The Cash for Clunkers Program is a really big success. You trade in your old gas guzzler and get $4500 from the government towards the purchase of a more fuel efficient vehicle. It started last week, and in less than a week, the $2 billion dollars is gone. That means about 225,000 people took advantage of it. If each one bought a $20K car, that just put $4.5 billion into the car industry. The one million was supposed to last until November. It was gone in a week. So Congress today proposed another $2 billion for the program. Some are calling this a great success. The $2 billion will come from other energy saving programs that aren’t off the ground yet. Maybe the recession has bottomed out. I personally can’t grasp any of the numbers. I do get the $4500. If I had a clunker, I would probably join in. I also get that the Flagstaff car dealers were complaining that the rebate web site kept crashing the last few days. It takes several hours for the dealership to do one rebate, with all the crashes. Now, the money is gone, unless Congress actually passes the latest bills.
The monsoon brought lots of thunder and lightning to our area, but didn’t drop any rain here. Probably dropped it around town in various places…thus the term isolated thunderstorms. I can’t complain, it never got over 80°. The traffic is building up for the weekend here. So many families heading toward Flag from the extreme heat of Phoenix. Just hope they spend lots of money to help our local economy.
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Random Fact…
The world's youngest parents were 8 and 9 and lived in China in 1910.
The term 'The Big Apple' was coined by touring jazz musicians of the 1930's who used the slang expression 'apple' for any town or city. Therefore, to play New York City is to play the big time - The Big Apple.
There are more Irish in New York City than in Dublin, Ireland; more Italians in New York City than in Rome, Italy; and more Jews in New York City than in Tel Aviv, Israel..
There are no natural lakes in the state of Ohio, every one is man made.
The smallest island with country status is Pitcairn in Polynesia , at just 1.75 sq. miles.
In the 1500’s they used to use urine to tan animal skins, so families used to all pee in a pot & then once a day it was taken & sold to the tannery.......if you had to do this to survive you were "Piss Poor" But worse than that were the really poor folk who couldn't even afford to buy a pot...........they "didn’t have a pot to piss in" and were the lowest of the low.
Crazy Stuff In The News…
SWANSEA, Wales - After stealing about $1,154 in liquor, two burglars decided to celebrate and got so drunk they fell asleep instead of escaping, police in Swansea, Wales, said. Burglars Keith Cullen and Paul Wiggins stacked up the stolen booze outside the store and then went in to have a drink. Police found them asleep in the store the next morning, The Sun newspaper reported. A Swansea prosecutor said closed circuit television recorded the entire theft of the Kuehne Nagle Drinks Logistics depot.
Police said Cullen turned up for his hearing at Swansea magistrates’ court so drunk he was prohibited from entering the building. Wiggins disappeared from the court.
Neither returned so both were tried in absentia. Cullen, 33, and Wiggins, 45, were convicted of burglary and theft and will be sentenced later.
August:
August is the eighth month of the year in the Gregorian Calendar and one of seven Gregorian months with the length of 31 days. This month was originally named Sextilis in Latin, because it was the sixth month in the ancient Roman calendar, which started in March about 735 BC under Romulus. It became the eighth month either when January and February were added to the beginning of the year by King Numa Pompilius about 700 BC or when those two months were moved from the end to the beginning of the year by the decemvirs about 450 BC (Roman writers disagree). It was renamed in honor of Augustus in 8 BC because several of the most significant events in his rise to power, culminating in the fall of Alexandria, fell in this month. Lore claims August originally had 29 days in the Roman Republican calendar. Augustus took two days from February and gave it to August when Sextilis was renamed in his honor. August's flower is the gladiolus or poppy, and its birthstone is the peridot. In common years no other month starts on the same day of the week as August, though in leap years February starts on the same day. August is the only month without a major federal holiday in the United States.
Month long events in August
Edinburgh Festival is an internationally famous arts festival that takes place during August National Immunization Awareness Month… National Psoriasis Awareness Month… Women's Small Business Month... National Back to School month…American Adventures Month…Golf Month…National Inventor’s Month…National Win with Civility Month…What will be your legacy Month
Week of Aug 1…
World Breastfeeding Week…Simplify Your Life Week
1 Aug…
213 days so far this year…152 days remain in 2009
Respect Your Parent’s Day…Sweet Corn Day…World Wide Web Day…National Mustard Day
BIRTHS ON THIS DAY…
1744 Jean-Baptiste Lamarck believed in inheritance of acquired traits
1770 William Clark explorer: Lewis and Clark Expedition
1779 Francis Scott Key composer (Star-Spangled Banner)
1819 Herman Melville US, author (Moby Dick, Billy Budd)
1933 Dom DeLuise NY, comedian, actor (End, Cannonball Run, Fatso)
1936 Yves Saint-Laurent fashion designer (Opium, Obsession)
1942 Jerry Garcia SF, rocker (Grateful Dead)
1948 Cliff Branch football Univ of CO grad
1961 Bart Conner US, parallel bars gymnast
Events on this day…
1619 1st black Americans (20) land at Jamestown, Virginia
1774 Priestly discovers oxygen
1790 1st US census (population of 3,939,214)
1831 London Bridge opens
1869 1st voyage down Colorado River
1876 Colorado becomes 38th state
1944 13-year-old Anne Frank made the last entry in her diary
1953 Calif introduces sales tax (for education)
1960 Chubby Checker releases "The Twist"
1972 1st article exposing Watergate scandal (Bernstein-Woodward)
1982 Greg Louganis, US becomes 1st diver to score 700 in 11 dives
Puzzles return tomorrow…
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The monsoon came and dumped today. Sure kept things nice and cool. A friend lost her modem by lightning strike near her rural home. That has to be a bummer. Another one of my friends has a summer house in Oregon. She let everyone know today that Oregon is very very hot and that no one has air conditioning. In fact many don’t even have fans. People are really suffering up there. While the house is beach front, on private land, they say it is virtually impossible to drive anywhere because all the private streets are filled with cars of beach goers. The public lots are filled and people will park anywhere to get to the water. Not a place I would want to be right now.
I got a call today from Hamdy, my roommate from the Egypt trip. It seems everything is going well for the trip to South Africa. I guess it’s about time to start doing some research on that part of our world. I need to find some on line newspapers from South Africa, Botswana, and Zambia. I also need to start learning about the Game Preserves we will be in. We don’t leave until late October, but it’s never too soon to start some real research. This should be a great trip. The Internet sure makes research so much easier. When I was in school, learning about Africa, Zambia had just changed from Northern Rhodesia to Zambia. They ended a century of British Rule in 1964. Botswana didn’t get its independence until 1966. It used to known to Westerners as Bechuanaland. I remember Africa being called the “Dark Continent”. Was that because the sun didn’t shine that much over there? Was it because Negroes lived there? Was it because Americans were in the dark about what was really happening over there? I’m afraid that Edgar Rice Burroughs and many imitators gave me a more visual, though fictitious, picture of Africa. Even the factual Livingston and Stanley story rings loud, while the daily lives in Africa below the equator is currently silent in my understanding. While the late 60’s were a time of big change in the US, it was also a time of even bigger change in Africa. All three countries we will visit are new to democracy. I look forward to updating my knowledge base.
Daily newspapers in English abound from Egypt and of course Scotland. I’m sure there will be many from South Africa, and at least one or two from Botswana and Zambia. When I searched for Egyptian papers I found some that were very pro-American, and a few that were not. This did help me prepare for meeting the people when I got there. While I didn’t meet any anti-Americans I did find some people that were not exactly pro-American. I was glad I had some background to better understand their positions. I plan to have a better understanding of the area before I get there, so I can learn more while there.
<> <> <> <> <> <>
Random Fact…
If you try to suppress a sneeze, you can rupture a blood vessel in your head or neck and die
Ants stretch when they wake up in the morning.
Damascus, Syria, was flourishing a couple of thousand years before Rome was founded in 753 BC, making it the oldest continuously inhabited city in existence.
Istanbul (aka Constantinople), Turkey, is the only city in the world located on two continents.
Los Angeles' full name is El Pueblo de Nuestra Senora la Reina de los Angeles de Porciuncula -- and can be abbreviated to 3.63% of its size: L.A.
Crazy Stuff In The News…
WELLS, England - Officials with western England’s Wookey Hole Caves said more than 2,000 people have applied to become the attraction’s new resident witch. Organizers of the search to find a resident witch for the Wells England Caves said the performer will earn $82,000 per year portraying a legendary witch said to have lived in the caves during the Dark Ages, CNN reported. Local legend states the witch lived with goats in the cave until she was turned to stone by a splash of holy water from an Abbot. Some proponents of the legend say the frozen figure of the witch can be seen in the cave’s rock formations.
The witch was alleged to have caused diseases, soured milk and cursed crops. The organizers said the applicants will each have one minute to convince a panel of judges that they have the best cackle and can make good use of their witch props. They said men, women and transgendered people are equally welcome to audition.
July is…
…Air Conditioning Appreciation Month…Blueberries Month…Cell Phone Courtesy Month…Family Reunion Month…Herbal/Prescription Awareness Month…Nat’l Doghouse Repair Month…Nat’l Grilling, Nat’l Hot Dog, Nat’l Horseradish, and Nat’l Ice Cream Month…Smart Irrigation Month…Social Wellness Month…Tour de France Month…Women’s Motorcycle Month…
Week of July 31…
Moby Dick Week
July 31…
212 days so far this year…153 days remain in 2009
System Administrator Appreciation Day
*Malaysia: Hair Pahlawan Day—Warrior’s Day
*Ka Hae Hawai’I Day—Hawaiian Flag Day
*Mexico : Day of National Mourning (1811-Miguel Hidalgo y Costilla)
BIRTHS ON THIS DAY…
1803
John Ericsson US, invented screw propeller, built USS Monitor
1841
George Melville polar explorer, naval engineer
1867
S.S. (Sebastian Spering) Kresge merchant: S.S. Kresge’s five & dime stores [now Kmart]
1912
Milton Friedman economist (Nobel 1976)
1919
Curt Gowdy Green River Wyo, sportscaster (ABC)
1943
William Bennett US Secretary of Education (1985-88)/drug czar
1945
Gary Lewis (Levitch)
singer: group: Gary Lewis and the Playboys: This Diamond Ring
1962
Wesley Snipes actor
1966
Dean Cain actor
IT HAPPENED ON THIS DAY…
1498
Christopher Columbus discovers island of Trinidad
1777
Marquis de Lafayette, 19, made major-general of Continental Army
1912
US government prohibits movies & photos of prize fights (censorship)
1925
Unemployment Insurance Act passed in England
1948
Pres Truman dedicates Idlewild Field (Kennedy Airport), NY
1953
Dept of Health, Education & Welfare created
1960
Elijah Muhammad, leader of Nation of Islam, calls for a black state
1972
Thomas Eagleton withdraws as Democratic VP candidate
1975
Jimmy Hoffa, the former president of the Teamsters union, is reported missing
Word Fragments Puzzle
In each of these puzzles, a word fragment is given, and you must think of an English word that contains the fragment -- that is, you must form a word by adding letters to the beginning and/or the end of the fragment. You may not add letters to the middle of the fragment, nor may you rearrange the letters given.
Multiple solutions are given for several word fragments and are shown in brackets (although we omitted most alternate solutions that rely on variations of the same word). To solve the puzzles, however, you only need to find one word for each fragment.
Example: choan [1]
Answer: psychoanalysis
1. rogl [3]
2. choan[2]
3. ylop [1]
4. rehen [5]
5. leco [2]
6. hep [1]
7. nuu [1]
8. aa [2]
9. ioa [1]
10. tegr [2]
*Bonus caj [2]
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Answers
1. Hieroglyphic, nitroglycerine, troglodyte
2. psychoanalysis
3. xylophone
4. apprehend comprehend incomprehensible prehensile reprehensible
5. telecommunicate teleconference
6. shepherd
7. continuum
8. aardvark bazaar
9. radioactive
10. integral integrity
*Bonus: cajole cajun
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I got a call today from Hamdy, my roommate from the Egypt trip. It seems everything is going well for the trip to South Africa. I guess it’s about time to start doing some research on that part of our world. I need to find some on line newspapers from South Africa, Botswana, and Zambia. I also need to start learning about the Game Preserves we will be in. We don’t leave until late October, but it’s never too soon to start some real research. This should be a great trip. The Internet sure makes research so much easier. When I was in school, learning about Africa, Zambia had just changed from Northern Rhodesia to Zambia. They ended a century of British Rule in 1964. Botswana didn’t get its independence until 1966. It used to known to Westerners as Bechuanaland. I remember Africa being called the “Dark Continent”. Was that because the sun didn’t shine that much over there? Was it because Negroes lived there? Was it because Americans were in the dark about what was really happening over there? I’m afraid that Edgar Rice Burroughs and many imitators gave me a more visual, though fictitious, picture of Africa. Even the factual Livingston and Stanley story rings loud, while the daily lives in Africa below the equator is currently silent in my understanding. While the late 60’s were a time of big change in the US, it was also a time of even bigger change in Africa. All three countries we will visit are new to democracy. I look forward to updating my knowledge base.
Daily newspapers in English abound from Egypt and of course Scotland. I’m sure there will be many from South Africa, and at least one or two from Botswana and Zambia. When I searched for Egyptian papers I found some that were very pro-American, and a few that were not. This did help me prepare for meeting the people when I got there. While I didn’t meet any anti-Americans I did find some people that were not exactly pro-American. I was glad I had some background to better understand their positions. I plan to have a better understanding of the area before I get there, so I can learn more while there.
<> <> <> <> <> <>
Random Fact…
If you try to suppress a sneeze, you can rupture a blood vessel in your head or neck and die
Ants stretch when they wake up in the morning.
Damascus, Syria, was flourishing a couple of thousand years before Rome was founded in 753 BC, making it the oldest continuously inhabited city in existence.
Istanbul (aka Constantinople), Turkey, is the only city in the world located on two continents.
Los Angeles' full name is El Pueblo de Nuestra Senora la Reina de los Angeles de Porciuncula -- and can be abbreviated to 3.63% of its size: L.A.
Crazy Stuff In The News…
WELLS, England - Officials with western England’s Wookey Hole Caves said more than 2,000 people have applied to become the attraction’s new resident witch. Organizers of the search to find a resident witch for the Wells England Caves said the performer will earn $82,000 per year portraying a legendary witch said to have lived in the caves during the Dark Ages, CNN reported. Local legend states the witch lived with goats in the cave until she was turned to stone by a splash of holy water from an Abbot. Some proponents of the legend say the frozen figure of the witch can be seen in the cave’s rock formations.
The witch was alleged to have caused diseases, soured milk and cursed crops. The organizers said the applicants will each have one minute to convince a panel of judges that they have the best cackle and can make good use of their witch props. They said men, women and transgendered people are equally welcome to audition.
July is…
…Air Conditioning Appreciation Month…Blueberries Month…Cell Phone Courtesy Month…Family Reunion Month…Herbal/Prescription Awareness Month…Nat’l Doghouse Repair Month…Nat’l Grilling, Nat’l Hot Dog, Nat’l Horseradish, and Nat’l Ice Cream Month…Smart Irrigation Month…Social Wellness Month…Tour de France Month…Women’s Motorcycle Month…
Week of July 31…
Moby Dick Week
July 31…
212 days so far this year…153 days remain in 2009
System Administrator Appreciation Day
*Malaysia: Hair Pahlawan Day—Warrior’s Day
*Ka Hae Hawai’I Day—Hawaiian Flag Day
*Mexico : Day of National Mourning (1811-Miguel Hidalgo y Costilla)
BIRTHS ON THIS DAY…
1803
John Ericsson US, invented screw propeller, built USS Monitor
1841
George Melville polar explorer, naval engineer
1867
S.S. (Sebastian Spering) Kresge merchant: S.S. Kresge’s five & dime stores [now Kmart]
1912
Milton Friedman economist (Nobel 1976)
1919
Curt Gowdy Green River Wyo, sportscaster (ABC)
1943
William Bennett US Secretary of Education (1985-88)/drug czar
1945
Gary Lewis (Levitch)
singer: group: Gary Lewis and the Playboys: This Diamond Ring
1962
Wesley Snipes actor
1966
Dean Cain actor
IT HAPPENED ON THIS DAY…
1498
Christopher Columbus discovers island of Trinidad
1777
Marquis de Lafayette, 19, made major-general of Continental Army
1912
US government prohibits movies & photos of prize fights (censorship)
1925
Unemployment Insurance Act passed in England
1948
Pres Truman dedicates Idlewild Field (Kennedy Airport), NY
1953
Dept of Health, Education & Welfare created
1960
Elijah Muhammad, leader of Nation of Islam, calls for a black state
1972
Thomas Eagleton withdraws as Democratic VP candidate
1975
Jimmy Hoffa, the former president of the Teamsters union, is reported missing
Word Fragments Puzzle
In each of these puzzles, a word fragment is given, and you must think of an English word that contains the fragment -- that is, you must form a word by adding letters to the beginning and/or the end of the fragment. You may not add letters to the middle of the fragment, nor may you rearrange the letters given.
Multiple solutions are given for several word fragments and are shown in brackets (although we omitted most alternate solutions that rely on variations of the same word). To solve the puzzles, however, you only need to find one word for each fragment.
Example: choan [1]
Answer: psychoanalysis
1. rogl [3]
2. choan[2]
3. ylop [1]
4. rehen [5]
5. leco [2]
6. hep [1]
7. nuu [1]
8. aa [2]
9. ioa [1]
10. tegr [2]
*Bonus caj [2]
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<>
<>
<>
<>
<>
<>
<>
<>
<>
<>
<>
<>
Answers
1. Hieroglyphic, nitroglycerine, troglodyte
2. psychoanalysis
3. xylophone
4. apprehend comprehend incomprehensible prehensile reprehensible
5. telecommunicate teleconference
6. shepherd
7. continuum
8. aardvark bazaar
9. radioactive
10. integral integrity
*Bonus: cajole cajun
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MidWeek
No monsoon, no clouds, no breeze. My deck hit 90° again today. Humidity was around 30% so it wasn’t the best of weather days. With only two days left in July, Flagstaff is getting set to have one the hottest July in a long time. Heat is so relative. Those in Phoenix are used to what they call triple digits. They too are complaining about this July, with many days well above 110°. I keep reminding myself, it’s a dry heat. I know I would have trouble in NYC right now. Way too hot with way too much humidity.
I really didn’t do very much today. I got a haircut and did some quick shopping. Our old WalMart is doing something—inside and out. Much of the parking lot is blocked off—much like the Sam’s Club lot has been for several months. Sam’s is building a gas station. I spent a short time in WalMart. It is remodeling. The last time I was there it was easy to go down the side main aisles. They had no stuff in those main wide aisles. It was nice. Well today, they have filled the main aisles again, but not with stuff a customer can buy. They filled them with boxes on pallets. It looks like everything is moving. Don’t think I’ll be going back until they finish. Moving stuff is fine. Moving whole departments is fine. Finding the things I needed was not easy. So, until they finish I will find what I need somewhere else or go without. They had a big stand up sign at the entrance saying they had temp jobs for people with three shifts, for about a month. Good for them. I’ll come back in late August.
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Random Fact…
Fortune cookies were actually invented in America, in 1918,
by Charles Jung.
Canada has more lakes than the rest of the world combined. Canada is an Indian word meaning 'Big Village.'
