This is Week 36 of 2010►Day 250 with 115 days left.
FREE RAMBLING THOUGHTS
I spent the day looking over my pile of stuff that I have to take on my trip. Somehow I misplaced, or lost the electrical converter. After several hours of looking, on and off, I gave up and ran to the store to get another. Probably a good thing, because the little brochure that comes with them clearly states they should not be used on computers. That probably explains what happened to my last battery. I read the info on the old converter and it said the same thing. Yeah, I had the package but lost the converter and the plug I used in South Africa. I also called my roommate, as we have only communicated through e-mail. I left a message, he called back and I missed his call. He gets to LAX about 4pm and I get there about 6pm so we can meet up then. We don’t fly out till midnight and the rest of the group arrives about 9pm from Denver. I also cleaned up my iPod a little and added about five hours of podcasts. As I looked for audio books, they were all 12+ hours. I don’t have that much down time alone and on my last two trips I get home and then listen to the rest of the book. I really enjoyed audio books when I was driving to and from Tuba or when I drove to Denver. I have found that when I sit on a plane, I usually fall asleep so music and short podcasts will work much better. I don’t have to be to the shuttle until 10:30 on Wednesday, so there is plenty of time to do what still has to be done.
Obama hit the campaign trail today. He made an interesting analogy. Our economy is like a car. The previous administration ran it into a ditch. This administration has pulled it out, and that was not easy, the car had some dents and scratches but it still runs. Now the Republicans want the keys back. The Democrats are putting the car in D-rive. The Republicans have stated they want to go back to the Bush era and put the car in R. Interesting analogy. Some Republican was on CNN talking in a panel discussion about the speech. He said the car is in Park, and his party just wants to get it moving again. Clever is better than bashing.
While my brother and his wife are enjoying Paris, it looks like a hurricane may be heading toward their hacienda in Mexico. Hermine is still a tropical storm and isn’t expected to be a big hurricane, but that means little to the people who get pelted. They are about 40 miles from the coast and the hacienda has withstood weather for over 100 years, so it shouldn’t really be a problem, but flooding and sandbags and that stuff will take its toll on those living a little closer to the coast. That area is mostly farms and Mayan villages. I hope everyone gets through it will little permanent damage.
General Petraeus came out today with an interesting statement. There is a church in Florida that is going to have a Koran burning on 9-11 at their church. The Dove World Outreach Center in Gainesville has a big day planned. This ‘New Testament Church’--a non-denominational charismatic church--has actually called for an International Burn the Koran Day on Sept. 11. The Church leader believes that Islam is demonic and must be destroyed. General Petraeus has told us that if the burning takes place, it will place our troops and our ‘friends’ in Afghanistan in mortal danger. He said that there are already daily protests against the burning in Afghanistan. It is so unnerving that zealots, like the Florida preacher, can frighten everyday Muslims half way across the world. Oh, wait, the Muslim zealots have been doing that for almost a decade, frightening everyday Christians here in the US. I hope the American zealots will soon get the message that their actions are threatening our soldiers, our government, and all Americans. The Federal and State governments are in a tough situation. They can’t just stop the burning, anymore than they can stop the burning of the American Flag or the Bible. The only people who can stop this insanity are the people who started it. I won’t be in the states on 9-11, but I will be in a part of the world where Muslims predominate. Since Ramadan will be ending on or about 9-11 this year, the tensions between the zealots and the ordinary Muslims is already high. The typical end of Ramadan celebrations will not be as public in the US as they have been for decades. If the burnings actually take place, they won’t affect American soil. The outrage will be worldwide. An Imam in Nigeria said a few years ago that when America sneezes, Africa catches the cold. In this case, the Muslim World may catch that cold. Most reliable estimates on religions of the world say there are about 2 billion Christians and 1.5 billion Muslims. That is a lot of people for the Dove World Outreach Center to piss off. I should add that I checked out the web for information on the Dove group. Nowhere could I find any information on the number of people belonging to this church. I did find that the religious community of Gainesville is against the burning, with 25 congregations stating that this event is wrong. The city also denied them a permit to burn books. It is nice to know that not everyone in Gainesville is fanatic, just like it is nice to know that not everyone in AZ is a racist.
Flag…H—81°; L—51°; RH—49%; and only a breeze of 5mph—a really, really nice day.
QUOTE FOR THE DAY
Richard Whately: Everyone wishes to have truth on his side, but not everyone wishes to be on the side of truth
HOLY MACKEREL: 1998 Sergey Brin and Larry Page incorporated the Internet search engine company Google
SOMEWHAT USELESS INFORMATION on Movies
▬The Blues Brothers once held the record for crashing the most police cars in a movie at approximately 30. The record was eventually broken by Blues Brothers 2000.
