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1. <?xml version='1.0' encoding='UTF-8'?><?xml-stylesheet href="http://www.blogger.com/styles/atom.css" type="text/css"?><feed xmlns='http://www.w3.org/2005/Atom' xmlns:openSearch='http://a9.com/-/spec/opensearchrss/1.0/' xmlns:blogger='http://schemas.google.com/blogger/2008' xmlns:georss='http://www.georss.org/georss' xmlns:gd="http://schemas.google.com/g/2005" xmlns:thr='http://purl.org/syndication/thread/1.0'><id>tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-12406865</id><updated>2024-03-06T22:57:13.995-05:00</updated><category term="2012"/><category term="news"/><category term="dream"/><category term="death"/><category term="mayan calendar"/><category term="Jaguar Nights"/><category term="Aztec"/><category term="Mexico"/><category term="13th Baktun"/><category term="long count"/><category term="mayan"/><category term="pyramid"/><category term="animals"/><category term="calendar"/><category term="pets"/><category term="archaeology"/><category term="cruise"/><category term="cruise ship"/><category term="Carnival Liberty"/><category term="america unearthed"/><category term="archeology"/><category term="books"/><category term="gate"/><category term="nutter"/><category term="rant"/><category term="scott wolter"/><category term="4 Ollin"/><category term="Apocalypto"/><category term="anthropology"/><category term="burner day"/><category term="cats"/><category term="dad"/><category term="dreams"/><category term="loss"/><category term="munay ki"/><category term="sad"/><category term="shamballa"/><category term="tzolkin"/><category term="4 Ahau"/><category term="Aztec calendar stone"/><category term="Inca"/><category term="afterlife"/><category term="aztec calendar"/><category term="crystal skulls"/><category term="crystals"/><category term="egypt"/><category term="energy"/><category term="flower of life"/><category term="global warming"/><category term="incan"/><category term="maya"/><category term="merkaba"/><category term="mesoamerican"/><category term="mortality"/><category term="movie review"/><category term="movies"/><category term="nanowrimo"/><category term="numerology"/><category term="pagan"/><category term="prophecy"/><category term="pseudo-documentary"/><category term="review"/><category term="sadness"/><category term="shamanism"/><category term="snakes"/><category term="thoughts"/><category term="time"/><category term="video"/><category term="zapotec"/><category term="12/12/12"/><category term="13 Ahau"/><category term="2013"/><category term="823 years"/><category term="Alzheimer&#39;s"/><category term="Aztec Sun Stone"/><category term="Blogger Beta"/><category term="Cancun"/><category term="Carnival"/><category term="Chichen Itza"/><category term="El Palmillo"/><category term="El Rey"/><category term="Eragon"/><category term="Guatemala"/><category term="January 17 2018"/><category term="La noche Triste"/><category term="Manik"/><category term="Moctezuma"/><category term="Roatan"/><category term="Seasonal Affective Disorder"/><category term="airline"/><category term="airport"/><category term="aliens"/><category term="ancient aliens"/><category term="atheism"/><category term="aztalan"/><category term="aztec gold"/><category term="aztec migration"/><category term="aztlan"/><category term="belize"/><category term="burial"/><category term="butterflies"/><category term="cactus"/><category term="cahokia"/><category term="calleman"/><category term="census"/><category term="chak"/><category term="chemistry"/><category term="chocolate. Xunatunich"/><category term="cibola"/><category term="color therapy"/><category term="cortes"/><category term="cozumel"/><category term="crop circle"/><category term="dead days"/><category term="deer"/><category term="dolphins"/><category term="dragon"/><category term="dying"/><category term="el mirador"/><category term="elements"/><category term="elongated skulls"/><category term="end of the world"/><category term="energy healing"/><category term="eulogy"/><category term="falling"/><category term="feathered serpent"/><category term="frogs"/><category term="furby"/><category term="gary jennings"/><category term="geology"/><category term="georgia"/><category term="grand cayman"/><category term="green"/><category term="h2"/><category term="heaven"/><category term="holidays"/><category term="honduras"/><category term="horoscopes"/><category term="html errors"/><category term="humor"/><category term="iguana"/><category term="implants"/><category term="joy"/><category term="kindle"/><category term="king tut"/><category term="kukulcan"/><category term="leap years"/><category term="legos"/><category term="lesson"/><category term="light master"/><category term="lightworkers"/><category term="lizard"/><category term="long count calendar"/><category term="lost luggage"/><category term="mandalas"/><category term="mayan ruins"/><category term="mayan underworld"/><category term="mel gibson"/><category term="merchandise"/><category term="metatrons cube"/><category term="miami"/><category term="michael giza"/><category term="missed planes"/><category term="monotheism"/><category term="monte alban"/><category term="montezuma"/><category term="myspace"/><category term="native american"/><category term="nebula"/><category term="new year"/><category term="novel"/><category term="overpopulation"/><category term="pagan census"/><category term="pantheism"/><category term="parrots"/><category term="penguin"/><category term="perpetual calendar"/><category term="peru"/><category term="photos"/><category term="pitch"/><category term="plumed serpent"/><category term="plymouth"/><category term="pneumonia"/><category term="pole shift"/><category term="pollution"/><category term="polytheism"/><category term="pool of souls"/><category term="popol vuh"/><category term="precession"/><category term="prediction"/><category term="queztalcoatl"/><category term="reality tv"/><category term="reiki"/><category term="religulous"/><category term="roberto rodriguez"/><category term="rock lake mystery"/><category term="rotherwas serpent mound"/><category term="ruins"/><category term="sacred geometry"/><category term="sacrifice"/><category term="san gervasio"/><category term="serpent mounds"/><category term="sick bay"/><category term="signs"/><category term="snake"/><category term="solar flares"/><category term="solstice"/><category term="spoiler"/><category term="sputz"/><category term="star tetrahedron"/><category term="swooping"/><category term="symbols"/><category term="synesthesia"/><category term="tenochtitlan"/><category term="teotihaucan"/><category term="thought forms"/><category term="thoughtforms"/><category term="tullum"/><category term="tulum"/><category term="tyranena"/><category term="vacation"/><category term="writing"/><category term="xibalba"/><category term="zeebo"/><title type='text'>Musings: Shamanic, Animal, Planetary &amp;amp; more</title><subtitle type='html'>Includes dreams, metaphysical musings, pets &amp;amp; animals, planetary happenings and miscellaneous personal musings.</subtitle><link rel='http://schemas.google.com/g/2005#feed' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://ofsinitiate.blogspot.com/feeds/posts/default'/><link rel='self' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/12406865/posts/default?alt=atom&amp;redirect=false'/><link rel='alternate' type='text/html' href='http://ofsinitiate.blogspot.com/'/><link rel='hub' href='http://pubsubhubbub.appspot.com/'/><link rel='next' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/12406865/posts/default?alt=atom&amp;start-index=26&amp;max-results=25&amp;redirect=false'/><author><name>GBP  })i({</name><uri>http://www.blogger.com/profile/09275995534174189926</uri><email>noreply@blogger.com</email><gd:image rel='http://schemas.google.com/g/2005#thumbnail' width='25' height='32' src='http://www.obsidianbutterfly.com/assets/about/Green%20Bert%20copy.jpg'/></author><generator version='7.00' uri='http://www.blogger.com'>Blogger</generator><openSearch:totalResults>559</openSearch:totalResults><openSearch:startIndex>1</openSearch:startIndex><openSearch:itemsPerPage>25</openSearch:itemsPerPage><entry><id>tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-12406865.post-4049710219620915052</id><published>2016-06-01T21:43:00.000-04:00</published><updated>2016-06-01T21:43:42.169-04:00</updated><category scheme="http://www.blogger.com/atom/ns#" term="13th Baktun"/><category scheme="http://www.blogger.com/atom/ns#" term="2012"/><category scheme="http://www.blogger.com/atom/ns#" term="calendar"/><category scheme="http://www.blogger.com/atom/ns#" term="end of the world"/><category scheme="http://www.blogger.com/atom/ns#" term="leap years"/><category scheme="http://www.blogger.com/atom/ns#" term="long count"/><category scheme="http://www.blogger.com/atom/ns#" term="long count calendar"/><category scheme="http://www.blogger.com/atom/ns#" term="mayan calendar"/><title type='text'>The Mayan Calendar is not ending June 3-4, 2016</title><content type='html'>&lt;a href=&quot;http://www.indiatimes.com/news/weird/scholars-release-the-latest-date-for-apocalypse-june-3-4-2016_-255927.html&quot; target=&quot;_blank&quot;&gt;This terrible article&lt;/a&gt; claims that “scholars” have released the REAL Mayan calendar end date and it’s June 3 or 4, because leap years!&amp;nbsp; (full screen print below; don&#39;t reward ignorance with clicks and page views)&lt;br /&gt;
2. Can we just stop it?<br />
3. An actual expert is quoted, and he says actual correct things about the Long Count, and notice that no where in his statement does he say that erroneous leap-year based calculations cause the end to change:  <br />
4. <span style="color: blue;"><span style="font-family: "courier new" , "courier" , monospace;">“As far as we know, the people of Mesoamerica, the Maya included, didn’t care about leap years,” Anthony Aveni, an expert in ancient Mesoamerican astronomy at Colgate University told the National Geographic.<br />“Our philosophy about leap year is a complicated scheme to make the seasons jibe with the calendar,” Aveni said. “They were more concerned that time should be unbroken, not interfered with, and that the count of time should have continuity.”</span></span><br />
5. Exactly. The Long Count Calendar counts DAYS.  It doesn’t count years.  It doesn’t care about leap years.  <br />
6. Even if you assume that the Long Count is only 13 Baktuns long (I’m not in that group, but I respect the thinking of those who are; 20 Baktuns makes way more sense to me)…it’s still way past 13 Baktuns.   The new chosen date, June 3, 2016, is 13.0.3.9.0 3-Zotz 3-Ahau.  Ahau is indeed the end of a cycle—a 20 day one.  Every <b>20 days</b> there’s an Ahau date.<br />
7. Notice that the Long Count date starts with 13.  That’s because Baktun 13 started in 2012, right on schedule, 1,872,000 days after it began.  It doesn’t matter if you correlate it with the Jewish calendar, the Islamic calendar, the Egyptian calendar (which the article does mention, who knows why).  <b>It counts DAYS not YEARS and it is not a solar calendar.  A day is a day is a day.</b>   The correlation between the Mayan calendars and the Gregorian calendar (our calendar) changes by a day every leap year (that’s why it’s so hard to calculate).<br />
8. (Also, the concept of a "leap year" wasn't invented until 45 BC, 3000+ years after the beginning of the Long Count.)<br />
9. Dragging the 365-day Haab calendar into the mix is just obfuscation and ignorance (and the Haab also doesn’t have leap years).  The Haab isn’t contained within the structure of the Long Count the way the Tzolkin is and doesn’t synch up with it.  Instead, the Long Count has the Tun period, which is 18 20-day Uinal periods to approximate a year. <b>But again, the point of the Long Count was to count DAYS not YEARS.</b>  It’s an odometer where most sections are 0-19 (except the Tun, which is 0-17), created by people who used base-20 instead of base-10.<br />
10. Bringing in a Western astrology chart is also obfuscation, because Western and Mesoamerican astrology are not related in any way.<br />
11. The 1260 day difference is because… it’s been 1260 days since 13.0.0.0.0.<br />
12. Stop spreading lies through ignorance, please.<br />
13. <br />
14. <a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh529g2-vZwPU_5EP6U9GUjjpQZlou4ABiIdQ4y-tbSi0zuXvppRzKWMogoXaeLSRZiyHdDdhE4tvQv_84HU6sI5MSEvIJBO2yYvoCk3sOsx0NasjCro1dTNQVDcemY3hg5teTvwA/s1600/newLCCending_screenshot.jpg" imageanchor="1"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh529g2-vZwPU_5EP6U9GUjjpQZlou4ABiIdQ4y-tbSi0zuXvppRzKWMogoXaeLSRZiyHdDdhE4tvQv_84HU6sI5MSEvIJBO2yYvoCk3sOsx0NasjCro1dTNQVDcemY3hg5teTvwA/s320/newLCCending_screenshot.jpg" width="76" /></a><div class="blogger-post-footer">http://ofsinitiate.blogspot.com
15. (c) Gevera Bert Piedmont  })i({
16. Thank you!&lt;/div&gt;</content><link rel='replies' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://ofsinitiate.blogspot.com/feeds/4049710219620915052/comments/default' title='Post Comments'/><link rel='replies' type='text/html' href='http://www.blogger.com/comment.g?blogID=12406865&amp;postID=4049710219620915052' title='0 Comments'/><link rel='edit' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/12406865/posts/default/4049710219620915052'/><link rel='self' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/12406865/posts/default/4049710219620915052'/><link rel='alternate' type='text/html' href='http://ofsinitiate.blogspot.com/2016/06/the-mayan-calendar-is-not-ending-june-3.html' title='The Mayan Calendar is not ending June 3-4, 2016'/><author><name>GBP  })i({</name><uri>http://www.blogger.com/profile/09275995534174189926</uri><email>noreply@blogger.com</email><gd:image rel='http://schemas.google.com/g/2005#thumbnail' width='25' height='32' src='http://www.obsidianbutterfly.com/assets/about/Green%20Bert%20copy.jpg'/></author><media:thumbnail xmlns:media="http://search.yahoo.com/mrss/" url="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh529g2-vZwPU_5EP6U9GUjjpQZlou4ABiIdQ4y-tbSi0zuXvppRzKWMogoXaeLSRZiyHdDdhE4tvQv_84HU6sI5MSEvIJBO2yYvoCk3sOsx0NasjCro1dTNQVDcemY3hg5teTvwA/s72-c/newLCCending_screenshot.jpg" height="72" width="72"/><thr:total>0</thr:total></entry><entry><id>tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-12406865.post-6448970545526939484</id><published>2014-12-26T17:12:00.000-05:00</published><updated>2014-12-26T17:12:38.323-05:00</updated><category scheme="http://www.blogger.com/atom/ns#" term="america unearthed"/><category scheme="http://www.blogger.com/atom/ns#" term="Aztec"/><category scheme="http://www.blogger.com/atom/ns#" term="aztec gold"/><category scheme="http://www.blogger.com/atom/ns#" term="cortes"/><category scheme="http://www.blogger.com/atom/ns#" term="La noche Triste"/><category scheme="http://www.blogger.com/atom/ns#" term="mesoamerican"/><category scheme="http://www.blogger.com/atom/ns#" term="Moctezuma"/><category scheme="http://www.blogger.com/atom/ns#" term="montezuma"/><category scheme="http://www.blogger.com/atom/ns#" term="pseudo-documentary"/><category scheme="http://www.blogger.com/atom/ns#" term="review"/><category scheme="http://www.blogger.com/atom/ns#" term="scott wolter"/><title type='text'>America Unearthed:  Montezuma&#39;s Gold (review/commentary)</title><content type='html'>Once again, Scott Wolter, forensic geologist and host of &lt;i&gt;America Unearthed&lt;/i&gt;, is venturing into the territory of the Mesoamericans, so once again I shall dissect the episode for you and add my own special brand of commentary.&amp;nbsp; Enjoy.&lt;br /&gt;
17. This episode, "Montezuma's Gold" originally aired November 29, 2014.  For now, the full episode is <a href="https://draft.blogger.com/American%20Unearthed:%20%20Montezuma%27s%20Gold" target="_blank">at the H2 page</a>.<br />
18. It begins with the delivery of a mysterious map with the note "Please put this to good use" and a computer chip.  It looks like the same map used in a previous episode about pyramids in Wisconsin (see <a href="http://ofsinitiate.blogspot.com/2014/01/america-unearthed-underwater-pyramids.html" target="_blank">my review of that episode</a>).  In the package is also a crude lump of gold that looks like a child's version of something Aztec, with <i>Freddie Crystal</i> written on the back.  The chip has a picture of the map with a glyph drawn across it.<br />
19. After the intro, Scott is scuba diving in a lake in Utah, looking for Montezuma's treasure. He helpfully explains that Montezuma was "that guy who led the Aztecs" and that he's most famous for "Montezuma's revenge." <br />
20. I will not even dignify that with a comment.<br />
21. The map package apparently led him to this lake.  He admits to having seen the map before (ha!  nailed that!), the "Disturnell Map" (<a href="http://www.archives.gov/publications/prologue/2005/summer/images/mexico-disturnell-l.jpg" target="_blank">large size image</a>).<br />
22. <table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
23. <tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhKYlaxQ6hSIKRr8H2ExwfJ2BnylTgbSPPqA1rTDQac7RwuHPlM5LES5xYVcj0SpGSE7usnBFAWxaTBmhgkzXCsgkvK58qLnssuKTeniNDAaz2hZmFGRQXA-TGzcPS3p_LSzVXpDg/s1600/mexico-disturnell-m.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhKYlaxQ6hSIKRr8H2ExwfJ2BnylTgbSPPqA1rTDQac7RwuHPlM5LES5xYVcj0SpGSE7usnBFAWxaTBmhgkzXCsgkvK58qLnssuKTeniNDAaz2hZmFGRQXA-TGzcPS3p_LSzVXpDg/s1600/mexico-disturnell-m.jpg" height="376" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
24. <tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Disturnell Map of 1847, from the Treaty of Guadalupe Hidalgo<b></b></td></tr>
25. </tbody></table>
26. Scott reminisces about the search for the underwater pyramids and says he's not done with the Aztecs, and explains how they came from the north, from Aztlan, and how this map places Aztlan in the Four Corners region where Arizona, Colorado, New Mexico, and Utah meet.  (Too bad archeologists don't know about this!)  On this version of Scott's map, someone has hand-written "Montezuma's curse" over Utah.<br />
27. Scott heads to "the middle of the Utah desert" to meet with Lois Brown, a journalist who coincidentally has written a whole book called <i>Cursed Gold</i> (imagine that).  She explains that Freddie Crystal showed up 100 years ago in Kanab, Utah with a mysterious map.  (Are maps ever not mysterious on this show?)  They are meeting in the place supposedly depicted on Freddie Crystal's map.<br />
28. Scott's narration helpfully explains how the Aztecs were the "largest empire in South America" (you probably heard me yelling at the television from wherever you are at that stinker), and how <span class="st">Cortés</span> "found" all kinds of gold there. (Yes, in the Aztecs' treasury...following in the footsteps of Columbus "discovering" land where people already had lived for thousands of years.)  When "war broke out" between the Spanish and Aztecs (he makes it sound mystifying... how did that <i>ever</i> happen?), all that treasure "just disappeared."<br />
29. <hr />
30. I have to stop here.  It didn't just vanish.  The Spanish were taking it away, running away, on La Noche Triste (June 30, 1520) after the death of Moctezuma II, who was being held prisoner by the Spanish.  The Spanish were greedy, the gold was heavy, the Aztecs had removed all the bridges from the causeways' canals.  The Spanish dumped much of the gold into Lake Tenochtitlan as they fled, where presumably it sank into the ooze.  Later, when <span class="st">Cortés</span> razed Tenochtitlan, the rubble was used to enlarge the island and covered the areas where the causeways and canals once were.  Theoretically, that treasure is all buried somewhere deep under present-day Mexico City.  (You can search for La Noche Triste to read all about that sad night.)<br />
31. <hr />
32. Immediately the show goes back to Freddie Crystal, who somehow believed the Aztecs left Tenochtitlan carrying the treasure after <span class="st">Cortés destroyed their entire civilization and way of life and enslaved or killed 80% or more of them.  </span><br />
33. <span class="st">I know there are theories that Moctezuma's (the more correct spelling) successor had the sunken (buried) treasure taken up from the lake bottom, but since they pretty much immediately went to war, I don't see how they had time, or if they did, where they could have hidden it that </span><span class="st"><span class="st">Cortés</span> wouldn't have found it while destroying the city shortly after.  Would they have given up the manpower to carry that immense amount of treasure far away in the middle of a huge war?  </span><br />
34. <span class="st">Apparently Freddie Crystal's maps came from somewhere in Mexico.  He, and his (mysterious) maps disappeared (mysteriously) in 1922.  Whenever anyone tries to search for the treasure in this area of Utah "bad things happen to them" according to the journalist, including cave divers being attacked apparently by ghosts.  A CURSE.</span><br />
35. <span class="st">The journalist explains that the Aztecs (leaderless at this point, remember) had somehow rallied, extracted the treasure and sent it off with 2,000 slaves carrying it and an escort of warriors (without </span><span class="st">Cortés or anyone else noticing!) to hide it.</span><br />
36. <span class="st">Several moments of simple research reveals that the new Aztec leader </span>Cuauhtemoc, cousin to Moctezuma and son of Ahuitzotl (the ruler before Moctezuma), was actually tortured by the Spanish in an effort to find out what he had done with the lost treasure.  Eventually he was executed, without ever saying that he knew where the treasure was.  Why did he not admit "2000 slaves plus a band of warriors took it north but I don't know to where?" instead of insisting it was still in the lake even as the Spanish stuck his bare feet into the fire?<br />
37. Scott and his journalist friend revel in the Aztec's reputation for sacrificing people, and say that the 2,000 slaves and most of the warriors would have been sacrificed to "guard" the treasure.  <br />
38. Usually people were sacrificed to gods, not just randomly murdered on a whim and I don't think the Aztec concept of the afterlife would have matched up with the idea of guardian ghosts. <br />
39. The journalist insists she doesn't believe in curses, however, and her and Scott head right into the caves, which Freddie found "walled up" and 1,000 townspeople tore down the wall and found the caves filled with sand.<br />
40. Two thousand plus skeletons of dead Aztec slaves and warriors were not found when the sand was removed.<br />
41. Scott does his geologist thing and says the sandstone caves were definitely excavated deliberately.<br />
42. Well, Native Americans lived in that area for thousands of years, who is to say it wasn't them who dug out that cave and not Aztecs from <a href="https://www.timeanddate.com/worldclock/distances.html?n=220" target="_blank">1500 miles away</a>?  But of course the caves are on government land and Scott isn't allowed inside to really look around.<br />
43. Somehow Scott manages to decide, on the basis of a peek inside the forbidden (CURSED) cave, that "it makes the most sense" to him that the Aztecs dug out the cave and "all the evidence" (what evidence!?) points to the Aztecs.<br />
44. When Lois explains that Freddie Crystal only found a few "bones and beads" in the cave, Scott changes his story.  This cave, he says, was SUPPOSED to be the final resting place of the treasure, but something happened.  (A CURSE!?)  The plan was changed.  The treasure was moved!  But to where!?<br />
45. (Normally I do not use so many interrobangs [!?] when I write, but the breathless nature of these programs just brings them out in me.)<br />
46. Scott shows the journalist the "petroglyph" that was drawn across his map--a circle with a straight line through it.  She says immediately that she's seen it before, drawn near a (CURSED) cave where scuba divers were attacked by ghosts. <br />
47. <table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right; margin-left: 1em; text-align: right;"><tbody>
48. <tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgfVWtH3fdjGK9cS9j7K_GzalqW0s4mX0q8K-5r9JX4v5XdYUb59UZGElHYRjbUyk6eo0LEMHJFv39LJkVMldI5FG9myM0cWyODEJu7tufVSTf4aXZYa9eayWHwhgKEEkxi-ecA6g/s1600/Waterglyph_Illustrations_by_Paul_Jones.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgfVWtH3fdjGK9cS9j7K_GzalqW0s4mX0q8K-5r9JX4v5XdYUb59UZGElHYRjbUyk6eo0LEMHJFv39LJkVMldI5FG9myM0cWyODEJu7tufVSTf4aXZYa9eayWHwhgKEEkxi-ecA6g/s1600/Waterglyph_Illustrations_by_Paul_Jones.jpg" height="124" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
49. <tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span class="mw-mmv-source-author"><span class="mw-mmv-author">Water Glyphs, drawn by Paul Jones</span></span></td></tr>
50. </tbody></table>
51. Again, a few scant moments of research brought me many results about "<a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Water_glyphs" target="_blank">water glyphs</a>" with the explanation that they are found all over the American Southwest. <br />
52. <br />
53. So it makes perfect sense to me that a glyph pointing to water would be found near a cave full of water.<br />
54. Somehow, the revelation that a water glyph was found near a cave leads Scott right back to the treasure, and the fact there is undoubtedly a connection between the U.S. and the ancient Aztecs.<br />
55. I don't know why he can't understand that there was no United States when the Aztecs were around.  It was just land to the north.  It wasn't magical.  Even if Aztlan was in the U.S. it still wouldn't be mysterious.  It seems evident from the serpent worship in the Mississippi area and the distribution of trade goods through both lands that there was contact between people in what is now the US and people in what is now Mexico in pre-columbian times, and why would that be weird?  <br />
56. Scott keep mentioned "evidence" that the treasure was hid in that cave system.  What evidence?  Where are the bones, the beads?  Have they been proven to be Aztec in origin?  (There's a test they can do on bones to tell where the person grew up by <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Isotope_analysis#Archaeology" target="_blank">isotope analysis</a>. You'd think a geologist would know about isotopes in soil and rock.)<br />
57. Scott then meets with Steve Shaffer, who wrote something called "voices of the ancients," who said he named that special, unique symbol (the common water glyph) the Key because it's the "key to Montezuma's treasure." Scott says perhaps the symbols are "several hundred years" old or (gasp) "even Native American." <br />
58. Really.  Petroglyphs in the Southwest being Native American?  Who would have guessed.<br />
59. But Steve said he asked "some" Native Americans who said they didn't know anything about the symbols. <br />
60. So the symbols aren't Native American?  And of course, Aztecs aren't Native American either, because only First People of the U.S. can be called that. <br />
61. The two men spend some time looking at photos of various water glyphs.  Scott sort of explains something called the Latitude Exercise saying that's what the glyphs really mean. <br />
62. I could not find anything actually called that, that involves a hole, a circle, and a line as he described.  I don't know if the Aztecs used any concept like latitude on their maps.  But if they did use the circle, line, and hole method to calculate distances, certainly some of those glyphs would have been found in Mexico as well as the Four Corners area?  Why would they invent something to tell them where they are just to use for that journey and not use it again anywhere else? <br />
63. Steve says one of the glyphs was near a burial of 3 skeletons, all buried in the fetal position with broken-off feet.  Scott explains that the Aztec underworld was called Mictlan and it was very dark there and that's why Aztecs buried their dead in the fetal position so those skeletons MUST be Aztecs.  (I don't follow that reasoning either.)<br />
64. Because no one else ever buried their dead like that.  Brief research, again, shows that many <a href="http://www.britannica.com/EBchecked/topic/85256/burial" target="_blank">Native American tribes</a> buried their dead in the fetal position, as did <a href="http://www.unexplainedstuff.com/Afterlife-Mysteries/Oldest-Discovered-Burial-Site.html" target="_blank">Neanderthals</a> in Europe.<br />
65. Of course, the three skeletons are "gone" and whether they were ever examined or documented professionally isn't stated.  Scott goes right back to "ritual sacrifice" and clearly those three skeletons were Aztec sacrifices!   Steve tells Scott that there's a cave with the water glyph "painted" on the ceiling and in that cave is where the treasure is.<br />
66. Three Lakes Ranch is the location of this mysterious cave and, according to Scott, is also Aztlan (where the Aztecs came from originally).  And Montezuma (as Scott calls him) sent the gold there. <br />
67. Even though Moctezuma died right before the Spanish took off with the treasure and lost it in the lake and presumably Cuauhtemoc later hauled it out...Or not?  <br />
68. Lon Child, the owner of the Three Lakes Ranch, says his father discovered in 1990 that the Aztecs liked to hide their treasure in "water traps."<br />
69. The only mention online of Aztec water traps and treasure is on the various sites about the gold being on this guy's land.  I wonder what he charges treasure hunters for access?<br />
70. Since the lake on the property is exactly 35 feet deep, and that's the depth of an Aztec water trap, clearly this was a Aztec-made lake, so his father bought all the land.  They dove on it, and immediately ghosts started attacking the divers and now all these years later the divers refuse to admit they ever dived there because of the CURSE.  Child Senior evidently did a good job of spreading around the idea that he owned the land where the Aztec treasure was, but because of the CURSE no one could get to it.<br />
71. Child Senior used GPR (ground penetrating radar) and found the land near the lake had caverns and voids.   Here's where Scott could have used his much-vaunted geology creds and explained why limestone would be riddled with voids where there is also water, but he did not.  Child Senior had a well-digger come and amazingly there was some gold on the drill bit! <br />
72. There are gold mines in the Four Corners area, so finding gold shouldn't be a shock.  Again, something a Forensic Geologist should know.<br />
73. So the well-digger came out with a bigger bit and drilled deeper but the bit broke.  The digger died that night, cursed! <br />
74. Apparently no other digger would ever come out!  If I thought there was a billion dollars in treasure in my yard, I wouldn't give up on trying to get it out of the ground.  I'd call every well digger in the phone book and on the internet.<br />
75. Scott says he'll drill and Child says NO you'll die, CURSED, but you can dive the pond and go into the Aztec 35-foot classic water trap.<br />
76. Honestly the water trap thing sounds like something from <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Oak_Island" target="_blank">Oak Island</a>, or Indiana Jones, or even someone's AD&D campaign.<br />
77. Scott says earnestly that since the "Aztec homeland was built on a swamp" they would be great at water engineering and hence making water traps. <br />
78. I thought their homeland was Aztlan, in the Four Corners?  Does he mean Tenochtitlan, their capital city, built on an island in a lake?<br />
79. <div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
80. <a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj3lnO9UuLxqchciq1NqHpVMGfRvE5OF3ySok9x6HmnlICcxedbbkzy9v4bGcqz6sZWji9A0FtntfA-Q7b_NuJJaLzSmNtbDASsItNpI495nPxADwL_ljjDTzDRnPZcqaeoI5M6Lg/s1600/IMAG006.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj3lnO9UuLxqchciq1NqHpVMGfRvE5OF3ySok9x6HmnlICcxedbbkzy9v4bGcqz6sZWji9A0FtntfA-Q7b_NuJJaLzSmNtbDASsItNpI495nPxADwL_ljjDTzDRnPZcqaeoI5M6Lg/s1600/IMAG006.JPG" height="262" width="320" /></a></div>
81. Scott decides to send in an ROV to look at all the underwater tunnels because he thinks they are connected to the other cave he already looked at and therefore the treasure is there, even though he already said the treasure was moved from there. <br />
82. Of course it's time for another bit of product placement for Scott's friend's ROV company. <br />
83. I have to laugh because it's unsafe for divers because of the CURSE so who is filming the ROV as it swims around?<br />
84. Scott is amazed and confused that there's sediment at the bottom of the lake.  He is the worse geologist ever.  He can't see through the ROV camera because of the sediment so... into the lake go the people!  Because if there is sediment in the lake, there must be treasure! <br />
85. Just like how dead bodies grow insects through spontaneous generation, so does treasure hidden underwater generate sediment.  You learn something new every day, right?<br />
86. Once under the water, Scott is baffled again because "it's pitch black" in the cave!  And the entrance is too narrow for a person.  And again, the SILT. <br />
87. Silt=curse apparently.<br />
88. Now comes the dredging.  Looks like when I clean my pond filter.  Then the hose won't work, the "damn thing."  The Aztec's "water trap is a damn good one," Scott says.  So he's going to drain the lake!  But no, the AMBERSNAIL is endangered and lives only there and hurting one snail is a $50,000 fine. <br />
89. Maybe they should have known that from the beginning before they starting flinging around equipment!?<br />
90. Scott remembers that he is a geologist and decides to test the mortar of some blocks pulled from the lake...and it's modern.  He wants "to drill but the land owner won't let" him because of the CURSE.  He concludes that the treasure is there but he can't prove it.<br />
91. <br />
92. I have always taken a weird kind of comfort in the fact that all the treasure was still down there, under 500+ years of lake silt, debris, and Mexico City, waiting forever.  I'm going to keep that view, even after watching this show.<br />
93. (Image sources: <a href="http://www.archives.gov/publications/prologue/2005/summer/mexico-1.html" target="_blank">map</a>; <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Water_glyphs#mediaviewer/File:Waterglyph_Illustrations_by_Paul_Jones.jpg" target="_blank">water glyphs</a>; <a href="http://www.in-the-desert.com/montezuma.html" target="_blank">map</a><br />
94. <br />
95. <br /><div class="blogger-post-footer">http://ofsinitiate.blogspot.com
96. (c) Gevera Bert Piedmont  })i({
97. Thank you!&lt;/div&gt;</content><link rel='replies' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://ofsinitiate.blogspot.com/feeds/6448970545526939484/comments/default' title='Post Comments'/><link rel='replies' type='text/html' href='http://www.blogger.com/comment.g?blogID=12406865&amp;postID=6448970545526939484' title='2 Comments'/><link rel='edit' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/12406865/posts/default/6448970545526939484'/><link rel='self' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/12406865/posts/default/6448970545526939484'/><link rel='alternate' type='text/html' href='http://ofsinitiate.blogspot.com/2014/12/america-unearthed-montezumas-gold.html' title='America Unearthed:  Montezuma&#39;s Gold (review/commentary)'/><author><name>GBP  })i({</name><uri>http://www.blogger.com/profile/09275995534174189926</uri><email>noreply@blogger.com</email><gd:image rel='http://schemas.google.com/g/2005#thumbnail' width='25' height='32' src='http://www.obsidianbutterfly.com/assets/about/Green%20Bert%20copy.jpg'/></author><media:thumbnail xmlns:media="http://search.yahoo.com/mrss/" url="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhKYlaxQ6hSIKRr8H2ExwfJ2BnylTgbSPPqA1rTDQac7RwuHPlM5LES5xYVcj0SpGSE7usnBFAWxaTBmhgkzXCsgkvK58qLnssuKTeniNDAaz2hZmFGRQXA-TGzcPS3p_LSzVXpDg/s72-c/mexico-disturnell-m.jpg" height="72" width="72"/><thr:total>2</thr:total></entry><entry><id>tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-12406865.post-5824711632529744012</id><published>2014-01-29T16:29:00.006-05:00</published><updated>2014-01-29T16:52:12.231-05:00</updated><category scheme="http://www.blogger.com/atom/ns#" term="america unearthed"/><category scheme="http://www.blogger.com/atom/ns#" term="georgia"/><category scheme="http://www.blogger.com/atom/ns#" term="maya"/><category scheme="http://www.blogger.com/atom/ns#" term="mayan"/><category scheme="http://www.blogger.com/atom/ns#" term="pseudo-documentary"/><category scheme="http://www.blogger.com/atom/ns#" term="pyramid"/><category scheme="http://www.blogger.com/atom/ns#" term="scott wolter"/><title type='text'>America Unearthed: American Mayan Secrets (review/commentary)</title><content type='html'>&lt;i&gt;American Mayan Secrets&lt;/i&gt; is the first episode of the series &lt;i&gt;&lt;a href=&quot;http://www.history.com/shows/america-unearthed&quot; target=&quot;_blank&quot;&gt;America Unearthed&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/i&gt;, originally aired right on 12/21/2012.&amp;nbsp; Honestly, after watching a season and a half of this show, it is not the greatest pseudo-documentary.&amp;nbsp; But I am going to start reviewing Meso-themed shows, so I&#39;m going back to this one.&lt;br /&gt;
98. In this episode, Scott Wolter, the forensic geologist host, wants to explore the supposed <a href="http://www.rawstory.com/rs/2011/12/22/1100-year-old-mayan-ruins-found-in-north-georgia/" target="_blank">Mayan pyramids found in Georgia</a>.  He begins by complaining and swearing that<b> the "government" wouldn't let him into the site</b>, but a friend of his has secret footage.<br />
99. The photographer had a permit and spent a day filming.  There are over 100 rock walls and structures on the site. To me, they look much like the rock walls found all over New England (where I live).  There are also cairns, not dissimilar to those at nearby <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gungywamp" target="_blank">Gungywamp</a> (probably built by Native Americans or at the latest, early Colonial settlers) in Groton, CT.<br />
100. But best of all, the photographer found a square foundation.  <b>Clearly, a pyramid was there,</b> according to Wolter.  That sends him off on a quest.<br />
101. His photographer puts him in contact with Richard Thornton (quoted at the above linked article and <a href="http://www.examiner.com/article/ruins-georgia-mountains-show-evidence-of-maya-connection" target="_blank">here</a>), who is the one who discovered the supposed Mayan connection.<br />
102. <div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
103. <a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgWFC996QLV0zuig2bmbY3hbw3iagXBnqEb-Odg8KIIIvWJkTs4InfP-ALx5CW12GwLAWFeSyrqDgz6OBmwjzgYXev4kVRi842rmQbQrX9ea1jWtAlWW6SxTu2EI0oWBd1IU5txYw/s1600/GeorgiaMayan1.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgWFC996QLV0zuig2bmbY3hbw3iagXBnqEb-Odg8KIIIvWJkTs4InfP-ALx5CW12GwLAWFeSyrqDgz6OBmwjzgYXev4kVRi842rmQbQrX9ea1jWtAlWW6SxTu2EI0oWBd1IU5txYw/s1600/GeorgiaMayan1.jpg" height="155" width="200" /></a></div>
104. Thornton says it's an absolute fact that<b> the Creek Indians were originally Mayans</b><i>.</i>  The architecture, the "cultural traditions" and art, plus the language (1/3 to 1/2 of the Creek language are words that are Mayan or Totonac).  ( <a href="http://www.examiner.com/article/south-american-and-mayan-dna-discovered-southern-appalachians" target="_blank">This article</a> addresses the subject of Central and South American DNA in North American natives. The language connection is discussed <a href="http://lostworlds.org/language-evidence-mesoamerican-trade-contact-southeastern-u-s/" target="_blank">here</a>.)<br />
105. Wolter brings up one of his favorite subjects, archo-astronomy, and Thornton promises to show Wolter all sorts of maps and diagrams with alignments at the Georgia site.<br />
106. Wolter immediately wonders, <b>"is this what they don't want me to see?" </b><br />
107. Thornton says there are over 3000 stone structures, carbon-dated to 1,000 AD, a whole town's worth (see map) more than a half-mile square.<br />
108. Thornton is flabbergasted that archeologists formed a "political action group" to "opposed" all information about this site being related to the Mayans, without ever seeing the site in person.  (Apparently <a href="http://abcnews.go.com/Technology/mayan-ruins-georgia-archeologist-objects-web-story-viral/story?id=15291662" target="_blank">this is that cabal</a>?) Wolter is not surprised.  He goes into a long digression about another investigation he went on that was also stonewalled by academics. <br />
109. (I have to note that he swears a lot in this episode, but not in the more recent ones.  Swearing doesn't bother me, but I wonder if some people complained and he was told to tone it down?)<br />
110. <table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right; margin-left: 1em; text-align: right;"><tbody>
111. <tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgmkW1VefoRRpcBkPb5qnaBUkXBLk33W_vYewr2O61RAme-zbPiQJztc52_6Q6K5efW_oEKr_aurjKD6LWot8NROUzp2dBkBS2tSjjt1Hh8dNwzgeXE1cqtxV3QUOdLDCT1fVXgyA/s1600/GeorgiaMayan2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgmkW1VefoRRpcBkPb5qnaBUkXBLk33W_vYewr2O61RAme-zbPiQJztc52_6Q6K5efW_oEKr_aurjKD6LWot8NROUzp2dBkBS2tSjjt1Hh8dNwzgeXE1cqtxV3QUOdLDCT1fVXgyA/s1600/GeorgiaMayan2.jpg" height="120" width="200" /></a></td></tr>
112. <tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Screenshot showing alignment to sunset of winter solstice</td></tr>
113. </tbody></table>