Next to Warsaw, Chicago has the largest Polish population in the world.
Woodward Avenue in Detroit, Michigan carries the designation M-1, so named because it was the first paved road anywhere.
Crazy Stuff In The News…
27-year-old Chris Parks of Seattle had just flown back to the United States from a vacation in Mexico with friends. He was going through customs in an airport in North Carolina when his name caught the attention of Homeland Security personnel. Before he knew it Parks was arrested and tossed into the county jail in Charlotte and locked up for one week. When told he was a fugitive, he was floored. His crime? He was a deserter from the military.
The only problem is Parks was never in the military.
“I’ve been in the Army for 10 years, and didn’t even know it,” he says. “Just seems kind of odd.”
No one believed him. Parks was ordered to report to Fort Knox in Kentucky - where he sat and waited and waited some more with actual military deserters.
His head was shaved, he was issued fatigues. He was afraid he would be court-martialed.
“I was at Fort Knox for one week - and I almost didn’t get out,” says Parks.
Parks says when he was 18, he nearly joined the Army. But at the last minute, he backed out. Apparently, that message never got through military’s system.
Despite the army’s paperwork showing that Parks went through basic training in South Carolina, then went AWOL from a base in Georgia, he insists that never happened, and wonders if
his military recruiter from 10 years ago hung him out to dry by never processing his paperwork. Parks says he now carries documents to prove to authorities he’s not a deserter.
July is…
…Air Conditioning Appreciation Month…Blueberries Month…Cell Phone Courtesy Month…Family Reunion Month…Herbal/Prescription Awareness Month…Nat’l Doghouse Repair Month…Nat’l Grilling, Nat’l Hot Dog, Nat’l Horseradish, and Nat’l Ice Cream Month…Smart Irrigation Month…Social Wellness Month…Tour de France Month…Women’s Motorcycle Month…
Week of July 27…
World Hacky-Sack Week
July 30…
211 days so far this year…154 days remain in 2009
Cheesecake Day
Father-In-Law Day
*Vanuatu – Independence Day (formerly Anglo-French condominium of the New Hebrides)
BIRTHS ON THIS DAY…
1818
Emily Bronte England, novelist (Wuthering Heights)
1863
Henry Ford Dearborn Township, Mich, auto maker (Ford)
1889
Vladimir Zworykin, developer of television
1890
Casey Stengel NY Yankee (1949-60) & 1st NY Met manager
1933
Edd "Kookie" Byrnes (Breitenberger) LA, actor (77 Sunset Strip,
1939
Peter Bogdanovich director
1940
Patricia Schroeder (Rep-D-Colo)
1941
Paul Anka songwriter
1947
Arnold Schwarzenegger Austria, actor, politician
1956
Delta Burke Orlando Fla, actress
1961
Laurence Fishburne (Lawrence Fishburne III/Larry Fishburne)Tony Award-winning actor
IT HAPPENED ON THIS DAY…
1619
House of Burgesses Virginia formed, 1st elective US governing body
1836
1st English newspaper published in Hawaii
1928
George Eastman demonstrates 1st color movie
1931
Russel Boardman and John Polando land their Monoplane in Istanbul, Turkey today in 49 hrs and 20 minutes since leaving New York setting a new long distance non stop world record
1935
The first Penguin paperback book is published, an early step in the paperback revolution that would take off after World War II.
1956
US motto "In God We Trust" authorized
1965
LBJ signs Medicare bill, which went into effect following year
Word Fragments Puzzle
In each of these puzzles, a word fragment is given, and you must think of an English word that contains the fragment -- that is, you must form a word by adding letters to the beginning and/or the end of the fragment. You may not add letters to the middle of the fragment, nor may you rearrange the letters given.
Multiple solutions are given for several word fragments and are shown in brackets (although we omitted most alternate solutions that rely on variations of the same word). To solve the puzzles, however, you only need to find one word for each fragment.
Example: choan [1]
Answer: psychoanalysis
1. llel [3]
2. osoe [1]
3. iloli [1]
4. atula [2]
5. terb [8]
6. thom [1]
7. alibr [2]
8. wkw [2]
9. lywo [9]
10. athem [2]
*Bonus oela [1]
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<>
<>
<>
<>
<>
<>
<>
<>
<>
<>
Answers
1. allele hallelujah parallel
2. whosoever
3. kiloliter
4. congratulations spatula
5. butterball chatterbox counterbalance jitterbug litterbug quarterback scatterbrain terbium
6. fathom
7. calibrate caliber
8. hawkweed awkward
9. plywood pollywog
10. anathema mathematics
*Bonus: shoelace viscoelastic
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I really didn’t do very much today. I got a haircut and did some quick shopping. Our old WalMart is doing something—inside and out. Much of the parking lot is blocked off—much like the Sam’s Club lot has been for several months. Sam’s is building a gas station. I spent a short time in WalMart. It is remodeling. The last time I was there it was easy to go down the side main aisles. They had no stuff in those main wide aisles. It was nice. Well today, they have filled the main aisles again, but not with stuff a customer can buy. They filled them with boxes on pallets. It looks like everything is moving. Don’t think I’ll be going back until they finish. Moving stuff is fine. Moving whole departments is fine. Finding the things I needed was not easy. So, until they finish I will find what I need somewhere else or go without. They had a big stand up sign at the entrance saying they had temp jobs for people with three shifts, for about a month. Good for them. I’ll come back in late August.
<> <> <> <> <> <>
Random Fact…
Fortune cookies were actually invented in America, in 1918,
by Charles Jung.
Canada has more lakes than the rest of the world combined. Canada is an Indian word meaning 'Big Village.'
Next to Warsaw, Chicago has the largest Polish population in the world.
Woodward Avenue in Detroit, Michigan carries the designation M-1, so named because it was the first paved road anywhere.
Crazy Stuff In The News…
27-year-old Chris Parks of Seattle had just flown back to the United States from a vacation in Mexico with friends. He was going through customs in an airport in North Carolina when his name caught the attention of Homeland Security personnel. Before he knew it Parks was arrested and tossed into the county jail in Charlotte and locked up for one week. When told he was a fugitive, he was floored. His crime? He was a deserter from the military.
The only problem is Parks was never in the military.
“I’ve been in the Army for 10 years, and didn’t even know it,” he says. “Just seems kind of odd.”
No one believed him. Parks was ordered to report to Fort Knox in Kentucky - where he sat and waited and waited some more with actual military deserters.
His head was shaved, he was issued fatigues. He was afraid he would be court-martialed.
“I was at Fort Knox for one week - and I almost didn’t get out,” says Parks.
Parks says when he was 18, he nearly joined the Army. But at the last minute, he backed out. Apparently, that message never got through military’s system.
Despite the army’s paperwork showing that Parks went through basic training in South Carolina, then went AWOL from a base in Georgia, he insists that never happened, and wonders if
his military recruiter from 10 years ago hung him out to dry by never processing his paperwork. Parks says he now carries documents to prove to authorities he’s not a deserter.
July is…
…Air Conditioning Appreciation Month…Blueberries Month…Cell Phone Courtesy Month…Family Reunion Month…Herbal/Prescription Awareness Month…Nat’l Doghouse Repair Month…Nat’l Grilling, Nat’l Hot Dog, Nat’l Horseradish, and Nat’l Ice Cream Month…Smart Irrigation Month…Social Wellness Month…Tour de France Month…Women’s Motorcycle Month…
Week of July 27…
World Hacky-Sack Week
July 30…
211 days so far this year…154 days remain in 2009
Cheesecake Day
Father-In-Law Day
*Vanuatu – Independence Day (formerly Anglo-French condominium of the New Hebrides)
BIRTHS ON THIS DAY…
1818
Emily Bronte England, novelist (Wuthering Heights)
1863
Henry Ford Dearborn Township, Mich, auto maker (Ford)
1889
Vladimir Zworykin, developer of television
1890
Casey Stengel NY Yankee (1949-60) & 1st NY Met manager
1933
Edd "Kookie" Byrnes (Breitenberger) LA, actor (77 Sunset Strip,
1939
Peter Bogdanovich director
1940
Patricia Schroeder (Rep-D-Colo)
1941
Paul Anka songwriter
1947
Arnold Schwarzenegger Austria, actor, politician
1956
Delta Burke Orlando Fla, actress
1961
Laurence Fishburne (Lawrence Fishburne III/Larry Fishburne)Tony Award-winning actor
IT HAPPENED ON THIS DAY…
1619
House of Burgesses Virginia formed, 1st elective US governing body
1836
1st English newspaper published in Hawaii
1928
George Eastman demonstrates 1st color movie
1931
Russel Boardman and John Polando land their Monoplane in Istanbul, Turkey today in 49 hrs and 20 minutes since leaving New York setting a new long distance non stop world record
1935
The first Penguin paperback book is published, an early step in the paperback revolution that would take off after World War II.
1956
US motto "In God We Trust" authorized
1965
LBJ signs Medicare bill, which went into effect following year
Word Fragments Puzzle
In each of these puzzles, a word fragment is given, and you must think of an English word that contains the fragment -- that is, you must form a word by adding letters to the beginning and/or the end of the fragment. You may not add letters to the middle of the fragment, nor may you rearrange the letters given.
Multiple solutions are given for several word fragments and are shown in brackets (although we omitted most alternate solutions that rely on variations of the same word). To solve the puzzles, however, you only need to find one word for each fragment.
Example: choan [1]
Answer: psychoanalysis
1. llel [3]
2. osoe [1]
3. iloli [1]
4. atula [2]
5. terb [8]
6. thom [1]
7. alibr [2]
8. wkw [2]
9. lywo [9]
10. athem [2]
*Bonus oela [1]
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Answers
1. allele hallelujah parallel
2. whosoever
3. kiloliter
4. congratulations spatula
5. butterball chatterbox counterbalance jitterbug litterbug quarterback scatterbrain terbium
6. fathom
7. calibrate caliber
8. hawkweed awkward
9. plywood pollywog
10. anathema mathematics
*Bonus: shoelace viscoelastic
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Two last comments on the Birthers…I learned today, a little late I guess, that John McCain was born on a military base in Panama. Obama was born in the 50th state, and it had been a state for 6 years when he was born. Panama still isn’t a state, and never will be. I guess the birthers believe that being born on a military base is the same as being born in the US, while being born in a new state doesn’t count. Such craziness. I also learned today that conspiracy theories are not new…well I did know that. Mary Todd Lincoln, a southerner, had to have all her mail, to her relatives, during the Civil War, read by the government, to squelch the theory that she was sending Northern troop movements to the enemy. I guess conspiracy theories will always be around. I still don’t believe the ‘magic bullet’ theory.
AARP had a live town hall meeting with Obama on Health Care. It was on CNN and available on the Internet. I did get some good information and heard some questions from elderly who are really scared. One person stated that she didn’t want ‘socialized medicine’ and didn’t want changes to her Medicare. Huh? Another wanted Obama to promise that the government wouldn’t be sending a person to all Medicare recipients with a form to fill out on how they wanted to die. Of course he answered both ladies quite well. What so many people don’t seem to believe is that our heath care system is a mess. It is much too profit based. It is fraught with waste. It can’t stay the same.
Our monsoon didn’t come today and the thermometer rose to 92° on my deck. Air inside and out was just stagnant. I had the cooler on for most of the afternoon.
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Random Fact…
Crayons were invented in New York in 1903. Crayons were invented in New York in 1903.
Brazil got its name from the nut, not the other way around.
Antarctica is the only land on our planet that is not owned by any country. Ninety percent of the world's ice covers Antarctica. This ice also represents seventy percent of all the fresh water in the world. As strange as it sounds, however, Antarctica is essentially a desert.. The average yearly total precipitation is about two inches. Although covered with ice (all but 0.4% of it, that is), Antarctica is the driest place on the planet, with an absolute humidity lower than the Gobi desert.
Crazy Stuff In The News…
INDIANAPOLIS - A venomous scorpion hitched a ride on a jet plane bound from Phoenix to Indianapolis and stung one passenger before it was captured when the aircraft landed.
Marilee McInnis, a spokeswoman for Southwest Airlines, said the passenger was not seriously hurt and the Arizona bark scorpion and five of its babies were destroyed after Flight 2093 arrived at Indianapolis International Airport, the Indianapolis Star reported. Airport spokeswoman
Susan Sullivan said Douglas Herbstsommer, 44, discovered the arachnids in his carry-on luggage and was stung by the adult about a half an hour before the plane landed.
Herbstsommer was treated at the airport and did not require hospitalization. McInnis said the jetliner was fumigated overnight to make sure there were no additional scorpions.
July is…
…Air Conditioning Appreciation Month…Blueberries Month…Cell Phone Courtesy Month…Family Reunion Month…Herbal/Prescription Awareness Month…Nat’l Doghouse Repair Month…Nat’l Grilling, Nat’l Hot Dog, Nat’l Horseradish, and Nat’l Ice Cream Month…Smart Irrigation Month…Social Wellness Month…Tour de France Month…Women’s Motorcycle Month…
Week of July 27…
World Hacky-Sack Week
July 29…
210 days so far this year…155 days remain in 2009
Lasagna Day
Rain Day
*Romania: National Anthem Day [1848-unofficial; 1989-official]
BIRTHS ON THIS DAY…
1805
Alexis de Tocqueville France, statesman/writer (Democracy in America)
1869
Booth Tarkington US, novelist (17, Magnificent Ambersons)
1871
[Gregory Efimovich] Rasputin the mad Russian monk
1883
Benito Mussolini [Il Duce], Fascist Italian dictator
1892
William Powell actor (Thin Man, My Man Godfrey)
1905
-Clara Bow silent screen actress
-Dag Hammarskjuld 2nd UN Secretary-General (1953-61) (Nobel 1961)
1907
Melvin Belli Sonora Calif, lawyer
1924
Robert Horton LA Calif, actor (Wagon Train)
1933
Robert Fuller Troy NY, actor (Wagon Train)
1938
Peter Jennings Toronto Canada, news anchor
1953
Ken Burns Emmy Award-winning writer, producer, director
IT HAPPENED ON THIS DAY…
1588
Attacking Spanish Armada defeated & scattered by English defenders
1715
10 Spanish treasure galleons sunk off Florida coast by hurricane
1773
1st schoolhouse west of Allegheny Mtns completed, Schoenbrunn, OH
1848
During the Potato Famine in Ireland, a nationalist rebellion led by William Smith O'Brien is crushed, and O'Brien arrested.
1928
Walt Disney's "Steamboat Willie" is released
1958
Pres Eisenhower signs NASA & Space Act of 1958
1965
Beatles movie "Help" premiers, Queen Elizabeth attends
1970
6 days of race rioting in Hartford Ct
1981
Millions of people around the world watched on television as England’s Prince Charles and Lady Diana Spencer married at St. Paul’s Cathedral in London.
1996
Carl Lewis won his ninth Olympic gold medal by winning the long jump competition at the 1996 LA Olympic games
Category Puzzle
Each of the three words can be made into a common word or two word phrase
Example: play, beef, rocky
Answer: ground
1. House, star, street
2. Cart, fifth, chair
3. Theme, trailer, ball
4. Thumb, ever, onion
5. Hog, board, mouth
6. Video, board, waiting
7. Cheese, guitar, along
8. Master, wedding, side
9. Oil, rattle, eyes
10. Rocket, night, lark
*Bonus: Neck, snapping, dove
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Answers
1. Light
2. Wheel
3. Park
4. Green
5. Wash
6. Game
7. String
8. Ring
9. Snake
10. Sky
*Bonus: Turtle
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AARP had a live town hall meeting with Obama on Health Care. It was on CNN and available on the Internet. I did get some good information and heard some questions from elderly who are really scared. One person stated that she didn’t want ‘socialized medicine’ and didn’t want changes to her Medicare. Huh? Another wanted Obama to promise that the government wouldn’t be sending a person to all Medicare recipients with a form to fill out on how they wanted to die. Of course he answered both ladies quite well. What so many people don’t seem to believe is that our heath care system is a mess. It is much too profit based. It is fraught with waste. It can’t stay the same.
Our monsoon didn’t come today and the thermometer rose to 92° on my deck. Air inside and out was just stagnant. I had the cooler on for most of the afternoon.
<> <> <> <> <> <>
Random Fact…
Crayons were invented in New York in 1903. Crayons were invented in New York in 1903.
Brazil got its name from the nut, not the other way around.
Antarctica is the only land on our planet that is not owned by any country. Ninety percent of the world's ice covers Antarctica. This ice also represents seventy percent of all the fresh water in the world. As strange as it sounds, however, Antarctica is essentially a desert.. The average yearly total precipitation is about two inches. Although covered with ice (all but 0.4% of it, that is), Antarctica is the driest place on the planet, with an absolute humidity lower than the Gobi desert.
Crazy Stuff In The News…
INDIANAPOLIS - A venomous scorpion hitched a ride on a jet plane bound from Phoenix to Indianapolis and stung one passenger before it was captured when the aircraft landed.
Marilee McInnis, a spokeswoman for Southwest Airlines, said the passenger was not seriously hurt and the Arizona bark scorpion and five of its babies were destroyed after Flight 2093 arrived at Indianapolis International Airport, the Indianapolis Star reported. Airport spokeswoman
Susan Sullivan said Douglas Herbstsommer, 44, discovered the arachnids in his carry-on luggage and was stung by the adult about a half an hour before the plane landed.
Herbstsommer was treated at the airport and did not require hospitalization. McInnis said the jetliner was fumigated overnight to make sure there were no additional scorpions.
July is…
…Air Conditioning Appreciation Month…Blueberries Month…Cell Phone Courtesy Month…Family Reunion Month…Herbal/Prescription Awareness Month…Nat’l Doghouse Repair Month…Nat’l Grilling, Nat’l Hot Dog, Nat’l Horseradish, and Nat’l Ice Cream Month…Smart Irrigation Month…Social Wellness Month…Tour de France Month…Women’s Motorcycle Month…
Week of July 27…
World Hacky-Sack Week
July 29…
210 days so far this year…155 days remain in 2009
Lasagna Day
Rain Day
*Romania: National Anthem Day [1848-unofficial; 1989-official]
BIRTHS ON THIS DAY…
1805
Alexis de Tocqueville France, statesman/writer (Democracy in America)
1869
Booth Tarkington US, novelist (17, Magnificent Ambersons)
1871
[Gregory Efimovich] Rasputin the mad Russian monk
1883
Benito Mussolini [Il Duce], Fascist Italian dictator
1892
William Powell actor (Thin Man, My Man Godfrey)
1905
-Clara Bow silent screen actress
-Dag Hammarskjuld 2nd UN Secretary-General (1953-61) (Nobel 1961)
1907
Melvin Belli Sonora Calif, lawyer
1924
Robert Horton LA Calif, actor (Wagon Train)
1933
Robert Fuller Troy NY, actor (Wagon Train)
1938
Peter Jennings Toronto Canada, news anchor
1953
Ken Burns Emmy Award-winning writer, producer, director
IT HAPPENED ON THIS DAY…
1588
Attacking Spanish Armada defeated & scattered by English defenders
1715
10 Spanish treasure galleons sunk off Florida coast by hurricane
1773
1st schoolhouse west of Allegheny Mtns completed, Schoenbrunn, OH
1848
During the Potato Famine in Ireland, a nationalist rebellion led by William Smith O'Brien is crushed, and O'Brien arrested.
