I do not love you as if you were salt-rose or topaz,
or the arrow of carnations the fire shoots off.
I love you as certain things are to be loved,
in secret, between the shadow and the soul.
I love you as the plant that never blooms,
but carries in itself the light of hidden flowers.
Thanks to your love a certain fragrance,
risen darkly from the earth, lives darkly in my body.
I love you without knowing how, or when, or from where,
I love you straight forwardly, without complexities or pride,
so I love you because I know no other way than this:
where "I" does not exist, nor "you,"
So close that your hand on my chest is my hand,
So close that your eyes close and I fall asleep.
Neruda, Pablo. "I do not love you as if you were salt." http://www.michaelpalmer.net/Other%20Pages/i_do_not_love.htm.
Thursday, March 29, 2007
Tuesday, March 27, 2007
Jay County Pollution
At least the awful stench gives you a little warning of what you are about to see. After all, nothing that smells that bad can look very good.
Animal carcasses -- by one count more than 250 of them -- have been scattered along a steep bank that leads down to a small creek along Spooky Hollow Road between Jay County roads 600-S and 700-S.
Some of the carcasses appear to be in garbage bags, and others are just scattered around the area. There's the occasional body part here and there, a skull or two rolled up against the base of a tree and other rubbish like tires and broken glass dumped there as well.
Flooding caused by last week's rain might have washed some of the animals downstream.
Otherwise, it would be a lovely area. Really.
The winding, gravel road is called Spooky Hollow because the countless trees along it darken the sky when the leaves are out, according to residents. And in the fall, when the trees show their colors, it's really a pleasant drive.
But not right now.
Two women walking in the area last week discovered the carcasses, and the recent rains have delayed clean-up efforts by county crews.
County engineer Dan Watson said he thought the cleanup could begin sometime today.
Officials said it didn't appear that the carcasses had been there very long because they had not been ravaged by other animals.
County highway supervisor Ken Wellman said he was concerned about safety procedures during the clean-up process because of the high water.
"We are looking at different ways to handle the situation," he said. "(Jay County Conservation Officer) Dwane Ford and I are working together to see how to best handle the situation."
Nearby residents didn't seem too upset. No one claimed it was the work of aliens or a secret cult.
"I'm a little concerned about it," said Tina Miller, who has lived in the area for about 20 years. "Way out here no one ever sees anything because the houses are so far apart."
But she's not unduly worried. "Stuff like that happens," she shrugged.
Oddly enough, some of the carcasses had been skinned, including dogs, cats, raccoons and coyotes among others. But a couple of calf carcasses didn't appear to have been molested in any way.
Conservation officer Ford is leading the investigation. He could not be reached for comment Monday, but others say the investigation has led toward Mercer County, just across the state line in Ohio, because numerous pets have been reported missing there.
Jay County officials say the carcasses will be buried on county-owned property near the Jay County Highway Department along County Road 300-N.
Anyone with information about the incident is asked to call the Jay County sheriff's department, (260) 726-8188.
Routledge, Ric. "Hundreds of animal carcasses dumped in Jay County." The Star Press (2007): 27 Mar 2007 http://www.thestarpress.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20070327/NEWS01/703270322.
Animal carcasses -- by one count more than 250 of them -- have been scattered along a steep bank that leads down to a small creek along Spooky Hollow Road between Jay County roads 600-S and 700-S.
Some of the carcasses appear to be in garbage bags, and others are just scattered around the area. There's the occasional body part here and there, a skull or two rolled up against the base of a tree and other rubbish like tires and broken glass dumped there as well.
Flooding caused by last week's rain might have washed some of the animals downstream.
Otherwise, it would be a lovely area. Really.
The winding, gravel road is called Spooky Hollow because the countless trees along it darken the sky when the leaves are out, according to residents. And in the fall, when the trees show their colors, it's really a pleasant drive.
But not right now.
Two women walking in the area last week discovered the carcasses, and the recent rains have delayed clean-up efforts by county crews.
County engineer Dan Watson said he thought the cleanup could begin sometime today.
Officials said it didn't appear that the carcasses had been there very long because they had not been ravaged by other animals.
County highway supervisor Ken Wellman said he was concerned about safety procedures during the clean-up process because of the high water.
"We are looking at different ways to handle the situation," he said. "(Jay County Conservation Officer) Dwane Ford and I are working together to see how to best handle the situation."
Nearby residents didn't seem too upset. No one claimed it was the work of aliens or a secret cult.
"I'm a little concerned about it," said Tina Miller, who has lived in the area for about 20 years. "Way out here no one ever sees anything because the houses are so far apart."
But she's not unduly worried. "Stuff like that happens," she shrugged.
