May 19

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May 19, 2020 Week: 20 Day: 140

86004: H 75° \ L 42° \ Average Sky Cover: 5%

Wind: 13mph\Gusts: 26mph Visibility: 10 mi

Nearest lightning: 555mi.; Nearest active fire: 97mi.

Extreme Risk of Fire

Red Flag Warning

Record High: 85°[2000] Record Low: 29°[1971]

May Averages: 68°\34° (3 days with moisture)

Today’s Quote

"The best and most beautiful things in the world

cannot be seen or even touched

they must be felt with the heart."

• -Helen Keller

Random Tidbits

What is the capital of Australia?

If you're looking to head to Australia's capital, you start off for Sydney — that famous city with its majestic opera house. But that isn't the capital of Australia. Neither are popular places such as Melbourne, Perth, or Brisbane. The lesser-known city of Canberra doesn't always ring a bell. It is, however, the capital of Australia.

Home to just about 400,000 people, Canberra has a small-town vibe that allows visitors to experience all the city has to offer without feeling overwhelmed. From art to history to the great outdoors, this city in the land down under doesn't disappoint. You'll find museums, breweries, and incredible architecture to explore, and you'll be treated to views of mountains and valleys.

Have a smile

A friend sent these to me

Why are dogs bad dancers?

Because they have two left feet.

Observations This Week

Ramadan: 23-5/23

Cannes Film Festival: 12-23 Cancelled due to COVID-19
World Schizophrenia Awareness Week: 13-19 Link
National Foul Ball Week: 16-21
National Safe Boating Week: 16-22
EMS (Emergency Medical Services) Week: 17-23 Link
International Heritage Breeds Week: 17-23 Link 
National Eosinophil Awareness Week: 17-23 Link
National Medical Transcription Week: 17-23 Link
International New Friends, Old Friends Week: 17-23
National Unicycle Week: 17-23
World Trade Week: 17-23
National Bike to Work Week: 18-22Link Moved to September 21-27 due to COVID-19
National Tire Safety Week: 18-24 Link

Observations for Today

Boy's Club Day

May Ray Day

National Devil’s Food Cake Day

National Hepatitus Testing Day
National Asian & Pacific Islander HIV/AIDS Awareness Day Link
National Scooter Day
World IBD Day Link

World Plant a Vegetable Garden Day

My Rambling Thoughts

A windy Monday with a Red Flag Alert, High wind warning (up to 40mph) and a beautiful blue sky. I'm skipping my walk today. I really dislike wind.

About a week ago I read that llamas may have an antibody to combat COVID 19. I figured it was some crazy theory from a llama farmer who wanted publicity. Then CNN ran a story that Sweden has been looking at this for months. They are just starting animal testing and hoping to start human testing by the end of this year. Hmmm

This virus has a positive effect: it is flattening the carbon emissions curve. Every day cities around the world are posting pictures of their very clear sky, along with a post of a picture in the same spot a couple of months ago. NICE!

Over 130 homes have been evacuated from a fire in Cave Creek, AZ. A town of 400,000 that borders Phoenix. Fire season is starting early here in AZ.

The AZ governor is not releasing stats on COVID19 from long term care facilities in our state. His reasoning has me baffled. About a year ago, an comatose Apache girl in Hacienda Care Facility gave birth after being impregnated by a care worker. The governor says he doesn't want more negative press for any health care facilities. Hacienda has to increase security and many employees left and the facility had trouble finding replacements. I am at a loss for words.

Today’s Puzzle

Answer at the bottom of the page

What day would yesterday be if Thursday was four days before the day after tomorrow?

Historical Events

1780 - This morning, a combination of thick smoke and heavy cloud cover caused complete darkness to fall on Eastern Canada and the New England area of the United States candles were needed by noon, and it not disburse until the following evening, causing New England's Dark Day.

1910 - Earth passed through the tail of Halley's Comet.

