Let's Boogie!

Incredible Luck

     If you were to jump off the observation deck of the Empire State Building how far would you fall? The answer is about 1,050 feet and it would be fatal, right? Not if you were Elvita Adams. 
     After losing her job, the Bronx woman was reportedly living off $100 welfare checks. Unable to pay the rent, her landlord was threatening to evict her and her 10-year old son. So, on the night of December 2, 1979, the 29-year old woman went to the Empire State Building’s 86th floor observatory, scaled the spiked fence and jumped. 
     She wasn’t the first person who decided to commit suicide by leaping from the Empire State Building. There have been over 30 suicide attempts, most of which have been successful. The first one happened in 1931 before the building was even complete when a man who had been fired jumped from the 58th floor.
     Then there was Evelyn McHale, the “the most beautiful suicide” because she wore pearls and gloves, and landed atop a limousine. A photography student snapped a photo of McHale’s 1947 jump, which then became infamous; ending up in Time magazine and even in Andy Warhol’s art. 
     So, what made Elvita Adam’s suicide special? It’s because she survived the jump when a gust of wind blew her back and she landed just one flight down and she landed on a two and a half foot ledge on the 85th floor. On that day, the winds were said to be blowing somewhere between 23 and 38 MPH. 
     A security guard named Frank Clark heard Adams moaning and reached out of the floor’s window to pull her into safety. She was then taken to Bellvue Hospital in severe pain, the result of either a broken hip or pelvis. 
     After being treated, she was placed under psychiatric watch. She said from the hospital, “All I remember is the pain, I was in so much pain that I wasn’t afraid.” She is also quoted as saying, “I’m not sure if the wind pushed me back, or pushed me off.”  Nobody knows what happened to Adams after she was saved.  

View from observation deck

     As impressive as Adams' story is, there are tales of people people surviving falls that are far more impressive.
     Vesna Vulovic (January 3,1950 – December 23, 2016) was a Serbian flight attendant. She holds the Guinness world record for surviving the highest fall without a parachute: 33,330 feet. 
     Her fall took place after an explosion tore through the baggage compartment of her flight on January 26, 1972, causing the plane to crash near Srbska Kamenice, Czechoslovakia. She was the sole survivor of the crash that air safety investigators attributed to a briefcase bomb. 
     She spent days in a coma and was hospitalized for several months. She suffered a fractured skull, three broken vertebrae, two broken legs, broken ribs and a fractured pelvis. These injuries resulted in her being temporarily paralyzed from the waist down. She made an almost complete recovery but continued to walk with a limp. 
     Vulovic maintained that she had no memory of the incident and thus had no qualms about flying in the aftermath of the crash. She became a celebrity in Yugoslavia and was deemed a national hero. 
     Her survival was attributed to her being trapped by a food cart in the fuselage as it broke away from the rest of the aircraft. When the cabin depressurized, the passengers and other flight crew were blown out of the aircraft and fell to their deaths. Investigators believed that the fuselage, with Vulovic pinned inside, landed at an angle in a heavily wooded and snow-covered mountainside, which cushioned the impact. Her physicians concluded that her history of low blood pressure caused her to pass out after the cabin depressurized and kept her heart from bursting on impact. 

Further Reading: 
How to Fall 35,000 Feet And Survive 
10 Amazing Free Fall Survivors

Reconstructed Faces From The Civil War

     In the Civil War the Battle of the Monitor and Merrimack, also called Battle of Hampton Roads, took place on March 9, 1862 at Hampton Roads, Virginia, a harbor at the mouth of the James River. It was notable as history’s first duel between ironclad warships and the beginning of a new era of naval warfare. 
     The Northern-built Merrimack, a conventional steam frigate, had been salvaged by the Confederates from the Norfolk navy yard and rechristened the Virginia. With her upper hull cut away and armored with iron, this 263-foot vessel resembled, according to one contemporary source, “a floating barn roof.”
     Supported by several other Confederate vessels, the Virginia (Merrimack) virtually decimated a Union fleet of wooden warships off Newport News, Virginia, on March 8th. The Union ironclad Monitor arrived the same night. This 172-foot “cheese box on a raft,” with its water-level decks and armored revolving gun turret, represented an entirely new concept of naval design. 
     Thus the stage was set for the dramatic naval battle of March 9, with crowds of Union and Confederate supporters watching from the decks of nearby vessels and the shores on either side. 
     Soon after 8:00 am the Virginia (Merrimack) opened fire on the Minnesota, and the Monitor appeared. They passed back and forth on opposite courses. Both crews lacked training and firing was ineffective. The Monitor could fire only once in seven or eight minutes but was faster and more maneuverable than her larger opponent. 
     After additional action and reloading, the Monitor’s pilothouse was hit, driving iron splinters into Captain’s eyes. The ship sheered into shallow water, and the Virginia (Merrimack), concluding that the enemy was disabled, turned again to attack the Minnesota. But her officers reported low ammunition, a leak in the bow, and difficulty in keeping up steam. At about 12:30 pm the ship headed for its navy yard and the battle was over. 
     The Monitor provided gun support on the James River for George B. McClellan’s Peninsular Campaign. By December 1862, it was clear the Monitor was no longer needed in Virginia, so she was sent to Beaufort, North Carolina, to join a fleet being assembled for an attack on Charleston, South Carolina.
     While the Monitor served well in the sheltered waters of Chesapeake Bay, it was heavy and low-slung making it a poor craft for the open sea. The Monitor was towed around the rough waters of Cape Hatteras, North Carolina. The Cape is a treacherous time for any ship so the decision seems questionable. 
     As it was being towed the caulking around the gun turret loosened and water began to leak into the hull. More leaks followed. High seas tossed the craft, causing the ship’s flat bottom to slap the water with each roll opening more seams, and by nightfall on December 30, the Monitor was in dire straits. 
     The Monitor’s commander, J.P. Bankhead, signaled the towing vessel that he wished to abandon ship. The towing vessel, a wooden side-wheeler, pulled as close as safety allowed and two lifeboats were lowered to retrieve the crew.
     Some fell into the sea and died and some remained aboard the ship when it sank. About 50 men were rescued, but some men were terrified to venture onto the deck in such rough seas. The ironclad’s pumps stopped working and it sank before 16 men could be rescued. 
     The wreck was discovered in 1973 and designated the first national marine sanctuary in 1975. In August 2002, the rusty iron gun turret of the USS Monitor reemerged from the Atlantic Ocean, concluding a series of large-scale expeditions to the ship’s wreck site. Recovery workers found a pair of skeletons inside, the remains of two of the 16 Union soldiers. The remains found in the turret probably belonged to two crew members trying to abandon the ship before it sank. 
     To date, none of the other missing crew members have been found. In addition to the two skeletons the tattered remnants of their uniforms were discovered and a rubber comb was found by one of the remains, a ring was on a finger of the other. Also found was a pair of shoes, buttons and a silver spoon.
     As part of a project taking ten years, facial reconstructions were done by experts at Louisiana State University, using the skulls of the two full skeletal remains found in the turret, after other scientific detective work failed to identify them. DNA testing, based on samples from their teeth and leg bones, did not find a match with any living descendants of the ship's crew or their families.
     The identity of the two dead men is unknown, but one was between 17 and 24 years old, the other likely in his 30s. They were Caucasian, so neither was among the three African-Americans who served on the Monitor's crew. An examination of medical and Navy records narrowed possibilities to six people. The older man is one of two possible crew members, while there are as many as four possible matches for the younger one. 
     Genealogist Lisa Stansbury couldn't make a positive match, but she believes the older sailor to be the ship's fireman who tended the coal-fired steam engine. His name was Robert Williams.