114. When Wolter shows Thornton the videos shot by his friend, he admits to be "not impressed" because <b>the ruins don't really look like anything from Mexico</b>.  The stones aren't dressed or neatly stacked, there is no stucco or plaster (whatever they called it back then, same form and function).  Thornton says that all Mayan sites really look like this, and people like him (he is NOT an archeologist, by the way) are called in to rebuild them.  I think that's pushing it a bit.  I've been to some sites where stuff isn't restored, just dug up, and it looks more organized, and very different, than these familiar rock walls (which I have seen all my life all around me).  <br />
115. Thornton has a lot of really cool<b> 3d videos showing various archeo-astronomy alignments</b> he's discovered that don't lend themselves to screen printing.  He says he also found a water distribution device that convinced him the site is Mayan, because the Maya grew crops on terraces and water through artificial irrigation.   <br />
116. Once again, Wolter complains about not being allowed admittance to the site and says petulantly that he'll just fly in and use LiDAR on the site.  Apparently you can just fly over places and use this ground-sensing technology with no permissions?   LiDAR is something that's also being<a href="http://www.bbc.com/future/story/20120827-the-laser-archaeologists" target="_blank"> used in Central America</a> to find archeological sites from the air, since the squared outlines of buildings show up clearly even when buried by vegetation.  It is also really, really expensive.  I can only guess that the production company is paying the bill; I found one LiDAR survey that cost <a href="http://www.fs.fed.us/rm/pubs_other/rmrs_2011_hummel_s001.pdf" target="_blank">$80,000</a> (lower right corner of page 3).<br />
117. That segment of the video is called the <b>LiDAR Aerial Reconnaissance Mission over Chattahoochee National Forest</b>.  I cannot make this up.  While in the plane, Wolter earnestly explains that<b> around 900 AD, the Maya people "just vanished" and that "many believe they came to America." </b> This is the same kind of fudge-writing used extensively on <i>Ancient Aliens</i>; it actually says nothing.  The millions of Maya still living in Mexico might take offense at being told they vanished 1100 years ago, for instance.<br />
118. There's an overly long segment about how exactly LiDAR works, including the "mowing the lawn" pattern also used when doing underwater surveys. (Maybe he should have done that when looking for the <a href="http://ofsinitiate.blogspot.com/2014/01/america-unearthed-underwater-pyramids.html" target="_blank">underwater Aztec pyramids</a> instead of giving up like a wimp.)  The LiDAR stuff is very interesting and I'd watch a show just about how it works, but it takes too much time away from the meat of the episode:  <b>is this settlement Mayan or not?</b><br />
119. <div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
120. <a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjeNIyJtgoSQS_EUXwO5dXP8F05t17Jo6opOcLHf7LxxsEpvo5KLx4EeCXWoCbZ6ScEx8-MY8zqLXuBrLZi7c_SFBGOMZ6PByDo71YTcrfSEi9ZBRrX1gtcI9hX3yPWy8AjUBYDdQ/s1600/ForsythPetroglyph.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjeNIyJtgoSQS_EUXwO5dXP8F05t17Jo6opOcLHf7LxxsEpvo5KLx4EeCXWoCbZ6ScEx8-MY8zqLXuBrLZi7c_SFBGOMZ6PByDo71YTcrfSEi9ZBRrX1gtcI9hX3yPWy8AjUBYDdQ/s1600/ForsythPetroglyph.jpg" height="143" width="200" /></a></div>
121. Wolter says that he was "very skeptical" but now, seeing preliminary LiDAR images, he is "convinced."<br />
122. He muses that the flight of the Maya from their cities to Georgia might be "connected to their prophecy" and heads off to another location to look at a carved rock called the Forsyth Petroglyph in Athens, Georgia.<br />
123. This stone, the petroglyphs of which are reproduced to the right, has nothing on it that looks Mayan.  He meets with another source, who wrote a book about the Maya, who says the symbols are EXACTLY the same as Mayan symbols as well as Creek symbols.<br />
124. <div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
125. <a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjIBBf1c9C8sn7k2OGYsIYDOk3F0nHFrpFq5M3IkiRU7T87da5f0dlinxY9n7hI70Z6qSWZ7LMODGrkYmaX5mDLbPzn4E8iWmi5MQRKbXqJUo8VRMe-PD_tc-abXBIeKg3k9gKBNg/s1600/mayablue.png" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjIBBf1c9C8sn7k2OGYsIYDOk3F0nHFrpFq5M3IkiRU7T87da5f0dlinxY9n7hI70Z6qSWZ7LMODGrkYmaX5mDLbPzn4E8iWmi5MQRKbXqJUo8VRMe-PD_tc-abXBIeKg3k9gKBNg/s1600/mayablue.png" height="140" width="200" /></a></div>
126. Supposedly the carvings are of star map, a comet impact in 536 A.D.  Wolter agrees that it must be a star map and also that it's clear that it connects the Creek Indians to the Maya.  No mention of why this comet impact is so important or where the comet landed.  I was able to find out that there is <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Extreme_weather_events_of_535%E2%80%93536" target="_blank">global evidence that something happened</a> around then, but it was probably a large volcano, maybe Krakatoa, erupting.  Or why the Maya made a carving in 536 AD in Georgia when they were in Mexico until after 900 AD.   Or how there can be a "star map" to a volcano located right here on Earth.<br />
127. Then they get into the most interesting (and in my opinion, valid) part of the show: <a href="http://www.livescience.com/28381-maya-blue-paint-recipe-discovered.html" target="_blank">Maya Blue</a>.  <b>Maya Blue was a special blue (green-blue, really) very durable, pigment used extensively by the Maya in their murals. </b> It's a mixture of palygorskite clay and indigo pigments.  The clay is abundant in Georgia but not in Central America. Wolter thinks that<b> the clay from Georgia was used to make the pigments used in Mesoamerica.</b><br />
128. <div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
129. <a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg0iBwRoDWmJc6jABSicP_QZ2hYKDPmR5OrsadJ71Yjn86DUQr0zUfR5ffXCyQl2V_2zSg3_v9FJuPhPYhgumPTdsSKKSA2EBlHJw0MEz89LVUN_Aev1AOhAm6xhjec6vakfOTlZw/s1600/Spiro_Wulfing_and_Etowah_repousse_plates_HRoe_2012.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg0iBwRoDWmJc6jABSicP_QZ2hYKDPmR5OrsadJ71Yjn86DUQr0zUfR5ffXCyQl2V_2zSg3_v9FJuPhPYhgumPTdsSKKSA2EBlHJw0MEz89LVUN_Aev1AOhAm6xhjec6vakfOTlZw/s1600/Spiro_Wulfing_and_Etowah_repousse_plates_HRoe_2012.jpg" height="200" width="148" /></a></div>
130. The source offers another connection between the two areas, and displays photos and sketches of a "falcon dancer plate" and says the identical drawing was found at Chichen Itza (more on that below).<br />
131. The source also says that<b> at another Georgian site called Ocmulgee they found an "elite burial" where the skull had cranial deformation</b>.  (I wrote about <a href="http://ofsinitiate.blogspot.com/2011/10/elongated-skulls-and-brainpower.html" target="_blank">cranial deformation</a> a few years ago.)  The source brings up again that it's "taboo" to mainstream archeologists, and again Wolter whines and says he's going to change history himself!  To the bat cave!  I mean, off to <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ocmulgee_National_Monument" target="_blank">Ocmulgee Mound Site </a>(Macon, Georgia) to see the deformed skull.<br />
132. (Ignoring the Maya Blue and Falcon Dancer connections...)(and actually they never do show the deformed skull or mention it again)<br />
133. En route, this source says that Thornton's theories need to be tested, but the horrible academics won't allow it to happen.<br />
134. <div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
135. <a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiUOTm8bEJ_VzgY1wgMtt8YWGKBpdUcJlJiERqAgPZxmv_PWitIzo2IlMWq5rdVD19S8iKJePXOsrKg2Oo0IQhv21trJBxVJA89xTjrk_GntcWVvwsKjmqkX02PQfvh8aNQcaoLuA/s1600/spiralmounds.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiUOTm8bEJ_VzgY1wgMtt8YWGKBpdUcJlJiERqAgPZxmv_PWitIzo2IlMWq5rdVD19S8iKJePXOsrKg2Oo0IQhv21trJBxVJA89xTjrk_GntcWVvwsKjmqkX02PQfvh8aNQcaoLuA/s1600/spiralmounds.jpg" height="215" width="400" /></a></div>
136. <br />
137. <b><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Xochitecatl" target="_blank">Xochitecatl, Mexico</a>, supposedly has an identical spiral mound as one found at Ocmulgee.</b>  It's covered in vegetation now, but the source has an old photo of it standing alone in cleared land.  They are the only spiral mounds known to exist in North or Central America.  The Creek Indians did a Snake Dance up and around this spiral pyramid, no word on what was done at the Mexican version of the spiral pyramid.  (Of course, just the name--Xochitecatl--Flower Blade?--tells you that site is Aztec, not Mayan.)<br />
138. The focus then moves briefly to Florida.  When the Spanish arrived in what is now Florida, around Lake Okeechobee were three tribes, called the <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mayaimi" target="_blank">Mayaimi</a> (Miami is actually not named after that tribe), <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mayaca_%28tribe%29" target="_blank">Mayaka</a>, and Mayauaca (which doesn't apparently exist except on this program), and some research shows me that none of these tribes were remotely related to the Mayans except their names.<br />
139. Wolter takes this as <b>further proof the Maya were in Georgia</b>.<br />
140. They inspect a large mound in <a href="http://www.nps.gov/ocmu/index.htm" target="_blank">Ocmulgee</a>, supposedly the first one built by the Creek upon their arrival in the area.  It's a large mound with a central hallway, the door facing due east to align with the sunrise.  (Looks more like an <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Anglo-Saxon_burial_mounds" target="_blank">English barrow</a> to me than anything MesoAmerican, but what do I know?)  This is Wolter's dream, archeo-astronomy.  This cannot possibly be a coincidence.<br />
141. Wolter heads to Chichen Itza where he meets with an actual archeologist.  He has to admit that "some people think the Maya died out completely but they didn't" (reversing what he said earlier in the show).  The large central pyramid (El Castillo), the archeologist says, was a man-made mountain.  The stones are very square (even weathered, their square edges are apparent), unlike the heaps of rounded natural-looking stones in Georgia.  The pyramid is also very tall and pointed, not like the low flat platform-like mounds in Georgia. (There <i>are</i> platforms at Chichen Itza, but again they are made with precisely cut stores which are also elaborately carved.)<br />
142. Wolter asks what the archeologist thinks about contact between the Creek and Maya, and he says "it's possible" which really floors Wolter, who was obviously expecting a fight, but the guy is very personable; he grins and says "if you can find the Maya there, we can find Georgia down here."   <br />
143. They look at the Observatory and talk about how the various windows were used to track Venus and other alignments, and also was related to the calendar.   The building is the link between the heavens and the earth.<br />
144. <table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left; margin-right: 1em; text-align: left;"><tbody>
145. <tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj_gaSJ8NCZcuVVz8UTXDuVVAAiDt-d7-mHZvJrpsXh3ZNEZxVW-rR3n_lp2e91JSaHfGIiZsqSBjiU_w4q1jV5y2X6jmN6Ffy4_MS8jxgfPcrv1jHVtlBsEfU3iHI2o0GsAy-4_w/s1600/2spiral.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj_gaSJ8NCZcuVVz8UTXDuVVAAiDt-d7-mHZvJrpsXh3ZNEZxVW-rR3n_lp2e91JSaHfGIiZsqSBjiU_w4q1jV5y2X6jmN6Ffy4_MS8jxgfPcrv1jHVtlBsEfU3iHI2o0GsAy-4_w/s1600/2spiral.jpg" height="101" width="200" /></a></td></tr>
146. <tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Archimedean spiral vs Logarithmic (Fibonacci)</td></tr>
147. </tbody></table>
148. Wolter tells how he saw a spiral mound in Georgia, and there are spirals on some of the carvings at Chichen Itza, so<b> clearly they are exactly the same</b>. The archeologist is non-committal.<br />
149. Wolter pulls out a nautilus shell and insults the archeologist's intelligence by explaining the Fibonacci sequence and tells him that the Maya were copying it.  Even though a Fibonacci spiral is not the same as the spirals they drew.<br />
150. <div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
151. <a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjaGFllnoa5i_SQAxtHiQyTakpTPAz_6jEKEH1_et-VtozuolG8wFEm0H0zbmGoIC7PsixmNSEWgMpALeVVgLDV1f8YE4adPORm6F7_AizBU0qjC4UYDYswQc-jR-Fr9WDwZ-3VHQ/s1600/CI_carving.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjaGFllnoa5i_SQAxtHiQyTakpTPAz_6jEKEH1_et-VtozuolG8wFEm0H0zbmGoIC7PsixmNSEWgMpALeVVgLDV1f8YE4adPORm6F7_AizBU0qjC4UYDYswQc-jR-Fr9WDwZ-3VHQ/s1600/CI_carving.jpg" height="160" width="320" /></a></div>
152. Wolter brings up <b>the "end of the calendar"and "end of the world"</b> (this was filmed in 2012) and the archeologist calmly says that it's the end of Baktun 12 and the beginning of Baktun 13, where we will stay for 400 years until Baktun 14.  It's the beginning of something new, and it's great that it gets the Maya people more attention.<br />
153. The archeologist shows Wolter a carving that is similar to the Falcon Dancer plate.  They are both carrying weapons, both appear to have feathers, and both have a severed head.  I think it's the temple of the Warriors, but it's been a while since I was down there.<br />
154. Finally they return to the subject Maya Blue, gazing over the cenote, the ritual well, and the place the site is named for (Mouth of the Well = Chichen Itza).  The cenote had children at the bottom (sacrifices to the rain god) and a lot of Maya Blue, a 14-foot layer of it, from all the offerings painted blue before being tossed in there.<br />
155. What's left of Mayan Blue looks rather green after 1100+ years in the elements, but some of it is still visible.  The archeologist admits they haven't found a single source of palygorskite for the Maya Blue but it doesn't seem to faze him.<br />
156. Wolter returns to his lair, I mean lab, and reviews the LiDAR data.  He seems astonished that the reconstruction (above) matches the LiDAR.  The guy meticulously mapped the place by hand, why wouldn't it match?   <br />
157. <b>Wolter creates some Maya Blue using Georgia clay and compares it to actual Maya Blue used in Mexico </b>to see if the clay is geologically the same, using x-ray defraction, and find that<b> it matches perfectly.</b>  Wolter then goes on a tirade about how "academics" don't believe any cultures came to America before Columbus and that it's bullsh-t and this PROVES them wrong. <br />
158. Um.  Columbus himself found all sorts of people already here when he arrived.  I wasn't aware that any academics disputed that.  Even a first grader knows that.  There <i>is</i> resistance to the thought that Europeans came here before Columbus (or even Asians, discounting the land-bridge part of it 40,000 years ago).<br />
159. I do think<b> the connection between Georgia clay and Maya blue is awesome because it proves that TRADERS moved between the two. </b> It makes NO SENSE that the Maya fled FROM Mexico TO Georgia and yet used Georgian materials back in Mexico.    <br />
160. <br />
161. <i>image sources:  <a href="http://www.examiner.com/article/ruins-georgia-mountains-show-evidence-of-maya-connection" target="_blank">site plan</a>, screenshot, <a href="http://www.examiner.com/slideshow/possible-interpretations-of-the-forsyth-petroglyphs#slide=1" target="_blank">petroglyph</a>, <a href="http://openhousecreative.co.uk/site/public/portfolio_maya_blue/3-OH-maya-blue-logo-3.png" target="_blank">Maya blue</a>,<a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Spiro_Wulfing_and_Etowah_repousse_plates_HRoe_2012.jpg" target="_blank"> plate</a>, <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Archimedean_spiral.svg" target="_blank">spiral 1</a>, <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Logarithmic_Spiral_Pylab.svg" target="_blank">spiral 2</a>, screenshot, screenshot </i>
162. <br />
163. Cross-posted to <a href="http://www.obsidianbutterfly.com/articles/AmericanMaya.html" target="_blank">Transformations by Obsidian Butterfly site</a>.<div class="blogger-post-footer">http://ofsinitiate.blogspot.com
164. (c) Gevera Bert Piedmont  })i({
165. Thank you!&lt;/div&gt;</content><link rel='replies' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://ofsinitiate.blogspot.com/feeds/5824711632529744012/comments/default' title='Post Comments'/><link rel='replies' type='text/html' href='http://www.blogger.com/comment.g?blogID=12406865&amp;postID=5824711632529744012' title='6 Comments'/><link rel='edit' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/12406865/posts/default/5824711632529744012'/><link rel='self' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/12406865/posts/default/5824711632529744012'/><link rel='alternate' type='text/html' href='http://ofsinitiate.blogspot.com/2014/01/america-unearthed-american-mayan.html' title='America Unearthed: American Mayan Secrets (review/commentary)'/><author><name>GBP  })i({</name><uri>http://www.blogger.com/profile/09275995534174189926</uri><email>noreply@blogger.com</email><gd:image rel='http://schemas.google.com/g/2005#thumbnail' width='25' height='32' src='http://www.obsidianbutterfly.com/assets/about/Green%20Bert%20copy.jpg'/></author><media:thumbnail xmlns:media="http://search.yahoo.com/mrss/" url="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgWFC996QLV0zuig2bmbY3hbw3iagXBnqEb-Odg8KIIIvWJkTs4InfP-ALx5CW12GwLAWFeSyrqDgz6OBmwjzgYXev4kVRi842rmQbQrX9ea1jWtAlWW6SxTu2EI0oWBd1IU5txYw/s72-c/GeorgiaMayan1.jpg" height="72" width="72"/><thr:total>6</thr:total></entry><entry><id>tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-12406865.post-7692805941273826406</id><published>2014-01-26T20:44:00.001-05:00</published><updated>2014-01-28T13:13:03.999-05:00</updated><category scheme="http://www.blogger.com/atom/ns#" term="america unearthed"/><category scheme="http://www.blogger.com/atom/ns#" term="anthropology"/><category scheme="http://www.blogger.com/atom/ns#" term="archaeology"/><category scheme="http://www.blogger.com/atom/ns#" term="cahokia"/><category scheme="http://www.blogger.com/atom/ns#" term="feathered serpent"/><category scheme="http://www.blogger.com/atom/ns#" term="kukulcan"/><category scheme="http://www.blogger.com/atom/ns#" term="plumed serpent"/><category scheme="http://www.blogger.com/atom/ns#" term="queztalcoatl"/><category scheme="http://www.blogger.com/atom/ns#" term="rotherwas serpent mound"/><category scheme="http://www.blogger.com/atom/ns#" term="scott wolter"/><category scheme="http://www.blogger.com/atom/ns#" term="serpent mounds"/><title type='text'>America Unearthed: Mystery of the Serpents (Review/commentary)</title><content type='html'>Since I had so much fun with last week&#39;s episode about&lt;a href=&quot;http://ofsinitiate.blogspot.com/2014/01/america-unearthed-underwater-pyramids.html&quot; target=&quot;_blank&quot;&gt; underwater Aztec pyramids&lt;/a&gt;, I thought I&#39;d also review the show on the &lt;a href=&quot;http://www.history.com/shows/america-unearthed/videos&quot; target=&quot;_blank&quot;&gt;serpent mounds&lt;/a&gt;.&amp;nbsp; When I originally started this blog, many years ago, it was to record my dreams and musings as I was initiated into the Order of the Feathered Serpent, with my final initiation to be at the Ohio Serpent Mounds.&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp; Because of&amp;nbsp; illness in his immediate family, the teacher had to put the class on hold, and it&#39;s never started back up even though I&#39;ve contacted him several times.&lt;br /&gt;
166. <table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right; margin-left: 1em; text-align: right;"><tbody>
167. <tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhgeS0RYKwmlBI36IUekiU21EiiFJaV8PGIrxtoxbmnP7S7_zfWIP7J2l-VZiIvP_K-UfuDJ_-01SmGOpeT6IBjPqPh9FUR3ykVfsbGnKlwj17tCfDEUE3lQAA0QbrrIMCLj0D0bQ/s1600/LochNellSerpent.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhgeS0RYKwmlBI36IUekiU21EiiFJaV8PGIrxtoxbmnP7S7_zfWIP7J2l-VZiIvP_K-UfuDJ_-01SmGOpeT6IBjPqPh9FUR3ykVfsbGnKlwj17tCfDEUE3lQAA0QbrrIMCLj0D0bQ/s1600/LochNellSerpent.jpg" height="185" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
168. <tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Loch Nell Serpent Mound (screen print from video)</td></tr>
169. </tbody></table>
170. This episode of <i>American Unearthed</i> starts out by saying, <span style="font-size: large;">"There are mysterious mounds scattered throughout the planet."  </span>Inside and out, apparently, not just on the surface.  Bad writing strikes in sentence one.<br />
171. These mounds are linked by mysterious symbols thousands of years old that span continents and oceans and it all ends up in the U.S....<br />
172. In Oban, Scotland, Scott Wolter (the show's "forensic geologist" host), investigates a serpent mound, one of three in the world (one is in the U.S. and two in Europe).  This serpent is on the edge of Loch Nell and this drawing shows its alignment.  This is a Bronze age effigy mound, most of which are ancient and associated with rituals.  This one had a stone circle in the head, including some stones that had been burnt. You can see the altar stone in the circle.  Also on the site was a stone burial chamber called a <i>kist</i>, excavated in the late 19th century, and found to have been robbed, with only a bone knife left behind.  Probably this was a site for ritual sacrifices (one of Wolter's favorite subjects).<br />
173. Wolter, using his geology knowledge for once, explains that probably there was a glacier here, terminating in this loch.  <span style="font-size: large;">The movement of the glacier, dragging along rocks and soil underneath, forms a natural winding ridge called an <i>esker</i>, which is what the serpent portion probably is, and then enhanced by humans.</span><br />
174. <table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right; margin-left: 1em; text-align: right;"><tbody>
175. <tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEisKeUCXgsHKiy7fvvYt4bP_hKGMhe85-2VV580zOepUMJO96fj9glVyw_VJmM9z9ChEmbs7zJ52sVVjECKAOvrisDE1esZxezJ5aUlKE7TCGmfF4_P4L-i7BdydMhkl4BForrKSQ/s1600/serpent-head.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEisKeUCXgsHKiy7fvvYt4bP_hKGMhe85-2VV580zOepUMJO96fj9glVyw_VJmM9z9ChEmbs7zJ52sVVjECKAOvrisDE1esZxezJ5aUlKE7TCGmfF4_P4L-i7BdydMhkl4BForrKSQ/s1600/serpent-head.jpg" height="239" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
176. <tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Serpent's head, Chichen Itza</td></tr>
177. </tbody></table>
178. Serpent symbols are ancient, going back to the Bible.  Egpytian pharohs wore a serpent (<i>uraeus</i>) on their crowns.  The <i>caduceus</i> staff of the Greek god Hermes has two serpents wrapped around it (it's now the familiar medical symbol).   Wolter then brings in the serpent from last week's episode, the one that supposedly guarded the supposed underwater Aztec pyramid.<br />
179. He mentions Chichen Itza, now one of the new 7 wonders of the old world, in Yucatan Mexico, by talking about astro-astronomy (and also showing the observatory building at Chichen Itza), but somehow fails to note that the base of the staircases of the main pyramid (the famous one) are the heads of serpents, specifically of the god Quetzalcoatl/Kukulcan (Aztec/Mayan names for the same god), or the fact that on the spring equinox the shadows make it look like the serpent is crawling down the steps.  In fact there are feathered serpent heads all over that complex, not just on the main pyramid.  <br />
180. Somehow, astro-astronomy provides a clue to who built (or modified) the Scottish serpent mound.   Possibly, a serpent (Loch Nell monster?) lives in the loch.  They try to figure out what, if any, alignments, exist there, using a phone app.  I WANT THAT APP.  What app does that?  Ah, the <a href="https://itunes.apple.com/us/app/helios-sun-position-calculator/id311648870?mt=8" target="_blank">Helios Sun Position app</a> (another product placement here) which of course is i-tunes only.  (<a href="http://appleinsider.com/articles/13/09/09/smartphones-now-account-for-56-of-us-market-apples-iphone-at-25-share" target="_blank">Most smart phones are Android</a>, you know, Mr App Programmer.)<br />
181. And of course Wolter finds alignments!  The people who built the mounds aligned them to...wait. <span style="font-size: large;"> Did he not just say the mounds were laid down organically by the glacier? Why would the glacier have used archeo-astronomy to form the mounds?</span><br />
182. I'm therefore ignoring what he says about these alignments.  Because clearly any idiot can see that it makes more sense that the mound was organically built by nature and then improved by man.  Wolter is forcing his ideas onto this, because of his obsession with archeo-astronomy.<br />
183. <table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right; margin-left: 1em; text-align: right;"><tbody>
184. <tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi37TJxDTj8pHXe_nfVdY85t8ws7p4OdhBemMp0Uqkb26zpcn0GEPy-j_-lbAiAVaGT7wG4CX2qKjwN-ra2bKB2hJJrcRuK2kSA5KslDYMh3Mjr70h34eOa8QuG5WBylFtJ5FuVzQ/s1600/stonehenge_2540465b.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi37TJxDTj8pHXe_nfVdY85t8ws7p4OdhBemMp0Uqkb26zpcn0GEPy-j_-lbAiAVaGT7wG4CX2qKjwN-ra2bKB2hJJrcRuK2kSA5KslDYMh3Mjr70h34eOa8QuG5WBylFtJ5FuVzQ/s1600/stonehenge_2540465b.jpg" height="199" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
185. <tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Stonehenge, Salisbury Plain, England</td></tr>
186. </tbody></table>
187. He returns to Chichen Itza (or, as my husband refers to it, "Bert's homeland") and finally brings up the alignment I already detailed above, but he mentions it in less details.  Stonehenge is another well-known place that has definite, built-in alignments.  I will listen to someone talk all day about man-made alignments at those two man-made places.  I won't listen if you're talking about an organic formation.  And please don't say God did it.  Please.<br />
188. The local expert says in 2000 BCE, people moved into that area (Loch Nell).  Wolter asks eagerly if they were "pagans."  2000 years before Jesus that's all there were, pagans.  My brain just broke from the stupid.   And of course human sacrifice!  <span style="font-size: large;">Don't forget all the pagan rituals and human sacrifice.</span><br />
189. Wolter declares that he knows of a bigger serpent mound (not hard to do if there are only 3 in the world)--the one in Ohio. And since there are only three, they must be related.  Especially since the Lock Nell one has such <i>great archeo-astronomy</i>.  (Plus I am still waiting to hear where the third mound is.)<br />
190. <table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right; margin-left: 1em; text-align: right;"><tbody>
191. <tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjOC8UZvL6lDcKM5-7wlD1f3NL9IGHIsWj9LdDUxU0flsremjR9ACDfdA5i6Raf49lnuqIqz583ePDLHJA0uooN7G7oZNsgb6DpKup7IEACn_-xAiG5GtKc8p2FjPtPdVGDp8hc4Q/s1600/SFig-2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjOC8UZvL6lDcKM5-7wlD1f3NL9IGHIsWj9LdDUxU0flsremjR9ACDfdA5i6Raf49lnuqIqz583ePDLHJA0uooN7G7oZNsgb6DpKup7IEACn_-xAiG5GtKc8p2FjPtPdVGDp8hc4Q/s1600/SFig-2.jpg" height="209" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
192. <tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Ohio Serpent Mound, aerial view</td></tr>
193. </tbody></table>
194. Wolter gets in a helicopter to tour the Ohio mound from the sky.  There is an extended showing of dials and rotators and the helicopter taking off.<br />
195. Since it was made to be seen from above, clearly it was built for the gods to see.  Or aliens, of course, but that's another show (<a href="http://www.history.com/shows/ancient-aliens" target="_blank">Ancient Aliens</a>)--I yell at that one too.<br />
196. This mound has been carbon-dated to between 700 BCE and 100 AD--13 centuries or more after the Scottish one.  Some nearby but associated burials were found that date very far back, even fossilized ones, but were they the original builders?<br />
197. <table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left; margin-right: 1em; text-align: left;"><tbody>
198. <tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhJLIyRJpA5FcX9EJF4EHaGKJieKii5xY57E6id6Ws7TR6ZxaPkgg1LbTDXrNkGpkARziehyfYPNC39yIUHOuO5dVpU3O-x54jML508pciEslUc-7NvL3uZvTCwR4TJlUXTJEEBwg/s1600/serpentmounddraco.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhJLIyRJpA5FcX9EJF4EHaGKJieKii5xY57E6id6Ws7TR6ZxaPkgg1LbTDXrNkGpkARziehyfYPNC39yIUHOuO5dVpU3O-x54jML508pciEslUc-7NvL3uZvTCwR4TJlUXTJEEBwg/s1600/serpentmounddraco.jpg" height="180" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
199. <tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">It's not the same at all in my eyes.  </td></tr>
200. </tbody></table>
201. This serpent has an egg in its mouth, possibly a sun disc, or the Eye of Horus (Egyptian connection again, even though Egypt has zero serpent mounds?).  This serpent has 15 solar/lunar alignments and it also looks like the constellation Draco.  I don't see it.<br />
202. <span style="font-size: large;">The local expert says the mound was designed by "a genius who loved the heavens and loved the earth," an adept. </span><br />
203. <span style="font-size: large;">It's a place to "restore the spirit of the planet."</span><br />
204. Wolter says the two serpents mounds are clearly related:<br />
205. <ul>
206. <li>both are best seen from above</li>
207. <li>both have ceremonial burials</li>
208. <li>both have astronomical alignments (I've said my piece on the Scottish alignments, move along, nothing more to say here) </li>
209. <li>both date back "thousands of years" (although not to the same range at all)</li>
210. <li>both are "spiritual sites" with "pagan rituals" including possible human sacrifice </li>
211. </ul>
212. But he thinks the SAME PEOPLE built both mounds.  They lived a long time, from 2,000 bce to 700 bce, didn't they?<br />
213. Oh, and now they've brought God into it after all. <span style="font-size: large;"> Supposedly God built the Ohio mound to remind everyone of the serpent in the garden and the "egg" in the snake's mouth is the apple, the fruit of knowledge of good and evil, so therefore...wait for it...the Ohio mound is the location of the Garden of Eden.</span><br />
214. Really, if I wasn't blogging this, I'd probably have turned it off there, exactly halfway through the episode.<br />
215. <table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left; margin-right: 1em; text-align: left;"><tbody>
216. <tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh_F_Yh18cuF9IQ4CxUKioP1fre22UaP9943_9ewq1tof9ZEfon8MDB_91OcqPcieEdk8sMgHGvPQryyDrgA-iYnd0Ys504wPonoDbhmYa_0II7RbnrqknnnRptOFcwJOiOCIbYdA/s1600/Miss-River-National-Park-Group-3_3_1.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh_F_Yh18cuF9IQ4CxUKioP1fre22UaP9943_9ewq1tof9ZEfon8MDB_91OcqPcieEdk8sMgHGvPQryyDrgA-iYnd0Ys504wPonoDbhmYa_0II7RbnrqknnnRptOFcwJOiOCIbYdA/s1600/Miss-River-National-Park-Group-3_3_1.jpg" height="218" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
217. <tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">National Park Service map of Effigy Mounds</td></tr>
218. </tbody></table>
219. The local expert says the Cherokee people believe the Eastern portion of the U.S. was once a garden, and therefore the Garden of Evil.  And clearly, the expert believes the serpent was the great father/mother/provider so the two sites must be connected.  Even though the garden of Eden connection has an evil snake motif, not a benevolent one.<br />
220. They go off to Effigy Mounds National Monument in Harpers Ferry, Iowa, to somehow prove the connection between the Ohio and Scotland serpents.<br />
221. Wolter declares that "ancient pagan travelers from Scotland" clearly helped the people in Ohio build their serpent.<br />
222. In Iowa, he meets with another local expert, a man who has been surveying and studying the mounds for 33 years.  The site originally had over 1,000 mounds (most now destroyed).  It was a place of education and of course had archeo-astronomy.  The local Ho-Chunk people (their shamans/priests), according to the expert, were travelers who regularly went to Europe.<br />
223. <span style="font-size: large;">Yes, pre-Columbian Native American shamans traveled to Europe all the time and apparently the Europeans never noticed.  </span>(or maybe only Columbus noticed?)<br />
224. You know that Wolter immediately lost his MIND over this, as it proves his theory of transference, although in the other direction.<br />
225. He says figuring out why they encoded information in the effigy mounds would "a global system of shared knowledge and ideas, a link between cultures that reaches further back in time than our history books tell us today."  And of course, his standard line, if I can prove this, it will change history.<br />
226. (note: I've been watching [yelling at] this show for two seasons and he has yet to change history.)<br />
227. The local expert says the shamanic knowledge of archeo-alignments was shared freely among local tribes and of course across the Atlantic to (pagan?) Europe.<br />
228. <table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right; margin-left: 1em; text-align: right;"><tbody>
229. <tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjJCipbYV_jaw_nKrlLLSkipe3wwGZf9L-2Q6-0RHQQyCE8nJ5I5KZDxv9Reg9h4H4k1oq459Ylws7G2BFG3WONCjKQWt8SGt0Zz2MwkKibv1RNo2x7uCtYu6ivo_COiA4lmWPXzw/s1600/CahokiaMounds-old.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjJCipbYV_jaw_nKrlLLSkipe3wwGZf9L-2Q6-0RHQQyCE8nJ5I5KZDxv9Reg9h4H4k1oq459Ylws7G2BFG3WONCjKQWt8SGt0Zz2MwkKibv1RNo2x7uCtYu6ivo_COiA4lmWPXzw/s1600/CahokiaMounds-old.jpg" height="216" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
230. <tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">artist's rendition of Cahokia, approx 1150 AD</td></tr>
231. </tbody></table>
232. A thousand years ago, the area around the Iowa park contained hundreds more effigy mounds, including more than one serpent mound.  It was part of the worship of the Plumed Serpent (ie, Quetzalcoatl/Kukulcan, am I right?) that spread all across the Mississippi area.  Their trading area spread across North and Central America (and of course, Europe) and the center was Cahokia (mentioned in last week's review as well).  Cahokia was a major city in North America, and it collapsed or was abandoned after 1200 AD.  (The novel <i>People of the River</i>, by W. Michael Gear and Kathleen O'Neal Gear, is about this time period/place. They are archaeologists who write about early native American cultures.)<br />
233. Next Wolter visits Cahokia (on the Mississippi River in Missouri, across from St Louis).  He wants to use LIDAR to scan Cahokia.  This is the same technology that they are using to find sites hidden in the jungles of Central America.  Apparently LIDAR has been used there before, but it was an older version with lower resolution (looking at a dog, not at his fleas, as the operator says).<br />
234. Cahokia once had 12,000 people living there in 1200 AD, more than contemporary London or Paris (but at the same time, Tenochtitlan--the Aztec capital--had 200,000-300,000 inhabitants, making it the largest city in the WORLD).   The largest mound of Cahokia is larger than the Great Pyramid of Egypt. It was the largest man-made building in  Pre-Columbian North America.<br />
235. The LIDAR image of Cahokia is awesome.  There's no way to screen print it unfortunately but it shows roads and little houses and larger buildings.<br />
236. <table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right; margin-left: 1em; text-align: right;"><tbody>
237. <tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjrnAAzwA2JdYHvO8H4KRJsE3bnZaJSxI297qHh2MB42EaMoPXzMdOXXJX-RObpW-Hx_vrbTD2GuLLnM56-eUuEnKM0XlYAaqk7_PsdL7b9vDJCnUv27gGiEcFBuxzIbpecKkLc8A/s1600/Rotherwas_1.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjrnAAzwA2JdYHvO8H4KRJsE3bnZaJSxI297qHh2MB42EaMoPXzMdOXXJX-RObpW-Hx_vrbTD2GuLLnM56-eUuEnKM0XlYAaqk7_PsdL7b9vDJCnUv27gGiEcFBuxzIbpecKkLc8A/s1600/Rotherwas_1.jpg" height="213" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
238. <tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The Rotherwas Serpent Mound, now buried under a road</td></tr>
239. </tbody></table>
240. His conclusion, of course, is that all the sites are related (all the American ones, yes, unquestionable, but lumping in Scotland, no).<br />
241. He never showed the third serpent mound so I did a little research, which made me sad.  <span style="font-size: large;">The third serpent mound was in England and it was destroyed in 2007 </span>when a road was build over it.  It was called the <a href="http://www.andrewcollins.com/page/news/Rotherwas.htm" target="_blank">Rotherwas Serpent Mound</a>.  The link contains its story and description as well as comparisons to the other two mounds profiled in this episode.<br />
242. <br />
243. <i>image sources:  screen print from <a href="http://www.history.com/shows/america-unearthed/videos" target="_blank">video</a>, <a href="http://media-cdn.tripadvisor.com/media/photo-s/01/25/79/60/serpent-head.jpg" target="_blank">Trip Advisor</a>, <a href="http://i.telegraph.co.uk/multimedia/archive/02540/stonehenge_2540465b.jpg" target="_blank">The Telegraph</a>, <a href="http://www.barry.warmkessel.com/SFig-2.jpg" target="_blank">here</a>, screen print again/same source, <a href="http://www.nps.gov/efmo/parkmgmt/images/Miss-River-National-Park-Group-3_3_1.jpg" target="_blank">National Park Service</a>, <a href="http://www.legendsofamerica.com/photos-illinois/CahokiaMounds-old.jpg" target="_blank">Legends of America</a>, <a href="http://www.andrewcollins.com/page/news/Rotherwas.htm" target="_blank">Andrew Collins </a></i>
244. <br />
245. This article is also posted on my web site, <a href="http://www.obsidianbutterfly.com/articles/serpentmystery.html" target="_blank">Transformations by Obsidian Butterfly</a>.<div class="blogger-post-footer">http://ofsinitiate.blogspot.com
246. (c) Gevera Bert Piedmont  })i({
247. Thank you!&lt;/div&gt;</content><link rel='replies' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://ofsinitiate.blogspot.com/feeds/7692805941273826406/comments/default' title='Post Comments'/><link rel='replies' type='text/html' href='http://www.blogger.com/comment.g?blogID=12406865&amp;postID=7692805941273826406' title='0 Comments'/><link rel='edit' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/12406865/posts/default/7692805941273826406'/><link rel='self' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/12406865/posts/default/7692805941273826406'/><link rel='alternate' type='text/html' href='http://ofsinitiate.blogspot.com/2014/01/america-unearthed-mystery-of-serpents.html' title='America Unearthed: Mystery of the Serpents (Review/commentary)'/><author><name>GBP  })i({</name><uri>http://www.blogger.com/profile/09275995534174189926</uri><email>noreply@blogger.com</email><gd:image rel='http://schemas.google.com/g/2005#thumbnail' width='25' height='32' src='http://www.obsidianbutterfly.com/assets/about/Green%20Bert%20copy.jpg'/></author><media:thumbnail xmlns:media="http://search.yahoo.com/mrss/" url="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhgeS0RYKwmlBI36IUekiU21EiiFJaV8PGIrxtoxbmnP7S7_zfWIP7J2l-VZiIvP_K-UfuDJ_-01SmGOpeT6IBjPqPh9FUR3ykVfsbGnKlwj17tCfDEUE3lQAA0QbrrIMCLj0D0bQ/s72-c/LochNellSerpent.jpg" height="72" width="72"/><thr:total>0</thr:total></entry><entry><id>tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-12406865.post-7318555751039640434</id><published>2014-01-19T21:16:00.000-05:00</published><updated>2014-01-28T13:55:51.526-05:00</updated><category scheme="http://www.blogger.com/atom/ns#" term="america unearthed"/><category scheme="http://www.blogger.com/atom/ns#" term="anthropology"/><category scheme="http://www.blogger.com/atom/ns#" term="aztalan"/><category scheme="http://www.blogger.com/atom/ns#" term="Aztec"/><category scheme="http://www.blogger.com/atom/ns#" term="aztec migration"/><category scheme="http://www.blogger.com/atom/ns#" term="aztlan"/><category scheme="http://www.blogger.com/atom/ns#" term="geology"/><category scheme="http://www.blogger.com/atom/ns#" term="h2"/><category scheme="http://www.blogger.com/atom/ns#" term="maya"/><category scheme="http://www.blogger.com/atom/ns#" term="mayan"/><category scheme="http://www.blogger.com/atom/ns#" term="native american"/><category scheme="http://www.blogger.com/atom/ns#" term="pyramid"/><category scheme="http://www.blogger.com/atom/ns#" term="review"/><category scheme="http://www.blogger.com/atom/ns#" term="roberto rodriguez"/><category scheme="http://www.blogger.com/atom/ns#" term="rock lake mystery"/><category scheme="http://www.blogger.com/atom/ns#" term="scott wolter"/><category scheme="http://www.blogger.com/atom/ns#" term="spoiler"/><category scheme="http://www.blogger.com/atom/ns#" term="tyranena"/><title type='text'>America Unearthed: Underwater Pyramids (review/discussion/snark/spoilers)</title><content type='html'>I&#39;ve been watching &lt;a href=&quot;http://www.history.com/shows/america-unearthed&quot; target=&quot;_blank&quot;&gt;America Unearthed&lt;/a&gt; (H2 channel) since the early episodes, including the very first one where they claimed to have found&lt;span style=&quot;font-size: large;&quot;&gt; Mayan pyramids and artifacts in Georgia.&lt;/span&gt;&amp;nbsp; (I didn&#39;t think to review it at the time.) &amp;nbsp; You can watch&lt;a href=&quot;http://youtu.be/ywLNdUnZr4s&quot; target=&quot;_blank&quot;&gt; it on Youtube&lt;/a&gt;&lt;a href=&quot;http://youtu.be/cKE3QkCuKtM&quot; target=&quot;_blank&quot;&gt;.&lt;/a&gt; or on &lt;a href=&quot;http://www.history.com/shows/america-unearthed/videos&quot; target=&quot;_blank&quot;&gt;H2&lt;/a&gt;. If I remember&amp;nbsp; correctly, the most interesting thing was the revelation that the &lt;span style=&quot;font-size: large;&quot;&gt;Maya Blue (pigment) used in Georgia came from the same source geologically as the Maya Blue used by the Central American Maya.&amp;nbsp; &lt;/span&gt;&lt;br /&gt;
