Beyond Earth

Planet Earth is orbiting the sun at 67,000 miles per hour -- it is also rotating on its axis (spinning) at 1,000 miles per hour at the equator. Our solar system (the sun and its 9 planets) is travelling through space at 515,000 miles per hour. Our sun is a single star within a galaxy of stars, called the Milky Way. Our Milky Way galaxy, home of our solar system, is 100,000 light years across -- it would take about 230,000,000 (230 million) years at the speed of light to travel all the way around the outside perimeter of the Milky Way galaxy. There are about 300,000,000,000 (300 billion) stars within the Milky Way galaxy alone, a modest-sized galaxy compared to most other galaxies in the known universe. Our known universe contains some 100,000,000,000 (100 billion) galaxies, with each galaxy potentially containing multiple billions of stars. On a clear night, the average person is able to view approximately 3,000 stars with the naked eye. On July 22, 2003, CNN News reported that astronomers announced there are 70 sextillion stars in the visible universe. A sextillion is a 1 followed by 21 zeroes -- that's 70,000,000,000,000,000,000,000 known stars in the universe, more than all the grains of sand on all the beaches of the entire Earth. This is not the total number of stars in the universe -- it's the number within the range of present day telescopes. The true number could be a zillion times higher. Our single star (the sun) contains 9 planets -- imagine how many potential planets are contained within 70, 000,000,000,000,000,000,000 known stars (other suns). Keep that in mind the next time you complain about finding a convenient parking spot. Also, keep that in mind if you assume that Planet Earth is the only spinning orb in the universe that contains intelligent entities, such as human beings, whose intelligence is often highly questionable. ___________ Quote for the Day – “Something deeply hidden had to be behind things.” Albert Einstein ___________ Bret Burquest is the author of 12 books. He lives in the Ozark Mountains with a few dogs and where the universe is a fairly large place. ___________ - -

New Madrid Fault

On January 12, 2010, the Caribbean island nation of Haiti experienced an earthquake of 7.0 magnitude, claiming between 100,000 and 200,000 lives. Earthquakes are not new to Haiti. In 1751, a quake destroyed every masonry building (except one) in Port-au-Prince. Twenty years later, a 7.5 magnitude quake again leveled Port-au-Prince, killing 200 people. In 1842, a quake on northern Haiti killed 10,000 people. In 1946, a magnitude 8.0 quake produced a tsunami that killed 1,800 people. Earthquakes are not new to the USA either. New Madrid, Mo., is on the west bank of the Mississippi River, about a hundred miles upstream from Memphis, across the river from the Kentucky and Tennessee state lines, just above the Missouri boot heel. The population in 2010 is approximately 3,200. On December 16, 1811, the 400 people who lived in New Madrid were awakened by a powerful earthquake. It was the largest seismic event east of the Rocky Mountains in the United States, over 8.0 in magnitude. The tremor lasted from three to five minutes. The ground visibly rolled and most buildings were completely destroyed. Large areas of land sank, new lakes were formed and over 150,000 acres of forest were decimated. It also caused the Mississippi River to flow backwards for several hours and changed the course of the river. The shake was felt as far north as Quebec City, Canada, and it rang church bells in Boston, Mass., over 1,000 miles away. The towns of Point Pleasant and Little Prairie, both in Missouri, located on points of land jutting out into the Mississippi River, were completely swept away without a trace. During the next few weeks, there were 2,000 aftershocks, including three more quakes in the 8.0 range. This event became known as the Great New Madrid Earthquake of 1811-1812 because its epicenter was in a sparsely populated area near New Madrid. The New Madrid Fault system extends 120 miles south-southwest from the area of Cairo, Ill., through New Madrid, down to Blytheville, Ark., all the way down to Marked Tree, Ark. The New Madrid Fault averages some 200 measured events per year (1.0 or greater). About once every 18 months, there is a shock of 4.0 or more, causing minimal local damage. On Thanksgiving of 1996, there was a 4.3 quake which was felt by people in Missouri, Arkansas, Tennessee, Kentucky, Illinois and Mississippi. An earthquake of 6.0 or greater could cause serious damage to structures, particularly older masonry buildings, from St. Louis to Memphis. This occurs about every 80 years. The last event was in 1895. The New Madrid Fault is overdue for a jolt. An earthquake of 7.5 or greater would be felt throughout the entire United States and would cause damage in 20 or more states. This happens once every 200-300 years or every 500-600 years, depending on which seismological study one chooses to believe. The last such event occurred in 1812. Earthquake prediction is not an exact science. Most experts believe there is about a 90% chance of a quake of 6.0 or greater by the year 2040. Some experts believe there is a 3% chance of a major earthquake (7.5 or greater) along the New Madrid Fault by 2040, while other experts believe there is a 25% chance by 2040. The Earth's surface is made up of a series of tectonic plates, much like pieces of a giant jigsaw puzzle. These plates are in constant motion, traveling a few inches per year. As these plates build up stress over time, energy is occasionally released in the form of an earthquake. It's not a question of "if" there will be another massive earthquake along the New Madrid Fault, but "when." And when it occurs there will be catastrophic destruction, particularly in southeastern Missouri, northeastern Arkansas, western Kentucky, western Tennessee and southern Illinois. We live on a very precarious planet. Besides dealing with the injustice inflicted upon others by evil people, we must also contend with natural disasters such as earthquakes, hurricanes, tornadoes, tsunamis, volcanoes, fires, floods, mudslides, droughts, meteors, extreme temperatures, pandemics, crop failures and so on. And you can no more win a war than you can win an earthquake. Beyond the folly of politics and the nefarious manipulations of global elitist greed-heads, human destiny is primarily a series of unforeseen events guided by invisible forces. Whatever happens tomorrow is meant to happen and there's nothing you can do about it. If you live anywhere near the New Madrid Fault, don't despair -- just stock up on beans and ammo, and live life to the fullest. The future is like a box of chocolates – you never know what you're going to get. ___________ Quote for the Day -- “Those who survived the San Francisco earthquake said, ‘Thank God, I’m still alive.’ But, of course, those who died, their lives will never be the same again.” U.S. Senator Barbara Boxer (D-Cal) ___________ Bret Burquest is the author of 12 books. He lives in the Ozark Mountains with a few dogs and too close to the New Madrid fault for peace of mind. ___________ - -

