Mar 11

 

 

Mar 11, 2021     Week: 19    Day: 70                         Visibility: 10 miles

Local: H 45°\ L 22°\Ave. Sky Cover: 15%                Wind:  6mph/ Gusts:  11mph

Nearest Lightning: 526mi.                                           Low Risk of Fire:  Active fire:  550mi

Record: 69°[1980]  Record: -5°[1948]              Mar. Averages: 53°/23° (6 days with moisture)            

Today’s Quote

I believe in being an innovator.

~Walt Disney

Random Tidbits

The Latin motto Annuit Ceptis appears over the pyramid on the dollar bill; it translates into "He [God] has favored our undertaking." The scroll underneath the pyramid reads Novus Ordo Seclorum, or "A new order of the ages," which was meant to signify the dawn of the new American era.

A Little Humor

Two carbons walk into a bar together, they had a few drinks and really liked each other by the end of it… Carbon dating.

Weekly Observations

Lent [Christian]	Thru 4/3
Celebrate Your Name Week Girl Scout Week Link  National Dental Assistants Recognition Week Link National Procrastination Week National Schools Social Work Week Link  National Words Matter Week No More Week Link Read an E-Book Week Link Save Your Vision Week Link Termite Awareness Week Women in Construction Week  Link  Words Matter Week	7-13
Women of Aviation Worldwide Week	7-14
Pediatric Nurse Practitioner Week	10-13
National Money Show	11-13
Turkey Vultures Return to the Living Sign	11-17

 

Today’s Observations

Lent [Christian]	Thru 4/3
Celebrate Your Name Week Girl Scout Week Link  National Dental Assistants Recognition Week Link National Procrastination Week National Schools Social Work Week Link  National Words Matter Week No More Week Link Read an E-Book Week Link Save Your Vision Week Link Termite Awareness Week Women in Construction Week  Link  Words Matter Week	7-13
Women of Aviation Worldwide Week	7-14
Pediatric Nurse Practitioner Week	10-13
National Money Show	11-13
Turkey Vultures Return to the Living Sign	11-17

Dream 2021 Day
Isra Al Mi'ra: 10-11 [Islam]
Johnny Appleseed Day

Key Deer Awareness Day
Nametag Day Link 
National 311 Day Link
National “Eat Your Noodles” Day

National Funeral Director and Mortician Recognition Day Link 
National Promposal Day (Ask to prom) Link
COVID-19 Global Pandemic Day
Popcorn Lover's Day 

Oatmeal Nut Waffle Day

World Kidney Day
World Plumbing Day Link

Worship of Tools Day 

 

My Sometimes-Long-Winded Thoughts

Another windy day to lower our temps. It’s OK since it is bringing some moisture.

I have to say I thought the UK was very tolerant. I don’t recall People of Color who grew up in the UK mentioning racism. Now that Megan has opened that can of worms, many in Britain are saying it has always been a racist country. So sad.  I am aware of the Commonwealth’s horrific record while conquering places with People of Color. I was just naïve.

Some shocking news in our little mountain town. I got my Master’s from NAU and met many Navajo and other Natives also working on advanced degrees.  Several of them went on to get their Doctorates. One guy became a principal, superintendent at several different districts and a couple of years ago became our County Superintendent of Education. Then he suddenly resigned ‘for personal reasons’ a few months ago. I checked with some people who also knew him, and no one knew why. It hit the local paper today. He had been attempting to and got caught accessing pornography sites while on the county network. Thankfully, they were not of child porn. I am saddened that he did it. He was the first Navajo to be in that position. Many will see this as a blemish on the entire Navajo tribe.  It is not. It is about one man.

The big question in America…What to do with those who are crossing or attempting to cross the US border illegally, especially unaccompanied minors?  I believe that the answer is not cages, but that is all I have. I hope the current administration come up with an idea real soon.

Daily Puzzle

Answer: bottom of the page

Let’s pretend we’re on the metric system and use kilograms instead of pounds to give us a starting base number of 100. Four people (Alex, Brook, Chris and Dusty) want to cross a river in a boat that can only carry 100kg. Alex weighs 90kg, Brook weighs 80kg, Chris weighs 60kg and Dusty weighs 40kg, and they have 20kg of supplies. How do they get across?

Historical Events

105 – Ts’ai Lun invented paper, in China.

