A couple of weeks ago in Vermont I went antiquing, and bought an old printer's drawer. My friend also bought one. These old drawers are magnificent, and can be easily transformed into a trinket art display. Last week I was going to start on cleaning and staining my drawer, but I wasn't feeling well. Here is a drawer that is similar to mine, and some examples of what others have done. 
Starting with Duchamp's version painted in 1919, I've enjoyed many of the 'bastardized' Mona Lisa renditions.
Hilary & Monica were definitely amusing in the 1990's.
But, this version is by far the most brilliant commentary of the times!
Recently, there have been some exciting discoveries and advances in the study of human evolution. Tim White and others have finally published information and analysis about Ardi, the nearly complete humanoid skeleton they found in Ethiopia in 1997. It has taken 12 years to fully analyze the find. Ardi is the oldest hominid skeleton ever found.
Ardi, a 3.5 foot female Ardipithecus that walked on two feet and lived 4.4 million years ago, predates Lucy by a million years. Some revelations about Ardi are that she did walk on two feet, and yet had feet which could also grip tree limbs. This makes bipedalism much earlier for hominids than thought. For whatever
reason, bipedalism must have had a tremendous evolutionary advantage for primates that evolved into humans, since it is a poor way to amble. Scientists are theorizing that bipedalism frees the hands for carrying food. (I thought also perhaps for carrying infants) An upright position then paved the way for other advantages such as social interaction, tool use, and speech, and was reinforced.
Though I don't quite understand, Ardi also separates humans from the ape and gorilla branch more than once thought. Although we come from the same root as apes and gorillas, I guess the first hominid creatures developed on the hominid branch, not on the same branch as the gorillas and apes. They evolved separately. Still, we share 99.9% of the same genetic material as our primate friends. Another revelation is that Ardi has small teeth, unlike chimpanzees.
It's difficult to imagine that once upon a time I spent a week in Montana. It's taken me a long time to upload these photos. One, I did lose the USB connector for my camera, but two, I think I did have that 'can't go back there again' feeling. It was a beautiful experience for an outdoor lover. Hard to imagine. Here's our first day hike at Glacier National Park. I've also included our travel diary entries for that day.
August 22, 2009 Today was an incredible day. This park is amazing! 
We stayed in West Glacier the first night. Accommodations were rustic but we slept. Then we drove to Apgar Village and did some shopping and got a map. We parked at the Avalanche trail head then entered the trail of the cedars. It was very similar to the trees we saw in Olympia National Park, but smaller. We continued on to Avalanche Lake. The trail was a little climbing of 2 miles. We got to the lake and it was amazing! We stayed there a couple of hours, ate lunch, took pictures, walked around. The water was that glacial turquoise in parts. I found an injured bat and tried to help, but he was doomed with a clipped wing. What fascinating little creatures! 
He was so small and had this tiny dog-like face and teeth! We also saw a mink! CT
Indescribable beauty..... Spectacular views open up at every turn. Everything is big and spread out and high up. The water is melted ice but refreshing on the hands and feet. I'm out of shape but just did 4 miles of hiking. Loved every minute of it. The boat ride on Lake McDonald was relaxing and I'm hoping to get some color from the brilliant sun. A million stars shown down tonight! Hoping to see some more wildlife before the week is out. The mink was so adorable! MK
Roberta Flack is a goddess walking upon the earth. Her signature song, "Killing Me Softly With His Song," was released in 1970! I noticed recently, working in Market Basket with the constant piped in music, that "Killing Me Softly" was being played frequently. At first I thought it was Roberta, but then I realized it was a modern version of the song by 'The Fugees'. Not bad, but not Roberta.
Below is Roberta Flack singing "Killing Me Softly" in the early 1970's. (Unfortunately I can't tell if this studio footage is live, or matched with a recorded version of the song) The second video is 'The Fugees'" version, with Roberta Flack, 39 years later, joining them on stage.
The authenticity of the Shroud of Turin, one of my favorite unsolved mysteries, has been solved. The shroud originally came to my attention in the early 1980's. There were many books about it and I was very intrigued. Science could not easily explain away this amazing piece!
The shroud is a long (14 ft.) linen cloth with a ghostly 3D image of the body and face of a man (both back side and front) that looks a lot like our depiction of Jesus, and a man that has been crucified. To make matters more convincing, there is also blood caked on the cloth, and the image is not painted on.
In 1988 scientists did carbon testing on the shroud, and dated it to the Middle Ages (1260-1390). At this point I put the shroud out of my mind, and deemed it a medieval forgery. During the 1300's, Europe was rife with the display of religious relics and icons, in order to encourage pilgrimages and raise money for the church. In addition, the provenance, or historical record of the piece, was dated to the 1350's.
