Amongst the few gems on television that I allowed my kids to watch when they were truly little, like under 5, other than Pingu, [this deserves a video, ed.] was an animated version of Star Trek. Pingu, I should mention, is a spectacular claymation with a dialogue that is both incomprehensible and comprehensible at the same moment. The episode with the sea lion nightmare, however, was so scary it was banned by my eldest. Watch if you dare, this snippet:
Little did I know, or notice in those rather blurry days, that the animated Star Trek was endorsed by the American Psychological Association, and that they boiled down the lessons of the episode in a nice little snippet at the end of each show.
Most of the lessons turn out to boldly be, on almost sober reflection, very sound, especially for little humans. From the practical advice to not let strangers into the house, and to not sneak out of the house [I see they left out to not split infinitives while they were busy boldly giving advice, ed.] without your parents’ knowledge, as you might get in to trouble and no one will know you need help. Some of the practical lessons were more complicated. After being shrunk to 1/16th of an inch but effecting a harrowing escape, they learn and teach the dangers of ambush: “[o]ne shouldn’t go around sneaking up and surprising people one doesn’t know as it may result in highly unfortunate consequences,” to quote Spock.
True dat. True of people one does know, frankly. And then they move on to the larger moral issues, and I quote from the show directly:
- Be yourself and tell the truth and you’ll stay out of trouble.
- Teamwork and cooperation win the day.
- Don’t tamper with what you don’t understand and don’t consort with the devil.
- It is always better to peaceably talk out your troubles than resort to violence and wholesale murder.
Well, yes, especially number 4. Discouraging wholesale murder was important in our household, as my middle child, at the ripe old age of 2, asked at the end of Lion King, as his mother and sister wiped away their tears, literally, “So, if I kill dad, will I become king?”
Jeremy Irons’ performance as Uncle Scar clearly had left a strong impression. Don’t consort with the devil surprised me, and kind of freaked me out. But good advice one must agree, though hard to explain to wee ones.
But of course the advice drifts into conventional silliness, pushing the equality of women in an episode where it would appear that Lieutenant Uhura has saved Kirk from a planet of beautiful, blonde, white women, for which he is strangely grateful, and offering the ubiquitous but inane advice to stay away from drugs. Staying away from self-administered drugs is good advice for the junior crowd, but staying away from drugs would obviously have been fatal if taken literally, at least for two out of three of our kids as tots, which the ‘message’ does acknowledge, as otherwise Bones would have died too:
Strange advice to this day, when properly considered everything one consumes or slathers on one’s skin is a drug. Coffee or tea, anyone?
And here they also get a little muddled, as they needed to break Bones out of a local jail, but then panic about having encouraged lawlessness:
Interesting that the message does not always match the plot. Life is not so simple, even to the American Psychological Association, but it was or should be, when you are little, unless it leads to patricide.
Morning cartoons.
Here’s a good 9 minute cartoon version of The Mississippi Bubble. I’m sure there’s a lesson in there somewhere.
http://www.nfb.ca/film/john_law_and_the_mississippi_bubble
Nice word of the day. Not often stumped but didn’t know that one. I used to wager (as much as I thought the target could bear) that if they would take a dictionary, close their eyes and point to a word, I could define it for them. I won much more than I lost but it’s a lot easier than it sounds since the majority of words in there are commonly known. Been a reader all my life, so I’m continuously adding new ones. Plus two years of h.s. Latin helped me “root” out some I was unfamiliar with.
(Wish my wife was more perspicuous.)
Jeez, Louise, another guy with two years of Latin on this board…
We had a thread on that not long ago, but the comments? We came, we saw, we went all over the place like a herd of cats, as usual.
Funny story from back then. A few guys got together and took turns doing translations in Mrs Hedberg’s class, the others would make slight changes and hand in their work. All went well until one fateful day when murus, a wall built for defense purposes, was mistaken for muris a form of the word mus (mouse). Four papers all read:
“The mice in Jericho are nine feet tall”!!!
More on the Hendry news that I commented on yesterday. Here is a trend follower blog’s take on that same piece of news. It’s actually rather entertaining to watch all the different spins that the same piece of news can generate. Everybody grinds their own axe.
http://systematicrelativestrength.com/2013/11/25/reconciling-fundamentals-technicals/
And for the record, here is the original interview that started the frenzy of commentary. Amazing all the different directions it took after that.
http://www.investmentweek.co.uk/investment-week/news/2308814/i-cant-look-at-myself-in-the-mirror-hendry-on-why-hes-turned-bullish
i miss summer, already.
the painters web-site is
http://justderrsarts.blogspot.com/p/blog-page.html
well, none of that worked too well. m44, you’re up.
Happy Tyr’s Day, everyone. Found some nice links on these days. I’ll post them daily for the rest of the week.
A lot of people are familiar with Odin, Thor, etc, but fewer are familiar with Tyr. That guy was badass, and that’s no lie.
http://runewisdom.wordpress.com/2011/09/20/tuesday-tyrs-day/
Dudestacker – that was a real thigh slapper, and must be a hit at parties! I need to brush up on my latin, or am in serious trouble if you remember vocabulary so well. Interesting that we all suffered through it. I had the insanity to also take it in university, helping to guarantee that I would be unemployable.
