There will be a live program on tv tonight that should prove of interest to anyone who has an interest in egyptology.An attempt will be made to enter a door at the end of a shaft in the queen's chamber of the great pyramid with state of the art tv equiptment to find out what lurks behind it. They will be using the same type of sensor equiptment that they used last year in the world trade center recovery effort. It will be a National Geographic special and in my area it's being carried live by the FOX network 8-10PM ET. Anyway here's the link if anyone wants more information...
http://news.nationalgeographic.com/news/2002/09/0910_020913_egypt_1.html


Paulette

Thanks for the reminder Paulette - I'm always interesting in that kind of thing.

Margaret

FOX is airing this?...In that case, I fully expect them to find a large alien spacecraft inside the pyramid! :D Maybe they can get Geraldo to host the show...he can make up for that whole "Al Capone's Vault" debacle.

So...what was in it? (I do not have a TV :tongue: )

I only saw the last half of the program but I found it very interesting. I was especially interested in the finds at the "city" where the workers seemed to have lived - debunks the theory that the pyramids were build by slaves.

Paulette - I think we should leave Greg in suspense - what do you say?

Margaret

ahhh!!! :(

According to the news they should of broken through by now. Any news on the findings so far?

They found....
...



...



...



...


...another door! FOX just knows how to milk a good thing when they see it! ;)

Two hours! Ugh.

I am a pyramidiot tho. One of those silly people who refuses to believe that gazillion ton cubes of granite were rolled on palm tree trunks from the quarry to the building site and various other things that don't seem quite right.

Claudia

The outcome of the show was as incredulous in my opinon as the numbers 911 coming up in the NY lottery last week. I really do believe in synchronicity and coincidences but unfortunately I'm also becoming increasingly cynical about alot of things in the media. My faith will be restored if they just go across the Nile to Home Depot or wherever they go in Cairo and get one of those super long bits that electricians use and drill through the second door. I would imagine that they should be as curious as anyone over what lies beyond the door....what's most interesting about the great pyramid is that whoever built it went from literally heaping piles of stones to something as technologically difficult as constructing the great pyramid in a very brief period of time. Anyway if Geraldo were there, I bet HE would have been on their case. Most likely he 's probably either on tour with the American Idol Troupe or establishing a beachead in Iraq-never around where you want him!
Paulette :bawling:

I only watched part of the last half also. I am fascinated by Egypt's ancient culture, but not by primetime TV's efforts to garner audiences. I just didn't really think they'd wait to find out what was there until we all were sitting in front of the TV with our popcorn in hand. The "next door" is both exasperating and intriguing to me -- I hope they don't wait for another "Special" to find out what's behind it, but do as Paulette suggests -- go to Home Depot and get a longer bit and drill through that sucker now! Then let us know what they found.

Margaret -- I didn't see the part that explained that it wasn't slaves -- can you tell me more, or I'll look it up somewhere on the net.

Tobycatt -- who do you think made the pyramids, or how were they built?

Hi CJ, throughout the show, they were showing an excavation at a townsite that was close to the pyramid and they were expostulating (there's a $50 word :D ) that the townsite was there to support the building of the pyramid. They uncovered enough cattle bones to feed enough people to build the thing for many years. They also uncovered a huge bakery etc.

The Egyptian archeologist that opened the sarcophagus on the show said that all the information about the townsite and the way some of the workers were buried led him to believe that it was built by paid labor.

He also said something like "the pyramids couldn't have been built by slaves, they had to be built by love" He also talked about the "teams" of workers (he didn't call them teams - he used a different word, but I forget what he said)

Also there was an Egyptian woman archeologist who was showing some recovered bones - in one case the bones had been surgically amputated. They surmised that a slave would not have been treated to such good care.

Anyway, it's all speculation, but I love hearing about it. In my next life, I'm coming back as an archeologist. I can see myself sitting there with a soft brush uncovering pot shards.

When I see things like that show last night - or some of the Discovery Channel shows about ancient civilizations, my imagination goes wild!

Take care, Margaret

Thanks for the added information, Margaret. I minored in Anthropology, and had one friend who married an archeologist. She's currently working at a museum in the States. I just found her again via Classmates.com (We hadn't talked in years) and I don't know whether she ever got to work on sites or not. I used to fantasize about finding a rare find while brushing away the silt. Then I remembered that I don't even like to dust my furniture, and realized that it wasn't really my calling... :)

My awe of the pyramids was reduced by the previous theory that slaves were used, so I'm happy to hear that paid workers created such awesome structures.

I thought it was very interesting. Too many commercials (expected from Fox) but still informative. I didn't realize the Egyptians were such big beer drinkers. I can relate to that!

Bob

Tonight on Discovery Channel, I watched a show about a "mummy" that was discovered in Pakistan. The mummy came to light when someone tried to sell it and someone else squealed on them.

The mummy was taken to a museum where it was examined etc. It was in an elaborately carved wooden box, wrapped in gold, the whole nine yards. It was thought that the mummy was a Persian princess - how the mummy came to be in Pakistan was a mystery.

After much research, it was learned that the "mummy" was an elaborate fake and the body incased in all that gold was a woman who appears to have been murdered (her back was broken) in 1994!!

They didn't go into the following investigation to find out who she was or how she met her death. And, since that one came to light, there have been others offered for sale as well.

