Home Opinion Mine Creek Revelations: Just A Thumbprint

Mine Creek Revelations: Just A Thumbprint

2022
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YES, I AM STILL HERE peeking out of the newspaper’s window on Main Street and I am worried that some Bloke from Liverpool forgot to put on his gloves when he picked up a wax statue and carried it to a cool room at the Victoria and Albert Museum in Jolly Old London, recently.

Here’s what makes those gloves important: On display in the room was a wax model which Michelangelo himself whittled as a model for a stone statue he intended to carve for the tomb of a Pope, waaaaay back in the 16th century.

The room had been getting dangerously warm for the wax, and after the model sat for awhile in the cooler room some of the art experts noticed that a thumbprint began to appear on the base. Of course, the Limeys jumped to the conclusion that it was the master’s fingerprint which was coaxed out by the change in temperature.

According to an article in the e-magazine, ‘LiveScience,’ Michelangelo often carved wax models before chipping away at the stone for the statue hidden inside. After his death, and at his instruction, his notes and sketches and wax models were burned. This piece of wax apparently escaped the fire because the artist never completed the stone statue.

The wax model was purchased by some wealthy lords and ladies, and was given to the high-falutin’ museum.

But an evil thought is creeping into this Yank’s mind.

What if Nigel Crumpton-Smythe of Liverpool, the museum handyman, accidentally gripped the warm wax model without benefit of gloves when he carried it into the cool room?

What if that is really Nigel’s thumb, not Mickey A’s?

I’ve seen some British detective shows on television, so I know those detectives are more interested in tea and crumpets, or popping in for a pint at the Fox and Hound Pub instead of solving crimes. So, maybe there’s a chance that Nigel won’t get nailed for the thumbprint.

On the other hand, he might spend the next 150 years in the Tower of London.

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JUST RUMORS. Many versions are swirling about, and I hear there are more local political announcements to be made.

But, I no more believe that than the #1 Fair Weather Razorback Football Fan believes that more teams will be in the SEC.

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I’VE QUIT watching the Olympics. Too many professional athletes competing. And the U.S. basketball team full of NBA stars really stunk. The greatest paid golfers in the world are competing in the sport. Sport? Surfing? Synchronized Swimming? I thought the Olympics hit rock bottom when the Winter Olympics added curling.

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THE GOOD EARTH. Whew! On Sunday an asteroid the size of the Great Pyramid of Giza zipped by the Good Earth.

No hit, no harm. It was, after all, a couple of million miles away, but real close as far as outer space is concerned.

Doesn’t it seem that we have more and more of these close calls? In fact, it wasn’t so long ago that one actually zipped between the Moon and Earth.

The Chinese have now taken the lead in preparations to deal with any asteroid that appears to be on collision course with Earth.

The Chinese are in this position of leadership because the Russians are lying about having enough money for a space program, and the Americans are too busy arguing about whether it a liberal asteroid or a conservative asteroid.

When I finally got around to making ‘Bucket List’ trips, I went to see Meteor Crater in northern Arizona.

It is privately owned. You pay a modest fee to get in. You can hike about 1/4 of the way around the rim (the guide warns you to look out for snakes); there’s a movie theatre that tells the history of the crater; and there’s a gift shop). I loved the place. Saw it with daughter Julie and granddaughter Carsyn who was about 10 or 11 at the time.

Anyway, sometime about 50,000 years ago a Volkswagen-sized meteor slammed into the Arizona high desert leaving this giant crater. The little museum at the site has a couple of pieces of the actual iron rock, but most of it was blown to bits all over the countryside.

If you’re ever driving to the Grand Canyon you’ll pass the road leading to Meteor Crater. Well worth the detour. 

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MORE THINGS I LEARNED from opening an email: That indestructible black box that is used on airplanes — Why don’t they make the whole airplane out of that stuff?

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ANIMAL CRACKERS. At the doorstep on my patio, Sunday morning, was the empty shell of a Cicada.

Never heard it. It’s entirely possible that a neighbor brought it and left it just to get me stirred up..

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WORD GAMES. Good friends: Stand Up and Be Counted. They’re brave and they’re sitting somewhere in the audience.

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HE SAID: “Your wrinkles either show that you’re nasty, cranky, and senile, or that you’re always smiling.” Carlos Santana, guitar player

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SHE SAID: “I hate housework! You make the beds, you do the dishes and six months later you have to start all over again.” comic Joan Rivers

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SWEET DREAMS, Baby

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