Hillary In the White House

President Hillary Clinton:

“Bill and Hillary Clinton, when they first reached the White House, set a new standard of the politically active spouse.…”

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A Butterfly Flaps Its Wings…

Gratefulness.org’s Word For the Day today:

After an orange cloud — formed as a result of a dust storm over the Sahara and caught up by air currents — reached the Philippines and settled there with rain, I understood that we are all sailing in the same boat.

-Vladimir Kovalyonok (Astronaut)

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Stonehenge Solved?

From latimes.com early this morning:

Stonehenge was a royal family’s burial site, researchers say

“…The structure is aligned with sunrise at the summer solstice, and researchers have long viewed the monument as both an astronomical observatory and a cemetery, although they thought that the burials took place only over a relatively short period, perhaps a century.

“But research over the last three years has provided a wealth of new information indicating that Stonehenge is only part of a much larger ceremonial and religious complex.

“Excavations at Durrington Walls, two miles northeast of Stonehenge, revealed a village that is now thought to contain as many as 1,000 houses and a wooden henge that is virtually identical in design to Stonehenge but is aligned with sunrise at the winter solstice. It was built at the same time as Stonehenge.…”

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It’s A Lot Simpler Than I Thought

How to Make a Cosmopolitan

from wikiHow - The How to Manual That You Can Edit

The Cosmopolitan, affectionately referred to as a Cosmo, is a sophisticated vodka based cocktail, flavoured with orange, cranberry and lime. Though its origins are disputed, we know that it made its appearance in San Francisco, CA during the late 1980s and reached new levels of popularity when it became the drink of choice by the characters of the TV show “Sex and the City”. So if you’d like a Cosmo with your burger and fries, here’s how to make your own!

Ingredients

• 40 ml (1 1/3 oz) of vodka
  
• 10 ml (1/3 oz or 2 tsp) of orange liqueur (triple sec, cointreau, or Grand Marnier)
  
• 10 ml (1/3 oz or 2 tsp) of cranberry juice
  
• 1 medium lime
  
• 1 medium orange
  

Steps

1. Chill the martini glass. Fill the martini glass with ice and leave to cool while you prepare your drink.
   
2. Mix the ingredients. In a mixing glass, combine the vodka, orange liqueur, and cranberry juice.
   
   • You can use single shot and double shot measures if you're making several drinks at once.
     
   
   
3. Cut the lime. Cut a lime in half, and divide one half in to 4 wedges.
   
4. Add the lime. Squeeze 2 wedges over the mixing glass, and drop them in.
   
5. Add the ice. Get rid of the ice from your martini glass, and fill up the mixing glass with fresh ice. Always do this last so you don’t dilute your cocktail with melted water from the ice.
   
6. Shake. Put the top half of the cocktail shaker on, pressing down firmly. The cooling process during shaking will cause the metal to contract on the glass and form the seal. Invert so that the glass cup is on the top to prevent it from hitting and breaking on an object as well as prevent the ingredients from leaking out of the shaker. Hold the top and bottom with each hand and shake vigorously for about 20 seconds or when there is condensation on the outside of the shaker and it feels very cold.
   
7. Release. Put the shaker down with the drink in the metal shaker. Tap the side of the shaker with the base of your palm and nudge the glass from side to side to loosen it until you can remove it.
   
8. Pour it out. Put the cocktail strainer over the shaker and pour in to the martini glass.
   
   • When you put the strainer on the shaker, be sure to push it towards the edge of the glass that the mixture is going to pour over so you don't get any shards of ice in your drink.
     
   
   
9. Garnish. To garnish, use an orange or lemon twist (see Tips). Alternatively, you can use a wedge of lemon or lime.
   

Variations

• 2 parts lemon vodka to one parts triple sec, one part cranberry juice, and the juice of half a lime
  
• Blue cosmopolitan - substitute blue curaçao (in place of triple sec) and white cranberry juice
  
• Cosmocello - substitute limoncello in place of lime juice
  

Tips

• The higher quality the triple sec, the cleaner the flavor of the drink. Grand Marnier creates a drink with a very sweet and cloying flavor that some may not favor.
  
