8 | LIFE IN SOLERA | MARCH 2024 |
This & That
Submitted by e Solera Ghostwriter
There's a lake in Australia called "Lake
Disappointment" that was named by Frank Hamm
in 1897, who was hoping to find fresh water but
instead found a mostly dry lake bed with lots of
salt. In 2020, Kumpupintil Lake was formally
approved by the Western Australian Government
agency Landgate as the official name, following a
request from the traditional owners and the Western
Desert Lands Aboriginal Corporation. The name
"Kumpupintil" describes how the lake was made
and is linked to a Martu creation story where Martu
warriors fought mighty giants in an epic battle.
In 1860, Abraham
Lincoln grew his
famous beard because
he got a letter from an
11-year-old girl named
Grace Bedell who said
that all ladies liked
the whiskers and they
would convince their
husbands to vote for
him for president.
In 1991 on the cruise ship Oceanos, after
a series of freak waves slammed against
the ship, the pipe's shell plating burst open
and began filling the compartment with
seawater causing uncontrolled flooding. The
ship started to sink. The captain and crew
abandoned the ship first, leaving passengers
on board without sounding the alarm. Moss
Hills (inset photo), an entertainer aboard
the ship, used the radio to call mayday, and
everyone was saved. The crew were charged
with negligence. So much with going down
with the ship.
So much with going
down with the ship.
I hiked for this?
