The paintings in this posting are by artist Victor Molev
and were sent to me by truckshunter Kev
after he saw the pictures in blogposting 223.
From the top: Paul McCartney, John Lennon and the Mona Lisa.
Thanks Kev; they're amazing...
225
In this blogposting….
*One Good Tern
*Who Do You Think You Are?
*All You Need To Know About American Cuisine
*AGM XX
So think on and look sharp

ONE GOOD TERN
Amazingly, an Arctic tern has been found on the Farne Islands thirty whole years after it was ringed as a chick. It was in Spring 1980 that National Trust warden John Walton placed the ring - number CE60645 - on the bird’s leg, which makes this the oldest Arctic tern in known British ornithological history.

It’s not the oldest known wild bird, though. That honour is shared between a Manx shearwater on Bardsey Island in Wales and a fulmar in Orkney, both of whom are at least 50 years old - and may still be out there somewhere.

By now, Arctic tern number CE60645 should be on its way to Antarctica again - a round trip of 40,000 miles. So in its lifetime, it’s already clocked up more than a million miles. This is a world record - not just for a bird but for any living creature.

Bon voyage - et bon retour!

WHO DO YOU THINK YOU ARE?
I received an interesting email the other day from regular truckshunter Dave Shannon, who’s being climbing about in his family tree. Some of the stuff he’s discovered is in true Who Do You Think You Are? style - totally unexpected and inviting you to dig deeper back in time.

His great-great-grandfather was born in Bellingham (in Northumberland) in about 1815 and his grandmother was born in Chester-le-Street around 1820. His grandparents, George and Ann, had 10 children and what’s a little bit tantalising is that they lived near Cologne in 1855 (of all places).

With that kind of titbit you just have to find out more, don’t you? Dave is understandably amazed and wonders why they went there. He reckons it could be something to do with the Crimean War, in which Prussia (as Germany then was) was involved.

Fascinating stuff - which just invites further investigation.

I’m surprised and ashamed to report that I haven’t delved too deeply into my own family history, given that I’m always bleating on about how interested I am in it. The furthest back I can go with any confidence is to the 1880s or thereabouts. That’s when my great-aunt was born. Later, she and her husband became teachers at Pelton Infants School when it opened in the early 1900s.

I have a lovely picture of the entire teaching staff, Aunty Mill and Uncle Will included. They’re all standing there looking po-faced and serious at the camera - between two huge aspidistras.

Have you investigated who you are and where you came from? Does your family have any stories and legends about your ancestors?

Get in touch!

ALL YOU NEED TO KNOW ABOUT AMERICAN CUISINE
Three wonderful, food-related stories have caught my eye recently, all of them emanating from the gastronomic hellhole that is the United States…

*...a man called Joey Chestnut - aka Jaws - ate 47 burritos in 10 minutes at the New Mexico State Fair in Albuquerque, beating the previous record of 33. He also holds the world record for hotdog eating….

*….Stanley Neace, of Breathitt County, Kentucky, went berserk after his wife didn’t cook his eggs the way he liked them. He took a 12-gauge pump shotgun and killed her. Then he killed his stepdaughter. And then three neighbours. And then himself….

*….a Montana woman saved her own life, and that of her pet collie, from a marauding 14st black bear by hurling a courgette at him….

AGM XX
AGM XX will take place at 1100 on Thursday 14 October at Gateshead Central Library, not far from the Shipley Art Gallery. It’s much easier to park there for people who depend on their cars to get to AGMs.

If you don’t have a car, get in touch. It may be possible to offer lifts.

And don’t forget - a splendid time is guaranteed for all.

CONTACT ME
Post comments on this blog or email me: truckshunters@googlemail.com

2 comments:

Sid said...

Hello everyone. I've just had a browse at the Gateshead Central Library website and note that Phase 1 of a Lottery Funded improvement program has just been completed.
The next Phase has just been started and it will include a cafe.......at the moment they don't have one.
Saltwell Towers isn't to far away, and we didn't get thrown out last time, so do you think we should visit them again. I'll leave the decision in your capable hands Ian.

Sid said...

I have just checked the weather forecast for Thursday and it's set to be fair with sunny periods.
Ideal Truckshunter weather.