Blog Archives

May Day

4/29/2022

MAY POLES and FLOWERS
Originally May Day was the Celtic festival of Beltane. The pagan Celtic religion comprised the beliefs and practices adhered to by the Iron Age people of Western Europe ‒ now known as the Celts ‒ roughly between 500 BC and 500 AD.

May Day is one of the four ancient Celtic cross-quarter days, making it an astronomical holiday as it falls between the March equinox and June solstice. The Celts believed May 1 as the most important day of the year because it divided the year into “dark” (primarily winter) and “light” (growing season, spring and summer) or the return of life and fertility.

During the middle ages villagers would enter the woods to find a maypole that was set up for the day in small towns (or sometimes permanently in larger cities). The day’s festivities involved merriment, as people would dance around the pole clad with colorful streamers and ribbons.
Image Source: learnreligions.com/beltane-rituals

Historians believe the first maypole dance originated as part of a fertility ritual, where the pole symbolized male fertility and baskets and wreaths symbolized female fertility.

When the Roman conquered the British Isles they brought their own beliefs and festivals. For the most part, those integrated with the Celtic practices. Floralia was one of the festivals the Romans brought; a five day celebration devoted to Flora, the goddess of flowers, which took place between April and May. This festival merged with the Celtic Beltrane, since both were all about fertility.

Although popular in Europe, May Day celebrations and traditions hit a rough patch when brought to America by European immigrants. The Puritans didn’t approve, and while May Day celebrations continued to take place, it was certainly less widespread and less popular than across the pond.

In the 18th century, the Roman Catholic religion began celebrating May Day with various May devotions to the Blessed Virgin Mary. The first of May is also one of two feast days of the Catholic patron saint of workers St. Joseph the Worker, a carpenter and foster father of Jesus. Replacing another feast to St. Joseph, this date was chosen by Pope Pius XII in 1955 as a counterpoint to the communist International Workers' Day celebrations.

These celebrations continue throughout Europe and the US. May pole dances still take place, but since the late 20th century the tradition of giving of "May baskets" ‒ small baskets of sweets or flowers, usually left anonymously on neighbors’ doorsteps ‒ has faded into non-existence in most places.

MAY DAY: THE ORIGINAL LABOR DAY
By the 19th century, while children in white danced around May poles, other children worked in coal mines and did other hard-labor work. The Second Industrial Revolution had numerous workers dying every day from terrible working conditions, and everyone breathed the smoke-filled air belching in black clouds from industrial smoke stacks.
Workers began to grumble about working conditions and labor organizations were springing up both in Europe and America. In 1866, the National Labor Union was formed in the US as people become vocal about their rights, the need for safer conditions, and shorter work hours.

In 2022, May 1 is not recognized in the US as “Workers’ Day” as it is in most of the world, but its origins took place in the US.

THE HAYMARKET RIOTS
Chicago had been a center of work-related agitation for some time, and a railroad strike in 1877 had ended in violence. In 1884, the Federation of Organized Trades and Labor Unions (FOTLU) chose to hold their national convention in Chicago where they issued an ultimatum that after May 1, 1886, the legal work day would be eight hours.

Two years later, when that FOTLU deadline approached, “an estimated quarter million workers in the Chicago area became directly involved in the crusade to implement the eight hour work day, including the Trades and Labor Assembly, the Socialistic Labor Party and local Knights of Labor,” according to an archived synopsis published by the Industrial Workers of the World in 1993. msn.com/en-us/the-real-history-of-may-day/

The generally quiet demonstration broke out in violence on May 3 at McCormick Reaper Works, where police and demonstrators clashed and set off a vicious scuffle that left several workers dead.

The next day, a large crowd gathered at Chicago’s Haymarket Square to protest the previous day’s killings. At first, the proceedings were calm, and even Chicago mayor Carter Image Source: https://www.thinglink.com Harrison attended. Then someone in the crowd
threw an explosive at the police. In reaction, law enforcement officers fired indiscriminately into the crowd which included workers and their own police officers.

Chaos and violence ensued between police and demonstrators with by standers in between. At least 7 policemen were killed and sixty others injured, and sources claim as many demonstrators and civilians were killed and injured (without giving statistics).

Reliable witnesses testified that all the pistol flashes came from the center of the street, where the police were standing, and none from the crowd. Moreover, initial newspaper reports made no mention of firing by civilians. A telegraph pole at the scene was filled with bullet holes, all coming from the direction of the police."

The friction between U.S. authorities and the labor movement continued from there. Eight anarchists were arrested and convicted for murder for throwing the explosive at the police, even though only three were even present at Haymarket and those three were in full view of all when the bombing occurred.

In 1889, May Day was chosen as the date
for “International Workers’ Day” to commemorate The Eight Convicted of Murder
the Haymarket affair in Chicago and the struggle Image Source:pbs.org/wgbh/americanexperience/chicago-eight
for an eight-hour working day.

THE PULLMAN STRIKE
The Pullman Strike was two interrelated strikes in 1894 that shaped national labor policy in the United States during a period of deep economic depression.

The Pullman Strike occurred in Illinois on May 11, 1894. Without going into the gory details, three thousand railroad workers went on a wildcat strike without the authorization of their union because of the way George Mortimer Pullman, founder and president of the Pullman Palace Car Company, treated his workers.

Image Source: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pullman_Strike Image Credit: illustration by Frederic Remington
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Labor_Day

Ultimately, in trying to subdue the riots, thirty people were killed by the US Military and US Marshalls (some sources say hundreds, other say just a few). President Grover Cleveland made peace with the labor people, but fearing further conflict, the US Congress voted to approve rush legislation establishing Labor Day a national holiday. It was signed into law only six days after the end of the strike (July 20, 1894).

LABOR DAY IN THE US
In July 1894, President Grover Cleveland signed into law a piece of legislation that created a national Labor Day Holiday in early September. States and cities had been celebrating their own versions of Labor Day at different times at least since 1882, but this action set the date for a national holiday and moved the event away from the May 1 “Workers’ Day”, the recognized date for radical labor protests in Europe and the US. Congress feared the holiday would be associated with nascent Communist, Syndicalist and Anarchist movements and would appear to celebrate the labor riots of 1884, the Haymarket Affair in 1886, and other May Day riots. Everything is political, isn't it?

