Feb
11, 2021 Week: 6
Day: 42 |
Local: H 47°\ L 21°\Ave. Sky Cover: 70% |
Wind: 6mph\Gusts: 11mph |
Low Risk of Fire: Active
fire: 267mi |
Nearest
lightning: 1198mi. |
Record: 62°[1971] Record: -12°[1908] |
Visibility: 10mi |
Feb. Averages: 47°/19° (5 days with moisture) |
Today’s
Quote
We're born alone, we live
alone, we die alone. Only through our love and friendship can we create the
illusion for the moment that we're not alone.
Orson Welles
Random Tidbits
No. Why is
"No." the abbreviation for "number," since there is no
"O" in the word? Well, there may not be an "O" in number,
but there is one in the Latin word numero, which is where the English word
comes from.
Lb How did the letters
"L" and "B" get to be the abbreviation for
"pound"? It has to do with the origins of the word. The English word
"pound" originates from an ancient Roman unit of measurement called a
Libra pondo, meaning "a pound by weight." "Pondo" became
the English word "pound," while the "Libra" provided the
origin for the "lb" abbreviation.
A Little Humor
Q What do a baker and investment banker have in common?
They both want to make bread and they both wait for their dough to
rise.
.....
My Rooster Was Attacking The Hens. We Bought Him A Vest With Bells and
A Lock To Give The Hens A Warning. He Got Out Of The Vest So Fast He Won Two
Awards A “No Bell Prize” and A “Pullet
Surprise”
True Things
No Hysteria Here
A Texas high school
student arrived to take his final exams in a hazmat suit after his family said
the district isn't doing enough to protect students and families from COVID-19.
Houston teenager Mason Kalkofen showed up to Spring Woods High School's campus
in a full suit of personal protective gear after the school district mandated
that virtual learners take their final exams on the school's campus. "I'm
having to go in a hazmat suit," Kalkofen said. "That way I can
protect my family." The family said they asked the school to allow the
teenager to take his exams virtually, but the request was refused. They said
multiple letters have been sent home informing families of positive coronavirus
cases at the school. Spring Branch Independent School District said officials
"offered the family multiple testing options, including the option of the
student testing alone in a room with only one proctor present wearing PPE. The
family refused all options."
Presidential Trivia
John Tyler was very, very unpopular.
To say John Tyler was
not particularly well-liked is an understatement. When he died in 1862, his
obituary in The New
York Times called
him,"the most unpopular public man that had ever held any office in the
United States." Yikes. It probably didn't help that he was
considered a traitor to the
United States when he died,
having recently been elected to the Congress of the Confederacy.
James K. Polk wasn't what you'd call the life
of the party.
Polk's devout
Presbyterian wife, Sarah, banned dancing,
drinking, and card games in the White House during her time as first lady, making
for a very dull presidency.
Zachary Taylor was nominated without knowing
it.
In 1848, Taylor had no
idea the the Wig Party chose him as their nomination for president.
Apparently, the party sent him a
letter without postage>>>P, and when he refused to pay for it, he ended up
going weeks without knowing the good news.
Weekly Observations
Solo Diners Eat Out Weekend |
7-12 |
Burn Awareness Week Link |
7-13 |
Congenital Heart Defect
Awareness Week Link |
7-14 |
American Association For The
Advancement of Science Week Link |
8-11 |
Freelance
Writer Appreciation Week |
8-13 |
Love Makes the World Go Round;
but, Laughter Keeps Us From Getting Dizzy Week |
8-14 |
Kitchen
and Bath Show Week Link |
9-12 |
Westminster Dog Show |
10-11 (Moved to June 12 & 13) |
Today’s Observations
Be Electrific Day
Don't
Cry Over Spilled Milk Day
International Day of Women and Girls in Science
Get Out Your Guitar Day
Pro Sports Wives Day
Make a
Friend Day
National Giving Hearts Day
National Inventors Day Link
National
Peppermint Patty Day
National
Shut-in Visitation Day
Paczki Day in Poland
Read in a Bathtub Day
Satisfied Staying Single Day
White Shirt Day or White T-Shirt Day Link
World Day of The Sick Link
My Sometimes-Long-Winded Thoughts
Watching the Impeachment can be a learning experience, for sure. I have
a hard time concentrating. When there is a break, I watch Fox or CNN
commentary. I’m sure, barring something stunning, that this is an exercise in
futility. It has been reported on 24 hour news networks that some Senators, on
both sides, spend their time sitting quietly, doodling, or starting at papers
in their laps. They have been told that any outburst will end in jail, but
nothing about paying attention.
