Yes, tonight was the end of our summer season. We'll get to the normal bits of blog, but here's what everyone wants to see... THE RESULTS!! Congratulations to Tom, Mike, and Andy for a close battle! And thanks to all who played along this summer. We'll be sure to do it again next year! <channels Kasey Kasem> And now, back to the countdown -- er -- blog. On August 29, 1831, Michael Faraday demonstrated the first electric transformer. He was conducting an experiment with an iron ring, some copper wire and a big 4 inch plate battery. He was investigating the phenomenon known as electro-magnetism. electro-magnetism had been discovered by Hans Christian Oersted, who published his work on this in 1820. Faraday took Oersted's work further. In September 1821, he discovered electro-magnetic rotations, the principle behind the electric motor. Faraday took a ring made of solid soft iron and wrapped it on opposite sides in two sets of unconnected copper wires. The wires don't touch each other or the ring at any point. They are wrapped around the ring in layers of cotton wadding for insulation. Each end of one coil was connected to a battery, which will provide the current. Each end of the other was connected to a galvanometer, an instrument that detects current. As the coils do not touch, if the galvanometer were to detect current, electricity would have to have passed from one side of the ring to the other in some way. When the battery is connected, the needle of the galvanometer leaps into action, registering current. However, the effect quickly fades and the needle soon detects no current, even though the battery is still connected. If the battery is switched off and on again repeatedly, the effect can be reproduced over and over again, as rapidly as you like. Repeatedly switching the power on and off generates what we call alternating current (AC), since the current swaps back and forth between the two coils. This principle is the basis for much of our modern public electricity supply. On this date back in 1967, the series finale of the TV show "The Fugitive" starring David Janssen was watched by 78 million people. Actually, this show invented the series finale. It was an ending that most of America had to experience, while also becoming a template for future TV finales. For four years, 1963–1967, The Fugitive exemplified the Hitchcockian double chase: hero after villain, police after hero. Dr. Richard Kimble was wrongly convicted of killing his wife. His train to the electric chair was derailed, liberating Kimble to search for the one-armed man whom he glimpsed running from the murder scene. While Kimble was taking menial jobs to subsist on his quest, Lieutenant Philip Gerard relentlessly pursued the escapee Kimble. These dueling cat and mouse narratives were sustained over 120 episodes, with everyone suspiciously looking over their shoulders. After four years, David Janssen wanted out. The producers asked one of the lead writers to craft a two-part ending in early 1967. ABC made the unusual decision for the time to air the finale during the end of summer, when many Americans were vacationing. The first part, airing on August 22, 1967, attracted a good rating. But nothing compared the second part on August 29, which broke all records: a 72% share of homes and a projected audience of 78 million people. Yes, the freedom of David Janssen proved bigger than the earth-shattering appearance of the Beatles on The Ed Sullivan Show three years before. And, this date also marks the anniversary of Hurricane Katrina’s 2nd and 3rd landfall as a category 3 hurricane in 2005. Katrina devastated much of the U.S. Gulf Coast from Louisiana to the Florida Panhandle, killing more than 1,800 an causing over $100 billion in damage. The progression of this storm was intense over a short period of time. A tropical depression formed over the southeastern Bahamas on Aug. 23, 2005. A day later, Tropical Storm Katrina moved into the central Bahamas before making landfall as a Category 1 hurricane along the southeastern Florida coast on the 25th. Three days later, as the storm moved west into the warm waters of the Gulf of Mexico, Katrina rapidly intensified to a Category 5 major hurricane. On August 29, 2005, Hurricane Katrina made landfall near Buras-Triumph, Louisiana, with 125 mph winds, as a strong Category 3 hurricane. Although the storm surge to the east of the path of the eye in Mississippi was higher, a significant surge affected the Louisiana coast. The height of the surge is uncertain because of a lack of data, although a tide gauge in Plaquemines Parish indicated a storm tide in excess of 14 feet, and a 12-foot storm surge was recorded in Grand Isle. The hurricane made its final