Sep 20

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

Sep. 20, 2019 Week: 38  Day: 263

86004:   H 72° \ L 45° \ Average Sky Cover: 5% 

Nearest wildfire:  18mi.  Nearest lightning:  176mi

Wind:   30mph\Gusts:  36mph  Visibility: 10 mi

Record High: 83°[2000]   Record Low: 23°[1971]

Sep Averages: 74°\42° (5 days with rain)

Today’s Quote

Don't go around saying the world owes you a living.

The world owes you nothing.

It was here first.

Mark Twain

Random Tidbits

Horizontal gaming wheels, such as those used in roulette, were invented in England in 1720 for a game called roly-poly. Roly-poly was similar to roulette, except there were no numbers on the wheel. There were alternating white spaces and black spaces, along with a "bar black" space and a "bar white" space. The "bar" spaces were the equivalents of zero and double-zero -- if the ball landed in either space, bets on black or white lost. Roly-poly was banned in England in 1745, but the horizontal wheel traveled well. By 1796, modern roulette was being played in France.

The kings in decks of playing cards represent real leaders and conquerors from history, although not all had the title of king. The deck we use today is based on cards designed in 15th-century France. The king of spades represents the Biblical King David, the king of clubs represents Alexander the Great, the king of hearts represents Charlemagne and the king of diamonds represents Julius Caesar.

Observances This Week

15-21

Balance Awareness Week Link   
Build A Better Image Week 
Child Passenger Safety Week Link  
International Clean Hands Week
Mitochondrial Disease Awareness Week Link
National Farm & Ranch Safety and Health Week
National Historically Black Colleges & Universities Week
National Indoor Plant Week 
National Rehabilitation Awareness Week 
National Security Officer Appreciation Week  
National Singles Week 
Pollution Prevention Week Link
Prostate Cancer Awareness Week  

16-22

National Love Your Files Week Link 
National Postdoc Appreciation Week Link

17-23

Constitution Week

18-22

National Guitar Flat-Picking Days Link
Hummingbird Celebration: Link

20-29

National Ballroom Dance Week  Link
Farm Animal Awareness Week  

Observances for Today

Bright Pink Lipstick Day  Link
Clean Up The World Weekend-thru 22 Link 

Constitution Day/Pledge Across America 
International Grenache Day   Link
National Concussion Awareness Day  Link
National Doodle Day  Link
National Fried Rice Day Link
National POW/MIA Recognition Day  Link
National Pepperoni Pizza Day

National Punch Day / Rum Punch Day

National String Cheese Day  Link
National Tradesmen Day 

My Rambling Thoughts

Red Flag Day here with wind expected to reach 45mph late this afternoon. Not a day to be outside for long.

The PBS/Ken Burns Country Music documentary just keeps getting better. I’m a day behind, but watched the Hank Williams part last night. What a story, much of which I didn’t know. Enjoying the new knowledge.

I knew we had ‘detention centers’ for kids near the border. Didn’t know there was one that sits empty. It is run by a private contractor and could hold 1200 kids. The gov’t contract is still being paid monthly to the empty facility for a mere $720,000. WTH? The guy with the contract says that is what it costs each month to keep the place viable, in case it is needed. Sounds fishy to me.

I put some nice photos of the current Scotland trip on the Focus FB page. Thanks to Ann for sending them to me.

Today is my service comp date…that means that in 1971 I started my job at Shonto Boarding School. I was teaching 3^rd grade. It began my 36-year career on the Navajo Reservation. I didn’t have TV the first two years, then my dad showed up and put up a 40’ TV antenna with guy wires so I could see one channel from Flagstaff. I’m still in person friends with a few from Shonto, and a few more on FB. It was a great experience.

Today is also the anniversary of my father’s passing in 1994. He was a great dad and is still missed. He made it to 80 years old and was only hospitalized for about the week before his passing. My brother, mother, and I were there for the last days. The priest from our church, who was close to our family, was there for last rites. Much later he told my mom it was the first time he had given last rites and it was one of the hardest things he ever did. We didn’t realize that until he told my mom. When he retired to a church retirement home, he called my mom and said he set up a prayer for my father that would be said every week in perpetuity. WOW!

