May 30

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Today’s  Historical  Highlights

1806: Andrew Jackson kills Charles Dickinson in a duel after Dickinson had accused Jackson's wife of bigamy

1848: Mexico ratifies treaty giving US; New Mexico, California & parts of Nevada, Utah, Arizona & Colorado in return for $15 million

1935: Babe Ruth's final game, goes hitless for Braves against Phillies

1958: Unidentified soldiers killed in WW II & Korean War buried in Arlington

1967: Robert "Evel" Knievel's motorcycle jumps 16 automobiles

1980: 1st papal visit to France since 1814

1982: Spain becomes 16th member of NATO

1991: 64th National Spelling Bee: Joanne Lagatta wins spelling antipyretic

♪Happy Birthday To: ♪

Free Rambling Thoughts   

Flag is such a great place to live…another great day. While I spent some time outside, I did finally rearrange my living room for a better view for summer. The humidity is so low, and it doesn’t look like things are going to change. First that raises our fire danger. On a personal note it means greasing up twice a day. My dermatologist says that Aquaphil is best for keeping skin moist. The good side is that it works…the other side is that it doesn’t absorb quickly, so I have a whitish color to my arms and legs for about an hour after using it. A small price, I guess, to pay…but bothersome.

While we continue to have very dry weather, across the ocean in Africa, it is devastating. Crops are dead, many thousands of people are headed for starvation. I have not visited any of the countries currently in trouble, but I recognize the devastation that a one year drought to bring to many of the countries I have visited. I am shocked that Dubai and Saudi Arabia, so oil rich are not helping their neighbors. It has to be greed, not religion. True Muslims are expected to help those with less. I have to wonder what the real reason is.

Game   Center: (answers at the end of post)

Brain Game—A close up picture of what?

NPR Sunday Puzzle

Clues are given for two words. Each word has two syllables. The first syllable of the first word has a short "U" sound as in "uh." Change this to a long "O" sound and, phonetically, you'll get a new word that answers the second clue. Example: For the clue, "absolutely beautiful" and "an old style punishment," the answer would be "stunning" and "stoning."

1.      General George at Battle of Little Big Horn; something to set a drink on:

2.     To say under one’s breath; an engine:

3.     A light one horse carriage; one over par:

4.     A ravine; a hockey position:

5.     A gas guzzling GM vehicle: a baseball hit over the wall:

6.     A passage through a mountain; having harmony and melody:

7.     Having a healthy red complexion; an assistant to a rock band:

8.     A little fat; actor Maguire:

9.     A period of play in polo; a snug necklace:

10.  Fortunate; trickster god in Norse myth:

11.     Like some Groucho quips; a small horse:

12.   Fair, like a day at the beach; a big name in audio equipment:

13.   Machines that fill envelopes; a brand of frozen dinners:

What is the word or phrase?

     J        K10     Q        A

3x3 Word Boxes

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? Each answer is 3 letters.

1.    Zig counterpart

2.   Time since birth

3.   Golly

Lifestyle  Substance     

Summer Songs of the 1960’s

• Oh, Pretty Woman, Roy Orbison 1964 Billboard Hot 100 Peak: #1 (3 weeks)

• Like A Rolling Stone, Bob Dylan 1965 Billboard Hot 100 Peak: #2

• (Sittin' On) The Dock Of The Bay, Otis Redding 1968 Billboard Hot 100 Peak: #1 (4 weeks)

• Paint It, Black, The Rolling Stones 1966 Billboard Hot 100 Peak: #1 (2 weeks)

Harper’s Index         

Chances that a top brand of imported extra-virgin olive oil is not extra-virgin: 3 in 4

Found on You Tube 

Peter Paul Rubens      

Planet Earth—

Joke-of-the-day

A guy walks in to the Barbershop.
Barber says, "What will it be today?"
Guy says, "well I want it going with my waves on top, faded on one side, plug the other, and just make it all out of shape and messed up."
Barber says, "Now why in the world do you want your hair cut like that."
 Guy says, "That’s how you cut it last time"

Rules of Thumb   

Easy shortcuts to make an ‘educated’ guess

For every complaint a company receives, there are 26 other customers with problems, and 6 are serious.

Yeah, It Really Happened

 BOSTON (AP) --Harvard University alumni attending their 50th class reunion this week are getting updates on classmates, but one person stands out among those sharing news about career moves, retirements and grandkids — Unabomber Ted Kaczynski.

