I am not a poster. I am a crispy critter.

[The Zontron 7000]

I am an internet java script sent to infiltrate your site and transform you from political neanderthals into a modern 21st Century progressive mode.

This is your first warning.

Do not try and resist.

It is useless.

Accept your fate.

You will be assimilated.

[Alice au Wonderland]

Oh, cooool!

Too bad it doesn't happen to me when I play poker!

[NicknamedBob]

Petanque, pronounced "pay-tonk", one of Europe's most popular outdoor games, is a distant cousin of horseshoes and a close relative of bocce. The game originated in Provence in the early 1900's. The aim is to toss, or roll a number of steel balls as close as possible to a small wooden aim ball, called "but" or "cochonnet" (meaning "piglet" in French). Players take turns, and whoever ends up closest to the aim ball when all balls are played, wins. Unlike horseshoes, where the aim stake is fixed, petanques' aim ball may be hit at any time, which can completely turn around the score at the last second. And whereas the official bocce rules call for a prepared court, with markers and sideboards, petanque can be played on most outdoor surfaces, anytime you feel like.

No special skill is required, adults can play with children, and the equipment is inexpensive. The game of petanque is simple, relaxing, lots of fun and a perfect way to make new friends. Last but not least, petanque can be (and usually is) played while enjoying a cool drink (the French will go for wine or pastis) and some tasty outdoor snacks! No wonder this extremely pleasant game is rapidly gaining popularity worldwide.

It seems innocent enough. I'd have to worry that the bigger boys would steal the boules for a more lethal entertainment.

[NicknamedBob]

"... doesn't happen to me when I play poker!"

That's why you have to play poker with a straight face.

[Alice au Wonderland]

Yikes! I forgot! Keep the Petanque balls away from my children and their trebuchets!

We have transparent aluminum windows on the castle, right?

[Alice au Wonderland]

Darlin', they rarely come straighter than me. *wink*

[NicknamedBob]

"We have transparent aluminum windows on the castle, right?"

Hmm. Hadn't thought about that. I'll implement a suggestion. We use transparent aluminum on the canopy sections. We've just about shut down glass production in favor of AlON, anyway.

Glass is still preferable for drinking glasses and such. even if broken, it can easily be recycled. The Romans recycled glass thousands of years ago.

[Alice au Wonderland]

I'm not concerned about stemware survival. With kids on board, it is inevitable that plates, glasses, etc. will suffer some damage.

I am concerned, however, about the "toys" the kids, both large and small, plan to bring with them. If a petanque ball launched from a trebuchet takes out a china cabinet, it's no big deal. If it takes out a window, we're going to be in deep doo doo.

[NicknamedBob]

I'll need to review the scope of our venture, for you and for others.

The castle footprint is approximately ... well, here, let me do this...

The castle is a full sized castle, basically square to rectangular in plan form, with cylindrical towers at each corner. (Let’s try the long wall of a rectangle 2000 ft long, and the shorter wall only 1500 ft.) The front gate has a rounded gate opening, with functional drawbridge that lowers over a small moat. The moat completely encircles the castle, providing swimming for the castle guests and the resident plesiosaur. Water pumps keep the moat water circulating, providing a huge lap pool where one can swim and remain stationary, or move with the current around the castle.

The courtyard walls are thick, comprising two small rooms, little more than cells, and a narrow corridor across the thickness of them. Each floor of the castle, from twenty five to thirty feet high, has two floors in the walls to correspond with it. The ends of the corridors have two-story (25 ft) day rooms with fireplaces and other group comforts. The castle has four primary floors above grade, (This makes the walls of the castle 100 ft high.) Beyond the gate, nearly a thousand feet of courtyard provide a secure area to entertain guests within the walled area, and the back portion of the castle is a structure 500 feet wide by two thousand feet long. The back tower on the right has a large circular(75 to 100ft) floor plan of seven of the 25ft floors. The observatory is set within the roof structure at the top of this tower.

The back tower on the left side has a narrower tower, rising very high above the plane, almost a minaret. The castle grounds stretch away for perhaps a half-mile in each direction, with a variety of terrain in different quadrants. Within close sight of the castle are cultivated fields yielding to orchards and vineyards, and then to woodland and forest. At approximately a mile radius from the center of the castle is a “steel fence” that merges into a latticework of girders assembled into a globular hexagonal greenhouse over the entire castle valley. The structure extends underneath the castle also, making a Christmas tree ornament of enormous size. Ports and loading dock doors and hatches cover the surface of this lower area.

And that's just for the Castle Enclosure. There are two other balancing enclosures which, with the connecting structures, form our space vessel, "The UTS Flying Castle."

[Alice au Wonderland]

And if one of my little darlings gets the notion to fling a petanque ball, or anything else, through the girders or the observatory, what then?

Remember, the children have all day to figure out how to get into trouble; We have 30 seconds, at most, to stop them.

[NicknamedBob]

I am not certain of the range obtainable with your equipment. We do have a rifle and gunnery range in the swampy area to the, well, North, of the castle.

The children are welcome to set up their equipment there.

An intentional disturbance to the integrity of the atmospheric envelope would be met by the same response as an accidental one. We have damage control teams standing by to ride the girder craft up to the area of damage, and seal the aperture. It is a highly sought-after post, similar to that of fire-fighters in traditional society. An even more exclusive group patrols the outside -- the vacuum side!

The children would also face harsh judgement. And speedy justice. Those who cannot be trusted not to endanger the entire community may find themselves deported. How good are they at holding their breath?

[Alice au Wonderland]

They're swimmers, Bob. They have excellent breath control.

I'll tell them to confine their high powered "toys" to the gunnery range.

Where should I tell them to put the snares?

[NicknamedBob]

"Where should I tell them to put the snares?"

Near the woodlands. I assume they know not to take more than they intend to eat, and to go back and dismantle any snares they are no longer interested in maintaining.

Our wildlife, and the area set aside for it, is limited. I hope they will keep that in mind.

[Alice au Wonderland]

I think that they were hoping for larger prey, but alright. Woodlands it is.

[Alice au Wonderland]

Time to hit the sack. I have to roll out early to take the car for a tune up. I have no idea how long I'll be there with the kids, either. Gack.

'Night, all!

[tuliptree76]

Hi everyone. I'm finally getting a chance to sit in front of my computer for more than a couple of minutes.

[NicknamedBob]

Hi, Doc!

[tuliptree76]

Not really new or exciting. I've just been busy all day. I'm finally getting a chance to eat dinner. Tonight I'm having tomato soup.