What a wonderfully ridiculous playoff game.
On Sunday, the Arizona Cardinals defeated the Green Bay Packers in a flashy, high-scoring overtime battle, 51-45. It was the kind of football contest you love if you eat Skittles for breakfast, meditate to K.C. & the Sunshine Band and think “Transformers 2” is Oscar bait. And really, who isn’t that kind of person once in a while?
Month: January 2010
State Of The Union Could Coincide With 'Lost' Premiere
Read what The Onion’s American Voices think.
Hindsight
Five years ago today Apple introduced the iPod Shuffle and the Mac Mini. Apple stock closed that day at $64.56 and later split 2:1. As this is written Apple stock (AAPL) is at $210.20.
So, despite the crash, if you had bought $10,000 worth of Apple five years ago and held it, it would be worth $65,117 today.
I used to be quick at this kind of thing
How's the paid online subscription thing working out?
Factoids from Reflections of a Newsosaur:
“A puny 2.4% of print subscribers is the average number of people paying for online content at the handful of daily newspapers that have been bold enough to erect pay walls, according to a new survey.”
“But wait, it gets worse. Because only about a third of American households subscribe to newspapers, the survey suggests that the actual average penetration of pay sites is at best 0.7% of total households.”
Even though the Newport (RI) Daily News charges $420 annually for online access, its 1.7% penetration rate is identical to that of the Colorado Springs (CO) Gazette, which charges web subscribers only $1 a year.
Albuquerque Journal daily circulation is 101,810; Albuquerque Journal online subscriptions: 1,133. That’s 1.1%, among the lowest of the 26 newspaper pay sites surveyed.
Best line of the day, so far
“Elsewhere, NBC announced that with Jay Leno’s return to late night the network would find a new role for Conan O’Brien, ‘possibly as a murder victim on Law & Order.’ ”
Best line of the day
“Now all the letters in my brain are gray!”
Today’s Photo
Jill took this photo in Venice.
Best line of the day, so far
“What’s a great landing? One that you walk away from.”
Moritz Loew, passenger on the plane that landed on two wheels this morning at Newark
01/10/10
Today is the birthday
… of Willie McCovey. “Stretch,” a baseball hall-of-famer, is 72.
TOP LEFT-HANDED HOME RUN HITTER IN N.L.
HISTORY WITH 521. SECOND ONLY TO LOU GEHRIG
WITH 18 CAREER GRAND SLAMS. LED N.L. IN HOMERS
THREE TIMES AND RBI’S TWICE. N.L. ROOKIE OF
YEAR IN 1959, MVP IN 1969 AND COMEBACK PLAYER
OF THE YEAR IN ’77. TEAMED WITH WILLIE MAYS
FOR AWESOME 1-2 PUNCH IN GIANTS’ LINEUP.
… of Scott McKenzie. So “if you’re going to San Francisco” wish Scott a happy 71st birthday.
… of Rod Stewart. The Rock and Roll Hall of Fame inductee is 65.
Rod Stewart can be regarded as the rock generation’s heir to Sam Cooke. Like Cooke, Stewart delivers both romantic ballads and uptempo material with conviction and panache, and he sings in a warm, soulful rasp. A singer’s singer, Stewart seemed made to inhabit the spotlight.
… of William Sanderson. The character actor (E.B. Farnum in “Deadwood,” Larry on “Newhart,” Lippy in “Lonesome Dove”) is 62.
… of George Foreman. The boxing hall-of-famer and cook is 61. Foreman has five daughters and five sons and has named all of the sons George — George Jr., George III, George IV, George V, and George VI.
… of Patricia Mae Andrzejewski. Pat Benatar is 57. She won four consecutive Grammy awards in the 1980s for “Best Rock Vocal Performance, Female.”
… of Shawn Colvin. The singer is 54.
