grandma's hand gun

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rM1CPS4cWGs

"Grandma lived out on a ridge where one or t'other neighbor could be seen  but never heard. No street lights of any kind it were dark at night as could be. The lady was known to step out of the house with gun in hand to shoo off a black bear what be lingering on the property. She would slip her hand gun into her apron for a nature walk. Gandma was righteous hill folk"  jpr

Oh yeah she let off a few rounds new years eve!

People never cease to amaze me

An Egyptian municipal zoo has been called out by the press for painting black stripes on a donkey to pass it off as a zebra after a photo of the animal appeared online. A student put the images on Facebook after visiting Cairo's International Garden municipal park. Notice the photo. Aside from its small size and pointy ears, there were also black smudges on its face. And this is not the first such incident. Several zoos in the country have been exposed for doing the same. A ZEONKY?

That's us.

Stone walls of ireland

Over 1/4 million miles of the things exist there, some being centuries old.

"Old Irishmen build old walls" says Jpr. "We has'm both here in the hills of Appalachia."

Tamiyo Kusakari

Japanese actress and ballerina. Stared in their version of "Shall we dance?"

Jpr: indeed she makes the day more lovely just as a surprise flower in the garden.

Genderfluid

This is a guy, yes guy, called Chase Johnsey, the first 'male' ballerina with a major ballet company, the English National Ballet.  Our man Chase has already performed a number of female roles.  He has had 'femine' facial reconstruction surgery, describes himself as 'gender fluid' and is married to a guy called Carlos.  My how the world has changed. 

burial place of king Darius

In the precipitous cliff at Naqsh-e Rustam  located north of the ancient Persian capital city of Persepolis, in the Fars province of modern Iran,archaeologists have identified with certainty the tomb of Darius the Great (c. 521-486 B.C).

Oldest Cold Case Ever Solved

Holding the current record for the longest cold case that was solved is the murder of seven-year-old Maria Ridulph in 1957. The young girl vanished from her Sycamore, Illinois home one winter without a trace, and her decomposing body was found the next year. A suspect was identified – a young man named John Tessier – but he had an ironclad alibi: he was on a train at the time, and he had witnesses to back him up. The cops let him go and the gruesome murder was never solved. However, science has a way of punishing the guilty, and when Ridulph’s corpse was exhumed in 2011 for additional DNA testing, it pointed the finger at Tessier again. His train alibi was also disproved when a girlfriend found his ticket unpunched. Now going by the name Jack McCullough, he was arrested in Seattle and charged with the crime in September of 2012. After 55 years, he was sentenced to two life terms.

little girl in trouble

A swarm of police converge on a little girl on Cronulla beach in Australia.  She may look innocent, but she was reportedly kicking sandcastles all day.
jpr:precious  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Z_e6nRw7Iocj

my hero section

MS. MARIE JOSEPH

ADJUNCT PROFESSOR OF COMMUNICATION

MJOSEPH@SCS.EDU

Marie Joseph is an adjunct professor of Communication teaching public speaking in the St. Charles College Division.  She is also an adjunct professor in the Graduate School of Theology at St. Charles having taught Undergraduate Catholic Spirituality and Catechetical courses in the Sacraments and Spirituality. Marie received her Bachelor’s Degree in Marketing, with a concentration in Communication and Spanish from Cornell University in Ithaca N.Y. and a master’s degree in Systematic Theology from St. Charles Borromeo Seminary. Marie worked in the fields of marketing and advertising for Kraft General Foods, Inc. She taught Technology and Spanish in Catholic elementary school for eight years. Marie is certified and trained in physical fitness, nutrition, theater and dance. She has been deeply involved in Catholic mission work in Kenya, Africa. Marie recently appeared as the guest on EWTN “The Journey Home Show” with Marcus Grodi and her book Faith on Fire was featured on “The Catholic Corner “with Msgr. Nolan of the Archdiocese of Trenton. Marie was recently awarded “Woman of the Year” from the Knights of Columbus for her current work Executive Director of the Legacy of Life Foundation, Inc. supporting two Pro-Life Crisis Pregnancy Centers in Bristol, Bucks County and Philadelphia, PA. and ministering to women and families.

