Thursday, February 27

Are We Really Nothing At All On A Ride To Nowhere?

Who am I?

Sometimes it's easily to get puffed up with our own self importance. But, who the heck do we think we are?

We are really nothing at all. We have a life span that's not even the blink of an eye, compared with how long everything has been in existence - so we'll soon be forgotten.

And what are we? A minute bit of consciousness zipping along at 67,000 miles an hour, doing a daily twirl while riding on what is essentially a rock. And 'our' rock is only one little rock out of billions all travelling through what we call space.

Not really that impressive are we?

And to think we are the only bits of consciousness anywhere. That can't be right surely, what with all of those stars out there, but that's what the 'experts' would have us believe. There's just us and if we don't get a move on, we'll soon all be gone too.

Someone's got to be having a laugh. But who is that someone chuckling away?

If the atheists are right, there isn't anything out there having a smile at our expense. So, what are we worrying about? We might as well not care a damn, take what we want and have one big knees up while we can.

But despite this many people, for some reason, are caring and kind and will do a neighbour or family member a good turn. Some care so much for their friends, spouses, parents, sons, daughters, grandchildren they would lay down their own lives for them. But why? What's the point?

It may well be that, despite our almost comical situation - travelling on a fast rock and so on, there is something more. We tend to feel this inside, when we bother to look. We are something more than the blink of an eye.

If we enquire within, we might just discover that there's more to us than meets the eye. Finding out what that is, could well be why we are here, right now, at this precise moment.

Enjoy the ride, even when it gets bumpy.

Other Recent Rambles:
A How Did It All Begin Ramble
The Tortoise And The Big Crunch Prior To The End Of The Everything
Memories Of The Future

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Tuesday, February 25

The Ten Secrets To Living A Long Healthy Life

Ikaria

I was reading a seven page article from the New York Times archives titled The Island Where People Forget to Die.

Stamatis Moraitis
It's a story about a Greek war veteran, Stamatis Moraitis, who was living in Florida, USA when, in 1976, he was diagnosed with lung cancer. He recalls that several doctors confirmed the diagnosis and gave him only nine months to live.

As he was in his 60s he rejected any aggressive cancer treatment and decided he would prefer to die on the Greek island of Ikaria so that he could be buried. along with his ancestors. overlooking the Aegean Sea.

To cut a long article short he is still alive today and is in his late 90s - or rather I should say he was in 2012, for that is when the NY Times article was written.

As for the cancer Stamatis says that it 'just went away'.

He told the reporter, "I actually went back to America about 25 years after moving here [to Ikaria] to see if the doctors could explain it to me."

The reporter asked him, "What happened?"

He replied, "My doctors were all dead."

What interested me in this story is the fact that the island of Ikaria is famed for it's residents living a long time.

The University of Athens did a study on this and came to the conclusion that people on Ikaria were reaching the age of 90 at two and a half times the rate Americans do. (Ikarian men in particular are nearly four times as likely as their American counterparts to reach 90, often in better health.) But more than that, they were also living about 8 to 10 years longer.

So what makes Ikaria so different?

It's appears to be down to their way of life and not any one thing in particular.

As an example of this Dr. Ilias Leriadis, an Ikarian physicians, tells of how :

"People stay up late here. We wake up late and always take naps. I don’t even open my office until 11 a.m. because no one comes before then. Have you noticed that no one wears a watch here? No clock is working correctly. When you invite someone to lunch, they might come at 10 a.m. or 6 p.m. We simply don’t care about the clock here."

Okay, that's quite simplistic but so is the life on Ikaria. Going through what I have read on the subject there are 10 important aspects of their lives that helps them live longer - and maybe even overcome diseases.

1. Faith
With the case of Stamatis Moraitis he reconnected with his faith. As soon as he was able, on Sunday mornings, he would hobble up the hill to the tiny Greek Orthodox chapel where his grandfather once served as a priest.

This may seem a small change but all of the elements of the Ikarian way of life have to be combined. I found a story in the Telegraph where research into liver transplant patients found those who were actively seeking God had a better survival rate than those who did not hold religious beliefs - regardless of which faith they held.

2. Friends and Community
 When his childhood friends discovered Stamatis had moved back to the island, they started showing up every afternoon. They’d talk for hours, an activity that invariably involved a bottle or two of locally produced wine.

As he gradually felt better in the evenings he would often walk to the local tavern, where he played dominoes and talked with his friends until past midnight.

