Daily Archives: 12/3/2011

Humor

Dog joke

Two women were out for a Saturday stroll. One had a Doberman and the other, a Chihuahua .

As they walked down the street, the one with the Doberman said to her friend, “Let’s go over to that bar for a drink.”

The lady with the chihuahua said, “We can’t go in there. We’ve got dogs with us.”

The one with the Doberman said, “Just watch, and do as I do.”

They walked over to the bar and the one with the Doberman put on a pair of dark glasses and started to walk in.

The woman with the Doberman said, “You don’t understand. This is my seeing-eye dog.”

The bouncer said, “A Doberman?”

The woman said, “Yes, they’re using them now. They’re very good.”

The bouncer said, “OK, come on in.”

The lady with the Chihuahua thought that convincing him that a Chihuahua was a seeing-eye dog may be a bit more difficult, but thought,”What the heck,” so she put on her dark glasses and started to walk in.

Once again the bouncer said, “Sorry, lady, no pets allowed.”

The woman said, “You don’t understand. This is my seeing-eye dog”

The bouncer said, “A Chihuahua?”

The woman with the Chihuahua said,

“A Chihuahua? They gave me a f………g Chihuahua ?!”

(From an email from good friend Bob!)

Music, The real war

Saturday Song #7 – Erika

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And now for something completely different:  A German army marching song:  Erika:

I had a few acquaintances in the German military while I was there. I also had friends my dad’s age who’d been in the German military… you can do the math. One of them was a broadcast engineer with a German TV network, and in a previous time, a communications man in the Wehrmacht. The interpreter with our MP’s was a former Luftwaffe pilot. One of the doctors at the post dispensary had practiced medicine in North Africa with Rommel’s Afrika Korps. And there’s this story of a friendly old man I met at the park one spring day.

This song, like many in other armies, is about the girl back home

.Auf der Heide blüht ein kleines Blümelein
Und das heißt: Erika.
(On the heath a little flower blooms.
And she’s called: Erika)
Heiß von hunderttausend kleinen Bienelein
Wird umschwärmt Erika.
(Warmth comes from a hundred thousand bees.
That swarm over Erika)
Denn ihr Herz ist voller Süßigkeit,
Zarter Duft entströmt dem Blütenkleid
(Because her heart is full of sweetness,
Her dress gives a pleasant scent.)
Auf der Heide blüht ein kleines Blümelein
Und das heißt: Erika.
(On the heath a little flower blooms.
And it’s called: Erika)

2. In der Heimat wohnt ein kleines Mägdelein
Und das heißt: Erika.
(Back home lives a little girl,
And she’s called: Erika)
Dieses Mädel ist mein treues Schätzelein
Und mein Glück, Erika.
(this girl is my faithful darling,
and my joy: Erika)
Wenn das Heidekraut rot-lila blüht,
Singe ich zum Gruß ihr dieses Lied.
(When the heath flowers bloom red and lilac,
I sing her this song in greeting)
Auf der Heide blüht ein kleines Blümelein
Und das heißt: Erika.
(On the heath a little flower blooms.
And it’s called: Erika)

And in response to “Little Red1’s” comment, yes, no doubt that the legions sang as the marched.

From Kipling’s Rimini:

When you go by the Via Aurelia
As thousands have traveled before
Remember the Luck of the Soldier
Who never saw Rome any more!
Oh, dear was the sweetheart that kissed him,
And dear was the mother that bore;
But his shield was picked up in the heather,
And he never saw Rome any more!

Remember it’s the Christmas season and thousands of miles away are men and women standing in our names. and they have hearts and homes and loved ones…

History

Today in History – December 3

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1586 – Sir Thomas Herriot introduces potatoes to England from Colombia.

1967 – At Groote Schuur Hospital in Cape Town, South Africa, a transplant team headed by Christiaan Barnard carries out the first heart transplant on a human (53-year-old Louis Washkansky).

1967 – The luxury train 20th Century Limited completes its last run from New York City to Chicago (the train was inaugurated on June 15, 1902).

1984 – Bhopal Disaster: A methyl isocyanate leak from a Union Carbide pesticide plant in Bhopal, India, kills more than 3,800 people outright and injures 150,000-600,000 others (some 6,000 of whom would later die from their injuries) in one of the worst industrial disasters in history. Rumors that Union Carbide was manufacturing “spot remover” at the site are incorrect (and tasteless).

1997 – In Ottawa, Canada, representatives from 121 countries sign a treaty prohibiting manufacture and deployment of anti-personnel landmines. The United States, People’s Republic of China, and Russia do not sign the treaty, however. Since anybody with half a brain and a few simple tools can build a land mine, this is one of those “feel-good” treaties.