... bring an extras $7 for Grass Roots season dues. Please take a moment to ensure your ACC membership is also in good standing. Thanks!! I am holding winnings for a few players – Michael S., Brian W., and Al R., I have some cashola with your name sticky-noted to it On this date in 1850, Kamehameha III proclaimed Honolulu the capital city of the independent Kingdom of Hawaii. The city is located on the south shore of the island of Oahu, between the mountains and the Pacific Ocean . It’s surrounded by fields of sugar cane and pineapple, ranch lands, and farms. The British explorer Captain James Cook (1728–79) was the first known Westerner to sight the island of Oahu, on January 18, 1778. By the late eighteenth century, powerful Hawaiian rulers battled for control of the archipelago. In 1795, King Kamehameha the Great who controlled the Big Island of Hawaii, captured Maui and Molokai and set his eyes on Oahu. Kamehameha's large fleet of battle canoes landed in present-day Waikiki. His soldiers moved across the valley and into the mountains pursuing Kalanikupule, the king of Oahu. After his victory, Kamehameha united the islands under one kingdom. In sports, on this day in 1905, Detroit Tigers future Baseball HOF center fielder Ty Cobb makes his MLB debut. Tyrus Raymond Cobb, despite his family’s objections signed a semi-pro contract with Augusta in 1904. It was during a Sally League game while with Augusta―where the Tigers also trained each spring―that Cobb, from Narrows, Georgia, in the Empire State of the South, was named “The Georgia Peach” by legendary sportswriter Grantland Rice. In his first major league at-bat, the 18 year-old doubled off Jack Chesbro in the first inning of the Tigers’ 5-3 victory over the Highlanders at Detroit’s Bennett Park. The two-bagger is the first of the 4,189 hits the Georgia Peach would collect during his 24-year Hall of Fame career. And in music, August 30, 1968 was when the first record was released on the “Apple” label in the UK, just three months after the label launched: The Beatles’ single "Hey Jude" (“Revolution” was the B-side). At more than seven minutes in length it was at the time the longest single to top both the British and American charts. The song, written by Paul McCartney and also credited to John Lennon for some contributions, has been long-used as a generally encouraging message, and it was specifically inspired as an empathetic message to Lennon's then five-year old son, Julian, during his parents' divorce. This week wrapped up our short-but-sweet summer season. We had a new person come to play, Heather Chilsen. Heather found us on Facebook, and came out to see what we’re all about. Though I asked – nay demanded – everyone be nice to Heather, she, alas, earned a string of pearls on her first outing with us. Heather did say she had fun, and hopefully she will join us! So, I had a few minutes during coffee break this morning and held up this post pending our SUMMER RESULTS! So, these are the “raw results” – that is, because it’s summer, counting everything regardless of whether you made your twelve. Here are the top 10 finishers using this method: Then, because it’s all done in Excel and therefore easy to manipulate, lol, here are the top 10 when scoring like regular season: Either way you slice it, congratulations Jerry Gooden! May your good cards continue into the new season (or, hope you didn’t use up all the good ones when it didn’t count!) We had 18 players come out to finish up the summer. So, we paid 5 places and two teams: 1st place: Bernard Whitfield, with a 17 / 8 / +131 2nd place: Jerry Gooden, with a 16 / 8 / +53 3rd place: Tom Goeschel, with a 16 / 7 / +86 4th place: Joe Greiner, with a 13 / 6 / +36 5th place: Andy Wagner, with a 13 / 5 / +113 1st team: Liz(12) and David (9) 2nd team: Ernie (12) and Brian (8) Get your game faces, y’all; the new season opens next week! Have a great week, and stay safe! ~ Jennifer
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Before we get into it, just a reminder that the new Grass Roots season starts on Monday, September 6. At that time (or sooner if you prefer) I will be collecting an additional $7 for Grass Roots dues. Please take a moment to ensure your ACC membership is also in good standing. Thanks!! OK. So. I didn't write this on Monday, so I'm doing a mix of the 23rd and 24th. On August 24, 79 (not "1979", but "79"), Mount Vesuvius erupted, destroying the ancient Roman cities of Pompeii and Herculaneum. At least, that’s the date inscribed in the history books. As well-publicized recent discoveries have suggested, the volcano may have instead erupted in October. How there can be a discrepancy in dates is fascinating (at least to me). So there was this kid, Pliny the Younger, who evacuate the area along with his mother, and therefore survived the ordeal. He wrote letters describing the eruption and one of them has the date. Now, of course, the original letter has long since been lost, but there are copies made in the Middle Ages from