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Today we take a moment to pay tribute to that much beloved, often taken for grated.....ooops, sorry, taken for granted, sometimes beautiful, sometimes unbearable odiferous friend of nearly everyone's - cheese. While there is no solid evidence of where cheese-making originated, humans likely developed cheese by accident while transporting and storing milk in bladders, the enzymes of which would encourage curdling. Cuneiform texts dating back to the early second millennium BC show that cheese was already well-known among the Sumerians at the time. And shards of holed pottery, showing direct evidence of cheese-making, have been found in Poland and Switzerland dating back 8,000 years. In the America's, the conquistadors reported that the Inca were making cheese from llama's milk. In Asia, preserved cheese dating to 1615 BC has been found in he Taklamakan Desert in Xinjiang, China. Cheese is generally classified by its milk (cows, goats, sheep, buffalo or a combination thereof), its country of origin, age, texture (from soft to hard.....), flavor (mild to extra sharp) and, finally, its preparation. By some estimates, there are more than 1,800 different types of cheese in the world. For those who are interested, wikipedia gives a very comprehensive country-by-country listing here https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_cheeses But these many varied cheeses can generally be broken down into seven types: 1) Fresh (no rind): Bright white, mild, lemony or lactic with just a hint of the potential flavor of the milk. Some are wrapped in chestnut leaves, rolled in ash or covered in herbs. 2) Aged Fresh Cheese (wrinkled white to grey-blue rind): Usually made from goats’ milk, that have been allowed to grow a thin almost transparent rind. As the cheese shrinks the pinky-white rind wrinkles and a dusting of blue grey mould develops. If allowed to dry out the wrinkles become crevasses, the blue mould darkens, the interior becomes almost brittle and the flavor intense and very goaty. 3) Soft White Rind (White Fuzzy Rind): These grow a fine white crusty rind of penicillin candidum mould, which helps ripen the cheese and prevents the soft, voluptuous interior from drying out. 4) Semi-soft (Fine to thick grey-brown rind or orange & sticky): Some, like Edam, have a barely formed rind and are generally mild, buttery and sweet. Those with a thicker, mould-encrusted rind are denser and taste stronger, more earthy. Some are repeatedly 'washed ' in brine, which encourages the orange, sticky, bacteria to develop. The result is a feisty, pungent flavor and aroma. 5) Hard (crusty, grey often polished, waxed or oiled): Hard cheeses are pressed for hours or even weeks to remove the whey and compact the curd. Since they have a low moisture content they take longer to mature and are typically more complex and stronger in flavor. 6) Blue (gritty, rough, sometimes sticky rind): Blue penicillium mould is sprinkled into the vat before the milk has curdled then the curd is cut, piled into moulds and drained. The spicy taste is due to the reaction between the curds and the blue mould as they age together. 7) Flavor added: Hard cheeses to which a variety of flavors like nuts, fruit or herbs are added. Examples are Gouda with Cumin, Lancashire with Chives and Pecorino with Truffles. The most expensive cheese in the world, sold for as much as $1,300 per kilogram, is said to be Pule, a Serbian cheese made from 60% Balkan donkey milk and 40% goats milk. It is so expensive because of its difficulty to produce, and its rarity: there are only about 100 female Balkan donkeys (jennies) that are milked for Pule-making and it takes 25 litres (6.5 gallons) of milk to create one kilogram (about 2 lb's) of cheese. And while we are all familiar with having cheese and crackers with wine and cocktails, some innovative bartenders have found ways to manipulate cheeses into liquid forms to use in cocktails. At Coupette in London they feature a house-made parmigian liqueur in its Ain’t Being Cheesy cocktail. At Two Schmucks in Barcelona they work with a variety of cheeses in drinks. Most notably in their Melon, Cheese & Pepper cocktail. Finally, no tribute to cheese would be complete without a mention of the cheese capital of the United States, the state of Wisconsin. In 2019 Wisconsin led the nation in cheese production with over three billion pounds produced. This is where residents of the state get their, mostly proud nickname of "Cheese Heads" from. #cheese #cocktails #wisconsin #cheesehead #pule #coupette #twoschmucks #london #barcelona #food #beverage

