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IN THIS ISSUE

• Zvonko Springer is part of a crew fighting a fire
• Jack Peaker concludes his speculations on UFOs
• Jean Sterling comments on conspicuous consumption
• Dixie Augusteijn remembers Christmas concerts
• Don Henderson sends the story of a magician and a parrot
• Tom Williamson forwards an observation on the high price of gas
• Websites are recommended by Bill McNair, Bruce Galway, and Gerrit de Leeuw

Zvonko Springer´s work brigade is called to fight a fire in

BUILDING A NEW NATION

One day in August we were called back from work and boarded trucks that took us to the nearest station of the forest railway called "sheamandufer" (from French "chemin de fer"). A line of flatcars pulled by a puffing locomotive with a huge conical-shaped chimney topped with a wide mesh to prevent sparking was waiting for us. We got axes and shovels and boarded the flatcars. The train started to climb a track of 600-mm gauge that lead towards the slopes of Konjuh Mountain, where the forest was on fire. Coming around a narrow bend we saw Konjuh through a haze of cloud of smoke, and a few hundred meters later we disembarked from the train. [Note: Mountain Konjuh is praised in a sad Partisans´ song. The forests there were almost like a jungle and few humans ever passed through.]

First we cut long branches with their leaves on and then spread out in a line, entering the forest of giant hardwood, mostly beech trees. There was not much undergrowth so we advanced rapidly uphill and reaching its rim, found a small valley down below containing several huts. The fire was coming closer to us and continuing down into the valley. Our line turned towards the fire and started clearing undergrowth, making a wide fire brake, and we stayed there preventing sparks from jumping over. A courier went down to warn the inhabitants and to bring back some water if possible as thirst and heat worsened with time.

After a while he returned with an old man carrying bags of sour apples, good for quenching thirst, but none of the villagers came with him to help us to save their hamlet. The only explanation the old man had was as short as simple: "Kismet!" (meaning "It is the fate!"). That was it - so we stayed until dark when the danger of the fire spreading subsided. We boarded the waiting "sheamandufer" and returned to the camp near midnight - very tired and totally dried out.

Next morning waking up was delayed, and during the roll call there was laughing and teasing among the fire fighters whose skin was in hues of gray, and some had scorched hair. Later our brigade received for its great efforts extraordinary praise and got the title of a "spearhead brigade".

A few days later I had to join workers who were starting a new cut on the opposite side of the previous working site. The hillside was much steeper and the Oskova riverbed was at its foot. There was no footpath yet except for a number of profiles fixed by the surveyor to mark the position and slope of cut. It was a dangerous site and without proper care one could easily lose hold and slide down into the Oskova. Serious injuries might be fatal because of nonexistent emergency medical care and the long distance to a proper hospital.

We were given chisels and hammers, rock sledge mallets, crowbars, and long ropes, as well as good wishes for success. A worker would fix a rope around his waist and the other end of it was tied firmly to a chisel driven into the ground above his working place. First we used heavy hoes and crowbars, slowly enlarging the footholds that gradually widened to both sides until they joined to the neighboring ones.

Within a week or so the cut became deeper and working there safer too so the command praised our group more often. One day it happened so suddenly that we got really scared seeing a bush fire spreading through the dry grass on a nearby plain towards the river´s wide bend just below our camp. The camp was not in danger but there was a large stock of timber on the river´s opposite side and next to it, the railway stores and timber dumps. We skipped our ropes, got some branches, and ran down to help stop sparks and fires from jumping over the river. There was a lot of commotion on both sides of the Oskova river, but fortunately it did not take too long to get out the fire. All this happened at noon time and nobody could resist a quick dip in the river´s cool waters to wash off the ash and dust.

The day´s work was ruined anyway so everybody groused about whoever had the brilliant idea to start a grass fire. It was bad luck that the order had been given by the camp´s chief commander to scorch the grass instead of clearing it at the site foreseen for a new stratum. Some jokers said that there were many poisonous snakes hiding in the high grass and that the fire would destroy them easily - to comfort our girls, it was said. Although the commander was not happy about the fire it had a good result: it opened a wide path and a safer access to the river bank where we could do our washing more easily.

To be concluded.

