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Christmas At Work

I didn't realise you could set your blog to Approve comments, not that I would disapprove, regardless of the comment myself.   Anyway - It's been a week of Christmas parties, for work mostly. One with clients (terrible) and one without (not terrible but not that great either).   I find it difficult to socialise with people from work outside of working hours. To me it's like - You can't choose your family, but you can choose your friends. I'm not at the job to make great friends, I didn't choose to spend every day with these people, I simply chose to make some money. They say "Lets go to the movies" to which I'd like to reply "I'd rather go with my friends" they say "Lets go out for a drink", to which I'd like to say "I'd rather do that with friends". As I don't generally say those things, I end up making excuses. To which they say "Why don't you come out with us?" To which I'd like to say " Because I have a life", they eventually start to imply "Don't you like us?" To which I'd love to reply "Well no....not really"

Germanicus

Germanicus

 

Eboracvm Album (now In Gallery)

Not a bad trip to York , the winter sun doesnt help when trying to get panned shots of the walls so I think that will have to wait till spring. The Roman Bath's 'Museum" is in turmoil at present so no shots of that , however the Yorkshire Museum had an excellent array of items. The Walls were a bit tricky because of the lighting conditions so I concentrated on the Gatehouses.The wallls were in part original Roman built and constantly extended in medieval times. I was struck by the fact that the modern building lines of major new builds are directly influenced by the Roman street pattern -not the meandering Medieval layout.Stood on the top of the Minster you get an idea of the symmetry of the fortress and the related streets, ive posted a photo to illustrate this.The Minster is always impressive and I took a trip up to the roof of the main Tower ,hot work even on a cold day with a scarey traverse across a very low parapeted roof, medieval workmen were not 6 feet tall with largish feet is my surmise-I took a huge number of shots of the Wall but I think I will post just a few in case of battlement fatigue.   Vindolanda next I think!

Pertinax

Pertinax

 

Moravian Sugar Cake

So this past Saturday we had a baby shower for my sister and it was a wonderful occasion because we had all siblings together (me, my older brother & his family, & my 2 sisters); which won

Pantagathus

Pantagathus

 

Experimental Gallery Entries

Ive dropped a couple of "welded " photos into my "Historic Site" Gallery, they arent meant to be proper exhibits in the sense of cultural/historical importance .I hope members would take a look and give critical feedback, I want to adopt the method to try and get long panoramic shots of certain of the wall sections around York.However if the images are too small for comfortable viewing ill try a different approach.   The welds are now withdrawn -only theMultangular Tower shot remains in Eboracvm-more to be attempted in the spring.   Off to York for a couple of days hoping to get some shots of the Medieval Walls and Roman remains

Pertinax

Pertinax

 

