Lucky

After hearing about the Nanny from hell on the news I found myself wondering about the back story,in particular how they went about hiring a woman to watch their children (ages 11,4,and 1) in exchange for room and board, a woman that they were now desperately in fear of. The answer is Craigslist,now I'm not voicing neither disapproval nor approval of Craigslist,what I am saying is that if you were going to hire someone to care for your children,presumably in your absence,that you would want to do a careful background check and contact any and all references. It is never mentioned if the family used any kind of screening process. The woman of the household stated she is frightened for her children and her property and that the nanny isn't right in the head. I am thinking she should consider her own part in the problem...after all she wouldn't be locking her fridge and waiting 4 months for the formal eviction process to rid her household of the nanny if she would have done her homework before allowing the woman into her home. My opinion is she got lucky that her children didn't disappear never to be seen or heard from again,or worse.

A Possible Solution

I was just reading about the World Pillow Fight Championship and though some of the contenders look pretty serious I was thinking it would be a great way for countries to solve conflicts. No one would get hurt and if they're anything like me when it comes to pillow fighting they  would probably end up weak from laughter,problem solved!
As far as I could tell the original pillow fight championships started in Kenwood,CA around 1966 (not positive on the exact year) and were held yearly on the 4th of July until they outgrew the area and were forced to stop having the event in 2006. They are now relocated in Santa Rosa,CA and will hold the fight this year on September,27th. The original fight pitted opponents on a wet pole over mud and the proceeds went to the Kenwood Firemen's Association. Since that time other venues began offering pillow fight championships,some of the photos shown are from an event in New York City.

Desperate For A Big Mac

I feel kind of bad for the 25 year old gal who was only trying to do the right thing when she walked to a 24 hour McDonald's at around 3 a.m. She found the dining area was closed leaving  the drive-up window as her only option. She was told she couldn't use the drive-through without a car,being impaired (just under 3 times the legal limit) she walked back home to get her car. Police noticed her driving erratically and once they got her pulled over they smelled alcohol and noticed behavior suggestive of intoxication. I bet she felt stupid the next morning...but I wonder if she still was in the mood for McDonald's?

Startling Statue

When I read about the statue titled "Sleepwalker" I couldn't understand what had everyone so upset,how could a bronze statue look life like enough to be frightening? When I finally sat down here and looked up a picture of the offending work it became instantly clear,sometimes a picture truly is worth a thousand words. The first odd thing is the placement of the piece...Wellesly College (a women's college).Within hours of installation a petition began asking for the removal of "Sleepwalker". It has definitely received attention and the artist is thrilled with the reactions. One would think that the people who feel uncomfortable around the statue would eventually not be bothered by it knowing that it is only a statue,but apparently that has not been the case. I must admit that it is really quite lifelike.

Get Crabby

Though Hermit Crabs are not indigenous to New Jersey and cannot survive the winters there,that is the location where they gather for their 15 minutes of fame. For 40 years the Miss Crustacean Hermit Crab Beauty Pageant has been held there. The contestants compete for the  "Coveted Cucumber Rind Cup" which represents a year's supply of groceries,if supplemented with tree bark,pizza crust and stagnant water. The decorated crabs are displayed on colorful backdrops for judging and the winner gets to stroll the flower bedecked runway to the tune of " Here It Comes,Miss Crustacean". The event has been a question on Jeopardy,named one of the nation's ten most unusual events by U.S. News and World Report, and featured in the media around the world. The pageant is followed by Hermit Crab Races.

It's Not Too Late!

Have you had a near death experience in the last year? If you have there is still time to make a pilgrimage to Spain to take part in La Fiesta de Santa Marta de Ribarteme,a festival honoring those who managed to cheat death. The festival takes place July 29th every year and consists of the lucky almost dead being paraded through the streets in coffins carried by their families. Once the coffin carrying festivities are over the almost dead rise and tell their near death experiences. The day concludes with dancing and celebrating life.
If you don't qualify maybe you could still participate with a Haunted Ghost Barbie? they must be good for something.

