Monday

1 February 2010--Week 5 of 2010: 32 days this year…333 remain
» Quote Times Two « .
“Teachers: two kinds: the kind that fill you with so much quail shot that you can't move and the kind that just give you a little prod from behind and you jump to the skies.” ~Robert Frost; Poet
"Mistakes are oft the stepping stones to failure." ~Slovenian Proverb
» Free Ramblings « .
First some information on This month:
February is from Latin for ‘purification’. Since 770BC it was used as the month to fix the calendar, today the Gregorian calendar still uses February to make the calendar work. It is known as the ‘mud month’, the ‘month of the pearl’ (Finnish when the snow melts on branches and then refreezes forming ice pearls), and the month of ‘hard frost’.
My background in sociology and linguistics certainly influences my life. The detainment of missionaries in Haiti is just another example of people not really understanding either. Missionaries were stopped at the Haitian border with ‘orphans’ from the earthquake.
The Haitian government is functioning and stopped all adoptions until it can be determined that the little ones are really orphans. It reminds me of the time the US government came to the Navajo Rez, soon after the 1868 treaty and were in Tuba. While the Navajo knew that there were Ute living in the area—less than 2 miles from Tuba, they were asked if any other tribes were in the area. They denied the existence of any Ute in the area. It took many lawsuits and over 120 years for the Ute to get their land back. The missionaries today believe that they are doing the right thing. They have no understanding of the devastation they are causing. Haitian parents, being very poor, have for years been putting their children in orphanages because they can’t care for them. Many return to their families when they are grown. Raising a child today, anywhere, is difficult. Adopting a child of a different background is very hard on the child and the adoptive family. Maybe it’s because I’m adopted, maybe it’s something else, but I just can’t understand foreign adoptions. It seems to me that the children should be cared for by their own. The families that want to help a child should send money or donate time to help them. They shouldn’t just take them away.
The US has stopped bringing the seriously injured to US Hospitals, because the hospital bureaucrats want to know who is going to pay for their care. Not a lot of humanity being shown. The doctors and other personnel at these hospitals want to help. Many have gone to Haiti to help; others are willing to assist them here. Like so many other things in this country, money takes over. So sad.
The sky was clear, then cloudy, then overcast, then clear again. There was a slight breeze, but overall the 42° was nice. I guess the 18° last night was OK too. Not a lot of snow mounds melted today, but as we get ready for February, we will survive.
»New* Winter Olympics* «                                        .
The Vancouver Olympics open on Feb 12.
Did you know…
Ireland has 6 athletes, Scotland has at least 6 athletes competing under Great Britain.
The first winter games were held in 1924 in Chamnix, France.
»Side Show Stories—«                                            .
OXFORD, England - Police in England said a group of officers caught on camera using a riot shield as a sled on a snow slope were reprimanded by a superior. Superintendent Andrew Murray, Oxford City commander with Thames Valley Police, said a bystander captured video of a group of officers arriving at the slope and encouraging a colleague to sled down the hill while clinging to the straps for steering, the Daily mail reported. The video was later uploaded to YouTube. "The snow has a habit of bringing out the child in all of us," Murray said. "I have spoken to the officers concerned and reminded them in no uncertain terms that tobogganing on duty, on police equipment and at taxpayers' expense is a very bad idea should they wish to progress under my command."
»Random Fact«                                                    .
The 1986 tax act was aimed at simplification. It ended up amending 2,000 sections of the code and creating more than 100 new forms.
» Puzzle «                                                            .
A list of words is given. To solve the puzzle, think of a single word that goes with each to form a compound word or word pair that functions as a compound word. For example, if the given words are volley, field, and bearing, the the answer would be ball, because the word ball can be added to each of the other words to form volleyball, ball field, and ball bearing. Answers are at the end of blog.
1. hard, under, up
2. fitting, land, free
3. salt, melon, white
» Calendar Information «                                             .
☼ February’s Month Long Observances ☼
Birthstone: Amethyst …Flower: Violet and Primrose
Adopt A Rescued Rabbit Month^AMD/Low Vision Awareness Month^American Heart Month^Bake for Family Fun Month^Fabulous Florida Strawberry Month^Grapefruit Month^International Boost Self-Esteem Month^International Expect Success Month^Jobs in Golf Month^Library Lovers Month^Marijuana Awareness Month^National African American History Month^National Bird Feeding Month^National Black History Month^National Care About Your Indoor Air Month^National Cherry Month^National Condom Month^National Children's Dental Health Month^National Laugh-Friendly Month^National Mend A Broken Heart Month^National Parent Leadership Month^National Pet Dental Health Month^National Senior Independence Month^National Time Management Month^Plant the Seeds of Greatness Month^Pull Your Sofa Off The Wall Month^Relationship Wellness Month^Responsible Pet Owner's Month^Return Shopping Carts to the Supermarket Month^Spiritual Teachers Month^Spunky Old Broads Month^ Sweet Potato Month^Wise Health Care Consumer Month^ Youth Leadership Month^
☼ Observance Weeks in February ☼
Children's Authors & Illustrators Week: 1-7
National Patient Recognition Week: 1-7
National School Counseling Week: 1-5
Solo Diners Eat Out Weekend: 1-7
Women's Heart Week: 1-7
International Networking Week: 1-5
Intimate Apparel Market Week: 1-4
☼ 1 February Observances—US/UN/World ☼
Freedom Day
G.I. Joe Day
Give Kids A Smile Day
Hula in The Coola Day
Robinson Crusoe Day
Spunky Old Broads Day
Working Naked Day
☼1 February Observances—by country ☼
Ireland: St. Brigid, patron saint day
Malaysia : Federal Territory Holiday (1974)
Nicaragua : Air Force Day
☼ Holy Mackerel: On this day in
☼ Born on this day ☼
     » The Arts
Authors, Artists and Composers
Thomas Cole, in 1801, romantic landscape painter (Hudson River School)
Victor August Herbert, in 1859 (Ireland), composer (Babes in Toyland)
Langston Hughes, in 1902, poet/translator
Muriel Spark, in 1918, (Scotland), novelist (The Prime of Miss Jean Brodie)
Entertainers in Cinema, Music, Theater, and TV
(William) Clark Gable, in 1901, actor (Gone With the Wind)
John Ford, in 1895, director (Stagecoach, Air Mail, Quiet Man)
Michael C. Hall, 39, actor (“Six Feet Under,” “Dexter”)
Sherman Hemsley, 72, actor (“The Jeffersons,” “Amen”)
Rick James [James Johnson], in 1952, rock/soul/funk vocalist (Super Freak)
Terry Jones, 68, Welsh actor, director (“Monty Python’s Flying Circus”)
Anthony LaPaglia, 51, (Australia), actor
Lisa Marie Presley, 42, singer
Bob Shane, 76, vocalist (Kingston Trio)
Pauly Shore, 40, comedian, actor
     »Athletes
     »Business, Education, Politics
Boris Yeltsin, in 1931, president of Russian SSR
     »Science/Religion
Jacob Roggeveen, in 1659, Dutch Swiss lawyer/navigator (Easter Island)
Thomas Campbell, in 1763, founder (Church of Disciples in America)
Eduard Adolf Strasburger, in 1844, German botanist (Angiospermen)
☼Today’s Obits ☼
Carlos I King of Portugal in 1908, assassinated @ 44
Buster Keaton [Joseph Francis], in 1966, US comic @ 69
Hedda Hopper [Elda Furry], in 1966, US gossip columnist, @ 75
Langston Hughes, in 1967, poet/translator, on 65th birthday
Jack Bailey, in 1980, TV host (Queen for a Day), @ 72
James G MacDonald, in 1991, cartoon voice (Mickey Mouse), @ 84
☼What happened on this day? ☼
     » The Arts
1935…1st "March of Time" newsreel premieres at the Capitol
1949…RCA releases 1st single record ever (45 rpm)
1982…"Late Night With David Letterman" debuts on NBC-TV
1999…Former White House intern Monica Lewinsky gives deposition
    »Athletics
    »Business, Education, Politics
1587…English queen Elizabeth I signs Mary Stuart's death sentence
1790…Supreme Court convenes for the 1st time (New York NY)
1862…The Battle Hymn of the Republic was first published in Atlantic Monthly
1884…1st volume of the Oxford English Dictionary, A-Ant, published
1906…1st federal penitentiary building completed, Leavenworth KS
1917…By Executive Order, today, the PAPAGO Indian Reservation in established in Arizona.
1920…1st commercial armored car introduced (St Paul MN)
1951…1st telecast of atomic explosion - US nuclear test at Nevada Test Site
1957…1st black pilot (PH Young) on a US scheduled passenger airline
1960…4 students stage 1st civil rights sit-in, at Greensboro NC Woolworth
1965…Martin Luther King Jr & 700 demonstrators arrested in Selma AL
1978…Harriet Tubman is 1st black woman honored on a US postage stamp
     »Science/Religion
2003…The Space Shuttle Columbia breaks up on re-entry into the Earth's atmospher
2004…During the annual Hajj pilgrimage to the city of Mecca in Saudi Arabia 251 people are trampled to death during a stampede
» Number One Songs in…
1944…Besame Mucho - The Jimmy Dorsey Orchestra (vocal: Bob Eberly & Kitty Kallen
1952…Slowpoke - Pee Wee King
1960…Running Bear - Johnny Preston
1968…Judy in Disguise (With Glasses) - John Fred & His Playboy Band
1976…Love Rollercoaster - Ohio Players
1984…Karma Chameleon - Culture Club Factory
» ANSWERS to puzzle «
1. COVER: hardcover, undercover, cover up
2. FORM: form-fitting, landform, freeform
3.WATER: salt water, watermelon, white water

