Researcher says that medieval knights may have had PTSD

Medieval knights may have had PTSD or post-traumatic stress disorder. Often portrayed as courageous and cold-hearted killers, knights were human, too.

In movies, medieval knights are portrayed as courageous and loyal heroes who will fight to the death without fear or regret. In reality, the lives of knights were filled with a litany of stresses much like those that modern soldiers deal with.

They were often sleep-deprived, exhausted and malnourished. They slept outside on hard ground, fully exposed to whatever weather befell them. And their lives were full of horror and carnage as they regularly killed other men and watched their friends die.

Faced with the trauma inherent in a life of combat, according to a new look at ancient texts, medieval knights sometimes struggled with despair, fear, powerlessness and delusions. Some may have even suffered from post-traumatic stress or related disorders, argues a Danish researcher, just as their modern-day counterparts do. (Read more here)

When tattoos aren't nearly enough, and a 1941 Fruit cake sold for $525

          Good Morning Humboldt County!

How are you this morning? C’mon in and have a cup of hot coffee with me. Are you going to be one of the thousands of post Christmas shoppers today? Many Americans have today off and retailers are trying to cash in one more time before the year ends.

As for me…I’m content to stay at home and relax. Whatever you decide to do, make it a good day.

      When tattoos aren’t nearly enough

In some primitive cultures, beauty and status are displayed via large holes in the earlobe from which to hang heavy ornaments or to insert jewels or tokens, and BBC News reported in November that an "increasing" number of counterculture Westerners are getting their lobes opened far beyond routine piercing, usually by gradually stretching but sometimes with a hole-punch tool for immediate results. The hard core are "gauge kings (or queens)," showing a "commitment" to the lifestyle by making holes up to 10 mm (three-eighths inch) wide. (Cosmetic surgeons told BBC News in November that they're already preparing procedures for the inevitable wave of regretted decisions.) [BBC News, 11-21-2011]

           1941 Fruit Cake Sold for $525

A 1941 fruitcake has sold for $525 to an Arizona man in an Ohio company’s online auction, and the money will go to the homeless in southwest Ohio.

Elite Estate Group sold the cake in an auction on its website. Company owner Larry Chaney says the man, who wanted to remain anonymous, probably bought the cake as an investment.

Chaney says he doubts anyone would eat a 70-year-old fruitcake even though it was vacuum packed and contained rum that probably helped preserve it.The cake was made in 1941 by The Kroger Co. It was returned unopened to a Kroger store in 1971. The manager took it home and kept it until recently when his son was helping him get rid of some things and gave the cake to Chaney.

Time to walk on down the road…

I wish you a Merry Christmas and memorable traditions

        By Dave Stancliff/For The Times Standard
Christmas traditions.
Sometimes solemn. Sometimes silly. Always special.
Presents for my two sisters, brother, and me always appeared under the tree on Christmas morning. Never before.
On Christmas Eve we each got to open a present. Without fail, it was pajamas for all of us. Santa always wanted us to look good on Christmas morning. He also didn’t want us poking and prodding presents to see what they were until that magic morning.
My mother, never one who liked surprises, always opened her Christmas presents while the rest of the family were supposedly sleeping, then carefully re-wrapped them. We were all wise to that game but never said anything. Sorry Mom; I had to share your touching little holiday habit.
In the winter of 1979 my wife and I wanted to start a new tradition. Cutting down a real Christmas tree. Both of us were raised in the city and the only Christmas trees we saw were for sale on wooden stands in corner parking lots.

 We went with another couple who were longtime residents of Humboldt County, to a thick strand of trees on the side of a mountain on Highway 299. We took our three young sons, who eagerly anticipated the new experience of cutting down a tree for Christmas.
It was cold and snow blanketed the ground. And the tree tops. My wife, sons and I went in one direction, and our friends the other. We agreed to meet back at the pickup trucks. The crisp wind made me wish I’d remembered my gloves, but I didn’t let that dampen my spirits.
My little family was out in the woods on an adventure and I felt pretty good about it. The boys and my wife plowed through snow drifts with laughter that never seemed to stop. What a day. The stuff memories are made of.
 After a free-for-all snow fight, we walked around until we found the right tree. If you’ve ever seen the movie “Christmas Vacation” there’s a part where Clark cuts down a monstrous tree that barely fit in their house. I did not make that mistake.
 The tree we selected would easily fit into our little house. It was on a steep incline, but no problem. I  cautioned my family to step back. It was time for the man of the house to take care of business.

