Feb 22, 2013

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Flagstaff Almanac:  Week: 08/ Day: 53   

Today: H   27°…L 21° Averages: H  46° L 20° Records: H   60°(1995,’82,’77)…L -9°(1955)

Wind: ave:   12mph; Gusts:  23mph  Ave. humidity:  79%

Quote of the Day:

Today’s Historical Highlights:

18th Winter Olympic games close at Nagano Japan—1998

1st national convention of Prohibition Party (Columbus Ohio) —1872

1st national meeting of Republican Party (Pittsburgh) —1856

1st presidential radio address (Calvin Coolidge) —1924

1st Spanish commercial on network TV (Pepsi-Cola-CBS Grammy Award) —1989

Afghanistan declares martial law—1980

Bonnie Blair skates world record 500m (39.10 sec) —1988

Egypt & Syria form United Arab Republic (UAR) —1958

Ethiopian police shoot at demonstrators—1974

Greenback Labor Party forms (Toledo Ohio) —1878

Hawaii became a US territory—1900

Indians introduce pilgrims to popcorn—1630

Jews are expelled from Zurich Switzerland—1349

Johns Hopkins University opens—1876

Spain sells (east) Florida to United States for $5 million —1821

Tennessee adopts a new constitution abolishing slavery—1865

US President Cleveland signs bill to admit Dakotas, Montana & Washington—1889

USA beats USSR in Olympic hockey 4-3 en route to a gold medal—1980

♪  ♪   Happy Birthday To: ♪. ♪   

How many can you identify?…answers in Today’s Birthdays

Free Rambling Thoughts:   

Another day of mostly snow. The storm still hasn’t departed as predicted. About another inch of accumulation. Roads are fairly clear, but sidewalks are another matter. Our complex is fine, but many in the area outside the complex don’t seem to own snow shovels. While it was warm enough for a walk, the sidewalks made it difficult, and walking in the streets is not my idea of a peaceful walk.

 

I did some light cleaning downstairs today as I hadn’t vacuumed for at least two weeks. Too bad I’ve become so lazy, and the house feels so much better after a little dusting and a run of the vacuum.

 

I did the readings for our Egypt presentation and put together a handout for Saturday. I found the articles very informative. There are many political parties trying to get power and due to the force of their former leader, none are very organized. I recall that while I was in Egypt there were a lot of uniformed and un-uniformed police or military. Turns out the military still has a lot of power, both for jobs and for policy. We saw uniformed army, uniformed tourist police, uniformed police and lots of plainclothesmen; all with guns. Not knowing at the time, part of their job was to insure that we, as tourists, were not against the government. The country was poor when I was there, and has only gotten poorer since the uprising. With almost 1/3 of the population under 25, few jobs, and high inflation, it is no wonder the road to democracy is not going smoothly. Most involved in the uprising have a vested interest and are not very trusting of the US, since we backed the former dictator for decades. Now the various political parties want nothing to do with US assistance, for fear that it will be a chance for the US to put in another dictator. Egypt is a very strategic country regarding Middle East issues and as the US is loudly Pro-Israel and mostly quiet on Palestine sovereignty, it is a diplomatic nightmare for the US. I still believe the everyday people of Egypt welcome the US and for more than just the tourist dollars. The everyday people see our freedom, our independence, our open and representative government and see it as a model. If the US has learned anything in the Arab spring it is that each country and its people must find their own way to democracy, defined by what they want. Hopefully we have learned that just because our government works for us, it probably won’t work in another country, unless that country develops like ours…with decades of strife to get where we are.   

Game  Center: (answers at the end of post)

Brain Teasers

I can be straight or not I can be flat or round I have three layers The rounder I am - the straighter I am I can be a person's trademark I can be chemically challengedWhat am I?

HINT: My center layer is called a Medulla

Lifestyle  Substance:     

Found on You Tube with some relevance to today:

• The Best of Harpo Marx

• Excerpt Andy Warhol Documentary

Ok, then?

Read This Carefully!!

Meeting On Open Meetings is Closed

Picture of the Day: Native American Art

Harper’s Index:         

Percentage change in the likelihood a child will eat an apple from the school cafeteria if the apple has an Elmo sticker on it: +68

Unusual Fact of the Day:

The Caesar Salad was not invented by the Italians, but by a restaurant owner in Tijuana, Mexico

Joke-of-the-day:

After dating a young lady for some time a young man decides it is time to marry her.

He proceeds with all the necessary plans and finally the day comes.

On the day of the wedding the young man has yet to pay the pastor for performing the ceremony. However the pastor has a plan.

The service proceeds as planned the vows are exchanged etc. Now it is time for the groom to kiss his bride. The pastor sees this as the perfect opportunity to ask to be paid. He pulls the young man aside and asks him. Can you please pay me?

Not wanting to create a seen the young man asked. How much do I owe you?

The pastor thinks quickly and replies, pay me according to your wife's beauty.

The young man discretely pulled out five dollars and gave it to the pastor. 

Although annoyed by this, the pastor continues the ceremony and says; you may now kiss the bride. At this point the veil is lifted from the brides face to allow the groom to kiss her. As the groom is about to kiss his new bride the pastor interrupts and promptly hand the groom four dollars and fifty cents.  

Rules of Thumb:   

Easy shortcuts to make an ‘educated’ guess

SCULPTING WITH PAPER

You can sculpt a full-size likeness of two five-year-old kids from one copy of the Sunday New York Times, if you save the Book Review for yourself.    

