Friday Dec 3

This is Week 48 of 2010►Day 337 with 28 days remaining
23 Days until Christmas
Flagstaff Weather:
TODAY’S QUOTE—Eleanor Roosevelt
Do what you feel in your heart to be right, for you'll be criticized anyway. You'll be damned if you do and damned if you don't.

FREE RAMBLING THOUGHTS
I got a call from my brother today, the Advent calendar arrived. I am happy that each small piece of chocolate is embossed with something Christmas-y and it looks like each one will be different. He said he had just thought about getting one last week, probably about the same time I got them. There are no coincidences and brothers—biological or adopted—have a special bond. He mentioned that his Thanksgiving felt very strange, sitting on a deck, with palm trees all around and a full feast on the deck. I reminded him that those south of the equator celebrate Christmas in the middle of the summer. That too must be very strange. I listen to old-er people saying they move because they are just tired of the snow and the cold. I certainly hope I never reach that conclusion. While my mom was in the Care Facility, there were many people who still loved the beauty of a white Christmas. It was understood that they didn’t want to be out in the cold, but really liked looking out the huge picture windows throughout the building and seeing a winter Christmas scene.

I really hate to carry around all those store discount cards. Many times I forget to get it out or forget I even have one. Today my problem was solved. There’s an app for that. My Blackberry can pull up the barcode so that all I have to do is swipe my phone and it’s done. I always have my phone with me, since I also use it to make my shopping lists. It is amazing that just a few years ago a phone was for making phone calls. Now it does so much more. I was using my new app at Safeway today, and the lady behind me saw it and wanted it. While we were standing in line, she downloaded it and was ready to save, save, save. I have friends who have three to ten of those tiny cards on their key ring. I tried that but the keys were too heavy and probably didn’t do the ignition on my ride any good. For those wanting the app, you need a smartphone. Go to your app store and find CardStar. It’s free and sure is convenient.

The House, still run by Democrats, showed the world that Ethics still means Ethics in their house of government. An 80 year old Democrat with 40 years in the House had to stand before his peers and be censured. It is very humiliating and something like only 25 others have been censured in the history of our country. I sure hope that people realize this is a big deal and that it was done, in part to show that our government works—slowly for sure, but eventually. Certainly this is a baby step in moving our government forward, but 2 years ago Nancy said her congress would come down hard on ethic violations. Now we know they will.

That budget report that came out last week on how to get our country out of debt has some big plans. They too suggest a freeze on civilian employee salaries. They also suggested a 10% cut in retirement payments and having the retirees pay 10-20% more of their share of health benefits. They also want the retirement age to get Social Security to be 70. Of course the Social Security thing won’t start until the current 20 year olds reach 70. The change for Federal Employees would start as soon as a bill is passed. Federal retirees are a small number of Americans so this will be hard to alter. Way too many think that we were underworked, overpaid, and don’t deserve what we get. Many Federal workers groups have already started a campaign to stop this rather unfair change. As I have said before, I am willing to pay my fair share to help out the country in this troubled time, but I don’t want to have to pay more than my fair share. If all American retirees had to take a 10% cut in their benefits or suddenly had to pay 10-20% more in their share of health benefits, then I say go for it. It would not be easy, but everyone would be treated fairly. Just like the GM worker, I didn’t have a lot to say about how money was allocated while I worked. As a retiree I only have my vote. I’m concerned that the new congress will see these retiree cuts as a way to show the American public that they are cutting government waste. Time and time alone will see how this all develops.

HOLY MACKEREL: 1557 1st Covenant of Scottish Protestants form

∞ JEOPARDY PUZZLE(SuperJeopardy Answers) from 1990 MYTHOLOGICAL WOMEN
►Slain by Achilles, Penthesilea was queen of these warrior women
►These terrible goddesses of punishment had eyes that wept tears of blood
►Phaedra who fell in love with her stepson Hippolytus, was the daughter of this king of Crete
►This 6-headed sea monster that ate sailors lived in a cave opposite the whirlpool Charybdis
►Zeus arranged for her to spend part of the year with her mother, Demeter, the rest with her husband, Hades

SOMEWHAT USELESS INFORMATION—
According to the U.S. Department of Agriculture, more than 45 million turkeys are cooked and eaten in the U.S. at Thanksgiving—that's one sixth of all turkeys sold in the U.S. each year.
***
The cranberry got its name because the pale pink blossoms on the plant resembled a crane’s head and neck. The name craneberry stuck, eventually becoming cranberry.
***
The average age of the Mayflower passenger was 32. The oldest Mayflower passenger was 64.

UNUSUAL NEWS ITEM
BROOKFIELD, WI — Two Wisconsin couch potatoes hope to wedge their way onto the Snuggie's sofa with an adult onesie.
Tyler Galganski and Dave Hibler are selling fleece, footless onesies with hoods called the "Forever Lazy" out of Hibler's parents' basement.
The 26-year-old Galganski and 25-year-old Hibler have released a long-form commercial that echoes the Snuggie ads, including cheering fans wearing the item as an alternative to a blanket.
Anne Flynn, who works for the company that produces the Snuggie, said there's room on their couch but they are still five or 10 steps ahead of competitors.
Hibler and Galganski say they have sold more than 10,000 of the pajamas in about a year and a half. The Snuggie maker says it has sold more than 20 million over the last two years.

A LITTLE LAUGH
Although I had arrived 20 minutes early for my one o'clock doctor's appointment, I watched patient after patient disappear into the various rooms. Now, I know things happen, and that more serious issues are typically dealt with first, so I was able to accept that those coming in after me were seen first, But when I was still sitting in the waiting room 1 1/2 hours later, I'd had enough and had become pretty irate.
Fortunately, as I got up and went to the receptionist, I calmed down enough to handle it without anger.
Instead I calmly said, "I know my son's appointment was for one o'clock. Can you tell me if that was a.m. or p.m.?"

FOUND ON ‘YOU TUBE’
8 Days of Hanukkah Interesting ? !

∞ UP CLOSE PICTURE
This is a close up of what object?

