The Daily Dose/Monday, October 11, 2021
The Daily Dose/October 11, 2021
By Gaylon Kent
America’s Funniest Guy™
Leading Off
Notes from around the human experience.
Leading Off is running intermittently while we work on a project.
Today At The Site
Writing worth reading. Usually.
The Diary of a Nobody – At the hotel, Sparrow gets off a moderately funny line. Today’s Diary.
Right after that a guy my age comes up and starts prattling about what a wonderful dinner he had at one of the 500 breweries downtown…Despite his rave reviews – and still plainly a growing boy – he was scanning the sundry stand and ends up bringing pizza and Tums up to the counter.
“Sir, aren’t you sending mixed signals, here???…Pizza and a heartburn remedy???”
He laffed and said no, the pizza was for him and the Tums for his son.
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———
On This Date
The long march to today.
In 1987 – The AIDS quilt is first displayed, at a Washington, D.C. march for gay and lesbian rights. The quilt had its origins in 1985, when an activist at an AIDS march asked marchers to write the name of someone who had died of AIDS on a placard, which were later taped to the San Francisco federal building. Today the quilt, with nearly 50,000 panels and weighing 54 tons, is too big for one display, though portions are on display in San Francisco while some tour the country.
In 2020 – The Los Angeles Lakers tie the NBA record for most titles won, winning the NBA Finals with a 106-93 win over the Miami Heat in Game 6, played in Orlando. It was the 17th NBA title for the Lakers, equaling the mark established by the Boston Celtics, who had won their 17th NBA title in 2008. The Lakers, then in Minneapolis, won their first NBA title in 1949 and are 17-15 in the Finals, their 32 appearances also an NBA record.
In 1952 – Jo Stafford is at #1 on Billboard’s Best Sellers in Stores chart – a predecessor to the Hot 100 – for the fifth and final consecutive week with You Belong to Me. It was the fourth of five #1 songs on a Billboard pop chart for Stafford and her 26th of 41 Top 10 hits. The song also went to #1 in Great Britain, where it was the second #1 hit on the British chart and the first by a woman. Her 102nd and final appearance on a Billboard chart came in 1957, when Wind in the Willow peaked at #53 on the Top 100.
Some Philosophy Crap
The wisdom of the ages. Whatever.
…by taking so much for the state, you reduce everyone’s ability to create more wealth. Even the bandit in the forest never takes more than two-thirds of the merchant’s caravan…so that there will always be something for him to steal.
Gore Vidal
Creation
Answer To The Last Trivia Question
Knowledge is power.
The lowest toll charged to transit the Panama Canal came in in 1928 when 36 cents (a bit less than $6 in today’s money) was charged to Richard Halliburton to swim the canal.
Today’s Stumper
Match wits with Gaylon. It’s not that hard.
What was the first #1 song on the British charts? – Answer next time!
The Daily Dose/Sunday, October 10, 2021
The Daily Dose/October 10, 2021
By Gaylon Kent
America’s Funniest Guy™
The Sunday Bottom 5
A ranking of some things.
1. COVID – Those of you still doing your own research, what, are you in the lab every night investigating previous findings???…Sunday Bottom 5 pollsters still “pretty sure” you should get vaccinated but, hey, it’s your early, stupid death…Rock on, dudes.
2. Baseball Playoffs – A couple of things guys: 1) consider moving the high school regional-ish wild card games to Monday and 2) have the LDS’ over by Sunday…Wild card teams that want a day off should’ve won their division.
3. Donald Trump Supporters – The 3-hole staple…Hey guys, Donald Trump is a lying sexual predator who believes 1) the moon is part of Mars and 2) that the Revolution was won by the securing of British airports…Plus his only talent, interest, is in drawing attention to himself…A question for you: which one of these elements continues to earn your support???
4. Pandora Papers – Yeah, this is a shocker: the rich and powerful squirreling away money in offshore accounts…Friends, the real news would’ve been had they not been doing this in the first place…Whether it’s legal tax avoidance or criminal tax evasion, History’s great lesson is that the rich and powerful will protect themselves.
5. US Debt Ceiling – Sunday Bottom 5 pollsters “strongly suspect” they will never understand why we have a debt ceiling in the first place if we are merely going to raise it every time it’s approached.