Dim Bulbs

Life is often stranger than fiction. Compiled from various sources over time, the following items are purported to be true stories. Obviously, we can’t all be the brightest bulb on the tree. California, the land of fruit and nuts, always has more than its share of dim bulbs. In Modesto, a man attempted to hold up a bank using a thumb and a finger to simulate a gun. In a typical dim bulb maneuver, he failed to keep his hand in his pocket, making his apprehension a laughing matter and an easy task. In Los Angeles, police were conducting a lineup. They asked each of the men in the lineup to say, “Give me all your money or I’ll shoot.” One of the suspects shouted: “That’s not what I said!” Needless to say, another dim bulb bit the dust. In San Francisco, a man walked into a Bank of America, wrote a robbery note on a deposit slip and stood in line waiting for his turn. He became impatient so he went across the street to rob a Wells Fargo Bank. The teller told him she couldn’t accept a note written on a Bank of America deposit slip and that he’d either have to rewrite it on a Wells Fargo deposit slip or go back to Bank of America. So the dim bulb, a mighty dim bulb indeed, went back to the Bank of America and stood in line until some men in blue came along and escorted him to jail. In Bakersfield, a young couple bought a brand new speedboat and went to a lake to take it for a spin. They got the motor started just fine but it seemed very sluggish. They eventually made it to a nearby marina and had it examined by a mechanic. Upon inspection it was discovered that the trailer was still securely strapped under the boat. Dim bulbs have been known to run in pairs too. Dim bulbs aren’t restricted to California, although it would be helpful if they were. In Topeka, Kansas, a man attempted to hold up a convenience store. Finding the amount of cash on hand to be less than expected, he tied up the store clerk and began working the counter himself, hoping to accumulate more money in the process. He was arrested three hours later, still on duty behind the counter. He may not have been the sharpest tool in the shed but he had a good work ethic. Too bad he didn’t get a job in the convenience store in the first place. In Atlantic City, an elderly woman won a bucket of quarters on the slot machines in one of the casino hotels. On the way up to her room, two black men joined her in the elevator. Suddenly, one of the men said, “Hit the floor” whereupon the woman threw her bucket of quarters up in the air and sprawled on the elevator floor. The man politely explained that he meant for her to push a button for her floor; then they both helped her gather the scattered coins. The following morning the woman received a dozen roses. The card read: “Thanks for the best laugh we’ve had in years.” It was signed: Eddie Murphy and Michael Jordan. In Boston, a Catholic priest was standing on the sidewalk having a conversation with an older woman when a thug grabbed the woman’s purse, knocking her to the ground, and hit the priest with a club, rendering him unconscious. The woman had two sons – one was the priest she was talking to and the other was the top crime boss (Mafia) in the city. Somewhere in Boston is a dim bulb with the wrong purse and plenty of reason to avoid guys named Carmine, Vito or Big Tony. Relocating to somewhere beyond Jupiter might be a wise move. In Finland, where taxes are among the highest in the world and the national pastime is depression, there is an office building full of dim bulbs. A tax official in his 60s died of a heart attack at his desk. Two days passed before any of his 30 co-workers noticed he had expired. Apparently accountants look like they’re still working even though the distance between their face and the top of their desk is zero. Dim bulbs provide an important benefit to mankind -- they make the rest of us look fairly intelligent. ______________ Quote for the Day – "Be alert, the world needs more lerts." Woody Paige ___________ Bret Burquest is the author of 12 books. He lives in the Ozark Mountains with a few dogs and where dim bulbs roam freely. ___________ - -

