On hell

I've been reading Dorothy L. Sayers, who was (I'm sure you all know) more than simply a "Writer of Detective Stories," as her blue plaque, perhaps rather sniffily, describes her. She was also a profound and clear thinker about Christian theology, and, according to at least one of her biographers, seems to have taken agnosticism to its highest level by never being quite sure whether she was a Christian or not. She did, however, do it the courtesy of thinking about Christianity as though it were a serious subject, and thus once again gives the lie to all those who maintain, in the teeth of the evidence, that religion only works if you don't think at all.

Specifically, I'm reading her translation of Dante's Divine Comedy (completed after her death by Barbara Reynolds, but I haven't got to that bit yet), and in particular her lengthy introductions to each book, in which occasional glimpses of the characteristic Sayers humour enlighten what might, in someone else's hands, have been a somewhat turgid exegesis of mediaeval theology; and she's reminded me of something I think I always knew about hell, though who told me I can not now recall.

( There follow certain thoughts concerning hell... )

At any rate, it's a fascinating read, and I have got to try terza rima at some point, if I can find a suitable subject that appeals to me.

Filk

Just posted this to Making Light, on the subject of the cheering Hugo results

(original here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bTAh7OPNC20)

(except that's not the original version, since the song was written by Billy Bragg. Thanks to Tom Whitmore on ML for pointing this out to me.)

Fall asleep with the Hugos on
Wake with an ache, that's another Worldcon
Consider how my vote was spent
And do I approve how the ballot went
I asked an old pro for advice
He told me once, then he told me twice:
"Your life is full of choices made at random!"
He smacked me hard across the head
Handed me a card which read:
"Work like you were living in the early days of a better fandom." (x2)

"Count those votes again!" I cried.
The counters said "It's cut and dried.
The Puppy slates all got ignored
And finished up below 'No Award.'*
You gave them stick, you gave them hell,
And all the votes have gone really well.
They couldn't have gone better if we'd planned 'em!"
And where the filkers laughed and sang
Loud the call to action rang:
"Work like you were living in the early days of a better fandom." (x2)

"Take this lesson to your heart,"
She said, "and honour well our art.
If we would keep the Hugos free
The greatest threat is complacency.
We must frustrate their knavish tricks
And pass the rule of four and six,
Or else an easy victory we'll hand 'em.
Next year at MidAmericon
This great task we must carry on--
Work like you were living in the early days of a better fandom. (x2)
Living in the early days,
Living in the early days,
Living in the early days of a better fandom."

*Well, except for Guardians of the Galaxy, but that's nothing to worry about, I think.

My brain...

At some point in the past week I came up with an acronym I thought would be highly useful: WHABADY.

Unfortunately, I can't now remember what it was an acronym for.

Suggestions welcome, and feel free to mock my incipient senility. Anyone who gets the right answer will earn my undying gratitude.