Read a book as a young child all about what's inside things - an egg, a castle under siege and so on.
Lots of very simple drawings in just orange, black and white. The page that fascinated me most was a cross-section of a volcano. You could see the lava moving up from deep underground to burst out of the cone, and a sinister little side-volcano where a smaller lava-stream was pouring out.

I loved that chapter and it started my lifelong interest in volcanoes. I'd read everything I could about them and even now I record Discovery volcano programmes to watch over and over.

Anyway.. about 10 years ago I came across it again, second hand. It had a stamp inside which indicated that it might even have been the very same book! How exciting.

But wait, what's this? Basic drawings, hardly any text, and what an unrealistic, flat-looking volcano!

I must have been very young when I first read it. I'm not really disappointed though - it set off my imagination, as books're supposed to. I will never part with it again.
(Juan Quar is clinging to her front teeth on, Sat 31 Aug 2013, 23:44, 16 replies)

Wow, it sounds like you REALLY like volcanoes.

(AWESOMEB0T meddling prick, Sun 1 Sep 2013, 1:16, closed)

Volcanoes are AWESOME!

(dozers, do fuck off ur a nob m8, Sun 1 Sep 2013, 10:27, closed)

Magmificent.
( Happy Phantom has been to Hastings, Brighton, and Eastbourne too, Sun 1 Sep 2013, 11:50, closed)

As puns go, that was not the best I have ever read...
..but I can't think of anything better and it probably wasn't technically a pun anyway. So respect.
(Colonel Blink is now officially a pretentious prick, Sun 1 Sep 2013, 14:14, closed)

\o/
( Happy Phantom has been to Hastings, Brighton, and Eastbourne too, Sun 1 Sep 2013, 14:40, closed)

How can you tell?

(Juan Quar is clinging to her front teeth on, Mon 2 Sep 2013, 13:16, closed)

I, too, had a fascination with volcanos in my youth.
I have since been to two (Teide and Vesuvius) and they were both very disappointing.
(Me, I'm not... in any way intoxicated, Sun 1 Sep 2013, 17:56, closed)

I'm not a fan of volcanos
but when we went past Etna, all the farms had dry stone walls made of lava and the wine had a certain volcano-ness about it. Living near a volcano must make you a bit weird. I wanted to walk up behind a local and shout 'BOOOOM!!!'
(CADmonkey rollllllllled another one, just like the other one, Sun 1 Sep 2013, 18:05, closed)

*would have*

(Juan Quar is clinging to her front teeth on, Mon 2 Sep 2013, 13:15, closed)

Did they just smell of farts?
You'd want them to smell like something more heroic really, like glory or Brut.
(Eukanuba, Sun 1 Sep 2013, 18:54, closed)

They smelled of rotten eggs.
There was no molten lava or anything and no super villains lairs either.
(Me, I'm not... in any way intoxicated, Sun 1 Sep 2013, 19:21, closed)

Thing about Vesuvius though is that the gas is the most immediately dangerous aspect, rather than the lave.
The gas can apparently build up and overflow the crater and suffocate everyone living nearby.

Until relatively recently it was legal to build houses quite high up on the slopes. Madness!

Although I'd probably buy one.
(Juan Quar is clinging to her front teeth on, Mon 2 Sep 2013, 13:19, closed)

Killed by "rotten egg gas"?
The views were superbe though.
(Me, I'm not... in any way intoxicated, Mon 2 Sep 2013, 18:57, closed)

You would possibly be less disappointed if you visited
an ACTiVE volcano. Vesuvius is staring at a puddle of bubbly sludge from about 500 feet away.
( edjogs Collared doves are shit., Sun 1 Sep 2013, 21:31, closed)

Oh I loved Vesuvius!
We went to the top and it was cloudy up there, and the crater was steaming and smelt of farts. Utterly satisfying.
(Juan Quar is clinging to her front teeth on, Mon 2 Sep 2013, 13:15, closed)

Yeah I go with that
It's the trigger that inspires and doesn't have to be high tech.
( edjogs Collared doves are shit., Sun 1 Sep 2013, 21:33, closed)