Come back, Col Man! Who else gives us stuff like this?:

Thursday November 25, 2004

A car park attendant in the US bought a lottery ticket on the day he was declared bankrupt - and won $A59 million. Juan Rodriguez, 49, a Colombian immigrant, hit the largest ever New York state jackpot. His wife has now taken him back.

Last Update: Thursday, November 25, 2004. 12:25pm (AEDT)

'Mother' tops survey of English's most beautiful words

'Mother' is the most beautiful word in the English language, followed by 'passion', 'smile', 'love' and 'eternity', according to a worldwide survey.

The British Council, the government agency that promotes British culture around the globe, has quizzed more than 40,000 people in 102 non-English speaking countries on their favourite words.

'Fantastic', 'destiny', 'freedom', 'liberty' and 'tranquillity' filled out the top 10 most beautiful English words.

The choices were made out of a list of 70 words - a number deliberately chosen to mark the British Council's 70th anniversary.

Others that made the grade included 'lollipop' at number 42, 'flip-flop' (59), 'hen's night' (70) and 'banana' (41), along with 'twinkle' (23), 'hiccup' (63), 'hodgepodge' (64), 'whoops' (56) and 'oi' (61).

"It's interesting that 'mother', the only word of the 70 that describes a direct relationship between people, came top of the poll," British Council spokesman Greg Selby said.

The word 'father' did not make the list at all.

- AFP

Poor ol dads! Now is that fair?

well, when they start suckling their young maybe...

To me, the infamous cheese sandwich is what Mama Cass ingested before/while she was dying, but there was another post re other data.

Sorry, I don't so much want to dredge up mama cass dying stuff. But... that is the key image for me, re cheese sandwich and that she choked on one.

(I try to eat cheese sandwiches before 5 p.m.)





ok kidding about 5pm.

Yeah, and don't forget...no cheese sandwiches before going swimming.

'GRAIL' MYSTERY UNVEILED

A mysterious inscription on a stately home monument is likely to be a message from an 18th century Christian sect - not the location of the Holy Grail.

That is the view of legendary World War Two code-breakers from Bletchley Park in Buckinghamshire.

The significance of the sequence of letters on the Shepherd's Monument at the Shugborough Estate in Staffordshire has baffled visitors for years.

The marble tablet, commissioned in 1748, features a carved image of a Nicolas Poussin painting with the letters D.O.U.O.S.V.A.V.V.M. underneath.

After months of study, the Bletchley Park sleuths say it is likely to stand for "Jesus (As Deity) Defy", a message from a sect called the Priory of Sion.

The order had to keep its views secret because the Church of England, which viewed Jesus as an earthly prophet, thought they were heretical.

It had been rumoured the riddle would reveal the location of the Holy Grail.

According to myth, the Grail was used either by Jesus at the Last Supper or by Mary Magdalene to catch Jesus' blood during the Crucifixion.

The quest for the Grail became a popular theme in art, and in more recent times was parodied by the Monty Python team in their classic film.

RHYMES 'TOO VIOLENT'

Bedtime nursery rhymes like Simple Simon, Humpty Dumpty and the Grand Olde Duke of York have been blamed for exposing children to more violence than they would see during an average evening in front of the TV.


Researchers, who have published the tongue-in-cheek study, found that the frequency of violence was more than 10 times greater in nursery rhymes compared with TV.

They argued that putting children in front of the TV rather than reading them the traditional rhymes could actually reduce their exposure to violence.

Some of the worst offenders were Simple Simon, who pricked his fingers on a thistle, Six in a Bed, with its repeated rollings from the bed, and Jack and Jill's hill climbing mishaps.

The researchers said: "Other episodes which caused concern, for instance placing a baby intentionally in harm's way by placing his or her cot in a tree top (Rock-A-Bye Baby), may also cause distress to a child's perception of its safety.

"A social services referral would undoubtedly follow."

The study was published by doctors in Archives of Disease in Childhood, the researchers assessed the contents of 25 popular nursery rhymes which were read to a toddler - referred to as "the fourth researcher" - to gauge their reactions.

