I’m Just Curious: Southern remedies

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by Debbie Walker

You know by now that I have a love for odd, not the normal (?) books. I can’t help it, some of them are just so amusing and some have amazing information.

This past trip to the south (two weeks ago) offered me some very good pickins’ for books. One book I had to have is titled Thangs YANKEES Don’t Know, by Bil Dwyer. By the title you can tell the south is still blistered by the fact they lost THE war.

In this very southern book I found the section of “Rustic Remedies.” The author does give a note of warning and does suggest you should talk to your medical professional before trying any such remedies. Here are a few for you to contemplate:

Arthritis – Drink a mixture of honey, vinegar and moonshine. (Any wonder how this one works!)

Athlete’s Foot – Step in fresh cow dung (sure I’ll get right over to the neighbor’s pasture!)

Burns – Scrapings from a raw potato will draw out the fire. (I’ll bet that one works.)

Colds – Drink whiskey and honey mixed or a mixture of honey and vinegar. (Throw in some moonshine and fix your arthritis and the cold!)

Pneumonia – Give patient two teaspoonful of oil rendered from skunk fat. (Sure and they would have this at our nearest pharmacy?)

Sores – Put a little lard around the sore and let the dog lick it. The dog’s saliva will cure it.

Stop bleeding – Use chimney soot or spider webs. (A friend’s mom actually did that spider web thing on him and it worked. She also used black pepper to stop bleeding.)

Warts – Rub a clove of garlic on it every day or rub the wart with a rock and put the rock in a box. The person who opens the box will get the wart (!!!!). (Another friend of mine used clear nail polish. That one actually worked!)

Chicken pox – Can be relieved by letting a rooster fly over their head. (!!!)

Corn – To remove corn, rub it with a grain of corn, then feed the corn to a black chicken.

Cramps – If your toes cramp put your shoes upside down under your bed. (I have to tell Ken that one!)

Earache – Fried onion juice poured in the ear or persimmon sap. (Oh yuck!!)

Whooping cough – Get rid of this malady by getting a stick as long as you are and throwing it into the attic. (???)

Dizzy spells – Mixture of blackberry juice and moonshine (how do they think they got dizzy? That moonshine would be my guess!)

I know you probably have a few of these ingredients on your grocery list right now so you can be prepared! All the credit for collecting this information goes to the author Bil Dwyer and I have enjoyed sharing all this with you. Hope it gave you a chuckle or two!

And I will always be curious! Contact me at dwdaffy@yahoo.com sub line: southern remedies.

Thanks for reading!

REVIEWS: Crumb, Beethoven & Carl T. Fischer

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Peter CatesREVIEW POTPOURRI

by Peter Cates

Crumb

documentary film produced and directed by Terry Zwigoff, Sony Films 1994, 120 minutes.

Terry Zwigoff

Terry Zwigoff initially ran into fierce resistance from his otherwise very good friend Robert Crumb, when he proposed the idea of this film. In reply, Zwigoff threatened to commit suicide, thus convincing the artist of the documentary’s viability. During the nine years of production, Zwigoff was living on $200 a month and suffering from pulverizing back pain.

Robert Crumb

Crumb, of course, has been well known since the ‘60s as an underground comic book artist with his own uniquely dark, yet often quite funny vision. He satirizes much of contemporary culture; his own difficult childhood and dysfunctional family; and certain icons of movies and TV. His obsession with the varieties of sexuality have brought both fame and notoriety . No further details needed in a family newspaper .

Throughout the documentary, Crumb’s two brothers, the older Charles and younger Max, are often featured, both of them showing formidable sketching talent. In fact, Zwigoff insisted on the title, Crumb, as a tribute to all three brothers.

Unfortunately, Charles committed suicide two months after the film was completed but Max stopped his pan-handling.

Among other subjects that obsess Crumb is the rural nostalgic American past. This animates his record collecting of old 78s from before about 1935; he owns approximately 6,000 disks of old jazz, blues, hillbilly, gospel, etc. Audio and video offerings on youtube abound that showcase this passion.
A very interesting documentary on an important figure in American art !

