Old Sailors' Almanac

THIS WEEK IN HISTORY

Week 48, 2019

Previous Week   November 25, 2019 - December 01, 2019  Next Week

Rosa Parks’ Arrest on December 01, 1955

Rosa Parks’ Arrest on December 01, 1955

Rosa Parks’ Arrest: On Thursday, December 1, 1955, the 42-year-old Rosa Parks was commuting home from a long day of work at the Montgomery Fair department store by bus. Black residents of Montgomery often avoided municipal buses if possible because they found the Negroes-in-back policy so demeaning. Nonetheless, 70 percent or more riders on a typical day were black, and on this day Rosa Parks was one of them.

Segregation was written into law; the front of a Montgomery bus was reserved for white citizens, and the seats behind them for black citizens. However, it was only by custom that bus drivers had the authority to ask a black person to give up a seat for a white rider. There were contradictory Montgomery laws on the books: One said segregation must be enforced, but another, largely ignored, said no person (white or black) could be asked to give up a seat even if there were no other seat on the bus available.

Nonetheless, at one point on the route, a white man had no seat because all the seats in the designated “white” section were taken. So the driver told the riders in the four seats of the first row of the “colored” section to stand, in effect adding another row to the “white” section. The three others obeyed. Parks did not.

“People always say that I didn’t give up my seat because I was tired”, wrote Parks in her autobiography, “but that isn’t true. I was not tired physically… No, the only tired I was, was tired of giving in.”

Eventually, two police officers approached the stopped bus, assessed the situation and placed Parks in custody.

History.com / Wikipedia / Encyclopedia Britannica / Biography / Womens History.org / Gutenberg.org / Rosa Parks’ Arrest on December 01, 1955 (YouTube) video


Chunnel makes breakthrough on December 01, 1990

Chunnel makes breakthrough on December 01, 1990

Chunnel makes breakthrough: Shortly after 11 a.m. on December 1, 1990, 132 feet below the English Channel, workers drill an opening the size of a car through a wall of rock. This was no ordinary hole–it connected the two ends of an underwater tunnel linking Great Britain with the European mainland for the first time in more than 8,000 years.

The Channel Tunnel, or “Chunnel”, was not a new idea. It had been suggested to Napoleon Bonaparte, in fact, as early as 1802. It wasn’t until the late 20th century, though, that the necessary technology was developed. In 1986, Britain and France signed a treaty authorizing the construction of a tunnel running between Folkestone, England, and Calais, France.

Over the next four years, nearly 13,000 workers dug 95 miles of tunnels at an average depth of 150 feet (45 meters) below sea level. Eight million cubic meters of soil were removed, at a rate of some 2,400 tons per hour. The completed Chunnel would have three interconnected tubes, including one rail track in each direction and one service tunnel. The price? A whopping $15 billion.

After workers drilled that final hole on December 01, 1990, they exchanged French and British flags and toasted each other with champagne. Final construction took four more years, and the Channel Tunnel finally opened for passenger service on May 06, 1994, with Britain’s Queen Elizabeth II and France’s President Francois Mitterrand on hand in Calais for the inaugural run. A company called Eurotunnel won the 55-year concession to operate the Chunnel, which is the crucial stretch of the Eurostar high-speed rail link between London and Paris. The regular shuttle train through the tunnel runs 31 miles in total–23 of those underwater–and takes 20 minutes, with an additional 15-minute loop to turn the train around.

The Chunnel is the second-longest rail tunnel in the world, after the Seikan Tunnel in Japan.

History.com / Wikipedia / Encyclopedia Britannica / BBC / Japan Times / Chunnel makes breakthrough on December 01, 1990 (YouTube) video


“Tales of Legendary Ghost Ships - Legend of El Caleuche”

The Old Salt’s Corner

“Tales of Legendary Ghost Ships”

Legend of El Caleuche

In the very south of South America, there live a group of people known as the Mapuche. This little known peoples were able to repel the Spanish conquistadors from the 16th century for over 300 years. This allowed them to keep much of their pre Columbian heritage and mythos intact. The collected wisdom is known as the Chilota mythology. One of the those bits of lore is about “The Caleuche”.

