Questions of the Day for Father's Day Sunday, June 19, 2016

[animalcrazy]

[quote=Bayarea4;44465440]Welcome to the Questions of the Day for Sunday, June 19, 2016, and Happy Father’s Day to all the dads, stepdads, grandfathers, fathers-to-be, foster fathers and those who have been like a father to someone. You are loved and appreciated for all you do.

If your birthday is today, you were born under the sign of Gemini. Some famous people who share your birthday are mathematician and philosopher Blaise Pascal; Moe Howard of the Three Stooges; rocker Ann Wilson of Heart; bandleader Guy Lombardo; baseball legend Lou Gehrig; U.S. Supreme Court Justice Abe Fortas; actresses Gena Rowlands, Phylicia Rashad, Kathleen Turner and Zoe Saldana; actors Pat Buttram and Louis Jourdan; musicians Lester Flatt and Mark DeBarge; author Salman Rushdie; singer, dancer and reality show judge Paula Abdul and film critic Pauline Kael.

Today’s Question:
In a few days we will reach the summer solstice in the Northern Hemisphere, the longest period of daylight and shortest night of the year. Do the longer days and shorter nights (or vice-versa in the Southern Hemisphere) affect you in any way, and if so, how?

The summer solstice always makes me happy. I like to be outside either walking the dogs or riding my bike watching the sun set. Usually the shorties are with us and we do sparklers, but one is in California for the summer now. Sometimes I like just sitting on the front porch swing with candles and a bottle of bubbly. Tomorrow is the summer solstice and it's supposed to be in the 90's with a 50% chance of rain. That sounds like a good day to watch the storm come in with some bubbly.

The winter solstice is equally as fun. I miss the spa and sitting out there watching the sun set at 5ish. It's especially fun if it's snowing. Or just staying in under the covers snug on the sofa with the boys and watching the sun go down and the Christmas lights on in the neighborhood. Or best yet, on the slopes skiing and standing on top of the run watching the sun go down. That would be a first for us.



Bonus Question:
Today is the birthday of 19th century English land agent Charles Boycott, whose ostracism by Irish nationalists gave rise to the term “to boycott.” Have you ever boycotted anyone or anything, and why? Have you ever been boycotted?

I will always continue to boycott Veal. I think we have enough amusing things to eat without torturing baby cows. I have a hard time eating goat meat at the Indian restaurant as well.



Just For Fun:
Technology is getting more challenging all the time. When was the last time a mechanical object or electronic gizmo confused or frustrated you so much that you wanted to beat your head against the wall, say naughty words and/or time travel back to 1953?


I'm still not very good with computers but I'm much better with my smart phone.



