17 Dec

17 December 2022

Daily Almanac for Flagstaff
Week 51 Day 351 \ Ave. Sky Cover 5% \ Visibility 10 miles Flagstaff Today 24° \2° 
Wind 5mph \ Gusts 15mph  Air Quality: Fair \Very Low Risk of fire \ Nearest active fire 339mi \ Nearest Lightning 1986mi
Dec Averages for Flagstaff: 43° \ 17° `
Sunshine & Brisk

Today’s Quote

 

Weekly Observations

Andisop (Meteorological Fiddling): 5-24   Link
Human Rights Week: 10-17
Christmas Bird Count Week: 14-1/5 Link 
Halcyon Days: 14-28 
Halcyon Days: 14-28 
Drive Sober or Get Pulled Over: 15 - 1/1/23  Link 
Posadas: 16-24
Saturnalia: 17-23

Daily Observations

National Maple Syrup Day
Pan American Aviation Day
Wright Brothers Day
A Christmas Carol Day (Story)
Clean Air Day
National Wreaths Across America Day Link
Wright Brothers Day

My Sometimes-Long-Winded Thoughts

Another  cold morning. I warmed up to a sweltering 24° by noon.

Many were awaiting Trump’s big announcement. The wait was over when he introduced, for a mere $99, anyone could purchase an NFT Trading Card about Trump. He said you could follow his life by buying the set. The Conservatives are yelling about how bad the economy is and their leader wants them to buy a digital trading card that you can never really touch. I can’t wait to see how many are actually sold.

I follow a conservative guy on Facebook as he also runs a good site on happenings in Flagstaff. He posted that he is looking for a new church because his current church is not holding Christmas Day services because Christmas is on a Sunday this year.  I am dumbfounded that a Christian church would not honor the birth of Christ. I must be missing something.

Favorite Memes

Actual temps from this morning.

Did you Know?

Run your fingers along the edge of a dime and you’ll notice the coin has a crimped edge. If you were to count those tiny grooves and valleys, you’d find 118 ridges, one less than is found on a quarter.

But not all American coins have ridges, and here’s why. Rippled edges on larger-denomination coins have been a part of American currency since the U.S. Mint’s early days, and they were a clever solution to a massive currency conundrum: counterfeiting and fraud. Around the 1700s, coins were an easy target for money-generating schemes, including coin clipping: People would clip or shave off slim portions of a coin’s outer edge, cashing in the scraps of precious silver and gold. In Great Britain, coin clipping was so common that the crown deemed it a form of treason. In early North American settlements, “coining” — the actual production of fake coins — was equally problematic.

Knowing this, American coin makers added grooved bands — called reeded edges — to the thin sides of dimes, quarters, and larger coins then made from silver, in order to prevent shaving and make fraud more difficult. (Pennies and nickels remained smooth-sided since they were pressed from less-valuable copper and nickel.) But reeded edges lost some of their utility when the Coinage Act of 1965 changed the composition of dimes and quarters from silver to a copper-nickel blend. Reeded edges remain today as a design choice, and because they help people with visual impairments differentiate among coins.   

Slang Origins

1938: Socko

Meaning: strikingly impressive, effective, successful

This word doesn’t come from the socks on your foot, but rather a "sock" to the face. It was used to describe something so impressive that it hits you in the face, like a movie with a socko actor.

Corny jokes

Why did the scarecrow win an award?
Because he was outstanding in his field.
….
Where can you buy soup in bulk?
The stock market.
….
If athletes get athlete’s foot, what do elves get?
Mistle-toes.

Historical Events

1843 – A Christmas Carol by Charles Dickens was published.
1903 – The Wright brothers make the first controlled powered, heavier-than-air flight in the Wright Flyer at Kitty Hawk, North Carolina.
1969 – Project Blue Book: The United States Air Force closed its study of UFOs.
2101 – The Arab Spring began
2014 – The US and Cuba re-established diplomatic relations after severing them in 1961.