1702 – The Daily Courant, England’s first national daily newspaper, was published for the first time.

1818 – Frankenstein; or, The Modern Prometheus by 21-year-old Mary Wollstonecraft Shelley was published. It is recognized as the world’s first science fiction novel.

1916 – USS Nevada (BB-36) was commissioned as the first US Navy ‘super-dreadnought’.

1918 – The influenza epidemic of 1918 began in Fort Riley, Kansas. 20 million people worldwide died from the disease.

1927 – Samuel Roxy Rothafel opened the Roxy Theatre in NYC.

1960 – Pioneer V was launched from Cape Canaveral, Florida.

1989 – COPS debuted on FOX. It was one of the earliest ‘reality TV” shows.

1997 – ‘Sir’ Paul McCartney was knighted by Queen Elizabeth II for his “services to music.”

2004 – Train Bombings in Madrid, Spain killed 191 people, and injured over 1,800.

2006 Michelle Bachelet is inaugurated as the first female president of Chile.

2011 9.0 magnitude earthquake strikes 130 km (80 miles) east of Sendai, Japan, triggering a tsunami killing thousands of people and causing the second worst nuclear accident in history at Fukushima nuclear plant

2018 China's National People's Congress approves removal of term limits for a leader, will allow Xi Jinping presidency for life

2019 Israeli President Reuven Rivlin, refutes Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's statement “Israel is the nation state of the Jewish people – and only it.”

2020 COVID-19 declared a pandemic by the head of the World Health Organization Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, with 121,564 cases worldwide and 4,373 deaths

Birthdays Today

90 – Rupert Murdoch, Australian-American businessman and media magnate

@89 – Lawrence Welk, American accordion player, bandleader (d. 1992)

@79 – Antonin Scalia, American lawyer, jurist,(d. 2016; natural causes)

71 – Jerry Zucker, American director, producer, and screenwriter

@64 – Ralph Abernathy, American minister and activist (d. 1990; blood clots)

51—Terrance Howard, actor

50 – Johnny Knoxville [Philip John Clapp], actor

Puzzle Answer

There may be a couple variations that will work, but here is one way: Chris and Dusty row across (combined 100kg), Dusty returns. Alex rows over, and Chris returns. Chris and Dusty row across again, Dusty returns. Brook rows across with the supplies (combined 100kg), and Chris returns. Chris and Dusty row across again.

 

Mar 10

 

 

Mar 10, 2021     Week: 19    Day: 69                         Visibility: 10 miles

Local: H 56°\ L 21°\Ave. Sky Cover: 20%                Wind:  11mph/ Gusts:  25mph

Nearest Lightning: 849mi.                                           High Risk of Fire:  Active fire:  95mi

Record: 70°[1989]  Record: -9°[1958]           Mar. Averages: 53°/23° (6 days with moisture)            

Today’s Quote

Consider what each soil will bear, and what each refuse.

~Virgil

Random Tidbits

The symbolism of the pyramid on the US seal's reverse is trickier. The pyramid has 13 steps the designers apparently never got tired of the 13 motif and the Roman numeral for 1776 is emblazoned across the bottom. The all-seeing Eye of Providence at the top of the pyramid symbolizes the divine help the early Americans needed in establishing the new country. The pyramid itself symbolizes strength and durability.

A Little Humor

Knock, knock----Who's There?----Wayne----Wayne who?
The Wayne is really coming down, so open the door!

Weekly Observations

Lent [Christian]

Celebrate Your Name Week Girl Scout Week Link  National Dental Assistants Recognition Week Link National Procrastination Week National Schools Social Work Week Link  National Words Matter Week No More Week Link Read an E-Book Week Link Save Your Vision Week Link Termite Awareness Week Women in Construction Week  Link  Words Matter Week

Women of Aviation Worldwide Week

Pediatric Nurse Practitioner Week

 

Today’s Observations

Blueberry Popover Day

Discover What Your Name Means Day Link 
International Bagpipe Day
International Day of Awesomeness Link

International Find a Pay Phone Booth Day

Land Line Telephone Day
Middle Name Pride Day

Mario Day
National Ranch Dressing Day

National Women & Girls HIV/AIDS Awareness Day
Registered Dietitian Day
Salvation Army Day
Sterile Packaging Day
US Paper Money Day

My Sometimes-Long-Winded Thoughts

The wind is dropping the ‘feels like’ temperature by about 10 degrees. There may be some snow blowing in. Maybe not…hard to tell yet.