Makes you wonder what other fakes are out there,

Margaret

Hi CJ~

I think the Egyptians built them, but I think there is technology that they had that has been lost. Like from a really advanced civilization that had language and medicine and the ability to somehow lift these stones.

Mostly the people I read are Graham Hancock, John Anthony West and Robert Schoch. One of the guys on the show last night, his last name is Lerner, is paid by the Edgar Cayce society. Edgar Cayce predicted that there is a room beneath the floor of the paws of the Sphinx. Supposedly it has been found using sonar. Cayce said that the room houses data that will change history. The Cayce foundation wants first dibs on it, and they are in tight with Hawass the guy who runs the Giza plateau. Those authors that I mentioned were trying to get the Egyptian government to find out what is there but make it public domain. Last I heard, because the funding was coming from the Cayce society, they were going to get at it first along with the Egyptian government and they would be the ones to decide if the info would be made public or not. I don't know if this info is on the web, but I heard Graham Hancock speak and the whole second half of his lecture was on this topic and the politics going on there.

I could go on for days, but I won't. You can email me tho if you want. I would love to talk your ear off.

Hugs,
Claudia

Re drilling into the second door--I heard some BBC reporter say that her sources told her that it would be a year before they had enough data ( whatever that means) to drill into the second door.I was looking at a schematic of a cross section of the interior in the papers yesterday and it appears from the drawing that the space between the two doors is very close to the exterior of the pyramid. They probably don't want to drill a hole through one of the exterior blocks but maybe they will use some sounding equiptment although I really don't know if that's a viable option. Anyway I guess that what I was hoping for was the discovery of some technology from that time that we were unaware of. There are so many place of mystery on this earth. It is nice to dream
Paulette

Tobbycatt
Just saw your reply after I posted mine. I was unaware that there was a connection between the Cayce society and the Giza plateau project! Do you have a link to that information. I too have
the books by the authors you mentioned as well as whatever other books on Eqypt that I was able to get my hands on.The country has fasinated me from an early age.It's too bad that there are so many turf wars going on re the explorations but that is always the way.In some ways I find this reminescent of all of the expectation concerning the Letter of Fatima.Big build up-unsatisfactory( in my opinion) explanation.
Paulette

I'd be interested to know what alternative technologies are mooted as regards the construction of the pyramids.

Hi Paulette!!

This info may be on Graham Hancocks web site, I am not sure tho...it came from a lecture he gave in Berkeley that I attended. From what I understand there is a person who is a multi gazillionaire who is funding Lerner and the Cayce people to make sure the info comes to them and not the general public. I really don't want to think that anyone, especially someone affiliated with Edgar Cayce, would do such a thing, but nothing surprises me anymore.

From a world view, I can understand the fear and the Egyptian government wanting to protect their history and their antiquity. Everyone on the planet wants to have a piece of them. But if there is education to be had, we all deserve to know about it. The Dead Sea Scrolls are highly controversial, but they have not destroyed the Catholic church, know what I mean?

Last I heard Graham Hancock was backing off the work he has been doing. I am not totally sure why, but John Anthony West is really the primary source for what is what. I liked Graham for his readability and accessibility though.

YES FATIMA...just what was in that letter to the Pope???

I will get off my soap box now but I love this stuff. Not the controversy...just the amazing stuff that happens and we don't get to know about it. It's not fair. Oh gosh now I am whining too.

Hugs!
Claudia

Hi Chris,

Not sure I know what you are asking. There are lots of theories how they were built ranging from aliens to slaves dragging the massive stones across the sand. Some people believe that sound was used, some believe pulleys, some huge ramps used to drag the stones then taken down when it was done, others the tree logs with the stones rolled on them. Lots of theories but for all the recording that the Egyptians have done they have not found any recording so far of how it was done.

There are lots of examples of this around the world. In South America arches were built with stones weight several tons. No clue as to how the "primatives" got those darn cap stones up there.

There was a man in Florida who built a park made of stone. He worked alone, in secrecy. He opened his park to the public, but when he worked he demanded secrecy. He said he found the secrets of the pyramid builders, and from what people have been able to figure out it had to do with running electric current thru the rocks and then using pulleys to move them.

Here is a link to it:

http://www.coralcastle.com/

Fascinates me.

Hugs,
Claudia

Wait a second....someone explain to me why National Geographic is associating themselves with Edgar Cayce followers...or was that just something thrown together by FOX? In my opinion, that just kills any scientific credibility they might have had.

Why National Geographic would do that I don't know. Why they would affiliate with Fox when they have their own network I don't know, or why they would choose Fox over PBS I don't know, but we can sure guess huh? But we can guess it has to do with money and funding and things like that.

Mark Lehner has great "legitimate" credentials but he also makes no bones about saying that his interest in Egypt began thru the Edgar Cayce's teachings, so I don't think I am propagating a rumor started by Hancock at his lectures.

Don't get me wrong. I love Edgar Cayce and believe there is more to our history than we know. What I worry about is that the information may never make it to the public, and it needs to be public. We need to be able to make our own decisions about these things. Were Cayce alive I believe he would want the information available to anyone who wants it. Not just the rich and not just the fearful with an agenda of their own. That is not what Cayce was about. He was an amazing man.

Gosh.

Claudia

I watched the final part of the pyramid 'soap' opera. It was screened over here as a National Geographic production.

