The May 8 episode of “UNDER THE INFLUENCE” contains content that will, to use an expression of most of our youths, blow your mind.
It is the host’s (Terry O’Reilly) take on why books are so important for his show research.
You will learn a whole lot about a variety of things and people.
Do NOT be put off by the introduction when it brings up the bible; you’ll learn things about the politics of publishing it and a bit about the rivalry between two of its earliest publishers. After that it switches to more modern books and their authors’ takes on what the subject of the book is (one author makes a case for several Beatles songs as “conversations” between John Lennon and Paul McCartney).
For ease of use open the link in a new window and click on the “Play Episodes” button.
Enjoy ! ! –
This is Colleen Moore, one of the biggest stars of silent movies at that time… she was the quintessential flapper, and actually quite beautiful.
I’ve read about this scene… Early special effects.
She was famous for the exaggerated eye movements used to portray emotion in silent films.. but not like this!
This was done in split screen, by putting black cardboard over half her face, filming one side and then the other, and then joining the two filmstrips.
I’m no professional. Heck, I’m not even an amateur. But I think that’s a whale of a lot of force being delivered by that wave. It seems obvious that it is what has worn away that rock outcropping over the eons. I’ll bet the water’s ice cold too. This also leads me to conclude that the guy standing out there alone on a rock ledge has mush for brains. He’ll be lucky to see tomorrow.
I went down into the harbor and got to watch this guy.
At first the kids didn’t see him/her. When they did i had to sit down to keep Buddy from dragging me away. Fawn got loud. I’m hanging on to them and trying to get the phone out to take a photo and she/he calmly walks around us and jumps into the water.
71 days without food… then silence. What happened?
In the year 1823, the whaling ship Jenny set sail into the icy grip of the Arctic, never to return with its crew alive. Months later, she was found drifting silently off the coast of Greenland, her sails stiff with frost, her decks eerily still. When rescuers boarded, they made a discovery that would haunt maritime history forever—the entire crew, frozen in time, their bodies preserved in grotesque tableaus of their final moments.
The captain’s logbook lay open on his desk, its last entry sending a shiver down the spines of those who read it: “May 4, 1823. No food for 71 days. I am the only one left alive.”
What happened aboard the Jenny? The ship had become trapped in pack ice, a death sentence for any vessel in that era. With no way to break free, supplies dwindled. The crew, weakened by starvation and the relentless cold, succumbed one by one. The captain, the last survivor, scribbled his final words before the Arctic claimed him too.
But the Jenny was not alone in her fate. The 19th century was littered with such tragedies—the infamous Franklin Expedition of 1845 vanished without a trace, its ships Erebus and Terror lost for over a century before being rediscovered, their crews dead from scurvy, lead poisoning, and the merciless cold.
Ghost ships like the Jenny became legends, their stories whispered in taverns and docksides. Were they cursed? Did some unseen horror stalk their decks? Or was it simply the brutal indifference of nature, swallowing men whole without remorse?
Even today, the Jenny’s final log entry lingers like a ghostly echo. What did the captain see in those last days? Did he watch his men die, knowing he would follow? Or did madness take him before the cold did?
The Arctic gives up its secrets slowly, if at all. The Jenny remains a frozen tomb, a warning from the past about the price of daring the unknown. And somewhere, in the silent depths of history, her story still waits—half-told, half-frozen, forever unfinished.
They do – the Botanical Garden here in Munich was quite busy today and those geese were in the busiest part.
You could hand-feed them!
Plus their parents were close all the time.
the Elvis beetle
Are you sure of that sobriquet? I think it looks more like Reagan.
More like Reagan than Elvis…. but even more like an Alaskan billiken.
Robert Redford in “The Great Gatsby” from 1974.
Had to be!!
Yup.
,
A Fibonacci flower!
Fibonacci cactus, anyway.😁
Spiral aloe.
If you like your vegetables fractal, try Romanescu broccoli.
There are some cauliflower that grow like that.
I think it’s the same one… broccoli and cauliflower are related.
Romanescu broccoli tastes halfway in between, and it’s sometimes labeled cauliflower.
There’s also green cauliflower that tastes like it’s got a little broccoli in it, and yellow cauliflower that tastes a little sweeter.
All these unusual forms are way overpriced at the supermarket, but I used to find them sometimes at the 99c store that closed.
Ooh! I can see Hansel and Gretel’s cottage!
,.
The Amocosaurus? No fake nose and specs to go along with the fake eye?
I was so tired last night I didn’t see “Amoco” or the people….
I thought it was a rock formation that looked like a sea creature breaching, and you were telling the species.
Sigh……
OMG! I thought it was the same thing, but painted with graffiti and made to look like a giant shark!
LOL…. at least I’m not alone😁
Looks kinda like the bow of some kind of ship.
Sinking ship.
At least one of us got it right!
Last night i didn’t see the signage on the front.
Guess i was right.
But, that is one odd looking bow.
I didn’t see the signage till you pointed it out.