Sunday

January 31, 2010--Week 5 of 2010: 31 days this year…334 remain

» Quote Times Two «                      .

"There`s so much to say but your eyes keep interrupting me." ~unknown, but probably some lounge lizard

A hundred years from now it will not matter what my bank account was, the sort of house I lived in, or the kind of car I drove... but the world may be different because I was important in the life of a child.” ~Forest E. Witcraft; Teacher, Scholar

» Free Ramblings «                        .

They are still clearing the snow away from our parking area. This time it was a cute little orange front loader. He did a pretty good job. The piles they make are not melting, but at least they are out of the way. No major ice fell from the roof today. The neighborhood kids are enjoying the snow and the piles. Sledding was the fun of the day. The piles are high enough to make a semi-decent slide into the commons area. We made it to 40° with no wind, so a nice day. Last night only dropped to 27°.

I watched a couple of movies this afternoon, after cleaning a little around the upstairs. At some point I have to deal with taxes, but not today.

»Side Show Stories—Darwin Awards 2010 «            .

The Darwin Awards commemorate those who improve our gene pool... by removing themselves from it.

Another runner up…

An American teenager was in the hospital recovering from serious head wounds received from an oncoming train. When asked how he received the injuries, the lad told police that he was simply trying to see how close he could get his head to a moving train before he was hit.

»Random Fact«                                                  .

A quarter of the bones in your body are in your feet..

» Interesting Statistics – Tax Time«                       .

*Note: I realize that statistics can be made to say just about anything.

During the first World War, tax rates were pushed up to 77 percent. They stayed there until the late 1920s. The same thing happened after World War II. Wartime tax rates were as high as 94 percent, and incredibly the top rate stayed above 90 percent for 20 years after the way.

» Puzzle «                                                        .

A list of words is given. To solve the puzzle, think of a single word that goes with each to form a compound word or word pair that functions as a compound word. For example, if the given words are volley, field, and bearing, the the answer would be ball, because the word ball can be added to each of the other words to form volleyball, ball field, and ball bearing. Answers are at the end of blog.

1. weight, fly, sand

2. above, floor, walk

3. watch, house, gone

» Calendar Information «                                   .  

☼ January Month Long Observances ☼

Birthstone: Garnet …Flower: Carnation

Book Blitz Month * Bath Safety Month * Birth Defects Month * California Dried Plum Digestive Month * Celebration of Life Month * Cervical Cancer Screening Month * Financial Wellness Month * High Tech Month * International Creativity Month * International Quality of Life Month * International Wayfinding Month * International Wealth Mentality Month * National Be On-Purpose Month * National Bird Feeding Month * National Clean Up Your Computer Month * National Get Organized Month * National Glaucoma Awareness Month * National Hot Tea Month * National Mail Order Gardening Month * National Mentoring Month * National Personal Self-Defense Awareness Month * National Poverty in America Awareness Month * National Radon Action Month * National Skating Month * National Soup Month * National Volunteer Blood Donor Month * Oatmeal Month * Rising Star Month * Self-help Group Awareness Month * Senior Women’s Travel Month * Shape Up US Month * Thyroid Awareness Month

☼ Observance Weeks in January ☼

Sundance Film Festival: 21-31

☼ 31 January Observances—US/UN/World ☼

Inspire Your Heart with the Arts Day

National Popcorn Day

National Child Labor Day

National Seed Swap Day

World Leprosy Day: to clear up myths and give basic knowledge about it

☼31 January Observances—by country ☼

Lerwick, Shetland Islands : Up-Helly-Aa/Norse fire festival

Nauru : Independence Day (from Australia, 1968)

Surrey England : Dicing for Maid's Money Day

☼ Holy Mackerel: On this day in 1905…1st auto to exceed 100 mph (161 kph), A G MacDonald, Daytona Beach
☼ Born on this day ☼

     » The Arts

Tallulah Bankhead, in 1902, actress

Eddie Cantor (Iskowitz), in 1892, ‘banjo eyes’: actor, singer

Carol Channing, 87, actress (stage: Hello, Dolly!; Thoroughly Modern Millie)

Phil Collins, 59, singer/drummer (Genesis-Against All Odds)

Minnie Driver, 39, actress (Gross Pointe Blank, Good Will Hunting)

James Franciscus, in 1934, actor (Mr Novak, Longstreet, Hunter)

Zane Grey (Pearl Grey), 1872, dentist; author: The Spirit of the Border, The Last of the Plainsmen, Riders of the Purple Sage

Mario Lanza, in 1921, actor/singer

Kelly Lynch, 51, actress (Drugstore Cowboy), born Minneapolis, MN, Jan 31, 1959.

Norman Mailer, in 1923, New York City NY mayoral candidate/novelist: His platform for Mayor was to have NYC become the 51st state.

Stuart Margolin, 70, actor, director, writer (“The Rockford Files,” )

Garry Moore (Thomas Garrison Morfit), in 1915, Emmy Award-winning entertainer

John Henry O'Hara in 1905, novelist (Butterfield 8, Pal Joey)

Suzanne Pleshette, in 1937, actress (The Birds, Emily-Bob Newhart Show)

Antony Winkler Prins in 1817, Dutch writer (Groiler Encyclopaedia)

Franz Schubert, in 1797, composer: Unfinished Symphony

Justin Timberlake, 29, singer, actor (Alpha Dog, Black Snake Moan)

     »Athletics

Ernest (Ernie) Banks, 79, Hall of Fame baseball player

Brett "the Hitman" Hart, 53, WWF champion mad a comeback a couple of weeks ago.

