Tuesday, April 23
Apr. 24th, 2024 01:45 am![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
gottawonderToday I am grateful for:
Very lovely weather. It went up to about 19 C today, and sunny. T shirt weather.
I woke on my own a little earlier than I usually do, and that is nice.
I did some laundry and did the dishes, and that felt productive.
I very briefly talked with my Mom, but she sounded very sleepy so I didn't talk for long. Then I spoke with Sister E. It sounds like she had a lot of fun recently with a group of women her age, they went shopping at a green house for some outdoor plants, and apparently had a lot of fun together.+
I'm glad that my Sister E is doing her best to enjoy being retired, and being in town after living on their acreage. I think she is determined not to just sit on the couch and mope about getting older and all of the changes and fears it brings. Since moving to town, she's embraced walking the dog, finding things to do like pickle ball and helping her friend with the consignment store, and being social.
I had the time to let Wonder out into her pasture before I went to see River, and today I took Dandy (pony) over and let him in with her. Before he was in a corral beside her, but after very little drama, I felt like they would be okay to be in with each other.
There was very little drama, though not much interaction either, but this is still a good outcome. I want to make sure that Wonder has some interaction with another equine, though most of the time Dandy will live with the other pony and the goats. Just SOMETHING so that Wonder has a social life.
After I put them all back in their rightful places again, I went to see River.
His breathing wasn't great, so I was giving him lots of breaks. He did okay with everything today, if kind of slowly.
We did ride outside a bit too, which was really nice.
I came home and my Sweetie had done a few useful things, like took down some Christmas lights and put away a few things, and got the big water tanks set up for if it rains (we use it to water the garden). He also picked up some cat and dog food.
He also started supper, so YAY for Sweetie!
We watched an episode of "Boardwalk Empire", which must have had a bit of a ratings drop back then, because the sex and nudity was increased for that episode. Sigh.
It's funny to think about it that way, but Egypt has coast line along the Mediterranean Sea. Somehow I never think of it that way. It also has coast on the Red Sea, and the Gulf of Suez and Gulf of Aqaba.
The Suez Canal is in Egypt, one of the modern wonders of the world, that allows shipping to move from the Red Sea into the Mediterranean, connecting that side of Africa and well, a whole part of the world to Europe fairly directly whereas before it would have had to be shipped all the way around Africa first.
Egypt is the third most populated country in Africa, with 110,000,000 people.
Well, we all know it's ancient, right? We all know about the pyramids, the Valley of the Kings, Cleopatra, the pharaohs, all that.
The early culture mostly farmed in the rich soil along the Nile river. Annual flooding leaves new rich soil as it recedes. The vast grasslands were so heavily over grazed by these early people that they destroyed it, forming the vast Sahara desert.
"A unified kingdom was founded c. 3150 BCE by King Menes, leading to a series of dynasties that ruled Egypt for the next three millennia. Egyptian culture flourished during this long period and remained distinctively Egyptian in its religion, arts, language and customs. The first two ruling dynasties of a unified Egypt set the stage for the Old Kingdom period, c. 2700–2200 BCE, which constructed many pyramids, most notably the Third Dynasty pyramid of Djoser and the Fourth Dynasty Giza pyramids."
There was then a First Intermediate Kingdom, a Middle Kingdom, and a New Kingdom (This period is noted for some of the most well known Pharaohs, including Hatshepsut, Thutmose III, Akhenaten and his wife Nefertiti, Tutankhamun and Ramesses II. ).
Some minor conquering, then Egypt was reclaimed by pharoahs. Then it was back and forth between native pharaohs and the Achaemenid Empire, for quite some time, right up until Alexander the Great took over and Ptolemy founded the Ptolemaic Empire.
Cleopatra was the last ruler of the Ptolemaic line, and she ruled from 51 to 30 B.C.
Then there was other stuff, then it was ruled by the Ottoman Empire, but it was always an iffy thing. Egypt kept doing its own thing as a semi-autonomous nation under the Mamaluks (A weird military caste of administrators).
Then, (this always blows my mind for some reason), Egypt was invaded by Napoleon in 1798, and it was a big fight between the British, the French, and the Ottoman Empire. In all of that mess, Albania (who had been working for the Ottomans) ended up taking control, and did so until 1952.