The programme was broadcast in approx 10 minute sections with about 5 minute gaps when nothing was transmitted just a notice saying the broadcast would re-commence shortly. Never seen a program in this format over here before, I'm wondering if US viewers got advertisements in these regular gaps.

I did some research into Lehner and he seems to have rejected much of the Cayce nonsense...I guess the other archaeologists were laughed at him. IMHO Cayce was a fraud....but if California ever falls into the sea, the poles reverse themselves and Atlantis decides to make a encore presentation, I'll gladly eat those words... ;)

Chris,
On the promos for the show here it said that it would be on FOX as a live special and then shown later in the week on the new National Geographic Cable channel. What the tie in was is a mystery to me. Probably some type of corporate affliation I would guess. Anyway, there were alot of commercials. We get quite a few channels in my community but not National Geographic...one of my favorites is A&E which has some really interesting programs.
Also love the sitcoms on PBS-particularly "Keeping Up Appearences" and some of the Masterpiece Theatre presentations.Some excellent shows come to us from across the pond. The originality and quality of the acting is what makes them so good.
Paulette

Hi Greg,

Yeah, I don't think my beautiful home state is going to fall in the ocean anytime soon, but Cayce was a healing mofo who helped an awful lot of people.

Just in case I will set you a place at the dinner table...


Hugs,
Claudia

Oh and PS...polar shifts are not unheard of.

I found a statement by Dr Hawass dismissing Cayce opinions
On August 21 I will give a talk at the Cayce Foundation on my discoveries at Giza. I hope that after all these lectures and TV appearances that people can understand that what Cayce said about ancient Egypt is a myth. The Arabs from the 9th century talked about this legend and psychics like Cayce and others have brought this myth back. I found that the public need to hear the evidence that we discovered, and all the archaeological records as an answer to the question of who built the pyramids. [Dr. Zahi Hawass Director of the Giza Pyramids and Saqqara

Guess this is why Fox televises the Nat. Geog. shows also --
Based at National Geographic Society headquarters in Washington, D.C., the National Geographic Channel is a partnership between National Geographic Television and Fox Cable Networks Group.

Originally posted by CJ Swartz
...the National Geographic Channel is a partnership between National Geographic Television and Fox Cable Networks Group.

So, they made a deal with the devil! :devil: On next week- "Who wants to marry a National Geographic Photographer!"

I can recieve three of the US news channels via satellite and the Fox channel is pretty dire much of the time screening messages of praise from viewers !

Paulette I didnt realise 'Keeping up Appearances' had reached your shores, its always being repeated over here. If you like that you might look out for 'Absolutely Fabulous' which is very funny.

"Are You Being Served", "Fawlty Towers" There was one about some old people in a retirement community - a crusty old man and woman shared a patio - I can't remember the name of it, but it was really funny.

We don't tend to get those shows until they've had their run in Britain, then we get them on the cable "Public Broadcasting" channels.

You'd think being in Canada and us being related and all, we'd get more British mainstream tv, but we don't. All we get is the same fare that is dished up on the big american networks - besides the homegrown stuff that is sometimes unbearable to watch.

Take care,
Margaret

We've had quite a bit on Egypt on TV recently, a superb biography of Howard Carter and his excavations with Lord Caernarvon before the war and a couple of programs on the Pharoes.

Margaret the programme you mentioned in the retirement home was 'Waiting for God' with Stephanie Cole and Graham Crowden.


Cheers.......

Originally posted by chris h
Margaret the programme you mentioned in the retirement home was 'Waiting for God' with Stephanie Cole and Graham Crowden.


Right, thanks Chris. Of course I forgot "Corronation Street" that is shown in half hour increments every afternoon and then in one 2 hour marathon every Sunday morning. I was adicted for quite a while until all the interesting characters were either jailed or killed off.

I try to watch everything about Egypt that I can find on the tv. I once did "regression" and found myself in the desert, looking out at a camel caravan from a hiding place inside a sand dune - I don't know what that means except that I'm fascinated.

My brother lived for a time in Kuwait and I was afraid to go visit him lest the sight of all that sand would tip me over into a psychotic break fo some kind :D

Take care
Margaret

I used to like watching "One Foot in the Grave"...my wife says I'm going to be just like that old man one day! :D I was also a big Dr. Who fan as a kid...too bad they cancelled it.

Margaret - Sounds like you need to plan a trip to Cairo! Perhaps you are descended from an Egyption queen...

Originally posted by G. Couch
Margaret - Sounds like you need to plan a trip to Cairo! Perhaps you are descended from an Egyption queen...

My impression of my regression fantasy was that I was more like a pickpocket hiding from the law :) :) But I like your idea of being a "queen"

Margaret

From "Waiting for God" website --Waiting for God (http://users.ev1.net/~ehcalk/wfg/wfg-main.htm)

Man: "Have you put in an order for a high powered assault rifle?"

Diana: "In fact, I ordered a whole case of them, plus hand grenades, 3 inch mortars, and a selection of assorted ground to air missiles."

Man: "May I ask why?"

Diana: "We’ve got mice."

Other than Diana's over-reaction towards mice, I love "Waiting for God" and the whole cast of characters. They haven't shown it here in some years, but I'm sure it'll turn up on a cable channel sometime. I loved the theme music, which the website identifies as a movement from Schubert's "Trout Quintet".


