On this day in 1878, ‘Cleopatra’s Needle’ was erected on the Victoria Embankment in London. It is one of a pair of ancient Egyptian obelisks now in London and New York.
The obelisk was originally erected in the Egyptian city of Heliopolis on the orders of Thutmose III, around 1450 BC. It is of granite, brought from the quarries of Aswan, near the first cataract of the Nile. Thutmose III had a single column of text carved on each face. Other inscriptions were added about 200 years later by Ramesses II to commemorate his military victories: these are in two columns on each face, flanking the original inscriptions. The obelisks were moved to Alexandria and set up in the Caesareum, a temple built by Cleopatra in honor of Mark Antony or Julius Caesar by the Romans in 12 BC, during the reign of Augustus.
The removal of the obelisks from Egypt was presided over by Isma’il Pasha, who had greatly indebted the Khedivate of Egypt during its rapid modernization. The London needle was presented to the United Kingdom in 1819, but remained in Alexandria until 1877 when Sir William James Erasmus Wilson, a distinguished anatomist and dermatologist, sponsored its transportation to London. In the same year, Elbert E. Farman, the then-United States Consul General at Cairo, secured the other needle for the United States.
The obelisk was transported to London with great difficulty and erected on the Victoria Embankment on 12 September 1878. Cleopatra’s Needle is flanked by two faux-Egyptian sphinxes, designed by the English architect George John Vulliamy. The sphinxes are cast in bronze and bear hieroglyphic inscriptions that say netjer nefer men-kheper-re di ankh, which translates as “the good god, Thuthmosis III given life”. These sphinxes appear to be looking at the Needle rather than guarding it, due to the sphinxes’ improper or backwards installation. During World War I, a bomb from a German air raid landed near the needle. the damage remains unrepaired to this day and is clearly visible in the form of shrapnel holes and gouges on the western sphinx.
The western side of Cleopatra’s Needle in the City of Westminster, London.
Get ready for the world’s longest Pub Crawl!!!
Apparently not…
RULES!
and there’s petty revenge…
More headline fun…
Today is the birthday, in 1943, of American folk and blues singer Maria Muldaur, who had the 1974 US No.6 & UK No.21 single ‘Midnight At The Oasis’. The song was nominated for both Record of the Year and Song of the Year at the 17th Annual Grammy Awards. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8bjzuSO27fA
Today is, of course, the anniversary of The September 11 attacks, also known as 9/11 or Nine-eleven, four coordinated Islamist terrorist suicide attacks by al-Qaeda against the United States in 2001. Nineteen terrorists hijacked four commercial airliners, two of which were flown into the Twin Towers of the World Trade Center in New York City and the third into the Pentagon in Arlington County, Virginia. The fourth plane crashed in a rural Pennsylvania field during a passenger revolt. In response to the attacks, the United States waged the global war on terror over multiple decades to eliminate hostile groups deemed terrorist organizations, as well as the governments purported to support them.
The attacks killed 2,977 people, injured thousands more[k] and gave rise to substantial long-term health consequences while also causing at least US$10 billion in infrastructure and property damage. It remains the deadliest terrorist attack in history as well as the deadliest incident for firefighters and law enforcement personnel in American history, killing 343 and 72 members, respectively. The crashes of Flight 11 and Flight 175 were the deadliest aviation disasters of all time, and the collision of Flight 77 with the Pentagon resulted in the fourth-highest number of ground fatalities in a plane crash in history. The destruction of the World Trade Center and its environs, located in Manhattan’s Financial District, seriously harmed the U.S. economy and induced global market shocks. Many other countries strengthened anti-terrorism legislation and expanded their powers of law enforcement and intelligence agencies. The total number of deaths caused by the attacks, combined with the death tolls from the conflicts they directly incited, has been estimated by the Costs of War Project to be over 4.5 million.
Explosion following the impact of flight UA 175 into the South Tower
He probably deserved that…
This aged badly…
Surprise!!
