Despite what you’ve read — or seen in the movies — many think the most-feared pirate was actually a Chinese woman. Her name was Ching Shih (widow of Cheng), nicknamed Madame Ching, and she lived from 1775 until 1844. Her territory was the China Sea in the early 19th century. She began as a Cantonese
Today a quick unpublished poem — WWMPD? I survey the bedroom as I stare in dismay. Each place that I look, things are in disarray. Toys scattered about, all over the floor. I can’t even walk around anymore. The beds are unmade, pillows scattered around. There’s no sense of order at all to be found.
Since about 2000, smoking has been banned on virtually all airline flights. Yet if you’ve flown recently, you’ll notice there are still illuminated “No Smoking” signs, there is a sign on the bathroom door, and below that sign is an ashtray. Why? Have you every heard the saying “There’s always someone who doesn’t get the
If I were smart, I wouldn’t touch this topic. I’ve never even been married myself, but I can’t resist. So, as a public service, I’m going to share some recent information on having a happy marriage. Here goes — The title is “Underrated Qualities To Look For In A Spouse, According To Experts” by Kelsey
As a history nerd, my problem with your average history book is it will tell you what happened, but not how it happened. To get the real story, you have to find books like Nothing To Fear: FDR’s Inner Circle and the Hundred Days That Created Modern America by Adam Cohen. We all know the
According to The Writer’s Almanac, September 27, 1825 was the beginning of the first steam-powered passenger railway service in England — “It brought together the work of George Stephenson, builder of coal mine steam engines, and Edward Pease, who wanted to build a delivery system to bring coal to the market towns of Darlington and
We’re living longer and longer. This is true of the entire Western world, where taking care of the elderly is becoming a major concern. When I was in Japan a few years ago, I noticed all the elevators had places to sit. This care is compounded by the decline in mental function among many. According
Lately I’ve been mentioning books I haven’t read myself, but would like to. This is another: Zapped: From Infrared to X-rays, the Curious History of Invisible Light by Bob Berman. There’s a lot in our universe we just can’t see. I’m sure you’ve heard of dark matter; I’ve never heard of “dark light”, but the
Today is the official start of Fall (or Autumn), because it’s the Equinox. Google says the Autumn Equinox comes at exactly 4:02 pm EDT on September 22nd. Equinox, since it’s derived from the word “equal”, means daylight and nighttime are exactly the same. But like everything in this world, it’s complicated. According to EarthSky, there
F. Scott Fitzgerald once said “The test of a first-rate intelligence is the ability to hold two opposed ideas in mind at the same time and still retain the ability to function.” I think he’s onto something. Here is a good example. First, The Carter Center (President Jimmy Carter’s organization) has been working very hard