1928
Walt Disney's "Steamboat Willie" is released
1958
Pres Eisenhower signs NASA & Space Act of 1958
1965
Beatles movie "Help" premiers, Queen Elizabeth attends
1970
6 days of race rioting in Hartford Ct
1981
Millions of people around the world watched on television as England’s Prince Charles and Lady Diana Spencer married at St. Paul’s Cathedral in London.
1996
Carl Lewis won his ninth Olympic gold medal by winning the long jump competition at the 1996 LA Olympic games
Category Puzzle
Each of the three words can be made into a common word or two word phrase
Example: play, beef, rocky
Answer: ground
1. House, star, street
2. Cart, fifth, chair
3. Theme, trailer, ball
4. Thumb, ever, onion
5. Hog, board, mouth
6. Video, board, waiting
7. Cheese, guitar, along
8. Master, wedding, side
9. Oil, rattle, eyes
10. Rocket, night, lark
*Bonus: Neck, snapping, dove
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Answers
1. Light
2. Wheel
3. Park
4. Green
5. Wash
6. Game
7. String
8. Ring
9. Snake
10. Sky
*Bonus: Turtle
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birthers
Another monsoon cooled us off and wet the forest quite nicely. It wasn’t anywhere like yesterdays downpour, but it works. Clouds are still around so more is coming. So many of my non-Arizona friends still don’t get that we are above 7000’, and a whole lot cooler than Phoenix. Several out of state friends emailed me today to ask how was surviving the ‘extreme heat’. They had seen on TV that much of Arizona was under an ‘extreme heat warning’ meaning stay inside, drink lots of water, and don’t drive more than necessary. As I explained, I am in Northern Arizona where a really day is around 90° and we are having a nice monsoon season which keeps us much cooler than even that. I am reminded almost daily that, to many citizens in this country, Arizona is Phoenix. I remind them that when a tornado hit Fort Collins, Colorado last year, I didn’t ask my Denver friends if they saw it. It’s OK, even though these friends don’t know AZ, they know I live there and are concerned. That is good.
This ‘birther’ issue—is our President a natural-born citizen—is getting out of hand. First I should say, I have no question that he was born in Hawaii. When I retired and needed a passport, I couldn’t find the birth certificate I grew up with. I do remember it though. It was a very old copy. It was black with white type. It had an embossed seal. It was not an original birth certificate. [I digress. It was the one the State of Colorado produced for me after I was officially adopted. For whatever reason, the really original—with my birth name and at least birth mother’s name was locked up somewhere for no one to see. Not even me. Laws have changed, and I guess I could get a copy of it now—if I was interested. However this white writing on black paper said I was born. It said it was a live birth. It didn’t say I was a bastard—even though I was.] Back to point about Obama’s birth certificate. When the State of Colorado mailed me an official copy of my birth certificate, it was a nice computer print out. It didn’t show a lot of the information that was on the old certificate. Today, there was a news story about Obama’s birth certificate. It was held up by some official in Hawaii. I knew right away it wasn’t the original. It looked a lot like the one I now have. It’s clean, computer generated, and has a computer generated seal.
I’m not surprised that some conservatives don’t want to accept that certificate. Many of them don’t want anything that comes from a computer. They believe that computers are the beginning of the end. No computerized medical records is also part of their call. I am beginning to think many of the ‘birthers’ aren’t really sure that Hawaii is part of the United States. When they were in school, they learned about the Hawaiian King Kamehameha. Any person born in Hawaii may not be a natural born citizen.
Some Americans still aren’t sure that New Mexico is part of the US. Remember the Olympics mess when an Atlanta ticket seller wouldn’t sell America tickets to a family in Santa Fe, NM, because they had to go through their local embassy. Remember that many Americans who travel to New Mexico and/or Hawaii ask their travel agent the exchange rate in that area. We have many out there who just don’t understand.
Politicians will continue to cater to their constituency, and if the ‘birthers’ are loud enough, few of today’s politicians will stand up and tell these people to ‘get a life.’
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Random Fact…
Number of words in the first sentence of Bill Clinton’s memoir and in that of George W. Bush’s, respectively: 49, 5
Men get hiccups more often than women.
A house in Baghdad worth $15,000 before the Iraq war now sells for $120,000 to $150,000.
Crazy Stuff In The News…
ARLINGTON HEIGHTS, Ill. - A 93-year-old Illinois man says he is marrying his third-grade sweetheart after 85 years apart. Roland “Mac” McKitrick, 93, of Arlington Heights, proposed to Lorraine Beatty, 92, of Georgia, about three years after they reconnected following an 85-year interruption in their friendship, the Arlington Heights Daily Herald reported. “She was my third-grade sweetheart back in 1921,” McKitrick said. “We knew each other for about one year. Then, for all practical purposes, we lost contact for 85 years.” But McKitrick said both he and Beatty had brothers living in Connecticut who became friends, and the two reunited through their brothers. “I still picture her as my third-grade sweetheart. I’ve carried that in the back of my mind since that time,”
McKitrick said. He said he still has a photograph of himself with Beatty taken when they were children. “That snapshot stayed in my memory,” he said, “and her face stayed in my memory.”
July is…
…Air Conditioning Appreciation Month…Blueberries Month…Cell Phone Courtesy Month…Family Reunion Month…Herbal/Prescription Awareness Month…Nat’l Doghouse Repair Month…Nat’l Grilling, Nat’l Hot Dog, Nat’l Horseradish, and Nat’l Ice Cream Month…Smart Irrigation Month…Social Wellness Month…Tour de France Month…Women’s Motorcycle Month…
Week of July 27…
World Hacky-Sack Week
July 28…
209 days so far this year…156 days remain in 2009
National Milk Chocolate Day
*Peru: Independence Day [1821]
*Faroe Islands [1/2 way between Scotland & Iceland]: Olvasoka Eve [opens Parliament]
BIRTHS ON THIS DAY…
1165
Ibn al-'Arabi Muslim mystic/philosopher
1844
Gerard Manley Hopkins England, poet (The Windhover)
1866
Beatrix Potter England, children's author (Tale of Peter Rabbit)
1892
Joe E Brown Holgate Ohio, comedian
1901
Rudy Vallee Vt, singer
1907
Vivian Vance Cherryvale Ks, actress (Ethel Mertz-I Love Lucy)
1916
David Brown NYC, director (Jaws, Planet of the Apes)
1929
Jacqueline Lee Bouvier Kennedy Onassis 1st lady
1945
Jim Davis cartoonist (Garfield)
1948
-Georgia Engel Wash DC, actress (Georgette-Mary Tyler Moore Show)
- Sally (Ann) Struthers Emmy Award-winning actress
IT HAPPENED ON THIS DAY…
1586
Sir Thomas Harriot introduces potatoes to Europe
1851
Total solar eclipse captured on a daguerreotype photograph
1862
Fort Bowie is established in the Apache Pass, in southeastern Arizona, by members of Brigadier General James Charlatan's California volunteers.
1865
The American Dental Association proposed its first code of ethics
1866
Metric system becomes a legal measurement system in US
1868
14th Amendment ratified, citizenship to ex-slaves
1900
Hamburger created by Louis Lassing in Connecticut
1915
US forces invade Haiti, stays until 1924
1931
Congress makes "The Star-Spangled Banner" our 2nd national anthem
1943
Pres FDR announces end of coffee rationing in US
1959
Hawaii's 1st US election sends 1st Asian-Americans to Congress
1999
Federal Regulators from the SEC have given until August 1st for Brokerage firms to prove compliance with Y2K or a court order will be obtained to close them down on December 31st.
Category Puzzle
Each of the three words can be made into a common word or two word phrase
Example: play, beef, rocky
Answer: ground
1. Off, crow, tactics
2. Reading, stick, fat
3. Hook, jelly, bowl
4. Hay, smoke, up
5. Dog, frog, fighter
6. Weight, fly, sand
7. Above, floor, walk
8. Watch, house, gone
9. Hard, under, up
10. Fitting, land, free
*Bonus: salt, melon, white
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Answers
1. Scare
2. Lip
3. Fish
4. Stack
5. Bull
6. Paper
7. Board
8. Dog
9. Cover
10. Form
*Bonus: Water
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This ‘birther’ issue—is our President a natural-born citizen—is getting out of hand. First I should say, I have no question that he was born in Hawaii. When I retired and needed a passport, I couldn’t find the birth certificate I grew up with. I do remember it though. It was a very old copy. It was black with white type. It had an embossed seal. It was not an original birth certificate. [I digress. It was the one the State of Colorado produced for me after I was officially adopted. For whatever reason, the really original—with my birth name and at least birth mother’s name was locked up somewhere for no one to see. Not even me. Laws have changed, and I guess I could get a copy of it now—if I was interested. However this white writing on black paper said I was born. It said it was a live birth. It didn’t say I was a bastard—even though I was.] Back to point about Obama’s birth certificate. When the State of Colorado mailed me an official copy of my birth certificate, it was a nice computer print out. It didn’t show a lot of the information that was on the old certificate. Today, there was a news story about Obama’s birth certificate. It was held up by some official in Hawaii. I knew right away it wasn’t the original. It looked a lot like the one I now have. It’s clean, computer generated, and has a computer generated seal.
I’m not surprised that some conservatives don’t want to accept that certificate. Many of them don’t want anything that comes from a computer. They believe that computers are the beginning of the end. No computerized medical records is also part of their call. I am beginning to think many of the ‘birthers’ aren’t really sure that Hawaii is part of the United States. When they were in school, they learned about the Hawaiian King Kamehameha. Any person born in Hawaii may not be a natural born citizen.
Some Americans still aren’t sure that New Mexico is part of the US. Remember the Olympics mess when an Atlanta ticket seller wouldn’t sell America tickets to a family in Santa Fe, NM, because they had to go through their local embassy. Remember that many Americans who travel to New Mexico and/or Hawaii ask their travel agent the exchange rate in that area. We have many out there who just don’t understand.
Politicians will continue to cater to their constituency, and if the ‘birthers’ are loud enough, few of today’s politicians will stand up and tell these people to ‘get a life.’
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Random Fact…
Number of words in the first sentence of Bill Clinton’s memoir and in that of George W. Bush’s, respectively: 49, 5
Men get hiccups more often than women.
A house in Baghdad worth $15,000 before the Iraq war now sells for $120,000 to $150,000.
Crazy Stuff In The News…
ARLINGTON HEIGHTS, Ill. - A 93-year-old Illinois man says he is marrying his third-grade sweetheart after 85 years apart. Roland “Mac” McKitrick, 93, of Arlington Heights, proposed to Lorraine Beatty, 92, of Georgia, about three years after they reconnected following an 85-year interruption in their friendship, the Arlington Heights Daily Herald reported. “She was my third-grade sweetheart back in 1921,” McKitrick said. “We knew each other for about one year. Then, for all practical purposes, we lost contact for 85 years.” But McKitrick said both he and Beatty had brothers living in Connecticut who became friends, and the two reunited through their brothers. “I still picture her as my third-grade sweetheart. I’ve carried that in the back of my mind since that time,”
McKitrick said. He said he still has a photograph of himself with Beatty taken when they were children. “That snapshot stayed in my memory,” he said, “and her face stayed in my memory.”
July is…
…Air Conditioning Appreciation Month…Blueberries Month…Cell Phone Courtesy Month…Family Reunion Month…Herbal/Prescription Awareness Month…Nat’l Doghouse Repair Month…Nat’l Grilling, Nat’l Hot Dog, Nat’l Horseradish, and Nat’l Ice Cream Month…Smart Irrigation Month…Social Wellness Month…Tour de France Month…Women’s Motorcycle Month…
Week of July 27…
World Hacky-Sack Week
July 28…
209 days so far this year…156 days remain in 2009
National Milk Chocolate Day
*Peru: Independence Day [1821]
*Faroe Islands [1/2 way between Scotland & Iceland]: Olvasoka Eve [opens Parliament]
BIRTHS ON THIS DAY…
1165
Ibn al-'Arabi Muslim mystic/philosopher
1844
Gerard Manley Hopkins England, poet (The Windhover)
1866
Beatrix Potter England, children's author (Tale of Peter Rabbit)
1892
Joe E Brown Holgate Ohio, comedian
1901
Rudy Vallee Vt, singer
1907
Vivian Vance Cherryvale Ks, actress (Ethel Mertz-I Love Lucy)
1916
David Brown NYC, director (Jaws, Planet of the Apes)
1929
Jacqueline Lee Bouvier Kennedy Onassis 1st lady
1945
Jim Davis cartoonist (Garfield)
1948
-Georgia Engel Wash DC, actress (Georgette-Mary Tyler Moore Show)
- Sally (Ann) Struthers Emmy Award-winning actress
IT HAPPENED ON THIS DAY…
1586
Sir Thomas Harriot introduces potatoes to Europe
1851
Total solar eclipse captured on a daguerreotype photograph
1862
Fort Bowie is established in the Apache Pass, in southeastern Arizona, by members of Brigadier General James Charlatan's California volunteers.
1865
The American Dental Association proposed its first code of ethics
1866
Metric system becomes a legal measurement system in US
1868
14th Amendment ratified, citizenship to ex-slaves
1900
Hamburger created by Louis Lassing in Connecticut
1915
US forces invade Haiti, stays until 1924
1931
Congress makes "The Star-Spangled Banner" our 2nd national anthem
1943
Pres FDR announces end of coffee rationing in US
1959
Hawaii's 1st US election sends 1st Asian-Americans to Congress
1999
Federal Regulators from the SEC have given until August 1st for Brokerage firms to prove compliance with Y2K or a court order will be obtained to close them down on December 31st.
Category Puzzle
Each of the three words can be made into a common word or two word phrase
Example: play, beef, rocky
Answer: ground
1. Off, crow, tactics
2. Reading, stick, fat
3. Hook, jelly, bowl
4. Hay, smoke, up
5. Dog, frog, fighter
6. Weight, fly, sand
7. Above, floor, walk
8. Watch, house, gone
9. Hard, under, up
10. Fitting, land, free
*Bonus: salt, melon, white
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Answers
1. Scare
2. Lip
3. Fish
4. Stack
5. Bull
6. Paper
7. Board
8. Dog
9. Cover
10. Form
*Bonus: Water
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Monsoon
Sunday is a day of rest. I didn’t need rest, but I sure didn’t get to be outside much either. The morning, like most recently, began with clouds moving in. It warmed up, just like always. Then about 1:30 the clouds opened and we got a hard rain. Then it slowed to a gentle rain. Just like most monsoonal days. Soon the gentle rain turned into a wave of hard rain. This cycle continued for almost an hour. I’m sure this is the most rain we have had in one afternoon in many a day. Now the sky is basically clear here, but it looks like the horizon clouds are just waiting for tomorrow.
Sara Palin really quit. At a picnic. In Fairbanks…not the capital. Guess she showed them politicians by golly. She also proved she was a maverick…to all those who trusted and voted for her. Guess she showed everyone she was a soccer mom and not a pit bull.
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Random Fact…
The cruise liner, Queen Elizabeth II, moves only six inches for each gallon of diesel that it burns.
The Amazon rainforest produces more than 20% the world's oxygen supply. The Amazon River pushes so much water into the Atlantic Ocean that, more than one hundred miles at sea off the mouth of the river; one can dip fresh water out of the ocean. The volume of water in the Amazon river is greater than the next eight largest rivers in the world combined and three times the flow of all rivers in the United States.
Estimated total, in pounds, of explosives dropped by Israel on Gaza during the first week of this winter’s attack: 40,000. Estimated total fired into Israel by Palestinians last year: 40,000
Crazy Stuff In The News…
MIAMI - A suburban Miami woman said a bee removal specialist destroyed about 250,000 bees inside the walls of her home. Mary Olarte of Miami Shores said she was not concerned when dead bees began appearing outside of her house but she was shocked when a contractor discovered three thriving hives within the walls of her home, the Miami Herald reported. Willie Sklaroff, proprietor of bee removal service Willie the Bee Man, said all of the bees were destroyed Tuesday due to fears they may have been Africanized honeybees, also known as killer bees. However, analysis of the bees after they were killed with pesticides indicates they were not Africanized, the Herald reported..Olarte said she collected more than 100 pounds of honey and wax from the now-vacated hives in her walls. “I have lots of friends,” she said, and “everyone wants to try some.”
July is…
…Air Conditioning Appreciation Month…Blueberries Month…Cell Phone Courtesy Month…Family Reunion Month…Herbal/Prescription Awareness Month…Nat’l Doghouse Repair Month…Nat’l Grilling, Nat’l Hot Dog, Nat’l Horseradish, and Nat’l Ice Cream Month…Smart Irrigation Month…Social Wellness Month…Tour de France Month…Women’s Motorcycle Month…
Week of July 27…World Hacky-Sack Week
July 26…
208 days so far this year…157 days remain in 2009
Nat’l Korean War Veterans Armistice Day
Barbie-in-a-Blender Day
Take your Houseplant for a Walk Day
Walk on Stilts Day
*Finland: Nat’l Sleepy Head Day
* N. Korea: Victory Day
*Puerto Rico: Jose Celso Barbosa Day [The Father of ‘Statehood for Puerto Rico Movement’]
BIRTHS ON THIS DAY…
1870
Joseph Hilaire Belloc England, author (Path to Rome)
1880
Donald Crisp Scotland, actor
1899 Harl McDonald near Boulder Colorado, composer (Santa F‚ Trail)
1906
Leo Durocher Mass, baseball manager
1916
Kennan Wynn NYC, actor
1922
Norman Lear TV writer/producer
1931
Jerry Van Dyke Danville Ill, actor
1933
Nick Reynolds folk singer: group: The Kingston Trio
1944
Bobbie Gentry Grammy Award-winning singer [1967]: Ode to Billy Jo
1948
Peggy Fleming San Jose Cal, ice figure skater
1949
Maureen McGovern Youngstown Oh, singer (Got to be a morning after)
IT HAPPENED ON THIS DAY…
1501
Copernicus formally installed as canon of Frauenberg Cathedral
1694
Bank of England chartered
1775
Benjamin Church began his service as the first Surgeon General of the Continental Army
1837
US Mint opens in Charlotte, NC
1844
Fire destroys the US mint at Charlotte, NC
1974
John Denver’s biggest hit song reached the top of the Billboard singles chart. Annie’s Song, written for his wife
1991
TV Guide publishes it's 2000th edition .
Category Puzzle
Each of the three words can be made into a common word or two word phrase
Example: play, beef, rocky
Answer: ground
1. Key, wall, precious
2. Corn, winner, sweet
3. Top, inner, test
4. Go, there, seen
5. Back, crawl, work
6. Read, child, water
7. Blue, lands, roots
8. Butter, maid, run
9. Hot, strong, arrow
10. Sore, witness, buck
*Bonus: battle, work, play
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Answers”
1. Stone
2. Bread
3. Tube
4. Fore
5. Space
6. Proof
7. Grass
8. Milk
9. Head
10. Eye
*Bonus: Ground
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Sara Palin really quit. At a picnic. In Fairbanks…not the capital. Guess she showed them politicians by golly. She also proved she was a maverick…to all those who trusted and voted for her. Guess she showed everyone she was a soccer mom and not a pit bull.
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Random Fact…
The cruise liner, Queen Elizabeth II, moves only six inches for each gallon of diesel that it burns.
