3-22-14

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Flagstaff Almanac: Day: 081   / Week: 12  

Today: L 26°…H 57°… Ave. humidity: 34%

     Wind: ave:   17mph; Gusts:  33mph  

     Average Low: 24° Record Low:  -1° (1952)

    Average High: 51° Record High:  68° (2004)

Quote of the Day

 

Today’s Historical Highlights

1457 - Gutenberg Bible became the 1st printed book

1622 - 1st American Indian (Powhattan) massacre of whites Jamestown Virginia, 347 slain

1630 - 1st colonial legislation prohibiting gambling enacted (Boston)

1790 - Thomas Jefferson becomes the 1st US Secretary of State 

1794 - Congress bans US vessels from supplying slaves to other countries

1841 - Cornstarch patented (Orlando Jones)

1946 - 1st US rocket to leave the Earth's atmosphere (50 miles up)

1960 - AL Schawlow & C H Townes obtain patent for the laser

1972 - Congress approves Equal Rights Amendment (never ratified)

♫  Today’s Birthdays: ♫   

How many can you identify? Answers in Today’s Birthdays

 

My Free Rambling Thoughts   

A nice day in Flag, clear cloudless sky, nice temps, and just a bit of wind…except for the occasional gusts.

Correction: I saw the Maasi in Tanzania, not Ethiopia. A friend and fellow traveler corrected my bad memory. We did also see one of the young men draw and drink a cow’s blood. A very interesting event for our group.

I got all my tax stuff together today, so tomorrow I will drop it off with my accountant so that he can figure it out while I am enjoying sunny Cuba. I went to the bank to get my traveling money and the manager came up to me to see how my ‘bank issue’ was going. I told her a brief version and she shook her head and asked for a copy of the letter I had received from the bank.

I also figured out the Concentra problem. I thought that my Medicare started on my birthday, not the first day of my birthday month, so I didn’t tell them I was a Medicare patient. I called and got it straightened out in about 5 minutes. Cool.

So interesting to listen to the Plane search. CNN is running out of news so is sadly talking about the cost of the search...other cultures place a much higher importance on life than the cost. And now we have cockpit communication is translated from English to Chinese and back to English. Really nice for everyone to learn about the problems with this translated communication. 'Lost in double translation' takes on new meaning.

Game  Center (answers at the end of post)

Brain Teasers

Each of the sentences below use two words which are synonyms of each other, but here in these sentences, they are not used with the same meaning. Can you find the words ?

1. You cannot ______ to imagine what a _____ you gave me.

2. Service is my ______ name, you will always find me in the community _______.

3. The cook used the largest ______ to make a stew for the full compliment of the _____.

4. They agreed to meet outside the _____ of justice for their _____.

5. I know you will _____ me for this purchase, I cannot _____ you.

6. The ______ of bids for the ______ of Eros was unparalleled.

Lifestyle  Substance:     

Found on You Tube with some relevance to today

• "Larry King Live" Interview With Actor Karl Malden

• Harpo & Chico play Mama Yo Quiero

• Marcel Marceau - Youth, Maturity, Old Age and Death

• MTH Episode 1 - The Gutenberg Bible

• Sarah Brightman and Andrew Lloyd Webber

• Top 10 William Shatner's Captain Kirk Fight Moves

Books that Changed the World

The Republic by Plato

Forget 20th century politics – let’s travel back to 380 BC. The Republic is considered the definitive Western text on political life and philosophy, discussing what’s good, what’s bad, and what’s just.

While Plato’s work might seem overly complicated and difficult to read for today’s audiences, it remains an important political and philosophical work that influences much of the philosophy and ethics we have today.

Breakthroughs that Changed the World

Semiconductor electronics, mid-20th century

The physical foundation of the virtual world

OK Then…

 

Harper’s Index 

• Cost of admission to the New Year’s Eve party at the Marriott Marquis’s viewing room overlooking Times Square: $3500

Unusual Fact of the Day

When asked in 1993 why The Professor couldn't just fix the boat's hole, Bob Denver said, "He absolutely had no talent for boat building."

Joke-of-the-day

A young man at this construction site was bragging that he could outdo anyone based on his strength. He especially made fun of one of the older workman. After several minutes, the older worker had enough. 

"Why don't you put your money where you mouth is?" he said. "I'll bet a week's wages that I can haul something in a wheelbarrow over to the other building that you won't be able to wheel back." 

"You're on, old man," the young man replied. "Let's see what you've got." 

The old man reached out and grabbed the wheelbarrow by the handles. Then nodding to the young man, he said with a smile, "All right. Get in."  

Rules of Thumb:   

Easy shortcuts to make an ‘educated’ guess

USING A PAINT ROLLERThe average paint roller will apply two to three square feet of paint per dip.    

