Earlier this month my friend Bill asked me to post 5 albums that influenced me or changed my life in some way. Here's #2: Abba's"Super Trouper."
I loved a lot of Abba's earlier albums but this was the first album of theirs that I bought. From Super Trouper to the Piper, Lay All Your Love on Me, On and On and On and Our Last Summer (which I played a lot after my grandmother passed) - all of these songs are very special, and this entire album makes you want to sing along!
ABOUT THE ALBUM:Super Trouper is the seventh studio album by the Swedish pop group ABBA, first released in 1980. It features the No.1 singles "The Winner Takes It All" and "Super Trouper". The album became the biggest-selling album of 1980 in the UK. Led by the international hit "The Winner Takes It All", Super Trouper was the group's sixth chart-topping album in the UK. It was also the best-selling album in Britain for 1980. Super Trouper
was first released on CD in 1983 by Polar Music International, in the
early 1980s by Polydor, and in the late 1980s by Atlantic Records for
the US. The album has been reissued in digitally remastered form four
times; first in 1997, then in 2001, again in 2005 as part of The Complete Studio Recordingsbox set
and as a Deluxe Edition (containing a bonus DVD) in 2011. The previous
year's divorce between Björn and Agnetha was explored in "The Winner
Takes It All", and the members' lives in Stockholm high society circles
coloured the lyrics for "On and On and On". Other well-known songs on the album include the hit single title track "Super Trouper", as well as the electro-dance of "Lay All Your Love on Me".
Earlier this month my friend Bill asked me to post 5 albums that influenced me or changed my life in some way. Here's #1. It was Dolly Parton's 9 to 5. I found many relatable songs in the album and fell in love with Dolly's optimistic personality and appreciation for the simple things in life. Of course "9 to 5" is one of my all time favorites.
About the Album: 9 to 5 and Odd Jobs is the twenty-third solo studio album by Dolly Parton. It was released on November 17, 1980, by RCA Records. A concept album about working, the album was centered on Parton's hit "9 to 5", which served as the theme song to the film of the same name (co-starring Parton, Jane Fonda and Lily Tomlin), and topped both the U.S. country and pop charts. The album's two additional singles—a cover of Mike Settle's "But You Know I Love You" and a reading of "The House of the Rising Sun" – provided further country hits, with "But You Know I Love You" also reaching #1.
The understated pop-country arrangement of most of the songs was
seen as a welcome return to form for Parton by critics, after the
overly-polished pop sound of Parton's previous albums. In addition to
five Parton compositions, the album contained a number of folk and
country classics, including work by Woody Guthrie, Mel Tillis and Merle Travis.
The album was produced by Mike Post (with the exception of "9 to 5", which was produced by Parton's bandleader Gregg Perry).
A 1983 reissue on cassette omitted the tracks "Detroit City" and "Dark as a Dungeon,"
and moved the song "Sing For The Common Man" to the end of Side 2.
However, a 2009 reissue of the album included all ten of the album's
original tracks, as well as a remixed version of "9 to 5", and a
previously unreleased cover of Sly & the Family Stone's 1969 hit "Everyday People" as bonus cuts.
The album stayed at No. 1 on the Billboard Top Country Albums
chart for 10 consecutive weeks and ended up being certified Gold by the Recording Industry Association of America.[1]
As a superhero fan, it's good to see that the man who plays one of my favorite heroes stands up for true American values. Here's the story:
CAPTAIN AMERICA DOESN’T SUPPORT TRUMP AND THOSE WHO DO
Actor Chris Evans is one of the most famous New England
Patriots fans in Hollywood, frequently showing his support for the NFL team on
Twitter. But in a new cover story from The Hollywood Reporter, the “Captain
America” star said he “might have to cut ties” with Tom Brady if the Patriots
quarterback still supports President Donald Trump.
Gizmodo reports: Evans has revealed that his boss at Marvel Studios, Kevin Feige, is
actually encouraging of his Twitter musings and that Marvel as a larger
entity has never spoken to him about it:
He worries about doing too much of this sort of thing, about it seeming performative or becoming white noise — Chris Evans, back on his bullshit.
