This is Week 44 of 2010►Day 308 with 57 days left.
Flagstaff Weather: H—70°; L—45°; RH—29%; sky—clear and wind—5 mph
QUOTE FOR THE DAY—Noel Coward
I like long walks, especially when they are taken by people who annoy me.
FREE RAMBLING THOUGHTS
Twenty-nine million Americans spoke and just like the 2008 elections, they want change. They also spoke in saying that they want change—right now. The people of AZ spoke, about 1.3 million, and decided that conservative was better than progressive or liberal. While I am not happy about the results, I only hope that the new Congress will bring more action for the people of the United States. As we all know, it is easy to condemn, easy to stop action. When you have the power, it is much harder to bring about change. We need leaders who will bring us out of this recession. We need jobs for people who need them. We need action. I must say many of the winners have talked about cutting the budget, improving education, fixing healthcare, but when pressed, they do not have an specific plans. Some of the cuts that will have to happen are going to hurt, and in this day and age, that is a suicide vote. I sure hope that the new congress will tell us the truth. Lay the cards on the table and vote to improve our country.
AZ has voted for Freedom in Healthcare, which seems to mean that no AZ citizen can be compelled into Obamacare. It is still not clear to me if that means individuals cannot partake in Obamacare or if it means that individuals can opt out of Obamacare. Time will tell.
Now that I can no longer say ‘our non-elected governor’ I hope that she suddenly wakes up and realizes that SB1070 is not worth the fight at the Supreme Court. She was a one issue candidate and has her work cut out in fixing the financial crisis that we are in. Some of her props did not pass, so again, big cuts are already in the works, I’m sure.
After waiting years, the new Wal-Mart Superstore opened today. I stopped by and it is going to be nice to be able to stay on this side of town for my Wal-Mart purchases. I also predict a grocery store war in Flagstaff. The new Wal-Mart has a huge grocery section, and that should get Safeway, Albertson’s and Fry’s to cut prices. All three are located within a couple of miles of the new store. We don’t have a Basha’s on this side of town, so it probably won’t change their prices. It will be interesting to see how all this plays out in the upcoming months. As I get older, I find convenience is getting more and more important. When I was working I’d come in to Flag and spend the night. Then in the morning I’d head for the far side of town and hit several department type stores, the discount stores, then hit at least two grocery stores before heading back to the Rez. Now I just want to hit the stores that are close to home.
It was hard to believe that it is November here in Flagstaff, and the warm temps are supposed to continue through the week. I’m not complaining, I like having the windows open during the day.
HOLY MACKEREL: 1846▬An artificial leg was patented by B.F. Palmer of Meredith, NH who “got a leg up” on all other competition, according to the U.S. Patent office.
JEOPARDY PUZZLE—(1984 games)(answers below) Democrats
$100- Initials in common to all members of Lyndon Johnson's family
$200- Seminarian who became California's "Guru Governor"
$300- Chrysler Corp. pres. considered by some Dems. as potential V.P. material
$400- Colorado senator who served as McGovern's campaign manager in '72
$500- Hubert Humphrey's running mate in '68
SOMEWHAT USELESS INFORMATION—Betty Boop
→Cartoon cutie Betty Boop was developed by Max Fleischer and drawn by animator Grim Natwick for Paramount Studio's Talkartoons cartoon series. She was originally created as a human-like canine character, the love interest for a dog named Bimbo.
→Betty made her debut on August 9, 1930 in Dizzy Dishes, the sixth installment in the Talkartoon series. She quickly became a fan favorite, and starred in over 100 cartoons from 1931 to 1939.
→Max Fleischer finalized Betty Boop as completely human by 1932 in the cartoon Any Rags. Her floppy poodle ears became hoop earrings, and her black poodle nose became a girl's button-like nose. Famous vocal artist Mae Questel was the voice of Betty from 1931 until her death in 1998. Questel also provided the voice of Olive Oyl in the Popeye cartoon series.
→Betty Boop is known as the first and one of the most famous sex symbols on the animated screen. She shows off her curves and cleavage with short, shapely dresses, high heels, and a garter belt.
→The censorship guidelines set by the Motion Picture Production Code in 1934 greatly affected the carefree flapper style that had made Betty famous. She transformed into a career girl with a fuller dress who no longer winked at strangers or shook her hips.