1962 - Marilyn Monroe sang her famous 'Happy Birthday' to President John F. Kennedy at NYC's Madison Square Garden

1965 - Pete Townshend wrote My Generation today, his 20th birthday on a train. He was on a train because his car, a 1935 Packard hearse, was ordered away by the Queen.

1987 - A patent (#4,666,425) for "keeping a head alive" was issued to Chet Fleming.

1996 - Sundance Channel made its debut.

1997 - Avian flu, A(H5N1), killed a three-year-old boy in Hong Kong, its first victim.

2006 - The Da Vinci Code opened in theaters.

2011 Alpha Magnetic Spectrometer, project to search for dark matter, led by Samuel C. C. Ting, installed on the International Space Station

2015 Historic first handshake between Prince Charles and Sinn Féin leader Gerry Adams at the National University of Ireland in Galway

Birthdays Today

75-Drummer Pete Townsend

72-Singer Grace Jones

@46-Wrestler Andre The Giant [André René Roussimoff] (d. 1993; heart failure)

@39-Activist Malcom X [Malcolm Little] (d. 1965; gun shot)

Puzzle Answer:

Friday.

May 18

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May 18, 2020 Week: 20 Day: 139

86004: H 77° \ L 42° \ Average Sky Cover: 10%

Wind: 8mph\Gusts: 17mph Visibility: 10 mi

Nearest lightning: 694mi.; Nearest active fire: 458mi.

Extreme Risk of Fire

Record High: 82°[1970] Record Low: 21°[1977]

May Averages: 68°\34° (3 days with moisture)

Today’s Quote

"Tell me and I forget.

Teach me and I remember.

Involve me and I learn."

-Benjamin Franklin

Random Tidbits

What is the capital of Canada?

Toronto? Nope. Montreal? Try again. Vancouver? Still not correct. Canada's capital is Ottawa, which is close to the border with New York. It houses a bilingual parliament and has its own rich traditions, even if it isn't the top-spot to visit on a trip up north.

Home to the Rideau Canal, which is a UNESCO World Heritage Site, Ottawa boasts year-round celebrations and festivals, offers a cosmopolitan vibe, and can easily be traversed by foot. Many visitors enjoy the historic ByWard Market, which is lined with markets and cute shops.

Have a smile

A friend sent these to me

Why was the mushroom happy?

Because he was a fungi.

Observations This Week

Ramadan: 23-5/23

Cannes Film Festival: 12-23 Cancelled due to COVID-19
World Schizophrenia Awareness Week: 13-19  Link
National Foul Ball Week: 16-21
National Safe Boating Week: 16-22 
EMS (Emergency Medical Services) Week: 17-23  Link
International Heritage Breeds Week: 17-23 Link  
National Eosinophil Awareness Week: 17-23  Link  
National Medical Transcription Week: 17-23  Link
International New Friends, Old Friends Week: 17-23 
National Unicycle Week: 17-23
World Trade Week: 17-23 
National Bike to Work Week: 18-22 Link Moved to September 21-27 due to COVID-19
National Tire Safety Week:  18-24 Link

Observations for Today

Buy A Musical Instrument Day Link  (Honor of The Music Man Creator)
HIV Vaccine Awareness Day LinkI Love Reeses Day Link  Link
International Museum Day Link
Mother Whistler Day

No Dirty Dishes Day
National Cheese Souffle Day

Supply Chain Professional DayVictoria Day(Canada)

Visit Your Relatives Day

My Rambling Thoughts

Sunday is a good day for a nice long walk in the fresh air.

Every day more Focus People are getting a partial refund on our Tahiti adventure. Looks like each of us with refunds will be getting several checks from various companies involved in the trip. I'm hopeful my first one will come soon.

I watched the special on Graduate Together 2020. Articulate seniors from around the country introduced the speakers and the entertainment. All did well. Obama gave a nice graduating speech. So nice to hear a speech given in complete sentences, with paragraphs that have a topic sentence, and each paragraph relates to the previous one. He was also able to pronounce every single word, almost like he had written them himself.

