3-14-14


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Flagstaff Almanac: Day: 073   / Week: 11  
Today: L 23°…H 52°… Ave. humidity: 44%
     Wind: ave:   10mph; Gusts:  22mph  
     Average Low: 23° Record Low:  -4° (1990)
    Average High: 50° Record High:  69° (2007)

Quote of the Day
 
Today’s Historical Highlights
1493 - Columbus writes a letter describing the generous nature of the Indians 
     he has encountered. He will describe them as "men of great deference and kindness."
1743 - 1st American town meeting (Boston's Faneuil Hall)
1794 - Eli Whitney patents cotton gin
1812 - Congress authorizes war bonds to finance War of 1812
1885 - Gilbert & Sullivan's comic opera "Mikado" premieres in London
1900 - US currency goes on gold standard
1913 - John D Rockefeller gives $100 million to Rockefeller Foundation
1931 - 1st theater built for rear movie projection (NYC)
1936 - Federal Register, 1st magazine of the US government, publishes 1st issue
1958 - South Africa government prohibits the African National Congress
1964 - Dallas, Texas; Jack Ruby sentenced to death for Lee Harvey Oswald's murder
1983 - OPEC cut oil prices for 1st time in 23 years
1984 - Gerry Adams, of Sinn Féin, is seriously wounded in an assassination attempt-Belfast
1992 - Soviet newspaper "Pravda" suspends publication

♫  Today’s Birthdays: ♫   
How many can you identify? Answers in Today’s Birthdays
 
My Free Rambling Thoughts   
Nice morning, then overcast this afternoon…hopefully some rain drops will be falling on my head before dark.
 
Cheryl and I had a good lunch. Her son and his family are headed for a 7 day cruise around Mexico’s west coast. I caught her up on my visit with our old boss. I had a great Rueben sandwich. Mary is down in Phx with her daughter and grandkids, having a great time.
 
OK, where is Rod Serling when we really need him? This whole Malaysia Airline mystery is really like an episode of Twilight Zone. Every day, even every few hours, we get new wrong information. This is so horrific for the families of those on that flight. Other international travelers must be wondering if it is safe to fly on a 777…the most commonly used plane on long haul flights. Without answers as to where the plane is, and why it can’t be found must have some travelers reconsidering their flights until answers are found. I’m glad we are not flying on a 777 when I travel to Cuba. A couple of days ago some news guy was interviewing some ‘expert’ on these kinds of searches. Basically the reporter said: we really don’t know much, except that the plane was not plucked out of the air by little green men in a spaceship. The ‘expert’ answered, with a grin: We don’t even know that for sure.
Game  Center (answers at the end of post)
Brain Teasers
In this teaser, I have given you a 9-letter word. Your job is to break up this word into 9 separate letters and place them on the dashes to spell a 7-letter word, a 5-letter word, and a 3-letter word. You can use each letter only once.
IMPASSIVE
 _ E _ T _ G _ _ R _ S _ _ P _

