June 7, 2023

MAR 13, patients and their maladies: torsade de pointes


Authors' Note: 

Torsade de pointes (tor-sad duh PWAnT), is an Anglo-French medical term for twisting of the peaks, named in 1966 by its French cardiologist discoverer. It is a pattern seen on the ECG (electrocardiogram), with 'twisting' or cycling of the height of the ventricular 'QRS' complexes, and is often associated with factors, inherited or acquired, that widen the 'Q-T' interval on the tracing. This pattern is associated with nasty ventricular arrhythmias and sudden death. If you are lucky, you have survived the initial episode and have correctable factors (e.g. electrolyte disorders, certain pharmaceuticals, etc.)

Flying straight is a casual metaphor associated with performing expected or routine function.


June 6, 2023

JUN 9, brief saga: Newfoundland potato famine of 1846 - 8



NEWFOUNDLAND POTATO FAMINE

'Forty-six, on "the Rock", things got dire:

St. John's shops wrecked by storms after fire.

Fishing outports' spud-fields,

With reliable yields,

Saw their crop turn to blighted black mire.

The next year, nature failed them the same;
Ships from Cork, bearing starving kin, came.
Some rich folks knew the reason:
The Almighty, displeasin',
Judged the indolent poor were to blame.


Their "coffin-ships" stopped, then passed by
To the St. Lawrence ports, where they'd try
To survive quarantine
(U.S. neighbours were mean);
Many, gripped by "ship fever", would die.

Dr G.H. and Giorgio Coniglio, 2023
Authors' Note: The Irish potato famine of 1845-1852, had important repercussions in British North America. Initially, we had our own version of the disaster, although it didn't last as long. The food-production aspect was confined to the Atlantic island of Newfoundland ("the Rock"), where potato monoculture had provided backup food for a populace (ironically, one-half of Irish descent) who otherwise fed themselves on marine protein (seals and cod). But in 1846, both these usual sources failed, and the network for regional food distribution was disrupted by a large fire, then a storm, that lashed the key port of St John's. At just this point, the potato blight that had spread northwards through the United States was found to involve the fishing villages (outports) on the island's south shore. In the second year, the blight spread to involve the entire island, and the marine resource situation was no better. The number of deaths due to starvation, likely many thousands, remains unknown.
The British governor of the colony, reasoning that the indolence of the island's underclass had offended the Almighty, invoked a period of fasting to appease heavenly powers. Fortunately, the next year, the marine resources returned, resolving the crisis.

Back in Ireland, landlords took advantage, and bought tickets to encourage resourceless tenants to emigrate; they were welcomed to Canadian colonies and territories by the public, by charities, and by local governments, often despite low potential for contribution to the economy. Many refugees were sick ("ship's fever" often equated to dysentery or typhus) on arrival or shortly afterward, with a major effect on hospital services; in the summer of 1847, an estimated 20,000 died in typhus epidemics that ravaged Montreal and Quebec, as well as settlements in New Brunswick and Ontario. 
In contrast, the U.S. populace may have felt less charitable towards British disaster-victims, and a punitive tax was levied on shipping companies for each passenger. Although large numbers of Irish refugees did eventually reach the U.S., Canada bore far more than its share, especially in the acute phase of the disaster.
The author acknowledges inspiration by speedysnail's OEDILF verse "Great Famine".

Online References: 

Great Famine (Ireland) - Wikipedia

Newfoundland Potato Famine  - Wikipedia

History of Irish immigration to Canada - Irish Post

* JUN 8, garden intruders -- glossy privet

 

reprise from June 2020


JUN 8, garden intruders: glossy privet





Readers, you are fortunate to have available all our poetic comments on creatures (animal and vegetable), devoted to subverting your gardening plans. To view this collection our full-service blog "Edifying Nonsense", click HERE!


You can also review illustrated verses about orderly garden inhabitants by proceeding to 'Poetry Praising the Charleston Garden' on the full-service blog 'Edifying Nonsense'. Click HERE!




Readers, you are fortunate to have available all our poetic comments on creatures (animal and vegetable), devoted to subverting your gardening plans. To view this collection our full-service blog "Edifying Nonsense", click HERE!


You can also review illustrated verses about orderly garden inhabitants by proceeding to 'Poetry Praising the Charleston Garden' on the full-service blog 'Edifying Nonsense'. Click HERE!

JUN 7, "pictures at a renovation": final view

Flooring, cabinets, wallboard repairs and new doors are now in place, so we only need the following ...
baseboards and floor mouldings reinstalled  
lots more painting
appliances, plumbing fixtures, lighting fixtures and window blinds installed
fireplace surrounds refinished
furniture variously reinstalled or replaced
shelving in all the closets
lots of other finishing touches
But, this will be the final photo-collage posted on this topic. If you would like to see the final result, give us a few more weeks, and then arrange to come by! 











 

PREVIOUS VIEWS:
You can journey back through the whole arduous undertaking by scrolling back through our earlier posts (you can also click these dates for direct transport back to see the previous views). The earlier posts show the demolition phase, and that may be of particular interest to many viewers.
May 25: reconstruction
May 7reconstruction
May 3reconstruction
April 26reconstruction
April 18reconstruction
April 16: demolition phase
April 10: demolition phase
April 6: demolition phase
April 4: demolition phase
March 31: demolition phase
And, check out the project-planning stage, elucidated in photos and verse, on March 19, and March 27.

