out for quite some time the name
is "The Road Home"  I believe that is the title.

>

Aistes


------------------------------

Date: Sat, 14 Dec 1996 00:19:52 -0500
From: Chris & Sean Talbot <brujah-+AT+-idirect.com>
To: mercedes-lackey-+AT+-herald.co.uk
Subject: Re: Healers channeling/Lee/Luck/Song
Message-ID: <199612140519.AAA01045-+AT+-nemesis.idirect.com>

At 04:08 AM 12/12/96 GMT, you wrote:
>
>
>I believe the reference some of you are groping for - the one about Healers
>chanelling- is in Arrow's Flight. The Healer in Waymeet, Kerithwyn, uses
>Talia as a channel; maybe Talia has some small Healing Gift (like Vanyel's)
>that is not much but enough that she can channel.  I don't have the book on
>me, but I remember something like Kerithwyn "checking" Talia somehow to see
>if Talia could be of help.
Talia is a healer just she is a mind healer.  She also has the thought gifts
which allow her to help healers.

>
>Oh, when I said "small Healing Gift" I meant like Kerithwyn's, or Devan's.
>Talia is a Mind Healer, but that is quite different, from what I
>understand.
That is also what I understand but that would still allow her to lend the
energy out to another healer because she had been semi trained in her gift.

>
Aistes


------------------------------

Date: Sat, 14 Dec 1996 00:32:07 -0600
From: singer-+AT+-iglobal.net
To: mercedes-lackey-+AT+-herald.co.uk
Subject: fwrd from Rainwood --bye for Christmas
Message-ID: <v01510100aed7b26e68a6-+AT+-[207.43.170.37]>

>Date: Fri, 13 Dec 1996 08:38:19 -0800
>From: Rainwood/Jefferson <macstager-+AT+-earthlink.net>
>Reply-To: macstager-+AT+-earthlink.net
>Organization: Bohemian Films, Ltd
>MIME-Version: 1.0
>To: singer-+AT+-iglobal.net
>Subject: please forward
>

The following is from our Lady Healer Rainwood:

>Heyla everyone!
>
>I wanted to drop a quick line - Tresta is going to forward it for me -
>to everyone here.  I've been having some really nasty software problems
>due to an unfortunate experience with Windows 95 :(  If you don't have
>it yet, don't bother. I am most unimpressed with the darn thing!
>At any rate, I am experiencing difficulty recieving mail, sending mail -
>anything to do with mail. . . how awful.  It's temporarily working, but
>I doubt it'll last!
>I don't expect to have things sorted out until January, because I'm
>going on vacation next week and won't be back till then - so I've
>unsubbed whilst the mail server was working, and don't expect to resub
>'till mid-January or so.  I'm really looking forward to coming "back"
>once this whole mess is sorted out.  Have a wonderful Christmas and New
>Year.  I will be thinking good thoughts about you all!  May all your
>wishes come true and may your New Year be filled with sweetness and
>blessings.
>
>Peace,
>
>Rainwood

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To be tired of horses is to be tired of life; horses are a gift to us."

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End of MERCEDES-LACKEY Digest 1018
**********************************