10/17/13

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Flagstaff Almanac:

Week: 42/ Day: 390   

Today: L 35°…H 57°… Ave. humidity: 54%

Wind: ave:   5mph; Gusts:  18mph  

Average Low: 31° Record Low:  18° (1998)

Average High: 63° Record High:  78° (1973)

Quote of the Day

 

Today’s Historical Highlights

"Hair" premieres on Broadway…1967

Al Capone convicted of tax evasion, sentenced to 11 years in prison…1931

Arabs decrease oil production…1973

Bank of Italy (Bank of America) opens its doors…1904

Boston blacks, petition legislature for equal school facilities…1787

Colbert Report first airs…2005

Dalai Lama receives the United States Congressional Gold Medal…2007

Lance Armstrong loses a host of endorsements in the wake of his doping scandal…2012

Mother Teresa of India, awarded Nobel Peace Prize…1979

NY Museum of Modern Art hangs Matisse's "Le Bateau" upside-down; corrected 12/3…1961

Pinnacle fitted on Taipei 101, to become the World's tallest high rise…2003

Pres Carter signs bill restoring Jefferson Davis citizenship…1978

Radio Corporation of America (RCA) created…1919

Scottish worker begins hunger march from Glasgow on London…1922

♫  Today’s Birthdays: ♫   

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

 

My Free Rambling Thoughts   

What a joke. This congress is a mess and has certainly proven that as a group they are unable to control the government of the US. So tough to see our great country in such a stupid position. Sadly the other world powers are looking at DC and wondering why the dollar is the basis for the world economy. The people who have caused this mess have no idea about international relations. In my first real international trip, Scotland, I had my eyes opened when I turned on the TV and saw that the Olympics were going on. All the interviews, all the ‘stories’, all the events that were televised were when the UK countries were expected to do well. I was shocked to learn that others in the world were not that interested in what the American athletes were doing. I quickly learned that each nation has its own history and its own problems. A good lesson for today. We are not the center of the universe and we will not always control the international economy when we act so childish. The Tea Party claims they want smaller government, then pass bills to have the Feds and the state governments interfere with a woman’s right to choose, more regulations on who can and cannot vote and on and on. It looks like the congress is really just going to kick the can down the road so we can deal with this again in less than 90 days. I say no winter break for Congress unless the issues are solved. No pay for the Congress until the issues are solved. I just can’t believe that Americans want our government to run like this.

Game  Center (answers at the end of post)

Brain Teasers

What advice is shown below? 

BEETROOT  YEETROOT  YOETROOT  YOUTROOT  YOURROOT  YOURSOOT  YOURSEOT  YOURSELT  YOURSELF

Lifestyle  Substance:     

Found on You Tube with some relevance to today

• Teresa Brewer - Ricochet romance

• December Bride

• Norm MacDonald on Dennis Miller Graphic Language

• Alan Jackson - Amazing Grace

• Cheers s Norm and Cliff Lollipop
 

Hmmmm…Fearsome Phobias

If you have an irrational fear of... Garlic
You're suffering from... Alliumphobia Latin allium ‘garlic’

If you have an irrational fear of... Germany (or Germans)
You're suffering from... Germanophobia

OK Then…

 

Harper’s Index 

• Portion of live-in domestic workers who make less than minimum wage: 2/3

• Who are required to work during their scheduled time off: 3/5

Amazing Facts About The Human Body

Human bone is as strong as granite in supporting weight. A block of bone the size of a matchbox can support 9 tons – that is four times as much as concrete can support.

Unusual Fact of the Day

The Beach Boys were the founders of surf rock; however, only Dennis Wilson knew how to surf. He died of drowning in 1983.

Joke-of-the-day

A grizzled old man was eating in a truck stop when three very large, leathered bikers walked in. The first walked up to the old man, pushed his cigarette into the old man's pie and then took a seat at the counter. The second walked up to the old man, spat into the old man's milk and then he too took a seat at the counter. The third walked up to the old man, turned over the old man's plate, and then he took a seat at the counter.

Without a word of protest, the old man quietly left the diner. Shortly thereafter, one of the bikers said to the waitress, "Humph, not much of a man, was he?"

The waitress replied, "Not much of a truck driver either, he just backed his big-rig over three motorcycles."  

Rules of Thumb:   

Easy shortcuts to make an ‘educated’ guess

ON-LINE USERS RULE

If you get a group of 100 people online then one will create content, 10 will "interact" with it (commenting or offering improvements) and the other 89 will just view it. Quoting Charles Arthur in The Guardian, July 20, 2006.    

Yeah, It Really Happened

NASHUA, N.H. -- NASHUA, N.H. (AP) — A New Hampshire gas station clerk who thwarted an attempted robbery by pulling out a handgun was fired because company policy prohibits staff from carrying firearms.

