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 |   A Journal to impart knowledge and facts |
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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. |
| Thursday, April 8 Plain of Jars Location: Xiangkhoang Plateau, Laos More than 2,000 large ancient stone jars are spread across a plateau in Central Laos. Some stand 10 feet tall and weigh several tons. Archaeologists estimate the jars are 2,000 years old, but their purpose is unclear. The most common theories are that they were used as funeral urns. What do you think these urns were for? Have a great day! Kindest Regards, Lilli  Today’s Laos market offers live chickens in round baskets. Other products also are offered in jars or baskets. ø =256/81. I used the symbol for engineering diameter of a circle=phi, because I can’t find the phi symbol on my journal. Anyway, phi mathematics dates back to Egypt at about 650 B.C. . Credit is given to a scribe named Ahnes. People have always been fascinated with circles. Ancient civilizations molded jars to carry food and water from clay sources. The round jar is easier to make than a rectangle or a square with corners. Maybe it lasts longer too. Many Laotians are Buddhist. They use cremation for burial. Buddha appeared on the scene sometime around 650 B.C. I think the use of stone jars as a place to honor the dead is a worthwhile thought. Cremation serves the purpose of controlling disease passed from bodies that are decomposing in a tropical climate. It appears, that the stone jars were carved from boulders laying on the side of a mountain where the quarry was. The jars were carved with metal tools by hand. An awesome kind of dedication to the work would have been needed. A good question is how were they moved to the different locations? No one has come forth with an answer yet. Except, most of them are round so may be people just gathered to roll them once they were finished. I came across a You Tube entry that says THE SECRET WAR waged from 1964 -1973 caused a lot of damage to at least Jar Site one. Also the amount of bombs dropped on this jar site still causes the site to be dangerous; although the site is regularly scoured for bombs. There are 85 different jar sites. Site one being the site of trenches used as cover for fighters made me wonder if this site was chosen in the hopes that ancestors interred would be helpful in the battles? Site one is on and near a mountain. The trenches circle the bottom of the mountain. Perhaps an ancient battle took place here at another time and the jars were used as cover for the warriors? I can see them each with whatever weapon stock was needed popping up and shooting arrows, throwing stones, or blowing darts from dart guns at the enemy all the while safe inside a granite or sandstone jar. As big as each jar is and as heavy as they are I can also imagine people using them as places to pray or prisons for the manic part of the society. Laos has a tropical climate. The coolness of rock could also indicate an ability to store grains or food sources and keep possessions safe from jungle creatures. In any event, I would have to believe the scientists who put forth a theory of cremation were possibly accurate because they examined the site in person. The lids are extremely heavy and have pictures on the top. Scientist believe they are monuments to the interred dead. WORD COUNT = 578 THE END |
| The Flannan Isles Lighthouse Disappearances In 1900, three keepers of the Flannan Isles Lighthouse off the west coast of Scotland disappeared under the strangest of circumstances. The lighthouse was manned by a three-person team (Thomas Marshall, James Ducat, and Donald MacArthur), with a fourth man rotating in from shore. On Boxing Day (December 26) of 1900, the relief keeper arrived to find none of the lighthouse keepers present. The only sign that anything was amiss was an overturned chair near the kitchen table. No bodies were ever found, which has led to endless speculation. Theories range from drownings to abduction by foreign spies, a ghost ship, or a giant sea monster. Whatever happened back in December 1900 at the Flannan Isles Lighthouse, we may never know. So, tell us what happened to the lighthouse keepers!  EILEAN MOR AND FLANNAN LIGHTHOUSE by Apondia I say, take your jacket if your going to help us secure the restocking supplies. No man. One of us needs to stay with the light. It’s my turn. I’ll just go down to see the two of you are able to stabilize the supplies, then I’ll come right back. Don’t need the jacket for a quick look see. I can get dinner if you’re out very long. A third voice broke into the conversation. Odd wind that. Water breaking against the shore is high and heavy. Let’s get this done fast so, we can get back into safety in the house just in case there is a storm brewing out to sea. When they arrived outside, one of the men shaded his eyes and stared out to sea. “I don’t like the air. It feels heavy. Another replied, Yeah, where are the birds? Come on. Just get the job done. Nothin out here to see but rocks and ocean man. Out to sea there was a lengthening wave