Mar 31


FYI: Click on any blue text for a link to more information!

Today’s  Historical  Highlights
1831 - Quebec & Montreal incorporated
1850 - US population hits 23,191,876 (Black population: 3,638,808 (15.7%))
1889 - 300m Eiffel Tower officially opens (commemorates French Revolution)
1932 - Ford publicly unveils its V-8 engine
1944 - Hungary orders all Jews to wear yellow stars
1945 - Tennessee Williams' "Glass Menagerie," premieres in NYC
1953 - Department of Health, Education & Welfare established
1959 - Dalai Lama fled China & was granted political asylum in India
1963 - LA ends streetcar service after 90 years
1965 - US ordered the 1st combat troops to Vietnam
1966 - 25,000 anti war demonstrators march in NYC
1971 - William Calley sentenced to life for Mi Lai Massacre
♪Happy Birthday To: ♪                     
 
Free Rambling Thoughts   
A very good lunch with the retirees today. Cheryl had great pics of her Hawaii relaxing trip. Sounds like everyone had a great time. Cheryl was really impressed with the cleanliness and friendly, calm people on the Island. She said they really know how to make tourists feel welcome. Mary still hasn’t gotten any pics of her new grandson…he had a tough birth and was moved immediately to ICU. Scary for sure. He was born on Wednesday and seems both new mom and baby are going home today. Prayers for a good life for little Rutley Cole Sattelberger. Mary is with AT&T for her cell phone. She is getting ripped off…first she got a new phone a few months ago and it would automatically open to Facebook. Even when the phone was closed. Data use piled up so to fix the glitch, AT&T simply reset her phone to turn off the internet. That is hardly a solution. Then on the day Rutley was born, she went in to be sure she could still get picture messages. They told her they weren’t sure. She asked for newer phone, and they said it would cost and arm and leg since she still had 18 months on her two year contract. I told her go in and demand a new phone. We’ll see what happens.

Only in AZ…now the Pinal County Sheriff’s Office may have deleted thousands of emails. The sheriff’s office says they were just ‘archived.’ Somehow the Freedom of Information request didn’t include archived emails. Really ?!?

Game   Center   (answers at the end of post)
Brain Game—New puzzle type today

NPR Sunday Puzzle
Each sentence has two blanks. The word that goes into the first blank starts with an "H." Drop the "H," and you'll get a new word that goes in the second blank to complete the sentence. For example: With the current price of home fuel, the cost of ______ my house is ______ me alive. The answer: "heating" and "eating."
1.      This old battlefield is ­­­­_____ ground and camping on it is not _____:
2.      The pilot with the receding _____ is the best pilot in the whole _____:
3.      Any so called expert who describes a red stripped fish as a _____ is clearly _____:
4.      During the summer when temperatures are _____ you’ll see an _____ playing on the bank of the stream:
5.      Seemingly every horse was in _____ in an old TV western I saw last night starring James _____:
6.      Appropriately, a ship carrying thousands of seedlings arrived in the _____ on _____ day:
7.      Before putting new tiles on the roof the roofer removes and _____ the old ones over the _____:
8.      While studying the colonial site, the archeologists discovered a stone _____ buried in the _____:
9.      In the photograph of a woman at her dressing table if her _____ is distracting _____ it out:
10.   The girl in the _____ top must _____ her attire before class:

Wuzzles  What concept or phrase do these suggest?
*Note: new puzzle begins tomorrow