* JUN 6, wordplay map -- New World palindromes (#23,#24)


reprise from June 2020

JUN 6, wordplay maps: new world palindromes(#23,#24)






You can view the entire collection of these 50 wordplay maps, by accessing the collection 'Tourists Palindromic Guides: The Americas'. Start by clicking HERE 

June 5, 2023

JUN 5, mammalian wildlife: "selfie with bison"


SELFIE with BISON


Here's a lesson I tried to teach my son:

"It's not bright to snap selfies with bison."

Though they're there in the Park

Between sunup and dark,

While at rest they're phlegmatic,

When aroused they're erratic.

"Once they're moving, please don't even try, son."

Dr G.H. and Giorgio Coniglio, 2023






Authors' NoteIt's hard to believe that there was a 'responsible driver' who let this young person out of the car to take this picture (isolated from a published video), but there you are. 

In national parks in both Canada and the United States, there are fines imposed for approaching wildlife too closely, and signage usually makes this abundantly clear.

A verse, and more pictures of the American bison (buffalo), can be found on this post

June 4, 2023

* JUN 4, exotic destination -- Iceland

 

reprise from June 4, 2020

JUN 4, exotic destination: Iceland
Keep more to yourself for a while, wash your hands frequently, remember to laugh on occasion, and stay well!



travel; Iceland;Icelandic language; volcano; geyser; glacier; climate; Giorgio Coniglio

To see this verse and others about Iceland in the form of novel song-lyrics, click here for today's post on "Edifying Nonsense"

photo-collage; Iceland; family; vacation; geyser; Giorgio Coniglio


Other poetic verses about 'Exotic Travel Destinations' can be found on our blog 'Edifying Nonsense'. Click HERE.

June 3, 2023

JUN 3, palinku (poetic novelty): eating veggies and/or meat













 (Ed. note:) Verses of this ilk have continued to accumulate. You can view them all at one swoop if you  proceed with a single click to our more encyclopedic blog "Edifying Nonsense". Click HERE.

 links for any date: scroll over to the calendar-based listings of 'Past Posts' in the righthand column on this page, choose your month of interest, and then select (by clicking) the post of your choice.

June 2, 2023

* JUN 2, insects -- beer bugs

 

reprise from June, 2020



JUN 2, insects: beer bugs




You can review Giorgio's other verses about pesty and occasionally beneficial insects, as  collected in 'Buzzwords: Verses about Insects' on the full-service blog "Edifying Nonsense". Click HERE.

May 31, 2023

MAY 31, "pictures at a renovation"

 

LR (still no flooring)





inside the office



later in the day, hardwood flooring started 



May 30, 2023

* MAY 30, exotic destination -- Cappadocia, Turkey

 reprise from May 2020

MAY 30, 2020: exotic destination: Cappadocia (troglodytes)





Other verses about 'Exotic Travel Destinations' can be found on our blog 'Edifying Nonsense'. Click HERE.

 

May 28, 2023

* MAY 28, brief saga -- fluoridation


 reprise from May 2020

MAY 28, a brief saga: fluoridation









Authors' Note:    A controversy over fluoridation of public water systems peaked in the 1940s through 1960s in North America. Municipal water-suppliers with low ambient levels of the natural mineral were motivated to adjust that in order to reduce childhood tooth decay. Despite initial vocal opposition, fluoridation was adopted by many municipalities in North American and elsewhere. In Europe, in contrast, fluoridation of municipal water-systems has never achieved wide support as a public health measure.
 “Do you realize that fluoridation is the most monstrously conceived and dangerous Communist plot we have ever had to face?” Brig. Gen. Jack Ripper, a character in the 1964 film classic Dr. Strangelove”.

  You can review the collection of illustrated verses on other dental topics by proceeding to the post 'Dental Feelingson our full-service blog 'Edifying Nonsense'.


For the purpose of this blog, a 'brief saga' is defined as a poem, usually narrative, but occasionally expository, that tell its story in at least 15 lines. Most commonly, the format involves three stanzas in limerick form. Your blogging team has been presenting these concoctions at the rate of one per month, mixed in with the usual shorter poems, wordplay and  other general offerings. 
   
To access the next 'brief saga' on this blog, proceed to 'Life as a Loon'.
To access the most recent previous 'brief saga', back up to 'Claire's celerity'. 


May 27, 2023

MAY 27, excursions: around Washington, DC

    


the flamingo house


Union Market



'Friendship Archway',
Chinatown gate, world's largest paifang



Union Station







Columbus Circle




typical DC row houses


statue of Nathanael Greene, 
Revolutionary War general.
Stanton Park, Washington NE.
  

"Knife Edge Mirror Two Piece"
Henry Moore,
National Gallery of Art 




on the steps of SCOTUS

congressional selfie


at the United States Botanic Garden
(what a conservatory!)


spokesperson for the Capitol Hill Squirrel Lobby