Wednesday Dec 8

This is Week 49 of 2010►Day 342 with 23 days remaining

17 Days until Christmas
Flagstaff Weather:

TODAY’S QUOTE—Burton Hillis
The best of all gifts around any Christmas tree: the presence of a happy family all wrapped up in each other.

FREE RAMBLING THOUGHTS

It was another nice day so I put out some outside decorations. I have a couple of entry door lighted trees and a lighted reindeer. I’m sure I’ll be putting out the icicle lights and tree lights tomorrow. I have some great Christmas music playing throughout the day. Gotta show that Christmas Spirit. I just hope they don’t get buried until May.

Mary had a very odd experience at her interview. When she arrived she was told she had to do a drug test. I get that—can’t have drug crazed meth addicts working with the infirm. They handed her the cup and pointed her to the bathroom. At the end of the interview she was told she didn’t pass the drug test. She asked why? The guy says, “I’m not a doctor, so if you want to work here you have to go to a walk in clinic within 24 hours, pay $60 and if you pass, bring in the results and we will start working on placement.” What I find odd is that while an employer has the right to require a drug test before and during employment; I don’t think that means some over-the-counter (OTC) drug test, performed and read by non-medical personnel. [When I was working we had to do random drug tests on our bus drivers. They had to take the first one at their own cost, and then each year, the government paid for the test. If the employee failed the test, they could take another test, at their cost to get a clean test. All the tests had to be done by a certified lab. The closest lab for most of the schools was Flagstaff.] Mary is not using illegal drugs of any kind. But when one hears that someone failed a drug test, it does lead to much speculation. She does take prescribed meds, like most of us. She had already listed all her meds, including OTC drugs, on her friggin’ application. Now she is in a quandary. If she doesn’t get the drug test, everyone she has told about her possible employment will wonder why she didn’t get hired. John had recommended her, and I’m sure the boss might make a slip when John asks about the interview and say the interview was good, but she didn’t pass the drug test. If Mary tells people about the less than scientific test, it looks like she is covering something. Most people I know would think that failing a drug test means they are using illegal drugs of some kind. Now I find out that employer with no medical background can refuse employment to anyone using prescribed medicine with results from an OTC kit. I really don’t think this was the intent of the law that made it acceptable for employers to require drug tests. This care giving business has certainly taken on a new light. One would think that they would want caregivers who follow their own doctor’s instructions. If not, they could have caregivers telling clients that it is OK to stop taking a certain med because it really doesn’t work that well. Very strange.

HOLY MACKEREL: 1962 Striking workers of the International Typographical Union closed nine New York City newspapers. The strike lasted 114 days, ending on April 1, 1963. A total of 5,700,000 readers were affected by the shutdown. It made people turn on radio and TV

∞ JEOPARDY PUZZLE—(SuperJeopardy Answers) from 1990 FAMOUS POLITICIANS

☼In his bid for an unprecedented 4th term, this NYC mayor was defeated in the 1989 Democratic Party

☼Ironically, the Arizona Democratic Party Organization was founded by his father & uncle

☼Tho this senate minority leader won the 1988 GOP Iowa caucauses, he lost the presidential nomination

☼This Minnesota congressman wrote the 1919 act that enforced prohibition

☼The 2 late sons of John D. Rockefeller Jr. who became governors

SOMEWHAT USELESS INFORMATION—Sharks Part 2

Each type of shark has a different shaped tooth depending on their diet. A shark may grow and use over 20,000 teeth in its lifetime! If one tooth is lost another spins forward from the rows and rows of backup teeth.

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A shark's skin is made of denticles instead of ordinary fish scales. The denticles are constructed like hard, sharp teeth and help to protect the shark from injury.

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Baby sharks are called pups. There are three ways that sharks are born: eggs are laid, eggs hatch inside the mother and then are born, or pup sharks grow inside the mother. Sharks can have from 1 to 100 babies at a time, depending on the type of shark.

UNUSUAL NEWS ITEM

Note: The Philippines is 90% Christian (with 80% of those-Roman Catholic) and 5-10% Muslim

MANILA, Philippines — Visitors to the Philippines may get smiles from airport immigration officials, but they shouldn't expect to hear "Merry Christmas."

Immigration Bureau Chief Ronaldo Ledesma says officers at passport counters are banned from offering Christmas greetings because they may be misconstrued as soliciting gifts or cash.

It is a tradition in the Philippines for children to offer Christmas wishes to solicit gifts from godparents and relatives. The practice has been hijacked by corrupt officials who sometimes use it as code for extortion requests.

Ledesma said Tuesday that a Christmas greeting, even if sincere, may sound like asking for a tip. Instead, he said officials should give a warm smile, and efficient service.

Ledesma's bureau has been criticized as a beehive of corruption, and he has promised to clean it up.

A LITTLE LAUGH

I was in my ‘wills and trusts’ course when the professor posed this question to the students: Why do people choose to have their children, rather than their siblings, inherit their estate?

After students offered various theories, one fellow raised his hand. "This may be a bit off the point," he said, "but when I was little, when my brother and sister finished playing with me, they would put me into a drawer."

FOUND ON ‘YOU TUBE’

From CNN—recalling John Lennon’s Last Day

The Last Interview with John Lennon, hours before he was assassinated.

CALENDAR INFORMATION

♦ Weekly Observances ♦

1-9: Chanukah (Hanukkah)

5-10: Clerc-Gallaudet Week

6-12: National Handwashing Awareness Week

♦ Today’s Observances ♦

Brownie Day: the food!

Take It In The Ear Day—means something about listening better ?

Bulgaria: National Students' Day

CARICOM and Cuba: CARICOM-Cuba Day, celebrate diplomatic ties between the Caribbean Community (CARICOM) (15 Caribbean nations are members with 5 associate members) and Cuba.

Guam: Lady of Camarin Day

Japan: Bodhi Day (Enlightenment of the Buddha)

Romania: Constitution Day

Spain, Panamá, Canal Zone: Mother's Day

Spain: School Reunion Day

Uruguay: Beaches Day/Family Day

Uzbekistan: Constitution Day (1992)

♫ University Fight Songs ♫

Click on Song Title to see and hear

Indiana University

Northern Illinois University

Duke University

♦Today’s Births♦

ARTS

Gregg Allman, 63, singer (The Allman Brothers band)

1832 Björnstjerne Björnson, novelist (Pa Guds Veje, Nobel-1903)

1925 Sammy Davis Jr, singer/dancer/actor (Ocean's 11, Candy Man)

James Galway, 71, flutist, born Belfast, Northern Ireland

1906 Richard Dafydd Vivian Llewellyn Lloyd, novelist (How Green Was My Valley) born in Middlesex, Wales

1943 Jim Morrison, singer (Doors)

Sinead O’Connor, 44, singer, songwriter, born Dublin, Ireland

1894 Elzie Segar cartoonist: creator of Popeye

1865 Jean Sibelius, Finish composer (Valse Triste, Finlandia)

1894 James (Grover) Thurber, humorist (Men, Women & Dogs, Secret Life of Walter Mitty)

1933 [Clerow] Flip Wilson Jr, comedian (Flip Wilson Show)

