Old Sailors' Almanac

THIS WEEK IN HISTORY

Week 18, 2018

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The United States begins construction of the Panama Canal on May 4, 1904

The United States begins construction of the Panama Canal on May 4, 1904

The United States begins construction of the Panama Canal: Following the failure of a French construction team in the 1880s, the United States commenced building a canal across a 50-mile stretch of the Panama isthmus in 1904. The project was helped by the elimination of disease-carrying mosquitoes, while chief engineer John Stevens devised innovative techniques and spurred the crucial redesign from a sea-level to a lock canal. His successor, Lt. Col. George Washington Goethals, stepped up excavation efforts of a stubborn mountain range and oversaw the building of the dams and locks. Opened in 1914, oversight of the world-famous Panama Canal was transferred from the U.S. to Panama in 1999.

The idea of creating a water passage across the isthmus of Panama to link the Atlantic and Pacific Oceans dates back to at least the 1500s, when King Charles I of Spain tapped his regional governor to survey a route along the Chagres River. The realization of such a route across the mountainous, jungle terrain was deemed impossible at the time, although the idea remained tantalizing as a potential shortcut from Europe to eastern Asia.

France was ultimately the first country to attempt the task. Led by Count Ferdinand de Lesseps, the builder of the Suez Canal in Egypt, the construction team broke ground on a planned sea-level canal in 1880. The French soon comprehended the monumental challenge ahead of them: Along with the incessant rains that caused heavy landslides, there was no effective means for combating the spread of yellow fever and malaria. De Lesseps belatedly realized that a sea-level canal was too difficult and reorganized efforts toward a lock canal, but funding was pulled from the project in 1888.

Following the deliberations of the U.S. Isthmian Canal Commission and a push from President Theodore Roosevelt, the U.S. purchased the French assets in the canal zone for $40 million in 1902. When a proposed treaty over rights to build in what was then a Colombian territory was rejected, the U.S. threw its military weight behind a Panamanian independence movement, eventually negotiating a deal with the new government in 1903 that gave them rights in perpetuity to the canal zone.

Seemingly not grasping the lessons from the French effort, the Americans devised plans for a sea-level canal along the roughly 50-mile stretch from Colón to Panama City. The project officially commenced with a dedication ceremony on May 4, 1904, but chief engineer John Wallace encountered immediate problems. Much of the French equipment was in need of repair, while the spread of yellow fever and malaria was frightening off the workforce. Under pressure to keep construction moving forward, Wallace instead resigned after a year.

A railroad specialist named John Stevens took over as chief engineer in July 1905 and immediately addressed the workforce issues by recruiting West Indian laborers. Stevens ordered new equipment and devised efficient methods to speed up work, such as the use of a swinging boom to lift chunks of railroad track and adjust the train route for carting away excavated material. He also quickly recognized the difficulties posed by landslides and convinced Roosevelt that a lock canal was best for the terrain.

The project was helped immensely by chief sanitary officer Dr. William Gorgas, who believed that mosquitoes carried the deadly diseases indigenous to the area. Gorgas embarked on a mission to wipe out the carriers, his team painstakingly fumigating homes and cleansing pools of water. The last reported case of yellow fever on the isthmus came in November 1905, while malaria cases dropped precipitously over the following decade.

Although construction was on track when President Roosevelt visited the area in November 1906, the project suffered a setback when Stevens suddenly resigned a few months later. Incensed, Roosevelt named Army Corps engineer Lt. Col. George Washington Goethals the new chief engineer, granting him authority over virtually all administrative matters in the building zone. Goethals proved a no-nonsense commander by squashing a work strike after taking charge, but he also oversaw the addition of facilities to improve the quality of life for workers and their families.

Goethals focused efforts on Culebra Cut, the clearing of the mountain range between Gamboa and Pedro Miguel. Excavation of the nearly 9-mile stretch became an around-the-clock operation, with up to 6,000 men contributing at any one time. Despite the attention paid to this phase of the project, Culebra Cut was a notorious danger zone, as casualties mounted from unpredictable landslides and dynamite explosions.

Construction of the locks began with the pouring of concrete at Gatún in August 1909. Built in pairs, with each chamber measuring 110 feet wide by 1,000 feet long, the locks were embedded with culverts that leveraged gravity to raise and lower water levels. Ultimately, the three locks along the canal route lifted ships 85 feet above sea level, to man-made Gatún Lake in the middle. Hollow, buoyant lock gates were also built, varying in height from 47 to 82 feet. The entire enterprise was powered by electricity and run through a control board.