rushing with speed across the deep sea. Rushing, rushing, faster and faster toward Eilean Mor. The cave under the Island filling, heavy with water. A roaring sound like nothing the men ever experienced, hit the shore. At this point the shore was a graduated depth from the sea bottom to the Island surface. The wave shortened suddenly as it hit the shore. The huge volume of water being pushed by the speeding wave had no where to go but up, up into the air.The men turned each one looking up as the water volume came crashing down with a force and volume not experienced on Eilean Mor often. The water pulled backwards dragging the three light house attendants with it. Their listless bodies already lifeless from the devastating impact of tons of sea water filled with unexpected sea creatures, sand, and sea bottom debris. (SPEED = FREQUENCY * WAVELENGTH) = TSUNAMI Far out on the water a vessel hovered over the sea. It was a large flat looking oval. The force of it hovering over the water was causing wave frequencies to be abnormal. Light shone out from large round openings in its’ circular side. Suddenly, as quickly as it had arrived in the vicinity of Eilean Mor, a short blast of light and the vessel winked out. It simply was not there any more. It left behind the mystery of Flannan Isles lighthouse. WORD COUNT BY THE JOURNAL 7 = 406 apondia#1781748 |
| Prompt: Tuesday, April 6 Ghost Ship: The Mary Celeste On December 4, 1872, a British-American ship called “the Mary Celeste” was found empty and adrift in the Atlantic. It was found to be seaworthy and with its cargo fully intact, except for a lifeboat, which it appeared had been boarded in an orderly fashion. But why? We may never know because no one on board was ever heard from again. In November 1872, the Mary Celeste set sail from New York bound for Genoa, Italy. She was manned by Captain Benjamin Briggs and seven crew members, including Briggs’ wife and their 2-year-old daughter. Supplies on board were ample enough for six months, and luxurious—including a sewing machine and an upright piano. Commentators generally agree that to precipitate the abandonment of a seaworthy ship, some extraordinary and alarming circumstance must have arisen. However, the last entry on the ship’s daily log reveals nothing unusual, and inside the ship, all appeared to be in order. Theories over the years have included mutiny, pirate attack, and an assault by a giant octopus or sea monster. In recent years, scientists have posed the theory that fumes from alcohol on board caused an explosion that, as a result of a scientific anomaly, did not leave behind signs of burning—but was terrifying enough that Briggs ordered everyone into the lifeboat. Give us your opinion of what happened. Maybe you were even there?! The Marie Celeste, a theory by Apondia The Marie Celeste was more than a ghost ship. It’s fate was sealed from the first time the sails filled with wind. The brigantine, Amazon, a ship with two masts, 12 oars to a side, swift and easily maneuvered, was built by Joshua Davis. It was built on Spencer’s Island, Nova Scotia She was called the Amazon. It was a grand sight. Buoyant, on the water, she floated in a grand show. As the wind filled her sails every one cheered to see her at the launching, May 18, 1861. A lot of genuine love of sailing and thought was put into this lovely maiden voyage. The sweet brigantine was 99.3 feet long, 25.5 feet wide, and 11.7 feet deep from the deck down. She boasted a tonnage of 198.42 gross weight. With this makeup she could fairly fly over the seas in a steady wind. Keep these facts in mind as the story unfolds. The first captain took her out to fill her hold with a cargo early June, 1861 While overseeing the loading of the cargo the captain became seriously ill. I was startled to see the beauty sailing so quickly back into her home port since I knew she was destined for England once she was loaded. The Captain died on June 19, several days after the Amazon made port. A new Captain was quickly chosen and the ship set out for England, only to become entangled in fishing equipment as she sailed through East Port, Maine. Once freed of the entanglement, Amazon continued without problems to England. We received news at our port, that she hit and sank a brig somewhere in the English channel. I began to worry that some evil spirit was targeting this lithe water traveler. I also worried because crews of a ship that could not shake bad luck were exceptionally difficult to find. Although Amazon did have some good voyages it was soon run aground in Grace Bay, Nova Scotia. Because of being run aground in the Bay, it was designated a salvage ship. Then, it was sold to an American Owner. I hoped to find out a new port would give it a new start on the high seas. Amazon’s new port registry was New York and Boston. I had a sailor friend working ships out of the New York port. I sent him a telegraph to be on the look out for news of the Amazon. I wanted to keep up with her story. Even then, I think I had a premonition of what the ships history would turn out to be. It wasn’t long, when I heard, about the brigantine