Neighborhood Model
Kathryn

Fat 'n' Happy

Percentage of total population who have a body mass index of greater than 30:

United States - 30.6%
Slovakia - 22.4%
United Kingdom - 22%
Luxembourg - 17.3%
Czech Republic - 14.8%
Iceland - 12.4%
Finland - 11.8%
Sweden - 10.4%
Netherlands - 10%
France - 9.4%

Sky dog 

Buddy the dog 

Essentials

WD-40

The product began from a search for a rust preventative solvent and de-greaser to protect missile parts. WD-40 was created in 1953 by three technicians at the San Diego Rocket Chemical Company. Its name comes from the project that was to find a "water displacement" compound. They were successful with the fortieth formulation, thus WD-40.

Some of the uses:

Penetrates stuck bolts, lug nuts, and hose ends

Protects silver from tarnishing

Cleans and lubricates guitar strings

Gets oil spots off concrete driveways

Gives floors that 'just-waxed' sheen without making it slippery

Keeps flies off cows

Restores and cleans chalkboards

Removes lipstick stains

Loosens stubborn zippers

Removes stains from stainless steel sinks

Removes dirt and grime from the barbecue grill

Keeps scissors working smoothly

Lubricates noisy door hinges on vehicles and doors in homes

Gives a children's play gym slide a shine for a super fast slide

Lubricates tracks in sticking home windows and makes them easier to open

Restores and cleans padded leather dashboards in vehicles, as well as
vinyl bumpers

Keeps rust from forming on saws and saw blades, and other tools

Removes splattered grease on stove

Keeps bathroom mirror from fogging

Keeps pigeons off the balcony (they hate the smell)

Some folks spray it on their arms, hands, knees, etc. to relieve arthritis pain.

One fellow claims spraying it on fishing lures attracts fish.

Finally, the favorite use in the State of New York--WD-40 protects the Statue of Liberty from the elements.

Gather ye rose-buds while ye may,
Old Time is still aflying,
And this same flower that smiles today,
Tomorow will be dying.

~Robert Herrick

Serendipitous Inventions

Chewing Gum - While experimenting with ways of using the traditional Mexican gum chicle as a substitute for rubber in toys, boots, and clothes, inventor Thomas Adams absentmindedly popped a piece in his mouth and was suddenly struck by the possibility of adding artificial flavor.

Post-it Notes - While working on a chemical formula for stronger glues, Spencer Silver, a researcher for the 3-M office-equipment company, accidentally discovered super-weak glue. It was dismissed as useless until a colleague, Arthur Fry, thought of applying strips of it to paper.

Potato Chips – In 1853 Native American chef George Crum, working in Sarasota Springs, New York, was frustrated by a guest who kept sending back his French fried potatoes, saying they were too thick. In a fit of pique, Crum cut them into wafer-thin strips and fried them. They became a house specialty.

Summer Scene
Camden Yards
Baltimore, MD

Knowledge

Sent to me by my friend and mentor, Ken, the pride of Cherry Hill, New Jersey:

A furniture dealer from Alabama decided that he wanted to expand the line of furniture in his store, so he decided to go to Paris, France to see what he could find.

After arriving in Paris (this being his first trip ever to the French capital), he met with some manufacturers and finally selected a line that he thought would sell well back home in Alabama.

To celebrate the new acquisition, he decided to visit a small bistro an a have a glass of wine. As he sat enjoying his wine, he noticed that the small place was quite crowded, and that the one other chair at his table was the only vacant seat in the house. Before long, a very beautiful young Parisian girl came to his table, asked him something in French (which he did not understand), and motioned toward the chair. He invited her to sit down. He tried to speak to her in English, but she didn't speak his language so, after a couple of minutes of trying to communicate with her, he took a napkin and drew a picture of a wine glass and showed it her. She nodded, and he ordered a glass of wine for her.

After sitting together at the table for a while, he took another napkin, and drew a picture of a plate with food on it, and she nodded.

So, they left the bistro and found a quiet cafe that featured a small group playing romantic music. They ordered dinner, and afterward he took another napkin and drew a picture of a couple dancing. She nodded, and they got up to dance. They danced until the cafe closed and the band was packing up.

