In an earlier post I mused about winter in Chicago, where there are cold temperatures in early winter and plenty of snow in January and February. Well. Here we are, creeping along in the middle of January and the forecast is for...rain. Huh? I'm sorry, but that ain't right. It is not supposed to rain in Chicago in January, dammit!
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Another tradition bites the dust with the announcement that the Ringling Bros. and Barnum & Bailey Circus is folding up the tent and shutting down. One of the many reasons given for the shutdown is the shorter attention span of modern audiences. What used to be a three hour show was shortened to a little more than two hours, and yet attendance has declined.
It's too bad; the circus was one of the last holdouts of family entertainment, with something for everybody and kids of all ages. I've attended plenty of circuses, with a very hazy memory of a giant tent along the lakefront, maybe at the site where McCormick Place now stands. It's possible; the Ringling Bros./Barnum & Bailey circus had their last performance under the big top in 1956.
The last time I was at their circus was about 25 years ago as a birthday present from my sister. She asked me what I wanted to do for my birthday and I said, "The circus is in town!" With her three young children it was a great idea and a good time was had by all. Seeing all those elephants come galloping out for the opening act, coming to a dead stop and rising on their hind legs was really something, a sight no longer to be seen.
The most memorable thing from the big top show, when I must have been 5 or 6, was seeing some of the animals up close before the show. I distinctly remember an elephant taking some peanuts out of my hand with its trunk, which was disturbingly slimy. It makes sense, the trunk being its nose and all with the attendant mucous. But still, it was quite a surprise for this young pup.
Then there was the annual Shrine Circus held at the Medinah Temple; went to a bunch of those. A strangely small venue for a circus, but somehow it worked.
Finally, there was the locally produced TV program "Super Circus," whose main attraction was the voluptuous Mary Hartline, hubba, hubba. I saw that, too, with a forgotten group; too early for it to have been Cub Scouts so it might have been a school group. I've forgotten where it was broadcast from but I remember being unimpressed. I had a lousy seat positioned behind a TV camera guy; it looked much better on TV than it did live, but the costumes were very colorful, looking nothing like they did on the old black & white DeForest.
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When I think of religion, I usually think in terms of the major players in modern life: Christianity, Islam, Hinduism, and Judaism. As a lark, I found a topic on Wikipedia, "List of new religious movements," another eye opener. It looks like there's something for everybody, no belief system is too goofy. I didn't dig too deeply, but it appears that some belief systems don't include any deities, which may appeal to folks of the atheistic persuasion.
Some of the religions I've never heard of: Anthroposophy, New Thought, Syncretism, Thelema, and Transhumanism among others. I've seem magazine ads for the Rosicrucians, but I don't know what they're up to. And the good old Zoroastrians are still with us.
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Well, Mr. Beagles, you have inspired me to try making ice cream. I received an Amazon gift card for Christmas and there's a nice looking unit that I've added to my wish list. But before I pull the trigger I have a question: many recipes call for heavy cream but the closest I've found in the local supermarket is heavy whipping cream. Is that the same thing? Other recipes include milk, half & half, and condensed milk but they are all easily available. Also, I've read that the ice cream is only fresh for a couple of weeks (frozen, of course) probably due to the inclusion of egg yolk and the obvious lack of preservatives. Has that been your experience? As much as I like chocolate, I think the first batch will be vanilla/black cherry.
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