9/7/13


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Almanac: Flagstaff:  Week: 36/ Day: 250   
Today: H 78°…L 51°
Wind: ave:   5mph; Gusts:  17mph  
Ave. humidity:  60%
Record Low: 33° (1985)
Record High: 87° (1977)
Average Low: 45°
Average High: 76°

Quote of the Day



Today’s Historical Highlights
"Uncle Sam" was 1st used to refer to US (Troy Post of NY)…1813
1st presidential election was held in Egypt…2005
Boulder Dam (now Hoover Dam) begins operation…1936
Edith Eleanor McLean is 1st baby place in an incubator…1888
Integration begins in Wash DC & Baltimore MD public schools…1954
Strongest Hurricane of century in Netherlands (wind force 12)…1944
Workmen's Compensation Act passed by Congress…1916

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



My Free Rambling Thoughts   
A nice quiet Friday. Rearranged some stuff in the living room, still more to do on another day. With the great weather, hard and impossible to stay inside for any time at all. So I did take a nice walk this afternoon.
 
I was taught that in a democracy the people elect officials to carry out their wishes and to fulfill their campaign rhetoric. The bomb Syria vote is coming up next week. Every news outlet is saying that the American people do not approve of bombing. The call from the President and his followers seem to be changing their story daily, and still the majority of Americans are against the bombing. I am dismayed by the Congressional members who are saying that even though the constituents are overwhelmingly against bombing, they believe they are privy to other information and will vote for the bombing. Really? Our country and our Congress have been mislead before by the Executive Branch. It is time to stand up and vote what the people want. The people elected you…and you are our voice.  
 
An interesting story in our local paper. There is a BIA Dorm here in Flagstaff where students from the Rez can live and attend public high school. Over a decade ago, the dorm became a grant school, meaning that they make a lot of local decisions and operate more or less autonomously while still getting BIA money. The current CEO is a former aide, and teacher from my old school. She worked hard to get her education and her Master’s degree. She finally became a supervisor at another school, then moved from school to school and has now ‘landed’ at the dorm. While the BIA educated her, she always had a less than positive feeling about the BIA. She was certainly not alone. Now she has closed the dorm for 3 weeks because of a bed bug infestation at the dorm. The BIA has had to deal with possible infestations for years. They have never had to close a dorm. I have to wonder when was the last time this dorm replaced their mattresses, when was the last time they spent much of the summer disinfecting and checking the dormitory for infestation of a variety of bugs and animals. My semi-educated guess is that all that prep was overlooked for quite a few years because it is expensive and time consuming. I feel bad for the 100 or so students who have to now stay in a dormitory 35 miles from Flagstaff, get up and be on the bus at 5:30am to get to the dorm for breakfast and then to school by 7:45. All this inconvenience will pass but could have been avoided by a little hard work during the summer.

Game  Center (answers at the end of post)
Brain Teasers
Pete'sa Pete lists prices for his extra toppings in pairs. How much does each topping cost by itself? Each price is whole-dollar increments. 
Pineapple & Hot Peppers $7 Broccoli & Extra Cheese $6 Mushrooms & Onions $2 Black Olives & Hot Peppers $5 Pepperoni & Mushrooms $4 Onions & Black Olives $3 Extra Cheese & Mushrooms $5

Lifestyle  Substance:     
Found on You Tube with some relevance to today

Hmmmm…Fearsome Phobias
If you have an irrational fear of... Being Buried alive
You're suffering from... Taphephobia [Gk taphē burial, grave]
If you have an irrational fear of... Cancer
You're suffering from... Carcinophobia [GK: carcino- 'cancer', crab]
It is Illegal…
No Vehicle without a Driver May Exceed 60 Miles per Hour in California
Privileges granted to people in the U.S. (and many western nations) for being Christian…
Politicians responsible for your governance are probably members of your faith.
Ok, then?



Harper’s Index    
  • Estimated pounds of unreported ammonium nitrate held at a Texas fertilizer plant that exploded in April: 540,400
  • Factor by which this amount exceeds the threshold for reporting to the Dept. of Homeland Security: 370