The Caleuche is a ghost ship that appears every night near the Island of Chiloe, which is an island off the coast of Chile. The ship appears as a beautiful and bright white sailing ship, with 3 masts of 5 sails each, The ship is always full of lights and with the sounds of a party and the people on board laughing. After she is spotted the ship is then said to disappear or submerge itself under the water. The ghost ship is also known to be able to navigate while under water.

The Ship is not just any type of ship. The Caleuche is said to be is a kind of conscious being that sails the waters around the area. She carries the spirits of all those who have drowned at sea. According to Chilota mythology, the spirits of the drowned are summoned to the ship by three Chilota “water spirits”.

After appearing for a few moments, the ship is then said to disappear or submerge itself under the water. According to legend, the spirits of the drowned are summoned to the ship by Sirena Chilota, her sister Pincoya, and their brother Picoy. Sirena Chilota resembles what we know as mermaids, with the upper body and face of a teen, with long blond hair and golden scales.

Pincoya is said to have long blond hair, be of incomparable beauty, be cheerful and sensual, and rise from the depths of the sea with her totally human like body. Picoy has the body of a sea lion with golden fur and the face of a strikingly attractive human man, with long blond hair.

There appear to be two types of passengers aboard the luminous vessel. The spirits of those who drowned at sea are said to be able to continue their existence in a sort of paradise like existence, instead of being left lonely and cold in the ocean deeps. They are allowed according to some stories to even visit home once a year to give aid to their families. However there are also kidnapped fishermen who are kidnapped and forced to perform the duties as crew.

The folklore also says that the evil Brujo Chilote, the equivalent to the male witch, likes to visit the party on the Caleuche. Although they are evil, they are welcome aboard the ship. They reach the Ship by summoning up a magical water horse which is said to be able to gallop upon the surface of the ocean.

EsoterX / Chiloe Mitologico / LabrujulaVerde (Green Compass) / Night Watch Paranormal / Wikipedia


“I’m Just Sayin’”

“I’m Just Sayin”

“As for the opposite of kindness,

which I have known well,”

it deserves no name.”

“Craftwork - it is neither as easy as faith,

nor as sure as science.”

“There are certain clues at a crime scene which by their very nature do not lend themselves to being collected or examined.

How's one collect love, rage, hatred, fear...?

These are things that we're trained to look for.”

~ James Reese


“Thought for the Day”

“Thought for the Day”

“I ask no favors for my sex.

All I ask of our brethren is,

that they will take their feet from off our necks,

and permit us to stand upright

on that ground

which God designed us to occupy.”

“Whatsoever it is morally right for a man to do,

it is morally right for a woman to do.

She is clothed by her Maker with the same rights,

the same duties.”

~ Sarah Moore Grimké


“What I Have Learned”

“What I Learned”

“Mistakes are a great educator

when one is honest enough to admit them

and willing to learn from them.”

~ Anonymous


Second Hand News

Second Hand News (Links to Articles from Week 48 - November 25, 2019 - December 01, 2019)

Top News Stories - Photos (Washington Examiner) Trump surprises troops in Afghanistan on ThanksgivingNewsweek article predicts he will spend Thanksgiving golfing and tweetingDOJ inspector general devises chart of FBI mistakes made in Carter Page FISA process

Police clear London Bridge after reports of gunshotsTrump turned Syria policy on its head. It’s working out better than critics thoughtNorth Korea uses 'super large' rocket launcher to fire off two short-range missiles

SEALs caught up in Eddie Gallagher case will be allowed to keep their Tridents, Navy says“Cannot make this sh*t up:” In the death of ISIS leader Abu Bakr al Baghdadi - Battle erupts over “MALE/FEMALE” of military dog Conan

Ilhan Omar a 'Qatari asset' who passed secrets to Iran, Florida court toldUkraine “Whistleblower” insists he discussed nothing of 'substance' with Schiff staff before filing complaint‘They are PUBLIC GOODS’: AOC says she’s not just promising people ‘free stuff’ Washington Examiner

Top News Stories - Photos (Daily Mail) The moment police shoot dead terrorist on London Bridge after attacker wearing fake suicide belt stabbed five: Hero passers-by struggle with suspect before officers drag them away and open fire as crowds flee scene