Today’s Puzzle

Answer at the bottom of this page

How can you physically stand behind your father while he is standing behind you?

For this kind of super tricky riddle, you might do best to actually map out the physical relationship in your head—if you can! This riddle works by tricking you into thinking about impossibilities.

This is the last riddle for a while. Next up are more puzzles.

Historical Events

1498 (Earthquake & Tsunami) Nankaido, Japan

1960 - The Flintstones debuted on ABC

1969 - #1 Hit: The Archies - Sugar, Sugar

1973 - An estimated 90 million people watched 'The Battle of the Sexes.' Billie Jean King defeated Bobby Riggs in a televised tennis match at the Astrodome in Houston, Texas.

1975 - #1 Hit: David Bowie - Fame

1977 - The Fonz jumped a shark on Happy Days, forever immortalizing the phrase "jumping the shark" as a metaphor for when something has passed its peak.

1979 - Buck Rogers in the 25th Century premiered on NBC

1984 - The Cosby Show premiered on NBC

1984 - Who's The Boss debuted on ABC.

1986 - #1 Hit: Huey Lewis and the News - Stuck with You

1989 - East End Show - Miss Saigon (Musical) opened

1990 - The Flash premiered on CBS

1993 - Vicki Van Meter took off from Maine, landing in San Diego three days later, becoming the youngest female pilot to fly across the U.S.

1998 - The Iron Man Rested - Baltimore Orioles shortstop Cal Ripken, Jr. sat out a game, ending his consecutive MLB game playing streak. Cal "Irom Man' Ripken played 2,632 consecutive games over 16 seasons.

1999- Law & Order: SVU debuted on NBC

2006 - Top Gear co-host Richard Hammond was seriously injured after crashing a car at 280 mph

2009 - Barack Obama appeared on five Sunday news/talk shows on the same day: CBS's Face the Nation, ABC's This Week, CNN's State of the Union with John King, NBC/MSNBC's Meet The Press and on Univision.

2013 - The Apple iPhone 4S, iPhone 5C and iPHone 5S were released.

2014 - #1 Hit: Meghan Trainor - All About That Bass

Birthdays Today

Anne Meara, comedian, actress (d. 2015 @85)

Dr. Joyce Brothers, psychologist, TV personality

(d. 2013 @85)

Sophia Loren, actor (85)

George RR Martin, writer (A Song of Ice & Fire) (71)

Jay Ward , creator (Rocky & Bullwinkle, Dudley Do-Right, Peabody and Sherman, George of the Jungle)

(d. 1989 @69; renal cancer)

Jon Bernthal, TV actor (The Walking Dead) (43)

Asia Argento, Italalian actor/writer & leader of ‘#Me Too’ (43)

Puzzle answer:

You are standing back-to-back with your father.

Sep 19

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

Sep. 19, 2019 Week: 38  Day: 262

86004:   H 74° \ L 50° \ Average Sky Cover: 35% 

Nearest wildfire:  18mi.  Nearest lightning:  483mi

Wind:   9mph\Gusts:  24mph  Visibility: 10 mi

Record High: 84°[1956]   Record Low: 25°[1971]

Sep Averages: 74°\42° (5 days with rain)

Today’s Quote

If moderation is a fault,

then indifference is a crime.

Jack Kerouac

Random Tidbits

Coin-operated gaming devices in the late 1800s included games with large revolving wheels divided into color segments. Players wagered on which color the wheel would stop. They're considered the forerunners of modern slot machines, even though they didn't have reels. The first recognizably modern three-reel slot was the Liberty Bell, invented by Charles Fey in San Francisco in 1899. The machine was so popular that for many years all slot machines were referred to as bell machines.

The game of 21 got its common nickname, blackjack, from a practice in illegal casinos in the early 1900s. Some casinos paid a bonus if a two-card 21 was made up of an ace and jack of spades. Others paid bonuses if an ace of spades was accompanied by a jack of either clubs or spades. The black jack was the key to the bonus, and became the name of the game.

