L. Marcus

And girls I've dated.

The Aahalin were old, very old, and broken. They broke themselves a long time ago, in three devastating wars. Their home planet's ecology barely survived, and less than one percent of the Aahal did the same. No Aahalin had been born since, and now, an aeon later, there were just a handful left. At the time of the great wars the Aahal had started to explore the galaxy, and their home system had a vast array of space stations. Now all that remained of that interstellar effort was dust.
 
The species evolved from a tree-dwelling, communal omnivore. Several branches of descendants fought for supremacy, until only one remained. Unopposed, proto-Aahal began dominating their world. Millennia passed, and culture and technology led to civilization and prosperity and, eventually, the Aahalin's almost-suicide by war.
 
Now, all that was left was but a handful of individuals, only neural systems hooked into computer networks, supported and kept alive by machines. They spoke to each other about the past, about faded glory, hoarded knowlege, threadbare philosophy, revisited in the infinite. No-one longer looked to the stars, apart from ignored, automated observatories.
 
One day, one of these telescopes detected something new: a what appeared to be an alien craft dropping out of warp at the edge of the inner system. It spent some time surveying the planets and debris orbiting the star, and was in an intercept trajectory with the Aahal's planet when yet another, similar craft showed up. The two ships briefly exchanged radio communications, and apparently made course adjustments to meet when the second craft opened fire witha barrage of missiles. The first ship answered in kind. When the noise died down, both craft were one with the dust of the Aahal's past glory.
 
The appearance of an alien race in their home system had mildly piqued the interest of a few Aahal -- but the fiery exchange sent them all into an uproar. The first Aahal spaceship built in an aeon surveyed the wrecks, and showed that the two ships had indeed been crewed by members of the same species -- a species not too unlike the Aahal themselves in their youth.
 
The Aahal were shaken out of their torpor. A species given to present violence against its own members? That hit too close to home. That could not stand. Newly constructed listening posts throughout the system found transmissions originating in a system not too far away -- in all evidence, the home system of the alien species. These transmissions confirmed the violent nature of the senders, a violent nature even worse than the Aahalin feared.
 
All of Aahalin came together. Factories that had been lying dormant for a geologic age roared to life, producing an armada of drones and an army of robots, with the one expressed purpose of saving this young species from itself.

A Finnish dinner is not for the faint of heart.

A bit late, but what the heck.
 
LINK

What's with all these questions?

The Computer Is A Cheating Bastard!!

The Aahalin were old, very old, and broken. They broke themselves a long time ago, in three devastating wars. Their home planet's ecology barely survived, and less than one percent of the Aahal did the same. No Aahalin had been born since, and now, an aeon later, there were just a handful left. At the time of the great wars the Aahal had started to explore the galaxy, and their home system had a vast array of space stations. Now all that remained of that interstellar effort was dust.
 
The species evolved from a tree-dwelling, communal omnivore. Several branches of descendants fought for supremacy, until only one remained. Unopposed, proto-Aahal began dominating their world. Millennia passed, and culture and technology led to civilization and prosperity and, eventually, the Aahalin's almost-suicide by war.
 
Now, all that was left was but a handful of individuals, only neural systems hooked into computer networks, supported and kept alive by machines. They spoke to each other about the past, about faded glory, hoarded knowlege, threadbare philosophy, revisited in the infinite. No-one longer looked to the stars, apart from ignored, automated observatories.
 
One day, one of these telescopes detected something new: a what appeared to be an alien craft dropping out of warp at the edge of the inner system. It spent some time surveying the planets and debris orbiting the star, and was in an intercept trajectory with the Aahal's planet when yet another, similar craft showed up. The two ships briefly exchanged radio communications, and apparently made course adjustments to meet when the second craft opened fire witha barrage of missiles. The first ship answered in kind. When the noise died down, both craft were one with the dust of the Aahal's past glory.
 
The appearance of an alien race in their home system had mildly piqued the interest of a few Aahal -- but the fiery exchange sent them all into an uproar. The first Aahal spaceship built in an aeon surveyed the wrecks, and showed that the two ships had indeed been crewed by members of the same species -- a species not too unlike the Aahal themselves in their youth.
 
The Aahal were shaken out of their torpor. A species given to present violence against its own members? That hit too close to home. That could not stand. Newly constructed listening posts throughout the system found transmissions originating in a system not too far away -- in all evidence, the home system of the alien species. These transmissions confirmed the violent nature of the senders, a violent nature even worse than the Aahalin feared.
 
All of Aahalin came together. Factories that had been lying dormant for a geologic age roared to life, producing an armada of drones and an army of robots, with the one expressed purpose of saving this young species from itself.

I don't drink ... wine.

WOULD YOU LIKE TO PLAY A GAME?

WOULD YOU LIKE TO PLAY A GAME?

You ... make me want to be a better man.

Steeellaaa!!