• If you don’t have lime juice, you can substitute sour mix.
  
• To make an orange twist:
  
  • Cut a thin slice of peel.
    
  • Use the knife to remove the pith.
    
  • Cut into an even strip. Run the orange around the lip of the glass, twist it over the drink, and drop it in.
    
  
  

Warnings

• Don’t be tempted to add too much cranberry juice. It’s there for the color, not the flavor.
  
• Better quality cranberry juice makes a better cosmopolitan. Look for natural cranberry juice without corn syrup.
  

Things You'll Need

• 1 martini glass
  
• 1 cocktail shaker (these instructions are demonstrated using a “Boston” shaker, but any shaker can be used)
  
• 1 25ml (1 fl oz) single shot measure
  
• 1 50ml (2 fl oz) double shot measure
  
• Ice
  
• 1 knife
  
• 1 chopping board
  
• 1 cocktail strainer
  
• 1 mixing glass
  

Related wikiHows

• How to Make a Shaken Cocktail
  
• How to Garnish a Cocktail
  
• How to Make Martinis
  
• How to Throw a Cocktail Party
  

Sources and Citations

• http://www.videojug.com/film/how-to-make-a-cosmopolitan-cocktail - Video of technique. Original source of article. Shared with permission.
  
• http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cosmopolitan_%28cocktail%29
  

Article provided by wikiHow, a collaborative writing project to build the world's largest, highest quality how-to manual. Please edit this article and find author credits at the original wikiHow article on How to Make a Cosmopolitan. All content on wikiHow can be shared under a Creative Commons license.

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JPL Is in Fine Form!!

From the nytimes.com early tomorrow morning:

Mars Lander Starts Moving Its Robotic Arm

“The spacecraft also completed a 360-degree panorama, showing what Peter H. Smith of the University of Arizona, the principal investigator, described as a ‘hummocky terrain’ — mostly flat with slight bumps and troughs caused by the expansion and contraction of under-surface ice.

“The few rocks were small — generally about five inches in diameter, with some as wide as eight inches — and most were flat, Dr. Smith said. Curiously, the rocks appeared brighter than the soil.

“The science team has started naming the rocks, drawing from fairy tales and folk legends. One Humpty-Dumpty-inspired rock was named “King’s Men,” and another “King’s Horses.” One otrough was named “Sleepy Hollow,” so two nearby rocks are now “Ichabod” after Ichabod Crane, the main character of the story, and “Headless,” the headless horseman who pursues Ichabod.…”

Ya gotta love it!

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Happy 80th!!

From the Daily Mail today:

Still together after 80 years, Britain’s oldest married couple celebrate their “oak” wedding with a simple kiss

“As with any married couple, there are times when Frank and Anita Milford don’t quite see eye to eye.

“But they have never let the odd disagreement get in the way of their love for each other and their dedication to their marriage.

“To prove it, Frank, 100, and Anita, 99, today celebrate their 80th wedding anniversary, equalling the record for England’s longest-ever marriage.…”

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Opposites Attract

Today’s Daily Thought from Real Simple:



At every party there are two kinds of people — those who want to go home and those who don’t. The trouble is, they are usually married to each other.

— Ann Landers

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Nifty: Yummy and Good for You, Too!

From the Mail Online Friday:
Adding rosemary to your steak could reduce cancer risk

“Rosemary is usually added to meat for its flavour, but now there is another reason to use the seasoning - to help prevent cancer.

“Scientists found adding the herb to hamburgers can break up potentially cancer-causing compounds called HCAs (heterocyclic amines) which form when meat is cooked.

“The presence of HCAs can be a particular problem in beef cooked at high temperatures over a long period of time.