Violent episodes were classified as to whether they were accidental, aggressive or intentional, and included implied or threatened violence.

Humpty Dumpty would be an example of accidental violence, as he fell off the wall, while the Grand Olde Duke of York's marching army implied an aggressive act.

The levels of accidental and aggressive violence were twice as high in the nursery rhymes as they were on TV.

Altogether there were almost five violent scenes per hour of viewing on TV, but there were more than 52 per hour of listening to nursery rhymes, the research said.

This meant the frequency of violence with nursery rhymes was around 11 times that with TV viewing.

how about tthe childrens poem that recounts the symptoms and prognosis of THE PLAGUE. Quite cheery .

Ring around the rosie, I presume. Nasty one, that.

In New York City, car radio theft is so prevalent that many people are putting signs in their cars that say, "NO RADIO." This is supposed to discourage thieves who would break car windows in order to steal a radio.

One resident had such a sign, but one morning found a window broken anyway. In the car was a note that said, "JUST CHECKING"

That's funny, panzade.

Hey, anyone seen Col Man yet?

The 'worst' US TV import ever
November 26, 2004 - 7:55AM


Baywatch actors David Hasselhoff, Donna D'Errico and Traci Bingham.
Photo: Reuters


Baywatch, the sun-bleached saga of Californian life guards, was voted the worst-ever US television import in a British survey released today.

The same survey ranked the 25 best US imports, with The Simpsons, Dallas, MASH, 24 and The Larry Sanders Show leading the pack.

Baywatch, which starred Pamela Anderson and David Hasselhoff, ran from 1989 to 2001 and was once ranked the world's most popular program, with viewers in 140 countries.

Broadcast magazine's poll of about 20 program buyers from British terrestrial, cable and satellite channels acknowledged the appeal of a "series about a muscular lifeguard and his crew of pneumatic young helpers with raging hormones", but condemned Baywatch for scripts "of mind-numbing predictability: beachgoer is saved from drowning".

Second place in the poll went to The Anna Nicole Show, the reality program featuring Playboy Playmate turned model Anna Nicole Smith.

Southern-fried 1970s hit The Dukes of Hazzard ranked third, followed by futuristic James Belushi vehicle Wild Palms and anthropomorphic action series Manimal.

Broadcast's 10 Worst US Imports:

1. Baywatch

2. The Anna Nicole Show

3. The Dukes of Hazzard

4. Wild Palms"

5. Manimal

6. The Jerry Springer Show

7. Knots Landing

8. Falcon Crest

9. The Bold and the Beautiful

10. Extreme Makeover

- AP

He's supposed to be in Argentina checking on some stocks he invested in. Seems the bottom fell out of the beef futures market.

In the meantime we'll keep his forum warm.

Oh, I see!

We certainly will!

A new beer brewed in Boca Raton touts itself as the first one brewed for women, but it is based on a 200-year-old recipe.

The beer, made of honey and rose hips, is called Honey Amber Rose.

"To me, it's a nice transition for women who have never tasted beer to women that have tried other microbrews that enjoy them (but want) to try something different," Abby Waters, of Beautiful Brews Inc., said.

Waters said her Honey is low in carbs, has no preservatives and just 4.2 percent alcohol.

"At our first tasting on Saturday, we sold 13 cases in four hours," Waters said.

Waters and her partner, Kent Carpenter, met and fell in love over the concept of Honey Amber Rose. An obscure beer recipe from the 1830s brewed up their inspiration. "Our mission is to reinvent the image of beer and fund the wonderful cause of women's entrepreneurial dreams," the company says on its Web site.

Honey Amber Rose sells for $6.99 a six-pack; a portion of the proceeds goes toward women's charities.

A beer made of honey & rosehips! :And low in carbs!!!!
I must try some! Send me a six-pack, please, panzade.

Sure...I'm taking orders..

Put me on that list too, panzade. By the name alone it is worth a try.