kind of amusing...

yesterday, a massive typhoon ravaged the eastern phillippines...killing more than 109.

that fact isn't amusing. what i did find amusing though was the name of the typhoon, Durian. now, it's common knowledge that hurricanes/tropical storms in the western hemisphere are usually given male or female names starting with 21 of the 26 letters in the Roman alphabet; q,u,x,y, and z names aren't used. right now, there are six rotating lists of names, in alternating male and female order. even numbered years start with a male 'A' name and a female 'B' name; odd years are the opposite. for example, the first storm of 2006 was named Alberto; next year's first will be named Andrea. during extraordinary hurricane seasons, however, when all the letters have been used, such as in 2005, additional storms are given greek letter names, starting with alpha. and hurricanes that have caused devastating damage, such as Andrew, Charley, Katrina, and Rita, are retired (name-wise).

well, Durian is an amusing name for a typhoon, mainly because that's the name of a massive, prickly fruit that is native to Southeast Asia. about the size of a very big honeydew, the durian is known for its creaminess and (yet) overpowering stench. the best comparison of a freshly cut durian's smell would be that of roadkill stuffed into a gym bag w/ sweat drenched socks, smeared in rotting eggs.

really

in fact, the durian is so putrid that it's not even allowed on many airlines. yep, it's on the banned list, next to flammables, explosives, and cigarettes.

there's a common saying about durian, "It tastes like heaven but smells like hell." and it's true. i've actually had a durian shake at a restaurant that served a trio of SE Asian cuisine - Malaysian, Singaporean, and Indonesian. i can tell you that the silky texture of the fruit was almost custard-like, but whatever magic used in making the shake still couldn't mask the underlying 'aroma' of rotten eggs. i'm glad i've tried it but have no inclinations of getting another...even on occasion.

when i saw the headline of the typhoon article, it just made me think of changing our naming system. hell, mebbe we should use things that obliterate our olfactories...like Hurricane Limburger or Hurricane Mothball. why make it a sex thing? after all, from 1953 to 1978, all hurricanes had female names. it was only in 1979 that male names were added to the lists... trust me, Hurricane Vomit would be a much more memorable name than Audrey, which killed 390 people in Louisiana and Texas in 1957. who's gonna remember that?

i like my system better