Quote: There are two ways to get enough; one is to continue to accumulate more and more. The other is to desire less.—G K Chesterton
HOLY MACKEREL: 1904 Netherlands Indies colony begins opium production
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MY FREE RAMBLING THOUGHTS
Happy New Year— May your best day of the past be your worst day of the future.
It is time to look ahead. This year will be the International Year of Forests--to raise awareness and strengthen the sustainable forest management, conservation and sustainable development of all types of forests for the benefit of current and future generations. It is the International Year of Chemistry—to commemorate the achievements of chemistry, and its contributions to humankind. It is the International Year for People of African descent. It is also World Veterinary Year 2011-- in recognition of the 250th anniversary of the foundation of the world’s first veterinary school in Lyon, France, in 1761. We are also in the middle of United Nations Literacy Decade until 2012 ; United Nations Decade on Education for Sustainable Development and Second International Decade of the World's Indigenous People until 2014; and finally it is Water for Life Decade until 2015.
In 2010 I saw the devastation of two forests with my own eyes. First: the devastating fires in Flagstaff that destroyed thousands of acres of our National Forest. It will take at least a century to rebuild the forest. Many in outlying Flagstaff are still suffering from the flooding that came with the monsoon. Second: the destruction of the rainforest in Borneo. The only way to restore their forest is to stop the 24/7 logging. It is difficult, if not impossible to stop this 3rd world nation from logging in an effort to become a developing nation.
I am looking forward to a great year with travel to England’s Hadrian’s Wall and later to Ethiopia. Both will be exciting and educational.
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∞ JEOPARDY PUZZLE—(Super-Jeopardy Answers) from 1990 COMMUNICATIONS
…answers at bottom…
→ In 1989, for this medium's 50th anniversary, a plaque was put in a museum at the site of the 1939 World's Fair
→ Communications satellite launched in 1962 that was the first privately owned Earth satellite
→ U Thant spoke to the U.N. general assembly in English, although this was his native tongue
→ The most often used letter in English text, it is also one of the quickest to send in Morse code
→ This M.I.T. linguist claims every human knows the general principles of language at birth
UNUSUAL NEWS ITEM--TAUNTON, MA
A robber walked out of a Taunton car wash and gas station with a flat-screen TV under his shirt. The robber thought he got away, but the manager of the car wash tracked him down.
The manager of Prestige Car Wash and Gas Station, Nicole Telles, showed 7NEWS the men’s restroom where the crime went down, where the 27-inch flat-screen used to hang. But police say a 20-year-old ripped it right from the mount and took off.
Telles said he hid the TV under his sweatshirt.
“I felt like, if we had all the information … the process would be a lot quicker,” said Telles.
Telles said she didn’t catch the culprit when the crime happened, but she figured she could do some detective work of her own and try to figure out who the suspect was.
Surveillance video showed the suspect using a credit card to pay for gas, and he had been at the counter as well. So Telles looked up the transaction and got his name. She then started digging into Facebook.
“I went on Facebook, searched the name — the first and last name — and he was like the third one up top. He looked like the guy, and I was like, ‘All right. Let me request him’” as a "friend," said Telles. “He accepted me, so I went through all his pictures, made sure it was him.”
She says her boss even sent him a message telling him to bring back the TV and they wouldn't call police.
“He ended up deleting me, so then we thought to ourselves that the kid doesn’t want to give it up,” said Telles.
They went to police with all of their evidence and the suspect was then arrested.
SOMEWHAT USELESS INFORMATION—
45.2% of Americans pee in the shower!
85% of American women wear the wrong bra size.
A LITTLE LAUGH
The symphony musicians had little confidence in the person brought in to be their new conductor. Their fears were realized at the very first rehearsal. The cymbalist, realizing that the conductor did not know what he was doing, angrily clashed his instruments together during a delicate, soft passage. The music stopped. The conductor, highly agitated, looked angrily around the orchestra, demanding, "Who did that? Who did that?"
