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Think Blue. Count Two.
Feb. 11th, 2006 05:18 amSome marine salvors recover the Graf Spee's eagle! The swastika is covered with a tarp, since we apparently now have to pretend that the Nazis didn't use swastikas, since those are offensive.
*****
When I was little my friend Ray and I thought that Nazis were saying "Hi Hitler!" when they saluted. Our Sunday school teacher had stressed at one point that one should greet everyone as though one were greeting Jesus. We were probably a bit too young to really get what she was driving at. I don't recall which one of us drew the parallel first, but we concluded that this is what the Nazis were doing - greeting one another as they'd greet Hitler.
*****
An interesting theory about supernovae. They're positing that the collapsed core vibrates and the sound blows off the outer layers of the star, as a way to get around the stalling problem. I'd always kind of thought (and I may well have misunderstood) that the energy from the reflected shock waves was what caused endothermic fusion that produced elements heavier than iron. I suppose the energy from sound waves could do the same thing.
*****
Sibe's mug shot. I could criticize people for unseemly schadenfreude, but I'd be a hypocrite. He's earned this.
The lawsuit count is apparently up to four now, with estimates of the final number as high as two dozen. I suspect additional suits are pretty much bouncing the financial rubble.
*****
Friend Otter has a photograph from 1936 of his mother outside of her favourite department store. Seeing it made me reflect on how department stores have changed over time. When I was little, we used to always shop at the Woolworth's store. I had nothing to compare it to, and didn't realize how old-fashioned the layout was. The shopping area was willed with long, low tables that displayed good at an adult's waist height. Down the middle of each ran a sort of divider, which might have glass or wire bins attached. The dividers were low themselves, no more than a foot high. You could see from end of the store to the other, not at all like the modern stores with their high shelving. Around the perimetre of the floor were specialty counters, each with an attendant. There was one for yardgoods, one for records and music, one for keys and hardware, etc.
What was really different about those days were the items in the bins, though. Small stuff was laid out, loose and unwrapped, in little glass or metal bins. You sorted though, and picked out what you wanted. Each item had a price sticker on it. It wasn't like the modern practice of sealing everything in plastic, then attaching it to a cardboard sheet with advertising on it. They could store a lot more stuff in a lot less space, plus I'm sure it's cheaper that way. You don't get the aggressive displays that modern marketers seem to lust after, though. For some reason, it was just fascinating picking though those little glass bins, looking for stuff. I have very clear memories of buying C6 Christmas bulbs and cardboard houses that way. Way more fun than looking at backcards on display hangers.
Sometimes my grandmother would take me to her favourite store (I can't recall the name anymore) which was seriously old-fashioned. There they had only minimal displays to give an idea of what was sold. You told the guy what you wanted, he measured you, then brought out plain white cardboard boxes with (eg) shirts in them for you to look at and choose. A strange way of shopping. On the good side, you were dealing with sales staff who specialized, so you never had to guess at what to buy, unlike at modern stores.
It was something of a surprise to me at Home Despot the other day when I asked a question, and got a detailed and authoritative answer. It's frankly sad that it's surprising anymore to meet someone who knows what he's selling, and how to use it.
*****
When I was little my friend Ray and I thought that Nazis were saying "Hi Hitler!" when they saluted. Our Sunday school teacher had stressed at one point that one should greet everyone as though one were greeting Jesus. We were probably a bit too young to really get what she was driving at. I don't recall which one of us drew the parallel first, but we concluded that this is what the Nazis were doing - greeting one another as they'd greet Hitler.
*****
An interesting theory about supernovae. They're positing that the collapsed core vibrates and the sound blows off the outer layers of the star, as a way to get around the stalling problem. I'd always kind of thought (and I may well have misunderstood) that the energy from the reflected shock waves was what caused endothermic fusion that produced elements heavier than iron. I suppose the energy from sound waves could do the same thing.
*****
Sibe's mug shot. I could criticize people for unseemly schadenfreude, but I'd be a hypocrite. He's earned this.
The lawsuit count is apparently up to four now, with estimates of the final number as high as two dozen. I suspect additional suits are pretty much bouncing the financial rubble.
*****
Friend Otter has a photograph from 1936 of his mother outside of her favourite department store. Seeing it made me reflect on how department stores have changed over time. When I was little, we used to always shop at the Woolworth's store. I had nothing to compare it to, and didn't realize how old-fashioned the layout was. The shopping area was willed with long, low tables that displayed good at an adult's waist height. Down the middle of each ran a sort of divider, which might have glass or wire bins attached. The dividers were low themselves, no more than a foot high. You could see from end of the store to the other, not at all like the modern stores with their high shelving. Around the perimetre of the floor were specialty counters, each with an attendant. There was one for yardgoods, one for records and music, one for keys and hardware, etc.
What was really different about those days were the items in the bins, though. Small stuff was laid out, loose and unwrapped, in little glass or metal bins. You sorted though, and picked out what you wanted. Each item had a price sticker on it. It wasn't like the modern practice of sealing everything in plastic, then attaching it to a cardboard sheet with advertising on it. They could store a lot more stuff in a lot less space, plus I'm sure it's cheaper that way. You don't get the aggressive displays that modern marketers seem to lust after, though. For some reason, it was just fascinating picking though those little glass bins, looking for stuff. I have very clear memories of buying C6 Christmas bulbs and cardboard houses that way. Way more fun than looking at backcards on display hangers.
Sometimes my grandmother would take me to her favourite store (I can't recall the name anymore) which was seriously old-fashioned. There they had only minimal displays to give an idea of what was sold. You told the guy what you wanted, he measured you, then brought out plain white cardboard boxes with (eg) shirts in them for you to look at and choose. A strange way of shopping. On the good side, you were dealing with sales staff who specialized, so you never had to guess at what to buy, unlike at modern stores.
It was something of a surprise to me at Home Despot the other day when I asked a question, and got a detailed and authoritative answer. It's frankly sad that it's surprising anymore to meet someone who knows what he's selling, and how to use it.