My Religion

I have a religion in a sense, which is not Christianity, Budhism, Hinduism, Islam, or Polytheist. I am a Athiest which in a sense is a religion. I'm an Athiest for certain reasons. My religious stand-point has gone through several phases. This was one of the trials of my life.   1. When I was a little kid I was a christian. I was not old enough to think if something was logical or illogical yet so a full heartedly believed in a higher power. I didn't know the things I know now and nothing was stoping me from seeing things in a religious way. At this point I was even arguing that God existed and I ocassionaly, but not often, prayed for something to happen. I hoped that God would some day fix problems on earth and solve the suffereing and problems I knew existed.   2. Later on, in about 2nd grade, I made a friendship with a now great friend of mine. He was obsessed with history, WWII in particular, was very religious, and was also a Republican. He was one of the deciding factors I beleive that shaped me into the person I am today. He was very interested in the Nazi Party, and at that age we weren't conscerned about how horrible something was, or how good something was, all we cared was what it was, how it happened, why it happened, who made it happened, and whether it was cool. This gave me a equal stand point on WWII, I knew about the halocaust, but becuase I had also learnt about all the advances the Nazi party had made in terms of war-fare and engenieering I had a different opinion on it. I not only saw what happened, but what made it happened.   That spirt has lived on with me, and I began to question all what I beleive to be clear flaws and warps of reality in Christianity. I was now uncertain over whether it was right or wrong, whether the earth was gods creation or not. I saw both good and evil in everything becuase of all my time with my friend. I began to wonder why God would make something evil do good things, and if God is all forgiving, why does he only give you one chance at life. I didn't beleive in reincarnation, but I was then at that point an Agnostic, unsure of what to do.   3. The third phase of my religious stand point took place a few years ago when I became obsessed with Rome and her glory, power, prestige, genious, and culture. Rome had a ever changing effect on my life in a religious stand point. It was at some time durring my reading that I heard a few words that changed me.   "A little known fact, is what is poupularly beleived is commonly true"   In those words, I realized to myself "why would one sixth of the world be right, while the other 5/6s are wrong? So many people can not be mistaken, and if 1/6 is right, then by rule, they should be able to provide enough proof to prove their point." and so I was confirmed by that as an Atheist. I was a shaky one at best, but still an Atheist.   Later on I studied science more, read the works of great people, and overall became more knowlegable about the world around me as I grew older. The older I got, the more of an Atheist I was. Thus comfirmed in my non-God beleifs.   If anyone i wondering why I've written this peice on my religous stand point over time. Don't ask, I myself am not sure.

Sextus Roscius

Sextus Roscius

 

Why Don't People Apprciate...

I am furious right now, you know what I really don't like? When people don't appreciate history and they yell at you for liking it and call you a dork for liking it. It pisses me off alot! I am so tired of people not apperciating my love, has this ever happened to you? I am a high schooler in Hawaii and am currently 15, I am in a World History but everyone in the class is retarded...we have one of the lowest standards in the United States for education, but why do people have to insult history and not care to learn about it?   I don't like math but I give it a try, the people in my stupid class don't try at all and make fun of me because I enjoy it so much.   I am so angry, well I am done letting out my feelings, Zeke

Zeke

Zeke

 

My Patron

Over the past months I have been thinking of adopoting a Patron simply because I want to feel closer to my religion through one god. I have reached out to many gods but one particullar god has found me, and wants to form some sort of friendship with me: Hermes has been the god that has answeared most of my prayers and seems to be closest to me when ever I need him. I think this has to deal with the fact that I am a teenage youth, I do altheltics and I plan on getting into market oriented business, all which Hermes rules over. Very soon I will be adopitng him as my own personal savior if he so wishes that of me. Do any Pagans know a formal way to adopt a god?   Zeke

Zeke

Zeke

 

Guilt

I feel rather guilty for no posting in the Blog section for a long time.

Zeke

Zeke

 

Medicinal Herbs-potency And Dosage.

Lost Warrior asked a question which I have pondered on for many years-what is your prefered method of delivery for herbal medicines?. ( the basic question was infusion or oil as a preference).   Pardon me double blogging today but this needs a reasonably considered reply.   The reply is more complicated: my preferences would be: 1. Fluid Extract (strong/pure).This in truth is an infusion in concentrated form. 2.Tincture ( quite strong /stable for a long time). 3.Pure herb-but this depends on the required use ,so for example I would prefer to use Slippery Elm (Ulmus fulva) as a powder in conjunction with Golden Seal (as a tincture) , being the "best" combination for some stomachic problems.Otherwise the pure herb is relativley weak in comparison to 1 and 2 above, though for a wound (Yarrow) I would apply the fresh plant and take the extract. 4.encapsulated herb extract-if you dont like the taste or smell of a strong herb 5.tablets and lozenges-tend to be milder formulations. 6.oils-deceptivley easy to use but can be fearsomely strong so best avoided if you are unsure.Pure oils are excellent, Frankinscence and Wintergreen are great healing medicaments but must be used with care.l   As you can see I havent given a straight answer , if I was Medicus to a legion I would ensure a.a supply of freshly cut herbs( say comfrey and yarrow in particular for bruising, gashes), b.a store of dried herb and herbs macerated in wine ( wormwood and walnut for antiparasitic use as well as the two entries above and something as a cough medicine, probably a mallow) .c.acetum for wounds d.a supply of Opium and henbane for painkilling . And a lot of wine for me, and some attractive female assistants