landfall near the mouth of the Pearl River, with the eye straddling St. Tammany Parish, Louisiana, and Hancock County, Mississippi. Although Katrina weakened to a Category 3 before making landfall along the northern Gulf Coast, it was still a major hurricane that brought immense devastation. By Aug. 31, 80% of New Orleans was under flood waters after the levees that separate the city from Lake Pontchartrain failed. Images of people waving for help from their rooftops and being pulled from flood waters were on every news outlet across the nation. Storm surge ranging from 4-20 feet swallowed homes and businesses from Dauphin Island to Bayou La Batre. Numerous tornadoes spawned in the outer bands of Katrina, mainly on the eastern side of the well-defined eye, took down trees and caused extensive powerline damage. Because of the large death toll and destruction of property along the Gulf Coast, the name Katrina was officially retired on April 6, 2006, by the World Meteorological Organization at the request of the U.S. government. The name will never again be used for another North Atlantic hurricane. It was replaced by Katia on List III of the Atlantic hurricane naming lists, which was used in the 2011 Atlantic hurricane season. We had 20 players (including Dot and Jim!!) come out to play this week, so we paid out four places and three teams:
Mike Due, scoring a 15/7/91 John Morch, with 12/6/75 Ernie Hodgson, with 12/6/34 and Andy Wagner rounded out the place winners with a 12/6/17 First Team: Jennifer Johnson (10) and Bob Hewitt (9) Second Team: Roger Doenges (11) and Jerry Gooden (8) Third Team: Tom Goeschel (10) and Frank Abernathy (8) A few quick reminders for next week -- weekly buy-in is going up to $16, and dues are due. Also, I'll have flyers for my Dad's tournament for your taking pleasure! Have a great week, everyone, and see you on Monday! ~ Jennifer
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Only one more week until the 2022-2023 season officially starts. Are you ready? On August 22, 1846, Gen. Stephen Kearny established the Territory of New Mexico as a U.S. possession. His proclamation guaranteed freedom of religion and protection for private property in the newly claimed lands. After fighting erupted in Texas, Congress declared war against Mexico on May 11. At the outbreak of the war, President James Polk named Kearny commander of the Army of the West and ordered him to lead an expeditionary force to occupy New Mexico and California. A border skirmish along the Rio Grande that started off the fighting was followed by a series of U.S. victories. When the dust cleared, Mexico had lost about one-third of its territory, including nearly all of present-day California, Utah, Nevada, Arizona and New Mexico. Kearny marched to Santa Fe, N.M., without opposition at the head of a force of 1,700 men. His overall forces in the war zone consisted of two regiments of Missouri volunteers, a regiment of New York volunteers who had arrived in California by ship, several artillery and infantry battalions, the First Dragoon Regiment, which Kearny had organized and which served as the genesis of the U.S. cavalry, and the Mormon Battalion. After quickly taking control of much of the area that comprises modern-day New Mexico, Kearny was named as its military governor on Aug. 18. Within another month, he ensured that a civilian government was in place. When Kearny returned to Washington, he was greeted as a hero. Polk named him governor of Veracruz, and later of Mexico City. He also received a brevet promotion to major general in 1848. New Mexico officially became a state in 1912. On August 22, 1901, the Cadillac Motor Company was founded. Cadillac Motor Company began with the remnants of Henry Ford’s second, failed business, and became the premier luxury car company it is today. It is second only to Buick as the oldest active car marker in the U.S. Its founder, Henry Leland, convinced former Ford board of directors that he could create a viable company, using a motor he had developed for the Olds Motor Vehicle Company. The first Cadillac cars used a Ford designed body with Leland’s Cadillac engine. Cadillac, “The Standard of the World,” made several notable contributions to automotive manufacturing including: production of a fully enclosed car, in quantity, by 1906; the first to offer electric starting, ignition, and lighting in cars; development of some of the most powerful V-8, V-12, and V-16 engines in the industry; and design of an all-steel roof in 1935. The Cadillac Crest is derived from the coat of arms of Le Sieur Antoine de la Mothe Cadillac, who founded the City of Detroit in 1701. First used on Cadillac cars in 1905 and registered as a trademark