September 11th

Two immortal football coaches share this birthday. Paul “Bear” Bryant was born on this date in 1913. Tom Landry was born on this date in 1924.

Musician Leo Kottke is 62.

Sportscaster Lesley Visser is 54. Visser was the first woman to receive the Pro Football Hall of Fame’s Pete Rozelle Radio-Television Award.

Oscar nominee for best supporting actress for her performance in Sideways, Virginia Madsen is 46.

Harry Connick Jr. is 40. He grew up in New Orleans where his father was D.A.

William Sydney Porter was born on this date in 1852. We know him as O. Henry. According to The Writer’s Almanac , “He wrote his most famous story, “The Gift of the Magi,” in three hours, in the middle of the night, with his editor sleeping on his couch.” NewMexiKen had posted that story in its entirety. Another particular favorite is The Ransom of Red Chief.

Idle thoughts

I love America and I love New Mexico and I love the New Mexico State Fair. Could there be anything more American than the fair with it’s crazy food, and horses barrel racing, and street entertainers, and bands, and high school students reciting their own poems, and FFA displays? And blue ribbons everywhere — pottery, Indian bead work, photographs, Lego projects, paintings, cookies, scrapbook pages, woodworking, quilts.

At the Fair a number of schools and school districts from around the state had displays of student art work. Some was what you’d expect and some was great. And I don’t know if there is some secret art colony in Clayton, New Mexico, or an art teacher of extraordinary talent, but WOW! can those kids do art in Clayton, population 2,132.

NewMexiKen took my car in for servicing early this morning. On the floor in the Lexus showroom were four cars, three of them black. Henry Ford would be so proud. (Ford once said, “Any customer can have a car painted any color that he wants so long as it is black.” Black paint dried faster.)

“Today” was on the TV in the customer lounge at Lexus and I saw an interview with Jodie Foster, who has a new film. Watching Foster I decided John Hinckley Jr. wasn’t completely crazy.

The crowd of 41,000 for the New Mexico State vs. New Mexico football game last Saturday night doesn’t sound very impressive until you realize that was nearly as many people as live in Farmington, the sixth largest city in the whole state.

Parenting 101

In a comment, Cat’s Mom, Tanya says:

New MexiKen- I would like to propose a topic for you to opine upon. I have struggled for the last 5 plus years to determine what makes a good parent and what traits, actions and habits are common among good parents. My definition of a good parent at this point is one who raises happy, healthy, well-adjusted, well-informed people who go on to contribute to society in a positive manner, preferably after completing undergraduate and graduate degrees. Knowing your particular track record in this record, which I consider outstanding, I am looking for insight from you and your Internet brethren (or sisters) on this topic. With all of the noise and distractions that the world has to offer, how do you raise children who are safe, sane, happy and ready to face what is out there?

Wow. There are probably more strongly held opinions on this than there are about religion. Indeed, while I entitled this post “Parenting 101,” I think Tanya is asking for a syllabus for the advanced course.

NewMexiKen isn’t certain that I have anything worthwhile to say — but, of course, that never stops me. I will need to give it some thought first, however.

How about contributions from the readers — even if you are not a parent, you were once a child.

How do you raise children who are safe, sane, happy and ready to face what is out there?

Apple Sells One Millionth iPhone

“One million iPhones in 74 days—it took almost two years to achieve this milestone with iPod,” said Steve Jobs, Apple’s CEO. “We can’t wait to get this revolutionary product into the hands of even more customers this holiday season.”

Apple

I’ll bet they can’t. Think what Apple could have done if they were partnered with a better cell network (AT&T is usually rated the worst of the big 5 national carriers, though Sprint sometimes claims that distinction).

NewMexiKen would like to get an iPhone, AT&T notwithstanding. My Verizon contract runs until January 8, 2008, but VzW does pro-rate the cancellation fee. Guess how much they pro-rate it?

A whopping $5 a month.

[And the reason the contract was renewed last January was because I upped my monthly minutes.]

