Calcis

Jacksonville News – Candidates would like to see ‘green’ city
From the issue of healthy trees being cut down to the visual blight of clear cutting and concerns about the best way to harness useable, environmentally-friendly energy, “green” topics have been in the news a lot in recent years and have touched every town in the nation, including our small city of Jacksonville.

The city in recent months submitted a grant proposal to turn cooking oil into fuel for the city’s diesel-run vehicles, a tree ordinance is being readied for submission to the city council and the city is even looking into ways of using the methane gas given off by the wastewater treatment plant as an energy source.

Julia Child Spied for the American Government During World War II
The queen of French cuisine Julia Child spied for the American government when the Nazis were rising to power, according to records the National Archives released Thursday.

Child, along with 35,000 others including soldiers, actors, lawyers, professors, athletes and reporters, worked for the Office of Strategic Services OSS, a precursor to the CIA, established by President Franklin Roosevelt during World War II.

The OSS spy ring studied military plans, created propaganda, infiltrated enemy ranks and stirred resistance among foreign troops, according to 750,000 pages the National Archives released, Fox News reported.

Infamous Indian chief Quanah Parker: His existence hinged on an ignored warning | Batesville Daily Guard
When the first photos of American Indians from the 1800s came in at Old Independence Regional Museum, curator Twyla Gill Wright felt as though an old friend had come to visit.

Quanah Parker, the fierce, bloodthirsty Comanche who later turned peacemaker, is the lead figure in the exhibit, being featured in no less than six of the 53. The photos were taken in Oklahoma between 1881 and 1889.

Every Texas schoolboy and girl knows the story of Quanah Parker, whose white mother, Cynthia Ann Parker, was kidnaped by several hundred Comanches, Kiowas and Caddo Indians when she was a child and who fell in love with one of her captors, married him and had three children with him — one of whom was Quanah.

Quanah, meaning “flower” or “fragrant,” was the last chief of the Comanches and never lost a battle to the white man.

“One branch of my family was at the fort where Quanah’s mother was captured when she was 9 years old,” Twyla said.

And if the Parkers — Cynthia Ann’s family — had heeded a warning from one of Twyla’s family members on long-ago May 19, 1836, Cynthia would never have been captured and Quanah would never have existed — a huge chapter of Texas history would never have been written.

“My grandmother told me the story many times when I was a girl,” Twyla said.

Booger is back: Woman receives 5 cloned puppies | ajc.com
SEOUL, South Korea — Booger is back. An American woman received five puppies Tuesday that were cloned from her beloved late pitbull, becoming the inaugural customer of a South Korean company that says it is the world’s first successful commercial canine cloning service.

Seoul-based RNL Bio said the clones of Bernann McKinney’s dog Booger were born last week after being cloned in cooperation with a team of Seoul National University scientists who created the world’s first cloned dog in 2005.

Tyn Tymes reunion more party than concert | GadsdenTimes.com | Gadsden Times | Gadsden, AL
Mike Keracher chuckles as he notes that the 21st-century version of the Tyn Tymes has been performing longer than the original version existed – nearly twice as long, in fact.

The band’s annual reunion show is Saturday in Convention Hall.

In 1965, 10 collegians from Gadsden put together a band. The members were attending Auburn University, the University of Alabama and Jacksonville State University, but they all called Gadsden home.

The twist is that the five horn players graduated from Gadsden High, while the five members of the rhythm section graduated from Emma Sansom High. In the days before consolidation, the schools were fierce cross-town rivals.

View all funerals and obituaries for March 14, 2008. | GadsdenTimes.com

Dulcie Terrell Whitten, born on Dec. 21, 1907, to Luther Malcolm and Ada Griffin Terrell, passed away on March 12, 2008. She was preceded in death by her loving husband, Barnett Olen Whitten.

She is survived by her adopted daughter, Theresa Johnson, Etowah County; grandson, John McGuire Shellie Johnson; and great-grandchildren, Kate McGuire Johnson and Ian Patrick Johnson, Decatur, Ga. She is survived by many nephews and nieces.

