Words of our fathers

Some of the most impressive art that we know of is the rock art produced by ancient man and found in caves scattered across France and Spain. More than 200 caves have been found, studied and admired for their scope of subjects and brilliance of effort all leading to a conclusion that our ancestors, while living simply (by our standards) had a full and complex culture.

Humans take pride in knowing they are different from other animals, and one of the reasons is that we use a large, complicated vocabulary to communicate our thoughts. While it’s understood that verbal communication is perhaps the earliest form of information transfer it’s also commonly felt that the act of writing down the sounds of speech didn’t happen until about 13,000 years ago.

But that date might be in question if the theory of some researchers in paleoanthropology are correct. Genevieve von Petzinger from the University of Victoria in British Columbia has written a paper on a study she did using rock art as her source. Included in the art are signs and symbols whose meaning is unknown. She, and her associates have created a data base of some 26 visual forms, called hectiforms, that are found in cave art all across Europe that were created across some 20,000 years. The hectiforms seem to transcend time different cultures and could mean that humankind had developed a form of proto-communication at long ago as 35,000 years.  

The hectiform addition to ancient art work appears to be also found in some cave art found in Africa which could extend the theory that viable communication goes even further back in our history. My feeling is that mankind is a lot smarter than some of scientist’s believe and that our ancestral heritage was produced by people just like you or me.  

His lips were moving

             As a mediator I have to listen to people make all sorts of claims concerning why they did what they did. Most of the time what they have to say is either correct or it’s patently wrong and we resolve the issue and go on from there until we ultimately reach a solution. So I’ve learned to listen, and to assure myself that the claim made is at least reasonably correct…the only trouble with developing this skill is that I now find myself applying it to general conversation and to the utterances of politicians. (Can you see where this is going?)

           

            Last week the President gave a major energy policy speech at Prince George’s Community College in Maryland, whoever wrote the speech for him didn’t waste time by checking facts and the President compounded the errors contained in his speech by some of his responses to questions. The one answer that struck me the most was his claim that he had quadrupled the number of drilling rigs in operation during his administration. 

Other reports I’ve seen contradict that assertion so it was an easy web search to find that there is a on line reporting service that tracks well and drilling sites. (If you are interested it’s the Baker-Hughes Rig Report) There are just shy of 2,000 drilling rigs in operation in the country so for him to have increased the number of rigs fourfold in the past four years there had to have only 500 at some point since 2008.

            The last time there were 500 rigs in operation was in the mid 1990’s and in fact the report shows that not only have the number of rigs been declining the only new ones are located on private land, not on any area controlled by the government. It's one thing for a politician to speak untruthfully it a much worse thing for him to do so while giving a "major policy speach".

Ink or not

Moving has always been an experience for us...each time we move the tonnage of books that accompany us increases dramatically. And when My Lady or I are deployed in response to disaster we usually end up mailing lots and lots of books home. Even though we work 7 days a week while in the field there is always time to fill with good words and book stores are always a draw.
After my last deployment I figured up how much money was spent in buying books and mailing them home and I started to consider buying an e-book reader such as a Kindle. In one compact package I can have literally hundreds of book titles and access to new titles anytime I want. It's a seductive thought but any new item comes with "issues". One more thing to go bad, a new charger to lose, paying download fees to the book source and, with our eclectic taste a chance that the strange title that interests us will not be available. I also like to flip pages and a plastic screen just doesn't do that!
So for the nonce, I'll continue to search the old used book section at the store and settle back with a good book whenever the opportunity arises.

Viamin D

As we get older our wants and needs change…and for those of you who are prejudging what I’m thinking I’m not talking about sex or food. Instead I’m talking about a simple vitamin D deficiency that can seriously impact our lives.
A researcher tested more that 1,500 residents in German nursing homes and found that 89 percent of them had insufficient levels of Vitamin D and about 64 percent had severe deficiencies of vitamin D. There is also anecdotal information here in the U.S. that indicates that hip fractures after falls are significantly greater during the winter months than during sunny summer months.
When you think about it the shorter daylight period and the fact that it’s colder encourages people to stay indoors, especially the elderly. I know that I’m more aware of slipping on the ice and I’m very aware that at my age the bones tend to get a little brittle. But I’m also aware that I can consume a vitamin D supplement in order to minimize my risk of orthopedic injury if I take a fall.
 The interesting part of this blog that I’m now writing is that at an American Stroke Association International Conference a study of more that 16,000 patients was presented that indicates those who lived in areas with shorter exposure to sunlight have a 56 percent increased risk of having a Cerebral Vascular Accident.
The two studies are not mutually supportive and both fail to account for social, cultural and dietary differences but to my curious mind both have a similar conclusion that as we age the absorption of vitamin D, either by pill or by sunlight can only be beneficial.

Winter tricks I didn't get to use this year

Before winter started I prepared for possible harsh weather by anticipating and preparing...but winter this year has been warm and dry so I'll have to keep these tricks in mind for next year.

Keep your headlights clear with car wax, just wipe ordinary car wax on your headlights. It contains water repellents that prevent mess and gunk from accumulating. The wax lasts about 6 months.
   
Squeak-proof your wipers with rubbing alcohol! Wipe the wipers with a cloth saturated with rubbing alcohol or ammonia. This one trick can make badly streaking & squeaking wipers change to near perfect silence & clarity.

Ice-proof your windows with vinegar! Just fill a spray bottle with three parts vinegar to one part water & spritz it on all your windows at night. In the morning, they'll be clear of icy mess. Vinegar contains acetic acid, which raises the freezing point of water ---preventing frost from forming!
Prevent car doors from freezing shut with cooking spray! Spray cooking oil (corn oil-based) on the rubber seals around car doors & rub it in with a paper towel. The cooking spray prevents water from freezing onto the rubber

Fog-proof your windshield with shaving cream! Spray some shaving cream on the inside of your windshield & wipe it off with paper towels, leaving no smears. Shaving cream has many of the same ingredients found in commercial defoggers.

De-ice your lock in seconds with hand sanitizer! Just put some hand sanitizer gel on the key & the lock and your problem is solved!

A story to consider

With a grateful hat tip to "Old NFO"

One evening an old Cherokee told his grandson about a battle that goes on inside people. 

He said, "My son, the battle is between two wolves inside us all.

"One is Evil -  It is anger, envy, jealousy, sorrow, regret, greed, arrogance, self-pity, guilt, resentment, inferiority, lies, false pride, superiority, and ego.

"The other is Good -  It is joy, peace, love, hope, serenity, humility, kindness, benevolence, empathy, generosity, truth, compassion and faith."

The grandson thought about it for a minute and then asked his grandfather: "Which wolf wins?"

The old Cherokee simply replied, "The one you feed."


Doesn't get much simpler than that...

A call for unisex soap

A while back My Lady and I stopped at a local drugstore to buy some personal care items. As we were wandering the isles I was startled to find that while the products were all in the same part of the store there were important differences in the store layout as to where various lotions and soaps can be found.

In order for us to find the product we wanted we first had to determine what part of our bodies we wanted to treat and then decide what gender we are. It is not enough to intend to purchase moisturizer or soap; you must determine if you want it for your face, body, or feet, and from there whether it’s soap or a moisturizer for a man’s parts or a woman’s.

So my question is: Is Ivory soap male or female?