Feb 16

 

Week: 8 Day: 47a	5
Local Temp:   47°\ 26° Wind: 8mph\ Gusts: 14mph	Extreme risk of fire Active fire: 361mi. \ Lightning: 1668mi.
Feb Averages: 46°\19° (5 days w/moisture)

 

Today’s Quote

Weekly Observations

 

4-20	Winter Olympics XXIV
11-20	Date (Fruit) Week
12-19	National Entrepreneurship Week Link
13-19	Children of Alcoholics Week Link  International Flirting Week    Jell-O Week Love A Mensch Week National Secondhand Wardrobe Week Random Acts of Kindness Week Link
14-21	National Condom Week National Nestbox Week [bird houses] NCCDP Alzheimer's & Dementia Staff Education Week

 

Daily Observations

 

My Sometimes-Long-Winded Thoughts

A little windy and the wind is cold.

Jury duty continues. Today I got there at 7:30…to be sure I would get a parking space. There were about 30 of us in the jury waiting room, all masked and a few feet apart. The bailiff gave us general instructions, showed us a video of the importance of jury duty, and we got a credit card that will be the way we get paid. We all get milage, from the center of our zip code to the courthouse. If selected, we get $12/day for the trial…+ milage. Then they drew the first 10 for the jury box in the courtroom. I wasn’t one of the 10. The rest of us sat in the benches.  The judge came in and thanked us again for doing our civic duty. Then she said that ‘due to a medical emergency’ we would be dismissed for the day and must return tomorrow at 8:15. That’s when the attorneys will question each person in the jury box. If someone is dismissed, a new person goes into the box. I’m sure tomorrow will be a long day, even if I’m not on the real jury. The trial is about sexual assault and is expected to last 5 court days.

Two updates on climate change:

1.  Global warming is changing the wine production business. Now there is less quantity, but better taste and growth areas are moving…England now has better climate than most of France for grapes. So sayeth the 60 Minutes story.

2.     Flagstaff and the surrounding areas are now in a ‘mega-drought’…the worst one in over 1200 years. Very sad news for our forest.

Three updates on the 2022 Olympics:

1.   The 15-year-old ROC skater who tested positive for a banned substance has been allowed to participate in upcoming events. If she is a medal winner, the medals will not be given out until the investigation ends long after the Olympics. A reminder, a US runner was banned for having marijuana in her system before her completion. The USOC made that determination, just like the ROC made its determination. Now there is a call that there be more consistency in banning an athlete.

2.     This morning’s medal count: Norway—21, ROC—18, US—16.

3.     Erin Johnson, USA, is the first black woman to win medal in speedskating.   

Favorite Memes

 

A bit of Humor

What did the magician say to the fisherman?

Go on-pick a cod

Trivia

Q: Which painter reputedly cut off his own ear?

 

Q: The History of Middle-earth' was written by which author?

 

Q: What is Symptomatology the study of?

 

Q: Which science deals with the motion of projectiles?

 

 

 

 

ANSWERS:

Answer 1: Van Gogh

Answer 2: J. R. R. Tolkien

Answer 3: symptoms

Answer 4: Ballistics

 

Historical Events

W                 1883 – Ladies Home Journal magazine began publication.

W                 1923 – In Thebes, Egypt, English archaeologist Howard Carter entered the sealed burial chamber of the ancient Egyptian ruler King Tutankhamen. He had been looking for King Tut’s tomb since his first trip to Egypt in 1891. The outer chambers were discovered in November 1922.

W                 1959 – Fidel Castro became the Premier of Cuba after dictator Fulgencio Batista was overthrown (on January 1).

W                 1983 – The Ash Wednesday brushfires in Southern Australia took the lives of 71 people, becoming Australia’s worst fire ever.

W                 2005 – The Kyoto Protocol came into force.

W                 2005 – The National Hockey League canceled the entire 2004-2005 regular season and playoffs.

W                 2006 – The last Mobile army surgical hospital (MASH) was decommissioned by the United States Army.

Birthdays Today

@73 – Hugh Beaumont, American actor (d. 1982; heart attack)

71 – William Katt, American actor

@67 – Robert Joseph Flaherty, American ‘Father of the Documentary Film’ (d. 1951)

65 – Levardis Robert Martyn ‘LeVar’ Burton, German-born American actor, director, producer

64 – Ice-T (Tracy Lauren Marrow), American rapper and actor

@62 – Salvatore Phillip "Sonny" Bono, American actor, singer, politician (d. 1998; skiing)

@42 – Margaux Hemingway, American model and actress (d. 1996; OD)

40 – Lupe Fiasco, American rapper

32 – The Weeknd [Abel Makkonen Tesfaye], Ethiopian R&B singer