He does not worry about saying something online that might inspire
MAGA-minded fans to microwave their Captain America action figures. And
for what it’s worth, he says, “Marvel has never said anything. On the
contrary — when I bump into Kevin Feige the first thing out of his mouth
is ‘Man, I love what you’re doing [on Twitter].’”
Feige even added that part of the glee of it all is that it’s actually very on-brand for Captain America:
I
don’t see it as trash-talking. I see it as very astute, very honorable,
very noble, very Cap-like. Commentary and questioning. I’ve said to
him, “You’re merging! You and the character are merging!”
Even though I've had decades of signs from spirits of people and pets who have passed on, it still amazes me what they
can do to let us know they're around. Usually, they drop by on birthdays, anniversaries and holidays, and Mother's day was no exception as my mom let me know she's around.
As I've written in all 5 of my books, spirits (and earthbound ghosts) have many ways to let us know they are around. This time, my mom sent me a specific musical sign in a song that was one of her and my favorites- and that holds a special memory. My Mom passed in December of 2013 and lets me know she's still very much around. Here's her latest "note" to me!
Buzz Wyatt not listening to Grandma
WHAT HAPPENED - On Mother's Day, we went to a restaurant with Tom's folks. There was music playing over the speakers as we dined. Just as we were finishing up and preparing to leave, Dolly Parton's "Here you come again" came on. I knew mom was sitting next to me at the table (along with my dad). Mom wanted to let me know that on Mother's day, she's still very much there, being a mom.
Mom at our house in 2011 with Franklin and Dolly
WHAT'S ODD ABOUT THE SONG PLAYING? - The song was released in 1977, and although it was a number one country hit and top pop hit for Dolly, it's now 40 years old and you NEVER hear it! So for that song to be mixed in among all of the other current music the restaurant was playing is unprecedented. I've never heard any songs older than those from 1990 in the restaurant (I was a radio DJ and memorized Blilboard music charts, if you're wondering how I know that)
WHY IS THE SONG IMPORTANT? When the song came out in 1977 and during the summer of 1978, when I was
15, I remember being at home on Saturday morning and helping clean the
house. I was tidying up my younger brother's bedroom while listening to
the American Top 40 with Casey Casem and "Here You Come Again" came on
the radio. Mom was walking down the hallway and came in and sat on the
bed asking what that song was - and I pulled up a chair. That's when we
started slapping hands and knees in a back and forth game, to the rhythm
of the song. We laughed about that for a long time. Neither of us had ever forgotten that special 4 minutes and I'll always cherish it and that song.
So, THANKS, MOM! That is one of my favorite memories with you. Thanks for visiting on Mother's Day. Love you! ENJOY THE LIVE PERFORMANCE FROM DOLLY: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MyqF6b1KmFE
*********************** KEEP A VOICE RECORDING
Little did I know that at the end of Dec. 2013, Mom would pass. Fortunately, I saved a voicemail message she left for me on my cell phone (thinking it worked like an answering machine and that I could hear her while she was leaving a message) CLICK HERE TO HEAR MY MOM's VOICE: Norma's Voicemail Message to Rob on 11-1-13 ( http://youtu.be/NX-yobSxi3w)
Archaeology and zoology mixed with history is always fascinating and everyone loves a bunny! Here's a new research story from BBC News that confirms the appearance of rabbits around 1 AD-
Rabbits have been hopping around the UK since Roman times, experts have been able to prove for the first time.
Scientific
tests on a rabbit bone, found at Fishbourne Roman Palace in West
Sussex, have shown the animal was alive in the first century AD.
The
1.6in (4cm) piece of a tibia bone was found in 1964 but it remained in a
box until 2017, when a zooarchaeologist realised that it came from a
rabbit.
Academics believe the animal could have been kept as an exotic pet.
Analysis, including radiocarbon dating, was carried out by researchers at the universities of Exeter, Oxford and Leicester.
Rabbits are native to Spain and France and it had been thought they were introduced to Britain during the medieval period.
Prof
Naomi Sykes, from the University of Exeter, said there have been many
previous claims of discoveries of Roman rabbits, and even some from the
Bronze Age, but they had not been backed up by evidence.
