★ May 7, 2012 ★

My application to Beta test something new & cool has been accepted! I like Beta testing ... I've got the Beta of firefox on here right now, but the most Beta testing fun I ever had was Beta testing the larger software like Windows (I Beta tested Chicago) & AOL. This is a 1st Beta testing an EA game though & I can't wait! It looks like it's going to be really fun based on the screenshots I've seen. Other than that, I had a good weekend, watched Meet Joe Black again & really enjoyed it again. Made a wonderful beef roast with potatoes & baby carrots yesterday, & LCFD Maintenance on Tuesday. :)

Circumlocution:

1: The use of an unnecessarily large number of words to express an idea. 2: Evasion in speech.

It certainly couldn't be objected that he used any needless circumlocution, or failed to speak directly to the purpose.

In The King's English, grammarian H.W. Fowler advised, "Prefer the single word to the circumlocution." Alas, that good advice was not followed by the framers of "circumlocution," who actually used 2 terms in forming the word for unnecessarily verbose prose or speech. But their choicer were apt: "circumlocution" derives from the Latin circum- ("around") & locutio ("speech"), so it literally means "roundabout speech." Since the 15th century, English writers have used "circumlocution" with disdain. Charles Dickens even used it to satirize political runarounds when he created the fictional Circumlocution Office, a government department that delayed the dissemination of information & just about everything else.

Daimler-Benz announces purchase of Chrysler Corp. (1998):

On this day in 1998, the German automobile company Daimler-Benz--maker of the world-famous luxury car brand Mercedes-Benz--announces a $36 billion merger with the United States-based Chrysler Corporation.

The purchase of Chrysler, America's third-largest car company, by the Stuttgart-based Daimler-Benz marked the biggest acquisition by a foreign buyer of any U.S. company in history. Though marketed to investors as an equal pairing, it soon emerged that Daimler would be the dominant partner, with its stockholders owning the majority of the new company's shares. For Chrysler, headquartered in Auburn Hills, Michigan, the end of independence was a surprising twist in a striking comeback story. After a near-collapse and a government bailout in 1979 that saved it from bankruptcy, the company surged back in the 1980s under the leadership of the former Ford executive Lee Iacocca, in a revival spurred in part by the tremendous success of its trendsetting minivan.

The new company, DaimlerChrysler AG, began trading on the Frankfurt and New York stock exchanges the following November. A few months later, according to a 2001 article in The New York Times, its stock price rose to an impressive high of $108.62 per share. The euphoria proved to be short-lived, however. While Daimler had been attracted by the profitability of Chrysler's minivans and Jeeps, over the next few years profits were up and down, and by the fall of 2003 the Chrysler Group had cut some 26,000 jobs and was still losing money.

In 2006, according to the Times, Chrysler posted a loss of $1.5 billion and fell behind Toyota to fourth place in the American car market. This loss came despite the company's splashy launch of 10 new Chrysler models that year, with plans to unveil eight more. The following May, however, after reportedly negotiating with General Motors about a potential sale, DaimlerChrysler announced it was selling 80.1 percent of Chrysler to the private-equity firm Cerberus Capital Management for $7.4 billion. DaimlerChrysler, soon renamed Daimler AG, kept a 19.9 percent stake in the new company, known as Chrysler LLC.

By late 2008, increasingly dismal sales led Chrysler to seek federal funds to the tune of $4 billion to stay afloat. Under pressure from the Obama administration, the company filed for bankruptcy protection in April 2009 and will enter into a planned partnership with the Italian automaker Fiat.

Final episode of Friends airs on NBC (2004):

At 9:00 p.m. Eastern and Pacific times on this day in 2004, that familiar theme song (“I’ll Be There For You” by the Rembrandts) announces the beginning of the end, as an estimated 51.1 million people tune in for the final original episode of NBC’s long-running comedy series Friends.

Created and executive-produced (with Kevin S. Bright) by Marta Kauffman and David Crane, Friends debuted 10 years and 236 episodes earlier, on September 22, 1994. Shot at the Warner Brothers studios in Burbank, California, the show was set in New York City’s Greenwich Village, where six friends struggled with the ups-and-downs of young adult life in the big city--albeit while living in an impossibly large, cushy apartment, apparently without the burden of having to spend much time working actual jobs. Almost from the beginning of its decade-long run, Friends was a cultural phenomenon, winning six Emmy Awards (including one for Outstanding Comedy Series), sparking hairstyle trends (“the Rachel”), spawning catch phrases (“How you doin?”) and turning its six principal cast members into household names.

Preceded by a maelstrom of hype and publicity, the hour-long Friends finale drew approximately two-thirds of the audience garnered by the finales of two other long-running sitcoms, Cheers (80.4 million) in 1993 and Seinfeld (76.2 million) in 1998, according to a Fox News report. The most-watched TV series finale ever, M*A*S*H, was viewed by some 105 million people when it aired in 1983.  According to the New York Times, NBC charged advertisers an average of $2 million for every 30 seconds of ad time during the finale--a record amount for a sitcom and only $300,000 less than what CBS charged during that year’s Super Bowl.