A ritual is defined as a sequence of activities involving gestures, words, actions, or objects, performed according to a set sequence. Rituals may be prescribed by the traditions of a community, including a religious community. Rituals are a feature of all known human societies. They include not only the worship rites and sacraments of organized religions and cults, but also rites of passage, atonement and purification rites, oaths of allegiance, dedication ceremonies, coronations and presidential inaugurations, marriages, funerals and more. Even everyday actions like hand-shaking and saying “hello” could be termed as rituals. A ceremony is defined as a unified ritualistic event with a purpose, usually consisting of a number of artistic components, performed on a special occasion. To be powerful and effective ceremonies have to have impact. This occurs when the ceremony is framed by the visual and performing arts. Great care is taken in creating and choosing the poetry, prose, stories, personal journeys, myths, silences, dance, music and song, shared meditations, choreography and symbolism which comprise a ceremony. To reinforce the psychological and cultural power of ceremony it should be enacted, as far as possible, in a beautiful interior or exterior place. Beauty is the essential core of ceremony, having always been part of “raising the spirit” and embedding the good in the memory. Ceremonies are, historically, the bridge between the visual and performing arts and the people. Theatre emerged from ritual, and ceremony. Early societies perceived connections between certain actions performed by the group or leaders in the group and the desired results of the whole society. These actions moved from habit, to tradition, and then on to ceremony and ritual. The formulation of these actions, and the consequent repetition and rehearsal, broke the ground for theatre. In his seminal work, “The Hero With A Thousand Faces”, Joseph Campbell says of rituals and ceremonies – “The tribal ceremonies of birth, initiation, marriage, burial, installation and so forth, serve to translate the individual’s life-crises and life-deeds into classic, impersonal forms. They disclose him to himself, not as this personality or that, but as the warrior, the bride, the widow, the priest, the chieftain; at the same time rehearsing for the rest of the community the old lesson of the archetypal stages”. In the equally ground-breaking work, “The Power of Myth”, Campbell’s thesis is that, as the world becomes more globalised and people travel and work in countries other than their own, we are in need of new myths, ceremonies and rituals to fill the ever developing void left when people move on from their local mythology and rituals. It is these myths and rituals that give our societies some meaning and contribute to stability. Indeed, one could say that stability requires its very own myths and rituals. They provide us with a cultural framework by which we can define ourselves - to know who we are. A society that has held onto its rituals and ceremonies in unique fashion, despite an onslaught of cultural influences from outside, is the famed resort island of Bali on the Indonesian archipelago. Traditional ceremonies in Bali are related to Hindu religious activities, the religion embraced by the majority of Balinese. These rituals and ceremonies are a part of the daily life of the people on the island. Without detracting from the impact or significance of the ceremony, all people – including tourists – can join in by wearing traditional Balinese clothing, making the proper offerings and such. Traditional ceremonies in Bali are closely related to the religious life of the local community, which is closely related to religious ceremonial activities or offerings to Ida Sang Hyang Widi (God), especially on days that are considered sacred by Hindus. Although there are many different rituals and ceremonies that happen in various villages and districts across the island, there are a number of traditional ceremonies related to offerings to the Pitara (ancestors or people who have died), ceremonies to Humans, Bhuta Kala (evil spirits) and nature that are widely practiced throughout Bali. We thought we’d give a quick look at a few of these here today. Ngaben Ceremony: The Ngaben ceremony is a cremation ritual to carry the corpse back to the creator. In general, after death the person's body will be burned and then the ashes are washed away into the sea. Melasti Ceremony: This is a purification ceremony for both self and sacred objects belonging to the temple. In Hindu religious belief, water sources such as lakes, seas and springs are the source of life or “tirta amerta”. In this ritual, people flock to the sea or water sources wearing white clothes and carrying prayer equipment along with sacred objects or statues to be cleaned. The purpose of this ceremony is to increase devotion to the Gods and manifestations of God and increase the awareness