Hornet's Nest In A Car

 

Just Doing What Comes Natural On A Sunday

 

The Best Comic Strip Ever

Calvin and Hobbes is the best comic strip ever. Nothing more needs to be said. Here's some quotes to prove my point:

"Sometimes I think the surest sign that intellegent life exists elsewhere in the universe is that none of it has tried to contact us."

"My parents are the two stupidest people on earth. Just my luck they'd get married and have ME."

"If you don't get a goodnight kiss, you get kafka dreams."

"Before beginning any home-plumbing repair, make sure you possess the proper tools for the job. Check the followng list of handy expletives, and see that you know how to use them."

"Valient Spaceman Spiff is being led away by an alien to be debriefed. Little do they know but he doesn't WEAR briefs."

"I couldn't do my assignment because my parents forgot to pay the gravity bill."

"They can make me do it, but they can't make me do it with dignity."


More to come....

Diane on Wikipedia

 

Daniel Markoya created this from a pic he took when we were dealing with lice in our house.

Emerging Grace

 

This is one of a marvelous set of images and posters about missions and Christian compassion. Check it out here:
http://emerginggrace.blogspot.com/2007/07/more-generous-view.html

It's Official!

 

According to the best podcast on movies in the world, Filmspotting, a majority of critics on the show rated Wall-E as the best movie of 2008! That's good enough for me!

And it really is. Wall-E is about relationships, about enviornmentalism, and about our lazy attitude to let others do our work for us and the consequences of that. The hero is a Chaplainesque robot who bears a strange resemblance to number 2 in Short Circuit, but is so much more charming, so cute, so caring. He falls head over heels with a beautiful robot named Eve, who has a terrible habit of trying to blow poor Wall-E up.

If you haven't seen it, please see it. One of my brothers doesn't care for it, so there is no accounting for taste, but I've seen it three times and liked it better each time.

O Sacred Head Now Wounded

This is one of the most heart-wrenching hymns of all time. Fernando Ortega's version is almost a perfect example of it, although he only sings three verses. Below, I am posting the whole of J.W. Alexander's version of Bernard of Clairvaux's poem.

For more info on the hymn, check out the Wikipedia article.

O sacred Head, now wounded, with grief and shame weighed down,
Now scornfully surrounded with thorns, Thine only crown;
How pale Thou art with anguish, with sore abuse and scorn!
How does that visage languish, which once was bright as morn!


What Thou, my Lord, hast suffered, was all for sinners’ gain;
Mine, mine was the transgression, but Thine the deadly pain.
Lo, here I fall, my Savior! ’Tis I deserve Thy place;
Look on me with Thy favor, vouchsafe to me Thy grace.


Men mock and taunt and jeer Thee, Thou noble countenance,
Though mighty worlds shall fear Thee and flee before Thy glance.
How art thou pale with anguish, with sore abuse and scorn!
How doth Thy visage languish that once was bright as morn!


Now from Thy cheeks has vanished their color once so fair;
From Thy red lips is banished the splendor that was there.
Grim death, with cruel rigor, hath robbed Thee of Thy life;
Thus Thou hast lost Thy vigor, Thy strength in this sad strife.


My burden in Thy Passion, Lord, Thou hast borne for me,
For it was my transgression which brought this woe on Thee.
I cast me down before Thee, wrath were my rightful lot;
Have mercy, I implore Thee; Redeemer, spurn me not!


What language shall I borrow to thank Thee, dearest friend,
For this Thy dying sorrow, Thy pity without end?
O make me Thine forever, and should I fainting be,
Lord, let me never, never outlive my love to Thee.


My Shepherd, now receive me; my Guardian, own me Thine.
Great blessings Thou didst give me, O source of gifts divine.
Thy lips have often fed me with words of truth and love;
Thy Spirit oft hath led me to heavenly joys above.


Here I will stand beside Thee, from Thee I will not part;
O Savior, do not chide me! When breaks Thy loving heart,
When soul and body languish in death’s cold, cruel grasp,
Then, in Thy deepest anguish, Thee in mine arms I’ll clasp.


The joy can never be spoken, above all joys beside,
When in Thy body broken I thus with safety hide.
O Lord of Life, desiring Thy glory now to see,
Beside Thy cross expiring, I’d breathe my soul to Thee.


My Savior, be Thou near me when death is at my door;
Then let Thy presence cheer me, forsake me nevermore!
When soul and body languish, oh, leave me not alone,
But take away mine anguish by virtue of Thine own!


Be Thou my consolation, my shield when I must die;
Remind me of Thy passion when my last hour draws nigh.
Mine eyes shall then behold Thee, upon Thy cross shall dwell,
My heart by faith enfolds Thee. Who dieth thus dies well.

Recent Narnia Movies

I have watched both of the Chronicles of Narnia movies. They are both, in my opinion, disappointing. They have none of the charm of the books, and have invented a lot of unnecessary action.

Of course, my kids love them, but my youngest daughter asks me, "Do you think that these are good movies? They have a lot of killing in them."

Yeah, Mercy. I agree. And the worst is seeing these children involved in war. It may be fantasy warfare, but it is realistic enough to make one nervous for the children in this terrible situation.

Children in war. Of course, this is done regularly around the world. Children are recruited for war in the Middle East, Africa and Latin America regularly. But this is an atrocity, and should be seen as so. It is not children's entertainment.

Is this some secret plot to prepare our children-- especially evangelical children-- to be ready to be soldiers, should the need arise? Perhaps My Chemical Romance is right:

"They're gunna clean up your looks
With all the lies and the books
To make a citizen out of you
Because they sleep with a gun
And keep an eye on you son
So they can watch all the things you do....
They gunna rip up your heads
Your inspiration to shreads:
Another cog in the murder machine
They say, 'Teenagers scare the living sh** out of me'
They could care less, as long as someone will bleed."

Can't trust the kids, so make them ready to be a part of the military to "defend what is good and right"-- right as defined by the current regime.

I'm not really saying that the Narnia movies are about that, but they certainly aren't the Christian allegory Lewis penned.

Good King Wenceslas: The Real Story

Posted in Mental Floss:
http://www.mentalfloss.com/blogs/archives/21293
December 25, 2008 - 1:37 PM By Steven Otfinoski

As far as Christmas carols go, you’ve got three basic archetypes: songs about Jesus, songs about baby Jesus and songs about snowy weather. Then, tossed in with a lovable snowman, is poor King Wenceslas. Because he’s jumbled into this mix, some might walk away thinking the good king existed only in song; but they’d be wrong. Very wrong. With a nation of Czechs still looking to him as their patron saint, it seems that Wenceslas more than made his mark. So, just how “good” was he? And why do we sing about him at Christmas time? Don’t worry, it’s all covered below.

Behind the Music
Wenceslas, or Vaclav, as he was better known, was born around 907 C.E. Strictly speaking, the “good king” wasn’t a king at all, but a prince who presided over Bohemia, the region that eventually became a principal part of Czechoslovakia and more recently the Czech Republic. In addition to the “king” myth, the well-known Christmas carol has perpetuated an image of Wenceslas as a bearded, middle-aged monarch. The truth is he died around age 22.

While Wenceslas was not a king, he was a member of the first royal Bohemian dynasty, the Premysls. The first Premysl on historical record is Duke Borivoy, grandfather of Wenceslas and the first ruler in his pagan land to accept Christianity. Borivoy married the Slav princess Ludmila, who joined her husband in converting to the Christian faith, and together they built the first church in Bohemia. Upon his death Borivoy was succeeded by his two sons, Raislav, Wenceslas’ father, and Spythinev. Young Wenceslas was extremely close to his grandmother, Ludmila, who instilled in him a strong religious faith and gave him a thorough education (a highly unusual opportunity since most aristocrats at the time couldn’t read or write). Raislav died when Wenceslas was 13, and his power-hungry mother, Drahmoira, became regent.

Although probably not a pagan herself, Drahmoira aligned herself with the anti-Christian crowd in Bohemia and separated Ludmila from her son to prevent them from plotting against her. Later she had her mother-in-law strangled, thus making Ludmila one of Bohemia’s first Christian martyrs and a role model for her grandson.
Wenceslas quickly proved his mettle by going up against his mother’s forces and defeating them in one decisive battle. Now the sole ruler of Bohemia, the young prince ended the persecution of Christians, promoted education among his people, and united Bohemia and Moravia into one kingdom. Accordingly, he became known for his kindness to children and the poor, a trait that is central to the Christmas carol.

The Wenceslas Formerly Known as Prince
The Czech nobles didn’t like Wenceslas’ promotion of Christianity, but it was his relationship with Germany that proved to be his undoing. Rather than wait to be attacked by his powerful neighbor, Wenceslas formed an alliance with Henry I, the first Saxon monarch of Germany. According to the alliance, Bohemia would be under German domination but retain much of its independence.

Angered by the alliance, the nobles, who distrusted Germany, began plotting Wenceslas’ death. And, in a Shakespearean twist, they were joined in their plot by the prince’s ambitious brother, Boleslav. There are several versions of how Wenceslas met his end on September 20, 929. One version holds that the scheming Boleslav invited his brother to a religious festival and personally attacked him on the way to church. A more lurid version has Boleslav’s co-conspirators striking the young king down in cold blood as he attended mass.

The dark deed earned Boleslav the fitting epithet “Boleslav the Cruel,” but the murderous brother turned out to be a surprisingly able monarch. His quarrel with Wenceslas must have been more political than religious, for he himself was a Christian, and he (like Wenceslas) did not persecute Christians as his mother had. Boleslav greatly expanded the kingdom of Bohemia, adding parts of Moravia not already in his kingdom, a good bit of Silesia and most of what is today Slovakia. When he died in 967 after a 38-year reign, Boleslav left behind a kingdom geographically similar to what the Czech Republic is today.