Lifestyle  Substance:     
Found on You Tube with some relevance to today

Remembering TV’s great shows
"The Golden Girls"--Dorothy, Rose, Blanche and Sophia proved that senior citizens can still swing.
Bizarre Facts about World’s Dictators
Bashar Al Assad, Computer Geek And Ophthalmologist
Bashar Al Assad is the enigmatic president of Syria. However, a look into the history and nature of the man in question raises some strange discoveries. Assad was the lesser-known brother in the family, overshadowed by his flashier older brother, who was to succeed as president. Assad studied computer sciences in his spare time and became head of the Syrian Computer Club as an unabashed “geek.”After graduating from high school, Assad proceeded to medical studies at the University of Damascus, conducting his residency in ophthalmology at the Tishreen military hospital. In 1992, the Syrian-born eye doctor began working at the Western Eye Hospital in London. Upon the death of his brother in a car crash in 1994, the pressure of succession fell to Assad. Although he had no political aspirations, Assad took the seat in 2000. A sham election was held and Assad switched from London eye doctor to the Syria’s new president and dictator.
Misconceptions of Medieval Figures
Joan Of Arc Didn’t Actually Fight In Battle
An unexpected but extraordinarily successful leader, Joan of Arc provided the French with some much needed morale during the Hundred Years’ War. Allegedly inspired by voices of saints, Joan was captured by the English and burned for heresy in 1431, but the French finally won the conflict around 30 years after her death. Joan of Arc never killed anyone. She didn’t even actually fight. Sure, she was on the front lines—and was wounded as a result—but she served as an inspirational figure for the French army, not a combatant. Donned in a specially-crafted suit of armor, Joan would raise aloft her iconic battle standard during combat to rally her troops on to victory. Joan of Arc was born around 1412 in Domremy, France, the daughter of a peasant farmer. Domremy itself was actually on the border between France and Burgundy, a hotbed of conflict. Joan visited a nearby town, Vaucouleurs, where she convinced a captain to allow her to travel to Chinon to visit the dauphin (heir to the throne), Charles. Whether he believed her testimony or not, Chinon put his trust in Joan. Joined by her brothers and French general La Hire, Joan and the French army liberated Orleans. She went on to inspire the French to several other major victories, ultimately leading to the coronation of Charles in Reims. Joan was also heavily involved in reforming the army. She expelled prostitutes and mandated church attendance and confession. She banned swearing, looting, and harassing. She played a major role in the army’s tactical decisions as well.Joan of Arc was canonized in 1920. Remembered as a national icon in France, her life is celebrated every second Sunday in May. She is also honored with a feast on May 30.
OK Then…
 
Harper’s Index 
Replacement cost of the munitions used by the US military in the first nine days of intervention in Libya: $25-,200,000
Unusual Fact of the Day
The winning word at the 1940 National Spelling Bee was "therapy."
Joke-of-the-day
True story from a Novell NetWire SysOp:
Caller: "Hello, is this Tech Support?"
Tech: "Yes, it is. How may I help you?"
Caller: "The cup holder on my PC is broken and I am within my warranty period. How do I go about getting that fixed?"
Tech: "I'm sorry, but did you say a cup holder?"
Caller: "Yes, it's attached to the front of my computer."
Tech: "Please excuse me if I seem a bit stumped. It's because I am. Did you receive this as part of a promotional, at a trade show? How did you get this cup holder? Does it have any trademark on it?"
Caller: "It came with my computer, I don't know anything about a promotional. It just has '4X' on it. “At this point the Tech Rep had to mute the caller, because he couldn't stand it. The caller had been using the load drawer of the CD-ROM drive as a cup holder, and snapped it off the drive!
Rules of Thumb:   
Easy shortcuts to make an ‘educated’ guess
IDENTIFYING A SEDGE
Sedges have edges (round rushes have none).    
Yeah, It Really Happened
Authorities say two students at a New York state college were charged with animal abuse after a dog was held upside down over a keg and forced to drink beer.
Police say one of the College at Brockport students held the black Labrador retriever over a keg and apparently forced the animal to drink from the tap during an off-campus party at a house in the village located 17 miles west of Rochester.
Another student took a photo and posted it on a Twitter account featuring stories and pictures from parties thrown by students enrolled at state colleges in New York.
The two men, both 20, were charged with torturing and injuring an animal. They were issued appearance tickets for town court.
The dog was taken by the local dog warden.
Somewhat Useless Information   
  • Barbie's full name is Barbara Millicent Roberts. She is from fictional Willows, Wis., and went to high school there.
  • Barbie's boyfriend, Ken, showed up two years after Barbie in 1961. Ken and Barbie broke up on Valentine's Day in 2004 after being together more than 43 years. They rekindled their relationship on Valentine's Day 2011.
  • The best-selling doll ever was the Totally Hair Barbie in 1992.
  • She is 11.5 inches tall and weighs 7.35 ounces.
  • Barbie has three sisters: Skipper, Stacie and Chelsea.
  • Barbie's first pet was a horse named Dancer.

