8-2-11

All Blue text is a link…be sure and click on it for more information!

‡     TODAY’s “Geez”:

¬ 1937 - The Marihuana Tax Act of 1937 is passed in America, essentially rendering marijuana and all its by-products illegal

¬ 1985 - 5 die in a train crash in Westminster CO

¬ 1989 - NASA confirmed Voyager 2's discovery of 3 more moons of Neptune designated temporarily 1989 N2, 1989 N3 & 1989 N24

‡     Free Rambling Thoughts…

It was very good to see Gabby Giffords back on the House floor today. What a shock. Her recovery is no less than miraculous.

I ran errands today and discovered that only Walgreens develops film and provides a disk. The advertise one hour, but when I arrived they said at least two hours. No problem…I’ve waited this long. I’ll drive across town again tomorrow to pick it up. That way I will be able to finish my blog on the trip. It is not a day by day account, just my usual ramblings about 13 days on the Colorado River in the Grand Canyon. The more I write and find out how big some of the rapids were do I realize how adventurous I really was.  My financial advisor had lent me a book that listed the canyon trip mile by mile. I left it home, as I didn’t want it ruined, but several of the oarers had copies of it. I plan to stop at the bookstore tomorrow to find a couple of Grand Canyon books too. Bookmans should have what I’m looking for.

I did quite a bit of walking than I have since I got back. My feet are very tender tonight. I still have a couple of stubborn spots on each foot and have used ½ the cream. If they don’t get better near the end of the tube I’ll go to the dermatologist. It’s only been six days, but seems like it’s been at least a month. While I am fine most of the day, if I walk a lot, the tenderness makes it uncomfortable. Most people seeing me don’t know I have any problems so that’s a good sign.

It’s been a good day for rain, and burn area flooding. We have had several downpours throughout the day. I was in the middle of one on my way home and it sure cut down on traffic, slowed the traffic there was, and made driving a little challenging. The flood area closed a lot of roads in the flood’s path and reports of ‘boulders’ in the middle of several streets out there. Such an unnecessary hassle for all those residents—one careless camper’s fire created the mess that will take several decades to abate the flooding. Those poor people are stuck in their homes as their property values have plummeted, insurance costs have skyrocketed, and our county and state budgets have been hit hard. So has the forest service budget. All at a time when everyone says their pot of money is empty.

I got a response from my congressman today about my Social Security decrease because I worked for the Feds. His response was a form so he can look at my SS records. Not sure I’ll reply. My question was regarding the law and the cut to all Civil Service employees under CSRP. I figure it’s just a delay tactic to not answer my question. I know the hassle that occurs when a citizen asks a congressman for help to the agency involved. More than once I had to respond to a congressman or senator regarding an issue raised by a private citizen. Believe me, it is difficult and takes many hours away from doing the job you were hired to do. Not only do you have to do all the leg work, then it has to go through the solicitor’s office where they basically rewrite everything into government talk. Then they send you the answer and you have to sign it as though it was your work. I’ll wait a few days to decide it I want to hassle the workers because my congressman can’t simply answer a question on his own.

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

1.      Who was the first American woman to win Wimbledon?

2.      Who was the first man to die in a US airplane crash?

3.      Which millionaire yachtsman perished on the Lusitania in 1915?

4.      How old was the man who was granted the first divorce in Irish history?

5.      How many years elapsed between DH Lawrence's writing of Lady Chatterley's Lover and the book's publication?

6.      Lindbergh wrote about his New York to Paris flight in which book?

7.      Maria Montessori was the first woman in Italy to be awarded a degree in which subject?

8.      In which country was Pasternak's Dr. Zhivago first published?

9.      In what year did Caruso make his first American record?

10.   Child expert Dr. Spock won an Olympic gold medal in what event?

11.   Slippery Frank Cline was whose bodyguard?

12.   Who created Popeye?

13.   Who was the Lindbergh baby's nanny when he was kidnapped?

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

‡     Hmmmmm…

¬Minimum number of birds killed by crashing into windows in NYC each year: 100,000

‡     Somewhat Useless Information…

¬ The best estimates available suggest that the total volume of gold ever mined up to the end of 2006 was approximately 158,000 tones, of which around 65% has been mined since 1950.

