Luge

A short post today, it was mainly based off of a late conversation in the night.


Luge 

"a small sled that is ridden in a supine position and used especially in competition; also : the competition itself"

I enjoy luge. I definitely enjoy being a luger. Luging is such a large part of life.


I think there is a luger in every family; sometimes there are whole families of lugers.


In the end, if someone was to ask me, "what do you get from being a luger?" I would say the pride in after a hard day of luging, your muscles ache, your joints are creaky, you just know, deep down, that you are a sore luger. That right there is enough to remind yourself that being a luger is.


From Wikipedia


A Luge ( /ˈluːʒ/) is a small one- or two-person sled on which one sleds supine (face up) and feet-first. Steering is done by flexing the sled's runners with the calf of each leg or exerting opposite shoulder pressure to the seat. Racing sleds weigh 21-25 kilograms (46-55 lbs.) for singles and 25-30 kilograms (55-66 lbs.) for doubles.[1] Luge is also the name of an Olympic sport. Of the three Olympic sliding sports, which includebobsleigh and skeleton, luge is the fastest and most dangerous. Lugers can reach speeds of 140 km per hour (87 mph). The Guinness World Record is held by Tony Benshoof of the United States who achieved a speed of 139.9 km per hour (86.93 mph).[2] One athlete, Manuel Pfister of Austria, reached a top speed of 154 km per hour (95.69 mph) on the track in Whistler, Canada prior to the 2010 Vancouver Winter Olympics.[3]

Street luge is a recent innovation of the sport. Although it is considered an extreme sport, it is not yet an Olympic sport.

Lugers compete against a timer and are timed to a thousandth of a second, making luge one of the most precisely timed sports in the world. The first recorded use of the term "luge" is 1905, from the Savoy/Swiss dialect of French "luge" meaning "small coasting sled", and is possibly from a Gaulish word with the sameroot as English sled.

The Daumenator has spoken


P.S. If you don't get the first part of this post, read it out loud to someone.

The -agonists

You have most certainly heard of the protagonist in a work of literature. You may have even heard of the antagonist. But have you heard of the deuteragonist or even the tritagonist? These Wikipedia articles best explains what those fascinating terms are:

Protagonist 

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

A protagonist (from the Greek πρωταγωνιστής protagonistes, "one who plays the first part, chief actor"[1]) is the main character (the central or primary personal figure) of a literary, theatrical, cinematic, or musical narrative, who ends up in conflict because of the antagonist and with whom the audience is intended to most identify. In thetheatre of Ancient Greece, three actors played all of the main dramatic roles in a tragedy; the leading role was played by the protagonist, while the other roles were played by deuteragonist and the tritagonist.

The terms protagonist and main character are variously defined and, depending on the source, may denote different concepts. In fiction, the story of the protagonist may be told from the perspective of a different character (who may also, but not necessarily, be the narrator). An example would be a narrator who relates the fate of several protagonists, perhaps as prominent figures recalled in a biographical perspective. Often, the protagonist in a narrative is also the same person as the focal character, though the two terms are distinct. Excitement and intrigue alone is what the audience feels toward a focal character, while a sense of empathy about the character's objectives and emotions is what the audience feels toward the protagonist. Although the protagonist is often referred to as the "good guy", it is entirely possible for a story's protagonist to be the clear villain, or antihero, of the piece.

The principal opponent of the protagonist is a character known as the antagonist, who represents or creates obstacles that the protagonist must overcome. As with protagonists, there may be more than one antagonist in a story. The antagonist may be the story's hero; for example, where the protagonist is a criminal, the antagonist could be a law enforcement agent that tries to capture him. Sometimes, a work will offer a particular character as the protagonist, only to dispose of that character unexpectedly, as a dramatic device. Such a character is called a false protagonist. Marion in Alfred Hitchcock's Psycho (1960) is a famous example.

When the work contain subplots, these may have different protagonists from the main plot. In some novels, the protagonists may be impossible to identify, because multiple plots in the novel do not permit clear identification of one as the main plot, such as in Alexander Solzhenitsyn's The First Circle, depicting a variety of characters imprisoned and living in a gulag camp, or in Leo Tolstoy's War and Peace, depicting 15 major characters involved in or affected by a war.

In psychodrama, the "protagonist" is the person (group member, patient or client) who decides to enact some significant aspect of his life, experiences or relationships on stage with the help of the psychodrama director and other group members, taking supplementary roles as auxiliary egos.