“However, research at Kansas State University showed that adding rosemary to beef patties reduced levels of HRAs by 30 to 100 per cent. This is due to the herb's antioxidant properties.

“Adding rosemary is an alternative to cooking meat at lower temperatures.

“Meat-lovers who do not like the flavour of rosemary can use rosemary extract, which can be bought on the internet.…”

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Different Take on a Mess

Today’s Daily Thought from Real Simple:



I am thankful for the mess to clean after a party because it means I have been surrounded by friends.

— Nancie J. Carmody

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Children… Theories… Children… Theories…

From Quotes of the Day, today:

Before I got married I had six theories about bringing up children; now I have six children and no theories.

- John Wilmot

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The Cops Weren’t Helpful?

From the LA Times’ all-about-animals blog, L.A. Unleashed, earlier today:

Lost parrot returns home after reciting his name and address:

“When Yosuke the parrot flew out of his cage and got lost, he did exactly what he had been taught — he recited his name and address to a stranger willing to help.…”

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Slow Down, Yes…

…but don’t stop, or worse yet, start moving in reverse.

Moderation in all things: I don’t know about anybody else, but I have no intention of totally buying into any scheme(s) that guarantees I’ll be (physically) stuck where I am right now with no hope of ever leaving until I’m buried.

As it intimates in the warnings in this article, think; use common sense.

How to Get Started in the Slow Food Movement

from wikiHow - The How to Manual That You Can Edit

Slow Food is good, clean and fair food. We believe that the food we eat should taste good; that it should be produced in a clean way that does not harm the environment, animal welfare or our health; and that food producers should receive fair compensation for their work.[1]
The slow food movement is a reaction to a fast food lifestyle predominant in many modern cultures. By choosing to become a part of the Slow Food movement, you are making a choice to be a co-producer rather than a consumer; an active, proactive and informed part of the food chain that recognises the “connections between plate and planet”.[2] This article discusses a few ways to become involved and become a Slow Foodie yourself.

Steps

1. Understand what slow food means. Slow food is about more than food; it is about a lifestyle that connects our food consumption to the wider social, ethical, lifestyle, political, environmental and spiritual elements around us. Slow food is about eschewing haste and recognising that over-reliance on fast food damages our health, social fabric and cultural food traditions.
   
2. Join a Slow Food group in your region. The Slow Food movement has enlisted over 80,000 members in at least 122 countries, so it's probable you have a group near you.[3] Your local group will be known as a “convivium” and you will find your local group via Slow Food – Where To Find. Of course, you don’t have to join to be a part of the Slow Food movement; it is just a chance to be with like-minded people and to have the chance to share ideas and to participate in events together; benefits that may enthuse you.
   
3. Get cooking. That’s right. Stop buying the pre-made selection and start pulling out your recipe books. Look for family heirloom recipes passed down through the generations; many of us can recall delicious meal occasions prepared by family members, or even by ourselves before the need for speed overtook us. Be careful about your recipe choices, however. The fancy cookbooks might call for ingredients that need to be imported from many thousands of miles away; avoid these and favour recipes that let your local produce take centre stage, including veggies and fruit from your own garden.
   
4. Shop locally. Shopping locally is a key element to being a Slow Foodie. Shop at your local farmers’ markets, your local fruit and vegetable store and even consider asking for veggies from your neighbours if they’re growing some. Not only do you save the wear and tear on the environment from all the energy consumed in long-range transportation but you also know where your food came from and that’s a very reassuring feeling. The greatest benefit of shopping locally though? The food is as fresh as possible and that just tastes the best.
   
5. Avoid genetically modified food. Whilst some companies may put forth a vision that genetically modified food is the promise of the future, there remain many questions about the speed at which such modification is occurring and the means by which it is being achieved. Certainly, we have been modifying our food for centuries but the key word here is centuries, not a matter of years. The Slow Food movement has a fundamental opposition to the use of genetically modified food products because in making a large swathe of common food sources generic, we risk losing the all important diversity and quality of food available around the world and replacing it with mono-crops that become more susceptible to disease, providing less healthy variety and possibly increasing the chances of human-induced disease through over-concentration on a few food types.
   