¬ An oyster takes ten years to produce a pearl that is about the size of a pea.

‡     Yeah, It Really Happened…

A gun, a knife, a bat, a broken beer bottle and a camcorder. These are among the offensive weapons the Portland police feel threatened by enough to use non-lethal force in order to subdue anyone carrying them.

According to a report four men say Portland police ran roughshod over their constitutional rights, and one of the men's bodies, and they are taking their case to court.

It all started when police officers followed a police dog onto the property during a search for a fleeing suspect. After the dog keyed on a car, officers broke out a window. Upset residents, insisting no one had run onto their property, started to videotape the police search.

One man with the video camera walked to the edge of the property to record the police activity. At one point, he yelled to his friend, "Yes, I got it all on film. They had no right to come on this property."

He says in the suit that police immediately came after him, and yelled at him "put it down." Officers moved towards him, and he said, "Don't come after me." Seconds later he was shot with a bean bag gun and a Taser and fell to the ground.

Not that he was threatening them, he was just recording them in case they did anything illegal...like violently assault an innocent bystander.

It was all explained later, though. Officers wrote in their reports that Waterhouse, "...had refused to drop the camera which could be used as a weapon."

‡     Guffaw…or at least smile…

A sign at Budapest’s Zoo requests:

 PLEASE DO NOT FEED THE ANIMALS. IF YOU HAVE ANY SUITABLE FOOD GIVE IT TO THE GUARD ON DUTY

Bonus:

You know you’re getting old when your best friend tells you he's having an affair and you want to know if it's catered

‡     Searchin’ “You Tube” I found…

Lamb Chop The Best of Shari Lewis Part 1

‡     Daybook Information…

…Happening This Week:

1-7: Exhibitor Appreciation Week / Psychic Week / National Fraud Awareness Week / Simplify Your Life Week / Single Working Women's Week / World Breastfeeding Week

‡     TODAY IS

¬National Night Out

~*~

Macedonia: National Day

‡     Today’s Events:

·        IN ARTS

1865 - Lewis Carroll publishes "Alice's Adventures in Wonderland"

1961 - Beatles 1st gig as house band of Liverpool's Cavern Club

·        IN ATHLETICS

1875 - 1st roller skating rink opens (London)

1987 - Kevin Seitzer (KC Royals), gets 6 hits in one baseball game

·        IN BUSINESS

1791 - Samuel Briggs & his son, patent nail-making machine

1858 - 1st mailboxes installed in Boston & NYC streets

·        IN EDUCATION

--

·        FOR INDIGENOUS PEOPLE

1689 - A small force of thirty men, led by Lieutenant James Weems, are occupying the fort at Pemaquid, Maine. They are attacked by almost 100 Abenaki Indians. The soldiers eventually surrender, and those who aren't killed, are taken as prisoners to Canada

1792 - Mohegan Samson Occom dies in New Stockbridge, New York. A protégé of Rev. Eleazar Wheelock, Occom learns numerous foreign languages, become an ordained minister, be the first Indian to preach in England, minister to many Indian tribes, and be instrumental in the establishment of Dartmouth College in New Hampshire

1832 - 1,300 Illinois militia defeat Sac & Fox indians, end Black Hawk War

·        IN INTERNATIONAL POLITICS

1943 - Lt John F Kennedy's PT-boat 109 sinks at Solomon Islands

·        IN RELIGION

1492 - Jews are expelled from Spain by King Ferdinand & Queen Isabella

·        IN SCIENCE

1610 - Henry Hudson enters bay later named after him, the Hudson Bay

1892 - Charles A Wheeler patents a prototype of the escalator

1922 - China, hit by a typhoon; about 60,000 die

1962 - NASA civilian test pilot Joseph A Walker takes X-15 to 32,600 m

·        IN US POLITICS

1776 - Formal signing of Declaration of Independence

1790 - The first US Census is conducted

1909 - 1st Lincoln head pennies minted

1939 - Hatch Act prohibits political activity by federal workers

·        ARTISTS:  AUTHORS:  COMPOSERS

1924 - James Baldwin, NY, author (Go Tell it on Mountain, Another Country)