the following year, the coat of arms symbolizes pioneering and leadership in the automotive industry. The coat of arms is divided into two parts, a coat and shield. The couronne, or Coronet, symbolizes the six ancient courts of France. The shield denotes the courageous origins of a noble family, being taken from the shape of shields used by the crusaders. It is composed of four quarters. The first and fourth quarterings display the arms of the Mothe family. The color scheme - black against gold - denotes wisdom and riches. The "fess," or lateral bar, also was an award for valiant conduct during the Crusades, and symbolized that the holder always would be ready to stand up for the public welfare. The second and third quarterings are believed to have been added to the Mothe coat of arms after a favorable marriage which increased the family's estates. The colors indicate "prowess and boldness in action" (red), "purity, charity, virtue and plenty" (silver) and knightly valor (blue). The repetition of the cross bar or "fess" indicates more knightly valor during the Crusades. And, on this date in 1986, “Stand By Me”, a film based on a novella by Stephen King and directed by Rob Reiner, was released. Based on King's 1982 novella The Body, and the title derives from the song by Ben E. King. Wil Wheaton, River Phoenix, Corey Feldman, and Jerry O'Connell star as four boys who, in 1959, go on a hike to find the dead body of a missing boy. On the way, Gordie Lachance (Wheaton), Vern Tessio (O'Connell), Chris Chambers (Phoenix) and Teddy Duchamp (Feldman) encounter a mean junk man and a marsh full of leeches, as they also learn more about one another and their very different home lives. Just a lark at first, the boys' adventure evolves into a defining event in their lives. Stand By Me is a wise, nostalgic movie with a weird streak that captures both Stephen King's voice and the trials of growing up. We had 20 players come out to peg this week, paying out 4 places and three teams. Another Grand Slam for the club -- Tom Goeschel takes First with a 19/9/+139 Second went to Megan Player with a 13/6/+42 Third was won by Glenn McMahon with a 13/6/+12 Al Robinson rounded out Fourth with a 12/6/+50 1st Team (combined 22/11/-13): Kristy Haught (11) and Andy Wagner (11) 2nd Team (combined 21/10/-18): Steve Podolski (11) and Bernard Whitfield (10) 3rd Team (combined 20/10/-101): Pete Amacher (10) and Ernie Hodgson (10) Tom's Grand Slam has catapulted him into first place in the summer session. The field is close, though; a nail-biter to be sure! Here are the current standings. Thanks, Joe, for pointing out the issue with the calculations for games and spread last week -- it's been fixed. As a reminder, dues will be due on September 5th. You can either pay them to me and I'll send in one big check for the club, or you can pay online via the big red button on cribbage.org. If you choose to pay online, please just let me know so I can check you off my list. Also, a new tournament has been added for the weekend of October 28-30. The tournament I hold in memory of my dad, with 100% payback, has been scheduled. The flyer is up on cribbage.org, but I will have paper copies soon. The dates for the 2023 Spring Fling have also been nailed down with the hotel; I just need to finalize the plans with the tournament commissioner. I'm trying to change it up this year, and add a one-day tournament on Friday. More to come on that later. I hope everyone has a great rest of your week; see ya'll Monday! ~ Jennifer We have almost wrapped up the summer session -- where has the time gone? I can't believe it's mid-August already. But at least the dog days of summer are behind us. The dog days are from July 3 to August 11 each year. They're usually the hottest and most unbearable days of the season. "Dog Days" refer to Sirius, the brightest star in the constellation Canis Major, which means “big dog” in Latin and is said to represent one of Orion’s hunting dogs. To the Greeks and Romans, the dog days occurred around the time Sirius appears to rise alongside the sun, in late July in the Northern Hemisphere. They believed the heat from the two stars combined is what made these days the hottest of the year, a period that could bring fever or even catastrophe. On this date in 1620, the Mayflower set sail from Southampton, England, with 102 Pilgrims on board. The Mayflower left with a smaller vessel–the Speedwell–but the latter proved unseaworthy and twice was forced to return to port. On September 16, the Mayflower left for America alone from Plymouth. In a difficult Atlantic crossing, the 90-foot Mayflower encountered rough seas and storms and was blown more than 500 miles off course. Along the way, the