I'm told that there is no Greek word for privacy. They say that 'When everyone knows everyone else's business, you get a feeling of connection and security.'

Compare this way of life to all of the lonely people - especially as they get older - in much of the western world. Some people don't even know their neighbours.

There's a BBC article about how friends help people to live longer. They write, "Good friends promise to be there for you, and their presence can actually help you live longer."

3. Time
Clock and time
As Dr. Ilias Leriadis has said - see above - "No clock is working correctly. When you invite someone to lunch, they might come at 10 a.m. or 6 p.m. We simply don’t care about the clock here."

Now this is something many working people in the UK, USA and so on will say they couldn't possibly follow, other than on holidays or vacations. But, when you think about it, watching the clock and being time bounded causes stress, whether we realise this or not.

Personally I don't get up with the clock. I get up when I wake up. I accept though that I'm lucky to be able to do this.

4. Nature
It seems we have to get back to being one with nature - growing our own food, walking in the woods, along beaches and up in the mountains.

When Stamatis began to feel better he started planting some vegetables in the garden, even though he didn’t expect to live to harvest them. But he did continue to live and reaped his crops. Feeling emboldened he went on to clean up and care for the family vineyard as well.

The Science Daily website suggests that adults tend to live longer if their homes are near a park or other green space - and this is regardless of their social or economic status.

Once he had regained his health Stamatis woke up when he felt like it, worked in the vineyards until mid afternoon, made himself lunch and then took a long nap.

5. Napping
This is what many Mediterranean countries do when the sun is at it's hottest. The Spanish call this a siesta. It has been shown that occasional napping was associated with a 12 percent reduction in the risk of coronary heart disease, but that regular napping - at least three days weekly - was associated with a 37 percent reduction.

There's an article on the Daily Mail about how taking a catnap helps you live longer.

Walking in the Austrian Alps
Nature & Walking in the Austrian Alps

6. Walking
This is something I very much believe in and try to do every day without fail. Karin and I also love walking holidays in, say, the Austrian Alps.

As far as the the Ikarian people are concerned, if they go to church, if they go to their friends' house it always occasions a walk - which, it is said, burns more calories than going to a gym for 20 minutes a day.

The Guradian write about 'taking your brain for a walk.' It's supposedly the secret to delaying dementia Regular brisk walking, three times a week, increases the size of brain regions linked to planning and memory.

Also see Want to Live Longer? Start Walking

7. Diet
The typical Ikarian diet for Stamatis was a breakfast of goat's milk, wine, sage tea or coffee, honey and bread. Lunch was almost always beans (lentils, garbanzos), potatoes, greens (fennel, dandelion or a spinachlike green called horta) and whatever seasonal vegetables their garden produced; dinner was bread and goat’s milk.

Dr. Antonia Trichopoulou of the University of Athens, an expert on the Mediterranean diet, describes the Ikarians' diet as being, like that of others around the Mediterranean, rich in olive oil and vegetables, low in dairy (except goat's milk) and meat products, and also included moderate amounts of alcohol. It emphasized homegrown potatoes, beans (garbanzo, black-eyed peas and lentils), wild greens and locally produced goat milk and honey.

A study by Dr. Christina Chrysohoou, a cardiologist at the University of Athens School of Medicine found that her subjects consumed about six times as many beans a day as Americans, ate fish twice a week and meat five times a month, drank on average two to three cups of coffee a day and took in about a quarter as much refined sugar - the elderly did not like soda. She also discovered they were consuming high levels of olive oil along with two to four glasses of wine a day.

Much has been written about the Mediterranean Diet. See: How to Follow the Mediterranean Diet and on Wikipedia Mediterranean Diet.

8. Wine
The reporter of the New York Times tells of how: "Just after sunset, after we returned to their home to have some tea, another old couple walked in, carrying a glass amphora of home made wine. The four nonagenarians cheek-kissed one another heartily and settled in around the table. They gossiped, drank wine and occasionally erupted into laughter."

The Daily Mail has an article 'Miracle ingredient' in red wine could help people live longer and more energetic lives.

9. Herb Teas
 Herb Teas made from dried herbs endemic to the island, are enjoyed as an end-of-the-day cocktail.

These may be made from wild marjoram, sage (flaskomilia), a type of mint tea (fliskouni), rosemary and also a drink made from boiling dandelion leaves and adding a little lemon.

