Jan 26, 2012


FYI: Click on any blue text for a link to more information!

Today’s  Historical  Highlights
1838 - Tennessee becomes 1st state to prohibit alcohol
1875 - Electric dental drill is patented by George F Green
1913 - Jim Thorpe relinquishes his 1912 Olympic medals for being a pro
1954 - Ground breaking begins on Disneyland
1957 - India annexes Kashmir
1980 - Mary Decker became 1st woman to run a mile in under 4½ minutes
Abner Doubleday, Union general-major/inventor (baseball) born in 1819; dies on 74th birthday in 1893

♫Happy Birthday To: ♫                     
 
Free Rambling Thoughts   
A good day…started gathering my income tax stuff, to see what I am still waiting for. Complicated but no way to avoid it.

My brother sent me a link to some of the photos from the Hacienda Weekend. These are ones that Laura took with her iPhone…the professional ones won’t be ready for a couple of weeks. So cool. What a great weekend. Here are two cool pics.


I also spent some time with a couple of CD’s I got from fellow travelers on our Ethiopian trip. Very cool indeed. It’s always amazing to me how each photographer sees our trip through different eyes. Makes the trip more memorable.

Our retirement group is meeting tomorrow at a new hamburger joint here in town…supposed to be some of the best burgers on the planet. Guess I’ll find out tomorrow.
 Game   Center   (answers at the end of post)
Brain Game

NPR Sunday Puzzle
You are given two words and must provide a third word that can go in between them. The answer will follow the first word and precede the second to complete two familiar two-word phrases. In addition, the answer must fall in between the two words alphabetically. For example, given "last" and "lines," the answer would be "laugh" as in "last laugh" and "laugh lines."
1.     Beer, button:
2.     Chemistry, clown:
3.     Calling, catalogue:
4.     Bad, brother:
5.     Shelf, suit:
6.     Cabin, cut:
7.     Safe, symbol:
8.     Banana, box:
9.     Bed, bunny:

Wuzzles  What concept or phrase do these suggest?

Lifestyle  Substance     
AZ Centennial is in 20 days:  Did you know?…
  • The state's precipitation varies. At Flagstaff the annual average is 18.31 inches; Phoenix averages 7.64 inches; and Yuma's annual average is 3.27 inches.
  • The Arizona ridge-nosed rattlesnake is perhaps the most beautiful of all eleven species of rattlesnakes found in Arizona.
  • The colors blue and gold are the official state colors.
  • Located in Fountain Hills is a fountain believed to be the tallest in the world.

Found on You Tube         
Halley's Comet
Harper’s Index         
Chance that a person will remember something if he thinks he can look it up later: 1 in 5
Joke-of-the-day
The drunken defendant appears yet again before the tired judge, who says, "You have been constantly appearing before me for the past twenty years."
Replied the drunk: "Can I help it if you can't get promoted?"

Planet Earth

Rules of Thumb   
Easy shortcuts to make an ‘educated’ guess
If you are giving a party and you live in the suburbs, invite two times the number of people you want to attend. If you live within range of public transportation, invite one and a half times the number of people you want. If you are in the heart of the city, invite one and a quarter times the number of people you want.
Somewhat Useless Information 
  • Ballet emerged in the late 15th century Renaissance court culture of Italy, as a dance interpretation of fencing. It was eventually further developed in the French court from the time of Louis XIV in the 17th century.
  • The word "tutu" may be a corruption of "cucu," French baby talk for "cul-cul" meaning roughly "botty-wotty" (for bottom). Alternatively, it may derive from tulle, the material from which tutus are often made.
  • For its first 100 years, ballet was performed exclusively by male courtiers as an amateur entertainment.
  • The largest ballet class involved 989 participants in an event organized by Andrew Warth in Canal Walk Shopping Centre, Cape Town, South Africa, on August 24, 2008.
  • A fouette is like a pirouette where the dancer flicks their leg around to spin. New Yorker Leigh Zimmerman twirled a new world record by completing 38 complete spins at the Pineapple Dance Studios in London.
  • Anna Pavlova, the renowned prima ballerina, died of pneumonia three weeks before her 50th birthday. Following an old ballet tradition, on the day she was to have next performed, the show went on as scheduled, with a single spotlight circling an empty stage where she would have been. The Pavlova dessert was named after her.

Yeah, It Really Happened                 
VANCOUVER, British Columbia - The world's most expensive hot dog has debuted in Vancouver, Canada, costing $100 for the foot-long dog infused with cognac along with lobster and Kobe beef. The founder of dougieDog Hot Dogs, dougie luv, said in a release his brainchild uses 100-year-old Louis XIII cognac that costs more than $2,000 a bottle. He named the creation the Dragon Dog in honor of the Chinese New Year, which this year celebrates the year of the dragon. The dog is nestled in Japanese Kobe beef from hand-massaged cows that is seared in olive and truffle oils, lobster shreds and a picante sauce whose ingredients Mr. luv wouldn't disclose. He said he intends to contact the Guinness Book of Records to unseat the previous most-expensive hot dog at New York's Serendipity restaurant, which sells for $69. The release said the new hot dog would be a regular menu item and not a limited offer.