Today is the birthday, in 1957, of English drummer Jon Moss from Culture Club, who had the 1983 UK No.1 & 1984 US No.1 single ‘Karma Chameleon’, plus seven other UK top 10 singles. He has also played with other bands, including London, the Nips, the Damned and Adam and the Ants. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JmcA9LIIXWw
Today is the birthday, in 1801, of Marie Catherine Laveau a Louisiana Creole practitioner of Voodoo, an herbalist, and a midwife who was renowned in New Orleans. She was known as The Voodoo Queen. Her daughter, Marie Laveau II (1827 – c. 1862), also practiced rootwork, conjure, and Native American and African spiritualism, as well as Louisiana Voodoo and traditional Roman Catholicism. An alternate spelling of her name, Laveaux (a plural), is considered by historians to be from the original French spelling.
Marie Catherine Laveau was born a free woman of color in New Orleans’s French Quarter, Louisiana. Her mother, Marguerite D’Arcantel, was a free woman of African, European, and Native American ancestry. Because Laveau’s mother was not married at the time of her birth, her father was not identified on her 1801 baptismal record. A possible candidate is Charles Laveau, the son of Charles Laveau Trudeau, a white Louisiana creole and politician. Other historians claim that Laveau’s father was a free man of color named Charles Laveaux.
Following the reported death of her husband, Jacques Paris, she entered a domestic partnership with Christophe Dominick Duminy de Glapion, a nobleman of French descent, with whom she lived until his death in 1855. Marie Laveau was a dedicated practitioner of Voodoo, a healer, an herbalist, and an entrepreneur. Laveau was also known as a prominent female religious leader and community activist. She also made money by selling her clients gris gris as charms to help their wishes come true.
In her role as a Voodoo practitioner, customers often appealed to Laveau for help with family disputes, health, finances, and more. Laveau performed her services in three main places – her own home on St. Ann Street, within Congo Square, and at Lake Pontchartrain. She was the third female leader of Voodoo in New Orleans. Of Laveau’s magical career, little can be substantiated, including whether or not she had a snake she named Zombi after an African god, whether the occult part of her magic mixed Roman Catholic saints with African spirits, and Native American spiritualism.
Laveau’s name and her history have been surrounded by legend and lore. She is generally believed to have been buried in plot 347, the Glapion family crypt in Saint Louis Cemetery No. 1, New Orleans. Tourists continue to visit and some draw X marks in accordance with a decades-old tradition that if people wanted Laveau to grant them a wish, they had to draw three Xs on the tomb, turn around three times, knock on the tomb, yell out their wish, and if it was granted, come back, circle their Xs, and leave Laveau an offering.
Numerous songs about Marie Laveau have been recorded, including “Marie La Veau” by Papa Celestin; “Marie Laveau” written by Shel Silverstein and Baxter Taylor and recorded by Dr. Hook & the Medicine Show (1972), and Bobby Bare (1974); “The Witch Queen of New Orleans” (1971) by Redbone; “Dixie Drug Store” by Grant Lee Buffalo; “X Marks the Spot (Marie Laveau)” by Joe Sample; “Marie Laveau” by Dr. John; “Marie Laveau” (2013) by Tao Of Sound; “Voodoo Queen Marie” to the minstrel tune “Colored Aristocracy” by The Holy Modal Rounders; “The Witch Queen of New Orleans” by Total Toly; “The Widow Paris” by The Get Up Kids; “Marie Laveau” by the Danish metal band Volbeat; and “The Widow Paris” by Lester T. Raww’s Graveside Quartet.
headline writers…
SIGNZ
Today is the birthday, in 1945, of Puerto Rican musician, singer and composer Jose Feliciano, best known for many international hits, including his rendition of The Doors’ ‘Light My Fire’. His 1968 album Feliciano! reached No. 2 on the US charts. Jose was born blind as a result of congenital glaucoma. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=l145cg01O4k
On this day in 1886, the Berne Convention for the Protection of Literary and Artistic Works was signed by ten European countries with the goal of agreeing on a set of legal principles for the protection of original work. Its rules have been updated many times since then. The treaty provides authors, musicians, poets, painters, and other creators with the means to control how their works are used, by whom, and on what terms. In some jurisdictions these types of rights are referred to as copyright; on the European continent they are generally referred to as authors’ rights (French: droits d’auteur, German: Urheberrecht).
