Author Archives: The Old Wolf

“He who saves one life saves the world entire.”

Posted on by The Old Wolf

Nicholas_Winton_in_Prague

On the eve of World War II, Sir Nicholas Winton organized the rescue of 669 mostly Jewish children from German-occupied Czechoslovakia. While Sir Nicholas gives credit to many others who helped in the rescue effort and endured even greater dangers than he, the UK press dubbed him the “British Schindler.” There is no question that his efforts were pivotal in the saving of many lives.

In 1988, the BBC aired an episode of “That’s Life,” a program that fluctuated between humorous pieces and deadly serious issues. The clip below features Sir Nicholas and an entire audience of people who, directly or indirectly, owed their lives to him.

Hankies at the ready!

The Old Wolf has *snif* spoken.

The title of this post, by the way, is a quote from “Schindler’s List.” It was derived from the Talmud:  “Whoever destroys a soul, it is considered as if he destroyed an entire world. And whoever saves a life, it is considered as if he saved an entire world.”

-Mishnah Sanhedrin 4:9; Babylonian Talmud Tractate Sanhedrin 37a

Behind the “Do Not Enter” Signs

Posted on by The Old Wolf

Dutch photographer Niki Feijen specializes in urban exploration; capturing boarded-up buildings and decaying farm houses. His images reveal furniture and clothes that remain in decaying homes where owners have long since departed.

article-2316987-198AAFE9000005DC-376_964x639

Layers of blankets remain on the bed in the empty farmhouse, which is still surrounded by crosses and statues of Jesus belonging to its former owner

article-2316987-198AAE66000005DC-624_964x634

Frozen in time: The occupants of this abandoned farm house are long gone, but their belongings remain; from the paintings hanging on the walls to the neatly made bed.

For more such haunting images and further information, visit MailOnline, or Niki Feijen’s own website.

The Old Wolf has spoken.

All the beer; all the coffee

Posted on by The Old Wolf

The folks over at Pop Chart Lab have been busy. They do impressive work; here are two of their infographics which delineate just about everything you would need to know in order to become an impressive beer snob or a really skilled barista. These infographics are large – click for a full-size version.

Beer

 

All the beers, and the kinds of glasses they are served in.

Coffee

 

Master this, and Starbucks is your oyster.

A blogger over at Fast Company related,

[The] coffee Chart lays out the entire coffee ecosystem, outlining how various methods of production, including the French press, Kyoto dripper, and Neapolitan flip, among others, are used to create coffees, cortados, cappuccinos, and more. Coffee devotees can use the graphic as a way to announce their allegiance to the coffee bean in all its manifestations. For newcomers, it’s a chance to discover that it’s not actually called a “cafe olé.”

Creating the taxonomy was not without its difficulties. “We had to make a judgment call on how to classify the output of the Moka Pot and the Aeropress,” a PopChartLab team member told me. “It’s not quite standard brewed coffee, but we wouldn’t dare call it espresso, so we coined a term for it: fauxpresso.” And while it is, indeed, compendious, there is one notable omission. “I think we got just about every major coffee brewer in here except for K-cups,” he says, “because screw K-cups.”

One of my Aussie mates has been busy with a virtual beer tour around the world (originally in 80 beers, but as of this writing up to 129); I’d love to take that tour with him, as well as sample every possible type of coffee concoction, if it weren’t for the fact that I drink neither beer nor coffee.

But all this is ruddy interesting.

The Old Wolf has spoken.

You defile your religion

Posted on by The Old Wolf

A new statement by Taliban Spokesman Shahidullah Shahid indicates that the organization is still gunning for Malala Yousafzai, the brave young lady who defied the cowardly thugs and encouraged girls in Afghanistan to become educated, and was shot in the head for her troubles.

malala1-1-522x293

Shahid said, “She accepted that she attacked Islam so we we tried to kill her, and if we get another chance we will definitely kill her and that will make us feel proud. Islam prohibits killing women, but except those that support the infidels in their war against our religion,” he added.

I say the following things to someone who would feel proud for killing a young lady who wants only to raise the condition of her fellow citizens:

“Shahidullah Shahid, you are haram and apostate. You know nothing of Islam and its precepts, you have failed to understand the Qur’an that you claim to revere, and you defile the faith that you profess to uphold. You are a disgrace to good and honest Muslims everywhere.”

