~★~♥~♥~★~ El Morno! ♥~★~★~♥ ~
Jan 29, 2013

 ★~ Today’s Quote:  It ain’t what they call you, it’s what you answer to.  ~ W. C. Fields

★~ Puzzle Day:

John Spilsbury, a London engraver and mapmaker, produced the first jigsaw puzzle around 1760 by mounting one of his maps on a sheet of hardwood and cutting around the borders of the countries to create interlocking pieces. Since then, puzzles have become an educational tool, and a family pastime. May I take this moment to remind everyone the proper way way to start a puzzle is to turn all the pieces over and work the border first, peeps…work the boarder first!

★~ Corn Chip Day:

The corn chip is often overlooked on the snack table. Put a bowl of chips next to some salsa or guac and it’s the dip that gets all the attention. Make a plate of nachos and the chips are the least thrilling layer. But while the humble corn chip doesn’t ask for much fanfare, today we salute it for all its hard work. On Superbowl Sunday over 96,000,000 tons of chips will be consumed. 

★~ Today in History:

♥~ 1802 – John Beckley became the first Librarian of the U.S. Congress. He was paid $2 a day. Not bad, considering in 1802 you could buy a house for $25.00 and two chickens.

♥~ 1845 – The Raven, by Edgar Allan Poe, was published for the first time in the New York Evening Mirror.

♥~ 1861 – Kansas, the Sunflower State, became a state. The capital of the 34th state is Topeka., The western meadowlark is the state bird, and the state song is Home on the Range. The roaming buffalo is the state animal, and the state tree is the cottonwood. Kansas, derived from the Sioux Indian word meaning ‘people of the southwind’, uses the Latin phrase ‘Ad astra per aspera’ or ‘To the stars through difficulties’ as its motto.

♥~ 1929 – The Seeing Eye (founded in Nashville, TN) was incorporated. Its purpose was to train dogs to guide the blind. They have gone on to matched thousands of dogs with persons who are blind or visually impaired in the U.S. and Canada.

♥~ 1959 – Walt Disney’s Sleeping Beauty was released. The animated fantasy features the voices Mary Costa (as Princess Aurora and Briar Rose), Bill Shirley (as Prince Phillip) Eleanor Audley (Maleficent) Verna Felton (Flora) Barbara Luddy (Merryweather) Barbara Jo Allen (Fauna) Taylor Holmes (King Stefan) and Bill Thompson (as King Hubert).

★~Born Today:

♥~ 1737 – Thomas Paine American revolutionary leader, political philosopher: :  The man who said, “These are the times that try men’s souls” came to America in 1774 at the request of Benjamin Franklin. Throughout his life, he wrote a number of influential books and pamphlets including The Age of Reason, The Rights of Man, and Common Sense. Each of these works brought public attention to key issues and helped establish the philosophical foundation for the American Revolution. Paine’s writing inspired many people to strive for political, economic, and social advancement. He was also one of the first people to call for an end to slavery and universal human rights.

♥~ 1880 – W.C. (William Claude) Fields (Dukenfield) entertainer; the man who said, “Comedy is a serious business,”  He ran away from home as a child, stole to survive, got in a lot of fistfights, and was arrested often. He was a skilled juggler, and at 14 he  joined the carnival. He went from juggling to doing a witty comedic routine, and then to acting in films. He toured a lot, and the more famous he became, the more he drank. When he was filming movies, he kept a flask of mixed martinis near at hand, referring to it as his “pineapple juice.” He quipped about his drinking a lot, saying things like, “Once, during Prohibition, I was forced to live for days on nothing but food and water.” And, “Everyone must believe in something. I believe I’ll have another drink.” And, “If I had to live life over, I’d live over a saloon.” Toward the end of his life, his career fizzled out some — he gained a reputation for being extremely hard to work with, was passed over for some coveted movie roles, and his alcoholism was taking its toll. He died Christmas Day 1946. And then his persona made a sort of comeback in the late 1960s. The Beatles even included his face in the collage on the cover of their Sgt. Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club Band album.

♥~ 1945 – Tom Selleck Emmy Award-winning actor: Magnum, P.I. [1983-1984], Three Men and a Baby, Mr. Baseball, Runaway, Lassiter, Quigley Down Under, 3 Men and a Little Lady, Running Mates, Las Vegas, Blue Bloods

♥~ 1954 – Oprah Winfrey Emmy Award-winning talk show host: Oprah Winfrey [1986, 1990-1994]; actress: The Color Purple, Native Son, The Women of Brewster Place

★~ Did You Know: 

In honor of Puzzle Day, Cole will demonstrate how to make a 3D Apple Puzzle. Link: How to Carve a 3D Apple Puzzle

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I hope everyone has a terrific Tuesday. I’m off and running in in our 62 degree weather.

♥~