Labour Day and International Worker’s Day
International Worker's Day recognizes the International Labor Movement and is celebrated on May 1 in at least eighty countries in the world, including most of Europe.
May 1 continues to be the day for protesting labor and other issues in these countries.

France ▲ India ▲ Palestine ▲
Image Source: thenewamerican.com/may-day-protests Image Source: newindianexpress.com/galleries/may/01/

Greece ▼ Pakistan ▼ Turkey ▼
Source of images: telesurenglish.net/multimedia/Workers-Right-Groups

On Labor Day in the US we can kick back with a beer.
JUST SAYIN!
□
Sources:
https://www.learnreligions.com/beltane-rites-and-rituals-2561678
https://www.livefromtheloungepodcast.com/post/ep-10-history-of-labor-day-pullman-strike-of-1894
www.thefreedictionary.com/May+Day
https://www.history.com/topics/holidays/history-of-may-day
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/May_Day
https://nationaltoday.com/may-day/
https://www.pinterest.com/pin/445082375663782263/
https://www.vintagechicagopostcards.com/2020/11/haymarket-square-clash-between-police.html
https://www.pbs.org/wgbh/americanexperience/features/chicago-eight-anarchists
https://daily.jstor.org/how-labor-lost-may-day/
https://history.house.gov/Historical-Highlights/1851-1900/The-first-Labor-Day/
https://www.msn.com/en-us/money/other/the-real-history-of-may-day/ar-BB1g7fq4?fullscreen=true&cvid=0c753a732e594f5293cc01dae5656548#image=1
https://www.telesurenglish.net/multimedia/Workers-Right-Groups-Commemorate-May-Day-Worldwide-20190501-0013.html
https://thenewamerican.com/traditional-may-day-protests-in-france-become-violent-riots/
https://www.newindianexpress.com/galleries/world/2017/may/01/may-day-in-pics-protesters-worldwide-demand-better-work-conditions-higher-wages-100415.html

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"Blind as a Kiwi!"

4/22/2022

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WILL THE REAL KIWI PLEASE STAND UP?

All of the above can be legitimately claim the name “Kiwi.” [The plural of the work can be either Kiwi or Kiwis]. However, none of them originated in New Zealand.

● First to arrive in what is now named New Zealand were the ancestors of the Kiwi Bird. There are three theories about how they arrived in New Zealand.

The first is that the kiwi’s ancestor was already around when New Zealand broke away from Antarctica and Australia 60 million years ago.
The second debate is that as the land broke away, kiwis walked from island to island as the land rose and fell, eventually arriving in New Zealand.
The third is that the kiwi’s ancestor flew from island to island to reach New Zealand. There is growing evidence to suggest this is most likely.

● About 60 million years later, the second to arrive were the Maori, settlers from East Polynesia, who migrated by canoe to New Zealand in several waves of between roughly 1320 and 1350 AD. Over several centuries in isolation, these settlers developed their own culture, language, mythology, and art independent of eastern Polynesian cultures.

● Only a few hundred years after the first humans, Dutchman Abel Tasman was the first European to discover New Zealand in 1642. His men were the first Europeans to have a confirmed encounter with the Maori, and as might be expected, things didn’t go well.
At any rate, no one called New Zealanders Kiwis until World War II when Australian’s coined the name. New Zealander’s would use a boot shine with an image of a kiwi on the tin. The Australian’s noticed this and started calling them kiwis! The name caught on and is now used worldwide.

● Late comer on the scene is the Kiwi fruit. Its proper name is Chinese Gooseberry, and the plant is native to China. Seeds were brought to New Zealand in 1904 by Mary Isabel Fraser, the principal of Wanganui Girls’ College, who had been visiting mission schools in China. They were planted in 1906 by a Whanganui nurseryman, Alexander Allison, and the vines first fruited in 1910. People thought the fruit had a gooseberry flavor and began to call it the Chinese gooseberry, although it is not related to the family to which gooseberries belong.

TODAY’S SUBJECT: THE KIWI BIRD
Kiwi are flightless birds native to and found only in New Zealand. The bird is the size of domestic chicken [approximately 2 to 4 pounds and 14” to 18”] and the smallest living ratite, a category of mostly large, flightless birds with a ratite breastbone, including the ostrich, rhea, emu, cassowary, and kiwi, together with the extinct moa and elephant bird.
The Kiwi’s closest relative is the extinct elephant bird of Madagascar.

SPECIES OF KIWI
There are five recognized species of Kiwi birds: Brown Kiwi, Great Spotted Kiwi, Little Spotted Kiwi, Rowi and Tokoeka.

The Rowi is the rarest type of kiwi. There is a little confusion regarding the names and numbers of species because several have different names due to the area in New Zealand where they are found but are still the same species.

Image credit: Grutness on en.wikipedia modified by Tony Wills - Own work. Originally from en.wikipedia;
Image Source: wikipedia.org/wiki/Kiwi_(bird)

North Island Brown or Roroa Great Spotted Kiwi Okarito Brown Kiwi
Image Credit: Rod Morris, NE Dept. of Conservation Image Source: tookooldoggies.blogspot.com/2012/08/
Image Source: nzbirdsonline.org.nz/species/north-island-brown-kiwi Image Source: animals-unique.blogspot.com/
\

Southern Brown or Tokoeka Rowi Kiwi Little Spotted Kiwi
Image Credit: Glen Fergus - Stewart Island, NZ Image Source: doc.govt.nz/birds/birds-a-z/kiwi/rowi/
CC BY-SA 2.5, Image Source: Image Source: birdingnz.co.nz/little-spotted-kiwi
commons.wikimedia.org/index.php?curid

MEET MANUKURA - ONE OF A KIND
Rowi may be rare, and there are only 450 left in the world, but Manukura, a white kiwi, is the one known in the world. She was born at the National Wildlife Centre Pukaha, North Island of New Zealand, on 1 May 2011.

Manukura is not albino (where there is a lack of melanin that makes pigmentation white and features pink eyes), but, pure white, which means she is the rare progeny of two parents who carry the recessive white feather gene.

