FAMOUS JAZZ PIANIST…..Fats Waller was kidnapped by gangsters for three days in Chicago in 1926…..he was the “surprise guest” at Al Capone’s birthday party….he was later found very drunk….extremely tired….and had earned thousands of dollars in cash….from Capone and other party-goers as tips.
LONDON’S FIRST TRAFFICE LIGHT….was a 22-foot gas-lit tower….that required a full-time police officer….after just one month of taming horse-drawn carriage chaos….a gas leak caused an explosion in 1869….injuring the operator….and stalling automated traffic control for 60 years.
MEXICO….became the first country in the world….to let citizens vote for Supreme Court justices….5 women were elected and an indigenous right champion gave his speech in his native tongue.
ANCIENT ROMANS….carved “NFFNSNC” on their tombs….which is short for “Non fui, fui, non sum, non curo”….it meant “I was not, I was, I am not, I do not care”….it was their way of saying….there is nothing to fear….before birth and nothing to fear after life.”
IN 2012….A tiny bone from Denisova Cave, Siberia was found….DNA in 2018 showed it was “Denny”….a girl with a Neanderthal mom and a Denisovan dad….the first-generation hybrid and clear proof….these ancient human groups interbred.
SINCE 1980…..Around 40% of the top titles in men’s long distance International running…have been won by Kenyan athletes…..and most of them are from a single tribe….The Kalenjin.
AMONG THE NAVAJO (Diné)….a newborn baby is not fully part of the human community…..until their first laugh….usually around three to four months….whoever coaxes that laugh….must host the First Laugh Ceremony…..sharing food, salt and gifts….so the baby begins life rooted in generosity.
EVERY YEAR….Andean villagers rebuilt the ´Qeswachaka bridge….by using ancient Incan techniques…..it’s made entirely of woven grass….and has been reconstructed annually for over 600 years….it represents the last living link to a vast network of suspension bridges….that connected an empire across the mountains.
IN 1943….Nikola Tesla died alone in a hotel room surrounded by locked trunks….inside were blueprints for a “Death Beam”….and a wireless power system…..and all this information was confiscated by the U.S. government…..hours after his death.
BLACK FOOD HISTORY:
1. Fried Chicken: Originated in West Africa, brought to Americas by enslaved people.
2. Gumbo: African, French, and Indigenous fusion dish from Louisiana.
3. Barbecue: African and European influences merged in Southern BBQ.
4. Soul Food: Post-Civil War cuisine developed by African American women.
5. Juneteenth: Celebratory foods like red velvet cake, strawberry soda.
6. African Diasporic Cuisines: Caribbean, Latin American, African American.
7. Foodways of Enslavement: Cooking techniques, ingredients.
8. Freedom Food: Post-Emancipation culinary innovations.
9. The Black Chef’s Movement: Modern culinary activism.
10. Black Food Culture Preservation: Efforts to document, celebrate heritage.
BEFORE PUMPKINS…..the original Jack-ó-lanterns were terrifying faces carved into turnips in Ireland….the tradition was inspired by the legend of “Stingy Jack”…..he was a man doomed to wander the earth for all eternity….with only a burning coal in a hallowed out turnip to light the way….they were meant to ward off spirits….not to be used for decorations.
IN THE EARLY 1900’s…..while U.S. policies tried to erase Native cultures….Frances Densmore recorded thousands of songs on fragile wax cylinders…..Mohegan medicine woman Gladys Tantaquidgeon…..secretly preserved tribal birth records…..and decades later, these hidden archives provided the legal proof…..needed to win federal recognition for the Mohegan tribe.
ANCIENT TALES…..often depict creatures possessing remarkable skills that rapidly evolved societies….suggesting a multi-faceted interpretation of progress…..instead of seeing history as a straight line of improvement…..these stories reveal circularity and friction in our development …..they also ignite speculation about how contact with such beings might have influenced art…..architecture and technology throughout time…..each cultural artifact encapsulates more than human experience…..it hints at encounters that challenge simple narratives of advancement…..maybe we need to embrace the complexity embedded in our past….to understand humanity’s journey fully.