Great Scott!

 

   Where did the saying "Great Scott!" come from? This familiar old inoffensive exclamation, was popular in the second half of the 1800’s and the early 1900’s. Possibly a substitution for Great G-d, the phrase was also resurrected in 1985 by Christopher Lloyd’s Doc Brown character in the first Back to the Future movie. 

    In 1971 the largest lunar sample brought back to earth was named Great Scott after the mission commander David Scott. But where did the term originate?

     Historically, the phrase is generally associated with two specific "Scotts": Scottish author Sir Walter Scott and, US general Winfield Scott, also known as Old Fuss and Feathers.

    An explicit connection of Sir Walter Scott's name is found in a poem published 15 August 1871, on the 100th anniversary of Scott's birth:

Whose wild free charms, he chanted forth Great Scott! When shall we see thy like again? Great Scott!

  

   Apparently Mark Twain held Sir Walter in distain as indicated by his repeated use of the phrase in A Connecticut Yankee in King Arthur's Court (1889). And in The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn (1884), where he names a sinking boat the Walter Scott.

   The phrase also appears in a 3 May1864 diary entry by Private Robert Knox Sneden (Eye of the Storm: a Civil War Odyssey)"Great Scott," who would have thought that this would be the destiny of the Union Volunteer in 1861.

                       General Winfield Scott
                                *********

    In my next historical romance, my heroine Una McLaren, is a Scottish immigrant. While she doesn’t utter the phase, I think she qualifies as being a Great Scott!

 

Check out my current western Undercover Outlaw winner of The Beverley Award. https://books2read.com/u/me7J9A  http://ginirifkin.blogspot.com

 

Great Scott from Back to the Future

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yX4ZguOZjhs

March Giveaway, grab a book to read in the re-immerging sunhine and warmth.

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SOLACE 

Fae Warriors book one

(although a trilogy, each book stands alone)

Solace Goodeve, one of Mother Nature’s favorite Fae Warriors, is assigned to Earth to help save the planet. Reptile invaders, disguising themselves as humans, are waging a takeover—and Mother is mad enough to eat asteroids. Solace is ready to prove herself as a warrior, but having a human for a partner is not in her battle plan—even if the man is rugged, ripped, and ready for action. 

Army Ranger, Tanner Jackson, has seen his share of black op missions. The last one took a toll on both body and soul. Tanner isn’t looking for love, even though his new partner is six-foot-tall and drop dead gorgeous. However, after Solace shows him a new meaning to working undercover, he may have to reconsider that possibility.

As the Reps plan to sabotage NOAA, Tanner and Solace must learn to trust one another. But as they're trying to save the world, Solace and Tanner might just lose their hearts—and that takes the most courage of all.

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Goat notes and Donkey tales No. 2 Where did donkeys originate?

            

                                        Jack and Rosie 

     There were two separate species of the African ass: the Nubian wild ass and the Somali wild ass. Our modern domesticated donkeys are all descended from these African wild ancestors. 

   Donkeys were first domesticated around 6,000 years ago in North Africa and Egypt for meat and milk. Around 2,000 years ago donkeys were among the hardworking animals used to carry silk from the Pacific Ocean to the Mediterranean along the Silk Road.         

   The African wild donkey is a member of the horse family.

They live in the deserts and arid areas of the Horn of Africa, Ethiopia and Somalia, also in the Arabian Peninsula and in the Middle East. Many are endangered, especially the subspecies of the Somali and Nubian ass. 

  

   Other than on the French Poitou donkey, there is a slender, dark dorsal stripe in all subspecies. The Nubian wild ass, as well as the domestic donkey, also has a stripe across the shoulder creating the legendary cross.

   The legs of the Somali wild ass are striped with black. My donkey Rosie, has faint leg stripes! 

      Wild asses can run almost as fast as a horse. However, unlike most hoofed mammals, their tendency is to not flee right away from a potentially dangerous situation, but to investigate first before deciding what to do.

   My two donkeys are much more laidback than the horses I've been around. I think this contributes to the mistaken idea that donkeys are stubborn. Perhaps they are being thoughtful. Sometimes their consideration of a situation can save not only themselves, but you. 

   When necessary, donkeys defend themselves with powerful bites, and kicks from both their front and hind legs. 

A wall of stacked donkey hides. 

   Donkeys have long been abused, whether by being used for roping practice, currently being slaughtered by the thousands for hide glue used in cosmetics, or being rounded up by in American by the BLM Bureau of Land Management. 

    Yet they remain loving and forgiving animals.     

                                                                                                            

      Jack and Rosie are both rescues from 

                 Longhopes Donkey Shelter

                                    

                          Go here to read about 

                            the horrific hide glue

                             cosmetic industry

                

  #donkeys #wilddonkeys #hideglueincosmetics 

#Longhopesdonkeyshelter

         

Finding Home Again by Darlene Fredette

 

                5 Stars for Finding Home Again

Book 5 in the Redford Falls series is another satisfying fun read, this time with a twist of suspense. Although this story stands alone, many characters from previous books make cameo appearances which is fun, but it isn’t necessary for you to have read the prior offerings. 

Jordan McKenzie feels she has found a home she never knew when she becomes the caretaker of an historic house in need of loving restoration. Used as the setting for most of the story, you’ll wish you could stay in this beautiful old mansion and explore the lush grounds surrounding the home. 

As the grand opening approaches to celebrate the home becoming Redford Falls new B&B, Pearl, the matriarch and current owner of the estate, requests an intriguing gathering of family members. She’s hatched a plan to solve a mystery years in the making. Jordan is reluctantly involved in keeping the secret and the ruse has her going beyond her comfort zone and fighting her conscience especially when Pearl’s handsome nephew, Logan, shows up looking for answers of his own and the love he once felt from his Aunt Pearl. 

The attraction between Jordan and Logan is quick to heat up, but denied by both. How they overcome the personal and outside huddles thrown in their path makes for an interesting read. Miska, a large and lovable dog, adds to the excitement…until he goes missing. Logan has aspirations of becoming a chef, too bad his cooking sends Jordan to the hospital. The final solving of the mysteries felt like a scene from the wonderful old film noir tropes like the Thin Man with all the suspects present as the suspense builds and some very unexpected revelations come to light.

Once again I enjoyed Darlene Fredette’s writing style and her imaginative storytelling. 

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About Darlene Fredette

Darlene resides on the Atlantic Coast of Canada where the summers are too short and the winters are too long. An avid reader since childhood, Darlene loved to develop the many stories coming to life in her head. She writes contemporary romances with a focus on plot-driven page-turners. When not working on her next book, she can be found with her husband, her daughter, and her yellow Labrador. Darlene’s favourite pastime is taking summer day-trips to the Valley to soak in the small-town feel.

N.N. Light Giveaway: Happy February the month for all kinds of love

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Lady Gallant 

    Ukraine and Crimea have been in the news lately. Read about the Crimean war of 1853 when British and French forces fought the Russians for control of this strategic country on the Black Sea. 

    Florence Nightingale, the Charge of the Light Brigade, Britain's first war correspondent, all part of this thrilling historical romance. 

                    Enter Giveaway here

 

    Disowned by her father and still mourning the death of her fiancé, Josephine Posey joins Florence Nightingale’s brigade of nurses bound for the Black Sea. Thousands of British soldiers desperately await these angels of mercy and a new life awaits Josie. Amidst the chaos of death and despair, she finds a spark of hope, lighting the flame once more inside her soul.

    In search of the truth, Garrick Allen, one of Britain’s first war correspondents also journeys to the Crimean Peninsula. To him the soldiers seem all but abandoned by Queen and country, and as he smokes his cheroots and makes friends with a bottle, he writes his bold but honest dispatches for The Times.  Not wanting anything more than to finish his job and go home, Garrick is blind-sided by a nurse with attitude who offers him a new slant on life and a reason to love.

