Still Gravity

Bokari the Kartan Guide, 1825 - Drawing from the book of Major William Grey. This is a book with a long title: Travels in Western Africa, in the years 1818, 19, 20, and 21, from the river Gambia , through Woolli, Bondoo ,  Galam , Kasson, Kaarta , and Foolidoo, to the river Niger .  ( This is the map  with the routes of the expedition.) The text was published in 1825 and the authors were Mayor William Gray and Staff Surgeon Dochard - Dochard died before the publication. The book covers the failed expedition to reach the Niger River and explore its course.  After the death of the expedition commander - Major John Peddie -, Captain William Grey and Staff Surgeon Dochard were appointed in charge. About this, Major Gray wrote in the Preface of the book: Warmed with those feelings, I felt an honourable pride in being entrusted with a command to explore the uncultivated regions of Western Africa. It was a task of peril, but the measure of danger was the measure of honour; and with a strong

A couple of Atlantic horseshoe crabs in the Florida Keys.   These creatures are old. Their forerunners have been around for 400 million years.  The weirdos have ten eyes, blue blood, and at the end, they are not even crabs. They are arthropods! Meaning that they are cousins of spiders and scorpions.  We crossed path with these two kayaking in the shallow waters of Key Largo.  Are they matting? Looks like this is the case because usually they are loners. But happens that the smaller males sometimes go on a ride on the female's back until she lays her eggs - in the picture the rider is smaller.  The scientific name of these "crabs" is Limulus polyphemus . I don't see the reason for the "Polyphemus" because the mythical Cyclops only had one eye according to the old tales. LOL. 

Vincas or periwinkles growing wild in a trail of Cape Florida state park in Key Biscayne - For photo licensing go here .  The common Madagascar periwinkle ( Vinca rosea  or  Catharanthus roseus ) is pretty and also poisonous - all parts of the plant are toxic. So much, that it's said that in its native Madagascar the plant was used to create a poisonous beverage for ordeal trials before they switched to the tangena .  Old books talk of these trials. One of them is,  The story of  Ida Pfeiffer and her travels in many lands .  The government of Madagascar has always been Draconian in its severity, and the penalty exacted for almost every offence is blood. Some of the unfortunates are burned; others are hurled over a high rock; others buried alive; others scalded to death with boiling water; others killed with the spear; others sewn up alive in mats, and left to perish of hunger and corruption; and others beheaded. Recourse is not unfrequently had to poison, which is used as a kind o

Hugh Clapperton painted by Gildon Manton - From Clapperton's journal published in 1828 . This is the journal of the second expedition of  Hugh Clapperton  to the interior of Africa published in 1828 under the name: Journal of a Second Expedition into the Interior of Africa from the Bight of Benin to Soccatoo . The journal covers until the point of Clapperton's death. The aftermath is described by  Richard Lander , who also brough back the Clapperton's journal to England - he was the only survivor.  Clapperton's first expedition was in 1824. The second one began a year later and also reached Sokoto - Sakkwato in the local language -, but this time he entered through the  Bight of Benin  and went through the Yoruba lands.  These were times of expansion for the  Sokoto Caliphate  - or Fulani Empire - and the religion of Islam through West Africa. Sokoto was at war with the  Bornu Empire  and Clapperton was stopped by  Muhammed Bello , the Second Caliph.  Hugh Clapperton 

The anhinga needs to dry its wings after diving for food. This is a common sight of the bird in Florida shores. Photo taken in Biscayne Bay - Check  this page  for  photo licensing.  The anhinga bird has many names:  Snakebird. Darter. American darter. Water turkey.  " Anhinga " comes from the language of an indigenous group from Brazil. The word means "devil bird" or "snake bird" - the neck and head sometimes look like a snake when they are swimming.  The long and flexible neck of the anhinga is confused with a water snake because the body of the bird remains submerged - photo taken in the Everglades.  These birds swim very well underwater. Plenty of them in Florida and its Everglades.  Anhinga nest with hungry babies claiming for food. They show their distinctive long necks - photo taken in the Everglades.  What about some photos of alligators now?

Round celestial bodies and eclipses. Page of "De sphaera mundi" written by Johannes de Sacrobosco circa the year 1230.   Before Copernicus we had De sphaera mundi or Textus de sphaera or De sphaera of  Johannes de Sacrobosco  - aka John of Holywood -, a text of the Middle Ages that carried Cecco d'Ascoli  to his dead by fire after obsessing with spheres.  An excerpt from Sacrobosco's text: THE EARTH A SPHERE. -- That the earth, too, is round is shown thus. The signs and stars do not rise and set the same for all men everywhere but rise and set sooner for those in the east than for those in the west; and of this there is no other cause than the bulge of the earth. Moreover, celestial phenomena evidence that they rise sooner for Orientals than for westerners. For one and the same eclipse of the moon which appears to us in the first hour of the night appears to Orientals about the third hour of the night, which proves that they had night and sunset before we did, of w

Beautiful Mysore raspberries in sunny South Florida - For photo licensing go here .  Raspberries are raspberries. They are good for us. Mysore raspberries ( Rubus niveus ) come from southern Asia. Edible plant with many spines to protect the precious fruits - double check my photo if you missed the spines. A curious thing is the origin of the name raspberry: The earliest recorded form of raspberry in English comes from the early 1500’s, but it wasn’t even called raspberry at that point. The word was raspis. Somewhere around the mid-1500’s, raspis started getting shortened to simply rasp. So our beloved raspberry has this whole secret past life we knew nothing about. Read more in this blog post . 

