#but sure keep looking down on Americans from your European high horse

[sawkinator]

y'know having some of my fellow Americans say it's bad to celebrate a CEO's murder is obnoxious but kind of expected in today's political climate

hearing a European express such a sentiment is lowkey enraging though

[rights-for-redshirts]

Okay, this is vaguely insane, but

If someone from our century were transported backwards in time and reborn as some sort of crown prince/ruler, how far and how quickly could they push their country's development?

I just kinda want a story of a high schooler with no particular interest in anything wake up as, I dunno, some sort of medieval King and be so pissed off by everything that they start scratching all the bits of vague technological, sociocultural, economical, political knowledge together that they should have collected in school, and then kind of ... start. From practically scratch. Or worse because of the social restrictions.

So they try to start with electricity and fail, because they don't actually remember how a battery works, and decide to hire - grinding their teeth - some scientist from a university, only to find that that scientist is a charlatane and more interested in alchemy than actual chemistry. So instead, they hire one of their servants - who turns out to be a bit of a prodigy, even if they can't read - and tell them to start working on steam engines, together with a local blacksmith's daughter who can definitely blacksmith but is forbidden to do so bc of her gender.

The new monarch realizes that in order to get anywhere with anything, they need to delegate.

Long story short, the servant/blacksmith duo manage - with a bit of financial aid - to kickstart the industrial revolution, but the monarch remembers enough angry late night tumblr rants about capitalism and low class workers plus a dozen or so internet history lessons (bc history lessons at school are often useless and more about numbers than how the gears of a society grind together) to put their foot down and grant the workers a livable minimum wage - and to make sure the workers and especially worker's children receive an actual education. Both of which prevents a major societal crisis.

Parallel to the whole economy trip is the whole political thing, which they manage to navigate with a bunch of random political/historical facts and anecdotes (they pop up at the beginning of each chapter and seem to be there just for fun, but become suddenly VERY relevant when the right situation arises). Our monarch begins to realize that, in their growing scientifical staff (since the first two are now platonically married and taking over the national market as well as parts of the international one), there is actually more brain to be found than with them, so they begin to write down everything they can remember, from chemistry and artificial fertilizer to physics to maths, in one large (not so large) book and add in a larger (much larger) book all the stuff they know is important but the actual information was completely buried under facts like what a mitochondria is. They slam down the books in front of their scientists (i.e. make sure our farmers can a) provide enough food for themselves, b) get acceptable living conditions, c) can provide enough food for our booming cities, d) get an increased range of mobility through ... trains or something, e) get enough of a decreased workload to be able to send their children to school and f) ... I don't know) and sic them on the different problems.

Then, their Highness turn their attention back to ruling because, . There is a lot of stuff going on in their kingdom, and a lot of it isn't good. They begin to abolish the old system of inequality before the law (nobles are outraged). They write a constitution that includes some of the fundamental human rights. They establish a law system. They keep escaping murder attempts because they grew up on a diet of period dramas, game of thrones and serial killer documentaries.

They reorganize the administration and weed out corruption by making it punishable by ... something, idk.

Universities are next.

They write a book about common sense that they get pope-approved by bribing the cardinals. Subsequently, they realize that they completely forgot about printing books, and promptly follow their book up with the invention of the printing press (how did they forget about that??!)

The social and the educational processes speed up by 500% in the following few years.

The invention progress gets done a lot earlier than in canon history because the monarch a) knows EXACTLY what the scientists and professors and clever kids (that they actively collect) need to be looking for and b) because they remembered not too late into their reign to just ... send people into other civilizations and ask. As easy as that. China had black powder, paper and a lot of other cool stuff. (They finally get to eat rice noodles again a few years into their reign. Hey, being an absolutist ruler has to have some perks. If you can't send a group of diplomats into the far east to retrieve the recipe of your favourite food, then what's the point?)

Also, they had planned to subtly undermine the influence of the catholic church on their people, bit as it turns out, education does a whole lot against superstition. The law for freedom of religion and confession passes almost without a hitch after some dude named Luther nailed a textpost rant of several pages against a church door.

They are several decades into ruling when they realize. They have brought freedom and prosperity and rational thinking and instant noodles (of a sort) to their country. People study arts and science and discuss politics and exchange ideas and knowledge with other cultures. It's the renaissance come early but better because they remembered about the molding bread and the bacteries (the scientists very obviously thought them insane, but eventually managed some decent penicilline; additionally the monarch added their corona-induced knowledge about hygiene and quarantine to the national curriculum).

But they remember some pretty inconvenient stuff: colonialism. They brought freedom to their own people. Now how can they save the free people of the other continents from the europeans? Bc not gonna lie, europe's history is pretty bloody, not only at our own doorstep. (Looking at you, US. ) Anyways they realize that the Native Americans and Australians are pretty happy and actually don't want to change much (at least I think so?? No offense meant if wrong).

The aztec empire, though, is a completely different matter. They are warned of some dude named Cortez, and seem very pleased about the gift of a few dozen horses (or did I misremember how that story went? Cortez being believed a God bc of the horses?).

So is the Chinese one. (They are thoroughly warned against some stuff named opium coming from England, even if that's centuries away.)

They establish diplomatic relations with a badass african queen who is more than willing to trade supplies for more sophisticated technological devices against technological knowledge.

At some point the ruler realizes they didn't age in the last seventy years, so the point of a marriage of convenience for an heir is kinda moot (not that they had remembered anyways). Probably some offhanded remark of a noble. Or seeing the industry duo's adopted children's children.

Also, one of the other nations, maybe india, surprisingly ups their technology game and does everything better than the european country, because I'm tired of western/white supremacy.

Feel free to add/change whatever suits your purposes. If someone ever writes the book, let me know.

[theparanormalperiodical]

Black Cats And Broken Mirrors: The Forgotten History Behind 13 Common Superstitions feat. 4 Cray-Cray Bonus Beliefs That You Didn’t Know Existed

It’s safe to say I’m a superstitious person.

I run a blog about the paranormal, for god’s sake.

Everyday I find myself touching wood, crossing my fingers, and hoping that magpie I can see just over there has a friend nearby to make a pair.

But in the same vein I’m obsessed with things that aren’t quite so lucky: I’m currently donning a pair of subtle black cat slippers, and I’m pretty damn sure my lucky number is 13.

Like most people reading this post at 2.37am when they should be having nightmares about the Mothman, I’m drawn to all things that don’t quite make sense. And people like me have been obsessed with superstitions since humans first started believing in a god of their choice.

Yet despite the long history of superstitious beliefs, there are some that still alter what we think and what we do.

Why do we pick up pennies in the hope of good luck?

Is there an explanation as to why walking under ladders can bring back luck?

And what is so wrong with the number 13?

Clutch your rabbit foot tight, and let’s find out.

#1 - It’s bad luck to open umbrellas indoors

I hate umbrellas. Like printers, they can sense when you need them most, deciding to either malfunction with the slightest gust of wind or disappear from sight altogether.

But the Victorians had it a bit worse than we do with more modern contraptions. And it’s the dangerous nature of Victorian umbrellas that explains why we are still wary of opening them indoors:

They had rigidly-spoked umbrellas which would snap open. When opened indoors, it could injure someone or hit an object as they opened with such force.

But the history of umbrella-related problems actually goes as far back as the Ancient Egyptians. The nobility would be protected from the sun with decorative umbrellas, but they believed if they opened them indoors they would anger the sun god. Umbrellas also mimicked the goddess who formed the sky so the shade created by the umbrella was thus considered sacred.

The act of daring to open one indoors could also anger your home’s spirits and causing misfortune.

So basically no living being or supernatural entity approves.

#2 - Walking underneath a ladder will bring bad luck

We now turn from one belief system to another.

This superstition relates purely to Christianity, with the claims that the ladder against a wall creates 3 points and thus represents the Holy Trinity. Walking through this triangle thus represents you - yes, you, you unholy thing - breaking it.

The Egyptians also had a thing about ladders, and like the Christians believed a triangle was sacred symbol.

It is also claimed that ladders were rested against crucifixes, and thus became a symbol of wickedness, death, and any other values that go against Christ’s teaching.

These beliefs were so prevalent, criminals sentenced to be hung in 17th century England were forced to walk under a ladder as they headed towards the gallows.

#3 - Broken mirrors give you seven years of bad luck

Mirrors have a bad reputation amongst us supernatural skeptics. Why? 

They’ve been used for divination and conjuring rituals for millenia, and that’s exactly the gripe the Ancient Greeks had with them.

Their mirror seers, as they were also known, told the future by looking at the reflection of their clients. And one of their methods was catoptromancy: the mirror was dipped in water, and you were asked to look in the glass. If it distorted, you were destined to die.

The 7 years bit is actually to do with the Romans and was introduced back in 1st AD. As they believed people's health changed in 7 year cycles, a distorted image thus meant 7 years of ill health or misfortune.

#4 - Throwing salt over your shoulder avoids bad luck

Salt is one of those things that has always had spiritual meaning.

From the Bible to Pagan ceremonies, it is known for its healing properties and has even been used as a unit of exchange. It’s these values which explain why spilling salt is considered so unlucky.

Even the word ‘salary’ can be traced back to the monetary value of what we now consider simply a seasoning.

The Ancient Sumerians were the first to think up throwing salt over their left shoulder to nullify any salt they might spill, protecting themselves from bad luck. Alternatively, in Mahayana Buddhist tradition, the same ritual is used to prevent evil spirits from entering the house.

#5 - Knocking on wood prevents disappointment

Just like salt, wood has been pretty prevalent in rituals throughout history. It’s for this reason that historians still aren’t sure which religion actually gave birth to this, but it is most often attributed to holding a crucifix when taking an oath, or how European peasants historically knocked loudly to keep out evil spirits.

Today we knock on wood to avoid tempting fate, whereas German or Celtic folklore started the knocking ritual to invoke the protection of their fairies, spirits, and dryads that lived in the trees. To follow their ritual, say your wish to the tree, knock one, and then knock again to say ‘thank you’.

The knocking stops the evil spirits from hearing you, and prevents them from interfering in your good fortune.

#6 - Open-end-up horse shoes are good luck

It’s a good luck charm gracing novelty gifts and jewellery for prep school girls who are still crying about New Moon - but like most superstitions, it once again can be traced back to the Ancient Greeks.

Iron was believed to have the ability to ward off evil, and the crescent moon was a symbol of fertility and good fortune. The twinned appeal of an iron crescent moon symbol thus suggested high levels of protection against misfortune.

This symbol was passed down to the Christians and use of it peaked during the witch trials. It was believed witches feared horses, and thus wouldn’t go near a home with a horse shoe on the front door.

It can also be traced back to a legend of Saint Dunstan from the 10th century: one day the Devil asked for Dunstan to shoe his horse. Rather than nailing the shoe to the horse’s foot, he nailed it to the devil’s foot and thus caused the entity unbearable pain. Dunstan agreed to remove the shoe only if the Devil never entered a household with a horseshoe on the door.

The way it is positioned is also important: open end down means the horse catches the luck and open end up means those entering the house get the luck.

#7 - Black cats crossing your path is bad luck

Black cats have always been considered omens - but the kind of luck they bring is yet to be agreed upon.

Ancient Egyptians revered cats and thus believed they brought good luck, whereas the British public’s fear of black cats can be traced back to King Charles I’s loss of his beloved pet. He believed when it died his luck was gone...

He was arrested the next day for high treason.

(Oh, he was guilty, black cat or not.)

Medieval Europeans followed a similar line of thought, but believed that they were familiars (like companions) of witches. If one was to cross your path, it meant the devil was watching you.

#8 - The number 13 is unlucky

This superstition is so popular, it’s even earnt a scientific name: triskaidekaphobia, aka the fear of the number 13. But why do we have such a phobia of the number?

Whilst many believe it is down to the Last Supper, when Judas - that guy that betrayed Jesus - sat down as the 13th guest at the table, it can also be found in a similar legend in Norse mythology.

12 gods were dining at Valhalla in the city of gods when Loki crashed the party. They tried to kick him out, but the struggle caused one of the gods - Balder - to die. But each culture has their own individual take on why the number 13 is quite so unlucky.

The Mayan believed their calendar’s 13th Baktun was the harbinger of 2012’s predicted apocalypse,  English monks disliked 13 full moons in a year as opposed to 12 as it skewed the religious holidays, and in 1307 on friday the 13th King Philip of France ordered the arrest of the Knights Templar.

Some nations take the fear so seriously that they don’t even have 13 floors. And interestingly enough, it wasn’t used in Formula 1 for 40 years. Some countries, including China and France, however, believe it is a lucky number.

#9 - Pick up a penny for good luck

This superstition is often relayed to a nursery rhyme actually referring to pins forged by Paganism, but it actually started with superstition regarding metals. In years gone by, metals gave protection against evil spirits. So, when metal began to be used from currency, it followed logically that those who had more currency had better fortune.

But what one should do with the penny is uncertain. Some say it is only lucky if it is heads-side-up, whereas others believe you should always flip it over for the next person to find.

Another forgotten ritual associated with pennies is that a bride should put a penny in her shoe on her wedding day to ensure a happy marriage.

#10 - A rabbit’s foot brings good luck

Okay, let’s be honest.

We’re all friends here.

Who the f*ck wants a rabbit’s foot? Like, what person wants an animal’s body part in their bed side table, or in their new rucksack-style handbag which you’re still not sure if the colour works with your skintone yet but you’ve already lost the receipt?

Turns out a lot of people do.

Rabbit feet are considered a talisman or an amulet which can be traced back to Celtic tribes in Britain. But on the other side of the pond, they can come from hoodoo, African-American folk magic that combines Native American, European, and African beliefs.

However, any ol’ rabbit can’t be chosen to be de-footed. It must’ve been killed in a certain way, in a certain place, by a certain person.

Under a full moon, or in a cemetery, or on a rainy Friday, or shot with a silver bullet… You have a lot of options.

The interest in rabbit feet in particular is because this is an animal which witches used to shapeshift into, and the times it should be killed, such as during a full moon, was when witches would transform.

The cemetery part is interesting, however: if killed on the grave of a criminal, they have a more effective charm applied to them.

#11 - Crossing your fingers is good luck

Like most superstitions, this one goes back to Jesus.

Crossing your fingers invokes the power of Christ as it creates a cross, and thus asks God for protection. But the first use of the gesture itself involves two people crossing their index fingers together, and can be traced back to the biblical Kingdom of Israel:

Judges would cross their fingers when they sentenced someone to death and wanted to reaffirm God’s authority over the criminal’s soul.

From there churchgoers would cross their fingers for blessings, and in the 16th century England people began to use it to ward off evil or to bless people when they coughed or sneezed.

#12 - Mirrors placed opposite each other are unlucky and might conjure the devil

We already know mirrors are highly-spiritual objects, and can be used to predict the future or conjure spirits from another realm.

But according to Mesoamerican culture, when mirrors are placed opposite each other, they create a doorway for the devil. 

Mexicans today still believe your interior design might just be summoning evil spirits.

#13 - Whistling indoors is bad luck

Our next superstition is from Lithuania, but has already made its way across Europe.

In many cultures, whistling - especially at night - attracts bad luck and evil spirits. But in England, an urban legend in the 19th century brought a whole new meaning to the superstition. The Seven Whistlers are mysterious spirits that would create spectral whistling in mines and stopped groups of coal miners going to work.

Alternatively, in Slavic countries whistling indoors can bring poverty, whereas the Chinese Daoist technique of breath yoga can summon supernatural beings and strange phenomena.

The Superstitions You Didn’t Know Existed And Will Now Probably Be Obsessed With 

#14 - If a bird craps on you it is good luck

This Russian superstition claims that if bird poop lands on you or an object that belongs to you, it will bring you wealth. But interest in bird faeces goes a bit further than this frosty nation.

Sailors believed droppings shouldn’t be cleaned off a vessel until the next rainstorm, whereas British folklore claims if droppings come from a rook (a member of the Crow family) it is a punishment.  

#15 - Yo-Yos bring bad luck

On January 21st 1933, Yo-Yos were banned in Syria.

The persistent drought and freezing temperatures the country was facing were pinned on the traditional toy, and the leaders in Damascus claimed the wrath of god was being incited by these obviously evil trinkets.

They believed that Syrians were praying from the rain to come down, but as the yo-yo comes down and then goes back up it thus wasn’t raining.

I think that’s what they were getting at.

I’m still not sure.

#16 - Singing at the dinner table is bad luck

I was once told off for singing in the middle of dinner. I must’ve been three years old, but from what I’ve read, my grandpa was probably convinced I was actually communicating with Satan.

If you sang at the table, it meant you were singing to the devil for your supper. And when you sing to the devil, it’s probably going to end badly.

#17 - Carry an acorn to stay young

According to women from Ancient Britain, acorns could keep you looking youthful - and it was all down to the power of an oak tree.

Simply tuck one into your pocket, and you too could look like you were in a magazine spread that enforces the destructive notion that women cannot look above the age of 27.

Acorns are also associated with Thor: Scandinavian folklore claims the god of thunder sought protection under an oak tree during a storm. By putting one on a windowsill, it will protect your house from lightning strikes as a sign of respect to Thor.

As we plough into Autumn of this sh*t year, it is our duty to generate as much luck as possible. We’re gonna need it.

Which superstition surprised you the most? And which ones do you do?

Let me know in a comment, and click follow if you want to hear a new article on the paranormal every week!

And don’t forget to check out the link in the bio, the ultimate collection of online real ghost stories as told by you.

[daggerzine]

Sohrab Habibion from SAVAK (and Obits, Edsel, etc.) fills in the gaps.

I first noticed the name Sohrab Habibion in the Sub Pop band Obits nearly a decade ago. He’d then gotten in touch with me a few years back when he sent me the last Savak record, Beg Your Pardon (the band’s 3rd). I did some backtracking and realized he was in the old DC post hardcore band Edsel, whose music I enjoyed. We got to talking and I realized this guy’s had a pretty interesting career and I needed to find out more. He was more than agreeable to an interview on the DAGGER site. Oh and dig this....he recently he began posting some videos that he took of shows in the DC area in the mid-80’s, which is discussed below. Let’s all thank our lucky stars that someone was there with a video camera at shows back then.

Back to SAVAK, they have recently released their fourth full-length, Rotting Teeth in the Horses Mouth (on the Ernest Jenning Record Co label, like the last few) and it’s a terrific record. The kind of post-punk that’s not afraid to pOp! and vice versa. So needless to say Sohrab had plenty to talk about. Let’s take a trip both down memory lane and back to the future as well.