I must apologize to my readers for yesterday’s a little too graphic
experience at the hospital. I won’t be so graphic in the future.
Second language learners always have unique phrases that many others don’t
fully understand. One of my favorites from Navajoland is ‘Sko-den’. Any
guesses? It might be used after one states: Do you want to go with me to town?
It roughly means: Let’s go then. Linguistically the Navajo language do
not have either ‘th’ sound (thin/then) and is usually substituted with ‘d’ or ‘t’.
After all these years, I still don’t know what happened to ‘let us go’ to become
‘sko’.
Daily Puzzle
Answer: bottom of the page
What can be swallowed, but can also swallow you?
Historical Events
660 BC – Traditional date for the foundation of Japan by Emperor
Jimmu.
1534 – Henry VIII of England was recognized as supreme head of the
Church of England.
1752 – The first hospital in the United States, Pennsylvania Hospital,
opened.
1808 – As an experiment, anthracite coal was burned as fuel by Judge
Jesse Fell in Pennsylvania.
1812 – Massachusetts governor Elbridge Gerry ‘gerrymandered’ for the
first time.
1858 – Marie-Bernarde Soubirous, a 14-year-old French peasant girl,
first claimed to see a vision of the Virgin Mary near Lourdes, France. In 1933,
she was canonized as St. Bernadette by the Roman Catholic Church.
1928 – The La-Z-Boy reclining chair was invented by Ed Shoemaker.
1929 – The Vatican was officially independent of Italy with the
Lateran Treaty.
1963 – The French Chef, starring Julia Child debuted on WGBH in
Boston, MA.
1971 – 87 countries, including the United States, United Kingdom, and
the Soviet Union, signed the Seabed Arms Control Treaty, outlawing nuclear
weapons on the ocean floor in international waters.
1989 – Rev. Barbara Harris became the first woman to be consecrated as
a bishop in the Episcopal Church.
1990 – Nelson Mandela, leader of the movement to end South African
apartheid, was released from prison after 27 years
1994 – The ‘rBGH’ genetically engineered growth hormone for cows goes
on sale to dairy farmers under the name Posilac, made by Monsanto. It was the
first-time altered genes were allowed into live animals.
1997- The Simpsons made television history with their episode “The
Itchy, Scratchy and Poochie Show” which they then surpassed the Flintstones as
the longest-running prime-time cartoon series in terms of episodes aired.
1998 Lyrics to "Candle in the Wind 1997" auctioned for
$442,500.
2006 – Vice President Dick Cheney accidentally shot his friend Harry
Whittington while the two were hunting together.
2009 Uri Geller purchases Lamb Island, Scotland, previously known for
its witch trials
2012 – Singer Whitney Houston died in a hotel bathtub, the result of
accidental drowning. Heart disease and cocaine, which was found in her system,
were determined to be contributing factors.
2011 Egyptian Revolution culminates in the resignation of Hosni
Mubarak and the transfer of power to the Supreme Military Council after 18 days
of protests (Arab Spring)
2013 Pope Benedict XVI announces his resignation from February 28, the
first pope to resign since 1415
2018 MOMA opens a major solo exhibition for Brazilian artist Tarsila
do Amaral in New York
2020 Largest wave ever surfed by a woman by Brazilian Maya Ganeira
riding a 73.5ft (22.4m) wave at Nazaré, Portugal
Birthdays Today
@89 – Sidney Sheldon, American
television producer and novel writer (d.2007)
@88 – Virginia E. Johnson, American
psychologist, academic (d. 2013)
87 – Tina Louise, American actress
@84 – Thomas Edison, American
engineer, businessman (d. 1931)
@82 – Burt Reynolds, American
actor (d. 2018)
80 – Sérgio Mendes, Brazilian pianist, composer
68 – Jeb Bush, American politician
59 – Sheryl Crow, American singer-songwriter
57 – Sarah Palin, American politician
52 – Jennifer Aniston, American actress
42 – Brandy (Norwood), American singer
29 – Taylor Lautner, American actor
Puzzle Answer
Pride