PREVIOUS THOUGHTS FOR THE DAY
June 9th to June 14th 2003
MONDAY JUNE 9
The Memory of a Moment
I gained another insight over the weekend. I was saving some digital photographs from our trip to the eclipse when somehow, the wrong buttons got pushed. One of the pictures disappeared completely from the memory and the hard drive. Ordinary photos, of course, can also vanish. Negatives can be misplaced. Prints can fade and tear. All of which set me thinking. How do you get truly permanent storage? How, on this planet full of change, can you safely hold the memory of a moment for all time? Unless perhaps... you set it in stone?
TUESDAY JUNE 10
"Lost Information" from the past
Dear Jonathan,
Those lost digital photos are probably still on your hard drive. The only way to truly get them off is with the Pentagon standard 3-pass method. Even this doesn't always work. If you accidentally deleted your files, try a free "Forensic Program" from the internet.
Best Of Luck,
John (Aquarius)
PS Technology is our friend. Dear John,
You're an Aquarian. You would say that! Thanks for your tip. It proves my point. All kinds of �lost information� from the past may still exist... if only we are clued in enough to find it!.
WEDNESDAY JUNE 11
Holographic communication
Memories can be held in people as well as rocks. Books may perish but songs and stories can pass intact through countless generations. That's why legends and fairytales are so precious to those who seek ancient lost knowledge. The 'oral tradition' though, can't provide sound and picture. For that, you need a language beyond words; a kind of telepathic transmission in which complete experiences are passed �holographically.� Interestingly, this is how dolphins are believed to communicate. Perhaps, if we could only learn to listen to them, we may also discover how to tune in to the stones.
THURSDAY JUNE 12
Antelopes freed by Elephants story
A reader called Carol has sent in another animal story. At Empangeni, South Africa, several antelopes had been rounded up for a breeding program. One evening in April, 11 elephants encircled the compound. Officials watched in amazement as the matriarch used her trunk to undo the metal latches on the gate. While the antelopes escaped, the elephants just stood back... and then strolled off into the night. "This behaviour is most unusual and cannot be explained by science," said a local ecologist.
FRIDAY JUNE 13
June Full Moon and Friday 13th
Astrologers see no significance in today's date. We follow planets, not calendars. But as it so happens, the Moon is full. Here, to celebrate this cosmic coincidence, are some fascinating facts. Doctors at Bradford Royal Infirmary found more than twice as many people are likely to need treatment for animal bites during Full Moon. Official figures from British Telecom prove most of us spend longer on the phone and more time surfing the net when the Moon is full. The outdoor light of a Full Moon equates to the light you would get indoors, from a 15 watt bulb. At half-full, the Moon gives out about one watt. The Algonquin tribe of North America call the June Full Moon the Strawberry Moon. In Europe, it is often called the Rose Moon. In the Botanical Gardens of Birmingham Alabama there's a Sycamore tree that has been to the moon and back. It grew from a seed carried by Astronaut Stuart Roosa on Apollo 14. Luna was a Roman moon goddess. 19th century mental health laws were known as �Lunacy� acts because the Victorians felt so sure that people with problems got worse at Full Moon. A study in 1995, by psychologists at the State University in Georgia, Atlanta found people ate more food but drank less alcohol at Full Moon. Earth has more than one moon! In 1986, scientists found a tiny second satellite. Cruithne, our baby moon, is three miles wide with a horse-shoe shaped orbit lasting 770 years. The Lunar cycle takes about 29.5 days. Male doctors often describe the menstrual cycle as a 28-day pattern but as all women will testify, it varies. Many feel sure it follows the rhythm of the Moon... almost exactly. At full Moon and new Moon, the Earth, Sun and Moon line up, producing a gravitational effect that brings high tides across the globe. FRIDAY 13th The AXA insurance group found drivers are 50% LESS likely to crash on a Friday that falls on the 13th. People try harder to be careful then. Due to a quirk in the calendar, Friday is more likely to fall on the thirteenth of the month than any other day... by a factor of 0.02 per cent. On Friday 13th, 2000, 150 students in Hampton, USA spent the day deliberately walking under ladders and spilling salt carelessly. No ill effects were reported but intriguingly, 58 just couldn't bring themselves to smash a mirror! On Friday 13th, October, 1307, King Philip of France rounded up and executed several thousand members of the Knights Templar. In hospitals, airlines and hotels the numbered beds, rows of seats or floors will often go straight from 12 to 14. According to the Bible, there were 13 people at the last supper - after which Jesus died on a Friday. Ancient zodiacs vary, but ALL contain 12 signs. That's why 13, in every culture, has come to symbolise the breaking of a perfect circle.
SATURDAY JUNE 14
Full Moon
How are you feeling this morning? The moon was pretty full last night - and there will still be plenty of it this evening. Remember this week - it's one thing to have fun - and another to go too far! Happy Birthday!
Venus Williams (Gemini born June 17, 1980) People born under the sign of Gemini are famously quick-witted. They never take their eye off the ball. Venus Williams. who turns 23 on Tuesday, is a case in point. We can hardly say that she born to serve - because, like all who share her sign, she finds it hard to take orders. She can give them though! Her star is in the ascendancy now as we may well see later this month.
Happy birthday also this week to: Today June 14; Boy George (42) and Steffi Graf (34), Tomorrow June 15; Jim Belushi (49), Courteney Cox (39), Helen Hunt (40) and Ice Cube (34), Tuesday June 17; Barry Manilow (60), Wednesday June 18; Paul McCartney (61) and Isabella Rossellini (51), Thursday June 19; Salman Rushdie (56) and Kathleen Turner (49), Friday June 20; Nicole Kidman (36), Cyndi Lauper (50), Lionel Richie (54) and Brian Wilson (61).
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