Welcome to ...

The place where the world comes together in honesty and mirth.
Windmills Tilted, Scared Cows Butchered, Lies Skewered on the Lance of Reality ... or something to that effect.


Saturday, December 31, 2016

The Daily Drift

Welcome to Today's Edition of  
Carolina Naturally
Today also happens to be Look On The Bright Side Day ...! 
 
Carolina Naturally is read in 210 countries around the world daily.   
   
Party ... !
Today is - New Year's Eve

 You want the unvarnished truth?
Don't forget to visit: The Truth Be Told
Some of our readers today have been in:
The Americas
Antigua - Argentina - Aruba - Bahamas - Barbados - Belize - Bolivia - Brazil - Canada - Chile  Colombia - Costa Rica - Dominican Republic- Ecuador - El Salvador - French Guiana - Guatemala Haiti - Honduras - Jamaica - Mexico - Nicaragua - Paraguay - Peru - Puerto Rico
Sint Eustatius and Saba - Sint Maartin - Trinidad and Tobago - Turks and Caicos - United States  Uruguay - Venezuela - Virgin Islands
Europe
Albania - Armenia - Austria - Belarus - Belgium - Bosnia and Herzegovina - Bulgaria - Croatia  Cyprus -  Czech Republic - Denmark - England - Estonia - Finland - France - Georgia - Germany Greece -  Hungary - Iceland - Ireland - Isle of Mann - Italy - Jersey - Latvia - Lithuania - Macedonia  Malta - Moldova - Monaco - Montenegro - Netherlands - Northern Ireland - Norway - Poland Portugal - Romania - Russia - San Marino - Scotland - Serbia - Slovakia - Slovenia - Spain - Sweden  Switzerland - Turkey - Ukraine - Wales
Asia
Afghanistan - Azerbaijan - Bangladesh - Brunei - Burma - Cambodia - China - Hong Kong - India  Indonesia  Iran - Iraq - Israel - Japan - Jordan - Kazakhstan - Korea -  Lebanon - Malaysia - Mauritius
Mongolia - Nepal - Oman - Pakistan - Palestine - Saudi Arabia - Singapore - Sri Lanka - Taiwan Thailand - Tibet - United Arab Emirates - Uzbekistan - Vietnam - Yemen
Africa
Algeria - Chad - Congo - Egypt - Ethiopia - Ivory Coast - Ghana - Kenya - Libya - Madagascar  Morocco - Mozambique - Nigeria - South Africa - Sudan - Tunisia - Zambia - Zimbabwe
The Pacific
Australia - French Polynesia - Guam - Marshall Islands - New Zealand - Papua New Guinea Philippines
Don't forget to visit our sister blogs Here and Here.

Today in History

1775
George Washington orders recruiting officers to accept free blacks into the army.
1852
The richest year of the gold rush ends with $81.3 million in gold produced.
1862
Union General William Rosecrans‘ army repels two Confederate attacks at the Battle of Murfreesboro (Stone’s River).
1910
John B. Moisant and Arch Hoxsey, two of America’s foremost aviators, die in separate plane crashes.
1911
Helene Dutrieu wins the Femina aviation cup in Etampes. She sets a distance record for women at 158 miles.
1915
The Germans torpedo the British liner Persia without any warning killing 335 passengers.
1923
The Sahara is crossed by an automobile for the first time.
1930
Brewery heir Adolphus Busch is kidnapped.
1941
General MacArthur reports that U.S. lines in Manila have been pushed back by the Japanese.
1942
After five months of battle, Emperor Hirohito allows the Japanese commanders at Guadalcanal to retreat.
1944
Hungary declares war on Germany.
1965
California becomes the largest state in population.
1977
Cambodia breaks relations with Vietnam.