Yeah, It Really Happened

-- Ms. Blondie Bennett (her recently acquired real name), 38, is not just a California model selling provocative "Barbie doll" photos of herself online (featuring her recently augmented 32JJ breast implants). She is at work on a longer-range project to remake herself completely as a human Barbie doll -- to include the popular critique that Barbie represents not only bodily perfection but mindlessness. Bennett said she has had 20 hypnotherapy sessions to "help" her appear more confused and vacant, according to news reports. "I want people to see me as a plastic sex doll, and being brainless is a big part of that." She said she is doing well, in that she recently got lost driving to her mother's house. [Daily Mail, 2-19-2014; Huffington Post, 2-19-2014]  

Somewhat Useless Information   

• The French Foreign Legion is a military service wing of the French Army established in 1831, unique because it was exclusively created for foreign nationals willing to serve in the French Armed Forces.

• The original purpose of the Foreign Legion was to remove disruptive elements from society and put them to use fighting the enemies of France. Recruits included failed revolutionaries from the rest of Europe, soldiers from the disbanded Swiss and German mercenary regiments of the Bourbon monarchy, and troublemakers in general, both foreign and French.

• Historically, the American film industry portrayed the Foreign Legion as having a reputation as a haven for cut-throats fugitives from justice. This image is largely out of date since the legion now conducts extensive background checks via Interpol.

• Some Americans disagreed with the United States' initial refusal to enter WWI and so they joined the French Foreign Legion or the British or Canadian army. A group of U.S. pilots formed the Lafayette Escadrille, which was part of the French air force and became one of the top fighting units on the Western Front.

Calendar Information        

Happening This Week:
16-22 

American Chocolate Week

Campfire USA Birthday Week
Health Information Professionals Week
National Animal Poison Prevention Week
National Inhalant and Poisons Awareness Week
Termite Awareness Week
Flood Safety Awareness Week
17-23

Act Happy Week
Flood Awareness Week
Wellderly Week
Wildlife Week
World Folktales & Fables Week
21-27

Week of Solidarity with People's Struggling Against Racism & Discrimination

Today Is                                                                      

·        American Diabetes Association Alert Day

·        As Young As You Feel Day

·        Education and Sharing Day

·        International Day of The Seal

·        International Goof-off Day

·        World Day for Water (aka World Water Day)

·        World Day of Metta-- change in the climate of global consciousness so that the basic needs of ALL beings may be met

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·        Emancipation Day (Puerto Rico-1873)

·        New Years Day (India-for several Hindu sects)

Today’s Events through History  

1638 - Religious dissident Anne Hutchinson expelled from Massachusetts Bay Colony

1765 - Stamp Act passed; 1st direct British tax on colonists

1822 - NY Horticultural Society founded

1914 - World's 1st airline, St Petersburg Tampa Airboat Line, begins

1928 - Noel Coward's musical "This Year of Grace" premieres in London

Today’s Birthdays                                                           

Pat Robertson, televangelist (700 club) is 84

William Shatner, Montreal, actor (Star Trek, T J Hooker) is 83

Roger Whittaker, Nairobi Kenya, country singer (Durham Town) is 78

Jeremy Clyde, rocker (Chad & Jeremy-Yesterday's Gone) is 73

Andrew Lloyd Webber, London, composer (Phantom of the Opera, Cats) is 66

Wolf Blitzer, American television journalist is 66

Bob Costas, Queens, sportscaster/talk show host (Later) is 62

Matthew Modine, actor (Full Metal Jacket) is 55

Remembered for being born today

1846-1886 - Randolph Caldecott, England, illustrator (Caldecott Medal namesake)

1868-1953 - Robert A. Millikan, physicist (photoelectric effect; Nobel 1923)

1887-1961 - Chico Marx, [Leonard Martin], NYC, comedian (Marx Brothers)

1908-1988 - Louis D L'Amour, Jamestown ND, author (Hondo, Jubal Sackett)

1912-2009 - Karl Malden, Chicago, actor (Mike-Streets of SF, American Express)

1920-1981 - Ross Martin, Grodek Poland, actor (Mr Lucky, Wild Wild West)

1923-2007 - Marcel Marceau, Strasbourg France, mime (Barbarella, Silent Movie)

Today’s Historical Obits                                                           

Walter Lantz, US cartoonist (Woody Woodpecker), 1994, @93

William Hanna, American animator and studio founder, 2001, @90

James W. Black, Scottish Nobel Prize-winning doctor, 2010, @85

Karl Wallenda, falls walking high-wire, 1978, @73

Ban Johnson, founder of baseball's American League, 1931, @67

Michael Todd, producer (Around the World in 80 Days), plane crash, 1958, @48

Brain Teasers

1. You cannot BEGIN to imagine what a START you gave me.

2. Service is my MIDDLE name, you will always find me in the community CENTER.

3. The cook used the largest VESSEL to make a stew for the full compliment of the SHIP.

4. They agreed to meet outside the COURT of justice for their DATE.

5. I know you will CHARGE me for this purchase, I cannot BLAME you.

6. The NUMBER of bids for the FIGURE of Eros was unparalleled.

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  §