Beethoven

Symphony No. 6, Pastoral
Weber/Berlioz Invitation to the Dance- Franz Konwitschny conducting the Leipzig Gewandhaus; Weitblick SSS0016-2, CD, released 2001 and consisting of broadcasts from December 10, 1961 (Weber), and October 30, 1958.

Franz Konwitschny

Franz Konwitschny (1901-1962) was one of the great conductors from a past that included such titans as Arturo Toscanini, Fritz Reiner, Otto Klemperer and George Szell, each of whom commanded an infrastructure of fans, critics, the media and record labels, that often blocked out more modest figures of equal talent, such as FK.

This pair of well-known classical masterworks are given performances that engage, captivate and inspire any listener with an open mind and heart. They will also appeal to the possibly jaded, experienced types of listeners/collectors who think there is little left to discover after hearing both pieces ad nauseam numbers of times via concerts and recordings but they couldn’t be more wrong. Konwitschny conveyed a newly minted freshness, almost as if he were discovering them for the first time. His phrasing, tempos, high-lighted details, drawing of sheer sound, etc., add up to a first class CD.

He was also quite the character. He loved the proverbial bottle and was nicknamed Konwhiskey. Once he consumed six bottles of champagne before conducting a highly-successful performance of Richard Wagner’s five-hour opera, Tristan and Isolde.

He would wave to family and friends with a handkerchief right in the middle of conducting a concert. He hated rehearsals but quickly got the orchestra back on track if playing became sloppy.

When he died on July 28, 1962, just short of his 61st birthday, of a heart attack, while on tour with the Leipzig, in Belgrade, Yugoslavia, he was given a grand state funeral from the East German government, with massive crowds, ten deep, lining five miles of streets. However, because he was a devout, practicing Catholic, his request for a funeral Mass in his will was honored, much to the chagrin of the Communist leadership.

The Weitblick CDs originated from Japan, are mostly deleted, and tend to be prohibitively expensive on various websites (with a few exceptions). However, the mail order Berkshire Record Outlet has kept a number of Weitblicks, including this week’s post, available for very reasonable prices. For those whose interest in acquiring more Konwitschny recordings is increased after buying and hearing the above Pastoral, they will find not only Weitblicks, but also offerings from such other labels as Memories, Regis, Scribendum, Berlin Classics, etc.

Carl T. Fischer

Reflections of an Indian Boy
Paul Weston conducting his Orchestra; Columbia, CL 788, mono LP, recorded 1954.

Carl T. Fischer

Carl T. Fischer worked for 15 years on this very exciting tone poem for full orchestra, all but completing it just before his death from cancer at age 42 in 1954. Born to Chero­kee parents who encouraged his budding talent, he wrote this piece out of his own experience, imagination and love of traditional rhythms.

The music is melodic and filled with the romantic sweep of such soundtrack composers as Max Steiner, Miklos Rosza and Bernard Herrmann. Examples of the titles include At the Pool, Maiden’s Prayer, Big Brave Song and Ceremonial War Dance. The LP is out of print but can be heard on YouTube in its entirety. Sometimes a copy of the album shows up at a garage sale or used record store, where I found mine.

SOLON & BEYOND, Week of July 20, 2017

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Marilyn Rogers-Bull & Percyby Marilyn Rogers-Bull & Percy
grams29@tds.net
Solon, Maine 04979

Good morning, dear friends. Don’t worry, be happy!

Several people have said they missed my columns the last two weeks, I did write them but one got lost and the staff at the paper were on vacation one of the weeks. I apologize to everyone who failed to see their news in for the event they had told me about. I do try to put in all that is sent to me, if I get it in time.

When Virginia Merrill got done writing for the Somerset Reporter many years ago and I started writing for it, she stressed very clearly that it is a community service and I have tried to follow her words.