6. Buy organic. Where possible, prefer organic produce over conventionally grown food. You reduce your exposure to pesticides, fungicides and fertiliser chemicals and you get produce that many studies have suggested are higher in nutrients that bolster the immune system, presumably because plants not treated with pesticides must produce more antioxidants to protect themselves.[4] Organic food is an important part of the Slow Food movement because organic food is low impact and harm reducing, especially when practiced on a non-industrial scale.
   
7. Grow your own food. Whether you have space only for a container of herbs or space for a large veggie patch, you can become a direct force in your own food production. For dwellers in small residences, use the window sill and balcony to grow herbs and fruit trees in pots. For those with larger gardens, plant vegetables in seasonal rotation and enjoy the freshest there is. It is really important to involve children in gardening, to aid their understanding of the connection between soil, food and their own health. Start children with easy-to-grow plants, such as radishes, herbs and peas. Encourage children to eat some of their crop raw, straight from the garden, so that they can taste just how delicious a fresh pod of peas or cob of corn really is.
   
8. Share your home-cooked meals. Not everybody can cook. Those who are infirm, disabled or simply too busy to consider the value of slow food are just some examples of people who are not in a position to cook. Share your cooking talents around to help out those less fortunate; and if you are trying to convince others about the message of slow food, what better way than by setting the example with your own delicious food? Tempt them…
   
9. Cook with the kids. The earlier that children get involved in the kitchen, the better. Children who know how to cook are not at the mercy of the fast food industry and know automatically how easy it is to whip up their own fresh food at home. Moreover, in teaching kids how to cook, you share a family tradition together that will bind you closer together and this helps to pass on traditional family knowledge. Encourage kids to enjoy cooking at home by letting their imaginations take a key part in the cooking process; creating shapes and food themes is a fun part of making food for the table, as in this image.
   
10. Pack a healthy lunch. For work, school, outings and play, take a home-prepared lunch. Soup can be kept warm in a thermos, sandwiches can be kept fresh by pre-cutting the filling but only adding it to the bread at lunchtime and homemade baked goods, cut fruit and veggies, salads and leftovers can contribute to a well-rounded and tasty lunch that lets you spend more time enjoying your lunch hour and keeping extra money in your wallet. Save that extra money for a delicious meal once a month in a restaurant that follows Slow Food principles.
    

Tips

• The Slow Food movement began in Italy, in 1989. Carlo Petrini advocated against fast food and was the founding member of the Slow Food movement.[5]
  
• Drink municipal water where safe; bottled water requires high energy usage to bottle and transport and there are concerns about leakage of chemicals from the plastic bottles. It is better to agitate for sustained municipal water supplies than to pay more per litre for water than for fuel; water that often is filtered municipal supplies anyway! Add a filter to your home taps and enjoy what you are already paying for and support the local waterworks.
  
• Many traditional cooking methods have fallen into disuse because of the time that they required to prepare and cook. Many people have solved this problem by preparing large quantities of old-style food in one day (imagine that you were going to have many guests), then freezing it in meal sized containers for easy defrosting and consumption. Freezers are very useful tools for the modern kitchen.
  
• Never forget that your slow cooker can be started in advance and allowed to cook all day, maintenance-free; and that when in a rush, a pressure cooker can greatly reduce the time necessary to cook items or entire meals! (Pressure cooking a half gallon of fresh-snapped green beans requires less than 10 minutes, and entire roast beef only takes 15 minutes per pound of meat.) Additionally, a huge “bale” of fresh spinach microwaves in minutes! Not all “slow” cooking has to be inconvenient or a long ordeal -- the word “slow” refers more to Anti-Fast-Food.
  