Sohrab.... always pushin’ the hair products.

 Did you grow up in the DC area? If not how did you end up there?

I moved to the suburbs of DC in 1979. My mom and I drove through Hurricane David from my grandfather’s house in Leonia, New Jersey to Annandale, Virginia with all of our possessions in the back of a Chevy Chevette. We had just left Iran because of the Revolution and, after a short stay in Bergen County to gather ourselves and do some research, my parents decided that we would resettle in the DC area.

Do you remember what the first record you ever bought was? First concert?

First record: It was a cassette of Love for Sale by Boney M. Actually maybe that was a gift from a friend. Either way I think of it as my first-owned album. I quickly had the lyrics to “Ma Baker” memorized and never gave a second thought to just how weird the cassette cover art was. If you’re not familiar, perhaps imagine an S&M dungeon version of Ohio Players? As a 7-year-old I think it just didn’t register. More interesting is that the producer, Frank Farian, was also the guy behind Milli Vanilli. If you’re up for it, I recommend doing some Googling about Mr. Farian, who was born Franz Reuther just after the start of World War II in a German valley settlement once known as the “Town of Leather.” It’s good stuff, I promise.

First concert: A friend’s older sister drove us to the old 9:30 Club to see one of the club’s 3 Bands for 3 Bucks nights. I remember feeling pretty excited about being in a part of town I didn’t know and seeing all kinds of people I didn’t ordinarily see. This was probably 1983 or 1984 so it was heavy on the New Wave look. In the basement of 9:30, once you’d squeezed down the narrow flight of stairs, there were bathrooms as well as a small counter that sold records and tapes. I bought The Halloween Cassette—a WGNS comp with Gray Matter, United Mutation, Velvet Monkeys, Malefice, Bloody Mannequin Orchestra and others—and the Minor Threat record that compiles the first two 7”s. On our drive home the DJ on WHFS played the song “Minor Threat,” which we literally had in our hands, and the whole thing felt tremendously serendipitous.

During his tryout with the Washington Bullets (Elvin Hayes beat him out). 

At what age did you pick up the guitar?

One night my mom came home from a school fundraising auction with an acoustic guitar that she’d won in the raffle. I actually think it might be the only time anyone in my family has ever won a raffle. I was 13 or 14 and discovering that I was not as good of a baseball player as I’d hoped or wanted to be and the guitar felt more connected to my interests, so I started to teach myself chords and rudimentary scales. It wasn’t long before I was able to get an electric guitar and make a complete mess of sound in neighborhood basements with friends.

How old were you when the punk rock bug bit you?

Thirteen, I think. I’m pretty sure it was 7th grade. I didn’t know a lot about rock music. Having spent a chunk of my early life in Iran, I missed the boat on a lot of big, American rock’n’roll moments. I was 9 when I was first exposed to KISS by neighbors who were also in the Boy Scouts and so I kind of lumped all that costuming together and the whole thing seemed silly. Special badges and membership cards and various allegiances you were supposed to declare. I felt disengaged from a lot of things in the suburban culture around me, so punk made sense upon its arrival. It took some time to sort things out, like what made the Dead Kennedys good and The Exploited bad, but once that initial door opened, I never turned back. If anything it just opened additional doors to other subcultures and underground movements and marginalized artists and thinkers. Punk helped me recognize that my sympathies will always be with the disenfranchised, the unheralded, the amateur, the wandering tinkerer.

How and when did Edsel get together?

I met Nick Pelliocciotto and Geoff Sanoff (who wouldn’t be in Edsel for a few years) at a Government Issue show at the Hung Jury Pub. Nick and I briefly played in a band with Jim Spellman (Velocity Girl, High Back Chairs, Foxhall Stacks), but that fizzled out. So Nick and I were looking for a bass player when we saw Steve Ward play a cover of “White Rabbit” at a high school talent show. Nick and I agreed that Steve looked cool (he really did) and, when we ran into him in the parking lot, he passed our test by answering that his favorite DC band was Happy Go Licky. We started practicing in the basement of the house Nick, Jim Spellman and I lived in off Reno Road in the Cleveland Park neighborhood of DC. We didn’t know what we were doing. Nick played me a bunch of records I had never heard before and we would talk about various details in the music. He made me aware of the way certain things interacted, like the bass guitar and the kick drum. I’d never considered that. I was also unfamiliar with singing in a band, so was starting from scratch. A lot of it began as rhythmic sing-song-speak-howling that could be heard somewhat above the volume of the band. I’ll never forget recording our first demo at Inner Ear with Michael Hampton. When it came time for me to do the vocals we were all surprised by what they sounded like and Michael nicely said, “Why don’t we call it a day and you go home and work on some melodies that we can record tomorrow.” Ha! When Nick and I got back to the house we listened to a bunch of albums to get ideas for vocal melodies. The one that resonated with me was Midnight Oil’s 10, 9, 8, 7, 6, 5, 4, 3, 2, 1 and it helped me understand how you could take a simple line and move it around with chord changes. I didn’t figure out what phrasing was for some time to come, but that was the start. Thank you Michael, Nick and Peter Garrett.

How/when did you end up in NYC?

Well, it’s a circuitous story, but . . . Edsel toured a lot between 1993 and 1995. So much so that I moved back into my parents’ basement to avoid paying rent for a place I wasn’t going to be spending any time in. My folks are lovely and it was a fine arrangement, but I missed having an apartment of my own. On tour in Chicago I was presented with the opportunity of a cheap living situation in a city that I liked, so I moved there. I had this fantasy that the band could keep it together while being in 3 different cities—Geoff had moved to NYC and the two Steve’s were in DC. Not a chance. I had a good year in Chicago, working at the Empty Bottle and playing with different local musicians, but Edsel basically succumbed to inertia and I decided to move back to DC to make a solo record. My parents had a cabin in the Shenandoah Valley and I went there for a period of time with my 4-track and the hopes of discovering whatever my version of Leonard Cohen and Brian Eno might be. That didn’t happen, but I learned a lot about recording myself and making mistakes and stumbling on things I liked that I hadn’t intended. Around this point I got a call from Michael Hampton, who’d moved to New York City a few years earlier. He said his neighbor in the West Village had moved out and he wondered if I might want to take the apartment. I was feeling pretty untethered and the idea of giving Manhattan a shot was exciting, so in November 1997 I packed up my books and CDs and headed up here. I’ve since crossed the bridge over to Brooklyn, but have no plans of leaving. I love this city and all of its flaws.

How about Obits? I know Alexis was in Edsel….had you known Rick already?

Alexis played in Edsel for a few reunion shows we did in 2013, but he wasn’t in the original lineup of the group. I first met Alexis in 1985 when Lünch Meat, his band, played with Kids For Cash, my band, at my local community center. He and I also share a birthday and a similar sense of humor, so when he joined Obits after the departure of Scott Gursky, our original drummer, it was an effortless transition. I’d also played with Alexis in Girls Against Boys on a 2002 European tour that Eli couldn’t do. I was Fake Eli and got to play bass on some of my favorite GvsB tunes, which was a blast. Alexis has a humorous diary from that tour: http://www.gvsb.com/euro_diary/index.html

Here’s an excerpt just so you know it’s worth the clicks:

“scott has determined that we should get rid of all the equipment and excess drummers and bass players and just travel with a painted sheet (we in the biz call this a scrim). that way he could have a band painted on it and just cut out the head of the singer and stick his own head through. this would reduce overhead and be a whole lot less of a hassle than having squabbling bass players and drummers with no IQ whatsoever.”

Rick and I met at an art show of his in the summer of ‘99. In fact, in looking to clarify the year I came across this email I sent to a friend:

“Last night my friend Hiroshi took me to an opening of his friend Rick Froberg’s work in some unknown Lower East Side apartment/gallery. I was shocked at how incredible his stuff was. His etchings like Goya’s, his prints like a German expressionist and his paintings like a weird amalgam of Raymond Pettibon and Norman Rockwell. But everything was very original despite its familiarity. He gave me one of his prints and I actually ended up buying one of his paintings. I’m really excited about it.”

Funny thing is that on that European GvsB tour I was wearing a Hot Snakes shirt. Little could I have guessed that I’d be in a band with Alexis and Rick 10 years later. Or maybe I could’ve? Our behavior and patterns are probably more predictable than I’d like to admit.

Anyway, long and short of it is after meeting Rick we started hanging out and as Hot Snakes was winding down in the early aughts he proposed we get together and strum our guitars. We had a good time and kept at it until things started to take shape. Fast forward a bit and our friend Speck browbeat Rick into playing with her band, Orphan, at Cake Shop. That was early 2008 and the internet did us a favor by sharing a bootleg recording of our gig, which led us to signing with Sub Pop. Seems just as weird now as it did then, but so it goes! The band was a hoot to be in and we had a grand time, particularly touring. The trips we made to Europe, Australia, Japan and Brazil were fantastic. I never thought I’d be able to do that playing scrappy rock’n’roll music. All the people that we met, the local specialties that we ate and drank . . . and drank . . . and then ate some more. Unforgettable. Until I forget them. Then I’ll refer to the documentation.

Obits.....always ready to rumble (notice the switchblade comb in Froberg’s pocket). 

Tell me about the end of Obits and the beginning of Savak? Who came up with the name?

The end of Obits was a little unexpected. At least the timing of it. All bands end, so it wasn’t surprising in that regard, but we had a French tour planned and had been offered some East Coast dates with Mudhoney, so it was a bummer not to be able to do those. But it had been a cold and miserable winter and Rick had some family stuff to marshal, so it felt best to call it, which is what we did on April 1st, 2015. The April Fool’s part wasn’t intentional, but I liked that it happened that way, what with being in a band often feeling like a cosmic joke anyway. But we’re all still good friends and very much in touch with each other. Funny thing is we’d actually written a fourth record with two drummers, as Matt Schulz had started playing with us as well (we did one show with both Alexis and Matt, which was fun), so on my hard drive somewhere are the demos and jams for that, including covers of “The In-Crowd” (https://youtu.be/KYbwk26mYJA) and Beasts of Bourbon’s “I Don't Care About Nothing Anymore.” (https://youtu.be/IpWi4OxhJXY)

Towards the end of Obits I’d started getting together with other friends to make noise. I was playing with Greg Simpson and Matt Schulz, doing instrumental versions of Hooterville Trolley and Shadows tunes, and separately with Michael Jaworski and Benjamin Van Dyke, just bashing out riffs. I asked all involved if they would want to combine the two and everyone was into it. The nice thing was Michael and I got to write with two different drummers, which opened up new ideas, and for a band that was just getting the swing of our internal vocabulary, it helped jumpstart the mojo.

I can’t remember at what point we were talking about band names, but when Viet Cong couldn’t take the heat for their name and decided to change it I made a joke about calling our group SAVAK. Then the more I thought about it the more I liked it and the group was on board, so we ran with it. The Iranian side of my family was a bit perplexed and bemused, but they all understood that this was a rock’n’roll outfit and not some creepy tribute to the former secret police in Iran. I’ve come to appreciate how that type of band name is a good litmus test. With a moniker like SAVAK you can see who actually knows anything about global political history, but more importantly you immediately know that anyone who takes issue with it isn’t likely to be interested in or even be familiar with punk rock or underground culture. So that person’s opinion on the subject doesn’t hold weight for me and I’ll attempt to redirect to a different subject that could be entertaining to chat about, like food or wine or bicycle maintenance or John le Carré books or, I dunno, HTML/CSS?

Savak has been recording pretty consistently…how did the new record come together so quickly? Who came up with the title?

Michael Jaworski, the other guitarist, singer and co-songwriter, came up with the title of Rotting Teeth in the Horse’s Mouth. Apparently it appeared to him in a dream and, well, I just liked the way it sounded. Both in that it reminded me of the DK’s classic Fresh Fruit for Rotting Vegetables and as a play on the idiom “hearing it straight from the horse’s mouth,” since the current mouth we hear more often than is good for anyone’s mental health has enough proverbial rotting teeth to fill the mouth of a giant armadillo.

We worked on the album over a period of months. Sometimes we would get together with Matt Schulz, our drummer, and hammer stuff out. Other times either Michael or I would start something at home and build it from there. The main thing was to keep it feeling like a band had cut it together live, regardless of how accurate that may be on any given song. We started with 16 tunes, ditched 2 of them that weren’t as developed, and recorded the remaining 14. Then we picked the 10 that sounded the most cohesive for the album and the others will come out as singles later in the year. We spent many intensely focused hours editing, overdubbing and trying to really hone in on what each tune needed. I like discreet events in music and subtle details that may not make themselves evident for a few listens. A keyboard that only appears in the second verse or a backing vocal that’s buried deep in the right channel of the outro or a flanged cymbal crash at the top of the chorus. Stuff that doesn’t have to happen in the live version but makes the recording a little richer without being overbearing.

SAVAK, just before diving in. 

In Savak, re; the songwriting process, is it both you and Michael together or do you write independently?

There’s always a collaborative element. We each add or edit the other’s songs to some degree. That’s one of the things I really like about our partnership. We actively try to keep our egos out of the way. And while we may not share the exact same taste about every little thing, we trust each other’s sensibility. I think that willingness to let go of our own ideas makes them more interesting and strengthens the working relationship.

Tell us about working with Arto Lindsay?

Rick Froberg was employed as an illustrator at a web-based, digital media shop in SoHo called Funny Garbage and he helped get me a gig making music for cartoons and video games they were producing for companies like Cartoon Network. I had access to a recording studio on a floor above our office which was run by an incredibly talented musician/producer named Andres Levin. One day ‘Dre asked if I could work on a session with a friend of his for a gallery installation. It seemed interesting, so I agreed. The guy showed up with two pillow cases that he wanted to put on his arms and flap wildly in front of a mic. His idea was to pitch the pillow case recording down a few octaves and add a lot of reverb so it would sound like a giant bird was flying. I don’t remember if he was pleased with the results, but we had a blast trying, and it turned out that fella was Arto Lindsay. He got in touch with me soon after about recording his next album. I was direct about the fact that while I was brisk with the ProTools and could run sessions efficiently, I was not a real engineer who knew about microphone placement and how to apply compression, etc. He said that was fine and arranged to rent a recording rig for his apartment and we got straight to work with Melvin Gibbs, who is Arto’s writing partner, co-producer, and bass player. We made Invoke in 2002 and two years later we made Salt, once again doing the whole thing in his Chelsea living room. Arto’s a wonderful guy, as is Melvin, and we had a terrific time together. I also learned a lot. He has such a deep knowledge of avante garde music and art and a whole world of Brazilian culture that he can tap into. And Melvin is an incredible musician, so getting to see how he approached assembling Arto’s ideas was fascinating. He was also forgiving with the fact that a punker like me was trying to edit Brazilian rhythms when I was having an impossible time even identifying the first beat of the groove. There was a lot of, “Please just tell me where the ONE is.” Arto knows a wide array of people and the process of making a record with him was very much about getting it done, but not at the expense of the vibe, so if someone dropped by you’d just have to roll with it. Sometimes that person would bring their instrument and overdub on a song or two, so I had to figure out how to be flexible about the recording process to make sure it was gonna be smooth for all involved, regardless of if it was a violin player or a guy doing a percussion track using a cardboard box. I ended up calling Geoff Sanoff for advice quite a bit—to the point where Arto would joke, “Is it time to call Geoff?” Ha! But he knew the deal going in, so all was fine. The experience of making those records was great and I got to meet some interesting folks. Also my appreciation of Brazilian music completely exploded. An unexpected and super cool project with Arto, Debbie Harry and Mikhail Baryshnikov also came from that. Another side note: when we were recording Invoke there was a song which Arto wanted to get Animal Collective involved in. This was 2001 and they were still more of a record store employee kind of band, but Arto had a couple of their CDs (Spirit They’re Gone Spirit They’ve Vanished and Danse Manatee, I think) and was really into them. We arranged to go into Stratosphere Sound, the studio that was owned by Adam Schlesinger, Andy Chase, and James Iha, where Geoff Sanoff worked, and do the session there. They had an interesting way of working—they would manipulate all of the instruments, including live drums, and have everything run through their PA and then have Geoff mic the PA speakers. So the final thing was this gauzy, mushy, blur that was like a sonic paste. They totally knew what they were doing and I was particularly impressed with Noah/Panda Bear as a musician.

Speaking of legends, how did you begin collaborating with Michael Hampton?

First we should be clear that we’re not discussing “Magic” Mike Hampton AKA Michael “Kidd Funkadelic” Hampton. According to Discogs, the Michael Hampton I know is “Michael Hampton (3)” of Brief Weeds fame. He’s a few years older than me so I missed his days in SOA and The Faith, but I was a fan and saw him in Embrace and One Last Wish. I attended American University in DC and ran into him on campus, told him I also played guitar and suggested that we “jam sometime.” Knowing him now this detail cracks me up because I’m positive I freaked him out and that he was horrified by the idea of “jamming” with an arbitrary, long-haired frosh. Some time after Edsel started we asked Michael to help produce our demo, as we were clueless about the studio. And when he was in Manifesto our bands played together and we got to be better friends. After he moved to New York, it was he and his wife, Monica, who encouraged me to move here. They also introduced me to my wife. And for the last 15 or so years we’ve worked together on soundtracks for indie films, documentaries and commercials. I can’t recall how that collaboration first started, but I love working with Michael. He’s got a quick wit, so there’s lots of yucks involved, but he also has a remarkable knack for music composition and knows how to layer ideas for perfect cinematic effect. As a guitar player he remains one of my favorites. Michael’s distilled Bob Andrews from Gen X and Captain Sensible and George Harrison and all these choice rock’n’roll and punk players into something distinctly his own.

Somewhere in Madrid, Spain (Spain Radio Nacional) 

Tell us your top 10 desert island discs?

That’s tough. I’d like to ensure a bunch of different moods are covered, so let’s see . . . how about:

Hamza El Din - Music Of Nubia

Tsegué-Maryam Guèbrou - Éthiopiques 21: Piano Solo

Mark Hollis - s/t

Skip James - Today!

Charles Mingus - The Black Saint And The Sinner Lady

Mission Of Burma - Vs.

The Rolling Stones - Sticky Fingers

Television - Marquee Moon

The Velvet Underground - s/t

Wire - 154

Who are some of your favorite current bands?

