STRUMPETING UPDATE

Ridley and I head for Chicago today. Last night we had a very nice event in either Virginia or Maryland, or possibly Georgia. It was definitely a state. A number of blog commandos showed up, including the group shown in the exclusive CrapCam photo below, which included the mysterious Woman On A Stick, whose head is, we believe, getting smaller. We apologize for the quality of the photo, but the CrapCam appears to be getting crappier. Either that, or the actual world is getting more out of focus. There is no way to tell.

Comments

[Lush]

First!

*waves ~~~*

*tosses underpants*

[Guin]

Of what significance is the large inflatable pig?

I am a bit concerned about Dave's lack of a blue shirt. Perhaps it's because Mrs. Blog was away in Europe for so long that he ran out of clean ones.

[Pam]

That yellow creature is not a pig. That is a Pikachu, one of the Pokemon characters (think cartoons, trading cards, TV show, etc.) beloved by grade-school kids.

[random thunking]

Firstly, and most importantly, Names!!! We need names to attach to the bloglit faces.

Secondly, and mebbe even more importantly, Ridley should see a doctor about that growth on his dangly bits. It appears to be the size of a japanese anime monster.

[Renee (the First)]

Left to right: Dave, me, Leetie-on-a-stick, Matt, Pikachu, and Susan.

And Leetie has indeed been to a shrink. (That is, that's as big as I could get my printer to make her.) If things go on at this rate, she's going to be the size of a marble at Dave and Ridley's next appearance.

[Punkin Poo]

Whoo hoo! Leetie sure does get around! (But I'd heard that about her) I wasn't aware of the shrinking part, though....maybe she'll be magically back to normal size tonight :)

Good job guys!

[crossgirl]

*blink* *blink* it's too early for pictures that swimmy.

[MarkinNC]

Why is Pic-a-choo at the book shindig?

[Juggler of Geese]

I would be happy to become the official photographer for the blog, but I am poor and cannot afford it. Can someone sponsor me, I promise I will behave...
A little.

[Susan Kosior]

I am the Bloglit formerly known as DC Blogger yadda yadda... Too much to keep on writing all that out... That's me on the right :)

[Jeff Meyerson]

Nice Pikachu, Susan. Don't know if you take it everywhere or just to book signings, but...nice.

[Kibby F5™]

Leetie getting around?

Yea, saw that before too.

Yay! Blogits!

[Jeff Meyerson]

Looks like Leetie's Head is becoming our own Zelig.

And AGNFARB.

[slyeyes]

Leetie's head has fallen victim to shrinkage?

I'm gonna stop right there.

[slyeyes]

And the earthquake that hit when the picture was taken must explain why Dave isn't sure of the location.

[Susan Kosior]

Alas, I cannot take credit for Pikachu, he/she/it is Matt's!

[Matt Morrison]

I actually brought the Pikachu. I had it in my car anf figured it would definitely stick out to all the bloggers. Good times were had by all.

[Matt Morrison]

Although I may start calling my Pikachu, "The Large Inflatable Pig." That made my day, Guin.

[Renee (the First)]

Matt, you never did tell us why your friend set Pikachu on fire.

[Targetgirl]

Also alarmed at Dave's shirt's lack of blueness.

*lip quivering*

What's wrong, Dave??? My world has begun to crash down all around me...

[Chaz]

Of what significance is the large inflatable pig?....

Tribute to Syd Barrett...come on, man!!! :)

[queensbee]

well, hi all.......including pikachu, but i still dont understand the draw of those anime creatures.....

[KDF]

Don't fear the non-blue shirt -- Dave also wore it to the Vero Beach event and I believe LBFF said he looked rather fetching in it.

Good job, guys! Yeah, Matt, tell the Pikachu On Fire story! Pleasepleasepleaseplease!

*hopes Leetie's head shrinks no further -- the crapcam has a hard enough time capturing large non-shrinking objects*

[Lisa Bisa Fo Fisa]

KDF-Yep, very fetching. I know it's blog tradition to expect the blue shirt, but believe it or not, he looks great in other colors too.

[MOTW]

Hi, Renee, Matt, and DCBlogger yadda yadda!