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Kim Basinger, 57, actress (Oscar for L.A. Confidential; Batman, The Natural)

1936 David Carradine, actor (Kung Fu, Mean Streets)

1911 Lee J Cobb, actor (Virginian, 12 Angry Men, On the Waterfront)

Teri Hatcher, 46, actress (“Desperate Housewives,” “Lois & Clark”)

1937 James MacArthur actor: Hawaii Five-O: Dano of “Book ’em, Dano”

Maximilian Schell, 80, actor (Deep Impact, Topkapi, Judgment at Nuremberg)

ATHLETICS

Dwight Howard, 25, Basketball (Magic)

BUSINESS & EDUCATION

Ann Coulter, 49, political commentator, author

1861 William Crapo Durant founded General Motors

POLITICS

1626 Christina queen of Swedenden who abdicated after becoming Catholic

SCIENCE & RELIGION

1508 Gemma Frisius [Jemme Reinersz] Frisian geographer/astronomer

1765 Eli Whitney inventor (Cotton Gin)

♦Today’s Obituaries♦

Bob Bell clown (WGN's 1st Bozo), @ 75 in 1997

Robert H Lawrence USAF/astronaut, flight training accident @ 32 in 1967

John Lennon assassinated @ 40 by Mark David Chapman in 1980

Carlotta Monti lover of WC Fields, @ 86 in 1993

Slim Pickins western actor (Blazing Saddles), after brain surgery @ 64 in 1983

Marty Robbins country singer, heart surgery complications @ 57 in 1982

Omar I 2nd kalief of Islam, murdered in 644

♦Today’s Events♦

ARTS

1813 Ludwig von Beethoven's 7th Symphony in A, premieres

1963 Frank Sinatra Jr. was kidnapped in Lake Tahoe, Nevada. He was set free three days later after his father paid a $240,000 ransom with no questions asked.

ATHLETICS

1955 Brooklyn catcher Roy Campanella wins his 3rd MVP Award

1994 Darryl Strawberry indicted on tax evasion charges

BUSINESS & EDUCATION

1931 Coaxial cable patented

1936 NAACP files suit to equalize the salaries of black & white teachers

1997 A $25 billion deal: Swiss Bank and Union Bank of Switzerland announced a plan to form a single bank with assets of well over half a trillion dollars. The combined group would be called the United Bank of Switzerland and would become the world’s biggest money manager.

INDIGENOUS PEOPLE

1780 John Sevier, and volunteers from North Carolina, soundly defeat the Chickamauga Cherokees in a fight at Boyd's creek, Tennessee.

1829 In his first "State of the Union Address," President Andrew Jackson will state his goal to remove all Indians in the southeastern part of the United States to lands west of the Mississippi. A law to that effect would pass Congress on May 28, 1830.

POLITICS (US)

1776 George Washington's retreating army crosses Delaware River from New Jersey

POLITICS (International)

1880 5,000 armed Boers gather in Paardekraal South-Africa

SCIENCE & RELIGION

1854 Pope Pius IX proclaims Immaculate Conception, makes Mary, free of Original Sin

1863 Jesuit Church of La Compana in Santiago Chile catches fire, 2,500 die in panic

1909 Bird banding society found

1966 US & USSR sign treaty to prohibit nuclear weapons in outer space

ANSWERS

∞ JEOPARDY

In his bid for an unprecedented 4th term, this NYC mayor was defeated in the 1989 Democratic Party

Who was Ed Koch?

Ironically, the Arizona Democratic Party Organization was founded by his father & uncle

Who is Barry (AUH2O) Goldwater?

Tho this senate minority leader won the 1988 GOP Iowa caucuses, he lost the presidential nomination

Who was Bob Dole?

This Minnesota congressman wrote the 1919 act that enforced prohibition

Who was Volstead?

The 2 late sons of John D. Rockefeller Jr. who became governors

Who were Nelson (NY) and Winthrop (AR)?

Tuesday Dec 7

This is Week 49 of 2010►Day 341 with 24 days remaining

18 Days until Christmas
Flagstaff Weather:

TODAY’S QUOTE—W.J. Cameron
Christmas is the gentlest, loveliest festival of the revolving year - and yet, for all that, when it speaks, its voice has strong authority.

FREE RAMBLING THOUGHTS

I got up this morning and decorated the tree. It looks nice, and as always, I found memories in the boxes I had forgotten about. This is the first year for some very unique animal decorations I got from Martha last year. There is an elephant, a hippo, and a giraffe (for my trip to South Africa). They were supposed to arrive last year, but somehow didn’t, so I got them for my birthday. They look very nice with just the right amount of whimsy on the tree. For the past four years I have put outside lights up, nothing spectacular, but lights on the bush, a couple of ‘door entry’ small trees, some candy cane path markers, and a couple of big ornaments. For the past four years I have had them buried in snow. I must say the lights on the tree and bush look great with a covering of snow, but the others lose some of their splendor. The other problem, of course, is that my entry way continues to face north. That means that some of the snow doesn’t melt until May and that some of the lights and decorations remain outside, buried until May. It seems to me that since the earth rotates around the sun and that there is a slight tilt, some scientist should be able to figure out how to have my north facing townhouse change every other year so it faces south. That way, all the residents of the complex can enjoy the joys of having snow on their sidewalk and front area stay the entire winter. If that is not possible, I can see putting our complex on a huge buried lazy susan that slowly rotates through the seasons. It could be slower than the restaurant on the Seattle Space Needle or the one on Malaysia Tower One. Each of those does one full rotation during a two hour meal. I figure one full rotation each season would suffice for my complex. That way, directionally challenged people like me wouldn’t be stuck always facing north and dealing with permasnow throughout the winter. Of course I high today almost had me putting out the lights, but then I remembered the snow and decided to wait another day to see if I am ready for the hassle. One of my neighbors did put out some outside stuff today—a neighbor who doesn’t face north.

It seems that John has convinced Mary that she needs to work for Comfort Keepers. It is a great concept. Elderly or physically challenged adults can have someone come into their home to do light chores, fix meals, converse, take them to appointments, all the way to 24/7 in home care. This lets the elder remain in their home when they can no longer do all that is necessary to do that. They also help out people for short-term care after an illness or hospital stay. They pay their workers $8/hr and I’m not sure how much they charge the clients. My brother and I checked into some of that when my mom first got sick. All I remember about the Denver people was that it wasn’t cheap. None of the family was very excited about having a stranger come into my mom’s home and we were fortunate enough not to have to use a service. The guy who called me for a reference seems like a very nice, compassionate care giver/PR person. Mary is really not looking for full time employment. Neither was John, but now John is working more than 40 hrs per week. He is really enjoying it. I know it takes a certain personality to be that kind of care giver and there is also a certain personality to be on the receiving end of the care. It is great when the right mix is found. When I talked to Mary about all this, she said part of it is to help her prepare for her own mother’s passing and since her mom is 98, it will be difficult.