Former President of Poland says Hunter Biden DID get on the board of Ukrainian energy firm thanks to dad - but he 'never abused his position''Do I have stupid written on the back of my shirt?' Justice Clarence Thomas slams Joe Biden for using Anita Hill's sexual harassment allegations to try to get rid of him over his anti-abortion viewsMichael Bloomberg hires top staffer from Kamala Harris' 2020 campaign as he kicks his Presidential bid into full gearAlexandria Ocasio-Cortez raises 'unprecedented' $1.4million in reelection funds in just three months - outstripping veterans Nancy Pelosi and Adam Schiff

Cyborg super soldiers: U.S. Army report reveals vision for deadly 'machine humans' with infrared sight, boosted strength and mind-controlled weapons by 2050 President Erdogan slams 'brain dead' Emmanuel Macron for his criticism of NATO and says the French leader is the one 'suffering brain death'

Black Friday kicks off around the globe: Eager bargain hunters rush into stores and fight over TVs as shopping frenzy spreads worldwideShocking moment Black Friday brawl breaks out between bargain hunters - as customers across the country clamber for deals and walk out of stores with shopping carts piled highDark web criminals cash in on Black Friday with cut-price deals on illegal drugs, fake ID documents and stolen data Daily Mail UK

CORRUPTION CHRONICLES - Mainstream Media Scream: (Watch Dog On-Line Publications) CORRUPTION CHRONICLES: Judicial Watch: FBI Uncovers New Clinton Emails

“Investigating the Investigators:” Trump Targeted by Key FBI Lawyer In His Own Administration!

Judicial Watch Sues for Documents on Census Plan to Hire Foreign Nationals

Navy Secretary Richard Spencer - The Kind Of Swamp-Dweller We Hired Trump To Fire

Sanctuaries to Release Illegal Immigrants Jailed for Rape, Murder, Child Molestation Judicial Watch

Top News Stories - Photos (John Batchelor) “Deep state HQ is where the snakes are.” audio  

Does Washington have self-awareness or a sense of humor? No and no. audio  

The roaring U.S. economy: any Christmas Grinch? Nope. audio  

Morales and conspirators scheme to return to power by beggaring Bolivia. audio  

On the Road to the Islam World Capitals of Baku and Tashkent. audio  

The Plot Against the President: The True Story of How Congressman Devin Nunes Uncovered the Biggest Political Scandal in U.S. History audio   2 of 4 audio   3 of 4 audio   4 of 4 audio   John Batchelor (12/01/2019)

Mr. Answer Man Please Tell Us: The History of Thanksgiving in the United States

Mr. Answer Man Please Tell Us: The History of Thanksgiving in the United States

Thanksgiving Day is a national holiday in the United States, and Thanksgiving 2019 occurs on Thursday, November 28. In 1621, the Plymouth colonists and Wampanoag Indians shared an autumn harvest feast that is acknowledged today as one of the first Thanksgiving celebrations in the colonies. For more than two centuries, days of thanksgiving were celebrated by individual colonies and states. It wasn’t until 1863, in the midst of the Civil War, that President Abraham Lincoln proclaimed a national Thanksgiving Day to be held each November.

Mr. Answer Man Please Tell Us: The History of Thanksgiving in the United States

Thanksgiving at Plymouth

In September 1620, a small ship called the Mayflower left Plymouth, England, carrying 102 passengers—an assortment of religious separatists seeking a new home where they could freely practice their faith and other individuals lured by the promise of prosperity and land ownership in the New World. After a treacherous and uncomfortable crossing that lasted 66 days, they dropped anchor near the tip of Cape Cod, far north of their intended destination at the mouth of the Hudson River. One month later, the Mayflower crossed Massachusetts Bay, where the Pilgrims, as they are now commonly known, began the work of establishing a village at Plymouth.

Did you know? Lobster, seal and swans were on the Pilgrims' menu.

Mr. Answer Man Please Tell Us: The History of Thanksgiving in the United States

Throughout that first brutal winter, most of the colonists remained on board the ship, where they suffered from exposure, scurvy and outbreaks of contagious disease. Only half of the Mayflower’s original passengers and crew lived to see their first New England spring. In March, the remaining settlers moved ashore, where they received an astonishing visit from an Abenaki Indian who greeted them in English. Several days later, he returned with another Native American, Squanto, a member of the Pawtuxet tribe who had been kidnapped by an English sea captain and sold into slavery before escaping to London and returning to his homeland on an exploratory expedition. Squanto taught the Pilgrims, weakened by malnutrition and illness, how to cultivate corn, extract sap from maple trees, catch fish in the rivers and avoid poisonous plants. He also helped the settlers forge an alliance with the Wampanoag, a local tribe, which would endure for more than 50 years and tragically remains one of the sole examples of harmony between European colonists and Native Americans.