Warnings

• Test your soil for toxins. If you live in an urban area, or anywhere that may have once been industrial you would be well-advised to test your soil before growing vegetables. Even healthy looking soil could be contaminated with lead, mercury, zinc, cadmium, or PCBs. In the US, the local Agriculture Office should offer these testing services to their residents, along with relevant advice concerning growing things in your immediate area.
  
• It is easy to believe that organic farming and fair trade products are safer and better for the world. However, many experts disagree with the hype. Remember that “organic” is a business model just like any other, and presents its own problems and challenges.[6]
  

Things You'll Need

• Time
  
• Farmers’ markets, local fruit and vegetable stores
  
• Garden or container garden
  

Related wikiHows

• How to Choose the Most Important Organic Foods
  
• How to Start an Organic Garden
  
• How to Save Money at a Farmers’ Market
  
• How to Avoid the Temptation to Eat Unhealthy Foods
  
• How to Be Green
  
• How to Live a More Environmentally Friendly Lifestyle
  
• How to Practice Sustainable Agriculture
  

Sources and Citations

• Official Slow Food
  Web site
  
• Slow Food USA
  
• Slow Food UK
  
• Slow Food Canada
  
• Slow Food Ireland
  
• The Slow Food Foundation for Biodiversity
  

1. Å™ Slow Food, Our Philosophy


2. Å™ Slow Food, Our Philosophy


3. Å™ Where We Are


4. Å™ New York Times: Is Organic Food Provably Better?


5. Å™ Wikipedia, Slow Food


6. Å™ http://www.economist.com/business/displaystory.cfm?story_id=8380592

Article provided by wikiHow, a collaborative writing project to build the world's largest, highest quality how-to manual. Please edit this article and find author credits at the original wikiHow article on How to Get Started in the Slow Food Movement. All content on wikiHow can be shared under a Creative Commons license.

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Love’s Virtues

Gratefulness.org’s Word For the Day today:

Love makes labour light. Love alone gives value to all things.

-St. Teresa of Avila

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That’s Explorer As In IE

This is better than my cyborg name!!

Get Your Monster Name

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Nullify This!!

Great name, huh?

Get Your Cyborg Name

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Bowser Beer!

On baltimoresun.com yesterday:

Mutts: Dog beer 2: Or, you could buy American

Ya gotta love it!!

The inaugural Mutts post can be found here: A big, sloppy face-licking welcome

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Exercise Your Brain from a Young Age

Today’s Daily Thought from Real Simple:



Think left and think right and think low and think high. Oh, the thinks you can think up if only you try!

— Dr. Seuss

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A Wise Young Man

On Time.com today:

The World’s Next Top Lama

The article ends thusly: “…When a reporter noted that the Kagyu lineage is known for its stress on practice and that his own generation is not known for its patience, the Karmapa delivered some advice that his American followers could no doubt appreciate. ‘If people have no patience,’ he said, ‘they have no patience, and I can’t insist that they develop it. But I’ve observed that human life without patience becomes unworkable. My experience has been that I’ve been forced to develop patience with unchangeable situations.’ It is a virtue to recommend as well to those hoping for a solution for Tibet's status.”

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Flutterbys!

How to Create a Butterfly Garden

from wikiHow - The How to Manual That You Can Edit

Add beauty and life to your garden with the inclusion of flowers and plants that attract butterflies. There is a range of specific plants that entice butterflies, are easy to care for and are attractive for the garden. It is important to include “Host Plants” to ensure that the butterfly larvae (caterpillars) have a home and “Nectar Plants” for the butterflies to feed upon.

Steps

1. Research first. Find out which butterflies are common in your area. Observation over a few days and the use of a butterfly field guide will help you in this pursuit.
   
2. Choose “Host Plants” for your garden. Note from your research what the caterpillar (larvae) of the local butterflies eat. Two excellent examples are:
   
   • Milkweed - this attracts the Monarch caterpillar; and
     
   • Parsley - this attracts the Black Swallowtail caterpillar.
     
