October 1, 2021

From The BBC: Africa's week in pictures: 24-30 September 2021

https://www.bbc.com/news/world-africa-58747044

This regular photo feature is a wonderful presentation of the diversity of Africa and
Africans.

October 1, 2021

From The BBC: Your pictures of Scotland: 24 September - 1 October (2021)

It's fitting that this new batch of Scotland photos comes on the first day of the month
of October. Enjoy!

https://www.bbc.com/news/uk-scotland-58699837

October 1, 2021

Old Farmers Almanac: The Month of October 2021: Holidays, Fun Facts, Folklore

https://www.almanac.com/content/month-october-holidays-fun-facts-folklore

"In October, autumn comes into full swing. Let’s get in the fall mood! Learn why this month is called October, which holidays to look out for, what to do in the garden, what to bake in the kitchen, when to see the full Hunter’s Moon, and more!"

see more at above link

Of course this information only applies to the northern hemisphere of our earth. I've
already performed my monthly ritual of The Changing Of The Calendar Page that I
display on my cork board. I always like to know where I am in space and time!

September 26, 2021

Guardian-"Unsung hero: how 'Mr Radio Philips' helped thousands flee the Nazis

In June 1940, a Dutch salesman, acting as a consul in Lithuania, issued Jewish refugees with pseudo visas to escape Europe. His remarkable story is only now being told."

https://www.theguardian.com/world/2021/sep/26/unsung-hero-how-mr-radio-philips-helped-thousands-flee-the-nazis

'He helped save more Jewish lives than Oskar Schindler, but while the brave deeds of the German industrialist were known around the world because of an Oscar-winning film, few know the name Jan Zwartendijk, a Dutch radio salesman who helped thousands of Jews flee Nazi-occupied Europe.

Now a book by the celebrated Dutch writer Jan Brokken seeks to rescue Zwartendijk from obscurity, as well as other courageous officials who bent the rules to help several thousand Jews trapped between Nazi Europe and the Soviet Union.

The Just, published this year in English, recounts how up to 10,000 men, women and children fled the Holocaust. At the heart of the story is Zwartendijk and the Japanese diplomat Chiune Sugihara, who improvised an improbable escape route from Lithuania to the Japanese port of Tsuruga and beyond. Over 10 frantic days in the summer of 1940, the two men issued “visas” to 2,139 people. Researchers estimate 6,000 to 10,000 may have escaped, as women and children often travelled on male relatives’ documents.

Yet while Sugihara became a national hero, featuring on Japan’s school curriculum and with three museums dedicated to his life, Zwartendijk was forgotten. His youngest son, a baby in the Lithuanian years, knew nothing of his father’s actions until he was in his 30s. “He never spoke about this period,” said Rob Zwartendijk, 81, speaking to the Observer from the North Holland town of Blaricum.'

This is a long and inspiring read that is new information for me. It points up the good
that can be done by one or two persons working together. There's much more text
and photos at the above link.

September 25, 2021

Hurricane Sam looks like it's on track to hit our east coast in the North

Carolina area. I'll be keeping an eye on this.

https://www.wunderground.com/hurricane/atlantic/2021/hurricane-sam?map=5day&MR=1

(scroll down)

One interesting thing I learned during this past week of checking on tropical storms
and hurricanes is that there has never been a named storm that begins with the
letter "Q". I became curious as to why the names went from Peter to Rose and
checked it out. It's just another one of the many things I never knew before.

https://www.nhc.noaa.gov/aboutnames_history.shtml

September 24, 2021

Yesterday my live-in son and I went and got our regular yearly flu vaccinations.

Our side-effects were minimal, a little feeling of stiffness at the injection sites and a
feeling of tiredness today. A little arm/shoulder flexing and some relaxation today pretty much took care of it all.

That's not bad, and about what we experienced when we got our covid vaccines
earlier this year. I support and recommend vaccines.

September 24, 2021

From The BBC: Your pictures of Scotland: 17 - 24 September (2021)

I always enjoy having a look at this weekly photo feature. Today it's moos, coos and
an airborne Airedale that are my favorites but you're welcome to find your own.

https://www.bbc.com/news/uk-scotland-58623663

September 22, 2021

Reuters: Backers of Trump's false fraud claims seek to control next elections

'Summary:
Reuters examined all 15 Republican candidates for secretary of state in five battlegrounds. Ten still question whether Trump lost the 2020 election.

Democrats intensify fundraising as pro-Trump candidates aim to capture control of elections oversight in key states.

From article:

Sept 22 (Reuters) - One leading candidate seeking to become Georgia’s chief elections official, Republican Jody Hice, is a Congressman who voted to overturn Democrat Joe Biden's 2020 presidential win in the hours after the Jan. 6 riots at the U.S. Capitol. Hice had posted on social media earlier that day: “This is our 1776 moment,” referencing the American Revolution.

In Arizona, the contenders for the elections-chief office, secretary of state, include Republican state lawmaker Mark Finchem, who attended the ‘Stop the Steal’ rally before the deadly insurrection and spoke at a similar gathering the previous day. In Nevada, one strong Republican candidate for elections chief is Jim Marchant, who unsuccessfully sued to have his own defeat in a 2020 congressional race reversed based on unfounded voter-fraud claims.'

https://www.reuters.com/world/us/backers-trumps-false-fraud-claims-seek-control-next-us-elections-2021-09-22/

There's much more text and photos at the link. I can't say that this is new information but it's all here in one place. We have to defeat these reTHUG attempts
to further pollute our political/social process.

September 21, 2021

Tomorrow, September 22, 2021, is the first day of the fall season here in the

northern hemisphere. Today, September 21, 2021 our high temp is 80 degrees here in Albuquerqe, NM and that's very welcome after a hot summer.

'Next Season; Autumn/Fall 2021

Start (September Equinox)
Sep 22 1:21 pm (U.S. Mountain Daylight Saving Time)
Duration89 days, 20 hrs, 38 mins'

https://www.timeanddate.com/calendar/seasons.html

September 21, 2021

Wikiepedia: List of food origins (throughout our world)

While reading this op https://www.democraticunderground.com/100215881060
I got to thinking about the importance of food items and where they originated.
There's a LOT of information available here at

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_food_origins

so have a look and you may be pleasantly surprised. Or maybe not. Here's a
sample:

'Current importance of food origins:

In 2016, researchers linked the origins and primary regions of diversity ("areas typically including the locations of the initial domestication of crops, encompassing the primary geographical zones of crop variation generated since that time, and containing relatively high species richness in crop wild relatives" of food and agricultural crops with their current importance around the world in modern national food supplies and agricultural production.

The results indicated that national diets and farm production around the world were generally composed of a large set of crops from many diverse origins. Foreign crops (crops whose origins do not include the same region as the country) comprised 68.7% of national food supplies as a global mean, and their usage has increased in the last fifty years.'

I've edited the above into paragraphs to make it easier to read. Enjoy!