N E W!!! GUINNESS WORLD RECORDS—Unusual Skill
→ The heaviest weight dangled from a swallowed sword is 25 kg (55 lb 1 oz) and was achieved by Thomas Blackthorne (UK) on the set of Lo Show Dei Record, in Italy, on 19 April 2009.
→The most Ferrero Rocher chocolates eaten in one minute is seven and was achieved by Jim Lyngvild (Denmark) live on TV2 Denmark's Go? Aften Danmark in Copenhagen, Denmark, on 10 October 2008
→The fastest time to run 100 m (328 ft) barefoot on ice is 17.35 sec set by Nico Surings (Netherlands) at the Ijssportcentrum in Eindhoven, Netherlands, on December 8, 2006.
→The fastest time to carve a face into a pumpkin is 24.03 seconds, by Stephen Clarke (USA), who broke his previous record on July 23, 2006 at Universal Studios, Orlando, Florida, USA as part of 'Food Network Challenge: Guinness World Records Week'.
→Vincent Pilkington of Cootehill, County Cavan, Republic of Ireland, plucked a turkey in 1 minute 30 seconds on November 17, 1980. His past best time was 2 minutes 44 seconds. Vincent is so enthusiastic about his skills that he even carried out 24 hours of turkey plucking to raise funds for his local Holy Family School. In this time he plucked 244 turkeys.
MATCH THE Happy New Year Phrase with the language: (answers at bottom)
Languages: AFRIKAANS ARABIC BASQUE CHINESE ESPERANTO FRENCH GERMAN HAWAIIAN IRISH GAELIC KOREAN MALAY NAVAJO SCOTTISH GAELIC VIETNAMESE
عام سعيد
ath bhliain faoi mhaise
bliadhna mhath ur
bonne année
Chúc Mừng Nǎm Mớ
ein gutes neues Jah
feliĉan novan jaron
gelukkige nuwejaar
hauoli makahiki hou
hozhi naghai
selamat tahun baru
seh heh bok mani bat uh seyo
urte berry
xin nian hao
FOUND ON ‘YOU TUBE’
htA great video of 2011 Taipei 101 New Year’s Fireworks
♫ T O P T V T H E M E S O N G S OF ALL TIME♫
Click on Song Title to see and hear
♪… http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Mbk81X6WHA4 Perhaps the most grating theme on this list, the Green Acrestheme song wins points for excessive emphasis on the show title, right from the first passage of the song. Who can forget the "Greeeeeeen Acres is the place for me" lead-in? Vic Mizzy knew what he was doing, because one cannot hear the phrase "Green Acres" without recalling the theme… and isn't that the point?
♪… 29. Mr. Ed "A horse is a horse of course, of course, and no one can talk to a horse, of course, that is, of course, unless that horse is the famous Mr. Ed." There are few theme songs out there that get stuck in your head as well as this highly enjoyable, fast-paced ditty from the 1960s sitcom
♪… 28. I Love Lucy Without question Lucille Ball was and still is the First Lady of Television. Her over-the-top antics as Lucy set the bar for all future female driven comedies to come. Keeping in tune with the night club swagger of her television husband Ricky Ricardo, the theme to the zany show is all big band samba blitz, a classic slice of Hollywood soniference that mixes shaking rhythms with whirling dervish horns, and an overall sense of whimsical party-styled looseness
♪… 27. WKRP The catchy theme from WKRP, which wraps up with a warbly, almost tongue-in-cheek "WKRP in Cincinatti" was just the right introduction to a wacky office comedy set at a Seventies radio station. Even if you only remember the last seconds of the theme, it is a veritable earworm that may take days to forget. In fact, just by reading this, you are probably already screwed. If you're at work, you just might want to try singing that last passage and see how many folks you can annoy.
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DAYBOOK INFORMATION
‡…THIS MONTH…‡
Apple and Apricots Month • Artichoke and Asparagus Month • Bath Safety Month • Birth Defects Month • Book Blitz Month•California Dried Plum Digestive Month • Celebration of Life Month • Cervical Cancer Screening Month • Financial Wellness Month • International Change Your Stars Month • International Creativity Month • International New Year’s Resolutions Month for Businesses • International Quality of Life Month • International Wayfinding Month • International Wealth Mentality Month • National Be On-Purpose Month • National Clean Up Your Computer Month • National Get Organized Month • National Glaucoma Awareness Monthv • 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 • Shape Up US Month • Tubers and Dried Fruit Month • Thyroid Awareness Month
‡…THIS WEEK…‡Kwanzaa 12/26-1/1
Celebration of Life Week: Diet Resolution Week: Silent Record Week: 1-7
National Lose Weight/Feel Great Week: 1-8
‡…TODAY IS…‡
New Years Day
New Year's Dishonor List Day: Since 1977, Lake Superior State University in Marie, Mich., has released its annual List of Words Banished from the Queen's English for Mis-Use,
Independence Day
…Brunei from United Kingdom in 1984.
…Cameroon from France in 1960
…Haiti from France in 1804.
…Sudan from United Kingdom in 1956.
…Western Samoa from New Zealand in 1962
Cuba: Revolution Day
Italy: Constitution Day 1948
Japan: New Year (year = AD + 660)
Capetown, South Africa: Coon Carnival (Kaapse Klopse)—minstrel show
Taiwan: Foundation of the Republic Liberation Day
Tanzania: National Tree Planting Day
US: Alabama: Mobile Carnival
US: Rose Bowl Game
US: Tournament of Roses Parade Day
US: Philadelphia: Mummer's Parade
Western Christianity: The eighth day of Christmas (The eight maids a-milking are the eight Beatitudes: The text of St. Matthew: Blessed are the poor in spirit: for theirs is the kingdom of heaven. (Verse 3) Blessed are the meek: for they shall possess the land. (Verse 4) Blessed are they who mourn: for they shall be comforted. (Verse 5) Blessed are they that hunger and thirst after justice: for they shall have their fill. (Verse 6) Blessed are the merciful: for they shall obtain mercy. (Verse 7) Blessed are the clean of heart: for they shall see God. (Verse 8) Blessed are the peacemakers: for they shall be called the children of God. (Verse 9) Blessed are they that suffer persecution forjustice' sake, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven. (Verse 10))
Kwanzaa: Imani (ee-MAH-nee) is the seventh and last day. Imani means faith--pledge to believe with all our hearts and minds in our people, our parents, our good and dedicated teachers and leaders,and in the greater good of the work we do with and for one another, for the community and for the PEOPLE.
‡…Today’s Births…‡
• AUTHORS
1919 J[erome] D[avid] Salinger novelist (Catcher in the Rye)
• ATHLETES
Leoš Friedl, 33, Czech tennis player
• BUSINESS & EDUCATION
1895 J Edgar Hoover Director of US Fedreal Bureau of Investigation
• ENTERTAINERS (ACTORS/SINGERS/…)
1909 Dana Andrews actor (Battle of the Bulge, Laura)
1900 Xavier Cugat [Francisco de Asís Javier Cugat Mingall de Brue y Deulofeo] Tirona Catalonia Spain, bandleader
Michael Imperioli, 44, actor (“The Sopranos”)
Frank Langella, 70, actor (Frost/Nixon, The Twelve Chairs, Lolita)
Country Joe McDonald, 68, singer: group: Country Joe & the Fish: The F-I-S-H Cheer from Woodstock
• POLITICIANS
Beatrix Wilhelmina Armgard, 72, Queen of Netherlands (1980- )
1449 Lorenzo de' Medici [The Magnificent] of Florence
1735 Paul Revere silversmith/US patriot
1909 Barry Goldwater (Senator-AZ, 1953-65, 69- )/Presidential candidate (R) 1964)
1752 Elizabeth Griscom (Betsy) Ross flag maker
• SCIENCE & RELIGION
1917 Jule Gregory Charney, American meteorologist
1888 – John Garand, American inventor—developed Caliber .30 M1, the Garand rifle became the world's first standard-issue autoloading infantry rifle