Back at their table, the young lady took a napkin and drew a picture of a four-poster bed. To this day, he has no idea how she figured out he was in the furniture business...

Some drink at the fountain of knowledge. Others just gargle.

Strange Deaths of Some Popes

Stephen VII (896-897) Attacked, jailed, and strangled
John X (914-928) Imprisoned and suffocated
John XIII (956-972) Bludgeoned to death on the way to see his lady-in-waiting by her husband
John XIV (983-984) Left to die of starvation in prison
John XXI (1276-1277) Died when the roof of his new study fell on him

The Middle Ages were tough on everyone.

Word Origins for 400, Alex...

duffel bag

A large canvas bag for carrying clothes or gear. Originally it was made of a woolen fabric called duffel, which was so named because it came from Duffel, Belgium.

A Toy of the 50's

Remember Changeable Charlie.

Charlie 

Charlie 

Neighborhood Model
Elizabeth C.

Top Ten Dog Breeds in the US

Labrador Retriever
Golden Retriever
German Shepherd
Beagle
Dachshund
Yorkshire Terrier
Boxer
Poodle
Chihuahua
Shih Tzu

Orchid
US Botanic Gardens
Washington, D.C.

Simple Pleasures - the Sinatra Playlist

I love Sinatra. I think it’s partly because of the songs he sang -the great old standards - but it’s surely because of the inimitable way he sang them. Sinatra could find the emotional essence of a song and convey it to the listener better than anyone. The natural vocal delivery with nearly flawless diction and phrasing carried the message so effortlessly. From everything I’ve read, it’s clear he worked hard to make it seem effortless.

Put some Sinatra on your iPod, and let that voice get into your head.

A few of my favorites:

I’ve Got You Under My Skin
(Definitely my favorite Sinatra song. I like the Sinatra at the Sands version. The song itself is terrific, add an amazing arrangement by Nelson Riddle, add the Count Basie Orchestra, then add Sinatra who rides this song for all it’s worth. )
Drinking Again
You Go to My Head
Witchcraft
Summer Wind
All of Nothing at All
Moonlight in Vermont
I Get a Kick Out of You
I’ve Got a Crush on You
How Little It Matters
Angel Eyes
Don’t Worry ‘Bout Me
The Way You Look Tonight
If I Had You
New York New York

Goldwyn

“Coffee just isn’t my cup of tea.”

~ Samuel Goldwyn

Neighborhood Model

Dorelle

WWII 

WWII 

D-Day Anniversary

Excerpt from Ronald Reagan’s speech at Pointe du Hoc, Normandy, June 6, 1984 (The 40th anniversary of D-Day)

"Behind me is a memorial that symbolizes the Ranger daggers that were thrust into the top of these cliffs. And before me are the men who put them there.

These are the boys of Pointe du Hoc. These are the men who took the cliffs. These are the champions who helped free a continent. These are the heroes who helped end a war.

Gentlemen, I look at you and I think of the words of Stephen Spender's poem. You are men who in your 'lives fought for life...and left the vivid air signed with your honor'... "

Full text of speech:

http://www.townhall.com/hall_of_fame/reagan/speech/normandy.html

Amish Walking

~The average Amish man takes 18,425 steps a day, and the average Amish woman takes 14,196. A typical American takes 5,000. ~

From Time Magazine (June 6, 2005)

Pins in the Woods 

Strawberry Fields Forever

Living is easy with eyes closed
Misunderstanding all you see
It's getting hard to be someone
but it all works out
It doesn't matter much to me

Let me take you down
cause I'm going to strawberry fields
Nothing is real
and nothing to get hung about
Strawberry fields forever


LONDON (Reuters) - A British children's home immortalized in the Beatles hit "Strawberry Fields Forever" closes on Tuesday (May 31, 2005) after 69 years of looking after Liverpool's disadvantaged youngsters.

John Lennon used to visit the home as a boy to play with childhood friends in its grounds. He modified the name to make it flow better for the song.

A number of interesting recording techniques were used, including vari-speed and tapes played backwards. The first recording used an acoustic guitar, which Lennon was not satisfied with. A subsequent track was dubbed with cellos and trumpets.

The Beatles on the Mall