2024 Christmas Decorations Tour

My previous video and article included decorations for Halloween, Thanksgiving, and even a smattering for Christmas. For this touring, I saw a few decorations that served dual-holiday purposes, the residents having creatively adorned them. Got most of the images from a few days of drive-byes. Surprisingly, seems fewer places had decorations than previous years.

Most decorations I imaged were inflatable balloons, which included Santa, snowmen, reindeer, penguins, a few dogs, live white-tail deer, ... Many goodies images were of candy canes and red/white or green/white round mints.

One video section includes a collection of Halloween/Christmas visuals that I culled from other clips. Look for these items in the neighborhood sections among the more obvious Christmas-theme figures. Happy touring! Also look for Halloween/Christmas in my blog and YouTube channel.

2024 Halloween Imaging in November

Halloween this year was on a Thursday. I incorrectly guessed that people would keep their Halloween decorations into the weekend. Besides a few people having already started taking in items, a few balloons were deflated.

Imagining I might take good daytime images, initially hoped to capture more striking nighttime versions. Having less stamina than in the past, and also seeing dismantling of decorations lessened ambition for an evening pic excursion.

In the last day of movie-making, I shoehorned a few clips and pix from the rest of November during the rest of November. Look for a li'l Thanksgiving and Halloweenish Christmas peeks.

Lesson learned for 2025—take pix and videos a few days before Halloween (daytime for one session, nighttime for another session).

Visit past Halloween videos ("Halloween Decorations Galore!") and related blog articles.

Last of the Cedars Downed

Upon moving in, the cedar trees numbered 11. Arborgeddon (in 2023) wiped out maybe five. The last cedar became weakened maybe a year later; it could fall and harm or worse in a bad moment. Got it cut and removed mid-September.

The video revisits some memories of Arborgeddon damage. A segment shows abbreviated cutting and removal of the last tree. Besides wanting to document the majestic tree's demise, I wanted to closely view the cedar stump surface.

Based on meandering to view previous cedar stumps, I wasn't sure what the surface would look like. The center part is heartwood, prominently "ringed" by the sapwood.(It measures about 9" x 12".) Anything about the shape and colors remind you of anything? For more info about tree anatomy that also mentions barks and cambium, with ID-labeled image, visit "Anatomy of a Tree".

 

The irregular perimeter made me wonder how weak the trunk itself might have been. That stump doesn't resemble the nearby one, also a cedar. They both look like their trunks had been lacking in solid mass.

Visit my other articles and videos of cedars, now in the past. No longer any cedars to hack at errant branches and their needly, junipery foliage.

• "See Dere Cedar Stumps, Plus One, Sizing Up" article | video
• "See Dere Cedar Stumps" article | video

Related: "2023 Ice 'N' Arborgeddon" article | video

Revisiting Lemon Poppyseed Mini-cupcakes

My first batch of lemon poppyseed mini-cupcakes was in June 2012. Coincidentally, I used the same lemon cake brand and poppyseeds. The two emphases were as follows:

• Regular-size vs. mini-cupcakes made using aluminum pans that had round wells
• Separation methods between the cake batter and pan wells

This time, I triedd using silicone pans with square wells. One panful, I used scoops/spoon to dispense batter. The other panful, I pitcher-poured. (Pitcher dispensing is so much faster!) I also enriched the recipe with an extra egg and used milk instead of water. Richer flavor and body.

Wellll, the session did not go anywhere as well as I'd hoped. Various websites touted non-stickiness of silicone, and that the physical flexibility would allow quick release of baked items.

Alas, throwing caution to the wind, my un-oiled pans, filled with ~95% batter, yielded cringeworthy amounts of baked cake in the wells. The hoped-for flick-of-the-wrist cake releases kind of worked. They were fugly, better served in dim lighting.

The video shows straightforward steps that worked well until I got to the dispensing, baking, and cake extractions. (Pay attention to the kitchen versions of road caution signs.)

Calories and Sodium

The yield was from filling the cupcake wells higher than I should have. I have a recollection that I'd wound up with 77 at another baking session. Another wrinkle to the calculations is that much of the cake stuck to the pans. More units, fewer calories each. Same amount of units but successful detachments from pans, more calories each.

I did not list poppyseeds in the table. Google results show negligible stats for calories, sodium, or practically any other noteworthy nutrient.

