A massive wagon train, made up of 1,000 settlers and 1,000 head of cattle, sets off down the Oregon Trail from Independence, Missouri. Known as the "Great Emigration," the expedition came two years after the first modest party of settlers made the long, overland journey to Oregon.
After leaving Independence, the giant wagon train followed the Sante Fe Trail for some 40 miles and then turned northwest to the Platte River, which it followed along its northern route to Fort Laramie, Wyoming. From there, it traveled on to the Rocky Mountains, which it passed through by way of the broad, level South Pass that led to the basin of the Colorado River. The travelers then went southwest to Fort Bridger, northwest across a divide to Fort Hall on the Snake River, and on to Fort Boise, where they gained supplies for the difficult journey over the Blue Mountains and into Oregon. The Great Emigration finally arrived in October, completing the 2,000-mile journey from Independence in five months.
In the next year, four more wagon trains made the journey, and in 1845 the number of emigrants who used the Oregon Trail exceeded 3,000. Travel along the trail gradually declined with the advent of the railroads, and the route was finally abandoned in the 1870s.
Saturday, May 22, 2010
Soldier Blinded in Iraq Won't Stop Serving His Country
Capt. Scott Smiley, of Pasco, Wash., is one of only a handful of soldiers
who chose to remain on active duty after being blinded by fighting in Iraq
and Afghanistan, a practice that's rare but one that military officials say
benefits both parties.
WEST POINT, N.Y. -- Since a car bomb blinded Capt. Scott Smiley in Iraq, he
has skied Vail, climbed Mount Rainier, earned his MBA, raised two young boys
with his wife, won an Espy award and pulled himself up from faith-shaking
depths.
Smiley, 30, has snagged attention for his big accomplishments. But the daily
ones are telling, too, including the recent tour he gave of his staff's
offices at the U.S. Military Academy at West Point, where he plans to watch
President Barack Obama address the Class of 2010 on Saturday.
Unable to see the path around the workers' cubicles, Smiley stepped forward
with a joke to the camouflage-clad officers he was showing around: "I walk
around, and when I hit things, I move," he said.
An aide trailing him said softly, "Turn right, sir," at a doorway. Smiley
turned.
Smiley, of Pasco, Wash., is one of only a handful of soldiers who chose to
remain on active duty after being blinded by fighting in Iraq and
Afghanistan, a practice that's rare but one that military officials say
benefits both parties.
Though unable to return to his old infantry duties in Iraq, Smiley has
thrived in stateside postings such as his latest at West Point, from which
he graduated in 2003. He now commands the Warrior Transition Unit at West
Point for ailing or wounded soldiers.
Voice software allows Smiley to listen to e-mails, books and pamphlets.
Aides help him navigate and tell him what order he's signing. It's a little
like changing his son's diapers at home: He's fine as long as he knows where
everything is.
His resiliency and energy helped him earn the 2007 Soldier of the Year
commendation from the publication Army Times, as well as an ESPN Espy award
in 2008 for best outdoor athlete.
He earned his master's of business administration at Duke University and has
spoken to the Olympic and Duke teams coached by Mike Krzyzewski, a fellow
West Point alum. He has a memoir coming out this year titled "Hope Unseen."
Smiley said he's not trying to prove anything with his exploits.
"In terms of getting an MBA, climbing Mount Rainier, it's what I always
wanted to do," he said. "Why should I stop that?"
Smiley was injured April 6, 2005, six months into a deployment to Iraq. He
led patrols through Mosul, a dangerous city where a too-high pile of garbage
could be hiding explosives and the enemy blended in with the populace.
Sgt. 1st Class Mike Branham, who served as a squad leader under Smiley, said
his fellow serviceman was a topflight officer, one who stood out for his
deep Christian faith and detailed knowledge of his soldiers.
"He knew their names, he knew their wives' names, he knew their likes and
dislikes," Branham said.
Smiley was leading a patrol in an armored Stryker vehicle when, from his
perch in the forward hatch, he spotted a silver Opel that matched
intelligence descriptions of a potential car bomb. The trunk appeared to be
weighed down and the driver acted as though he didn't understand Smiley, who
fired warning shots at the ground when it looked as if the driver was going
to pull forward.
The driver raised his hands, and the car went up in a fireball.
Shrapnel tore through Smiley's left eye and lodged in his frontal brain
lobe; another fragment the size of a pencil lead pierced his right eye.
Slumped unconscious in the Stryker hatch, Smiley was rushed to a medical
center, where he briefly flatlined as friends prayed at his bedside.
Branham recalls, "I didn't think he was going to make it past that day at
all."
He was left permanently blinded and temporarily paralyzed on his right side.
Stabilized and shipped stateside, Smiley struggled with his fate. He had
vowed at his wedding to take care of his wife, Tiffany, and there she was,
taking care of him. The exertion of wiggling his big toe required a
three-hour nap.
He received his Purple Heart on his hospital bed. A video posted on YouTube
of the ceremony shows his brother Neal struggling to maintain composure as
he reads the citation. Smiley, looking beaten and uncomfortable in his bed,
turns his head away.
"When I got to the hospital and I finally realized what happened, what my
life was going to be like, I didn't believe in God. I questioned my faith. I
questioned everything that was ever said to me before," Smiley said.
"Because in my mind, why would God allow something like this to happen to
me?"
Smiley credits his wife, family and faith for helping him accept his
condition. Ultimately, he decided he didn't want to be like the Lt. Dan
character played by Gary Sinise in "Forrest Gump," the officer who wants to
be left to die when he loses his legs in Vietnam. He would push on. And if
his path kept him in the Army, that was fine.
"I was totally prepared to get out," he said. "But still in the back of my
mind, it was: 'I still have so much to give. I love serving my country."'
The Army says at least four other totally or partially blind soldiers have
remained on active duty since Iraq and Afghanistan.
Capt. Ivan Castro lost his sight and suffered other serious injuries in a
2006 mortar attack in Iraq and is now stationed at Fort Bragg, N.C., with
the Special Operations Recruiting Battalion. Castro, a 42-year-old who runs
marathons and 50-mile races, appears to share some personality traits with
Smiley -- and says he also felt he still had something to serve after being
injured.
"I've been doing this for over 18 years," Castro, who was born in Hoboken,
N.J., and grew up in Puerto Rico, said in a phone interview. "This is all I
know. This is what I love. This is what I live for."
Castro's commander, Lt. Col. Fredrick Dummar, said the continued service by
blind soldiers fits with the military philosophy that everyone has unique
abilities and that "there's always somebody on the team that can accomplish
a mission."
Smiley was at first posted at Accessions Command, which oversees recruiting,
and later earned his MBA. He returned to West Point last year to teach and
took command this year of the Warrior Transition Unit here this year. He
lives on post with Tiffany and their two young boys. After the West Point
graduation ceremony Saturday, he plans to pin lieutenant bars on one of the
roughly 1,000 cadets who will become new Army officers.
Smiley conceded that he might have a better understanding of the ailing
soldiers under his command but is quick to add that his overriding concern
is maintaining Army standards -- for his soldiers and for himself.
"I still want to be the person I always wanted to be," he said.
who chose to remain on active duty after being blinded by fighting in Iraq
and Afghanistan, a practice that's rare but one that military officials say
benefits both parties.
WEST POINT, N.Y. -- Since a car bomb blinded Capt. Scott Smiley in Iraq, he
has skied Vail, climbed Mount Rainier, earned his MBA, raised two young boys
with his wife, won an Espy award and pulled himself up from faith-shaking
depths.
Smiley, 30, has snagged attention for his big accomplishments. But the daily
ones are telling, too, including the recent tour he gave of his staff's
offices at the U.S. Military Academy at West Point, where he plans to watch
President Barack Obama address the Class of 2010 on Saturday.
Unable to see the path around the workers' cubicles, Smiley stepped forward
with a joke to the camouflage-clad officers he was showing around: "I walk
around, and when I hit things, I move," he said.
An aide trailing him said softly, "Turn right, sir," at a doorway. Smiley
turned.
Smiley, of Pasco, Wash., is one of only a handful of soldiers who chose to
remain on active duty after being blinded by fighting in Iraq and
Afghanistan, a practice that's rare but one that military officials say
benefits both parties.
Though unable to return to his old infantry duties in Iraq, Smiley has
thrived in stateside postings such as his latest at West Point, from which
he graduated in 2003. He now commands the Warrior Transition Unit at West
Point for ailing or wounded soldiers.
Voice software allows Smiley to listen to e-mails, books and pamphlets.
Aides help him navigate and tell him what order he's signing. It's a little
like changing his son's diapers at home: He's fine as long as he knows where
everything is.
His resiliency and energy helped him earn the 2007 Soldier of the Year
commendation from the publication Army Times, as well as an ESPN Espy award
in 2008 for best outdoor athlete.
He earned his master's of business administration at Duke University and has
spoken to the Olympic and Duke teams coached by Mike Krzyzewski, a fellow
West Point alum. He has a memoir coming out this year titled "Hope Unseen."
Smiley said he's not trying to prove anything with his exploits.
"In terms of getting an MBA, climbing Mount Rainier, it's what I always
wanted to do," he said. "Why should I stop that?"
Smiley was injured April 6, 2005, six months into a deployment to Iraq. He
led patrols through Mosul, a dangerous city where a too-high pile of garbage
could be hiding explosives and the enemy blended in with the populace.
Sgt. 1st Class Mike Branham, who served as a squad leader under Smiley, said
his fellow serviceman was a topflight officer, one who stood out for his
deep Christian faith and detailed knowledge of his soldiers.
"He knew their names, he knew their wives' names, he knew their likes and
dislikes," Branham said.
Smiley was leading a patrol in an armored Stryker vehicle when, from his
perch in the forward hatch, he spotted a silver Opel that matched
intelligence descriptions of a potential car bomb. The trunk appeared to be
weighed down and the driver acted as though he didn't understand Smiley, who
fired warning shots at the ground when it looked as if the driver was going
to pull forward.
The driver raised his hands, and the car went up in a fireball.
Shrapnel tore through Smiley's left eye and lodged in his frontal brain
lobe; another fragment the size of a pencil lead pierced his right eye.
Slumped unconscious in the Stryker hatch, Smiley was rushed to a medical
center, where he briefly flatlined as friends prayed at his bedside.
Branham recalls, "I didn't think he was going to make it past that day at
all."
He was left permanently blinded and temporarily paralyzed on his right side.
Stabilized and shipped stateside, Smiley struggled with his fate. He had
vowed at his wedding to take care of his wife, Tiffany, and there she was,
taking care of him. The exertion of wiggling his big toe required a
three-hour nap.
He received his Purple Heart on his hospital bed. A video posted on YouTube
of the ceremony shows his brother Neal struggling to maintain composure as
he reads the citation. Smiley, looking beaten and uncomfortable in his bed,
turns his head away.
"When I got to the hospital and I finally realized what happened, what my
life was going to be like, I didn't believe in God. I questioned my faith. I
questioned everything that was ever said to me before," Smiley said.
"Because in my mind, why would God allow something like this to happen to
me?"
Smiley credits his wife, family and faith for helping him accept his
condition. Ultimately, he decided he didn't want to be like the Lt. Dan
character played by Gary Sinise in "Forrest Gump," the officer who wants to
be left to die when he loses his legs in Vietnam. He would push on. And if
his path kept him in the Army, that was fine.
"I was totally prepared to get out," he said. "But still in the back of my
mind, it was: 'I still have so much to give. I love serving my country."'
The Army says at least four other totally or partially blind soldiers have
remained on active duty since Iraq and Afghanistan.
Capt. Ivan Castro lost his sight and suffered other serious injuries in a
2006 mortar attack in Iraq and is now stationed at Fort Bragg, N.C., with
the Special Operations Recruiting Battalion. Castro, a 42-year-old who runs
marathons and 50-mile races, appears to share some personality traits with
Smiley -- and says he also felt he still had something to serve after being
injured.
"I've been doing this for over 18 years," Castro, who was born in Hoboken,
N.J., and grew up in Puerto Rico, said in a phone interview. "This is all I
know. This is what I love. This is what I live for."
Castro's commander, Lt. Col. Fredrick Dummar, said the continued service by
blind soldiers fits with the military philosophy that everyone has unique
abilities and that "there's always somebody on the team that can accomplish
a mission."
Smiley was at first posted at Accessions Command, which oversees recruiting,
and later earned his MBA. He returned to West Point last year to teach and
took command this year of the Warrior Transition Unit here this year. He
lives on post with Tiffany and their two young boys. After the West Point
graduation ceremony Saturday, he plans to pin lieutenant bars on one of the
roughly 1,000 cadets who will become new Army officers.
Smiley conceded that he might have a better understanding of the ailing
soldiers under his command but is quick to add that his overriding concern
is maintaining Army standards -- for his soldiers and for himself.
"I still want to be the person I always wanted to be," he said.
Friday, May 21, 2010
The Minefield at Home : American Veterans Speak on Post War Life
New York Times October 25, 2009, 9:00 pm
>
> The Minefield at Home : American Veterans Speak on Post War Life
> By
> Michael Jernigan
> In August 2004, while on patrol with my Marine unit in Mahmudiya, Iraq, I
> was severely wounded by a roadside bomb. My wounds included a crushed
> skull and
> right hand, traumatic brain injury and the loss of both my eyes.
> I am not alone. In the past eight years, many of the 35,000 American
> soldiers wounded in the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan have returned home.
> But many of
> us have also returned with deep emotional wounds, and those are harder to
> see.
>
> In fact, they're often invisible, which is why so many returning soldiers
> feel so lost back home. Those of us with post-traumatic stress disorder -
> I'm
> one of them - feel like strangers here, carrying around a burden many
> people are unaware of or just can't understand. The possibilities for
> misunderstandings,
> collisions and alienation are great.
>
> Rewind to 2005. I am sitting in the house alone in the dark. I do not know
> where the light switches are. What does it matter anyway? I cannot see
> light.
> I get up to get another beer and discover that I have run out. No fear,
> though - I'll go find the bottle of Johnnie Walker I have somewhere in the
> back
> room.