Dave, Leetie's head may be shrinking, but it looks like Ridley is now the Invisible Man.

[Lisa Bisa Fo Fisa]

BTW -- YAY DC Commandos!!!

[Cheryl]

Nice job, bloggers! Way to support Fearless Leader.

(I'm finding the Crapcam funnier and funnier. I was trying to explain to Sportboy why the picture of us from New York was so blurry ... and I was like "No, that's Dave's camera. It's bad. We like it that way." *snork*)

[Punkin Poo]

"Tonight on WWE LIVE - The DC Commandos vs. The Large Blog Squadron! Oh wait! It appears a woman with torpedos for breasts has knocked EVERYONE out of the ring!"

(tee hee - sorry, couldn't resist)

[Siouxie]

/me thinks that everyone just trembles in the presence of Dave...

Great picture though!

[Punkin (shamelessly self promoting) Poo]

Oh.....and in case you haven't been back to the old thread, here's a link to more Vineyard pictures...

[Steve]

Dave's in Illinois? Too bad he's not strumpeting in Central Illinois; I just can't get away from work to head up there. Rats!

On a more positive note, the picture above is completely in focus when I don't have my glasses on. At least, I think that's a positive thing.

[Siouxie]

Punkin - those are great pictures! nices ones of you when you're not as "inflated":)

[Punkin Poo]

Thanks, Suze! (I think Ridley "popped" me!)

[Mickle Spiffy]

The most memorable quote from Dave last night was:
"We need more orphans."

He may have been talking about the plot to his next "Peter" book, but, on the safe side, parents: it behooves you to ...er... hoof it.

[Leetie]

Renee, Matt, and DC Blogger Susan Yadda Yadda: THANK YOU for taking me to the book signing last night!!!

You are all nuts.
Now give me back my head!

[snif]

FYI: That woman whose head is on a stick is wanted in 10 states, and now she's toying with the feds, trying to throw them off by using a group of accomplices. What a sick world...

[Steve]

Leetie,

I have to say, I'm very impressed that you were able to type that without your head. Amazing!

[crossgirl]

punkin, you take great photos! love the lemons.

[Leetie]

Oh! And thanks for taking me to Martha's Vineyard, Punkin! Great pix.

Geez. I really do get around. I'm gonna get me a reputation.

[Cat R.]

Punkin ~ great link, and what a beautiful place. "Front Porch Livin" WBAGNF my retirement plans....

Where is Dave going to be in Chicago?

[mudstuffin]

Leetie: at least it's a photo of your head and not some other body part that people are posting on the internet...(ominous music)...what was that? That was wierd. What was I saying? Oh yeah, at least it's your lovely face and not your notorious behind (ominous chord) that's being schlepped to these book-dos, like for instance in Dayton where I'm sure no-one is planning to wave a butt-placard (ominous music).

[Renee (the First)]

Um, Leetie, I, well, um . . . I just threw your head away.

Is that okay?

[Matt Morrison]

Here is "The Indestructible Pikachu" on fire story:

I bought him at Flea Market World for a dollar (I haggled the guy down from $4) because it amused me. My friend Josh brought his little brother Jordan - then age 2 - over to my apartment and he (Jordan, well... Josh too) started wrestling the Pikachu. You can tell it's pretty big, and I started joking with Josh that the Pikachu was actually winning the wrestling match despite the fact that the Pikachu lacked the gift of life.

In a true "Guys" moment, Josh decided that we had to figure out ways to destroy the Pikachu. Yes, there was absolutely no logic to what we did, but that didn't stop us. Pikachu was dropped out of an 8-story building, thrown in a lake, and then run over by a car. (You can't see in the picture, but Renee can tell you that there is only a black mark on the Pikachu from where we ran over it in my friend Rory's car. That's it. I've done nothing to fix him.)

So Josh decids that the only method he hasn't tried yet was to set the Pikachu on fire. Figuring that I already had more that $1 worth of entertainment from the Pikachu, I allowed him to set it on fire. He light both ears, and for about 30 seconds, Pikachu was aflame. Then, for no apparent reason, the fire on both ears went out simultaneously. It was one of the freakiest things I've ever seen. (And when I was in the Navy, I actually saw a box that said "USDA - Not Fit For Human Consumption." That was crossed out and said below it, "Approved: US Navy." And I've met Geraldo.)

