Mairlyn's Photos - June 23 2025 - Hair Stands Straight Up!

 

This is a picture that got my attention  Strange white hair all sticking up.  The headline was about what to do if your hair suddenly sticks straight up.  The answer is:  "move indoors as quickly as possible as lightning ice about to strike you.  It is known as "electrostatic induction" where the buildup of static electricity causes your hair to rise.  A person will also feel a tingling sensation       What are the other headlines in this site - it is indianexpress.com that gave the information about the electrostatic induction.  Here are their click bait headlines:   This mosquito bracelet is a Canadian best-seller Wrap foil around your doorknob when alone, here's why Always keep a bread clip in your wallet (here's why) Eat 1 teaspoon every night, see what happens a week later Your joints will be as good as new.  Do it in the morning 15 worst unhealthy breakfast foods to avoid in the morning I wonder which one of these gets the most clicks. "A 2023 study analyzed over 100 million articles to determine which headlines drove the most shares. Phrases like “for the first time!,” “you need to…,” and “…of all time” were responsible for generating the most engagement." "Clickbait headlines are designed to evoke strong emotions, making people more likely to click on the link to satisfy their desire for quick entertainment or information. Our brains often can’t resist the temptation!" I like how silly the headlines are - read more examples HERE.   And where did they get that picture of the hair on end.  Here's the full picture. It doesn't intrigue like the first one, does it?

This is one of the Whistling Gardens' peony displays.     Read more daily posts here: marilyncornwellblogspot.com Purchase works here: Fine Art America- marilyncornwell.com Redbubble - marilyncornwellart.ca

Jan 9 2021 - Zeno Who?

 

Zeno 1. Is this a number? 2, Is this a game character? 3. Is this an emperor? 4, Is this a place? Who can guess these days what the answer might be? Or it might be all of them.  Definitely Zeno is the name of an emperor in the Byzantine era -this was the time of Goths and Vandals, so the name Zeno fits in. While it isn't a number that I know of, it is the name of a mathematics program.   And there are Zeno's paradoxes, devised by Greek philosopher Zeno of Elea.  There are nine surviving paradoxes preserved in Aristotle's Physics - the three famous ones are Achilles and the tortoise, the Dichotomy argument and the arrow in flight.  They are covered in Wikipedia HERE.  I dismiss the point in each one and am clearly not meant for philosophy. There is a place in Fandom -called Zeon. This might be more popular than Zeno, as spellcheck keeps changing Zeno to Zeon.  The story of Zeon goes like this: "When Zeon Zum Deikun, the leader of the Republic, became gravely ill in UC 0068, he mentioned only one name on his deathbed: "Degwin Zabi." The people of Side 3 took this to mean that Deikun was naming Degwin to succeed him as leader of the Republic in that year. After being appointed as the leader of the Republic of Zeon, Degwin Zabi adopted the title of Sodo, meaning "Lord," and was referred to from them on as Degwin Sodo Zabi." I seem to find the plots from the fantasy world and the ancient world very similar.  Maybe Zeno, Byzantine Emperor, inspired the game Zeon. Today's pictures are of Whistling Gardens, just over an hour's drive from Grimsby or Toronto.  This is my version of virtual botanical garden tours.    Purchase at: FAA - marilyncornwellart.com Redbubble - marilyncornwellart.ca

Aug 13 2020 - Mingling on Friday the 13th

 

There are only two Friday the 13ths in 2020 - the first one happened in March just before lockdown and the next one is November.  That may or may not be a problem for Port Dover. It is the destination town for its  motorcycle gatherings on Friday the 13th occurrences.  There were 100,000 bikers in September 2019.  The next summer gathering will be August 2021.  They might expect the same numbers - and we might expect to still be expected to wear masks and social distance.   Will they be wearing mingle masks?  Here's the latest in COVID-19 masks. It is Canadian-made, clear face covering.  This is expected to help in a few ways:  the sound is better, it is better for reading lips for the hard of hearing, smiles and other expressions will be seen, and less fogging of glasses.     This could be a nice step forward for our social interaction.  It makes me wonder why countries already wearing masks aren't using this type - but then all the articles say they are wearing surgical masks.  I guess that question is for another time. I thought I would catch up on the latest COVID-19 jokes: When you work at a bank and 2 guys with masks come in ... but they're just robbing the place Day 1:  I have stocked up on enough non-perishable food and supplies to last me for months, maybe years, so that I can remain in isolation for as long as it takes to see out this pandemic Day 2: I am in the supermarket because I wanted a Twix The owner of my gym just emailed a more thorough, detailed, thoughtful plan for dealing with the coronavirus than the President of the United States Doctor: Your Covid-19 test came back positive Patient: That can't be correct.  I have more than 300 rolls of toilet paper Corona beer changes name to avoid association with the Coronavirus outbreak Ebola Extra I washed my hands so much due to Covid-19 that my exam notes from 1995 resurfaced Friend in California unsuccessfully trying to get a test for coronavirus: Q "Have you been to any countries experiencing an outbreak of coronavirus in the past two weeks?" A "Yes, the USA" Here's the entrance bridge to the conifer garden at Whistling Gardens.