American Political Chart

Conservatives believe in: personal responsibility, limited government, free markets, individual liberty, traditional American values and a strong national defense. Believe the role of government should be to provide people the freedom necessary to pursue their own goals. Conservative policies generally emphasize empowerment of the individual to solve problems. 

Liberals believe in: government action to achieve equal opportunity and equality for all. It is the duty of the government to alleviate social ills and to protect civil liberties and individual and human rights. Believe the role of the government should be to guarantee that no one is in need. Liberal policies generally emphasize the need for the government to solve problems. 

	Conservative	Liberal
Anti-gun	Doesn’t buy one	Ban them
Vegetarian	Doesn’t eat meat	Ban meat products
Out of work	Diligently searches for a job	Wonders who is going to take care of him
Doesn’t like a television show	Changes the channel	Demands the show be canceled or the host fired.
Non-religious	Does not attend services	Demands no mention of God
Needs health care	Shops for insurance or finds a job with better insurance	Demands government pay for it.
Doesn’t like the president	Waits for next election	Demands impeachment

The Truth About Red Bull

     According to the US Department of Agriculture one 12 ounce can of Red Bull contains 108 mg of caffeine. Caffeine in an 8 ounce cup of coffee can vary widely, but let's assume it contains 95 mg, so a cup and a half of coffee yields 142.5 mg of caffeine. By the way, the USDA website allows you search their Search Food Data Central for information on the nutritional value and ingrediants in thousands of foods and drinks. 
     Originally Red Bull was the drink of choice for truck drivers in Thailand, but it's pretty much everywhere today. The original Red Bull is called Krating Daeng and it was created in 1976 by an entrepreneur in Thailand named Chaleo Yoovidhya. Truck drivers were among the first targeted as customers. 
     It wasn't until 1987 that a completely unrelated business encounter turned it into Red Bull and introduced it to the world. Chaleo's company was working with importing product from a German toothpaste company called Blendax. After Blendax's marketing director sampled the drink, the idea of forming a corporation specifically to bring it to the rest of the world came into being.
     It seems many researchers just want to make a name for themselves and one has to question just how trivial some reports on the safety of energy drinks are.  On the other side of the coin there are a number of studies that say Red Bull is completely safe, but if you read the fine print, you'll find they're often financed by...you guessed it...Red Bull    
    In 2004, France raised concerns about the levels of caffeine Red Bull contains and banned the import and sale of it completely. The ban was challenged, but upheld. It wasn't until 2008 that the original, unmodified version of Red Bull was allowed to be imported and sold in France because continued testing couldn't find any evidence of the supposed health risks.
     In 2009, when Red Bull Cola was tested in Germany and it was found samples contained trace amounts of cocaine, some people went into a panic. It was clarified that the product was made from the same coca plant that's notorious for its illicit byproducts. It's included in a number of energy drinks, but the manufacturing process removes the cocaine component… in most cases. Even though the amount found was negligible (it would take chugging almost 3,200 gallons, or 12,000 liters, to get any cocaine-like effects) it was still banned in six German states.   
     In 2014 Lithuania voted a law into effect that took away a huge part of Red Bull's target audience: minors. The law forbid the selling of any high-caffeine energy drink to minors.
     Also in 2014, Dr. Peter Miller of Australia's Deakin University published an article that questioned just how honest some of these studies are. His concern though was about investigations into what happens when you combine energy drinks and alcohol.  Common sense says that's not a good idea, but that's something that's lacking in a lot of people who probably don't care what Dr. Miller's report said anyway.
     Red Bull's logo is NOT two red bulls; they are animals called gaurs which are native to South and Southeast Asia. The gaur is the tallest of the world's wild cattle and they all have the horns you see on the Red Bull logo, regardless of whether they're male or female. They're also among the largest land animals. 
     So, what's the skinny on Red Bull? Is it bad for you? It's claimed high levels of caffeine and sugar can be extremely dangerous and have even been shown to stop the heart. 
     Claims have been made that the acidity of energy drinks is potentially harmful to bone, muscle, and brain health. 
     And, claims have been made that it is extremely addictive and causes consumers to depend on them to boost their energy. This one seems believable when you consider coffee, tea and cola drinks are also addictive.
     Energy drinks are known to elevate blood pressure. A 2015 study found that after adults drank one 16 ounce can of an energy drink, the average systolic blood pressure of the participants increased by 6.2 percent, while the average diastolic blood pressure increased by 6.8 percent. 
     My question is, what happens to your blood pressure if you drink 16 ounces of coffee? The report didn't say. However, an article in Healthline referenced a study which showed that 200–300 mg of caffeine from coffee (approximately the amount you'd consume in 1.5–2 cups) resulted in an average increase of 8 mm Hg and 6 mm Hg in systolic and diastolic blood pressure, respectively. Let's do some math assuming one's blood pressure is 120/70. A 16 ounce can of Red Bull raises your BP to 127/75. Two cups of coffee raises it to 128/78.  Piffle! The difference is negligible. It should be added that some studies show that energy drinks raise blood pressure by other mechanisms in a way different from caffeine alone. 
      A report from the World Health Organization says energy drinks, such as Red Bull and Monster, contain high levels of the stimulant caffeine. Considering the caffeine levels of Red Bull, Monster, etc. and coffee are very similar, the WHO report sounds like alarmist drivel.
     Despite all the hype and people screaming about the dangers of Red Bull and other energy drinks, it looks like having one serving is equivalent to a regular cup of coffee. It is when one exceeds the limits and drinks 2 or 3 cans that trouble could occur. 
     People with heart or circulatory medical conditions are at higher risk of adverse effects. Nor is it advisable to drink such drinks (including coffee) right before working out. The goal of working out is to elevate heart rate during exercise and maintain it at a high level for a while. If you drink something with caffeine in it, it could trigger a heart attack, especially when there is an underlying medical condition of the heart. 
     Remember energy drinks (including coffee) are not substitutes for meals, especially breakfast! 
     If I have any complaint against energy drinks, it's the fact that it is appealing to young people. One teenager told me about how he and a couple of friends drank Red Bull before basketball practice and it had an adverse effect that left them frightened. They all swore off the stuff thinking it was too dangerous...smart young fellows. I suspect the problem was that they were not used to the effects of caffeine and that's what caused their reaction and had they drunk two cup of coffee the same thing would have happened.

