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July 22, 2015 I'm going to start today to record on a daily basis whatever happens to strike my fancy. So, it is a very cool breezy day. I just posted 5 short book reviews to The Monthly Reading Challenge. I'm suppose to put away some winter wood today from the woodpile outside but I'm playing hookey from work to write so starting this blog will get done. I'm having a daily fight with a flock of English Sparrows that are trying to take over my barn. They are making a terrible mess so they have to go. I have destroyed several nests so far they don't leave but they get out of the barn when I am around. I'm just starting the fight so I guess I don't know how far I have to go to discourage them. I'm trying not to spread myself to thin on WDC because I find so many things that are interesting here and I am trying to work on a new story. I really enjoy sitting at my desk with a cup of tea and reading blogs on WDC. |
| Anything written in this story is attributed to Andre's influence. MONKEY BUSINESS FOR ALL Tricksey had her hands on her hips. She threw up one hand pointed her finger and shook it. "No. no. no. Don't even think it". "O.K. I won't think it." Kythera smiled a wide close lipped sarcastic smile."I will do it though, tonight!" Kythera turned walked into her bedroom and quietly closed the door. Later Tricksey heard movement in the library. She gave the door a rather violent push. A young rather slender man was standing by the book shelf. Tricksey gasped, "Kythera is that you?" "Well it isn't anti Matilda!" Looking at a man's watch which now rested on her wrist, Kythera slipped on a suit jacket which matched her three piece suit and tie, complete with tophat. "I'm off." Tricksey followed her to the door peering out as she left. "She looks like her father in that outfit." Kythera had always wondered what went on at the meetings of the Dighton All Men's Club. In Sunday church Reverend Danforth had made an express invitation to the males in the congregation to attend the weekly meeting and hear an acclaimed speaker. Kythera was going to slip in and listen. Mr. Earthly was greeting people at the door. Kythera cringed because he always thought he was the center of the solar system. She waited a few minutes, when he left she slipped into the room. Kythera looked around. The room was a large rectangle with a stage at the front. It held a microphone and had heavy blue curtains at both sides. There were small 2 or 3 person tables setting randomly around the room. They were crowded together and would seat at least 75 or more people. She took one at the far right hand side. Situated close to the wall of windows. The dark drapes across the windows blended with her suit, shielding her from the heavy lights at the front of the room. She took out a small notebook and pencil, so she could take notes if she wanted. The tables were filling fast as men streamed through the entry way. A waiter stopped momentarily at her table and asked what her order would be? In anguish,she attempted to lower her voice and make it rougher as she ordered a Root Beer. The waiter looked at her a little strangely, then moved to another table to take other orders. Soon the waiter was back with a foaming mug of Root Beer, also a bowl of peanuts and pretzels. As he moved away he turned to look at her again. Kythera was beginning to relax a little as know one else seemed to be looking her way. Soon, Lord Richard John Bingham the Earl of Lucan, walked onto the stage and approached the microphone. We have a surprise entertainment. Miguel Corte and his monkey companion are here to tell you about an amazing trip. Let's give them a hand. The Earl turned to his right and spoke. "Miguel?" The room of men clapped loudly as an Indian chief dressed in soft deer hides and a trailing headdress walked onto the stage from behind the heavy blue curtains. His companion was a monkey dressed in a tuxedo and smoking a cigarette. Miguel leaned into the microphone." Um I want you to meet Andre. I just met Andre tonight and he agreed to answer some questions. I'm having some trouble with interpretation so, um, Neil Berriman has agreed to help us understand what Andre has to tell us. Um. Andre could you put out the cigarette it's a no smoking zone?" Andre fumbles in a pocket and pulls out a small ashtray. He places the cigarette in it and spits on it with a whole lot of drool produced by his floppy monkey lips. Then he grinned a big toothy monkey grin and says, "eh,eh, eh." then salutes the audience. Miguel asks, "Andre, what kind of cookies do you like? Andre jumps up and down waving his arms and screeching. "Mr. Berriman did you understand that?" Berriman stands up from a table in front of the stage and joins the two by the microphone. "Andre clearly wants to know, to what kind of cookies are you referring?" Miguel looks puzzled, "Are you referring to ingredients?" Andre started twirling around jumping up and down and making sounds that are assuredly laughter. Berriman says, "Um, he likes the kind that track the people who stop at his website." Miguel draws back in a startled way and says," Oh. well I was referring to the kind you eat." Andre screeches in monkey language, "Banana of course." Which actually everyone in the room understood. Well then Miguel returns to the conversation, what is your favorite beverage? Andre emphasizes, "Banana Daiquiri." Again Miguel is startled into silence. Mr Berriman intervenes, "You travel