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Aug 10 2020 - Bikers at the Top of the News

 

The news has been dedicated to a biker rally in South Dakota - the 80th annual Sturgis Motorcycle Rally.  It has made the top of the news with its pictures of old guys on motorcycles, streets filled with people, quotes from attendees, and facts on the state's lack of procedures around COVID-19.  Both the CBC and the New York Times were adept at this coverage. Here are the prominent quotes: "Screw COVID," read the design on one T-shirt being hawked at the event. "I went to Sturgis." "I don't want to die, but I don't want to be cooped up all my life either," he said.  "This is a major experiment," he said. "It could be a major mistake." “My biggest concern is drivers — they just don’t pay attention to bikes. But I don’t know one person in a six-state radius who has had Covid. I think it is all just political.” “We have no concerns — if we are going to get sick, then we’ll get sick.” “I’m not convinced it’s real. I think it’s nothing more than the flu. If I die from the virus, it was just meant to be.” Here's the quote from the governor Kristi Noem:  "I trusted my people, they trusted me, and South Dakota is in a good spot in our fight against COVID-19. The #Sturgis motorcycle rally starts this weekend, and we're excited for visitors to see what our great state has to offer!"  She says that no virus outbreak was documented from the trip to Mount Rushmore last month. Yesterday I went to Whistling Gardens, and this picture is from the Aviary.  Perhaps it applies to the people quoted above:  birds of a feather flock together.

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June 12 2020 - Alarm Fatigue

Alarm fatigue is where we are in the curve of the Pandemic.  We have been exposed to a large number of frequent alarms/alerts and consequently can become sensitized to them.   Normally this is associated with patient safety, where there are false or clinically irrelevant alarms. But here we are:  many weeks into the constant alarms of staying inside, social distancing, gloves, and masks and we are experiencing the same stresses as health workers.  I wonder how this might change an entire population's social fabric. Another expert has given this a new name - moral fatigue - where we are barred from making the appropriate moral choice by existing rules or policies, or we have to deal with a new set of moral choices and not able to rely on habits and existing patterns.   The result is the same for both alarm fatigue and moral fatigue: exhaustion.  And this results in being less attentive to the needed activities like washing hands, social distancing, and so on.  And if we think we might get used to the new rules, there are even more new rules coming out.  What's the latest alarm?  As patio season is about to open: don't use the restaurant bathrooms.  Don't share condiments.   This is a pandemic that will be remembered for bathroom activities.  Our beautiful swan today lives at Whistling Gardens.  He is one of the two swans there - both are named Brutus.

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June 8 2020 - Peonies, Peonies

Public gardens have opened their outdoor spaces. We are just in time for  peonies.  I went to Whistling Gardens yesterday. It opened on June 3rd, so I was there for the first open week.   What did I go to see? The largest peony collection in North America.  There are over 1,200 varieties. Here's the excerpt from the website: "Since the fall of 2013 with the first plantings of donated peonies, the collection now encompasses 1,200 species and varieties. It is the largest collection in North America by far. It is also one of the most complete collections of peonies in the world. A new formal garden was initially planted in 2017 and finished in 2018 with well over 500 varieties. David (Maltby) and the Cooks continue to donate new specimens each season. The Itoh Hybrid collection is moving into the conifer garden." In comparison the Michigan national collection located in Ann Arbor,  at the Matthaei Botanical Gardens and Nicols Arboretum, has 262 varieties.  It has a long tradition and has been been preserving peony varieties since 1922.   The first picture shows the rarest peony in the collection.  Darren was very happy to have it blooming this year, and he says he can make divisions of it later season - that would allow him to preserve it.  There are a lot of species of peonies.  At the most general level, the types are herbaceous - what we mostly see in gardens; tree peonies - they re tall with woody stems and enormous flowers, and itoh (or "Intersectional") and these are a 1948 cross between tree peonies and herbaceous.  Peonies are beloved for their delicate appearance, sweet fragrance and as a symbol of good fortune and a happy marriage. Marco Polo described them as roses as big as cabbages.  Can you imagine seeing them for the first time?

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