> I hear a noise outside. I freeze. I am running through the worst-case
> scenarios. Where am I in the house? How close is my rifle? Be quiet,
> listen, and slowly
> make your way to the bedroom. Good, I've found my rifle next to the bed,
> right where I left it. I feel safer. I am still listening; I don't hear
> anything
> else. Still, I will stand here in the dark with my head on a swivel
> listening to everything within hearing. Is that not my first general order
> as a Marine?
> It is quiet. I am calm now, reassured that I am not under attack. Let's go
> back to what we were doing. That bottle of Johnnie Walker is in the back
> room
> in a box somewhere. I stop and pause. I should bring my rifle; it makes me
> feel safer.
>
> Fast forward a couple of years. I am married. My paranoia is not as bad,
> but still there.
> One night, I am taking my wife, Leslie, out to dinner for a "date." As we
> walk to the table with the help of my guide dog, Brittani, we hear a
> voice: "Doggy,
> Mommy! There is a doggy!"
> "Yes, it's a doggy," the mother says. "You have to sit down and finish
> your dinner."
> The child asks loudly why he can't bring his dog to a restaurant. As I
> walk by the table I lean down and say: "This is Brittani. She is a working
> dog. She
> is my eyes." I cannot see the look on the boy's face. I know that people
> are sometimes taken aback by my appearance. My left eye socket is empty
> and my
> right one usually has a prosthetic with an emblem or logo. (I even have
> one with diamond studs.)
> We sit down. The waiter hands me a menu, I hand it back to him and say:
> "You can have this, I gave up reading!" I can only imagine the
> conversation that
> takes place when he returns to his post and starts talking to his
> co-worker.
> After dinner, we get up to leave. I imagine what the other diners are
> thinking: "He gets around very well for a guy who can't see." What they do
> not notice
> is that I am holding my wife's hand and she is guiding me through the maze
> of tables. I often get frustrated in restaurants because the tables are
> always
> closer together than is comfortable for me. Brittani also does her best to
> make sure that I do not knock over the tables as I pass. Despite all of
> this
> help I still bump into tables and chairs. In the past, I have even hit
> them so hard that I've knocked someone's drink over.
>
> Other problems remain. I fly off the handle. My emotions often come out
> quickly and unchecked. I often behave in ways that I do not understand.
> And most
> times, it seems, the people around me understand it even less.
> It is 2008 and I am back in school. I am walking to class at Georgetown
> University. I stop right next to a flight of steps leading to the Levy
> Center. This
> building is not my destination; it is just a spot where I stop to get my
> bearings on an old campus that can be difficult for someone with
> disabilities
> to navigate. Someone walks up and grabs my arm to turn me to face the
> staircase. Did this person ask me if I was lost? Or even utter a word
> before deciding
> to grab me? No, because I am a cripple and it's O.K. to manhandle me. My
> reaction is quick and angry. I jerk my arm out of his hands and spin on my
> heels
> with the bearing of a United States Marine.
> "Get your freaking hands off me. You think you can grab me? Try it again
> and I'll break you down shotgun style!"
> I am now in a horrible mood. I have to ground myself. What just happened?
> This individual saw a blind person standing in front of some stairs. He
> probably
> thought that I did not see the stairs and needed help. So he reached out
> and grabbed me to spin me around to find the staircase. As usual, he did
> not say
> anything. These would-be helpers never do. Maybe they do not know what to
> say. I do not know what they are thinking at that moment, but I can tell
> you
> what happens to me. I immediately flash back to Iraq.
> I am standing in a crowd of Iraqis. We are trying to push the gathering
> crowd back to clear an area. All of a sudden a large Iraqi man wraps his
> arms around
> me. I cannot move. I cannot bring up my rifle to defend myself. The only
> thing I can do is reach my Ka-Bar (a combat fighting knife). You can
> imagine what
> is to happen next.
> It is a war and you cannot just grab a Marine and think that you will walk
> away unharmed.
> This is where my head goes when I am touched unexpectedly. I know the man
> who grabbed me on the Georgetown campus was just trying to help. Why do I
> become
> so angry so quickly? Why do I threaten physical harm? I do not know. It
> happens so fast that I do not even think, I just react. That is what we
> are trained
> to do. It is the difference between a live Marine and a dead Marine.
>
> I've come to learn that responses like the one at Georgetown are common to
> people suffering from P.T.S.D. I've begun to understand my own experience
> a little
> better and am making progress. But there is still the innocent, ignorant
> student who grabbed my arm. How will that gap be addressed?
> Hopefully, President Obama's signing of the veterans spending bill last
> Thursday will help raise awareness of problems like these. But there is
> something
> we can do that no legislation can: educate.
> Throughout history, warriors have been taught not to speak of their
> emotional struggles. Earlier generations of American veterans mostly
> suffered in silence.
> That tradition can change.
> We can share our experiences - today more rapidly and widely than ever -
> so that this generation of soldiers can let others know about those
> struggles without
> embarrassment or shame. So that when the worlds of the soldier and the
> civilian meet, they'll come together, not collide.
>
> The Minefield at Home : American Veterans Speak on Post War Life
> By
> Michael Jernigan
> In August 2004, while on patrol with my Marine unit in Mahmudiya, Iraq, I
> was severely wounded by a roadside bomb. My wounds included a crushed
> skull and
> right hand, traumatic brain injury and the loss of both my eyes.
> I am not alone. In the past eight years, many of the 35,000 American
> soldiers wounded in the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan have returned home.
> But many of
> us have also returned with deep emotional wounds, and those are harder to
> see.
>
> In fact, they're often invisible, which is why so many returning soldiers
> feel so lost back home. Those of us with post-traumatic stress disorder -
> I'm
> one of them - feel like strangers here, carrying around a burden many
> people are unaware of or just can't understand. The possibilities for
> misunderstandings,
> collisions and alienation are great.
>
> Rewind to 2005. I am sitting in the house alone in the dark. I do not know
> where the light switches are. What does it matter anyway? I cannot see
> light.
> I get up to get another beer and discover that I have run out. No fear,
> though - I'll go find the bottle of Johnnie Walker I have somewhere in the
> back
> room.
> I hear a noise outside. I freeze. I am running through the worst-case
> scenarios. Where am I in the house? How close is my rifle? Be quiet,
> listen, and slowly
> make your way to the bedroom. Good, I've found my rifle next to the bed,
> right where I left it. I feel safer. I am still listening; I don't hear
> anything
> else. Still, I will stand here in the dark with my head on a swivel
> listening to everything within hearing. Is that not my first general order
> as a Marine?
> It is quiet. I am calm now, reassured that I am not under attack. Let's go
> back to what we were doing. That bottle of Johnnie Walker is in the back
> room
> in a box somewhere. I stop and pause. I should bring my rifle; it makes me
> feel safer.
>
> Fast forward a couple of years. I am married. My paranoia is not as bad,
> but still there.
> One night, I am taking my wife, Leslie, out to dinner for a "date." As we
> walk to the table with the help of my guide dog, Brittani, we hear a
> voice: "Doggy,
> Mommy! There is a doggy!"
> "Yes, it's a doggy," the mother says. "You have to sit down and finish
> your dinner."
> The child asks loudly why he can't bring his dog to a restaurant. As I
> walk by the table I lean down and say: "This is Brittani. She is a working
> dog. She
> is my eyes." I cannot see the look on the boy's face. I know that people
> are sometimes taken aback by my appearance. My left eye socket is empty
> and my
> right one usually has a prosthetic with an emblem or logo. (I even have
> one with diamond studs.)
> We sit down. The waiter hands me a menu, I hand it back to him and say:
> "You can have this, I gave up reading!" I can only imagine the
> conversation that
> takes place when he returns to his post and starts talking to his
> co-worker.
> After dinner, we get up to leave. I imagine what the other diners are
> thinking: "He gets around very well for a guy who can't see." What they do
> not notice
> is that I am holding my wife's hand and she is guiding me through the maze
> of tables. I often get frustrated in restaurants because the tables are
> always
> closer together than is comfortable for me. Brittani also does her best to
> make sure that I do not knock over the tables as I pass. Despite all of
> this
> help I still bump into tables and chairs. In the past, I have even hit
> them so hard that I've knocked someone's drink over.
>
> Other problems remain. I fly off the handle. My emotions often come out
> quickly and unchecked. I often behave in ways that I do not understand.
> And most
> times, it seems, the people around me understand it even less.
> It is 2008 and I am back in school. I am walking to class at Georgetown
> University. I stop right next to a flight of steps leading to the Levy
> Center. This
> building is not my destination; it is just a spot where I stop to get my
> bearings on an old campus that can be difficult for someone with
> disabilities
> to navigate. Someone walks up and grabs my arm to turn me to face the
> staircase. Did this person ask me if I was lost? Or even utter a word
> before deciding
> to grab me? No, because I am a cripple and it's O.K. to manhandle me. My
> reaction is quick and angry. I jerk my arm out of his hands and spin on my
> heels
> with the bearing of a United States Marine.
> "Get your freaking hands off me. You think you can grab me? Try it again
> and I'll break you down shotgun style!"
> I am now in a horrible mood. I have to ground myself. What just happened?
> This individual saw a blind person standing in front of some stairs. He
> probably
> thought that I did not see the stairs and needed help. So he reached out
> and grabbed me to spin me around to find the staircase. As usual, he did
> not say
> anything. These would-be helpers never do. Maybe they do not know what to
> say. I do not know what they are thinking at that moment, but I can tell
> you
> what happens to me. I immediately flash back to Iraq.
> I am standing in a crowd of Iraqis. We are trying to push the gathering
> crowd back to clear an area. All of a sudden a large Iraqi man wraps his
> arms around
> me. I cannot move. I cannot bring up my rifle to defend myself. The only
> thing I can do is reach my Ka-Bar (a combat fighting knife). You can
> imagine what
> is to happen next.
> It is a war and you cannot just grab a Marine and think that you will walk
> away unharmed.
> This is where my head goes when I am touched unexpectedly. I know the man
> who grabbed me on the Georgetown campus was just trying to help. Why do I
> become
> so angry so quickly? Why do I threaten physical harm? I do not know. It
> happens so fast that I do not even think, I just react. That is what we
> are trained
> to do. It is the difference between a live Marine and a dead Marine.
>
> I've come to learn that responses like the one at Georgetown are common to
> people suffering from P.T.S.D. I've begun to understand my own experience
> a little
> better and am making progress. But there is still the innocent, ignorant
> student who grabbed my arm. How will that gap be addressed?
> Hopefully, President Obama's signing of the veterans spending bill last
> Thursday will help raise awareness of problems like these. But there is
> something
> we can do that no legislation can: educate.
> Throughout history, warriors have been taught not to speak of their
> emotional struggles. Earlier generations of American veterans mostly
> suffered in silence.
> That tradition can change.
> We can share our experiences - today more rapidly and widely than ever -
> so that this generation of soldiers can let others know about those
> struggles without
> embarrassment or shame. So that when the worlds of the soldier and the
> civilian meet, they'll come together, not collide.
Tuesday, May 18, 2010
QUESTION?
1. Is it good if a vacuum really sucks?
>>
>> 2. Why is the third hand on the watch called the second hand?
>>
>> 3. If a word is misspelled in the dictionary, how would we ever know?
>>
>> 4. If Webster wrote the first dictionary, where did he find the words?
>>
>> 5. Why do we say something is out of whack? What is a whack?
>>
>> 6. Why does "slow down" and "slow up" mean the same thing?
>>
>> 7. Why does "fat chance" and "slim chance" mean the same thing?
>>
>> 8. Why do "tug" boats push their barges?
>>
>> 9. Why do we sing "Take me out to the ball game" when we are already
>> there?
>>
>> 10. Why are they called " stands" when they are made for sitting?
>>
>> 11. Why is it called "after dark" when it really is "after light"?
>>
>> 12.. Doesn't "expecting the unexpected" make the unexpected expected?
>>
>> 13.. Why are a "wise man" and a "wise guy" opposites?
>>
>> 14. Why do "overlook" and "oversee" mean opposite things?
>>
>> 15. Why is "phonics" not spelled the way it sounds?
>>
>> 16. If work is so terrific, why do they have to pay you to do it?
>>
>> 17.. If all the world is a stage, where is the audience sitting?
>>
>> 18. If love is blind, why is lingerie so popular?
>>
>> 19. If you are cross-eyed and have dyslexia, can you read all right?
>>
>> 20. Why is bra singular and panties plural?
>>
>> 21.. Why do you press harder on the buttons of a remote control when you
>> know the batteries are dead?
>>
>> 22. Why do we put suits in garment bags and garments in a suitcase?
>>
>> 23. How come abbreviated is such a long word?
>>
>> 24. Why do we wash bath towels? Aren't we clean when we use them?
>>
>> 25.. Why doesn't glue stick to the inside of the bottle?
>>
>> 26. Why do they call it a TV set when you only have one?
>>
>> 27.Christmas - What other time of the year do you sit in front of a dead
>> tree and eat candy out of your socks?
>>
>> 28. Why do we drive on a parkway and park on a driveway?
>>
>> 2. Why is the third hand on the watch called the second hand?
>>
>> 3. If a word is misspelled in the dictionary, how would we ever know?
>>
>> 4. If Webster wrote the first dictionary, where did he find the words?
>>
>> 5. Why do we say something is out of whack? What is a whack?
>>
>> 6. Why does "slow down" and "slow up" mean the same thing?
>>
>> 7. Why does "fat chance" and "slim chance" mean the same thing?
>>
>> 8. Why do "tug" boats push their barges?
>>
>> 9. Why do we sing "Take me out to the ball game" when we are already
>> there?
>>
>> 10. Why are they called " stands" when they are made for sitting?
>>
>> 11. Why is it called "after dark" when it really is "after light"?
>>
>> 12.. Doesn't "expecting the unexpected" make the unexpected expected?
>>
>> 13.. Why are a "wise man" and a "wise guy" opposites?
>>
>> 14. Why do "overlook" and "oversee" mean opposite things?
>>
>> 15. Why is "phonics" not spelled the way it sounds?
