1 Apr

 

1 April 2023

Daily Almanac for Flagstaff
Week 13 Day 91 \ Ave. Sky Cover 5% \ Visibility 20 miles Flagstaff Today 52° \14°  Wind 3mph \ Gusts 9mph 
Air Quality: Fair \Very Low Risk of fire \ Nearest active fire 347mi \ Nearest Lightning 843mi
Apr. Averages for Flagstaff: 60° \ 27° \3 Days of moisture
Sunshine

April Fool’s DayNobody’s sure when the whole April Fools Day thing started.  April Fools’ Day has been celebrated for centuries, but the origin of this day is still shrouded in mystery. Some historians believe it dates back to 1582 when France changed from the Julia calendar to the Gregorian calendar. Those who forgot or refused to accept the new calendar system were considered “fools” and sent on “errands,” such as visiting nonexistent locations with playful imitation scrolls and other paper novelty items that declared them April Fools.

Other scholars contend that April Fools’ Day began around 536 AD when PopeGregory III designated April 1st as a day of celebration called “All Fool’s Day.” This allowed people to laugh and make jokes instead of observing religious holidays during this time.

In 1392, in Geoffrey Chaucer’s The Canterbury Tales, there was a reference to March 32, which could be APRIL 1st.

On April Fools’ Day 1957, on a BBC show called Panorama – they showed a family in Switzerland harvesting spaghetti from the family “spaghetti tree” at a SWISS HARVEST FESTIVAL, documentary style. At the time, spaghetti wasn’t really a thing in England, and people many people thought it was true. But not all hoaxes are limited to April 1st, one of the earliest documented purposeful hoaxes was in 1835, when The New York Sun Newspaper ran stories for six days about life on the moon – goats, unicorns, walking beavers, and bat-like winged humanoids. It increased sales, but they never printed a retraction.

Today’s Quote

Monthly Observations

Adopt A Ferret Month
Adopt A Horse Month (4/26 - 5/31)
Adopt A Greyhound Month Link
Atlanta Food & Wine Month
Arab American Heritage Month Link
ASPCA Month  Link  Link
Alcohol Awareness Month
Amateur Radio Month
Autism Acceptance Month  Link
Autism Awareness Month Link

Weekly Observations

3/19-4/16
National Cherry Blossom Festival 
3/22-4/20
Ramadan
3/26-4/1
Consider Christianity Week
International Phace Syndrome Awareness Week
National Cleaning Week
3/26-4/9
Passiontide
3/26-4/1
Passion Week
3/29-4/1
International Listening Association Week
3/30-4/2
Mule Days
3-31-4/2
American Crossword Puzzle Days 

Apr. 1-7
APAWS Pooper Scooper  Week
Golden Rule Week
Laugh at Work Week
Medication Safety Week
Testicular Cancer Awareness Week (aka Get A Grip Day!) 
Week of The Young Child

Daily Observations

April Fools or All Fools Day
Boomer Bonus Days
Every Day is Tag Day Link
Fun at Work Day
International Pillow Fight Day
International Tatting Day Link
Library Snap Shot Day
Myles Day
National Fun Day
National Hand Made Day  Link 
National Love Our Children Day
National Play Outside Day Link
Poetry & The Creative Mind Day
Reading is Funny Day
Sorry Charlie Day
Sourdough Bread Day
St. Stupid Day Link
Take Down Tobacco Day Link  (Formerly Kick Butts Day)
Tangible Karma Day
Time Warp Days Link
US Air force Academy Day

My Sometimes-Long-Winded Thoughts

April has arrived. Hoping for Spring weather without snow…rain would be great…

This morning I had an early blood draw for upcoming appointments. All went well. This afternoon I pick up my taxes. Hoping for a good return.

For months the news was full of ‘Will he or Won’t be indicted?’ Now everyone speculates his actions at the court. He’s been making headlines: the first impeachment, the second impeachment, the big lie, and on and on. Just let the system do what has been doing forever. I don’t need a bunch of people telling me what to expect.  

Enjoy…

 

Facts…

Richard Nixon once smuggled a suitcase full of weed through the airport for Louis Armstrong. 

More Slang origins…

Like a Cat on a Hot Tin Roof

If you’re like a cat on a hot tin roof, you’re agitated and nervous to the point of almost hysteria.

Beauty in our 50 states…

17. New York

New York State is too often defined by New York City. Too bad, 'cause the wilder reaches of the state rivals the diversity of almost any other. Consider: New York has three coasts (Lake Erie, Lake Ontario, and the Atlantic) and two distinct mountain ranges (the Catskills and the Adirondacks). It claims a slice of Lake Champlain and all of the Finger Lakes. Plus the prettier half of Niagara Falls—there's a reason the best views come when you stand on the Canadian side. Conservation is an ongoing battle in New York, but the state has done an admirable job of securing natural spaces for wildlife and wild people to enjoy. The Empire State has more publicly owned land by percentage than any state east of the Mississippi and is No. 1 in the country for percentage of land owned by the state itself. (Thanks, New York City tax base!)

Historical Events

1891 – The Wrigley (Chewing Gum) Company was founded in Chicago, Illinois.
April 1 is known as April Fools Day or All Fools’ Day in many countries.
1976 – Apple Inc. was formed by Steve Jobs, Steve Wozniak, and Ronald Wayne in Cupertino, California. 12 days later, Ronald sold his 10% share of the new company back to Jobs and Wozniak for $800.“What can I say? You make a decision based on your understanding of the circumstances, and you live with it.” – Ronald Wayne
1997 – Comet Hale-Bopp was seen passing at perihelion.

Birthdays Today

112 – Fauja Singh, Indian runner…last marathon in 2013 @101
@92 – Jane Powell, American actress, singer, dancer
@84 – Debbie Reyonlds, American actress (d. 2021)
@83 – Otto von Bismarck, German lawyer and politician, 1st Chancellor of the German Empire (d. 1898)
“Only a fool learns from his own mistakes. The wise man learns from the mistakes of others.”– Otto von Bismarck
83 – Ali MacGraw, American actress
“I’m learning how to live in the present and be grateful for what’s working rather than looking for the ‘what’s not working’ piece.”– Ali MacGraw
73 – Samuel Alito, lawyer, Associate Justice of the US Supreme Court
“The First Amendment, I think, is the jewel of our Constitution.”– Samuel Alito
62 – Susan Boyle, Scottish singer
56 – Chris Evans, English radio, television host
50 – Rachel Maddow, American journalist and author
@47 – Lon Chaney, American actor, director, and screenwriter (d. 1930, hemorrhage)
“My whole career has been devoted to keeping people from knowing me.”– Lon Chaney
42 – Bijou Phillips, American actress, model
“I can’t change the world. I have to fix me.”– Bijou Phillips
28 – Logan Paul, American Youtuber