I tried to ID this fungus species with Google Lens and returned Kuehneromyces mutabilis .  We found this cluster of fungus growing over a palm tree stump.  They are edible if they really are  Kuehneromyces mutabilis.  But I wouldn't try them because this species can be easily confused with poisonous mushrooms - especially the deadly  Galerina marginata or funeral bell.  That's why I only take pictures of mushrooms and leave to the experts the picking of the edible ones.  This cluster of fungus is growing on the stump of a dead palm tree. They are important for forests in decomposing wood. Good recycling. 

Boloki man and his wife. Photo from the book "Among Congo Cannibals" of Reverend John H Weeks. The author wrote about this picture: "Notice the cicatrice on the man’s forehead and on the woman’s stomach. The brass ring round her neck in some cases weighs as much as 28 lbs. In her hand she is holding a paddle."   Reverend John H. Weeks lived in Africa from 1881 to 1911. The Baptist Missionary went to the Congo and after some years founded the mission station of Monsembe along the Congo River.  In the book  Among Congo Cannibals, he compiled his experiences living for 15 years among the Boloki people that lived by the Ruki River - the Ruki is a tributary of the Congo River. The name means "black" and was one of the sets used for the movie The African Queen .  John H. Weeks lived his first nine years in the city of San Salvador in today Angola - the city is known now as  M'banza-Kongo .  His local friends tried to scare him away from working with the Bol

After the C accident last year, I bought wildflowers seeds for a garden project . It came out good, and even brought butterflies.  This summer - surprise - we got unexpected newcomers with blue and white flowers.  Larkspur or delphinium?  - For photo licensing  go here .   We also got a version with white flowers.  It has been difficult to identify the new flowers because there are two different species that use "larkspur" as common name. One is  Delphinium , the other the Blue Larkspur with its genus  Consolida . I also read that the second one is a clade of the first one - meaning a descendent.  Still not sure. But anyway, the flowers are beautiful - they are also toxic. Don't try them. 

Chicken Key is a forested island in Biscayne Bay, Florida. There is a landing spot at the northern tip - left in this photo -, but there were signs forbidding to land. We saw many birds all around the island.  This trip happened eleven years ago. The small island is in the bay across Deering Estate . We launched from the small park at Deering Point - 1.5 miles away from the island.  We paddled around Chicken Key and saw manatees in the Cutler Channel by the northern tip. By the southern tip on the east side there were two sharks having a lunch - that part had a stronger current. One of them swam close to our kayak with the fin out of the water. They were small. Returning, we paddled close to Deering Estate. The whole trip was around 4 miles.  It's said that the Tequesta used Chicken Key for ceremonies and as a stop when fishing in the bay. There is also a tale about pirates and a treasure hidden in the island - all the islands of Florida have pirate tales and hidden treasures. Anot

Like this cute decoration says, the idea is to be back to being happy campers.  We're close to a year since C's accident . Slow recovery, but she's a lot better. She rides now a little over 5 miles on paved roads. Big accomplishment, even if still a far cry from her 15-25 range - keep going Viking girl!  We may be back to traveling and camping soon and also to blog posting from the cell phone - that's a pain. The plan is to sail next month if winds keep blowing our way.  In preparation, I checked the brakes of the pickup truck. Need to replace pads and rotors. Also found a damaged caliper - the old travels took a toll.  I ordered the parts because is better to fix all now by myself than later on the road. Also need to change the tires. They are at the end of their lives.  Expensive bills coming but living our lives the way we want is more important than money.  On the truck camper side: I made some mods because C can't sleep anymore on the raised bed. We will move t

Should we call it literature? Well, this is another topic. But anyway, we are here to share what is probably the shortest piece of flash fiction in Spanish language. A tale of just seven words.  The original version:  Cuando despertó, el dinosaurio todavía estaba allí. FIN Let's translate.  When (she/he) woke, the dinosaur still was there.  THE END (In the original version, the genre of the protagonist is undefined.) "The Dinosaur" is open to many readings. The limits are the reader's imagination: Who did wake up? Why was the dinosaur there? What happened before the person - or no person - felt sleep?  And maybe, it was just a tiny dinosaur like this one  we met hiking in Palo Duro Canyon.      A few words with a big story behind.    Extra: Many short stories from Augusto Monterroso in this page  - in Spanish.