Her parents came from predator-free Little Barrier Island along with 28 other kiwi in 2010. The purpose of the translocation was to boost kiwi population at Pukaha. The result of that breeding season was 14 healthy chicks, which were released into the wild. The Rangitane o Wairarapa iwi (the local tribe) saw the chick as a tohu (sign) of new beginnings and gave her the name ‘Manukura’, which translated means “of chiefly status”.

A LITTLE PREHISTORIC HISTORY
Part of the reason to pay particular attention to these birds is the way in which the Kiwi evolved somewhere else, made its way to New Zealand ‒ the only place in the world where they have existed since before the evolution of homo sapiens ‒ and adapted to its new home.

Originally, scientists believed the Kiwi was related to the Australian ratites [large flightless birds]. However, recent DNA research shows the Kiwi closely related to an extinct ratite from the Madagascar area, not Australia as previously believed.

Kiwi and the Madagascar elephant bird were rather close cousins which separated into their own individual families and genus about 50 to 60 million years ago. By this gime fhe continent of Gonwanda had broken into much smaller lands masses. and thefe would have been no land passage to New Zealand or Australia. Somehow they must have flown. Source: theconversation.com/rewriting-the-origin-of-new-zealands-kiwi-bird-history

New Zealand was completely unoccupied by any humans until the Maori arrived in the 1300s in several large migrations. New Zealand had evolved with no land mammals except three species of bats. Bats were the only predators until Dutch explorer Abel Tasman discovered it (again) in 1642. European settlers and traders brought other animals and livestock.

In the time the Maori had alone with the kiwi, the birds became an important part of their culture and religion. For Maori, kiwi are, in effect, our elder siblings. And, like a good older brother or sister, they are very protective of us. That's partly why in certain places, Maori patrol the forests nightly to keep the Kiwi safe.

ADAPTATION NOVELTIES OF THE KIWI
● Flightless and Feathers
Like all flightless ratites [ostrich, emu, rhea, and cassowary], Kiwis have no keel on the sternum to anchor wing muscles. The vestigial wings are so small that they are invisible under the bristly, hair-like, two-branched feathers.

Kiwi Feathers - Image Source: almazrestaurant.com/do-kiwis-have-feathers/

The bones of most other birds, when adults, are hollow with no marrow because of the minimization of weight for flight. Since Kiwis developed without flight, thus without weight constraints, they have bone marrow. Also, they also have no tails.

● Eyesight
Kiwis might as well be blind. Their eyes are the smallest relative to body mass in all avian species resulting in the smallest visual field as well. The eye evolved for a night time lifestyle, and kiwi rely more on their other senses. The Kiwi eye is so underdeveloped that blind specimens have been found in nature which are perfectly adapted to the lifestyle.

Writers: Now you can substitute “Blind as a Kiwi” for the tired “Blind as a bat.”

The kiwi's mostly nocturnal habits may be a result of habitat intrusion by predators, including humans. In areas of New Zealand where introduced predators have been removed, such as sanctuaries, kiwi are often seen in daylight.

● Beak and Sense of Smell
The Kiwi beak is long, pointed, and sometimes a little curved. They are unique among birds to have their nostrils at the end of the beak which gives Kiwis an exceptional sense of smell that is rare for birds. I couldn’t find good close-up photos which show the nostrils or beak details.

The beak is more than just an unusual shape . It functions as a vibration detector. Sensory pits at ImageSource: mercurybay.co.nz/local/kiwiinfo. the tips of their beaks allow them to sense prey underground. They can locate worms, insects, and other prey buried several centimeters underground using their beaks and well-developed sense of smell. The cat-like whiskers at the base of the beak assist getting around at night. Kiwi also have a good sense of hearing and touch.

● Mating and Reproduction
During mating season [June to March] the male kiwi will follow the female around, grunting at her until she notices him. If she is not interested, she will either run away or try and scare him off. If she is interested, they mate and will remain a monogamous couple for their entire lives ‒ which can be 25 to 50 years.

Once mated, they live in pairs and call to each other at night, and meet in the nesting burrow every three days. The relationship tends to be quite volatile and physical, the female generally calling the shots over her smaller partner. However, these relationships can last as long as 30 years.
Comparison of chicken egg to Kiwi egg
Image Source: pholder.com/u/siegward-the-thicc/

At the peak of the breeding season, Kiwi will mate 2-3 times per night for 3 weeks until an egg is made.
Although females are usually larger than males, they carry only one egg… but what an egg! The Kiwi is about the same size as a chicken, but the Kiwi egg is six time larger than a chicken egg. The egg is about 20% of the female’s body size.

The kiwi's egg is so large relative to its body size that the female has considerable difficulty laying it. During the later stages of pregnancy, she can’t eat because there is no room for food in her body.

Once the female kiwi lays her egg, the male takes over and actually sits on the egg until it hatches while the female forages for food. Her stomach will have shrunk so much that she needs to replenish herself. Image source: pinterest.com/pin/855402522950562018/

Because of the size of the egg, it takes about 80 days to hatch, leaving the male Kiwi more or less like Dr. Suess’s Horton the Elephant who is hatching an egg and is, “tired and bored and has kinks in his legs.”

Thanks to Dad, kiwi chicks hatch pretty much ready to run, with a belly full of yolk they can live off of for their first two and a half weeks of life. Brown Kiwi will leave the nest as young as 4-6 weeks old, forced out by their parents who often need the burrow for another egg. Great Spotted Kiwi may stay in the nest for a year or longer, and Rowi and Stewart Island tokoeka can remain with their parents for up to seven years.

ENVIRONMENTAL STATUS
Extinction rates for birds in New Zealand are high. According to the DOC, 34 per cent of endemic land and freshwater birds and five per cent of sea birds have already been lost. Today, more than a third of bird species are considered threatened—one step away from endangered. Several species of Kiwi have been on the endangered list, but through the effort of the New Zealand Department of Conservation, at least two species have now move from “endangered” to “threatened”.

Still, loss of habitat throughout the country threatens the continued existence of this bird. The natural habitat of the Kiwi is the subtropical and temperate areas with coniferous trees and shrubs or beech forests, but they are now being forced to adapt to different habitat, such as sub-alpine scrub, tussock grassland, and the mountains. Predators are also a major cause of depletion.