Funeral services will be held Saturday, March 15, at Village Chapel Funeral Home, 101 Vandell Blvd. Gadsden. The viewing will be at 10 a.m. and the service held at 11 a.m. Mrs. Whitten will be buried in Crestwood Cemetery. The family should plan to arrive at 9:30 a.m. for the private viewing.

The Rev. Jerry Owens and the Rev. Raymond Bowman will officiate. Her pallbearers will be friends and family.

Mrs. Whitten spent her formative years in Etowah County, graduating from Walnut Grove High School in the Class of 1927. She is an alumnae of Jacksonville State College. After graduation, she taught school at Howelton School. Dulcie and Olen moved to Albertville, where she taught in Marshall County.

Her husband was hired by the State Revenue Department of Alabama, causing them to relocate to Montgomery for a period of more than 35 years. Dulcie and Olan joined Capitol Heights Baptist Church, cultivating friendships that lasted long after they had moved back to Etowah County to finish out their lives together.

Mrs. Whitten returned to Etowah County to take over the manufacture and distribution of Cumarindine, a medication for burns, created by her mother and father in Etowah County and used by people all over the U.S.A. to cure multiple ails. She and Olan joined the Mt. Olive Baptist Church and became very involved in the church – Dulcie was very interested in fundraising for WMU and all missions and served 25 years as president of the WMU at Mt. Olive.

She was multi-talented – her paintings were lovely to behold. She was in great demand for her wedding cakes, which were delicious, as well as beautifully decorated. She could sew anything she set her mind to, from window treatment to beautiful formal gowns for her daughter to wear to dances. She often designed and made dresses for friends and neighbors for contest. Her yard was always filled with flowers used to grace the altar Sundays at Mt. Olive Baptist Church. She was a remarkable woman who lived her fullest and will truly be missed by all who came in contact with her for the past 100 years. She was an Alabama treasure.

Flowers will be accepted, or those who wish, may give to the Mt. Olive Baptist Church building fund.
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A follow-up about the makers of CUMARINDINE…don’t know if the product is still being made or not. Just found about Dulcie Terrell Whitten’s death, today (July 26, 2008).

– CAA
weavercat@gmail.com

Daily Home – Things to consider before you take to two wheels
While everybody likes saving a little money, and driving a scooter or motorcycle can certainly help do that, downsizing to a two-wheeled vehicle isn’t for everybody. Consider the following before you make a visit to your local dealer:

o The rules of the road are a little bit different for bikers, and bikers are more vulnerable. Take a motorcycle safety course like the one offered at University of Montevallo. “This is so important for new riders or someone who’s re-entering,” said Jason Upchurch of Talladega Cycle Sales. The three-day Alabama Motorcycle Safety Program is also offered at locations in Jacksonville, Madison County, Dothan, Tuscumbia and Montgomery. Visit www.montevallo.edu/atsc/motorcycle for more information.

• You will need to purchase protective gear to wear while riding. “A lot of people come in and want a cheap motorcycle and then want a cheap helmet to go with it,” said Mike Wright at Yamaha Sea-Doo in Sylacauga. “I would say invest in a nice helmet and also protective gear.” Also remember, you will likely have to contend with helmet hair.

• Inclement weather. Sudden afternoon showers could cramp your riding style. However, there are weather suits available for such occasions.

• You can’t pack a lot of cargo or extra people onto a motorcycle or scooter. If you have small children you frequently tote around town with you, a bike may not end up saving you all that much money since you wouldn’t be able to use it on those occasions.

• Last, but not least: Biking isn’t for everybody. “If it’s not your thing, don’t do it,” said Faye Mather, 65, who just purchased her first scooter and loves it.
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I would add another thing — Automobile drivers/motorists DO NOT “SEE” motorcycle or scooters!
Many people I know have had wrecks due to motorists completely ignoring them while they drove ’sanely’ on their bikes.

From personal experience — and extremely lucky to be in one piece — I came out light on injury after a Firebird hit me from behind on Highway 21 (in Alabama)!

Insurance? No he did not have insurance.

Anyway, that was quite a number of years ago.

Two-wheels are fun and fuel efficient, yes. But if there is a wreck — two-wheel drivers usually don’t come off lightly, on injury.

