IIDD, Try: Thursday, September 20th

Not that I want to be a god or a hero. Just to change into a tree, grow for ages, not hurt anyone. -Czeslaw Milosz, poet and novelist (1911-2004)


Great pics, and thanks.

 Glad to hear you are enjoying the Manor, surroundings and tub...

Hope to have a sniff of the Malt and Rum when we return!

Mind the gentle explosive charge when you try the cellar door!

Another beautiful day here-a bit of culture with lots of strolling.

Dinner with friends in Highgate tonight, off to,relatives in Folkstone tomorrow via train from Charing Cross. 

Cheers, Grog

Westvleteren 12

"This must be strange for business people and difficult to understand that we do not exploit our commercial assets as much as we can. We are no brewers. We are monks. We brew beer to be able to afford being monks."

Killer on the Road: Violence and the American Interstate (Discovering America)

by Ginger Strand by University of Texas Press, 2012

"The nation, as sociologist Amitai Etzioni reported to the 1979 Pres­ident's Commission on an Agenda for the Eighties, was actu­ally divided against itself, torn between its own commitment to endless growth and its desire to return to the antimaterialist values Carter had described in his speech. It was a state of ambivalence that couldn't last, Etzioni predicted: the nation would have to undergo either 'rededication to the industrial, mass-consumption society' or a 'clearer commitment to a slow-growth, quality-of-life society.'

  

"The choice was made in 1980 with the election of Ronald Reagan. Reagan, articulating boundless faith in the American way, touched a chord in a nation weary of self-doubt and cog­nitive dissonance. In the campaign's one televised debate, Rea­gan offered a few simple questions for people to ask themselves in deciding how to vote: 'Are you better off than you were four years ago? Is it easier for you to go buy things in stores than it was four years ago?' he began. In stark contrast to Carter's critique of materialism, Reagan's redefinition of the national mission was offered in the simplest terms possible: America is succeeding if its citizens can go buy things. His subsequent landslide victory suggested the message had found an enthusi­astic audience: the rededication to mass consumption was on.

"The return to a vision of an America without limits was a deep and profound shift in the national sensibility, a turn away from self-doubt and back toward the American dream -- defined as unfettered free enterprise, unabashed consumer­ism, and unflinching military prowess."

Fanta, the fruity flavored soda, is sold in more than fifty countries. There are nearly 100 different flavors available, ranging from Lychee (in Cambodia and formerly in Thailand) and Lactic White Grape (Taiwan) to Watermelon Splash (parts unknown) and something called Shokata (Maldives). Its original flavor, created in 1940, was orange and for years, was only available in Europe. But it has taken the world by storm since. And it probably would not have happened but for a Nazi embargo.




Coca-Cola, which now owns Fanta, had a large bottling and distribution business in Germany in the 1930s. But it was soon at risk. Few tactics were ruled out as Europe entered into war in the late 1930s, and economic restrictions were certainly among those used. Germany disallowed the importation of goods from Western Europe, and the Coca-Cola plants were unable to import the ingredients used to make the world-famous cola. So Max Keith, a German-born executive in charge of Coke's German footprint, made due with what was available. Pickings were slim. Keith took whatever he could get -- apple fibers left over from cider making; whey, a cheese byproduct; beet sugar (as cane sugar was highly rationed); and certainly a litany of other things which us Westerners would be horrified to know our grandparents probably imbibed. Keith later called the ingredients the "leftovers of the leftovers.") 

Despite the rank poor ingredients, the drink was, somehow, popular. Some suggest that the fact that Fanta was sweet was enough, as bakers and housewives used it as a sugar substitute due to the above-mentioned rations. Others simply believed the beverage tasted good -- a fruity and bubbly escape from a world at war. In any event, the soft drink -- and therefore, Coca-Cola's German infrastructure -- survived the war.

Hi Ajay et al,

Here's a quick update wrt cycling on SW Marine Dr on weekdays...
The new bike lane goes from Camosun St all the way to Wesbrook Mall!!
Near 41st Ave, students are now consistently parking so that cyclists can pass. Today I counted about 45 cars nicely parked although one was in the no parking zone by the fire access gate to Pacific Spirit Park (which I called in to RCMP).
Last week, passing several trucks with trailers in the 80 km zone was not a problem as they all pulled off onto the shoulder past the demarcated bike lane.

Thank-you for all your support!

Elisabeth Jang
daily bicycle commuter to UBC South Campus

________________________________________

Begin forwarded message:

Date: July 17, 2012 5:55:24 PM PDT
Subject: Latest on SW Marine

The MOTI district manager advised me that the plan is to construct the parking lane till into the 60k zone but not into the 80k zone.  I also communicated with TREK folks at UBC and they seem to be OK with MOTI constructing a park and ride facility for students, though they may still be looking into the situation.  Have contacted Upass folks at TransLink to see if they have an interest in this matter.  Looks like August is fast approaching, so we may soon have a 1.5m bike lane beside a 2.5m paved parking lane from Camosun to somewhere into the 60k zone.  Much better than current configuration, but probably a waste of money as no parking signs would have sufficed.

Wow, nice vid!
Kinda brought it all back, especially the music track.
Funny how the first person I met this year who had been was a very
young quebecois girl in Pemby who had just come back, sans
decompression, and was seemingly unaffected.
Another case of youth being wasted on the young.
T

Chloe Alexis Dunn

20 September at 22:59 ·

Just finish HOT yoga with G Port, my skin is glowing!!! Or I look like a beet, not sure?