CALENDAR INFORMATION
♦ Weekly Observances ♦
1-7: Cookie Cutter Week ¤ Tolerance Week ¤ Recipe Greetings For The Holidays Week
1-9: Chanukah (Hanukkah)
♦ Today’s Observances ♦
Heart Transplant Day (1967)
UN International Day of the Basque language
UN International Day of the Disabled Person
National Roof-Over-Your-Head Day
India: Advocate's Day (to honor Rajendra Prasad, a Lawyer & India’s 1st President)
US: Illinois : Admission Day (1818—21st state)
♫ One Hit Wonders—1967-68 ♫
Click on Song Title to see and hear the original
♦Today’s Births♦
ARTS
1857 Joseph Conrad Poland, novelist (Lord Jim, Heart of Darkness)
Ferlin Husky, 83, singer Great Song
Jaye P. Morgan, 78, singer That’s All I Want From You
1897 Kate O'Brien Irish writer (Without My Cloak)
Ozzy Osbourne, 62, singer, songwriter (first lead singer for Black Sabbath): Reality Show star
Andy Williams, 80, singer Moon River
1755 Gilbert Stuart US, portrait painter (painted Washington)
***
Brendan Fraser, 42, actor (Mummy, The Quiet American)
Daryl Hannah, 49, actress (Splash, Grumpy Old Men)
Julianne Moore, 49, actress (Children of Men, The Hours, Far from Heaven)
ATHLETICS
Bucky Lasek, 38, skateboarder
Rick Ravon Mears, 59, former auto racer
Katarina Witt, 45, Olympic figure skater
BUSINESS & EDUCATION
1753 Samuel Crompton English inventor (mule-jenny spinning machine)
1795 Sir Rowland Hill introduced 1st adhesive postage stamp (1840)
POLITICS
1887 Naruhiko, Prince Higashikuni of Japan
1884 Rajendra Prasad, first President of India
1963 Terri Schiavo, American right to die figure
SCIENCE & RELIGION
1838 Cleveland Abbe, meteorologist: first U.S. Weather Bureau meteorologist
1924 John Backus inventor (FORTRAN computer language)
1888 Yitzhak HaLevi Herzog, Polish-born Chief Rabbi of Ireland and of Israel
1483 Nicolaus von Amsdorf German reformation theologist
♦Today’s Obituaries♦
John Carroll (priest), first Roman Catholic archbishop in the U.S. @ 80 in 1815
Madeline Kahn, American actress, ovarian cancer @ 57 in 1999
Pierre-Auguste Renoir, French impressionist painter, heart attack @ 78 in 1919
Robert Louis Stevenson, Scottish writer, cerebral hemorrhage @ 44 in 1894
St Francis Xavier, Jesuit missionary to the East, fever @ 46 in 1552
♦Today’s Events♦
ARTS
1947 Tennessee Williams play "A Streetcar Named Desire" premieres in New York NY
1950 Paul Harvey begins his national radio broadcast
ATHLETICS
1938 AAU's decides to continue linear measuring system over metric
1956 Wilt Chamberlain's 1st collegiate basketball game (scores 52)
BUSINESS & EDUCATION
1586 Sir Thomas Herriot introduces potatoes to England, from Colombia
1931 Alka Seltzer goes on sale
INDIGENOUS PEOPLE
1598 Zaldivar "discovers" ACOMA.
1837 Accompanied by CHEROKEE mediators, Mikanopy, and 30 other SEMINOLE leaders arrive at Fort Mellon, near St.Augustine, Florida, today, under a flag of truce, to discuss peace. The CHEROKEE mediators were there with the approval of the Secretary of War. General Thomas Jesup, much to the shame of the CHEROKEEs, takes the SEMINOLEs hostage. Jesup hopes to force the SEMINOLEs to surrender by holding their leaders as prisoners.
POLITICS (US)
1639 1st annulment by court decree passes
1775 1st official US flag raising (aboard naval vessel Alfred)
POLITICS (International)
1694 English parliamentary election set for every 3 years
SCIENCE & RELIGION
1621 Galileo perfects the telescope
1834 1st US dental society organized (New York)
1967 1st human heart transplant performed (Dr Christiaan Barnard, South Africa)
1984 2,000 die from Union Carbide poison gas emission in Bhopal, India

ANSWERS
∞ JEOPARDY
►Slain by Achilles, Penthesilea was queen of these warrior women
Who are the Amazons?
►These terrible goddesses of punishment had eyes that wept tears of blood
Who were the Furies?
►Phaedra who fell in love with her stepson Hippolytus, was the daughter of this king of Crete
Who was Minos?
►This 6-headed sea monster that ate sailors lived in a cave opposite the whirlpool Charybdis
Who was Scylla?
►Zeus arranged for her to spend part of the year with her mother, Demeter, the rest with her husband, Hades
Who was Persephone?
∞ PICTURE
An electrical outlet

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Thursday Dec 2

This is Week 48 of 2010►Day 336 with 29 days remaining

24 Days until Christmas
Flagstaff Weather:
TODAY’S QUOTE—William James
The art of being wise is the art of knowing what to overlook.

FREE RAMBLING THOUGHTS
Finally a nice day. I ran some errands this morning and it was actually nice outside. I was glad to see that as my errands required walking outside several times. Unfortunately I was not the only person who decided to hit a few stores today. Parking lots were fairly full and people seemed to be buying so that is good for the merchants. I haven’t gone shopping in Phoenix for several years and am hoping I don’t have to this year. I think it is a little too far to do a round trip in one day. I did it a lot when I was younger, but always spent the night. All the shopping malls are spread all around town and Phoenix is not known for its easy traffic routes. Driving is easy, except during rush hour.

I talked to Bob this afternoon. We are still set to go to Hadrian’s Wall sometime this spring. He is not a travel agent and has talked to a bunch of people into showing interest in the trip. I think things will change when he finally gets down to asking for money. I learned a long time ago that many people are all excited about going somewhere until they have to open their wallets. They never say they can’t afford the trip, but have some other reason. When I did trips for the Boarding School we had to get paperwork in five months before the trip. More than once I had a chaperone come in a few weeks before the trip and say they couldn’t go because that is the week that their auntie is having her toenails clipped that week and she was the only one who could take her to the appointment and care for her after the procedure. I got the close family thing and decided early that I didn’t want a chaperone on the trip who didn’t want to be there. So it became a battle with the Bureau to cancel one travel authorization—that was the easy part. Getting a new travel authorization was always the problem. The Bureau always had very strict rules and lots of questions to answer. Why did the person cancel? Why didn’t you know this any sooner? For the new person, explain, in detail, why this is being presented outside the established Bureau timeframe deadlines. What other alternatives have you tried so that you can stay within the guidelines? How will you prevent working outside the Bureau guidelines in the future? And on and on. I always played the game, got on my best ‘I am so unworthy, but it isn‘t about me, it is about the trip for the students’ face and always found someone who would help. Usually there was a payback involved. Don’t freak out, not a money payback, but a favor for them. Usually a promise that I would never do it again. I always made sure that those who helped got a card and picture from the students that thanked them for going above and beyond so they could have their trip. If I had a similar situation, I tried really hard to find another person to work with. It worked for me. Bob is not dealing with a bureaucracy and while the trip will be the more the merrier, a smaller number will work also. The last count was about 15, but we can certainly do it with 2.

I also talked to Ellie today. There is a trip to Tanzania and Kenya for the migration coming up and it will be Hamdy’s last trip. He is retiring, or so he says. He is such a worker; I doubt he will be ‘retired’ for very long. I know that he had a great business going before 9-11 and was actually turning down tours to Africa and the Middle East. The world changed for him on 9-11, He is Egyptian with dual citizenship. He lives the Muslim life as best he can in the US. He doesn’t hid the fact that his is Muslim, but I know he doesn’t try to convert people…after all, his wife is Jewish and both practice their religion. His business fell off a cliff when his American travelers were no longer interested in working with a Muslim travel agency. Many of his ‘friends’, both business and personal, suddenly didn’t trust him anymore. He, like all Americans, was horrified by the events of 9-11. No matter what he said or did, the trust was gone. A sad commentary on a portion of the American population. I suggested that part of the issue was also the American economy. He agreed that everyone in the travel business suffered when the stock market tanked. Anyway, it will be great to see the migration. I may even take the balloon ride over the herds.