248. The premise of the show is that Scott Wolter, a forensic geologist, investigates various claims that he always says "will change history" such as proving Vikings and other pre-Columbian Europeans were in the New World prior to the 15th century.  He is never able to conclusively prove anything (and in a recent case, having to do with a giant rock wall in Texas, he actually disproved the theory that the long wall was man-made).<br />
249. Last night's Underwater Pyramid episode begins with two duck hunters in a rowboat being caught on top of an underwater step pyramid in a lake (Lake Mills, Wisconsin) in 1900.  Very dramatic.<br />
250. <table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left; margin-right: 1em; text-align: left;"><tbody>
251. <tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiMFHA_DCRREuuP0iVEyfoXBHpyP5tt-l3BytAH9TBrl8MbyJuh56YtpsFGGVJ04tiKnf-1oJCS-vrWV80VMvb1XzQ_ed0rXoYarUTASdWzln31-7yPwH4CTYInTT_6HcwpL12e8A/s1600/stoneteepees.png" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiMFHA_DCRREuuP0iVEyfoXBHpyP5tt-l3BytAH9TBrl8MbyJuh56YtpsFGGVJ04tiKnf-1oJCS-vrWV80VMvb1XzQ_ed0rXoYarUTASdWzln31-7yPwH4CTYInTT_6HcwpL12e8A/s1600/stoneteepees.png" height="320" width="240" /></a></td></tr>
252. <tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Stone Teepees beer label with story.</td></tr>
253. </tbody></table>
254. Wolter meets his contact at Tyranena Brewing Company, named for the same lake (now known as "Rock Lake").  Their beer label shows three stone pyramids and says "Stone Teepee."<br />
255. The Native Americans in the area tell of <span style="font-size: large;">a "foreign tribe" that built "stone structures and effigy mounds" in the area of the lake, now underwater.  Supposedly, the contact says, the Aztecs built them.</span> Some scuba divers went down and found pyramids.  But the drawing looks nothing like a pyramid to me--a pyramid has a square bottom and 4 triangular sizes.  This has a rectangular bottom, two triangular sizes and two rectangular sides.  It looks like a stone version of a long house, not like anything I've ever seen from Meso-America.<br />
256. <table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
257. <tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgevZcJijSsq4e6cEZVXvMjX9rvwvDDD95-sRVUILQPkRgCWkmRHqtboMyPxKKR6Hw_LD84VTZRy50x9DfLvTxAXqdQIzOn_Gx3uxCS4HHuMbfM8TjQwmtExzmUsXWAEYpT5kHuCQ/s1600/underwateraztecpyramids.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgevZcJijSsq4e6cEZVXvMjX9rvwvDDD95-sRVUILQPkRgCWkmRHqtboMyPxKKR6Hw_LD84VTZRy50x9DfLvTxAXqdQIzOn_Gx3uxCS4HHuMbfM8TjQwmtExzmUsXWAEYpT5kHuCQ/s1600/underwateraztecpyramids.jpg" height="165" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
258. <tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">I screenprinted this from the video on H2's site</td></tr>
259. </tbody></table>
260. Another legend, also on a beer bottle, is "Rocky's Revenge", about the "protector of the pyramids" and the label shows a kind of prehistoric dinosaur.  It's "Wisconsin's version of Nessie."  Local scuba divers feel like the monster's watching them and get creeped out by it. <br />
261. <table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
262. <tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgSmHnzCgv5ISBMmErObT4K1CPX5s7Indp2RVcFsPZ1tfrI3BBImCuDsXXGGrHRg6u_-A_8NGd2VfHOz0lQuq2jV3N5IfZ_7gRdya5mq6w-bWkPMfL-y7TYOqfpo_mwBHA_l-kWLQ/s1600/RockysRevenge.png" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgSmHnzCgv5ISBMmErObT4K1CPX5s7Indp2RVcFsPZ1tfrI3BBImCuDsXXGGrHRg6u_-A_8NGd2VfHOz0lQuq2jV3N5IfZ_7gRdya5mq6w-bWkPMfL-y7TYOqfpo_mwBHA_l-kWLQ/s1600/RockysRevenge.png" height="320" width="284" /></a></td></tr>
263. <tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Rocky's Revenge beer label with story.</td></tr>
264. </tbody></table>
265. <br />
266. Wolter declares his intention to dive the pyramids with a personal submarine (submersible), although he declares the idea of the Aztecs traveling that far "bizarre."<br />
267. The FuGo subs are silly-looking bright yellow tiny things, like the Mini Coopers of the sub world.  Then the show turns into an ad for the sub.  Product placement, anyone?   First the beer, now the sub.  Sigh.<br />
268. Looking up Lake Mills, I see that the lake is half the town, and at the other half is something labeled "Aztalan" which is very close to the word for the Aztec's legendary homeland,
269. <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Aztl%C3%A1n" target="_blank">Aztlán</a>.  The Rocky's Revenge label mentions Aztalan as well.<br />
270. <div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
271. <a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg0-2o0psrJBglBAlGVqUOI7gN4YGxc2AieSeqgi7Ca_ObjKHZ7aPkLWUHnV_N9-SqMjNwVd1Mkab45evQfcZqLADTfYBDsbSByONldy2CT5kreKDhOOEN50RPVQWKey9JlVYuUGQ/s1600/lakemills.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg0-2o0psrJBglBAlGVqUOI7gN4YGxc2AieSeqgi7Ca_ObjKHZ7aPkLWUHnV_N9-SqMjNwVd1Mkab45evQfcZqLADTfYBDsbSByONldy2CT5kreKDhOOEN50RPVQWKey9JlVYuUGQ/s1600/lakemills.jpg" /></a></div>
272.  Wolter's next stop is a visit with Dr. Roberto Rodriguez, who has "studied the Aztecs," whatever that means, and who is an "Aztec Migration Expert."  He says he "followed the corn," because corn was originally domesticated in the southern Mexican area (albeit thousands of years before the Aztecs appeared on the scene).<br />
273. This gives Wolter a chance to<span style="font-size: large;"> luridly describe people being sacrificed to the "corn god" and "corn goddess" (great use of deity names there, Wolter) and gasp, some of the sacrifices were even eaten.</span>   Dr. Rodriguez says he discovered the Aztec legend that they came originally from the North (ie, North America, or at least the southern part of it) which completely flabbergasts Wolter, as if<span style="font-size: large;"> no one ever in the history of talking about the Aztecs knew their legend of their northern homeland.</span>  Which I already mentioned, above, before even getting to this section of the show.<br />
274. Wolter goes on to talk about "Roberto's remarkable theory" that the Aztecs came from American and moved to Mexico.  Remarkable theory?  It's an ancient legend.  This guy didn't discover it.  This is disingenuous and this sort of stuff angers me.   Maybe Wolter knew the Aztecs believed they came from the North, maybe he didn't, but to pretend this guy invented the idea is ridiculous.   I don't believe anyone has ever found what was the ancient homeland of Aztlan, which could have been in the American Southwest, or higher up, or even in very northern Mexico.  We'll probably never know for sure.<br />
275. Dr Rodriguez explains that the Aztec <i>pochtecas</i> (traveling merchants) did travel all over the continent (perhaps how the Maya Blue got to Georgia?). I know that those trade goods can be traced by modern anthropologists who find them in excavations, and also borrowed words in other languages can show those trade routes, such as the study of the Uto-Aztecan languages, shown on this map from Wikipedia:<br />
276. <div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
277. <a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgJvlflSTheNrQaAP4vQuWcYCBrlwatVQ0B04YUc6cFmVfFT3nTggf63pqNSXxAVdJdpjtNgzU1KW27QNOr0reyUaN6HcdAnHrm7jHSU5Cbtgi_c0hClWpSTxrzn4QsvYQXsVnHrQ/s1600/uteaztecanlanguagemap.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgJvlflSTheNrQaAP4vQuWcYCBrlwatVQ0B04YUc6cFmVfFT3nTggf63pqNSXxAVdJdpjtNgzU1KW27QNOr0reyUaN6HcdAnHrm7jHSU5Cbtgi_c0hClWpSTxrzn4QsvYQXsVnHrQ/s1600/uteaztecanlanguagemap.jpg" height="320" width="267" /></a></div>
278. <br />
279. (aside: I don't know why I can't get a job as a researcher for one of these types of shows.  All these extra things, I'm either looking up on the fly or I already know them.)<br />
280. You might notice that the red on that map goes NO WHERE near where these alleged Aztec pyramids are, up by Lake Michigan.<br />
281. The good doctor offers some ancient maps to Wolter, to prove his "theory" about North America being the Aztec homeland. This is one of them:<br />
282. <div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
283. <a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgjHXaIjhVaiQNiaMYuYZq7bAzkv_Uc3aEE8VtSrA4NwGsrIipB3kStnP5pjCSudresV5wbfJo7Hkmm8pfkz0KgUJjtqUB_stEjejUBZS3suqQXcY5m5GcukX-QF9_W4_ryt1UPww/s1600/Disturnell-map.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgjHXaIjhVaiQNiaMYuYZq7bAzkv_Uc3aEE8VtSrA4NwGsrIipB3kStnP5pjCSudresV5wbfJo7Hkmm8pfkz0KgUJjtqUB_stEjejUBZS3suqQXcY5m5GcukX-QF9_W4_ryt1UPww/s1600/Disturnell-map.jpg" height="229" width="320" /></a></div>
284. The map is from the Treaty of Guadalupe Hidalgo (Wolter constantly calls it, incorrectly, the Treat of Hidalgo) in 1848.  Dr Rodriguez says that in the Four Corners region, <span style="font-size: large;">this map has a label that it's the homeland of the Aztecs ("Antigua residencia de los Aztecas").</span><br />
285. I was only able to find a translated version in close-up, which also shows the <span style="font-size: large;">"ruins of the 2nd houses of the Aztecs"</span> not far away.<br />
286. <table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
287. <tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiya-RtndaSTNXDYd557hh4pbObNZZ-wssgjbrt8UCqWt3XRSAMrGw9nX4GSZgpzgOiiKkQLU8mYVCXlplUYA52GL55Plg4wmOeHKfed4MRVTMTXtcCvPK-Y6VPYZmTlrmy8hqrBA/s1600/ancienthomelandaztecs+copy.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiya-RtndaSTNXDYd557hh4pbObNZZ-wssgjbrt8UCqWt3XRSAMrGw9nX4GSZgpzgOiiKkQLU8mYVCXlplUYA52GL55Plg4wmOeHKfed4MRVTMTXtcCvPK-Y6VPYZmTlrmy8hqrBA/s1600/ancienthomelandaztecs+copy.jpg" height="320" width="277" /></a></td></tr>
288. <tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Close up of translated maps showing<br />
289.  "Ancient Residence"  and "Ruins of the 2nd Houses"</td></tr>
290. </tbody></table>
291. <br />
292. Dr Rodriguez thinks the Great Salt Lake is the actual origin of the Aztecs, based on some even older maps.  But on newer maps, supposedly this information is redacted.  Dr Rodriguez seems to believe <span style="font-size: large;">it's a racist conspiracy</span>, because everyone tells Mexicans to "go back" to Mexico, but they really came from North America so they are already "back" and that won't do.<br />
293. Even though this map shows the ancient Aztec homeland as no where near Wisconsin, Wolter can't let it go.  Maybe the lake wasn't the Great Salt Lake.  Maybe it was Lake Michigan.  Or this Rock Lake.  He doesn't know when to quit.<br />
294. I'm going to turn aside again and interject my own thoughts:  <span style="font-size: large;">If the Aztecs' homeland was Rock Lake, or even Lake Michigan, they would not have been labeled "foreigners" by the natives living in the area.  They would have BEEN the natives living in that area. </span> Once the Aztecs went south, they stayed south, except, as mentioned already, for the pochtecas, who certainly didn't stick around long enough to build pyramids in any places they visited.  <br />
295. And then Dr Rodriguez mentions a few words that are cognates in Aztec (Nahuatl) and the local native language:  Michigan and Michoacan both mean "place of fishes" (pronounced almost exactly the same), as well as "mocatzin" and "moccasin" (both meaning shoe).<br />
296. I think these can be explained by the pochtecas bringing language from place to place along with trade goods.  "What's this foot thing?" "It's a mocatzin" (other person doesn't hear the slight "t" sound) "Oh, a moccasin."<br />
297. Finally, halfway through the show, Wolter is ready to dive in his little yellow submarine so he can prove that the rock structures were built by Aztecs and somehow the sea monster also has Aztec relevance although I can't comprehend it, and evidently it was more important to include another product placement/ad for the subs rather than <span style="font-size: large;">explain how the Aztecs placed the serpent in the lake.</span> <span style="font-size: large;"> The lake that wasn't there when the structures were built. But that was perhaps the lake that was the homeland of the Aztecs.  </span>I'm utterly confused and there are still 30 minutes to go.<br />
298. Finally, they are diving, talking about how Rocky is a cryptid and they're looking for him as well as for the pyramids.  More time is wasted because Wolter gets himself stuck into the bottom's mud, it's murky, there are weeds, all kinds of false drama because his battery is running dead and he's not found anything.   Except that it's "creepy" down there.<br />
299. And after that ONE FAILED DIVE he gives up.  Doesn't dive again.  Doesn't try any kind of sonar.  Just wanders off, heads to that place I mentioned earlier, Aztalan state park.  He meets the former Wisconsin state archeologist, who says they've never found a pyramid in the lake either.  Of course if Wolter had checked with them first, it would have been a non-story.<br />
300. (Or maybe he did and that's why he gave up after one dive.  Or, as in other shows, he could have visited them first, gotten belligerent with those who didn't agree with his ideas, and stomped off to prove them wrong, only to go home muttering "it's still possible" when he couldn't do that.)  <br />
301. The archeologist brings him to a partially restored archeological site, dated to around 1,000 A.D.  It's a heavily fortified site, with defensive log walls.  Supposedly new people moved in with existing people, and thus the fortification was to protect the newcomers from the other older tribes.  Apparently this information came from their middens.<br />
302. The site appears to be low mounds inside of the log fences.  Wolter claims it looks like Tenochtitlan because there are plazas between the buildings.  Well, who builds buildings all on top of each other with no space in between?  (I won't get into my friend's theory of pyramid building, which is that the most efficient way to pile up earth and/or stones and/or bricks turns out to be a pyramid shape.)<br />
303. <table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right; margin-left: 1em; text-align: right;"><tbody>
304. <tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgXUu1myKhri5V7NHS55dF_N-8KVL7HIWzqTiipVOUPmX06YDP-TffKQmUcWYxaPDS-NZeEqZN5IqWoDRbliSEn5YTDJnZ11sHZXsN8zTs63W4PI05CQEOh2A6RrEWlhKf6yBtZ7A/s1600/atzmap.jpeg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgXUu1myKhri5V7NHS55dF_N-8KVL7HIWzqTiipVOUPmX06YDP-TffKQmUcWYxaPDS-NZeEqZN5IqWoDRbliSEn5YTDJnZ11sHZXsN8zTs63W4PI05CQEOh2A6RrEWlhKf6yBtZ7A/s1600/atzmap.jpeg" height="320" width="235" /></a></td></tr>
305. <tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Aztalan site reconstruction.</td></tr>
306. </tbody></table>
307. Wolter keeps talking about how the Aztecs built walls to keep the rich people in (they did?), and since the archeologist says this town had a wealthy quadrant, with its own walls (the long thin area to the right of this  map next to the trees, if I'm following the on-screen map correctly), and that one mound, that <span style="font-size: large;">it's exactly like an Aztec city.</span><br />
308. One of the pyramids was actually a burial pyramid, again, something Aztecs didn't do.  On top of another pyramid was the sacred fire, only put out once a year when the corn was about to be planted, because these people, like the Aztecs, were "obsessed by corn."  Now personally<span style="font-size: large;"> I'd call the Aztecs many things, but corn-obsessed isn't even on my radar.</span><br />
309. The archeologist describes a "princess mound" where a young woman was buried with high-status items.  Immediately Wolter says she must have been sacrificed when the corn crop was bad.  Because, of course, there is no chance she was the beloved daughter of the ruler who died young and was buried with riches by her grieving family.<br />
310. Wolter sums it all up.  Both sites:<br />
311. <ul>
312. <li>were obsessed with corn</li>
313. <li>had plazas</li>
314. <li>had a wealthy walled neighborhood</li>
315. <li>human sacrifice</li>
316. <li>the names </li>
317. </ul>
318. <br />
319. And he wonders, how could they be connected? Um, the POCHTECAS already mentioned could have brought the concepts around...or...<br />
320. The archeologist says the settler who discovered the ruins made up the name after finding out about the Aztec homeland. <span style="font-size: large;"> That the site is dated absolutely to 1,000 AD, abandoned by 1200 A.D. and has nothing to do with the Aztecs, and was built by the Mississipians.</span>   And he brings up <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cahokia" target="_blank">Cahokia</a>, as being the capital of the Mississipian civilization.<br />
321. Wolter leaps to another conclusion, that the Mississipian people left this site, wandered to the Great Salt Lake, and from there to central Mexico, totally discounting what's already been discussed about the origins of the Ute-Aztecan language family.   <span style="font-size: large;">He admits that if there are any rocks in Rock Lake, they are probably glacial erratics, but hey, he did PROVE his friend's THEORY that the Aztecs really came from the North. </span> Who knew that?<br />
322. Wow.<br />
323. <br />
324. Picture sources:  <a href="http://tyranena.com/category/our-beer/" target="_blank">Tyranena Beer page</a>, <a href="http://www.history.com/shows/america-unearthed/videos" target="_blank">H2,</a> <a href="https://www.google.com/search?q=lake+mills+wisconsin&source=lnms&sa=X&ei=Vm3cUo_6G-rd2AWCjYC4Cg&ved=0CAYQ_AUoAA&biw=1429&bih=642&dpr=0.9" target="_blank">Google Maps,</a> <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Uto-Aztecan_languages" target="_blank">Wikipedia</a>, <a href="http://www.organmtnfriends.org/wp-content/uploads/2013/04/Disturnell-map.jpg" target="_blank">1848 map,</a> <a href="http://users.skynet.be/fa039055/tanner03.jpg" target="_blank">translated map</a>, <a href="http://digicoll.library.wisc.edu/WI/data/images/TEIr/wiacrev/V37/reference/WAR0370303101r.jpeg" target="_blank">Aztalan map</a><br />
325. <br />
326. <i>Addendum:  My artist friend Mike read this post and thought it was too snarky.  Then he watched the episode, and thought it wasn't snarky enough!  He did point out one thing I missed...that apparently some of the research for the episode involved reading beer labels.  I did mention the labels but I wasn't thinking about the absurdity of beer labels as sources for historical fact.</i><br />
327. Cross-posted to <a href="http://www.obsidianbutterfly.com/articles/underpyramids.html" target="_blank">Transformations by Obsidian Butterfly web site</a>.
328. <div class="blogger-post-footer">http://ofsinitiate.blogspot.com
329. (c) Gevera Bert Piedmont  })i({
330. Thank you!&lt;/div&gt;</content><link rel='replies' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://ofsinitiate.blogspot.com/feeds/7318555751039640434/comments/default' title='Post Comments'/><link rel='replies' type='text/html' href='http://www.blogger.com/comment.g?blogID=12406865&amp;postID=7318555751039640434' title='2 Comments'/><link rel='edit' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/12406865/posts/default/7318555751039640434'/><link rel='self' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/12406865/posts/default/7318555751039640434'/><link rel='alternate' type='text/html' href='http://ofsinitiate.blogspot.com/2014/01/america-unearthed-underwater-pyramids.html' title='America Unearthed: Underwater Pyramids (review/discussion/snark/spoilers)'/><author><name>GBP  })i({</name><uri>http://www.blogger.com/profile/09275995534174189926</uri><email>noreply@blogger.com</email><gd:image rel='http://schemas.google.com/g/2005#thumbnail' width='25' height='32' src='http://www.obsidianbutterfly.com/assets/about/Green%20Bert%20copy.jpg'/></author><media:thumbnail xmlns:media="http://search.yahoo.com/mrss/" url="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiMFHA_DCRREuuP0iVEyfoXBHpyP5tt-l3BytAH9TBrl8MbyJuh56YtpsFGGVJ04tiKnf-1oJCS-vrWV80VMvb1XzQ_ed0rXoYarUTASdWzln31-7yPwH4CTYInTT_6HcwpL12e8A/s72-c/stoneteepees.png" height="72" width="72"/><thr:total>2</thr:total></entry><entry><id>tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-12406865.post-3113913133092488138</id><published>2013-10-29T14:28:00.001-04:00</published><updated>2013-10-29T14:28:03.758-04:00</updated><category scheme="http://www.blogger.com/atom/ns#" term="dream"/><category scheme="http://www.blogger.com/atom/ns#" term="dying"/><category scheme="http://www.blogger.com/atom/ns#" term="falling"/><category scheme="http://www.blogger.com/atom/ns#" term="swooping"/><title type='text'>the swooping flying falling dream</title><content type='html'>&lt;div class=&quot;separator&quot; style=&quot;clear: both; text-align: center;&quot;&gt;
331. <a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiktTT53V2c4OiOuAfdoDjCjgy3Ch4snmf8O0XQV1WkrQPejrLIJqJRt2OTnxRQQBCnihiPdCFjiwKzJioo6vFmr95DBwO259MdYv4eUm0VSeJSUvi5liEukn8VjN1S-V-gnuNFfA/s1600/dream.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="133" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiktTT53V2c4OiOuAfdoDjCjgy3Ch4snmf8O0XQV1WkrQPejrLIJqJRt2OTnxRQQBCnihiPdCFjiwKzJioo6vFmr95DBwO259MdYv4eUm0VSeJSUvi5liEukn8VjN1S-V-gnuNFfA/s200/dream.jpg" width="200" /></a></div>
332. Everyone has a form of this dream, I think. <span style="color: #351c75;"> <span style="font-size: large;">The swooping/flying/falling nightmare.</span></span><br />
333. I had it last night.<br />
334. At the beginning of the dream, I was at my mom's house looking outside at her garden. The garden was full of frogs, all kinds of frogs, sitting on leaves and on decorations and on the ground.  I went outside because one of the frogs was very appealing to me, and<span style="font-size: large;"> <span style="color: #351c75;">this frog came over to me and clearly wanted to be my pet.</span></span>  I took it inside.  I also had some kind of pet lizard inside.<br />
335. It was time for me to go to the <a href="http://www.myasc.org/fairs.htm" target="_blank">Astrological Society of Connecticut's New Age Fair,</a> where IRL I am a vendor every quarter, selling my <a href="http://www.jaguarnights.info/" target="_blank">books on the Mayan-Aztec calendar </a>and artwork along with my artist Mike.  For whatever reason, I brought the new frog and the lizard and some other small creatures.  They were in a shallow round container covered with a black cloth.<br />
336. The fair was held in a dream building.  Some lady kept putting her things onto my vendor table, worse yet, putting them on top of my pets, and I was very upset that the frog and lizard and other critters would be injured or killed.<br />
337. The day before the fair, <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Leonard_Cohen" target="_blank">Leonard Cohen</a>, the singer, had died.  (As I am writing this, he is very much alive, although <a href="http://www.rollingstone.com/music/news/lou-reed-velvet-underground-leader-and-rock-pioneer-dead-at-71-20131027" target="_blank">Lou Reed</a> just died, who is not in any way the same person.)  Apparently the way to commemorate this singer's death is to have <span style="font-size: large;"><span style="color: #351c75;">line dancing</span> </span>at a New Age fair.  I am not into line dancing.  I was in the line, though, ready to do my duty, when people started to notice that there were cavities in the walls and everyone went into those cavities, because apparently<span style="font-size: large;"> <span style="color: #351c75;">acting like a rat</span> </span>is also a good way to commemorate the death of an awesome singer.<br />
338. <span style="font-size: large;"><span style="color: #351c75;">Inside the walls were a series of curved tunnels, stairs, spirals, and ladders. It was like a giant fun house.  <span style="color: black;"><span style="font-size: small;">Everything was around a blind corner.</span></span></span><span style="font-size: small;"> </span></span><span style="font-size: small;"> Y</span>ou'd be spiraling up and next thing you'd turn a corner and be sliding down.  I was following two young girls.  We went up and then around a corner was a short ladder going down.  We climbed down the ladder and at the bottom was the mouth of a closed slide, like a water slide. They fit into it easily and were on their way but <span style="color: #351c75;"><span style="font-size: large;">I was too fat.</span></span>  I had <span style="font-size: large;"><span style="color: #351c75;">no choice</span> </span>but to climb back up the ladder. But as I climbed it, it got longer and longer, and went further and further away from the wall.  Finally<span style="font-size: large;"> <span style="color: #351c75;">I was at the top of an immensely tall ladder, like an Indian monk doing a rope trick</span></span>, and I was outside the building.  The ladder was free-standing, but wobbling.  I had a bit of lucid dreaming then--<i>oh shit here it comes</i>--and then the ladder started to lean toward the building.  I could see that I had to aim myself at a very small window.  <span style="color: #351c75;"><span style="font-size: large;">I was swooping, I was flying, it was awful.</span></span><br />
339. <span style="color: #351c75;"><span style="font-size: large;">And I woke up.</span></span><br />
340. I've also had varieties of this dream where I'm on a trampoline, or the high dive at a pool, and every jump I go higher and higher and get more and more scared but I have such momentum I can't stop. <span style="color: #351c75;"><span style="font-size: large;">The going up is bad, the short hover at the top is terrible, and the falling, falling, falling in a great arc is the worse.</span></span><br />
341. My husband was watching one of the<a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jackass:_The_Movie" target="_blank"> Jackass movies</a> once.  They were doing this stunt where they bounced people off a huge air pillow into a lake.  They put a camera on one person so the viewer could experience it. <br />
342. And although I have never swooped or flown (except in a jet) or fallen from a great height, the view from that camera was EXACTLY like my dreams.  To the point where I could not watch the movie until that segment was over.<br />
343. According to the online <a href="http://www.dreamdictionary.org/common/falling-dreams/" target="_blank">Dream Dictionary</a>,<span style="font-size: large;"> <span style="color: #351c75;">a falling dream means you feel like your life is out of control.</span> </span> Something horrible happened to me last night, something beyond my control, something that I see as a betrayal, so that doesn't surprise me.  Their information on frogs and ladders was less than helpful, nothing on lizards, new age fairs, swooping, or deep-voiced singers.<br />
344. (<a href="http://astralprojectionguides.com/wp-content/uploads/lucid-dream-flying.jpg" target="_blank">image source</a>)<div class="blogger-post-footer">http://ofsinitiate.blogspot.com
345. (c) Gevera Bert Piedmont  })i({
346. Thank you!&lt;/div&gt;</content><link rel='replies' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://ofsinitiate.blogspot.com/feeds/3113913133092488138/comments/default' title='Post Comments'/><link rel='replies' type='text/html' href='http://www.blogger.com/comment.g?blogID=12406865&amp;postID=3113913133092488138' title='0 Comments'/><link rel='edit' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/12406865/posts/default/3113913133092488138'/><link rel='self' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/12406865/posts/default/3113913133092488138'/><link rel='alternate' type='text/html' href='http://ofsinitiate.blogspot.com/2013/10/the-swooping-flying-falling-dream.html' title='the swooping flying falling dream'/><author><name>GBP  })i({</name><uri>http://www.blogger.com/profile/09275995534174189926</uri><email>noreply@blogger.com</email><gd:image rel='http://schemas.google.com/g/2005#thumbnail' width='25' height='32' src='http://www.obsidianbutterfly.com/assets/about/Green%20Bert%20copy.jpg'/></author><media:thumbnail xmlns:media="http://search.yahoo.com/mrss/" url="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiktTT53V2c4OiOuAfdoDjCjgy3Ch4snmf8O0XQV1WkrQPejrLIJqJRt2OTnxRQQBCnihiPdCFjiwKzJioo6vFmr95DBwO259MdYv4eUm0VSeJSUvi5liEukn8VjN1S-V-gnuNFfA/s72-c/dream.jpg" height="72" width="72"/><thr:total>0</thr:total></entry><entry><id>tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-12406865.post-1755414041108736320</id><published>2012-12-12T00:00:00.000-05:00</published><updated>2012-12-12T09:30:57.196-05:00</updated><category scheme="http://www.blogger.com/atom/ns#" term="12/12/12"/><category scheme="http://www.blogger.com/atom/ns#" term="13th Baktun"/><category scheme="http://www.blogger.com/atom/ns#" term="2012"/><category scheme="http://www.blogger.com/atom/ns#" term="energy"/><category scheme="http://www.blogger.com/atom/ns#" term="gate"/><category scheme="http://www.blogger.com/atom/ns#" term="shamballa"/><title type='text'>12/12/12 12:12 </title><content type='html'>&lt;div class=&quot;separator&quot; style=&quot;clear: both; text-align: center;&quot;&gt;
347. <a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj0Ecs7zl_Oq63JZA7JP8ehZXe5cCmNy4VKTxQaZ6Korss4wMAcuRrQp5waoBdo_-ej9m1VXk_kanSJlVleCAj3d0cLDvYegEeRtVQDgkMtQNe41xfLAPyizzukcXEteu2KptRtjQ/s1600/FOL+sphere+with+man+copy.png" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj0Ecs7zl_Oq63JZA7JP8ehZXe5cCmNy4VKTxQaZ6Korss4wMAcuRrQp5waoBdo_-ej9m1VXk_kanSJlVleCAj3d0cLDvYegEeRtVQDgkMtQNe41xfLAPyizzukcXEteu2KptRtjQ/s1600/FOL+sphere+with+man+copy.png" /></a></div>
348. <span style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: 'lucida grande', tahoma, verdana, arial, sans-serif; font-size: 13px; line-height: 17px;">It's 12-12-12! (The 12th gate out of 13.)</span><br />
349. <span style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: 'lucida grande', tahoma, verdana, arial, sans-serif; font-size: 13px; line-height: 17px;">Welcome the light and open your spiritual gateway wide! Clear your karma and make way for healthy, happy relationships and ways of being in the world. </span><br />
350. <span style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: 'lucida grande', tahoma, verdana, arial, sans-serif; font-size: 13px; line-height: 17px;">This spiritual activation gate will bring the highest frequencies ever encoded in the Light of the Ascended Consciousness,  followed by the final gate in 9 days on 12/21/12 when Baktun 13 begins. </span><br />
351. <span style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: 'lucida grande', tahoma, verdana, arial, sans-serif; font-size: 13px; line-height: 17px;">All the spiritual energies we have been working for since 1/1/1 will be fulfilled and available very soon.</span><br />
352. <span style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: 'lucida grande', tahoma, verdana, arial, sans-serif; font-size: 13px; line-height: 17px;">Make it count today! Be light, be love.</span><br />
353. <span style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: 'lucida grande', tahoma, verdana, arial, sans-serif; font-size: 13px; line-height: 17px;">Shamballa on!  </span><br />
354. <span style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: 'lucida grande', tahoma, verdana, arial, sans-serif; font-size: 13px; line-height: 17px;">(image source:  <a href="http://www.obsidianbutterfly.com/articles/howtolivemultidim.html" target="_blank">ME!</a>  This is a drawing I did for a class on Merkabas and Sacred Geometry)</span><div class="blogger-post-footer">http://ofsinitiate.blogspot.com
355. (c) Gevera Bert Piedmont  })i({
356. Thank you!&lt;/div&gt;</content><link rel='replies' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://ofsinitiate.blogspot.com/feeds/1755414041108736320/comments/default' title='Post Comments'/><link rel='replies' type='text/html' href='http://www.blogger.com/comment.g?blogID=12406865&amp;postID=1755414041108736320' title='1 Comments'/><link rel='edit' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/12406865/posts/default/1755414041108736320'/><link rel='self' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/12406865/posts/default/1755414041108736320'/><link rel='alternate' type='text/html' href='http://ofsinitiate.blogspot.com/2012/12/121212-1212.html' title='12/12/12 12:12 '/><author><name>GBP  })i({</name><uri>http://www.blogger.com/profile/09275995534174189926</uri><email>noreply@blogger.com</email><gd:image rel='http://schemas.google.com/g/2005#thumbnail' width='25' height='32' src='http://www.obsidianbutterfly.com/assets/about/Green%20Bert%20copy.jpg'/></author><media:thumbnail xmlns:media="http://search.yahoo.com/mrss/" url="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj0Ecs7zl_Oq63JZA7JP8ehZXe5cCmNy4VKTxQaZ6Korss4wMAcuRrQp5waoBdo_-ej9m1VXk_kanSJlVleCAj3d0cLDvYegEeRtVQDgkMtQNe41xfLAPyizzukcXEteu2KptRtjQ/s72-c/FOL+sphere+with+man+copy.png" height="72" width="72"/><thr:total>1</thr:total></entry><entry><id>tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-12406865.post-1938146982242582420</id><published>2012-11-15T11:17:00.003-05:00</published><updated>2012-11-15T11:17:59.682-05:00</updated><category scheme="http://www.blogger.com/atom/ns#" term="Aztec"/><category scheme="http://www.blogger.com/atom/ns#" term="Jaguar Nights"/><category scheme="http://www.blogger.com/atom/ns#" term="mayan"/><category scheme="http://www.blogger.com/atom/ns#" term="merchandise"/><category scheme="http://www.blogger.com/atom/ns#" term="mesoamerican"/><category scheme="http://www.blogger.com/atom/ns#" term="michael giza"/><title type='text'>Jaguar Nights merchandise</title><content type='html'>&lt;a href=&quot;https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEitJ7LeObIbSrMsxDfP87LBMyvDOvfuG1TmN0xJyDqZ0xif6DZmwY-RQoUfb_xYxSo-DJW537rGLYxsW_ZHAR5qaVWTk8aZjRsjq4Wsc85yY3C4A2aC_J4YivgTZzlMdYeoAITzww/s1600/zazzle2.png&quot; style=&quot;clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;&quot;&gt;&lt;img border=&quot;0&quot; src=&quot;https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEitJ7LeObIbSrMsxDfP87LBMyvDOvfuG1TmN0xJyDqZ0xif6DZmwY-RQoUfb_xYxSo-DJW537rGLYxsW_ZHAR5qaVWTk8aZjRsjq4Wsc85yY3C4A2aC_J4YivgTZzlMdYeoAITzww/s1600/zazzle2.png&quot; /&gt;&lt;/a&gt;My artist Mike has put up two of his designs, both used in &lt;a href=&quot;http://www.obsidianbutterfly.com/jaguarnights&quot; target=&quot;_blank&quot;&gt;Jaguar Nights 2013&lt;/a&gt;, as t-shirt designs on Zazzle.&amp;nbsp;&lt;br /&gt;
357. <br />
358. The shirts are available in a multitude of colors.  The designs are <a href="http://www.zazzle.com/rabbit_in_the_moon_t_shirt-235720761633511936" target="_blank">Rabbit in the Moon</a> (I LOVE IT) and <a href="http://www.zazzle.com/jaguar_warrior_t_shirt_in_white-235763100787852898" target="_blank">Jaguar Warrior</a>.  The rabbit design is probably going to be the back of the Mayan Oracle cards.  You can search Zazzle for "<a href="http://www.zazzle.com/michaelgiza+gifts?pg=2" target="_blank">MichaelGiza</a>" (no space) to see all of his work.<br />
359. <div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
360. <a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjnXuiUI4aUAlM90jYVrEFSN45Mah0-cPctuYlQRVb-Kj9IqRFV-9HhyphenhyphenJkjs69mF2u-x_B5r82GkQkeqyWvP7musrrBhqB7ISmLJdSCMmODoEMqtvisx0FjW2RF6O1sfbzTuv8RBQ/s1600/MikesSunGod.png" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjnXuiUI4aUAlM90jYVrEFSN45Mah0-cPctuYlQRVb-Kj9IqRFV-9HhyphenhyphenJkjs69mF2u-x_B5r82GkQkeqyWvP7musrrBhqB7ISmLJdSCMmODoEMqtvisx0FjW2RF6O1sfbzTuv8RBQ/s1600/MikesSunGod.png" /></a></div>
361. In Meso themed work, he also offers <a href="http://www.zazzle.com/sun_god_card-137699403904178574" target="_blank">Sun God cards</a>, <a href="http://www.zazzle.com/sun_god_t_shirt-235781554436726518" target="_blank">Sun God t-shirts</a>, and the Jaguar Warrior on <a href="http://www.zazzle.com/jaguar_warrior_card_white_on_red-137071229245354889" target="_blank">red greeting cards</a>, turquoise and brown <a href="http://www.zazzle.com/jaguar_warrior_card_blue_on_brown-137124008443254549" target="_blank">greeting cards</a>, <a href="http://www.zazzle.com/jaguar_warrior_playing_cards_blue-256281441906184701" target="_blank">playing cards</a>, and a <a href="http://www.zazzle.com/jaguar_warrior_notebook_red-130641900597789123" target="_blank">red notebook</a>.  The Rabbit is also available on a <a href="http://www.zazzle.com/rabbit_in_the_moon_mug_blue-168197982826358396" target="_blank">mug. </a>(soon to be mine) The Sun God picture gives you an idea of the style of artwork and color that will be on the Mayan Oracle cards.<div class="blogger-post-footer">http://ofsinitiate.blogspot.com
362. (c) Gevera Bert Piedmont  })i({
363. Thank you!&lt;/div&gt;</content><link rel='replies' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://ofsinitiate.blogspot.com/feeds/1938146982242582420/comments/default' title='Post Comments'/><link rel='replies' type='text/html' href='http://www.blogger.com/comment.g?blogID=12406865&amp;postID=1938146982242582420' title='2 Comments'/><link rel='edit' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/12406865/posts/default/1938146982242582420'/><link rel='self' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/12406865/posts/default/1938146982242582420'/><link rel='alternate' type='text/html' href='http://ofsinitiate.blogspot.com/2012/11/jaguar-nights-merchandise.html' title='Jaguar Nights merchandise'/><author><name>GBP  })i({</name><uri>http://www.blogger.com/profile/09275995534174189926</uri><email>noreply@blogger.com</email><gd:image rel='http://schemas.google.com/g/2005#thumbnail' width='25' height='32' src='http://www.obsidianbutterfly.com/assets/about/Green%20Bert%20copy.jpg'/></author><media:thumbnail xmlns:media="http://search.yahoo.com/mrss/" url="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEitJ7LeObIbSrMsxDfP87LBMyvDOvfuG1TmN0xJyDqZ0xif6DZmwY-RQoUfb_xYxSo-DJW537rGLYxsW_ZHAR5qaVWTk8aZjRsjq4Wsc85yY3C4A2aC_J4YivgTZzlMdYeoAITzww/s72-c/zazzle2.png" height="72" width="72"/><thr:total>2</thr:total></entry><entry><id>tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-12406865.post-6506313392995615202</id><published>2012-11-15T10:52:00.002-05:00</published><updated>2012-11-15T10:52:07.075-05:00</updated><category scheme="http://www.blogger.com/atom/ns#" term="2013"/><category scheme="http://www.blogger.com/atom/ns#" term="calendar"/><category scheme="http://www.blogger.com/atom/ns#" term="Jaguar Nights"/><title type='text'>Jaguar Nights 2013 in Kindle &amp; print, with screen shots</title><content type='html'>&lt;table align=&quot;right&quot; tr=&quot;tr&quot;&gt;&lt;tbody&gt;
364. <tr><td><a _blank="" href="http://www.amazon.com/Jaguar-Nights-2013-Mayan-Aztec-Calendar/dp/1480130796/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1352991088&sr=8-1&keywords=1480130796">
365. <img height="140" src="http://www.obsidianbutterfly.com/jaguarnights/Jaguar-Nights-2013-sm.png" width="100" /></a></td></tr>
366. </tbody></table>
367. <a href="http://www.amazon.com/Jaguar-Nights-2013-Mayan-Aztec-Calendar/dp/1480130796/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1352991088&sr=8-1&keywords=1480130796" target="_blank"><b><i>Jaguar Nights 2013 Mayan-Aztec Calendar</i></b></a> is now available in both print and kindle formats.  The Kindle format has color pictures for those using a Kindle Fire or a Kindle app on a smartphone or tablet.  Click the cover or the above link to purchase either version.  Because of the large expense of mailing from Amazon to me and from me to you, I'm only selling books in person, not via mail anymore.  <br />
368. The print version is in a totally new format, expanded from 64 pages to 110, with more room on each day for writing.  It is one week per 2-page spread; Saturday and Sunday are a bit larger, and there is an informational panel.<br />
369. <div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
370. <a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi6Ub5__D9P5tJTcjwP5E3B2bZhUH5wRtCE7Lfc7XJmQCaFyF_AaR9y_uEpai22t88oWFUw2uccAfhPfPng-r7stRRzr-gbZs7eQse6RIuWqlaUUFIm08EadGWUkPbtmjfeCD0Uig/s1600/samplelayout+for+blog.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="237" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi6Ub5__D9P5tJTcjwP5E3B2bZhUH5wRtCE7Lfc7XJmQCaFyF_AaR9y_uEpai22t88oWFUw2uccAfhPfPng-r7stRRzr-gbZs7eQse6RIuWqlaUUFIm08EadGWUkPbtmjfeCD0Uig/s320/samplelayout+for+blog.png" width="320" /></a></div>
371.  Compared to 2008,2009, 2011, and 2012, which had 2 weeks per 2 page spread with all information at the back of the book.  People complained that there was not enough room to write appointments and notes with this format.  So I listened,and changed it!<br />
372. <div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
373. <a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjUyYWtrekp2sGOQ2ye2UBiy3GiByPoPM28PC-yAMZy3j4-Wtr9WTqxBTBv6MT4_GMFDUQh66vxEeiSHazBce9wg2Kw86mFzDI9NC-sqCo9sKUTzj9-faUgX15f3kmvMdlard2Ddw/s1600/2012samplelayoutforblog.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="237" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjUyYWtrekp2sGOQ2ye2UBiy3GiByPoPM28PC-yAMZy3j4-Wtr9WTqxBTBv6MT4_GMFDUQh66vxEeiSHazBce9wg2Kw86mFzDI9NC-sqCo9sKUTzj9-faUgX15f3kmvMdlard2Ddw/s320/2012samplelayoutforblog.png" width="320" /></a></div>
374. It's hard to make a Kindle screenprint; I don't have a Kindle Fire, just an old-school black and white one, but here are prints from the emulator program.  The daily graphics are in color and so are the photos.