The Amazon rainforest produces more than 20% the world's oxygen supply. The Amazon River pushes so much water into the Atlantic Ocean that, more than one hundred miles at sea off the mouth of the river; one can dip fresh water out of the ocean. The volume of water in the Amazon river is greater than the next eight largest rivers in the world combined and three times the flow of all rivers in the United States.
Estimated total, in pounds, of explosives dropped by Israel on Gaza during the first week of this winter’s attack: 40,000. Estimated total fired into Israel by Palestinians last year: 40,000
Crazy Stuff In The News…
MIAMI - A suburban Miami woman said a bee removal specialist destroyed about 250,000 bees inside the walls of her home. Mary Olarte of Miami Shores said she was not concerned when dead bees began appearing outside of her house but she was shocked when a contractor discovered three thriving hives within the walls of her home, the Miami Herald reported. Willie Sklaroff, proprietor of bee removal service Willie the Bee Man, said all of the bees were destroyed Tuesday due to fears they may have been Africanized honeybees, also known as killer bees. However, analysis of the bees after they were killed with pesticides indicates they were not Africanized, the Herald reported..Olarte said she collected more than 100 pounds of honey and wax from the now-vacated hives in her walls. “I have lots of friends,” she said, and “everyone wants to try some.”
July is…
…Air Conditioning Appreciation Month…Blueberries Month…Cell Phone Courtesy Month…Family Reunion Month…Herbal/Prescription Awareness Month…Nat’l Doghouse Repair Month…Nat’l Grilling, Nat’l Hot Dog, Nat’l Horseradish, and Nat’l Ice Cream Month…Smart Irrigation Month…Social Wellness Month…Tour de France Month…Women’s Motorcycle Month…
Week of July 27…World Hacky-Sack Week
July 26…
208 days so far this year…157 days remain in 2009
Nat’l Korean War Veterans Armistice Day
Barbie-in-a-Blender Day
Take your Houseplant for a Walk Day
Walk on Stilts Day
*Finland: Nat’l Sleepy Head Day
* N. Korea: Victory Day
*Puerto Rico: Jose Celso Barbosa Day [The Father of ‘Statehood for Puerto Rico Movement’]
BIRTHS ON THIS DAY…
1870
Joseph Hilaire Belloc England, author (Path to Rome)
1880
Donald Crisp Scotland, actor
1899 Harl McDonald near Boulder Colorado, composer (Santa F‚ Trail)
1906
Leo Durocher Mass, baseball manager
1916
Kennan Wynn NYC, actor
1922
Norman Lear TV writer/producer
1931
Jerry Van Dyke Danville Ill, actor
1933
Nick Reynolds folk singer: group: The Kingston Trio
1944
Bobbie Gentry Grammy Award-winning singer [1967]: Ode to Billy Jo
1948
Peggy Fleming San Jose Cal, ice figure skater
1949
Maureen McGovern Youngstown Oh, singer (Got to be a morning after)
IT HAPPENED ON THIS DAY…
1501
Copernicus formally installed as canon of Frauenberg Cathedral
1694
Bank of England chartered
1775
Benjamin Church began his service as the first Surgeon General of the Continental Army
1837
US Mint opens in Charlotte, NC
1844
Fire destroys the US mint at Charlotte, NC
1974
John Denver’s biggest hit song reached the top of the Billboard singles chart. Annie’s Song, written for his wife
1991
TV Guide publishes it's 2000th edition .
Category Puzzle
Each of the three words can be made into a common word or two word phrase
Example: play, beef, rocky
Answer: ground
1. Key, wall, precious
2. Corn, winner, sweet
3. Top, inner, test
4. Go, there, seen
5. Back, crawl, work
6. Read, child, water
7. Blue, lands, roots
8. Butter, maid, run
9. Hot, strong, arrow
10. Sore, witness, buck
*Bonus: battle, work, play
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Answers”
1. Stone
2. Bread
3. Tube
4. Fore
5. Space
6. Proof
7. Grass
8. Milk
9. Head
10. Eye
*Bonus: Ground
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Saturday
Saturday brought us clouds, a slight breeze, then an overcast sky, but so far no monsoon. I’m holding onto hope, as it did rain in West Flagstaff when I was over there earlier. It looks like it could rain at any moment, so here’s hoping.
A change in Health Care sounds like it is in trouble, yet again. As I have gotten older, I have started to add to my doctors—always had a primary care person, a dentist, and an ophthalmologist. Now I have a dermatologist, a urologist, an allergist. My insurance has been BCBS-Federal since I started working for the BIA. This year the plan raised its co-pay from $15 to $20 dollars. The deductible needed to get a break on tests also was raised a lot. The Feds have one of the best coverage programs anywhere in the US. One allergy medicine went from $12/month to $25/month…same medicine. And it’s a generic. One test the eye doctor runs used to cost me $8. This year it was $105—I haven’t met my annual deductable this year. Some people reading this are saying, “Damn, wish my medicines and visits were that cheap.” I understand that. I’m just saying that some medicines doubled in price and the office visit went up 25%. And I am one of the lucky ones.
All those people that don’t think we need a change in our health care system need to get a life. Each time I visit a doctor, I ask about their side of this debate. They don’t talk a lot about it, but do say they are doing more paperwork and are being paid less each year. Their rent goes up. Their employee wages go up. Their cost of running an office goes up. They say that the percentage of these rising costs are not met by any of the insurance companies. My premium goes up, my co-pay goes up, my deductable goes up, and the physicians don’t seem to be getting their fair share of this. The medical community is in a catch 22. If they don’t accept certain plans, they don’t have patients. If they accept the plans, they say they don’t get fair compensation. I want a medical care provider who is excited about fixing what is wrong with me. I don’t need a provider who feels the insurance compensation isn’t adequate for his work. I want a provider who is up on the latest information, not one who can’t afford to keep up to date. I have been in an emergency room twice in my life. Both times were fairly serious and led to hospitalization. Each time I saw many people waiting to be seen. I know too many people who use the Emergency Room as their Primary Care Physician. This country needs a health care system that fairly compensates providers, provides good care to the sick, gives compensation for regular screenings, and charges patients fairly and equally. I heard that one proposal was that every American paid 1% of their gross income. I’m paying more than that now. Maybe that would solve our health care system problems.
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Random Facts…
Because metal was scarce, the Oscars given out during World War II were made of wood.
Chocolate syrup was used for blood in the famous 45 second shower scene in Alfred Hitchcock's movie, Psycho, which actually took 7 days to shoot.
Chance that a U.S. Gulf War veteran still suffers from “Gulf War illness,” according to a federal panel: 1 in 4
Crazy Stuff In The News…
FORT MYERS BEACH, Fla. - A Florida town fired its manager after learning the woman he married less than a year ago was an adult video actress, officials say. The town council of Fort Myers Beach voted unanimously to terminate the contract of manager Scott Janke, 55, and then held a meeting Wednesday night to explain the move to residents, the Fort Myers (Fla.) New-Press reports. “I’m very puzzled about the need for emergency action since our manager has been married since October,” said resident Pat Smith. “What I don’t also understand is why it matters so much what the spouse is doing so long as it’s legal.” Janke’s wife, who acts under the screen name Jazelle Moore, refers to herself as a “priestess of the erotic arts” on her Web site. The town council says her profession brings an inappropriate and negative image to a place that prides itself on being family-friendly.
July is…
…Air Conditioning Appreciation Month…Blueberries Month…Cell Phone Courtesy Month…Family Reunion Month…Herbal/Prescription Awareness Month…Nat’l Doghouse Repair Month…Nat’l Grilling, Nat’l Hot Dog, Nat’l Horseradish, and Nat’l Ice Cream Month…Smart Irrigation Month…Social Wellness Month…Tour de France Month…Women’s Motorcycle Month…
Week of July 23…
Lumberjack Week—for the real ones, not the NAU ones
July 26…
207 days so far this year…158 days remain in 2009
Parent’s Day
*India: Vijays Divas [end of the Kargil War]
*Cuba: Day of National Rebellion [1953]
*Liberia: Independence Day [1847] from US
BIRTHS ON THIS DAY…
1796
George Catlin US, author/painter of American Indian scenes
1805
Constantine Brumidi artist (Myrtle Murdock)
1829
Auguste Beernaert Belgium (Nobel Peace Prize-1909)
1856
George Bernard Shaw Dublin Ire, dramatist (Pygmalion-Nobel 1925)
1875
Dr Carl Gustav Jung Switzerland, founded analytic psychology
1892
Pearl S Buck US, novelist (The Good Earth)
1894
Aldous Huxley England, author (Brave New World)
1902
Gracie Allen SF Calif, Mrs George Burns/comedian (Burns & Allen)
1928
Stanley Kubrick director
1943
Mick Jagger Rolling Stone
1956
Dorothy Hamill Olympic Hall of Famer
1959
Kevin Spacey Academy Award-winning actor
IT HAPPENED ON THIS DAY…
1775
Benjamin Franklin becomes 1st Postmaster General
1788
New York, the 11th state, entered the United States of America this day
1848
1st Woman's Rights Convention (Senecca Falls NY)
1887
1st Esperanto book published
1908
Federal Bureau of Investigation established
1947
Department of Defense established
1956
Egypt seizes Suez Canal
Category Puzzle
Each of the three words can be made into a common word or two word phrase
Example: play, beef, rocky
Answer: ground
1. Back, short, watch
2. Blue, cake, cottage
3. Stool, powder, ball
4. Big, soil, table
5. Made, cuff, left
6. Motion, poke, down
7. Light, hot, check
8. Light, hot, back
9. Wood, liquor, luck
10. Drop, off, stand
*Bonus: car, top, ice
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Answers
1. Stop
2. Cheese
3. Foot
4. Top
5. Hand
6. Slow
7. Stop
8. Flash
9. Hard
10. Kick
*Bonus: box
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A change in Health Care sounds like it is in trouble, yet again. As I have gotten older, I have started to add to my doctors—always had a primary care person, a dentist, and an ophthalmologist. Now I have a dermatologist, a urologist, an allergist. My insurance has been BCBS-Federal since I started working for the BIA. This year the plan raised its co-pay from $15 to $20 dollars. The deductible needed to get a break on tests also was raised a lot. The Feds have one of the best coverage programs anywhere in the US. One allergy medicine went from $12/month to $25/month…same medicine. And it’s a generic. One test the eye doctor runs used to cost me $8. This year it was $105—I haven’t met my annual deductable this year. Some people reading this are saying, “Damn, wish my medicines and visits were that cheap.” I understand that. I’m just saying that some medicines doubled in price and the office visit went up 25%. And I am one of the lucky ones.
All those people that don’t think we need a change in our health care system need to get a life. Each time I visit a doctor, I ask about their side of this debate. They don’t talk a lot about it, but do say they are doing more paperwork and are being paid less each year. Their rent goes up. Their employee wages go up. Their cost of running an office goes up. They say that the percentage of these rising costs are not met by any of the insurance companies. My premium goes up, my co-pay goes up, my deductable goes up, and the physicians don’t seem to be getting their fair share of this. The medical community is in a catch 22. If they don’t accept certain plans, they don’t have patients. If they accept the plans, they say they don’t get fair compensation. I want a medical care provider who is excited about fixing what is wrong with me. I don’t need a provider who feels the insurance compensation isn’t adequate for his work. I want a provider who is up on the latest information, not one who can’t afford to keep up to date. I have been in an emergency room twice in my life. Both times were fairly serious and led to hospitalization. Each time I saw many people waiting to be seen. I know too many people who use the Emergency Room as their Primary Care Physician. This country needs a health care system that fairly compensates providers, provides good care to the sick, gives compensation for regular screenings, and charges patients fairly and equally. I heard that one proposal was that every American paid 1% of their gross income. I’m paying more than that now. Maybe that would solve our health care system problems.
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Random Facts…
Because metal was scarce, the Oscars given out during World War II were made of wood.
Chocolate syrup was used for blood in the famous 45 second shower scene in Alfred Hitchcock's movie, Psycho, which actually took 7 days to shoot.
Chance that a U.S. Gulf War veteran still suffers from “Gulf War illness,” according to a federal panel: 1 in 4
Crazy Stuff In The News…
FORT MYERS BEACH, Fla. - A Florida town fired its manager after learning the woman he married less than a year ago was an adult video actress, officials say. The town council of Fort Myers Beach voted unanimously to terminate the contract of manager Scott Janke, 55, and then held a meeting Wednesday night to explain the move to residents, the Fort Myers (Fla.) New-Press reports. “I’m very puzzled about the need for emergency action since our manager has been married since October,” said resident Pat Smith. “What I don’t also understand is why it matters so much what the spouse is doing so long as it’s legal.” Janke’s wife, who acts under the screen name Jazelle Moore, refers to herself as a “priestess of the erotic arts” on her Web site. The town council says her profession brings an inappropriate and negative image to a place that prides itself on being family-friendly.
July is…
…Air Conditioning Appreciation Month…Blueberries Month…Cell Phone Courtesy Month…Family Reunion Month…Herbal/Prescription Awareness Month…Nat’l Doghouse Repair Month…Nat’l Grilling, Nat’l Hot Dog, Nat’l Horseradish, and Nat’l Ice Cream Month…Smart Irrigation Month…Social Wellness Month…Tour de France Month…Women’s Motorcycle Month…
Week of July 23…
Lumberjack Week—for the real ones, not the NAU ones
July 26…
207 days so far this year…158 days remain in 2009
Parent’s Day
*India: Vijays Divas [end of the Kargil War]
*Cuba: Day of National Rebellion [1953]
*Liberia: Independence Day [1847] from US
BIRTHS ON THIS DAY…
1796
George Catlin US, author/painter of American Indian scenes
1805
Constantine Brumidi artist (Myrtle Murdock)
1829
Auguste Beernaert Belgium (Nobel Peace Prize-1909)
1856
George Bernard Shaw Dublin Ire, dramatist (Pygmalion-Nobel 1925)
1875
Dr Carl Gustav Jung Switzerland, founded analytic psychology
1892
Pearl S Buck US, novelist (The Good Earth)
1894
Aldous Huxley England, author (Brave New World)
1902
Gracie Allen SF Calif, Mrs George Burns/comedian (Burns & Allen)
1928
Stanley Kubrick director
1943
Mick Jagger Rolling Stone
1956
Dorothy Hamill Olympic Hall of Famer
1959
Kevin Spacey Academy Award-winning actor
IT HAPPENED ON THIS DAY…
1775
Benjamin Franklin becomes 1st Postmaster General
1788
New York, the 11th state, entered the United States of America this day
1848
1st Woman's Rights Convention (Senecca Falls NY)
1887
1st Esperanto book published
1908
Federal Bureau of Investigation established
1947
Department of Defense established
1956
Egypt seizes Suez Canal
Category Puzzle
Each of the three words can be made into a common word or two word phrase
Example: play, beef, rocky
Answer: ground
1. Back, short, watch
2. Blue, cake, cottage
3. Stool, powder, ball
4. Big, soil, table
5. Made, cuff, left
6. Motion, poke, down
7. Light, hot, check
8. Light, hot, back
9. Wood, liquor, luck
10. Drop, off, stand
*Bonus: car, top, ice
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Answers
1. Stop
2. Cheese
3. Foot
4. Top
5. Hand
6. Slow
7. Stop
8. Flash
9. Hard
10. Kick
*Bonus: box
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I was very lazy today. I stayed up way to late watching movies last night. The movies were good, but I wasn’t worth much most of the day. I’ve always been one of those who has a scheduled bed time—around 11 and who get up around 6. When I stay up until 3, I still wake up at 6 but don’t operate very well. I knew this would happen, but did it anyway. The movies were good and I really didn’t have a lot to do today anyway.
President Obama continues to be full of surprises. At a press conference the other day he answered a question on the professor arrested for disorderly conduct. I was surprised when he said the police acted ‘stupidly’. Instead of Health Care—the purpose of the press conference—being in the headlines, it was this comment. He did preface his comments that he didn’t know all the facts and that the professor was a friend of his. Even so, I was surprised by his comment. The last time we had such a eloquent speaking President I was in grade school. Today, Obama went to the Press Room at the White House and told the press that he had talked to his friend, and to the officer involved. Both, he said seem to be good people. Both seem to have overreacted to the situation. He said that he wanted people to have an open dialogue regarding race relations in this country. He also said he could have chosen his words more carefully. Then he invited the Prof and the Cop to the White House for a beer. Good for him. Our President is human. Our President misspeaks. Our President is able to admit a mistake. Our President works to straighten out misconceptions. This is one of the good changes he brings to our country.
We all have to remember that many of the ‘radio voices’ on the far right have to have ratings to stay on the air. This may be why they don’t want this story to die. They also don’t want the birth certificate issue to die. They seem to make so many outrageous statements. These ‘voices’ are seldom if ever held accountable. Obama is not afraid of accountability. Obama is not afraid to bring change. He still has my support.
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Random Fact
There are more chickens than people in the world.
July is…
…Air Conditioning Appreciation Month…Blueberries Month…Cell Phone Courtesy Month…Family Reunion Month…Herbal/Prescription Awareness Month…Nat’l Doghouse Repair Month…Nat’l Grilling, Nat’l Hot Dog, Nat’l Horseradish, and Nat’l Ice Cream Month…Smart Irrigation Month…Social Wellness Month…Tour de France Month…Women’s Motorcycle Month…
Week of July 23
Lumberjack Week—for the real ones, not the NAU ones
July 25—206 days so far this year…159 days remain in 2009
National Day of the Cowboy
*Inca: Ilyap’a Festival [God of Weather]
*Puerto Rico: Constitution Day [1952]
*Sussex, England: Ebernoe [Sheep] Horn Fair & Festival—since 16th c.
BIRTHS ON THIS DAY…
1884
Davidson Black Canada, doctor of anatomy (identified Peking Man)
1894
Walter Brennan Swampscott Mass, actror (Real McCoys, At Gun Point)
1920
Rosalind Franklin British physical chemist whose groundbreaking research led to the discovery of the double-helix structure of DNA
1924
Estelle Getty NYC, actress (Sophia Petrillo-Golden Girls)
1927
Midge Decter St Paul Minn, anti woman's lib (Liberated Woman and Other Americans)
1954
Walter Payton NFL running back (Chicago Bears)
1967
Matt LeBlanc actor: Friends
IT HAPPENED ON THIS DAY…
1729
North Carolina becomes royal colony
1775
Maryland issues currency depicting George III trampling Magna Carta
1866
US Grant named 1st general of Army
1868
Territory of Wyoming created
1871
Carrousel patented by Wilhelm Schneider, Davenport, Iowa
1895
Pierre Curie marries fellow chemist Marie Sklodowska.
1917
The exotic dancer Mata Hari is sentenced to execution by firing squad by a French court for spying on Germany's behalf during World War I.
1965
Bob Dylan appeared on stage at the Newport Jazz Festival with an electric guitar—starts Folk-Rock Era.
1978
Lesley Brown gave birth to the world's first test tube baby ( in-vitro fertilization ), Louise, delivered by caesarean section in Oldham, England.
1983
1st nonhuman primate (baboon) conceived in a lab dish, San Antonio
1992
25th Olympic Summer games opens in Barcelona, Spain
1999
American cyclist Lance Armstrong wins the Tour de France, bicycle racing's top event, less than three years after being diagnosed with testicular cancer.
