25 Years of 'A Christmas Story'

Time flies when your having fun! This holiday season marks the 25th anniversary of A Christmas Story, a classic story of Americana. Seems like it was just yesterday that Ralphie was looking in that department store window and admiring that rifle. You know, an official Red Ryder carbine-action 200-shot range model air rifle with a compass in the stock! To celebrate the occasion, a convention was held for fans in Cleveland this past weekend. More than 4000 fans attended to meet cast members, watch several documentaries about the making of the movie, see the original fire truck from the " I Triple Dog Dare you" scene, and tour the Parker household. Seems my invitation was lost in the mail. Happy Anniversary, anyway:)

25th Anniversary Trivia

• Ralph's school exteriors were filmed at Victoria School in St. Catharines, Ontario, Canada.
• Jean Shepherd (writer/narrator) is the irate man waiting in the Santa line at the department store. The woman behind Jean is his wife, Leigh Brown.
  
• Parts of the movie, including the Christmas tree shopping scene, were filmed in Toronto, Ontario. One of Toronto's trademark red trolleys can be seen driving by the shot of the outside of the tree lot.
• Swede, the dim-witted neighbor, who marvels at the Leg Lamp from outside is Bob Clark, the director of the movie.
• The "major award" was based on a real lamp: an illuminated Nehi logo.
• The Radio Orphan Annie decoder pin that Ralphie receives is the 1940 "Speedomatic" model, indicating that the movie takes place in December, 1940. Different decoder badges were made each year from 1935-1940. By 1941, the decoders were made of paper.
• When the character of Scut Farkas first appears, the "Wolf" music from Prokofiev's "Peter and the Wolf" plays in the background. The name "Farkas" is derived from the Hungarian word for "wolf".
• Inspired the creation of "The Wonder Years" television show (1988).
• In 2005, the original home used for the exterior shots of the family home was put up for auction on eBay and avid fan of the movie Brian Jones managed to purchase the home directly from the seller. See my 'byte' of that story here. Everything you wanted to know about A Christmas Story, but were afraid to ask is available at the website for the house. Check it out now!
  

Believe it or not

Rocket Man

And I think it's gonna be a long long time
Till touch down brings me round again to find
I'm not the man they think I am at home
Oh no no no I'm a rocket man
Rocket man burning out his fuse up here alone

Sweet Home Alabama

Can the Fins and the Russian's rock? The Leningrad Cowboys and the Red Army Choir say "yes."

Raising Baby - Part 5

In contrast to the previous baby post, Mom can have her problems too!

Hiking Staff

I was on another forum recently when the discussion of hiking staffs came up. The discussion centered around whether to buy a prefabricated one or make your own. The discussion caused me to think about my own hiking staff.

The same man that taught me about "Less Than 14 Miles," also taught me about outdoor equipment. One of the most important pieces of backpacking equipment is the staff. It has a multitude of uses from physical support, snake whacker, tarp pole, to baseball bat. As such, it is important to carefully choose the correct one.

I chose the natural route. No prefab stuff for me. Twenty-five years ago, I handpicked a small tree from the Virgin Falls Pocket Wilderness area in middle Tennessee. That name lends itself to a discussion of its own, but that will have to wait. The tree I chose was called Ironwood or sometimes referred to as American Hornbuckle. The name defined its characteristics - strength, toughness, and durability. Ironwood is used to make axe and tool handles because of its toughness.

My staff was cut to the desired length and taken to an artesian in Oak Ridge, Tennessee. He carved a relief image of an owl and put a tilted crown on the top of the staff (which is actually the bottom of the tree). Next, the staff was treated with mineral oil to preserve its rich color and tones. Finally, I coated the bottom with a heavy layer of epoxy to keep the base from splintering. I discovered later that this wood is almost impossible to splinter.

The staff made several trial runs in the Tennessee mountains, but its worthiness was proved out on a trip to the Grand Canyon several months later. It helped me climb down from the South Rim to the Tonto Platform, then to the raging Colorado River at the bottom. It lifted me up the miles of switchback of the Bright Angel Trail back to the rim. Since that trip it has made long distance treks on the Appalachian Trail and spent time on coastal islands of the Atlantic. It even made a return trip to the Grand Canyon in the 1990's.

