6-16-11

Ø TODAY’s “Geez”:

1871 - Ancient Arabic Order of Nobles of Mystic Shrine [Shriners] founded, NYC

1961 - Soviet ballet dancer Rudolf Nureyev defects to West in Paris

Ø Free Rambling Thoughts…

Our hottest day so far this year. I ran some errands and it was nice outside. Not too much wind. The fireS continue in our scorched state. The investigators have ‘two persons of interest’ in the biggest fire. That was good news. They seem pretty sure it started burning over half a million acres from an unattended campfire. I read a suggestion today that one should have to have a permit to build a campfire during our dry season. Sounds like a good idea to me. As a kid, our Boy Scouts would go camping and we always had to have a permit. I remember being surprised when I got to AZ and no permit was required. With a drought that has lasted almost two decades, with an increased population wanting to be in the forest, with more and more people heading into the forest with no idea what they are doing, it is time for change. I want these forests to be around for coming generations.

Ø Trivia Quiz…(answers at the end of post)

1. Who was Thomas Jefferson and why was he important?

Refer to the passage below for questions 2 and 3:

"We hold these truths to be self-evident: That all men are created equal; that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable rights; that among these are life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness. That, to secure these rights, governments are instituted among men, deriving their just powers from the consent of the governed; that, whenever any form of government becomes destructive of these ends, it is the right of the people to alter or to abolish it, and to institute a new government. —1776

2. The quotation is from the:

A) Articles of Confederation B) Constitution C) Declaration of Independence D) Missouri Compromise

3. The primary author of the document was:

A) George Washington B) John Marshall C) Robert E. Lee D) Thomas Jefferson

4. What were the three main countries that made up the Axis powers in World War II?

A) Germany, Russia and Japan B) Italy, Japan and Russia C) Germany, Japan and Italy D) Germany, Japan and Great Britain

Ø Zoom-ed in Picture…Can you Identify what this is? (Answer at end of post)

Ø Hmmmmm…

· Percentage of all global IOP money last year that was raised in the US: 17

· Years since recordkeeping began in which the figure was lower: 0

Ø Somewhat Useless Information…

· Albert Einstein did not speak his first words until late into age three. His parents thought he was retarded.

· While he was at Cambridge University, Charles Darwin joined the "Gourmet Club," which met once a week to eat animals not often found in menus, like hawk. His zeal for weird food, however, broke down when he tried an old brown owl, which he found "indescribable."

Ø Yeah, It Really Happened…

BARNSTABLE, Mass. - Police in Massachusetts said they arrested a trio of men who robbed a Dunkin' Donuts of a bag of pastries while armed with knives and a hatchet.

Barnstable police said the men, two of whom were carrying knives while the third was armed with a hatchet, entered the Dunkin' Donuts on West Main Street in Hyannis Wednesday night and demanded an employee hand over a paper bag they apparently believed to contain money, the Cape Cod Times reported Monday. However, Sgt. Thomas Twomey said the bag, which the men did not open before leaving, contained doughnuts. Police said they identified the men from security camera footage of the incident. Nicholas Mercurio, 19, Lukas Peterson, 21, and Charles Iliffe, 20, were arrested and charged with armed robbery while masked.

Ø Guffaw…or at least smile…

Aoccdrnig to a rscheearch at Cmabrigde Uinervtisy, it deosn’t mttaer in waht oredr the ltteers in a wrod are, the olny iprmoetnt tihng is taht the frist and lsat ltteer be at the rghit pclae. The rset can be a total mses and you can sitll raed it wouthit porbelm. Tihs is bcuseae the huamn mnid deos not raed ervey lteter by istlef, but the wrod as a wlohe. Pettry amzanig huh?

Ø Searchin’ “You Tube” I found…

2010 National Hollerin' Contest Champion

Ø Daybook Information…

…Happening This Week:

10-17

· Superman Week

· Nursing Assistants Week

12-18

· National Flag Week

· Men's Health Week

14-20

· Universal Father's Week

· US Open Golf Championship

Ø TODAY IS

National Hollerin' Contest Day

Baseball: Ladies' Day

Bloomsday: a commemoration observed annually in Dublin and elsewhere to celebrate the life of Irish writer James Joyce and relive the events in his novel Ulysses, all of which took place on the same day in Dublin in 1904

Fudge Day

National Nursing Assistants Day

Recess At Work Day

South Africa: Youth Day

Ø Today’s Events:

… IN ARTS

1879 - Gilbert & Sullivan's "HMS Pinafore" debuts at Bowery Theater NYC

1937 - Marx Brothers' "A Day At The Races" opens in LA

… IN ATHLETICS

1909 - Jim Thorpe makes his pro baseball pitching debut for Rocky Mount (ECL) with 4-2 win, this will cause him to forfeit his Olympic medals

1929 - Otto E Funk, 62, ends marathon walk (NY to SF, 4165 miles in 183 days)

1968 - Lee Trevino is 1st to play all 4 rounds of golf's US open under par

… IN BUSINESS

1784 - Holland forbids orange clothes

1884 - 1st roller coaster used (Coney Island NY)

1903 - Ford Motors incorporates

1903 - Pepsi Cola company forms

1909 - 1st US airplane sold commercially, by Glenn Curtiss for $5,000

… IN EDUCATION

▬

… FOR INDIGENOUS PEOPLE

1873 - Pres Grant decrees Wallowa Valley for Nez-Perce

… IN INTERNATIONAL POLITICS

1567 - Mary, Queen of Scots, imprisoned in Lochleven Castle prison Scotland

1913 - South-African parliament forbids blacks owning land

… IN RELIGION

1880 - Salvation Army forms in London

… IN SCIENCE

1963 - Valentina Tereshkova (USSR) is 1st woman in space, aboard Vostok 6

… IN US POLITICS

1755 - British capture Fort Beauséjour [Fort Cumberland], expel Acadians

1775 - Battle of Bunker Hill (actually it is Breed's Hill)

1933 - US Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC) created

1935 - US Congress accepts FDR's "New Deal"

1941 - 1st US federally owned airport opened Wash DC

… ARTISTS: AUTHORS: COMPOSERS…

1937 - Erich Segal, author (Love Story, Oliver's Story)

…ATHLETES

▬

…ENTERTAINERS (ACTORS/SINGERS…)

1907 - Jack Albertson, actor (Thin Man, Chico & the Man)

John Cho, actor turns 39

1888 - Bobby Clark, vaudevillan (World's funniest circus clown)

1890 - Stan Laurel, [Arthur S Jefferson], England, comedian (Laurel & Hardy)

1910 - E G Marshall, actor (Lawrence-Defenders, Caine Mutiny)

Laurie Metcalf, actor turns 56

1971 - Tupac Shakur, rap star/actor (Juice, Bullet)

Joan Van Ark, American actress turns 68

… ENTREPRENEUR & EDUCATORS

1899 - Nelson Doubleday, US, publisher (Doubleday)

1917 - Katharine Graham, newspaper publisher (Wash Post)

…POLITICIANS

1606 - Arthur Chichester, 1st Earl of Donegall, Irish soldier

1829 - Geronimo, Apache leader

…SCIENTISTS / THEOLOGISTS

1801 - Julius Plücker, German mathematician and physicist

Ø Today’s Obits:

1970 - Brian Piccolo, American football player [Brian’s Story] dies of testicular cancer at 27

1959 - George Reeves, actor (Superman, Gone with the Wind), shoots self at 45

1977 - Wernher von Braun, rocket scientist (V1/V2), dies at 65 of smoking 1984 - Lew Andreas, American basketball coach dies at 82

Ø ANSWERS:

Trivia Quiz

Eighth Grade Sample Questions

1. Who was Thomas Jefferson and why was he important?

Thomas Jefferson was the third U.S. president and was the main author of the Declaration of Independence.

Refer to the passage below for questions 2 and 3:

2. The quotation is from the:

C) Declaration of Independence

3. The primary author of the document was:

D) Thomas Jefferson

4. What were the three main countries that made up the Axis powers in World War II?

C) Germany, Japan and Italy

Close Up Picture

Chewing Gum

Ø …AND THAT’S ALL FOR NOW

6-15-11

Ø TODAY’s “Geez”:

· 1219 - Dannebrog - oldest national flag in the world - and flag of Denmark. According to legend, fell from the sky during the Battle of Lyndanisse (now Tallinn) in Estonia, and turned the Danes' luck

· 1934 - Great Smokey Mountains National Park dedicated

· 1955 - The Eisenhower administration stages the first annual "Operation Alert" (OPAL) exercise, an attempt to assess the USA's preparations for a nuclear attack

· 1967 - Gov Reagan signs liberalized California abortion bill

Ø Free Rambling Thoughts…

I was able to find some great sales on shirts today. Then I picked up some color for my outdoor flowerpots. Nice day and not a lot of wind. The current fire in Eastern AZ and now Western NM has become the largest fire in AZ history. They caught the guy who started the previous largest fire, so there is hope that they will catch the crazy who started this one.