my back yard...can you find my dog?

hint: he's a black lab

longest escape from prison

The longest recorded escape by a recaptured prisoner was that of Leonard T. Fristoe, 77, who escaped from the Nevada State Prison, Carson City, Nevada, USA on December 15, 1923. Leonard was turned in by his son on November 15, 1969 at Compton, California. By then Leonard had nearly 46 years of freedom under the name of Claude R. Willis. His crime was killing two sheriff's deputies in 1920.

irish laughter

DUBLIN DRIVERS

Paddy was driving down the motorway between Naas and Dublin, 

Answering, he heard his wife's voice urgently warning him, 

"Paddy , I just heard on the news that there's a car going the wrong way on M1. P

"Hell," said Paddy , "It's not just one car. It's hundreds of them!" 

Irish Confessional

An Irishman goes into the confessional box after

years of being away from the Church. 

There's a fully equipped bar with Guinness on tap.

On the other wall is a dazzling array of the finest 

cigars and chocolates. 

Then the priest comes in. "Father, forgive me, for

it's been a very long time since I've been to confession,

but I must first admit that the confessional box is much 

more inviting than it used to be."

The priest replies: "Get out. You're on my side." 

jpr: see http://www.irisheyesofva.com/

A famly outing. Love.

A fire rainbow

But despite its name, the rare phenomenon isn't related to recent wildfires. Instead, it's caused by a unique alignment of forces in the atmosphere. Technically called a circumhorizontal arc, fire rainbows are caused by light passing through wispy, high-altitude cirrus clouds.

The Irish Funeral

A man was leaving a convenience store with his morning coffee when he noticed a most unusual funeral procession approaching the nearby cemetery.

A black hearse was followed by a second black hearse about 50 Feet behind the first one. Behind the second hearse was a solitary man walking a dog on a leash. Behind him, a short distance back, were about 200 men walking single file.

The man couldn't stand the curiosity. He respectfully approached the man walking the dog and said:"I am so sorry for your loss, and this may be a bad time to disturb you, but I've never seen a funeral like this. Whose funeral is it?"

"My wife's."
''What happened to her?"
"She yelled at me and my dog attacked and killed her."

He inquired further, "But who is in the second hearse?"
The man answered, "My mother-in-law. She was trying to help my wife when the dog turned on her."

A very poignant and touching moment of brotherhood and silence passed between the two men.

"Can I borrow the dog?"

The man replied, "Get in line."

the world's strangest rock

This balancing rock formation is one of the Brimham rocks, located on Brimham Moor in North Yorkshire, England. Made of millstone grit, it was carved over time through water and wind erosion. 

Among the Rocks

Oh, good gigantic smile o' the brown old earth,
This autumn morning! How he sets his bones To bask i' the sun, and thrusts out knees and feet
For the ripple to run over in its mirth;
Listening the while, where on the heap of stones
The white breast of the sea-lark twitters sweet.

there is a poem on everything

That is the doctrine, simple, ancient, true;
Such is life's trial, as old earth smiles and knows.
If you loved only what were worth your love,
Love were clear gain, and wholly well for you:
Make the low nature better by your throes!
Give earth yourself, go up for gain above! 

Robert Browning

Luckest Man Alive

Frank Selak, an 84  year old Croation, the luckest man alive.  

He had his first escape from death in 1962 when a train he was travelling on from Sarajevo to Dubrovnik jumped the rails and plunged into a river killing 17 people. A year later, he was thrown out of a plane on his first and only flight when a door flew open and he landed in a haystack. This time 19 people died. In 1966, a bus he was on skidded into a river, drowning four.  In 1970 his car caught fire as he drove along a motorway and he fled with seconds to spare before the fuel tank exploded.