I have long since retired that staff. Afraid that I would break it (not likely) or worse, lose it. It has sat in the corner of my home office for many years now. It occurred to me during that discussion on that forum, that this staff has become part of me. I've had it for more than 1/2 my life. It carries my legacy and has become a signature item. It is an heirloom that will be passed down to my children.

I Was a Middle-Aged Cadaver

While cruising several forums related to hiking and geocaching recently, I came across a message asking for volunteers to help with an upcoming seminar. After reading more details about the event, I decided this would be an interesting thing to do and responded to the call. The next day I received a message that indicated that I was "in" and they looked forward to seeing me soon. The requirements for a volunteer sounded interesting: have and know how to use a GPS receiver, have all-weather hiking gear, and be able to assume the role of a cadaver (i.e., play dead). Yeah, it made me curious too.

The skies were dark and several rain drops splattered on the windshield as I pulled into Camp Andrel about 7:30 in the morning. Camp Andrel is a Girl Scout camp located outside of Rogersville, Alabama along the banks of the Elk River. The camp was teeming with activity already. There were SUVs and 4WDs; men and women dressed in outdoor apparel ranging from hunting to hiking gear; and dogs. There were as many dogs as people. However, these were not ordinary dogs. These were Search and Rescue dogs, abbreviated as SAR K9. These folks and animals had gathered for the 2008 Airscent Seminar.

What is airscent? Airscent usually refers to search dogs that use airscenting techniques to search areas. Airscent dogs will ignore ground scent and will follow and locate people by catching the "hot" scent of people on the wind. Airscenting techniques are very effective for covering large areas quickly and can produce high probabilities of detection if conditions are good for airscenting. Some airscenting dogs are also trained to scent discriminate, meaning they can be pre-scented on an article from the missing persons and pick this person from others in the search area. These dogs are often called wilderness or area search dogs. Most are trained to find the victim, alert the handler when the victim has been found, and return the handler to the victim.

It was becoming clear to me that I was a "victim." In order to train the dogs (and handlers), volunteers are needed to get lost and sometimes play dead in the wilderness. I was introduced to the head trainer, Denver from North Carolina, and put on a team that involved the advanced dogs. We drove to the training area, which was a 400 acre farm, and I was instructed to leave my car unlocked. At this point, I had not seen any of the dogs yet, but that time was coming. The dogs would be allowed to smell inside my car to get what is known as a "scent article" (i.e., my signature stinky body odor).

For my first scenario, I was dropped off on a road and told to walk a tree line in a gully for about 200 yards. I was then to turn left at the fence and walk about 300 yards to the top of the hill along another treeline. I was to hide among the brush/trees and play dead. No problem. I proceeded to the target area and wondered how long I would be here. I was told to bring a book or something to do. Instead, I chose to savor the solitude by lying down on my pack and watching the storm clouds blow overhead. Fortunately, it was not raining yet and I found myself admiring the wind and the trees. At that moment, in that place, I found peace, joy, and contentment.

After nodding off a time or two, I awoke to the sound of a dog barking far in the distance. I opened my eyes and saw a black retriever on a hill that was about a 1/2 mile from my location. For some reason, I assumed this dog was going after the other volunteer. I watched the dog track back and forth for a few seconds and then it bolted down the hill with speed that I couldn't believe. I lost him in the gully and wondered where he was going. In a few minutes, I started to hear something that resembled a cow bell. I realized that the bell was on the dog, named Jake, and he was making his way up the hill towards my location. Time to play dead. Jake saw me and came straight to my face and proceeded to give my head a bath with his tongue. Since I was dead, Jake tried his best to get me to respond. At one point, he opened his jaw and gently closed on my nose, but that didn't evoke a response so he started barking. The handler came and retrieved him. The reward for Jake? A toy that squeaked. Game over. Unfortunately, Jake didn't do what he was supposed to do. After finding me, he was supposed to return to the trainer or alert the trainer. Jake chose to lick me for a few minutes before notifying his trainer.