Recently some scientists challenged the accuracy of the earlier carbon dating. Burns on the shroud, which we know occurred in the Middle Ages and were fixed by nuns with patches of cloth, may have affected the outcome of the carbon testing. Most importantly, no one had yet to duplicate or explain how the image was created. It was intriguing to wonder: "How could people from medieval times have such sophisticated methods that even modern scientists can't explain?"
Last week an article appeared, reporting that an Italian scientist Luigi Garlaschelli had duplicated the image by rubbing pigment on a model with a mask, then baking the pigment off (very simplified version). This technique
leaves a faint stain similar to the shroud image. Others scientists have now successfully used other methods, that have also produced eerie images.
I must say that I'm slightly disappointed, but bow down to the God of science. One thing that always bothered me about the shroud was that Jesus looked exactly like Jesus. We know in reality the real Jesus living in the Middle East at the time probably would have been short, with an olive complexion, and curly dark hair. This is what always made me suspicious that the shroud was of European origin.
--------------------------------Garlarschelli's Recreation
Not surprisingly, I am not high maintenance, but quite low maintenance. Sometimes I think my independence and self-sufficiency borders on frightening.
I should be paired with the right, fairly high maintenance person. Only one friend called me high maintenance once, in reference to my 'emotional intensity.'
Click on the image to take the quiz yourself.
There isn't a young girl on the planet that hasn't been profoundly moved by Anne Frank's diary, once she's read it. I remember reading it as an adolescent, but I haven't read it since. I'm afraid if I read the diary again I can't experience that innocence and heavy heart that can only be felt at that time in life.
Second to the bible, Anne Frank's diary is the most translated document in history. When I went to Anne
Frank's hiding place in Amsterdam, I was amazed at the all translated versions of her story, which the museum had on hand.
I hate that her father originally censored parts of her diary, deeming them improper. Just like an authoritative middle-aged man to squelch out a young woman's budding sexuality. At the same time, kudos to Otto for recognizing the miracle of his daughter's words, and sharing them with the world. Fortunately the full version of her diary is now available. 
Anne Frank beat out Hilter's "Mein Kampf" by millions of copies. What utter irony. Who wants to listen to the rants and ravings of that old black heart? The man that murdered her. What a contrast between beauty and evil--- Anne Frank and Hilter.
Some moving pictures of Anne Frank have been released on the internet. Would she ever dream these images of her would be available worldwide in such a format, 60 years later? I think she would have been delighted.
I have seen these images before. Anne is up on the balcony watching a neighbor's wedding, a year or so before her family is forced into hiding. In the film, you catch a little of her spirited personality. Click on link.
http://www.youtube.com/annefrank#play/uploads/
I saw an article in National Geographic Magazine listing all of the second biggest, fastest, oldest, tallest animals, cities, languages, oceans, mountains, etc... of the world. The article inspired me to check out the 10th largest, smallest, heaviest, deepest, etc... animals, humans, oceans, mountains, etc...., of the world and the United States.
Just curious. This list compiles the unsung heroes of the World Book of Records.
1. 10TH LARGEST US CITY
San Jose, Ca. population 939,000 as of 7/1/2007
2. 10TH TALLEST US MOUNTAIN
Mount Bear, Alaska 14,831 ft.
3. 10TH TALLEST ANIMAL
Percheron Draft Horse 7ft.
4. 10th HEAVIEST ANIMAL
Bison 1,764 lbs.
5. 10th LARGEST METRO AREA IN THE WORLD
Shanghai, China 16,650,000
6. 10TH OLDEST PERSON TO LIVE EVER
Kamato Hungo, Japan 116 years, 45 days
7. 10TH OLDEST PERSON NOW LIVING
Eunice Sanborn, Texas, US 113 years, 68 days born in 1896
8. 10TH TALLEST MAN EVER
John F. Carroll 8ft. 0 in.
9. 10TH DEEPEST OCEAN OR SEA
Japan Sea 12,276 ft. deep
10. 10TH SMARTEST PERSON LIVING
Judith Polgar Chess Champion IQ 170
Having just visited Glacier National Park in Montana last month, I have had close encounters with mountain lions recently on my mind. Though more likely to see a grizzly bear at Glacier (cougars are very 'reclusive'), mountain lions, or pumas, do reside in Glacier National Park. Apparently these fine wild cats have made somewhat of a resurgence in the past decades in the United States. The puma has always resided in Florida, but now lives in the mid-area of the U.S. stretching from Texas to North Dakota. 
