Stuff you didn't know and probably don't care about

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John Connor

Lifer
Nov 30, 2012
22,840
617
121
They still don't. :D


Radio was like the television back then. Remember that scene in the move Christmas Story? "Be sure to drink your ovaltine." Was a code given to kids from the show Little Orphan Annie I guess.

I love radio broadcasting. I sometimes listen to an alternative radio show called Coast To Coat AM with George Norry. He's got some really great things on that program. It used to be hosted by Art Bell. If you want to not sleep at night and become paranoid, that show is for you. HAHA. The Halloween show is pretty creepy. Lots of ghost and apparition talk, etc.

I used to listen to AM radio on my small AA battery powered radio. In fact the batteries still work since around the 2012 election. I now listen to radio on the iHeart App. Or stream it though my Amazon Echo Dot.
 

John Connor

Lifer
Nov 30, 2012
22,840
617
121
My daughter works with the oldest American on occasion...

http://www.centredaily.com/news/local/article167937527.html


Born before the Titanic. Lived through two world wars, the Korean war, Vietnam , Gulf war one and two. Seen the first automobile, man land on the moon, the Internet and countless other achievements and historical moments in time. Pretty amazing.

I want to at least live to see tricentennial. The 4th of July is my most favorite holiday. And being able to see that date would be awesome. But alas, I would be 95 years old. Even if I do see that day I may be so out of it that it wouldn't even matter. I have a few star chart Apps on my phone and it's like a time machine. I can see what the stars and planets looked like on the morning I was born, and I've looked to see what they will look like on July 4th 2076.
 

lxskllr

No Lifer
Nov 30, 2004
57,363
7,514
126
Yea, the beginning of the 20th century was an interesting time to be born. You could start life in a time that would have been recognizable to someone 500 years previous and live to see humans land on the moon.

I look at pictures of that woman, and wonder what her life's like. Hard of hearing, can't see well, and people come around and pester due to the accident of being old. I think I'd be thinking "Christ, when is it gonna end?!"
 

elitejp

Golden Member
Jan 2, 2010
1,080
20
81
Another few interesting things about my stay over here.
I was sick so i took some cold medicine and drank it down with cold water. Unfortunatately i was later to find out that cold water will cause the medicine to not work. Cold water would also give you a stomach ache.
China is an interesting place to visit.
 

GagHalfrunt

Lifer
Apr 19, 2001
25,297
2,000
126
In the 1980's a woman named Lori Arnold became America's first female drug kingpin. She married a biker gang president and started out just slinging a little of the gang's meth around her hometown of Ottumwa Iowa. Despite being a high school drop out with no real business experience it turned out Lori was kind of a genius at setting up and running a meth empire that Gustavo Fring would be proud of. She needed supply which came from California, so she bought cars and hired drivers to constantly bring in meth by the trunk load. That wasn't enough, so she invested in a string of over a dozen car dealerships so she'd always have a steady supply of cars, drivers and dealer plates to make the drug runs from California to Iowa. As her business grew she expanded across the entire midwest and used horses as her cover like Gus used chicken. She bought a horse farm to breed and train thoroughbreds and used that as her product transportation hub. She housed her workers on her farm and she convinced her cartel contacts to loan her a cook to teach her own people to manufacture meth and she set up her own lab on her horse farm. She was manufacturing hundreds of pounds a week and even that wasn't enough, so she kept her car fleet bringing in more and more meth from California. And like Gus, she hid in plain site, friend and booster to the police, do-gooder, champion of the community while running a huge drug empire under their nose. Of course she was eventually caught and served a couple of long prison sentences, but not before making so many millions that she couldn't count it all and almost single-handedly creating the meth epidemic in the USA.

What's especially impressive is that she was a teenager the first time she tried meth and started selling her hubbies biker meth. She quickly ditched him and the gang and did almost everything herself and was so successful at it that it all happened REALLY fast. From slinging free samples and selling $10 bags to buying her own car dealerships to owning 14 houses to buying her own planes and a 170 acre horse ranch for distribution in less than five years. Truly the very definition of a drug kingpin and the self-made millionaire American dream.

Now the kicker. Ever hear of Lori Arnold before today? Probably not. But I bet you have heard of her big brother. Lori is the little sister of actor and comedian Tom Arnold, co-star of True Lies with Arnold Schwarzenegger and best known as the former husband of Roseanne Barr.
 

shortylickens

No Lifer
Jul 15, 2003
82,854
17,365
136
The Michelin man was introduced in 1894



michelinman1.jpg
 

Mai72

Lifer
Sep 12, 2012
11,578
1,741
126
Did you know that fecal matter is still present in the air when you enter a restroom. Probably not a good idea to brush your teeth in a public restroom. Unless you like fecal matter in your mouth. Oh, and make sure you wash your toothbrush at home real real good. And, that cell phone you like to use while you're on the John. Yep. It's covered in poo.

Have a nice day. :=)
 

who?

Platinum Member
Sep 1, 2012
2,327
42
91
My mother loves "Coast to Coast AM". Whenever she has trouble going to sleep she finds that on her headphone radio and it puts her right out.
 

John Connor

Lifer
Nov 30, 2012
22,840
617
121
This is a Cassowary. The most dangerous bird in the world. They are native to New Guinea, nearby islands, and northeastern Australia. They are a shy animal and thus you may not even see them, but if confronted they will kick your ass with their sharp claws. They can weigh as much as 129 pounds and are about six feet tall.


NCzC6zn.jpg



Mom, what's for Thanksgiving? Cassowary!
 

FeuerFrei

Diamond Member
Mar 30, 2005
9,152
928
126
This is a Cassowary. The most dangerous bird in the world. They are native to New Guinea, nearby islands, and northeastern Australia. They are a shy animal and thus you may not even see them, but if confronted they will kick your ass with their sharp claws. They can weigh as much as 129 pounds and are about six feet tall.

Mom, what's for Thanksgiving? Cassowary!

I'm reading a book on Fabulous Beasts (title). I'll see if any ancient accounts match up with that thing.

Man those things have some wattles. (img search)
 

John Connor

Lifer
Nov 30, 2012
22,840
617
121
During the cold war there was an experiment to deploy 480,000,000 dipole antennas tuned to 8Ghz in space to create an artificial ionosphere for better communication. The project was eventually cancelled but there was some launches and some of those are still in space today. Some failed to deploy and are still in clumps.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Project_West_Ford


Pretty amazing at all the crap we have done in the name of anti-communism in terms of technology. The CIA , for example had things in spy craft that were pretty remarkable. They once made a device that crawled through walls and drilled holes to listen in on conversations. I believe that too was back in the 60's. Imagine the shit they have now.
 

Red Squirrel

No Lifer
May 24, 2003
67,194
12,025
126
www.anyf.ca
Pretty amazing at all the crap we have done in the name of anti-communism in terms of technology. The CIA , for example had things in spy craft that were pretty remarkable. They once made a device that crawled through walls and drilled holes to listen in on conversations. I believe that too was back in the 60's. Imagine the shit they have now.

Yeah some crazy tech in that era. Definitly does make one wonder what they have now, as we'll only really find out in 50 years from now if they ever release any of it.