Thursday, June 23, 2011

Synapses of the world, unite!

According to the statistics section of my blog, I have written 763 posts (not counting this one) since September 28, 2007. This made me think, naturally, of the French and Indian War.

Do not look at me like that with those rolling eyes. It makes perfect sense.

The French and Indian War lasted from 1754 until 1763 -- note those last three digits, 763, which are the same as the number of, oh, forget it -- and was also known as the Seven Years War, even though if you subtract 1754 from 1763 you will get, let me see now, nine years. This is both confusing and completely unrelated to the fact that September, which is the ninth month of the year, was in fact the seventh month of the Roman calendar (in Latin septem means “seven” and septimus means “seventh”) until 153 BC, when the beginning of the year was changed from Kalendas Martius (1 March) to Kalendas Januarius (1 January), but that is neither here nor there. Well, actually it was there, but it’s not any more. Another story I have read explaining the reason September became the ninth month instead of the seventh is that two months were inserted into the Kalenda calendar to honor Julius Caesar and Augustus Caesar, namely July and August. The Romans, usually so thorough, apparently figured they had done enough damage and decided not to rename September November, rename October December, rename November Undecimber, and rename December Duodecimber. If you don’t have a clue what I am talking about, clicking here will help.

According to our old friend Wikipedia, the war (we were talking about the French and Indian/Seven Years War, remember?) was also known in Sweden as the Pomeranian War, in India as the Third Carnatic War, and in Prussia and Austria as the Third Silesian War. This is approximately as confusing as calling Constantinople Istanbul, calling Bombay Mumbai, calling Hot Springs (New Mexico) Truth or Consequences (New Mexico), and dividing Ruanda-Urundi into two separate countries and calling one Rwanda and the other Burundi, but it is not quite as confusing as calling the old Byelorussian Soviet Socialist Republic Belarus or calling Burma Myanmar or calling the Hellespont the Dardanelles. If you are really into Greek mythology, my mentioning the Hellespont should bring to mind the legend of Hero and Leander, in which Hero was female, Leander was male, and a lot of swimming was involved. Just like last weekend in the UK. If only Leander had worn an orange hat and a wet suit, perhaps he would not have drowned but would have received a free pair of flip-flops like Daphne did. (Again, clicking on the links will help you understand.)

I have no idea where this post is going. Nor do I know where it came from. Ditto as regards that last paragraph.

The human brain is a funny thing. Not funny ha-ha but funny peculiar. If you don’t believe me, look at this:


I will quit while I am a head ahead.

If you don’t think I am ahead, kindly keep your opinion to yourself.

Until we meet again, please continue sending good thoughts my way and I will do the same back atcha, good buddy (CB* talk for reciprocate). If you have not heretofore been sending good thoughts my way, there is no time like the present to begin.

Or you can entertain yourself by watching this (2:42).

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* by which I mean Citizens’ Band radio. My incurable itch unquenchable thirst for knowledge, however, has led me to discover that CB can mean quite a number of things. Why, just in composing this note I learned that in the UK back in the seventies there was a singing group called Laurie Lingo and the Dipsticks and that Providence, Rhode Island, is known to American truckers as Barftown. Where else, I ask you, would you ever learn such useful and fascinating information? --RWP

11 comments:

  1. Whodathunkit? The things I learn here.

    I was previously unaware that the Swedish thought the war was fought over those cute little dogs.:)

    It's amazing how many things are known by the initials "CB." Another bit of trivia for my stash.

    I enjoyed the clip from the WOZ, which has been around almost as long as we have -- because, because, because, because, because! :)

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  2. Bob remind me to never go on a long car trip with you. Or a bus trip. Or a plane flight. Hell just never BE with you ;-)

    On the other hand, thanks for the long awaited and well publicised link to my blog. You're a good egg, sir.

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  3. in my own head i hqave exactly 753 blogs and i was born in 1753, imagine that coicidence<><>silverback is such a nice guy but methinks he thinks you very wordy

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  4. Hey, that girl in the film clip's good, isn't she? She could have quite a future in showbiz! (Yes, yes, everyone, don't worry, I do know who she is - I'm just English and being ironic!)

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  5. Pat, you might want to be on the lookout for my next post, which, frankly, was inspired by your comment.

    Ian (Silverback), you have discovered that my thinking process does not occur in a linear fashion from point A to point B, but operates more like a beach ball, with a patch of tangential yet interconnected colors that all somehow contribute to the same fun, albeit spherical, experience. This is the first time in my life I have ever written that particular sentence, and I hope it will be the last. And thank you for continuing to return to my blog in spite of everything.

    Putz, Silverback may be right. You are much older than I thought.

    Daphne, no one has ever been "just English" and I mean that in the best possibly way. Are you still wearing your medal? (I would be if I had accomplished your feat. I might not ever take it off.)

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  6. P.S. to Pat, I believe you mean the WOO, not the WOZ...

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  7. CB are also my initials. I've been sending good thoughts your way for years now, but still your brain works in mysterious ways. So that didn't help ;-)

    You're a fountain of information. And WV is 'trizi'. You're the Trizi Fountain of information. Related to the Trevi Fountain perhaps?

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  8. Carolina, how could I not have remembered that CB had personal meaning for you? See, my synapses are definitely NOT firing or connecting or whatever it is that they do...

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  9. This post inevitably reminds of a local geographical oddity. Not far from here is a road that is known as Sanders on one side of the county dividing line and Saunders on the other. I'll bet you can guess which side belongs to the wealthier county.

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<b>Always true to you, darlin’, in my fashion</b>

We are bombarded daily by abbreviations in everyday life, abbreviations that are never explained, only assumed to be understood by everyone...