settlers formulated and signed the Mayflower Compact, an agreement that bound the signatories into a “civil body politic.” Because it established constitutional law and the rule of the majority, the compact is regarded as an important precursor to American democracy. After a 66-day voyage, the ship landed on November 21 on the tip of Cape Cod at what is now Provincetown, Massachusetts. After coming to anchor in Provincetown harbor, a party of armed men under the command of Captain Myles Standish was sent out to explore the area and find a location suitable for settlement. While they were gone, Susanna White gave birth to a son, Peregrine, aboard the Mayflower. He was the first English child born in New England. In mid-December, the explorers went ashore at a location across Cape Cod Bay where they found cleared fields and plentiful running water and named the site Plymouth. On this date in 1939 "The Wizard of Oz", the musical fantasy film adaptation of L. Frank Baum's book, premiered at Grauman's Chinese Theatre, Hollywood. The cast featured Judy Garland (Dorothy), Ray Bolger (Scarecrow), Jack Haley (Tin Man), Bert Lahr (Cowardly Lion), Frank Morgan (Wizard), Billie Burke (Glinda), and Margaret Hamilton (Wicked Witch); songs by Harold Arlen and Yip Harburg. This was not the “world premiere”, that happened a few days prior at the Strand Theater in Oconomowoc, Wisconsin on Aug. 12, 1939. Oconomowoc was one of three locations chosen as a soft launch for the film that MGM feared might be a bust. MGM went all out for the Hollywood premier, with huge searchlights and bleachers for the fans. They also installed the Scarecrow’s cornfield to the left of the box office, and a miniature Munchkin village to the right. The movie only played for one week at Grauman’s: August 16 to 22. Then again, this was 1939 – Hollywood’s peak year, when studios produced a movie a week. The movie was one of the first to take full advantage of Technicolor technology and is richly detailed. The score and musical numbers from the film have been engrained in pop culture since their debut on the screen. The MGM group didn’t turn a profit on the expensive film until it was re-released in 1949. The film is engrained in popular culture and continues to captivate audiences and influence filmmakers to this day. And, in 1969, the Woodstock Festival opened in Bethel, New York on Max Yasgur's Dairy Farm. Billed as “An Aquarian Experience: 3 Days of Peace and Music,” the epic event would later be known simply as Woodstock and become synonymous with the counterculture movement of the 1960s. Woodstock was a success, but the massive concert didn’t come off without a hitch: Last-minute venue changes, bad weather and the hordes of attendees caused major headaches. Still, despite—or because of—a lot of sex, drugs, rock ‘n’ roll and rain, Woodstock was a peaceful celebration and earned its hallowed place in pop culture history. The Woodstock Music Festival was the brainchild of four men, all age 27 or younger, looking for an investment opportunity: John Roberts, Joel Rosenman, Artie Kornfeld and Michael Lang. The four men formed Woodstock Ventures, Inc., and decided to host a music festival. by the time people started arriving a couple days ahead of the concert, the fencing, gates and ticket booths still weren’t ready. With no efficient way to charge concert-goers, Lang and his partners decided to make Woodstock a free event. Woodstock officially ended on Monday, August 18, after Hendrix left the stage. Leaving Woodstock wasn’t much easier than getting there. Roads and highways quickly became jammed again as festival-goers made their way home. Cleaning up the venue was a mammoth task and required several days, many bulldozers and tens of thousands of dollars. In 2006, Bethel Woods Center for the Arts opened on the hill where the Woodstock Music Festival took place. Today, it hosts outdoor concerts in its beautiful pavilion. There’s also a 1960s museum on site. We had 22 players come out to play, including a new member coming to us from club 318 in Pennsylvania, Rob Hessenauer. We paid out five places and three teams. Taking first this week was Peter Amacher, with a 14 / 7 / 31 John Morch took 2nd place, with a 13 / 6 / 63 Roger Doenges took 3rd place, with a 12 / 6 / 49 Joe Greiner took 4th place, with a 12 / 6 / -19 And Ernie Hodgson rounded out the place winners with a 12 / 5 / 21 First Team (21 points) was Andy Wagner (11) and Heather Chilsen (10) Second Team (19 / 9 / +37) was Jeff Seidenstein (10) and Jennifer Johnson (9) Third Team (19/9/-19) was Mike Due (10) and Jerry Gooden (9) Here are the standings as of Monday's tournament: That's it for me, folks; have a good week, and see ya'll next Monday!
