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Jan. 28, 2011 Here it is! Number Four of the “infamous” (but fascinating) Cate’s chapbooks. Exactly what you require in the crevasse of mid-winter - another montage of interesting (perhaps inspiring) illumination from every corner of the globe. Said globe is Earth, by the way. I have not received my permits to publish the news from Titan as yet. Saturn’s prime moon, Titan, tends to keep all its information close to the chest – entertainment, scientific research, community news, political hearsay, etc. – all under wraps. For them to know and for us to guess, huh? (I would love to get hold of their music charts and see if their top sellers are anywhere near as acutely talented as ours.) This current chapbook will offer short articles, shorter poetry, recipes, quotes and possible smidgens of wisdom. Don’t count too profoundly on the wisdom. You’re dealing with a pretty near seventy-one-year-old writer. Caveat emptor! (That’s Latin for, “Buyer beware,” or some such.) **************************************************************** Incredibly Bad Weather While those of us who live close to the Gulf of Mexico fret about possible hurricanes during the hot summer months, with great reason, (Katrina is one of those shakes-and-sweats-inducing reasons) India and her neighbors get to worry about tropical cyclones. What’s the difference between a hurricane and a cyclone? Well, a hurricane is a low pressure system moving over a large body of warm water – say the heated south Atlantic or the balmy Gulf of Mexico. A hurricane is not a hurricane until the maximum winds are clocked at 74 miles per hour or more and sustained. A tropical depression, which is capable of giving life to a cyclone, can begin with sustained winds of 38mph or less. The cyclone does not become official until the wind speed rises from 38 to 73mph. When push comes to shove, there’s not a heck of a lot of difference between the two storms. Actually, a cyclone is simply another name for a hurricane, just in a different part of the world. Our Atlantic storms get names when they become furious enough. Until the Weather Bureau decided to give each hurricane a woman’s name in 1953 they were alphabetical – Apple, Baker, Charlie. Then, in 1978, men’s names were added to the women’s. Cyclones get non-personal names. There are a few men’s and women’s monikers, but most of the storms are flowers, birds, animals, trees or even foods. Who could be petrified by Hurricane Donut or Cyclone Spaghetti? This past summer a “rogue storm” hit the Indian Ocean and eventually flooded Pakistan disastrously. Over 2000 were killed and over 20 million injured or made homeless. The weather system had wandered hundreds of miles farther west than normal. Pakistan is typically arid, passed over by cyclones. However, in July 2010, flooding began. At one point, 20% of Pakistan sat under water. 10 million people were forced to drink bad water. This storm formed in the Bay of Bengal and worked its way west. Laden with moisture, the clouds poured fantastic amounts of water on the barren mountains of Pakistan and flooded the Indus River, making for more misery. Scientists looked through 10 years of satellite data and found nothing even near the system that inundated the area in 2010. The storms were associated with a wind pattern over the Bay of Bengal. Knowing this, the meteorologists now feel that they can make better forecasts, should conditions for such a devastating storm occur again. **************************************************************** Quotes on Politics - Enjoy In my many years I have come to a conclusion that one useless man is a shame, two is a law firm and three or more is a congress. -- John Adams A government which robs Peter to pay Paul can always depend on the support of Paul. -- George Bernard Shaw Democracy must be something more than two wolves and a sheep voting on what to have for dinner. -- James Bovard, Civil Libertarian (1994) I don't make jokes. I just watch the government and report the facts. -- Will Rogers In general, the art of government consists of taking as much money as possible from one party of the citizens to give to the other. -- Voltaire (1764) There is no distinctly native American criminal class...save Congress. -- Mark Twain What this country needs are more unemployed politicians. -- Edward Langley, Artist (1928-1995) **************************************************************** Recipes Southwest White Chicken Chili 1 tbs olive oil 1 pound chicken breasts cut into cubes 4 tsp chili powder 2 tsp cumin 1 large onion, chopped (about 1 cup) 1 can cream of chicken soup ¾ cup water 1 ½ cups frozen whole kernel corn 2 standard sized cans of white kidney beans (cannellini beans) rinsed and drained Heat oil in 4 quart saucepan @ medium high heat. Add chicken, onion + spices. Cook until chicken is cooked and onions tender. Stir often. Stir in soup, water, beans and corn. Heat to a boil. Lower heat and cook for five minutes. Stir occasionally. Sprinkle with shredded Cheddar cheese if wanted. Baked Mushroom