There are a number of kiwi predator-free sanctuaries throughout New Zealand, and the Department of Conservation relocation and breeding programs have been successful. Still, only about 68,000 kiwis are left in existence. On average, 2% of kiwi die each week (around 20 kiwi per week). It is estimated that only 5% of kiwi chicks survive to adulthood.
Hopefully, the kiwi will continue to survive in today’s world.

JUST SAYIN
□
NOTE: Collective nouns for birds.
A cacophony of of Kaka, A Tribe of Kiwi, A Cluster of Knots, A fling of Knots, and A tangle of Knotsy.

Sources:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kiwi_(bird)?msclkid=5342abaab84011ec909987622b7c7485
https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=3509003
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kiwi_(bird)?msclkid=5342abaab84011ec909987622b7c7485
http://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=69887040
https://www.nzbirdsonline.org.nz/species/north-island-brown-kiwi
http://tookooldoggies.blogspot.com/2012/08/prey-of-dog-new-zealand.html
https://www.doc.govt.nz/nature/native-animals/birds/birds-a-z/kiwi/rowi/
http://animals-unique.blogspot.com/2012/06/kiwi-unique.html
https://www.birdingnz.co.nz/birds-of-new-zealand/little-spotted-kiwi
https://www.newzealand.com/int/feature/arrival-of-maori/
https://ainawgsd.tumblr.com/post/164109629934/kiwi-kiwi-or-kiwis-are-flightless-birds-native-to
https://pholder.com/u/siegward-the-thicc/
https://www.pinterest.com/pin/855402522950562018/
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kiwi_(bird)?msclkid=5342abaab84011ec909987622b7c7485
https://www.svasthlife.com/fruits/faq-kiwi-fruit-native-to-which-country.html
https://www.learnz.org.nz/location192/bg-easy-f/european-discovery-of-new-zealand
http://mercurybay.co.nz/local/kiwiinfo.php
https://www.wayfaringkiwi.com/fun-facts-about-the-kiwi-bird/?msclkid=87dde45db84311ec975abefee085f081
https://kiwigrubbox.com/blogs/news/kiwi-bird-facts?msclkid=87de25bab84311ecb9b2b12b94cf5c97
https://www.newzealand.com/int/feature/arrival-of-maori/
https://ainawgsd.tumblr.com/post/164109629934/kiwi-kiwi-or-kiwis-are-flightless-birds-native-to
https://pholder.com/u/siegward-the-thicc/
https://www.pinterest.com/pin/855402522950562018/
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kiwi_(bird)?msclkid=5342abaab84011ec909987622b7c7485
https://www.svasthlife.com/fruits/faq-kiwi-fruit-native-to-which-country.html
https://www.learnz.org.nz/location192/bg-easy-f/european-discovery-of-new-zealand
http://skifmnetwork.co.nz/2020/07/02/meet-manukura-the-worlds-only-white-kiwi/
https://www.liveanimalslist.com/birds/kiwis.php
https://theconversation.com/rewriting-the-origin-of-new-zealands-kiwi-bird-ancestors-27022#:~:text=It%20showed%20that%20the%20kiwi%20%E2%80%93%20the%20national,evolutionary%20mystery%20that%20has%20lasted%20for%20150%20years.?msclkid=1aafb15fbc1e11eca3d146
https://almazrestaurant.com/do-kiwis-have-feathers/#:~:text=How%20many%20feathers%20does%20a%20kiwi%20have%3F%20Their,small%20pygostyle.%20Why%20do%20kiwis%20have%20no%20wings%3F?msclkid=98145265bc2711ec951837be859d6af5
https://nzhistory.govt.nz/the-chinese-gooseberry-becomes-the-kiwifruit?msclkid=4717b9adbcff11ecb931a032507b5600
https://www.readersdigest.ca/culture/kiwi-bird/
Kiwis Facts, Flightless Bird Habitat, Diet, Information with Pictures (liveanimalslist.com)

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THINGS YOU SHOULD NEVER SAY TO A ROMANCE AUTHOR

4/15/2022

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Years ago, I ran onto a wonderful blog posted by Author Simon P. Clark, entitled Eleven Things Never to Say to an Author, dated May 28, 2013 [and, unfortunately, no longer posted online.] His website is: https://www.simonpclark.com/ .

Clark's premise is so true, and so funny, that I wanted to share. I modified his eleven points to fit Romance Writers and added a few "never say" statements of my own and thoughts from my friends at Romance Books 4 Us.

1."You write romance novels? Wow! I wish I could do that."

Response: "You really don't. It's hard work, and you have to spend hours at a hot computer in your underwear coming up with new and clichéless ways of describing an accelerated heart beat, sweat, and how put to tab A into slot B. You have to experiment. You have to...
Why are you leaving?"

2. "Writing a romance novel sounds like fun. I think I'll take a few weeks off and write one."

Response: "Your profession sounds interesting too. Maybe I'll take a summer school course and become a brain surgeon just like you."

3. "If you write novels, why are you still working?"

Response: “What? !!@#$ "

4. "You write romance novels now? Wow. What does it feel like not having to go to work every day?"

Response: "Like going to work every...and every night...and on weekends, but without any vacation, overtime pay, or sick leave."

5. "I have a great idea for a book..."
Response: "Good. Write it, come back in ten years, and we’ll talk."

6. Variations On A Theme #1
● "Your books was so good. I'll bet you could even write a real book."
● "Oh, I get it. You're going to write a romance novels now, and then later you'll write a real book."
● "Is writing this stuff going to interfere with your real book?"
● "Now that you're writing smut, are you ever going to finish your real book?"
● "You're a writer? Cool! Romance novels? Oh, that's too bad."

Response: "Yeah, just those pesky romance novels. It's a good thing they don't require some of the most creative, discerning, demanding, open minded readers around, eh? Aha ha, ha. Ha."

7. Variations On A Theme #2
● "I don't read bodice rippers."
● "I don't care for reading porn, but I enjoy your books."
● "Do you practice all those love scenes yourself?" Chuckle, chuckle.
● "I read a romance novel the other day. How can people read such trash?

Response: "You mean you can read? Well, that's a start. Why are you ogling my cover and sweating?"

8. Variations On A Theme #3
● "You wrote a romance novel? That's wonderful. When will it be published?"

Response: "That all depends on whether or not I can sell it. First I have to find an agent. Then the agent has to send it to publishers and convince one of them to buy it. Then there's the contract. After that it takes a year to get into rewrites and editing. After that... Well, maybe around 2030. Can you wait that long?" [Also an answer to question #3]

● "You wrote a romance novel? That's wonderful. Send me a copy when it's published."

