Cap'n Bob & the Damsel

Tucker’s Second Birthday

Today is Tucker’s second birthday — well, it’s not known what his real birthday is since he was found wandering south of town and nobody claimed him, so the vet who examined him estimated his age to be a year old a year ago today. We adopted him a year ago this coming Saturday, so that anniversary will be this weekend.

After we lost Bay Bay last year, we weren’t expecting to adopt another pet as soon as we found Tucker, but there he was at a Humane Society adoption event at Tractor Supply and it was love at first sight for both us and the little guy.

Tucker is a long-haired chihuahua mix and weighs in at about eleven pounds. He has mostly black fur with a white patch on his right neck, a little blaze on his forehead and a large white “tuxedo shirt” down his chest.

Since we adopted him, Tucker has completely adapted to our routines and he is a wonderful and loving little guy. We look forward to having him around for a long time to come.

So happy birthday little man!

08 Mar 2023 by Critters Family

In Like a Lion

Now that I’m finally posting Damsel’s photo of a light dusting in the local foothills, it has all melted or sublimated away. However, we did get some snow in the area with freezing temperatures in early March which isn’t totally unusual for us. We’re at about 2200 feet above sea level here and have on occasion had snow stick here in town.

I know that other regions in our Nation have had much colder winter weather than we’ve recently experienced and, in fact, so have we here in past years. However, this is the coldest we have had this winter and it’s happening in accordance with the March Proverb.

Normally, this would be the time of late winter when we’re beginning to have cactus flowers blooming and other signs of impending spring. And, as a matter of fact, Damsel and I just walked out into the rock and cactus gardens and verified that there are tiny flower buds appearing on the prickly pear, beavertail, hedgehog and Argentine Giant cacti. I’m sure that Damsel will be posting a few early spring cactus flower pictures in a few weeks or less.

All that remains now, is for the March weather to go out like a lamb and then, in a few more weeks, come back like a fire-breathing dragon when the summer temperatures return to our Sonoran Desert — and we’re OK with that.

p.s. If you think that weather and climate can be influenced by anthropogenic (man-made) activities, please refer to our on-line paper about The Great Climate Hoax.

06 Mar 2023 by Arizona Environment Global Warming

A 1947 Pontiac Woody
Station Wagon Anaglyph

This is a throwback to Saturday, November 08, 2008 when the Coast Guard Lighthouse at Point Vicente on the Palos Verdes Peninsula, Southwestern Los Angeles County, California held an open house. Damsel and I were attending the open house on a nice sunny November Day.

Other than the lighthouse and grounds tour, one gentleman drove his 1947 Pontiac Station Wagon (not a true “woody,” but with painted on planks) onto the lighthouse station as an exhibit. I used a little pocket camera, a Canon Powershot A510IS to take an image pair to later render into a 3D image.

You will need your red/cyan 3D glasses to view the above anaglyph image. If you don’t have a pair, then you can view the 2D version here.

The encounter with this old classic was very nostalgic for me since I learned to drive in a 1951 version of this car, a Pontiac wagon with a straight-eight engine which is the same type of engine that was in the classic wagon seen above.

25 Feb 2023 by Bob's 3D Stuff Classics Nostalgia

George Washington’s Birthday

Today marks the 291st anniversary of the birth of the “Father of the Country,” George Washington. He was an American military officer, statesman, and Founding Father who served as the first president of the United States from 1789 to 1797. Washington died in 1799 at Mount Vernon, VA, where he is laid to rest.

It is our opinion that the President’s Day Holiday as a replacement for both Lincoln’s and Washington’s birthdays is a sham and a disservice to both men. The generic term ‘president’ refers to nobody in particular that held the office and, unfortunately, may also commemorate some of the worst imbeciles ever to have been elected up to and including the present occupant of 1600 Pennsylvania Ave.

We missed posting on February 12, which would have been the 214th birth anniversary of Abraham Lincoln (sorry Abe — next year maybe). Also, the image of GW above is actually actor Jon Voight, whose appearance in “An American Carol,” made an excellent impression of the Father of the Country.

22 Feb 2023 by Holidays Patriotism

Mardi Gras 2023

Mardi Gras in French means “Fat Tuesday.” The slogan above is French for “Let the good times roll.” Damsel and I visited “Noo Awlins” in October of 1998 and picked up on some of the jargon while we were there. New Orleans is, to say the least, a very interesting place. We were not in town during Mardi Gras, however, and were able to see the town relatively unabated by the enormous crowds that would appear a few months later.