In the finale, the long-running on-and-off relationship between Ross (David Schwimmer) and Rachel (Jennifer Aniston), which over the years included a drunken Las Vegas wedding and a baby, Emma, born in 2002, ended as most of the show’s fans hoped: They got back together, presumably for good. Meanwhile, Chandler (Matthew Perry) and Monica (Courtney Cox-Arquette) had become suburbanites and parents of twins, Phoebe (Lisa Kudrow) was married, and Joey (Matt LeBlanc) was headed off to L.A. to pursue his acting career. (A spin-off sitcom, Joey, followed LeBlanc’s character to Hollywood; the show failed to attract a significant audience, and was canceled in 2006.)

Throughout the show’s run, its six stars maintained a famously unified front, ensuring that no one of them emerged as a dominating force onscreen and even negotiating their salaries together. In the spring of 2000, each member of the cast signed a two-year, $40 million contract that netted them each a staggering $1 million per episode. Broadcast in some 100 countries, Friends continues to earn good ratings for its syndicated rerun episodes.

It'll be hard to shake the cobwebs from your mind this morning, & you may not feel clear-headed until after you get a shot of espresso or 2. Live with the fuzz until concentration is absolutely necessary.
Not every mystery has to be that way forever -- see if you can track down your latest puzzle today. Even if things seem totally out there, you should pick up on at least hints of what's really going on.
There's no need to rush, so take your time and do things right today. When you're doing things with your honey, the process can be as much fun as the end result.
Your attitude is strong, and you are feeling willful today -- and it looks as though this is a perfect time for you to fight for what (or whom) you believe in! In any contest today, you are sure to be the victor. You might not feel ready for any type of battle, but you are. There are reserves of strength deep inside you that you have barely tapped into. Are you ready to unleash the beast? Of course, the better question might be whether the world is ready to meet the beast!

Laundry:

Need an incentive to have your family help with laundry? Tell your family that if any money is found in pockets then it's theirs. Doing the laundry could become very lucrative!

Listen, there's nothing good about a timeshare. They have no redeeming qualities whatsoever. Besides, in most of these deals the food is bad & they'll stick you in a room that's not so hot either. Timeshares are one of the few consumer products that have an overwhelmingly high dissatisfaction rate. It's virtually impossible to find someone who's glad they bought in to one of those things!

Shopping: 200 calories an hour.

Stress Check:

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BONUS FEATURES IN PRO:
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★ Turn the phone sideways for historical graphs
Everyone has experienced changes in heart rate before taking an exam, giving a public speech, or when exercising. Not only does your heart rate increase, but the amount of time between consecutive heart beats changes as well. By measuring heart rate variability (HRV) using your iPhone's built-in camera, you can estimate your level of stress in just two minutes wherever you are!
Top athletes across the globe are using HRV to track their fatigue and recovery to maximize performance. Whether you're a runner, biker, swimmer, or weightlifter, Stress Check will help you optimize your workouts day after day.
Stress Check utilizes a method of quantitative stress level assessment developed by Biocom Technologies, a well-known developer of various professional health assessment technologies. Our HRV algorithms follow recommendations of the European Society of Cardiology (ESC) and the North American Society of Pacing and Electrophysiology (NASPE).

This plant's fleshy, somewhat spiny leaves contain rows of enlarged cells that are filled with a translucent yellow mucus. What is it?

Walking on the outside:

The custom of a man walking between his female companion & the street was the custom in the days when carriages splashed mud & ladies' finery needed shielding. These days, it doesn't matter who is walking on the street side of the sidewalk.

What breed was Snuppy, the world’s first cloned dog?

An Afghan hound. He was named Snuppy for Seoul National University puppy by the South Korean scientists who created him in 2005.

What movie character was included as both a hero and a villain on the American Film Institute’s list of “100 Years . . . 100 Heroes and Villains”?

What popular 1980s family sitcom is shown on Italian TV as I Robinson, or The Robinsons?

The Cosby Show. Apparently Robinson is easier for Italians to pronounce than Huxtable.

What's the difference between perlite & vermiculite, both sound in soil mixes?

Both are minerals that are processed at high temperature to make them explode into small, lightweight, puffy pieces. Their size & shape make channels for the flow of air & water, helping to aerate the soil & providing drainage. They also prevent the growing medium  from drying out too quickly because they hold onto water. But they do it differently, & that difference is important. Perlite holds water only on its surface; vermiculite absorbs water, as much as 16X iss weight, making a much wetter growing medium.

All perlite - which is white & nearly round, is chemically the same. It's inert, its pH is neutral, & it doesn't break down. Vermiculite, on the other hand, has a shiny brownish metallic color & comes in squared-off pieces. Depending on where it's mined, its pH may range from neutral to strongly alkaline. It's chemically active, binding or releasing various minerals, & eventually needs to be replaced.

Which island is the biggest, 2nd biggest, & 3rd biggest?

A. New Guinea

B. Borneo

C. Greenland