The grand project began drawing to a close in 1913. Two steam shovels working from opposite directions met in the center of Culebra Cut in May, and a few weeks later, the last spillway at Gatún Dam was closed to allow the lake to swell to its full height. In October, President Woodrow Wilson operated a telegraph at the White House that triggered the explosion of Gamboa dike, flooding the final stretch of dry passageway at Culebra Cut.

The Panama Canal officially opened on August 15, 1914, although the planned grand ceremony was downgraded due to the outbreak of WWI. Completed at a cost of more than $350 million, it was the most expensive construction project in U.S. history to that point. Altogether, some 3.4 million cubic meters of concrete went into building the locks, and nearly 240 million cubic yards of rock and dirt were excavated during the American construction phase. Of the 56,000 workers employed between 1904 and 1913, roughly 5,600 were reported killed.

Bolstered by the addition of Madden Dam in 1935, the Panama Canal proved a vital component to expanding global trade routes in the 20th century. The transition to local oversight began with a 1977 treaty signed by U.S. President Jimmy Carter and Panama leader Omar Torrijos, with the Panama Canal Authority assuming full control on December 31, 1999. Recognized by the American Society of Civil Engineers as one of the seven wonders of the modern world in 1994, the canal hosted its 1 millionth passing ship in September 2010.

History Channel / Wikipedia / Britannica Encyclopedia / Space.com / Creation.com Johannes Kepler (YouTube) video


Understanding Military Terminology: Scout of Many Trails (Sea Scout and Boy Scout look at globe with old sailor) ~ Norman Rockwell

Understanding Military Terminology - Mine

(DOD) 1. In land mine warfare, an explosive or other material, normally encased, designed to destroy or damage ground vehicles, boats, or aircraft, or designed to wound, kill, or otherwise incapacitate personnel and designed to be detonated by the action of its victim, by the passage of time, or by controlled means.

2. In naval mine warfare, an explosive device laid in the water with the intention of damaging or sinking ships or of deterring shipping from entering an area. See also mine warfare..

Joint Publications (JP 3-15) Barriers, Obstacles, and Mine Warfare for Joint Operations


U.S. Navy Aircraft Carrier USS Washington (U.S.Navy.mil)

The Old Salt’s Corner

CWC Call Signs

Typical Carrier Air Wing (CVW)

WARFARE Commander or Coordinator

   ABBREVIATION   BATTLEGROUP CALL SIGN

Composite Warfare Commander   CWC   AB

Surface Warfare Commander   SUWC   AS

Undersea Warfare Commander   USWC   AX

Air Warfare Commander   AWC   AW

Command & Control Warfare Commander   C2W   AQ

Strike Warfare Commander   STRIKE   AP

Air Resource Element Coordinator   AREC   AR

Helicopter Element Coordinator   HEC   AL

Submarine Element Coordinator   SEC   SEC

Force Over-the-Horizon Track Coordinator   FOTC   FOTC

Screen Coordinator   SC   AN

1. Surface Warfare Commander (AS)

The surface warfare commander can best perform his duties from onboard the carrier due to superior Command-Control-Communications-Computers and Intelligence (C4I) and proximity to surface surveillance coordination (SSC) and war-at-sea (WAS) tactical air assets. He is usually the commanding officer of the CV(N). Alternate AS is often a Tomahawk-capable ship commanding officer. AS is responsible for planning and executing both offensive and defensive war-at-sea strikes as well as for SSC. This maximizes the benefits of the close relationship necessary between the AS and the Force Over-the-Horizon Track Coordinator (FOTC, see below).

2. Undersea Warfare Commander (AX)

The tactical DESRON commander is normally the undersea warfare commander (AX). AX is often double hatted as Helicopter Element Coordinator (HEC, see below) and Screen Coordinator (SC, see below). Alternate AX is often the senior DD-963 (Spruance-class) commanding officer or, if none is available, a senior commanding officer of the primary mission USW DD(G)/FF(G) in the battlegroup.

3. Air Warfare Commander (AW)

The commanding officer of the cruiser in the battlegroup is often assigned as AW. Preferably, it is a Ticonderoga class CG operating the AEGIS weapon system. The Combat Information Center (CIC) of these ships is specially designed for inner air battle functions. A second cruiser within the battlegroup may act as an alternate AW to allow a 12 hours on - 12 hours off rotation.

