Nov 25

FYI: Any blue text is a link. Click to check it out!

Nov. 25, 2019 Week: 48  Day: 339

86004:   H 52° \ L 21° \ Average Sky Cover: 5%

Nearest active fire:  219mi.  Nearest lightning:  1057mi

Wind:   1mph\Gusts:  0mph  Visibility: 10 mi

Record High: 70°[1949]   Record Low: -8°[1906]

Nov. Averages: 53°\23° (3 days with moisture)

Today’s Quote

“It does not matter

how long you are spending on the earth,

how much money you have gathered,

or how much attention you have received.

It is the amount of positive vibration

you have radiated in life that matters.”

~ Amit Ray

Random Tidbits

Columbus' discovery of America. Let's start with the basics. You can't "discover" something that's already occupied. But even if you discount the Native Americans, Columbus was still 500 years too late. Norse explorer Leif Erikson beat him to the punch, landing on these shores during the 10th century. What's more, Columbus didn't even set foot on what would become the United States. He landed on several Caribbean islands.

Pocahontas fell in love with John Smith. Never get your history for Disney movies. The essence of the Pocahontas/John Smith story is true. A young Native American girl did befriend an Englishman, and their relationship may have saved the Jamestown colony. But Pocahontas was just 12, which would make a romantic relationship with a 28-year-old man wildly inappropriate, even by 17th century standards.

Observances This Week

19-26

National Farm-City Week

21-28

International Games Week
Church/State Separation Week
GERD Awareness Week Link
National Bible Week
National Family Week
National Game & Puzzle Week
World Karaoke Championships Link

23-28

Better Conversation Week

25-12/1

National Deal Week   

Observances for Today

Blase'Day
International Day For the Elimination of Violence Against Women Day
International Hat Day
Shopping Reminder Day
National “Eat with a Friend” Day

National Jukebox Day  Link  
National Parfait Day

Shopping Reminder Day

Tie One On Day

My Rambling Thoughts

A nice fall day.  Weather guy says more snow on the way for Thanksgiving Day and Black Friday. Not excited yet as it is way too early to figure out weather ahead. Sunday morning news programs were decent, but too much delving into what might be if there is an impeachment trial.

Encouraged to read about AG Barr’s initiative to study the crisis of missing and murdered indigenous people. Many current reservations have 10 times more murders than the US average. It is another part of the history of Reservations that most Americans know nothing about.

During my career I spent a year in South Dakota on the Pine Ridge Reservation. The state advertising campaign at that time was ‘the jewel of America is South Dakota’. Times have changed and SD has a big meth problem throughout the state. I’m having a very hard time with their new advertising slogan: ‘South Dakota Meth, we’re on it’. The play on words means the state is tackling the Meth crisis, but I still think it is a weird way to tell America.

Every morning the past week I have awoken to frost on the car windshields. Not unusual for this time of year. What is different, every day after sunrise it takes longer and longer for the frost to disappear. Today the frost was still there, in the sunny areas until almost 9a…about 2 hours after sunrise.

The CU Buffalo beat the Washington Huskies last night and it was on my TV. Thanks ESPN2 for a great game.

Today’s Puzzle

Answer at the bottom of this page

Tabitha is 13 years old. Her father Ronan is 40 years old. How many years ago was Ronan four times as old as Tabitha?

Historical Events

1792 - The Old Farmer's Almanac first published by Robert B. Thomas. He added "Old" to the title in 1832 because there was so much competition in the Farmer's Almanac business.

1867 US Congress commission looks into "impeachment" of President Andrew Johnson

1884 - The patent (#308,422) for the process of evaporated milk was issued to John Meyenberg, of St Louis, Missouri.

1920 - The Philadelphia Thanksgiving Day Parade is the oldest in the US, starting on this date.

1937 - World's Fair of Paris (Exposition Internationale des Arts et Techniques dans la Vie Moderne - International Exposition dedicated to Art and Technology in Modern Life) closed, with 31.2 million visitors.

1940 - Woody Woodpecker debuted with release of Walter Lantz's "Knock Knock." He was actually the antagonist to Andy Panda (already established character) in the cartoon.

1947 - The Hollywood Ten consisting of Alvah Bessie, Herbert Biberman, Lester Cole, Edward Dmytryk, Ring Lardner Jr., John Howard Lawson, Albert Maltz, Samuel Ornitz, Adrian Scott and Dalton Trumbo were cited for contempt of Congress for refusing to give testimony to the House Committee on Un-American Activities.