▬When the Mother-Ship passes over the Devil's Tower near the end of Spielberg's movie, Close Encounters of the Third Kind, R2-D2 can be seen hanging from the bottom of the ship.
GREY MATTER PUZZLE 1—Jeopardy Answers: States in Song
$100-It's where I came from with a banjo on my knee
$200-According to Beach Boys' hit, state with the cutest girls in the world
$300-State where you'd find Elvis' rain & Diamond's woman
$400-The alternate lyrics to "I've Been Working On The Railroad"
$500-Patti Page hit that is official song of a southern state
UNUSUAL NEWS ITEM
Dallas — The best fried recipes were crowned Monday at the "Big Tex Choice Awards."
This winner of the "most creative" fried food was "Fried Beer." It is actually a beer-filled pretzel pocket, but diners can open the delicious dough and pour a cold one.
"I was lazy. I figured, 'Why should I have to drink and eat when I can just eat?" I wanted a pretzel, I wanted beer and I figured a way to combine them. You know, make something fun out of it," said inventor Mark Zable.
The recipe is only for 21 and over, ID required.
The coveted award for "Best Taste" went to "Texas Fried Frito Pie." The concoction is Texas chili and sharp cheddar cheese encased in Frito chips and then battered and fried. The creator calls it a smooth medley of hot, meaty, crunch, salty, cheesy goodness that transports you back to the golden age of fair food.
Other finalist recipes included: Deep Fried S'mores Pop Tart, Fried Chocolate, Deep Fried Frozen Margarita, Fried Lemonade, Fernies Fried Club Salad and Fried Texas Caviar.
You will be able to taste the recipes at the State Fair of Texas, which runs from Sept. 24 through October.
A LITTLE LAUGH
English professors love to catch the errors students make in their term papers, and they love nothing better than to catch mixed metaphors. The "friends and survivors" of Calvin College English department collected this list of mixed metaphors and posted them on their web site:
"He swept the rug under the carpet."
"She's burning the midnight oil at both ends."
"It was so cold last night I had to throw another blanket on the fire."
"It's time to step up to the plate and cut the mustard."
"She's robbing Peter to pay the piper."
"He's up a tree without a paddle."
"Beware my friend...you are skating on hot water."
"Keep your ear to the grindstone."
"Sometimes you've gotta stick your neck out on a limb."
"Some people sail through life on a bed of roses like a knife slicing through butter."
GREY MATTER PUZZLE 2--Riddle
Johnny's mom had 5 kids, January, February, March and April. Who was the fifth kid?
FOUND ON ‘YOU TUBE’
Garrison Keillor sings: Click Here to Hear!
GREY MATTER PICTURE
This is a close up of what object?
SOME CALENDAR INFORMATION
¤ Weekly Observances ¤
1-8: Self-University Week and International Enthusiasm Week
5-11: National Waffle Week AND Suicide Prevention Week AND National Payroll Week
¤ Today’s Observances ¤
Neither Rain Nor Snow Day
Google Commemoration Day
Grandma Moses Day Salami Day
Another Look Unlimited Day: devoted annually to lessening the flow to landfills, and is reserved for taking a second look around your house, attic, basement, garage or any storage area where you may find possessions you no longer need.
Australia: National Threatened Species Day
Brazil : Independence Day (1822: Brazil from Portugal)
Mozambique: Victory Day
¤ Hit Songs on this date ¤
1916...America...Columbia Mixed Double Quartet
1926...Bye Bye, Blackbird...Gene Austin Click Here to Hear It!
1936...A Fine Romance...Fred Astaire Click Here to Hear It!
1946...To Each His Own...Freddy Martin
1956...Hound Dog/Don't Be Cruel...Elvis Presley
1966...You Can't Hurry Love...The Supremes Hear It Here!
1976... (Shake, Shake, Shake) Shake Your Booty...K.C. & the Sunshine Band Click Here to Hear It!