As for poor Wenceslas, his untimely death may have been the best thing to happen to him. Perhaps to atone for his act of fratricide, Boleslav had his brother’s bones buried in the church of St.Vitus in Prague. The relics made the church the center of a cult to the Christian martyr and soon Bohemian pilgrims were flocking to the holy site. The celebration of Wenceslas’ life became so prominent that a national holiday was created called Wenceslas’ Feast Day, celebrated for the first time on September 28, 985. Within another generation, he was officially declared Bohemia’s patron saint. His image appeared on coins, and the so-called “Crown of Wenceslas” became, in subsequent centuries, a symbol of the Czech lands and their people. Wenceslas remains a potent symbol of Czech patriotism and independence to this day—not bad for a prince who didn’t make it to his 30s.

Martyr and Child Reunion
So where does the Christmas carol fit into all this? Fast forward about 800 years to London when John Mason Neale, son of an Anglican clergyman, was born in 1818. After being ordained in 1842, chronic poor health prevented Neale from being appointed to a parish. Instead, he was made chief official of Sackville College in 1846. Sackville, despite its name, was not an institute of higher learning but an almshouse that sheltered the poor and underprivileged. Neale took his charge seriously and worked tirelessly to better the lot of the unfortunate. In 1854 he co-founded the Sisterhood of St. Margaret, a religious order whose duty was to nurse the sick. To many Anglicans, this smacked too much of Roman Catholicism, and they accused Neale of being an agent of Rome. He was physically attacked by a crowd at a funeral service and several times was nearly stoned by mobs who also threatened to burn down his house.

But Neale survived the persecution and eventually earned some respect as a church scholar and translator of ancient and medieval hymns from the original Latin and Greek. He also penned original hymns and carols, the most famous being “Good King Wenceslas,” written in 1853. He intended it as a carol for children to instill in them the importance of giving to the unfortunate, and chose Wenceslas as his protagonist because of his reputation as a pious ruler who was kind to the poor.
“Good King Wenceslas,” with its quaint moral lesson of a king who enlists his page to help him bring food, wine and fuel to one of his poorest subjects during a raging storm, was an instant success. The Good Reverend Neale continued to serve the poor himself until his death at age 48 in 1866.

For all its popularity, “Good King Wenceslas” isn’t strictly a Christmas carol. In fact, the story told in the carol takes place on the Feast of Stephen, which falls on December 26, the day after Christmas. However, Stephen, as those of you who are savvy about your saints know, was also the first Christian martyr, which makes the setting of this popular carol grimly appropriate.

Iron Man

Just watched it. It was funny, but isn't it interesting in so many of these action movies that the hero threatens his own life to save a single American, but kills as many non-Americans as he likes, and that's okay?

The Sunrunner

A fictional story by one of the folks who attend Anawim.

Written By: Thomas Paul Patenall II

P.O. Box 3103, Portland, Oregon 97208

E-Mail (thesunrunner@bigfoot.com)
(thomaspatenall@yahoo.com)



ACT I THE REPORTER

It was an extremely hot mid August day. General Logan was having difficulties ignoring the commotion from the front of his mansion. Making as much noise as they possibly could without being arrested was a newly formed coalition group protesting the General's next hunt. The newspapers announced the General was planning to track down and stuff the legendary Beast known as a Sasquatch.

He was angered for letting himself get into this seemingly unavoidable predicament. Leaning over his desk he sneaks a peak through the curtain at the irate crowd as they wielded signs and screamed loud obscenities about hunters. When he sees them he thinks to himself, “this is ridiculous, something has got to be done about this.”

Looking at the angry protesters he experiences a flashback to that dreadful night that started it all… It was a most unforgettable sixtieth birthday party. things were about to happen that would change the future forever. It all started during a tour of the wildlife trophy room in the General’s mansion. Several guests had gathered around his most valuable trophy of all, the Great White Rhinoceros.

The party was planned out to be the biggest and best birthday party he had ever seen. At least that is what his wife had intended. One thing for sure, it turned out to be the most unforgettable one he had ever had. The catering service hired by Mrs. Logan made a mistake, instead of setting up a Champaign bar as requested, they furnished the entire hard liquor menu; everything from Russian vodka to expensive Crown Royal whiskey, along with everything else you could think of. The caterer's bartender could make any drink possible, and made it no secret.

The guest appeared to be enjoying their selves while standing next to the huge white monument; joking and laughing. The Great White Rhino was a publicity grabber. The General led an African expedition in a hunt that received an overwhelming amount of publicity because he had paid an African government over a million to allow him to hunt for one of the members of the endangered species list.

The guest’s were getting louder with their comments about the Rhino and its cost. Suddenly, a guest in a loud intoxicated voice says, “the article about the General in Hunter Life Magazine was a lie.” Needless to say the attention from the room was focused on him. Then he yells out, “Hunter Life Magazine said the General has everything from the forest in this trophy room, so where is his Sasquatch trophy.” Then somebody else yells, “Yea, I read an article that said the General believes Sasquatches really do exist.” The guests were getting carried away with the situation, next thing you know the whole crowd was in all uproar.

Hearing the commotion, the General walks over and says, “Hey people, what's all the ruckus about?” Everybody looks at him and somebody began explaining what was being said. After hearing what was being said, in an obvious drunk voice he says, “If I knew where to find a Sasquatch, I would have a Sasquatch Trophy.”

This comment started even more remarks. He gains control of the crowd and says, “Hey people, back to the bar room.” As they followed him out the door a guest yells, “When you going to get one?” The General laughingly responds, “The next hunt is for a Sasquatch, and it's worth a million dollars to the person who knows where to get one.”

One of the Caterer's that night was a struggling reporter, willing to do anything to get a good story on the General. Any information on the General was always profitable because it always made news across the Country. The next day everything seemed normal. Then one of the maids comes running in with the newspaper and says, “Look, the General’s is in the newspaper again.”

Walking into the room the General says, “what are they saying this time?” She holds up the newspaper to show him his picture and says, “they say your going to hunt for a Sasquatch, and are willing to pay one million dollars to the person who can tell you where to get one.” The General SCREAMS, “What!?! Bring me that paper.”

Looking at the article he remembers the trophy room incident from the night before. Scratching his head he thinks to himself, “what happened? It was just a joke.” The article was insulting in it's comments. It closed by saying his next hunt will probably be for a Leprechaun.

The phone began ringing off the hook. There were column writers wanting an exclusive and Sasquatch and Bigfoot club members demanding him to stop the hunt. The situation started had gotten out of hand. As the days passed after the party, the General realized he was committed to do the hunt or, in the alternative admit that he didn’t believe Sasquatches existed. This was a very difficult decision to make. He decided to go through with the hunt. He could never admit that he was just talking drunk.

He decides to call a press conference. It was held in the trophy room where he stood at a podium answering the reporter’s questions. Several were thrown at him; he prepared a cheat sheet to accommodate every question he thought might be asked. He made an attempt to clean up the damage done from the first article. He once again made the announcement that if there was someone who provides him with the whereabouts of a Sasquatch, they it would be worth one million dollars in cash.

After the press conference he had hoped for this to be the end of it, not a chance. The articles that followed were still making him look ridiculous. The phone kept ringing with false sightings and people from different groups demanding things. One group wants him to quit hunting and let Sasquatches live, the next want to help him hunt for Sasquatches. He couldn’t believe how far out of hand the situation had become.

Flashing back, still peeking through the curtain at the angry protesters a thought crosses his mind, “if it wasn't for that stupid remark at the party.” Then an idea comes to him, “Why should I hunt and kill a Sasquatch to put in the trophy room, why not capture one instead and tell the reporters I’ll keep it in the Tank at the compound.”

He calls another press conference to make the announcement, it went well; the articles took a turn around, his life was slowly but surely getting back to normal. The Coalition group was off his back and no new articles were appearing in the newspapers.

He never believed in a million years that he would actually catch a real live Sasquatch. He just wanted the night from his birthday party to fade off into the sunset of life and write it off as just being one of those things.

As the days passed he set up a toll free number for people to phone in sightings. It actually became fun; the phone kept ringing with people trying to make a million dollars. Some of the things the people were coming up with sounded pretty ridiculous, others were sounding quite sincere about seeing Sasquatches, but as it turned out, none of them actually did. One day the phone rang and Mr. Tanner answered it. Immediately he jumps to his feet and runs out of the room.


ACT II THE TRAITOR

It was a normal day that had started out like any other; everyone except Mr. Tanner was in the mansion bar. This particular location of the mansion had somehow ended up being the place where they worked on the Sasquatch project. It looked like a scene from a mission impossible episode with all the high tech gadgetry, the walls covered with aerial maps of supposed sightings; tables with satellite relay monitors. On the back wall was a radar map covering Northern America. Each sighting was marked; everyday calls were coming in.

The General truly believed in his heart that they would never really get a Sasquatch; but after everything that had happened, he thought it would be best to play it out all the way. During the times they would discuss the daily sightings it would always be done with a bit of humor in the air; under the circumstances, how else could it be done.

All of a sudden, rushing into the rooms comes Mr. Tanner yelling, “this is it, we have a Sasquatch.” Holding a videotape he yells, “I've got him on tape as proof.” For a moment the room went completely silent. Then, the General in a loud voice yells, “you've what! You have one on tape as proof?” Mr. Tanner in an equally loud voice yells, “yes, I have one on tape and there is someone who will tell us where to find him.”

For a brief moment it went silent, then, all of them started asking questions. Mr. Tanner yells, “hey, let's watch the tape and you will all know what I know.” He starts the tape. While watching the video several thoughts were running though the General's mind. He thought, “this is evidence that Sasquatches really do exist, and it is far more believable than the famous film Roger Patterson took back in 67, this is too good to be true.”