I get rather disturbed when important news is not shared with me so I can let the people know what is going on, which happened recently. If it hadn’t been for a good friend, I wouldn’t have known about the special Solon budget committee meeting held at the Solon Town Office on July 12. Those present for this meeting were selectmen Mary Lou Ridley and Sarah Davis, budget committee members Mike Golden, Eleanor Pooler, Albert Starbird, Sherry Rogers, Frank Ridley, Jeff Pomelow, George Williams and Ann Padham and myself.

The meeting was held for permission to use Municipal Building Maintenance Reserve Funds to do repairs and seal the exterior bricks on the Coolidge Library. The estimate for materials to do the job is $485 and labor is $1,040 for a total of $1,525. This estimate is for work on the library. Work to include, cleaning moss off lower section of building; removing excess mortar from entry steps; repairing missing mortar joints and sealing all masonry surfaces including chimney, with ChimneySaver Water Seal. The company which will do the job is River’s Edge Masonry & More; 1133 River Road, Solon, Maine 04979.

The Fourth of July celebration in Solon started with a parade through town which was watched by many people along the street. Young and old seemed to be enjoying it, with much visiting going on. Long before the evening fire works were set off a huge crowd started gathering around the Solon Elementary School to watch the show.

Lief and I were invited to a July 4 barbecue at the home of our neighbor, Ronnie Brown on the Padham Road. There were 33 friends and family in attendance on that perfect summer day, with lots of great food. Ronnie had bought 80 chicken legs and barbecued them to perfection, and those attending had brought lots of tasty food.

When Lief and I were returning home one day this week after having breakfast at Griswold’s, we couldn’t believe our eyes when we saw a bear walking across the road ahead of us. It was a very large animal and not something you see very often. Awhile back we had something steal some of our bird feeders ( and break others) and some people thought it might have been a bear, guess it’s quite likely that might have been the case.

The Solon Pine Tree 4-H Club met on Saturday, July 8, with Hunter Soucer presiding. The members made plans to do the dinner for the Solon High School Alumni on Saturday, July 15, at the Solon School.

Plans were also made to go camping at the Evergreen Campground July 21, 22, and 23. On that weekend members went on a rafting trip from Solon to North Anson boat landing, along with a water safety meeting for the members being done by Cliff Stevens from Moxie Outdoors.

The members did sand art as a craft project. Colored sand was donated by Gary York, of York Signs, in Skowhegan.

The members are planning to exhibit at Bangor Fair and Skowhegan Fair in July and August. At Skowhegan Fair they will be taking part in the 4-H Day Parade on Sunday, August 13.

The next meeting will be on Monday, August 21 at 5:30 p.m., at the Solon Fire Station.

Summer hours at Stewart Public Library for July and August are Wednesday 2 – 5 p.m. and Saturday 9 a.m. – noon.

Have been continuing to go through papers, etc., and came across these words which were in Percy’s and my column one time when he was still with us. There isn’t any date on it, but hopefully you won’t remember it, but I think it is worth repeating in honor of Percy, I still miss him! “In spite of whatever may happen in your day, it’s going to be okay. You’ve made it through difficult things before, right? And you always land on your feet. Maybe not dancing; maybe not always sure about what to do next. But you always manage to figure things out. Especially when you’re able to keep your sense of humor and not lose your smile. If you really think about it, you’ll realize that you are a very strong individual. Someone who may not have all the answers, but who – at least – is willing to hope and try and believe. You can see your way through just about anything; it all depends on how you look at it.”

How I Love that Cat! (The above words were by Douglas Pagels.)

Tracking: Tracking with a purpose

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TRAINING YOUR PERFORMANCE DOG

by Carolyn Fuhrer

A tracking dog needs to understand their job. We as trainers need to define the job. In other words, we need to really give a good detailed job description. What is it you want your dog to do?

A tracking dog must follow the basic path the tracklayer walked. A tracking dog cannot cut out entire “legs” of the track and get to the end as a Search and Rescue dog might do. They must follow track scent, not air scent in order to be successful. We as handlers must understand and teach the task. Tracking is not nose work and nose work is not tracking. Yes, both require scenting skills, but applied in a different way.

