An eclectic blend of a conversational Coffee Klatch with a sense of wonder, discovery, and intellectual playfulness, much like the historical Cabinets of Curiosities that housed rare artifacts, oddities, and treasures.
In this weekly miscellany, each issue opens a drawer to reveal something fascinating, funny, or thought-provoking. It’s part archive, part adventure!
Cabinet Drawer of the Week
Globe at Night is an international citizen-science campaign to raise public awareness of the impact of light pollution. They invite people to measure and submit their night sky brightness observations.
At set time periods within each year, the project asks people to count the number of stars that they can see from their location and report it to the project’s website.
They collect all this information and create a public, freely available map of global light pollution.
Word to the Wise
Epitome – (e-‘pit-o-me) n. a typical or ideal example, and example that represents something very well
Thoughts from the Nook
I’ve always enjoyed Magic Eye Pictures, also called Stereograms. They are 2-D pictures that allow you to see a 3-D picture when you focus correctly. Generally, I can look at one and focus farther away and see it.
If you have difficulties, try these steps:
Hold the image close to your nose.
Focus beyond it, as if you’re looking at something in the distance.
Slowly move the picture away from you.
Keep your eyes relaxed.
They’re generally easier to see when they are larger, so try a computer or print one out.
Here are a couple to try:
If you want tons of different pictures like this, just do an image search for “magic eye pictures” or “stereograms”.
Trivia Espresso Shot
The largest fungus in the world is an Armillaria ostoyae and it was discovered in 1998. It is believed to be the largest organism in the world and is estimated to be 2,400 years old, but could be over 8,000 years old. It’s located in the Malheur National Forest in Oregon, and it covers 3.5 square miles! The second biggest is 91 acres in northern Michigan.
It has an underground root system and the fungus spreads through rhizomorphs: black, shoestring-like filaments that grow through soil, bridging gaps between food sources like tree roots. These rhizomorphs allow the fungus to parasitize and kill trees by decaying their root systems, then continue feeding on dead wood.
The Pfunny Page
Reference Desk
NOAA is the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration that is the official United States scientific and regulatory agency tasked with forecasting weather, monitoring oceanic and atmospheric conditions, charting the seas, conducting deep-sea exploration, and managing fishing and protection of marine mammals and endangered species in the US.
NOAA was officially formed in 1970, merging several related agencies.
The National Weather Service is part of NOAA, providing weather, water, and climate forecasts and warnings. They also had a 17% personnel reduction because of DOGE, the legality of which is still unresolved.
The NOAA Open Data Dissemination (NODD) Program makes tons of NOAA environmental data from many sources publicly and freely available over a variety of platforms. This is one of the main sources of info that weather apps use.
Dad Joke Cupboard
Q: How do you throw a party in space?
A: You planet.
Composer Corner
Ludovico Einaudi is an Italian composer and pianist born in Turin 1955. He is especially known for his film and TV scores.
He started out composing music as a teenager on a folk guitar. Then he studied composition at the Conservatorio Verdi and learned orchestration from Lucian Berio. Later he collaborated with Ballaké Sissoko from Mali and Djivan Gasparyan from Armenia.
In 2005, he was appointed an Officer of the Order of Merit of the Italian Republic.
Nuvole Bianche | Doctor Zhivago | Elegy for the Arctic| The Water Diviner
Food Holidays This Week
Sun, Mar 1 – National Fruit Compote Day, National Peanut Butter Lover’s Day, Sandwich Day
Mon, Mar 2 – National Banana Cream Pie Day
Tue, Mar 3 – National Canadian Bacon Day, National Irish Whiskey Day, National Mulled Wine Day, National Moscow Mule Day, National Cold Cuts Day
Wed, Mar 4 – National Pound Cake Day
Thu, Mar 5 – National Absinthe Day, National Poutine Day, National Cheese Doodle Day
Fri, Mar 6 – National White Chocolate Cheesecake Day, National Frozen Food Day, Oreo Cookie Day
Sat, Mar 7 – National Crown Roast Day, National Cereal Day, National Flapjack Day
Sun, Mar 8 – National Peanut Cluster Day
From the Archives
Alcoholic beverages have been around probably as long as humanity. Here are the best estimates I could find of the years each different type was invented.
Absinthe: About 1792
Baijiu: About 900; modern version: mid 1300s
Beer: About 3500 BCE
Bourbon: About 1787
Brandy: 1313
Cognac: Mid 1500s
Gin: Mid 1600s
Hard Cider: 55 BCE
Mezcal: 400 BCE; modern version: about 1600
Pisco: About 1600
Rum: Early 1600s
Scotch: 1494
Tequila: About 800 BCE; by name: about 1750
Vodka: About 250; by name: about 1750
Whisky (general): 1000-1200CE
Wine: About 6000 BCE
Recipe Card
Magic Chicken Ranch Casserole
Ingredients
1 lb. boneless, skinless chicken breasts, diced
4 oz. cream cheese
16 oz. bag frozen peas and carrots (or your choice of mixed vegetables)
8 oz. sour cream
1 oz. packet of ranch seasoning mix or 3 tbsp. of this homemade version
1 small bunch of green onions, thinly sliced (about 1/4 cup)
2 eggs
1 cup milk
1 Tbsp. vegetable oil
1 tsp. dried dill
1/4 tsp. garlic powder
1/4 tsp. salt
1 cup flour
Directions
Preheat oven to 400°F. Spray a 9 x 13” baking dish with cooking spray and set aside.
Spray a large skillet with cooking spray and heat over medium-high heat. Add chicken to hot skillet, and sprinkle with salt and pepper to taste. Sauté until mostly cooked on the outside, about 5 minutes.
Add cream cheese and stir until melted and chicken is coated. Stir in frozen vegetables, and cook 3 minutes, stirring frequently.
Turn off heat and add sour cream, ranch mix, and green onions. Stir well to combine, then transfer chicken and vegetable mixture to the prepared baking dish.
In a medium bowl, whisk together eggs, milk, vegetable oil, dill, garlic powder, and 1/4 tsp salt. Add flour and whisk for about a minute until smooth. Pour batter evenly over chicken mixture.
Bake for 40-45 minutes, or until topping is puffy and starting to brown.
Puzzle Pause
I always have a jigsaw puzzle going at home. Here’s a photo of the current state of my current puzzle.
Voting Brackets
The current topic in our voting bracket is Favorite Birds of North America. It’s a double bracket, so the current Round Two has 64 birds.
Our Voting Brackets are open to anyone in the world, and we have a website for it: https://votingbrackets.com/. New rounds begin every Monday, Wednesday, and Friday.
We have completed more than 150 brackets over the last seven years. Here is a full list of all the results back to the beginning.
Marginalia
“I fart in your general direction. Your mother was a hamster and your father smelt of elderberries!”
- the French taunter in Monty Python and The Holy Grail
The Index
Today’s curated list: Funniest B-Horror Movie Monsters!
Rubber
Night of the Lepus
Killer Klowns from Outer Space
Four-Headed Shark Attack
Velocipastor
What are your favorite B-movie “monsters”? Feel free to discuss in the comments.
Next Time in the Klatch
Dune – the books and movies
Until next time, stay curious!