375. <br />
376. <div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
377. <a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjaZJaWoi0vJRIatno7pTgamiP6vcWdbJfvQFT2_nJEGPw8z7UEY3G_jtgT5f9DYrqv3HXJbkuttlVZiVr3LFweZDWSR8JGecDy18NKNjMwnfUyqCwOe4_-4sEfsHTswwIM1oGtRw/s1600/Kindle_screenprint1.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjaZJaWoi0vJRIatno7pTgamiP6vcWdbJfvQFT2_nJEGPw8z7UEY3G_jtgT5f9DYrqv3HXJbkuttlVZiVr3LFweZDWSR8JGecDy18NKNjMwnfUyqCwOe4_-4sEfsHTswwIM1oGtRw/s320/Kindle_screenprint1.png" width="280" /></a></div>
378. <br />
379. <div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
380. <a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgO0X6ktUEi5biz_4Ub_ZLxBRT4CDFzsABFJsp60fReChj72Y3YKspG09KmrWO_D5aRSTXN6w-JDvYb4w3LvcYlDBWZfPOXrY6mQ0njrf0Uk04B-NVfbg1prR7vJl4Gt3LEbB14Ug/s1600/kindlescreenprint2.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgO0X6ktUEi5biz_4Ub_ZLxBRT4CDFzsABFJsp60fReChj72Y3YKspG09KmrWO_D5aRSTXN6w-JDvYb4w3LvcYlDBWZfPOXrY6mQ0njrf0Uk04B-NVfbg1prR7vJl4Gt3LEbB14Ug/s320/kindlescreenprint2.png" width="253" /></a></div>
381. I welcome comments and suggestions.  This is my first attempt at a Kindle calendar so I'd love to know what you think.  transformations at obsidianbutterfly dot com.  <div class="blogger-post-footer">http://ofsinitiate.blogspot.com
382. (c) Gevera Bert Piedmont  })i({
383. Thank you!&lt;/div&gt;</content><link rel='replies' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://ofsinitiate.blogspot.com/feeds/6506313392995615202/comments/default' title='Post Comments'/><link rel='replies' type='text/html' href='http://www.blogger.com/comment.g?blogID=12406865&amp;postID=6506313392995615202' title='2 Comments'/><link rel='edit' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/12406865/posts/default/6506313392995615202'/><link rel='self' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/12406865/posts/default/6506313392995615202'/><link rel='alternate' type='text/html' href='http://ofsinitiate.blogspot.com/2012/11/jaguar-nights-2013-in-kindle-print-with.html' title='Jaguar Nights 2013 in Kindle &amp; print, with screen shots'/><author><name>GBP  })i({</name><uri>http://www.blogger.com/profile/09275995534174189926</uri><email>noreply@blogger.com</email><gd:image rel='http://schemas.google.com/g/2005#thumbnail' width='25' height='32' src='http://www.obsidianbutterfly.com/assets/about/Green%20Bert%20copy.jpg'/></author><media:thumbnail xmlns:media="http://search.yahoo.com/mrss/" url="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi6Ub5__D9P5tJTcjwP5E3B2bZhUH5wRtCE7Lfc7XJmQCaFyF_AaR9y_uEpai22t88oWFUw2uccAfhPfPng-r7stRRzr-gbZs7eQse6RIuWqlaUUFIm08EadGWUkPbtmjfeCD0Uig/s72-c/samplelayout+for+blog.png" height="72" width="72"/><thr:total>2</thr:total></entry><entry><id>tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-12406865.post-2564244498398384872</id><published>2012-10-25T17:36:00.000-04:00</published><updated>2012-10-30T17:46:10.934-04:00</updated><category scheme="http://www.blogger.com/atom/ns#" term="Carnival Liberty"/><category scheme="http://www.blogger.com/atom/ns#" term="cruise"/><category scheme="http://www.blogger.com/atom/ns#" term="cruise ship"/><category scheme="http://www.blogger.com/atom/ns#" term="grand cayman"/><category scheme="http://www.blogger.com/atom/ns#" term="miami"/><title type='text'>Cruise 2012:  Grand Cayman (NOT!) and homeward bound</title><content type='html'>All night the boat was heaving and groaning.  Since we were so low we heard lots of water rushing, and things clanking around.  Not surprising that early in the a.m. Jacques the lisping cruise director said we’d be getting into Grand Cayman at 10:45 instead of 10:00 due to the waves, and that we’d dock elsewhere than Georgetown but no shore excursions would be rescheduled.  Ours was at 11:30 so we weren’t worried.  &lt;b&gt;It was the only one we were doing with our friends—Reef and Ray Snorkel—and we were really looking forward to it, because we love Grand Cayman and the sting rays there.&lt;/b&gt;&lt;br /&gt;
384. Just before we were ready to follow our ticket, our friends called.  They had been in line at the excursion desk and found out that <b>all the snorkeling tours had been canceled</b>.  We were sad to miss our sting rays but we’d still get to walk around, buy cigars and rum cake right?<br />
385. <div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
386. <a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi1eK-pdXNwI4Belb_G_lfcVhkfUOBtWETO2XJQnJtWTZjsYYJV5OC04wjULzKSOWEcQbFAblLap1k4MYpTyLLIkAGCYuZXmb50iBM-fD3WuO1CD7dXIkF_t0mTdgnfo5y5vstRzg/s1600/cruise_October2012-002-10-2.png" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi1eK-pdXNwI4Belb_G_lfcVhkfUOBtWETO2XJQnJtWTZjsYYJV5OC04wjULzKSOWEcQbFAblLap1k4MYpTyLLIkAGCYuZXmb50iBM-fD3WuO1CD7dXIkF_t0mTdgnfo5y5vstRzg/s320/cruise_October2012-002-10-2.png" width="320" /></a></div>
387. By the time our friends came down 1 level to our room, <b>they had announced that, although 5 tender boats were circling the Liberty waiting to take us all off, we weren’t going to Grand Cayman.</b>  <b>It was RIGHT THERE outside the window and we couldn’t go.  </b>Will was so angry.  He really loves Grand Cayman and he was feeling better and he promised his friends at work good cigars.  
388. Our plan was to go to the comedy show that night, 3 comedians back-to-back for 3 hours, after dinner.  We all went to the pool, since we had bathing suits on, and while there, Jacques announced that <b>the comedians had been waiting on Grand Cayman to be picked up and thus…no comedians either.</b>  We were all mad.  We had to wave goodbye to our favorite destination without going there, not knowing when we’d be back, and no comedians either!?<br />
389. <div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
390. <a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgEOZHkG6MbAQ7IZHFdvmV_LYmKfopfKAwxnNU11jelzm-vo_Uz7R-kwKC4qKN54mMV0lCt8rSEMNgTaQ5bCLzJnfZO_l9LHPxSvqziFPwli6brkmM-1r8NB_uuqr-iFKbsdzJ0dQ/s1600/cruise_October2012-015-10-2.png" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgEOZHkG6MbAQ7IZHFdvmV_LYmKfopfKAwxnNU11jelzm-vo_Uz7R-kwKC4qKN54mMV0lCt8rSEMNgTaQ5bCLzJnfZO_l9LHPxSvqziFPwli6brkmM-1r8NB_uuqr-iFKbsdzJ0dQ/s320/cruise_October2012-015-10-2.png" width="320" /></a></div>
391. So it was two days back to Miami.  The pool water had all sloshed out so that day after Grand Cayman I didn’t spend much time in the pool.  The second formal night, the night we didn’t go to Grand Cayman, had no lobster for my hubby.
392. The next day they had refilled the pool so I worked out for over an hour in the early morning before it got too hot.  We ate at the burger bar for lunch again, our usual spot, <b>indulged in the Chocolate Buffet</b> after that, had our last dinner in the nice dining room, watched Pirates of the Caribbean for a while, while the pool water sloshed out around us—I saw video when I got home of a Disney cruise and the pool wasn’t half as violent, I didn’t even think of video taping the pool!  Packed up, headed home, feeling very sad.  (more under the pics)<br />
393. <div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
394. <a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh4k-vUia_G7BGc74vMZs4czkl7hWQxa52jALSFZLepZ0oYCToEgCq-oKncjOetKHLRcko3j3MOenoRjaCcQNfwIHxD56vdSDjUL9FvANknVKaFxaA_3-i2Ybxqyn83uj_cMYJs3Q/s1600/Cruise_Oct2012-065-10-22-we.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh4k-vUia_G7BGc74vMZs4czkl7hWQxa52jALSFZLepZ0oYCToEgCq-oKncjOetKHLRcko3j3MOenoRjaCcQNfwIHxD56vdSDjUL9FvANknVKaFxaA_3-i2Ybxqyn83uj_cMYJs3Q/s320/Cruise_Oct2012-065-10-22-we.png" width="240" /></a></div>
395. <br />
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397. <a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgwlPfGvZXUQGf0OJSmu3ZsjUVTYpCFuzmKhlnUdOZEUWBRwH-WNehN7pHTtd30VIp-hbhE6pM2UeT6ds18Eq_z_JhbGEKEtLnwgPW2owdne9aq5busqXlylmJq8Vidc_MHB1IKRg/s1600/Cruise_Oct2012-066-lliberty.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgwlPfGvZXUQGf0OJSmu3ZsjUVTYpCFuzmKhlnUdOZEUWBRwH-WNehN7pHTtd30VIp-hbhE6pM2UeT6ds18Eq_z_JhbGEKEtLnwgPW2owdne9aq5busqXlylmJq8Vidc_MHB1IKRg/s320/Cruise_Oct2012-066-lliberty.png" width="320" /></a></div>
398. <br />
399. <div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
400. <a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhV2x7Nzdu6qrnpI5bJbrwTvEwq30F3R6npAf7yF_HIRMtGGvlIFR5hiwSuDrI-eQ0CSsIStekAmjGfu6hRhfhxGvvxZpgmq5XL9q6Zu4gX6GLUbXGUoJIOad2sme0qR4zhEHpUoQ/s1600/cruise_October2012-004-web.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="284" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhV2x7Nzdu6qrnpI5bJbrwTvEwq30F3R6npAf7yF_HIRMtGGvlIFR5hiwSuDrI-eQ0CSsIStekAmjGfu6hRhfhxGvvxZpgmq5XL9q6Zu4gX6GLUbXGUoJIOad2sme0qR4zhEHpUoQ/s320/cruise_October2012-004-web.png" width="320" /></a></div>
401. <br />
402. <div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
403. <a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhXta07s3w_q7Xw2J35lyvYOdFmsuuaENOEVevQbcLhrHq5JZjiNGagZOSRLxP4kGicKY4kBMM9xeOThrKzgyfTyjjdP5M5j987fFw7fim2DGl46rcgW72qVVxP0_16lK5x6OqiBg/s1600/cruise_October2012-005-copy.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="184" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhXta07s3w_q7Xw2J35lyvYOdFmsuuaENOEVevQbcLhrHq5JZjiNGagZOSRLxP4kGicKY4kBMM9xeOThrKzgyfTyjjdP5M5j987fFw7fim2DGl46rcgW72qVVxP0_16lK5x6OqiBg/s320/cruise_October2012-005-copy.png" width="320" /></a></div>
404. One thing that really bothered my friend and me was that the Carnival Liberty's decor was so UGLY.  Pictures don't do its ugliness justice. Who designed this ship?  Were they blind or high?  Were they freshmen in high school? <br />
405. Here are more pics that weren't discussed & thus ends this chronicle.<br />
406. <div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
407. <a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEib5byj0lX3QfjWj3iJHwaVBDDPPEB-Vqv-dmo01L6wWueCxhuKKhwDCBf2GigrUlidFHLp8ST_s08awzcsrHlnIweTYg2J2S9E0_4NcJNNsDplEZnF6V9_k2abbZ_BlRb5I9WYaQ/s1600/Cruise_Oct2012-178-10-24-wi.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="241" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEib5byj0lX3QfjWj3iJHwaVBDDPPEB-Vqv-dmo01L6wWueCxhuKKhwDCBf2GigrUlidFHLp8ST_s08awzcsrHlnIweTYg2J2S9E0_4NcJNNsDplEZnF6V9_k2abbZ_BlRb5I9WYaQ/s320/Cruise_Oct2012-178-10-24-wi.png" width="320" /></a></div>
408. <br />
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410. <a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjF0GwpV4ntrmODlNRQYnw1VQzESaoj_gZdW1qBuuj1OCVrl2TTPISjOnKZ7ha0fcHoCxpCKIiJxtX1F1_Y4tyuDePJSThfV-2aG7K3hYcu6VHyzwwgaFL3ZdT2RIRMx9mnsPXmJQ/s1600/GIFTS_October2012-187-web.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="170" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjF0GwpV4ntrmODlNRQYnw1VQzESaoj_gZdW1qBuuj1OCVrl2TTPISjOnKZ7ha0fcHoCxpCKIiJxtX1F1_Y4tyuDePJSThfV-2aG7K3hYcu6VHyzwwgaFL3ZdT2RIRMx9mnsPXmJQ/s320/GIFTS_October2012-187-web.png" width="320" /></a></div>
411. <br />
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413. <a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjGaM4-O4lsQYXI4pGoC0CKKePqN-aLqaRO84IM2ejyX4QvAnrhl6ID09iwoWiT0hAMV_YCSN_21i9BvlOozgrsNTzKgtYwJzAyX5G91epoKA5VnZh3pO3sxPtJdDmlcS3lKu56Vw/s1600/GIFTS_October2012-189-web.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="311" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjGaM4-O4lsQYXI4pGoC0CKKePqN-aLqaRO84IM2ejyX4QvAnrhl6ID09iwoWiT0hAMV_YCSN_21i9BvlOozgrsNTzKgtYwJzAyX5G91epoKA5VnZh3pO3sxPtJdDmlcS3lKu56Vw/s320/GIFTS_October2012-189-web.png" width="320" /></a></div>
414. <br />
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416. <a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiviTyAcuvdAYe3HiDx2EvgHcxVjDAbqb1MnizWlHt9JSFMeUS5hu0QzdLmQcXdwC9Pudodi_Lmx9FijOfWbK8ZeAk2YpX_hoTcFAfgcZVrIxVsd3vP0ZIGu34hEmzhL3Xvi70y7A/s1600/GIFTS_October2012-205-web.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiviTyAcuvdAYe3HiDx2EvgHcxVjDAbqb1MnizWlHt9JSFMeUS5hu0QzdLmQcXdwC9Pudodi_Lmx9FijOfWbK8ZeAk2YpX_hoTcFAfgcZVrIxVsd3vP0ZIGu34hEmzhL3Xvi70y7A/s320/GIFTS_October2012-205-web.png" width="250" /></a></div>
417. <br />
418. <div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
419. <a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEibklYUCPtHKkjibmMfpM3k0MD_Q4B-oWV9a0dvIVM5CsO5940_yihs61Bq7YpgNuVDh07HU-09Iyaan4rYjrV8-3d96wsMXAnKiRFmNq0VgXf-Vpf-75O-_6dE7MO2ulbi0_y02Q/s1600/cruise_October2012-012-10-2.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEibklYUCPtHKkjibmMfpM3k0MD_Q4B-oWV9a0dvIVM5CsO5940_yihs61Bq7YpgNuVDh07HU-09Iyaan4rYjrV8-3d96wsMXAnKiRFmNq0VgXf-Vpf-75O-_6dE7MO2ulbi0_y02Q/s320/cruise_October2012-012-10-2.png" width="320" /></a></div>
420. <br />
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422. <a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgy7cgs_NjDLsyh6ADGi68GV-DnSwn78A1Y1lGaPgxautjbRU8yoCQzPNoEuGBOjdzsf4StdvW_faLzX2VoZHOHnTvaxJ30cVRM-59oEyjI10_h4fsiCW65QqEU2TWp5VpC67SG7Q/s1600/cruise_October2012-016-10-2.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="232" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgy7cgs_NjDLsyh6ADGi68GV-DnSwn78A1Y1lGaPgxautjbRU8yoCQzPNoEuGBOjdzsf4StdvW_faLzX2VoZHOHnTvaxJ30cVRM-59oEyjI10_h4fsiCW65QqEU2TWp5VpC67SG7Q/s320/cruise_October2012-016-10-2.png" width="320" /></a></div>
423. <br />
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425. <a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgUW7pVhXL_LfrldaG0vlf5HcRP_I1p1f84BA703bcjrq8GEi5QtNdkH7WtnlHSzcAm3mghPurVPSYSQqPB7vnLstGbRujO8-d4rx509im9NGzW_RaPlgoXC47Qm0_QQq98a-DN4Q/s1600/cruise_October2012-019-10-2.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgUW7pVhXL_LfrldaG0vlf5HcRP_I1p1f84BA703bcjrq8GEi5QtNdkH7WtnlHSzcAm3mghPurVPSYSQqPB7vnLstGbRujO8-d4rx509im9NGzW_RaPlgoXC47Qm0_QQq98a-DN4Q/s320/cruise_October2012-019-10-2.png" width="320" /></a></div>
426. <br />
427. <div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
428. <a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh0VCgw4q5TqQoX5DiRTSV6pHyevYs_WUIdPkB3m6QcibxCqs85i-7gUQDOUq1ugw0j-NamGy8oZHZm-Ix6F_siuM2YXg9DVKSDcBkQqI2mdZNRs5L5w4-gk7b9W_y1W1LVxfFnJw/s1600/stuff-web.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="291" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh0VCgw4q5TqQoX5DiRTSV6pHyevYs_WUIdPkB3m6QcibxCqs85i-7gUQDOUq1ugw0j-NamGy8oZHZm-Ix6F_siuM2YXg9DVKSDcBkQqI2mdZNRs5L5w4-gk7b9W_y1W1LVxfFnJw/s320/stuff-web.png" width="320" /></a></div>
429. <br /><div class="blogger-post-footer">http://ofsinitiate.blogspot.com
430. (c) Gevera Bert Piedmont  })i({
431. Thank you!&lt;/div&gt;</content><link rel='replies' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://ofsinitiate.blogspot.com/feeds/2564244498398384872/comments/default' title='Post Comments'/><link rel='replies' type='text/html' href='http://www.blogger.com/comment.g?blogID=12406865&amp;postID=2564244498398384872' title='0 Comments'/><link rel='edit' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/12406865/posts/default/2564244498398384872'/><link rel='self' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/12406865/posts/default/2564244498398384872'/><link rel='alternate' type='text/html' href='http://ofsinitiate.blogspot.com/2012/10/cruise-2012-grand-cayman-not-and.html' title='Cruise 2012:  Grand Cayman (NOT!) and homeward bound'/><author><name>GBP  })i({</name><uri>http://www.blogger.com/profile/09275995534174189926</uri><email>noreply@blogger.com</email><gd:image rel='http://schemas.google.com/g/2005#thumbnail' width='25' height='32' src='http://www.obsidianbutterfly.com/assets/about/Green%20Bert%20copy.jpg'/></author><media:thumbnail xmlns:media="http://search.yahoo.com/mrss/" url="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi1eK-pdXNwI4Belb_G_lfcVhkfUOBtWETO2XJQnJtWTZjsYYJV5OC04wjULzKSOWEcQbFAblLap1k4MYpTyLLIkAGCYuZXmb50iBM-fD3WuO1CD7dXIkF_t0mTdgnfo5y5vstRzg/s72-c/cruise_October2012-002-10-2.png" height="72" width="72"/><thr:total>0</thr:total></entry><entry><id>tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-12406865.post-10056407850710609</id><published>2012-10-24T17:17:00.000-04:00</published><updated>2012-10-30T17:34:53.494-04:00</updated><category scheme="http://www.blogger.com/atom/ns#" term="cruise"/><category scheme="http://www.blogger.com/atom/ns#" term="cruise ship"/><category scheme="http://www.blogger.com/atom/ns#" term="dolphins"/><category scheme="http://www.blogger.com/atom/ns#" term="honduras"/><category scheme="http://www.blogger.com/atom/ns#" term="Roatan"/><title type='text'>Cruise 2012: Dolphin Extravaganza!</title><content type='html'>We were last in Roatan (Honduras) on our 10th anniversary, 9 years ago, on the second cruise ship that ever went to the island.  And wow how Roatan has changed.  We docked at another of the ubiquitous dock-side shopping experiences.  This one was on a hill above the ship (no tenders!). (more text below pics)&lt;br /&gt;
432. <div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
433. <a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiCjVRL_cI0Lrv0nUu3tZJc2_api_wxhz-wdu4XgjqZa1JzfLz65UcA5rV65s81y25o2wnJG7rSXbltTa0bVBnc_1wN2ZzfEmuaqPuOc7bhQ4fl3H8yv7543pebzb4zITUnqy6_Hw/s1600/Cruise_Oct2012-103-10-24-ro.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiCjVRL_cI0Lrv0nUu3tZJc2_api_wxhz-wdu4XgjqZa1JzfLz65UcA5rV65s81y25o2wnJG7rSXbltTa0bVBnc_1wN2ZzfEmuaqPuOc7bhQ4fl3H8yv7543pebzb4zITUnqy6_Hw/s320/Cruise_Oct2012-103-10-24-ro.png" width="320" /></a></div>
434. <br />
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436. <a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjPgLRF5HKeLIhDMIGcBGqvnhaZ6aeF8WUvbSuQ7vCAZzALbDVuuwIfhXvpxgdnYem9cb-ghUxVjynsGESIPbSdgjO9AJ9Hrv6nkdZ5ezfKOMhAR_yNaRoj8lLZbWCguEQSiTL-Ag/s1600/Cruise_Oct2012-104-10-24-ro.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjPgLRF5HKeLIhDMIGcBGqvnhaZ6aeF8WUvbSuQ7vCAZzALbDVuuwIfhXvpxgdnYem9cb-ghUxVjynsGESIPbSdgjO9AJ9Hrv6nkdZ5ezfKOMhAR_yNaRoj8lLZbWCguEQSiTL-Ag/s320/Cruise_Oct2012-104-10-24-ro.png" width="320" /></a></div>
437. <br />
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439. <a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh8A3nxz-4EvhxNWKRq05glUKhb9HprrZ18PghpZTn1PKI_QMRDYtEwZvSO99jWHnXFYBaCAK86rHa5AonGdVLKn9Xdf-ukvBs54zLWk7nzGBDeMdHCxU7XNez-U0Qf7mIv1b1PfA/s1600/Cruise_Oct2012-105-10-24-ro.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh8A3nxz-4EvhxNWKRq05glUKhb9HprrZ18PghpZTn1PKI_QMRDYtEwZvSO99jWHnXFYBaCAK86rHa5AonGdVLKn9Xdf-ukvBs54zLWk7nzGBDeMdHCxU7XNez-U0Qf7mIv1b1PfA/s320/Cruise_Oct2012-105-10-24-ro.png" width="320" /></a></div>
440. <br />
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442. <a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgnusetcrgU_zSfCqP5LY0aVWY99zBNX_wnYTeY0MmW0plY3Rv9C5pMxO30tRjAQ1iFcyl3laijo9vgJKlP8bLe6JlS9m8AxS8WSyrVmkemO0ZVFd8zKGDT5sWJ9UpJxgcZyvIugQ/s1600/Cruise_Oct2012-106-roatan-1.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgnusetcrgU_zSfCqP5LY0aVWY99zBNX_wnYTeY0MmW0plY3Rv9C5pMxO30tRjAQ1iFcyl3laijo9vgJKlP8bLe6JlS9m8AxS8WSyrVmkemO0ZVFd8zKGDT5sWJ9UpJxgcZyvIugQ/s320/Cruise_Oct2012-106-roatan-1.png" width="320" /></a></div>
443. <br />
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445. <a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjkRbyoBfzO8a43oLMMr2XpLo09vtl9iRr7U5s_mHyAIHbjV76PTJAHhvUTUgOOvHFHhXUxr7o6HuXtbKDkMS7KD4q_aGJGBji0S3iRAE-RkaFwR4oC6HnavhLt2DvoQKfB-xePSA/s1600/Cruise_Oct2012-107-roatan-1.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjkRbyoBfzO8a43oLMMr2XpLo09vtl9iRr7U5s_mHyAIHbjV76PTJAHhvUTUgOOvHFHhXUxr7o6HuXtbKDkMS7KD4q_aGJGBji0S3iRAE-RkaFwR4oC6HnavhLt2DvoQKfB-xePSA/s320/Cruise_Oct2012-107-roatan-1.png" width="320" /></a></div>
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448. <a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgKmlO3uE1iagzqXEi8_NrABofc5W0zdiG4UmAPb97blbKChG70TTwHni7XHhGJWa5g5GlCo3XbeEGOvJRmOaWIKpz8VuZViPgnnh2M8LuER1A25MlENpVkE6eh6Ff6UKZbylwjWg/s1600/Cruise_Oct2012-108-10-24-ro.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="225" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgKmlO3uE1iagzqXEi8_NrABofc5W0zdiG4UmAPb97blbKChG70TTwHni7XHhGJWa5g5GlCo3XbeEGOvJRmOaWIKpz8VuZViPgnnh2M8LuER1A25MlENpVkE6eh6Ff6UKZbylwjWg/s320/Cruise_Oct2012-108-10-24-ro.png" width="320" /></a></div>
449. Our dolphin swim and snorkel didn’t leave until 10 a.m. so we had time to walk around first.  The first few shops I went into hoping to find some Mayan art were disappointing.  Honduras is at the edge of Maya-land, I know, but I did have hope.  But these shops seemed to carry art that looked more African, or even Australian.  I hadn’t found anything AWESOME yet for me or my friend and this was my last stop where it was possible.  Then I saw a place called Roatan Stone Art.  It was exactly what I had been looking for, and if Roatan had been an earlier stop I probably would have spent my budget there.  Nothing mass produced and badly carved, only nice and unique items.  I bought a pair of altar bowls.  Since we had forgotten towels and water my  husband headed back to the boat with the bowls to get the towels.<br />
450. We had to fill out ridiculous paperwork to go on the tour.  Basically it said <b>we could be eaten by, or at least munched on, by all sorts of wildlife from horses and iguanas to sharks, stingrays and dolphins, and if we did get eaten it wasn’t the tour group’s fault even if they shoved us into the mouth of a shark.  Excellent</b>.  We signed.<br />
451. We took a short ride on a small Hyundai bus across the island from Mahogany Bay to <a href="http://www.anthonyskey.com/" target="_blank">Anthony’s Key Resort</a> <span id="goog_860466221"></span><span id="goog_860466222"></span>and the <a href="http://www.anthonyskey.com/rims/roatan-institute-for-marine-sciences.htm" target="_blank">Roatan Maritime Institute</a> where the dolphins were.  We walked through the jungle to a dock where we boarded a very small boat to cross the water to a little key, or cay, where the dolphins live.  One person said there were 24 dolphins, another 30.  Lots of dolphins, some babies.
452. They were Atlantic Bottlenose dolphins, some bred in captivity and some wild-caught.<br />
453. The dolphin for our group was a 10 year old female named Marley who had rejected her last baby, which is apparently very rare, and the baby had been adopted by an older female.  She was a goofball of a dolphin.  Everything she did, she’d roll over a little and get her eye just out of the water and look at us to see if we approved.  The male trainer was trying to get her to blow his whistle and she was sticking out her tongue at him and then flopping her head around so her tongue flapped out of her mouth and laughing at him.  He said, “this isn’t a trick, this is her!” and then the dolphin went to the female trainer and immediately blew her whistle with no tongue action. (more text below the pics)<br />
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455. <a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhARFBmrlH7ezPBrcWh2h3ioYPFaYHgxeiiBfzSBgOWJ8BumR9CpKvBlqhi9vHTPvu1MBN4Qxgj1T4RGf0_vPpSoc6ugHOcKPbuShiVtoaHDaYSxi07_klnaR8ooDrqsD5AbGdHwA/s1600/Cruise_Oct2012-109-10-24-ro.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="157" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhARFBmrlH7ezPBrcWh2h3ioYPFaYHgxeiiBfzSBgOWJ8BumR9CpKvBlqhi9vHTPvu1MBN4Qxgj1T4RGf0_vPpSoc6ugHOcKPbuShiVtoaHDaYSxi07_klnaR8ooDrqsD5AbGdHwA/s320/Cruise_Oct2012-109-10-24-ro.png" width="320" /></a></div>
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458. <a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEimfHCYDlsrpbUhCCj7721Nh71F8NqYV-K2PMO0pyokg7nw92el1g9RP-1tvG8luyPj3pmbyrfwTAwMR5i92AlmTJ9TGQwmohFGgR-Bg06ph2jfCKo3Q38l9UqsKBRxFbx5y8Cajg/s1600/Cruise_Oct2012-112-10-24-ro.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="303" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEimfHCYDlsrpbUhCCj7721Nh71F8NqYV-K2PMO0pyokg7nw92el1g9RP-1tvG8luyPj3pmbyrfwTAwMR5i92AlmTJ9TGQwmohFGgR-Bg06ph2jfCKo3Q38l9UqsKBRxFbx5y8Cajg/s320/Cruise_Oct2012-112-10-24-ro.png" width="320" /></a></div>
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461. <a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgUVpgR1-NJ5A79KFivLV5cRnJ9Z1cIUSkXOEFVDZL9P384E3Kgw1RpGNnwwM9Pgd2oBrIE20dkMctTOpwYc33tXmIedWWLUk6ZN4Q5AIRryb6ssn-IGf-fGdehjlWsX-ec9HJofQ/s1600/Cruise_Oct2012-113-10-24-ro.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="241" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgUVpgR1-NJ5A79KFivLV5cRnJ9Z1cIUSkXOEFVDZL9P384E3Kgw1RpGNnwwM9Pgd2oBrIE20dkMctTOpwYc33tXmIedWWLUk6ZN4Q5AIRryb6ssn-IGf-fGdehjlWsX-ec9HJofQ/s320/Cruise_Oct2012-113-10-24-ro.png" width="320" /></a></div>
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464. <a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi90s3xveGT-QZm7TfCp6bRZF-aN9qQlVHs7wXwmQRA4BJ3FA7L2XfWqj3U8sbehxy3jZyvgv9klJlEcf7YlJNTQAg6nPZXDljEBpLG9u2B5a6tEwEZaqC9Vw0zhj_t4YqOf4SZnQ/s1600/Cruise_Oct2012-115-10-24-ro.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="291" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi90s3xveGT-QZm7TfCp6bRZF-aN9qQlVHs7wXwmQRA4BJ3FA7L2XfWqj3U8sbehxy3jZyvgv9klJlEcf7YlJNTQAg6nPZXDljEBpLG9u2B5a6tEwEZaqC9Vw0zhj_t4YqOf4SZnQ/s320/Cruise_Oct2012-115-10-24-ro.png" width="320" /></a></div>
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467. <a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiZGBS0u7l5BN7FqYiPgrT96v-l14AXLYkIuk_y4tQ6XbtTFvjnAtGyf-4hiBCITMTnbPaG-j9UZpAYPHA71NZeA8VMHfTczth6GXolNoFlZ8J3Al-ARGf4UiYliwLUKg863vhAQQ/s1600/Cruise_Oct2012-116-10-24-ro.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="183" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiZGBS0u7l5BN7FqYiPgrT96v-l14AXLYkIuk_y4tQ6XbtTFvjnAtGyf-4hiBCITMTnbPaG-j9UZpAYPHA71NZeA8VMHfTczth6GXolNoFlZ8J3Al-ARGf4UiYliwLUKg863vhAQQ/s320/Cruise_Oct2012-116-10-24-ro.png" width="320" /></a></div>
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470. <a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiYgyUDVgejLG53uSk9w3Lb-uR2eQZyabou0Ta1cTXkFbyPhEeECbMM2CMR4pOZCvJx-jvFYuPZrOuo0leqDTcpiNY6aHRxnGy-058-QNB0h-N907vCc6z4_QJpIYjLh0C9_Eyesg/s1600/Cruise_Oct2012-118-10-24-ro.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiYgyUDVgejLG53uSk9w3Lb-uR2eQZyabou0Ta1cTXkFbyPhEeECbMM2CMR4pOZCvJx-jvFYuPZrOuo0leqDTcpiNY6aHRxnGy-058-QNB0h-N907vCc6z4_QJpIYjLh0C9_Eyesg/s320/Cruise_Oct2012-118-10-24-ro.png" width="195" /></a></div>
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473. <a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhVvUFbPuV4FVSeykGxbBKwqqGFCCCDbaHgBURfSlY-56steoZD4s6n6DHZndSggIa5gUw1xiG5ZD6ij8CvdaYALwsaddAUynTeDlhXOnyldsN2ys6RLD5_PHN0U8mOD1yvvb2t8g/s1600/Cruise_Oct2012-119-10-24-ro.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="303" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhVvUFbPuV4FVSeykGxbBKwqqGFCCCDbaHgBURfSlY-56steoZD4s6n6DHZndSggIa5gUw1xiG5ZD6ij8CvdaYALwsaddAUynTeDlhXOnyldsN2ys6RLD5_PHN0U8mOD1yvvb2t8g/s320/Cruise_Oct2012-119-10-24-ro.png" width="320" /></a></div>
474. <br />
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476. <a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjcYVUO5ZP4BE6DpSpvrJaDt7lwb3qV58wf2hCQfo384JnGcljUrnLc8p4biBp_IdEiLGaKcqE1l425GPQecxpZ298gQi93M43DKbjfKCkjJ60zPxGxNRGGxu5qBuAo8vYdEj6tHQ/s1600/Cruise_Oct2012-139-10-24-ro.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="190" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjcYVUO5ZP4BE6DpSpvrJaDt7lwb3qV58wf2hCQfo384JnGcljUrnLc8p4biBp_IdEiLGaKcqE1l425GPQecxpZ298gQi93M43DKbjfKCkjJ60zPxGxNRGGxu5qBuAo8vYdEj6tHQ/s320/Cruise_Oct2012-139-10-24-ro.png" width="320" /></a></div>
477. <br />
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479. <a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi7ZF8ZLnEa45Amn1hP6IdeV7qcXZARRe6vAupAn5LO5rPbVKYyQ_X5C3IpObr8mLT3xijIsiDCNIZOtA9g9E2odD3arbrv0ArGj_rjQqRmg9P4xcBnxPuONyKJpiEGr8csyJtTrA/s1600/Cruise_Oct2012-140-10-24-ro.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="256" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi7ZF8ZLnEa45Amn1hP6IdeV7qcXZARRe6vAupAn5LO5rPbVKYyQ_X5C3IpObr8mLT3xijIsiDCNIZOtA9g9E2odD3arbrv0ArGj_rjQqRmg9P4xcBnxPuONyKJpiEGr8csyJtTrA/s320/Cruise_Oct2012-140-10-24-ro.png" width="320" /></a></div>
480. <br />
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482. <a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiI6nIzQgx9Z87wHN961Weiyt1KnPkes2lW3TJUkS7pCj2xXaP2vE7OCke51AoAyF-woWe71RjDhQqg5-FRgi6Q_ckXyTUw7a7K31gefaX0Y4YmmbF924d9FXfEBJKwdskdpA3XpA/s1600/Cruise_Oct2012-147-10-24-ro.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiI6nIzQgx9Z87wHN961Weiyt1KnPkes2lW3TJUkS7pCj2xXaP2vE7OCke51AoAyF-woWe71RjDhQqg5-FRgi6Q_ckXyTUw7a7K31gefaX0Y4YmmbF924d9FXfEBJKwdskdpA3XpA/s320/Cruise_Oct2012-147-10-24-ro.png" width="320" /></a></div>
483. <br />
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485. <a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjWwTw5y4mVIsvfClU_ZZP7lPcarU053P_RX-U_3N2xe79qM6G9GBQLi2zUq4s0sypH_s44FytP3dDeD7TwIxNCY5z74z26RJFa2MOYbsDP9rm7jiCAOR7PLRklMkP7yeFcYOxo0A/s1600/Cruise_Oct2012-148-10-24-ro.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjWwTw5y4mVIsvfClU_ZZP7lPcarU053P_RX-U_3N2xe79qM6G9GBQLi2zUq4s0sypH_s44FytP3dDeD7TwIxNCY5z74z26RJFa2MOYbsDP9rm7jiCAOR7PLRklMkP7yeFcYOxo0A/s320/Cruise_Oct2012-148-10-24-ro.png" width="311" /></a></div>
486. <br />
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488. <a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgM9hUQa1qt-uc1q5pOt10senhnxJRdU5NJFQKwLoBWF-borGxlTOLvK9EMjCyP3UxLMCd78RJTJaNIHkLbyomW1OBS7xr_6Ea_hq8i9JAl6CdX7fZZLi75s3T1xakGHHRYjD5kww/s1600/Cruise_Oct2012-157-10-24-ro.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="253" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgM9hUQa1qt-uc1q5pOt10senhnxJRdU5NJFQKwLoBWF-borGxlTOLvK9EMjCyP3UxLMCd78RJTJaNIHkLbyomW1OBS7xr_6Ea_hq8i9JAl6CdX7fZZLi75s3T1xakGHHRYjD5kww/s320/Cruise_Oct2012-157-10-24-ro.png" width="320" /></a></div>
489. <br />
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491. <a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgUQ90o6RXp0EVNU7QyLC69g1cOCBMkkSJSkQ5o2_iknG_xTO_lfbc9GfH7906z4eUPJoy6vG6J6OyR6QHj2nq4h-43FGInIWk6fn8D6XliVlur8Sdy3GhUGYd0B6fRsZwUlyzGWQ/s1600/Cruise_Oct2012-158-10-24-ro.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgUQ90o6RXp0EVNU7QyLC69g1cOCBMkkSJSkQ5o2_iknG_xTO_lfbc9GfH7906z4eUPJoy6vG6J6OyR6QHj2nq4h-43FGInIWk6fn8D6XliVlur8Sdy3GhUGYd0B6fRsZwUlyzGWQ/s320/Cruise_Oct2012-158-10-24-ro.png" width="320" /></a></div>
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494. <a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi_fccV8HWXQ6C6ZLWWytkGw7D23d8IefVpZQsUKSx4V-HkV2xcn1ZuXxwFYOk8Morb3qZMuXPr7HqeBZVWH_ALUQlzzK5lzCw_AqGFaVprWeDeMuDvJXyjSjBmOug0Aaisg3Ha-g/s1600/Cruise_Oct2012-159-10-24-ro.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="202" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi_fccV8HWXQ6C6ZLWWytkGw7D23d8IefVpZQsUKSx4V-HkV2xcn1ZuXxwFYOk8Morb3qZMuXPr7HqeBZVWH_ALUQlzzK5lzCw_AqGFaVprWeDeMuDvJXyjSjBmOug0Aaisg3Ha-g/s320/Cruise_Oct2012-159-10-24-ro.png" width="320" /></a></div>
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497. <a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjOKdjpegjGm1fS6NnQNd1osZXCqYvoYTNRLblHAvs-zgvtoWW1Kv7JO-5c912BnFJ3TYUPS5-jxFUg8lrvn85q7_VIcLcdoLkYkUAfcwBIn3lBPIPzEnQDnDPTSo2K8pwB0_X8rw/s1600/Cruise_Oct2012-160-10-24-ro.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjOKdjpegjGm1fS6NnQNd1osZXCqYvoYTNRLblHAvs-zgvtoWW1Kv7JO-5c912BnFJ3TYUPS5-jxFUg8lrvn85q7_VIcLcdoLkYkUAfcwBIn3lBPIPzEnQDnDPTSo2K8pwB0_X8rw/s320/Cruise_Oct2012-160-10-24-ro.png" width="320" /></a></div>
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500. <a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjrcM-3mC08OgpiwH-HPpnAApVecXdtD6uaFr_L77KTVQjTpVH-3PTPx8EuavctWnA0tYx6mIrTeSKY7WXs6odoNu7OJoJtDpQcmYsGtCLrajAMb1COOYaz-xm5x4UqPRbn6Kik1g/s1600/Cruise_Oct2012-163-1-0-24-r.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjrcM-3mC08OgpiwH-HPpnAApVecXdtD6uaFr_L77KTVQjTpVH-3PTPx8EuavctWnA0tYx6mIrTeSKY7WXs6odoNu7OJoJtDpQcmYsGtCLrajAMb1COOYaz-xm5x4UqPRbn6Kik1g/s320/Cruise_Oct2012-163-1-0-24-r.png" width="162" /></a></div>
501. Basically we stood in waist-deep water with the dolphin and the trainers in front of us and the dolphin did tricks and swam back and forth in front of us so we could pet her.  We all got our pictures taken hugging her and getting a “kiss” (dolphin leans its beak on your cheek and grins).  We had 10 minutes to take our own pictures and videos (some of which are above...and more text is below).<br />
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503. <a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhWsv2bEukXA67I4DagKWs9ADoTyf57y4oonLfMZcu9z3XARQ9rDrks7Y6e3e0iQVyFTZgLwQfkg6b68oWv_OeXvtEcgRpyNybBsVlR89nCDL1YZ_l28G7aQuCfJTkYRo4RTfwSDA/s1600/557833_3300008239491_156992.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhWsv2bEukXA67I4DagKWs9ADoTyf57y4oonLfMZcu9z3XARQ9rDrks7Y6e3e0iQVyFTZgLwQfkg6b68oWv_OeXvtEcgRpyNybBsVlR89nCDL1YZ_l28G7aQuCfJTkYRo4RTfwSDA/s320/557833_3300008239491_156992.png" width="155" /></a></div>
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506. <a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgzqaV_sQ5c_Vn9ura5Tx5m7y5XIEtwfATR65ydzi_byvZxckTybPtnSEAX013aUxI5f2W_rRNxWanJ-ojoeAxoijFle9Ae72lB1peTrPM8qobFqxI7UwHgogr2szhQ54mjjBcLUA/s1600/664806_3291284781410_147021.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="212" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgzqaV_sQ5c_Vn9ura5Tx5m7y5XIEtwfATR65ydzi_byvZxckTybPtnSEAX013aUxI5f2W_rRNxWanJ-ojoeAxoijFle9Ae72lB1peTrPM8qobFqxI7UwHgogr2szhQ54mjjBcLUA/s320/664806_3291284781410_147021.png" width="320" /></a></div>
507. <br />
508. <div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
509. <a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiVckj9JL-hutuo89v_zw5TEU7MYAoSb6zgFXDihmax-OPZZ3u9ZMr9Bc90jq-srsIsjZBdVxbQAp7fb8eDXrOW3T7EsH65gBR-Iv8JhXTIrh6nkocrxxoov3zrAblVbFOrwR2Myw/s1600/AKR_8019-copy.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiVckj9JL-hutuo89v_zw5TEU7MYAoSb6zgFXDihmax-OPZZ3u9ZMr9Bc90jq-srsIsjZBdVxbQAp7fb8eDXrOW3T7EsH65gBR-Iv8JhXTIrh6nkocrxxoov3zrAblVbFOrwR2Myw/s320/AKR_8019-copy.png" width="212" /></a></div>
510. <br />
511. Then we put away our cameras and got our snorkels and fins (fins were required; I actually had bought a pair but Will had to rent them) and we got to snorkel freely around the lagoon while dolphins dive bombed us and played with us. It was so awesome.  If you had a piece of seaweed a dolphin would come and steal it.  Even the babies came around.  If you spun in place they’d race around you in a circle.  You’d hear them squeaking and then they’d come from behind (always from behind) and roll to look at you with their big brown eyes as you laughed and tried to pet them.  There were also all kinds of cool reef fish to look at, and corals, and lots of grass under the water.  It was maybe 15-20 feet deep and the various fish we saw were maybe 8-10” long at most.  
