News Details (Posted: January 25, 2005):

Monday's SEASIDE SCOOP By Peggy Fisher

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January 24, 2005 From Jim, Judy & Pal Sadie of Coral Stone: Incredible shot : Taken by someone who was in Phuket, Thailand, when the tsunami smashed ashore. This perspective is much more amazing than what has been seen on TV coverage. Now we can better understand the reason for the extent of the damage. The speed of the wave generated by the earthquake was estimated at 500 mph. ******************************­************ In Memoriam for Johnny A fond farewell to the late Johnny Carson, the TV legend who ruled the late night and the Tonight Show for 30 years, and passed away Sunday at 79. Thanks, Johnny, for your boyish charm, humor and style. You were our hero and mentor; before you retired too early, we dreamed of meeting you on your show as a celebrity guest. St. Peter’s no doubt welcoming you with: Heeeeeere’s Johnny….in a perfect Ed McMahon imitation, and Heaven’s just become more lively and even more perfect now that you’ve joined the angels, bringing your unique humility, heartland charm and droll humor. And, of course, we’ll still be chatting on many a beach a patrol….you’ll join my overactive Muse, Management and so many other bosses and spirits from this world and the next, chattering away with advice, tips and scoops. Thanks for the memories, laughter and inspiration. As Letterman, whose “Late Night with David Letterman” followed your “Tonight Show” said: All of us who came after are pretenders. We will not see the likes of him again; amen! ******************************­************ Triaging Time THINK—It is the source of self-renewal. PLAY—It will keep you young. READ—It will rejuvenate your mind. LAUGH—It will restore your balance. DAYDREAM—It will provide you a roadmap. PLAN—To make time for what you want to do. —from Bob Beard in Dearborn, MI, who checks online Seaside Scoop every day. Please share your time-saving tips and tricks via Seaside Scoop, if you have time ;-). ******************************­************ Welcome! Welcome to Seaside Scoop, strengthening our word power and memories incrementally while linking friends and wildlife supporters across Florida and the globe. Seaside Scoop readers span Florida, 35 states, Guam and 15 countries abroad. (Your email address is safe. Seaside Scoop will never sell, rent or disclose your email address to third parties.) ******************************­************ Word-a-Day Dedicated today to Management, aka Typhoid Howard. Reporting here from Ground Zero and amazingly still healthy, but near overdosing on Vitamins C, E and hand-washing, like a Parasol Lady Macbeth! Typhoid Mary TYE-foid-MAIR-ee noun : one that is by force of circumstances a center from which something undesirable spreads Example sentence: "We don't want any Typhoid Marys here," the supervisor told employees, "so if you have a bad cold, do your coworkers a favor and stay home." Did you know? The original Typhoid Mary was a New York City cook in the early 1900s who loved her job. Unfortunately, she had been exposed to typhoid, and although she was immune to the disease herself, she was able to pass the disease to others by way of the food she prepared. Health officials identified her as Mary Mallon, an Irish-born immigrant, and they quarantined her to stop the spread of the disease. Three years later, Mary was released with a warning not to cook professionally again. But in 1915, she was discovered working as a cook at a maternity hospital identified as the source of a new typhoid outbreak, and she was forcibly returned to quarantine, where she remained until her death in 1938. ******************************­****** The Donald ;-) Nervous for his 3rd trip to alter, The Donald said: You’re fired! instead of I do! Scary Weather News Spoke to Wachovia Help Line in Oregon over the weekend—scary news—it was not only an unprecedented 60 degrees while much of the rest of country was under snow and freezing temps, but their weather people are predicting winter may be over! She said she’s seen lambs born (supposed to birth in the spring!) and plants sprouting. Woe to us in Florida, if that means Summer’s on the way, as well as Global Warming. As if we need anything else to scare us than hurricanes & tsunamis! More Weather Updates Virtual Agent Gayle from Wisconsin with an Orlando report: Here in Orlando. Left a day early to escape the foot of snow we had coming. Didn’t want to get stuck in airports. We’re in sunny Orlando. It’s beautiful here! Haven’t done anything major fun yet but good to be here. Update from Gayle’s Mother back in Wisconsin: The national news is calling the Wisconsin part of this storm deadly and treacherous. Locally they're still telling people to stay off the roads. We have a drift on the back patio that's as high as the railing. The sun is out so it's really pretty, but when the wind whips up it's hard to see - briefly. Last night three of Merrimac's Fire and Rescue trucks went by here with lights and sirens, but they were really going slowly. They stopped just past the corner on Hwy. U. Today Dad saw that there's a pickup on it's