1834 - Frederic Auguste Bartholdi, French sculptor (Statue of Liberty)

Wes Craven director, turns 72

1892 - Jack Warner, US movie studio head (Warner Bros)

·        ATHLETES

Ed West, NFL tight end (Phila Eagles, Atlanta Falcons) turns 50

·        ENTERTAINERS (ACTORS/SINGERS…)

Joanna Cassidy actress turns 66

Kathy Lennon, singer (Lennon Sisters) turns 68

1905 - Myrna Loy, actress (Jazz Singer, Thin Man, Vanity Fair)

1922 - Carroll O'Connor, NYC, actor (All in the Family, Heat of the Night)

Peter O'Toole turns 79

Mary-Louise Parker, actress (Fried Green Tomatoes) turns 47

·        ENTREPRENEUR & EDUCATORS

1754 - Pierre Charles L'Enfant, French architect laid out Wash DC

·        POLITICIANS

Lance Ito, judge (OJ Simpson trial) turns 62

·        SCIENTISTS / THEOLOGISTS

--

‡     Today’s Obits:

1922 - Alexander Graham Bell, Scottish/US physicist (telephone), dies at 75

1696 - Robert Campbell of Glenlyon, Scottish military commander dies at 66

1903 - Calamity Jane, [Martha Jane Cannary], US desperado, dies of alcohol abuse at 51

1921 - Enrico Caruso, Italian opera singer, dies of peritonitis at 48

1978 - Totie Fields, [Sophie Feldman], comedienne, dies of pulmonary embolism at about 48

1788 - Thomas Gainsborough, English painter (Blue Boy), dies of cancer at 61

1923 - Warren Harding, 29th Pres (1921-23), dies of apoplexy or congestive heart failure at 57

1876 - Wild Bill Hickok, shot dead (from behind) by Jack McCall while playing poker at 39. He held a pair of Aces & a pair of 8's

1998 - Shari Lewis, American puppeteer dies of uterine cancer at 65

1979 - Thurmon Munson, NY Yankee, killed in a plane crash at Akron Oh at 32

‡     ANSWERS:

Trivia Quiz

1.      Who was the first American woman to win Wimbledon?

a.      May Sutton in 1905

2.      Who was the first man to die in a US airplane crash?

a.      Lieutenant Thomas E Selfridge—passenger in Orville Wright plane in 1908

3.      Which millionaire yachtsman perished on the Lusitania in 1915?

a.      Alfred Vanderbuilt

4.      How old was the man who was granted the first divorce in Irish history?

a.      68

5.      How many years elapsed between DH Lawrence's writing of Lady Chatterley's Lover and the book's publication?

a.      32

6.      Lindbergh wrote about his New York to Paris flight in which book?

a.      Spirit of St. Louis

7.      Maria Montessori was the first woman in Italy to be awarded a degree in which subject?

a.      Medicine

8.      In which country was Pasternak's Dr. Zhivago first published?

a.      Italy in 1957 from a smuggled manuscript as USSR refused to publish it.

9.      In what year did Caruso make his first American record?

a.      1903

10.   Child expert Dr. Spock won an Olympic gold medal in what event?

a.      Rowing—1924--Paris

11.   Slippery Frank Cline was whose bodyguard?

a.      AL Capone

12.   Who created Popeye?

a.      Elzie Segar

13.   Who was the Lindbergh baby's nanny when he was kidnapped?

a.      Betty Gow

Close Up Picture

Disclaimer: All opinions are mine…feel free to agree or disagree. All ‘data’ info is from the internet sites and is usually checked with at least one other source, but I have learned that every site has mistakes and sadly once out the information is out there, many sites simply copy it and is therefore difficult to verify. Also for events occurring before the Gregorian calendar was adopted [1582] may not be totally accurate.

‡     AND THAT’S ALL FOR NOW     ‡

8-1-11

All Blue text is a link…be sure and click on it for more information!

