Vestigial Us

The towel act described briefly in yesterday's post can be seen on youtube.  While it is another comedy team, it is the same fun.  This is thanks to Marina: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5411cS2P43E I wondered yesterday how we still have so much hair on our bodies - 5 million hairs. This seems like a lot of follicles that aren't of use anymore.  It is considered one of the aspects of human evolution where there are DNA 'leftovers' - vestigial structures. These include wisdom teeth, hiccups, the pink tissue in the eye (leftover from a third eyelid), ear wiggle, lip twitching (left over from when we would bare our teeth), the human tail bone, and goosebumps - when we had hair this made us look bigger.  The list and description of twelve of these can be found HERE and the Wikipedia article is HERE.  There are many items listed in the Wikipedia article. It was thought that the appendix was vestigial, but it now may be considered to have a purpose in our immune system to protect good bacteria in the gut. I thought there must be some funny evolutionary jokes - that is jokes about evolution.  But I found only one article with satirical evolution jokes/cartoons - a bored panda article HERE.  Otherwise, there seem to be few evolution jokes, but there are lots of Easter Bunny jokes:  How do you know the Easter Bunny is really smart?  Because he's an egghead.  How do bunnies stay healthy?  Eggercise  What do you call a mischievous egg?  A practical yolker  What's the difference between a bunny and a lumberjack? One chews and hops, the other hews and chops. Why didn't the easter egg cross the road? Because he wasn't a chicken yet!

Snowman Burning vs Sakura Spring

The Swiss celebrate the end of winter with a burning snowman.  Known as the Böögg, it is often stuffed with explosives. If you want to know how to make a snowman burn, here's the LINK.  The article describes the tradition and festival. For those of us who love flowers, Japan's Hanami is the most famous and long-lived tradition around the globe.  This takes place from late March to early May. This is the festival of cherry blossoms - Sakura. So I am hoping for more Japanese cherry trees to be planted in celebration of the 90th Anniversary of diplomatic relations between Japan and Canada.  The website advertises that we can make our own 90th Anniversary paper flags with the flag-mkaing kit. Mississaugua Celebration Square  has a Japanese Festival - this year it is on August 25th and 26th, 2018.  The banner picture on the website shows drumming, dancing, and a music festival. The celebration of Sakura Days happens in Vancouver, which has a great tradition of blossom trees. This is scheduled for April 14 and 15 and will take place at Van Dusen Botanical Garden, a truly wonderful botanic garden. "Enjoy taiko drumming, martial arts, koto (Japanese harp), dance and singing performances. Participate in a tea ceremony, or learn about ikebana (flower arranging), origami (paper folding), haiku or calligraphy and try getting dressed in an authentic yukata". I can only suggest that we celebrate this 90th anniversary by planting more cherry trees.  Today's pictures feature the cherry grove at Royal Botanical Gardens, planted in 1966.

Until Now

In English the phrase “until now” is used to refer to a change of circumstances where the change happens now.  Here's an example. This famous painting has a hidden meaning no one ever understood until now "Vincent van Gogh painted his famous Starry Night a year before his death, in June 1889. Not only is it one of the artist’s greatest works, but it also is one of the most important works of art in the history of Western painting. In 2004, observations using Hubble Space Telescope revealed swirling clouds of dust and gas surrounding a distant star. And as astronomers claim, these Galaxy images look uncannily like Vincent van Gogh’s Starry Night. The scientists began to study how the artist’s works connects to the actual discovery and found out that there is a distinct pattern of turbulent fluid structures in many of Van Gogh’s paintings". Read the article and see the animation of what he's captured HERE.  Another expression that contains  "until" is Until Further Notice.  This expression appears to have some good humour in it. I will be 29 until further notice Due to an intense mind fog, all my thoughts have been grounded until further notice I am out of order until further notice.  My "stupid people" filter needs cleaning  and my "give a damn" is broke pending repairs Due to the current work load, the light at the end of the tunnel will be turned off until further notice Sorry.  Mind closed until further notice Today's image is a close-up of what's commonly called Frosty Fern.  Such an intricate plant leaf.  It is Selaginella kraussiana, also known as a spikemoss.