512. It really felt like they were playing with us and teasing us, especially if you had seaweed.  If you put your hand out they would come and push it with their noses (the trainers did that a lot to them) like a cat or dog would.  I can’t explain how amazing it was.<br />
513. My mask kept getting water in it and I wasn’t scared or panicking, only annoyed that I had to come to the surface and clear it out.  Not one bit of panic attack, even when water came in my snorkel!  
514. Normally we disdain having others take our pictures for money but in this case, we bought the pictures.  The deal was that it was $12.50 for each picture, minimum of 2, and if you bought all them of them it was $40 on a thumb drive, plus $10 for each other person in your group.  So a couple was $50.  I bought the thumb drive for $50 with no hesitation because some of the pictures came out really good.<br />
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516. <a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg40grmaEkhtMXp-Bhv_OggmbvNaA-miiTJCf59YO9M9oPbAVEF1d1OKHdz4NpIPcwhAqAIJnDjQeB9apQZ8hplumfOl-17lcw8aWVY-Xe-ERmq5uya-IxFO4ZqJUEl4V8or2e_Lg/s1600/Cruise_Oct2012-102-10-24-ro.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg40grmaEkhtMXp-Bhv_OggmbvNaA-miiTJCf59YO9M9oPbAVEF1d1OKHdz4NpIPcwhAqAIJnDjQeB9apQZ8hplumfOl-17lcw8aWVY-Xe-ERmq5uya-IxFO4ZqJUEl4V8or2e_Lg/s320/Cruise_Oct2012-102-10-24-ro.png" width="320" /></a></div>
517. <br />
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519. <a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiVCzR6RqfKUmuYEzh1mX_yrT3CArU9wZu3Ph6rlBFqzZ-PlTyeLmAlv7-JYHPeIDiz3AXbv3p7EwDmaJzGIZmvMnXUfrI_Dih0WQVja-1mwwrUVHVs3pjMacl2gHwOJGTGKDGOhA/s1600/Cruise_Oct2012-171-10-24-be.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="177" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiVCzR6RqfKUmuYEzh1mX_yrT3CArU9wZu3Ph6rlBFqzZ-PlTyeLmAlv7-JYHPeIDiz3AXbv3p7EwDmaJzGIZmvMnXUfrI_Dih0WQVja-1mwwrUVHVs3pjMacl2gHwOJGTGKDGOhA/s320/Cruise_Oct2012-171-10-24-be.png" width="320" /></a></div>
520. <br />
521. <div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
522. <a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj1Aa8JUAxCOWHYHL0SVgrTA0Si_Y_CgFuz9OKxBf6VulNVdfwzFUzl7KEoad2vnaz52PsT4LCJoIjUhcFfSrgMcl52LKi96NjdW4t98DF_eyotey17hNIKKZtK6op6i0tHzneTnA/s1600/Cruise_Oct2012-172-10-24-be.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="214" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj1Aa8JUAxCOWHYHL0SVgrTA0Si_Y_CgFuz9OKxBf6VulNVdfwzFUzl7KEoad2vnaz52PsT4LCJoIjUhcFfSrgMcl52LKi96NjdW4t98DF_eyotey17hNIKKZtK6op6i0tHzneTnA/s320/Cruise_Oct2012-172-10-24-be.png" width="320" /></a></div>
523. We went for a drink at Fat Tuesdays on the way back to the ship & Will took my picture with the parrot-bird and <a href="http://www.facebook.com/ToadPurse" target="_blank">Toad Purse</a>.  Will had a Hurricane in an Atti-tube cup and he said it was the worse Hurricane he’d ever had.  He actually dumped it in the trash it was so bad.<br />
524. At dinner our friends surprised us with a heart shaped cake from the bakery that said Happy Anniversary (even though our anniversary had been 2 weeks before) and then we went to see <a href="http://www.edgerockson.com/theshow.html" target="_blank">Edge Evolution</a>, a juggling show, a sophisticated one.  He did juggling, ancient yoyo work, and thunder sticks, and did it on stilts and blind folded.  The ship was plowing through violent waves (Hurricane Sandy) and he only missed one trick because of it.
525. <div class="blogger-post-footer">http://ofsinitiate.blogspot.com
526. (c) Gevera Bert Piedmont  })i({
527. Thank you!&lt;/div&gt;</content><link rel='replies' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://ofsinitiate.blogspot.com/feeds/10056407850710609/comments/default' title='Post Comments'/><link rel='replies' type='text/html' href='http://www.blogger.com/comment.g?blogID=12406865&amp;postID=10056407850710609' title='0 Comments'/><link rel='edit' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/12406865/posts/default/10056407850710609'/><link rel='self' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/12406865/posts/default/10056407850710609'/><link rel='alternate' type='text/html' href='http://ofsinitiate.blogspot.com/2012/10/cruise-2012-dolphin-extravaganza.html' title='Cruise 2012: Dolphin Extravaganza!'/><author><name>GBP  })i({</name><uri>http://www.blogger.com/profile/09275995534174189926</uri><email>noreply@blogger.com</email><gd:image rel='http://schemas.google.com/g/2005#thumbnail' width='25' height='32' src='http://www.obsidianbutterfly.com/assets/about/Green%20Bert%20copy.jpg'/></author><media:thumbnail xmlns:media="http://search.yahoo.com/mrss/" url="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiCjVRL_cI0Lrv0nUu3tZJc2_api_wxhz-wdu4XgjqZa1JzfLz65UcA5rV65s81y25o2wnJG7rSXbltTa0bVBnc_1wN2ZzfEmuaqPuOc7bhQ4fl3H8yv7543pebzb4zITUnqy6_Hw/s72-c/Cruise_Oct2012-103-10-24-ro.png" height="72" width="72"/><thr:total>0</thr:total></entry><entry><id>tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-12406865.post-5963440338479507879</id><published>2012-10-23T17:02:00.000-04:00</published><updated>2012-10-30T17:31:28.547-04:00</updated><category scheme="http://www.blogger.com/atom/ns#" term="belize"/><category scheme="http://www.blogger.com/atom/ns#" term="chocolate. Xunatunich"/><category scheme="http://www.blogger.com/atom/ns#" term="cruise"/><category scheme="http://www.blogger.com/atom/ns#" term="cruise ship"/><category scheme="http://www.blogger.com/atom/ns#" term="Guatemala"/><title type='text'>Cruise 2012: in which we get rained upon</title><content type='html'>During his morning visit, Will got an inhaler from the doctor, with the same medicine they’d been putting up his nose with the nebulizer.  It went with the antibiotic and steroid pills he’d been given the day before.  Dr Fullerton is a cool doc.  He’s from Florida and had been a doctor in both the Army and the Navy, and had been stationed in Groton and liked it in New England.  When he gave Will the inhaler he told him to hide it in his pocket and not tell the nurses because we’d “already paid enough” for everything. I thought that was pretty nice of him.  He showed us where he got attacked on the face by jellyfish while swimming in Cozumel the day before, preparing for an Ironman in a few weeks.  He swam the actual course he’d be doing in the competition, a full one, with a 2.5 mile swim, 110 mile bike ride followed by a full marathon.&lt;br /&gt;
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529. </div>
530. <div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
531. <a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjtbdv7elxWVbimMzUHH-OM-UrbvtXjFSpcTVKGwxOWBq0mbWsWS4wtwQ6rAMoY5EO5cd5HHD80KhnSpsqy8EH2bj24JJ3auZ89dBigffSS95fdBv7AnfQPfFOZ0movUyJBHuODJg/s1600/Cruise_Oct2012-072-belize-1.png" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="191" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjtbdv7elxWVbimMzUHH-OM-UrbvtXjFSpcTVKGwxOWBq0mbWsWS4wtwQ6rAMoY5EO5cd5HHD80KhnSpsqy8EH2bj24JJ3auZ89dBigffSS95fdBv7AnfQPfFOZ0movUyJBHuODJg/s320/Cruise_Oct2012-072-belize-1.png" width="320" /></a></div>
532. Then we took tender #18 to Belize City and walked around for exactly an hour. <b>The first thing I saw was the world's biggest cockroach, thankfully dead.</b><br />
533. We were going to do the chocolate factory tour but it was lame and not worth $20 a person even with free chocolate bars included.  I had a chocolate shake there—it was high cacao chocolate, slightly bitter, the good stuff—and Will had an espresso, both made with local organic beans.  <b>While we were in the chocolate place there was a torrential downpour, like monsoon quality, rain solid in the sky, downpour.  It made me feel a little better about missing Xunatunich since they said you can’t climb the pyramid to see into Guatemala in the rain.  I really wanted to go, of course, to add another ruins site to my collect-the-whole-set, but not at my  husband’s health’s expense.
534. </b><br />
535. <div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
536. <a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiSH6yFSl-iuw4VUNj8p9EmULxzrfYOGplqtcQ6FyrXb5YdrqcCuRozUkiGsElZD_Z4sf93tUQLkJrDOnTAzgOtkR5OiCgybHKV1Bg3IWdudsnqNqtsujbVkvkC4twpHXaV1oS39g/s1600/Cruise_Oct2012-092-toad-10_.png" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="207" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiSH6yFSl-iuw4VUNj8p9EmULxzrfYOGplqtcQ6FyrXb5YdrqcCuRozUkiGsElZD_Z4sf93tUQLkJrDOnTAzgOtkR5OiCgybHKV1Bg3IWdudsnqNqtsujbVkvkC4twpHXaV1oS39g/s320/Cruise_Oct2012-092-toad-10_.png" width="320" /></a></div>
537. The shopping village featured many, many wooden pillars carved into Mayan glyphs. I took photos of a lot of them but they were actually kind of lame.  The gylphs didn’t make any sense, they were just crammed 4 or 5 to a pillar.
538. I bought a few things and we actually were about to board the very same tender that had brought us to the village (it had made a round trip to the ship while we shopped) but it was going off empty. (more text below pics)<br />
539. <div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
540. <a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgV_uaPtIVRHuci_dm4l5VgPqrMUN_ioBnjb2pgWrZgphldESXVe8-htip6QRV2tbiM9ai1_4fe0kzOzO3LaFleiaCwZnF9p-XXhR6ldQAEQzpZOy48iy4ycj2HyVqfD-P6eoymNA/s1600/Cruise_Oct2012-097-belize-1.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="238" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgV_uaPtIVRHuci_dm4l5VgPqrMUN_ioBnjb2pgWrZgphldESXVe8-htip6QRV2tbiM9ai1_4fe0kzOzO3LaFleiaCwZnF9p-XXhR6ldQAEQzpZOy48iy4ycj2HyVqfD-P6eoymNA/s320/Cruise_Oct2012-097-belize-1.png" width="320" /></a></div>
541. <br />
542. <div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
543. <a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhaU0e5WO-1IUSpUgHFRaRuoME6cXqvEuSeHX4e1yrqHtC_6Z8dVw2E56qVrQrIabiPRNVgoUdZZdNAJdm6wErFWdUrmu-TggmQCqPMa17UGFTdga3-VYSwphfzGdGdZFisB0IM5g/s1600/Cruise_Oct2012-098-1023-bel.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhaU0e5WO-1IUSpUgHFRaRuoME6cXqvEuSeHX4e1yrqHtC_6Z8dVw2E56qVrQrIabiPRNVgoUdZZdNAJdm6wErFWdUrmu-TggmQCqPMa17UGFTdga3-VYSwphfzGdGdZFisB0IM5g/s320/Cruise_Oct2012-098-1023-bel.png" width="297" /></a></div>
544. <div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
545. <a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEisSMAEEK85hecB6G9550MrCyhGRYIgsvgOYhhFijIXh-nzxK8GJwfr7jy7Vygb-FMxOKeX4RN-OnrhXiBaEL6Ilu4vVPlM0aHbBmP4dOlN6KxHyh_T0kEr8eAb_DtzrRWEk6TfEw/s1600/Cruise_Oct2012-094-10-23-wi.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEisSMAEEK85hecB6G9550MrCyhGRYIgsvgOYhhFijIXh-nzxK8GJwfr7jy7Vygb-FMxOKeX4RN-OnrhXiBaEL6Ilu4vVPlM0aHbBmP4dOlN6KxHyh_T0kEr8eAb_DtzrRWEk6TfEw/s320/Cruise_Oct2012-094-10-23-wi.png" width="294" /></a></div>
546. <br />
547. <div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
548. <a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhZgKf_73vL5sEhbJ7DXHQcvnq5O0Sikwa7NCYuxVvt9YvTdEFrrQIODYKbLxdZWUbaYvPADP-gugyOvRd1OZqA_YlOfdAEmXsRpFvYqFvByi0YLHZJWrg7WF9BjxYCp1S8GxeSAQ/s1600/Cruise_Oct2012-095-bert-10-.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhZgKf_73vL5sEhbJ7DXHQcvnq5O0Sikwa7NCYuxVvt9YvTdEFrrQIODYKbLxdZWUbaYvPADP-gugyOvRd1OZqA_YlOfdAEmXsRpFvYqFvByi0YLHZJWrg7WF9BjxYCp1S8GxeSAQ/s320/Cruise_Oct2012-095-bert-10-.png" width="308" /></a></div>
549. We were back in time for lunch, and Will felt really tired after only that little bit of slow walking.
550. We ate at the hamburger place and I worked out in the pool and we hung out there for a little while.<br />
551. At dinner, I went in alone while they went up to the steak house.  The waiters kept trying to fill all 4 glasses with water. I’d say, “they aren’t coming” and hopefully they’d say “maybe they are” even though I said they went upstairs to the steak place.  Then they offered apple pie a la mode for dessert.  My husband loves apple pie. I got it to go for him and I went to get myself another piece of chocolate cake.  <b>And the bakery was out of chocolate cake.  Evidently someone came along and bought the whole cake!</b>  They had carrot cake only, and one single chocolate chip cookie which seemed so lonely I just had to take it back to the room with me. I called room service for some hot chocolate and had my dessert in the room.<br />
552. When my  husband finally came in he laughed because I’d brought him dessert.  All 3 of them had <b>14 oz individual (!?) cheesecakes for dessert</b> (and not finished them) and apparently the cheesecake was awesome and the food was awesome and I should have gone except that I don’t care much for steak and I hate seafood and that’s all they had.  He said he’d have the pie for breakfast.<br />
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554. <a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi7HvZfucRIIZMJ1MpExwntk8_gCy46wagVUe89vgvSDUdAQzRpCOx9gQg9yHcUv-VYEtxj25N3I1oNE4DfcOsi09zEYWRajok8apOz3hXMphZw-9fbSj5Xd9sXeQWNzQRxllW3KQ/s1600/Cruise_Oct2012-091-10_23-be.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="275" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi7HvZfucRIIZMJ1MpExwntk8_gCy46wagVUe89vgvSDUdAQzRpCOx9gQg9yHcUv-VYEtxj25N3I1oNE4DfcOsi09zEYWRajok8apOz3hXMphZw-9fbSj5Xd9sXeQWNzQRxllW3KQ/s320/Cruise_Oct2012-091-10_23-be.png" width="320" /></a></div>
555. <div class="blogger-post-footer">http://ofsinitiate.blogspot.com
556. (c) Gevera Bert Piedmont  })i({
557. Thank you!&lt;/div&gt;</content><link rel='replies' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://ofsinitiate.blogspot.com/feeds/5963440338479507879/comments/default' title='Post Comments'/><link rel='replies' type='text/html' href='http://www.blogger.com/comment.g?blogID=12406865&amp;postID=5963440338479507879' title='0 Comments'/><link rel='edit' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/12406865/posts/default/5963440338479507879'/><link rel='self' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/12406865/posts/default/5963440338479507879'/><link rel='alternate' type='text/html' href='http://ofsinitiate.blogspot.com/2012/10/cruise-2012-in-which-we-get-rained-upon.html' title='Cruise 2012: in which we get rained upon'/><author><name>GBP  })i({</name><uri>http://www.blogger.com/profile/09275995534174189926</uri><email>noreply@blogger.com</email><gd:image rel='http://schemas.google.com/g/2005#thumbnail' width='25' height='32' src='http://www.obsidianbutterfly.com/assets/about/Green%20Bert%20copy.jpg'/></author><media:thumbnail xmlns:media="http://search.yahoo.com/mrss/" url="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjtbdv7elxWVbimMzUHH-OM-UrbvtXjFSpcTVKGwxOWBq0mbWsWS4wtwQ6rAMoY5EO5cd5HHD80KhnSpsqy8EH2bj24JJ3auZ89dBigffSS95fdBv7AnfQPfFOZ0movUyJBHuODJg/s72-c/Cruise_Oct2012-072-belize-1.png" height="72" width="72"/><thr:total>0</thr:total></entry><entry><id>tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-12406865.post-162876386631214734</id><published>2012-10-22T15:46:00.000-04:00</published><updated>2012-10-30T16:53:41.729-04:00</updated><category scheme="http://www.blogger.com/atom/ns#" term="Carnival Liberty"/><category scheme="http://www.blogger.com/atom/ns#" term="cozumel"/><category scheme="http://www.blogger.com/atom/ns#" term="cruise"/><category scheme="http://www.blogger.com/atom/ns#" term="cruise ship"/><category scheme="http://www.blogger.com/atom/ns#" term="mayan ruins"/><category scheme="http://www.blogger.com/atom/ns#" term="Mexico"/><category scheme="http://www.blogger.com/atom/ns#" term="san gervasio"/><title type='text'>Cruise 2012: in which I get to keep my organs</title><content type='html'>On Monday, I woke up at 3 because Will was coughing, and saw that we were in Cozumel, 4 + hours early.  &lt;b&gt;I tried to put the room service tray outside quietly in the dark, dropped it, broken glass everywhere, woke up my husband with the noise, had to call for a clean up, the phone didn’t work, had to hunt down a steward in person to clean up the glass.&lt;/b&gt; He came in with the vacuum, you can imagine the noise and confusion and mess.&amp;nbsp; My bad.&amp;nbsp; &lt;br /&gt;
558. <b>Went up to the Guest Services desk to tell them my husband had pneumonia and we had no phone and by the way, we’re in Cozumel, are you going to get my bag now?</b>
559. Hilarity ensued as the person said, “You can’t go ashore yet.”  “I don’t want to go ashore yet. I want YOU to go and get my bag.”  “You can’t go ashore yet.  We don’t dock until 7.” “yes, but clearly we <i>are docked</i> already at 3 a.m., so how about someone goes and gets my bag?”  “We docked early because someone had a heart attack.”  Oops, they were just <i>determined</i> to have <i>someone</i> go to the Mexican hospital, weren’t they?  “That is too bad, but what about my bag?” (I am a heartless, selfish bitch sometimes, I admit it.)<br />
560. Finally she checked and found out that <b>the bag was coming into the Cozumel airport at 1 p.m.</b> and they’d go get it then.  So I had no need to search out a dive shop and buy new snorkeling equipment.<br />
561. I went ashore in Cozumel alone at 7 a.m. (Will had an 8 a.m. doctor appointment.)  I had already arranged for a rental car to be at a rental place at the dock at 7:15 a.m.  <b>They  had assured me that the rental place was in a gas station “right there.”</b>
562. Yes, right there.  After you navigate on foot through their tourist village of shops and eager proprietors,  then down a promenade and through a parking lot and across the street and asking random Mexican men “<i>Donde esta el Pemex?  Pemex aqui?  Alli?  Donde?</i>” and then finding the Pemex and the rental place and it doesn’t even open until 8 a.m.
563. They were supposed to have an automatic transmission Chevy Aveo with air conditioning waiting for me.  No Chevy Aveo in sight.  No proprietor in sight.  Out comes the <i>muy mal, un poquito espanol</i> again.<br />
564. Finally <b>Omar the car guy</b> was located, hanging out with the glass-bottom boat guy.  (His name was really Omar.)  He had no idea I was coming or that I expected a vehicle.  He said he would get me a manual transmission car with A/C.  I said no, must be automatic.  All he had was a <b>Geo Trakker 4x4 with no A/C, but it was automatic.</b>  I said fine.  I paid way too much money for it and waited for it to arrive.
565. <b>It was red.  And rust.  It had no side windows.  It had no carpets.  The floor had holes in it.  The check engine light was on.  </b>“<i>Es bueno</i>,” They said.  “<i>No es bueno!</i>”  “<i>es bueno!</i>”  They give me a map, in Spanish.  The only landmark was the gas station itself and a shell in the intersection where I needed to turn right on my way to the San Gervasio ruins.
566. <b>Reverse didn’t work.  The brakes really didn’t work.</b>  <i>Solamente hablo espanol un poquito.  </i>And thus, <i>sola</i>, I was off.  Oh, and <b>I couldn’t get my cell phone to work, that was a bonus.</b>  <b>Alone in Mexico, with purple hair, the worse rental car in the history of the world, and my cell wouldn’t connect to any network.  Great. </b><br />
567. <div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
568. <a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiCMkFFY_vEEX5v4ro5byY14WADcFL7B0OB3YjPjzpV6cBOlq6v5mD-hDhmzwE7rlamL5NHPQBFgZLc6rymTuY-ugMr8CULXUvk5afnIrD1MQ4Qt0SSO0ADddG1_4NtvPx5xovZ9Q/s1600/notmygeo-web.png" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="231" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiCMkFFY_vEEX5v4ro5byY14WADcFL7B0OB3YjPjzpV6cBOlq6v5mD-hDhmzwE7rlamL5NHPQBFgZLc6rymTuY-ugMr8CULXUvk5afnIrD1MQ4Qt0SSO0ADddG1_4NtvPx5xovZ9Q/s320/notmygeo-web.png" width="320" /></a></div>
569. In this paragon of a rattling, hiccupping vehicle, I set out into the Mexican jungle.  First I had to drive through the Mexican city and deal with all the topes (speed bumps) and people on scooters with small children and street signs I couldn’t quite decipher and a confusion over which blue building I was supposed to turn left at?<br />
570. Apparently Mexican men, workers crammed into the back of pick-up trucks, really like fat women with purple and blond hair and big black hats who are alone in barely functioning vehicles.  Or maybe they just want a green card, I don’t know.  But I was very popular.  Lots of honking, waving, wolf-whistles, being called “chica” and generally hollered at favorably.<br />
571. <div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
572. <a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhpo1_FLCWu7zXY5CpsrgPF7eiCnnDOXqCwf9uXvoYSf5KTDZVbzn-ZVQZJnNg-kNGdzXtiuCZWjRe9kkFmlWh52aWvVJDGyhDDZ0bKReAQTgXWteKtOx2laeZ6P6CO9VELgC6G9A/s1600/Cruise_Oct2012-057-cozumel-.png" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="155" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhpo1_FLCWu7zXY5CpsrgPF7eiCnnDOXqCwf9uXvoYSf5KTDZVbzn-ZVQZJnNg-kNGdzXtiuCZWjRe9kkFmlWh52aWvVJDGyhDDZ0bKReAQTgXWteKtOx2laeZ6P6CO9VELgC6G9A/s320/Cruise_Oct2012-057-cozumel-.png" width="320" /></a></div>
573. I found my way to the giant shell in the middle of the intersection and turned, leaving the city and entering the type of long boring jungle road with occasional slum-houses that Mexico has everywhere.  Oh, and <b>lots of vultures, just hanging out on the sides of the road, waiting for my vehicle to crash so they and the jaguars could fight over who eats me.</b>  Probably they’d id me by my purple hair streak after the animals were done.<br />
574. The turn off to San Gervasio didn’t warn of the dangers beyond.  Honestly the road was about 10 miles long, the speed limit was about 1 kilometer per hour and it was in terrible shape.  I thought my red rusty car-thing would shake to pieces on it.  At the end, I parked against a tree (oops—more on that later) and went in.  It cost a whopping $8 American to enter.<br />
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576. <a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh6YFTzwCr1ywIEugSf9wfjkWTpOXm-UkcXg_u-2J4mrq0L8ZAOKoVHKZ_Q2Oq-TyCqPMvVNKNNydeexWj3_KxzIjeMGWsOggBDTwVmWmLMGTTzvBVFh62XJhn1nkaBiC6BMSqFKQ/s1600/cozumel-bert-toad-web.png" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="301" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh6YFTzwCr1ywIEugSf9wfjkWTpOXm-UkcXg_u-2J4mrq0L8ZAOKoVHKZ_Q2Oq-TyCqPMvVNKNNydeexWj3_KxzIjeMGWsOggBDTwVmWmLMGTTzvBVFh62XJhn1nkaBiC6BMSqFKQ/s320/cozumel-bert-toad-web.png" width="320" /></a></div>
577. <b>I hired a little Mexican man, a Maya, for $18 American, to be my guide.  His name was Ruben </b>(like the sandwich, like my evil mailman at home).  He was from the Uxmal area originally but his grandfather the shaman told him he had to “go east” and so he ended up in Cozumel in 1956 and had been working at this site ever since.<b>
578. San Gervasio is the modern Spanish name for this site, a small sacred complex devoted to the fertility goddess Ix Chel.</b>  I guess it isn’t very popular; no one else was there.
579. Ruben and I walked around for two hours, talking.  His stories were a confusing mix of Christianity, New Age, and ancient paganism.  Some of what he said was wrong but I wasn’t going to argue with an old native man who claims a baktun is 2000 years long (it’s 396, approximately).  Of course Mexican-style Catholicism is basically a mix of the old religion and Jesus-worship in a way that’s much more pleasing than how American Catholics worship.  (I know because I used to be one, at least on the surface.  Scratch me and you’d find a pagan, always.)<br />
580. <div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
581. <a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjoHG0pJihy2Y5uT37iAXy1ZiXp-hJp1YCF1LP6ywH5U_7mug8dzz6dnm0SDdeWXrvxRg5vnoV8XPSuqWWeFYc1YxY03BmVT5hZ6Lq9GRbMJbiR-ycVKdnKvD4VcKPWZAW5uNsyVg/s1600/Cruise_Oct2012-040-cozumel_.png" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjoHG0pJihy2Y5uT37iAXy1ZiXp-hJp1YCF1LP6ywH5U_7mug8dzz6dnm0SDdeWXrvxRg5vnoV8XPSuqWWeFYc1YxY03BmVT5hZ6Lq9GRbMJbiR-ycVKdnKvD4VcKPWZAW5uNsyVg/s320/Cruise_Oct2012-040-cozumel_.png" width="320" /></a></div>
582. Ruben showed me a place where 2 bodies had been excavated.  He said they were <b>priests who didn’t quite live to be initiated fully and they had been carbon-dated to 10,000 BC.</b>  He scoffed at all of the plaques erected by the government and said they were all wrong and laughed at me for taking pictures of them.  The internet says that it’s a late Classical site, erected probably around 1,000 AD so Ruben’s dating was only about 11,000 years off.  
583. He said the site was devoted to the study of the sun, moon, and “eastern star” (Venus, I presume).  <b>The arch is at the exact center of the island (not according to any maps, but…) and is perfectly aligned to the cardinal directions and at noon on the five equinoxes (I know, there are only 2 per year) the sun is right overhead.</b>  There is another name for this, not equinox, but I can’t remember it, and it only happens at certain places on the earth, and it might be ecliptic or solar zenith, but that doesn’t seem to be it either.<br />
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585. <a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj56GI10PLSnz6_iYq_ZKYLb4C2W8hHjyN2cqKs9dDMhiuLEYKS3T-4jLvmVQrikY4hHErCd62rfz3c5SQJe3hMY4Pe6t5Lo2FZLaRnN5LTF4CW_-m2gXelCwhAyaV4Yf4rwGk8-w/s1600/Cruise_Oct2012-033-cozumel_.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj56GI10PLSnz6_iYq_ZKYLb4C2W8hHjyN2cqKs9dDMhiuLEYKS3T-4jLvmVQrikY4hHErCd62rfz3c5SQJe3hMY4Pe6t5Lo2FZLaRnN5LTF4CW_-m2gXelCwhAyaV4Yf4rwGk8-w/s320/Cruise_Oct2012-033-cozumel_.png" width="320" /></a></div>
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588. <a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhf5ADNvKq1ecouSfXAOc1rvDC5Gvmf2y_HVExRSeqzr1F9jhgB3Dh0ibcinAqAtmQrBFrAUByGjXhgcPNg5ygCzPkT_EPFYf_un1x8U9HMqsTCdDB044jRcPTwzvBxXjb1ct-zAw/s1600/Cruise_Oct2012-035-cozumel-.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhf5ADNvKq1ecouSfXAOc1rvDC5Gvmf2y_HVExRSeqzr1F9jhgB3Dh0ibcinAqAtmQrBFrAUByGjXhgcPNg5ygCzPkT_EPFYf_un1x8U9HMqsTCdDB044jRcPTwzvBxXjb1ct-zAw/s320/Cruise_Oct2012-035-cozumel-.png" width="320" /></a></div>
589. <br />
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591. <a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhzmah3sJ_bsXXnCCaSS6G27bR5ljMVvUOzrzD9pspwfu5Zo5bbyZIj3z8WSi24YJ6BUmr5C9OZPxu4ya6tQf56ZU4PAXlQapI0d8HUVFe3cpuhRqsgZLqAEX74cUqam2vMr6pj3A/s1600/Cruise_Oct2012-038-cozumelw.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhzmah3sJ_bsXXnCCaSS6G27bR5ljMVvUOzrzD9pspwfu5Zo5bbyZIj3z8WSi24YJ6BUmr5C9OZPxu4ya6tQf56ZU4PAXlQapI0d8HUVFe3cpuhRqsgZLqAEX74cUqam2vMr6pj3A/s320/Cruise_Oct2012-038-cozumelw.png" width="240" /></a></div>
592. <br />
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594. <a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgeHXPPSvHwAkkCPYjJMlAI-7HuYBiAZFznwGSv8r-uLF_VkJYL7z4ZLxUtx_eiVbKZv1KvXPhSEDLbYqu5LvRYRMTdkxQa_4qXHb2cpEOgK2nZLkYQZAT_v7ZDKDa7EaRZw7t5RA/s1600/Cruise_Oct2012-039-cozumel-.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgeHXPPSvHwAkkCPYjJMlAI-7HuYBiAZFznwGSv8r-uLF_VkJYL7z4ZLxUtx_eiVbKZv1KvXPhSEDLbYqu5LvRYRMTdkxQa_4qXHb2cpEOgK2nZLkYQZAT_v7ZDKDa7EaRZw7t5RA/s320/Cruise_Oct2012-039-cozumel-.png" width="240" /></a></div>
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596. </div>
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599. <a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg36EOlBf9H3dxyK4QjR7eh3NvMpF9k_DSkHEZP__9pQiV944JHiC4vbmM53tzo92xXQQUqVuQ8xS9-Tr2ivFCoswHplJVbK2dJRiaXlvtO9myoBCNwQH_3DVlC8XlyWZ14JwTU-g/s1600/Cruise_Oct2012-028-cozumel-.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"></a></div>
600. As we were walking toward the arch, Ruben mentioned that there are ocelots there. I’d been disappointed at the lack of iguanas (one big male and maybe a dozen females, the amount that should have been on a single building there) so I was excited to maybe see an ocelot.  Ruben misunderstood my agitation and said “now you are afraid of the tigers, huh?” and I said, “No, I want to see one!”  Although <b>I was confused if there were ocelots there (small wild cats, spotted) or jaguars (much larger cats, sometimes called tigers).  Ruben said that many hurricanes had hit the site and many of the animals were killed.  They were expecting a big population explosion of iguanas in the spring.</b><br />
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602. <a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg36EOlBf9H3dxyK4QjR7eh3NvMpF9k_DSkHEZP__9pQiV944JHiC4vbmM53tzo92xXQQUqVuQ8xS9-Tr2ivFCoswHplJVbK2dJRiaXlvtO9myoBCNwQH_3DVlC8XlyWZ14JwTU-g/s1600/Cruise_Oct2012-028-cozumel-.png" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg36EOlBf9H3dxyK4QjR7eh3NvMpF9k_DSkHEZP__9pQiV944JHiC4vbmM53tzo92xXQQUqVuQ8xS9-Tr2ivFCoswHplJVbK2dJRiaXlvtO9myoBCNwQH_3DVlC8XlyWZ14JwTU-g/s320/Cruise_Oct2012-028-cozumel-.png" width="320" /></a></div>
603. <br />
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605. <a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhVvmwtROlVuqBlOEpaVAWdcvcT9miv4I4vAPDpr1W_L62uBC0044ore_yfcrvjjiSxW-BYAX0P4Rn3lj7ktjZfH2oflmtQKXtVrXoiyLzrlhgtVKShXv6hofv8HDMcDiYBV3IUeg/s1600/Cruise_Oct2012-027-cozumel_.png" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhVvmwtROlVuqBlOEpaVAWdcvcT9miv4I4vAPDpr1W_L62uBC0044ore_yfcrvjjiSxW-BYAX0P4Rn3lj7ktjZfH2oflmtQKXtVrXoiyLzrlhgtVKShXv6hofv8HDMcDiYBV3IUeg/s320/Cruise_Oct2012-027-cozumel_.png" width="320" /></a></div>
606. A dry cenote he showed me was next to a dry pond and he said a hurricane in 1988 drove the water underground and that when he saw both were empty he cried because it was fulfilling some ancient prophecy he knew of.  The water is 4-6 feet underground now, and the government archeologists have no interest in excavating to get it back to the surface.  Ruben also said the round cenotes were all dug by Spaniards and that people were sacrificed into ponds, and sacrifice was always voluntary. (text continues under the pics)<br />
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608. <a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjvf1VnmrcCw8fDr_09Md7rQqvH0mur1qKSKVtd7cK3DwUEhe8AC_pT5CEEOsBFE5LbAE65SpPelKo8nnIO_W5A4RnIE50-fYxBgR2szdU2zOge51e3hPGJtW14oD2KpWOvnC7FuQ/s1600/Cruise_Oct2012-045-cozumelw.png" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjvf1VnmrcCw8fDr_09Md7rQqvH0mur1qKSKVtd7cK3DwUEhe8AC_pT5CEEOsBFE5LbAE65SpPelKo8nnIO_W5A4RnIE50-fYxBgR2szdU2zOge51e3hPGJtW14oD2KpWOvnC7FuQ/s320/Cruise_Oct2012-045-cozumelw.png" width="320" /></a></div>
609. <br />
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611. <a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgEXohdc2T9Xo9XGzKSPKA0T0K3ejIyPifks1kFuMeYttRyxxx51_vOLPw-6PSfLObXrU8Bjwj23qa6X2ypqxN55Dvayz_tGHLvV6gryOKZapxaiRwc75GBlhXxa_vYB8QLww0DPA/s1600/Cruise_Oct2012-052-cozumel-.png" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgEXohdc2T9Xo9XGzKSPKA0T0K3ejIyPifks1kFuMeYttRyxxx51_vOLPw-6PSfLObXrU8Bjwj23qa6X2ypqxN55Dvayz_tGHLvV6gryOKZapxaiRwc75GBlhXxa_vYB8QLww0DPA/s320/Cruise_Oct2012-052-cozumel-.png" width="320" /></a></div>
612. I<b> made an offering a spring water at the altar to Ix Chel (he said I did it very nicely, and faced the proper way) asking for creativity, although the original request there was for pregnancy, 19 of them per woman if the internet is to be believed. </b><br />
613. One of the buildings with red handprints, the one with the male iguana in the niche, he said was a sweat lodge (temazcal, although I couldn’t remember the Aztec word right then) for women who wanted to get pregnant, and that babies conceived after the mothers went to this sweat lodge could be priests. And the handprints were made by the priests themselves as they were initiated from age 2 to age 30 (or maybe 32, 30 years of training?) and then every 30 years after that until they died at age 90.  (text continues under the pics)<br />
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615. <a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj8F-pPJzBYu7nsHnptrD8p4r4zsuAjWd9_iKaR_ZejFiaOrKOEovCsjdCavpV8-Ljynd9FLah2OSV6wBPdFakFDkpWSNFMaW_9tsm36KD5AMDFSU6cyKZ65dxAPO9F019MrATvAA/s1600/Cruise_Oct2012-016-cozumel_.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj8F-pPJzBYu7nsHnptrD8p4r4zsuAjWd9_iKaR_ZejFiaOrKOEovCsjdCavpV8-Ljynd9FLah2OSV6wBPdFakFDkpWSNFMaW_9tsm36KD5AMDFSU6cyKZ65dxAPO9F019MrATvAA/s320/Cruise_Oct2012-016-cozumel_.png" width="320" /></a></div>
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618. <a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgotNylvhdX6Djbeq-n2QjHswXDOaL3dHSZqUDCBULoALWTtbz_KaAzMP5BaMGj1L1itewVUFVmYMgBYgBQfzp8Ku0nNbUEBER4K-QNUx7xZDXYKpOs3P4UYfNRXHShZMkHOJsPiQ/s1600/Cruise_Oct2012-018-cozumel_.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgotNylvhdX6Djbeq-n2QjHswXDOaL3dHSZqUDCBULoALWTtbz_KaAzMP5BaMGj1L1itewVUFVmYMgBYgBQfzp8Ku0nNbUEBER4K-QNUx7xZDXYKpOs3P4UYfNRXHShZMkHOJsPiQ/s320/Cruise_Oct2012-018-cozumel_.png" width="320" /></a></div>
619. <br />
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621. <a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhpr5w6Luyxg12CS1f0Mx0rDfeVpb8R4WhK2N9MRNslAbUvdSAaIUjtUy6IjB8zMDu6xandP30qREYhAFhQe1fAW7U6aQAiwL5Cs5RGBeTxDxx0ohW4h54w3jq1d10PqgEPbUDgpg/s1600/Cruise_Oct2012-020-cozumel_.png" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhpr5w6Luyxg12CS1f0Mx0rDfeVpb8R4WhK2N9MRNslAbUvdSAaIUjtUy6IjB8zMDu6xandP30qREYhAFhQe1fAW7U6aQAiwL5Cs5RGBeTxDxx0ohW4h54w3jq1d10PqgEPbUDgpg/s320/Cruise_Oct2012-020-cozumel_.png" width="320" /></a></div>
622. He had joked when I hired him that his fee was $18 and double if I didn’t like it.  As we walked back to his station, he said, “I hope you didn’t like it,” and I said that I did, but I paid him $25.<br />
623. <b>Forsaking all logic and reason, I decided to drive around the perimeter of the island, alone in the rental car from hell with no phone.  That was when I found out about the reverse gear, or lack thereof, since I had parked with the car’s nose against a tree.  Slamming the gear shift violently from drive to reverse caused it to kind of lurch backward until I could get around the tree,</b> drive back down that hideous road, and then for reasons unknown to me, turn left to drive around the loop rather than right and back into the town. (more text under the pics...)<br />
624. <div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
625. <a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgK7pF7j43HVN0nBxgOpNiSUOEjwMn6RZ4hJy2X6wb6qmDh6qWSYXXEv5EBzuWw8OnFjIEpXBPwagWTz4OQCVubCzj5dhX9dmAWz1kr5NHU9SsTfXJ_1J6lV-Nk4-w8fvYBByxdWw/s1600/Cruise_Oct2012-058-cozumel-.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgK7pF7j43HVN0nBxgOpNiSUOEjwMn6RZ4hJy2X6wb6qmDh6qWSYXXEv5EBzuWw8OnFjIEpXBPwagWTz4OQCVubCzj5dhX9dmAWz1kr5NHU9SsTfXJ_1J6lV-Nk4-w8fvYBByxdWw/s320/Cruise_Oct2012-058-cozumel-.png" width="320" /></a></div>
626. <br />
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628. <a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjF3Ca3azNmW2N-WY-ALjICf6Exnpz-RLrMl08j_zuBtV39EZJTFLbqTQ399jc1MHZcBVfir6JND_B-yB3521mQb2mVXc-7OicUN2VGPH67S98u4iWswQUzwaPMmLKKJ26emkrcnw/s1600/Cruise_Oct2012-059-cozumel-.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjF3Ca3azNmW2N-WY-ALjICf6Exnpz-RLrMl08j_zuBtV39EZJTFLbqTQ399jc1MHZcBVfir6JND_B-yB3521mQb2mVXc-7OicUN2VGPH67S98u4iWswQUzwaPMmLKKJ26emkrcnw/s320/Cruise_Oct2012-059-cozumel-.png" width="320" /></a></div>
629. <br />
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631. <a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEia0S3G1T1nV5DFEDobzeA5M2ewvtjezdxT6oo2A2rt61FISFnRCDZh9zgUYFIC9ufxZqfaWriCfIB4xgdUsDHJJ_MMJxEykvJrOweWB2rjwhHStrvYWWMFh1By0FasyL_X6KHGRA/s1600/Cruise_Oct2012-060-cozumel-.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEia0S3G1T1nV5DFEDobzeA5M2ewvtjezdxT6oo2A2rt61FISFnRCDZh9zgUYFIC9ufxZqfaWriCfIB4xgdUsDHJJ_MMJxEykvJrOweWB2rjwhHStrvYWWMFh1By0FasyL_X6KHGRA/s320/Cruise_Oct2012-060-cozumel-.png" width="320" /></a></div>
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634. <a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjQ7kMS0ZA30RV7QUQp_9IEC-iCr15gmKBBMJSPrcy_ln0YXRXywsfg_0jia34pf84A6p9BO36sEQwsk1XqS9G4XejRPWtd4dPBjwnEkXJEu4yELrlU8d2bHiCfVrJhe3jTo65WWg/s1600/Cruise_Oct2012-061-cozumel-.png" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="198" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjQ7kMS0ZA30RV7QUQp_9IEC-iCr15gmKBBMJSPrcy_ln0YXRXywsfg_0jia34pf84A6p9BO36sEQwsk1XqS9G4XejRPWtd4dPBjwnEkXJEu4yELrlU8d2bHiCfVrJhe3jTo65WWg/s320/Cruise_Oct2012-061-cozumel-.png" width="320" /></a></div>
635. Lots of vultures.  Men in trucks yelling at me.  The loop road was under construction so lots of shunting between the small beach-loop road and the bigger real road. <b> I was almost back to the side where the Carnival ship was docked when my map flew out the lack of windows.  
