Interesting Tidbit About The First Australians.

Happy New Year!
On this peaceful New Year's Day morning I read an interesting article about the trip taken by the Aboriginal peoples of Australia more than 50,000 years ago away from Africa and across the Asian continent and to Australia. Prior to 1788, the indigenous people of the continent inhabited the Australian somewhere between 30,000 to 40,000 years by themselves.  I thought it was an interesting and worthwhile read. Hopefully you might think so too. Hopefully my trips into the orchard of knowledge will be more frequent then they were during the past year. Here's hoping.

Here is the article to read! Enjoy!

Apple Chip Tidbit: Courtesy of the Commonwealth of Australia- Early European Exploration of the Interior of the Continent

Dear Reader(Myself):
Sometimes knowledge, like Apples, whether encountered in a supermarket that appears as one is walking merrily along or as low hanging fruit on a nearby tree, falls into our grasp effortlessly. Today was one of those infrequent occasions when enlightenment occurs without vigorous pursuit of any sought after nugget of information. When having a look at the Commonwealth's website in search of information about Canberra and the Australian Capital Territory, I came upon this interesting section of the site which had a trove of information about some of the truly epic and harrowing expeditions undertaken by  different generations of European(and their Aussie descendant) explorers. Very worthwhile reading. Often times knowledge is obtained through the path of diligent and determined study. But not always. Sometimes that delicious apple of knowledge is accessible via the easy extension of one's figurative arms and the grasp of one's figurative hand. I savor these easy moments!
Here's the link
Cheers!

http://australia.gov.au/about-australia/australian-story/early-explorers

APPLE CHIP TIDBIT- ARMISTICE DAY/ANZAC CONTINUED: AUSTRALIAN SACRIFICE FOR THE CROWN 1914-1918

Dear Reader,
My last brief post was about the Gallipoli Campaign of  1915 undertaken by the Australia New Zealand Army Corps(ANZAC) task/expeditionary force. Although the valor that Australia's soldiers displayed during this campaign was an important moment in the commonwealth's conception of itself as a nation, it was only the first chapter in the history of Australia's involvement in World War One. The ANZAC's would participate in important battles on the war's western front at Bullecourt, Messines and Amiens(which was a decisive blow to the Central Powers and led to the end of the War in November 1918). Between the years of 1915-1918, Australia would offer over 300,000 service members up to the Crown for service in the Middle East and Europe. Considering that Australia's population at the time was slightly over 4,800,000, the contribution to the British war effort was quite considerable. 60,000 Australians were killed and over 150,000 were wounded in more than three years of fighting. More than 1 out of every 25 Australians alive at the time was a casualty of the war. When looking at the toll amongst young Australian men alone the casualty ratio is closer to 1 in 10. Staggering numbers.  With Armistice Day around the corner, I thought this tragic bit yet important chapter in Australian history was worth another post.  I found the human tragedy of the war and the suffering endured well encapsulated in a song written by Peter Bogle called, "The Band Played Waltzing Matilda", in this instance performed by the Pogues.

1914-1918
Lest We Forget

Apple Chip Tidbit: ANZAC

Death and suffering are part of the stuffing that makes up the tragic nature of human existance. The idea of Australia and Australians as being a place and people seperate from Great Britain was forged in such death and suffering. The First World War and specifically the Dardanelles(Gallipoli) campaign of 1915-1916, were essential components in forging this national consciousness. Soldiers primarily from New Zealand and Australia were sent by Winston Churchill to invade Turkey, capture Istanbul and knock Turkey out of the war, thus braking a stalemate on the Western front of the war. The landing in April of 1915 quickly turned into a quagmire and ended in defeat with many casualties on both sides, Turkey still in the war and the Australians and New Zealnd Army Corps Task Foce(ANZAC) forced to withdraw. Australians felt there soldiers whom by all accounts fought bravely were abandoned without much support against the Turks, who were fighting from a geographically adventageous position defending their homeland. This sense of disregard and abandonment led to a greater questioning of the relationship between the U.K and the Australian Commonwealth and a sense of sharing a seperate national destiny than that of Britain. Thus ANZAC resonates deeply here in Australia.

Its a Rainy Day at the Orchard... but rain is necessary to grow the seeds of WISDOM...Thank you, Roger Ebert.