of Hindus to restore environmental sustainability. Saraswati Day: This is a holiday to celebrate science. On this day, Balinese Hindus perform a special ceremony to worship or glorify Dewi Saraswati who is believed to bring knowledge on earth to make everyone in the world smart and educated. Everything related to science is prayed for in the Saraswati ceremony which includes dance performances and story readings that last all night. Galungan Day: Galungan comes from the Old Javanese language and means “Win”. This is a traditional ceremony that aims to celebrate the victory of Dharma (goodness) against Adharma (evil) and is celebrated every 6 months or, in the Balinese calendar, every 210 days. Mepandes: Also known as the “tooth cutting ceremony” is performed when a child enters adolescence. In this ceremony, six upper canine teeth of the child will be scraped off. The purpose of this ritual is to eliminate 6 enemies (sad ripu) in humans. The six enemies are lust, greed, anger, drunkenness, confusion and envy. Tumpek Landep: A ceremony, carried out every 210 days, where Balinese purify their weapons and equipment with offerings and prayers. Led by a traditional leader, it is carried out in a temple that is considered sacred for the occasion and has the right location. As symbols of intelligence and helping human life, these objects are worshiped on this day as a form of gratitude to God in his manifestation as Sang Hyang Pasupati. #bali #indonesia #ceremony #ritual #josephcampbell #powerofmyth #dance #art #myth #music #theatre #beauty #omdick #anyhigh

Fashionista's we most certainly are not. But we do know enough to know what we don't like, or what would be best to avoid when dressing up for a night out. Since not everyone might have as keen an eye for the pitfalls of fashion, we thought we'd take a quick look at some of the strangest/craziest/just down right bizarre fashion trends of the past. Many, if not all of which we're very happy are no longer in fashion. So zip up cause away we go...... * Macaroni: More than just a favorite hangover dish, it's also a delightfully strange fashion trend from the mid-1700's. "Yankee Doodle went to town, riding on a pony, stuck a feather in his cap, and called it macaroni....", is the refrain from a well-known American song and nursery ryhme. That lyric is in reference to young French men who took Italian fashion to the extreme. The style is, in fact, named after the Italian pasta dish, signifying sophistication and worldliness. The most notable element of macaroni fashion was a huge wig with the tiny hat (or feather) on top, but it also included flashy waistcoats, bright stockings, and fancy buckled shoes. * Black Teeth: In early Tudor England, sugar wasn't readily available. By the time that Elizabeth I came around in the mid-1500's, it was everywhere (though at a very high cost), and the Virgin Queen had a thing for sweets. Her teeth were black and decaying, the result of a sweet tooth (and a whole lot of neglect). They also sparked a short-lived fashion trend in England: Women purposefully blackened their teeth to prove that they had enough money to buy sugar. Fortunately this trend died out long ago, otherwise, today there might be an alarming number people walking around with orange hair.... * Arsenic Dresses: Bottle-green dresses were all the rage in the Victorian era, and they had price tags to match. To achieve this lovely shade of green, the fabric was dyed using large amounts of arsenic. Some women suffered nausea, impaired vision, and skin reactions to the dye. But the dresses were only worn on special occasions, limiting exposure to the arsenic in the fabric. The garment makers were the real sufferers - many died to bring this trend to the fashionable set. * Codpieces: Men trying to prove the power of their packages has been a thing since, well....forever. Codpieces were the penis enhancements of the 15th and 16th centuries. They were made out of a variety of materials including padded cloth, embroidered fabric, metal (good grief!) and sometimes even carved from (no pun intended) wood — and served to make men feel good about their members. * Crakowes: Also known as poulaines or pikes, this super long shoe reigned supreme with men across Europe in the late 14th and early 15th centuries. The shoes were named after Krákow, Poland because they were introduced to England by Polish nobles. Once the shoes were seen at court, they became all the rage - even though the shoes were up to twenty-four inches long. But they were a quick indicator of social status: the longer the shoe, the higher the wearer's station. Chains were sometimes strung from the toe of the crakow to the knee to allow the wearer to walk. Sometimes the toes were stuffed with material for the same reason. * Breast Flatteners: During the Roaring '20s, the hourglass shape gave way to the boyish flapper figure and underwear got an overhaul. The goal of every undergarment was to flatten the breasts and torso, so that flapper dresses could hang straight down without any curvaceous interruptions. Corset-makers R. & W.H. Symington invented a garment, the Symington Side Lacer, that would flatten the breasts. The wearer would slip the garment over her head and pull the straps and side laces tight to smooth out curves. Other manufacturers designed similar devices. The Miracle Reducing Rubber Brassiere was "scientifically designed without bones or lacings," while the Bramley Corsele combined the brassiere and corset into one piece that easily layered under dresses. So, from this brief look at some of the craziest fashion trends of history, we have learned a couple of takeaways. One, that people will go to ridiculous lengths to prove their station in society. And two, that exaggeration is key. The true devotes of trends seemed mostly to believe that bigger was better. Whether they're deadly or just plain nuts, you can be thankful these fashion trends are in the past and are not deserving of a comeback. #fashion #flappers #roaringtwenties #dresses #hoopskirts #lifestyle

Winston Churchill (an old friend of our blog) once famously said, “Those that fail to learn from history are doomed to repeat it”. Now, although we are big fans of that classic movie “Groundhog Day”, in an effort to not just become another ‘repeater’ of history, this week we thought we’d share a few strange but true historical snippets that we all might learn - though not exactly sure what - some kind of lesson from. So, hold onto your belief systems because here we go….. Turkeys were once worshipped as gods. Though the argument could be made that, in the USA on Thanksgiving day every November, that still holds true, in 300 B.C. these big birds were heralded by the Mayan people as vessels of the gods and were honored as such. So much so that they were domesticated to have roles in religious rites. They were symbols of power and prestige and can be found everywhere in Maya iconography and archaeology. Napoleon was once attacked by a horde of bunnies. The emperor had requested that a rabbit hunt be arranged for himself and his men. His chief of staff, Alexandre Berthier, set it up and had men round up reportedly 3,000 rabbits for the occasion. When the rabbits were released from their cages the bunnies charged toward Bonaparte and his men in a viscous and unstoppable onslaught. Captain Morgan was a real guy. While some of us may have thought we've met him after too many glasses of his famous rum, he actually was a Welsh privateer (aka a pirate) who fought alongside the English against the Spanish in the Caribbean in the 1660s and 1670s. His first name was Henry and he was knighted by King Charles II of England. His exact birth date is unknown, but it was sometime around 1635. He died in Jamaica in 1688, apparently very rich. Using forks used to be considered sacrilegious. Yes indeed, forks were once seen as blasphemous. First introduced in Italy in the 11th Century, these spiked spaghetti-twirling instruments were seen as an offense to God. Why, you may ask? Because they were seen as "artificial hands" and, as such, were considered to be sacrilegious. Pope Gregory IV declared a war on cats. In the 13th century, Pope Gregory IV said that black cats were instruments of Satan and ordered the extermination of these felines across Europe. But, as the saying goes - be careful what you wish for - his plan backfired as it resulted in an increase in the population of plague-carrying rats. Ketchup was sold in the 1830’s as medicine. In 1834, ketchup was sold as a cure for indigestion by an Ohio physician named John Cook. Tomato ketchup was popularized as a condiment commercially in the late 1800’s and today, in the USA alone, more than 10 billion ounces of ketchup are sold annually. Of course, in the 1980’s, during the administration of US President Ronald Reagan, ketchup was classified as a vegetable….. At this point it seems appropriate to refer back up to Churchill’s quote at the beginning of this blog post. #winstonchurchill #groundhogday #billmurray #history #captainmorgan #rum #pirates #turkey #napoleon #bunnies #ketchup #medicine #ronaldreagan #vegetables #cats #forks #religion

