Living In the World, Not on It

No change in horoscope By Sarah Black Prof. Parke Kunkle shocked many people Jan. 10 by saying the zodiac actually has 13 signs. A professor from a community college is out to set the record straight, calling out 3,000 years of popular belief and Babylonian tradition and telling the world they've got their zodiac signs wrong. Professor Parke Kunkle, an astronomer teaching at Minneapolis Community and Technical College and board member of the Minnesota Planetarium Society, has made clear that the current zodiac calendar is wrong, and has added a 13th sign, Ophiucus (ooh-FEE-yew-kus). "In astronomy we look at the motion of the stars and the planets and what the background stars are," said Kunkle in a radio broadcast with NPR. "But the Earth has wobbled a bit in its spin, and that wobble has changed where the sun is located on a given date." This means that when astrologers say the sun is in Pisces, it is now in Aquarius, et cetera, Kunk...

It really is hard to imagine and it boggles the mind that anyone falls for this crap. It is staggering to me that anyone regardless of social or fiduciary circles reads these and thinks, "Wow! I can really get rich fast!" Especially in countries where you know that kind of capital (in this case a whopping U.S.$12.5 million) doesn't exist anywhere in it, and may not exist if you took the surround six countries and cobbled all of their money as well. But people do shockingly fall for these get-rich-quick-easy scams. Of course if you take the Girl Scouts and Band kids and regular school kids the adults running those shows are relentlessly trying to turn your sweet little pigtailed girl or sweet little dirt-covered boy into Amway people. This goes on all the time, especially in seasonal droves. please read and reply Dear Partner, I am the Director in charge of Auditing section Bank of Africa(B.o a.)Ouagadougou Burkina-Faso in West Africa. Forgive my indignation if this messa...

I normally like the fact that there are four separate and distinct seasons where I live. But I have to admit that while winter is my least favourite, this one is getting particularly old... The first snow storm came on 26 December. It has been all downhill - on a sled out of control - from there. I can still appreciate the beauty of the snow, but quite frankly, enough is enough. The first snow storm brought just about 30" of fluffy white snow. Fortuitously, we shut down for the Monday. I certainly wasn't going to attempt that mess. The next one followed on 5 January, but not at the staggering amount the first one brought. Even so, I am not a fan of driving in snow. Let's just say I've seen far too many accidents to have any confidence. I know how to drive in snow (very slowly) but most of the drivers in New Jersey - especially those with SUVs - think they somehow get a pass on having to drive with any care or regard for others and completely turn into maniacs. Let them...

As I look at the morning sky Today the wind is blowing hard See that bird is floating high Pretty soon it will be tired I spent a day all by myself A rich man without his wealth Sometimes I get it wrong But I'm not the only one The afternoon was very clear The sun was beating down on me I got thirsty for a beer That I had to go to sea The sea was very rough It made me feel sick But I like that kind of stuff It beats arithmetic I don't want the world to change I like the way it is Just give me one more wish I can't get enough of this When it gets to be alive And not just still survive To hit and not to miss I can't get enough of this The early evening mists Look beautiful to me Was sweeter than a kiss I wish you all could see I'm a long long way from home But this photograph of you Even though it's monochrome Tells me what I should do So I got up on my feet I knew it would be alright For my clothes were looking beat In the middle of the night I don't want the...

This can't be real My heart is burning How does it feel Well, let's say I'm learning It had to come The ship has landed It's time to run The crew are stranded We're having the time of our lives We're lost in a cruel paradise Someone like you can make me feel like I used to do Return my heart, yeah, make it feel like it does at the start Someone like you, Someone like you, yeah You're everything to me The sweetest symphony All that I try to be You are my harmony I guess what I mean to say Is you keep the walls at bay We're children on holiday Here comes the crowd We're having the time of our lives We're lost in a cruel paradise Someone like you can make me feel like I used to do Return my heart, yeah, make it feel like it does at the start Someone like you, yeah, Someone like you, yeah

We're like crystal, we break easy I'm a poor man, if you leave me I'm applauded, then forgotten It was summer, now it's autumn I don't know what to say, you don't care anyway I'm a man in a rage (just tell me what I've got to do), with a girl I betrayed Here comes love, it's like honey You can't buy it with money, you're not alone anymore, (whenever you're here with me), You shock me to the core, you shock me to the core We're like crystal, it's not easy With your love, you could feed me Every man, and every woman Needs someone, So keep it coming Keep it coming, keep it coming, keep it coming Keep it coming, keep it coming, keep it coming Keep it coming I don't know what to say, you don't care anyway I'm a man in a rage (just tell me what I've got to do), with a girl I betrayed Here comes love, it's like honey You can't buy it with money, you're not alone anymore, (whenever you're here with me), You...