Shawn Colvin is one of the bright spots of the so-called “new folk movement” that began in the late ’80s. And though she grew out of the somewhat limited “woman with a guitar” school, she has managed to keep the form fresh with a diverse approach, avoiding the clichéd sentiments and all-too-often formulaic arrangements that have plagued the genre. In less than a decade of recording, Colvin has emerged as a songcraftsman with plenty of pop smarts, which has earned her a broad and loyal following.
Jim Croce was born on this date in 1943. Croce released just 11 singles, but “Bad, Bad Leroy Brown” and “Time in a Bottle” made it to number one, the first in July 1973, the second posthumously after Croce died in a plane crash at age 30 in September of that year.
In the music industry, arguably the worst tragedy that can befall an artist is to die in their prime, when he or she is just beginning to break through to the mainstream and reach people on a national level. One such artist was Jim Croce, a songwriter with a knack for both upbeat, catchy singles and empathetic, melancholy ballads. Though Croce only recorded a few studio albums before an untimely plane crash, he continues to be remembered posthumously. Croce appealed to fans as a common man, and it was not a gimmick — he was a father and husband who went through a series of blue-collar jobs. And whether he used dry wit, gentle emotions, or sorrow, Croce sang with a rare form of honesty and power. Few artists have ever been able to pull off such down-to-earth storytelling as convincingly as he was.
Had he not smoked, the historian and author Stephen Ambrose might have been 74 today; he died in 2002.
… born in Lovington, Illinois (1936), who wrote several best-selling books about American history, including Band of Brothers (1992) and Undaunted Courage: Meriwether Lewis, Thomas Jefferson, and the Opening of the American West (1996).
He was a longtime professor, and many of the stories he wrote in his popular history books were ones he’d told over and over to his college students, trying hard to entertain them. He said, “There is nothing like standing before 50 students at 8:00 a.m. to start talking about an event that occurred 100 years ago, because the look on their faces is a challenge — ‘Let’s see you keep me awake.’ You learn what works and what doesn’t in a hurry.”
Dumas Malone was born in Coldwater, Michigan, on this date in 1892. Professor Malone, who died in 1986, was a historian, biographer and editor. His foremost work, the six volume Jefferson and His Time, is the most authoritative biography of the William and Mary alumnus who became author of the Declaration of Independence, third President of the United States and founder of the University of Virginia. The last volume, Sage of Monticello was completed when Malone was 89 years-old. Dumas Malone was presented the Medal of Freedom by President Reagan in 1983.
Andromeda Galaxy
Andromeda Galaxy, or M31, is the farthest object visible to the unaided-eye — it is two-and-a-half million light years away. It consists of an estimated one trillion stars (or about twice as many as the Milky Way). Andromeda is visible even in most urban areas, though just as a smudge of light.
Click image for larger version and to learn more.
To find the Andromeda Galaxy on a clear, dark night, first find the constellation Cassiopeia. Cassiopeia is on the opposite side of the North Star from the Big Dipper. Cassiopeia is W shaped (the W could be upside down or sideways). Follow the V on the right of the Cassiopeia W as if it were an arrow. Go 15 degrees in the direction the arrow points (you can determine 15 degrees most easily by extending your arm full length and then stretching your index finger and your pinky; the distance between the fingers will then be about 15 degrees; this works no matter your size). Andromeda Galaxy is just to the right of this point.
And, although it doesn’t mention Andromeda Galaxy, Tonight’s Sky January 2010 is a terrific short narrated animation of this month’s sky.
Added thought. There are possibly 500 billion galaxies. The Milky Way, one of them, has 500 billion stars. Loosely interpreted that means 2,500,000,000,000,000,000,000 stars (500 billion times 500 billion). Surely the odds alone demonstrate that there must be intelligent life elsewhere in the universe. Why would our planet of all the possible planets be the single one? And even if a God created it all, why would there not be beings in God’s image, as some think we are, in a billion (a trillion) different places? I mean, why bother with all that otherwise?
January 9th
Today is the birthday
… of Judith Krantz, 82. She published her first novel at age 50.