This Military Dad's Gift To His LGBT Daughter Will Make You Cry

He knew how important it was to her. 
 It took a while for Dakotah Whitcomb to come out as being bisexual to her dad.
She knew that the family had many close friends in the LGBT community, and that being bisexual wasn't something he had a problem with at all.
But still, it's different when it's your dad.
When a waitress flirted with her at a restaurant and her brother teased Dakotah saying she probably didn't mind the flirting, Dakotah knew it was time.
She told her dad that she was bisexual, and he responded in the best possible way.
"That's so cool!" He said to her.
But the adorableness doesn't stop there.
This Christmas, Dakotah asked for an LGBT pride flag as a last minute gift.
She didn't really expect her dad to follow through on the gift, so when she opened her flag on Christmas morning and read the letter he had included with it she was in no way prepared for the touching message.
The letter said:
"Merry Christmas Dakotah,
When I saw that a Gay Pride flag was on your list, at first I thought it was an odd request. But after thinking about it, I think I know why.
I reckon that you feel that everyone else in the family, except grandma, has a flag that represents something we were/are a part of. I have the Marine Corps, Grandpa and Mom have the Navy, and Darr has the Army. So it makes sense that you would want a flag to represent something you are a part of.
I present you with this flag, to display how you would like. In the spring, when I hang the flags up, I would be proud to hang yours up.
Love you,
Dad"
Um, no, I'm not crying, it's just the effects of all the onions I've been chopping today.
Yes, that's right. Onions.
Acceptance and love are crucial to any human being. 
Many members of the LGBT community are rejected by their families members and made to feel unwanted and unloved.
Dakotah's dad didn't just accept her and her bisexuality, he celebrated her!
Dakotah's whole family have dedicated their lives to serving different branches of the military.
Because Dakotah is disabled, she has not been able to serve.
By telling her that he would be happy to fly her flag alongside the other flags that represent the other members of their family, he wasn't just telling her that being bisexual was "fine", he was telling her that both being bisexual and being HER was absolutely wonderful.
He'd have her no other way.
***
Real Family Values
Semper Fi

Lotus stir-fry scores high in consumer panels

Lotus, an aquatic perennial vegetable native to many subtropical and temperate zones, is cultivated extensively throughout Asia. Lotus rhizomes, stems, flowers, seeds, and young leaves are in great demand, and are considered a dietary vegetable … Read more

A Guide to Vibrators for Women Over 50

State Officials Finally Realize ACA Is Great For People

State Officials Finally Realize ACA Is Great For People

Fox 'News' Caught Using Out-and-Out Lie to Push for End to Food Stamps

Got Irony?

Got Irony? Ainsley Earhardt Features 'Mortifying Moments' From The Mainstream MediaAinsley Earhardt Features 'Mortifying Moments' From The Mainstream Media

Gun-loving wingnut hack killed after letting teen boy hold his firearm

M.D. Harmon, a wingnut hack who frequently wrote in favor of gun ownership rights for the Portland Press Herald, died this week after being shot by a teenage boy.
Can you say Irony?
Can you say Karma?

NRA convinced lawmakers that killing a 13-year-old over loose change is ‘reasonable’

The NRA is pressuring lawmakers to loosen up gun laws across the country, and then relieving gun owners of responsibility when they use their weapons to kill. The results are predictable.

Texas officer arrested in uniform for having sex with 13-year-old more than 20 times

A Texas law enforcement officer was arrested after he was accused of repeatedly sexually assaulting his girlfriend’s 13-year-old daughter.

Link Dump

Breathalyzer Detects 17 Diseases With One Breath From a Patient

An international team of 56 researchers in five countries has confirmed a hypothesis first proposed by the ancient Greeks – that different diseases are characterized by different “chemical signatures” identifiable in breath samples. The findings … Read more

Can too much sleep be unhealthy?

How do psychopaths feel about other people?

Many smokers with serious mental illness want to kick habit

Among American adults who have a serious mental illness such as schizophrenia, bipolar disorder or clinical depression, 57 percent are smokers. In contrast, only 15 percent of U.S. adults overall smoke. Many with such psychiatric … Read more

9 Weird and Wonderful Facts About Death and Funeral Practice

Ancient Chaco Canyon population likely relied on imported food

The ancient inhabitants of New Mexico’s Chaco Canyon, the zenith of Pueblo culture in the Southwest a thousand years ago, likely had to import corn to feed the multitudes residing there, says a new CU … Read more

Weird Taxidermy

This taxidermy was found inside a late 19th century French mansion which has been sealed up for more than 100 years. (Via National Geographic). Good to know people was just as weird before the internet.