Why Do Clothes Get Wrinkled?

Science can explain wrinkles, and it’s less complicated than you may think. The short answer is that clothes get wrinkled because of heat and water. These two factors interact with the building blocks of the clothing itself, causing it to become wrinkled. Are you ready for the long answer? Continue reading…

Wrinkled, rumpled clothes are not a cute look, unless it's an intentional look, I guess, but that's not what we're here to talk about today. We're here to talk about what to do with clothes that are wrinkled when you would like them to look pressed — or, at least, not weirdly creased. In service of not appearing weirdly creased, here are 10 ways to deal with wrinkled clothes. 10 Ways To De-Wrinkle Your Clothes

The website The Adequate Man explains the difference between liquid and powder detergents, an overview of washer and dryer settings and cycles, products you use to get your clothes clean and how to tackle common stain and smell problems and fabric softeners. Some talk about wrinkles...

Mount Washington, New Hampshire the Killer Mountain

     

     Mount Washington, called Agiocochook by some Native American tribes, is the highest peak in the Northeastern United States at 6,288.2 feet and the most topographically prominent mountain east of the Mississippi River. 
     It’s also a killer. Since 1849, nearly 150 people have died on it. It’s so treacherous that author Nicholas Howe has detailed many of the fatalities in his book Not Without Peril published in 2000 and updated in 2009. They have died in all seasons due to the harsh and rapidly changing conditions, inadequate equipment, and failure to plan for the wide variety of conditions which can occur above tree line. 
     The mountain is notorious for its erratic weather. At 6,288 feet, Mount Washington is only one-third the size of Mount McKinley, North America’s highest peak. But Mount Washington sticks up like a big toe at a point where storms from the north, south and west collide. As a result, it can see snow and ice even in the summer. 
     On the afternoon of April 12, 1934, the Mount Washington Observatory recorded a wind speed of 231 miles per hour at the summit, the world record from 1934 until 1996. New Hampshire's Mount Washington lost its distinction as the site of the fastest wind gust ever recorded on Earth when a 253 mph gust on Australia's Barrow Island occurred during Cyclone Olivia in 1996. In 1969, Hurricane Camille had the highest wind speed at landfall at an estimated 190 miles per hour when it struck the Mississippi coast. This wind speed at landfall is the highest ever recorded worldwide. Satellite and radar measurements, e.g. of tornadoes, hurricanes, and air currents in the upper atmosphere, do not officially compete with records for surface measurements. 
     The mountain is located in the Presidential Range of the White Mountains, in the township of Sargent's Purchase, New Hampshire. While nearly the whole mountain is in the White Mountain National Forest, an area of 60.3 acres surrounding and including the summit is occupied by Mount Washington State Park. 
     The Mount Washington Cog Railway ascends the western slope of the mountain, and the Mount Washington Auto Road climbs to the summit from the east. The mountain is visited by hikers, and the Appalachian Trail crosses the summit. Other common activities include glider flying, back country skiing, and annual cycle and running races such as the Auto Road Bicycle Hillclimb and Road Race. 
     Viewing it from the Atlantic Ocean in 1524, Giovanni da Verrazzano described what he saw as high interior mountains. The Abenaki people inhabiting the region at the time of European contact believed that the tops of mountains were the dwelling place of the gods, and so among other reasons did not climb them out of religious deference to their sanctity. 
     Darby Field claimed to have made the first ascent of Mt. Washington in 1642. Field again summited Agiocochook in October 1642 on an early surveying expedition that created maps of land as far as Maine. 
     Little occurred on the summit itself until the mid-19th century, when it was developed into one of the first tourist destinations in the nation, with construction of more bridle paths and two hotels. The Summit House opened in 1852, a 64-foot-long stone hotel anchored by four heavy chains over its roof. In 1853, the Tip-Top House was erected to compete. Rebuilt of wood with 91 rooms in 1872–1873, the Summit House burned in 1908, then was replaced in granite in 1915. The Tip-Top House alone survived the fire; today it is a state historic site. Other Victorian era tourist attractions include a coach road (1861)—now the Mount Washington Auto Road—and the Mount Washington Cog Railway (1869), both of which are still in operation. 
     The summit Mount Washington has an alpine climate or tundra climate although it receives an extremely high amount of precipitation, atypical for most regions with such cold weather. Lower elevations have a subarctic climate. 
     The erratic weather is partly due to the convergence of several storm tracks, mainly from the Atlantic to the south, the Gulf region and the Pacific Northwest. The vertical rise of the Presidential Range, combined with its north-south orientation, makes it a significant barrier to westerly winds. Low-pressure areas develop along the coastline in the winter due to the relative temperature differences between the Northeastern United States and the Atlantic Ocean.
     With these factors combined, hurricane-force wind gusts are observed from the summit of the mountain on average of 110 days per year. For many years, the record low temperature was thought to be −47 degrees F. occurring on January 29, 1934, but upon the first in-depth examination of the data from the 19th century at NOAA's National Climatic Data Center in Asheville, North Carolina, a new record low was discovered. Mount Washington's official record low of −50 degrees F. was recorded on January 22, 1885. However, there is also hand-written evidence to suggest that an unofficial low of −59 degrees F. occurred on January 5, 1871. The official record cold daily maximum is −28 degrees F. From December to March, temperatures rise above freezing on only 15 days.
     On January 16, 2004, the summit weather observation registered a temperature of −43.6 degrees and sustained winds of 87.5 mph resulting in a wind chill value of −102.59 degrees. 
     Due in part to its high prominence, to its situation at the confluence of two major storm tracks, and to the north-south orientation of the Presidential Range ridgeline which it crowns, Mount Washington receives very high levels of precipitation, averaging an equivalent of 96.9 inches of rain per year. Compare this to Concord, New Hampshire’s 44 inches of rain, on average, per year.
     On August 7, 1932, Raymond E. Welch became the first one-legged man to climb Mount Washington. An official race was held and open only to one-legged people. At the time of his climb, he was the station agent for the Boston and Maine Railroad in Northumberland, New Hampshire. 
     The mountain is also the host to one of the oldest car races in the country, the Mount Washington Hillclimb Auto Race, which has been held on and off since 1904. In car racing, Travis Pastrana set a new record of 5 minutes, 44.72 seconds, driving a Subaru Rally Team USA Subaru WRX STI in June 2017.
     Edwin H. Armstrong installed an FM-broadcasting station on the top of Mount Washington in 1937 and in1954 a TV tower and transmitters were installed for WMTW, Channel 8. The station continuously broadcast until 2002 from the top of the mountain, including local forecasts. 
    Mount Washington has been the subject of several famous paintings, part of a New England school of art known as White Mountain art.