Lifestyle  Substance     
Planet Earth—

Found on You Tube         
Eiffel Tower, Paris
Harper’s Index         
Percentage decrease in the median US household income during the ‘recovery’: 6.7
Joke-of-the-day
Fun Things To Do In An Elevator:
1. Crack open your briefcase or purse, and while peering inside ask: "Got enough air in there?"
2. Grimace painfully while smacking your forehead and muttering: "Shut up, all of you just shut UP!"
3. Whistle the first seven notes of "It's a Small World" incessantly.
4. Sell Girl Scout cookies.
5. On a long ride, sway side to side at the natural frequency of the elevator.
6. Greet everyone getting on the elevator with a warm handshake and ask them to call you Admiral
7. When at least 8 people have boarded, moan from the back: "Oh, not now, motion sickness!"
8. Meow occasionally.
9. Wear a puppet on your hand and talk to other passengers "through" it.
10. Draw a little square on the floor with chalk and announce to the other passengers that this is your "personal space."
Rules of Thumb   
Easy shortcuts to make an ‘educated’ guess
When simple things need instructions, it is a sign of poor design.
Somewhat Useless Information   
The bird they call a "robin" in England is smaller than the U.S. variety and is a symbol of Christmas, not a harbinger of spring.
Robert Stroud was known as the "Birdman of Alcatraz," but he actually only kept birds when he was incarcerated at the Federal Penitentiary at Leavenworth. Officials at Alcatraz nixed his bird hobby.
Smaller, lighter birds that spend most of their time in trees generally hop when on the ground, while larger birds run. In each case, it's a matter of what type of locomotion moves the bird most efficiently and uses the least amount of energy.
Due to the nature of the vulture's diet, it's extra-strong stomach acid is designed to kill virtually any type of bacteria or virus.
The melodiousness and versatility of a bird's voice is a product of evolution. Birds that spend most of their time in trees need voices that carry in order to communicate and attract mates, so they have highly developed vocal muscles.
No natural bird sounds are heard in Alfred Hitchcock's 1963 horror classic The Birds. All the chirps, squawks, and screeches were electronically generated for maximum terrifying effect.
Yeah, It Really Happened                 
Houston: Houston Chronicle society reporter Sarah Tressler talked about her dismissal from the paper on ABC's Good Morning American Friday after another publication exposed her second job as a night club stripper.
The Houston Press, an alternative weekly, first exposed the "double life" of Tressler on Monday in a feature story with the headline "Writer by day, stripper by night." It also drew attention to Tressler’s blog — Dairy of an Angry Stripper — which included pictures of her scantily-clad self, as well as rich detail from the inside of the gentlemen's club.
At the Chronicle, the largest daily newspaper in Texas, the society reporter rubs elbows with the ultra-wealthy and usually conservative VIPs who attend lavish charity balls and luncheons.
"It is a personal matter concerning an employee and we don’t comment on such matters," said Naomi Engle, Marketing & Community Affairs Specialist at Houston Chronicle.
Tressler, told the ABC host that the paper had dismissed her because she did not tell her supervisors about the off-hours gig.
She had recently been brought on as a full-time reporter at the Chronicle, so the time she spent picking up extra income from dancing had dwindled, she said.
Tressler told ABC that she did not expect anyone to reveal her secret because that seemed "like such a mean thing to do."
Tressler, who holds a bachelor’s degree and a Master’s Degree, told ABC that earning money was her main incentive for stripping in clubs, which she started doing when she was a freelance writer for the Chronicle and others. She indicated that she would continue her work in the clubs. She also works as an adjunct professor at Houston University.
"I had three jobs, I lost one of them and now I have two jobs," Tressler told ABC. "I was a stripper/reporter/professor and now I’m just a stripper/professor, and I don’t think that’s too bad."
Calendar Information        
…Happening This Week:
25-31 
Consider Christianity Week:
Passiontide (3/25-4/7)
National Conference on Family Literacy
Pediatric Nurse Practioner Week
Root Canal Awareness Week
National Protocol Officer's Week
National Cleaning Week
Today Is                                                                      
Bunsen Burner Day
Earth Hour turn off lights for one hour
National Clams On The Half Shell Day
National Love Our Children Day
"She's Funny That Way" Day

Virgin Islands: Transfer Day (1917- commemorates when the Danish West Indies were formally ceded to the United States by Denmark; thus, becoming the U.S. Virgin Islands, in exchange for twenty-five million dollars.)