Getting a Grip

I hadn't given much thought to greased wrestling and assumed it was a modern twist on an old sport,not so! It actually goes back to ancient civilizations or Southeastern Europe where wrestlers would oil one another with olive oil prior to matches. The wrestlers wear a type of lederhosen traditionally made from water buffalo hide and more recently from calfskin. The match must be won by achieving an effective hold on the garment and putting an arm through it. I found this interesting as it is not the visual most people conjure when someone mentions greased wrestling.

Kicking Ash

Volcano surfing isn't a brand new sport (invented in 2005) but for those wanting to combine the excitement of being on a live volcano with flying down an ash and pebble slope at 50 mph it may be just what you are looking for. It is a much rougher ride than snowboarding and instead of snow if you fall,the surface is closer to razor blades. Apparently over 10,000 people have already tried it but I doubt it will become and Olympic event any time soon. Another sport I believe I will take a pass on.

Count On It

I believe I wrote a blog a year or maybe two years ago about the bee rescue service I offer to the bees trapped on my front porch. To summarize for those who may have missed it,the bees fly into the 3/4 enclosed porch and can't find their way back out so using a jar and a stiff piece of paper I capture and release the bees so they can continue their important bee work. The other day I read that bees have the ability to count in that they recognize patterns of up to 4 dots or marks. The study proving this had controls in place to insure the bees weren't using color,smell or any other clues. So here is my question...what kind of signs do I need to make to either tell the bees not to enter,or instruct them how to exit once they are trapped on the porch? and what size do you figure these signs should be? All these studies leave so many questions unanswered!

31-900 and Counting

Baskin -Robbins made a name for their ice cream franchise by introducing 31 flavors,one for every day of the month,Ben and Jerry's another American institution is known for their intensely flavored,playfully named offerings,but when it comes to the Guinness Book of World Records, the record for most flavors goes to neither an American nor an Italian ice cream maker. The title belongs to a privately owned shop in Merida,Venezuela where nearly 900 flavors are offered. In order to keep ice cream fresh only 80 different flavors are available at a time and though some flavors sound downright disgusting,they all seem to get surprisingly good reviews. The flavor that started it all was Avocado,other flavors include:Smoked Trout,Tuna,Meat,Chicken and Rice,Ham and Cheese,Mushrooms and Wine,Vodka and Lime,and the house specialty "Pabellon Criollo" a combination of the flavors of a traditional Venezuelan meal,beef,rice,plantain,cheese and black beans.

Packaging

Am I the only one that has problems with the blast proof type of packaging that most everything comes in? or do I suffer from some deficiency when it comes to "breaking" into the impenetrable plastic fortresses that seem to enclose even the most lowly items. I realize that the packaging is an attempt to both protect the consumer and keep theft down,yet the thieves seem to be doing fine and the only ones suffering are the honest customers. Earlier this morning I worked for nearly 20 minutes to open a plastic pouch with my new sheets inside...go ahead laugh, it sounds easy enough but the zipper had an arrow shaped head on it that prevented it from unzipping and there wasn't room to get any cutting implement under it to cut through it,and if you cut through the plastic pouch you run the risk of also cutting your new sheets. What exactly was the packaging trying to prevent? people from touching the sheets? people hauling them out of the package and the inner configuration of packing and somehow secreting them on their person? in the summer? Then again on the news today they ran a piece about a man walking out of a Fred Meyer store with hand guns he had stolen and placed inside a backpack,also stolen. Don't ask me why that didn't set off any alarms I can walk out of store and set off alarms without a single stolen item. Something tells me that the whole system needs a little more work,and please don't make it harder on the honest people who only want to buy and item and be able to get it out of the protective shield once they have it safely home. Interesting that they also sell special tools to open this kind of packaging which I am sure the thieves have stolen several of so they may not be available in all locations!
 

Foot or Feet?