Many herbs also contain mild diuretics and doctors often use diuretics to treat hypertension. There is a possibility that perhaps, by drinking tea nightly, Ikarians have gently lowered their blood pressure throughout their lives.

10. Sunshine
Something we don't have enough of here in the UK. But sunshine makes you feel good. I remember a booklet I once read about the Secrets Of Immortality. The first requirement, or secret, was to choose to live in a warm climate. It stated that this was how the ancients achieved longevity i.e the likes of Methuselah living close to a thousand years. But a more reliable article is in the Telegraph Sunshine 'can help you live longer by cutting risk of heart disease and diabetes'

I know I said there were 10 but here's one more:

11. Sex
In a study by  the University of Athens on Ikarian men between 65 and 100 they found that 80 percent of them claimed to have sex regularly, and a quarter of that self-reported group said they were doing so with 'good duration' and 'achievement.' Enough said.

You could also say there are two more requirements. In the 17th century, Joseph Georgirenes, the bishop of Ikaria, described its residents as proud people who slept on the ground. "The most commendable thing on this island," he wrote, "is their air (12) and water (13), both so healthful that people are very long-lived, it being an ordinary thing to see persons in it of 100 years of age."

From what I have read these are the ten, twelve or thirteen  essentials to the Ikarian way of life and may well be the reasons why residents tend to live longer than those of the USA and the UK. It's only an opinion, of course.

P.S. I'd better also add that I am not suggesting that anyone should forgo medical treatment for cancer or any other illness.

Other Healthy Posts:
Is Karma The Cause Of Ill Health
The Size Of Your Telomeres Really Does Matter If You Want A Longer LIfe
The Formula For A Healthier Sexier Life

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Monday, February 24

Psychokinetic Potential And Beating The Odds Of 7776 To 1

Two sixes on dice

Here's a strange experience from a 67 Not Out reader, Terry.

I'm not sure if this comes under the category of coincidence but it was something I thought very bizarre and is still puzzling me.

I was playing with five dice, throwing them together to see the numbers that came up. My wife wasn't too impressed with this, as there was stuff to do in the garden. So she asked what I was doing.

I started explaining I was seeing how many sixes I could get. "Mmmm," she said and picked up the dice, shook and threw them. To my absolute amazement she rolled five 6's. She had a big grin on her face.

"How on earth did you do that," I asked, "That's nearly impossible."

I worked out the odds of this happening. It's 7776 to one (6x6x6x6x6)

"It was strange," she answered, "When I picked up the dice I knew it was going to happen."

She tried again and, of course, couldn't do it, only one six.

I'm still amazed at how the five 6's happened. One of those special moments or maybe I've got a witch for a wife.

-Terry

All things are possible, even five 6's. I was looking through a book I have, The Element Encyclopedia of Ghosts & Hauntings, and came across what they call a Dice Test. It says that this is used in psi testing for investigating psychokinesis, the psychic power of the mind to influence objects. The simple test goes like this:

Concentrate your mind upon the throwing of a six (on a die). You can speak or shout at the dice but you may not in any other way influence it. If you score a six write this down. Do this thirty times. How many sixes did you score?

8+ There is less than 1% chance of attaining this score, good evidence for psychokinetic ability.

7. Psychokinetic potential high - there is less than 8% chance of attaining this score.

6. psychokinetic potential still likely as this is above chance.

3-5 Within the area of chance.

2. Less than 3% chance of attaining this score.

1. High psychokinetic potential but working backwards - less than 1% chance of attaining this score.

I just tried the above myself and with the first six throws got three sixes! But then it went downhill and I ended up with only five sixes in my 30 throws - which is within the area of chance. Disappointing, perhaps I got too over confident after my first six throws! But I will try again later.

I understand though what Terry's wife meant when she said she knew it was going to happen. A while back I bought a raffle ticket at a social event and when the raffle was being drawn I 'knew' I was going to win the prize (a hamper) and felt almost uncomfortable about this. And sure enough my number was drawn and I won.

There's lots that we don't fully understand about, well a lot of things.

Reference: The Element Encyclopedia of Ghosts and Hauntings

Other Random 67 Not Out Posts:
Being On Earth Is One Big Coincidence
Chance And Coincidence Don't Happen By Chance And Coincidence
Food For Thought: Peas Or Peace

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Sunday, February 23

Ohio Man Claims He Visited Heaven During Near-Death Experience -


This recent video tells the story of Brian Miller and his Near Death Experience (NDE). It's not one of the best but it's another case of where a person is told that he still has 'things' to do before he can move on.