Jackie (Jack Roosevelt) Robinson, in 1919, Baseball Hall of Famer

(Lynn) Nolan Ryan, 63, Hall of Fame baseball player(Mets, Angels, Astros)

     »Business, Education, Politics

Queen Beatrix, 72, Queen of the Netherlands

R W Bonham, in 1906, founder (International Braille Chess Association)

Stewart L Udall, in 1920-St Johns AZ, US Secretary of Interior

James G Watt, 72, US Secretary of Interior (1981-83)

     »Science/Religion

Sri Daya Mata, 1914, Hindu religious figure

☼Today’s Obits ☼

Edwin H Armstrong in 1954, US radio inventor (FM), suicide @ 63

Guy Fawkes in 1606, convicted in the "Gunpowder Plot", executed @ 35

Samuel Goldwyn in 1974, Polish/English/US film magnate (MGM), @ 91

Bir Bikram Shah Deva Mahendra in 1972, king of Nepal (1955-72), unknown causes @ 51

Eddie Slovik in 1945, 1st US soldier executed for desertion since Civil War @ 25

[Bonnie Prince] Charles E Stuart in 1788, English pretender, @ 67

☼What happened on this day? ☼

     » The Arts

1929…Leon Trotsky expelled from Russia to Turkey

1936…The Green Hornet’s first broadcast, was introduced by its famous theme song, The Flight of the Bumble Bee

     »Athletics

1974…McDonald's founder Ray Kroc buys San Diego Padres

1988…Super Bowl XXII Washington Redskins beat Denver Broncos, 42-10 in San Diego

1999…Super Bowl XXXIII Denver Broncos beat Atlanta Falcons in Miami

     »Business, Education, Politics

1627…Spanish government goes bankrupt

1842…John Tyler's daughter Elizabeth marries in the White House

1865…Congress passes 13th Amendment, abolishing slavery in America (121-24)

1870…The first acts are taken to establish the White Mountain-San Carlos-Camp Apache Reserve in western Arizona territory

1985…South African President PW Botha offers to free Mandela if he denounces violence

1990…1st McDonald's in Russia opens in Moscow, world's biggest McDonald's-over 30,000 the first day

     »Science/Religion

1646…Jesuits "predict" a lunar eclipse for the HURONs of Ossossane. This accurate prediction, made with the use of an almanac, will lead to many religious conversions.

1961…Ham is 1st primate in space (158 miles) aboard Mercury/Redstone 2

» Number One Songs in…

1951…Tennessee Waltz - Patti Page

1959…Smoke Gets in Your Eyes - The Platters

1967…I’m a Believer - The Monkees

1975…Please Mr. Postman - Carpenters

1991…Gonna Make You Sweat (Everybody Dance Now) - C & C Music Factory

» ANSWERS to puzzle «

1. PAPER: paperweight, flypaper, sandpaper

2. BOARD: above board, floorboard, boardwalk

3. DOG: watch dog, dog house, dog gone

Saturday

January 30, 2010--Week 4 of 2010: 30 days this year…335 remain

» Quote Times Two «                      .

"The less a statesman amounts to, the more he loves the flag." ~Frank McKinney “Kin” Hubbard, American political cartoonist

“What I would like to give my daughter is freedom. And this is something that must be given by example, not by exhortation.” ~Erica Jong; Educator, Author

» Free Ramblings «                         .

I returned from some errands about 12:30 this afternoon. A crew was just climbing the ladder to our roof. They were harnessed up to each other and appeared ready to move the snow off the roof. Soon I heard a lot of stomping and moving on my roof. I’m the second one in the line of about ten townhouses. After about thirty minutes there were huge chunks of ‘snice’ falling onto my sidewalk, trees and bushes. For those of you don’t know, ‘snice’ is beautiful white snow on top and thick hard formed ice on the bottom. I watched from both upstairs and downstairs. The ice cave didn’t fall as quickly as I had expected. It was really glued on. The crew worked on my roof for about an hour and a half before moving down to the others. When I was sure they were through with my roof, I opened the front door to check out their work from the parking lot. We have all seen those ‘avalanche hits ski lodge’ movies. Well, The snow pile on my sidewalk was over six feet high of ‘snice’. Soon there was a poor guy with a coal shovel out there trying to get all of this off the sidewalk. He worked a good 30 minutes and finally got to my front door, but there was still at least a foot of snow on the sidewalk. Out of nowhere, there was this loud noise, and ‘snice’ coming off the roof covered all his work with another three feet of the stuff. I ran to the front door, opened it, and there he was, standing under the porch with a look of terror on his face. He was OK, being under the porch, but all his hard work was destroyed. He asked if he could use my bathroom. If it had been me, I’m sure a bathroom call would have been too late. His boss came over the three foot wall of ‘snice’ and checked on his worker. The worker used the bathroom, and then climbed out of the house and began his work again. He couldn’t work from my door, because there was really very little room to stand. In a few minutes I heard a chain saw starting up. The boss was cutting the ‘snice’ with it. The pieces were too big for any shovel to lift. My neighbor and I now have a very, very narrow path from the house to the parking lot. The wall of snow and ice is now at least 6 feet high. This new pile may not melt until the 4th….of July. To end this saga, a 20-something girl came knocking on my door about 4:00. She was there to let me know that there was still lots of ice on the roof, and according to her, about a ton of ice was still up there, and that if would probably ‘slide’ off over the next few days. Just be careful when you are going in or out. No more snow, for a little while, please.

While all this was going on, trapped in my home, I ended up watching something historical. President Obama met with 140 Republican House members for a question/answer period on live TV. Gutsy move that has never been done before. Talk about transparent. The great orator did it again, he was able to admit mistakes, answer all the questions, and let everyone know that he is very aware of what is going on in this country. He really wants some bipartisan support. Talk about walking into a lion’s den. While Obama did get some bruises, he survived. He also wants to have it happen again. Leadership in action.

While the roof cleaners were removing ice, we made it to 45° and had no wind. Last night dropped to 19°. No snow is in the forecast, so the ice, snow, and ‘snice’ should continue to melt.

»Side Show Stories—Darwin Awards 2010 «               .

The Darwin Awards commemorate those who improve our gene pool... by removing themselves from it.

Another runner up…

After stopping for drinks at an illegal bar, a Zimbabwean bus driver found that the 20 mental patients he was supposed to be transporting from Harare to Bulawayo had escaped. Not wanting to admit his incompetence, the driver went to a nearby bus stop and offered everyone waiting there a free ride. He then delivered the passengers to the mental hospital, telling the staff that the patients were very excitable and prone to bizarre fantasies. The deception wasn't discovered for three days.

»Random Fact«                                                   .

In 1995 the Royal Norwegian Navy became the first navy in the world to appoint a female submarine captain.

» Interesting Statistics «                                       .

*Note: I realize that statistics can be made to say just about anything.

~ There are 17 separate land areas in AZ that are designated for Military Use. Two are in the Flagstaff area…Camp Navajo and the US Naval Observatory Station.

» Puzzle «                                                          .

A list of words is given. To solve the puzzle, think of a single word that goes with each to form a compound word or word pair that functions as a compound word. For example, if the given words are volley, field, and bearing, the the answer would be ball, because the word ball can be added to each of the other words to form volleyball, ball field, and ball bearing. Answers are at the end of blog.

1. hook, jelly, bowl

2. hay, smoke, up

3. dog, frog, fighter

» Calendar Information «                                     .

☼ January Month Long Observances ☼

Birthstone: Garnet …Flower: Carnation

Book Blitz Month * Bath Safety Month * Birth Defects Month * California Dried Plum Digestive Month * Celebration of Life Month * Cervical Cancer Screening Month * Financial Wellness Month * High Tech Month * International Creativity Month * International Quality of Life Month * International Wayfinding Month * International Wealth Mentality Month * National Be On-Purpose Month * National Bird Feeding Month * National Clean Up Your Computer Month * National Get Organized Month * National Glaucoma Awareness Month * National Hot Tea Month * National Mail Order Gardening Month * National Mentoring Month * National Personal Self-Defense Awareness Month * National Poverty in America Awareness Month * National Radon Action Month * National Skating Month * National Soup Month * National Volunteer Blood Donor Month * Oatmeal Month * Rising Star Month * Self-help Group Awareness Month * Senior Women’s Travel Month * Shape Up US Month * Thyroid Awareness Month

☼ Observance Weeks in January ☼

Sundance Film Festival: 21-31

National Cowboy Poetry Gathering Week: 23-30

National Nurse Anesthetists Week: 24-30

☼ 27 January Observances—US/UN/World ☼

Inane Answering Message Day

Kentucky, Virgin Islands : Franklin D Roosevelt Day

Perigean Spring Tides: Moon closest to earth tonight

Tu B'Shvat: 15th day of Jewish month Shevat for planting trees

☼27 January Observances—by country ☼

England : Women Peerage Day (1958) –women seen as peers in government

☼ Holy Mackerel: On this day in 1956…KRMA TV channel 6 in Denver CO (PBS) begins broadcasting...my parents went door-to-door to gather signatures and $$ to get it to happen.

