Arrrr matey! If’n you didn’t know, Sept 19th be International Talk Like a Pirate Day! So grab yer rum and eye-patch and prepare for some keel haul’n!

So where does Talk Like a Pirate Day come from? Hint: not Disney! It all started with a couple of guys named John Baur and Mark Summers. They are the first of the modern day pirate talkers. You can read all about it at their web site here.
So how can you celebrate this most unique holiday?

First there is the obvious. Walk around today and throw out a nautical term or two in your everyday conversation.

Arrr, how ye be doing today Bob?

Feelin’ strong as a bottle of Davy Jones’ rum! Arrr!

Got those TPS reports or will ye be walkin’ the plank?

What else can ya do? How about a pirate video game? Or should I say THE pirate video game?

Sid Meier’s Pirates!

This classic from the early days of computer gaming first appeared on the Commodore64. It also showed up on the Apple II and a few other systems of the time. I have been playing this on both my PC and PSP. It is a lot of fun and it more than just ship-to-ship combat. You can assault settlements, dance with governor’s daughters or kick back and divide up your booty! It’s fun! It’s piratey!

Need to learn more about pirates? Pick-up

Pirateology: A Hunter’s Companion

From Amazon.com:

Aar! Hoist the sails for a lavish new discovery filled with treasures — a magnificent resource for pirate lovers everywhere. The eagerly awaited new title in the best-selling ’Ology series — more than 5 million sold worldwide!

Step lively, pirate foes and fanciers! Mysterious booty found inside a long-lost sea chest, hidden for hundreds of years off the coast of Newfoundland, has just been uncovered for your enjoyment. Within these covers is the fascinating eighteenth-century journal of Captain William Lubber, an earnest soul who sailed the seas in search of the vicious female pirate Arabella Drummond. Prepare for a mesmerizing tale of the golden age of piracy — from storm-tossed sailing ships to tantalizing treasure islands, from pirates’ flags and fashions to their wily weapons and wicked ways. An extraordinary find for pirateologists, here is a true and complete companion for the dedicated pirate hunter.

Looking for some good epic music with a pirate theme?

A really fun movie with a great soundtrack! Not much else to say here. If you haven’t heard about these movies, you need to put the controller down and get some back into the real world!

Ok, I’ve mentioned games, a book and music. So what is next? A movie of course! And my choice for a pirate movies is….

Didn’t expect that did ya? Ok, so Pirates of Silicon Valley is not exactly a pirate movie. However it is a good movie and you can learn a bit about the early days of Microsoft and Apple. This originally aired on the cable station TNT and is very well done.

From Amazon.com:

The revolution came when we weren’t looking. It happened in a garage. In a dorm room. In countless hours of effort, imagining and intrigue. Apple co-founder Steve Jobs and Microsoft co-founder Bill Gates were changing the way the world works, lives and communicates.

The event-packed saga of the quirky visionaries who jump-started the future unfolds with exhilarating, cutting-edge style in Pirates of Silicon Valley. Noah Wyle (ER) portrays Jobs and Anthony Michael Hall (The Dead Zone) portrays Gates in this chronicle of the fierce and often humorous battle to rule the fledgling personal computer empire. “The story is almost Shakespearean… it’s a tale of lust, greed, ambition, love and hate,” writer/director Martyn Burke reflects. And it’s a success story unlike any other.

Check it out. It’s a fun little flick!

Last but not least, you’ll need some pirate food for the occasion. Here is a web site filled with all the pirate food recipes you will need to throw a Talk Like a Pirate party! With Glogg, Ginger Rum, O’Hanlons Stew and Hard tack you can stuff your belly till ye be puke’n off the port bow!

Happy Holiday!

Prof. Venatus, fly’n me jolly roger and chasing booty!