The largest population of cougars aggregates in the Dakotas and Nebraska. However, more mid-Western states have had sightings. Last year a mountain lion was found in Chicago!
A few sightings have occurred in the Northeast. In fact, my friend J.D.'s Mom is pretty sure she saw a puma meandering in the hills of NH. While others may have thought she was going "off the deep end," she was later vindicated by an article in a nearby newspaper confirming that other folks had seen a mountain lion in the area. Naturalists, however, do not think there's a viable population of mountain lions in New England. The cats are likely escaped pets.
________________________________________National Geographic Data
Wow! Chaka Khan in the late 1970's. I've always loved this old funk song--"Tell Me Something Good," and never realized the great Chaka Khan was the lead singer! Check her out!
This evening I got together with my second cousin Nancy for dinner, who I probably haven't seen for 20 years. She needed some professional advice regarding her son. I met her two children McKenzie and Michael, and they were delightfully entertaining.
As children Nancy and I spent a fair amount of time together. We are about the same age. Nancy and her sister Paula lived in Everett, and my sisters and I would visit their house in Everett and they'd visit our house in Somerville. Our moms-- Judy and Pat--were not only first cousins but were and still are good friends.
I told Nancy our moms were both born on the same street in Chelsea, only months apart. She didn't know this family history tidbit. Out of all my mom's cousins, she was always closest to Pat.
Nancy now lives in Peabody, and Paula lives in Las Vegas. If I go out to the Southwest this February, I'd like to see Paula.
It was really great to see Nancy. I was a little nervous, but it seemed like old times right away. She gave me this picture. Here we all are on June 3, 1973. From left is Paula, me (age 10), Nancy, (a neighbor on Nancy's lap), my sisters Janet and Jennifer. 
Hopefully we'll keep our promise to keep in touch and get together for a BBQ in the spring.
Currently I'm reading Howard Zinn's "A People's History of the United States," 1492 to Present." Though perhaps more cynical than I am able to swallow, Zinn does tell the 'other side' of American history, the story of the poor and 'have-nots', a group which has included in various centuries Native Americans, women, children, African Americans, immigrants, farmers, labor workers, religious minorities, and others.
Zinn deflates some of our American heroes like Jefferson and Lincoln by describing the varied political and selfish motives behind their endeavors like the Declaration of Independence and the Emancipation Proclamation, rather than purist American ideals. Zinn then highlights aspects of American history like the labor movement. Though called communist and criminal, labor reform was perhaps one of America's greatest democratic triumphs for the 'ordinary' man? The poor labor workers had everything to lose by contributing even a small amount, and the very rich like J.P. Morgan had so little to lose by sharing a fraction of their wealth.
Indeed, true history is like a complicated woven fabric. There are many sides to each issue. However, though very many American institutions, businesses, museums, foundations, banks, universities, etc... were founded by men like Carnegie and J.P. Morgan, with a fraction of their wealth, Labor Day should help us keep in mind that these institutions were built on the backs of thousands of ordinary American workers, like my ancestors and yours.
Labor Day: JP Morgan Vs. The Coal Miners
--------Mari Paz Vega
The other night I happened to catch a P.O.V. documentary on PBS, call "Ella Es el Matador." It was about female bullfighters, which I didn't even know existed! Apparently there's a long and spotty history of women and bullfighting. Going back to the 1930's and on there were female bullfighters, and some of them were well known.
It's surprising to me that such masochistic cultures as Latin America, Mexico, and Spain would ever allow women to fight, but a small number of women have fought consistently throughout the decades. In Spain, during Franco's reign, women were banned. Even today Spain is more sexist towards women. Some of the women in the documentary have to pursue their careers in Latin America, though Spain is perceived as the ultimate place to fight and become famous.
The documentary follows several women during the pursuit of their careers. All of the women must work extra hard and be extra lucky to become 'el matador,' compared to males. There is a long process of being an apprentice matador before graduating to the title of el matador. The film points out that there is no true title for a female matador, which should be 'la matadora.' Even though females can fight, there is an invisible wall of sexism and prejudice that prevents most women from ever becoming established bullfighters. Only one woman in the film, Mari Paz Vega, 'makes' it.
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------Eva Florencia
The film acknowledges cruelty to animals, but does not make the issue a focus. Bullfighting exists, and is a sport Spaniards love which is difficult for many others to understand. I cannot explain her love, but there is no doubt the film captures one women Eva Florencia's ardent passion for bullfighting and the bull. She paints pictures of bulls, and sees the bull as a deeply symbolic figure. It's also clear in the film that there are deep religious overtones to bullfighting, and there are numerous ritualistic habits associated with the fight.
