Ancient Civilizations of the Americas

I just recently discovered some online videos on these civilizations that are very good and informative, with views of artwork and architecture to accompany the info about them. Maybe others are already aware of these videos, but I wasn't.

The talks were given in 2015 at Vanderbilt University by archeologist Anna Guengerich who specializes in cultures of the Andes, but has broad knowledge of other ancient American civilizations. She is really good.

There are 5 videos on You Tube. I could not paste links with my phone but you can find them easily with a You Tube search for "Ancient Civilizations of the Americas" or googling for her name. There are a lot of online junk videos on the topics so be sure you get the right ones. You can view each one separately by itself in any order, but she does sometimes reference previous video info so viewing them in order helps.

They are each around an hour long, followed by Q and A. If you have the time and patience, they are worth it. I have the patience because the topics interest me and the time because I am retired. I have studied these civilizations but learned new details and insights from Ms. Guengerich.

Each video is identified on You Tube by its date. These are the dates and topics:

1-15-15 - Aztecs
1-22-15 - Maya
1-29-15 - Inca
2-5-15 - Andes cultures (besides the Inca)
2-25-15 - Cahokia (Illinois)

Enjoy. I did.

I met an absolutely beautiful dog today.

Sorry, no pics. Didn't have my phone on me.

I went out for a short walk and a new neighbor was out walking her dog. He was a 9 month old blue merle Australian sheepdog. Initially, I saw only his face because a fence post blocked view of the rest of him. Looked like a border collie to me so I asked if he was.

He had the playful, mischievous energy of his breed at 9 months, which brought back memories for me of the border collie that I had several years ago. The owner said she is currently dealing with his penchant for chewing everything in sight, which he obligingly demonstrated for us (without us noticing until too late) by chewing through the connection between his collar and leash while we talked.

The swirled markings on this dog were incredibly beautiful, set off by solid black ears and a white blaze on his face. I think I'm in love with this dog.

Does anybody know what this CDC classification means?

I check my county health department's website regularly to see how many new cases there are, how many new deaths, new hospitalizations, etc.

Currently the website says that community transmission in the county is classified as "substantial" by the CDC. Is there a hierarchy of classifications, e.g. low, medium, high, substantial, non-substantial, etc.? Anyone know what "substantial" is in relation to other CDC categories?

Can anyone recommend a good cat video?

I have the original Cat Sitter video, which my cat took to right away, but it's getting to be old stuff for her now. I got another one for her at Christmas, but she didn't show as much interest in it.

She likes videos and sometimes watches parts of movies with me, but I'd like to get her another one made just for cats. Any ideas?

Good news this morning.

Yesterday I had a mammogram. It had been 6 years since my last one. Since there is no history of breast cancer in my family, I considerrd it a low priority.

Then I had some symptoms that MIGHT have indicated breast cancer so I requested the mammogram.

This morning I received a call from the hospital's imaging department that the results were normal.

I am relieved, and will get yearly exams now because the hospital tech said that breast cancer can occur at any age regardless of family history. Having yearly mammograms lets the doctor detect any changes since the last one.

Just thought I'd share my relief and the tech's advice.

Considerate kitty

Ember is 5 years old and very playful. She's an only cat
and was separated from her littermates very early, so she never learned how to "play nice." She's rough and tumble in her favorite game of ambushing me.

She always left her claws out when she tagged my legs during an ambush. I tried acting hurt to teach her to pull in the claws but it never worked ...until ...

One day Ember rushed out of her tunnel as I walked by and swatted my legs as usual. I was wearing capris and loafers, no socks. Her claws caught a surface vein in my ankle and it bled a LOT for a small vein. Ember froze in place and stared at the blood running down into my shoe.

I hobbled to the battroom to clean up. Used up a lot of paper towels staunching the blood flow. The whole time, Ember sat in the doorway staring at me. When the bleeding stopped, I put on anesthetic and a Band-aid, washed out my shoe, and sat down in the living room. Ember followed me, sniffed the Band-aid, and looked into my face. Then she disappeared.

About an hour later, I went to the kitchen, passing her tunnel on the way. She rushed out at me as usual, then paused suddenly and gently tapped my leg with her claws held in.

She still ambushes me, but now she always holds her claws in and taps gently instead of swatting. She's an indoor cat and has never hunted. It's as if she suddenly realized what lethal weapons her claws are and is afraid of hurting me again. So she self-adjusted her play habits.

What a sweety.

Cat joke

From the Garfield comic strip.

What do you call a cat after a 10 hour nap?

Sleep deprived.

Happy Easter to everyone.

Can we stop using the term "Fox News"?

It is not a news organization. It is a RW propaganda tool. Why legitimize their claim to offer real news by including the word "news" in their name?

Sure, we can say "Faux News," but that will never catch on outside of left wing circles. I'd like to see new terminology that is accurate, not inflammatory, and not obviously partisan, just accurate, so it develops mainstream usage.

Just call it "Fox TV." It is accurate, but does not support the illusion that it is a news agency.

I'd like to see Fox TV become the widespread, common usage term in everyday speech.

If you could change one event in history,

what would it be and why?

It's the 'what if' of turning points that I 'm thinking of.

I would go to the German Empire in 1888, and save the life of Kaiser Frederick William, son of Wilhem I and father of Wihelm II. Kaiser Frederick was married to Queen Victoria's daughter, also named Victoria. He admired the British parliamentary system and had great plans for political, social, and economic reforms in Germany.

But Fritz died of throat cancer after just 3 months as kaiser. His son, Wilhelm II rejected his parents' reforms and later led his country into the First World War.

If Fritz had lived, WWI might have been avoided. Without WWI there is no WWII, no Nazi regime, and no Holocaust.