For my second scenario, I walked across the field and planted myself under a huge cedar tree. They would switch dogs and go after the other volunteer first. It started to gently rain and I chose not to do anything as I waited. Almost 2 hours later and after some good sleeping, I heard a cow bell again. This was Rudy, a German Shepherd. I heard him go back and forth for several minutes down below me. Later, I was told my scent had drifted downhill and was hanging in the trees, which confused the dog. Rudy finally got wind of me and came to my tree. Once he found me, he returned to his owner and then he returned to me again. He kept of this cyclical motion until the handler was at my side. His reward? A rope with a knot on the end. I could tell Rudy was a working dog and more mature than Jake.

After lunch, we moved into a more complex method of finding someone by using a method known as discriminating airscenting. The two volunteers would line up fairly close to each other, one easily seen in the open field and the other hidden in the trees. The dogs would pick up both our scents, but had to discern which was the correct one. I don't recall the dog's name, but he was very intelligent. I played the decoy in the field and he came right up to me, smelled me, and turned and went back to the handler. He did this a second time and the handler told him to "go find him." The dog launched past me and went down the treeline. He overshot the target, but quickly realized that and came back to the area where the other volunteer was. I was completely impressed and amazed at the dog's ability.

I should point out that these dogs do not walk. They are running almost all of the time because time is of the essence. The final scenario involved three of us taking a long walk in the field. All the dogs would train on this scenario. I was the first decoy. My friend Jake was the first out and found me quickly. He proceeded to get in my face and started barking. Unfortunately, I wasn't the victim he was searching for. Jake got wind of the real victim and bounced off over the hill. Rudy was next. I heard him coming from my left. He ran within 10 feet of me and kept going. He knew I was not the right person. He returned to his handler, which confused the handler, and after a little discussion they realized that I was not the right person. Rudy had lost the scent of the real victim and did what he was supposed to do - return to the handler. The remaining dogs cycled through me as the rain got heavier.

In the end, I had spent almost 7 hours out in a cold and wet field. Dogs had jumped on me, licked me, and wanted to play with me. I had a blast! I gained a new appreciation and respect for the people, who volunteer their time and money, and the dogs, who work relentlessly to get that reward. It occurred to me during lunch, that these folks are on the "front lines" and are often the first ones to reach a victim, whether dead or alive. They are truly unsung heroes that play a vital part in our society. I felt honored to have been able to participate in this type of event and one that I will not forget.

[Information and pictures grabbed from www.nasdak.org]

Raising Baby - Part 4

Baby must be handled with care as seen in these illustrations. Not sure why "Dad" seems to always be shown in an unfavorable situation in these illustrations. Can you spot the bias in today's illustrations?

The Revenge of Betamax !

TOKYO, Japan (CNN) -- Toshiba said Tuesday it will no longer manufacture HD DVDs, effectively ending the long-running battle with the rival Blu-ray for a dominant high-definition format.

Toshiba said it made the decision to cease developing, manufacturing, and marketing HD DVDs after "recent major changes in the market." It promised to continue offering support and service for all existing Toshiba HD DVD products.

"We carefully assessed the long-term impact of continuing the so-called 'next-generation format war' and concluded that a swift decision will best help the market develop," Toshiba President and Chief Executive Atsutoshi Nishida said in a news release.

Toshiba's HD DVD business has been suffering recently with a string of major retailers and rental companies announcing their preference for Blu-ray, developed by Sony.

Raising Baby - Part 3

Baby needs physical activity to stimulate the muscles and brain. Recent research indicates that children of all ages, including toddlers, need some sort of physical activity. If they do not participate in adequate physical activity, young children are more likely to grow into sedentary adults, which is a "growing" problem in the United States.

"Children develop skill through involvement in physical activity," says National Association for Sports and Physical Education (NASPE) Executive Director Judy Young, PhD. "And parent involvement plays a significant role in children developing motor competence and enjoying physical activity."

With any kind of exercise routine, there is always a right and a wrong way. The following illustrations hopefully will clear up any confusion:

Raising Baby - Part 2

Baby's safety and well-being should be the top priority of any parent. We can use a trip to the grocery store as an example:

First, baby must be properly secured in the automobile before transport to the local grocery store. Don't be in such a hurry that you forget to put him in a Government approved safety seat (see top diagram). Specific and serious information on child safety seats can be found at the American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP) and the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA).

