Kick Up Your Heels

Someday I may sit down and compile a list of the world's weirdest festivals,but today is not that day. While most festivals may seem obscure,if you look hard enough you can usually find other events devoted to the same thing,not so with the Gumboot Day. Gumboot Day occurs the Tuesday after Easter in Taihape,New Zealand. The aim of the festival is to break the world record for the longest gumboot throw. It also includes a number of other competitions such as best dressed gumboot,shoot the loop with gumboots,gumboot art,dog barking,lawnmower races,baa black sheep racing,along with typical food and craft offerings. In case you aren't familiar with what a gumboot is,it is what we call a rubber boot or wader in the U.S. It was a new on to me and we all know how I love the unusual!

Slime Time

The regular reader among us perhaps will recall a blog I posted about a new beauty treatment that consisted of having your face lit on fire. Today's offering is another type of facial fad...snail guts and slime. It started when Chilean farmers who were raising snails for the French food market noticed smoother skin after handling the snails. The snails secrete glycolic acid and elastin to protect their own skin from cuts,bacteria and UV rays. It is a 100% pure and natural product to replace chemical skin creams,of course this isn't the first odd item to be used in beauty products,there have been chicken bone marrow moisturizers,bull semen shampoo,and bird feces spa treatments to name a few. There are various brands of snail gel available or for those of you brave? (read crazy) enough for the real thing you can get live snails put on your face in a spa treatment...I'll pass!

Odder and Odder

There has been talk and theories concerning life on other planets and alien visitations to our planet for more years than one could count. Some of the theories even concern landmarks like The Pyramids,Easter Island and Stonehenge,but the latest thing I read sounds pretty out there...at least to me.
Two people founded an organization called Ammach (Anomalous Mind Management Abductee Contactee Helpline) they give support and counselling to people who believe they have had extra-terrestrial contact. Ammach was set up in 2011 after an UFO conference. Among the services offered are meetings,workshops and the opportunity for people to have their encounter tales videoed. The want to get information out so people will know it is okay to come forward. They employ various devices to confirm alien contact,metal detectors,a stud finder to locate implants,magnetic field meters and a UV mineral lamp which shows residues on the skin. If you have been to another dimension it leaves a signature on your skin's atoms that can be seen under UV light. The founders believe the aliens are a malevolent force and we are under threat of termination as a species.
Who knows? I would like to say stranger things have happened,but they usually happen in books!

Extremes

Today for the runners among us,in case you have yet to hear,there is a new game afoot! It is called "Run For Your Lives" and is a 5 K run the incorporates mazes,mud,various obstacles and zombies. The zombies can steal health flags from you until you have none left,you don't then become a zombie yourself  you are just out of the "running". I figured this to be the perfect sport for the adrenaline junkies who just don't get the same charge out of things they used to. When I first heard about it I though it was a crazy idea,but after a bit of consideration and remembering how long the "Running of the Bulls" has been going on,I came to the conclusion that it was only semi-crazy!

Yuck!

No sooner than I post a blog about snack companies all making the same type of snacks in the name of being different than I found a snack (candy actually) that is maybe too far in the different direction. Lollyphile introduced a breast milk flavored lollipop earlier this year,they aren't really made from breast milk but I still can't imagine that being a savory flavor. The owner got the idea for the new flavor from watching the babies of his friends go from screaming and furious to contented and docile,and thought the flavor should be available to everyone. Mother's breast milk was used to identify the flavor but the finished product is vegan. Other flavors produced by Lollyphile include: Sriracha (fiery Asian ketchup),Strawberry Basil Mojito,Strawberry-Banana Daiquiri,Wasabi-Ginger,White Russian,Absinthe,Amaretto,Bourbon,Chai Tea,Dreamsicle,Green Tea,Habanero Tequila, Horchata,Lavender,Maple-Bacon,Pan Galactic Gargle Blaster,Party Girl (not that! birthday cake icing) Pomegranate-Tangerine and Salty Dog. What can I say? If your're looking for something different Lollyphile seems to have you covered!

Is Nothing Sacred?