4. Command & Control Warfare Commander (AQ)

The space and electronic warfare commander acts as principal advisor to CWC for use and counter-use of the electromagnetic spectrum by friendly and enemy forces. AQ will promulgate Force Emissions Control (EMCON) restrictions, monitors organic and non-organic intelligence and surveillance sensors and develops operational deception and counter-targeting plans as appropriate. AQ is located onboard the carrier. An alternate call sign for C2W is AZ.

5. Strike Warfare Commander (AP)

In single CVBG operations the carrier air wing commander (CAG) is normally assigned as the air warfare commander. The CWC may retain AP and use the CAG to augment CWC staff if desired. AP sets general strike philosophy, policy and employs manned aircraft and tactical missiles. AP sets strikes which can include both carrier strike assets and TLAM in accordance with the Air Tasking Order (ATO) when applicable.

6. Air Resources Element Coordinator (AR)

The air resource element coordinator provides organic carrier air resources as tasked by warfare commanders and the CWC. AR promulgates current information on the availability of aircraft to the CWC and other warfare commanders as well as disseminates information or results (e.g., BDA) achieved by organic carrier air resources. The CV(N)’s Strike Operations Officer normally handles this function.

7. Helicopter Element Coordinator (HEC)

The Helicopter Element Coordinator promulgates air and air plans for non-logistics (e.g., USW, OTH-T) helicopters such as the LAMPS-II/III to support battlegroup operations.

8. Submarine Element Coordinator (SEC)

The Submarine Element Coordinator acts as principle advisor to AX for submarine matters when an SSN is assigned in integrated in direct support (SSN DS) of the battlegroup. The SEC acts as executive agent to advise in planning and direction of SSN DS employment. Reports directly to OTC/CWC on matters of submarine safety. The SEC assists in preparation of submarine sections of operational tasking for USW elements.

9. Force Over the Horizon Track Coordinator (FOTC )

The FOTC manages and collates all-source (organic and non-organic) contact information. As such, he designates contacts of critical concern to the battlegroup.

10. Screen Coordinator (SC)

The Screen Coordinator provides tactical direction to the ships of the battlegroup which constitute the inner USW screen.


“I’m Just Sayin’”

“I’m Just Sayin”

“It was my mom who told me,

‘Ernie, if you make even one person happy

with your smile or a funny thing you did every day,

you’ll have accomplished a great deal.’

And that’s all I’ve ever tried to do.”

~ Ernest Borgnine


“Thought for the Day”

“Thought for the Day”

“Governments constantly choose

between telling lies and fighting wars,

with the end result always being the same.

One will always lead to the other.”

~ Thomas Jefferson


“What I Have Learned”

“What I Have Learned”

“Nobody knows what a boy is worth.

We'll have to wait and see.

But every man in a noble place a boy once used to be.”

~ Anonymous


Bizarre News (we couldn’t make up stuff this good – real news story)

Bizarre News (we couldn’t make up stuff this good – real news story)

Calls for Paris sex-doll 'brothel' to be closed down over rape fantasy claims, but police say it's legal

Calls for Paris sex-doll 'brothel' to be closed down over rape fantasy claims, but police say it's legal

Paris councillors will this week examine calls to shut down France's first ever sex doll brothel, which opened earlier this year and currently has four silicone women ready for “rent”.

The move comes after police visited the premises in the middle-class 14th arrondissement and determined that it was breaking no laws and was not a threat to public order.

Communist members of the Paris Council have tabled a motion calling for the closure of the “brothel” on moral grounds, while feminist groups argue that it is encouraging a culture of rape.

The brothel’s XDolls website advertises that it has four different dolls on offer - Lily, Sofia, Kim, and Candice - and provides photos of each one.

The whole operation is shrouded in secrecy, with no address listed on the website. To find the location, would-be customers have to pay in advance by credit card for a session with a doll, which comes at a cost of €89 for an hour, €149 for two hours, and €19 for the optional virtual reality addition.

Couples have to pay €120 for one hour, and every customer must fork out a €100 returnable deposit upon arrival.

The brothel is listed on the city’s business register as a games centre, said Nicolas Bonnet Oulaldj, the Communist leader on the Paris council who has tabled a motion for the place to be closed.

“It’s as if you go there to play pinball or table football”, he told Le Parisien.