Second, upon arrival at the grocery store, baby is safest in a shopping cart. However, proper placement in the cart is important (see bottom diagram). Keep this diagram in the diaper bag for handy reference.

With the proper use of these two techniques, baby can have an enjoyable shopping experience.

Raising Baby - Part 1

I thought it would be appropriate to impart some wisdom of raising babies since I have some experience in that area. This is intended to help those parents with that first child, but could also be useful for those with their second or third. This will be a multiple part series because there is a large bundle of information to relay. These techniques/instructions are appropriate for newborns up to two years of age.

I believe the first example shown in the top picture is obvious and self-explanatory. However, the bottom picture is not quite as obvious and should be posted in a common area for easy reference.

Dream a Little Dream ... Theater

Think you have a nice home theater system? Don't read this article if the answer is yes. I've also heard that it transforms bad movies into good ones!

Electious Thompson

Things Seen While Geocaching:

Electious Thompson was born in 1755 in Prince George's County, Maryland. In the mid 1770's he joined the growing number of soldiers fighting in the Revolutionary War. Of the larger battles, he is believed to have participated in the Battles of Long Island, White Plains, and the Battle of Germantown. The Battle of Long Island was a significant turning point in the war.

On Aug. 27, 1776, the first major battle of the Revolutionary War was fought at Brooklyn, N.Y. Known as the Battle of Brooklyn or the Battle of Long Island, it was where Maryland would earn her nickname ‘‘The Old Line State.” Few are aware that the war could have ended that day had it not been for the ‘‘Maryland 400” who sacrificed themselves to allow the colonial army to escape. Even fewer are aware of the involvement of the men from St. Mary’s County.

The colonists, numbering less than 13,000, faced 30,000 British forces. Within a few hours they were surrounded. Gen. George Washington ordered a retreat with the men of Maryland, Pennsylvania, and Delaware left behind to provide cover. The only escape was past an old house and across a creek.

The Delaware and Pennsylvania lines gave way and they were ordered to retreat, leaving six Maryland companies, totaling about 400 men, who were ordered to take the old house where cannons were killing escaping colonists. The Marylanders attacked five times, losing more men with each attempt.

As the Marylanders continued to charge and the killing continued, Washington called up the 5th Independent Company from St. Mary’s County to provide relief. In the sixth attempt, the remnants of the 400 successfully took the house and stopped the carnage for a brief time, but were soon overwhelmed and ordered to retreat.

The men of St. Mary’s stationed themselves at the mouth of the creek. With only two pieces of artillery, they silenced the six cannons of the enemy. After the retreat of the 400, the men of St. Mary’s spiked their cannons and crossed the creek to safety. [source: Southern Maryland Newspapers]

Pvt. Electious Thompson was one of the soldiers from St Mary's County. After the war, Electious married Martha Sherall and they moved to Virgina, North Carolina, Kentucky, and eventually settled in Morgan County, Alabama. Electious was a Free Mason and a Doctor of Divinity. He died in 1840 in Alabama (note: tombstone has several errors).

My son and I found Dr. Electious Thompson recently at the Pines Church cemetery while geocaching in Morgan County. His tombstone and plaque, placed by the DAR, are shown in the picture. As usual, click on image for larger version. What a great name. They just don't make them like that anymore! There is a lot to see and learn out there - get out while you can ...

[Information collected from multiple sources on the internet. Copyrights are observed.]

Old Brick Church (1839), Mooresville, AL

File this one under the heading of "Things Seen While Geocaching". In case you missed it, click on the picture of the steeple for a closer look. More info here.

I Triple-Dog Dare Ya !

CHESTERTON, Ind. — Two fourth-grade boys mimicking a scene from the movie "A Christmas Story" wound up with their tongues stuck to a frozen flagpole.

Gavin Dempsey and James Alexander were serving on flag duty at Jackson Elementary School Friday morning, with the job of raising and lowering the school's flags. They decided to see if their tongues really would stick to the cold metal.

"I decided to try it because I thought all of the TV shows were lies, but turns out I was wrong," Gavin said.

Karen Alexander, James' mother , said her son told her he got the idea from the movie, which is based on stories about a boy growing up in the northwest Indiana community of Hammond in the 1940s.

"I can't believe he did it, but they learned their lesson," she said.