Other NDE Story Posts:
The Over Powering Love Of Near Death Experiences
NDE: Returned From Death As She Had Three Things To Complete On Earth Before She Could Leave
Author's Experiences Led Her To Believe In Life After Death

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Saturday, February 22

Mysterious Slither-Like Geoduck Clams Stranded On Cornish Beach Following Storms

Seagulls in Cornwall

The mystery deepens of the Slither like shell creatures I spotted on a Cornish Beach. Most of them are now gone, the fleshy parts devoured by scavenging seagulls (photo above).

Christin from Seattle, WA, USA suggested that they may well be a type of geoduck clam. This is fine but, from what I've read on Wikipedia, "the geoduck is native to the west coast of North America." This is a very long way from Cornwall in the south west of England.

It's true we have had some exceptionally big storms and high tides crashing into our shoreline, so perhaps this has somehow transported the geoducks from far afield. But that does seem unlikely.

Geoduck on Cornish beach
My photo of the Mysterious Shell Creatures found on a Cornish Beach
I went back to the beach but most of the clams - or whatever they are called - have now disappeared. Only a few of the shells remain.

Here's a little more info from Wikipedia on geoducks:

"The geoduck 'gooey duck', scientific name Panopea generosa, is a species of very large, edible, saltwater clam in the family Hiatellidae. The common name is derived from a Lushootseed (Nisqually) word gʷídəq meaning 'dig deep'.

The geoduck is native to the west coast of North America. The shell of the clam ranges from 15 centimetres (5.9 in) to over 20 centimetres (7.9 in) in length, but the extremely long siphons make the clam itself much longer than this: the 'neck' or siphons alone can be 1 metre (3.3 ft) in length. The geoduck is both one of the largest clams in the world, and one of the longest-lived animals of any type. As adults they have very few predators other than humans."

The geoduck is a burrowing clam and I've read that they were the inspiration for the slug-like alien parasites of the 2006 movie Slither.

Slither

I therefore hope any remaining geoduck clams left on our Cornish beach aren't making their way inland and into our bathrooms and ...

But for anyone who should find one, here's how to cook them (though I'll pass on this being a vegetarian!)


Photos © Mike Perry

Other Cornwall Posts And Mysteries:
The Mysterious Shell Creatures On Cornish Beach
10 Mystery Posts About Cornwall
The Granite Dinosaur And Turtle Guarding Helman Tor Cornwall

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Thursday, February 20

Messages And Signs From The Dead And Those Close To Death


On the theme of messages and signs from the dead and those close to death. Here is a story from Mary Garcia.

"On Dec 28th 2013 I lost my father to lung cancer that had metasticized to other part of the body.

My oldest brother is now laying in the hospital dying from COPD/emphysema. His lung collapsed a couple of weeks ago and things have been getting worse for him even with surgery. We saw him yesterday and when I got home I saw my husband's Valentine's gifts on the table. Chocolate and White roses.

Today we rushed again to see my brother because they thought he was about to pass soon. While I was sitting there next to him, he told me he saw a little white bird on my shoulder. Then he asked "Do you hear that music? That beautiful music?" Of course no one could hear it but him.

He's been on a lot of pain medication but I know about signs so I believed him.

I was then talking to another family member from his wife's family and she told me about when her grandfather died.

He told her he would come back as a sparrow to watch over her. There were many times the sparrow appeared either physically or symbolically throughout the time since he passed. That's what made me connect to the realization that my mother and I had kept the two doves from my father's funeral bouquet that my mom got him. I will wait to see what happens and if any other white birds/doves appear in the coming days. This thread [on post The White Dove As A Messenger Of The Dead] has really comforted me.

Oh and one more coincidence. My brother told our other brother that he had a code for him to let him know if things were really bad. He'd text him or tell him either 6 or 7 for good or bad. I just noticed that the 6 and 7 appear as your website domain name. How about that?"

~ Mary

Mary Garcia writes and illustrates children's books. Her current book is Boo-Boo's New Leg - A True Story of Illness, Acceptance and Healing.