In November 1621, after the Pilgrims’ first corn harvest proved successful, Governor William Bradford organized a celebratory feast and invited a group of the fledgling colony’s Native American allies, including the Wampanoag chief Massasoit. Now remembered as American’s “first Thanksgiving” - although the Pilgrims themselves may not have used the term at the time—the festival lasted for three days. While no record exists of the historic banquet’s exact menu, the Pilgrim chronicler Edward Winslow wrote in his journal that Governor Bradford sent four men on a “fowling” mission in preparation for the event, and that the Wampanoag guests arrived bearing five deer. Historians have suggested that many of the dishes were likely prepared using traditional Native American spices and cooking methods. Because the Pilgrims had no oven and the Mayflower’s sugar supply had dwindled by the fall of 1621, the meal did not feature pies, cakes or other desserts, which have become a hallmark of contemporary celebrations.

Mr. Answer Man Please Tell Us: The History of Thanksgiving in the United States

Thanksgiving Becomes an Official Holiday

Pilgrims held their second Thanksgiving celebration in 1623 to mark the end of a long drought that had threatened the year’s harvest and prompted Governor Bradford to call for a religious fast. Days of fasting and thanksgiving on an annual or occasional basis became common practice in other New England settlements as well. During the American Revolution, the Continental Congress designated one or more days of thanksgiving a year, and in 1789 George Washington issued the first Thanksgiving proclamation by the national government of the United States; in it, he called upon Americans to express their gratitude for the happy conclusion to the country’s war of independence and the successful ratification of the U.S. Constitution. His successors John Adams and James Madison also designated days of thanks during their

In 1817, New York became the first of several states to officially adopt an annual Thanksgiving holiday; each celebrated it on a different day, however, and the American South remained largely unfamiliar with the tradition. In 1827, the noted magazine editor and prolific writer Sarah Josepha Hale—author, among countless other things, of the nursery rhyme “Mary Had a Little Lamb”—launched a campaign to establish Thanksgiving as a national holiday. For 36 years, she published numerous editorials and sent scores of letters to governors, senators, presidents and other politicians. Abraham Lincoln finally heeded her request in 1863, at the height of the Civil War, in a proclamation entreating all Americans to ask God to “commend to his tender care all those who have become widows, orphans, mourners or sufferers in the lamentable civil strife” and to “heal the wounds of the nation.” He scheduled Thanksgiving for the final Thursday in November, and it was celebrated on that day every year until 1939, when Franklin D. Roosevelt moved the holiday up a week in an attempt to spur retail sales during the Great Depression. Roosevelt’s plan, known derisively as Franksgiving, was met with passionate opposition, and in 1941 the president reluctantly signed a bill making Thanksgiving the fourth Thursday in November.

Mr. Answer Man Please Tell Us: The History of Thanksgiving in the United States

Thanksgiving Traditions

In many American households, the Thanksgiving celebration has lost much of its original religious significance; instead, it now centers on cooking and sharing a bountiful meal with family and friends. Turkey, a Thanksgiving staple so ubiquitous it has become all but synonymous with the holiday, may or may not have been on offer when the Pilgrims hosted the inaugural feast in 1621. Today, however, nearly 90 percent of Americans eat the bird - whether roasted, baked or deep-fried - on Thanksgiving, according to the National Turkey Federation. Other traditional foods include stuffing, mashed potatoes, cranberry sauce and pumpkin pie. Volunteering is a common Thanksgiving Day activity, and communities often hold food drives and host free dinners for the less fortunate.

Parades have also become an integral part of the holiday in cities and towns across the United States. Presented by Macy’s department store since 1924, New York City’s Thanksgiving Day parade is the largest and most famous, attracting some 2 to 3 million spectators along its 2.5-mile route and drawing an enormous television audience. It typically features marching bands, performers, elaborate floats conveying various celebrities and giant balloons shaped like cartoon characters.