English, the official language of presidential debates, too

In the debate, held at the University of Miami, the candidates’ responses were simultaneously translated into Spanish for the broadcast.
…

Richardson, one of two candidate[s] who speak fluent Spanish, objected to the debate rules that required all candidates to answer in English. The rule was designed to make sure that no candidate had an advantage in appealing to the Spanish-speaking audience.

AP via Guardian Unlimited.

The debate was organized by Univision, the Spanish language network. Aren’t debates intended for candidates to show their advantages? It’s an election, not a quiz show, right?

September 10th is the birthday

… of Arnold Palmer. Arnie is 78 today.

… of Jose Feliciano. He’s 62. Feliciano was one of the first to stylize The Star Spangled Banner, giving it a Latin touch at Tiger Stadium during the 1968 World Series.

… of Basketball Hall of Fame inductee Bob Lanier. He’s 59.

… of Amy Irving. She’s 54. Ms. Irving was nominated for a best supporting actress Oscar for her performance in Yentl.

… of writer-director Chris Columbus. He’s 49.

… of future Baseball Hall of Fame inductee Randy Johnson. He’s 44.

And it’s the birthday of Roger Maris, born on this date in 1934. The following is from The Official Roger Maris Web Site:

Roger and teammate Mickey Mantle entertained baseball fans throughout the summer of ’61 as the two New York Yankee sluggers chased the record many called the most cherished in all of sports. Mickey dropped out of the home run race early due to an illness, but finished with a career high 54 home runs. Roger tied Ruth on September 26, hitting his 60th home run. He then hit his 61st home run on the final day of the season, October 1, 1961, against the Boston Red Sox to set a new record. The Yankees won the game, 1 to 0, and later went on to win the World Series.

Roger was voted the Most Valuable Player in the American league for the second straight year, as he led the league in home runs and RBI’s. He was also named the 1961 Associated Press’ Male Athlete of the Year.

During his career, Roger Maris played in seven World Series and seven All-Star games. He hit 275 career home runs and won the Gold Glove Award for outstanding defensive play. The New York Yankees retired his number “9” in 1984.

It was on September 10, 1813, that Oliver Hazard Perry sent the message, “We have met the enemy, and they are ours.” The enemy was a British fleet. Perry’s fleet had defeated it in the Battle of Lake Erie.

September 9, 1850

California was admitted to the Union as the 31st state, and New Mexico Territory (which included present-day Arizona) and Utah Territory (which included present-day western Colorado and Nevada) were organized, by acts signed by President Millard Fillmore on September 9, 1850. That day, President Fillmore also signed an act paying Texas $10 million to relinquish its claims to the Rio Grande as its western border all the way into Colorado.

California was admitted as a free state — that is, no slavery — upsetting the balance between free and slave states that had held for nearly 30 years. The territorial organic acts for New Mexico and Utah stated: “That, when admitted as a State, the said territory, or any portion of the same, shall be received into the Union, with or without slavery, as their constitution may prescribe at the time of their admission.” This too was an undoing of the Missouri Compromise of 1820-1821, which had prohibited slavery in territories north of 36º 30′ (the southern boundary of Missouri). The question was now open in territories both north (Utah) and south (New Mexico) of that line.

Slavery in the territories became the prime issue of the 1850s, the election of 1860, and the coming of the Civil War.

September 9th

Cliff Robertson is 82. Robertson won the best acting Oscar in 1969 for Charly. Most recently he has played Peter Parker’s Uncle Ben.

Joe Theismann is 58. Allegedly his name was pronounced Thees-man until he went to Notre Dame and they realized that Thighs-man rhymed with Heisman (as in the Trophy). No, really. (Theismann was runner-up to Jim Plunkett of Stanford for the Heisman in 1970.) NewMexiKen was at RFK that Monday night in 1985 when Lawrence Taylor broke Theismann’s leg.

Once-upon-a-time child star Angela Cartwright is 58.

Hugh Grant is 47. Is it just me, or do he and Phil Mickelson have the same goofy look?

Adam Sandler turns 41 today.

Best supporting actress nominee Michelle Williams is 27.