So after surviving being wrestled by children and puppies, thrown into a lake, thrown out of a building, and having the ability to extinguish fires with its mind, I have dubbed him "The Indestructible Pikachu."

BTW, the Pikachu must really have powers, because Pikachu is the only being in focus on the CrapCam picture.

[Renee (the First)]

Wow, you should've told us last night. I'd have been even more in awe of Pikachu than I already was (despite the stuffing leaking from both ears).

MOTW, Ridley was there, but apparently he vanished into the ether while the picture was being taken. Maybe Pikachu gave him a threatening look.

[Leetie]

*snork!*

[Leetie]

Wait a minute... NOTORIOUS???!!!!

[Punkin Poo]

GREAT story, Matt!

[judi]

wessonality: the details of the tour are, as always, at www.davebarry.com/events.html

matt: excellent story :) and good to know that flame retardent chemicals work on other kinds of ... wait... that doesn't sound right... ummm....

[mudstuffin]

ah, er... I meant "melodious". Yeah, that's the ticket.

[Renee (the First)]

Oh, yes, mud, I'm sure she much prefers a melodious behind.

[MOTW]

Geraldo Rivera --> valid age error

[Jeff Meyerson]

Pikachu & The Large Inflatable Pig WBAGNFA wrestling tag team to go up against Leetie's Head & The Giant Bust From the Vineyard.

I know I'd pay to see it.

[Renee (the First)]

Hey, Mickle, why didn't you come get in the picture with us last night? (Or were you the Pikachu?)

Personally, my favorite lines of the night were when Dave was detailing all Ridley's favorite methods of killing people. I wonder how Ridley's family sleeps at night.

[Jeff Meyerson]

Sorry, Matt - that should have been The Indestructible Pikachu...

[Cat R.]

Thanks, judi!

Matt, yer freakin' me out with that Pikachu. We had one in our home until recently, won at some carnival years ago. Now I feel -- strangely fortunate -- that it left quietly, in a bag of toys, donated to the Salvation Army. I had no idea it might have been indestructible. What have I unknowingly passed along...?

[Matt Morrison]

Wessonality!

There is more than one?!?!

THERE CAN ONLY BE ONE HIGHLANDER!

[marfie]

Punkin - fabulous pictures! Thanks for sharing.

*Makes note NEVER to buy daughters a Pikachu ANYTHING*

[KCSteve]

You know Dave, it might just be getting time to wipe some of the snorkage off the lens of the CrapCam.

[The DC Dump]

Now I've seen everything.

[Betsi]

Pikachu--I choose YOU! (My brother used to watch that show)
I have never been able to get into anime. A friend of mine sent me a bunch of dot hack sign DVD's, I wasn't able to make it past the first one.
One of my professors is having a baby early next year and wanted to give his child the middle name "Goku" after Dragon Ball Z--thankfully his wife won't let him.

[Guin]

Okay, I now get the pig-like-thing story....
;)

[Meanie the Blue]

Renee's photos.

Click next to see the whole series.

[Matt Morrison]

I put a couple of other pics from last night up as well.

[Punkin Poo]

Nice pix, Renee! Matt - my work firewall is blocking MySpace - dang! Will check em out when I go home...Thanks!

[Renee (the First)]

I can't see yours either, Matt. Might just be a computer glitch on my part. Thanks for putting mine up, Meanie!

[Leetie]

What scares me in the Y! photos is all the random other people in picture #4 taking pictures too.

*hides*

[Leetie]

I usually have no probs w/Myspace but I'm not seeing any pix there either.

[Punkin (still dizzy from Dave's hug) Poo]

Can't believ no one has said:

"Nice to get a peek at choo guys!"

[Cat R.]

OK, Anderson's in Naperville is just too close to pass up. The future-bloglits-in-training and I are going to try to make it to the signing tonight. Turns out "Peter and the Starcatchers" is a known title to my 12-year-old. "MOM! That's a Caudill book!" The Rebecca Caudill selections are always highly strumpeted by our school district :)

Dave, you aim to please the whole family.

