Jun 15

 

 

 

Jun 15, 2021   Week: 25    Day: 166

Visibility: 10 miles Ave. Sky Cover: 10%

Local: H 90°\ L 56°

Wind:  6mph/ Gusts:  13mph

EXTREME Risk of Fire:  Active fire:  23mi Nearest Lightning: 627mi.

Jun Averages: 70°/42° (1 day w/moisture)

 

Today’s Quote

 

Formula for success: rise early, work hard, strike oil. J. Paul Getty

 

Random Tidbits

 

Wolves were once the most widely distributed land predator the world has ever seen. The only places they didn't thrive were in the true desert and rainforests.

Britain's King Edgar imposed an annual tax of 300 wolf skins on Wales. The Welsh wolf population was quickly exterminated.

In 1500, the last wolf was killed in England. In 1770, Ireland's last wolf was killed. In 1772, Denmark's last wolf was killed.

In 1927, a French policeman was tried for the shooting of a boy he believed was a werewolf. That same year, the last wild wolves in France were killed.

Currently, there are about 50,000 wolves in Canada; 6,500 in Alaska; and 3,500 in the Lower 48 States. In Europe, Italy has fewer than 300; Spain around 2,000; and Norway and Sweden combined have fewer than 100.

 

Humor

 

Why are cowboys’ hats turned up on the sides? So that three people can fit in the pickup.

 

True Things

 

Bright Ideas

-- On March 9, Eric Dion Warren, 50, was sentenced to federal prison in Lubbock, Texas, after pleading guilty to robbing a bank and using a BMW he was test-driving as his getaway car. The Fort Worth Star-Telegram reported that, according to court documents, Warren drove to the AIM Bank in Wolfforth on June 7, 2019, handed the teller a note demanding $10,000 in small bills and showed what appeared to be a handgun. The teller complied, and Warren headed back to the dealership where he pulled out $3,000 as the down payment on the car he had been driving. As Warren finalized the deal, the dealership received a call about the bank robbery and the connection was made. Warren was given the maximum sentence of 20 years. [Fort Worth Star-Telegram, 3/10/2021]

 

Weekly Observations

 

National Flag Week National Pet Wedding Week Link National Right of Way Professionals Week Link National Waste & Recycling Workers Week Link	13-19
National Hermit Week	13-20
Bartender of The Year Week Link	14-17
Meet A Mate Week Men's Health Week  Link   Link  US Open Golf Championship	14-20
Royal Ascot Link	15-19

 

Today’s Observations

 

Global Wind Day Link Lobster Day Magna Carta Day Native American Citizenship Day National Day of Prayer for Law Enforcement Officers National Kiss a Wookie Day National Lobster Day Link  National Nature Photography Day National Prune Day Smile Power Day World Elder Abuse Awareness Day Link Worldwide Day of Giving Link

 

My Sometimes-Long-Winded Thoughts

Another scorcher for Flagstaff. So early for 90+. The family American Flag is flying outside for Flag Day! I cleaned both bathrooms before it got too hot. Fan on, windows open. Nice breeze is keeping this heat bearable. As hot as it is, it’s hotter on the Rez at 100+…then this: Major power outage effecting the following communities: Kayenta, Pinon, Forest Lake, Hard Rock, Blue Gap, Tsegi, Kaibeto, Navajo Mtn, Coalmine Mesa, Monument Valley, Mexican Water, Shonto, Tonalea, Dennehotso, Rock Point. This won’t make the news, but sure effects thousands of people. NTUA [Navajo Tribal Utility Authority] is still looking for the reason.  The students I taught are from many of these areas. President Biden seems to be doing a good job in mending fences with many European countries. That’s good news for sure. Some friends stopped by after dinner. They were headed back to the rez after a weekend of fun. Nice visit. The local fire continues to burn…now 11,000 acres with about 250 fighting it. Just saw on FB that Cracker Barrel employees and management volunteered to come in at 3a to make 250 hot breakfasts for the firefighters. And they are going to work their regular shifts today. Very cool! An artist I know from Tuba called the other day to say he was having problems. Everyone has known he is gay for decades. He went to Public School and graduated from the Santa Fe Indian Art Institute years ago. He makes a decent living with his painting and his Kachinas. Over the years he was also an art teacher, a DJ on Tuba’s local HS radio station, a culture teacher, and similar jobs. He usually stayed in each job a couple of years, then would just quit. Anyway, he told me that the 215 Canadian Indigenous children who were buried at the Catholic school brought back many memories of his own early childhood sexual abuse. He didn’t talk about what happened, but realizes he needs mental health assistance to get through this repressed memory. I encouraged him to get the help and to realize that this will all work out in time. He is not traditional, so I didn’t recommend a medicine man. He has texted me a couple of times and seems to be doing a little better. I’m sure he will tell me more when he is ready. I sure wish I could have offered more assistance but have no more answers.