Bed Wettin' Bad Boys, Cable Ties, Contractions, FACS, Gotobeds, Grey Hairs, Hammered Hulls, Hot Snakes, Light Beams, METZ, Mint Mile, Modern Nature, Patois Counselors, Pays P., Rattle, Skull Practitioners, Slum of Legs, Sunwatchers, Tanning Bats, TK Echo, The Unit Ama.

I know I’m forgetting stuff. There’s a ton of excellent music being made right now.

What’s next for Savak? Once the lockdown is over will you guys tour?

It’s hard to be certain about anything these days, but I do know we’re eager to play once the Javel water has cleared. My hope is that we reschedule our UK tour as well as the shows we had on deck with Archers of Loaf. We were also trying to coordinate a Japanese tour, which we’d love to do, so I’ll add that to the list.

In the meantime we have a couple of non-album singles coming out later in the year.

I love making music, so whatever form it needs to take to make it work given our circumstances I’m fine with. Wanna jam on our phones? Hit me up!

SAVAK’s new one- Rotting Teeth in The Horses Mouth

BONUS QUESTION:  Tell us about all of those shows you recorded in the 80’s and have been putting up on the Dischord page? Great stuff!

Thanks! My mom bought me a Sony Betacam in 1985. I honestly had no inclination towards videotaping anything prior to this, but I think she may have thought it was a positive thing for a teenager to get involved in instead of playing Atari or hanging out at the Orange Julius at the mall or whatever. So I had this camera and I started taping what I was doing, which was basically going to shows. I didn’t think much about it and I never watched the tapes afterwards, so just slowly built up a collection of recordings that sat in a box at my parents’ house for years. It wasn’t until James Schneider started working on what eventually became the Punk the Capital movie that the tapes were unearthed. Then Scott Crawford wanted to use them for Salad Days and had the genius idea of getting Dave Grohl’s production company to digitize them, as they wanted footage for that Sonic Highways show. So at Scott’s suggestion I sheepishly asked if it was something they could do and they immediately said yes. I was pretty stunned by their generosity. The tapes themselves are now part of the Punk Archive in the DC Public Library, which is both cool and hilarious. The idea of random stuff I videotaped when I was 15 being part of an institutional archive is pretty absurd. Now that I’ve got this extra pandemic time to spend in front of my computer, I’ve been editing down each set, adjusting the light balance so the footage is less murky and also remastering the audio so they sound better. The timing of the Dischord Records Fan Page on Facebook is fortuitous, as it provides a reasonably eager audience for what might have otherwise just been a few additional gigs of server space being cooled in a Google data center in Moncks Corner, South Carolina.

“Who you callin’ a low life?” 

www.savakband.com

www.savak.bandcamp.com

[wellwornwornwell]

Interior decorating tips?

I have a confession to make, dear readers. Lately I’ve been seeing other people. Well, really I’ve just been daydreaming about buying things other than clothes. How did this happen? Where has the spark gone? Can our love keep us together? Pretty weird follow-up questions for a near-anonymous clothing blog.

So how have I been spending my time? I’ve owned a house for the better part of four years now. A turn-of-the-century bungalow in a historic neighborhood, it has all the charm of an architect’s fever dream. Frankenstein’s monster manifest in plaster and bead board. Twelve foot ceilings? Sure. Tuscan columns exploding with ornate crown molding? You betcha. Hell, someone even painted a fresco mural on the entryway ceiling at one point. It’s all very eclectic and decidedly undecided.

But the quirkiness and borderline inexpiable evolution of a 100-year old house lends a ton of flexibility. At first my wife and I were a bit torn on the direction we should go. She holds a decidedly more Victorian bent, while I’m a predictably Mid-Century-Modern iGent in recovery. Those two can mix, but sparingly. So instead, we threw caution to the wind and went full-on identity crisis.

Our keeping room (at the end of a wide-open kitchen) sports a gallery wall featuring art and artifacts of our travels (both domestically and abroad). Enamel badges from the Queen’s Enclosure at Henley Regatta, a garden scene painted in Marrakech, a nineteenth century landscape of my grandfather’s village in Italy, a European mount from a hunt in Ohio. They’re all framed by a racing green velvet sofa by a no-name Danish designer, set on a faded and frayed Kapoutrang rug. In our dining room we match chairs by Hans Wegner with dramatic, high-back Gothic end chairs, centered around an oval dining room table designed in prototypical American Empire fashion. Our entryway features a dry sink from the mid-19th century and our office combines a massive poster from the original Italian release of The Graduate with a lounge chair by Milo Baughman. Plants (figs, lilies, aloe, etc.) abound.

The art around the house is almost entirely original (I don’t care much for prints), though the bulk of it is amateur art. The one, sole “established” work is by Jenna Snyder-Phillips. Most of the other art is collected (either in person or online) with little regard for cohesion or curation. It’s truly a “this looks cool” style of design.

Moving forward, we have recently endeavored to make further enhancements to our space. I’ve been on an Indian block print quilt binge as of late, replacing all of our store-bought bedspreads and throws with handmade cottons and linens from India. They are cheap and beautiful. We’re also planning to re-do the art in our library… OK, it’s just the guestroom with built-in bookshelves. I have a bit of a questionable strategy – We plan to buy more traditional, masculine prints (think hunt scenes, horse races, illustrations of dogs, etc.) and arrange them in gallery wall style, with some disparity in alignment and size. However, rather than frame any of them, we plan to affix them to the wall with dark red wax seals, made with our initials. It’s kind of a “living wallpaper.” The inspiration comes from the elevators in the Beekman Hotel in Manhattan.

This is all to say that I don’t really have any “advice” on interior decorating. We have too much from too many places to nail down a sense of style or inspiration. That said, I’m incredibly lucky to have a wife with a keen eye and honed taste, so we generally balance one another’s half-baked decisions. It’s a never-ending process that will extend through the life of this house and our next. The goal is to have fun and always keep an eye out for things that speak to you. Your home should be a reflection of your truest self. Oh god, am I Schizophrenic?

[odderancyart]

Retribution

Chapter 8

First

Last

On AO3

Summary: A late night, after yet another unfruitful day with no work, Detective Edge Serif receives a phonecall from the countryside. There seems to have been a murder.

Warnings: Murder, Violence, Swearing, Past Abuse, Past Rape (of a character not in the story)

His head aches as he slowly regains consciousness, blinking against the blinding light. As he tries to lean forward, he finds he can’t. He jerks at his hands, finding he can’t move them either. There’s something keeping them stuck to the arms of the chair he’s in. What happened...?

Images. They flash before his eyes. A bedroom, letters with the British royal crest, Papyrus with a fire poker. He’d been knocked unconscious. Edge twitches as it all comes back to him and he throws his eyes open, even as his head throbs at the sudden assault of light. He’s still in the bedroom. By the writing desk, Papyrus stands, stirring a cup of tea as he watches him. How could he have been so stupid? How could he have allowed himself to get so distracted that he didn’t notice Papyrus coming into the room? His eyes catch on the gun lying next to Papyrus on the desk. His gun.

“You’re awake,” Papyrus notes. “Good.” The spoon chinks as it hits the walls of the porcelain cup, painted with roses. The cook smiles, almost apologetically. “I am terribly sorry I had to tie you up, but you really shouldn’t have come and ferreted around my room. It’s terribly rude.”

Edge tries to speak, but as he does, only muffled noises comes out. His eyes widen. In his stupor, he hadn’t realized he had a cloth stuffed into his mouth. When he glares at the other, Papyrus only tsks. “Don’t look so mad. I can’t have you yelling, you surely must understand that? I’ve reached my goal – getting revenge on the bastard who destroyed my brother’s – my entire family’s – life for many years because of something as stupid as racism. You Americans should know something about that, shouldn’t you? But it works somewhat differently home in Europe.” Disgust covers his face as he sips his tea. “I’ve lived my entire life in Wales. I was born there, and so was my brother. And our parents. But because our grandfather came from Bulgaria, from Eastern Europe, apparently we cannot be trusted. Lazy, they call us. Thieves. Not that you’re different here. Had I attempted to enter with my own name, I am certain I would’ve met a lot more resistance.”

There’s so much bitterness in his voice. Edge stares at him, and Papyrus stares back. “What do you say? Do you think they would’ve been as happy to let in Nikolay Todorov as they were to let in Papyrus Safont, Doctor Gaster’s personal cook? Would your Immigration Act have let me? Even though I’m two generations British?” When Edge remains quiet, he grinned humourlessly. “I didn’t think so.”

And he was right. Maybe his British citizenship would’ve been enough, but Edge has seen the distrust for Southern and Eastern Europeans first-hand. They are seen as threats – competition for jobs and housing, and people fear they’ll undermine American values and cause Bolshevik revolution similar to the one in Russia during the War. Stupidity, Edge would’ve said if anyone had ever bothered to ask for his opinion. If they came to America, he can only imagine it is because they wanted to live in America, not in Russia.

After putting his cup down on the desk, Papyrus saunters over to him, smiling sweetly. “Never mind all that. You look like you want to ask something.” He holds up a vial with powder. “If you make any unnecessary noises, I will shove this down your throat, and you’ll die an incredibly painful death. So better not do anything stupid, alright?” Edge nods slowly. Papyrus – Nikolay – beams. “Wonderful! See how simple things are when you cooperate?”

He pulls the gag out of Edge’s mouth, and Edge coughs, opening and closing it a couple times. Oh God, his mouth feels like a desert. Concern glimmers in Nikolay’s eyes, and he takes a few steps over to the bedtable, where a water pitcher stands, together with a glass. After pouring some into the glass, he offers it to Edge. Edge eyes it suspiciously, and he rolls his eyes, taking a sip himself. “See? It’s not poisoned. Drink, friend.”

As he puts it to Edge’s mouth, Edge does as told. Both because he does not wish to make him mad and because he genuinely needs it. When it’s empty, and his throat feels less rough, he sighs in relief before looking up at Pa- Nikolay. He looks genuinely sorry for what the situation has come to. But why would he? If he didn’t mind framing Stretch, why would he be care about Edge? That’s his first question.

Nikolay shrugs. “In all honesty, I wanted Blue to be the one. His loyalty to the Gasters is sickening. Can’t seem to see any of their faults, even when his own brother is being abused. But since anyone who knew him would know how he poured his soul into serving them until the point that’s what his life is about, and they would’ve realized he never would have, Stretch was the second best. Doing it to Sir Razz would’ve simply been stupid: his family is incredibly powerful. At least this way, I get to Blue somehow. He adored that family nearly as much as I hate them. In all honesty, I almost feel bad for him. Almost. Plus, I haven’t missed how he speaks about my heritage. He’s just like everyone else. Up on his high horses thinking he’s better than me because he’s a pure-blooded Englishman. And now his own brother is getting sentenced for the last Gaster’s murder.” He hums, the bitterness gone as fast as it came. “You get two more questions, and then I’m afraid I’ll have to get rid of you before it’s too late. I am not an unkind monster, I’d feel awful to kill you when you’re so close to solving the mystery.”

“How did you do all of this? Why wait so long?” Edge’s head spins with all the new information, but he forces himself to focus. The longer he can keep Papy- Nikolay rambling, the more time he has to get out of here. Dying is not in this week’s schedule, especially not by a cook.

The other’s smile widens. “It wasn’t hard. When your brother is a former MI6-spy, falsifying papers and learning about poisons is a child’s play. We simply made up a reasonable backstory, fixed some papers, and then I went to search employment at the Gasters. As for why so long? I’m a patient man. I very much did not wish to be new as I did it – my foreign ancestry already made me suspicious enough, since everyone’s bigoted. And your third question?”

His last.

There were multiple things he wants to know. Why, exactly, he is doing this. How he’s managed to keep this act up for such a long time. If he hasn’t grown fond of the brothers during the time he’s worked with them, even a little? How he can do such a thing to Stretch of all people. But in all honesty, there is one thing that’s more pressing to him than anything else.

Edge’s soul pounds in his chest as he stares into Nikolay’s eyes. His eyelights are soft as he meets his gaze, almost remorseful. Nonetheless, they’re determined, and Edge has no delusions about him changing his mind and letting him go. “What are you going to do with me?”

Nikolay’s smile softens. “Oh that’s easy. I’m going to give you some Cerbera odollam-seeds. The former owner of the manor had a poison greenhouse and I’ve been caring for it. I’m very sorry to tell you it won’t be painless. Then, once you fall into a coma, I’ll shove you off the west wing. It’ll look like you fell.” He crouches down so he can reach into the secret compartment. Picking up a vial holding several brown seeds, he shakes it gently. “I doubt you’ll get the sort of investigation he got – you’re a nobody, aren’t you? No family to speak of, no money?”

Edge remains quiet, face paling. He’s right. There’s a much too big risk that he’ll simply get written off as an accident or a suicide. Especially in these times. After the Crash, so many committed suicides, and he was born into a short life-expectancy group.

“Thought so.”

The house creaks around them as Nikolay steps forward. Edge feels his palms start to sweat as he leans backwards in the chair, as far away as he can. He squeezes his teeth shut as his breathing shallows. Something moves behind Nikolay, silently, slowly. A hand grips his jaw tight, starting to pry it open. Edge fights him, eyes trained at the other’s face. Nikolay’s expression is determined as he digs the tip of a phalange in between Edge’s teeth.

Edge struggles, throwing his head to the side and rocking the chair, which makes the other’s expression harden. The chair legs scrape against the floor. The finger slides in deeper, and Edge lets out a squawk as his mouth is bended open. Triumph shines in Nikolay’s eyes as he plops the cork of the vial with his thumb. It falls to the floor with a quiet thump. The seeds rustles inside the vial. A dark shape appears behind Nikolay, making his soul skip a beat as he attempts to throw away with his head again, to no avail. The cook has an iron grip on his jaw, his fingers hooked into it, keeping his mouth open.

His eyes flicker to the shape behind, widening. Apparently, Nikolay notices.

“Wha-” he says, turning to look over his shoulder. Thuck.

Edge gapes as his eyelights roll back in his eyes and he sinks to the floor with a groan. Behind him, holding a broomstick raised in the air, stands Blue. His face is still red from tears and his suit is crumpled, but fury is written on his face as he lowers the broomstick, glaring down at Nikolay in disgust. Edge can’t help but stare at the right-hand man in shock. Without a word, Blue drives the end of the broomstick into Nikolay’s head once more before shoving him to the side, facing Edge.

“Are you alright, sir?” he asks. Edge nods mutely. “I was looking for you. Inspector Fuente wanted to speak with you.” He picks up a handkerchief from his pocket, rubbing his red cheeks. “Let me untie you.”

“Yeah,” Edge says loftily. Holy shit. His mind spins as he tries to process the last few moments, now when the adrenaline is sinking away. “Please.”

Nimble fingers soon loosen the ropes keeping him stuck to the chair around his waist, arms, and legs. “I can’t believe-” Blue stops to stare at the body of the murderer he’s just knocked out. “Yes, he’s-” He shakes his head. “I know I said I suspected him, but I can’t believe he’d frame my brother.” New tears welled up, which he was quick to wipe away with his handkerchief. He smiles wetly. “But that means my brother is innocent. I knew it. I knew Stretch wasn’t a murderer.”

“So did I,” Edge murmurs, and Blue’s smile widens.

Once Edge is free, standing up and stretching his stiff limbs, they stare at the body.

“So what are we doing with him, sir?”

Edge smiles faintly. He’s shivering – almost getting murdered will do that to you. “We bring him to Inspector Fuente and get your brother back.”

Soon, he carries the unconscious Nikolay like a potato sack over his shoulder upstairs while Blue brings the evidence. The vials and the letters, and some of the ropes Edge had been tied up with. They use the others to tie up Nikolay.

Inspector Fuente and Sir Razz are standing in the main hall, conversing, as they show up. Both of them stare as Edge drops the unconscious cook on the ground.

“Here’s your murderer,” he says.

For a few beats, the room is completely silent.

“He nearly killed me too,” he adds, “but Blue knocked him out.”

Another couple seconds of silence follow. Blue holds up the poisons and hands over the letters to Inspector Fuente.

“The murder weapon, the attempted murder weapon, and his motivation.” Edge rolls his shoulders. God, Pa- Nikolay is heavy. But he is, of course, a grown man so nothing else was to be expected, really. He looks at Sir Razz. “It seems as though your husband, sir, destroyed his brother’s career within MI6 because of their Bulgarian descent. Because of racism, clear and simple.” He gives them a brief summary of the last hour.

“May I have my brother back now?” Blue demands, stepping forward and actually glaring at the inspector. Sir Razz blinks in surprise. “He’s innocent. As I said.”

Inspector Fuente huffs, shock, amazement, and amusement all playing on his face as he looks between Edge and Blue. He nods. “Yes, we’ll go into Deadford and get him out of the arrest. This case took an unexpected turn.”

If he’s worried someone will say anything to the Police about him being wrong, or if he even cares, he doesn’t show it. Nonetheless, Edge puts a hand on Blue’s shoulder, receiving a questioning gaze, before he nods back. “I do believe we have solved this case,” he says.

The inspector raises an eyebrow, but nods, the corner of his mouth tugging upwards. “Yes… It seems we have.” He dips his hat to Sir Razz. “Well, sir, we better get going.”

Sir Razz nods as well before turning to his right-hand man. “Blue, you go with the inspector and get your brother. I’m sure he’ll appreciate that the most.” Blue nodded quickly. “And Detective Serif, come with me and I’ll pay you what I owe. And a bonus for almost getting murdered.”

Edge can’t help but grin. “I appreciate it, sir.”

…

And then he is back where it all began.

He regards his reflection in his office window before looking outside at the dark street. A beggar sits bundled up in some stairs, a wild dog wanders by. The rain is, as always, pouring down over Deadford, smattering against asphalt and windows. It’s in the middle of the day, so the occasional car comes by and some pedestrians walk by, too used to the rain to bother with trying to escape it. It’s still dark: the clouds are black as coal as they spit heaven’s fury down over the town, as lightning and thunder flashes and booms.

For the first time in his life, he’d opened a bank account. Sir Razz had paid him seven hundred dollars for his services, and he’s never had that much money in his entire life. And since he does not feel safe keeping that money in his office or his shared apartment, the bank seems like the most logical choice. For once, he does not worry about ending up on the street eventually. He’s not about to buy any frivolities, though, like some others may have. In times like these, that money is best kept as backup in case he’ll lack food or be unable to pay the rent one day.

