Velociraptor Awareness Day

[osprey_archer]

I'm traipsing off to the north woods for Russian immersion weekend. I will eat many tasty things and go hiking and probably OD on Russian.

Also, tomorrow (according to a sign I saw on Science Hall) is Velociraptor Awareness Day. I'm not sure how one should celebrate this holiday, but I'm thinking a good steak - tartare if you really want to get into the spirit of things.

I'm also not sure if we're supposed to be aware of the dangers posed by velociraptors (right up there with zombies!), or of the mistreatment of velociraptors in the media ever since that anti-dinosaur travesty of a film, Jurassic Park. Did you know that velociraptors were about the size of golden retrievers? And that they had feathers? Although they probably didn't fly, cool as that would have been.

I have this sudden desire to go read dinosaur books. I bet there have been a lot of exciting discoveries in the twelve years since I stopped; last I knew, velociraptors didn't have any feathers.

Comments

[girl-called-sun.livejournal.com]

Good luck with your Russian Weekend.

I wonder how far the zombie/velocipator conspiracy extends?

[exuberantself.livejournal.com]

Obviously zombies don't need an Awareness Day because everyone already has the good sense to both aware and reasonably frightened by them. Also, everyone knows that zombies are far more dangerous than velociraptors. Silly.

[girl-called-sun.livejournal.com]

The level of danger varies directly with your speed: zombies are less dangerous the faster you are going (the undead lurch has a maximum of 10 mph, I believe). This is why we must be aware of, and prevent, a zombie/velociraptor coalition; the dinos are fearsome swift.

[exuberantself.livejournal.com]

But can have their bellies rubbed into submission, the 'raptors, I mean. Or so I hear.

It is true, though, that if zombies and velociraptors joined forces, the earth would be doomed.


...do you think there would be zombie!raptors?

[girl-called-sun.livejournal.com]

I think there could be zombie!raptors... they would be immune to the belly tickling, but easily bribed with tasty brains.

[exuberantself.livejournal.com]

Well, there you go. We might have a chance after all.

[exuberantself.livejournal.com]

As much as ODing on Russian sounds, it is Velociraptor Awareness Day. I feel like this is an important holiday that too few people are aware of. The good news of the tiny velociraptors and their giant fictional cousins should be shared, lest they become real from our doubting.

...have you seen Wes Craven's New Nightmare? Because I'm sitting here imagining raptors becoming stronger having been replaced by Transformers in the dreams of little boys and stepping into the world again. I may have watched too many movies when I was a kid.

[osprey-archer.livejournal.com]

The only Wes Craven movie I've seen is Red Eye, which creeped me the hell out. Cilian Murphy has the most disturbing eyes EVER. And yet he is strangely attractive.

Also, I may have to write something with the zombie!raptors mentioned above. If it comes to pass you can feel appropriately guilty/awesome, as the case may be.

[longlegs21.livejournal.com]

Hey, a Russian immersion weekend sounds cool! How was it set up? How did it go?

(By the way, the ad at the right of the screen right now is telling me to "Find Your Russian Beauty Today!" Personalized ads are nearly always creepy or otherwise awkward/inappropriate, I've found.

[osprey-archer.livejournal.com]

My school has a sort of B&B thing on the shore of Lake Michigan, and every weekend some clubs or language immersion groups or what have you go up and do their thing without, you know, the rest of the campus getting in the way.

It went well - I don't speak enough Russian to even attempt to speak Russian for a full weekend, but we had a good time. It was over Russian Orthodox Easter so we ate kulich and attempted to do a candlelight trek out to the Chapel (the wind kept intervening and we all had to race shrieking to whoever still had a lit candle).