Animal Pictures


Friday, December 30, 2016

The Daily Drift

Welcome to Today's Edition of  
Carolina Naturally
This is true ...! 
 
Carolina Naturally is read in 210 countries around the world daily.   
   
Bacon ... !
Today is - Bacon Day

 You want the unvarnished truth?
Don't forget to visit: The Truth Be Told
Some of our readers today have been in:
The Americas
Antigua - Argentina - Aruba - Bahamas - Barbados - Belize - Bolivia - Brazil - Canada - Chile  Colombia - Costa Rica - Dominican Republic- Ecuador - El Salvador - French Guiana - Guatemala Haiti - Honduras - Jamaica - Mexico - Nicaragua - Paraguay - Peru - Puerto Rico
Sint Eustatius and Saba - Sint Maartin - Trinidad and Tobago - Turks and Caicos - United States  Uruguay - Venezuela - Virgin Islands
Europe
Albania - Armenia - Austria - Belarus - Belgium - Bosnia and Herzegovina - Bulgaria - Croatia  Cyprus -  Czech Republic - Denmark - England - Estonia - Finland - France - Georgia - Germany Greece -  Hungary - Iceland - Ireland - Isle of Mann - Italy - Jersey - Latvia - Lithuania - Macedonia  Malta - Moldova - Monaco - Montenegro - Netherlands - Northern Ireland - Norway - Poland Portugal - Romania - Russia - San Marino - Scotland - Serbia - Slovakia - Slovenia - Spain - Sweden  Switzerland - Turkey - Ukraine - Wales
Asia
Afghanistan - Azerbaijan - Bangladesh - Brunei - Burma - Cambodia - China - Hong Kong - India  Indonesia  Iran - Iraq - Israel - Japan - Jordan - Kazakhstan - Korea -  Lebanon - Malaysia - Mauritius
Mongolia - Nepal - Oman - Pakistan - Palestine - Saudi Arabia - Singapore - Sri Lanka - Taiwan Thailand - Tibet - United Arab Emirates - Uzbekistan - Vietnam - Yemen
Africa
Algeria - Chad - Congo - Egypt - Ethiopia - Ivory Coast - Ghana - Kenya - Libya - Madagascar  Morocco - Mozambique - Nigeria - South Africa - Sudan - Tunisia - Zambia - Zimbabwe
The Pacific
Australia - French Polynesia - Guam - Marshall Islands - New Zealand - Papua New Guinea Philippines
Don't forget to visit our sister blogs Here and Here.

Today in History

1460
The Duke of York is defeated and killed by Lancastrians at the Battle of Wakefield.
1803
The United States takes possession of the Louisiana area from France at New Orleans with a simple ceremony, the simultaneous lowering and raising of the national flags.
1861
Banks in the United States suspend the practice of redeeming paper money for metal currency, a practice that would continue until 1879.
1862
The draft of the Emancipation Proclamation is finished and circulated among Lincoln‘s cabinet for comment.
1905
Governor Frank Steunenberg of Idaho is killed by an assassin’s bomb.
1922
Soviet Russia is renamed the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics.
1932
The Soviet Union bars food handouts for housewives under 36 years of age. They must now work to eat.
1947
Romania’s King Michael is forced to abdicate by Soviet-backed Communists. Communists now control all of Eastern Europe.
1965
Ferdinand E. Marcos is sworn in as the Philippine Republic’s sixth president.
1972
After two weeks of heavy bombing raids on North Vietnam, Nixon halts the air offensive and agrees to resume peace negotiations with Hanoi representative Le Duc Tho.
1976
Governor Carey of New York pardons seven inmates, closing the book on the Attica uprising.
2006
Saddam Hussein, former Iraq dictator, is executed by hanging for crimes committed against his own people during his rule.