University of ExeterImage caption
A bone from a rabbit found at Fishbourne Roman Palace
"The bone
fragment was very small, meaning it was overlooked for decades, and
modern research techniques mean we can learn about its date and genetic
background as well," she said.
Researchers say they believe the
rabbit was kept as a pet, as the signature in its bones suggests it ate
its own faecal pellets.
"When they are in a hutch they tend to
eat their own poo, and that gives them a really interesting signature in
their bones, wild rabbits don't do that to the same extent," said Prof
Sykes.
She added: "This is a tremendously exciting discovery and
this very early rabbit is already revealing new insights into the
history of the Easter traditions."
He's been the idiot of the week many times, and reclaims the top spot again! This time, he told his followers something so outrageously false, that they also really have to be "Dead Stupid" to believe him. Like no brainwaves (and I'm sure there are many who do). Trump’s latest false claim about an abortion law is not just grotesque, it's dangerous. FACT CHECK: President Donald J. Trump's claim that mothers and doctors would be permitted to "execute" a baby after it leaves the womb is incorrect.
Trump offers incendiary falsehood on abortion at Wisconsin rally
By Eli Watkins, CNN
Updated 4:40 PM ET, Sun April 28, 2019
Washington (CNN)President Donald Trump made an incendiary remark at a rally Saturday night, veering from criticism of Wisconsin's Democratic governor to a false claim that mothers and doctors have the option to "execute" babies.
Speaking at a rally he hosted in Green Bay, Wisconsin, on Saturday, Trump pointed to former Wisconsin Republican Gov. Scott Walker, who was in attendance, and said Walker's successor, Democratic Gov. Tony Evers "shockingly stated that he will veto legislation that protects Wisconsin babies born alive."
According to the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, Evers planned to veto a GOP-backed state bill that could have meant life sentences in prison for doctors who intentionally did not provide medical care to babies born alive after a failed abortion.
Trump continued on the theme after his initial comment to claim that mothers and doctors are given the choice to "execute" a baby.
"The baby is born," Trump said. "The mother meets with the doctor. They take care of the baby. They wrap the baby beautifully, and then the doctor and the mother determine whether or not they will execute the baby. I don't think so."
Trump's claim that mothers and doctors are permitted to execute a baby after it leaves the womb is incorrect. The bill he referred to would mandate that health professionals do all they could to keep a baby alive if it was "born alive" and would penalize anyone who let a baby die.
Fascinating research was just published that found "60% of bird species came from Australia!
Basically, all perching birds – the majority of the world’s bird population – originated in Australia, researchers report. Amazing. Here's the story:
SOURCE: EarthSky.org
According to a new study, all perching bird species — the majority of the world’s bird population — originated in Australia.
These perching birds — called passerines — make up more than 60 percent of all birds. There are more than 6,000 species of passerines – distinguished from other birds by the arrangement of their toes (three pointing forward and one back), which facilitates perching – including familiar birds like cardinals, warblers, jays, and sparrows.
Previous hypotheses about passerine evolution and diversification suggested that perching birds originated in South America. But it turns out, according to the new research, published April 1, 2019, in Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, that the Carolina wren at your feeder actually has a very long-lost ancestor, 47 million years ago or so, in the Land Down Under.
The researchers conducted genomic testing using technology that did not exist 10 years ago. They analyzed DNA data from the 137 families of perching birds. Some of the museum samples the researchers used were up to 100 years old.
Edward Braun, a professor of biology at the University of Florida, is a study co-author. Braun said in a statement: Previous studies only looked at one or a few genes. What makes this study unique is one, the broad sampling across the genome, and two, the comprehensive nature in that we captured all major groups of perching birds. The third factor is the integration of the fossil records and biogeography, along with the comprehensive genomic sampling.
Using this genomic data, as well as knowledge of the Earth’s shifting history when continents were closer to each other, the team discovered that this history was the primary factor in the evolution of passerines. Rebecca Kimball, a professor of biology at University of Florida, is a study co-author. She said:
A lot of people thought that factors that drove movement were radiation, expansion of numbers, things linked to climate change. We’ve shown that is less likely.
