May 25

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

May 25, 2020 Week: 22 Day: 146

86004: H 73° \ L 36° \ Average Sky Cover: 5%

Wind: 6mph\Gusts: 7mph Visibility: 10 mi

Nearest lightning: 390mi.; Nearest active fire: 220mi.

Extreme Risk of Fire

Record High: 95°[1951] Record Low: 18°[1980]

May Averages: 68°\34° (3 days with moisture)

Today’s Quote

"It is during our darkest moments

that we must focus to see the light."

-Aristotle

Random Tidbits

The use of forks was considered sacrilegious

The widely used eating utensil was once seen as offensive to God when it was first introduced in Italy in the 11th century. Oddly enough, people used to eat with their fingers. The number of fingers used for eating distinguished the upper class from the lower class. Three fingers were considered to be good manners. The oldest forks were discovered in Turkey, dating back to the fourth millennium B.C., but it was likely that they were only used as tools. The Church in Italy argued that God had created humans with fingers so that they could eat God’s food, but this didn’t stop the production of expensive forks made of gold for wealthy families.

Have a smile

A friend sent these to me

“My friend's professor didn't realize he was screen sharing during a presentation that was worth half of her course grade. He was sending people emails about adopting a cat named Koala, then he watched a YouTube video about bees.”

Observations This Week

Fleet Week (NY): 20-26
Mudbug Madness Days: 23-25 Cancelled due to COVID-19
Old-Time Player Piano Weekend: 23-25  Cancelled due to COVID-19
National African Violet Week: 24-30
Healthy and Safe Swimming Week: 25-30 Link
National Backyard Games Week: 25-6/1Scripps National Spelling Bee: 25-28 Cancelled due to COVID-19.
Week of Solidarity With The People of Non-Self-Governing Territories: 25-31

Observations for Today

Cookie Monster's Birthday Link
Hamburger Day
Julia Pierpont DayMemorial Day

National Missing Children's Day

National Brown Bag It Day

National and Internat'l Missing Children's Day Link
National Tap Dance Day
National Wine Day Link
Nerd Pride Day or Geek Pride Day Link
Prayer for Peace Memorial DayTap Dance Day

Sing Out Day

World Thyroid Day Link
Towel Day Link

My Rambling Thoughts

It's Memorial Day...to remember those who gave their lives so we could live free. Thanks for your sacrifice.

Nice spring day. Decided it was time to do some spring cleaning of my vehicle interior. Vacuumed, sprayed, trash bin emptied...all nice and clean for the summer.

Small world story. A Focus Traveler has a place in Red Feather, CO. My mom's best friend and a neighbor for years moved up there decades ago. Her son is the Postmaster in Red Feather and is a great photographer. I mentioned that on Donna's FB post. Turns out she has one of his photos in her living room and knows him. A small world indeed.

Tara Reade, the lady accusing Biden has led to some questioning of her allegations, her background, and her motives. ABC is reporting that there will be more.

Today’s Puzzle

Answer at the bottom of the page

I am the beginning of sorrow, and the end of sickness. You cannot express happiness without me, yet I am in the midst of crosses. I am always in risk, yet never in danger. You may find me in the sun, but I am never out of darkness. What am I?

Historical Events

1521 Edict of Worms outlaws Martin Luther and his followers

1816 Collection of poems by Samuel Taylor Coleridge published by John Murray in London, including "Kubla Khan" and "Christabel"

1842 Christian Doppler presents his idea, now known as the Doppler Effect, to the Royal Bohemian Society, Prague

1878 - Gilbert and Sullivan's comic opera H.M.S. Pinafore opened at the Opera Comique in London.

1935 - At Forbes Field in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, Babe Ruth hit his 714th (and final) home run.

1961 - President John F. Kennedy declared "I believe that this nation should commit itself to achieving the goal, before this decade is out, of landing a man on the Moon and returning him safely to the Earth. No single space program in this period will be more impressive to mankind, or more important in the long-range exploration of space; and none will be so difficult or expensive to accomplish."

1968 - The St. Louis Gateway Arch was dedicated.

1977 - Star Wars opened Memorial Day weekend, marking the biggest entertainment juggernaut in modern popular culture.