a lot Andre. Tell us where you recently traveled?" Andre becomes very still for a moment then he moves over to Berriman and whispers into his ear. Lord Lucan has set a large sketchbook on an easel on the stage near the trio. Berriman addresses Andre. "Yes! go ahead show us what you saw." As Andre sketches Berriman turns to the audience. "Andre recently took a cruise on the USS Cyclops to the Greater Antilles." Andre stepped aside giving a clear view of his sketch The sketch shows a saucer like vehicle floating on raging cresting high waves. He had also drawn storm clouds and high gusting winds in the atmosphere above the saucer. Men in the audience were jumping up from their seats. One man shouted, "where is the ship you were on now?" Andre was standing alone in the center of the stage. He just turned his hands upwards in front of his body and shrugged his shoulders. As shouts went up all over the room and most men were on their feet. Kythera got up and quietly slunk out the door. Entering her home, she stripped off the short wig she wore and shook out her long auburn hair. Tricksey flew into the room, " Your back. So, what was it like?" Let me get out of this garb and change into some nice feminine clothes. When she returned to the room she had stripped off the fake mustache, combed her long locks, and settled ino a soft frilly gown. "Well Let's hear it?" Tricksey was biting her nails. "You know how we always talk about how males and females don't understand each other?" "Yes?" "Well you wouldn't believe the kind of monkey business that goes on in an all male meeting." The End Word Count:1104 |
What's the Secret of the Bermuda Triangle? Unless you've never been near a drugstore paperback rack and don't surf cable channels late at night, you've undoubtedly heard of the Bermuda Triangle, aka the Devil's Triangle. It's an area of water between Florida, Puerto Rico, and Bermuda that, according to pop mythology, contains some sort of malevolent force that causes ships, planes, and people to disappear, never to be seen again. Some have put the blame on extraterrestrial invaders capturing humans for study, on inter-dimensional vortices, and even on oceanic flatulence (methane gas erupting from ocean sediments) REFERENCE:https://oceanservice.noaa.gov/facts/bermudatri.html https://www.history.com/topics/folklore/bermuda-triangle https://www.livescience.com/20645-ufo-sightings.html BERMUDA TRIANGLE "during very unstable weather conditions the down burst of cold air from aloft can hit the surface like a bomb, exploding outward like a giant squall line of wind and water. A similar event occurred to Concordia in 2010, off the coast of Brazil. Scientists are currently investigating whether "hexagonal" clouds may be the source of these up-to-170 mph (270 km/h) "air bombs" REFERENCE:BERMUDA TRIANGLE, WIKIPEDIA As recent as two weeks ago. An extremely loud burst of sound struck the area where I live. It was reported by many people on Facebook. Questions were raised about the occurrence. We have been experiencing some unstable weather, weather stations in the area were consulted. One explanation was given that it could have been a meteor entering the atmosphere somewhere close as the sound was reported in many small towns and rural places in the area. To me it sounded like a sonic boom. An object moving faster than the speed of sound causes pressure waves in the atmosphere moving quickly away from the source. I have read about the Bermuda Triangle for many years. It covers approximately, 500,000 square miles of ocean. It is traveled regularly, by ships and airplanes, that never experience anything out of the ordinary. The name for this area was first used by a writer, Vincent Gaddis, in an article written for Argosy Magazine. All over the world in 7 different oceans accidents happen to aircraft and ships. They do not happen more in the Bermuda Triangle, than anywhere else. The Bermuda Triangle is considered folklore; started by writers looking to earn money with fanciful stories. Only instead of the fictional fantasy angle; They built up a supposed angle of reality based on loss of aircraft and ships. Have we lost ships and aircraft in that area? Yes. If we don't have evidence about why and how they were lost it becomes a mystery. Suggested reality says the losses are due to weather conditions, human error, or unexplained natural causes. Finding them in the deep waters of the ocean takes special equipment and salvage. Where to look is always a problem? Someday all the mysteries the earth holds will be solved. As for Andre I've traveled with the mischief monkey. I thought it was always wise to monitor his intake of Banana daiquiri? WORD COUNT: 485-PROMPT 96 WORDS = 389 |