which this date is derived. The letter says the eruption happened on "nonum kal. Septembres" -- or nine days before the first of September -- or in other words August 24. Cool, no? Well, that's just how one scribe translated the letter. Other scribes have omitted the date altogether or have a different one. A 15th century version notes the date as simply "nonum kal." -- the 9th day before the 1st -- without any month. Not helpful. An edition also printed in the 1400's says "November Calend" -- the first of November. Other versions say "nonum kal. Novem" (Oct 24) or "IX kal. Decembris" which is actually November 24th. It's like that game of telephone when we were kids -- the message gets corrupted as it gets copied. Getty has a fascinating article talking about the archeological, archaeobotanical, and other scientific evidence, which does suggest that October is more likely. The link is at the bottom of this post in the Notes. On August 23, 1784, four counties in western North Carolina declare their independence. The self-proclaimed state of Franklin broke away from North Carolina and attempted an experiment at self-rule. They wrote their own Declaration of Independence and proposed a draft constitution in December 1784. From that point on, the state of Franklin failed to gain much traction. The Confederation Congress rejected Franklin’s request to become the 14th state. Two leaders, John Sevier and John Tipton, competed for power, and residents dealt with continual fighting and land disputes with the Cherokee Indians. By 1788, the state of Franklin’s residents grew weary of independence and a year later, North Carolina took back the state of Franklin, turning it over to the federal government as part of the new Southwest Territory. In 1796, the former State of Franklin formed the eastern section of the new state of Tennessee. On this date in 1994 Jeff Buckley releases his album "Grace", featuring his cover of Leonard Cohen's "Hallelujah" -- one of my all-time favorite songs ever. Buckley attained his first number one on Billboard's Hot Digital Songs in March 2008 for Hallelujah, nearly 11 years after his death in a tragic drowning accident in Memphis. Monday night at club, we had another small night -- only 16 peggers came out (again). We were a relaxed and lively group, with the pressure of earning the almighty GRPs lifted for yet another evening. We forgave over-pegs, encouraged recounting for missed pegs, and had a good ol' Kitchen Cribbage night. We still collected an entry fee, though, so it wasn't all loosey-goosey. We paid out four places and two teams. 1st Place: Larry Phifer - 15/7/+108 2nd Place: Jerry Gooden - 15/7/+83 3rd Place: Jennifer Johnson - 14/6/+92 4th Place: Joe Greiner - 13/6/+81 1st Team: Megan (12) and Pete (10) 2nd Team: Glenn (10) and Al(8) We wrap up the summer next week before diving into the new [hopefully uninterrupted] Grass Roots season. See y'all next week! Be safe, everyone! Hello my friends! I was out of state last week during our Season Finale for some much-needed R&R and [obviously] didn't post. But. But. But..... that means you may have missed the news: JEFF RAYNES IS CLUB 58 CHAMPION! Yep, that's right, Kristy started the night out strong last Monday, but her cards went stone cold about halfway through the night. So, Jeff reigns victorious. Congrats!! OK, down to business for this week. On this date in 1501, Michelangelo awarded the contract to create his statue of David by the Overseers of the Office of Works (the Operai) of the Duomo, Florence's cathedral church. The statue was meant to be a symbol of the city. Michelangelo was only 26 when he began this work and unlike other statues of David, he depicted his subject before his battle with Goliath, using the contrapposto pose to convey his subject's pent-up sense of energy before battle. Standing 14 feet high and weighing over 5 tons, David was carved from a single block of marble that had already been rejected by other artists. The work began on September 13, 1501, a month after being awarded the contract. The final product unveiled on September 8, 1504. On August 16, 1962, Ringo Starr replaced Pete Best as the Beatles' drummer. The group's first official concert was just two days later. The concert took place at Hulme Hall in Birkenhead – a ferry 'cross the Mersey away from Liverpool. wo months earlier, the group passed an audition for Parlophone Records. But while producer George Martin liked what he heard, he was dissatisfied with Best. He told the Beatles that, while they could use Best onstage, he was going to bring in a session drummer for the recordings. The other Beatles, along with manager Brian Epstein, discussed the situation and decided that it was in their best interests to sack the drummer entirely. On Aug. 16, Epstein called Best into his office and told him the news that he was out. And, on this date in 1988, IBM introduced software for artificial intelligence. A number of software programs were released that were designed to provide