Greg, I've never seen "One Foot in the Grave", but the episode summaries make it sound like something I'd like to see --

"Victor is worried by a mysterious rash, gives a lady window-cleaner a shock and is subsequently visited by two policemen who turn out to be Jehovah's Witnesses. An evening at an exercise class ends in confusion and tragedy. Then Victor becomes convinced that he's dead." :eek:

Margaret, perhaps you were a young princess hiding from your father's soldiers seeking to bring you back after you had run off with a wonderful, but lower-class, sweetheart... Oh, I hope you didn't get caught! :bawling:

CJ is such a romantic hehehe. You have a whole story going, maybe you should start writing.

Hugs,
Claudia

PS...My British TV faves are Fawty Towers and The Young Ones.

CJ, I never thought of it like that - come to think of it, I was rather well-dressed :D I wonder what the love of my life did to support me in the manner to which I had become accustomed. Perhaps he became a wealthy merchant trading in gold and frankencense etc.

I have a couple of story ideas that I've been working on in my idle moments - both are "time shift" stories. One involves the famous Chinese "flying horse"

http://www.unc.edu/courses/hist033/flying_horse.htm

After watching all that stuff about mummies the other night, I did some checking and found a lot more information about this horse and I need to get back to writing that story.

Maybe I wasn't Egyptian, but I sure know I have some roots back there somewhere :cool:

Take care Margaret

The Chinese have pyramids too, maybe you were in the Gobi desert instead.

HELP!! Now you've got me digging around in Chinese pyramid sites and I found a site that predicts that the whole crust of the earth will shift next year - what will happen to us all. Helpfully, they provide a list of safe locations that we can all go to.

Maybe we should plan a "RetouchPro" convention at one of those places.

Take care, Margaret

Didn't Cayce predict something like that for the year 2000? Polar shift or crust shift? I should be safe at 7000 ft above sea level...provided the local extinct volcano does not go crazy.

CJ - "One Foot In The Grave" is pretty funny. I recall one episode that took place entirely in a car...sounds boring but is was pretty funny and was certainly not something you would see from an American sitcom. Of course not all BBC shows are so great...I submit "Teletubbies" into evidence! :D

Sure have some kindred souls here!I think it's great that its
expanding in many diverse directions.Anxious to take a look at the coral castle and the chinese horses. Re the interest of many people in a fascination with the unknown, from my point of view, what it comes down to is the need to believe in something to make sense of why we're here. A few years ago I heard the author of the book " When Bad Things Happen To Good People" speak. What I remember him saying is that there will most likely never be explanations for so many things in life. Unless we want to drive around with a bumper sticker on our car reading" Life's a beach(sp)and then you die" we each have to come up with our own answers. For some folks , the answers are found in their religions and for others life is a continuous search to find meaning and purpose. In many ways that may be why our art and photography give us so much satisfaction. We're creating and exploring-and as a poster on another thread said-we're playing and having fun with what we're doing.
Paulette:rainbow:

Margaret -- I'd never heard of this before, but found some comforting news regarding "pole shifts", I think we're in the clear :D --Author refutes pole shift (http://www.nhne.com/articles/sapoleshift.html)


"When John White first published "Pole Shift" in 1980, his book sent re-affirming shocks waves through the earth changes community. Many earth change believers (including this reporter) believed White's book "proved" that Edgar Cayce, and a host of other psychics, had correctly foreseen a global catastrophe that would destroy much of the planet along with major portions of the human race. White's book was particularly powerful because it was written by a man with serious professional credentials and, perhaps more importantly, because it seamlessly wed modern scientific data with contemporary psychics and ancient myths and prophecies. While White refused to say in "Pole Shift" that he was absolutely certain that a pole shift was coming, he left no doubt that he thought one might strike sometime near the year 2000.

Now, however, White has publicly said that he doesn't believe there is going to be a pole shift -- at least the kind of cataclysmic variety envisioned by Cayce, Gordon-Michael Scallion, and others. And while "Pole Shift" is still selling like hot cakes (it is presently being published by the A.R.E., Edgar Cayce's organization), the 1995 edition now contains an epilogue that discusses why a pole shift WON'T be visiting planet Earth anytime soon. White also challenged the themes championed in "Pole Shift" in another book of his published in 1990, "The Meeting of Science and Spirit." In that book he writes, "On the basis of a decade's hindsight, I think that the possibility of a catastrophic pole shift at the end of this century is increasingly unlikely. To be more precise, I do not think a pole shift will occur as predicted."

Very interesting CJ - I had to abandon my search this evening so I could pursue other interests, but I will follow up on what you've said.

Paulette - I agree with what you said. In my own life, I've had many times of intense personal drama and confusion. During those times, I've been most interested in the larger riddles of the world - as if finding meaning in them might help me to unravel some of the turmoil in my own circumstances. On the other hand, during times of peace and calm, I've had little interest in anything beyond my own circle.

I feel I'm in the middle of a huge transition - recently had to quit my job, retirement is not what I had hoped it would be, having to make decisions that will affect the rest of my life - and here I am researching ancient secrets.

Interesting. I just put that together as I was writing it. As Oprah would say, I think I just had an "AHAH" moment. :o:

This discussion has been interesting - not much to do with retouching, but at least in my case, it helped clarify something I've been struggling with.