☼ Born on this day ☼

     » The Arts

Christian Bale, 36, actor (3:10 to Yuma, The Prestige, Rescue Dawn, Batman Begins)

Brett Butler, 52, comedienne, actress (“Grace Under Fire”)

Phil Collins, 59, musician, singer, songwriter

Gene Hackman, 80, actor (Oscars for The French Connection and Unforgiven)

Dorothy Malone, 85, actress (“Peyton Place”)

Dick Martin, in 1922, actor/comedian (Laugh-In)

Vanessa Redgrave, 73, actress

Boris Spassky, 73, former chess player, journalist

     »Athletics

Davey Johnson, 67, Nationals baseball manager and former Mets player

Payne Stewart, in 1957, golf: champ

     »Business, Education, Politics

Richard (Dick) Cheney, 69, 46th vice president of the US

Shirley Chisholm, in 1924. Representative-D-NY

Franklin Delano Roosevelt in 1882. 32nd President

     »Science/Religion

Peter Agre, 61, American biologist, Nobel laureate--chemistry

Max Theiler, in 1899, South African virologist, Nobel Prize Laureate

☼Today’s Obits ☼

Charles I in 1649, King of Great Britain (1625-49), beheaded for treason @ 49

Osceola in 1838 Seminole Chief, malaria, in jail @ 34

Mahatma Gandhi, in 1948, India spiritual and political leader, assassinated by Hindu extremists in New Delhi, @ 78

Ferdinand Porsche, in 1951, German car inventor (Porsche), @ 75

☼What happened on this day? ☼

     » The Arts

1933…"The Lone Ranger" premieres on ABC radio

1961…KAET TV channel 8 in Phoenix AZ (PBS) begins broadcasting

1977…The Roots Part VIII finale episode is aired on ABC

     »Athletics

1994…Dan Jansen skates world record 500m (35.76)

     »Business, Education, Politics

1798… first fight in House--Representative Matthew Lyon (Vermont) spits in face of Representative Roger Griswold (Connecticut) in US House of Representatives, after an argument

1820…Edward Bransfield aboard Williams discovers Antarctica (UK claim)

1847…Yerba Buena renamed San Francisco

1924…Northern Ireland Civil Rights demonstrators were gunned down. They were shot by British Army Paratroopers.

1939…Hitler calls for the extermination of Jews

1946…1st issue of Franklin Roosevelt dime

1956…Martin Luther King Jr's home bombed

1968…The Viet Cong launched surprise attacks in South Vietnam , beginning the Tet Offensive

     »Science/Religion

1487…Bell chimes invented

1989…5 pharaoh sculptures from 1470 BC found at temple of Luxor

» Number One Songs in…

1950…Dear Hearts and Gentle People - Bing Crosby

1958…At the Hop - Danny & The Juniors

1966…We Can Work It Out - The Beatles

1974…The Way We Were - Barbra Streisand

» ANSWERS to puzzle «                                      .

1. FISH: fishhook, jellyfish, fishbowl

2. STACK: haystack, smokestack, stack up

3. BULL: bulldog, bullfrog, bull fighter

Friday

January 29, 2010--Week 4 of 2010: 29 days this year…336 remain

» Quote Times Two «                       .

"In gallant trim the gilded vessel goes, Youth on the bow, Pleasure at the helm." ~unkonwn

“The whole art of teaching is only the art of awakening the natural curiosity of young minds for the purpose of satisfying it afterwards.” ~Anatole France, Critic, Writer

» Free Ramblings «                         .

Politicians will always be politicians…duh. Obama gave a good political speech last night. He certainly hit the target when he reminded America that education is the best way to beat poverty. Did you hear that AZ legislature? Did you hear that non-elected Governor Brewer? They just keep cutting and cutting education. At times our 42nd place in per-student educational spending seems to be too high for them. Why can’t we be 50th? I reside in such a short-sighted state.

Obama called out the Supreme Court decision on recognizing a corporation as a person who can freely donate to federal campaigns. Judge Alito, sitting with the other justices, gave a negative head bob and quietly mumbled something about the call-out being wrong. Obama made it clear, before his call out, that he was aware of the separation of powers. Alito’s behavior was more like that of an adolescent who doesn’t like being called out by someone who has little or no power over the adolescent’s life. Sad.

Flag dropped to 28° last night and got to a whopping 36° today. The 30mph gusts made it feel a whole lot cooler. No snow flew today, but it sure tried. We still may get a little more snow out of this storm, but I think it is highly unlikely. My vast education in weather forecasting consists of ‘how it looks outside, and how I feel about it.” I’m almost as accurate as the weather bureau with all their charts, graphs, and maps.

»Side Show Stories—Darwin Awards 2010 «               .

The Darwin Awards commemorate those who improve our gene pool... by removing themselves from it.

Another runner up…

A man who shoveled snow for an hour to clear a space for his car during a blizzard in Chicago returned with his vehicle to find a woman had taken the space. Understandably, he shot her.

»Random Fact«                                                     .

Alaska has more caribou than people.

» Interesting Statistics – Tax Time«                      .

*Note: I realize that statistics can be made to say just about anything.

~ more than 50 percent of us use professional tax help. This percentage is on the rise -- it was 40 percent in 1980.

» Puzzle «                                                            .

A list of words is given. To solve the puzzle, think of a single word that goes with each to form a compound word or word pair that functions as a compound word. For example, if the given words are volley, field, and bearing, the the answer would be ball, because the word ball can be added to each of the other words to form volleyball, ball field, and ball bearing. Answers are at the end of blog.

1. battle, work, play

2. off, crow, tactics

3. reading, stick, fat

» Calendar Information «                                       . 

☼ January Month Long Observances ☼

Birthstone: Garnet …Flower: Carnation

Book Blitz Month * Bath Safety Month * Birth Defects Month * California Dried Plum Digestive Month * Celebration of Life Month * Cervical Cancer Screening Month * Financial Wellness Month * High Tech Month * International Creativity Month * International Quality of Life Month * International Wayfinding Month * International Wealth Mentality Month * National Be On-Purpose Month * National Bird Feeding Month * National Clean Up Your Computer Month * National Get Organized Month * National Glaucoma Awareness Month * National Hot Tea Month * National Mail Order Gardening Month * National Mentoring Month * National Personal Self-Defense Awareness Month * National Poverty in America Awareness Month * National Radon Action Month * National Skating Month * National Soup Month * National Volunteer Blood Donor Month * Oatmeal Month * Rising Star Month * Self-help Group Awareness Month * Senior Women’s Travel Month * Shape Up US Month * Thyroid Awareness Month

☼ Observance Weeks in January ☼

Sundance Film Festival: 21-31

National Cowboy Poetry Gathering Week: 23-30

World Leprosy Week: 23-29

National Nurse Anesthetists Week: 24-30

National Medical Group Practice Week: 25-29

☼ 27 January Observances—US/UN/World ☼

National Corn Chip Day

Kansas : Admission Day/Kansas Day (1861)

☼27 January Observances—by country ☼

Gibraltar: Constitution Day (since 2006)

☼ Holy Mackerel: On this day in 1845…Edgar Allen Poe's "The Raven" 1st published (New York City NY)

☼ Born on this day ☼

     » The Arts

Edward Abbey, in 1927 US author (Desert Solitaire)

Anton Chekhov in 1860, short story writer

Paddy Chayefsky in 1923, [Sydney], US, dramatist (Marty)

W C Fields [William Claude Dukenfield], in 1880 , actor and comedian

John Forsythe (John Freund), 92, actor (“Bachelor Father,” Charlie’s voice on “Charlie’s Angels,” “Dynasty”)

Germaine Greer, 71, (Australia), feminist/author (Female Eunuch)

Sara Gilbert, 35, actress (“The Big Bang Theory,” “Roseanne”

Germaine Greer, 71, Australian author (Daddy We Hardly Knew You, The Female Eunuch)

Victor Mature, in 1913, actor

Romain Rolland, in 1866 (France), writer (Nobel 1915)

Katharine Ross, 67, actress (The Graduate)

Tom Selleck, 65, actor (“Magnum, PI,” Three Men and a Baby, Mr Baseball)

Oprah Winfrey, 56, television talk show host, actress, producer

     »Athletics

Gregory Efthimios (Greg) Louganis, 50, Olympic gold medal diver, born San Diego, CA, Jan 29, 1960.