I don't know if I told you, but I'm seeking Santeria You'll never guess the things that I do I'll have the devil round for tea Don't you know that I'm here beside you Can't you see that I can't relax When I saw you in my rearview You could've stopped me in my tracks I'll be there for you when you want me to I'll stand by your side like I always do In the dead of night it'll be alright 'Cause I'll be there for you when you want me to You can take me to an island, ride across the stormy sea We can worship pagan idols, there together you and me Why don't you run over here and rescue me? You can drive down in your car Why don't we both take a ride and turn that key We'll drive at 60 miles an hour I'll be there for you when you want me to I'll stand by your side like I always do In the dead of night it'll be alright 'Cause I'll be there for you when you want me to I'll be there for you when you want ...

Take my hand And don't let go Trust this man And let it flow Don't take me down Cause I'm not done Don't steal my crown Before it's won The wide expanse The wheel of chance Will turn my way The sky will not be gray I don't wanna be like other people are Don't wanna own a key, don't wanna wash my car Don't wanna have to work like other people do I want it to be free, I want it to be true Take my hand And don't let go Trust this man And let it flow I drank in every bar in town I filled my cup when I was down I saw the things I wanted to see Became the man I wanted to be But then somehow I lost my way I've got to get back there today I don't wanna be like other people are Don't wanna own a key, don't wanna wash my car Don't wanna have to work like other people do I want it to be free, I want it to be true I don't wanna be like other people are Don't wanna own a key, don't wanna wash my car Don't wanna have to work...

Company announced earlier this week that they will be relying more on its streaming service, which caused user uproar. Netflix is slowly phasing out its DVD mailing system, and its subscribers aren’t too happy about it. The company has predicted that in two years, they will be relying more on its “Watch Instantly” service instead of actual DVDs, Yahoo! Movies reports . Earlier this week, Netflix’s director of product management Jamie Odell announced that the company would be “removing the ‘Add to DVD Queue’ option from streaming devices.” This was an indication that Netflix could “concentrate on offering you the titles that are available to watch instantly.” After the announcement was made, many users were angry about the sudden change. One commenter wrote, “Clearly Netflix wants to send less discs through the mail, and therefore wants us to make it more difficult for the user to add their queue in furtherance of that.” Another said, “Ho...

Most of us rely on e-mail as one of our primary communication tools. And given the number of messages we send and receive, we do it with remarkable success. But as with anything, the more e-mails we send, the more likely we are to screw one up. And simple e-mail mistakes can be disastrous. They can cost us a raise, promotion--even a job. With a new year upon us, this is the perfect time to go through some of the worst e-mail mistakes employees make and how to avoid them. 1. Sending before you mean to. Enter the recipient's e-mail address only when your e-mail is ready to be sent. This helps reduce the risk of an embarrassing misfire, such as sending an important e-mail to the wrong person or e-mailing a half-written note. 2. Forgetting the attachment. If your e-mail includes an attachment, upload the file to the e-mail before composing it. This eliminates the embarrassing mistake of forgetting it before hitting "send," and having to send another e-m...

BIRMINGHAM, Ala. – Alabama Gov. Robert Bentley told a church crowd just moments into his new administration that those who have not accepted Jesus as their savior are not his brothers and sisters, shocking some critics who questioned Tuesday whether he can be fair to non-Christians. "Anybody here today who has not accepted Jesus as their savior, I'm telling you, you're not my brother and you're not my sister, and I want to be your brother," Bentley said Monday, his inauguration day, according to The Birmingham News. The Anti-Defamation League on Tuesday called Bentley's remarks shocking. "His comments are not only offensive, but also raise serious questions as to whether non-Christians can expect to receive equal treatment during his tenure as governor," said Bill Nigut, the ADL's regional director. Speaking at Dexter Avenue King Memorial Church after the official inaugural ceremony, Bentley told the crowd t...