Oddly enough, some of the carcasses had been skinned, including dogs, cats, raccoons and coyotes among others. But a couple of calf carcasses didn't appear to have been molested in any way.
Conservation officer Ford is leading the investigation. He could not be reached for comment Monday, but others say the investigation has led toward Mercer County, just across the state line in Ohio, because numerous pets have been reported missing there.
Jay County officials say the carcasses will be buried on county-owned property near the Jay County Highway Department along County Road 300-N.
Anyone with information about the incident is asked to call the Jay County sheriff's department, (260) 726-8188.
Routledge, Ric. "Hundreds of animal carcasses dumped in Jay County." The Star Press (2007): 27 Mar 2007 http://www.thestarpress.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20070327/NEWS01/703270322.
Monday, March 26, 2007
Human Sheep
Scientists have created the world's first human-sheep chimera - which has the body of a sheep and half-human organs.
The sheep have 15 per cent human cells and 85 per cent animal cells - and their evolution brings the prospect of animal organs being transplanted into humans one step closer.
Professor Esmail Zanjani, of the University of Nevada, has spent seven years and £5million perfecting the technique, which involves injecting adult human cells into a sheep's foetus.
He has already created a sheep liver which has a large proportion of human cells and eventually hopes to precisely match a sheep to a transplant patient, using their own stem cells to create their own flock of sheep.
The process would involve extracting stem cells from the donor's bone marrow and injecting them into the peritoneum of a sheep's foetus. When the lamb is born, two months later, it would have a liver, heart, lungs and brain that are partly human and available for transplant.
"We would take a couple of ounces of bone marrow cells from the patient,' said Prof Zanjani, whose work is highlighted in a Channel 4 programme tomorrow.
"We would isolate the stem cells from them, inject them into the peritoneum of these animals and then these cells would get distributed throughout the metabolic system into the circulatory system of all the organs in the body. The two ounces of stem cell or bone marrow cell we get would provide enough stem cells to do about ten foetuses. So you don't just have one organ for transplant purposes, you have many available in case the first one fails."
At present 7,168 patients are waiting for an organ transplant in Britain alone, and two thirds of them are expected to die before an organ becomes available.
Scientists at King's College, London, and the North East Stem Cell Institute in Newcastle have now applied to the HFEA, the Government's fertility watchdog, for permission to start work on the chimeras.
But the development is likely to revive criticisms about scientists playing God, with the possibility of silent viruses, which are harmless in animals, being introduced into the human race.
Dr Patrick Dixon, an international lecturer on biological trends, warned: "Many silent viruses could create a biological nightmare in humans. Mutant animal viruses are a real threat, as we have seen with HIV."
Animal rights activists fear that if the cells get mixed together, they could end up with cellular fusion, creating a hybrid which would have the features and characteristics of both man and sheep. But Prof Zanjani said: "Transplanting the cells into foetal sheep at this early stage does not result in fusion at all."
Joseph, Claudia. "Now scientists create a sheep that's 15% human." Daily Mail: 24 Mar. 2007 http://www.dailymail.co.uk/pages/live/articles/news/news.html?in_article_id=444436&in_page_id=1770.
The sheep have 15 per cent human cells and 85 per cent animal cells - and their evolution brings the prospect of animal organs being transplanted into humans one step closer.
Professor Esmail Zanjani, of the University of Nevada, has spent seven years and £5million perfecting the technique, which involves injecting adult human cells into a sheep's foetus.
He has already created a sheep liver which has a large proportion of human cells and eventually hopes to precisely match a sheep to a transplant patient, using their own stem cells to create their own flock of sheep.
The process would involve extracting stem cells from the donor's bone marrow and injecting them into the peritoneum of a sheep's foetus. When the lamb is born, two months later, it would have a liver, heart, lungs and brain that are partly human and available for transplant.
"We would take a couple of ounces of bone marrow cells from the patient,' said Prof Zanjani, whose work is highlighted in a Channel 4 programme tomorrow.
"We would isolate the stem cells from them, inject them into the peritoneum of these animals and then these cells would get distributed throughout the metabolic system into the circulatory system of all the organs in the body. The two ounces of stem cell or bone marrow cell we get would provide enough stem cells to do about ten foetuses. So you don't just have one organ for transplant purposes, you have many available in case the first one fails."
At present 7,168 patients are waiting for an organ transplant in Britain alone, and two thirds of them are expected to die before an organ becomes available.
Scientists at King's College, London, and the North East Stem Cell Institute in Newcastle have now applied to the HFEA, the Government's fertility watchdog, for permission to start work on the chimeras.
But the development is likely to revive criticisms about scientists playing God, with the possibility of silent viruses, which are harmless in animals, being introduced into the human race.
Dr Patrick Dixon, an international lecturer on biological trends, warned: "Many silent viruses could create a biological nightmare in humans. Mutant animal viruses are a real threat, as we have seen with HIV."