Pertinax

Pertinax

 

Skipton Castle

I finally managed to get some reasonable internal photos of the Conduit Court in Skipton Castle.The Court was the well spring for the Castle. Originally built in 1090 the Castle was massivley strengthened in 1310.In the War of the Roses this was a Lancastrian House (Red Rose).The Tudor wing (1536) is attached to the NE, and bore the brunt of unsympathetic internal Victorian "improvement".In the Civil War this was the last Castle to hold out for the King in the north.Somehow the place has survived as the most complete Medieval Castle in Britain despite seeing some fierce action.   The Court is very atmospheric but the light is difficult and its tricky to get the ancient yew tree and the mellow colour of the stone ,these shots seem reasonable,but I think I can get better in summer. I did try to get a shot down through the castle privy-the drop is about 200 feet-but it didnt turn out well.( I just re-read that last sentence and realised I had made an unintentional bad pun-but ill leave it in ).   The present Earl was there today and I was talking to him for a while before I realised who he was, otherwise the place was deserted-except for the tea lady.   additional mote: what I havent been able to show yet is the northern elevation where the Castle towers over the river to its rear, the light was too contrasty to get a clean shot-you can see how bright it was ,but the shade was pitch black.

Pertinax

Pertinax

 

Rather Depressing

Among the frequent trials of my life, being the odd ball, the unpopular, the hated, the pessimistic, the nerd, the freak, and the history geek. I was plagued as any one would be with periods of time were I hated myself and all those around me.   The turbulence of my early childhood, lookingback, seems to have been caused mostly by deaths of those in my family, who at the time were discarded in my mind becuase I didn't realize that their death affected me. As a young child I was racist, from which I have gone away from. I think the cause for that is not so much I hated people becuase of the color of their skin but what I hated about what I beleived (at the time) they represented and I made horribly mistaken biased opinions off those. I was also at a young age drawn to looking at the other side of things becuase of a friend of mine who was obsessed with learning about WWII and Nazi Germany in particular which gave me a different look at what they did than many others draw becuase I was exposed at the same time and in equal amounts the horrors they wreaked and the things they managed to achompish. I've had a interesting life far different from that of the average school kid, as can be seen considering I'm only in middle school and have earned a name for myself among scholars and teachers on this website and in other areas.   But never, in all my years of living, have I seriously considered killing myself. It goes against my doctrine of life by all accounts. Since middle school started I've met multiple people who seriosuly thought about or had already tried to commit suicide. To some of which I held affection, to some I did not. The many people thinking of suicide is almost frightning. I suppose I am naive in thinking there wouldn't be so many, but the number is still disturbing. So I am left with that thought in the back of my mind now, and driven by it.

Sextus Roscius

Sextus Roscius

 

Pliny And The Modesty Of Elephants.