| Soon before 10 pm on 7 November 1974, Lady Lucan, hysterical and blood-covered, burst into The Plumbers Arms in Belgravia, London. She was screaming about the murder of her children’s nanny and that she had barely escaped with her life. What’s more, she named her estranged husband, Richard John Bingham, Earl of Lucan, as the attacker. What happened to the Earl of Bingham?  "Does a professional gambler commit suicide?" The 7th Earl of Lucan was estranged from his wife? Press releases state that he was engaged in a serious custody battle with his wife. I tried to find our just what problems broke up the marriage. It would give some clues to the whole mystery. I also tried to find out, who was the father of Sandra Rivett's child, Neil Berriman, who was given up for adoption. He was the same age as the 8th Earl of Lucan. Lady Lucan was aware of all the facts related to the Nanny's child. In an effort to learn who the father of Berriman was; I was reading a file from an English newspaper when windows came up and went blank with a notice that changes were being made. I could shut down the file and reopen it, I could continue to read. When I did that, the new file was changed. All references to Berriman were deleted. Focus was on the possible reasons for the Earl's disappearance. All other efforts to name the father of Sandra Rivett's son came up blank. Neil Berriman believes Lord John Bingham, the 7th Earl of Lucan is living. At the age of 85 he is said to be living in Australia. Even though Berriman approached English Police about his facts; they don't seem to have looked into the same case that was brought to them by the nannies son. Over the years, police have traced different sightings of Lord Lucan to no avail. Always the facts do not produce a living fugitive. Will the truth ever be known about the disappearance of lord Lucan. Time will tell. If enough pressure is brought to bear on the right people. After people who are involved have died and there are not so many legal possibilities to be gained. Someone may come forward with proof and bring closure to the legal file. Or not! references: Wikipedia for facts https://inews.co.uk/culture/television/lord-lucan- https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-7940419 word count:391 - prompt words 63=328 |
 In the 1950s, workers uncovered a huge 40-ton rock near Berkeley, Massachusetts with strange marks and symbols carved on it. It had first been described around 1680 and was studied many times by scholars in the centuries after, as per New England. Because it appears to have both pictorial inscriptions as well as some letter-like carvings, not everyone thinks it is the work of Native tribes in the area, but possibly the work of sailors from Portugal or even proof of Viking or Phoenician visitation. Andre says, "If anyone can decipher this message, it would have to be a writer." Share your theory, and solve the message in the marks and symbols. Convince your readers that your theory is the only factual solution. DIGHTON ROCK Edmund DeLabarre's translation: “Miguel Cortereal. 1511. By the Will of God, leader of the natives of India in this place” reference from: The State Library of Massachusetts. Rock originally found in the Taunton River, which leads to Hopes Bay. I'm siding with the Portuguese population, who live in the area. One fact leads me. Miguel Corte-real, Portuguese explorer, was last seen searching for his brother, whose ship disappeared in this area of the Atlantic. There are hazardous waters off the coast of Massachusetts. TheOcean Graveyard is estimated to hold 1000 wreaks buried in the sands of the ocean. Ships listed lost as early as the 1700s. Or maybe lost even earlier? The best pictures I saw of the Dighton Rock writings are shown in the Library of Massachusetts. The pictures of the writings in Wikipedia actually look like kids defaced the original writings. It makes sense to me, both of the brothers Corte may have lost their ships to weather or coastal manipulations when sailing to close to the land. Miguel would easily make an impression on local inhabitants with his writing, gunpowder, and other implements of the age and became their leader. If he lost his ship? It would be his desire if any other ships came his way to leave a message. My Theory: Perhaps the Brighton Rock holds more than one type of writing. Carved at more than one age. It could even be laying on it's side, when first discovered. Earlier pictograms could be confusing the message, if the rock also held a message from an earlier age? The rock could have been some kind of marker of the place, where salt water turned to fresh which is a biological fact about sea inlets fed by fresh water rivers. The biological animals living in such places are interesting to hunters. Reference: Wikipedia and The American Heritage Museum Word Count: 307 plus prompt 431 apondia#1781748 |
Prompt one of Mysterious 5 day challenge: Named after the island near where it was found by sponge divers 115 years ago, the Antikythera mechanism is an incredible machine of finely calibrated gears that appeared to be technology not available until at least the 10th century—but the mechanism was at least 2,000 years old. Then in 2016, it was found in Andre the Blog Monkey's luggage when he returned to Canada from a magical mystery ship vacation. Can anybody shed some light on this mysterious object?{{/b} Is Andre related to Curious George by any chance? I guess not they are both just often up to Monkey Shines. I have to say if this item was in Andre's luggage he must have visited the National Archaeological Museum at Athens. This is where the original parts and the more modern models of the Antikythera reside. The original Antikythera Mechanism is believed to have been built between 150 and 100 B.C. However, because the parts brought up from the sea at the time of the recovery were in such a difficult state of preservation it was not easy to figure out how the mechanism was used. Derek J de Solia Price, who lived from 1922-1983, was a Yale University Professor. He began to work on the mystery of the mechanism in 1951. He actually built a replica model during his lifetime, while he studied the original. Wikipedia has an article called Antikythera Mechanism, that