For one Muslim’s look at the extremist mentality, I refer you to this previous post.

Apparently, Malala is a serious contender for the Nobel Peace Prize. Nothing would please me more than to see her be awarded this recognition of her immense courage. Whether she wins or no, her bravery serves as a beacon of inspiration for young women around the world who want to better themselves, and she deserves a place of honor in the annals of history.

The Old Wolf has spoken.

Ka mate!

Posted on by The Old Wolf
SHORPY_FL16785895

This 1913 image, found at Shorpy, shows a Māori boy performing a haka on the beach in Northland, New Zealand. The haka is a traditional ancestral war cry, dance or challenge.

Glass plate negative by Arthur Northwood.

The Ka Mate haka has been popularized by the New Zealand All Blacks, who perform it as a challenge to their opponents at the beginning of every match. It can be quite intimidating to watch, which is the whole point:

The Ka Mate was composed by Te Rauparaha, war leader of the Ngāti Toa tribe of the North Island of New Zealand. He composed Ka Mate circa 1820 as a celebration of life over death after his lucky escape from pursuing Ngāti Maniapoto and Waikato enemies. He had hidden from them in a food-storage pit, and climbed back into the light to be met by a chief friendly to him – Te Whareangi (the “hairy man”).

What follows is a video showing how Inia Maxwell taught the Blacks how to perform the haka in the proper way:

Here, from Wikipedia, is the main body of the chant accompanied by a translation:

Ka mate, ka mate!ka ora! ka ora!Ka mate! ka mate! ka ora! ka ora!

Tēnei te tangata pūhuruhuru

Nāna nei i tiki mai whakawhiti te rā

Ā, upane! ka upane!

Ā, upane, ka upane, whiti te ra!

’Tis death! ‘tis death! (or: I may die)’Tis life! ‘tis life! (or: I may live)’Tis death! ‘tis death! ’Tis life! ‘tis life!

This is the hairy man

Who brought the sun and caused it to shine

A step upward, another step upward!

A step upward, another… the Sun shines!

The Ka Mate has been popularized sufficiently that it appears in other places as well:

Bucky - Ka Mate

“Get Fuzzy” by Darby Conley

On Viggo Mortensen’s last day on the set filming Lord of the Rings, the New Zealand cast and crew offered him the haka as a signal honor for his contribution; you can see how moved he was by this recognition. The salient point begins at 1:44, but the entire clip is worth watching.

Lastly, here is a powerful video showing the soldiers of 2/1 RNZIR Battalion (New Zealand Defence Force) paying tribute to their fallen comrades with a massive haka. You can almost cut the honor and respect with a knife.

Some additional background on the Ka Mate can be found at Marimari.com.

The Old Wolf has spoken.

Right and Left: Wrong

Posted on by The Old Wolf

I saw this posted on Facebook last year and it raised my eyebrow:

226077_1000

This spread like wildfire around conservative circles, but unfortunately its an oversimplification based on a misunderstanding.

The original Hebrew text of Ecclesiastes 10:2 is “לֵב חָכָם לִימִינוֹ, וְלֵב כְּסִיל לִשְׂמֹאלוֹ” (lev hakam lemino ve lev kesil lesmolo), or “wise heart to right, and foolish heart to left.” The historical meaning of right and left to the Jewish nation is more complex than the intructions to World of Warcraft, but if you’re really interested, a good summary is at the Jewish Virtual Library; long story short, from a biblical standpoint, the right has always been the place of honor or wisdom.

We see this concept reflected in many New Testament references (Matthew 25:33 states “And he shall set the sheep on his right hand, but the goats on the left,”) but even biblically the analogy is not consistently used. In Mark 10:37, two presumptuous disciples asked Jesus, “Grant unto us that we may sit, one on thy right hand, and the other on thy left hand, in thy glory.” [1] Thus in this reference, both right and left were considered places of privilege and esteem.

A further disconnect of the biblical usage with modern politics arises when we realize that current usage of left and right began with the French revolution; Wikipedia states that “The terms ‘left’ and ‘right’ were not used to refer to political ideology but only to seating in the legislature.”