Braun said: The evolutionary history of perching birds — when they moved, when they diversified, was very much shaped by Earth’s history. They were passengers on parts of the planet. It was the history of the planet that determined when and where they moved.
Bottom line: A new study traces the origin of perching bird species to Australia.
If you want to travel to a hostile place, check out Indonesia. The nation of Brunei just made it legal to stone gay people to death. Just another country of barbarians. To call them animals is an insult to animals. This country also has violent and harsh penalities for abortions and exposing children to other than 1 religion. What a horrible place to live or visit.
WHERE IS BRUNEI? Brunei is a tiny nation on the island of Borneo, in 2 distinct sections surrounded by Malaysia and the South China Sea. It's known for its beaches and biodiverse rainforest, much of it protected within reserves. NOW, it's known for intolerance and violence and death sentences to gay people.
OTHER STUPID CRUEL LAWS: Abortion is punishable by flogging and people are criminalized if they expose Muslim children to the beliefs and practices of any religion other than Islam. Here's the story from BBC NEWS
Brunei implements stoning to death under new anti-LGBT laws
The move by Sultan Hassanal Bolkiah's government means gay men could face "medieval" stoning.
Brunei is introducing strict new Islamic laws that make anal sex and adultery offences punishable by stoning to death.
The new measures, that come into force on Wednesday, also cover a range of other crimes including punishment for theft by amputation.
The move has sparked international condemnation.
Brunei's gay community has expressed shock and fear at the "medieval punishments".
"You wake up and realise that your neighbours, your family or even that nice old lady that sells prawn fritters by the side of the road doesn't think you're human, or is okay with stoning," one Bruneian gay man, who did not want to be identified, told the BBC.
The sultan of the small South-East Asian nation on Wednesday called for "stronger" Islamic teachings.
Homosexuality was already illegal in Brunei and punishable by up to 10 years in prison.
Muslims make up about two-thirds of the country's population of 420,000. Brunei has retained the death penalty but has not carried out an execution since 1957.
What is punishable under the changes to the penal code?
The law mostly applies to Muslims, including children who have reached puberty, though some aspects will apply to non-Muslims.
Under the new laws, individuals accused of certain acts will be convicted if they confess or if there were witnesses present.
Offences such as rape, adultery, sodomy, robbery and insult or defamation of the Prophet Muhammad will carry the maximum penalty of death.
Lesbian sex carries a different penalty of 40 strokes of the cane and/or a maximum of 10 years in jail
The punishment for theft is amputation
Those who "persuade, tell or encourage" Muslim children under the age of 18 "to accept the teachings of religions other than Islam" are liable to a fine or jail
Individuals who have not reached puberty but are convicted of certain offences may be instead subjected to whipping.
What has global reaction been?
Sultan Hassanal heads the Brunei Investment Agency which owns the Dorchester Collection, an operator of some of the world's top hotels including the Dorchester in London and the Beverly Hills Hotel in Los Angeles.
Brunei's ruling royals possess a huge private fortune and its largely ethnic Malay residents enjoy generous state handouts and pay no taxes.
But Hollywood actor George Clooney and other celebrities have now called for a boycott of the luxury hotels. TV host Ellen DeGeneres also called for people to "rise up", saying "we need to do something now".
"I want to see Islamic teachings in this country grow stronger," Sultan Hassanal Bolkiah said in a public address, according to AFP news agency, without mentioning the new laws.
A Huge mystery solved by archaeologists, and DNA researchers revealed the group of people who built Stonehenge in the United Kingdom. Fascinating! Forensic scientists recreated the appearances of the people in this study. Here's the article from BBC News (orig. published on 4/16/19)
The ancestors of the people
who built Stonehenge travelled west across the Mediterranean before
reaching Britain, a study has shown. Researchers compared
DNA extracted from Neolithic human remains found across Britain with
that of people alive at the same time in Europe.
IMAGE RIGHT: Image caption Construction on Stonehenge probably began about 3,000 BC
The Neolithic inhabitants appear to have travelled from Anatolia (modern Turkey) to Iberia before winding their way north.
They reached Britain in about 4,000BC.
Details have been published in the journal Nature Ecology & Evolution.