How One Man Used a Deck of Cards to Make Parapsychology a Science

Okay, I know, I know, parapsychology is not a science. But science does study claims of psychic abilities. Dr. Joseph B. Rhine was influential in codifying a way to do that.
Since the 1930s, Zener cards, also known as ESP cards, have been used to quantify psychic ability, testing for telepathy and clairvoyance (you might remember them from that scene in 1984’s Ghostbusters, when Venkman tests the “effects of negative reinforcement on ESP”). The cards straddle the intersection of science and the paranormal, pseudoscience and legitimacy. In a lot of ways, that’s a space also occupied by the man who pioneered their use, Dr. Joseph B. Rhine, founder of the Duke Parapsychology Lab.
Rhine’s interest in the paranormal took hold in 1922, when he was a young plant physiologist earning a Ph.D. in botany at the University of Chicago. Rhine and his wife Louisa were both dedicated scientists, but they had questions that simple biological reductionism didn’t seem to answer; Rhine had once thought of joining the ministry, until his wife steered him towards science. And then, in May of that year, they sat in the audience to hear Sir Arthur Conan Doyle make his case for life after death.
While fascinated by the phenomena they observed at Spiritualist seances, they were also scientists who wanted proof. Since there is no way to observe life after death and report on it, Rhine focused on ESP, and developed Zener cards (along with psychologist Dr. Karl Zener) in order to test those powers in a scientific manner. Read the story of Dr. Rhine and his ESP research at Atlas Obscura.  

An Inuit map carved out of wood

"When Danish naval officer Gustav Holm was exploring the eastern coast of Greenland in 1885, an Inuit named Kunit gave him this three-dimensional wooden map.
The two parts form one whole: The bottom carving represents the coast from Sermiligak to Kangerdlugsuatsiak, and the top is an island offshore. The Inuit would carry these maps in their kayaks to navigate the waters between the two landmasses."
Found in the Futility Closet.   Not sure where the Inuit got wood; it must have been a precious resource in the subarctic.

Steganography on a Canadian coin

"Canada’s “victory nickel,” struck from 1943 to 1945, included a special message to stimulate the war effort: Engraved around the rim were the words WE WIN WHEN WE WORK WILLINGLY in Morse Code.  The coin was reissued in 2005 to commemorate the 60th anniversary of V-E Day."
Found in the Futility Closet.
Steganography is the practice of concealing a file, message, image, or video within another file, message, image, or video. The word steganography combines the Greek words steganos (στεγανός), meaning "covered, concealed, or protected", and graphein (γράφειν) meaning "writing".

Amniocele dramatically illustrated

As reported by the New England Journal of Medicine:
A 33-year-old asymptomatic woman (gravida 6, para 5) presented at 22 weeks of gestation with a large herniation of the amniotic sac through the left uterine wall that was detected by routine ultrasonography. She had had five previous cesarean sections through a transverse incision of the lower uterine segment and no previous vaginal deliveries... At 30 weeks of gestation, a healthy male newborn weighing 1385 g was delivered by cesarean section.
The five previous C-sections had resulted in a weakened uterine wall, through which the fetus' legs extended.  Impressive image.

We Become More Forgetful With Age

Stressed out by Finances?

One third of children in Silicon Valley are homeless while tech profits soar

One third of children in Silicon Valley are homeless while tech profits soar

Parents intentionally starved children because they ‘did not want them anymore’

Two Halifax, Pennsylvania parents are facing assault charges after locking up their three children in a room, beating and starving them.

Georgia teen suffers breakdown over fears her parents would discover youth pastor’s rape

"In situations like this where a youth pastor uses his access to children and position to satisfy a sexual appetite, it is always a concern that there are unknown victims."

‘I am not a piece of meat’

Singer Ariana Grande hit back at a young fan who made a derogatory comment about her, asserting she is “not a piece of meat” that men get to use at will.

