Saturday, June 7, 2008

Good Morning, Clippers!


June 7, 2008
Gosh, it feels good to say 2008. I'm so stuck in 1895, I'm starting to lose all my current sense, even my political correctness. And I'd hate to give examples of this happening, because I still know enough to know better!

As far as discussions I've had recently on politics, other people are talking about McCain vs. Obama. But I've been more focused on Vacheron vs. Childs. (There's numerous articles about them popping up at antiquearchives.com. One, Another.) In case you aren't following that, The Farmer newspaper sees Vacheron as a scoundrel and Childs as a saint. And they might have a point if the recent (1895) controversy about the town's school is any measure. They're in the legislature, and you're telling me Vacheron didn't have a chance to object about the bill to get rid of Jamaica's school?! I mean, c'mon!

But this is no time to get heated up. Politics does that to me...

Today, some of these first posts have some interesting things, also some tough to understand things. Down the page, the one on Ireland is cute, even though I hate dialect. As for "McPhun's Joke," I don't get it. Unless the guy's bald. It doesn't come across to me. Maybe I'll get it later.

The Harvard Lampoon poem is funny. You never know, glancing at these poems, if they're worth the trouble. But this one is clever.

On "The Giraffe's Head" post. I've seen those horn things -- knockers? -- and I guess I've known they were for defense. I didn't know giraffes were so touchy about people around them, though. This article has a parallel to Jesus' Good Shepherd teaching, about how the sheep know the shepherd's voice, and a stranger they will not follow (John 10). "A new keeper would have a hard time with her, as she knows me and will not let a stranger do anything for her." So, to translate the Bible cross-culturally, in Giraffeese, "I am the Good Giraffe Keeper. My giraffes know my voice and follow me. But a stranger, they will not allow him to do anything for them."

Heinecken, the German prodigy. That's amazing, if true. He knew all that before the age of four, then died! That's really too bad. What he might have accomplished is wonderful to contemplate. Or whatever killed him might not have killed him but just changed everything about his capabilities. And he would've gone around saying "Duh" like the rest of us!

Lastly, they didn't have chimneys? Come on. Can that be right? And "Every language is said to have its own name for wheat." Maybe so, but there's probably lots of things that every language has a word for, such as bread, house, hand, and taxes. That's the kind of trivia that keeps me up at night, so extremely interesting.

It seems like I'm stuck in 1895, I know. But I have a bunch to go, so settle in!

No comments: