Saturday 3-13

♣ 13 March 2010--Week 10 of 2010: 72 days this year…293 remain ♣

♣ Two Quotes to think about…Today ♣

“Our lives begin to end the day we become silent about things that matter.”

~Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.

“There is no act too small, no act too bold. The history of social change is the history of millions of actions, small and large, coming together at points in history and creating a power that [nothing] cannot suppress."

~Howard Zinn (historian)

♣ Free Ramblings ♣

I had a great lunch at my favorite Mexican restaurant today. Great conversation and great food—can’t beat that. Cheryl is heading for Salt Lake with Elder Hostel tomorrow. She will be doing a week of supervised genealogy searches at the Mormon Church. She should return with some great stories. Mary will be back from Hawaii soon. Those Elder Hostel planners are quite astute—tomorrow is National Genealogy Day.

We had another great day weather-wise today. A high of 52°, very little wind, blue sky, everything one could ask for. It took some time to get to that 52° since we started the day at 9°. Our town brags an average of 288 days of sunshine each year. Most of us here don’t react well to even several days in a row of no sunshine. After too many cloudy days lately, we are all celebrating our second straight day of all day sunshine.

I checked out a page on the internet about Flagstaff. Here is what they told travelers: January – April. Refreshing days and crisp nights! Nights are cold, with temperatures warming up during the day. Layering is key and snow is possible. Bring warm pants, winter coat, gloves, boots and heavy socks. Hmmm. I’ll remember that when I read other town’s weather synopsis before traveling.

Give them enough rope and they will hang themselves. That is one way to deal with the crazies of the world. I’m just wondering how much rope some need? First this week ol’ Rush made all the news programs when he said he was moving to Costa Rica if Health Care passed. That might even muster some votes for health care by legislators. Rush tried to backpedal when real news outlets pointed out that Costa Rica has free health care for the entire population and has been doing so for many many years. Yesterday, Glenn Beck told his listeners that if their church leaders talked about of ‘social justice’ the parishioners should leave that church and report those church leaders to the authorities. His warped view is that both the Nazi’s and the Communists believed in ‘social justice.’ I guess I don’t know a lot about Glenn, since I never listen to him. Turns out he is a practicing member of LDS. Their leaders along with leaders from many denominations stated that their followers should know that Glenn was not speaking for the church, and that the Bible has over 2000 passages that show Jesus preached Social Justice. Uhh, how do guys like Glenn and Rush keep their high paying jobs? It’s beyond me.

Facebook wins a great on-line campaign. I have enjoyed Betty White for decades. She was great on Password, better on Mary Tyler Moore, and the best on Golden Girls. Now, after her Super Bowl Snickers ad and the Facebook Fan Page with over ½ million members Ms White, now 88, will be a host on SNL on the Mother’s Day Show May 8th. All is good with the world.

♣Random Fact: ♣

The "natural alarm clock" which enables some people to wake up more or less when they want to is caused by a burst of the stress hormone adrenocorticotropin. Researchers say this reflects an unconscious anticipation of the stress of waking up.

♣Side Show Stories—♣

AMES, Iowa - Second-degree burglary charges have been filed against an Ames man who broke into a church where he allegedly used the institution's electronic equipment to watch pornography. Police allege the 55-year-old man broke into the First Christian Church on Thursday. After gathering items from around the building, he is believed to have gone to the basement to spend the night. Police summoned to the church Friday by staff, found the man trying to haul away a garbage can filled with food, kitchen utensils, clothes, electronic equipment and a 26-inch flat-screen television. Police Cmdr. Mike Brennan said the man used the electronic equipment to watch pornographic movies that were found on him when he was arrested. He is being held on $10,000 bond.

♣ Puzzle ♣

Word Boxes are like miniature crossword puzzles, except that each word is filled in across AND down the grid. That is, the answer to 1 across is the same word as the answer to 1 down; 2 across is the same as 2 down; etc. Can you solve these Word Boxes? To solve: draw a square that has 5 X 5 sections.

1 gun action (HINT: S - - - -)

2 divide in two (HINT: - A - - -)

3 back in ... days (HINT: - - D - -)

4 observable (HINT: - - - R -)

5 in the alphabet, "J" (HINT: - - - - H)

♣ Calendar Information ♣

• March’s Month Long Observances •

BIRTHSTONE: aquamarine and bloodstone (courage) FLOWER: Narcissus [daffodil, jonquil] (vanity)

National Cheerleading Safety Month • National Clean Up Your IRS Act Month • National Colorectal Cancer Awareness Month • National Craft Month • National Ethics Awareness Month •National Eye Donor Month • National Frozen Food Month • National Multiple Sclerosis Education & Awareness Month •National Kidney Month• National Nutrition Month • National Social Work Month • National Umbrella Month • National Women's History Month • Optimism Month • Play The Recorder Month • Poison Prevention Awareness Month • Red Cross Month • Save Your Vision Month • Sing With Your Child Month • Small Press Month •Spiritual Wellness Month • Women's History Month • Workplace Eye Health and Safety Month • Youth Art Month

