#dickson nearby yelling that that they need to get a room

[seizeourdestiny]

Sometimes, you need a little help getting bandaged.

Alternate caption: bro, is it gay to bandage up your best friend who you resent and are kinda starting to hate?

[chaletnz]

Edinburgh's Attractions

The day in Edinburgh began a lot like how I spend most other days as a tourist in a new city - with a free walking tour! Our guide James gathered us together as a group of 30 or so at the Royal Mile (which isn't actually a mile but it a so-called "Scottish Mile" of around 200m more than a regular mile). Our first stop was at the city chambers for our first history lesson of the tour after some quick introductions. Of course we began with the history of the city of Edinburgh, built between three volcanoes with the Royal Mile actually lying on top of layers of volcanic rock. James told us about the grisly death of William Wallace involving being hung until he was almost dead then tied to four horses who tore him into quarters as they ran in different directions. Then we played a game of guessing how many storeys high the city chambers building was - of course it looks 4-5 storeys but because of Edinburgh's hilly disposition the correct answer was actually 11! We stopped at the Market Cross which is one of the oldest structures in Edinburgh, it's from 1885 and actually isn't even the original but rather one created slightly further up the Royal Mile to replace the wooden original. As history would have it thieves and criminals were nailed to the cross for 24 hours for their crime, but apparently if they wished to free themselves they could simply yank themselves off the cross but some flesh might remain on the cross... now there is a unicorn on top - the national animal of Scotland. Nearby we visited the Parliament building of Edinburgh which now serves as law courts since they built a new parliament building (and went over budget by £5 million...). In the small square outside there was a statue of Charles the 2nd on a horse, however the sculptor had accidentally sculpted the wrong person's head so he simply continued the statue and left the original head on top. But he was very annoyed that he'd been scolded for his mistake so he left a hole in the top of the head and also in the bottom of the horse Charles was riding so each time it rained the horse would appear to be peeing all over the square. We passed the John Knox Presbyterian church and James pointed out a small plaque on parking spot 23 which is the actual burial place of John Knox. We were all surprised to be standing on top of a grave and jumped back but he reassured us with a very Scottish "don werry!" On our way to the High Kerk we heard some bagpipes to make our tour properly Scottish, then were told the story of how one woman protested the changing of official religions in Scotland by throwing a chair in the church and supposedly it led to the civil war in the U.K. There is a commemorative statue inside - to the chair, and also an angel playing the bagpipes. On the footpath nearby we stopped at the stone heart which is where an old toll booth used to be. We were all invited to spit into the middle of the heart as apparently tradition would have it! A slight detour and we were in a hidden close (one of 36 down the length of the Royal Mile), here James told us the story of Deacon Brodie who was a problem gambler and also the head locksmith in Edinburgh. He went broke and started robbing the residents of the city blind for 20 years and somehow ended up as the head of task force assigned to catch the Edinburgh thief! Eventually he was discovered and fled to Amsterdam but was caught and taken back to be hung on gallows that he had designed himself. Next we saw a trip step alarm system preserved in a wall, one step was strategically lower than the rest so that a thief would always trip and fall causing the inhabitants of the house to be alerted to their presence. Around the corner James explained to us how in Edinburgh they built living quarters underground and this meant that the sewer systems couldn't be run through here. Instead, waste was thrown from the windows after yelling out to passersby to watch out. Apparently the term shit-faced originated because of this - being drunk and getting hit by someone's flying waste! We took a short break and then visited the Grassmarket where we saw the gallows that hung Half-Hung Maggie Dickson; she was hung until dead and headed to the cemetery when she suddenly sat bolt upright in her coffin. She lived a further 40 years and since she had been declared legally dead she didn't need to pay taxes, and her marriage was annulled so she could marry the man of her affair. Our last stop was the Greyfriar's kirkyard, as we walked through James told us that the soil is so soft that tombstones are always falling, cracking and breaking, but slightly more chilling is the fact that bones often find their way to the surface. On one tour a participant found an entire jawbone! Luckily there is a place in the church to return any accidentally discovered bones so they can be re-buried. From the cemetery we could see the backside of the cafe where JK Rowling wrote her first three Harry Potter books. She sat at the window table and looked out over the kirkyard and the castle and that was some of her inspiration for Hogwarts. Following the Harry Potter theme we saw another of Rowling's inspirations - the grave of William McGonagall, a failed poet famous only for being so terrible. Our final stop on the tour was perhaps Scotland's most visited tombstone. James told us the last tale of John Gray who was an old man hired as the night watchman of the Greyfriar's kirkyard to prevent grave robbers digging up bodies in the night. He was lonely so he adopted a little dog called Bobby. John died after two years but Bobby lived to be 15 years old and guarded John's grave all those years, when he died he was buried just outside the cemetery because dogs cannot be buried on sacred grounds but a large tombstone was put up in the cemetery in memoriam and now tourists visit to leave sticks and balls and dog treats. After the tour I wandered around a few shops and up to the castle for a look. Later I was booked in for The Scottish Whiskey Experience which I'd been really looking forward to. It began with a barrel ride to explain the whiskey making process and then we all sat in front of a huge 180 degree screen to show each region of Scotland with crisp flyover footage and describe the type of whiskey they produce there. Each of us on the tour had our own scratch n sniff card so we can smell an aroma from each region to choose a taster for ourselves. The next room was a classic tasting room where we each took a dram of our chosen region - of course I couldn't resist a peaty Islay! The final room on the tour was a cased collection of 3384 bottles of whiskey - the largest collection in the world including centuries-old bottles which had almost evaporated in their bottles. I had signed up for the extended tasting so I had a tray of four more drams to taste then I wanted to try a Campbelltown whiskey as I'd never tried one from that region before, and then I also wanted to try a Ben Nevis because the flavours sounded like a delicious combination for me. Of course it was a lot of whiskey in one go and I ended the evening drunkenly stuffing my face at Five Guys (my favourite burger place and I'll eat with no shame!) and sending Snapchats to my friends. All in all a fantastically informative and enjoyable day in the beautiful city of Edinburgh!