Other Similar Posts:
20 Examples Of How The Dead Contact Us With Messages Or Signs
A-Mail Messages From Beyond The Grave
10 White Feather Story Posts As Examples Of Messages From The Dead

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Wednesday, February 19

The Giant Buried In The Bank Of England

Lead coffin of William Daniel Jenkins
Lead coffin of William Daniel Jenkins
I published a post on Monday about A Sighting Of The Bank Of England Black Nun Ghost. This morning I picked up an old book from the 1930s I had bought at a car boot sale for a few pence. The book was titled How Much Do You Know. I opened it up at random and on page 19 the first story was What Clerk Was Buried In The Bank Of England?

It seems that the answer to the question (according to the book) is: 'An eight-foot giant named Jenkins who died in 1798.'

The book writes:

"He desired to be buried there in order that his corpse would be safe from body snatchers. This precaution was inspired by the fate of his contemporary, James O'Bryan, an Irish giant.

The latter gave instructions that he should be buried at sea, but so anxious was John Hunter, the distinguished surgeon, to have his body that he gave the undertakers 500 guineas for it.

Hunter's celebrated collection of anatomical specimens was, after his death, purchased by the British Government, and O'Bryan's skeleton now stands, alongside that of a dwarf, in the museum of the Royal College of Surgeons."

Well, a bit of a Library Angel moment I thought. Then I wondered if by any chance the staid Bank of England website would have any information on the giant story - and surprisingly they did.

In August 1933 the Bank Of England was doing some rebuilding and they came across a lead coffin in what was known as the old Garden Court. The coffin bore a metal plate inscribed: 'Mr William Danl. Jenkins. Died 24 March 1798, Aged 31 - photo at top of post.

So it turns out a giant being buried in the Bank of England is actually true.

William Daniel Jenkins was a former clerk of the bank and died 'of decline'. His friends at the Bank, feared that the corpse would be stolen by body snatchers asked permission of the Directors to bury it in the Bank's Garden Court. It is quoted that 'Jenkins himself was said to have been considerably disturbed in his mind before his death, from the apprehension that his body would be taken up after burial for the use of Surgeons. The request was granted.

There was an Act of Parliament in July 1923 which said that any human remains removed from the site should be re-interred at Nunhead Cemetery or any other consecrated burial ground. Accordingly the Jenkin's coffin was removed to Nunhead (near Peckham) where it was placed in the catacomb, having been found too large for the vaults.

The two versions of the Jenkin's story are slightly different regarding what happened to the skeleton, but the Bank of England's version sounds more likely.

Other 67 Not Out Posts:
A Sighting Of The Bank Of England Black Nun Ghost
Top 10 Coincidence And Synchronicity Stories
The Little Dog Looking Down From The Top Of St Austell Church Tower

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Tuesday, February 18

The Mysterious Shell Creatures On Cornish Beach

Strange shell on Cornish Beach

I snapped the above photo on Sunday and I'm wondering what it is - erm, not what it might look like as Karin has already made one suggestion, which I'll ignore!

We went to Pentewan Beach, Cornwall to see if there had been any storm damage. It's been pretty bad in the UK with lots of flooding, gales and high tides. It's said to be an effect of the USA's bad weather, which has altered the normal position of the jet stream - a fast flowing air current that girdles the globe.

The high tides and gales have caused some damage to the Pentewan beach defences, as can be seen from the photo below. Though this is nothing compared to some of the damage and problems in other parts of Cornwall and England. Sunday, however, was a sunny, crisp winter's day.

Storm damage at Pentewan Beach, Cornwall
Pentewan Beach , Cornwall storm damage
We saw the strange shells with their growths or innards exposed along the beach and in rock pools. The photo below shows such a pool. The photo at the top of the post is of a - whatever it is - that was marooned on a concrete rock.

Rock pool on Pentewan Beach, Cornwall

On our way back from Pentewan Beach we walked through Kings Wood which was quite waterlogged. As the sun was shining though, the reflections in the saturated ground were quite impressive.

Reflections in KIngs Wood, Pentewan, Cornwall

Photos © Mike Perry

Click on the photos to make them larger.

Other Posts Based On Pentewan Beach
Magical Release At The Mouth Of The White River
Are Mutilated Horses Part Of A Satanic Or Black Magic Ritual
Observing What Is Often Missed

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Monday, February 17

A Sighting Of The Bank Of England Black Nun Ghost

Bank of England
The Bank of England, Threadneedle Street, London
First an email I received:

"Please don't publish my name or details  but I saw what I believe to be a ghost in Threadneedle Street, London.

I was on a short visit to London and was walking alone in the late evening along Threadneedle Street, near to where the Bank of England is positioned.