• Observance Weeks in March•

6-21 •Iditarod Race

7-13 •Celebrate Your Name Week:

       •National Consumer Protection Week

       •National Words Matter Week

       •Save Your Vision Week

       •Telecommuter Appreciation Week

       •National Professional Pet Sitters Week

       •Read an E-Book Week

       •Teen Tech Week

8-14•Universal Women's Week

• 13 March Observances—US/UN/World •

Donald Duck Day: Clarence Nash, his voice, born today 1936

Earmuffs Day: 1st patented today in 1877

Genealogy Day

Good Samaritan Involvement Day: since 1964 to remember Queen’s murder

International Fanny Pack Day

Jewel Day

K-9 Veterans Day

National Open An Umbrella Indoors Day

•13 March Observances—by country •

Cuba : Attack on the Presidential Palace (1959)

Japan: Kasuga Matsuri (Kasuga Grand Shrine in Nara): Shinto “Monkey Festival”

Liberia : Decoration Day

♣ Number One Songs in…

1944•Mairzy Doats - The Merry Macs

1952•Please, Mr. Sun - Johnnie Ray

1960•The Theme from "A Summer Place" - Percy Faith

1968•Love is Blue - Paul Mauriat

1976•December 1963 (Oh, What a Night) - The Four Seasons

1984•Jump - Van Halen

• Holy Mackerel: 1948•According to an article dated this date, unregistered firearms were no longer in Bingham Canyon, Utah. This mountain mining camp town was the last town of the “Old West” to make it illegal to carry a firearm without a license.

• Born on this day •

     …The Arts

Authors, Artists and Composers

David Allan, 1744, Scottish painter

L[aFayette] Ron Hubbard ,1911, sci-fi writer/Scientologist (Dianetics)

Allan Jaffee, 1921, comic strip cartoonist/illustrator (MAD Magazine)

Entertainers in Cinema, Music, Theater, and TV

Charo (Maria Martinez)—meaning gaudy or tawdry, 59, singer, actress (“Chico and the Man”)

Dana Delany, 54, actress (“China Beach”)

Paul Fix, 1901, Dobbs Ferry NY, actor (Micah on Rifleman)

William H. Macy, 60, actor (Fargo, Boogie Nights, “ER”)

Clarence Nash, 1936, animation voice (Donald Duck)

Neil Sedaka, 71, singer, songwriter (Breaking Up is Hard to Do)

     …Athletes

Thomas Andrew (Andy) Bean, 57, golfer

Vance Johnson, 1963, NFL wide receiver (Broncos)

     …Business, Education

Walter Annenberg, 1908, American publisher and philanthropist (TV Guide, 17)

     …Politics

Abigail Fillmore (Powers), 1798, wife of 13th President Millard Fillmore; instituted the White House library

     …Science/Religion

Joseph Priestly, 1733, (England) clergyman/scientist (discovered oxygen)

Percival "Percy" Lowell,1855, US astronomer (predicted discovery of Pluto) *

^^^

*Percilval Lowell built an observatory in Flagstaff, in 1894, because of its clear, almost cloudless, and dark nights. The observatory was successful and led to many other observatories around the world to be built in high altitude areas with dark sky nights. This observatory also led Flagstaff, years later, to become the first International Dark Sky City—controlling the number of lights and the brightness of those lights at night. Much of his work was studying the Mars ‘canals’ which he believed showed a previous civilization could have thrived. This part of this work led many sci-fi writers of the time to write stories of Martian Aliens invading Earth to save their civilization. Finally, he predicted Planet X that controlled the orbits of Uranus and Neptune. Years after his death, his Planet X was discovered, in Flagstaff and named Pluto—his initials being the first two letters of the new planet.

•Today’s Obits •

Benjamin Harrison, 1901, 23rd President, influenza @ 67

Susan B[rownell] Anthony, 1906, American suffragist, @ 85

Clarence S Darrow, 1938, Scopes Monkey Trial attorney, @ 80

Stephen Vincent Benét, 1943, American author heart attack @ 44

Bruno Bettelheim, 1990, American psychiatrist @ 87

Maureen Stapleton, 2006,American actress @81

•What Happened on this Day •

     …The Arts

1938•Louis Armstrong and his orchestra record “When the Saints Go Marching In.”

     …Athletics

1943•Baseball approves official ball (with cork & balata)

     …Business, Education.

1634•Académie Française opens

1639•Cambridge College renamed Harvard for clergyman John Harvard

     …Politics

1852•Uncle Sam cartoon figure made its debut in the New York Lantern weekly

1864•The first group of NAVAJOs finish the "Long Walk" to Fort Sumner on the Bosque Redondo Reservation

1884•US adopts Standard Time

1921•Mongolia (formerly Outer Mongolia) declares independence from China

     …Science/Religion

1781•Sir William Herschel sees "comet" (really discovered Uranus)

♣ANSWERS to puzzle ♣

SHOOT

HALVE

OLDEN

OVERT

TENTH

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