HOLY MACKEREL:1927 1st Model A Fords sold, for $385 ($4715.64 in 2010)
∞ JEOPARDY PUZZLE—(SuperJeopardy Answers) from 1990 U.S. STATES
►Most say its name is Papago Indian for “little spring”, others say it's Spanish for “arid zone”
►The bald cypress, which grows in the swamps & bayous, is this state's official tree
►While Washington has no official state fish, these 2 states have chosen a salmon
►Mount Adams, Mount Jefferson & Mount Madison are in this New England state
►“The Peace Garden State”

SOMEWHAT USELESS INFORMATION—
The germs on your fingers double after using the toilet, but 50 percent of men and 25 percent of women do not wash their hands afterward.
***
Washing your hands after you go to the bathroom can reduce the spread of diarrheal diseases by almost half.

UNUSUAL NEWS ITEM
FLORENCE, AZ - A Pinal County Sheriff's deputy who was shot in the southern Arizona desert in April has been placed on paid administrative leave pending an investigation into comments he allegedly made to a Valley news reporter. His attack was national news for days.
Phoenix New Times reporter Paul Rubin interviewed Deputy Louie Puroll for an article published November 25th , which contained statements from Puroll regarding meetings he has had with known Mexican drug cartel operatives. The deputy reportedly told Rubin the operatives "have approached him four or five times over the years wanting to do business."
The article also cites comments from Puroll regarding other shooting incidents he has been involved in that would make the April 30 shootout in the desert "seem like eating lunch at the Dairy Queen."
Earlier this year, Puroll told investigators he was following a group of smugglers carrying bales of marijuana on April 30 when he was ambushed by men firing AK-47 rifles. In what Puroll described as a running gunbattle, he said he was grazed by a bullet in the back. Investigators never found any suspects, raising doubts about Puroll's account of the shooting.
In an initial New Times article published in September , Rubin cited forensic experts who claimed Puroll's story "doesn't add up," and referred to the deputy as "Pinalcchio."
According to a PCSO spokesman, in his November interview with Rubin, Puroll allegedly referenced the previous article, stating a rancher friend offered to murder the journalist over the piece.
"Now that that's off (referring to a tape recorder used by Mr. Rubin), let me tell you something. You're lucky to be alive right now," Puroll allegedly told Rubin.
The investigation into Puroll's alleged comments will be handled by the Pinal County Sheriff's Office Professional Standards Unit.
"If the statements reported in the article written by Mr. Rubin are in fact proven accurate, the conduct of Deputy Puroll is not consistent with Pinal County Sheriff's Office policies nor do I approve of the way in which he represented our sworn profession," Pinal County Sheriff Paul Babeu said.

A LITTLE LAUGH
Helping me sort clothes into "save" and "give away" piles, my six-year-old daughter came across a garter belt. "What's this?" she asked.
"It's a garter belt," I said. Seeing that meant nothing to her, I added, "It's for holding up stockings."
"Ah," she said, carefully placing it in the "save" pile, "we'll use it next Christmas Eve."

FOUND ON ‘YOU TUBE’

∞ UP CLOSE PICTURE
This is a close up of what object?
CALENDAR INFORMATION
♦ Weekly Observances ♦
1-7: Cookie Cutter Week ¤ Tolerance Week ¤ Recipe Greetings For The Holidays Week
1-9: Chanukah (Hanukkah)
♦ Today’s Observances ♦
National Fritters Day
International Day for the Abolition of Slavery Day
Special Education Day
Americas: Pan American Health Day
Cuba: Landing of Granma Expeditionaries (Castro arrives)
Laos: National Day (King Savang Vatthana abdicates 1975)
United Arab Emirates: Independence Day (1971 from UK) [UAE=Abu dhabi, Dubai, Sharjah, Ajman, Umm al-Wuwain, Ras al-Khaimah and Fujarirah]
♫ One Hit Wonders—1967 ♫
Click on Song Title to see and hear the original
♦Today’s Births♦
ARTS
T. Coraghessan Boyle, 62, author (Riven Rock, The Tortilla Curtain)
1923 Maria M Callas, soprano (Carmen, Mademoiselle Award-1953)
1869 Jonas Cohn, German/English philosopher (Theory of the Dialects)
1885 Níkos Kazantazakís, Greek writer (Zorba, Last Temptation of Christ)
1859 Georges Seurat, French painter: Sunday Afternoon on the Island of Grand Jatte
ATHLETICS
Randy Gardner, 52, former figure skater, choreographer
Brian Habib, 46, NFL guard (Denver Broncos-Superbowl 32)
Monica Seles, 37, tennis player
Britney Spears, 29, singer
***
Dan Butler, 56, actor (Bulldog on “Frasier”)
Cathy Lee Crosby, 62, actress (“That’s Incredible,” Coach)
1922 Leo V Gordon, actor (Circus Boy, Enos, Winds of War)
Julie Harris, 85, actress (stage: winner of six Tony Awards; television: three Emmys
Lucy Liu, 43, actress (Lucky Number Slevin, Charlie’s Angels, “Ally McBeal”)
1914 Ray Walston, actor (South Pacific, My Favorite Martian, Damn Yankees)
BUSINESS & EDUCATION
1777 Henry Doeff, colonialist (wrote Dutch-Japanese dictionary)
1906 Peter Carl Goldmark, developed color TV & LP records
1915 Randolph Hearst, newspaper publisher
Stone Phillips, 56, anchor (“Dateline,” “20/20” )
1863 Charles Ringling, circus entrepreneur
POLITICS
1924 Alexander Haig Jr, US Secretary of State (1981-82)/general
Harry Reid, 71, US Senator (D, Nevada)
SCIENCE & RELIGION
1678 Nicolaas S Cruquius, Dutch hydraulic engineer (drained Haarlemmermeer)
1885 George Minot, physician, worked on anemia (Nobel 1934)
♦Today’s Obituaries♦
Desi Arnaz actor (Ricky Ricardo-I Love Lucy), lung cancer @ 69 in 1986
John Brown US abolitionist, hanged @ 59 in 1859
Aaron Copland composer (Fanfare for the Common Man), @ 90 in 1990
Robert Cummings actor (Love that Bob), kidney failure at 82 in 1990
Marty Feldman comedic actor (Young Frankenstein), heart attack @ 49 in 1982
Pablo Escobar Gaviria Colombian drug baron, shot @ 44 in 1993
Roxie Roker actress (Helen Willis-Jeffersons)/mother of Lenny Kravitz, breast cancer @ 66 in 1995
Marquis de Sade writer, @ 74 in 1814
Sabu Sabu actor (Jungle Book, Drums), heart attack @ 39 in 1963
Cardinal Francis Spellman archbishop of New York, @ 78 in 1967
♦Today’s Events♦
ARTS
1887 Charles Dickens' 1st public reading in US (New York NY)
1932 "Adventures of Charlie Chan" 1st heard on NBC-Blue radio network
ATHLETICS
1916 Baseballers who are injured now get full pay for duration of contract
1981 Fernando Valenzuela (Dodgers) wins National League Rookie of the Year
BUSINESS & EDUCATION
1816 1st savings bank in US opens (Philadelphia Savings Fund Society)
1901 King Camp Gillette begins selling safety razor blades
1927 1st Model A Fords sold, for $385 ($4715.64 in 2010)
1952 1st human birth televised to public (KOA-TV Denver CO)
INDIGENOUS PEOPLE
1761 No land grants for Indian lands in British territories now be made without the Crown's approval.
POLITICS (US)
1823 President James Monroe declares his "Monroe Doctrine"
1954 US Senate censures Joe McCarthy (Senator-R-WI) for "conduct that tends to bring the Senate into dishonor and disrepute"
1970 Environmental Protection Agency begins (Director: William Ruckelshaus)
POLITICS (International)
1802 English sell Suriname to Dutch
1804 Napoleon Bonaparte crowned 1st emperor of France in Paris by Pope Pius VII
1899 US & Germany agree to divide Samoa between them
1978 Chanting "Allah is great", anti-Shah protesters poured through Tehran
1979 Crowds attack US embassy at Tripoli Libya
SCIENCE & RELIGION
1697 St Paul's Cathedral opens in London
1929 1st skull of Peking man found, 50 km out of Peking at Tsjoe Koe Tien
1942 1st controlled nuclear chain reaction (Enrico Fermi-University of Chicago)
1957 1st US full-scale atomic electric power plant-power generated, Shippingport PA
1963 1st Dutch rocket launched/reaches height of 10 km
ANSWERS
∞ JEOPARDY
►Most say its name is Papago Indian for “little spring”, others say it's Spanish for “arid zone”
What is Arizona?
►The bald cypress, which grows in the swamps & bayous, is this state's official tree
What is Louisiana?
►While Washington has no official state fish, these 2 states have chosen a salmon
What is Alaska and Oregon?
►Mount Adams, Mount Jefferson & Mount Madison are in this New England state
What is New Hampshire?
►“The Peace Garden State”
What is North Dakota?
∞ PICTURE
The top of a soda bottle

