Dec 7 2023 - The Hat Trick Continued

 

The hat trick in different sports - in cricket where it originated, the same player has to take three consecutive wickets.  In hockey it is three goals by a player at any point in the game.  If the goals were made one after the other it is a natural hat trick.  Hockey has a good track record at hat tricks.  Supposedly the origin in hockey, according to SportsAspire is that... "in the 1940s, Alex Kaleta of the Chicago Blackhawks was walking around in Toronto, prior to his match against the Toronto Maple Leafs. He was searching for a hat and found a man by the name of Sammy Taft. So he sees this swanky gray fedora with a gray trim, and he really digs it, but he didn’t have enough paper to buy it. So Taft makes an offer to Kaleta, telling him that if he were to score three goals in the upcoming match, the former would gift him the hat free of charge. As it turned out, Kaleta took it seriously, scored four goals, and Taft kept his word. Enter, the hat trick in hockey." This is the accepted narrative in the NHL Hall of Fame, and hockey fans reward such an accomplishment by throwing their hats into the arena. That's what I was told yesterday, so I am going with it. Compare the sports here.  There are lots of differences.    This was a model at this year's convention in Denver.

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Nov 16 2023 - Bimbo, Himbo and Thembo

 

A Bimbo is ... disparaging ... an attractive but unintelligent, foolish or inept young woman Then a Himbo is ... disparaging to a young man And a Thembo is ... disparaging to a non-binary person The definitions leave out the sexualized descriptor for Bimbo.  The term was first used to describe men, and the first officially recorded female dumb blonde was Rosalie Duthe 1748 - 1830.  And what is this all about?  A movement began in 2017 led by Alicia Amira who self-proclaimed herself a bimbo to "empower women to be proud to embrace their femininity."  The BimboTok community on the social media platform TikTok, is where users engage in stereotypical hyper-femininity to satirize consumerism, capitalism, and misogyny. And who has been accused of being a bimbo in the original sense - men were originally the bimbos.  It is none other than Donald Trump. Journalist Stephen Richter accused him of being an unintelligent or brutish male.  This was in response to Donald Trump's  tweet that the moderator of a debate he was in was a bimbo.

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Oct 4 2023 - The King of Spades

 

The king card is the oldest and most universal court card. It most likely originated in Persian Ganjifeh where kings are depicted as seated on thrones and outranking the viceroy cards which are mounted on horses.  High card by suit and low card by suit refer to assigning relative values to playing cards of equal rank based on their suit. When suit ranking is applied, the most common conventions from lowest to highest are: ♣♦♥♠ English alphabetical order. clubs, followed by diamonds, hearts, and spades.   That makes the King of Spades the highest ranking King: a wealthy king who carries a scepter and an orb. It is a symbol of power and authority. . The kings were associated with historical figures, although this tradition was dropped over time: The King of Spades is thought to be David, King of Israel from the Old Testament. King of Clubs: Alexander the Great, King of Macedonia, who conquered a vast region and lived from 356 to 323 BCE. The King of Hearts is the only king without a moustache.  He is Charlemagne, King of France and the first Holy Roman Emperor, who lived from 747 to 814 AD. King of Diamonds is Roman Caesar Augustus. Some sources say the king of diamonds is Julius Caesar, not Augustus. Some jokes are very lengthy and get to a punchline eventually.  Deck of card jokes are pretty short: What doctor also specializes in card games? The cardiologist. Why did a husband give his wife a deck of cards?  She wanted something with diamonds. What does Batman keep losing when playing card games?  He keeps attracting the Joker Why did the Kings, Queens, and Jacks stand before a judge? They’re court cards. My doctor tells me that a healthy serving of red meat is the size of a deck of cards.  Tonight I ate 52 slices of roast beef. A patient bursts into a doctor’s office, "Doctor, I believe I'm a deck of cards!"  Doctor : "Sit down, I'll deal with you later" Today we have a nice model railroad layout scene.

