Alert! Blog Break: Publisher Says It’s Only Temporary

Good Day World!

Time for a blog break.

I find it refreshing. And necessary.

In this age of technology, I think it’s a good idea to unplug occasionally. I turn off my PC, the TV, and take a break from everything virtual.

I’ll actually do everything in real time for the next week. 

From November 4th through the 11th, I’ll be wandering the hinterlands with my honey. If all goes well, my next post will be on the 12th.

Here’s an election day story for you: Bush, Kennedy and more: 5 political dynasties to watch Election Day

Since I’ll be gone on Veterans Day, I’m going to give a shout-out right now to my fellow veterans; “Peace!”

I want to thank you, valued viewer, for stopping by this blog.

Take a minute, and check out the links on the right side of this page.

You’ll find newspaper columns I wrote, and all of my past posts (going back to July 2005), a link to my novella RAFTER’S REDEMPTION, and a link to an ongoing book project – THE JET CHRONICLES.

I hope you come back to visit again soon. Have a good one!

Time for me to walk on down the road…

“The life which is unexamined is not worth living.” - Plato

 

 

 

How to create awesome glazes for your precious pottery

Good Day World!

It’s time to get glazed…but not confused!

I put together a learning board on glazing pottery last year that was really popular with viewers (still is) while working at Learnist.

It’s titled Awesome Glazes for Pottery.

Glazing is important for earthenware vessels. Without it they wouldn't hold liquids due to porosity. Glaze is also used on stoneware and porcelain.

Check out the links and information on glazing origins, art, applications, techniques and how to apply it like a pro.

According to this Wikipedia article, from 552 to 794 AD, different colored glazes were introduced during the Kofun period of Japan.

The earliest example, Sue ware, was decorated with natural ash glazes and were green. In the 13th century, flower designs were painted with red, blue, green, yellow and black overglazes.

Learn about bisque firing, baking and glazing your pottery creations at Howstuffworks.

Using glazes requires a lot of experimentation and practice. Many factors, like the kind of kiln or the kind of clay you use, impact the final result.

Above all, have fun!

Time for me to walk on down the road…

Time to FACT CHECK campaign whoppers before elections

Good Day World!

Just the facts, please.

By the time the last polling booth closes on Nov. 4, a staggering amount of money — $4 billion, by one estimate — will have been spent on the midterm elections.

What did all that money buy?

A lot of false and misleading TV ads.

The facts too often did not support the over-the-top rhetoric used by both sides. Here’s a breakdown of the bullshit being broadcast in hopes of getting votes:

SENIOR SCARE

There were plenty of claims to scare seniors. But they were ghost stories — both frightening and fanciful.

Midterm Medicare Mudslinging, Oct. 3
More Senior Scare in Arkansas, Aug. 22
Social Security Scare in Louisiana, Aug. 7
Medicare Ghost Stories, July 9
Old Medicare Claims in Arkansas Senate Race, Feb. 21

COAL-FIRED WHOPPERS

The whoppers in Kentucky and West Virginia were often fueled by America's No. 1 energy source, coal.

Bogus Attack in Coal Mine Country, March 19
Doubling Down in West Virginia, Sept. 16
Kentucky Coal Connections, Oct. 7
No Proof of 'Lying,' Oct. 15

OBAMACARE

'Cassidycare?' Come On! July 11
Who Supports Obamacare in Georgia Race? July 16
Obamacare Ad Onslaught, April 11

DISHONORING VETERANS

Moldy Baloney About Vets' Benefits, June 5
Democratic Assault on Cassidy's Record, Sept. 3
No Cuts for Military Vets, Sept. 18
Braley's VA Hearing Attendance Under Attack, Aug. 1

MISLEADING ADS ABOUT TAXES

McConnell's Bloated Tax Boast, April 23
Grimes Ad Misses the Mark on McConnell, Oct. 23
Cantor Mislabels Opponent, May 5
Cantor Mislabels Opponent, The Sequel, May 28
Editing Out the Facts in Alabama, June 25
More Carbon Tax Distortions, July 24
AFP Distorts Begich's Carbon Tax Stance, Feb. 28

WAIT ... THERE'S MORE!

Disconnecting the Dots in Arkansas, April 11
Hijacking History in Arkansas, Sept. 24
Abortion Attack Goes Too Far in Montana, May 22
Perdue Distorts Nunn Campaign Memo, Sept. 12
Double Whopper Against King, Oct. 10

 

Ancient Teotihuacan tunnel in Mexico yields treasure trove of ritual objects

(Photo - A scanner view of a tunnel under a pyramid at the archaeological site of Teotihuacan, Mexico.)