╬╦╦╦╩╩╩╬
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Wed December 01

This is Week 48 of 2010►Day 335 with 30 days remaining

25 Days until Christmas
Flagstaff Weather:
TODAY’S QUOTE—
All the really valuable things you own are things you can't photograph.

FREE RAMBLING THOUGHTS
The past few days have been very cold. This is fairly unusual for this early in the winter season. I only hope that we won’t look back on the last week of November as being warm. We are usually in the low 20’s for an average low temperature in November. I won’t be surprised it this year it is in the high teens. I know other places have been hit harder, but we just aren’t used to this many days of really cold nights.

I had lunch with Mary and Cheryl. We all had a great Thanksgiving. Cheryl had her son, daughter-in-law, and grandkids and Mary went to Phoenix where her Chicago daughter, son-in-law and grandson joined her son and his family. Mary was happy to get back to Flag as the Phoenix twins (aged 4) and the Chicago boy (2) had more than their fair share of territory issues. Cheryl is doing very well and had soup with us. She discovered another benefit; lunch is now much less expensive. We had some great conversation, a few laughs, and a good time.

Obama seems ready to piss off just about everybody with his latest announcement. He has frozen Federal salaries for two years. Except for the military. We retirees had already been warned not to expect much more than coal this year in our Christmas stocking. Now it is official. President Ronnie did the same thing when I was working. I am not against doing my fair share—either as a retiree or as a Federal worker. Of course, this freeze doesn’t freeze our health care costs for two years. So in actuality we had our salary reduced. This won’t make many headlines. It certainly won’t bring the brightest and the best to Federal service. It may let some know that our economy is still in the ditch. Federal employees, in general, make much less than their counterparts in the private sector. Now, for two years, even less than less. Whatever this announcement does in politics, it means that if will be even harder to recruit the best and brightest. I fully admit that when I joined the Federal Service I was happy to have a job. My career was successful by any measurement. I probably could have made more money if I had become a principal or a superintendent. However, I wouldn’t have been as happy. The caveat to this announcement is that the non-civilian military personnel will continue to get pay raises. There is quite a cadre of civilian military personnel throughout the world. They won’t get raises, but the soldiers will continue to get raises. Why they were singled out is beyond me. It is a voluntary military. The sell lines for joining the military include good education for easy movement to the private sector, being one of the ‘few’, helping the world citizens live in democracy, helping citizens in third world countries. I agree that no one working full time for the Federal government should have to get food stamps to survive. I know families that are separated for months and months during deployment. I know the grief of families when their son or daughter die fighting. I know quite a few who have joined the military and come back with the discipline and mind set to be successful. I just wonder why a president who campaigned to get us out of two wars hasn’t done it. I wonder why that president now believes that only our military personnel deserve to be paid more. If everyone has to continue to tighten their belts, then everyone has to do that.

HOLY MACKEREL: 1958 Our Lady of Angels School burns, killing 92 students & 3 nuns (Chicago)

∞ JEOPARDY PUZZLE—(SuperJeopardy Answers) from 1990 COOKING
►Snail butter, which can be served on other foods, is usually made with 1 or 2 cloves of this
►Traditionally, this vegetable put the “red” in red flannel hash
►This school was founded in 1895 to teach cooking to wealthy young Frenchwomen
►This Penn. dish, made with scraps of pork mixed with corn meal, is shaped into loaves & then sliced & fried
►In Mexican cooking this spicy sauce made with chilies & chocolate is often served over poultry

SOMEWHAT USELESS INFORMATION—Thanksgivng
The first American Thanksgiving was celebrated in 1621, to commemorate the harvest reaped by the Plymouth Colony after a harsh winter. In that year Governor William Bradford proclaimed a day of thanksgiving. The colonists celebrated it as a traditional English harvest feast, to which they invited the local Wampanoag Indians.
***
During the mid-1800s, poet and editor Sarah J. Hale began lobbying for a national Thanksgiving holiday. In 1863 President Abraham Lincoln gave his Thanksgiving Proclamation, declaring the last Thursday in November a day of thanksgiving.
***
At one time, the turkey and the bald eagle were each considered as the national symbol of America. Benjamin Franklin was one of those who argued passionately on behalf of the turkey. Franklin felt the turkey, although "vain and silly", was a better choice than the bald eagle, whom he felt was "a coward".

UNUSUAL NEWS ITEM
LONDON — Author Rowan Somerville won literature's little-coveted Bad Sex in Fiction Prize Monday for the use of unsettling insect imagery in his novel "The Shape of Her."
Judges of the annual literary award said they were especially impressed by a passage comparing lovemaking to "a lepidopterist mounting a tough-skinned insect."
The animal imagery continues elsewhere in the novel, a tale of desire and memory set on a Greek island. One character's fingers are described as "tender enough to hold a tiny bird."
The prize, founded in 1993 by Literary Review magazine, aims to draw attention to "the crude, tasteless, and often perfunctory use of redundant passages of sexual description in contemporary novels."
Somerville, who was born in Britain and lives in Ireland, took his victory in good humor, noting that "there is nothing more English than bad sex."
He said he was honored to be shortlisted alongside authors like Australia's Christos Tsiolkas — for "The Slap" — and American writer Jonathan Franzen, nominated for the best-selling "Freedom."
Previous winners include such literary heavyweights as Sebastian Faulks, Tom Wolfe, Norman Mailer and the late John Updike, who was awarded a lifetime achievement Bad Sex prize in 2008.
Last year's winner was "The Kindly Ones" by American author Jonathan Littell, which described a sex act as "a jolt that emptied my head like a spoon scraping the inside of a soft-boiled egg."