HOLY MACKEREL: 1941 Japan bombs Pearl Harbor Hawaii, US. 188 aircraft destroyed; 155 aircraft damaged; 2,402 military killed; 1,247 military wounded; 57 civilians killed; 35 civilians wounded

∞ JEOPARDY PUZZLE—(SuperJeopardy Answers) from 1990 ORGANIZATIONS

☼Originally, this amateur boxing organization was sponsored by the Chicago Tribune Charities

☼"Show a kid how America works" is the slogan of this young people's business organization

☼Members of SPEBSQSA usually sing in a group of this many people

☼Candy manufacturer Robert Welch founded this organization in 1958

☼This farmers’ organization is officially called the Order of Patrons of Husbandry

SOMEWHAT USELESS INFORMATION—Sharks

☼Sharks are able to feel vibrations in the water using a line of canals that go from its head to its tail. Called a "lateral line", these canals are filled with water and contain sensory cells with hairs growing out of them. These hairs move when the water vibrates and alerts the shark to potential prey.

☼In some form, sharks have been around for about 400 million years. Even before dinosaurs roamed the earth, sharks hunted through the oceans. They're such good survivors that they've had little need to evolve in the last 150 million years.

☼Sharks have the most powerful jaws on the planet. Unlike most animals' jaws, both the sharks' upper and lower jaws move. A shark bites with its lower jaw first and then its upper. It tosses its head back and forth to tear loose a piece of meat which it swallows whole.

UNUSUAL NEWS ITEM

DETROIT — A Michigan woman whose hand was broken while she was reaching for toilet paper can sue a restaurant over her injury.

The case is dividing the Michigan Supreme Court. The court's liberal majority says a jury should decide whether the dispenser created an unreasonable risk of harm at Texas Roadhouse in Taylor.

The court's three conservative justices say there should be no liability for ordinary accidents.

Sheri Schooley says it's a "bizarre story." She says the cover on the dispenser fell on her right hand, breaking it.

The 58-year-old South Rockwood woman says she can't work as an administrative assistant because she can't type. Schooley also says her bowling average dropped by 40 pins after she was forced to switch hands.

A lower court refused to dismiss the lawsuit.

A LITTLE LAUGH

On a recent trip to Washington, D.C., my brother-in-law overheard a patriotic father pointing out a well-known building to his son. "You see that triangular-shaped octagon over there? That's the Pentagon."

FOUND ON ‘YOU TUBE’

Pearl Harbor Day Attack

CALENDAR INFORMATION

♦ Weekly Observances ♦

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

1-9: Chanukah (Hanukkah)

5-10: Clerc-Gallaudet Week

6-12: National Handwashing Awareness Week

♦ Today’s Observances ♦

Muharram 1 Islamic New Year Celebration

National Cotton Candy Day

National Pearl Harbor Remembrance Day

International Civil Aviation Day

Armenia: Spitak Remembrance Day (1988 earthquake destroyed most of country’s infrastructure)

Colombia: Día de las Velitas, begins after sunset. (Day of Little Candles—to honor Immaculate Conception & Virgin Mary)

India: Armed Forces Flag Day (since 1949 to honor all branches of military)

Iran: Student Day (since 1958 to remember 3 students killed by police during demonstration against Nixon visit.

Ivory Coast: National Day (1960)

US: Delaware: Ratification Day (1787-1st state to ratify US Constitution)

♫ University Fight Songs ♫

Click on Song Title to see and hear

Florida State University

Clemson University

Michigan State University

♦Today’s Births♦

ARTS

1598 Giovanni Bernini Italy, baroque sculptor (St Teresa in Ecstasy)

1873 Willa (Sibert) Cather Pulitzer Prize-Winning author: One of Ours [1923]

1942 Harry Chapin, folk/rock singer/songwriter (Taxi, Cat's in the Craddle)

1912 Louis Prima, singer (That Old Black Magic)

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Ellen Burstyn, 78, actress (Tony for Same Time, Next Year; Oscar for Alice Doesn’t Live Here Anymore), born Edna Rae Gilhooley

1910 Rod Cameron, actor (City Detective, State Trooper)

C. Thomas Howell, 44, actor (“Two Marriages,” Soul Man, Tank)

1923 Ted Knight, actor (Mary Tyler Moore, Too Close for Comfort)

Eli Wallach, 95, actor (The Tiger Makes Out; Emmy for “The Poppy Is Also a Flower”)

ATHLETICS

Johnny Lee Bench, 63, Hall of Fame baseball player

Larry Joe Bird, 54, Hall of Fame basketball player

1908 John H Doeg tennis champion (US Open-1930)

BUSINESS & EDUCATION

Noam Chomsky, 82, linguist (founded transformational grammar)

POLITICS

1542 Mary Stuart Queen of Scots (1560-1587)

SCIENCE & RELIGION

967 Abu Sa'id ibn Aboa al-Chair Persian mystic

1823 Leopold Kronecker German mathematician (Tensor of Kronecker)

♦Today’s Obituaries♦

William Bligh British naval officer of "Bounty" fame dies in London @ 63 in 1817

Delecta "Dee" Clark US singer (Raindrops) heart attack @ 52 in 1990
George Darwin theorized Moon was pulled out of Pacific Ocean @ 67 in 1912

John Flaxman English sculptor (tombs at St Paul's Cathedral), @ 71 in 1826

Rube Goldberg US cartoonist (Mike & Ike, Pulitzer 1948), @ 87 in 1970

Edgar Graham member of Northern Ireland Assembly, shot by IRA @ 29 in 1983

♦Today’s Events♦

ARTS

1842 New York Philharmonic's 1st concert

1952 My Little Margie, starring Gale Storm and Charles Farrell, made its debut on CBS radio.

ATHLETICS

1925 Swimmer Johnny Weissmuller set a world record in the 150-yard freestyle

BUSINESS & EDUCATION

1926 Gas refrigerator patented

INDIGENOUS PEOPLE

0036 -BC Earliest known Mayan inscription, Stela 2 at Chiapa de Corzo

1804 Lewis & Clark go on a buffalo hunt with Big White (Mandan).

1831 The CHOCTAW removal process has begun. Indian Commissioners John Eaton, and John Coffee, meet with the Choctaws and the Chickasaws on Oaka Knoxabee Creek today.