For a moment he became obsessed with the idea of getting world recognition for being the one and only man to ever capture a real live Sasquatch, and ultimately being the one who would end one of the world's most controversial mysteries of all time. He speaks up, “this has got to work, we have lots of planning ahead of us, and until this is done, nobody is to know anything about any of this.” The men all agreed that it would be best for them to keep everything quiet.

The General stayed up late thinking about what was going to happen when he finally catches the Sasquatch. What he once believed would be totally impossible was now becoming a reality; he knew it would be a dream come true. It would make the night of his birthday party and all the problems that followed it look like a well-planned publicity stunt; he had before him an opportunity of a lifetime.

The following day they held a meeting, everyone except Mr. Tanner was there. He was bringing the man who gave him the tape. Within minutes they walked in and he was introduced as Hark. After the introductions they played the tape. Hark explained it as it played. The General studied him as he spoke. He appeared to be uneasy about the situation and what he was doing; it was almost as if he was selling his own soul. He was extremely concerned whether or not the Sasquatch would be kept alive. He speaks up and says, “The news say you want to catch one, not kill one? If this is true, we can deal.”

To ease his mind, the General decided to show him exactly where it would be they would be keeping the Giant. He tells Mr. Jessup fire-up the helicopter. Within minutes they were in the air. At the Compound the General gave Hark the royal tour. He asked Dr. Burlow to explain everything about the Tank and how it worked.

The General and Hark were inside the Tank; over the speaker they could hear Dr. Burlow working the controls from the glassed ill observation deck. Over the loud speaker, Dr. Burlow explained how the Tank worked, saying things before they would happen, you could hear him say, “this is how we simulate a storm here at the Compound.” Then it started to rain with lighting and thunder; it was like a storm broke out.

Hark was all to impressed on how true to life the weather simulation in the Tank actually was. The General said while standing there with his umbrella says, “we have spared no expense in creating a suitable wildlife environment for our future guest here at the Compound.” Hark told the General he was ready to talk about the terms.

They all gathered in the main observation deck. Hark hands Mr. Tanner an envelope and says, “these are my terms, they are not negotiable, please talk them over,” and walks out of the observation deck and can be seen over the security cameras walking into the Tank.

Mr. Tanner opens the envelope and begins to read what Hark had written out for the deal. It said he would only do it under certain circumstances. The first thing he listed was that absolutely no harm was to come to the Giant. Second, and most important of all, they would have to agree to return him six months after he is captured.

As soon as the men heard it, they started yelling back and forth saying, “this is nuts, he expects one million dollars for a Sasquatch and wants us to return it six months later.” The General listened while the men made comments. After a while he interrupts and says, “this is perfect.” The men all looked at him with a surprised look.

Then Professor Bruner speaks up and says, “What do you mean Sir?” He responds, “It's perfect, think about it, we will undoubtedly have a new coalition group telling us to free him anyway, and what we really wanted to accomplish in the first place is the fact that we said we would do something, and we did it, think about it Gentlemen, this is perfect.”

The General called Hark over the loud speaker and asked him to return to the observation deck. When he walked in the General told him that they agree with his terms. Mr. Jessup flew them back to the mansion. Back at the mansion they gathered in the bar to finish the meeting.

Hark explained to the men that the Sharmota Reservation has a Sasquatch living within its borders. He told them the Sasquatch they had seen is known by the Indians as the Sunrunner. He went on to explain that the Sunrunner makes an appearance once every eight weeks during what is called the “Sunrunner Festival.”

He told them of a woman named Antler who is the Reservation security manager, and that she owns the Reservation casino. He said that Reservation security is taken very serious to protect the secrets of the Sunrunner. He was asked why the Sunrunner is called the Sunrunner, he responds, “because when he does his run, it is done in the sunset hour.”

The General listened while he spoke. It was apparent to him why he seemed like a man selling his own soul. According to Hark the Indians gather in the village of Tangar. It is there where they worship this giant of a creature once every eight weeks as he passes the village at a full run. He spoke as if the Sunrunner is some kind of God to the Indians.

He said he would inform them when the Sunrunner was getting ready to make his run. A few days past when he finally called and said, “it's time for the Sunrunner festival.”


ACT III THE IMPOSSIBLE ONE

(Round One)

The journey to the Sharmota seemed an endless one. As part of the plan they would enter through the north end of the reservation where according to Hark, security is weak. They wanted to cross over reservation territory undetected. Once they reached the location no time was wasted gearing up the horses.

Using a map as guidance they started the long ride. The trip through the reservation trails would take them over three hours. As planned they met up with Hark who informed them the Indians were preparing for the Sunrunners run and time was crucial.

At top speed the men rode to a place beside the river where Hark said would be the best place for them to wait for the Sunrunner to run by. When they arrived the General gave Mr. Tanner and Mr. Miller instructions to scout the trails. Mr. Tanner followed the trail towards the Ocean; Mr. Miller headed the other direction towards the village.

Shortly they both returned, Mr. Miller reports, “the Indians are is just over the crest about a mile away.” Mr. Tanner reports, “the trail towards the Ocean has one way in and one way out;” the General asks, “the end of the trail, is it the way Hark described it?” Mr. Tanner, “yes, the cliffs are well over five hundred feet above where the Sharmota drains into the Pacific, there is no place for him to go when he goes there.”

While they were positioning for what they believed would be a long and tiring wait to actually see this spectacular event, the horses began to get spooked as if a storm was coming. The men all looked towards the village of Tangar where they could hear the loud steady beat from the Indians drums in celebration. By the intensity of the sound of the drums they were obviously at the peak of the event.

Suddenly, like a bolt of lighting and as big as life come the Sunrunner moving ever so fast. In a split second he flies by the men who were standing there momentarily in a state of shock. Mr. Tanner yells out, “my God, did you see that?” Dr. Burlow yells, “I’ve never seen anything move like that in my life, he must have been doing over a hundred miles an hour.” The General yells, “let's get him.” Quickly the men mounted and were after the fast moving Giant who was wasting no time.

At a full gallop the General yells, “he's rounding the bend were going to lose him!” As he rounded the bend they lost sight of him. They thought that that was it they had lost him for sure. When they rounded the bend they were startled to see him in the distance sitting on a log. Mr. Tanner yells, “what the heck?” It was obvious by the way he was sitting and looking at them that he was waiting there for them. Then, suddenly, as graceful as could, he was once again, gone! The men couldn't believe their eyes.

Moving swiftly along the trail and still a distance behind the fast moving Sunrunner, Mr. Tanner yells out in an exhausted voice, “we're almost to the end of the trail, there's no place for him to go from there, this is it we have him trapped at the cliff.” Still in the distance, the Sunrunner rounded the last bend falling out of sight. While the men cleared the last bend several thoughts were running through their minds on what to expect. The General yells out as they were rounding the bend, “Prepare to shoot.” While riding at full speed they pulled their full impact tranquilizer rifles and were in the firing position.

But unfortunately for the men, as quick as he arrived he disappeared even quicker. There was no sight of him at all. They all looked around for a moment in silent thought. Finally Mr. Tanner speaks up, “what now, the thing must be able to fly.” The General started asking questions, “Where could he have gone?” Dr. Burlow responds, “There is something we missed.” The General snaps back, “we covered everything, this creature is going to prove to be the most impossible one yet.”

They were all looking at each other for answers but not a one of them had one? Mr. Miller thinking out loud, “this just don't make sense, nowhere for him to go but yet he's gone.” He started getting even louder with his thoughts and climbs off his horse and walks over to the cliff overlooking the Ocean. Looking down at the shore through a pair of zoom lens Binoculars he says, “there's nothing down there floating in the water, this just don't make sense.” The General yells out, “mount up, lets get out of here.”

As they started back down the trail, out of nowhere riding fast directly towards them came Antler with several of her braves. She immediately demands explanation as to why they are on Indian land. The General responds, “We're scouting for Bears.” Antler shouts back, “not in the Indian territories your not, leave here at once and never return.”

The General apologized for their (supposed) mistake, and started riding at a slow gallop. A distance down the trail they crossed over the valley of the winds bridge. Which was the way leading off the reservation. From there it is three miles to reservations border.

Antler followed close behind them to the bridge. After they crossed over the bridge the alarm on her belt went off. They followed behind them about two hundred yards back as they were leaving reservation territory. As they were riding along Dr. Burlow says to the General, “do you think she believed the Bear story?” The General responds, “no, not for a minute, just be glad were making it out of here without a fight.”

As Antler was following them down the road, one of the braves says, “how did they cross over the bridge without you knowing it in the first place?” Antler says, “They obviously didn't come this way.” The brave says, “How could this be, that don’t make any sense.” Antler responds in an angered voice, “it is possible they were here to hunt for the Sunrunner, if this is true there must be a traitor among us.” The braves looked at each other with surprise and not knowing what to say or think.

Back at the mansion the men were waiting for Mr. Tanner who was bringing Hark. When they arrived he was asked several questions about the Sunrunner. He told them the Sunrunner is a mystery to the Indians. He said, “Antler knows more about the Sunrunner than anyone on the Reservation, many times we have tried to follow him and the same thing happens every time, at the cliffs edge he disappears into thin air, he is and has always been a complete mystery to our people.”

After talking to Hark they came to the conclusion that the Indian's absolutely without a doubt believe the Sunrunner to be a spirit, and that nobody could ever catch him. When the meeting was over Hark returned to the Reservation, he said he would signal them when it's time for the next Sunrunner festival.