Advertising of cigars including the brand "Cubanola" in the newspaper "The Evening World", May 23, 1902 - Source: Library of Congress. This newspaper was published in New York and the owner was the famous journalist  Joseph Pulitzer .        I found  this picture  in a travel blog. It shows a wall ad from an old brand of Cuban cigars in Radford, Virginia.  Curiously, I found that Cubanola cigars were made in factories of the United States. According to the previous advertisement, it was among the best sellers of the world and the best part was the price. 5 cents? - does anyone still use cents?  Old prices. Old economy.

Ticks are always a problem with warmer weather and this summer won't be different. I just read a  new article  warning about rising cases of Nantucket fever or babesiosis. What is this fever? It's caused by a parasite that comes from the same tick that carries Lyme disease. The species is more common in the Northeast and Midwest, but lives in other parts of the country.  The first step is to avoid being bitten by ticks. There are some things that may help -  check this post , 

The entrance to the Dahomey Village in the Chicago World's Fair of 1893 - Image from the book "Official Views Of The World's Columbian Exposition" published in the same year.  Well, it wasn't a permanent village, it lasted for the six months of the Chicago World's Fair or World's Columbian Exposition of 1893.  This world fair was famous for many things: its neoclassical architecture, the gigantic pool with replicas of Columbus' ships, displays of technological advances, and in the dark side, the assassination of the mayor of Chicago and a tragic fire caused by the "Greatest Refrigerator on Earth" - 12 firemen and 4 employees lost their lives. On the cultural area, the Chicago World's Fair brought people and cultures from 46 countries. Among them, the dancer "Little Egypt" with its " hoochie coochie ", the Buffalo Bill's Wild West Show that settled on the sidelines, and a "village" concept representing man

The entrance to the Fruit & Spice Park of Miami adorned by a blooming  Pink shower tree  - For photo licensing  go here .  This is a park southwest from downtown Miami called Fruit & Spice Park.  A paved trail goes through the property. Trees, trees, and more trees. And because all is about fruits here - including the biggest one in the world -, there is also a section for the poisonous ones.   The dangerous area. Some fruits are totally poisonous as a whole and others just in some parts - like the alligator apple with the seeds.  There are also a few baobabs in the park. Some people carved their names on their barks. Stupidity.  The group of baobabs by the lake. The African native feels at home in South Florida.   I loved the photo of the flower of this plant. It's called red bush apple or lady apple ( Syzygium suborbiculare ). It's a native from northern Australia and New Guinea. Interesting flowers. The Australian aboriginals eat the fruits and also use them for me

The Cape Florida lighthouse looking wild across the dunes on the tip of Key Biscayne  - For photo licensing  go here .  Historic lighthouse in the Santa Marta of the Spanish explorers. The island's name today is Key Biscayne, after a folk from the Bay of Biscay was stranded for a time around here - or so said  Hernando de Escalante Fontaneda . Crowds of beachgoers and fishermen share the state park  every weekend, but only a few visit the lighthouse and the home of the old keepers.  The house of the old keepers of the Cape Florida Lighthouse. It wasn't bad. The home has a great view facing the Atlantic Ocean.    All is fun and laughs today. Hard to imagine that once there was war and a dead guy here - the Seminoles attacked the lighthouse on July 23 of 1836 and slave Aaron Carter died while the lighthouse keeper was wounded.  Which spot of the world has not seen human warfare? Perhaps the cold Antarctic, but I may be wrong. From the state park in Key Biscayne, there is a great

Huge jackfruits hanging low in a tree. These are the biggest fruits in the world. I took the photo in South Florida  - For photo licensing  go here .    The fruit of the jack tree ( Artocarpus heterophyllus ) beats all the records. It's big and heavy, weighting up to 120 pounds - 55 kg.  The jack tree produces between 200 and 500 fruits per year. The flavor is a sweet mix of other fruits, you can feel subtle tastes of apple, pineapple, mango, and banana. It's sort of an undefined shake. There are many recipes to use them - most are desserts.  The jack tree is called jaca or yaca in Spanish. The name "jack" comes from the Portuguese.

Page of an edition of "Three Stories & Ten Poems" from Ernest Hemingway.  Here we go with Hemingway poetry. Harsh. But we know what to expect from his sharp journalistic prose and  iceberg theory .  "Oklahoma" was published in 1923 in Three Stories & Ten Poems   - affiliate link to Amazon . The name says it all: the "Oklahoma" of the Choctaw language - means "red people" -, and Oklahoma the state seen through its genesis, the Indian Territory .  American Indians or Native American - whatever suits you, but many of them prefer the first name - in their new way of life.   Now to the poem.  All of the Indians are dead (a good Indian is a dead Indian) Or riding in motor cars— (the oil lands, you know, they’re all rich) Smoke smarts my eyes, Cottonwood twigs and buffalo dung Smoke grey in the teepee— (or is it myopic trachoma) The prairies are long, The moon rises, Ponies Drag at their pickets. The grass has gone brown in the summer— (or is it