The Daily Dose – Tuesday, July 24, 2018
All Aboard: We noted yesterday we were considering some changes to the Daily Report feature and today we offer the first: the renaming of the feature to The Daily Dose, a name long used for one of the bellwether features of the old Writer’s Shack. As we noted, we don’t really have the three-four hours required to write the old Daily Dose regularly anymore. We wish we did because we enjoyed writing it immensely, but times change. This feature remains under construction and we are not entirely certain what other changes will be coming, so standby.
Today’s Lineup:
The Diary of a Nobody: Sparrow has to play chef at Hotel B this morning when Blake fails to report for breakfast attendant duties, plus he notices during the morning’s garden watering that some of the plants are starting to fade. Also, he is obliged to deal with one of those rare guests that pop up from time to time who simply will not be satisfied.
The Thought for the Day: We have always found Michelangelo an interesting figure, and today’s quote comes from a really good biography of him by Miles Unger. Supremely talented and supremely driven, Michelangelo’s life offers lessons for everyone, even, especially those of us who probably will not be living down the ages.
On This Date:
In 1974 – The United States Supreme Court rules President Richard Nixon must surrender subpoenaed tapes recorded at the White House to the Watergate special prosecutor. Nixon would comply with the order on July 30, and the episode marked the beginning of the end of the Nixon Administration. Nixon resigned the presidency in early August.
In 1968 – Hoyt Wilhelm of the Chicago White Sox establishes a new major league record, pitching in his 907th game in the second game of a doubleheader against the Oakland A’s. Wilhelm would give up a run in one-third of an inning and was the losing pitcher in the 2-1 ballgame. Wilhelm broke the record established by Cy Young and would retire with 1,070 appearances. His record was broken in 1998 by Dennis Eckersley and his how held by Jesse Orosco with 1,252.
In 1982 – Survivor hits #1 for the only time on the Billboard Hot 100 when the theme from the movie Rocky III, Eye of the Tiger, hits #1 for the first of six weeks. Eye of the Tiger went to #1 in eight other countries, including Great Britain and Canada, and was Billboard’s second biggest song of 1982, behind Physical by Olivia Newton-John.
Many thanks for stopping by. Please consider a subscription and have a good day.
Gaylon
The Thought for the Day – Miles Unger, on Michelangelo
He was the prototype of the temperamental genius, beholden to no one and responsible only to the dictates of his own inspiration. – Miles Unger, Michelangelo: A Life in Six Masterpieces
Miles Unger is an American writer, specializing in, among other things, biographies of ancient Italians. This is the only book of his we’ve read so far, and we look forward to our paths crossing again because this book was richly researched, thoughtfully and entertainingly written and like all good biographers Unger made his subject appear to be sitting in the same room with you. Michelangelo (1475-1564), of course, is one of the great artists in human history, one of the few to reach the pinnacle in three different forms of human endeavor: sculpture, painting and architecture.
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Daily Report – Monday, July 23, 2018
Sparrow still can’t get his alarm clock situation squared away on today’s edition of The Diary of a Nobody. Recall Saturday there was a power outage and the alarm didn’t go off. Well, he couldn’t be bothered to get a battery for backup, so he kept his phone in his room but the alarm was hard to hear which wouldn’t have been a problem except for the fact he forgot to set the regular alarm clock.
Senior Chief Haugland, an instructor from the old Navy days, has The Thought for the Day. We’ve haven’t actually entered it in our quotebook, but no matter because we’ve never forgotten it. It concerns mistakes and habits.
We are in the initial stages of expanding this feature, though we are still hazy on the details. Regular readers will recall The Daily Dose column that we haven’t written in ages. Well, we don’t really have the three-fours every day required to write it right now, however, certain elements might find their way here. As they already have, because fans recognize the On This Date feature that was a staple of The Daily Dose.
On This Date:
In 1829 – The machine that would eventually become the typewriter, then known as the typographer, is patented by American inventor William Austin Burt. Burt had built his typographer to help out with the correspondence required in his job as a government surveyor. He was also the inventor of the solar compass and the equatorial sextant.
