This is Week 40 of 2010►Day 281 with 84 days left.
FREE RAMBLING THOUGHTS
We were warned not to wear bright color clothing for our trip to the Semenggok Nature Reserve of Sarawak where we would be seeing Orangutans. Zack, our guide, was also a registered guide here, so we again got some extra information from the other guides. The word ‘orangutan’ translates to ‘man of the forest.’ I had seen orangutans at the CO. Springs Zoo, and at the Denver Zoo. Until I saw them in the wild, I never understood the translation. We got there just b efore feeding time. We had to rush up the paved trail to get there on time. While several in our group usually walked slowly and appeared a little unsteady sometimes, at this park, all that was forgotten. Everyone was at the feeding spot very quickly. Watching them come in from the forest, I understood their name. As they stretched out and swung from tree to tree, in the shadows of the thick foliage, they put on an amazing Cirque de Soleil performance. We were told by one of the guides how lucky we were that day. The Alpha Male hadn’t been in for a couple of weeks, but he showed up. So did one of his wives with a two week old baby—her first outing since the birth. It turned out there were several feeding places, all timed to that tourists could view all of them. Like the Lion Walk in South Africa, much of the ‘danger’ hype seemed unnecessary, however, this venue did have very large pictures of arm and leg injuries of visitors who didn’t follow the rules. All the feeding areas had lots of trees, a high platform for the food and also added ropes to assist the Orangutans movement around the feeding area. While they stayed in the trees, and not on the ground, many times we were less than 15 feet from them with no fences or barriers. They were much more interested in the food and the trees than our cameras. Several moms had their babies holding on around mom’s waist as she swung though the trees. The tiny ones had a look of horror while this was going on. This is a rehab center for orangutans. There are several young males who may try to be the Alpha Male. When this happens, the younger male is ‘sent off’ to another area…the guide wasn’t real clear as to exactly what that meant—did it mean to another center, back into the wild, to a zoo? I guess for them, limited English makes it easier to deal with the difficult questions.
After our visit we are off for a short plane ride to Sibu, where we will begin a 9 day river cruise. Since our arrival in Malaysia, the scheduled has been changed three times. We are now back to the original time of the flight. It is a small airport and our 2 hour wait changed into a four hour wait. Ellie was getting concerned that we would miss our ship. In the end, all we lost was some shopping time in Sibu and upon arrival were rushed from the airport to the ship. Sibu was attempting to reclaim the Malaysian record for the most number of Chinese lanterns on their streets during this festival. There were 31,000 lamps throughout the city. A beautiful view. The city center was alive with food markets, food booths, and many carnival games going on, late into the night. We had been greeted at the airport with a camera crew and interviewer. At first we thought the cruise line was making a promo video to sell to us at the end of the cruise. After boarding the ship, and refreshing ourselves a little, it was off to dinner. There was the cameraman (who had a very expensive machine), a light man, a sound man, a producer, and a director awaiting our arrival in the dining room. They started video graphing us serving, eating, chewing, and conversing. It was apparent they were making a professional video. Most in our group seemed uncomfortable, so when they came to our table with the bright light and camera rolling, I told them it was rude to photograph Americans while eating. They stopped and went back to their table to eat. After dinner I went to the table and introduced myself and asked what they were doing on the ship. Turns out they were working for the Malaysian government Tourism Office and would be with us for the cruise. I explained that they should tell the group what was going on. The director, a powerful woman, told me that they had the government’s permission to do this. I told her she didn’t have MY permission. She looked shocked and said she was sorry. As the days of our trip continued, the crew turned out to be very friendly, very nice, and quickly realized that the Brits, Aussies, Canadians, and Americans on the ship were on Holiday, and that they were working. We never really got used to their constant presence at every turn, but realized they were working to help Malaysia and therefore dealt with it. The CEO of the cruise line showed up and he stayed for a couple of days for interviews and filming. This filming was a really big deal for the cruise line and because the CEO was on board, we did get some great opportunities that other cruises probably don’t get. I definitely want to travel on Pandow Cruises again, but in the future will check to see if a film crew is on board. More on the great film crew later.
Our storms have departed Flagstaff and none too soon. When I got up, I could see snow on the Peaks. It was nice to see the peaks again, nice to have a blue sky, but the wind and cooler temps did little but remind me that summer is over, fall is here, and winter is just around the corner. I finally ran some errands today, did some necessary shopping, and am settling back into life in Flagstaff. I am starting to feel semi-literate about the news again. I certainly didn’t miss the campaign commercials, the robocalls, and the constant barrage of ‘news’ when a politician makes a statement. I know that I really get into all that stuff while I am in Flagstaff, but must say, the world out there is no place for most of it. Again, I am confused by Globalization. Somehow we need to keep our individual culture and language while embracing the cultures and languages out there. It is not an easy task, and there certainly aren’t any blueprints out there to show us the way. It will be left to the historians to see if our path has been beneficial to humankind.