A Noble Person

Paul Newman was born on January 26, 1925, in a suburb of Cleveland. On September 26, 2008, at age 83, he passed on to the Great Beyond. His father was Jewish and ran a sporting goods store. His mother was a Slovakian Catholic who converted to Christian Science when Paul was five years old. Newman made his acting debut at the age of seven, playing the court jester in a school production of Robin Hood. He briefly attended Ohio University in Athens, Ohio. He served in the U.S. Navy during World War II. His plan to be accepted into pilot training failed when it was discovered he was color blond. After boot camp, he was trained as a gunner and radioman in torpedo bombers. In 1945, he served aboard the USS Bunker Hill during the battle for Okinawa. After the war, he graduated from Kenyon College. Later, he studied acting at Yale University and under Lee Strasberg at the Actors Studio in New York City. Paul Newman was a brilliant actor. He made over 50 movies, starting in the 1950s, and was nominated for a best actor Academy Award 10 times, winning once and receiving two Oscars for lifetime achievement. He also received two Golden Globe Awards, an Emmy, a Screen Actors Guild Award, a Cannes Film Festival Award and many honorary awards. On the silver screen, he was Hud, Cool Hand Luke, Harper, Hombre, The Hustler (Fast Eddie Felton) and Butch Cassidy. And he was magnificent every time. Politically, Newman was very liberal. He supported Eugene McCarthy in the 1968 presidential election race, which landed him on Richard Nixon's infamous Enemy List.. But unlike other show biz liberals, he lived far from the glare of Hollywood, in Connecticut. And unlike other show biz liberals, his philanthropy didn't include attacking successful people and corporations. Instead of trying to confiscate money from others, Newman founded a company called Newman's Own, in 1982, which carries a line of food products. The company policy is to donate all proceeds, after taxes, to various charities. To date, this effort has distributed in excess of $200 million to worthy causes, mostly toward children worldwide. He not only talked the talk, but he walked the walk. Newman was survived by his wife of 50 years, Joanne Woodward, five daughters, two grandsons and his older brother. His son, Scott, died in 1978 of a drug overdose. Rest in Peace. ___________ Quote for the Day – "A noble person lives by doing what needs to be done, not by thinking about doing or thinking about what to think when finished doing." Bret ___________ Bret Burquest is the author of 12 books. He lives in the Ozark Mountains with a few dogs and an imaginary girlfriend named Tequila Mockingbird. ___________ - -