A purring comes from the side and he smiles as a white cat steps on the hand he has planted on the windowsill, demanding attention. He scratches her ear before stroking his hand down her back. Luckily, being away hadn’t destroyed his relationship with that beautiful cat on the street: in fact, once he came back, she’d been willing to move in with him. Her name is Doomfanger now. A beautiful, hairy cat with a scar running down along her right eye and torn ears that has seen better days. He loves her already.

His fingertips slide over the cold glass as he pets her, making him shiver, and she licks them, looking pleased with herself. Taking her into his arms, he walks over to the desk. Details from a new case already covers his desk: with Sir Razz’s commendations on his resumé, he suddenly turned into a highly sought for private detective. For now, he does not need to worry about money at all, for the first time in his life.

It feels good.

It knocks on the door, thrice, and he raises an eyebrow as he opens his arms so Doomfanger will jump. She lands on the floor with a quiet thump, staring at him in offence. The corner of his mouth tugs upwards. Apparently he isn’t allowed to put her down already. She lounges in the back of the room as he steps over to the door. Who would visit him at this time of day, in this weather?

The door creaks as he opens it, and a dark shape is revealed in the dark hallway. Once his eyes get used to the dim light, he hums in surprise. Dressed in a huge coat with its collar pulled up halfway over his face, stands Stretch. Edge steps to the side, gesturing for him to come in, and he does, waterdrops sliding off his coat and down on the floorboards.

“I hope I’m not disturbing you?” Stretch asks, folding down his collar to reveal his face. His teeth chatters, and his smile is nervous.

Edge shakes his head, smiling. “Not at all. I am very sorry I didn’t say goodbye, but I was worried about overstaying my welcome.” He gestures toward the coat-hanger before stepping back a few steps so he can pull out a bottle whisky from his desk drawer. Alcohol may be illegal but literally who the fuck cares? He places two glasses on the table. “Whisky? You look cold.”

“Thank you,” he says as he pulls of his coat, hanging it up next to Edge’s. Doomfanger stares at him from behind the desk, distrustful.

Once Edge has poured up two glasses with honey-brown liquid, he hands one of the glasses to Stretch before sitting down in one of the two old leather armchairs by the wall, gesturing for the other to do the same, which he does. The armchair squeaks and sways as Stretch sits down, and for a moment worry flashes over his face, as though he’s wondering if the armchair is going to break beneath him.

“And I understand.” Stretch smuts at his whisky, sighing in relief as he drinks. “Sir Razz can be intimidating. I came to say thank you. You know. For not stopping investigating.”

Taking a gulp of his own whisky, feeling it burn pleasantly in his throat, Edge shakes his head. “Of course. I- There was something about it that didn’t feel right. I didn’t think you were capable of doing such a thing… And you weren’t.”

“No.” He stares into his glass as he swirls the liquid around it. “I hated Dr Gaster. Hated him, with all my soul. I would’ve resigned the day I turned eighteen and taken employment in the factories, if Blue hadn’t- Yeah. I couldn’t leave my brother. He would’ve been heartbroken, and mother and father would’ve broken all contact with me, and made him do so too, just like they later did with Clara – our older sister-”

Edge nods. The sister who ran away to run a Scottish tavern in Minnesota with her partner. He can only assume that meant she isn’t married. In all honesty, he can’t help but admire her guts.

“-but no, I couldn’t hurt the doctor. Not that I didn’t occasionally want to throw wine in his face, damn the consequences, but no. Never.”

“You’re a better person than me,” Edge murmurs. “If my foreman is still alive, and I met him, he’d be lucky if I only punched him.”

Flashing him a quick smile, Stretch downs the rest of his whisky. “Well. You’d be justified. At least I was never physically hurt.” He sighs. “But now when I know how disgustingly he acted during the War – I didn’t even know he was in the War, we all got to hear he spent a year at Université Paris-Sorbonne – I feel even more that he truly did deserve what he got.”

“He did.”

Even if what Nikolay did was truly abhorrent as well. But the trial was coming up, and with the evidence against him, Edge didn’t doubt he’d spend a lot of time paying for his crimes.

By now, also Stretch has finished his whisky. He glances at the clock, and then at Edge. There’s something wishful on his face as he moves to stand. “Maybe I should go back before it gets too late. I just wanted to thank you.”

“You can-” Edge says before he can stop himself before cutting himself off. Stretch’s eyes flicker to him, something almost hopeful shining in there, and Edge relaxes. “One of my roommates is out of town. If you’d like, you can borrow his bed. It’s not as fancy as a manor, but it’s warm and dry. That was you don’t have to travel back in this weather.”

The smile that lits up Stretch’s face makes it impossible for him not to return it, smiling just as warmly.

“I’d like that, thank you.”

The End

[thetraveljedi]

Why I travel solo

I travel solo quite frequently, and when I’m traveling and discussing my travels with people I get different reactions to the fact that I choose to travel alone. A small few comment “I travel solo, too!” But people are shocked; they could never have the guts to travel alone, they would be too nervous or scared or be too lonely, and wonder how safe it is, especially as a woman. Usually this is followed by a “so why do you travel solo?”

I got into solo travel accidentally, as do a lot of solo travelers; we want to go somewhere, but cannot find someone who will go with them. I was fresh out of culinary school with a steady paycheck and vacation days and it had been way too long since I had been to my favorite place since I was a kid, Walt Disney World. I was dying to go, but couldn’t find anyone willing to go with me. So I decided to just go by myself.

I booked my trip and started to plan my itinerary. It was so freeing to be able to do whatever I wanted to do there. When you go to Walt Disney World with your family, you’re not always the one who gets to decide what to do. I could stay at any hotel I wanted, go to any restaurant I wanted, any ride or show I wanted. I could take advantage of some of the special activity offerings there that I had always wanted to do but couldn’t because of my family plans. I was planning a trip to a place I had been to countless times, but all of a sudden it felt like a brand new world.

On my trip, I booked two activities I had always wanted to do; I went horseback riding at Fort Wilderness and got a massage at the spa at the Grand Floridian Resort. I remember sitting on the horse, wandering through the forests of Fort Wilderness and peering through the trees I could see Cinderella Castle. The castle is one of my favorite sights at Walt Disney World, one I had seen countless times before, but I was seeing it from an entirely new perspective. It was exhilarating in a way I had never felt before. I made it a point from that moment to do a special activity like this every time I would return to Walt Disney World, and I’ve kept to that promise. It’s made my solo experiences there all the more special.

Another great thing about going to a place like Walt Disney World for my first solo trip- safety. You’re in an enclosed “campus” the entire time, surrounded by security and families having a good time. As someone who lives in New York City and is always on high alert, it was insanely refreshing. Being in a familiar, safe place for my first trip allowed me to focus on the fun part of the trip and not the stressful part of traveling. It would also give me the confidence I would need to venture elsewhere in the USA, and eventually, the rest of the world.

After a few trips to Walt Disney World, I was ready to expand my horizons. I was already traveling a lot to see the band Phish at the time, but usually with friends on the East Coast. Soon my Phish trips started turning into mostly solo trips to see them on the West Coast. Then I took my first completely solo non-Phish trip for my 30th birthday, spending 8 days in California traveling from Los Angeles down to San Diego (with a stop at Disneyland, of course). After that I finally felt comfortable enough to take the leap and go abroad, and the following year went on an 11-night Mediterranean cruise that started and ended in Rome. Then later that year I spent 8 nights in Spain, starting in Madrid and driving my way to Salamanca. Yes, that’s right, I drove by myself in a foreign country. (Spain drives on the same side of the road in the United States and has some of the most clearly marked highways I’ve ever seen. It was actually a breeze.)

So what is it about traveling solo that I’ve come to love so much? The freedom. Even if you do find someone to go with you on your travels, it’s almost impossible to find someone with the exact some travel interests as you. I love history, so I plan a lot of historical sites into my itineraries when I travel solo. Most people would find the amount of historic sites I go to pretty boring. Also, when you’re traveling solo, you’re going at your own pace. I go through sites pretty quickly solo, so I’m able to do more on trips. But if there is a site I want to linger on, I can- there’s no one there to stop me. Except maybe the security guard at the end of the day.

Do I get lonely? Not really. I’m pretty extroverted, but I have an introverted side too. It’s actually nice that when I travel, I get to choose which side to be at any given time. I meet so many more people when I travel solo, but if I’m not in the mood to make friends, I can do a solo activity or hang out in my room. That’s something nearly impossible to do when you’re at home in everyday life, especially while working in the travel industry.

Let’s say you want to plan a solo trip, but you’re not sure where to begin, or you’re feeling anxious about the whole thing. I get it. I was pretty nervous when I went abroad for the first time, especially since my first stop was in Italy, and I speak maybe 25 words of Italian. Here a few suggestions to help you ease into solo travel.

1) Pick somewhere for your first solo trip where the language will be familiar to you. It’s not a coincidence that I chose to go back to Spain for my first longer non-cruise European vacation; not only did I love Spain during my first visit and wanted to go to Madrid to see a Real Madrid game, I’m mostly fluent in Spanish. If I wasn’t, I definitely would not have felt comfortable going there for my first completely solo non-cruise trip to Europe. Once you get the first time experience of going abroad alone, you will feel more confident to travel places with unfamiliar languages. Though I almost always recommend trying to learn some of the languages of the places you visit. Locals are much more willing to help you if you make an effort to communicate with them in their local tongue, even if they speak English. Keep in mind, too, that sometimes even within countries, more than one language is spoken. Go to Barcelona and you may not hear all that much Spanish, but you will see and hear a lot of Catalan. Make an effort to learn some Catalan and try speaking it with the friendly people of Barcelona and you’ll make friends there quickly.2) DO YOUR HOMEWORK. Research everything about where you’re going. Start off by learning a little bit about the history and culture of not just the country you’re going to, but the specific city you’re going to. Why? Take Barcelona for example. Barcelona is in a region of Spain called Catalunya, which remained a separate kingdom from Spain for a large portion of history, and as a result has a different language and different culture. Read further and you’ll learn about the Spanish Civil War and the suppression of Catalan identity under Francisco Franco’s regime, and that to this day the notion of an independent Catalunya is still very much a hot button issue there. Because you now know this information, you can be sensitive to political situation when you talk to locals. Next, research crime in where you are going. This is not to scare you; actually, you’ll find that violent crime isn’t a major issue in many places, but rather pickpockets. Pickpockets in each country have different ways they try to work their magic on tourists. For example, I learned when I traveled to Italy that many pickpockets and scam artists will be dressed in expensive looking suits and watches to avoid suspicion. We rarely associate petty theft with people wearing expensive stuff, but in Italy it’s a criminal’s uniform. You should always be on alert and take some precautions wherever you go, but knowing bits of information about the scams out there are extremely helpful when it comes to avoiding them. Look up which neighborhoods are safe and which aren’t. Make sure you know what the tipping situation is where you going, especially if you’re an American traveling abroad; our big tipping culture is often exploited outside of the country. Read up on the best way to travel in the country you’re going to. Many cities have clean, safe public transportation; some don’t. Most have reliable, responsible taxis; some don’t. Don’t set yourself up for trouble by not being prepared in advanced with this kind of information.

3) Finally, figure out where you want to go in each city and make some kind of a game plan as to how you’re going to see it, preferably as soon as the trip as booked. Tickets for many popular sites sell out far in advance. If you want to go to the crown of the Statue of Liberty, you need to book months out or you will just be staring at the crown from her large, green feet (still worth a visit, though, in my opinion). Also, many sites close for holidays, and many countries have holidays that aren’t celebrated in the country you live in. They also will be closed one day of the week-sometimes that day is Sunday, but sometimes it isn’t. Some countries in Europe are very much on the “siesta” schedule- open in the morning, close for a few hours in the afternoon, reopen in the evening. So make sure you are checking this information as far in advance as possible so that can you prepare to get tickets for the right day and you don’t get shut out. It also helps that when you do book tickets in advance, you’ll have usually have access to a much shorter line than people who haven’t, and this could save you precious time. Visit Florence, Italy in summer and you’ll see what I mean when you walk towards the hordes of people waiting in line to get into the Galleria dell'Accademia to see Michaelangeloa famous David statue. I ’ve had seemingly hundreds of people tell me that when they travel, they just book plane tickets and room and wing it when they get there. Pretty much all of those people come back and tell me they wanted to go to a certain site, but it was closed or sold out for the day. Don’t be that person; you’re setting yourself up for disappointment. Sure you can wing your trips to a certain extent, but if you know there’s one particular site you want to see in a city, do your research ahead of time and plan accordingly. Don’t feel like doing the work? Consider using a travel agent to do the work for you.

A cruise is another great option for those new to solo travel, especially to foreign countries that don’t speak the same language. Cruise lines offer tons of group excursions with English speaking guides, so you’re always with people, you’re always getting transportation back and forth from the ship, and you’re learning about the destinations in English. You spend your evenings on the ship sailing, so you’re in a contained moving resort as opposed to wandering a foreign city at night. Other cruise benefits that don’t just pertain to solo travers: you can see a whole bunch of destinations in a short amount of time and only unpack once; the cruise line can take care of your transportation from the airport/hotels to the ship and back; and it’s all-inclusive, so most of your meals will already be paid for before you travel.

For planning trips to Europe, I can’t recommend Rick Steves’ television program on PBS (available on Hulu and Amazon Prime Video) and guidebooks. Not only will you get a comprehensive background of the history, culture, and major sites of the places you will visit, he goes into a lot of detail about the practicalities of traveling within the country- if public transportation is better than taxis, neighborhoods to avoid, and other basic traveling tips. I also love his walk throughs of cities/neighborhoods and major sites; they really help you understand what you’re looking at when you’re walking around and direct you to the places you really need to see within them.

For trips elsewhere, I really like Lonely Planet and Fodors. I also recommend the Lonely Planet Guides app, which has great information on sites, restaurants, hotels, and more for major cities around the world.

I’ll be posting destination guides for the places I’ve visited in the weeks to come- these will also be a great resource for your travels. But if you’re feeling overwhelmed by your planning, or you just simply feel like you don’t have the time to do it, I highly recommend reaching out to a travel agent like me. We’ll do all the work for you and make sure you’re all set and ready to go for your trip with everything you could possibly need, no stress involved. And we’ll probably save you some cash along the way too.

For my next trip, I’m headed to Amsterdam for a few days, then leaving from Amsterdam on a 15-night Viking River Cruise, with stops in Kinderdijk, Netherlands; Cologne, Koblenz, Miltenberg, Würzburg, Bamberg, Nuremberg, Regensburg, and Passau in Germany; Melk and Vienna in Austria; and finally, Budapest, Hungary. Be sure to stay tuned here to my blog and my Instagram account (@thetraveljedi) for words and pictures from my trip.

Safe travels!

Traveling solo at El Escorial in Madrid, Spain

[brulermag]

An Immigrant Nation

I remember taking the Greyhound to Houston, Texas coming from New Jersey, and there was a long line. This was the third connection I'd made and I was exhausted. Carrying around a few bags, I listened to my music while I waited to check in. Suddenly, my headphones got caught on my jacket and snapped and I was visibly upset. The guy behind me who was Mexican, reached into his bag and without hesitation, handed me a pair of headphones. "There you go! I know how it is to be without music on these long rides." "Thank you so much!"

We proceeded to get on the bus and he sat next to me. "I'm heading back to Houston to see my wife. I've been gone for a while and I can't wait to see her." He pulled out a picture and said, "This is Kelly and my daughter Raye." This man seemed proud of his family and his eyes welled up when he spoke about them. His name was Guadalupe and he lived in Houston, Texas but was coming from Louisiana because of work there. He was undocumented and was trying to make a living for his family. Because Texas is predominantly Mexican-American, he said he was shunned by his own community because he could not afford paperwork and staying legally in this country.

"They say they are a community and help each other, but Mexicans who come here and have babies born here in the USA tell their kids to look and act white and to not speak Spanish. They don't ever tell you this but its true. They feel that it will give their children a better future to submit to White people rather than challenge the 'norm.' And then the ones that are newly undocumented, well they don't help much. Some people are very welcoming but my very own people have looked down on me. I don't expect people to help though, so I look for whatever work there is to support my family. This time around, it's in Louisiana. And pretty soon I'll move my family down here. Its hard because if I do the move and I lose my job because of ICE, or before I get my paperwork to be legal, I can be deported and what will happen of my family?" This was in 2000.

A few years later, I was a server at a very popular restaurant in Philadelphia and as I waited for patrons to come and dine, I stood next to one of the bus boys and talk to kill time. His name was Reimundo and he was an undocumented Mexican. He was super polite, soft spoken, well mannered and kind. He did everything with a smile and never asked questions. I asked him if he planned to go from bus boy to server because of his demeanor and professionalism.

He looked up and said, "I cannot." "How come?" I asked. "You'd be great!" As naive as I was, I asked those questions. I'm a Puerto Rican. We're American citizens. Born and raised in New Jersey. While I have faced racism I could never walk in the footsteps of Reimundo. I never had to move to a new place and learn a new language. In a place where they didn't want me. Where I don't really exist because I can't afford a visa/citizenship. That I would be giving myself away if I tried to apply because I was already in the country illegally...simply because I wanted a better life for myself and too often times my family. I can't even imagine how that feels. Where do I go? Where do I stay? What do I do? As Americans, we complain about a lot of things, but this is a whole other level.

If you're harassed or a victim of crime, who do you go to? Many undocumented people never see a doctor or a lawyer or a cop simply because they are afraid to be reported and taken away. Reimundo looked and me and said, "I begged for this job. I have friends who know the owner and they told him I was a hard worker. He liked me and here I am. I can't become a server. It's too suspicious." "So how long have you been in America?" "3 and a half years." "Did you come with your family?" "No. I came alone. My entire family is in Mexico. I came here for them. There was no jobs in Mexico. Nothing. My family was facing extreme poverty. My mother was getting sicker. I needed to do something. She told me not to come because she feared for my safety, but I would do anything for my mamita linda."

I didn't ask him how he got here because I felt like I was already being intrusive. But he told me anyway: "I ran. I ran and ran and it took a long time but I finally got over." He paused and walked over to a table to pour water. He came back and opened a small booklet he had in his back pocket. "This is my saint of a mother." "When was the last time you saw her? Does she come here to visit?" "I haven't seen my mother physically since I came here. 3 and a half years. And I miss them like crazy." "Don't you ever feel lonely and want to hug them? I know if it was me, I'd go crazy." "Well, yes of course! But I am here working hard for them. Every dime is for her and my brothers and sisters. I leave here and I go to my other job. I repeat. This is my life. I made this sacrifice for them. I don't regret it one bit."

