Things I’ve learned this week

Hello!  Happy, happy Friday!  I can’t believe that we’re here again already.  It seems like I only took a nap since last week, and here we are, seven days later!

Shall I presume that since you’re here, you’ve already donned your crash helmet;   are wearing your galoshes;  and have slipped into your Flame Retardant Clothing?  Yes?  Good.  Jump into your seat, put on your seatbelt (do ask if you need an extension belt) and hold hands with the person next to you.  Let’s have no screaming now ….   OFF WE GO…

I learned this week that I’d forgotten exactly how much I loved Mary Tyler Moore, the wonderful, deeply funny but never mucky, American actress.  I grew up watching her on TV, and as I grew my enjoyment grew with me.  I appreciated her more and more as I became an adult.

She represented a time which I wanted to stay living in.  I could already see, as a young adult, that comedy was changing and how comics/comedians/actors and actresses were slowly breaking down or jumping over boundaries and barriers.  I didn’t want this new ‘thing’ which dipped its toes in bad taste.  I wanted what Mary offered, and women like her – on both sides of the pond.  Valerie Harper and her Rhoda Morgenstern

From the UK:  a wonderful programme called Are You Being Served? – all of the actors and actresses who were a part of the whole fabric of this wonderful comedy.  Felicity Kendal and Richard Briers in the fabulous ‘The Good Life’.  I could go on, but I’d bore you to tears.  But it is these types of programmes which had a magical quality which comedy shows just don’t seem to have today.

I learned/realised this week that I hadn’t really appreciated Mary Tyler Moore ENOUGH when I had the chance, and I so wish I had.  Ms.Tyler-Moore left us, two days ago, on the 25th of January.   When I heard the news on TV, I felt a lump come to my throat and a tiny piece of my heart broke.  I shall never forget her.  Thank you for the great joy and happiness you brought to my life Mary.  x

~  ~  ~  ~  ~

 

I learned this week that …. THERE IS NO SUCH THING AS A ‘NORMAL’ PERSON.  Yes, you read that right.  No one is ‘normal’.  Each and every one of us is made up of a multitude of individual characteristics.  If you take an average of each of them (height, shoe size, length of fingers etc),  you won’t find any individual who is average in all respects. 

This is known as the ‘Jaggedness Principle’.

During the 1940s the Jaggedness Principle forced the US Air Force to re-fit fighter airplanes with adjustable seats and other ‘adjustable to fit’  fixtures.   You see: the cockpits were originally designed around the average range of just 10 body measurements taken from a population of 4,063 pilots.  But because no single pilot met all of those criteria, they ended up with a seat which actually didn’t fit anybody.

And if you need further proof:   In 2011 the Australian Bureau of Statistics used their national census to find the ‘average Australian’.  They announced that she is:  a 37-year-old woman with a son and a daughter aged six and nine. She is 162 cm (5’4”) tall, and weighs 71.1 kgs (11st). She lives in a three-bedroom house, has about $200,000 still to pay on her mortgage and her family originally came from the UK. However, when they checked this description against their census data they couldn’t find even a single person in the whole of the country who fitted that description!

See?  No such thing as a ‘normal person’.  So …   that must mean that we’re ALL abnormal!?!   LOL!!!

~ ~ ~ ~ ~

 

I also learned this week ….  that the Pope is paid no salary what-so-ever.  He is paid nothing and owns nothing.   A Vatican spokesman Joaquín Navarro-Valls ended speculation about the Pope’s personal wealth in 2001 by saying ‘The Pope does not and has never received a salary.’

As head of the Catholic Church and head of state of the Vatican, all the Pope’s worldly needs are looked after.  A recent estimate of the Vatican’s wealth by Time magazine put it at between $10 and $15 billion. In full, the Pope’s job titles are: Bishop of Rome, Vicar of Jesus Christ, Successor of the Prince of Apostles, Supreme Pontiff of the Universal Church, Primate of Italy, Archbishop and Metropolitan of the Roman Province, Sovereign of the State of Vatican City and Servant of Servants of God.

Before officially taking on the role, the Pope-elect’s private property is donated to the Church, transferred to another relative, used to endow a foundation or placed in trust. He can also choose to retain controlling ownership and use his Will to specify what should happen to everything when he dies.

When John Paul II died in 2005 he left no possessions and asked for his personal papers to be burned.  Three bags containing gold, silver and bronze coins were placed beside the body.  Each bag contained one coin for each year of his reign, the only monetary compensation he received for his service,  adding up to about £80.

~  ~  ~  ~  ~

 

And now … that thing you’ve been waiting for … THE JOKES!