Birthdays Today

@91 – Alison Uttley, English children’s book writer (d.  1976)
86 – Pope Francis (Jorge Mario Bergoglio), Argentinian priest
@84 – Arthur Fiedler, American conductor (d.  1979)
77 – Ernie Hudson, American actor, the ‘other’ Ghostbuster
“When someone asks if you’re a god, you say YES!”– Ernie Hudson
76 – Eugene Levy, Canadian actor
73 – Paul Rodgers, English singer-songwriter
“Live music is where you get the inspiration and creativity. I just try to keep an open mind, and that’s the way a lot of good things happen.”– Paul Rodgers
@54 – Burt Baskin, co-founded Baskin-Robbins (d.  1967; heart attack)
47 – Milla Jovovich, Ukrainian-American actress
44 – Chase Utley, American baseball player
“I’ve always been taught to play the game hard. Baseball is such a tough game, it really humbles you at times, you just have to try not to get too high or too low.”– Chase Utley
36 – Emma Bell, American actress  

16 Dec

 

16 December 2022

Daily Almanac for Flagstaff
Week 51 Day 350 \ Ave. Sky Cover 5% \ Visibility 10 miles Flagstaff Today 35° \6° 
Wind 9mph \ Gusts 14mph  Air Quality: Fair \Very Low Risk of fire \ Nearest active fire 345mi \ Nearest Lightning 1408mi
Dec Averages for Flagstaff: 43° \ 17° `
Chilly with Sunshine

Today’s Quote

 

Weekly Observations

Andisop (Meteorological Fiddling): 5-24   Link
Human Rights Week: 10-17
Christmas Bird Count Week: 14-1/5 Link 
Halcyon Days: 14-28 
Halcyon Days: 14-28 
Drive Sober or Get Pulled Over: 15 - 1/1/23  Link 
Posadas: 16-24

Daily Observations

Barbie and Barney Backlash Day
National Chocolate-covered Anything Day  Link
National Ugly Christmas Sweater Day Link 
Stupid Toy Day
Underdog Day 
Zionism Day

My Sometimes-Long-Winded Thoughts

Another cold night and chilly day. The sunshine is nice, but it is too cold to melt the snow.

In a few days, Title 42 ends. That is the rule to prevent the spread of Covid from Sep 2020 that addresses immigrants. Congress has had over two years to make a plan that deals with our border. Shame on Congress for not averting the surge that has been expected when Title 42 ended. Living in a border state, I am so worn out from all the finger-pointing and blaming.

Favorite Memes

Did you Know?

Tarantula bites are about as painful as bee stings.

Despite their incredibly scary reputation, it turns out that tarantulas have a bite that is about as painful and as venomous as a bee sting. And according to Burke Museum, "None of the North American species or those commonly kept as pets are considered to pose even a mild bite hazard."

In fact, the museum's website says, "Hollywood is squarely to blame for these spiders' toxic-to-humans reputation. Tarantulas are large, photogenic and many are easily handled, and therefore they have been very widely used in horror and action-adventure movies."   

Slang Origins

1937: Dirt-poor

Even as the economy began to recover from the Depression, American families were suffering. Upper-middle-class professionals saw their income drop by up to 40%, and everyone was forced to make lifestyle changes to get by. While it’s often claimed that “dirt-poor” originated in 1500s England, this is actually an Americanism coined during one of the poorest times in U.S. history.

Corny jokes

How did the dead brother and his dead brother resemble each other?

They were dead ringers.

…

Why are there gates around cemeteries?

Because people are dying to get in.

…

Why shouldn’t you write with a broken pen?

Because it’s pointless.

Historical Events

1773 – The Boston Tea Party: Members of the Sons of Liberty, disguised as Mohawk Indians, dumped hundreds of crates of tea into Boston harbor as a protest against the Tea Act.
1944 – The Battle of the Bulge
1947 – William Shockley, John Bardeen, and Walter Brattain built the first practical point-contact transistor.
1950 -US President Harry S. Truman declares a state of emergency after Chinese troops enter the fight in support of communist North Korea.

Birthdays Today

@90 – Arthur C. Clarke, British science fiction writer (d. 2008)
“Perhaps it is better to be un-sane and happy, than sane and un-happy. But it is the best of all to be sane and happy. Whether our descendants can achieve that goal will be the greatest challenge of the future. Indeed, it may well decide whether we have any future.”– Arthur C. Clarke
81 – Lesley Stahl, American journalist
76 – Benny Andersson, Swedish singer-songwriter, ABBA
@76 – Margaret Mead, American anthropologist author (d. 1978; cancer)
@73 – Noël Coward, English actor, playwright, composer (d. 1973; heart failure)
“The higher the building the lower the morals.”– Noël Coward
61 – Shane Black, American actor, director, screenwriter
59 – Benjamin Bratt, American actor
“The one thing for an actor that is death, is if you’re bored. The boredom will show in your work. It’s an amazing blessing to do something you love.”– Benjamin Bratt
@56 – Ludwig van Beethoven, composer (d. 1827; fever)
@50 – Catherine Of Aragon, Queen (d. 1536; banished)
@41 – Jane Austen, novelist (d. 1817; Addison's Disease)
41 – Krysten Ritter, American actress

 