POLITICS (US)

1917 US becomes 13th country to declare war on Austria during World War I

1941 1st Japanese submarine sunk by a US ship (USS Ward)

POLITICS (International)

0043 -BC- Marcus Tullius Cicero, Roman writer, gets his head & right hand chopped off by Mark Antony's soldiers

1986 President Jean-Claude Duvalier flees Haïti

SCIENCE & RELIGION

1909 Leo Baekeland, Yonkers NY, patents 1st thermosetting plastic (Bakelite)

1934 Wiley Post discovers the jet stream

1988 Earthquake in Armenia - 6.9 on the Richter scale (>100,000 killed, 5,000,000 homeless)

1995 US space probe Galileo begins orbiting Jupiter

ANSWERS

∞ JEOPARDY

Originally, this amateur boxing organization was sponsored by the Chicago Tribune Charities

What is the Golden Gloves?

"Show a kid how America works" is the slogan of this young people's business organization

What is Junior Achievement?

Members of SPEBSQSA usually sing in a group of this many people

What is Four? (…Barber Shop Quartet…)

Candy manufacturer Robert Welch founded this organization in 1958

What is the John Birch Society?

This farmers’ organization is officially called the Order of Patrons of Husbandry

What is The Grange?

Monday Dec 6

This is Week 49 of 2010►Day 340 with 25 days remaining

19 Days until Christmas
Flagstaff Weather:

TODAY’S QUOTE—Charles Dickens
I have always thought of Christmas time, when it has come round, as a good time; a kind, forgiving, charitable time; the only time I know of, in the long calendar of the year, when men and women seem by one consent to open their shut-up hearts freely, and to think of people below them as if they really were fellow passengers to the grave, and not another race of creatures bound on other journeys.

FREE RAMBLING THOUGHTS

I usually use Weatherbug.com to get my weather information. On occasion I check it against either AOL or MSN, especially when the numbers look strange. All three sites claim to get their packets of information from Pulliam Airport—our local airport that is about 6 miles from downtown. I do check my own digital weather thermometer during the day, like before I go outside or when I get back and am surprised by how warm, or cold it was. Well when I sat down tonight, Weatherbug said that our high was 76°. I checked to be sure I was still on Flag, and even hit refresh. I had been outside several times today and there ain’t no way that it ever got close to that. Both AOL and MSN had 56° so I took those—the highest my digital showed was 57°. Some computer somewhere sure posted the wrong temperature. AND some human was asleep at the wheel.

I was all set to decorate the tree this afternoon, but some friends stopped by and we watched the Broncos and the Cards lose. The Cards are such an embarrassment this year. They seem to have two good plays in a row, then five bad plays in a row. Most NFL teams can beat a team with that profile. I have to wonder who I will be following into the Super Bowl. Certainly not Denver or Phoenix—at least this year.

60 minutes did a great interview with Mark Z—the guru behind Facebook. He reminds me of my geek cousin who helped develop some of the first lasers while still in high school. He talks just like Bob did a few decades ago. I really believe that he is a good guy who really believes that social networking is here to stay and that he will be in the lead. We will see their next big change Monday morning when there will be a whole new profile page. Interesting. I think FB is a good way to keep up with people of similar interests, though I don’t add a bunch of strangers to increase my friend count. I certainly don’t expect to make face-to-face friends after they are found on FB. But then, I’m not 20-something anymore either. I also don’t give out much personal info on the site. My emails go to an account without using my name, The email I receive at that address is not important stuff and is not linked to any other email address. Anyway, the FB phenom is not going to go away anytime soon.

HOLY MACKEREL: 1956 A violent water polo match between Hungary and the USSR takes place during the 1956 Summer Olympics inMelbourne, against the backdrop of the 1956 Hungarian Revolution.

∞ JEOPARDY PUZZLE—(SuperJeopardy Answers) from 1990 BIOLOGY

↨Class of animals so named because they have an aquatic larval stage & terrestrial adult lives

↨The development of this part of the egg contributed to the evolution of life on land

↨In the lab, you put something in an autoclave to do this to it

↨In humans it separates the thoracic cavity from the abdominal cavity

↨The Savi's pygmy variety of this animal is said to be the world's smallest mammal

SOMEWHAT USELESS INFORMATION—Skee-ball Part 2

☼In 1935 the rights to Skee-Ball were purchased by the Wurlitzer Corporation, which in 1945 sold them to the Philadelphia Toboggan Company, an amusement park ride manufacturer. In 1977 the Philadelphia Toboggan Company set up Skee-Ball, Inc. to market the game, now located in Chalfont, Pennsylvania.

☼ 5 Skee-Ball went state-of-the-art in 1974 when electronic alleys were introduced to the market. Later additions such as sound effects and musical selections increase the game's popularity even further.

☼In 2005, Brewskeeball.com created the first Skee-Ball based league in New York City. On February 12-14, 2010, Brewskee-Ball hosted the first-ever Brewskee-Ball National Championship at Full Circle Bar.

UNUSUAL NEWS ITEM

GAINESVILLE, FL-- A University of Florida student said he searched his name on Google and found authorities were using his picture to represent a similarly named convict. Zachary Garcia, a student at the Gainesville school, said an online search for his name brought up his picture associated with a Polk County Sheriff's Office report of a murder convict named Zachery Garcia, who spells his first name with an "e" rather than an "a," WTSP-TV, Tampa, Fla., reported Thursday. "I was just very shocked to find my picture and the article saying that I was convicted of a felony murder charge," the student said, "and I was just very shocked and angry that someone put my name up there and said I did something I didn't do." "Everybody makes mistakes," Garcia said. "I work at Publix and I might get somebody's sub (order) wrong. But for somebody to get (the photo of a suspect) wrong ... it's not a sandwich, it's somebody's life you're playing with."

A LITTLE LAUGH

The phone rang. It was a salesman from a mortgage refinance company. "Do you have a second mortgage on your home?"

"No," I replied.

"Would you like to consolidate all your debts?"

"I really don't have any," I said.

"How about freeing up cash for home improvements?" he tried.

"I don't need any. I just recently had some done and paid cash," I parried.

There was a brief silence, and then he asked, "Are you looking for a husband?"

FOUND ON ‘YOU TUBE’

Interesting interview with Aunt Bee

CALENDAR INFORMATION

♦ Weekly Observances ♦

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

1-9: Chanukah (Hanukkah)

5-10: Clerc-Gallaudet Week

6-12: National Handwashing Awareness Week

♦ Today’s Observances ♦

National Gazpacho Day: to remind all of this Spanish summer vegetable soup, served cold

Microwave Oven Day

Mitten Tree Day

Muharram 1 (Begins at sundown - Islamic New Year)

Miner's Day: since 2009 to recognize the accomplishments of US miners

National Pawnbrokers Day

Saint Nicholas Day

Bahrain: Ruler's Ascension Day

Canada: National Day of Remembrance and Action on Violence Against Women

Finland: Independence Day (from Russia in 1917)

Spain: Constitution Day (since 1978)

♫ University Fight Songs ♫

Click on Song Title to see and hear

University of Colorado

Colorado State University

University of Northern Colorado

♦Today’s Births♦

ARTS

Dave Brubeck, 90, jazz musician

1896 Ira Gershwin, lyricist ('S Wonderful, I Got Rhythm)

1886 Joyce (Alfred) Kilmer, poet: Trees; killed in action in WWI

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1906 Agnes Moorehead, actress (Endora-Bewitched)

1924 Wally (Wallace Maynard) Cox, actor: Mr. Peepers

JoBeth Williams, 57, actress (The Ponder Heart, The Big Chill)

ATHLETICS

1913 Eleanor Holm, 100 meter backstroke swimmer (Olympics-gold-1932)

1903 ‘Poosh ’Em Up’ Tony (Anthony Michael) Lazzeri, Baseball Hall of Famer: Yankees [World Series: 1926-1928, 1932, 1936, 1937/all-star: 1933/A.L. single game record: 11 RBI’s: May 24, 1936], Cubs [World Series: 1938], Dodgers, Giants

BUSINESS & EDUCATION

1792 Abraham J van de Aa, lexicographer (Biographic Dictionary)

1822 John Eberhard, built 1st large-scale pencil factory in US

Craig Newmark, 58, founder of craigslist

POLITICS

1732 Warren Hastings, 1st Governor-General of India (1773-84)

1608 George Monck/Monk English general/Governor of Scotland

SCIENCE & RELIGION

1911 Alfred James Broomhall, Methodist missionary

1918 Harold Horace Hopkins, inventor (Endoscope)

♦Today’s Obituaries♦

Don Ameche actor (Cocoon), prostate cancer @ 85 in 1993

Frances Bavier actress (Aunt Bee-Andy Griffith Show) cancer @ 86 in 1989

Marie Jeanne Becu comtesse du Barry mistress of Louis XV, beheaded @ 50 in 1793

Joseph Black Scottish medical/chemist/physicist, @ 71 in 1799

Jean-Baptiste Siméon Chardin French still life painter, @ 80 in 1779

Eliot Daniel composer (I Love Lucy theme), @ 89 in 1997

Jefferson Davis President of Confederate States of America (1861-5), @ 81 in 1889

Leadbelly [Huddie William Ledbetter] blues singer, diabetes @ 64 in 1949

Claude [Oscar] Monet French painter (impressionist), @ 86 in 1926

Roy Orbison US Rock singer (Pretty Woman, Only the Lonely), heart attack @ 52 in 1988

Giovanni Pacini Italian composer, @ 71 in 1867

Burr Tillstrom puppeteer (Kukla Fran & Ollie), @ 68 in 1985

♦Today’s Events♦

ARTS

1732 1st play in American colonies acted by professional players, New York NY [George Farquhar's comedy The Recruiting Officer]

1994 Maltese Falcon auctioned for $398,590

ATHLETICS

1956 Aged 14, swimmer Sandra Morgan becomes the youngest Australian to win an Olympic gold medal.

BUSINESS & EDUCATION

1768 1st edition of "Encyclopedia Brittanica" published (Scotland)

1876 City of Anaheim incorporated for 2nd time

1933 Ban on James Joyce' "Ulysses" in US, lifted

INDIGENOUS PEOPLE

1830 President Jackson supports CHEROKEE removal.

1862 President Lincoln orders hanging of 39 Santee Sioux Indians

POLITICS (US)

1849 Harriet Tubman escapes from slavery in Maryland

1865 13th Amendment is ratified, abolishing slavery

1904 Theodore Roosevelt confirms Monroe-doctrine (Roosevelt Corollary)

1923 1st presidential address broadcast on radio (President Calvin Coolidge)

1973 Gerald Ford sworn-in as 1st unelected Vice-President, succeeds Spiro T Agnew

POLITICS (International)

1534 Quito, Ecuador founded by Spanish

1648 Pride's Purge: Thomas Pride prevents 96 Presbyterians from sitting in English parliament

1912 China votes for universal human rights

1921 Anglo-Irish Treaty signed; Ireland receives dominion status; partition creates Northern Ireland

1922 1st constitution of Irish Free State comes into operation

1929 Turkey introduces female suffrage

1982 Bomb attack on Londonderry, North Ireland disco, 17 killed

1988 Nelson Mandela is transferred to Victor Vester Prison, Capetown

SCIENCE & RELIGION

1825 President John Adams suggests establishment of a US observatory

1947 The Everglades National Park in Florida is dedicated by President Truman.

1967 Adrian Kantrowitz performed the first human heart transplant in the United States.

1984 Martina Navratilova’s 74-game winning streak over 11+ months came to an end.

ANSWERS

∞ JEOPARDY

Class of animals so named because they have an aquatic larval stage & terrestrial adult lives

What are amphibians?

The development of this part of the egg contributed to the evolution of life on land

What is the shell?

In the lab, you put something in an autoclave to do this to it

What is sterilize it?

In humans it separates the thoracic cavity from the abdominal cavity

What is the diaphragm?

The Savi's pygmy variety of this animal is said to be the world's smallest mammal

What is a shrew?

Sunday Dec 5

This is Week 49 of 2010►Day 339 with 26 days remaining

20 Days until Christmas
Flagstaff Weather:

TODAY’S QUOTE—Marjorie Holmes
At Christmas, all roads lead home.

FREE RAMBLING THOUGHTS

Today I broke a Family Christmas Tradition. Every year, for as long as I can remember, my mother would do all the Christmas decorations in one day. She was a lady of style and the thought of neighbors, friends, or the Fuller Brush Man arriving at our house with it only partially decorated was so strong, that we would start about 9am and finish about 3pm. My dad would be outside stringing lights and my mom, brother and I would be inside putting up the decorations and moving a few pieces of furniture so everything would work. There were always a few new decorations, bought the day after Christmas the year before. We only decorated the living room and dining room. As the years went by, there were special guest towels and a candle in the bathroom. She did the same thing when she moved to her independent living apartment. When she moved into the Care Facility, whichever son arrived first, usually me, would help her decorate her room. Today I put up the tree. I had bought a lighted tree a couple of years ago, the day after Christmas. It takes some work to make it look good. In the past I have done that and decorated the living room. This year I took more time with the lighted tree and that was all I did. The tree does look nice, even without decorations. That will come tomorrow. I still have some of our family decorations, now vintage. My brother got the 1950’s Santa head tree topper and the 1960’s angel tree topper complete with a half globe mirror ball that had a small bulb and a plastic disk that made the half-globe mirror twinkle when the bulb got warm. Every year I look for a good tree topper, but have been unsuccessful in finding one that has the simplicity and beauty of either of those family ones. I must say, it doesn’t feel like Christmas yet, but it is getting there.

A few days ago I got two DVD’s from other Focus travelers. The travelers always have a ‘picture party’ after the people have a chance to get their pictures organized. When Ellie started Focus, the picture party was exactly that, everyone brought a stack of prints, passed them around, shared some with everyone. Now, with everyone using digital cameras some people were kind enough to make DVD’s for everyone. Those who were there also copied pictures onto their flash drives. We may be an old-er group of travelers, but we stay up on technology. Wioma has been the one hold out. Up until Malaysia she carried rolls of film with her. She is the one who travels the most. While most of us take one trip a year or maybe two in a year once in a while, Wioma takes a trip every month. She goes on a trip, spends a week or so at home, and is off again. Her husband passed quite a few years ago, they had no kids, and she said she is going to enjoy herself. She has a couple of traveling friends, but none of them can keep up with her all the time. Anyway, Wioma shocked everyone when she had a digital camera on the Malaysia trip. She is now thinking about buying a computer—her first. She is quite an unusual lady. She is fun to travel with and always has some good stories. I took the time today to look thorough the pictures. While we were all on the same trip, we took a lot of different pictures. It was nice to see the trip through two other people’s eyes. I think I’m going to make a couple of new slideshows out of them, as it is much easier to watch them that way instead of downloading the pictures. It will keep me busy, but also gives me a chance to relive the trip.

I really don’t like to shop on the weekend. But I got an email loyalty coupon from World Market that gave me 25% off almost anything in their store. I headed over there, dealt with the traffic and the shoppers and picked up several Christmas gifts. It was worth the trip. They always have unique items that make nice gifts and for me, they were 25% off. When I came out of the store, our clear sky was turning ominous over Mt. Elden. I snapped a few pictures and headed home. No snow in the forecast, but it sure looked like it in the sky.

HOLY MACKEREL: 1929 1st US nudist organization (American League for Physical Culture, NY)

1955 Historic bus boycott begins in Montgomery AL by Rosa Parks

∞ JEOPARDY PUZZLE—(SuperJeopardy Answers) from 1990 FILM FACTS

►Richard Pryor co-wrote this Western with Mel Brooks; its original title was "Black Bart"

►Kevin Costner starred in this 1989 film based on the novel "Shoeless Joe"

►"Tonight Show" exec. producer who directed "Bedtime for Bonzo" & "Bonzo Goes to College"

►The first film Jimmy Stewart made after serving as a WWII bomber pilot was this holiday classic

►Elizabeth Taylor found passion on a plantation before it was pulverized by pachyderms in this 1954 film

SOMEWHAT USELESS INFORMATION—Skee Ball

☼The game of Skee-Ball was invented in 1909 by J. Dickinson Este in the city of Philadelphia. In 1914, the first Skee-Ball Alleys were sold and distributed to the outdoor amusement industry market by Maurice Piesen.

☼The game originally had a 36-foot lane which was too large for most arcades, and meant that only those who were rather strong could play the game well. In 1928, the size of the alley was reduced by more than half – to 14 feet.

☼The first national Skee-Ball tournament was held in an Atlantic City, New Jersey arcade in 1932.

UNUSUAL NEWS ITEM

LOS ANGELES - Inspectors in Los Angeles say "Operation Spiderman" ended with the arrest of a German man who allegedly mailed hundreds of live tarantulas to the United States. Sven Koppler, 37, Watchberg, Germany, was picked up shortly after arriving in Los Angeles to meet with an association, the U.S. attorney's office announced Friday. Koppler was charged with violating animal-smuggling laws and ordered to appear in federal court Friday afternoon. Prosecutors said in a written statement that Koppler allegedly twice shipped boxes packed with between 250 and 300 live spiders from Germany to Los Angeles. The discovery of one of the shipments during a routine inspection of international mail sparked the undercover operation dubbed "Operation Spiderman." Postal inspectors and agents of the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service posed as buyers and had Koppel mail them five boxes holding dozens of tarantulas. Among the spiders were several Mexican red-kneed tarantulas, a species that is protected under international law, the statement said.

A LITTLE LAUGH

While hiking in the mountains one day I came across a gorgeous gorge that I thought was an echo canyon. I shouted, "Hello there." But the response sounded to me like, "Hello where?"

I tried again. "How do you do?"

A moment later the report came back sounding like, "How do I do what?"

Baffled and amused I decided to give it the ultimate test. "You're not really an echo canyon, are you?"

The response from the big ditch confirmed my suspicions. "Brilliant deduction, Einstein."

FOUND ON ‘YOU TUBE’

Three Tenors—My Way

∞ UP CLOSE PICTURE

Will return when I find some new ones.

CALENDAR INFORMATION

♦ Weekly Observances ♦

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

1-9: Chanukah (Hanukkah)

5-10: Clerc-Gallaudet Week: to recognize two greats in educating the deaf

♦ Today’s Observances ♦

Bathtub Party Day

Day of the Ninja: Day to honor the feudal Japanese Assassins and Spies: only pop culture, especially Western Pop Culture do ninjas wear black. The historic ninjas were dressed as civilians

Austria: Krampuslauf (the evil St. Nicholas who punishes the bad children)

Belgium, Czech Republic, Slovakia, the Netherlands, Hungary, Romania and the UK: Saint Nicholas Eve (in preparation for Saint Nicholas Day)

Haiti: Discovery Day (by Westerners in 1492)

Lebanon: Arbor Day

Thailand: King's Birthday

USSR: Constitution Day (1936)

UN: International Volunteer Day for Economic and Social Development

United States: Repeal Day (end of Prohibition 1933)

♫ University Fight Songs ♫

Click on Song Title to see and hear

Northern Arizona University

Arizona State University

University of Arizona

♦Today’s Births♦

ARTS

José Carreras, 64, Spanish opera singer, one of the “Three Tenors”

Joan Didion, 76, author, journalist (The Year of Magical Thinking, The White Album)

1901 Walter Elias Disney, animator (Mickey Mouse)

Chad Mitchell, 74, singer The Marvelous Toy http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YXlNyeEbP6g

Little Richard, 75, singer, born Richard Penniman

1905 Otto Preminger, Austrian director/producer (Laura, Exodus)

1830 Christina Rossetti, London, poet (Winter Rain, Passing Away)

Calvin Trillin, 75, author (American Stories, Remembering Denny)

<>

Margaret Cho, 42, actress, comedienne

Frankie Muniz, 25, actor (“Malcolm in the Middle,” My Dog Skip)

ATHLETICS

Pablo Morales, 46, Olympic Gold Medalist: swimmer [1984, 1992]; holds men’s world record for 100 meter butterfly

1870 Bill Pickett, rodeo cowboy: first to bulldog - wrestle a running steer to the ground

Jim Plunkett, 63, football: (Raiders quarterback: Super Bowl: XV, XVIII; Heisman Trophy winner: Stanford [1970]; Patriots Rookie of the Year [1971], 49ers)