Beginning in the mid-20th century and perhaps even earlier, the president of the United States has “pardoned” one or two Thanksgiving turkeys each year, sparing the birds from slaughter and sending them to a farm for retirement. A number of U.S. governors also perform the annual turkey pardoning ritual.

Mr. Answer Man Please Tell Us: The History of Thanksgiving in the United States

Thanksgiving Controversies

For some scholars, the jury is still out on whether the feast at Plymouth really constituted the first Thanksgiving in the United States. Indeed, historians have recorded other ceremonies of thanks among European settlers in North America that predate the Pilgrims’ celebration. In 1565, for instance, the Spanish explorer Pedro Menéndez de Avilé invited members of the local Timucua tribe to a dinner in St. Augustine, Florida, after holding a mass to thank God for his crew’s safe arrival. On December 4, 1619, when 38 British settlers reached a site known as Berkeley Hundred on the banks of Virginia’s James River, they read a proclamation designating the date as “a day of thanksgiving to Almighty God”.

Some Native Americans and others take issue with how the Thanksgiving story is presented to the American public, and especially to schoolchildren. In their view, the traditional narrative paints a deceptively sunny portrait of relations between the Pilgrims and the Wampanoag people, masking the long and bloody history of conflict between Native Americans and European settlers that resulted in the deaths of millions. Since 1970, protesters have gathered on the day designated as Thanksgiving at the top of Cole’s Hill, which overlooks Plymouth Rock, to commemorate a “National Day of Mourning”. Similar events are held in other parts of the country.

Mr. Answer Man Please Tell Us: The History of Thanksgiving in the United States

Thanksgiving’s Ancient Origins

Although the American concept of Thanksgiving developed in the colonies of New England, its roots can be traced back to the other side of the Atlantic. Both the Separatists who came over on the Mayflower and the Puritans who arrived soon after brought with them a tradition of providential holidays - days of fasting during difficult or pivotal moments and days of feasting and celebration to thank God in times of plenty.

As an annual celebration of the harvest and its bounty, moreover, Thanksgiving falls under a category of festivals that spans cultures, continents and millennia. In ancient times, the Egyptians, Greeks and Romans feasted and paid tribute to their gods after the fall harvest. Thanksgiving also bears a resemblance to the ancient Jewish harvest festival of Sukkot. Finally, historians have noted that Native Americans had a rich tradition of commemorating the fall harvest with feasting and merrymaking long before Europeans set foot on their shores.

History ChannelNational GeographicQuaraThanksgivingWikipedia


NAVSPEAK aka U.S. Navy Slang - U.S. Navy

NAVSPEAK aka U.S. Navy Slang

Hatch: A closure in the deck, commonly watertight, on a Naval vessel. Sailors tend to call doors “hatches”, but the term actually only refers to openings in the deck. If it goes through a bulkhead, it's a door.

Have a Navy Day: Has two separate meanings.

1.) “Have a great day!” From your Navy superiors.

2.) “Get Fucked or Fuck-Off” from your Navy equals and lower in rank.

Haze Grey: The color painted on Navy ships.

Haze Grey Motherfucker: Sailor (or CO) who prefers to be under way as much as possible, or a ship and crew that spends a great deal of time under way—e.g, “We were haze grey motherfuckers.”

Heads and Beds: An inspection performed daily at sea by the XO or a designated replacement, usually the MAA.

Happy Hour: The hour during which the ship is cleaned every day.

HCO: Helo Control Officer, talks to each pilot as he makes his approach to a small boy (See LSO)

Head: Bathroom (the term comes from the days of sail, because wind would blow from the rear of the ship forward the bathroom would be located at the front “head” of the ship to carry the foul smell of excrement away from the crew). “Head call” means to use the head.

Wiktionary.org


Just for MARINES - The Few. The Proud.

Just for you MARINE

Hard Charger or Hard: Term of endearment from a senior to a junior Marine when he or she completes a difficult task, so named for charging through the assignment; or general toughness.

Hashmark: Service stripe worn on the uniform sleeve by enlisted men and women for completion of four years of honorable service in any of the U.S. Armed Services and Reserves.

HBT: HerringBone Twill; the cotton material of Marine utilities from 1941 to the late 1950s.

HDR: Humanitarian Daily Ration, a variation of the Meal,Ready-to-Eat (MRE) used to feed a single malnourished person for one day with 2,300 calories.