>>
>> 16. If work is so terrific, why do they have to pay you to do it?
>>
>> 17.. If all the world is a stage, where is the audience sitting?
>>
>> 18. If love is blind, why is lingerie so popular?
>>
>> 19. If you are cross-eyed and have dyslexia, can you read all right?
>>
>> 20. Why is bra singular and panties plural?
>>
>> 21.. Why do you press harder on the buttons of a remote control when you
>> know the batteries are dead?
>>
>> 22. Why do we put suits in garment bags and garments in a suitcase?
>>
>> 23. How come abbreviated is such a long word?
>>
>> 24. Why do we wash bath towels? Aren't we clean when we use them?
>>
>> 25.. Why doesn't glue stick to the inside of the bottle?
>>
>> 26. Why do they call it a TV set when you only have one?
>>
>> 27.Christmas - What other time of the year do you sit in front of a dead
>> tree and eat candy out of your socks?
>>
>> 28. Why do we drive on a parkway and park on a driveway?
Monday, May 17, 2010
1954 : Brown v. Board of Ed is decided
In a major civil rights victory, the U.S. Supreme Court hands down an unanimous decision in Brown v. Board of Education of Topeka, ruling that racial segregation in public educational facilities is unconstitutional. The historic decision, which brought an end to federal tolerance of racial segregation, specifically dealt with Linda Brown, a young African American girl who had been denied admission to her local elementary school in Topeka, Kansas, because of the color of her skin.
In 1896, the Supreme Court ruled in Plessy v. Ferguson that "separate but equal" accommodations in railroad cars conformed to the 14th Amendment's guarantee of equal protection. That ruling was used to justify segregating all public facilities, including elementary schools. However, in the case of Linda Brown, the white school she attempted to attend was far superior to her black alternative and miles closer to her home. The National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP) took up Linda's cause, and in 1954 Brown v. Board of Education of Topeka reached the Supreme Court. African American lawyer (and future Supreme Court justice) Thurgood Marshall led Brown's legal team, and on May 17, 1954, the high court handed down its decision.
In an opinion written by Chief Justice Earl Warren, the nation's highest court ruled that not only was the "separate but equal" doctrine unconstitutional in Linda's case, it was unconstitutional in all cases because educational segregation stamped an inherent badge of inferiority on African American students. A year later, after hearing arguments on the implementation of their ruling, the Supreme Court published guidelines requiring public school systems to integrate "with all deliberate speed."
The Brown v. Board of Education decision served to greatly motivate the civil rights movement of the 1950s and 1960s and ultimately led to the abolishment of racial segregation in all public facilities and accommodations.
In 1896, the Supreme Court ruled in Plessy v. Ferguson that "separate but equal" accommodations in railroad cars conformed to the 14th Amendment's guarantee of equal protection. That ruling was used to justify segregating all public facilities, including elementary schools. However, in the case of Linda Brown, the white school she attempted to attend was far superior to her black alternative and miles closer to her home. The National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP) took up Linda's cause, and in 1954 Brown v. Board of Education of Topeka reached the Supreme Court. African American lawyer (and future Supreme Court justice) Thurgood Marshall led Brown's legal team, and on May 17, 1954, the high court handed down its decision.
In an opinion written by Chief Justice Earl Warren, the nation's highest court ruled that not only was the "separate but equal" doctrine unconstitutional in Linda's case, it was unconstitutional in all cases because educational segregation stamped an inherent badge of inferiority on African American students. A year later, after hearing arguments on the implementation of their ruling, the Supreme Court published guidelines requiring public school systems to integrate "with all deliberate speed."
The Brown v. Board of Education decision served to greatly motivate the civil rights movement of the 1950s and 1960s and ultimately led to the abolishment of racial segregation in all public facilities and accommodations.
Saturday, May 15, 2010
1937 : Madeleine Albright is born
On this day in 1937, Madeleine Albright, America's first female secretary of state, is born Maria Jana Korbelova in Prague, Czechoslovakia (now the Czech Republic).
The daughter of Czech diplomat Josef Korbel, Albright fled to England with her family after the Nazis occupied Czechoslovakia in 1939. Though Albright long believed they had fled for political reasons, she learned as an adult that her family was Jewish and that three of her grandparents had died in Nazi concentration camps. The family returned home after World War II ended but immigrated to the United States in 1948 after a Soviet-sponsored Communist coup seized power in Prague. Josef Korbel became dean of the school of international relations at the University of Denver (where he would later train another female secretary of state, Condoleeza Rice).
After graduating from Wellesley College in 1959, Albright married Joseph Medill Patterson Albright of the prominent Medill newspaper-publishing family. With an MA and PhD from Columbia University under her belt, Albright headed to Washington, D.C., where she worked for Maine's Senator Edmund S. Muskie and served on the National Security Council in the administration of President Jimmy Carter. She and Joseph Albright divorced in 1982. During the Republican presidencies of Ronald Reagan and George H.W. Bush, Albright worked for several nonprofit organizations and taught at Georgetown University's School of Foreign Service.
With a Democrat--Bill Clinton--in the White House again in 1992, Albright found herself at the center of Washington's most powerful circle. In 1993, Clinton appointed her ambassador to the United Nations. In that post, Albright earned a reputation as a straight-talking defender of American interests and an advocate for an increased role for the U.S. in U.N. operations. In late 1996, Clinton nominated Albright to succeed Warren Christopher as U.S. secretary of state. After her nomination was unanimously confirmed by the Senate, she was sworn in on January 23, 1997.
As secretary of state, Albright pursued an active foreign policy, including the use of military force to pressure autocratic regimes in Yugoslavia and Iraq, among other troubled regions. Her trip to North Korea in October 2000 to meet with leader Kim Jong Il made her the highest-ranking U.S. official to visit that country. She drew some criticism for her tough position on U.S. sanctions against Iraq, which led to many civilian deaths in that country and fueled the rage of Muslim extremists such as Osama bin Laden.
Albright's term ended with the election of President George W. Bush in 2000. Though there was talk of her entering Czech politics, she returned to her teaching post at Georgetown and became chair of a nonprofit organization, the National Democratic Institute for International Affairs.
The daughter of Czech diplomat Josef Korbel, Albright fled to England with her family after the Nazis occupied Czechoslovakia in 1939. Though Albright long believed they had fled for political reasons, she learned as an adult that her family was Jewish and that three of her grandparents had died in Nazi concentration camps. The family returned home after World War II ended but immigrated to the United States in 1948 after a Soviet-sponsored Communist coup seized power in Prague. Josef Korbel became dean of the school of international relations at the University of Denver (where he would later train another female secretary of state, Condoleeza Rice).
After graduating from Wellesley College in 1959, Albright married Joseph Medill Patterson Albright of the prominent Medill newspaper-publishing family. With an MA and PhD from Columbia University under her belt, Albright headed to Washington, D.C., where she worked for Maine's Senator Edmund S. Muskie and served on the National Security Council in the administration of President Jimmy Carter. She and Joseph Albright divorced in 1982. During the Republican presidencies of Ronald Reagan and George H.W. Bush, Albright worked for several nonprofit organizations and taught at Georgetown University's School of Foreign Service.
With a Democrat--Bill Clinton--in the White House again in 1992, Albright found herself at the center of Washington's most powerful circle. In 1993, Clinton appointed her ambassador to the United Nations. In that post, Albright earned a reputation as a straight-talking defender of American interests and an advocate for an increased role for the U.S. in U.N. operations. In late 1996, Clinton nominated Albright to succeed Warren Christopher as U.S. secretary of state. After her nomination was unanimously confirmed by the Senate, she was sworn in on January 23, 1997.
As secretary of state, Albright pursued an active foreign policy, including the use of military force to pressure autocratic regimes in Yugoslavia and Iraq, among other troubled regions. Her trip to North Korea in October 2000 to meet with leader Kim Jong Il made her the highest-ranking U.S. official to visit that country. She drew some criticism for her tough position on U.S. sanctions against Iraq, which led to many civilian deaths in that country and fueled the rage of Muslim extremists such as Osama bin Laden.
Albright's term ended with the election of President George W. Bush in 2000. Though there was talk of her entering Czech politics, she returned to her teaching post at Georgetown and became chair of a nonprofit organization, the National Democratic Institute for International Affairs.
Friday, May 14, 2010
1804 : Lewis and Clark depart
One year after the United States doubled its territory with the Louisiana Purchase, the Lewis and Clark expedition leaves St. Louis, Missouri, on a mission to explore the Northwest from the Mississippi River to the Pacific Ocean.
Even before the U.S. government concluded purchase negotiations with France, President Thomas Jefferson commissioned his private secretary Meriwether Lewis and William Clark, an army captain, to lead an expedition into what is now the U.S. Northwest. On May 14, the "Corps of Discovery"--featuring approximately 45 men (although only an approximate 33 men would make the full journey)--left St. Louis for the American interior.
The expedition traveled up the Missouri River in a 55-foot long keelboat and two smaller boats. In November, Toussaint Charbonneau, a French-Canadian fur trader accompanied by his young Native American wife Sacagawea, joined the expedition as an interpreter. The group wintered in present-day North Dakota before crossing into present-day Montana, where they first saw the Rocky Mountains. On the other side of the Continental Divide, they were met by Sacagawea's tribe, the Shoshone Indians, who sold them horses for their journey down through the Bitterroot Mountains. After passing through the dangerous rapids of the Clearwater and Snake rivers in canoes, the explorers reached the calm of the Columbia River, which led them to the sea. On November 8, 1805, the expedition arrived at the Pacific Ocean, the first European explorers to do so by an overland route from the east. After pausing there for the winter, the explorers began their long journey back to St. Louis.
On September 23, 1806, after almost two and a half years, the expedition returned to the city, bringing back a wealth of information about the largely unexplored region, as well as valuable U.S. claims to Oregon Territory.
Even before the U.S. government concluded purchase negotiations with France, President Thomas Jefferson commissioned his private secretary Meriwether Lewis and William Clark, an army captain, to lead an expedition into what is now the U.S. Northwest. On May 14, the "Corps of Discovery"--featuring approximately 45 men (although only an approximate 33 men would make the full journey)--left St. Louis for the American interior.
The expedition traveled up the Missouri River in a 55-foot long keelboat and two smaller boats. In November, Toussaint Charbonneau, a French-Canadian fur trader accompanied by his young Native American wife Sacagawea, joined the expedition as an interpreter. The group wintered in present-day North Dakota before crossing into present-day Montana, where they first saw the Rocky Mountains. On the other side of the Continental Divide, they were met by Sacagawea's tribe, the Shoshone Indians, who sold them horses for their journey down through the Bitterroot Mountains. After passing through the dangerous rapids of the Clearwater and Snake rivers in canoes, the explorers reached the calm of the Columbia River, which led them to the sea. On November 8, 1805, the expedition arrived at the Pacific Ocean, the first European explorers to do so by an overland route from the east. After pausing there for the winter, the explorers began their long journey back to St. Louis.
On September 23, 1806, after almost two and a half years, the expedition returned to the city, bringing back a wealth of information about the largely unexplored region, as well as valuable U.S. claims to Oregon Territory.
Thursday, May 13, 2010
1846 : President Polk declares war on Mexico
On May 13, 1846, the U.S. Congress overwhelmingly votes in favor of President James K. Polk's request to declare war on Mexico in a dispute over Texas.
Under the threat of war, the United States had refrained from annexing Texas after the latter won independence from Mexico in 1836. But in 1844, President John Tyler restarted negotiations with the Republic of Texas, culminating with a Treaty of Annexation. The treaty was defeated by a wide margin in the Senate because it would upset the slave state/free state balance between North and South and risked war with Mexico, which had broken off relations with the United States. But shortly before leaving office and with the support of President-elect Polk, Tyler managed to get the joint resolution passed on March 1, 1845. Texas was admitted to the union on December 29. While Mexico didn't follow through with its threat to declare war, relations between the two nations remained tense over border disputes, and in July 1845, President Polk ordered troops into disputed lands that lay between the Neuces and Rio Grande rivers. In November, Polk sent the diplomat John Slidell to Mexico to seek boundary adjustments in return for the U.S. government’s settlement of the claims of U.S. citizens against Mexico and also to make an offer to purchase California and New Mexico. After the mission failed, the U.S. army under Gen. Zachary Taylor advanced to the mouth of the Rio Grande, the river that the state of Texas claimed as its southern boundary.
Mexico, claiming that the boundary was the Nueces River to the northeast of the Rio Grande, considered the advance of Taylor's army an act of aggression and in April 1846 sent troops across the Rio Grande. Polk, in turn, declared the Mexican advance to be an invasion of U.S. soil, and on May 11, 1846, asked Congress to declare war on Mexico, which it did two days later.
After nearly two years of fighting, peace was established by the Treaty of Guadalupe Hidalgo, signed on February 2, 1848. The Rio Grande was made the southern boundary of Texas, and California and New Mexico were ceded to the United States. In return, the United States paid Mexico the sum of $15 million and agreed to settle all claims of U.S. citizens against Mexico.
Under the threat of war, the United States had refrained from annexing Texas after the latter won independence from Mexico in 1836. But in 1844, President John Tyler restarted negotiations with the Republic of Texas, culminating with a Treaty of Annexation. The treaty was defeated by a wide margin in the Senate because it would upset the slave state/free state balance between North and South and risked war with Mexico, which had broken off relations with the United States. But shortly before leaving office and with the support of President-elect Polk, Tyler managed to get the joint resolution passed on March 1, 1845. Texas was admitted to the union on December 29. While Mexico didn't follow through with its threat to declare war, relations between the two nations remained tense over border disputes, and in July 1845, President Polk ordered troops into disputed lands that lay between the Neuces and Rio Grande rivers. In November, Polk sent the diplomat John Slidell to Mexico to seek boundary adjustments in return for the U.S. government’s settlement of the claims of U.S. citizens against Mexico and also to make an offer to purchase California and New Mexico. After the mission failed, the U.S. army under Gen. Zachary Taylor advanced to the mouth of the Rio Grande, the river that the state of Texas claimed as its southern boundary.
