THE FANDOM HIGHTIMES: Volume 5, First Edition!

[not-a-mused.livejournal.com]

EDITOR'S LETTER:
Dear Reader,

What you are currently holding in your hands is a tradition, a legacy of sort, that has been passed down from hand to hand, editor to editor, to faithfully be printed for the entertainment and information of the community. And now it passes into my hands (so help us all).

Now, I'm not the sort of person to think that, just because I'm the editor of a paper, people will want to actually read what I have to say about anything in the world and think it's interesting. I'm the sort of person who thinks that no matter what. After all, my writing resume for the Fandom Hightimes involves me just babbling about whatever I think about as if it's actually important, whenever I even actually wrote something to begin with. So now I can continue to do the same, just with a fancier title.

I can only hope that, with this new year, I can continue to make the paper as great as my predecessors, Rikku before me and, before her, a long list of people I never knew or met but were probably very good at what they did. It's a...slightly different paper than before. For one thing, we have more female writers (and I'm going avoid a comment about Lee Adama's arms here). I might even be bold enough to say that we've got more crazy, too, but only time will tell on that one. We're trying a few little, tiny new things, and hopefully won't cause this paper to self destruct in five minutes because of it.

Time will tell on a lot of things; I've spent a summer away from this place, and it's been relatively quiet since the return. Of course, since I've been here before, I know that that only means there's a lot more in store for us. Until then, read the paper. Feel informed. Make a nifty hat out of it. You won't regret it. --C. Stephanides







The Tarot Journey for Beginners
by Eleanor Robinson

Ed. Note: The editor would like to point out that, while it is not mentioned in the article by Ms. Robinson, it is indeed very much not in the spirit of the tarot to look at your cards and then say 'Go Fish.'

Hello dearest readers. I am Eleanor Robinson, sophomore, and I wish to take you on a journey to learning the art of Tarot. The Tarot is an ancient form of divination, through the use of a card system.

There are two aspects to the cards, the Major Arcana, which hold the most symbolic and archetypal importance and the Minor Arcana, which represents experiences of every facet of life through four different spheres. Within the card set, these spheres are called suits; Cups, Wands, Pentacles and Swords. In a sense, the Major Arcana sets the stage for the Minor Arcana which represents the people, concerns, activities and emotions that encompass our everyday lives.

One might wonder what the cards mean, especially someone new to Tarot, but that is a rather impossible question. Each individual deck has its own imagery and symbolism, which must then be interpreted by the reader within the context of the receiver’s question. Therefore, understanding the meaning of the cards is ultimately a very personal experience and may not occur straight away. Often times, the meaning of a reading may not be apparent for some time.

That said, however, I will endeavor to put together a basic introduction to the most commonly held interpretations of the Tarot set. During the coming weeks, I will present an overview of each of the cards of the Major Arcana, followed by the Suits along with some typical spreads a diviner may choose to use.

I hope you will enjoy this learning journey and I am more than happy and willing to answer any questions you may have, either through correspondence or in person.

Blessed Be,
Eleanor Robinson








Cooking Made Easy
by Hoshi Sato

Ed. Note: It is a well known fact that anyone who experiments too liberally with Ms. Sato's recipes will have little bits of their anatomy features in next week's recipe. Modify with caution.

Hello readers. My name is Hoshi Sato, and those of you who know me might remember that I'm not from this century. For those of you who can't cook, rest assured that eventually you'll be able to get machines that replicate food for you from recipes stored in memory. However, the ones from my time period don't work very well, and at best, you can get some very weak green tea from them.

That's why it can't hurt to have a few simple things that are easy to prepare, and nothing is simpler than traditional Japanese oden. What I'm sharing is my grandmother's recipe, but feel free to change things around to make your own version, especially if you don't like fish cakes or tofu.

Ingredients

1/3 daikon radish, cut into thick rounds
2 potatoes, cut in half
3 carrots, cut into large pieces
4 hard-boiled eggs, peeled
1 block of konnyaku (a transparent yam starch cake)
2 blocks of fried tofu
2-4 fish cakes
4-5 tbsps of soy sauce
1 tsp of sugar
2 tbsps of sake (Japanese rice wine)
OR pick up oden seasoning at most Asian stores and use it in place of soy sauce, sugar and sake.

Bring 4 cups of dashi soup stock to a boil (hint: I use vegetable broth if I don't have dashi available). Chop ingredients into large pieces and add to pot, then add soy sauce, sugar and sake. Turn heat down to low and simmer for 40-60 minutes. The longer it simmers, the better it tastes, and you can always add more dashi and soy sauce to taste.