A LITTLE LAUGH
I'm the postmaster for a small town in Pennsylvania. One of my regular customers, Jeff, bought several sheets of newly released commemorative stamps.
Soon after he left, a woman came in carrying two crisp sheets of Harry Houdini stamps she'd found in the parking lot.
The next morning, I gave Jeff the sheets of stamps he'd lost. "You know," Jeff said to me, "I'm not at all that surprised the Houdini stamps reappeared."

FOUND ON ‘YOU TUBE’

∞ UP CLOSE PICTURE
This is a close up of what object?
CALENDAR INFORMATION
♦ December Observances ♦
December's flower is the narcissus or holly. December's birthstones are turquoise, lapis lazuli, zircon, topaz (blue), or tanzanite. In Latin, decem means "ten". December was also the tenth month in the Roman calendar until a monthless winter period was divided between January and February. December is the month with the shortest daylight hours of the year in the Northern Hemisphere and the longest daylight hours of the year in the Southern Hemisphere. In the Northern hemisphere, the beginning of the meteorological winter is 1 December.
__________________________________________________________________________________
World Aids Month►Bingo's Birthday Month►Colorectal Cancer Education and Awareness Month►Love Your Neighbor Month►National Drunk & Drugged Driving (3D) Prevention Month►National Write A Business Plan Month►National Tie Month►Operation Santa Paws►Quince and Watermelon Month►Rising Star Month►Root Vegetables and Exotic Fruits Month►Safe Toys and Gifts Month►Spiritual Literacy Month►Take a New Year's Resolution to Stop Smoking (TANYRSS)►Tomato and Winter Squash Month►Universal Human Rights Month►

♦ Weekly Observances ♦
1-7: Cookie Cutter Week ¤ Tolerance Week ¤ Recipe Greetings For The Holidays Week

1-9: Chanukah (Hanukkah)
♦ Today’s Observances ♦
National Pie Day
Eat A Red Apple Day
Bifocals at the Monitor Liberation Day
Day With(out) Art Day
Special Kids Day
World Aids Day (since 1991)
Hanukkah begins at sundown
Rosa Parks Day arrested in 1955 for not sitting in the back of the bus
Azores: Independence Day (Administrative from Portugal 1895)
Cape Verde: Restoration Day (1968)
Central African Republic: Independence Day (1958 from France)
Costa Rica: Military Abolition Day
Iceland: Independence Day (1918 from Denmark)
Liberia: Matilda Newport Day (1822 an ex-slave who helped build Liberia)
Myanmar: National Day
Portugal: Independence Day (1640 from Spain)
Portuguese Guinea: Youth Day
Romania: National Day
Thailand: Damrong Rajanubhab Day: to honor the founder of Thailand education
♫ One Hit Wonders—1966 ♫
Click on Song Title to see and hear the original
♦Today’s Births♦
ARTS
1933 Lou Rawls (Louis Allen), Grammy Award-winning singer
1634 John-Erasmus Quellinus [Quellien] Flemish painter
1886 Rex Stout mystery writer (Nero Wolf)
***
Woody Allen (Allen Stewart Konigsberg), 75, filmmaker (Oscar for Annie Hall; Manhattan, Hannah and Her Sisters), actor
1929 David Doyle, actor: Charlie’s Angels
1913 Mary Martin actress (Peter Pan) Larry Hagman's mom
Bette Midler, 65, singer, actress (Beaches, For the Boys, Down and Out in Beverly Hills)
1940 Richard Pryor, comedian, actor
1923 Dick Shawn (Richard Schulefand), comedian, actor
Treat Williams, 58, actor (“Everwood”; Hair, Smooth Talk)
ATHLETICS
1925 Cal ‘Buster’ McLish (Calvin Coolidge Julius Caesar Tuskahoma McLish), baseball: pitcher: Dodgers, Pirates, Cubs, Indians [all-star: 1959], Reds, White Sox, Phillies
Reggie Sanders, 43, baseball (Reds, Padres, Braves, Diamondbacks, Giant, Cardinals, Pirates, Royals)
Lee Buck Trevino, 71, golfer
BUSINESS & EDUCATION
1904 W A "Tony" Boyle United Mine Workers president
1912 Minoru Yamasaki architect (World Trade Center, New York)
POLITICS
1844 Alexandra Danish princess/Queen of Great Britain/Ireland
SCIENCE & RELIGION
1932 Robert T Herres  USAF/astronaut
1743 Martin H Klaproth German chemist (uranium)
♦Today’s Obituaries♦
Henry I Beauclerc, king of England (1st king that could read), food poisoning @ 67 in 1135
Aleksandr I Romanov, czar of Russia (1801-25), mysteriously @ 47 in 1825
James Arthur Baldwin, writer (Another Country), esophageal cancer @ 63 in 1987
David Ben-Gurion, founding father of Israel, @ 87 in 1973
Philip Spencer, 1st US naval officer condemned for mutiny, hanged @ 19 in 1842
♦Today’s Events♦
ARTS
1879 Gilbert and Sullivan’s operetta, H.M.S. Pinafore, opened
1982 Michael Jackson releases "Thriller"
ATHLETICS
1981 Kareem Abdul-Jabbar surpassed Oscar Robertson as pro basketball’s second all-time leading scorer (second to Wilt Chamberlain)
BUSINESS & EDUCATION
1913 1st drive-up gasoline station opens (Pittsburgh)
1913 Continuous moving assembly line introduced by Ford
1917 Boys Town founded by Father Edward Flanagan, west of Omaha NE
1921 US Post Office establishes philatelic agency
1929 Game of BINGO invented by Edwin S Lowe
1951 Golden Gate Bridge closes due to high winds
INDIGENOUS PEOPLE
1805 To renegotiate the flint River Treaty of November 3, 1804, the United States invites 6 CREEK Chiefs to Washington to meet with Secretary of War Henry Dearborn. They agree to pay the CREEKs $206,000 for their two million acres instead of $200,000. But, the payments will be made over ten years, instead of in cash. The CREEK also agree to allowing a road through their lands.
1831 Peter Pitchlynn, and 400 other CHOCTAWs, board the steamer Brandywine in Memphis today. The steamer will transport them up to the Arkansas Post on the White River.
POLITICS (US)
1824 U.S. presidential election, 1824: Since no candidate had received a majority of the total electoral college votes in the election, the United States House of Representatives is given the task of deciding the winner in accordance with the Twelfth Amendment to the United States Constitution.
1942 Gasoline rationed in US
1978 President Carter more than doubles national park system size
POLITICS (International)
1919 Lady Nancy Astor sworn-in as 1st female member of British Parliament
1943 FDR, Churchill & Stalin agree to Operation Overlord (D-Day)
1965 South Africa government says children of white fathers are white
SCIENCE & RELIGION
1909 1st Israeli kibbutz founded, Deganya Alef
1930 Ruth Nichols becomes 1st woman pilot to cross the continent
1941 US Civil Air Patrol (CAP) organizes
1959 12 nations sign a treaty for scientific peaceful use of Antarctica
1959 The 1st color photograph of Earth received from outer space
1982 Barney Clark becomes the first person to receive a permanent artificial heart.
1987 Digging begins to link England & France under the English Channel

ANSWERS
∞ JEOPARDY
Snail butter, which can be served on other foods, is usually made with 1 or 2 cloves of this
What is garlic?
Traditionally, this vegetable put the “red” in red flannel hash
What are beets?
This school was founded in 1895 to teach cooking to wealthy young Frenchwomen
What is the Le Cordon Bleu?
This Penn. dish, made with scraps of pork mixed with corn meal, is shaped into loaves & then sliced & fried
What is scrapple?
In Mexican cooking this spicy sauce made with chilies & chocolate is often served over poultry
What is mole?
∞ PICTURE
A Rutabaga
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Tues Nov 30

This is Week 48 of 2010►Day 334 with 31 days remaining

Flagstaff Weather:
TODAY’S QUOTE—
All the really valuable things you own are things you can't photograph.