Another old time snack has been dragged out of its comfortable niche and made into a "power snack" with an assortment of flavors. Once known as Cracker Jack, it has been made into Cracker Jack'D. The new brand name was launched earlier this year with three core varieties of "snacks with impact"-Hearty Mix,Intense Mix and Sweet and Savory Clusters. Some of the new flavors include Cracker Jack 'D Power Bites (includes caffeine) Cocoa Java,Vanilla Mocha,Hearty Mix types are Cheddar BBQ and one example of Intense Mix is Spicy Pizzeria. It occurs to me that by all manufacturers jumping on the same bandwagon to have unique flavored snacks they are only succeeding in making snacks that are more alike. They are even having a cross country tour "Splash Party" to introduce the new concoctions. As the band Queen so aptly put it..."Another One Bites the Dust".

Hard Headed

A friend of mine called to tell me her son had been in an accident on the fishing boat he was working on and had been flown from the boat to a Portland hospital. Several years ago her youngest son was also in a serious accident involving a head injury and now both sons have plates in their heads as a result. She was joking that it was the second time their hard Finnish/Yugoslavian heads had saved their lives. She also mentioned that the surgeon had stated he had trouble sawing into her son's skull,she in turn told him that he should have used the type of saw they use for Native Americans as their skulls are more dense. This skull density matter made me curious why that would be so. What I found doesn't support what she presented,but it is interesting none the less. Number one for skull density is the Aborigine,Africans are a close second followed by Caucasians with Asians having the lowest density. There was no concrete reason for these statistics stated,but I wondered if exposure to sunlight had played a part? There were no statistics on skull density for Native Americans,so I'm still in the dark about that.

Too Weird for Me

The average human dream only lasts 2 to 3 seconds (I find this hard to believe when I have very vivid dreams that it doesn't seem possible they could contain the amount of information I remember in that time frame). Also your brain is more active and thinks more at night,just imagine what you could accomplish if you had a way of reversing the process! The average person has at least seven dreams a night. To sum up what I have gathered from these few facts,the world would be a more intelligent,productive place if people could sleep more and harness those hours to take care of their business the next day? Or maybe that is the idea behind the thought of making your dreams come true? No,that thought doesn't make me any happier as some of my dreams are too weird to want them to become reality! Make what you will of it,just thought I would throw it out there to give you something to think about.

Vanity or Insanity?

I know that some men are nearly as vain as women when it comes to their grooming,but even at that the lengths they are going to came as a surprise to me. The craze is largely due to jokes George Clooney repeatedly made about instead of his eyes he gets the skin on his testicles ironed out. The procedure is known by several phrases,tightening the tackle,ball ironing,going nuts, and laser polishing the crown jewels,but the more subtle name for the procedure is the "Male Laser Lift". The process includes removing hair, evening out skin tone and discoloration,removing skin tags and overall tightening of the skin. It takes from 45 minutes to over an hour and the results last up to 4 weeks. The cost varies from place to place but a general figure is $575. Is it just me having a difficult time imagining a man having this done in that particular area,or have I finally reached the "old fogy" status? Oh,and if you think I am going to include before and after pictures you are clearly "going nuts"!

A Better Idea

I may be way behind on this as Kiva.org was founded in 2005,nonetheless I just read about it and thought it was a great idea. Instead of sending mass quantities of items or food to countries in need (as is our governments approach) and those items either being hijacked before they get to the intended people,or the items being of no use to the recipients,Kiva (a nonprofit organization ) allows people to lend money via the internet to people in developing countries through its field partners. Kiva includes stories of the people who need the loans and what they need them for so the lenders can connect with the entrepreneurs on a human level. Kiva doesn't collect any interest on the loans and is supported only by grants,loans and donations. Kiva's mission is "To connect people through lending to alleviate poverty." Kiva emphasizes supporting women because in many developing countries women suffer the most from poverty because whatever resources are available are often given to the male family members. The payback rate on the loans is 99% and it is my understanding that you can help for as little as $25,which you can either collect when the loan is repaid or loan it out again. It seems to me that this is a more sensible approach than money ending up building a plush home for a leader or being otherwise misspent the way you hear of so often.

