Apr 9

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Apr 9, 2018 Week: 15\ Day: 99

86004 Today: H 68° \ L 32° \ Average Sky Cover: 5% 

Nearest Lightning:  504 miles away

Wind ave.:   15mph\Gusts:  0mph Visibility: 10 mi

Record High: 75°[1989]   Record Low: 9°[1953]

Apr Averages: 58°\27°

Today’s Quote

There is always one moment in childhood when the door opens and lets the future in.

Graham Greene

Harper’s Index

55

            Percentage of US whites who believe

white Americans are discriminated against

21

Who say they’ve experienced discrimination themselves

More Observances This Month

Grange Month Link
Holy Humor Month
Home Improvement Time (April-Sept.30)
Honor Society Awareness Month
Informed Women Month

Observances This Week

4-10

Hate Week

7-13

National Dental Hygienest Week Link

7-15

National Robotics Week Link

8-14

Animal Control Officer Appreciation Week Link
National Dog Bite Prevention Week Link
National Crime Victims Rights Week  Link
National Public Safety Telecommunicators (911 Operators) Week
National Student Employment Week Link
Oral, Head and Neck Cancer Awareness Week Link
Pan American Week
Undergraduate Research Week  Link  

9-13

American Indian Awareness Week Link

9-15

National Library Week 
National Occupational Health Nursing Week Link
National Work Zone Safety Awareness Week Link

Observances for Today

Appomattox Day Link
Jenkins Ear Day
Jumbo Day  (Elephant came to US and created the word for big in our language.)
Name Yourself Day

National Cherish An Antique Day
National Former Prisoner of War Recognition Day
Winston Churchill Day

Today’s Significant US Historical Events

✪ Today’s Significant International Historical Events 

1600’s                                          

✪1682 Robert La Salle claims lower Mississippi (Louisiana) for France

1700’s                                          

✪1731 British mariner Robert Jenkins' ear cut off by Spanish Guarde Costa in the Caribbean, later catalyst for war between Britain & Spain

1768 John Hancock refuses to allow two British customs agents to go below deck of his ship, considered by some to be the first act of physical resistance to British authority in the colonies

1800’s                                          

1865 Confederate General Robert E Lee and 26,765 troops surrender at Appomattox Court House to US Lieutenant General Ulysses S Grant (US Civil War)

1866 Civil Rights Bill passes over President Andrew Johnson's veto

✪1872 Samuel R Percy patents dried milk

1900’s                                          

1914 US President W Wilson refuses to recognize Huerta as President of Mexico on the grounds that he has not been elected by the people

1928 Mae West's NYC debut in a daring new play "Diamond Lil"

1939 Marian Anderson sings before 75,000 at the Lincoln Memorial in Washington, D.C.

1947 Atomic Energy Commission confirmed

✪1952 Hugo Ballivian's government is overthrown by the Bolivian National Revolution, starting a period of agrarian reform, universal suffrage and the nationalization of tin mines

1953 "TV Guide" publishes 1st issue

1959 Bill Sharman hits a NBA record 56 consecutive foul shot

1959 NASA names 1st 7 astronauts for Project Mercury

1962 34th Academy Awards: "West Side Story", Sophia Loren & Maximillian Schell win

✪1963 Winston Churchill becomes 1st honorary US citizen

1976 "All the President's Men", directed by Alan J. Pakula, based on the novel by Carl Bernstein and Bob Woodward detailing their Watergate investigation, starring Dustin Hoffman and Robert Redford, is released

1979 51st Academy Awards: "The Deer Hunter", Jon Voight & Jane Fonda win

1984 56th Academy Awards: "Terms of Endearment", Robert Duvall & Shirley MacLaine win

1992 US Fed court finds Panamanian dictator Manuel Noriega guilty of 8 out of 10 drug and racketeering charges

1993 Colorado Rockies 1st home game & 1st victory, 11-4 over Mont Expos

2000’s                                          

✪2003 Baghdad falls to U.S. forces ending the invasion of Iraqi but resulting in widespread looting

✪2017 Two Egyptian Coptic churches in Tanta and Alexandria attacked by suicide bombers leaving at least 44 dead

2017 Twitter footage of passenger forcibly removed from United Airlines flight in Chicago after flight overbooked causes outrage

My Rambling Thoughts

Nice spring day as the wind died down late last night. No moisture.

Caught up on my Sunday morning news shows. Not a lot new. Guess the world be around another week.

Reviewing my trip to the Amazon. Have to pick up a few things, like a water bottle with carrier for our hikes and some kind of shoe covering to keep my shoes dry on the hikes. Living in a high desert, the second one may be a challenge, probably just a good waterproofing spray for the hiking boots. And I have to search out my walking sticks…they are somewhere in the house.