2 New Puzzles Everyday

Answer: bottom of the page

 

MAN Board

by LITTLE

 

 

Historical Events

 

763 BC – Assyrians recorded a solar eclipse, and that detail was later used to fix the chronology of Mesopotamian history.

1215 – The signed (sealed) Magna Carta guaranteed King John would respect feudal rights and privileges, uphold the freedom of the church within his kingdom. This was probably the same King John of Robin Hood lore.

1502 – Christopher Columbus landed on the island of Martinique on his fourth voyage.

1648 – Margaret Jones was hanged in Boston for witchcraft, in the first such execution for the Massachusetts Bay Colony.

1752 – Benjamin Franklin proved that lightning is electricity (traditional date, the exact date is unknown).

1776 – Delaware Separation Day: Delaware voted to suspend government under the British Crown and officially separate from Pennsylvania.

1844 – Charles Goodyear received a patent (#3,633) for vulcanization, a process to strengthen rubber.

1846 – The Oregon Treaty established the 49th parallel as the border between the United States and Canada, from the Rocky Mountains to the Strait of Juan de Fuca.

1878 – Eadweard Muybridge took a series of photographs to prove that all four feet of a horse leave the ground when it runs; the study becomes the basis of motion pictures. The purpose of the shoot was to determine whether a galloping horse ever lifts all four feet completely off the ground during the gait since the human eye could not break down the action. It is considered by many to be the first ‘motion picture.’

1916 – President Woodrow Wilson signed a bill incorporating the Boy Scouts of America, making them the only American youth organization with a federal charter.

1919 – The first US patent (#228,904) for a safety razor was issued to (brothers) Frederick and Otto Kampfe of New York.

1921 – Bessie Coleman earned her pilot’s license, becoming the first female pilot of African-American descent.

1985 – Rembrandt’s painting Danaë was attacked by Bronius Maigys (later judged insane) who threw sulfuric acid on the canvas and cut it twice with a knife.

1992 – The United States Supreme Court ruled in United States v. Álvarez-Machaín that it is permissible for the United States to forcibly extradite suspects in foreign countries and bring them to the United States for trial, without approval from those other countries.

1994 – Israel and Vatican City established full diplomatic relations.

2012 – Nik Wallenda became the first person to successfully tightrope walk over Niagara Falls.

2015 Remains of a 2,000-year-old women dubbed "the sleeping beauty" are announced discovered in Northern Ethiopia from ancient kingdom of Aksum

2015 800 year anniversary of "the birthplace of modern democracy", the signing of the Magna Carta by King John at Runymede, England

2017 Scotland Yard launches criminal inquiry and British Prime Minister Theresa May announces a public inquiry a day after the Grenfell Tower fire

2018 Physicist Stephen Hawking's ashes are interred in Westminster Abbey, London, between the remains of Isaac Newton and Charles Darwin

2020 In landmark decision US Supreme Court rules 6-3 that gay and transgender workers cannot be discriminated against in the workplace

 

Birthdays Today

 

