CAROLINA NATURALLY: Sep 11, 2015

Friday, September 11, 2015

The Daily Drift

Welcome to the Friday Edition of Carolina Naturally.

Our latest comment:

This blog never fails.

~ Debbie Reyes

So true ...!

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Enjoy Bananas ... !

Today is - Banana Day

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Today in History

1297		Scots under William Wallace defeat the English at Stirling Bridge.
1695		Imperial troops under Eugene of Savoy defeat the Turks at the Battle of Zenta.
1709		John Churchill, Duke of Marlborough, wins the bloodiest battle of the 18th century at great cost, against the French at Malplaquet.
1740		The first mention of an African American doctor or dentist in the colonies is made in the Pennsylvania Gazette.
1777		General George Washington and his troops are defeated by the British under General Sir William Howe at the Battle of Brandywine in Pennsylvania.
1786		The Convention of Annapolis opens with the aim of revising the articles of confederation.
1802		Piedmont, Italy, is annexed by France.
1814		U.S. forces led by Thomas Macdonough route the British fleet on Lake Champlain.
1847		Stephen Foster’s "Oh! Susanna" is first performed in a saloon in Pittsburgh.
1850		Soprano opera singer Jenny Lind, the "Swedish Nightingale," makes her American debut at New York’s Castle Garden Theater.
1864		A 10-day truce is declared between generals Sherman and Hood so civilians may leave Atlanta, Georgia.
1857		Indians incited by Mormon John D. Lee kill 120 California-bound settlers in the Mountain Meadows Massacre.
1904		The battleship Connecticut, launched in New York, introduces a new era in naval construction.
1916		The "Star Spangled Banner" is sung at the beginning of a baseball game for the first time in Cooperstown, New York.
1944		American troops enter Luxembourg.
1962		Thurgood Marshall is appointed a judge of the 2nd Circuit Court of Appeals.
1965		The 1st Cavalry Division (Airmobile) arrives in South Vietnam and is stationed at An Khe.
1974		Haile Selassie I is deposed from the Ethiopian throne.
2001		In an unprecedented, highly coordinated attack, terrorists hijack four U.S. passenger airliners, flying two into the World Trade Center towers in New York and one into the Pentagon, killing thousands. The fourth airliner, headed toward Washington likely to strike the White House or Capitol, is crashed just over 100 miles away in Pennsylvania after passengers storm the cockpit and overtake the hijackers.
2005		Israel completes its unilateral disengagement of all Israeli civilians and military from the Gaza Strip.
2007		Russia detonates a nano-bomb; dubbed the "Father of All Bombs," it is the largest non-nuclear weapon developed to date.
2012		US consulate in Benghazi, Libya, attacked and burned down; 4 Americans were killed including the US ambassador, J. Christopher Stevens.

Editorial Comment

It has been a week since we returned from our "Blogcation" and it has been a good week. The first few days back we spent catching up on all the submitted items that had kept coming in while we played on the river and camped under the stars on our mountain top - it was a lot, but we got through it nicely.

As you may have noticed we have begun to post comments we have received (as we said we might do a few months ago). Our criteria for posting comments is the same as it has always been:

... no comments that include links of any kind will be posted

... no anonymous comments will be posted

... no screen-name comments will be posted

(unless the screen-name is the real full name)

... only comments with full names will be posted

(we might post only a single name on the rare occasion, but don't bet on it)

... comments with full names whether they are positive or negative will be posted

(of course like everybody else we prefer the positive ones)

... comments of a confusing nature, if they are accompanied by a full name, do stand a chance of being posted.

It is amusing how this simple criteria cannot be grasped by some - either lacking in intelligence or confidence they continue to frustrate themselves by ignoring the aforesaid criteria and wondering why their comments never appear.

The farm has done well this summer and the produce was a hit at the local market and now with autumn approaching we will have time to really sort through the artifacts from our archaeological dig this summer.
Our remainder of the year looks to be as busy as it has been all year thus far - whomever said that retirement would bring a slowing down to the pace of your life didn't have a clue what they were talking about.

Be Happy and Have Fun

Ziggy

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Iconic Dishes and the Cities That Made Them Famous

Everyone has their food favorites, but do you know where and how the recipe originated? Sometimes we eat foods in our own corners of the world and are surprised when they are nowhere to be found when we travel. Conversely, we may be on vacation and stumble upon a delicious dish that we are unable to forget. The linked article mentions a number of beloved foods and explains their origins.
One of those foods is toasted ravioli. The delicious, slightly crunchy yet soft and chewy outside has a flavorful filling of beef, cheese, spinach/artichoke or whatever is desired. Toasted ravioli originated in St. Louis, Missouri, specifically at Blueberry Hill, a lively restaurant and bar that often features live bands. As the origin story goes, a cook at the establishment "accidentally" dropped ravioli into a deep fryer instead of hot water. Whether it was an accident or not, the outcome was savory.