BUSINESS & EDUCATION

1894 Phillip K. Wrigley, corporate executive: Wrigley Gum

POLITICS

1839 George Armstrong Custer, Major General (Union volunteers, of Little Big Horn fame)

1902 [Steve James] Strom Thurmond, Senator-SC

1782 Martin Van Buren, 8th President (1837-41)

SCIENCE & RELIGION

1901 Werner Heisenberg, German physicist/discovered uncertainty (Nobel 1932)

♦Today’s Obituaries♦

Alexandre Dumas, writer (The Three Musketeers, The Count of Monte Cristo), @ 68 in 1870

Joseph Jefferson "Shoeless Joe" Jackson, of baseball's black sox scandal, heart attack @ 64 in 1951

Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart, composer, dies in Vienna, rheumatic fever @ 35 in 1791

Phillis Wheatley, 1st important black poet in America, in childbirth @29 in 1784

♦Today’s Events♦

ARTS

1854 Aaron Allen of Boston patents folding theater chair

1974 "Monty Python's Flying Circus" final episode airs on BBC

ATHLETICS

1908 1st football uniform numerals used (University of Pittsburgh)

BUSINESS & EDUCATION

1766 London auctioneers Christie's hold their 1st sale

1776 Phi Beta Kappa, 1st American scholastic fraternity (William & Mary College), is founded

1848 President Polk triggers Gold Rush of '49, confirms California gold discovery

1868 1st American bicycle college opens (New York)

1879 1st automatic telephone switching system patented

1893 1st electric car (built in Toronto) could go 15 miles between charges

1955 American Federation of Labor and the Congress of Industrial Organizations merged

INDIGENOUS PEOPLE

1835 Members of the Georgia Guard will arrest CHEROKEE Principal Chief John Ross at his home. Also arrested in historian John Howard Payne. Payne, the author of the song "Home, Sweet Home", was writing a history of the CHEROKEE people. They are be arrested so they will not be able to attend the "New Echota Treaty" conference.

POLITICS (US)

1831 Former President John Quincy Adams takes his seat as member of House of Representatives

POLITICS (International)

1952 London smog of 1952 - worst smog in London ever, 4,000+ die

1979 Ireland premier Jack Lynch resigns

SCIENCE & RELIGION

1456 Earthquake strikes Naples; about 35,000 die

1932 German physicist Albert Einstein granted a visa

1876 First practical pipe wrench, the fabulous Stillson wrench was patented by D.C. Stillson

ANSWERS

∞ JEOPARDY

Richard Pryor co-wrote this Western with Mel Brooks; its original title was "Black Bart"

What is ‘Blazing Saddles’?

Kevin Costner starred in this 1989 film based on the novel "Shoeless Joe"

What was ‘Field of Dreams’?

"Tonight Show" exec. producer who directed "Bedtime for Bonzo" & "Bonzo Goes to College"

Who was (Freddy) De Cordova?

The first film Jimmy Stewart made after serving as a WWII bomber pilot was this holiday classic

What was ‘It’s a Wonderful Life’?

Elizabeth Taylor found passion on a plantation before it was pulverized by pachyderms in this 1954 film

What was ‘Elephant Walk’?



Saturday Dec 4

This is Week 48 of 2010►Day 338 with 27 days remaining
21 Days until Christmas
Flagstaff Weather:

TODAY’S QUOTE—Thomas Bailey Aldrich
To keep the heart unwrinkled, to be hopeful, kindly, cheerful, reverent--that is to triumph over old age.

FREE RAMBLING THOUGHTS

We had a great weather day here in Flag. I spent some time outside walking and that was nice, since I haven’t done that for several days because of the cold weather.

I am so glad that I haven’t had to trudge through the Medicare hassles, yet. Just like the Open Season in the government plans, this is Open Season for Medicare. A friend stopped by with a stack of proposals for Part something or other. I guess I better start trying to learn a little more. I was basically no help to her. One hassle is that I have never really studied Health Insurance policy. When I was in college I signed up for BCBS as a students on campus. When I got my first job after college, I just kept BCBS. It has been good to me. Much better in the past when I didn’t visit a lot of physicians. Still good while I visit an array of doctors. I still consider health insurance as a backup in case I get sick. Something to help me pay the bills. Well, now that I have to see more than my primary care physician, a dentist and an ophthalmologist once or twice a year, I need to start figuring out how this whole system works. My government program changes in a few years when I become eligible for Medicare. I can keep BCBS as my secondary and at a much lower cost. Guessing what will happen to one’s health in the future is a daunting task. One seems to be guessing how to pay the least amount of money for the most coverage of what health issues are expected to have in the next year. Had I known that I would need two crowns in one year, I could have gotten dental insurance and probably saved a bunch of bucks. Since I didn’t know what year this would be, I could have paid several years of insurance and not needed it. If I got the dental insurance, had no problems, and therefore dropped it, I would have paid for useless insurance and then the high cost of the crowns. It will be a journey I am not looking forward to.

If you really want something you have to fight for it. I heard that as I was growing up. Fight did not mean physical brawling, it meant something like working hard. As Americans we take our freedoms pretty seriously. We work hard to keep them. Sometimes we leave our borders to help others work for those freedoms. We have been in Afghanistan for a decade, with the stated goal of giving the people a democracy. Today, one of the top Afghan military leaders said that he wants his country to have a democracy, but believes it will take time—at least another decade—to get there. It doesn’t sound to me like many of the Afghans want to have a democracy and many are not willing to work for it. Sadly, many third world countries have fallen into a cycle of poverty, corruption, and the ‘poor me’ syndrome. Without a leadership that believes in democracy and a voice of the people that believe in democracy, it will never happen. Democracy by definition can’t be forced on people who don’t want it. As the world power for democracy, we did not learn the lesson of previous nation’s troops in Afghanistan. We somehow decided that we could do it where others failed. I don’t have a lot of faith that this will change by 2012—our current pull out date or by 2022, the new date from the Afghanistan military leader. Another saying I grew up with was: When you find yourself in a hole, stop digging. Also: There is a point when you have to stop throwing good money after bad.

HOLY MACKEREL: 1843 Manila paper (made from sails, canvas & rope) patented, Massachusetts 

∞ JEOPARDY PUZZLE—(SuperJeopardy Answers) from 1990 THE QUEEN'S ENGLISH

►A telephone in use isn't busy, it's this

►When an English mummy wants an English daddy to change baby's diaper, she asks him to change this

►A leg break bowler may deliver a flipper in this sport

►A doctor's office, whether or not operations are performed there

►If you bridged the Atlantic & wanted to borrow a wrench, ask for one of these

SOMEWHAT USELESS INFORMATION—

The largest bill ever printed was the $100,000 bill; it was actually a Gold Certificate issued in 1934. These notes were used for transactions between Federal Reserve banks and were not circulated among the general public. President Woodrow Wilson was depicted on the bill.

***

The so-called "all-seeing eye" that sits atop the pyramid on dollar bills was included as a reflection of divine providence. This was not the only option that was considered to fulfill that desired theme. A depiction of the Children of Israel in the Wilderness was also discussed as a possibility.