   
   
3. Choose “Nectar Plants” for your garden. Nectar plants serve as the food source for the butterfly. There is a variety of possible plants and some of them are shown here. Excellent choices include:
   
   • A Butterfly Bush - this is suitable for a Swallowtail. Large plant: 4 feet (1.2m) tall, 6 feet (1.8m) wide, make sure it is hardy in your area. Some varieties are considered invasive, so make sure, if you purchase one of these, that you keep it dead-headed to prevent seed production.
     
   • Swamp Milkweed - suitable for the Snowberry Clearwing. This plant grows 3 feet (.9m) tall and 18 inches (.5m) wide. It also serves as the host plant for Monarch caterpillars.
     
   • Joe Pye Weed - this is suitable for the Swallowtail. It grows to be a very large plant - 8 feet (2.4m) tall and 4 feet (1.2m) wide. It is a perennial.
     
   • Aster - Asters grow to 3 feet (.9m) tall and 2 feet (.6m) wide. It is a perennial. Butterflies especially love native varieties.
     
   • Bee Balm - this plant grows 2 feet (.6m) tall and 18 inches (.5m) wide. It is a perennial.
     
   • Zinnia - this plant is attractive to a range of butterflies and they especially like the tall varieties. The plant generally grows 4 feet (1.2m) high and 1 foot (.3m) wide. It is an annual and is easy to start from seed.
     
   • Pentas - suitable for Swallowtails. This plant grows 2 feet (.6m) hight and 3 feet (.9m) wide. It is an annual in cold climates.
     
   • Heliotrope - this plant attracts a range of butterflies. It grows to a height of 2 feet (.6m) and a width of 1 foot (.3m), although it is possible to contain it in a pot. It will remain a perennial in temperate zones but is only an annual in cold climates.
     
   
   
4. Plan garden on paper. Draw up a plan, or decide where to add these suggestions to a current garden. Keep in mind the full grown size of plants during this planning stage.
   
5. Purchase plants or seeds from garden center. You can also get these plants and seeds online. Choose robust and healthy plants to give them a good start.
   
6. Plant your butterfly garden. Make sure to keep new plants and seeds watered until plants are well-established or seeds germinate. Keep the weeds at bay, to give the plants a good chance.
   
7. Observe and enjoy the butterfly activity in your garden. Watch for female butterflies laying eggs on host plants. Make notes in a record book of the butterflies that you observe and, if you can, take photographs to add to your record book. A digital record book can be a useful and simple way to do this and can be added to over the years. Observed changes in the types and numbers of butterflies coming into your garden can be information shared with biologists, ecologists and climate change specialists who use local variation information to ascertain species increase or decline, as well as temperature fluctuations and change.
   

Tips

• If there are Monarch Butterflies in your area, they are very easy to attract. Swamp Milkweed (noted above) or Tropical Milkweed (annual in colder climates) are excellent host plants for them. The Tropical Milkweed can be started from seed in the winter.
  
• Monarchs are very fascinating butterflies. Their migration pattern is one of nature’s great stories. Indeed, you can participate in the migration by helping to track the Monarchs that arrive in your part of the world. Report your own observations to this map.
  

Warnings

• Always avoid planting potentially invasive species of plants. These plants can spread miles beyond the garden walls and wreak havoc on native ecosystems. If they are planted they will spread.
  

Related wikiHows

• How to Create a Rustic Flower Garden
  
• How to Raise Butterflies
  
• How to Arrange Six Flower Buds
  
• How to Grow a TickleMe Plant
  
• How to Make a Fairy House
  
• How to Grow Iris
  

Sources and Citations

• Glorious Butterfly - Butterfly Gardening and Raising Monarchs.
  

Article provided by wikiHow, a collaborative writing project to build the world’s largest, highest quality how-to manual. Please edit this article and find author credits at the original wikiHow article on How to Create a Butterfly Garden. All content on wikiHow can be shared under a Creative Commons license.

