Some Events Of The Last 24 Hours

[poliphilo]

After lunch the women all went off to the shops and the men all went off somewhere else and I was left in charge of five kids- aged between twelve and five- whom I lead off to the beach.

Since the aunts and uncles and mothers and fathers had withdrawn their authority I let the kids march into the water with their socks on. One of the 12 year olds wanted to swim and I gave her permission to go and sit in the surf wearing her sun dress because why not? Pebbles and shells were collected. Christa wanted to carry a big sparkly rock home with her but since it was twice the size of her head settled for chipping off a small fragment.

Earlier- over pizza- I was talking to one of the men. He works for the U.N.'s Commission on Climate Control. He said the surprising thing about Vladimir Putin is he's so tiny. He encountered him once at some conference and couldn't believe it was really him until afterwards- because, of course, we think of these world-bestriding leaders as enormous.

The weather held through the afternoon. And then the clouds drove in from the west and scuppered our chances of seeing the "blood moon". At seven this morning there was a clap of thunder, followed by brief, tropical downpour. It's now quarter to nine, there's a bit of a breeze and the sun is shining.

Comments

[oakmouse]

Putin is a real Popeye --- short and muscular. It's interesting, because at this point in the US, a politician that short could never rise to high office; the voters would snooter them mercilessly. But about 70 years ago we re-elected Harry Truman by a landslide after he finished Roosevelt's last term, and he was pretty short too.

[poliphilo]

That's weird- how "tall" has come to equal "presidential". And yet so many alpha males have been little men- Napoleon for instance....

[cmcmck]

Cromwell was a six footer at a time when male average was 5'4".

Charles I was male average and Henrietta Maria topped him by three inches which is not how it looks in the portraits.........

Hitler was a shorthouse while il Duce was tall.

Stalin was short. My height indeed- 5'6"

[oakmouse]

Napoleon is a great example; he was considered short ever for his time, when men were a lot shorter than they are now.

It really is weird that height is equated with presidential oomph --- there's no rational or coherent reason for it. It seems to be entirely a matter of advertising.