‡     TODAY’s “Geez”:

¬ 1869 - 1st voyage down Colorado River

¬ 1953 - Calif introduces sales tax (for education)

¬ 1957 - 1st commercial building heated by Sun (Albuquerque NM)

¬ 1957 - US & Canada create North American Air Defense Command (NORAD)

¬ 1960 - Chubby Checker releases "The Twist"

¬ 1972 - 1st article exposing Wategate scandal (Bernstein-Woodward)

‡     Free Rambling Thoughts…

I had a well deserved lazy day today. I stayed up late last night watching movies. Then slept in until 7am. I only did a cursory check of mail for bills. The rest will wait till tomorrow. I caught up on my recorded shows and kicked it all day. I’m really into the USA and TNT series that last for a few months, and come back in a few months later.

Jeannie called and all seems to be well with her. She is still raising her grandkids and seems to be enjoying it. She is selling or transferring her house in Tuba to a relative, since she says she has no desire to return to Tuba to live. She’s always been a city Native and I was amazed at how many years she stayed in Tuba working. She is one of the most caring people I know, always helping those with less—and believe me she doesn’t have very much. She is happy and that is what is important.

I’ve heard ‘there’s an app for that’ for some time. Today I saw an ad for the iPad that shows a man talking to his iPad and an instant voice translation into another language for the person he is talking to understand. I’m sure it is not as good as it looks, but what a concept. I remember when the ‘big deal’ in commercials was to scan a document and have it on your computer in less than a minute, ready to add to or change. A few years later, it still had a lot of problems and it I think it took longer to get rid of all the ‘garbage’ than it would have taken to simply type the page again. I’m sure that the iPad app has it’s drawbacks. I also don’t know if I could stand in a foreign country, with an iPad talking to the Natives. But I never expected to be answering e-mail on a river in Borneo. Technology is so amazing—when it works or when it opens new possibilities.

A couple of showers wet the streets at my house, but it did rain hard in other parts of Flag. Keep them monsoons coming.

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

News Stories Trivia - John Scopes, Insulin, hostages, Spirit of St. Louis, Ku Klux Klan, Microwave ovens, the Gold standard and more

1.      Who revived the Ku Klux Klan in 1915?

2.      Which two Canadians discovered insulin taken from pigs could help diabetics?

3.      Which boat capsized in the 1997 Vendee Globe round the world race?

4.      Who is credited with inventing the microwave when a chocolate bar melted in his pocket when he was standing in front of a magnetron?

5.      Rudolf Nureyev took citizenship of which country in 1982?

6.      Who was President when the USA went formally onto the gold standard?

7.      In which city were the "Chariots OF Fire" Olympic Games?

8.      Who took the world land speed record in 1903?

9.      Why was John Scopes brought to trial in Tennessee in 1925?

10.   In which two events did Mildred "Babe" Didrikson win gold a the 1932 L A Olympics?

11.   Who were the two women hostages held in the US Embassy in Tehran in 1980-81?

12.   Who was the first black guest to be invited to dine at the White House?

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

‡     Hmmmmm…

¬Number of states that have more pigs than people: 5 [Minnesota, Iowa, Nebraska, North Carolina, and South Dakota]

‡     Somewhat Useless Information…

¬ Coffee was the top agricultural export for twelve countries in 2004, and it was the world's seventh-largest legal agricultural export by value in 2005.

¬ "El Tosto," the first electric toaster, was most likely invented in 1905, when inventor Albert Marsh developed the Nichrome wire, making the toaster possible

¬ The average cell phone has 100 times as much bacteria as a toilet seat.

¬ There are 70,000 E.coli infections every year in the US. Beef and fecal matter are two of the major sources.

‡     Yeah, It Really Happened…

NEWARK, Ohio - An Ohio woman said a picture taken with her deceased father's open casket forming the "I" in an "O-H-I-O" cheer is a tribute to his love for the Buckeyes. Juli Miracle, who arranged for the picture to be taken after the July 1 death of her father, Roy Miracle, said the picture was a tribute to her father's fun-loving ways and his love for Ohio State University, The Columbus (Ohio) Dispatch reported Thursday. "I didn't do it for anybody but Dad and I," Juli Miracle said of the picture, which quickly spread across the Internet.

"To me, it was the best honor and tribute to do for him and OSU."

The Rev. Mark Chow, who presided over the funeral at First United Methodist Church in Newark, said the photo was a fitting tribute to Roy Miracle. "He was a fun-loving man who loved to tease," Chow said.