Animal rights activists fear that if the cells get mixed together, they could end up with cellular fusion, creating a hybrid which would have the features and characteristics of both man and sheep. But Prof Zanjani said: "Transplanting the cells into foetal sheep at this early stage does not result in fusion at all."
Joseph, Claudia. "Now scientists create a sheep that's 15% human." Daily Mail: 24 Mar. 2007 http://www.dailymail.co.uk/pages/live/articles/news/news.html?in_article_id=444436&in_page_id=1770.
Sunday, March 18, 2007
Buds
I took this in New Orleans, it is probably one of the best pictures I have ever taken. Since my free Flickr account is full, I decided to post it on here instead.
If you click on it, you can see it in better detail.
Friday, March 09, 2007
i carry your heart with me by ee cummings
i carry your heart with me(i carry it in
my heart)i am never without it(anywhere
i go you go,my dear; and whatever is done
by only me is your doing,my darling)
i fear
no fate(for you are my fate,my sweet)i want
no world(for beautiful you are my world,my true)
and it's you are whatever a moon has always meant
and whatever a sun will always sing is you
here is the deepest secret nobody knows
(here is the root of the root and the bud of the bud
and the sky of the sky of a tree called life;which grows
higher than the soul can hope or mind can hide)
and this is the wonder that's keeping the stars apart
i carry your heart(i carry it in my heart)
cummings, e.e. "i carry your heart with me." PoemHunter.com. 9 March 2007. http://www.poemhunter.com/poem/i-carry-your-heart-with-me-2/.
Thursday, March 08, 2007
Alzheimers by Kelly Cherry
I found this beautiful poem while Stumbling round the internet. The language and imagery in this poem took my breath away.
He stands at the door, a crazy old man
Back from the hospital, his mind rattling
like the suitcase, swinging from his hand,
That contains shaving cream, a piggy bank,
A book he sometimes pretends to read,
His clothes. On the brick wall beside him
Roses and columbine slug it out for space, claw the mortar.
The sun is shining, as it does late in the afternoon
in England, after rain.
Sun hardens the house, reifies it,
Strikes the iron grillwork like a smithy
and sparks fly off, burning in the bushes--
the rosebushes--
While the white wood trim defines solidity in space.
This is his house. He remembers it as his,
Remembers the walkway he built between the front room
and the garage, the rhododendron he planted in back,
the car he used to drive. He remembers himself,
A younger man, in a tweed hat, a man who loved
Music. There is no time for that now. No time for music,
The peculiar screeching of strings, the luxurious
Fiddling with emotion.
Other things have become more urgent.
Other matters are now of greater import, have more
Consequence, must be attended to. The first
Thing he must do, now that he is home, is decide who
This woman is, this old, white-haired woman
Standing here in the doorway,
Welcoming him in.
Cherry, Kelly. "Alzheimers." 1997 http://www.zarcrom.com/users/yeartorem/ADpoetry/KCAlzheimers.html.
He stands at the door, a crazy old man
Back from the hospital, his mind rattling
like the suitcase, swinging from his hand,
That contains shaving cream, a piggy bank,
A book he sometimes pretends to read,
His clothes. On the brick wall beside him
Roses and columbine slug it out for space, claw the mortar.
The sun is shining, as it does late in the afternoon
in England, after rain.
Sun hardens the house, reifies it,
Strikes the iron grillwork like a smithy
and sparks fly off, burning in the bushes--
the rosebushes--
While the white wood trim defines solidity in space.
This is his house. He remembers it as his,
Remembers the walkway he built between the front room
and the garage, the rhododendron he planted in back,
the car he used to drive. He remembers himself,
A younger man, in a tweed hat, a man who loved
Music. There is no time for that now. No time for music,
The peculiar screeching of strings, the luxurious
Fiddling with emotion.
Other things have become more urgent.
Other matters are now of greater import, have more
Consequence, must be attended to. The first
Thing he must do, now that he is home, is decide who
This woman is, this old, white-haired woman
Standing here in the doorway,
Welcoming him in.
Cherry, Kelly. "Alzheimers." 1997 http://www.zarcrom.com/users/yeartorem/ADpoetry/KCAlzheimers.html.
Remember Book-It!
Fort Wayne (WANE) - Pizza Hut's Book It! Program provides incentive for students to read. But a children's advocacy group is criticizing the program, claiming it makes kids hungry for pizza, not books. Educators and Pizza Hut disagree, saying the program is just one more tool to help improve literacy.