Three years later, he lost most of his hair when a faulty fuel pump spewed petrol over the hot engine of his car and blew flames through the air vents.  Then in 1995 he was knocked down by a bus in Zagreb but walked away with minor injuries. The following year, he was driving in the mountains when he turned a corner to see a UN truck coming straight for him.  He careered through a crash barrier and over the 300ft precipice.  He leapt clear at the last minute and sat in a tree as he watched his car hit the bottom and explode.

He then won £600,000 with his first ever lottery ticket and celebrated his fifth marriage saying: "I guess all the earlier marriages were disasters too."  He gave the money away preferring to live a simple life.  He kept a small amount to build a shrine to the Blessed Virgin.

Snail joke

A snail is at the police station. He's telling the officer on duty about how he was just mugged and robbed.
"It was these two turtles!", the snail sobs. "They beat me up and took my money!
"The officer asks, "Did you get a good look at them?"
The snail says, "No! It all happened so fast!"

yoke

Two Scotsmen bought a bottle of bootleg whisky for a pound and it was the vilest brew they had ever tasted.
"I'll be very glad," said one to the other, "when we finish this bottle."

rapes by country

#1 United States: 95,136 
#2 South Africa: 52,425 
#3 Canada: 24,350 
#4 Australia: 15,630 
#5 India: 15,468 
#6 Mexico: 14,373 
#7 United Kingdom: 13,395 
#8 Germany: 8,615 
#9 France: 8,458 
#10 Russia: 6,978 
#11 Korea, South: 6,139 
#12 Peru: 5,968 
#13 Spain: 5,664 
#14 Zimbabwe: 5,567 
#15 Thailand: 4,020 
#16 Argentina: 3,036 
#17 Venezuela: 2,931 
#18 Italy: 2,543 
#19 Belgium: 2,436 
#20 Japan: 2,357

jpr: Many third world countries have NO RAPE laws ...beware!

exoplanet

The number so far is 1077 planets found outside the solar system. Several methods for discovery exist.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=J9fvLBlOs7U

The transit method

In astronomy, the radiation flux from the star during the transit of the planet is reduced, which can be fixed with modern telescopes. If the remote star eclipsed planet similar to Jupiter, its brightness is decreased by 1%.

flowing river

My friend bade farewell at the Yellow Crane House,

And went down eastward to Willow Valley
Amid the flowers and mists of March.
The lonely sail in the distance
Vanished at last beyond the blue sky
And I could see only the river
Flowing along the border of heaven.

By Li Po

jpr: It has been said one's life flows as on a river with forests dark, and danger filled on either side. So let the flow go and keep off forbidden shores as it were.

Reversals of Earth's Magnetic Field

Earth’s magnetic field is undergoing significant shifts, and South Africa has front row seats to observe the changes. Satellites and magnetic observatories have recorded stirrings in the magnetic field – some areas weakening, some strengthening – which suggest that our planet is headed for a reversal of its magnetic poles in the next few hundred years.

normally the geographic North Pole is a magnetic south pole 

The time spans of between reversals are randomly distributed with most being between 0.1 and 1 million years with an average of 450,000 years. 

brendan behan quotes

Brendan Francis Behan  Irish: Breandán Ó Beacháin; 9 February 1923 – 20 March 1964) was an Irish poet, short story writer, novelist, and playwright who wrote in both English and Irish. He was also an Irish republican and a volunteer in the Irish Republican Army. Born in Dublin into a republican family, he became a member of the IRA's youth organisation Fianna Éireann at the age of fourteen. However, there was also a strong emphasis on Irish history and culture in the home, which meant he was steeped in literature and patriotic ballads from a tender age. Behan eventually joined the IRA at sixteen, which led to him serving time in a borstal youth prison in the United Kingdom and was also imprisoned in Republic of Ireland. During this time, he took it upon himself to study and he became a fluent speaker of the Irish language

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dUsSfTP95-8

“It's not that the Irish are cynical. It's rather that they have a wonderful lack of respect for everything and everybody.” 


a quote from his death bed to a visiting nun  “Ah, bless you, Sister, may all your sons be bishops.” 