Reincarnation of Marilyn Monroe

In April of 2007, I wrote a newspaper column about a woman in Toronto named Sherrie Lea Laird who had been deemed to be the reincarnation of Marilyn Monroe by a psychiatrist who specialized in hypnotic regression therapy. It turned out to be one of the major turning points in my life. At age 11, Sherrie was wondering about the beauty mark above her lip (similar to Marilyn Monroe) as her aunt began singing, "A kiss on the hand may be quite continental, but diamonds are a girl's best friend." When she asked her aunt about the song, which seemed so familiar, her aunt explained it was sung by Marilyn Monroe in a movie called GENTLEMEN PREFER BLONDS. "It was just like an explosion in my mind," Sherrie declared. Even though she didn't even know what Marilyn Monroe looked like, she began having dreams and flashbacks about Monroe. Afraid to tell anyone about it over the years, she eventually spiraled into alcohol and drugs. By the 1990s, Sherrie had become a rising pop singer in Toronto, Canada. Her song "No Ordinary Love" had been at the top of the music charts in Canada and Europe. But she was still traumatized by feelings of being haunted by an internal demon. In 1998, Sherrie discovered Dr. Finkelstein's website and e-mailed him concerning her repressed feelings and anxieties about being possessed by another person. Dr. Adrian Finkelstein is a graduate of the prestigious Menninger School of Psychiatry, a former chief of the outpatient of psychiatry at Mount Sinai Medical Center, a former assistant professor of psychiatry at Chicago's Rush Medical School and served as assistant clinical professor of psychiatry at UCLA, where he taught past-life regression therapy. Now in private practice, Dr. Finkelstein has been a pioneer and expert in past-life regression therapy for 30 years, and has performed over 5,000 past-life regressions. He has also created and patented a Past and Present Lives -- Iris Recognition Comparison Test (PPL-IRCT). Sherrie and Dr. Finkelstein worked together, on and off, for more than eight years. Soon, Dr. Finkelstein became convinced that Sherrie Lea Laird was the reincarnation of Marilyn Monroe. In addition to sessions of video-taped past-life regressions in a somnambulistic hypnotic state, other analytic methods were also conducted, including bone structure, eyes, voice patterns, handwriting analysis, personality traits, linguistics, etc. Under hypnosis, Sherrie revealed a multitude of things about Marilyn Monroe, many of which could not have been known by anyone except those close to Monroe or by Marilyn herself. "The more evidence I gathered the harder it was to disbelieve." Finkelstein said. "Not only are there physical similarities between Sherrie and Marilyn, the details she was able to provide were just phenomenal." Under hypnosis, Sherrie (in Marilyn Monroe's voice) revealed she had had an affair with both John and Bobby Kennedy. Her relationship with JFK started in 1954 and ended two months before her death. Her true love was former husband Arthur Miller and she admitted that former husband, Joe DiMaggio, was boring and jealous. She also claimed to have had an affair with Tony Curtis, which was publicly acknowledged by Curtis at a later date. In a session on Nov. 11, 2005, Sherrie stated that her death was caused by an accidental overdose of drugs she had taken while in a sorrowful mood and had not been murdered as speculated by many conspiracy theorists. Sherrie was born 11 months after Marilyn Monroe died. Coincidentally, Sherrie's mother had suffered a miscarriage just two months before she became pregnant with Sherrie. Sherrie believes she had also been the miscarried child. Under hypnosis, Sherrie's daughter, Kezia (age 20 at the time), surprisingly declared that she was the reincarnation of Marilyn Monroe's mother, Gladys. Coincidentally, Kezia had been conceived within days of Marilyn Monroe's mother's death. Sherrie is a singer – Marilyn Monroe played a singer named Cherie in the movie BUS STOP. They each had an Aunt Anne, have similar bone structures, mannerisms and hand-writing techniques, share the same astrological moon nodes, and so on. Dr. Finkelstein wrote the book MARILYN MONROE RETURNS – THE HEALING OF A SOUL which was the basis for the Sherrie Lea Laird mystique. He and Sherrie have appeared on many TV shows, including Geraldo Rivera Live, The Scarborough Report, Inside Edition, etc. In April of 2007, I met Sherrie Lea Laird on the Internet when she responded to my newspaper column. We soon became friends and corresponded regularly for many years. Unfortunately, she eventually drifted on to another phase of her life, out of my life. Somewhere along the way, Sherrie changed her name to Aven Roth. I suspect she had enough of being Sherrie Lea Laird, wanting to escape the endless sensational notoriety and get on with her musical aspirations. She and her life companion, lead guitarist Chris Blakk, originally had a band called Pandemonia, which has somehow evolved into a band called Black9. Sherrie is a shining light in a dark world -- I am proud to call her my friend. ___________ Quote for the Day – "Marilyn Monroe is not back because she was famous, she's back because she's human." Sherrie Lea Laird ___________ Bret Burquest is the author of 12 books. He lives in the Ozark Mountains with a few dogs and where some like it hot. ___________ - -