Dr. Susan Linn, a spokesperson for The Campaign for a Commercial-Free Childhood, says Book It! doesn't give kids an appetite for reading. "There is a national concern about reading. There has been for a very long time, so Pizza Hut decided to create a program to help kids read. And in fact what the program does is market Pizza Hut every day the kids are in school. So you keep promising kids rewards for reading, there are a couple of messages in that. One of them is an inherent message that kids don't want to read and that reading is boring. When the reward ends, kids tend to stop doing whatever that behavior is."
The reading program is in many elementary schools in our area, and many educators maintain Book It! does give students a taste for books. "The Book It! Program really encourages reading in our elementary school students and reading is the most important foundation of learning. Anything that encourages reading we support," says FWCS Director of Public Affairs Melanie Hall.
Pizza Hut issued this statement: "The Book It! Program is designed to help children develop a love of book and reading and accomplishing goals. Teachers and parents tell us that the rewards of praise, recognition and pizza are motivating. A certificate for a personal pan pizza is only awarded once a month, and only then if the student has achieved the reading goals set by his or her teacher. We're proud of the success of the Book It! Program, which has encouraged million of students to develop a lifelong passion for learning."
The company says it also received hundreds of comments from Book It! alums supporting the program. An e-mail to Pizza Hut reads, "I am 26 and I think I was one of the first sessions of students to take part in the Book It! program years ago. I would just like to say thank you for the program that your company built. With the help of my parents, you guys helped me to build a love for books."
The Campaign for a Commerical-Free Childhood says Pizza Hut could sponsor other programs that don't promote products, like purchasing books. A Pizza Hut representative told NewsChannel 15 over the phone that the company does do that in addition to Book It!.
This article found here.
Personally I think this is completely ridiculous. I LOVED Book-It! I think any program that gets kids to read is a fantastic idea, even if it does have some commercial value. Since when is giving rewards to a well-deserving child a bad thing?
Dr. Susan Linn, a spokesperson for The Campaign for a Commercial-Free Childhood, says Book It! doesn't give kids an appetite for reading. "There is a national concern about reading. There has been for a very long time, so Pizza Hut decided to create a program to help kids read. And in fact what the program does is market Pizza Hut every day the kids are in school. So you keep promising kids rewards for reading, there are a couple of messages in that. One of them is an inherent message that kids don't want to read and that reading is boring. When the reward ends, kids tend to stop doing whatever that behavior is."
The reading program is in many elementary schools in our area, and many educators maintain Book It! does give students a taste for books. "The Book It! Program really encourages reading in our elementary school students and reading is the most important foundation of learning. Anything that encourages reading we support," says FWCS Director of Public Affairs Melanie Hall.
Pizza Hut issued this statement: "The Book It! Program is designed to help children develop a love of book and reading and accomplishing goals. Teachers and parents tell us that the rewards of praise, recognition and pizza are motivating. A certificate for a personal pan pizza is only awarded once a month, and only then if the student has achieved the reading goals set by his or her teacher. We're proud of the success of the Book It! Program, which has encouraged million of students to develop a lifelong passion for learning."
The company says it also received hundreds of comments from Book It! alums supporting the program. An e-mail to Pizza Hut reads, "I am 26 and I think I was one of the first sessions of students to take part in the Book It! program years ago. I would just like to say thank you for the program that your company built. With the help of my parents, you guys helped me to build a love for books."
The Campaign for a Commerical-Free Childhood says Pizza Hut could sponsor other programs that don't promote products, like purchasing books. A Pizza Hut representative told NewsChannel 15 over the phone that the company does do that in addition to Book It!.
This article found here.
Personally I think this is completely ridiculous. I LOVED Book-It! I think any program that gets kids to read is a fantastic idea, even if it does have some commercial value. Since when is giving rewards to a well-deserving child a bad thing?
Tuesday, February 20, 2007
Tuesday, January 30, 2007
From "If Men Could Menstruate" by Gloria Steinem
"What would happen, for instance, if suddenly, magically, men could menstruate and women could not?
The answer is clear--menstruation would become an enviable, boast-worthy, masculine event:
Men would brag about how long and how much.
Boys would mark the onset of menses, that longed-for proof of manhood, with relgious ritual and stag parties.
Congress would fund a National Institute of Dysmenorrhea to help stamp out monthly discomforts.
Sanitary supplies would be federally funded and free. (Of course, some men would still pay for the prestige of commercial brands such as John Wayne Tampons, Muhammad Ali's Rope-a-dope Pads, Joe Namath Jocks Shields--'For Those Light Bachelor Days,' and Robert 'Baretta' Blake Maxi-Pads.)
Military men, right-wing politicians, and religious fundamentalists would cite menstruation ('men-struation') as proof that only men could serve in the Army ('you have to give blood to take blood'), occupy political office ('can women be aggressive without that steadfast cycle governed by the planet Mars?'), be priests and ministers ('how could a woman give her blood for our sins?'), or rabbis ('without the monthly loss of impurities, women remain unclean').
