This is Week 45 of 2010►Day 315 with 50 days left.
Flagstaff Weather: H—47°(wind chill-36°); L—19°; RH—36%; —Mostly sunny sky and wind—15 mph
QUOTE FOR THE DAY—Seth Godin
Just because something is easy to measure doesn't mean it's important.
FREE RAMBLING THOUGHTS
It is Veteran’s Day here in the US. My grandfather didn’t serve in WWI because as he was the one selected to stay home on the farm while his brothers served. Thankfully all seven brothers returned. My father served in WWII. He had dropped out of high school and did two years in the Navy from 1935-1937. He was then called back during WWII and spent time in the Army in France and also in the Pacific—thankfully both were non-combat jobs. My brother and I missed Vietnam due to IIS deferments and then high lottery numbers. While I didn’t lose any friends in Vietnam, my time of the Rez showed me the honor of serving, the grief in losing a loved one, and the effects of PTSD before it had a name. Many of those in prior wars were drafted and really had no choice. Today’s vets have all volunteered. Some of them saw the military as a way out of a bad situation, others to honor their family and their country. We are a military country. We believe that force is better than talking. Our military budget is larger than the next 26 allies combined. I may not support our invasions of other countries, but I do support our troops and our vets. Many of the vets had no idea what they were getting into and when they found out, it was too late to do anything but fight. I understand that many of the troops fought with pride, but all vets return to our country scared. We need to do whatever we can to support their rehab and their lives. The other people who need to be honored are the family members of the vets. Dads, sons, brothers, husbands, uncles, and cousins also have to deal with deployment. So do moms, daughters, sisters, wives, aunts, and grandparents. So to all our vets, thank you for your service.
For a short period of time in the 1980’s, Veteran’s Day was moved from Nov 11 to the second Monday in November so many could have a long weekend. The Vet’s didn’t like this as the original day was set because it was Nov. 11 at 11:11am that WWI ended. The Vet’s won out and we quickly returned to celebrating on Nov 11, no matter what day of the week it fell. Makes sense to me.
It was a really fall day here in Flagstaff. The wind and the much cooler temps meant that anyone going outside needed a jacket, and something to cover their ears if they stayed out very long. I ran some errands this morning and helped out a friend with some gas money to get to a dental appointment in Cameron. I don’t mind helping people in real need and Jeannie sure is. She has moved to subsidized housing, her son, his three kids, and her daughter are all back in the fold. Both the siblings are ‘in school’. They work full time at minimum wage and each is taking three classes. They always seem to live on the edge of poverty here in Flag and somehow hold on to the impossible dream that when they finish school, everything will be fine. Now the dream is for the son to graduate in four or five years, at 30 something, get a job in Seattle, in the medical field, and live happily ever after. I’m afraid that both kids are just perpetual students who will always be in school and always be on the edge. Schools make it sound so easy to get a job after graduation, but most students don’t realize that when a degree takes a decade, the employment field is pretty limited. A little gas money only makes life easier for today, but that is all I can do.
When one gets close to 80, one sometimes doesn’t keep everyone in the loop. I got a call from Ellie today that Bob has decided to do the Italy trip in June. It is a great trip but I told Bob I didn’t think I would go, but did want to go to the UK for the Hadrian Wall thing. I tried to get with Bob today, but he didn’t answer, so I’ll try tomorrow. The UK trip would take a lot of planning on Bob’s part whereas Italy would be a done deal. Time will tell what happens.
HOLY MACKEREL: 1959»1st episode of "Rocky & His Friends" airs
JEOPARDY PUZZLE—(1984 games)(answers below): Science
$100-A sound's repetition by reflection
$200-He originated "The Origin of Species"
$300-Singular form of the word "bacteria"
$400-Negative particle that orbits an atom's nucleus
$500-Cytology is the study of these biological building blocks
SOMEWHAT USELESS INFORMATION—
>The number of atoms in a pound of iron is nearly five trillion trillion:
4,891,500,000,000,000,000,000,000
>To keep the unemployment rate steady at 9.6%, the US economy needs to create 100,000 jobs per month. This assumes average population growth of 1% and a flat labor force participation rate.
