Some countries require your passport be valid for another six months before you enter. Check with your travel agent or see this list of countries with specific information.
http://travel.state.gov/travel/cis_pa_tw/cis/cis_1765.html

It started with a notice in the local newspaper last fall. The minor league baseball team in Lansing, Mich., wanted to sell the naming rights to its stadium, then called Oldsmobile Park. General Motors Corp., which hadn't built any Oldsmobiles since 2004, was ending its sponsorship. Thomas M. Cooley Law School President Don LeDuc was intrigued. If corporations can gain visibility with stadium naming rights, he thought, why not a law school? Three months later, LeDuc and the Lansing Lugnuts announced that they had struck a deal. Oldsmobile Park is now Cooley Law School Stadium. LeDuc believes it's the first time a law school has secured naming rights to an unaffiliated sports facility. The school will pay nearly $1.5 million to the team during the 11-year naming contract. http://www.law.com/jsp/nlj/PubArticleNLJ.jsp?id=1202444420825&src=EMC-Email&et=editorial&bu=National%20Law%20Journal&pt=NLJ.com-%20Daily%20Headlines&cn=20100224NLJ&kw=Law%20school%20buys%20naming%20rights%20to%20minor%20league%20ball%20park&slreturn=1&hbxlogin=1

de jure (di JOOR-ee, day JOOR-ay, day YOO-ray, day JYOO-ray)
adverb: By right; by law.
adjective: Rightful.
From Latin de jure (from the law). Ultimately from the Indo-European root yewes- (law) that is also the source of jury, judge, just, injury, perjury, and conjure. The complement of de jure is de facto meaning "in practice".
ad hominem (ad HO-mi-nuhm, HOM-uh-nuhm))
adverb, adjective:
Appealing to one's prejudices, emotions, or other personal considerations rather than to intellect or reason.
Attacking an opponent personally instead of answering the argument.
From Latin, literally "to the person". A.Word.A.Day with Anu Garg

Both the longest[1] and the largest island in the contiguous United States, Long Island extends 118 miles (190 km) from New York Harbor, and has a maximum width of 23 miles (37 km) between the northern (Long Island Sound) coast and the southern Atlantic coast.[2] With a land area of 1,401 square miles (3,629 km2), Long Island is the 11th largest island in the United States, the 148th largest island in the world, larger than any U.S. territory except Puerto Rico,[2] and just smaller than the state of Rhode Island (1545 sq mi). Long Island had a population of 7,448,618 as of the 2000 census,[2] making it the most populated island in any U.S. state or territory. I t is also the 17th most populous island in the world, ahead of Ireland, Jamaica and the Japanese island of Hokkaidō. Its population density is 5,470 inhabitants per square mile (2,110 /km2). If it were a state, Long Island would rank 12th in population. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Long_Island

Puerto Rico (pronounced /ˌpwɛərtə ˈriːkoʊ/ or /ˌpɔrtə ˈriːkoʊ/), officially the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico (Spanish: "Estado Libre Asociado de Puerto Rico" — literally Associated Free State of Puerto Rico), is a self-governing unincorporated territory of the United States located in the northeastern Caribbean Sea, east of the Dominican Republic and west of the Virgin Islands. Puerto Rico (Spanish for "rich port") is composed of an archipelago that includes the main island of Puerto Rico and a number of smaller islands, the largest of which are Vieques, Culebra, and Mona. The main island of Puerto Rico is the smallest by land area and second smallest by population among the four Greater Antilles, which also include Cuba, Hispaniola, and Jamaica.
Puerto Ricans often call the island Borinquen, from Borikén, its indigenous Taíno name.[4][5] The terms boricua and borincano derive from Borikén and Borinquen respectively, and are commonly used to identify someone of Puerto Rican heritage. The island is also popularly known as "La Isla del Encanto", which translated means "The Island of Enchantment." Puerto Rico consists of the main island of Puerto Rico and various smaller islands, including Vieques, Culebra, Mona, Desecheo, and Caja de Muertos. Of these last five, only Culebra and Vieques are inhabited year-round. Mona is uninhabited most of the year except for employees of the Puerto Rico Department of Natural Resources. There are also many other even smaller islands including Monito and "La Isleta de San Juan" which includes Old San Juan and Puerta de Tierra. The Commonwealth of Puerto Rico has an area of 13,790 square kilometers (5,320 sq mi), of which 8,870 km2 (3,420 sq mi) is land and 4,921 km2 (1,900 sq mi) is water.[102] The maximum length of the main island from east to west is 180 km (110 mi), and the maximum width from north to south is 65 km (40 mi).[103] Puerto Rico is the smallest of the Greater Antilles. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Puerto_Rico