… of Bart Starr. The hall-of-fame quarterback is 76.
… of Dick Enberg. The sportscaster is 75 (oh, my!).
… of Joan Baez. The singer is 69.
… of Jimmy Page. The Led Zeppelin rocker is 66.
Combining the visceral power and intensity of hard rock with the finesse and delicacy of British folk music, Led Zeppelin redefined rock in the Seventies and for all time. They were as influential in that decade as the Beatles were in the prior one. Their impact extends to classic and alternative rockers alike. Then and now, Led Zeppelin looms larger than life on the rock landscape as a band for the ages with an almost mystical power to evoke primal passions. The combination of Jimmy Page’s powerful, layered guitar work, Robert Plant’s keening, upper-timbre vocals, John Paul Jones’ melodic bass playing and keyboard work, and John Bonham’s thunderous drumming made for a band whose alchemy proved enchanting and irresistible. “The motto of the group is definitely, ‘Ever onward,’” Page said in 1977, perfectly summing up Led Zeppelin’s forward-thinking philosophy.
… of Brenda Gayle Webb. Loretta Lynn’s little sister Crystal Gayle is 59.
… of J.K. Simmons. He’s 55. He’s seen on The Closer and Law & Order as Dr. Skoda, and was terrific, I thought, as Juno’s dad. He’s very good in a small role in Up in the Air, too.
… of New York Times Pulitizer Prize winning book critic Michiko Kakutani. She is 55 today.
… of Dave Matthews. He’s 43.
… of Chad Ochocinco. He’s Tres-Dos.
Gilligan (and Maynard Krebs) was born on this date in 1935. Bob Denver died in 2005.
The stripper Gypsy Rose Lee was born Rose Louise Hovick on this date in 1914, or January 8, 1911, or February 9, 1911.
Toyota and Datsun (Nissan) made their first appearance in the U.S. at the Los Angeles Auto Show 51 years ago today.
iTunes was announced 9 years ago today; the iPhone three years ago today.
Bank Scoreboard
One bank was taken over by FDIC yesterday.
The 2009 final total of failed banks was 140.
It was 25 in 2008.
It was 3 in 2007.
It was none in 2006 and 2005.
It was 4 in 2004 and 3 in 2003.
Source: FDIC
Book Review II
Jill rightfully made fun of me when I short-changed a book review yesterday. [I did go back and, in a comment, add a little bit.]
So, to make amends, here’s a review I did four years ago. I find reading Momaday’s language again in these excerpts just as thrilling as the first time. (And Valle Grande is THAT magnificent — there is talk currently about making it into a national park.)
[I] spent much of the afternoon with M. Scott Momaday’s House Made of Dawn, a superb novel that won the Pulitzer Prize in 1969. . . .
In compelling language, Momaday tells the story of Abel, an American Indian veteran who returns home to his pueblo in 1945. In telling Abel’s story we learn also stories about Abel’s grandfather, the priest, women in Abel’s life, friends. All this takes place in Walatowa, a fictional pueblo whose geography resembles the actual Pueblo of Jemez, the surrounding mountains and canyons; and in Los Angeles among relocated Indians.
And, while the story is moving and meaningful, it is Momaday’s language that soars. Abel at Valle Grande in the Jemez Mountains (truly, in real life, one of the world’s great scenic wonders):
Of all the places that he knew, this valley alone could reflect the great spatial majesty of the sky. It scooped out of the dark peaks like the well of a great, gathering storm, deep umber and blue and smoke-colored. The view across the diameter was magnificent; it was an unbelievably great expanse. As many times as he had been there in the past, each new sight of it always brought him up short, and he had to catch his breath. Just there, it seemed, a strange and brilliant light lay upon the world, and all the objects in the landscape were washed clean and set away in the distance. In the morning sunlight the Valle Grande was dappled with the shadows of clouds and vibrant with rolling winter grass. The clouds were always there, huge, sharply described, and shining in the pure air. But the great feature of the valley was its size. It was almost too great for the eye to hold, strangely beautiful and full of distance. Such vastness makes for illusion, a kind of illusion that comprehends reality, and where it exists there is always wonder and exhilaration. He looked at the facets of a boulder that lay balanced on the edge of the land, and the first thing beyond, the vague misty field out of which it stood, was the floor of the valley itself, pale and blue-green, miles away. He shifted the focus of his gaze, and he could just make out the clusters of dots that were cattle grazing along the river in the faraway plain.