UNUSUAL NEWS ITEM
I heard this on Science Friday—NPR, now it is in print
A species of cricket has broken an unlikely world record: largest testicles in relation to body weight.
The tuberous bushcricket's testicles account for 14 percent of its body weight. To put that in perspective, the testicles of a man weighing 200 pounds (91 kilograms) with that ball-to-body ratio would weigh 28 pounds (12.7 kilograms).
The bushcricket, whose anatomical extremes were reported Tuesday in thejournal Biology Letters, edges out the record of a species of fruit fly, Drosophila bifurca, whose testes-to-body weight ratio has been recorded as 10.6 percent.
A LITTLE LAUGH
A woman walked into my father's carpet store. She'd just moved out of her parents' home and needed something for her new living-room floor. "Do you know how big the room is?" Dad asked.
"Yes," she said. "It's 22 flip-flops long by 18 flip-flops wide...and I wear a size 8."
FOUND ON ‘YOU TUBE’
GREY MATTER PICTURE
This is a close up of what object?
SOME CALENDAR INFORMATION
¤ Weekly Observances ¤
7-13: National Nurse Practioner's Week, Pursuit of Happiness Week, National Rad Tech Week , Fraud Awareness Week, Dear Santa Letter Week, National Young Reader's Week, World Kindness Week
14-20: American Education Week, Geography Awareness Week, National Hunger & Homeless Awareness Week, National Global Entrepreneurship Week
19-25:National Farm-City Week
21-28: National Bible Week, National Family Week, National Game & Puzzle Week, National Teens Don't Text and Drive Week, Better Conversation Week, Church/State Separation Week
¤ Today’s Observances ¤
Clean Air Action Day
Death/Duty Day
Origami Day
Veterans Day
Angola: Independence Day (1975 from Portugal)
Belgium, France, French countries, New Zealand: Armistice Day
Belgium: Women's Day since 1972
Bhutan: King's Birthday
Canada: Remembrance Day-Veterans Day, 11th Hr-11th Day-11th Month
China: Singles Day (since 1990’s, the four ones in the date is considered a message to stay single—11.11)
Colombia: Cartagena Day (1811)
Germany, the Netherlands: Opening of carnival ("Karneval"/"Fasching"), on 11-11, at 11:11: The beginning of carnival season that ends on Ash Wednesday.
Japan: Pocky Day (biscuit covered with chocolate on a stick) and Pretz Day (pretzel on a stick, covered with seasonings): mostly a teenage thing
Maldives: Republic Day (monarchy disbanded in 1968)
Poland: Independence Day (since 1918)
Rhodesia: Independence Day (1965 from UK)
St Maarten: Concordia Day: International Language Recognition
South Korea: Pepero Day (a cookie stick dipped in chocolate): given to lovers, a kind of Valentine’s Day thing
US: Washington: Admission Day (1889)—42nd state
¤ Top 10 songs of 1967 ¤
Click on Song Title to see and hear the original
¤ Today’s Births ¤
╬ THE ARTS
Fyodor Mikhailovich Dostoyevsky, novelist (Crime & Punishment)—in 1821
Sam Spiegel, producer (On the Waterfront, Bridge over River Kwai)—in 1901
Kurt Vonnegut Jr, author (Slaughterhouse Five, Sirens of Titan)—in 1922
♦♦Actors♦♦
Leonardo DiCaprio, 36, actor (Revolutionary Road, Blood Diamond, The Departed, Titanic)
Calista Flockhart, 46, actress (“Ally McBeal,” “Brothers & Sisters”)
Stubby Kaye, actor (Guys & Dolls, Lil' Abner, Cat Ballou)—in 1918
Demi Moore, 48, actress (Charlie’s Angels: Full Throttle, GI Jane, Ghost)
Pat O'Brien, actor (Knute Rockne, Angels with Dirty Faces)—in 1899
Clifton Webb (Webb Parmalee Hollenbeck), actor: Laura, Razor’s Edge, Satan Never Sleeps, Titanic, Three Coins in the Fountain, Sitting Pretty, Mr. Belvedere)—in 1859
Jonathan Winters, 85, comedian, actor (“The Jonathan Winters Show,” Viva Max!)