Today in History:
0240 BC - Eratosthenes estimates the circumference of the Earth using two sticks.
1586 - English colonists sail away from Roanoke Island, NC after failing to establish England's first permanent settlement in America.
1778 - U.S. General George Washington's troops leave Valley Forge after a winter of training.
1821 - The Ottomans defeat the Greeks at the Battle of Dragasani.
1846 – First organized baseball game: The New York Knickerbocker Club plays the New York Club at the Elysian Field, Hoboken, NJ.
1862 - U.S. President Abraham Lincoln outlines his Emancipation Proclamation, which outlaws slavery in U.S. territories.
1864 - The USS Kearsarge sinks the CSS Alabama off the coast of Cherbourg, France.
1865 - The emancipation of slaves is proclaimed in Texas.
1867 - In New York, the Belmont Stakes is run for the first time.
1873 - Eadweard Muybridge successfully photographs a horse named "Sallie Gardner" in fast motion using a series of 24 stereoscopic cameras. This is considered the first step toward motion pictures.
1903 – A young Italian schoolteacher, Benito Mussolini, is placed under investigation by police in Bern, Switzerland.
1910 - The first Father's Day is celebrated in Spokane, Washington.
1911 - In Pennsylvania, the first motion-picture censorship board is established.
1912 - The U.S. government establishes the 8-hour work day.
1917 - During World War I, King George V orders the British royal family to dispense with German titles and surnames.
1933 - France grants political asylum to Russian revolutionary leader Leon Trotsky.
1934 - The U.S. National Archives and Records Administration is established.
1934 - The U.S. Congress established the Federal Communications Commission (FCC). The commission will later regulate radio and TV broadcasting .
1937 - The town of Bilbao, Spain, falls to the Nationalist forces.
1939 - In Atlanta, GA, legislation is enacted banning pinball machines in the city.
1942 - Norma Jeane Mortenson (Marilyn Monroe), age 16, and her 21-year-old neighbor Jimmy Dougherty are married. They divorce in June of 1946.
1942 - British Prime Minister Winston Churchill arrives in Washington, DC, to discuss the invasion of North Africa with U.S. President Franklin D. Roosevelt.
1943 – Future Nixon secretary of state Henry Kissinger becomes a naturalized United States citizen.
1943 - The National Football League approves the merger of the Philadelphia Eagles and the Pittsburgh Steelers.
1944 - The U.S. wins the battle of the Philippine Sea against the Imperial Japanese fleet.
1951 - U.S. President Harry S Truman signs the Universal Military Training and Service Act, which extends Selective Service until July 1, 1955 and lowers the draft age to 18.
1952 – Long-running TV game show "I've Got a Secret" debuts on CBS.
1958 - In Washington, DC, nine entertainers refuse to answer a congressional committee's questions on communism.
1961 - Kuwait regains complete independence from Britain.
1961 - The U.S. Supreme Court strikes down a provision in Maryland's constitution that requires state officeholders to profess a belief in God.
1964 - The Civil Rights Act of 1964 is approved after surviving an 83-day filibuster in the U.S. Senate.
1965 - Air Marshall Nguyen Cao Ky becomes South Vietnam's youngest premier at age 34.
1968 - 50,000 people march on Washington, D.C. to support the Poor People's Campaign.
1973 - The Case-Church Amendment prevents further U.S. involvement in Southeast Asia.
1973 – Baseball star Pete Rose of the Cincinnati Reds gets his 2,000th career hit.
1973 - The stage production of "The Rocky Horror Picture Show" opens in London.
1973 - Gordie Howe leaves the NHL to join his sons Mark and Marty in the WHA (World Hockey League).
1978 – The comic strip “Garfield” debuts in newspapers around the U.S..
1981 - "Superman II" sets the all-time, one-day record for theater box-office receipts when it takes in $5.5 million.
1981 - The European Space Agency sends two satellites into orbit from Kourou, French Guiana.
1983 - Lixian-nian is chosen to be China's first president since 1969.
1987 - The U.S. Supreme Court strikes down the Louisiana law that requires schools to teach creationism.
1989 - The movie "Batman" premieres.
1997 - William Hague becomes the youngest leader of Britain's Conservative party in nearly 200 years.
1998 - Gateway is fined more than $400,000 for illegally shipping personal computers to 16 countries subject to U.S. export controls.
1998 - A study is released which says that cigarette smoking more than doubles the risk of developing dementia and Alzheimer's.
1998 - Switzerland's three largest banks offer $600 million to settle claims they'd stolen the assets of Holocaust victims during World War II. Jewish leaders call the offer insultingly low.
1999 – Author Stephen King is struck from behind and seriously injured by a mini-van while walking along a road in Maine.
1999 - The Dallas Stars win their first NHL Stanley Cup by defeating the Buffalo Sabres in the third overtime of game six.
2000 - The U.S. Supreme Court rules that a group prayer led by students at public-school football games violates the 1st Amendment's principle that calls for the separation of church and state.

Word of the Day:
palimpsest /’palǝm(p)・sest/ noun
1. A manuscript or piece of writing, especially an ancient one, which has been wiped clean and written over, but traces of the original remain.
2. Something reused or altered but still bearing traces of its original form.
Example: “Sutton Place is a palimpsest of the taste of successive owners.”

Quote of the Day:
“Men never do evil so completely and cheerfully as when they do it from religious conviction.”
- Blaise Pascal (1623-1662)

Today Is:
Father’s Day (U.S.)
National Kissing Day
World Sauntering Day





Thanks Bay and happy fathers day to all of our fathers today. I hope your day is filled with joy.