Jack Peaker writes about some official studies of

UFOs

In France in February, 1974, the then Minister of Defense Robert Galley declared in an interview that for 20 years, the French have been studying UFOs. The results of the official studies were published, including the analysis of traces left by two UFOs in 1975 and 1981 in the south of France. An extract from the report states, "The physical phenomenon exists; its place of origin, method of propulsion and behaviour are all beyond human comprehension." Since then all information has actually been embargoed by the French.

The Swiss government has often said that it pays little credence to the UFOs. But since 1990, the Federal Military Department has given free access to a map showing civilian UFO sightings. No military sightings are recorded. On this map are two reports of sightings by military radar, the first on August the 2nd at eleven o´clock at night. This UFO sighting lasted for a whole hour. It wasn´t a meteorite, as it moved in a zigzag fashion. It wasn´t birds, because of high speed; and they ruled out aircraft. On the 13th of June, 1993, radar showed a UFO moving not horizontally, but vertically over a military base. The changes of altitude went from five and a half thousand meters to eight and a half thousand in just a few minutes. The object was also capable of moving from 8,000 meters to 20,000 meters in a few seconds.

In the Soviet Union in 1990, a short while after the sightings in Belgium, General Igor Maltsev, Supreme Chief of the Soviet Air Force, admitted the existence of alien UFOs and extraterrestrial life forms. He said that some MIGs had observed a saucer of 100 to 200 meters in diameter. It was able to stay motionless in the air, and performed extraordinary aerial maneuvers. Ground radar had confirmed this phenomenon. The Soviet Defense Chief had decided not to attack the UFO. He calculated such an attack would be pure folly. In 1991, Soviet government documents reported that an atomic base in Kapustin, Yar, had sighted a UFO over the base for two hours in 1989. During its flight, the UFO emitted a ray of light which seemed to inspect the installation.

In 1984, a UFO was seen in the Ukraine above a missile base, but no intervention was possible. After the UFO left the airspace of the base, the guidance systems for the missiles used on the base were found to be inoperative. All the systems had to be reprogrammed. US atomic bases have experienced similar systems malfunctions after supposed UFO appearances.

The Berlin wall fell in 1989 and the official Soviet News Agency TASS for the first time reported the landing of a UFO at Voronezh. Some children and numerous adults were witnesses. TASS reported that the Voronezh UFO had landed humanoids and robots. This episode was repeated three times. The witnesses were questioned by western experts and were thought to be credible. Studies of traces left by the UFO revealed substances not known on earth. The disc had the form of an egg; it was 15 meters high and five to six meters long. On the basis of the earth´s disturbance, it had to weigh at least 11 tons.

Even in the US, UFO sightings are classified as top secret. However, the door has been opened or cracked by the law on freedom of information brought in in 1970. This was a law supported by President Jimmy Carter. He saw a UFO in 1969 when he was a state governor.

Another important case is that of the then Lieutenant Graham Bethune during a 1951 flight from England to the US on a C54 transport. The incident was confirmed by the whole crew.

Whether or not the existence of extraterrestrial life exists is yet to be determined. However, the fact that so many instances of unidentified flying objects have been seen and described in similar ways across the whole world seems more than just coincidental.

Jean Sterling comments on Dick Monaghan´s article in the last issue:

SUPERSIZE THAT, PLEASE

"How much over-comsumption is there in our cars? I bought mine second hand, so I didn´t order all the stuff it has, and I use most of it."

o I bought my car new, but since I´ve had it for 15 years I guess you wouldn´t say I´m guilty of over-consumption. It´s a great little car - very dependable, and it´s a joy to take to the gas station. It´s a Honda Civic VX, a model that was specifically built for fuel economy. It has aluminum wheels, a special engine, and five- speed manual transmission. Honda only made that particular model for a couple of years as it didn´t sell well. It cost $1,000 more than the base model, and people didn´t want to pay the extra price. My Civic has windows that crank and no cruise control. It does have a tape deck and air conditioning (I live in Florida after all). There are almost 120,000 miles (about 190,000 kilometers) on it, so I´m sure I´ve gotten my $1,000 back and then some. With a son who is an environmental engineer, one must buy green. My next car will probably be a Prius. But that´s a long way off - the little Civic still runs like a top. My husband was driving it one day, and at a stop light a motorcyclist waved at him, and said, "Great little car you´ve got there, mister."