@78  – Alfred Lash LaRue, American cowboy actor (d. 1996; emphysema)

68 -- Xi Jinping, General Secretary of Chinese Communist Party

@67 -- Margaret Bourke-White, American photographer, 1st female LIFE staff photographer (d. 1971; Parkinson’s)

@64 – Waylon Jennings, singer (d. 2002; diabetic complications)

@63 -- Lisa del Giocondo, believed to be the subject of Mona Lisa (d. 1542)

58 – Helen Hunt, American actress

56 – Courteney Cox, American actress

@52 – Harry Nilsson, American singer-songwriter (d. 1994; heart attack)

52 – Ice Cube [O'Shea Jackson], American rapper, actor

51 – Leah Remini, American actress, producer

48 – Neil Patrick Harris, American actor, singer

Puzzles Answer

 

Man overboard                                                      Little by little

 

Flag Day

 

 

FLAG DAY 

Jun 14, 2021   Week: 25    Day: 165

Visibility: 10 miles Ave. Sky Cover: 5%

Local: H 86°\ L 48°

Wind:  7mph/ Gusts:  16+mph

EXTREME Risk of Fire:  Active fire:  23mi Nearest Lightning: 367mi.

Jun Averages: 70°/42° (1 day w/moisture)

 

Today’s Quote

 

Art is the most intense mode of individualism that the world has known. Oscar Wilde

 

Random Tidbits

 

Though many females in a wolf pack are able to have pups, only a few will actually mate and bear pups. Often, only the alpha female and male will mate, which serves to produce the strongest cubs and helps limit the number of cubs the pack must care for.

Biologists have found that wolves will respond to humans imitating their howls.

Wolves howl to contact separated members of their group, to rally the group before hunting, or to warn rival wolf packs to keep away. Lone wolves will howl to attract mates or just because they are alone.

 

Humor

 

Sven notices his neighbor has a sign in his yard: ”Boat for Sale.”

“Ole,” he says, “you don’t own a boat. All you got is your old tractor and your combine.”

“Yup,” said Ole. “And they’re boat for sale.”

True Things

 

What Could Go Wrong?

Alexandr Kudlay, 33, and Viktoria Pustovitova, 28, of Kharkiv, Ukraine, are experimenting with a new way to preserve their on-and-off relationship: On Valentine's Day, they handcuffed themselves together and have vowed to stay that way for three months. "We used to break up once or twice a week," Kudlay told Reuters, but now when they disagree, "we simply stop talking instead of packing up our things and walking away." They take turns taking showers and give each other privacy in the bathroom by standing outside with one hand inside. [Reuters, 3/11/2021]

 

Weekly Observations

 

National Flag Week National Pet Wedding Week Link National Right of Way Professionals Week Link National Waste & Recycling Workers Week Link	13-19
National Hermit Week	13-20
Bartender of The Year Week Link	14-17
Meet A Mate Week Men's Health Week  Link   Link  US Open Golf Championship	14-20

 

Today’s Observations

 

Army's Birthday Bourbon Day Chinese Dragon Boat Festival  Family History Day Flag Day Hydranencephaly Awareness Day Link International Bath Day Monkey Around Day National Bourbon Day  Link No Mailing Children Day  Link National Strawberry Shortcake Day Pause for the Pledge Day Ride To Work Day (Motorcycles)  Link  (World) Blood Donor Day Link

 