Suddenly, without warning, this lady was walking towards me, I don't know where she had appeared from. One minute she wasn't there and the next minute she was.

The lady looked strange and was dressed all in black in what I thought looked like the style from the 1800s. She was wearing a black bonnet with a long veil and her dress was long and full.

I could see her face through the veil and she looked sad. As I passed her she glanced up briefly and asked in a soft voice, "Have you seen my brother?" I muttered, "No," in reply.

Almost immediately afterwards I turned round, to have another look at her, but she had disappeared. There was no one behind me other than a couple walking in the same direction as me.

I've since read that the Bank of England has a ghost known as the Black Nun. I wonder if this is who I saw."

As I often say, I accept stories and emails in good faith. But the Bank of England is said to have a ghost, a woman called Sarah Whitehead.

The story goes that Sarah's brother, Philip Whitehead, was employed in the Cashier's Office at the Bank of England but he appears to have had sticky fingers. So much so that he was found guilty at the Old Bailey of forgery.

They didn't muck about in those days and in 1812 Philip was duly hanged for his crime.

Black Nun ghost Sarah Whitehead
As strange as it sounds nowadays the death of her brother was kept from Sarah for a long period. But you can't keep such things hidden forever and one day she went to the Bank of England and asked to see her brother.

The person she was enquiring to told her of her brother's crime. This had a dreadful effect on Sarah and virtually sent her mad. She couldn't accept that anything had happened to her beloved brother and started visiting the bank every day in search of him. She was also convinced that the bank owed her substantial amounts of money.

Day after day she would cause a disturbance at the bank upsetting staff and customers. In 1818 the bank realised they had to do something about this and offered Sarah a substantial amount of money. There was one condition and that was that she must never visit the bank again.

Sarah kept to the conditions and never returned to the bank - until, that is, she died.

Following her death she was often seen at night, still dressed all in black, and enquired to people she met, "Have you seen my brother?"

Sarah came to be known as the Black Nun or the Bank Nun.

Formation of Bank of England in 1694
Formation of the Bank of England in 1694
Other Ghost Story Posts:
The Ghosts Who Haunt Bodmin Jail, Cornwall: 13 Exclusive Photos
The Ghost Of A Nun Was Herself In A Previous Life
Kate Says She Has Sex Regularly With A Ghost

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Friday, February 14

British Holiday Aircraft Misses UFO By Only A Few Feet

Plane near miss with UFO

This is a UFO sighting I hadn't previously heard about, but an official investigation on the sighting has now been carried out.

On July 19th 2013, flight TCX24HX, took off from Ibiza. The plane was owned by the Thomas Cook travel company and the registration number was G-KKAZ. It was heading for Manchester airport, England.

As the aircraft was travelling over Reading, England it experienced, what has been described as a 'near miss'. The captain physically ducked as a cigar / rugby ball shaped craft - which appeared to be silver in colour and of a metallic substance - came within feet of the Thomas Cook plane.

According to The Telegraph website: "The captain said he spotted the object travelling towards the jet out of a left hand side, cockpit window, apparently heading directly for it. He said there was no time to for the aircrew to take evasive action. He told investigators he was certain the object was going to crash into his aircraft and ducked as it headed towards him."

A report into the incident tells of how the captain "was under the apprehension that they were on collision course with no time to react. His immediate reaction was to duck to the right and reach over to alert the FO [First Officer]; there was no time to talk to alert him ... [the captain] was fully expecting to experience some kind of impact with a conflicting aircraft" and said it was "within a few feet" above the jet.

It's worth mentioning that this near miss was at 6.35pm on a summer's day and therefore in daylight, and at an altitude of 34,000 feet.

So, what was the conclusion of the investigation? Would you believe it "wasn't possible to trace the object or determine the likely cause of the sighting."

According to The Telegraph the investigation checked data recordings to establish what other aircraft were in the area at the time, but eliminated them all from its quest to find out what had been responsible. It also ruled out meteorological balloons, after checking none were released in the vicinity. Toy balloons were also discounted, as they are not large enough to reach such heights. Military radar operators were also contacted but were unable to trace the reported object.

This wasn't a one off incident though because in 1995, the Civil Aviation Authority conducted an intense investigation when the captain of a passenger aircraft - again coming into land at Manchester Airport - nearly collided with a dark, wedge shaped object that was so close that the first officer also instinctively ducked.