Silicone Pan Resources That Seemed Persuasive at the Time

• "Silicone vs Paper cupcake liners"
• "How To Use a Silicone Muffin Pan?"
• "Webake Mini Brownie Pan Square Silicone Baking Mold for Keto Fat Bomb, Chocolate, Peanut Butter, Blondie"
• "24-Cavity Metal Reinforced Silicone Mini Muffin Pan by Celebrate It™"
• "Good Question: Help! Why Do Cupcakes Always Get Stuck In These Silicone Muffin Cups?"
• "What are the advantages of silicone molds?", subsection of "Grease the silicone mold - is it really necessary? - Wisefood"

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Related: "Lemon Poppyseed Mini-cupcakes"

Betty Crocker Butter Pecan Cake Mix Cookies, MImicking La Moderna Marianita Cookies

It'd been awhile since I'd baked cookies using cake mix. Betty Crocker caught my eye with the Butter Pecan cake flavor. The sale price of $1 was compelling. I tried to duplicate La Moderna Marianita pecan flavor cookies, cheap at about 68 cents for a roll of 28 cookies (6.5 ounces).

The Marianita cookies are crunchy and don't contain actual pecans. The flavor has a hint of pecan nut skins, smidge of bitter aftertaste. For attempting crunchiness, I had hoped baking at 325, not 350, and baking cookies longer than typical cookies would work. I also hoped that the BC's reduced amount of powder (from 15.25 to 13.25 oz) wouldn't affect the outcome.

Wellll, the lessons learned for the next time will be to raid some other cake mix box for two ounces of powder to add to the recipe. The dough didn't firm up like in other cake mix cooky dough. It was stickier and harder to load into my cooky press and dispense. Also, next time, I'll try baking the cookies at least 13 to 14 minutes. Sure, I like soft and chewy, but I was trying to obtain the Marianita crunchiness.

View the video for step-by-step process. See the final image for comparison of a plateful each of BC Butter Pecan cake mix cookies and La Moderna Marianita pecan flavor cookies.

Making cookies at home take way more time and energy than buying shelf-stable store cookies. Be sure to block out time for gathering ingredients, equipment, mixing, dispensing, baking, and cooling. Oh, yeah, remember cleanup time and effort!

Cookies and other wheat-dominant products have gotten pricey over time. On the good side, the ingredients for the project came to less than $2: $1 for box of cake mix, 29 cents for 1/3 C oil, and 50 cents for 2 eggs. The yield was 42 cookies. FWIW, cookies baked at home seem to take longer to consume than store-bought. More appreciation for the effort expended? Definitely tastier!

Calories and Sodium

As a side thought, I considered adding chocolate chips. Doing so would have added extra calories (~30C/cooky) and cost ($1.50 additional for project). Mmmm, butter pecan flavor with chocolate chips! Related: "Low-effort Choco Chip Cake Mix Cookies" (article, video)

La Moderna Resources

La Moderna cookies are a niche item at HEB. I've not been inclined to seek other products from this Mexico-based company. Memory aid that Moderna is one of the big-name Covid-19 vaccines.

• La Moderna manufactures pasta and soups as well as cookies. Amusingly, La La Maderna's cooky page does not include the pecan flavored ones.
• "La Moderna Marianitas Cookies", 71 cents for 6.5 oz Nutrition info claims 6 servings, 5 cookies per serving. I counted 28 cookies.
• "La Moderna Pecan Marianitas, Authentic Mexican Pecan Cookies, Fun Snacks For Kids, 6.53 Oz, Pack Of 20"

Get the Most Out of Shampoo/Lotion Bottles, Etc.

Got frugality inclinations? How about extracting the last of shampoos and lotions near the bottom of their bottles? My topic is primarily modifying and repurposing suitable size/shape plastic bottles so they can hold those almost-empty bottles upside-down. With gravity, the positioning of dispensers with remaining slo-mo fluids does away with numerous bottle tip-overs, shakes, and/or flow waits.

Additional slo-mo fluids besides shampoos and lotions include mustards and liquid hand soaps. (The liquid soap hack is repurposing a soda bottle top into a funnel, described farther down.)

Cutting A Prospective Empty Bottle for "Cradle Cup"

The modifications of bottles require careful handling when cutting. I used an xacto knife and pair of scissors (not shown).