Unusual Fact of the Day
Moe had a beef with Lou Costello. He thought Costello stole parts of Curly’s shtick!
Joke-of-the-day
Dear Son,
Your Pa has a new job. The first in 48 years. We are a little better, off now, getting $17.96 every Thursday. So we up and thought we'd do a little fixin’ up. We sent to Rosemont and Seasbuck for one of them there bathrooms you hear so much about and it took a plumber to put it in shape.
On one side of the room is a great big long thing, something like the hogs drink out of, only you get in it and wash all over. Over on the other side is a little white thing called a sink, this is for light washing, like face and hands, but over in the other corner we really got something.
There you put one foot in, wash it clean, pull a chain and get fresh water for the other foot. Two lids come with the darn thing and we ain't had any use for them in the bathroom, so I'm using one for a bread board and the other we framed grandmother's picture in.
They were awful nice people to deal with and they sent us a roll of writing paper with it.
Take care of yourself son.
Your Maw
Rules of Thumb:   
Easy shortcuts to make an ‘educated’ guess
INVITING GUESTS
If you are giving a party and you live in the suburbs, invite two times the number of people you want to attend. If you live within range of public transportation, invite one and a half times the number of people you want. If you are in the heart of the city, invite one and a quarter times the number of people you want.    
Yeah, It Really Happened
EUGENE, Ore. - An Oregon girl was told by an employee of Rue 21, a youth clothing retailer, she was "too big" to shop in one of their stores, her family said. Shelby Buster and a friend went to a mall in Eugene, Ore., to spend Buster's birthday money. She said it was the first time she'd gone shopping without her mother, who stayed in the food court while the girls shopped. After Buster's friend entered the store, she followed but was stopped by an employee who told her she had to leave, she said. "I walked in and the lady at the front counter said, 'Hey you're too big to be in this store, I need you to leave,'" Buster said. She and her friend went and got Buster's mother, who returned to the store with the girls, and asked to speak with a manager, KEZI-TV, Eugene, reported Sunday. "[We] walked back and my mom came back to talk to them and they're like 'oh we're so sorry,'" Buster said. The family told KEZI they've contacted corporate headquarters for Rue 21 about the incident but have yet to hear back. A store manager said they're reviewing security footage to determine what happened. The chain told the TV station it doesn't tolerate discrimination of any kind. "Seriously that's disrespectful and rude. Just because I'm bigger than you guys are, I'm not a 14 or smaller. It makes no sense why they would do that," Buster said.  
Somewhat Useless Information   
  • Baskin Robbins once made ketchup ice cream. This was the only vegetable flavored ice cream produced.
  • According to the Gemological Institute of America, up until the 1730's, India was the only source for diamonds in the world.
  • The hyoid bone in the throat is the only bone in the human body not joined to another.
  • The king of hearts is the only king without a mustache on a standard playing card.
  • Zsa Zsa Gabor was the first - and only - recipient of a Golden Globe Award for "Most Glamorous Actress." She won the peculiar award in 1958. The category was deleted thereafter.
  • Libra, the Scales, is the only inanimate symbol in the zodiac.

 Calendar Information        
Happening This Week:
1st-7th
International Enthusiasm Week
National Nutrition Week
National Waffle Week
Self-University Week
National Payroll Week
3rd -7th  
Play Days

Today Is                                                                       
·        Google Commemoration Day: 1996 creation 
·        Grandma Moses Day
·        "Neither Snow nor Rain" Day
~~~~
·        Brazil: Independence Day (1822 from Portugal)

Today’s Events through History  
1st use of synthetic rubber in asphaltic concrete, Akron Oh…1948
American Bandstand moves to California, & airs once a week on Saturday…1963
Desmond Tutu becomes Anglican archbishop of Capetown…1986
Donald Boyles record highest parachute jump from a bridge, 1,053' Royal Gorge 
     Bridge CO…1970
Ethiopia drops diplomatic relations with Somalia…1977
John McEnroe & Bjorn Borg one of the greatest US Open finals McEnroe 
     fends off Borg (76 61 67 57 64)…1980
Zion AME Church dedicated (NYC)…1800

Today’s Birthdays                                                           
Garrison Keillor, humorist (Praire Home Companion) is 72
Gloria Gaynor, disco singer (I Will Survive) is 64
William Katt, US, actor (Butch & Sundance Kid, Carrie) is 63
Corbin Bernsen, actor (Arnie Becker-LA Law) is 59

Remembered for being born today
"Janet" Taylor Caldwell, England, novelist (Melissa) [1900-1985]
Queen Elizabeth I, daughter of Henry VIII and Anna Boleyn [1533-1603]
Matthäus Günther, German painter [1705-1788]
Buddy [Charles]Holly, singer (Peggy Sue, That'll Be the Day), [1936-1959]
Daniel K. Inouye, Hawaii, politician (US Senator, 1963-2012) [1924-2012]
Peter Lawford (Peter Sydney Ernest Aylen), London, actor (Mrs Miniver, Thin 
     Man) [1923-1984]
Don Messick, cartoon voice (Bam-bam, Astro, Scooby-Doo) [1927-1997]
Grandma Moses [Anna Maria], primitive painter (Old Oaken Bucket) [1860-1961]
James Van Allen, US physicist (discovered Van Allen radiation belts) [1914-2006]

Today’s Historical Obits                                                           
Spring Byington, actress (Lily Ruskin-December Bride)…1971…at 84
Al Kelly, double talk comedian (Ernie Kovacs Show)…heart attack…1966…at 67
Keith Moon, rock drummer (Who)…drug overdose…1978…at 31

Brain Teasers
From the list above and the note about only whole-dollar amounts we note that if Mushrooms & Onions are $2 together they must be $1 each. From there it is simple math to figure out the following. 
Onions $1
Mushrooms $1
Pepperoni $3
Black Olives $2
Extra Cheese $4
Broccoli $2
Hot Peppers $3
Pineapple $4
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  §
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Flagstaff, Arizona, United States
I retired in '06--at the ripe old age of 57. I enjoy blogging, photography, traveling, and living life to it's fullest.