Multiply 111,111,111 by itself and the answer is:12,345,678,987,654,321
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In Los Angeles, the tower light atop Capitol Records has been sending out in morse code the word "Hollywood" since 1956.
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On July 26, 1908, Attorney General Charles J.Bonaparte
appointed an unnamed force of special agents to be the investigative
force of the Department of Justice. The FBI evolved from this small
group. Mr. Bonaparte was the grand nephew of Napoleon Bonaparte.
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Until the 1930's in the US, the "E" grade was used for failing the assignment. This was changed to "F" as professors didn't want students and parents to think that "E" stood for excellence.
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The car in which the Archduke Franz Ferdinand was assassinated in June 1914 bore the license plate A111118. The war that followed this event ended on 11-11-18.
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Rudolf's Red Nose is trademarked and if you want to use a likeness for a book or film, you face a lot of paperwork and fees. The original copyright from the 1939 book will expire in 2034 when it goes into public domain. However, anything from the 1964 children's TV show most likely carries its own copyright and licenses.
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That perfect wave-shaped blob of toothpaste on a brush is known as a "nurdle".
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Getty Images
It takes Venus longer to rotate once on its axis than to complete one orbit of the Sun.
That's 243 Earth days to rotate once – the longest rotation of any
planet in the Solar System – and only 224.7 Earth days to complete an
orbit of the Sun.
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The Unicorn is the Scotland's national animal.
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From Wiki: The spacecraft cemetery, known more formally as the South Pacific Ocean(ic) Uninhabited Area,is a region in the southern Pacific Ocean east of New Zealand, where spacecraft that have reached the end of their usefulness are routinely crashed. The area is roughly centered on "Point Nemo", theoceanic pole of inaccessibility, the location farthest from any land. A total of more than 263 spacecraft were disposed in this area between 1971 and 2016. The International Space Station is slated to end up in the spacecraft cemetery upon "retirement".
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Why does hot water freeze faster than cold water?
The reason for the observation is warm water evaporates quickly than cold water. As evaporation will produce the cooling effect water will get cooling immediately and freeze earlier than cold water.
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And, last but not least-Haburu the cat:
Such a tolerant and chill katter! Just wants to hang out with Dad and get a few scritches!
8/14-It's been mild for several days with rain coming in late week. The hydrangeas are glowy pink:
Mamachuck surveying her realm:
Piling cumulus of showers that missed us:
8/19-we had a wet weekend with a mixed bag from hour to hour. Radar showed what I call "popcorn" cells-multiple small areas of showers moving across the state. One moment it is pouring. Five minutes later, the sun is out. Repeat.
Temps will be cooling early week with a couple of nights into the 40's. Happily, temps will rebound for the beginning of next week. Rain totals here for the month are 4.6". Time to mow the lawn again!
Over the weekend, the tithonia began to bloom.
Focaccia! with rosemary and olive oil infused dough. Tasty!
J's-caramelized onions with shaved ham, sauteed shittake mushrooms and grated lemon rind.
C's-caramelized onions with sauteed shittake mushrooms, homegrown cherry tomatoes, olives and grated lemon rind.
Served with the red wine of our choice.
Eco-terrorists attacks on the cherry tomato bush!!! Bastards!
Up and down the bush, which reaches over 6 ft tall, branches have been nipped. Most likely, it's the damn deer although squirrels may have climbed up there. I put my money on Bambi. WTF! They also hit the shorter Jet Star tomato stems.
Damage to the cherry toms-seems too small and delicate for deer-I'm wondering either bird or squirrel. Research sez they are attracted to the sweetness but oddly, the ripe ones aren't touched and they have to be much sweeter than the unripened fruit. This isn't the first year that we suspect that we have had clip-clop hooves on THE FRIGGIN' DECK! You can see the bare branches here:
What I find as odd is that this has been a lush, wet Summer. No drought! So, plenty of stuff to eat. What? Tired of the SOS in your Carrier Creek habitat? Or is it learned behavior-they were here last year and remembered?
Well, at least Mamachuck is not to blame for this outrage.
Monster zuccs!
Chester looks alarmed at these big boys-the longest coming in at 18"!
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The Jewish tradition of leaving a stone atop a gravemarker:
An old practice that goes back at least to medieval times and possibly earlier to place a small stone upon the gravestone of a loved one when
visiting the cemetery. There are a number of reasons given for this custom, on both a basic level as well as a more esoteric one:
By placing a stone or a pebble
on top of the tombstone, we honor the deceased by letting people know
that the grave site has recently been visited. When
others notice the stones, they will see that this is a grave visitors
frequent, and they too will take an interest in who is buried there, and
perhaps will visit the grave site themselves.