Unfortunately, vast numbers of people who see an image like this will say “Oh, wow, that’s cool, I never knew that,” and spread the message far and wide without bothering to question its validity.

226351_600

It’s hard for me to independently verify everything I see, and these days elections are won and lost with the votes of people who don’t even make the effort. We deserve better.

The Old Wolf has spoken.

[1] “It was regarded as a boorish lack of etiquette to walk on the right of one’s teacher; but when he was accompanied by two, he walked in the middle and the greater of his companions walked on the right (Yoma 37a).”

Our bodies do strange things

Posted on by The Old Wolf

Rising-Dough1

I recently came across this article about a gentleman who brews his own beer… inside his gut. Apparently he harbors Saccharomyces cerevisiae, with the result that his digestive system was literally manufacturing alcohol every time he consumed carbohydrates due to the fermentation action of S. cerevisiae mixing with carbs and sugar.

From the article:

The man, who at first was assumed by other doctors to be a “closet” drinker,[1] was eventually cured of his condition after being put on a low-carb diet and taking anti-fungal medications to purge his body of S. cerevisiae. But his case now serves as an example of what can happen to a person when taking conventional antibiotics — the body’s delicate microbial ecosystem can undergo drastic changes that leave it prone to takeover by harmful yeast strains.

I recently had an experience that was different but related, and was pretty strange. I’m  putting the rest of this post under a “more” cut, in case it falls into the category of “too much information.”

Continue reading →

The hidden operating theatre

Posted on by The Old Wolf

Old-op-the-lond

 

The Old Operating Theatre Museum and Herb Garret is a museum of surgical history and one of the oldest surviving operating theatres. It is located in the garret of St Thomas’s Church, Southwark, on the original site of St Thomas’ Hospital. This photo shows the reconstruction of the theatre as it would have looked while in use.

lookingwest-web

Built in 1822, the operating theatre was used for 40 years, when the hospital moved to a different location. The garret was walled up;  it was forgotten, and remained undiscovered until 1957.   Read more at Wikipedia and The Old Operating Theatre website.

For your gratuitous edification and mine – I had to go scurrying to the dictionary for this one – the “garret” referred to is “a habitable attic or small (and possibly dismal or cramped) living space at the top of a house.”

Place-saint-georges

Place Saint-Georges in Paris, showing top-floor garret windows.

?????????????

 

Carl Spitzweg, The poor poet (Der arme Poet), 1839, showing a garret dwelling.

The Old Wolf has spoken.

Avag Co Bepsig: These coins are Evil!

Posted on by The Old Wolf

http://theoldwolf.com/Fraud/index.htmlNote: Before you read the article below, please read the following disclaimer, made necessary by some of the comments this post has generated.

These coins are not evil. They are cheap bits of plastic from some manufacturer in China. They have no special qualities, no magic powers. There is no witch named “Avagnanian Coishousness of Bepsigosity” – that’s just nonsense from a writer of satire. He might as well have used “A Vague Consciousness of BepsiCola.” There are no witches in this world. A lot of people who want to be one, and pretend they are, but dark magic and fortune telling and bad luck and the evil eye are all products of people’s imaginations.

Well, let me backpedal a bit.

Somehow, I managed to come into possession of one of these little plastic gems:

Avag.jp

I’m certain it came to me from one of the fraud letters that my mother used to receive when she was alive (and continues to receive years after her death).

At any rate, here it is. Being a linguist by profession, I was curious about the inscription – whether it was sheer garbage or was based on anything real. I found a lovely description, completely tongue-in-cheek, at The Captain’s Blog:

This is a warning for aspiring pirates intent on purchasing a bag full of plastic novelty coins. Be aware that the brand of plastic coins bearing the legend “AVAG CO BEPSIG” are enchanted. That’s right, enchanted….

At our very first PiratePalooza I made the mistake of buying just such a bag of Avag Co Bepsig coins and made a fair show of giving them out whenever possible. Yet, when I returned to port I found that I still had a good many of the coins in me purse. Over the course of the year I continued to find more of the coins. Some in my bed, some in the settee, some in the stern of my autocarriage. Every time I found an Avag Co Bepsig coin I returned it to me leather coinpurse, full in the knowledge that I had them collected, each and every one.