1977 - Chinese government removed the ban on the works of William Shakespeare, the biggest entertainment juggernaut in the Elizabethan era.

1986 - Hands Across America took place.

1992 - Jay Leno made his debut as the new host of The Tonight Show.

1994 - George Swanson was buried in Brush Creek Cemetery, in the driver's seat of his 1984 white Corvette in Hempfield County, Pennsylvania.

2005 - Carrie Underwood won season four of America Idol on FOX.

2011- Oprah Winfrey hosted the final episode of her syndicated daytime show.

2012 A SpaceX Dragon becomes the first commercial spacecraft to dock at the International Space Station

2017 Facebook's Mark Zuckerberg receives an honorary degree from Harvard University, after dropping out in 2004

2019 First ever albino panda footage in the wild released (taken in April) from China's Wolong National Nature Reserve

Birthdays Today

@91-Lyricist Hal David (d. 2012)

81-Actor Ian McKellen

@78-Writer Ralph Waldo Emerson (d. 1882)

@78-Operatic Soprano Beverly Sills (d. 2007; lung cancer)

77-Country singer Jessi Colter [Mirriam Johnson]

57-Actor Mike Myers
50-Producer, Comedian Jamie Kennedy

45-Singer Lauryn Hill

Puzzle Answer:

The letter S

May 24

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

May 24, 2020 Week: 21 Day: 145

86004: H 71° \ L 32° \ Average Sky Cover: 5%

Wind: 7mph\Gusts: 16mph Visibility: 10 mi

Nearest lightning: 556mi.; Nearest active fire: 325mi.

Extreme Risk of Fire

Record High: 83°[1983] Record Low: 23°[1909]

May Averages: 68°\34° (3 days with moisture)

Today’s Quote

"The future belongs to those who believe

in the beauty of their dreams."

-Eleanor Roosevelt

Random Tidbits

The income tax system employed by the IRS that we know today would not be put into place until 1913 with the addition of the 16th amendment to the U.S. Constitution, which reads, "Congress shall have power to lay and collect taxes on incomes, from whatever source derived..."

When the income tax was fully established in 1913, the tax rate was 1 percent. Few paid income tax to the IRS, as it was required only if you made $3,000 or more per year. That year only 1 out of 271 Americans had to pay income tax.

Have a smile

A friend sent these to me

"During a Zoom class session for an MBA class, a classmate had his video on but seemed to believe he had stepped off-camera. He stuck his hand down the front of his gym shorts at which point our professor stopped mid-sentence and there was an extremely awkward 30 seconds of silence. I nearly fell out of my chair I was laughing so hard."

Observations This Week

National Tire Safety Week:  18-24 Link
Fleet Week (NY): 20-26
National Polka Weekend: 22-24 Cancelled due to COVID-19
Mudbug Madness Days: 23-25 Cancelled due to COVID-19
Old-Time Player Piano Weekend: 23-25  Cancelled due to COVID-19
National African Violet Week: 24-30

Observations for Today

Aviation Maintenance Technician Day Link
Brother's DayIndianapolis 500 Moved to August 23.
International Tiara Day
Morse Code DayNational Escargot Day

Neighbor Day
Scavenger Hunt Day

World Schizophrenia Awareness Day Link
Yucatan Shrimp Day Link

My Rambling Thoughts

Great morning walk before returning home to do weekend cleaning. A great day to be outside.

Read an article about the Superintendent of Jeffco, in CO. He is polling parents for their input on reopening schools. He is asking about their concerns of safety, their children receiving a great education, any special needs of families, etc. Very Cool.

Biden and Trump both put their respective foot in their respective mouth: Biden messed up by questioning the 'Blackness' of any Black person who voted for Trump. Trump is launching a $1million campaign against him with the comments highlighted in the ads. Trump is also starting a campaign for Jeff Sessions' Republican opponent in the primary for Jeff's previous Senate seat. Both main candidates need to think about consequences of every word that leaves their mouth and every dollar that leaves their pocket.

Pleased to see that Trump ordered American flags at half mast through Sunday for the many victims of Covid19. Good for him.

IHS [Indian Health Service] ordered 247,000 masks for its personnel on the Navajo Reservation, only to find most are unusable. Another order of 130,400 did not meet medical standards. The masks, originally made in China were purchased from a new vendor. That vendor had just opened his business in April. His previous job was President Trump's deputy chief of staff. How can his happen to the Navajo people?