In my opinion Spaniards love bullfighting because 'el matador' is a Christ-like figure facing death over and over. Watching this film does make me want to read Hemingway's "Death in the Afternoon."
Conchita Cintron (1922-2009)
Patricia McCormick (one of the few American
female bullfighters)
My five year old niece sent me a thank you letter for the new bike I bought her in August. Made my day.
Sadly, my grandfather Hjalmar never returned to Norway after his youth. Except for one brother, Nikolai, who was lost at sea during W.W.II, the rest of his family never left Norway to visit the states. My grandfather left behind his mother Hendrikke (she died in 1956), three sisters Bertha, Gunhild, and Borghild, and four brothers Nils, Hans, Klaus, and Johan.
Over the years the family corresponded by letters and cards. In the 30's, 40's, and 50's my mother remembers getting packages with home-made mittens, hats, and scarfs. Apparently my grandfather's sister Gunhild was very talented at knitting and embroidery. In the 1960's and 1970's correspondence tapered off to an occasional holiday card.
When my grandfather passed away in 1986, we sent a letter to Norway informing his family. At the time we were not even sure if any of his siblings were still living. It turns out his sister Bertha, and brothers Klaus, Johan, and Nils were still in Norway. Thus began a re-correspondence, as I took up interest in reacquainting with the family. It was difficult, as the oldsters only wrote in Norwegian, and could not read or speak in English.
Hjalmar's sister Bertha, who was in her 80's at the time, was the sister I corresponded with. Unlike my grandfather, Bertha's personality was cheerful and interactive. From the late 1980's to the early 1990's, we wrote to each other several times until her death in 1994. 
In 1992, I went to visit Norway and met Bertha and Klaus. It was a joyous occasion and one of the most memorable of my life. Bertha seemed at peace to finally meet one member of her long lost family. When she saw me, she clapped her hands and said in Norwegian, "Oh yes! I can see the resemblance!" Below is the translation of a letter sent by Bertha.
--------------------------------------------------Klaus, Great-grandmother, Bertha, Nikolai
"Dear all of you! Hearty thanks for your letter and the pictures you sent us. We become thereby better known to each other. Those who see John (my uncle) say he resembles Kjell (his cousin). Yes we miss Nils who was always the happy boy from when he was little. He and Hjalmar and Klausen were inseparable. Now we are all old. Johan has had the same as Hjalmar-- heart infraction. It was rather light, so Johan could come home from the hospital. He has help in the house 3 times a week.
Klaus playing his fiddle in 1992, and as a young man
You write about a trip to Norway. Don't know if I can manage such visits now. Had it been 10 years ago it would have been nice for us. We waited for Hjalmar for a long time. Many regards to your mother for us. You have a lovely mother and Hjalmar had a good wife. I shall buy a frame for the nice picture of her.
I will become 85 this summer, so you can understand my writing is not as good as it used to be and I have some trouble gathering my thoughts. I am happy for what I am. I do things around the house okay. We are fine, but there is alot of evil in the world today which destroys a lot of people. We expect Kjell to come home. He will help Klaus with some work.
You write something about the house at home in Grimstad. In those days all houses were built with two livingrooms, kitchen, a hallway, a loft upstairs, and 2 rooms and a hallway. Where we slept as children we called ..... . There were 4 beds, and the boys slept 2 and 2 together in one bed. I can remember my mother banging with a broom handle to wake us in the morning so we could eat and go to school at 9. It was fun. We were 8 neighbors in Grimstad and a lot of boys.
It took a long time before you got an answer back. I have had a bad knee and was not allowed to walk on that foot without support. I am better after I got medication from the doctor.
These houses in Nymark are big houses. We used to be two families. Now we are only 2 people left. That's the way it goes. Those days were cozy when we were all alive. Hearty greetings to all of you from all of us--- Klaus, Johan, and Bertha. You must give many regards to your mother! I will send more pictures later!
This past weekend was the 40th anniversary of Woodstock. My only claim to fame regarding this historic event (I was six years old at the time) is that I know two people that were actually there!
There's been a lot of press in the past week or so about Woodstock. What did it all mean? Looking back at the line-up of bands during those three days, it seems Woodstock really was a milestone event of the "Baby Boomer" generation. The themes of the songs-- messages of peace, brotherhood, racial equality, free love, experience, and freedom-- typify the generation.