Today’s Puzzle

Answer at the bottom of the page

You use it from your head to your toes,

the more it works the thinner it grows.

Historical Events

1910 - The Earth passes through the tail of Halley's Comet.

1926 - In one of the first Media Frenzy's of Popular Culture, Evangelist Aimee Semple McPherson disappeared while visiting a Venice, California beach.

1946 - A UFO, with living creatures inside, was reported by Gosta Carlsson, in Sweden.

1952 - Professor Willard F. Libby determined the age of Stonehenge on Salisbury Plain, England, at 1848 BC, give or take 275 years.

1980 (Volcano Eruption) Mount St. Helens in Washington erupted with a 5.1 magnitude, causing a massive avalanche and killed 57 people. David Johnson was a volcanologist studying Mt. St. Helens from 6 miles away when it erupted. He made a transmission stating: "Vancouver! Vancouver! This is it!" as the volcano erupted. The transmission went dead at this point, and his body was never recovered.

1998 - Murphy Brown TV series ended on CBS.

2006 The post Loktantra Andolan government passes a landmark bill curtailing the power of the monarchy and making Nepal a secular country

2018 All of Chile's 34 Roman Catholic bishops offer their resignation to Pope Francis in wake of child sex scandal

Birthdays Today

@94-Film Director Frank Capra (d. 1991)

@88-Singer Perry Como [Pierino Ronald Como] (d. 2001)

@84-Pope John Paul II [Karol Józef Wojtyła] (d. 2005)

68-Country singer George Strait

65- Actor Chow Yun-Fat

50-Comedian Tina Fey

@50-Tsar Nicholas II (d. 18918; assasinated)

Puzzle Answer:

A bar of soap

May 17

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May 17, 2020 Week: 21 Day: 138

86004: H 78° \ L 43° \ Average Sky Cover: 15%

Wind: mph\Gusts: mph Visibility: 10 mi

Nearest lightning: 665mi.; Nearest active fire: 306mi.

High Risk of Fire

Record High: 82°[2009] Record Low: 28°[1943]

May Averages: 68°\34° (3 days with moisture)

Today’s Quote

"The future belongs to those

who believe in the beauty of their dreams."

-Eleanor Roosevelt

Random Tidbits

Before they were famous

Before he was the lead singer of the Police, Gordon Sumner was a teacher in England

Before he was Rocky, Sylvester Stallone worked as a gym teacher in Switzerland.

Mr. T also once worked as a teacher. He was a gym instructor in Chicago

Have a smile

A friend sent these to me

It happened on Zoom teleconferences

"I didn't have the heart to tell my boss that the entire team could see his bong sitting on the mantle."

“I had a goal to learn to play the guitar. On a particularly boring conference call, I pulled out the guitar and started strumming away. Of course, I thought I was muted but I wasn't. As I paused to figure out my next finger placement, I heard my boss say, ‘Whoever is playing the guitar, will you please stop?’”

Observations This Week

Ramadan: 23-5/23

National Public Gardens Week: 8-17  Link
National Nursing Home Week: 10-17
National Return To Work Week:  10-17
Reading is Fun Week:  10-17 Link  Salvation Army Week: 10-17 
Brain Injury Awareness Week: 11-17 Link
National Stuttering Awareness Week: 11-17
Work At Home Moms Week: 11-17 
American Craft Beer Week: 11-17 Link
Cannes Film Festival: 12-23 Cancelled due to COVID-19
World Schizophrenia Awareness Week: 13-19  Link
PGA Championship: 14-17 Moved to August due to COVID-19  Link
National Foul Ball Week: 16-21
National Safe Boating Week: 16-22 
EMS (Emergency Medical Services)Week: 17-23  Link
International Heritage Breeds Week: 17-23 Link  
National Eosinophil Awareness Week: 17-23  Link  
National Medical Transcription Week: 17-23  Link
International New Friends,Old Friends Week:17-23
National Unicycle Week: 17-23
World Trade Week: 17-23 

Observations for Today

International Day Against Homophobia, Transphobia and Biphobia  Link
National Cherry Cobbler Day

Pack Rat Day

Ride A Unicycle Day ;Rural Life SundayTake Your Parents To The Playground Day Link
Rogation Sunday
Same Sex Marriage Day
World Hypertension Day  Link
World Telecommunications & Information Society Day  Link
World Neurofibromatosis Day (NF Day)  Link

My Rambling Thoughts

Weather is great...long walk in the forest made it better.