FREE RAMBLING THOUGHTS
Another chilly day here in Flag. It was 11° when I got up. I did run some errands today. Over the weekend I ran across an Advent Calendar. In my youth my brother and I always had one. Back in the day, you opened each door or window of a religious Christmas scene and found a small picture of something Christmas-y. Some were more religious than others. The funny part was my mom never knew what would be behind the door or window either. I recall lots of good memories and one that wasn’t so cool for little kids—it was bible verses for each day. Not that it wasn’t nice to read Bible verses; but we wanted pictures. Well times have certainly changed in the past 50 years. The ones I found are now neither religious nor healthy. The only pictures are Santa doing something. Then, when you open each window you get a piece of candy. The packaging still calls it an Advent calendar. I bought two and mailed one to my brother and his wife today. It won’t get there until the 3rd—as I wasn’t going to pay $26 for overnight mail. Since they are now in Miami Beach, I’m sure they will enjoy the Santa in the snow scene. I also got one for myself. So beginning on the 1st I will be opening a door or window each day until Christmas, and probably eating the candy.

I did learn a little more about the WikiLeaks thing today. It turns out to be a long and complicated maze. The military arrested a Marine soon after the first leaks were announced. He is one of 600,000 Americans who had access to all these files. Since 9-11 there has been a greater sharing of information within the Intelligence community. This was to help the various agencies work from the same information. It occurred when the Dept. of Homeland Security was established, placing many different agencies under one head. This 22 year old Marine had access and wanted the American citizens to see what was really going on within the Intelligence community. This kid had moved up one whole rank since joining the Marines. He used a flash drive to do this, while lip-synching to Lady Gaga, in case cameras were watching him. He was being paid a whopping $1642/month for his service. I am certainly not happy that these classified documents have been made public. I also get that sometimes, while working for the government, one reads things that are embarrassing to an official, to an agency, to a bureau. I get that he was trying to do a good thing—remember Daniel Ellsberg and his release of information about Viet Nam. In the current techno age, it is much easier to release information. The WikiLeaks founder, Julian Assange, is a 38 year old Australian who wants to open up governments. He has released documents from many governments and we are just hearing about it because now he is releasing our secrets. He has to live ‘on the run’ since he started releasing many documents back in the early 1990’s. I get his goal. The world would be a better place if governments didn’t keep secrets. The argument is that other governments won’t play fair. We will probably never know, because everyone has bought into that argument. The more I read about the goals, the less angry I am. Maybe his leaks will change some of the government to government dealings in our world. That would be a good thing. Only time will tell if these leaks bring about change.

HOLY MACKEREL: 1988 Soviets stop jamming Radio Liberty; 1st time in 38 years

∞ JEOPARDY PUZZLE—(SuperJeopardy Answers) from 1990 LITERATURE
He spent 5 years as a slave in north Africa before he began work on the first modern Spanish novel
Dublin Theatre formed from the Irish Literary Theatre founded by W.B. Yeats & Lady Gregory
Milan Kundera, a Czech, lived in France when he published “The Unbearable Lightness of” this
In some versions of the story, he was unable to look at the Holy Grail after his adulterous affair
The 3 sections that comprise Dante's “Divine Comedy”

SOMEWHAT USELESS INFORMATION—
The Macy’s parade was first televised in New York in 1945, and that same year the Macy's parade began using the route that is still followed today.
***
Floats must travel through the Lincoln Tunnel to get to Manhattan for the parade. A 24 foot wide, 40 foot high float has to fold up to an 8 foot wide and 12 1/2 food high float in order to get through.
***
There was a helium shortage in 1958 that forced the balloons to be filled with air and hung from cranes instead of the traditional floating and bobbing.

UNUSUAL NEWS ITEM
EVANS CITY, PA. — Emergency crews in Butler County were called to rescue the driver of a pickup truck that ended up stuck 30 feet off the ground in a tree.
Channel 4 Action News' Amber Nicotra reported police said Erin Dawn Bowser, 33, was driving westbound on Route 68 in Evans City.
Police said Bowser hit a car, a guardrail and a pole before bouncing over the rail and becoming stuck in a tree over Connoquenessing Creek.
"She was completely alert and as calm as can be for her situation. She was fine, she was talking clearly. She did an excellent job of not panicking when we were going off the ground," said rescue worker Ken Wagner.
Rescue crews used ropes and ladders to reach Bowser, who removed from the vehicle in a rescue basket and taken to Butler Hospital with minor injuries.
The rescue effort closed Route 68 for several hours Monday morning. The road reopened to traffic around 11:30 a.m.
Nicotra reported that Bowser, is facing several citations in connection with the wreck, including driving too fast for road conditions. Nicotra reported that police said Bowser told them the road was icy.

A LITTLE LAUGH
I was nervous the night my husband and I brought our three young sons to An upscale restaurant for the first time. My husband ordered a bottle Of wine with the meal. When the waitress brought it, our children became quiet as she began the ritual uncorking.
She poured a small Amount for me to taste, and then our six-year-old piped up, "Mom usually drinks a lot more than that!"

FOUND ON ‘YOU TUBE’