Word Puzzle from NPR Sunday Puzzler…1987
Rearrange the letter in each word to make a new word starting with V.
EX: SAVE
Answers: VASE
1. EVEN
2. IVAN
3. RIVAL
4. DIVAN
5. CAVEAT
6. LOVELY
7. IRVING
8. DEVOTE
9. COVERT
10. LATVIAN
• Bonus: OBSERVE
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Answers:
1. VEER
2. VAIN
3. VIRAL
4. VIAND
5. VACATE
6. VOLLEY
7. VIRGIN
8. VETOED
9. VECTOR
10. VALIANT
* Bonus: VERBOSE
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President Obama continues to be full of surprises. At a press conference the other day he answered a question on the professor arrested for disorderly conduct. I was surprised when he said the police acted ‘stupidly’. Instead of Health Care—the purpose of the press conference—being in the headlines, it was this comment. He did preface his comments that he didn’t know all the facts and that the professor was a friend of his. Even so, I was surprised by his comment. The last time we had such a eloquent speaking President I was in grade school. Today, Obama went to the Press Room at the White House and told the press that he had talked to his friend, and to the officer involved. Both, he said seem to be good people. Both seem to have overreacted to the situation. He said that he wanted people to have an open dialogue regarding race relations in this country. He also said he could have chosen his words more carefully. Then he invited the Prof and the Cop to the White House for a beer. Good for him. Our President is human. Our President misspeaks. Our President is able to admit a mistake. Our President works to straighten out misconceptions. This is one of the good changes he brings to our country.
We all have to remember that many of the ‘radio voices’ on the far right have to have ratings to stay on the air. This may be why they don’t want this story to die. They also don’t want the birth certificate issue to die. They seem to make so many outrageous statements. These ‘voices’ are seldom if ever held accountable. Obama is not afraid of accountability. Obama is not afraid to bring change. He still has my support.
<> <> <> <> <> <>
Random Fact
There are more chickens than people in the world.
July is…
…Air Conditioning Appreciation Month…Blueberries Month…Cell Phone Courtesy Month…Family Reunion Month…Herbal/Prescription Awareness Month…Nat’l Doghouse Repair Month…Nat’l Grilling, Nat’l Hot Dog, Nat’l Horseradish, and Nat’l Ice Cream Month…Smart Irrigation Month…Social Wellness Month…Tour de France Month…Women’s Motorcycle Month…
Week of July 23
Lumberjack Week—for the real ones, not the NAU ones
July 25—206 days so far this year…159 days remain in 2009
National Day of the Cowboy
*Inca: Ilyap’a Festival [God of Weather]
*Puerto Rico: Constitution Day [1952]
*Sussex, England: Ebernoe [Sheep] Horn Fair & Festival—since 16th c.
BIRTHS ON THIS DAY…
1884
Davidson Black Canada, doctor of anatomy (identified Peking Man)
1894
Walter Brennan Swampscott Mass, actror (Real McCoys, At Gun Point)
1920
Rosalind Franklin British physical chemist whose groundbreaking research led to the discovery of the double-helix structure of DNA
1924
Estelle Getty NYC, actress (Sophia Petrillo-Golden Girls)
1927
Midge Decter St Paul Minn, anti woman's lib (Liberated Woman and Other Americans)
1954
Walter Payton NFL running back (Chicago Bears)
1967
Matt LeBlanc actor: Friends
IT HAPPENED ON THIS DAY…
1729
North Carolina becomes royal colony
1775
Maryland issues currency depicting George III trampling Magna Carta
1866
US Grant named 1st general of Army
1868
Territory of Wyoming created
1871
Carrousel patented by Wilhelm Schneider, Davenport, Iowa
1895
Pierre Curie marries fellow chemist Marie Sklodowska.
1917
The exotic dancer Mata Hari is sentenced to execution by firing squad by a French court for spying on Germany's behalf during World War I.
1965
Bob Dylan appeared on stage at the Newport Jazz Festival with an electric guitar—starts Folk-Rock Era.
1978
Lesley Brown gave birth to the world's first test tube baby ( in-vitro fertilization ), Louise, delivered by caesarean section in Oldham, England.
1983
1st nonhuman primate (baboon) conceived in a lab dish, San Antonio
1992
25th Olympic Summer games opens in Barcelona, Spain
1999
American cyclist Lance Armstrong wins the Tour de France, bicycle racing's top event, less than three years after being diagnosed with testicular cancer.
Word Puzzle from NPR Sunday Puzzler…1987
Rearrange the letter in each word to make a new word starting with V.
EX: SAVE
Answers: VASE
1. EVEN
2. IVAN
3. RIVAL
4. DIVAN
5. CAVEAT
6. LOVELY
7. IRVING
8. DEVOTE
9. COVERT
10. LATVIAN
• Bonus: OBSERVE
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<>
<>
<>
<>
<>
<>
<>
<>
<>
<>
<>
Answers:
1. VEER
2. VAIN
3. VIRAL
4. VIAND
5. VACATE
6. VOLLEY
7. VIRGIN
8. VETOED
9. VECTOR
10. VALIANT
* Bonus: VERBOSE
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Pita
Our lunch group found a very cool lunch place today. It’s the Pita Jungle. Great food and lots of it for the price. The cheese and fruit plate would have been enough for two. My gyro was full of meat. The humus was very mild and very good. The Pita bread was fresh and very tasty. Reminded me of Egypt. I know it should remind me of Greece, but I haven’t been to Greece and at least for me, at this time, Pita bread is Egypt. This hummus was much milder than the hummus of Egypt. The place is located next to New Frontiers Food Market and is surrounded by numerous empty buildings. The economic crisis seems to have slowed this new center’s growth. During the noon hour, the Jungle had a steady flow of people in and out. It is an AZ chain with about a dozen locations. Well worth a stop for some good food.
A friend stopped by on the way back from Vegas to Tuba. There was an education conference on Reading this week. It seems that downtown Vegas is being rebuilt with lots of new casinos. The strip is also being added to. Soon it will be to Henderson. The strange, or sad, part is that while there appears to be lots of construction---fences, big earth moving machines, and piles of construction materials—there are very few workers. Maybe it’s because it is really hot in Vegas in July. I fear it is the busted economy. Lots of Natives usually work over there, and most I know are back on the Rez, awaiting some work when the building starts up again.
My hair cut lady finally moved to another shop. She’s been cutting my hair forever. A few years ago she moved to a shop in downtown Flagstaff. I hated it. The shop was nice, everyone was friendly, but, as I’ve said before, finding a parking place made the hassle of getting a haircut was made even worse. She has moved into a strip mall. Now it will be much easier to get a haircut. With no parking hassle, I won’t dread the trip nearly as much. I told Teri how happy I was that she had moved—because of the parking—and she said she was surprised how many of her regulars were saying the same thing. Duh...
Today would have been my father’s 95th birthday. My brother and I had a nice talk today. We had both been thinking about how good our father was to our mom and to us. He had been in poor health the last five years of his 80 years. It was a good thing that he didn’t have to suffer. He worked hard to make sure my mom was taken care of after he was gone. He did a very good job at that. She had a huge monthly bill at her luxury nursing home for almost three years. My brother and I never had to dip into savings to pay for any of it. When my mom passed, there was still money for both of us. While we never ‘kept up with the Joneses’ we had a good life and never were in need. Actually we were far from any need. It was good to remember the good times. We both needed the conversation and today was a good day to do it.
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Random Fact
The first FAX machine was patented in 1843, 33 years before Alexander Graham Bell demonstrated the telephone.
July is…
…Air Conditioning Appreciation Month…Blueberries Month…Cell Phone Courtesy Month…Family Reunion Month…Herbal/Prescription Awareness Month…Nat’l Doghouse Repair Month…Nat’l Grilling, Nat’l Hot Dog, Nat’l Horseradish, and Nat’l Ice Cream Month…Smart Irrigation Month…Social Wellness Month…Tour de France Month…Women’s Motorcycle Month…
Week of July 23
Lumberjack Week—for the real ones, not the NAU ones
July 24—205 days so far this year…160 days remain in 2009
Cousins Day
National Drive-Thru Day
National Tequila Day—US Only
Tell An Old Joke Day
*Ecuador: Simon Bolivar Day
*Utah: Pioneer Day [1847]
*Denmark: Midsummer Day
BIRTHS ON THIS DAY…
1783
Simon Bolivar freed 6 Latin American republics from Spanish rule
1802
Alexandre Dumas France, author (3 Musketeers)
1895
Robert Graves England, poet/historical novelist (I, Claudius)
1898
Amelia Earhart into the wild blue yonder
1900
Zelda Fitzgerald 1st wife of F Scott
1920
Bella Abzug (Rep-D-NY)
1936
Ruth Buzzi Westerly RI, comedienne (Laugh-In)
1951
Lynda Carter Phoenix Az, Miss USA/actress (Wonder Woman)
1964
Barry Bonds baseball
1969
Jennifer Lopez actress
IT HAPPENED ON THIS DAY…
1534
Jacques Cartier erects a thirty-three foot high cross on a small island in Gaspe Harbor, Quebec. He then claims the area for France.
1683
1st settlers from Germany to US, leave aboard the Concord
1701
The French trader Antoine de la Mothe, Sieur de Cadillac, founds Detroit (originally "La Ville d'Etroit," or "city of the strait") to control the fur trade in the region
1704
Great Britain takes Gibraltar from Spain
1847
Brigham Young & his Mormon followers arrive at Salt Lake City, UT
1934
1st ptarmigan hatched & reared in captivity, Ithaca, NY
1967
Race riot in Cambridge Maryland .
2005
Lance Armstrong wins a record seventh consecutive Tour de France, cycling's premier event.
Word Puzzle from NPR Sunday Puzzler…1987
Each answer here is a familiar two-word phrase with two consecutive M’s inside it—one ending the first word, the other starting the second word.
EX: Cause of computer breakdown
Answers: system malfunction
1. Head of a marching band
2. Daily drink that’s low in fat
3. Athletic contest held in a pool
4. 1999 ‘Star Wars’ episode with ‘The’
5. 1960’s civil rights protest, involving walking from one city to another
6. Leader of the Doors
7. Old movie cowboy
8. ‘Cheers’ bartender
9. In the title of a best selling book, “Men Are …”
10. Branch of physics dealing with atoms and molecules
• Bonus: Tractor and thresher, for example
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Answers:
1. Drum Major
2. Skim milk
3. Swim meet
4. “Phantom Menace’
5. Freedom March
6. Jim Morrison
7. Tom Mix
8. Sam Malone
9. From Mars
10. Quantum mechanics
* Bonus: Thom McAn
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A friend stopped by on the way back from Vegas to Tuba. There was an education conference on Reading this week. It seems that downtown Vegas is being rebuilt with lots of new casinos. The strip is also being added to. Soon it will be to Henderson. The strange, or sad, part is that while there appears to be lots of construction---fences, big earth moving machines, and piles of construction materials—there are very few workers. Maybe it’s because it is really hot in Vegas in July. I fear it is the busted economy. Lots of Natives usually work over there, and most I know are back on the Rez, awaiting some work when the building starts up again.
My hair cut lady finally moved to another shop. She’s been cutting my hair forever. A few years ago she moved to a shop in downtown Flagstaff. I hated it. The shop was nice, everyone was friendly, but, as I’ve said before, finding a parking place made the hassle of getting a haircut was made even worse. She has moved into a strip mall. Now it will be much easier to get a haircut. With no parking hassle, I won’t dread the trip nearly as much. I told Teri how happy I was that she had moved—because of the parking—and she said she was surprised how many of her regulars were saying the same thing. Duh...
Today would have been my father’s 95th birthday. My brother and I had a nice talk today. We had both been thinking about how good our father was to our mom and to us. He had been in poor health the last five years of his 80 years. It was a good thing that he didn’t have to suffer. He worked hard to make sure my mom was taken care of after he was gone. He did a very good job at that. She had a huge monthly bill at her luxury nursing home for almost three years. My brother and I never had to dip into savings to pay for any of it. When my mom passed, there was still money for both of us. While we never ‘kept up with the Joneses’ we had a good life and never were in need. Actually we were far from any need. It was good to remember the good times. We both needed the conversation and today was a good day to do it.
<> <> <> <> <> <>
Random Fact
The first FAX machine was patented in 1843, 33 years before Alexander Graham Bell demonstrated the telephone.
July is…
…Air Conditioning Appreciation Month…Blueberries Month…Cell Phone Courtesy Month…Family Reunion Month…Herbal/Prescription Awareness Month…Nat’l Doghouse Repair Month…Nat’l Grilling, Nat’l Hot Dog, Nat’l Horseradish, and Nat’l Ice Cream Month…Smart Irrigation Month…Social Wellness Month…Tour de France Month…Women’s Motorcycle Month…
Week of July 23
Lumberjack Week—for the real ones, not the NAU ones
July 24—205 days so far this year…160 days remain in 2009
Cousins Day
National Drive-Thru Day
National Tequila Day—US Only
Tell An Old Joke Day
*Ecuador: Simon Bolivar Day
*Utah: Pioneer Day [1847]
*Denmark: Midsummer Day
BIRTHS ON THIS DAY…
1783
Simon Bolivar freed 6 Latin American republics from Spanish rule
1802
Alexandre Dumas France, author (3 Musketeers)
1895
Robert Graves England, poet/historical novelist (I, Claudius)
1898
Amelia Earhart into the wild blue yonder
1900
Zelda Fitzgerald 1st wife of F Scott
1920
Bella Abzug (Rep-D-NY)
1936
Ruth Buzzi Westerly RI, comedienne (Laugh-In)
1951
Lynda Carter Phoenix Az, Miss USA/actress (Wonder Woman)
1964
Barry Bonds baseball
1969
Jennifer Lopez actress
IT HAPPENED ON THIS DAY…
1534
Jacques Cartier erects a thirty-three foot high cross on a small island in Gaspe Harbor, Quebec. He then claims the area for France.
1683
1st settlers from Germany to US, leave aboard the Concord
1701
The French trader Antoine de la Mothe, Sieur de Cadillac, founds Detroit (originally "La Ville d'Etroit," or "city of the strait") to control the fur trade in the region
1704
Great Britain takes Gibraltar from Spain
1847
Brigham Young & his Mormon followers arrive at Salt Lake City, UT
1934
1st ptarmigan hatched & reared in captivity, Ithaca, NY
1967
Race riot in Cambridge Maryland .
2005
Lance Armstrong wins a record seventh consecutive Tour de France, cycling's premier event.
Word Puzzle from NPR Sunday Puzzler…1987
Each answer here is a familiar two-word phrase with two consecutive M’s inside it—one ending the first word, the other starting the second word.
EX: Cause of computer breakdown
Answers: system malfunction
1. Head of a marching band
2. Daily drink that’s low in fat
3. Athletic contest held in a pool
4. 1999 ‘Star Wars’ episode with ‘The’
5. 1960’s civil rights protest, involving walking from one city to another
6. Leader of the Doors
7. Old movie cowboy
8. ‘Cheers’ bartender
9. In the title of a best selling book, “Men Are …”
10. Branch of physics dealing with atoms and molecules
• Bonus: Tractor and thresher, for example
<>
<>
<>
<>
<>
<>
<>
<>
<>
<>
<>
<>
<>
<>
Answers:
1. Drum Major
2. Skim milk
3. Swim meet
4. “Phantom Menace’
5. Freedom March
6. Jim Morrison
7. Tom Mix
8. Sam Malone
9. From Mars
10. Quantum mechanics
* Bonus: Thom McAn
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Thunder
We made it to 80° here, with clouds but no rain. Then just as Obama was answering questions about health care, the sky opened up a dropped a huge amount of rain. It got dark and the thunder and lightning was rampant. I sure hope that was just monsoon weather and not some forecast of a better health plan.
Every president since Truman has tried to reform health care. Medicare was the only real change. I sure hope Obama can do something. I still have a few years before Medicare kicks in. While my Government Plan is good, it ain’t cheap, and this year all the deductibles went way up. So it costs more to do routine things and to get meds. I know I am one of the lucky ones. My PCP charges $120 for a routine visit, and I only have to pay $20 while last year it was $15 and he was charging #120. If I didn’t have this insurance, I would be going into debt. I don’t have a lot of friends who were not Federal employees or Natives. The few I have are paying a whole lot more than I do each month, they pay a whole lot more for meds. I was picking up my blood pressure meds the other day, and the person in front of me, probably 45 years old, got one prescription. The total he had to pay was $345. My blood pressure medicine is $1.17 every month. I also take two allergy meds that cost me $25/month each. I think that is outrageous until I see what others are paying. I’m all for paying my fair share, but I don’t like watching all the expensive ads that the pharmaceutical industry is making, and I really don’t like the bottom line profit that the insurance companies are making. There has to be a better way.
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Random Fact
A thousand bytes make a kilobyte.
July is…
…Air Conditioning Appreciation Month…Blueberries Month…Cell Phone Courtesy Month…Family Reunion Month…Herbal/Prescription Awareness Month…Nat’l Doghouse Repair Month…Nat’l Grilling, Nat’l Hot Dog, Nat’l Horseradish, and Nat’l Ice Cream Month…Smart Irrigation Month…Social Wellness Month…Tour de France Month…Women’s Motorcycle Month…
Week of July 23
Lumberjack Week—for the real ones, not the NAU ones
July 23—204 days so far this year…161 days remain in 2009
All American Soap Box Derby Day
Gorgeous Grandma Day
Hot Enough for You Day
*Egypt: Revolution Day [1952]
BIRTHS ON THIS DAY…
1892
Haile Selassie emperor of Ethiopia
1894
Arthur Treacher Brighton England, announcer
1914
Charles S. Frazier Jr., Brunswick, Maine Great father and husband
1915
Vincent Sardi, Jr. restaurateur: Sardi’s Restaurant, New York, NY
1919
Pee Wee Reese Hall of Fame shortstop (Dodgers)
1925
Gloria De Haven LA, actress
1936
-Anthony M Kennedy Calif, supreme court justice
-Don Drysdale Van Nuys Calif, pitcher (LA Dodgers-Cy Young 1962)
1947
-Don Imus radio personality
-Spencer Christian weatherman
1961
Woody Harrelson Midland Tx, actor
1972
Marlon Wayans writer, actor: The Wayans Bros
IT HAPPENED ON THIS DAY…
636
Arabs gain control of most of Palestine from the Byzantine Empire
1298
Jews are massacred at Wurzburg Germany
1548
Mary, Queen of Scots, at the age of 6, leaves Scotland for her arranged future marriage to the French dauphin Francis
1715
The first lighthouse in America was authorized for construction at Little Brewster Island, Massachusetts.
1798
Napoleon captures Alexandria, Egypt
1803
Robert Emmett's insurrected in Dublin
1904
Ice cream cone created by Charles E Menches during La Purchase Expo
1940
"Blitz" begins, all-night raid on London
1958
1st 4 women named to peerage in House of Lords
1967
Pirate Radio Swinging Scotland closes down for financial reasons
1976
4,000 delegates from the Pennsylvania chapter of the American Legion met at the Bellevue-Stratford Hotel in Philadelphia for a four-day gathering. Several days after the event ended, many attendees became sick. By August 2, 22 people were dead and hundreds connected to the gathering were experiencing pneumonia-like symptoms.
