Names, Names, Names

As I was browsing through a miscellany of blogs a while back, I came across the little quiz below (I've provided my answers after the questions). 1.YOUR PORN STAR NAME [or: Your Romance Novelist Name]: (first pet and current street name) Fluffy Gastle 2. YOUR MOVIE STAR NAME: (grandfather/grandmother on mother's side first name, favorite candy) Maude Macaroon 3. YOUR "FLY GIRL/GUY" NAME: (first initial of first name, first three letters of your last name) A. Nel 4. YOUR DETECTIVE NAME: (favorite animal, name of high school) Cat Martin 5. YOUR OPPOSITE SEX NAME: (name of dad/mom, cell phone Company you use): Otto Sasktel 7. YOUR STAR WARS NAME: (daily prescription medicine, make of car) Valproic Ford 8. SOAP OPERA NAME: (middle name, street you grew up on): Jessica Walker 9. YOUR FASHION DESIGNER NAME: (first word you see on your left, favorite restaurant) Regina India House 10. MY TRAGIC HEROINE NAME: (favourite flower, word off nearest book spine) Calla Blood ***** Interesting. Now what on earth is a "Fly Girl/Guy"? Via Everything Here Is Covered In Cat Hair.

The Story of the Green Children

I enjoy reading folklore, so my attention was caught by the story of the two green children who are said to have appeared suddenly by a village in England. This incident is supposed to have happened in the 12th century, when King Stephen was on the throne. I read now that the modern town of Woolpit, England, is the original town of the story, and that this tale is one they use in promoting tourism. Via In The Middle.

Cats Imitating Gargoyles

As I am both a cat fan and a medievalist, I couldn't help but be enraptured by the blog post When Good Cats Go Gargoyle. Check out Claudius and Ellie doing their gargoyle imitations. Via pages turned.

Owen and Mzee's Web Log

You may remember Owen and Mzee, the baby hippo and the tortoise who formed an unlikely friendship after the tsunami of 2004. There is now a blog that features them and the rest of the animals cared for at the animal sanctuary where they live. As well as the blog, there are links to sites describing the animals and plants of the sanctuary, a link to a newsletter, a link to a free Owen and Mzee screensaver, and a link to free ring tones for your cell phone. Via How To Save The World.

A Site For Appalachian Folk Music

Here's an interesting site for those interested in early American folk music: Fiddle Tunes of the Old Frontier: The Henry Reed Collection. Henry Reed was a fiddler born in 1884 in Monroe County, Virginia, and this site contains music recorded when he was over 80. The site says, "the tunes represent the music and evoke the history and spirit of Virginia's Appalachian frontier." There are 184 recordings plus essays on Henry Reed, field notes, transcriptions of the music, links, and a glossary. The recordings are sorted according to genre, including breakdowns, fiddle tunes, hornpipes, schottisches, jigs, quicksteps, rags, reels, and much more. Via Plep.

Interesting Site on Spices

Here's a great site for those of us who are interested in the spices in our food: Gernot Katzer's Spice Pages. This site provides information on over 100 spices, from ajwain to zedoary. Many of them (like zedoary or perilla or rocket) are ones I've never heard of. For each spice there is a wealth of information: · translations of the name of the spice into many different languages · a photo of the plant with a description of which part of it is used in cooking · the sensory quality (e.g. lemon-scented? astringent?) · a description of the plant's properties · its origin · the etymology of the plant's name · some links to other sites about the plant There are no recipes here, but everything else you could possibly want to know about the spices is available. There's also a list of spice mixtures (e.g. bouquet garni, garam masala) along with a description of what's contained in each.

The Freedom Museum

The Freedom Museum is a site that's well worth a look. It's a U.S. site that is devoted to the "struggle for freedom in the U.S. and the role the First Amendment plays in our daily lives." The site invites us to "Explore how freedom plays a role in your life." There's an exploration of the history of freedom, an examination of how some people's freedoms were not guaranteed automatically in the United States, some quotations from people who were fighting for freedom, and much more. Via Plep.