Mexico, claiming that the boundary was the Nueces River to the northeast of the Rio Grande, considered the advance of Taylor's army an act of aggression and in April 1846 sent troops across the Rio Grande. Polk, in turn, declared the Mexican advance to be an invasion of U.S. soil, and on May 11, 1846, asked Congress to declare war on Mexico, which it did two days later.
After nearly two years of fighting, peace was established by the Treaty of Guadalupe Hidalgo, signed on February 2, 1848. The Rio Grande was made the southern boundary of Texas, and California and New Mexico were ceded to the United States. In return, the United States paid Mexico the sum of $15 million and agreed to settle all claims of U.S. citizens against Mexico.
Wednesday, May 12, 2010
YOUR AGE BY CHOCOLATE MATH
Don't tell me your age; you'd probably lie anyway-but the Hershey Man will know!
YOUR AGE BY CHOCOLATE MATH
This is pretty neat.
DON'T CHEAT BY SCROLLING DOWN FIRST!
It takes less than a minute ...
Work this out as you read ...
Be sure you don't read the bottom until you've worked it out!
This is not one of those waste of time things, it's fun.
1. First of all, pick the number of times a week that you would like to have chocolate (more than once but less than 10)
2. Multiply this number by 2 (just to be bold)
3. Add 5
4. Multiply it by 50 -- I'll wait while you get the calculator
5. If you have already had your birthday this year add 1760 .
If you haven't, add
1759..
6... Now subtract the four digit year that you were born.
You should have a three digit number
The first digit of this was your original number
(i.e., how many times you want to have chocolate each week).
The next two numbers are
YOUR AGE! (Oh YES, it is!!!!!)
THIS IS THE ONLY YEAR (2010) IT
WILL EVER WORK, SO SPREAD IT AROUND WHILE IT LASTS.
Chocolate Calculator.
YOUR AGE BY CHOCOLATE MATH
This is pretty neat.
DON'T CHEAT BY SCROLLING DOWN FIRST!
It takes less than a minute ...
Work this out as you read ...
Be sure you don't read the bottom until you've worked it out!
This is not one of those waste of time things, it's fun.
1. First of all, pick the number of times a week that you would like to have chocolate (more than once but less than 10)
2. Multiply this number by 2 (just to be bold)
3. Add 5
4. Multiply it by 50 -- I'll wait while you get the calculator
5. If you have already had your birthday this year add 1760 .
If you haven't, add
1759..
6... Now subtract the four digit year that you were born.
You should have a three digit number
The first digit of this was your original number
(i.e., how many times you want to have chocolate each week).
The next two numbers are
YOUR AGE! (Oh YES, it is!!!!!)
THIS IS THE ONLY YEAR (2010) IT
WILL EVER WORK, SO SPREAD IT AROUND WHILE IT LASTS.
Chocolate Calculator.
1957 : Race car driver A.J. Foyt gets first pro victory
On this day in 1957, race car driver A.J. Foyt (1935- ) scores his first professional victory, in a U.S. Automobile Club (USAC) midget car race in Kansas City, Missouri.
A tough-as-nails Texan, Anthony Joseph Foyt, Jr. raced midget cars--smaller vehicles designed to be driven in races of shorter distances--and stock cars before moving up to bigger things in 1958, when he entered his first Indianapolis 500 race. Foyt won his first Indy 500 crown in 1961, when rival Eddie Sachs was forced to make a tire change in the final laps, giving Foyt the chance to overtake him and win with a then-record average speed of 139.13 mph.
The 1964 season saw Foyt earn a record-setting winning percentage of .769 with 10 wins in 13 races. His most important win that year came in the Indy 500, which he finished with an average speed of 147.45 mph. After a near-fatal crash in a stock car race in 1965--in which he broke his back, fractured his ankle and suffered severe chest injuries--Foyt came back to continue his string of impressive achievements. In 1967, he won his third Indy 500 in a car he had designed himself, with his father Tony as chief mechanic. Two weeks later, he traveled to France and won the 24 Hours of LeMans international competition with teammate Don Gurney. With a win at the Daytona 500 in 1972, Foyt became the first driver to win all three major races in motor sports: the Indy 500, the Daytona 500 and the 24 Hours of LeMans.
In addition to the records for most total victories (67), most national championships (7) and most victories in one season (10), Foyt also has the most consecutive Indy 500 starts: He competed in the race for 35 straight years. His fourth win came in 1977, when the 42-year-old Foyt screamed around the track at an average speed of 161.331 mph. Only two other men have equaled his record of four Indy 500 wins.
In 1989, Foyt became the first driver inducted into the brand-new Motor Sports Hall of Fame in Novi, Michigan. He practiced at the Indy 500 track in 1993, but retired on the first day of qualifying races. Apart from auto racing teams, Foyt's later business interests have included car dealerships, funeral homes, oil investments and thoroughbred racehorses.
A tough-as-nails Texan, Anthony Joseph Foyt, Jr. raced midget cars--smaller vehicles designed to be driven in races of shorter distances--and stock cars before moving up to bigger things in 1958, when he entered his first Indianapolis 500 race. Foyt won his first Indy 500 crown in 1961, when rival Eddie Sachs was forced to make a tire change in the final laps, giving Foyt the chance to overtake him and win with a then-record average speed of 139.13 mph.
The 1964 season saw Foyt earn a record-setting winning percentage of .769 with 10 wins in 13 races. His most important win that year came in the Indy 500, which he finished with an average speed of 147.45 mph. After a near-fatal crash in a stock car race in 1965--in which he broke his back, fractured his ankle and suffered severe chest injuries--Foyt came back to continue his string of impressive achievements. In 1967, he won his third Indy 500 in a car he had designed himself, with his father Tony as chief mechanic. Two weeks later, he traveled to France and won the 24 Hours of LeMans international competition with teammate Don Gurney. With a win at the Daytona 500 in 1972, Foyt became the first driver to win all three major races in motor sports: the Indy 500, the Daytona 500 and the 24 Hours of LeMans.
In addition to the records for most total victories (67), most national championships (7) and most victories in one season (10), Foyt also has the most consecutive Indy 500 starts: He competed in the race for 35 straight years. His fourth win came in 1977, when the 42-year-old Foyt screamed around the track at an average speed of 161.331 mph. Only two other men have equaled his record of four Indy 500 wins.
In 1989, Foyt became the first driver inducted into the brand-new Motor Sports Hall of Fame in Novi, Michigan. He practiced at the Indy 500 track in 1993, but retired on the first day of qualifying races. Apart from auto racing teams, Foyt's later business interests have included car dealerships, funeral homes, oil investments and thoroughbred racehorses.
Sunday, May 9, 2010
MEN ARE JUST HAPPIER PEOPLE
NICKNAMES
If Laura, Kate and Sarah go out for lunch, they will call each other Laura, Kate and Sarah.
If Mike, Dave and John go out, they will affectionately refer to each other as Fat-Boy, Gas-man and Four-eyes.
EATING OUT
When the bill arrives, Mike, Dave and John will each throw in $20, even though it's only for $32.50. None of them will have anything smaller and none will actually admit they want change back.
When the girls get their bill, out come the pocket calculators.
MONEY
A man will pay $2 for a $1 item he needs.
A woman will pay $1 for a $2 item that she doesn't need but it's on sale.
BATHROOMS
A man has six items in his bathroom: toothbrush and toothpaste, shaving cream, razor, a bar of soap, and a towel.
The average number of items in the typical woman's bathroom is 337. A man would not be able to identify more than 15 of these items.
ARGUMENTS
A woman has the last word in any argument.
Anything a man says after that is the beginning of a new argument.
FUTURE
A woman worries about the future until she gets a husband.
A man never worries about the future until he gets a wife..
MARRIAGE
A woman marries a man expecting he will change, but he doesn't.
A man marries a woman expecting that she won't change, but she does.
DRESSING UP
A woman will dress up to go shopping, water the plants, empty the trash, answer the phone, read a book, and get the mail.
A man will dress up for weddings and funerals.
NATURAL
Men wake up as good-looking as they went to bed.
Women somehow deteriorate during the night.
OFFSPRING
Ah, children. A woman knows all about her children. She knows about dentist appointments and romances, best friends, favorite foods, secret fears and hopes and dreams.
A man is vaguely aware of some short people living in the house.
THOUGHT FOR THE DAY
A married man should forget his mistakes. There's no use in two people remembering the same thing!
SO, send this to the women who have a sense of humor and who can handle it ... and to the men who will enjoy reading it.
If Laura, Kate and Sarah go out for lunch, they will call each other Laura, Kate and Sarah.
If Mike, Dave and John go out, they will affectionately refer to each other as Fat-Boy, Gas-man and Four-eyes.
EATING OUT
When the bill arrives, Mike, Dave and John will each throw in $20, even though it's only for $32.50. None of them will have anything smaller and none will actually admit they want change back.
When the girls get their bill, out come the pocket calculators.
MONEY
A man will pay $2 for a $1 item he needs.
A woman will pay $1 for a $2 item that she doesn't need but it's on sale.
BATHROOMS
A man has six items in his bathroom: toothbrush and toothpaste, shaving cream, razor, a bar of soap, and a towel.
The average number of items in the typical woman's bathroom is 337. A man would not be able to identify more than 15 of these items.
ARGUMENTS
A woman has the last word in any argument.
Anything a man says after that is the beginning of a new argument.
FUTURE
A woman worries about the future until she gets a husband.
A man never worries about the future until he gets a wife..
MARRIAGE
A woman marries a man expecting he will change, but he doesn't.
A man marries a woman expecting that she won't change, but she does.
DRESSING UP
A woman will dress up to go shopping, water the plants, empty the trash, answer the phone, read a book, and get the mail.
A man will dress up for weddings and funerals.
NATURAL
Men wake up as good-looking as they went to bed.
Women somehow deteriorate during the night.
OFFSPRING
Ah, children. A woman knows all about her children. She knows about dentist appointments and romances, best friends, favorite foods, secret fears and hopes and dreams.
A man is vaguely aware of some short people living in the house.
THOUGHT FOR THE DAY
A married man should forget his mistakes. There's no use in two people remembering the same thing!
SO, send this to the women who have a sense of humor and who can handle it ... and to the men who will enjoy reading it.
YOU THOUGHT I WASN'T LOOKING
A message every adult should read because children
Are watching you and doing as you do, not as you say.
When you thought I wasn't looking I saw you hang my
First painting on the refrigerator, and I immediately
Wanted to paint another one.
When you thought I wasn't looking I saw you feed a
Stray cat, and I learned that it was good to be kind
To animals.
When you thought I wasn't looking I saw you make my
Favorite cake for me, and I learned that the little
Things can be the special things in life.
When you thought I wasn't looking I heard you say a
Prayer, and I knew that there is a God I could always
Talk to, and I learned to trust in Him.
When you thought I wasn't looking I saw you make a
Meal and take it to a friend who was sick, and I
Learned that we all have to help take care of each
Other.
When you thought I wasn't looking, I saw you give of
Your time and money to help people who had nothing,
And I learned that those who have something should
Give to those who don't.
When you thought I wasn't looking I saw you take care
Of our house and everyone in it, and I learned we have
To take care of what we are given.
When you thought I wasn't looking I saw how you
Handled your responsibilities, even when you didn't
Feel good, and I learned that I would have to be
Responsible when I grow up.
When you thought I wasn't looking I saw tears come
>From your eyes, and I learned that sometimes things
Hurt, but it's all right to cry.
When you thought I wasn't looking I saw that you
Cared, and I wanted to be every thing that I could be
When you thought I wasn't looking I learned most of
life's lessons that I need to know to be a good and
Productive person when I grow up.
When you thought I wasn't looking I looked at you and
Wanted to say,'Thanks for all the things I saw when
You thought I wasn't looking.
Are watching you and doing as you do, not as you say.
When you thought I wasn't looking I saw you hang my
First painting on the refrigerator, and I immediately
Wanted to paint another one.
When you thought I wasn't looking I saw you feed a
Stray cat, and I learned that it was good to be kind
To animals.
When you thought I wasn't looking I saw you make my
Favorite cake for me, and I learned that the little
Things can be the special things in life.
When you thought I wasn't looking I heard you say a
Prayer, and I knew that there is a God I could always
Talk to, and I learned to trust in Him.
When you thought I wasn't looking I saw you make a
Meal and take it to a friend who was sick, and I
Learned that we all have to help take care of each
Other.
When you thought I wasn't looking, I saw you give of
Your time and money to help people who had nothing,
And I learned that those who have something should
Give to those who don't.
When you thought I wasn't looking I saw you take care
Of our house and everyone in it, and I learned we have
To take care of what we are given.
When you thought I wasn't looking I saw how you
Handled your responsibilities, even when you didn't
Feel good, and I learned that I would have to be
Responsible when I grow up.
When you thought I wasn't looking I saw tears come
>From your eyes, and I learned that sometimes things
Hurt, but it's all right to cry.
When you thought I wasn't looking I saw that you
Cared, and I wanted to be every thing that I could be
When you thought I wasn't looking I learned most of
life's lessons that I need to know to be a good and
Productive person when I grow up.
When you thought I wasn't looking I looked at you and
Wanted to say,'Thanks for all the things I saw when
You thought I wasn't looking.
Saturday, May 8, 2010
Ever wonder how 'the fight started
One year, a husband decided to buy his mother-in-law a cemetery plot as a Christmas gift...
The next year, he didn't buy her a gift. When she asked him why, he replied, "Well, you still haven't used the gift I bought you last year!"
And that's how the fight started...
----------------------------------------------------------------------------
My wife and I are watching Who Wants To Be A Millionaire while we were in bed.
I turned to her and said, 'Do you want to have sex?'
'No,' she answered. I then said, 'Is that your final answer?'
She didn't even look at me this time, simply saying 'Yes.'
So I said, 'Then I'd like to phone a friend.'
And that's when the fight started...
----------------------------------------------------------------------------
I took my wife to a restaurant. The waiter, for some reason, took my order first. 'I'll have the strip steak, medium rare, please.'
He said, Aren't you worried about the mad cow?' 'Nah, she can order for herself.'
And that's when the fight started...