This week's post is a quick look at how everything old is new again. And by that we're talking the "speakeasy". Most people know that a speakeasy was a place where alcoholic beverages were illegally sold in the USA during prohibition. From 1920 to 1933 there was a nationwide constitutional ban on the production, importation, transportation and sale of alcoholic beverages. Speakeasies received their name as patrons were often told to “speak easy” about these secret bars in public and from the fact that police often had trouble locating the bars due to the fact that people tended to speak quietly while inside. Speakeasies claimed to sell soft drinks and coffee, but served alcohol behind the scenes - some famously served in coffee cups. The speakeasy created an environment where gangsters, the wealthy and the lower classes could all drink and socialize together. Modern day speakeasies no longer have to evade closure, arrest and prosecution. One of the biggest trends in nightlife and bars over the last decade is the rise of the "speakeasy" bar - cocktail bars that mimic the illicit, hidden bars that arose during the Prohibition era of the 1920's. Indeed, the allure of private drinking lounges, often hidden in back alleys or behind fake doors in nondescript storefronts or restaurants, remains a strong draw today. Now, while we're very happy that laws outlawing alcohol sales in the USA were repealed long ago, we do owe a bit of a debt of thanks for a couple consequences of it having occurred. For example, prohibition made cocktails famous. Most drinkers before the 1920s would drink their alcohol straight, either with an ice cube, a twist of lime, or a splash of water. But that was high quality alcohol, not the lower-quality stuff that became more common during the prohibition era. Rum-runners and bootleggers often brought in poor quality liquors from Mexico, Cuba, and the Caribbean, so speakeasy owners began to mix in other ingredients to the alcoholic drinks to hide the poor flavors. As a result, dozens of cocktails were invented, and cocktails became the more popular choice of alcoholic beverage at bars and clubs. A couple of the more famous cocktails that we're pretty certain Gatsby would have sipped on back in the day are: Bee's Knees: gin, honey syrup & fresh lemon juice. People used the fresh lemon & honey to cover up the harsh taste of the bathtub gin. For that little extra "razzle dazzle" you can top it off with a float of dry champagne. Boulevardier: rye whiskey, campari & dry vermouth. This variation on our beloved Negroni first appeared in 1927 at The New York Bar in Paris. Hanky Panky: gin, sweet vermouth & Fernet Branca. Created in 1925 at the Savoy Hotel in London, this surprisingly well-balanced cocktail may ease you into liking the divisive Fernet. Scofflaw: rye whiskey, dry vermouth & grenadine. Invented in 1924 at Harry's Bar in Paris as a nod to all the American drinkers who were surviving Prohibition, the Scofflaw is an unlikely cross between a Daiquiri and a Manhattan. Brandy Alexander: cognac, dark creme de cacao & heavy cream. Brandy was introduced to the original gin-based cocktail in 1922 when it was served at the London wedding of Princess Mary and Viscount Lascelles. Mimosa: champagne & orange juice. So delightfully simple and so wonderfully refreshing, the simple mixture was invented at the Ritz Hotel in Paris in 1925. Well, technically the mix of the two was already called a Buck's Fizz, but bartender Frank Meier tweaked the ratios to equal parts, forever revolutionizing our Sunday afternoons. Finally, we raise a toast to a man of integrity who's name has become synonymous with quality. - Bill McCoy. Captain Bill McCoy was a rum-runner (a transporter of illegal rum, usually from Cuba or the Caribbean) known for his integrity. Unlike other runners, he didn’t water down his liquors, but instead sold them at full strength. When people said the alcohol was “the real McCoy“, it meant that it hadn’t been watered down and thus was high quality alcohol. The phrase quickly caught on, and has persisted to this day. We know that anything called “the real McCoy” means “a product of high quality”. If you're feeling knowledgable on the subject, here's a link to a fun Prohibition quiz from the Mob Museum in Las Vegas, Nevada that you can try your hand at: https://prohibition.themobmuseum.org/wp_quiz/speakeasies/ We look forward to hearing about your favorite Prohibition-era cocktails and your favorite modern-day speakeasy's in our Fourm's. Here's a taste of one of our latest favorite speakeasy finds - No. 11 Jakarta (Eleven Jakarta), a Japanese style speakeasy bar in the heart of Jakarta. #speakeasy #prohibition #alcapone #booze #alcohol #cocktails #bootlegger #rumrunner #realmccoy #jakarta #coffee #mobmuseum #lasvegas

