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 (copyright © 2012 by Towne Square America™)

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(06/09/2010) Reportage and interpretation by: Bil. Alvernaz

What’s the Deal with Cracker Jacks?
 (copyright © 2012 by Towne Square America™)

Somewhere Inside Cracker Jacks -  If you haven’t bought Cracker Jacks lately, you’re in for a shock! The toys inside, well, they aren’t “toys” anymore. Now you get a “Prize Inside” thanks to Frito Lay’s reworking of one of America’s favorite snacks (that is even included as part of the song “Take me out to the ball game”).

And, as if the crummy “prize” you now get isn’t bad enough, the box of Cracker Jacks is now pretty much a plastic bag (oh, you can still find the familiar box if you search enough stores ... but, beware, because who NOSE how old that box of “snacks with a prize” actually is). The end of the Cracker Jacks box is further detailed by the tag line you see at the Cracker Jacks web site - “There are new surprises waiting for you - so open a bag and enjoy!” It even shows the bag! You just get Cracker Jacks in a plastic bag with the same graphics showing what is “inside the box.” There was a time when Cracker Jacks toys were really something ... some you even had to carefully construct. Now, as shown in the graphics on the bag with Sailor Jack (a boy in a sailor costume with Bingo, a little white, happy looking dog at his feet), you get a flat “something” that is more of a joke than a toy or a trinket!

The history of Cracker Jacks goes all the way back to Chicago World’s Fair in 1893. That’s when Frederick William Rueckheim and his brother mass produced Crack Jacks and sold it at the fair. It was called “Candied Popcorn and Peanuts and was created with a mixture of popcorn, molasses, and peanuts ... and it was an instant hit! By 1896 Rueckheim figured out a way to keep the individual popped corn from sticking together and first official batch of the newly named “Cracker Jack” was mass produced. The name came from someone who tasted the original product who said, “That’s a cracker, Jack!” “Cracker” meaning great and “Jack” being a slang term that would translate today into “Dude.”

In 1899 Henry Gottlieb Eckstein invented a “wax sealed package” for freshness. The claim was that it was a dust, germ, and moisture-proof “waxed sealed, durable paper package.” Thus, the Cracker Jacks box, as we knew it, was born. Prizes were added to the “mix” in 1912, with the slogan “A prize in every box!” These became an instant hit! 1918 saw Sailor Jack and his dog, Bingo, added to the packaging. In 1964 the Cracker Jacks company was sold to Borden after a bidding war between Borden and Frito-Lay. Over 30 years later, Frito-Lay finally “won the battle” and bought the Cracker Jacks “empire” from Borden (1997).

The biggest “claim to fame” for Cracker Jacks, that also cemented it into a solid part of our American culture, came in 1908 with the song “Take Me Out to the Ball Game,” with the line, “Buy me some peanuts and Cracker Jacks, I don’t care if we ever get back.”

But, let’s get back to the real prizes that used to be in Cracker Jacks ... Here are a couple of links that show you just how cool those little toys and trinkets were. Of course, this goes way back to the 1940s and 1950s.

The actual “treat” of caramelized popcorn goes back much further than the “invention” of Cracker Jacks. A special strain of “popping corn” was hybridized by Native Americans as far back as 800 A.D. Some New England tribes coated the corn with heated maple syrup to preserve it.

But things are looking up a bit for the “prize inside” of every box. Cracker Jacks has just introduced a promotion tied to Major League Baseball, Special Edition. These prizes are stickers of all 34 Major League Baseball teams. You can even go to the Cracker Jacks web site (http://www.crackerjack.com.htm) to download the special collector sheets for displaying your stickers. This is yet more smart marketing that adds to the legacy of an already iconic American product!

(06/09/2010) Reportage and interpretation by: Bil. Alvernaz

CLOUDS ... just look up to see it all ...
 (copyright © 2012 by Towne Square America™)

Somewhere high above you in the sky - A new e-Book is available online and it shows you how to read messages in the clouds. The e-Book called “CLOUDS” is an adventure story interlaced with a true-life, epistolary accounting of what you need to know (that you didn’t know you already knew) to live the life you want to (and should) live.