O'Keefe Plans To Infiltrate 'Fake News' Networks Like ABC, NBC

O'Keefe arrogantly equates legitimate news networks to his ridiculous fraud.
***
This is rich ... Disgraced and CONVICTED felon wingnut agitator infamous for fake "documentaries" using false and faked 'evidence' thinks legitimate news sources are the fakers.
Granted the news sources are not the best and some try harder to be better than others do, but come on, really?!

Fox 'News' Lies About Food Stamp 'Fraud'

Unhinged Dumbass Trump sycophant interrupts cult mass to scream about fringe PizzaGate conspiracy

Unhinged Dumbass Trump sycophant interrupts cult mass to scream about fringe PizzaGate conspiracy

It looks like something from another planet ...

Because it is:
"... Groups of dark brown streaks have been photographed by the Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter on melting pinkish sand dunes covered with light frost..."

Astronomy STEM lesson

WTF is a pangolin?


Dog Protects Little Girl Lost In The Forest For 11 Days

When a 4-year-old goes missing it's crucial to find the child within the first 48 hours, because they know from experience that a young child would have a hard time surviving outdoors that long without help.

So when little Karina Chikitova wandered into a forest in Siberia and got lost her family panicked, and when the hundreds of people searching for her had yet to locate her a week later they began to give up hope.
But Karina was lucky because her dog Kyrachaan had gone with her, and Kyrachaan was able to help Karina stay warm at night and defend her from wolves and bears in the forest until help arrived.Eleven days after her disappearance Kyrachaan showed up in the village and pointed rescuers in the right direction, and four miles from the village in the tall grass they found Karina.
Karina had survived by eating berries, and had a few scrapes and bug bites but no major injuries, and the first thing she said when she saw Kyrachaan again- "Why did you leave me?"Read Dog Protects Girl Lost In Forest For 11 Days here

Animal Pictures


Thursday, December 29, 2016

The Daily Drift

Welcome to Today's Edition of  
Carolina Naturally
Yeah ...! 
 
Carolina Naturally is read in 210 countries around the world daily.   
   
Tick Tock ... !
Today is - Tick Tock Day

 You want the unvarnished truth?
Don't forget to visit: The Truth Be Told
Some of our readers today have been in:
The Americas
Antigua - Argentina - Aruba - Bahamas - Barbados - Belize - Bolivia - Brazil - Canada - Chile  Colombia - Costa Rica - Dominican Republic- Ecuador - El Salvador - French Guiana - Guatemala Haiti - Honduras - Jamaica - Mexico - Nicaragua - Paraguay - Peru - Puerto Rico
Sint Eustatius and Saba - Sint Maartin - Trinidad and Tobago - Turks and Caicos - United States  Uruguay - Venezuela - Virgin Islands
Europe
Albania - Armenia - Austria - Belarus - Belgium - Bosnia and Herzegovina - Bulgaria - Croatia  Cyprus -  Czech Republic - Denmark - England - Estonia - Finland - France - Georgia - Germany Greece -  Hungary - Iceland - Ireland - Isle of Mann - Italy - Jersey - Latvia - Lithuania - Macedonia  Malta - Moldova - Monaco - Montenegro - Netherlands - Northern Ireland - Norway - Poland Portugal - Romania - Russia - San Marino - Scotland - Serbia - Slovakia - Slovenia - Spain - Sweden  Switzerland - Turkey - Ukraine - Wales
Asia
Afghanistan - Azerbaijan - Bangladesh - Brunei - Burma - Cambodia - China - Hong Kong - India  Indonesia  Iran - Iraq - Israel - Japan - Jordan - Kazakhstan - Korea -  Lebanon - Malaysia - Mauritius
Mongolia - Nepal - Oman - Pakistan - Palestine - Saudi Arabia - Singapore - Sri Lanka - Taiwan Thailand - Tibet - United Arab Emirates - Uzbekistan - Vietnam - Yemen
Africa
Algeria - Chad - Congo - Egypt - Ethiopia - Ivory Coast - Ghana - Kenya - Libya - Madagascar  Morocco - Mozambique - Nigeria - South Africa - Sudan - Tunisia - Zambia - Zimbabwe
The Pacific
Australia - French Polynesia - Guam - Marshall Islands - New Zealand - Papua New Guinea Philippines
Don't forget to visit our sister blogs Here and Here.