The migration to Britain was just one part of a general, massive expansion of people out of Anatolia in 6,000vBC that introduced farming to Europe.
Before that, Europe was populated by small, travelling groups which hunted animals and gathered wild plants and shellfish.
One group of early farmers followed the river Danube up into Central Europe, but another group travelled west across the Mediterranean.
DNA reveals that Neolithic Britons were largely descended from groups who took the Mediterranean route, either hugging the coast or hopping from island-to-island on boats.
IMAGE RIGHT: Image copyrightRoyal Pavilion & Museum, BrightonImage caption A facial reconstruction of Whitehawk Woman, a 5,600-year-old Neolithic woman from Sussex. The reconstruction is on show at the Royal Pavilion & Museum in Brighton When the researchers analysed the DNA of early British farmers, they found they most closely resembled Neolithic people from Iberia (modern Spain and Portugal). These Iberian farmers were descended from people who had journeyed across the Mediterranean.
From Iberia, or somewhere close, the Mediterranean farmers travelled north through France. They might have entered Britain from the west, through Wales or south-west England. Indeed, radiocarbon dates suggest that Neolithic people arrived marginally earlier in the west, but this remains a topic for future work.
In addition to farming, the Neolithic migrants to Britain appear to have introduced the tradition of building monuments using large stones known as megaliths. Stonehenge in Wiltshire was part of this tradition.
Although Britain was inhabited by groups of "western hunter-gatherers" when the farmers arrived in about 4,000BC, DNA shows that the two groups did not mix very much at all.
The British hunter-gatherers were almost completely replaced by the Neolithic farmers, apart from one group in western Scotland, where the Neolithic inhabitants had elevated local ancestry. This could have come down to the farmer groups simply having greater numbers.
"We don't find any detectable evidence at all for the local British western hunter-gatherer ancestry in the Neolithic farmers after they arrive," said co-author Dr Tom Booth, a specialist in ancient DNA from the Natural History Museum in London.
"That doesn't mean they don't mix at all, it just means that maybe their population sizes were too small to have left any kind of genetic legacy."
Co-author Professor Mark Thomas, from UCL, said he also favoured "a numbers game explanation".
IMAGE RIGHT: Image copyrightChannel 4/Plimsoll ProductionsImage caption A reconstruction of Cheddar Man. As with other Mesolithic hunter-gatherers, DNA results suggest he had dark skin and blue or green eyes Professor Thomas said the Neolithic farmers had probably had to adapt their practices to different climatic conditions as they moved across Europe. But by the time they reached Britain they were already "tooled up" and well-prepared for growing crops in a north-west European climate.
The study also analysed DNA from these British hunter-gatherers. One of the skeletons analysed was that of Cheddar Man, whose skeletal remains have been dated to 7,100BC.
He was the subject of a reconstruction unveiled at the Natural History Museum last year. DNA suggests that, like most other European hunter-gatherers of the time, he had dark skin combined with blue eyes.
Genetic analysis shows that the Neolithic farmers, by contrast, were paler-skinned with brown eyes and black or dark-brown hair.
Towards the end of the Neolithic, in about 2,450BC, the descendents of the first farmers were themselves almost entirely replaced when a new population - called the Bell Beaker people - migrated from mainland Europe. So Britain saw two extreme genetic shifts in the space of a few thousand years.
Prof Thomas said that this later event happened after the Neolithic population had been in decline for some time, both in Britain and across Europe. He cautioned against simplistic explanations invoking conflict, and said the shifts ultimately came down to "economic" factors, about which lifestyles were best suited to exploit the landscape.
Dr Booth explained: "It's difficult to see whether the two [genetic shifts] could have anything in common - they're two very different kinds of change. There's speculation that they're to some extent population collapses. But the reasons suggested for those two collapses are different, so it could just be coincidence."
Decline of Pedersen glacier in Kenai Fjords Park, Alaska
Climate change (warming of global temperatures) has been occurring since the Industrial Revolution and scientists around the world have been cataloging the effects. Take it from me, I'm a meteorologist. Global warming has caused increased CO2 (Carbon dioxide) levels in the atmosphere, melting glaciers and vanishing sea ice, more Arctic Outbreaks of frigid air over the U.S. and Europe, warmer sea surface temperatures, more intense hurricanes and storms, tropical plants and fish being found further toward the poles, and much more. Weather (short term event) is NOT climate (that's weather over a long term).
