Feb 11

 

 

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  
Children's Authors & Illustrators Week 

7-13

Congenital Heart Defect Awareness Week Link
Have A Heart for A Chained Dog Week  
Link

National Marriage Week 
 Link  Link
Risk Awareness Week

 

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
Love A Mench Week
Random Acts of Kindness Week 
Link 

 

8-14

Kitchen and Bath Show Week Link 
World AG Expo

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

 

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Flagstaff, Arizona, United States
I retired in '06--at the ripe old age of 57. I enjoy blogging, photography, traveling, and living life to it's fullest.