Do Americans really care about the Royal Family of Britain? Watching the news coverage, one might think it is our number one priority. For me, it is not. One commentator even suggested that the Harry and Megan interview will tear down the monarchy, something we could not do in 1776.

This virus has really shown that even scientists do not understand everything that happens. Now, even vaccinated travelers are warned not to travel. Hmmm. Something to think about…When Jurassic Park was set to open, the scientists said they were ready, and we all remember how that turned out.

Daily Puzzle

Answer: bottom of the page

A farmer wants to cross a river and take with him a wolf, a goat and a cabbage. He has a boat, but it can only fit himself plus either the wolf, the goat or the cabbage. If the wolf and the goat are alone on one shore, the wolf will eat the goat. If the goat and the cabbage are alone on the shore, the goat will eat the cabbage. How can the farmer bring the wolf, the goat and the cabbage across the river without anything being eaten?

Historical Events

1804 – In St. Louis, Missouri, a formal ceremony was conducted to transfer ownership of the Louisiana Territory from France to the United States, via the Louisiana Purchase.

1906 – An underground fire sparked a massive explosion that virtually destroyed a vast maze of mines in Courrieres, France, that killed over 1,000 workers.

1926 – Lolly Willowes, or The Loving Huntsman, was the first Book-of-the-Month Club selection, published by Viking Press.

1955 – A US Patent (#2,704,172) was issued to Aaron S. Lapin for his invention of “Dispensing Valves for Gas Pressure Containers”. That may sound boring until you find out it was for his Reddi-Wip cream topping.

1978 – The Incredible Hulk premiered on CBS.

1980 – Jean Harris shot and killed Scarsdale diet doctor Herman Tarnower.

2007 The US Justice Department releases an internal audit that found that the Federal Bureau of Investigation had acted illegally in its use of the USA Patriot Act to secretly obtain personal information about US citizens

2015 US President Barack Obama signs an executive order declaring Venezuela a national security threat to the US

2020 Italy announces it is locking down the whole country due to a spike in COVID-19 cases with 10,040 cases and 630 deaths 

Birthdays Today

81 – Chuck Norris, American actor, producer, and martial artist

@70 – James Earl Ray, assassin of Martin Luther King Jr. (d. 1998; kidney failure)

63 – Sharon Stone, American actress

59 – Jasmine Guy, American actress

@54 – Osama bin Laden, Saudi Arabian terrorist, founded al-Qaeda (d. 2011; assassinated by SEALS)

50 – Jon Hamm, American actor

38 – Carrie Underwood, American singer-songwriter

Puzzle Answer

First, the farmer takes the goat across. The farmer returns alone and then takes the wolf across and returns with the goat. Then the farmer takes the cabbage across, leaving it with the wolf and returning alone to get the goat.

 

Mar 8

 

 

Mar 9, 2021    Week: 19    Day: 68                 Visibility: 10 miles

Local: H 58°\ L 31°\Ave. Sky Cover: 5%         Wind:  12mph/ Gusts:  20mph

Nearest Lightning: 1950mi.                           Extreme Risk of Fire:  Active fire: 595 mi

Record:70 °[1989]  Record: 0°[1964]                 Mar. Averages: 53°/23° (6 days with moisture)            

Today’s Quote

Weather forecast for tonight: dark.

~George Carlin

Random Tidbits

The One Dollar bill: The obverse picturing the eagle is a bit easier to explain. The bird holds 13 arrows to show the nation's strength in war, but it also grasps an olive branch with 13 leaves and 13 olives that symbolize the importance of peace. (The recurring number 13, which also appears in the stripes on the eagle's shield and the constellation of stars over its head, is a nod to the original 13 states.)

A Little Humor

What does a farmer put on his sunburned pigs?

Oinkment.

Weekly Observations

Lent [Christian]	Thru 4/3
Celebrate Your Name Week Girl Scout Week Link  National Dental Assistants Recognition Week Link National Procrastination Week National Schools Social Work Week Link  National Words Matter Week No More Week Link Read an E-Book Week Link Save Your Vision Week Link Termite Awareness Week Women in Construction Week  Link  Words Matter Week	7-13
Women of Aviation Worldwide Week	7-14

 

Today’s Observations

Barbie Day
Crabmeat Day

Get Over It Day Link
Joe Franklin Day
Meatball Day

National Crab Day

National Get Over It Day

National Meatball Day
National Urban Educator Day  Link
Napping Day

Organize Your Home Office Day
Panic Day

Unique Names Day  Link  

 

My Sometimes-Long-Winded Thoughts

A nice day even if it is a bit windy. I had a nice walk around the neighborhood before the wind picked up.