The Suez Canal was completed in 1869, and it was VERY IMPORTANT in the world wars as to who controlled it.
In WW I, Egypt fought with the Ottoman Empire, and after it's fall, Egypt was declared independent of it, and became a British Protectorate, but also the Kingdom of Egypt.
In WW II, Egypt was neutral on paper, but the British had extensive military bases in Egypt, and Britain had control of the Suez Canal.
Egypt became a Republic in 1953.
More stuff.
Today, Egypt is "not free", though it has a President and elections; "In 2024, as part of its Freedom in the World report, Freedom House rated political rights in Egypt at 6 (with 40 representing the most free and 0 the least), and civil liberties at 12 (with 60 being the highest score and 0 the lowest, which gave it the freedom rating of "Not Free".[156] According to the 2023 V-Dem Democracy indices Egypt is the eighth least democratic country in Africa.[157] The 2023 edition of The Economist Democracy Index categorises Egypt as an "authoritarian regime", with a score of 2.93.[158]"
Aside from the Nile Valley, most of Egypt is a desert. The Aswan Dam messed with the annual flooding of the Nile, which means the deposits of rich soil no longer takes place.
Since many of Egypt's cities are along the coast, as well as agriculture, it is very vulnerable to climate change as a significant rise in sea levels would make most of it's people climate refugees.
Apparently has a lot of really interesting and unique lichens and fungi.
An interesting side note is an ancient pigment called "Egyptian Blue".
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Egyptian_blue
The economy is doing well these days, though wealth is concentrated in a small group with not much getting to the average person (most people live on less than $2 a day). In recent years, the Egyptian army has expanded its economic influence, dominating sectors such as petrol stations, fish-farming, car manufacturing, media, infrastructure including roads and bridges, and cement production. Naturally tourism is a HUGE industry for Egypt.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Egypt
https://youtu.be/jdNw0g7SOMc?si=3cfPYsuTT6eYRxY8
If you seriously just watch the Youtube videos, you'll learn SO MUCH about these countries, and they're fun.
Very lovely weather. It went up to about 19 C today, and sunny. T shirt weather.
I woke on my own a little earlier than I usually do, and that is nice.
I did some laundry and did the dishes, and that felt productive.
I very briefly talked with my Mom, but she sounded very sleepy so I didn't talk for long. Then I spoke with Sister E. It sounds like she had a lot of fun recently with a group of women her age, they went shopping at a green house for some outdoor plants, and apparently had a lot of fun together.+
I'm glad that my Sister E is doing her best to enjoy being retired, and being in town after living on their acreage. I think she is determined not to just sit on the couch and mope about getting older and all of the changes and fears it brings. Since moving to town, she's embraced walking the dog, finding things to do like pickle ball and helping her friend with the consignment store, and being social.
I had the time to let Wonder out into her pasture before I went to see River, and today I took Dandy (pony) over and let him in with her. Before he was in a corral beside her, but after very little drama, I felt like they would be okay to be in with each other.
There was very little drama, though not much interaction either, but this is still a good outcome. I want to make sure that Wonder has some interaction with another equine, though most of the time Dandy will live with the other pony and the goats. Just SOMETHING so that Wonder has a social life.
After I put them all back in their rightful places again, I went to see River.
His breathing wasn't great, so I was giving him lots of breaks. He did okay with everything today, if kind of slowly.
We did ride outside a bit too, which was really nice.
I came home and my Sweetie had done a few useful things, like took down some Christmas lights and put away a few things, and got the big water tanks set up for if it rains (we use it to water the garden). He also picked up some cat and dog food.
He also started supper, so YAY for Sweetie!
We watched an episode of "Boardwalk Empire", which must have had a bit of a ratings drop back then, because the sex and nudity was increased for that episode. Sigh.
It's funny to think about it that way, but Egypt has coast line along the Mediterranean Sea. Somehow I never think of it that way. It also has coast on the Red Sea, and the Gulf of Suez and Gulf of Aqaba.
