The #1 Song On This Date In (Recent) History

In case you'd ever wondered what song was number one on the charts on any particular day since 1940, you can now find out. There is a website that records the #1 songs each day in the U.S. (according to Billboard magazine). Check out The #1 Song On This Date In History. I see that on the day I was born, the #1 song was "Are You Lonesome Tonight" by Elvis Presley. On the day I was married, it was "Magic" by Olivia Newton-John. Not exactly my taste in music, either of these, but not awful, either. Via splinters.

A Tale of Two Cameras

Here are two updates on the two wildly different camera stories I've posted about in the last month. The first is the story of the Good Samaritan who is trying to find the proper owner of the lost camera (see the full story here). The camera was found in London, England, and has "300 pictures dating back to January 2005. Most of the pictures are family pics showing a young child playing, and some more recent ones include a new baby. There are a few movies on the chips." The Good Samaritan wants to point out that the language on the movie clips is Italian, not Spanish, as he thought earlier. Then, sadly, there is the story of the Bad Samaritans. This couple notified the camera's owner that they found it, but then they decided to keep it because their 9 year old son had just been diagnosed with diabetes and considered the finding of the camera good luck (see the full story here). As you might expect, there was a storm of outrage against this anonymous couple. Many people urged Judith, the owner of the stolen camera, to go to the media and to pursue matters with the police. Judith has put the following update on her blog: · "On the legal front, the police are still working on it, and apparently making some progress. · On the journalism front, expect some stories in the next week, mostly about the whole web phenomenon aspect of this thing. · I've had no further contact with the family. · I've accepted no offers of money or cameras. Anyone who wants to donate is encouraged to donate to the Juvenile Diabetes Foundation." I saw the story in Saturday's Leader-Post, so word is starting to circulate in the media. Judith is honourably not naming the family, other to say that they live in Ontario. However, the public knows that there is a couple with a 9 year old son recently returned to Ontario from Hawaii. The son has just been diagnosed with diabetes (and suddenly has an expensive new camera). How long can it be before someone figures out who the family is and leaks word to the media? And then what happens?

Secret Places Galore

Creative Home Engineering is a company that will build hidden passages for your house on a scale that makes me think of James Bond. Here's my favourite option: "Twist a candlestick and your fireplace rotates, granting access to a hidden room." If, like me, you don't have a fireplace, you can make do with the hidden-room-behind-the-bookshelf trick: "Pull a favourite book from your library shelf and watch a cabinet section recess to reveal a hidden passageway." Access to these hidden rooms is limited to those who can get by the fingerprint scanners, voice recognition systems, and optical imaging. Their video demonstrations of how the features work are interesting, but I found their site hard to navigate. Perhaps it's just the size of my screen (or my eyesight), but I found it difficult to see the writing that indicated links to other parts of their site (from the home page, click on the photos on the upper right part of the screen). Also, when I clicked on my computer's "back" button, it didn't take me to the screen I'd been looking at previously on their site, but instead it took me to the previous web site. To stick with their site, you have to click on the images on it that are labelled as "features," "security," "cost," and so forth. This writing is in a small font and the colour combination is white type on a black background. Despite these frustrations, the site is well worth a look; you can check it out here. Via Boing Boing.

More Steps To Avoid In Parenting

Little boy: Dad, what's something I can learn? Dad: Do you know how to use a chainsaw? I can see if I can get the chainsaw working. Via Overheard In New York.

2006 Olympic Medal Design--Brilliant or Ridiculous?

Is it just me, or does anyone else have hesitations about the look of the current Olympic medals? I've raised this with other people, only to be told dismissively that the athletes won't care. Well, maybe not, but could we just set that aside for a moment and talk aesthetics? Some people I know rave about them. I'm sure they're very stylish, but to me they just look silly. I've heard them compared to a bagel or a CD. I too think they look like a CD. There is an interesting write-up about these medals, though (their design, the technique of making them). You can find that information here. I didn't even know that the design of the medals changed from one Olympics to the next--I thought they stayed the same forever.

Is This Your Lost Camera?