‡…Today’s Obituaries…‡
1557 Jacques Cartier French explorer (Canada), @ 65
1972 Maurice A Chevalier French actor (Can Can, Gigi), @ 83
1630 Tetsugen Doko Zen teacher (Jodo sect converted to Obaku Zen), @ 53
1998 Helen Wills Moody Roark tennis ace (31 Grand Slams), @ 92
1994 Cesar Romero US actor (Joker-Batman), @ 86
1953 Hank Williams country singer (Cold Cold Heart), mysterious heart failure@ 29
‡…Today’s Events…‡
• ARTS
1764 Eight years old Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart played for the Royal Family Versailles.
1908 1st time, ball signifying new year dropped at Times Square
1948 1st color newsreel filmed, Pasadena CA
1960 Johnny Cash plays 1st of many free concerts behind bars
• ATHLETICS
1886 1st Tournament of Roses, Pasadena CA
1935 1st Sugar Bowl & 1st Orange Bowl
1954 Rose & Cotton Bowl are 1st sport colorcasts
• BUSINESS & EDUCATION
1842 1st illustrated weekly magazine in US publishes 1st issue, New York City NY
1852 1st US public bath opens in New York City NY
1854 Lincoln University, a black college, chartered (Oxford PA)
1968 Evel Knievel fails in his attempt to jump Cæsar's Palace Fountain
• INDIGENOUS PEOPLE
1805 Lewis & Clark attend a party with the local Indians.
• POLITICS (US)
1808 Congress prohibits importation of slaves
1818 Official reopening of the White House
1861 President Lincoln declares slavery in Confederate states unlawful
1863 Emancipation Proclamation (ending slavery) issued by Lincoln
1874 New York City annexes the Bronx
1892 Ellis Island becomes reception center for new immigrants
1897 Brooklyn merges with New York to form present City of New York
• POLITICS (International)
1808 Sierra Leone becomes a British colony
1880 Building of Panamá Canal, begins
1904 Netherlands Indies colony begins opium production
1999 Eleven of the countries in the European Economic and Monetary Union (EMU) gave up their own currencies and adopted the new Euro (EUR)currency: Austria, Belgium, Finland, France, Germany, Ireland, Italy, Luxembourg, the Netherlands, Portugal, and Spain. (Greece followed suit on January 1, 2001.)
• SCIENCE & RELIGION
1977 1st woman formally ordained an Episcopal priest (Jacqueline Means)
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ANSWERS
∞ HAPPY NEW YEAR LANGUAGES
gelukkige nuwejaar AFRIKAANS; عام سعيد ARABIC; urte berri on BASQUE; xin nian hao CHINESE; feliĉan novan jaron ESPERANTO; bonne année FRENCH; ein gutes neues Jah GERMAN; hauoli makahiki hou HAWAIIAN; ath bhliain faoi mhaise IRISH GAELIC; seh heh bok mani bat uh seyo KOREAN; selamat tahun baru MALAY; hozhi naghai NAVAJO; bliadhna mhath ur SCOTTISH GAELIC; Chúc Mừng Nǎm Mớ VIETNAMESE
∞ JEOPARDY
→ In 1989, for this medium's 50th anniversary, a plaque was put in a museum at the site of the 1939 World's Fair
What is Television?
→ Communications satellite launched in 1962 that was the first privately owned Earth satellite
What was Telstar?
→ U Thant spoke to the U.N. general assembly in English, although this was his native tongue
What is Burmese?
→ The most often used letter in English text, it is also one of the quickest to send in Morse code
What is ‘s’ ‘…’?
→ This M.I.T. linguist claims every human knows the general principles of language at birth
Who is Noam Chomsky?
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