Tarzan of the Apes

Yesterday Brian Cole reminded me of the best-known feral child: Tarzan. Tarzan (John Clayton II, Viscount Greystoke) is a fictional character, an archetypal feral child raised in the African jungle by the Mangani great apes; he later experiences civilization only to largely reject it and return to the wild as a heroic adventurer. Created by Edgar Rice Burroughs, Tarzan first appeared in the novel Tarzan of the Apes (magazine publication 1912, book publication 1914), and subsequently in 25 sequels, several authorized books by other authors, and innumerable works in other media, both authorized and unauthorized. Burroughs created an elegant version of the wild man figure largely unalloyed with character flaws or faults. Tarzan is described as being tall, athletic, handsome, and tanned, with grey eyes and long black hair. He wears almost no clothes, except for a loincloth. Emotionally, he is courageous, intelligent, loyal, and steadfast. He is presented as behaving ethically in most situations, except when seeking vengeance under the motivation of grief. Was there a real person that Tarzan was based on?  Did it spring from Burroughs' imagination. An article in the telegraph.co.uk addresses the question.   "According to journalist Thomas Llewellan Jones in a 1959 article for Man’s Adventure magazine, the 14th Earl of Streatham, William Charles Mildin, spent 15 years living in the wilds of Africa between 1868 and 1883. The earl’s story came to light only when family documents were made public following the death of his son in 1937.   Supposedly Lord Mildin left 1,500 pages of memoirs, which begin: “I was only 11 when, in a boyish fit of anger and pique, I ran away from home and obtained a berth as cabin boy aboard the four-masted sailing vessel, Antilla, bound for African ports-of-call and the Cape of Good Hope…” Doesn't this seem so enticing?  But alas, no evidence was ever found to verify the story.  Our landscape today looks like these pictures taken almost exactly a year ago.  The little yellow flower is Witch Hazel, one of the spring blooming shrubs that can handle snow.  Can you see the red tips on the trees in the orchard?  Todays snowy landscape likely validates what makes March a least favourite month.  It consists of snow, green, snow, green, then out pops April!

Six-Time Candidate for Presient

What makes the Barbie doll so significant?  Over one billion dolls have been sold. When she was created by Ruth Handler, the intention was for little girls to realize they have choices through the doll.  Barbie is nearing 60 years old next year.  She's gone through 150 careers, and run for president 6 times. She's had over 40 pets.  Her clothes were designed by Mattel's fashion designer Charlotte Johnson. The range of Barbie branded goods is extensive and includes books, apparel, cosmetics and video games.  She's a supporting character in the Pixar films Toy Story 2 and 3.  Andy Warhol's painting of Barbie sold for $1.1 million in 2015. BillyBoy* (his name has an asterisk) was a close friend of Warhol's and owned the portrait.  The portrait of Barbie was a testament to BillyBoy*'s love of Barbie.  He owned tens of thousands of the dolls. In 1984, Billyboy*'s collection was dressed by the famous fashion designers of the day and toured France.  The bbc news story on BillyBoy* is here. Today's pictures interpret Barbie pink.

The Odds Are

There's a site called Randomize and you pick and flip a coin.  "You have a 50/50 chance of this coin landing on heads or tails.  This U.S. penny has been flipped 162405 times.  Why don't you give it another flip!"  You can pick from a number of coins. Or you can roll the dice, generate random integers, prime numbers, lottery numbers, and random cards.  The website specializes in randomizing different things.  It has a random quote. We think of these odds and probabilities: 50-50, 60-40 and 80-20.    How many people do you need to have a 50-50 chance of sharing a birthday? 23 people.  In a room of just 23 people there’s a 50-50 chance of two people having the same birthday. In a room of 75 there’s a 99.9% chance of two people matching. I find that I have forgotten that odds and probably are not the same:   "Odds compare one event to another event, whereas probability compares one event to both possible events. Thus, when the odds are 60 to 40, the fraction for the Odds is 60/40, but the fraction to calculate the probability is 60/100". I am really thinking about the weather - of course.  That's my focus for probability as we move into spring rain and leave winter snow behind.  We want to have 0 probability of snow wherever we go.  Not that 20% chance of snow at any given point on the map.  "So for every 10 kms you travel you will increase your odds of seeing snow by multiplying the chance of snow at each point".  So stay put and reap the 20%. Our pictures today are scenes from Pennsylvania in late January when we visited the Longwood Orchid Festival.

