Friday 4-2

2 April 2010~~Week 14 of 2010: 92 days this year…273 days remain

‡ Scottish Proverbs 

Don't judge each day by the harvest you reap, but by the seeds you plant. (So said Robert Louis Stevenson)

He has licked the butter aff my bread.

• Holy Mackerel: On this day in 1877 ►1st Easter egg roll held on White House lawn

‡ Free Ramblings   

I made it through today with no major pranks. Martha called early this morning to tell me her fairly new printer would not get rid of its ‘paper jam’ announcement and would not print anything. We tried for about 30 minutes to fix it through IM’s. Luckily she uses it on her laptop, so she came by this afternoon with laptop, printer, and necessary cords in hand. Modern technology makes our lives so much easier when it works. When it doesn’t work it is very frustrating. Computers and printers can’t be ‘taken apart’ to see what might be wrong. You are at the mercy of techs who, for a price, will either walk you through a checklist or have you bring it to them. Most times they are also lost, and simply suggest you buy a new whatever. Of course there is no trade in value for a computer or printer that doesn’t work. The printer was only a couple of years old and should not be in end-of-life care. Anyway, I too searched for som small piece of paper that might be blocking the printer. No luck. Then I tried a can of air to blow out anything that might be blocking the paper path. I was very happy that this worked. I was almost out of ideas. As usual, I still don’t know why it didn’t work, then it did work.
One of the retired Line Officers from BIA is having an Albuquerque get together at the end of the month for all the retirees. Haven’t decided if I will go, but will see what happens. Many of the higher-ups stayed in Albuquerque after they retired and I don’t look forward to the five hour drive for dinner. It would be nice to see some of the people though.
The local media prank this year was a joint effort by the mayor’s office, the local NPR station, the local university, and the local newspaper—with all announcing that as part of the necessary budget cuts, the ordinance that has us shoveling our sidewalks would now include the street too. Such a coordinated prank does deserve some kudos. The University even stated it was offering classes on snow shoveling techniques for the elderly and one on business strategies of a snow removal business. Finally the non-elected governor jumped in with a plan to double the annual snow fall in Flagstaff by cloud seeding.
We did wake up to a few inches of snow, and that was no joke. It was mostly melted by noon. We climbed to 40° and had blue sky with some wind throughout the day. It even spit some snow a couple of times with the mostly blue sky. Spring in Flag…you never know what will happen from one minute to the next.

‡ A Quick Smile   

Two snowmen are standing in a field. One says to the other : "Funny, I smell carrots too".

‡ Random Fact   

The average cat sleeps about 2/3 of the day

‡ Puzzle   

State Mottos: Name the state with this motto

1 Audemus jura nostra defendere: We dare defend our rights

2 *Justitia Omnibus: Justice for All

3 Ua mau ke ea o ka ʻāina i ka pono: The life of the land is perpetuated by righteousness.

4 Dirigo: I lead

5 All For Our Country

* not a state, but run by Feds

‡ Side Show Stories   

VANCOUVER, British Columbia - A Canadian commercial income tax preparation service in Vancouver was tidying up Monday after an enraged customer caused more than $10,000 damage. Constable Lindsey Houghton told reporters the unidentified 52-year-old man showed up at the business Sunday afternoon claiming the company had made a mistake on a past income tax filing, although at a different location. He was apparently unhappy with the staff's response to his complaint and began throwing furniture around the office, The (Vancouver) Province said. He then began sliding his arms across desks, sending computers and monitors crashing to the floor, Houghton said. As police officers arrived to arrest the man, they saw him trying to use an interior stand-up sign to smash the front window, the report said.

"Everyone would agree that income tax time can be stressul," Houghton said.