The Aahalin were old, very old, and broken. They broke themselves a long time ago, in three devastating wars. Their home planet's ecology barely survived, and less than one percent of the Aahal did the same. No Aahalin had been born since, and now, an aeon later, there were just a handful left. At the time of the great wars the Aahal had started to explore the galaxy, and their home system had a vast array of space stations. Now all that remained of that interstellar effort was dust.
 
The species evolved from a tree-dwelling, communal omnivore. Several branches of descendants fought for supremacy, until only one remained. Unopposed, proto-Aahal began dominating their world. Millennia passed, and culture and technology led to civilization and prosperity and, eventually, the Aahalin's almost-suicide by war.
 
Now, all that was left was but a handful of individuals, only neural systems hooked into computer networks, supported and kept alive by machines. They spoke to each other about the past, about faded glory, hoarded knowlege, threadbare philosophy, revisited in the infinite. No-one longer looked to the stars, apart from ignored, automated observatories.
 
One day, one of these telescopes detected something new: a what appeared to be an alien craft dropping out of warp at the edge of the inner system. It spent some time surveying the planets and debris orbiting the star, and was in an intercept trajectory with the Aahal's planet when yet another, similar craft showed up. The two ships briefly exchanged radio communications, and apparently made course adjustments to meet when the second craft opened fire witha barrage of missiles. The first ship answered in kind. When the noise died down, both craft were one with the dust of the Aahal's past glory.
 
The appearance of an alien race in their home system had mildly piqued the interest of a few Aahal -- but the fiery exchange sent them all into an uproar. The first Aahal spaceship built in an aeon surveyed the wrecks, and showed that the two ships had indeed been crewed by members of the same species -- a species not too unlike the Aahal themselves in their youth.
 
The Aahal were shaken out of their torpor. A species given to present violence against its own members? That hit too close to home. That could not stand. Newly constructed listening posts throughout the system found transmissions originating in a system not too far away -- in all evidence, the home system of the alien species. These transmissions confirmed the violent nature of the senders, a violent nature even worse than the Aahalin feared.
 
All of Aahalin came together. Factories that had been lying dormant for a geologic age roared to life, producing an armada of drones and an army of robots, with the one expressed purpose of saving this young species from itself.

The Aahalin were old, very old, and broken. They broke themselves a long time ago, in three devastating wars. Their home planet's ecology barely survived, and less than one percent of the Aahal did the same. No Aahalin had been born since, and now, an aeon later, there were just a handful left. At the time of the great wars the Aahal had started to explore the galaxy, and their home system had a vast array of space stations. Now all that remained of that interstellar effort was dust.
 
The species evolved from a tree-dwelling, communal omnivore. Several branches of descendants fought for supremacy, until only one remained. Unopposed, proto-Aahal began dominating their world. Millennia passed, and culture and technology led to civilization and prosperity and, eventually, the Aahalin's almost-suicide by war.
 
Now, all that was left was but a handful of individuals, only neural systems hooked into computer networks, supported and kept alive by machines. They spoke to each other about the past, about faded glory, hoarded knowlege, threadbare philosophy, revisited in the infinite. No-one longer looked to the stars, apart from ignored, automated observatories.
 
One day, one of these telescopes detected something new: a what appeared to be an alien craft dropping out of warp at the edge of the inner system. It spent some time surveying the planets and debris orbiting the star, and was in an intercept trajectory with the Aahal's planet when yet another, similar craft showed up. The two ships briefly exchanged radio communications, and apparently made course adjustments to meet when the second craft opened fire witha barrage of missiles. The first ship answered in kind. When the noise died down, both craft were one with the dust of the Aahal's past glory.
 
The appearance of an alien race in their home system had mildly piqued the interest of a few Aahal -- but the fiery exchange sent them all into an uproar. The first Aahal spaceship built in an aeon surveyed the wrecks, and showed that the two ships had indeed been crewed by members of the same species -- a species not too unlike the Aahal themselves in their youth.
 
The Aahal were shaken out of their torpor. A species given to present violence against its own members? That hit too close to home. That could not stand. Newly constructed listening posts throughout the system found transmissions originating in a system not too far away -- in all evidence, the home system of the alien species. These transmissions confirmed the violent nature of the senders, a violent nature even worse than the Aahalin feared.
 
All of Aahalin came together. Factories that had been lying dormant for a geologic age roared to life, producing an armada of drones and an army of robots, with the one expressed purpose of saving this young species from itself.

Let's get down to business
To defeat the Huns!

Nuts!

Oh no -- Flatters give me a headache. Learn trigonometry, people!

"Who's in command here, private?"
 
"Ain't you?!"

My three-year-old son came up to me today and said something. I couldn't make it out, exactly, so I asked him to say it again. I figured it out the second time.
 
He was saying, "Let's get down to business to defeat the Huns."
 

I'm not an animal!

Governor Jerry Brown: If NASA, under Trump, is unable to perform its Climate Science mission, including launching satellites and sharing the data, then California will launch satellites on its own.
 
http://www.businessinsider.com/ca-gov-jerry-brown-california-could-launch-its-own-damn-satellite-2016-12

Nih!

Am I looking for love in Alderaan places?