Quite an interesting 60 Minutes last night. The story I enjoyed the most was on space travel. The pertinent question was how the United States makes the missiles that take people and things into space. Many at NASA are happy that private business wants to do it…like Elon Musk. It makes sense to them because then taxpayers don’t have to foot the bill. Since NASA is funded by Congress to get taxpayer money, Congress approves all their expenditures. Senators from states where missiles are produced were afraid that voters in their states would lose jobs if private enterprise made the missiles. You can guess who will be making the missiles that will take us back to the moon. A case of politics vs science.

Andy is back in Flag, and Faith stayed in Indiana for another couple of weeks, thanks to on-line learning she can still work. Her dad passed 2 days before his 91^st birthday and on the same date that Andy lost his son last year. She has 3 sisters and a brother. All are doing well, but lots to do as her dad lived in the same place for decades. Faith’s mom passed a couple of years ago.

My ophthalmologist is very thorough. Every year he does a test of my peripheral vision called a ‘visual field test’. One eye at a time you stare into a machine that has an orange dot. While staring at the orange dot, white lights appear at various distances around the orange dot. The patient clicks a button whenever a white dot is seen. It takes about 5 minutes per eye. For some reason I despise this test. It is boring, it is hard not to have my eye look where the last white light flashes. Anyway, I took the test this morning. I still don’t like it.

Daily Puzzle

Answer: bottom of the page

There are three people (Alex, Ben and Cody), one of whom is a knight, one a knave, and one a spy. The knight always tells the truth, the knave always lies, and the spy can either lie or tell the truth. Alex says: “Cody is a knave.” Ben says: “Alex is a knight.” Cody says: “I am the spy.” Who is the knight, who the knave, and who the spy?

Historical Events

1611 – Johannes Fabricius, a Dutch astronomer, discovered sunspots.

1822 – Charles M. Graham of NY was issued the first US Patent (#X03472) for artificial teeth.

1841 – The US Supreme Court ruled that the African slaves who seized control of the Amistad slave ship had been illegally forced into slavery, and thus were free under American law.

1858 – The first US Patent (#19,578) for a street postal mailbox was patented by Albert Potts, of Philadelphia.

1945 – 300 B29 bombers dropped nearly 500,000 cylinders of napalm and petroleum jelly on Tokyo creating a 40-sq-km firestorm that killed over 100,000 and maimed another million. It was the most destructive single bombing in history, including Hiroshima and Nagasaki atomic bombs.

1959 – Barbie debuted. Barbie’s appearance was modeled on a doll named Lilli, which was based on a racy German comic strip character.

1985 – The Tyler Civitan Club was the first to partake in the Adopt-a-Highway Sign Program, erected on Texas’s Highway 69.

1989 – A Geomagnetic Storm affected Quebec’s electrical transmission system.

1997 – Christopher Wallace, AKA Biggie Smalls, AKA the Notorious B.I.G., was shot to death at a stoplight in Los Angeles. Rapper Suge Knight has been eyed as the killer. Suge was also accused of running over (and killing) Terry Carter in January 2015.

2011 – Space Shuttle Discovery makes its final landing after 39 flights.

2015 US President Barack Obama signs an executive order declaring Venezuela a national security threat to the US

2020 Italy announces it is locking down the whole country due to a spike in COVID-19 cases with 10,040 cases and 630 deaths

Birthdays Today

@88 – Mickey Spillane, American crime novelist (died in 2006)

85 – Mickey Gilley, American singer-songwriter and pianist

@79 – Marty Ingels, American actor and comedian (d. 2015; stroke)

76 – Robin Trower, English rock guitarist and vocalist (Procol Harum)

@64 – Bobby Fischer, American chess player (d. 2008; kidney failure)

@54 – Raul Julia, Puerto Rican-American actor (d. 1994; stomach cancer)

50 – Emmanuel Lewis, American actor

Puzzle Answer

We know Ben isn’t telling the truth, because if he was, there would be two knights; so, Ben could be either the knave or the spy. Cody also can’t be the knight, because then his statement would be a lie. So that must mean Alex is the knight. Ben, therefore, must be the spy, since the spy sometimes tells the truth; leaving Cody as the knave.