‡     Guffaw…or at least smile…

While walking to the ninth hole, one psychiatrist said to his colleague, “would you believe that yesterday I had a patient who claimed he heard music every time he put on his hat?”

 “Really? What did you do?”

 The psychiatrist answered, “I took it away and removed the band.”

Bonus:

A guy walks into a bar. He says to the bartender "I'd like a Whiskey Sour." The bartender replies "How do you make that?"

The guy says "You put in whiskey to make it strong, water to make it weak, lemon to make it sour and sugar to make it sweat. You mix it all together and you say 'Here's to you' and then you drink it yourself."

The bartender says "That's not a drink! That's a contradiction!"

‡     Searchin’ “You Tube” I found…

 Tommy Makem ~ Will You Go Lassie, Go

‡     Daybook Information…

…Happening This Week:

1-7: Exhibitor Appreciation Week / Psychic Week / National Fraud Awareness Week / Simplify Your Life Week / Single Working Women's Week / World Breastfeeding Week

‡     THIS MONTH IS

·        American Adventures Month

·        American Indian Heritage Month

·        Black Business Month

·        Cataract Awareness Month

·        Celery, Fennel and Cactus Month Link

·        Children's Eye Health & Safety Month

·        Children's Vision & Learning Month

·        Get Ready for Kindergarten Month

·        Golf Month Link

·        Happiness Happens Month

·        Motorsports Awareness Month

·        Mushroom and Onion Month

·        National Fetal Alcohol Spectrum Disorders Awareness Month 

·        National Immunization Awareness Month

·        National Panini Month

·        National Spinal Muscular Atrophy Awareness Month

·        National Runaway Prevention Month

·        National Truancy Prevention Month

·        National Water Quality Month

·        National Win With Civility Month

·        Neurosurgery Outreach Month

·        Orange and Papaya Month

·        Pedestrian Safety Month

·        Psoriasis Awareness Month

·        What Will Be Your Legacy Month

‡     TODAY IS

¬ Girlfriend's Day

¬ National Minority Donor Awareness Day

¬ Ramadan (Islamic)

¬ Respect for Parents Day

¬ Rounds Resounding Day

¬ Spiderman Day

¬ US Air Force Day

¬ World Wide Web Day

~*~

¬ Bahamas, Trinidad, Tobago:  Emancipation Day

¬ Benin: Independence Day (1960 from France)

¬ Jamaica: Abolition of Slavery Day (1834)

¬ Jamaica: Independence Day (1962 from UK)

¬ US: Colorado: Admission Day (1876—38^th state)

¬ Zambia: Youth Day

          

‡     Today’s Events:

·        IN ARTS

1927 - Earliest date for a film to be considered for the Academy Awards

1981 - MTV premieres at 12:01 AM

·        IN ATHLETICS

1716 - 1st sculling race (London Bridge to Chelsea)

1928 - Babe Ruth hits HR # 42 & is 4 weeks ahead of his 1927 pace

1936 - Adolph Hitler opens 11th Olympic Games in Berlin

1976 - 21st Olympic games close at Montreal Canada

1982 - Greg Louganis, US becomes 1st diver to score 700 (752.67) in 11 dives

1993 - Reggie Jackson enshrined in Baseball Hall of Fame in Cooperstown, NY

·        IN BUSINESS

1901 - Burial within SF City limits prohibited

1941 - The first Jeep is produced

·        IN EDUCATION

1911 - Omar N Bradley (18) begins education in West Point

1944 - Anne Frank's last diary entry; 3 days later she is arrested

·        FOR INDIGENOUS PEOPLE

1735 - An agreement covering "amity and commerce" is reached by representatives of the British in New York, and Western Abenaki, Housatonic, Mohegan and Scaghticoke Indians

·        IN INTERNATIONAL POLITICS

30 BC - Octavian (later known as Augustus) enters Alexandria, Egypt, bringing it under the control of the Roman Republic

1291 - Everlasting League forms, basis of Swiss Confederation (Independence)

1498 - Christopher Columbus lands on "Isla Santa" (Venezuela)