(Round Two)

Eight weeks past when they finally received word the Sunrunner festival was two days out. The General added some additional help to the Team; he asked a couple named Jim and Alice Nicholas to go to the Casino and keep them informed. They have worked with the Team before and the General knew he could count on them.

To make this work everything was re-planned. Back in position on the Reservation time was passing slowly, two days went by and still no sign of the Sunrunner. Just about the time they were ready to call it quits and break camp, Mr. Tanner radios the General and says, “He's moving fast heading your way, get ready.”

The men moved as fast as they could to saddle the horses, but it was too late. Moving ever so fast the Sunrunner past the hidden camp, within seconds the men were saddled and after him. This time when they reached the end of the trails it was the same as last time, no Sunrunner in sight and no possible place for him to go, but yet he was gone.

Everyone except Mr. Tanner was at the end of the trail sitting on the horses trying to figure out where the Sunrunner had gone. Riding up fast Mr. Tanner says, “Where is he?” Dr. Burlow responds, “It happened again, he disappeared into thin air.” Mr. Tanner says, “What, he's two hours early this time and we still missed him, he must be a spirit.”

Moments later Mr. Tanner gets off his horse and walks over towards the cliffs edge overlooking the mighty Sharmota where it drains into the Pacific. He picks up a rock and throws it. As he watches the rock fall downward he imagines himself doing a parachute jump of the cliff because of its staggering height above the rocky shores below.

When the rock hit the water it broke his concentration. At that instant he spots what believes to be a small Whale making it's way into the mouth of the Sharmota. Then he thinks out loud, “That's fresh water little Whale, you cannot survive there.” Then it hit him, “That's no Whale, That's the Sunrunner.”

He screams out, “There he is, he's down there swimming in the river.” The men jump off the horses and run over to the edge almost falling off. Mr. Miller says, “There's nothing down there.” The General yells out, “Yes, I can see him.”

Within seconds they all could see him. Professor Bruner focused his video camera on the swift moving Sunrunner. As he was swimming along directly below him you could see his silhouette moving along with him in perfect harmony. A few seconds later he swam into the shadows and could no longer be seen.

(Round Three)

Back at the mansion they were viewing the video and planning the next move when the General speaks up and says, “We need a boat to catch him?” Suggestions started flying back and forth and he speaks up, “Captain Stewart is our man, we need him and his boat.” The General asked Mr. Tanner to arrange to have Captain Stewart come to the mansion so they could make the plans to capture the Sunrunner.

When Captain Stewart arrived he was impressed with all the high tech equipment and the appearance of the mansion bar. He jokingly said it looked like a cross between a cocktail lounge and FBI headquarters. The General explained everything to him except the location. He was willing to take the job for the right price.

He wanted to be paid two hundred and fifty thousand, or suggested they find another boat. The General agreed to pay because Captain Stewart's boat is the only boat that would stand half a chance in battling the swift and deadly current from the mighty Sharmota as it drains into the mighty Pacific Ocean.

Several days passed when Hark informed the men it was once again Sunrunner festival time. The men were on the move again. They felt confident they would get him this time for sure. Everything was precision planned to assure the success of the capture. The men were positioned in different locations.

Mr. Tanner and Mr. Miller were on the Reservation. They would follow the Sunrunner to the cliffs. The General had positioned himself in a crow’s nest setting on the opposite side of the mouth of the River. The rest of the men were aboard Captain Stewart's boat.

Mr. Miller came over the radio sounding the alarm, “He’ heading your way General, we are not far behind him.” The General screams into his radio, “Get ready men.” A few moments later the Sunrunner reached the cliffs. Little did the men know they were in for the cliff diving show of their lives?

When the Sunrunner reached the end of the trail, it was one of the most spectacular exhibitions of athletic skill ever witnessed by man. The Sunrunner went into a dive formation and sailed off the staggering heights of the cliffs like Superman. The men couldn’t believe their eyes.

All the men started screaming. Somebody yells, “Did you see that?” Someone else yells, “That's unbelievable.” They were all amazed at the spectacular performance delivered by the Sunrunner. They watched while he made a perfect splashdown.

The General could be heard loud over the radio making his commands, “Burlow, ready the net, Stewart, get your men into position.” His cellular phone rang; it was Mr. Dunbar saying, “Antler is on the move.” The General screams into his radio, “Tanner, you and Miller get out of there fast, Antler is in route to your position.”

The Sun runner’s dive was perfect. The moment he went underwater Captain Stewart’s men had him on radar. As he made his way into the mouth of the Sharmota River, Dr. Burlow fired the cannon net. It landed in a perfect circle on the surface of the water above the fast swimming giant; the weight from the net sunk it fast. Quickly it wrapped around the Sunrunner, who was not in the mood for fishing games

On the boat one of Captain Stewart's men yelled, “He's in the net.” Everything was going according to plan; then the cables connecting to the net suddenly went tight. Dr. Burlow yells, “Turn the cable motor on.” The General yells over the radio, “The moment he clears the water shoot him with the tranquilizer darts.”

Professor Bruner and Mr. Jessup prepared to shoot, without warning they were thrown of balance. The cable motor stopped and started to smoke. One of Captain Stewart's men screamed, “What happened?” Right then, the boat tilted to a forty-five degree angle and was quickly being towed directly into the shallow rocky waters.

Everybody aboard the boat went into a scramble. Captain Stewart screamed, “Cut the lines before we bottom out.” General Logan sees one of Captain Stewart's men preparing to cut the line and screams into his radio, “Don't cut those lines.” Too late, the lines were cut and the Boat immediately went back into an upright position.

The General could be heard screaming loudly over the radio, “You cowards.” For a few short moments it went silent. Then you could hear him over the radio saying, ‘Captain Stewart get that boat out of here before Antler shows up.” The motor could be heard revving up while in a spin around taking off.

The General came over the radio yelling, “Tanner, Miller dig in, Antler will be along within four minutes.” Moments later Antler arrived, she and her braves dismounted at the cliffs. Antler walks to the edge and pulls out her telescope then looks and spots the fast moving boat as it was heading out to Sea.

General Logan on the opposite side of the River was dug in camouflaged and unable to be seen by Antler and her braves. Mr. Tanner and Mr. Miller headed north into the brush and laid their horses down and covered their tracks.

Antler braves scouted the area and found the horse tracks coming to an end. It seemed like hours passed before Antler and her braves headed back down the trail, a half hour later. Dunbar notified the General. Mr. Jessup flew in and picked them up.

(Round Four)

Back at the mansion the men were waiting to find out what the General's next move would be. The General walked in and sat in his favorite spot. He starred directly into the fire that was burning in the fireplace for the longest time. The men wanted to say something to him but not a one could find the words.

After what seemed like half the night he began to speak, “perhaps this was not meant to be.” The men all looked at him in puzzlement. Dr. Burlow speaks up and says, “Please General, and explain what you mean?” The General looked at him and said, “we have been beaten, he has won, it's time we realize the truth.” The men sat there not knowing what to say. Professor Bruner picked up the remote and turned on the television, one of the stations he turned to happen to be a special focusing on hunters.

The men all watched without expression. Then the General's and his Teams faces appeared and they started talking about the million dollars for the Sasquatch and the money spent for capturing the great white Rhinoceros from the African expedition. Professor Bruner picked up the remote and started changing the channel. The General yells, “What did you do that for? Put it back!”

They watched as the show took a twist from a serious side and started making jokes. The General became furious when the program began joking about the Sasquatch ordeal, he says, “they haven't got a clue.” He sat there listening. Finally, he pulls out his pistol and shoots the television set. A moment later he says, “were going to get him, were are not going to fail this time, lets get him.” The men looked at each other and smiled.

A few weeks passed and they finally heard from Hark saying it was time for the Sunrunner festival. The men were fast in getting into position. Again, same as last time he made a perfect dive. This time the General was not playing. The moment he cleared the cliffs he was shot several times with high power tranquilizer darts.

He hit the water hard; quickly he was loaded aboard the boat. Captain Stewart's men were all scared to death he would regain consciousness. Dr. Burlow checked his vital signs. The boat was fast in route heading towards the pier. The capture was a success.

When they arrived at the pier a semi truck was waiting. The men loaded the Sunrunner into the trailer and locked the doors. Within minutes the truck drivers arrived and started the journey to the Compound.


ACT IV THE COMPOUND

Rolling along through rush hour traffic, the truck was right on schedule. The drivers hadn’t a clue the cargo they were carrying was a sleeping Sasquatch. Suddenly, out of nowhere comes a car driving recklessly. When it pulled beside the truck the driver was forced to swerve to avoid a collision. The sudden movement woke the Sunrunner.

The moment he gained consciousness he broke loose from his restraints. Angrily he stands to his feet and when he realized where he was, or rather where he wasn’t, he went completely berserk and started smashing the walls on the inside of the trailer.

Immediately the truck driver lost control and the truck flipped onto it's side and started sliding. Several vehicles smashed into each other and the truck. It was a twenty three-vehicle pile-up. The highway looked like a wrecking yard.

One of the vehicles caught in the traffic jam was news-van; the reporters jumped out and started filming the wreck. When the smoke cleared the back doors of the truck trailer could be clearly seen. The people standing around on the roadway didn't have a clue that they were in for a show of a lifetime, one they would never forget.

Suddenly, the back doors of the trailer come flying off sailing through the air and out steps the Sunrunner. Immediately the news cameras zoomed in on him. When the people seen an eight foot Giant step out of the trailer they couldn’t believe their eyes. Some were terrified; others were excited.

When the news team realized what they were filming was a real live Sasquatch, they pre-empted regular programming. The General sitting at home relaxing in the mansion’s bar saw the newsbreak and nearly had a heart attack. In a panic he calls Mr. Jessup and says, “He’s escaped, fire-up the helicopter.” Mr. Jessup responds, “It's running now General, we saw the news, we're preparing for take off.” Within minutes they were in the air.

