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Showing posts from October, 2014

Week 2 Day 4 - The Intellectual Devotional: Eratosthenes

Day 4 is for science and today's subject is Eratosthenes (276-194 BC).  The chief librarian of Alexandria who devised a way to measure the earth's size.  I've read this page two times and my mind is still boggled.  It took a water well, the sun and a measuring stick.  Oh, and a pacer - a professional walker trained in taking perfectly equal steps.  What?!? On June 21st, the longest day of the year, Eratosthenes got crackin' with his plan to visit a special well in the neighboring town of Syene and wait for the sun to hit the bottom of the well. That time was 12 noon. By seeing the bottom of the well this meant that the sun was directly overhead in Syene, which was due north of his town of Alexandria.  If the sun was directly overhead in Syene then the suns rays must be hitting at an angle in Alexandria.  On June 21st (I'm assuming the following year, they don't say) Eratosthenes took a measuring stick and captured the angle cast by the shadow.  He knew the

Week 2 Day 3 - The Intellectual Devotional: Bust of Nefertiti

Nefertiti translates to "the beautiful one is come".  Did you know that?  The bust of Nefertiti is nearly 3,400 years old and is in near perfect condition.  Amazing!  Only the earlobes are chipped.  (I can't say that about plates I've had for only 10 years.) Nefertiti's husband Pharaoh Akhenaton embraced a new, monotheistic religion that emphasized ethics.  I think a massive dose of ethics is very much needed these days!  I feel ethics is lost on those in positions that need it most. I'm really enjoying the information found in The Intellectual Devotional.  It gives you just enough to make you want to delve into the subject and learn all you can.

The Crew From Attack On Titan Roamed The Halls

My youngest had her last Halloween Parade at school today.  Bitter sweet.   The adorable, tiny years of wanting to be a Princess have passed and now we're into Anime and Manga characters.  Lily is a big fan of the anime Attack of Titan.  (Anime is the cartoon version. Manga is the print version. You're welcome ;->)  Luckily two of her friends like the same anime so they decided to become -  Eren Yeager, his adopted sister Mikasa Ackerman and their friend Armin Arlert. Eren, Mikasa and Armin Lily is donning a wig - and yes, the bangs need to hang in front of her face (drives me crazy but hey, it's not everyday) while her friends made the move and truly cut and/or colored their hair to resemble their character.  Have you heard the term "CosPlay"?  This is it. On Halloween night they plan to roam the streets, attacking Titans and claiming as much candy as their pillowcases can hold.  Are your kids dressing up this year?  What are they going as?

Week 1, Day 3 - The Intellectual Devotional: Lascaux Cave Paintings

The earliest known works of art were found by accident.  In 1940 four boys discovered a cave in Montignac in central France.  Inside the cave was a series of rooms covered in paintings and these paintings were researched to be between 15,000 to 17,000 years old.  Whoa!  (Or, what ever is French for 'whoa!'). A majority of the paintings were of animals, mostly silhouette, drawn in careful detail.  A belief is that drawing the beasts would bring them under the mans control or increase their numbers when becoming scarce. The few images of man were more crudely drawn.  They say it suggests that prehistoric man did not think they themselves were endowed with magical properties.  Here's my take - I think the one doing the drawing was mad at the guy he was drawing so he made him look scraggly for eternity.  Ah ha!  Revenge. The caves were open to the public however, in 1955 it became apparent that exposure to as many as 1,200 visitors per day was taking a toll on the paint

Stomach Bug In School - Building Immune System At Home

image courtesy of freedigitalphotos.net Yesterday I hear, "Mom, where's the stomach medicine?"  It's in the same place it's always been but if the question's being asked that means she re-e-eally doesn't feel good and wants to be taken care of.  Mom to the rescue!  (Hopefully).  Time to brush up on foods/vitamins that help build the immune system. Let's see... I've brought out a can of Lysol and a container of disinfecting wipes has made its rounds around the house this morning.  (I'm wondering if the rumbling in my stomach is something wrong or just the result of the cayenne pepper I put in my scrambled eggs.  Hello, hypochondria.  It's me, Ann.)  Time to visit WebMD and see what I need to stock up on: Beta-carotene and other carotenoids:  apricots, asparagus, beets, broccoli, cantaloupe, carrots, corn, green peppers, kale, mangoes, turnip and collard greens, nectarines, peaches, pink grapefruit, pumpkin, squash, spinach, sweet