And still I continued to find more, in places I thought I’d looked before. It’s fairly ridiculous how these things seem to breed in captivity, easily outstripping the population of coat hangers rutting in me washroom.

Without a doubt, my collection of these bewitched plastic coins outnumbers my original purchase and I am now consigned to the fact that some day in the future my ship will be awash in these devilish discs of dementia, certain to sink ‘neath their accursed weight and artificial shininess. For now I can only serve as example to those of you lucky enough yet to avoid these shiny promises from the heart of Avagnanian Coishousness of Bepsigosity, for that it what it turns out the name means.

Avagnanian Coishousness be a person… a Bane Witch of terrible antiquity and uncertain designs upon humanity, Cap’n Drew in particular. And even though I now know the source of me curse don’t expect me to take it all noble-like. No, no.

Know this, me hearties: I’ll take no pity upon any of you, so watch your backs. I’ll be certain to try slipping one of me famous cursed coins into your open pockets, purses, pouches and gaping glimpses of cleavage.

You’ve been warned.

Of course, this is all in fun. But the world is so full of a number of things, I suppose we should all be yanking our hair out in frustration if we knew the depth and breadth of human gullibility. Over at Ripoff Report, I found this letter from a dear soul who was so glad she was warned about the evil enchantment that lay on these coins, received in one of these fraudulent “prayer letter” scams:

You have sent me prayer letters. The one I recently opened on Oct. 16, 2011 although you sent it in May 2011. I just came across it . Although the letter was right on in what I was specifically praying for..you placed 2 coins in the letter to put one in my house that fiances will increase in my house & the other to place in my purse for financial increase. Once i did this & went to bed all night I could not sleep God woke me & told me to google the words on the coins they say “Avag Co Bepsig” I googled these words & discovered they are a WITCH”S name. You see I am a born again believer in Christ Jesus He Is My Lord & Savior..He Promises To Not Let His Children Walk In Darkness…I was at my dad’s house who is a Pastor & has won many to Christ. I was going to put one coin in his house but The Holy Spirit kept telling me NO!!! You see I am EXPOSING YOU !!! THis witch turned a man’s coins to plastic…if you people are really of Christ Jesus why would’nt God show you about these coins before you started sending them out??? God Promises Not To Let THose Who Truly Love Him Walk In Darkness…He EXPOSED you to me!!!

Now, in the interest of full disclosure I need to point out that I have a spiritual walk of my own, but I’ve always done my best to temper my faith with reason.[1] Not doing so leads to madness, or to the kind of attitude one sees above, where “if you read it in the Bible, or if you see it on the Internet, it has to be true.” In the end, it’s scary to think the kinds of world views upon which ordinary people, legislators, and national leaders can base their behavior.

In a recorded interview which once existed on YouTube, Richard Dawkins fielded a question from a Muslim who asked whether atheists could judge right from wrong in the absence of an absolute morality. Professor Dawkins proceeded to shred the question simply by making reference to things like the beating of women and punishment for apostasy, and summed up his analysis by saying that if these kinds of things are what absolute morality brings, he’d rather live without it; instead, he favors a morality that is developed and tested and tried and revised by the strength of reason and humanity. I’m put in mind of the four-way test of the Rotarians, used as a guide for business and personal relationships:

Of the things we think, say or do

  1. Is it the TRUTH?
  2. Is it FAIR to all concerned?
  3. Will it build GOODWILL and BETTER FRIENDSHIPS?
  4. Will it be BENEFICIAL to all concerned?

There’s a lot of wiggle-room in the first one, because among humans “truth” is hard to ferret out, except within the realm of pure science; but the last three ask the same question in different ways, to wit, “will it raise the human condition?”

Whatever we believe, we cannot afford to go through life not asking this question. Religion and humanism have as their ultimate goal to make their practitioners better people. If you’re still a jerk, it’s not working.

The Old Wolf has spoken.

[1] Now don’t jump down my throat about inconsistencies here… one of these days I’ll get my thoughts together in a more comprehensive essay about why I believe what I do, although a brief summary might be extrapolated from this entry. After that, feel free to shred my Weltanschauung if it brings you joy, but I’m pretty certain that the exercise will be entirely academic.