THIS DAY IN HISTORY

Today is Friday, June 20, the 172nd day of 2008.
There are 194 days left in the year. Summer arrives at 7:59 p.m. Eastern time.

Today's Highlight in History:

On June 20, 1893, a jury in New Bedford, Mass., found Lizzie Borden innocent of the ax murders of her father and stepmother.

On this date:

In 1756, in India, a group of British soldiers was imprisoned in a cell that gained notoriety as the "Black Hole of Calcutta." However, the exact circumstances -- such as the number of prisoners, originally put at 146, and how many of them died -- are disputed.

In 1782, Congress approved the Great Seal of the United States.

In 1837, Queen Victoria acceded to the British throne following the death of her uncle, King William IV.

In 1863, West Virginia became the 35th state.

In 1943, race rioting erupted in Detroit; federal troops were sent in two days later to quell the violence that resulted in more than 30 deaths.

In 1947, Benjamin "Bugsy" Siegel was shot dead at the Beverly Hills, Calif., mansion of his girlfriend, Virginia Hill, apparently at the order of mob associates.

In 1948, the television variety series "Toast of the Town," hosted by Ed Sullivan, debuted on CBS.

In 1963, the United States and Soviet Union signed an agreement to set up a "hot line" between the two superpowers.

In 1967, boxer Muhammad Ali was convicted in Houston of violating Selective Service laws by refusing to be drafted. Ali's conviction was ultimately overturned by the Supreme Court.

In 2001, Houston resident Andrea Yates drowned her five children in the family bathtub, then called police. Yates was later convicted of murder, but had her conviction overturned; she was acquitted in a retrial.

Ten years ago: On the eve of Father's Day, President Clinton used his weekly radio address to announce the release of the first wave of almost $60 million in prostate cancer research grants.

Five years ago: Secretary of State Colin Powell met separately with the leaders of Israel and the Palestinian Authority, praising the Israelis for efforts toward an eventual peace settlement and urging speed on the Palestinians. President Bush named Scott McClellan his new press secretary, succeeding Ari Fleischer. Wildfires fueled by high winds burned 250 homes in southern Arizona.

One year ago: For the second time, President Bush vetoed an embryonic stem cell bill as he urged scientists toward what he termed "ethically responsible" research. Sammy Sosa, playing for the Texas Rangers after a year out of baseball, hit his 600th home run, making him the fifth player to reach the milestone.

Today's Birthdays:

Actress Olympia Dukakis is 77.

Actor Martin Landau is 77.

Actor James Tolkan is 77.

Actor Danny Aiello is 75.

Blues musician Lazy Lester is 75.

Actor John Mahoney is 68.

Movie director Stephen Frears is 67.

Singer-songwriter Brian Wilson is 66.

Actor John McCook is 63.

Singer Anne Murray is 63.

TV personality Bob Vila is 62.

Musician Andre Watts is 62.

Actress Candy Clark is 61.

Producer Tina Sinatra is 60.

Rhythm-and-blues singer Lionel Richie is 59.

Actor John Goodman is 56.

Rock musician Michael Anthony is 54.

Musician John Taylor is 48.

Rock musician Mark DeGliantoni is 46.

Rock musician Murphy Karges (Sugar Ray) is 41.

Actress Nicole Kidman is 41.

Movie director Robert Rodriguez is 40.

Actor Peter Paige is 39.

Actor Josh Lucas is 37.

Country-folk singer-songwriter Amos Lee is 31.

Country singer Chuck Wicks is 29.

Actor Chris Mintz-Plasse is 19.

Actress Maria Lark (TV: "Medium") is 11.

Thought for Today: "Even the merest gesture is holy if it is filled with faith." -- Franz Kafka, Austrian author and poet (1883-1924).

Summer began today at 2359 UTC. That was at 4:59 pm PDT (where I am at) and the temp here in the valley is currently 105°f (40.5°c). This is the first day where we have turned on the a/c.

I had forgotten what hot is.

Oh, if you would like a listing of all the soltaces and equinoxes through 2020, just click here.

"Let's all be careful out there!"

A LADY WITH A BEAUTIFUL VOICE

The sick Mexican husband was laying on his death bed. He had only hours to live when suddenly he smelled tamales. He dearly loved tamales more than anything else in the world, especially his wife Chita's tamales.

With every last bit of the energy left in his mind and body, the terminally ill husband pulled himself out of bed, across the floor, down the hall, and into the kitchen. Here, his wife was removing the fresh batch of tamales from the stove top.

As he reached for one of the freshly made tamales, his wife smacked him in the back of the head with a wooden spoon:

"Leave them alone, ¡stupido!...
They're for the funeral!"