UNUSUAL NEWS ITEM
Msnbc--Why would anyone slap cut beer cans around the necks of seagulls? A wildlife group made aware of the incidents in the San Francisco Bay Area isn't certain but it calls it torture and is fighting back with a $2,000 bounty. At least two birds with the collars have been spotted in Half Moon Bay, Fisherman's Wharf and Alcatraz Island, said WildRescue of Monterey, Calif.
The group appealed for the public to be on the watch for more.
"Instead of attempting to capture the birds, which can make them more wary and harder to catch, sightings should be reported immediately to a dedicated paging service 831-429-2323 or emailed to rescue@wildrescue.org," the group stated. WildRescue said it had alerted the U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service.
"This is a federal crime punishable by severe fines, imprisonment, or both," said Rebecca Dmytryk, WildRescue's spokeswoman.
A $2,000 reward is also being dangled as an incentive to turn in the perpetrator or perpetrators.
"I feel pretty confident that if word gets around, we’ll be able to find the birds and help them," Dmytryk said. "I’m also hopeful that we’ll track down the perpetrator, maybe even through fingerprints. But, just that people are watching, and there’s a bounty, maybe that’s enough to get them to stop torturing animals."
So who'd do such a thing? "It's probably someone who is bored and needing to show off," said Dmytryk.
A LITTLE LAUGH
I work for a small software company with approximately fifty employees. My Boss was the company's third employee. At a meeting with a potential client, our team introduced ourselves one by one. When it was my Boss' turn, he said, "I've been with the company for it's entire 10 year history. I started as a 'lowly programmer' and now I am a senior manager."
When it was my turn, I rose and said, "I'm new with the company. I'm still a lowly programmer."
FOUND ON ‘YOU TUBE’
GREY MATTER PICTURE
This is a close up of what object?
SOME CALENDAR INFORMATION
¤ Weekly Observances ¤
27-11/3: World Hearing Aid Awareness Week
1-7: Intimate Apparel Market Week
Give Wildlife A Break Week
National Animal Shelter Appreciation Week
Give Wildlife A Break Week
National Patient Accessibility Week
World Communication Week
7-13: National Nurse Practioner's Week, Pursuit of Happiness Week, National Rad Tech Week , Fraud Awareness Week, Dear Santa Letter Week, National Young Reader's Week, World Kindness Week
14-20: American Education Week, Geography Awareness Week, National Hunger & Homeless Awareness Week, National Global Entrepreneurship Week
19-25:National Farm-City Week
21-28: National Bible Week, National Family Week, National Game & Puzzle Week, National Teens Don't Text and Drive Week, Better Conversation Week, Church/State Separation Week
¤ Today’s Observances ¤
Waiting For The Barbarians Day
Egypt: Day of Love (1970s)
Italy: Unity Day (1945)/Victory of Vittorio Veneto (1866) National Unity and Armed Forces Day or Giorno dell'Unità Nazionale e Festa delle Forze Armate
Panama: Flag Day
Tonga: Constitution Day (1970)
Russia: Unity Day
US-Oklahoma: Will Rogers Day (1879)
¤ Top 10 Songs of 1960 ¤
Click on Song Title to see and hear the original
¤ Today’s Births ¤
╬ THE ARTS
Will (William Penn Adair) Rogers, humorist, born in 1879
Robert Mapplethorpe, 64, photographer: known for photographs of sadomasochistic rituals, nudes, portraits, still lifes; work on exhibit: Art Institute of Chicago, New York’s Metropolitan Museum and Museum of Modern Art, Paris’ Pompidou Center, London’s Victoria and Albert Museum
♦♦Actors♦♦
Art Carney, actor (Ed Norton-Honeymooners), born in 1918
Martin (Henry) Balsam, Academy Award-winning actor: A Thousand Clowns [1965]; All the President’s Men, Breakfast at Tiffany’s, The Carpetbaggers, Death Wish 3, Delta Force, The Goodbye People, Harlow, Little Big Man, Marjorie Morningstar, Murder on the Orient Express, Psycho, Tora! Tora! Tora!, Twelve Angry Men, All in the Family; born in 1919