Most of us are hooked up to some emergency network where we live. I just got an auto-call from the Sheriff’s network that there was a fast moving wildfire in the area and to plan for evacuation of my home. A tad scary until I looked in that direction and saw a little  smoke. Looked up the area they listed in the call and it is 14 miles away and there is a four-lane highway and lots of homes and businesses between me and the fire. Also, lots of trees. I’m now hearing several fire trucks headed that way. Not planning on evacuation, but will certainly keep my eyes open. One house destroyed, fire still moving. Helicopter just dropped water.  I do believe their potential evacuation area is much larger than necessary.

Birthdays Today

@-  indicates age at death

90’s

@91- Hugh Hefner,

American magazine publisher and businessman (Playboy),

 born in Chicago

(d. 2017)

80’s

86- Paul Krassner,

comic strip cartoonist (MAD Magazine)/founder (Yippies)

70’s

79- Michael Learned,

actress (Olivia-Waltons, Nurse),

born in Washington, D.C.

@77- Paul Robeson,

American singer (Old Man River), actor and

civil rights activist,

born in Princeton, NJ

stroke (d. 1976)

@76- John Presper Eckert,

co-inventor (1st electronic computer-ENIAC)

leukemia (d. 1995)

60’s

@68- Tamerlane (Timur),

Turkic conqueror and founder of the Timurid Dynasty,

born in Shahrisabz, Uzbekistan

(d. 1405)

64- Dennis Quaid,

actor (Big Easy, Dreamscape, Right Stuff),

born in Houston, Texas

50’s

@57- Ward Bond,

American actor (Wagon Train, It's a Wonderful Life),

born in Benkelman, Neb

heart attack (d. 1960)

55- Marc Jacobs,

fashion designer

55- Joe Scarborough,

American television personality

52- Cynthia Nixon,

American actress (Sex and the City),

born in NYC

20’s

28- Kristen Stewart,

American actress (Bella Swan-The Twilight Saga),

born in Los Angeles

Historical Obits Today

80’s

@89-1959 Frank Lloyd Wright,

American architect (Guggenheim)

recognized as "the greatest American architect of all time"

60’s

@65-1626 Francis Bacon,

English statesman and philosopher

pneumonia

50’s

@56-1988 Brook Benton [Benjamin Franklin Peay],

American soul vocalist

(It's Just a Matter of Time, Rainy Night in Georgia),

meningitis

30’s

@35-1976 Phil Ochs,

American anti-war folk singer (Draft Dodger Rag),

commits suicide

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 contains mistakes and sadly once 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.

Apr 8

FYI: Any blue text is a link. Click to check it out!

Apr 8, 2018 Week: 15\ Day: 98

86004 Today: H 77° \ L 44° \ Average Sky Cover: 35% 

Nearest Lightning:  728 miles away

Wind ave.:   14mph\Gusts:  35mph Visibility: 10 mi

Record High: 78°[1989]   Record Low: 14°[1999]

Apr Averages: 58°\27°

Today’s Quote

Travel is fatal to prejudice, bigotry, and narrow-mindedness, and many of our people need it sorely on these accounts. Broad, wholesome, charitable views of men and things cannot be acquired by vegetating in one little corner of the earth.

   Mark Twain

Harper’s Index

47

            Percentage of US Latinos who would

support a law criminalizing offensive speech

about white people

26

            Of US Whites

More Observances This Month

Frog Month Link
Genocide and Human Rights Awareness Month  Link
Global Astronomy Month
Global Child Nutrition Month Link

Observances This Week

4-10

Hate Week

5-8

Mule Day
The Masters Tournament

7-8

Just Pray No! Worldwide Weekend of Prayer and Fasting

7-13

National Dental Hygienest Week Link

7-15

National Robotics Week Link

8-14

Animal Control Officer Appreciation Week Link
National Dog Bite Prevention Week Link
National Crime Victims Rights Week  Link
National Public Safety Telecommunicators (911 Operators) Week
National Student Employment Week Link
Oral, Head and Neck Cancer Awareness Week Link
Pan American Week
Undergraduate Research Week  Link  

Observances for Today

All is Ours Day

Buddah Day (Historical Birth Date)  Link 
Draw a Picture of a Bird Day Link
International Roma Day
National Dog Fighting Awareness Day
Trading Cards For Grown-ups Day Link
Zoo Lover's Day

Today’s Significant US Historical Events

✪ Today’s Significant International Historical Events 

1000’s                                          

✪1093 The new Winchester Cathedral is dedicated by bishop Walkelin

1700’s                                          

1730 1st Jewish congregation in US forms synagogue, "Shearith Israel, NYC"

✪1766 1st fire escape patented, wicker basket on a pulley & chain

1800’s                                          

✪1820 The famous ancient Greek statue, Venus de Milo is discovered on the Aegean island of Melos

1879 Milk sold in glass bottles for 1st time

✪1886 William Ewart Gladstone introduces the first Irish Home Rule Bill into the British House of Commons.

