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Today is the birthday, in 1833, of Alfred Nobel. Nobel’s father was an alumnus of the Royal Institute of Technology in Stockholm and was an engineer and inventor who built bridges and buildings and experimented with different ways of blasting rocks. He encouraged and taught Nobel from a young age.

As a young man, Nobel studied with chemist Nikolai Zinin; then, in 1850, he went to Paris to further the work. There he met Ascanio Sobrero, who had synthesized nitroglycerin three years before. Sobrero strongly opposed the use of nitroglycerin because it was unpredictable, exploding when subjected to variable heat or pressure. But Nobel became interested in finding a way to control and use nitroglycerin as a commercially usable explosive; it had much more power than gunpowder.

Nobel found that when nitroglycerin was incorporated in an absorbent inert substance like kieselguhr (diatomaceous earth) it became safer and more convenient to handle, and this mixture he patented in 1867 as “dynamite”. Nobel later combined nitroglycerin with various nitrocellulose compounds, similar to collodion, but settled on a more efficient recipe combining another nitrate explosive, and obtained a transparent, jelly-like substance, which was a more powerful explosive than dynamite. Gelignite, or blasting gelatin, as it was named, was patented in 1876.

On 27 November 1895, at the Swedish-Norwegian Club in Paris, Nobel signed his last will and set aside the bulk of his estate to establish the Nobel Prizes, to be awarded annually without distinction of nationality. He also made several other important contributions to science, holding 355 patents during his life.

Portrait of Nobel by Gösta Florman

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Seventy Five!!!

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BADA BING BING BING…

Don’t worry, Donald. You’re still eligible for the No Ball Prize.

tRUMP, putting the NO in Nobel Peace Price.

Anti-vaxxers, how do you feel about your Dear Leader getting a flu vaccine and Covid booster? It’s almost as if he took you for complete suckers.

I don’t have a train of thought, I have a Roomba of thought. It can move straight ahead, but as soon as it bumps into something, it turns around and starts moving in a brand-new, random direction.

They held a contest to choose the best neckwear. It was a tie.

Daughter: Alexa play “Let it Go.” Me: When I was your age I had to call the radio station, wait on hold for 30 mins to request a song, then sit by my boom box for an hour with a blank cassette tape for my song to play so I could record it. Daughter: I don’t know what any of that means.

Mr. Rogers did not adequately prepare me for the people in my neighborhood.

I was walking a pretty girl home from school one day when we ran upon one the school bullies. Good thing I was carrying her books or she wouldn’t have been able to beat him up.

Medical researchers have determined stress will kill you. Great … one more thing to worry about.

Apparently it takes 10,000 hours to master a skill, which can’t be true because I’ve been an adult a lot longer than 10,000 hours and I still have no idea what I’m doing.

You donate a kidney, you’re a hero. You donate three kidneys, and suddenly the police are involved.

Husband: The nerve of that doctor. Saying I’m so old that he referred me to an archaeologist. Wife: Audiologist, dear. You can’t hear.

I’m not sure I agree with the idea that “when you snooze you lose.” At my age, snoozing seems more like winning to me.

IF YOU ARE ARGUING LOUDLY ON YOUR PHONE IN PUBLIC, PLEASE PUT IT ON SPEAKER, I NEED TO HEAR BOTH SIDES OF THE STORY.

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Today is the birthday, in 1957, of American guitarist, singer, songwriter, arranger and record producer Steve Lukather, who with Toto had the 1983 US No.1 & UK No.3 single ‘Africa’. Lukather has recorded guitar tracks for more than 1,500 albums including the guitar solo for Olivia Newton-John’s 1981 No.1 single ‘Physical’, Michael Jackson’s ‘Beat It’, and was also heavily involved in the recording of virtually all of Jackson’s Thriller album. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FTQbiNvZqaY

On this day in 1818, The United States and the United Kingdom signed the cleverly named Treaty of 1818. This treaty resolved standing boundary issues between the two nations. The treaty allowed for joint occupation and settlement of the Oregon Country, known to the British and in Canadian history as the Columbia District of the Hudson’s Bay Company.

The two nations agreed to a boundary line involving the 49th parallel north, in part because a straight-line boundary would be easier to survey than the pre-existing boundaries based on watersheds. The treaty marked both the United Kingdom’s last permanent major loss of territory in what is now the Continental United States and the United States’ first permanent significant cession of North American territory to a foreign power.

The Treaty of 1818, along with the Rush–Bagot Treaty of 1817, marked the beginning of improved relations between the British Empire and its former colonies, and paved the way for more positive relations between the US and Canada although repelling a US invasion was a defense priority in Canada until 1928.

Cutting on the 49th parallel, on the right bank of the Moyie River, looking west, 1860.

(courtesy North American Boundary Commission)

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Her Shoes…His Shoes…

Signs remind us that we have NO KINGS

…and thousands more

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Wow! What a coupon!