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Sep 6 2023 - 44 The Number

 

Baxter typed in "44" so let's check it out. 44 is a repdigit and palindromic number in decimal. It is the tenth 10-happy number, and the fourth octahedral number. Repdigit? The word is a portmanteau of "repeated" and "digit". Examples are 11, 666, 4444, and 999999.   The concept of a repdigit has been studied under that name since at least 1974, and earlier Beiler (1966) called them "monodigit numbers".The Brazilian numbers were introduced later, in 1994, in the 9th Iberoamerican Mathematical Olympiad that took place in Fortaleza at Brazil. The first problem in this competition, proposed by Mexico, was as follows: A number n > 0 is called "Brazilian" if there exists an integer b such that 1 <  b < n – 1 for which the representation of n in base b is written with all equal digits. Prove that 1994 is Brazilian and that 1993 is not Brazilian. Palindromic? A palindromic number (also known as a numeral palindrome or a numeric palindrome) is a number (such as 16461) that remains the same when its digits are reversed.  Octahedral? An octahedral number belongs to a figurate number and it is the number of spheres in an octahedron built from closely packed spheres. First, a few octahedral numbers (where n = 0, 1, 2, 3…….) are 0, 1, 6, 19, and so on. Thanks Baxter, I had no idea there was so much meaning packed into 44.   Alternately, in terms of numbers, Baxter could be giving a clear and simple message that Angel 44 - one of the guardian angels - has chosen to show him that he is not alone, and that we who live with him are a blessing to him.   He lies on the  with his feet in the air, and ears over the keyboard.  Is it a repdigit day or an angel day?   One of the Denver convention layout scenes.

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May 11 2023 - Calling someone dumbbell

 

Calling someone a dumbbell is to call them stupid or foolish.  What is that shape - dumb bell?   early 18th century: originally denoting an apparatus similar to that used to ring a church bell (but without the bell, so noiseless or ‘dumb’);  dumbbell  (dating from the 1920s) is an extended use by association with dumb ‘stupid’.  Dumb has meant stupid for centuries in Germanic languages, so it took Americans a little while to catch up.   The supposed synonyms today are "dunce, ignoramus, fool, blockhead, dimwit" but that isn't current language.   Here's an article with current expressions for this: A Few Cards Short Of A Full Deck  Not The Sharpest Tool In The Shed!  As Smart As Bait  The Light Is On But Nobody’s Home A Few Beers Short Of A Six-pack There’s A Village Missing Its Idiot  One Fry Short Of A Happy Meal  Couple Of Quarters Short Of A Roll  The Elevator Doesn’t Go To The Top Floor  Now that sounds more like it.

A train day today

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Dec 28 2022 - A Change in the Weather

 

Well, we arrive at a change in the weather.  We'll have above freezing temperatures for two weeks, with rain coming.   I wonder what that will do in Buffalo. I think of icebergs floating down main streets.  With this drastic "change in the weather" I wonder if  it one of the 12 common weather phrases?  It doesn't appear to be.  Here are a few: Under the weather - nautical Right as rain - Under debate but thoughts are straight as an arrow Take a rain check - American baseball game rained out Head in the clouds - before flight, considered impossible Every cloud has a silver lining - cloud formation   The calm before the storm - meteorology Red sky at night, sailor's delight - sailing Rainbow in the morning gives you fair warning - sailing When dew is on the grass, rain will never come to pass - meteorology Mares' tails and mackerel scales make tall ships take in their sails - sailing Dog days of summer - lazy dogs panting vs Greek dog star Sirius  It's raining cats and dogs "One of the best weather phrases there is… and one with many possible explanations. The most common, although with a few variations, is about a proliferation of stray animals. When homes featured thatch roofs, stray dogs and cats would often hide in them for shelter and for temperature regulation. But if it rained hard enough, these animals would either be washed out of the roof, or would jump out on purpose to look for better shelter. Along the same lines, in times when door locks weren’t as common, strays would push their way inside to get out of heavy rain. There is even a darker thought that strays would be washed away in the gulleys on the sides of old streets in a heavy rain, also contributing to the look of it actually raining these animals! Finally, there is some thought that within mythology, cats often had powers over storms, and dogs including the Norse god Odin had influence on storms and windy conditions, so people referenced the cats bringing the rain, and dogs bringing the wind!" They are all explained HERE at weloveweather.tv But wait, there are more - these from preply.com HERE  A tempest in a teapot A bolt from the blue Come rain or shine Raindrops in the drought Get wind of A ray of hope Railroad Day. Read more daily posts here: marilyncornwellblog.com Purchase works here: Fine Art America- marilyncornwellart.com Redbubble - marilyncornwellart.ca