1980
River of No Return Wilderness Area designated by Jimmy Carter
2000
Tiger Woods today became the youngest player to win a career Grand Slam
Word Puzzle from NPR Sunday Puzzler…1987
Every sentence below contains two blanks. The word that goes in the first blank has a long A sound [like in BAKE] somewhere in it. Change that long A to an /oi/ sound [like in boy] to get a new word that goes in the second blank to complete the sentence.
EX: No Plain _____ was allowed to _____ the top sorority.
Answers: Jane / join
1. The teenager downtown said “See you _____!”…but continued to _____ on the street corner.
2. In the debater’s _____ to make a clever reply, he is _____ by his own petard.
3. The apprentice house _____ needed a helpful _____ on how to hold a brush.
4. The blind chef read a recipe in _____ on how to _____ a chicken.
5. The riot police _____ the demonstrators, which immediately made their eyes _____.
6. At the Victorian-style restaurant, there was a _____ change of the _____ underneath each place setting.
7. In the Miss America Pageant, self-composure is very important, so it _____ to have _____.
8. The psychoanalyst’s nerves were _____ from studying too much _____
9. The chemistry building at _____ University is installing a new furnace in its _____ room
10. A film thriller that ends with a _____ scene would not be my first _____ tonight.
• Bonus: ???
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Answers:
1. Later / loiter
2. Haste / hoist
3. Painter/ pointer
4. Braille / broil
5. Maced / moist
6. Daily / doily
7. Pays / poise
8. Frayed / Freud
9. Baylor / boiler
10. Chase / choice
* Bonus: ???
<> <> <> <> <> <> <>
Every president since Truman has tried to reform health care. Medicare was the only real change. I sure hope Obama can do something. I still have a few years before Medicare kicks in. While my Government Plan is good, it ain’t cheap, and this year all the deductibles went way up. So it costs more to do routine things and to get meds. I know I am one of the lucky ones. My PCP charges $120 for a routine visit, and I only have to pay $20 while last year it was $15 and he was charging #120. If I didn’t have this insurance, I would be going into debt. I don’t have a lot of friends who were not Federal employees or Natives. The few I have are paying a whole lot more than I do each month, they pay a whole lot more for meds. I was picking up my blood pressure meds the other day, and the person in front of me, probably 45 years old, got one prescription. The total he had to pay was $345. My blood pressure medicine is $1.17 every month. I also take two allergy meds that cost me $25/month each. I think that is outrageous until I see what others are paying. I’m all for paying my fair share, but I don’t like watching all the expensive ads that the pharmaceutical industry is making, and I really don’t like the bottom line profit that the insurance companies are making. There has to be a better way.
<> <> <> <> <> <>
Random Fact
A thousand bytes make a kilobyte.
July is…
…Air Conditioning Appreciation Month…Blueberries Month…Cell Phone Courtesy Month…Family Reunion Month…Herbal/Prescription Awareness Month…Nat’l Doghouse Repair Month…Nat’l Grilling, Nat’l Hot Dog, Nat’l Horseradish, and Nat’l Ice Cream Month…Smart Irrigation Month…Social Wellness Month…Tour de France Month…Women’s Motorcycle Month…
Week of July 23
Lumberjack Week—for the real ones, not the NAU ones
July 23—204 days so far this year…161 days remain in 2009
All American Soap Box Derby Day
Gorgeous Grandma Day
Hot Enough for You Day
*Egypt: Revolution Day [1952]
BIRTHS ON THIS DAY…
1892
Haile Selassie emperor of Ethiopia
1894
Arthur Treacher Brighton England, announcer
1914
Charles S. Frazier Jr., Brunswick, Maine Great father and husband
1915
Vincent Sardi, Jr. restaurateur: Sardi’s Restaurant, New York, NY
1919
Pee Wee Reese Hall of Fame shortstop (Dodgers)
1925
Gloria De Haven LA, actress
1936
-Anthony M Kennedy Calif, supreme court justice
-Don Drysdale Van Nuys Calif, pitcher (LA Dodgers-Cy Young 1962)
1947
-Don Imus radio personality
-Spencer Christian weatherman
1961
Woody Harrelson Midland Tx, actor
1972
Marlon Wayans writer, actor: The Wayans Bros
IT HAPPENED ON THIS DAY…
636
Arabs gain control of most of Palestine from the Byzantine Empire
1298
Jews are massacred at Wurzburg Germany
1548
Mary, Queen of Scots, at the age of 6, leaves Scotland for her arranged future marriage to the French dauphin Francis
1715
The first lighthouse in America was authorized for construction at Little Brewster Island, Massachusetts.
1798
Napoleon captures Alexandria, Egypt
1803
Robert Emmett's insurrected in Dublin
1904
Ice cream cone created by Charles E Menches during La Purchase Expo
1940
"Blitz" begins, all-night raid on London
1958
1st 4 women named to peerage in House of Lords
1967
Pirate Radio Swinging Scotland closes down for financial reasons
1976
4,000 delegates from the Pennsylvania chapter of the American Legion met at the Bellevue-Stratford Hotel in Philadelphia for a four-day gathering. Several days after the event ended, many attendees became sick. By August 2, 22 people were dead and hundreds connected to the gathering were experiencing pneumonia-like symptoms.
1980
River of No Return Wilderness Area designated by Jimmy Carter
2000
Tiger Woods today became the youngest player to win a career Grand Slam
Word Puzzle from NPR Sunday Puzzler…1987
Every sentence below contains two blanks. The word that goes in the first blank has a long A sound [like in BAKE] somewhere in it. Change that long A to an /oi/ sound [like in boy] to get a new word that goes in the second blank to complete the sentence.
EX: No Plain _____ was allowed to _____ the top sorority.
Answers: Jane / join
1. The teenager downtown said “See you _____!”…but continued to _____ on the street corner.
2. In the debater’s _____ to make a clever reply, he is _____ by his own petard.
3. The apprentice house _____ needed a helpful _____ on how to hold a brush.
4. The blind chef read a recipe in _____ on how to _____ a chicken.
5. The riot police _____ the demonstrators, which immediately made their eyes _____.
6. At the Victorian-style restaurant, there was a _____ change of the _____ underneath each place setting.
7. In the Miss America Pageant, self-composure is very important, so it _____ to have _____.
8. The psychoanalyst’s nerves were _____ from studying too much _____
9. The chemistry building at _____ University is installing a new furnace in its _____ room
10. A film thriller that ends with a _____ scene would not be my first _____ tonight.
• Bonus: ???
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Answers:
1. Later / loiter
2. Haste / hoist
3. Painter/ pointer
4. Braille / broil
5. Maced / moist
6. Daily / doily
7. Pays / poise
8. Frayed / Freud
9. Baylor / boiler
10. Chase / choice
* Bonus: ???
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Attention! For Immediate Release—
I enjoy getting emails. I enjoy reading emails. I even forward many emails to my buddies. Some might even say, I send out too many emails. There are two kinds of emails I never--repeat never--send on. Can you guess what categories these emails fall into?
The first category are those that say I will have bad luck, bad karma, bad vibes, or something else bad will happen if I don’t forward them. The ones I really dislike are the ones that threaten me with a time limit. You must send this on in 4,5, 10 minutes for this to work. This is usually followed by how much good will come based on the number of people I send it to. One person brings 2 minutes of good, five people bring a week of good, 10 people bring a month, 2000 people bring a lifetime of good. Give me a break.
The second category are the ones that send a cheery message, with lots of cute little hearts, cute smiling animals, and dancing animations. These are OK, and are usually creative, until you get to the end. That’s what sets me off. If you agree with all this sugary sentiment, send it back to me so I will know how you feel. If I am really your best friend, you know it already. If I am really in love with you, you know it already. If I really like you a lot, you know it already. And finally, why would anyone send this sugar sweet note to so many people? How many best friends can one have? Note that even Facebook doesn’t call people a Best Friend, only a friend. Also these forwards usually have three or four pages of addresses of people who have received and sent the message. Ever hear of BCC? If you really like, luv, or care about me, call me on the phone or send a personal note just to me.
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Random Fact
The wingspan of a Boeing 747 jet is longer than the Wright Brothers' first flight.
July is…
…Air Conditioning Appreciation Month…Blueberries Month…Cell Phone Courtesy Month…Family Reunion Month…Herbal/Prescription Awareness Month…Nat’l Doghouse Repair Month…Nat’l Grilling, Nat’l Hot Dog, Nat’l Horseradish, and Nat’l Ice Cream Month…Smart Irrigation Month…Social Wellness Month…Tour de France Month…Women’s Motorcycle Month…
Week of July 21
National Baby Food Week
July 22—203 days so far this year…162 days remain in 2009
Health, Happiness through Hypnosis Day
Rat-Catcher’s Day—for Pied Piper of Hamelin
Spoonerism Day
American Poet Day—for Stephen Vincent Benet
*Pakistan: Bank Holiday
*Poland: Liberation Day [1944]
BIRTHS ON THIS DAY…
1822
Gregor Mendel monk/geneticist, discoverer of the laws of heredity
1844
Rev William Archibald Spooner London, invented "spoonerisms"
1849
Emma Lazarus poet ("The New Colossus"-base of Statue of Liberty)
1890
Rose Kennedy mom of JFK, RFK & Ted
1898
Stephen Vincent Benet US, writer (The Devil & Daniel Webster)
1908
Amy Vanderbilt authority on etiquette
1923
Robert Dole (Sen-R-Ks)
1928
Orson Bean actor/comedian
1932
Oscar de la Renta Dom Rep, designer
1940
Alex Trebek Sudbury Ontario, TV game host
1946
Danny Glover actor: Lethal Weapon series
1947
Don Henley drummer (Eagles)
1955
Willem Dafoe actor
IT HAPPENED ON THIS DAY…
1298
English defeat Scots at Battle of Falkirk
1790
The United States enacts a law for the formal regulation of trade with Indians titled "An Act providing for Holding a Treaty or Treaties to Establish Peace with Certain Indian Tribes." It also enacts "An Act to Regulate Trade and Intercourse With the Indian Tribes."
1933
Caterina Jarboro sings "Aida," NYC-1st Black prima donna in US
1942
Gasoline rationing begins in US during WW II
1933
In his monoplane, the Winnie Mae, American aviator Wiley Post completes the first solo around-the-world flight.
Word Puzzle from NPR Sunday Puzzler…1987
For each pair of words below, name an animal that can follow the first word and precede the second one to complete a compound word or a familiar two-word phrase. Note: None of the new words or phrases formed can themselves be animals.
EX: Cash _____ Slip
Answers: cow
1. Dark _____ Laugh
2. Grease _____ Business
3. Copy _____ Nap
4. Hot _____ Paddle
5. Paper _____ Lily
6. Road _____ Wild
7. Pack _____ Race
8. White _____ Ears
9. Silver _____ Trot
10. Literary _____ Hearted
• Bonus: Lone _____ Whistle
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Answers:
1. Horse
2. Monkey
3. Cat
4. Dog
5. Tiger
6. Hog
7. Rat
8. Elephant
9. Fox
10. Lion
* Bonus: Wolf
<> <> <> <> <> <> <>
I enjoy getting emails. I enjoy reading emails. I even forward many emails to my buddies. Some might even say, I send out too many emails. There are two kinds of emails I never--repeat never--send on. Can you guess what categories these emails fall into?
The first category are those that say I will have bad luck, bad karma, bad vibes, or something else bad will happen if I don’t forward them. The ones I really dislike are the ones that threaten me with a time limit. You must send this on in 4,5, 10 minutes for this to work. This is usually followed by how much good will come based on the number of people I send it to. One person brings 2 minutes of good, five people bring a week of good, 10 people bring a month, 2000 people bring a lifetime of good. Give me a break.
The second category are the ones that send a cheery message, with lots of cute little hearts, cute smiling animals, and dancing animations. These are OK, and are usually creative, until you get to the end. That’s what sets me off. If you agree with all this sugary sentiment, send it back to me so I will know how you feel. If I am really your best friend, you know it already. If I am really in love with you, you know it already. If I really like you a lot, you know it already. And finally, why would anyone send this sugar sweet note to so many people? How many best friends can one have? Note that even Facebook doesn’t call people a Best Friend, only a friend. Also these forwards usually have three or four pages of addresses of people who have received and sent the message. Ever hear of BCC? If you really like, luv, or care about me, call me on the phone or send a personal note just to me.
<> <> <> <> <> <>
Random Fact
The wingspan of a Boeing 747 jet is longer than the Wright Brothers' first flight.
July is…
…Air Conditioning Appreciation Month…Blueberries Month…Cell Phone Courtesy Month…Family Reunion Month…Herbal/Prescription Awareness Month…Nat’l Doghouse Repair Month…Nat’l Grilling, Nat’l Hot Dog, Nat’l Horseradish, and Nat’l Ice Cream Month…Smart Irrigation Month…Social Wellness Month…Tour de France Month…Women’s Motorcycle Month…
Week of July 21
National Baby Food Week
July 22—203 days so far this year…162 days remain in 2009
Health, Happiness through Hypnosis Day
Rat-Catcher’s Day—for Pied Piper of Hamelin
Spoonerism Day
American Poet Day—for Stephen Vincent Benet
*Pakistan: Bank Holiday
*Poland: Liberation Day [1944]
BIRTHS ON THIS DAY…
1822
Gregor Mendel monk/geneticist, discoverer of the laws of heredity
1844
Rev William Archibald Spooner London, invented "spoonerisms"
1849
Emma Lazarus poet ("The New Colossus"-base of Statue of Liberty)
1890
Rose Kennedy mom of JFK, RFK & Ted
1898
Stephen Vincent Benet US, writer (The Devil & Daniel Webster)
1908
Amy Vanderbilt authority on etiquette
1923
Robert Dole (Sen-R-Ks)
1928
Orson Bean actor/comedian
1932
Oscar de la Renta Dom Rep, designer
1940
Alex Trebek Sudbury Ontario, TV game host
1946
Danny Glover actor: Lethal Weapon series
1947
Don Henley drummer (Eagles)
1955
Willem Dafoe actor
IT HAPPENED ON THIS DAY…
1298
English defeat Scots at Battle of Falkirk
1790
The United States enacts a law for the formal regulation of trade with Indians titled "An Act providing for Holding a Treaty or Treaties to Establish Peace with Certain Indian Tribes." It also enacts "An Act to Regulate Trade and Intercourse With the Indian Tribes."
1933
Caterina Jarboro sings "Aida," NYC-1st Black prima donna in US
1942
Gasoline rationing begins in US during WW II
1933
In his monoplane, the Winnie Mae, American aviator Wiley Post completes the first solo around-the-world flight.
Word Puzzle from NPR Sunday Puzzler…1987
For each pair of words below, name an animal that can follow the first word and precede the second one to complete a compound word or a familiar two-word phrase. Note: None of the new words or phrases formed can themselves be animals.
EX: Cash _____ Slip
Answers: cow
1. Dark _____ Laugh
2. Grease _____ Business
3. Copy _____ Nap
4. Hot _____ Paddle
5. Paper _____ Lily
6. Road _____ Wild
7. Pack _____ Race
8. White _____ Ears
9. Silver _____ Trot
10. Literary _____ Hearted
• Bonus: Lone _____ Whistle
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Answers:
1. Horse
2. Monkey
3. Cat
4. Dog
5. Tiger
6. Hog
7. Rat
8. Elephant
9. Fox
10. Lion
* Bonus: Wolf
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Captued
What a mess in Afghanistan. The Taliban captured an American soldier. Now, what will happen? The Taliban knows that we have captured theirs, we have tortured theirs, we have water boarded theirs, we have imprisoned theirs for years. Just like the Taliban, our soldiers are young volunteers. Just like the Taliban, ours are fighting for what they believe is right. Now we have to watch and see what the Taliban will do. This young soldier is alone, is scared, and will say anything he’s told. The story leaked out today, from our military, that this soldier was distraught when he left his base camp unarmed. It doesn’t matter how he was captured. It doesn’t matter how he feels about the military war. He is an American. He is being held by our perceived enemy. IMHO this is not the time for the military to spread possible, but not proven scenarios. After he is released, or after he is extracted, then the military can follow its own rules to deal with this soldier. This is the time to protect Americans. This story will only get murkier in the days to come.
The thunder started early today, and continued through most of the day. The rain showers came, stopped, returned, stopped and returned again. The thunderheads came, and moved out, leaving us overcast. Quite a monsoon day her in our little mountain town. Cooler temps lasted all day. That was really nice. This has been the hottest July in years. Most people in Flagstaff don’t have air conditioning as it would only be used a few days each summer. This last two weeks have many thinking about what to do. A huge windstorm hit Gila Bend and Ajo AZ last night. It knocked out electricity for 2500 customers. It will take another 24 hours to get it back on. Both Gila Bend and Ajo passed 100 degrees today. Life is tough for both these communities most days. These days it is much worse. Dry Ice is being distributed by AZ Public Service in both towns. That will help people with freezers, but I don’t know how it will cool them off. It took APS eight hours to find a generator that could be brought to the only cooling center in Gila Bend. Many elderly and frail had to be transported to towns with electricity. Guess we in Flag can’t complain too much about the heat.
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Random Fact
60% of all US potato products originate in Idaho.
July is…
…Air Conditioning Appreciation Month…Blueberries Month…Cell Phone Courtesy Month…Family Reunion Month…Herbal/Prescription Awareness Month…Nat’l Doghouse Repair Month…Nat’l Grilling, Nat’l Hot Dog, Nat’l Horseradish, and Nat’l Ice Cream Month…Smart Irrigation Month…Social Wellness Month…Tour de France Month…Women’s Motorcycle Month…
Week of July 21
National Baby Food Week
July 21—202 days so far this year…163 days remain in 2009
Legal Drinking Age Day
*Belgium: National Holiday since 1831—Inauguration of Leopold I
*Guam: Liberation Day [1944]
*Singapore: Racial Harmony Day
BIRTHS ON THIS DAY…
1804
Victor Schoelcher Guadeloupe, abolished french slavery
1816
Paul Julius Baron von Reuter founded Reuters news service
1899
Ernest Hemmingway Oak Park, for whom the bell tolled... (Nobel 1954)
1920
Isaac Stern Kremenetz, Russia, violinist (debut SF Symph)
1924
Don Knotts Morgantown WV, actor
1938
Janet Reno U.S. Attorney General (1993-2001)
1947
Cat Stevens aka Yusuf Islam, rocker (Peace Train, Father & Son)
1948
Garry Trudeau cartoonist: Doonesbury
1952
Robin Williams Chicago Ill, comedian
IT HAPPENED ON THIS DAY…
1588
English fleet defeats Spanish armada
1773
Pope Clement XIV dissolves the Jesuit order of priests. The ban remains in effect until 1814, when the Jesuits are revived by Pope Pius VII.
1806
Crow Indians steal twenty-four of Lewis and Clark’s horses.
1846
Mormons found 1st English settlement in Calif (San Joaquin Valley)
1861
1st major battle of Civil War ends (Bull Run), Va-South wins
1873
Jesse James, 1st train robbery
1930
US Veterans Administration established
1925
A Tennessee jury finds high school teacher John Scopes guilty of teaching evolution, and he is fined $100.
1957
Althea Gibson became the first black woman to win a major U.S. tennis title
1970
Egypt completes the Aswan High Dam on the Nile River, a major Soviet-funded project that creates Lake Nasser and provides much of the country's electrical power.