~ Jennifer I'm on vacation, so a short post this week. First, thanks to Jeff Raynes for taking control this week; and for John, Kristy, and Brian for their help in making sure everything got taken care of. Also, I wanted to reiterate what Jeff Sidenstein announced this week -- for this season, September through December, I'm going to be collecting an extra $1 per person to put into the "treasury" for the club, to handle any expenses that may come up. There aren't many, but this way, we have a small buffer in case something does. I'm having a good time here on Long Island. We went out to Montauk on Tuesday for the day, and yesterday spent the day on the boat fishing. Or getting sunburned. My son caught 75 fish in just under two hours -- mostly porgies, but a few young sea bass, and one sea robin. No keepers. I got sunburned :) It's raining today, so we're cooking. We have meatballs in the oven for lunch. homemade sauce from Monday defrosting on the stove, and fresh rolls cooling on the counter. Just a few super brief historical highlights from this date in history... On this date in 1786, US Congress unanimously chose the dollar as the monetary unit for the United States of America. In 1963, Kingsmen released "Louie, Louie", and radio stations labeled it obscene. In 1969, Photographer Iain Macmillan snapped the most iconic photo of the Beatles. One of the most recognizable images of the 20th century, the photograph was taken in the middle of Abbey Road in London and showed all the members of the popular rock band, The Beatles crossing the road on a zebra crossing. The photograph was used as a cover for their 11th album, Abbey Road. Faced with the near-certain prospect of impeachment for his role in the Watergate scandal, U.S. President Richard M. Nixon announced his resignation on this day in 1974 and was succeeded by Gerald Ford the following day. We had 19 players come out to play on Monday, including one novice player. Play was a little slow, and the night didn't wrap until 11pm. Brian Wilson won the night with a GRAND SLAM! 18/9/+163 Way to go, Brian! Second place went to Jeff Raynes, who is stealthily making his way up the rankings, finishing with a 15/7/+85 Third place went to Jeff Sidenstein, with a 15/7/+83 Mike Due took fourth with 14/6/+11 Heather Chilsen rounded out the places with a 13/6/+65 First team (combined 17/8/-75) was Kristy Haught (9) and Bob Hewitt (8) Second team (combined 16/8/-20) was Jerry Gooden (10) and Glenn McMahon (6) Here are the summer results now that we're 3/4 of the way through: Have a good rest of the week, everyone; hope to see you on Monday!
~ Jennifer Welcome to August! I hope everyone who was able to come had a great time at the NOCT. It was great to see Cathy and Russ, and Dot (by last report, she is doing great), and all our friends from the Trail. It was especially great to see our newest club members Steve and Heather come out to some of the events, and SUPER great to see Steve go pretty far in the NOCT Main. Way to go, Steve!!! On this date in 1911, Harriet Quimby passed her pilot's test and became the first American woman to earn an Aero Club of America aviator's certificate. With license in hand, the "Dresden China Aviatrix" or "China Doll," as the press dubbed her because of her petite stature and fair skin, moved to capitalize on her new notoriety. Americans loved flying, and pilots could earn as much as $1,000 per performance, and prize money for a race could go as high as $10,000 or more. Quimby joined an exhibition team, and made her professional debut earning $1,500 in a night flight over Staten Island before a crowd of almost 20,000 spectators. As one of the country's few female pilots, she capitalized on her femininity by wearing trousers tucked into high lace boots accentuated by a plum-colored satin blouse, necklace, and antique bracelet. She drew crowds whenever she competed in cross-country meets and races. Hoping to earn a global reputation with its incumbent fame and fortune, Quimby decided to attempt a channel crossing from England to France in late 1911. The feat had been first accomplished by Louis Bleriot in 1909 and subsequently by other pilots, but never by a woman. On April 16, 1912, she began her flight from Dover to Calais in a Bleriot monoplane. Quimby successfully crossed the channel, landing at Hardelot, approximately 25 miles south of her original destination. On July 1, 1912, less than three months after her channel crossing, she made her tragic last flight. while performing at the Harvard-Boston aviation meet in her new 70-horsepower Bleriot monoplane in 1912, Quimby lost control of the aircraft. Both she and a passenger were thrown out of the plane, and, in front of horrified spectators, they