636. Now the Carnival Liberty is a pretty big boat, and it was docked right against the land (not on top of it, like the poor Concordia last winter) so I figured if I could see it, I could find it, and thus the gas station where I had to return my vehicle.</b><br />
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638. <a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjGG4vDmb-0-M4ScYOEq1MrIw5dpRdHuWb7kTdN-uD0000Qih2OipsQSGY5WznV7jZ_8rOMBQoVmZiF9wOLWI5HLf853N9I5MmUvQGiK1VQRqsA7i2DlnfBTvBkorLFn8iiEw4vpg/s1600/Cruise_Oct2012-062-cozumel_.png" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="280" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjGG4vDmb-0-M4ScYOEq1MrIw5dpRdHuWb7kTdN-uD0000Qih2OipsQSGY5WznV7jZ_8rOMBQoVmZiF9wOLWI5HLf853N9I5MmUvQGiK1VQRqsA7i2DlnfBTvBkorLFn8iiEw4vpg/s320/Cruise_Oct2012-062-cozumel_.png" width="320" /></a></div>
639. <b> </b>I was watching the kilometer signs go down in number, trying to convert to miles and thus time in my head, <b>when a giant alebrije flashed by on my right.  I collect small alebrijes (Mexican wooden, painted folk art from the Oaxaca area) but  never had I seen one 20 feet high.  </b>I pulled into the exit road of the place since the entrance had already passed me and <b>damn if I didn’t go nose against the wall and no reverse on the damn gear shift.  And two guards with guns at the store staring at me as I slammed the car in and out of drive until I could inch around and park near the giant blue animal and take some photos and then zoom back up the exit and be on my merry way.</b> I figure they probably were selling awesome alebrijes in the store but any store that has armed security I probably can’t afford right?<br />
640.  I found the ship, found the gas station, and put $10 worth of gas in the car.  Then it wouldn’t start. I thought I’d have to abandon it at the pump but then I got it going.  I returned it and started back to the ship.  The glass-bottom boat guy stopped me.  “Did you just drive around the island and come back?”  He was indignant.  I showed him my San Gervasio wristband but he wasn’t satisfied.  He wanted me in that glass bottom boat. <b>I explained that my husband was in the sick bay with pneumonia and I was a bad enough wife for abandoning him so I could trek around Mexico alone with purple hair and a car from hell and probably men who wanted to harvest my organs in a hotel bathtub but Glass Bottom Boat man didn’t care.  I needed to be in that boat.  
641. I did not go into the boat.</b><br />
642. I walked back through the shopping village, got a couple of little alebrijes for my collection and a few other items, back onto the boat, and bye-bye Mexico until who knows when.  At least I made it there in 2012 right? (more text below pics)<br />
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644. <a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh0nVa2IKxZZ-ju1VkC_NkhmNmJxP493vot1bv-KHHI1H4yyBgFf9Yz5viILdXARBfGTpla3vbV3roLgYo3Xa-izH1YtMZf1NzW8w37KEKaNj98CIk1vZguMx5FXvjVpeA6RLzYdw/s1600/Cruise_Oct2012-063-cozumel-.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh0nVa2IKxZZ-ju1VkC_NkhmNmJxP493vot1bv-KHHI1H4yyBgFf9Yz5viILdXARBfGTpla3vbV3roLgYo3Xa-izH1YtMZf1NzW8w37KEKaNj98CIk1vZguMx5FXvjVpeA6RLzYdw/s320/Cruise_Oct2012-063-cozumel-.png" width="320" /></a></div>
645. <br />
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647. <a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh11HN5sjzk-BCXZV0_19qBQzTDjm6bubPRvrpXIZPlRrBCBJ5eeqp25bab6h7kLGOb2OiTJcqf4Ebf6LTNaZKqYRd0xJYxL9e-O_rzseRveB-LaHPcwQUBoDNoKSj6uCubljWNPw/s1600/Cruise_Oct2012-064-cozumel-.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh11HN5sjzk-BCXZV0_19qBQzTDjm6bubPRvrpXIZPlRrBCBJ5eeqp25bab6h7kLGOb2OiTJcqf4Ebf6LTNaZKqYRd0xJYxL9e-O_rzseRveB-LaHPcwQUBoDNoKSj6uCubljWNPw/s320/Cruise_Oct2012-064-cozumel-.png" width="320" /></a></div>
648. My hubby was just finishing his room service lunch.  He was only slightly better according to the medics, so with great sadness I made my way up one floor to the excursions desk and handed in our Xunatunich tickets for full credit.  There was no way he could go and I felt guilty enough for my Mexican morning alone.<br />
649. <b>Our bag was delivered around 4:30. It was almost anti-climatic at that point, even though I was very happy to have my snorkel.</b><br />
650. When we met up with our friends for dinner, we found out that our waiters had been very concerned by our absence at formal night, especially since we’d been asking the night before if that was lobster night.  I guess one of the waiters had seen me around the sick bay and thought <i>I</i> was sick.  Since my friend is a nurse she knew that Will had been really sick but she didn’t know it was pneumonia until they saw us again.  They had gone to Coba and climbed the pyramid there and had an awesome time.  Everyone was glad to have us back.
651. Everyone but me ordered cheesecake for dessert.  Apparently it was the world’s worse cheesecake (exepct possibly the cheesecake at Ponderosa many years ago) and when they complained, the waiter (who looked a lot like Karl Pilkington from the Idiot Abroad series on Science Channel) said, “I never recommend the cheesecake.”  Which we learned was his code for “that sucks, don’t order it.”  So they KNOW the cheesecake is bad but they keep making it the same way?  
652. After dinner we walked upstairs to the steakhouse.  Nothing on the menu was worth the extra $35 to me but my husband and our friends really wanted to try it, so they made reservations for the next night.<br />
653. Below are the pictures that aren't mentioned in the narrative but you may enjoy looking at them. No more text after that.<br />
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655. <a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgkiq5YLJxav1q5ns-EGRRQOFivEXbPVin7qa8gSakeDz_G7DQhxxQyXS401WI8hWbTJ89YY3RqkzDZ4MxOqB-oQ6598bmgHGUlHJGKh2eIVC4XfZHBf89-PVZvpiAeL7NzPUzi5Q/s1600/Cruise_Oct2012-010-cozumel_.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgkiq5YLJxav1q5ns-EGRRQOFivEXbPVin7qa8gSakeDz_G7DQhxxQyXS401WI8hWbTJ89YY3RqkzDZ4MxOqB-oQ6598bmgHGUlHJGKh2eIVC4XfZHBf89-PVZvpiAeL7NzPUzi5Q/s320/Cruise_Oct2012-010-cozumel_.png" width="320" /></a></div>
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658. <a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhUJU5If5t8A60BN5TbZ_xHC3qZXOWekfmVXo1zPyULd2S-a9Hw4xAtaYK7-ELBqaZJ2YlUNTZFSrPI-sXP0NbdQynkcIzE4UasWoQzAftIpLxUOtR8aFdCn0eT09LgQHhyphenhyphengb3mEw/s1600/Cruise_Oct2012-012-cozumel_.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhUJU5If5t8A60BN5TbZ_xHC3qZXOWekfmVXo1zPyULd2S-a9Hw4xAtaYK7-ELBqaZJ2YlUNTZFSrPI-sXP0NbdQynkcIzE4UasWoQzAftIpLxUOtR8aFdCn0eT09LgQHhyphenhyphengb3mEw/s320/Cruise_Oct2012-012-cozumel_.png" width="147" /></a></div>
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661. <a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjLDztPEwiRklCgzFuPLGUjJpJcLU2_h_JNq3y801ZY3we2TteYWWHdRQuHa-mUW1kvkB-qLRbELKsRqdE7msJva29y7aRZdFQ6ly8CrX8tAvdIa6fBcCU64gbtzJypKXE25wS0PQ/s1600/Cruise_Oct2012-014-cozumel_.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjLDztPEwiRklCgzFuPLGUjJpJcLU2_h_JNq3y801ZY3we2TteYWWHdRQuHa-mUW1kvkB-qLRbELKsRqdE7msJva29y7aRZdFQ6ly8CrX8tAvdIa6fBcCU64gbtzJypKXE25wS0PQ/s320/Cruise_Oct2012-014-cozumel_.png" width="320" /></a></div>
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664. <a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjnCIxoDvf7IcrghCelpTZmg_sN-Ev7UptCr6AnW_ZQFHNGk5UGw-s50x3BL1U1czinDgqtuKPAZYfLcSDsqjUnlObthyXgi793-fiC45NbnMp4CF3lH90HSWWXCU9nDpwglfV5lg/s1600/Cruise_Oct2012-015-lizard_w.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjnCIxoDvf7IcrghCelpTZmg_sN-Ev7UptCr6AnW_ZQFHNGk5UGw-s50x3BL1U1czinDgqtuKPAZYfLcSDsqjUnlObthyXgi793-fiC45NbnMp4CF3lH90HSWWXCU9nDpwglfV5lg/s320/Cruise_Oct2012-015-lizard_w.png" width="320" /></a></div>
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667. <a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhwlAs695mxYf3AKGr0tttvSRRmn2ybhRwhMDhcFaVrQzrk7MKs4IrN8HwHK3YcWjc-82yUhI7Gu8r3q4OF9TUTgtCBxOoXftpRNJ2GrtdtcFMLJzq0diCYBnul4qLof4D4VXr0qw/s1600/Cruise_Oct2012-021-cozumel_.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="186" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhwlAs695mxYf3AKGr0tttvSRRmn2ybhRwhMDhcFaVrQzrk7MKs4IrN8HwHK3YcWjc-82yUhI7Gu8r3q4OF9TUTgtCBxOoXftpRNJ2GrtdtcFMLJzq0diCYBnul4qLof4D4VXr0qw/s320/Cruise_Oct2012-021-cozumel_.png" width="320" /></a></div>
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670. <a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjBqEDTY9jQSujKKE63UAA1GxkfSK9DqXfvpoFzxFoRp-MHvMhOx27WTtKS9EshQC9rFJCczJKnBE0dpCjkqXxLTftlkoVhwzk-QVl1rDr0WWMEUcDGwk1azxymUyaZD1Zb48tyqA/s1600/Cruise_Oct2012-022-cozumel_.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="192" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjBqEDTY9jQSujKKE63UAA1GxkfSK9DqXfvpoFzxFoRp-MHvMhOx27WTtKS9EshQC9rFJCczJKnBE0dpCjkqXxLTftlkoVhwzk-QVl1rDr0WWMEUcDGwk1azxymUyaZD1Zb48tyqA/s320/Cruise_Oct2012-022-cozumel_.png" width="320" /></a></div>
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673. <a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiw_AKx1G0IXF2HEudIbKMGR9GngtYL1-4hyphenhypheniJutbCxH5bIC1X0aozeAmFoQkz0_wg7SdJw2F20Evj2fJ0ddL-lAAdK199xOSGEJ7uclaV5c9BY6c7lA9ZG7aHT3q3C8i7OtGPuZw/s1600/Cruise_Oct2012-024-cozumel_.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiw_AKx1G0IXF2HEudIbKMGR9GngtYL1-4hyphenhypheniJutbCxH5bIC1X0aozeAmFoQkz0_wg7SdJw2F20Evj2fJ0ddL-lAAdK199xOSGEJ7uclaV5c9BY6c7lA9ZG7aHT3q3C8i7OtGPuZw/s320/Cruise_Oct2012-024-cozumel_.png" width="320" /></a></div>
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676. <a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhC-h1hqUH7UHKttSfG1qhhCKxLj8f9PsRapy_314IEYDPh-Hw-SV2C01EICeARB14o17Gb6Af0T5AKihcF9egx8tdWIu-la-KaDKlhkx1QQEIuD33fGaBMd5FslaTUT5wYZ5H7_A/s1600/Cruise_Oct2012-025-cozumel_.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhC-h1hqUH7UHKttSfG1qhhCKxLj8f9PsRapy_314IEYDPh-Hw-SV2C01EICeARB14o17Gb6Af0T5AKihcF9egx8tdWIu-la-KaDKlhkx1QQEIuD33fGaBMd5FslaTUT5wYZ5H7_A/s320/Cruise_Oct2012-025-cozumel_.png" width="317" /></a></div>
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679. <a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjQvAPXnUD0BVqzwhGBQnDkMCxaLMH3Y_zUBIum5A5ABRaaRibNKeonROw2nr0YwolwZJDpq7kmhmabKiACeRPpGXcLk431QgaE2oEFcJH89iBsqBXtiTf4u7fzp-E1ttiABvPKTQ/s1600/Cruise_Oct2012-026-cozumel_.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjQvAPXnUD0BVqzwhGBQnDkMCxaLMH3Y_zUBIum5A5ABRaaRibNKeonROw2nr0YwolwZJDpq7kmhmabKiACeRPpGXcLk431QgaE2oEFcJH89iBsqBXtiTf4u7fzp-E1ttiABvPKTQ/s320/Cruise_Oct2012-026-cozumel_.png" width="320" /></a></div>
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682. <a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhFu15rfRzcweWvNYzuQEMtQqp5qq5AJuLp1wckEFea40fGdJclHzueE3VoulUbw9b2fo-Rv_im_AkrwkODQQAQ4evvG93eaVNnkbCA-EUgXspt_BKhhXSTTdnAyFn7cXPO_c_YaA/s1600/Cruise_Oct2012-029-cozumel_.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="168" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhFu15rfRzcweWvNYzuQEMtQqp5qq5AJuLp1wckEFea40fGdJclHzueE3VoulUbw9b2fo-Rv_im_AkrwkODQQAQ4evvG93eaVNnkbCA-EUgXspt_BKhhXSTTdnAyFn7cXPO_c_YaA/s320/Cruise_Oct2012-029-cozumel_.png" width="320" /></a></div>
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685. <a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj6b2E3dIJryXDu5gwTf0kaOiJm7Lxcvw68CeOYJfVmzkjslaSfXkUQ8lmo0oQC9J9JzlmaegrKoThvlsn4rNd4yUIE_OMQGDS2bR8EkH7N_uhyBvWB2MOqd7V1IQX-gdlx9vSQGA/s1600/Cruise_Oct2012-030-cozumel_.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="222" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj6b2E3dIJryXDu5gwTf0kaOiJm7Lxcvw68CeOYJfVmzkjslaSfXkUQ8lmo0oQC9J9JzlmaegrKoThvlsn4rNd4yUIE_OMQGDS2bR8EkH7N_uhyBvWB2MOqd7V1IQX-gdlx9vSQGA/s320/Cruise_Oct2012-030-cozumel_.png" width="320" /></a></div>
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688. <a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEic_4lDWO4DKsBo444FLkXdwvZUT335XUMlKb-vDVzADRlMCDIuzIO1BD-VCouxKG4N6hTtl6zov8PSw9vPk0cgUSxOy14GUfFcm06oUCJ3sOK2-KGjH1F-HxfmvcImpgsuJ_unKQ/s1600/Cruise_Oct2012-031-cozumel-.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEic_4lDWO4DKsBo444FLkXdwvZUT335XUMlKb-vDVzADRlMCDIuzIO1BD-VCouxKG4N6hTtl6zov8PSw9vPk0cgUSxOy14GUfFcm06oUCJ3sOK2-KGjH1F-HxfmvcImpgsuJ_unKQ/s320/Cruise_Oct2012-031-cozumel-.png" width="320" /></a></div>
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691. <a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEijvedQQ9spk-6Ht1-1vXQwXLPpGHGd_f4NqY-7uoOUepaUFQnDiffsznUxqm_bV47-h0yObadB_MbXqmrgsO6nAb2T9mHa_qtEmhr5OaEa_c4u_zI1xb-sb7gszftjlblLJEFiCQ/s1600/Cruise_Oct2012-032-cozumel_.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEijvedQQ9spk-6Ht1-1vXQwXLPpGHGd_f4NqY-7uoOUepaUFQnDiffsznUxqm_bV47-h0yObadB_MbXqmrgsO6nAb2T9mHa_qtEmhr5OaEa_c4u_zI1xb-sb7gszftjlblLJEFiCQ/s320/Cruise_Oct2012-032-cozumel_.png" width="240" /></a></div>
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694. <a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgr0uNhpeLaiR-KPdmswdBMPfrBCrnmxv6iZda85nSoywO4uRnpsUFplk0NIfi1Ti9SCvsykyobQjc6aGv8jQadF5h_y0vgJhZnu8GIb_yqFJn9FSgj1fPcJPx-ZiGAXDxOK3k2-w/s1600/Cruise_Oct2012-036-cozumel-.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgr0uNhpeLaiR-KPdmswdBMPfrBCrnmxv6iZda85nSoywO4uRnpsUFplk0NIfi1Ti9SCvsykyobQjc6aGv8jQadF5h_y0vgJhZnu8GIb_yqFJn9FSgj1fPcJPx-ZiGAXDxOK3k2-w/s320/Cruise_Oct2012-036-cozumel-.png" width="320" /></a></div>
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697. <a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEipWLWmZj5rXvsXwWD1ngO4nc1wSi4C8q6ph4Vlpy4UdJKu7O4OknnqBlbiBHvDq_rWfqU2yrLSsgGCcLfIG9eph1LzpDtkAzdFBdKKgVo6Qq_JWY07zlXLM2nNsHfXNvKD5elWvQ/s1600/Cruise_Oct2012-037-cozumel-.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEipWLWmZj5rXvsXwWD1ngO4nc1wSi4C8q6ph4Vlpy4UdJKu7O4OknnqBlbiBHvDq_rWfqU2yrLSsgGCcLfIG9eph1LzpDtkAzdFBdKKgVo6Qq_JWY07zlXLM2nNsHfXNvKD5elWvQ/s320/Cruise_Oct2012-037-cozumel-.png" width="320" /></a></div>
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700. <a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgI9a0Pp8ga7hHp9UcNbfMR_Gj5bPr8waP5Lz1Ujexzw43G9_71HSXcPACIncTR5ggMGPhgkE1p8WQsiwRQCsKtAvoMIGGAugKIB8JQ7D4MIWhqe9xW6YVkP7gmL4a5enXfhee15g/s1600/Cruise_Oct2012-042-cozumelw.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgI9a0Pp8ga7hHp9UcNbfMR_Gj5bPr8waP5Lz1Ujexzw43G9_71HSXcPACIncTR5ggMGPhgkE1p8WQsiwRQCsKtAvoMIGGAugKIB8JQ7D4MIWhqe9xW6YVkP7gmL4a5enXfhee15g/s320/Cruise_Oct2012-042-cozumelw.png" width="320" /></a></div>
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703. <a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjDsvFW8_YjBF_aQf19QXjBY7gzeEWOery2itu9YbZcShI9zBO4BCRnvcHAN_yZaNxCrX_L1zx1S4oKHXNSEX9hXiQy1uexq9uTG9t6J1Qwgkx33oEh6yhL5suX4FViTXtZ0Ue_IQ/s1600/Cruise_Oct2012-044-cozumel_.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjDsvFW8_YjBF_aQf19QXjBY7gzeEWOery2itu9YbZcShI9zBO4BCRnvcHAN_yZaNxCrX_L1zx1S4oKHXNSEX9hXiQy1uexq9uTG9t6J1Qwgkx33oEh6yhL5suX4FViTXtZ0Ue_IQ/s320/Cruise_Oct2012-044-cozumel_.png" width="320" /></a></div>
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706. <a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg7VnPCAZEWDS6mpbCFdSYF-HYyITA13F4-u3ObvUMXiHqkwLhRLOfdvlQq4BymLrNajEgWGFkB9KKd5Lj4zVAJ5icavd37rPgVZctoGQNku4JsI-9oZShF4ly_Hc3oWKlBKqOTRQ/s1600/Cruise_Oct2012-047-cozumel-.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="177" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg7VnPCAZEWDS6mpbCFdSYF-HYyITA13F4-u3ObvUMXiHqkwLhRLOfdvlQq4BymLrNajEgWGFkB9KKd5Lj4zVAJ5icavd37rPgVZctoGQNku4JsI-9oZShF4ly_Hc3oWKlBKqOTRQ/s320/Cruise_Oct2012-047-cozumel-.png" width="320" /></a></div>
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712. <a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj5QrXriV7V2dIYGuc2zA66DOVyMl2Y0Km3UgzTFXoBiyT4iYr4Y5sFRHnpW0h3_FmLmMXJq1-On06661mnJm6r7rLfvltWJVfvw964Vuy1kNij1uPYcpvqysRPg_cLUhoufjrLgg/s1600/Cruise_Oct2012-050-cozumel-.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj5QrXriV7V2dIYGuc2zA66DOVyMl2Y0Km3UgzTFXoBiyT4iYr4Y5sFRHnpW0h3_FmLmMXJq1-On06661mnJm6r7rLfvltWJVfvw964Vuy1kNij1uPYcpvqysRPg_cLUhoufjrLgg/s320/Cruise_Oct2012-050-cozumel-.png" width="320" /></a></div>
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715. <a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjpE4l3MKwDZM882-_2RjtKqDxPHnatjXrrZ7SJl9HLs1abjwxSYrQACRR7Na3eLP9FcSbp9YFKIMNVMc0caH1yoit6Fp0YzokUdsLHzoEdc6dHaPM_QHfNjN7ewR8ZeMzPm-Vfrw/s1600/Cruise_Oct2012-051-cozumel-.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="190" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjpE4l3MKwDZM882-_2RjtKqDxPHnatjXrrZ7SJl9HLs1abjwxSYrQACRR7Na3eLP9FcSbp9YFKIMNVMc0caH1yoit6Fp0YzokUdsLHzoEdc6dHaPM_QHfNjN7ewR8ZeMzPm-Vfrw/s320/Cruise_Oct2012-051-cozumel-.png" width="320" /></a></div>
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718. <a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjcU_vD9wqu7qsUdIejZp5HDcrorljoPyw5WFGj-v2jispQD-dvAMz9LlLN8yMaiI9qfQgf_RiwW4CauulxeyfxxFiCsdSdD7gb93dtMwGt7ORrkpvrLpn8QIhsAt3E0vNt3Gw-UQ/s1600/Cruise_Oct2012-053-cozumel-.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjcU_vD9wqu7qsUdIejZp5HDcrorljoPyw5WFGj-v2jispQD-dvAMz9LlLN8yMaiI9qfQgf_RiwW4CauulxeyfxxFiCsdSdD7gb93dtMwGt7ORrkpvrLpn8QIhsAt3E0vNt3Gw-UQ/s320/Cruise_Oct2012-053-cozumel-.png" width="320" /></a></div>
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721. <a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh88IO9lm-zzMeN0oHbDQWxs3muV7dJ3TqcLhWeNJk8LGB4KuSIA9zrFE_sbRWxBwhnVEJnjRJ1jfK6GtL0fxmj2yG8yF0nZrA9af3i5mClr19tKGZ6exMcyCu_2hl7zbHFs9s-Bg/s1600/Cruise_Oct2012-054-cozumel-.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh88IO9lm-zzMeN0oHbDQWxs3muV7dJ3TqcLhWeNJk8LGB4KuSIA9zrFE_sbRWxBwhnVEJnjRJ1jfK6GtL0fxmj2yG8yF0nZrA9af3i5mClr19tKGZ6exMcyCu_2hl7zbHFs9s-Bg/s320/Cruise_Oct2012-054-cozumel-.png" width="320" /></a></div>
722. <br />
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724. <a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh3Nrrpsc-4IvTzsncOGzIhaDwjZwTiwv0B5Yi-spNGDhOR_ZS78Imi_g9Ci9hugSO9zJge3ICVog8mBUa1MailyyOw1ua9C9dhxA4uFdKhitHFM9YOrGMbMcgIIwMQ6K6Rxm_nRg/s1600/Cruise_Oct2012-056-cozumel-.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh3Nrrpsc-4IvTzsncOGzIhaDwjZwTiwv0B5Yi-spNGDhOR_ZS78Imi_g9Ci9hugSO9zJge3ICVog8mBUa1MailyyOw1ua9C9dhxA4uFdKhitHFM9YOrGMbMcgIIwMQ6K6Rxm_nRg/s320/Cruise_Oct2012-056-cozumel-.png" width="320" /></a></div>
725. <div class="blogger-post-footer">http://ofsinitiate.blogspot.com
726. (c) Gevera Bert Piedmont  })i({
727. Thank you!&lt;/div&gt;</content><link rel='replies' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://ofsinitiate.blogspot.com/feeds/162876386631214734/comments/default' title='Post Comments'/><link rel='replies' type='text/html' href='http://www.blogger.com/comment.g?blogID=12406865&amp;postID=162876386631214734' title='0 Comments'/><link rel='edit' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/12406865/posts/default/162876386631214734'/><link rel='self' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/12406865/posts/default/162876386631214734'/><link rel='alternate' type='text/html' href='http://ofsinitiate.blogspot.com/2012/10/cruise-2012-in-which-i-get-to-keep-my.html' title='Cruise 2012: in which I get to keep my organs'/><author><name>GBP  })i({</name><uri>http://www.blogger.com/profile/09275995534174189926</uri><email>noreply@blogger.com</email><gd:image rel='http://schemas.google.com/g/2005#thumbnail' width='25' height='32' src='http://www.obsidianbutterfly.com/assets/about/Green%20Bert%20copy.jpg'/></author><media:thumbnail xmlns:media="http://search.yahoo.com/mrss/" url="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiCMkFFY_vEEX5v4ro5byY14WADcFL7B0OB3YjPjzpV6cBOlq6v5mD-hDhmzwE7rlamL5NHPQBFgZLc6rymTuY-ugMr8CULXUvk5afnIrD1MQ4Qt0SSO0ADddG1_4NtvPx5xovZ9Q/s72-c/notmygeo-web.png" height="72" width="72"/><thr:total>0</thr:total></entry><entry><id>tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-12406865.post-5663658544715469617</id><published>2012-10-21T15:18:00.000-04:00</published><updated>2012-10-30T15:44:17.834-04:00</updated><category scheme="http://www.blogger.com/atom/ns#" term="Carnival Liberty"/><category scheme="http://www.blogger.com/atom/ns#" term="cruise ship"/><category scheme="http://www.blogger.com/atom/ns#" term="pneumonia"/><category scheme="http://www.blogger.com/atom/ns#" term="sick bay"/><title type='text'>Cruise 2012: in which pneumonia strikes</title><content type='html'>After not sleeping well again, I was up very early on Sunday 10/21/21.  We both coughed all night.  I went down to the medic and explained about the lost bag (which really did contain a full, brand-new sealed bottle of Nyquil) and my yearly chronic cough (which I haven’t had in years, this cough was acute) and got a small bottle of cough syrup free.  I went upstairs and dosed Will with it.  It was green and horrible.  I wanted him to go to the medic for real but he said he was afraid they’d put him off the boat for having “flu-like symptoms” and refused to go.&lt;br /&gt;
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729. <a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi3WUlHJOXFIj3i9vTy6NajB4-JAy5qlWYEIJ2JmXp8xAIiBySNaI5SW9jlCI6v6Tzu-f7nv6U5V5RCnqzEe_trWzZpELdhoUaMQvoFVoyzswKji6Q9blFX_BL1Tc_ylbyORzSQRg/s1600/615904_510717122271732_6474.png" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="317" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi3WUlHJOXFIj3i9vTy6NajB4-JAy5qlWYEIJ2JmXp8xAIiBySNaI5SW9jlCI6v6Tzu-f7nv6U5V5RCnqzEe_trWzZpELdhoUaMQvoFVoyzswKji6Q9blFX_BL1Tc_ylbyORzSQRg/s320/615904_510717122271732_6474.png" width="320" /></a></div>
730. I gathered my lost luggage paperwork and headed to the Guest Services help desk and spent a lovely hour there winning friends and influencing people.  Oh that’s right, that was <a href="http://www.facebook.com/ToadPurse">Toad Purse</a> making friends, not me.
731. It turned out that <b>our Carnival Cruise protection plan actually covered the airline losing the luggage.  If the luggage wasn’t located in a timely manner, or if I needed to purchase replacement items before it was found, Carnival would pay me back.  Even if I had to buy $100 more worth of new snorkel equipment.</b>  They gave me two toiletries kits (just to add to my gallon of existing stuff) and a voucher for free cleaning because somehow I packed only shirts in my carry-on and all my pants in the duffel bag.  I had the cargo pants I wore on the plane, and another pair of capris, and some spandex bike shorts.  That was it.<br />
732. We had arranged to meet our friends for lunch.  Will could barely walk or breathe.  I asked if he wanted to go to the medic and he said no.  We headed the length of the ship to the back, found our friends, picked up plates for the buffet--and Will said, “I need the doctor.” Put down the plates, walk back to the front of the boat and down from level 9 to 0 and the doctor’s closed until 3.  My poor husband was doubled over half dead.  I found a crew member and told him <b>it was a real emergency, that Will couldn’t breathe,</b> and he called someone and the medical people arrived and swarmed him.
733. They had him in their little sick-bay bed almost immediately, oxygen tubes up his nose, IV in his arm, then a mask over his face to administer medicine.  His oxygen saturation level was only 86 (should be 98 or 99 percent).<br />
734.  I stayed for a while but I was useless and in the way, and the nurses said he’d be there until at least 3 p.m., so I left to go to the 24 hour pizzeria and see if I could find our friends (I couldn’t, and I couldn’t remember their room number to call them).  I came back at 3 to see if he was ready to go.  He wasn’t.  
735. <b>I thought we’d make it to formal night and he’d get his lobster.  We didn’t.
736. He wasn’t allowed to walk.  He wasn’t allowed on shore the next day.  They had to call for a wheelchair.</b>  They called at 5 and it didn’t come until 5:45 and our dinner seating was at 6 so there was no way we could make the formal night since we needed to shower (I’d gone in the salt water pool early in the morning and my hair was crusty, for one thing).<br />
737. Will had multiple breathing treatments, antibiotics through the IV, pure oxygen up his nose, and his level was only in the low 90s.  The nurse said that if he’d gone into an emergency room in the U.S. with his symptoms, he would have been admitted.  They said he could go to the hospital in Mexico the next day but obviously we didn’t want that, and they also thought he’d probably get better care staying on the ship.  (My friend, who is a triage nurse at an ER, said that the prices on the ship were really very cheap and it would be cheaper to get a physical there than in the U.S. without insurance!)  <b>He had two chest x-rays on their crappy little machine and he had pneumonia in one lung.  The bill was $800, charged to our on-board account (also known as our Discover card).  The nurse pronounced him “a very sick man” and made me feel slightly guilty for not staying at his side all day.</b><br />
738.  In lieu of formal night’s lobster and steak, my husband had a sandwich from room service and I had more pizza.  When I came back he complained that his room service sandwich had been too small and I walked back up to deck 9 to get him another one from the deli; it was a bigger, better sandwich with more meat, he said.<br />
739. I was still angry over the loss of our bag.  I found a flyer that said if you applied for a Carnival Fun Points credit card you’d get a free backpack.  I filled out the app and climbed up to deck 5 (we were on 2) and <b>got 2 free backpacks so I’d have a small bag when I went ashore for cameras, water, etc., since my tote bag was MIA inside the duffel.</b>  I have no idea if we got the credit card or not and honestly I don’t care, I only wanted the backpacks.  They also gave me 2 lanyards for our Carnival IDs and punched mine so I could use the lanyard.<br />
740. I found the bakery and bought a giant piece of chocolate cake for $2. It did not make me feel better.<br />
741. <b>The medics had already said the only way Will was going ashore in Cozumel was en route to the hospital.  I was worried about our excursion to Xunatunich the next day in Belize; it was a long bus ride and then hours of walking around Mayan ruins and climbing the pyramid.  I didn’t want to go alone.</b> (Our friends went to Altun Ha, which we already visited on a previous trip in 2003.  Or maybe they went cave tubing.  Either way, not with us.)  I was worried <b>if Will’s breathing got bad he’d end up in a Belize hospital, and who wants to be in a hospital in a country with only 3 stop lights.  In the WHOLE COUNTRY.  I can’t imagine what their jaguar-to-stop-light ratio is but I bet it’s very high. </b><br />
742. I stopped by the excursions desk and noted that there were no refunds within 24 hours of an excursion if cancelled and only 25% refund if cancelled with more than a day’s notice.  I showed them the $800 bill saying PNEUMONIA and they agreed to cancel Xunatunich for a full refund if necessary.  So no Mayan pyramid in Belize for me this trip.  :(<br />
743. <b>I stopped at the Guest Services desk to check on the bag.  They said it was sitting in DC, having never made the plane.  I was somehow completely unsurprised by that.</b>  But it was going to be sent to Cozumel, and someone from Carnival would pick it up and transport it to our room as soon as we arrived in Cozumel at 7 a.m. the next morning.