A Good Samaritan in London, England has found a camera and posted the particulars on a web site in a heart-warming attempt to find the owner. Among other things, the website says, "It was lying in the middle of a cross road, almost got hit by a bus. The Camera has 2 Memory chips, with over 300 pictures dating back to January 2005. Most of the pictures are family pics showing a young child playing, and some more recent ones include a new baby. There are a few movies on the chips, with Spanish being the spoken language." Later it says, "To anyone viewing this page, please forward the url to everyone you know, and lets see if we can return it to its owner." To read the story, or possibly claim your camera, go to this website. Isn't this in complete contrast to the creepy couple (thieves--let's call them what they are) who found and wouldn't return Judith's expensive camera because their son liked it so much (see this story, which I wrote about on Sunday). I love it when the Internet is used as a force for the good—there's too much of the other side out there. Via Boing Boing.

Just a Wee Bit More About Our Connection to the Olympics

Here are two profiles of Colleen Sostorics, two-time gold medallist in women's hockey. The first appears to be an official profile with a wonderful background story (including the details of her lucky silver coin that she wears while competing and the reason she wears the pink bracelet). You can find this story here. The second is Canoe's Olympic profile of Colleen; you can find it here.

Our Niece Wins Her Second Olympic Gold Medal!

When the Canadian Women's Hockey Team won gold at the Olympics today, our niece Colleen Sostorics (#5) was a part of it. Even better, it was her second Olympic gold medal; she'd also been with the team at Salt Lake City in 2002. I got home in time to watch the last 12 minutes of today's game, and I'm actually glad I didn't get home any sooner. I can't stand hockey, but I thought I could force myself to watch the gold medal game. I'm just as glad that I didn't have to—I was full of tension throughout those last 12 minutes, convinced that something would go hideously awry. It didn't, though, and as soon as the game was officially over I was riveted, watching for glimpses of Colleen as she celebrated with her teammates and as she received her medal and cried. I cried too.

Dogs For The Deaf

Dogs for the Deaf sounds like a winning organisation. The group rescues dogs from animal shelters and trains them to alert their people to "fire/smoke alarm, telephone, door knock, doorbell, oven timer, alarm clock, and name call. A dog may be trained for an eighth sound, the baby cry." According to their web site, "more than 1½ million of the 23 million deaf or hard of hearing individuals in the United States and Canada could benefit from a Hearing Dog." To read more about this organisation, see their website.

#1 Way Not To Raise Your Children

Ethics? Values? Basic human decency? All seem to be totally absent with one family, despite their claim that they want to teach their son to do the right thing. A woman had lost her camera when she was vacationing in Hawaii. Then some people found it, but decided to keep it because their son had been using it for a week and had grown to like it so much. Here's the link to the full story. Unbelievable. Via Boing Boing.

A Clingy Day or Two

Adja, our oldest ferret, is having a Velcro week. She's not generally one who likes to come cuddle with people, although she'll curl up with Mandy and Chloe, the other two ferrets, quite cheerfully. In the last couple of days, though, she's been playing "Flop" in order to get our attention. She does this by flopping down with her back legs splayed out and her chin flat on the floor. Naturally she recovers promptly the minute we stop and pet her. This method is a lot better than what Mandy does when she wants attention and I don't notice her—Mandy nips at my toes. The other morning I held Adja and gave her reiki for almost 1 ½ hours, and this morning she's curled up tight sleeping in my lap as I write this. When I try to put her back in her favourite sleeping spot, she gets up and plays "Flop" again. So I guess it will be a Snuggle Adja Day as I read and write. There are worse ways to spend my time.

Doing My Bit To Promote An Olympian

Our niece, Colleen Sostorics, is currently competing at the Olympics in the Canadian women's hockey team. You'd hardly know it, though, by media attention to her. I don't do an actual count of which team member is mentioned most (although Hayley Wickenheiser would be a good bet—and probably rightfully so). But I'm willing to bet Colleen would be mentioned least. I know, I know—not everyone on the team can have 18 articles a week written about them. I know I'm being all aunt-like and huffy. But, honestly—with one exception, the only time I've seen her name mentioned so far is in stories about who made the team. It was the same at the last Olympics (when she won gold at Salt Lake City in 2002). I only saw her name mentioned once. At that time, one perceptive columnist in the Globe and Mail wrote something like "Colleen Sostorics doesn't get the credit she deserves. When the going gets rough, she just gets better." However, here's one good article about her in the provincial media—and about time!

