And what did you do today in the vineyard of the Lord? We got hit with the vineyard metaphor twice today, from both the Book of Isaiah and the Gospel of Matthew.

The Explorers Club is now a full week behind schedule; the lost time will be make up, so keep your eyes peeled for the next episode in only four days.

The Explorers Club
No. XCVI - The Bombardment of Algiers, 27 August 1816, an attempt to end the raiding of Europe for slaves by the Barbary pirates.






This is the first in a loose series on slavery leading up to the spectacular one hundredth episode of The Explorers Club. I am very excited about the approaching No. C and I hope you are too. An arbitrary milestone is a milestone all the same.

Science!
Holy cow. Snowlink. "Frost"? "Ground fog"? Ares's blood, the Red Planet's not as dead as we thought! This is incredible! And once again, a N.A.S.A. robot intended to have a 90-sol operational lifespan refuses to go gentle into that good night. Yes, sir, our boys at N.A.S.A. sure build 'em plucky. Godspeed, Phoenix. Your human masters are deeply appreciative of your service.

Science!

The Stars My Destination
Usually, I intend the title "Proud Europa" as a cruel jest. I mean for it to have the taste of ashes, a beacon of my disdain for the moral decay and decadence of our European friends, cousins, and allies. In this instance, there is no irony, there is naught but sincere admiration. Europe should be proud of what they've accomplished over the last six months: Farewell to the A.T.V. Jules Verne. I know this bodes well for the future of the E.S.A. and its partner national space agencies. Thank you, friends and dear comrades, and job well done.

And turning to the astral aspirations of the Middle Kingdom, home are the heroes. Though I harbor great antagonism toward the bloody-handed tyrants who rule the P.R.C., I bear no ill will toward the Chinese people. And though my patriotism could rightly be described as nationalism, when it comes to the cold of outer space I wholeheartedly embrace the words of the plaques left on the Moon by our Apollo astronauts: "We came in peace for all Mankind." It is right and proper that nations should be rivals and enemies here on the good Earth, but in the vacuum of space, we are as one. Cheer for the Chinese space program and you cheer "for all Mankind."

Ricky Fitness
I "bonked" on Friday. I hate bonking. Bonking makes it all too plain to me that the man I am is not the boy I was. The S.K.P. Machine was incapable of bonking. True, he had the innate energy of a teenager, but 'twas more than that. He was me, he was fat and lazy, but he somehow transcended himself. He was a machine, "more machine now than man," only not "twisted and evil." I'm not sure how to recapture that indefatigable spirit, to become again the S.K.P. Machine, but I am resolute. I will succeed or die in the attempt.

And it is entirely possible I will spend the next thirty-one years trying to succeed, never quite, and then eventually die in the attempt. 'Twould be a good end.

The Rebel Black Dot Song of the Day
Reel Big Fish, "Somebody Hates Me" from Why Do They Rock So Hard? (T.L.A.M.)

Commentary:

"I know, no matter what,
No matter who,
No matter what I do,
Somebody hates me.
(Somebody hates me.)
Somebody hates me, somebody hates me.
(Somebody hates me.)
Somebody hates me.
Somebody hates me,
And I hate somebody, too."

And I hate somebody, too.