Ancient Urns or Drinking Vessels For Giants?
Stonehenge inspires awe, but there’s an even more mysterious ancient scene in Laos. The Plain of Jars consists of thousands of prehistoric stone vessels scattered over hundreds of square kilometers near Phonsavan, in the northeastern part of the country—a hilly area, despite the “plain” in the name. The huge jars form a surreal sight—some are up to ten feet tall and weigh several tons. It’s an archeological wonder that experts still haven’t pinned down.
French archeologists began puzzling over the vast display in the early 20th century. One, Henri Parmentier, who visited in 1923, found that although the contents of many of the jars had already been plundered, a typical one might contain one or two black pots, one or two hand axes, a “bizarre object” he concluded was a lamp, glass beads, drilled carnelian beads, earrings of stone or glass, bronze bells, and “frequently the debris of human bones.” Yet another French archeologist, Madeleine Colani, is credited with providing much of the early information about the site after conducting field research there in the 1930s and writing a tome called The Megaliths of Upper Laos—which, according to the New York Times, is a “719-page, two-volume hardcover available only in French.”
Archeologists say that the structures, some of which date back to 2,000 years ago, may be burial-related, though one oft-reported local legend declares that “a tribe of giants used them as wine chalices to celebrate a great victory." Read more at Ancient Urns or Drinking Vessels for Giants? Behind the Mysterious Plain of Jars in Laos
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Search For MH370 Will Eventually End
The underwater search for missing Malaysia Airlines Flight 370 could come to an end in the first half of next year.
Search teams have been combing a vast area of the seafloor in a remote part of the southern Indian Ocean, hunting for traces of the passenger jet and the 239 people it was carrying.
The search zone, where officials believe the Boeing 777 is most likely to have ended up, was expanded earlier this year from 60,000 square kilometers to 120,000 kilometers, bigger than the U.S. state of Pennsylvania.
Australia, which is leading the underwater hunt, announced Wednesday that the zone is unlikely to get any bigger.
"In the absence of credible new information that leads to the identification of a specific location of the aircraft, gvernments have agreed that there will be no further expansion of the search area," the Australian agency coordinating the search said in a statement.
The other two countries involved in the search are Malaysia, where Flight 370 began its journey, and China, where most of the passengers were from.
Families left in limbo
When the governments announced plans to increase the search zone to 120,000 square kilometers in April, they said it could take roughly another year.
Australian authorities said Wednesday that more than 50,000 square kilometers have been covered so far.
Flight 370 disappeared after taking off from Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, on March 8, 2014, bound for Beijing.
Authorities still don't know why it turned dramatically off course over the sea between Malaysia and Vietnam, or where exactly its errant journey finished.
Family members of the people on board say they have been left in limbo, with the absence of tangible evidence feeding hopes that their loved ones are still alive.
An international team of experts used satellite data to calculate that the plane eventually went down in the southern Indian Ocean, far off the coast of Western Australia. - Underwater search for MH370 could end next year, Australia says
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Girl struck by lightning while opening fridge
High school student Macie Martinez was struck by a bolt of lightning while standing inside her kitchen.
The teenager and her parents, who live near Lake Travis in the US state of Texas, had just emerged from their pantry after sheltering there following a local tornado warning.
According to reports, Macie had opened the fridge door to fetch some food when she was suddenly struck by a powerful bolt of lightning that left her screaming in agony.
"I remember when I was holding on it was the most painful thing I've ever experienced in my whole life," she said. "Then, afterwards, I couldn't feel my legs, and I couldn't walk and I was just shaking."
After pulling her clear of the fridge her parents rushed her to the nearest hospital.
Doctors revealed that she had sustained a wound on her back where the electricity had left her body as well as burns on her arms. It was remarkable that she hadn't been killed.
According to a neighbor the lightning had come up from underneath the house and went out through the roof. All the major kitchen appliances were fried and there were scorch marks everywhere.
"I feel very lucky. Lucky to be sitting here doing this interview today," said Macie.
"Normally, I'd go outside in the rain, but now it's like oh my gosh, there may be a storm I need to stay inside. I need to be safe. Stay in bed. It's a change."
Her parents have since installed lightning rods and a surge protector in the house in an effort to prevent anything similar from ever happening again.
NOTE: Strange enough, something similar happened to me when I was a teenager...witnessed by my sister. We were in the kitchen during a bad thunderstorm, when I opened the refrigerator and a bright bolt of 'lightening' shot from the door towards the ceiling. Scared the daylights out of us. Lon
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Cult Leader Asks For UFO Landing Permission
Remember Lia Eden, the leader of the Salamullah (God's Kingdom of Eden) religious sect that prophesied that a major earthquake was going to hit Jakarta before the end of May?
Yeaaah, so that obviously didn’t happen.
Lia has not made any statements yet today regarding her fortunetelling fail, but she did double down on the crazy last weekend by writing a letter to President Joko Widodo and Jakarta Governor Basuki “Ahok” Tjahaja Purnama asking for their permission to allow a UFO, piloted by the angel Gabriel, to land at the National Monument (Monas) so he can pick up her followers.
"Therefore, we hope that President Jokowi will approve and give us permission for our UFO to land.” Lia Eden wrote in the letter, as reported by Liputan6.
Despite the celestial implications, Ahok said he had not read the letter yet.
"I have not read it, I’m scared it would affect me," the governor joked.
Lia Eden leads a sect in which she claims to be the reincarnation of Mother Mary. She claims her son, Ahmad Mukti, is the reincarnation of Jesus Christ. We can't wait to hear her explanation for why she prophetic powers keep failing her. - Cult Leader Lia Eden Asks Jokowi and Ahok for Permission for a UFO to Land at Monas
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Big Thanks!
Vanessa and I want to thank everyone who has donated to her medical support fund...including those who wished to send donations by mail and through PayPal. All of it is appreciated. Vanessa's Medical Support Fund
Donations by mail can be sent to:
Lon Strickler
26 Coachman Ct.
Randallstown, MD 21133
PayPal:
You can use the donation buttons on the newsletter and blog...or use my email address lonstrickler@phantomsandmonsters.com
Thanks again!
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