~♥~♥~★~ El Morno! ♥~★~★~♥ ~
May 23, 2013

★~Today’s Quote: “Behold the turtle. He only makes progress when he sticks his neck out.” James Bryant Conant, Harvard President

★~ Lucky Penny Day: 

Find a penny, pick it up
and all day long, you’ll have good luck.
Give that penny to a friend,
and your luck will never end.

If the penny you find is on heads, it is your lucky day, but if it’s on tails, pass it on to a friend and they will have good luck all day long and your luck will never end.

(Mr Nancy, when we find a penny today we will be thinking of you!)

★~ World Turtle Day:

(Maxine–our favorite camp turtle)

Susan Tellem and Marshall Thompson, founders of the American Tortoise Rescue (ATR), created the first “World Turtle Day” which was celebrated on May 23, 1999. This year marks the 14th observance of this day to “increase respect and knowledge for the world’s oldest creatures.”

In recent years the numbers of turtles throughout the world have been rapidly decreasing due to habitat destruction, the pet trade and the exotic food industry. Organizations like the ATR work tirelessly to protect and preserve the turtle populations.
Have you ever wondered what the differences are between a tortoise, turtle and terrapin?

~ A tortoise lives on land and eats low-growing vegetation. They do not have webbed feet.
~ A turtle spends most of its time in the water and does have webbed feet.
~ A terrapin lives both on land and in water, and will always be found close to water.

★~ Taffy Day:

The exact history of how taffy came to be is still a mystery. Taffy has been part of American life since the late 1800’s and has been a beach-side tradition since it appeared in Atlantic City more than 100 years ago. Some say taffy appeared in the Midwest at county fairs even earlier. However, Atlantic City is known as the home of salt water taffy. Legend has it that salt water taffy received its name by accident. A young candy merchant opened a taffy stand on the first Atlantic City Boardwalk — then just two steps above sea level. One night, a generous tide brought in a lively surf, which sprayed sea foam over his establishment and dampened his stock of candy. The next morning, the merchant was dismayed to find his merchandise wet and responded to a girl’s request for taffy with a quick and clever “You mean salt water taffy.” The name, stuck.

★~ Today in History:

[youtube]http://youtu.be/4AKbUm8GrbM[/youtube]

♥~ 1938 – LIFE magazine’s cover pictured the actor Errol Flynn as a glamor boy.

♥~ 1969 – The Who released their rock opera Tommy.

♥~ 1975 – Singer B.J. Thomas received a gold record for the single with the extremely long title, (Hey, Won’t You Play) Another Somebody Done Somebody Wrong Song.

♥~ 1984 – U.S. Surgeon General C. Everett Koop announced that cigarette smoking cost the country $40 billion a year in health expenses and lost productivity.

♥~ 1991: Seinfeld’s “Chinese Restaurant” episode was broadcast.

♥~ 1994 – Pulp Fiction, by American director Quentin Tarantino, won the Golden Palm for best film at the 47th Cannes Film Festival.

★~Born Today:

♥~ 1846 – Belle Aurelia Babb 1st US attorney: It took some 23 years, but Belle, who later changed her name to Arabella Mansfield, became the first women to practice law in the U.S.

♥~ 1910 – Margaret Wise Brown author:  Goodnight moon. Margaret or Brownie as her friends caller her attributed her success to being able to reach down into the soul of the child that still lived within her and bring it to life. She never had children of her own, but she left the royalties for most of her books to a nine-year-old neighbor boy, Albert Clarke.  She said, “A good picture book can almost be whistled. … All have their own melodies behind the storytelling.

♥~ 1933 – Joan Collins actress: Dynasty, appeared in Playboy at age 50; sister of writer, Jackie Collins

♥~ 1958 – Drew Carey comedian, actor, producer, writer: The Drew Carey Show, Whose Line Is It Anyway?; TV game show host: The Price Is Right

★~ Good to Know:

♥~ The average penny lasts 25 years

♥~ Pennies were the very first coins minted in the United States. In March 1793, the mint distributed 11,178 copper cents.

♥~ Today, the composition of the penny is 97.5 percent zinc and 2.5 percent copper.

♥~ There have been 11 different designs featured on the penny.

♥~ The Lincoln penny was first minted and circulated in 1909, the 100th anniversary of his birth.

♥~ Lincoln faces to the right, while all other portraits on coins face to the left.

♥~ Lincoln pennies made from 1909 to 1958 were designed by Victor D. Brenner. His initials V.D.B. were on a limited quantity of the 1909 pennies making it one of the most sought after pennies for collecting.

♥~ In a coin toss, you may have been odds if you choose tails. Rumor has it that the heads picture weighs more, so it ends up on the bottom more often (the U.S. Mint disputes this theory)

♥~ Approximately 30 million pennies per day (1,040 pennies every second) are produced. Each year, the U.S. Mint produces more than 13 billion pennies.

♥~ Over two-thirds of all coins produced by the U.S. Mint are pennies.

♥~There are somewhere between 200,000,000,000 and 250,000,000,000 pennies in circulation (or between $2 billion and $2.5 billion).

♥~ The penny is the most widely used denomination currently in circulation and it remains profitable to make. Each penny costs .93 of a cent to make, but the Mint collects one cent for it. A recent poll by Opinion Research Corporation found that more than 70% of Americans support keeping the penny in circulation. There are currently no plans to retire the penny.

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You are offered a million dollars or a penny doubled every day for thirty-one days? Which offer do you choose?  There isn’t just one right answer.

Penny for your thoughts?

Hope everyone has a tremendous Thursday!

♥~