Calendar Information        
Happening This Week:
1-16
Iditarod Race
8-14
National Procrastination Week
Universal Women's Week
National Agriculture Week
9-15
Teen Tech Week
Girl Scout Week
International Brain Awareness Week
Stand Up! LGBT Awareness Week
11-17
Turkey Vultures Return to the Living Sign

Today Is                                                                      
·        International Ask A Question Day  
·        Potato Chip Day
·        Pi Day (as in the math pie = 3.14159265 etc.)
·        World Sleep Day
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·        Commonwealth Day (UK—since 1904)

Today’s Events through History  
1647 - Thirty Years' War: Bavaria, Cologne, France and Sweden sign the Truce of Ulm.
1967 - JFK's body moved from temporary grave to a permanent memorial
1993 - 3,000th performance of "Nunsense"

Today’s Birthdays                                                           
Frank Borman, astronaut (Gem 7, Ap 8)/CEO (Eastern Airline) is 86
Michael Caine, [Maurice J Micklewhite], actor (Alfie) is 81
Quincy Jones Jr, composer/singer (We Are The World) is 81
Billy Crystal, actor, writer, producer (Soap, City Slickers) is 66
Jerry Greenfield, American co-founder of Ben & Jerry's ice cream is 64
J Fred Muggs, chimp (Today show) is 62
Chris Klein, actor (American Pie) is 35

Remembered for being born today
1804 - Johann Strauss, the Elder, Viennese violinist and composer (Radetzky March)
1864 - [John] Casey Jones, RR engineer (Ballad of Casey Jones)
1879 - Albert Einstein, German-born theoretical physicist and Nobel laureate (theory of relativity)
1916 - Horton Foote, author, playwright and screenwriter
1920 - Hank Ketcham, cartoonist (Dennis the Menace)

Today’s Historical Obits                                                           
Peter Graves [Aurness], actor (MI), 2010, @83
Marlin Perkins, TV host (Wild Kingdom), 1986, @80
George Eastman, US industrialist (Kodak-camera), suicide, 1932, @77
Murat B "Chic" Young, US comic strip artist (Blondie), 1973, @72
C V Wood Jr, theme park developer (Disneyland), cancer, 1992, @71
Ralph James, actor (Orson-Mork & Mindy), 1992, @67
Karl Marx, German philosopher (Communist Manifesto), pleurisy, 1883, @64
Edward Abbey (environmental author), after surgery, 1989, @62

Brain Teasers
1. VESTIGE 2. PRISM 3. SPA
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  §
Posted by No comments:

3-13-14


FYI: Any blue text is a link. Click to check it out!
Flagstaff Almanac: Day: 072   / Week: 11  
Today: L 26°…H 49°… Ave. humidity: 27%
     Wind: ave:   8mph; Gusts:  25mph  
     Average Low: 22° Record Low:  -9° (1962)
    Average High: 49° Record High:  70° (2007)

Quote of the Day
 
Today’s Historical Highlights
1519 - Cortez lands in Mexico
1639 - Cambridge College renamed Harvard for clergyman John Harvard
1656 - Jews are denied the right to build a synagogue in New Amsterdam
1781 - Sir William Herschel sees "comet" (really discovered Uranus)
1852 - Uncle Sam cartoon figure made its debut in the NY Lantern weekly
1864 – 1st group of NAVAJOs finish the "Long Walk" to Fort Sumner
1897 - San Diego State University is founded.
1930 - Clyde Tombaugh announces discovery of Pluto at Lowell Observatory
1980 - Ford Motor Co found innocent in death of 3 women in a fiery Pinto
1986 - Microsoft has its Initial public offering.
1991 - Exxon pays $1-billion dollars in fines & cleanup of Valdez oil spill
2012 - Encyclopedia Britannica announces that it will no longer publish printed versions
2013 - Cardinal Jorge Mario Bergoglio is elected as the new pope, Pope Francis

♫  Today’s Birthdays: ♫   
How many can you identify? Answers in Today’s Birthdays
 
My Free Rambling Thoughts   
Another good day here in Flag.
 
I had lunch with a former boss who just retired from his work at Navajo Nation. He has been running the Education Dept. for the past decade. He just turned 65 and said it was time…I get that. Now he is continuing his work on his doctorate as he joined a program a couple of years ago to show his staff that education is a lifelong process. He is a fluent speaker and is literate in Navajo. His dissertation is looking at the Navajo language through the eyes of medicine men, rather than the alphabet produced by non-Navajos who used English orthography. Fascinating how medicine men/women learned their healing songs without being literate. They produced something kinda like ancient pictographs. Developing a system of orthography by a Native speaker of Navajo sounds so exciting. This could definitely become one of those ‘I knew him when’ stories. Can’t wait to keep up with his study.
 
