CAROLINA NATURALLY

Tuesday, May 31, 2011

The Daily Drift

The Daily Drift

Today's horoscope says:
Today, if an unexpected cancellation happens, take it as a sign that you need to slow down -- because you definitely do!
What's the rush, anyway?
You've been running at full tilt for quite a while, but what you may not realize is that there's no deadline looming ahead that you need to be worried about.
Don't move according to someone else's schedule.
Instead, go at a pace that enables you to feel relaxed and at ease with yourself.
That's more important than anything else.

Some of our readers today have been in:

Canberra, Australian Capital Territory, Australia
Melbourne, Victoria, Australia
Auckland, Auckland, New Zealand
Dublin, Dublin, Ireland
Glasgow, Scotland, United Kingdom
London, England, United Kingdom
Kuala Lumpur, Wilayah Persekutuan, Malaysia
Geneva, Geneve, Switzerland
Berlin, Berlin, Germany
Birmingham, England, United kingdom
Madrid, Madrid, Spain
Amsterdam, Noord-Holland, Netherlands
Hamburg, hamburg, Germany7
Barcelona, Catalonia, Spain
Nancy, Lorraine, France
Stoke On Trent, England, United Kingdom
Gengenbach, Baden-Wurttemberg, Germany

as well as Slovakia, Malta, Bulgaria, Israel, Finland, Austria, Norway, Georgia, Mexico, Peru, Kuwait, Serbia, Bangladesh, Latvia, Greece, Scotland, Hong Kong, Denmark, Wales, Iran, Singapore, Poland, Taiwan, Sweden, Afghanistan, Belgium, Tibet, Croatia, Pakistan, Romania, Paraguay, Sudan, Vietnam, Argentina, Cambodia, Egypt, France, Estonia, Puerto Rico, Maldives, Qatar, Brazil, New Zealand, United Arab Emirates, Slovenia, China, Iraq, Ecuador, Nigeria, Colombia, Chile, Honduras, Paupa New Guinea, Moldova, Venezuela, Germany, Mexico, Saudi Arabia, Ireland, Czech Republic, Vietnam, Norway, Finland

and in cities across the United States such as Nashua, Holcombe, Galveston, Herndon and more.

Today is:

Today is Tuesday, May 31, the 151st day of 2011.

There are 214 days left in the year.

Today's unusual holiday or celebrations is:

What You Think Upon Grows Day.

Don't forget to visit our sister blog!

Arlington National Cemetery Scene Of KKK VS Westboro baptist cult

It has been widely reported for years that members of the Westboro baptist cult protest at funerals of military men and women.

However, CNN is reporting that on Memorial Day outside the Arlington National Cemetery, members of Westboro Baptist Church were confronted by a group of counter-protesters, the Ku Klux Klan (KKK).

According to CNN, three members of the Westboro baptist cult were met by a small group, claiming to be a branch of the Knights of the Southern Cross out of Virginia.

The news station is reporting that the confrontation happened just hours before President Barack Obama led the annual Memorial Day observances at the Tomb of the Unknowns.

Dennis LaBonte, of the KKK group, told the CNN reporter, that the soldiers, who the church members are protesting, are the same ones who fought to give them their right to free speech.

In a counter comment, Abigail Phelps, the daughter of the Westboro cult founder, said that the KKK can counter protest, because they have no moral authority on anything. (talk about the kettle calling the pot black!)

Click on CNN to read more on this story.

***

Reportedly, people passing by the incident shouted their thanks to the counter-protesters.

While this Southerner is not the biggest fan of the Klan - in fact, not a fan in any sense of the word - one has to hand it to them for this.
You know you have to be a very special kind of hate group for another hate group to protest you.

Or as one blogger from Down Under put it:

Even the KKK think the Westboro baptist wankers suck

Awesome Pictures

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Last of Laurel and Hardy

This short video is thought to be the last footage of comedians Laurel and Hardy; it was shot in 1956 at the home of Stan Laurel’s daughter, Lois. Also featured in the clip: Stan Laurel’s wife Ida Kitaeva Raphael Laurel, Hardy’s wife Virginia Lucille Jones, Andy Wade (who shot the film), Laurel’s daughter Lois, her husband Rand Brooks and their children, Randy and Laurie.

Full Story

The Optimism Bias

Is the glass half empty or half full?