On
a more mystical level, the Talmud observes that reading the inscription
on a gravestone can adversely affect one’s Torah learning. While the Kabbalists explain that in general this warning applies only
to inscriptions that protrude from the tombstone and not words engraved
into it, Rabbi Yosef Yuzpa
Hahn (1570–1637) cites a tradition that placing a stone on the
tombstone also helps to avoid any undesirable consequences that would
result from reading a tombstone.
The
placement of the stone serves as an invitation of sorts for a spark of
the departed to come down and rest upon the tombstone for the duration
of the visit.
In life, people may enjoy the beauty of their physical
surroundings, but when they die, all of their material
possessions and beauty are meaningless and left behind. It is only
their accumulated spiritual wealth that remains immortal, just like a
rock, which stays forever.
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We were watching a doc about whales and we saw this big guy:
Blue Whale
The stripes made me think of the apron worn by this famous 1990's TV chef:
Jeff Smith
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Passing noted: Peter Marshall from The Hollywood Squares TV quiz show died 8/15 aged 98 years.
The show was broadcasted from 1966-1981 and featured many comedians notably Paul Lynde whose quips ranged from snarky to outrageous. C immediately thought of this one:
Q: Do female frogs croak?
Paul Lynde: If you hold their little heads under water long enough!
Ahh, marketing. Saw this at the market today:
This brand, part of the Conagra, according to their blurb is "taking a step toward protecting the environment by becoming the first brand to introduce Carbonfree®
Certified Carbon Neutral single-serve frozen meals. This June, eight
Evol meals, produced in a TRUE certified Zero Waste facility, will be
Certified Carbon Neutral through the Carbonfree® Product Certification Program".
Gee, how nice of them. Nevamind that the emissions from your gas vehicle when you drive home from the market more than negates any carbon emission savings created by this frozen dinner. (cough) Bullshit.
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Why do you see gulls in large parking lots?
Oceans, beaches, lakes, parking lots, roof tops, and the like all have one thing in common: they
allow gulls to group up out in the open in such a way that gives them a
line of sight on both potential food sources and potential predators. Wide open space makes a safe place. Plus, humans tend to litter and kids drop things so there can be some good eatin' on the asphalt.
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Oh Gawd, politics:
The deranged Roach in his 2am Sunday tweetstorm posted this coded fake ad: from Ben Meiselas
So...if you drink the Fool Aid, the consequences for America will be this:
Jonestown 1978
This is the coming apocalypse the Christian Nationalists (and others) have been in an uproar about. What I find real crazy about this coding is by putting Kamala into her Indian alter-ego, she is cast as a swami or guru, as much as a false prophet as the Rev. Jim Jones. See what happened to him! Brother, we shall know Yahweh's wrath if that dark guru witch is elected!
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Fun Vids:
A Blue Button. From Wiki:
Porpita porpita, or the blue button, is a marine organism consisting of a colony of hydroids
found in the warmer, tropical and sub-tropical waters of the Pacific, Atlantic, and Indian oceans, as well as the Mediterranean Sea and eastern Arabian Sea.Although it is superficially similar to a jellyfish, each apparent individual is actually a colony of hydrozoan polyps. The taxonomic class, Hydrozoa, falls under the phylum Cnidaria, which includes anemones, corals, and jellyfish, which explains their similar appearances.
The Pharaoh's Serpent (aka black snake).
From Wiki:
"Black snake" is a term that can refer to at least three similar types of fireworks:
the Pharaoh's snake, the sugar snake, or a popular retail composition
marketed under various product names but usually known as "black snake".
The "Pharaoh's snake" or "Pharaoh's serpent" is the original version of
the black snake experiment.
The Pharaoh's snake is a more dramatic experiment and it requires
more safety precautions than the sugar snake due to the presence of
toximercury vapor and other mercury compounds.
This reaction was discovered by Friedrich Wohler in 1821, soon after the first synthesis of mercury thiocyanate. It was
described as "winding out from itself at the same time worm-like
processes, to many times its former bulk, of a very light material of
the color of graphite." For some time, a firework product called "Pharaoschlangen" was
available to the public in Germany but was eventually banned when the
toxic properties of the product were discovered through the deaths of
several children who had mistakenly consumed the resulting solid.
The Pharaoh's snake experiment is conducted in the same manner as the sugar snake experiment, however, the former uses mercury (II) thiocyanate (Hg(SCN)2) instead of powdered sugar with baking soda. This must be done in a fume hood because all mercury compounds are hazardous.
Human's These Days with vivid examples of HRH's attitudes towards us. (bloody peasants)
Fluff fire in La Rioja, Spain.
The fluff is actually seeds that have fallen from popular trees.