Sometimes, antagonists and protagonists may overlap, depending on what their ultimate objectives are considered to be.

Deuteragonist 

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

In literature, the deuteragonist (from Greek: δευτεραγωνιστής, deuteragonistes, second actor) is the second most important character, after the protagonistand before the tritagonist.[1] The deuteragonist may switch from being with or against the protagonist depending on the deuteragonist's own conflict/plot.

History

Greek drama began with simply one actor, the protagonist, and a chorus of dancers. The playwright Aeschylus introduced the deuteragonist; Aristotle says in his Poetics

Καὶ τό τε τῶν ὑποκριτῶν πλῆθος ἐξ ἑνὸς εἰς δύο πρῶτος Αἰσχύλος ἤγαγε καὶ τὰ τοῦ χοροῦ ἠλάττωσε καὶ τὸν λόγον πρωταγωνιστεῖν παρεσκεύασεν (1449a15).[2]

Thus, it was Aeschylus who first raised the number of the actors from one to two. He also curtailed the chorus and gave the dialogue the leading part (1449a15).[2]

Aeschylus' efforts brought the dialogue and interaction between characters to the forefront and set the stage for other playwrights of the era, like Sophoclesand Euripides, to produce many iconic plays.[3]

[edit]Drama

Because Ancient Greek drama involved only three actors (the protagonist, deuteragonist, and tritagonist) plus the chorus, each actor often played several parts. For instance, in Sophocles' Oedipus Rex, the protagonist would be Oedipus, who is on stage in most acts, the deuteragonist would be Jocasta(Oedipus' mother and wife), as well as the Shepherd and Messenger. This would be because Jocasta is certainly a major role—acting opposite Oedipus many times and occupying a central part of the story—and because the Shepherd and Messenger are onstage when Jocasta is offstage.[4]

[edit]Literature

Literarily, the deuteragonist often assumes the role of "sidekick" to the protagonist. In Mark Twain's The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn, the protagonist isHuck and the deuteragonist, his constant companion, is Jim. In this story the tritagonist would be Tom Sawyer.[5] Conversely, the deuteragonist could also be a particularly visible antagonist, normally whom the actual antagonist hides behind.

Tritagonist 

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

In literature, the tritagonist is the third most important character of a narrative, after the protagonist and deuteragonist. In Ancient Greek drama, the tritagonist was the third member of the acting troupe.

As a character, a tritagonist may act as the instigator or cause of the sufferings of the protagonist. Despite being the least sympathetic character of the drama, he occasions the situations by which pity and sympathy for the protagonist are excited.[1]:451

The part of the tritagonist emerged from earlier forms of two-actor drama. Where two actors only allowed for a principal character and his adversary, moving the part of adversary to a third actor (the tritagonist) allowed for the second actor (the deuteragonist) to play roles as a confidant or aide to the principal character, and thereby elicit greater character depth from the principal character by having the protagonist explain their feelings and motivations to an on-stage listener.[1]:451 As Ancient Greek theatre recitations were partly melodic, the role of the tritagonist would typically go to a performer with a voice in the bassrange (as compared to the protagonist as tenor and the deuteragonist as baritone).[2]:172 Cicero, in his Divinatio in Caecilium, reported that the tritagonist (being a role of lesser importance than the protagonist) would often have to subdue his voice if he was naturally stronger than the protagonist.[3]

Notable Ancient Greek actors who worked in this role include the orator Aeschines, who was held by Demosthenes to have been untalented as a tritagonist,[2]:175 and Myniscus, who was tritagonist under the playwright Aeschylus.[2]:195

In some forms of Greek theatre, it was traditional for the tritagonist to enter the stage from the left.

Here is the worst for last:

Antagonist 

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

This article is about the literary term. For the pharmacological term, see receptor antagonist. For other uses, see Antagonist (disambiguation).

An antagonist (from Greek ἀνταγωνιστής - antagonistēs , "opponent, competitor, enemy, rival")[1] is a character, group of characters, or institution, that represents the opposition against which the protagonist must contend. In other words, 'A person, or a group of people who oppose the main character, or the main characters.'[2] In the classic style of story wherein the action consists of a hero fighting a villain, the two can be regarded as protagonist and antagonist, respectively.[3]

The antagonist may also represent a major threat or obstacle to the main character by their very existence, without necessarily deliberately targeting him or her.