Today in History


1170
Thomas Becket, the archbishop of Canterbury, is murdered in Canterbury Cathedral by four knights of Henry II.

1607
Indian chief Powhatan spares John Smith’s life after the pleas of his daughter Pocahontas.

1778
British troops, attempting a new strategy to defeat the colonials in America, capture Savannah.

1845
Texas (comprised of the present state of Texas and part of New Mexico, Colorado, and Wyoming) is admitted as the 28th state of the Union, with the provision that the area (389,166 square miles) should be divided into no more than five states “of convenient size.”

1849
Gas lighting is installed in the White House.

1862
Union General William T. Sherman‘s troops try to gain the north side of Vicksburg in the Battle of Chickasaw Bluffs.

1890
The last major conflict of the Indian wars takes place at Wounded Knee Creek in South Dakota after Colonel James W. Forsyth of the 7th Cavalry tries to disarm Chief Big Foot and his followers.

1914
The production of Belgian newspapers is halted to protest German censorship.

1921
Sears Roebuck president Julius Rosenwald pledges $20 million of his personal fortune to help Sears through hard times.

1926
Germany and Italy sign an arbitration treaty.

1934
Japan formally denounces Washington Naval Treaty of 1922.

1940
In a radio interview, President Roosevelt proclaims the United States to be the “arsenal of democracy.”

1940
London suffers its most devastating air raid when Germans firebomb the city on the evening of December 29.

1948
Tito declares Yugoslavia will follow its own path to Communism.

1956
President Dwight Eisenhower asks Congress for the authority to oppose Soviet aggression in the Middle East.

1965
A Xmas truce is observed in Vietnam, while President Johnson tries to get the North Vietnamese to the bargaining table.

1981
Reagan curtails Soviet trade in reprisal for its harsh policies on Poland.

A Peculiar Doorway

Here's a door that might be a little difficult to get through at times. At least it opens in instead of out! This picture was taken in Germany, and the consensus of commenters is that the stairs were there first, and a room with a door was added to the home. Let's just hope it's a closet or storage room. Can you imagine trying to get out of a bedroom like this in an emergency situation? Or paramedics trying to get in? This is one of a group of remodeling failures from Germany, in a collection at Buzzfeed called The 21 Worst Handymen In The World.

'My Husband and I Threw a Sex Party to Celebrate Our 20th Anniversary’

sex party
'My Husband and I Threw a Sex Party to Celebrate Our 20th Anniversary’
"I was incredibly nervous about the event since we hadn’t done one of these before."

Why Aren't There Any B Batteries?

We learn about different battery sizes when we're kids, which is when I learned it took six D batteries to play cassettes on my boombox for about four hours- and that D batteries were heavy and cost a bundle.But we're always left with one unanswered question- what happened to the "B" batteries?
To find out we have to go back to the 1920s, when battery cell sizes were standardized by the government agencies, War Industries Board and American battery manufacturers working to create a uniform product:
In 1924, industry and government representatives met again to figure out a naming system for all those cells and batteries they had just standardized. They decided to base it around the alphabet, dubbing the smallest cells and single-cell batteries “A” and went from there to B, C and D. There was also a "No. 6" battery that was larger than the others and pretty commonly used, so it was grandfathered in without a name change.
As battery technology changed and improved and new sizes of batteries were made, they were added to the naming system. When smaller batteries came along, they were designated AA and AAA. These newer batteries were the right size for the growing consumer electronics industry, so they caught on. C and D batteries also found a niche in medium- and high-drain applications. The mid-size A and B batteries simply didn’t have a market and more or less disappeared in the U.S..
While you typically won’t see either A or B batteries on American store shelves, they’re still out there in the wild. A batteries were used in early-model laptop battery packs and some hobby battery packs. B batteries are still sometimes used in Europe for lanterns and bicycle lamps. According to Energizer, though, their popularity is dwindling there, too, and they might be completely discontinued.