Today At The Site
Writing worth reading. Usually.
Cheapskates rejoice: Read Free Sunday (RFS) continues. Today’s Diary entry is with Sparrow’s compliments.
The Diary of a Nobody – Sparrow gets a call from a drunk guest needing a ride back to the hotel. Today’s Diary.
We had a saying in the Nav: prior planning prevents piss poor performance…You can’t just go out and drink willy-nilly in a strange town: you must know how you are going to get back to your hotel…Is there bus service???…Ubers, Lyfts???…Taxis???…If you’re calling your hotel wondering what the deal is, you did not plan ahead.
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Click here to get in on the laughs.
4Ever & Ever ($8.99) and monthly ($2.99) plans available.
Click here for complimentary chapters of all of Gaylon’s books.
It’s easy reading on any device.
———
On This Date
The long march to today.
In 1913 – The Atlantic and Pacific oceans are connected for the first time when the Culebra Cut in Panama is flooded when a dike is destroyed by a signal sent from the White House by President Woodrow Wilson. In January, a floating crane would become the first self-propelled vessel to transit the canal and the Panama Canal officially opened to commercial traffic on August 14, 1914. Despite the oceans it connects, the Panama Canal is actually on a northwest/southeast course.
In 1957 – Lew Burdette of the Milwaukee Braves ties the World Series record for most wins in a series as the Braves clinch the championship with a 5-0 victory over the New York Yankees in Game 7. Burdette won three games, tying a mark done nine times previously. Burdette also won games two and five and the feat has been accomplished three times since, most recently by Randy Johnson of the Arizona Diamondbacks in 2001.
In 1981 – Endless Love by Diana Ross and Lionel Richie is at #1 on the Billboard Hot 100 for the ninth and final consecutive week. It was the fifth and final #1 song for Ross and the first of five #1s for Richie. The song also peaked at #1 on Billboard’s soul chart, peaked at #7 in Great Britain, was Billboard’s second biggest song of the year, it’s 3rd-biggest of the decade and ranked 18th on Billboard’s 60th Anniversary Hot 100 in 2018. In 1994 a version of the song by Luther Vandross and Mariah Carey peaked at #2 on the Hot 100 and at #7 on Billboard’s soul chart.
Some Philosophy Crap
The wisdom of the ages. Whatever.
In ’Profiles in Courage’ he had been the one delivering the verdict, praising eight senators for possessing „…the breadth of a man above party or section…and, above all, a deep seated belief in themselves…
Thurston Clarke
JFK’s Last Hundred Days
Answer To The Last Trivia Question
Knowledge is power.
Che Guevara was born in Rosaria, Argentina.
Today’s Stumper
Match wits with Gaylon. It’s not that hard.
What is the lowest toll ever charged to transit the Panama Canal? – Answer next time!
The Diary of a Nobody/October 9
Yes indeedy, it is Read Free Sunday at The Diary. Enjoy today’s entry with Sparrow’s compliments.
It’s Sparrow, an average man passing an average life…
Saturday, October 9
Amy had left and yours truly had just started in on his nite’s labors when the phone rings…It’s a guest who’s wrapped up his evening’s revels downtown and found himself without a way back to the hotel…It seems the few Ubers and Lyfts were enjoying the nite off and could I come down and pick him and his homies up???
The Daily Dose/Saturday, October 9, 2021
The Daily Dose/October 9, 2021
By Gaylon Kent
America’s Funniest Guy™
Leading Off
Notes from around the human experience.
Leading Off is enjoying some time off while we work on a project.
Today At The Site
Writing worth reading. Usually.
The Diary of a Nobody – The hot springs at the gym are open again. Today’s Diary.
I’m in the locker room changing shoes for my walk and this guy I see regularly comes in and lays out his trunks and a towel, acting for all the world as if the pool is open…He gets into his trunks and grabs his towel and yours truly notes he was told the pools were closed…He says, yeah, they just decided to open them and heads out.
Well, that certainly puts a spring in your step, because ol’ Sparrow could really use a soak…Instead of slogging thru the walk and then killing time until it was time to report to the veterans service office (VSO) at 0800, yours truly stepped out smartly and had a good pace the whole way and all but did a cannonball into his fave hot spring.