What were these 'near misses'? Do you think the authorities really couldn't 'determine the likely cause of the sighting.'? Strange, when the National Air Traffic Control Services admit that staff detect around one unexplained flying object every month.

There must be something out there - even if it's earthbound. Surely, whatever it is, isn't being covered up? No, that's silly ...

Other Random UFO Posts:
10 UFO And Alien Stories
How President Eisenhower Met A UFO Alien
The Aircraft Swallowed By A UFO Mystery Updated

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Thursday, February 13

The Coincidence Of The Number 13 As The Red Arrows Fly Past

Red Arrows
Red Arrows
At an airshow in Lowestoft, Suffolk, England over 150,000 people went to watch the action. Amongst the crowd was a 13 year old boy. And, oh yes, the date was Friday the 13th.

The weather made a turn for the worse, just as the Red Arrows flew past, and a huge crack of lightning lit up the sky. The 13 year old unnamed boy had been in the area where the lightning struck.

Rex Clarke, the ambulance team leader, described what happened, "Suddenly there was this huge crack of lightning really close to the seafront and really loud thunder. Seconds later we got a call that someone had been hit. The boy was breathing and was conscious. He had a minor burn to his shoulder and was taken to hospital as a precaution. It could have been a lot worse."

Ah, and the coincidence bit? The 13 year old boy, on Friday the 13th, was struck by lightning at 13:13 (i.e. 1:13 pm).

As Mr Clarke put it, "It’s all a bit strange that he was 13, and it happened at 13:13 on Friday 13th."

Strange indeed.

Initial source for the story: Daily Mirror. Image by Tomhab and published under GNU Free Documentation License.

Other Number Story Posts:
The Mystery And Enigma Of The Number 23
Beyoncé And The Number 4 Lead To The Illuminati
John Lennon And The Coincidence With Number 9

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Tuesday, February 11

Octonaut Missions Resumed As Dr Shellington Located With A White Feather

Shellington or Dr Shellington of the Octonauts
The photo is for Day 8 of my taking a photo every day exercise
The SOS went out over the phone line: Shellington has gone missing.

In the world of a 3 year old, such as my grandson, this isn't good news. Shellington or Dr Shellington as he probably should be addressed, is an important member of the Octonaut team. His knowledge of the ocean and his field research are extremely useful on any of the Octonaut missions - where their aim is to Explore! Rescue! Protect!

Fortunately we found Shellington hiding in a box of Lego, along with the white feather, from when our grandson had last paid us a visit. We were able to reunite the missing Octonaut with his seven other adventurers. Thankfully new missions can now once more be considered.

Who are these Octonauts? Wikipedia, rather stuffily, describes them thus "... an underwater exploring crew made up of stylized anthropomorphic animals, a team of eight adventurers who live in an undersea base, the Octopod, from where they go on undersea adventures with the help of a fleet of aquatic vehicles." If he read this Shellington would no doubt reply, "Fascinating," or "Jumping Jellyfish."

It's interesting how similar themes appear in different television series - synchronicity, coincidence, or maybe there really isn't anything new in the world.

If we look at the Octonauts (designed for pre-school children) and compare them with Star Trek, for instance, the similarities are there. I read the following description on the Highchairs & Headaches website:

"Octonauts: Think Star Trek, for children, but take them out of space and dump them in the ocean. I thought of this clever little analogy after the hubby recently turned me into a bit of a Star Trek geek. The little sea-dwelling astronaut creatures hang out on the Octopod (aka Deep Space Nine), go out on missions in little ships called GUPs (aka shuttles), and meet various different species that live throughout the ocean (aka space). There’s a captain, a medic, and various other members of the Octonaut crew (aka Starfleet). Coincidence? I think not."

Shellington the Octonaut in double

Strangely when I looked at another photo I had taken of Shellington, using the reflection setting on my camera, the white feather seems to have turned into a rocket ship or space vehicle.

Photos: © Mike Perry

Other 67 Not Out Posts:
Finding Helen Under The Rubbish Coincidence
We Seem To Have The Need To Cry
Cleopatra's Needle Didn't Want To Come To London

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Monday, February 10

Who In The World Was That Guy Coincidence

Three soldiers

I came across the following coincidence story from gameoverno on Reddit. It made me smile, as you can imagine something like this actually happening.

"A friend and I had lunch with a total stranger who got in my friend's car when he was picking me up. We each assumed the guy was the other's friend whom he'd invited, but had not said anything about - and neither of us directly asked, 'So how do you guys know each other?'