For reasons unbeknownst to me I started wondering why athlete's foot was named for a singular foot instead of the more likely athlete's feet? I have never had the fungus but it seems that if you had it on one foot chances are you would have it on both feet,so what is the story on that? As often happens my mind was off to the races...most people will tell you their minds wander,not so with my mind. My mind sets out at warp speed building freeways along the way complete with workers leaning on shovels,the problem is directing it and I've yet to master that feat ( yet another feet,or feat to deal with!). I decided I would ask a knowledgeable friend who is used to my scattered, esoteric questions if she had any ideas about this misnomer,she did not and an internet search yielded zip. I thought it would be best if I didn't get carried away with pursuing it further...then this same friend mentioned that rental bowling shoes used to come with warnings about athlete's foot which in turn made me think of my youth when you had to either have socks or used a footie/peds (supplied by the store) to try on shoes at the store,which was also an effort to prevent the dreaded fungus. Now comes your part my faithful readers! I remember them handing you or your mother (or parent) a footie so your foot would be protected from whatever might be lurking in the brand new,but maybe contaminated shoe,but my recollection tells me that once you were done with the footie it was returned to the box or sometimes a jar it had just been removed from so it had served no purpose whatsoever since it could have already been used by a person with the fungus other than perhaps passing the fungus along to your previously uninfected foot. So the question is am I remembering this wrong? Did they actually throw them away after every use?  Of course in those days no one worn bike helmets or had seat belts either and most of us are still alive to talk about it!

Eeny Meeny

Today's post has to be among the grossest things I have included in this blog and you can rest assured I will not be lining up anytime soon to try a sourtoe cocktail. The sourtoe dates back to 1973 when a trapper lost a toe to frostbite,or so the story goes,how it made its way into a cocktail? I have no idea...but wait,it gets worse! not only are some people willing to pay an extra $10 to have the mummified toe in their drinks still others are willing to plop down $500 to swallow the toe. Since the original toe was accidentally swallowed in 1980 the hotel bar that serves the sourtoe has gone through about a dozen toes. The idea is to let the toe touch your lips as you drink the alcohol around it. When not in use the toes are kept in a brine solution and supposedly the alcohol in the drinks keeps them sterile. As previously stated,I will be taking a pass on this one.

Skills Sign

Often times when I post a blog within the next day or so I run across something closely related to the previous post but from a totally different source. This phenomenon has been happening repeatedly this month and I have no explanation...call it serendipity. Today's offering is related to both yesterday's post and Sunday's post and all three were inspired from things I read in three different places. Those readers who read the last two posts will see how today's post ties in with them as it is about both road signs (yesterday) and prostitutes (Sunday). Located in the Italian province of Treviso is a warning sign for prostitutes as they are quite active in the area and are thought to be a traffic hazard as motorists gawk. In addition to the signs police are issuing fines to both prostitutes and their customers. It occurs to me that the sign itself may be a hazard.

Signs of the Times

I haven't seen a driver's manual in years and plan to pick one up when my physical presence is required  for license renewal later this year. I am curious about what information has changed and what information has been excluded over the years. I know back when the manual was still chiseled onto stone tablets it included the various sign shapes and colors and what those things stood for. Does anyone remember what the shapes are meant to convey? The greater number of sides on a sign the more important the message. The circular sign (infinite number of sides) is the most important as a car and train collision rarely ends well. Next is the STOP sign with eight sides,but the logic goes downhill from there,theoretically the YIELD sign should be a pentagon shape but that shape went to denote County Route markers,nor did YIELD make the cut for a rectangular shape but was assigned to a triangle. That seems to be a recurring theme with neat and orderly rules,they start out logical and easy to understand and slip slowly toward chaos...or maybe that is just me?

Job Skills

Due to Spain's economic crisis and rising unemployment many women are becoming sex workers. Prostitution isn't illegal nor is it regulated in any way,some cities have fines issued for being in areas forbidden to the workers. A group of established sex workers decided to offer a course for aspiring sex workers including topics like dealing with the stigma of prostitution,sex tricks,filing tax returns, and marketing. The course attracted 15 women who were either considering the idea of prostitution or had recently started and wanted more information. The course instructor stated all professionals need training.

Watch Where You Step!