All About Krishna

For those who are interested in the Hindu god Krishna, here's a nifty site: Painted Visions from India and Pakistan, Past and Present. The site shows 9 paintings that present the story of Krishna's life. You can read the explanation of each painting, or you can listen to an audio recording. There's also a card game to play that tests your knowledge of the information presented on the site. Check out the animated elephant that moves back and forth as the site loads, and once the site is ready to go, make sure your speakers are on to enjoy the music. Via Yahoo! Picks.

A New Way To Screen For Spammers

If you're feeling like a smile, check out KittenAuth. It is meant to be installed as a screen on web pages to prevent spam, but it's unlike the usual system ("type in the letters that you see in front of you"). According to its creator, it "is a new system for human-checking that forgoes all the useless random string crap that people cannot read, and replaces the whole lot with pictures of cute animals." To read more about it, see here. To go directly to the kittens, see here. Make sure you actually click on the three kittens to get the words of encouragement when you complete it. Via Rebecca's Pocket.

Hobbit/Elvish Name Generators

I started re-reading Tolkien's The Lord of The Rings the other day (for the umpteenth time). Either that same day or the next I stumbled across two amusing webpages based on Tolkien's world. The first is The Hobbit Name Generator. Here you type in your name and press a button to see what your name would translate to if you were a hobbit. I would be Azaelia Bunce of Brockenborings. The second page is similar; it's The Elvish Name Generator. Apparently if I were an elf, my name would be Larien Felagund. I seem to remember seeing this page a few years ago, but I'm pleased that it's turned up again now that I'm re-reading the trilogy. Via barefoot meandering.

A Blog on Food and History

18thC Cuisine is a blog that manages to combine two of my interests: history and food. Even when I know I don't like the food (e.g. anything licorice-flavoured), I love reading about it. This blog invites readers to "Explore with me 18thC French cuisine as a habitante in Nouvelle France may have cooked." She works her way through 18th century recipes and techniques (e.g. sugaring off) and provides the old recipes first in the original French and then in translation. This blog has wonderful links to other food blogs (as well as sites with instructions on how to write food blogs). There are also links to sites on 18th century history, cooking tools, kitchen gardens, and blogs/sites in French. As background to the time she's interested in, here's a link to a very good site on Nouvelle France (also known as New France or Quebec). Via The Old Foodie through Epicurious.com.

Great Site For Folk Music

If you're a fan of traditional folk music, here's a good site to check out: Folk Music of England, Scotland, Ireland, Wales, and America. You can search for folk music by country (England, Ireland, Scotland, Wales, U.S., and a few from Canada and Australia). A few Canadian ones include "Canadian Boat Song," "Farewell to Nova Scotia," "Polly Vaughn," and "Settler's Lament." You can also search them by category, such as love songs, songs of war, songs of the sea, children's songs, and "wastrels, rascals, criminals, outlaws and violence." There's also a link to the Child ballads (e.g. "Barbara Allen," "The Death of Queen Jane," "The Two Magicians"). The site provides lyrics, a history of the song, links to background info on each song (e.g. links to a site on shape-shifting on the page for "The Two Magicians"), and audio files (music only, no vocals). Via Stones In the Field through Digital Medievalist.

How To Travel Light

Here's something that comes up just at a time when I need it: One Bag: The Art and Science of Travelling Light. Subtitled "all about packing, luggage, and travelling light," this site has a wide range of information in the following categories: · "what to take" · "what to take it in" · "how to pack it" He also has a list of further resources. Via Rebecca's Pocket.

Life-Size Chocolate Rooms

Like chocolate? Here's the web site for you: Life-Size Chocolate Rooms. If you have a minimum of 2,500 British pounds, you can have a room built all of chocolate (with lickable walls). For your next party, guests can eat the rooms (and the chandelier, and the fireplace, and the paintings . . .). Via Boing Boing.

