Symbol of Romance - and - love song on this day !!

It is yet another recent period hype - Valentine's Day ! celebrated annually on Feb 14,  relating to a Saint!  romance and love -  start with two love songs! – not only the Day – Roses too are associated with love ! 

I get high when I see you go by

My, oh my

When you sigh, my, my inside just flies

Butterflies

Why am I so shy when I'm beside you?

..  can you identify the singer ? or the album ??  -  and the other  .. native English! 

Love is fine darling ! – when you are mine !

 

.. .. don’t get frightened by this close-up photo.  The Crocodile has the most powerful bite ever measured for animals that are now living. For example, the saltwater crocodile, found near Australia, can bite nearly three times as hard as a lion or a tiger. Yet, the crocodile’s jaw is also incredibly sensitive to touch—even more sensitive than the human fingertip. 

Digressing away, Feb 14 has link to some sad events – war & killing.  The Arauco War was a long-running conflict between colonial Spaniards and the Mapuche people, mostly fought in the Araucanía region of Chile. The conflict began at first as a reaction to the Spanish conquerors attempting to establish cities and force Mapuches into servitude. It subsequently evolved over time into phases comprising drawn-out sieges, slave-hunting expeditions, pillaging raids, punitive expeditions, and renewed Spanish attempts to secure lost territories. Abduction of women and war rape was common on both sides. 

The Mapuche uprising of 1655  was a series of coordinated Mapuche attacks against Spanish settlements and forts in colonial Chile. It was the worst military crisis in Chile in decades, and contemporaries even considered the possibility of a civil war among the Spanish.  The uprising marked the beginning of a ten-year period of warfare between the Spanish and the Mapuche.  On the morning of February 14, 1655 -  Mapuches all over southern Chile —from Osorno to Maule River— launched attacks against Spanish estancias, forts and individuals.  Mapuche slaves rose against their masters, men were killed while women and children were held hostages.  Livestock was stolen and houses set afire.  Arauco and Chillán were besieged.  This last city was eventually evacuated by the Spanish. 

Thavapudhalavan (transl. Precious Son)  directed by Muktha Srinivasan starring Sivaji Ganesan and K. R. Vijaya was released in 1972 – strangely it had an English song sung by LR Easwari and Ajit Singh to the music of MS Viswanathan, lyricists being – Vaali and Randoor Guy. 

Love is fine darling when you are mine

No sun no shine summer rain

Without you dear life is pain

When you are mine darling always fine

Its always dream ever green  !!  

 

Crocodiles, are   generally large, ponderous, amphibious animals of lizard-like appearance and carnivorous habit belonging to the reptile order Crocodylia. Crocodiles have powerful jaws with many conical teeth and short legs with clawed webbed toes. They share a unique body form that allows the eyes, ears, and nostrils to be above the water surface while most of the animal is hidden below. The tail is long and massive, and the skin is thick and plated. 

A  dog can only snap its jaws shut with a force of 100 pounds per square inch. This is enough to cause a nasty injury to the top of one’s finger, but a croc could easily remove the whole hand, given that its jaw can exert a force of 3,000 pounds per square inch. Any small creature that is unfortunate enough to be snapped up by a crocodile is highly unlikely to see daylight again, its bones being crushed to pulp in no time at all. 

However, despite the immense strength of the muscles that close a crocodile’s jaw (the same applies to alligators and caymans), those that open the jaw are considerably weaker. This means that it is possible to escape being eaten as long as one can prevent the jaws from opening in the first place, and this can indeed be done.  You may have seen that crocodile catchers often try to snare and keep its jaws closed. 

The crocodile’s jaw is covered with thousands of sense organs. “Each of the nerve endings comes out of a hole in the skull.” This arrangement protects the nerve fibers in the jaw while providing sensitivity that in some spots is greater than instruments could measure. As a result, the crocodile can distinguish between food and debris in its mouth. That is also how a mother crocodile can carry her hatchlings in her mouth without accidentally crushing them. The crocodile’s jaw is a surprising combination of power and sensitivity. 

The song at the start,  “I get high when I see you go by” is a song from the Album -  ‘Its only Love’ of the famous English rock band, the Beatles written by John Lennon, released in 1965  !

 

In case you felt the close-up photos of Crocodile to be hideous sight, here is a photo of beautiful Roses  !!

 
With regards – S Sampathkumar
14^th Feb 2024