I recently heard about an obscure hobby called carpeteering. Apparently it isn't too widespread at this time but it may catch on especially with travelers that find themselves bored and spending several hours in airports. Carpeteering consists of photographing airport carpets and brief histories behind the carpets. I have often wondered about the designs found in airport carpets as some almost seem to promote vertigo,in fact the carpet in Singapore's airport is designed to look like a fall from a skyscraper. The Auckland,NZ carpet is text that the official translation reads "Auckland  airport and people of Paorae welcome you" but others translate it to say "Your feet smell like the dung heaps of Paorae,Go home." Next time you are at an airport look down and take note,you might be surprised.

Eating For Thousands

Known in the west as food porn or gastronomic voyeurism,it is called broadcast eating in its home country of South Korea. How it works is a solo diner (usually young and attractive) live stream their evening meals for thousands of viewers. In South Korea a quarter of the households are occupied by only one person so having a meal with a familiar face is rare and meals alone can be boring. One 34 year old woman's broadcasts are so popular she was able to quit her day job and now lives off the virtual currency her fans send (it has to be converted to cash).The meals she prepares are extravagant and can go on for hours as she chats with her audience and net her around $9,000 per month. Sounds like a job I could get into if I were younger and looking for a work!

Boob Job?

I am continually surprised by the number of inventions whose purposes are either questionable or bordering on nefarious. The Wine Rack Bra isn't a brand new concept but it makes a person wonder about the intention behind the invention. The device is for carrying your own adult beverage and I understand some people don't want to pay for the overpriced beverages available at events,but would they also be inclined to make use of it in areas where adult beverages were prohibited? and what about underage drinkers? There is no mention of any insulation factor so I assume when you first donned it the beverage bladder would be icy cold against your chest but as you wore it the beverage would become body temperature...yuck! Another selling point that is stressed is if you are wear an A cup bra you can appear to be a DD cup when the drink bladder is full,and when it is empty it can be blown into to give you the same DD look. It doesn't sound like much of a bargain ($29.95) to me,it sounds more likely to be an inconvenience.

Fraudulent Rank

Today's post is funny in a couple of ways,Cap'n Crunch aka Cap'n Horatio Magellan Crunch obviously isn't a real Navy captain as he is a cereal mascot/icon,but his uniform has only three stripes on the sleeve making him a commander,one rank below captain. It took over fifty years before anyone noticed the stripe discrepancy. The Cap'n debuted int eh 1960's along with his dog named Seadog and his crew of orphaned children :Alfie,Brunhilde,Carlyle and Dave. When the Cap'n was asked to explain the scandal he stated he is the captain of the SS Guppy and that made him an official captain...I can't help but wonder if PepsiCo whose Quaker Oats division produces the cereal will change the stripes on his uniform?

More On Nude Events

Yesterday while I was looking for photos to add to that post I came across news of the World Naked Bike Ride which happened Sunday (June 8th). Portland has its own naked ride (11th annual) plus related events and is one of 75 cities participating in the U.S.The ride is also held in 20 other countries. Portland's event is thought to be the largest with more than 8,000 riders last year. It is held as a protest about oil dependency,cycling vulnerability and body image. Okay,I get how the oil dependency fits the protest but cycling vulnerability??? you can't get much more vulnerable than riding a bicycle naked,and did I mention comfort? I also would question the body image portion of the event as it seems to me if you are okay with riding a bike naked with 8,000 other people body image is the least of your problems,but of course that is only my opinion. If you are offended by nudity do not look at the photos!

Wear Your Sunday Best!

I'm not sure why it never occurred to me that there would be nudist churches,but it didn't. There are actually quite a few of them which makes it even more odd that I had never heard of them. The church I have chosen for today's post is White Tail Chapel (try not to laugh,it really is the name). The main focus of the church is casting off material concerns, obviously including clothing. The pastor points out that many of Jesus' important moments happened when he was naked and God made us naked. He says nudity is a great equalizer and makes it impossible to be judgmental. At the risk of sounding risque,I don't find that statement entirely accurate!