Ive become absorbed in Pliny, some of his one liners' are priceless: and I dont mean this to denigrate him where it appears that "modern" science concludes he is mistaken in a thing.   For some reason I was drawn to his writing on the Elephant , which he describes as second only to man in intellect and a thoughtful beast capable of offering homage to the Gods, and to its own Chief beasts.My favourite observation was "elephants mate in secret because of their modesty" what a quaint but elegant phrase :its impossible to stop smiling whilst reading because although you may for a while feel superior due to your modernity , what is startling is how close to modern thought the great man is throughout the books.   Pompey of course suffered the curses of the Arena when Elephants provided by him for sport "played on the sympathy of the crowd ,entreating them with indescribable gestures", the curse worked of course as we know.Note: I was playing Rome total realism and found the Elephants seriously hard to kill.   Under Agnus castus ,the herb,he expounds that the concentate of the plant is used to check "violent sexual desire" , and thus acts an antidote to the "genitalia stimulating bites" from poisinous spiders. This is interesting stuff,he is absolutely right of course in terms of male desire the "castus" is from the greek meaning chaste and in the middle ages monkish communities self medicated to diminish desires of the flesh.The spider bite interests me, obviously you had to watch where you sat in Rome.   The herb fell out of use in Europe after 1700 to be rediscovered much later and is now freely available -though usually as a uterine tonic especially in menopause.   Gallery pictures: hemlock,yarrow and wild carrot posted today all have a passing resemblance but Hemlock is the Virgil Sollozo of the group,look at the leaf structure.   Im gratified at the number of visitors to the Herbal Gallery -I thought it would be far too abstruse for interest. beer report-Dark Star Brewery-Espresso, yes a coffee flavoured beer! and a glass of Timmermans Peche as dessert.

Pertinax

Pertinax

 

Krampus

Well i guess the average person outside the alps never heard of that word....   However it is BIG here in Austria, on december 5th, every child goes out and chase and get chased by the mighty Krampus.

Viggen

Viggen

 

Poisons, Dandruff And Baldness

"those who have swallowed quicksilver find a remedy in lard. Poisons-especially henbane, mistletoe,hemlock, sea-hare , and others-are neutralised by drinking ass's milk. "   "Bear-grease mixed with laudunum and maidenhair, prevents baldness and cures mange and thin eyebrows if compounded with lamp -black from lamp wicks.Mixed with wine bear grease is a cure for dandruff" (complex fatty acid/lettuce/maidenhair/carbon -q a mix)   Pliny might be a bit shaky in this area so dont shoot any bears,and certainly avoid drinking mercury ,the Maidenhair fern is certainly a good digestive aid and kidney tonic/gall bladder cleanser.. Henbane is a tricky plant, certainly the Romans used it for anasthesia (tropane alkoloids) but the Egyptian variety is much more potent than other species-so ift depends where the herb was supplied from. Mistletoe is a European parasite with a potent mythical background,it is a cardiac tonic but it requires only a very low dosage - it can be violently purgative.This was the sacred herb of the Druids, a protection from all Evil-and it survives with us today in Xmas wreaths, so positioned to ward off malign influences at the solstice.   Like Poppaea you can bathe in ass's milk, though not for your skin-but to draw large roundworms out -hence I wondered if Cleopatra knew this trick as the Egyptians were keen on purging, and must have suffered with helminth infestation.   Apollonius says that scraping a sore tooth and gums with the tooth of a man who has met a violent death is highly effective. Again avoid this one I think.Clove oil will help though.     Foreign Beer Update:- and as promised-this evening we consumed-Duchesse De bourgogne (west flanders not Ned Flanders ), Cuvee Des Trolls (Scalsis), and Chimay (Blond), and Orval (Trappist). Pantagathus did you get that?

Pertinax

Pertinax

 

Summer Is Here

So Summer arrived this week, and the first day was a hot one at 34c, which I enjoyed. I guess that's about 90 or something in the other measurement. The days this week were like a count down for me, as I was anticipating heading down to the beach house. I write this from that very house by the sea. The house is in Barwon Heads which is only about an hour and a half from Melbourne. It's a place I really enjoy. I never do that much down here...if it's hot I go swimming, I go fishing in the evenings, I read a lot. Speaking of which I'll be trying to put a big dent in 69AD The Year of Four Emperors while I'm down here. Barwon Heads is called that because the town surrounds some headlands where the Barwon river flows into Bass Straight, not far from the entry to Port Phillip Bay, they do killer fish and chips down here, I sampled them again tonight. That's it for now, If I catch any decent fish I might write something about it.   Summer days, oh how I love them.

Germanicus

Germanicus

 

It's About Time...

