Aug 4

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Aug. 4, 2019 Week: 32 \ Day: 216

86004:   H 83° \ L 56° \ Average Sky Cover: 50% 

Nearest wildfire:  100mi. Nearest lightning:  6.2mi

Wind:   9mph\Gusts:  9mph

Visibility: 10 mi

Record High: 91°[1994]   Record Low: 35°[1956]

Aug Averages: 79°\50° (9 day with rain)

Today’s Quote

If we open a quarrel between past and present,

we shall find that we have lost the future.

Winston Churchill

Random Tidbits

Panama Canal. It took 34 years to create this 50-mile-long canal across the Isthmus of Panama. The amount of digging required and the size of its locks helped make it the most expensive project in American history at that time-and the most deadly: About 80,000 people died during construction (most from disease).

Channel Tunnel. Known as the Chunnel, it links France and England. It is 31 mi long, and 23 of those miles are 150 ft beneath the seabed of the English Channel. High-speed trains whiz through its side-by-side tubes.

Netherlands North Sea Protection Works. Because the Netherlands is below sea level, a series of dams, floodgates, and surge barriers have been built to keep the sea from flooding the country during storms. The biggest part of the project was a two-mile-long moveable surge barrier across an estuary finished in 1986. It is made of 65 concrete piers each weighing 18,000 tons. It has been said that the project is nearly equal in scale to the Great Wall of China.

Observances This Month

Psoriasis Awareness Month Link
Read-A-Romance Month
Rye Month Link
Tomboy Tools Month Link
What Will Be Your Legacy Month
World Mutt-i-grees Rescue Month  Link  Link

Observances This Week

1-4

Lollapalooza Link 

1-7

International Clown Week Link
National Cleanse Your Skin Week  Link
National Minority Donor Awareness Week
Simplify Your Life Week
World Breastfeeding Week Link

1-9

International Mathematicians Week

2-4

Satchmo Days  Link

2-11

Gallop International Tribal Indian Powwow Link
Sturgis Rally Link

4-7

Rock for Life Week Link

4-10

Assistance Dog Week  Link  Link  
Exercise With Your Child Week
Knights of Columbus Family Week
National Button Week Link
National Farmers' Market Week Link 
National Fraud Awareness Week Link   
National Health Center Week Link  
National Psychic Week Link  Link   
Single Working Women's Week Link
Stop on Red Week Link

Observances for Today

American Family Day  Link  
U.S. Coast Guard Day

Friendship Day Link 
International Forgiveness Day

National Chocolate Chip Day Link
National Kids' Day  Link
National Psychic Day  Link 
Raisin Bran Day  Link
Single Working Women's Day

Sisters' Day
Social Security Day

My Rambling Thoughts

The small fire near the Observatory was put out quickly. There was a lightning/thunder/rainstorm last night. Thankfully no flooding. Looks like more rain today. Many of the huge cumulus clouds are very dark. Some rain: good; any lightning: bad.

One of the amazing sites on the Siberian trip were the massive forests. Now I am seeing that some of those beautiful forests in Siberia are on fire. So sad. Like here, beautiful forests may lead to fire and flooding. It was also interesting that in the flooding article I read, the author referred to the small villages as ‘settlements’ and not towns or villages. Guess I’ll have to read more to find out the difference. A quick search on Google states: ‘a settlement is in the state of being settled’. I guess that is before it becomes a hamlet.

Multiple fatalities in shooting at mall in El Paso, TX. When will this violence end in our country? Lots of families doing ‘back to school’ shopping have their lives interrupted or ended.

Today’s Puzzle

Answer at the bottom of this page

What is the missing half of each word pair?

1. Hot and

2. Lock and

3. Black and

4. Scream and

5. Body and

6. Left and

7. Bacon and

8. Cat and

9. Up and

10. Burgers and

Today’s Highlighted Historical Events

70 - The Second Temple in Jerusalem was destroyed by the Romans.

1693 - Celebratory date for Dom Perignon's invention of Champagne.

1790 - A tariff act created the need for the Revenue Cutter Service, later renamed The United States Coast Guard.

1892 - The father and stepmother of Lizzie Borden were found murdered in their Fall River, Massachusetts home. Lizzie was acquitted of the crime.

1858 - The Billboard Hot 100 was published for the first time. The first number-one song of the Hot 100 was "Poor Little Fool" by Ricky Nelson.

1921 – Crop-dusting was invented. John B. Macready flew a Curtiss JN-4 over catalpa trees near Troy, Ohio, killing 99% of the leaf caterpillars, saving the 5000 trees with 175 pounds of lead arsenate pesticide.

1936 - Jesse Owens, black Olympic track star won the Gold Medalin Germany's Olympics, embarrassing Adolph Hitler.

1942 - Holiday Inn was released in theaters. The Holiday Inn hotel chain was named after this film. Introduced the Academy Award for Best Original Song, White Christmas, by Irving Berlin and performed by Bing Crosby.

1956 - #1 Hit August 4, 1956 - August 17, 1956: The Platters - My Prayer

1958 - #1 Hit August 4, 1958 - August 17, 1958: Ricky Nelson - Poor Little Fool

1973 - #1 Hit August 4, 1973 - August 17, 1973: Maureen McGovern - The Morning After

1977 - US President Jimmy Carter signed legislation creating the United States Department of Energy.

1987 - The Federal Communications Commission rescinded the Fairness Doctrine, which had required radio and television stations to present controversial issues "fairly".

1990 - #1 Hit August 4, 1990 - August 31, 1990: Mariah Carey - Vision Of Love

August 4, 1997 (fiction) Skynet was activated, The Terminator, Film

2001 - #1 Hit August 4, 2001 - August 17, 2001: Destiny's Child - Bootylicious

Highlighted Birthdays Today

1792   Percy Shelley (Poet)(d. 1822@29: drowned)

1900   Elizabeth (Queen Mother of Britain)(d. 2001@101)

1955   Billy Bob Thornton (Actor)(64)

1961   Barack Obama (US President)(58)

1962   Roger Clemons (Baseball Player)(57)

1971   Jeff Gordon (Nascar Driver) (48)

1992   Dylan and Cole Sprouse (Twin actors)(27)

Puzzle answer:

1. Hot and COLD

2. Lock and KEY or Lock and LOAD      

3. Black and WHITE or Black and BLUE

4. Scream and SHOUT

5. Body and SOUL

6. Left and RIGHT

7. Bacon and EGGS

8. Cat and MOUSE

9. Up and DOWN

10. Burgers and FRIES