If a dog is successful at nose work by air scenting, they may resort to this technique if the “track” scent is difficult to find or contaminated, or the environmental conditions are difficult. Air scenting has paid off in the past, so they may default to this “successful” behavior when confronted with a problem. This is where training must be clear to the tracking dog. We do not want them to follow air scent. We want them to follow track scent. This is why letting a tracking dog fringe and wander on the track is not giving a clear job description of what the dog needs to do. A successful tracking dog must focus and then maintain their focus on the track scent. At the beginner level they must do this for 450-500 yards and make 3 to 5 turns (corners) along the way. So, our purpose in beginning tracking is to keep the dog on the actual track, discourage fringing and air scenting and make track scent valuable. Tracks should be designed so dogs are successful and are motivated to keep their heads down. In other words, following track scent pays very well.

Another common problem is distractions or “crittering” along the track. Dogs must be taught to ignore distractions and to follow the track. A “leave it” command is very necessary for a tracking dog. Sometimes it is even a safety issue. Teach “leave it” away from the track so you have this command on hand when you need it. There are many positive ways to teach “leave it” and it should be understood by all dogs. Telling your dog you must leave something is not a bad thing; it could even save their life. So teach “leave it.”

Another very important concept we must incorporate into our training program is reducing the help we give our dog on the track and creating a confident dog who will make correct decisions on the track. In the beginning stages we help a lot to get the dog to understand the job and be well rewarded for doing the job. We must gradually reduce our help and let the dog take over. This many times requires a great deal of patience and being quiet so as not to verbally push the dog. A relaxed body posture will help the dog realize there is no pressure, and it will allow the dog to work.

Make your training sessions meaningful. Before you go out and just lay a track, think about the purpose of the track and what aspect of tracking you are trying to teach.

Happy tracking!

Carolyn Fuhrer has earned over 90 AKC titles with her Golden Retrievers, including 2 Champion Tracker titles. Carolyn is the owner of North Star Dog Training School in Somerville, Maine. She has been teaching people to understand their dogs for over 25 years. You can contact her with questions, suggestions and ideas for her column by e-mailing carolyn@dogsatnorthstar.com.

SCORES & OUTDOORS: The wonders of nature

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Roland D. HalleeSCORES & OUTDOORS

by Roland D. Hallee

We have talked about the activities of nature’s little critters in the past, but it never ceases to amaze me as to what can happen in an instance.

Last week, while on vacation, I was sitting on the porch taking a break from some chores, and my wife was behind camp working in her flower garden.

Earlier, she had been filling the bird feeders and had taken a piece of suet, about half the size of a golf ball, and placed in on the ground while she refilled the cages.

Well, shortly following that, a chipmunk came out of his den, which he has many entrances to in the area, and began enjoying the morsel of suet. However, a nearby woodpecker decided that it was his, and began pecking at the chipmunk’s head. The chipmunk was undeterred by all of this and continued to eat the suet, despite taking quite a beating from the woodpecker.

Meanwhile, two mourning doves landed nearby, and decided to get in on the action. They began to approach the other two combatants, sneaking in from behind the woodpecker. At that point, I thought to myself, “this will be interesting.” Unfortunately, my wife was not aware this was going on and came around from behind the camp and began to say something to me. At that point, the confrontation broke up. The chipmunk scooted off to his den, and the three birds flew off in their own directions. We’ll never know how that would have turned out.

Later, that evening, I noticed the chunk of suet was no longer on the ground, so one of them won out on that fight.

But that was nothing compared to what we witnessed on Saturday. It was a beautiful day, and we were out on the lake to take in some fishing. There was a bass tournament going on that day, so many boats and anglers were in the area. At one point, we saw a small bass, about 12-inches in length, floating in the water, obviously dead. We left it, citing that the circle of life would come into play, and some bird of prey, an osprey, bald eagle, or even a sea gull would come along and scavenge that up.