Otis Redding was born on this date in 1941.

Though his career was relatively brief, cut short by a tragic plane crash, Otis Redding was a singer of such commanding stature that to this day he embodies the essence of soul music in its purist form. His name is synonymous with the term soul, music that arose out of the black experience in America through the transmutation of gospel and rhythm & blues into a form of funky, secular testifying. Redding left behind a legacy of recordings made during the four-year period from his first sessions for Stax/Volt Records in 1963 until his death in 1967. Ironically, although he consistently impacted the R&B charts beginning with the Top Ten appearance of “Mr. Pitiful” in 1965, none of his singles fared better than #21 on the pop Top Forty until the posthumous release of “(Sittin’ On) The Dock of the Bay.” That landmark song, recorded just four days before Redding’s death, went to #1 and stayed there for four weeks in early 1968.

— Rock and Roll Hall of Fame

Redding wrote the song known as Aretha Franklin’s signature hit, “Respect.”

Try a Little Tenderness

To Infinity — And Beyond

NewMexiKen has written about the Voyager spacecraft and the Golden Record here, here and here. But I failed in the past few weeks to note the 30th anniversary of their launches in 1977. Voyager 2 was launched on August 20, 1977 and Voyager 1 on September 5, 1977.

Both spacecraft — now in interstellar space, outside the area where our Sun dominates the environment — continue to send back data. Voyager 1 is further from Earth than any other manmade object and leaving us behind at 38,000 miles per hour.

NASA and the Jet Propulsion Laboratory have a site devoted to Voyager.

And there is a site with the recordings on the Voyager Golden Record: Sounds and Music of Earth.

Thanks to John for the last link and the reminder.

Lipstick In School

According to a news report, a certain school in Garden City, MI was recently faced with a unique problem. A number of 12-year-old girls were beginning to use lipstick and would put it on in the washroom.That was fine, but after they put on their lipstick they would press their lips to the mirror leaving dozens of little lip prints.

Every night, the maintenance man would remove them and the next day the girls would put them back. Finally the principal decided that something had to be done. He called all the girls to the washroom and met them there with the maintenance man. He explained that all these lip prints were causing a major problem for the custodian who had to clean the mirrors every night. To demonstrate how difficult it had been to clean the mirrors, he asked the maintenance man to show the girls how much effort was required. He took out a long-handled squeegee, dipped it in the toilet, and cleaned the mirror with it. Since then, there have been no lip prints on the mirror.

Neal Boortz

Worst Hurricane in U.S. History

It was on this day [September 8th] in 1900 that the worst hurricane in American history hit Galveston, Texas. At the time Galveston was a beautiful resort town on the eastern end of a barrier island, just off the Texas coast. But the highest point of the island was only 8.7 feet above sea level, and when the storm approached all the bridges off the island were flooded and people were trapped on high ground. The storm hit that evening and by the end of it, more than a third of the entire city was gone. There was barely any trace of the houses or even the streets that had been there before. In total, more than 3,600 houses were completely destroyed. About 37,000 people were on the island when the storm hit. More than 12,000 were still missing weeks later. The official death toll was about 8,000, but most historians think that number is much too low.

The Writer’s Almanac from American Public Media

Two Music Immortals

… were born on September 8th.

Jimmie Rodgers, considered the “Father of Country Music,” was born in Meridian, Mississippi, on September 8, 1897. He died from TB in 1933. Jimmie Rodgers was the first person inducted into the Country Music Hall of Fame and among the first inductees into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame.

James Charles Rodgers, known professionally as the Singing Brakeman and America’s Blue Yodeler, was the first performer inducted into the Country Music Hall of Fame. He was honored as the Father of Country Music, “the man who started it all.” From many diverse elements—the traditional melodies and folk music of his southern upbringing, early jazz, stage show yodeling, the work chants of railroad section crews and, most importantly, African-American blues—Rodgers evolved a lasting musical style which made him immensely popular in his own time and a major influence on generations of country artists.