I rinse and air-dry a suitable empty plastic bottle. (Suitability means the empty "cup" cradles the product bottle vertically with only a little extra gap.) With an xacto knife, I slowly poke short, horizontal slits into the upper portion of the bottle until the top portion detaches or becomes loose enough to easily remove. I then use a pair of scissors to gingerly trim the cup's edge neatly.

Rant about Some Shampoo and Lotion Dispensers

Ever wonder if shampoo and lotion companies deliberately package their products to have the consumer waste the last drops? Most bottles have press open/close lids or fliptops for easy dispensing. Less convenient dispensers are screwtop caps and pumpers. Least convenient are bottles that manufacturers have attached snapped-on dispensers.

J & J Baby Shampoo exemplifies the worst of dispensers--snapped on pumper. The top requires prying off, and the straw is too short, making end-of-product extraction difficult. Suave shampoo is flip-top, but the top also requires prying to remove it.

J & J travel size shampoo is cute. It has a flip-top dispenser. However, the mouth diameter is so small that only an eyedropper would fit, making refilling impractical.

My advocacy for cuppish bottles doesn't address snapped-on dispensers for some shampoos. About all I can advise is the following steps:

1. Use as much of the shampoo as possible. Inverting the bottle is helpful, maybe even with a modified cup.
2. Pry the dispenser off.
3. Add a little water to make the shampoo easier to pour out.
4. If the bottle is a suitable size/shape, cut it open and reuse it for holding inverted product bottles.

Beyond Shampoos and Lotions

I have emphasized bottles for shampoos and lotions. Another item that is suitable for upside-down cradling is a mustard bottle. Coincidentally, I found a salad dressing bottle to be a good size and shape for the cradling cup.

A specific use I have for another cradle cup is for placement of a small bottle of baby oil at the sink. The cup's slightly larger size and wall prevents the smaller bottle from tipping over.

Prospective Cradle Cups

If you already stand your low-supply bottle upside down, do you position the bottle amongst other containers? Lean it into a corner? Use a cuppish item? Want ideas? Look the kitchen, pantry, and bathroom for prospectives for plastic bottle cradles. Some existing and prospective examples:

Soda Bottle Funnel Frugality

Liquid hand soaps, imho, are way too concentrated. Undiluted, they tend to run out fast. For a long time, I used a standard funnel to pour half of one bottle into another, then add water. The process was slow for both pouring the full strength liquid and adding water.

It occurred to me that a 2-liter soda bottle might have a mouth diameter that fit the liquid soap bottles. Voila! If you dilute your liquid hand soap and haven't tried this hack. the video includes the info.

My method for making the funnel is similar to making previously mentioned holders. The soda bottle material is much thinner than previously referenced plastic cradle cups. (I made a second funnel as an example for method, which I discarded afterward.)

The modifications of bottles require careful handling when cutting. I used an xacto knife and pair of scissors (not shown).

I rinsed and air-dried an empty 2-liter soda bottle. Halfway up the bottle, I used an xacto knife to slowly pierce some touching horizontal slits. The gap became long enough for pressing the wall and easily slipping in scissors. I then cut and neatly trimmed the edge.

Ready to squeeze out more of your liquidy products? Hope I've provided some food for thought.

See Dere Cedar Stumps, Plus One, Sizing Up

 

This topic is a followup to March's "See Dere Cedar Stumps" (article, video). At that time, I noted nine cedar (ashe juniper) stumps. Six of those trees got damaged and needed removing only last year because of Arborgeddon in my area (article, video).

During a recent backyard weed-pull session, I saw that I overlooked yet another cedar stump. I took a new set of pix. For good measure, I used primarily an 18" transparent drafting scale and a wooden yardstick. Previously, I used a metal tape measure that was unwieldy although doable enough.

For this set of images, I emphasized ascending cut-surface spans, scaling the images in reference to each other and also including span dimensions. View the images from smallest to largest spans, which range from just under 8" to almost 23". (The plus-one stump is mid-range size—~12 1/4.) Note the stumps' irregular perimeters, and lack of roundness and symmetry.

"Ashe Juniper" mentions "easily recognized by its irregular shape, fluted, twisted trunk". The site describes it in deeper detail for characteristics and environs. Various images round out the info.

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Related: "See Dere Cedar Stumps" article | video

April 8 2024 Total Solar Eclipse (44-sec capture)

Why only 44 seconds instead of reported totality of 2 minutes and 35 seconds? Clouds interfered with and distorted the capture, eventually totally obscuring the corona after ~43 seconds. My entire recording was 2 minutes and 26 seconds, but the viewfinder showed only darkness from about 44 seconds till the end. The video shows real-time speed (~44 seconds), then half speed.