Well, if you’re anything like the average American, then chances are you’re biased toward optimism.
Here’s an interesting article by Tali Sharot of TIME Magazine about science of optimism, and how may just be hardwired by evolution into our brain as a survival mechanism against the knowledge of certain death:

To think positively about our prospects, we must first be able to imagine ourselves in the future. Optimism starts with what may be the most extraordinary of human talents: mental time travel, the ability to move back and forth through time and space in one’s mind. Although most of us take this ability for granted, our capacity to envision a different time and place is in fact critical to our survival.
It is easy to see why cognitive time travel was naturally selected for over the course of evolution. It allows us to plan ahead, to save food and resources for times of scarcity and to endure hard work in anticipation of a future reward. It also lets us forecast how our current behavior may influence future generations. If we were not able to picture the world in a hundred years or more, would we be concerned with global warming? Would we attempt to live healthily? Would we have children?
While mental time travel has clear survival advantages, conscious foresight came to humans at an enormous price — the understanding that somewhere in the future, death awaits. Ajit Varki, a biologist at the University of California, San Diego, argues that the awareness of mortality on its own would have led evolution to a dead end. The despair would have interfered with our daily function, bringing the activities needed for survival to a stop. The only way conscious mental time travel could have arisen over the course of evolution is if it emerged together with irrational optimism. Knowledge of death had to emerge side by side with the persistent ability to picture a bright future.

Full Story

Shoe

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Culinary DeLites

America's best cities for burgers

One locale is known for its pastrami patty, while another get kudos for its triple-decker treat.

Wide-open race

Also:

A week's worth of delicious dinners

Get a taste of New Orleans with this full-bodied and flavorful chicken and sausage gumbo.

Plus, tuna fajitas

Also:

8 unusual, but delicious grilling ideas

Instead of the same old burgers and hot dogs, try tossing pizza or pineapple on the grill.

Barbecued lettuce?

Also:

How a backyard BBQ can cost over $200,000

It starts by throwing some $5,000 burgers on a $164,000 gold-plated grill.

Don't forget these utensils

Also:

A kitchen garden circa 79 AD replicated with parsley, sage, rosemary and thyme.

Photos by R.Cruger

Since every home had a kitchen garden in ancient Rome, it's a tradition worth keeping over the centuries. So when given the chance to pick sprigs from the replica of a Mediterranean garden at the Getty Villa, I wondered what ancient plants were growing. The museum's garden is filled with herbs, edible flowers and fruit trees as well as flax for making linen. The co-author of a new book, Gardens and Plants of the Getty Villa, Michael D. Dehart, was one of the guides on the tour and the museum offered recipes for bouquets garnis along with cooking string to wrap up the aromatic selections. While we won't be using them for a roast boar, crane, porpoise or door mouse stew, the same recipes work today for casseroles, soups broths, sauces and infusions:

Article continues: Bouquet Garni Recipes Inspired by a 1st Century Roman Herb Garden

Foods that help you lose weight

11 foods that can help you lose weight

Stock up on these everyday foods to suppress appetite and trim belly fat.

Combo that keeps you full longer

Also:

Bait and Switch Report Reveals Rampant Seafood Fraud

Seafood images from Bait and Switch Report

I'm lucky to live on Vancouver Island where you can't walk down the street without tripping over a fisherfolk and his or her boat. It would be tough to pass off a still-twitching catch as something other than what it is, but for eaters further inland that buy their catch from behind glass things are different. Oceana has compiled research from academics, governments and consumers into a report that shows that mislabelling seafood is common practice with serious consequences.

Article continues: Bait and Switch Report Reveals Rampant Seafood Fraud

Food poisoning crisis grows: 14 dead in Germany

Germany held crisis talks amid reports that at least 14 people have died and hundreds are ill in an outbreak of a highly virulent strain of bacteria found on imported cucumbers.

Full Story

Leave it to the Irish

An Irishman arrived at J.F.K. Airport and wandered about the terminal with tears streaming down his cheeks.

An airline employee asked him if he was already homesick.

“No,” replied the Irishman. “I’ve lost all me luggage!”

“How’d that happen?”

“The cork fell out,” said the Irishman.

Check engine light explained

What the check engine light really means

You don't need to rush to a mechanic every time the warning light appears.

Try the gas cap trick first

Also:

Ways to clean up credit

The best ways to clean up your credit

Change the one payment habit that determines 35% of your credit score.

What to ask your credit card company

Also:

Switch fields to be happier

Switch careers for a happier life

If you want more money or flexible hours, look into one of these professions.

High-satisfaction jobs

Also:

The Difference Between You and Your Boss

1 When you take a long time, you're slow.
When your boss takes a long time, he's thorough.

2 When you don't do it, you're lazy.
When your boss doesn't do it, he's too busy.

3 When you make a mistake, you're an idiot.
When your boss makes a mistake, he's only human.

4 When doing something without being told, you're overstepping your authority.
When your boss does the same thing, that's initiative.

5 When you take a stand, you're being pig-headed.
When your boss does it, he's being firm.

6 When you overlooked a rule of ettiquette, you're being rude.
When your boss skips a few rules, he's being original.

7 When you please your boss, you're arse-creeping.
When your boss pleases his boss, he's being co-operative.

8 When you're out of the office, you're wandering around.
When your boss is out of the office, he's on business.

9 When you're on a day off sick, you're always sick.
When your boss has a day off sick, he must be very ill.

10 When you apply for leave, you must be going for an interview.
When your boss applies for leave, it's because he's overworked.