Kaczynski graduated in 1962 and is locked up in the federal Supermax prison in Colorado for killing three people and injuring 23 during a nationwide bombing spree between 1978 and 1995. In an alumni directory, he lists his occupation as "prisoner" and says his awards are "Eight life sentences, issued by the United States District Court for the Eastern District of California, 1998."

It's an update the alumni association now regrets.

"While all members of the class who submit entries are included, we regret publishing Kaczynski's references to his convictions and apologize for any distress that it may have caused others," the Harvard Alumni Association said in a statement Wednesday evening.

The alumni association said all class members, including Kaczynski, were invited to submit entries for the class report, distributed for reunion activities during commencement week.

A Harvard spokesman said the update was submitted by Kaczynski but could not immediately say how the university confirmed that. A message seeking comment was left with Kaczynski's attorney.

Kaczynski is a Harvard-trained mathematician who also got masters and doctoral degrees from the University of Michigan.

He lived as a recluse in a Montana cabin, railed against technology and led authorities on the nation's longest and costliest manhunt. He was caught in 1996 when his brother recognized his idiosyncratic writings and tipped off authorities.

Kaczynski pleaded guilty two years later to avoid a trial at which his lawyer had planned to offer an insanity defense. The guilty plea also saved him from the death penalty.

Items seized from his cabin were auctioned last year by the U.S. Marshals Service for more than $200,000 to benefit his victims.

Somewhat Useless Information   

• Memorial Day was a response to the unprecedented carnage of the Civil War, in which some 620,000 soldiers on both sides died. The loss of life and its effect on communities throughout the North and South led to spontaneous commemorations of the dead.

• On May 5, 1868, Union hero Maj. Gen. John A. Logan issued General Orders No. 11, which set aside May 30, 1868, "for the purpose of strewing with flowers, or otherwise decorating the graves of comrades who died in defense of their country during the late rebellion...."

• From the practice of decorating graves with flowers, wreaths and flags, the holiday was long known as Decoration Day. The name Memorial Day goes back to 1882, but the older name didn't disappear until after World War II. Federal law declared "Memorial Day" the official name in 1967.

• New York was the first state to designate Memorial Day a legal holiday, in 1873. Most Northern states had followed suit by the 1890s. The states of the former Confederacy were unenthusiastic about a holiday memorializing those who, in Gen. Logan's words, "united to suppress the late rebellion." The South didn't adopt the May 30 Memorial Day until after World War I, by which time its purpose had been broadened to include those who died in all the country's wars.

• On May 30, 1868, President Ulysses S. Grant presided over the first Memorial Day ceremony at Arlington National Cemetery. Some 5,000 people attended on a spring day which, The New York Times reported, was "somewhat too warm for comfort." The principal speaker was James A. Garfield, a Civil War general, Republican congressman from Ohio and future president.

• General Orders No. 11 stated that "in this observance no form of ceremony is prescribed," but over time several customs and symbols became associated with the holiday. It is customary on Memorial Day to fly the flag at half staff until noon, and then raise it to the top of the staff until sunset.

For AZ centennial celebration: town names

• Lake Havasu City, AZ
: is a city in Mohave County, population is 52,527, first started as an Army Air Corps rest camp during World War II on the shores of Lake Havasu, established in 1963 by Robert P. McCulloch(of McCulloch chainsaws) as a planned community, a tourist attraction in Lake Havasu City is the London Bridge, racial makeup of the city was 94.35% White, 0.31% Black or African American, 0.69% Native American, 0.58% Asian, 0.10% Pacific Islander, 2.51% from other races, and 1.46% from two or more races. 7.86% of the population is Hispanic or Latino of any race.. 

• Lake Montezuma, AZ
: in Yavapai County, population is 3,344, originally known as Beaver Creek as ranchers and farmers settled along the banks of the creek named for the prolific numbers of beavers found there, 12 sq mi (31.1 km2), racial makeup of the CDP was 92.58% White, 0.09%Black or African American, 2.33% Native American, 0.18% Asian, 2.78% from other races, and 2.03% from two or more races. 7.27% of the population is Hispanic or Latino of any race

• Pinetop–Lakeside, AZ
: in Navajo County, population of the town is 4,156, popular summer resort and second-home area for Arizona desert residents, 11.3 square miles (29 km2), racial makeup of the town was 89.17% White, 1.03% Black orAfrican American, 2.29% Native American, 0.34% Asian, 0.03% Pacific Islander, 4.61% from other races, and 2.54% from two or more races. 11.36% of the population is Hispanic or Latino of any race.