Q: Why did the banana go to the Doctor?
A: Because it was not peeling well

Q: What do you call an illegally parked frog?
A: Toad.
Q: Did you hear about the  Italian  chef  that died?
A: He pasta way.
Q: What’s the difference between bird flu and swine flu?
A: If you have bird flu,  you need tweetment.  If you have swine flu,  you need oink-ment.
Q: What did one elevator say to the other elevator?
A: I think I’m coming down with something!
Q: How many books can you put in an empty backpack?
A: One!  After that it’s not empty!
Q: What do you call a group of men waiting for a haircut?
A: A barbercue

Q: Did you hear about the astronaut who stepped on chewing gum?
A: He got stuck in Orbit.
Q: What do you call a nervous javelin thrower?
A: Shakespeare
Q: What does it mean if  life gives you melons?
A:  It means your dyslexic

and finally . . .
Q: What did one raindrop say to the other?
A: Two’s company, three’s a cloud
~  ~  ~
Well, that’s another weekly round-up of things I’ve learned this week, done and dusted.  Not only am I cleverer* than I was a week ago, but now you are too!  ~Aaaand …  I’m slowly turning your skeleton into funny bones.  I reckon I’m about up to your knees around this time … so we’re doing well!
*I know it’s not a proper word, but I likes it.  🙂

  ~ 

May today leave you filled with peace and with a smile in your heart, and may your weekend be restful, joyful and with a smattering of love surrounding the days.  And … if you don’t have someone who can share their love with you this weekend ….  then have some of mine. . .   ❤    ❤    ❤ 
~

Sending  buckets  of  love  ~  from me here in my corner, to you there in yours.  

 sig-coffee-copy

Author: The Art of Cobwebs - aka:- thecobweboriumemporium

Hello. I'm 'Cobwebs'. I live in a wee little cottage in the South of England, aptly called Cobweb Cottage. This little dwelling really is a cobweb factory. Not inside (well, occasionally) - but outside - flipping heck! This information should give you a clue as to why my blog is called The Art of Cobwebs aka: The Cobweborium Emporium. I've been arty and crafty from a very young age, and although my crafts have sometimes turned a corner and taken me in another direction, I've always crafted in some way, shape or form. One day, in the blink of an eye, life changed somewhat for me and the consequences were many. I had to find a new way of being 'artistic'. Card making; scrap-booking; producing ATC's and ACEO's; needle felting; Polymer clay; painting- but in a more relaxed style than I had before, and sewing, - are all things which I visit, as and when life allows. I've fairy recently become a Textile Artist and am enjoying this new creative outlet very much as it offers me so much scope for letting my imagination run through a grassy field and feel the wind in my hair - (mentally, of course). I love to create. To make things. I truthfully believe that the best gifts in the world are those in which you've given your time, rather than your cash. Thank you so much for visiting. Please visit my blog (link below) and have a look around. I'm sure you'll find something to enjoy, even if it's only a handful of jokes! (yes, seriously - there really are jokes!) Wishing you a truly blessed rest of your day! ~ Cobs. <3

26 thoughts on “Things I’ve learned this week”

    1. It made me terribly wistful to go back and remember what I was watching, and what I’d go out of my way to watch, in the 70’s. I’d love ‘TV’ to re-run some of the Mary Tyler Moore shows. They were such fun.

      Sending squidges ~ Cobs x

      Liked by 1 person

    1. Thank you Flo, you too my fabulous blogging friend.

      OOOOo!!! While I’m here …
      I promised you I’d get back to you when I found out more about the Simplicity Needle Felting Machines.
      It was a bit of a fiddle trying to find out information. I tried everywhere I could try in the UK and although some suppliers said that they no longer sold it, they couldn’t tell me if the machine had been discontinued, or just removed it from sale because they were going to bring out a new and improved machine.

      So … I did some research and eventually managed to find out who I needed to speak to in the USA, who’d be able to give me information.
      They were very nice, but told me that they had indeed discontinued the felting machine. However, when I asked if perhaps they were planning to bring out another machine to replace it, they were a tiny bit vague, but said that at this time, no, there were no plans at the moment.

      They very kindly sent me some spare needles for my machine, which I am very grateful for. So sad to bring you negative news on the machine. But who knows… maybe a new machine will appear on the horizon at some point in the not too distant future. fingers crossed
      Squidges ~ Cobs. x

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  1. I didn’t see that MTM had died. Very sad. I used to sometimes see her show as a kid; also Rhoda, with the fantastic Carlton the Doorman character. But oh, the Good Life. I honestly think I know chunks of that show off by heart. Remember the Christmas special where Tom and Barbara gave Margot and Jerry those oversized hand-loomed pea green jumpers? Margot said “speech, Jerry” and he said something like “I can honestly say, that on the right occasion, these will be the perfect thing to wear”. Genius.

    Liked by 1 person

    1. (actually laughing out loud here)… Yes, I remember that episode VERY well … especially the handmade crackers – made from magazine pictures, – which when they pulled them, they had to shout BANG because they didn’t have any snaps inside! Even today, all these years later, whenever I pull a cracker now, inside my head I still shout ‘BANG’ and all because of Tom and his homemade crackers.

      Just because I loves you … I got you a ‘present’ ….

      … you can watch the whole thing if you want, but if you don’t have the time, scroll through to 18 minutes, and just watch the remaining few minutes from there. It’s not great quality in so much as you’re missing the bottom 20% of the film due to the black bar, but it’s watchable, and after a few moments you don’t really notice.