side in the ditch - barely visible in the snow. Good time to be in Florida! —All we Floridians agree, with great gratitude! Mail Call Laura Russo in Coral Gables: Seaside Scoop is the best! Keep up the good work. Paula Mathena in IL (not Ohio as reported earlier): -OK, my Friend! Have a great weekend and enjoy those balmy (compared to ours) temps! Lil Miller-Fox of www.verobeach.com: Peggy - Tea article was great. Didn't know if you knew that we have a fabulous tea merchant in town (14th Avenue). Owners are biologists by schooling. It is a place worth visiting, but warning - you'll have a hard time going back to Earl Grey. Take a look http://www.verobeach.com/Tea/ Best, Lil Fellow writer Georgina in Coral Gables, FL: You'll never run out of those cute cat pics, will you? Your Puzzle article was magnificent, flowed so smoothly, facilely: you know your subject well. Top Fools was hilarious!... Don't worry about summer yet, P! Nothing better than writing inside a warm and cozy home to dispel the winter blues! And -- lucky you -- you have four (!) critters underfoot. Chris Quinton in England: Sad News With all the sadness and trauma going on in the world at the moment, it is worth reflecting on the death of a very important person which almost went unnoticed last week. Larry La Prise, the man who wrote the song "The Hokey Pokey", died peacefully at age 93. The most traumatic part for his family was getting him into the coffin. They put his left leg in. And then the trouble started............ Animal Rescue Site 2004 & 2005 Updates: Martin Luther King, Jr. said, "Darkness cannot drive out darkness, only light can do that." Thank you for helping to illuminate the world through your generous actions at The Animal Rescue Site. Your efforts are making a difference... In 2004, clicks on the "Feed an Animal in Need" button helped rescued animals by feeding them over 31.5 million bowls of food! In addition, purchases in The Animal Rescue Site store funded an additional 34.8 million bowls of food. Keep clicking and shopping -- together we can help even more orphaned pets and wild animals in 2005! Global Lifeguards: We're currently on a worldwide talent search for artist, writers and photographers, ages 5-17 to help support our Health and Safety Scholarship Fund for school teachers and other applicants that may need financial support for health and safety classes. Also check out our newly formed Public Safety Relief Fund for Police, Firefighters and Medical personnel. Log onto www.glgs.org. ******************************­*********************** Attachments/hyperlinks—Publica­tion Progress Another terrific clip Out of Africa from Virtual Agent Gayle in Wisconsin, Orlando and now in Vero Beach, published in Tanzania Consumer Digest (Select Electric Shavers for Smooth Results) ******************************­*********************** How You Can Help Tsunami Victims INDONESIA: January, 2005 BANDA ACEH - The global death toll from the Asian tsunami shot above 226,000 after Indonesia's Health Ministry confirmed the deaths of tens of thousands of people previously listed as missing. The ministry raised the country's death toll to 166,320. It had previously given a figure of 95,450 while Indonesia's Ministry of Social Affairs had put the death toll at around 115,000 before it stopped counting. Dodi Indrasanto, a director at the health ministry's department of health affairs, said the new death total reflected the latest reports from the provinces of Aceh and North Sumatra, which were directly in the path of the killer tsunami spawned by a magnitude 9 earthquake the day after Christmas. The new figure lifted the total global death toll from the tsunami disaster to 226,566, although the number continues to rise as more deaths are reported around the region. Photo from Shirley: A beach front shop is submerged in sand in Unawatuna, in southern Sri Lanka SRI LANKA DISASTER RELIEF I’m sure by now you would have heard of the terrible tragedy that hit among other nations, the island of Sri Lanka. Our immediate family is safe but I have yet to hear from some cousins who were in the affected areas.... and I know of friends and their families who perished. You will be pleased to know that the old Jaycee training works... deeply involved in mobilizing efforts in South Florida with fund raisers especially for the long-term rebuilding and restoration of a destroyed nation. A group of us Sri Lankans living in south Florida are collecting donations to help relief efforts and have set up a bank account at Washington Mutual Bank, Pinecrest. If you would like to help—and here any amount—no matter how small, will be gratefully accepted-please send your check, made out to: Sri Lanka Disaster Relief Fund and mail it to me at 6820 SW 28 Terrace Miami Fl 33155. I will be happy to make the arrangements to have the funds channeled through the RED CROSS in SRI LANKA where the relief efforts are already underway... If you have any questions or concerns, please give me a call at 305 661 8855 or 305 335 2373. Or email: shirleypw1@bellsouth.net Many Thanks. Shirley Wijesinha. Cartoon Cavalcade : Pease email cartoons that give you a smile to