This map is intriguing. Prepared by the Atlas of True Names, it shows each state with the translated meaning of the state’s name. I wondered about the accuracy of the effort when I saw Utah described as “Land of the Sun,” when everyone here knows that Utah means “people of the mountains;’ however, a bit more digging revealed that linguistically, the word “Ute” means “the high land” or “the land of the sun,” which by metonymy could be extended to meaning the people who live in a high place, or the mountains.
Anyway, it’s presented here for your gratuitous enjoyment. Check out the other maps offered by the Atlas… I’d love to have some of these in hard copy on my walls.
“Next summer I’ll make the strike, and this time I’ll put it into something safe for the rest of my life, and stop this fool wandering around.” [1]
The above map shows the states (in blue) which have state-sponsored lotteries. When the jackpot rises to the hundreds of millions of dollars, people flock to the convenience stores and plunk down a few dollars for the chance at a big one. But the probability of winning is so vanishingly small that players are simply flushing their money down the toilet for a brief, titillating dream.
The infographic below is large, but rather enlightening, as it makes your chances rather visible in terms of scale.
In Arabic, the appropriate expression is “بكرة في المشمش” (bokra fil mishmish, or “tomorrow, when the apricots bloom.”) That’s the equivalent of “How about never. Is never good for you?”
Proponents of lotteries push the idea that it’s cheap entertainment, cheaper than going to a movie or bowling or to a dance or concert. But I’m put in mind of Isiah 29:8:
“It shall even be as when an hungry man dreameth, and, behold, he eateth; but he awaketh, and his soul is empty: or as when a thirsty man dreameth, and, behold, he drinketh; but he awaketh, and, behold, he is faint, and his soul hath appetite.”
It is cheap entertainment… cheap as in the sense of little worth. When I was a kid in the 50’s, “made in Japan” was the equivalent of cheap slum, garbage, worthless trash – nowadays “made in China” seems to have taken over that shame (although we consume millions of tons of it from Wal-Mart and other places.)
Oh, make no mistake… I’ve been tempted. I live in one of the six states which has no lottery, and a couple of times I’ve been sorely tried… a little drive would take me over the border where I could plunk down my quatloos like the rest of humanity. But thankfully, I’ve prevailed, simply by reminding myself of the odds, and realizing that most of my money would be going to subsidize expenses for a state other than my own.
Despite the odds, millions play – and many others drop cash for worthless “systems” like the one shown here:
Yes, I’d love to be a multi-millionaire… but like WOPR said at the end of “War Games”, it’s a strange game… the only winning move is not to play.
The Old Wolf has spoken.
[1] Van Tilburg Clark, Walter, “The Wind and the Snow of Winter”
A cherished colleague of mine who passed away far too soon after a battle with cancer had her office two doors down from mine on the 21st floor of our building. This dear lady had a sneeze that would rattle the windows on the ground floor, and every time I heard her let fly I’d email her a drawing of a mop and bucket, or Noah’s flood, something similar; one day I sent her the image above which I dashed off for her benefit. I’d know she had gotten it when I heard her laugh, which was almost as loud.
Some myths about sneezing:
Your heart stops when you sneeze. When your chest contracts because of a sneeze, your blood flow is momentarily constricted as well. As a result, the rhythm of your heart may change, but it definitely doesn’t stop.
You can’t keep your eyes open when you sneeze. If you do, your eyeballs will pop out. Most people naturally close their eyes when they sneeze, but if they are able to keep them open, their eyes stay firmly planted in their heads where they belong. Your blood pressure may spike momentarily, but that’s about it.
If you sneeze X times in a row, you’ll have an orgasm. No idea who came up with this one – although sneezing releases endorphins and can feel good, there’s no relationship between sneezing and sex.
Some facts about sneezing:
The Greek word for sneeze is πνεῦμα (pneuma) which means “soul or spirit.” In ancient times, people believed that sneezing was a near-death experience; a blessing would keep your soul from escaping, and protect you from the devil who is just waiting to come in.
A sneeze can travel up to one hundred miles per hour. The particles and spit emitted when we sneeze can travel up to five feet away, and the bacteria sent into the air by our sternutation can spread up to 150 feet away.
If you sneeze on Monday, you sneeze for danger; Sneeze on Tuesday, you kiss a stranger; Sneeze on Wednesday, you sneeze for a letter; Sneeze on a Thursday, for something better; Sneeze on a Friday, you sneeze for sorrow; Sneeze on a Saturday, your sweetheart tomorrow; Sneeze on a Sunday, your safety seek, The devil will have you the whole of the week.
Found at designtaxi.com. Maps on the Web has created a map that shows the most famous brand to come from each state in the US.
For obvious reasons, the map is creating a stir among those who don’t agree with the particular choice made to represent their state. Regardless of how it all shakes out, I found the map intriguing as I only knew the origins of a few of these brands.