In this article from April 15th from Reuters, here's another example of climate change in Alaska:
Record-early Alaska river thaw follows high winter temperatures
Key Alaska rivers that are usually frozen at this time of year are now free-flowing, with record-early thaws following record-high winter and spring temperatures.
Aug thru Oct 2016- Alaska warmer than normal. Cr: NOAA
In the interior Alaska city of Nenana, ice on the Tanana River gave way just after midnight on Sunday. It was by far the earliest breakup in the 102-year history of the Nenana Ice Classic, an iconic Alaska betting pool in which participants predict when thaw will sink a wooden tripod placed on the ice.
The previous earliest breakup of the Tanana, a tributary of the Yukon River, was April 20, a mark reached in 1998 and 1940.
Another record-early thaw happened on Friday on the Kuskokwim River at the southwestern city of Bethel. The previous earliest ice-breakup date for the Kuskokwim Ice Classic was also April 20, in 2016. The Friday ice breakup was the earliest for that part of the Kuskokwim in 92 years of records kept by the National Weather Service.
At both rivers, records show that breakup has been happening, on average, about a week earlier since the 1960s, not counting this year’s record thaws.
This year’s breakups followed an extraordinarily warm Alaska winter with near-record-low ice in the Bering Sea and a record-hot March statewide.
The increasingly early melt reflects Alaska’s long-term climate change, said Brian Brettschneider, a climate researcher with the University of Alaska Fairbanks’ International Arctic Research Center.
“It’s just another indicator of how Alaska is warming up,” he said.
More precisely, this year’s early melt reflects the warm conditions that persisted over wide areas of Alaska, from mountain peaks to the open ocean, Brettschneider said.
“The condition of the ice is a proxy for what the climate has been like for the past five months or so,” he said.
For rural Alaskans in communities that lack outside road access, changes in river ice can have dire consequences.
The rural and mostly indigenous residents use frozen rivers for travel, driving snowmobiles or other vehicles over them.
“If we’re not able to travel on the river, we’re all 100 percent dependent on air travel, which is hugely expensive,” said Mark Leary, an official with a local Yupik tribal council.
In March, when Kuskoskwim River ice conditions resembled those that used to be common in May, four people died in separate incidents when their snowmobiles or all-terrain vehicles plunged into the water.
Lack of river ice can also hinder villagers’ ability to harvest wild food, Leary said. That is important in a region where the mostly Yupik residents count on wild fish, game and plants for most of their diet.
“Normally, we would be right in the height of ice-fishing season,” he said. And normally, residents would be traveling by snowmobile to hunt migratory birds, he said.
Instead, villagers are getting out their boats early and using them to hunt and fish, he said.
We love archaeology, and the UK is always digging into it's past. Actually digging. This is some of the latest finds from Ireland. .. Downpatrick dig: Medieval child's remains found in grave
Image caption Medieval skeletons were found beside Down Cathedral in Downpatrick
The remains of a young child and a teenager are among 14 skeletons uncovered in an ancient burial ground within metres of St Patrick's grave.
The medieval skeletons were found beside Down Cathedral in Downpatrick, County Down, in August 2018.
Archaeologists first thought they had found the lost cemetery of 13th Century Benedictine monks.
But they have said the oldest skeleton is that of a five or six-year-old child who died almost 1,000 years ago.
Image caption Archaeologist Brian Sloan believes there is "more to be found" in Downpatrick
The most recent skeleton is that of a young woman, believed to be a late adolescent, buried between 1317 and 1429.
Experts said she was suffering from severe tooth abscesses at the time of her death and believe she may have travelled to the on-site monastery in search of medicine or prayer.
A community dig was led by archaeologists from Queen's University in Belfast, working with volunteers to prepare the ground for the erection of a replica high cross.Visitors from around the world flocked to the area as the dig unfolded.