***

Our so-called "paper currency" is actually not paper, but is made of cotton/linen material. It consists of a 75% cotton/25% linen blend with silk fibers running through it.

UNUSUAL NEWS ITEM

LONDON — As Arctic blizzards swept across southeast England, stranding hundreds in their cars and bringing motorways to a virtual halt in whiteout conditions, Kent police received a strange call on their emergency number.

"I haven't been out to check on him for five hours but I went outside for a fag (cigarette) and he's gone," said the female caller.

When the operator asked who had gone she replied: "My snowman. I thought that with it being icy and there not being anybody about he'd be safe.

"It ain't a nice road, but you don't expect anybody to nick your snowman," she added.

Police were most definitely not amused.

"This call could have cost someone's life if there was a genuine emergency and they couldn't get through. It was completely irresponsible,' said Chief Inspector Simon Black.

A transcript of the call was released by the force to highlight what they said was misuse of the emergency number 999 system.

A LITTLE LAUGH

A wealthy man had a falling out with his two sons. It was serious enough that he decided to change his will.

At his lawyer's office, he threw his will on the table and said, "This needs an heircut."

FOUND ON ‘YOU TUBE’

Marcel Marceau Clip

∞ 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 ♦

Wear Brown Shoes Day

National Cookie Day

National Dice Day

Skywarn Recognition Day; Nat’l Weather Service and Ham Operators cooperation since 1999

Coats and Toys for Kids Day

India: Navy Day

Italy: Navy Day

México: Day of the Artisans

Thailand: Thai Environment Day

Tonga: Proclamation Day

♫ One Hit Wonders—1968 ♫

Click on Song Title to see and hear the original

In-A-Gadda-Da-Vida ►Iron Butterfly

Angel of the Morning ►Merrilee Rush & The Turnabouts

Fire ►The Crazy World of Arthur Brown

Naturally Stoned ►The Avant-Garde

Summertime Blues ► Blue Cheer

♦Today’s Births♦

ARTS

1835 Samuel Butler, English author (Erewhom, Way of All Flesh)

Freddy Cannon [Picariello], 71, rocker (Palisades Park)

Chris Hillman, 68, musician (the Byrds, the Desert Rose Band)

1934 Wink [Winston Conrad] Martindale, TV game show host; singer Remember this?

1944 Dennis Wilson, drummer/vocalist (Beach Boys

* * *

Max Baer, Jr, 73, actor (“The Beverly Hillbillies”), producer (Ode to Billy Joe)

Tyra Banks, 37, model, actress, talk show host

Jeff Bridges, 61, actor (The Contender, Starman, The Last Picture Show)

1934 Victor French, actor: Choices, Little House on the Prairie

Marisa Tomei, 46, actress (In the Bedroom, Oscar for My Cousin Vinny)

ATHLETICS

1930 Harvey (Edward) Kuenn, baseball: Tigers [American League Rookie of the Year: 1953/all-star: 1953-1959], Indians [all-star: 1960], Giants [World Series: 1962], Cubs, Phillies; manager: Brewers: American League Manager of the Year [1982]

BUSINESS & EDUCATION

1822 Frances Crabbe, British feminist founded Anti-Vivisection Society to end animal testing on products

1858 Chester Greenwood, inventor: ear muffs

Charles Keating, 87, district attorney (Los Angeles CA); finance fiasco

POLITICS

1912 Pappy (Gregory) Boyington, aviator: USMC: commanding officer of WWII Black Sheep Squadron

SCIENCE & RELIGION

1584 John Cotton, Puritan clergyman in Massachusetts Bay colony

1908 A D Hershey, biologist, worked with bacteriophages (Nobel 1969)

♦Today’s Obituaries♦

[Auguste-]Maurice Barrès French writer/parliament leader, heart attack @ 61 in 1923

Jakob Kaplan French head rabbi (1955-81), @ 99 in 1994

Bert Lahr [Irving Lahrheim] US comic (Wizard of Oz), cancer @ 72 in 1967

Margaret Landon US author (Anna & the King of Siam), @ 90 in 1993

Itzhak Rabin (יִצְחָק רַבִּין ) PM of Israel (1968-73), assassinated @ 73 in 1995

Shunryu Suzuki (祥岳俊隆) Zen teacher, founder of San Francisco Zen Center, @ 67 in 1971 "Our tendency is to be interested in something that is growing in the garden, not in the bare soil itself. But if you want to have a good harvest, the most important thing is to make the soil rich and cultivate it well."

Frank V Zappa music/composer (Mothers of Invention), cancer @ 52 in 1993

♦Today’s Events♦

ARTS

1955 As part of an NBC-TV special, mime artist Marcel Marceau appeared on television for the first time

1981 "Falcon Crest" premieres on CBS-TV

ATHLETICS

1947 USSR joins International Amateur Athletic Union

1977 NFL's 5,000th game, Cincinnati beats Kansas City 27-7

1997 NBA suspends Latrell Sprewell for 1 year for attacking his coach

BUSINESS & EDUCATION

1791 Britain's Observer, oldest Sunday newspaper in world, 1st published

1932 “Good evening, Mr. and Mrs. North and South America and all the ships at sea. Let’s go to press!” The Walter Winchell Show, later The Jergens Journal and still later, Kaiser-Frazer News, was first heard on the NBC Blue network.

1952 Killer fogs begin in London England, "Smog" becomes a word

INDIGENOUS PEOPLE

1598 Spanish and ACOMA forces engage in a fight.

2000 Secretary of Energy Bill Richardson signed an agreement which returns to the NORTHER UTEs approximately 85,000 acres of land in Utah. The land had been appropriated by the U.S. Congress taken from them eighty-four years ago.

POLITICS (US)

1933 FDR creates Federal Alcohol Control Administration

POLITICS (International)

1655 Middelburg Netherlands forbids building of synagogue

1745 Bonnie Prince Charles reaches Derby

1941 Nazi ordinances places Jews of Poland outside protection of courts

1991 Muslim Shiites release last US hostage Terry Anderson (held 6½ years)

SCIENCE & RELIGION

1563 Council of Trent holds last session, after 18 years

1843 Manila paper (made from sails, canvas & rope) patented, Massachusetts

1864 Romanian Jews are forbidden to practice law

1930 Vatican approves rhythm method for birth control

ANSWERS

∞ JEOPARDY

A telephone in use isn't busy, it's this

What is engaged?

When an English mummy wants an English daddy to change baby's diaper, she asks him to change this

What is a nappy? (or napkin)

A leg break bowler may deliver a flipper in this sport

What is cricket?

A doctor's office, whether or not operations are performed there

What is surgery?

If you bridged the Atlantic & wanted to borrow a wrench, ask for one of these

What is a spanner?

∞ PICTURE

A staple remover

╬╦╦╦╩╩╩╬