1780 - Sweden declares neutrality

1834 - Slavery abolished throughout the British Empire

·        IN RELIGION

--

·        IN SCIENCE

1785 - Caroline Herschel becomes 1st woman discoverer of a comet

1793 - France becomes 1st country to use the metric system

·        IN US POLITICS

1619 - 1st black Americans (20) land at Jamestown, Virginia

1790 - 1st US census (population of 3,939,214; 697,624 are slaves)

1794 - Whiskey Rebellion begins1831 - London Bridge opens to traffic

1867 - Blacks vote for 1st time in a state election in South (Tenn)

1881 - US Quarantine Station authorized for Angel Island, SF Bay

1946 - Pres Truman establishes Atomic Energy Commission (AEC)

1950 - Territory of Guam created

·        ARTISTS:  AUTHORS:  COMPOSERS

1819 - Herman Melville, author (Moby Dick, Billy Budd)

1911 - Jackie Ormes, First African-American cartoonist 

·        ATHLETES

Darryl Hall, NFL cornerback (SF 49ers) turns 45

Nancy Lopez, professional golfer turns 59

·        ENTERTAINERS (ACTORS/SINGERS…)

Tempestt Bledsoe actor (Cosby Show) turns 38

1924 - Yvonne DeCarlo, actress (10 Commandments, Lily-Munsters)

1933-Dom DeLuise comedian

1942 - Jerry Garcia, rocker (Grateful Dead-Uncle Joe's Band)

·        ENTREPRENEUR & EDUCATORS

1837 - Mother Jones (Mary Harris Jones), American labor organizer 

·        POLITICIANS

--

·        SCIENTISTS / THEOLOGISTS

1770 - William Clark, 2nd lt of Lewis & Clark Expedition

1889 - John F Mahoney, developed penicillin treatment of syphilis

1818 - Maria Mitchell, 1st US woman astronomer on Nantucket Island

1626 - Sabbatai Zevi, Montenegrin rabbi, kabbalist, and founder of the Jewish Sabbatean movement

‡     Today’s Obits:

1589 - Jacques Clément, French assassin of Henry III of France killed by Royal attendants at 22

1917 - Frank Little, American labor organizer lynched at 38

2007 - Tommy Makem, Irish folk singer dies at 75

1977 - Francis Gary Powers, US U-2 pilot, dies as pilot of helicopter at 47

1714 - Anne Stuart, queen of England (1702-14), dies of gout at about 49

‡     ANSWERS:

Trivia Quiz

1.      Who revived the Ku Klux Klan in 1915?

a.      William Simmonds

2.      Which two Canadians discovered insulin taken from pigs could help diabetics?

a.      Frederick Banting & Charles Best

3.      Which boat capsized in the 1997 Vendee Globe round the world race?

a.      Exide Challenger

4.      Who is credited with inventing the microwave when a chocolate bar melted in his pocket when he was standing in front of a magnetron?

a.      Percy LeBaron Spencer

5.      Rudolf Nureyev took citizenship of which country in 1982?

a.      Austria

6.      Who was President when the USA went formally onto the gold standard?

a.      McKinley

7.      In which city were the "Chariots OF Fire" Olympic Games?

a.      Paris

8.      Who took the world land speed record in 1903?

a.      Henry Ford—91.7mph

9.      Why was John Scopes brought to trial in Tennessee in 1925?

a.      Teaching about evolution

10.   In which two events did Mildred "Babe" Didrikson win gold a the 1932 L A Olympics?

a.      Hurdles and javelin

11.   Who were the two women hostages held in the US Embassy in Tehran in 1980-81?

a.      Kathryn Koob—NGO director & Elizabeth Ann Swift—Chief of Political Section of US Embassy

12.   Who was the first black guest to be invited to dine at the White House?

a.      Booker T Washington

Close Up Picture

Disclaimer: All opinions are mine…feel free to agree or disagree. All ‘data’ info is from the internet sites and is usually checked with at least one other source, but I have learned that every site has mistakes and sadly once out the information is out there, many sites simply copy it and is therefore difficult to verify. Also for events occurring before the Gregorian calendar was adopted [1582] may not be totally accurate.

‡     AND THAT’S ALL FOR NOW     ‡