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
My wife sat down on the couch next to me as I was flipping the channels.
She asked, 'What's on TV?'
I said, 'Dust.'
And then the fight started...
----------------------------------------------------------------------------
My wife was hinting about what she wanted for our upcoming anniversary...
She said, 'I want something shiny that goes from 0 to 200 in about 3 seconds.'
I bought her a scale.
And then the fight started...
----------------------------------------------------------------------------
My wife and I were sitting at a table at her high school reunion, and she kept staring at a drunken man swigging his drink as he sat alone at a nearby table.
I asked her, 'Do you know him?'
'Yes,' she sighed,
'He's my old boyfriend... I understand he took to drinking right after we split up those many years ago, and I hear he hasn't been sober since.'
'My God!' I said,
'Who would think a person could go on celebrating that long?'
And then the fight started...
----------------------------------------------------------------------------
I rear-ended a car this morning... So, there we were alongside the road and slowly the other driver got out of his car.
You know how sometimes you just get soooo stressed and little things just seem funny?
Yeah, well I couldn't believe it... he was a DWARF!!!
He stormed over to my car, looked up at me, and shouted, 'I AM NOT HAPPY!'
So, I looked down at him and said, 'Well, then which one are you?'
And then the fight started....
----------------------------------------------------------------------------
THE BROKEN LAWN MOWER:
When our lawn mower broke and wouldn't run, my wife kept hinting to me that I should get it fixed.
But, somehow I always had something else to take care of first, the truck, the car, playing golf. Always something more important to me.
Finally she thought of a clever way to make her point.
When I arrived home one day, I found her seated in the tall grass, busily snipping away with a tiny pair of sewing scissors.
I watched silently for a short time and then went into the house. I was gone only a minute, and when I came out again I handed her a toothbrush.
I said, 'When you finish cutting the grass, you might as well sweep the driveway.'
The doctors say I will walk again, but I will always have a limp.
The next year, he didn't buy her a gift. When she asked him why, he replied, "Well, you still haven't used the gift I bought you last year!"
And that's how the fight started...
----------------------------------------------------------------------------
My wife and I are watching Who Wants To Be A Millionaire while we were in bed.
I turned to her and said, 'Do you want to have sex?'
'No,' she answered. I then said, 'Is that your final answer?'
She didn't even look at me this time, simply saying 'Yes.'
So I said, 'Then I'd like to phone a friend.'
And that's when the fight started...
----------------------------------------------------------------------------
I took my wife to a restaurant. The waiter, for some reason, took my order first. 'I'll have the strip steak, medium rare, please.'
He said, Aren't you worried about the mad cow?' 'Nah, she can order for herself.'
And that's when the fight started...
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
My wife sat down on the couch next to me as I was flipping the channels.
She asked, 'What's on TV?'
I said, 'Dust.'
And then the fight started...
----------------------------------------------------------------------------
My wife was hinting about what she wanted for our upcoming anniversary...
She said, 'I want something shiny that goes from 0 to 200 in about 3 seconds.'
I bought her a scale.
And then the fight started...
----------------------------------------------------------------------------
My wife and I were sitting at a table at her high school reunion, and she kept staring at a drunken man swigging his drink as he sat alone at a nearby table.
I asked her, 'Do you know him?'
'Yes,' she sighed,
'He's my old boyfriend... I understand he took to drinking right after we split up those many years ago, and I hear he hasn't been sober since.'
'My God!' I said,
'Who would think a person could go on celebrating that long?'
And then the fight started...
----------------------------------------------------------------------------
I rear-ended a car this morning... So, there we were alongside the road and slowly the other driver got out of his car.
You know how sometimes you just get soooo stressed and little things just seem funny?
Yeah, well I couldn't believe it... he was a DWARF!!!
He stormed over to my car, looked up at me, and shouted, 'I AM NOT HAPPY!'
So, I looked down at him and said, 'Well, then which one are you?'
And then the fight started....
----------------------------------------------------------------------------
THE BROKEN LAWN MOWER:
When our lawn mower broke and wouldn't run, my wife kept hinting to me that I should get it fixed.
But, somehow I always had something else to take care of first, the truck, the car, playing golf. Always something more important to me.
Finally she thought of a clever way to make her point.
When I arrived home one day, I found her seated in the tall grass, busily snipping away with a tiny pair of sewing scissors.
I watched silently for a short time and then went into the house. I was gone only a minute, and when I came out again I handed her a toothbrush.
I said, 'When you finish cutting the grass, you might as well sweep the driveway.'
The doctors say I will walk again, but I will always have a limp.
1945 : V-E Day is celebrated in American and Britain
On this day in 1945, both Great Britain and the United States celebrate Victory in Europe Day. Cities in both nations, as well as formerly occupied cities in Western Europe, put out flags and banners, rejoicing in the defeat of the Nazi war machine.
The eighth of May spelled the day when German troops throughout Europe finally laid down their arms: In Prague, Germans surrendered to their Soviet antagonists, after the latter had lost more than 8,000 soldiers, and the Germans considerably more; in Copenhagen and Oslo; at Karlshorst, near Berlin; in northern Latvia; on the Channel Island of Sark--the German surrender was realized in a final cease-fire. More surrender documents were signed in Berlin and in eastern Germany.
The main concern of many German soldiers was to elude the grasp of Soviet forces, to keep from being taken prisoner. About 1 million Germans attempted a mass exodus to the West when the fighting in Czechoslovakia ended, but were stopped by the Russians and taken captive. The Russians took approximately 2 million prisoners in the period just before and after the German surrender.
Meanwhile, more than 13,000 British POWs were released and sent back to Great Britain.
Pockets of German-Soviet confrontation would continue into the next day. On May 9, the Soviets would lose 600 more soldiers in Silesia before the Germans finally surrendered. Consequently, V-E Day was not celebrated until the ninth in Moscow, with a radio broadcast salute from Stalin himself: "The age-long struggle of the Slav nations...has ended in victory. Your courage has defeated the Nazis. The war is over."
The eighth of May spelled the day when German troops throughout Europe finally laid down their arms: In Prague, Germans surrendered to their Soviet antagonists, after the latter had lost more than 8,000 soldiers, and the Germans considerably more; in Copenhagen and Oslo; at Karlshorst, near Berlin; in northern Latvia; on the Channel Island of Sark--the German surrender was realized in a final cease-fire. More surrender documents were signed in Berlin and in eastern Germany.
The main concern of many German soldiers was to elude the grasp of Soviet forces, to keep from being taken prisoner. About 1 million Germans attempted a mass exodus to the West when the fighting in Czechoslovakia ended, but were stopped by the Russians and taken captive. The Russians took approximately 2 million prisoners in the period just before and after the German surrender.
Meanwhile, more than 13,000 British POWs were released and sent back to Great Britain.
Pockets of German-Soviet confrontation would continue into the next day. On May 9, the Soviets would lose 600 more soldiers in Silesia before the Germans finally surrendered. Consequently, V-E Day was not celebrated until the ninth in Moscow, with a radio broadcast salute from Stalin himself: "The age-long struggle of the Slav nations...has ended in victory. Your courage has defeated the Nazis. The war is over."
Friday, May 7, 2010
1994 : Munch's The Scream recovered
On May 7, 1994, Norway's most famous painting, "The Scream" by Edvard Munch, was recovered almost three months after it was stolen from a museum in Oslo. The fragile painting was recovered undamaged at a hotel in Asgardstrand, about 40 miles south of Oslo, police said.
The iconic 1893 painting of a waiflike figure on a bridge was stolen in only 50 seconds during a break-in on February 12, the opening day of the 1994 Winter Olympics in Lillehammer. Two thieves broke through a window of the National Gallery, cut a wire holding the painting to the wall and left a note reading "Thousand thanks for the bad security!"
A few days after the theft, a Norwegian anti-abortion group said it could have the painting returned if Norwegian television showed an anti-abortion film. The claim turned out to be false. The government also received a $1 million ransom demand on March 3, but refused to pay it due to a lack of proof that the demand was genuine.
Eventually, police found four pieces of the painting's frame in Nittedal, a suburb north of Oslo, and what may have been a cryptic messages that the thieves wanted to discuss a ransom. Finally, in January 1996, four men were convicted and sentenced in connection with the theft. They included Paal Enger, who had been convicted in 1988 of stealing Munch's "The Vampire" in Oslo. Enger was sentenced this time to six-and-a-half-years in prison. He escaped while on a field trip in 1999, and was captured 12 days later in a blond wig and dark sunglasses trying to buy a train ticket to Copenhagen.
In August 2004, another version of The Scream was stolen along with Munch's The Madonna, this time from the Munch Museum in Oslo. Three men were convicted in connection with that theft in May 2006. Police recovered both works in August with minor marks and tears.
Munch developed an emotionally charged style that served as an important forerunner of the 20th century Expressionist movement. He painted "The Scream" as part of his "Frieze of Life" series, in which sickness, death, fear, love and melancholy are central themes. He died in January 1944 at the age of 81.
The iconic 1893 painting of a waiflike figure on a bridge was stolen in only 50 seconds during a break-in on February 12, the opening day of the 1994 Winter Olympics in Lillehammer. Two thieves broke through a window of the National Gallery, cut a wire holding the painting to the wall and left a note reading "Thousand thanks for the bad security!"
A few days after the theft, a Norwegian anti-abortion group said it could have the painting returned if Norwegian television showed an anti-abortion film. The claim turned out to be false. The government also received a $1 million ransom demand on March 3, but refused to pay it due to a lack of proof that the demand was genuine.
Eventually, police found four pieces of the painting's frame in Nittedal, a suburb north of Oslo, and what may have been a cryptic messages that the thieves wanted to discuss a ransom. Finally, in January 1996, four men were convicted and sentenced in connection with the theft. They included Paal Enger, who had been convicted in 1988 of stealing Munch's "The Vampire" in Oslo. Enger was sentenced this time to six-and-a-half-years in prison. He escaped while on a field trip in 1999, and was captured 12 days later in a blond wig and dark sunglasses trying to buy a train ticket to Copenhagen.
In August 2004, another version of The Scream was stolen along with Munch's The Madonna, this time from the Munch Museum in Oslo. Three men were convicted in connection with that theft in May 2006. Police recovered both works in August with minor marks and tears.
Munch developed an emotionally charged style that served as an important forerunner of the 20th century Expressionist movement. He painted "The Scream" as part of his "Frieze of Life" series, in which sickness, death, fear, love and melancholy are central themes. He died in January 1944 at the age of 81.
Thursday, May 6, 2010
1994 : English Channel tunnel opens
In a ceremony presided over by England's Queen Elizabeth II and French President Francois Mitterand, a rail tunnel under the English Channel was officially opened, connecting Britain and the European mainland for the first time since the Ice Age.
The channel tunnel, or "Chunnel," connects Folkstone, England, with Sangatte, France, 31 miles away. The Chunnel cut travel time between England and France to a swift 35 minutes and eventually between London and Paris to two-and-a-half hours.
As the world's longest undersea tunnel, the Chunnel runs under water for 23 miles, with an average depth of 150 feet below the seabed. Each day, about 30,000 people, 6,000 cars and 3,500 trucks journey through the Chunnel on passenger, shuttle and freight trains.
Millions of tons of earth were moved to build the two rail tunnels--one for northbound and one for southbound traffic--and one service tunnel. Fifteen thousand people were employed at the peak of construction. Ten people were killed during construction.
Napoleon's engineer, Albert Mathieu, planned the first tunnel under the English Channel in 1802, envisioning an underground passage with ventilation chimneys that would stretch above the waves. In 1880, the first real attempt was made by Colonel Beaumont, who bore a tunnel more than a mile long before abandoning the project. Other efforts followed in the 20th century, but none on the scale of the tunnels begun in June 1988.
The Chunnel's $16 billion cost was roughly twice the original estimate, and completion was a year behind schedule. One year into service, Eurotunnel announced a huge loss, one of the biggest in United Kingdom corporate history at the time. A scheme in which banks agreed to swap billions of pounds worth of loans for shares saved the tunnel from going under and it showed its first net profit in 1999.
Freight traffic was suspended for six months after a fire broke out on a lorry in the tunnel in November 1996. Nobody was seriously hurt in the incident.
In 1996, the American Society of Civil Engineers identified the tunnel as one of the Seven Wonders of the Modern World.
The channel tunnel, or "Chunnel," connects Folkstone, England, with Sangatte, France, 31 miles away. The Chunnel cut travel time between England and France to a swift 35 minutes and eventually between London and Paris to two-and-a-half hours.
As the world's longest undersea tunnel, the Chunnel runs under water for 23 miles, with an average depth of 150 feet below the seabed. Each day, about 30,000 people, 6,000 cars and 3,500 trucks journey through the Chunnel on passenger, shuttle and freight trains.
Millions of tons of earth were moved to build the two rail tunnels--one for northbound and one for southbound traffic--and one service tunnel. Fifteen thousand people were employed at the peak of construction. Ten people were killed during construction.
Napoleon's engineer, Albert Mathieu, planned the first tunnel under the English Channel in 1802, envisioning an underground passage with ventilation chimneys that would stretch above the waves. In 1880, the first real attempt was made by Colonel Beaumont, who bore a tunnel more than a mile long before abandoning the project. Other efforts followed in the 20th century, but none on the scale of the tunnels begun in June 1988.
The Chunnel's $16 billion cost was roughly twice the original estimate, and completion was a year behind schedule. One year into service, Eurotunnel announced a huge loss, one of the biggest in United Kingdom corporate history at the time. A scheme in which banks agreed to swap billions of pounds worth of loans for shares saved the tunnel from going under and it showed its first net profit in 1999.
Freight traffic was suspended for six months after a fire broke out on a lorry in the tunnel in November 1996. Nobody was seriously hurt in the incident.
In 1996, the American Society of Civil Engineers identified the tunnel as one of the Seven Wonders of the Modern World.