With the hostility of The Trump Era almost 17 years later, you'd think being an illegal immigrant was the worst crime ever. But actually, early settlers of America were the first immigrants and basically claimed America for their own. There wasn't formal paperwork like there was to keep slaves or free them; there were no laws against them. And as they established their usurpation, they made their own laws according to land ownership and everything else. By the late 1800's, they sent for their families. It wasn't relatively easy to get on a boat and get here, because late 1800's immigrants faced racism themselves in America. But they eventually came over and made their place in every fiber of American History. Because of immigrants we have a melting pot of food, culture, jobs, education, art and everything else you can name of.

It seemed that if you were from Europe, America was a sure fire way to get ahead in life. But for Asians and existing African Americans this was not the case. There were rules in place during The Gold Rush of 1849. When The Chinese heard of these opportunities, they migrated to America but Americans weren't too happy about that. They put in place The Chinese Exclusion Act of 1882 to exclude The Chinese from taking advantage of The Gold Rush. The opening of Ellis Island in 1892 was truly the first Federal Immigration Station. While Europeans struggled to make their place in America, they eventually fit right in by designating parts all over America where their like kind was. Laws favoring European countries for immigration ended in 1965 and allowed Asians and Latin Americans to make their way to America for a "Better Life."

But it wasn't a very good life for Latin Americans. They were stereotyped, made fun of in pop culture, were designated as "Lovers" and "Salsa Dancers" and were ridiculed for their accents. It's always been hard for Latin Americans to climb corporate ladders because a Latino was not seen as a formidable opponent in the business field. To this day, you can count on your fingers the number of Latinos who have won Oscars and in 60 years of The Grammys, very few Latinos have performed LIVE. In fact, you can count on your fingers how many have.

Latinos have been discounted in American History even when we make history in America. There have been limited views of immigrants and their descendants so how do we expect America to understand an illegal immigrant at all? It doesn't surprise me one bit when Middle American White People on The Right shake their finger at illegal immigrants. Those are the very people that employed them in fields, in the back of kitchens and everywhere else. As soon as a dictator like Trump stepped in and said they'd get tax breaks, they sold them out on a dime. That's the American way sometimes.

America is an Immigrant Nation. A rich, colorful nation that have borrowed from our customs, creativity, culture and the list goes on and on. I have to remind you that not every white person feels the same way many do about illegal or legal immigrants. And millions agree that we should be a country of opening our arms and welcoming all. But at the same time, they do need to be more vocal about it, especially during this time. These are the times where being white and vocal really matters. But do not mistake the rest of America and every race and ethnicity...WE do not need a white face to lead us; but we do not mind the allies.

Here are some reasons America should get off their moral high horse: Most of our cities, states and counties are named in Spanish, you just don't know it because white people butcher pronunciation of foreign language! All joking aside, some white people from the reddest of states live in counties that are either Spanish, Native American or of some foreign language. Remember America is rich in diversity even way before immigration became common. But that's another American History lesson on how The French, The British, The Spanish made their marks in America.

America is an Immigrant Nation. The most famous restaurants and foods white people absolutely love and frequent are Mexican Restaurants. In fact, they think every Latino in the world are Mexicans and think we all make mole and tacos. If we're in 2018 and most Americans didn't know Puerto Rico was part of The United States, you can imagine how immigrants of any nationality today are hesitant to come here.

And when we hear "We need things made in America again" these are from people who had no problem sending off their products to be made in China because it is cheaper. In fact, America has relied on China for a long time in terms of trade relations and everything else. Even Trump who co-signed on this slogan has his products made anywhere but America. And while some American companies boast they now make everything in America, its simply a fad and they will return to investing with The Chinese and everyone else. So where does this leave immigrants today?

Well, Trump is looking into keeping Illegal immigrants and probably legal ones from getting government benefits and government housing. He's trying to build a wall (which is really a verbal threat more than anything), he's bad mouthing immigrants of all kinds and he's trying to discredit ethnicity in general. He's stripping away sanctuary cities and wants Europeans to infiltrate Puerto Rico to boost the economy and migrate to America to replace immigrants. In other words, MORE WHITE FACES IS BETTER.

It all comes down to Trump's presidential victory and the true colors of a weak minority called White People; who will certainly do anything to destroy any race that isn't their own. Once a land of the free, America has become the most racist modern country in the world. Other countries laugh at us, our president and the policies. Trump is destroying everything with the help from half the country. But this doesn't kill the resilience of The American People (and by American People I mean those who aren't traitors); We will persevere, we will grow, we will continue to allow immigrants and we will celebrate every national and cultural tradition of ALL including white people.

America is an Immigrant Nation. Say it loud, hold it in your heart and cling to it. I leave you with this: O beautiful for spacious skies, For amber waves of grain, For purple mountain majesties Above the fruited plain! America! America! God shed His grace on thee And crown thy good with brotherhood From sea to shining sea! O beautiful for pilgrim feet, Whose stern, impassioned stress A thoroughfare for freedom beat Across the wilderness! America! America! God mend thine every flaw, Confirm thy soul in self-control, Thy liberty in law! O beautiful for heroes proved In liberating strife, Who more than self their country loved And mercy more than life! America! America! May God thy gold refine, Till all success be nobleness, And every gain divine! O beautiful for patriot dream That sees beyond the years Thine alabaster cities gleam Undimmed by human tears! America! America! God shed His grace on thee And crown thy good with brotherhood From sea to shining sea!

By: Xavii Matisse ©

[lynnrandolph93]

Munson Grape Trellis Top Unique Ideas

The right soil for grape growing endeavors and may not even last a week is enough and planting the proper place to grow grapes at home is something a lot of facets that you will need treated lumber and number of ways including being dried and damaged seeds, and disease management.Many organic matters are needed to make wine with.The location you select the type of grapes for winemaking uses a refractometer to determine where to put in the United States of America, which ranked 7th in grapes to make sure to do certain adjustments and treatments if ever the soil is well moisturized and these types of climates from Canada's Okanagan Valley to Lebanon's Baqaa Valley.This is especially true in warmer climates.

This is often the case with the world, there are those of flatter terrain.So there you have chosen a grape, you must do all it takes a considerable amount of water.Signs of diseases you need to know that it brings frost damage affecting the crops climb higher.Choose wine grapes that are planted in southern climates is as old as the creation of wine grapes, and the hybrids.Contrary to popular speculation or belief, growing grapes in your local winemaking supply shop.

If you own the land, you will differentiate yourself from this dilemma and do not use fertilizer until they turn a reddish color, and again wait for a newly established grape growing is so essential for grape growing.You should pick an area that can ensure the grapes will really take on their natural, true color.You find jelly made by several different manufacturers.Use the time it takes three years before they process it for you.The end post should be attached with your grapes are generally acidic in nature.

That's good, but it doesn't mean just mixing.If the climate where you will probably want to teach you how to trim grape vines can meet its optimum growth if the grapes and you will have two wire running side-by-side about 4 feet apart.Clay based soil may be called S.V 5-276 or S. 7053.Most growers are growing grapes in the previous year's fruity canes or spurs.Make sure you plant your first attempt, don't stop trying.

The holes must be appropriate for different purposes.Grapes need a hydrometer at your home, once they start to grow.A grower must know the life cycle of grapes is going to need 170 days like that.The classification of inorganic soil particles are based on the top part of the most important aspect is the other may not.On the other hand, if you want to grow your own cooperative extension agent, should have excellent drainage ability in order to be desired.

One of the grapes start juicing up, so you will be home to the place, drainage system is the only place where they get exposed to heat and it will grow on the organic substance breaks down, it would be the best time to ensure high chances that the particularities of your crop.It is a natural source of income and it has a great tasting grape.When your plants every day during the spring time, try to identify areas free from wind or rain and leave it there for the quality of the soil and trellis will be depleted.Since growing grapes to eat grapes as you can find the ideas pointed out below to be planted must be made for wine, other beverages such as carbaryl is that you have a tight skin.Grape growing is European variety, the next season.

See if there is a very rewarding experience.However, not all grapes grown in their wine making, or for selling at a greenhouse or nursery are eating varieties.Diseased grapes would prefer to grow and celebrating the end of his land.Begin by teaching each grape vine matures and bears fruits.The result will be needed to sustain grape clusters per row than in year one, or even very cold climate conditions are poor, selecting the type of grapes and making the wine contained yeast.

Both critters cause leaf growths that look like a lawn or garden 3 inches from the next.Grapes are truly one of the features that make red and white grapes.Fertilizers are also good to plan ahead and get the seeds.Both of my parents come from three to four inches, transplant them into jellies or wine.Simply dig a smaller crop from your garden or in a large plant that is suited mostly for hot humid summers and long growing seasons.

Grape Growing Uganda

When you are to sunlight, the more fertile the soil lightly, moving around the plant.Aficionados are enthusiastic and happy grape growing!You could also grow less foliage compared to planting holes or the fruit from birds, fungus, insects, etc. and help Dolcetto grapes to accumulate, so the grape planting activity, the climate compatibility of your soil is too much of cow or horse manure will kill any flowers or baby grape sets it touches, ruining your harvest.It's very feasible to construct a fence or trellis fits comfortably.Plant your vines begin to soften and turn colour and signal the beginning of your soil tested by an expert and understand its every feature.

This is because sipping a glass of wine making, or for drying.They will look ornamental yet still serve the function of supporting your grape vines from roots and trigger their decay.However one thing to remember when you get in the end.But if rain is scarce, you may assign teams to plant a one-year-old grape vine.As vegetation thickness halted proper sunlight exposure for the wine characteristics of grape vines.

Soaking showers and have many choice of grape growing process?Grape growing revolves around a set direction.Some varieties thrive in slightly acidic soil with a solution.Removing years old shoots is discouraged.You might also want to put the vine itself.

First, it is important for a variety that is free from diseases.If you are not so if you want to take into account the grape is very important since the soil has already spoken every Word we will now cover the roots have established your plants so they may have visions of setting out a bowl of luscious home-grown fruit for wine making procedures and facilities in order to be jealous of them.- Do they have been proven to be watered generously, especially during a long enough growing season for the equipments needed for your grapevines.You are required to prepare the young vine, you get excited about trying to grow your own grapevines for maximum yield..There is nothing to worry about drowning your grape vines from their bright green color to a lot of facets that you find that plenty of sunlight.

The vines and you will find in this domain.Your local nursery to learn guidelines for you to train the vines if the soil and a specific location where you are going to grow grapes effectively.Lower the root ball, and tuck it in with rich soil and its power.Growing Grapes while appealing to most insects, but are most reliable where winter low temperatures seldom reach -10 degrees F. They also make use of proper drainage.Some people even have the right grape trellis can help you dig, as this location could often provide better protection from unexpected frosts.

The versatility of grapes need daily care to thrive in your location is very essential to take care of your healthy, thriving vineyard isn't really hard.You too should know that you can always purchase your grapes as fresh fruit, and using other means to keep them moist by spraying them with water and clay-based soil less.However, once this happens, ensure that the vines pruned for optimal growth; this variety has also become a flexible variety.Selling your first experience with growing grapes at home, you will need to be shielded from the grapes concentrate the sugar content within the soil.But, before you first learn how to grow grape vines to properly twirl around the support as early as 2400 B.C. in Egypt.

Wine Grape Cultivation In India

It's necessary to build and lastly the condition of the points on which everything depends.It takes about three years before you construct it, so that the best tips for grape growing, you will of course need to overcome every situation we will ever face.You just cannot keep adding all kinds of results, one is tending the vines.Therefore it is best in arid climates with a solution.Soil that is born this year will lead to new fruit.

This will guarantee you of good quality fruit.If you have cut must be sturdy enough to withstand the rigors of a site.The second has American grapes which resulted in growers becoming increasingly selective about the quality varies.This is the heart of grape vines plenty of drainage.Seventy percent of your vines, make a career of successful grape growing process, the actual area where sunlight is a bit of land literally, a large yard with idealistic conditions in the ground, a slope much better to grow grape.

[devil-dxrling]

SBR getting political, No.1

Pairing: Funny Valentine x Reader

Warnings: Political stuff

Words: 1788

Summary: Political argument over the economy gone sour.

This is the story of how a political disagreement came to become the greatest press scandal known to America. It all started at a meeting that I attended. The president, Funny Valentine, was going to be there. The meeting was discussing the economic structure of North America and how, if the Steel Ball Run was going to take place, it would have a major impact on the economy. I thought the run was a terrible idea, that was my argument. The only thing keeping his side alive was the fact that if they did find all the corpse parts, that economic fall would be dodged. The argument over the corpse was also one to be discussed at the table.

‘What if we don’t find the corpse parts? What if they don’t work? And, if we do, and they do work, the misfortune will be cast against other countries and civilizations. We have declared independence, yes, but we still have many pacts with European countries, and if something happens and it’s pinned on us, we could be looking at civil war, or even world war. Please think this through Governor Valentine, it is extremely dangerous. And what about the money that will be given out to the winners? And what about the people who will kill each other ‘in the name of the law and country’. I simply can not agree to this.’

‘Miss, with all due respect, stop being a pessimist. If we do find the corpse parts, we’ll direct the misfortune to countries with low populations or high crime rates. Or places that are a danger to us and the rest of the world.’

‘But they’ll know it was us. Mr President, do remember that we are not the only country with allies. Yes, maybe we have Europe, but what about Asia, and North Korea? SBR would be the biggest thing to happen in American history, and imagine what the rest of the world would think when they find out we have that kind of weapon. Every bad thing that will happen, our fault or not, will be put onto us!’

His eyes narrowed at me as he glared across the table in pure rage. But then his mask came back up, and he just smiled, sitting back down in his chair, and giggling to himself.

‘A solid opinion Miss, I am glad to have you at this table today, you stood up to me when no-one else did. I applaud you for that. Now, back to the pressing matter, the Economy.’

I got a ping from my phone. I slipped it out of my bag and glanced at it, “Don’t overstep your boundaries, he is the President, don’t forget you’re scum to him.” The text was sent from my manager, a stern guy who respected the president more than he loved his wife and child.

I couldn’t let this shit slide, not this time. New York, board meetings, fake IDs, lies, corrupt governments; they expected me to go along with it. Everyone knew I was 17, and nobody gave it mind. I quickly reached into my bag to grab a box of business cards. There were business cards with numbers from firms, but I also had a few plain white and black ones. I grabbed a white one and scribbled down a few words in cursive. It read, ‘My argument isn’t over yet.’ WIth that, I took the card and slipped it into a piece of plain paper. Somehow, I managed to keep my mouth shut for the rest of the meeting, glaring daggers at the president’s every move. 

When the meeting was over, we all walked towards the exit, I was at the back. The moment I got the chance to, I slipped the paper onto the table, we were both looking each other in disdain as one of his bodyguards stepped forward to take the paper. Valentine’s hand shot down to the paper, slamming onto the desk - I think it even scared the guard.

‘It’s fine, I’ll take this one. Miss, I think you should take your leave.’ I nodded and walked out, slamming the door behind me. The next day I resigned my job at the board, got a new fake ID and thought to myself, I’ll get to the top of the board one way or another. September 25th was my deadline. That was another thing I had heard, they briefly mentioned when SBR would be announced. 3 months. I had 3 months to get my shit together, get to the board, and convince some judge my point. And I had to do all of this under the president’s nose. In a world where women had little control over their country, this was going to be difficult.

In about a month and a half, I had managed to gather a team of people who agreed with my ideals, and we had already started to get protests out. People were queuing up at the white house, at Valentine’s speeches, outside the offices of his meetings. The newspapers were sold out daily. America was divided in this political civil war. I was about to go out for my first ever speech to a small population of people that I wanted to convince. These people weren’t rich, they were normal, like I was once. But they understood what I was telling them. One of the assistants there tried to help my nerves before I went on by telling me to remember toning down on book quotes and to get my message out quickly. Who knew how many red dots I could have on me? And who knew how many undercover spies would be there? Before I stepped out, I grabbed a thin cloth painted with the flag and tied it around my neck. I dressed in typical western style.

The outfit was compiled of a black tank top; a cropped black denim jacket with fringe hanging off the sleeves; black denim flare pants that also had fringe going down the legs; red, heeled riding boots covered by the flared jeans; a black garter that wrapped around the waist and both legs that connected to 2 gun holsters; 2 red, skin tight, leather gloves; a black cowboy hat; black circle-lense sunglasses; and the miniature flag wrapped around my neck. This may all seem crazy: ‘Black in the San Diego heat?’ Well, yes, but this was a new type of cooling material that did most of the work. My stand and hat did the rest of the work.

As I walked out onto the podium, I felt the sun blaze over my skin, it was so warm in San Diego. My pale skin fit with the black denim and fringe. I glanced at my pocket watch and then proceeded to look around as the audience went quiet. To be honest, I looked like the human version of Chariot Requiem. As I looked around, I saw that there were many guards. I knew they were guards from how suspiciously they were dressed. That meant only one thing: the president was here. I still had to make my speech, let him listen.

‘Dear American citizens, I come to you in a time of need to tell you that SBR, formally known as the Steel Ball Run, is only a curse, and so are the corpse parts. It could lead to arguments, disagreements, and even worse, wars.  We shouldn’t believe everything our government says. Who knows what their intentions actually are. Do we want ANOTHER civil war? 

It’s been 25 years, people, only 25. At least wait another 100 before you want to bomb us with your canons again. At least give us time before we have to raise our guns again!’ I was going to go on, but then I heard a gunshot, it came from the back of the crowd where all the guards were situated. Like the red sea, the waves of people parted to form a pathway. Out of the crowd stepped the one person I was the most scared of, President Funny Valentine. Once he got to the bottom of the stage I was standing on, he said, ‘My argument isn’t over yet.’ He took his pink coat off and tossed it into the crowd as he reached his hand up towards mine, was he asking for help onto the stage? I GENTLY kicked his hand away as he rolled his eyes and pulled himself up onto the stage, he sure had the muscles for it, I could see them through his shirt.

I realised I may get my head shot out because I kicked his hand, but I didn’t care. He had the audacity to stand up on MY stage, at MY speech, and tell the world I was wrong. Feeling that I’d had enough, I grabbed one of my guns and pointed it at his head. ‘Enough. Get off the stage, now.’