Today’s Other Events                                                             
1100’s
1146 - Bernard of Clairvaux preaches his famous sermon in a field at Vézelay, urging the necessity of a Second Crusade. Louis VII is present, and joins the Crusade.
>< 
1700’s
1745 - Jews are expelled from Prague
1793 - Moses Cockrell, and a few whites, are leading pack animals across Powell's Mountain. They will be attacked by Chickamauga Chief Captain Bench, and his followers. All of the Europeans will be killed except Cockrell, who will escape after out running Bench.
1800’s
1870 - 1st black to vote in US (Thomas P Mundy of Perth Amboy NJ)
1877 - In Arizona, parts of the White Mountain - San Carlos Reservation will be restored to public domain.
1880 - 1st town completely illuminated by electric lighting (Wabash, IN)
1900’s
1909 - Baseball rules players who jump contracts are suspended for 5 years
1909 - Gustav Mahler conducts NY Philharmonic for his 1st time
1918 - 1st daylight savings time in US goes into effect
1933 - Congress authorizes Civilian Conservation Corps
1953 - UN Security Council nominates Dag Hammarskjoeld secretary-general
1954 - US Air Force Academy in Colorado Springs Colo, established
1958 - US Navy forms atomic sub division
1967 - 1st time  Jimi Hendrix burns his guitar (London)
1968 - LBJ announces he will not seek re-election
1970 - Federal bankruptcy court allows Seattle Pilots to be sold to Milwaukee
1973 - Ken Norton defeats Muhammad Ali in a 12 round split decision
1991 - Danny Bonaduce attacks a transvestite prostitute in Phoenix Az
1995 - 1st game at Coors Stadium CO (replacement Rockies beat Yanks 4-1)
2000’s
2004 - In Fallujah, Iraq, 4 American private military contractors working for Blackwater USA, are killed and their bodies mutilated after being ambushed.
2007 - In Sydney, Australia, 2.2 million people take part in the first Earth Hour.
2008 - Aloha Airlines, a bankrupt airline, permanently ends passenger service

Today’s Birthdays                                                           
In their 80’s
Gordie Howe, Floral Sask, NHL right wing (Detroit Redwings) is 84
In their 70’s
Barney Frank, (Rep-D-MA, 1981- ) is 72                   
Shirley Jones, Smithton Pa, actress (Partridge Family, Elmer Gantry) is 78
Michael Savage, American talk radio host and commentator is 70
In their 60’s
Albert Gore Jr, Wash DC, (Sen-D-Tenn, 1985-92)/45th US VP (1993- ) is 64
Gabe Kaplan, Bkln NY, comedian/actor (Welcome Back Kotter) is 67
Ed Marinaro, NYC, actor (Joe-Hill St Blues, Sonny-Laverne & Shirley) is 62
Rhea Perlman, actor (Cheers) is 64
Christopher Walken, Astoria Queens, actor (Deer Hunter, Brainstorm) is 69
<> 
In their 40’s
Ewan McGregor, Perth Scotland, Scottish actor (Trainspotting) is 41
Remembered for being born on this day
René Descartes, France, philosopher in 1596
Liz Claiborne, Brussels Belgium, American fashion designer, entrepreneur and founder of Liz Claiborne Inc in 1929
Cesar Chavez, Yuma Az, farm labor leader (United Farm Workers) in 1927
Jack Johnson,1st black heavyweight boxing champ (1908-1915) in 1878
Richard Kiley, Chicago, actor (Man of La Mancha, Endless Love) in 1922
John La Farge, US painter in 1835
Pius IV, [Gianangelo de' Medici], Italian lawyer/pope (1559-65) in 1499
Henry Morgan, NYC, comedian/TV panelist (I've Got a Secret, Arena) in 1915

Today’s Obits                                                           
Bella Abzug, American politician dies at 77 in 1998
Charlotte Bronte, English author (Jane Eyre), dies of typhus (?) at 38 in 1855
John Calhoun, 7th US Vice President dies of TB at 68 in 1850
Brandon Lee, US actor (Crow)/son of Bruce Lee, accidentally shot at 28 in 1993
John Pierpont Morgan, US banker/CEO (US Steel Corp), dies at 75 in 1913
Knute Rockne, football player/coach, dies in a plane crash at 43 in 1931
Selena, Mexican Grammy winning singer, killed by a fan at 24 in 1995

Answers                                                                                                                                            
Brain Game

