Feb 28

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Today’s  Historical  Highlights

1692 - Salem witch hunt begins

1759 - Pope Clement XIII allows Bible to be translated into various languages

1849 - 1st boat load of gold rush prospectors arrives in SF from east coast

1861 - Colorado is organized as a United States territory

1951 - Senate committee reports of at least 2 major US crime syndicates

1974 - Ethiopian government of Makonnen forms

1977 - 1st killer whale born in captivity (Marineland )

1995 - Denver International Airport opens

♪Happy Birthday To: ♪                     

 

Free Rambling Thoughts   

Windy, windy, windy…not a day to be out and about. But I did it anyway. Big mistake. I went to the bank and being the geek that I am, drove up to the ATM and as usual stuck a few checks into the machine. It had problems and spit them back out. I stuck them in again and it tried to spit them out. All but one check came out. I could see it but couldn’t grab it. The little door closed. I got a receipt that the machine had an unexpected error and a number to call. I drove around to the front of the bank and called, the guy couldn’t help me because I didn’t know the amount of the check….note to those who don’t deposit this way…you don’t need to do a deposit slip. I had a total amount of the deposit that I had made before leaving home, but no tape. So I go inside. The lady spent about 10 minutes playing with her computer and said that there was a pending check for $80.10 and that was 15 cents different than my total deposit. She called the manager because the pending check was ‘posted’ at 5am. I told the asst. manager that that wasn’t my 1:35p deposit. Her response: “The post is on Eastern Time.” I told her that Eastern time was only 2 hours different, not 8 hours different, and that since the bank isn’t in Egypt, it must be a different deposit.” Get this, she said, “Oh, were you expecting a deposit from Egypt?” She said not to worry, that they would straighten it out tomorrow or Wednesday—the day the guy comes to open the machine.” They will call me. She assured me that the check is in the machine, and can’t come out when someone else makes a deposit. So I guess I’ll just wait. And no, I didn’t learn my lesson, I’m sure I will continue to deposit at the ATM. I’m sure this happened because of the wind. I ran the rest of my errands and was glad to get home. Driving in 50+MPH winds is no fun. Walking into the stores isn’t that much fun either. Glad I didn’t have to be out very long. Winter Weather Advisory says expect 3”-8” of snow after dark. Hmmmm. I will never understand politicians. AZ semi-infamous Gay sheriff now has new stories…he was a head schoolmaster back East years ago, and some of this former students have claimed that he had an inappropriate relationship with a 17 year old male student. No facts yet, just stories. Really?!?

Game   Center   (answers at the end of post)

Brain Game

NPR Sunday Puzzle

Every answer in today's puzzle is a familiar phrase in the form BLANK of BLANK, where the first word starts with the letter T. Given the last word of the phrase, the player must give the first word. Example: For "departure," the answer would be "time," as in TIME of DEPARTURE.

1.      Events:

2.      War:

3.      Fate:

4.      Endearment:

5.      Cancer:

6.      Athens:

7.      Duty:

8.      Babble:

9.      Thought:

10.   Iodine:

11.   Versailles:

12.   Wills:

13.   Voice:

14.   Knowledge:

15.   Contents:

16.   The morning:

Wuzzles  What concept or phrase do these suggest?