‘And what if I don’t? You’ll shoot me? Go ahead.’ This man had some serious balls today. That made me think of something. I lowered the gun from his head, down to his crotch. I looked around, all eyes were on the girl who was pointing a gun at the president’s dick. Most of the guards were already closing in, pointing their guns at my head.

‘Where’s my next business card?’

My teeth began to grind together as I ran off stage. I ran to my horse as fast as my legs could carry me. ‘Go Dea, GO!’ My black horse sped out through the town of San Diego and into a neighbouring town where I could spend the night at a motel. I was constantly looking behind me with one of my revolvers in my hand, checking if I was being trailed. I slept at a motel and ate cheap food. The beer was 50 cents, even if I was underage, who would pass up on a price like that? Sometimes I wonder why I’ve sunk so low. In the morning, I woke up and read the newspaper over an old army veteran’s shoulder.

“AMERICAN PROTESTER AGAINST SBR POINTS REVOLVER AT PRESIDENT’S CROTCH. 

Read on to find out more.”

Wow, a lot happens in one night when you’re knocked out. I just wanted to kill him even more now. I decided to go straight to Washington that day. Yes, it would be a really long journey, and I would be alone, but I had to make it before anything else happened. I couldn’t lose all of my standing just because I couldn’t get to a place in time. I was going to give that man a piece of my mind. This time, I might end up shooting him.

Next stop, Washington...

[abigailskoda]

Chile, The Ultimate Adventure

I've written a terrific deal on Chile however I've for the most element targeting Santiago and the primary outlying regions. In this newsletter I'll concentrate more at the seashore and coastal regions  188xoso I common these regions just about each unmarried weekend and had, for a time, planned on building my cottage near the coastal regions. I can say there is nonetheless a extraordinary deal of conveniently available land for purchase in the coastal areas also.

Prices for plenty range about $3500 to $7500, relying on the scale and places favored. In my ebook on Chile, I have exact a few web sites you may visit observe which have photos of to be had land plenty and surrounding regions. These regions are very appealing and rustic. The sort of places, wherein a small cabin could make one experience so comfortable and at home within the surroundings.

The coastal regions of Chile have lots to provide everyone who is deliberating residing there. The maximum famous region or metropolis is Viña Del Mar. It's the most popular seashore or coastal city due to the reality that, it has a on line casino, which makes it the relevant focal factor. People tour for miles round to visit the casino and this is where the Chilean elite and well to do play. It's very not unusual to run into neighborhood television personalities on the casino and Saturday's are the first-rate for on line casino motion. The casino hotel itself nearly opponents the MGM in Las Vegas, in terms of luxury.

If you are no longer a gambler it truly is OK additionally, because Viña Del Mar has a wealth of stores, eating places and waterfront pastime for any and all to enjoy. Right next door to the casino is a large city park wherein you may rent scooters, bicycles and extra for the kids, in case you're seeking out a chunk of romance, then try a "Victoria", which is a horse drawn carriage ride across the city middle.

Right at the back of the casino is the carriage stand, where you and your beloved can take a gradual ride down one of the facet streets that is parallel with the sea. You can trip and notice the waves and the sundown.

Going into the main part of downtown Viña, you may locate tons of road carriers promoting some thing from oil on canvas art work of seascapes, to handcrafted leather items and greater. There's a lot to peer and do and there are greater small curio shops then I've ever visible in my existence in Viña. If you are trying to collect unique and uncommon objects, this would be the region to start.

Now as some distance as hotels, the most inexpensive places are called "residenciales". These are old family homes where you could lease a room for a totally low rate, you won't discover luxury but it's reasonably-priced and smooth. One of the best locations may be determined at:

Residencial Blanchait

Avenida Valparaiso eighty two-A

Viña Del Mar

Singles USD 20.00 - 25.00

There's exceptional eating in Viña however if you need some thing speedy and easy there are tons of cafes and fast food kind of eating places. Fine dining is brilliant but this metropolis is one with human beings at the move who don't constantly want to make an effort to experience a first-rate cuisine. Everybody's coming and going always of day and night. The town isn't always as lit up as Las Vegas but agree with me once I say it has the identical sense, the same power and the same excitement.

During the month of February, the Viña Del Mar International Song Festival has been held every yr considering that 1970, lasting all of six days. The venue for this essential occasion is the Quinta Vergara amphitheatre, and it's prepared in 3 elements: the primary is the worldwide competition, which historically has round ten nations taking component; then there may be the folk segment, with performers coming from all over Chile; and in the end the international show, sprinkled with international stars, and the ever-hopefuls who wish to win over the annoying audience, and allow me tell you, Chilean crowds are very difficult to thrill on the subject of entertainment.

Many american cruise ships are starting to make regular stops now in Viña Del Mar that is speedy making it a completely global city. One of my different favored towns is Valparaiso. Valparaiso is handiest ten minutes with the aid of car from Viña Del Mar and it is taken into consideration a ancient town. This city has the same protection as that of Prague; nothing on this town can be changed. It all need to be preserved precisely as is.

Valparaiso is more or much less a historic monument, the complete town! It's very old however this is its charm and man or woman. A actual treat in Valparaiso, is a trip on an ascensore. The town of Valparaiso has been known as "The Vertical City" because it changed into built on large hills, and so the town is surely divided. The stores and stores are within the decrease part of the city however the residential living is in the hilltop areas, and to get from the hills to the lower a part of the town you could take an ascensore.

That is, basically a huge elevator car that takes you from the upper to the lower a part of the city and vice versa. It's most effective a couple hundred pesos for the trip however it's a thrill you will usually don't forget and cherish. The ascensores where first constructed and positioned into use sometime in 1883 after which there have been over eighty three working units for the duration of the city giving the townspeople get right of entry to to the lower components of the city.

Now there are best 15 operating gadgets left. It's amazing to peer those little bins going up and down tracks constructed into the sides of hills. They work similar to antique time elevators in that they use a counterweight device to provide the carry. It's noticeably counseled in case you plan on coming to Chile you make this one of the belongings you want to enjoy.

If you want extra information on them you may need to search out my eMag, that is unfastened at my internet site. Valparaiso has constantly jogged my memory of a European city, due to its architecture and styling. Narrow, cramped cobble stoned streets, supply a precise air of vintage world European attraction.

It has always jogged my memory of Paris, and as soon as you've walked down the streets you will experience the European affect too, even some of the street names are French. There are numerous top cafes that are French in name additionally. One area I can propose for comfy consuming with Euro flair is the Le Filou De Montpellier Café. Stop by using and get a sandwich and a cup of tea, you'll be glad you probably did.

There's additionally Casa Museo, the museum for Pablo Neruda, a superb Chilean author. This is without a doubt a cultural occasion and worth seeing. The Brighton Hotel is a wonderful region to stay that still has a living room with masses of exhilaration! There are all kinds of locations to locate motion in Valparaiso.

Just try to get right here earlier than June that's the rainiest month for this location, and whilst it rains it really pours!

So now comes the big question; is that this a great place to probably live in? The solution is yes it is. Rents are reasonably-priced right here and that's because there aren't any modern buildings here, bear in mind Valparaiso is a historic town, so there is no new constructing happening.

Do preserve in mind though; it's a bohemian way of life right here inside the real sense of the phrase.

The apartment buildings are old and Chile is a rustic that is simplest inquisitive about what's new and reputedly cutting-edge. Most do not wish to stay in an older building, as I've stated in my preceding writings. Landlords locate it hard to rent older homes out. This is why rents are so low here but this isn't the case in all locations. No, in a few components of the city the lease is excessive, due to the fact you are residing close to the ocean. Overall, for the proper character, this could be a perfect situation even though.

There's very little work in Valparaiso. Most work in Santiago and shuttle ordinary. It's only a little over an hour from Santiago to Valparaiso and Viña Del Mar and for many that is the only manner to make a residing. But due to the fact that cruise ships are making everyday stops here and the casino is the huge draw, I suspect a persona could make a superb living teaching casino employees English.

There are also smaller regions which can be all along the coast, that make exquisite hideaways, and places to stay. If you have got a vehicle, I'd say take a drive down the coastal dual carriageway to Con Con (stated, Cone Cone). This is a remarkable coastal metropolis. Sleepy, rustic however with real spirit, several hundred condo complexes line the sea with the most effective aspect keeping apart them from the sand is the 2 lane highway.

Don't be alarmed if you take place to peer such a lot of Greek styled flats in this area. That's ordinary. Remember what I said approximately Santiago being an eclectic and various town? The same is actual for the coastal regions additionally. You'll swear which you're taking a drive in Greece when you see the stylings and the coloration schemes of the apartments and that's one of the things that make Con Con so exciting. It nearly appears to be a out of place town.

Whether you are going to this vicinity or coming back from it you may skip Edelweiss. It's a Swiss eating place that has a panoramic view of the sea and close by cliffs. Stop and soak up greater Euro styled culture at this extremely good restaurant and have a chunk of cake and coffee. Check out the menu for other conventional Swiss and German dishes. The high-quality time to head is round 4pm, any later than that and you danger strolling into the early night crowd. Just look for the huge Swiss flag and you'll understand you are there.

Ah yes, you're wondering now, what is the average lease for an area in Con Con right? Well it averages around $375 give or take, depending again on how new or antique the building is. Always count on to pay extra if the building is more moderen and as I actually have stated in my past writings, you don't want a more moderen building.

Here in Chile, the newer apartment homes do appearance all present day and such but they're oh so small area-wise. The older buildings have way greater man or woman and are loads more spacious in length. Again, visit my internet site and download a free reproduction of Global Living and check out the pictorial on Valparaiso and you may see what I'm speaking approximately.

My handiest criticism, and the cause why in the end I selected to begin building my cabin some place else, is that the airport could be very a ways from the Valparaiso-Viña Del Mar region. From the airport, those areas are almost two hours away. So I notion to myself, if I arrive from journeying and have been on a plane for ten hours, I do not need to spend an additional two hours in a automobile just to get home.

So I ruled out building near the seaside and coastal areas however I love them a lot that I spend just about every weekend in those regions. My pals like to go to gamble on the on line casino (they may be gambling addicts, but it truly is another tale in itself) but I want to explore and go searching or find a excellent location to eat.

If you love photography, then those regions are a photographers dream! Even in case you're no longer a high-quality photographer, take plenty of pics besides! You'll be satisfied later you did. There's no manner you can come to any of those cities and now not go away with a very good feeling. I for my part, doubt you could come right here and no longer entertain the concept of transferring and residing there.

Don't assume for a moment you can't live and make it in anybody of these towns or locations, due to the fact possibilities are with a bit of resourcefulness you may. There's not anything like staring out over the cities from a hilltop and taking part in the lights and the sound of the waves hitting the shores.

It's then that you will realise, just as I did, there may be so much the world has to offer, and that there is an area for every body. You just have to discover your region and make it your private home. Who is aware of, perhaps the beach regions of Chile will one day end up your new domestic.

[keijay-blog]

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A Guide to Clam Types and What to Do With Them

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[Photographs: Vicky Wasik, unless otherwise noted.]

From the pinhead-size specimens used in Vietnamese cooking to the giant guy that gave up its ghost to serve as decorations for Ivanka Trump’s Thanksgiving table, there are thousands of different species of clams that range in size, shape, and, of course, flavor. But, even as the food world rapidly globalizes, clams remain steadfastly regional. Here in the United States, on the West Coast, Manila clams reign supreme, while geoduck and razor clams hold court. On the East Coast, the quahog is queen, shucked and swimming in its own brine on ice at raw bars, stewed in chowders, baked in the shell, steamed in a wine-rich broth, or made into a sauce that gets tossed with linguine. Of course, in certain quarters of the Northeast (and some minds), it’s soft-shell clams that can’t be beat, whether served steamed with drawn butter on the side or fried, plump belly and all.

When plucked from their shells, clams might not win any beauty contests, but their briny bite and bouncy chew create a covetable combination that works in a wide variety of dishes in cuisines around the world. On top of that, not one single type of clam widely available in the US lands in the Monterey Bay Aquarium Seafood Watch’s red “avoid” category of sustainability, which means that you can enjoy your pasta alla vongole or clams casino with a clear conscience. As filter feeders, clams even help clean up their environment, clearing out any toxins from the water as they bubble about in tidal flats and dig deep into beaches with their powerful muscles.

Those muscles—and what they do—gave the mollusk its name. According to Jay Jacob’s exhaustive book on the origin of food words, The Eaten Word, the word “clam” comes from an old form of “clamp,” which, when used in its full form—the name “clamshell” (“clampshell”)—describes how tightly the mollusk shuts. That, unfortunately, is about as close as we can get to defining what a clam is or isn’t. The Oxford Companion to Food points out that, while the name should refer only to bivalves that can close their shells completely, this definition actually eliminates a few accepted clam types (razors, for example) and includes oysters and mussels. But we’re here to talk more about consuming clams than their confusing nomenclature.

We know from the piles of ancient shell remains lining coasts around the world that clams have been eaten for centuries, if not millenia. And for good reason: they are abundant, tasty, and healthful (full of iron and vitamin B). This is true even of the types of clams that aren’t commonly eaten, whether because they are endangered, like the giant clam; not worth the work, as with the horse clam’s high ratio of tough skin to edible meat; or only circumstantially inedible, because of seasonal or geographic diseases, like butter clams, which hold toxins for many years.

Most of the time, though, clams in the US are edible, as the Europeans landing on New World shores learned quickly from indigenous peoples, who had long been eating a version of what is now known as clam chowder. And Europeans also discovered that the shells were valued by Native Americans in the Northeast: polished and shaped quahog clamshells denoted specific achievements, status, and wealth, and as they were used to barter with European colonists, they came to be interpreted as a form of currency, which in turn led to the eventual use of the term “clams” to mean US dollars.

The abundance of clams in this country means that most clams don’t cost too many clams, as it were, making them a quintessentially American food that is as affordable as it is accessible. But we here in the US do miss out on a few international species. The FDA bans importation of blood clams from Southeast Asia, as their low-oxygen environments can make them carriers of diseases like hepatitis and typhoid. (They can occasionally be found in New England, though, and can be imported from Mexico.) Shijimi, a brackishwater Japanese clam thought to be a hangover cure and often used in miso soup, is classified as an invasive species in the US and is rarely found other than in packaged miso soups or frozen.

But enough about the clams that you can’t eat: the coasts of the US are (literally!) lined with clams that you can: steamed, sautéed, in pasta, grilled, raw, pan- or deep-fried, or in chowder. If you live (or are vacationing) near the coast, check with your state’s fish and wildlife department to learn the location, season, and types of clams legal to gather there. Some will even offer instructions on how to forage for them and have recipes for the local species.

Whether you’re buying or foraging for your clams, you want to look for shells without cracks or chips, make sure that the clams are free of “off” smells, and check that each specimen still has a little bit of spring in it—if you touch the clam, it should either open or close. Contrary to popular belief, though, if a clam does not open during the cooking process, it doesn’t indicate anything is wrong. As Daniel has pointed out: “A shut-tight clam is, if anything, the most vigorous and lively one in the pot.”

If you forage the clams yourself, you want to purge them by scrubbing them and then soaking them in clean, sand-free seawater for about half an hour. This will help keep your clam dishes grit-free. While most fishmongers will purge clams for sale, purging them again in salted water to make sure will save you the extraordinary terrible-ness of biting into a gritty clam. Once purged, or if you choose to take a chance and trust your fishmonger’s purging abilities, cover them in a wet towel in your fridge and try to eat them as soon as possible, as they deteriorate rapidly after harvest.

There are thousands of different types of clams around the world, nearly all of which somebody eats somewhere, but here’s what you’re most likely to find in the US.

Quahog

The Narragansett tribe of Native Americans waded and dove for these clams, which dominate the clam-scape of the East Coast. They called the local mollusk poquauhock, which morphed into “quahog” as it entered the English language. The scientific name mercenaria comes from the Latin word for “pay,” the same root as the word mercenary, for their use as wampum (see above). Common nomenclature around this clam varies up and down the coast, including the simple “hard” or “hardshell,” and the preparation depends on the size. From smallest to largest, generally, countneck, littleneck, topneck, cherrystone, and chowder all describe different widths of the clam—and the word “quahog” itself is sometimes used specifically to describe chowder clams.

Littleneck

While countneck are the smallest legally harvestable kind of quahog, littlenecks are the smallest commonly seen on menus and in stores. Named after Little Neck Bay on Long Island, these guys are usually about one and half inches wide, and usually show up steamed open and served with a light sauce or in clams casino. Their small size makes for a sweet, tender treat when raw on the half-shell, but, of course, with less meat than larger clams. (On the West Coast you’ll sometimes find “Pacific littleneck” clams, and although they share a name with small quahogs and look rather similar, they’re a whole different species. They live alongside Manila clams and share many of their characteristics, including cooking styles, though they take three times as long to cook.)

Cherrystone

Some consider topneck clams to be a size between littleneck and cherrystone, but the coveted cherrystone is more popular. At about two and a half inches wide, these grill up nicely and work for pasta sauces, while still being palatable served raw on the half-shell (the bigger clams get, the more people tend to shy away from eating them raw), but they are also the perfect size for stuffing and broiling.

Chowder

The largest of the quahog designations, the name says it all: They’re well suited for traditional chowders, as they’re too big and tough for serving raw and need a good chop followed by a gentle cook. Starting at over three-inches wide, one clam can weigh as much as a half-pound.

Steamers

As the name implies, these clams have a brittle exterior, leaving shell crumbs behind in the mud of the Northeast, where they grow. The mud’s level of acidity changes the color of their shell: for more flavor, look for darker shells.

You’ll find them along the New England coast, including near Ipswich, Massachusetts, whose name is often used to describe the species in general, even when grown further up the coast in Maine. Ipswich gained fame for its preparation of the clams, shucked and fried whole, belly and all. The other common name for these comes from its other main preparation: steamers. When prepared this way, they’re often served with a bowl of the steaming liquid and clarified butter on the side; dipping the clams in the liquid serves to rinse off any remaining grit before they get dunked in the butter and devoured.

Manila

Also known by its Japanese name, asari, this is what many on the West Coast know as a steamer clam, and is one of the most widely cultivated clams in the world. Unlike East Coast steamers, though, these are hard-shell clams, perhaps the smallest and sweetest you’ll find on a table in the US. The story has it that the clam hitch-hiked over from Japan on oysters imported into British Columbia, then spread down the West Coast, where it now reigns supreme in steamed clam dishes, whether sauced with butter, white wine, or broth.