     »Business, Education, Politics

Allen B DuMont, in 1901, inventor (perfected commercial practical cathode ray tube)

William McKinley, in 1843, 25th President

Thomas Paine, in 1737, political essayist (Common Sense, Age of Reason)

Adam Clayton Powell, in 1908, US Representative- NY

John D[avid] Rockefeller Jr in 1874, philanthropist

     »Science/Religion

Lawrence Hargrave, in 1850, inventor (box kite)

☼Today’s Obits ☼

Edward Lear in 1888, poet/author, @ 75

Robert Lee Frost in 1963, US poet (New Hampshire, 4 Pulitzers), @ 88

Alan Ladd, in 1964 actor (Shane), accidental overdose @50

Freddie Prinze, in 1977 comedian/actor (Chico & the Man), suicide @ 22

Jimmy Durante, in 1980 New York City NY, singer/comedian (Ink-a-dink-a-doo, Palooka, The Jimmy Durante Show), @ 86

☼What happened on this day? ☼

     » The Arts

1953…1st movie in Cinemascope (The Robe) premieres

1959…Walt Disney's "Sleeping Beauty" released

1996…6,138th performance of "Cats" is held in London, surpassing record of Broadway's longest-running musical, "A Chorus Line"

     »Athletics

1936…Ty Cobb, Babe Ruth, Honus Wagner, Christy Mathewson and Walter Johnson were the first players to be elected to the Baseball Hall of Fame

1988…Largest NBA crowd-Boston Celtics at Detroit (61,938)

     »Business, Education, Politics

1802…John Beckley of Virginia appointed 1st Librarian of Congress

1834…President Jackson orders 1st use of US troops to suppress a labor dispute

1929…Seeing Eye Guide Dog Organization forms

1990…Exxon Valdez captain Joseph Hazelwood goes on trial due to oil spill

     »Science/Religion

1886…1st successful gasoline-driven car patented, Karl Benz

1896…Emile Grubbe is 1st doctor to use radiation treatment for breast cancer

» Number One Songs in…

1949…Buttons and Bows - Dinah Shore

1957…Singing the Blues - Guy Mitchell

1965…Downtown - Petula Clark

1973…Superstition - Stevie Wonder

1981…9 to 5 - Dolly Parton

» ANSWERS to puzzle «

1. GROUND: battleground, groundwork, playground

2. SCARE: scare off, scarecrow, scare tactics

3. LIP: lip reading, lipstick, fat lip

Thursday

January 28, 2010--Week 4 of 2010: 28 days this year…337 remain

» Quote Times Two «                       .

"When seeking love give nothing, Having found love give all."~ unknown

"Any intelligent fool can make things bigger, more complex, and more violent. It takes a touch of genius - and a lot of courage - to move in the opposite direction and contemplate a wholesale change in thought and attitude." ~E.F. Schumacher, Economist

» Free Ramblings «                          .

"Well, gosh, we all had to bring our birth certificates to show we were who we said we were, and we were the age we said we were, to play football in youth sports," said Hayworth, who is currently challenging John McCain (R-AZ) in Arizona's Senate primary. "Shouldn't we know exactly that anyone who wants to run for public office is a natural born citizen of the United States, and is who they say they are?"—JD Haworth.

Hey, JD, read the US Constitution…the only two offices that require a natural born citizen are President and Vice President. It’s too bad that McCain’s rival is a friggin’ Birther. I’m sure that if someone calls JD on this quote, he will simply say that either he was misquoted, or that he meant something else. That’s his problem, he doesn’t know of what he speaks. JD’s run is becoming National fodder, since he is running in a primary against the most recent Presidential loser.

Obama is giving his State of the Union speech tonight. I’ll be listening. More on that, I’m sure tomorrow.

Today is Data Privacy Day. I must say we need to do more than just talk about it, but insure that it happens. With the overwhelming amount of data available through the internet, there has to be something to insure that the information is accurate. Part of this blog recalls births, deaths, and events that have occurred throughout history. I do this because being reminded of these things helps me keep my mind active. I also like recalling these tidbits, sometimes because I lived at that time, others I had learned sometime but kinda forgotten. Many times I learn something I didn’t ever know. I have searched out sites that give me the information to share. What continues to astound me is the number of mistakes that are out there. I realize that some information may not be readily verifiable, so I try hard to have at least two sites showing the information before I post it. If internet web masters can’t get simple dates right, what other information out there is totally wrong? That is something we have to ask every time we log on.

Flag had some heavy snow flurries for about an hour this morning. The weather service issued a bulletin saying to expect up to 8” of snow. The snow melted as it fell, the sky cleared. Hopefully we won’t get any more from this storm. My ice cave is still holding on, the icicles continue to grow. We still have plenty left from the last storm. One interesting observance today, while these heavy flurries were falling, our parking lot had a small river of water running down the middle of the road. Guess that means the snow is melting. It only dropped to 22° last night, so it warmed up to our high of 38° fairly early. This helped a little in melting the snow piles. Another 45 days like this, and our record snow fall will finally be melted.

»Side Show Stories—Darwin Awards 2010 «.

The Darwin Awards commemorate those who improve our gene pool... by removing themselves from it.

Another more runner up…

When his 38 caliber revolver failed to fire at his intended victim during a hold-up in Long Beach, California, would-be robber James Elliot did something that can only inspire wonder. He peered down the barrel and tried the trigger again. This time it worked.

»Random Fact «                              .

A one-minute kiss burns 26 calories.

» Interesting Statistics «                   .

*Note: I realize that statistics can be made to say just about anything.

~ Between 1997 and 2003, there was a 25% increase in the number of businesses in AZ. Too bad that is the latest data.

» Puzzle «                                          .

A list of words is given. To solve the puzzle, think of a single word that goes with each to form a compound word or word pair that functions as a compound word. For example, if the given words are volley, field, and bearing, the the answer would be ball, because the word ball can be added to each of the other words to form volleyball, ball field, and ball bearing. Answers are at the end of blog.

1. butter, maid, run

2. hot, strong, arrow

3. sore, witness, buck

» Calendar Information «                  .     

☼ January Month Long Observances ☼

Birthstone: Garnet …Flower: Carnation

Book Blitz Month * Bath Safety Month * Birth Defects Month * California Dried Plum Digestive Month * Celebration of Life Month * Cervical Cancer Screening Month * Financial Wellness Month * High Tech Month * International Creativity Month * International Quality of Life Month * International Wayfinding Month * International Wealth Mentality Month * National Be On-Purpose Month * National Bird Feeding Month * National Clean Up Your Computer Month * National Get Organized Month * National Glaucoma Awareness Month * National Hot Tea Month * National Mail Order Gardening Month * National Mentoring Month * National Personal Self-Defense Awareness Month * National Poverty in America Awareness Month * National Radon Action Month * National Skating Month * National Soup Month * National Volunteer Blood Donor Month * Oatmeal Month * Rising Star Month * Self-help Group Awareness Month * Senior Women’s Travel Month * Shape Up US Month * Thyroid Awareness Month

☼ Observance Weeks in January ☼

Sundance Film Festival: 21-31

National Cowboy Poetry Gathering Week: 23-30

World Leprosy Week: 23-29

National Nurse Anesthetists Week: 24-30

National Medical Group Practice Week: 25-29

☼ 27 January Observances—US/UN/World ☼

National Kazoo Day

Clash Day

Rattlesnake Round-Up Day

☼27 January Observances—by country ☼

Rwanda : Democracy Day (1961)