[saleintothe90s]

269. 96 Things About 1996 part 9

(part 8)

81. Beck Weathers 

Dr. Beck Weathers was stuck on Mount Everest during a blizzard in May of 1996, 8 people wound up dying from exposure from the blizzard.  When found after descending to a camp on the mountain, fellow hikers  believed that he was so frostbitten and ill from exposure that he would die that night. The group tried to make Weathers comfortable in his last hours. However, he beat the odds and survived. He was guided to a helocopter and was flown to a hospital. Weathers nose, fingers on both hands, his right arm, and parts of his feet were all lost to frostbite. 

He still worked as a pathologist, in a 2003 interview:

You adjust to doing things differently. God bless Velcro and elastics. But anything that requires fingers, I can’t do. I have a gal Friday who is a master’s-level physician’s assistant, specifically trained in the area of pathology, and what she offers is almost exactly what I can’t do. I hate to say that we have a hand-and-glove relationship, but that’s essentially how it works.

82. Mommy gets a new haircut (May 23)

After 36 years with the same frumpy bob, Mommy finally has a new 'do.

Today, comics readers get their first look at the make-over of the character in the popular comic strip "Family Circus." The author of the strip, Bil Keane of Paradise Valley, Ariz., apparently decided to update her hair after a reader complained that the pointy chin-length cut Mommy has had since the feature's debut in 1960 was old-fashioned. 1

Here’s a story from the person who suggested to Bil Keane that Mommy needed a new haircut. Did you know what Mommy’s name is Thelma? Did you know that Family Circus takes place in Scottsdale, Arizona?

83. Steve Forbes runs for President (and hosts Saturday Night Live)

Businessman, and Forbes magazine founder, Steve Forbes tried to run for president as a Republican with a “flat tax” campaign. He won Arizona and Delaware! 

He also, bizarrely hosted Saturday Night Live in April of 1996. Here he is with Molly Shannon and some giant Florida Bugs. 

(I cannot find the original source for this image) 

84. The “Boulder” WalMart 

No no no, not in Boulder, Colorado. This was a WalMart in Dickson City, Pennsylvania that shut down suddenly due to safety precautions -- because a boulder rolled into it in December of 1996.

DICKSON CITY -- The company that warns customers to "watch out for falling prices" had to close a store Tuesday because of falling boulders.    The Wal-Mart store on Route 6 in Dickson City closed on the recommendation of an engineering firm hired to investigate a continuing problem with boulders rolling from the adjacent Bell Mountain.    A Wal-Mart spokeswoman at the corporate headquarters in Bentonville, Ark., said Wednesday that store officials are looking for another location and hope to reopen by the weekend, the last of the Christmas shopping season.    One of the boulders at the back of the store was taller than the building.  2

The property stayed abandoned for 20 years until the Wegmans grocery store nearby bought the property so the eyesore could be removed.  It was torn down just in November.

85. Motorola StarTac Phone (January 3)

(aka, the “Frasier Phone” ... ok, only I called it that. Frasier & Niles Crane were early adopters of the phone)

(source)

Arriving right at the beginning of 1996, the StarTac was the first “gotta have it” phone.

86. Apple is not up for sale (1/24)

87. “Apple Doesn’t Fall” closes after one performance (4/16)

“The Apple Doesn't Fall . . .," a comedy by Trish Vradenburg, closed on Sunday after one performance at the Lyceum Theater, 149 West 45th Street. Directed by Leonard Nimoy and starring Margaret Whitton and Florence Stanley, it had 19 previews. 3

88. Jeff Foxworthy & Sinbad hosted the American Music Awards (January)

(source)

89. Martin has a mental breakdown (5/8)

With a pistol in his pocket, comedian Martin Lawrence ran into traffic on busy Ventura Boulevard in Sherman Oaks on Tuesday, cursing and screaming at oncoming cars until he was taken away by police and hospitalized, authorities and witnesses said.