When the Sunrunner jumped from back of the truck he landed on the hood of a car. From there he looked around for a moment at all the people; then jumped from car to car while people inside them were screaming in fear. Then he hopped over a fence and ran up into the woods. The people standing around in the middle of the wreck couldn’t believe what they had witnessed. Everybody except Mr. Tanner and Dr Burlow were aboard the helicopter. The General told Professor Bruner to set up the tracking monitor, which would hopefully detect the tracking device they put on him.

A storm had broken out and was getting worse by the minute. When the men flew into the area Professor Bruner picked up the Sunrunners signal. They were close to the location specified on the monitor, they were geared down and ready to re-capture him. They touched down a short distance from the signal; they were armed with their full impact tranquilizer rifles. As they neared the signal it was obvious he was hiding. The signal was coming from a clump of bushes.

The General ordered the men to shoot into the bushes. After several shots were fired the Sunrunner came out screaming made, he walked a few feet and fell to the ground knocked out cold. The General commands, “Load him in, lets go.” The unconscious Sunrunner was carried into the helicopter.

The moment they became airborne Mr. Jessup was having difficulties maneuvering in the storm, visibility was poor; he was relying completely on his instrument gauges for guidance. The rain and the wind were unbearably fierce. The General was unable to make radio contact with the Compound.

At the Compound, Mr. Tanner had his hands full restoring the power that was knocked out compliments of the storm; he estimated full power restoration within ten minutes. Dr. Burlow received a radio message from the General saying they were twelve minutes out and to prepare the landing pad.

The men worked hard and managed to restore the power. The lights on the landing pad were damaged from flying debris. With the helicopter seconds out they grabbed a box of flares and lit them around the landing pad to simulate landing lights.

They could hear sounds from the helicopter battling the storm in the distance. Arriving above, the fierce wind sent them into a spiral. Mr. Jessup regained control and was able to land. The General yelled out the orders to quickly move the Sunrunner before he awakes. The men placed the giant onto a cart and moved him into the Tank where he was left strapped to the cart until Tank Security was cleared.

Everyone had gathered in the main observation deck. Dr. Burlow was adjusting the controls to better simulate the environment to accommodate the Sunrunner, he had adjusted the lighting and heat and was working on the airflow to provide him with proper air ventilation; they wanted him to be as comfortable as possible.

General Logan was preparing to open a bottle of expensive Champaign in celebration of a capture that had earned the title of being called the most difficult one ever. The Sunrunner regained consciousness and realized he was strapped down. He became furious and started to struggle, the straps broke as if they were made of paper. Dr. Burlow yells out, “He's loose.” Mr. Tanner responds, “It's okay, you know the Tank will hold him without a problem.”

The men felt secure in the observation deck, they had designed and built the Tank and were confident that it could hold anything, even ‘King Kong’ they joked. Confidently they stood there watching the Sunrunner as they were having the Champagne.

As before he started going berserk, he picked up rocks and was throwing them everywhere, some at the observation deck which just bounced off. He pulled trees up from the roots and threw them. He was in a rage and totally out of control; you could hear the anger in his voice.

The General made the command to send in the tranquilizer-pod before the Tank sustained any more damage, the tranquilizer-pod looks similar to R2D2 and was specially designed to enter the Tank and tranquilize whatever the problem might be. By remote Dr. Burlow sent the pod in and shot two darts directly into the Sunrunners chest, both a direct hit. Unfortunately they didn’t faze him. Two more were fired; these too didn't faze him.

He climbs a tree as the pod maneuvered below him; he jumps down and angrily grabs it and starts breaking the exterior parts from the frame. Screaming loud he lifts it above his head and throws it sailing threw the air shattering the observation deck glass.

From the inside the men watched the glass explode into a million pieces. The moment the glass broke it enabled the Sunrunner to see the men inside. Immediately he runs to area below the front of it and climbs up a tree. The men watched as he reached the same level as they were and then jumped threw the opening of the deck.

The men were face to face with an outraged and extremely violent Sunrunner. Quickly they drew their weapons and were preparing to shoot. As the angered Sunrunner walked towards them, the General yells, “No wait.” At that instant, he fell to the ground knocked out cold. The men looked at each other with disbelief, they were amazed at what had taken place. The General gave the command to clean the mess up and to put the Sunrunner into the containment booth.

The next day everything was under control; the window replaced, glass cleaned up. They placed the giant overnight in the containment booth. He was kept sedated until they were able to weld electro shock leg and wrist restrainers on him. The General decided to have a press conference at the Compound. Dr. Burlow said he thought it was too soon but the General insisted on telling the world about his new living trophy.

He had waited a long time for this day. The team worked hard all night to prepare for what they suspected to be the worst. Dr. Burlow suggested they enter the Tank with extreme caution while they were fixing the damage caused during the Sunrunners attempt to escape. The inside of the Tank had sustained severe damage. Trees were snapped in half, the sprinkler system for rain simulation was damaged; there were minor electrical problems. The damage took some time to fix.

The General made the arrangements for his long awaited and well-deserved press conference. He had the Compound lobby prepared for the event. It was the best location in the building for such an event. Across from the lobby entrance is a staircase with five steps up to a wall, then steps on the left and right. This would be the location for the podium. Behind where he would be standing would be a large screen television to use as the first introduction.

They wondered what was going on in his mind while they were working fixing the damage done to the Tank. The men were working on the sprinkler system while the Sunrunner sat on a rock and starred at them without expression, it gave them an eerie feeling. As a finishing touch the men brought in an assortment of food. They hoped he would eat; if he does, it could mean acceptance to the new environment. They didn't know if he was a meat eater or a vegetarian. The Sunrunner wouldn’t eat anything he just sat there motionless.

The General prepared for any possible question he thought would come his way from the bloodthirsty reporters. He was dressed in his best tuxedo. Mrs. Logan had prepared food and drink for the conference goers. As it started the General was only asked a couple of questions, both were answered with full confidence. A period of time elapsed without any questions being asked.

The reporters could be heard whispering back and fourth. Standing up against the wall and tired of the silence, Mr. Miller yells out, “Why aren't you reporters asking some of your stupid questions?” The reporters all looked at him with a sudden sigh of embarrassment. Then he hits them with another remark, “What, are you all too stupid to even find out why you are here?”

Then, from the out of the reporters came a voice saying, “General Logan, why have you called us here?” The General says, “I thought you would never ask.’ Right then the room burst out into laughter, suddenly the tension in the lobby lifted. The General with a proud look says, “Today is the day, on this day a mystery to man comes to an end.”

He steps to the side of the big screen and turns it on by remote and says, “Ladies and Gentlemen of the press allow, us the opportunity to introduce you to the world's first ever in captivity Legendary Beast known as a Sasquatch.” The screen came into focus and right there as plain as day was a real live Sasquatch. The reporters immediately jump to their feet and started shouting out questions, “Is he real? Where did you get him? Can we see him in real life?”

The reporters couldn't believe their eyes; they kept snapping photos and asking questions. The General says, “Follow me.” They followed him past the big screen television and up the steps; they all took a close look as they passed the screen. Walking to the top of the steps around the corner into a big room with a glass wall overlooking an inside forest.

The General says, “There he is, don't worry, he cannot see us.” The moment he made the comment the Sunrunner jumped to his feet and walks over to the window and starred directly into the glass while the reporters stood watching from the other side. This shocked even the General. Dr. Burlow calls the General and suggested for him to end the observation room tour just in case the Sunrunner goes berserk.

The General agreed and started them back out the door. One of the reporters shouts out, “what are those things on his wrists and legs for?” The General responds, “it was to transport him, now he won't let us in to remove them.” Another reporter shouts, “Where's he from?” The General politely responds, “That information is classified”

That night the General had a celebration at his mansion. He invited guests from everywhere. What had taken place had made worldwide news. It was being billed the biggest thing since the landing on the moon in 1969. Compliments were coming in from everywhere. The phone rang off the hook, everybody from coalition groups thanking him for not killing the beast to people willing to pay millions of dollars for the Giant. The General couldn't be more pleased with all the publicity. Just when you think things are perfect and nothing could go wrong, something comes along and proves you wrong.

ACT V THE RESCUE

The day after the press conference Dr. Burlow and Mr. Tanner were working when the phone rang, it was the main security gate located in the front of the compound. The guard informed them there were two Global agents demanding to see General Logan. Dr. Burlow called the General who said, “Keep them out, and don’t make any moves until I get there.” Mr. Jessup immediately flew the General to the compound.

When the General arrived he walked in and asked, “What does Global International Security want with us?” Both agents walk over to him and one of them says, “It's not you we want, it’s the creature you have inside the compound that is of Global interest.” The General speaks up and says, “This is private property and you Gentlemen are being asked to leave.”

One of the agents reaches into his suit pocket and pulls out a paper and hands it to the General and says, “You don't understand General Logan, someone is leaving and it's not us, you have thirty minutes from the service of this paper to evacuate.” The General says, “Why are you doing this?” One of the agents answers, “The creature is a mystery, which means he is a threat to Global Security, he will be examined though an autopsy to reveal his mysterious for the better of mankind, then he will most likely be destroyed.”

The General was furious; he instructed the men to not cause a scene. He wanted to deal with the situation from the top. Back at the mansion he was on the phone with the secretary of defense who said he would he look into the situation and let them know within the hour. This made the General feel somewhat at ease; he figured if anybody could help it would be the secretary of defense, after all, it was a security issue.