Wednesday, May 5, 2010
History of Bachata: The guitar music of the Dominican Republic
Bachata is a popular guitar music from the Dominican Republic. Now overwhelmingly successful among Latinos in the United States, bachata took shape over a period of about forty years in the bars and brothels of Santo Domingo, not gaining acceptance in its native land until about ten years ago. Young groups like Aventura have a similar relationship to original bachata as rock and rollers do to the blues, which has languished in the shadow of its more commercially viable descendant.
In fact, the parallel between bachata and the blues is marked. Although bachata developed out of, and bachateros play, a variety of different rhythms, notably including merengue, the music which is specifically called bachata is a variant of the bolero. The bolero in Latin culture has traditionally been a romantic music, dealing with themes like deception and lost love. The bachatero, like the bluesman, sings about pain and trouble; one difference, though, is that while the bluesman hops on a southbound freight and keeps moving, the bachatero gets as far as the neighborhood bar and looks for solace in a bottle of rum in a dark corner!
The genre has passed through several phases since José Manuel Calderón recorded what is generally recognized as the first bachata single (“Borracho de amor” and “Que será de mi (Condena)”) in 1961. Indeed, long before Calderón, guitar music was the music of choice in the places of ill repute which became home to bachata. The guitar and guitar music like bolero and son were also the staples of the campo, the countryside, and with the death of dictator Rafael Trujillo in 1961 a number of musicians left the campo to record in the capital. The dictator’s family had virtually monopolized the music industry in the country, and when he was killed entrepreneurs began recording the first generation of bachateros. At this point the music was not yet referred to as bachata, but rather as “bolero campesino”. The word bachata originally denoted an informal party where guitar music was generally played—only later did it come to signify the music itself, and then in a denigrating manner.
When Calderón recorded, bachata was essentially a type of bolero, very little different from the Puerto Rican, Ecuadorian, Mexican and Peruvian music that inspired it. In subsequent years, the music began to define itself as a genre which, while still based principally on the bolero rhythm, is easily distinguishable from it. In order to understand these changes it is useful to divide the genre into the following categories, each of which roughly corresponds to a time period:
In fact, the parallel between bachata and the blues is marked. Although bachata developed out of, and bachateros play, a variety of different rhythms, notably including merengue, the music which is specifically called bachata is a variant of the bolero. The bolero in Latin culture has traditionally been a romantic music, dealing with themes like deception and lost love. The bachatero, like the bluesman, sings about pain and trouble; one difference, though, is that while the bluesman hops on a southbound freight and keeps moving, the bachatero gets as far as the neighborhood bar and looks for solace in a bottle of rum in a dark corner!
The genre has passed through several phases since José Manuel Calderón recorded what is generally recognized as the first bachata single (“Borracho de amor” and “Que será de mi (Condena)”) in 1961. Indeed, long before Calderón, guitar music was the music of choice in the places of ill repute which became home to bachata. The guitar and guitar music like bolero and son were also the staples of the campo, the countryside, and with the death of dictator Rafael Trujillo in 1961 a number of musicians left the campo to record in the capital. The dictator’s family had virtually monopolized the music industry in the country, and when he was killed entrepreneurs began recording the first generation of bachateros. At this point the music was not yet referred to as bachata, but rather as “bolero campesino”. The word bachata originally denoted an informal party where guitar music was generally played—only later did it come to signify the music itself, and then in a denigrating manner.
When Calderón recorded, bachata was essentially a type of bolero, very little different from the Puerto Rican, Ecuadorian, Mexican and Peruvian music that inspired it. In subsequent years, the music began to define itself as a genre which, while still based principally on the bolero rhythm, is easily distinguishable from it. In order to understand these changes it is useful to divide the genre into the following categories, each of which roughly corresponds to a time period:
LIFE IN THE 1500'S
The next time you are washing your hands and complain because the water temperature isn't just how you like it, think about how things used to be. Here are some facts about the 1500s:
Most people got married in June because they took their yearly bath in May, and still smelled pretty good by June. However, they were starting to smell, so brides carried a bouquet of flowers to hide the body odor. Hence the custom today of carrying a bouquet when getting married.
Baths consisted of a big tub filled with hot water. The man of the house had the privilege of the nice clean water, then all the other sons and men, then the women and finally the children. Last of all the babies. By then the water was so dirty you could actually lose someone in it Hence the saying, Don't throw the baby out with the b ath water..
Houses had thatched roofs-thick straw-piled high, with no wood underneath. It was the only place for animals to get warm, so all the cats and other small animals (mice, bugs) lived in the roof When it rained it became slippery and sometimes the animals would slip and fall off the roof. Hence the saying. It's raining cats and dogs.
There was nothing to stop things from falling into the house.. This posed a real problem in the bedroom where bugs and other droppings could mess up your nice clean bed. Hence, a bed with big posts and a sheet hung over the top afforded some protection. That's how canopy beds came into existence.
The floor was dirt. Only the wealthy had something other than dirt. Hence the saying, Dirt poor. The wealthy had slate floors that would get slippery in the winter when wet, so they spread thresh (straw) on floor to help keep their footing. As the winter wore on, they added more thresh until, when you opened the door, it would all start slipping outside. A piece of wood was placed in the entranceway. Hence the saying a thresh hold.
(Getting quite an education, aren't you?)
In those old days, they cooked in the kitchen with a big kettle that always hung over the fire. Every day they lit the fire and added things to the pot. They ate mostly vegetables and did not get much meat. They would eat the stew for dinner, leaving leftovers in the pot to get cold overnight and then start over the next day. Sometimes stew had food in it that had been there for quite a while. Hence the rhyme, Peas porridge hot, peas porridge cold, peas porridge in the pot nine days old..
Sometimes they could obtain pork, which made them feel quite special. When visitors came over, they would hang up their bacon to show off. It was a sign of wealth that a man could, bring home the bacon. They would cut off a little to share with guests and would all sit a round and chew the fat..
Those with money had plates made of pewter. Food with high acid content caused some of the lead to leach onto the food, causing lead poisoning death. This happened most often with tomatoes, so for the next 400 years or so, tomatoes were considered poisonous.
Bread was divided according to status. Workers got the burnt bottom of the loaf, the family got the middle, and guests got the top, or the upper crust.
Lead cups were used to drink ale or whisky. The combination would sometimes knock the imbibers out for a couple of days. Someone walking along the road would take them for dead and prepare them for burial. They were laid out on the kitchen table for a couple of days and the family would gather around and eat and drink and wait and see if they would wake up. Hence the custom of holding a wake.
England is old and small and the local folks started running out of places to bury people. So they would dig up coffins and would take the bones to a bone-house, and reuse the grave. When reopening these coffins, 1 out of 25 coffins were found to have scratch marks on the inside and they realized they had been burying people alive. So they would tie a string on the wrist of the corpse, lead it through the coffin and up through the ground and tie it to a bell. Someone would have to sit out in the graveyard all night (the graveyard shift.) to listen for the bell; thus, someone could be, saved by the bell or was considered a ..dead ringer..
Most people got married in June because they took their yearly bath in May, and still smelled pretty good by June. However, they were starting to smell, so brides carried a bouquet of flowers to hide the body odor. Hence the custom today of carrying a bouquet when getting married.
Baths consisted of a big tub filled with hot water. The man of the house had the privilege of the nice clean water, then all the other sons and men, then the women and finally the children. Last of all the babies. By then the water was so dirty you could actually lose someone in it Hence the saying, Don't throw the baby out with the b ath water..
Houses had thatched roofs-thick straw-piled high, with no wood underneath. It was the only place for animals to get warm, so all the cats and other small animals (mice, bugs) lived in the roof When it rained it became slippery and sometimes the animals would slip and fall off the roof. Hence the saying. It's raining cats and dogs.
There was nothing to stop things from falling into the house.. This posed a real problem in the bedroom where bugs and other droppings could mess up your nice clean bed. Hence, a bed with big posts and a sheet hung over the top afforded some protection. That's how canopy beds came into existence.
The floor was dirt. Only the wealthy had something other than dirt. Hence the saying, Dirt poor. The wealthy had slate floors that would get slippery in the winter when wet, so they spread thresh (straw) on floor to help keep their footing. As the winter wore on, they added more thresh until, when you opened the door, it would all start slipping outside. A piece of wood was placed in the entranceway. Hence the saying a thresh hold.
(Getting quite an education, aren't you?)
In those old days, they cooked in the kitchen with a big kettle that always hung over the fire. Every day they lit the fire and added things to the pot. They ate mostly vegetables and did not get much meat. They would eat the stew for dinner, leaving leftovers in the pot to get cold overnight and then start over the next day. Sometimes stew had food in it that had been there for quite a while. Hence the rhyme, Peas porridge hot, peas porridge cold, peas porridge in the pot nine days old..
Sometimes they could obtain pork, which made them feel quite special. When visitors came over, they would hang up their bacon to show off. It was a sign of wealth that a man could, bring home the bacon. They would cut off a little to share with guests and would all sit a round and chew the fat..
Those with money had plates made of pewter. Food with high acid content caused some of the lead to leach onto the food, causing lead poisoning death. This happened most often with tomatoes, so for the next 400 years or so, tomatoes were considered poisonous.
Bread was divided according to status. Workers got the burnt bottom of the loaf, the family got the middle, and guests got the top, or the upper crust.
Lead cups were used to drink ale or whisky. The combination would sometimes knock the imbibers out for a couple of days. Someone walking along the road would take them for dead and prepare them for burial. They were laid out on the kitchen table for a couple of days and the family would gather around and eat and drink and wait and see if they would wake up. Hence the custom of holding a wake.
England is old and small and the local folks started running out of places to bury people. So they would dig up coffins and would take the bones to a bone-house, and reuse the grave. When reopening these coffins, 1 out of 25 coffins were found to have scratch marks on the inside and they realized they had been burying people alive. So they would tie a string on the wrist of the corpse, lead it through the coffin and up through the ground and tie it to a bell. Someone would have to sit out in the graveyard all night (the graveyard shift.) to listen for the bell; thus, someone could be, saved by the bell or was considered a ..dead ringer..
MAY5
Pocahontas, daughter of the chief of the Powhatan Indian confederacy, marries English tobacco planter John Rolfe in Jamestown, Virginia. The marriage ensured peace between the Jamestown settlers and the Powhatan Indians for several years.
In May 1607, about 100 English colonists settled along the James River in Virginia to found Jamestown, the first permanent English settlement in America. The settlers fared badly because of famine, disease, and Indian attacks, but were aided by 27-year-old English adventurer John Smith, who directed survival efforts and mapped the area. While exploring the Chickahominy River in December 1607, Smith and two colonists were captured by Powhatan warriors. At the time, the Powhatan confederacy consisted of around 30 Tidewater-area tribes led by Chief Wahunsonacock, known as Chief Powhatan to the English. Smith's companions were killed, but he was spared and released, (according to a 1624 account by Smith) because of the dramatic intercession of Pocahontas, Chief Powhatan's 13-year-old daughter. Her real name was Matoaka, and Pocahontas was a pet name that has been translated variously as "playful one" and "my favorite daughter."
In 1608, Smith became president of the Jamestown colony, but the settlement continued to suffer. An accidental fire destroyed much of the town, and hunger, disease, and Indian attacks continued. During this time, Pocahontas often came to Jamestown as an emissary of her father, sometimes bearing gifts of food to help the hard-pressed settlers. She befriended the settlers and became acquainted with English ways. In 1609, Smith was injured from a fire in his gunpowder bag and was forced to return to England.
After Smith's departure, relations with the Powhatan deteriorated and many settlers died from famine and disease in the winter of 1609-10. Jamestown was about to be abandoned by its inhabitants when Baron De La Warr (also known as Delaware) arrived in June 1610 with new supplies and rebuilt the settlement--the Delaware River and the colony of Delaware were later named after him. John Rolfe also arrived in Jamestown in 1610 and two years later cultivated the first tobacco there, introducing a successful source of livelihood that would have far-reaching importance for Virginia.
In the spring of 1613, English Captain Samuel Argall took Pocahontas hostage, hoping to use her to negotiate a permanent peace with her father. Brought to Jamestown, she was put under the custody of Sir Thomas Gates, the marshal of Virginia. Gates treated her as a guest rather than a prisoner and encouraged her to learn English customs. She converted to Christianity and was baptized Lady Rebecca. Powhatan eventually agreed to the terms for her release, but by then she had fallen in love with John Rolfe, who was about 10 years her senior. On April 5, 1614, Pocahontas and John Rolfe married with the blessing of Chief Powhatan and the governor of Virginia.
Their marriage brought a peace between the English colonists and the Powhatans, and in 1615 Pocahontas gave birth to their first child, Thomas. In 1616, the couple sailed to England. The so-called Indian Princess proved popular with the English gentry, and she was presented at the court of King James I. In March 1617, Pocahontas and Rolfe prepared to sail back to Virginia. However, the day before they were to leave, Pocahontas died, probably of smallpox, and was buried at the parish church of St. George in Gravesend, England.
John Rolfe returned to Virginia and was killed in an Indian massacre in 1622. After an education in England, their son Thomas Rolfe returned to Virginia and became a prominent citizen. John Smith returned to the New World in 1614 to explore the New England coast. On another voyage of exploration in 1614, he was captured by pirates but escaped after three months of captivity. He then returned to England, where he died in 1631.
In May 1607, about 100 English colonists settled along the James River in Virginia to found Jamestown, the first permanent English settlement in America. The settlers fared badly because of famine, disease, and Indian attacks, but were aided by 27-year-old English adventurer John Smith, who directed survival efforts and mapped the area. While exploring the Chickahominy River in December 1607, Smith and two colonists were captured by Powhatan warriors. At the time, the Powhatan confederacy consisted of around 30 Tidewater-area tribes led by Chief Wahunsonacock, known as Chief Powhatan to the English. Smith's companions were killed, but he was spared and released, (according to a 1624 account by Smith) because of the dramatic intercession of Pocahontas, Chief Powhatan's 13-year-old daughter. Her real name was Matoaka, and Pocahontas was a pet name that has been translated variously as "playful one" and "my favorite daughter."