15 Dec

 

December 2022

Daily Almanac for Flagstaff
Week 51 Day 349 \ Ave. Sky Cover 5% \ Visibility 10 miles Flagstaff Today 34° \2° 
Wind 3mph \ Gusts 6mph  Air Quality: Fair \Low Risk of fire \ Nearest active fire 131mi \ Nearest Lightning 1152mi
Dec Averages for Flagstaff: 43° \ 17° `
Sunshine & Crisp

Today’s Quote

Weekly Observations

Andisop (Meteorological Fiddling): 5-24   Link
Human Rights Week: 10-17
Christmas Bird Count Week: 14-1/5 Link 
Halcyon Days: 14-28 
Drive Sober or Get Pulled Over: 15 - 1/1/23  Link 

Daily Observations

Bill of Rights Day
Cat Herder’s Day Link
National Cupcake Day
National Lemon Cupcake Day
National Re-gifting Day Link
National Wear Your Pearls Day
Zamenhof Day (Esperato Literature Day) Link

My Sometimes-Long-Winded Thoughts

I woke up to a very chilly morning. It is still crisp outside. The sun has been shining all day, but the snow is only melting on the dark pavement.

It has been a few months since I had my angioedema…swollen lips. It started as I was going to bed last night. When I got up this morning, the lip was still swollen. After about an hour I was back to normal. Weird.

Even the elk must have been cold…a small herd of 10-15 got into a fenced area at one of the local middle schools and were unable to escape. Forest Service is deciding what to do next.

Our country needs to revamp our campaigning laws NOW! I’m talking major changes…like no campaigning until 90 days before the election and every candidate must list ALL contributions to the campaign with names of human doners. There can be no ore hiding behind a ‘super-PAC’ or any anonymous donations. If one dollar or one million dollars arrives anonymously it must be returned to the sender or given to a listed charity, like Red Cross, Doctors without Borders, Wounded Warriors, etc. Politicians should be doing their job for the people they represent, not to donors who have an agenda.

Favorite Memes

Did you Know?

There's a "floating rainforest" in the sea.

When most people think of rainforests, they picture massive jungles filled with trees and critters. However, somewhere in the Sargasso Sea sits the so-called "floating rainforest" that consists not of dense vegetation on land, but of seaweed under water.

According to Smithsonian magazine, each strand of brown Sargassum marine algae can grow to be the length of a school bus. When they become matted together in the water, the masses - or "forests" - of algae can be as large as several football fields. The seaweed is not only impressively long and large, but also provides the perfect place for a diverse collection of animals to live - not unlike an actual rainforest!   

Slang Origins

1936: The big house

Meaning: prison

The age of the gangster in the 1920s and 1930s may explain why so much of the slang from the ‘30s refers to prison, and some of these words are still used today. The big house is one of those that endured. It was also the title of a 1930 movie about a prison escape, considered by many to have defined the genre of prison dramas.

Corny jokes

What do you call an alligator detective?

An investi-gator.

….

What kind of ghost has the best hearing?

The eeriest.

Historical Events

1791 – The Bill of Rights was added to the United States Constitution.
1933 – The Twenty-first Amendment to the United States Constitution repealed the Eighteenth Amendment, which prohibited the sale, manufacture, and transportation of alcohol.
1973 – The American Psychiatric Association voted 13 to 0 to remove homosexuality from its official list of psychiatric disorders.

Birthdays Today

@91 – Alexandre Eiffel, French engineer, Eiffel Tower (d. 1923)
@85 – Tim Conway, American comedian and actor (d. 2019)
“It’s hard to be sad when you’re laughing, so I enjoy making people happy.”– Tim Conway
@83 – J. Paul Getty, American-English businessman, founder of Getty Oil (d. 1976)
83 – Dave Clark, English drummer
@78 – Uziel Gal, German/Israeli inventor of the Uzi submachine gun (d. 2002; cancer)
76 – Carmine Appice, American drummer, songwriter
73 – Don Johnson, American actor
69 – J. M. DeMatteis, American author
“I’ve realized over the years that, with rare exceptions, most writer’s block isn’t writer’s block at all: It’s necessary time that allows the unconscious mind to do its deep work.”
– J.M. DeMatteis
59 – Helen Slater, American actress
50 – Stuart Townsend, Irish actor
@43 – Alan Freed, American radio host (d. 1965; complications of alcoholism)
43 – Adam Brody, American actor
“Comic books aren’t nerdy. You’d have to be an idiot to think computers are nerdy.”
-Adam Brody
@30 – Nero, Roman emperor (d. 68; ordered his soldiers to kill him)