2007
The last and final Harry Potter book goes on sale " Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows"
Word Puzzle from NPR Sunday Puzzler…1987
Every answer here is a word or name starting with the syllable ‘brrr’, in any spelling
EX: pack animal
Answers: burro
1. French wine
2. Germany’s capital
3. Low comedy
4. Sack material
5. Comedienne Carol
6. Alabama city
7. Vermont city
8. Kind of shorts
9. Grow rapidly
10. Myanmar’s former name
• Bonus: Upper Volta’s modern name
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Answers:
1. Burgundy
2. Berlin
3. Burlesque
4. Burlap
5. Burnett
6. Birmingham
7. Burlington
8. Bermuda
9. Burgeon
10. Burma
* Bonus: Burkina Faso
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The thunder started early today, and continued through most of the day. The rain showers came, stopped, returned, stopped and returned again. The thunderheads came, and moved out, leaving us overcast. Quite a monsoon day her in our little mountain town. Cooler temps lasted all day. That was really nice. This has been the hottest July in years. Most people in Flagstaff don’t have air conditioning as it would only be used a few days each summer. This last two weeks have many thinking about what to do. A huge windstorm hit Gila Bend and Ajo AZ last night. It knocked out electricity for 2500 customers. It will take another 24 hours to get it back on. Both Gila Bend and Ajo passed 100 degrees today. Life is tough for both these communities most days. These days it is much worse. Dry Ice is being distributed by AZ Public Service in both towns. That will help people with freezers, but I don’t know how it will cool them off. It took APS eight hours to find a generator that could be brought to the only cooling center in Gila Bend. Many elderly and frail had to be transported to towns with electricity. Guess we in Flag can’t complain too much about the heat.
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Random Fact
60% of all US potato products originate in Idaho.
July is…
…Air Conditioning Appreciation Month…Blueberries Month…Cell Phone Courtesy Month…Family Reunion Month…Herbal/Prescription Awareness Month…Nat’l Doghouse Repair Month…Nat’l Grilling, Nat’l Hot Dog, Nat’l Horseradish, and Nat’l Ice Cream Month…Smart Irrigation Month…Social Wellness Month…Tour de France Month…Women’s Motorcycle Month…
Week of July 21
National Baby Food Week
July 21—202 days so far this year…163 days remain in 2009
Legal Drinking Age Day
*Belgium: National Holiday since 1831—Inauguration of Leopold I
*Guam: Liberation Day [1944]
*Singapore: Racial Harmony Day
BIRTHS ON THIS DAY…
1804
Victor Schoelcher Guadeloupe, abolished french slavery
1816
Paul Julius Baron von Reuter founded Reuters news service
1899
Ernest Hemmingway Oak Park, for whom the bell tolled... (Nobel 1954)
1920
Isaac Stern Kremenetz, Russia, violinist (debut SF Symph)
1924
Don Knotts Morgantown WV, actor
1938
Janet Reno U.S. Attorney General (1993-2001)
1947
Cat Stevens aka Yusuf Islam, rocker (Peace Train, Father & Son)
1948
Garry Trudeau cartoonist: Doonesbury
1952
Robin Williams Chicago Ill, comedian
IT HAPPENED ON THIS DAY…
1588
English fleet defeats Spanish armada
1773
Pope Clement XIV dissolves the Jesuit order of priests. The ban remains in effect until 1814, when the Jesuits are revived by Pope Pius VII.
1806
Crow Indians steal twenty-four of Lewis and Clark’s horses.
1846
Mormons found 1st English settlement in Calif (San Joaquin Valley)
1861
1st major battle of Civil War ends (Bull Run), Va-South wins
1873
Jesse James, 1st train robbery
1930
US Veterans Administration established
1925
A Tennessee jury finds high school teacher John Scopes guilty of teaching evolution, and he is fined $100.
1957
Althea Gibson became the first black woman to win a major U.S. tennis title
1970
Egypt completes the Aswan High Dam on the Nile River, a major Soviet-funded project that creates Lake Nasser and provides much of the country's electrical power.
2007
The last and final Harry Potter book goes on sale " Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows"
Word Puzzle from NPR Sunday Puzzler…1987
Every answer here is a word or name starting with the syllable ‘brrr’, in any spelling
EX: pack animal
Answers: burro
1. French wine
2. Germany’s capital
3. Low comedy
4. Sack material
5. Comedienne Carol
6. Alabama city
7. Vermont city
8. Kind of shorts
9. Grow rapidly
10. Myanmar’s former name
• Bonus: Upper Volta’s modern name
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Answers:
1. Burgundy
2. Berlin
3. Burlesque
4. Burlap
5. Burnett
6. Birmingham
7. Burlington
8. Bermuda
9. Burgeon
10. Burma
* Bonus: Burkina Faso
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Celts II
I spent a couple of hours at the Celtic Festival today. Southwest Skye Pipe and Drum Band played. For those of you unfamiliar with Celtic Festivals, they are a lot of fun. I’m not really into the games, but others seem to enjoy them. There are lots of Clan booths, with information about that clan’s history. Each clan has a whole bureaucracy of officers, local—national—and worldwide. There are several booths with various beers, other booths for whiskey tasting, and lots of vendors who travel the circuit of festivals selling their wares. There are also Celtic Dancers, Celtic Music that is not the bag pipes, Singers, and on and on. For me the best part is when the various bands wander the crowds playing great music. The ‘Massed Bands’ is also very impressive when all the bands and individual bagpipers join in to march through the events. They are followed by the various Clan members with banners. Amazing how everyone there is a wee bit Celt for the day.
The education world lost a great writer today when Frank McCourt passed at 78. “Angela’s Ashes” brought the Irish-American the most fame, but “Teacher Man”, about his teaching career, was my favorite. He told great stories of working in the bureaucracy of the NYC School System. He had a hard life, but kept his insight and humor throughout the book. He said he didn’t want a funeral service and said “I don't want funeral services or memorials. Let them scatter my ashes over the Shannon and pollute the river.” RIP
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Random Fact
You're born with 300 bones, but when you get to be an adult, you only have 206.
July is…
…Air Conditioning Appreciation Month…Blueberries Month…Cell Phone Courtesy Month…Family Reunion Month…Herbal/Prescription Awareness Month…Nat’l Doghouse Repair Month…Nat’l Grilling, Nat’l Hot Dog, Nat’l Horseradish, and Nat’l Ice Cream Month…Smart Irrigation Month…Social Wellness Month…Tour de France Month…Women’s Motorcycle Month…
Week of July 19
Captive Nations Week
National Independent Retailers Week
July 20—201 days so far this year…166 days remain in 2009
National Get Out of the Doghouse Day
National Hug Your Kid Day
National Lollipop Day
*Scotland: Glasgow Fair Begins
*Columbia: Independence Day [1810 from Spain]
*Argentina: Dia del Amigo [Friendship Day]
BIRTHS ON THIS DAY…
1591
Anne Hutchinson American religious reformer
1919
Sir Edmund Hillary one of 1st 2 men to scale Mt Everest
1924
Thomas Berger US, novelist (Vital Parts, Little Big Man)
1933
Nelson Doubleday publisher (Doubleday)/owner (NY Mets)
1938
-Diana Rigg Doncaster England, actress (Emma Peel)
-Natalie Wood [Natasha Nikolaevna Gurdin], SF, (Gypsy, Rebel Without a Cause)
1947
Carlos Santana Mexico, musician
IT HAPPENED ON THIS DAY…
1773
Scottish settlers arrive at Pictou, Nova Scotia (Canada)
1872
Mahlon Loomis receives patent for wireless ... the radio is born
1881
Sioux Indian leader Sitting Bull, surrenders to federal troops
1949
Israel's 19 month war of independence ends
1951
King Abdullah of Jordan was assassinated in Jerusalem by a Palestinian nationalist.
1956
The UK and U.S.A. withdraw offers of aid for creation of the Aswan high dam in response to President Gamal Abdel Nasser of Egypt forming closer relationships with the Soviet Union.
1969
1st men on Moon, Neil Armstrong & Edwin Aldrin, Apollo 11
1995
Native Canadian Indians are blocking roads, threatening sit-ins and challenging government authorities , and many believe it is only a matter of time before bloodshed happens. They are angry that Government Departments are bypassing the Chiefs and going to local bands to negotiate treaty rights because they are not as strong.
1996
26th Olympic Summer games opens in Atlanta, Georgia
Word Puzzle from NPR Sunday Puzzler…1987
The answer to the first clue in each pair is a word with the vowels O and A [in that order] somewhere inside. Switch the O and A to A and O and you’ll get a new word that answers he second clue.
EX: The “Rubaiyat” poet / Another name for Cupid
Answers: Omar / Amor
1. A score in soccer / Lockup in England
2. Spanish greeting / Angel’s accessory
3. Musical instrument / Gas used in florescent tubes
4. Word before ‘nova’ / Certain opera singer
5. First name in late-night talk / Body of principles
6. South Seas kingdom / Sensuous dance
7. Composition of many a South Seas island / Song
8. Dazzling pictures [2 words] / To the left, to a sailor
9. Mel Gibson to Danny Glover in “Lethal Weapon” / Kind of oil
10. Certain numerical rating / start of a play [2 words]
• Bonus: ???
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Answers:
1. Goal / gaol
2. Hola / halo
3. Organ / argon
4. Bosses / basso
5. Conan / canon
6. Tonga / tango
7. Coral / carol
8. Op art / aport
9. Co-star / castor
10. Octane / act one
* Bonus: ???
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The education world lost a great writer today when Frank McCourt passed at 78. “Angela’s Ashes” brought the Irish-American the most fame, but “Teacher Man”, about his teaching career, was my favorite. He told great stories of working in the bureaucracy of the NYC School System. He had a hard life, but kept his insight and humor throughout the book. He said he didn’t want a funeral service and said “I don't want funeral services or memorials. Let them scatter my ashes over the Shannon and pollute the river.” RIP
<> <> <> <> <> <>
Random Fact
You're born with 300 bones, but when you get to be an adult, you only have 206.
July is…
…Air Conditioning Appreciation Month…Blueberries Month…Cell Phone Courtesy Month…Family Reunion Month…Herbal/Prescription Awareness Month…Nat’l Doghouse Repair Month…Nat’l Grilling, Nat’l Hot Dog, Nat’l Horseradish, and Nat’l Ice Cream Month…Smart Irrigation Month…Social Wellness Month…Tour de France Month…Women’s Motorcycle Month…
Week of July 19
Captive Nations Week
National Independent Retailers Week
July 20—201 days so far this year…166 days remain in 2009
National Get Out of the Doghouse Day
National Hug Your Kid Day
National Lollipop Day
*Scotland: Glasgow Fair Begins
*Columbia: Independence Day [1810 from Spain]
*Argentina: Dia del Amigo [Friendship Day]
BIRTHS ON THIS DAY…
1591
Anne Hutchinson American religious reformer
1919
Sir Edmund Hillary one of 1st 2 men to scale Mt Everest
1924
Thomas Berger US, novelist (Vital Parts, Little Big Man)
1933
Nelson Doubleday publisher (Doubleday)/owner (NY Mets)
1938
-Diana Rigg Doncaster England, actress (Emma Peel)
-Natalie Wood [Natasha Nikolaevna Gurdin], SF, (Gypsy, Rebel Without a Cause)
1947
Carlos Santana Mexico, musician
IT HAPPENED ON THIS DAY…
1773
Scottish settlers arrive at Pictou, Nova Scotia (Canada)
1872
Mahlon Loomis receives patent for wireless ... the radio is born
1881
Sioux Indian leader Sitting Bull, surrenders to federal troops
1949
Israel's 19 month war of independence ends
1951
King Abdullah of Jordan was assassinated in Jerusalem by a Palestinian nationalist.
1956
The UK and U.S.A. withdraw offers of aid for creation of the Aswan high dam in response to President Gamal Abdel Nasser of Egypt forming closer relationships with the Soviet Union.
1969
1st men on Moon, Neil Armstrong & Edwin Aldrin, Apollo 11
1995
Native Canadian Indians are blocking roads, threatening sit-ins and challenging government authorities , and many believe it is only a matter of time before bloodshed happens. They are angry that Government Departments are bypassing the Chiefs and going to local bands to negotiate treaty rights because they are not as strong.
1996
26th Olympic Summer games opens in Atlanta, Georgia
Word Puzzle from NPR Sunday Puzzler…1987
The answer to the first clue in each pair is a word with the vowels O and A [in that order] somewhere inside. Switch the O and A to A and O and you’ll get a new word that answers he second clue.
EX: The “Rubaiyat” poet / Another name for Cupid
Answers: Omar / Amor
1. A score in soccer / Lockup in England
2. Spanish greeting / Angel’s accessory
3. Musical instrument / Gas used in florescent tubes
4. Word before ‘nova’ / Certain opera singer
5. First name in late-night talk / Body of principles
6. South Seas kingdom / Sensuous dance
7. Composition of many a South Seas island / Song
8. Dazzling pictures [2 words] / To the left, to a sailor
9. Mel Gibson to Danny Glover in “Lethal Weapon” / Kind of oil
10. Certain numerical rating / start of a play [2 words]
• Bonus: ???
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Answers:
1. Goal / gaol
2. Hola / halo
3. Organ / argon
4. Bosses / basso
5. Conan / canon
6. Tonga / tango
7. Coral / carol
8. Op art / aport
9. Co-star / castor
10. Octane / act one
* Bonus: ???
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Celts
Flagstaff has remained very hot. But we did get a nice monsoon this afternoon. It made it over 90° but I’m not sure how much over, as I wasn’t home.
I spent much of the day at the Northern AZ Celtic Festival here in Flagstaff. Lots of good piping. Lots of good drumming. Mass Bands was really great. A young Piper I know, a sophomore @ NAU, was the lead piper. Very hot, but quite a spectacle none the less. Wicked Tinkers were there and again put on a great show. If you haven’t heard of them, check them out on the net. The only thing that bothers me was the pirates who were with the massed bands and wandering around. While they dress like the old time pirates we grew up with, I can’t help thinking about today’s pirates who are real and killing innocent people. The Festival continues tomorrow, and I might find some time to get over there again.
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Random Fact
A hippo can open its mouth wide enough to fit a 4 foot tall child inside.
July is…
…Air Conditioning Appreciation Month…Blueberries Month…Cell Phone Courtesy Month…Family Reunion Month…Herbal/Prescription Awareness Month…Nat’l Doghouse Repair Month…Nat’l Grilling, Nat’l Hot Dog, Nat’l Horseradish, and Nat’l Ice Cream Month…Smart Irrigation Month…Social Wellness Month…Tour de France Month…Women’s Motorcycle Month…
Week of July 19
Captive Nations Week
National Independent Retailers Week
July 19—200 days so far this year…167 days remain in 2009
National Ice Cream Day
*Burma: Burmese Martyr’s Day
Northern AZ Celtic Festival Day 2
BIRTHS ON THIS DAY…
1799
French troops in Egypt discover the Rosetta Stone
1814
Samuel Colt inventor (colt revolver)
1834
Edgar Degas France, impressionist painter (Bouquet)
1860
Lizzie Borden murderer, gave her mother forty whacks
1896
A.J. (Archibald Joseph) Cronin author: The Citadel, Keys of the Kingdom
1922
George McGovern (Sen-D-SD), pres candidate (D-1972)
1938
Vikki Carr (Florencia Bisenta deCasilla Martinez Cardona) El Paso Tx, singer
IT HAPPENED ON THIS DAY…
695
Maya King Waxaklahun Ubah K’awil ascends to the throne at Copán, Honduras.
1820
The Kickapoo sign a treaty (7 Stat., 208.) at St. Louis
1848
1st women's rights convention (Seneca Falls, NY)
1909
The first unassisted triple play in major-league baseball
1923
With the introduction of Insulin which is not a cure but a remedy for Diabetes –Kathryn Webster, my grandmother, was one of the first to receive it
1927
Ty Cobb gets his 4,000th hit
1946
Marilyn Monroe acted in her first screen test
1961
1st in-flight movie shown (TWA)
1980
22nd modern Olympic games opens in Moscow; US & others boycott
Word Puzzle from NPR Sunday Puzzler…1987
Each answer in this puzzle is a familiar two-word phrase that starts and ends with G
EX: common greeting
Answers: good morning
1. Animal that’s the subject of experiments
2. Zero, in slang
3. Result of greenhouse gasses
4. Possible result of an oil shortage
5. It flies over public buildings in Athens
6. Old-fashioned way of making bottles
7. Service that stores often provide around Christmas
8. Miscellany
9. Where a road meets a railroad track
10. Command to a little dogie
• Bonus: Edgar Allan Poe story, with “The ___
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Answers:
1. Guienea pig
2. Goose egg
3. Global warming
4. Gas rationing
5. Greek Flag
6. Glass blowing
7. Gift wrapping
8. Grab bag
9. Grade crossing
10. Get along [git alone
* Bonus: “gold bug”
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I spent much of the day at the Northern AZ Celtic Festival here in Flagstaff. Lots of good piping. Lots of good drumming. Mass Bands was really great. A young Piper I know, a sophomore @ NAU, was the lead piper. Very hot, but quite a spectacle none the less. Wicked Tinkers were there and again put on a great show. If you haven’t heard of them, check them out on the net. The only thing that bothers me was the pirates who were with the massed bands and wandering around. While they dress like the old time pirates we grew up with, I can’t help thinking about today’s pirates who are real and killing innocent people. The Festival continues tomorrow, and I might find some time to get over there again.
<> <> <> <> <> <>
Random Fact
A hippo can open its mouth wide enough to fit a 4 foot tall child inside.
July is…
…Air Conditioning Appreciation Month…Blueberries Month…Cell Phone Courtesy Month…Family Reunion Month…Herbal/Prescription Awareness Month…Nat’l Doghouse Repair Month…Nat’l Grilling, Nat’l Hot Dog, Nat’l Horseradish, and Nat’l Ice Cream Month…Smart Irrigation Month…Social Wellness Month…Tour de France Month…Women’s Motorcycle Month…
Week of July 19
Captive Nations Week
National Independent Retailers Week
July 19—200 days so far this year…167 days remain in 2009
National Ice Cream Day
*Burma: Burmese Martyr’s Day
Northern AZ Celtic Festival Day 2
BIRTHS ON THIS DAY…
1799
French troops in Egypt discover the Rosetta Stone
1814
Samuel Colt inventor (colt revolver)
1834
Edgar Degas France, impressionist painter (Bouquet)
1860
Lizzie Borden murderer, gave her mother forty whacks
1896
A.J. (Archibald Joseph) Cronin author: The Citadel, Keys of the Kingdom
1922
George McGovern (Sen-D-SD), pres candidate (D-1972)
1938
Vikki Carr (Florencia Bisenta deCasilla Martinez Cardona) El Paso Tx, singer
IT HAPPENED ON THIS DAY…
695
Maya King Waxaklahun Ubah K’awil ascends to the throne at Copán, Honduras.