One of the things we did notice in the almost three hours we were fishing was that there were no birds present in the crystal blue sky. Usually, they are all around us.

Finally, at one point, we heard the call of a bald eagle, although we could not see it. I summized it was perched in a nearby tree and possibly warning us not to approach the dead fish, which it possibly had its eyes on for lunch.

The fish was floating approximately 15 yards away from our boat when a bald eagle came swooping down from a nearby tree and flew parallel to the water – maybe five feet from the water level – for about 20 feet, extended its talons, picked that fish right from the surface of the water, and proceeded, at the same altitude, down the shoreline and disappeared around a bend into a cove.

I have seen bald eagles scoop up fish from the lake before, but not from that close a distance. It goes without saying the scene was spectacular. Bald eagles are massive birds.

Even when you think you have seen all Mother Nature has to offer, something like this comes along.

I’m Just Curious: In case you wondered; uses for duct tape and WD-40

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This is a new column. The editor, Roland, is going to let us have a little fun with these “You used _______ to do what?!” I am hoping you will have as much fun reading these and trying them out as I am having putting them together for you. Questions are welcomed! Email me at dwdaffy@yahoo.com, and I’ll do my best to answer them. We are not sure if this will be a twice a month column or ? We’ll let you know as soon as we know. I hope you enjoy!!!

I am starting out this week by relaying something my Maine farmer/doctor told me this week. He said “A real Mainer will have duct tape and a blue tarp (gray or any other color too, I think) however I would like to add the WD-40!

Let’s start with duct tape:

Hem your pants: My brother used to use staples but I think the tape would work better. It will last through a few washes.

Lint remover: wrap duct tape around your hand and it works so good. Removes lint and animal fur. Keep a role handy!

Duct tape for a bandage: You know it will stay stuck. One Maine summer trip my sister’s toenail got lifted, so the nail stood up but was still attached. Oh yeah, painful! Since she was flying home that day we bandaged the toe and then covered it with duct tape. It protected that poor toe.

Secret hidden car key: Hold a spare key under the car with duct tape, just in case you are like me and have been known to lose a key or lock it in the car!

Repair a vacuum hose, actually probably any hose.

Repair outside furniture cushions.

Mend a screen so those nasty bugs won’t move in with you!!

Repair a tent.

Pool patch. Kids are so disappointed if their little pool deflates so this is a quick fix. The fun is on!!

Repair your ski pants. Don’t give up a ski trip because you’re getting too much ventilation! Carry that duct tape with you when packing to go anywhere.

WD-40:

Remove strong glue: I love to play with the do-it-yourself finger nails. I have used Super glue for them (lasts longer). Well, I have, in the past, goofed and glued fingers together. That is kind of scary, but now I just spray on the WD-40, it works. Also you can take glue off surfaces where it doesn’t belong. I’ll be using it today on the kids’ desks at school. (It worked great!)

Stuck on ring: wash your hands after but spray the finger with the stuck on ring.

Zippers: Spray on a zipper that’s being difficult. I had to use it on Ken’s jacket and it really helped the zipper function better. (I like that word, function!)

Bugs and insects: (I wouldn’t use it if I had teething children) Spray WD-40 on windowsills and frames, screens and door frames, critters don’t like this. Don’t inhale fumes.

Remove chewing gum from hair: spray the gummed up hair. Gum will comb out. Again don’t inhale.

Remove scuff marks: spray and rub off the floor. Possibly remove tar as well.

Well once again I have run out of word space, it happens. Gotta go! Let me know what you think. dwdaffy@yahoo.com sub: Uses Remember to check out the on-line version!

REVIEWS: Composer: Mozart; Composer: Tchaikovsky; Singer: Jacqueline Francois

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Peter CatesREVIEW POTPOURRI

by Peter Cates

MozartMozart

Sinfonia Concertante in E-Flat Major for Violin, Viola and Orchestra; Sinfonia Concertante for Oboe, Clarinet, French horn, Bassoon, and Orchestra- various soloists, Armin Jorad conducting the Lausanne Chamber Orchestra, Musical Heritage Society- MHS 4739H,  12-inch stereo LP, recorded April, 1980.