NCLB got another blow today. Only 12% of graduating seniors have a basic proficiency in American History. A couple of the tests will be in the trivia section for the next few days. They tested 4^th graders, 8^th graders, and seniors. Of course American History is not part of any of the proficiencies necessary to be proficient in NCLB, which means it just isn’t taught that much. As we have seen the past few years, many politicians, on both sides, make up history and make up facts. This is no way to continue a democracy.

Ø Trivia Quiz…(answers at the end of post)

1. A consequence of Prohibition was

A) the failure of the Republicans in the 1928 presidential election

B) the growth of organized crime

C) the turning of public attention to pressing international issues

D) widespread popular support for further moral reform

2. North Korea was helped by this ally during the Korean War:

A) Japan

B) The Philippines

C) Hong Kong

D) China

3. President Franklin D. Roosevelt's goal in supporting the Lend-Lease Act of 1941 was to

A) Encourage Japanese Americans to relocate voluntarily

B) Use foreign investment as a way of stimulating the American economy

C) Maintain an isolationist stance by providing only limited aid to both sides of the European conflict

D) Assist Britain's war effort without violating United States neutrality laws

4. Before the Vietnam War, the Vietnamese broke free from this colonizer:

A) Britain

B) China

C) France

D) Russia

5. What main factors contributed to the growth of suburbs?

A) Increases in automobile ownership

B) The building of a modern highway system

C) Tax deductions for mortgage interest

D) All of the above

6. In the 1970's the United States economy was directly affected by

A) a sharp increase in the price of oil

B) an increase in the cost of solar energy

C) an overall decline in international trade

D) a rapid decline in prices of consumer goods

7. The North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) and the Warsaw Pact are best described as two

A) Organizations founded by the European Economic Community to promote trade between Europe and the United States

B) Treaties negotiated between the allies and the Central Powers at Versailles after the First World War

C)Bodies established by the United Nations to promote peace within multiethnic European countries such as Czechoslovakia and Yugoslavia

D) Military organizations made up, respectively, of the United States and its allies and the Soviet Union and its allies during the Cold War

Ø Zoom-ed in Picture…Can you Identify what this is? (Answer at end of post)

Ø Hmmmmm…

· Chance that a US $100 bill is currently held outside the country: 1 in 2

Ø Somewhat Useless Information…

· The Baccalaureate Ceremony origin is said to go back to 1432. The first Baccalaureate Ceremony commenced at Oxford University. At that time each student was required to deliver a sermon in Latin as part of his academic applications.

· What we call today a "cap," which is worn by students and faculty in some cases, used to be called a “hood." The "hood" is believed to be dated back to the Celtic Groups. At that time in history only the Druid priests wore capes with hoods, symbolizing their superiority and higher intelligence. Today, the "hood" or "cap" is used to identify the student's academic institution and degree.

· "Pomp and Circumstance" was composed by Sir Edward Elgar (b. 6/2/1857 d. 2/26/1934). It was first performed on October 19, 1901 in Liverpool, England.

Ø Yeah, It Really Happened…

EDEN, N.C. — An Eden woman stole a home pregnancy test and three water guns from the Walmart store in Eden on June 7, police said.

Police said Amber Shaquille Duncan also made off with a can of cashews, a box of fruit snacks, a pack of water balloons and a box of granola bars.

The stolen items were worth $39.63, police said.

Duncan also had an outstanding warrant for failure to appear in court on a charge of resisting a public officer.

Ø Guffaw…or at least smile…

Only in America... can a pizza get to your house faster than an ambulance.

Only in America... are there handicap parking places in front of a skating rink.

Only in America... do drugstores make the sick walk all the way to the back of the store to get their prescriptions while healthy people can buy cigarettes at the front.

Only in America... do people order double cheese burgers, large fries, and a diet Coke.

Only in America... do banks leave both doors to the vault open and then chain the pens to the counters.

Only in America... do they leave cars worth thousands of dollars in the driveway and put our useless junk in the garage.

Only in America... do they use answering machines to screen calls and then have call waiting so they won't miss a call from someone they didn't want to talk to in the first place.

Only in America... do they buy hot dogs in packages of ten and buns in packages of eight.

Only in America... do they use the word "politics" to describe the process so well; "Poli" in Latin meaning "many" and "tics" meaning "bloodsucking creatures".

