May 23, 2012

Truly a frustrating day yesterday. I worked, worked, worked, missed training because I was working, & then finally, when I finally got to the end of all the work, I walked over to my massage chair ... & the phone rang. I was on the phone until the dryer buzzed, then everyone came walking in the door for the evening. I wanted to cry. I needed so badly to sit down & take a breath at the end of a long day, but NOPE! So close that my fingertips almost touched the chair, but NOPE! Worked my butt off Monday, too. Of course yesterday had the help of a structure fire in Princeton ... those tend to take a little bit of time. See, most people get off work & go home & sit down at the end of the day. What do you do when you work from home & you CAN'T leave work? You work until you fall asleep. I REALLY need some down time! This Friday is the opening of MIB3.

Bourne Legacy:

Following the Jason Bourne debacle, the CIA finds itself dealing with a familiar threat when another estranged operative surfaces. Jeremy Renner stars alongside Edward Norton, Rachel Weisz and Joan Allen.

Find all of the colors that appear in the cue game of snooker.

Yellow, green, orange, brown, blue, purple, pink, black, gray, red.

Forget the raw carrots & cauliflower - you know what a really good onion dip cries out for.

George W. Bush recovers from bicycle accident (2004):

On this day in 2004, as reported in the Washington Post, President George Bush recovers from a bicycle accident he'd had the day before. Bush had taken up mountain biking for exercise at the suggestion of physicians.

Reporter Dana Milbank recounted how Bush fell from his mountain bike while completing a 17-mile course on his ranch in Crawford, Texas. Despite scrapes and scratches on his chin, lip, nose, hand and knees, Bush--who was wearing a helmet at the time--got back on his bike and finished the course. Afterwards, a White House spokesperson warned reporters that Bush might show up for his daughter Jenna's graduation party the next Saturday sporting a bandage on his chin.

In an earlier mishap in 2003, Bush was captured on film as he fell off a motorized scooter. The physically active Bush has narrowly escaped other frightening and life-threatening incidents. In 1999, he luckily avoided major injuries when a truck carrying a load of cement and wood turned over as he was jogging by it. That same year, Bush encountered, but was not bitten by, venomous water moccasins while swimming in a watering hole on his Crawford ranch. In January 2002, Bush was alone with his two dogs watching a football game in the White House when he managed to dislodge a pretzel from his throat after choking on it.

Over the years, cartoonists and journalists have relished showing the presidents in their more uncoordinated moments, but no president has been lampooned for clumsiness like former President Gerald Ford, who was actually very athletic. After he was first photographed stumbling down the last few steps of the stairway from Air Force One, Ford's subsequent trips and falls were immortalized by actor Chevy Chase in the 1970s on the popular television show, Saturday Night Live.

Personal computers:

We 1st brought PCs into our homes for word processing, spreadsheets & games. Now, imagine life without the Internet!

Place a piece of chalk in your jewelry box to prevent jewelry from tarnishing.

Quick! Name 2 vines whose scientific names start with "P" that will grow well indoors!

Renting is an excellent idea under a few circumstances, most significantly while you're getting your financial act together. Baby steps 1, 2 & 3 should be done before you buy a home. Another reason to rent is if you're not going to be in a city for very long - like with military folks who are only in a location for a few years. Renting is also good for young couples just getting married. Be married for a while, rent something cheap, pile up cash, clean up your mess.

Roboer Moog, inventor of the modern synthesizer is born. He doesn't wiggle, he oscillates. (1934)

SafeGadget:

Safegadget helps you secure your computer, laptop, notebook, and Smartphones with free Anti-virus, Internet security software, Anti-spyware, and Windows security tips.
Many tutorials to help individuals lock down their computers and prevent hackers from stealing information. Create, store, and use secure passwords.
Learn how to fight spam, phishing, perform safe online shopping, learn how to invest online safely, and how to bank online securely.
Secure your wireless Internet and use a free Wi-Fi hotspot securely.

Spear-carrier:

1a: A member of an opera chorus b: A bit actor in a play. 2: A person whose actions are of little significance or value.

Although the former aide was only a spear-carrier in the administration, his recent memoir, which points an accusatory finger at several key players, is causing quite a stir.

"Spear-carrier" began to be used for a person having a nonspeaking or supernumerary role in opera or theater in the 1950s. The name likely came from the nondescript, often spear-carrying soldiers who appear in the background or as walk-ons in plays about ancient Rome or Greece. Off-stage, "spear-carrier" refers to a person having a minimal role in the undertaking of some major event or in the working of some major organization.

To the right of the plate, working in, place the soup spoon (if soup will be served), a teaspoon (if coffee is served during the meal), & then the entree knife. The durring edge of the knife blade faces the plate. If you're serving a seafood appetizer, the seafood fork (also known as a shellfish or an oyster fork) is placed to the right of the spoon(s) & the knife - the only fork set on the right side of the place setting.

Under what name do we know the literary classic that originally bore the title Travels into Several Remote Nations of the World, in Four Parts?

Gulliver’s Travels. Author Jonathan Swift’s original title continued: By Lemuel Gulliver, First a Surgeon, and then a Captain of Several Ships.

 

What animal has larger eyes than any other land creature?

 

What, exactly, is a bonsai plant?

There's no such thing really. Instead, there are plants that are trained as bonsais. The word comes from the Japanese kanji characters bon & sai meaning "container" & "to plant." Not quite everything can be made into a bonsai, but tropical, semitropical, & temperate trees & shrubs, both evergreen & deciduous, are used.

To succeed in caring for a bonsai, you must keep it alive & healthy, & you must continue its training. You can learn more at the websites of Bonsai Clubs International & the American Bonsai Society.

Traditional bonsai plants are hardy outdoor species such as times & junipers, which cannot live indoors year-round. Here are some suggestions for indoor candidates:

Full sun: Chinese elm, dwarf pomegranate, gardenia, snow rose.

Part sun: Australian myrtle, camellia, citrus, jade plant.

Bright indirect light: Creeping fig, false heather, Norfolk Island pine, star jasmine.

Which last name is the most, 2nd most, & 3rd most popular in the U.S.?

A. Williams

B. Smith

C. Johnson

BCA. According to the 1990 census, there were 2,501,922 Smiths in the USA, or about 1% of the population. No wonder finding a Smith in the phone book can drive you up the wall.

 

Who had the most, 2nd most, & 3rd most wins & losses?

A. Bob Gibson

B. Whitey Ford

C. Sandy Koufax