share. ******************************­***************** Seaside Scoop Web News Jumbo squid wash onto Southern California beaches Photo: From Carl Peterson in Guam—A firefly squid among deep sea creatures found after the tsunami in Phuket, Thailand NEWPORT BEACH, Calif. (AP) Hundreds of giant squid are washing up on Orange County beaches, creating a scene more akin to 20,000 Leagues Under the Sea'' than The O.C.' The bug-eyed sea creatures, believed to be Humboldt squid, normally reside in deep water and only come to the surface at night. Why approximately 500 of them began washing up on the sands of Laguna Beach and Newport Beach on Tuesday isn't clear. Authorities said the squid —the biggest weighing 17 pounds—might have been pursuing bait fish and gotten too close to shore, or the tides might simply have carried them in. ``I have heard of this happening before, but it's not a common occurrence,'' lifeguard Capt. Eric Bauer of the Newport Beach Fire Department said Wednesday. Authorities plan to remove the squid in the next couple of days and will give at least a couple to the Santa Barbara Museum of Natural History for research. In the meantime, beachgoers were advised not to eat or even touch them. ``They probably have bacteria on them at this point,'' Bauer said. For Seaside Scoops online, check: http://glgs.org/themes/Custom/­1/glg_articleView.asp?pid=68&t­id=14&articleid=29 ******************************­************ Peggy’s Pet Parade New Year cat collection sent by Laura in Atlanta, Geri in Ft. Pierce, Regina in Sarasota, mentor Al in Ft. Lauderdale and Management in Vero Beach—these are most popular felines. ? In 2005 we should move with care… ? Lydia Sacher in Miami: Be conscious of your appearance. ?Bill Glynn, N. Beach Civic Ass. president: Mac Fat Cat at McDonald’s…doesn’t’ it figure?…. From Carl Peterson in Guam: Deep sea creatures found after the tsunami in Phuket, Thailand. Hard to believe, even from an ole Navy guy! How do you like the lizard fish pictured? As everyone knows, the tsunami in Southeast Asia was devastating both in the loss of life and economically to the region. However, now that the clean up is underway in the region, deep sea creatures that live too deep to be studied are being found scattered throughout the wreckage. These creatures were washed up on shore when the waves hit. Amazing what lives so far below the surface isn't it? Pictured: Lizard fish If you have digital pics of your pet stars, please email them; once they join “Pets in Waiting,” Seaside Scoop stardom awaits via Peggy’s Pet Parade. ******************************­***************** Georgina’s Million Dollar Baby Review Million Dollar Baby: I read in an editing book somewhere that one's supposed to be able to encapsulate any story into three sentences. Herewith is the plot of Clint Eastwood's latest masterpiece, Million Dollar Baby: 1) A crusty old curmudgeon of a trainer (Eastwood) and his gym manager, a one-eyed, former contender (Morgan Freeman), are eking out their less than fully satisfactory lives. 2) An eager, enthusiastic, full of spit, fire, and life contender in the making shows up, asking to be trained as a fighter; there's one catch, however: she's a girl (Hilary Swank). 3) The manager -- and, reluctantly -- the trainer, take on the girl; however, the student ultimately becomes their teacher. At the Golden Globes last Sunday, Swank referred to Eastwood's performance as "the finest of his career." Perhaps so. Clint Eastwood's come a long way since his spaghetti Westerns, but he's never wavered in what he seeks: redemption. This time, he directs, produces, acts, and writes the sparse, yet haunting, score. It is extraordinary to imagine he found the time -- and energy -- to immerse himself into his role as Frankie. But he did. To the hilt. All three of them did: whereas Eastwood's intensity bubbles closer to the surface, and Swank's erupts, Freeman delivers an understated knock out punch, akin to the one he delivers to the long-standing bully of a mentally challenged boxer whom the old manager has taken under his wing. And Swank shines with a rough-hewn kind of polish, in the midst of all her grittiness. No wonder she won The Golden Globe as Best Dramatic Actress. No wonder Eastwood won for Best Directing. What'll happen come Oscar time is anyone's guess, but, given the accolades that have already been heaped on this picture, I think it's a sure bet Clint Eastwood won't walk away empty-handed at the end of February. This movie was so moving and gripping in its intensity that I was left with no tears. It's when I don't cry that I know it's hit deep. 2005 Cheers from Vero Beach Peggy Writing by Fisher Vero Beach, FL (772)388-4920 Turn the wheel of your life. Make complete revolutions. Celebrate every turning. And persevere with joy. —Deng Ming-Dao Writer ******************************­************* Seaside Scoop (AKA Word-a-Day) Content Any content may be copied; please credit Seaside Scoop . I would also appreciate your publishing information on subscribing: To subscribe to free Seaside Scoop email: writingbyfisher@bellsouth.net ------------------------------­------------------------------­--------------------