Yeah, It Really Happened

REDHILL, England - A British farmer who used haystacks to conceal construction of a castle on his property has been ordered to tear down the structure. Robert Fidler, 63, was ordered by the Planning Inspectorate to demolish Redhill, England, castle at the end of a six-year planning battle, The Sun reported Monday. Fidler concealed the castle, which includes ramparts and canons, behind a 40-foot stack of hay bales and tarpaulin for four years in an attempt to circumvent planning rules using a rule stating property built without permission but unchallenged for four years could not be "enforced against."

However, the Reigate & Banstead Council said in 2007 Fidler's castle would not be granted retroactive planning permission because he "set out deliberately to deceive" the council. "His actions in constructing the dwelling house behind a wall of straw bales, and then living in the building for over four years before the bales were removed, was intended to conceal the building and its use from the council's knowledge and thus prevent any enforcement action being taken before it was too late," Inspector Sara Morgan wrote in the council's report. Fidler previously said he would take the battle to the European Court of Human Rights, if necessary. "This house will never be knocked down. This is a beautiful house that has been lovingly created. I will do whatever it takes to keep it," Fidler said.  

Somewhat Useless Information   

• "Allah Akbar, Allah Akbar, La Allah Il Allah, La Allah Il Allah U Mohammed Rassul Allah" is heard by more people than any other sound of the human voice. This is the prayer recited by muezzins from each of the four corners of the prayer tower as Moslems all over the world face toward Mecca and kneel at sunset. It means: "God is great. There is no God but God, and Mohammed is the prophet of God."

• Almonds and pistachios are the only nuts mentioned in the Bible.

• Although not named in the New Testament, tradition names the two thieves crucified at the same time as Jesus as Dismas and Gestas.

• As specified by the Christian church, the canonical hours are matins, lauds, prime, terce, sext, none, vespers, and compline.

• Gabriel, Michael, and Lucifer are the three angels mentioned by name in the Bible.

• In Christian theology there are nine choirs of angels. From highest to lowest, they are: seraphim, cherubim, thrones, dominions, virtues, powers, principalities, archangels, and angels.

• One of the holiest Christian holidays is named after a pagan goddess. The name "Easter" derives from the Anglo-Saxon goddess Eostre, who governed the vernal equinox.

Calendar Information        

Happening This Week:

15-24
National Date (fruit) Week
National Entrepreneurship Week
National FFA Week
Brotherhood / Sisterhood Week
Build A Better Trade Show Image Week
National Engineers Week
National Justice for Animals Week

21-23
National Conference on Education

21-25
Read Me Week

22-24
Texas Cowboy Poetry Week
National Eating Disorders Awareness Week

Today Is                                                                      

Be Humble Day

National Margarita Day

Single-Tasking Day

Spay Day

George Washington's Birthday

Woolworth's Day 1879-1^st store opens

World Thinking Day

~St. Lucia: Independence Day (1979 from UK)

Today’s Events through History  

1st cabs with taxi meters begin operating in London—1907

1st meeting of Republican Party (Michigan) —1854

1st successful chinchilla farm in US (LA California) —1923

Arabs bomb attack in Jerusalem, 50 die—1948

Jack C. Montgomery, a Cherokee, is a First Lieutenant with the Forty-fifth Infantry 

     in Italy. For his solo actions against three different enemy positions, he is 

     awarded the Medal of Honor—1944

Jews expelled from outskirts of Warsaw Poland—1775

President Nixon, meets with Chinese Premier Chou En-Lai in Beijing—1972

Purple Heart award reinstituted—1932

Spain renounces claims to Oregon Country, Florida—1819

Steve Fossett completes 1st air balloon over Pacific Ocean—1995 

Today’s Birthdays                                                           

In their 90’s

Don Pardo, TV announcer (Jeopardy, Saturday Night Live) is 94

In their 70’s

Tom Van Arsdale, NBA all-star is 70

Dick Van Arsdale, NBA all-star is 70

In their 60’s

Julius Erving, ABA/NBA forward is 63

Julius Tauchin, Navajo teacher is 63

In their 50’s

Vijay Singh, Lautoka Fiji, PGA golfer is 50

In their 30’s

Drew Barrymore, actress (ET, Firestarter, Poison Ivy) is 38

Remembered for being born today

Robert Baden-Powell, founder (Boy Scouts, Girl Guides) (1857-1941)

Gale Gordon, actor (Conklin-Our Miss Brooks, Here's Lucy) (1906-1995)

Heinrich Hertz, physicist, 1st to broadcast & receive radio waves (1857-1894)

Ted Kennedy, American politician (1932-2009)

Sheldon Leonard, NYC, actor/director (Danny Thomas Show, Big Eddie) (1907-1997)

"Chico" Marx, NYC, actor/comedian (1887-1961)

Anthony Van Dyck, Antwerp Belgium, painter (1599-1641)

George Washington, Westmoreland, Virginia, 1st American president (1732-1799)

Robert Young, actor (Father Knows Best, Marcus Welby MD) (1907-1997)

Today’s Historical Obits                                                           

Ed Flanders, actor (Dr Westphall-St Elsewhere)—suicide—1995—at 60

Felix Frankfurter, Justice of the U.S. Supreme Court—1965—at 82

Johann Wolfgang von Goethe, German writer—1832—at 82

Charles Lyell, British geologist (Elements of Geology)—1875—at 77

David Susskind, TV host (Open End, David Susskind Show)—heart attack—1987—at 66

Andy Warhol, pop artist—heart attack following surgry—1987—at 58

Amerigo Vespucci, Italian explorer (America)—1512—at 57

Answer: Brain Teasers

Hair
Straight hair is round in shape
Wavy or curly hair is flat in shape (the curlier the hair the flatter)
Hair consists of 3 layers -
Cuticle (outer layer)
Cortex (second layer)
Medulla (center layer)
Chemically challenged - permed, tinted, bleached, etc.

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  §