Learn about the origins of more iconic dishes here.

Opera Singer on Helium

(Video Link)

Christina Elizabeth, a professional opera singer, offers an extra squeaky "Deh Vieni Non Tardar" from The Marriage of Figaro. Her already extraordinary vocal range is made only greater with the addition of helium. It's delightful! I would sit through an entire opera if it was performed this way.

Dear Dad, Send Money: Letters from Students in the Middle Ages

The more things change, the more they remain the same. One of the first things that students learn when they go off to college is that it’s expensive to live on your own, out from under your parents’ roof. It was the same way back when college was invented. This letter is from the 1220s:

B. to his venerable master A., greeting This is to inform you that I am studying at Oxford with the greatest diligence, but the matter of money stands greatly in the way of my promotion, as it is now two months since I spent the last of what you sent me. The city is expensive and makes many demands; I have to rent lodgings, buy necessaries, and provide for many other things which I cannot now specify. Wherefore I respectfully beg your paternity that by the promptings of divine pity you may assist me, so that I may be able to complete what I have well begun. For you must know that without Ceres and Bacchus Apollo grows cold.

Ceres, the goddess of agriculture and grains, is a nod to food, and of course, Bacchus is the god of wine. Adding his name might not have been the best idea. You can see more examples of medieval letters home from school at Medievalist.

The Dark Realities Of Working As A Birthday Clown

Don't let that painted on smile fool ya- working as a birthday clown is a really tough job, and many clowns go home feeling rather blue after a gig.

Between the people who are terrified of you, those who get turned on by your makeup at a party full of kids, and those who assume you're a sicko because they read about a sicko clown once, those who don the clown white for a living can't seem to get any love.

Well, aside from the fetishizers that is, and when you read the 5 Realities Of Being A Birthday Clown you'll agree- the smile is painted on for a reason!

Read I Am A Clown: 5 Truths You'll Wish I Didn't Tell You at Cracked

Seventeen Phrases People Commonly Say Incorrectly

There are certain phrases used by English speaking people all over the world on a regular basis, phrases which have gone beyond the realm of idiom or cliché and become an inherent part of the English language.

But no matter how common the phrase there are people who will misuse, mangle and mix up the words in that phrase, defending their version with confidence.

How many times have you heard someone say “one in the same” “hunger pains” or “I could care less” when they really mean “one and the same” “hunger pangs” and “I couldn't care less”?

It may seem like a small and insignificant difference, but if people are going to use these phrases so often they might as well be saying them correctly!

See 17 Common Phrases You've Been Saying Wrong Your Whole Life here

Did Walt Disney Really Say Kurt Russell's Name Before He Died?

A celebrity's last words become a major part of their legend after they pass on, and sometimes even overshadows the celebrity's career.

But there's one guy who wasn't overshadowed by his last words, partly because people can't decide what his last words actually were. That guy is Walt Disney, and his last words have been the subject of many arguments over the years.

When Kurt Russell went on Jimmy Kimmel Live back in 2007 and declared his name was the last thing Walt Disney ever said he got some Disney historians riled up, including one who went to great lengths to disprove the myth.

Leading Disney historian Jim Korkis did an exhaustive amount of research to uncover what Walt actually “said” before he died, words written on paper since Walt was dying of lung cancer and couldn't speak, and the list surprisingly includes the words “Kirt (sp) Russell”.

Read Walt's Last Words: NOT Kurt Russell at Mouseplanet

Alzheimer’s Shield

Researchers shed light on potential shield from Alzheimer’s

Today, more than 5.1 million Americans live with Alzheimer’s disease, a devastating type of dementia that plagues memory and thinking. That number is expected to triple in the coming decades. […]

Retinal Changes Offer Clues about Brain Pathology of Schizophrenia

Retinal Changes Offer Clues about Brain Pathology of Schizophrenia

Tracking changes in the eye’s retina may help doctors provide more effective treatment for people with schizophrenia, according to researchers at Rutgers University and Mount Sinai’s New York Eye and Ear Infirmary. A […]

Hidden Blue Paint Found in Ancient Mummy Portraits

Hidden Blue Paint Found in Ancient Mummy Portraits

A stash of 1,900-year-old Egyptian mummy paintings is helping researchers understand how ancient artists used a fashionable pigment called Egyptian blue.