Dear Reader,
When I started this blog to compile facts that were interesting to me(and basically to no one else), I assured myself that I would not veer too far off of the straight and narrow. However, today I digress. I admit to you, dear reader, that at times my mind becomes preoccupied with questions of an existential nature. I often end up, sometimes confusingly, trying to figure out, what is the purpose of this life that I have been given. How do I live in a way that makes my life truly worth while. I suppose I will wrestle with this question to the end. So today, their is a driving rain in the orchard and most people have stayed away and decided to come back another day. No Apple Chip Tidbits on the ground for Sho and I to grouse over. However, rain, even in great amounts, is necessary in order to make the trees that make up the orchard of life to grow fruitful and strong. In this vein, Roger Ebert(of Siskel and Ebert film review fame) has recently provided a much needed downpour of knowledge upon these fields. He recently wrote his book of memoirs, entitled "Life Itself". Ebert has been dealing with thyroid cancer which caused much him much physical pain and also took away his ability to speak. He is terminally ill.   In the last chapter of the book(re-published in his blog for the Chicago Sun-Times, he holds forth with this piece of wisdom,

"To make others less happy is a crime. To make ourselves unhappy is where all crime starts. We must try to contribute joy to the world. That is true no matter what our problems, our health, our circumstances. We must try. I didn't always know this, and am happy I lived long enough to find it out".

I write these entries because I find a certain degree of joy in learning about new facts and considering fresh perspectives, ideas  and thoughts which I have never before entertained. I do think Ebert is on to something. Whether it is in our personal or professional lives, giving joyfully and freely of ones time, talents and energy to give uplift, help, renewal or whatever grace one can give is one way to live the good life. I need to remember this myself and do better in my own life. Sorry for pontificating. Thanks for putting up with my ramblings and back to Tidbits next week.
Cheers...

Small Apple Chip Tidbit: Come Estai...Mate??!!!

Dear Reader(Myself)

I promise my entry this week will be short. When one thinks of Australia's demographic makeup, it is natural to think of the commonwealth's Aboriginal(50,000 years old) and Anglo-Celtic(223 years old) heritage. However  many people might not know that close to  5 percent of Australia's population is made up of......immigrants from Italy and (mainly) their descendants? Starting with the Australian Gold Rush in the middle of the 19th century, London encouraged  limited amounts of immigration to fill labor shortages in agriculture caused by men leaving their jobs to attempt to find fortune in Victoria and South Australia. Amongst immigrants brought in mainly from northern Europe, these Italians were mainly middle class and wealthier folks who could afford passage to Australia. After the rush subsided,many of these folks stayed on in the country and assimilated into the fabric of Australian society. Many of them were skilled professionals and merchants who were quick to find success, and made a major impact upon the cultural and economic life of Victoria and the city of Melbourne especially. Fast forward some 70 odd years down the road  and we land in 1945.  At the end of the Second World War, Australia's political leadership, most notably amongst them, Prime Minister Ben Chiffley, realizing both how close the commonwealth had come to being invaded by the Japanese and the implicit necessity for more people to grow both the economy and thus its ability to defend itself properly, launched a massive immigration program. During the thirty years following 1945, more than a half million Italians, this time a much more economically diverse group, along with millions of other displaced persons from around Europe, were welcomed to come work and live in the country. As a result, 1 out of every 20 Australians today were either born in Italy or descended from someone born in Italy. I am stretching it a bit here, but if there is such a thing as Apple Gelato, I hope that this could be considered a mildly satisfying spoonful of such a concoction.
Cheers!

Apple Chip Tidbit: Who is Newcastle's pop culture claim to fame? Answer: SILVERCHAIR(Go 90's Rock!)

Dear Reader(s)(Myself and maybe Sho),

If one were to walk down the streets of either Queens, New York or Minneapolis, Minnesota and ask a random person on the street,

" Who is the most famous person, group or other cultural entity that comes to mind when mentioning Newcastle, New South Wales, Australia?"

I would be willing to bet almost six figures worth of American dollars that no one would say," Ah, but of course, those devilish lairikins of alternative rock Silverchair!!!"