[Magnum Mike]

Today’s Question:
In a few days we will reach the summer solstice in the Northern Hemisphere, the longest period of daylight and shortest night of the year. Do the longer days and shorter nights (or vice-versa in the Southern Hemisphere) affect you in any way, and if so, how? - In the summer months I usually wake up earlier because the sun rises earlier.. Just as long as I don't start crowing like a rooster in the morning, I guess it doesn't affect me too much...

Bonus Question:
Today is the birthday of 19th century English land agent Charles Boycott, whose ostracism by Irish nationalists gave rise to the term “to boycott.” Have you ever boycotted anyone or anything, and why? Have you ever been boycotted? - Hmm.. when I was a kid, I never BoyCotted.. but I've always GirlCotted things.. which I think means I chased girls.. I think that's why they BoyCotted me... - Actually, being a gun enthusiast and a very strong supporter of the Second Amendment, I will boycott any entities that are not very friendly to gun owners. I carry a weapon with me and if a business prohibits firearms on the premises, I will take my business somewhere else. Fortunately, there are only a handful of such businesses here in Arizona that have such policy.


Just For Fun:
Technology is getting more challenging all the time. When was the last time a mechanical object or electronic gizmo confused or frustrated you so much that you wanted to beat your head against the wall, say naughty words and/or time travel back to 1953?
- Oh Boy.. Right now it's the "Service Engine Light" in my 4x4 truck.. Automobiles nowadays being mechanical, filled with electronic gizmos, are not as simple as they used to be, especially when they need to be serviced...

Today Is:
National Kissing Day - Teal.. That might explain why the cashier at the store told me to kiss her.. earlier today.. (Just kidding)

Thanks Bayarea and whether you're a father or not, happy Father's Day, even if your father is no longer with us.

[Bayarea4]

Today’s Question:
In a few days we will reach the summer solstice in the Northern Hemisphere, the longest period of daylight and shortest night of the year. Do the longer days and shorter nights (or vice-versa in the Southern Hemisphere) affect you in any way, and if so, how?

Yes, the earlier sunrise affects me a lot because I'm a night owl. I seldom get to sleep before 4 am, and then I wake up a few hours later when the sun comes streaming in. Even with lined draperies, it's bright enough to wake me up, and then sometimes I can't get back to sleep for a long time or at all.



Bonus Question:
Today is the birthday of 19th century English land agent Charles Boycott, whose ostracism by Irish nationalists gave rise to the term “to boycott.” Have you ever boycotted anyone or anything, and why? Have you ever been boycotted?

Yes, I am boycotting Hershey because they filed a lawsuit that prevents the importation of British Cadburys into the U.S. Hershey bought the Cadburys name and produce their own version, but it's inferior to the original. I used like to buy British Cadburys at import shops, but now it's banned because Hershey claims it violates their copyright.


Just For Fun:
Technology is getting more challenging all the time. When was the last time a mechanical object or electronic gizmo confused or frustrated you so much that you wanted to beat your head against the wall, say naughty words and/or time travel back to 1953?

Last month Mr. Bay and I bought a car with all sorts of technology that we'd never used before, and it's confusing to do even simple things like use the audio system, set the climate control, open the moonroof or lock and unlock the doors.

Last week I parked and was getting out the car when an alarm tone sounded. I didn't know what was wrong and couldn't make it stop. The car wouldn't lock, either. I had to leave it that way while I did my business. When I got back to the car, I tried to stop the alarm tone by hitting the alarm button on the key fob. Not only didn't it help, it made the car alarm go off when I opened the door!

I had to call Mr. Bay to come rescue me and bring the car's owner's manual. Meanwhile, a lady pulled in next to me with two big dogs in the back seat, and they were howling from the pain of the alarm. Then a random stranger came out of a pub and offered to open my hood and disable the alarm! To say that I was embarrassed and shaken up would be an understatement.

It turned out that the only thing I'd done wrong was to exit the car with the gear set in Reverse instead of Park.


Thanks to everyone for your interesting and sometimes funny answers!