May 30

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May 30, 2019 Week: 22 \ Day: 150

86004:   H 55° \ L 33° \ Average Sky Cover: 80% 

Nearest wildfire:  530mi. Nearest lightning:  327mi

Wind:   5mph\Gusts:  9mph

Visibility: 10 mi

Record High: 88°[2002]   Record Low: 18°[1918]

May Averages: 68°\34° (3 days with rain)

Today’s Quote

A sure cure for seasickness is to sit under a tree.

Spike Milligan

Random Tidbits

The moon is never really full. The disk of the moon can only appear 100 percent sunlit from Earth when it is diametrically opposite to the sun in the sky. But that, of course, is impossible because at that moment the moon would be positioned in the middle of the Earth's shadow and in total lunar eclipse. In fact, in any month where there is no eclipse, there should be an ever-so-slight sliver of darkness visible somewhere on the lunar limb throughout those hours when the moon is passing through "full" phase; close inspection will usually reveal that moon is not fully illuminated, but is indeed gibbous or slightly out of roundness.

Observances This Week

Ramadan 5/5-6/4

National African Violet Week: 26-6/2

Black Single Parents Week: 28-6/3

Scripps National Spelling Bee: 28-31

Observances for Today

Indianapolis 500 Anniversary
Loomis Day=-0987656*/Memorial Day (Traditional)
Mint Julep Day Link
My Bucket's Got a Hole Day

National Creativity Day  Link
National Nail Tech Day Link

Water a Flower Day

My Rambling Thoughts

Cloudy and rain again today. Not complaining.

Today reminded me of my 9^th grade Civics teacher, Ruth Steinmeier. She taught us about how the government works. I have always known it is up to Congress. That means that it is up to the American people. Now is the time for every American to get involved. I was a working adult during the two impeachments. I let them do their job and I voted. Nixon saw the handwriting on the wall and simply resigned. But it took a very long time. Clinton kept right on working during his impeachment, and he remained in office. That too, took a long time. I worked for the government and while both these impeachments were going on, nothing was ever said by any administrator. We all let Congress do its job. Both were long processes and America survived. Now is the time for the House to do its job so the Senate can do its job. It is time to get this out of politics and into the elected representative’s hands. Let the chips fall where they may.

I saw a FB post that one of my friends from my early days in the BIA was very close to one of the tornados in Kansas. She and her husband are safe, but she said it was very scary. They were hiding in an interior closet for several hours with no power. Glad they are OK.

PUZZLE OF THE DAY

Answer at the bottom of this page

Two very short friends, John and Jack, were living together in an apartment. Since they used to lose their apartment key very often, they decided to leave it on top of the door frame when they leave home. I

n order to reach the key, John was climbing on Jack’s shoulders and thus taking it down from the frame. However, John was the taller and the heavier guy of the two. Why didn’t Jack climb on his shoulders instead?

Today’s Significant Historical Events

1400’s

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

1500’s

1527 University of Marburg (Germany) founded

1539 Spanish explorer Hernando de Soto discovers Florida

1800’s

1806 Future US President Andrew Jackson kills Charles Dickinson in a duel after Dickinson accused Jackson's wife of bigamy

1821 James Boyd patents Rubber Fire Hose

1848 William G Young patents ice cream freezer

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

1900’s

1908 1st federal workmen's compensation law approved

1922 Completed Lincoln Memorial dedicated by US Chief Justice William H. Taft in front of 50,000

1937 Memorial Day Massacre: Chicago Police Department shoot and kill 10 unarmed demonstrators during the "Little Steel Strike" in the United States

1948 A dike along the flooding Columbia River breaks, obliterating Vanport, Oregon within minutes. Fifteen people die and tens of thousands are left homeless.

1954 Emile Zatopek runs world record 5K (13:57.2)

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

1967 Robert "Evel" Knievel's motorcycle jumps 16 automobiles in Gardena, California

1979 Ted Coombs begins a 5,193 mile roller skate from LA to NYC

2000’s

012 A number of nations including Germany, Turkey and Canada, expel Syrian diplomats following the Houla massacre

Birthdays Today

1908 Mel Blanc,

(d. 1989: @81)

American voice actor, comedian best known for his Looney Tunes and Merrie Melodies cartoons (Bugs Bunny, Elmer Fudd & Porky Pig),

born in San Francisco, California

1909 Benny Goodman,

(d. 1986: @77: heart attack)

clarinetist and bandleader (King of Swing),

born in Chicago, Illinois

85- Alexey Leonov,

Russian cosmonaut (Voskhod 2, first man to walk in space),

born in Listvyanka, Soviet Union

80’s

80- Michael J Pollard,

actor (Bonny & Clyde, Roxanne),

born in Passaic, New Jersey

70’s

79- David Ackroyd,

actor (I Come in Peace, Memories of Me),

born in Orange, New Jersey

50’s

55- Wynonna,

[Christina Judd],

singer (Judds-Why Not Me)

born in Ashland Ky

40’s

45- Cee-Lo Green

[Thomas Callaway],

American Grammy winning singer-songwriter (Crazy, F*** You), reality TV judge (The Voice), record producer, and actor,

born in Atlanta, Georgia

Historical Obits Today

80’s

@83-1778 Voltaire

[Francois-Marie Arouet],

French writer, philosopher and playwright (Candide)

70’s

@70-1960 Boris Pasternak,

Russian poet and novelist (Doctor Zhivago) (Nobel Prize 1958),

dies from lung cancer

60’s

@62-1640 Peter Paul Rubens,

Flemish Baroque painter,

dies from gout

50’s

@56-1744 Alexander Pope,

English poet (The Rape of the Lock),

dies after long illness

40’s

@47-2015 Joseph [Beau] Biden III,

American politician and son of Vice President Joe Biden,

dies of cancer

20’s

@29-1593 Christopher Marlowe,

English dramatist and poet (Tamburlaine the Great),

stabbed to death in a pub brawl in Deptford

@24-1975 Steve Prefontaine,

American runner (5K 1972 Olympic 4th),

dies in a car accident

Teen’s

@19-1431 Joan of Arc,

Roman Catholic Saint and national heroine of France (legendary date),

executed and burnt at the stake

Puzzle answer:

The reason is that as being taller, John also had longer arms. If Jack climbed on John’s shoulders, he wouldn’t have reached the key.