A sacred tunnel discovered in the ancient city of Teotihuacan is filled with thousands of ritual objects and may lead to royal tombs, the lead Mexican archaeologist on the project said Wednesday.

The site is located about 30 miles (50 kilometers) northeast of Mexico City. The ruins have long been shrouded in mystery because its inhabitants did not leave behind written records.

(Rest of the story)

Would you benefit from ‘Social Media Cleansing’?

Good Day World!

Are you hyper-connected?

Does your smartphone go with you to the bathroom?

Can’t sleep unless your smartphone is in bed with you?

Is your face buried in Facebook, video games, twitter, texting, sexting, chatting, and Googling your days away?

It’s time you came up for air my friend!

A recent study found people have become so used to continuous outside stimulation that a large number of them would rather experience minor electrical shocks than spend time alone with their thoughts.

What’s the matter with that picture?

Another study found many students couldn’t concentrate on homework for more than two minutes without checking their social media accounts or writing an email.

Wow!

Sadly, too many people feel disconnected when they’re offline.

Virtual reality threatens “real time’ life experiences in our techie culture. I highly recommend a “social media cleansing” to help keep yourself grounded.

If you’re not sure how addicted you are to your smartphone/social media, take a break from it for a few hours. Turn it off.

If those hours seemed like days, the answer is obvious. The question now is, what are you going to do about it?

Time for me to walk on down the road…

Finally! Evidence discovered about Amelia Earhart’s fate

Good Day World!

It appears Amelia Earhart and Fred Noonan died as castaways on a tiny atoll after their plane went down. 

Researchers have suspected as much for decades, but there’s been no positive proof…until now.

A fragment of Amelia Earhart's lost aircraft has been identified to a high degree of certainty for the first time ever since her plane vanished over the Pacific Ocean on July 2, 1937, in a record attempt to fly around the world at the equator.

New research strongly suggests that a piece of aluminum aircraft debris (Photo) recovered in 1991 from Nikumaroro, an uninhabited atoll in the southwestern Pacific republic of Kiribati, does belong to Earhart’s twin-engined Lockheed Electra.

The breakthrough would prove that, contrary to what was generally believed, Earhart and her navigator, Fred Noonan, did not crash in the Pacific Ocean, running out of fuel somewhere near their target destination of Howland Island.

(Photo courtesy Miami Herald)

Instead, they made a forced landing on Nikumaroro' smooth, flat coral reef. The two became castaways and eventually died on the atoll, which is some 350 miles southeast of Howland Island.

It’s the first time an artifact found on Nikumaroro has been shown to have a direct link to Amelia Earhart. (Read full story at Discovery News)

Related:

This article from the Earhart Project webpage summarizes Amelia Earhart’s famous last flight, and documents when the patch/fragment was put on the plane in place of a window.

You’ll also found out about TIGHAR (pronounced “tiger”) an acronym for The International Group for Historic Aircraft Recovery, a non-profit foundation dedicated to promoting responsible aviation archaeology and historic preservation.

Time for me to walk on down the road…

Is it possible that you’re biased? Find out here

Good Day World!

Are you biased?

Not sure?

Would you like to know if you are?

Psychologists at Harvard, the University of Virginia and the University of Washington created "Project Implicit" to develop Hidden Bias Tests — called Implicit Association Tests - to measure unconscious bias.

To take Project Implicit's Hidden Bias Tests, click here. You may be asked to register.

ABOUT STEREOTYPES AND PREJUDICES

Hidden Bias Tests measure unconscious, or automatic, biases. Your willingness to examine your own possible biases is an important step in understanding the roots of stereotypes and prejudice in our society.

The ability to distinguish friend from foe helped early humans survive, and the ability to quickly and automatically categorize people is a fundamental quality of the human mind.

Categories give order to life, and every day, we group other people into categories based on social and other characteristics.

This is the foundation of stereotypes, prejudice and, ultimately, discrimination.

You’ll learn about:

Definition of terms - How do we learn prejudice? - How are our biases reinforced? - How do we perpetuate bias? - About Hidden Bias – and more.

Time for me to walk on down the road…

Funny News Reviews: Condom truck tips, spills load & more

Good Day World!

With all the bad news that seems to dominate the mainstream media – and social media – I thought it would be a nice change of pace to read some funny news stories/headlines.