The Cambridge Dictionary defines humor as: the ability to be amused by something seen, heard or thought about, sometimes causing you to smile or laugh, or the quality in something that causes such amusement. One of the greatest American humorists, Mark Twain, remarked that “humor is mankind’s greatest blessing.” It has been argued that the human capacity for humor is what distinguishes our species from others. Humor can build and destroy, strengthen and weaken, honor and besmirch, and perhaps all of these at the same time. Take, for example, when an uppity authority figure slips and falls on a banana peel. Or the ridiculous hilarity of the silent movie day Keystone Kops. Merriam-Webster defines humor as: that quality which appeals to a sense of the ludicrous or absurdly incongruous and an often temporary state of mind imposed especially by circumstances. Being able to laugh in the face of adversity is, as Mark Twain said, a great gift. So, in today's blog post we salute the people of Sri Lanka. A people who are going through unimaginable economic and political difficulties, yet who never cease to amaze, inspire and humble us with their unwavering ability to find humor in any situation, regardless how dire the circumstances may be. During last weeks people power uprising, many government buildings and residences were peaceably taken over by an understandably angry public at the ruin of their economy. To illustrate the Sri Lankan's incredible gift for humor, we share with you a "review of their stay" posted by one of the protestors who overran the Presidential residence in Colombo: Humor can be the great equalizer and inspire great highs. It's an honor for us to be able to count many Sri Lankan's among our dearest friends and we wish them well in their search for a better future. We also wish they could be an example for people everywhere, even when things look bleakest, to take a minute and find something that makes you laugh. #srilanka #marktwain #keystonekops #humor #colombo

The shamans, healers, sages and wisdom keepers of all times, all continents and all peoples, in their ageless wisdom, say that human spirituality is composed of three aspects: relationships, values, and life purpose. Spirituality means different things to different people. For some, it’s primarily about a belief in God and active participation in organized religion. For others, it’s about non-religious experiences that help them get in touch with their spiritual selves through quiet reflection, time in nature, private prayer, yoga, hallucinogens or meditation. Spirituality is defined as the recognition of a feeling, sense, or belief that there is something bigger than ones self, that there is more to being human than sensory experience, and that the larger whole of which we are a part is cosmic or divine in nature. The spiritual refers to a person’s thoughts and beliefs rather than their physical body or surroundings. For mystics, the spiritual is not something merely to think about but also something to be encountered. Spiritual phenomena may be said to be experienced when they are thought about in such a way that a depth of feeling becomes attached to them. When experience of the spiritual is heartfelt, the spiritual is found to be mysterious, awesome, urgent, and fascinating. Mystics believe that their experiences disclose the existence of an extrasensory dimension of reality: phenomena whose existence cannot be detected through sense perception but become apparent during mystical experience. During mystical experiences, extrasensory phenomena are said to be directly perceived, whether by the soul, the mind, the imagination, or some other faculty. The phenomena that mystics encounter may be impersonal — a unifying principle, structure, process, law, or force — or personal — ghosts, spirits, angels, demons, gods or revelations derived from such personal beings. When mystics make claims about extrasensory dimensions of reality, they are making the same type of claim that physical scientists do when they cite the laws of physics, or psychologists when they posit emotional complexes that govern responses to events. They are not speaking of the magical, mythological, or otherworldly; they are attempting to speak of aspects of the world of sense perception that are not perceptible to the senses. The mystical experience can be defined as a sense of unity, or the experience of becoming one with all that exists. Mystical experiences may be encountered following the ingestion of classic hallucinogens. The following is a written description of an experience reported by a volunteer who received 20 mg/70 kg of psilocybin in a study conducted at Johns Hopkins: “In my mind’s eye, I felt myself instinctively taking on the posture of prayer in my head. I was on my knees, hands clasped in front of me and I bowed to this force. I wasn’t scared or threatened in any way. It was more about reverence. I was showing my respect. I was humbled and honored to be in this presence. This presence was a feeling, not something I saw or heard. I only felt it, but it felt more real than any reality I have experienced. And it was a familiar place too. One I had felt before. It was when I surrendered to this, that I felt like I let