'Rich picture of medieval life'
Ancient pottery and animal bones were also recovered in the buried kitchen of a 13th Century Benedictine Abbey as well as a flint tool dating to about 7,000 BC.
Blackberry seeds, sloe pips, fish bones and charred wheat grains from bread-making were also found.
Image copyrightQueen's University/Down County MuseumImage caption Medieval jugs found during the dig have been carefully pieced together
Excavation director Brian Sloan said subsequent analysis, including radiocarbon dating of three of the skeletons, had uncovered a "rich picture of medieval life".
Although analysis of the skeletons is ongoing, he said evidence showed the young child had lived and died before the Anglo-Norman invasion of 1177 AD.
He said the young woman had lived sometime between 1317-1429 AD when the site was occupied by the Benedictine Abbey.
Mr Sloan said the other archaeological finds had offered an insight into life in the abbey and a glimpse into an 8th Century Christian monastic site.
"We can use this evidence to build up a picture of the diet and everyday activities of the monks who lived and prayed here," he added. "The large pottery shards have been painstakingly pieced together at Queen's University Belfast giving an idea of the shape, size and decoration of the vessels.
"A rich environmental picture is being established through the processing of the soil samples taken during the excavation."
Metalwork recovered from an ancient pit has also been analysed and include fine copper alloy dress pins, a socketed arrowhead, a horseshoe, a pair of iron shears and a length of chain with a suspension hook still attached.
A number of items are now on display in the High Cross Gallery at Down County Museum in Downpatrick, in two new cases funded by the British Museum Trust, while research work continues on the collection of artefacts, dating from the Mesolithic (c. 7000 BC) period.
Mr Sloan added: "This is fantastic as Downpatrick has almost been ignored from an archaeological and historical point of view.
"It has got my blood flowing. I believe there is more to be found."
I recently read and enjoyed a novel called "February and December: Dominus Calendar Series," by JP Kenwood. The author is a friend of a friend which is how I heard about it. The book is an historical fiction novel about 2 gay men in ancient Rome.
This historical fiction novel contains 2 stories of ancient Rome featuring characters from JP Kenwood's Dominus series. The stories are well-written and paint a vivid picture of ancient Roman times. The 2 main characters are engaging and interesting, and the sexual tension between them becomes obvious. The stories involve a Roman military leader and a Roman lawyer (both men) whom lust for each other, so of course there are sex scenes in the book. The intimate scenes are also well-done, and are not overly dramatic, but are steamy.
Readers will feel like you're experiencing life in ancient Rome as the author paints the picture well.
In addition, the cover photo of the muscular ancient Roman guy is really nice to look at !
I'm looking forward to reading the Dominus series.
ABOUT THE BOOK: As a lifelong passion continues to fade, another love deepens… two
stand-alone m/m stories of love, lust, and friendship in ancient Rome. February:
Home from the first war against the kingdom of Dacia, Gaius Fabius
ignores his obligations in Rome and returns to his secluded seaside
villa in southern Italy. Under the pretense of a holiday trip, his best
friend and secret lover, Lucius Petronius, surprises him with an
unexpected visit. Later that evening, the lusty masters share the
delights of Gaius’s blond pleasure slave, Nicomedes. December:
With whispers of an embezzlement scandal floating through the capital,
Lucius Petronius and his beloved concubine, Bryaxis, celebrate the
raucous winter solstice festival of the Saturnalia with Luc’s family.
After a joy-filled evening of food, gifts, and stories, Lucius and
Bryaxis reverse roles in the master chamber. Warnings for explicit language, filthy loving, and daft shenanigans
I'm a simple guy who enjoys the simple things in life, especially our dogs. I volunteer for dog rescues, enjoy exercising, blogging, politics, helping friends and neighbors, participating in ghost investigations, coffee, weather, superheroes, comic books, mystery novels, traveling, 70s and 80s music, classic country music,writing books on ghosts and spirits, cooking simply and keeping in shape. You'll find tidbits of all of these things on this blog and more. EMAIL me at Rgutro@gmail.com - Rob
Earlier this month my friend Bill asked me to post 5 albums that influenced me or changed my life in some way. Here's #2: Abba's"Super Trouper."