Observances This Week

10-19

Palindrome Week 9-10-19…9-19-19

15-21

Balance Awareness Week Link   
Build A Better Image Week 
Child Passenger Safety Week Link  
International Clean Hands Week
Mitochondrial Disease Awareness Week Link
National Farm & Ranch Safety and Health Week
National Historically Black Colleges & Universities Week
National Indoor Plant Week 
National Rehabilitation Awareness Week 
National Security Officer Appreciation Week  
National Singles Week 
Pollution Prevention Week Link
Prostate Cancer Awareness Week  

16-22

National Love Your Files Week Link 
National Postdoc Appreciation Week Link

17-23

Constitution Week

18-22

National Guitar Flat-Picking Days Link
Hummingbird Celebration: Link

Observances for Today

International Talk Like a Pirate Day

National Ask An Atheist Day Link   
National Gymnastics Day

National Butterscotch Pudding Day

National PawPaw Day
National Teach Ag Day Link 
Talk Like A Pirate Day Link  Link 

My Rambling Thoughts

After all my cleaning, I had about 3 bags of good stuff I no longer use ready for Savers (Boys Club Donations). So this morning I dropped them off at their bin. That pesky fire outside of town, though under control, and the wind the past few days has lots of smoke blowing in to our community during the day. Right now, it looks like an eclipse is happening. Grrrrr.

Thinking about winners and losers from yesterday’s hearing with Cory…there were no winners and the losers were the American people. Our President tweeted to Cory that he did a great job. Hmmm. One tiny thing that came out of the last part of the hearings is when Cory said he had no reason to talk truthfully to the press. He said with them, he is not under oath. The reason this is very frightening to me is that what other political people believe the same thing? Years ago I would have seen him as an outlier. Today, not so much.

I have been a fan of Cokie Roberts since she started at NPR and whenever she interviewed people on ABC. She will be missed by many. Journalism lost an icon, America lost a dedicated journalist.

Today’s Puzzle

Answer at the bottom of this page

What can you hold in your right hand, but never in your left hand?

Take it slow and easy with this one. Perhaps if take a look at your own hands, that might give you a clue based on logic.

Historical Events

1876 - Melville Bissell patented the first carpet sweeper.

1921 - The greatest rainfall recorded in United States history during 18 consecutive hours (measured at an unofficial weather-monitoring site) fell at Thrall, Williamson County, Texas, 36.40 inches fell from a Hurricane.

1928 - Mickey Mouse's first screen appearance - Steamboat Willie at the Colony Theater NYC.

1934 - Bruno Haptmann was arrested for kidnapping Charles Lindbergh's baby.

1952 - The Adventures of Superman premiered, in syndication

1960 - #1 Hit: Chubby Checker - The Twist

1961 - Betty and Barney Hill claimed to be abducted by aliens in New Hampshire

1970 - #1 Hit: Diana Ross - Ain't No Mountain High Enough

1970 - The Mary Tyler Moore Show premiered on CBS.

1975 - The alligator was removed from the endangered species list in parts of Louisiana.

1976 - A UFO was reportedly seen over Tehran, Iran. Two F-4 Phantom II jets lost power during a chase.

1977 - The chairs on which Archie and Edith Bunker sat through 8 seasons of All in the Family were given to the Smithsonian Institution

1981 - Paul Simon & Art Garfunkel performed a reunion concert in New York's Central Park.

1983 - Kiss performed on MTV without make-up for the first time.

1983 - The nighttime (syndicated) edition of the NBC daytime game show Wheel of Fortune premiered

1984 - Highway To Heaven premiered on NBC

1987 - #1 Hit: Michael Jackson with Siedah Garrett - I Just Can't Stop Loving You

1994- ER made its debut on NBC

2005 - How I Met Your Mother premiered on CBS

2014 - The Apple iPhone 6 and iPhone 6 Plus were released.

2015 - #1 Hit: Justin Bieber - What Do You Mean?

Birthdays Today

James Lipton, lyricist, writer (Inside the Actors Studio) (93)

Adam West, actor (d. 2017 @88)

Jeremy Irons, movie actor (71)

Twiggy [Dame Lesley Hornby Lawson, model (70)

Cheri Oteri, comedian (SNL) (57)

Brooke Benton, Rock & Roll/R&B singer

(d. 1988 @ 56; pneumonia)

Trisha Yearwood, country singer (55)

Jimmy Fallon, TV host (45)

Columbus Short, choreographer, actor (37)

Puzzle answer:

Your left hand.