In 1977 the Soviet Union had an internationally televised song contest, much like Eurovision. As few viewers had phones, they would switch on their lights if they liked a song and off if they didn't. The power spikes were recorded by the state energy company and thereports sent to the station to pick the winner.
It is not a sign
"Signs once portended disaster in marriage," writes Linda Lowen. "My ring didn't fit. When the jeweller stretched it, it shattered. On our honeymoon, a hurricane struck Cancún. Diverted to Nassau, we fled our hotel because of a fire.The concierge booked us a new room with ceiling plaster littering the bed. While snorkelling, Jim's wedding band disappeared. He quit searching at dusk. I continued, for years, along other shorelines. Last summer, I lazily stopped wearing my ring. In Scotland for our October anniversary, Jim noticed and felt hurt. But I have let go of signs, symbols. Thirty years is proof enough." (Tiny Love Stories Via The NYT)
Gill writes: "Sixteen years ago when I arrived from the UK to work as a nurse in Rotorua, an elderly patient asked about my family. I told her I had a sister working in London. Just then her church minister arrived and she said perhaps my sister knew the minister's son, Adam, who was working in London on his OE. I laughed, saying London was huge and I didn't think so. That weekend I was chatting on the phone to my sister who had an issue at work and needed assistance from a guy from the HR department. By coincidence, he was from Rotorua. I asked if he was called Adam. My sister was even more spooked than I was when I told her I'd just met his dad."
Coal-rolling troll
Coal-rolling troll.
What scared you as a kid?
A reader writes: "As a kid the original Doctor Who theme tune terrified me. I also hated the sound the water made going down the plughole, I was certain I was going to be sucked into another world. But the most scary childhood memory was something more realistic — the dangers of house fires. They came into school, taught us to stop, drop and roll and then showed us a public information film where the family had to leave their dog behind. I was inconsolable for days."