Flag…H—61°; L—27°; RH—40%; and only a breeze of about 10mph with gusts in the 20’s. We had a couple of short showers, but nothing to write home about. It was a nice fall day, for those who are ready for fall. I’m just not there yet.
QUOTE FOR THE DAY – Malay Proverbs
A turtle lays thousands of eggs, nobody knows; but when a hen lays an egg, the whole village know
(meaning of proverb: some people do much things but don't show publicity; others who do small things but do much publicity)
HOLY MACKEREL: 1871 This day was one for the history books as far as fires go. In Wisconsin, one of the most disastrous forest fires ever destroyed the town of Peshtigo, burned across six counties and killed over 1100 people. The city of Chicago was virtually leveled when Mrs. O’Leary’s cow kicked over a lantern in the barn and 17,450 other buildings, leaving almost 99,000 people homeless.
SOMEWHAT USELESS INFORMATION
The Cathedral of Notre Dame covers 8,500 square yards. When it was completed in the Middle Ages, the entire population of Amiens (the city it is located in), about 10,000 people, could attend the same service.
GREY MATTER PUZZLE 1—Jeopardy Answers—80’s TV Trivia
$200-Every week this comedienne was "so glad we had this time together"
$400- Richard Carlson "led" this number of lives as a communist counterspy & FBI agent
$600- Lucy & Desi's TV production company
$800- Series which pitted "CONTROL" against "KAOS”
$1000- Crooner who was 1st offered role of "Columbo" but turned it down because he didn't need the money
UNUSUAL NEWS ITEM
Stephen Fry and zoologist Mark Carwardine find themselves in New Zealand through one of the most dramatic landscapes in the world. They encounter this flightless parrot which, well you have to watch.
Here is the strange video: Click Here to View
A LITTLE LAUGH
I used to work in an art supply store. We sold artists' canvas by the yard, and you could get it in either of two widths: 36 inches or 48 inches.
Customer: "Can you please cut some canvas for me?"
Me: "Certainly, what width?"
Customer: (confused and slightly annoyed) "Scissors?"
Here is a video of the Orangutans at the park. Mine isn’t quite ready yet. Click Here to View!
GREY MATTER PICTURE
This is a close up of what object?
SOME CALENDAR INFORMATION
¤ Weekly Observances ¤
2-9: No Salt Week
3-9: National Newspaper Week ^ National Work From Home Week ^ Fire Prevention Week ^ Mental Illness Awareness Week ^ Mystery Series Week ^ National Carry A Tune Week ^ Nuclear Medicine Week
4-10: Customer Service Week ^ Financial Planning Week ^ Spinning & Weaving Week ^ World Space Week
5-10:Great Books Week
6-12: Physicians Assistant Week
8-12: Kids' Goal Setting Week
8-10: New York Comic Con Week
10-16: Build Your Business with Business Cards Week ^ Emergency Nurses Week ^ Home-based Business Week ^ National Chestnut Week ^ National Food Bank Week ^ National Metric Week ^ Take Your Medicine Americans Week ^ World Rainforest Week
11-17: Fall Astronomy Week ^ National School Lunch Week
17-23: Food and Drug Interaction Education and Awareness Week ^ Getting The World To Beat A Path To Your Door Week ^ International Credit Union Week ^ Teen Read Week ^ National Chemistry Week ^ National Hospital and Health-System Pharmacy Week ^ YWCA Week without Violence ^ National Character Counts Week ^ National Forest Products Week ^ National Lead Poisoning Prevention Week ^ National School Bus Safety Week
18-24: Freedom From Bullies Week ^ Freedom of Speech Week ^ Medical Assistants Recognition Week ^ National Food Bank Week ^ National Infertility Awareness Week ^ National Massage Therapy Week ^ National Businesswomen's Week
24-31: Disarmament Week ^ Give Wildlife a Break Week ^ Pastoral Care Week ^ Peace, Friendship and Good Will Week ^ Prescription Errors Education & Awareness Week ^ International Magic Week ^ National Respiratory Care Week
27-11/3: World Hearing Aid Awareness Week
¤ Today’s Observances ¤
Alvin C. York Day (WWI hero—movie Sgt. York)
National Depression Screening Day
Lee's National Denim Day
National Pierogi Day—for the pasta/potato dumplings
Croatia: Independence Day, celebrate the official separation from Yugoslavia in 1991
Peru: Navy Day
¤ Hit Songs on this date ¤
1896 ...On the Benches in the Park / George J. Gaskin
1906 ...The Good Old U.S.A. / Byron G. Harlan Click Here to Here!