The Suez Canal is in Egypt, one of the modern wonders of the world, that allows shipping to move from the Red Sea into the Mediterranean, connecting that side of Africa and well, a whole part of the world to Europe fairly directly whereas before it would have had to be shipped all the way around Africa first.
Egypt is the third most populated country in Africa, with 110,000,000 people.
Well, we all know it's ancient, right? We all know about the pyramids, the Valley of the Kings, Cleopatra, the pharaohs, all that.
The early culture mostly farmed in the rich soil along the Nile river. Annual flooding leaves new rich soil as it recedes. The vast grasslands were so heavily over grazed by these early people that they destroyed it, forming the vast Sahara desert.
"A unified kingdom was founded c. 3150 BCE by King Menes, leading to a series of dynasties that ruled Egypt for the next three millennia. Egyptian culture flourished during this long period and remained distinctively Egyptian in its religion, arts, language and customs. The first two ruling dynasties of a unified Egypt set the stage for the Old Kingdom period, c. 2700–2200 BCE, which constructed many pyramids, most notably the Third Dynasty pyramid of Djoser and the Fourth Dynasty Giza pyramids."
There was then a First Intermediate Kingdom, a Middle Kingdom, and a New Kingdom (This period is noted for some of the most well known Pharaohs, including Hatshepsut, Thutmose III, Akhenaten and his wife Nefertiti, Tutankhamun and Ramesses II. ).
Some minor conquering, then Egypt was reclaimed by pharoahs. Then it was back and forth between native pharaohs and the Achaemenid Empire, for quite some time, right up until Alexander the Great took over and Ptolemy founded the Ptolemaic Empire.
Cleopatra was the last ruler of the Ptolemaic line, and she ruled from 51 to 30 B.C.
Then there was other stuff, then it was ruled by the Ottoman Empire, but it was always an iffy thing. Egypt kept doing its own thing as a semi-autonomous nation under the Mamaluks (A weird military caste of administrators).
Then, (this always blows my mind for some reason), Egypt was invaded by Napoleon in 1798, and it was a big fight between the British, the French, and the Ottoman Empire. In all of that mess, Albania (who had been working for the Ottomans) ended up taking control, and did so until 1952.
The Suez Canal was completed in 1869, and it was VERY IMPORTANT in the world wars as to who controlled it.
In WW I, Egypt fought with the Ottoman Empire, and after it's fall, Egypt was declared independent of it, and became a British Protectorate, but also the Kingdom of Egypt.
In WW II, Egypt was neutral on paper, but the British had extensive military bases in Egypt, and Britain had control of the Suez Canal.
Egypt became a Republic in 1953.
More stuff.
Today, Egypt is "not free", though it has a President and elections; "In 2024, as part of its Freedom in the World report, Freedom House rated political rights in Egypt at 6 (with 40 representing the most free and 0 the least), and civil liberties at 12 (with 60 being the highest score and 0 the lowest, which gave it the freedom rating of "Not Free".[156] According to the 2023 V-Dem Democracy indices Egypt is the eighth least democratic country in Africa.[157] The 2023 edition of The Economist Democracy Index categorises Egypt as an "authoritarian regime", with a score of 2.93.[158]"
Aside from the Nile Valley, most of Egypt is a desert. The Aswan Dam messed with the annual flooding of the Nile, which means the deposits of rich soil no longer takes place.
Since many of Egypt's cities are along the coast, as well as agriculture, it is very vulnerable to climate change as a significant rise in sea levels would make most of it's people climate refugees.
Apparently has a lot of really interesting and unique lichens and fungi.
An interesting side note is an ancient pigment called "Egyptian Blue".
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Egyptian_blue
The economy is doing well these days, though wealth is concentrated in a small group with not much getting to the average person (most people live on less than $2 a day). In recent years, the Egyptian army has expanded its economic influence, dominating sectors such as petrol stations, fish-farming, car manufacturing, media, infrastructure including roads and bridges, and cement production. Naturally tourism is a HUGE industry for Egypt.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Egypt
https://youtu.be/jdNw0g7SOMc?si=3cfPYsuTT6eYRxY8
If you seriously just watch the Youtube videos, you'll learn SO MUCH about these countries, and they're fun.