Its cotton like fibres help them to be carried in the wind so they can
be widely spread. Although it's highly flammable, the grass remains
unburned due to its high water content.
Bovine Revolution! From 1996. Some folks would rather not become a meal.
Insane, violent and hilarious: The Trunk Monkey ads
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Craig Stevens in the title role
We've been watching some old school TV lately: Perry Mason, Twilight Zone and Peter Gunn, which was on from 1958-1961. It's the first detective program created directly for TV vs. something adapted from a different medium. What's familiar for most folks is its iconic theme music written by Henry Mancini. Gunn is a Mr. Cool private dick but not a borderline thug like Mickey Spillane. He's a gentleman for the most part, suave, well-dressed, with good taste in most things patterned after Cary Grant. His "office" is a smokey, wharfside jazz bar named "Mother's" owned by a tough old bird. His girlfriend, "Edie" works there and occasionally sings.
Curiously, the creator was none other than Blake Edwards, who also wrote and directed a number of the episodes. In 1963, Edwards created the Pink Panther leading to a series of sequels lasting until 1993. Its iconic theme music was also written by Henry Mancini.
The Pink Panther featuring Peter Sellers and David Niven
I
noticed similarities between Peter Gunn and the film Chinatown. Like
Jake Gittes, he is an ex-cop who goes into private investigation. The
money is better and he maintains relationships with detectives on the
police force. Gunn has a nose for trouble and like Roger Moore in The
Saint, (which ran in the UK between 1962 -1969), he likes to help folks
out often in a manner skirting the boundaries of the letter of the law.
Jack Nicholson as Jake Gittes in Chinatown
Roger Moore as the title character
One thing we appreciate about these shows is that being only a half hour long, they move along at a good clip. The fashions are always interesting as are the prevailing mores of the times especially with gender roles/relationships.
And man...everyone smokes.
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"White Horses of Camargue" by Drew Doggett
From Wiki: The Camargue, is a traditional French breed of working horse indigenous to the Camargue area in southern France. Its origins are unknown. For centuries, possibly thousands of years, these small horses have lived wild in the harsh environment of the Camargue marshes and wetlands of the Rhône delta.
This reminded me of an earlier lifetime, living in the country and raising horses. Michele and I had 2-an Andalusian and a Tennessee Walker/Clydesdale mix that we rescued. I remember we would sit on our back deck, which overlooked a pond, and watch these two big/gentle guys play in the paddock next to the barn. They would chase each other around and perform mock battles, rearing upon their back legs and thrusting their front hooves at each other.
They were both geldings so these actions weren't serious-dogs and cats mock fight as well.
Floating, Just Floating. (ed. note-a Watergirl like C with Georgia O'Keefe clouds )
Sunset and Supermoon At Arcadia Lake
Light and Shadows
The Ginko (James River)
Starlight Time
Blue Burch Forest no. 1
Blue Birch Woods
Sleeping Bear Dunes
On The Hunt
Jef Bourgeau (b. 1950) is a Detroit artist who has exhibited extensively in
galleries and museums, from New York to Tokyo. As well as a renowned
artist, he is also a ground-breaking curator and the founding director
of Detroit's Museum of New Art (MONA) and co-founder of the Detroit
Center for Contemporary Photography.
In 1992, Mr. Hale had an exhibition at the Lansing Art Gallery when I was working there. Beautiful work-a nice blend of hyper-realism and abstract shapes. He had begun his career in this genre in 1985.
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When we have emptied a peanut butter jar, we typically put it out as a treat in the Diner. We're not sure who enjoys it but it has to be someone with a small head because the jar is usually clean as a whistle all the way to the bottom. I put one out last night before the rains and this morning, I found it on the path. I thought that was nice of them, imagining they said "We know you guys recycle!" when they left it. Good neighbors!
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Buddy, when we've had muggy evenings this past week.
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8/6: More heavy rains-1.75" with temps in the low '60's. What the Brits would call a "filthy day".
8/8:
Finally, dry enough to mow the jungle. Curious thing amongst American
men-mowing the grass is like getting a haircut. In both cases, you feel
and look better. Odd how we've been trained to prefer this particular visual
aesthetic of lawns.
I also did some major tomato plant trimming. We finally have some fruit but too much leaf-tomatoes like to have good air circulation. Some creatures found within:
Yikes! The Tomato Hornworm! The hungry, hungry hippo in wormworld.
Dragonfly
I saw one of these while working:
Male Widow Skimmer Dragonfly
8/9: Pool Day and first big ripe tomato. We celebrated, as our tradition, by making BLTs. Last year, it was on this very date as well.
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Politics:
A new billboard from George Conway's anti-psychopath PAC that was put up outside of Mar-a-Lago.