Chocolate

Life is like a box of chocolates -- it’s full of temptation and eventually becomes empty. The cacao tree, also known as “Theobroma cacao” to those who prefer scientific names, is native to the tropical, equatorial slopes of the Andes in South America. Theobroma is Greek for “food of the Gods.” The ancient Aztecs worshipped the cacao tree and used the beans as currency. Their main god, Quetzalcoatl, was the guardian of the cacao tree, considered the source of strength and wealth. The Aztecs crushed the beans into a paste, added spices, and drank it. Cacao seeds (beans) are the source of cocoa, cocoa butter and chocolate. Early explorers brought the cacao bean back to Europe in the 1500s. With the invention of the moulding process in the 1800s, cacao beans were crushed into a fine powder, heated, and poured into moulds, forming shapes as it cooled. Thus the first chocolate candy bar came into being. All modern commercial chocolate products contain substantial amounts of sugar, which may partially explain why chocolate can be so addictive. According to research at New York University, there is a genetic reason some people crave sugary foods. Researchers identified a gene that was different between groups that craved sweets and those who didn’t. An ability by prehistoric humans to identify nutritional foods, such as fruits, while avoiding bitter plant material, which could be toxic, may have led to a genetic trait present today through human evolution. Chocolate, like other sweet foods, stimulates the release of endorphins, natural body hormones that generate feelings of pleasure. A craving for chocolate could be a craving for pleasure. From a chemical point of view, chocolate is the world's most perfect food. There are over 300 chemicals in chocolate, many of which may also promote craving. For example, chocolate contains magnesium and iron, thus would satisfy anyone with a shortage of these minerals, such as pregnant women. Chocolate contains a small amount of caffeine, a stimulant of the central nervous system. Another stimulant present is theobromine, which relaxes the muscles in the linings of the lung. This compound is safe for human beings but metabolizes more slowly in dogs and other domestic animals, and could even kill them. Many studies show that some chocolate ingredients affect the brain. Neurotransmitters are chemical messengers that transport electronic signals between nerve cells in the brain, causing changes in emotions and sensations. Chocolate contains tryptophan, which creates a neurotransmitter called serotonin. High levels of serotonin can produce feelings of ecstasy. Coincidentally, the designer drug called Ecstasy also works by increasing serotonin levels in the brain. Another chemical named phenylethylamine works as an amphetamine by stimulating the brain’s pleasure centers, generating feelings of excitement, attraction and apprehension. Anandamide is another neurotransmitter in chocolate that acts on the same brain structure as THC, the active ingredient in cannabis (marijuana). They also discovered other similarities between chocolate and marijuana, but can't remember what they were. However, the amount of tryptophan, phenylethylamine and anadamine in chocolate is so small, one would have to consume vast quantities to produce an euphoric state similar to street drugs. According to neuroscientist Daniele Piomelli, chocolate works “indirectly” to produce its high. It contains chemicals known to slow down the breakdown of certain compounds, therefore prolonging the action of the natural stimulation in the brain. Dark chocolate contains flavonoids, including procyanidins, epicatechins and catechins. These compounds are antioxidents, which lower oxidation levels in LDL (bad) cholesterol and increase levels in HDL (good) cholesterol. They also reduce blood clotting, increase blood vessel flexibility and improve blood flow. A study conducted at Harvard University suggests those who eat chocolate three times a month will live almost a year longer than those who don’t. Chocolate is terrific stuff. It tastes great, gives you an emotional lift and promotes a natural high. But don’t tell the government about it or they’ll take that away from us too. ___________ Quote for the Day – "Life is like a box of chocolates – you never know what you're gonna get." Forrest Gump ___________ Bret Burquest is the author of 12 books. He lives in the Ozark Mountains with a few dogs and has an occasional chunk of dark chocolate for health & pleasure. ___________ - -

