Old So What

  In 1869, a French chemist named Hippolyte Mège-Mouries created a new “butter,” made from beef fat.   It was supposed to have a longer shelf life than real butter, and be an overall hardier product. So, in 1895, the butter industry, or whatever it was called, banned yellow margarine. This meant that you could only buy white margarine. Segue to the early 1950s… Now, I’ve seen white margarine. It’s not appetizing, but that’s the point. So, you had to mix the yellow coloring with the white margarine glop. They came in a plastic bag, but in two different compartments in the bag that you had to squish together.   I loved to do this.   It was a fun job when you’re five! (I, myself, prefer the taste of butter.)

  Another excellent movie available on YouTube is:   The Painted Veil based on the story by the well-known writer, Somerset Maugham. The main characters, Kitty and Water Fane (Naomi Watts and Edward Norton) start out as unhappily matched, but end up coming together as a couple in love.   Unfortunately, it’s too late. Described as a “Chinese period romance,” with a backdrop of the real event of the cholera epidemic in early 1900s China.   (It should be said that any movie in which Edward Norton is involved can be counted on as being really good because the man is both creative and a perfectionist!) The supporting cast includes Diana Rigg and Toby Jones.   Highly recommended by this author.

  Just be really careful of your source!

  To clear up a common mistake… Hieroglyphs refers to the characters themselves used in Egyptian writing, such as an animal or bird.   Hieroglyphic is the adjective to describe this writing system, which is:   A system using pictures to represent words or sounds.

  Get this Book NOW, I’m not kidding. Ask Not:   The Kennedys and the Women they Destroyed by Maureen Callahan This is an important writing, a documentation, for which those of us who were around at the time have been waiting. Finally, after all these years, and all the lies, we get to learn the truth.   And Ms. Callahan has assured us that she has made it her priority to seek out, research, validate and give us the truth…at last. I was so interested in this book that I purchased it in hard cover, something I never do. Glue your socks on because they will surely pop off while reading this page-turner. I don’t know where to start, I actually haven’t even finished the book yet. There are a few more pages to go. For those of you, who don’t know:   In the sixties the Kennedys were our royalty in America. Royalty guarded by a press which closely protected the Kennedy image, the mystical, almost religious Kennedy aura. But in actuality, many of the Kennedy ...

  (Stanley Steamer, as in the car, not the cleaning company, Stanley Steemer.) The Stanley Motor Carriage Company was an American manufacturer of cars—steam cars—from 1902 to 1924. The first model was produced in 1897; the inventors were twin brothers Francis and Freelan. At one time the steam-powered passenger car was extremely popular.   It was clean, powerful, attractive and fast, but very complicated to drive. It took 17 steps to start the car, and wait for the steam pressure to build up.   The traveling speed was 35 to 45 miles per hour, and it had a 28-gallon tank, which was heated with vaporized kerosene. Unfortunately, these cars fell victim to the superiority of the internal combustion vehicles, which had improved quickly, even using an electric starter instead of the original crank, notorious for actually injuring the operator. With the use of the self-starter and the end of the hand crank, gasoline-fueled cars became the obvious winner, being so much ...

  We used to learn this stuff in school. So here goes… George Washington was the first president of the United States of America. The most important fact about him to me has always been that at the beginning, the founding of this country, he was offered the title and role of “king,” but declined.   He didn’t view this title as appropriate for the American soul, mind or spirit. Bravo to him. The world had had enough kings and queens.   This was a new chapter and it deserved a new beginning, a new title. President Washington was a hero! Period! He served as President from 1789 to 1797. He is known as the Father of Our Country.   Born on February 22, 1732 in Virginia (One of the original 13 Colonies.), President Washington commanded the Continental Army, which fought for independence from England during the Revolutionary War (1775-1783). Because he was so trusted, he was asked to preside over the  Constitutional Convention,   which was responsible...

  If you read my book, A Quick Read: Short-Short Stories , then you have at least an idea. These dramas are addictive!  Really, maybe I should get a life, but I look forward to the story line, the actors, the sets, the costumes, the smallest details which have all been included just for me! And everything is more than well done, it’s almost, yes, almost, perfect.   All of which show: care, expense-not-spared, sensitivity to the viewers, extraordinary imagination, above- and-beyond writing, acting and directing. It's nice to think that there are still creative, bodies of pure talent in this world, at least in Korea. These dramas end with a “Thank you” to “our” audience. I rest my case. P.S. The one flaw and the only reason for the almost perfect score instead of perfect, is that in order to grant the viewers’ wish for a happy ending, sometimes the endings don’t really make sense, as when the heroine swallows poison, gushes up blood, but ends up just fine! How...