MINNEAPOLIS - It's a new year, and there's new Zodiac signs for many in 2011. Professor Parke Kunkle of the Minnesota Planetarium Society says the Zodiac has a date problem. If you imagine the Earth as a spinning top, the axis changes as it wobbles. 5,000 years later, it means the stars are not aligned, so those with a Libra horoscope are really a Virgo, and many others have a new Zodiac sign too. “Right now its pointing this way, the North Star, but 3000 BC it was pointing differently,” Kunkle said. “Now things have moved and the sun is in a different constellation. We're about a whole constellation off." And don’t forget Ophiuchus, astrology’s orphan. "Ophiuchus has been a constellation for years and it just gets left out,” Kunkle said. NEW ZODIAC SIGN CHART Capricorn January 20- to February 16 Aquarius February 16 to March 11 Pisces March 11 to April 18. Aries April 18 to May 13 Taurus May 13 to June 21. Gemini June 21 to July 20 Can...

A group of more than 100 scientists and experts say in a new report that California faces the risk of a massive "superstorm" that could flood a quarter of the state's homes and cause $300 billion to $400 billion in damage. Researchers point out that the potential scale of destruction in this storm scenario is four or five times the amount of damage that could be wrought by a major earthquake. It sounds like the plot of an apocalyptic action movie, but scientists with the U.S. Geological Survey warned federal and state emergency officials that California's geological history shows such "superstorms" have happened in the past, and should be added to the long list of natural disasters to worry about in the Golden State. The threat of a cataclysmic California storm has been dormant for the past 150 years. Geological Survey director Marcia K. McNutt told the New York Times that a 300-mile stretch of the Central Vall...

I always find that when life is hard or I'm over-thinking things, I go outside and look at the night sky. You who have been a reader know this. It is grounding and beautiful. It gives me balance when I need it the most. And I need the grounding now as much as ever. Last night I commented to Luis that the Moon was beautiful and was presaging bad weather. It had a halo around it. The halo is created by moisture in the air, high enough in the atmosphere to create a small rainbow surrounding the Moon. It's gorgeous but also explains why the Moon is invisible tonight, hidden by clouds. Luis was surprised - first he couldn't find it (I always know exactly where it is every day - a little scary. I also told everyone at the table on Friday night their hire dates... they were a little freaked out. Heh, heh, heh...); then he saw it and said, "Wow, there's a halo!" I also told him when you see a crescent Moon hanging high in the night sky, it is fiction. The crescent Moo...

When one saves a life, the last thing one wants to find themselves asking is, "Was this worth it?" I find I ask more often than I like. It is one thing to bring back someone who had a heart attack that was a freaky thing. It is entirely another to bring back people who are 20-something or 30-something who helped themselves to get to this point with drugs. (Sadly, the drug of choice in Parsippany is heroin. This is a bigger death sentence than the usual drug choices.) When you walk into a room to find a young person receiving CPR, it is shocking. When I did CPR on people who were in their 50s and up, it is fairly cut and dry. Overexertion leads to too much stress on the heart and someone who has been ignoring their health goes down. When we have a positive outcome, that person almost always goes on to use that second chance to really turn their lives into healthy, active living. It's amazing. And if you run into them on the street, you see a wholly different person. The de...