1893 The Critic reports that ice cream soda is America's national drink

1900’s                                          

1913 17th amendment, requiring direct election of US senators, ratified

1935 Works Progress Administration approved by Congress

1943 U.S. President Franklin Roosevelt, in an attempt to check inflation, freezes wages and prices, prohibits workers from changing jobs unless the war effort would be aided thereby, and bars rate increases to common carriers and public utilities.

1963 35th Academy Awards: "Lawrence of Arabia", Anne Bancroft & Gregory Peck win

1966 Time publishes its "Is God Dead" issue - its first issue without an image

✪1979 People's Republic of China joins IOC

✪1985 India files suit against Union Carbide over Bhopal disaster

1986 Clint Eastwood elected mayor of Carmel, California. Makes his day.

2000’s                                          

2000 Nineteen US Marines are killed when a V-22 Osprey tilt-rotor aircraft crashes near Marana, Arizona

✪2004 Darfur conflict: The Humanitarian Ceasefire Agreement is signed by the Sudanese government and two rebel groups

✪2017 Fifth day of protests by thousands in Caracas, Venezuela against the government

My Rambling Thoughts

Drove over to get my taxes. We had agreed on Sat. @ 12:30. I even got a text message, but the time had changed to 12:15. No problem. I get there and she can’t find my appointment. I pull up the text message and discover they changed the date to the 9^th as well as the time. Oh, well. Computers and input people do what they want. I’m just getting to be the old fart who does as he is told without complaint.

A spring day here….and that means strong winds. Anyone interested is buying some of our wind? These 35mph gusts are no fun.

Massive changes have occurred in this great country since 45 took over. I am not happy about most of the changes, since they change people’s lives and not for the better. National Guard troops have returned to the southern AZ border and the Texas border. That should stop all the people who overstay their VISAs. And illegal border crossing is the lowest it has been in decades. Heard from the head of Texas National Guard that their soldiers are ready, but will have to be rotated out to get more training on border crossing….seems they are well trained for disasters but not trained for illegal border crossers. Hmmm, wonder where the training money will come from? And who has the expertise? Seems like 45 has pretty much disqualified any who really know.

Birthdays Today

@-  indicates age at death

90’s

@93- Betty [Bloomer] Ford,

US 1st lady (1974-77) and

founder of the Betty Ford Center clinic,

born in Chicago, Illinois

(d. 2011)

80’s

@87- Mary Pickford [Gladys Smith],

Canadian actress (Poor Little Rich Girl),

born in Toronto, Ontario

(d. 1979)

@86- John Gavin [Juan Vincent Apablasa Jr],

American actor (Imitation of Life, Psycho), and

US Ambassador to Mexico (1981–86),

born in Los Angeles

(d. 2018)

60’s

@64- Joan Sebastian (José Manuel Figueroa Figueroa),

popular Mexican singer

bone cancer (d. 2015)

50’s

58- John Schneider,

actor (Dukes of Hazzard)

@57- Sonja Henie,

Norwegian ice skater (Olympic gold 1928,32,36) and

actress (My Lucky Star),

born in Oslo, Norway

leukemia (d. 1969)

55- Julian Lennon,

singer (Too Late for Goodbyes) and

son of John,

born in Liverpool, England

50- Patricia Arquette,

actress (Boyhood, True Romance),

born in NYC

40’s

@47- Juan Ponce de León,

Spanish explorer and conquistador 

searched for the fountain of youth and

the first European to discover Florida,

born in Santervás de Campos, Castile, Spain

poisoned arrow from locals (d. 1521)

41- Sara Shepherd,

author (Pretty Little Liars)

30’s

@38- Chris Kyle,

Navy SEAL sniper (160 kills),

shot by friend (d. 2013)

Historical Obits Today

90’s

@96-1993 Marian Anderson,

American contralto and celebrated singer

(My Lord, What a Morning)

@91-1973 Pablo Picasso,

Spanish painter (The Young Ladies of Avignon, Guernica)

80’s

@88-1981 Omar Bradley,

last US 5-star general, (Normandy)

@87-2013 Margaret Thatcher,

British Prime Minister (1979 - 1990)

70’s

@70-2013 Annette Funicello,

American singer and actress (Mickey Mouse Club),

multiple sclerosis complications

50’s

@50-1861 Elisha Otis,

American founder of the Otis Elevator Company and

inventor of a safety device that prevents elevators from

falling if the hoisting cable fails,

diphtheria

40’s

@49-1997 Laura Nyro,

singer, ovarian cancer

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 contains mistakes and sadly once 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…☼☼☼☼