Take care, Margaret

What I want to know is, is there any real scientific basis for this "pole shift" idea? Sounds hokey to me...but if someone can point me to a reputable scientific paper on the subject I would love to read about it. There is one catastrophic natural disaster that is very real and could happen in our lives...asteroid impact. Before you laugh, realize that the odds of it happening are far greater than most people realize. scary stuff...

Margaret - It's funny that you mention times of turmoil as being times when you are most interested in the "larger riddles of the world"...I seem to create my best art when I'm in a state of personal (or financial!) confusion. There must be some correlation between creativity and personal risk/drama- when things are easy and calm, the mind does not seem to jump to that extra level as it does when things are not so calm! :)

Originally posted by G. Couch
There must be some correlation between creativity and personal risk/drama- when things are easy and calm, the mind does not seem to jump to that extra level as it does when things are not so calm! :)

I think you might be right - when I was deep in conflict at work and in my personal life, I could write like crazy. I produced some really good stuff (not published, but still good :D ) and I kept thinking that if I could ever get my life under control, I could settle down and be a great writer.

Well, things fell into place, all the conflict was gone, but did I write? No, I would put pen to paper and nothing would happen - all the ideas flitted away and I couldn't recapture them.

Now that I have some conflict again, the urge to write is coming back and I'm at least able to pour some energy onto the page in the form of a daily journal.

I shudder to think that in order to be creative I would have to live in turmoil the rest of my life....

Take care, Margaret

http://www.flem-ath.com/e-h.htm

Hi Everyone,

The above link may interest you. Apparently there was a correspondence between Einstein and Charles Hapgood regarding the earth crust displacement idea. Einstein told his fellow scientists to pay attention to Hapgood and his theories.

I will keep looking but I think it is an accepted concept that a pole shift has happened in the past at least once and is used to explain the tropical foliage and mammoth remains found in the arctic.


Claudia

...But you could explain tropical foliage in the Arctic as simply evidence of very slow continental drift ...or past global warming. A catastrophic "polar shift" seems like a pretty extreme explanation when more plausible theories exist.

Also, that site seems to be using Einstein as it's proof! Just because Einstein agreed with the theory does not make it true...after all, he mistakenly argued against the existence of black holes.

...I'm still a skeptic :tongue:

Yeah well ok, I give up. I get too caught up in taking debates personally so I will shut up until the subject goes back to normal things.

Claudia

Speaking of ancient cultures...I found this to be pretty interesting-
Mayan "World War" (http://story.news.yahoo.com/news?tmpl=story&u=/ap/20020919/ap_on_sc/fighting_maya_1)

Originally posted by tobycatt
Yeah well ok, I give up. I get too caught up in taking debates personally so I will shut up until the subject goes back to normal things.

Claudia

sorry... :( I love debates...and rarely take anything personally, but I can come across as pretty hard headed sometimes. Please do not "shut up"...I enjoy a good debate!

I know, I am a big sissy. Maybe tomorrow when I am awake I will take up my sword again.

:tongue:


Claudia

Hey, Greg -- wanna contribute to a "good cause"? :D

A California man is almost ready to prove there's a giant hole connecting the North and South Poles. Next May, Hollow Earth researcher Dallas Thompson is planning to travel from the Arctic to the Antarctic by way of the hole.

So far, Thompson says he's received $100 grand in donations -- enough to buy a mini-helicopter that can zip through the hole at 100 miles per hour.

Thompson still needs another $15 grand to pay for the "hole" experience, which he says will include a side trip to a "crystal city" under the Earth and encounters with real-life dinosaurs.

A lot of these theories relate to beliefs in Atlantis, creationism, and / or an advanced civilization which existed thousands of years ago but vanished from the face of the earth -- retreating back into the solar system, drowned in Atlantis, or hiding in the "hollow" Earth. It seems that there was an NBC special on TV in 1996 called "The Mysterious Origins of Man" which related some of these theories.

I found one scientist's attempt to explain how current scientific findings do not agree with these alternative thoughts --

http://www.intersurf.com/~chalcedony/wildside.shtml#link40

These ideas are fun to talk about, but I don't believe they have any basis in fact. There are many things we don't understand, and much to learn, and the use of the scientific method will slowly reveal more to succeeding generations. I'd love to see what the current thoughts will be in 2202 or 2622 -- if mankind is still around.

I shudder to think that in order to be creative I would have to live in turmoil the rest of my life.... -- Margaret

I shudder to think that also, Margaret. I think there's a possible simple way to explain the situation -- when you and other creative people are enjoying happy, comfortable times, there are many directions for your energies to turn -- family, friends, interesting events going on about you, etc. This decreases your FOCUS on your creative writing interest. When difficult times erupt, your FOCUS returns to your writing as a method of dealing with those difficult issues -- (avoiding them, or working through them with your creativity). Now, if that is true, it's just a matter of learning to FOCUS on your writing even when you could be doing other fun things -- like visiting RetouchPRO, etc.

...and I just need to FOCUS on fruits and vegetables instead of ice cream...

CJ - hmmm...a real life journey to the center of the earth. :) I think I will keep my money! 100 grand in donations...wow! If he can get money for that, we should put up a website- "Members of Retouchpro seek Atlantis...need donations!"

I'd love to see what the current thoughts will be in 2202 or 2622 -- if mankind is still around.

