9-8-11

FYI: Blue text is a link…be sure and click on it for more information!

TODAY’s “Geez”
1504 - Michelangelo's David is unveiled in Florence
1952 - Ernest Hemmingway's "Old Man & Sea" published
1943 - Gen Eisenhower announce unconditional surrender of Italy in WW II

Free Rambling Thoughts…
Our group +2 got together for lunch. Mary’s daughter and 2 year old grandson are visiting. Mary has been grandma bragging about Cash for a long time…he is just 2 years old. Well today, I have to agree. He speaks clearly, is aware of things around him, and remembers. He is also very well behaved and eats his veggies. Even asks for more. He is big for his age. He was shy at first but soon was talking away. Cheryl is heading to CA in a couple of weeks for a few days with the grandkids. A good time was held by all.

I finally reviewed my Ethiopia trip materials and made my plane reservations to Denver. After checking many websites, I found that for this trip, it is cheaper to fly from Flag to Denver than to take the shuttle. If I took the shuttle, I would have to leave at 5:15am to get to Denver in time to make connections. Flying back I would have to spend the night in either Denver or Phoenix to get the shuttle back to Flag. This way I leave Flag at 6am, park at the airport for free, and return to the airport about 9:30pm. That should work out well.

I called Hamdy to verify the Denver flights and had a nice talk. This is going to be an amazing trip…lots of National Parks, several river rides to local villages, lots of local culture. I think I counted visiting 10 villages of 10 different tribes. We should also be seeing lots of wildlife. Much of our travel within the country is by 4x4 with some long rides—about 6 hours each to get to the various destinations. This is not a developed country and not many airports to move around. There are 82 million people living there, and is about 2/3 the size of Alaska. We will be visiting many of the 10 World Heritage Sites in Ethiopia. Great trip.

Hamdy was also interested in my Grand Canyon trip and said he really wants to bring his kids on a trip like that—mentioning that his wife would not like it at all. He is planning on bringing his family to AZ after he retires as neither child has seen this part of the country. They have traveled to Africa and the Middle East many times.

Trivia Quiz…(answers at the end of post)
1.      What butterfly-shaped gland is located just in front of the windpipe?
2.      What's short for "light amplification by stimulated emission of radiation"?
3.      What planet is the brightest object in the sky, after the sun and moon?
4.      What weapon did German gunsmith August Kotter unload on the world in 1520?
5.      What type of machine did 19-year-old French genius Blaise Pascal invent to help his dad do taxes in 1642?
6.      What do leukemia sufferers have too many of?
7.      What Benjamin Holt invention was good news to farmers in 1900?
8.      What weather phenomenon is measured by the Beaufort scale?
9.      What do itchy people call the "rhus radicans" they were sorry they came into contact with?
10.  What drupaceous fruit were Hawaiian women once forbidden by law to eat?

Zoom-ed in Picture…Can you Identify what this is? (Answer at end of post)

Hmmmmm…
Chances that a US millionaire does not ‘feel wealthy’: 2 in 5
Average amount he or she believes would begin to create such a feeling: $7.5 million

Somewhat Useless Information…
Flies typically transmit their harmful microorganisms to humans through our mouths, when we eat food on which they have landed and deposited their feces.
A cockroach can survive several weeks without a head.

Yeah, It Really Happened…
MERRILLVILLE, Ind. - Police in Indiana said they arrested a man spotted walking shirtless along an interstate while holding a sword on his shoulder.
Indiana State Police said Master Trooper Rick Hudson and Trooper Ricky Rayner were responding to a call about an abandoned Toyota in the middle lane of Interstate 65 about 2:30 a.m. Sunday in Merrillville when they spotted the man, who appeared to be in his mid to late 40s, The Post-Tribune in Merrillville reported Monday.
State Police Sgt. Ann Wojas said the man swung his sword at Hudson and then dropped the 35-inch weapon when Hudson ordered him to put it down. Wojas said the man attempted to get inside a sport utility vehicle that swerved to avoid hitting a police car, but surrendered when ordered at gunpoint.
The man, who gave police several different names and addresses, claimed to be "cuckoo for Cocoa Puffs," police said. The unidentified suspect was charged with attempted carjacking, resisting law enforcement and possession of marijuana.

Guffaw…or at least smile…
Three college professors were driving down the highway at a very slow speed. A policeman pulled them over and explained that driving so slowly on the highway could be hazardous. The driver pointed out the sign that read "20." He explained that he was going 20 mph because of the sign. The policeman pointed out that the sign indicated they were driving on Highway 20.
Somewhat embarrassed the professor apologized and promised to be more observant.
As the policeman turn to walk back to his car, he noticed the other two professors on the floor ...looking scared to death! He asked the driver, "What's wrong with them?"
The driver replied, "We just turned off Highway 105."