Kathy Griffin, 44, comedienne, actress (“Kathy Griffin: My Life on the D List”)
Ralph Macchio, 48, actor (The Karate Kid)
Matthew McConaughey, 41, actor (Failure to Launch, Sahara, A Time to Kill)
Markie Post, 60, actress (“Night Court,” “Hearts Afire”)
Doris Roberts, 80, actress (“Everybody Loves Raymond,” “Remington Steele”)
Loretta Swit, 73, actress (“M*A*S*H”)
Gig Young, actor (They Shoot Horses Don't They), born in 1913
╬ ATHLETICS
Orlando Pace, 35, football, Rams, Bears
╬ BUSINESS & EDUCATION
Sean “Diddy” Combs, 40, rapper, music and fashion executive, actor
Walter Cronkite, news anchor (CBS Evening News 1962-81), born in 1916
James Fraser, designed buffalo nickel, born in 1876
Alfred Heineken, beer mogul: Heineken Brewery, born in 1923
Pauline Trigere, fashion designer: produced first reversible coat; Costume Designer: Breakfast at Tiffany’s, born in 1912
╬ POLITICS
Laura Bush, 64, former First Lady, wife of George W. Bush
╬ SCIENCE & RELIGION
--
¤ Today’s Obituaries ¤ 2
Merie Earle, actress (Maude-Waltons), uremic poisoning at 95, in 1984
Yitzhak Rabin, IDF Chief of Staff, diplomat and the fifth Prime Minister of the State of Israel, assassinated @ 73 in 1995
Raphael Soyer, artist (Depression scenes in NYC), @ 87 in 1987
¤ Today’s Events ¤
╬ THE ARTS
1948▬T.S. Eliot (Thomas Stearns Eliot) won the Nobel Prize in Literature “for his outstanding, pioneer contribution to present-day poetry.”
╬ ATHLETICS
1904▬1st stadium built specifically for football (Harvard Stadium)
1924▬California legalizes pro boxing (illegal since 1914)
1973▬Golfing great Ben Crenshaw won his first tournament on the pro tour by capturing the Texas Open.
╬ BUSINESS & EDUCATION
1861▬University of Washington founded in Seattle
1862▬Gatling gun patented (Richard J Gatling)
1879▬James J. Ritty of Dayton, OH patented the cash register.
1939▬1st air conditioned automobile (Packard) exhibited, Chicago, Ill
╬ INDIGENOUS PEOPLE
1833▬Lieutenant Rains, Disbursing Agent for the Choctaws, informs General George Gibson that since the beginning of the fall, approximately 1/5 of the 3000 Choctaws near the Choctaw Agency in Indian Territory (present day Oklahoma), have died from the climate, the flood on the Arkansas River, and no scientific medical care.
╬ POLITICS (US)
1842▬Abraham Lincoln marries Mary Todd in Springfield, Ill
1845▬1st nationally observed uniform election day in US
1924▬Nellie Tayloe Ross elected 1st US female gov (Wyoming)
1986▬Democrats gain control over the US Senate
---Presidents elected on this day
1884▬Grover Cleveland (D) beats James G Blaine (R) for 1st presidential term
1952▬America said, “I Like Ike”. The Dwight D. Eisenhower/Richard M. Nixon ticket won a sweeping (55%-44%) victory over Democrat Adlai E. Stevenson and running-mate John J. Sparkman. 1980▬Ronald Reagan (R) beats President Jimmy Carter (R) by a landslide
╬ POLITICS (International)
1576▬Spanish defeat Walloons & take Antwerp Belgium
1979▬3,000 militants overran the U.S. Embassy in Teheran, Iran.
╬ SCIENCE & RELIGION
1854▬Lighthouse established on Alcatraz Island
1873▬Dentist John Beers of San Francisco patents the gold crown
1922▬Howard Carter discovers tomb of Tutankhamen in Egypt
1958 - Angelo Roncalli became Pope John XXIII
GREY MATTER ANSWERS
↔ JEOPARDY
$100- Initials in common to all members of Lyndon Johnson's family
What is LBJ?
$200- Seminarian who became California's "Guru Governor"
Who is Edmund Brown, JR?
$300- Chrysler Corp. pres. considered by some Dems. as potential V.P. material:
Who is Lee Iacocca?
$400- Colorado senator who served as McGovern's campaign manager in '72:
Who is Gary Hart?
$500- Hubert Humphrey's running mate in '68
Who was Edmund Muskey?
↔ PICTURE
"Wet wipes" dispenser
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