Lawrence, star of the television sitcom "Martin" and the films "Bad Boys" and "A Thin Line Between Love & Hate," was found in the middle of Ventura Boulevard at Tyrone Avenue about 12:30 p.m., said Sgt. Bert Mora of the Los Angeles Police Department.

After police restrained Lawrence, he was taken to Sherman Oaks Hospital and Health Center and later released to his personal physician, Dr. William Young of Cedars-Sinai Medical Center, Mora said.

A witness--who declined to be identified but who said he was an acquaintance of Lawrence--said the actor was cursing, waving his hands and yelling, "Fight the establishment!" He said Lawrence ran out of the street when police arrived and tried to fight them off when they attempted to restrain him. 4

90. Woody gets arrested for planting seeds (6/1) 

91. HoTMaiL Launches (7/4)

In June the product was ready to launch, at that time they had 15 employees working for them. They launched it on July 4, 1996 - Independence Day - as Sabeer and jack thought free email was a great Independent idea and populist tool. Every body who owned a computer had their own email accounts, but with webmail, they could log on from anywhere in the world. The first users found it all by themselves and then it spread like a forest fire. there were 100 in first hour, 200 in second hour and 250 in third hour. the idea was so intuitively powerful that 80% of those who signed up for Hotmail; learned about it from a friend. 5

92. Jackie Stern 

Florida man wears medal without honor

Stern December 4, 1996 Web posted at: 8:20 a.m. EST From Correspondent Robert Vito

FORT LAUDERDALE, Florida (CNN) -- Wherever 67-year-old Jackie Stern went in this south Florida community, he brought along his Medal of Honor, awarded by Congress to military personnel who have risked life in combat beyond the call of duty.

Speeches to Gulf War veterans, war stories at police stations and appearances at public occasions were all ripe moments for Stern to share his heroic past.

The only problem with Stern's highly visible patriotism is that he was living a lie. He had not earned the Medal of Honor -- he had bought it.

"He marched around in parades. He came around reviewing ROTC troops, even coming in here to get photographed wearing the medal," said Sgt. Dan Ciacciarelli of the Broward County Sheriff's Department. "He's pretty brazen."

For nearly 10 years, Stern bragged he had won the medal for bravery in the Korean War. He even went so far as to include a prisoner of war tag on the front of his car and a license plate on the back bearing a purple heart.

But in real military life, 'Captain' Jack Stern never made it past private.

Eventually Stern's public displays provoked suspicion among some in the community. His tall tale unraveled when police learned he had never even set foot on a continent where the U.S. was involved in a conflict.

Faced with the truth, Stern pleaded guilty to federal charges involving the unearned medal of honor.

In a federal courtroom, the former bread truck driver and polygraph operator apologized to veterans. He said his actions had been stupid and pitiful.

His son blamed his father's behavior on a massive stroke in 1985 that left him partially paralyzed.

Stern said he bought the medal at a military show for $800. The medal turned out to be authentic but not officially issued.

Stern could have been sentenced to six months in jail; instead, the judge placed him on one year's probation and ordered him to write letters of apology to the 171 surviving recipients of the Medal of Honor. 6

Here’s more info on other guys who have posed as Medal of Honor winners. 

93. Charlie Sheen’s Home Run Night (4/21)

According to the Los Angeles Times, actor Charlie Sheen paid $5,000 for a chance at Anaheim Stadium. He bought all the seats behind the left-field fence for a recent game between the California Angels and Detroit Tigers in hopes of catching a ball.

Sheen sat with three friends on an aisle about 20 rows up, pounding a glove in anticipation of a home run that never came.

"Anybody can catch a foul ball. I want to catch a fair ball," Sheen said.

He chose to set himself apart from the crowd because "I didn't want to crawl over the paying public. I wanted to avoid the violence." 7

94. Febreze is test marketed

Procter & Gamble Co. will begin test marketing Febreze Fabric Refresher May 20. P&G said Febreze, which can be used on clothing or upholstery, uses a proprietary technology to trap odor molecules from such sources as cigarette smoke, pets or cooking. TV and print ads by Grey Advertising, highlighting situations where Febreze can be used, will run in the Phoenix; Boise, Idaho; and Salt Lake City test markets. 8

95. Keith Luecke

She's a kid. Sitting in Judge William Walker's courtroom last week, Alecia Campbell watched the room fill with television cameras. She watched as the man accused of corrupting her minced into the room, hobbled by an ankle chain. Her blunt features were shiny, no makeup, not even lipstick. Maybe she's not allowed. Her mother was there, looking grim. Alecia chewed gum.