Despite my friend’s advice, I had not brought a full sized ax to cut down the tree. Instead, I had a recently purchased hatchet, and was confident of my ability to get things done with it. I was just cutting down a spruce, not a Redwood!
  There were a few things working against me as I peeled off my jacket and took up an awkward stance in preparation for the assault. The tree stood on a steep hill. I missed my first mighty swing and rolled a short way down the hill! I jumped up instantly as my concerned family looked on.
“Just playing around,” I joked and trudged back up to the tree whistling “Silent Night.” My hands were really cold by now so I wanted to make short work of the job. On my next swing the sharp hatchet bit into the bark with a satisfying thunk.

 I swung again, suddenly confident, and the hatchet glanced off the tree and struck my left shin with a sickening smack! My wife and the boys were at an angle that prevented them from seeing where the second swing landed. I gritted my teeth and felt real stupid as I smiled down at them and tried to staunch the blood with a handful of snow.

 They all looked so innocent. So trusting of my abilities, that I knew I had to conceal the wound. At least until we got home and I could take my dear wife aside and get some medical attention.
  I stood on one leg and one knee hacking away like a man possessed. The tree couldn’t withstand my ruthless attack for long. It finally fell over and slowly slid down the hill. I pulled it over to the truck as my wide-eyed sons babbled happily. With my friend’s help we hefted it into the back of the truck.
 No one noticed my bloody shin in all the excitement and I managed to drive back to the house with my secret intact. Afterward my wife treated the deep cut (right to the bone) on my shin between fits of laughter. We agreed not to share what happened, but the story came out the following year when we didn’t cut a tree for Christmas and our sons wondered why.
  As It Stands, sometimes traditions are short-lived, but none the less memorable. Merry Christmas to you from the Stancliff family!

Christmas Eve Special Report:What kids around the world feed Santa

 Good Morning Humboldt County!

Here we are the day before  Christmas. C’mon inside and have a hot cup of coffee with me and see what Santa get’s to eat tonight. I even have cookies for us this morning! 

As a child, did you ever wonder whether Santa got tired of eating the same thing at each house he visited? Turns out, you needn’t have worried: though American and Canadian children leave out milk and cookies, the treats left out for him in other countries keep Santa’s night from being anything but monotonous. Here’s a look at what Santa (in whatever form he takes) can expect at houses around the world on Christmas eve.

Denmark
On Christmas Eve, Danish children leave out a bowl of special Christmas rice pudding called risengrød. The pudding is said to appease Tomte, a white-bearded mythical figure, similar to the English Father Christmas, who brings presents but has been known to cause household mischief if his requisite bowl of risengrød is missing.

Germany
In Germany, Santa can only satisfy his appetite for reading. Children there leave letters, not cookies, for Santa (who in Germany takes the form of Christkind, a white-robed, present-bearing figure from which “Kris Kringle” is derived). The letters are usually doused with glitter and attractively displayed on the windowsills. On Christmas morning, when the children wake up, the letters are gone, replaced by presents under the tree.

France
In France, children don’t leave cookies for the French Père Noël, but instead make sure to fill their shoes with carrots and treats for his donkey, Gui. Père Noël will remove the treats for the donkey and in their place leave small trinkets and tokens for the children.

Netherlands
Dutch children leave out carrots, hay and a bowl of water on Christmas Eve for Sinterklaas’ horse. Sinterklaas, in return, leaves hot chocolate, mandarin oranges, chocolate coins and marzipan figures. Not a bad trade.

Britain and Australia
The Australians and Brits figure Santa needs something a little heartier than milk and cookies to sustain him through his big night, so children leave out sherry and mince pies. The traditional Christmastime treats are made with sweet, sticky fruit and brandy, and baked into bite-sized pies.

Ireland
Santa can expect more mince pies when he gets to Ireland, but there he’ll get to wash it down with some Guinness, which Irish families traditionally leave out for him on Christmas Eve. And after a long night of hard work, Santa definitely deserves it.

Chile
In Chile, Viejo Pascuero (Old Man Christmas) is greeted with a traditional Chilean pan de pascua, a sponge cake flavored with ginger and honey and full of candied fruit.

Other Christmas Eve eats around the world
Not all cultures set aside food for Santa on Christmas Eve, but if he gets hungry on his long trip, here’s a look at what he can expect in other parts of the world.