Today is the birthday, in 1950, of Tom Petty, American singer and songwriter. He was the frontman of Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers and was a founding member of the late 1980s supergroup the Traveling Wilburys and Mudcrutch. Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers had the 1977 single ‘American Girl’, the 1989 UK No.28 single ‘I Won’t Back Down’, and the 1991 UK No.3 album ‘Into The Great Wide Open’. With the Traveling Wilburys, the 1988 UK No. 21 single ‘Handle With Care’. Petty has also released a string of solo albums, and Throughout his career and has sold over 60 million albums. Petty died on 2 October 2017. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nvlTJrNJ5lA

On this day in 1787, fourteen blacks, describing themselves as taxpaying “freemen” of Boston (Massachusetts abolished slavery in 1783), submitted a petition to the legislature protesting that their children were excluded from the Boston public schools because of their race. Deliberately echoing the protests of the Sons of Liberty, they complained to the legislature of taxation without education.

But the Commonwealth’s lawmakers ignored their plea. Rebuffed by the legislature, Boston’s blacks established a school of their own. Prince Hall, one of the fourteen blacks who petitioned the legislature in 1787, was the school’s first teacher. Hall was one of the most influential black leaders of the late 1700s. Hall served in the Continental Army during the revolution.

Having served in the Revolutionary War, Hall and other blacks expected, but did not receive, racial equality when the war ended. Hall collaborated with others to propose legislation for equal rights. He also hosted community events, such as educational forums and theater events, to improve the lives of Black people.

Hall was interested in the Masonic fraternity because Freemasonry was founded on liberty, equality, and peaceful ideals. Having been rejected by colonial Freemasonry, Hall and 15 others sought and were initiated into Masonry by members of Lodge No. 441 of the Grand Lodge of Ireland on March 6, 1775. Hall and other freedmen founded African Lodge No. 1, and he was named Grand Master. Hall was considered the “father of African Freemasonry”.

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“My new work schedule is three days in the office and two days at home dreading going to the office.”

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Today is the birthday, in 1972, of Haitian rapper and musician Wyclef Jean, who with The Fugees had the 1996 UK No.1 single Killing Me Softly and the 1998 solo 1998 UK No.3 single ‘Gone Till November’. Their second album The Score (1996) became one of the best-selling albums of all time. Jean has won three Grammy Awards for his musical work. He co-wrote the 1999 singles ‘My Love Is Your Love’ for Whitney Houston and ‘Maria Maria’ for Santana. He guest performed on Shakira’s 2006 single, ‘Hips Don’t Lie’, reaching No.1 in 55 countries. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DUT5rEU6pqM

Today is the anniversary of the execution of Marie Antoinette in 1793. was the last queen of France before the fall of the monarchy during the French Revolution. She was the wife of King Louis XVI.

Born an archduchess of Austria, she was the penultimate child and youngest daughter of Empress Maria Theresa and Emperor Francis I of the Holy Roman Empire. She married Louis Auguste, Dauphin of France, in May 1770 at age 14, becoming the Dauphine of France. On 10 May 1774, her husband ascended the throne as king, and she became queen.

Beginning with the convocation of the Estates General in 1789, the French Revolution overturned the monarchy and led, eventually, to the trial, conviction and execution of the king and eventually, the queen. Many of the revolution’s ideas are considered fundamental principles of liberal democracy, and its values remain central to modern French political discourse. Causes of the revolution include crippling government debt, unfair taxation, economic hardship and social inequality.

During the French Revolution, she became known as Madame Déficit because the country’s financial crisis was blamed on her lavish spending and her opposition to social and financial reforms. On 21 September 1792, France was declared a republic and the monarchy was abolished. Louis XVI was executed by guillotine on 21 January 1793. Marie Antoinette’s trial began on 14 October 1793; two days later, she was convicted by the Revolutionary Tribunal of high treason. Marie Antoinette was executed by beheading by guillotine at 12:15 pm on 16 October. Her last words are recorded as, “Pardonnez-moi, monsieur. Je ne l’ai pas fait exprès” or “Pardon me, sir, I did not do it on purpose”, after accidentally stepping on her executioner’s shoe.

Marie Antoinette’s execution by guillotine on 16 October 1793: at left, Sanson, the executioner, showing Marie Antoinette’s head to the people. Anonymous, 1793

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That last performer can leave quite a mark!

HANDS OFF MY BUMPER STICKERS!

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signsess

Today is the birthday, in 1947, of American musician and songwriter Bob Weir, best known as a founding member of the Grateful Dead. The group released more than 140 albums during their career, the majority of them recorded live in concert. Weir also founded and played in several other bands during and after his career with the Grateful Dead, and Weir, along with former Grateful Dead members, joined John Mayer to form the band Dead & Company. What a long, strange trip it’s been! https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QuyaK0hGxWk

Today is the birthday, in 1872, of Edith Wilson. She was First Lady of the United States from 1915 to 1921 as the second wife of President Woodrow Wilson. She married the widower Wilson in December 1915, during his first term as president. She became essentially the acting President during the last 18 months of his term.