A very fine LP of two of Mozart’s most appealing works and given  very fine performances. Two of several of Mozart’s works that make splendid introductions to the classics. The writer of the liner notes recounted how the assigned conductor of the Sinfonia for woodwinds misplaced the original score, forcing Mozart to recopy most of the music from memory.

Tchaikovsky

Symphony No. 4.
Herbert von Karajan conducting the Philharmonia Orchestra; English Columbia 33CX 1139, mono LP 12-inch record, recorded 1953.

Tchaikovsky’s endlessly compelling 4th Symphony has received many good to great recordings, of which I own a sizable pile. Examples: Bernstein, Ormandy, Kubelik, Stokowski, two Karajans, Albert, three Markevitches, two Mravinskys, Munch, Monteux, Reiner, Abravanel, Ozawa, Abbado, Pletnev, Muti, Rozhdestvensky, Rostropovich, Valek, Termikanov, Ivanov, Masur, Barenboim, Malko, Bernstein, Hollreiser, Freccia, Maazel, etc.

In 1946, Karajan became the conductor of the  Philharmonia Orchestra, an ensemble in London mainly created to make records, and to perform at concerts only secondly. K and a couple of other conductors turned it into a group second to none, while he made many of his finest records during his entire career, the above disc being a prime  example. All of these early LPs have been made available in cd box sets that are quite inexpensive!

Jacqueline Francois

Columbia WL 178, mono 12-inch LP, recorded approx. late ‘50s.

By the end of World War II, France’s most popular pop singers were Maurice Chevalier, Edith Piaf and Charles Trenet. But when the 24-year-old Jacqueline Francois (1922-2009) entered the formidable arena, her talent, charisma and musicianship was akin to a firestorm. Within a month of her first record, she won the Grand Prix du Disque, the French equivalent of the Grammy.

A head’s up – the prospective listener should know French to fully enjoy this record of standards, although the melodies of Fascination and La Mer or Beyond the Sea should be familiar to seasoned fans of ‘50s pop music.

For certain listeners as myself, no need to understand the language in order to enjoy Francois’ phrasing, pacing and delectable voice plus the polished orchestral arrangements of Paul Durand. A delightfully different type of record.

TECH TALK: Welcome to Reality 2.0

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ERIC’S TECH TALK

by Eric Austin
Computer Technical Advisor

Let me take you back a few decades to the 1980s. I was 12 years old and cruising around the neighborhood on my ten-speed mountain bike. On this particular day, I was exploring the garage sales along Lakeview Drive that are so prevalent this time of year.

At one of them, I found an old video game console for 75 cents and eagerly trundled it atop my bike for the trip home. It was one of those all-in-one units with the games built into it, and two controllers, then called “paddles,” with only a simple knob like a control switch for a dimmable light.

The first videogame: Pong.

All the games included were variations on Pong, in which each player controls a short, vertical line on opposite sides of the screen, moved up or down by the control knob on the game paddle. The objective of the game is to “bounce” a little white dot from one side of the screen to the other in order to score points against your opponent.

Nobody looking at a screenshot of this game would mistake it for an actual game of tennis.

Skip forward to the present day. Steam, the largest digital distribution platform on the web, has their Summer Sale and I pick up the game Grand Theft Auto 5 for 20 bucks.

GTA5 is one of the biggest videogame releases in recent years, with over 11 million copies sold within 24-hours of its debut. Basically, it’s a crime story told in a simulated world based on the Southern California city of Los Angeles and the surrounding countryside.

Consider just a few mind-blowing facts about the world of GTA5: The game world encompasses more than 100 square miles! You can fly a plane, ride a motorcycle, or go scuba-diving off the coast of California. If you stop your car in the middle of traffic, drivers around you will beep their horns and flip you the bird until you get moving again. If you make your character act crazy in the game, passers-by will pull out their phones and film you — just like real life!