 Up until a month ago, I would not have been able to answer this question either, but I when I saw a copy of the Newcastle Herald with an adverstisement for an upcoming Silverchair reading something like,"  Silverchair Playing Hometown Gig", your favorite aimless investigator decided to look into this important matter. And what did I find out: That all three members of the band were brought up in the inner-city suburb(read urban residential neighborhood) of Merewether Beach, which is only a few kilometers( a mile or so) from where we live in The Hill section of Newcastle. Why I find this obscure fact interesting is because Silverchair was a medium sized speck on the alt-rock landscape of the 1990's that reminds me of  the great years of Nirvana, Soundgarden and the Smashing Pumpkins, amongst many others. The band was(and still is) a three piece band with lead singer and guitarist Daniel Johns, Bassist Chris Joannou and Drummer, Ben Gilles. They were discovered in a talent contest sponsored by the national radio station, Triple J(a subsidiary of the Australian Broadcasting Channel), and went on to record three records that I knew of in the mid to late 1990's, "Frogstomp"(1995),  "Neon Ballroom(1999)" and "Freak Show(1997)" When" Frogstomp" was released in the United States it became the first time since the 1980's that an Australian band reached the Billboard Top Ten Album's list(along with fellow Aussies INXS and Men At Work). 

So, friend(s), now you know, when someone asks you about Newcastle's contributions to pop culture, you can knowingly chime in about these blokes:

APPLE CHIP TIDBIT: Australia's Jessie James

Dear Reader(myself and I),
I have got a sour apple gummy bear for ya( yay says dave..I like anything with sugar and an artificial sour apple flavor)! No chips of knowledge today. This is blood and guts and calories and intellectual fat up the wazoo!!! Today, I will talk about  briefly about Ned Kelly. Who is Ned Kellly, you might ask? Well, dear reader, he is only the greatest bushranger(read: wild west outlaw in the United States) who was a complete an utter thug, robbing, torturing and killing scores of people in the bush(read:country or rural) regions of  northeastern Victoria, Australia throughout the early to late 1870's  However is legend is more popular then that of any lawman or "good guy" that existed at the same time. Some say that this is due to  his supposed representation of the defiant and individualist ethic that many of the early pioneers that settled the then western stretches of Australia had. Some say his legend is due to the resonance of the great resentment that many Irish convicts, who were sent to Australia to serve time as prisoners or periods of indentured servitude held towards the colonial British authorities(today almost one third of all Australian citizens claim some Irish heritage on one or both sides of their family).  His legend was mostly forged in blood as he seeminlgly murdered with impunity for a period of five years, while successfully evading capture with the help of the large Kelly clan that would often shelter him after commiting one of his many crimes. One night, in late October of 1880, four regional policemen who were searching for Kelly were ambushed by Ned and his gang. Three of the officers were captured and one was able to escape. The escaped officer, realizing that he had been captured by Kelly, told the officers of his  gneral wareabouts. A posse of officers was dispatched to the area around Glenrowan, Victoria and found the three officers dead having had their scrotums and testicles shot off by the Kelly gang.  The regional police received a lucky break from a local informant that Kelly and his gang were holed up in a safety house in town. A few days later, a large contingent of police brought in from Melbourne to raid Kelly compound. The police arrived late in the afternoon on a freight train and promptly surrounded the compound and began firing live rounds at it. A ferocious gun battle raged into the night between the two camps. The next day during a lull in the fighting, Kelly, clad in a homemade suit  made of steel that covered his head and upper body tried to make a run for it into the bush in back of the house. However, one of the policemen spotted him and shot him in the leg, which was not protected. He was quickly apprehended and brought to Melbourne where he was quickly tried and convicted of murder. He was sentenced to death by hanging. A few days later, he was executed by British authorities at a  prison within the city limits.  He was only twenty five years of age at the time of his death. But his legend lives on in Australian folklore. Villain, symbol of defiance and the wild early years of  the European settlement of the Australian bush country and the untamed appetites, dreams and dangers that were realized there, Ned Kelly has come to symbolize an antihero whose chararcter has deep resonance in the Australian psyche. That was like eating a bag of just sour apple gummy bears! Thanks for indulging me, dear reader!!!

APPLE CHIP TIDBIT: I was never a math or science guy in school...

But "THE ROCKS" of Sydney tell a story that has more to do with vice then geology!