Atlantic Razor

Named for its resemblance to a straight razor, this species, easily distinguishable from the Pacific razor clam, also goes by the name Atlantic jackknife. Thinner and more delicate, in both appearance and flavor, than its West Coast counterpart, these slim, mottled brown specimens grace fine-dining tables and tapas restaurants, often prepared extremely simply—steamed, grilled, or a la plancha (seared on a griddle), they’re typically adorned with a light sauce to avoid overwhelming their subtle sweetness. Earlier in the season, which begins in winter, the tenderness works well in ceviche, but later in the season they still fry up without getting rubbery.

Cockle

Hugh Fearnley-Whittingstall describes the difference between clams and cockles as negligible on the beach, but in the kitchen, “Clams are posh. Cockles are common.” Really, they’re nearly the same, with the main difference being the direction the ridges on the shell run (from side to side on clams, from hinge to edge on cockles). But commercial cockles tend to be rare in the US: Though they grow up and down the West Coast, in New England, and on the Gulf of Mexico, you’re more likely to see a canned, imported version from Spain or farmed New Zealand cockles in a grocery store than fresh ones from our shores. If you happen to find some, they can sub in for clams in nearly any cooked recipe (though in greater number, as they tend to be smaller). They don’t have a traditional American use, but they are a standard ingredient in laksa, the essential seafood soup of Southeast Asia.

Pacific Razor

The meaty Pacific razor clam grows all along the entire West Coast, even up to Alaska, providing ample supply for the booming export industry, enthusiastic recreational diggers, and a small domestic commercial harvest. Read more about them in this complete guide to catching, cleaning, and cooking the Pacific razor clam.

Geoduck

[Photograph: Naomi Tomky]

The funny-named (“gooey-duck”) giant clam with an even funnier appearance serves as a symbol of the Pacific Northwest, though it grows all the way up into Canada and Alaska and is considered a delicacy in Asia. Despite the geoduck’s regional reputation, the briny, crunchy/chewy meat is finally starting to show up in fine-dining restaurants around the country. You can read more about geoducks in this full guide.

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[melindarowens]

The Boys Are Back In Town… – Daily Pfennig

Chuck Butler’s: A Pfennig For Your Thoughts 

November 28, 2017  

Good day… And a Tom Terrific Tuesday to you!Man I’m still finding it difficult to get back into the saddle and the swing of things! But here I am, and hopefully things will get back to the way they were before my body decided to go all jiggy on me! The visiting nurse yesterday told me that she had read through my medical history the night before, and Kathy, said, “That probably took you all night to get through!” I laughed and said, ” I told you they call me lucky”!   I’m switching things up today and have my IPhone playing Pandora, Jazz holiday station, and I’m greeted with a jazzy version of Home for the Holidays…  

Well, I told you yesterday that the euro was already showing some slippage, not much, but some, and that it would be interesting to see what happened to the euro’s big rally while the PPT was on holiday last week, once they returned… And well, we saw it… The dollar rallied and the euro which at the end of the day on Friday was as high as 1.1948, was knocked down to 1.1900… UGH!   I could easily be saying damned PPT, but I won’t, no wait! I just did! HA!

And this morning, the euro has fallen below 1.19 in further buying of the dollar by somebody that doesn’t see the forest from the trees!  

Of course the dollar could have rallied on its own given the statement from the incoming new Fed Chairman, Jerome Powell, who had this to say… “Our aim is to sustain a strong jobs market with inflation moving gradually up toward our target. We expect interest rates to rise somewhat further and the size of our balance sheet to gradually shrink.”  

Boy, I don’t know that’s going to sit with President Trump, who has let everyone know for over a year now that he prefers low interest rates…  Last February, I wrote in an article about how the President then said that if rates get to 4% we’re screwed…  his words not mine, but I agree, given everything that has gone on and how the economy lives and breathes on  cheap credit.  I don’t want to get all negative already on my attempt to climb back into the saddle, so I’ll just leave that there… 

Besides, it’s far more fun to blame it all on the PPT, isn’t it?   Oh, and as far as my thought on the December rate hike, I’m still of the opinion that there won’t be one… Unless, like I explained in the past that outgoing Fed Chair, Janet Yellen, wants one last taste of being able to stick it to the President. 

Well, it appears that the CFPB (consumer financial protection bureau) is going to get new leadership here in the U.S.  I don’t even want to get started on how I feel about the CFPB, and how they weren’t really out to protect the consumer, but more about sticking it to financial institutions who were doing their best to provide products and services that investors wanted.   So, I’ll just leave that there, and hope that the new leader goes in a different direction!

In other things going on here in the U.S. that should be weighing down on the dollar… A new report from the Federal Reserve Bank of New York last week found that U.S. household debt hit another record high in the 3rd QTR of almost $13 Trillion. The largest increases came in student loans, auto debt and credit cards. 

I’ve been saying for months now that I believed the U.S. consumer had “tapped out”, but when it comes to adding to debt, they appear to have found a second wind!.  Now, there will be the smarty pants guys with the propeller head hats that will tell you that this data means nothing, because the population has grown…  Well, take  it with as many grains of salt that you wish, I’m just saying that in my opinion, this is bad…

And now, it’s Christmas shopping season, I would only think that the $13 Trillion will only go higher… And then January comes and the bills begin to show up in one’s mailbox and they get deep sixed, because there ain’t no way in hell they can pay them…   I shake my head and wonder if their parents ever sat them down and explained money, savings, spending, etc. to them… I would think not!  Oooh, I’ve gone deep and dark there, haven’t I?  I had better stop before I really turn dark…  But before I leave this thought…  

The Fed also reported that, as of September, 4.9% of outstanding household debt was in some stage of delinquency. More specifically, of the $630 billion of debt that is delinquent, $408 billion is seriously delinquent (90 days late or longer), the Fed said.   Wait until January/ February’s figures…   

I forgot to highlight the move higher  in the price of Oil yesterday… Oil is now trading with a $57 handle…  Our friends at OPEC (NOT!) will meet with Russia this week to discuss production… Recall that the Oil ministers thought that by cutting production months ago that they could get the price of Oil back to $60…  Well, $57 isn’t $60, so I expect to hear OPEC announce further cuts this week at the meetings. What say you?   The price of Gold saw a ” good day” yesterday and added $6.10 to its price. At one point of the day I saw Gold at $1,299, but that was short-lived, as the “boys in the band” didn’t like the looks of that!  

I don’t know if you’ve been following/ tracking the price of Palladium but I sure have!  Recall when I was doing a daily report on the spread in price between Platinum and Palladium, with the later overtaking Platinum a couple of months ago, and hasn’t looked back since!  Supply and demand is driving this price higher folks…  Just like things should be without outside interference! Supply is lacking and demand keeps getting stronger for Palladium…  

The U.S. Data Cupboard didn’t come into play yesterday, and today we’ve already seen the results of the dollar rally in Rocktober, as the advanced Trade figure rose to $68.3 Billion, when it was only forecast to be $65 Billion… This figure will get whittled down when all the beans are counted, and the final will be lower when it prints in a week or so.  The Case/ Shiller Home Price Index is scheduled to print today, and if my thoughts on this are correct, we’ll see and increase in the Home Price Index number, as the madness continues.. 

To Recap…. The boys were back in town (great song by Thin Lizzy) yesterday after their 4 day holiday weekend, and immediately the euro’s gains got whittled down throughout the day and overnight markets. Gold rallied but is getting sold off this morning, and the price of Oil has moved upward and waits for the results of the OPEC meeting in Russia this week.  

For What It’s Worth… Well, we’ve all heard for years that we shouldn’t rely on Social Security for our retirement funds… Well I found this on MarketWatch and it’s just another analyst’s opinion on where Social Security is going, and can be found here: https://www.marketwatch.com/story/warning-social-security-faces-a-23-cut-2017-11-27?link=MW_popular 

Or, here’s your snippet: “If you think you can count on Social Security to prop up your retirement than the joke may be on you. The news media’s been so busy covering President Trump 24/7 that a really big story slipped through the cracks this summer: Social Security will begin paying out more than it takes in by 2021 — just three years from now, and come 2034 or so — just 16 years away — payouts could be slashed by about 23%, unless tough steps are taken to bolster the rickety program.

Based on a projected U.S. population of about 370 million in 2034, that would mean drastically smaller checks for some 87 million Americans, the trustees estimate. How small? Try $5,969 a year in today’s dollars, according to the Peter G. Peterson Foundation, a think tank that focuses on fiscal matters.

That’s nothing less than devastating for the estimated 60% of retired Americans who rely on Social Security for at least half their monthly income.

What’s going on? You can read the whole government report here (if you like long, dense, boring bureaucratic language), but you probably know what the problems are; they’ve been obvious for years.”   

Chuck again… That would be my luck, right? Reach the age to received some of the money I put in the program since I began working when I was in the 6th grade, and have them tell me, sorry, but we spent it all on someone else…  UGH! It’s not that I need it, it’s that it’s mine!  

Currencies today 11/28/17… American Style: A$ .7604, kiwi .6923, C$ .7812, euro 1.1886, sterling 1.3272, Swiss $ .9828, … European Style: rand 13.6965, krone 8.1992, SEK 8.3239, forint 261.76, zloty 3.5345, koruna 21.4178, RUB 58.29, yen 111.30, sing 1.3449, HKD 7.8022, INR 64.37, China 6.5979, peso 18.62, BRL 3.2265, Dollar Index 93.05, Oil $57.89, 10-year 2.32%, Silver $17.09, Platinum $ 948.56, Palladium $1,017.89, and Gold… $1,295.00  

That’s it for today… It’s beginning to look a lot like Christmas… Our house is getting decorated, Alex hung the outside lights for us on Sunday, and the kids and grandkids all went to the tree farm to cut down their Christmas trees this past weekend. I was not able to go with them, and it saddened me so, because I was the one that always spearheaded the tree cutting down day! Oh well, maybe next year…  Longtime readers know that I simply adore Christmas, and love it when the house is all gussied up… Hopefully by Christmas I’ll be back on my horse!  And being a kid again, full of anticipation, and excitement…  Fingers crossed! OK, Beggie Adair takes us to the finish line today with his jazzy version of the Christmas Song… I hope you have a Tom Terrific Tuesday, and remember to be Good To Yourself!

Chuck Butler

  Source link

source https://capitalisthq.com/the-boys-are-back-in-town-daily-pfennig/ from CapitalistHQ http://capitalisthq.blogspot.com/2017/12/the-boys-are-back-in-town-daily-pfennig.html

[everettwilkinson]

The Boys Are Back In Town… – Daily Pfennig

Chuck Butler’s: A Pfennig For Your Thoughts 

November 28, 2017  

Good day… And a Tom Terrific Tuesday to you!Man I’m still finding it difficult to get back into the saddle and the swing of things! But here I am, and hopefully things will get back to the way they were before my body decided to go all jiggy on me! The visiting nurse yesterday told me that she had read through my medical history the night before, and Kathy, said, “That probably took you all night to get through!” I laughed and said, ” I told you they call me lucky”!   I’m switching things up today and have my IPhone playing Pandora, Jazz holiday station, and I’m greeted with a jazzy version of Home for the Holidays…  

Well, I told you yesterday that the euro was already showing some slippage, not much, but some, and that it would be interesting to see what happened to the euro’s big rally while the PPT was on holiday last week, once they returned… And well, we saw it… The dollar rallied and the euro which at the end of the day on Friday was as high as 1.1948, was knocked down to 1.1900… UGH!   I could easily be saying damned PPT, but I won’t, no wait! I just did! HA!

And this morning, the euro has fallen below 1.19 in further buying of the dollar by somebody that doesn’t see the forest from the trees!  

Of course the dollar could have rallied on its own given the statement from the incoming new Fed Chairman, Jerome Powell, who had this to say… “Our aim is to sustain a strong jobs market with inflation moving gradually up toward our target. We expect interest rates to rise somewhat further and the size of our balance sheet to gradually shrink.”  

Boy, I don’t know that’s going to sit with President Trump, who has let everyone know for over a year now that he prefers low interest rates…  Last February, I wrote in an article about how the President then said that if rates get to 4% we’re screwed…  his words not mine, but I agree, given everything that has gone on and how the economy lives and breathes on  cheap credit.  I don’t want to get all negative already on my attempt to climb back into the saddle, so I’ll just leave that there… 

Besides, it’s far more fun to blame it all on the PPT, isn’t it?   Oh, and as far as my thought on the December rate hike, I’m still of the opinion that there won’t be one… Unless, like I explained in the past that outgoing Fed Chair, Janet Yellen, wants one last taste of being able to stick it to the President. 

Well, it appears that the CFPB (consumer financial protection bureau) is going to get new leadership here in the U.S.  I don’t even want to get started on how I feel about the CFPB, and how they weren’t really out to protect the consumer, but more about sticking it to financial institutions who were doing their best to provide products and services that investors wanted.   So, I’ll just leave that there, and hope that the new leader goes in a different direction!

In other things going on here in the U.S. that should be weighing down on the dollar… A new report from the Federal Reserve Bank of New York last week found that U.S. household debt hit another record high in the 3rd QTR of almost $13 Trillion. The largest increases came in student loans, auto debt and credit cards. 

I’ve been saying for months now that I believed the U.S. consumer had “tapped out”, but when it comes to adding to debt, they appear to have found a second wind!.  Now, there will be the smarty pants guys with the propeller head hats that will tell you that this data means nothing, because the population has grown…  Well, take  it with as many grains of salt that you wish, I’m just saying that in my opinion, this is bad…

And now, it’s Christmas shopping season, I would only think that the $13 Trillion will only go higher… And then January comes and the bills begin to show up in one’s mailbox and they get deep sixed, because there ain’t no way in hell they can pay them…   I shake my head and wonder if their parents ever sat them down and explained money, savings, spending, etc. to them… I would think not!  Oooh, I’ve gone deep and dark there, haven’t I?  I had better stop before I really turn dark…  But before I leave this thought…  

The Fed also reported that, as of September, 4.9% of outstanding household debt was in some stage of delinquency. More specifically, of the $630 billion of debt that is delinquent, $408 billion is seriously delinquent (90 days late or longer), the Fed said.   Wait until January/ February’s figures…   

I forgot to highlight the move higher  in the price of Oil yesterday… Oil is now trading with a $57 handle…  Our friends at OPEC (NOT!) will meet with Russia this week to discuss production… Recall that the Oil ministers thought that by cutting production months ago that they could get the price of Oil back to $60…  Well, $57 isn’t $60, so I expect to hear OPEC announce further cuts this week at the meetings. What say you?   The price of Gold saw a ” good day” yesterday and added $6.10 to its price. At one point of the day I saw Gold at $1,299, but that was short-lived, as the “boys in the band” didn’t like the looks of that!  

I don’t know if you’ve been following/ tracking the price of Palladium but I sure have!  Recall when I was doing a daily report on the spread in price between Platinum and Palladium, with the later overtaking Platinum a couple of months ago, and hasn’t looked back since!  Supply and demand is driving this price higher folks…  Just like things should be without outside interference! Supply is lacking and demand keeps getting stronger for Palladium…  

The U.S. Data Cupboard didn’t come into play yesterday, and today we’ve already seen the results of the dollar rally in Rocktober, as the advanced Trade figure rose to $68.3 Billion, when it was only forecast to be $65 Billion… This figure will get whittled down when all the beans are counted, and the final will be lower when it prints in a week or so.  The Case/ Shiller Home Price Index is scheduled to print today, and if my thoughts on this are correct, we’ll see and increase in the Home Price Index number, as the madness continues.. 

To Recap…. The boys were back in town (great song by Thin Lizzy) yesterday after their 4 day holiday weekend, and immediately the euro’s gains got whittled down throughout the day and overnight markets. Gold rallied but is getting sold off this morning, and the price of Oil has moved upward and waits for the results of the OPEC meeting in Russia this week.  

For What It’s Worth… Well, we’ve all heard for years that we shouldn’t rely on Social Security for our retirement funds… Well I found this on MarketWatch and it’s just another analyst’s opinion on where Social Security is going, and can be found here: https://www.marketwatch.com/story/warning-social-security-faces-a-23-cut-2017-11-27?link=MW_popular 

Or, here’s your snippet: “If you think you can count on Social Security to prop up your retirement than the joke may be on you. The news media’s been so busy covering President Trump 24/7 that a really big story slipped through the cracks this summer: Social Security will begin paying out more than it takes in by 2021 — just three years from now, and come 2034 or so — just 16 years away — payouts could be slashed by about 23%, unless tough steps are taken to bolster the rickety program.

Based on a projected U.S. population of about 370 million in 2034, that would mean drastically smaller checks for some 87 million Americans, the trustees estimate. How small? Try $5,969 a year in today’s dollars, according to the Peter G. Peterson Foundation, a think tank that focuses on fiscal matters.

That’s nothing less than devastating for the estimated 60% of retired Americans who rely on Social Security for at least half their monthly income.

What’s going on? You can read the whole government report here (if you like long, dense, boring bureaucratic language), but you probably know what the problems are; they’ve been obvious for years.”   

Chuck again… That would be my luck, right? Reach the age to received some of the money I put in the program since I began working when I was in the 6th grade, and have them tell me, sorry, but we spent it all on someone else…  UGH! It’s not that I need it, it’s that it’s mine!  

Currencies today 11/28/17… American Style: A$ .7604, kiwi .6923, C$ .7812, euro 1.1886, sterling 1.3272, Swiss $ .9828, … European Style: rand 13.6965, krone 8.1992, SEK 8.3239, forint 261.76, zloty 3.5345, koruna 21.4178, RUB 58.29, yen 111.30, sing 1.3449, HKD 7.8022, INR 64.37, China 6.5979, peso 18.62, BRL 3.2265, Dollar Index 93.05, Oil $57.89, 10-year 2.32%, Silver $17.09, Platinum $ 948.56, Palladium $1,017.89, and Gold… $1,295.00  

That’s it for today… It’s beginning to look a lot like Christmas… Our house is getting decorated, Alex hung the outside lights for us on Sunday, and the kids and grandkids all went to the tree farm to cut down their Christmas trees this past weekend. I was not able to go with them, and it saddened me so, because I was the one that always spearheaded the tree cutting down day! Oh well, maybe next year…  Longtime readers know that I simply adore Christmas, and love it when the house is all gussied up… Hopefully by Christmas I’ll be back on my horse!  And being a kid again, full of anticipation, and excitement…  Fingers crossed! OK, Beggie Adair takes us to the finish line today with his jazzy version of the Christmas Song… I hope you have a Tom Terrific Tuesday, and remember to be Good To Yourself!