Adolf Hitler having a conversation with The Marshal of Finland on his birthday in 1942.
This conversation was secretly recorded; this is the only known recording of Hitler while not giving a speech. The video below provides translated subtitles to the conversation.
Hitler deserves no particular focus or attention, but as a historical item of interest, this has value. The only time I ever heard his voice was in his recorded speeches, when he’s reveling in his bombastic madness. It sounds uncanny to hear him speaking in an intimate, conversational setting.
A BBC article gives some more information about the orchestra and chorus. The orchestra was featured in “Kinshasa Symphony,” one of the finalist films in the 6th Annual Africa World Documentary Film Festival.
Kinshasa Symphony (95m) by Klaus Wischmann (Germany)
Two hundred orchestral musicians are playing Beethoven’s Ninth – Freude schöner Götterfunken. A power cut strikes just a few bars before the last movement. Problems like this are the least of the worries facing the only symphony orchestra in the Congo. In the 15 years of its existence, the musicians have survived two putsches, various crises and a war. But concentration on the music and hopes for a better future keeps them going. “Kinshasa Symphony” is a study of people in one of the world’s most chaotic cities doing their best to maintain one of the most complex systems of joint human endeavor, a symphony orchestra. The film is about the Democratic Republic of Congo, the people in Kinshasa and the power of music.
The letter came in a box of Halloween decorations purchased at Kmart, but for a year Julie Keith never knew. It gathered dust in her storage, a haunting plea for help hidden among artificial skeletons, tombstones and spider webs.
Keith, a 42-year-old vehicle donation manager at a southeast Portland Goodwill, at one point considered donating the unopened $29.99 Kmart graveyard kit. It was one of those accumulated items you never need and easily forget. But on a Sunday afternoon in October, Keith pulled the orange and black box from storage. She intended to decorate her home in Damascus for her daughter’s fifth birthday, just days before Halloween.
She ripped open the box and threw aside the cellophane.
That’s when Keith found it. Scribbled onto paper and folded into eighths, the letter was tucked between two Styrofoam headstones.
“Sir:
“If you occasionally buy this product, please kindly resend this letter to the World Human Right Organization. Thousands people here who are under the persicution of the Chinese Communist Party Government will thank and remember you forever.”
“People who work here have to work 15 hours a day without Saturday, Sunday break and any holidays. Otherwise, they will suffer torturement, beat and rude remark. Nearly no payment (10 yuan/1 month, or $1.61).”
“People who work here, suffer punishment 1-3 years averagely, but without Court Sentence (unlaw punishment). Many of them are Falun Gong practitioners, who are totally innocent people only because they have different believe to CCPG. They often suffer more punishment than others.”
The letter was not signed.
The graveyard kit, the letter read, was made in unit 8, department 2 of the Masanjia Labor Camp in Shenyang, China. Chinese characters broke up choppy English sentences.
The administrative building of the Masanjia labor camp and other facilities in China.
Keith started doing homework and digging around, and the letter was widely published on the internet. Responses ranged from outraged to skeptical, including those who pointed out that her publication of this material put the writer at risk if he/she were real.
On June 11th, 2013, The New York Times published a follow-up article indicating that the writer had been found, and was no longer in the labor camp. It’s an interesting read and lends credence to the original story, although there has been no other independent confirmation from inside China.
It appears that many companies who import Chinese products have no policies that bar the use of forced labor.
Just something else to think about the next time you go shopping at a big box store and the label says “Made in China.”
The Totally Ghoul product – the letter from China was found in a package like this.
A recent question over at Reddit asked, “Can you Terrify Us in Just Three Words?”
Below, the top entries or ones that I found especially terrifying (with the really sick ones, sadly abundant, removed for family friendliness).
Search History Subpoena
You Tested Positive
No Toilet Paper
Frenulum Papercut Extravaganza [1]
Nuclear Launch Detected
We Should Talk
You’ll Never Retire
Wow, That’s Small
Continuous Kidney Stones
Everyone Dies Alone
Look Behind You
My Office. Now.
You’re Being Audited
Digital Rights Management
President Kim Kardashian
You Have Cancer
Nutella Was Discontinued
Amy’s Baking Company
No More Bacon [2]
Winter is Coming [3]
President Sarah Palin
I’d have to agree, most of these are downright terrifying. I’m reminded of Hemingway’s bleak short story: “For sale, baby shoes. Never worn;” also, the shortest horror story ever written: “The last man on earth sat alone in a room. There was a knock on the door.”
It was interesting to see what people consider terrifying.
The Old Wolf has spoken.
[1] Ouch! I’ve done my tongue on an envelope, but never this.
[2] One of the most terrifying of all
[3] I’m not a Game of Thrones fan – I’ve neither seen nor read it – but at least I recognized this.
Playing in the World Game 