“They took away our land, our language, and our religion; but they could never harness our tongues...” 

prospector amanda adkins

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=l5hyFy5ytls

Amanda spends her summers above the 14000 ft level in the Colorado Rocky Mts while gem hunting.
A widower with seven children who takes her work quite seriously. Born into a West Virginia mining family, it comes natural like.

jpr: Mikey we'll grub stake you!

favorite names for cats

1. Sye
2. Nascar                            

3. Bean bag
4. Chibe
5. putty tat
6. Winny
7. Forrest
8.Chitty
9. Edgar Allen Poe
10 Buddha



https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EvkZGYfktcw

a shiny spoon

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pCHMkzzPV6Il
jpr:These are the things children should learn!

i hate poetry - self evident

ode to a diseased strip mall

parking lot

40 acres of

busted man-made rock

all sorts of crumbly dust 

and shit you want no one to recognize.

add the depth of all the holes 

triangulate

triganomentrize a tad

add some gumlike birdlike snot

what you got?

the initial groundbreaking road to hell.

I liked geometry, algebra, some calclui;

never trig, 

a queer way of math

not queer per se,

just a queer way

with all the effin magical math splooge

all is fractal, 

even splooge I guess.

otherwise i never call queer at all

though there are those that see me so

if it weren't for the splooginess

I'd be Ok

on a really good day

on a really good day

i'd cob the hell out of that

satanic.demonic.melancholic (kiss# 1 after dark)

big.black.wide.defiled 

tempis effin fugit

short timer plot

Bridalwreath Spirea

Bridalwreath Spirea is a deciduous shrub with sensational flowers and lovely autumn colors.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=29w_bSGYJtQ

jpr: me ma had'em, me grandma had'em. Now I have'em.

Henry Calvin (May 25, 1918 – October 6, 1975)

Born in Texas as Wimberly Calvin Goodman. He was an actor, known for Zorro (1957), and Babes in Toyland (1961).

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NDq7ixRpaaE

   If you know these characters then you were a mouskateer!

OD of Melancholy; add a little Ray Bradbury and Dandelion Wine

"Our Town"; Iris Dement and Emily Lou Harris

brain scan

Studies of jpr's cranium show his conscious level motivations. However some topics have been shown to be more persistent than others.

camel in the mud

An unfortunate camel stuck in mud was at the centre of a dramatic rescue mission in western India.

The animal, a rare Kharai camel, had sunk to its stomach among the mangroves and the rescue party spent over an hour to help it out of the mud. Its concerned owner spotted the camel trapped in the mud near his home in the village of Nimrivand 12 hours earlier, but was unable to help until morning came and the tide was low.

jpr: there's a lesson here seems a bit complicated though.

deep space

Hubble telescope image of a deep space object.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7dSoTgTDCBo

hang'em the'll dry

If'n there be sun with a breeze,  its all good!

appalachian mountain man

Where's the still?

I Do..French Film Comedy

Superb! Must see!

father and son

doubles the fun!

Tomb of Queen Esther

The Tomb of  Queen Esther (bible) is traditionally believed to be  located in Hamadan, Iran.

The Antikythera mechanism

The Antikythera mechanism is an ancient analog computer designed to calculate astronomical positions. The construction has been dated to the early 1st century BC. 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MqhuAnySPZ0

.In 1900, some divers found the wreck of a Roman vessel off the Greek island of Antikythera. Among the other treasures remanded to the Greek government was an unassuming corroded lump. X-rays and advanced photography have uncovered the true complexity of the mysterious Antikythera mechanism.

scotland

                                  Isle of Skye