¤ Today’s Births ¤
╬ THE ARTS
"Janet" Taylor Caldwell, novelist (Melissa) …born 1900…Manchester, England
Arthur Ferrante, 89, pianist (Ferrante and Teicher), composer, born New York, NY
Charles Hardin Buddy Holly, singer (Peggy Sue, That'll Be the Day) …born 1936…Lubbock, TX
Elia Kazan, director (Streetcar Named Desire) …born 1909… Constantinople, Turkey
Garrison Keillor, 68, humorist (Praire Home Companion) …born Anoka, MN
Grandma (Anna Mary Robertson) Moses, primitive painter (Old Oaken Bucket) …born 1860…Greenwich, NY
♦♦♦♦♦♦
Corbin Bernsen, 56, actor (“LA Law,” “Ryan’s Hope,” Major League), born North Hollywood, CA
Susan Blakely, 60, actress (The Way We Were, The Lords of Flatbush, Shampoo), born Frankfurt, Germany
Peter Lawford, actor (Mrs Miniver, The Thin Man) …born 1923…London England
Sir (John) Anthony Quayle, actor: The Bourne Identity, MacKenna’s Gold, QB VII, Anne of a Thousand Days, Lawrence of Arabia, The Guns of Navarone…born 1913… Lancashire,England
Richard Roundtree, 68, actor (Shaft, Q, Once upon a Time When We Were Colored), born New Rochelle, NY
Devon Sawa, 32, actor: Casper, Little Giants…born Vancouver, British Columbia
╬ ATHLETICS
Paul Brown, Pro Football Hall of Famer: football coach: Cleveland Brown…born 1908…Norwalk, IA
Bert Jones, 59, football: Colts: Rams…born Ruston, LA
Joe (Joseph Oden) Rudi, 64, baseball: Athletics, Athletics, Angels, Red Sox…born Modesto, CA
╬ BUSINESS & EDUCATION
J.P. (John Pierpont) Morgan Jr., financier…born 1867…Irvington, NY
╬ POLITICS
Queen Elizabeth I, (1558-1603) daughter of Henry VIII…born 1533… Greenwich, England
Thomas Hendricks, 21st vice president of the United States [1885] …born 1819…Fultonham, OH
Daniel Ken Inouye, 86, US Senator (D, Hawaii), born Honolulu, HI
╬ SCIENCE & RELIGION
Dr Michael E DeBakey (Michel Dabaghi), artificial heart pioneer…born 1908…Lake Charles, LA
Ferdinand Vandiveer Hayden, geologist (Geographic Survey 1859-86) …born 1829…Westfield, MA
¤ Today’s Obituaries ¤
Spring Byington, actress (Lily Ruskin-December Bride), @ 84 in 1971
Al Kelly, double talk comedian (Ernie Kovacs Show), @ 67 in 1966 See and Hear him Here!
EugŠne Lefebvre, dies test piloting a Wright A aircraft in 1909
Keith Moon, English drummer (The Who), OD @ 32 in 1978
José Clemente Orozco, Mexican painter @ 66 in 1949
¤ Today’s Events ¤
╬ THE ARTS
1963 1st US TV appearance of the Beatles (Big Night Out-ABC)
1996 Rappers Tupac Shakur and Marion ‘Suge’ Knight, were shot after leaving the Tyson/Seldon prizefight
╬ ATHLETICS
1892 James J Corbett kayos John L Sullivan in round 21 at New Orleans
1983 Drury Gallagher sets fastest swim around Manhattan (6h41m35s)
1986 Dan Marino of the Miami Dolphins threw his 100th career touchdown pass, in only his 44th pro game, setting an NFL record
╬ BUSINESS & EDUCATION
1880 Geo Ligowsky patents device to throw clay pigeons for trap shooters
1907 Sutro's ornate Cliff House in SF destroyed by fire
1914 New York Post Office Building opens to the public
╬ INDIGENOUS PEOPLE
1957 An Act of Congress gives the Chilkat Indians mineral rights to their lands near Klukwan. They are one of only a very small number of Alaskans with this provision.
╬ POLITICS (US)
--
╬ POLITICS (International)
1940 German Air Force blitz London for 1st of 57 consecutive nights 1986 Desmond Tutu installed to lead south African Anglican Church
╬ SCIENCE & RELIGION
1800 Zion AME Church dedicated (NYC)
1888 Edith Eleanor McLean was the first baby to be placed in an incubator.
1936 Boulder Dam (now Hoover Dam) begins operation
1986 Desmond Tutu installed to lead South African Anglican Church
GREY MATTER ANSWERS
↔ 1
$100-It's where I came from with a banjo on my knee: What is Alabama?
$200-According to Beach Boys' hit, state with the cutest girls in the world: What is California?
$300-State where you'd find Elvis' rain & Diamond's woman: What is Kentucky?
$400-The alternate lyrics to "I've Been Working On The Railroad": What is The Eyes of Texas?
$500-Patti Page hit that is official song of a southern state: What is the Tennessee Waltz?
↔ 2
Johnny!
↔ PICTURE
Handcuffs
TODAY’S NATIONAL PARK PHOTO SHOTS
Bryce Canyon National Park, Utah, 23rd National Park since date February 25, 1928: Bryce Canyon is a giant natural amphitheatre along the Paunsaugunt Plateau. The unique area has hundreds of tall hoodoos formed by erosion. The region was originally settled by Native Americans and later by Mormon pioneers.
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