I wish I could be around for that as well...although, as you say, there might not be anyone around. There are a few scientists who speculate that the reason programs like SETI have not been successful in finding ET, is that advanced civilizations tend to destroy themselves once they acquire technology like the A-bomb. Hopefully humanity can get through this period without destroying everything...but I have my doubts. (pessimistic mood today)

Margaret
That was a very interesting observation you made between turmoil and creativity. Perhaps when our lives are in turmoil we need to escape and one positive way of doing it is through the imagination. Get below the radar of our conscious mind and let our intuition guide us. Sometimes if it feels right it is right. We (and I'm talking about myself here) get so caught up in all of the "shoulds" in life that we often don't take the time to dowhat those things that brings us the greatest satisfaction. ....at long last I'm really learning to say no and focus on what's important to me.
Greg
Don't you think perhaps the "winds of war" swirlling around us may be contributing to the feeling of unease that I've observed a number of folks are feeling. I've know I've been in an antsy mood the last week. By the way, I was listening to some congressman on tv ( don't remember who) talk about the readiness of the military and if we would ever need a draft again. Anybody know what age men( and I assume woman as well today) would be drafted at if it comes to that?
Paulette

Paulette,

This is from the U. S. Selective Service's website as of today --

"The Selective Service System remains in a standby, caretaker status. On Friday, March 15, 2002, in response to a question about the draft, President Bush stated that "the country shouldn't expect there to be a draft." He also stated that "the volunteer army is working ... and people shouldn't worry about a draft."

It would take legislative action by the Congress and implementation by the President to reinstate a draft in an emergency.

...young men are reminded that they are required by existing Federal law to register with Selective Service within 30 days of their 18th birthday. Late registrations are accepted, but not if a man is 26 years old or older."

IF the draft was re-instated: "For a conventional draft of "untrained" manpower, a man is in the first priority group for a possible draft during the calendar year of his 20th birthday."

"For women to be required to register with Selective Service, Congress would have to amend the law."

CJ
Thanks for the prompt response. As you may have guessed we have a son who we were thinking about.
Paulette

we have a son who we were thinking about.

Understood!

I have a 21 year old nephew, and he affects my feelings about current events also. :)

For all my philosophising about my discontent over the past few days I was no closer to an answer (although all of your insightful responses helped me sort out what I've been feeling)

I spent most of the day with my 81 year old mother and a large group of her contemporaries. Their answer to what might be troubling me?

"You're just bored. You need to take a class, learn something new, learn to play the piano, volunteer, take up dancing, ..."

Accept for the volunteering (my son says that my volunteering would not be good for any organization I chose to help in that way :( ) I know they are right. I've been stagnant for too long.

This discussion has been very interesting and has renewed my interest in the story I was writing. I think I'll go over to the library and see if I can find some of the books that have been mentioned and do some "learning" and see if I can't finish something I started a long time ago.

Take care, Margaret

Originally posted by paulette conlan
Greg
Don't you think perhaps the "winds of war" swirlling around us may be contributing to the feeling of unease that I've observed a number of folks are feeling.

Good point...I had not really thought of that, but you might be right. I know I have been feeling pretty uneasy about recent events...the issue of the draft brings up a whole host of questions. (probably worthy of it's own thread...hint, hint :D ) I really have to question the use of mandatory service in a democracy...if a majority of people oppose a war (Vietnam for instance) how does forcing people to fight make us any different than a dictatorship? ...And if we are fighting a "just" war, why would you need a draft when the number of volunteers would suffice? If the government needed people to go hunt down Bin Laden, I would certainly volunteer...but I think I would have serious doubts about a government forcing people to go fight for oil fields. Besides, the current "war" that we are in requires specialized forces...not your average joe.

Well said, Greg.

I'd start a thread on "what do you think about going to war with Iraq", or "Should we start the draft again", but it's worrisome enough for all of us without arguing about our own personal views relating to issues that are far beyond our power to control -- other than to let our Congressional representatives our opinions.

Our local talk radio was discussing questions relating to the draft, whether to allow women in combat positions, and required military service of all young people (similar to Israel's requirement), and it was interesting listening to career servicement bringing up issues that most of us listeners hadn't known about such as the Navy officer who resigned because he couldn't ever get a support services position due to those positions always being filled by women --- which always left him out in foreign combat area positions. I enjoyed hearing a practical problem being discussed instead of the usual philosophical "women deserve" or "women should never" opinions which just allow the speaker to vent but never change anyone's mind.

I don't know what Chris H. is going to do about this thread -- we haven't always stuck to the subject. Perhaps we'll have to rename it something like his "Regards from the UK" that can allow almost any topic.

(back on topic ;) )
...Well...the new National Geographic has some interesting stuff about Egypt. I just got it today and have not had time to really look at it, but it looks relevant to some of the things discussed here.

CJ - One "Regards from the UK" is all the world can handle!

http://www.unknowncountry.com/news/?id=1959

whole buncha new links on Atlantis. hehehehe

Let's not forget the Sumerians, Babylonians, etc...

Mesopotamia (http://almuhit.phys.uvic.ca/~babul/AstroCourses/P303/mesopotamia.html)

http://www.wsu.edu:8080/~dee/MESO/CONTENT1.HTM

oh i love the sumerians! sooooo interesting...

I must slap CJ firmly on the wrists at this point about 'Regards From'. Its always stuck rigidly to topic and I've never had need to censure its sophisticated and charming contributors.

what happened? what did she do? please please dont hit her.