Calendar Information        
…Happening This Week:
20-30
Sundance Film Festival
21-27
World Leprosy WeekNational Activity Professionals WeekKid Film FestivalNational Nurse Anesthetists WeekClean Out Your Inbox WeekNational Handwriting Analysis WeekNational Medical Group Practice WeekNational Nuclear Science WeekNo Name Calling WeekNational Take Back Your Time Week
Today Is                                                                      

Lotus 123 Day (1983 spreadsheet program goes on sale] 
National Peanut Brittle Day
Toad Hollow Day of Encouragement [a day to connect with others through the heart, it stresses the importance of sharing a kind word with fellow man. Although the name conjures thought of childhood storybooks and amusement park rides, Toad Hollow Day of Encourangement is actually rooted in 1800s era school house located in Kalamazoo, Michigan]
Australia Day [arrival of first fleet at Sydney Cove in 1788]
India: Republic Day [1830, Declaration of Independence]
US: Michigan: Admission Day [1837, 26th state]

Today’s Other Events                                                             
Before 1000CE
66 - 5th recorded perihelion passage of Halley's Comet
1500’s
1531 - Lisbon hit by Earthquake; about 30,000 die
1700’s
1784 - Ben Franklin expresses unhappiness over eagle as America's symbol
1800’s
1802 - Congress passes an act calling for a US Capitol library
1808 - Rum Rebellion, the only successful (albeit short-lived) armed takeover of the government in Australia.
1861 - Louisiana becomes 6th state to secede
1863 - American Civil War: Massachusetts Governor receives permission from Secretary of War to raise a militia organization for men of African descent
1900’s
1907 - 1st federal corrupt election practices law passed
1910 - Heavy rains cause floods in Paris
1915 - Rocky Mountain National Park, CO established
1918 - Pres Hoover calls for "wheatless" & "meatless" days for war effort
1926 - Television 1st demonstrated (J L Baird, London)
1948 - Executive Order 9981, end segregation in US Armed Forces signed
1956 - 7th Winter Olympic games open in Cortina d'Ampezzo, Italy
1965 - South Vietnam milt coup under General Nguyen Khanh
1971 - Charles Manson convicted of murder
1977 - Soviet figure skaters Sergei Shakrai & Marine Tcherkasova are 1st to perform a quadruple twist lift , Helsinki
1979 - "Dukes of Hazzard" premieres on CBS
1986 - Superbowl XX: Chicago Bears beat NE Patriots, 46-10 MVP: Richard Dent
1989 - US computer security expert warns of catastrophic virus
1992 - Americans with Disabilities Act went into effect
1992 - Superbowl XXVI: Wash Red Skins beat Buffalo Bills, 37-24 MVP: Mark Rypien
1997 - Superbowl XXXI: Green Bay Packers beat NE Patriots, 35-21 MVP: Desmond Howard 
1998 - Intel launches 333 MHz Pentium II chip
2000’s
2005 - Condoleezza Rice is sworn in as U.S. Secretary of State, becoming the first African American woman to hold the post
2006 - Western Union discontinues use of its telegram service


Today’s Birthdays                                                           
Under 30 years old
Suleman octuplets [Noah Angel Solomon , Maliyah Angel Solomon , Isaiah Angel Solomon , Nariyah Angel Solomon , Jonah Angel Solomon , Josiah Angel Solomon , Jeremiah Angel Solomon , and Makai Angel Solomon ]are 3 years old
In their 50’s
Ellen DeGeneres, actor and TV host is 54
Wayne Gretzky, Brantford Ont, NHL great scorer (Oiler, King, Rangers) is 51
Eddie Van Halen, Nijmegan Neth, rock guitarist (Van Halen-Jump, 1984) is 55
In their 70’s
Bob Uecker, catcher/actor (Mr Belvedere) is 77
Remembered for being born on this day
Alexander Carlyle, Scottish church leader in 1722
Juan Pablo Duarte, Dominican founding father in 1813
Benjamin Robert Haydon, Plymouth, painter (Waiting for The Times) in 1786
Eartha Kitt, singer/actress (Catwoman-Batman) in 1928
Douglas MacArthur, general (WW II) in 1880
Paul Newman, Cleve, racer/popcorn mogul/actor (Hud, Hombre, Hustler) in 1925
George Shiras Jr., U.S. Supreme Court justice in 1832
Gene Siskel, movie critic (Siskel & Ebert) in 1946

Today’s Obits                                                           
Paul "Bear" Bryant, college football coach (Alabama), dies of heart attack at 69 in 1983
José Ferrer, Puerto Rican actor/director (Cyrano de Bergerac), dies at 80 in 1992
Victor Fleming, director (Wizard of Oz, Gone With Wind), dies of heart attack at 65 in 1949
Edward Jenner, discoverer (vaccination), dies at 75 in 1824
Charles "Lucky" Luciano, NYC Mafia gangster, dies of heart attack at 65 in 1962
Georg Mohr, Danish mathematician dies at 57 in 1697
Nicholaus Otto, auto pioneer (internal combustion engine) dies at 58 in 1891
Edward G Robinson, [Goldenberg], actor (Little Caesar), dies at 79 in 1973
Nelson Rockefeller, former VP & (4X Gov-R-NY), dies of heart attack at 70 in 1979
William K Wrigley, owner (Wrigley Gum, Chicago Cubs), dies of heart disease at 71 in 1932

Answers                                                                                                                                            
Brain Game
Animals on the left are WILD, animals on the right are DOMESTICATED
NPR Sunday Puzzle
1.     Beer, button: belly
2.     Chemistry, clown: class
3.     Calling, catalogue: card
4.     Bad, brother: blood
5.     Shelf, suit: space
6.     Cabin, cut: crew
7.     Safe, symbol: sex
8.     Banana, box: bread
9.     Bed, bunny: bugs
Wuzzle
  • An A in history
  • Tidal waves
  • Paradox

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] the dates may not be totally accurate.
    And That Is All for Now 

No comments:

Post a Comment

Followers

Total Pageviews

Blog Archive

About Me

My photo
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.