My Sometimes-Long-Winded Thoughts

Very warm for June here. I don’t remember temps this hot in June since forever. It looks to me like the Phx Suns really want to win in these playoff games…and it appears Denver has no such desire. I was hoping for a good 6 or 7 games. Biden is certainly a statesman. His first trip abroad as President seems to be going well while he meets with our allies. I’m much happier with a President that is a statesman and diplomat. Ever heard pf ‘progressiphobia? Bill Maher says it is the inability to see the progress that has been made. America is far from perfect. However, this country has made great strides in many areas. Could we travel faster…of course. Does this country still have race issues…yes. But look back. We don’t have slaves anymore, we aren’t lynching anymore, we don’t have separate drinking fountains, we have progressed. We just need to pick up a little speed. When I was in college, I learned that the US was heading toward a country where ‘whites’ would not be the majority…the total number of ‘whites’ would be smaller than all the minorities combined. It is now called ‘majority-minority’. Several large cities, including Philadelphia…where our country began, are now majority-minority cities. This has led to fear by many that will mean that ‘whites’ will be treated as a minority. That alone says a lot about race. If minorities are seen as equals, why is it a problem? It is a problem because minorities are not treated as equals in many ways. Just look at the ‘one-drop rule’. That says that if a non-white is in your bloodline in the last 5 generations, you are not white. It means that if you have Black in your last 5 generations, you are Black…no matter the color of your skin.  If you have any indigenous blood relative in the last 5 generations, you are indigenous. This certainly complicates the study of ‘race’ in a social context.

2 New Puzzles Everyday

Answer: bottom of the page

 

HEAD HEEL     HEEL HEEL

SKATING ICE

 

Historical Events

 

1158 – Munich (in what is now Germany) was founded by Henry the Lion on the banks of the river Isar.

1777 – The Stars and Stripes was adopted by Congress as the Flag of the United States. Today, June 14 is the official ‘Flag Day’ in the United States.

1789 – Whiskey distilled from maize was first produced by American clergyman the Rev Elijah Craig. It is named Bourbon because Rev Craig lived in Bourbon County, Kentucky.

1834 – The first sandpaper was patented (#X08244, #X08245, #X08246, #X08247) and issued to Isaac Fisher, Jr., of Springfield, Vermont

1872 – Trade unions were legalized in Canada.

1884 – New York was the first state in the US to enact legislation requiring the burying of utility wires.

1938 – Dr. Benjamin Gruskin of Philadelphia, Pa. patented (#2,120,667) chlorophyll as a “therapeutic agent for the use in the treatment of infection” of the bloodstream, infected parts, and for open cuts and wounds.

1951 – The Univac1 was unveiled in Washington, DC, and dedicated as the world’s first commercial computer.

1954 – US President Dwight D. Eisenhower signed a bill that placed the words ‘under God’ into the United States Pledge of Allegiance.

1959 – Disneyland Monorail System, the first daily operating monorail system in the Western Hemisphere, opened to the public in Anaheim, California.

1962 – The European Space Research Organization (now European Space Agency) was established in Paris.

1966 – The Vatican announced the abolition of the Index Librorum Prohibitorum (“Index of Prohibited Books”), which was originally instituted in 1557.

1967 – The People’s Republic of China tested its first hydrogen bomb.

1972– The insecticide DDT was banned from use in the US.

1973 US President Richard Nixon administration imposes 60-day economy-wide price freeze, superseding Special Rule No. 1 for oil companies

1993 Ruth Bader Ginsburg is nominated to the United States Supreme Court by President Bill Clinton

2013 The US government charges NSA leaker Edward Snowden with violating the Espionage Act and theft of government property

2019 Swiss women hold a national strike over the country's slow pace towards equality

2019 Petition to create world's first "time free zone" on Sommaroy island which has complete daylight for 2 months, delivered to the Norwegian parliament

 

Birthdays Today

 

@85 – Harriet Beecher Stowe, American author, activist (d. 1896)

75 – Donald Trump, 45th President

60 – Boy George [George Alan O'Dowd ], English singer-songwriter

52 – Steffi Graf, German tennis player

@51 – Alois Alzheimer, German psychiatrist, neuropathologist (d. 1915; rheumatic fever)

@39 – Ernesto “Che” Guevara, Argentinian-Cuban guerrilla leader (d, 1967; shot after being captured to avoid a trial)

33 – Kevin McHale, American actor, radio personality

32 – Lucy Hale, American actress

 

Puzzles Answer

 

Head over heels                                                    Skating on thin ice