Amazon, that had been driven onto the shore by a Cape Briton Island storm. I became suspicious of the whole affair when a rumor spread through shipyards, that the newest owners abandoned the ship as a total loss and collected the insurance money. Such an awful loss for a seaworthy vessel in it’s youngest years. I think I still found hope for her when on October 15, of that year Alexander McBean took the ship as a derelict. After that recovery, she was sold twice and landed back in the hands of an American Corporation of ship owners. In what appeared to be an effort to change her history and persuade crews to board her, they changed her name. In 1869 Amazon became The Marie Celeste and was refitted. It was a massive outlay of $10,000 that was spent to increase her tonnage to 298.28, and give her a second deck. The port of registry was now permanently New York. At least it was in a place where I could get news of her as she moved about. I was pretty sure the refitting was not to her advantage. After this there was not any adverse news or rumor so I’m assuming the Mary Celeste had some proper voyages, although I would not know her cargo or destinations. The next I heard of the ship was in 1872. A well-known Captain, Benjamin Briggs, had taken her out with competent first and second mates and a crew of German sailors. Rumor says, she was found with her masts up, some sails furled properly, some sails catching the wind and the rudder held properly in place. The cargo of denatured alcohol and most possessions of the captain and others were also not touched. However, the possessions of two sailors presumed on board were missing. The life boat also was gone. Lots of theories abound. Personally, I think the deck was altered to make her a slave ship. Sometime after the Mary Celeste altered her course to pick up a load of slaves, there was a problem on board. Perhaps someone got into the alcohol, which was popular idea at the time but, being denatured it would only have caused sickness or death in the person or persons who drank it. Or, there was a load of slaves aboard headed for Europe. They got loose, revolted, and threw everyone overboard to the sharks and escaped in the life boat. Pirates were loose on the open seas; although they often took the ship and killed the crews who did not join them. Really, the second deck and refitting make me believe in the slave theory. Slave ships often were refitted with more decks to make room for more bodies. Many slaves died in route because of poor treatment and were just thrown overboard as fish food. A revolt of black warriors was not a new scene in shipyards. Now the ship was sold several more times. She traveled is seas near the West Indies. Which is another thought that leads to slave trading and cargo that did not, in the end, have much value. Her registered ports changed often and without significance. Rumor followed her. Another one of her Captains died suddenly of serious illness. Maybe it was yellow fever, since Europeans often caught this from African travels. In 1885 a group of shippers in Boston shipyard loaded her with worthless cargo. The Captain, Gilman C. Parks set out for Port Au Prince. He deliberately ran the Marie Celeste onto a coral reef as they approached the Port of Haiti, on January 3,1885. She was never recovered, although pieces of the ship were found, after most of the ship had rotted away. Insurance money was claimed but, the Captain who schemed it was jailed for fraud. I’m writing this now to inform a friend about the sad ending of a gallant ship. We were there to see her launch and cheered with the rest of the crowd. I still see, in my mind, the jaunty way she rode the sea as her sails first unfurled and took the wind. WORD COUNT BY THE JOURNAL 7 = 1926 REFERENCE: WIKIPEDIA - THE MARIE CELESTE apondia#1781748 |
| Instantaneous pressure changes can cause severe damage to trees, buildings and human beings.Prompt for Monday, April 5 The Crooked Forest Location: West Pomerania, Poland This Polish forest lives up to its name, with hundreds of peculiar pine trees. Several hundred pine trees were planted there in the 1930s and grew with an almost 90-degree bend at their base, making them look like fishing hooks. Some believe that a technique or human tool was actually used to make the trees curve this way, while others speculate that a winter snowstorm or some other damage could have given this fascinating forest its interesting shape. Give us your own creative reason why the trees are this way. The Crooked Forest Saturday evening, someone on the road, where I live, set off a percussion bomb. Houses in the area felt the repercussions of the compacted air waves. How close you live to the actual place the bomb is set off depends on how much the trees, ground and house might shake. Instantaneous pressure changes can cause severe damage to trees, buildings and human beings. When I saw the picture of the Crooked Forest I immediately wondered if this was the result of some percussion airwaves caused by bombing in 1945 as the Russians advanced on East Prussia. 