Admiral's Advice: The Banana Edition

@CTFCofficial Cheltenham expects---- To upskill you must all practice attack and defence modes and include trick shots like banana kicks COYR

BaaaaaaaaaaaaaB

I've never known where inspiration comes from; but when it appears, it certainly becomes a driving force.

So it was, that one breakfast time; eating my porridge , I started playing with my camera phone, considering how I could transmit a photo from phone to computer. I looked for a shot and saw the fruit bowl in front of me, resulting in the above picture.

That got me musing about bananas. I thought about how they grow, in faraway warm climes;  how they aged quickly, when indoors; and how their real goodness lay under their skins.

By now, I was warming to the task and wondered if I could make any comparisons with the human race.

So it was that on last week's blog I published my poem "Bananas."

Regarding this, here are some explanations:

The last line " My musa friends " refers to the botanical (genus ), which includes bananas and plantains.

" The ethylene gas chamber, " refers to the containers in which freshly picked bananas are placed in and then deprived of oxygen  to keep them green until they reach the supermarkets.

Bananas are plants, not trees and for commercial reasons usually grow in plantation rows  tied up in (ball) sacks for protection and later processing. 

As  the title suggests, my poem is primarily about bananas; but I felt I needed to give further consideration to  humans. So here is my new poem "Plantains "

Would that we could be

 our own persons,

using our talents to joyfully

engage with other.

Not to be processed and

ordered by the system.

following rigid patterns

 of conformity.

Would that we could live

 our lives out gracefully.

Like wine maturing slowly

valued for the knowledge

and wisdom we have attained.

Would we all could look

at the heart of others 

and realise the beauty

 that lies underneath.

Then we would be alike

to plantains, growing 

independently;

 green in youth,but

reaching our prime

 when old. and

appreciated for the

sweetness that lies
beneath.

Ck 07/ 02/ '14

BaaaaaaaaaaaaaB

Banana Lore

1 Because bananas contain relatively high amounts of potassium, Bananas are naturally radioactive.

2  There are approx. 1000 types of Banana plants, but most are unpalatable. The commercially favoured variety is the Cavendish, of which each plant is a perfect clone of one another; making them all susceptible to disease.

3 Bananas are the 4th largest crop; after wheat, rice and corn (maize). A hundred billion bananas are produced annually.

4 Banana plants actually, being herbs, properly should be called berries.

5  A group ( collective noun ) of bananas is known as a hand, making a single banana a finger.

BaaaaaaaaaaaaaB

Banana Art

I asked my friend KoN if he could supply me  with some ' Banana Art ' using his computer 'painting' app.

He obliged.

BaaaaaaaaaaaaaB

Banana Skin ?

At the moment 42% of Scots would  vote No in the bid for independence; 29% would vote Yes, making 29% undecided; so all to play for.

The British Government seem to me to be running scared. As I suspected, the "Big Guns " are being brought out including the PM who yesterday ( 7/2 ) went to the Olympic Park to plead for a No vote,

Scare stories abound: Royal Bank of Scotland ( RBS ) are threatening to move from their base from Edinburgh to London, (after a yes vote) and the Bank of England  are putting out currency worries.

In my opinion, we seem to be given a very biased viewpoint; the Scots are being bulldozed to vote No- not true democracy?

This is the time for Scotland's Olympic Gold Winners; Andy Murray: Sir Chris Hoy; Heather Stanning and Timothy Baillie to come out for  independence. Live the Dream !

KoN 8/ 02 / '14

BaaaaaaaaaaaaaB

Buckle up for the windy week ahead and try to look forward to Spring.

To cheer us up, here are K's snowdrops.

Cheerio

Ck.