You Too Can Be Royalty!

If you have always longed to be King or Queen it may be easier than you think...that is if you don't mind being Hobo Royalty. To be an eligible candidate for King you must be currently riding the rails or have ridden them for at least 5 years,attended the Hobo Convention (Britt,Iowa) at least 3 times,be screened by a committee of former Kings and not have been King in the last 3 years. Along with that a gift of gab and campaign signs are helpful. Queens have an easier time in the selection process,candidates for Queen must have attended the Hobo Convention 3 times and actively contribute to the betterment of the hobo community,they do not have to ride the rails and are not screened. If you qualify for either position you have to sign up before the end of the second night of the convention. Along with a parade there are several other events and the candidates all give 30 second speeches,then the big moment comes when the King and Queen are chosen by the people of Britt and the hobos according the who receives the loudest applause. Good luck to all who are interested!

Band/Bands

Unlike the title of yesterday's blog band doesn't really vary much in its meaning,which in short is to unite (other than referring to frequency). The reason for today's blog is twofold,one is I just finished reading and listening to "Ghost Brothers of Darkland County" (a musical by Stephen King and John Mellencamp) and was amazed by the talent that put it together and performed it. The second reason is I mentioned to a friend a few days back that Stephen King and Dave Barry were in a band together along with other authors and I am pretty sure she thought I was joking. They called themselves "The Rock Bottom Remainders" which is a self mocking name they took from a publishing term,remaindered book,meaning the unsold copies that are sold at reduced prices. The band members included Dave Barry,Stephen King,Amy Tan,Maya Angelou,Ridley Pearson,Barbara Kingsolver,MattGroening,Greg Iles and several others. They were founded in 1992 and played several charities. They also played at the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame opening in 1995. They performed for the last time August 6,2012 on The Late Late Show with Craig Ferguson on which both Stephen King and Dave Barry were guests. You might think it is unfair for people to have so much and varied talent,but I think it is more about a persons desire to achieve a goal and then pursuing it.

Pads

For a three letter word pad has many meanings and can be used as a noun or a verb,though I've never cared for it as a verb and don't use it to refer to my own walking movement. As a noun it can refer to a cushion,something to write on,living quarters,the underpart of the foot of some animals and a broad floating leaf. Today let's turn our attention to the broad flat leaf. The average Victoria Giant Water Lily is 6 feet across with the largest around 10 feet and each lily can have 10 pads at a time taking up a total of 30 feet. The chance of having seen one in a backyard pond are pretty slim. The leaves unfurl about 2 feet a day and once they are fully open they can support a small man. I had never seen anything like these pads and figured a lot of other people had been missing out as well...so here they are in all their hugeness!

What's in a Name?

A few days ago I read how the candy Milk Duds got their name,and strange as it may sound,I feel kind of bad about it. When they decided to make Milk Duds the idea was for them to be round balls that would be easy to enjoy,but after many attempts and alterations it became apparent that it couldn't be done. The results were misshapen blobs instead of a symmetrical ball. They still thought it was a tasty and handy treat and began marketing it as Milk Duds as the original idea of being round had been a dud,or loser. Several candies have interesting stories behind how they acquired their names. The Snickers bar was named after the favorite horse of the Mars family. The Kit Kat bar goes back to the 18th century when mutton pies known as Kit-Kat were served at the political Kit-Kat club in London. The Baby Ruth bar (think of the pool scene in Caddy Shack!) has perhaps the most sorted story concerning its name. The manufacturer claimed it was named after the first born daughter of President Grover Cleveland. It is a doubtful story though as Ruth Cleveland died in 1904 and Baby Ruth wasn't introduced until 1920. The 2nd theory was it was named for baseball's Babe Ruth,but to avoid paying him royalties they called it a Baby Ruth. I thought it would be fun to give you something to ponder next time you decided to indulge in your favorite treat!