╬ ATHLETICS
Reynaldo Ordóñez Pereira, 38, baseball (Mets, Devil Rays, Cubs), born Havana, Cuba
Frank Urban “Fuzzy” Zoeller, 59, golfer
╬ BUSINESS & EDUCATION
Yen Jo-chu, Chinese scholar of Ch'ing dynasty—in 1636
Charles "Lucky" Luciano, NYC Mafia gangster—in 1896 in Sicily
╬ POLITICS
Abigail Smith Adams, 2nd 1st lady—in 1744
Barbara Boxer, 70, US Senator (D, California)
Alger Hiss, State Department official and spy—in 1904
Daniel Ortega Saavedra, 65, 83rd President of Nicaragua (1984-present )
George S Patton, general "Old Blood & Guts"—in 1885
╬ SCIENCE & RELIGION
Ephraim McDowell, surgeon (pioneered abdominal surgery)—in 1771
¤ Today’s Obituaries ¤
Stringbean [David Akeman], banjoist/comedian (Hee Haw), murdered @ 58 in 1973
L T Coggeshall, medical scientist (Secretary of HEW 1956-58), @ 86, in 1987
Rev Martin Luther King Sr, @ 84 in 1984
Nat Turner, former slave, led a violent insurrection, hanged @31, in 1831
¤ Today’s Events ¤
╬ THE ARTS
1939»Kate Smith 1st sings Irving Berlin's "God Bless America"► for first time
1987»Van Gogh's "Irises" sells for record $53.6 M at auction
1987»Van Gogh's "Irises" sells for record $53.6 M at auction
╬ ATHLETICS
1868»1st American amateur track & field meet (NYC)
1981»The first rookie baseball player to win the coveted Cy Young Award --21-year-old honoree LA Dodger Fernando Valenzuela.
╬ BUSINESS & EDUCATION
1647»Massachusetts passes 1st US compulsory school attendance law
1714»A highway in the Bronx is laid out, later renamed East 233rd Street
1790»Chrysanthemums are introduced into England from China
1986»Sperry Rand and Burroughs merged to form Unisys, becoming the #2 computer company
1992»Bobby Fischer won his re-match with Boris Spassky in Sveti Stefan, Yugoslavia
╬ INDIGENOUS PEOPLE
1778»Iroquois Indians in NY kill 40 in Cherry Valley Massacre
1794»A treaty (7 stat. 44) is concluded at Canandaigua (Konondaigua), New York, with the "Six Nations." The United States acknowledges the treaties signed by the Six Nations and New York. Boundaries are established. The Six Nations will not submit further land claims. A wagon trail is established from Fort Schlosser to Buffalo Creek on Lake Erie. The Indians receive $10,000 in goods now. The annuity agreed to in the treaty of April 3, 1792 is increased from $1500 to $4500 in goods. The treaty is signed by Thomas Pickering for the United States, and by fifty-nine Indians.
1865»Medicine Bottle and Little Shakopee, two of the leaders of the Santee Siouxuprising are executed at Pine Knob
╬ POLITICS (US)
1620»41 pilgrims land in Massachusetts, sign Mayflower Compact (just & equal laws)
1864»Sherman's troops destroy Rome, Georgia
1921»President Harding dedicates Tomb of Unknown Soldier
╬ POLITICS (International)
1811»Cartagena Colombia declares independence from Spain
╬ SCIENCE & RELIGION
1851»The telescope was patented by Alvan Clark of Cambridge
1860»1st Jewish wedding in Buenos Aires Argentina
1865»Mary Edward Walker, 1st Army female surgeon, awarded Medal of Honor
1925»Robert Millikan announces discovery of cosmic rays
1988»Oldest known insect fossils (390 million years) reported in Science
1992»For the first time, women were permitted to become priests of the Church of England
GREY MATTER ANSWERS
↔ JEOPARDY
$100-A sound's repetition by reflection
What is an echo?
$200-He originated "The Origin of Species"
Who was Charles Darwin?
$300-Singular form of the word "bacteria"
What is bacterium?
$400-Negative particle that orbits an atom's nucleus
What is an electron?
$500-Cytology is the study of these biological building blocks
What are cells?
↔ PICTURE
Toilet or Urinal flusher
◄.► ◄.► ◄.►◄.►