      Awww such rich, warm, funny, fabulous memories. ❤
      Sending squidgery squidges ~ Cobs. x

      Liked by 1 person

      1. Rats, the links won’t work for me, it just takes me to my profile page instead. I told you WP hates me!! I will copy it down and look at it later. Xx

        Liked by 1 person

    1. Hello lovely Ruthie. 🙂
      Such fabulous TV shows. I do miss them.
      You’re right, she will be missed very much, for I know for sure that others will be recalling their own memories of Mary, and acknowledging how great an actress she was, and how great a personality she was.

      Wishes for you having a truly blessed weekend Ruthie.
      Sending squidges~ Cobs. x

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  2. omg, the balloons!!!!!! Are you being served? Great show. Growing up I watched, with my Dad, “On the Buses”, the Carry On Gang and so on, Benny Hill. I used to watch Dick Van Dyke show and MTM show too. She was quite the lady.
    Those sweaters too, she obviously did not do a swatch did she? lol
    Well time for tea and a few rows of knitting. *sigh of contentment here. Thanks for sharing another lovely Friday comic relief with us and well, just for being you!
    Have a grrrreat weekend.

    Liked by 1 person

    1. Hello Soozy!
      Awww, fabulous memories! I wish one of the TV channels would show some of the Mary Tyler Moore shows, here in the UK.

      Thank you for your beautiful comment Soozy, and for coming to visit with me. Love seeing you and chatting over a coffee. 🙂
      ~ Cobs. x

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    1. It’s things I hear about or read about. I then Google the bits of information I remember in order to check out if *that* thing is true.

      I LOVED the ‘no such thing as a normal person’. I heard that on a scientific programme a few weeks ago. They were talking about the Jaggedness Principle, and the name piqued my interest and got me listening. And from there… I made a note of the name: Jaggedness Principle, and then looked it up on the internet in order to make sure that it wasn’t a wind-up! LOL

      The Pope … I know!! It was a surprise to me too. But once it had weedled it’s way into my brain it made total sense. What would the Pope need a salary for?? He was highly unlikely to go shopping for groceries, and I doubt that he needed money for anything.

      But to tell you the truth … I forget more than I remember. There was something in the newspaper last week… a tiny little side note thing, which both Mr.Cobs and I read, and both said: “that’s one for the Friday post!” I have no idea what it was, and when I asked Big Cobs, he couldn’t remember either! LOL

      Hope your weekend is exactly the thing which leaves you peace filled and happy.
      ~ Cobs.x

      Liked by 1 person

  3. This is why we gave up tv a long time ago. Today it is just rubbish. Same with music. No wonder today’s young people are so messed up. There was another graceful diva who just fluttered on set in beautiful gowns before the show but I can’t for the life of me remember her name. My husband always liked her. Oh for the good old days. LOL

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    1. Hello Beverly! 🙂
      My Grandmother never owned a TV. She said she had no need of a TV when she was way too busy to watch one. And …I can see what she meant.

      But … I know I couldn’t do without one simply because I inherited my fathers love of the News reports on TV. I am thankful for having the opportunity to not only watch UK news, but also see and hear news from other countries. It enables me to have a more balanced view on world news and events, and I love that.

      I echo your ‘wish’ about the ‘good old days’. I would love to go back, maybe once a week, to my younger years.

      Hey … we’re crafters! We should be able to whip up a time machine!!
      lol
      Sending squidges ~ Cobs. x

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      1. I keep up with news (such as it is) by Internet. W ho know s if what we get is false or real…??? My laptop is on the blink again and this pad has its limits so who knows when my blogging will get going. I do have photos though!!!! Stay warm..the daffodils are coming up….SPRING is. a coming.

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        1. I KNOW!!! THE DAFFS ARE GROWING IN OUR FRONT GARDEN …. much to my absolute delight!

          Aw sorry to hear about the computer blinking playing up! Like you, I couldn’t deal with blogging on a pad. I have a wee tablet which I can use in times of requirements – like being awake in bed at 2am in the morning and not wanting to wake the whole house up. (Mr.C, dog, cats … and even the rabbit begins to have a tantrum if it knows one of us is around and not offering it a tidbit! lol. But … putting passwords into that tablet is enough to keep me using a ‘proper’ computer for ever and ever! So I don’t know how you can type on yours. You fill me with awe!
          Sending squidges and hoping hopes for the pooter to be well again soon.
          ~ Cobs. x

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          1. Well it is driving me crazy which isn’t far to go. Like now. I have been trying to reply for two days and the screen goes blank on your blog. Must be rats . I,m sure it isn’t me. Any way if I disappear for awhile you know I am dealing with Dell and this grand is not happy.

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    1. LOL … I too was gratified to learn that I’m not normal. But when I began to think about the alternative it made life a little grim for the merest moment – ‘abnormal’ – until I realised that everyone else was too. lol.

      I see we are from a similar ‘time’. It took me rather a while to understand the hilarity which happened when anyone referred to Mrs. Slocombs ‘cat’ [cough]. Obviously I was too young. (or, more likely, too naive).

      Lovely to see you Tom. Have a great week! ~ Cobs. 🙂

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