Dear Reader(Myself),
This past Thursday, I had the distinct pleasure of being able  to travel two hours south of Newcastle on the New South Wales "Country-Link" commuter rail service in order to visit the state capital(and one of the true gems of the Pacific Rim), Sydney. This is where the story of  modern Australia starts. As I may have mentioned in a previous post, Captain Arthur Phillip, who oversaw the first European(read: British) settlement of Australia, set up camp at Port Jackson(the formal name given to what most people call Sydney Harbor) in January of 1788, in the what is now known as the Circular Quay area of Sydney, in the shadow of where the Sydney harbor bridge crosses the water seperating the city center from suburban north Sydney. The very first neighborhood of what would become the city of Sydney was quickly erected and in  short  order would become a crime and disease ridden slum filled with brothels, taverns, boarding houses and trenchant poverty. It was the embodiment of  all of the social ills that manifested themselves in the British policy of "transportation" or simply the shipping  of criminals to serve their sentences far away from the motherland's shores(in the case of Australia, to what might as well have been the end of the earth) and out of sight and mind. The area's buildings were constructed largely with the use of local sandstone and the new locals started referring to the collection of sandstone structures as "the Rocks", and the name stuck. As I mentioned earlier, the natural sciences and math never were the subjects in school that truly animated me. However, the study of the human past does, and I found it to be rather neat to be amongst the sandstone rocks that would eventually spawn with it a major center of commerse and would thus establish  the  foundation of what would become the Commonwealth of Australia. You will have to forgive me as I poured an overflowing handful of chips into your hands. The chips that fell on the floor and that are still plenty good to eat will  boost your immunity to all sorts of illness. Sometimes, my pedantic ways gets the best of me. But  in the end, they are good for you!
Take Care!

APPLE CHIP TIDBIT: If only I had been born 192 years and 363 days earlier and was a british convict...

Then I could have been a member of the First Fleet!  The First Fleet was the group of eleven British Naval supply ships which set sail from England in May of 1787 and arrived at Port Jackson in present day Sydney harbour on January 26th, 1788. The flotilla, led by Captain Arthur Phillip, was sent to establish a colony on land claimed for Great Britain on the east coast of the Australian continent by Captain James Cook eighteen year earlier. Cook called this land, New South Wales. The First Fleet consisted of almost eight hundred convicts and more then six hundred members of the British military sent to establish the claimed lands' territorial integrity. Although numerous European explorers had set foot on the Australian continent prior to the late 18th century(Potuguese and Dutch), none had taken the time to establish an actualy community on the island(of course, the indigeneous peoples, known here in Australia as "first peoples", had been living here for almost 50,000 years prior to European settlement). This day is known as "Australia Day". I was born on January, 24th 1981. If I had been born 192 years and 363 days earlier in Britain and had been convicted of a crime, I could have been one of the first of His Majesty's subjects establishing the United Kingdom's largest(physically) colony! Crisp crunching sounds can be simulated by the reader at this point.

APPLE CHIP TIDBIT: How empty is Australia?

Yestereday, while sitting shivering on our very uneven couch on a chilly winter morning here in the southern hemisphere, I was reading a few pages of Bill Bryson's rather witty and clever travel book about Australia, " In a Sunburned Country" and was drawn to a statistic I found rather shocking.  In Australia the average population density is 6 people per square mile! In a country the size of the United States! In the U.S there are over one hundred people per square mile on average. However, Bryson mentions that 6 is skewed wildly due to the fact that over 85 percent of the populations lives in metropolitan areas along the Pacific and Indian Ocean coasts. The reality is that in most of Australia, the density of the population is less than one person per square mile. Taste that salty yet fortified apple chip goodness!

A New Brand of Information Tidbit: THE DRIED APPLE CHIP!!!

Dear Reader(read: probably myself):

When I was much younger, my parents on occasion would  pack my lunch before I went to school. My lunch pack would typically consist of four items: A sandwich, a bag of fruit, a drink and then some variety of  chip or cheese doodle. I rememberthat one of those types of chips/doodles were apple chips. Apple chips were baige,thin and crisp dried out slices of granny and fuji apples which were a touch salty and a bit sweet at the same time. I remember them  being quite good. They were in that gray area between health and junk food. They did not have too many calories and did not significantly add to ones waist line, however if one were looking for food that would  not exacerbate hypertension, this would not be it. However they were fortified with artificially enriched vitamins which gave them redeeming value. They were quick snacks that you could convince yourself were heallthy and you would be mostly right! Except that things that are truly good for you shouldn't taste quite as salty. Thus I introduce to you dear reader(TRUMPETS SOUNDING...DRUMS ROLLING...HERE IT IS.....): THE APPLE CHIP TIDBIT!!!!!