∞ UP CLOSE PICTURE
This is a close up of what object?
CALENDAR INFORMATION
♦ Weekly Observances ♦
--
♦ Today’s Observances ♦
Stay At Home Because You're Well Day
Cities for Life Day: Since 1786 to end the death penalty in countries
Computer Security Day
National Meth Awareness Day
Saint Andrew's Day: Patron Saint of Scotland: born: Latha Naomh Anndra
Barbados : Independence Day (1966 from UK)
Benin : National Day
Iran : Qadir Khom Festival: Muslim Holiday
Philippines : Andres Bonifacio Day/Heroes' Day (1863) [leader of 1896 revolt against Spain
Scotland: National Day
Yemen PDR : Independence Day (1967)
♫ One Hit Wonders—1965 ♫
Click on Song Title to see and hear the original
♦Today’s Births♦
ARTS
Richard Wagstaff Dick Clark, 81, longtime host of “American Bandstand,” entertainer, producer
1835 Samuel Clemens [Mark Twain], author (Tom Sawyer, Huckleberry Finn)
Billy Idol, 55, singer, songwriter, born William Michael Albert Broad
David Mamet, 63, dramatist (American Buffalo, Glengary Glen Ross, Oleanna, Things Change)
1924 Allan Sherman parody singer/songwriter (Hello Muddah, Hello Faddah)
Noel Paul Stookey, 73, singer, songwriter (Peter, Paul and Mary)
***
1926 Richard Crenna, actor (Rambo, Summer Rental, Sand Pebbles)
Robert Guillaume, 83, actor (“Soap,” “Benson”)
1920 Virginia Mayo, actress (Out of the Blue, White Heat)
Sandra Oh, 40, actress (Under the Tuscan Sun, Sideways, “Grey’s Anatomy”), born Nepean, ON, Canada
Mandy Patinkin, 58, actor (Tony for Evita; Sunday in the Park with George, “Chicago Hope”)
Ben Stiller, 45, actor, director
Efrem Zimbalist Jr, 87, actor (77 Sunset Strip, FBI, Scruples)
ATHLETICS
Vincent Edward “Bo” Jackson, 48, former baseball player, former football player
1931 Bill Walsh, Pro Football Hall of Famer: Bengals, Chargers; football coach: Stanford, 49ers: Super Bowl XVI, XIX, XXIII
Paul Westphal, 60, NBA guard (Celtics, Suns)
BUSINESS & EDUCATION
Joan Ganz Cooney, 81, founder of the Children’s Television Workshop and creator of “Sesame Street,”
G. Gordon Liddy, 80, convicted Watergate coconspirator, radio talk show host
POLITICS
1924 Shirley Chisholm (D-Rep-NY), 1st black congresswoman/presidential candidate
1874 Sir Winston Churchill (C) British PM (1940-45, 1951-55, Nobel 1953)
1936 Abbie Hoffman, 1960s cultural revolutionary [Yippie]; one of the Chicago Eight; author: Revolution for the Hell of It, Steal this Book;
SCIENCE & RELIGION
1915 Henry Taube chemist (Nobel 1983)
♦Today’s Obituaries♦
Cleopatra, Egyptian queen, suicide @ 39 in 30BCE
Norman Cousins, editor (Saturday Review), heart failure @ 75 in 1990
Herbert B. Khaury Tiny Tim, singer with the falsetto warble and ukulele ("Tiptoe Through the Tulips" ), heart failure @ 64 in 1996
Marcello Malpighi, father of microscopic anatomy, apoplexy @ 66 in 1694
Herbert Manfred Zeppo Marx, comedic actor, cancer @ 78 in 1979
♦Today’s Events♦
ARTS
2004 Longtime Jeopardy! champion Ken Jennings of Salt Lake City, Utah finally loses, leaving him withUS$2,520,700, television's biggest game show winnings.
ATHLETICS
1948 Baseball's Negro National League disbands
1956 Archie Moore was defeated by Floyd Patterson.
BUSINESS & EDUCATION
1886 1st commercially successful AC electric power plant opens, Buffalo
1998 Exxon and Mobil sign a $73.7 billion USD agreement to merge, thus creating Exxon-Mobil, the world's largest company.
INDIGENOUS PEOPLE
1769 Gaspar de Portolá has led an expedition to explore parts of the central California coastline. While near San Jose Creek, a group of local Indians provides them with some food.
1836 The United States signs a treaty (7 stat. 527) with the Wahpaakootah, Susseton,and Upper Medawakanton tribes of Sioux Indians.
POLITICS (US)
1804 Impeachment trial of Supreme Court Justice Samuel Chase begins
POLITICS (International)
1782 Britain signs agreement recognizing US independence
1803 Spain cedes her claims to Louisiana Territory to France
1947 Day after UN decree for Israel, Jewish settlements attacked
SCIENCE & RELIGION
1954 In Sylacauga, Alabama, United States, the Hodges Meteorite crashes through a roof and hits a woman taking an afternoon nap in the only documented case of a human being hit by a rock from space.

ANSWERS
∞ JEOPARDY
He spent 5 years as a slave in North Africa before he began work on the first modern Spanish novel
Who was Cervantes?
Dublin Theatre formed from the Irish Literary Theatre founded by W.B. Yeats & Lady Gregory
What is The Abbey?
Milan Kundera, a Czech, lived in France when he published “The Unbearable Lightness of” this
What is Being?
In some versions of the story, he was unable to look at the Holy Grail after his adulterous affair
Who was Lancelot?
The 3 sections that comprise Dante's “Divine Comedy”
What are The Inferno, Il Purgatorio, Il Paradiso
∞ PICTURE
A straw hat
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Mon Nov 29

This is Week 48 of 2010►Day 333 with 32 days remaining

Flagstaff Weather:
TODAY’S QUOTE—
Experience is what you get when you do not get what you want.

FREE RAMBLING THOUGHTS

I woke up this morning to about 2” of snow and it snowed on and off all day. Guess it’s time to get ready for winter. While we were in the 20’s most of the day, the wind chill was in the low teens. We need the moisture so this is a nice way to get it. It snows, most of it melts, it snows again. Gotta love Flagstaff.

I watched a Public TV special fund raiser today…Paul Stoockey and Peter Yarrow and others. It wasn’t the same as PP&M but was very enjoyable. They are still putting out good music, just using a variety of female singers. I’m a fan of folk music so I enjoyed it.

Broncos lost today, so I’m glad I didn’t get to see it. The Cards play tomorrow.

I did a about 4 loads of laundry today, so I’m caught up for a little while. Not a lot to do with all the snow. Even the birds were staying undercover today. They stopped by a couple of times, when the wind died down, but sure didn’t stay very long. I guess I only feed the smart birds.

Today is my friend Bob’s 80th birthday. He is having a big party up in Loveland, CO. I’ll call him tomorrow when things calm down a little. I forgot to call this morning, before the festivities began. I know he had a great day.

I need to learn more about how the US got involved in private contracting for the various war efforts. Our volunteer military has been sent to foreign countries to fight against locals. Much of the training of the military and police in these countries were being trained by private contractors. The National Police force is currently about 80% illiterate and about 25% are getting high while on duty and while being trained. Recent figures show that they make more money through bribes than they do as police officers. So many times, especially in third world countries, bribes are a way of life and getting a government job is the best way to get more bribes. Watching some training videos on 60 minutes reminded me of Asian culture. So many times the polite Asians will nod ‘yes’, say ‘yes’ and agree with Westerners just to avoid conflict. Once the Westerner has moved on, the Asian will continue to do whatever they were doing. It is just part of the culture. The Afghan police being trained in the video cuts had that same smile on their faces. When will we ever learn that we can’t enter a country and change the culture in less than a generation. If we learn nothing from the last decade + of war, I hope that it is soldiers fight wars and private contractors make money and little else. We need to acknowledge that many of the private contractors are really mercenaries. These contractors are doing their work for money and nothing else. Soldiers are taught that they are fighting for OUR country. We will never win a war with mercenaries because they by definition always offer their expertise to the highest bidder. It is so frustrating that our intelligence community believes in mercenaries. Our military doesn’t.