Response: "Yeah, right. Are you kidding, you A-hole? You not only expect me to give you a copy, but to pay postage on top of that. Why don't you sacrifice one cup of Starbucks and buy a copy?"

● "You wrote this?"

Response: "Nooo, I'm just wasting time sitting in Barns and Noble signing someone else's book so they don't have to be here. What? Don't I look like I could write a book?"

9. "Who's Your Agent? Can you recommend me?"
Response: "Who's your psychiatrist?"

11. "Aren't Romance Novels dying out?"

Response: "Something's going to be dying in about four seconds, and I guarantee you it won't be romance novels."

12. "So How Much Money Do You Make Writing Romance Novels? It can't be very much."
Response: "Here's a fun new rule. It's called Don't Ask Authors Things You Wouldn't Ask Other intelligent Adults."

13. "Will You Put Me In Your Next Book?"
Response: "Don't tempt me. I might. I might not. Do something interesting and let's see. Why don't you start by stripping down in public?"

14. "I Hate Reading."
Response: "You say 'hate', I hear 'hit me.' I swear, it's so strange..."

15. “You could be the next Stephen King.”

Response: "I think that name is already taken. Besides, he's a guy, and I'm a size 2X female. I don't think his pants would fit."

JUST SAYIN
If you are an author, I'm sure you have a collection of things people have said to you that make you want to strangle them, or force feed them a book. It makes you wonder what people really think about writers and publishing. For sure, they have no clue about what if takes to write any book, even a bad one.
□

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CAT TAIL TALK: Learn To Read A New Language

4/8/2022

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A person can’t own a cat… the cat owns the person and gives the orders. Not the other way around. So if you are a fur-baby parent, you need to understand that everything a cat does communicates something, and tail movements are among the best indicators.
◄ Image Source: whycatwhy.com/decode-your-cats-tai

One of the most common questions people ask about cats is why they wag their tails and what it means.

Now, I’ve had one or more cats in my family all my life growing up and most of my adult life… and that question threw me for a loop. As unimportant as the subject matter might be to many, I had to find out. Besides, I never thought of what cats do with their tails as “wagging”.

COMMUNICATION
All animals have ways to express their feelings. Presumably, Cat Feelings are not too complex, and you would think that human beings, with all their brain power and never-ending emotions, would have figured out the simplistic ways our domesticated animals try to communicate with us. But I’m not sure if most humans get it.

Cats use every possible means to let humans and other animals know how they are feeling. Their body movements, eye movements, overall body posture, attentiveness, vocal sounds, and tail movements all send a message to whomever can read it. Despite all the signals, humans find it easy to misread a cat’s behavior.

Pet owners [fur-baby parents] should be ‒ and probably are ‒ able to read their cat’s tail the way most of us read facial expressions of people, and know how to give back signals to their cats. Experts say you can communicate with your cat through eye contact. When a cat makes direct eye contact with a blink, they are communicating affection and comfort to you. To communicate your love, you can offer treats and loving pats.

So, the answer to the big question is not too difficult: Cats use their tails to communicate their feelings.

PHYSICAL NATURE OF THE CAT’S TAIL
To understand what your cat is trying to tell you with their tail, it help to understand a little about the physiology and how it moves.

● Cat's Tails Vary In Length
Cat tails are different lengths, depending on the breed. A cat’s tail length is governed by he number of vertebrae in the tail, and different breeds have different numbers, the average being 19-23 vertebrae. With the majority of the species, the tail comprises 10% of the bones in a cats’ body.

● Cats’ Tails Are Highly Muscled and Flexible
Since cats have so many vertebrae in their tails, they also have a whole army of muscle groups, tendons, ligaments, and nerve endings which contribute to an effective network of signals and muscle responses. This makes the tail very flexible, allowing cats to move the whole tail or only a few vertebrae at a time.

● Cats’ Tails Are Highly Sensitive To Touch
Because of the complex network of nerves, muscles, and sensory input in a cat's tail and spinal column, they usually dislikes her tail being touched. Their physiology also allows cats to raise and lower the hairs of the tail.

RANGE OF MOVEMENTS
Their physiology gives cats a range of movements of the tail, and each one means something in terms of how the cat feels and its moods. Their communication is not just the nature of the movement, but also the up or down position, the direction, and speed of types of movements.
This chart from whycatwhy.com/tail-decoding-masterclass/ gives a quick guide to Cat Tail Reading.

Image Source: whycatwhy.com/tail-decoding-masterclass/

● Low Flick
The low flick tail wag is a quick back and forth action means the cat is unhappy and want to be left alone.

● Low Wagging
If your cat’s tail is low wagging, that is generally an indicator that they’re scared. Their ears may also be pinned back, their body crouched low to the ground. If they’re really scared, they might tuck their tail between their legs too.

● Slow swish
A slow swish of the tail from left to right means the cat is mildly annoyed. Back off if you see this as it could quickly transform into the angry low flick.

● Quick swish
The quick swish from side-to-side occurs when your cat is feeling playful and will often be followed by a pounce. This behavior is most commonly seen when playing with toys or another cat and will be coupled with dilated pupils and forward pointing ears.

● Quick twitch
A short, quick twitch usually implies concentration. You’re most likely to see this cat tail language when they’re window watching a small critter or bird, and they may even display strange cat sounds like chirping or chattering. The cat in the photo is probably quick-twitching her tail.
Image Source: catvills.com/why-cat-stare

● The quiver
The tail quiver means the cat is excited to see you! Your cat will approach you with their tail high up in the air and the tip will do a little quivering movement, similar to how a rattlesnake shakes their tail. This signals to you or other cats that they’re ready for interaction and will usually purr, rub their face on you and sometimes might also meow happily.

● Sleep twitch
Sometimes when your cat’s sleeping and you pet or talk to them, she might give you a sleep twitch of the tail. This cat tail language is their way of saying, “I know you’re there, but I feel safe enough to carry on snoozing anyway.”