US: Canada: 27 European Nations: Data Privacy Day—to raise awareness of the importance of data privacy

☼ Holy Mackerel: On this day in 1918…US food administrator Hoover calls for "wheatless" & "meatless" days for war effort

☼ Born on this day ☼

     » The Arts

Alan Alda (Alphonso D’Abruzzo), 74, actor (Paper Lion, The Four Seasons, “M*A*S*H”), director

Sabine Baring-Gould, in 1834 , Anglican clergyman and author, "Onward, Christian Soldiers"

John Barclay in 1582, Scottish satirist/poet

Barbi Benton [Klein], 60, Playboy model/actress (Hee Haw)

Acker (Bernard) Bilk, 81, British clarinetist, composer: Stranger on the Shore

"Sidonie Gabrielle" Colette in 1873, novelist (Cheri, Gigi)

Sarah McLachlan, 42, Canadian singer

Claes Oldenburg, 81, Swedish artist, sculptor

Jackson Pollock in 1912 (Cody WY), abstract artist (Lavender Mist)

Artur Rubinstein in 1887, American pianist

Susan Sontag in 1933, essayist/novelist/film director

Elijah Wood, 29, actor (the Lord of the Rings trilogy, The Ice Storm)
     »Athletics

Dwight Stone, 46, NFL receiver/running back (Panthers, Packers)

     »Business, Education, Politics

Henry VII, in 1457, 1st Tudor king of England

Nicolas Sarkozy, 55, President of France

Sir Henry Morton Stanley in 1841, explorer: leader of African expedition to find the missing missionary, David Livingstone: “Dr. Livingstone, I presume?” said Mr. Stanley

    »Science/Religion

William Seward Burroughs in 1855, inventor (recording adding machine)

☼Today’s Obits ☼

Charlemagne in 0814, German emperor/Roman Emperor (800-814), @ 71

Henry VIII in 1547 King of England (1509-47), compiications of gout @ 55

Sir Francis Drake in 1595 English navigator/pirate, dysentery @ about 50

Peter I "the Great" Romanov in 1725 czar of Russia, gangrene @ 52

John Banner in 1973 actor (Schultz-Hogan's Heroes), hemorrhage @ 62 on birthday

Philip H Burton in 1995 Welsh producer/Richard Burton's teacher, @ 80

Jimmy Durante in 1980, comedian, @ 86

Challenger Astronauts in 1986: Gregory B. Jarvis, payload specialist @ 42; Christa McAuliffe teacher, @ 38; Ronald E McNair @ 36; Ellison S Onizuka, Major USAF @ 40; Dr Judith Arlene Resnik @37; Francis R Scobee, USAF/@ 47; Michael J Smith Commander USN @ 41

Jerry Siegel in 1996 comic book writer (Superman), @ 81

William Butler Yeats in 1939 Irish poet (Nobel), @ 73

☼What happened on this day? ☼

     » The Arts

1878…Yale Daily News published, 1st college daily newspaper

1902…The Carnegie Institution was established in Washington DC

1973…"Barnaby Jones" premieres on CBS TV

1978…"Fantasy Island" starring Ricardo Montalban premieres on ABC TV

     »Athletics

1934…1st US ski tow (rope) begins operation (Woodstock VT)

1958…Dodger catcher Roy Campanella is paralyzed in an automobile wreck

1969…Barbara Jo Rubin becomes 1st woman jockey to win in North America

1990…Super Bowl XXIV San Francisco 49ers beat Denver Broncos

     »Business, Education, Politics

1547…9-year-old Edward VI succeeds Henry VIII as king of England

1858…John Brown organized raid on Arsenal at Harper's Ferry

1899…American Social Science Association incorporated by Congress

1914…Beverly Hills, California, is incorporated

1928…Christopher Hornsrud chosen PM of Norway at age 101

1932…1st US state unemployment insurance act enacted-Wisconsin

1935…Iceland becomes 1st country to legalize abortion

1937…Testing of the Rolls Royce had begun; sale begins after WWII

1949…UN Security council condemns Dutch aggression in Indonesia

     »Science/Religion

1613…Galileo may have unknowingly viewed undiscovered planet Neptune

1807…London's Pall Mall is 1st street lit by gaslight

1986…25th Space Shuttle (51L)-Challenger 10 explodes 73 seconds after liftoff

» Number One Songs in…

1956…Memories are Made of This - Dean Martin

1964…There! I’ve Said It Again - Bobby Vinton

1972…American Pie - Don McLean

1980…Do that to Me One More Time - The Captain & Tennille

» ANSWERS to puzzle «

1. MILK: buttermilk, milkmaid, milk run

2. HEAD: hot head, headstrong, arrowhead

3. EYE: eyesore, eye witness, buckeye

Wednesday

January 27, 2010--Week 4 of 2010: 27 days this year…338 remain

» Quote Times Two « 

"A man cannot be comfortable without his own approval." ~ Mark Twain, humorist

“Example moves the world more than doctrine.” ~ Henry Miller, Author

» Free Ramblings «

OMG, Arizona needs to hold on to its political hat. Our former nemesis in our old congressional district is going to run for the Republican Party’s nomination for the US Senate. J D Hayworth is a conservative’s conservative. He has been out of office for some time, since the new districts were formed after the last census. He has been a host of a Phoenix Radio Talk Show for, I guess, almost a decade. Now he wants McCain’s seat. He says John is too liberal for our state, and while John has done a lot for the state, it’s time for him to come back to AZ. He was on a Phoenix TV informational show this morning, wearing an open shirt. I just saw an interview on National News with him. This time he was wearing a suit and tie. I can’t vote in the Republican Primary, so time will tell. I just have to hope that the Dems will find a person who can beat him, or John. The way I see it, if John wins the primary, he wins in November. If JD wins the primary, the race will be wide open and no knows who will win. Neither AZ nor our nation needs another super conservative in Washington.

Still no one has showed up to get the snow off our roof. It is melting, but still looks pretty precarious. My friend has been stuck for 6 days, but finally found someone to get her dug out today…Good news for sure. The 42° helped melt the snow, and allow the icicles to grow even longer and thicker. We only went to 12° last night. It was nice to be able to be outside, but still nowhere to walk safely around here. I slipped on some ice picking up the paper from my front area. No real damage, felt stupid, slightly twisted one knee on the way down, but some icy-hot is fixing that. Good thing the snow is so deep, as I was able to fall into a snow bank, and then slide down to the sidewalk. Winter Wonderland it isn’t.

»Side Show Stories—Darwin Awards 2010 «

The Darwin Awards commemorate those who improve our gene pool... by removing themselves from it.

THE WINNER!!!: ( Arkansas Democrat Gazette): Two local men were injured when their pickup truck left the road and struck a tree near Cotton Patch on State Highway 38 early Monday. Woodruff County deputy Dovey Snyder reported the accident shortly after midnight Monday. Thurston Poole, 33, of Des Arc, and Billy Ray Wallis, 38, of Little Rock, were returning to Des Arc after a frog catching trip. On an overcast Sunday night, Pooles pickup truck headlights malfunctioned. The two men concluded that the headlight fuse on the older-model truck had burned out. As a replacement fuse was not available, Wallis noticed that the 22 caliber bullets from his pistol fit perfectly into the fuse box next to the steering- wheel column. Upon inserting the bullet the headlights again began to operate properly, and the two men proceeded on eastbound toward the White River Bridge. After traveling approximately 20 miles, and just before crossing the river, the bullet apparently overheated, discharged, and struck Poole in the testicles. The vehicle swerved sharply right, exiting the pavement, and striking a tree. Poole suffered only minor cuts and abrasions from the accident but will require extensive surgery to repair the damage to his testicles, which will never operate as intended. Wallis sustained a broken clavicle and was treated and released. "Thank God we weren't on that bridge when Thurston shot his n**s off, or we might both be dead," stated Wallis. "I've been a trooper for 10 years in this part of the world, but this is a first for me. I can't believe that those two would admit how this accident happened," said Snyder. Upon being notified of the wreck, Lavinia (Poole 's wife), asked how many frogs the boys had caught and did anyone get them from the truck. Priorities, after all!! Though Poole and Wallis did not die as a result of their misadventure as normally required by Darwin Award Official Rules, it can be argued that Poole did, in fact, effectively remove himself from the gene pool.