Eclipse Day Decisions Made For Better or Worse

I couldn't order the weather. It was fickle for a good amount of Texas, including my viewing site, Austin. Weather forecasts and updates seemed to constantly change. Inclinations to travel were tempered by fears of encountering vehicular multiple-dimpling and hail-caused car window smashings. Also, destinations required real time to reach; available time required for traveling eventually evaporated. We stayed put.

From hearing stories about past eclipse events. area population swelling and travel would be challenging for residents and visitors alike. Highways and smaller roads could result in no-gos from traffic overflow or collisions or combinations. News frequently broadcast alerts about having certified solar glasses, stocking up on food, ensuring full gas tanks, and preparing for hours-long departures afterwards. We took the advisories seriously.

I should have thought of using a tripod for my Canon IXUS 180 (PowerShot) camera. As much as I tried to hold it steady, it shook. After I truncated the recording from 2 minutes and 26 seconds, I manually aligned the frames using GIMP. The process was similar to how I aligned the October 2023 annular eclipse frames.

Article:"Partial Annular Solar Eclipse Oct 14 2023, Austin"
YT video ~35 sec): Side by Side Eclipse Views, Austin Area Oct 14 2023"

Another should-have-done was aiming the camera downward a few seconds before totality, turning it on and starting to record, then aiming the camera upward. I would have captured the timer beeper for start of totality. (I did manage to capture the timer's end-of-totality beep.)

GIMP and OpenShot Image Processing

In short, I used GIMP, with grid display to align the images in layer views. The task was much more difficult than October 2023 annular eclipse because of moving-clouds distortions and obscuring. Several times, the view transitioned from disk to arc to smudge, in different directions and varying focus qualities. Clouds! Consolation is that some of the corona was viewable, and we got no rain.

As for OpenShot, I had help with converting the clip to individual frames, then re-assemblling the edited frames into a view-stable disk-centric movie. Turns out that trying to use OpenShot to assemble the frames froze the tool. We used ffmpeg in a command window.

Extra Touches

Some features I hadn't tried ever, or in a long time:

• I used some OpenShot's capabilitiese to crop, scale down, and move an inset movie of a kitchen timer.
• I extracted about 50 seconds of audio in OpenShot, then opened and edited it in Audacity. I added it to the video, along with the image of the graph.
• I created an outline circle to note the major visible prominence at 4 o'clock position.

If I Knew Then, ...

I discovered many of my actions generated a lot of heat before light. Glad to have learned shorter steps eventually. A thought kept me going for creating the video. I'd never think about processing another eclipse set of images. Not inclined to go to another eclipse site any time soon.

"Can’t get enough of the total solar eclipse or got clouded out? Here are the next ones to watch for" provides some years to consider next US eclipses.

The next U.S. taste of totality comes in 2033 when an eclipse brushes Alaska and Russia. And in 2044, one will cross Greenland and western Canada, touching swaths of North Dakota and Montana. ... An eclipse on the scale of Monday’s event won’t happen again until Aug. 12, 2045.

"Future Eclipses" provides some info in tables for future solar and lunar eclipses. Long haul to get there.

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Want additional astronomy-themed articles? Click for "astro topic" search results in my blog. Related: Sky/Astronomy Items YouTube playlist

See Dere Cedar Stumps

 

While recently pulling out spring weeds, I noticed some of the cedar stumps didn't have round, smooth perimeters as I'd expect. Turns out that all nine stumps looked different from typical cylindrical tree trunks of live oak and Spanish oaks. Interestingly, these cross sections also looked different from each other.

While poking around on the web, it turns out that these trees are also known as ashe juniper trees. (A long time ago, I was told that these trees were cedars.) I'm keeping the theme title, but keeping in mind that the tie-in to junipers is the foliage.

Cedars and Junipers

The following resources indicate that the cedar tree and stumps in the backyard to be ashe junipers.

"Cedar vs. Juniper: Why we call it ‘cedar fever’ when cedar isn’t to blame" focuses on "fever". The accompanying video provides good videocam panning of the trees. About 15 seconds into video, the tree resembles the lone remaining backyard "cedar" tree. Notable: "the tree was finally formally identified as ashe juniper in 1932."