● Waving tail while lying down
Cat expert Dr. Ernie Ward suggests that sometimes cat tail wagging may indicate the animal is in pain or feeling unwell. If your cat’s lying down and waving their tail whilst also behaving out of sorts – such as going off their food or spending a lot of time in hiding – they may be feeling under the weather. If you’re concerned about your cat’s health, take them to the vet as soon as possible for a diagnosis.

● Wrapping tail
Occasionally, when your cat wants to show you affection, they may wrap their tail around your hand, arm, leg, or even neck. However, this is less common as most cats tend to display their love for you in the form of head butts instead.

● Fluffed up tail
A fluffed up tail occurs when the cat feels she in danger. They generally do this during a confrontation ‒ dog, cat, human, or maybe with your super scary robot vacuum cleaner. According to experts, cats puff up to try and make themselves look larger and scarier to their foe, which is also why they’ll arch their backs.

CAT FEELINGS
Depending on how felines wag their tails, they may be expressing fear, annoyance, pain, restfulness, playfulness, and happiness. I have no way of knowing what kind of emotions cats may have, and just six seems rather simplistic even for a cat.

For lack of a better and more inspired way to put together Cat Feelings in relation to Cat Tail Movements, I’m going with the six general emotions that are readily “readable” in the tail movements plus a few others I could find references about. So we begin.

Image Source: petmd.com/cat/behavior/cat-wags-tail ▼

● HAPPY CAT
A straight up tail is a sign that the cat is on the “happy cat” side of the spectrum. After all, felines are rather aloof creatures, so don’t expect a smile.

Contrary to some beliefs, felines do have facial expressions but they are very hard to read and not at all what humans would expect.

Felines wag their tails in a slow and sultry way to show its contentment. It’s less a wag than the cat simply lifting their tail, vertebrae by vertebrae, with a little hook curve on the end. They will do this even when lying down, lifting the tail off the surface they are lying on and then letting their tail uncurl again. There are several emotions under the title of Happy Cat.

■ Confident Cat
When a cat is confident, she will walk around with the tail straight up gently wagging at the tip. It is the sign of a happy and fearless cat. It is a spirited attitude that helps other cats know that your pet is open to communication.

◄ Image source: teddyfeed.com/cats-tail-movements

■ Friendly Welcoming Cat
An upright, gently swaying tail is your cat's way of greeting you. She’s saying hello! The tail will often quiver, signaling your cat is happy to see you and would like a petting, please! You'll often see the same greeting between two cats, followed by gentle rubbing and vocalization.
◄ Image Source: petmd.com/cat/behavior/cat-wags-tail

This is usually a sure sign of an excited, happy feline. An upright tail can also signal fear, but the rest of the body language tells you the difference.

Source of Images:
petmd.com/cat/behavior/cat-wags-tail

■ Cat ready for interaction
A quivering tail also means that your cat is excited to see you. Your cat will approach you with their tail high up in the air and the tip will do a little quivering movement.

■ Peeing Cat
Your cat might also show this posture when she's peeing or marking her territory. In this case, your cat will back up against the edge of a litter box, wall, or piece of furniture.
Image Source: petmd.com/cat/behavior/cat-wags-tail

● FRIGHTENED CAT
Felines wag their tails when they are frightened or startled. Usually, their tail will be stiff and the hair on their tail will rise, giving the tail a thicker puffed up appearance.
◄Image Source: animalfoodplanet.com/cats-wag-tails

This is because the cat’s hair stands on end (piloerection) so that they can appear to be larger. Tail is wagged close to the ground. There may be a slight wag to their tail even if they lie down.

Your kitty can even tuck her tail between her legs in submission. This situation symbolizes that she does not want to engage in the fight. If your cat has an elevated tail, arched back, and pushed-back ears. It means your cat is scared but willing to fight the object. There may be another animal or an innocent thing, such as a leaf blowing in the wind, arousing fear in your cat.

This tail position is often triggered by feeling threatened by other animals in the yard, dogs approaching, visitors in the home, or sudden noises. Remove the inciting triggers to decrease your cat’s stress. If you try to interact with your cat when their hair is standing up, they may perceive your approach as a threat and become aggressive.
Image Source: petmd.com/cat/behavior/cat-wags-tail Image Source: tuxedo-cat.co.uk/cats-wag-tails/

● ANNOYED CAT
This is the easiest emotion to spot when a cat is wagging her tail. Cats usually thrash or thump their tails back, or move it back and forth in a swishing motion or in a low flick when they are annoyed or excited.

For example, the cat may jerk her tail if she wants you to stop touching her. You’ll most likely see this cat tail language when the cat is put in a situation she’s not pleased about. The cagt is telling you to go away and leave them so they can have space. If another cat enters their space, the tail flick signals that a fight is about to happen.

Even when a cat that is lying down, she may express annoyance by aggressively wagging her tail in a large swishing motion or thunk it against the surface she’s lying on. If you have petted them too vigorously, cats show their annoyance by wagging or thumping their tail. As with humans, cats experience rising levels of annoyance and at each level the cat will show escalating agitation.

● CAT IN PAIN
A cat may lower their tail below the level of their back if they are frightened or anxious. If your cat’s tail is tucked between their legs, then they are really scared or may be experiencing pain.

Source of Images: petmd.com/cat/behavior/cat-wags-tail

While this is rare, your cat's tail may also wag or twitch while lying down if she is in pain. If your cat's tail is waving or jerking in cases where it is usually relaxed, there may be underlying pain causing the discomfort. “Get thee to a veterinarian post haste.” Pain or illness usually occurs with other associated symptoms such as like lack of energy or not eating, unusual meowing, etc.

If your cat is sitting or lying down with their tail wrapped around her body, then she is frightened, defensive, in pain, or feeling unwell. Whatever the cause, the fur-parent should do whatever possible to ensure that your cat’s environment is free of stressors. If this persists with the cat frequently couching with the tail curled around their body, “Get thee to veterinarian post haste.”

● CAT IN RESTFULNESS
Cats love to sleep ‒ some up to eighteen hours a day ‒ and when they are in a light dream state, the tip of their tail may wag slightly from side to side. Young cats may show a more vigorous wagging since their nervous systems are still developing. An adult cat’s restful tail wagging is perhaps the equivalent of a human toe-tapping when you are engaged in a pleasurable activity. When cats feels secure and safe, they can sleep almost anywhere and in any position.
Image source: Image Source:
science beautifuldesktopwallpapers2014.blogspot.com/ vox.com/memory-improvement-psychology-science

● PLAYFUL CAT
Play is an important part of a cat’s development, and they may signal their readiness to play by wagging their tail suggestively or just moving the tip of her tail to get some human’s attention.