EO – I like the Norse gods, and know less than I should so link away, please. Apparently Tyr, or Tiw (according to my quick linguistic search) was one-handed, which should mean there is no “on the other hand” to confuse one with this god.
http://www.northernpaganism.org/shrines/fenrir/writing/the-mystery-of-fenris-and-tyr.html
This link seems to flesh out the story of Tyr and Fenrir better than most. Dog lovers especially will appreciate the tale.
The Tyr/Fenrir story is typically cast as one of supreme bravery and sacrifice on Tyr’s part, and that is how I understood it, until I did this bit of research this morning. Now I understand there is more to the story, and it is all the more poignant, though I don’t know how much the writer is basing on solid sources, and how much is their own reading between the lines as they wish. I like it though.
Dog stories. They always make me cry. 😥
I think I’ll go give my pups a hug.
“Little is known about the origins of the Runic alphabet, which is traditionally known as futhark after the first six letters. In Old Norse the word rune means ‘letter’, ‘text’ or ‘inscription’. The word also means ‘mystery’ or ‘secret’ in Old Germanic languages and runes had a important role in ritual and magic.”
http://www.omniglot.com/writing/runic.htm
Tyr’s day hunh? I have a new favorite day. I can identify w/ him as his runic arrow matches my Sagittarian archer and a prime Sag trait is truthfulness at all times. So easy to be distracted from my main objective today…..
I need to find Medicare Supplemental Ins. Yes in 3 short weeks from today I will attain that magical 65th milestone. (I see that you’re a week later than me, Ms Capricorn.) Actually the Medicare coverage starts 12-1 so I thought I had best get a move on since I have postponed it for months, all the while being bombarded w/ postal solicitations for my business. Which, of course, I promptly immolated in my rural pyre barrel.
Wish me luck- I think I’ve narrowed it down to four possibilities.
check this out. the times, they are a changing…
good luck with that Dude. it’s freaking ridiculous. and it’s not a political issue at all. its greed and selfishness vs. compassion and humanity.
“Pope Francis calls unfettered capitalism ‘tyranny’ and urges rich to share wealth
Pontiff’s first major publication calls on global leaders to guarantee work, education and healthcare”
(see ya in hell teabaggers) 🙂 🙂 🙂
http://www.theguardian.com/world/2013/nov/26/pope-francis-capitalism-tyranny
NIce pick, peckerwood. It deserves a replay, with the volume up. And a follow up…
have we found the the spirit of Thanksgiving here or what? thanks EO. hey, no one has called me peckerwood in a while. 🙂
i hope this is OK Xty. this is a cause we all can support here. Walmart ruins communities in every way. and anyone that goes shopping the day after Thanksgiving, for CHRISTMAS, doesn’t give a damn about either holiday. the hypocrisy is astounding. so i support the workers that may choose to strike on BLACK FRIDAY
(so see ya in hell Walmart) 🙂 🙂 🙂
“Walmart is the world’s largest private employer, with more than 2 million workers around the world, so it has tremendous influence over how the economy works. And for 50 years, Walmart has done everything it can to widen the gap between the 1% and the rest of us. The 6 Walton heirs control more wealth than 42% of Americans combined, while most Walmart workers struggle to survive on poverty wages. Walmart wages are so low that one Ohio store launched a canned food drive so that people who work there can have Thanksgiving dinner!”
https://action.sumofus.org/a/Walmart-strike-fundraiser-2013/3/2/?akid=2887.1864556.2Kb1Tx&rd=1&sub=fwd&t=3
this video is a more or less a ‘commercial’ but still i think this is where we all should meet up.
i was here.
another clue, Hafenansicht, a view of the harbor…
we are all connected… by water.
i love the new lighthouse.
😎
hey, check it out! i’m on top of the Leaderboard!!!
i’m handing off the baton.
Assuming they have herring, but is it as good as this? Might have to b.y.o.h.
The Ma Baensch Difference
Baensch Food Products Co. is a regional small business that produces a premium product. Our ingredients are of the highest quality and we will never compromise that.
Ma Baensch uses wild, Grade A quality herring caught in the Bay of Fundy by an exclusive supplier in Nova Scotia, Canada. Most other herring brands acquire their herring from Canadian suppliers in a variety of A, B and C Grades.
Ma Baensch hand sorts and packs the herring tidbits, selecting only the firmest fillet cuts. Most other herring brands are machine packed using other parts of the fish.
Ma Baensch uses pure liquid beet sugar. Most other herring brands use standard corn syrup.
Ma Baensch uses fresh Spanish onions sliced on site for daily production which eliminates the need for refrigeration. Most other herring brands use pre-processed, treated onions.
Ma Baensch herring is marinated overnight and drained the next day for hand-packing in fresh marinade to provide that special Ma Baensch flavor. Most other herring brands pack in the original marinade.
Ma Baensch uses Wisconsin’s Natural Buttermilk and Natural Sour Cream for the highest quality. Most other herring brands use a lower grade of dairy products and acidified sour cream.
Ma Baensch herring is always packed by hand to protect each plump little fillet and provide the perfect herring experience. Our employees are proud to “Put their Smile in every Jar”.