The guy was nice enough and we ended up having a fine lunch with pleasant, but generally chitchat-level, conservation.

My friend called me up after he dropped us off and asked, 'Who in the world was that guy?' We then discovered our assumptions about the other knowing him were false.

We had to know why this happened, so I looked up the guy in the employee directory (I worked at the same company) and emailed him.

He replied explaining he was supposed to meet a Brian (my friend's name is Brian) who had the same colour and model car, at the same spot we picked him up and at the same time!

He thought that he'd met up with the right people until about three quarters of the way through lunch when Brian said where he worked and that didn't match with the Brian he was meant to meet."

~ gameoverno

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Saturday, February 8

The Little Dog Looking Down From The Top Of St Austell Church Tower

Holy Trinity Church, St Austell, Cornwall

On day 4 or my taking a photo every day exercise, looking upwards I snapped my local church tower in St Austell, Cornwall.

Dog face on church tower
Why the top part? Because I have lived in the area for over 30 years but have never really looked properly at the top of the church tower. This is strange as, wherever I go in the world, I always go into the local church to soak up the atmosphere and to enjoy the architecture. There's something about places of worship that are very special.

There's a saying about how we sometimes don't see what's staring us in the face. This is how I feel about the church. I've walked past it thousands of times but haven't taken it all in properly - it's just something that's there - like the bakers, the pubs, the market house and so on.

I had noticed the clock and the four saints' statues but never the little dog looking down from the very top or the strange creatures at the corners of the tower and the funny looking faces also looking down on the people walking past..

Detail on church tower, St Austell Cornwall

Detail on st Austell Church Tower

What this has shown me is how easy it is to take things for granted and how it's good to look at things from a different perspective at times. Goodness knows what else there is all around me that I'm missing out on.

Holy Trinity Church, St.Austell, Cornwall
Holy Trinity Church, St.Austell, Cornwall
The Holy Trinity Church history in brief: "The Church in St Austell has a long history. A Christian community, possibly with Celtic roots was in existence in what is now St Austell in pre-Norman times. There has been a church building on the site of the town centre church - Holy Trinity - since 1169. Part of the current building dates back as far as 1290."

Photos © Mike Perry

Other taking a photo every day posts:
Footprints In The Sand Synchronicity
Who Would You Spend Your Final Day On Earth With?
The Symbolism Of Biscuits And Wages In A Glass Barrel

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Friday, February 7

The Symbolism Of Biscuits And Wages In A Glass Barrel

Glass biscuit barrel

Okay, the above is the third image of my taking a photo every day exercise. I know I said I wouldn't publish every photo I take but I justified this one because of a coincidence story I found on The Inquirer website, though the story originated from the Orlando Sentinal.

My photo is of a biscuit barrel - or a cookie jar as it would probably be called in the USA. I'll say why I took this picture after the coincidence story, which follows:

"Two brothers have been re-united after 48 years after the purchase of a biscuit barrel on eBay.

According to the Orlando Sentinal, Bob Kunath saw a similar cookie jar in a local flea market, tried to buy it but thought $150 was too steep.

Instead he did a search on the auction site eBay and discovered a similar jar was on sale for $35. When he bought it and looked at the receipt, he noticed the name of the seller was Harry Saylor. Bob knew from his own adoption papers his father's surname was Saylor.

So he emailed the vendor and discovered that Harry was his long lost brother. Now they're back in touch with each other."

As for my biscuit barrel it usually sits on a shelf in our hall and belonged to my parents, who received it as a wedding present. It's of no real monetary value but means a lot to me. As a small child I remember the barrel being on the sideboard in our living room.

My favourite biscuits
In those days, as with most working people, dad was paid weekly on a Friday. When he arrived home in the evening he would take out his wage packet and put the housekeeping money for my mum into the biscuit barrel. It was a routine that always happened, other than when dad had a holiday away from work. I can still picture this today.

As with symbols of any kind this doesn't mean that every time I walk into our hall I consciously think of my mum and dad. Seeing the barrel though could well work on an unconscious level and so keeps me feeling close to my parents, now that they have moved on - as do other items we have around the house.

Symbols (even biscuit barrels!) can be meaningful, though we don't always realise the effect they may be having on us.

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Distinguishing Between False And True Signs
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Mark Master Masons Symbolism And Why This Year Is 6012

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