New Roach merch: Whiskey glass with bullet
Only $24.99-3 different versions, 10% off now if you sign up for their email!
8/6: Kamala picks MN Gov. Tim Walz as her running mate. From the Midwest, was in the Nat'l Guard, former social studies teacher and High School Football coach, member of the House of Representatives 2007-2019, a hunter and gun owner, married with 2 kids, member of Evangelical Lutheran Church in America-he brings a lot of knowledge and experience to the team. I think he is a wise choice. Best of luck!
One of the latest taglines coming out of the campaign that I applaud: "mind your own business!" It's none of your business who someone loves, the books they read, their choice to bear children, who they are friends with, amongst other things.
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I was listening to the 60's channel on Sirius while driving around the other day, when a song came on I was not familiar with: "Sidewalk Surfing" by Jan and Dean. It came out in 1964 and was co-written by Brian Wilson and refers to skateboarding. Now, I wasn't aware of skateboarding back then but it turns out that skateboarding was started in CA in the late-40's-early 50's by surfers when the waves in the ocean were flat.
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Found in Dr. Hannibal Lecter's kitchen:
This turned up on my FB feed-handmade resin SkullSlice knife holder. Why the algorithms thought I'd be interested is a mystery. Regularly $79.99 now on Summer sale (for a limited time only) for 51% off!
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A couple of paintings by Magritte that I had not seen:
The Key to the Fields 1936
The Invisible Mirror 1942
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C uttered this quote and cited a meme she had seen on FB. I had never heard of it. Wonderfully absurd and feels like a Groucho Marx saying.
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Salman Rushdie on storytelling: "We need stories. We need stories to understand ourselves. “We
are the only creature that does this unusual thing of telling each
other stories in order to try and understand the kind of creature that
we are".
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Update on 8/1 FSS piece concerning the stranded astronauts. NASA in a statement on 8//7 said that they are stuck if the Boeing capsule cannot be fixed. They could return in February, 2025 on SpaceX’s Crew Dragon which is scheduled to fly up to the ISS. Helluva choice: POS Boeing or one of Elon's junky machines. So much for "I'll Be Home, For Christmas..."
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One day I was driving down Grand River Ave in East Lansing when I noticed this building, between Collingswood and Bogue:
Evans Scholars? I was unfamiliar with this group and so was C. I investigated and it turns out to be connected with golf:
From the WGAESF website:
Who We Are
The Western Golf Association conducts championships
for professional and amateur golfers, promotes the use of caddies and
supports the Evans Scholars Foundation’s efforts to award full tuition
and housing college scholarships to hardworking caddies with limited
financial means.
We’re a driving force in the game of golf, a respected charitable
cause for tens of thousands of supporters and a distinguished leader in
the nation’s golf community.
Western Golf Association
The WGA began in in 1899, when 11 Chicago-area golf clubs formed an
organization to promote their interests in golf. It was in Golf,
Illinois, where the WGA established its headquarters. At the nearby Glen
View Club, the WGA held its first Western Open and Western Amateur
championships to showcase the exceptional talent of golfers who called
the west their home.
Today, we conduct four amateur championships – the Western Amateur,
Western Junior, Women’s Western Amateur and Women’s Western Junior – and
two professional events – the Korn Ferry Tour’s NV5 Invitational
presented by Old National Bank and the BMW Championship, the penultimate
event of the PGA TOUR FedExCup Playoffs.
Evans Scholars Foundation
In 1929, famed amateur golfer Charles "Chick" Evans Jr. asked the WGA
to administer the fund he had established to send deserving caddies to
college. The WGA awarded its first two scholarships in 1930, sending
caddies Harold Fink and Jim McGinnis to Northwestern University. Until
World War II, all Evans Scholars continued to attend Northwestern, and
it was there that the first Scholarship House was established.
As the Evans Scholars Foundation grew, WGA Directors realized the
impact of Chick's dream on the lives of young men and women with limited
access to a college education. When Chick's original investment was
exhausted, the WGA Directors perpetuated the Evans Scholars Program by
making contributions of their own.
Today, the Foundation is funded by contributions from Par Club
members across the country as well as proceeds from our championships.
The Evans Scholars Program provides academic, professional and social
resources that help students maintain a cumulative 3.3 GPA and 98
percent graduation rate. There are a record 1,130 Evans Scholars
enrolled in 24 leading universities for the 2023-24 academic year, and
12,040 young men and women have graduated as Evans Scholars since 1930.
The MSU branch, established in 1955, there are currently 85 scholars and 958 alumni.
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Fun Vids:
Whirling Dervish-Sufi meditation
A vlog entry by Walter Santi from Turkey who has 3 indoor cats, 14 outdoor cats, a dog and wild critters who visit his garden.
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