In 1608, Smith became president of the Jamestown colony, but the settlement continued to suffer. An accidental fire destroyed much of the town, and hunger, disease, and Indian attacks continued. During this time, Pocahontas often came to Jamestown as an emissary of her father, sometimes bearing gifts of food to help the hard-pressed settlers. She befriended the settlers and became acquainted with English ways. In 1609, Smith was injured from a fire in his gunpowder bag and was forced to return to England.
After Smith's departure, relations with the Powhatan deteriorated and many settlers died from famine and disease in the winter of 1609-10. Jamestown was about to be abandoned by its inhabitants when Baron De La Warr (also known as Delaware) arrived in June 1610 with new supplies and rebuilt the settlement--the Delaware River and the colony of Delaware were later named after him. John Rolfe also arrived in Jamestown in 1610 and two years later cultivated the first tobacco there, introducing a successful source of livelihood that would have far-reaching importance for Virginia.
In the spring of 1613, English Captain Samuel Argall took Pocahontas hostage, hoping to use her to negotiate a permanent peace with her father. Brought to Jamestown, she was put under the custody of Sir Thomas Gates, the marshal of Virginia. Gates treated her as a guest rather than a prisoner and encouraged her to learn English customs. She converted to Christianity and was baptized Lady Rebecca. Powhatan eventually agreed to the terms for her release, but by then she had fallen in love with John Rolfe, who was about 10 years her senior. On April 5, 1614, Pocahontas and John Rolfe married with the blessing of Chief Powhatan and the governor of Virginia.
Their marriage brought a peace between the English colonists and the Powhatans, and in 1615 Pocahontas gave birth to their first child, Thomas. In 1616, the couple sailed to England. The so-called Indian Princess proved popular with the English gentry, and she was presented at the court of King James I. In March 1617, Pocahontas and Rolfe prepared to sail back to Virginia. However, the day before they were to leave, Pocahontas died, probably of smallpox, and was buried at the parish church of St. George in Gravesend, England.
John Rolfe returned to Virginia and was killed in an Indian massacre in 1622. After an education in England, their son Thomas Rolfe returned to Virginia and became a prominent citizen. John Smith returned to the New World in 1614 to explore the New England coast. On another voyage of exploration in 1614, he was captured by pirates but escaped after three months of captivity. He then returned to England, where he died in 1631.
Tuesday, May 4, 2010
Ernie Harwell
Tigers' longtime broadcaster Harwell dead at 92 LARRY LAGE
Associated Press Ernie Harwell, the Detroit Tigers' longtime
broadcaster honored by Hall of Fame, dead at 92 DETROIT --
Longtime Detroit Tigers broadcaster Ernie Harwell, beloved by generations of
fans who grew up listening to his rich voice, Southern cadence and quirky
phrases on the radio, has died after a months-long battle with cancer. He
was 92. Tigers spokesman Brian Britten said the Tigers learned of Harwell's
death from his agent. Harwell, a Hall of Fame announcer who called Detroit
Tigers games for four-plus decades and was acquired by the Brooklyn Dodgers
for a catcher, announced in September that he had been diagnosed with
inoperable cancer of the bile duct. Then 91, he took the news with
characteristic poise, saying he planned to continue working on a book and
other projects. Whatever happens, I'm ready to face it," Harwell told The
Associated Press on Sept. 4, 2009. I have a great faith in God and Jesus.
Shortly after Harwell's announcement, the Tigers honored him during the
third inning of a game against Kansas City, showing a video tribute and
giving him a chance to address the crowd at Comerica Park. In my almost 92
years on this Earth, the good Lord has blessed me with a great journey,"
Harwell said at a microphone behind home plate. The blessed part of that
journey is that it's going to end here in the great state of Michigan.
Harwell died Tuesday at his home in Novi, about 30 miles northwest of
Detroit, according to the Detroit Free Press. The Tigers did not have
additional details about his death. Harwell spent 42 of his 55 years in
broadcasting with the Tigers. He was their play-by-play radio voice from
1960-1991 and 1993-2002. The team and its flagship radio station, WJR,
allowed his contract to expire after the 1991 season in what became a public
relations nightmare. Then-Tigers president Bo Schembechler, the former
Michigan football coach, took the blame. WJR general manager Jim Long later
took responsibility for the unpopular move. When Mike Ilitch bought the
franchise from Tom Monaghan, he put Harwell back in the booth in 1993.
Harwell chose to retire after the 2002 season. His big break came in
unorthodox fashion. Brooklyn Dodgers radio broadcaster Red Barber fell ill
in 1948, and general manager Branch Rickey needed a replacement. After
learning the Crackers needed a catcher, Rickey sent minor league catcher
Cliff Dapper to Atlanta and Harwell joined the Dodgers. Harwell said his
most memorable game was the 1951 playoff between the Dodgers and New York
Giants for the NL pennant, which Bobby Thomson won with a walk-off home run,
but few if any people remember his recount of the "Shot Heard 'Round The
World? at the Polo Grounds that day. Russ Hodges' exclamation on radio of
"The Giants win the pennant! became one of the most famous moments in sports
broadcasting history. Harwell, meanwhile, was calling the first major
sporting event televised coast-to-coast in the United States. His work that
day has been largely forgotten. I just said, `It's gone! and then the
pictures took over," he recalled. By his own count, Harwell called more than
8,300 major league games, starting with the Dodgers and continuing with the
Giants and Baltimore Orioles before joining the Tigers. He missed two games
outside of the '92 season: one for his brother's funeral in 1968, the other
when he was inducted into the National Sportscasters and Sportswriters
Association Hall of Fame in 1989. The Georgia native's easygoing manner and
love of baseball endeared him to generations of Tigers fans, enhancing the
club's finest moments and making its struggles more bearable. Even casual
fans could tick off Harwell catchphrases: "Looooooong gone! for a home run;
"He stood there like the house by the side of the road and watched that one
go by" for a batter taking a called third strike; and "Two for the price of
one! for a double play. Foul balls into the stands were "Caught by a man
from (whatever town in the area that came to his mind). I started that after
I got to Detroit in 1961 or '62, and it just happened by accident," Harwell
explained. I said, `A guy from Grosse Pointe caught that foul ball,' then
the next ones were caught by a guy from Saginaw or a lady from Lansing. The
Baseball Hall of Fame honored Harwell in 1981 with the Ford C. Frick Award,
given annually to a broadcaster for major contributions to baseball. Harwell
tempered his with modesty. I just want people to remember me as a guy who
showed up for work and tried to do a good job," Harwell told the AP weeks
before he retired in 2002. As Detroit struggled late in Harwell's career --
the Tigers had losing records in each of his final nine years in the
booth -- he became a reminder of better times. A life-sized statue of
Harwell stands at the entrance to Comerica Park and its press box is called
"The Ernie Harwell Media Center. He took pride in making rare visits to the
ballpark and for not doing much play-by-play work as a retiree. But he did
make a guest appearance for ESPN Radio during the fourth inning of the 2005
All-Star game in Detroit. He also presented the ceremonial first ball to
Tigers greats Al Kaline and Willie Horton before Game 1 of the 2006 World
Series when Detroit hosted the St. Louis Cardinals. Harwell was born Jan.
25, 1918, in Washington, Ga., with a speech defect that left him
tongue-tied. Through therapy and forcing himself to participate in debates
and classroom discussions, he had overcome the handicap by the time he
graduated from Emory University. Harwell was 16 when he became a
correspondent for The Sporting News, and worked from 1936-40 as a sports
writer for The Atlanta Constitution. Harwell began his broadcasting career
in 1940 as a sports commentator for WSB radio in Atlanta. He also worked The
Masters for NBC radio. After serving in the U.S. Marine Corps from 1942-46,
Harwell was the minor league Atlanta Crackers' radio voice from 1946-48. His
output far exceeded the thousands of baseball games he broadcast. He wrote a
column for the Free Press after retiring from broadcasting, penned more than
50 songs, produced at least three book-length collections of essays and
anecdotes, covered the 1939 Atlanta premiere of "Gone with the Wind" for
Life magazine and broadcast golf and pro and college football. Harwell's
vigor prompted Blue Cross Blue Shield of Michigan to sign him to a 10-year
contract as a spokesman and fitness advocate in 2003, when he was 85.
Survivors include his wife of 68 years, Lulu, and four children. ------
Associated Press Writer Jim Irwin contributed to this report.
Associated Press Ernie Harwell, the Detroit Tigers' longtime
broadcaster honored by Hall of Fame, dead at 92 DETROIT --
Longtime Detroit Tigers broadcaster Ernie Harwell, beloved by generations of
fans who grew up listening to his rich voice, Southern cadence and quirky
phrases on the radio, has died after a months-long battle with cancer. He
was 92. Tigers spokesman Brian Britten said the Tigers learned of Harwell's
death from his agent. Harwell, a Hall of Fame announcer who called Detroit
Tigers games for four-plus decades and was acquired by the Brooklyn Dodgers
for a catcher, announced in September that he had been diagnosed with
inoperable cancer of the bile duct. Then 91, he took the news with
characteristic poise, saying he planned to continue working on a book and
other projects. Whatever happens, I'm ready to face it," Harwell told The
Associated Press on Sept. 4, 2009. I have a great faith in God and Jesus.
Shortly after Harwell's announcement, the Tigers honored him during the
third inning of a game against Kansas City, showing a video tribute and
giving him a chance to address the crowd at Comerica Park. In my almost 92
years on this Earth, the good Lord has blessed me with a great journey,"
Harwell said at a microphone behind home plate. The blessed part of that
journey is that it's going to end here in the great state of Michigan.
Harwell died Tuesday at his home in Novi, about 30 miles northwest of
Detroit, according to the Detroit Free Press. The Tigers did not have
additional details about his death. Harwell spent 42 of his 55 years in
broadcasting with the Tigers. He was their play-by-play radio voice from
1960-1991 and 1993-2002. The team and its flagship radio station, WJR,
allowed his contract to expire after the 1991 season in what became a public
relations nightmare. Then-Tigers president Bo Schembechler, the former
Michigan football coach, took the blame. WJR general manager Jim Long later
took responsibility for the unpopular move. When Mike Ilitch bought the
franchise from Tom Monaghan, he put Harwell back in the booth in 1993.
Harwell chose to retire after the 2002 season. His big break came in
unorthodox fashion. Brooklyn Dodgers radio broadcaster Red Barber fell ill
in 1948, and general manager Branch Rickey needed a replacement. After
learning the Crackers needed a catcher, Rickey sent minor league catcher
Cliff Dapper to Atlanta and Harwell joined the Dodgers. Harwell said his
most memorable game was the 1951 playoff between the Dodgers and New York
Giants for the NL pennant, which Bobby Thomson won with a walk-off home run,
but few if any people remember his recount of the "Shot Heard 'Round The
World? at the Polo Grounds that day. Russ Hodges' exclamation on radio of
"The Giants win the pennant! became one of the most famous moments in sports
broadcasting history. Harwell, meanwhile, was calling the first major
sporting event televised coast-to-coast in the United States. His work that
day has been largely forgotten. I just said, `It's gone! and then the
pictures took over," he recalled. By his own count, Harwell called more than
8,300 major league games, starting with the Dodgers and continuing with the
Giants and Baltimore Orioles before joining the Tigers. He missed two games
outside of the '92 season: one for his brother's funeral in 1968, the other
when he was inducted into the National Sportscasters and Sportswriters
Association Hall of Fame in 1989. The Georgia native's easygoing manner and
love of baseball endeared him to generations of Tigers fans, enhancing the
club's finest moments and making its struggles more bearable. Even casual
fans could tick off Harwell catchphrases: "Looooooong gone! for a home run;
"He stood there like the house by the side of the road and watched that one
go by" for a batter taking a called third strike; and "Two for the price of
one! for a double play. Foul balls into the stands were "Caught by a man
from (whatever town in the area that came to his mind). I started that after
I got to Detroit in 1961 or '62, and it just happened by accident," Harwell
explained. I said, `A guy from Grosse Pointe caught that foul ball,' then
the next ones were caught by a guy from Saginaw or a lady from Lansing. The
Baseball Hall of Fame honored Harwell in 1981 with the Ford C. Frick Award,
given annually to a broadcaster for major contributions to baseball. Harwell
tempered his with modesty. I just want people to remember me as a guy who
showed up for work and tried to do a good job," Harwell told the AP weeks
before he retired in 2002. As Detroit struggled late in Harwell's career --
the Tigers had losing records in each of his final nine years in the
booth -- he became a reminder of better times. A life-sized statue of
Harwell stands at the entrance to Comerica Park and its press box is called
"The Ernie Harwell Media Center. He took pride in making rare visits to the
ballpark and for not doing much play-by-play work as a retiree. But he did
make a guest appearance for ESPN Radio during the fourth inning of the 2005
All-Star game in Detroit. He also presented the ceremonial first ball to
Tigers greats Al Kaline and Willie Horton before Game 1 of the 2006 World
Series when Detroit hosted the St. Louis Cardinals. Harwell was born Jan.
25, 1918, in Washington, Ga., with a speech defect that left him
tongue-tied. Through therapy and forcing himself to participate in debates
and classroom discussions, he had overcome the handicap by the time he
graduated from Emory University. Harwell was 16 when he became a
correspondent for The Sporting News, and worked from 1936-40 as a sports
writer for The Atlanta Constitution. Harwell began his broadcasting career
in 1940 as a sports commentator for WSB radio in Atlanta. He also worked The
Masters for NBC radio. After serving in the U.S. Marine Corps from 1942-46,
Harwell was the minor league Atlanta Crackers' radio voice from 1946-48. His
output far exceeded the thousands of baseball games he broadcast. He wrote a
column for the Free Press after retiring from broadcasting, penned more than
50 songs, produced at least three book-length collections of essays and
anecdotes, covered the 1939 Atlanta premiere of "Gone with the Wind" for
Life magazine and broadcast golf and pro and college football. Harwell's
vigor prompted Blue Cross Blue Shield of Michigan to sign him to a 10-year
contract as a spokesman and fitness advocate in 2003, when he was 85.
Survivors include his wife of 68 years, Lulu, and four children. ------
Associated Press Writer Jim Irwin contributed to this report.