10 Things About Yourself That Would Surprise You

Here's an interesting link: 10 Things About Yourself That Would Surprise You from Ramit Sethi's blog I Will Teach You To Be Rich. I found this link on Rebecca Blood's wonderful blog Rebecca's Pocket.

Celebrating the Maple Leaf

Today is National Flag Day in Canada. Who knew? Mind you, after all the Valentine's Day hype, I'm perfectly happy to not have to suffer through more advertising blather for a month or two. However, for anyone interested in the history of how the maple leaf came to replace the Union Jack, and many other tidbits about flags and Canadian history, the Government of Canada has an interesting web site at National Flag of Canada Day February 15 After browsing through this site, I now know that the name for the study of flags is vexillology. I also learned a point of flag etiquette from this site. It tells me that "when the National Flag of Canada is raised or lowered, or when it is carried past in a parade or review, people should face the flag, men should remove their hats, and all should remain silent." I did not know that. Ever anxious to do the right thing, however, I will now shut up and face the flag when I'm supposed to.

True Grit

Is there anyone who was watching the Olympic pairs figure skating yesterday who wasn't first horrified, and then thrilled, by the experience of the last pair to skate? Chinese skaters Zhang Dan and Zhang Hao were in second place coming in to the long program last night. They were planning to execute a throw quadruple jump at the beginning of their program, hoping that the successful completion of some high-difficulty elements like this would move them into first place. The throw was the first big ticket item in the program, and Zhang Dan fell on it. Falls happen in figure skating, but this fall was so bad that they had to stop their program. She could barely move after the fall—Zhang Hao had to help her (see photo) over to the side of the rink. In a breathtaking display of courage and perseverance, however, Zhang Dan decided to try to complete the program. I'm sure everyone watching held their collective breaths for each of the elements that followed, but the pair went on to skate so well that they won the Olympic silver medal. They also received an enthusiastic standing ovation from the fans in the rink, and I don't think I've ever seen a performance that deserved it more just on the basis of courage.

So Far, So Good

The Canadian women's hockey team (with our niece Colleen Sostorics playing defense) has started off very strongly at the Olympics. They've defeated Italy 16-0 and Russia 12-0. So far the games seem to be scheduled at less than primetime hours, so it's fortunate for me that I'm not anxious to watch them. I can't stand hockey, but I can bring myself to read about the games that Colleen's been in after they're over. I know I'm missing out on a lot of the nuances, though. What on earth is a hat trick? Apparently Hayley Wickenheiser and Caroline Ouellette achieved this in the game against Italy. I gather congratulations are in order for having done hat tricks, so good for them!

Cybermonks Do Their Bit For World Peace

One inspirational place I've found on the web is the site run by the Cybermonks, most notably the multi-faith Interlude Thought Of The Day. This page is my home page on my personal computer. In addition to the Thought Of The Day, there are also links to the weekly meditation, an archive of past meditations, prayers, poetry, and more.

My Niece The Olympic Hockey Player (Really)

When you're cheering on the Canadian Olympic women's hockey team, make sure you keep an eye out for my niece: Colleen Sostorics, of Kennedy, Saskatchewan. She plays defense, and I think the number on her sweater is 5. To be scrupulously honest, she's my husband's niece. But I'm just as proud of her as he is. Now if only I liked hockey and could enjoy watching her play . . . .

Fortune Cookie Angst

"You are a friendly and loving person; others bask in your presence" (Fortune Cookie). Well, thanks. I always appreciate insightful comments into my character. But what happened to cookies that tell me "Beware the tall, dark stranger" or "You will soon take a trip"? I love to get forecasts—dire or otherwise. It's not that I believe in them (although you never know . . .). But if something is called a fortune cookie, darn it all, it should tell my fortune, however haphazardly. Although I seldom get predictions in my fortune cookies, others around me do. After I have lunch in the Chinese restaurant next door to where I work, I usually bring back a fortune cookie for one of my co-workers. Not only have the last three contained predictions for her, but they've all come true. Maybe I'll turn to tea leaves.

Pure Fluff

Every now and again I have the urge to stare at the computer screen and waste large chunks of time. One of the ways I do this is to click on silly sites like Hampster Dance. Make sure you look at this one with your speakers on!