Male radicals, left-wing politicians, and mystics, however would insist that women are equal, just different; and that any woman could enter their ranks if only she were willing to self0inflict a major wound every month ('you must give blood for the revolution'), recognize the preeminence of menstrual issues, or subordinate her selfness to all men in their Cycle of Enlightenment.
Street guys would brag ('I'm a three-pad man') or answer praise from a buddy (Man, you lookin' good!') by giving fives and saying, 'Yeah, man, I'm on the rag!'
TV shows would treat the subject at length. ('Happy Days': Richie and Potsie try to convince Fonzie that he is still 'The Fonz,' though he has missed two periods in a row.) So would newspapers. (SHARK SCARE THRETENS MENSTRUATING MEN. JUDGE CITES MONTHLY STRESS IN PARDOINING RAPIST.) And movies. (Newman and Redford in 'Blood Brothers'!)
Men would convince women that intercourse was more pleasurable at 'that time of the month.' Lesbians would be said to fear blood and therefore lif itself--though probably only because they needed a good menstruating man.
The answer is clear--menstruation would become an enviable, boast-worthy, masculine event:
Men would brag about how long and how much.
Boys would mark the onset of menses, that longed-for proof of manhood, with relgious ritual and stag parties.
Congress would fund a National Institute of Dysmenorrhea to help stamp out monthly discomforts.
Sanitary supplies would be federally funded and free. (Of course, some men would still pay for the prestige of commercial brands such as John Wayne Tampons, Muhammad Ali's Rope-a-dope Pads, Joe Namath Jocks Shields--'For Those Light Bachelor Days,' and Robert 'Baretta' Blake Maxi-Pads.)
Military men, right-wing politicians, and religious fundamentalists would cite menstruation ('men-struation') as proof that only men could serve in the Army ('you have to give blood to take blood'), occupy political office ('can women be aggressive without that steadfast cycle governed by the planet Mars?'), be priests and ministers ('how could a woman give her blood for our sins?'), or rabbis ('without the monthly loss of impurities, women remain unclean').
Male radicals, left-wing politicians, and mystics, however would insist that women are equal, just different; and that any woman could enter their ranks if only she were willing to self0inflict a major wound every month ('you must give blood for the revolution'), recognize the preeminence of menstrual issues, or subordinate her selfness to all men in their Cycle of Enlightenment.
Street guys would brag ('I'm a three-pad man') or answer praise from a buddy (Man, you lookin' good!') by giving fives and saying, 'Yeah, man, I'm on the rag!'
TV shows would treat the subject at length. ('Happy Days': Richie and Potsie try to convince Fonzie that he is still 'The Fonz,' though he has missed two periods in a row.) So would newspapers. (SHARK SCARE THRETENS MENSTRUATING MEN. JUDGE CITES MONTHLY STRESS IN PARDOINING RAPIST.) And movies. (Newman and Redford in 'Blood Brothers'!)
Men would convince women that intercourse was more pleasurable at 'that time of the month.' Lesbians would be said to fear blood and therefore lif itself--though probably only because they needed a good menstruating man.
Thursday, January 25, 2007
Something I learned while studying for Psych
"In 2001, Turkey's health minister announced that high school girls training to be nurses must be virgins. He also said that the virginity test he was authorizing would protect the nation's youth from prostitution and underage sexual intercourse. The regulations allow principals in state schools that train nurses, midwives, and other health workers to expel girls who have had sexual intercourse. Virginity is highly valued in mainly Muslim Turkey. Forced virginity tests were common until the practice was banned in 1999 after five girls took rat poison rather than submit to the test. However, in 2001 the health minister again authorized use of virginity tests (Turkey says only virgins can be nurses, 2001)."
This is taken from my Human Sexuality textbook. I was completely shocked when I read this. Things like this make me thankful I live in the US.
This is taken from my Human Sexuality textbook. I was completely shocked when I read this. Things like this make me thankful I live in the US.
Sunday, January 07, 2007
A Sad Day for College Eaters
"Inventor of Instant Noodles Passes Away at 96"
Momofuku Ando, the inventor of instant ramen noodles and founder and chairman of Nissin Foods passed away on January 5, 2007 of a heart attack. Born in Taiwan, a Japanese territory at that time, he moved to Japan when his parents died when he was young. He had a varied career over the first half of his life, and even served two years in jail for tax evasion. It was in 1958, when he was 48 years old that he perfected a flash frying method of drying noodles so they could be quickly re-hydrated and eaten. He had spent many years inventing food products after the food lines he saw in Japan post WWII.
Chikin (Chicken) Ramen was the first of the instant noodle products released and originally it was an expensive, luxury product that cost six times as much as normal, slow cook noodles. Soon production methods dropped the price and we ended up with the inexpensive food eaten by nearly every college student and struggling bachelor the world over.