Blue Yodel No. 9

Patsy Cline, the most popular female country singer in recording history, was born in Winchester, Virginia, on September 8, 1932. She died in a plane crash in 1963. Patsy Cline is an inductee of the Country Music Hall of Fame.

Cline is invariably invoked as a standard for female vocalists, and she has inspired scores of singers including k. d. lang, Loretta Lynn, Linda Ronstadt, Trisha Yearwood, and Wynonna Judd. Her brief career produced the #1 jukebox hit of all time, “Crazy” (written by Willie Nelson) and her unique, crying style and vocal impeccability have established her reputation as the quintessential torch singer.

Crazy

Now here’s a hall monitor with some street cred

NewMexiKen has been reading Angie Debo’s excellent 1976 biography of Geronimo. I recommend it. Here’s a couple of trivial items I thought were interesting.

When Geronimo’s and Naiche’s (son of Cochise) bands were consolidated at Mount Vernon Barracks, Alabama, in 1887 and 1888, the post doctor was Walter Reed. Yes, THE Walter Reed.

A school was eventually set up at the Alabama camp, where the Apaches were prisoners of war — men, women and children. Geronimo reportedly monitored the children’s attendance and deportment, walking up and down the aisles with a stick.

I’m thinking many of our schools today could use Geronimo patrolling their classrooms.

The Apaches were relocated to Fort Sill, Oklahoma, in 1894.

Update: Finishing the biography, amused to learn when that Geronimo traveled he would sell photos and autographs and even the buttons off his coat. He’d sell the buttons to people gathered to see him come by at the train station, then before the next station he’d sew on a new set of buttons.

Geronimo also rode in Teddy Roosevelt’s inaugural parade in March 1905. The Apache would have been about 75, nearly 76. It was said he could still vault onto his pony. This NewMexiKen post has a photo of Geronimo taken at the St. Louis Fair in 1904. He died in 1909, about age 80.

Surviving an airplane emergency

From a longer column by Salon’s Ask the pilot:

Conventional wisdom holds that airplane crashes are nonsurvivable. I can’t tell you how many times I’ve heard cynical fliers remark on the futility of fastening their seat belts. “After all,” the logic goes, “if there’s an accident, we’re all going to die anyway, right?”

In truth, most accidents have survivors, and relatively few are all-out catastrophes. Thus, a little pre-planning could save your life.

Part of that pre-planning is knowing exactly where the doors are — all of them, as smoke, fire or debris could render one or more exits unusable. You must also understand that should an evacuation be necessary, you will not be taking your carry-on luggage with you. Doing so could put yourself and others in considerable danger.

And this IMPORTANT point (emphasis mine):

This is the reason, by the way, for the litany of prohibitions during taxi, takeoff and landing: Tray tables need to be up, window shades open, laptops and iPods put away. It’s not about electronic interference, it’s about the need for a speedy egress and situational awareness should anything happen.

NewMexiKen is reminded of a flight a few years ago where I had the seat next to the window facing the bulkhead. A much inebriated fellow (we were two hours late leaving) boarded at the last minute and plopped himself into the middle seat. He neglected to buckle.

As we pulled away from the gate, I decided what the hell, and reminded him to buckle. He sneered and said something to the effect of why bother. I said, “Because when we’re rolling down the runway at 160 mph and the plane has an emergency stop, you’re going to keep going and hit that bulkhead at 160 mph, then bounce back and injure that nice lady next to you.”

He buckled.

Truckling to the Bible-bangers

Charles Pierce thinks maybe Senator Clinton is “truckling to the Bible-bangers, publicly haranguing us with [her] ‘faith journeys.'”

The “values voters” have been marinating in their own faith-based fear, faith-based bigotry, and solipsistic Personal Lords And Saviors for so long that it’s going to take a decade of deprogramming before they get within shouting distance of normal. They will vote the other way, if they ever vote the other way, because their personal economics get so dire, or because enough of their children get thrown away in a petulant president’s ongoing tantrum of a war, that no amount of eschatological dumbshow can distract them any longer. In other words, they will take political action as political actors. Period. All the prayerful filigree will fall away, and blessed human self-interest will once again rule the day. Until that great gettin’-up mornin’, the primary religious political power in this country comes from the Right, and that’s not going to change any time soon. Jesus Christ, Hillary. (You should pardon the expression.) These people are nuttier than a Christmas fruitcake. Why not just take a couple of million from the Scientologists and be done with it?

