These are a few shorts ... linked by themes to earlier posts.
American Thunderbirds
A while ago I wrote about American Thunderbirds (amongst other creatures), being apparently killed and photographed during the US Civil War. I duly posted some pictures (which I had cleaned a little bit), but remarked that one was an admitted fake, while another was very similar and that was obviously a fake, and finally one that, if not a fake, was just a trick of the light and backdrop causing it to look like something other than what is was, which was a vulture.
However in July 2015, a Kentucky man called Stephen, rang 'Coast to Coast AM Radio', and said that "I was hog hunting a few weeks back out in California, when I saw a very large bird-like creature. It swooped down and picked up a piglet. From the distance I was at I couldn't give you a definitive wingspan, but it had to be least 15 to 20 feet (4.6-6m). It didn't have many feathers, it almost looked reptilian".
So maybe this will start another look for the fabled 'Thunderbird'.
Pint Half Full or Pint Half Empty
When you are having a bad hair day, then you are having a bad hair day, and that’s, that .... take Brock Leach, a 13 year old boy from Cornwall in the UK, who in July 2015, was with his 16 year old brother on the cliffs at 'Trebar with Sand' near Tintagel, when he slipped on some lichen or moss, and fell 100ft (30 meters), down the cliff face.
His brother scrambled down the cliff (which isn't a totally vertical drop), to Brock's side, and found him caught on a ledge, bruised and winded, but alive and conscious, and apparently able to get up despite his injuries. Realising that the tide was coming in, and that if they stayed there they would be cut off from help, the elder brother helped Brock climb to a higher ledge - where Brock was promptly bitten by an adder snake. The adder is Britain’s only venomous snake (and quite hard to find).
They were rescued shortly afterwards, and Brock was rushed to hospital, where he was treated for a broken pelvis, severe bruising, and the snake bite ..... a full recovery was made.
Now some people would say he has been unlucky .... but I would argue the exact opposite, and that he was a very lucky man. How many stories with someone falling 100 feet down a cliff, and then being bitten by a venomous snake, and only then being rescued and recovering, do you read about? Not many ..... so, lucky boy.
Pilfering Pandas
I never try and resist the crimbo's (criminals), or hero's in costumes stories .... like the 'strange deaths' tales, they could almost keep a blog going by themselves, if I tracked down all the tales from across the globe.
This one involves a couple of 'crimbos', who raided a newsagents and convenience store in Louth, Lincolnshire, in England. They entered the premises at about 7:30pm, dressed in Panda onesies (all body and head costumes), and threatened a female member of staff with a handgun, forcing her into handing over cash from the till.
The staff member wasn't physically hurt and police are looking for these plundering pandas.
What Brits Really Think
Further to our posts about what the average UK 'households / couples' really do, there has been a report from Nationwide Savings, on what '30 typical something’s' are up to .... which is apparently not much these days.
They have managed to save just £4,300 (so that house deposit is still a few decades off), with just £343 in disposable income. This may explain why one in five is not happy with their careers. Their car is a hatchback, but it appears that they couldn't afford the insurance and petrol, even if they were given bigger cars.
Their favourite films include such non-classics as 'Dirty Dancing’, although 'Pulp Fiction' does make the list. If their film taste is some what unexciting and staid, then so is their music taste (if not worse) ... those between the ages of 30 and 35, count 'Queen' and the 'Beatles' (really ... 30 to 35 still listen to the Beatles? .... seems unlikely), 'Bon Jovi', 'Rhianna' and almost unbelievably 'Take That' (must be the ladies choice), among their favourite music acts. Strangely they are largely optimistic for the future.
Which is odd because a recent report has said that the proportions of national wealth has shifted from younger to older households since 2008. Now the proportions of national wealth privately owned by families and headed by someone under aged 45, has fallen from 20% to 16%. Over the same period the share of national wealth privately owned in households headed by someone over aged 65 increased from 17% to 19%. This change, despite the fact there are twice as many of the younger households.
Another study of 2,000 British people, found that people spend a total of nearly six years of their lives daydreaming (as little as that?). It claims that as much as two hours a day are lost in people spending imaginary lottery money winnings, or going on holidays, moving to the perfect home or location, or even if the weather was just better where they lived.
It seems that, even though for most of us these dreams never turn into reality , simply having them is enough to lift our spirits and makes six in ten of those who have them, feel happier for a while.
So there you are ... you are not wasting your time while idly thinking about all these things, you are in fact giving your inner self, a little happiness.
Angry Old Lady
When I reported on the extreme protest methods employed by a very grumpy dwarf, I didn’t realise that this story might open a whole new possible thread ....
The Sydney Daily Telegraph in Australia, reported in September, that a lady called Kay Bishop, from Croydon, in South London, went to a Debenhams department store, and dis-robed to almost nothing .... in fact she was wearing just a beauty queen type sash. She then went up to the windows, and then glued her bare backside to one of them.
The police were called, and she was eventually detached from the window and made to clothe herself. The police then told her off, and she was 'moved on', with no arrest (a bit of common sense breaking out there). The sash had said 'Worlds Grumpiest Old Woman', and she later confirmed that she had been protesting simply because she was "fed up with everything".