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Perseverance vs Conflict

Today’s Daily Reflection from the Society of the Little Flower:

The Lord has given me the grace never to fear the conflict, to do my duty no matter what the cost.

-St. Therese of Lisieux

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Dadsense…

…according to Anita!

Mom’s Overture

Put down the snack. Put down the drink. If you don’t, you will be sorry…

Gratitudes Interuptus?

Gratefulness.org’s Word For the Day today:

Feeling gratitude and not expressing it is like wrapping a present and not giving it.

-William Arthur Ward

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Do What You Can

Gratefulness.org’s Word For the Day today:

However much concerned I was at the problem of misery in the world, I never let myself get lost in broodings over it. I always held firmly to the thought that each one of us can do a little to bring some portion of it to an end.

-Albert Schweitzer

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Mom’s Role in Life

Today’s Daily Thought from Real Simple:



A mother is not a person to lean on but a person to make leaning unnecessary.
— Dorothy Canfield Fisher

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Reason Enough to Register, and Vote in November?

This arrived, from someone (I’m pretty sure) I don’t know, in my AOL inbox recently:

Presidential candidates Hillary Clinton, Barack Obama, and John McCain were flying to a debate.

Barack looked at Hillary, chuckled and said, “You know, I could throw a $1,000 bill out of the window right now and make somebody very happy.”

Hillary shrugged her shoulders and replied, “I could throw ten $100 bills out of the window and make ten people very happy.”

John added, “That being the case, I could throw one hundred $10 bills out of the window and make a hundred people very happy.”

Hearing their exchange, the pilot rolled his eyes and said to his copilot, “Such big-shots back there. I could throw all three of them out of the window and make 156 million people very happy.”

Including me!! I’m writing the pilot in, come November!

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There Are Days When…

…this is the only answer…

From Quotes of the Day, today:

I believe in looking reality straight in the eye and denying it.

- Garrison Keillor

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Maybe Bird Brains Aren’t So Puny After All

From the LA Times’ all-about-animals blog, L.A. Unleashed, earlier today: Birds are migrating through Southern California:

“Call it our annual miracle.

“For the next couple of weeks at least, an array of visiting birds will touch down in Southern California. Some will stay the summer, but most are simply passing through, migrating thousands of miles from Central or South America where they spend the winters, to the boreal forests of Canada where they nest.…”

Wow!! The Western Tanager is gorgeous!!

If the Gods Are Powerless…

From Quotes of the Day, today:

Against stupidity the gods themselves contend in vain.

- Friedrich von Schiller

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Not Your Grandfather’s Cello Player

Comment from the guy who posted this on YouTube:

“This is a pretty amazing video of Ethan Winer playing 37 separate cello parts to create one song. He even plays the percussion parts on his cello. It was recorded on 23 tracks using 37 plug-in effects. He spent hundreds of hours on this project so its worth a listen.”

It really is amazing!



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Skellig Michael

Posted on celt-archive today:



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And When He Was Not so Younger?

From Quotes of the Day, today:

When I was younger, I could remember anything, whether it had happened or not.

- Mark Twain

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Now playing: Dan Schutte - Glory In the Cross
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Paging Sister Bertrille, Indeed!

What is it with men who want to fly under balloons? I don’t mean hot air balloons, I mean toy balloons. This one’s a priest — he just wanted to get closer to God, I guess. From True’s 27 April 2008 edition:

http://www.thisistrue.com/blog-men_and_balloons.html

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Now playing: Bob Hurd - Third Luminous Mystery: The Proclamation of the Kingdom of God
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Individualism Isn’t All Bad

From Quotes of the Day, today:

Read, every day, something no one else is reading. Think, every day, something no one else is thinking. Do, every day, something no one else would be silly enough to do. It is bad for the mind to be always part of unanimity.

- Christopher Morley

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Now playing: The Robert Shaw Chorale - O Sanctissima
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