I am not a wikileaks fan. The latest ‘leaks’ simply show that what government officials say to the press and to the people is not what they say to each other. And many times it is not what they believe. It is going to take decades to rebuild any trust with many of our ‘friends’. The release is making public many of the behind the scene players in our foreign policy. It must be very difficult for our State Department personnel to find a way out of this latest release. I’m a fan of Mark Twain and agree that “If you tell the truth, you don’t have to remember anything.” Too many diplomats don’t believe that and it looks like they are stuck with their decision now. Diplomats now know that everything they put in writing is going to be made public someday soon. The entire diplomatic process is based on various degrees of trust. Many of our government leaders talk about the difficulty of dealing with N Korea or Iran or Cuba because we can’t trust the leadership. Ooops. Now in some cases we are the ones who can’t be trusted.

HOLY MACKEREL: 1877 Thomas Edison demonstrates the hand-cranked phonograph

∞ JEOPARDY PUZZLE—(SuperJeopardy Answers) from 1990--AFRICA
These little people who inhabit the Ituri Forest in Zaire may have been its first inhabitants
In 1962 the northern half of Ruanda-Urundi became Rwanda & the southern half became this nation
Explorers from this country claimed Mauritius in 1598 & named it for Prince Maurice of Nassau
Most of the Asians in this country live in Natal, where their ancestors worked on sugar plantations
Mozambique is a leading producer of this bean-shaped nut related to poison ivy

SOMEWHAT USELESS INFORMATION—
Just under half of the notes printed by the Bureau of Engraving and Printing are $1 notes. In fiscal year 2009, the exact percentage was 42.3%.
***
Martha Washington is the only woman whose portrait has appeared on a U.S. currency note. It appeared on the face of the $1 Silver Certificate of 1886 and 1891, and the back of the $1 Silver Certificate of 1896.
***
No portraits of African Americans have appeared on paper money, but commemorative coins were issued in the 1940s bearing the images of George Washington Carver and Booker T. Washington, followed more recently by the release of a Jackie Robinson coin.

UNUSUAL NEWS ITEM
ATHENS, GA - Police in Georgia said a man attempted to steal several deodorant sticks from a pharmacy that was struck by a similar crime a week earlier. Athens-Clarke County police said the man was caught on a security camera fleeing the store Friday with nine sticks of deodorant in four varieties stuffed into his cargo pants, the Athens Banner-Herald reported Monday. Police said the incident took place exactly one week after employees stopped a woman from stealing 12 deodorant sticks from the shelves. Police were searching for the latest thief.

A LITTLE LAUGH
After I asked for a half-pound trout fillet at my supermarket's seafood counter, the clerk picked one out of a pile and set it on the scale. It weighed precisely eight ounces.
Impressed, I asked, "How did you know?"
Looking pleased with himself, he declared, "I'm psychotic."

FOUND ON ‘YOU TUBE’

∞ UP CLOSE PICTURE
This is a close up of what object?
CALENDAR INFORMATION
♦ Weekly Observances ♦
--
♦ Today’s Observances ♦
Square Dance Day
Cyber Monday
Electronic Greetings Day
Albania: Liberation Day (1944 from Nazi)
Liberia: President William Tubman's Birthday: Father of Modern Liberia
UN: International Day of Solidarity With The Palestinian People
♫ One Hit Wonders—1960’s ♫
Click on Song Title to see and hear the original
1964 Have I The Right? The Honeycombs (note the female drummer)
♦Today’s Births♦
ARTS
1832 Louisa May Alcott, author (Little Women)
1918 Madeleine L’Engle, author: A Wrinkle in Time
1898 C.S. (Clive Staples) Lewis, Christian novelist, columnist, author: Chronicles of Narnia, Out of the Silent Planet
Chuck Mangione, 70, musician, composer (Grammy for “Bella-via”)
Dr David Reuben, 77, writer (Everything You Wanted to Know about Sex)
Garry Shandling, 61, comedian (“The Larry Sanders Show”)
1907 Merle Travis, country singer (16 Tons)
***
Don Cheadle, 46, actor (Talk to Me, Hotel Rwanda, Crash, Ocean’s Eleven)
Diane Ladd, 78, actress (Alice Doesn’t Live Here Anymore, Ramblin’ Rose), born Rose Diane Ladner
Howie Mandel, 55, actor, comedian, game show host (“Deal or No Deal”)
ATHLETICS
Don January, 81, pro golfer (1976 Vardon Trophy)
Vincent Edward (Vin) Scully, 83, sportscaster
BUSINESS & EDUCATION
1818 George Brown, Canadian publisher (Toronto Globe), PM (L) (1858)
POLITICS
Jacques Rene Chirac, 78, former President of France
Janet Napolitano, 53, US Secretary of Homeland Security, former Governor of Arizona
1811 Wendell Phillips women's suffrage/antislavery/prison reformer
SCIENCE & RELIGION
1803 Christian Doppler discovered Doppler Effect (color shift)
1849 Sir Ambrose Fleming inventor (diode)
♦Today’s Obituaries♦
Ralph Bellamy, actor, @ 87 in 1991
Cary Grant, actor, @ 82 in 1986
Rav Aaron Kotler, Orthodox Talmudic scholar @ 71 in 1962
Maria Theresa, leader of Austria (last of House of Hasburg), edema @ 63 in 1780
Giacomo Puccini, Italian composer, cancer/heart attack @ 66 in 1924
Howard Pyle (Gov-AZ, 1951-55), @ 81 in 1987
Natalie Wood, actress, drowns @ 43 in 1981
♦Today’s Events♦
ARTS
1825 Rossini’s Barber of Seville was presented in New York City. It was the first Italian opera to be presented in the United States.
ATHLETICS
1962 Major-league baseball decided to return to playing only one All-Star Game a year beginning in 1963. There had been two games each year since 1959.
BUSINESS & EDUCATION
1901 East 182nd Street in the Bronx is paved & opened
1933 1st state liquor stores authorized (Pennsylvania)
1967 US Secretary of Defense McNamara becomes President of the World Bank
INDIGENOUS PEOPLE
1691 The Abenaki sign a peace treaty with the British and agree to keep the British aware of the movements of the French in the area.
1864 Colorado militia kills 150 peaceful Cheyenne Indians
POLITICS (US)
1887 US receives rights to Pearl Harbor, on Oahu, Hawaii
POLITICS (International)
1952 President-elect Eisenhower visits Korea to assess the war
1994 The city of Seoul celebrated its 600th anniversary as the capital of Korea.
SCIENCE & RELIGION
1950 National Council of the Church of Christ in US established
1961 Mercury-Atlas 5 carries a chimp (Enos) to orbit
1964 Roman Catholic Church in US replaces Latin with English
ANSWERS
∞ JEOPARDY
These little people who inhabit the Ituri Forest in Zaire may have been its first inhabitants
Who are the Pygmy?
In 1962 the northern half of Ruanda-Urundi became Rwanda & the southern half became this nation
What is Burundi?
Explorers from this country claimed Mauritius in 1598 & named it for Prince Maurice of Nassau
What is Netherlands?
Most of the Asians in this country live in Natal, where their ancestors worked on sugar plantations
What is South Africa?
Mozambique is a leading producer of this bean-shaped nut related to poison ivy
What is the cashew?
∞ PICTURE
A compass
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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.