Got lots of updates and breaking news after our infamous Governor Brewer announced she would NOT be running for the office again. Most believed she was prohibited from running again by our constitution…she stepped in soon after her re-election when then Governor Napolitano moved to Homeland Security. Brewer has been saying that all the lawyers and constitutional knowledgeable are wrong and that she can run again. Guess the light finally dawned and rather than simply saying she can’t constitutionally  run, she proved again that she is in control and she alone has decided not to run. Thank goodness her reign against so many in AZ is coming to an end.
Game  Center (answers at the end of post)
Brain Teasers
I am a wild, untamed beast: I command respect and awe in most, and those who regard me as harmless will most likely find themselves dead by my hand. Men cannot control me, or hold me behind bars, But they ride me. However, They must use caution, for at any moment I can Rear up, throw them aloft, and swallow them whole. Poems have been written to my mighty roar, And yet children play carelessly beside me. I am a mighty entity, and one day I shall rise above the entire Earth. What am I?
Lifestyle  Substance:     
Found on You Tube with some relevance to today

Remembering TV’s great shows
"The Daily Show With Jon Stewart"--The mock anchor sets the national agenda like a wiseass Walter Cronkite — and the show helped turn Stephen Colbert and Steve Carell into headline makers.
Bizarre Facts about World’s Dictators
The Strange Tale Of Francisco Franco
Francisco Franco may need relatively little introduction as a militant leader in the Spanish Civil War. In the late 1930s, Franco’s Spanish Nationalist forces succeeded in overthrowing the democratically elected Second Republic. Although a somewhat brutal dictator, his government was recognized as legitimate by the American and British administrations at that time.What makes that occurrence especially odd is the means by which Franco achieved his victory—drawing on the support of Nazi Germany and Fascist Italy. The Germans tested a number of their war machines while assisting Franco, including the notorious Messerschmitt BF 109 fighter. Having secured his rule in Spain, Franco then refused to assist Nazi Germany and join them in their 1940 invasions at the start of WWII.
Misconceptions of Medieval Figures
Richard The Lionheart Probably Couldn’t Speak English
Thanks to movies set around the time of the Third Crusade, you’re probably familiar with Richard the Lionheart, ruler of England from 1189–1199. He’s often portrayed as one of England’s most courageous, powerful, and inspiring kings, a fierce leader who earned the respect of his legendary opponent, Saladin. Maybe King Richard I was brave and fierce, but he certainly wasn’t proud of being English. In fact, he may not have even been able to speak the English language. For a time, the language of English nobility was actually French, thanks to the Norman subjugation of England by William the Conqueror in 1066. During his 10 years as England’s king, Richard spent only a handful of months within the country and even considered selling it. Most of Richard’s time was spent away on campaign in the Middle East or in France. Richard had a rough time as ruler. Soon after his coronation, he went off to fight in the Third Crusade, having taken a crusader’s vow. On his way there in 1190, Richard’s fleet was wrecked near Cyprus, where he and his men received poor treatment from the island’s ruler. As a result, he conquered Cyprus and deposed its king, but his army could not take Jerusalem and he eventually decided to leave. He shipwrecked again. This time, instead of seizing territory from an unfriendly king, Richard was captured by the Duke of Austria. His ransom was equivalent to a quarter of every Englishman’s yearly income. He was released in 1194. The rest of Richard’s life was spent campaigning in France. At age 41, Richard was hit by an arrow and mortally wounded while besieging a French castle in 1199. He pardoned his killer on his deathbed, but shortly after he died, the archer was flayed and hanged.
OK Then…
 