 

Mar 8

 

 

Mar 8, 2021    Week: 19    Day: 67                 Visibility: 10 miles

Local: H 63°\ L 35°\Ave. Sky Cover: 209%     Wind:  9mph/ Gusts:  10mph

Nearest Lightning: 1376mi.                               High Risk of Fire:  Active fire:  428mi

Record: 67°[1989]  Record: -4°[1969]               Mar. Averages: 53°/23° (6 days with moisture)            

Today’s Quote

With color one obtains an energy that seems to stem from witchcraft.

~Henri Matisse

Random Tidbits

The two circular drawings on the reverse of the dollar bill are actually parts of the two-sided Great Seal of the United States. Although we don't see the entire seal outside of our wallets too often, the notion of having a great seal is actually as old as the country itself. The Continental Congress passed a resolution on July 4, 1776, to create a committee to design a great seal for the fledgling nation.

A Little Humor

What does a golfer do on his day off?

Putter around!

Weekly Observations

Lent [Christian]	Thru 4/3
Celebrate Your Name Week Girl Scout Week Link  National Dental Assistants Recognition Week Link National Procrastination Week National Schools Social Work Week Link  National Words Matter Week No More Week Link Read an E-Book Week Link Save Your Vision Week Link Termite Awareness Week Women in Construction Week  Link  Words Matter Wek	7-13
Women of Aviation Worldwide Week	7-14

 

Today’s Observations

Be Nasty Day

Fun Facts About Names Day  Link  
Day for Women's Rights & International Peace
Girls Write Now Day
International (Working) Women's Day Link
International Working Women's Day
National Proofreading Day
National Peanut Cluster Day Link
National Retro Video Game Day  Link
Proofreading Day

Volunteers of America Day

 

My Sometimes-Long-Winded Thoughts

It looks like it will be cloudy and windy for the next few days. I took a walk around the neighborhood before the wind picked up. After getting home I did two loads of laundry. I’ll put them away when the 2^nd drier load finishes.

I watched some of the Sunday morning talk shows. Some guests said the Covid relief bill will save America from ruin, while others say this is the beginning of the end of civilization as we know it. Not real helpful. Guess time will tell.

Looking forward to an uneventful week ahead.

Daily Puzzle

Answer: bottom of the page

A girl meets a lion and unicorn in the forest. The lion lies every Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday and the other days he speaks the truth. The unicorn lies on Thursdays, Fridays and Saturdays, and the other days of the week he speaks the truth. “Yesterday I was lying,” the lion told the girl. “So was I,” said the unicorn. What day is it?

Historical Events

1618 – Johannes Kepler formulated his Third Law of Planetary Motion.

1669 – Mount Etna, on the island of Sicily, began erupting and over the next several weeks killed over 20,000 people.

1755 – Thomas Paine, published African Slavery in America – the first article in the American colonies calling for the emancipation of slaves and the abolition of slavery.

1817 – The New York Stock Exchange was founded.

1950 – The ‘Volkswagen Type 2’, known as the VW Bus, was produced for the first time.

1971 – Muhammad Ali lost to Heavyweight Champion Joe Frazier in the “Fight of the Century” at Madison Square Garden in New York City.

1978 – The first radio episode of The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy, by Douglas Adams, was broadcast.

1983 – President Ronald Reagan labels the Soviet Union an ‘evil empire.’

2020 America registers 521 cases of COVID-19 with 21 deaths across 33 states

Birthdays Today

@93 – Oliver Wendell Holmes Jr., American lawyer and jurist (d. 1935)

76 – Micky Dolenz, American singer-songwriter and actor

74 – Randy Meisner, singer-songwriter and bass player [Eagles]

@67 – Lynn Redgrave, English-American actress, singer (d. 2010; breast cancer)

61 -- Lester Holt, journalist

45 – Freddie Prinze Jr., American actor

44 – James Van Der Beek, American actor

Puzzle Answer

Thursday. The only day they both tell the truth is Sunday; but today can’t be Sunday because the lion also tells the truth on Saturday (yesterday). Going day by day, the only day one of them is lying and one of them is telling the truth with those two statements is Thursday.