Crabs in the Time of Swine Flu - III

---

First we have two Guest Crabs.


Crab indiginous to the Isle of Wight. There is some indication that this is left over from the England, England theme park of an earlier age. (h/t to JSBlog)

---

I will not, under any circumstances, attempt to discuss this crab. Please go here and, if you are brave, here.

---

---

---

The Sea, The Sea, where is the Sea.

Grits

The essence of good grits lies (in) freshly milled whole-grain products, which helps to retain the flavor. Quick or instant grits are available in cans but the quality seems to suffer in the canning process. The result is grits that are usually described as tasting like "library paste."

That would be my opinion.

The world can be divided into two camps, those who love grits and those that despise them. There is no middle ground. -- Marcus Tullius Cicero

Chattanooga

---

There is some confusion as to the origin of the word "Chattanooga." This holds great interest to me since I be a home boy. I, for one, believe it to refer to Lookout Mountain. This source lends support to this with:

"Joshua Ross, a nephew of the chief, declared that the word was taken from the Creek Indian word "Chat-to-to-noog-gee" which means "rock rising to a point," a fitting description of Lookout Mountain."

Lookout Mountain with Moccasin Bend in the mid-ground taken from the side of Signal Mountain.

Tennessee, where the grass is green,
The sky is blue and the water too,
I wish I was rolling home to Tennessee..

I've been to London and to Paris, France
I'll go anyplace that I get the chance,
But I wish I was rolling home to Tennessee...

Tennessee, where the grass is green,
The sky is blue and the water too,
I wish I was rolling home to Tennessee..

I've dined out elegant at the Ritz,
But it don't beat my momma's grits,
But I wish I was rolling home to Tennessee...

Tennessee, where the grass is green,
The sky is blue and the water too,
I wish I was rolling home to Tennessee..

Dublin, Ireland, 1970

Crabs in the Time of Swine Flu - II

---

First, a correction:

An astute reader observed that this enticing crab actually appeared to be supra sol last week. We apologize for the error and present the crab in all its depicted splendor, sub sol and sunny side up.

---

All the elements of a great crab though the eye placement is a little clammy.

---

---

What can one say when approached with the absolute genius of the crab. Genuflect, please.

---

---

Mother's always want to get into the act. It takes a strong hand to keep them on the sidelines. This one has potential to be a future "Sikorsky" mom.

---

I Don't know where Alexis got this but it shows an excellent appreciation for the articulated appendages of Mr. Crab. Note also the double smiles. I don't care what people say, kids are inherently happy.

---

---

It is Halloween, after all.

---

People and balloons, if you will.

---

Absolutely refused to draw a crab. Insisted on a turtle. So, there you go. Not sure what is on the shell. But then, I am not a herpetologist.

A Surfeit of Irony

---

Why is it when the nabobs in Washington start slugging it out, hot and heavy, irony seems to rear its chuckling head?

From here:

HEALTH CARE -- FIFTY-FIVE REPUBLICANS WHO ARE 'STEADFASTLY OPPOSED' TO A PUBLIC OPTION ARE CURRENTLY ON MEDICARE: Yesterday, the office of Rep. Anthony Weiner (D-NY) released an internal study showing that 151 members of Congress "currently receive government-funded; government-administered single-payer health care -- Medicare." Of those 151 members, 55 are Republicans who also happen to be "steadfastly opposed [to] other Americans getting the public option, like the one they have chosen."

Crabs in the Time of Swine Flu

---

First we have a guest Crab. Not quite the same as a crab à l'état sauvage (you can tell by its nice cooked color) but we are always ready for crabs of any stripe (now there's an interesting phrase to look up; see below), particularly if they look like they just ralphed.

---

---

I think this is an excellent effort by a three year old

---

This was Carlie's second effort, after her mother showed her what a crab looked like.

I like her first effort much, much better. It is a little like Casper the ghost.

---

---

---

While not technically a crab, this drawing certainly employs the joie de vivre inherent in the mere concept of crabs. I know that seems contradictory, but, trust me (said Fozzie Bear.)

"of any stripe"
from here:

Just as textile fabrics can be made with a great variety of patterns characterized by different stripes, so men can be sorted into different types, or metaphorically, stripes.

Of course some of us have access to the OED online and could tell us when the earliest use was. It seems (from the source just referenced) to be an American political term.

I did find a reference in Don Quixote, but it was referring to the results of bantamweight flagellation. (note in particular that Google Search translates as "s" the old use of "f").

No Crabs Friday

---

We are simply inundated with 2009 H1N1 flu patients. Some of them are quite sick. The vaccine is now becoming available, however, the supply is limited. This causes hardship on parents who are worried about their child contracting this particular flu and frustration on our part trying to schedule patients. It is a potential bloody boondoggle of humongous proportions (like that medical terminology?). The biggest worry is that the virus will mutate and turn into a killer like the 1918 pandemic.

So far 2009 H1N1 (previously known as Prince Swine) has spared us old geezers. It is the classic Sci Fi thriller where all the young people are wiped out and the old people are left to wonder.

Hope not.

Friday Crab Blogging

---

Sardonyx

An inquisitive reader directs us toward an interesting play on sardonic (see "grin" in Friday Crab Blogging here). Sardonyx is a type of Onx from Sardis, an ancient Lydian city in Turkey. While tempting, it does not appear to be related to Sardinia, the island west of Italy, given the difference in times of ascendancy. But, who knows? The Phoenicians were shuttling between Ionia and the western Mediterranean at that time. (Did you know that Phoenicians traded on the high seas? I didn't.)

I found this onyx cameo carving, the Gemma Agustea from the early part of the first century CE (contemporary with Jesus Christ) to be fascinating. Firstly, the effect of transparency on the robes is a deft stroke. But the bottom collection of figures is quite curious. Not only is there a man in a fedora pulling someone's hair, but there are clearly soldiers raising a Roman Standard (Aquila) as echoed in this iconic sculpture depicting events on Iwo Jima.

This should morph into a discussion of the three symbols below, the presence of an eagle and their use in political cajolary:

---

Roman Standrd

Nazi Standard

American Standard

But I'm way to weary this morning. Maybe another time.