Piercing Eyes

Forgive me for the terrible pun,but I couldn't help myself. Some of you may recall awhile back I posted a blog about a woman (Elaine Davidson) being the most pierced person in the world (7,000 at last count...don't ask me how or where they all fit). Today's blog is about the most pierced man,Rolf Buchholz of Germany. He has a total of 453 studs and rings all over his body. Rolf is a 52 year old computer expert who fell in love with piercing around 13 years ago. He has 94 in and around his lips,25 in his eyebrows,8 in his nose and 278 in his genital area,and naturally to complete the ensemble he sports a full body suit of tattoos. I am a big fan of live and let live,but I can't help but wonder how a person would wash themselves and get clean around all that metal unless they were to take it all out every time and that doesn't seem like it would be practical. Does anyone know the mechanics of that?

Symbolic of??

The foods that are typically thought of after the phrase "As American as..." aren't really American inventions,but more accurately adoptions. Apple pie is much older than our country. Dutch apple pies with latticed crusts have been around since the 1500s but not in this country. The first apple seeds arrived in the future U.S. in 1625. The phrase "As American as apple pie"was in use by the 1860s. A better choice for an American pie would be Key lime pie.
That brings us to the hot dog which is a descendant of the sausage called the frankfurter which originated in Frankfurt,Germany. The naming of the hot dog did occur in America (New Jersey 1892) so in that respect it is somewhat American.

Vices

Yes,we all have our vices and I don't know why I wasted everyone's time yesterday disclosing more reasons to put away the diet soda habit,as the people who use it are very dedicated to their vice. The good news is music can help some of your ills,not a cure of course but right up there in the feel good department. Music has been found to stimulate parts of the brain,studies have demonstrated that music enhances the memory of Alzheimer's and dementia patients. Music has also been found to reduce stress,aid relaxation and alleviate depression. So..."if music be the food of love,play on"...or "Keep on Rockin in the Free World"!

Depressed?

By now most of you are probably sick of me harping on diet sodas,but what can I say? the stuff has no food value and your body has no idea what to do with the cocktail of chemicals they contain,and if you ask me the taste is less than pleasant. In a recent study 263,900 U.S. adults ages 50-71  answered questions about their beverage consumption ,around 10 years later the same people were asked if they had been diagnosed with depression. People who regularly drank 4 or more cans of soda were 30% more likely to be depressed than non soda drinkers. The diet soda drinkers were more at risk 31 % compared to 22% risk for regular soda drinkers. Diet fruit drinks scored 51% more likely to be depressed compared to those who did not drink diet fruit drinks. By contrast people who drank 4 or more cups of coffee a day were 10% less likely to have been diagnosed with depression. This study only established an association and didn't determine that the diet drinks caused the depression. Still,it seems to me with all the bad marks for diet drinks isn't there something you would feel better about drinking?

Trivia Trivia

Today's offering is a little something I came across and immediately wondered why this name was not included in the Harry Potter books. Trivia was the Roman goddess of sorcery and witchcraft. She haunted crossroads and graveyards as she wandered through the night and was seen only by dogs who barked at her approach (so that's what the dogs bark at in the night!). She was an underworld goddess known as the Queen of Ghosts. Trivia was represented as having three female bodies,all young and beautiful and united together. (I am not sure how they know what she looked like if only dogs could see her) Another thing as long as I am on the subject of goddesses and gods is that when animal sacrifices were made to the various gods and goddesses the sacrifice had to be the corresponding sex to the god or goddess to who it was offered male for a god and female for a goddess.

Freeze Face

When I was growing up mothers used to caution their children that if they kept making ugly faces their faces would freeze with that look on it for the rest of their life. It doesn't seem like any of us kids took the threat too seriously as it never stopped the activity for long. Did you ever wonder where mothers got this idea? In the early days of the automobile (1900s) driving was man's work and doctors cautioned that women at speeds of 15-20 miles an hour would experience acute mental suffering,nervous excitement and circulatory disturbances. It was also a worry that women riding in open air cars would suffer automobile face, a hypothetical condition in which the wind would blow women's mouths into permanent gapes.
Needless to say these theories weren't popular with women and were cutting the auto sales market in half. The car company Maxwell solved the dilemma by getting a 22 year old woman and 3 companions to drive from Manhattan to San Francisco. The rest as they say,is history.