1940”s Greifenhagin, 15° 15' N / 14° 14' E was a thriving city. It had a local court, Catholic Parish, Protestant church, and a synagogue. Small factories employed inhabitants. The city was located near the river Odra on the German border. The population claimed river water rights for the population. In 1945 the city was renamed Grefino. Pine is used for planking in boats. The wood has a uniform texture. It resists warping and swelling. The textured wood also resists shrinkage. Another use for pine is in furniture production. Pine is easily grown and is a renewable resource. The wood makes a strong low cost furniture, chairs, pews for churches, tables, and other types of useful products. It paints well. The knots in the pine make a scenic rustic product, that is appealing to the eye as well a useful in a home. Guess what? The crooked forests are pine trees. Someone else put forth the following theory. A group of wood workers or tree farmers bent the very young trees into this form for a specific use in a wood workers culture. By growing and forming the trees for their own use it had an economical use. There are perhaps 400 crooked trees in the Crooked Forest. This same forest also has trees that are not bent into this form. Both straight and crooked trees are approximately the same age. This is an indication of a tree plantation. Rumors of extreme cruelty proceeded the advancing Russian Armies. The Germans who were suppose to be organizing civilian movement away from the progressing war front procrastinated. Civilians fled into Germany without any organization. Children in families died from starvation and actually froze to death. Many civilians were shot by Germans or died from exposure as they fled. Perhaps an army battalion bent the young trees over to use as seats while they took a break from destroying the area. In any event, the countryside left a mystery. The trees are a silent scene that causes curiosity in tourists, who visit the area. Word count - approximately 446 (counted by the Journal 7) |
Congratulations on making it to the last day of the competition! What was your favorite prompt from the last month? What was the most rewarding aspect of participating in the competition?  It is ironic that I made it to the last day of the official round for this month. On the 26th we started experiencing high winds. The next two days were high winds mixed with rain. One day we had our electricity flashing on and off. It is impossible to work on the computer, although some of the time I did get WIFI on my kindle and phone. Weather is calmer now temps are going to raise today, so who knows how long it will stay calm. I liked the how to about showing tourist around. It was interesting to think about the type of places someone as a tourist might like to see. My reward of being in this months competition is just the personal satisfaction I received by making it as long as I did in the month, before my computer went out for another 3 days. I am experiencing a lot of stress right now. Although, spring is uplifting. Yesterday, I took the dogs out. It was cold but fairly dry. We played fetch in the back field for a time then took our customary walk. Today the computer and WIFI are back so normal definitely appeals to me. Weather really isn't unusual for this time of year. Easter is upon us. ![Merit Badge in Celebration
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What’s the best or worst practical joke that you’ve played on someone or that was played on you?  Definition from Oxford dictionary by way of Google:"a trick played on someone in order to make them look foolish and to amuse others." I don't play practical jokes on people or animals. I don't think I even approve of such things. It's like bullying, which can be done to any generation or species. Have you ever watched "America's Funniest Videos"? I have watched this many times. And I have laughed at some of the videos. Sometimes though, some of the things people do to each other look painful and humiliating. So, some of the videos I don't laugh at and I often wonder how serious the injuries are, that you see on this show. Spring is Sprung. Happy Spring to everyone. Now they are forecasting snow again??? |
Write about some of your most memorable vacations. Where did you go? Who were you with? What was your favorite part of the trip?  We did not take very many vacations. They had several Christian gatherings in a field within driving distance from us. Week long camping festivals. My family went two different years. There were tents set up where biblical subjects were preached or Christian musicians played and led singing. You were given programs and could chose what you wished to attend. My family went with the people from our church. At one time we had a large family sized tent. Meals were prepared at certain specified times. It was spiritually enlightening. After a couple years the situation collapsed and the meetings were not held any more. Years later I read an old article on the internet that said, the group that was responsible for holding the meetings were not able to pay bills run up as a result of so many people who attended. They went bankrupt and so did not