The men were all standing around in the mansion bar saying, “If Global Security kills the Sunrunner, and his blood will be on our hands.” The thought of that troubled the General. The men kept talking saying that after everything that has happened that they have grown respect for the Sunrunner and were willing to do anything to prevent his execution.

The phone rang; it was the secretary of defense. He said that regrettably he was unable to find anything out. He said, “Its even worse than you thought.” He went on to explain that he couldn't find out anything more than is already known, he said, “GIS has the lid tight on this one, nobody can penetrate global security computers without raising flags.”

The General stayed awake all night trying to figure out a way to save the Sunrunner. The next day he was in the Bar at the back table when the men walked in. They stood in front of him noticing a never seen before look on his face. He speaks up and says, “We are getting him back.” Professor Bruner says, “How, with GIS guarding his every move it's impossible.” The men talked back and forth with the General, Dr. Burlow says, “Even if we make it past our own security into the tank, I don't think the Sunrunner will think we are there to help him escape, it's ridiculous.”

The General jumps to his feet and yells, “There's got to be a way, if anybody could do it it's us.” The men were not offering the idea much support; this angered the General even more. He walks up to each of the men saying something regarding the past, he especially fired into Mr. Tanner saying, “You were nothing when I brought you in, you owe me, and I never thought I would have to say that.” He listened to Mr. Tanner say, “The Sunrunner is carrying the biggest can of whoop-ass I have ever seen, I hardly think he will just let us waltz into the tank and help him get out, let's be realistic.”

The General blew his stack telling the men to get out and to not bother coming back; he said he was going to create a new million dollar team, he said the next team will not be a bunch of cowards. The men walked out feeling bewildered; they were all trying to figure out a way to help the Sunrunner and earn back the General's respect.

In the driveway outside the mansion Mr. Tanner stops before getting into his jeep and says, “I need my tools,” then walks back into the mansion. The other men were standing there trying to figure out what to do when Dr. Barlow speaks up and says, “I need my maps.” Then walks back into the mansion.

Mr. Jessup says, “Need my flying gear.” Then walks back in. Professor Bruner and Mr. Miller looked at each other knowing what the other men were doing then Professor Bruner says, “Well Bill, let's go back to work.” By the time they walked into the Bar, everybody was on their feet working, the General says, “Welcome Back Gentlemen.”

The General knew his options were limited; he would only have one chance in saving the Sunrunner from sure death at the hands of Global Security. He knew they world have to come up with something real good to make it work. The men spent the entire night hoping to figure out a way to save the Sunrunners life; they didn't say much to each other, they were all in deep serious thought.

During the evening the secretary of defense called and said he was able to find out that they were not moving him for two days, he said it was something to do with transporting him because they did not want to fly him.

They were gathered in the bar Mr. Tanner walked in with a smile on his face and says, “I think I've got it.” All the men looked at him with a sign if relief. He was carrying Architectural designs of the compound. He spread them across the table and with full confidence and went into his plan.

He says, “If you remember right, the compound was once a chemical warehouse, they were using underground piping for disposal, the piping went to a well a half mile from the Compound?” The General speaks up and says, “That's right, that's what shut them down, because of all the environmental pollution.” Mr. Tanner says, “That's right Sir.”

Mr. Tanner explained his plan in detail to the men, the General speaks up and says, “This plan is excellent, I knew you wouldn’t let me down.” All the men agreed the plan would work except for… One of them +said, “What about the Sunrunner, you remember what you said about the biggest can of whoop-ass you ever seen, what about that?”

He responds, “I'm glad you brought that up.” They all looked at him in puzzlement. Right then he looks at the General and says, “Naturally we would have a problem going into the tank but do you remember what Hark said about the Sunrunner and Antler? We need her help to make this work.” The men all looked at each other and started to smile.

The General wasn't pleased with the idea of having to somehow get Antler's help, but he knew it was the only way to save the Sunrunners life. Mr. Tanner called Mr. Dunbar and requested lie requested the status at Reservation. He said, “It's as wild as could be, the Indians are totally out of control, it’s been a madhouse since they saw the news.”

The General Commands Mr. Jessup to fire-up the helicopter. The men all looked at him wondering what was up; he wouldn’t tell them. Within minutes they were in the air. The General commands Mr. Jessup to fly to the Sharmota Reservation.

When they were above the Casino they could see huge bon fires in the streets. The Reservation was completely in a frantic. The General tells Mr. Jessup to land in the field across from the Casino. The men yell out, “You can’t be serious General, they know we are the ones who took the Sunrunner, we wont stand a chance.”

The General responds, “Where's your spirit gentlemen, you are the million dollar team, now let's prove it.” They landed in the field across from the Casino. The men stepped out fully armed. They walked across the street up the steps and into the packed casino. It went completely silent the moment they walked in.

Antler and the General spot each other from across the room. At the same time they walked towards each other. Antler with five of her braves behind her and the General with the team behind him, they stopped just feet from each other. The room was silent; you could hear a pen drop.

The General breaks the silence and says, “We need your help?” Antler responds with, “Unless you tell me the Sunrunner is on the way back, yon will all die.” The General says, “If you kill us, you will never get the Sunrunner back.” Right then, Mr. Tanner speaks up and explains the ordeal with global security.

Antler asked the men to join her in private bar. Everybody was present. Antler says to the General, “I have two questions, first, why is it that you need my help? Second, who told you about the Sunrunner?”

Mr. Tanner speaks up and says, “I can answer those questions, we are unable to sedate him and make at the same time make a successful rescue. We need your help; he trusts you and will not cause a scene. Without you the rescue will be nearly impossible, and with or without you, were going in to save him. We are not able to answer your second question.”

Antler responds, “You just did, there is a traitor on this Reservation and I want to know who it is.” There was a long silence in the room; tension was building. In anger one of the Indians screams, “Tell us who it is or die,” and pulls his gun and aims it at the General. The team responds by assuming the combat position.

At this moment, one wrong move from either side would of sent a blaze of bullets. After what seemed like eternity, the silence was broke by Hark, he says, “I can't take it anymore, it was me.” He falls to the ground covering his face and says, “I have been a fool, I never should of done this, the nightmares from the Sunrunner spirit have haunted me every since, I deserve to die.”

Antler walks over to Hark and says, “It took a lot of courage to admit your mistake, and I have always known it was you, you will decide your own fate, meanwhile we have a job to do.” She looks at the General and says, “You men risked your lives by coming here to help the Sunrunner, you have also showed you have honor by not revealing who the traitor was, we were wrong about you, we have a job to do together, NOW LET'S BRING THE SUNRUNNER HOME WHERE HE CAN LIVE.”

Right then the entire room started screaming, everybody in the room knew the only thing that mattered was saving the Sunrunner from the hands of the people who want to destroy him.

Minutes later they were in the air. On the way the General explained the plan to Antler and her braves. They arrived at the mansion and precision planned the rescue. Time was running short. While they were waiting to move on the compound they worked hard on everything they would need. Dr. Burlow created an electronic computer security scrambler they believed would bypass the security, giving them an edge.

As the hour approached for them to make the move nobody said much, it was obvious they were in deep thought. The General gave the command, “This is it, let's move.” They flew in the helicopter to Dr. Burlow’s ranch; from there it is ten miles to the Compound. They loaded in the trucks and went to the place they would enter the piping leading into the compound basement. The journey through the piping was much easier than expected. On the way in Dr. Burlow said, “I don't believe we missed this when we installed the security system, this is too easy to get in.”

The men had no problem entering entering underground the compound. Dr. Barlow tapped into the security system with the device he had made, this enabled Antler to enter the tank undetected. The only thing she had to worry about was the global agent sitting in the observation deck. The men couldn’t believe their luck; the global agent was too busy reading a book and didn't bother to look up the entire time Antler was in the tank.

The Sunrunner was calm with Antler present. Everything went as planned they made it back into the pipe leaving the Compound. Mr. Tanner stayed inside as the Team made it to safety. He used a portable welder to seal the entrance. As soon as he finished welding the entrance he went to the roof and used a Hang Glider to fly off the only portion of the roof that is out of sight of the security cameras. Their plan was an absolute and complete success.

The men couldn't believe how easy it was for them to enter the Compound and rescue the Sunrunner while the so-called top security agency of the world guarding his every move. When they cleared the Compound, Antler and the Sunrunner rode in the back of a truck together, just the two of them. As soon as they reached the helicopter the General told Mr. Jessup to fly them back to the Reservation by themselves. When he returned he flew Antler's braves back to the Reservation.

Back at the compound, global agents had a surprise visit from the top of global security. They had all gathered in the main observation deck to view the Sasquatch. Needless to say, things went completely crazy when they realized he was no longer with them. It went even crazier when it was determined that his disappearance was virtually impossible and made absolutely no sense at all.

The General and his team had quite the laugh when they learned what had taken place at the Compound. Global Security gave the General permission to return. When they walked in the laugh was over, but they were glad things turned out the way they did.

Global agents had torn the place to pieces looking for the Sunrunner; only to make the determination that his disappearance had defied laws of physics.

Global determined the Sunrunner had vanished into thin air without an explanation, because of the clever trick Mr. Tanner pulled welding 5hut the entrance and Hang Gliding off the roof; leaving no evidence at all of anybody being there.

Within weeks the Sunrunner festival was announced. Antler personally went to the mansion and gave invitation to the General and the men to attend the event; which they were told no white man has ever received. When they arrived on the Reservation, they were escorted to the village of Tangar.

The Indians had gone way out on this celebration. They had two full size Bulls face-to-face barbecuing in the pit. They had a forty-seven-man drum circle. The Indians went completely hysterical when the Sunrunner went by at record speed.

Looking at the ritual from Indians perspective was an experience the General and the Team would never forget. They had seen something that no white man has ever seen before.