Well now, it seems I've been neglecting my poor little blog over here in the corner...   I went to see my Dad and the rest of my family for Thanksgiving, that was fun I got tons of cool stuff while I was there. Early Christmas presents, because we didn't know if I would be able to make it for Christmas (our weather turns nasty in the winter). I painted Christmas balls for my dad and my aunt, I couldn't post them before in case they happened to wander across this site...but at some point I will. I got a really cool sword and dagger from my dad, and a few other things, namely very nice clothes and a terrycloth bathrobe (which I love). I got to spend time with my Aunt Patty and my little cousin Jenny (who is not so little anymore but still my little cousin..and also an amazing singer BTW does plays and such and sings every chance she gets). I stumbled into an amazing prom dress, which my mom-mom got me for Christmas and my Aunt got me shoes to match. I'm very happy about it, I can't believe the circumstances under which we obtained it   I've gotten a new art program, as you have probably been noticing I've been uploading a very large number of pictures in the last few days...apparently some of you really like my work as well though it still has some problems I'm hoping to improve. At first I was upset that it wasn't GIMP but once I started actually using it, I've found that the features it does have are much better used, with much more control, and I can do things I could never do with the other program. I can't do as much funky stuff, but what I can do is much better quality, so I am quite pleased with it. The new miracle program is paint.NET if anyone is interested. The methods necessary for some features are a little backwards from what you would expect, but the results seem to be top notch Of course, it isn't as good as something like PhotoShop but for a free program downloaded in just a few minutes, its great (and it isn't as...quirky...as GIMP either. It runs much better...knock on wood...doesn't take as long to DL and set up either). So...yea...I'm back to late nights of making avatars and banners I'll never use but I love playing around with it...just to see what I can do   I can't believe it's Wednesday night already...these days off of school have really thrown me off...not that I'm complaining. When I actually think it's Wednesday it will be Friday...and I'll be pleasantly surprised

Lost_Warrior

Lost_Warrior

 

Emotion

So often are humans foucused on emotion, that they forget why they feel a certain emotion when a certain thing happens, and instead relate that thing to the emotion with out thought.   When some one insults you, you get angry, why would you not instead become happy? There is more explaination for the latter than their is for the common answer. One might become happy becuase they realize that the person insulting them has stooped a level below where they are becuase the agressor took a pre-emtive assualt without immediate provocation.   Wheras the general case of when some one is insulted they imediatly become angery and take the offensive when words have no affect on them at all, but the instinctial reaction takes over and causes that person to make a rebuttal instead of thinking to themselves that they are the superior without justification becuase the agressor has proved his inferiority.   Such is common occurence.

Sextus Roscius

Sextus Roscius

 

Cuckoopint (arum Maculatum)

I am gratified and amused by the learned interest that my image and commentary on Cuckoopint herb has stirred. At first I had thought perhaps there was an urgent cultural need to understand the starching of Elizabethen costume ruffs, I now see that it may have been more related to my initial commentary on the seminal vessels .   The glycosides in this plant are of unknown structure, the other main constituent is a group of acetylated mannans.Large doses administered for sore throats have caused death. Apparently hibernating bears like to eat quantities of the stuff to "open the gut due to its windy nature" before getting down to a new seasons foraging. But before you try and chop the root up to agglutinise your spermatazoa remember " it choppeth blistereth and maketh hands rough and rugged and withall smarting".   Its other commen name by the way is Lords and Ladies-.   My goodness I notice a further surge in erudite perusal since my main entry.   Also Fratres I urgently petition you to support the thread of Favonius Cornelius on "Great Artifacts" and to view the gallery images of Pantagathus and the elegant coins of antiquity.

