Friday, July 01, 2016

Welcome, July!


17 comments:

  1. Bernie is First.

    There is still no movement on the National Nurse Act. The bill is stuck in the Energy & Commerce Committee. I got a call today from Congressman Peter Welch's health aide, updating me. Though Peter has spoken with Congressman Fred Upton of Michigan, that committee Chair is still holding off on calling a hearing on the bill. It has 85 House members as co-sponsors (43R and 42D), and 118 national nursing and health related groups in support. It requires NO appropriation. I cannot fathom what the holdup could be!

    If you want to put in a good word for the bill, and/or ask that the Chair call for a hearing on the bill, it's H.R. 379, and Rep. Upton's office number is: 202 225-3761.

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  2. It's Canada Day!

    Today, Olivia DeHavilland has turned 100 years old, in Paris.
    http://www.dailymail.co.uk/tvshowbiz/article-3670080/AP-Interview-De-Havilland-breaks-silence-sibling-feud.html

    Today also marks the 100th Anniversary of the opening of the Battle of the Somme
    (Did you know that JRR Tolkien fought at the Somme?)
    https://www.theguardian.com/world/live/2016/jul/01/battle-of-somme-centenary-commemorations-live?page=with:block-577694dae4b0c5b1280f2eea

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    1. And today's Caltech alumni newsletter reported the death of an alumnus who got his PhD the year I was born. Yay fior longevity!

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    2. Bill, I'm speechless! And you know *that* doesn't happen very often.

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    3. Thanks for the links, Listener.

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    4. My pleasure, Cat.

      And thank YOU! That jet stream link you posted (below) is fascinating!!!

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  3. Canada Day! The poor citizens of southern Quebec are getting soaked with thunderstorms. We are too, of course. At least we aren't under a Tornado Watch as in the southern counties of Vermont right now. Already one tornado warning, too. So far we still have power. Mah*Sweetie and I are headed out to the Playhouse to see Sister Act tonight. Hope the power holds! Ha!

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    1. We had a tornado watch this afternoon. Fortunately, though we got a bit of rain, there were only a few rumbles of distant thunder.

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    2. Oh, right, Cat! I should have surmised as much given where the tornado warnings in Vermont were. I'm glad it was an uneventful event there!!!

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  4. How was Sister Act, listener? And did the power hold?

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    1. It was very well done! Several of the actors have been or currently are also on Broadway, and they really delivered. The music wasn't our cup of tea, but we were certainly happy to help lead the Standing Ovation at the end. :-)

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    2. Oh, and YES the power held! The storms moved more to the west as they came through, so we only got the edge of it after all, here.

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  5. With apologies to Puddle: A followup to Alan's post on the Jet Stream's crossing of the Equator.


    Unprecedented? Jet Stream Crosses Equator.
    - Click

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  6. No rain or tornadoes here; high temperatures up and down around a hundred degrees. Not unusual for this time of year. I remember one year when the high was over a hundred degrees for sixteen days straight--that got pretty old, I tell you. Usually it's no more than about four days. Afternoon humidity around 15%, nighttime low temps in the high 60's. We have a nice breeze from the river bottom here.

    The doves have left the nest; one day Miyoko saw them testing their wings; that evening we saw the babies on the roof next door, and that was it. Friends told us they had doves raise two families one year.

    Sunday before last, on the way home from the hospital I followed the example of a couple and gleaned yellow onions from a recently harvested field. They are still super-fresh, far better than any one can buy in the supermarkets. I remember when I was young my father was the produce man in a (by modern standards) small grocery store (the "Golden Rule" grocery), and he would regularly buy from the local truck farmers. Maybe the vertical/urban farming movement can bring those days back. One of the truck farmers grew what he called "Mongolian" beans--really fine, large, red-brown beans that produced a rich and tasty "gravy" simply by boiling.

    I am so disgusted with the modern plastic "ACE" combs, with their sharp teeth that break so easily. I am going to go hunting for a good hard rubber comb. Maybe first at the barber/beauty supply stores, then online. The old ACE combs had a lifetime warranty because they would typically be lost before they would be broken.

    Off to the hospital this weekend.

    Alan

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    1. not Mongolian beans--manchurian beans.

      Alan

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    2. In the wake of last night's front coming through, we are having a surprising and welcome day of 60F's. Our humidity feels low, but it's actually 65%. Our typical humidity is the main reason I dislike temps over 80F. 100F with 15% humidity would probably be a little easier to take than 90F and 80% humidity (expected here later this week).

      Around here we get fresh produce from the local Farmer's Markets! Everything from just-picked tomatoes, beets, onions, to berries and jam and even wood-fired pizza. YUM!!

      Oh, Alan, please do share what you learn about combs! I am with you on this, as I have three combs with busted teeth. They sure don't make 'em like they used to.

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