Loot Bag Etiquette

What was the value of the loot bag for the Oscar nominees?  Forbes came out on top of the retrieval list with:  "Inside the $100,000 Oscars Gift Bag of 2018." It is named the "Everyone Wins" Nominee gift bag.  It went to the 25 nominees in the acting and directing categories.  The participating companies donate the items and pay a promotional fee of at least $4,000 to have their products included.   Distinctive Assets is the company putting this all together.  It has 'toned down' the extravagance - in 2016 the bags were worth $230,000 each.  In this year's bag, there are three vacation packages - Greece, Hawaii, and the big one to Tanzania:  12-night Tanzania vacation for two This package from International Expeditions is the most expensive gift, costing more than $40,000. The journey includes spa services, a private safari guide, wild game drives and a hot air balloon safari with champagne breakfast. Here's a summary of what's included:  'This year’s offerings include a slate of skin-care, weight-loss and anti-aging products designed to fend off the inevitable progression of human life, as well as something called “Chao Pinhole Gum Rejuvenation.” The bag features fancy chocolates from Chocolatines in flavors unknown to the proletariat such as “Champagne Diamond” and “Ginger Sake Pearl.” We sampled the “Pomegranate Balsamic Ruby” but couldn’t taste the ruby'.  The full list is on thesuns website. What happens afterwards to the dozens of products?  I wondered about whether they are transferable - can they be given away as gifts?  Another article says that occasionally, celebrities are required to turn down gift bags because they have signed conflicting endorsement deals.  Others give theirs away; George Clooney opted in 2006 to donate his bag to a United Way charity auction, where it sold for $45,100. And still others object to the mere idea of gift bags on moral grounds — in 2007, Edward Norton called them “disgusting and shameful,” suggesting that the Academy instead make a charitable contribution in winners’ names.  Is there a downside to this windfall?  Yes - a big tax bill.  From time.com:  "But while these giveaways are usually thought of as freebies, that’s not how the IRS sees them. The tax man considers everything in the bags to be income, and therefore subject to the same tax rates as wages and other windfalls like gambling or lottery winnings".  That's how the Oscars/Academy got out of the business and Distinctive Assets took over.  After 2005, the contents were taxed. We're looking at another beautiful orchid from the Royal Botanical Gardens orchid show in February.

Twenty Plants to Beauty

Wasn't it two days ago that I looked at the duplicate place names?  Last night I went to the Royal Botanical Gardens in Burlington, ON and heard a speaker from Burlington, Wisconsin.   He is Roy Diblik, a garden writer with a garden design vision that focuses on modern design using native plants and creating 'native landscapes'.  One of his areas of expertise is understanding plants as members of a living community.  He is not amongst those people who view a plant as a potted possession. He made it clear that we garden selfishly and without consideration for the plants and their needs and requirements.  Roy's method of gardening is to create communities of plants that are 'companions' - meant to grow with each other. They cover the soil, keep out weeds, and create naturalistic gardens that can live on for decades.  They maintain themselves without the need for mulch or fertilizers.  This is possible when we give them their natural conditions.   Roy worked with Piet Oudolf and is best known as the plantsman behind Oudolf's midwestern garden designs.  He designs and creates award-winning public gardens in the Chicago and surrounding area. Best known is Lurie Garden at Millennium Park in Chicago. This is a bit of a wake-up call for someone like me who loves to go to the garden centre and purchase the latest new hybrids.  Roy can create a stunning garden with about 20 plants. There's a great deal to learn from the simplicity and discipline he espouses.  Here's Roy's website, Northwind Perennial Farm. Today's pictures show the Toronto Botanical Garden's front walk way garden.  It was designed by Piet Oudolf, and gives you a sense of the style of garden that is the subject of Roy's designs.  Our pictures show scenes through the seasons.