go. I was gone…or I should say this earthly part of me was. It was still on the couch in some sort of suspended animation awaiting my return. I was in the void. This void had a strange and indescribable quality to it in that there was nothing to it but this feeling of unconditional and undying Love. It felt like my soul was basking in the feeling of this space. I have no idea how long this lasted. Time and space did not exist there …it was all different manifestations of this Love feeling I found myself wrapped in.” There's so much more to talk about in this blog this time. But we think we'll save it all for a future posting. In the meantime, as always, we look forward to hearing about the spiritual & mystical experiences that you've had that took you to another level. #spiritual #mystical #hallucinogens #lsd #mystics #spirits #science

"The purpose of art is washing the dust of daily life off our souls" - Pablo Picasso. The Arts are defined as painting, sculpture, music, theater, literature, etc., considered as a group of activities done by people with skill and imagination (“the arts.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary). The term “art” is related to the Latin word “ars” meaning, art, skill, or craft. The first known use of the word comes from 13th-century manuscripts. However, the word art, and its many variations, have probably existed since the founding of Rome. The individual's definition of "Art" is really very subjective. What for one person might be considered a towering work of great importance, for another might be shrugged off as just so much blah, blah, blah. The Jean Basquiat painting that sold for $110.5 million at a Sotheby’s auction in 2017 would, no doubt, have had trouble finding an audience in Renaissance Italy, for example. Historically, works of art and symbolic thinking have been held up as proof of the cognitive superiority of modern humans – examples of the exceptional skills that define our species. Interestingly, scientists now claim that Neanderthals, not modern humans, were the first artists on earth. Neanderthals painted on cave walls in Spain 65,000 years ago, tens of thousands of years before modern humans arrived on the scene, researchers say. https://youtu.be/0H_wFNfrMmU The Finnish composer, Jean Sibelius said that "art is the signature of civilizations". Perhaps that term "civilization" could be construed to mean human or otherwise. Whatever the case, we count ourselves lucky enough to have friends and family who write - https://www.amazon.com/Gordon-McAlpine/e/B001HPRUW8%3Fref=dbs_a_mng_rwt_scns_share and paint -https://www.instagram.com/shohanalwis/ and, in doing so, have helped to wash the dust off of our daily lives. Was it a book or a piece of music or a movie or a painting or a sculpture or something else that raised your spirit to new heights? We look forward to hearing about it so we might be touched in the same way. #pablopicasso #picasso #jeanbasquiat #basquiat #art #painting #music #dance #movies #sculpture #books #neanderthal

Today we're going to talk a bit about beverages. A beverage is defined as "any potable liquid, especially one other than water". You may ask, what is the difference between a beverage and a drink? Basically it all comes down to semantics - unlike drink, beverage cannot be a verb. Beverage is a noun. While there are many different classifications of beverages, we found this basic chart an easy reference to determine under which category your favorite type of beverage might fall.... The ancients were fond of many beverages (most often fermented or distilled) that we are unfamiliar with today. Among the more interesting we found: * Falernian Wine - The ancient Romans had access to a lot of great wine. Hailing from Campania in Italy, Falernian was considered one of the finest. According to Pliny the Elder, Falernian was best after aging for fifteen years. Very high in alcohol content, "it is the only one, among all the wines, that take fire on the application of flame," said Pliny. * Pulque - Arguably the most storied alcoholic drink in Mexico's history, it's made by fermenting, not distilling, the sap of the maguey plant (AKA agave). In mythology, the milky white beverage was said to have been invented in a lost divine paradise, although humans probably first started drinking it about 4000 years ago. The Aztecs also used it as a religious stimulant. * Shedeh - A mysterious ancient Egyptian drink whose contents scholars still debate. The term "shedeh" has no translation in modern English, and the only Egyptian text that chronicled how it was made said it was filtered and heated - but the papyrus it was found on was incomplete. Whatever it was, shedeh was apparently a beverage fit for the pharaohs: King Tutankhamun's tomb contained an amphora of the