Examples in both film and theatre include Sauron, the main antagonist in The Lord of the Rings, who constantly battles the series' protagonists, and Tybalt, an antagonist in Romeo and Juliet, who slays Mercutio and whose later death results in the exiling of the play's protagonist, Romeo.

This article is about the literary term. For the pharmacological term, see receptor antagonist. For other uses, see Antagonist (disambiguation).

An antagonist (from Greek ἀνταγωνιστής - antagonistēs , "opponent, competitor, enemy, rival")[1] is a character, group of characters, or institution, that represents the opposition against which the protagonist must contend. In other words, 'A person, or a group of people who oppose the main character, or the main characters.'[2] In the classic style of story wherein the action consists of a hero fighting a villain, the two can be regarded as protagonist and antagonist, respectively.[3]

I could have also defined what a sidekick is also, but that may be saved for another time. For now, I will just give the explanation that I am lazy.

The Daumenator has spoken

More ChaCha Questions

Here are some crazy questions while answering questions on ChaCha:

• What does it mean when you vomit yellow liquid?
• How do you, say, run away when the police are after you and you don't have legal papers?
• Is the person next to me gay?
• Why does Conner Flocks wear so many sweaters?
• Who do scientists worship?
• How do you casually hack on a phone?
• Who are the Top 5 Attorneys for houses in Bloomington, Indiana?
• What is the fax number for the North Dakota Bureau of Vital Statistics?
• In the movie, "Bambi," what is Bambi?
• Which variety of potato is high in moisture and sugar but low in starch content?
• What is a dating site that I have a good chance on?
• Is Jacob the Supreme Overlord?
• Question: Vengeance Answer: Like gazpacho, is a dish best served cold
• Is California behind Ohio in timezones or in front of?
• 29% of Men have broken up with women because of what?
• What is a curb-stomp?
• How do I find top dead center on a tank?
• How much would 100 pennies from 1960 be worth?
• How was the weather yesterday?
• Where's Stacy at? She said she was at the bus station, but I can't find her.

I know that there are not many questions, but I think people have gotten smarter with their questions. Either that, or I keep missing them.

The Daumenator has spoken

My Stand Up Comedy Routine

People have told me that I should be a comedian. I then proceed to say, "Sure, but I have no idea what I would talk about." While that may be true, I should really give this consideration.


My first rule would be that my material would be clean as can be.The point in that is so that everyone can retell the jokes, not just certain circles of people. That would be my way of giving laughs to the world.


I would also go on tour a lot. I am not sure about television specials. I know that would drive in money, but I would never know if the people seeing me on TV are laughing. People who go to see a comedian already have a good sense of humor and want to laugh. The people who see it on TV may be those people who have nothing else to do.


While (yes, I said "while") I would be up on stage, I would do a lot of moving around. By that, I mean I would do a lot of pacing up and down the stage. I would try to appeal to certain sides of the audience at different times. I would do so not because it has a purpose, but just for the sake of getting my exercising done on stage.


I have seen a lot of comedians with bucket loads of bottled water while on stage. I have decided that that is what I will have as well. I will be talking a lot as a comedian and I surely can't have my voice getting sore. Anyway, I will demand a 24 pack of bottled water so that it seems like I will be talking for a long time. Actually, let's shorten that down to an 8 pack. I can't really drink that much on stage and not go to the bathroom.


I would wholly encourage people to throw tomatoes at me if I was not good. I think that was self-explanatory.


T-shirts that would be sold would be a picture of my face on them. On the back, it would read, "I laughed at this guy."


As for clothing for myself, I would always wear a suit. It would give the audience the idea that I mean business and that I take my job seriously. Once in a blue moon, I would wear a suit that makes me look like a pimp. By that, I mean a full white suit with a neon green tie. Yeah, sounds nice, doesn't it?


I would not go into the world of politics. I would anger many people that may not necessarily deserve my criticism. They won votes, which is more than I did. It is like criticizing someone for a job that you don't know how to do. You may think you know, but there is always an added layer of complexity.


This is the first post in the year 2013. There is nothing that ties being a comedian with 2013; I just wanted to mention it.


I would interact with the audience. I find that people will surprise you with their actions when put on the spot. Who knows? they might even say something funny. If it goes downhill, at least they would be able to say that they met me. They could also laugh at me behind their back. That would not be a whole lot of fun for me, but it would be for them.


I think that is all I have to say about my world of stand up comedy. I think there might be some more fine tuning here and there, but I have just listed out the basics.


The Daumenator has spoken