1950 - The Great Appalachian Storm of November 1950 impacts 22 American states, killing 353 people, injuring over 160.

1952 - East End Show - The Mousetrap (Play) November 25, 1952 at the Ambassadors Theatre in London, eventually becoming the longest continuously-running play in history.

1963 - John F. Kennedy was laid to rest at Arlington National Cemetery. The flags in Arlington National Cemetery are flown at half-staff from a half hour before the first funeral until a half hour after the last funeral each day. Lee Harvey Oswald is buried in Fort Worth, Texas.

1967 - #1 Hit: Strawberry Alarm Clock - Incense and Peppermints

1973 - Maximum speed limit was cut to 55 MPH as an energy conservation measure in the US.

1984 - Band Aid which was founded by Bob Geldof to help raise money to assist famine stricken Ethiopia, recorded the single Do They Know It's Christmas in a London studio. The group included Adam Clayton (U2), Phil Collins (Genesis, solo), Bob Geldof (The Boomtown Rats), Steve Norman (Spandau Ballet), Chris Cross (Ultravox), John Taylor (Duran Duran), Paul Young, Tony Hadley (Spandau Ballet), Glenn Gregory (Heaven 17), Simon Le Bon (Duran Duran), Simon Crowe (The Boomtown Rats), Marilyn, Keren (Bananarama), Martin Kemp (Spandau Ballet), Jody Watley (Shalamar), Bono (U2), Paul Weller (The Style Council), James Taylor (Kool & The Gang), Peter Blake (credited as 'sleeve artist'), George Michael (Wham!), Midge Ure (Ultravox), Martin Ware (Heaven 17), John Keeble (Spandau Ballet), Gary Kemp (Spandau Ballet), Roger Taylor (Duran Duran), Sara (Bananarama), Siobhan (Bananarama), Pete Briquette (The Boomtown Rats), Francis Rossi (Status Quo), Robert 'Kool' Bell (Kool & the Gang), Dennis Thomas (Kool & the Gang), Andy Taylor (Duran Duran), Jon Moss (Culture Club), Sting (The Police), Rick Parfitt (Status Quo), Nick Rhodes (Duran Duran), Johnny Fingers (The Boomtown Rats), Boy George (Culture Club), Holly (Frankie Goes to Hollywood), Paul McCartney (The Beatles, Wings) and David Bowie.

1989 - #1 Hit: Milli Vanilli - Blame It on the Rain

1990 Lech Wałęsa wins Poland's first popular election

1995 - #1 Hit: Whitney Houston - Exhale (Shoop Shoop)

2009 - Wikileaks - Information about 9/11 attacks on the World Trade Centre and the Pentagon were distributed online, with more than 500,000 intercepted pager messages, mainly from US officials posted by WikiLeaks founder, Julian Assange.

2015 Pope Francis begins his trip to Africa, visiting Kenya, Uganda and the Central African Republic

Birthdays Today

@95 – Noel Neill, American actress--Lois Lane,

(d. 2016)

@88 – Ricardo Montalbán, Mexican-American actor;

Kahn on Star Trek, Mr. Roarke on Fantasy Island

(died in 2009)

@84 – Joe DiMaggio, American baseball player and coach

(died in 1999)

@83 – Andrew Carnegie, Scottish-American businessman,

philanthropist (died in 1919)

@75 – Franz Xaver Gruber, Austrian organist and

Composer: Silent Night,

(died in 1863)

@73 – Percy Sledge, American singer

(died in 2015; liver cancer)

75 – Ben Stein, lawyer, commentator, actor, performer

73 – Marc Brown, Children’s author and illustrator

72 – John Larroquette, American actor

69 – Chris Claremont, English-American author

(Uncanny X-Men comic books)

@64 – Carrie Nation, American Prohibition activist;

known for attacking bars with a hatchet,

(died in 1911)

64 – Don Hahn, American director and producer (Lion King)

59 – Amy Grant, Christian Singer/Songwriter

@38 - John F. Kennedy, Jr, American lawyer and publisher

(died in 1999; plane crash)

48 – Christina Applegate, American actress, singer, dancer

and producer

Puzzle answer:

Four years ago, when Tabitha was 9 and Ronan was 36

(9 × 4 = 36)