»Random Fact «

About half of all Americans are on a diet at any given time.

» Interesting Statistics «

*Note: I realize that statistics can be made to say just about anything.

~ The AZ Gross State Product grew by 8.7% to 215.7 billion in 2005 making it the fastest growing economy in the US. Sorry to say “Not any more”.

» Puzzle «
A list of words is given. To solve the puzzle, think of a single word that goes with each to form a compound word or word pair that functions as a compound word. For example, if the given words are volley, field, and bearing, the the answer would be ball, because the word ball can be added to each of the other words to form volleyball, ball field, and ball bearing. Answers are at the end of blog.

1. back, crawl, work

2. read, child, water

3. blue, lands, roots

» Calendar Information «

☼ January Month Long Observances ☼

Birthstone: Garnet …Flower: Carnation

Book Blitz Month * Bath Safety Month * Birth Defects Month * California Dried Plum Digestive Month * Celebration of Life Month * Cervical Cancer Screening Month * Financial Wellness Month * High Tech Month * International Creativity Month * International Quality of Life Month * International Wayfinding Month * International Wealth Mentality Month * National Be On-Purpose Month * National Bird Feeding Month * National Clean Up Your Computer Month * National Get Organized Month * National Glaucoma Awareness Month * National Hot Tea Month * National Mail Order Gardening Month * National Mentoring Month * National Personal Self-Defense Awareness Month * National Poverty in America Awareness Month * National Radon Action Month * National Skating Month * National Soup Month * National Volunteer Blood Donor Month * Oatmeal Month * Rising Star Month * Self-help Group Awareness Month * Senior Women’s Travel Month * Shape Up US Month * Thyroid Awareness Month

☼ Observance Weeks in January ☼

Sundance Film Festival: 21-31

National Cowboy Poetry Gathering Week: 23-30

World Leprosy Week: 23-29

National Nurse Anesthetists Week: 24-30

National Medical Group Practice Week: 25-29

☼ 27 January Observances—US/UN/World ☼

Bubble Wrap Appreciation Day

Holocaust Memorial Day

Viet Nam Peace Day (1973)

☼27 January Observances—by country ☼

Denmark: Auschwitzdag (Auschwitz Day; commemoration day for the victims of the Holocaust and other genocide)

International Day of Commemoration in Memory of the Victims of the Holocaust

Monaco and Corsica: day of Saint Devota, martyred patron saint

Serbia: St. Sava Day, lawgiver and Serbian Orthodox Monastery builder

Viet Nam: Peace Day (1973)

☼ Holy Mackerel:☼ On this day in 1967…Apollo I electrical fire kills three US Astronauts in pre-flight testing.

☼ Born on this day ☼

     » The Arts

Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart in 1756 (Austria), musical prodigy/composer

Lewis Carroll [Charles Lutwidge Dodgson], in 1832 author (Alice in Wonderland)

Troy Donahue in 1936, actor

Lyle Russell Cedric ‘Skitch’ Henderson in 1918 (Birmingham England), orchestra leader (Tonight Show)

Jerome Kern in 1885, the father of the American musical: composer

Tracy Lawrence, 42, country singer

     »Athletics

(Anthony) Cris Collinsworth, 51, sportscaster

Art Rooney in 1901, NFL team owner (Pittsburgh Steelers)

     »Business, Education, Politics

Mohamed Al Fayed in 1933, (Egypt), CEO (Harrods)

Mairead Corrigan, 66, (Belfast, Northern Ireland), pacifist, Nobel Peace Prize winner

Samuel Gompers in 1850, labor union leader: 1st president of the American Federation of Labor [AFL]

William Randolph Hearst Jr, in 1908, newspaper publisher

John G. Roberts, Jr, 55, Chief Justice of the US

Kaiser Wilhelm II in 1859, German emperor

     »Science/Religion

Hyman G Rickover in 1900, US Admiral (father of modern nuclear navy)

Mikhail Baryshnikov, 62, in Latvia, ballet dancer, actor

☼Today’s Obits ☼

John James Audubon in 1851, conservationist (Audubon Society), senility @ 65

Roger B Chaffee astronaut, in 1967 @ 31 in Apollo I fire

Virgil I (Gus) Grissom astronaut, in 1967 @ 41 in Apollo I fire

Edward Higgins White II Lieutenant-Colonel USAF/astronaut (Gemini 4), in 1967 @ 36 in Apollo I fire

Mahalia Jackson in 1972, gospel singer (He Got the Whole World), diabetes @ 60

Paul "Bear" Bryant ,in 1983, US football coach (Alabama), heart attack @ 69

L Ron Hubbard, in 1986, novelist/founder (Church of Scientology), dies at 74

Andre "the Giant" Roussimoff in 1993 WWF wrestler, heart attack @ 49

☼What happened on this day? ☼

     » The Arts

1961…"Sing Along with Mitch" [Miller] premieres on NBC TV

1968 …Otis Redding’s (Sittin’ On) The Dock of the Bay was released on this day, seven weeks after the singer’s death.

1976…"Laverne & Shirley" spin-off from "Happy Days" premieres on ABC TV

1984…Michael Jackson is burned during filming for Pepsi commercial

     »Athletics

1984…Carl Lewis bettered his own two-year-old record by 9-1/4 inches when he set a new, world indoor record with a long-jump mark of 28 feet, 10-1/4 inches

1989…Kevin Johnson (Suns) begins NBA free throw streak of 57 games

     »Business, Education, Politics

1710…Czar Peter the Great sets 1st Russian state budget

1785…1st US state university chartered, Athens GA

1870. ..1st sorority (Kappa Alpha Theta) (DePauw University in Greencastle IN)

1926…US Senate agrees to join World Court

1944…Leningrad liberated from Germany in 880 days with 600,000 killed

1964…Margaret Chase Smith (Senator-R-ME) tries for Republican Presidential bid

1967…The Outer Space Treaty which banned the placing of nuclear weapons or any other weapons of mass destruction in orbit of Earth is signed by 60 countries

     »Science/Religion

1926…John Logie Baird, gives the first public demonstration of a television system in London. The BBC started the first public broadcasts in London in 1936. Regular television broadcasts began in the United States in 1939.

1948…1st tape recorder sold

» Number One Songs in…

1947…For Sentimental Reasons - Nat King Cole

1955…Mr. Sandman - The Chordettes

1963…Walk Right In - The Rooftop Singers

1971…Knock Three Times - Dawn

1979…Y.M.C.A. - Village People

» ANSWERS to puzzle «

1. SPACE: backspace, crawlspace, workspace

2. PROOF: proofread, childproof, waterproof

3. GRASS: bluegrass, grasslands, grassroots

Tuesday

January 26, 2010--Week 4 of 2010: 26 days this year…339 remain

►Provocative Quote                  .
"You're smart when you only believe half of what you hear, Wise is when you know which half to believe "

~ unknown

►Free Ramblings                      .

The sun shone all day and melted about 1% of the snow we have. My friend is still stuck at home. The icicles continue to grow on the front and back of my townhouse roof, and the ice cave shows no impression of leaving the roof soon. A friend in NC sent me a note that their recent ice storm had tree branches snapping and that it sounded like gun fire. Another friend in Iowa lost many branches in an ice storm there. Suddenly our snow storm was not so bad after all.

Back to the dentist as my temporary came off Friday, for the second time. Boring! I hope this one stays on until the permanent one arrives.