• Laveen, AZ
: a suburban community in Maricopa County, Laveen has been home to "pastoral alfalfa, cotton, and dairy farms", first settled by farmers and dairymen in 1884, Walter E. Laveen and his family homesteaded

Calendar Information        

…Happening This Week:

27-6/2

Hurricane Preparedness Week

Black Single Parents Week

Today Is                                                                      

Loomis Day (believed it was possible to harness the upper atmosphere’s electrical currents to successfully transfer telegraph messages without wire in 1850’s)

My Bucket's Got A Hole In It Day

National Senior Health & Fitness Day

World Multiple Sclerosis (MS) Day

Today’s Other Events                                                             

1400’s

1431: Hundred Years' War: in Rouen, France, 19-year-old Joan of Arc is burned at the stake by an English-dominated tribunal

1500’s

1536: English king Henry VIII marries Jane Seymour

1600’s

1650: An ordinance is passed against the making of counterfeit, or "fake," wampum by the Directors of the Council of the New Netherlands. European manufacturers are producing the fakes, which are being used to pay Indians

à

1800’s

1821: James Boyd patents Rubber Fire Hose

1868: Memorial Day 1st observed when 2 women in Columbus Mississippi placed flowers on both Confederate & Union graves

1900’s

1908: 1st federal workmen's compensation law approved

1922: Lincoln Memorial dedicated

1941: English Army enters Baghdad, chasing pro-German coup government

1966: 300 US airplanes bomb North Vietnam

1976: Bobby Unser sets world record for fastest pit stop (4 seconds)

1998: A magnitude 6.6 earthquake hits northern Afghanistan, killing up to 5,000

Today’s Birthdays                                                           

Remembered for being born on this day

Mel[vin J] Blanc,voice (Bugs Bunny, Elmer Fudd & Porky Pig) in 1908

James A Farley, postmaster general (1932-38) in 1888

Benny Goodman, Chicago, clarinetist/bandleader (King of Swing) in 1909

John Heawood, actor/singer/choreographer (Chitty Chitty Bang Bang) in 1920

Christine Jorgensen, pioneer transsexual in 1926

Meredith MacRae, Houston Tx, actress (Petticoat Junction, My 3 Sons) in 1945

In their 80’s

Clint Walker, Hartford Ill, actor (Kodiak,Cheyenne, Dirty Dozen) is 85

In their 70’s

Michael J Pollard, Passaic NJ, actor (Bonnie & Clyde, Roxanne) is 73

In their 60’s

Gale Sayers, NFL running back (Chicago Bears) is 69

In their 50’s

Jake "The Snake" Roberts, American wrestler is 57

In their 40’s

Manny Ramirez, Santo Domingo Dom Rep, outfielder (Cleveland Indians)is 40

Wynonna, [Christina Judd], Ashland Ky, singer (Judds-Why Not Me) is 48

Today’s Obits                                                           

Joan of Arc, French heroine and saint, burned in 1431 at 19

Christopher Marlowe, Brit dramatist (Tamburlaine the Great), murdered in 1593 at 29

Boris Pasternak, Russian poet (Dr Zhivago), dies of lung cancer in 1960  at 70

Alexander Pope, English poet (Eloisa to Abelard), dies in 1744 at 56

Claude Rains, actor (Invisible Man), dies in 1967 at 77

Floyd Roberts, Auto racer, killed during 1939 Indianapolis 500 in 1939 at 39

Peter Paul Rubens, Flemish painter, dies of heart failure in 1640 at 62

Voltaire, [Francois-Marie Arouet], French writer (Candide), dies in 1778 at 83

Answers                                                                                                                                            

Brain Game: Close Up Picture

What is the word or phrase?

Hijacking [high jack king]

NPR Sunday Puzzle

1.      General George at Battle of Little Big Horn; something to set a drink on: Custer; coaster

2.     To say under one’s breath; an engine: mutter; motor

3.     A light one horse carriage; one over par: buggy; bogie

4.     A ravine; a hockey position: gully; goalie

5.     A gas guzzling GM vehicle: a baseball hit over the wall: Hummer; homer

6.     A passage through a mountain; having harmony and melody: tunnel; tonal

7.     Having a healthy red complexion; an assistant to a rock band: ruddy; roadie

8.     A little fat; actor Maguire: tubby, Toby

9.     A period of play in polo; a snug necklace: chukker; choker

10.  Fortunate; trickster god in Norse myth: lucky; Loki

11.    Like some Groucho quips; a small horse: punny; pony

12.   Fair, like a day at the beach; a big name in audio equipment: sunny; Sony

13.   Machines that fill envelopes; a brand of frozen dinners: stuffer; Stouffer

3x3 boxes

ZAG

AGE

GEE

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  ☺