Junk and Luxury

One of the fastest ways to fail in life is to work so hard your manager will think you're after his job. In 1976, one year before our semi-blissful marriage of five years, my ex-wife and I went on a sailing adventure in the West Indies. We paid good money to be deckhands on a 248-foot, four-mast schooner, island-hopping the Leeward Islands of St. Martins, St. Barts, St Eustatius, St. Kitts and Nevis for two weeks. After a few days, we hooked up with a couple from Philadelphia and a couple from Alaska. One day the six of us were wandering the neighborhood back streets of a town on Nevis. Some of the locals were sitting on the front porches of their modest houses, playing dominoes or watching the tourists pass by. The couple from Philadelphia (liberals) mentioned how poor everyone seemed and suggested there should be an influx of government money to help everyone out. The couple from Alaska (conservatives) wondered why no one seemed to be working very hard and suggested an influx of private industry to kick-start the economy. My ex-wife was too busy looking for a shop where she could buy some more useless junk to notice anything. However, I noticed and wondered if I was the only sane person in the group. Everyone I saw along the street appeared to be perfectly content in their existence. You could see the happiness in the twinkle in their eyes. It was beyond my comprehension why anyone would want to barge in and spoil a perfectly desirable way of life. Apparently, there's a big difference between liberals and conservatives and relatively sane human beings. On the Orb of Wounded Souls, being enslaved by dependency on government handouts or being enslaved by becoming a cog in the giant economic engine of production and consumption (mindless growth) are both forms of enslavement. Clearly, there must be a more reasonable way of life. Once upon a time in America, the Europeans had not yet arrived to spoil a perfectly desirable way of life. There were indigenous people (Native Americans) scattered throughout the continent, doing just fine until the white man arrived on the eastern shore, stuck a flag in the ground and declared it to be a "discovery." Some of the indigenous folks had permanent settlements while others were hunter-gatherer nomads. A hunter-gatherer society consisted of small bands of nomadic people who lived in an area where it was too harsh to allow permanent settlements. They survived by foraging for edible plants and wild animals. Basically, they wandered from one food source to another. Everything they owned, they carried on their backs. One of the major areas of concentration of hunter-gatherer nomads was the Great Basin Desert area of the southwest (Wyoming, Utah, Nevada, Arizona, New Mexico, Colorado, etc.). These societies were part of the Shoshonean bands of Indians (Hopi, Piute, Mono, Comanche, Kawai, Panamint, Chemehuevi and others). In an article titled THE ART OF NOTHING, Thomas J. Elpel declares, "Hunter-gatherer societies succeeded in working only one or two hours per day, yet in our efforts to reproduce their lifestyle we end up working all day." Elpel is the director of Hollowtop Outdoor Primitive School in Montana and author of many books on survival. According to Elpel, the hunter-gatherers "had a lot of time on their hands because they produced almost no material culture." They basically sat around all day doing nothing. This helped conserve energy, an economical imperative so they wouldn't be forced to harvest more food each day to feed themselves. They also produced no unnecessary material goods, including artwork. Whenever they were forced to move on, they needed to do so with a minimal of effort. They didn't want to be dragging junk or luxury items with them. In our materialistic culture where the objective always seems to be growth, we love junk and luxury. Often they're the same thing. We work 40 hours a week, 50 weeks a year, just to stay even. In fact, we're less than even since our national debt is in the multiple trillions and continually rising. But we're too busy "getting ahead" to notice. So, you can be a go-getter and spin your wheels in pursuit of junk and luxury, or you can be a do-nothing and observe the folly of the go-getters as they work harder and harder while getting deeper and deeper in debt. Work is something you do because it's necessary for survival -- work you do beyond that is called a burden. Instead of continually clamoring for jobs, jobs, jobs, we should make quality of life our common objective. This would include a shorter work-week, less government control, less monetary insanity, less military adventurism, etc. • The corporate world wants everyone working at full capacity to maximize profits. • The government wants everyone working at full capacity to maximize tax revenues. • Financial institutions want everyone working in order to perpetuate their credit schemes to expand their control of the monetary system. • The military-industrial complex wants a world of bloody conflict to justify their costly existence. A shorter work-week and a less stressful way of life for the masses goes against the greedy ambitions of those who control the puppet strings. Endless, mindless growth is a cancer -- sooner or later, the puppets are going to figure it out. ___________ Quote for the Day – "The sole purpose of human existence is to kindle a light in the darkness of mere being." Carl Jung (1875 - 1961) ___________ Bret Burquest is the author of 12 books. He lives in the Ozark Mountains with a few dogs and where happiness comes from being satisfied with what you have, not with yearning for more, more, more. ___________ - -