Lost Art?

I am still a little dumbfounded by the thought of Tiedang Gong or Iron Crotch Kung Fu. From what I gathered it can either be the practice of a martial art (usually performed by monks) involving being kicked in the privates or some use their penis to lift or pull heavy items. I first read about this in a Mark Twain book "Following the Equator" where a person reportedly lifted 350 lbs. with his genitals. Another instance claimed a monk used his penis to pull a heavy stone roller. I imagine at this point you are all wondering why? The answer depends on who is asked,some claim it not only makes a man better able to protect himself,but also improves his sexual agility and potency. A temple comfirmed the existince of Tiedang Gong but insisted it was for health not sex. It is said to not be widely practice in our time...I can certainly see how that could have happened! I don't think I've ever known a man that would willingly be kicked in the crotch and as for lifting things? It taxes even my vivid imagination.

Raining On Parades

This is an instance where raining could easily  be changed for reining,or reigning and still make at least a little sense. It has been a thought of mine for some time that not everyone loves a parade,and I think there are a lot of people that wouldn't contest that statement. In fact I don't think kids much like parades other than for gathering the candy that is thrown,most of them look bored and seem crabby,but I can't say for sure about that. Today is an annual parade event here,The Regatta. I couldn't even tell you why they have it anymore as the interest in sailing that used to be part of the event is barely apparent today (there were 3 sailboats on the river). I think the last parade I attended was Mardi Gras in 1999,and though I went to many parades and caught many throws it was pretty much crowded, drunken chaos which isn't to say it wasn't fun! Back to the parade here...until several years ago the day of the parade would come and rather than having the parade route on parallel streets they would send it down the main thoroughfare,which is also a US HWY. I know that sounds crazy but this town has been under the same basic leadership for at least a century. Not to say that the people making the decisions are 100 years old but that they are all from the same "good ole boy" school of thought and reluctant to make any changes no matter how logical. So if you are a local whenever there is a parade event taking place that day, a person plans their day so as not to have to go into the downtown area within several hours either side of the event,that is up to and including death as to get an ambulance through that mess would not be an easy job.

It Gets Worse

Earlier in the week I asked a question of Oregonians on my Facebook page about the Health Care Survey. I wanted to know if any one of my acquaintances had received one in order to figure out why I had received one and determine if I would participate in the survey. First off it seems to me that since the survey is about the Oregon Health Care Plan they would be better off asking question of the people under the state health care plan...and what could my health have to do with that??
Next on my list of objections to State Health Care is why on earth are they advertising it on television?? Wouldn't the money they are spending for those spots and the production of those spots be much better spent for the care of the people dependent on it? I have a friend that lives near the state capital that is on Oregon Health Care and she couldn't even get glasses through them when her's were broken. Stop me if I'm wrong here,but isn't a person's vision part of their general health? and if not isn't it better for everyone concerned that people that drive have the tools they need to safely do the task? Not to mention walking and shopping and many other activities that would be impaired without needed vision correction. And why exactly are they advertising it in the first place? A few years ago a local hospital was doing advertising and I thought that was also money misspent since you don't really choose the hospital when you need one.
Before I get sidetracked any further allow me to put the frosting on the cake. I missed the first survey call,they left a message saying who they were and etc. Are you ready for where they were calling from per caller ID?? Norfolk,VA! That's right they couldn't even do the service of hiring Oregonians to conduct an Oregon survey. I don't know how anyone else feels about this whole mess,but I am in a state of general disgust.

How Sweet It Isn't

Have you ever heard of "mad honey"? It was my something new learned for today. Bees make "mad honey" from the nectar of the Rhododendron. The symptoms range from madness,vomiting,diarrhea and the inability to stand (with a large dose), a smaller dose produces a state like violent drunkenness. Death is rare,but it takes several days to fully recover from the other symptoms. The pollen and sap of the rhodie contain the toxin too and at one time it was used to make poison arrows. The entire plant should be avoided including using the limbs to roast hot dogs or marshmallows. Fortunately most honey is safe because the bees don't get nectar exclusively from the rhodie so the toxin is diluted enough to make it harmless.