home computer users with advice on topics form equipment design to home mortgages. IBM said that by answering a series of questions about a particular situation, even the most novice computer user can get expert advice. Fast forward to 2010, and IBM's Watson was introduced. The next year, Watson, outplayed two humans at the popular television quiz show Jeopardy! The computer's opponents weren't merely two humans—they were the two all-time best Jeopardy! champions, ever. IBM Watson beat them both in a live, real-time competition—no tricks, no gimmicks. The first week of our shortened summer started with a fizzle. We had 16 peggers come out to play. Raleigh had just reinstituted a mask mandate for indoors gathering, regardless of vaccination status. Whether that played a part or folks just needed to go on vacation, remains to be seen :) Fresh back from a week on Long Island, new director Jennifer was tough to beat -- unless you were from Rocky Mount. Tom and Pete served Jen her only two losses of the evening. 1st Place: Jennifer Johnson with a 16/7 card (where were these points during the season???) 2nd Place: Larry Phifer with a 14/7 card 3rd Place: Al Robinson with a 13/6 card 4th Place: Brian Wilson with a 13/5 card 1st Team: Jerry (11) and Liz (10) 2nd Team: Joe (11) and Glenn (6) Hope everyone has a great week; stay safe out there! ~ Jennifer Notes: Michelangelo's David The Day the Beatles Fired Pete Best IBM introduces artificial intelligence software On this date in 1776, at least this is the date accepted by modern historians, was the formal signing of the Declaration of Independence by 56 people. Officially, the Congress declared its freedom from Great Britain on July 2, 1776, when it approved a resolution in a unanimous vote. Once the Congress approved the actual document on July 4, it was sent to a printer named John Dunlap. About 200 copies of the Dunlap Broadside were printed, with John Hancock’s name printed at the bottom. Today, 26 copies remain. Then on July 8, 1776, Colonel John Nixon of Philadelphia read a printed Declaration of Independence to the public for the first time on what is now called Independence Square. Many members of the Continental Congress started to sign an engrossed version of the Declaration on August 2, 1776, in Philadelphia. John Hancock’s famous signature was in the middle, because of his status as President of the Congress. The other delegates signed by state delegation, starting in the upper right column, and then proceeding in five columns, arranged from the northernmost state (New Hampshire) to the southernmost (Georgia). On August 2, 1909, the Army Air Corps formed as the Army took their first delivery from the Wright Brothers. The Army paid $30,000 for the aircraft, a Wright A Flyer. It was given the name Signal Corps No. 1, but was generally just known as the Wright Military Flyer. The "Air Force" needed this aircraft to carry messages, to do reconnaissance, and to look for enemy troops. Soon after receiving the aircraft, the flying program moved to a field in College Park, Maryland, and it resumed in October 1909, with the Wright brothers training a few more men on how to fly. On Oct. 26, 2nd Lt. Fred Humphreys became the first Army officer to fly solo. And, on this date in 1969, "In the Year 2525" by Zager and Evans was enjoying its fourth week at #1 on the Billboard Hot 100. You can hear the song in the video at the end of this post. We had 26 folks come out to play tonight, including two new faces! Welcome to Kristine and Pat! Cathy stopped by to say goodbye in person, and to share hugs with everyone. We keep her and Russ in our prayers and hope they can return, at least to play, sometime soon. Some people had the cribbage gods smiling down on them -- there were two 13-cards, and two 12-cards that had to draw for partners. Liz Henderson had not one, but TWO cribbage salutes. I overheard players saying "I have another 16" more than once... The deities skipped over me, however, helping me to a paltry 7-card. Oh well. With 26 people, we had 6 prizes and three teams. 1st place: Frank Abernathy with a 16/7/+114 2nd Place: Fran Ward with a 16/7/+93 3rd Place: Ernie Hodgson with a 15/7/+104 4th Place: Larry Phifer with a 14/6/+105 5th Place: Kristy Haught with a 14/6/+101 6th Place: Steve Hooker with a 13/6/+95 1st Team: Curtis (13) and Luther (13) 2nd Team: Al (12) and Megan (10) 3rd Team: Jerry (12) and Pete (5) If you left before the prizes were distributed, Jeff will have them. I will not be at club on Monday night -- the family is taking a trip to New York to visit my husband's parents. A week of shooting and fishing and hanging out on the beach sounds like heaven to me! Jeff Raynes will be taking the reins (see what I did there?) next week. Here is the current top-10 with only ONE WEEK TO GO!!! With Kristy's 14 card, she has edged out Jeff for the lead! Can she hold on? Have a great couple of weeks, everyone. I'll see you soon! ~ Jennifer |
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