India
Children don’t traditionally leave food out for Christmas Baba in India, but they do make Christmas treats called kulkuls, which are sweet balls of fried dough made from coconut milk. Want to make your own? Get the recipe here.

Japan
In Japan, children can snack on a traditional Japanese Christmas cake, a white sponge cake covered with cream and decorated with strawberries, while waiting for the arrival of the Santa-like Hotei-Osho.

Philippines
Filipino children go to bed on Christmas Eve dreaming not of sugarplums but of the traditional nochabuena Christmas meal, which involves queso de bola (a ball of Edam cheese) and tsokolate (a hot-chocolate type drink).

Kenya
A Kenyan child might save lucky Santa a bit of roasted goat, which is the traditional Kenyan Christmas Eve repast.

Argentina
And if Santa gets thirsty on his trek through Argentina, he can duck into the kitchen for some sidra, an alcoholic apple cider that’s traditionally used to toast on Christmas Eve.

What kind of food did you leave out for Santa when you were a kid?

(Report by By Chiara Atik)

Dear Santa Letter sent 100 years ago found up chimney

IT MAY have been slightly scorched over the years but a letter to Santa written 100 years ago, which was later discovered in a Dublin fireplace, has the magic of Christmas written all over it.

On Christmas Eve 1911, a brother and sister, who signed their names, “A or H Howard”, penned their personally designed letter to Santa with their requests for gifts and a good luck message at their home in Oaklands Terrace, Terenure (or Terurnure, as the children spelled it) in Dublin.

They placed it in the chimney of the fireplace in the front bedroom so that Santa would see it as he made his way into the Howard household in the early hours of the morning.

The letter was discovered by the house’s current occupant, John Byrne, when he was installing central heating in 1992. Since then, he has retained it as a souvenir of another time and place but with the stamp of childhood innocence which still exists today. The message to Santa was warm but explicit.

“I want a baby doll and a waterproof with a hood and a pair of gloves and a toffee apple and a gold penny and a silver sixpence and a long toffee.”

Ownership of the house changed over the decades, with the Byrne family moving there in 1961, but the letter survived. “At that time, the fireplaces were made of brick with a shelf on either side,” said John Byrne who works in the building industry.

“The letter was found on one of the shelves.” The letter remained remarkably intact given the passage of time and was only slightly burned from fires set in the house over the years.

As well as the requests for gifts from Santa the letter also contains drawings and a message of “Good Luck” to Santa from the children. According to the 1911 census there were three children living at the address in the year in which the letter was written.

The youngest of them, Hannah, who was 10 at the time, and Fred (presumably short for Alfred) who was seven, fit in with the initials on the letter. A third child, a 13-year-old called Lily, is also listed. The Howard family were all born in England, including parents Fred Hamer Howard, an “under manager” in a plumber merchants, and his wife Mary Elizabeth. They listed their religion as Church of Ireland.

(Via Irish Times)

Bull Frog Plays Video Game, and an 80-Year Old Fights Off a Gunman

This frog could probably beat me at gaming, although that isn’t saying much!

   Good Morning Humboldt County!

Only two more shopping days left until Christmas. Thanks for taking time out of your busy schedule to stop by. I’ve got a fresh pot of coffee on, so c’mon in and relax for a few and see what stories I have for you.

In this video, a frog plays video games. No, really. Specifically, an African Bullfrog plays an app for the handheld game, Ant Smasher. The makers of the game note that more than 15 million people have downloaded it but we're pretty sure this is the first non-human player caught on video.

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        80-year-old grandmother fights off gunman

An 80-year-old grandmother in Florida successfully fended off an armed attacker who was attempting to rob her 61-year-old daughter.

Josefa Lopez told the Sentinel Sun she felt "no fear" when she used her aluminum cane to fight off the gunman who had physically assaulted her daughter.

"I thought she was dead," Lopez said in Spanish. "I yelled at [the gunman], 'I am going to kill you, [son of a b----]!' I wasn't myself. To me, she was dead." The assailant, who fired a gunshot at Lopez but missed, is still at large. He reportedly pulled Lopez from her Ford Expedition, shouting, "Give me," and pistol-whipped her. That's when the 4-foot-9 Josefa took control of the situation.

"When you see your daughter in trouble," Lopez said, "you have to do something." Lopez reportedly grabbed the gunman by the back of his shirt and began pulling him away from her daughter. She was about to strike him with her cane when he fired the shot at her.