Only in America... do they have drive-up ATM machines with Braille lettering

Ø Searchin’ “You Tube” I found…

First Motion Picture Horse, 1878

Ø Daybook Information…

…Happening This Week:

10-17

· Superman Week

· Nursing Assistants Week

12-18

· National Flag Week

· Men's Health Week

14-20

· Universal Father's Week

· US Open Golf Championship

Ø TODAY IS

Lunar Eclipse

Native American Citizenship Day

Nature Photography Day

Magna Carta Day

Smile Power Day

World Elder Abuse Awareness Day

Arkansas: Admission Day (1836 as 25^th state)

Ø Today’s Events:

… IN ARTS

1878 - 1st attempt at motion pictures (used 12 cameras, each taking 1 picture) done to see if all 4 of a horse's hooves leave the ground

1963 - "Sukiyaki" hits #1

1965 - Bob Dylan records "Like a Rolling Stone"

… IN ATHLETICS

1928 - Ty Cobb, 41, steals home for 50th & final time

1951 - Joe Louis scored his last knockout victory

… IN BUSINESS

1851 - Jacob Fussell, Baltimore dairyman, sets up 1st ice-cream factory

1911 - Tabulating Computing Recording Corporation (IBM) is incorporated

1943 - Congress of racial Equality (CORE) forms

… IN EDUCATION

1877 - Henry O Flipper becomes 1st black graduate at West Point

1916 - Boys Scouts of America forms

1962 - Students for a Democratic Society complete the Port Huron Statement

… FOR INDIGENOUS PEOPLE

1873 - Sioux attack Fort Abraham Lincoln, in central North Dakota, again. The garrison repels them

1924 - Native Americans are proclaimed US citizens

… IN INTERNATIONAL POLITICS

1094 - Rodrigo Diaz de Vivar [El Cid] occupies Valencia on the Moren

1215 - King John signs Magna Carta at Runnymede, England

1908 - World congress for Woman's rights opens in Amsterdam

… IN RELIGION

▬

… IN SCIENCE

1844 - Goodyear patents vulcanization of rubber

1869 - Celluloid patented by John Wesley Hyatt, Albany, NY

1876 - Tsunami's after earthquake floods NE coast of Japan, kills 28,000

… IN US POLITICS

1775 - George Washington appointed commander-in-chief of American Army

1804 - 12th amendment ratified; deals with manner of choosing president

1864 - Robert E Lee's home area (Arlington, VA) becomes a military cemetery

1898 - US marines attack Spanish off Guantánamo Cuba

1924 - J Edgar Hoover assumed leadership of the FBI

1982 - Supreme Court rules all children, regardless of citizenship, are entitled to a public education

1994 - Ruth Bader Ginsburg, sworn in as Supreme Court Justice

… ARTISTS: AUTHORS: COMPOSERS…

1888 - Ramon Lopez Velarde, Mexican poet (La Sangre Devota)

…ATHLETES

Wade Boggs, Red Sox/Yank 3rd baseman (AL bat champ 1985-88) turns 53

…ENTERTAINERS (ACTORS/SINGERS…)

Brett Butler, comedian (Grace Under Fire) turns 54

Courteney Cox actress turns 47

Ice Cube [O'Shea Jackson], rap singer/actor (Boyz in the Hood, Anaconda) turns 42

1921 - Erroll Garner, jazz pianist (Misty)

Neil Patrick Harris, Albuquerque NM, actor (Doogie Howser MD, How I Met Your Mother) turns 38

Helen Hunt actress turns 48

1937 - Waylon Jennings, country singer/guitarist (Ramblin' Man)

1917 - Al "Lash" La Rue, cowboy actor (Black Lash, Lash of the West)

1941 - Harry Nilsson, singer/guitarist (Midnight Cowboy)

Leah Remini actress turns 41

1949 - Jim Varney, American actor (Ernest Goes to Jail, Hey Vern

… ENTREPRENEUR & EDUCATORS

Xaveria Hollander, [DeVries], Surabaya Indonesia, auth (Happy Hooker) turns 68

…POLITICIANS

Mario M Cuomo, (Gov-D-NY, 1982-94) turns 79

1767 - Rachel Donelson Jackson, wife of Pres Andrew Jackson

…SCIENTISTS / THEOLOGISTS

1902 - Erik H Erickson, psychologist (Existentionalist)

Ø Today’s Obits:

1993 - John Connally, (Gov-D/R-Texas), dies at 76

2003 - Hume Cronyn, Canadian actor dies at 92

1996 - Ella Fitzgerald, singer, dies at 78

1989 - Victor French, actor (#44-Get Smart, Highway to Heaven), dies of cancer at 54

1849 - James Knox Polk, 11th Pres (1845-1849), dies of cholera at 53

1965 - E. A. Speiser, American Bible scholar dies at 63

1381 - Wat Tyler, leader of English Peasants' Revolt, beheaded at 50

1984 - Meredith Willson, composer (Music Man), dies at 82