I hope you enjoy working with this treasured family recipe. If there are other dishes (Japanese or otherwise) that you would like to see covered, please write to me at the paper and I'll try to cover them.

[OOC: Recipe taken from japanesefood.about.com, which is a better resource on Japanese food than I am. ]









Horoscopes
by Yakko Warner

Ed. Note: The Fandom Hightimes makes no claim that Mr. Warner is a true, verifiable oracle, and if you're looking for real advice, we suggest going to your mother.

Aries
March 21 - April 20
Flying is in your future. I'm not going to tell you when, or in what form, but it's there.

Taurus
April 21 - May 21
You will find a man attempting to put a key into your nasal cavity. Calmly explain that you are not a Ford Taurus. Whether or not you ask the man to remove the key is up to you.

Gemini
May 22 - June 22
Only play Bejeweled if you're wearing proper eye protection. Or else.

Cancer
June 23 - July 23
You may appear malignant at times, but people who know you will realize that you're actually benign.

Leo
July 24 - August 23
Wear a nametag. It's the best way for people to know your name and that just might come in handy.

Virgo
August 24 - September 23
I have no funny jokes about your sign. This means you have no laughter in your future.

Libra
September 24 - October 23
You will end up in your underwear this week.

Scorpio
October 24 - November 22
Your favorite sports team will put up many points. Now would be a good time to go to Vegas and place bets on your team.

Sagittarius
November 23 - December 21
Your past will be narrated by a former sitcom star. This will go much better than expected.

Capricorn
December 22 - January 20
Don't eat the popcorn at the theater. It's stale. Actually, go ahead and try it if you're curious. But you're going to find out that I was right.

Aquarius
January 21 - February 19
This is the dawning of the age of you. You'd think that means it's your birthday, but the calendar disagrees. It probably means something else.

Pisces
February 20 - March 20
Do not be afraid when your dessert starts wearing glasses. Just be careful to make sure you're not biting into a frame, because that might ruin the taste.







The Interior Conflict
by "Demosthenes"

Ed. Note: The views and opinions expressed in the following essay are entirely that of the author and not a reflection of the thoughts and position held by the Fandom Hightimes. In fact, the THT is in the position that the views and expressions in the following essay are a little crazycakes.

This little island thrown into the sea off the coast of Maryland is a very unique, special place, a fact that comes to no surprise to anyone who has spent more than a week in residence here. Being such a different and impossible place, however, makes it utterly problematic...and ultimately useless. The bonds made here are more likely to break than any other bonds we could potentially be pursing, unable to stand the pressure and tests that come with several interlacing dimensions. Even if the strength of steel is infused into something, there is no guarantee that the trust that this could withstand time and space. What happens when you depend on someone else to help you in your own world, only to find yourself faced with an inability to cross over? Portalocity, as it is called, has also been known to be incredibly fickle and undependable.

There can be a fatal error in putting too much faith in the support of our Fandom friends, just as there is a fatal error in believing that this place is strange mostly for the sake of whimsy. It keeps us entertained, right before plunging us into darkness. The place where we must seek the most strength and support is within ourselves. Even without the questionable consistency of the Portals, we are the only people who can be responsible for ourselves, and if one cannot perform without their small band to back them up, they might be better off with the consequences of their unguarded trust.

We have three separate services to help fend off invasions and trouble, but I send this warning to everyone out of concern that they do not put too much trust into these things! The social networking is important, but it is not the end-all, be-all, and leaning on such groups too much leads to individual weakness. What good is an army trained to shoot ballast when a monster has you cornered, alone and in the dark? What use is magical shields and support if the magic is suddenly gone? And just how far can a muffin and tea go to soothe the scar of deep, personal trauma?

I am not directly bashing the service groups as ineffectual. In the face of an invasion or a war, they will be very helpful. But not everything that will be thrown at us can be fought with the group mentality. We can only truly survive if we can stand on our own two feet.
--D.



Coffee Pin-Up



Cute Kitten Picture




credits:

editor: Cal Stephanides
words: "Demosthenes," Eleanor Robinson, Hoshi Sato, Cal Stephanides, Yakko Warner
pictures: The fabulous Chloe Sullivan, the amazing Rory Gilmore, the marvelous Peter Parker, the effervescent Rikku, and the middling Cal Stephanides
adviser: Ghanima Atreides

Questions? Concerns? Got a hot tip? Send a letter to the editor: letters.fhightimes@fandomhigh.edu!

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