Lorraine Questiaux of the feminist group Mouvement du Nid (Nest Movement) has argued that Xdolls is making money from “simulating the rape of a woman.”

“Can we in France approve a business that is based on the promotion of rape?” she asked.

But a police source said that while the brothel posed moral questions, the use of the word rape was not legally relevant in this context.

“You cannot accuse a man of raping a doll. It is as if a woman were to file a complaint with the police against a dildo”, the source told Le Parisien.

While a sex-doll brothel is new for Paris, other European cities have embraced the trend in recent years. There have been sex dolls for hire for three years in Gateshead in the UK, which made headlines for its “try before you buy policy”.

More recently, a sex doll brothel opened this year in the red light district of Amsterdam.

Europe got its first ever sex doll brothel when it opened in the Spanish city of Barcelona in February last year, our colleagues at The Local Spain reported.

The Local (03/20/2018) video


What Is ‘gh’ Doing in So Many English Words?

Mr. Answer Man Please Tell Us: What Is ‘gh’ Doing in So Many English Words?

It’s a blight, a thoroughly tough plight, enough to make you want to fight - or laugh. There are so many ways to pronounce, or not pronounce, the English “gh”, almost none of which have anything to do with the usual “g” or “h” sound. Why is it there to begin with?

Once upon a time, the “gh” did stand for a specific sound, one we don’t have in English today, except in interjections of disgust like blech. That back-of-the-throat fricative (written as /x/ in the International Phonetic Alphabet) is found in German, and if you look for the German counterpart of English “gh” words, you will often find the sound there: light ... licht, night ... nacht, eight ... acht, high ... hoch, neighbor ... nachbar, though ... doch.

So when you see a “gh”, it usually means that it was pronounced with the blech sound in Old English, when our writing system was first developed. Early scribes had to adapt the Roman alphabet to English, and since Latin didn’t have the /x/ sound, they used “h” or a non-Roman character called a yogh (ȝ). Eventually, during the Middle English period, they settled on “gh”.

By that time the pronunciation was already changing. The sound turned into /f/ or was dropped entirely. The Great Vowel Shift was underway and many parts of the language were in flux, but by the time the shift was complete, the printing press had stabilized the writing system, and the “gh”, pointing back to an earlier English, was here to stay.

Not all examples of English “gh” can be traced back to the /x/ sound. The word-initial “gh” of ghost and ghoul came from the habits of Flemish typesetters. Words borrowed from Italian like spaghetti and ghetto just stuck with Italian spelling conventions.

And there are some words that show how “gh” took on a life of its own in English, words that came into the language long after Old English and never had a /x/ sound in them. Delight and sprightly were modified under the influence of light and right. Sleigh was made to look like weigh, perhaps to avoid looking like slay. Haughty was modeled on words like taught and aught, because, well, doesn’t that look more haughty than hawty? Like it or not, "aught" now stands for a specific pronunciation, with a rounded vowel, that really can't be spelled any other way (at least in dialects without the caught-cot merger). Is taught the same as tot or tawt? I think naught.

Cross Word Solver.orgMental FlossQuoraSpell ZoneWikipedia“gh” words (YouTube) video


NAVSPEAK aka U.S. Navy Slang - U.S. Navy

NAVSPEAK aka U.S. Navy Slang

Sea Stories: Often exaggerated or embellished tales from previous deployments or commands told by seniors to juniors. Sea Stories almost always involve alcohol.

(1) Good sea stories should involve creative embellishment, inasmuch as one should tell it better than the guy one heard it from, with oneself (or an un-named “buddy”) as the new star. Add some contemporary details and those youngsters are mesmerized, as they should be. Should always begin with “No shit, this really happened”, or “This is a no shitter.”

(2) Reminiscence among older sailors, not necessarily with embellishment but often times a mutual exaggeration and perhaps colorful language: “Remember the time we were in the Gulf of Thailand for that ...?” “Yeah that was fucking crazy; we came damn near...”

Seaman Schmuckatelli: Generic name for a sailor, used in a similar manner as “Joe Blow” or “John Q. Public.”

Example: “You're working on an electrical system without tagging it out, when along comes Seaman Schmuckatelli, who energizes the circuit and ZAP, you're fried calamari.”

Seaman Timmy/Fireman Timmy: Used in similar fashion as “Seaman Schmuckatelli” except with a slightly more negative connotation of a sailor who is not too bright, or could be expected to do something stupid without any malicious intent.