So, if I don't get lost, I'll be there with my Scarlet Letter on as a recovering Barry Manilow listener. Please do not bar the door. Think of the children.

[Jeff Meyerson]

No myspace pics came through for me. From Renee's you can see what I meant about the B&N in NY having a much bigger & better signing area than Olsson's.

[neophyte]

Leetie, that was kind of my thought, too. Who are these other people taking photos, and why?

[Jeff Meyerson]

Are you kidding? How often do you go to a book signing and see people taking pictures of a Giant Leetiehead and a Burnt Pikachu?

Wouldn't you take a picture too?

[neophyte]

Well, of course I would, Jeff. But isn't it weird to think of pictures of Pikachu and The Giant Leetiehead on some stranger's blog? By "stranger," I mean somebody who isn't a Dave Barry Bloglit, because I'm not sure anybody could actually be stranger than we are! *beams with pride*

[blurkernomore]

Now I feel strangely...strange.

[Jeff Meyerson]

Good point, neo.

"Well, I get the Pikachu, I guess, but what's up with that woman's head on the stick?"

"Don't ask. She seems to be some goddess or something that all these Dave Barry people worship."

"Oh."

[Siouxie]

Well since we're sharing and since I'm too lazy to figure out the linky thingy...here's a link to my other crap phone cam pictures. I swear that BLURR next to me is Dave! (warning: extreme blurry feature ON

http://susycruz.shutterfly.com

[Siouxie]

Great pictures btw - Renee!

[Meanie the Blue]

No pix visible for me either, Matt.

Punkin - gesundheit.

[Renee (the First)]

Thanks for the compliments on the pictures. :-) My dad actually took the majority of them, so thanks on his behalf, too.

[Jeff Meyerson]

Susy, OK, they're no blurrier than Dave's crapcam pics. I recognize the blue shirt and the Peter Pan hat.

And Dave looks good too.

[blurkernomore]

Surely I can't be the only one of the guy type males here on the blog to notice that even though the phone pics were blurry it isn't hard to tell that Susy is smokin'!!

[mudstuffin]

Blurk: yeah, I definitely saw some rampart undulation there. Mesmerized, I was.

[blurkernomore]

What'd ya say, Mud? Oh, sorry. I was over on that other site starin'. Definitely some mesmerization goin' on.

[Siouxie]

aww chucks...thanks...I think

blurker: psst..that was the humidity "smokin"

mud: I'm sorry to disappoint - not much in the rampart dept. (I shoulda borrowed Punkin's girls')

[ObiDon]

Dave-
the CrapCam should have a dial that sets for different kinds of photos. Set it on A for Automatic and then exposure and focus will be taken care of...unless it is broken and if you publish the name of the camera I bet the manufacturer will FedEx you a new model fast.
-ObiDon

[Susan Kosior]

For one brief, *shining* moment, I knew what it was to be a celebrity... All those flash bulbs going off in our faces, and I was thinking, "Who the heck are those people?!"

And Ridley was "one of those people" for those of you who wanted to know who they were :-) that's why he wasn't in the picture.

[Matt Morrison]

Yes, Ridley was the one holding the CrapCam.

BTW, I have never read any of his books, but I am going to have to now. Every genius I've ever met has a amusing quirk, and Ridley carries a teabag with him wherever he goes. That is enough to convince me that his books must be good. That, and he is a member of the Remainders.

[Punkin Poo]

Matt - That's not his ONLY quirk. (Ow...*rubs sore bite mark*)

[Cheryl]

Renee ... the pic of you with Ridley and Dave is so cute! That's a keeper for sure.

[obi wan]

ObiDon??? Methinks a Sith lord is at work here...

[Sondra]

Dave, Love the shirt. When a collar lays that flat, it's because the fabric drapes well, because it's very soft. It must feel great against your skin. And the fern is lovely and well balanced on the shirt. Very flattering. Dark across the tummy - very slimming. Excellent choice. Michelle picked it out, eh?

;) Looks great!

[Poop Dogg]

That is a one big, um, Pikachu.