I’m only 40 (okay forty-two!), but I’ve watched as our ability to simulate real life has gone from Pong, a rudimentary effort to simulate the game of tennis, to Grand Theft Auto 5, an incredibly detailed simulation of an entire city, down to building interiors, wildlife in the countryside, and artificial intelligence-driven people that react to your actions on the fly.

Grand Theft Auto 5: An entire simulated city.

Considering this kind of advancement just in my short life, what kind of worlds will we be able to simulate in another 50 years? If the past is anything to go by, computer simulations of the future will be so real that they will be indistinguishable from actual reality. Already it is difficult to watch a movie today and know which parts of it are real and which are computer generated. Combine this graphics realism with advances in computing power and artificial intelligence and it is not difficult to imagine what videogames of the future might be like.

This kind of thinking has led a number of brilliant minds, as diverse as entrepreneur Elon Musk and astrophysicist Neil deGrasse Tyson, to ask: Are we already living in a simulated world? Would we be able to tell if we were?

The argument goes something like this:

We can assume that, in the future, it will be possible to simulate reality to the extent that it is impossible to distinguish it from the real thing. Further, it is an obvious assumption that there will be a greater number of simulated worlds than actual worlds. One can then also assume that some of those simulated worlds would be simulations of the past, such as earth in the year 2017. And since there is only one actual Earth 2017, but many possible simulations of Earth 2017, it therefore is more likely we are living in a simulation than not. For example, if there are a billion simulated versions of Earth 2017, but only one actual Earth 2017, the odds that we are living in the real world and not a simulated one would be a billion to one against.

Consider something even weirder. In a video game-simulated world, your computer only renders the part of the virtual world you are currently experiencing. So, when you are looking in a specific direction in the game world, your computer renders the graphics for the part of the world you are seeing, but not for anything that is currently off-screen. It does this to save processing power.

Well, the “real” world eerily works in a very similar way. According to the Copenhagen interpretation of quantum mechanics, “physical systems generally do not have definite properties prior to being measured” (Wiki, 2017). In other words, quantum particles do not exist in a specific place and time until they are interacted with – something termed in physics as the “(probability) wave function collapse,” in which all possible values (of location, of momentum, etc…) collapse to a single value at the moment of interaction. It is almost as if the universe is a quantum computer which saves processing power by not calculating exact values for reality until it becomes necessary by interaction with an observer. Weird, huh?

Is it possible that we are unwitting inhabitants of an enormous simulation powered by a quantum computer existing sometime in the future?

Are your neighbors simply advanced A.I. personalities designed to give this simulation a veneer of realism? Could we all simply be self-aware A.I. placed into a simulation of earth in the year 2017 and programmed to believe this is not a simulation?

Of course, would I be able to ask these questions if we were?

Do you know someone living in their own simulation of reality? Come share your experience on townline.org or send an email to me at ericwaustin@gmail.com!

New titling program from AKC

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TRAINING YOUR PERFORMANCE DOG

TRAINING YOUR PERFORMANCE DOG

by Carolyn Fuhrer

AKC has a new titling program: The AKC Trick Dog. It is designed so dogs and their owners can have fun learning tricks together.

There are four levels of titles in AKC Trick Dog:

  • AKC Novice Trick Dog TKN
  • AKC Intermediate Trick Dog TKI
  • AKC Advanced Trick Dog TKA
  • AKC Trick Dog Performer TKP

AKC approved CGC (Canine Good Citizen) evaluators may observe the tricks and sign as evaluators for the Novice, Intermediate and Advanced AKC titles.

For the performer level, all tricks must be done as a part of a routine and a video link must be provided to AKC for evaluation.

Here are the criteria for the four levels of titles:

Novice

Perform 10 tricks, or have the CGC on record at AKC and perform five tricks. May use food/toys as a lure (to guide the dog into position) and may use food as reinforcer and clickers to mark behavior. Dog will do each trick two times for the evaluator.

