Jan 26

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

Jan. 26, 2020 Week: 1  Day: 26

86004:   H 50° \ L 26° \ Average Sky Cover: 5%

Nearest lightning:  2110mi.; Nearest active fire:  348mi.  

Wind:   5mph\Gusts:  8mph  Visibility: 10 mi

Record High: 60°[1987]   Record Low: -15°[1937]

Jan. Averages: 43°\16° (22” days with snow)

Today’s Einstein Quote

The important thing is not to stop questioning.

Random Tidbits

Amid the many hundreds of diet books are really only four basic rules for weight loss: 1) eat carbs in the form of whole grains or fiber, 2) avoid trans and saturated fats, 3) eat lean protein, and 4) eat lots of fruits and veggies.

While eating raw fish that has been packed in fermented rice is a culinary technique that is a least 400 years old, sushi did not appear in the United States until the 1960s, and didn't become really popular until the 1980s when Americans became more health conscious.

Observations This Week

International Snowmobile Safety and Awareness Week: 18-26

Sundance Film Festival: 23-2/2

US Nationals Snow Sculpting Days: 25-2/2

Catholic Schools Week: 26-2/1

Clean Out Your Inbox Week: 26-31

Meat Week: 26-2/1

National School Choice Week:  26-2/1 

Tax Identity Theft Week: 26-30

Observations for Today

Australia Day

Dental Drill Appreciation Day
Grammy Awards
Lotus 1-2-3 Day
National Bible Sunday 
National Green Juice Day Link
National Peanut Brittle Day  Link
Spouse's Day

Toad Hollow Day of Encouragement
World Leprosy Day

My Rambling Thoughts

Tonight is the first meeting of 2020 for our discussion group. I have been with this group for 10 years. Our composition has changed but still a very worthwhile group. Tonight’s discussion should be very informative. The topic is Human Trafficking. The articles defined human trafficking, slavery, forced labor, sex trafficking, and child trafficking. Turns out this is a very complicated, complex issue involving International Law, National Law, Cultures, and the difficulty of defining all the terms above. I have already learned a lot about the countries with the best and worst records of child labor/slavery/forced labor. The authors also talked about how to avoid buying products from the worst offenders. I didn’t know that much of the tomato crop and chili crop from Mexico is from Child Labor or that coffee from most of Central and South America is from child labor.

Most followers of world news know that many times the first reports out are not that accurate. One has to wait a few days, weeks or even months to get the full story. The problem with our current media is that Breaking News has taken over and when the full story comes out, it is barely reported or even ignored. Back when the Iranian General was killed, all the news organizations had breaking news: General killed, no US casualties. Now, weeks later it has come out that there were at least 34 US soldiers who suffered TBI (Traumatic Brain Injury). President Trump was quick to say ‘No US Casualties’, then as TBI information started coming out, he said ‘some soldiers had headaches after the attack.’ Having worked in education as my career, I can tell everyone a TBI is so much more than a headache. Yet, there is no Breaking News about the TBI cases, no in-depth news stories about what happened to our soldiers. The media helps us forget way to soon.

Today’s Puzzle

Answer at the bottom of the page

Adam’s father has 4 children; Alice, Alesha, Alan.

Who is the fourth?

Historical Events

1564 - The Council of Trent issued its conclusions in the Tridentinum, establishing a distinction between Roman Catholicism and Protestantism.

1784 Benjamin Franklin expresses unhappiness over eagle as America's symbol

1788 Captain Arthur Phillip and British colonists hoist the Union Flag at Sydney Cove, New South Wales, now celebrated as Australia Day

1837 Michigan admitted as 26th US state

1838 - Tennessee became the 1st state to prohibit alcohol.

1905 World's largest diamond, the 3,106-carat Cullinan, is found in South Africa

1906 - The world's steam car land speed record was set at 127.7 mph (205.5 km/h) by Fred Marriot, racing at Daytona Beach, Florida, U.S.A. in his canoe-shaped Stanley Steamer Rocket. The record stood until 2009.

1912 - Jim Thorpe relinquished his 1912 Olympic medals for being a professional athlete. He was paid for playing two seasons of semi-professional baseball before competing in the Olympics, thus violating the amateur rules at that time. His Olympic medals were reinstated posthumously by an act of Congress in 1983.

1915 - The Rocky Mountain National Park was established.

1918 Herbert Hoover, US Food Administrator, calls for "wheatless" & "meatless" days for war effort

1961 1st woman personal physician to a US President - Janet G. Travell (to John F. Kennedy)

1963 - #1 Hit: The Rooftop Singers - Walk Right In

1966 - The Beaumont Children (ages 9, 7, and 4) disappeared from Glenelg Beach near Adelaide, South Australia.

1974 - #1 Hit: Ringo Starr - You're Sixteen

1979 - The Dukes of Hazzard debuted on CBS

1988 - Broadway Show - The Phantom of the Opera (Musical) opened

1991 - #1 Hit: Surface - The First Time

1998 President Bill Clinton says "I want to say one thing to the American people; I did not have sexual relations with that woman, Miss Lewinsky"

2005 Condoleezza Rice is sworn in as U.S. Secretary of State, the first African American woman to hold the post

2010 The World Health Organization rejects claims that it overstated the severity of the swine flu pandemic under pressure from vaccine companies

Birthdays Today

@84-Douglas MacArthur, War hero

@83- Paul Newman, actor, entrepreneur

62- Ellen DeGeneres, TV host, actor

59- Wayne Gretzky, hockey legend

11- Suleman octuplets, longest surviving set

Puzzle Answer:

Adam. Alice, Alesha and Alan are his siblings.