744. <div class="blogger-post-footer">http://ofsinitiate.blogspot.com
745. (c) Gevera Bert Piedmont  })i({
746. Thank you!&lt;/div&gt;</content><link rel='replies' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://ofsinitiate.blogspot.com/feeds/5663658544715469617/comments/default' title='Post Comments'/><link rel='replies' type='text/html' href='http://www.blogger.com/comment.g?blogID=12406865&amp;postID=5663658544715469617' title='0 Comments'/><link rel='edit' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/12406865/posts/default/5663658544715469617'/><link rel='self' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/12406865/posts/default/5663658544715469617'/><link rel='alternate' type='text/html' href='http://ofsinitiate.blogspot.com/2012/10/cruise-2012-in-which-pneumonia-strikes.html' title='Cruise 2012: in which pneumonia strikes'/><author><name>GBP  })i({</name><uri>http://www.blogger.com/profile/09275995534174189926</uri><email>noreply@blogger.com</email><gd:image rel='http://schemas.google.com/g/2005#thumbnail' width='25' height='32' src='http://www.obsidianbutterfly.com/assets/about/Green%20Bert%20copy.jpg'/></author><media:thumbnail xmlns:media="http://search.yahoo.com/mrss/" url="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi3WUlHJOXFIj3i9vTy6NajB4-JAy5qlWYEIJ2JmXp8xAIiBySNaI5SW9jlCI6v6Tzu-f7nv6U5V5RCnqzEe_trWzZpELdhoUaMQvoFVoyzswKji6Q9blFX_BL1Tc_ylbyORzSQRg/s72-c/615904_510717122271732_6474.png" height="72" width="72"/><thr:total>0</thr:total></entry><entry><id>tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-12406865.post-1786511227346276454</id><published>2012-10-20T10:34:00.000-04:00</published><updated>2012-10-30T15:16:19.886-04:00</updated><category scheme="http://www.blogger.com/atom/ns#" term="airline"/><category scheme="http://www.blogger.com/atom/ns#" term="airport"/><category scheme="http://www.blogger.com/atom/ns#" term="Carnival"/><category scheme="http://www.blogger.com/atom/ns#" term="Carnival Liberty"/><category scheme="http://www.blogger.com/atom/ns#" term="cruise"/><category scheme="http://www.blogger.com/atom/ns#" term="lost luggage"/><category scheme="http://www.blogger.com/atom/ns#" term="missed planes"/><category scheme="http://www.blogger.com/atom/ns#" term="vacation"/><title type='text'>Cruise 2012: in which much goes awry</title><content type='html'>The first of several entries detailing my recent cruise to the Caribbean. &amp;nbsp;There are other pictures, featuring my giant stuffed traveling toad, on my &lt;a href=&quot;http://www.facebook.com/ToadPurse&quot;&gt;Toad Purse Facebook page.&lt;/a&gt;&lt;br /&gt;
747. <hr />
748. We did what we were supposed to do.  None of it was our fault.  Really.
749. I never went to sleep on Friday night.  I don’t think Will slept much either.  So we were up by 2:45 a.m. and left by 3:30 a.m. for a 5:50 a.m. flight.  We were at Bradley in plenty of time.  Checked the big bag (remember that sad statement later) and got on the plane with the carry-on bags.  See?  Everything in its place.<br />
750. Or not.<br />
751. <table align="right" border="1" style="width: 100px;"><tbody>
752. <tr><td><i><span style="color: #351c75;">toiletries interlude: When we went through security in Bradley, I got stopped. They didn’t put me in the bomb box this time like they did in North Carolina a few years ago, but I got pulled aside and my bag searched. Why? I did an unforgivable sin. I packed my toiletries in a GALLON ziplock instead of a QUART. They decided that since it was toiletries for two, the gallon bag was okay just this once. I did not point out that a gallon contains 4 quarts not 2. But I got lectured by some 85-IQ guy in a fake cop suit. “THIS is a quart bag. THIS is your bag. THIS is a GALLON.” Well jeez I’m sorry okay, clearly I’ve totally ruined the airport for the day and it better shut down. I got off with just a warning, this time.</span></i></td></tr>
753. </tbody></table>
754. The captain comes on.  <b>Says that through a snafu of some sort (not his fault, either), we are on the wrong plane.  At the wrong gate.</b>  The plane in which we are all ensconced is actually going to Newark instead of Washington DC.  And it needs maintenance.  Apparently it needs maintenance so badly that it can’t possibly go the couple of extra hundred miles to DC instead of Newark.  So “they” (presumably the same “they” that put us on the wrong plane) won’t let us stay on this plane.  Possession is NOT nine tenths of the law with planes, I guess.<br />
755. We all get off the plane, collect our carry-ons from under the seat and the overhead compartments where nothing shifted because the plane never moved.  We walk down the stairs, across the runway, up the stairs, across the concourse to another gate, outside, down the stairs, across the runway, up some more stairs (tiny planes didn’t fit the jetway) and get on the IDENTICAL plane.  Meanwhile our baggage is doing the same, invisibly.<br />
756. We’re on another plane, supposedly the proper plane, waiting again.  <b>Wondering why it was okay for the previous plane to fly to Newark to get serviced but another couple hundred miles to DC would have caused it to fall apart in midair or something.  And what idiot flies from Hartford to Newark anyway?</b><br />
757. And now this plane is out of gas.  I can’t make this stuff up.  <b>We have to wait for the gas truck to come up and fill up the plane.
758. Obviously this makes us very, very late.</b>  We’re in the air still at the time we’re supposed to board our next plane to Miami.  Naturally we are very concerned about making that flight.  We’re meeting a cruise ship, not merely checking into a hotel, so time really matters.  And our friends were picking us up at MIA at 11 a.m. in their rental car so we could all have lunch somewhere fun before hitting the cruise ship at 1:30.  Well, not HITTING it, that would be bad.  Getting there.<br />
759. <b>The flight attendants assure us that they will hold the connection planes and if not we’ll AUTOMATICALLY be booked onto the next plane going to our destination and our bags will AUTOMATICALLY follow</b>.  Because clearly our one hour layover has been completely eaten by the whole wrong plane no gas debacle. 
760. <br />
761. They announce our connecting gate of D4 at Dulles. They announce our arrival gate of C18. We land. C18 is right near D4.  Our plane is still at D4.  And there’s a random plane at C18.  That plane is injured in some way and can’t leave. Or maybe it’s in a snit, it’s an emo plane.  I don’t know.<br />
762. Our plane is going on a Sunday drive (although it’s Saturday) cruising at low speed around the Dulles runways waiting for a gate to open.  We keep checking out D4.  Plane to Miami is still there.  The flight attendant tells us to tell the gate attendant as soon as we exit this plane to call D4 and hold the plane while we run.  Gate C21 opens, even closer to D4. <br />
763. The attendant at C21 is a major bitch.  She doesn’t want to call D4.  We beg.  She is in a snit, probably related to the snit of the plane still crouched at our real gate of C18.  She calls.  We run.  We are both sick, coughing and my lungs are falling out but <b>we run and get to gate D4 and there’s our plane and the f*king attendant there won’t let us on the plane.</b><br />
764. “We called ahead!  We RAN.”  We’re fat and sick.  Give us a break.  She was adamant.  “We don’t hold flights.”  “We called!  We ran!”  Nope.  TFB, basically, go back to customer service at gate C19 and complain. <br />
765. <table align="left" border="1" style="width: 100px;"><tbody>
766. <tr><td><i><span style="color: #351c75;">  sick interlude: Tuesday night we had dinner with my mom. She works at an elementary school as a recess and lunch lady. She is always bringing home exotic kid diseases. She was coughing that night. Wednesday I woke up coughing and with no voice, and Friday I skipped the gym because I was still coughing, and of course Will started coughing too. I called my mom before we left and said she made us both sick right before our vacation and she denied it.</span></i></td></tr>
767. </tbody></table>
768. At this point my lungs started to bubble and burble, this means bronchitis.  I could barely walk.  No more running in my future.  Will went ahead to get into line and get our AUTOMATIC new flight to Miami.  Our whole entire plane was in line already. Luckily it was a small plane with few people!  I<b> called Expedia on my cell phone (I bought travel insurance).  Expedia called United.  They were on hold with United, I was on hold with Expedia and waiting in line at United.</b> This is efficiency at its best, folks. Finally they arranged for us to<b> take a taxi to Reagan International Airport 45 minutes away and switch from United to American and get to Miami at 1:40 which seemed like plenty of time to make the cruise ship which leaves at 5:00 right.</b>  Because there were no more flights on any carrier to Miami from DC that would get there in time to make the cruise ship.  When we get our turn at the United CSR they give us a voucher for $70 for the cab fare to Reagan in Virginia and <b>tell us to run and that we probably still won’t make it.</b>  “What about our checked bag?”  “It probably made the flight to Miami, it will be waiting for you there at the United unclaimed baggage.”  Now, remember that we got off the previous flight and RAN and didn’t make it, how the heck did our luggage make it?  But they said it did so we had to believe them.<br />
769. I text my friends that we aren’t going to be lunching with them or need a ride and to go to the ship without us.  Dulles offers no golf carts.  <b>We have to run again, the length of the airport, not even any people-moving sidewalks.  We have to find a specific brand of cab that will take our voucher.</b>  We find one.  My husband offers the guy $40 extra in cash to get us there before 10 for our 11 a.m. flight (it’s 9:30).  Hey, it works in the movies.
770. The cab driver programs his GPS.  That’s a little worrying but I try not to freak.  He takes off sedately.  The highway is uncrowded.  He is going fifty in a fifty-five zone.  I call Carnival and explain our predicament, and tell them that there are still about a dozen people from Hartford stuck at Dulles and no clue how they are going to make the ship.  The cab driver, ignoring the cash Will’s waving, continues to poke along.  I ask the Carnival lady, “What happens if we miss this flight?” because just then we hit a 2 mile traffic jam leading to exit 75 which is the one for the airport and now it’s 10 a.m. and we’re dead stopped.  <b>The Carnival lady says we need to “make our way to Cozumel” (the first port of call, on Monday) and meet the ship there.  This sounds expensive.  The next flight to Miami from anywhere in Washington DC leaves at 3:45 and we’ll need to be on that to collect our bag, which is waiting for us in Miami remember, so we can’t even fly right to Cancun from DC if we miss this flight.  Which it looks like we are going to do.  Because of this stupid cab driver who wouldn’t take a bribe and now we’re stuck in traffic anyway and it’s 10:00 a.m. and we need to be in line for the plane already and we have to go through security and get our boarding passes before we can get on the plane.  So we are losing our minds.  And coughing, don’t forget coughing.</b><br />
771. We arrive at the airport at 10:15 and the driver, realizing finally that he’s a jerk, doesn’t take the $40 but he does make us come back into the cab and sign a bunch of paperwork after we've already collected our reduced luggage and are walking away.  We try to do curbside check-in but we can’t because we only have vouchers, not boarding passes.  <b>We go into the e-ticket line (because that’s what the CSR at the other airport said we had) but we couldn’t get the machine to work with any numbers on our paperwork.  The crabby lady there said we had to wait in the long line for unimportant peons.</b>  I’m almost crying and my lungs are burbling away.  
772. We’re in the long line.  The curbside check in guy comes in with someone’s bags and sees us in line and gets mad.  He says “I shouldn’t get involved, but you shouldn’t be in this line!  You’re going to miss your flight.  You should be over there!” He points to the e-ticket area.  We tell him that dragon-bitch sent us away.  Dragon bitch is glaring at us.  <b>The curbside guy pulls us out of line and past dragon bitch to some nice guy named Mike who takes care of us instantly and says the security line is short and we’ll make it but we have to get seat assignments at the gate.</b><br />
773. <b>And then I remember the stupid gallon bag and this is DC and 9/11 and all that and I want to kick myself in the head.  I resolve to just abandon the toiletries if they give me a problem about my big bag.
774. They don’t even notice the gallon bag, thank all the gods.</b><br />
775. We run again.
776. I’m wheezing and coughing.  We get to the gate.  The flight is boarding.  I run to the desk and say “we have no seat assignments” and the woman, bless her lovely heart, hands us our tickets all printed out and waiting.  <b>We get on the plane!  We make the ship!  All is well!
777. Well, no.
778. </b>Remember, way back at 5 a.m. in Bradley, 6 hours ago, when we checked our duffle bag?  Yeah, that duffle bag.  The one checked through on United to Miami that was going to waiting for us at United’s unclaimed baggage area when we got there at 1:40.<br />
779. We get to Miami International Airport.  We go to the baggage claim area for American and claim our carry-ons that got checked through.  Then I go to the Carnival desk and ask for help and in exchange I buy 2 tickets on the Carnival transport bus since our friends are already on the ship, their rental car long turned in.  <b>The Carnival lady calls United.  They have no record of the bag.  They say that because we got moved to American, they have the bag.  She calls American.  They say that it’s a United claim tag and United has to help us and they have no record of the bag.</b>
780. I leave my husband at the Carnival desk with the bags we have and trudge about a mile to the United desk to find our other bag.  I was there a very long time.  They had no record of anything.  <b>By the time I was done there I wasn’t sure that I existed or that I had flown to Miami at all that day.</b><br />
781.  Even though I was freaking, I let a guy go ahead of me because he was crying.  They (the same They that can’t figure out what plane goes where, I’m guessing) had failed to check his luggage through to Bonaire and he needed to claim it and get back through security to his Bonaire flight and the baggage wasn’t on the carousel and he only had 48 minutes and basically they told him “we’ll find it and send it to Bonaire on the next flight” and he said “that’s in 3 days, the flight I’m leaving on!” and it was his scuba equipment (my friend goes diving there, I guess it’s gorgeous) and he ran to catch the Bonaire flight with no luggage at all and I felt terrible for him.
782. Also in line were a pair of off-duty cops who said that the airline lost “seven bags of confidential police material” whatever that means and they were pretty pissed off too.  And they probably had guns.  I kept my distance.  Apparently there was a cop and fireman convention in town.<br />
783. When it was finally my turn (I wasn’t freaking out yet, we had 2 hours to get to the ship, it was a half hour away and we had a ride arranged on the bus) <b>the guy was super nice and helpful but still could give me no information about my mysterious invisible missing bag.</b>  He made copies of my documents and filled out the form saying my black duffel bag, style 25 (oh yeah, <b>this bag has been lost by airlines before</b>), with my snorkeling gear and half our clothes and more toiletries and my tote bag and 2 umbrellas and a notebook and extra batteries and basically all kinds of stuff I packed because we NEED it, is missing.<br />
784. <div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
785. <a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj6hV-glMpwBb1Q7XeahA1Fn2vedIr3tAfQ1UirUtpybEdTy5LC_WQj0IPXnd-l2Snrj-c25keqMBQJIXpkedWjPvjt-ckzI03AeL0GvFJw_MD0jKFLNfNxdBRM69rbl1zQ_Fwe5w/s1600/carnival-liberty_web.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="286" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj6hV-glMpwBb1Q7XeahA1Fn2vedIr3tAfQ1UirUtpybEdTy5LC_WQj0IPXnd-l2Snrj-c25keqMBQJIXpkedWjPvjt-ckzI03AeL0GvFJw_MD0jKFLNfNxdBRM69rbl1zQ_Fwe5w/s320/carnival-liberty_web.png" width="320" /></a></div>
786.  I had to write down every port of call and the ship’s shore times (provided thanks to the kind Carnival lady who called both airlines for me) so the bag might be able to catch up on one of them.  <b>The guy said that he was sure the bag made it onto the DC to Miami flight and they’d find it and send it to the cruise ship before it left the Port of Miami.  Even though we ran and didn’t make the flight, our bag was evidently magical and did.
787. </b>We gave up on our poor missing duffel bag and got on the last bus to the cruise ship with two ladies.<br />
788. <b> As we were (running of course)  going through the port doing the check-in procedure, they asked us if we had any “flu like symptoms” and we lied without blinking an eye, holding in our coughs.  We’re fine, keep moving, nothing to see here. </b><br />
789. Will was feeling worse and worse. I’d left a lung behind in DC.  We had dinner with our friends and went to sleep after a long and stressful day, both feeling sick and with no sleep the night before.  That was Day 0.
790. Oh, and our bag didn’t arrive.<div class="blogger-post-footer">http://ofsinitiate.blogspot.com
791. (c) Gevera Bert Piedmont  })i({
792. Thank you!&lt;/div&gt;</content><link rel='replies' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://ofsinitiate.blogspot.com/feeds/1786511227346276454/comments/default' title='Post Comments'/><link rel='replies' type='text/html' href='http://www.blogger.com/comment.g?blogID=12406865&amp;postID=1786511227346276454' title='0 Comments'/><link rel='edit' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/12406865/posts/default/1786511227346276454'/><link rel='self' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/12406865/posts/default/1786511227346276454'/><link rel='alternate' type='text/html' href='http://ofsinitiate.blogspot.com/2012/10/cruise-2012-in-which-much-goes-awry.html' title='Cruise 2012: in which much goes awry'/><author><name>GBP  })i({</name><uri>http://www.blogger.com/profile/09275995534174189926</uri><email>noreply@blogger.com</email><gd:image rel='http://schemas.google.com/g/2005#thumbnail' width='25' height='32' src='http://www.obsidianbutterfly.com/assets/about/Green%20Bert%20copy.jpg'/></author><media:thumbnail xmlns:media="http://search.yahoo.com/mrss/" url="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj6hV-glMpwBb1Q7XeahA1Fn2vedIr3tAfQ1UirUtpybEdTy5LC_WQj0IPXnd-l2Snrj-c25keqMBQJIXpkedWjPvjt-ckzI03AeL0GvFJw_MD0jKFLNfNxdBRM69rbl1zQ_Fwe5w/s72-c/carnival-liberty_web.png" height="72" width="72"/><thr:total>0</thr:total></entry><entry><id>tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-12406865.post-9082915035797524265</id><published>2012-08-26T14:41:00.000-04:00</published><updated>2012-08-26T14:41:43.968-04:00</updated><category scheme="http://www.blogger.com/atom/ns#" term="flower of life"/><category scheme="http://www.blogger.com/atom/ns#" term="merkaba"/><category scheme="http://www.blogger.com/atom/ns#" term="metatrons cube"/><category scheme="http://www.blogger.com/atom/ns#" term="sacred geometry"/><category scheme="http://www.blogger.com/atom/ns#" term="star tetrahedron"/><title type='text'>how to live multidimensionally through sacred geometry</title><content type='html'>&lt;br /&gt;
793. <div align="left" class="style1" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 16px;">
794. Here is a reprint of a new <a href="http://www.obsidianbutterfly.com/articles/howtolivemultidim.html">Sacred Geometry article</a> on my website.</div>
795. <div align="left" class="style1" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 16px;">
796. This is a version of the text of my lecture at the Astrological Society New Age Fair on 19 August, 2012, minus the meditation.</div>
797. <div align="left" class="style1" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 16px;">
798. <em>All the graphics are opriginally from the two volumes of the </em>Ancient Secret of the Flower of Life <em>by Drunvalo Melchizedek, although I have altered them in many cases (I created the looping gif, and the multicolored Flower of Life sphere, and colored the merkaba positions).</em></div>
799. <div style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 16px;">
800. <strong>Sacred Geometry</strong> is not what you learned sophomore year of high school. This is something much different and much more fun. Sacred Geometry is the organizational basis of all that exists, has existed and will exist. Found within these patterns are both two and three dimensional shapes which carry archetypal memories.</div>
801. <div style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 16px;">
802. This is a very brief introduction to what Sacred Geometry is and how you can use these concepts to expand your consciousness. The basic form of sacred geometry is called the <strong>Flower of Life</strong>. It is a beautiful interlocking series of circles. Each circle’s circumference crosses other circles’ center points.<br />You can draw the Flower of Life yourself, using a high quality compass. The basic steps look like this, with the finished product (usually illustrated with a double circle as a frame) in the lower right.<br /><img height="115" src="http://www.obsidianbutterfly.com/assets/articles/sac_geo/how%20to%20draw%20FOL%20to%20print.png" width="216" /></div>
803. <div style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 16px;">
804. The eye-shaped space in between each set of circles has its own meaning. One circle represents universal consciousness, the gold/solar source, and unchanging archetypes linked with, in the other circle, empirical consciousness, the silver/lunar reflection, and the changing realm of the senses, through the eye-shaped center that encompasses balanced human consciousness.</div>
805. <div style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 16px;">
806. The curved lines of the Flower of Life promote feminine, right-brained thinking. When you apply the straight lines of Metatron’s Cube, you add in the left-brained, masculine thinking. So if you need to concentrate more on one type of thinking or the other, or you feel unbalanced, you can meditate on either the curved shape, the straight line shape, or the combination.</div>
807. <div style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 16px;">
808. I call this Flower of LIfe figure “the mother of sacred geometry” because every important shape can be found within it, including the five Platonic Solids, named for the great Greek philosopher Plato. It is an ancient symbol which has been found all over the ancient world.</div>
809. <div style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 16px;">
810. The five Platonic Solids are the tetrahedron, the cube (hexahedron), the octahedron, the dodecahedron, and the icosahedron. If you have ever been involved with role-playing games, these will be familiar to you, as the shapes of the dice.</div>
811. <div style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 16px;">
812. To find the 5 shapes within the Flower of life, you extract a shape called Metatron’s Cube. You select these 13 circles from the Flower of Life shape—this is called the Fruit of Life—and then join all the centers with 78 straight lines to make Metatron’s Cube. This ancient shape, named for an angel, has been used to ward off evil and can be carried as a talisman.</div>
813. <div style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 16px;">
814. <img alt="extract metatron's cube from flower of life" height="77" src="http://www.obsidianbutterfly.com/assets/articles/sac_geo/extract%20metatrons%20cube.png" width="216" /></div>
815. <div style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 16px;">
816. From within Metatron’s cube, you can find the five Platonic Solids:</div>
817. <div style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 16px;">
818. Tetrahedron</div>
819. <div style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 16px;">
820. <img height="112" src="http://www.obsidianbutterfly.com/assets/articles/sac_geo/tetrahedron-in-metatron.jpg" width="216" /><img height="74" src="http://www.obsidianbutterfly.com/assets/articles/sac_geo/tetrahedron%203%20views%20copy.png" width="216" /></div>
821. <div style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 16px;">
822. Cube (hexahedron)</div>
823. <div style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 16px;">
824. <img height="123" src="http://www.obsidianbutterfly.com/assets/articles/sac_geo/cube-metatron.jpg" width="216" /><img height="77" src="http://www.obsidianbutterfly.com/assets/articles/sac_geo/cube%203%20views%20copy.png" width="216" /></div>
825. <div style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 16px;">
826. Octahedron</div>
827. <div style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 16px;">
828. <img height="108" src="http://www.obsidianbutterfly.com/assets/articles/sac_geo/octahedron-metatron.jpg" width="216" /> <img height="75" src="http://www.obsidianbutterfly.com/assets/articles/sac_geo/Octahedron%203%20views%20copy.png" width="216" /></div>
829. <div style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 16px;">
830. Dodecahedron</div>
831. <div style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 16px;">
832. <img height="106" src="http://www.obsidianbutterfly.com/assets/articles/sac_geo/dodecahedron-metatron.jpg" width="216" /> <img height="73" src="http://www.obsidianbutterfly.com/assets/articles/sac_geo/dodecahedron%203%20views%20copy.png" width="216" /></div>
833. <div style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 16px;">
834. Icosahedron</div>
835. <div style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 16px;">
836. <img height="124" src="http://www.obsidianbutterfly.com/assets/articles/sac_geo/icosahedron-metatron.jpg" width="216" /> <img height="72" src="http://www.obsidianbutterfly.com/assets/articles/sac_geo/icosahedron%203%20views%20copy.png" width="216" /></div>
837. <div style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 16px;">
838. The 5 Platonic solids are ideal, primal models of crystal patterns that occur throughout the world of minerals in countless variations. These are the only five regular polyhedra, that is, the only five solids made from the same equilateral, equiangular polygons. They have the same face shape on every side and only 1 angle per edge. All other shapes have different faces and/or angles. Also, if you spin any of these 5 shapes around its center point, its corners will describe a perfect sphere. The Platonic Solids occur in the crystal world. Working with them connects us to nature and the higher realms of the cosmos, especially those attributes associated closely with each polyhedron.</div>
839. <div style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 16px;">
840. Each of these shapes has metaphysical properties, making them valuable tools for meditation and rituals.</div>
841. <ul style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 16px;">
842. <li>The Tetrahedron is the four-sided (pyramid.( Each side is a triangle. (The pyramids of Egypt, Central America & elsewhere are five sided pyramids--four sloping triangular sides and a flat square/rectangular base.) It represents the powers of manifestation & creation, the element of Fire, the color Red and the Solar Plexus (third) chakra. Can help you burn through problems. It is masculine.</li>
843. <li>The Cube (Hexahedron) is the six-sided box. Each side is a square. It grounds the creation of the Tetrahedron into the physical realm. It represents the element of Earth, the color Green and the Base (first) chakra. Use for grounding. It is masculine.</li>
844. <li>The Octahedron is the eight-sided diamond. Each side is a triangle. It represents love, the heart and compassion, integration, the 8-fold path to Enlightenment, the element of Air, the color yellow and the Heart (4th) chakra. It can help you move forward. It represents your inner child.</li>
845. <li>The Dodecahedron is the twelve-sided ball with the pentagon faces. It represents the 12 faces of the God/dess within, Ascension, Mystery school teachings, the color Gold, the element Ether/Spirit and the higher chakras (8-12 and up). It connects you to the universal life force. It is female.</li>
846. <li>The Icosahedron is the twenty-sided ball with the triangular faces. It represents prayer, transformation, the color blue, the Naval (2nd) chakra and the element Water. It can help you sustain focus and momentum. It is female.<ul>Each of the five platonic solids carries special teachings. The tetrahedron invokes the power of manifestation and the cube grounds that creation in our bodies and this reality. Our core heart is found in the octahedron as an expression of self love and compassion. Prayer is invoked in the form of the icosahedron. The twelve faces of 'God within' are discovered in the dodecahedron.<br />
847. Four of the five platonic solids embody the number thirteen. The cube and octahedron have twelve edges or lines surrounding one center. The icosahedron has twelve corners around one and the dodecahedron has twelve faces around one.<br />
848. The only solid not supporting this is the tetrahedron and when two tetrahedrons are joined (star tetrahedron) there are twelve edges around one. More about the star tetrahedron in a moment.<br />
849. <table><tbody>
850. <tr><td style="font-size: 16px;">Platonic Solid</td><td style="font-size: 16px;">Edges</td><td style="font-size: 16px;">Corners</td><td style="font-size: 16px;">Faces</td><td style="font-size: 16px;">Total</td><td style="font-size: 16px;">Numerology</td></tr>
851. <tr><td style="font-size: 16px;">Tetrahedron</td><td style="font-size: 16px;">6</td><td style="font-size: 16px;">4</td><td style="font-size: 16px;">4</td><td style="font-size: 16px;">14</td><td style="font-size: 16px;">5</td></tr>
852. <tr><td style="font-size: 16px;">Cube</td><td style="font-size: 16px;">12</td><td style="font-size: 16px;">8</td><td style="font-size: 16px;">6</td><td style="font-size: 16px;">26</td><td style="font-size: 16px;">8</td></tr>
853. <tr><td style="font-size: 16px;">Octahedron</td><td style="font-size: 16px;">12</td><td style="font-size: 16px;">6</td><td style="font-size: 16px;">8</td><td style="font-size: 16px;">26</td><td style="font-size: 16px;">8</td></tr>
854. <tr><td style="font-size: 16px;">Icosahedron</td><td style="font-size: 16px;">30</td><td style="font-size: 16px;">12</td><td style="font-size: 16px;">20</td><td style="font-size: 16px;">62</td><td style="font-size: 16px;">8</td></tr>
855. <tr><td style="font-size: 16px;">Dodecahedron</td><td style="font-size: 16px;">30</td><td style="font-size: 16px;">20</td><td style="font-size: 16px;">12</td><td style="font-size: 16px;">62</td><td style="font-size: 16px;">8</td></tr>
856. <tr><td style="font-size: 16px;">Star Tetrahedron</td><td style="font-size: 16px;">12</td><td style="font-size: 16px;">8</td><td style="font-size: 16px;">8</td><td style="font-size: 16px;">n/a</td><td style="font-size: 16px;">n/a</td></tr>
857. </tbody></table>
858. There is a 6th mystical shape, also found within Metatron’s cube. This is the star tetrahedron, made up of 2 tetrahedrons. This powerful shape is also called a Merkaba. It is basically a 3 dimensional Star of David. It contains within it the geometry of the cube, the octahedron and the tetrahedron. The word Merkaba, in ancient Egypian, is translated as MER: rotating fields of light, KA: spirit, and BA: soul and in Hebrew it means 'chariot'.<br /><img height="125" src="http://www.obsidianbutterfly.com/assets/articles/sac_geo/star-tetrahedron-metatron.jpg" width="216" /><br />
859. Everyone knows about auras. You can get the colors of your aura photographed or looked at by a psychic. What a lot of people don’t know is that your aura isn’t really a shapeless blob. It’s the shape of a star tetrahedron. Three of them, actually.<br />
860. Stand up straight. Hold out your arms. Your static field is a hand’s width past the edge of your finger tips and the top point of that field is one hand’s width above your head and the bottom of that field is one hand’s width below your feet. These are your hands’ widths so for each person it’s slightly different.<br />
861. Running from top to bottom is a tube, the pranic tube, which carries energy from both earth and sky into your physical body. It is as big as the circle made by your thumb and forefinger. The top of the pranic tube is your soul star chakra, and the bottom of your pranic tube is your earth star chakra. These lead into your crown and root chakras (which also point straight up and down, unlike the other five, which point front and back). Your root and crown chakras are actually two ends of the same tube, and the energy running through it is changed as it passes the other 5 horizontal chakras.<br />
862. The alignment of the static star tetrahedron in your aura depends on your gender. If you are male, the point of the sun tetrahedron is in front of you, the flat part behind you. If you are female, the flat part of the sun tetrahedron is in front of you and the point behind you. These star tetrahedrons do not rotate. They represent your physical body and are neutral.<br />
863. <img height="288" src="http://www.obsidianbutterfly.com/assets/articles/sac_geo/merkaba-positioning-male-fe.jpg" width="288" /><br />
864. There are two more star tetrahedrons in your aura. The term “merkaba” refers to all 3 of these star tetrahedrons together.<br />
865. One star tetrahedron is male and electrical in energy and it rotates counter clockwise (to the left), and relates to your mental/logical thinking. The other star tetrahedron is female and magnetic and it rotates clockwise (to the right) and relates to your emotional thinking.<br />
866. Meditating with the merkaba activates the left and right brain together, raising your consciousness level. It brings dualities into balance—male and female; heaven and earth; everything that is yin and that is yang. You can, with practice, use the Merkaba field to lift your consciousness to higher realms.<br />
867. When you meditate and use any kind of breathing method, you should be aware of the breath and energy going in through both ends of the pranic tube and meeting in your heart. It’s almost like pumping up your heart, it gets bigger and bigger with each breath until it explodes into light from all the combined energies of earth and sky. When you visualize that happening and you’re working with the merkaba, the ball of light that surrounds you should look like a flower of life sphere in rainbow colors.<br />
868. <img height="288" src="http://www.obsidianbutterfly.com/assets/articles/sac_geo/FOL%20sphere%20with%20man%20copy.png" width="288" /><br />
869. One of the many things you can do with all these wonderful shapes is make crystal grids. This is a layout of crystals chosen for a specific purpose, placed in sacred geometry-based patterns to connect, clear, amplify, generate and re-direct energy. Crystal grids help to better formulate and ground intent, then assist to spread and manifest the sole purpose of that intent. Working with crystals and sacred geometry together can raise our vibration, clear physical and emotional blockages, expand our perception and reconnect us with Source.<br />
870. You can use as the base the whole Flower of Life shape, and place a crystal on each line crossing. Or you can use a Metatron’s cube and concentrate on whichever of the Platonic Solid shapes (or the Star Tetrahedron) you feel the need to connect to. You can purchase sets of Platonic Solid crystal shapes and Star Tetrahedrons to use in the grids (or just hold the single shape you need). You can make permanent grids by gluing the crystals in place and keep them in your car or in certain places in your home, as needed. Build them with a clear intention and purpose in mind.<br />
871. Star Tetrahedron grids are multipurpose. If you want to concentrate energy, and bring energy in from above and below, point the crystals toward the center. If you want to spread energy over a large area, point the crystals outward.<br />
872. This is a quickie grid I put together for this lecture, using a star tetrahedron in Metatron's Cube. In the center is a large amethyst star tetrahedron (which is for sale! <a href="http://www.obsidianbutterfly.com/contact.html" style="color: #999999;">Contact me</a>) surrounded by long singing laser quartz crystals and small Herkimer-type quartz.<br />
873. <img height="201" src="http://www.obsidianbutterfly.com/assets/articles/sac_geo/crystalgrid.png" width="216" /><br />
874. No matter what shape you use, activate the grid in the same way. Join up all the crystals in the pattern you laid, using your finger, a special crystal, or a wand. Do it 3 or 9 times, concentrating on bringing energy in from above and below, and putting the energy toward whatever purpose you built the grid. If you know Reiki or anything similar use that energy as well to program and empower the grid.<br />
875. You can build them for healing yourself or for healing someone else, for protection, or any other positive thing you can think of. You can put a piece of paper under the grid with the person’s name or photo, or with your affirmation written out (always phrased in the present time, and with gratitude).<br />
876. You should recharge and empower the grid at least once a day until it has served its purpose and then take it apart, and cleanse the crystals, freeing them of the programming.<br />
877. I offer for sale sets of crystal Platonic solids and loose merkaba crystals of all sizes, from $10 up. There is no page for these; <a href="http://www.obsidianbutterfly.com/contact.html" style="color: #999999;">contact me</a> if you're interested.<br />
878. <div align="left" class="style1">
879. <em>Looping animation of Metatron's Cube, the Platonic Solids and the star merkaba:</em></div>
880. <div align="left" class="style1">
881. <img alt="looping animation of sacred geometry" height="273" src="http://www.obsidianbutterfly.com/assets/articles/sac_geo/metatrons-cube-ANIMATION.gif" width="244" /></div>
882. <div align="left" class="style1">
883. All these fold-up Platonic Solid & star tetrahedron patterns are (c) by <a href="http://www.geometrycode.com/" style="color: #999999;" target="_blank">Bruce Rawlins</a> from his excellent <em>Sacred Geometry Sourcebook</em>, which I HIGHLY recommend. They are all PDFs requiring the <a href="http://get.adobe.com/reader/" style="color: #999999;" target="_blank">free Adobe Reader</a>.</div>
884. <ul>
885. <li><a href="http://www.obsidianbutterfly.com/assets/articles/star_tetrahedron_fold_up.pdf" style="color: #999999;">Star Tetrahedron fold up</a></li>
886. <li><a href="http://www.obsidianbutterfly.com/assets/articles/tetrahedron_fold_up.pdf" style="color: #999999;">Tetrahedron fold up</a></li>
887. <li><a href="http://www.obsidianbutterfly.com/assets/articles/hexahedron-cube_fold_up.pdf" style="color: #999999;">Hexahedron fold up</a></li>
888. <li><a href="http://www.obsidianbutterfly.com/assets/articles/octahedron_fold_up.pdf" style="color: #999999;">Octahedron fold up</a></li>
889. <li><a href="http://www.obsidianbutterfly.com/assets/articles/dodecahedron_fold_up.pdf" style="color: #999999;">Dodecahedron fold up</a></li>
890. <li><a href="http://www.obsidianbutterfly.com/assets/articles/Icosohedron_Fold__up.pdf" style="color: #999999;">Icosohedron fold up</a></li>
891. </ul>
892. </ul>
893. </li>
894. </ul>
895. <div class="blogger-post-footer">http://ofsinitiate.blogspot.com
896. (c) Gevera Bert Piedmont  })i({
897. Thank you!&lt;/div&gt;</content><link rel='replies' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://ofsinitiate.blogspot.com/feeds/9082915035797524265/comments/default' title='Post Comments'/><link rel='replies' type='text/html' href='http://www.blogger.com/comment.g?blogID=12406865&amp;postID=9082915035797524265' title='0 Comments'/><link rel='edit' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/12406865/posts/default/9082915035797524265'/><link rel='self' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/12406865/posts/default/9082915035797524265'/><link rel='alternate' type='text/html' href='http://ofsinitiate.blogspot.com/2012/08/how-to-live-multidimensionally-through.html' title='how to live multidimensionally through sacred geometry'/><author><name>GBP  })i({</name><uri>http://www.blogger.com/profile/09275995534174189926</uri><email>noreply@blogger.com</email><gd:image rel='http://schemas.google.com/g/2005#thumbnail' width='25' height='32' src='http://www.obsidianbutterfly.com/assets/about/Green%20Bert%20copy.jpg'/></author><thr:total>0</thr:total></entry><entry><id>tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-12406865.post-8710796587974190628</id><published>2012-02-09T16:43:00.001-05:00</published><updated>2012-02-09T16:43:34.473-05:00</updated><title type='text'>please vote for my other blog!</title><content type='html'>&lt;a href=&quot;http://www.seniorhomes.com/d/alzheimers-dad/&quot; style=&quot;clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;&quot; title=&quot;Alzheimer&#39;s Dad is a nominee in the SeniorHomes.com Best of the Web 2012.&quot;&gt;&lt;img height=&quot;185&quot; src=&quot;http://www.seniorhomes.com/images/best-of-web-2012/nominee-large.png&quot; width=&quot;200&quot; /&gt;&lt;/a&gt;&lt;br /&gt;
898. Please vote for my Alzheimer's Blog so I can be a finalist!   Simple like the page below (the link) on Facebook or +1 on google.<i>  </i>Or you can share on Blogger or other popular formats.<i><br /></i><br />
899. <br />
900. <i>Congratulations from SeniorHomes.com! </i><br />
901. <i>
902. Alzheimer's Dad has been nominated to the SeniorHomes.com Best of the Web 2012 in the Best Senior Living Blogs by Individuals category. The Best of the Web 2012 contest highlights the best senior living and caregiving websites, blogs, and resources on the web for consumers and senior living professionals.
903.  
904. Your nominee page has been published at <a href="http://www.seniorhomes.com/d/alzheimers-dad">http://www.seniorhomes.com/d/alzheimers-dad</a>. </i><br />
905. <br />
906. <i>The top nominee sites by popular vote will proceed to the round of finalists and will be rated by our panel of expert judges. Final rankings will be decided by the expert panel ratings.
907.  