———
Click here to get in on the laughs.
4Ever & Ever ($8.99) and monthly ($2.99) plans available.
Click here for complimentary chapters of all of Gaylon’s books.
It’s easy reading on any device.
———
On This Date
The long march to today.
In 1967 – Revolutionary Ernesto “Che” Guevara is executed by Bolivian forces in southern Bolivia. Guevara had been captured by Bolivian special forces the day before and his execution had been ordered by the government, despite US insistence he be kept alive for questioning. Eyewitness accounts state Guevara maintained his dignity and only asked for something to smoke. His executioner wasn’t the best of shots, shooting Guevara five times in the legs, and once each in an arm, a shoulder and his chest and throat.
In 1977 – The New York Yankees, three outs from elimination, get three runs in the top of the ninth inning and defeat the Kansas City Royals 5-3 in Game 5 of the American League Championship Series. The Yankees’ runs would come off of Dennis Leonard and Larry Gura and Sparky Lyle pitched the final inning and a third for the win. It was the second of three consecutive years the Yankees would defeat the Royals in the ALCS and they beat the Los Angeles Dodgers in six games in the World Series.
In 1971 – Freddie Hart is at #1 on Billboard’s country chart – then known as the Hot Country Singles chart – for the third and final non-consecutive week with Easy Loving. It was the first #1 song and the first Top 10 hit for Hart in a chart career that began in 1959 and he would go on to have six #1 songs and 14 Top 10 hits. The song also went #1 country in Canada, peaked at #17 on the Hot 100 and was Billboard’s biggest country song of the year.
Some Philosophy Crap
The wisdom of the ages. Whatever.
The tragedy of life is not that man loses, but that he almost wins.
Heywood Braun
Answer To The Last Trivia Question
Knowledge is power.
The other player besides Don Larsen to pitch a postseason no-hitter was Roy Halladay of the Philadelphia Phillies who no-hit the Cincinnati Reds in Game 1 of a 2010 National League Division Series on October 6, 2010.
Today’s Stumper
Match wits with Gaylon. It’s not that hard.
Where was Che Guevara born? – Answer next time!
The Daily Dose/Friday, October 8, 2021
The Daily Dose/October 8, 2021
By Gaylon Kent
America’s Funniest Guy™
Leading Off
Notes from around the human experience.
Leading Off will return,
Today At The Site
Writing worth reading. Usually.
The Diary of a Nobody – Sparrow buys some new slippers. Today’s Diary.
Of course, an appropriate pair meeting ol’ Sparrow’s specifications could’ve been ordered online but a new pair was, petulantly, wanted right now and an OK pair was found across the street at the retailer…They’re not real leather lined with shearling wool from virgin lambs fed with whole grains fertilized with the crap of Tibetan lamas, but they’re pretty comfy and if they don’t last six years like the other ones, that’s OK, they cost a quarter of the good ones, maybe a fifth.
———
Click here to get in on the laughs.
4Ever & Ever ($8.99) and monthly ($2.99) plans available.
Click here for complimentary chapters of all of Gaylon’s books.
It’s easy reading on any device.
———
On This Date
The long march to today.
In 1410 – The Prague Astronomical Clock is completed on the south face of the Old Town Hall in central Prague. The clock was built by local clockmaker Mikulas of Kadan, with town elders so pleased Mikulas was granted a house, a cash grant and an annual salary. The clock has been stopped many times over the years for maintenance and renovation and its last external element, a rooster, was added in the 1880s. It was the seventh astronomical clock in Europe and remains the world’s oldest operational clock.
In 1956 – Don Larsen of the New York Yankees become the first player to throw a perfect game in the World Series in a 2-0 win over the Brooklyn Dodgers in Game 5. Larsen struck out seven and his performance followed a Game 2 start where he lasted an inning and two-thirds. The win gave the Yankees a three games to two lead in a series they would win in seven games. Larsen’s feat remains unmatched.
In 1983 – Bonnie Tyler is at #1 on the Billboard Hot 100 for the second of four consecutive weeks with Total Eclipse of the Heart. It was the second and final Top 40 hit for Tyler and remains her only #1 song. The song also went to #1 in seven other countries including Norway and Great Britain and was Billboard’s 6th-biggest song of the year. The song was written and produced by Jim Steinman and the male vocals were sung by Rory Dodd.