‡ Calendar Information   

• Observance Weeks in April•

1-7

International Pooper-Scooper Week

Laugh at Work Week

Golden Rule Week

Medication Safety Week

Testicular Cancer Awareness Week

2-4

Alcohol-Free Weekend

• 2 April Observances—US/UN/World •

National Peanut Butter and Jelly Day

Good Friday for Christians

Hospital Admitting Clerks Day

International Children's Book Day

Reconciliation Day: to patch up family, friend relationships

World Autism Day

Massachusetts : Student Government Day

•2 April Observances—by country •

Argentina: officially Day of the War Veteran and the Fallen in the Malvinas War (Día del Veterano de Guerra y de los Caídos en la Guerra de las Malvinas) since 1982 when Argentina took control of Falkland Islands

Chad : Creation of Union of Central African States (1968)

Iran: Nature Day

Qatar: Independence Day (1970 from Britian)

•Number One Songs in…

1948 ►Now is the Hour - Bing Crosby

1956 ►Heartbreak Hotel - Elvis Presley

1964 ►Twist and Shout - The Beatles

1972 ►Mother and Child Reunion - Paul Simon

1980 ►Call Me – Blondie

1988 ►Love Will Find Its Way to You - Reba McEntire

•Happenings on this Day •

In The Arts

1902 ►1st motion picture theater opens (Los Angeles CA)

In Athletics

1985 ►The NCAA Rules Committee adopted the 45-second shot clock

1987 ►Doc Gooden undergoes cocaine rehabilitation

In Business or Education

1792 ►Congress establishes Philadelphia mint

1889 ►Charles Hall patented aluminum

1975 ►A 3 day National Conference on Indian Water Rights is convened today in Washington,D.C. Representatives from almost 200 tribes will attend the meeting.

1978 ►Velcro was 1st put on the market

In Politics

1513 ►Explorer Juan Ponce de León claims Florida for Spain

1987 ►Congress passed laws which allowed each state to increase the speed limit on rural roads from 55mph to 65mp

In Science/Religion

1979 ►The world’s first anthrax epidemic begins in Ekaterinburg, Russia

• 2 April Births •

Artists and Composers

Hans Christian Andersen, 1805, Denmark, author of 150 fairy tales

Frédéric-Auguste Bertholdi, 1834, France, sculptor (Statue of Liberty)

Sir Alec Guinness [de Cuffe], 1914, English thespian

Entertainers in Cinema, Music, Theater, and TV

Buddy Ebsen, 1908, actor (Beverly Hillbillies, Barnaby Jones)

Marvin P Gaye Jr, 1939, singer

Emmylou Harris, 63, singer

Linda Hunt, 65, actress

Christopher Meloni, 49, actor (Runaway Bride, “Law & Order: SVU,

Leon Russell, 69, musician

Jack Webb, 1920, actor (Joe Friday-Dragnet)

Athletes

Bill Romanowski, 44, NFL linebacker (Eagles, Broncos-Superbowl 32)

Reggie (Carl Reginald) Smith, 65 baseball (Red Sox)

Don Sutton, 45, Baseball Hall of Famer: pitcher

Business, Education Leaders

Walter Chrysler, 1875, founded Chrysler car company

Camille Paglia, 63, literature professor and literary and cultural critic

Political Leaders

Charlemagne, 742, 1st Holy Roman emperor

Scientists /Religious Leaders

Bhagwan Swaminarayan, 1781, religious leader

•2 April Obits •

Nathan Birnbaum, 1937, Austria philosopher (Zionism), @ 72

Pope John Paul II (Karol Józef Wojtyła ), 2005, 264th Roman Catholic Pope @ 85

Georges Pompidou, 1974, French President, lymphoma @ 62

Tomoyuki Tanaka, producer (Godzilla), stroke @ 86

‡ ANSWERS to puzzle

1 Alabama: Audemus jura nostra defendere: We dare defend our rights

2 District of Columbia: Justitia Omnibus Justice for All

3 Hawaii: Ua mau ke ea o ka ʻāina i ka pono: The life of the land is perpetuated by righteousness.

4. Maine: Dirigo I lead

5. Nevada: All For Our Country

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