June 29, 2005
*Spiffy
A year or two ago, I bought a wireless keyboard and mouse. For some reason or another that I've forgotten, I never hooked them up. Until now.
Yay, wireless!
Except...I now need to make sure I keep AA and AAA batteries in stock. The battery life is supposed to be 6 months at "30 minutes of use a day". Hahahahaha! 30 minutes. Such jokesters.
Plus this mouse has a scroll wheel, which the former mouse did not. I use scroll wheels like crazy at work, and missed it at home. And the new keyboard is nice and quiet. I'm a stealth-blogger now!
Once again, yay, wireless!
Quotes For This Wednesday
"God made the cat in order that man might have the pleasure of caressing the tiger."-Fernand Mery
"If cats could talk, they wouldn't."-Nan Porter
"If you are worthy of its affection, a cat will be your friend but never your slave."-Theophile Gautier
"In ancient times cats were worshipped as gods, they have never forgotten this."-Author Unknown
June 28, 2005
It's Only Tuesday? Quote
Well, it's not a quote. It's a comic. Make due.
(click to enlarge if you wish)
June 27, 2005
Monday Quote
From memory, so not quite verbatim...
"You know what being 'positive' is, don't you? It's usually being wrong at the top of your lungs."-Michael Landon as Charles Ingalls, Little House on the Prairie
June 22, 2005
Quote For This Particular Day
"It is not time or opportunity that is to determine intimacy; it is disposition alone. Seven years would be insufficient to make some people acquainted with each other, and seven days are more than enough for others."-Jane Austen
June 21, 2005
June 16, 2005
Real Life (and Death) Happens...
...Resulting in my abruptly needing to leave town for a few days.
But that doesn't mean Bill Week needs to end. Feel free to share any Bill stories in the comments or trackback with any Bill posts you have at your own place.
And if you need a fix of Bill or a little inspiration, try:
Bill C. Interview
Bill C. Part II
Take care, all.
June 15, 2005
June 15, 1215
On this date, King John signed the Magna Carta, early ancestor to the Constitution and Bill of Rights.
June 14, 2005
June 14, 1954
After much debate, President Eisenhower signed a bill adding "under God" to the Pledge of Allegiance.
Tuesday's Bill Quote
"I don't know whether it's the finest public housing in America or the crown jewel of the American penal system."–Bill Clinton, on the White House
June 13, 2005
June 13, 1865
Bill's Birthday: William Butler Yeats was born on this date.
Quote for a Bill Week Monday
"I promise not to continuously post about my unemployment. Really."-Bill
That Bill sure does keep his promises.
June 12, 2005
*June 12, 1964
On this date, Nelson Mandela was sentenced to life in prison.
June 11, 2005
June 11, 1509
On this date, Henry VIII married his first wife, Catherine of Aragon. The marriage resulted in the birth of a daughter, the future "Bloody Mary", Queen Mary I, but as I'm sure you know, no male heirs. The marriage was annulled after 24 years, and Catherine died about 3 years later.
June 10, 2005
June 10, 1944
On this date, Nazi SS troops destroyed the French town of Oradour-sur-Glane, killing nearly all the residents.
Quote for a Friday
"I served 23 years in the United States Marine Corps. I was through two wars. I flew 149 missions. My plane was hit by anti-aircraft fire on 12 different occasions.I was in the space program. It wasn't my checkbook, it was my life that was on the line. This was not a 9-to-5 job where I took time off to take the daily cash receipts to the bank.
I ask you to go with me, as I went the other day to a Veterans Hospital, and look those men with their mangled bodies in the eye and tell them they didn't hold a job.
You go with me to any Gold Star mother, and you look her in the eye and tell her that her son did not hold a job.
You go with me to the space program, and you go as I have gone to the widows and the orphans of Ed White and Gus Grissom and Roger Chaffee, and you look those kids in the eye and tell them that their dad didn't hold a job.
You go with me on Memorial Day coming up, and you stand on Arlington National Cemetery — where I have more friends than I like to remember — and you watch those waving flags, and you stand there, and you think about this nation, and you tell me that those people didn't have a job.
I tell you, Howard Metzenbaum, you should be on your knees every day of your life thanking God that there were some men — SOME MEN — who held a job. And they required a dedication to purpose and a love of country and a dedication to duty that was more important than life itself.
And their self-sacrifice is what has made this country possible.
I HAVE HELD A JOB, HOWARD!"
-John Glenn, to Howard Metzenbaum when Metzenbaum said Glenn never held a job.
June 09, 2005
*Ask Jen: Heartless Witch Edition
Reader "B" writes, "Regarding 'That's all she wrote!' Who is she and what did she write?"
"That's all she wrote" means basically, "it's over". She is the same she who wrote the "Dear John" letters in WWII, ending her relationship with her soldier abroad.