Searchin’ “You Tube” I found…

Daybook Information…
…Happening This Week:
1-7 
Self-University Week 
1-10 
International Enthusiasm Week 
4-10 
National Historically Black Colleges & Universities Week:  
National Waffle Week Suicide Prevention Week 6-10 
National Payroll Week: 
Play Days
TODAY IS
International Literacy Day
National Date Nut Bread Day
Nixon Pardon Day
Pediatric Hematology / Oncology Nurses Day
World Physical Therapy Day
~*~
Macedonia: Independence Day (1991 from Yugoslavia)

Today’s Events:
IN ARTS
1930 - 1st appearance of comic strip "Blondie"
1966 - "That Girl" starring Marlo Thomas premieres on ABC-TV
1968 - "Funny Girl" with Barbra Striesand premieres
1971 - John F Kennedy Center for Performing Arts opens in Washington DC
IN ATHLETICS
1996 - 110th US Women’s Tennis: Steffi Graf beats Monica Seles (7:5 6:4)
IN BUSINESS
1883 - Northern Pacific RR's last spike driven at Independence Creek, Mont
1920 - US Air Mail service begins (NYC to SF)
IN EDUCATION
1930 - NYC public schools begin teaching Hebrew
FOR INDIGENOUS PEOPLE
1756 - Colonel John Armstrong, leads approximately 300 Pennsylvania soldiers against the Delaware village of Kittanning, in retaliation for their attack on Fort Granville on July 30th. Delaware Chief, Captain Jacob, is trapped in his house. He is ordered to surrender, and he refuses. His house is set on fire, and he is burned to death. Armstrong estimates Delaware losses at 40 killed, and his own at 18. He recovers many English prisoners.
IN INTERNATIONAL POLITICS
1962 - Chinese troops exceed Mac-Mahon-line (Tibet-India boundary)
1970 - Hijacking (and subsequent destruction) of three airliners to Jordan by Palestinians; the events to follow would later become known as Black September
1994 - Last US, British & French troops leave West-Berlin
IN RELIGION
--
IN SCIENCE
1900 - 6,000 killed when a hurricane & tidal wave strikes Galveston, Texas
IN US POLITICS
1858 - Lincoln makes a speech about when you can fool people
1939 - FDR declares "limited national emergency" due to war in Europe
1974 - Pres Gerald Ford pardons former Pres R Nixon of all federal crimes

ARTISTS:  AUTHORS:  COMPOSERS
1841 - AntonĂ­nDvorák, Czech composer ( New World Symphony)
ATHLETES
L.C. Greenwood, American football player turns 65
John Thomas, NBA forward (Boston Celtics) turns 36
ENTERTAINERS (ACTORS/SINGERS…)
David Arquette, actor, director, producer turns 40
1932 - Patsy Cline, country singer (Crazy)
Brooke Burke, tv personality, model turns 40
Sid Caesar, comic actor, writer turns 89
Michelle Johnson, actor turns 46
Pink, singer turns 32
1925 - Peter Sellers, actor (Pink Panther…)
Heather Thomas, actor turns 54
Jonathan Taylor Thomas, actor (Randy-Home Improvement) turns 30
ENTREPRENEUR & EDUCATORS
--
POLITICIANS
Sam Nunn, American politician (Sen-D-Georgia, 1972 - 1997) turns 73
1841 - Charles J. Guiteau, American assassin of James A. Garfield 
1889 - Robert A Taft, (Sen-R-Ohio, Taft-Hartley Act)
SCIENTISTS / THEOLOGISTS
--


Today’s Obits:
1831 - John Aitken, Scottish-born music publisher dies at 86
1654 - Peter Claver, Spanish saint (baptized 300,000 slaves), dies of Parkinson's Disease at 74
1969 - Bud Collyer, TV emcee ( Beat the Clock, To Tell the Truth), dies of circulatory ailment at 61
1935 - Huey P Long, (Sen-La) assassinated at Baton Rouge Capitol building at 42
1977 - Zero [Samuel J] Mostel, US actor (Fiddler on the Roof), dies of aortic aneurysm at 62
1980 - Jean Piaget, Swiss psychologist/theory/educator, dies at 84
1970 - Percy Spencer, inventor of the microwave oven, dies at 76
1949 - Richard Strauss, German composer ( Also sprach Zarathustra), dies at 85
1755 - Ephraim Williams, American philanthropist (Williams College) shot in French/Indian War at 40

ANSWERS:
Trivia Quiz
1.      What butterfly-shaped gland is located just in front of the windpipe?
a.      The Thyroid
2.      What's short for "light amplification by stimulated emission of radiation"?
a.      Laser
3.      What planet is the brightest object in the sky, after the sun and moon?
a.      Venus
4.      What weapon did German gunsmith August Kotter unload on the world in 1520?
a.      The rifle
5.      What type of machine did 19-year-old French genius Blaise Pascal invent to help his dad do taxes in 1642?
a.      An adding machine
6.      What do leukemia sufferers have too many of?
a.      White blood cells, or leukocytes
7.      What Benjamin Holt invention was good news to farmers in 1900?
a.      The tractor
8.      What weather phenomenon is measured by the Beaufort scale?
a.      Wind
9.      What do itchy people call the "rhus radicans" they were sorry they came into contact with?
a.      Poison Ivy
10.  What drupaceous fruit were Hawaiian women once forbidden by law to eat?
a.      The coconut

Close Up Picture
Sand Dollar

Disclaimer: All opinions are mine…feel free to agree or disagree. All ‘data’ info is from the internet sites and is usually checked with at least one other source, but I have learned that every site has mistakes and sadly once out the information is out there, many sites simply copy it and is therefore difficult to verify. Also for events occurring before the Gregorian calendar was adopted [1582] may not be totally accurate.
§     AND THAT’S ALL FOR NOW     §

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Flagstaff, Arizona, United States
I retired in '06--at the ripe old age of 57. I enjoy blogging, photography, traveling, and living life to it's fullest.