Today’s Puzzle

Answer at the bottom of the page

Example: TM...in...AY = twelve months in a year

ATG...is...NG

ABITH...is...WTITB

TP...is...MTTS

HAL...is...BTN

AP...is...WATW

N...is...TMOI

Historical Events

1738 John Wesley is converted, launching the Methodist movement; celebrated annually by Methodists as Aldersgate Day

1775 - John Hancock was elected president of the Second Continental Congress.

1830 - Mary Had a Little Lamb by Sarah Josepha Hale was published.

1844 - Samuel F.B. Morse sent the first public telegraph message - 'What Hath God Wrought?' through the Washington-to-Baltimore telegraph line.

1883 - The Brooklyn Bridge over the East River opened, connecting Manhattan and Brooklyn.

1894 Lowell Observatory, Arizona, first begins observations of Mars with an eighteen-inch telescope, leads its builder Percival Lowell to conclude there are canals on Mars

1915 Thomas Edison invents telescribe to record telephone conversations

1930 Amy Johnson becomes the 1st woman to fly solo from England to Australia

1935 - The Cincinnati Reds beat the Philadelphia Phillies 2-1 in Major League Baseball's first-ever night game at Crosley Field in Cincinnati, Ohio.

1938 - A patent (#2,118,318) was issued for a Coin Controlled Parking Meter to Carl C. McGee of Oklahoma City, Oklahoma.

1943 - Josef Mengele, the 'Angel of Death' began working at the Auschwitz, Poland concentration camp.

1959 Empire Day renamed Commonwealth Day in Great Britain

1976 - The Concorde began regular passenger service between Europe and Washington DC.

1986 Margaret Thatcher becomes 1st British Prime Minister to visit Israel

1991 - Thelma and Louise, starring Geena Davis and Susan Sarandon, was released. Their car was a 1966 Ford Thunderbird.

1995 - ABC made the announcement that an episode of All My Children was deleted from broadcast due to the recent Oklahoma City bombing. In the story line a character was supposed to explode a church in which her ex was re-marrying.

2018 US President Donald Trump cancels summit with North and South Korea because of hostile statements from North Korea

2018 World's largest cat-proof fence (44km) completed at Newhaven Wildlife Sanctuary, central Australia to protest endangered species

Birthdays Today

82-Actor Tommy Chong

@81-Queen Victoria (d. 1901)

79-Singer Bob Dylan [Robert Allen Zimmerman]

76-Singer Patti LaBelle [Patricia Louise Holte]

76-Actor, Puppeteer Frank Oz [Frank Richard Oznowicz]

75-Actor Priscilla Presley

71-Actor Jim Broadbent

66-Actor Alfred Molina

55-Actor John C. Reilly

Puzzle Answer:

All that glitters is not gold

A bird in the hand is worth two in the bush

The pen is mightier than the sword

Half a loaf is better than none

A picture is worth a thousand words

Necessity is the mother of invention

May 23

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

May 23, 2020 Week: 20 Day: 144

86004: H 73° \ L 36° \ Average Sky Cover: 15%

Wind: 5mph\Gusts: 10mph Visibility: 10 mi

Nearest lightning: 446mi.; Nearest active fire: 249mi.

Extreme Risk of Fire

Record High: 85°[1984] Record Low: 21°[1972]

May Averages: 68°\34° (3 days with moisture)

Today’s Quote

"Don't judge each day by the harvest you reap

but by the seeds that you plant."

-Robert Louis Stevenson

Random Tidbits

During his presidency, Richard Nixon encouraged a secret IRS program called the Special Services Staff, which investigated his political opponents as well as harassing them with audits. More than 10,000 individuals and groups were targeted between 1969 and 1973.

Previous to 1862, the government only collected sales tax on certain items such as alcohol and tobacco. President Lincoln created the IRS and enacted a 3 percent income tax on those who made between $600 and $10,000 to assist in covering Civil War costs. This would be repealed 10 years later.

Have a smile

A friend sent these to me

"In the middle of a Zoom class, one of my coworkers thought she was on mute and answered her phone with "Sup, bitch?" and the professor definitely thought she was speaking to her. She had to stay on the call and apologize."