 

Poison Oak

     Leaves of three, let it be! 
     Hairy vine, no friend of mine! 

     While poison ivy is the most common cause of what they cal “contact dermatitis” in the United States, a bunch of other common plants can cause skin reactions: strawberry, garlic, tomato, comfrey, borage, rose hips, hot peppers, tulip bulbs, daffodil bulbs and hyacinth bulbs. 
     Also, I did not know this because I live in the North where crappy weather is often the norm, but the combined exposure to lemons, limes, clementines, oranges and grapefruit, which all contain light-sensitizing chemicals, can cause a rash. 
     Saturday was a nice day and the hedges needed trimming. So, come Monday morning small red bumps that itch like crazy were beginning to appear on my forearms. I knew immediately what it was...poison oak. I knew because it’s growing in one end of the hedges and I got it last year, too. You’d think I’d remember, but you can forget a lot of stuff in a year. 
     Many people get a rash from poison ivy, poison oak, and poison sumac (rare except in the southern US). The rash is caused by an oil found in the plants (urushiol). 
     Oddly, the itchy, blistering rash often does not start until 12 to 72 hours after you come into contact with the oil. Or, if it’s a person’s first exposure symptoms can take up to a week to appear! As the rash develops it appears to be spreading, but it’s not really; it’s just a delayed reaction. 
     Most people see the rash go away in a few weeks, but for some people the reaction can be serious and require a doctor’s care. Swelling is a sign of a serious reaction, especially if the eyes swell shut or the face swells. Trouble breathing or swallowing also warrants a trip to the emergency room. 
     Hunters and outdoorsmen should also use caution if they relieve themselves in the woods. In the Marine Corps I knew one fellow who got poison ivy on his manhood from peeing in the woods. It was horrible and he actually required hospitalization. 
     Poison oak is a relative of poison ivy. Both contain the same toxic resin which is present in all parts of the plant, not just the leaves. The resin is toxic to humans but harmless to animals. 

     Both plants have three leaflets, white flowers in spring, and can grow as a vine or a shrub. The leaflets can range in size from the length of your thumb to the length of your hand and the middle leaflet has a notably longer stem than the two side leaflets, though it's more obvious in poison ivy than poison oak.  Depending on the season, leaf color can range from green to orange and even a dark purplish-red. 
     In North America, there are two species of poison oak: Atlantic (Eastern) and Pacific (Western). Atlantic poison oak is a low-growing, upright shrub that can grow to be about 3 feet tall, sometimes giving it the appearance of a vine.
     Pacific poison oak can grow either as a shrub or a vine, causing it to be even more readily confused with poison ivy. The leaf shape resembles an oak leaf, but it’s not a member of the oak family. The leaflets are duller green than poison ivy and usually more distinctly lobed or toothed. 
     Unlike poison ivy, poison oak leaflets have hairs on both sides. While the fruit of poison ivy is the color of pearls, poison oak fruit has a tan color. 

Here are some interesting facts: 
#  Symptoms of poison oak include itchy red rashes that can resemble burns, swelling, and even blistering. 
#  Upon contact with your body, urushiol immediately forms a chemical bond to the skin and causes an almost unstoppable allergic reaction. 
#  Urushiol will stay on clothes, pets, or other materials for months and its potency lasts. This means that you could even get poison oak without going anywhere near it. 
#  The urushiol resin can cause harsher reactions for those who have been exposed to it before. 
#  Sensitivity to urushiol might decrease if you do not come into contact with it until later in life. 
#  Only about 15 percent of people are resistant to urushiol, but even they may become sensitive with repeated exposure. 
#  Danger: Smoke inhalation from burning poison oak can send you straight to the emergency room, so never burn this plant!! 