A Step Back

Today let's cast our imaginations into the past to the early days of man...first order of business is hunger,let's get something to eat! Some of the foods we eat today with little thought must have been a great trial and error with early man. Many times I have been involved in conversations wondering how certain items ever became foods. One of the most frequent of these foods is the artichoke,oddly the artichoke is one of the oldest  foods known to humans. The reason how they came to be recognized as food is never clearly stated,but my thought on this is early man watching animals eating thistles. Artichokes are a member of the thistle family in case you were wondering about the resemblance. Then there is the "story" of a cook attempting to poison George Washington by fixing a stew containing tomatoes. The story never really happened other than in a  Ellery Queen story,again the story is based somewhat in fact as tomatoes are part of the nightshade family and several members of that family are poisonous. The most difficult for me to wrap my mind around is the egg. Did early man see a bird lay an egg and think,"Hey! I bet that would be good eating!" It doesn't seem like a likely scenario to me. I am guessing that again it was by watching another animal eat an egg that tempted man to try one. With that thought in mind,I wonder how long early man tried to feed on grass and other foliage before gaining a balance to his diet?

Keep It Under Your Hat

After doing the blog about Dr. Seuss I started thinking of all the sayings there are about hats and decided to give it further attention. "Hats Off" is simply what it sounds like,taking one's hat off to show respect,same deal as tipping one's hat. "Throwing a Hat In the Ring" started in the 19th century saloons where there was often a boxing ring in the middle of the barroom so that the customers who wanted to fight each other could throw their hat into the ring indicating they would fight anybody. Teddy Roosevelt also used the phrase in a speech when he decided to run for office and ended the say with "and I am stripped to the waist." "Talking Through Your Hat" to talk nonsense or lie. "Eating Your Hat" goes back to the reign of Charles II of Great Britain and referred to his amorous doings. They named a goat after him that had his same love of life,which included eating hats. Today it indicates your belief in a sure thing.

Then What??

Why is it that so often news reports leave out the very things a person wants to know? A recent example is about 10 miles south of where I am located a human hand was found...they tell about the person that found it and when it was found but not whether it appeared to be a male hand or a female hand,nor if there was jewelry or other markings on it. I suppose that was in case several people are missing their hands they won't be able to falsely identify it?? give me a break! A book I was reading awhile back had another humorous example. A 70 year old man was beaten to death with a shoe...what is the first thing that you would want to know after reading that? What kind of shoe it was, right? Was it a slipper (not likely),a high heel? probably not a sneaker,perhaps a boot? The one that seems to top all of them is one that Mark Twain relates of a story that happened when he was traveling through India (keep in mind that this was in the 1800s and not a current event). At the time there were groups that roamed the land for the sole purpose of killing people and taking their belongings,it was an actual occupation. They were called Thugee or thugs for short and always killed their prey by strangulation. The story he related was of the killing of a group of 7 men and women that were traveling together,the Thugee killed the 7 but left two toddlers alive. So what became of the children??? It never mentions if they were kept by the Thugee and in turn trained to take up their trade or if they were abandoned,nothing more about them. Maybe it's just me and morbid curiosity,but I don't like to be left hanging on the details when it seems to me to be an important part of the story.

Topping Things Off

A fun fact I recently came across and don't think is widely known is that Dr. Seuss (Theodor Geisel) had an extensive hat collection. Once you hear that fact it makes perfect sense. In his home he had a hidden room that housed the hat closet. He begin collecting the hats in the 1920s and had hundreds of hats from all over the world. When he gave dinner parties he would grab a selection of hats from the closet and ask everyone present to wear one and assume the personality the hat inspired. (Wouldn't that be fun?) The collection includes the iconic "Cat in the Hat" one,but it is thought the book preceded the hat which was a gift fashioned after the hat in the book. Geisel was also an artist and produced not only images for his books but paintings,drawings and sculpture.