HE: High Explosive, refers to various kinds of ordnance or Heavy Equipment.

Head: Bathroom-latrine a nautical term from the days of sailing ships when the designated place to defecate and urinate was forward, at the bow or “head” of the ship.

Head Shed: Command post or other headquarters area where senior Marines gather.

Headgear: Hats, helmets, caps, etc.

Wikipedia.org


Naval Aviation Squadron Nicknames

Naval Aviation Squadron Nicknames

VXS-1 Scientific Development Squadron ONE (VXS-1) - nicknamed the “Warlocks”

United States Navy - Naval Air Station - Naval Air Station Patuxent River, St. Mary's County, Maryland.


Where Did That Saying Come From

Where Did That Saying Come From?

Where Did That Saying Come From? “Every man has his price - A golden key can open any door”

Every man has his price - A golden key can open any door:

 Meaning: 'A golden key opens any door' is the opinion that sufficient money, or the promise of it, will allow the possessor of it to do anything they wish.

History: This notion must be as old as money itself.

The first person who is known to have written it down is the English playwright John Lyly, in Euphues and his England, 1580:

“Who is so ignorant that knoweth not, gold be a key for euery locke, chieflye with his Ladye.”

Phrases.org UK


Science & Technology

Science & Technology

Science & Technology

Astronomers observe the awakening of a Be/X-ray binaryShape shifting protocells hint at the mechanics of early lifeStudy of data from 1988 Shroud of Turin testing suggests mistakesFastest eclipsing binary, a valuable target for gravitational wave studiesDesigned protein switch allows unprecedented control over living cellsAmoeba builds barriers for protection against bacteriaVPN providers address vulnerability findings by researchers

Phys.org / MedicalXpress / TechXplore


Bizarre News (we couldn’t make up stuff this good – real news story)

Bizarre News (we couldn’t make up stuff this good - real news story)

Chihuahua Was Abducted by a Seagull - It Could Happen, Expert Says

Chihuahua Was Abducted by a Seagull - It Could Happen, Expert Says

A wee chihuahua was recently snatched from his backyard in Paignton, Devon, a seaside town in the southern part of the United Kingdom.

The culprit, according to his owner, was a seagull.

While there are no photos or video documenting the attack, large gulls have been known to ambush small mammals — including pet dogs — even flying with them for short distances, an avian expert told Live Science. [Beastly Feasts: Amazing Photos of Animals and Their Prey]

But while such an attack is feasible, “they are very rare”, said Viola Ross-Smith, a science communicator with the British Trust for Ornithology, who earned her doctoral degree while researching large gulls.

“Like this time, the reports usually do not come with photographic evidence and are covered quite sensationally in the media, so it's hard to know exactly what happened”, Ross-Smith told Live Science in an email.

Chihuahua Was Abducted by a Seagull - It Could Happen, Expert Says

The gull purportedly struck quickly and without warning, the dog's owner, Becca Hill, told Devon Live. Her chihuahua - a brown-and-white 4-year-old male named Gizmo - was safe in the garden, while Hill's partner hung out the washing to dry nearby. Suddenly, a gull swooped down and scooped up the tiny pup with its beak. And just like that, Gizmo was gone. His owners could only watch helplessly as the gull carried poor Gizmo away, Devon Live reported.

“I have no idea if he was dropped or where he is now”, Hill said.

In the U.K., the gulls most commonly found in urban areas are herring gulls (Larus argentatus) and lesser black-backed gulls (Larus fuscus). Lesser black-backed gulls can measure up to 25 inches long (64 centimeters) with a wingspan of up to 59 inches (150 cm), while herring gulls measure up to 26 inches long (66 cm) with a wingspan of 58 inches (146 cm), according to the Cornell Lab of Ornithology.

Like many other types of large gulls, both species are omnivores that eat whatever they can find. The bulk of their diet is typically made up of fish, invertebrates, vegetables and discarded human food, but sometimes near-chihuahua-size mammals such as rats, moles and even small rabbits are on the menu, Ross-Smith said.

Seagulls have also been known to seek out other snacks that are perhaps even more gruesome: parasitic worms found in seal poo and baby seals' eyeballs.