● CURIOUS CAT
Hook-shaped tail means a cat is curious and playful. A low hanging tail with curl means a cat is cautious but still curious. Cats love to inspect things and can stare at them for a long time, sometimes deciding if the “thing” is worthy of attacking.
Image source: tuxedo-cat.co.uk/why-cats-wag-their-tails/

● PREDATOR CAT
The bottom line is “a cat is always a predator”. That’s wired-in behavior no matter how domesticated the animal is.

The predator cat will stalk its prey, then pounce, kill, remove and then eat their prey. When a cat is in stalking mode, she will move slowly, often with pauses while she “waits”. Cats will shift weight in the rear legs as they get ready for a quick sprint and pounce action.   Image Source: za.pinterest.com/pin/553731716654612430/

Then the cat pounces, he lifts off with his back feet and pounces on their prey. Once he catches the prey, he quickly kills it with a fatal bite then takes off to a safe location where they do not feel vulnerable and exposed to have their snack.

THE FINAL TALE
“What happens to a cat born with no tail?” you ask.  Yes, there are breeds of cats with no tails, and sometimes other breeds are just born without them. A cat born without a tail will never miss it. Their brains develop without the presence of the sensory input from the tail, but researchers and scientists know that the tail can serve a purpose in balance and psychological well-being. Cats with tails removed because of illness or injury adjust very well most of the time.

You, as the fur-parent will just have to learn your cat’s way of communication.

JUST SAYIN.
□
Sources:
https://www.animalfoodplanet.com/cats-wag-their-tails-while-lying-down/#:~:text=6%20Reasons%20Cats%20Wag%20Their%20Tails%20While%20Lying,Restfulness.%20...%205%20Playfulness.%20...%206%20Happiness.%20

https://cutelitterbox.com/why-do-cats-wag-their-tails/#:~:text=Here%20are%20some%20reasons%20why%20your%20cat%20wagging,cat.%205%20Cat%20is%20in%20pain.%20More%20items

https://www.petmd.com/cat/behavior/evr_ct_what-does-it-mean-when-a-cat-wags-tail#:~:text=Why%20Do%20Cats%20Wag%20Their%20Tails%3F%201%20Thrashing,3%20Swishing%20Tails.%20...%204%20Tail%20Quivers.%20

https://www.lifesize.com/en/blog/speaking-without-words/#:~:text=What%20percentage%20of%20communication%20is%20nonverbal%3F%20There%20have,to%2093%20percent%20of%20all%20communication%20is%20nonverbal.

https://www.bing.com/images/search?view=detailV2&ccid=EJ%2BVgrxs&id=2476DD12F7C3518F3558F24BE3F813B93DFB72A6&thid=OIP.EJ-Vgrxs8iowF_7WOBUA-QHaLG&mediaurl=https%3A%2F%2Fi.pinimg.com%2Foriginals%2Fac%2F10%2F8d%2Fac108daabe70f46330bac09697b6c146.png&cdnurl=ht

https://www.kitnipbox.com/meow/index.php/2020/01/16/what-does-your-cats-tail-say/canva-angry-calico-cat-lying-on-edge-of-bed-wagging-tail-1/
https://www.petplace.com/article/cats/pet-behavior-training/cat-behavior-training/how-do-cats-communicate-with-humans/
https://www.teddyfeed.com/pets/cats-different-tail-movements-mean/
https://www.animalfoodplanet.com/cats-wag-their-tails-wh
http://www.caticles.com/cat-tail-meaning
http://www.whycatwhy.com/how-to-decode-your-cats-tail-a-masterclass/
https://www.purina.co.uk/articles/cats/behaviour/common-questions/why-do-cats-wag-their-tails
https://www.purina.com.au/cats/behaviour/dreaming#.YksVN-jMLcc
https://www.tuxedo-cat.co.uk/why-cats-wag-their-tails/
https://catvills.com/why-cat-stare-at-the-wall/
https://www.vox.com/2014/11/13/7198639/memory-improvement-psychology-science
http://beautifuldesktopwallpapers2014.blogspot.com/2013/11/sleeping-cat-wallpaper-cute-on-pc.html
https://www.caticles.com/cat-tail-meaning/
https://fineartamerica.com/featured/1-playful-kitten-susan-leggett.html
https://www.pinterest.com/pin/264656915575835862/
https://iheartcats.com/vet-4-things-know-cats-tail/

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The Great Molasses Flood

4/1/2022

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SUGAR IS BAD FOR YOU
It is a proven fact that too much sugar is bad for you, but chances are you never imaged you could drown in sugar syrup.

EVERYTHING YOU NEVER WANTED TO KNOW ABOUT MOLASSES
Molasses, or black treacle as it’s called by the British, is a viscous syrup-like substance which results from the refining of sugarcane or sugar beets into sugar syfrup. The word molasses comes a derivative of the Latin for honey [mel].

Sugarcane molasses is an ingredient used in baking and cooking, primarily to sweeten and flavor foods, even beer and portable alcohol. In the US, it is primarily used to sweeten and flavor foods, and is a major component of brown sugar. It can also be fermented to make ethanol, the active ingredient in alcoholic beverages and a key component in munitions.
Blackstrap Molasses - Image Source: dreamstime.com/organic-black-cane-sugar-molasses

Sugar beet molasses differs from sugarcane molasses, and is generally used for cattle food.

Blackstrap Molasses has been used frequently for medicinal purposes. It is known for its bitter taste because it is derived from the third boiling of the syrup. Most of the sugar remains in the first syrup which results from the first boiling, and in the second syrup, result of the second boiling. Blackstrap is also used for dietary supplements because it is rich in vitamin B6, calcium, magnesium, iron, manganese, and potassium.