The Mardi Gras festival takes place on the last day before Ash Wednesday which is when Lent begins. The word “Carnival,” is derived from middle Latin “Carne Vale” for “good-bye to meat.” So, today is that Fat Tuesday — let the day of feasting begin.

Here is more about Fat Tuesday from Britannica.com

Mardi Gras, (French: Fat Tuesday) festive day celebrated in France on Shrove Tuesday (the Tuesday before Ash Wednesday), which marks the close of the pre-Lenten season. The French name Mardi Gras means Fat Tuesday, from the custom of using all the fats in the home before Lent in preparation for fasting and abstinence.

In the United States the principal Carnival celebration is in New Orleans, Louisiana. The Carnival season there opens on Twelfth Night (Epiphany, January 6) and climaxes with the Mardi Gras festivities commencing 10 days before Shrove Tuesday. This period is filled with elaborate revelrous parades, both day and night, building up to Mardi Gras and the Rex parade. Beads of yellow, gold, green, and purple are commonly distributed, and the eating of king cake is an iconic part of the celebration.

So, if you’re in to celebrating Fat Tuesday, Enjoy! We’re going to have a bowl of Cajun Gumbo today to celebrate Mardi Gras.

21 Feb 2023 by Culture Notions

Tutankhamun Tomb
100th Anniversary

Today, February 16, 2023, marks the 100th anniversary since 20th Century Archaeologist Howard Carter opened the inner tomb of the renowned Pharaoh Tutankhamun. The following is from Art Net

Despite discovering King Tutankhamun’s tomb in late 1922, it took several months for archaeologists to work their way through and catalogue the contents within the outer chambers. On February 16, 1923, Carter finally came face-to-face with the doorway leading to the tomb’s inner burial chamber and unsealed it. What he and his team were met with was the most well-preserved and intact pharaonic tombs ever found. Over the following eight years, the items and goods contained therein were carefully catalogued and removed, and today are held in the collection of the Egyptian Museum in Cairo.

Damsel and I are interested in all things Ancient Egypt and we were able to see many of the King Tutankhamun artifacts in 2005 on display at the Los Angeles County Museum of Arts (LACMA).

From Wikipedia:

Tutankhamun was the antepenultimate pharaoh of the Eighteenth Dynasty of ancient Egypt. He ascended to the throne around the age of nine and reigned until his death around the age of nineteen. Historically, Tutankhamun is primarily known for restoring the traditional polytheistic ancient Egyptian religion, after its suppression by Akhenaten in favor of the Atenist religion. Also, Tutankhamun was one of few kings worshipped as a deity during his lifetime; this was usually done posthumously for most pharaohs. In popular culture, he is known for his vastly opulent wealth found during the 1922 discovery of his tomb, KV62, the only such tomb to date to have been found in near-intact condition. The discovery of his tomb is widely considered one of the greatest archaeological discoveries of all time.

One might have thought that after Moses led the Hebrew Slaves out of Egypt that Pharaoh Rameses would get a clue about who Almighty God really is and should have passed it down to the masses in Egypt, but I guess I give Rameses too much credit; he remained clueless.

16 Feb 2023 by Arts Culture Notions Something Shiny

Valentines Day 2023

Happy St. Valentine’s Day! We’re sort of rained in today, so the celebration will be limited to indoor happenings (other than walking the dogs between showers).

Damsel traditionally gets some Waterford Crystal on Valentine’s Day. She chose Irish coffee mugs this year. And yes, we have already enjoyed Irish coffee served in these mugs. Sugar-free confections are the order of the day when it comes to Valentine’s Day treats. Damsel received Russel Stover candies in a heart-shaped box. Damsel’s favorite flowers, Stargazer Lilies are featured in our flower vase on this Valentine’s Day.

From History dot com:

Valentine’s Day occurs every February 14. Across the United States and in other places around the world, candy, flowers and gifts are exchanged between loved ones, all in the name of St. Valentine.

From 1 Corinthians 13:4-7

Love is patient and kind; love does not envy or boast; it is not arrogant or rude. It does not insist on its own way; it is not irritable or resentful; it does not rejoice at wrongdoing, but rejoices with the truth. Love bears all things, believes all things, hopes all things, endures all things.

14 Feb 2023 by Holidays Notions

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