ABC Wednesday
May 23rd, 2012

The letter this week is the Slinky S

and S does stand for Slinky

Did you ever play with a Slinky?

Did your children?

Or perhaps your grandchildren?

Wasn't it fun!!!!

The Slinky's inventor, Richard James ( a naval engineer) decided to demonstrate his new toy at Gimbels Department Store in Philadelphia in the the early 1940s though he really didn't think anyone would buy it because it was so simple.

Contrary to his expectations it was a great success

and remains the same today, as it did at Gimbels.

"The Slinky, like all objects, tends to resist change in its motion.  

Because of this inertia if it were placed at the top of the stairs it would stay at rest, without moving at all.

At this point it has potential or stored energy.

But once it is started down the stairs and gravity affects it, the potential energy

is created to kinetic energy, and the Slinky gracefully tumbles coil by coil down the stairs".

As the slinky moves down the steps energy is transferred along its length

in a longitudinal wave, rather like a sound wave that travels

through a substance by transferring a pulse of energy to the next molecule.

How quickly the wave moves depends on the spring constant and the mass of the metal

(I read that online!)

James had developed the Slinky for the Navy as an anti-vibration device for ship instruments.

When it failed to work for the Navy it became the successful toy it still is,

mesmerizing and amazing!

For more interesting S words sneak on over to ABC Wednesday,

here.http://abcwednesday-mrsnesbitt.blogspot.ca/

Sunday, the 20th of May,  2012

What we knew as 'Victoria Day' in honour of the Queen's birthday, when we went to the lake and had fireworks and a picnic and waved flags, has now become May Longweekend!!!!!  Everyone takes to the road to go hither and yon to various celebrations and early summer fetes and I doubt if many remember Queen Victoria's birthday is the cause celebre.  It is twittered about and there is great excitement on Facebook

What we have here in the village is the 74th  Annual Elk's Rodeo, with bulls and bareback riding and steer wrestling and barrel races.  We have the Firemen's Pancake Breakfast, a Cowboy's Church service under canvas, a Big Parade, a Children's Chicken Run, an all day Beer Garden and although the same events are probably firing up a dozen communities in British Columbia, we also have  thousands of visitors wearing cowboy hats.  Well, it seems like thousands.

What we were most excited about this week-end was the Centennial Celebrations at Charles' High School - Pen High.  O.k., we were mildly excited - as excited as those in their late eighties allow themselves to get about a great crowd of people, tremendously noisy and hiding quite effectively in their midst the very people you would like to visit with - your OWN old classmates.

So at the last minute we arranged a nice quiet luncheon at the Frog City Cafe in the middle of Linden Gardens in Kaledan; an especially lovely day - sunny, but not too warm, with just the faintest breeze and the very best of company.  The gatherings diminish somewhat as one by one people are wafted off to that great classroom in the sky, but that makes those who are left even more precious.  

Braving the wicked traffic we picked up our old and dear friend, Jill, - not yet easy with her widowed state and newly released from hospital but looking surprisingly fit, abandoning her walker for just a cane!  

We turned in at the Gardens and joined the remnants of the Class of '42, sitting around the patio, sheltered by the lovely greenery that surrounds Frog City and off in the distance flashes of colour where the azalea hold centre stage now the spring bulbs have all faded.

We had a great lunch, - Charles and I had a nice borscht and a Hippie Hobo sandwich made out of twenty grain bread and avocado, cheese, ham, tomato and various other goodies.  The ones who were game took a little turn around the gardens and were in awe of the marvelous colours and the shady pathways.

Eventually we had to move on, but we drove home, contented, happy, full of the satisfaction of having touched the lives of dear and familiar friends once again.

Please ignore the video

below, - it is

recalcitrant

won't work, and won't disappear.......