Sep 22

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

Sep. 22, 2019 Week: 39  Day: 265

86004:   H 69° \ L 38° \ Average Sky Cover: 5% 

Nearest wildfire:  19mi.  Nearest lightning:  480mi

Wind:   12mph\Gusts:  22mph  Visibility: 10 mi

Record High: 83°[1949]   Record Low: 20°[1912]

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

Today’s Quote

Economics is extremely useful

as a form of employment for economists.

John Kenneth Galbraith

Random Tidbits

Did you know that it rains diamonds on Uranus and Neptune? Recently scientists have been able to recreate the extreme pressures that exist at the bottom of the hydrocarbon-rich oceans of slush on these gas giants.

Researchers were able to produce this "diamond rain" using carbon polystyrene and high-powered lasers. The diamonds are only nanometers in length, but the experiment proves what the environmental extremes on these planets can produce

Observances This 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  

22-28

Banned Books Week
Deaf Dog Awareness Week Link 
International Interpreters and Translators Week
National Dog Week  Link and  Link
National Employ Older Workers Week Link 
National Keep Kids Creative Week
Remember to Register to Vote Week
Sea Otter Awareness Week Link   
Tolkien Week 
World Hearing Aid Awareness Week   Link 
World Reflexology Week 

Observances for Today

Clean Up The World Weekend-thru 22 Link 

American Business Women's Day
Car Free Day Link
Chainmail Day
 Dear Diary Day
Elephant Appreciation Day
Great Gorilla Run Day Link
Hobbit Day
Ice Cream Cone Day
International Day of Radiant Peace
National Centenarian's Day
National Girls' Night In Link
National Leg Wear Day Link
National Rock n' Roll Dog Day
National White Chocolate Day  Link
Remote Employee Appreciation Day

My Rambling Thoughts

Mary got back from Phx, so we did our weekly lunch yesterday at a nice little neighborhood sandwich shop. Great menu, great sandwiches, great conversation. Somehow our conversation lasted a good 2-1/2 hours. All good.

Our mountain town joined in the Climate Change Protest yesterday with several hundred protesters at City Hall. Many young for sure, but some old-er people too. After visiting numerous rain forest around the world I have heard stories from locals how the currently brown rivers used to run blue, how the lumber industry has decimated thousands of acres of primeval forest, it is not a big leap to believe that man’s belief that ‘man can control nature’ is harming this planet. Traditional Native belief is that ‘man should live in harmony with mother earth’. Makes more sense to me.

I couldn’t wait for the equinox, so this morning I cleaned out my cooler and stored it until next summer. This was a warm summer. Normally I use it for a couple of days in July. This year I was using it almost daily, early July until about a 2 weeks ago. I’m far from ready for snow, but the cooler temps are nice. The weather map says that it will be in the 60’s next week with some rain showers Monday thru Wednesday. Always welcome rain showers.

Today’s Puzzle

Answer at the bottom of this page

When young, I am sweet in the sun.

When middle-aged, I make you smile.

When old, I am valued more than ever.

What am I?

Historical Events

1776 - Nathan Hale was hanged by the British as a spy for the colonies during the Revolutionary War. In fairness to the British, this war hero was spying on them.

1789 - The U.S. Post Office was established by congress.

1862- The Emancipation Proclamation was issued by the president of the United States

1911 - Pitcher Cy Young beat Pittsburgh 1-0 for his final career victory - number 511.

1920 - A Chicago Grand Jury convened to investigate charges that 8 White Sox players conspired to fix the 1919 World Series. They did.

1938 - Broadway Show - Hellzapoppin (Review) opened

1964 - Broadway Show - Fiddler on the Roof (Musical) opened

1964 - The Man from U.N.C.L.E. premiered on NBC.

1973 - #1 Hit: Helen Reddy - Delta Dawn

1984 - #1 Hit: John Waite - Missing You

1985 - Farm Aid was first broadcast, on TNN and in syndication

1986 - ALF debuted on NBC

1987 - Full House premiered on ABC

1989 - ABC debuted TGIF (Thank Goodness It's Friday) from 8:00pm to 10:00pm, a new programming block for Friday Nights with four shows (Full House, Family Matters, Perfect Strangers, and Just the Ten of Us)

1994 - Friends premiered on NBC

2004 - Lost premiered on ABC

2009 - The Good Wife premiered on CBS

2011 - CERN scientists announced their discovery of neutrinos breaking the speed of light. There were reasonably sure that the experiment would not cause a black hole that would suck up the entire planet. So far, so good.

2013 Angela Merkel and the Christian Democrats win a third term with their best result since 1990 in German Federal elections

2014 NASA's MAVEN space probe successfully arrives in orbit over Mars

2015 Pope Francis is greeted by President Obama and Vice President Biden as he arrives for his 6 day tour of the US

2015 Volkswagen admits that 11 million cars have been wrongly programmed to appear to emit lesser emissions than they are

2015 Chinese President Xi Jinping arrives in Seattle to start his first state visit to the US

2015 Palangkaraya in Indonesian Borneo records the highest air pollutant index (API) value ever recorded of 1,986 due to haze caused by forest fires deliberately lit to clear land for palm oil plantations

Birthdays Today

John Houseman, actor, producer

(d. 1988 @86)

Toni Basil

[Antonia Christina Basilotta],

singer, dancer, choreographer (76)

Paul Muni

[Frederich Meshilem Meier Weisenfreund],

stage and movie actor

(d. 1967 @71; heart attack)

Debby Boone, singer (63)

Andrea Bocelli, opera singer (61)

Joan Jett, rock singer (61)

Scott Baio, TV actor (59)

Bonnie Hunt, comedic actor (58)

Mystikal [Michael Lawrence Tyler], rapper  (48)

Tom Felton, actor [Harry Potter movies] (32)

Puzzle answer:

WINE

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.