For most of his career my dad was an accountant at Armour & Company...a meat producer in Denver back in the day. Down around 48^th & Washington were Armour, Swift, and Cudahy. They are now a distant memory as they were bought out to even larger packers. So here we are today in America. Most of the meat packers, producers are huge foreign owned businesses. The meat processing plants are humongous compared to the ones in my dad's day. The producers (of cattle, pigs, and chickens) have plenty of animals to feed our country. The supply chain problem is at the processors. Many are closed as COVID19 has decimated their employees. To prevent this in the future, it is time to use the Anti-trust laws to break up these foreign businesses. A system of smaller processors around the country will help solve the problemd. The same is true for wheat, soy beans, corn and other items.

I have a former student who works as an anthropologist at the Grand Canyon. He just recently got a full-time job, but has worked there as a temporary employee for almost a decade on and off. He lives in a trailer at the South Rim. If he leaves the park, he has to stay in his trailer for 14 days quarantine. Now the Grand Canyon is beginning to reopen at the South Rim. All the Canyon workers are very concerned. So is the Navajo Nation as Many tourists get to the South Rim by going through Cameron...on the reservation. Every weekend the Navajo Nation is on lock-down, and President Nez has said that now all businesses on the Rez will also be closed on weekends from 6p Friday until 5a on Monday. Such a mess.

Today’s Puzzle

Answer at the bottom of the page

Here is a clue with numerals and letters; you have to figure out what the letters stand for.

Ex. 360 D in a C = 360 degrees in a circle

1. 101 D

2. 206 B in the HB

3. 88 K on a P

4. 30 C on the D

5. 118 E in the PT

Historical Events

1536 - The annulment of Henry VIII and Anne Boleyn's marriage.

1792 - The New York Stock Exchange was formed.

1875 - Aristides won the first Kentucky Derby.

1890 - Comic Cuts, the first British weekly comic paper, was published in London by Alfred Northcliffe.

1954 - The US Supreme Court handed down an unanimous decision in Brown v. Board of Education of Topeka, ruling that racial segregation in public educational facilities was unconstitutional.

1955 - Nathan Kline, appeared before the U.S. Congress to explain his work with Reserpine, an early antihypertensive/ antipsychotic psychopharmacology drug.

1965 - Written in 1955, the FBI Laboratory, after a formal investigation that began in 1964, declared the lyrics of Louie Louie to be officially 'Unintelligible at any speed.'

1970 - Thor Heyerdahl and a multinational crew set out from Morocco across the Atlantic Ocean in Ra II in 57 days.

2004 - The first legal same-sex marriages in the US were performed in the state of Massachusetts.

2015 Gun fight between rival biker gangs and police in Waco, Texas leaves 9 dead and 18 injured. 170 later arrested for organized crime.

2018 Gina Haspel confirmed as the first female director of the CIA by the US Senate

2018 Ebola outbreak in Democratic Republic of Congo spreads to the city of Mbandaka

Birthdays Today

@87-Actor Maureen O'Sullivan (d. 1998)

@74-Actor Dennis Hopper (d. 2010; cancer)

64-Actor Bob Saget

@61-Actor Bill Paxton (d. 2016; stroke)

59-Singer Enya

49-Athlete Mia Hamm

35-Dancer Derrick Hough

30-Actor Ross Butler

Puzzle Answer:

1. 101 Dalmatians

2. 206 bones in the human body

3. 88 keys on a piano

4. 30 companies on the Dow

5. 118 elements in the periodic table