1820
The Kickapoo sign a treaty (7 Stat., 208.) at St. Louis
1848
1st women's rights convention (Seneca Falls, NY)
1909
The first unassisted triple play in major-league baseball
1923
With the introduction of Insulin which is not a cure but a remedy for Diabetes –Kathryn Webster, my grandmother, was one of the first to receive it
1927
Ty Cobb gets his 4,000th hit
1946
Marilyn Monroe acted in her first screen test
1961
1st in-flight movie shown (TWA)
1980
22nd modern Olympic games opens in Moscow; US & others boycott
Word Puzzle from NPR Sunday Puzzler…1987
Each answer in this puzzle is a familiar two-word phrase that starts and ends with G
EX: common greeting
Answers: good morning
1. Animal that’s the subject of experiments
2. Zero, in slang
3. Result of greenhouse gasses
4. Possible result of an oil shortage
5. It flies over public buildings in Athens
6. Old-fashioned way of making bottles
7. Service that stores often provide around Christmas
8. Miscellany
9. Where a road meets a railroad track
10. Command to a little dogie
• Bonus: Edgar Allan Poe story, with “The ___
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<>
<>
<>
<>
<>
<>
<>
<>
<>
<>
<>
Answers:
1. Guienea pig
2. Goose egg
3. Global warming
4. Gas rationing
5. Greek Flag
6. Glass blowing
7. Gift wrapping
8. Grab bag
9. Grade crossing
10. Get along [git alone
* Bonus: “gold bug”
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HOT
The airport was only 92° today. My deck was 101°. Ah, summer in mountain country. Phoenix had an ‘extreme heat advisory’ and an ‘air quality alert’. Some areas of the Valley would probably reach 120° and people were asked to not drive cars or run any equipment that has a gas engine. If the heat won’t kill you, the pollution will. I’ll take the mountain heat, thank you very much.
Walter Cronkite passed today. I grew up with his nightly news. Back then, the print journalists were moving to TV, as were some radio journalists. Back then we got the news. Now we have so many agenda driven talking heads that one has to be very wary of anything we hear or see on the news. Journalism used to be “the collecting, writing, editing, and presenting of news or news articles in newspapers and magazines and in radio and television broadcasts.” So many times today journalism is the collecting and editorializing of news or news articles in newspapers and magazines and in radio and television broadcasts. Seldom does a TV station run a piece that starts out with ‘This is an Editorial’. Yet today, hard news is sprinkled with fluff and so many times the hard news is dummy-downed with non-announced editoritals. A sad passing indeed.
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Random Fact
Only 6% of the autographs in circulation from members of the Beatles are estimated to be real.
July is…
…Air Conditioning Appreciation Month…Blueberries Month…Cell Phone Courtesy Month…Family Reunion Month…Herbal/Prescription Awareness Month…Nat’l Doghouse Repair Month…Nat’l Grilling, Nat’l Hot Dog, Nat’l Horseradish, and Nat’l Ice Cream Month…Smart Irrigation Month…Social Wellness Month…Tour de France Month…Women’s Motorcycle Month…
Week of July 18
Restless Leg Syndrome Education & Awareness Week
July 18—199 days so far this year…168 days remain in 2009
Cow Appreciation Day
Toss away the ‘could haves’ and ‘should haves’ Day
*Uruguay: Constitution Day [1951]
*Spain: Labor Day
Northern AZ Celtic Festival Day
BIRTHS ON THIS DAY…
1720
Gilbert White "father of British naturalists"
1796
Feargus O'Connor County Cork, leader of the English Chartists
1811
William Makepeace Thackeray England, Victorian novelist (Vanity Fair)
1890
Charles Wilson Pres of General Motors (1940-53)/Sec of Def (1953-57)
1906
S.I. Hayakawa (Sen-R-CA) educator (Language in Action)
1909
Andrei Gromyko USSR, diplomat/USSR President
1909
Harriet Nelson (Peggy Lou Snyder)Des Moines, actress (Adventures of Ozzie & Harriet)
1910
Red (Richard) Skelton comedian (Clem Kadiddlehopper, Freddie the Freeloader)
1911
Hume Cronyn London Ontario, actor (World According to Garp, Cocoon)
1918
Nelson Mandela Qunu South Africa, political prisoner (ANC)
1921
John H Glenn Jr Cambridge Ohio, Col USMC astronaut
1940
James Brolin (Bruderlin) LA Calif, actor
1941
Martha Reeves Detroit Mich, singer (& the Vandellas-Dancing in St)
1954
Ricky Skaggs singer
IT HAPPENED ON THIS DAY…
64
Great Fire of Rome begins (Nero fiddles)
1872
Britain introduces secret ballot voting
1925
Nazi leader Adolf Hitler publishes the first volume of his personal manifesto, Mein Kampf
1936
Spanish Civil War begins, Gen Francisco Franco led uprising
1959
1st black to win a major golf tournament (William Wright) @ Wellshire Golf Course, Denver.
1966
Carl Sagan turns 1 billion seconds old
1969
A car driven by Senator Edward "Ted" Kennedy plunged off a narrow wooden bridge
1976
The first perfect 10 ever recorded in Olympic gymnastics was achieved up by Romania's 4-foot-11, 88-pound Nadia Comaneci on the women's uneven parallel bars.
1978
Egyptian & Israeli officials begin 2 days of talks
Word Puzzle from NPR Sunday Puzzler…1987
The answer to the first clue in each pair below is a compound word or two word phrase that ends in UP. Change the UP to DOWN and you’ll have a new compound word or a common two-word phrase that answers the second clue.
EX: Playboy feature / To find specifically
Answers: pin-up / pin down
1. To improve slightly / Football score
2. Event on a cattle range / Be conservative in estimating
3. Appear, as in an event / Final battle
4. Start to laugh hard / Police action against criminals
5. Robbery / To have, as a job
6. Kind of comedian / To quit, as during a confrontation
7. Thorough change in management / Extortion as by blackmail
8. Put on fancy clothes / To sharply criticize
9. Divorce / Reason to call or a tow truck
10. Certain exercise / Kind of strike
• Bonus: Prankster / Fell, as a tree
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Answers:
1. Touch up / touchdown
2. Roundup / round down
3. Show up / showdown
4. Crack up / crack down
5. Holdup / hold down
6. Stand-up / stand down
7. Shakeup / shakedown
8. Dress up / dress down
9. Breakup / breakdown
10. Sit-up / sit-down
* Bonus: Cutup/ cut down
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Walter Cronkite passed today. I grew up with his nightly news. Back then, the print journalists were moving to TV, as were some radio journalists. Back then we got the news. Now we have so many agenda driven talking heads that one has to be very wary of anything we hear or see on the news. Journalism used to be “the collecting, writing, editing, and presenting of news or news articles in newspapers and magazines and in radio and television broadcasts.” So many times today journalism is the collecting and editorializing of news or news articles in newspapers and magazines and in radio and television broadcasts. Seldom does a TV station run a piece that starts out with ‘This is an Editorial’. Yet today, hard news is sprinkled with fluff and so many times the hard news is dummy-downed with non-announced editoritals. A sad passing indeed.
<> <> <> <> <> <>
Random Fact
Only 6% of the autographs in circulation from members of the Beatles are estimated to be real.
July is…
…Air Conditioning Appreciation Month…Blueberries Month…Cell Phone Courtesy Month…Family Reunion Month…Herbal/Prescription Awareness Month…Nat’l Doghouse Repair Month…Nat’l Grilling, Nat’l Hot Dog, Nat’l Horseradish, and Nat’l Ice Cream Month…Smart Irrigation Month…Social Wellness Month…Tour de France Month…Women’s Motorcycle Month…
Week of July 18
Restless Leg Syndrome Education & Awareness Week
July 18—199 days so far this year…168 days remain in 2009
Cow Appreciation Day
Toss away the ‘could haves’ and ‘should haves’ Day
*Uruguay: Constitution Day [1951]
*Spain: Labor Day
Northern AZ Celtic Festival Day
BIRTHS ON THIS DAY…
1720
Gilbert White "father of British naturalists"
1796
Feargus O'Connor County Cork, leader of the English Chartists
1811
William Makepeace Thackeray England, Victorian novelist (Vanity Fair)
1890
Charles Wilson Pres of General Motors (1940-53)/Sec of Def (1953-57)
1906
S.I. Hayakawa (Sen-R-CA) educator (Language in Action)
1909
Andrei Gromyko USSR, diplomat/USSR President
1909
Harriet Nelson (Peggy Lou Snyder)Des Moines, actress (Adventures of Ozzie & Harriet)
1910
Red (Richard) Skelton comedian (Clem Kadiddlehopper, Freddie the Freeloader)
1911
Hume Cronyn London Ontario, actor (World According to Garp, Cocoon)
1918
Nelson Mandela Qunu South Africa, political prisoner (ANC)
1921
John H Glenn Jr Cambridge Ohio, Col USMC astronaut
1940
James Brolin (Bruderlin) LA Calif, actor
1941
Martha Reeves Detroit Mich, singer (& the Vandellas-Dancing in St)
1954
Ricky Skaggs singer
IT HAPPENED ON THIS DAY…
64
Great Fire of Rome begins (Nero fiddles)
1872
Britain introduces secret ballot voting
1925
Nazi leader Adolf Hitler publishes the first volume of his personal manifesto, Mein Kampf
1936
Spanish Civil War begins, Gen Francisco Franco led uprising
1959
1st black to win a major golf tournament (William Wright) @ Wellshire Golf Course, Denver.
1966
Carl Sagan turns 1 billion seconds old
1969
A car driven by Senator Edward "Ted" Kennedy plunged off a narrow wooden bridge
1976
The first perfect 10 ever recorded in Olympic gymnastics was achieved up by Romania's 4-foot-11, 88-pound Nadia Comaneci on the women's uneven parallel bars.
1978
Egyptian & Israeli officials begin 2 days of talks
Word Puzzle from NPR Sunday Puzzler…1987
The answer to the first clue in each pair below is a compound word or two word phrase that ends in UP. Change the UP to DOWN and you’ll have a new compound word or a common two-word phrase that answers the second clue.
EX: Playboy feature / To find specifically
Answers: pin-up / pin down
1. To improve slightly / Football score
2. Event on a cattle range / Be conservative in estimating
3. Appear, as in an event / Final battle
4. Start to laugh hard / Police action against criminals
5. Robbery / To have, as a job
6. Kind of comedian / To quit, as during a confrontation
7. Thorough change in management / Extortion as by blackmail
8. Put on fancy clothes / To sharply criticize
9. Divorce / Reason to call or a tow truck
10. Certain exercise / Kind of strike
• Bonus: Prankster / Fell, as a tree
<>
<>
<>
<>
<>
<>
<>
<>
<>
<>
<>
<>
<>
<>
Answers:
1. Touch up / touchdown
2. Roundup / round down
3. Show up / showdown
4. Crack up / crack down
5. Holdup / hold down
6. Stand-up / stand down
7. Shakeup / shakedown
8. Dress up / dress down
9. Breakup / breakdown
10. Sit-up / sit-down
* Bonus: Cutup/ cut down
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AZ News
It doesn’t happen very often. Arizona was the lead story on several nightly news programs. Our Jr. Senator—Jon Kyl—made a statement about the failures of the stimulus package and said that funding should stop now. The Federal Departments of Transportation, Education & Housing sent a letter to our non-elected governor outlining the funding that would stop in the state if the stimulus money were stopped. “If you prefer to forfeit the stimulus money, let us know.” Then both McCain and Brewer decried this as a threat and the letter was not appreciated. McCain went so far as to say he supported Kyl and did not appreciate the threat. The national news had nothing good to say about non-elected Governor Brewer. As we in Arizona are learning almost daily, Jan is incompetent, over her head, and unable to lead. It is a sad state of affairs here in Arizona. As if that isn’t enough, the AIMS test—written specifically for AZ students, based on a very detailed curriculum—just released the spring scores. Flagstaff test scores dropped in reading, math, and writing. I know that each year the ‘passing’ score rises, and that makes it harder for students to pass. That is not what happened in Flagstaff. The actual scores dropped. This is not good. Everyone is spinning the story, and some in Phoenix are suggesting that we change the test—read dummy down the test. What a sad state for our youth.
We have all heard stories, and some of us have friends who accidently taped over some important family event with the VCR. Well, now it seems NASA did the same thing—with the landing on the moon. The original scene was taped over in the 1980’s when money for new magnetic tape was scarce. This will probably give the conspiracy clans new ammo to say it never happened. I doubt I would have ever watched the actual original tape, but to find out they are gone seems like we lost part of the history of mankind. Not the first time and certainly not the last time.
My deck made it to 92° today, and there were few clouds and no rain. Sunset will cool us off, I hope.
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Random Fact
A hippo can open its mouth wide enough to fit a 4 foot tall child inside.
July is…
…Air Conditioning Appreciation Month…Blueberries Month…Cell Phone Courtesy Month…Family Reunion Month…Herbal/Prescription Awareness Month…Nat’l Doghouse Repair Month…Nat’l Grilling, Nat’l Hot Dog, Nat’l Horseradish, and Nat’l Ice Cream Month…Smart Irrigation Month…Social Wellness Month…Tour de France Month…Women’s Motorcycle Month…
Week of July 16
National Ventriloquism Week
July 17—198 days so far this year…167 days remain in 2009
Wrong Way Corrigan Day
World Day of International Justice
*South Korea: Constitution Day [1948]
*Japan: Gion Matsuri [Festival of purification to appease gods thought to cause fire, floods and earthquakes] since 869
BIRTHS ON THIS DAY…
1487
Esma'il I shah who converted Iran from Sunni to Shi'ah
1674
Isaac Watts England, writer/preacher/hymnist
1763
John Jacob Astor fur tycoon: American Fur Company
1888
Shmuel Agnon Israel, novelist (Day Before Yesterday-Nobel 1966)
1889
Erle Stanley Gardner author (created Perry Mason)
1900
James Cagney actor
1912
Art Linkletter (Arthur Gordon Kelly) Saskatchwan Canada, TV host
1917
Phyllis Diller Lima Ohio, comedienne
1934
Donald Sutherland Canada, actor
1935
Diahann Carroll Bronx, actress
1939
Spencer Davis Wales, vocalist (Gimme Some Lovin)
1952
David Hasselhoff Baltimore—actor; America’s Got Talent
IT HAPPENED ON THIS DAY…
1453
The Hundred Years' War between England and France ends with the English defeat at the Battle of Castillon in France.
1850
Harvard Observatory takes 1st photograph of a star (Vega)
1861
Congress authorizes paper money
1862
National cemeteries were authorized by the U.S. government on this day
1867
1st permanent university dental school in US, Harvard
1879
1st railroad opens in Hawaii
1917
British Royal family changes its name from Hanover to Windsor
1938
Douglas (Wrong Way) Corrigan leaves NY for LA, wound up in Ireland
1945
Harry Truman, Winston Churchill and Joseph Stalin meet at the beginning of the Potsdam Conference
1954
"Operation Wetback" is launched by the United States Immigration and Naturalization Service (INS) to remove about four million illegal immigrants from the southwestern United States
1955
Disneyland opens its doors in rural Orange County
1962
Senate rejects Medicare for the aged
1976
21st modern Olympic games opens in Montreal
Word Puzzle from NPR Sunday Puzzler…1987
Unscramble the following words, each of which contains two consecutive F’s somewhere inside it.
EX: ORE + FF
Answers: OFFER
1. SIN + FF
2. AGE + FF
3. ROAD + FF
4. ABLE + FF
5. RITA + FF
6. TUBE + FF
7. TORE + FF
8. LURE + FF
9. ARIA + FF
10. INSET + FF
• Bonus: LEMUR + FF
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Answers:
1. Sniff
2. Gaffe
3. Afford
4. Baffle
5. Tariff
6. Buffet
7. Effort
8. Ruffle
9. Affair
10. Stiffen
* Bonus: Muffler
<> <> <> <> <> <> <>
We have all heard stories, and some of us have friends who accidently taped over some important family event with the VCR. Well, now it seems NASA did the same thing—with the landing on the moon. The original scene was taped over in the 1980’s when money for new magnetic tape was scarce. This will probably give the conspiracy clans new ammo to say it never happened. I doubt I would have ever watched the actual original tape, but to find out they are gone seems like we lost part of the history of mankind. Not the first time and certainly not the last time.
My deck made it to 92° today, and there were few clouds and no rain. Sunset will cool us off, I hope.
<> <> <> <> <> <>
Random Fact
A hippo can open its mouth wide enough to fit a 4 foot tall child inside.
July is…
…Air Conditioning Appreciation Month…Blueberries Month…Cell Phone Courtesy Month…Family Reunion Month…Herbal/Prescription Awareness Month…Nat’l Doghouse Repair Month…Nat’l Grilling, Nat’l Hot Dog, Nat’l Horseradish, and Nat’l Ice Cream Month…Smart Irrigation Month…Social Wellness Month…Tour de France Month…Women’s Motorcycle Month…
Week of July 16
National Ventriloquism Week
July 17—198 days so far this year…167 days remain in 2009
Wrong Way Corrigan Day
World Day of International Justice
*South Korea: Constitution Day [1948]
*Japan: Gion Matsuri [Festival of purification to appease gods thought to cause fire, floods and earthquakes] since 869
BIRTHS ON THIS DAY…
1487
Esma'il I shah who converted Iran from Sunni to Shi'ah
1674
Isaac Watts England, writer/preacher/hymnist
1763
John Jacob Astor fur tycoon: American Fur Company
1888
Shmuel Agnon Israel, novelist (Day Before Yesterday-Nobel 1966)
1889
Erle Stanley Gardner author (created Perry Mason)
1900
James Cagney actor
1912
Art Linkletter (Arthur Gordon Kelly) Saskatchwan Canada, TV host
1917
Phyllis Diller Lima Ohio, comedienne
1934
Donald Sutherland Canada, actor
1935
Diahann Carroll Bronx, actress
1939
Spencer Davis Wales, vocalist (Gimme Some Lovin)
1952
David Hasselhoff Baltimore—actor; America’s Got Talent
IT HAPPENED ON THIS DAY…
1453
The Hundred Years' War between England and France ends with the English defeat at the Battle of Castillon in France.
1850
Harvard Observatory takes 1st photograph of a star (Vega)
1861
Congress authorizes paper money
1862
National cemeteries were authorized by the U.S. government on this day
1867
1st permanent university dental school in US, Harvard
1879
1st railroad opens in Hawaii
1917
British Royal family changes its name from Hanover to Windsor
1938
Douglas (Wrong Way) Corrigan leaves NY for LA, wound up in Ireland
1945
Harry Truman, Winston Churchill and Joseph Stalin meet at the beginning of the Potsdam Conference
1954
"Operation Wetback" is launched by the United States Immigration and Naturalization Service (INS) to remove about four million illegal immigrants from the southwestern United States
1955
Disneyland opens its doors in rural Orange County
1962
Senate rejects Medicare for the aged
1976
21st modern Olympic games opens in Montreal
Word Puzzle from NPR Sunday Puzzler…1987
Unscramble the following words, each of which contains two consecutive F’s somewhere inside it.
EX: ORE + FF
Answers: OFFER
1. SIN + FF
2. AGE + FF
3. ROAD + FF
4. ABLE + FF
5. RITA + FF
6. TUBE + FF
7. TORE + FF
8. LURE + FF
9. ARIA + FF
10. INSET + FF
• Bonus: LEMUR + FF
<>
<>
<>
<>
<>
<>
<>
<>
<>
<>
<>
<>
<>
<>
Answers:
1. Sniff
2. Gaffe
3. Afford
4. Baffle
5. Tariff
6. Buffet
7. Effort
8. Ruffle
9. Affair
10. Stiffen
* Bonus: Muffler
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About Me
- Retired, Not Dead
- 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.