Can also be used to refer to any sailor not expected to be very bright, who is young and naive, or one who has screwed up in some way: “And you've got Seaman Timmy on the .50 cal.”

Sea Warrior: Used by naval personnel whom have never set foot on a ship, usually in response to being called shipmate.

SEAL: The United States Navy's Sea, Air, Land Teams, commonly known as the Navy SEALs, are the U.S. Navy's principal special operations force and a part of the Naval Special Warfare Command and United States Special Operations Command. There are currently two Coast Guard SEALS, who completed SEAL training before the program was cancelled.


Just for MARINES - The Few. The Proud.

Just for you MARINE

VERTREP: Vertical replenishment, getting out of the Marine Corps early.

VEERP: Voluntary Enlisted Early Release Program, getting out of the Marine Corps early.

VTOL: Vertical TakeOff/Landing,, takeoff and landing technique that does not need a runway to become airborne. See also STOL, STOVL, & V/STOL.

V/R: Very Respectfully, used as an end greeting in written naval communication to senior.

V/STOL: Vertical/Short Takeoff and Landing, a type of aircraft that can perform STOL, STOVL, and VTOL.


Naval Aviation Squadron Nicknames

Naval Aviation Squadron Nicknames

VFA-101 - “Grim Reapers”
Eglin Air Force Base, Valparaiso, Florida - Established 1952–2005, 2012–present


Where Did That Saying Come From

Where Did That Saying Come From?

Where Did That Saying Come From? “Hold a candle to”

Hold a candle to:”  Meaning: To compare badly to an known authority - to be unfit even to hold a subordinate position.

Origin: Apprentices used to be expected to hold the candle so that more experienced workmen were able to see what they were doing. Someone unable even to do that would be of low status indeed.

Sir Edward Dering used a similar phrase 'to hold the candle' in his The fower cardinal-vertues of a Carmelite fryar, 1641:

“Though I be not worthy to hold the candle to Aristotle.”

'To hold a candle' is first recorded in 1883 in William Norris's No New Thing:

“Edith is pretty, very pretty; but she can't hold a candle to Nellie.”

Phrases.org UK


The Strange, Mysterious or Downright Weird

The Strange, Mysterious or Downright Weird

Funky Protein in Platypus Milk Could Beat Antibiotic Resistance

Funky Protein in Platypus Milk Could Beat Antibiotic Resistance

The milk of the platypus may contain a protein that can fight drug-resistant bacteria.

Now, a new analysis of that protein reveals that its shape is as bizarre as the shape of the animal that excreted it. The protein has a never-before-seen protein fold, now dubbed the “Shirley Temple” thanks to its ringlet-like structure, according to researchers from the Commonwealth Scientific and Industrial Research Organization (CSIRO) and Deakin University in Australia.

Platypuses are such weird animals that it would make sense for them to have weird biochemistry”, study researcher Janet Newman of CSIRO said in a statement.

Platypuses are monotremes, or egg-laying mammals. They suckle their young, but they don't have teats or nipples. Instead, they "sweat" milk from glands on their bellies. Baby platypuses gather around their supine mother, lapping up puddles of milk from her skin.

Many types of mammal milk have antibacterial properties, according to a 2014 paper in the journal Genome Biology and Evolution. Platypus milk may be particularly protective, though, because baby platypuses are exposed to many pathogens throughout their infancy. Their milk sits on their mothers' exposed skin, and they live in microbe-rich burrows as soon as they hatch. [Mammal Milk: How the Fat Measures Up (Infographic)]

Newman and her colleagues replicated an unknown protein from platypus milk in a laboratory and then studied its structure, discovering the unique ringlet shape. They reported their findings March 14 in the journal Structural Biology Communications.

“Although we've identified this highly unusual protein as only existing in monotremes, this discovery increases our knowledge of protein structures in general, and will go on to inform other drug discovery work done at the center [CSIRO]”, Newman said.

Live Science (03/16/2018) video


© CEASAR CHOPPY by cartoonist Marty Gavin - archives Ceasar Choppy's Navy! “© CEASAR CHOPPY” by Marty Gavin

SONG FACTS

“Sunshine of Your Love” - Cream 1967

“Sunshine of Your Love” - Cream
Album: Disraeli Gears
Released 1967 video

The lyric was written by Pete Brown, a beat poet who was friends with Ginger Baker and Jack Bruce. He also wrote lyrics for “I Feel Free” and “White Roomvideo. Eric Clapton and Jack Bruce wrote the music.