908. In order to become a finalist, we encourage you to promote your website and get the vote out. Spread the word about your nomination by sharing your nominee page with your clients, customers, friends, and fans and asking for their votes. Finalists are determined by popular vote (total Facebook likes and Google +1s), so each person can vote for you twice! Voting ends on March 2, 2012. </i><div class="blogger-post-footer">http://ofsinitiate.blogspot.com
909. (c) Gevera Bert Piedmont  })i({
910. Thank you!&lt;/div&gt;</content><link rel='replies' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://ofsinitiate.blogspot.com/feeds/8710796587974190628/comments/default' title='Post Comments'/><link rel='replies' type='text/html' href='http://www.blogger.com/comment.g?blogID=12406865&amp;postID=8710796587974190628' title='0 Comments'/><link rel='edit' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/12406865/posts/default/8710796587974190628'/><link rel='self' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/12406865/posts/default/8710796587974190628'/><link rel='alternate' type='text/html' href='http://ofsinitiate.blogspot.com/2012/02/please-vote-for-my-other-blog.html' title='please vote for my other blog!'/><author><name>GBP  })i({</name><uri>http://www.blogger.com/profile/09275995534174189926</uri><email>noreply@blogger.com</email><gd:image rel='http://schemas.google.com/g/2005#thumbnail' width='25' height='32' src='http://www.obsidianbutterfly.com/assets/about/Green%20Bert%20copy.jpg'/></author><thr:total>0</thr:total></entry><entry><id>tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-12406865.post-7956704247677131757</id><published>2011-12-19T15:15:00.000-05:00</published><updated>2011-12-19T15:21:28.347-05:00</updated><category scheme="http://www.blogger.com/atom/ns#" term="13th Baktun"/><category scheme="http://www.blogger.com/atom/ns#" term="holidays"/><category scheme="http://www.blogger.com/atom/ns#" term="pagan"/><category scheme="http://www.blogger.com/atom/ns#" term="rant"/><category scheme="http://www.blogger.com/atom/ns#" term="solstice"/><title type='text'>Avoiding the holidays (rant)</title><content type='html'>There are a lot of reasons why I don&#39;t like the holidays.&amp;nbsp; I&#39;m not a Christian anymore and the constant refrain of the Christers, as I call them, is mentally exhausting.&amp;nbsp; Keep CHRIST in CHRISTMAS they scream on billboards and on Facebook and in person,&amp;nbsp; not caring or knowing that most &quot;Christmas&quot; rituals were stolen from older pagan traditions.&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp; These people get royally offended at the generic greeting of Happy Holidays and don&#39;t seem to understand that Happy Holidays includes everyone, while Merry Christmas excludes everyone who doesn&#39;t worship Jesus. To me, one is friendly, the other rude.&amp;nbsp; Do what you want with your Jesus but keep him out of my face.&lt;br /&gt;
911. What elements of Christmas, you ask, are taken from pagans?<br />
912. <ul>
913. <li>The son of a god being born at the winter solstice--the feast of Osiris (ancient Egypt), who was the son of a god and who died and was resurrected, was on 12/25.  Mithras (ancient Rome) was also born on the solstice, died and was buried and resurrected, and I believe he also might have been born of a virgin but don't quote me on that. </li>
914. <li>Evergreen tree--Druids of ancient England decorated trees to celebrate the winter solstice.</li>
915. <li>Mistletoe kissing--a pagan fertility practice.</li>
916. <li>Santa--modern Santa was pretty much invented by Coca-Cola and I never understood what he had to do with Jesus.</li>
917. <li>I don't have any idea where presents came from but not from Jesus.  All my presents when I was little came from Santa, Jesus never gave me anything. </li>
918. </ul>
919. Just a few of the many.<br />
920. The Jesus hysteria, of course, is a big one that makes me want to crawl into a turtle shell around Thanksgiving and not come out.   Another is holiday music.  Even on the radio, on stations that usually play lovely loud rock music, they are playing those same rock bands warbling mournfully about the holidays in a way that should truly offend anyone of any sense and taste, of any religion.<br />
921. Of course, my Seasonal Affective Disorder (SAD), triggered by the loss of light leading up to the winter solstice, makes everything that much worse.  The turtle shell idea is that much more inviting--I don't want to come out and why should I? <br />
922. The thought of entering any store during that same time period is anathema to me.  I don't want presents.  I can't afford to reciprocate and I don't want more STUFF.  I spent last year de-cluttering my house, why should I junk it back up with stuff I don't want or need?   People desperate to get the latest, greatest, hottest STUFF, the must-have stuff, the looks on their faces as they pay with charge cards and layaway and their mortgage money just makes me ill.<br />
923. I try to take a step back and allow others to play out their karma and their own lives while I hide. I think about how much fun I'll be having a year from now as Baktun 12 winds down and for probably the only time in my life, everyone talks about the Mayan calendar.<br />
924. <br />
925. Happy Winter Solstice.  Enjoy whatever holiday your like, in your own way.<br />
926. <br />
927. <br />
928. <br />
929. <br /><div class="blogger-post-footer">http://ofsinitiate.blogspot.com
930. (c) Gevera Bert Piedmont  })i({
931. Thank you!&lt;/div&gt;</content><link rel='replies' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://ofsinitiate.blogspot.com/feeds/7956704247677131757/comments/default' title='Post Comments'/><link rel='replies' type='text/html' href='http://www.blogger.com/comment.g?blogID=12406865&amp;postID=7956704247677131757' title='0 Comments'/><link rel='edit' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/12406865/posts/default/7956704247677131757'/><link rel='self' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/12406865/posts/default/7956704247677131757'/><link rel='alternate' type='text/html' href='http://ofsinitiate.blogspot.com/2011/12/avoiding-holidays-rant.html' title='Avoiding the holidays (rant)'/><author><name>GBP  })i({</name><uri>http://www.blogger.com/profile/09275995534174189926</uri><email>noreply@blogger.com</email><gd:image rel='http://schemas.google.com/g/2005#thumbnail' width='25' height='32' src='http://www.obsidianbutterfly.com/assets/about/Green%20Bert%20copy.jpg'/></author><thr:total>0</thr:total></entry><entry><id>tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-12406865.post-6494481356251249388</id><published>2011-11-22T13:59:00.001-05:00</published><updated>2011-11-22T14:44:26.665-05:00</updated><category scheme="http://www.blogger.com/atom/ns#" term="2012"/><category scheme="http://www.blogger.com/atom/ns#" term="aztec calendar"/><category scheme="http://www.blogger.com/atom/ns#" term="books"/><category scheme="http://www.blogger.com/atom/ns#" term="calendar"/><category scheme="http://www.blogger.com/atom/ns#" term="Jaguar Nights"/><category scheme="http://www.blogger.com/atom/ns#" term="kindle"/><category scheme="http://www.blogger.com/atom/ns#" term="mayan calendar"/><category scheme="http://www.blogger.com/atom/ns#" term="tzolkin"/><title type='text'>3 new Jaguar Nights volumes!</title><content type='html'>&lt;div class=&quot;separator&quot; style=&quot;clear: both; text-align: center;&quot;&gt;
932. <a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiIgWXGgWhKYGdbtUK8vJBEyfnhqEXx7BNly31Ulq5lTmOYM1YA1kpWDEPdoLQhw9iqgtow-aEfEjc7zlq6TU6nignEeWn8xnM8csP96A1QKV38LLwjGEYd-ZLMffUbIhxav3sG6Q/s1600/JaguarNightsFrontWeb.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiIgWXGgWhKYGdbtUK8vJBEyfnhqEXx7BNly31Ulq5lTmOYM1YA1kpWDEPdoLQhw9iqgtow-aEfEjc7zlq6TU6nignEeWn8xnM8csP96A1QKV38LLwjGEYd-ZLMffUbIhxav3sG6Q/s200/JaguarNightsFrontWeb.jpg" width="130" /></a></div>
933. <span style="font-size: large;"><b>Jaguar Nights: A Journey Through the Tzolkin</b></span><br />
934. My 592-page book on the Tzolkin, is available through me or from Amazon.  A Kindle edition is coming soon.  $30.00<br />
935. <i>The Mesoamerican Tzolkin is a beautiful and simple calendar as well as a system of astrology and divination. Jaguar Nights is a uniquely organized reference book devoted to this sacred 260-day cycle. Each of the 260 days has two entire pages of comprehensive information. No flipping pages to figure out what everything means! It includes advanced information on how to use the calendar for divination augury, relationship compatibility, rituals, astrology, and how to find significant dates (electional astrology), all fully explained. Includes 92 years of correlation date charts (1930–2022). The Tzolkin holds the keys to many doors and to life cycles previously unnoticed. Use Jaguar Nights for two Tzolkin cycles as a personal diary and energy tracker, and as a reference for many years. When you immerse yourself in these alternate time cycles, the world starts to look different. You relate in a new way, you see patterns that you never noticed before. Learn to define your place in the great spiral of time, and find your relationship to the cosmos, with the Tzolkin. Step out of your world for a little while, and find a new set of rhythms to live by.  </i><br />
936. <br />
937. Jaguar Nights: A Journey Through the Tzolkin
938.  
939. <br />
940. <form action="https://www.paypal.com/cgi-bin/webscr" method="post">
941. <input name="cmd" type="hidden" value="_s-xclick" />
942. <input name="hosted_button_id" type="hidden" value="GKXEF44ULLETJ" />
943. <br />
944. <table>
945. <tbody>
946. <tr><td><input name="on0" type="hidden" value="Jaguar Nights: Journey" /></td></tr>
947. <tr><td><input maxlength="200" name="os0" type="text" /></td></tr>
948. </tbody></table>
949. <input alt="PayPal - The safer, easier way to pay online!" border="0" name="submit" src="https://www.paypalobjects.com/en_US/i/btn/btn_buynowCC_LG.gif" type="image" />
950. <img alt="" border="0" height="1" src="https://www.paypalobjects.com/en_US/i/scr/pixel.gif" width="1" /><br />
951. or <a href="http://www.amazon.com/Jaguar-Nights-Exploring-Mayan-Aztec-Calendar/dp/1466214341/ref=sr_1_11?ie=UTF8&qid=1321987738&sr=8-11" target="_blank">Jaguar Nights: Journey on Amazon</a>. </form>
952. <hr />
953. <form action="https://www.paypal.com/cgi-bin/webscr" method="post">
954. <input name="cmd" type="hidden" value="_s-xclick" />
955. <input name="hosted_button_id" type="hidden" value="9SAFP8XCPWV6J" />
956. <br />
957. <table>
958. <tbody>
959. <tr><td><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
960. <a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhKqVunZsdDS3XrHPIyqB_elYBFg0SJ8U848atkx6zBQmzxCz3EmyF1RQaVEKKYHDbUGSwkyEdW_aXp1SHaoCsacrqF8OXiH4rs8Xy2SopQckzsaDHpV7Hta_bCDIKE6iLdQAMGWQ/s1600/JaguarNights2012_cover_WEB.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhKqVunZsdDS3XrHPIyqB_elYBFg0SJ8U848atkx6zBQmzxCz3EmyF1RQaVEKKYHDbUGSwkyEdW_aXp1SHaoCsacrqF8OXiH4rs8Xy2SopQckzsaDHpV7Hta_bCDIKE6iLdQAMGWQ/s200/JaguarNights2012_cover_WEB.jpg" width="140" /></a></div>
961. <input name="on0" type="hidden" value="Jaguar Nights 2012" /><b><span style="font-size: large;">Jaguar Nights 2012</span></b><br />
962. <i>Jaguar Nights 2012 incorporates some new information from the big book. Jaguar Nights 2012 is $16 for a 62-page desk/purse calendar (8.5x5.5"). Each day has the Mayan Long Count, Haab and Tzolkin information, the sacred 260 count, the Aztec Xiuhpohualli (equivalent to the Haab) and Tonalpohualli (equivalent to the Tzolkin), as well as a countdown to 2012. All Tzolkin/Tonalpohualli dates numbered 1, 7, 8, and 13 (the sacred numbers) have energy readings, plus each month has the moon cycles and holidays (national, fun and pagan as well as a few from other religions). </i><br />
963. Kindle edition coming soon. </td></tr>
964. <tr><td><input maxlength="200" name="os0" type="text" /></td></tr>
965. </tbody></table>
966. <input alt="PayPal - The safer, easier way to pay online!" border="0" name="submit" src="https://www.paypalobjects.com/en_US/i/btn/btn_buynowCC_LG.gif" type="image" />
967. <img alt="" border="0" height="1" src="https://www.paypalobjects.com/en_US/i/scr/pixel.gif" width="1" /><br />
968. or <a href="http://www.amazon.com/Jaguar-Nights-2012-Mayan-Aztec-Calendar/dp/146645637X/ref=sr_1_13?ie=UTF8&qid=1321987738&sr=8-13" target="_blank">Jaguar Nights 2012 on Amazon </a>. </form>
969. <hr />
970. <div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
971. <a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEguPlb_QlKMQwfnaLT9oJqTIJ5qAjSfUKk7JZOlN0ojwXNOZYh6m5CSvPUY0miO6yQSX9FfFQ9K1H7T0sKm8MuiVCfP-5vT_DfTqLY3mAQKorHRBQfrgoKK_sb3qAeoymTHsfqgAQ/s1600/cover_color_web.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEguPlb_QlKMQwfnaLT9oJqTIJ5qAjSfUKk7JZOlN0ojwXNOZYh6m5CSvPUY0miO6yQSX9FfFQ9K1H7T0sKm8MuiVCfP-5vT_DfTqLY3mAQKorHRBQfrgoKK_sb3qAeoymTHsfqgAQ/s200/cover_color_web.jpg" width="133" /></a></div>
972. <span style="font-size: large;"><b>Jaguar Nights Companion #1: Reverse Tzolkin Ephemeris </b></span><br />
973. <i>This e-book is part of the Jaguar Nights series of calendars and books. It is a reverse ephemeris—instead of looking up a Gregorian calendar date to find which Tzolkin date it is, all the Gregorian dates from 1900 to 2060 are ranked by Tzolkin date. Find out when a Tzolkin date last happened and when it will happen again. This can be useful for interpreting divination results, electional astrology, personal guidance, journaling, daykeeping, and more.
974.  
975. This is not meant to be a stand-alone book; you need knowledge of the sacred 260-day Tzolkin calendar of the Maya to utilize the information. Only $5. </i><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Jaguar-Nights-Exploring-Mayan-Aztec-Calendar/dp/1466214341/ref=sr_1_11?ie=UTF8&qid=1321987738&sr=8-11" target="_blank"><br /></a><br />
976. <a href="http://www.amazon.com/Jaguar-Nights-2012-Mayan-Aztec-Calendar/dp/146645637X/ref=sr_1_13?ie=UTF8&qid=1321987738&sr=8-13" target="_blank"></a><br />
977. <a href="http://www.amazon.com/Jaguar-Nights-Companion-Companions-ebook/dp/B00682ZS74/ref=sr_1_14?s=digital-text&ie=UTF8&qid=1321978188&sr=1-14" target="_blank">Reverse Tzolkin Ephemeris on Amazon Kindle</a>.<br />
978.  <a href="http://www.amazon.com/gp/feature.html/ref=amb_link_352814002_3?ie=UTF8&docId=1000493771&pf_rd_m=ATVPDKIKX0DER&pf_rd_s=center-6&pf_rd_r=1M4WPAP0KH49G844QM4C&pf_rd_t=1401&pf_rd_p=1279039382&pf_rd_i=1000426311" target="_blank">Download a free Kindle Reader app here</a>.
979. <hr><div class="blogger-post-footer">http://ofsinitiate.blogspot.com
980. (c) Gevera Bert Piedmont  })i({
981. Thank you!&lt;/div&gt;</content><link rel='replies' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://ofsinitiate.blogspot.com/feeds/6494481356251249388/comments/default' title='Post Comments'/><link rel='replies' type='text/html' href='http://www.blogger.com/comment.g?blogID=12406865&amp;postID=6494481356251249388' title='0 Comments'/><link rel='edit' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/12406865/posts/default/6494481356251249388'/><link rel='self' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/12406865/posts/default/6494481356251249388'/><link rel='alternate' type='text/html' href='http://ofsinitiate.blogspot.com/2011/11/3-new-jaguar-nights-volumes.html' title='3 new Jaguar Nights volumes!'/><author><name>GBP  })i({</name><uri>http://www.blogger.com/profile/09275995534174189926</uri><email>noreply@blogger.com</email><gd:image rel='http://schemas.google.com/g/2005#thumbnail' width='25' height='32' src='http://www.obsidianbutterfly.com/assets/about/Green%20Bert%20copy.jpg'/></author><media:thumbnail xmlns:media="http://search.yahoo.com/mrss/" url="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiIgWXGgWhKYGdbtUK8vJBEyfnhqEXx7BNly31Ulq5lTmOYM1YA1kpWDEPdoLQhw9iqgtow-aEfEjc7zlq6TU6nignEeWn8xnM8csP96A1QKV38LLwjGEYd-ZLMffUbIhxav3sG6Q/s72-c/JaguarNightsFrontWeb.jpg" height="72" width="72"/><thr:total>0</thr:total></entry><entry><id>tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-12406865.post-5789799587161704434</id><published>2011-11-11T10:08:00.001-05:00</published><updated>2011-11-11T10:27:33.591-05:00</updated><category scheme="http://www.blogger.com/atom/ns#" term="2012"/><category scheme="http://www.blogger.com/atom/ns#" term="energy"/><category scheme="http://www.blogger.com/atom/ns#" term="gate"/><category scheme="http://www.blogger.com/atom/ns#" term="long count"/><category scheme="http://www.blogger.com/atom/ns#" term="mayan calendar"/><category scheme="http://www.blogger.com/atom/ns#" term="numerology"/><title type='text'>11/11/11 Welcome to the 11th gate</title><content type='html'>&lt;div class=&quot;separator&quot; style=&quot;clear: both; text-align: center;&quot;&gt;
982. <a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgB03_YoHMjuArowBWRtMe_r_3ln9AikOwFZAd764EZkTBljIqiQmAmgSm1PEZMbxqRkPrOHZynyTH-jXio3O2IC4gz1BPlllC-5NR8zZe8-FyhQQGf1ray8aFV4xS8kwgAKFzkFw/s1600/1111.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="186" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgB03_YoHMjuArowBWRtMe_r_3ln9AikOwFZAd764EZkTBljIqiQmAmgSm1PEZMbxqRkPrOHZynyTH-jXio3O2IC4gz1BPlllC-5NR8zZe8-FyhQQGf1ray8aFV4xS8kwgAKFzkFw/s200/1111.jpg" width="200" /></a></div>
983. Today is the 11th gate, the "big one" we've all been waiting for since the series of gates started on 1/1/1 (which seems so long ago).  There are two more gates, of course, 12/12/12 and the final 12/21/2012 which initiates Baktun 13 in the Mayan Long Count calendar.<br />
984. In numerology, 11 is a master number.  It signifies you plus God (whoever you think God is).  So today is a godly day, multiplied. (22 is also a master number, and in some numerology systems so are 33 and 44, but we only have 13 gates so it won't get that high!  Maybe on 02/22/2022 something will happen.)<br />
985. It's a time of global and personal activation, of energy upgrades.  Take everything in and transform.<br />
986. This series of 13 gates is unique because usually a galactic gate opens and then closes.  In 1999 there was one that opened between 2 blue moons (opened on the first one, closed on the second one) and the energy was crazy--but temporary.  These gates, however, are permanent.   Each one builds on the energies and changes of the one(s) that came before.<br />
987. So even if you don't think you feel anything, or don't understand what's going on, that's okay.  You won't miss anything--it's happening even if you don't know it.  The crazy occupy wall street thing? I'm sure that's part of the changes.  <br />
988. (<a href="http://ascension-temple.com/the-meaning-of-1111.html">image source</a> & more information on 11:11)<div class="blogger-post-footer">http://ofsinitiate.blogspot.com
989. (c) Gevera Bert Piedmont  })i({
990. Thank you!&lt;/div&gt;</content><link rel='replies' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://ofsinitiate.blogspot.com/feeds/5789799587161704434/comments/default' title='Post Comments'/><link rel='replies' type='text/html' href='http://www.blogger.com/comment.g?blogID=12406865&amp;postID=5789799587161704434' title='0 Comments'/><link rel='edit' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/12406865/posts/default/5789799587161704434'/><link rel='self' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/12406865/posts/default/5789799587161704434'/><link rel='alternate' type='text/html' href='http://ofsinitiate.blogspot.com/2011/11/111111-welcome-to-11th-gate.html' title='11/11/11 Welcome to the 11th gate'/><author><name>GBP  })i({</name><uri>http://www.blogger.com/profile/09275995534174189926</uri><email>noreply@blogger.com</email><gd:image rel='http://schemas.google.com/g/2005#thumbnail' width='25' height='32' src='http://www.obsidianbutterfly.com/assets/about/Green%20Bert%20copy.jpg'/></author><media:thumbnail xmlns:media="http://search.yahoo.com/mrss/" url="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgB03_YoHMjuArowBWRtMe_r_3ln9AikOwFZAd764EZkTBljIqiQmAmgSm1PEZMbxqRkPrOHZynyTH-jXio3O2IC4gz1BPlllC-5NR8zZe8-FyhQQGf1ray8aFV4xS8kwgAKFzkFw/s72-c/1111.jpg" height="72" width="72"/><thr:total>0</thr:total></entry><entry><id>tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-12406865.post-1061433632191806835</id><published>2011-10-28T10:53:00.002-04:00</published><updated>2011-10-28T10:53:56.111-04:00</updated><category scheme="http://www.blogger.com/atom/ns#" term="13 Ahau"/><category scheme="http://www.blogger.com/atom/ns#" term="2012"/><category scheme="http://www.blogger.com/atom/ns#" term="calleman"/><category scheme="http://www.blogger.com/atom/ns#" term="mayan calendar"/><category scheme="http://www.blogger.com/atom/ns#" term="tzolkin"/><title type='text'>10-28-2011--Calleman&#39;s calendar end</title><content type='html'>Today is finally here.&amp;nbsp; On this particular 13-Ahau, out of all the 13-Ahauob around 12-21-2012, Calleman picked this one, today, to be HIS idea of the &quot;end&quot; of the Mayan calendar.&amp;nbsp; (Why not 14-July 2012?)&lt;br /&gt;
991. I'm waiting.  The sun is shining.  It's a little cold out.   No end seems to be in sight.<br />
992. Calleman's fractal concept of the Long Count is that the 13 Baktuns (we are coming to the end of Baktun 12) equal the 13 Heavens.  But somehow he has also <a href="http://www.calleman.com/content/articles/End_of_calendar_SolarFlares_and_EarthChanges.htm">decided</a> that the Tzolkin ends today.  As in, tomorrow is NOT 1-Imix, but nothing.  Huh?   But then he hedges and says maybe it will continue.  I really don't pretend to understand his interpretation of the calendars.  It SOUNDS good on the surface, especially if you don't have any background, but when you really sit and think about it, it's all illogical.<br />
993. His claim:<br />
994. <div style="color: #0b5394; font-family: "Courier New",Courier,monospace;">
995. (T)he universe attains its highest quantum state and creates a new stage for life (at the top of the nine-storied pyramid). It is thus a common misunderstanding that a “new” cycle will begin after the calendar comes to an end. This is a misunderstanding because what is coming to an end is not a cycle to begin with, but nine linear directed evolutionary waves. The only aspect of the prophetic Mayan calendar system that may be described as cyclical is the 260 day tzolkin and this is the only cycle that will come to an end.
996. </div>
997. I have no idea what that means.  He goes on to say that<br />
998. <div style="color: #0b5394; font-family: "Courier New",Courier,monospace;">
999. This would likely mean an abrupt end to all future energetic regulation
1000. of our lives and actions and a sort of freedom shock. Life would be
1001. lived fully moment by moment by moment and each moment would be an
1002. eternity that would not be organically linked to other moments.</div>
1003. I thought we were all supposed to be living in the moment already?   <br />
1004. <br />
1005. You know what the sad thing is?  There really are AWESOME fractals in the Tzolkin.  I wish I could love his ideas, but they don't quite click for me.<br />
1006. <div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
1007. <a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi2iwv5-S3NCWhP_UIZ0NinnuLaaxPDJ_aRbCpz1wM6Twt6qkTgA5W7CbdQl4729FucO_6GCkz5re1n5rOTRnU4qLVGpxZA1QajdQS_pikX7_Uaii-PyfD-DkCM3rivJX4LVgcnRg/s1600/the-end-of-the-mayan-calendar.jpeg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi2iwv5-S3NCWhP_UIZ0NinnuLaaxPDJ_aRbCpz1wM6Twt6qkTgA5W7CbdQl4729FucO_6GCkz5re1n5rOTRnU4qLVGpxZA1QajdQS_pikX7_Uaii-PyfD-DkCM3rivJX4LVgcnRg/s400/the-end-of-the-mayan-calendar.jpeg" width="400" /></a></div>
1008. I wonder if he will go away tomorrow or jump online to post about today?<br />
1009. <a href="http://thewatchers.adorraeli.com/2011/02/09/universal-cycle-co-creation-and-february-10-and-october-28-2011/">image source</a><div class="blogger-post-footer">http://ofsinitiate.blogspot.com
1010. (c) Gevera Bert Piedmont  })i({
1011. Thank you!&lt;/div&gt;</content><link rel='replies' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://ofsinitiate.blogspot.com/feeds/1061433632191806835/comments/default' title='Post Comments'/><link rel='replies' type='text/html' href='http://www.blogger.com/comment.g?blogID=12406865&amp;postID=1061433632191806835' title='1 Comments'/><link rel='edit' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/12406865/posts/default/1061433632191806835'/><link rel='self' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/12406865/posts/default/1061433632191806835'/><link rel='alternate' type='text/html' href='http://ofsinitiate.blogspot.com/2011/10/10-28-2011-callemans-calendar-end.html' title='10-28-2011--Calleman&#39;s calendar end'/><author><name>GBP  })i({</name><uri>http://www.blogger.com/profile/09275995534174189926</uri><email>noreply@blogger.com</email><gd:image rel='http://schemas.google.com/g/2005#thumbnail' width='25' height='32' src='http://www.obsidianbutterfly.com/assets/about/Green%20Bert%20copy.jpg'/></author><media:thumbnail xmlns:media="http://search.yahoo.com/mrss/" url="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi2iwv5-S3NCWhP_UIZ0NinnuLaaxPDJ_aRbCpz1wM6Twt6qkTgA5W7CbdQl4729FucO_6GCkz5re1n5rOTRnU4qLVGpxZA1QajdQS_pikX7_Uaii-PyfD-DkCM3rivJX4LVgcnRg/s72-c/the-end-of-the-mayan-calendar.jpeg" height="72" width="72"/><thr:total>1</thr:total></entry><entry><id>tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-12406865.post-7216641167351836841</id><published>2011-10-28T10:33:00.000-04:00</published><updated>2011-10-28T10:33:34.875-04:00</updated><category scheme="http://www.blogger.com/atom/ns#" term="aliens"/><category scheme="http://www.blogger.com/atom/ns#" term="ancient aliens"/><category scheme="http://www.blogger.com/atom/ns#" term="anthropology"/><category scheme="http://www.blogger.com/atom/ns#" term="egypt"/><category scheme="http://www.blogger.com/atom/ns#" term="elongated skulls"/><category scheme="http://www.blogger.com/atom/ns#" term="king tut"/><category scheme="http://www.blogger.com/atom/ns#" term="peru"/><title type='text'>Elongated skulls and brainpower</title><content type='html'>&lt;table align=&quot;right&quot;&gt;&lt;tbody&gt;
1012. <tr><td><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjd-sxCRvbw5QcQmZ-X2i1SvJLANPCvVKuzkCywoiZpcyQImh6dxQYjYNZCY_-Ah6DnHZoeL4ivRidxKNbgb72yUPDTYwR05WcgX_UmW042FD4UALU4ajeFPi3l2yeJSbvj7pBW9Q/s1600/skullmashups.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjd-sxCRvbw5QcQmZ-X2i1SvJLANPCvVKuzkCywoiZpcyQImh6dxQYjYNZCY_-Ah6DnHZoeL4ivRidxKNbgb72yUPDTYwR05WcgX_UmW042FD4UALU4ajeFPi3l2yeJSbvj7pBW9Q/s400/skullmashups.jpg" width="276" /></a>
1013. </td></tr>
1014. </tbody></table>
1015. I was watching Ancient Aliens last night.  (My husband remarked, "is this show a training course for crazy people?")  Honestly the topics all run together but this one, as many of their episodes do, featured the elongated skulls of some ancient Egyptians and also people from Peru.  According to the show, either the elongated-skull people are ALIENS or they are trying to look like ALIENS.  Now I think there just might be ALIENS don't get me wrong and perhaps they visited the planet a few times, but <b>everything from the past is not freaking ALIENS</b>.  The show is funny, though.<br />
1016. Back to long skulls.I don't really care if the people with long skulls were alien or human or hybrid. I'm interested in the INSIDE of those skulls.  What did their brains look like?  Were they smarter or dumber than people with regular round heads?  What was the size of their brain case vs round skulls?  I know they can do this with tiny pellets, come on, hasn't any anthropologist ever wondered?  I put together this picture of a regular brain and a Peruvian mummy skull from a couple of sources and <b>it seems evident to me that these people should have had HUGE brains,</b> right?  What part got bigger?  How did that change them? 
1017. <br />
1018. <div style="text-align: left;">
1019. King Tut, his step-mother Nerfertiti and his sister (forgot her name) were all depicted with long, graceful skulls.  But if you look at his actual head next to a sculpture of him, it doesn't quite measure up, does it?  The angle isn't 100% but it's obvious that his head is more pointed and squat.  But clearly the head in the sculpture is achievable--look at the mummy from Peru.  So why was it important his people THOUGHT he had a big long head?<br />
1020. Looking for "elongated skulls" on Google Images, quite a few photos of current people with long skulls come up.  Whether these people have naturally long heads or have been artificially deformed, I don't know, but I have to wonder if anyone has ever taking an MRI of their brains or one of those scans where they ask you to do math and memory problems and see what lights up.  Or get them to donate their bodies to science and dissect their brains.<br />
1021. <br />
1022. <br />
1023. Is there a reason, besides aesthetics, to deform your skull?  Does it make you smarter, increase your memory, give you better math or verbal or spacial skills?  Or is there no brain in the extra space, just bone or fluid?  I found <a href="http://books.google.com/books?id=_fQ3AAAAYAAJ&pg=PA425&dq=elongated+skull+brain&hl=en&ei=H7qqTvvVLKbW0QHa6ai2Dw&sa=X&oi=book_result&ct=result&resnum=10&ved=0CGgQ6AEwCQ#v=onepage&q=elongated%20skull%20brain&f=false">one result</a> on Google books which says it's "mere displacement of the brain" that "does not change intellect" but that baffles me.  That Peruvian head looks like it could fit two extra brains.  Then again, the book is from 1869.<br />
1024. Anyway, lacking any formal training in physical anthropology, and also lacking any elongated skulls to work on, there isn't much I can do except wonder why someone who does have training and skulls isn't working on this.</div>
1025. <br />
1026. <i>S</i><i>ources: <a href="http://gizadeathstar.com/2011/01/peruvian-skull-may-shed-light-on-ancient-history/">skull w hair</a>  <a href="http://www.thekeep.org/%7Ekunoichi/kunoichi/themestream/tutankhamen_lily.jpg">tut bust</a>  <a href="http://www.topfoto.co.uk/gallery/tutankhamun/images/thumbs/0638142.jpg">tut skull   </a><a href="http://www.hilaryshepherd.com/rantsnraves/2007/09/01/man-loses-head-gets-four-thousand/">regular skull</a> <a href="http://troll.me/category/ancient-aliens-guy/">alien guy</a> skull combinations by me</i><br />
1027. <div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
1028. <a href="http://troll.me/images/ancient-aliens-guy/im-not-saying-it-was-aliens-but-it-was-aliens-thumb.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://troll.me/images/ancient-aliens-guy/im-not-saying-it-was-aliens-but-it-was-aliens-thumb.jpg" /></a></div><div class="blogger-post-footer">http://ofsinitiate.blogspot.com
1029. (c) Gevera Bert Piedmont  })i({
1030. Thank you!&lt;/div&gt;</content><link rel='replies' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://ofsinitiate.blogspot.com/feeds/7216641167351836841/comments/default' title='Post Comments'/><link rel='replies' type='text/html' href='http://www.blogger.com/comment.g?blogID=12406865&amp;postID=7216641167351836841' title='1 Comments'/><link rel='edit' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/12406865/posts/default/7216641167351836841'/><link rel='self' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/12406865/posts/default/7216641167351836841'/><link rel='alternate' type='text/html' href='http://ofsinitiate.blogspot.com/2011/10/elongated-skulls-and-brainpower.html' title='Elongated skulls and brainpower'/><author><name>GBP  })i({</name><uri>http://www.blogger.com/profile/09275995534174189926</uri><email>noreply@blogger.com</email><gd:image rel='http://schemas.google.com/g/2005#thumbnail' width='25' height='32' src='http://www.obsidianbutterfly.com/assets/about/Green%20Bert%20copy.jpg'/></author><media:thumbnail xmlns:media="http://search.yahoo.com/mrss/" url="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjd-sxCRvbw5QcQmZ-X2i1SvJLANPCvVKuzkCywoiZpcyQImh6dxQYjYNZCY_-Ah6DnHZoeL4ivRidxKNbgb72yUPDTYwR05WcgX_UmW042FD4UALU4ajeFPi3l2yeJSbvj7pBW9Q/s72-c/skullmashups.jpg" height="72" width="72"/><thr:total>1</thr:total></entry><entry><id>tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-12406865.post-9184377100592459626</id><published>2011-09-29T14:02:00.000-04:00</published><updated>2011-09-29T14:02:06.648-04:00</updated><category scheme="http://www.blogger.com/atom/ns#" term="2012"/><category scheme="http://www.blogger.com/atom/ns#" term="aztec calendar"/><category scheme="http://www.blogger.com/atom/ns#" term="books"/><category scheme="http://www.blogger.com/atom/ns#" term="calendar"/><category scheme="http://www.blogger.com/atom/ns#" term="Jaguar Nights"/><category scheme="http://www.blogger.com/atom/ns#" term="mayan calendar"/><title type='text'>Jaguar Nights: A Journey through the Tzolkin is almost ready</title><content type='html'>&lt;div class=&quot;separator&quot; style=&quot;clear: both; text-align: center;&quot;&gt;
1031. <a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiAvcS3Tna-2yYI0yNttLirf56stqFvJJ4EWDrdW8rJB_rRIxvXlETcvED6zE-x-Se_dcVXCpqVa2WY8FiCe4uSV2TarJ1Mvs1cz17WiYkqXsmHKFx0_sbYh9jli89NBuxq2LbjNw/s1600/JaguarNightsCover_WEB.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiAvcS3Tna-2yYI0yNttLirf56stqFvJJ4EWDrdW8rJB_rRIxvXlETcvED6zE-x-Se_dcVXCpqVa2WY8FiCe4uSV2TarJ1Mvs1cz17WiYkqXsmHKFx0_sbYh9jli89NBuxq2LbjNw/s1600/JaguarNightsCover_WEB.jpg" /></a></div>
1032. The long-awaited full volume that inspired the yearly calendars, <i>Jaguar Nights: A Journey Through the Tzolkin, Explorations of the Mayan Sacred Calendar</i>, is almost ready for shipment. (Around Thanksgiving.) Price will be about $30. Over 600 pages of exhaustive material on the sacred calendar.<br />
1033. <hr />
1034. Back cover blurb:<br />
1035. <br />
1036. <div style="text-align: center;">
1037. <i>It’s About Time!</i></div>
1038. <i><br />The Mesoamerican Tzolkin is a beautiful and simple calendar as well as a system of astrology and divination. Jaguar Nights is a uniquely organized reference book devoted to this sacred 260-day cycle. Each of the 260 days has two entire pages of comprehensive information. No flipping pages to figure out what everything means! It includes advanced information on how to use the calendar for divination augury, relationship compatibility, rituals, astrology, and how to find significant dates (electional astrology), all fully explained. Includes 92 years of correlation date charts (1930–2022). The Tzolkin holds the keys to many doors and to life cycles previously unnoticed. Use Jaguar Nights for two Tzolkin cycles as a personal diary and energy tracker, and as a reference for many years. When you immerse yourself in these alternate time cycles, the world starts to look different. You relate in a new way, you see patterns that you never noticed before. Learn to define your place in the great spiral of time, and find your relationship to the cosmos, with the Tzolkin. Step out of your world for a little while, and find a new set of rhythms to live by. </i><br />
1039. <br /><div class="blogger-post-footer">http://ofsinitiate.blogspot.com
1040. (c) Gevera Bert Piedmont  })i({
1041. Thank you!&lt;/div&gt;</content><link rel='replies' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://ofsinitiate.blogspot.com/feeds/9184377100592459626/comments/default' title='Post Comments'/><link rel='replies' type='text/html' href='http://www.blogger.com/comment.g?blogID=12406865&amp;postID=9184377100592459626' title='0 Comments'/><link rel='edit' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/12406865/posts/default/9184377100592459626'/><link rel='self' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/12406865/posts/default/9184377100592459626'/><link rel='alternate' type='text/html' href='http://ofsinitiate.blogspot.com/2011/09/jaguar-nights-journey-through-tzolkin.html' title='Jaguar Nights: A Journey through the Tzolkin is almost ready'/><author><name>GBP  })i({</name><uri>http://www.blogger.com/profile/09275995534174189926</uri><email>noreply@blogger.com</email><gd:image rel='http://schemas.google.com/g/2005#thumbnail' width='25' height='32' src='http://www.obsidianbutterfly.com/assets/about/Green%20Bert%20copy.jpg'/></author><media:thumbnail xmlns:media="http://search.yahoo.com/mrss/" url="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiAvcS3Tna-2yYI0yNttLirf56stqFvJJ4EWDrdW8rJB_rRIxvXlETcvED6zE-x-Se_dcVXCpqVa2WY8FiCe4uSV2TarJ1Mvs1cz17WiYkqXsmHKFx0_sbYh9jli89NBuxq2LbjNw/s72-c/JaguarNightsCover_WEB.jpg" height="72" width="72"/><thr:total>0</thr:total></entry><entry><id>tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-12406865.post-6018730650570092262</id><published>2011-05-19T15:05:00.000-04:00</published><updated>2011-05-19T15:05:30.589-04:00</updated><category scheme="http://www.blogger.com/atom/ns#" term="823 years"/><category scheme="http://www.blogger.com/atom/ns#" term="calendar"/><category scheme="http://www.blogger.com/atom/ns#" term="perpetual calendar"/><title type='text'>823 years of BS, or why that rumor is wrong</title><content type='html'>You&#39;ve probably gotten the email, or seen the Facebook post, about how this year (2011) is so incredibly rare and that it hasn&#39;t happened in 823 years (or won&#39;t happen again for 823 years).&lt;br /&gt;
1042. I honestly don't know how anyone with half a brain can fall for that.  Or forward it.<br />
1043. Think logically.  We have SEVEN weekdays.  So January 1 can be on any of those days.  That's SEVEN different calendars.  But oh wait, there's leap year.  So you need another SEVEN calendars with February 29 on them. (But you can see that there's only 7 versions of January 1 through February 28.)<br />
1044. That's a total of 14 calendars.  The 7 leap year ones, obviously, don't get used very often.  But 2011 isn't a leap year.  In fact, 2005 had the EXACT SAME CALENDAR (gasp) and it will come around again in 2022. It is not rare at all.  And I have no idea where the bogus 823 year figure comes from.  823 years ago was 1188.  This year, January 1 was on Saturday.  In 1188 it was on Friday--but it was a leap year, so it does correspond with our calendar from March 1 on.  (The point being that it's not the exact same calendar.)<br />
1045. From <a href="http://vpcalendar.net/">Virtual Perpetual Calendar</a>, here is calendar 6 (this year's) and 200 years of occurrences.<br />
1046. <div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhbJ4CrnkFt3a2VJjfL6z_bTQHPvLqkB-fG7pwnjVNKuLyGoJiJ94DdFvwk-7fC219EnlqVmKXIOW2H8lsZQQg866hLPyyfRBPKElPLIwD38kKPpqeT7fzD0KnEd0NMI_NRx_egWg/s1600/calendar6_web.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhbJ4CrnkFt3a2VJjfL6z_bTQHPvLqkB-fG7pwnjVNKuLyGoJiJ94DdFvwk-7fC219EnlqVmKXIOW2H8lsZQQg866hLPyyfRBPKElPLIwD38kKPpqeT7fzD0KnEd0NMI_NRx_egWg/s1600/calendar6_web.jpg" /></a></div><br />
1047. Please, please, please, STOP SENDING/POSTING this nonsense.  Or at least do it where I can't see it.<div class="blogger-post-footer">http://ofsinitiate.blogspot.com
1048. (c) Gevera Bert Piedmont  })i({
1049. Thank you!&lt;/div&gt;</content><link rel='replies' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://ofsinitiate.blogspot.com/feeds/6018730650570092262/comments/default' title='Post Comments'/><link rel='replies' type='text/html' href='http://www.blogger.com/comment.g?blogID=12406865&amp;postID=6018730650570092262' title='0 Comments'/><link rel='edit' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/12406865/posts/default/6018730650570092262'/><link rel='self' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/12406865/posts/default/6018730650570092262'/><link rel='alternate' type='text/html' href='http://ofsinitiate.blogspot.com/2011/05/823-years-of-bs-or-why-that-rumor-is.html' title='823 years of BS, or why that rumor is wrong'/><author><name>GBP  })i({</name><uri>http://www.blogger.com/profile/09275995534174189926</uri><email>noreply@blogger.com</email><gd:image rel='http://schemas.google.com/g/2005#thumbnail' width='25' height='32' src='http://www.obsidianbutterfly.com/assets/about/Green%20Bert%20copy.jpg'/></author><media:thumbnail xmlns:media="http://search.yahoo.com/mrss/" url="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhbJ4CrnkFt3a2VJjfL6z_bTQHPvLqkB-fG7pwnjVNKuLyGoJiJ94DdFvwk-7fC219EnlqVmKXIOW2H8lsZQQg866hLPyyfRBPKElPLIwD38kKPpqeT7fzD0KnEd0NMI_NRx_egWg/s72-c/calendar6_web.jpg" height="72" width="72"/><thr:total>0</thr:total></entry><entry><id>tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-12406865.post-6528638529998475339</id><published>2011-02-13T15:54:00.002-05:00</published><updated>2011-02-13T15:54:25.939-05:00</updated><title type='text'>Free lecture by Gevera...Relationships in the Mayan Calendar</title><content type='html'>&lt;b&gt;Relationship Aspects in the Sacred Mayan Calendar&lt;/b&gt;&lt;br /&gt;
1050. Starting a business? Thinking about getting married or adopting a child? Wondering about a new love relationship? There is a simple way, using the 260-day Sacred Mayan Calendar, to get a snapshot of the energy of two (or more) people, or even a person and a calendar day. Time permitting, relationships from the audience will be parsed.<br />
1051. ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~<br />
1052. I will be at the Astrological Society of Connecticut's New Age Fair from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. selling calendars and crystals, and presenting a free lecture from 11 a.m. to noon. Admission to the fair and the lecture is FREE and the vendors are always great. You can also get a variety of readings and horoscopes.<br />
1053. ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~<br />
1054. Sunday, February 20 · 11:00am - 12:00pm<br />
1055. Keeney Center<br />
1056. 200 Main Street<br />
1057. Wethersfield, CT<br />
1058. You may RSVP on <a href="http://www.facebook.com/index.php?lh=fffbd093cf1e7e037fe05edd7578af21&#%21/event.php?eid=133413106725371">Facebook</a>.<br />
1059. <hr /><div class="blogger-post-footer">http://ofsinitiate.blogspot.com
1060. (c) Gevera Bert Piedmont  })i({
1061. Thank you!&lt;/div&gt;</content><link rel='replies' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://ofsinitiate.blogspot.com/feeds/6528638529998475339/comments/default' title='Post Comments'/><link rel='replies' type='text/html' href='http://www.blogger.com/comment.g?blogID=12406865&amp;postID=6528638529998475339' title='1 Comments'/><link rel='edit' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/12406865/posts/default/6528638529998475339'/><link rel='self' type='application/atom+xml' href='http://www.blogger.com/feeds/12406865/posts/default/6528638529998475339'/><link rel='alternate' type='text/html' href='http://ofsinitiate.blogspot.com/2011/02/free-lecture-by-geverarelationships-in.html' title='Free lecture by Gevera...Relationships in the Mayan Calendar'/><author><name>GBP  })i({</name><uri>http://www.blogger.com/profile/09275995534174189926</uri><email>noreply@blogger.com</email><gd:image rel='http://schemas.google.com/g/2005#thumbnail' width='25' height='32' src='http://www.obsidianbutterfly.com/assets/about/Green%20Bert%20copy.jpg'/></author><thr:total>1</thr:total></entry></feed>

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