"I get unsolicited catalogues that seem to prove we have trouble deciding what to do with out surplus money. There are any number of gadgets invented only to satisfy our yearning for knick-knacks, but here´s my favorite: for only $150 (US) you can get a "voice activated" grocery list maker that categorizes your choices into categories and then prints it out in list form.

"I feel like such a peasant when I pick up a pencil and write "potatoes" on a piece of paper."

o I still write out my lists by hand. However, it would be nice if there were a gadget that would remind me to not leave said list on the table when I go to the store.

Dixie Augustjein remembers fondly

THE CHRISTMAS CONCERT

We had a party here yesterday for those over 90.

The MC had formerly been program director on a cruise ship which made trips around the world. He told of his experiences when he was a a young teacher in a small town in Alberta, and of his finding out what a big thing the Christmas concert was - more important than teaching ability.

It brought back so many memories of Christmas concerts in my early days. It certainly was a highlight in the season, probably only second in importance to Christmas day itself. Do you remember doing your first recitation, and the child who got stage struck and could not remember a line? There was always one or two dialogues, always a hit, especially with the parents of those taking part. It ended - before presents were given out - with Silent Night softly played while some of the younger girls, suitable dressed in white with angel wings adorned with tinsel, made graceful movements in time to the music. And ALWAYS people said it was the best concert they ever had. What a wonderful childhood we had and with so many memories.

Just a note on memories brought back by yesterday´s party for us oldies.

ED. NOTE: This is a reminder of the fact that for many of "us oldies", Christmas present is so different from Christmases past that we are saddened by the season, and find little joy in it. Many seniors find themselves alone on Christmas, after having been part of family festivities in the past. One suggestion is that we become involved in events that benefit others, so that we do not spend too much time in vain regrets: help with a charity dinner for street people, or invite some lonely person to share our own celebration, no matter how casual. Or for the crafty ones, knit some socks or mitts or scarves for the poor.... Any other suggestions on how to recapture some of the lost joys of Christmas past?

Don Henderson sends the story of

THE MAGICIAN AND THE PARROT

A magician worked on a cruise ship. The audience was different each week, so the magician did the same tricks over and over again.

One problem: The captain´s parrot saw the shows each week and began to understand how the magician did every trick. Once he understood, the parrot started shouting in the middle of the show, "Look, it´s not the same hat!"

"Look, he´s hiding the flowers under the table."

"Hey, why are all the cards the ace of spades?"

The magician was furious, but couldn´t do anything. It was, after all, the captain´s parrot.

Then the ship sank.

The magician found himself on a piece of wood in the middle of the sea with, as fate would have it, the parrot. They stared at each other with hatred, but did not utter a word. This went on for a day and then another and then another.

Finally on the fourth day, the parrot could not hold back:

"OK, I give up. Where´s the @#%^* ship?"

Tom Williamson forwards a post about

THE HIGH PRICE OF GAS

... Crude oil is sold around the world in US dollars. On January 1, 2007, a barrel of oil was selling for approximately $75 US, which equalled about $110 Canadian. On October 1, 2007, a barrel was selling for approximately $80 US, which translates to approximately $80 Canadian now that our dollar is on a par with the US dollar.

What that means is that we here in Canada can boast that the cost of a barrel of oil, for us, has decreased by $30 a barrel. No other country in the world has ever seen a decrease of that magnitude. That should make us ecstatic. But we are not, because in that same period, the price of a liter of gasoline has increased by 15 cents.

I wonder what excuse the big oil companies are going to come up with for not passing some savings on to us consumers. They do not hesitate to pass price increases on to us, do they?

Jay comments: Same old, same old. When the price of a barrel of oil jumps, the price at the pump immediately jumps, even though the gas was refined from cheaper oil. The above isn´t a surprise, more´s the pity.

RECOMMENDED WEBSITES

We have seen this site sent by Bill McNair before, but it is well worth a second look:

http://dingo.care2.com/cards/flash/5409/galaxy.swf

Bruce Galway says this site is about another sport that he will never try:

http://www.biertijd.com/mediaplayer/?itemid=4262

Gerrit de Leeuw was impressed by this young singer. Here she sings a duet with a popular singer from Korea:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GI_Zex4YH8o&feature=related

"A friend is one who knows you and loves you just the same." - Elbert Hubbard