NPR Sunday Puzzle
1.      This old battlefield is ­­­­_____ ground and camping on it is not _____:
a.      hallowed, allowed
2.      The pilot with the receding _____ is the best pilot in the whole _____:
a.      hairline; airline
3.      Any so called expert who describes a red stripped fish as a _____ is clearly _____:
a.      herring; erring
4.      During the summer when temperatures are _____ you’ll see an _____ playing on the bank of the stream:
a.      hotter; otter
5.      Seemingly every horse was in _____ in an old TV western I saw last night starring James _____:
a.      harness; Arness
6.      Appropriately, a ship carrying thousands of seedlings arrived in the _____ on _____ day:
a.      harbor; Arbor
7.      Before putting new tiles on the roof the roofer removes and _____ the old ones over the _____:
a.      heaves; eaves
8.      While studying the colonial site, the archeologists discovered a stone _____ buried in the _____:          
a.      hearth; earth
9.      In the photograph of a woman at her dressing table if her _____ is distracting _____ it out:
a.      hairbrush; airbrush
10.   The girl in the _____ top must _____ her attire before class:
a.      halter; alter

Wuzzle
  • An afterthought
  • Ice cube
  • The heat is intense

 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] the dates may not be totally accurate.
☺    And That Is All for Now  ☺

Mar 30


FYI: Click on any blue text for a link to more information!

Today’s  Historical  Highlights
240 BC - 1st recorded perihelion passage of Halley's Comet
1822 - Congress combined East & West Florida into Florida Territory
1854 - Indians successfully attack, and defeat a company of dragoons at Cieneguilla, New Mexico.
1867 - US buys Alaska from Russia for $7,200,000 (2 cents an acre - Seward's Folly)
1981 - Pres Reagan shot & wounded by John W Hinckley III
♪Happy Birthday To: ♪                     
 
Free Rambling Thoughts   
We moved our weekly lunch to Friday. Mary is very happy to have a new grandson. Mary will head out in a few weeks, though she wants to be there now. Cheryl got called to jury duty in Williams today and had hoped to get out in time for lunch. She didn’t get to be on the jury, as they settled during a break, but she didn’t get out until 11:00 and we had already decided to meet tomorrow.

If Affordable Health Care is set aside by the Supreme Court…I wonder if the many conservatives in this country will then push a law that requires hospitals to no longer pass non-insured patient costs on to insured people. A fairly deep secret in Health Care is that the insurance companies are in constant negotiations regarding all kinds of costs…the health care provider agrees to accept a negotiated price for all services, set by the insurance company; the insurance companies negotiate with ‘groups of insured’ to set the monthly price for its insurance and what it will cover; similar negotiations take place with pharmacies on the cost of meds. When a non-insured patient is treated, they too have some small room to negotiate the price and payments. Many who have gambled by not having insurance, for whatever reason, have found out that costs are high and failure to pay is difficult, until the person’s assets are gone. My mom had good insurance, but ended living in a health care facility that didn’t accept Medicare. Her monthly bill was $7000, she had very good care, good food, and her last few years were good for her. Thankfully she had the money. Many don’t. Several people at the health center stayed until their money was gone, then moved to a Medicare facility. So sad.

Game   Center   (answers at the end of post)
Brain Game

NPR Sunday Puzzle
Every answer is a familiar two-word phrase, in which each word has a short "A" vowel sound. For example, given the clue "A pest weed in lawns," the answer would be "crab grass."
1.      product of Hefty: trash bag
2.      A group of sheets of paper where you may doodle: scratch pad
3.      An annoying thing that accompanies a sitcom: laugh track
4.      Medical image of inside the body: CAT scan
5.      Protection from poison in the air: gas mask
6.      Where you might hang your chapeau: hat rack
7.      Group that included Frank Sinatra, Sammy Davis Jr, Dean Martin: rat pack
8.      Activity for Sammy Davis Jr and Gregory Hines: tap dance
9.      What you might get a club to allow re-entry: hand stamp
10.   Something that prevents you from slipping in the shower: bath mat
11.   According to superstition, it brings bad luck when it runs in front of you: black cat
12.   Winner of all the tricks in a bridge hand: grand slam

Wuzzles  What concept or phrase do these suggest?