Dec 22 2022 - The Longest Night Shortest Day

 

This is the year that I realized something about the expression "pagan".   To me it is a religious version of colonialism.  It is  like  "eskimo".  Everyone before the Roman Catholics was considered a pagan.  And here we are just having experienced Winter Solstice. And so our Longest Night of the year is a celebration originating with the pagans.  As compared to what or who?   Wouldn't it originate with any humans who could track the days and nights.  So wouldn't it be the Babylonians?  Yes, The festival began in Babylon with the birth day of the first sun god Tammuz on the ancient winter solstice on December 25th.The article continues: "Pagans still celebrate this original solar deity birth." And then continues with:  "The most important time of celebration for pagans (i.e., earth worshipers) is the Winter Solstice (Yule, Saturnalia or Midwinter). Yule is the northernmost point of their Wheel of the Year, which is a Witch’s Wheel that’s an annual cycle of seasonal festivals that serves to tether people to earth and earthly things."  This comes from sapphirethroneministries.wordpress.com and it is one of many like this.  At the other end of the spectrum, similar to secular Christmas descriptions: "The occasion is marked with sweet and traditional winter solstice rituals—from brewing mulled cider and eating winter solstice foods, to lighting lanterns, reciting winter solstice quotes, striking special yoga moves, and setting intentions for the season ahead." And in between are articles on the winter solstice celebrations that have been traditions for hundreds and thousands of years - the Hopi Indians of Arizona, the Persian festival Yalda, Into Raymi in Peru, and Dong Zhi in China.   So here we are finding our own balance in a diverse world. And the conclusion?  Most of us are just happy the dark days get shorter as the days go by.   Our picture today is the only winter layout I've ever  seen. Today's picture has to be the surprise abstract of the year.  This looks like an ocean beach landscape to me, with the waves on the shore.  The actual object is the entrance sculpture at the Horticulture Garden Butterfly Conservatory in Niagara Falls.  It was a bright sunny day and the sun and clouds were reflecting in the wall.   The second picture shows the wall with the  the Niagara River in the background.   Read more daily posts here: marilyncornwellblog.com Purchase works here: Fine Art America- marilyncornwellart.com Redbubble - marilyncornwellart.ca

Dec 1 2022 - At least 20,000,000,000,000,000

 

Continuing on my thoughts on how much the things on the planet weigh, I wondered about ants versus humans.  There are a lot of ants on the planet.  I wondered if there are enough of them to weigh more than humans.  It turns out that just this year,  scientists have  figured out just how many ants there are and how much they weigh.. As recently as 2014, a BBC wildlife presenter claimed that the the total number of ants weighed as much as humans, with the estimate then of the total number of ants being 100 trillion.  At the time the top-down method of calculation was used assuming ants comprise about 15 of the world's estimated insect population. This time,  a bottom-up approach used standardized methods for collecting and counting ants.  Not many details were given on this activity, but it does seem extensive to me to get representative samples. "... next step was to work out how much all these ants weigh. The mass of organisms is typically measured in terms of their carbon makeup. We estimated that 20 quadrillion average-sized ants correspond to a dry weight or “biomass” of approximately 12 million tonnes of carbon. So we humans weigh 316 million tonnes compared with 8 quadrillion ants.  For every human there are 2.5 million ants." I can barely imagine a  trillion.  So 20 quadrillion is 20,000 trillion.  Written out - the number is  20,000,000,000,000,000.  I hope that's correct as I copied and pasted it in. One of the scientific conclusions is that the weight of the world's ants exceeds that of all wild birds and mammals combined.  It is equal to one-fifth of the total weight of humans.  So that's our answer of the day to who weighs more - humans or ants. Here's a quote from one of the articles:  "It's very easy to weigh an ant. You buy a small electronic balance, and you place the ant on the balance," says Ratnieks. But he advises you refrigerate it first. "That way it doesn't run away."   Today we see the detail modelling of some wonderful layouts. Read more daily posts here: marilyncornwellblog.com Purchase works here: Fine Art America- marilyncornwellart.com Redbubble - marilyncornwellart.ca