Rice Prep time: 15 min Cook time: 40 min 1-1/3 cups uncooked rice 1 can condensed cream of mushroom soup 2/3 cup vegetable broth 1/3 cup chopped onion 2 tbs and 2 tps fresh, chopped mushrooms (or 3 sm cans) 3/4 tsp savory or parsley 3/4 tsp dried oregano 2 tbs & 2 tsp butter, melted Salt and pepper to taste Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Stir together all ingredients. Transfer to a 2 quart baking dish. Cover. Bake for 35 to 40 minutes. If rice looks a bit dry, pour in a little water. **************************************************************** Americans Have Been Dieting for 150 Years After 150 years, one would imagine we’ve gotten the hang of it. I’m talking about dealing with obesity. Prosperity brought corpulence with it. The fatter, the richer and the richer the fatter. Not everyone agreed with this adulation. William Banting, an overweight Englishman certainly didn’t. And he held the key to slenderness. In 1863 Banting lost “almost 50 pounds.” He accomplished this by refusing bread, butter, milk, beer and potatoes. Instead he ate loads of meat. He also wrote a pamphlet, “A Letter on Corpulence, Addressed to the Public.” The leaflet quickly crossed the Atlantic and grew so popular that dieting became known as ‘banting.” Soon enough, Americans being Americans were advertizing methods for reducing an excess of flesh. The Philadelphia Cookbook in 1900 declared obesity to be the “most objectionable form of disease.” It didn’t offer any low-cal recipes, however. In 1903 an obesity soap came on the market. LaParle Soap sold for $1.00 a bar (very costly at the time) and promised never to fail to reduce flesh. There was also a Reduction Salt “to wash away your fat.” An early exercise machine, Graybar Stimulator, promised to jiggle the pounds off. Later Bile Beans appeared with a heavy-duty laxative application. It was pulled from the market when it proved deadly. The US Government for the first time advised balance among proteins, carbohydrates and fat in 1894. A short time later, life insurance companies labeled overweight as a death risk. In 1916 the Dept of Agriculture produced the five food groups. Diet foods followed. Support groups came later. At this moment, “specialists” are questioning how our society ballooned and continues to expand. All they have to do is glance at the pudgies walking down the street with a 30 ounce Big Gulp in their grasp. Just hand them a sound nutritional weight-loss plan. There are 100s of them. **************************************************************** Poetry Minnehaha Falls 1937 Here stood a water-fall flecked with spray Blessed by a poet of yesterday; Sung to the hills by an age gone by; Left by the spoilers to drip and die. Down to the sea its waters went Laughing and lisping in deep content; Held in the arms of a father stream; Lulled by a lullaby; soothed in dreams. Now stands a white rock, barren cliff, Silent with memory, dry and stiff; Weeping a dribble of brackish tears Into the cavity of the years. By Kenneth E Harlan, my father, from a 1937 self-published booklet of poetry Untitled You gave me such a scare with your this-better-be-good air that the words frozen solid in my mouth and came out perfectly square- Cubes of imbecility – and tumbled upon the floor where my gaze followed them to stare at the blocks of pure stupidity. I wish you wouldn’t do that to me. By C. M. Lane (me in 1973 or so) A Blessing Just off the highway to Rochester, Minnesota, Twilight bounds softly forth on the grass. And the eyes of those two Indian ponies Darken with kindness. They have come gladly out of the willows To welcome my friend and me. We step over the barbed wire into the pasture Where they have been grazing all day alone. They ripple tensely, they can hardly contain their happiness That we have come. They bow shyly as wet swans. They love each other. There is no loneliness like theirs. At home once more, They begin munching the young tufts of spring in the darkness. I would like to hold the slenderer one in my arms, For she has walked over to me And nuzzled my left hand. She is black and white, Her mane falls wild on her forehead, And the light breeze moves me to caress her long ear That is delicate as the skin over a girl’s wrist. Suddenly I realize That if I stepped out of my body I would break Into blossom. By James Wright from The Collected Poems of James Wright 1971
That’s about it for this Chapbook. I hope I don’t get jail time for printing Jim Wright’s awesome poem. It’s my all-time favorite. If you enjoyed this Chapbook, please tell me.
Writing was always my first choice in life. I began writing at the age of 8, small books about pioneers heading west. Little did I know then that I would be living in the most "western" of all the states, Texas. No one told the Texans that they are simply Southerners who, like Bugs Bunny, took a wrong turn at Albuquerque and wound up here.
I am sneaking up on 70 years of age and now own a vast store of useless knowledge. Happy to share any or all of it with you all.
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