contains a picture of Price with his model. If you click on the picture it gives other pictures, which show in depth, the original object taken from the sea and it explains many things in picture form about the object that Price built using his studies. The original mechanism is a calculator. Its' function is basically to use comparative science to reach conclusions about how the sun and planets revolved around the earth's two poles. Using data fed to the mechanism it predicted positions and motions of planets and moons. Also, it used gears and hand power. Most recently, because of new discoveries in 2021; about the ancient parts of this mechanism, by history scientist working for UCL. A new and more accurate model was built. Andre should return the object to the museum. Word Count = 382 this also contains the prompt at the beginning which makes the article 300. Reference: Wikipedia and UCL article /size} apondia#1781748 |
| December 10 = Human Rights Day--United Nations slogan--All Human, All Equal "Where, after all, do universal human rights begin? In small places, close to home -- so close and so small that they cannot be seen on any maps of the world. [...] Unless these rights have meaning there, they have little meaning anywhere. Without concerted citizen action to uphold them close to home, we shall look in vain for progress in the larger world." Eleanor Roosevelt Today's Date: January 7, 2022 This is being written specifically for Blogville. It is a question for any who will give opinionated answers. Do you think the United States of America needs to address better Human Rights. issues, that will affect the way the nation is run in a better way? At my home we watched a movie about treasure hunters in the UK. It was a humorous movie about two groups of treasure hunters trying to find their fortunes by hunting farm lands and fields with metal detectors. The two groups were in competition against each other and the resulting situations were entertaining to watch. Today, I read an article about real treasure hunters in Pennsylvania, that call themselves Finders Keepers. They think they found a treasure of gold bars lost during the civil war, that belongs to the USA treasury (worth approximately 50 million dollars). However, the FBI got involved and may have removed the treasure. You can read an article about this in "The Guardian" or other sources as well. Using "The Freedom of Information Act" as a guide Finders Keepers is attempting to get proof that the treasure was removed from where they found it,by the FBI, without the FBI giving them any knowledge about the find? The USA has always been quick in the news to notice and bring to bear light on the absence of Human Rights in other countries. Does the USA address other countries Human Rights issues without taking note of its' own problems? Do we as a nation need a forum to reveal unnoticed Human Rights issues, that maybe affecting the mental anguish being revealed in the circumstances of politics? What do you think? |
| Blog about your most memorable flight or other form of transportation. Was it your dream trip or nightmare journey? 1963 I flew to the Panama Canal Zone. Actually, my destination was a USA Air-force Base outside of Panama City. I was traveling with my 9-month old son. He sat in my lap the whole way. It was a two day journey. We flew two commercial flights to South Carolina. Stayed over night in an Air Force Base Hotel. Then on day 2 caught an early morning flight from there to Panama on a MAT plane.. On the commercial flights my son Ricky entertained me by watching out the window. We had window seats on both planes. He watched the clouds and patted the window when he saw the ground below us at times. Sometimes, whatever he was looking at excited him he would jump up and down and crow baby words. One of the problems with the trip was having to carry him, the diaper bag stuffed with everything a baby needs for couple weeks, and a small carry bag of my own with legal papers for traveling out of the country. Day 1 we arrived in Charleston South Carolina and were transported by taxi to the Air-force base hotel. We arrived to late to go to the base cafeteria for food so I dived into the baby's bag and ate animal crackers and water for dinner. Next morning early base taxi took us to our flight. It was actually really nice. Military Air Transport hauled cargo and supplies to different bases {at that time}. On a flight with other military families we sat on benches along both walls of the aircraft. There was actually a flight attendant. A young airman. He distributed sandwiches, which we had to eat before we disembarked, because of regulations, about bringing food into the country. No one mentioned baby food, which I carried in my diaper bag. So, when I disembarked it went with me. He also apologized for the seating arrangements explaining that it was necessary because the aircraft also hauled crates and other items between passenger flights. Planes moved on and off the bases quickly which made the changing of special passenger seats impractical for cargo changes. Between the commercial flight and the Mat flight. I probably appreciated the Mat flight more. I was with other wives and children going to Panama to live with their husbands and fathers. I remember one woman was traveling with 3 small active children. We talked about common experiences of travel and our children. It was something I remember but, I have lost some of the particulars, like how long the flight was at the time. I doubt these kinds of flights are exactly the same after all these years. When we were evacuated because of the riots I was upset at the short time of stay. We had anticipated being in Panama for at least a year. I liked the climate and the city. It was one of my life adventures. |