"How Austin’s most hated tree benefits humans and the environment" states "Though not technically cedar, the Ashe Juniper trees have been referred to as cedar since the first settlers arrived in Texas, and the name stuck." The accompanying video shows several trees that resemble the ones in my yard from pre-arborgeddon in 2023.

"Ashe Juniper" shows a good image of tree bark, accompanied by description that suits the cut-off trees well.

The tree is easily recognized by its irregular shape, fluted, twisted trunk, and dark green foliage. ... Its bark is gray or reddish-brown often with white patches. ... Another identifying characteristic of the bark, especially on mature trees, is its shredding into long narrow strips.

"CEDAR 101" explains mountain cedar as "technically, it is Ashe juniper (Juniperus ashei). The name 'mountain cedar' comes from its visual similarity to Eastern Red Cedar and its preponderance in the Hill Country, or Edwards Plateau ecoregion, of Texas." The image of stacked logs provides various looks of cross cut edges. The site describes how the lumber is sized and graded for selling.

"Numerous Juniperus, but Neither Were Cedar!" is longish and detailed. About 2:29 into the video, the narrator holds up a small branch and states "This is an ash(e) juniper. This is the most common tree in Austin."

"A Forest Grows Under Ashe Juniper" includes the phrase "Ashe juniper (commonly called cedar)" in the video description

"Ashe Juniper is Native to Central Texas" includes historical and current info about ashe junipers.

Some Juniper/Cedar Cross Section Views

Besides the stacked logs image at Cedar 101, you can view additional cross sections. Some are comparable to the stumps in my "See Dere Cedar Stumps" video.

• "1" - 2.5" Red Cedar Log Bundle, ..."
• "Eastern Red Cedar (Juniper) r/firewood"
• Etsy's "Cedar Stumps" has loads of images for viewing. I've pasted links to some of the more interesting specimens.
• "16" x 3" Red Cedar Cookie, Slab, ..."
• "Red Cedar Log 319"
• "Very large thick unique red cedar wood slice ..."
• "Red Cedar Stump ..."
• "Red Cedar wood cookie slice ..."
• "Need some advice on drying and preserving these large juniper tree rounds " is a non-etsy page showing a multi-lobed cross section.

Additional Localized Resources

"7 Types of Cedar Trees in Texas: Identification Guide (Chart, Pictures)" provides info on seven types of cedar trees. I initially thought that my cedars were alligator cedars. I changed my mind when I saw the bark resembled organized mosaic tiles. BTW, the rock cedar (Juniperus ashei) apparently is another name for ashe juniper.

"What Kind of Cedar Grows in Texas? | Cedar Tree ID | Brush Management" contrasts ashe juniper, redberry juniper, and Eastern red cedar trees.

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Related: "See Dere Cedar Stumps, Plus One, Sizing Up" article | video

Cruisin' with Cartoons

I thought about a dozen cartoons that have aired on "Toon In With Me" in the last few years. They are entertaining for having themes from even before WWII. Viewing them across generations provides different perspectives of childhood, parent-agehood, and oldsterhood. Despite mostly 2D looks, these animations are amazing in indicating movement, character looks consistency, and great imaginations for improbable realities.

What kind of improbable realities? How about characters that get totally destroyed in scenes, yet recover to perfect health and wholiness within seconds? Violations of laws of physics with backgrounds that snap out of rigidity and back to immovable state? How about constant uses of dynamite, TNT, office safes, anvils, and the like for attempted destruction between adversaries? Such cartoons and items include the following characters: Roadrunner and Wile E. Coyote, Bugs Bunny and adversaries (Elmer Fudd, Yosemite Sam, Tasmanian Devil, ...), Tom and Jerry, and Tweety and Sylvester.

Thinking of various gadgets WRT to Wile E, the devices from Acme always fail him. Ordering delivery of a chicken meal would be more effective, filling, and less harmful to his health. Expanding thoughts wider about cartoons, some specific ones come to mind, with or without the usual weapons of personal destruction that I've mentioned.

Note: Links for cartoons are for full versions. Most are from YouTube. Ones from Daily Motion have slightly different play and audio controls; be sure to click "unmute".

Spider and Fly Interaction, Fly Saved By WWII Regulation

For "Meatless Flyday", the spider has four arms, four legs. Gloved hands show three-fingers and thumb most of the times. Feet are shod. In one instance, his shoe is cut open, exposing five toes. He counts his now five-digit hands to confirm full counts. The fly has two arms (gloved fingers) and two legs (three toes per foot). Comically improbable--a horseshoe magnet strong enough to attract the fly with ingested buck shot AND kitchen knives.