     The best chance at avoiding a reaction is to treat poison oak within 10 minutes of contact. Urushiol is not water-soluble and the use of strong soaps (like dish soap) and cold water to keep the oils from spreading is the first course of action. Then rinse off with cold water. 
     As urushiol can remain active for months, it’s necessary to wash any clothes or items that may have come into contact with the oil...which, by the way, is invisible. 
     The rash can be treated with calamine lotion, baking soda pastes, aloe vera and a number of commercial products. Another proven remedy is oatmeal.

Drawing Salve

Myxoid cyst

     NOTE WELL: We are not talking about black salve, an alternative medicine ointment. Black salve, made from blood root, has been condemned in several countries. The ointment, also known as drawing salve, contains sanguinarine – derived from bloodroot – and is often mixed with zinc chloride, working as a corrosive. This paste is used on a topical area, moles, scars and sometimes cancer, it destroys skin tissue, leaving being a black scar which later falls off. Black salves were popular in the early 1900s to treat skin lesions, but have been listed as a fake cancer treatment by the US Food and Drug Administration since 2004. In Australia, the Therapeutic Goods Administration has also condemned the ointments. In the early 2000s, interest in the use of drawing salve as a holistic treatment for cancerous tumors, in particular skin cancer made a resurgence. This product is dangerous. 

     Drawing salve is an ointment that can be used to treat a variety of skin inflammations such as infections, ingrown toenails, wood splinters, glass shards and insect poison. For generations this home remedy has been used to heal cuts, poison ivy, sores, and many other surface abrasions. 
     In the most popular brands of drawing salve the main ingredients as ichthammol, phenyl alcohol, arnica montana and several herbs such as echinacea, calendula, etc. These are combined with skin-enriching vitamin E, antiseptic bergamot oil, and anti-inflammatory comfrey oil, in a base of beeswax. 
     Ichthammol, the most active ingredient, is considered a medicine in some countries and is natural substance found in the rock, schist. It softens skin by weakening it slightly, which increases circulation. When more blood goes to the area, the wound will heal faster by ejecting any pus or irritant. 
     Arnica montana is a homeopathic topical pain relief agent. Its mechanism of action is not well known, bit it promotes wound healing and has antiseptic, anti-inflammatory and pain relieving properties. 
     Promoters of echinacea say that the herb encourages the immune system. When applied topically it is capable of phagocytosis, a process of devouring damaged cells, bacteria, and other microorganisms that cause infection.
     Calendula has antiseptic properties, which are helpful for treating wounds and preventing acne. 
     Drawing salve became successful during the period of widely advertised medicinals and balms of the late 1800s. Catchy slogans, bright packaging, and sworn testimonials from satisfied customers lwas the draw, so to speak. Drawing salve is still commonly used in modern times and it should be a staple in medicine cabinets. 

     All of which rings me to PRID drawing salve which advertisements say helps draw out irritations from under the skin caused by splinters, boils, thorns, ingrown hairs, bug bites and more. It provides temporary topical relief of pain and irritations associated with boils, minor skin eruptions and redness. PRID is a homeopathic formula with natural active ingredients 
    For a the last year or so I have had what is called a digital myxoid cyst on my left hand. They are a benign, non-cancerous swelling that usually occurs at the base of the nail on the fingers or toes. The exact cause is not known. 
     The cyst is frequently connected to the lining of the finger or toenail joint and is usually located between the joint and the nail. They are skin-colored, reddish or slightly translucent. If a cyst overlies the area where the nail is formed, as was the case with mine, it may cause a groove to occur along the length of the nail. Sometimes, slightly sticky, clear, straw-colored or blood-stained contents may leak out of the cyst. 
     Most people usually develop only one cyst. However, some people may develop more than one cyst on different fingers. The cyst is usually not painful. However, a cyst may become tender, especially when hit. Indeed...mine did. 
     If a digital myxoid cyst does not cause any symptoms, no treatment is required. Small cysts can disappear spontaneously without treatment and they may come back even after treatment. If treatment is considered necessary, there are a number of options. 
     I, or rather my wife, jabbed it with a sterile needle and squeezed the gel out. But, this only worked for a few days and then it was back bigger and more sore than ever. The next step was to get an appointment with dermatology at the hospital which proved impossible because they are booked so far out. In fact, I left a message and they were supposed to call me back, but they never did.
     That’s where PRID comes in. Two days after application and covering with a Band-Aid, the soreness was gone and the swelling was down. And, in a few more days almost all signs of the cyst were gone. 
     This is a highly recommended first aid product that should be in your medicine cabinet. 

Would you like fecal bacteria with that?

     I recently saw a Facebook post referencing an article that appeared on delish.com, a cooking website. The Delish article referenced an article from Metro, an online alternative news site, that was titled “Poo Found on Every McDonald’s Touchscreen Tested." 
     It was a report on an investigation done by the senior lecturer in microbiology at London Metropolitan University, Dr. Paul Matewele. Dr. Matewele went around testing McDonald’s touchscreen ordering machines in the UK and found they all had fecal bacteria on them. 
     In the past he has been interviewed on the BBC to discuss the bacteria found in reused plastic water bottles. It seems all the reused water bottles he tested contained bacteria and some had mold. The tests also found low levels of more serious pathogenic bacteria which could lead to serious issues. 
     He has also conducted other tests and found bacteria in everything...like handbags, hand cream, toothbrushes, no-spill toddler drinking cups, kitchen sponges, makeup bags and brushes, ear plugs and don’t ask about your bathroom. 
     I suppose Dr. Matewele has to do something to help justify his job, but it’s hard to escape the absurdity of testing all this stuff. Our home, let alone public places, are home to an astronomical amount of bacteria. Viruses are different, of course. They can survive on surfaces for days and it only takes a few of the little boogers to make us sick. 
     As for fecal bacteria, saying they found it in McDonald’s touch screens is hype. The implication is that the screens are smeared with human feces, which, of course, they are not. 
     In any case, it’s not a big deal... fecal coliform is EVERYWHERE! Computer keyboards, kitchens (one study found kitchens had more fecal bacteria than bathrooms), office coffee cups, shopping carts, hotel rooms, your clothes, etc, etc. Every time you brush your teeth you are shoving fecal coliform into your mouth. Flush the toilet and you are misting your bathroom with fecal spray. 
     In fact, by weight, bacteria make up a third of the contents of our intestines. Bacteria are an unavoidable part of the environment and the idea of everything being germ free is absurd and pointless. The bacteria that cause food poisoning need to multiply into astronomical amounts before they can overwhelm our immune system and make us sick. 