Shannon "Bear" Cothran told the Telegraph of Nashua he was working at a Shell station in Nashua early Monday when a man approached him with a knife. Police confirmed that the would-be robber fled after the clerk pulled out a gun.

Cothran said he then filed a report with Nouria Energy Corp., which owns the station, and was fired hours later even though the store manager and a district manager lobbied to save his job.

Nouria said in a statement Wednesday that it instructs its cashiers to give thieves what they ask for during a robbery attempt to resolve the conflict peacefully and quickly.

"Make no mistake: We care about the personal well-being of employees like Mr. Cothran, whose years of service are truly appreciated — not about the money in the cash register. So, we are especially grateful that this situation was resolved without injury," the statement said. "We do respect the constitutional right to bear arms. However, we believe the best way to keep our employees and customers safe is to prohibit weapons in the workplace."

The company said its policies are similar to others in the industry and consistent with the advice offered by police.

Somewhat Useless Information   

• Once in England, because of a water spout, it rained frogs!

• Almost two-thirds of the earth’s surface is covered by water. If the earth were flat, water would cover everything in a layer two miles deep!

• During a solar eclipse, the shadows of leaves make the same crescent shape of the eclipsing sun. The image is made by light passing through tiny holes in the leaves.

• Monks in the 16th century recorded seeing a giant explosion on the side of the Moon. It most likely was a large meteor that slammed into the Moon and left a large crater. It was a good thing the Moon was between us and the meteor!

• See the rings of Saturn while you can. They slowly wobble up and down over the years as Saturns poles point away from then towards the sun. The rings disappear when edge on to our line of sight. Currently they are almost at their widest point and can be seen even in binoculars and small telescopes.

Calendar Information        

Happening This Week:

13-19

Bullying Bystanders Unite Week
Earth Science Week
Freedom From Bullies Week
Getting The World To Beat A Path To Your Door Week
National Chestnut Week 
National Food Bank Week
Teen Read Week
YWCA Week Without Violence
14-18

National School Lunch Week
YWCA Week Without Violence 
17-24

Food & Drug Interactions and Awareness Week

Today Is                                                                      

·        Alternative Fuel Day

·        Black Poetry Day

·        Get to Know Your Customers Day

·        Get Smart About Credit Day

·        International Credit Union Day

·        International Day for the Eradication of Poverty

·        Mulligan Day

·        National Cake Decorating Day

·        National Pasta Day

·        Wear Something Gaudy Day

~~~~

·        Virgin Islands: Hurricane Thanksgiving Day (since 1726 that they survived another season)

Today’s Events through History  

Britain's Queen Elizabeth & Prince Philip visit the White House…1957

Cherokee sign the "Long Swamp" treaty; cede land in Georgia as reparations for 

     the fighting during the Revolutionary War…1782

Chuck Berry's "My Ding-a-ling," is #1…1972

Cornwallis defeated at Yorktown…1781

Thomas Edison files a patent for the Optical Phonograph (the first movie)…1888

Today’s Birthdays                                                           

Jimmy Breslin, columnist (NY Post, News, Newsday) is 82

Michael McKean, actor (Laverne & Shirley, Saturday Night Live, Spinal Tap) is 66

George Wendt, actor (Norm-Cheers) is 65

Margot Kidder, actress (Lois Lane, Amityville Horror) is 65

Alan Jackson, country singer (Here in the Real World) is 55

Norm MacDonald, Canadian comedian, SNL is 50

Eminem [Marshall Bruce Mathers III], rapper and movie star is 41

Remembered for being born today

Montgomery Clift, actor (From Here to Eternity) [1920-1966]

Spring Byington, Colo Springs, actress (Lily Ruskin-December Bride) [1886-1971]

Irene Ryan, actress (Granny-Beverly Hillbillies) [1902-1973]

John Paul I, [Albino Luciano], 263rd Roman Catholic pope [1912-1978]

Jerry Siegel, comic book writer (Superman) [1914-1996]

Shinichi Suzuki, Japanese music teacher (Suzuki Method) [1898-1998]

Arthur Miller, playwright (Death of a Salesman, Crucible) [1915-2005]

Tom Poston, actor (Steve Allen Show, Newhart) [1921-2007]

Robert "Evel" Knievel, motorcycle daredevil (Snake River Canyon) [1938-2007]

Today’s Historical Obits                                                           

Joey Bishop, entertainer, member of the Rat Pack…2007…@89

Teresa Brewer, pop and jazz singer…palsy…2007…@76

Frederic Chopin, Polish/French pianist/composer…TB…1849…@39

Brain Teasers

Be true to yourself. BEETROOT to YOURSELF (sound it out)

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  §