As of November 2022, the Berne Convention has been ratified by 181 states out of 195 countries in the world, most of which are also parties to the Paris Act of 1971.
The Berne Convention introduced the concept that protection exists the moment a work is “fixed”, that is, written or recorded on some physical medium, and its author is automatically entitled to all copyrights in the work and to any derivative works, unless and until the author explicitly disclaims them or until the copyright expires. A creator need not register or “apply for” a copyright in countries adhering to the convention. It also enforces a requirement that countries recognize rights held by the citizens of all other parties to the convention. Foreign authors are given the same rights and privileges to copyrighted material as domestic authors in any country that ratified the convention.
Before the Berne Convention, copyright legislation remained uncoordinated at an international level.[23] So for example a work published in the United Kingdom by a British national would be covered by copyright there but could be copied and sold by anyone in France. Dutch publisher Albertus Willem Sijthoff, who rose to prominence in the trade of translated books, wrote to Queen Wilhelmina of the Netherlands in 1899 in opposition to the convention over concerns that its international restrictions would stifle the Dutch print industry.
The Pirate Publisher—An International Burlesque that has the Longest Run on Record, from Puck, 1886, satirizes the ability of publishers to take works from one country and publish them in another without paying the original authors.
Bed Bugs…
Good insight
BADA BING BING BING!
I’ve done terrible things for money… Like, getting up early to go to work.
I didn’t mean to push all your buttons… I was just looking for mute.
I’m often mistaken for an adult because of my age.
I’m undiagnosed, but something ain’t right.
It’s like my mom always said… What the fuck is wrong with you?
Retirement to do list… Wake up.
People say I act like I don’t care. But it’s not an act.
August is over. September is here. Time to pick out a Halloween costume and start your Christmas shopping. Happy New Year, everybody.
My wife gave me an envelope marked. “Not to be opened until 2026”. Inside was a list of reasons why I can’t be trusted to carry out simple instructions.
Did you hear about the cook that blew himself up when he combined pasta and antipasti?
I have been nominated for a ’25 pushups a day for 25 days’ challenge. I blocked that person.
I once saw a video of a woman holding up a sign that said, “I love you Stevie”, at a Stevie Wonder concert. I think about that a lot.
As my Grandpappy used to say, “If you seen one doppelgänger, you seen ’em both”.
You know when you tap a video to see how long it’s got left? I wish you could do that to people while they’re talking.
I enjoy the Way with Words shown by sports commentators.
Today: “I like the way he used his eyes to see that ball”.
I once tried to surprise my wife by fixing the leaky sink. By the time I was done, the leak was gone… but now the dishwasher, the washing machine, and the neighbor’s sprinklers were somehow running at the same time. She asked, “Did you fix it?” I said, “Technically yes, but we may need to move.”
I’m in big trouble if my coworkers find out I don’t really have Tourette’s.
Doing crunches twice a day now. Captain in the morning, Nestle in the afternoon.
Those who confuse burro and burrow don’t know their ass from a hole in the ground.
I typed “I’m unstoppable,” but my phone changed it to “I’m unstable.” … Probably more accurate.
I am old enough that when I go into an antique store, they ask me to stay.
Me: *tells a funny story about my life* Therapist: Okay, so that’s called trauma.
Grocery stores should have baskets in the middle of the store for those “I really overestimated how much I can carry” moments.
So it’s totally fine for a cat to run and hide under the bed when visitors show up. But when I do it, suddenly I’m “rude” and “antisocial”?