Jack Bruce.'s bass line carries the song. He got the idea for it after going to a Jimi Hendrix concert. When Kees van Wee interviewed Bruce in 2003 for the Dutch magazine Heaven, Kees asked him which of his many songs epitomizes Jack Bruce the most. At first he was in doubt whether he should answer “Pieces Of Mind” or “Keep On Wondering”, but then he changed his mind and opted for “Sunshine Of Your Love”. Because, Said Bruce, “It's based on a bass riff. And when you enter a music shop this is the song that kids always play to try out a guitar.”


Pete Brown wrote the opening line after being up all night working with Bruce and watching the sun come up. That's were he got, “It's getting near dawn, when lights close their tired eyes.”


Tom Dowd, who worked with most of the artists for Atlantic Records at the time, engineered the Disreali Gears album. Dowd was renowned for his technical genius, but also for his ability to relate to musicians and put them at ease.


When Cream recorded this song, it wasn't working. In the documentary Tom Dowd And The Language Of Music, he explained: “There just wasn't this common ground that they had on so many of the other songs. I said, 'Have you ever seen an American Western where the Indian beat - the downbeat - is the beat? Why don't you play that one. Ginger went inside and they started to run the song again. When they started playing that way, all of the parts came together and they were elated.”


According to Rolling Stone magazine's Top 500 songs issue, Jack Bruce knew the song would do well. “Both Booker T. Jones and Otis Redding heard it at Atlantic Studios and told me it was going to be a smash”, he recalled.


One man who was not impressed was Ahmet Ertegun, who was head of the group's label. When Bruce revealed the song at the sessions, Ertegun declared it “psychedelic hogwash”. Ertegun constantly tried to promote Eric Clapton as the band's leader, and also didn't believe the bassist should be a lead singer. He only relented and agreed to champion this song after Booker T. Jones came by and expressed his approval.


This is one of Eric Clapton's favorites from this days with Cream; he played it at most of his solo shows throughout his career. When Cream played some reunion concerts in 2005, they played the song as their encore.


Jimi Hendrix covered this at some of his concerts, unaware that he was the inspiration for the bass line.


Hendrix did an impromptu performance of the song when he appeared on Happening for Lulu, BBC TV show in England hosted by the prim and proper “To Sir With Love” singer. After playing part of his scheduled song “Hey Joevideo, Hendrix stopped the performance and said, “We'd like to stop playing this rubbish and dedicate a song to the Cream, regardless of what kind of group they may be in. We dedicate this to Eric Clapton, Ginger Baker and Jack Bruce.”


This version appears on the Experience Hendrix 2CD/3LP The BBC Sessions towards the end of Disc 2/Side 6 on the LP. An instrumental version appears on the 2010 Valleys of Neptune album, which was recorded by Hendrix at London's Olympic Studios on February 16, 1969.


Hendrix engineer and producer Eddie Kramer recalled to Toronto's The Globe and Mail: “Jimi loved Cream, he loved Eric Clapton. It was a fabulous song, he loved to play it, and he would just rip into it whenever the mood hit him.” (thanks, Jippers - Gosford, Australia)


This was Cream's biggest hit. It was their first to do better in the US than in the UK, as they started to catch on in America. In the US, this first charted in February 1968 at #36. In August, after the album came out, it re-entered the chart and went to #5.


Clapton's guitar solo is based on the '50s song “Blue Moonvideo.


Excepting “Strange Brewvideo, the Disraeli Gears album was recorded in just three days, as the band had to return to England because their work visas were expiring. Engineer Tom Dowd recalls the sessions coming to an abrupt end when a limo driver showed up to take the musicians to the airport. Dowd was tasked with mixing the album in their absence.


Cream played this at the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame on January 12, 1993 when they reunited for their induction. To that point, the only other time the band got back together was at Eric Clapton's wedding in 1979.


Jack Bruce released a new version on his 2001 album Shadows In The Air. Clapton played on it along with Latin percussionists from New York City, which gave it a Salsa sound.


Cream official site / Billboard / All Music / Song Facts / Ultimate Classic Rock / Cream

Image: “Disraeli Gears (album)” by Cream


Trivia

Trivia

● The name of Dinosaur (deinos (terrible or awesome) and sauros (lizard or reptile) comes from the Greek words meaning Terrible Lizard.

