Aug 15

 

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

Aug 15, 2020 Week: 33 Day: 228

86004:   H 91° \ L 56° \ Average Sky Cover: 25%

Wind:   7mph\Gusts:  9mph  Visibility:  10mi

Nearest lightning:  122mi.; Nearest active fire:  59mi. 

High Risk of Fire          

Record High: 88°[1962]   Record Low: 33°[1968]

Jul Averages: 79°\50° (9 days with rain)

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Today’s  Quote

"The only place where success comes before work is in the dictionary."

-Vidal Sassoon

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Random Tidbits

 Like all members of the weasel family, ferrets are closely related to skunks and, like skunks, they can emit an odorous smell when excited or afraid. Consequently, many ferret owners decide to have their ferrets de-scented.

The word "ferret" is from the Latin fur, meaning "little thief." Indeed, one of the ferret's favorite activities is stealing and hiding things.

There are several populations of feral ferrets throughout the world. The most notable and destructive population lives in New Zealand. They were initially imported from England from 1879 to 1883 to help control the rabbit population. When that population was under control, the hybrids began eating New Zealand's native birds which, until that time, had no natural predators.

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A little humor

I moved to New York City for my health. I’m paranoid, and it was the only place where my fears were justified.

What’s a seven-course meal in North Dakota? A hamburger and a six-pack.

How do you know you’re from Ohio? You own only three spices: salt, pepper, and ketchup.

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State Name Origins

The name "Indiana" means "Land of the Indians" or "Land of Indians." After the French lost the French and Indian War in 1763, the English took over the territory that would include latter-day Indiana. The new owners of the land sought a new name for the territory, and in recognition of the people who originally occupied it, named it Indiana.

The story behind Iowa's name is a bit complicated. One version claims the name comes from the Iowa river, which was named for the native American Iowas (or Ioways), who were a Sioux tribe. One frontiersman wrote in 1868 that Native Americans encamped by a river were pleased with the location and said in their native tongue "'Iowa, Iowa, Iowa," meaning "beautiful." Members of the Ioway people have a different version of the name. One is the French spelling of Ayuhwa, meaning "sleepy ones."

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Observations This Week

Sturgis Rally: 7-16 Link 
Elvis Week: 8-16 Link
Assistance Dog Week: 9-15  Link  Link 
National Motorcycle Week: 9-16 Link 
Feeding Pets of the Homeless Week: 9-16 Link  Link  
National Resurrect Romance Week:9-16 
Weird Contest Week: 9-16 
Safe and Sound Week: 10-16 Link
US Amateur Golf Week: 10-16
Pueblo Revolt, New Mexico  Aug10-20, 1680

National Aviation Week: 15-21

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Observations for Today

Best Friends Day
Chauvin Day
Check The Chip Day (Those Implanted in Pets) Link
Chef Appreciation Day Link  
Clear The Shelters Day  Link  
Feast of the Assumption-Christian

Kool-Aid Day s

International Geocaching Day 
International Homeless Animals Day  
National Honey Bee Day Link  
National Leathercraft Day  Link
National Lemon Meringue Pie Day

National Relaxation Day
National Thrift Shop Day Link
National No SpongeBob Day Link

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My Rambling Thoughts

Headed out when the stores opened to do my weekly shopping. Went to the old WalMart, as last week the new one did not have some stuff I needed. The old one had everything, and Fry’s had some good stuff too. Successful trip for sure.

I am disappointed that the Trump campaign is questioning Kamala Harris’ birth in the US. Also I am tired of the ‘people are saying…’ to avoid directly saying anything.

The USPS is in real trouble, thanks to the current administration. Many Americans depend on the postal service to deliver bills, letters, on-line orders, and medicine. It is despicable that the President and Congress are doing this. Taking out sorting machines, that will slow down mail, is the latest tactic.

I watched a program on the gig economy the other night. I must admit, I didn’t really even know what the gig economy was. The gig economy is doing a gig for money. In my day, a gig was for musicians. Not anymore. A gig is any short-term job that pays…Uber, dog walking, cooking meals at someone’s home, etc. The gig economy is good for those who can afford to hire the service. It is not that good for the actual workers. They do have the ability to work or not work. When they work, they have no benefits…insurance, job security, sick leave, vacation time, Overtime, etc. The best advise was that when you use the gig economy, tip very well, and realize many are working 40+ hrs a week at this job to feed their family. Also, many also have a full-time job that doesn’t pay enough for their family.

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Today’s Puzzle

Answer at the bottom of the page

I do not speak unless spoken to,

many have heard me, but none have seen me.

What am I?

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Historical Events

1483 – Pope Sixtus IV consecrated the Sistine Chapel and dedicated it to the Virgin Mary.

1519 – Panama City, Panama, was founded.

1549 – Jesuit priest Francis Xavier came ashore at Kagoshima, Japan.

1843 – Tivoli Gardens, one of the oldest still intact amusement parks in the world, opened in Copenhagen, Denmark. It may be best known for its wooden roller coaster, Rutschebanen, or Bjergbanen (the Mountain Coaster), built in 1914

1914 – The Panama Canal opened with the transit of the cargo ship SS Ancon.

1935 – Entertainer Will Rogers and pilot Wiley Post were killed after their aircraft developed engine problems during takeoff in Barrow, Alaska.

1939 – The Wizard of Oz premiered at Grauman’s Chinese Theater in Los Angeles, California.

1947 – India gained Independence from the British Indian Empire.

1948 – CBS launched the first network TV news broadcast.

1965 – The Beatles played at Shea Stadium in New York. It is considered the first major rock concert. There were only a few hundred watts of sound for the band, who did not have monitors to hear each other and could not be heard over the screaming of 55,600 fans. The concert grossed $304,000 – a record at the time.

1969 – The Woodstock Music & Art Fair opened in upstate New York. Tickets for the three-day event were $18 in advance and $24 at the gate, and there was sufficient sound for the 500,000 attendees.

1973 – The United States’ bombing of Cambodia ended.

1977 – The Big Ear, a radio telescope operated by Ohio State University as part of the SETI project, received a radio signal from deep space – “6EQUJ5.” The event was named the “Wow! signal” from the notation made by Jerry Ehman on the project. The signal appears to have come to the northwest of the globular cluster of M55 in the constellation Sagittarius, near the Chi Sagittarii star group.

1985 – Michael Jackson paid $47.5 Million for the publishing rights to the Beatles’ song catalog.

1994 Terrorist Carlos the Jackal, captured in Khartoum Sudan

1998 Omagh bombing in Northern Ireland, the worst terrorist incident of The Troubles, kills 29 people and injures about 220

2006 Der Spiegel, Spiegel Online, publishes documents confirming German writer Günter Grass' membership of the Waffen-SS in World War II

2017 Barack Obama's tweet "No one is born hating another person because of the color of his skin or his background or his religion..." in response to Charlottesville violence becomes most-liked tweet ever

2018 US President Donald Trump revokes security clearance of former CIA Director and Trump critic John Brennan

2019 Israel bars US Democratic congresswomen Rashida Tlaib and Ilhan Omar from entering for supporting Palestinian-led boycott movement

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Birthdays Today

@91 – Julia Child, American chef and author (died in 2004)

82 – Maxine Waters, American politician

74 – Jimmy Webb, American singer-songwriter

@51 – Napoleon, French general and emperor (d. 1821)

50- Anthony Anderson, actor, game show host

48 – Ben Affleck, American actor, director, producer, and screenwriter

30 – Jennifer Lawrence, American actress

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Puzzle Answer

An echo.

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