Week 1 Day 2 - The Intellectual Devotional: Ulysses

Literature is the topic on day 2 for the weeks lesson in The Intellectual Devotional.  Subject: Ulysses by James Joyce.  I haven't read this book.  Have you?  They make reference to his use of "stream-of-consciousness narrative" and I have read another author that used that style, William Faulkner (Oprah's Book Club ;-> ).  Wow. Talk about an exercise in concentration. If you aren't familiar with this style of writing, here's an example from Ulysses: " He is young Leopold, as in a retrospective arrangement, a mirror within a mirror (hey, presto!), he beholdeth himself. That young figure of then is seen, precious manly, walking on a nipping morning from the old house in Clambrassil to the high school, his book satchel on him bandolier wise, and in it a goodly hunk of wheaten loaf, a mother’s thought.” Once you find your groove with the writer then it can be enjoyable, like a game.  But in the beginning it was difficult for me to relax with Faul

Beginning My 365 Daily Lessons - The Intellectual Devotional

Today begins my journey with "The Intellectual Devotional:  Revive You Mind, Complete Your Education and Roam Confidently with the Cultured Class".  I'm not as concerned about "roaming confidently with the cultured class" as I am about keeping my wits about me and sharpening my brain cells.  This book gives one page exercises in learning and reflection.  Between this, and the Lumosity app, hopefully I'll stop walking into a room and forgetting what I went in there for! There are 365 lessons and today was History - Subject: The Alphabet.  Oh, those Egyptian's and their hieroglyphics.  Fascinating!  The alphabet was produced so the Egyptian's could communicate with their prisoner's of war a.k.a. their slaves. Hieroglyphics had over a thousand symbols and no one could keep them all straight, they needed a leaner, meaner way to tell people what to do. I could go on but I won't. (Go pick-up the book and do this with me!) Let's see, the

Would You Have Yelled At Her Too?

Image courtesy of FreeDigitalPhotos.net Last week my daughter shared that one of her class topics was about charity.  Not whether it was right or wrong but about the act of giving - was this a selfless act, or selfish?  We started thinking about why we give.  Do we take money from our pockets and put it in a strangers hand to make them feel better, or ourselves?  Once you've given money to someone do you share this act in a conversation with family or friends?  If so, is that to encourage them to give as well, or to show how generous you are?  Is giving actually helping you receive? Recently a video has gone viral of a man yelling at an older woman who's getting into a newer model car.  This man is yelling that he has been giving her money for days while she stands on a street corner and now he discovers that she's driving a better car than his own.  He goes on shouting that the money he gave her was his lunch money and that he has gone without so that he could help

Top Favorite Things About Fall

Time for the Writer's Workshop over at Kat's place, Mama Kat's Losin' It .   My chosen prompt:   List Your Top Favorite Things About Fall This list is a bit difficult for me because I really do love when Spring and Summer happen in our city. The grey clouds hold off for weeks and weeks and that feels so good.  And there are so many great things to do in Portland, that doing them while dry is such a nice bonus.  However, there are things I appreciate about our beautiful Fall as well.  Here's my list of my top favorite things about Fall: ~  Not caring how pale my legs are.  (They will be covered for months!) ~  Pumpkin lattes.  Pumpkin Milkshakes.  Pumpkin Pie.  Pumpkin Muffins. (I must be hungry.) ~  Leaves dropping, which brings out our limited view of the Willamette River that's beyond our             backyard. ~  Big, fluffy, cozy socks.  (I like warm feet.) ~  How excited my girls get about Halloween.  The age transition is being m