Edith Bolling was born October 15, 1872, in Wytheville, Virginia. Bolling was a descendant of the first settlers to arrive at the Virginia Colony. Through her father, she was also a descendant of Mataoka, better known as Pocahontas. Her father was descended from Pocahontas’s granddaughter Jane Rolfe, who married Robert Bolling. a wealthy slave-owning planter and merchant. Additionally, she was related, either by blood or through marriage, to Thomas Jefferson, Martha Washington, Letitia Tyler, and the Harrison family.

While visiting her married sister in Washington, D.C., Edith met Norman Galt (1864–1908), a prominent jeweler of Galt & Bro. Norman Galt died unexpectedly at the age of 43. Edith hired a manager to oversee his business, paid off his debts, and with the income left to her by her late husband, toured Europe.

In March 1915, the widow Galt was introduced to recently widowed U.S. President Woodrow Wilson at the White House. Wilson took an instant liking to Galt and proposed soon after meeting her. Wilson married Galt on December 18, 1915, at her home in Washington, D.C.

Following his attendance at the Paris Peace Conference in 1919, Woodrow Wilson returned to the United States to campaign against strong non-interventionist sentiment for the ratification of the peace treaty and of the League of Nations Covenant. However, in October he suffered a stroke that left him bedridden and partially paralyzed. Edith Wilson and others in the President’s inner circle (including his physician and a few close friends) hid the true extent of the president’s illness and disability from the American public.

Edith also took over a number of routine duties and details of the executive branch of the government from the onset of Wilson’s illness until he left office almost a year and a half later. Edith became the sole communication link between the President and his Cabinet. She required they send her all pressing matters, memos, correspondence, questions, and requests. Edith took her role very seriously, even successfully pushing for the removal of Secretary of State Robert Lansing after he conducted a series of Cabinet meetings without the President (or Edith herself) present.

She assisted President Wilson in filling out paperwork, and would often add new notes or suggestions. She was made privy to classified information, and was entrusted with the responsibility of encoding and decoding encrypted messages.

On December 8, 1941, the day after Japan’s attack on Pearl Harbor, President Franklin D. Roosevelt asked Congress to declare war, taking pains to draw a link with Wilson’s April 1917 declaration of war. Edith Wilson was present during Roosevelt’s address to Congress. On April 14, 1945, she attended Roosevelt’s funeral at the White House. She later attended the January 20, 1961 inauguration of President John F. Kennedy.

Edith Wilson died of congestive heart failure on December 28, 1961, at age 89. She was to have been the guest of honor that day at the dedication ceremony for the Woodrow Wilson Bridge across the Potomac River, on what would have been her husband’s 105th birthday. She was buried next to her husband at the Washington National Cathedral.

Woodrow Wilson’s first posed photograph after his stroke. He was paralyzed on his left side, so Edith holds a document steady while he signs. June 1920.

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Only applies to ice cream…

Ouch!

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BADA BING!!

A very philosophical friend asked me, “What is Earth without art?” I just looked at him and said, “Eh?”

Baldwin is a cool name. It is the opposite of Hairloss.

Before the Internet, most people thought villages had only one idiot. Boy, were they wrong.

Them: How much faith do you have in the human race? Me: I’m a dog person.

My midlife crisis is over – I’m working on my senior life catastrophe.

“The truth has no defense against a fool determined to believe a lie.” – Mark Twain

Guy1: Bro, have you ever had an argument with your girlfriend? Guy2: Nope. Me and my girl don’t argue. She tells me to shut up and I do.

Bankrupt farmland will be perfect for building data centers and then provide the groundwater to cool the data centers.

ICE agent: Stop calling us Nazis or we’re going to take you to one of our concentration camps.

People are so dumb cooking food at 350 degrees for 40 minutes when they could just do the math and cook it a 14,000 degrees for one minute.

Next they’re going to tell us autism is caused by the demand to release the Epstein files. – Steve Hofstetter

Eyelashes are supposed to prevent things from getting into your eyes. When I do have something in my eye it’s always an eyelash. Eyeronic.

Does this couch I’m lying on make me look unmotivated?

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Today is the birthday, in 1946. of American record producer, arranger, pianist and composer Richard Carpenter, who formed half of the sibling duo The Carpenters alongside his younger sister Karen. They had the 1973 UK No.2 single ‘Yesterday Once More’ and the 1970 US No.1 & UK No.6 single ‘Close To You’. The Carpenters 1972 hit ‘Goodbye to Love’ was one of the first pop ballads to have a fuzz guitar solo and influenced the development of the power ballad. The duo hosted a television series during the summer of 1971, called Make Your Own Kind of Music. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PjFoQxjgbrs