These days we're familiar with these noodles under a variety of names like Top Ramen (ramen means "noodle" in Japanese), Oodles of Noodles, and Cup-a-Soup. It was back in 1971 when Nissin first released the cup of noodles products. There were tons of advertisements on TV and I begged my mom to get some. Many years later when I was in my late teens and I was first living on my own I would stock up on the noodles when I saw sales of 10 or 12 packages for $1. Then later, in college and afterwards when I could afford to eat differently, I still kept a few dozen packages around for quick snacks for me and my friends. It was one of the few easy to prepare foods I could make in my dorm room, and was great for those midnight munchies and study breaks.
In 2004 it is estimated that 70 billion servings of instant noodles were sold and in 2005 85.7 billion were sold. Just a few days ago I read that a recent research survey of the Japanese public felt that the invention of instant noodles was the most important invention of the last century.
In July 2005 they released Space Ram, instant noodles that can be cooked and eaten in space, so that the Japanese astronaut Soichi Noguchi could be insured that he would be able to have some tasty noodles to slurp while in micro-gravity. This was something important to him because he says he has always been a ramen fan. The noodles were designed to fit his mouth, and made in some of his favorite flavor combinations; miso, curry, tonkotsu (pork), and soy sauce. He is said to have commented that "They came out just like they do on Earth. It was very relaxing to be able to eat a good ramen in space." I can honestly say that more than anything else in this world I would love to join Noguchi in some of those noodles while looking down on our brilliant blue planet.
If you're ever in Osaka stop by the Momofuku Ando Instant Ramen Museum for a great little educational tour on instant noodles and the importance they have played in Japan, Asia, and the world over the last fifty years. You can also make noodle dough by hand, use a machine to make it into noodles, deep fry them, pick various soups and toppings, and have it packaged for your very own personalized cup of noodles in one of 5460 possible flavor combinations.
So everyone please raise a cup of noodles to the late Momofuku Ando, as he looks down on us happily slurping away.
Momofuku Ando, the inventor of instant ramen noodles and founder and chairman of Nissin Foods passed away on January 5, 2007 of a heart attack. Born in Taiwan, a Japanese territory at that time, he moved to Japan when his parents died when he was young. He had a varied career over the first half of his life, and even served two years in jail for tax evasion. It was in 1958, when he was 48 years old that he perfected a flash frying method of drying noodles so they could be quickly re-hydrated and eaten. He had spent many years inventing food products after the food lines he saw in Japan post WWII.
Chikin (Chicken) Ramen was the first of the instant noodle products released and originally it was an expensive, luxury product that cost six times as much as normal, slow cook noodles. Soon production methods dropped the price and we ended up with the inexpensive food eaten by nearly every college student and struggling bachelor the world over.
These days we're familiar with these noodles under a variety of names like Top Ramen (ramen means "noodle" in Japanese), Oodles of Noodles, and Cup-a-Soup. It was back in 1971 when Nissin first released the cup of noodles products. There were tons of advertisements on TV and I begged my mom to get some. Many years later when I was in my late teens and I was first living on my own I would stock up on the noodles when I saw sales of 10 or 12 packages for $1. Then later, in college and afterwards when I could afford to eat differently, I still kept a few dozen packages around for quick snacks for me and my friends. It was one of the few easy to prepare foods I could make in my dorm room, and was great for those midnight munchies and study breaks.
In 2004 it is estimated that 70 billion servings of instant noodles were sold and in 2005 85.7 billion were sold. Just a few days ago I read that a recent research survey of the Japanese public felt that the invention of instant noodles was the most important invention of the last century.
In July 2005 they released Space Ram, instant noodles that can be cooked and eaten in space, so that the Japanese astronaut Soichi Noguchi could be insured that he would be able to have some tasty noodles to slurp while in micro-gravity. This was something important to him because he says he has always been a ramen fan. The noodles were designed to fit his mouth, and made in some of his favorite flavor combinations; miso, curry, tonkotsu (pork), and soy sauce. He is said to have commented that "They came out just like they do on Earth. It was very relaxing to be able to eat a good ramen in space." I can honestly say that more than anything else in this world I would love to join Noguchi in some of those noodles while looking down on our brilliant blue planet.
If you're ever in Osaka stop by the Momofuku Ando Instant Ramen Museum for a great little educational tour on instant noodles and the importance they have played in Japan, Asia, and the world over the last fifty years. You can also make noodle dough by hand, use a machine to make it into noodles, deep fry them, pick various soups and toppings, and have it packaged for your very own personalized cup of noodles in one of 5460 possible flavor combinations.
So everyone please raise a cup of noodles to the late Momofuku Ando, as he looks down on us happily slurping away.