Parable of the Computer Virus

A version of the Parable of the Tares in the SKV:

Jesus told the crowds another story: “God’s utopia is like Bill Gates over Microsoft. He established a whole new version of Windows called ‘Windows Rules!’ which was going to be the premier system operator of all time. However, when Microsoft was closed (the employees DO sleep), Steve Jobs sent some spies in and infected the new operating system with viruses. Then they snuck out, undetected. After a while Windows Rules! went to beta version and all the viruses were discovered—every time the word ‘Windows’ appeared on each line of every text, it was replaced with ‘Apple’. When the Microsoft drones saw this, they went to Bill Gates and said, ‘Great Master, your programming, as always, was without error, was it not?’ Gates responded, ‘Steve Jobs is behind this, I know it!’ They said, ‘Would you like us to re-write every text of the program and take out the name of the accursed Apple?’ Gates said, “No, in my unfathomable wisdom I have discovered that the virus is too insidious—should we erase the “Apples” we will also erase the good text. We have no choice but to wait until the end of the beta test. At that time, I will have my virus hunters create the greatest anti-virus program the universe has ever seen. Then the program will run and every line of virus will be burned in Windows Inferno TM. But the good text will be sent out in Version 2 and they will thrive and make me more money.’”

Having finished his speech, Jesus left the crowds and went to Peter’s house. His private students then asked, “Could you tell us the meaning of your story of the computer virus?” Jesus said, “Certainly. Bill Gates is God’s emperor. The computer is the earth. The Windows Rules text are those who will live in God’s utopia for eternity. The lines of virus are the corrupt who live among God’s people. Steve Jobs is Satan. The beta test is the age we live in now and the final release is the time of God’s utopia. The virus hunters are angels. Just like the virus text is found and eradicated in Windows Inferno TM, so it is at the end of the age. God’s Messiah will send his angels and they will grab every corrupt person in his church—every person who causes God’s people to sin and those who live as if God didn’t tell them how to live. All these will be dragged out of the Emperor’s utopia and thrown to punishment where they will cry out in agony. But the faithful followers of God will thrive in God’s utopia.

10 Famous People Who Were Homeschooled

I homeschool my kids, so I thought this was interesting.

From Mental Floss:
http://blogs.static.mentalfloss.com/blogs/archives/20302.html


1. Agatha Christie. Agatha was a painfully shy girl, so her mom homeschooled her even though her two older siblings attended private school.

2. Pearl S. Buck was born in West Virginia, but her family moved to China when she was just three months old. She was homeschooled by a Confucian scholar and learned English as a second language from her mom.

3. Alexander Graham Bell was homeschooled by his mother until he was about 10. It was at this point that she started to go deaf and didn’t feel she could properly educate him any more. Her deafness inspired Bell to study acoustics and sound later in life.

4. If Thomas Edison was around today, he would probably be diagnosed with ADD – he left public school after only three months because his mind wouldn’t stop wandering. His mom homeschooled him after that, and he credited her with the success of his education: “My mother was the making of me. She was so true, so sure of me; and I felt I had something to live for, someone I must not disappoint.”

5. Ansel Adams was homeschooled at the age of 12 after his “wild laughter and undisguised contempt for the inept ramblings of his teachers” disrupted the classroom. His father took on his education from that point forward.

6. Robert Frost hated school so much he would get physically ill at the thought of going. He was homeschooled until his high school years.

7. Woodrow Wilson studied under his dad, one of the founders of the Southern Presbyterian Church in the United States (PCUS). He didn’t learn to read until he was about 12. He took a few classes at a school in Augusta, Georgia, to supplement his father’s teachings, and ended up spending a year at Davidson College before transferring to Princeton.

8. Mozart was educated by his dad as the Mozart family toured Europe from 1763-1766.

9. Laura Ingalls Wilder was homeschooled until her parents finally settled in De Smet in what was then Dakota Territory. She started teaching school herself when she was only 15 years old.

10. Louisa May Alcott studied mostly with her dad, but had a few lessons from family friends Henry David Thoreau, Ralph Waldo Emerson and Nathaniel Hawthorne. Can you imagine?

5 Comic Books that Made Real History

From the magazine, Mental Floss:
http://www.mentalfloss.com/blogs/archives/20794

by Mark Juddery, from the November-December issue

If you think superheroes do amazing things in comic books, you won’t believe what they can do off the page. For starters, Superman brought down the Ku Klux Klan, Donald Duck raised ships from the ocean floor, and Spider-Man transformed the American justice system.

1. Superman Defeats the Ku Klux Klan
In the 1940s, The Adventures of Superman was a radio sensation. Kids across the country huddled around their sets as the Man of Steel leapt off the page and over the airwaves. Although Superman had been fighting crime in print since 1938, the weekly audio episodes fleshed out his storyline even further. It was on the radio that Superman first faced kryptonite, met The Daily Planet reporter Jimmy Olsen, and became associated with “truth, justice, and the American way.” So, it’s no wonder that when a young writer and activist named Stetson Kennedy decided to expose the secrets of the Ku Klux Klan, he looked to a certain superhero for inspiration.

In the post-World War II era, the Klan experienced a huge resurgence. Its membership was skyrocketing, and its political influence was increasing, so Kennedy went undercover to infiltrate the group. By regularly attending meetings, he became privy to the organization’s secrets. But when he took the information to local authorities, they had little interest in using it. The Klan had become so powerful and intimidating that police were hesitant to build a case against them. Struggling to make use of his findings, Kennedy approached the writers of the Superman radio serial. It was perfect timing. With the war over and the Nazis no longer a threat, the producers were looking for a new villain for Superman to fight. The KKK was a great fit for the role. In a 16-episode series titled “Clan of the Fiery Cross,” the writers pitted the Man of Steel against the men in white hoods. As the storyline progressed, the shows exposed many of the KKK’s most guarded secrets. By revealing everything from code words to rituals, the program completely stripped the Klan of its mystique. Within two weeks of the broadcast, KKK recruitment was down to zero. And by 1948, people were showing up to Klan rallies just to mock them.

2. Popeye Helps America Survive the Great Depression
Everyone knows Popeye’s secret. Whenever the cartoon sailor is on the verge of losing a fight, he squeezes open a can of spinach, pours the greens down his throat, and uses his supercharged muscles to pummel opponents. But fewer people know that the U.S. government is directly responsible for his dependence on canned vegetables.

In the 1930s, America was mired in the Great Depression, and the government was looking for a way to promote iron-rich spinach as a meat substitute. To help spread the word, they hired one of America’s favorite celebrities, Popeye the Sailor Man. It was a smart plan. In all of the comic strips to that point, Popeye’s superhuman strength had never been explained. But with the government’s campaign in place, Popeye was suddenly more than willing to share the secret to his strength. Sure enough, soon after Popeye took up spinach, American sales of the mighty veggie increased by one-third. Better still, American children rated it their third favorite food, right after turkey and ice cream.

But it wasn’t just spinach the government was endorsing. They were also pushing the merits of canned food. U.S. officials wanted Americans to know that cans were the perfect way to stock up on emergency rations.

While Popeye should be applauded for persuading a nation to eat its greens, he did mislead people a bit. The government’s enthusiasm for spinach was based in part on the calculations of German scientist Dr. E von Wolf, who’d discovered in 1870 that spinach contains iron. When calculating the results, he misplaced a decimal point, thereby making it “official” that spinach had 10 times more iron than it actually did. Not until years later were these figures rechecked. But by then, everyone was downing their spinach, hoping to be as tough as Popeye.

3. Captain Marvel Jr. Saves the Bad-Hair Day
Like most American kids in the 1940s, Elvis Presley fantasized about growing up to be like his favorite comic book superheroes. But it turns out that The King might have been more interested in their fashion statements than their special powers.

During his early teen years, Elvis was obsessed with Captain Marvel Jr., known as “America’s most famous boy hero.” A younger version of Captain Marvel, the character sported an unusual hairstyle that featured a curly tuft of hair falling over the side of his forehead.

Sound familiar? When Elvis set out to conquer America with his rock ‘n’ roll ways, he copied the ’do, thus making it one of the most famous hairstyles of the 20th century. But that wasn’t all. Captain Marvel also gets credit for the short capes Elvis wore on the back of his jumpsuits, as well as The King’s famous TCB logo, which bears a striking resemblance to Marvel’s lightning bolt insignia. Of course, Elvis never tried to hide his love for the Captain. A copy of Captain Marvel Jr. #51 still sits in his preserved childhood bedroom in an apartment in Memphis, and his full comics collection remains intact in the attic at Graceland. Plus, the admiration was mutual. Captain Marvel Jr. paid tribute to The King in one issue, referring to the singer as “the greatest modern-day philosopher.”

4. Donald Duck’s Scientific Breakthrough
In 1966, Danish engineer Karl Krøyer developed a method for raising sunken ships off the ocean floor by injecting them with polystyrene foam balls. However, when Krøyer tried to license his invention with the Dutch patent office, he was denied. Donald Duck had beaten him to the punch by 22 years.

Indeed, Krøyer’s concept could be traced back to a Donald Duck comic conceived by Carl Barks. In addition to being the most celebrated artist of the Donald Duck comics, Barks was known for his scientific prowess. So in a 1944 story, when Donald got a bump on his head that turned him into a genius, the duck managed to mumble, “If I mix CH2 [a methylene compound] with NH4 [ammonium] and boil the atoms in osmotic fog, I should get speckled nitrogen!”