Is she a troubled child? Is she incorrigible? I don't know. But I know she is 14 years old. And she looks and acts her age.

He is a 34-year-old man who left his wife and seven children to live with an eighth-grade girl in a sleazy motor lodge.

[...]

The court will see whether he is guilty of breaking the law. Here's what I saw. He repeatedly winked and smiled at the young girl sitting across the courtroom from him. He mouthed the words, ''I love you'' twice, ''I miss you'' once.

He avoided the eyes of Chris Luecke, his wife of 12 years. She sat quietly, resting one freckled arm along the back of the pew-like seat about 6 inches from Alecia's face. Her eyes, blue almost violet, missed nothing.

Leaving the courtroom, Mrs. Luecke walked directly across the street to her attorney's office to file for divorce. 9

---

BATAVIA, OHIO BATAVIA, Ohio (AP) _ A former church youth director who once taught a program called ``True Love Waits'' was sentenced Wednesday to at least 12 years in prison for having an affair with a 13-year-old girl.

Keith Luecke, 33, pleaded guilty to child stealing and corrupting a minor.

He met Alecia Campbell, now 15, when she began dating Luecke's son, and they disappeared together for 78 days after he was to have appeared in court on charges related to their relationship in April.

They were found by authorities on June 28 at a motel in Hanahan, S.C.

``I pray that God brings peace to you and your family,'' Luecke said to the girl's family. ``To Alecia, I never meant to harm you or cause you pain, because I do love you.'' 10

96. This comic. 

cuz people used to joke that Bob Dole was too old. He’s still alive 21 years later! 

So I’m finally done with this series. It took way longer than I had anticipated. I didn’t think it would be this hard to come up with 96 minor things about 1996! 

Part 1 | Part 2 | Part 3 | Part 4 | Part 5 | Part 6 | Part 7 | Part 8 

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Sources: 

1. Baum, Geraldine, “Mommy Finally Makes the Cut,” Los Angeles Times, May 23, 1996. http://articles.latimes.com/1996-05-23/news/ls-7412_1_cutting-edge

2. Turfa, Palmela C. “PRICES AREN'T ALL THAT FALL AT WAL-MART BOULDERS TUMBLING FROM NEARBY MOUNTAIN LEAD TO CLOSING OF STORE IN SCRANTON AREA,” Times Leader, December 19, 1996. http://archives.timesleader.com/1996/1996_21/1996_12_19_PRICES_AREN_T_ALL_THAT_FALL_AT_WAL_MART_BOULDERS_TUMBLING_FROM_N.html 3. “The Apple’ Closes,” New York Times, April 16, 1996.  http://www.nytimes.com/1996/04/16/theater/the-apple-closes.html

4. Ramirez, Margaret, “Comedian Martin Lawrence Runs Into Street, Yells at Cars,” Los Angeles Times, May 8, 1996.  http://articles.latimes.com/1996-05-08/local/me-1744_1_comedian-martin-lawrence

5. “Sabeer Bhatiya, Los Angeles, Large Indian Company, Scott Mc Nealy MBA'80, Steve Wozniak and Marc Andreesen, Sabeer Bhatiya : The founder of "Hotmail.com": Is He Great or Is He Lucky..., Sabeer Bhatiya, Los Angeles, Large Indian Company, Scott Mc Nealy MBA'80, Steve Wozniak and Marc Andreesen, Apple Computers, Jack Smith, American Online account, web - HOTMAIL, Microsoft's financial muscles.” Accessed January 28, 2016. http://classic-web.archive.org/web/20070210043942/http://4to40.com/legends/print.asp?id=131

6. Vito, Robert. Florida man wears medal without honor,” CNN.com, December 4, 1996, accessed January 28, 2017, http://www.cnn.com/US/9612/04/medal.without.honor/. 

7. “Money Can't Buy Home-Run Ball,” Seattle Times, April 23, 1996. http://community.seattletimes.nwsource.com/archive/?date=19960423&slug=2325536

8. “P&G tests Febreze,” Advertising Age,  May 9, 1996. http://adage.com/article/news/p-g-tests-febreze/18446/

9. Pulfer, Laura, “The twisted journey of Keith Luecke,” Cincinnati Enquirer, July 14, 1996. http://enquirer.com/columns/pulfer/1996/07/071496_lp.html

10. “AT CHILD-STEALING SENTENCING, MAN PROFESSES LOVE FOR TEEN-AGE GIRL,” Associated Press, November 20, 1996. http://www.apnewsarchive.com/1996/At-Child-Stealing-Sentencing-Man-Professes-Love-for-Teen-Age-Girl/id-d61b3fbcdf39586a009d4a9dc4f582e1