– Cathy
weavercat@gmail.com

Cabooses – Alabama rail icons resurrected- al.com
Cabooses – Alabama rail icons resurrected
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Not seen any cabooses lately?
They may not be on the railroads anymore; but they can be in some interesting locations, around Alabama.

– Cathy
weavercat@gmail.com

Remains identified as czar’s children | ajc.com
Remains identified as czar’s children
Religious observances on 90th anniversary of executions

The Washington Post
Published on: 07/17/08

MOSCOW — Ninety years after the Bolsheviks executed the last czar and his family, Russian investigators said Wednesday that DNA analysis confirmed categorically that remains found in a pit last year in the Ural Mountains city of Yekaterinburg were those of the czar’s children Crown Prince Alexei and Grand Duchess Maria.

With that announcement, the remains of all of Nicholas II’s family have been accounted for. The myth, reinforced down the years in films and false claims, that one of czar’s offspring had survived has been formally put to rest.
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Resolution of a historical mystery?
Many believed so.

– Cathy
weavercat@gmail.com

Fox: Jackson used N-word in crude off-air remarks | ajc.com
Fox: Jackson used N-word in crude off-air remarks

By SOPHIA TAREEN
Associated Press Writer
Published on: 07/17/08

CHICAGO — The Rev. Jesse Jackson used the N-word during a break in a TV interview where he criticized presidential candidate Barack Obama, Fox News confirmed Wednesday.

The longtime civil rights leader already came under fire this month for crude off-air comments he made against Obama in what he thought was a private conversation during a taping of a “Fox & Friends” news show.
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Oooops.

– Cathy
weavercat@gmail.com

Tomatoes are fine, but FDA links jalepeno and seranno peppers to Salmonella | ajc.com
Tomatoes are fine, but FDA links jalepeno and seranno peppers to Salmonella
Largest of foodborne disease in a decade has sickened at least 1,220
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Actual culprit for illness found — millions of dollars of tomatoes plowed-under for no good reason, as it turns out.

– Cathy
weavercat@gmail.com

Court Clears eBay in Suit Over Sale of Counterfeit Goods – NYTimes.com
EBay scored an important victory in an American court on Monday on how much vetting it is required to do of its auction listings, but the decision was in contrast to recent European court rulings.
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In a decision in a four-year-old trademark lawsuit against eBay brought by the jeweler Tiffany & Company, Judge Richard J. Sullivan of the Federal District Court in Manhattan ruled that the online retailer does not have a legal responsibility to prevent its users from selling counterfeit items on its online marketplace.

The verdict reaffirms that Internet companies do not have to actively filter their sites for trademarked material. Rather, they can rely on intellectual property holders to monitor their sites, as long as they promptly remove material when rights holders complain.

Adult Web sites enjoy boost from stimulus checks | ajc.com
Seems Uncle Sam’s economic stimulus checks are boosting an unlikely part of the economy.

Adult entertainment Web sites began seeing a spike in business shortly after the first wave of checks went out in mid-May, according to Adult Internet Market Research Co., a New York firm that tracks the adult online world.

The George W. Bush Sewage Plant? | ajc.com
San Francisco group wants voters to weigh in on effort to rename waste facility

Associated Press
Published on: 07/07/08

SAN FRANCISCO — A California group submitted a proposal Monday to rename a sewage treatment plant after President Bush, calling the initiative a fitting tribute to the outgoing chief executive and the “mess” he’ll leave behind.

The Presidential Memorial Commission of San Francisco wants to switch the name of the Oceanside Water Pollution Control Plant to the George W. Bush Sewage Plant.

Wine chemical eases age-related ailments – San Jose Mercury News
It’s not exactly a fountain of youth, but a substance found in red wine, grapes and nuts can prevent many age-related problems in mice, an intriguing new study reveals.

The substance, resveratrol, led to healthier hearts, better bone density, fewer cataracts and greater motor coordination in the animals.

The findings, published online Thursday in Cell Metabolism, may increase interest in resveratrol as scientists seek to ward off the inevitable deterioration that comes with growing older.

“It slowed down substantially some of the main components of the aging process,” said Rafael de Cabo, one of the study authors. Cabo is a scientist with the Laboratory of Experimental Gerontology at the National Institute on Aging, which helped fund the research.