June 28 2022 - Thinking Differently

 

How do you know what it is to think "differently"?  What is "differently" when you experience it?   It popped up when I was considering our social outlook on the term "renegade".  There's quite a  word:  a person who deserts and betrays an organization, country, or set of principles.  "an agent who later turns out to be a renegade" Renegade is a tv show created and hosted by Ross Ashcroft, a British filmmaker, broadcaster and entrepreneur.   Given that definition, what might we expect from him?  Misinformation and conspiracies?  That's not the case. He is the director of the film Four Horsemen, a 2012 British documentary that criticizes the system of fractional reserve banking, debt-based economy and political lobbying by banks, which it regards as a serious threat to Western civilization.   It criticized the War on Terror, which it maintains is not fought to eliminate al-Qaeda and other militant organizations, but to create larger debt to the banks.   What the film promotes is a return to classical economics and the gold standard.  To get its point across, it turns to well-known experts.  Among those interviewed are Joseph Stiglitz, former chief economist at the World Bank; Noam Chomsky, linguistics professor; John Perkins, author of Confessions of an Economic Hit Man; ecological economist and steady-state theorist Herman Daly, formerly at the World Bank; and Max Keiser, TV host and former trader.   The four horsemen?  "A rapacious financial system, escalating organised violence, abject poverty for billions and the exhaustion of Earth's resources."  I watched the beginning with the comparison of the Roman Empire  to the American Empire in their declining years.   I looked to Rotten Tomatoes, the online aggregator of movie and TV show reviews from critics - for a view of whether it is a Fresh or Rotten film.  They gave it a 5.7 out of 10 average rating from 7 reviews.  The audience gave it a 3.9 out of 5 average rating with 100 ratings.  I think that's in the Fresh range.  Other sites gave it a much higher rating.  It is on Youtube HERE.  It is compelling to watch the interplay of images of documentary footage interspersed with intellectual luminaries expressing concern over the current situation.  Particularly from the point of view of 10 years later. So I switch quickly to the photos of the day - layouts from one of the narrow gauge railway convention. Is it part of the public lethargy that happens during the decline - something that Ashcroft warns us of.

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Jan 30 2022 - Question of the Day or Two

 

I hadn't seen this site before - vocm.com with the Question of the Day.  This is a St. John's,  NL news media organization, so the questions are primarily topical/political.  Today's question is:     You can answer it and look through past questions and see the results HERE.  If we were little people perhaps preschool, our question of the day might be: Are you wearing red today?  Or perhaps: Does your name have the letter Aa in it? At the other end of the adult spectrum, the gratefulness.org site has a daily question and today's is:  What does it mean to live wholeheartedly?  You don't give a yes/no answer, but a "reflection".  Yesterday's question:  My body is a miracle of arts science, and mystery.  What is it teaching me?  There were 47 reflections for that one.  You can find the questions HERE.  We conclude with the book by Al Katkowsky titled Question of the Day.  Life has answers. Make sure you're asking the right questions.  Are you searching for meaning? Or maybe you just want to really get to know someone. This book can help! Perfect for spending time with friends, family or even co-workers, Question of the Day is fun, enlightening, surprising, and revealing—ideal as an ice breaker among willing acquaintances or as a source of deeper conversation among old friends. Get the book HERE.