Lifestyle  Substance     
Planet Earth—

Found on You Tube         
Vincent Van Gogh Paintings
Harper’s Index         
Percentage decrease in the median US household income during the ‘Great Recession’: 3.2
Joke-of-the-day
A man in a hot air balloon realized he was lost. He reduced altitude and spotted a woman below. He descended a bit more and shouted,” Excuse me, can you help? I promised a friend I would meet him an hour ago, but I don't know where I am."
The woman below replied, "You are in a hot air balloon hovering approximately 30 feet above the ground. You are between 40 and 41 degrees north latitude and between 59 and 60 degrees west longitude."
"You must be an engineer," said the balloonist.
"I am," replied the woman. "How did you know?"
"Well," answered the balloonist, "everything you told me is technically correct, but I have no idea what to make of you, and the fact is I am still lost. Frankly, you've not been much help so far."
The woman below responded, "You must be in management."
"I am," replied the balloonist, "but how did you know?"
 "Well," said the woman, "you don't know where you are or where you are going. You have risen to where you are, due to a large quantity of hot air. You made a promise which you have no idea how to keep, and you expect people beneath you to solve your problems. The fact is you are in exactly the same position you were in before we met, but now, somehow, it's my fault!"
Rules of Thumb   
Easy shortcuts to make an ‘educated’ guess
You can predict your marathon time by multiplying your best 10 kilometer time by 4.65.
Somewhat Useless Information   
The Clydesdale became the enduring symbol of Budweiser in 1933 when Prohibition was repealed. Even though horse-drawn carriages were no longer used to deliver brew, August A. Busch Jr. purchased a team of geldings and hitched them to a beer delivery wagon as a surprise for his father.
Former major leaguer Bob Uecker actually gained more fame as the perennial "loser" in a series of ads for Miller Lite. Not everyone thought of him in this way, though. In 2006, he was forced to file a restraining order against a persistent stalker.
New York's Rheingold beer was famous for its annual "Miss Rheingold" competition, and Gothamites took this contest seriously. In the 1959 contest, 22 million votes were cast, making the New York turnout second only to the following year's presidential election.
Spuds MacKenzie, the "ultimate party animal" that pitched Bud Lite, was actually a female dog. The English Bull Terrier, whose real name was Honey Tree Evil Eye, was a female dog forced to live a lie and pretend to be male in front of the cameras.
The frosty mug filled with ice-cold beer seen on TV commercials is actually room-temperature beer with dish soap and salt added to keep a good foamy head. Glycerin is sprayed on the outside of the mug to simulate water drops.
During the late 1970s, actor James Coburn was paid a sum of $500,000 for uttering just two words in a series of beer commercials: "Schlitz...Light."
Yeah, It Really Happened                 
ARLINGTON, Texas - The company that handles concessions for the Texas Rangers said fans at Rangers Ballpark will be able to buy a 1-pound hot dog for $26. Concessions firm Sportsservice said the "Boomstick" hot dog, named in honor of right fielder Nelson Cruz, is topped with shredded cheese, chili, sautéed onions and fries, ESPNDallas.com reported Monday.
"I don't know how many calories are in this thing, but it's got to be 2,000 or 3,000," said Casey Rapp, operations manager for Sportsservice. "We did a half-pound hot dog during the World Series and wanted to top it," Rapp said. "Our company had to have the hot dog made special and we had to find a local bakery to make the bun. The bun is like a loaf of bread just to hold this thing."

Calendar Information        
…Happening This Week:
25-31 
Consider Christianity Week:
Passiontide (3/25-4/7)
National Conference on Family Literacy
Pediatric Nurse Practioner Week
Root Canal Awareness Week
National Protocol Officer's Week
National Cleaning Week
Today Is                                                                      
Doctors Day
Grass Is Always Browner On The Other Side Of The Fence Day
I Am In Control Day
Pencil Day 1858 - Pencil with attached eraser patented (Hyman L Lipman of Phila)