liquor. * Soma - Soma appears in the Rigveda, a series of ancient religious texts from India. Soma was a plant that produced an intoxicating beverage with a hallucinogenic effect, as well as the god who personified both of these. Soma was seen to be a healer and a fertilizing force. In the Rigveda, soma (the drink) was made by squeezing liquid from the plant's stalk, which was combined with milk and water. The resulting beverage might have brought worshippers some pretty interesting visions. * Kykeon - Kykeon was a psychedelic drink hailing from ancient Greece. What exactly went into it is a mystery, but it appears to have contained an unusual mix of barley, cheese, and wine. "Kykeon" might have been a generic word used to describe a potion with magical effects, but it was also often associated with "mysteries," or covert rites for a particular god. The most famous "mysteries" were the secret rites of the goddess Demeter at Eleusis, where participants downed an unknown hallucinogenic beverage to see visions. Scholars now think it might have been kykeon containing moldy grain, which was specially treated to yield psychedelic effects. Our subject line said this was a special day so it seems appropriate - and more than a little serendipitous - that we conclude this brief discussion about beverages with a shout out to the fact that today is WORLD GIN DAY! Always the second Saturday in June, the date moves around a bit, but we can rest assured that there's always Sunday following it to recuperate. So, whether it's in a martini or a gin & tonic or however you most prefer that intoxicating juniper spirit, raise a toast - to the ancients and to your friends! #WorldGinDay #soma #rigveda #romans # wine #beer #booze #spirits #beverages #egypt #mexico #kingtut

Wikipedia defines food as “…any substance consumed to provide nutritional support for an organism. Usually of plant, animal or fungal origin, food contains essential nutrients, such as carbohydrates, fats, proteins, vitamins or minerals. The substance is ingested by an organism and assimilated by the organism's cells to provide energy, maintain life, or stimulate growth. In ancient Rome grains, legumes, vegetables, eggs and cheeses were the basis of the diet, with fruit and honey for sweetness. Meat (mostly pork), and fish were used sparingly, and as the empire expanded beginning in the 3rd century BC, Romans welcomed new flavors – be it pepper from India or lemons from Persia. Roman food could be distinguished by its ingenious use of ingredients to create exciting dishes. A famous ingredient used by the ancient Romans was garum, still a mysterious liquid that can’t be fully replicated today. According to Pliny the Elder, garum was produced from fish intestines fermented with salt and possibly with some other ingredients to create a sort of liquor. The garum could be fermented in different grades. The more flavored and noble in aspect, the better. Garum was such a well-loved ingredient that even poets and writers praised it in their various works. We look forward to reading about what astonishing meals and desserts have caused you to sing their praises in verse in our Food Forum. #food #dessert #meals #rome #plinytheelder #ancient #india #persia #garum

The first known use of the word activity was in the 15th century and derives from the Middle English actyvete or "active life". Now, in the 15th century, people’s extracurricular activities were a bit different than today. The upper classes hunted, crowds would gather to watch knights participate in jousting tournaments with wooden lances, swords or maces and these tournaments would sometimes last for days. In the evenings people would play board games or cards. Webster defines activity as “the quality or state of being active”: “a process that an organism carries on or participates in by virtue of being alive”; specifically : an educational procedure designed to stimulate learning by firsthand experience. Here at AnyHigh.life, we define activity as anything that’s not consumable which sends the endorphins into overdrive and which you can do – legally - in public, either indoors or outdoors. We want to hear what activities really turn you on and while we don’t have a category specifically for jousting, we’re open for anything! #activity #games #indoor #outdoor #exercise #sex

noun plural noun: a) a particular kind of matter with uniform properties b) the real physical matter of which a person or thing consists a which has a tangible, solid presence. c) physical material from which something is made or which has discrete existence. Our favorite description is "c" due to its "discrete existence". What's your favorite substance? Tell us about it in our "Substance" forum and/or it's subcategories. #substance #matter #existence #tangible #tripping