Intermediate

Perform 10 tricks from the intermediate tricks list. May not use food/toys as a lure except where specifically permitted. May use food as a reinforcer and also clickers to mark behavior. Dog will do each trick two times for the evaluator.

Advanced

Perform five tricks from the advanced tricks list. May not use food/toys as a lure. May use food as a reinforcer and may also use clickers to mark behaviors. Dog will do each trick once for the evaluator.

Performer

Perform a total of 10 previously learned or new tricks from the Novice, Intermediate and Advanced titles. Must do at least two intermediate and two advanced tricks. May not use food/toys as a lure. May use food as reinforcer and may also use clickers to mark behaviors.

You can find all the tricks listed at the section on the AKC website devoted to Trick Dog: www.akc.org/about-trick-dog/

The most exciting news is that MCKC (Mid Coast Kennel Club of Maine) will be offering a CGC test and Novice, Intermediate and Advanced Trick Dog tests at their show at the Union Fairgrounds, in Union, on Saturday, September 2, 2017, after Best of Breed. So, come and enjoy the dog show, maybe enter one of the tests or, if you are not ready yet, come and watch the CGC and trick tests and see what its all about.

For more information about the tests: contact Kathy Duhnoski at kduhnoski@myfairpoint.net.

Carolyn Fuhrer has earned over 90 AKC titles with her Golden Retrievers, including 2 Champion Tracker titles. Carolyn is the owner of North Star Dog Training School in Somerville, Maine. She has been teaching people to understand their dogs for over 25 years. You can contact her with questions, suggestions and ideas for her column by e-mailing carolyn@dogsatnorthstar.com.

Lots going on at China transfer station

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Talkin’ Trash

by Irene Belanger
China selectman and Transfer station coordinator

Who would think that “trash” could become so complex!

There is a lot going on at the transfer station and the committee meets at least once a month.

First and foremost “thank you” to all you who use the China Transfer Station facility. Special thanks to staff at the station and committee members. The issues of timing and traffic flow have made life easier. Thank you to all for being kind and considerate of others while dropping off recyclables, reusables, composting and dropping off bags of “trash”.

The “Free For Taking” building isn’t quite finished but is now the one to use. Staff has had the “soft” opening but we’ll announce the “grand opening” soon. Thank you to Kevin and all who have worked on this structure and the parking area etc.

We could use a few more volunteers so if you feel the urge call Irene at 445-2349. We’re trying to keep the space in good order and appreciate it when those of you who stop and shop or drop off help us to keep things picked up and neat. We don’t want to lose this great space. If you have questions staff can assist you. Please don’t put very large items inside such as storm windows, bikes, large pieces of furniture, swimming pool equipment, tents, etc (very large items) into the building as there isn’t room.

We have nice sections for books, clothes, dishes, knick knacks etc., small good working items. We’ll all need to do our best to keep it as neat as possible. It’s great to share good items we no longer want with others. Please no mildewed items.

At the first recycling area there is now a container for clean plastic grocery and bread bags, case overwrap, dry cleaner bags, newspaper sleeves, ice bags, woodpellet bags, Ziplock and other recloseable bags, produce bags, bubble wrap, salt bags and cereal bags. We have a place we can now take them to for disposal.

There is cooked compost if you need some and more on the burner. Lobster and clam shells are welcome to the cause also. Manure helps the cooking especially horse “stuff.”

The Transfer Station Committee meets at least once a month and we have been discussing “ridged plastics.” If an item has a fair amount or more of metal in the plastic item and especially if there is a motor in the “plastic” then please toss it into the metal bin. Thank you.

When in doubt on anything the attendents are there to help. Please be patient as they are very busy and also must take a break on occasion or in the middle of a task.

PALERMO residents: please purchase your trashbags at Tobey’s Grocery or the Palermo town office.

Enjoy your summer everyone.