Today’s Other Events                                                             
1400’s
1422 - Ketsugan, Zen teacher, performs exorcisms to free aizoji temple
1500’s
1533 - Henry VIII divorces his 1st wife, Catherine of Aragon
> 
1800’s
1802 - The Indian Trade and Intercourse Act becomes law
1814 - Britain & allies march into Paris after defeating Napoleon
1842 - Ether was used as an anaesthetic for 1st time by Dr Crawford Long (Ga)
1856 - Russia signs Peace of Paris, ending the Crimean War
1900’s
1943 - Rodgers & Hammerstein's "Oklahoma!," premieres in NYC
1950 - Phototransistor invention announced, Murray Hill, NJ
1964 - Astronaut John Glenn withdraws from Ohio senate race
1967 - Cover picture of Beatles' "Sgt Pepper's" is photographed
1987 - Vincent van Goghs "Sunflowers" sells for record 22.5M pounds ($39.7 million)
2000’s
2006 - Marcos Pontes is the first Brazilian astronaut in space
2006 - UK Terrorism Act 2006 becomes law

Today’s Birthdays                                                           
In their 80’s
John Astin actor (I'm Dickens He's Fenster, Addams Family) is 82
Richard Dysart, Brighton Mass, actor (Leland MacKenzie-LA Law) is 83
Peter Marshall, Huntington WV, TV game show host (Hollywood Squares) is 85
In their 70’s
Warren Beatty actor (Bonnie & Clyde,Shampoo, Dick Tracy) is 75
In their 60’s
Eric Clapton, Ripley England, singer/guitarist (Tears in Heaven) is 67
In their 50’s
M C Hammer, [Stanley Kirk Burrell], Oakland Ca, rapper (Hammer Time) is 50
Paul Reiser actor (My 2 Dads, Diner, Aliens, Mad About You) is 55
In their 40’s
Celine Dion, Quebec Canada, singer (I'm Your Lady ) will be 44
Ian Ziering, West Orange NJ, actor (Steve Sanders-Beverly Hills 90210) is 48
In their 30’s
Norah Jones, American singer and pianist (Don’t Know Why ) is 33
Remembered for being born on this day
McGeorge Bundy, Boston, national security adviser (JFK) in 1919
Countee Cullen, US poet (Color, Ballad of the Brown Girl) in 1903
John Fiske, [Edmund Fisk Green], US historian/philosopher in 1842
John Hawkins, England, wrote 1st history of music in 1719
Nichiren, Japan, Buddhist priest/saint in 1222
Secreteriat, race horse, triple crown (1973) in 1970
Anna Sewell, British author in 1820
Vincent van Gogh, Groot-Zundert, Netherlands, artist, painter and pioneer of Expressionism (The Potato Eaters, Irises) in 1853
John-Baptist Xavery, Flemish sculptor in 1697

Today’s Obits                                                           
Elizabeth Bowes-Lyon, Queen Mother of the United Kingdom dies at 102 in 2002
James Cagney, actor (Yankee Doodle Dandy ), dies in NY at 86 in 1986
Alistair Cooke, English-born journalist dies at 96 in 2004
William Hunter, Scottish anatomist dies at 64 in 1783
W F A A Louisa/Lovisa, queen of Sweden/Norway, dies at 42 in 1871
Benedict Augustin Morel, psychologist (dementia praecox), dies at 63 in 1873

Answers                                                                                                                                            
Brain Game

NPR Sunday Puzzle
1.      A product of hefty:
a.      trash bag
2.      A group of sheets of paper where you may doodle:
a.      scratch pad
3.      An annoying thing that accompanies a sitcom:
a.      laugh track
4.      Medical image of inside the body:
a.      CAT scan
5.      Protection from poison in the air:
a.      gas mask
6.      Where you might hang your chapeau:
a.      hat rack
7.      Group that included Frank Sinatra, Sammy Davis Jr, Dean Martin:
a.      rat pack
8.      Activity for Sammy Davis Jr and Gregory Hines:
a.      tap dance
9.      What you might get a club to allow re-entry:
a.      hand stamp
10.   Something that prevents you from slipping in the shower:
a.      bath mat
11.   According to superstition, it brings bad luck when it runs in front of you:
a.      black cat
12.   Winner of all the tricks in a bridge hand:
a.      grand slam

Wuzzle
  •  play by play OR double play
  • detonate
  • silo

 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] the dates may not be totally accurate.
☺    And That Is All for Now  ☺

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Flagstaff, Arizona, United States
I retired in '06--at the ripe old age of 57. I enjoy blogging, photography, traveling, and living life to it's fullest.