    My APPLE CHIP TIDBIT series is perfectly suited for Australia: Small to Medium sized facts that are interesting yet do not require heavy reading or research on my part. Tidbits that are educational yet have a little of that seductive "pop salt" on them to make them easily digestable! I figure that the rhetorical big bag of apple chips that is Australia will be constantly tilting into the rhetorical open hands that are my silly and dream filled head. Hopefully I can share with  you, dear reader, a few of these chips that Australia has handed to me. I will label such tidbits accordingly!
Cheers Mates!
Dave

Lake MInnetonka: One Hundred and Twenty Five Miles of Coast Line

Granny Smith's have an outter skin that are a light to moderate shade of green. I think of  valley's in New Zealand, verdant and lush, sporouting abundant life from the earth when seeing this apple. The water's of Lake Minnetonka, in Hennepin(mostly) County, Minnesota do not neccesarily reflect this type of green when sun's uv rays shine upon them, yet they reflect a shade of green that is fierce in its darkness. This past Wednesday, I had the distinct pleasure of touring the lake with out friends Lindsay and Jeff and Lindsay's super nice and kind parents, Bob and Linda. I found the amoeba like shape of the lake, full of tiny channels to be quite intriguing and unlike other lakes that I had personally been on. I found out an interesting fact about Lake Minnetonka which is situated in (mostly) Hennepin County, Minnesota. I know this might not sound particularly spectacular but I think of Minnetonka as a medium sized suburban lake that has a few towns lakefront's with maybe ten miles of shore line. How many does it have, you may ask?!! Answer: over 125 miles!!!? I could not believe this at first but upon some reflection, I can see it. There are so many inlets, coves and channels, that when adding it all together, I could see it getting close to that total. 125 miles of water that could have the color of a granny smith if some young shenanigan pulling devil had the temerity to spray paint a granny smith dark green!  Alright Mr 305..young chico...dale dale till next time

The Orchard of Life!

Hi there. Visiting my sister-in-law Jess's and her husband Val's house! I learned something very interesting today! You may not be able to eat an apple a day. But if you look closely the orchard of life gives you some equally good nutrition. Jess and Val and their kids have a PUGGLE! I have never heard of this type of dog but evidently they are becoming popular amongst dog lovers/owners.  They are a mix of a Beagle and a Pug.  Very cute, a bit rambunctious but very cute for sure! But that is what life's orchard has given me today: A Puggle a very nice gift! Thank you Orchard of Life!!!! And Jess, Val, Emma and Raef
Cheers!
Dave

Lady Randolph Churchill

Mother of The Right Honorable Winston Churchill was born and raised in.....BROOKLYN, NEW YORK? Yes, it is true! This Apple Jack of a fact may surprise some! Winston Churchill's mother, Jeannette Jerome was born in Cobble Hill, Brooklyn, New York about one city block from where I used to live with my dad! Crazy huh? She met Winston's father in Paris, Sir Randolph Churchill in Parus later on in life! She was born on Amity street! Pretty nuts huh?

Serious Educational Anti Oxidents! Australia and the World Wars

Interesting and quick note here! Australian, until 1949,were citizens of the United Kingdom! However both World Wars left Australians feeling somewhat alone in the world with the motherland being a dubious protector. During the First World War, the sacrifice of 8,000 Aussies during the Gallipoli campaign and the close call brush with the Imperial Japanese, left many Aussies feeling either betrayed and/or vulnerable to the outside world. This convinced many that self reliance and further independence from Britain was necessary for survival in what was an unruly part of the World(i.e Communist Threat in Asia/The Pacific Rim) which Britain had proven itself unable to defend. Thus the Australian Government' threw open the gates to newcomers from across  Europe and eventually the world(after 1970) and  started a great post war immigration push to expand both the country's population in order to grow the economy as well as the countries military might.  This wave of immigration changed the face of Australia forever and would go along way to creating the dynamic and vibrant multicultural-outward looking democracy that exists today.
Thank you Bill Bryson-"In A Sunburned Country".  A good read!