A Site Promoting Tolerance

Here's a site I like to go back to frequently: Promoting Religious Understanding, Tolerance, and Freedom. Put together by the Ontario Consultants On Religious Tolerance, the site has a wealth of information on a variety of topics (there are over 3,230 essays). Their goals are as follows: · "Disseminating accurate religious information · Exposing religious fraud, hatred and misinformation · Disseminating information on dozens of "hot" religious topics" The site covers many areas: · write-ups about specific religions (e.g. Buddhism, Christianity, Islam, Wicca) · religion in general (with such sub-categories as quotations, science versus religion, seasonal topics, and confusing terms) · hot topics (abortion, cloning, gay rights, spanking children) · links to religious news

Rules Cats Live By

If you live with a cat, you'll understand the thinking behind a great posting at James S. Huggins' Refrigerator Door. It's titled Guidelines For Cats, and I don't know about your cats, but I think mine took notes from this site. Here are a few items from the list: · Always accompany guests to the bathroom. It is not necessary to do anything . . . just sit and stare. · For book readers, get in close under the chin, between eyes and book, unless you can lie across the book itself. · When the humans are eating, make sure you leave the tip of your tail in their dishes when they are not looking. Via baconandeh's.

100 Unusual Facts

Did you know that the Queen has never used a computer, that Bill Gates doesn't own an iPod, and that Nicole Kidman doesn't like butterflies? A BBC News article tells us all this and much more. Titled "100 Things We Didn't Know This Time Last Year," the article, published 30 December 2005, goes on to list unusual facts about people and things. There's interesting, if strange, information about giant squid, the octopus, and WD-40. We also learn that it's possible to blow up balloons with our ears. Via Neat New Stuff On The Web.

A History of Vision Aids

I'm guessing that the majority of us will need to wear glasses at some time in our lives. I'm also guessing that most of us don't give glasses a second thought. David A. Fleishman loves glasses, though, and he's put together an extensive website about them: Antique Spectacles and Other Vision Aids. It features the history of glasses, links to a number of online collections (glasses, other visual aids, cases), artwork, links to educational sites, and games (check out the rotating dots). Via Boing Boing.

Virtual Caves

I've always been fascinated by caves, but I haven't had much opportunity to explore any. Here's a wonderful site for stay-at-home cave lovers: Virtual Cave. There are sections here (with lots of photos) on sea caves, solution caves, lava tube caves, and erosional caves. Via Neat New Stuff On The Web.

Check Out This Jazz Site

One big attraction at the interesting harlem.org is a wonderful photo by Art Kane. The tag line on the photo site reads "explore jazz history through one photograph." The 1958 group photo shows 57 jazz greats all in one photo (originally taken for Esquire). Some of the artists featured include Count Basie, Gerry Mulligan, Thelonious Monk, and Lester Young. In addition to the photo, there are links to articles about the 57 musicians, a list of instruments played by each musicians (organised by instrument), and a list that shows which musicians played what kind of jazz (from Dixieland to bebop to cool jazz). I've already spent a lot of time at this site, and I'll be browsing some more. Via Quotidian Hell.

What Was Happening On Your Birthday?

Here's something that's fun to browse: what was happening on your birthday throughout history. Here's how you find out: go to Wikipedia and, in the search box on the left hand side, type in the month and day of your birthday (not the year), then click on "Go." When I entered my birthday, I found out that the following events had taken place (among many others): • 1653: Oliver Cromwell took over as Lord Protector of England, Scotland, and Ireland • 1773: the Boston Tea Party Of the many people who had been born that day, there were several with whom I'm proud to share a birthday: • 1485: Catherine of Aragon (first wife of Henry the VIII of England) • 1770: Ludwig van Beethoven • 1775: Jane Austen (my all-time favourite author) • 1899: Noel Coward • 1917: Arthur C. Clarke • 1928: Philip K. Dick Of course, some people died on this day too, including the following: • 1859: Wilhelm Grimm (one half of the brothers Grimm) • 1916: Rasputin • 1965: W. Somerset Maugham • 1980: Colonel Sanders Via The Worlds of Paul M. Jessup through Metaxu Cafe.

Working Out the Right Thing To Do

Here's an interesting link that talks about the background to thinking about moral dilemmas. There's also a related link that gives some examples of such dilemmas. Via Cynical-C.