Chloe The Ferret Makes a Discovery

Two nights ago Chloe, the most timid of our three ferrets, came as usual for her evening pat. As usual, she had crawled up on to the computer table (no, I don't know how she does it) and was peeping out from between the monitor and the printer. Somehow my husband had learned that she likes to touch noses, so I was prepared to do that this evening before petting her. But she got sidetracked when she saw my can of club soda on the table by the mouse. The club soda fascinated her. She came out from between the monitor and printer and cautiously sniffed near the can, and then she came closer and sniffed the can. I thought I'd help her look, so I tilted the can so she could see in. She sniffed some more—and then she discovered a little club soda in the rim of the can. Excitement! She immediately started to try to drink it. Because she wasn't quitting, and was actually getting quite persistent, I poured about half a tablespoonful of club soda on to the table. She came out far enough to sniff it, and then enthusiastically started to drink. The bubbles made her sneeze, but she carried on drinking it as fast as she could. When she finished she came back to the can looking for more. I didn't dare give her any more—I didn't know if club soda was good for ferrets. Last night I was back at my computer with another can of club soda, and soon she appeared again. This time she headed straight for the club soda. I decided that as she'd gone for a whole day with no ill effects, I'd give her a little more. This time she managed to zip through the whole amount with no sneezing. Ferrets! Who can tell what they'll get into their heads.

Humbug!

Today is the anniversary of the birth of Charles Dickens (1812). Come the Christmas season, you can't go for longer than an hour without hearing some reference to Scrooge, or Tiny Tim ("God bless us, each and every one"), or the Ghost of Christmas Past. It's too bad that this is the only way too many people will ever know Dickens' work. A Christmas Carol is a perfectly decent book, but it's not his only one! I'd have a hard time deciding on my favourite Dickens book. I think it would be a three-way tie between The Pickwick Papers, Bleak House, and Martin Chuzzlewit. How can you not love an author who gives his characters names like Gradgrind, Podsnap, Pecksniff, or Turveydrop?

You Want Fries With That?

I read in the Leader-Post this weekend that Laureen Teskey, Stephen Harper's wife, ate ketchup sandwiches as a girl. This is not something that I would care to eat, but I think it's fascinating to hear about other people's food preferences. I once asked everyone I could think of to let me know if they had heard of (or eaten) food or food combinations that might be considered unusual. Ketchup showed up in a variety of ways. Others told me about ketchup sandwiches, so I know it's not just Laureen Teskey who eats them. I've also heard about peanut butter and ketchup sandwiches. Another person told me about someone who loves ketchup on toast—but not just any old way. The toast has to be burnt black, with the butter added after the toast is so cold that the butter won't melt at all, but will just sit there. Then a thick layer of ketchup is added and left to dry out enough that a light crust forms on the ketchup. Only then is it ready for eating. Another person loves to have a breakfast of eggs sunny side up, hash browns, and bacon or sausage or ham. First he puts mustard on his eggs; then he covers them with peanut butter. After that he puts ketchup all over everything. I'm guessing there are lots more ketchup and something combinations out there. Maybe someday someone who loves ketchup will gather the ideas together and we'll see The Ketchup Cookbook.

Books, Books, Books

I still think the best thing to do with books is read them, but take a look at these four photos of the art work that's being created using thousands of books: http://storms.typepad.com/booklust/2006/01/lost_in_books.html These photos are part of an art installation called Beauty and the Book. There's a great write-up about it at Beauty and the Book. The blog that featured this is definitely going on my list of "Blogs to Read." Thanks to my sister for letting me know about this site!

I Am A Footnote

One day recently, out of idle curiosity, I did a Google Book Search for my name. As I haven't yet published my book manuscript, I was surprised to see my name pop up. One of the local history columns I had written for the Regina Sun is now cited as a reference in the Dictionary of Canadian Biography/ Dictionaire Bibliographique Du Canada (edited by Ramsay Cook and Real Belanger). I had written about the popular couple Amedee and Henriette Forget. Amedee Forget was appointed Lieutenant-Governor of the North-West Territories in 1898, and when Saskatchewan became a province in 1905 he was its first Lieutenant-Governor, a position in which he continued until 1910. In the entry on Amedee Forget written by E. Brian Titley, my article is listed in the works cited section (Amy Nelson-Mile, “The Forgets had much to offer,” Regina Sun, 21 March 1999). Fame! Or, at least, as much fame as I'm likely to get.