Asylum's Dark Side: The Deadly Business of Human Smuggling

Every day, thousands of refugees entrust their lives to human smugglers as they make their way to Europe -- and many of them die en route. The smugglers, meanwhile, are making handsome profits, and aren't particularly concerned about safety. More.

Woman Claims She Was Fired By The Same Company Twice For Being Pregnant

She also claims she was told her pregnancy made her an unreliable employee and a liability.

Muslim flight attendant says she was suspended for refusing to serve alcohol

Flight attendant Charee Stanley [Council on American-Islamic Relations]

Muslim flight attendant says she was suspended for refusing to serve alcohol

Charee Stanley filed a discrimination complaint in Detroit with the Equal Employment Opportunity commission, in an effort to get reinstated to her job.

***

It was part of her job as a flight attendant to serve alcohol and she should be required to do so regardless of her religious delusions or find other employ that does not require her to serve alcohol.
It is that simple.
Requirements of a job always supersede 'religious freedom' should that so called 'religious freedom' interfere or contradict with those requirements
Your 'religious freedom' ends at the tip of your nose.
Your 'religious freedom' cannot be imposed on another in any fashion or form.

The New York Prison that Doubled as a Clubhouse For Alimony Cheats

The Ludlow Street Jail in New York City has an interesting history. In the 19th century, it was a corrupt operation that had a tiered set of condition, depending on how much an inmate could afford to pay for favors. Pony up enough, and you might have a private cell and spend your days smoking cigars and playing billiards. Of course, this system meant less room, food, and protection for those would could not pay. Boss Tweed himself was incarcerated at the Ludlow Street jail, and he easily escaped from his luxury accommodations. Reform campaigns led to changes, but not all for the better.

In the early 20th century, almost all of the inmates left in the Ludlow Street Jail were men who had defaulted on their alimony payments. At the time, the laws in New York stated that if a man refused to pay alimony, he would be sentenced to six months in jail, after which he would be free of all further payments. Accordingly, divorced men whom the courts had decreed owed payments to their ex-wives began shrugging their shoulders and heading off to jail for an all-expenses paid vacation at what came to be nicknamed The New York Alimony Club.
Gone were the days of corrupt extortion. The days of gleeful misogyny had arrived. As one member of the club described to the New York Times in 1911, “Many of us have preferred to come here as a matter of principle rather than pay money that was demanded of us practically as black-mail from wives, who, while we were hard pressed, were living in luxury.”
The Alimony Club would host lavish holiday dinners for the inmates, and lived in a convivial little cabal—one that was “utopian,” according to the Times article. The new warden who arrived in 1912 even began playing music for the delinquent ex-husbands.

That’s just one episode in the sordid history of the Ludlow Street Jail, which you can read at Atlas Obscura.

Cyclist fined for using bike path too late at night

The mayor of Lévis in Quebec, Canada, says the city is considering reviewing its bylaws after a cyclist was given a $440 fine for riding on a bike path after 11pm. The 63-year-old cyclist in question, Gilles Frénette, was on the Parcours des Anses bike path in Old Lévis, across the river from Quebec City, on Wednesday night when police approached him. He was told he was breaking a municipal bylaw that prohibits people from being in public parks between 11pm and 5am.

Mayor Gilles Lehouillier said the police stopped Frénette because there have been recent reports of break-ins and mischief along this particular path. He defended the police's actions, saying they were acting in accordance with the law. Only six tickets have been issued this summer, he said - not bad, considering the path is used for 350,000 bike trips a year. But some say it's the principle of the matter. Quebec Solidaire MNA Manon Massé called on Transport Minister Robert Poëti to make sure all municipalities in Quebec have bike-friendly policies.
"$440 - that's the price Mr. Frénette would have to pay for riding on a bike path after 11pm. Is that how we encourage cycling?" she asked. Massé said people should be encouraged to use bikes rather than cars. Etienne Grandmont of Accès transports viables, an advocacy group for alternative transportation, said not only should people be encouraged to use bikes, but that police on bike paths should be using two wheels rather than four, as well.
"They went on the bike path with their car, that's something that's really [surprising] for a cyclist, to be in front of a car on a bike path. They should be a presence on the bike path, but using bikes too," Grandmont said. As for Frénette's ticket, the fine was later lowered to $150 and Lehouillier said the city will take another look at the bylaw, because he doesn't want to discourage people from cycing. Quebec City has a similar regulation, though it's rarely enforced. In Montreal, cyclists can use bike paths 24 hours a day except during the winter and on certain bridges at night.

Teenager charged with mischief after fake dynamite alarm clock seized by airport security

A 15-year-old in Canada has learned the hard way to think very carefully about what to put in a carry on bag when boarding a plane.

