Historical
Getting Around Town in Style
A little over one hundred years ago, there were more horse drawn carriages on city streets than cars. For the greater part of history, horse drawn carriages were the major means of transportation; "we have had six thousand years of history with the domesticated horse and only a little over one hundred years with the automobile!" Gloria Austin, Equine Heritage Institute
By Mary Chris Foxworthy5 years ago in FYI
What you didn't know about the Village Blacksmith
What you didn’t know, about the Village Blacksmith… In the early part of human history, blacksmith shops were normally on the outskirts of the villages or towns, The towns folk believed they were dealing in witchcraft or the dark arts because they used fire to make weapons, tools and utensils out of something that came from the earth. Include the fact that the blacksmith smithy was dark except for the hot forge fire and a couple windows covered in soot.
By Daniel Bell5 years ago in FYI
Talking to the Dead
Local lore says it was a cold winter night in 1847 when two young farm girls from Hydesville, New York plotted to scare the wits out of their mother by making ghost noises. The young pranksters were Maggie and Kate Fox. The prank went so far that by March 31st, 1848 a nationwide spiritualism movement was born.
By Laura DeRue5 years ago in FYI
Dinosaurs: The Earth's GOAT
The Stegosaurus lived longer before the Tyrannosaurus Rex than the T-Rex lived before us. Think about the implications of that for a minute. Stegosaurus roamed the earth around 150 million years ago in the late Jurassic period. That was already the second geologic period of the dinosaurs. (The Triassic kicked off 100 million years before ol' Stegs popped up). T-Rex didn't appear until the end of the Cretaceous period 85 million years later. And then us homo sapiens, the planet's snot-nosed Gen-Zers, rolled in less than three hundred thousand years ago, 65 million years after the final episode of Dinosaurs. Even including Neanderthals and other hominids only gets us about half a million years closer. If you go with the broadest possible definition and say mammals, our species has only been on top since well after the dinosaurs got meteored.
By William Reid5 years ago in FYI
It's that time- St. Paddy's Day has arrived!
Saint Patrick’s Day is right around the corner. Or as we call it- St. Paddy’s Day. Rivers are going to be dyed green. 5k and 10k’s of little green men and women wearing top hats and tutu’s will be held during the month. Wal-Mart started selling ‘Pinch me, I am Irish’ shirts on Valentine’s day. And bars are receiving their shipment of extra glasses from Amazon in anticipation of the biggest holiday for beer. I am already planning my meal of Corned Beef and Cabbage with Soda bread- which is currently all on sell at Fred Meyer’s if you are interested.
By Rose Loren Geer-Robbins5 years ago in FYI
Strange Origins of the Jack-in-the-box
For many, the jack-in-the-box is known as an amusing and harmless children’s toy, but its origins often convey a much darker story. To the casual observer the object is usually regarded as consisting of a clown rigged to a coiled spring that pops out for an entertaining display. However original jack-in-the-boxes actually contained a very particular variety of joker, augustes. Whilst most clowns don a face of white makeup, often attired in pointy hats and ruffled collars, augustes have the large red noses and are clothed in oversized trousers, often with squirty flowers in their buttonholes. While the Jack character certainly looks like a comical figure, his purpose wasn’t always amusement.
By M.R. Cameo5 years ago in FYI
The Dark Side Of Black History
When we learn about black history in school, we learn about the great leaders from a dark time in American history, but we don't realize how that dark time came about. In this story, I will tell you how slavery in America began and the unique facts you never learned in a history book. Would you be shocked if I told you there were black slave owners in all of the original 13 colonies? Would you be surprised if I told you the first indentured servant to turn into a lifelong slave was the property of a black man? Would you be amazed to find out that he won this right to enslave the first American against the wills of his white neighbor in the court of law?
By Jen Benart5 years ago in FYI
The Lost Art of The Olympic World
Javelin, triple jump, 100m, boxing: all a sport to get excited about when we tune into our 4 yearly Olympics. If you're anything like me, the Olympics are an exciting way to get through the summer ( along with cocktails and late night barbeques ). I love sitting on the sofa with my cup of tea ( or cocktail ), while eating a chocolate éclair and telling myself "I could have been an athlete".
By Kayleigh Taylor5 years ago in FYI