As children we were able to “see things in the clouds.” Then, as we grew up, instead of continuing to use our imagination to see even more in the clouds (that is really there), all of that magic somehow got lost.

The e-Book “CLOUDS” is really two books in one. The first part of the book fine-tunes your perception of and perspective on life. That then “opens the door” to extraordinary mental pathways, arming you with visionary excellence for the adventure story that follows. The second part of this e-Book is loaded with the information and clues “between the lines” that will allow you to read clouds (and do/see so much more).

To go to the “CLOUDS” online reading room right this very minute, click HERE ... otherwise, read on ...

 The first part of this book takes you through An Epidemic of Stupidity, Perspective & Perception, The Truth, Questions in Life, Getting From Here to There, Gravity (and being in control of it), Courtesy & Kindness, The Future, Uncomplicating Your Life, Happiness, Making Things Happen, and Death. Those chapters will help you see things so much more clearly in your life, all of which applies to getting the most out of the second part of the book (where the real story is).

Once the first part of the book "sinks in" and works it spell on you (more so than you will ever realize, well, you're ready for my adventure story that will reveal how to read clouds and much, much more. The main character in this story carefully explains how to crack the "fabric of heaven" and explore all of which ties everything together in the Universe ... and it is all right there in the clouds ... it has been all along, right there, in front of you. The heart of this epic narrative takes you back and forth from modern day to ancient civilizations where you will see how the knowledge to read clouds (and what really happened) was hidden by all of the disinformation those civilizations left for us to find in artifacts and relics.

You "follow along" as the main character, through the discoveries from that secret room, in his grandfather’s journals and “collections,” unravels mysteries and truths purposely “lost” for the ages. The protagonist, just like his grandfather, figures out how to read the hidden messages in clouds (and much more). What is learned sheds new light on history – what truly happened - as well as so much more that can be done in physics and with mental abilities. The best way to describe this book is to imagine Indiana Jones meets Harry Potter in the Twilight Zone. Throw in the paradigm of the Da Vinci Code and you have “CLOUDS.” Here is just one of the secrets about reading clouds (and just a small fraction of what you'll learn from this book): Cuneiforms, the symbols for ancient written languages, are taken directly from clouds formations and air masses ... you need to start thinking in concepts, not words, when looking at the sky to see what is there!

"CLOUDS" is a unique book in that it doesn't just start with the story I have to tell you. The opening chapters of "CLOUDS" help you fine tune your perspective and perception so when you get to the actual story in the book, you'll be able to absorb (mostly on a subliminal level) the information and hidden messages ... yes, just like in the clouds, this book has plenty of messages for you ... some even embedded within the patterns of the text. This book definitely isn't the same old story ... which brings us right back to this CLOUDS Publishing Experiment Space™.

This Publishing Experiment is a new "writer to reader" way to market and vend a book, allowing YOU to start reading my book without any hassles or obligations (no strings attached!). After reading the opening dozen or so chapters here online, if you find you want to read the complete "CLOUDS" manuscript (in electronic, e-Book form), then you can buy it by preordering your copy .. just shoot me an email at bil@alvernaz.com. I'll then provide the details on where to send your $20.00 (or whatever you can afford).

You are free to quote and share information provided in this copyrighted material (for non-commercial purposes only), provided you give attribution to the author by including the following statement, word for word, with the quoted excerpt: "This copyrighted material is from the book, "CLOUDS" - Copyright © 1985-2010 by Bil. Alvernaz (bil@alvernaz.com)"

There are no publishers, corporations, weasels, or entities (government or otherwise) involved in this Experiment (and Space) ... other than the author, Bil. Alvernaz (who is a Cloudologist), and YOU, of course ... along with anyone else to whom you might (and are encouraged to do) send this link (http://alvernaz.com/CLOUDS/clouds.html).