Pertinax

Pertinax

 

A Sad Day Be Black Friday

I was watching the news a few days ago and saw the rage of black friday. I even went shoping in it for a bit. After the experiance, I relized how insane some people will go over a game console, more specificaly, the XBox 360.   Such insanity I've seen before, like when a ice storm hit my town, or when the great black out of 2003 hit and everyone went into a panic. Those were all more major events and everyone freaked becuase of the sudden change. But, such hussle over a game console is simply unreasonable.   Reports of Gun-Point Robberys, Muggings, Black market selling, and even people betting on them for more than 5 times the whole-sale price. I laughed at it for a second, then thought. "that is really sad, that so many people would waste so much money and effort for a video game, america..." Since then I've wondered just how bad are we.

Sextus Roscius

Sextus Roscius

 

School, A Dread

Ah school, were you go to learn and socialize, but, I dread this place unlike my usual enthusiasm for learning (well at least compared to my peers) becuase of something scary that takes place tomorrow.   I go back to school from my wonderful 5 day vacation, 4 of which I spent up in michigan where it snowed and I had a great time. 1 of those days on vacation I spent in a car if you total the to and from times. So, I came back from the trip, and thoughts of school and friends came rushing back to my mind, and I realized that I had the most dreaded task (at least for me), Gym class.   Gym class at my school is taken to a new level of annoyance becuase: a. I'm not very athletic, not fat, just I don't like sports much. b. Our Gym teacher Coach Byle loves to make you do warm ups for ever, and I mean literaly 30 of the 45 minutes of class. c. A long, hard to make trip from the Gymnasium to latin class that comes imediatly after. d. Being sweaty for a entire class period e. having to do lots of work when I'm still waking up at 8:30 am   So to conclude, I'm going to be in a foul mood for a few days, if not a few weeks. At least I've got my birth day to look forward to on Saturday.

Sextus Roscius

Sextus Roscius

 

Pleasures Of The Table

Apart from materia medica my abiding passion is for the Triclinium, and I will keep members informed of any particularly outre gustatory experiences.I will also endeavour to gather a little more material regarding medieval recipes and pass these on from time to time. You will all be amused to hear that I have succumbed to a stomach bug today, but as I hold to the virtue of plant medicine I have mixed the inner bark of the Red Elm (native to N.America) with Manuka honey.It seems to have done the trick. The Elm is also called Ulmus fulva , I wonder do any American mamber's have information regarding its use by Native people's? I believe it may be called Moose Elm or Indian Elm in the western USA where it is more plentiful. note: I see it was used to treat gunshot wounds by pioneers   I shall be eating very plainly today.

Pertinax

Pertinax

 

Salvete!

As I lumbered out of the 12 hour car trip from Michigan, fatigued and ready to hit the hay, I turned on my computer, went to UNRV.com and logged in. What do I see to my surprise! But, a notice flashing up in my face telling me I had been promoted to equestrian status by the omnisceint Triumvirate. It brought a spark to my eyes and I told the few people who I had avadible to tell at 10:30 PM and then got to doing my blog.   Well, with much happiness, I know wait for something exciting to happen so I can post it here in my new blog.

Sextus Roscius

Sextus Roscius

 

Salve!

Greetings all!   I would like to use the blog feature to co-ordinate additional information on herbal medicines with the plant illustrations in my album. I am awaiting the "Pompeiian Herbal" to read and review, I hope I can make a small contribution towards the modern understanding of the use of plant medicines by the Greeks and Romans.   I am aware that Yarrow "The soldier's herb" has not made an appearence yet , but im biding my time till I can take a worthy photo.(note: this herb followed the legions everywhere and followed the redcoats into north america, not only is it a useful direct wound dressing but it is a true heamostatic with a huge range of chemical constituents )Yarrow was in antiquity called Herba Militaris but is now known as Achillea millefolium (as it is said Achilles bound his men's wound's with it).Its common name's are Knight's Milefoil and Nosebleed.   As I travel I will post photos of Roman and Medieval remains.Im not a big diary keeper so I wont be posting too many entries, save perhaps to let Pantagathus know if ive found a particularly interesting European Beer.

Pertinax

Pertinax

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