     Advertisers create an irrational fear of germs just so they can sell their antibacterial products, or as they like to call them, “germs” which is a pretty vague term. It is the biggest marketing coup since bottled water. 
    To me, Dr. Matewele is wasting his time and creating undo concern over something that has long been known to inhabit just about any surface you can think of. 
     Besides, and this is no kidding, according to several experts, the bottom line is, assuming you are a healthy person, eating your own feces would probably not harm you. Eating someone else's feces could make you sick if they were unhealthy, but eating feces from the right person could cure your diarrheal disease. See THIS article. Obviously the thought is disgusting, but the point is that what you pick up off the screen at McDonald's is nothing about which to be alarmed.

Tennis Shoes

     Tennis shoes, gym shoes, sneakers. Whatever you call them the first ones had rubber soles and canvas uppers and were designed and manufactured during the early 1800s for the British Navy to use on slippery decks. The shoes became popular with the rich aristocrats who started using them to play a popular sport of the day, tennis, hence the name tennis shoe. 
     The tennis shoe came onto the market around 1892 and were called plimsolls. They had neither a left nor right foot and were named sneakers because they were silent. That was a huge changes from the shoes of the day that had solid hard soles and made a lot of noise. 
     In 1916 the United States Rubber Company started making their own brand of tennis shoe, or rubber-soled canvas shoes, calling them Keds. By 1917 sneakers began to be mass produced and Marquis Converse produced the first shoe made just for basketball, called Converse All-Stars. In 1923, an Indiana hoops star named Chuck Taylor endorsed the shoes, and they became known as Chuck Taylor All-Stars. These are the best-selling basketball shoes of all time.
     Sneakers went international in 1924 when a German man named Adi Dassler created a sneaker that he named after himself: Adidas. Track star Jessie Owens wore Adidas when he won four gold medals at the 1936 Olympics. Adi’s brother Rudi started up another famous sports shoe company: Puma. 
     Even with the new brands, the style and design of the shoe changed little until the 1960’s which is when a lot of the shoe designers started to experimenting to try to improve the standard of the athletic or “tennis shoe” Adidas made a shoe specifically for playing tennis in 1931. 
     The University of Oregon coach Bill Bowerman wanted to design a more lightweight shoe that would offer a lot more traction, offer more comfort and be more lightweight. He named his company Nike, after the Greek goddess of victory and the rest is history. 
     Adidas, Puma and other brands also got on board and started to develop the tennis shoe into what we know today, and as pro tennis player involved with the development the shoes took on a whole new look. 
     Originally sports shoes were worn mostly to play sports, but in the 1950s, kids began wearing them and teens followed the fad after seeing James Dean in sneakers in movie Rebel Without a Cause. 
     In the 1980’s Nike introduced their Air Trainer 1, which offered lateral support, a strap that secured the foot for the side-to-side movement and a heel lift that was a little higher than average. And so the modern era of tennis shoes was born.
     Sales of sneakers skyrocketed in 1984, when Michael Jordan signed a contract to wear a Nike shoe called Air Jordans. Even after Jordan retired from the NBA, his shoes continued to be best sellers. 
     As companies competed, they changed the design by adding colors and eliminating laces. And, the shoes began to be produced for every sport: walking, skateboarding and cross training, you name it. Additionally, there were design changes that include gas pocket to create better cushioning, air could be pumped into shoes to make them fit more snugly, springs in the soles to reduce foot stress, etc. 

1950 model

     Of course, innovations like these come with a price: they plain black ones of the 1950s cost $3 or so. That was the equivalent of a little over $30 today. Nowadays a pair of tennis shoes, or what ever you want to call them, will set you back $100 to $200.

Jumping Animals

     The world record for the high jump is just a smidgen under 8 feet and one half inch; it’s held by Javier Sotomayor of Cuba, who set the record in 1993. In 1991 American Mike Powell set the world record in the long jump at 29 feet 4 inches. Impressive, but animals can do better. 
     Red kangaroos hop along on their powerful hind legs and at a pretty good rate of speed...over 35 miles an hour. But they fall short of setting any human records. They can cover up to 5 feet in a single leap and jump 6 feet high.
     Coyotes can clear a 6-7 foot fence barely touching it. Penguins can't fly, but they can jump over 9 feet, depending on their species. 
     Lions and tigers can jump almost equally high. The vertical leap record for a tiger is more than 12 feet, and the lion is just a few inches less. 

     The winner though is the puma or mountain lion or puma or cougar or panther. This cat is known by more names than just about any other mammal! But no matter what you call it, it's still the same cat. 

the Puma

     Their physique allows it great leaping and short-sprint ability. They can leap as high as 18 feet in one bound and as far as 40 to 45 feet horizontally. 

