Lenora Rogers's Blog, page 112
January 24, 2016
January 21, 2016
TR and the White House Gang
When Theodore Roosevelt became President in 1901, he brought his wife and six kids – the largest group of youngsters in the White House.
The Young Roosevelts
Theodore Roosevelt had the largest family living in the White House. (l. to r.: Ethel, TR, Ted, Archie, Alice, Kermit, Edith and Quentin.
At 42, Theodore Roosevelt was our youngest president, and not surprisingly, his family was filled with youngsters. Alice, at seventeen, would become an immediate hit: pret...
January 20, 2016
Snake in the grass.
Another creepy fairy tale! This is my take on Biancabella and the Snake by Giovanni Francesco Straparola. Giovanni (1480 – 1557) was an Italian fairy tale collector from Caravaggio. Funny tidbit about him- Straparola was most likely not his real last name, as it translates to “babbler”.
So the story goes like this (snarky summary). A woman gets pregnant after a snake crawls in her womb (ahem… so many jokes, so little time). She gives birth to a girl with a snake wrapped around...
Aedmar’s Mound And Earthworks, Blacko, Lancashire
Aedmar’s Mound at Admergill, near Blacko, Lancashire.
OS grid reference: SD 84829 41718. For want of a better name I am calling this site ‘Aedmar’s Mound Earthworks’. These earthworks or ringworks are located down in a narrow valley, in a field above Blacko Water, near Wheathead Lane,just to the westof Blacko and Gisburn road,Lancashire, in theareacalled Admergill. Atrackway heads off from Wheathead Lane at the bridge and then goes in a south-westerly direction...
MemePunk: Nikola Tesla
While I was looking for Tesla memes, I found it really interesting how many serious ones there were. My intention was to post funny things, but compared to the factual anecdotes that extolled his virtues as both a scientist and a human being, they were hard to find. I also couldn’t resist a little tribute to the late, great, David Bowie by posting his portrayal of Nikola Tesla in the 2006 filmThe Prestige.
January 19, 2016
The Newcastle Eccentrics of Hell’s Kitchen
Eccentric Characters of Newcastle by Henry Perlee Parker (after)
(c) Laing Art Gallery; Supplied by The Public Catalogue Foundation
In the taproom of The Flying Horse public house in the Groat Market, colloquially known as Hell’s Kitchen, various of the Newcastle Upon Tyne ‘Eccentric were to be seen, many of them mentioned in popular local ballads and folk-songs. They were well known on the Newcastle streets and on the quayside, and in the ale-houses. Fourteen of them we...
30 December 1460: The Debt is Paid
On the 30th of December 1460, Richard Plantagenet, Duke of York and his forces were caught by surprise by the Queen’s at Sandal Castle near Wakefield where they had been stationed for over two weeks. Richard knew the battle was lost and that he would likely die so he sent his son (Edmund, Earl of Rutland), his brother-in-law (Richard Neville, Earl of Salisbury) and his nephew (Thomas Neville) to safety.
Unfortunately this proved futile as those pursuing them had ma...
Albert Anastasia
Albert Anastasia (born Umberto Anastasio, September 26, 1902 – October 25, 1957) was one of the most ruthless and feared Cosa Nostra mobsters in United States history. A founder of the Italian American Mafia, Anastasia ran Murder, Inc. during the prewar era and during most of the 1950s was boss of what would become the modern Gambino crime family. He is perhaps the most feared hit-man of the Italian American Mafia’s golden era, earning the infamous nicknames “the Mad Hatter” a...
January 17, 2016
Maya Angelou
Born Marguerite Annie Johnson on April 4, 1928, Maya Angelou was an American author, poet, dancer, actress, and singer. She published seven autobiographies, three books of essays, and several other books.
I discovered Maya Angelou’s work in a charity shop in Cornwall, I bought the book I Know Why The Caged Bird Sings and it was a true gift for me. Throughout my life I have read most of her books and poetry and seen her on TV, and in films. It is her universal voice, that connects with so ma...