I think we all know exactly how she feels .....
Bad Granny
Its never too late to be a naughty granny ..... some like the late Cynthia Payne (Madam Sin) were naughty in the 'naughty but nice' way but others ... well they are another matter.
For instance in Germany, 87 year old Ursula Heverbeck of Hamburg, has been classed as uber naughty. Her crime is that she denies the WWII holocaust, and is classed as a Nazi, so she has been given 10 months in prison.
Naughty girl .... Germany is just about to let in a million people per annum, who also deny the WWII holocaust, and who hold Islamo-fascist beliefs. I wonder if they will all get 10 month prison terms ... probably not.
Stupidity Knows No Limits
We have talked about strange deaths before on this blog, and to be fair, if we dedicatedly trawled the press, we could happily keep a single subject blog going on those tales alone. But we only occasionally notice these stories, and its only when they make us think about something else that we bother to note the details ..... this is one such story.
A burglar (well either that or a very unlucky chimney sweep), died in strange circumstances...
The would be burglar aged 19, had apparently approached an empty house in Huron California, and climbed on to the roof. Seemingly he had then climbed down the chimney only to become stuck, unable to climb out or proceed he seems to have opted to wait (or no one heard his cries) .... US Houses are often on more land than in the UK, so no one heard him.
By Saturday afternoon he has presumably tired and was either unconscious to the world or still hoping to escape without the police being involved but whatever the cause, he made no noise when the house owner arrived home. The owner, feeling a late autumn or early winter chill, set and lit a fire ...... the screaming started within a few minutes, and smoke started to fill the room. Once the owner realised that it was from inside the chimney stack they dowsed the fire and called the police and fire brigade.
The fire-fighters had to break into the stack from the outside but the putative burglar was dead from a mix of smoke inhalation and burns. The local sheriff said that they had never seen anything like this before. But then again, when was the last time that you heard of anyone trying to climb down a chimney stack .... even Santa uses a teleporter.
If nothing else, this story shows that natural selection is still actively at work in the human race.
American Thunderbirds
A while ago I wrote about American Thunderbirds (amongst other creatures), being apparently killed and photographed during the US Civil War. I duly posted some pictures (which I had cleaned a little bit), but remarked that one was an admitted fake, while another was very similar and that was obviously a fake, and finally one that, if not a fake, was just a trick of the light and backdrop causing it to look like something other than what is was, which was a vulture.
 |
| Another Thunderbird Picture .... |
However in July 2015, a Kentucky man called Stephen, rang 'Coast to Coast AM Radio', and said that "I was hog hunting a few weeks back out in California, when I saw a very large bird-like creature. It swooped down and picked up a piglet. From the distance I was at I couldn't give you a definitive wingspan, but it had to be least 15 to 20 feet (4.6-6m). It didn't have many feathers, it almost looked reptilian".
So maybe this will start another look for the fabled 'Thunderbird'.
Pint Half Full or Pint Half Empty
When you are having a bad hair day, then you are having a bad hair day, and that’s, that .... take Brock Leach, a 13 year old boy from Cornwall in the UK, who in July 2015, was with his 16 year old brother on the cliffs at 'Trebar with Sand' near Tintagel, when he slipped on some lichen or moss, and fell 100ft (30 meters), down the cliff face.
His brother scrambled down the cliff (which isn't a totally vertical drop), to Brock's side, and found him caught on a ledge, bruised and winded, but alive and conscious, and apparently able to get up despite his injuries. Realising that the tide was coming in, and that if they stayed there they would be cut off from help, the elder brother helped Brock climb to a higher ledge - where Brock was promptly bitten by an adder snake. The adder is Britain’s only venomous snake (and quite hard to find).
They were rescued shortly afterwards, and Brock was rushed to hospital, where he was treated for a broken pelvis, severe bruising, and the snake bite ..... a full recovery was made.
Now some people would say he has been unlucky .... but I would argue the exact opposite, and that he was a very lucky man. How many stories with someone falling 100 feet down a cliff, and then being bitten by a venomous snake, and only then being rescued and recovering, do you read about? Not many ..... so, lucky boy.
Pilfering Pandas
I never try and resist the crimbo's (criminals), or hero's in costumes stories .... like the 'strange deaths' tales, they could almost keep a blog going by themselves, if I tracked down all the tales from across the globe.
This one involves a couple of 'crimbos', who raided a newsagents and convenience store in Louth, Lincolnshire, in England. They entered the premises at about 7:30pm, dressed in Panda onesies (all body and head costumes), and threatened a female member of staff with a handgun, forcing her into handing over cash from the till.
The staff member wasn't physically hurt and police are looking for these plundering pandas.
What Brits Really Think
Further to our posts about what the average UK 'households / couples' really do, there has been a report from Nationwide Savings, on what '30 typical something’s' are up to .... which is apparently not much these days.
They have managed to save just £4,300 (so that house deposit is still a few decades off), with just £343 in disposable income. This may explain why one in five is not happy with their careers. Their car is a hatchback, but it appears that they couldn't afford the insurance and petrol, even if they were given bigger cars.