Very, Very Bad Public Relations

Read the saga of what happened to two people who tried to stay at a hotel and encountered Mike, the Night Clerk. It starts out like this: "We held guaranteed, confirmed reservations at the DoubleTree Club for the night of November 14-15. - These rooms were held for late arrival with a major credit card. - Tom is a card-carrying Hilton HHonors Gold VIP? - Yet when we arrived at 2:00am? we were refused rooms! - Mike, your Night Clerk, said the only rooms left were off-limits because their plumbing and air-conditioning had broken! He'd given away the last good rooms three hours ago! He'd done nothing about finding us accommodation elsewhere! - And he was deeply unapologetic!" To read the entire story, see this link. It's a slide show, but no special software like PowerPoint is needed. Just click on the arrow at the bottom of the screen to navigate to the next screen. Make sure you read screen 16 (out of 17). Ouch. This took place in 2001, and the story has been circulating ever since. It almost makes you feel sorry for Mike. Almost. Via I Will Teach You To Be Rich. For Ramit Sethi's further comments about this and other instances of customer service (or lack thereof), see this post.

Hedgehog Blog

Photo by Brandy Agerbeck

Numo the hedgehog has his very own blog. I've always read that hedgehogs love to play with empty toilet paper or paper towel tubes, and Numo certainly does; there are some great photos of him tubing. We've had six hedgehogs over the years, and none of them has looked twice at these toys (or any other toys). When you're done admiring Numo, check out Hedgehog Central. Via Cute Overload.

Slavery Is Not Dead

I had always fuzzily assumed that after the Civil War in the United States, slavery was no longer a fact of life. Not so. The American Anti-Slavery Group has an extensive website which outlines the truth about slavery in the world today. Slavery may no longer be socially acceptable, but it still exists—even in the U.S. The site says that "According to CIA estimates, over 100,000 people are enslaved in the U.S. today. These victims (typically from the third world) are trafficked to locations across the country to work as domestic, sex, factory, or agricultural slaves. Law enforcement authorities have only recently recognized the extent of this modern day slavery, and are just now introducing response programs." Slavery is, unfortunately, a global phenomenan. If you click on the site's map, you'll be able to see information about slavery world-wide. As with any good site-with-a-cause, in addition to a great deal of information, this site also offers guidelines for activists (experienced and beginner). Via memepool.

Who Would Be On Your Guest List?

Betty E. Stein at the Forth Worth News-Sentinal has written an article wondering what three famous people—dead or alive—she would like to invite to lunch. It's not a new idea, but it's one that does make me wonder every time someone raises it. Would I invite my top three favourite authors (and how could I possibly keep it down to three?). My top three favourite musicians? Maybe three religious leaders? Or would I mix and match? How would a lunch that included Jane Austen, the Buddha, and Tom Waits work out? Or how about Charles Dickens, Confucious, and Billie Holliday? Via AustenBlog.

Something Beautiful

Something Beautiful is a great idea—a blog that links to sites featuring beautiful photos. In the past couple of days the sites have been about gardening, but recent posts also feature the Sutton Hoo site, a cheetah, and some Viking chess pieces. This site is well worth checking out.

The Good News Blog

Quite a few people feel hopeless after hearing so much about war, death, poverty, natural disasters, and our inhumanity to each other. The people behind the Good News Blog have decided to help show us that there is hope for humankind, and that good things do happen in the world. Recent stories cover the amount of money George Clooney's Oscar gift bag received at an auction for the United Way ($45,000) and a discovery that will help sufferers of Muscular Dystrophy.

Baha'is Under Surveillance in Iran

Radio Free Europe reports that Asma Jahangir, UN Special Rapporteur on Freedom of Religion, has issued a statement regarding surveillance of Baha'is in Iran. According to Jahangir's statement, in October 2005 a high-ranking Iranian military commander sent out a letter to various agencies, including the Ministry of Information, the Revolutionary Guard, and the police, in which they are asked identify citizens who are Bahai and monitor their activities. Jahangir warns that information collected in such a manner could be used to persecute Baha'is or discriminate against them. You can read the entire article here.

But I Wanted to Be a Pepsi!

Fine, I admit it, I'm a hopeless sucker for taking silly quizzes. Here's the result of the latest one:

You Are Diet Coke

You are energy in its purest form. No need to complicate things with sweetness. And while people may hate your aftertaste, you are seen as a necessary evil. Your best soda match: 7 Up Stay away from: Coke

What Kind of Soda Are You?

A necessary evil, hmm? I'm crushed. Not too crushed, though. I'll likely go back to Blogthings to idle away time on their other little tests, such as "What kind of cookie are you?" and "What European city do you belong in?"