Things I Can Hear Again

Today is my first day with hearing aids. Suddenly I'm rediscovering sounds I didn't know I was missing. Here's what I heard within the first hour after I had my hearing aids in: · the intake of breath (my own or another person's) · tires going through the slush on the street · the cat toy that jingles when our cats chase it

Here are some things that I can suddenly hear at full volume: · our dog's nails on our hardwood floor · the click of the mouse · keyboard noise · our ferrets walking on paper

Decoding This Phrase

Has anyone besides me noticed a new popularity for the annoying phrase "The truth of the matter is . . ."? There are similar phrases used as a bit of conversational throat-clearing--all with some connection to the concept of honesty. "Frankly" and "Quite frankly" are the two that come to mind. I remember reading in an Emma Lathen book that her main character responded to the question, "Can I be frank with you?" by assuming that the rest of the conversation would be full of deceit. I don't think that "The truth of the matter is," signals deceit, but I do think that, at least sometimes, there are sub-texts to it, too. Sometimes it seems as though this phrase is a code for "You're too stupid to figure this out so I'm going to spell it out for you." Other times I think it might be, "This topic is a major irritant to me but I don't want to say I'm irritated so I'll use this phrase to relieve my feelings while I say something negative about it." These interpretations are probably just my neuroses showing—but I still wouldn't mind if I never heard the phrase again.

That's Me In the Corner, Losing My Hearing

I noticed a while back that my husband was beginning to mumble. Then I noticed that T.V. shows were starting to be a lot quieter than they used to be--I had to turn the volume up higher and higher. When I went from the waiting room to the wrong doctor's office because I thought the aide had called my name, I was ready to concede that there might be a problem--but something small and fixable. After all, I'm only 45. Then the Ear, Nose, and Throat specialist--and later an audiologist--told me that not only did I have permanent hearing loss, but that it was more severe than I had thought. "You'll need amplification," the ENT specialist told me. After a second, I realised this had to be the new term for hearing aids--possibly coined so baby boomers wouldn't have to feel like their grandparents. Hearing aids, in the plural: one in each ear. "Will you get them?" my husband asked. "No!" I said. "I'll manage, but I'm not wearing hearing aids." A hearing aid, by whatever name, made me feel like my grandparents just by thinking about it. After a few days I came to my senses and ordered them. I also started telling others to let them know that not only was I having trouble hearing them now, but that they would have to bear with me as I learned how to wear the hearing aids. Fortunately, everyone was supportive, although I was startled by some of the comments I received. More than one person responded to my announcement that I was losing my hearing by saying, "Really? How could you tell?" I contemplated saying, "The colours haven't been as bright." I go in for my "learning how to use the hearing aid" session tomorrow. Sigh. Age and decrepitude.

Poets and Chocolate

For several years now CBC radio has hosted an annual Poetry Face-Off. Five poets read their work and the audience does its bit by voting in a winner. Said winner goes to the national face-off. I keep rooting for someone from Saskatchewan to win the national contest, but so far it hasn't happened. This year for sure! The Face-Off was popular the first year and each year more and more people attend. It's beginning to be hard to get a seat. This year--as if they needed to--the CBC has added an incentive to attend: free dark chocolate! I had to miss last year's event, but for sure I'll go this year (and not just because of the chocolate). The five poets are Shelley Leedahl, Taylor Leedahl (yes, they are related), Holly Luhning, Ken Mitchell, and Gabriel Yahyahkeekoot. I'm familiar with everyone's work but Gabriel Yahyahkeekoot, and I'm sure he'll be as fabulous as the rest. As in the past, the poets will be accompanied in their reading by Lee Kozak, Saskatoon musician/improv artist. Lee has done such a great job before that I've been close to being swayed in my vote by the music he's played rather than the work that's been read. I've been firm with myself, though. The evening will open with a reading by the winners of two competitions in the Saskatchewan Writers Guild's publication for teens (windScript) and it will close with a sketch by the comedy improv group the Bionic Bannock Boys--more artists I'm not familiar with (but that I've heard great things about). If anyone would like to attend, the event takes place on Friday 17 February at 8 pm at the CBC Galleria (2440 Broad Street, Regina SK). Doors open at 7:00 p.m.--and you really should get there early! If you attend, we might get in to an armwrestling match over the last of the chocolate.