| When I think about my life so far, I would have to say the most frightened I've ever been was the day.. Panama Canal Crisis 1964 On January 9,1964, grievances between native Panamanians and “Zonians”, or Americans residing within the U.S.-controlled Canal Zone, boiled over into a series of anti-American riots which resulted in an evacuation of the U.S. embassy in Panama City, widespread looting, and dozens of deaths.Google I was living in an apartment building with my husband and 10 month old son. My husband was an airman and was called in morning early hours to return to the base. After he left my landlady appeared at our apartment door and told me the situation was dire. She hid us in a trailer on her property along with an army Sgt. and his wife. After a 3 day wait the violent crowds were suspicious of her, thinking, that she was hiding USA military. She was able to reach government Guadia National, who arrived with an armored car and escorted us out of the trailer into the armored car pointing machine guns at the crowd, that was deathly silent and very threatening. At the time, our automobile, the landlady's automobiles, and other cars from the neighborhood were removed from the property and burned in the street by screaming hostile crowds of young boys and men. I have written this before in my blog so it isn't new. It will always be one of the most startling memories of first hand violence I have. |
 “The ultimate weakness of violence is that it is a descending spiral, begetting the very thing it seeks to destroy. Instead of diminishing evil, it multiplies it. Through violence you may murder the liar, but you cannot murder the lie, nor establish the truth. Through violence you murder the hater, but you do not murder hate. In fact, violence merely increases hate...Returning violence for violence multiplies violence, adding deeper darkness to a night already devoid of stars. Darkness cannot drive out darkness; only light can do that. Hate cannot drive out hate; only love can do that.” Martin Luther King, Jr. In the 1960's I was living in an apartment on a street in the Panama Canal Zone. People were listening to a man, who was standing on a crate, screaming out directions to a crowd of young men. They were seizing residents automobiles, piling them like match sticks in heaps in the street and burning them. My land lady hid my 10 month old son and I. Literally saved out lives. On January 6 I watched coverage on TV as violence struck the Capitol Complex. As I watched the camera panning crowds and people I particularly noticed how many people seemed to be wandering aimlessly, as a more compressed group of people stormed the building. I saw officers of the law being beaten. I saw guns waved. I saw people enter the building and break up furniture. Many spectators were moving away, trying to leave the scene as violence escalated. Later coverage showed officials being escorted quickly from the building and provided assurance of their safety. I was horrified that such a large amount of people were willing to show this kind of violence and disrespect not only for the laws of the nation, also, for just ordinary civilian people, who were at the time trying to produce a calm atmosphere to achieve a simple legal change over in government. Even as this was occurring I realize, that many people just don't know what to believe, because for years an atmosphere of lies has produced disassociated thinking in this country. Where I live people spread lies as if it is a normal thing to do. People don't have or take time to dig into any situation and discover the truth about any particular subject that may arise in the news. When it comes to law making and bills being passed in any congress within the USA states, often the real meat of any bill is not explained in news to the public. We need open free public explanations and content of laws, that are being passed. News, that is not something that you have to dig on the internet or anywhere else to find the true content and reasons for the bills. The working public is busy. They work jobs, raise children, keep house, regularly dealing with every day schedules. Keeping informed of public needs and other news is not an easy thing. Small groups resorting to violence will not prove anything. Watching this brought back all the helpless feelings I felt in the Panama Canal Zone. Once violence takes over no one will be safe. ![Merit Badge in Every Moment Matters
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| I started a new me time habit to add to my many that I have. I read , crochet, play my guitar. Now, I am learning to play music on the 17-note Kimbala. I found this on my Facebook page in December. It was called a thumb piano. Real name of the instrument is Kimbala. I was intrigued so I scraped together the money and purchased one. I like the harp sounds I can make with it. Many years ago I took Music theory when I attended a Christian College. Now, it is coming in handy so, I can translate music into Kimbala notation. It is a good stress fighter. And, just plain enjoyment of sounds. Happy New Year to every one. |
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