(05/24/2010) Reportage and interpretation by: Bil. Alvernaz

“LOST” ... What the ...?

The Island (wherever it is) - If you haven’t figured it out by now, here is the real secret to the “LOST” TV Show ... you’re not supposed to “get it.” You’re just supposed to be intrigued, mystified, puzzled, dazzled, perplexed, and, most important of all, you’re supposed to be entertained. And, that is what this amazing and unique, constantly twisting and twirling your perspective experience is all about. Plus, you get so much in the way of things to relate to in your own life, especially about redemption and proving yourself.

It is highly doubtful that the Brain Trust behind “LOST” had any idea they would create the sensation that they did, but once “LOST” grabbed hold of the intellect of so many people (including those “along for the ride” creating and producing the show), it took on a life of its own and we all benefited by “tuning in” in more ways that one.

The true brilliance of the show was that despite such ridiculous and fanciful plot lines, we all bought into it, suspending our disbelief as we couldn’t wait to see what happens next, week after week, month after month, year after year ... and don’t think it is over yet, because with the DVD boxed set for Season Six having a “built in” 20 bonus minutes of “other things” that happened in the finale, that will be just the beginning. There will be reunion shows and probably even a movie.

But, was this more a show about staying hydrated with all of the bottles of water consumed over the course of so many episodes, or was it maybe keeping track of how many times “We’re here” was said? And, just about everything was punctuated with guns being pulled out or shot or hidden or being cocked or tossed around (how many takes did it take to get all of the timing right on all of that?). One of the best parts of watching “LOST” was watching it with someone because when so many scenes ended with long stares and the camera flashing back and forth between confused and/or surprised looks, you had someone to turn to express your odd stare while asking disjointed questions to which there were (and probably never will be) no straight answers. More than anything else in “LOST,” the music carried and moved us all at so many points, especially the frantic drums beating at so many points or the haunting melodies when someone disappeared or died. And, that’s just part of the six-year landscape of “LOST,” all of which we’ll be discussing and dissecting for some time to come.

It was a show like none other before or to come. Nothing will ever come close to all of what “LOST” was (especially in our reasoning, “trying to make sense out of it all” minds).

The people behind “LOST” know a good thing when the see it, so look for more and more, in “bits and pieces” in the years to come. Sure, the creative team behind “LOST” will “make more bucks,” along with the current cast and any newcomers that will be “worked in” ... and we will love every minute of it. How many TV shows have you ever seen that keeps you on the edge of your seat, genuinely intrigued, with so many cliff hangers (even the ones going into commercials), like “LOST” did. And, how about a symphony orchestra that “fit the mood” with every turn, especially the emotional scenes. And, anyone who says they didn’t get a “tear in their eye” at so many different points is just plain lying!

With “LOST” you really didn’t want all the answers, because what would be the fun in that? The real “pull” of “LOST” was how it sucked you right in to EVERYTHING that happened, minute by minute. You bought into it all over and over again. I had heard about “LOST” and just thought it was something I really wasn’t interested in. I mean, come on. People stranded on an island and then trying to get back once they finally got off. For the first five years, I just ignored it, thinking it was just plain dumb! Then, with NetFlix online viewing, I thought, well, hey, let’s have a look at the first episode and then I’ll be convinced of just how stupid the show was. So much for that idea, because after the first 20 minute roller coaster ride of how “LOST” gets started, you are hooked ... with no hope of doing anything other that “ride it to the very end.” So, episode after episode, we watched it all online with NetFlix, until we got to Season Six, which we then watched online at ABC.Com.

I think the real magic of “LOST” is that we all could relate to the characters so well and that we saw so much of ourselves in those characters (good and bad). It will be impossible for anyone to come up with such a magic formula again ... an enchanting island that is always on the move, the drama, the conflict, and, most of all, the inventiveness. Now that’s what real entertainment is all about! You lose count of how many times a scene ends or the episode leaves you waaaaaay “out there” wondering, “What the ...?”

And, you just know you wouldn’t want it any other way!