QUARANTINE BLOG # 681

March 9, 2022

Humans have through the millennia lived in all kinds of dwellings, some they constructed, some they found in nature.  But perhaps the most fascinating live-in constructions are those which are carved into mountains and caves.  Today, and again next week, we’ll take a look at a few of those incredible homes.

Petra, located in southern Jordan, is one of the most famous archaeological sites and examples of a city carved into a rockface. 

The city was the capital of the Nabataean, an Arab kingdom, and was seen as an excellent location for the incense trade as it is situated at a crossroads between Arabia, Egypt and Syria-Phoenicia.  It was unknown to the outside world until 1812 when it was “discovered” by a Swiss traveler.  Local folklore says it was created by the wand of Moses, when he struck the rock to bring forth water for the Israelites.

Once home to 20,000 people at its peak in the 1st century AD, the city included temples, churches, an amphitheater, public buildings, reservoirs and passages.  Now a UNESCO World Heritage Site, many may recognize it from Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade.

Someone recorded (off of their TV) Indy, his Dad, Sallah, and Dr. Brody discovering the entrance to the Grail Cave.  The quality isn't the best, but it's still a fun view.

Next up is Predjama Castle, Slovenia

In the last 100 years Slovenia has been known as the Kingdom of Serbs, Croats, and Slovenes, later the Kingdom of Yugoslavia, and since 1990, once again Slovenia or the Republic of Slovenia.  

Predjama Castle in Slovenia was built over 800 years ago in the middle of a cliff.  It was designed to be inaccessible and impregnable, able to withstand sieges and protect its inhabitants, and is the largest cave castle in the world.  Behind the castle are a series of tunnels that weave throughout the cliff.  The world's largest cave castle, listed as one of the Guinness World Records, tells a picturesque story about the times when comfort had to give way to safety.

Legend states that the knight Erazem of Prejama, a robber barren of the 15th century,  fled to his castle in 1483 after killing a relative of Holy Roman Emperor Frederick III.  Erazem was able to survive a siege on the castle for over a year, using the tunnels to get food.  According to a popular but unverified legend, Erasmus was betrayed by one of his men and was killed by a shot from a cannon while he was sitting on the toilet.

Next time, the Ellora Caves of India.

👉  Some signs for the times:

👉  QB has not talked about the war in Ukraine – the war that Russian dictator Putin calls a military action – but three developments yesterday deserve notice.

Underscoring strong bipartisan pressure for a move that President Biden acknowledged would drive up U.S. energy prices, he announced, “We’re banning all imports of Russian oil and gas energy.”  Biden predicted prices would rise further as a result of “Putin’s war,” but pledged to do all he could to minimize the impact on the American people.  He also warned U.S. gas companies against exploiting the situation to engage in profiteering or price gouging (as the price of gasoline already in the tanks at the pumps jumped once again).

In light of the war in Ukraine, the energy industry is pushing the Biden administration to support more domestic oil production by opening up drilling in federal lands and restarting pipeline projects.

McDonald’s opened its first restaurant in Russia in Moscow’s Pushkin Square in 1990.  

Amid rising pressure to respond to Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, McDonald’s said on Tuesday that it was temporarily closing its 847 restaurants in Russia and pausing operations in the country.  The corporation said it would continue paying salaries for its employees in Russia, as it has for its employees in Ukraine.

And finally for this issue, Gina Raimondo, the secretary of commerce, issued a stern warning to Chinese companies that might defy U.S. restrictions against exporting to Russia, saying the United States would cut them off from American equipment and software they need to make their products.  The Biden administration could “essentially shut” down any Chinese companies that defy U.S. sanctions by continuing to supply chips and other advanced technology to Russia.

👉  Some quotations about aging:

👉  I looked up from my phone Monday evening – it was Family Night at 233 and Bonnie had just fed 15 people, and deliciously, too – and 6 of us sitting in the family room, a TV program ignored, were all staring at our electronic devices: one of us 75, one of us 6, and the rest somewhere in between.  That scene makes me appreciate even more the clipping below that Brian sent.

🛐  Today’s close is from Praying with the Psalms, by Eugene H. Peterson.

“In the shelter of your presence you hide them from human plots; you hold them safe under your shelter from contentious tongues” (Psalm 31:20).

The person of faith does not escape from reality but into reality. As we run from “human plots” and into the “shelter of your presence,” it is as if we were running from a cave full of snarling beasts into a wide, lush pasture where the open air and the wide horizons bring the exclamation, “O how abundant is your goodness!”

Prayer: “Beneath the cross of Jesus I fain would take my stand—the shadow of a mighty Rock within a weary land; a home within the wilderness, a rest upon the way, from the burning of the noontide heat, and the burden of the day” (Elizabeth C. Clephane, “Beneath the Cross of Jesus”). Amen.

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