Monday, May 3, 2010
MAY1 1931
In 1931, President Herbert Hoover officially dedicates New York City's Empire State Building, pressing a button from the White House that turns on the building's lights. Hoover's gesture, of course, was symbolic; while the president remained in Washington, D.C., someone else flicked the switches in New York.
The idea for the Empire State Building is said to have been born of a competition between Walter Chrysler of the Chrysler Corporation and John Jakob Raskob of General Motors, to see who could erect the taller building. Chrysler had already begun work on the famous Chrysler Building, the gleaming 1,046-foot skyscraper in midtown Manhattan. Not to be bested, Raskob assembled a group of well-known investors, including former New York Governor Alfred E. Smith. The group chose the architecture firm Shreve, Lamb and Harmon Associates to design the building. The Art-Deco plans, said to have been based in large part on the look of a pencil, were also builder-friendly: The entire building went up in just over a year, under budget (at $40 million) and well ahead of schedule. During certain periods of building, the frame grew an astonishing four-and-a-half stories a week.
At the time of its completion, the Empire State Building, at 102 stories and 1,250 feet high (1,454 feet to the top of the lightning rod), was the world's tallest skyscraper. The Depression-era construction employed as many as 3,400 workers on any single day, most of whom received an excellent pay rate, especially given the economic conditions of the time. The new building imbued New York City with a deep sense of pride, desperately needed in the depths of the Great Depression, when many city residents were unemployed and prospects looked bleak. The grip of the Depression on New York's economy was still evident a year later, however, when only 25 percent of the Empire State's offices had been rented.
In 1972, the Empire State Building lost its title as world's tallest building to New York's World Trade Center, which itself was the tallest skyscraper for but a year. Today the honor belongs to Taiwan's Taipei 101 building, which stretches 1,670 feet into the sky.
The idea for the Empire State Building is said to have been born of a competition between Walter Chrysler of the Chrysler Corporation and John Jakob Raskob of General Motors, to see who could erect the taller building. Chrysler had already begun work on the famous Chrysler Building, the gleaming 1,046-foot skyscraper in midtown Manhattan. Not to be bested, Raskob assembled a group of well-known investors, including former New York Governor Alfred E. Smith. The group chose the architecture firm Shreve, Lamb and Harmon Associates to design the building. The Art-Deco plans, said to have been based in large part on the look of a pencil, were also builder-friendly: The entire building went up in just over a year, under budget (at $40 million) and well ahead of schedule. During certain periods of building, the frame grew an astonishing four-and-a-half stories a week.
At the time of its completion, the Empire State Building, at 102 stories and 1,250 feet high (1,454 feet to the top of the lightning rod), was the world's tallest skyscraper. The Depression-era construction employed as many as 3,400 workers on any single day, most of whom received an excellent pay rate, especially given the economic conditions of the time. The new building imbued New York City with a deep sense of pride, desperately needed in the depths of the Great Depression, when many city residents were unemployed and prospects looked bleak. The grip of the Depression on New York's economy was still evident a year later, however, when only 25 percent of the Empire State's offices had been rented.
In 1972, the Empire State Building lost its title as world's tallest building to New York's World Trade Center, which itself was the tallest skyscraper for but a year. Today the honor belongs to Taiwan's Taipei 101 building, which stretches 1,670 feet into the sky.
Ed Norton
Born Arthur William Matthew Carney on November 4th, 1918 in Mt. Vernon, New York, Art Carney won an Oscar in 1975 for his first starring movie role -- in 'Harry and Tonto' -- although he never had an acting lesson. Before serving in World War II, he had started off in the 1930s, as an entertainer at the local Elks Club, and performed locally as an impressionist and tap dancer. After graduating from high school he traveled for three years with Horace Heidt, who had a very popular orchestra and radio quiz show in the late 1930s. While with Heidt's group, he landed a bit part in his first movie, Pot o'Gold, which starred James Stewart and Paulette Goddard. He displayed a remarkable range of dramatic talents over the radio in the 1940s on daytime serials, mysteries, spot recordings, and children's shows, essentially in character and dialect parts. He did a serious political program called Report to the Nation, for which he impersonated the voices of prominent figures of the day, among them Churchill and Roosevelt. He also worked with Morey Amsterdam on a radio show that turned into a television show, and thereby, Art Carney entered television.
Although he was particularly well known from the early 1950s on as Ed Norton, he was also much in demand as a serious actor, appearing on Suspense, Studio One, Kraft Theatre, Playhouse 90, Climax!, and Best of Broadway. By the 1960s, he was appearing only infrequently on television. He mostly performed on Broadway ('The Odd Couple', 'The Rope Dancers', 'The Prisoners of Second Avenue', 'Take Her, She's Mine') and the movies ('A Guide for the Married Man', 'W.W. and the Dixie Dance Kings', 'Harry and Tonto', 'The Late Show') which brought new facets of Art Carney to the public.
Carney first became interested in The Honeymooners at the suggestion of writers Arne Rosen and Coleman Jacoby, who were then writing for Jackie Gleason on DuMont's Cavalcade of Stars. He joined the show in 1950 and continued with it until it left New York. He rejoined The Honeymooners for guest spots on 'The American Scene Magazine' in 1962, for several seasons beginning in 1966, and for three ABC specials in 1976, 1977, and 1978.
Carney has earned seven Emmy Awards, five of them for his memorable role as the lovable Ed Norton on The Honeymooners. His role in the 1984 telefilm Terrible Joe Moran won him an Emmy Award for Outstanding Supporting Actor in a Limited Series or Special.. His first lead role in a feature film (which was in Harry and Tonto), won him an Oscar. In October 2003, only a few weeks before he passed away, he was inducted in to the Academy of Television Arts & Sciences' Hall of Fame.
Art Carney passed away on November 9th, 2003 at the age of 85.
Although he was particularly well known from the early 1950s on as Ed Norton, he was also much in demand as a serious actor, appearing on Suspense, Studio One, Kraft Theatre, Playhouse 90, Climax!, and Best of Broadway. By the 1960s, he was appearing only infrequently on television. He mostly performed on Broadway ('The Odd Couple', 'The Rope Dancers', 'The Prisoners of Second Avenue', 'Take Her, She's Mine') and the movies ('A Guide for the Married Man', 'W.W. and the Dixie Dance Kings', 'Harry and Tonto', 'The Late Show') which brought new facets of Art Carney to the public.
Carney first became interested in The Honeymooners at the suggestion of writers Arne Rosen and Coleman Jacoby, who were then writing for Jackie Gleason on DuMont's Cavalcade of Stars. He joined the show in 1950 and continued with it until it left New York. He rejoined The Honeymooners for guest spots on 'The American Scene Magazine' in 1962, for several seasons beginning in 1966, and for three ABC specials in 1976, 1977, and 1978.
Carney has earned seven Emmy Awards, five of them for his memorable role as the lovable Ed Norton on The Honeymooners. His role in the 1984 telefilm Terrible Joe Moran won him an Emmy Award for Outstanding Supporting Actor in a Limited Series or Special.. His first lead role in a feature film (which was in Harry and Tonto), won him an Oscar. In October 2003, only a few weeks before he passed away, he was inducted in to the Academy of Television Arts & Sciences' Hall of Fame.
Art Carney passed away on November 9th, 2003 at the age of 85.
Sunday, May 2, 2010
MAY2 1933 : Loch Ness Monster sighted
Although accounts of an aquatic beast living in Scotland's Loch Ness date back 1,500 years, the modern legend of the Loch Ness Monster is born when a sighting makes local news on May 2, 1933. The newspaper Inverness Courier related an account of a local couple who claimed to have seen "an enormous animal rolling and plunging on the surface." The story of the "monster" (a moniker chosen by the Courier editor) became a media phenomenon, with London newspapers sending correspondents to Scotland and a circus offering a 20,000 pound sterling reward for capture of the beast.
Loch Ness, located in the Scottish Highlands, has the largest volume of fresh water in Great Britain; the body of water reaches a depth of nearly 800 feet and a length of about 23 miles. Scholars of the Loch Ness Monster find a dozen references to "Nessie" in Scottish history, dating back to around A.D. 500, when local Picts carved a strange aquatic creature into standing stones near Loch Ness. The earliest written reference to a monster in Loch Ness is a 7th-century biography of Saint Columba, the Irish missionary who introduced Christianity to Scotland. In 565, according to the biographer, Columba was on his way to visit the king of the northern Picts near Inverness when he stopped at Loch Ness to confront a beast that had been killing people in the lake. Seeing a large beast about to attack another man, Columba intervened, invoking the name of God and commanding the creature to "go back with all speed." The monster retreated and never killed another man.
In 1933, a new road was completed along Loch Ness' shore, affording drivers a clear view of the loch. After an April 1933 sighting was reported in the local paper on May 2, interest steadily grew, especially after another couple claimed to have seen the beast on land, crossing the shore road. Several British newspapers sent reporters to Scotland, including London's Daily Mail, which hired big-game hunter Marmaduke Wetherell to capture the beast. After a few days searching the loch, Wetherell reported finding footprints of a large four-legged animal. In response, the Daily Mail carried the dramatic headline: "MONSTER OF LOCH NESS IS NOT LEGEND BUT A FACT." Scores of tourists descended on Loch Ness and sat in boats or decks chairs waiting for an appearance by the beast. Plaster casts of the footprints were sent to the British Natural History Museum, which reported that the tracks were that of a hippopotamus, specifically one hippopotamus foot, probably stuffed. The hoax temporarily deflated Loch Ness Monster mania, but stories of sightings continued.
A famous 1934 photograph seemed to show a dinosaur-like creature with a long neck emerging out of the murky waters, leading some to speculate that "Nessie" was a solitary survivor of the long-extinct plesiosaurs. The aquatic plesiosaurs were thought to have died off with the rest of the dinosaurs 65 million years ago. Loch Ness was frozen solid during the recent ice ages, however, so this creature would have had to have made its way up the River Ness from the sea in the past 10,000 years. And the plesiosaurs, believed to be cold-blooded, would not long survive in the frigid waters of Loch Ness. More likely, others suggested, it was an archeocyte, a primitive whale with a serpentine neck that is thought to have been extinct for 18 million years. Skeptics argued that what people were seeing in Loch Ness were "seiches"--oscillations in the water surface caused by the inflow of cold river water into the slightly warmer loch.
Amateur investigators kept an almost constant vigil, and in the 1960s several British universities launched expeditions to Loch Ness, using sonar to search the deep. Nothing conclusive was found, but in each expedition the sonar operators detected large, moving underwater objects they could not explain. In 1975, Boston's Academy of Applied Science combined sonar and underwater photography in an expedition to Loch Ness. A photo resulted that, after enhancement, appeared to show the giant flipper of a plesiosaur-like creature. Further sonar expeditions in the 1980s and 1990s resulted in more tantalizing, if inconclusive, readings. Revelations in 1994 that the famous 1934 photo was a hoax hardly dampened the enthusiasm of tourists and professional and amateur investigators to the legend of the Loch Ness Monster.
Loch Ness, located in the Scottish Highlands, has the largest volume of fresh water in Great Britain; the body of water reaches a depth of nearly 800 feet and a length of about 23 miles. Scholars of the Loch Ness Monster find a dozen references to "Nessie" in Scottish history, dating back to around A.D. 500, when local Picts carved a strange aquatic creature into standing stones near Loch Ness. The earliest written reference to a monster in Loch Ness is a 7th-century biography of Saint Columba, the Irish missionary who introduced Christianity to Scotland. In 565, according to the biographer, Columba was on his way to visit the king of the northern Picts near Inverness when he stopped at Loch Ness to confront a beast that had been killing people in the lake. Seeing a large beast about to attack another man, Columba intervened, invoking the name of God and commanding the creature to "go back with all speed." The monster retreated and never killed another man.
In 1933, a new road was completed along Loch Ness' shore, affording drivers a clear view of the loch. After an April 1933 sighting was reported in the local paper on May 2, interest steadily grew, especially after another couple claimed to have seen the beast on land, crossing the shore road. Several British newspapers sent reporters to Scotland, including London's Daily Mail, which hired big-game hunter Marmaduke Wetherell to capture the beast. After a few days searching the loch, Wetherell reported finding footprints of a large four-legged animal. In response, the Daily Mail carried the dramatic headline: "MONSTER OF LOCH NESS IS NOT LEGEND BUT A FACT." Scores of tourists descended on Loch Ness and sat in boats or decks chairs waiting for an appearance by the beast. Plaster casts of the footprints were sent to the British Natural History Museum, which reported that the tracks were that of a hippopotamus, specifically one hippopotamus foot, probably stuffed. The hoax temporarily deflated Loch Ness Monster mania, but stories of sightings continued.
A famous 1934 photograph seemed to show a dinosaur-like creature with a long neck emerging out of the murky waters, leading some to speculate that "Nessie" was a solitary survivor of the long-extinct plesiosaurs. The aquatic plesiosaurs were thought to have died off with the rest of the dinosaurs 65 million years ago. Loch Ness was frozen solid during the recent ice ages, however, so this creature would have had to have made its way up the River Ness from the sea in the past 10,000 years. And the plesiosaurs, believed to be cold-blooded, would not long survive in the frigid waters of Loch Ness. More likely, others suggested, it was an archeocyte, a primitive whale with a serpentine neck that is thought to have been extinct for 18 million years. Skeptics argued that what people were seeing in Loch Ness were "seiches"--oscillations in the water surface caused by the inflow of cold river water into the slightly warmer loch.
Amateur investigators kept an almost constant vigil, and in the 1960s several British universities launched expeditions to Loch Ness, using sonar to search the deep. Nothing conclusive was found, but in each expedition the sonar operators detected large, moving underwater objects they could not explain. In 1975, Boston's Academy of Applied Science combined sonar and underwater photography in an expedition to Loch Ness. A photo resulted that, after enhancement, appeared to show the giant flipper of a plesiosaur-like creature. Further sonar expeditions in the 1980s and 1990s resulted in more tantalizing, if inconclusive, readings. Revelations in 1994 that the famous 1934 photo was a hoax hardly dampened the enthusiasm of tourists and professional and amateur investigators to the legend of the Loch Ness Monster.
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