James said he plans to eat a lot of ice cream to help nurse his wound.

"When you're young, you're just messing around," he said.

Billie Dempsey, Gavin's mom, said a nurse called them to tell them the boys' tongues were bleeding.

"The nurse asked them, 'OK, who double-dog dared who?"' Billie Dempsey said, a reference to a phrase that a character in the movie used to dare another child to stick his tongue to the pole.

[AP, 26 Jan 08]

Bill Gates' "Last Day" Video from CES 2008

For all you tech junkies:

12 Days of Christmas via YouTube

I saw this on another blog and thought it was entertaining enough to provide a link here. From Indiana University, here is a men's A Cappella group called Straight No Chaser :

Believe It or Not: The Candy Cane

Blog Rehash II:

I haven’t given much thought to the Christmas candy cane, but it has always been there as a traditional staple of Christmas fanfare. It has been used as food and decoration. Over the years, I became aware that the candy cane has an interesting history. As with other things, the original purpose and meaning has been distorted by time/tradition (thus, the header of this article) and the story moves into legend/myth. Of course, Snopes has ideas on it too. These are a couple of my favorite Candy Cane Apologetics.

Candy canes have been around for centuries, but it wasn't until around 1900 that they were decorated with red stripes and bent into the shape of a cane. They were different, unique, and only appeared at Christmas time. They were sometimes handed out during church services to keep the children quiet. I know several children (and parents/preachers) that would like to see this invoked again. There are stories that the candy cane was used as a secret symbol among persecuted Christians, but that implies that persecution only happens at Christmas time.

In the late 1800's a candy maker in Indiana wanted to express the meaning of Christmas through a symbol made of candy. He came up with the idea of bending one of his white candy sticks into the shape of a candy cane. He incorporated several symbols of Christ's love and sacrifice through the Candy Cane. First, he used a plain white peppermint stick. The color white symbolizes the purity and sinless nature of Jesus. Next, he added three small stripes to symbolize the pain inflicted upon Jesus before His death on the cross. There are three of them to represent the Holy Trinity. He added a bold stripe to represent the blood Jesus shed for mankind. When looked at with the crook on top, it looks like a shepherd's staff because Jesus is the shepherd of man. If you turn it upside down, it becomes the letter J symbolizing the first letter in Jesus' name. The candy maker made these candy canes for Christmas, so everyone would remember what Christmas is all about!

Remember, National Candy Cane Day is Dec 26 !

Believe It or Not: Xmas

Blog Rehash I - from a couple of years ago:

I grew up thinking that Xmas was a derogatory, slang, and disrespectful term for Christmas. The retail stores made the argument that it was a shortened form necessary to reduce cost of advertising (you know, charge by the letter!). However, I was convinced that they were taking Christ out of Christmas. The controversy has been elevated this year by some retailers using the term “Holiday” in lieu of “Christmas”. You can buy Holiday wreaths, Holiday Trees, Holiday music, etc, etc. The use of the term has angered some Christians to the point of calling for a boycott of stores that promote “Holiday”.

Back to “Xmas” – Some believe that X is used to stand for Christ because of its resemblance to the cross. Others believe the first Greek letter of Christ is Chi, which is symbolized by X. The abbreviation does have roots of Greek origin. Xmas is derived from the word ΧΡΙΣΤΟΣ, transliterated as Christos, which is Greek for Christ. The early Christians understood that X stood for Christ's name. X, XP (Chi-Ro), and XC (first and last Greek letters) were often used in ancient Christian art (see image) as abbreviations for Christ’s name. During the 16th century, Europeans began using the first initial of Christ's name, X, in place of the word Christ in Christmas as shorthand. Eventually and over time, Christians who did not understand the Greek language and forgot why X was being used mistook "Xmas" as a sign of disrespect. A BBC News article from last year indicates that people still get riled by the term.

X-MAS is also an abbreviation for the WWII Italian frogman group called Decima Flottiglia MAS?

Back to “Holiday” – This should be of no surprise in our politically correct culture and reminds me of the Walt Disney boycott several years ago. “If you were of the world, the world would love its own; but because you are not of the world, but I chose you out of the world, therefore the world hates you.” - John 15:19. Pick your battles. Some are not worth fighting. Enuff said.