Puma Facts: 
* Unlike other big cats, they cannot roar. Instead, the large feline purrs like a house cat. 
* They have similar body types to house cats, only on a larger scale. They have slender bodies and round heads with pointed ears. They vary between 5-9 feet from head to tail. While males can weigh up to 150 pounds, females weigh less, topping out at about 100 pounds. 
* The coat of the cougar is a grayish tan to reddish color with lighter parts on the underside. The tail has a black spot on the end.
* The cougar’s established range includes western North America, a small region in Florida, and most of South America. 
* Generally they prey on deer but also feed on smaller animals if necessary, including domestic animals and livestock. After killing a large animal, a cougar hides the carcass and eats in the coming days. 
* For the most part, the cougar has no natural enemies (except for humans) and sits atop the food chain. 
* During most of their lives, cougars are solitary creatures. They interact only to mate, which can happen at any time of year. Females can breed as early as 2-3 years old and give birth to 2-3 kittens at a time. They raise the young while the males return to their solitary lifestyles. 
* At around two years old, cougar offspring will leave their mother to start their own life. Some travel far to establish their own territory as cougars need a lot of room to roam. 
* A healthy cougar in the wild can live to around 10 years of age. In captivity, cougars can live as long as 20 years.

Politics

I am not much into politics, but this cartoon seems to sum things up for just about all politicians everywhere.

Edmund Fitzgerald

     The legend of the Edmund Fitzgerald is one of the most mysterious and controversial shipwrecks that took place on the Great Lakes. The only sinking that has surpassed it is the Titanic. 
     The Edmund Fitzgerald’s final trip began November 9, 1975 at Superior, Wisconsin. Captain Ernest M. McSorley was the captain. 
     The ship was loaded with taconite pellets. They are made of processed iron ore, heated and rolled into marble-size balls. The ship departed Superior about 2:30 pm and was soon joined by another freighter, the Arthur M. Anderson, which had departed Two Harbors, Minnesota under Captain Bernie Cooper. The two ships were in radio contact. The Fitzgerald being the faster took the lead, with the distance between the vessels ranging from 10 to 15 miles. 
     Both captains were aware that a building storm was entering the Great Lakes from the Great Plains. the Great Plains contain parts of 10 states: Montana, North Dakota, South Dakota, Wyoming , Nebraska, Kansas, Colorado, Oklahoma, Texas, and New Mexico. 

    The captains agreed to take a northerly course across Lake Superior where they would be protected by highlands on the Canadian shore. They would later make a turn to the southeast to eventually reach the shelter of Whitefish Point.
     Gale warnings had been issued at 7 pm on November 9 and weather conditions continued to deteriorate and it was upgraded to storm warnings early in the morning of November 10. Winds were gusting to 50 knots and seas 12 to 16 feet, but both captains had often sailed in similar conditions. In the early afternoon of November 10, the Fitzgerald had passed Michipicoten Island and was approaching Caribou Island. The Anderson was just approaching Michipicoten, about three miles off the West end. 
     Captain Cooper testified that he watched the Edmund Fitzgerald pass far too close to Six Fathom Shoal to the north of Caribou Island and he could clearly see the ship and the beacon on Caribou on his radar. He and his officers watched the Fitzgerald pass right over the dangerous area of shallow water. By this time, snow and spray obscured the Fitzgerald from sight, but it was 17 miles ahead and visible on radar. 
     At 3:30 pm that afternoon, Captain McSorley radioed Captain Cooper and said he had a fence rail down, two vents lost or damaged, and the ship was listing. He requested Cooper to stay with him until he reached Whitefish and he was slowing down to allow the Arthur M. Anderson to catch up. When asked if he had his pumps running, McSorley replied that both of them were running.  
     As the afternoon wore on, the ships exchanged radio communications concerning navigation, but McSorley reported no alarms. At about 5:20 pm the crest of a wave smashed the Anderson’s starboard lifeboat and damaged it so that it was unusable. Winds were from the NW by W at a steady 58 knots with gusts to 70 knots and waves were 18 to 25 feet. 
     According to Captain Cooper, about 6:55 pm he and the men in the pilothouse felt a bump and the ship lurch. When they looked astern they saw a monstrous wave engulfing their entire vessel. The wave worked its way along the deck, crashing on the back of the pilothouse and drove the bow down into the lake. The Anderson recovered and they were immediately hit with an even bigger wave from astern. The pilot house crew testified that they watched those two waves head down the lake towards the Fitzgerald. Captain Cooper believed that it was those two waves that sunk the Edmund Fitzgerald.
     Morgan Clark, first mate of the Anderson, kept watching the Fitzgerald on the radar in order to calculate its distance from some other vessels near Whitefish Point, but he kept losing sight of the Fitzgerald on the radar because of sea return. Sea return means the waves were so high they interfered with the radar reflection. Clark spoke to the Fitzgerald for the last about at about 7:10 pm. Their conversation was about navigation and when asked about their problems, the Fitzgerald said they were holding their own. 
     At about 7:15 pm the radar signal was lost and this time they did not reappear. Radio calls to the Fitzgerald at about 7:22 pm were unanswered. Captain Cooper contacted the other ships in the area by radio asking if anyone had seen or heard from the Fitzgerald. 
     The weather had cleared dramatically. According to his written reported Captain Cooper became very concerned. With the clearing weather he should have been able to see the Fitzgerald’s lights, but couldn’t. He was sure something had happened to the Fitzgerald so he notified the Coast Guard which at time was trying to locate a 16-foot boat that was overdue. 
     Captain Cooper called the Coast Guard once again at about 8:00 pm, and firmly expressed his concern for the welfare of the Fitzgerald. The Coast Guard then initiated its search for the missing ship. By that time the Anderson had reached the safety of Whitefish Bay to the relief of all aboard. 
     The Coast Guard called Captain Cooper back at 9:00 pm and asked if there was any possibility he could come about and go back and do the searching. Cooper replied that he could, but he would not be making more than two or three miles an hour if he went back. The Coast Guard advised him that it was his call if he would be hazarding his vessel, but at that time he was probably the only vessel that could get to the scene at that time. 
     The Coast Guard thought the Fitzgerald may have split apart at the seams like had happened to another ship a few years previouly. In the end, Captain Cooper agreed go back and take a look even though, as he put it, “I’m afraid I’m going to take a hell of a beating out there.” 
     He then asked the Coast Guard if they realized what the conditions were out there, but they did not reply. So, he tried again. The Coast Guard replied that they did and, again, left it up to Captain Cooper. Captain Cooper agreed and he turned out to be the primary vessel in the search. 
     With his ship taking a beating and rolling badly, the crew discovered the Fitzgerald’s two lifeboats and other debris but no sign of survivors. Only one other vessel, the William Clay Ford, was able to leave the safety of Whitefish Bay to join in the search at the time. 

