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Thu Oct 12 09:18:17 EDT 2017
Slept from nine-thirty to six-thirty, without waking.
High of sixty-three today. Cloud. Chance of rain.
I'm feeling better. Lingering congestion and slight fatigue, but I imagine I'll be near 100% by tomorrow.
Work:
- Approve invoices
Done.
Fifteen-minute walk at lunch.
Overcast and damp, but not soaking wet like yesterday.
Bought lunch at the new Mr. Kabob that opened down the street. Serviceable.
Home:
- Go to bed early
http://roadsandkingdoms.com/2017/inside-the-worlds-largest-walnut-forest/
> Nestled in a lush valley of Kyrgyzstan’s Chatkal mountain range lies the village of Arslanbob, home to both the world’s largest natural walnut forest and a legend, the truth of which is harder to crack than the nut itself.
> They come from a forest that spreads east and west of Arslanbob in a confusing network of trails that weave through the dark green of the forest, punctured by patches of grass pasture and blossoming wild apple trees.
> Recent nursery-grown walnut trees line up in regimental rows, while the older trees stand alone. In some of the deeper sections, trees are 500 years old, according to Tohtarov. Walnuts from these trees are prized for their superior flavor.
> During the harvest season, hordes decamp to the forest, setting up makeshift shelters to allow for easier walnut collection, and the whole event has a carnival feel, with people sharing food and gathering around campfires to sing and share stories. Story telling is an important part of Arslanbob culture, leading to various explanations over how the walnut trees came to be in the valley. “There are two similar stories involving Alexander the Great, and at least two others saying important Islamic men brought the seeds from paradise to plant here,” Tohtarov explained.
Ha! I didn't know the etymological and historical link between vaccines and cows.
https://arstechnica.com/science/2017/10/maybe-you-shouldnt-vaccinate-your-kids-maybe-equinate-them-instead/
> Most people know the general tale of the vaccine’s origin, which started with key observations: smallpox survivors obtained immunity; infection through a scratch spurred a milder sickness; and milkmaids, who sometimes developed pustules on their hands, seemed conspicuously above the fray. These observations fortuitously fused in the mind of Edward Jenner, who, in 1798, reported protecting a brave eight-year-old named James Phipps from smallpox with an inoculation from the lesioned hand of a cowpox-infected milkmaid, Sarah Nelmes. The inoculation was dubbed a vaccine, a term that stems from the Latin word vacca, for cow.
Lunch: coffee, falafel sandwich
Dinner: chips
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