On the Couch With PBS

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Yesterday afternoon was overcast, but at dusk the sun somehow managed to make a brief, colorful appearance. I caught a glimpse from the kitchen window, dropped what I was doing, and frantically ran outdoors, snapping this shot from behind the grapevines.

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For several hours yesterday, I was back in that unheated tractor cab, bouncily bringing the last round bales in from the field. The rough ride caught up with me later in the evening.......after supper I could hardly move, stumbling to the couch to watch some shows on PBS. They were so interesting, I can't resist blogging about them.......I'll understand if you roll your eyes and surf away......

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First there was NOVA: The Bible's Buried Secrets........billed as a story of "science, history and faith". Obviously, archeology is the science......and, its ever fascinating to me. When I was a grade-schooler, my first dream was to be an archeologist when I grew up. Concerning findings in the Holy Land and surrounding territory: some of it lines up with what's recorded about the ancient Israelites in the Old Testament/Torah, and some of it doesn't. I'm alway intrigued by the Tetragrammaton, YHWH, the sacred, unspeakable name of God. Its a word found nowhere else, not surprisingly. Researchers have found ancient Egyptian records which refer to a place called YHW, located in the area of far southern Jordan, near the border with Arabia......the area called Midian in the Old Testament, where Moses fled to from Egypt. The show kept referring to a certain Egyptian stele......a stone inscribed with historical information (I can't recall the name of it, though).......anyhow, this particular stele does contain information that matches up with certain events in the Old Testament.

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Following that 2-hour show was Supernatural Science: Monumental Mysteries, reporting on new theories about the origin of the Sphinx in Egypt. I've always thought it strange that the Sphinx had the head of a human, but an animal body. Its being considered now that originally the Sphinx had the head of a lion, which would correspond with the body. The human head it now has is disproportionately smaller than the body, anyway. Researchers think that possibly the Pharoah Khufu---from the 4th Dynasty, I believe---had the lion's head carved into a likeness of his son (I forgot his name.....it started with a K.) A controversial idea being tossed about is that the original Sphinx is much older than traditionally believed.......built by peoples more ancient than the known dynasties of Egypt.

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Wow.........after all that weighty historical info, there was no way I could beat my way out of the warm cocoon of blankets there on the couch, so I watched one more PBS show. It was The Nightly Business Report; I really like the reporters on that show.....they cram much info into 30 minutes, and in a no-nonsense manner. They took me to hear Treasury Secretary Paulson testifying before the Senate in the bailout hearings;.....to Minneapolis and Hastings, MN, for a look at the newest hydroelectric technology;.....and, to an interview with Earvin "Magic" Johnson, now a successful entrepreneur. He looks to be doing very well......good for him......didn't he supposedly have AIDS years ago? Or am I thinking of someone else? Of course, the stock reports were given, too........which blow right over my head. I did catch that the head of YAHOO is stepping down.......his name is Yang.......is that where the first two letters of YAHOO come from, I wonder?

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OK.......sorry to ramble on.......I can't seem to become enamored with current sitcoms or other fictional TV fluff, but PBS documentaries and news shows can catch and hold my interest on occasion. Antiques Roadshow is a favorite around this household, too.......probably it could be considered fluffy, though.

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Hope you're havin' a great day!

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