Monday, December 11, 2006
When you know sexual harrassment suits have gone too far...
I could understand if a 7th or 8th grader or a high schooler had tried to hug a teacher, how that could be seen as sexual harrassment in some cases. But a 4 year old? When I was this age, my teachers were some of my best friends, and I hugged them frequently. We never would have gotten in trouble for this back then.
Monday, December 04, 2006
Free Doritos!
FRISCO — A tractor-trailer-size container filled with thousands of bags of Doritos washed up here early Thursday, prompting Hatteras Islanders to summon their inner scavengers.
After drifting south for several days in the Atlantic, the container veered landward at Diamond Shoals off Cape Point and came to rest in the wash south of the Cape Hatteras Fishing Pier in Frisco as the tide came in.
Steve Hissey, who runs the tackle shop at Teach’s Lair marina in Hatteras, received a call from a charter boat captain.
“How’s the fishing?” Hissey asked.
“I got two stripers and 35 bags of Doritos,” the captain answered.
Hissey said charter captains were angling for striped bass off the shoals when they spotted the container, broke it open and helped themselves.
Long before National Park Service ranger Brad Griest learned that the cargo container had beached, Hatteras Islanders were busy with their time-honored tradition of wreck salvage. A stream of folks stuffed large garbage bags with Cool Ranch, Nacho Cheese and Spicy Nacho Doritos.
Strewn across the beach, the red and blue bags were each marked “export.”
One person filled a truck with them. Others carted off armloads of the bags, which were mostly undamaged.
“Just helping with cleanup,” Frisco resident Parc Greene, clutching a garbage bag, told Griest, who waved him ahead.
David Dixon, an Avon attorney and amateur videographer, wasted no time in taking video footage to make a 30-second commercial. Doritos is running a promotion that invites fans to post their own homemade commercials. The best one will be broadcast during the Super Bowl on Feb. 4, said spokeswoman Aurora Gonzalez of Texas-based Frito-Lay, the maker of Doritos.
Gonzalez had no information on the beached Doritos.
When the park service managed by mid afternoon Thursday to get the shipping container locked and removed, it still held an undetermined number of boxed chips.
The Coast Guard has not yet tracked down the ship that lost the container, likely during last week’s nor’easter, said Petty Officer Kevin Schneider of the Marine Safety Team in Elizabeth City.
Schneider said the team is responsible for cleaning up a hazardous material, such as an oil spill. There may be some argument to be made about the health hazard of chips, he said, but the risk didn’t quite qualify.
“When I found out it’s Doritos, it’s pretty much out of our jurisdiction,” he said. “It’s definitely litter, but it’s not a contaminant.”
This article was found here.
My question to you: Would you eat these chips?
After drifting south for several days in the Atlantic, the container veered landward at Diamond Shoals off Cape Point and came to rest in the wash south of the Cape Hatteras Fishing Pier in Frisco as the tide came in.
Steve Hissey, who runs the tackle shop at Teach’s Lair marina in Hatteras, received a call from a charter boat captain.
“How’s the fishing?” Hissey asked.
“I got two stripers and 35 bags of Doritos,” the captain answered.
Hissey said charter captains were angling for striped bass off the shoals when they spotted the container, broke it open and helped themselves.
Long before National Park Service ranger Brad Griest learned that the cargo container had beached, Hatteras Islanders were busy with their time-honored tradition of wreck salvage. A stream of folks stuffed large garbage bags with Cool Ranch, Nacho Cheese and Spicy Nacho Doritos.
Strewn across the beach, the red and blue bags were each marked “export.”
One person filled a truck with them. Others carted off armloads of the bags, which were mostly undamaged.
“Just helping with cleanup,” Frisco resident Parc Greene, clutching a garbage bag, told Griest, who waved him ahead.
David Dixon, an Avon attorney and amateur videographer, wasted no time in taking video footage to make a 30-second commercial. Doritos is running a promotion that invites fans to post their own homemade commercials. The best one will be broadcast during the Super Bowl on Feb. 4, said spokeswoman Aurora Gonzalez of Texas-based Frito-Lay, the maker of Doritos.
Gonzalez had no information on the beached Doritos.
When the park service managed by mid afternoon Thursday to get the shipping container locked and removed, it still held an undetermined number of boxed chips.
The Coast Guard has not yet tracked down the ship that lost the container, likely during last week’s nor’easter, said Petty Officer Kevin Schneider of the Marine Safety Team in Elizabeth City.
Schneider said the team is responsible for cleaning up a hazardous material, such as an oil spill. There may be some argument to be made about the health hazard of chips, he said, but the risk didn’t quite qualify.
“When I found out it’s Doritos, it’s pretty much out of our jurisdiction,” he said. “It’s definitely litter, but it’s not a contaminant.”