Note that the spider's cut-open-toe shoe and hand digits around the 4:00 mark. Also noteworthy is WWII-type references to meatless day—"Meatless Monday Then and Now", and nighttime blackouts ("Blackout (wartime)").

Another cartoon with nod to WWII, "LOONEY TUNES (Looney Toons): A Tale of Two Kitties (1942) (Remastered) (HD 1080p)" shows a Victory Garden and lights-out policing. The cartoon includes destructive devices that only temporarily disable Catstello while annoying Babbit in their mission to capture a proto-Tweety. Violations of laws of physics are rampant, especially during the last few minutes.

The two cartoons I've described show loads of violence and little music. Several of the following cartoons engage in both music AND violence, but not sax and violins.

Hungarian Musical Presences in Cartoons

"Cartoons using Hungarian Rhapsody No. 2" shows compiled snippets. "The Concerto Controversy | Plagiarism Accusations Between Tom & Jerry and Looney Tunes" provides background to two very similar cartoons that feature Hungarian Rhapsody #2. Star piano players are Bugs Bunny and Tom Cat, respectively. The video also includes additional content about cartoons' cultural impacts.

"Brahms – Pigs in a Polka – Hungarian Dances 5, 7, 6, 17" provides details about Hungarian Dances music and order. The embedded cartoon link points to a YouTube video, but "LOONEY TUNES (Looney Toons): Pigs in a Polka (1943) (Remastered) (HD 1080p)" is more complete.

Three Pigs Segue to Jazz

"Three Little Bops (starring Joe Bezek)", from 1950s has loads of jazz from the three pigs and wolf. The story bears some resemblance to the familiar pigs and wolf story. No house constructions, but wolf blowing anyway.

Another Three Pigs Twist, Mashed Up with Little Red Riding Hood

"Bugs Bunny E078 The Windblown Hare" stars Bugs Bunny in a mashup of the three pigs with wolf and Little Red Riding Hood. The lesson is that defrauding Bugs results in consequences.

Little Red Riding Hood Variations

"Little Red Riding Rabbit" shows twist of Little Red Riding Hood ending up as the least sympathetic character. Both Bugs Bunny and the wolf ultimately leave her in dire straits. Apparently, several cartoons vary in their approaches to Little Red Riding Hood. Warner Brothers and Walter Lantz (Woody Woodpecker) have additional variations Of LRRH and wolf, fineable on the web.

Violations of Laws of Physics In Popeye Adventures

Oddly enough, Popeye cartoons, despite loads of violence, don't seem to resort to dynamite. Surroundings (roads, trains, ...) seem to become elastic in many stories. BTW, Olive has elasticity in spades. In instances, she twists like a corkscrew, spans chasms with skinny legs that rival Mr. Fantastic, and frequently moves her limbs spaghetti-ishly. An example of laws-of-physics violations is "Popeye 147 I'll be skiing you 1947". It starts out with ice skating, but transitions to skiing, with amazing Olive Oyl improbable flexibilities not seen in other cartoons. A St. Bernard rescues Popeye with spinach so he can rescue Olive from the ever-growing and downhill rolling snowball. Bluto gets kissed by a she-wolf on the slopes and Florida.

A Valentine Story for Multiple Generations

"Don't Look Now (1936) (HD)" is a Valentine Day theme of Cupid and youngsterish devil with opposing goals upon arising. The story has something for youngsters and grownups. The cartoon sprinkles a few adult themes, such as planted "evidence" of infidelity among courting couples and false accusations of paternity.. Lots of music throughout.

A Couple of Single Working Women and Their Abodes

Betty Boop and Olive Oyl cartoons have shown them having their own careers, businesses, and residences. Some cartoons show them living in apartments or houses—no roommates, siblings, or parents. Betty does own Pudgy, her dog, which occasionally exhibits human mannerisms.

Couple of business examples:

• Olive and Popeye open a diner together as partners in "Popeye The Sailor Man - We aim to please".
• Betty Boop shows her auto repair business in "Betty Boop - So Does An Automobile 1939 // Colorized HD". Numerous autos are animated to display human movements and behaviors.