● The internet was established in 1969 as a way for research to be quickly and securely shared by computers, for the U.S. Department of Defense.

● Babe Ruth has the most strike outs in baseball.


Jeopardy

A Test for People Who Know Everything

From the Jeopardy Archives Category - “INQUISITIVE WRITERS” ($400 DD):

“R.L. Stevenson wrote, 'I had gone to bed' this man, “I had awakened” this other man. 'How was this to be explained?'”

Answer for People Who Do Not Know Everything, or Want to Verify Their Answer Biography

From the Jeopardy Archives Category - “ANNUAL EVENTSS” (Name the maker of the product for us.) ($1,000):

“Halloween (All Hallows' Eve) leads into this observance the next day in the Christian church.”

Answer for People Who Do Not Know Everything, or Want to Verify Their Answer Catholic.org

From the Jeopardy Archives Category - “ANIMALS” ($800):

“This was the first dog breed to collect admissible evidence for American courts of law.”

Answer for People Who Do Not Know Everything, or Want to Verify Their Answer Guinness World Records


Answer to Last Week's Test

From the Jeopardy Archives Category - “MAJOR LEAGUE BALLPARK FOOD” ($400):

“Buy me some peanuts & also the 'Cracker Jack & mac' dog topped with caramel sauce at this team's PNC Park, arr!”

● Answer: Pittsburg Pirates. Esquire

From the Jeopardy Archives Category - “WORD PUZZLES” (Name the maker of the product for us.) ($200):

“Before signing a contract, you'd better read this.”

● Answer: Fine Print. The Orbit Group

From the Jeopardy Archives Category - “MATH HYSTERIA” ($200):

“The point at which 2 or more lines cross together, or, say, Fairfax & 3rd.”

● Answer: An Intersection. The Orbit Group


Joke of the Day

Joke of the Day

Joke of the Day

“Film Crew on Location”

A film crew was on location deep in the desert. One day, an old Indian went up to the director and said, “Tomorrow storm”. The next day there was a sandstorm.

Several days later, the Indian went up to the director and said, “Tomorrow rain”. The next day it rained for the entire day.

“This Indian is amazing”, said the director. He told his secretary to hire the Indian to predict the weather. However, after several successful predictions, the old Indian failed to show up for a couple of weeks.

Finally, the director sent for him. “I have a big scene to shoot tomorrow”, the director said, “and I'm counting on you. What will the weather be like?”

“Not know”, replied the Indian, shrugging his shoulders. “Radio broken!”

Joke of the Day

Lorenzo Dow, a 19th century evangelist, was on a preaching tour when he came to a small town one cold winter night. At the local general store he saw the town's lawyers gathered around the potbellied stove.

Dow told the men about a recent vision in which he had been given a tour of hell, much like the traveler in Dante's Inferno. One of the lawyers asked what he had seen.

“Very much what I see here”, Dow said. “All of the lawyers gathered in the hottest place.”


The Penalty for laughing in court is six months in jail; if it were not for this penalty, the jury would never hear the evidence. ~ H. L. Mencken

Lawyers occasionally stumble over the truth, but most of them pick themselves up and hurry off as if nothing had happened. ~ Winston Churchill

Sometimes a man who deserves to be looked down upon because he is a fool is despised only because he is a lawyer. ~ Montesquieu

Lawyers are like rhinoceroses: thick skinned, short-sighted, and always ready to charge. ~ David Mellor (b. 1949), British Conservative politician

“Q & A”

Q: What is the difference between a lawyer and a rooster?

A: When a rooster wakes up in the morning, its primal urge is to cluck defiance.

Q: WHow many law professors does it take to change a light bulb?

A: Hell, you need 250 just to lobby for the research grant.

Q: If you see a lawyer on a bicycle, why don't you swerve to hit him?

A: It might be your bicycle.

Q: What do you call a smiling, sober, courteous person at a bar association convention?

A: The caterer.

Q:Why do they bury lawyers under 20 feet of dirt?

A: Because deep down, they're really good people.

Q: Why are lawyers like nuclear weapons?

A: If one side has one, the other side has to get one. Once launched, they cannot be recalled. When they land, they screw up everything forever.

Q: What do lawyers and sperm have in common?

A: One in 3,000,000 has a chance of becoming a human being.