Some Philosophy Crap
The wisdom of the ages. Whatever.
…the virtuoso performance is the tip of a lifetime of struggle, and the gem of meaning is set in the metal of long perseverance.
Deng Ming-Dao
365 Tao
Answer To The Last Trivia Question
Knowledge is power.
Ed Walsh of the Chicago White Sox went 40-15 in 1908, the only major league pitcher besides Jack Chesbro to win at least 40 games in a season since 1901. The feat was rather common in the 19th-century.
Today’s Stumper
Match wits with Gaylon. It’s not that hard.
Who threw the only other no-hitter in a major league postseason game? – Answer next time!
The Daily Dose/Thursday, October 7, 2021
The Daily Dose/October 7, 2021
By Gaylon Kent
America’s Funniest Guy™
Leading Off
Notes from around the human experience.
Leading Off will return,
Today At The Site
Writing worth reading. Usually.
The Diary of a Nobody – Sparrow has to make a change to his Thanksgiving vacation plans. Today’s Diary.
A lady with an English accent answers, her tone filled with glee at the prospect of helping me, one hell of a customer service technique…She asks for my name and trip number and in short order she has my itinerary in front of her…She’s obviously reviewing it and then notes everything appeared to be in order “this end” and what, pray tell, did I need help with???…With typical English aplomb, she was making everything sound like a Francis Bacon quote.
Well, with typical Sparrow grace I informed her yours truly was in possession of an email from Frontier advising the flight from the big city to Louisville had been canceled and what options did I have???…The lady tapped some keys and then apologized profusely and said that Priceline had yet to be notified of the cancelation…I could cancel the entire trip and rebook, but, oh pish, dreaded fees would be involved and how about I call Frontier directly and see what could be done, perhaps a frightful mess could be avoided.
———
Click here to get in on the laughs.
4Ever & Ever ($8.99) and monthly ($2.99) plans available.
Click here for complimentary chapters of all of Gaylon’s books.
It’s easy reading on any device.
———
On This Date
The long march to today.
In 1959 – The Soviet spacecraft Luna 3 becomes the first spacecraft to return pictures of the far side of the moon, taking 29 pictures in about 40 minutes. The film was developed on board and converted to an electric signal and sent to Earth by a process similar to a fax. The camera was fixed on the spacecraft, meaning Luna 2 had to be maneuvered to get the camera into the desired position. Luna 3 had been launched two days earlier and had a closest point of approach to the moon of 3,900 miles.
In 1904 – Jack Chesbro of the New York Highlanders becomes the first pitcher in modern major league history to finish a season with at least 40 wins in a 3-2 win over the Boston Americans. Chesbro pitched a complete for his 41st victory of the season and had broken Cy Young’s modern major league record of 33 wins in 1901 on Sept 14. The all-time major league record for wins in a season is 60, by Hoss Radburn of the Providence Grays (National League) in 1884.
In 1978 – Boston is at #1 on the Billboard 200 album chart for the second and final non-consecutive week with Don’t Look Back. It was the first of two #1 albums for the group and the song yielded three chart singles, including the title track which peaked at #4 on the Hot 100, and Don’t Look Back was Billboard’s second-biggest album of the year. The album marked the beginning of a long legal fight between Boston and Epic Records resulting in an 8-year gap until their next album, a fight ultimately won by the group.
Some Philosophy Crap
The wisdom of the ages. Whatever.
…how coolly, in disregard of all one’s feeling, does the hard, cold, uninteresting course of daily realities move on…the cold mechanical habit of living remaining, after all vital interest in it has fled.
Harriet Beecher Stowe
Uncle Tom’s Cabin
Answer To The Last Trivia Question
Knowledge is power.
Hey Jude by the Beatles last appeared on the British singles chart in 2010, peaking at #40. Its last appearance on a Billboard chart was in 2019 when it peaked at #16 on the Hot Rock and Alternative Tracks chart.
Today’s Stumper
Match wits with Gaylon. It’s not that hard.
Who is the only other major league pitcher to win at least 40 games in a season since 1900? – Answer next time!