     The Coast Guard launched a fixed-wing aircraft at 10 pm and dispatched two cutters. One arrived at 12:45 pm on November 11, and the other arrived on November 14, having journeyed all the way from Duluth, Minnesota. After an extensive and thorough search by the Coast Guard, on November 14, a U.S. Navy plane equipped with a magnetic anomaly detector located a strong contact 17 miles north-northwest of Whitefish Point. 
     During the next three days, a Coast Guard cutter using a sidescan sonar located two large pieces of wreckage in the same area. Another sonar survey was conducted November 22-25. 
     The following May, in 1976, a Coast Guard cutter was again on the scene to conduct a third sidescan sonar survey. Contacts were strong enough to bring in the U.S. Navy’s controlled underwater recovery vehicle which took 43,000 feet of video tape and 900 photographs of the wreck. 
     On May 20, 1976, the words “Edmund Fitzgerald” were clearly seen on the stern, upside down, 535 feet below the surface. While the Coast Guard said the cause of the sinking could not be conclusively determined, it maintained that the most probable cause was the loss of buoyancy and stability resulting from massive flooding of the cargo hold as a result of ineffective hatch closures as boarding seas rolled along the spar deck. 
     However, the Coast Guard has been known to take the easy way out and assign causes based on convenience. The Lake Carrier’s Association vigorously disagreed with the Coast Guard’s suggestion that the lack of attention to properly closing the hatch covers by the crew was responsible for the disaster. They issued a letter to the National Transportation Safety Board in 1977 stating they were inclined to accept that Fitzgerald passed over the Six Fathom Shoal Area as reported by Captain Cooper who said that he always believed McSorley knew something serious had happened to Fitzgerald as the ship passed over Caribou Shoal and from that point on, McSorley knew he was sinking. 
     Even today there is disagreement over the cause of the sinking. Conflicting theories about the cause of the tragedy remain active today. The Great Lakes Shipwreck Historical Society made three dives on the wreck and it’s their belief that the ship “submarined” bow first into an enormous wave. That conclusion is based on the fact that the damage to the forward part of the ship is indicative of a powerful, quick force to the superstructure. But what caused the ship to take on water, enough to lose buoyancy and dive to the bottom so quickly, without a single call for help cannot be determined. Twenty-nine men were lost. 

Rare radio chatter between the Arthur M. Anderson and the Coast Guard November 10th, 1975. The last time anyone ever heard from the Edmund Fitzgerald.

Master Chef Junior...Fake!

     MasterChef Junior is an intriguing show starring Gordon Ramsay where kids are seemingly cooking some pretty impressive dishes. The program is a spinoff of MasterChef, but features children as the chefs from ages 8-13. It was also originally a show in the UK titled Junior MasterChef. 
     One wonders how 8-year olds learn all that. Like all reality shows, it isn’t real! It’s a lot more scripted than it appears and the kids are getting some help from real chefs. How else can an 8-year old do a complicated main dish and side dishes all at the same time and all in one hour or less? 
     Former contestants have made claims they were coached and helped a bit and there is a culinary team on the show that teaches the kids basic kitchen safety and also gives cooking lessons. Plus, the kids have access to cookbooks.
     They know well in advance what they will be cooking and have a chance to practice preparing the dish as many times as they want. Some have had private chefs visit their homes to teach them recipes weeks before they filmed the show. 
     One person spoke out after working as a culinary assistant on the show and confessed that the kids who were chosen wanted to be child actors, not chefs. Most of them were selected to be part of the show because they had a great personality, not because they had any cooking talent. 
     Guess what else? You see the kids cutting, slicing, dicing and stirring food, but they aren’t really cooking it...that’s done by a culinary team behind the scenes who actually do the real cooking and plating so they look nice. The kids do use knives and there is medic on the set just in case. The kids also also get help from the crew when they can't open a jar or something. 
     One person had his son audition, but the lad ended up taking another job instead. The man’s son was not an aspiring chef; he was a child actor and both parents were professional actors in New York. Producers liked the kid because he was a trained, but unknown actor. The producers would give him cooking lessons. One viewer swears he recognized two of the kids who were actors on TV shows he had seen. 
     Besides some small amount of knowledge/skill in cooking the kids also have to be actors and be able to take direction and do what they need to to make a good TV show.
     One person who claimed to be one of the chefs on the program revealed that the kid’s discussion with the judges over the food was all scripted and was a pain because there were so many takes. He called the kids “bratty little (expletive deleted)” and their parents “vulgar.” He did add that Gordon Ramsey is very charming.
     By the way, the other night on American Idol, another fake show, the judges used their “save” that allowed one of the two contestants booted off to continue, much to the cheers of the audience as the judges praised the person's talent. I don’t understand...if America didn’t like them the previous night, what makes the judges think they are going to like them next week? 

NOTE: I am amazed at the popularity of this post and judging by the number of e-mails I have gotten cussing me out, calling me names and demanding "proof" there are a LOT of people who believe this "reality" show is, indeed, real. For those who believe it is real no amount of proof to the contrary will be sufficient, but I suggest checking things out HERE.

How To Audition For MasterChef Junior 
View the application to be on the show

Skillet Lickers

     The Skillet Lickers were an old-time band from Georgia. They were formed in 1926 when Gid Tanner teamed up with blind guitarist Riley Puckett, Clayton McMichen and Fate Norris. 
     Between 1926 and 1931 they recorded 88 sides for Columbia Records. Later members were Lowe Stokes, Bert Layne, Hoke Rice, Arthur Tanner and Hoyt "Slim" Bryant. 
     They disbanded in 1931, but reformed for occasional recordings after a couple of years with a changing line-up. The Skillet Lickers are celebrated for embracing a style that was already out-of-fashion by the time they started. Had it not been for their playing of homely folk songs with a hard-driving fiddle section, contemporary audiences would hardly know how this kind of music sounded.