*throws herself down dramatically, crying

Now you've done it...you awoke the wrath of Pharaoh Chris...a sacrifice may be needed to appease him.

By the way...does anyone have any good info on the Kingdom of Kush? ...In some ways, they seem even more mysterious than the Egyptians.

:bow: Oh, great and glorious moderator

I humbly beg to atone for my suggestion that the "Regards from..." thread ever varies from its straight and noble path!



Ignore the lil' fellow below -- I have no idea where he came from...


:lmao:

I think I detect some mockery here !!


Greg do you mean the Hindu Kush ?

Chris- nope...Southern part of the Nile, near Sudan...also known as Nubia. I've not read much about the culture but I remember it from art history class! link (http://library.thinkquest.org/22845/bronze_age/index.shtml)

CJ - That sort of mockery will not get you a pyramid!

I think you might find more info looking for 'Nubians' on the net.

......if I weren't expecting company at 6! Celebrating the start of autumn here in south Florida. Stayed below 90 today.Made a Shephard's Pie -great comfort food. Excellent recipe-got it online.

Anyway,I want to get into Atlantis,The Mayans,Tibet and how about throwing in Mars for good measure! Oh great overseer of this thread-shall we start another thread and call it something like "the twilight zone'?
Paulette

I can only quote Lord Byron.......


The mind can make substance
and people planets of its own
With beings brighter then have been
and give a breath to forms which can outlive all flesh!!

Fordham University Nubia/Kush links (http://www.fordham.edu/halsall/africa/africasbook.html#Other%20Ancient%20Africa%20Societies)

Univ. of Chicago (http://www-oi.uchicago.edu/OI/PROJ/NUB/NUBX92/NUBX92_brochure.html)

...and the mesoamerican mysteries and art of the Olmec, Mayan...Olmec (http://www.mesoweb.com/olmec/)

Olmecs and pre-Columbian people and their art have always fascinated me -- probably because their location is so much closer -- I just remembered that I would like to see the Museum of Anthropology in Mexico City before I get too old -- anyone here traveled there or to some of the ruins?
http://community-2.webtv.net/Topiltzin-2091/AncientAmericaand/
http://studentweb.tulane.edu/~dhixson/
Arizona State University (http://archaeology.asu.edu/teo/index.php)
Canada's Civilizations website - Maya and Egypt
[/URL]
[URL]http://www.civilization.ca//civil/egypt/egypt_e.html (http://www.civilization.ca//civil/maya/mminteng.html)
Hmmm, looking at all of these links makes me realize that I have forgotten almost all of what I learned (and there's probably been lots of new discoveries to boot), so perhaps I've got some reading to do...

CJ
The friends who visited us last evening just returned from a trip to New Mexico where they explored some cliff dwellings which had been inhabited by a group called the Anazi. The pictures of their dwellings which were in caves carved out of almost sheer vertical cliffs were astonishing.Also they had these ceremonial caves called kivas. I have not been to NM but I would like to go. A few years ago we were in Phoenix and visited a wonderful museum named - named I belive " Heard ". We tried to get up to Sedona but didn't make it. For some odd reason I had a problem with the altitude as were were driving there and had to turn back. I do regret missing it.

I've been to several of the major ruin sites on the Yucatan-way back in the mid 70's just when Cancun opened up. That was when there was nothing there except the ruins. It was extraordinary what they carved out of the jungle.

Have not been to Mexico City. My all time dream place to go to would be Tibet but I don't think it will ever be a possibility for me.

CJ

That quote from Byron was beautiful. I must reread him. For me what it said was that you create your own reality.

Paulette

Paulette, I know you meant to write "Chris" instead of "CJ" regarding the Byron quote -- and I want to make sure that Chris, our beloved moderator, gets all the credit he's due ( -- NOT mocking, just very sincere.... and fearful of the moderator's ability to move/rename a thread -- which could leave us in a very weird place). ;)

Chris, do you really quote Lord Byron without having to look it up? Even if you look it up, I am truly impressed. You frequently have an apt quote from someone I've read only in school

Paulette, the Heard Museum is a wonderful little museum, isn't it! They may still have former Senator Goldwater's Hopi Kachina doll collection on display. I've been to some of the cliff dwellings here in Arizona, but not the New Mexico ones. You've visited there and the Yucatan Peninsula -- wonderful! I need to make up a timetable for me to visit there also. Tibet would be wonderful, but I know I'm not going up that high in the mountains -- I hope you surprise yourself and figure out a way to get there.

The Byron poem was drilled into me at school but I had to consult my trusty Oxford Quotations to get the verse construction correct.

Paulette - The cliff dwellings out here are amazing! I've only seen one so far but the complexity and scale of the structures is fascinating. Bandelier National Monument (http://www.nps.gov/band/) is right down the road from me. Petroglyph Nat. Monument (http://www.nps.gov/petr/index.htm) is next on my list...it's down near Albuquerque.

GC
Yes, Bandlier is where my friends visited. They'll enjoy seeing the link.I couldn't remember the name of the park. Also the name of the inhabitants were the Anasazi. This earth is truly filled with places of fascination.
Chris
My apologies for the incorrect attribution. Like Claire, I was amazed by your command of poetry.

Claire,
I enjoyed seeing a kachina doll collection at the Heard. I had forgotten all about them.Going to look them up online.

Paulette

I'm going on an archeological "dig" into my storage room. If I'm not back in a couple of days, will you please alert the authorities so they can mount a rescue.