This article was found here.
My question to you: Would you eat these chips?
Tuesday, November 28, 2006
Gun Maker's appeal Hoosier's ruling
Do you think people should be able to sue gun companies when a person is shot?...article found here
Gun makers are appealing an Indiana judge's first-of-its-kind ruling that a federal law shielding gun manufacturers from lawsuits is unconstitutional.
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The ruling by Lake Superior Court Judge Robert A. Pete allows a lawsuit filed by the city of Gary to continue against 16 gun manufacturers and six Northern Indiana gun dealers. The suit, filed in 1999, alleges the manufacturers and gun dealers sold handguns they knew would end up in the hands of criminals.
Gun manufacturers had sought to have the case dismissed under the Protection of Lawful Commerce in Arms Act. Passed by Congress in 2005, the law grants the industry broad protections from municipalities and victims seeking damages for gun-related violence.
Pete ruled that the law violates the due process and separation of powers clauses of the U.S. Constitution.
"(It) is clearly an act which was passed in response to pressure from the gun industry," he wrote in his decision last month.
A few cases filed elsewhere against the gun industry have been allowed to proceed under an exemption in the law, but Pete's ruling marked the first time the act was declared unconstitutional.
Gun manufacturers last week filed initial paperwork needed to appeal the decision.
Lawrence G. Keane, senior vice president and general counsel of the National Shooting Sports Foundation, an industry trade association, said Congress has the right to ban the lawsuits.
"We believe that the judge's decision is flawed as a matter of law and constitutional analysis," Keane said. "We think we're going to clearly win on appeal."
While drawing at least some attention around the country, the ruling here should have limited effect on cases elsewhere, said Ivan Bodensteiner, a constitutional law professor at Valparaiso University School of Law.
A ruling by a judge in Indiana does not bind a judge in another state, Bodensteiner said, and such decisions don't often get widely cited.
Still, the Washington, D.C.-based Brady Center to Prevent Gun Violence, which is helping represent the city of Gary, has hailed the decision as significant.
"It's gratifying to us that this bill, which was clearly a special-interest payoff to the gun industry and the gun lobby, was struck down by one of the courts that looked at it," said Brian Siebel, a senior attorney with the Brady Center.
The Gary lawsuit has already survived several hurdles.
After the city filed its lawsuit in 1999, the Indiana General Assembly passed a bill the next year to ban lawsuits by other municipalities.
Lake Superior Court Judge James Richards dismissed the Gary case in 2001, saying the city cannot fault businesses beyond its jurisdiction for the crimes committed by others.
That decision was appealed and ultimately landed before the Indiana Supreme Court, which ruled in 2003 that the lawsuit could go forward.
The federal law was passed after that and applied retroactively
Man Shoots Doe With Antlers
Very interesting phenomenon... article found here
MICHIGAN, N.D. - When Carmen Erickson dropped a deer with a single shot in a cattail slough south of here, he thought he'd downed a nice buck. Unlike his shot, he was a little off. The deer was a doe.
"It's got no male utilities," said Erickson, who lives in Minot. "It has teats ... it was pretty unusual."
Six hunting partners with Erickson witnessed the doe with a 4-by-4 rack.
"I'm sure this story will be around for 10 years," he said. "At least in our group."
Erickson notified the state Game and Fish Department and received a voice mail from a biologist who said these types of deer often are bucks whose testicles haven't descended or for some reason are castrated. Erickson said that is not the case with his deer, however.
"We couldn't find any male genitals on the deer," he said.
"We turned it over, and I got a lot of heat over that. Like I was supposed to know," Erickson joked.
Gary Rankin, district game warden in Larimore, said he has seen a couple of antlered does over the years, but for a doe to have a well-developed rack is unusual.
It is not the first antlered doe to be reported in the region this year. A conservation officer for the Minnesota Department of Natural Resources reported seeing a 10-point antlered doe shot near Robbin, Minn., during that state's firearms deer season. DNR conservation officers in other parts of Minnesota also reported a handful of antlered does.
Erickson said the antlered doe is a first for his crew, which has been hunting together for 25 years.
"It definitely was a keeper, he said.
Tuesday, November 21, 2006
Free Taco Bell for Life...for a price
Taco Bell is willing to give anyone who will give up their PlayStation 3 free tacos for life!
Thursday, November 16, 2006
Creepy Voodoo
This article is rather creepy...no matter what your opinion on Bush, I don't think many of us really think this is a good idea...
Monday, November 06, 2006
Just in time for Thanksgiving
I have a severe addiction to sweet potatoes. If it has these soft orange wonders in it, I will probably eat it. I really hope Walmart carries these chips because I want to try them! If anyone finds them, let me know!
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