The Pumpkin Spice F-150, which comes in a special burnt orange exterior color, includes a wide array of exclusive features, including plaid flannel upholstery, a gear shift knob shaped like a stalk of dried corn, and spritzers that will periodically spray a pumpkin spice scent into the cabin. “Feel free to wrap yourself in the nice, soft, Ford-branded sherpa blanket stowed in the center console and roll down the windows while you drive to breathe in the crisp autumn air,” Farley continued. “There are also an amazing 25 cupholders located throughout the interior of the truck, which is enough space for each passenger to enjoy 5 pumpkin spice lattes at once. It’s so pumpkin spicy you’ll feel sick.”
Today is the birthday, in 1952, of Dave Stewart, guitarist, songwriter and producer. He was a member of Longdancer and then The Tourists, (1979 UK No.4 single ‘I Only Want To Be With You’), Eurythmics, (1983 US No.1 & UK No.2 single ‘Sweet Dreams’, 1985 UK No.1 single ‘There Must Be An Angel’), solo, (1990 UK No.6 single ‘Lily Was Here’). Stewart has written songs with and produced many artists including Mick Jagger, Tom Petty and the Feargal Sharkey, UK No.1 hit ‘A Good Heart’. In 1992, along with Marcella Detroit, Stewart co-wrote Shakespears Sister hit single ‘Stay’ with his then-wife, Siobhan Fahey (with Stewart credited under the pseudonym “Jean Guiot”). Stewart won Best Producer at the 1986 BRIT Awards in London. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qeMFqkcPYcg
On this day in 1900, The Great Galveston hurricane was a catastrophic tropical cyclone that became the deadliest natural disaster in the history of the United States. The strongest storm of the 1900 Atlantic hurricane season, it left between 6,000 and 12,000 fatalities in the United States; the number most cited in official reports is 8,000. Most of these deaths occurred in and near Galveston, Texas, after the storm surge inundated the coastline and the island city with 8 to 12 ft (2.4 to 3.7 m) of water.
In addition to the number killed, the storm destroyed about 7,000 buildings of all uses in Galveston, which included 3,636 demolished homes; every dwelling in the city suffered some degree of damage. The hurricane left approximately 10,000 people in the city homeless, out of a total population of fewer than 38,000. The disaster ended the Golden Era of Galveston. The hurricane alarmed potential investors, who turned to Houston instead.
At the time of the 1900 hurricane, the highest point in the city of Galveston was only 8.7 ft (2.7 m) above sea level. The hurricane brought with it a storm surge of over 15 ft (4.6 m) that washed over the entire island. Storm surge and tides began flooding the city by the early morning hours of September 8. Water rose steadily from 3:00 p.m. (21:00 UTC) until approximately 7:30 p.m. (01:30 UTC September 9), when eyewitness accounts indicated that water rose about 4 ft (1.2 m) in just four seconds. An additional 5 ft (1.5 m) of water had flowed into portions of the city by 8:30 p.m.
The city of Galveston was effectively obliterated. With the city in ruins and railroads to the mainland destroyed, the survivors had little to live on until relief arrived. The city of Galveston was effectively obliterated.With the city in ruins and railroads to the mainland destroyed, the survivors had little to live on until relief arrived. The dead bodies were so numerous that burying all of them was impossible. Initially, bodies were collected by “dead gangs” and then given to 50 African American men – who were forcibly recruited at gunpoint – to load them onto a barge. About 700 bodies were taken out to sea to be dumped. However, after gulf currents washed many of the bodies back onto the beach, a new solution was needed. Funeral pyres were set up on the beaches, or wherever dead bodies were found, and burned day and night for several weeks after the storm. The authorities passed out free whiskey to sustain the distraught men conscripted for the gruesome work of collecting and burning the dead.
Floating wreckage after the hurricane
Not understand how things work…
It’s coming…
Babuskats…
Today is the birthday, in 1979, of Pink, (Alicia Moore), who had the 2001 UK No.2 single ‘Get The Party Started’, the 2001 US & UK No.1 single with Christina Aguilera, Lil’ Kim and Mya Lady Marmalade. Pink has become one of the most successful artists of her generation, having sold over 110 million records worldwide. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RQa7SvVCdZk
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