hold any more gatherings. Do to our financial instability we stayed at home on a regular basis. For some years I kept a lot of horses. It meant someone had to be home for chores. Later, when the horses were sold, we kept chickens, dairy goats, and sheep. Still a need to stay at home year round to take care of livestock. I always tried to help the kids find things to keep them busy. I was not as good at it as I now wish, I had been better. Trouble is now I am more educated and more capable of understanding things I never even thought about back then. People can't go back. We can only hope life is better for the generations going forward. MY children had more than I had as a child. My grandchildren have more than my children in learning and technology. That seems like it is the way it should be. |
What do you do to improve your mood when you are sad? If you are frustrated or angry, what is your secret to feeling better?  Scripture and my spiritual faith in the Living God is my go to place. Spiritual music helps. I learned from my mother who died as I was turning six years old "Now I lay me down to sleep I Pray the Lord my Soul to Keep, If I should die before I wake ,I pray the Lord my Soul to take." People isolated me and tried to teach me things I should not know. I had no protection from their evil ideas. Still, in all the problems other people have heaped on me I continue to do my daily work. I continue to see that physical death is not the end and daily habits matter. Covid shows us that just getting up and moving on, each day has a reward to it. Are we bored sure. As elderly people are we cast off to make room for younger people. Yep. But, our lives matter even to those who cannot see it. Study ecology. Study the key species. If the key species dies out it takes others with it. Scripture tells us; what the elders know and pass down matters. Otherwise, the young have to travel the exact same path to find the exact same knowledge. Look at space. The universe is expanding at a spontaneous rate. God continues to create. God rested on the seventh day. God did not quit creating. Humans are going to space and beyond. One of the greatest interests to me is the cooperation between nations as they work toward colonizing new planets. Interesting new thoughts, new technology, new knowledge. Look for it. ![Merit Badge in Risk Taker
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Write about your earliest memory. Try to describe it in as much detail as possible.  I have lots of early memories. Most of them center around the house I lived in when I was one to three years old. Maybe older I'm not sure. I would not begin to know which memory was the earliest. Each memory seems to center around something that was happening at the time. And, each memory has my Mom in it. One day, I asked my dad about the floor plan of that house. He was surprised I remembered it. I guess he built it with my Grandfather. I drew what I remembered on a piece of paper and he corrected it. I drew boxes of each room. Dad drew a rectangle and showed me where the partitions were. Now, I have a complete idea of what the floor plan of that house looked like. I also remember looking out windows on each side of the house. I remember that the back of the house had a cleared area not very wide and then wild grasses and brush, My brother was warned about rattle snakes at the back of the house? I wonder if he remembers that? From the living room I could see what seems to me a long cleared area, Then, a road, and across the road, the house my aunt and her children lived in. To the left of my view of the front yard was a house my grandparents lived in. To the right of my view was a lot of land. I could see another small house down the road on the same side as my aunts house. Understand these views are from a very small child. Who knows if a lot of land was 20 feet, an acre or 10 acres? I remember sand but, not a lost of lawn grass. It was Florida. I remember a vehicle but not a driveway. Memories from this long ago are interesting. Like the house drawing I wonder what is omitted? |
| What are your favorite movie genres? Share some recommendations with your readers! {e:tulipY) I like Detective stories, sometimes chick flicks, outer space drama, drama or some sorts. I will watch lots of different kinds of movies as long as they are not too sexual. Documentaries can be entertaining as well. However, About 2 years ago I had to choose in my budget between Netflix and Prime. Prime won because I shop a lot on line and it was helpful to my budget. During 2020, I began to not watch a lot of TV. I do not like reruns. and the news became to irritating to watch regular. I have lost touch with what movies may have come out in the last two years. Because I have Prime I can still get movies on my kindle. For a space of months this winter our WiFi would not download Prime movies. It is now back to doing proper downloads so I am watching movies from Prime on occasion. I could only recommend older movies at this point. Star Wars is a fun movie even the second time around. |
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