UNCONVENTIONAL WORLD RECORDS

There have been many people who’ve been dubbed flawed geniuses, i.e. people with immense talent in their field, yet have dark sides off it. They include Napoleon Bonaparte, Winston Churchill, Mahatma Gandhi, Zinedine Zidane, George Best, Diego Maradona, Paul Gascoigne, Alex Higgins, Bobby Fischer, Tiger Woods and many more.

In my humble opinion, the greatest example of a flawed genius in all of history is Caravaggio (1571–1610), the Italian painter who was active between 1593 and 1610. He is considered one of the greatest and most influential artists in history, but his genius had a very dark side.

His paintings have been described as “combined a realistic observation of the human state, both physical and emotional, with a dramatic use of lighting.”

One of them, The Calling of St Matthew, which was completed in 1599-1600, is considered one of the greatest paintings ever.

His skills earned him fame and fortune, yet his lifestyle was far from exemplary. A published notice on him, dated 1604 described how he lived his life 3 years previously:

…after a fortnight’s work he will swagger about for a month or two with a sword at his side and a servant following him, from one ball-court to the next, ever ready to engage in a fight or an argument, so that it is most awkward to get along with him.

Between 1600 and 1606 he was jailed at least 6 times. In 1606, he played a tennis match with the agreement that whoever was the loser would pay money. Caravaggio lost, and started a brawl which ended with his opponent dead, causing Caravaggio to flee from Rome.

For this, he received a death sentence from Pope Paul V – whose portrait he had just painted!

After that, he was in and out of more trouble, and was finally released from jail. 2 days later, his belongings all gone, he fell ill, started walking along a beach, then collapsed. He died 2 days later, at only 38 years of age.

If he had lived in our age, who knows, he could’ve been a modern polymath and an expert in all things ICT, perhaps even developing a home automation software all by himself.

Popularity: 1% [?]

A definition of a “mistress” is: a man’s long-term female lover and companion who is not married to him. This term is especially pertinent when the man is already married to another woman. They do not live together openly, and the relationship is usually secret.

Historically, the most famous mistresses are the royal mistresses of European monarchs. Here are some examples.

Diane de Poitiers (1499 – 1566), a French noblewoman, and the favourite mistress of King Henry II of France (1519 – 1559) who was King of France 1547 until his death. She became his mistress in 1538, when he was 19 and she was 39. When the king died, Queen Catherine de’ Medici banished her.

Barbara Palmer (née Villiers) (1640-1709), an English courtesan was the most notorious of the many mistresses of King Charles II of England. She bore him 5 children. She was known for her extravagance, bad temper and promiscuity and was described as “the curse of the nation”.

Madame de Montespan (1641–1707), was the chief mistress of King Louis XIV of France (1638-1715), with whom she had 7 children. Yes, I know it sounds weird, but “chief mistress” was almost an official position in the French government then, and the post comes complete with its own apartments! Some even called her the “true Queen of France” due to her influence at court. Goodness knows if she even had a say about what type of bathroom faucets should be used. She “reigned” from around 1667 to the 1680s, when the Affair of the Poisons (L’affaire des poisons) finally pushed them apart.

Nell Gwyn (1650–1687), the mistress of King Charles II of England (1630-1685), with whom she had 2 sons.

Madame de Pompadour (1721-1764), a member of the French court, was the chief mistress of Louis XV (1710-1774) from 1745 to her death.

Popularity: 1% [?]

What Valentine’s Day “gift” can be attempted to be explained, and makes sense, yet the resulting effect would most likely be utter disgust?

Why, a giant Madagascar hissing cockroach, what else?

Photo credit: cockroach.com

While quite a lot of people might consider a business credit card as a perfect V-Day gift, in February 2011 the Bronx Zoo came up with a truly unique idea: pay USD10 and you get to name a roach (presumably after your better half), and a certificate to make it offical.

The text at the name-a-roach section of the zoo’s website includes the following:

Flowers wilt. Chocolates melt. Roaches are forever.

Limited-time Valentine’s Day offer

Can’t decide on what to get that special someone for Valentine’s Day? Sometimes the answer is all around us, and right where it’s been for millions of years—like cockroaches! How better to express your appreciation for that special someone than to name a Madagascar hissing cockroach after them?

Naming a roach in honor of someone near and dear to your heart shows that you’ve noticed how resilient, resourceful, and loyal that person is. Or maybe it’s in recognition of your one and only’s virility, or strength in the face of high radiation. You’re not afraid to say, “Baby, you’re a roach!”

But not just any roach….He or she is a Madagascar hissing roach, the biggest and loudest of these stalwart insects. WCS’s Bronx Zoo has 58,000 of these brown, iridescent beauties, and they need names. With a $10 donation, one of them can be named by you. How sweet!

We’ll send a truly memorable certificate of honor to that certain someone explaining that there’s a special insect living at the Bronx Zoo with his or her name on it.

Where does my money go?

Your $10 donation helps WCS conserve species big and small, beautiful and damned. With your support, we’ll continue to do our work saving wildlife in the forests of Madagascar and throughout the world’s most majestic wild places.

But why these buggers? Simple. The insect’s family life is exemplary: the parents and kids stay close to each other for a long time, unlike most other insects. They don’t fly away, they are gentle, and perhaps most importantly, they’ll never bite. And they can do amazing things like effortlessly climb up a vertical face of smooth glass.

Source
Huffington Post, 11 Feb 2011

Popularity: 1% [?]

Where else but head over to the world’s most perfectly heart-shaped natural island?

The tiny island (or rather, islet) of Galesnjak (Galešnjak), Croatia in the Adriatic Sea has become a popular Valentine’s Day destination for lovers, thanks to Google Earth which highlighted its heart shape in February 2009:

Dubbed The Lovers’ Island

Zooming in

Size: 130,000 square yards or 0.132 km2. It’s 0.5km at its widest point.

Location: in Zadarski Kanal between Zadar and Pasman island; has also been described as located in the Pašman channel of the Adriatic, between the islands of Pašman and the town of Turanj on mainland Croatia.

Vegetation: wild plants and trees

Length of beach: 1.55km, completely encircles the island.

Highest points: 2 peaks, the highest at 36m above sea level.

Satellite view

The island is uninhabited, i.e. a desert island, and even Vlado Juresko, the owner didn’t realise what’s so special about the shape of his island, yet he must’ve flashed knowning grins daily, as enquiries started pouring in from couples wanting to stay over. So I guess it’s just a matter of time before those chalets with rustic furniture are set up…

A newsreport, aired February 2009, presumably in Croatian

Source
The Telegraph, 11 Feb 2009

Popularity: 1% [?]