Chihuahua Was Abducted by a Seagull - It Could Happen, Expert Says

Chihuahuas generally weigh no more than 6 lbs. (3 kilograms), but so-called miniature chihuahuas or teacup chihuahuas (which are not officially recognized breeds, according to the American Kennel Club) can be even lighter, so they are about the same size as other animals that are the natural prey of gulls, Ross-Smith explained. After picking up its prey, a gull may carry it a short distance, she added.

“They tend to fly up with them to the height of just a few metres and then drop them, to overcome them as part of the predation process”, Ross-Smith said. “They are powerful fliers, but they don't fly far with prey items like that.”

But Gizmo's abductor purportedly carried the dog “a fair way” until his owners couldn't see him anymore, Hill told The Guardian. She distributed flyers and shared his photo with local animal rescue organizations. One such agency, UAV Lost Dog & Rescue, shared a poster on Facebook, urging neighbors to check rooftops and trees for Gizmo, “sadly still missing”.

It's important to note that such attacks are uncommon, and gulls typically do not pose a threat to small pets or children, Ross-Smith said.

“Gulls don't just randomly attack people or other animals. They will defend their nest and chicks if a person or animal comes too close - the distance varies from nest to nest, and throughout the breeding season - but even in those cases, they usually just swoop and call”, she said.

Top 10 Species Success Stories

Marine Marvels: Spectacular Photos of Sea Creatures

7 Resolutions for a Better Planet

Live Science (07/23/2019) video


© CEASAR CHOPPY by cartoonist Marty Gavin - archives Ceasar Choppy's Navy! “© CEASAR CHOPPY” by Marty Gavin

SONG FACTS

“All My Loving” - The Beatles 1963

“All My Loving” - The Beatles
Album: With The Beatles
Released 1963 video

This was the first time Paul McCartney wrote the words to a song before the music. The song began as a poem he conceived while he was shaving one morning thinking about his girlfriend Jane Asher, whom he met when she interviewed him for the magazine Radio Times. He wrote the music that night. He originally envisioned it as a country/western song.

This Beatles classic was never released as a single, but it was the first song the group played on their first Ed Sullivan Show appearance: February 9, 1964 video. It was a historic telecast, as over 73 million people tuned in. At the time, that was the largest audience ever for a TV show.

McCartney sang lead on this. His vocal was double-tracked to bring it out in the mix.

George Harrison's guitar solo was influenced by Chet Atkins, one of his idols when he was learning to play.

John Lennon was always fond of the grinding rhythm guitar he contributed to the studio recording.

Three very different cover versions charted in the U.S. in 1964: An instrumental by the Hollyridge Strings video made #93, a faithful version by Jimmy Griffin video hit #118, and a squeaky rendition by The Chipmunks video made #134.

The Beatles, official site (The Official Top 50 biggest selling Beatles singles revealed) / Rock & Roll Hall of Fame / Billboard / All Music / Song Facts / Ultimate Classic Rock / Wikipedia

Image: “With The Beatles (album)” by The Beatles


Trivia

Trivia

● What year was the celebration that is most commonly considered to be the first Thanksgiving?

Answer to Trivia

● How long did the first Thanksgiving celebration last?

Answer to Trivia

● Under which president did Thanksgiving become an annual holiday?

Answer to Trivia

● In what decade did both the Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade and America’s Thanksgiving Parade start?

Answer to Trivia

● How do both Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade and America’s Thanksgiving Parade conclude?

Answer to Trivia

● Which president was the first to give a turkey a presidential pardon?

Answer to Trivia


Thanksgiving - Fact or Fiction

Fiction: In 1863, President Abraham Lincoln designated the last Thursday in November as a national day of thanksgiving. in 1939, after a request from the National Retail Dry Goods Association, President Franklin Roosevelt decreed that the holiday should always be celebrated on the fourth Thursday of the month (and never the occasional fifth, as occurred in 1939) in order to extend the holiday shopping season by a week.

Fact: In a letter to his daughter sent in 1784, Benjamin Franklin suggested that the wild turkey would be a more appropriate national symbol for the newly independent United States than the bald eagle (which had earlier been chosen by the Continental Congress). He argued that the turkey was “a much more respectable Bird”, “a true original Native of America”, and “though a little vain and silly, a Bird of Courage.»