Observations This Week

Ramadan: 23-5/23

Cannes Film Festival: 12-23 Cancelled due to COVID-19
EMS (Emergency Medical Services) Week: 17-23  Link
International Heritage Breeds Week: 17-23 Link  
National Eosinophil Awareness Week: 17-23  Link  
National Medical Transcription Week: 17-23  Link
International New Friends, Old Friends Week: 17-23
National Unicycle Week: 17-23
World Trade Week: 17-23 
National Bike to Work Week: 18-22 Link Moved to September 21-27 due to COVID-19
National Tire Safety Week:  18-24 Link  
Fleet Week (NY): 20-26
National Polka Weekend: 22-24 Cancelled due to COVID-19
Mudbug Madness Days: 23-25 Cancelled due to COVID-19
Old-Time Player Piano Weekend: 23-25  Cancelled due to COVID-19

Observations for Today

Amateur Radio Military Appreciation Day (ARMAD) Link Link
Armed Forces Day Crossband Military/Amateur Radio Communications Test  Link
Declaration of the Bab Day
Eid-Al-Fitr
International Day to End Obstetric Fistula
International Heritage Breeds Day Link
International Jazz Day 

Lucky Penny Day

National Best Friend-in-Law Day
National Taffy Day Link
World Turtle Day

My Rambling Thoughts

Great spring day. Got my weekly shopping done and not a lot of other shoppers. I figured with the 'long weekend' there would be more people. Guess not many are going to be partying with the pandemic. I turned down a Saturday fishing trip on Lake Powell, just not ready.

My first refund check from the canceled Tahiti adventure arrived by pony express. Now just waiting for the big one. I'm in no real hurry as I figure the entire travel sector is scrambling right now. I know Tumlare and Joe Green will make us whole again.

I sure would like to meet up with friends this weekend and go somewhere new...but I'm not going to make a 3-day weekend my last hurrah, so I'll stay around Flag, take some nice hikes/walks and enjoy our nice weather.

Today’s Puzzle

Answer at the bottom of the page

Can you figure out these clues from just the first letter of each word?

SWTI...is...H

I...is...B

NN...is...GN

H...is...TBP

B...is...ITEOTB

Historical Events

1701 - Scottish-born sea captain William Kidd was hanged on the banks of the Thames after being found guilty of piracy and murder.

1785 Benjamin Franklin announces his invention of bifocals

1813 South American independence leader Simón Bolívar enters Mérida, leading the invasion of Venezuela, and is proclaimed El Libertador ("The Liberator")

1911 - The New York Public Library was dedicated.

1920 - Joan of Arc was canonized by Pope Benedict XV.

1934 - Bank robbers Bonnie and Clyde were shot to death in stolen Ford Deluxe near Bienville Parish, Louisiana.

1785 Benjamin Franklin announces his invention of bifocals

1813 South American independence leader Simón Bolívar enters Mérida, leading the invasion of Venezuela, and is proclaimed El Libertador ("The Liberator")

1943 Thomas Mann begins writing his novel Dr Faustus

1958 Mao Zedong starts the "Great Leap Forward" movement in China

1960 Israel announces capture of Nazi Adolf Eichmann in Argentina

1960 (Tsunami) Caused by yesterday's earthquake off the coast of Chile, a tsunami travelled across the Pacific Ocean and killed 61 people in Hilo, Hawaii.

1992 US President George H. W. Bush orders Coast Guard to intercept boats with Haitian refugees

2005 - Tom Cruise famously jumped around on Oprah Winfrey's couch, proclaiming his love for Katie Holmes

2017 US President Donald Trump meets Pope Francis at the Vatican

2019 Prototype of new high-speed train that will float above the track, capable of travelling 600km an hour (370 mph), unveiled by Chinese Railway Rolling Stock Corporation in Qingdao

Birthdays Today

87-Actor Joan Collins

62-Comedian Drew Carey

57-Writer Karen Duffy

@56-Actor Douglas Fairbanks (d. 1939; heart attack)

45-Singer Jewel

44-Actor, model Kelly Monaco

Puzzle Answer:

Strike while the iron is hot

Ignorance is bliss

No news is good news

Honesty is the best policy

Beauty is in the eye of the beholder