Do you have a question for me? You can e-mail it. If I know the answer, I'll answer it. If I don't, I might make something up.
*June 9, 68
On this date, deposed Roman Emperor Nero committed suicide.
Quote for a Thursday
"Nothing gives one person so much advantage over another as to remain always cool and unruffled under all circumstances."-Thomas Jefferson
Borrowed from Chaplain Lewis.
June 08, 2005
The Rape of Ground Zero
A cemetery is not the place to foster "debate" or "dialogue". A cemetery is a place to honor and remember those who have died. The World Trade Center site is equivalent to a cemetery. Thousands of people died there and we need to honor and remember them. Quietly. Reverently.
Politics do not belong at Ground Zero.
It is important to some people to "understand" why September 11 happened, but the intellectual debate and dialogue should not take place on top of the victims' bodies.
Shame on anyone who can't understand that.
For more information, go here.
*Ask Jen: Filibuster Edition
Reader Amanda writes, "Can you please tell me the origins of the term filibuster?"
The word evolved, as many terms do, from other languages and meanings. The Dutch used the word vrijbuiter, or "freebooter" to label pirates. The Spanish adopted the term, changing it to filibustero. It came to be applied to revolutionaries trying to stir up trouble in Spanish colonies. One of their tactics was to speak incessantly in partisan rhetoric. Little wonder, then, that the term came to be applied to politicians who pirated debate with their partisan rhetoric.
Do you have a question for me? You can e-mail it. If I know the answer, I'll answer it. If I don't, I might make something up.
June 8, 632
Muhammad ibn Abdallah, prophet and founder of Islam, died on this date.
Show Me the Pepsi!
aka, Wednesday's quote...
"I'm tired of hearing about money, money, money, money, money. I just want to play the game, drink Pepsi, wear Reebok."-Shaquille O'Neal
June 07, 2005
*June 7, 1965
On this date, the Supreme Court handed down their decision in Griswold v. Connecticut, eliminating restrictions on the prescription and sale of the birth control pill.
Quote for a Decaf Tuesday
"I believe humans get a lot done, not because we're smart, but because we have thumbs so we can make coffee."-Flash Rosenberg
June 06, 2005
*June 6, 1892
On this date, Benjamin Harrison watched the Washington Senators beat the Cincinnati Reds. He was the first sitting president to attend a major-league baseball game.
Quote for a Decaf Monday
"Decaffeinated coffee is the devil's blend."-Author unknown
June 05, 2005
June, 1939
During this week in 1939, the SS St. Louis was denied port in Cuba and the U.S. The 900 Jewish refugees on board were returned to Europe, where many died in concentration camps.
June 03, 2005
*Quote for Friday
"Growth for the sake of growth is the ideology of the cancer cell."-Edward Abbey
June 02, 2005
*Presidential Fun Fact of the Quarter
Been awhile since I posted a Presidential Fun Fact, so here's one about Coolidge...
One day, he happened to discover a panic button on the White House porch, so he pretended to be tired and leaned against it. Nonchalantly, he went into the White House and watched from behind the curtain as two guards came running to the scene. They found nothing, of course, and returned to the guardhouse. He amused himself by pushing the button two more times in the same manner.
*June 2, 1947
For two years, the All-India Congress tried to reach an agreement on government ministers. Violence between Muslims and Hindus was escalating, with thousands of deaths resulting from the discord. The new government requested a split of India into two independent states: Pakistan would be the Muslims', and the rest of India would be the Hindus'. The plan was announced on this date in 1947...August 14 would be the date of the official split.
*Quote for a Thursday
Reporter: "It isn't likely you'll say anything tomorrow at the Fair?"President Coolidge: "No, I am just going as an exhibit."
June 01, 2005
*Speaking of Half-Stories...
Henry Hudson discovered and explored the Hudson River/Bay areas, looking for the Northwest Passage. This is about the extent of what I learned about him in school.
Maybe in the East, y'all learn the rest of the story.
Hudson did not discover that area. Giovanni da Verrazano did so about 85 years before Hudson showed up. Hudson didn't really explore much, either. He was just trying to pass through.
Either way, his explorations came to an end when the ship he was on got stuck in the ice of Hudson Bay for winter. When June rolled around and the ice finally broke up, Hudson wanted to continue westward. His crew, which had just spent a winter stuck on the ship, was less inclined to find that a great idea. Eventually they mutinied. Hudson, his son, and seven sickly crew members were let off the ship to do as they wished. The rest of the crew sailed back to Europe.
Hudson was never seen again, and the crew was never punished for their mutiny.
*June 1, 1926
Two babies were born on this day who were destined to become famous American actors...Andy Griffith and Marilyn Monroe.
*Quote for a Wednesday
"Fear not, the people may be deluded for a moment, but cannot be corrupted."-Andrew Jackson
Jew