Verna and Bob's Weblog

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Rustic Cart and Cactus

If you let Verna loose with her camera at a classic old California Mission like San Miguel near Paso Robles, she will usually deliver more than one artistic photo. In addition to a couple of others we already posted, this photo of a rustic cart built in the late 18th century nestled into some prickly pear cactus is a visual delight. Click on the image to enlarge.

rustica.jpg

About the Mission:

Mission San Miguel Arcángel was founded on July 25, 1797 by the Franciscan order, on a site chosen specifically due to the large number of Salinan Indians that inhabited the area, whom the Spanish priests wanted to evangelize. It is located at 775 Mission Street, San Miguel, California, in San Luis Obispo County. The mission remains in use today, though is undergoing earthquake remediation efforts.

August 3, 2009 by Culture Photography Vacation

Mission Santa Inés

santa-ines-pan.jpg

One of the highlights of our recent vacation was visiting some of the El Camino Real missions. Mission Santa Inés is near Solvang, the famous Danish tourist attraction.

From the Mission’s website:

The Mission was founded on September 17, 1804 by Father Estevan Tapis, and was named in honor of Saint Agnes, an early Christian martyr of the fourth century. The Spanish for Agnes is Inés, hence the name of the church; the American Yankees anglicized the spelling of the Spanish pronunciation and named the town Santa Ynez.

The Mission, which commands a superb view of the Santa Ynez River Valley and the Santa Ynez and San Rafael mountain ranges, continues its central role in the spiritual and social life of the Santa Ynez Valley as an active parish church of approximately 1,000 families, and is administered by the Capuchin Franciscan order.

July 28, 2009 by Culture Panoramas Vacation

Ancient Pottery Still Life

This garden knick knack has been hanging in the patio for a couple of years. Today, I photographed it and when looking at the image, it occurred to me that it looked like ancient Native American pottery. In black and white, it even adds to the effect. Click the image to enlarge.

pots

July 14, 2009 by Culture Photography

Mensa Words

words.pngThis has been all over the internet, but I wanted to post it here just because some of these pseudo-words and definitions are quite clever.

The Washington Post’s Mensa Invitational once again asked readers to take any word from the dictionary, alter it by adding, subtracting, or changing one letter, and supply a new definition. Here are this year’s winners. Read them carefully. Each is an artificial word with only one letter altered to form a real word. Some are terrifically innovative:

1. Intaxication: Euphoria at getting a tax refund, which lasts until you realize it was your money to start with.

2. Reintarnation: Coming back to life as a hillbilly.

3. Bozone (n.): The substance surrounding stupid people, that stops bright ideas from penetrating. The Bozone layer, unfortunately, shows little sign of breaking down in the near future.

4. Cashtration (n.): The act of buying a house, which renders the subject financially impotent for an indefinite period of time.

5. Giraffiti: Vandalism spray-painted very, very high.

6. Sarchasm: The gulf between the author of sarcastic wit and the person who doesn’t get it.

7. Inoculatte: To take coffee intravenously when you are running late.

8. Hipatitis: Terminal coolness.

9. Osteopornosis: A degenerate disease. (This one got extra credit.)

10. Karmageddon: It’s like, when everybody is sending off all these really bad vibes, right? And then, like, the Earth explodes and it’s like, a serious bummer.

11. Decafalon (n.): The grueling event of getting through the day consuming only things that are good for you.

12. Glibido: All talk and no action.

13. Dopeler Effect: The tendency of stupid ideas to seem smarter when they come at you rapidly.

14. Arachnoleptic Fit (n.): The frantic dance performed just after you’ve accidentally walked throug h a spider web.

15. Beelzebug (n.): Satan in the form of a mosquito, that gets into your bedroom at three in the morning and cannot be cast out.

16. Caterpallor (n.): The color you turn after finding half a worm in the fruit you’re eating.

17. Ignoranus: A person who’s both stupid and an a$$.

July 8, 2009 by Culture Entertainment

Flag Day 2009

We’re spending Flag Day and the birthday of the U.S. Army relaxing at home. In the crock pot is Crazy Yellow Chicken, which I’ll put on the grill later for the finishing touches.

flag-pow.jpg

June 14, 2009 by Culture

Social Studies

social-studies.jpgI don’t go very political on this website, but I can’t resist posting this interesting recount of a college experiment in socialism. H/T John Lott.

An economics professor at a local college made a statement that he had never failed a single student before but had once failed an entire class.

That class had insisted that socialism worked and that no one would be poor and no one would be rich, a great equalizer.

The professor then said, “OK, we will have an experiment in this class on socialism. All grades would be averaged and everyone would receive the same grade so no one would fail and no one would receive an A.

After the first test, the grades were averaged and everyone got a B.

The students who studied hard were upset and the students who studied little were happy.

As the second test rolled around, the students who studied little had studied even less and the ones who studied hard decided they wanted a free ride too so they studied little.

The second test average was a D! No one was happy.

When the 3rd test rolled around, the average was an F.

The scores never increased as bickering, blame and name-calling all resulted in hard feelings and no one would study for the benefit of anyone else.

All failed, to their great surprise, and the professor told them that socialism would also ultimately fail because when the reward is great, the effort to succeed is great but when government takes all the reward away, no one will try or want to succeed.

Could not be any simpler than that.

I’ll drink to that!

June 5, 2009 by Culture

Avalon 1998

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