Or this, the Navajo Ben Benally remembering a snow-filled day:
And afterward, when you brought the sheep back, your grandfather had filled the barrel with snow and there was plenty of water again. But he took you to the trading post anyway, because you were little and had looked forward to it. There were people inside, a lot of them, because there was a big snow on the ground and they needed things and they wanted to stand around and smoke and talk about the weather. You were little and there was a lot to see, and all of it was new and beautiful: bright new buckets and tubs, saddles and ropes, hats and shirts and boots, a big glass case all filled with candy. Frazer was the trader’s name. He gave you a piece of hard red candy and laughed because you couldn’t make up your mind to take it at first, and you wanted it so much you didn’t know what to do. And he gave your grandfather some tobacco and brown paper. And when he had smoked, your grandfather talked to the trader for a long time and you didn’t know what they were saying and you just looked around at all the new and beautiful things. And after a while the trader put some things out on the counter, sacks of flour and sugar, a slab of salt pork, some canned goods, and a little bag full of the hard red candy. And your grandfather took off one of his rings and gave it to the trader. It was a small green stone, set carelessly in thin silver. It was new and it wasn’t worth very much, not all the trader gave for it anyway. And the trader opened one of the cans, a big can of whole tomatoes, and your grandfather sprinkled sugar on the tomatoes and the two of you ate them right there and drank bottles of sweet red soda pop. And it was getting late and you rode home in the sunset and the whole land was cold and white. And that night your grandfather hammered the strips of silver and told you stories in the firelight. And you were little and right there in the center of everything, the sacred mountains, the snow-covered mountains and the hills, the gullies and the flats, the sundown and the night, everything—where you were little, where you were and had to be.
Awesome book; simply awesome.
Wind Cave National Park (South Dakota)
… was established on this date 107 years ago. It is the 7th oldest national park.
One of the world’s longest and most complex caves and 28,295 acres of mixed-grass prairie, ponderosa pine forest, and associated wildlife are the main features of the park.
The cave is well known for its outstanding display of boxwork, an unusual cave formation composed of thin calcite fins resembling honeycombs.
The park’s mixed-grass prairie is one of the few remaining and is home to native wildlife such as bison, elk, pronghorn, mule deer, coyotes, and prairie dogs.
Source: Wind Cave National Park
Muir Woods National Monument (California)
… was proclaimed such by President Theodore Roosevelt on this date 102 years ago.
Until the 1800’s, many northern California coastal valleys were covered with coast redwood trees similar to those now found in Muir Woods National Monument. The forest along Redwood Creek in today’s Muir Woods was spared from logging because it was hard to get to. Noting that Redwood Creek contained one of the San Francisco Bay Area’s last uncut stands of old-growth redwood, Congressman William Kent and his wife, Elizabeth Thacher Kent, bought 295 acres here for $45,000 in 1905. To protect the redwoods the Kents donated the land to the United States Federal Government and, in 1908, President Theodore Roosevelt declared it a national monument. Roosevelt suggested naming the area after Kent, but Kent wanted it named for conservationist John Muir.
Source: Muir Woods National Monument
Richard Nixon
… was born in Yorba Linda, California, on this date in 1913.
I was contacted by the staff working with Richard Nixon on his memoirs, RN, many years ago. I was asked to see if I could determine — from among the Nixon papers in my custody — the time of day he was born. As I remember it, my research was inconclusive. Someone else’s must have been helpful. The memoirs begin:
I was born in a house my father built. My birth on the night of January 9, 1913, coincided with a record-breaking cold snap in our town of Yorba Linda, California.