In 2009 – Mark Buehrle of the Chicago White Sox pitches the 18th perfect game in major league (ML) history as the White Sox defeat the Tampa Bay Rays 5-0. One of the great catches in ML history complimented Buehrle when DeWayne Wise made a spectacular catch against the left-center field wall to start the ninth inning. Wise lept, secured possession of the ball then lost control before catching the ball while falling to the ground. The play is commemorated on the wall at the White Sox stadium.
In 1983 – The Police are at #1 on the Billboard Hot 100 for the third week with Every Breath You Take. It would spend eight weeks at #1 and was Billboard’s #1 song for the year. It also went to #1 in Canada, Ireland, South Africa and Great Britain and remains their only #1 song in America.
Thank you for reading, please consider a subscription and have a great day.
Gaylon
The Thought for the Day – Senior Chief Haugland
Once is a mistake, twice is a habit. – Senior Chief Quartermaster (Submarines) Haugland, US Navy Quartermaster Submarine School, New London, CT, Summer, 1984
We’ve been keeping our quotebook since 1988 and while most of them have come from books there are a few we were at when they were said. This is one of them. I was one of a dozen or so new sailors attending submarine quartermaster (QM) school in Groton, CT and you should probably know in the Navy and Coast Guard quartermasters work in the navigation department, while in other branches they work in the supply department. Senior Chief Haugland, whose first name we forget, was one of our three instructors, along with Senior Chief Hall and a chief whose name we remember but will not try to spell. Haugland was trying to make the point that navigating submarines, while not particularly difficult, did require your complete attention and that bad habits led to mistakes which led to running aground and collisions, things we were to try and avoid.
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Daily Report – Sunday, July 22, 2018
Valued Readers,
We have a tripleheader for you today:
Sparrow oversleeps and misses his shift at the retailer today on The Diary of a Nobody. Also, they are down to one night auditor, one desk clerk and one assistant general manager at Hotel B.
Ngaio Marsh, and bonus points if you can pronounce her first name, has The Thought for the Day, from her novel Night at the Vulcan. Miss Marsh, wrote detective stories for many years, most with the same detective and some centered around the theater. Today’s Thought concerns how us humans are eminently adaptable.
And because it’s Sunday, we have The Sunday Bottom Ten for your review. At #1 this week is Treason and President Trump. Regular readers of this crap no we are not fans of the president, but friends let’s make sure we know what treason is before we go accusing people of it.
On This Date:
In 1992 – Colombian cocaine vendor Pablo Escobar. armed with advance notice of a plan to move him to another prison, escapes from his original prison. He spends the next 16 months on the run before being gunned down by Colombian authorities in 1993. Escobar had started his criminal career modestly, dealing contraband cigarettes and fake lottery tickets.
In 1923 – Walter Johnson of the Washington Senators strikes out Cleveland’s Stan Coveleski in the sixth inning to become the first major league pitcher to strike out 3,000 batters. Bob Gibson of the St Louis Cardinals would become the second in 1974 and to date, 16 players have accomplished the feat. Johnson retired with 3,508 strikeouts, now ninth on the all-time list.
In 1944 – I’ll Be Seeing You by Bing Crosby returns to the #1 position on Billboard’s Best Sellers in Stores chart, a forerunner of the Hot 100, for the third of four non-consecutive weeks. It had first hit #1 on July 1, replacing I’ll Get By by Harry James, which replaced it at #1 a week later. Songs replacing each other at #1 was not uncommon then, with Dinah Shore and the Mills Brothers alternating time at #1 for five weeks later in the year.
Many thanks for reading,
Gaylon
The Thought for the Day – Ngaio Marsh
So easily do our standards adjust themselves to our circumstances that whereas on her first night at the Vulcan the Greenroom had seemed a blessed haven, her hours of precarious security had bred a longing for a bed and ordered cleanliness, and she began to dread the night. – Ngaio Marsh, Night at the Vulcan
Dame Ngaoi (Nigh-oh) Marsh (1895-9182) was a New Zealandic writer specializing in detective stories. Like virtually of her works, Night at the Vulcan features Detective Roderick Alleyn of London’s Metropolitan Police and like some of her works the book centers around the theater. The main character is a young actress named Martyn Tarne, whose circumstances were such she was obliged to stay in the theater’s green room until a more suitable place could be found and A Night at the Vulcan was titled Opening Night everywhere but the US.
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