Lifestyle  Substance     

Planet Earth—Mayan

Found on You Tube         

Fine dining from Tom Jones

Harper’s Index         

Percentage of US video-game players who are over the age of 50: 29

Joke-of-the-day

Day 752 - My captors continue to taunt me with bizarre little dangling objects. They dine lavishly on fresh meat, while I am forced to eat dry cereal. The only thing that keeps me going is the hope of escape, and the mild satisfaction I get from ruining the occasional piece of furniture. Tomorrow I may eat another houseplant. Day 761 - Today my attempt to kill my captors by weaving around their feet while they were walking almost succeeded; must try this at the top of the stairs. In an attempt to disgust and repulse these vile oppressors, I once again induced myself to vomit on their favorite chair...must try this on their bed.Day 762 - Slept all day so that I could annoy my captors with sleep deprivation, incessant pleas for food at all hours of the night.Day 767 - Decapitated a mouse and brought them the headless body in an attempt to make them aware of what I am capable of, and to try to strike fear into their hearts. They only cooed and condescended about what a good little cat I was...Hmmm. Not working according to plan.Day 768 - I am finally aware of how sadistic they are. For no good reason I was chosen for the water torture. This time, however, it included a burning foamy chemical called "shampoo." What sick minds could invent such a liquid? My only consolation is the piece of thumb still stuck between my teeth.Day 771 - There was some sort of gathering of their accomplices. I was placed in solitary confinement throughout the event. However, I could hear the noise and smell the foul odor of the glass tubes they call "beer." More importantly I overheard that my confinement was due to MY power of "allergies." Must learn what this is and how to use it to my advantage. Day 774 - I am convinced the other captives are flunkies and may be snitches. The dog is routinely released and seems more than happy to return. He is obviously a half-wit. The bird, on the other hand, has got to be an informant. He has mastered their frightful tongue, something akin to mole speak, and speaks with them regularly. I am certain he reports my every move. Due to his current placement in the metal, room his safety is assured. But I can wait, it is only a matter of time...

Rules of Thumb   

Easy shortcuts to make an ‘educated’ guess

One thousand to 1,500 bees die per day under normal summer conditions. All or most are removed from the vicinity of the hive. An accumulation of 3 or 4 dead bees per day in front of the hive entrance is cause for suspicion.

Somewhat Useless Information    

In ancient times, without interference from streetlights or urban pollution, comets could be seen by everyone. Their sudden appearance was interpreted as an omen of nature and was used by astrologers to predict flood, famine, pestilence, or the death of a king.

Comets are composed mostly of ice and dust that grows tails when they approach the sun. All comets have a nucleus made of hard rock/ice. As the comet approaches the sun, solar energy begins to heat the ice and vaporize it.

The longest comet nucleus ever recorded had a measurement of 42 miles. The shortest comet nucleus measured 0.3 miles.

The first usable photographs of a comet's nucleus were taken by the European Space Agency's Giotto spacecraft as it flew close to Halley's Comet in 1986.

Compared to the solar system, comets are tiny. Like asteroids, they are bits of debris left over from when the Universe first started.

A comet can have more than one tail. The DeCheseaux comet fanned out like a peacock and had seven.

Yeah, It Really Happened                 

Miami, FL: Wildlife officials say three big cats have been removed from home of an actor who played Tarzan in a 1970 remake of the film.Steve Sipek had two tigers and a leopard taken from his home Monday morning because he didn't have a federal permit for them at his Loxahatchee home, Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission spokeswoman Carli Segelson was quoted as saying by the South Florida Sun Sentinel.Apparently there were violations related to the caging and fencing of the big cats, and also another violation related to commercial activity on the property. Authorities said they had been trying to get Sipek and his partner to comply, but they repeatedly failed to do so.Officials said the cats weren't being fed the appropriate food, and there had been escapes and injuries, the newspaper reported. It wasn't clear who had been bitten."It got to the point that we felt it was a safety hazard to the public but also there were concerns about the well-being of the animals, Segelson was quoted as saying.Sipek was arrested for having the animals without a federal permit and having them as pets, and the cats are being taken to a wildlife sanctuary.The newspaper reports that in 2004 a Bengal tiger of his escaped and was shot by FWC.

Calendar Information        

…Happening This Week:

26-3/3

National Eating Disorders Awareness Week

National Secondhand Wardrobe Week

Telecommuter Appreciation Week

Peace Corps Week

Today Is                                                                      

Public Sleeping Day

Floral Design Day

National Tooth Fairy Day

Rare Disease Day Spay Day USA

Today’s Other Events                                                             

1000’s

1066 - Westminster Abbey opens

1600’s

1638 - Scottish Presbyterians sign National Convent, Greyfriars, Edinburgh

1667 - English colony Suriname in Dutch hands

1675 - The Mission Santa Cruz de Sabacola El Menor is dedicated. The mission is for the Sawoklis Indians on the Apalachicola River.

1700’s

1704 - Indians attack Deerfield, Mass, kill 40, kidnap 100 1708 - Slave revolt, Newton, Long Island NY, 11 die

1749 - 1st edition of Henry Fieldings' "Tom Jones" published

1784 - John Wesley charters Methodist Church

1800’s

1827 - 1st commercial railroad in US, Baltimore & Ohio (B&O) chartered

1837 - A few Creek Indians attack the Alberson homestead on the Alabama-Florida. The Creeks are reported to have killed the entire family.