If not for this research request, for other efforts I received a copy of the memoirs inscribed to me: “To Ken, With appreciation for his service to the nation.” I’ve always cherished that inscription.
Nixon, by the way, did not use his middle name or initial. Though you always see him referred to as Richard M. Nixon, he himself signed as Richard Nixon and he titled his memoir RN.
Best redux post of the day
Andrew Tobias gave us all a little perspective when he posted this four years ago:
I am listening to 1776 on my Nano, and it’s 2 degrees Fahrenheit (in Boston, in 1776) and people are dragging 120 tons of can[n]ons from Ft. Ticonderoga 300 miles to General George Washington in Dorchester, and the suffering of the troops — civilians like you and me, who’ve left their families to fight the British — is astounding. Sentries are literally freezing to death. And all I can think about is how upset we get if we’re assigned a middle seat.
Best redux line of the day
“The baby got a hold of a cup of red Gatorade and my bathroom looks like a crime scene.”
Jill
First posted two years ago today.
Drew Brees weighs in on NFL's Supreme Court case
Idle thought
Got the software and took an early look at my 2009 income taxes. The good news is I actually had enough medical expenses last year to get a deduction. The bad news is I actually had enough medical expenses last year to get a deduction.
Also, as I pay off my mortgage the interest deduction decreases some each year. Isn’t it nice how the property taxes go up in almost perfect coordination to keep the net deduction the same?
Easily should have been a C+
But both authors tell the story of Gregory Watson, a University of Texas undergraduate who wrote a paper on one of the amendments proposed at the time of the Bill of Rights but not adopted. It would have made Congressional pay raises effective only after the next election. Watson started a letter-writing campaign, noting that in this case there was no deadline for ratification. The upshot was the most recent amendment, the 27th, ratified in 1992.
Characteristically, it is Lipsky who includes the killer detail. Watson’s professor, unconvinced that the amendment was still pending, gave him a C.
From an Adam Liptak review of Annotated Versions of the Constitution from Seth Lipsky and Jack N. Rakove
Book review
The discussion from Tom and Jill that followed my posting about the Wright Brothers on December 17th led me to read James Tobin’s To Conquer the Air: The Wright Brothers and the Great Race for Flight
It’s good.
Writing this review reminds me again of the time in high school when I spent most of the day reading a book during various classes so I could give an oral book report on it in last period English — Walter Lord’s A Night to Remember. I can still see the smiling, smirking and disapproving faces of a whole classroom full of high school juniors who thought it was somehow hilarious (and/or a mortal sin) that I pulled this off.
“On-demand delivery” is all the rage now. I was just ahead of the times.
Jesse Garon Presley and Elvis Aron Presley
… were born in a house without electricity or plumbing in East Tupelo, Mississippi, on this date in 1935. Jesse, the older twin, was stillborn. The parents were Vernon Elvis Presley and Gladys Smith Presley.
The Battle of New Orleans
… was fought on this date in 1815.
News of the peace treaty between Britain and the United States that had been signed at Ghent on December 24, 1814, did not reach the United States in time to avert the battle. Major General Andrew Jackson’s army of six-to-seven thousand troops consisted chiefly of militiamen and volunteers from southern states who fought against 7,500 British regulars.
The British stormed the American position, fortified effectively with earthworks and cotton bales. The fighting lasted only half an hour, ending in a decisive U.S. victory and a British withdrawal. British casualties numbered more than 2,000 (289 killed); American, only 71 (31 killed). News of the victory reached Washington at the same time as that of the Treaty of Ghent and did much to raise the low morale in the capital.
The anniversary of the Battle was widely celebrated with parties and dances during the nineteenth century, especially in the South. More recently it was commemorated in the “Battle of New Orleans,” as sung by Johnny Horton and others.