Totally miscellaneous thoughts

“May we all be faithful in what God has called us to do.” – Billy Graham

“One of the most striking differences between a cat and a lie is that a cat has only nine lives.” -- Mark Twain

Folk myths and fantasies share certain characteristics. They are often repeated, but never documented; they are believed without proof. They are always attributed to someone else; never can be found anyone who is personally, directly involved. Many – perhaps most, perhaps all – of these tales illuminate certain subliminal areas of the human psyche, some darker, some lighter: a wish to see the high and mighty cut down to size; an instinct for revenge; a delight in the discomfiture of others because, perhaps, it seems to make our own discomfitures easier to bear; a deep distrust of those who have chosen ways unlike our own.

An airplane does not stall because it loses power. If this were so, obviously sailplanes or gliders could not stay aloft. It stalls when the “angle of attack” – that is, the angle at which the wing meets the (apparently) onrushing air – becomes so great that the smooth flow of air over the wing, essential to lift, is destroyed by turbulence. Loss of power leads to (it does not “cause”) a stall only if the pilot tries too hard to maintain altitude.

The story that General Lee turned over his sword to General Grant after the surrender at Appomattox, and that Grant then returned the sword to Lee, is apparently without foundation. Grant denied it, anyway. In fact, Grant had specified that all rebel officers be allowed to retain their sidearms.

Is a true choice possible when it is impossible to assess its results? For example, Adam and Eve could not know what sin meant until it was too late.

It is a myth that Colorado is a mountain state. Only a little more than half of Colorado is mountainous. The rest is prairie. Nor are Colorado’s mountains, beautiful as they certainly are, really very high except in absolute terms: that is, elevation above sea level. The vast central plains of the US rise slowly as they extend westward; by the time one reaches the foothills of the Rockies in Colorado, the plain is about 5,000 feet high (Greeley, CO, 50 miles from the mountains, is at about 4,500 feet; Denver is about 5,200 feet high. Both are built on flat ground.) Thus, a 14,000-foot mountain in Colorado, and there are many, is in effect some 9,000 feet above the observer’s point of view at best. By contrast, Mr. Rainier in Washington State, itself a 14,0000-foot mountain, rises from near sea level. Thus, visitors from Washington State who see Colorado’s mountains for the first time often express some disappointment; they just don’t seem very high. Brochures about Denver that are produced in Denver frequently refer to her as Queen City of the Plains.

It is impossible to tell the exact time of death from the examination of a corpse. Unless the death is observed, physicians, pathologists, or medical examiners can only give a range of a probable post-mortem interval.

Falling asleep and freezing to death is a myth. Many years ago, the famous artic explorer Vilhjalmur Stefansson (1879-1962) warned against a dangerous myth: that persons in danger of freezing should press on, not stopping to rest. If they did stop, they might fall asleep; if so, they would never wake up.
The myth persists. It encourages those who are lost in the cold to flounder along until they are completely exhausted; at which point, it is truly possible to go to sleep forever.
Body temperature does drop during sleep. But, as Stefansson also pointed out, there is no danger that one WHO IS NOT EXHAUSTED will die of cold during a nap. Cold is a reliable alarm clock, as anyone whose bedcovers slip to the floor on a winter night can certify. The answer, according to Dr. Cameron Bangs, the Oregon physician nationally known for his treatment of cold-weather casualties, is to keep active, yes – but not to the point of exhaustion. The best course is fifteen- to thirty-minutes rests, followed by periods of activity to increase body-heat production.
Few people who die of exposure, it might be added, actually “freeze to death.” They die of hypothermia, or subnormal body temperature. And it can happen at temperatures well above freezing, especially if one is wet. Many had “frozen to death” in a 40 degree rainstorm, or rainstorm and windstorm, especially if they have driven themselves until they (quite literally) drop. Dr. Bangs further emphasizes the necessity of preparing some kind of adequate shelter BEFORE one reaches the point of exhaustion.

Hens will lay eggs without a rooster. They are infertile but quite edible.

An example of "Functional Fixation": Take a dime – one thin dime. What is it? Most people will see it as part of the monetary system. That is, you use it to buy things. But it can also be a screwdriver, a very slender shim or a decision-making tool (heads or tails?). Seeing it only as one-tenth of a dollar is an example of functional fixation: the inability to see a use for something other than its intended use.

Smart alecky putdown: Do they have schools where you come from?

On the street, a man dressed like a mystic handed me a crumpled ball of paper and asked me to hold it, which I did. He then asked my favorite color besides black or white. I answered “blue.” Then he asked me to choose a number: 2, 3, or 4. I picked “3.” Finally, he asked me to unwed the paper. On it were written “blue” and “3.” Then he asked me for a donation, of course. How did he guess right? I figured 3 was easy because it was the middle number. But why blue? My clothes weren’t blue.
Blue is easily the most popular color in the country. Blue is even the clear favorite fro kids. According to Crayola, blue or bluish colors (cerulean, denim, etc.) take seven of the top 10 spots.

Company is coming! What silverware represents when dropped on the floor: If you drop a fork, it means a man is coming; a spoon symbolizes a woman; a teaspoon, a child; a tablespoon means the entire family; and a carving knife signifies either the arrival of the in-laws or the preacher. The direction in which the silverware falls shows the direction from which the person is coming.

When an animal eats wild cherry leaves, it can be deadly. This only occurs with wilted leaves, not green leaves. When a limb breaks off of a wild cherry tree in or around the pastures, the leaves will wilt and a toxin in the form of hydrocyanic acid develops that causes the problem. It develops very rapidly in wilted leaves. A storm can blow and break limbs off a tree or blow leaves off into the pasture. After a storm, be sure to check possible problem areas and remove any felled wild cherry limbs that may have fallen.
Death can occur very rapidly. There have been cases where the animal still had leaves in its mouth when found. In most cases the animal will be dead before a vet can be called but if a small amount is ingested, there are potential remedies to try to save the animal.