We are about to enter the summer BBQ season soon.

Therefore it is important to refresh your memory on the etiquette of this sublime outdoor cooking activity, as it's the only type of cooking a 'real' man will do, probably because there is an element of danger involved.

When a man volunteers to do the BBQ the following chain of events are put into motion:
Routine...
(1) The woman buys the food.
(2) The woman makes the salad, prepares the vegetables, and makes dessert.
(3) The woman prepares the meat for cooking, places it on a tray along with the necessary cooking utensils and sauces, and takes it to the man who is lounging beside the grill - beer in hand.

Here comes the important part:
(4) THE MAN PLACES THE MEAT ON THE GRILL.

More routine....
(5) The woman goes inside to organize the plates and cutlery.
(6) The woman comes out to tell the man that the meat is burning.

He thanks her and asks if she will bring another glass of beer while he deals with the situation.

Important again:
(7) THE MAN TAKES THE MEAT OFF THE GRILL AND HANDS IT TO THE WOMAN.

More routine....
(8) The woman prepares the plates, salad, bread, utensils, napkins, sauces, and brings them to the table.
(9) After eating, the woman clears the table and does the dishes.

And most important of all:
(10) Everyone PRAISES the MAN and THANKS HIM for his cooking efforts.
(11) The man asks the woman how she enjoyed 'her night off.' And, upon seeing her annoyed reaction, concludes that there's just no pleasing some women....



A nurse walks into a bank totally exhausted after a 20 hour shift.

Preparing to write a check, she pulls a rectal thermometer out of her purse and tries to write with it.

She looks at the flabbergasted teller and without missing a beat says,

"Well, that's great......... that's really great ........some asshole has my pen."



Ole is out on the farm plowing the back 40. Suddenly Ole needs to take a leak. He jumps off his tractor, drops his pants, and begins to relieve himself.

Poor Ole....he doesn't realize that he's peeing on a hornets nest buried in the field.

Suddenly Ole is surrounded by a swarm of angry, wet bee's and he gets stung multiple times right on his tallywacker.

By golly, this really hurts, so Ole runs like the dickens to the farm house and calls the doctor.

Ole says, "Hey Doc, I was just out back plowin ya know, when I had to pee and by golly I peed right on a hornets nest, and they stung me right on my junk, and she burns something terrible".

"What can ya do to help me there Doc"?

The Doctor replies, "Well now Ole, if I was you, I'd stick my tallywacker in a bowl of warm buttermilk".

"It should relieve the swelling and stop the burning". That's what I'd do.

So by now, Ole's unit is swollen up to un-believable proportions (we should all be so lucky). So he pours himself a bowl of buttermilk and lays his junk in the bowl.

Enter Lena.

Lena looks at Ole with his member laying in the buttermilk, she pauses for a moment, looks Ole squarely in the eye and says to him.

"Ya know there Ole, we've been married for nearly 50 years now, and I never could figure out how you re-loaded that thing.


"Let's all be careful out there!"

DAILY CHUCKLE

"Let's all be careful out there!"

FOR THE FIRST TIME SINCE WATERGATE...

A CANDIDATE HAS REJECTED PUBLIC CAMPAIGN FUNDING


Even more info.


Firefox made their 24-hour goal and then some. Over 8 million downloads.

Turns out that the last foot found along the British Columbia coast was a hoax.

Well, I guess we can finally pull out of Iraq now. Major western oil companies have secured contracts to develop the oil fields and start production.



Obama's first national TV spot will air today in 18 targeted states.

On Tuesday, McCain was against drilling for oil in the ANWR (Alaska National Wildlife Reserve). On Wednesday he was willing to revisit the issue and on Thursday he was against it again. A "triple-flop". I am pleased to see that those people who live in New Mexico are all for off-shore drilling. They aren't worried about spoiling their coast line. Just have to keep those huge pickem-up trucks fueled. Their only concern.

The price of crude fell $5 yesterday. After having doubled since the first of the year, it isn't really all that significant.

The US Supreme Court made it easier for us old farts to claim age bias yesterday.

If it is of any interest to you, Britney Spears is now an aunt. Thats right, her 17-yo kid sister, Jamie Lynn gave birth to a baby girl, Maddie Briann, yesterday.

The great Hollywood and Broadway dancer, Cyd Charisse, died yesterday at 86.

Wine bras and beer bellies. What more could an alcoholic wish for?

Its TGIF!!

Have a great weekend everybody. Thanks for coming over. They'll be more later and over the weekend if you want to swing by.


"Let's all be careful out there!"