Time to walk on down the road…

We could all use a comforting snuggle now and then…

They say the holiday season is hard on a  people for different reasons:

Not being home for Christmas.

Being alone on Christmas.

The stress of buying gifts you can’t afford.

The holiday season is also hard on animals for different reasons:

They’re given as gifts, but later when they grow up they’re given away.

Outdoor stray cats, for whatever reasons, have to deal with freezing winter conditions.

Take a look at these two natural enemies. A dog and a cat. A puppy, to be sure, but still a dog.

Look at the eye contact. An unspoken agreement made in moments.

The puppy trusts the cat and comes over to cuddle.

The cat, because cats are independent, doesn’t want to look too happy with the situation…

…but it’s hard.

The warm body next to it is reassuring.

In the end the cat closes it’s eyes (a sure sign of trust) and allows the gangly puppy to snuggle up.

Is there a message here for humans?

You tell me.

photos found here

 

Autism-friendly Santas a hit at malls & parties, Santa’s reindeers prepare for Christmas, & John Lennon’s ‘Happy Xmas’ (War is Over)

          Good Morning Humboldt County!

 Only three more days until Christmas. Can you believe it? It’s cold outside, but no snow. C’mon in and have a cup of coffee with me and check out the following seasonal stories:

 

Autism-friendly Santas a hit at malls, parties

Visiting a shopping mall to share Christmas wishes with Santa had always been too much for 10-year-old Ben Borre, due to the autism that makes the noise, lights and crowds an unbearable torment.

But now a growing number of "sensitive" Santas in shopping centers, at community parties and elsewhere are giving Ben and others a chance to meet the big guy in autism-friendly settings — allowing their families to capture Christmas memories that other families may take for granted.

For a child on the autism spectrum, sometimes the smallest item or gesture can spark a connection — such as the Northtown Mall Santa's gold watch or the tiny Christmas train that rotates inside of it.

Visit msnbc.com for breaking news, world news, and news about the economy

The big day is drawing near….

In honor of the Iraq War ending…

Time to walk on down the road…

Once upon a time…

source

Moms turn to phone-sex to supplement income, support families during hard economic times

An increasing number of cash-strapped mothers are taking jobs as phone-sex operators, finding that talking dirty to strangers is an easy way to support their families.

The number of mothers with young children who have become telephone temptresses over the last 18 months has shot up about 400%, reports ABC’s “Good Morning America.”

The data comes from ratracerebellion.com, a website dedicated to helping mothers find jobs that allow them to work from home.

Chris Durst, who runs the online organization, has been tracking the working habits of mothers for more than a decade. She says the number of women who search for phone-sex work generally spikes after Labor Day, as their children return to school. But in the past two years, the level of interest in phone-sex employment has been extraordinary — and Durst blames it on the economy. (Read more here)

Manning defense's focus on gender identity disorder alarms some

It appears that Manning’s lawyers are desperate enough to use a defense - that isn’t a legal defense for the type of crime committed - hoping the gender card will save him somehow.

“Raising the hackles of some attorneys who work on transgender legal issues, defense attorneys for Bradley Manning apparently intend to make an almost novel legal argument -- that the Army private was suffering from gender identity disorder when his alleged crimes were committed -- if his case proceeds to court martial as expected.

Several attorneys who work with transgender legal issues said they were not aware of a gender identity disorder defense being raised in a civilian court, and King said it’s easy to see why not, noting that such a diagnosis “doesn’t prevent you from knowing right from wrong.” The disorder is most often raised in criminal proceedings as part of an overall insanity defense, or by expert witnesses arguing that a defendant is so mentally damaged that he or she should be committed, he said.

And several lawyers who work with transgender clients indicated they were not happy with the direction that the Manning proceedings have taken. “We don’t think that being transgender, if he in fact is, has anything to do with him breaking the law,” said Kylar Broadus, an attorney with the Transgender Law and Policy Institute. “Obviously the charges are serious and we don’t want the trial to be sensationalized or detracted from by him being transgender.”

“Our opinion is there is no correlation between anything he has done and gender identity disorder,” agreed Dru Levasseur, a transgender rights attorney with Lambda Legal.

“This plays into stereotypes that are not true,” he continued. “There are a lot of people with gender identity disorder fighting for their lives to be respected and understood as human beings who need equal access to the law. This type of scenario just confuses the situation.” (Story source)