AYYYYY! AYYY! AYYYYE! Baybay!---Mira a los caballos!

Photo by Photosho

Photo by PhotoSho

Hola companeros! Me and my BAYYYBAY Sho, traveled to Chincoteague Island, on the Eastern Shore of  Virginia, as well as Assateague Island off of the Eastern Shore of Maryland. There are approximately 150 feral horses on each island both of which are part of the Assateague Island National Seashore, of which it costs 15 dollars to enter for a one week visit. Supposedly in 1750 a Spanish ship ran ashore, causing a rupture in the hull, thus causing a group of horses to run free. The other more widely accepted explanation is that land owners on Virginia and Maryland's eastern shore simply set the horses that they no longer wanted loose (trying to avoid taxes) on the island on these barrier islands and thus a group of domesticated horses became wild.  I would certainly recommend a trip to the Maryland half where the above pictures were taken! As you can see, one can get quite close to the horses. They are beautiful! In addition it was interesting to drive through the Eastern Shore of Maryland and Va.  Although they are in relatively close proximity to the Washington D.C metro area, they are quite rural and one feels very distant from the hubbub of the  Mid -Atlantic/Northeast Megalopolis and the Eastern seaboard in general.  Do go visit!!!!

This is David, signing off saying every once in a while, drinkin' and bloggin' is so much fun!!!( listen to the Business circa 1982.... )

Adios and Buenos Noches..mundo carino! 

Apple Sauce in Holland! On French Fries?

Yes speaking of Apple Sauce, In the Netherlands, children eat French Fries with Apple Sauce as a condiment.I can see the salt and sweet bit, might make for an interesting mix of flavors. This might be common knowledge that most fine completely uninteresting. So be it. I never knew that these two mix to the delight of many in Holland. The Dutch, I am well aware, enjoy high cholestrol mayonnaise with their french fries but Apple Sauce. Muy original with the condiments. I realize that this fact  is more of a candied apple for the brain, but new junk foodish facts can count as well!

Have a bite! Tzu does not =zoo!

Good Evening to myself and the world! As I mentioned in post number one, I am on a dead end quest to learn as much useful and useless information that I can pack in my lifetime. This posting will be relatively short. Look at it as having one of those mini apple sauce containers that your mom packed for your lunch when you were but a wee babe in arms! It's not a full Fuji Apple eaten to the core but at least you can say you were in the ballpark! Its all good, karma gives us some slack.

  Anyway here it is: What is famous Eastern Zhou dynasty military advisor, Sun Tzu's real name? Answer: SUN WU! SUN WHO? Yes, indeed, the TZU in Sun Tzu means MASTER. WU is his given name! Who knew that the TZU is really a WU???!!!! Not I.  Join me tommorow for a bit more cranial nutrition. For now, sleep tight, and soak in the nutrition!

Gatorade for Curiousity: Chasing the Horizon for Fun!

Hi there! My name is Dave! I am a weird, kind of dorky guy who has a more than eclectic range of interests, hobbies and facinations! They range from the most mundane things imaginable including state route/highway designs, license plates,blocks of  swiss cheese....to the very highminded pursuits of mankind including how societies are organized politically, economically and socially, literature, fine art music, etc ......and then all of the  things in  between these two poles, including imagining myself to be a star soccer player and heading imaginary balls in the aisles of grocery stores, constantly making lists of new hobbies that I want to try out and smothering my love, Sho, with affection.

   I love knowing things for  the sake of knowing them. Learning something new for me is its own reward regardless of whether or not that knowledge has any practical occupational/vocational application. As I mentioned in the previous paragraph, I like to make lists of new hobbies to try, and one of those hobbies that I indeed would like to try is making a blog that is dedicated to my bottomless interest in learning new facts/ideas/other previously unconsidered things. So everyday, I will post  something new and perhaps add some miscellaneous content as well. But the title of this blog will set the tone: I will be feeding myself and anyone who cares to read, a mental apple every day in the enduring and most likely quixotic attempt to squeeze as much knowledge from the orange of life as possible! Here goes nothing!