Fiction: The Philadelphia department store Gimbel’s had sponsored a parade in 1920, but the Macy’s parade, launched four years later, soon became a Thanksgiving tradition and the standard kickoff to the holiday shopping season. The parade became ever more well-known after it featured prominently in the hit film Miracle on 34th Street (1947), which shows actual footage of the 1946 parade.

Fact: According to the Cape Cod Cranberry Growers’ Association, one of the country’s oldest farmers’ organizations, Native Americans used cranberries in a variety of foods, including “pemmican” (a nourishing, high-protein combination of crushed berries, dried deer meat and melted fat). They also used it as a medicine to treat arrow punctures and other wounds and as a dye for fabric. The Pilgrims adopted these uses for the fruit and gave it a name “craneberry” - because its drooping pink blossoms in the spring reminded them of a crane.

Fact: Turkey does contain the essential amino acid tryptophan, which is a natural sedative, but so do a lot of other foods, including chicken, beef, pork, beans and cheese. Though many people believe turkey’s tryptophan content is what makes many people feel sleepy after a big Thanksgiving meal, it is more likely the combination of fats and carbohydrates most people eat with the turkey, as well as the large amount of food (not to mention alcohol, in some cases) consumed, that makes most people feel like following their meal up with a nap.

Fiction (kind of): Domesticated turkeys (the type eaten on Thanksgiving) cannot fly, and their pace is limited to a slow walk. Female domestic turkeys, which are typically smaller and lighter than males, can move somewhat faster. Wild turkeys, on the other hand, are much smaller and more agile. They can reach speeds of up to 20-25 miles per hour on the ground and fly for short distances at speeds approaching 55 miles per hour. They also have better eyesight and hearing than their domestic counterparts.

Fact: The turkey trot, modeled on that bird’s characteristic short, jerky steps, was one of a number of popular dance styles that emerged during the late 19th and early 20th century in the United States. The two-step, a simple dance that required little to no instruction, was quickly followed by such dances as the one-step, the turkey trot, the fox trot and the bunny hug, which could all be performed to the ragtime and jazz music popular at the time.

Fiction: The American tradition of college football on Thanksgiving is pretty much as old as the sport itself. The newly formed American Intercollegiate Football Association held its first championship game on Thanksgiving Day in 1876. At the time, the sport resembled something between rugby and what we think of as football today.


Jeopardy

A Test for People Who Know Everything

From the Jeopardy Archives Category - “PICK A PLANET” ($200)

“In ancient Greece it was called Apollo.”

Answer for People Who Do Not Know Everything, or Want to Verify Their Answer Ancient History Encyclopedia EU

From the Jeopardy Archives Category - “PICK A PLANET” ($600)

“You'll spot its symbol.”

Answer for People Who Do Not Know Everything, or Want to Verify Their Answer Ancient History Encyclopedia EU

From the Jeopardy Archives Category - “PICK A PLANET” ($1,000)

“The Babylonians associated it with the goddess Ishtar.”

Answer for People Who Do Not Know Everything, or Want to Verify Their Answer Ancient History Encyclopedia EU


Answer to Last Week's Test

From the Jeopardy Archives Category - “BILL'S BILL OF RIGHTS RIGHTS” ($200)

“According to the fifth amendment, Bill can't be compelled to do this on the witness stand.”

● Answer: Testify against himself. Mount Vernon.org

From the Jeopardy Archives Category - “BILL'S BILL OF RIGHTS RIGHTS” ($600)

“Bill knows that according to the 4th amendment, the police can't search his house for illegal snakes without this.”

● Answer: A Warrant. National Park Service

From the Jeopardy Archives Category - “BILL'S BILL OF RIGHTS RIGHTS” ($800)

“Bill got out of jail without having to sell his Trans Am because the eighth amendment prevents excessive this.”

● Answer: Bail. Montpelier.org


Joke of the Day

Joke of the Day

“Catholic Elementary School at Lunch Time”

Joke of the Day

Catholic Elementary School at Lunch Time

The children were lined up in the cafeteria of a Catholic elementary school for lunch. At the head of the table was a large pile of apples.

The nun made a note, and posted on the apple tray: “Take only ONE. God is watching.”

Moving further along the lunch line, at the other end of the table was a large pile of chocolate chip cookies.

A child had written a note, “Take all you want. God is watching the apples.”