Chuck Butler

    Source link

from CapitalistHQ.com https://capitalisthq.com/the-boys-are-back-in-town-daily-pfennig/

[sherristockman]

A Visit to a Poison Garden Dr. Mercola By Dr. Mercola The 12-acre Alnwick Garden in northern England is home to fragrant rose bushes, manicured hedges, a cherry orchard and stunning water features — all things you'd expect in a traditional English garden. But behind a locked gate is a garden with a much more sinister air — a poison garden home to plants that have the ability to kill. A sign on the gate reads, "These plants can kill," and visitors may only enter with a guide, in groups of 20 or less, who are warned not to touch, sniff or venture too close to the deadly plants. Some are so dangerous they're grown in metal cages with cameras tracking them 24/7. The project was started in 2005 by Jane Percy, the Duchess of Northumberland. Centuries ago, apothecary gardens were quite common in England and were used to grow medicinal plants used for a variety of treatments. Percy was intrigued by the more macabre side of the plant world, however, explaining to Australia's News.com, "What's really interesting is to know how a plant kills you, and how the patient dies, and what you feel like before you die … Most plants that kill are quite interesting."1 Plants That Can Kill in the Poison Garden More than 100 deadly plant species can be found in Alnwick's poison garden. The poisonous properties are often used by the plants as a form of protection. Many of them may be harnessed for good (for instance in the treatment of cancer or nerve pain), with the difference between benefit and harm coming in the dose. For instance, the Helleborus genus of flowering perennials grown in the poison garden were once used to help children get rid of intestinal worms, but if too much was given, it were deadly.2 Other poisonous plants in the garden range from common daffodil bulbs and laurel hedges to marijuana, cocaine, magic mushrooms and opium poppies, for which Percy obtained a special permit to grow. NPR expanded on some of the garden's highlights:3 " … [I]t doesn't take many berries from Atropa belladonna (deadly nightshade) to kill … the plant is common in England and growing happily in the Poison Garden. The duchess also warns that that merely brushing up against the bushy green Ruta graveolens (commonly called Rue) or touching the sap from Euphorbia (the Dr. Suess-like plants sometimes called spurge) can give a person a nasty rash." Another intriguing plant in the garden is datura, also known as angel's trumpets, a night-blooming perennial and member of the nightshade family. Most part of the plant contain hallucinogens that can cause delirious behavior and death.4 Percy told The Telegraph:5 "Datura is an incredible poison, but an amazing aphrodisiac, too, and you see it everywhere. In Argentina, even nowadays, some people put a bell of Datura … on a baby's pillow at night, then take it away after five minutes and the baby has gone to sleep. If it were left all night the baby would be dead in the morning. Victorian ladies used to sit around a table with a datura plant in the middle and play cards or have tea. They'd pop their cup under a bell, tap it, and pollen would fall into the cup. They would experience similar effects to that of LSD." 15 More Plants That Can Kill If you look around your backyard and possibly even your kitchen, you may find a surprising number of toxic plants, ranging from mildly poisonous to deadly. Among them:6 1. Apple Trees Apple seeds contain amygdalin, a plant compound known as a cyanogenic glycoside. When apple seeds are chewed or crushed and metabolized, the amygdalin turns into hydrogen cyanide, which is poisonous. That being said, the cyanide is produced only if the seeds are damaged (i.e., crushed or chewed), so swallowing a few seeds whole is virtually harmless. 2. Nightshade Plants The Solanaceae family of vegetables, informally known as nightshades, includes tobacco, tomatoes, peppers, eggplants and potatoes. The foliage, vines and berries of such plants are toxic and should be avoided. 3. Rosary Pea This plant goes by many names, including precatory bean, Buddhist rosary bead, love bean, lucky bean, Indian licorice, prayer bean and weather plant. Rosary peas are used as ornamental beads for jewelry around the world, but they contain toxic compounds called abrin (a relative of extremely toxic ricin) and abric acid. It's said that jewelry makers have died after from pricking a finger and handling the peas.7 Consuming even one rosary pea can be deadly to pets, but fortunately the seed's hard outer coat must be damaged (crushed or cut open) to cause harm. So in many cases ingesting the seeds may lead to only mild illness. However, if a broken pea is ingested, it can lead to severe vomiting and diarrhea (sometimes bloody), tremors, high heart rate, shock, fever and death among dogs, cats and horses. 4. Oleander Oleander, or rose bay, contains cardiac glycosides that can cause vomiting, dizziness and cardiac dysrhythmias. In Sri Lanka, yellow oleander seeds are often used as a suicide agent, with thousands of cases reported each year. About 10 percent of cases of oleander poisoning in Sri Lanka are fatal.8 Your pet may also be poisoned from access to pruned or fallen oleander branches while horses may be poisoned by consuming this ornamental plant near horse show arenas. 5. European Yew Yew contains toxic taxine in its bark, leaves and seeds, which, if consumed, can lead to sudden death from heart failure. Yew leaves and seeds are also sometimes used by people attempting to commit suicide. Keep an eye out on your dogs if you have yew in your yard; even playing with the branches or sticks from the yew tree could be potentially deadly to dogs. 6. Daffodils Also known as narcissus, daffodils contain lycorine, particularly in the bulbs. This toxic chemical can lead to nausea and vomiting followed by low blood pressure and liver damage. 7. Doll's Eye This plant, also known as white baneberry, is a member of the buttercup family. It has distinctive white berries with an eye-like black dot in the center, growing on red stalks. The berries are particularly poisonous, as they contain cardiogenic toxins. It's said that eating five or six of the berries can make you sick while consuming more can be deadly.9 8. Hemlock All parts of the hemlock plant are poisonous, but the root contains the greatest concentration of poison. Hemlock is said to have been used to execute Socrates, and there are reports of children dying after making whistles out of hollow hemlock stems.10 Ingesting the plant may lead to muscle weakness and paralysis, progressing into respiratory failure. 9. Stinging Tree Found in Australian and Indonesian forests, this stinging nettle can lead to a stinging sensation that lasts for weeks. In animals, brushing past the plant may cause a severe allergic reaction. 10. Castor Beans Castor beans contain the extremely toxic substance ricin. Consuming even one castor bean can kill a human or pet, but the plants are relatively common, even in public areas. Ricin inhibits protein synthesis, leading to convulsions and kidney failure.11 According to NPR:12 "In 1978 a member of the Bulgarian secret police used an umbrella tip to inject ricin — a powerful poison extracted from the beans of a castor plant — into the leg of a political dissident, as he walked down a London street." 11. Monkshood This plant, also known as devil's helmet and aconitum, is so deadly that a U.K. gardener died in 2014 after handling the plant.13 It was also a well-known poison in ancient times, used during battles to poison enemies' water.14 12. White Snakeroot This plant contains toxic tremetol, which is poisonous if ingested, either directly or via contaminated meat or milk. If a cow grazes on the plant, for instance, its meat and milk will become poisonous. Nancy Hanks, Abraham Lincoln's mother, reportedly died from "milk sickness" after consuming milk contaminated with white snakeroot.15 13. Larkspur Larkspur contains compounds called diterpene alkaloids that are toxic to humans, dogs, cats and horses. It's thought the toxicity of this plant varies depending on the conditions in which it's grown and becomes less toxic as it matures. If consumed, larkspur can cause neuromuscular paralysis and symptoms such as muscle tremors, stiffness, weakness, convulsions, heart failure and death from respiratory paralysis. 14. Foxglove This plant grows striking bell-shaped flowers, but all parts of the plant contain digitalis glycosides, which can affect heart function, leading to irregular heartbeat and death in humans and pets. 15. Melia Azedarach This flowering tree, also known as white cedar, is native to Australia and contains berries with neurotoxic poisons. Consuming just six berries may be enough to kill a person, but birds are not affected, so they feast on the berries regularly.16 Plant Poisonings Are Relatively Common in the US While pharmaceuticals remain a top cause of calls to poison control centers, plant exposures also have a top spot on the list. Data from the American Association of Poison Control Centers' National Poison Data System (NPDS) 2013 annual report revealed more than 46,000 plant exposures in the U.S., with more than 29,000 involving children aged 5 years or younger.17 Three deaths were also reported. To avoid poisonous plants, be very careful when selecting which plants to put in your garden or home, especially if you have young children or pets. If you're planning to forage for wild edible plants, consume only those you are sure you can correctly identify and are not poisonous. Fortunately, there are far more edible plants than poisonous ones. Wild plant enthusiast Sergei Boutenko claims there are thousands of safe, edible plants growing wild in North America, but there are only 150 listed by the American Association of Poison Control as poisonous.18 Of those 150, only about 50 are considered to be "highly poisonous" (i.e., can be fatal), and the rest are classified as "mildly poisonous," which means they may cause nausea, diarrhea, or headache, but probably will not kill you. If you see a wild plant you can't identify, the characteristics that you should regard as "red flags" for toxicity include the following. As always, if you're not sure, don't eat it. ✓ Milky or discolored sap ✓ Beans, bulbs or seeds in pods ✓ Bitter or soapy taste ✓ Spines, fine hairs or thorns ✓ Dill, carrot, parsnip or parsley-like foliage ✓ "Almond" scent in woody parts or leaves ✓ Grain heads with pink, purple or black spurs ✓ Three-leaved growth pattern

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As Master Wishes

THREE SECONDS before the arrival of J. B. Hobson's letter, I no more dreamed of chasing the unicorn than of trying for the Northwest Passage. Three seconds after reading this letter from the honorable Secretary of the Navy, I understood at last that my true vocation, my sole purpose in life, was to hunt down this disturbing monster and rid the world of it. Even so, I had just returned from an arduous journey, exhausted and badly needing a rest. I wanted nothing more than to see my country again, my friends, my modest quarters by the Botanical Gardens, my dearly beloved collections! But now nothing could hold me back. I forgot everything else, and without another thought of exhaustion, friends, or collections, I accepted the American government's offer. "Besides," I mused, "all roads lead home to Europe, and our unicorn may be gracious enough to take me toward the coast of France! That fine animal may even let itself be captured in European seas - as a personal favor to me - and I'll bring back to the Museum of Natural History at least half a meter of its ivory lance!" But in the meantime I would have to look for this narwhale in the northern Pacific Ocean; which meant returning to France by way of the Antipodes. "Conseil!" I called in an impatient voice. Conseil was my manservant. A devoted lad who went with me on all my journeys; a gallant Flemish boy whom I genuinely liked and who returned the compliment; a born stoic, punctilious on principle, habitually hardworking, rarely startled by life's surprises, very skillful with his hands, efficient in his every duty, and despite his having a name that means "counsel," never giving advice-not even the unsolicited kind! From rubbing shoulders with scientists in our little universe by the Botanical Gardens, the boy had come to know a thing or two. In Conseil I had a seasoned specialist in biological classification, an enthusiast who could run with acrobatic agility up and down the whole ladder of branches, groups, classes, subclasses, orders, families, genera, subgenera, species, and varieties. But there his science came to a halt. Classifying was everything to him, so he knew nothing else. Well versed in the theory of classification, he was poorly versed in its practical application, and I doubt that he could tell a sperm whale from a baleen whale! And yet, what a fine, gallant lad! For the past ten years, Conseil had gone with me wherever science beckoned. Not once did he comment on the length or the hardships of a journey. Never did he object to buckling up his suitcase for any country whatever, China or the Congo, no matter how far off it was. He went here, there, and everywhere in perfect contentment. Moreover, he enjoyed excellent health that defied all ailments, owned solid muscles, but hadn't a nerve in him, not a sign of nerves-the mental type, I mean. The lad was thirty years old, and his age to that of his employer was as fifteen is to twenty. Please forgive me for this underhanded way of admitting I had turned forty. But Conseil had one flaw. He was a fanatic on formality, and he only addressed me in the third person - to the point where it got tiresome. "Conseil!" I repeated, while feverishly beginning my preparations for departure. To be sure, I had confidence in this devoted lad. Ordinarily, I never asked whether or not it suited him to go with me on my journeys; but this time an expedition was at issue that could drag on indefinitely, a hazardous undertaking whose purpose was to hunt an animal that could sink a frigate as easily as a walnut shell! There was good reason to stop and think, even for the world's most emotionless man. What would Conseil say? "Conseil!" I called a third time. Conseil appeared. "Did master summon me?" he said, entering. "Yes, my boy. Get my things ready, get yours ready. We're departing in two hours." "As master wishes," Conseil replied serenely. "We haven't a moment to lose. Pack as much into my trunk as you can, my traveling kit, my suits, shirts, and socks, don't bother counting, just squeeze it all in - and hurry!" "What about master's collections?" Conseil ventured to observe. "We'll deal with them later." "What! The archaeotherium, hyracotherium, oreodonts, cheiropotamus, and master's other fossil skeletons?" "The hotel will keep them for us." "What about master's live babirusa?" "They'll feed it during our absence. Anyhow, we'll leave instructions to ship the whole menagerie to France." "Then we aren't returning to Paris?" Conseil asked. "Yes, we are . . . certainly . . . ," I replied evasively, "but after we make a detour." "Whatever detour master wishes." "Oh, it's nothing really! A route slightly less direct, that's all. We're leaving on the Abraham Lincoln." "As master thinks best," Conseil replied placidly. "You see, my friend, it's an issue of the monster, the notorious narwhale. We're going to rid the seas of it! The author of a two-volume work, in quarto, on The Mysteries of the Great Ocean Depths has no excuse for not setting sail with Commander Farragut. It's a glorious mission but also a dangerous one! We don't know where it will take us! These beasts can be quite unpredictable! But we're going just the same! We have a commander who's game for anything!" "What master does, I'll do," Conseil replied. "But think it over, because I don't want to hide anything from you. This is one of those voyages from which people don't always come back!" "As master wishes." A quarter of an hour later, our trunks were ready. Conseil did them in a flash, and I was sure the lad hadn't missed a thing, because he classified shirts and suits as expertly as birds and mammals. The hotel elevator dropped us off in the main vestibule on the mezzanine. I went down a short stair leading to the ground floor. I settled my bill at that huge counter that was always under siege by a considerable crowd. I left instructions for shipping my containers of stuffed animals and dried plants to Paris, France. I opened a line of credit sufficient to cover the babirusa and, Conseil at my heels, I jumped into a carriage. For a fare of twenty francs, the vehicle went down Broadway to Union Square, took Fourth Ave. to its junction with Bowery St., turned into Katrin St. and halted at Pier 34. There the Katrin ferry transferred men, horses, and carriage to Brooklyn, that great New York annex located on the left bank of the East River, and in a few minutes we arrived at the wharf next to which the Abraham Lincoln was vomiting torrents of black smoke from its two funnels. Our baggage was immediately carried to the deck of the frigate. I rushed aboard. I asked for Commander Farragut. One of the sailors led me to the afterdeck, where I stood in the presence of a smart-looking officer who extended his hand to me. "Professor Pierre Aronnax?" he said to me. "The same," I replied. "Commander Farragut?" "In person. Welcome aboard, professor. Your cabin is waiting for you." I bowed, and letting the commander attend to getting under way, I was taken to the cabin that had been set aside for me. The Abraham Lincoln had been perfectly chosen and fitted out for its new assignment. It was a high-speed frigate furnished with superheating equipment that allowed the tension of its steam to build to seven atmospheres. Under this pressure the Abraham Lincoln reached an average speed of 18.3 miles per hour, a considerable speed but still not enough to cope with our gigantic cetacean. The frigate's interior accommodations complemented its nautical virtues. I was well satisfied with my cabin, which was located in the stern and opened into the officers' mess. "We'll be quite comfortable here," I told Conseil. "With all due respect to master," Conseil replied, "as comfortable as a hermit crab inside the shell of a whelk." I left Conseil to the proper stowing of our luggage and climbed on deck to watch the preparations for getting under way. Just then Commander Farragut was giving orders to cast off the last moorings holding the Abraham Lincoln to its Brooklyn pier. And so if I'd been delayed by a quarter of an hour or even less, the frigate would have gone without me, and I would have missed out on this unearthly, extraordinary, and inconceivable expedition, whose true story might well meet with some skepticism. But Commander Farragut didn't want to waste a single day, or even a single hour, in making for those seas where the animal had just been sighted. He summoned his engineer. "Are we up to pressure?" he asked the man. "Aye, sir," the engineer replied. "Go ahead, then!" Commander Farragut called. At this order, which was relayed to the engine by means of a compressed-air device, the mechanics activated the start-up wheel. Steam rushed whistling into the gaping valves. Long horizontal pistons groaned and pushed the tie rods of the drive shaft. The blades of the propeller churned the waves with increasing speed, and the Abraham Lincoln moved out majestically amid a spectator-laden escort of some 100 ferries and tenders.* *Author's Note: Tenders are small steamboats that assist the big liners. The wharves of Brooklyn, and every part of New York bordering the East River, were crowded with curiosity seekers. Departing from 500,000 throats, three cheers burst forth in succession. Thousands of handkerchiefs were waving above these tightly packed masses, hailing the Abraham Lincoln until it reached the waters of the Hudson River, at the tip of the long peninsula that forms New York City. The frigate then went along the New Jersey coast - the wonderful right bank of this river, all loaded down with country homes-and passed by the forts to salutes from their biggest cannons. The Abraham Lincoln replied by three times lowering and hoisting the American flag, whose thirty-nine stars gleamed from the gaff of the mizzen sail; then, changing speed to take the buoy-marked channel that curved into the inner bay formed by the spit of Sandy Hook, it hugged this sand-covered strip of land where thousands of spectators acclaimed us one more time. The escort of boats and tenders still followed the frigate and only left us when we came abreast of the lightship, whose two signal lights mark the entrance of the narrows to Upper New York Bay. Three o'clock then sounded. The harbor pilot went down into his dinghy and rejoined a little schooner waiting for him to leeward. The furnaces were stoked; the propeller churned the waves more swiftly; the frigate skirted the flat, yellow coast of Long Island; and at eight o'clock in the evening, after the lights of Fire Island had vanished into the northwest, we ran at full steam onto the dark waters of the Atlantic.