plummeted to their death in the shallow waters of the Boston harbor. August 1, 1944 marks Anne Frank's last diary entry; three days later she was arrested. The Franks went into hiding on July 6, 1942, in the backroom office and warehouse of Otto Frank’s food-products business. With the aid of a few non-Jewish friends, among them Miep Gies, who smuggled in food and other supplies, the Frank family and four other Jews—Hermann and Auguste van Pels and their son, Peter, and Fritz Pfeffer—lived confined to the “secret annex.” During this time, Anne wrote faithfully in her diary, recounting day-to-day life in hiding, from ordinary annoyances to the fear of capture. She discussed typical adolescent issues as well as her hopes for the future, which included becoming a journalist or a writer. Anne’s last diary entry was written on August 1, 1944. Three days later the annex was discovered by the Gestapo, which was acting on a tip from Dutch informers. It was established by the Dutch government that both Anne and her sister Margot died in a typhus epidemic in March 1945, only weeks before the liberation of Bergen-Belsen, but scholars in 2015 revealed new research, including analysis of archival data and first-person accounts, indicating that the sisters might have perished in February 1945. Otto Frank was found hospitalized at Auschwitz when it was liberated by Soviet troops on January 27, 1945. Anne's diary from June 1942 to August 1944 is regarded as the most famous personal account of the Holocaust and was required reading when I was in high school, and has been turned into a play and film. A new English translation of the Diary, published in 1995, contains material that was edited out of the original version, which makes the revised translation nearly one-third longer than the first. The Frank family’s hiding place on the Prinsengracht, a canal in Amsterdam, became a museum that is consistently among the city’s most-visited tourist sites. On this date back in 1981, MTV premiered at 12:01 AM, with the broadcast of “Video Killed the Radio Star” by the Buggles. Following the format of Top 40 radio, video disc jockeys (or “veejays”) introduced videos and bantered about music news between clips. After an initial splash, the network struggled in its early years. Cable TV was a luxury that not everyone had, and there weren’t that many videos, so there was much repetition. MTV expanded its programming to include rhythm and blues artists, and the network took off. Singles such as “Billie Jean” and “Beat It” from Michael Jackson’s Thriller (1982) not only showcased the strengths of the music video format but proved that exposure on MTV could propel artists to superstardom. By the mid-1980s, MTV had produced a noticeable effect on motion pictures, commercials, and television. It also changed the music industry; looking good (or at least interesting) on MTV became as important as sounding good when it came to selling recordings. In 1985 entertainment conglomerate Viacom Inc. purchased MTV Networks, the parent corporation of MTV, from Warner Communications Inc., and the shift in content was both dramatic and immediate. Instead of free-form playlists of music that covered a veejay’s entire shift, videos were packaged into discrete blocks based on genre. This gave rise to specialty shows such as 120 Minutes (alternative rock), Headbangers Ball (heavy metal), and Yo! MTV Raps (hip-hop). Before long, game shows, reality shows, animated cartoons, and soap operas began to appear in the MTV lineup, and the network shifted its focus from music to youth-oriented pop culture. We had only 17 people come out to play this week, meaning we paid out 5 places and 2 teams. Place Winners: Andy Wagner won the top spot, with an almost grand-slam 16/8/77 Jerry "Slam Killer" Gooden took second, with 14/6/111 Pete Amacher took third with 12/6/74 Mike Due grabbed fourth, with 12/6/42 and Brian Wilson snagged the last spot, with a 12/6/4 The teams were: 1st: Combined 21 points (21/10/135) : Heather Chilsen (11) and Liz Henderson (10) 2nd: Combined 18 points (18/9/-68): Jeff Raynes (10) and Jennifer Johnson (8) Here is where we stand as of tonight’s event:: A reminder that the new season starts on Monday September 1st, with our first meeting on Labor Day, September 5th. I will be collecting dues through the rest of August and the start of September, and sending them in to Cathy (as our regional statistician) to process. Dues have risen to $8 starting this year. Also, I will not be at cards on Monday -- we're off for a week of fishing and beach-sitting up in Long Island, NY. Jeff and John will be in charge :) See ya'll in a couple weeks! ~ Jennifer |
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