Nine Rail Fences

 

More unlikely but true facts:

Wombats poop in cubes. It may have something to do with their 10-meter-long digestive tract.  It takes roughly two weeks for matter to travel the entire length of their intestines, while all the moisture and nearly all the nutrients are absorbed.

Orcas (killer whales) are most likely evolved from a land mammal. Whales and dolphins have a more recent common ancestor with deer than they do with any fish in the sea. The flip side of this: Camels, giraffes and boars are more closely related to whales than they are to horses.

More people are killed by vending machines than by shark attacks. Of course, if people were in the habit of shaking great whites back and forth because they REALLY need a Snickers bar, that statistic would be different. Then there’s the fact that people are far more likely to be in close proximity with a vending machine than a shark.

Twenty-Three Friendship Stars

 

“He knows we must grow in spiritual cleanliness and stature to be able to live in His presence. To make that possible, Heavenly Father gave us a Savior and power to choose for ourselves to keep His commandments and to repent and come unto Him.” – President Henry B. Eyring

“I plead with you, as disciples of Jesus Christ, to pray to see others as He sees them and to treat them accordingly.” – Rosemary K. Chibota

“As we choose faith in Christ, He blesses us with courage, sometimes in very difficult situations, to choose the right, and as we manifest our courage to choose the right, our faith in Christ strengthens.” – Elder Neil L. Andersen

“We do not need to perfect ourselves to come to Christ. We come to Christ to be perfected.” – Elder Edward Dube

“Integrity, virtue and on-going repentance are the answer in a world where coarse language and serious challenges are so prevalent.” – Elder Quentin L. Cook

Half a Dozen Rail Fences

 

Unlikely, but true:

Fred Astaire took up skateboarding in his 70’s. He slipped while practicing in his driveway and broke his wrist at 78. “Gene Kelly warned me not to be a damned fool,” he said.

The average number of skeletons inside human beings is more than one, primarily because of pregnant women. There’s also the phenomenon called “vanishing twin,” in which one twin dies in utero and is absorbed – partially or completely – by the surviving twin.

If you’re a wife diagnosed with cancer, you’re six times more likely to have your spouse leave you than if you were a husband diagnosed with cancer.

Martin Luther King Jr. was born in 1929; the same year as Anne Frank. Marion Ross is a year older. Mel Brooks and Dick Van Dyke are three years older. So, if bigotry and hatred hadn’t killed them both, Anne Frank and Martin Luther King Jr. might still be living.  

Four Floating Pinwheels

 

One of the world’s most secure diamond vaults was beaten by a man who rented an office upstairs. Leonardo Notarbartolo moved into the Antwerp Diamond Center and posed as a gem importer for three years. He became friends with the center’s staff, learned the building’s routine, and mapped every layer of security. Then, in February 2003, Leonardo and his small team bypassed sensors, drilled into the vault, and made off with over 100 million dollars in diamonds, gold and jewelry. On their way out of the city, they dumped a bag of rubbish in the woods. A local landowner found and reported it: a video tape, a half-eaten salami sandwich, and crumpled paper. The trash led police straight to Leonardo and his allies; three years of planning foiled by a bag of garbage. Leonardo served ten years in jail, his friends half as long. Most of the haul was never recovered.

Pink Butterfly

 

My ballot arrived in the mail yesterday, and within hours I’d filled it out. I’d made up my mind who and what I was voting for, so it didn’t take long. There are three ballot drop-boxes near my home (the library, the senior center, and City Hall) and I’ll deposit mine in one of them today. I could have just returned my ballot to the mailbox for the postman to pick up. The League of Women Voters recommends mailing ballots back at least a week before Election Day, and I’m way ahead of their deadline. I’m so glad mail-in voting is an option. I remember an election day when we waited in line for hours – with hungry, bored kids in tow – to cast our votes in person. I got my flu shot last week, and won’t be fully protected for another week or so. Now is not the time to cue up with several dozen sniffling, coughing strangers.

Halloween Kitty

 

You may have heard the saying, “Don’t buy a pig in a poke,” and you may know it means “buyer beware.” But do you know why? In Middle English, a poke was a bag or sack. If you bought a piglet in a sack without first inspecting it, the animal inside might be something you wouldn’t serve for dinner. Like, for instance, a cat. But not all cultures consider pets off the menu. Restaurants in Vietnam openly advertise canine and feline meat, though vendors must disclose their sources. So, it’s surprising that this month in Ho Chi Minh City, twelve men were arrested and charged with the theft of over 2,700 family pets. They’d operate between dusk and dawn, trapping and trafficking cats in residential neighborhoods. I keep my cat indoors at night, so she doesn’t become roadkill. I guess in some places, cats should be kept indoors so they don’t become dinner.

Four Rail Fences

 

Chicken Soup in a Pumpkin

 

1 large pumpkin (big enough to fit a whole chicken!)

1 whole chicken

Shredded cabbage

Sliced carrots

Sliced mushrooms

Sliced onions

Crushed garlic cloves

Fresh rosemary, sage & thyme

1 chicken stock cube

Salt & pepper

Olive oil

 

Cut the top off pumpkin to create a lid. Scoop out seeds, leaving flesh intact. Add cabbage, carrots, mushrooms, onions and garlic. Nestle the whole chicken inside and add the fresh herbs, stock cube, salt and pepper. Place lid back on, rub outside with olive oil and carefully transfer to oven on baking sheet. Roast at 350F 4 hours, until the chicken is cooked and vegetables are tender. No water needed! As everything cooks, chicken, vegetables and pumpkin release juices, creating a natural broth. Carefully remove the chicken; shred meat and return it to the soup. Ladle into bowls with some of the pumpkin flesh and enjoy!