Culture and History

I want to know everything. Knowing I’m not immortal to see the future, or able to create a time machine to look at the past and the future… bothers me. How can I ever be satisfied when there is so much I don’t know!

Of course, the more I find out about the more I want to know. Knowledge is bottomless, endless and I will run out of time long before I run out of viable brain matter, and that bugs me.

The future is out there. I can see some of it, imagine more of it. I look at what we have and try to deduce what will come. Without immorality or a time machine, that’s the best I can do.

History is alive in our words, our traditions, our beliefs and our lifestyle.

This is about retro science, utopias, spirituality, traditions, the pioneering spirit, the paranormal, science fiction, survivalist theories, folk tales and vintage ideas.

I enjoy history. But, so many people think it is dull when you present it as a topic of conversation. I think they are assuming history is all about long winded tomes in the library under attack by dust bunnies and cobwebs. History is right now, each second passes into history. History is how we can see into the future.

The House in Ballantrae

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I know this house in Ballantrae, Ontario. I’ve never been inside, or even closer than looking from the street. There is another similar down the road but far less looked after. This house is a local treasure, to me at least. I found it on a card sold via Etsy today. It doesn’t seem to say who the artist is, might be easier to see on a larger size.… Read the rest

Have you Ever Heard of Irena Sender?

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My Mother forwarded this in email today. It seems to be about a real person. I found a biography about Irena Sender.

THE LADY PLUMBER

You wonder what criteria is used to select people for the peace prize. Read the story below and we then understand how pathetic and superficial our world has become.


Irena Sender Died: May 12, 2008 (aged 98) Warsaw, Poland

During WWII, Irena, got permission to work in the Warsaw ghetto, as a Plumbing/Sewer specialist.

… Read the rest

Where Will Television Go from Here?

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Television isn’t obsolete yet, but I wonder if the future will still have so many television sets. It is so odd that people still buy huge screens for television while looking at tiny phone screens most of the day.

I tried finding a TV in the smaller size, the size that would fit the space I have on my shelf.… Read the rest

Toronto Fire 1904 Postcard

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I have heard about the fire in old Toronto. So long ago (before I was born) that I forget the year. But, this postcard says it was 1904, and this is where the fire started. None of those old buildings will still be standing. The others which survived in 1904 are mostly gone too. The don’t make them like that any more, is certainly true.… Read the rest

I Think About Canadian Prehistory

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The following is cut and pasted from information at the UBC site. A little prehistory, as much as we seem to know so far. Funny how the present time is relearning the past.

9000 B.C.
Native peoples are living along the Eramosa River near what is now Guelph, Ontario.

5200 B.C.
The Sto:lo people are living alongside the Fraser River near what is now Mission, B.C.

… Read the rest