Mottos: Veneficus cui is. Or, Ego reprobo vestri animadverto , quod subpono meus proprius.
I now dub myself Sir Bernard Quatermass, Knight-Brigadier General of the Grand Order of Don Quixote de la Mancha. This basically means I can act like a knight and be a PITA, because I can use the mottos as an excuse for any changes in reality perception.
For the origins of my mottos, highlight the spoiler portions of the quotes:
First Motto Explanation, from Wikipedia wrote:
A wizard did it
"A wizard did it" is a suspiciously evasive answer to an inquiry, usually with the implication the question is either being purposely avoided or is in fact silly or overthought. The phrase was widely propagated through Internet message boards, frequently as a catch-all response to continuity errors in games or webcomics. (See PFM)
The phrase originated in this episode of The Simpsons when Lucy Lawless responds to Professor Frink's question regarding a continuity error in Xena: Warrior Princess.
Frink: Yes, over here, m-hay, m-haven … in Episode BF12, you were battling barbarians while riding a winged appaloosa yet in the very next scene my dear, you're clearly atop a winged Arabian! Please do explain it!
Lucy Lawless: Uh, yeah, well whenever you notice something like that … a wizard did it.
Frink: Yes, alright, yes, in episode AG04 …
Lucy Lawless: Wizard!
Frink: Oh for glaven out loud.
It is also reminiscent of Terry Pratchett's reasoning for not making more use of magic in his fantasy novels, i.e. that because magic is a non-existent force that an author can use to do anything, it can become a deus ex machina plot device. "A wizard did it" can be used as a sarcastic retort to a fantasy story that overuses magic to drive the story forward.
The phrase (or similar reasoning) may well be older than either The Simpsons or Pratchett. Don Quixote often makes reference to 'sage enchanters' who assist knights-errant in their fantastic feats. In chapter four of book four of the first volume, Don Quixote refers to such enchanters bringing friends to a knight's aid and transporting them to their own homes for dinner afterwards, though the home was several thousand miles from the battlefield. The knight remarks on this in reference to the remarkable speed his squire Sancho Panza made in delivering a letter to his mistress Doña Dulcinea del Toboso, a journey of some thirty leagues, or approximately ninety miles, each way, in only three days. In The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn by Mark Twain, Tom Sawyer makes reference to the use of magic in Don Quixote to explain how a magician turned the Arab caravan his gang planned to rob into a Sunday school class. To the reader, though not to Huckleberry, it is obvious Tom is joking.
Second Motto Explanation from Wikipedia wrote:
On MythBusters, Savage is famous for silly and juvenile behavior and sometimes doing ill-advised things for a laugh. His best known show quote appears in the beginning of most of the episodes: "I reject your reality and substitute my own!" (This quote was originally from the movie The Dungeonmaster and popularized during the show's 10th regular episode, where he and fellow Mythbuster Jamie Hyneman tested the "rip a car off its rear axle" myth as seen in the movie American Graffiti.) He used the quote after being challenged about earlier predictions of the likelihood of the myth's validity (the possible values added up to more than 100%). In later episodes, he wears a T-shirt that contains the aforementioned quote.
I may, or may not, announce crusades against a common enemy, which will change according to my state of mind.
You do not need any horse or nag to join this, however, these will be most favourably looked upon.
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(No longer a mod)
On sabbatical...
02 Dec 2006, 7:14 am