Screening staff at Toronto's Pearson Airport called in a police bomb disposal unit on Saturday night when they detected what they thought was an explosive device.
The police force responsible for security at Pearson, Peel Regional Police, say the device was fake.
They say it turned out to be a novelty alarm clock that looked like several sticks of dynamite bound together with a timer. The teenager has been charged with mischief.

Mother unhappy that daughter was sent home from school for wearing too tight trousers

The mother of a schoolgirl who was sent home on the first day of term for wearing trousers deemed too tight by school bosses is not happy. 14-year-old Ellisha Oliver was one of a number of girls at South Shields Community School in South Tyneside who were told to change their trousers at the start of the new term because they broke the school’s uniform policy. Upon arrival pupils were told trousers needed to be at least 14cms wide at the bottom.
For those whose trousers did not measure up to the right standards, they were handed new pairs from Asda and sent into a cupboard to change. Those who refused had their parents called to the school to collect them or were placed into isolation. Ellisha, who said the pair she was given were too big to wear, was taken home by her mother Stacy. Stacy, 36, from South Shields, said: "I've never known anything like it.
"I sent her to school wearing a perfectly fine pair of trousers, but she has been told to take them off and wear these other ones which are trailing the ground, because they're so big and she's tiny. She ended up missing a day of school because of this. As for the young girls who have just started, they were beside themselves. What a horrible first day for them, being forced to get changed. It's embarrassing. Do they want the kids to look silly?"

New headteacher Allie Denholm said she stands by her "tightening up" of the school's uniform wearing policy. She says all pupils were treated in a dignified manner and were told to get changed in private areas if their uniforms weren't up to scratch. Ms Denholm said: "We gave the children a choice to either go and change their clothes in a private place or we would contact their parents to come and collect them. All students were treated with respect and dignity. There have been no changes to the uniform policy. We are just tightening it up."

Baddie - The 87-year-old "Teenager"

Great ball of fire spotted in the sky over Bangkok

A large, bright fireball was seen streaking across the northern sky of Bangkok, Thailand, at about 8.40am on Monday.

Reports came from many different localities. An astronomer said that the fireball might be a meteor streaking down through the atmosphere.

YouTube link.

An official at the Bangkok Planetarium, however, said there had been no reports of a meteorite landing. Most meteors completely burn up in the atmosphere. If one did crash to earth, it would probably be noticed, he said.

YouTube link.

Saran Poshyachina, the deputy director of the National Astronomical Research Institute of Thailand, said the fireball could be a meteorite landing. But he also did not rule out the possibility it could be space junk.

Earth Shots

Hurricanes, Typhoons and Cyclones, Oh My

Hurricanes this year have set records in the Atlantic and Pacific. See some incredible images of these tropical cyclones from space.

Space mission could solve 100-year-old mystery

Loch Ness Monster was almost named after Queen Elizabeth

Famed British conservationist Sir Peter Scott, who gave the Loch Ness Monster the scientific name of Nessiteras rhombopteryx as part of an effort to protect it as an endangered species in case it's real, originally tried in 1960 to get Queen Elizabeth to approve the name Elizabethia Nessiae.
From The Scotsman:

Her Majesty was so interested in the eminent conservationist’s search she asked to be kept personally informed about it.
But Palace officials were dubious. They wanted proof Nessie existed, and questioned if it was appropriate to name a “monster” after the Queen.
The extraordinary documents were uncovered in an archive at Cambridge University.
A letter from Martin Charteris, the Queen’s assistant private secretary at the time, read: “If there is any suggestion of naming the animal after the Queen, there must of course be irrefutable evidence of it’s existence. It would be most regrettable to connect Her Majesty in any way with something which ultimately turned out to be a hoax."

More on this matter at The Independent: "The Queen and the Loch Ness monster: a murky tale of myth, nature and spin"
And regarding the name Nessiteras Rhombopteryx, this from the Museum of Hoaxes:

Sir Peter Scott of the Loch Ness Phenomena Investigation Bureau participated in the 1972 expedition that produced the flipper photo. Feeling that the photo provided proof that some kind of large creature existed in the loch, he decided to give the animal a scientific name: Nessiteras Rhombopteryx (which meant "the Ness wonder with a diamond fin"). But London newspapers soon pointed out that if you juggled around the letters in this name, you got the phrase "monster hoax by Sir Peter S." Was this evidence that the flipper photo had been a deliberate hoax? Scott denied it. Dr. Rines came to his rescue by pointing out that if you juggled the letters around a bit more, you could spell "Yes, both pix are monsters. R."
Above, "The Surgeon's Photo," known to be a hoax.