Long and Short Reviews says:

When I first picked up Lady Gallant, I have to admit that I was only vaguely familiar with the Crimean War. I have read many stories set against the back drop of various wars throughout history. I was intrigued at the possibility that this story might offer something fresh. I was not disappointed. It is clear throughout the text and the notes at the end of the story that Ms. Rifkin researched her setting in order to make it as clear to the reader as possible.

    I must also add that I enjoyed reading the quotes from various historical figures at the beginning of each chapter. I found them interesting and thought-provoking and they all seemed to fit the tone of the story well.

    Reading Lady Gallant was a pleasure. The characters are relatable and the romance is touching. I highly recommend it to any fan of historical romance.

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Goat notes and Donkey tales No. 1 Why do goats have such weird eyes?

Hi, I'm Gini and I live on a little patch of land I call The Farmlette. I hope you will enjoy stopping by to see what's happening with me and my critters. 

                Why do goats have such strange eyes?

Beanie, one of my Nigerian Dwarf goats. 

The goat's horizontal, rectangular pupils seem alien compared to the round pupils of people and dogs and the vertical slits of cats.

    The determining factor seems to be whether the animal is the hunter or the hunted...predator or grazing prey.“ For species that are active both night and day, like domestic cats, slit pupils provide the dynamic range needed to help them see in dim light yet not get blinded by the midday sun,” lead author Martin Banks of UC Berkeley 

                      

   Eyes located more on the side of the head produce a much wider field of vision than eyes like our own. 

    The shape of the pupils also allows them to take in more light. Meanwhile, they aren't absorbing as much light from above their heads, which keeps the sun from bleaching out their view of the grass around them. 

     This extensive peripheral vision lets them watch out for predators, and helps them see the entire terrain around them when they must plot an escape.

      

     Banks confirmed that grazing animals rotate their eyes when they bow their heads down to graze, effectively keeping their eye slits nearly parallel to the ground at all times — no matter the position of their heads. 

        

   They can rotate more than 50 degrees per eye, the researchers say, which is 10 times that of the human eye. This allows the grazers to maintain a preys'-eye-view of the world even when chowing down.

                 

              Weird or not, I love those eyes  

               and the goats that have them! 

            

                      

-------------------------------------------------------------

Here’s why goats have those freaky eyes

 By Rachel Feltman More info here

Why Do Goats Have Such Weird Eyes?

BY MATT SONIAK  More info here

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                   Solace Fae Warriors Book 1

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Although a trilogy, each book stands alone. No dainty flower faeries here--this story features female Fae warriors and the courageous men who love them and fight by their side. This Earth based fantasy of adventure and romance features characters with reader-friendly names and some fantastic otherworldly creatures….some friendly, some not! 

 

Blurb:

Solace Goodeve, one of Mother Nature’s favorite Fae Warriors, is assigned to Earth to help save the planet. Reptile invaders, disguising themselves as humans, are waging a takeover—and Mother is mad enough to eat asteroids. Solace is ready to prove herself as a warrior, but having a human for a partner is not in her battle plan—even if the man is rugged, ripped, and ready for action. 

Ex-Army Ranger, Tanner Jackson, has seen his share of black op missions. The last one took a toll on both body and soul. Tanner isn’t looking for love, even though his new partner is six-foot-tall and drop dead gorgeous. However, after Solace shows him a new meaning to working undercover, he may have to reconsider that possibility.

As the Reps plan to sabotage NOAA, Tanner and Solace must learn to trust one another. But as they're trying to save the world, Solace and Tanner might just lose their hearts—and that takes the most courage of all.

                            ____________

  I hope you enjoy Solace. Don't miss the rest of the adventure in Bliss and Portence!

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