1850 - The University of Utah opens in Salt Lake City

1900’s

1925 - "Tea For Two" by Marion Harris hit #1

1933 - 1st female in cabinet: Francis Perkins appointed Secretary of Labor

1940 - Richard Wright's "Native Son" published

1960 - 8th winter Olympic games close at Squaw Valley

1961 - JFK names Henry Kissinger special advisor

1970 - Bicycles permitted to cross Golden Gate Bridge

1974 - US & Egypt re-form diplomatic relations after 7 years

1983 - Final TV episode of "M*A*S*H" airs (CBS); record 125 million watch

1988 - 15th Winter Olympic games close at Calgary, Canada

1998 - Kosovo War: Serbian police begin the offensive against the Kosovo Liberation Army in Kosovo

2000’s

2004 - Over 1 million Taiwanese participating in the 228 Hand-in-Hand Rally form a 500-kilometre (300-mile) long human chain to commemorate the 228 Incident [anti-gov’t uprising] in 1947

2007 - Jupiter flyby of the New Horizons Pluto-observer spacecraft.

Today’s Birthdays                                                           

In their 80’s

Gavin MacLeod, actor (Murray-Mary Tyler Moore, Love Boat) is 81

In their 70’s

Mario Andretti, Italian American race-car driver (1969 Indianapolis 500, 1978 Formula One World Champion) is 72

In their 60’s

Charles S. Frazier III, teacher, supervisor, international traveler, blog writer in 63

Bernadette Peters, [Lazzara], Queens NY, actress (Jerk)  is 64

Charles "Bubba" Smith, Tx, NFLer (Balt Colts)/actor (Police Academy) is 67

In their 50’s

Rae Dawn Chong, actor is 50

Gilbert Gottfried, comedian (Beverly Hills Cop) is 57

John Turturro, director is  55

Remembered for being born on this day

Milton Caniff,  Dutch cartoonist (Terry & Pirates) in 1907

Brian Jones, [Lewis Brian Hopkins Jones], English rock guitarist (Rolling Stones) in 1942

Mary Lyon, US, educator (Mt Holyoke) (Hall of Fame) in 1797

Margaret of Scotland, queen of Norway in 1261

Vincente Minnelli, director (American in Paris, Gigi) in 1910

Zero "Samuel" Mostel, actor (Fiddler on the Roof) in 1915

Thomas Newcomen, English co-inventor (steam engine) in 1663

Bugsy Siegel, gangster created casinos in Las Vegas in 1906

Today’s Obits                                                           

Eddie "Rochester" Anderson, comedian (Jack Benny Show), dies of heart disease at 71 in 1977

Mr Ed, talking horse, dies

Paul Harvey, American radio broadcaster dies at 91 in 2009

Ishiro Honda, Japanese director/producer (Godzilla), dies at 81 in 1993

Henry James, US/British writer (Bostonians), dies of stroke at 72 in 1916

Charles Nicolle, French bacteriologist, recipient of the Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine  dies at 70 in 1936

Mike Smith, English musician (The Dave Clark Five) dies of pneumonia at 64 in 2008

Answers                    

Brain Game

NPR Sunday Puzzle

1.      Events:

a.      Turn of events

2.      War:

a.      Tug of war

3.      Fate:

a.      Twist of fate

4.      Endearment:

a.      Terms of Endearment

5.      Cancer:

a.      Tropic of Cancer

6.      Athens:

a.      Timon of Athens

7.      Duty:

a.      Tour of Duty

8.      Babble:

a.      Tower of Babble

9.      Thought:

a.      Train of thought

10.   Iodine:

a.      Tincture of iodine

11.   Versailles:

a.      Treaty of Versailles

12.   Wills:

a.      Test of wills

13.   Voice: tone

14.   Knowledge:

a.      Tree of Knowdlege

15.   Contents:

a.      Table of contents

16.   The morning:

a.      Top of the morning

Wuzzle

• Unfinished business
• Staying ahead of the game
• Falling rain

Disclaimer: All opinions are mine…feel free to agree or disagree.

All ‘data’ info is from the internet sites and is usually checked with at least one other source, but I have learned that every site has mistakes and sadly once out the information is out there, many sites simply copy it and is therefore difficult to verify. Also for events occurring before the Gregorian calendar was adopted [1582] the dates may not be totally accurate.

☺    And That Is All for Now  ☺