I must go down to the seas again, to the lonely sea and the sky, And all I ask is a tall ship and a star to steer her by, And the wheel's kick and the wind's song and the white sail's shaking, And a gray mist on the sea's face, and a gray dawn breaking. I must go down to the seas again, for the call of the running tide Is a wild call and a clear call that may not be denied; And all I ask is a windy day with the white clouds flying, And the flung spray and the blown spume, and the sea-gulls crying. I must go down to the seas again, to the vagrant gypsy life, To the gull's way and the whale's way, where the wind's like a whetted knife; And all I ask is a merry yarn from a laughing fellow-rover, And quiet sleep and a sweet dream when the long trick's over. John Masefield

I'm guilty. I gripe and complain and say that now the snow has gotten old. But then in the midst of our third snowstorm in as many weeks, I'm caught up in and blown away by how lovely and quiet it all is. In the midst of life and insanity is a ghostly but lovely world blanketed in cold fluffy snow. It is staggeringly lovely. All of the South Africans have bailed out of New Jersey to explore warmer climes; two are on a cruise ship through the Caribbean Seas, two re hiking through Arizona and the American Southwest and enjoying the desert views there. One has gone to Las Vegas and I don't recall what else is on the agenda. And my beloved friend, who loves to give me hugs, he is in either Las Vegas or has moved on to San Francisco (I did warn him that the Golden Gate Bridge is orange, not gold, in colour.) It's undoubtedly nice to be out in warmer climates when the area you live in gets nailed with snowstorms on a regular basis. But still, I can't help but appreciate t...

It isn't as bad as all that. Car 65 had their installation dinner tonight. I suspect all have left the actual event place by now (it is 01h10, quite late) but many times people love to keep a party going and go out somewhere after the formal event is over and party some more. So there may well be people out still having a fun time. It was quite unusual. One call went out around 19h00 and one just went out about 15 - 20 minutes ago. Usually they have the luck of picking a night where the weather is terrible and sometimes crews have had to stay at the buildings to get out. We normally hold our dinners later in the season and don't get snowstorms, but as I recall, last year there was a horrendous rain storm complete with high winds and other insanity on our dinner night. I love the installation parties, although I never partake in the drinking portion (I really hate the taste of alcohol). I kind of understand drinking, but I never understand drinking to the point of vomiting and f...

By Robert Frost TWO TRAMPS IN MUD TIME Out of the mud two strangers came And caught me splitting wood in the yard, And one of them put me off my aim By hailing cheerily "Hit them hard!" I knew pretty well why he had dropped behind And let the other go on a way. I knew pretty well what he had in mind: He wanted to take my job for pay. Good blocks of oak it was I split, As large around as the chopping block; And every piece I squarely hit Fell splinterless as a cloven rock. The blows that a life of self-control Spares to strike for the common good, That day, giving a loose my soul, I spent on the unimportant wood. The sun was warm but the wind was chill. You know how it is with an April day When the sun is out and the wind is still, You're one month on in the middle of May. But if you so much as dare to speak, A cloud comes over the sunlit arch, A wind comes off a frozen peak, And you're two months back in the middle of March. A bluebird comes tenderly up to aligh...

I'm not sure I don't have a post called this already, but Luis (quite surprisingly) added the movie Eat Pray Love to the NetFlix lit. While I give Luis credit for being able to sit through some "chick flicks" (he may even sit through more than I can - I find too many of them insipid and terribly uninspiring), this proved to be too much - i.e. too slow - even for him. But I was not unhappy with the movie. This is a surprise for me, as normally I am quite the purist when it comes to movies based on books. I realise it is rather impossible to put an entire book into a movie format unless the books are the size of C.S. Lewis' Narnian Chronicles , which even then was screwed up completely by the incompetent who did The Voyage of the Dawn Treader , which I had looked forward to in a big way and was so disappointed by the finished product. It is the best book in the series and the company that bought the rights from Disney Films did not follow the book in any fashion a...

Stop it! I'm not having monetary problems - outside my normal mode of spending, which is inordinate but not crazy. No. I was in the shower, doing my normal ruminant type thinking and I was thinking about addictions, then an e-mail from Senator Menendez about a tax credit (which is a bad idea) and then got to thinking about money and how it all began. In the simplest terms, it began as theft, then barter, then money and then credit. I would have to say that the invention of credit is where we really went wrong as a race, but that is another topic. In more detail, which is the only kind of thinking for me, theft had to be first. It just makes sense. If one tribe had something your tribe didn't, you'd pick a fight and procure it. So in actual fact, procurement came first. Whether it was theft-related procurement or legal or polite procurement, it was still procurement. Then we moved up to barter - at least that way, you weren't picking off the members of your group, beca...