I had a great lunch with Cheryl today. Mary couldn’t make it as she was waiting for a new windshield to be installed. As we were leaving, we met our former principal and his wife. Both of them are doing fine. Jerry was very sunburned from shoveling them out of their place in Doney Park. He has always been an outdoor guy, but he really looked like he had been spring skiing without sun block. All this snow makes for blindingly bright days.

Flagstaff is trying to consolidate schools to save money. Brings about lots of anger. The newest proposal puts Leupp Public school in the mix. Leupp, like Tuba has a public school and a Bureau school. In Tuba, both schools had different missions. While both believed in education, their means were different. I’m sure it’s the same in Leupp. Closing Leupp Public won’t help Leupp, anymore than any of the other proposed school closing will help their neighborhood community. The biggest difference is that those students who want to remain Public school students will have to take a one hour bus ride, one-way to get to school. The board member who suggested the closure stated that ‘we are in the business of education, not transportation’. Sounds like he feels that the Leupp students can just find another school, outside the district. He better look at the entitlement program dollars that the district gets because they have Leupp. Without Leupp, all of the district will suffer. Somehow it seems that included in this proposal is that Leupp is about 30 minutes from Flagstaff and somehow those parents won’t be very vocal.

We made it to 41° today, which was really nice. Last night’s low of 4° was not that nice. When it gets that cold, it takes forever to warm up and start the snow melting process.

►Quotes from Values.com—TEACHING BY EXAMPLE .

“No legacy is so rich as honesty.”

~William Shakespeare [All's Well that Ends Well", Act 3 scene 5]

►Side Show Stories—Darwin Awards 2010               .

The Darwin Awards commemorate those who improve our gene pool... by removing themselves from it.

(Reuters, Mississauga, Ontario ): A man cleaning a bird feeder on the balcony of his condominium apartment in this Toronto suburb slipped and fell 23 stories to his death. Stefan Macko, 55, was standing on a wheelchair when the accident occurred, said Inspector Darcy Honer of the Peel Regional Police. "It appears that the chair moved, and he went over the balcony," Honer said.

►Random Fact                                                   .

Frowning burns more calories than smiling.

§ Interesting Statistics
*Note: I realize that statistics can be made to say just about anything.

~ AZ uses about 7.2 million gallons of fuel each day.

~Maricopa County uses about 4.8 million gallons of that each day.

§ January Month Long Observances

Birthstone: Garnet …Flower: Carnation

Book Blitz Month * Bath Safety Month * Birth Defects Month * California Dried Plum Digestive Month * Celebration of Life Month * Cervical Cancer Screening Month * Financial Wellness Month * High Tech Month * International Creativity Month * International Quality of Life Month * International Wayfinding Month * International Wealth Mentality Month * National Be On-Purpose Month * National Bird Feeding Month * National Clean Up Your Computer Month * National Get Organized Month * National Glaucoma Awareness Month * National Hot Tea Month * National Mail Order Gardening Month * National Mentoring Month * National Personal Self-Defense Awareness Month * National Poverty in America Awareness Month * National Radon Action Month * National Skating Month * National Soup Month * National Volunteer Blood Donor Month * Oatmeal Month * Rising Star Month * Self-help Group Awareness Month * Senior Women’s Travel Month * Shape Up US Month * Thyroid Awareness Month

§ Observance Weeks in January

Sundance Film Festival: 21-31

National Cowboy Poetry Gathering Week: 23-30

World Leprosy Week: 23-29

National Nurse Anesthetists Week: 24-30

National Medical Group Practice Week: 25-29

§ 26 January Observances—US/UN/World

Lotus 1-2-3 Day—computer program

National Peanut Brittle Day

National Speak Up and Succeed Day

Arkansas : General Douglas MacArthur Day

Michigan : Admission Day (1837)

§26 January Observances—by country

Australia: Australia Day—British arrival in 1788 (known as Invasion Day by indigenous people)

Dominican Republic: Duarte's Day/Dia de Duarte (Juan Pablo Duarte y Díez was freedom fighter to end Haiti’s control of Dominican Republic)

India: Republic Day (1950)

§ Holy Mackerel: On this day in 1918…US food administrator Hoover calls for "wheatless" & "meatless" days for war effort

§Born on this day

     ~ The Arts

Anita Baker, 52, singer

Derek Bond in 1920, Glasgow Scotland, actor (Nicholas Nickleby)

Zara Cully in 1892, actress (Mother Jefferson-The Jeffersons)

Ellen DeGeneres, 52, comedienne, actress, talk show host

Scott Glenn, 68, actor (The Right Stuff, Silverado)

William Hopper in 1915, actor (Paul Drake-Perry Mason)

Eartha Kitt in 1928, singer/actress (Catwoman-Batman)

Paul Newman in 1925 - Academy Award-winning actor

Gene Siskel in 1946 movie critic (Siskel & Ebert)

Eddie Van Halen, 55, in Nijmegen, Netherlands - guitarist

     ~Athletics

Wayne Gretzky, 49, Hall of Fame hockey player

Robert George (Bob) Uecker, 75, sportscaster, former baseball player, actor (“Mr Belvedere”)

     ~Business, Education, Politics

Angela Davis, 66, political activist

Julia Dent Grant in 1826 - 1st lady of U.S., wife of 18th President Ulysses S. Grant

Sean MacBride in 1904, Dublin Ireland, statesman/Amnesty International co-founder (Nobel '74)

     ~Science/Religion

Father George Harold Clements, 78, Roman Catholic priest, civil rights leader

§Obits for this day

Abner Doubleday in 1893, credited with inventing baseball, on 74th birthday

William K Wrigley in 1932, owner (Wrigley Gum, Chicago Cubs), dies

Charles "Lucky" Luciano in 1962 NY Mafia gangster, @ 65

Edward G Robinson [Goldenberg], in 1973, actor (Little Caesar), @ 79

Nelson Rockefeller in 1979, former Vice President & 4 time Governor of NY, @70

Paul "Bear" Bryant in 1983, college football coach, @ 69

José Ferrer in 1992 Puerto Rican actor/director (Cyrano de Bergerac), @ 80

Shinichi Suzuki in 1998, music teacher (Suzuki Method), @ 99

§What happened on this day?

     ~ The Arts

1926…Television 1st demonstrated (John L Baird, London)

1979…"The Dukes of Hazzard" premieres on CBS

     ~Athletics

1913…Jim Thorpe relinquishes his 1912 Olympic medals for being a pro, returned to family 60 years later.

     ~Business, Education, Politics

1784…Ben Franklin wrote to his daughter to tell her that he was unhappy that the bald eagle had been chosen as the national bird of the United States

1838…Tennessee becomes 1st state to prohibit alcohol

1841…Hong Kong proclaimed a sovereign territory of Britain

1850…1st German-language daily newspaper in US published, New York City NY

1871…US income tax repealed

1905…World's largest diamond, the 3,106-carat Cullinan, is found in South Africa

1915…Rocky Mountain National Park, Colorado established

1954…Ground breaking begins on Disneyland

1992…Americans with Disabilities Act went into effect

1965…Hindi becomes the official language of India.

     ~Science/Religion

1789…John Odell signs contract for £336 to build St Peter's church (Bronx)

1875…Electric dental drill is patented by George F Green

1961…1st woman "personal physician to President"-JG Travell

~ Number One Songs in…

1946… Let It Snow - Vaughn Monroe

1954…Stranger in Paradise - Tony Bennett

1962…The Twist - Chubby Checker

1970…Raindrop Keep Fallin’ on My Head - B.J. Thomas

1978…What a Difference You’ve Made in My Life - Ronnie Milsap

► Puzzle                               .

A list of words is given. To solve the puzzle, think of a single word that goes with each to form a compound word or word pair that functions as a compound word. For example, if the given words are volley, field, and bearing, the the answer would be ball, because the word ball can be added to each of the other words to form volleyball, ball field, and ball bearing.

1. corn, winner, sweet

2. top, inner, test

3. go, there, seen 

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ANSWERS

1. BREAD: cornbread, bread winner, sweet bread

2. TUBE: tube top, inner tube, test tube

3. FORE: forego, therefore, foreseen