Sugar-cane juice being boiled in stages to allow the water to evaporate and remove the impurities at a jaggery-making unit near Muzaffarnagar.
Image Credit: Pradeep Gaur/Mint
Image Source: livemint.com/Leisure/Sweet-symphony

THE GREAT MOLASSES DISASTER
The Great Molasses Disaster sounds like a family story about a Sunday brunch incident when Junior spilled an entire pitcher of syrup all over the pastor and his wife at the dining room table. The kind of oral family history you tell your grandkids about and laugh. Unfortunately, the real event was a true disaster which took 21 lives and injured 150 others.

The catastrophe occurred in the North End neighborhood of Boston, Massachusetts, on January 15, 1919, at the Purity Distilling Company facility near Keany Square. Purity used the harborside of Commercial Street to offload molasses transported by ships from the Caribbean on the Charles River and store the product in a large storage tank on their property for later transport by pipeline to the Purity ethanol plant in Cambridge.
▼ Image Credit: IMeowbot - Own work, PublicDomain This storage tank was 50 feet tall and 90 feet in Image Source: commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?

diameter and had a capacity of 2.3 million U.S. gallons.

Detail of molasses flood area:
1. Purity Distilling molasses tank
2. Firehouse 31 (heavy damage)
3. Paving department and police station
4. Purity offices (flattened)
5. Copps Hill Terrace 6. Boston Gas Light building (damaged)
7. Purity warehouse (mostly intact)
8. Residential area (site of flattened Clougherty house)

The molasses tank approximately 1919 ▼
Image Source: commons.wikimedia.org/BostonMolassesDisaster

Fate chose January 15, 1919, for the tragedy, but not by chance. First, the winter weather had warmed quickly and the temperature in Boston reached 40°F, well above the freezing temperatures of the prior week. Second, the previous day a ship had delivered a load of molasses which had been warmed for transfer. Experts believe the warmer molasses from the delivery caused expansion of the colder molasses inside the tank, causing it to explode..

K-bang! At 12:30 pm the earth rumbled. According to Wikipedia, “Witnesses reported that they felt the ground shake and heard a roar as it collapsed, a long rumble similar to the passing of an elevated train. Others reported a tremendous crashing, a deep growling, "a thunderclap-like bang!", and a sound like a machine gun as the rivets shot out of the tank.” https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Molasses

Consider: Molasses is about 40% more dense than water, giving it a great amount of force which created a wave of molasses 25 feet high moving at 35 miles per hour. The wave of sticky syrup took out buildings, snapped part of the elevated railway structure, nearly tipped over a streetcar and flooded several blocks to a depth of 2 to 3 feet in molasses.

The Boston Post wrote, “A rumble, a hiss—some say a boom and a swish—and the wave of molasses swept out. A wall of syrup cascaded over Commercial Street at 35 miles per hour, obliterating all the people, horses, buildings and electrical poles in its path.” The Boston Globe’s article stated that the force of the molasses wave caused buildings to “cringe up as though they were made of pasteboard.”
Front page of the January 16, 1919, “Boston Post”
Image source: history.com/news/the-great-molasses-flood

AFTERMATH
Arriving within minutes, the first responders ‒ police, firefighters, and more than a hundred sailors from USS Nantucket stationed nearby ‒ had to wade through several feet of molasses which was described as being like quicksand. They were quickly followed by the Red Cross, the army and navy.

According to History.com,”The most dramatic rescue took place at the Engine 31 firehouse, where several of the men from the lunchtime card game were trapped in a molasses-flooded pocket of space on the collapsed first floor.”Search and rescue continued for several days. Clean up took weeks. Salt water was sprayed from fireboats to wash away the syrup which was absorbed by the river beach sand, leaving the harbor brown for months. Cleanup of the whole city took months longer since everything anyone touched was sticky.

Oral history claims the entire area smelled of molasses every summer for years.

Site of the Tank afterward ▲ By the raised Railway structure ▲
Image source: commons.wikimedia.org/BostonMolassesDisaster   Image Source: history.com/great-molasses-flood-of-1919

  Damaged part of the elevated train ▼ Damage to Firehouse 31 ▼
  Credit for Images:.Courtesy trustees of the Boston Public Library
Leslie Jones Collection - Source of Images: monovisions.com/boston-molasses-disaster

FOLOWUP
Ultimately, the property damage was assessed at nearly $100,000,000 in today's dollars. As Boston struggled to recover, everyone wanted to know what had caused this disaster.

The newspapers reported that the tank had exploded. The tank's owner, U.S. Industrial Alcohol, who built the tank only four years before due to WWI demand ethanol for munitions, claimed that anarchists had dynamited it as an act of sabotage, which was not beyond possibility.

This was soon proved to be false, and the families affected by explosion ‒ mostly poor Irish and Italian laborers ‒ testified the tank had leaked since construction in 1915, and U.S.I.A. had ignored complaints and warnings that the tank was not safe.

The tank, they insisted, had leaked or "wept" molasses consistently since its construction in 1915, under pressure to rush completion, and the neighborhood had heard groans, rumbles, and metallic creaks since its construction. U.S.I.A had ignored complaints and warnings that the tank was unsafe.

The court ruled in favor of the property owners and families who had suffered. “Massachusetts and most other states responded to the verdict by passing laws to certify engineers and regulate construction. The molasses case marked the beginning of the end of an era when big business faced no government restrictions on its activities — and no consequences.” history.com/news/the-great-molasses-flood

JUST SAYIN
□
Sources:
https://www.livemint.com/Leisure/xrILP6IeqqU05wBXGMuzGK/Photo-Essay--Bittersweet-symphony.htmlhttps:/www.livemint.com/Leisure/xrILP6IeqqU05wBXGMuzGK/Photo-Essay--Bittersweet-symphony.html

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Great_Molasses_Flood#:~:text=The%20Great%20Molasses%20Flood%2C%20also%20known%20as%20the,North%20End%20neighborhood%20of%20Boston%2C%20Massachusetts%2C%20United%20States
.
https://www.history.com/news/the-great-molasses-flood-of-1919#&gid=ci023d0bbd600125f5&pid=molasses-flood-gettyimages-631625454

https://www.massmoments.org/moment-details/great-molasses-flood.html
https://www.newenglandhistoricalsociety.com/great-boston-molasses-disaster-1919/
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Molasses
https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=84101
https://monovisions.com/the-boston-molasses-disaster-of-1919/
https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:BostonMolassesDisaster.jpg

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The Great Molasses Flood

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