Their favourite films include such non-classics as 'Dirty Dancing’, although 'Pulp Fiction' does make the list. If their film taste is some what unexciting and staid, then so is their music taste (if not worse) ... those between the ages of 30 and 35, count 'Queen' and the 'Beatles' (really ... 30 to 35 still listen to the Beatles? .... seems unlikely), 'Bon Jovi', 'Rhianna' and almost unbelievably 'Take That' (must be the ladies choice), among their favourite music acts. Strangely they are largely optimistic for the future.
Which is odd because a recent report has said that the proportions of national wealth has shifted from younger to older households since 2008. Now the proportions of national wealth privately owned by families and headed by someone under aged 45, has fallen from 20% to 16%. Over the same period the share of national wealth privately owned in households headed by someone over aged 65 increased from 17% to 19%. This change, despite the fact there are twice as many of the younger households.
Another study of 2,000 British people, found that people spend a total of nearly six years of their lives daydreaming (as little as that?). It claims that as much as two hours a day are lost in people spending imaginary lottery money winnings, or going on holidays, moving to the perfect home or location, or even if the weather was just better where they lived.
It seems that, even though for most of us these dreams never turn into reality , simply having them is enough to lift our spirits and makes six in ten of those who have them, feel happier for a while.
So there you are ... you are not wasting your time while idly thinking about all these things, you are in fact giving your inner self, a little happiness.
Angry Old Lady
When I reported on the extreme protest methods employed by a very grumpy dwarf, I didn’t realise that this story might open a whole new possible thread ....
The Sydney Daily Telegraph in Australia, reported in September, that a lady called Kay Bishop, from Croydon, in South London, went to a Debenhams department store, and dis-robed to almost nothing .... in fact she was wearing just a beauty queen type sash. She then went up to the windows, and then glued her bare backside to one of them.
The police were called, and she was eventually detached from the window and made to clothe herself. The police then told her off, and she was 'moved on', with no arrest (a bit of common sense breaking out there). The sash had said 'Worlds Grumpiest Old Woman', and she later confirmed that she had been protesting simply because she was "fed up with everything".
I think we all know exactly how she feels .....
Bad Granny
Its never too late to be a naughty granny ..... some like the late Cynthia Payne (Madam Sin) were naughty in the 'naughty but nice' way but others ... well they are another matter.
For instance in Germany, 87 year old Ursula Heverbeck of Hamburg, has been classed as uber naughty. Her crime is that she denies the WWII holocaust, and is classed as a Nazi, so she has been given 10 months in prison.
Naughty girl .... Germany is just about to let in a million people per annum, who also deny the WWII holocaust, and who hold Islamo-fascist beliefs. I wonder if they will all get 10 month prison terms ... probably not.
Stupidity Knows No Limits
We have talked about strange deaths before on this blog, and to be fair, if we dedicatedly trawled the press, we could happily keep a single subject blog going on those tales alone. But we only occasionally notice these stories, and its only when they make us think about something else that we bother to note the details ..... this is one such story.
A burglar (well either that or a very unlucky chimney sweep), died in strange circumstances...
 |
| Burglar In The Chimney .... |
The would be burglar aged 19, had apparently approached an empty house in Huron California, and climbed on to the roof. Seemingly he had then climbed down the chimney only to become stuck, unable to climb out or proceed he seems to have opted to wait (or no one heard his cries) .... US Houses are often on more land than in the UK, so no one heard him.
By Saturday afternoon he has presumably tired and was either unconscious to the world or still hoping to escape without the police being involved but whatever the cause, he made no noise when the house owner arrived home. The owner, feeling a late autumn or early winter chill, set and lit a fire ...... the screaming started within a few minutes, and smoke started to fill the room. Once the owner realised that it was from inside the chimney stack they dowsed the fire and called the police and fire brigade.
The fire-fighters had to break into the stack from the outside but the putative burglar was dead from a mix of smoke inhalation and burns. The local sheriff said that they had never seen anything like this before. But then again, when was the last time that you heard of anyone trying to climb down a chimney stack .... even Santa uses a teleporter.
If nothing else, this story shows that natural selection is still actively at work in the human race.
Pint Half Full or Pint Half Empty : I'm always uncomfortable with the conclusion "lucky him" ; if hurting one's self badly but not actually dying is lucky then I'm content to remain unlucky.
ReplyDeleteWhat Brits Really Think : You're right to be skeptical of these surveys, they're inherently biased towards those who are available to be polled, those who then agree to be polled and then the level of truth that they're willing to tell.
"The only possible conclusion the social sciences can draw is: some do, some don’t."
- Ernest Rutherford (1871-1937)
Stupidity Knows no Limits : As horrific as your example is, this young candidate for a Darwin Award has probably spared much pain and suffering for others by getting stuck in that chimney when he did.
There was a lot to comment on with this post ... glad you did so.
DeleteThunderbirds Are GOing to be a topic again I hope?
ReplyDeleteyeah .... OK, as long as you don't do that again.
Delete