Rec'ed for Multiple Viewings

The following cartoons are great entertainment that invite multiple viewings, for absorbing details and also re-viewing fun stuff. They have great plot development, loads of music, and lots of innovations with devices and gadgets. Action-packed nearly throughout the adventures.

• "Betty Boop - Grampy's Indoor Outing (1936)"
• "Popeye the Sailor - Cartoons Ain't Human"
• "Rabbit Of Seville (1950)"

Generational Reaches

Whether you watch classic cartoons as first timer or old timer, favorites will form memories of happy entertainment. Oddly enough, some cartoons almost seem new if not viewed in many years.

Sycamore Tree Sight, Seed Pod Pickapart

For a few weeks this summer, my stemmed orb-like object lay on the floor. I wasn't sure what to expect if I were to poke and prod it. My video starts out showing showing a sycamore tree and leaves. The latter part shows my exploration and pickapart to fuzzy fibers and, eventually, snipped-apart center.

With poking around the web, I quickly concluded the item was not an acorn. Somehow, I was able to focus (grin) and conclude the object was a sycamore seed pod, aka sycamore seed ball, aka sycamore ball. I myself decided on "sycamore tree seed pod".

Sycamore Resources—Trees, Humongous Leaves, Orb-like Seed Pods

"Sycamore Tree" provides overall info and basic images for sycamore trees. The split-open seed pod shows a good view of the "fuzzy interior"."Sycamore, American" shows a picked-apart seed pod similar to mine. Compare the leaves that both sides use for emphasizing size. Note the white bark shots.

Leaves figure prominently in "Everybody hates sycamores?". The leaves look nice, but the video speaker describes their downsides.

"The Sycamore Squeeze", published February 2022 mentions that time period as good for squeezing a sycamore seed ball.

If a seed-ball isn’t ready, bring it inside a house for a day or so. Dry air hastens the squishable stage. When it gives, it’s ready to take.

Still pictures in the article and the accompanying 's video confirm the object to be a sycamore tree seed ball. FWIW, I had begun cutting into and prying stuff apart before I realized I could squeeze the fuzz off.

"Sycamore Tree seed pod explosion in slow motion" shows the crushing of a sycamore seed pod. The pre-crush object looks like my object, but not the separation of parts!

Portraits of Wildflowers, with Multiple Sycamore Items

Portraits of Wildflowers primarily provides flora content and macro pictures. To my delight, I did a sycamore search and found several articles and images that greatly helped me ID sycamore trees, leaves, and seed pods.

"Sycamore seed ball" described the seed pod process.

These start out hard and firm but eventually, in a way that’s reminiscent of cattails with seeds attached to fluff, they loosen to the point that a touch—be it of a hand or of the wind—causes them to unravel.

"Sycamore seed balls and drying leaf" and "Sycamore leaf and clouds" blog titles perfectly describe their accompanying images. (¡Mira! ¡Mira!)

"Whose woods these are I just don’t know*" is an intriguing blog title. The content itself provides a good description of sycamore tree characteristics to go with the image.

Reaching Way Back for Sycamore Tree Climber—Zacchaeus

My recollection of first hearing of "sycamore" was as a child singing about Zacchaeus climbing a sycamore tree to view Jesus. Google provides loads of info for "zacchaeus song", much of the info surrounding Zacchaeus himself.

Q/As are handy with summaries, such as who Zacchaeus was, why he climbed a sycamore tree, how short he was, why he changed his treatment of people WRT tax collection, moral lesson, etc. Google "zacchaeus in the bible" and "how did zacchaeus change after meeting jesus".

View YouTube results for "zacchaeus was a little man song" for several versions of the children's biblical song. ("Zacchaeus Was a Wee Little Man" is illustrated and includes a second verse.)

Sycamore Tree in Relatively Recent News

A recent news account of a sycamore tree chopping made news in September 2023. The article includes historical info about the locale and tree's age. From "Famous 'Sycamore Gap tree' in northern England found cut down overnight; 16-year-old arrested"

The tree, which is about 300 years old, was located next to Hadrian's Wall, built by the Romans beginning in 122 A.D. to mark the northern limits of Roman Britannia.

In Closing, a Far-reaching Sycamore Resource

"Sycamore Trees: Leaves, Bark, Types – Identification Guide (Pictures)" has exhaustive content and images of sycamores, mostly about ones in some US states and Mexico. One item that particularly piqued me was the info and image comparison between a sycamore and maple leaf.