I thought it was a rock formation…🙄
When you can’t tell a supertanker from a natural rock formation, you know the ship’s maintenance has been disgraceful!
The May 8 episode of “UNDER THE INFLUENCE” contains content that will, to use an expression of most of our youths, blow your mind.
It is the host’s (Terry O’Reilly) take on why books are so important for his show research.
You will learn a whole lot about a variety of things and people.
Do NOT be put off by the introduction when it brings up the bible; you’ll learn things about the politics of publishing it and a bit about the rivalry between two of its earliest publishers. After that it switches to more modern books and their authors’ takes on what the subject of the book is (one author makes a case for several Beatles songs as “conversations” between John Lennon and Paul McCartney).
For ease of use open the link in a new window and click on the “Play Episodes” button.
Enjoy ! ! –
As usual I caught the tail end of the program driving to the park for my afternoon walk…
,
Can’t see anyone wanting their glasses back after they’ve been taken apart and reground to use in binoculars and telescopes (spy-glasses)…
I don’t think they mean they want your eyeglasses.
“Glasses” used to include opera glasses, binoculars, spy-glasses and telescopes, along with eyeglasses, which were still usually called spectacles.
Good point! “Glasses” were also short for “Magnifying Glass(es)” like Sherlock Holmes used.
I bet she’s a drummer too.
She would have made a fine wife for Ben Turpin!
That’s just wrong.
This is Colleen Moore, one of the biggest stars of silent movies at that time… she was the quintessential flapper, and actually quite beautiful.
I’ve read about this scene… Early special effects.
She was famous for the exaggerated eye movements used to portray emotion in silent films.. but not like this!
This was done in split screen, by putting black cardboard over half her face, filming one side and then the other, and then joining the two filmstrips.
,,
We got those here too!
I once saw one swoop down and grab a BIG carp out of an ornamental pond!
Fascinating family dynamic they have going there.
Happy families…
I had no shot.
I recognised her.
I couldn’t be sure it was her…
I’m no professional. Heck, I’m not even an amateur. But I think that’s a whale of a lot of force being delivered by that wave. It seems obvious that it is what has worn away that rock outcropping over the eons. I’ll bet the water’s ice cold too. This also leads me to conclude that the guy standing out there alone on a rock ledge has mush for brains. He’ll be lucky to see tomorrow.
Happy! You get back here!
That kind of wave action looks better when you are further away from it.
Does anyone else see the pup in the middle surf?
You will have to outline it or something.
My imagination isn’t that good.
If you mean a dog’s head made out of surf… Yes.
If you mean there’s a real dog in the picture… No.
I see it now!
Saw it right away. Was torn which comment to make…
I went down into the harbor and got to watch this guy.
At first the kids didn’t see him/her. When they did i had to sit down to keep Buddy from dragging me away. Fawn got loud. I’m hanging on to them and trying to get the phone out to take a photo and she/he calmly walks around us and jumps into the water.
I believe that it’s a brown pelican.
The Whaling Ship ‘Jenny’.
71 days without food… then silence. What happened?
In the year 1823, the whaling ship Jenny set sail into the icy grip of the Arctic, never to return with its crew alive. Months later, she was found drifting silently off the coast of Greenland, her sails stiff with frost, her decks eerily still. When rescuers boarded, they made a discovery that would haunt maritime history forever—the entire crew, frozen in time, their bodies preserved in grotesque tableaus of their final moments.
The captain’s logbook lay open on his desk, its last entry sending a shiver down the spines of those who read it: “May 4, 1823. No food for 71 days. I am the only one left alive.”
What happened aboard the Jenny? The ship had become trapped in pack ice, a death sentence for any vessel in that era. With no way to break free, supplies dwindled. The crew, weakened by starvation and the relentless cold, succumbed one by one. The captain, the last survivor, scribbled his final words before the Arctic claimed him too.
But the Jenny was not alone in her fate. The 19th century was littered with such tragedies—the infamous Franklin Expedition of 1845 vanished without a trace, its ships Erebus and Terror lost for over a century before being rediscovered, their crews dead from scurvy, lead poisoning, and the merciless cold.
Ghost ships like the Jenny became legends, their stories whispered in taverns and docksides. Were they cursed? Did some unseen horror stalk their decks? Or was it simply the brutal indifference of nature, swallowing men whole without remorse?
Even today, the Jenny’s final log entry lingers like a ghostly echo. What did the captain see in those last days? Did he watch his men die, knowing he would follow? Or did madness take him before the cold did?
The Arctic gives up its secrets slowly, if at all. The Jenny remains a frozen tomb, a warning from the past about the price of daring the unknown. And somewhere, in the silent depths of history, her story still waits—half-told, half-frozen, forever unfinished.
…and the Donner Party didn’t learn from them.
😢
Nor did Franklin, or Scott…
They’re baaaaaack!
They must feel safe if baby is napping.
They do – the Botanical Garden here in Munich was quite busy today and those geese were in the busiest part.
You could hand-feed them!
Plus their parents were close all the time.