THIS STORY SMELLS

When a man attempted to siphon gasoline from a motor home parked on a Seattle street, he got much more than he bargained for.

Police arrived at the scene to find an ill man curled up next to a motor home trying to steal gasoline and plugged his hose into the motor home's sewage tank by mistake. The owner of the vehicle declined to press charges, saying that it was the best laugh he'd ever had.

CASH MACHINE DOESN’T PAY OFF

Two men tried to pull the front off a cash machine by running a chain from the machine to the bumper of their pickup truck.

Instead of pulling the front panel off the machine, though, they pulled the bumper off their truck. Scared, they left the scene and drove home.

With the chain still attached to the machine.
With their bumper still attached to the chain.
With their vehicle's license plate still attached to the bumper!

ACTUAL NEWSPAPER HEADLINES

1. Sex Education Delayed, Teachers Request Training
2. Plane Too Close to Ground, Crash Probe Told
3. Iraqi Head Seeks Arms
4. Man Struck by Lightning Faces Battery Charge
5. Something Went Wrong in Jet Crash, Expert Says
6. Safety Experts Say School Bus Passengers Should Be Belted
7. Drunk Gets Nine Months in Violin Case
8. Survivor of Siamese Twins Joins Parents
9. Farmer Bill Dies in House
10. New Study of Obesity Looks for Larger Test Group
11. Is There a Ring of Debris around Uranus?
12. Stud Tires Out

CHECK IT OUT

Drug-possession defendant Christopher Johns, on trial in March in Pontiac, Michigan, said he had been searched without a warrant.

The prosecutor said the officer didn't need a warrant because a "bulge" in Christopher's jacket could have been a gun. Nonsense, said Christopher, who happened to be wearing the same jacket that day in court.

He handed it over so the judge could see it. The judge discovered a packet of cocaine in the pocket and laughed so hard he required a five-minute recess to compose himself. (Source)

Time for me to walk on down the road…

 

What a Weird and Wonderful Beard Competition

Photo by Craig Mitchelldyer / AP

                                                        Good Day World!

“Snidley Whiplash” would have been envious.

Over 300 dudes gathered for the Just For Men World Beard and Moustache Championships in Portland, Oregon on Saturday, Oct.25th.

Talk about knarly beards. The competition, held at the Portland Marriott Downtown Waterfront and Keller Auditorium, awarded 18 titles in categories ranging from "Dali" to "Fu Manchue" and "Freestyle Full Beard."

Nine foreign countries fielded competitors for the unusual competitions.  Judges looked for moustaches and beards that enhanced, "appearance, style and personality."

There was some controversy about the event.

Another World Beard and Moustache Championship protested the Portland event on Friday, calling the event "a fraud."

But that didn't stop the contest from being entertaining. People had a lot of fun. Go Here for a slideshow of cool beards and staches.

I hope the contest comes back next year, as I might enter it. I once won a beard contest 30 years ago. Maybe it’s time to come out of retirement and see if my whiter version stands a chance!

Time for me to walk on down the road…  

‘Religious Right’ Resorts to Lies About Being Forced to Perform Gay Marriages

Good Day World!

The Religious Right is reeling.

The federal government has recognized gay marriage in six more states, extending federal benefits to those couples.

The federal government has opened the door to gay marriage and the Religious Right is striking back with false stories about how churches are being forced to violate their beliefs to comply.

For example:

A couple from Coeur d’Alene, Idaho claim they are being forced to perform same-sex weddings in their wedding chapel, despite it being against their religious beliefs.

Donald and Evelyn Knapp are ordained ministers who run the Hitching Post, a wedding chapel that operates under the International Church of the Four Square, an evangelical Pentecostal sect.

The Knapps claim they were told they must start performing same-sex weddings, or face fines and possible jail time for violating a city ordinance.

The Knapps quickly claimed religious discrimination said their worst fears have come true. Churches are now being forced to perform same-sex weddings.

Hold on there for a moment. Here’s the rest of that story:

A slight hitch (pardon the pun): the chapel is not a non-profit ministry, but a for-profit company, which means it’s required by law to follow state and federal laws.

Real churches are non-profits, and are not being forced to comply with any government regulations.

More on the subject:

• Judge Strikes Down Wyoming Gay Marriage Ban
• Gay Marriage Becomes Legal in Arizona
• Feds to Recognize Gay Marriages in Seven More States

Time for me to walk on down the road…