Pierce adds, “[I]f Senator Clinton is completely sincere in her attachment to this particular big ship of fools, I wouldn’t vote for her if she were running against a ticket of George Steinbrenner and Ann Coulter. However, if she’s just using this as a cynical political ploy, she’s my gal.”

Here’s his link for background from Mother Jones: Hillary’s Prayer: Hillary Clinton’s Religion and Politics.

The Puppet Master

From a fascinating column on Apple’s Steve Jobs by Robert X. Cringley (worth reading in its full version) but here’s an excerpt on the iPhone pricing:

This week’s iPhone pricing story, in which Apple punished its most loyal users by dropping the price of an 8-gig iPhone from $599 to $399 less than three months after the product’s introduction, is classic Steve Jobs. It wasn’t an accident. It wasn’t a thoughtless mistake. It was a calculated and tightly scripted exercise in marketing and ego gratification. In the mind of Steve Jobs the entire incident had no downside, none at all, which is yet another reason why he is not like you or me.

Let’s deconstruct the incident. Apple announced a variety of new and kinda-new iPods dominated by the iPod Touch (iPhone minus the phone) and an iPod Nano with video (great for watching miniseries). At the very end of the presentation, Jobs announced the iPhone price cut. Why did he wait until the very end? Because he knew the news would be disruptive and might have obscured his presentation of the new products. He KNEW there was going to be controversy. So much for the “Steve is simply out of touch with the world” theory.

So why did he do it? Why did he cut the price? I have no inside information here, but it seems pretty obvious to me: Apple introduced the iPhone at $599 to milk the early adopters and somewhat limit demand then dropped the price to $399 (the REAL price) to stimulate demand now that the product is a critical success and relatively bug-free. At least 500,000 iPhones went out at the old price, which means Apple made $100 million in extra profit.

Had nobody complained, Apple would have left it at that. But Jobs expected complaints and had an answer waiting — the $100 Apple store credit. This was no knee-jerk reaction, either. It was already there just waiting if needed. Apple keeps an undeserved $50 million and customers get $50 million back. Or do they? Some customers will never use their store credit. Those who do use it will nearly all buy something that costs more than $100. And, most importantly, those who bought their iPhones at an AT&T store will have to make what might be their first of many visits to an Apple Store. That is alone worth the $50 per customer this escapade will eventually cost Apple, taking into account unused credits and Apple Store wholesale costs.

So Apple still comes out $75 million ahead, which is important to Steve Jobs.

September 7th

Elizabeth was born on September 7th in 1533. The queen Virginia is named after.

Anna Mary Robertson was born on September 7th in 1860. Grandma Moses lived until 1961, and only started painting at age 76.

David Packard was born on September 7th in 1912. The “P” in HP.

Senator Daniel Inouye was born on September 7th in 1924. He’s 83 today.

Tenor saxophonist Theodore Rollins — Sonny Rollins — was born on September 7th in 1930. He is 77 today.

Buddy Holly was born on September 7th in 1936. Just 22 when the music died.

Gloria Gaynor was born on September 7th in 1949. Still surviving at 58.

Go on now go walk out the door
just turn around now
’cause you’re not welcome anymore
weren’t you the one who tried to hurt me with goodbye
Did you think I’d crumble
Did you think I’d lay down and die
Oh no, not I
I will survive
Oh as long as i know how to love
I know I will stay alive
I’ve got all my life to live
I’ve got all my love to give
and I’ll survive
I will survive (hey-hey)

Julie Kavner was born on September 7th in 1951. NewMexiKen liked her best in Awakenings, but we all know her as the voice of Marge Simpson. She’s 56 today.

W. Earl Brown was born on September 7th in 1963. He’s Dan Dority of Deadwood and 44 today.