Many folks have also pointed out that 169 Americans died in Vietnam that weekend. This just adds to the complexity of the late 1960's in American history (and the world), and the complexity of what the 60's generation contributed to American culture.
Personally, I do not consider myself a 'baby boomer.' I came of age during the early 1980's Reagan era. But along with the "flapper generation" of the 1920's, and the 'greatest generation' of the 1940's, I look up to the 1960's generation as one of the greatest and most influential of the past century.
My grandfather, Hjalmar Nilson Grimstad, was a merchant seaman or 'merchant marine' for many years. During the early 1930's he worked for the Department of Commerce, particularly the Bureau of Navigation and Shipping Service. As a sailor on various freight ships, he had the opportunity to sail to Panama and the West coast of South America. He may have been as far as Argentina. After each voyage, he was 'discharged' from service. Through 1929 to 1932 he was discharged in Baltimore and New York, and then later in 1933 in Boston, where he ended up settling and getting married. 
He kept records of the various ships he sailed on. Interestingly, one of the ships he sailed was called the S.S. Carolyn, and it was the only ship I could find a picture of! Unfortunately, this ship was later utilized during W.W. II and was torpedoed and sunk in 1945.
click on documents for closer view
I just took a course about bilingual children and education in America. I learned a lot about language, language loss, and second language acquisition. I thought a lot about my grandfather's eventual loss of Norwegian through the years. We also discussed immigration and culture, and the 'American Story' in general.
Below are two documents aptly illustrating my family's story-- the naturalization papers of my great-grandmother Mary Margaret Downing and my grandmother Margaret Gwendolyn Grimstad.
As an amateur genealogist, if you can find the naturalization records of your ancestor, you will glean a lot of information. Some of the details given are birthplace, port of entry to the United States, children, address, physical description, signature, and usually a photograph. There is a website, Footnote.com, that has naturalization papers, but it costs money to access them.
Obviously I didn't get my height from this side of the family!
click on documents for detailed view
Positive psychology, or the study of what makes people happy, is becoming more and more a growing topic in the world of neuroscience. I'm very interested in positive psychology, as I am a person who's suffered from depression and the propensity towards negative thinking my whole life. Dan Gilbert is a professor at Harvard, and he's written a book called "Stumbling on Happiness." Here he gives a short and interesting talk about how people interpret events much differently than we expect.
| # | MyGoals |
My Political Views
I am a center-left social libertarian
Left: 2.96, Libertarian: 4.43
Political Spectrum Quiz
What philosophy of life do you follow? I guess I mostly have an Eastern philosophy outlook. (Not surprising) Take the quiz and find out for yourself.
You Are Eastern |
 You see yourself as a very small part of the universe - and you're still trying to figure out what your role is. Discovering who you are and the meaning of your life is very important to you. You see life as a journey, and you hope to learn as much as you possibly can. You believe that living a virtuous and reflective life is how to reach enlightenment. |
Surprisingly enough, I've never really been much into the Amelia Earhart "mystery," mostly because I think it's clear what happened to her. Earhart's plane ran out of fuel, crashed into the vast Pacific Ocean on July 2, 1937, and was lost. Given the expanse of the Pacific Ocean, and the lack of land in the area where Earhart was flying, it is entirely possible that no debris from her crash would ever be found.
Nevertheless, theories have abounded over the many decades about her disappearance, from Japanese capture and torture to assuming another identity and living in Asia. Since her body was never found, there's always the possibility she survived the initial crash. Also, there's always the question of what happened for sure.
While most stories can be dismissed as mere fiction, there are a couple of realistic possibilities of what may have happened to Earhart. Assuming that she could have landed the plane in water or on land safely (or survived the impact) there is an island called Nikumaroro in the area where Earhart was last known to be. Supposedly, in the early 1940's British surveyors found skeletal remains on this island, though these tantalizing remains have been since lost to obscurity.
Lately, a research group called International Group for Historic Aircraft Recovery (TIGHAR) has been re-examining the Amelia Earhart mystery, and Nikumaroro Island. Its executive director Ric Gillespie postulates that Earhart was a castaway on Nikumaroro Island and even sent radio distress calls days after her disappearance.
In 2007 TIGHAR found artifacts which do raise interesting questions. The items, a mirror compact and a zipper, have been authenticated to be American-made objects circa 1930's. TIGHAR's plan is to return to Nikumaroro and hopefully excavate more artifacts. If successful, researchers hope to extract DNA from the items, and compare them to a reference sample of Amelia Earhart's DNA. It's a longshot, but I suppose it's possible.