Thank you,
Margaret:) :)

hey - what the heck are you doing taking pictures of MY hidey-holes!!??

Ohh, it's YOUR storage room. Okay. Never mind. :D

We'll get the search & rescue dogs ready!




ooooo --- do I see an ancient obelisk in the back...?

Thats the biggest sink plunger I've ever seen !

Originally posted by chris h
Thats the biggest sink plunger I've ever seen !

We do things up big out here in the colonies :D :D

Margaret

Hi all, I just saw an ad for a program about the assassination of King Tut on the Discovery Channel and thought you might be interested.

http://www.exn.ca/Stories/2002/09/23/53.asp

The date and time is for the broadcast in Canada - don't know when it will be aired in the US or elsewhere.

Take care,
Margaret

Margaret
I'll look out for the program. By the way, I saw a report on CNN that the robot used in the Great Pyramid for that tv special located two more undiscovered doors. Apparently one was in the northern shaft and I don't remember where the other one was.When I find the link to the story I'll post it.

Hope that your'e seeing the light of day with your storage room project. Actually I've had ( what I call) my junk room in much more chaotic condition. Here in Florida my laundry room is my designated "junk room" where I can leave a mess when I'm working on some project. In addition to being the catchall for items temporarily(which can stretch to years)in transit, it functions as a sewing room, painting room,woodworking room(minor projects) as well as of course the laundry and ironing(rarely) area. It's really not a large room(also windowless) and I often think about how unwisely we use the space in our house.

Still hitting 90 every afternoon down here with high humidity also. Probably the effect of the hurricanes in the atmosphere. Anyway, being stuck in,I get alot of stuff done that I wouldn't otherwise.

Paulette


:cool:

I was lucky when I ventured into the storage room. I was looking for some sewing supplies and they were in a bin near the front so I didn't have to go too far into the mess.

My laptop has a DVD player on it and I know there is a cable to hook it up to the tv and I'm afraid it's waaaaayyyy in the back. I'm debating whether it's worth digging for or should I just got down to "Krazy Kiley's Electronic Store" and by a DVD player for $50 :D :D

I look forward to hearing more about the robot in the pyramid. I'll take a look too and see if I can find anything.

Take care,
Margaret

Margaret
I bought a DVD player -brand name Apex at Walmart's about a month ago for about $60.I got the recommendation somewhere on the web and since Walmart has a 30 day return policy I figured I'd take a chance. Anyway, it seems to play everything that I've thrown in so far. What I want to do is start putting some slide shows with sound on CD(old family and friends pictures) to send to my kids and friends.Have been trying out a few packages on demo but still haven't found one yet that has everything I want. What I want is a dissolve effect and some control over the sound. Sorta like Ken Burns does with his Civil War programs. But maybe he's doing that with a video though and that's something I don't want to get into again right now. If anyone reading this post has a suggestion please let me know.
Paulette:cool:

I haven't burned any CD's except the straightforward drag the folder over there.

I did buy Roxio Toast when I got these new computers with the burners on them, but it only runs under OSX (on a Mac - there are Window's versions too) and I haven't upgraded to OSX yet, so I haven't tried it out.

People I talked to before I bought it said it was the best.

For the fading effects etc., have you tried plain old Microsoft Powerpoint?? You can include a "free" Powerpoint viewer on the CD just in case those viewing it don't have Powerpoint installed.

Also, Shockwave.com has PhotoJam that makes slide shows. The newest version has music editing and more transitions:

http://www.shockwave.com/sw/content/photojam

Now you've reminded me of one more thing I was going to get busy and do - organize my photos into slide shows - thanks :D :D

Margaret

While we wait for news on the pyramids , may I take the liberty of going offtopic on this thread?

Margaret
I took a look at some of the examples on that link and they appear to be doing what I want to accomplish. One thing that I'll have to find out is if the shows can be burned on a CD. I would assume so but in reading some of the users comments, I'm not certain. Anyway, I'll download the trial and see what happens.Something that I was thinking of doing is making up "pages" in PS like those you see in the scrapbooks which seem to be so popular now. I picked up a magazine called "Memory Makers" and got some good ideas about layout.
Perhaps what I should do first is 1.Decide on the name of the CD eg "My Early Years" 2. Round up the pictures I need and get them on a CD 3.Locate some favorite songs and do likewise . Of course what will happen is that I'll start restoring or embellishing every photo and get totally bogged down.
Paulette

. :(

Good luck on your project. I'm afraid that I'm too easily distracted to make a good job of such a thing.

I will start looking at pictures and come across one that reminds me of something else and I'll be off following up that idea which inevitably reminds me of something else etc. until I'm way off track.

I would think that you should be able to put the PhotoJam albums on CD as long as you include the PhotoJam application with it.

Margaret

Paulette, I just downloaded PhotoJam and started it up. I'm attaching a shot of the splash screen that says in order to publish your albums on CD, you need to buy a key. Sorry about that.

Margaret

I will start looking at pictures and come across one that reminds me of something else and I'll be off following up that idea which inevitably reminds me of something else etc. until I'm way off track. -- Margaret

Glad to know that I'm not the only one who does that (I do it with lots of things, especially while on the net -- use Google to find one thing, find another that looks interesting, and awaaaay I go!) -- see you when we cross paths -- "way off track". ;)