Harper’s Index 
Amount the Canadian Armed Forces spends each year on weight-loss surgery for obese soldiers: $220,000
Unusual Fact of the Day
Fish cough…to spit out undesirable items…like fish hooks.
Joke-of-the-day
A widower who never paid any attention to his wife while she was alive now found himself missing her desperately. He went to a psychic to see if he could contact his late wife. The psychic went into a trance. A strange breeze wafted through the darkened room, and suddenly, the man heard the unmistakable voice of his dearly departed wife. "Honey!" he cried. "Is that you?"
"Yes, my husband."
"Are you happy?"
"Yes, my husband." "
Happier than you were with me?"
"Yes, my husband."
"Then Heaven must be an amazing place!"
"I'm not in Heaven, dear."  
Rules of Thumb:   
Easy shortcuts to make an ‘educated’ guess
BUYING WINEThe higher the alcohol level, the drier the wine.    
Yeah, It Really Happened
WASHINGTON - The U.S. Supreme Court said Monday it would not hear a Pennsylvania school district's appeal of a free speech case involving "I (heart) boobies" bracelets. In denying the case, which involves two Easton, Pa., middle school students banned from, and later punished by school administrators for, wearing bracelets in school meant to raise breast cancer awareness, the court effectively ended the legal fight and gave the victory to the students. Had it accepted the case, the Easton case would have joined a list of historic decisions about public school dress codes and constitutional rights of minors, the Constitution Daily, a publication of Philadelphia's National Constitution Center history museum, said Monday. The students, through their mothers, sued the school after they were not allowed to wear the popular bracelets at school. The district court and a federal appeals court ruled in favor of the students. When the 3rd U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals in Philadelphia heard the case, nine judges sided with the students and five with the school. The school district spent $107,000 pursuing the case in court, mostly paid by an insurance policy, the Easton Express-Times reported last week.  
Somewhat Useless Information   
  • Diamonds are the hardest substance known to man.
  • Hydrogen is the most abundant element in the Universe (75%).
  • The typewriter was invented in 1829, and the automatic dishwasher in 1889.
  • No matter its size or thickness, no piece of paper can be folded in half more than 7 times.
  • The only letter not appearing on the Periodic Table is the letter “J”.
  • Hydrofluoric acid will dissolve glass.
  • Sound travels about 4 times faster in water than in air.
  • There are between 100,000,000,000 and 1,000,000,000,000 stars in a normal galaxy.
  • The hottest planet in the solar system is Venus, with an estimated surface temperature of 864 F (462 C).

Calendar Information        
Happening This Week:
1-16
Iditarod Race
8-14
National Procrastination Week
Universal Women's Week
National Agriculture Week
9-15
Teen Tech Week
Girl Scout Week
International Brain Awareness Week
Stand Up! LGBT Awareness Week
11-17
Turkey Vultures Return to the Living Sign

Today Is                                                                      
·        Donald Duck Day
·        Earmuffs Day
·        Good Samaritan Involvement Day
·        K-9 Veterans Day
·        Ken (the doll) Day
·        L. Ron Hubbard Day
·        National Open An Umbrella Indoors Day
·        Planet Uranus Day
·        Smart & Sexy Day
·        World Kidney Day
<>  <>
·        Bretzelsonndeg (Luxembourg-marking the halfway point of Lent - free pastries)

Today’s Events through History  
1868 - Senate begins US President Andrew Johnson's impeachment trial
1900 – France-length of the workday for women/children limited to 11 hours by law.
1980 - Eric Heiden skates world record 1000m (1:13.60)
1997 - The Phoenix lights were seen over Phoenix, a hotly debated controversy

Today’s Birthdays                                                           
Neil Sedaka, Brooklyn, singer/songwriter (Breaking Up is Hard to Do) is 75
Robert S Woods, actor (Bo-One Life to Live) is 66
William H Macy, actor (Homicide, Water Engine) is 64
Dana Delany, actress (China Beach, Desperate Housewives) is 58
Emile Hirsch, actor (Into the Wild, Speed Racer) is 29

Remembered for being born today
1855 - Percival "Percy" Lowell, US astronomer (predicted discovery of Pluto)
1901 - Paul Fix, actor (Rifleman)
1911 - L[aFayette] Ron Hubbard, sci-fi writer/scientologist (Dianetics)
1929 - Peter Breck, actor (Black Saddle, Big Valley, Benji), (d. 2012)

Today’s Historical Obits                                                           
Susan Brownell Anthony, American suffragist, 1906, @85
Clarence S Darrow, Scopes Monkey Trial attorney, 1938, @80
Maureen Stapleton, American actress, 2006, @80
John Barbour, Scottish poet, 1395, @75
Benjamin Harrison, 23rd US President, pneumonia, 1901, @67
Stephen Vincent Benét, American author, heart attack, 1943, @44 
Leland Stanford, Jr., Stanford University named for him, typhoid, 1884, @15

Brain Teasers
I am the sea.
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  §
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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.