Although it sounded like nonsense, it wasn’t. In 1963, chemists P.P. Gaspar and G.S. Hammond wrote a technical article about methylene that included a reference to the Donald Duck story. The final paragraph read, “Among experiments which have not, to our knowledge, been carried out as yet is one of a most intriguing nature suggested in the literature of no less than 19 years ago.” A footnote revealed that “literature” as the Donald Duck comic. It seems the web-footed children’s hero had deduced the chemical intermediate long before it had been proven to exist.
But why were these top American chemists looking to comics for inspiration? Apparently, Dr. Gaspar had been a lifelong Donald Duck fan, and he’d rediscovered Donald’s early reference to methylene while collecting old copies of the classic adventures. Gaspar never disclosed how much his work owed to Duckburg’s most famous resident, but then again, how many scientists would confess that they used comic books to bolster their research?

,
In a 1977 edition of Spider-Man, Peter Parker has the tables turned on him. The villain, Kingpin, tracks down Spidey using an electronic transmitter that he’d fastened to the superhero’s wrist. Although Kingpin loses in the end (he always does), one New Mexico judge saw beauty in his plan. Inspired by the strip, Judge Jack Love turned to computer salesman Michael Goss and asked if he could create a similar device to keep track of crime suspects awaiting trial. In 1983, Goss produced his first batch of electronic monitors. Authorities in Albuquerque then tested the devices on five offenders, using the gadgets as an alternative to incarceration. Today, the transmitters are a common sight in courtrooms across the country, usually in the form of electronic ankle bracelets. Most famously, Martha Stewart donned one while she was under house arrest in 2004. Perhaps she would have felt better knowing that the gadget had once nabbed Spider-Man, too.

Operation Cat Drop

As found in Mental Floss-- http://www.mentalfloss.com/blogs/archives/20692

When humans mess with mother nature, the unforseeable occurs....

"A case in Borneo illustrates the delicate balance of nature and the unintended consequences of human intervention.

"An early 50s outbreak of malaria led the World Health Organization (WHO) to bring in massive amounts of DDT to kill mosquitoes. They killed the mosquitoes, but also virtually wiped out a particular species of parasitic wasp. The wasp fed on thatch-eating caterpillars. With the wasps gone, the caterpillars ate the villager’s roofs!

"An even worse consequence was that geckos ate the poisoned insects and were in turn eaten by native cats. The native cats died from DDT poisoning, and therefore the rat population flourished. This lead to an outbreak of typhus and plague among humans.

"To assuage the damage, WHO arranged for a supply drop that included a couple dozen healthy cats! This supply drop (which included other supplies) was dubbed Operation Cat Drop. The cats were able to reduce the rodent population to controllable levels, and DDT was eventually outlawed.

"As we continue to “improve” the environment and serve a growing human population, there will be more such stories to come."

Can You Survive On Foot?

My dad and I were talking the other day about our respective neighborhoods and how necessary it is to have a car in them. Some neighborhoods you can walk to everything you need, while others you need a bike or--like my parent's place in the San Bernadino Mountains-- you absolutely must have a car.

If you want to know how "walkable" your neighborhood is, check out this site:
http://www.walkscore.com/

My neighborhood in N Portland got a 78 out of a hundred, pretty good, but there's no supermarket within a mile of our place.

How does your neighborhood rate?

But even if it's pretty walkable, the real question is: how often would you walk instead of driving if you had the option?

Some Words From St. Nick

Another poem by Roberta, an attender at Anawim:

As Christmas drew near, the Christ we revere gave a new verse for His Blest Day!
New words came so quick, as thoughts of St. Nick came to mind, like I “heard” him say:
“Dads, Moms, girls and boys, don’t focus on toys and neglect the Christ I held dear,
He is the Reason for this blest Season, and I want to make that fact clear!

“When I was a lad my heart was quite sad, long before my name joined “the saints”!
If facts were made known, before His Light shone in my heart, “a few” made complaints!
I confess some acts, done by boys in “packs,” included my part in their ranks,
But one day I vowed, confessing out loud: ‘Please forgive me, Lord, for my pranks?’

“By His grace bestowed, Christ lifted the load of my sin, confessed there that day,
The Jesus I’d spurned, I very soon learned, had paid the debt I could not pay!
No virtue of mine, not one could I find, as I searched my heart and my soul,
To justify Him forgiving my sin, for cleansing and making me ‘whole’!

“Whatever the name attached to my fame, be it St. Nick, or Santa Claus,
Take time, bow your head at His manger-bed, take time in your shopping to pause!
No matter which name you use for my ‘fame,’ remember, when I come ‘in view,’
That same Baby died, for you crucified! I loved Him, you should love Him, too”!

-- Roberta N. Tuthill, copyright 12/22/2007 (8:10 am to 1:10 pm)
Dedicated to Dr. Thomas Wyatt I (12/22/1891 - 4/19/1964)

Sowing In Tears

This is a poem from one of the folks who frequent Anawim:

Psalm 126:5,6

Lord, give me tears to weep for those who don’t know they should be weeping,

Grant to me wakeful hours to pray for those now in danger, sleeping.

Hasten my feet to share Good News; it seems I am only creeping.

I’ll thrust in the sickle, garner grain, Your precious harvest reaping;

Throw out the lifeline, rescue souls into outer darkness sweeping.

I’ll launch Your life-boat, take them in, deliver to Your safe-keeping!



-- Roberta N. Tuthill, Copyright 4/5/2008 11 pm

Important Thanksgiving Facts

Found in Mental Floss here:
http://www.mentalfloss.com/blogs/archives/20151

by Matt Soniak - November 27, 2008 - 10:00 AM

Why does turkey make me tired?

Most people blame tryptophan, but that’s not really the main culprit. In case you’re wondering, tryptophan is an amino acid that the body uses in the processes of making vitamin B3 and serotonin, a neurotransmitter that helps regulate sleep. It can’t be produced by our bodies, so we need to get it through our diet. From which foods, exactly? Turkey, of course, but also other meats, chocolate, bananas, mangoes, dairy products, eggs, chickpeas, peanuts and a slew of other foods. Some of these, like cheddar cheese, have more tryptophan per gram than turkey. Tryptophan doesn’t have much of an impact unless it’s taken on an empty stomach and in an amount larger than what we’re getting from our drumstick. So why does turkey get the rap as a one-way ticket to a nap?

The urge to snooze is more the fault of the average Thanksgiving meal and all the food and booze that go with it. Here are a few things that play into the nap factor:
Fats – That turkey skin is delicious, but fats take a lot of energy to digest, so the body redirects blood to the digestive system. Reduced blood flow in the rest of the body means reduced energy.

Alcohol – What Homer Simpson called the cause of—and solution to—all of life’s problems is also a central nervous system depressant.

Overeating – Same deal as fats. It takes a lot of energy to digest a big feast (the average Thanksgiving meal contains 3,000 calories and 229 grams of fat), so blood is sent to the digestive process system, leaving the brain a little tired.

Why is dark meat dark and white meat white?

Among the many things inside our bodies (guts, black stuff, about fifty Slim Jims), there are two types of muscle fiber: fast twitch and slow twitch. Fast twitch muscle fibers, which contract quickly but consume a lot of energy and fatigue quickly, are used for rapid movements like jumping and sprinting. Slow twitch muscle fibers contract slowly but don’t use much energy, and can contract for a long time before fatiguing; they’re used for endurance activities.

Most of our muscles are made up of a mix of both slow and fast twitch fibers and, overall, the average human body has about a 50/50 mix of the two. Some people may have a higher percentage of one type or the other from developing those fibers through training and exercise. Some Olympic sprinters have as much as 80% fast twitch fibers and long-distance runners have the same percentage of slow-twitch. Ongoing research says that training can only alter the ratio so much, though. It seems that there’s a genetic predisposition for having more of one fiber than another. But let’s talk turkey.

The meat we eat from a turkey is turkey muscle, and turkeys have fast and slow twitch muscle fibers, too—though not in the same even mixing we see in humans. The difference between dark meat and white meat is due to the type of muscle fiber that’s predominant in the meat and the way that fiber makes energy.

The muscles in turkey legs – the dark meat from the thighs and drumsticks – are mainly made up of slow twitch fibers, which get their energy from oxygen stored in the fibers by a protein called myoglobin. Myoglobin is a richly pigmented protein, and the more myoglobin there is in the fibers, the darker the meat.

Turkey wings and breasts, the white meat, are mostly made up of fast twitch muscle fibers, which get their energy from glycogen, a polysaccharide of glucose that’s stored in the muscle fibers and doesn’t have much pigment.

If you’ve eaten duck breast, you know that it’s hardly what you’d call white meat. That’s because unlike flightless turkeys, ducks take to the air a lot and have more slow twitch fibers, and more myoglobin, in their wings and breasts.

Thanksgiving by the Numbers
Before we all find a comfortable spot on the couch to curl up in, let’s crunch some big numbers that go along with the big meal.

271 million -
The estimated number of turkeys raised in the US this year. Of those, 49 million were raised in Minnesota, the leading turkey production state for the year.

$4.3 billion –
The estimated amount that farmers will make from the sale of all those turkeys.


689 million pounds –
The estimate for US cranberry production this year. Wisconsin comes out on top with 385 million pounds produced.

1.8 billion pounds –
The total weight of sweet potatoes produced by the major sweet potato producing states last year.

1.1 billion pounds –
The total weight of the pumpkins produced last year by major pumpkin-producing states, with a value of $117 million. Illinois wiped the floor with the rest of the states’ pumpkin patches and led the country with 542 million pounds worth of gourd.

177 million pounds –
The tart cherry production for 2008, if pumpkin pie isn’t your thing.

13.3 pounds –
The amount of turkey that the average American ate in 2006.

(If you’re a numbers geek, these figures came from the USDA National Agricultural Statistics Service, the USDA Economic Research Service and the Census Bureau, all of which have plenty of other fun stats to play with.)