Dec 21 2021 - Short, Shorter and Shortest

The days are Short and the surname Short means exactly that - short in stature.  But the surname Shorter as a name turns out to mean a short-necked person - derived from the Anglo-Saxon word scorkhals meaning a person with a short neck.   There's a crest for the Short Family and it makes sense it is of Anglo-Saxon origin.  It derives from sceort - the Old English word for short.  The first record of the name was Ordic Scott in 1176 in Dorset.   Looking at the surname Short, it is Martin Short, the Canadian actor, who comes to mind.  His family is the Griffin and Quinn families from the Crossmaglen area of County Armagh in Northern Ireland.  His father was an illegal immigrant to the U.S. and made his way to Canada.  That's a very short through-line for heritage. My association of the Shorter name is with the famous Jazz Saxophonist Wayne Shorter, and his surname would be related to the legacy of slavery in the U.S.  A number of his compositions are themed on slavery. He has been called a "Griot"  - a member of a class of travelling poets, musicians, and storytellers who maintain a tradition of oral history in parts of West Africa.   Our shortest day is today - here we are at Winter Solstice - it is coming at 10:58 a.m.  While the full moon reached its peak on Saturday evening, it is very bright this morning, illuminating the back garden as a faint sun might do.  It turns out that we reached and touched The Sun - Our Sun - in 2021.  On April 28, 2021, during its eighth flyby of the Sun, the Parker Solar Probe encountered the specific magnetic and particle conditions at 18.8 solar radii (around 8.1 million miles) above the solar surface that told scientists it had crossed the Alfvén critical surface for the first time and finally entered the solar atmosphere.  It touched "the stuff the sun is made of".   "We can actually see the spacecraft flying through coronal structures that can be observed during a total solar eclipse.” It dipped around 6.5 million miles into the sun's atmosphere, and reached the pseudostreamer - massive structures that rise above the sun's surface and can be seen from Earth during solar eclipses.  The next flyby is January 2022.   In all it will make 24 orbits of the sun over 7 years.  If the Probe stays functional the mission could be extended to 22 years and would capture the entire solar cycle.  This is the cycle that the sun's magnetic field goes through approximately every 11 years.  Something to consider given we live in the Sun's atmosphere.   As for the surname Shortest - I didn't find one yet, only the shortest name - supposedly N.  Yes, a single letter, usually spelled Ehn.  There's a huge list of the shortest surnames HERE.  They are all two letter names.  Here's a train image from one of the Model Railroad Conventions.  Could this be a Winter Solstice layout?  I don't ever recall another winter layout.

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July 8 2021 - Looking for the Oldest Stuff

 

Continuing on the theme of old, I wonder what the oldest stuff is.  What do we prize and keep? There's a website named oldest.org and it tracks "oldest" things. There are simple things like  the 9 oldest wood schoolhouses, lighthouses  banks, buildings, bridges, and so on. Little did I think that the oldest tattoos would be significant. Ethnographic and historical texts reveal that tattooing has been practiced by just about every human culture in historic times. The ancient Greeks used tattoos from the 5th century on to communicate among spies; later, the Romans marked criminals and slaves with tattoos. Other cultures had sacred messages and symbols. Finding the oldest tattoos entails finding mummies. The oldest?  Ötzi the Iceman from 3400 BCE had tattoos - 61 in 19 groups of black lines. The locations of many of the markings are consistent with traditional Chinese acupuncture points, specifically those that are used to treat back pain and stomach upset. What is intriguing is that Ötzi lived roughly 2,000 years before the oldest generally accepted evidence of acupuncture, and well west of its purported origins in China. X-rays revealed that Ötzi had arthritis in his hip joint, knees, ankles and spine; forensic analysis discovered evidence of whipworm eggs - known to cause severe abdominal pain - in Ötzi’s stomach. It is, therefore, possible that Ötzi’s tattoos did in fact play a therapeutic role, and that acupuncture has a slightly more complicated history than previously believed. Now that is intriguing. It tells us that there is much to learn from old things, antique things and vintage things.  There's a trend to get rid of old stuff these days - things we have just finished using.  It has led to the waning appreciation of antiques and vintage.   That leaves us with National Old Stuff Day. - March 2nd. It is a day to celebrate old things and get rid of old things.  The two live side by side.  Certainly steam locomotives and railroad layouts represent old stuff from a previous time.  I wonder if I would find any tattoos on the figures.  I've never considered looking or asking.  It would be remarkable, wouldn't it.

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