1916 ...If I Knock the 'L' Out of Kelly (It Would Still Be Kelly to Me) / Marguerite Farrell Click Here to Hear!
1926 ...When the Red, Red Robin Comes Bob-Bob-Bobbin' Along / Al Jolson Click Here to Hear!
1936 ...When Did You Leave Heaven? / Guy Lombardo Click Here to Hear!
1946 …To Each His Own / Eddy Howard
1956 …Don't Be Cruel/Hound Dog / Elvis Presley
1966 …Cherish / The Association
1976 …A Fifth of Beethoven / Walter Murphy & His Big Apple Band Click Here to Hear!
1986 …When I Think of You / Janet Jackson
¤ Today’s Births ¤
╬ THE ARTS
Chevy Chase, 67, comedian, actor, born Cornelius Crane
Frank Herbert, sci-fi writer (Dune), in 1920
R.L. Stine, 67, author (Goosebumps series)
♦♦♦♦♦♦
David Carradine, actor (Kung-Fu, Boxcar Bertha, Young Guns), in 1936
Matt Damon, 40, actor (Ocean’s Eleven, The Bourne Identity, Good Will Hunting)
Paul Hogan, 71, actor, writer (Crocodile Dundee)
Sigourney Weaver, 61, actress (Ghostbusters, Gorillas in the Mist, Aliens)
╬ ATHLETICS
Bill Elliott, 55, race car driver
Rashaan Salaam, 36, football (Heisman—1994, Bears, Browns, Packers, 49er’s)
╬ BUSINESS & EDUCATION
Rona Barrett, 74, gossip columnist
Clodagh, 73, designer, born Clodagh Aubry at Galway, Ireland
╬ POLITICS
Eddie Rickenbacker, aviator "Ace of Aces" (WW I), in 1890
Juan Peron, Argentine Pres (1946-55, 1973-74), in 1895
╬ SCIENCE & RELIGION
J Frank Duryea, inventor (1st auto built & operated in the US), in 1869
Jesse Jackson, 69, clergyman, civil rights leader
¤ Today’s Obituaries ¤
Fernando Lamas, actor/director, cancer @ 67 in 1982
Leon Klinghoffer, hijackers of Achille Lauro, throw him off the boat @ 69 in 1985
Franklin Pierce, 14th president of US, @ 65 in 1869
Wendell Lewis Willkie, Republican politician, at least 20 heart attacks @ 52 in 1944
¤ Today’s Events ¤
╬ THE ARTS
1935 Ozzie Nelson marries Harriet Hilliard (Ozzie & Harriet)
1970 Soviet author Alexander I Solzhenitsyn awarded Nobel Prize for Lit
╬ ATHLETICS
1818 2 English boxers are 1st to use padded gloves
1957 Brooklyn Dodgers announce move to Los Angeles
╬ BUSINESS & EDUCATION
1952 Amy Vanderbilt’s The Complete Book of Etiquette was first published.
1988 Fire in Seattle's Space Needle causes evacuation, $2,000 damage
╬ INDIGENOUS PEOPLE
1758 (through October 26): IROQUOIS & DELAWARE treaty - the Council of Easton begins today in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. Eventually peace treaties will be signed, and many of the much-hated treaty of Albany will be abrogated.
╬ POLITICS (US)
1775 Officers decide to bar slaves & free blacks from Continental Army
1840 1st Hawaiian constitution proclaimed
╬ POLITICS (International)
1945 Truman announced atomic bomb secret shared with Britain & Canada
1957 Turkish & Syrian border guards exchange fire
1962 Algeria admitted as 109th member of the UN
╬ SCIENCE & RELIGION
451 Council of Chalcedon (4th ecumenical council) opens
1822 1st eruption of Galunggung (Java) sends boiling sludge into valley
GREY MATTER ANSWERS
↔ 1
$200-Every week this comedienne was "so glad we had this time together": Who is Carol Burnett?
$400- Richard Carlson "led" this number of lives as a communist counterspy & FBI agent: What is Three?
$600- Lucy & Desi's TV production company: What is Desilu?
$800- Series which pitted "CONTROL" against "KAOS”: What is Get Smart?
$1000- Crooner who was 1st offered role of "Columbo" but turned it down because he didn't need the money: Who is Bing Crosby?
↔ PICTURE
A Rutabaga
<> <> <> <>