Quote For money you can have everything it is said. No, that is not true. You can buy food, but not appetite; medicine, but not health; soft beds, but not sleep; knowledge but not intelligence; glitter, but not comfort; fun, but not pleasure; acquaintances, but not friendship; servants, but not faithfulness; grey hair, but not honor; quiet days, but not peace. The shell of all things you can get for money. But not the kernel. That cannot be had for money.
Arne Garborg, born Aadne Eivindsson Garborg (1851-1924) Norwegian writer

Scientists classify yogurt as a protein thickener. Proteins coagulate as they heat up, which thickens sauces. In the case of yogurt, its proteins are already coagulated by their culturing process, so when heated close to a boil, the yogurt curdles, separating its proteins and liquids. For smooth sauce, add yogurt at the end of cooking. In dishes where simmering it into the sauce is essential for character, accept yogurt's quirks and don't worry. The Splendid Table February 24, 2010

Comic strip humor Every 24 hours, the world turns over on someone who was sitting on top of it. Crankshaft February 24, 2010

Maroon (color) - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia (362 words)


Maroon is the national color of the Republic of Latvia, and is featured in its National flag.

Maroon is the main color in the flag of Qatar.


Maroon is the official color of the state of Queensland, Australia.

Maroon Bells - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia (457 words)


Maroon Peak, at 14,156 feet, is the 27th highest peak in Colorado; North Maroon Peak, at 14,014 feet, is the 50th highest.

The view of the Maroon Bells from the Maroon Creek valley to the northeast is one of the most famous scenes in Colorado, and is reputed to be the "most-photographed spot in Colorado".

Maroon Lake is at an altitude of 9,580 feet of 2880 meters.
Maroon is a color related to dark red. Maroon is a type of red, mixed with brown not purple or pink[citation needed]. Although conceptually a color mixture, it can be regarded as a dark (and possibly also desaturated) shade of red. Derived from French marron ("chestnut"), it didn't become a color-word in English until ca. 1791. http://www.statemaster.com/encyclopedia/Maroon-(color)

Blake J Robbins v Lower Merion School District is a class action suit brought by Blake J. Robbins and other students of Harriton High School[1] in the Lower Merion School District, Pennsylvania, United States, for allegedly infringing upon the privacy of the students via remotely activated webcams in school laptops while the laptops were being used at home.[2][3] The case was brought after Robbins was allegedly disciplined at school, with a photograph taken by the webcam as evidence. The matter has since also begun to be investigated by the FBI, and is being cited as an example of how modern technology impacts personal privacy (whether or not the school itself broke any rules or laws).[4] The school used LANrev for tracking.[5] http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Blake_J._Robbins_v._Lower_Merion_School_District

Lights. Camera. Traction. That's what President Obama will be seeking February 25 at a televised summit with Republicans and Democrats on his stalled effort to revamp America's health care system. The session, however, carries much broader implications. Whether or not Obama ultimately gets a health care bill through Congress, the effort could have practical and political consequences for years to come. http://www.usatoday.com/news/washington/2010-02-23-health-care-summit-Obama_N.htm
http://www.nytimes.com/2010/02/24/health/policy/24health.html
http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424052748703503804575083901649362256.html?mod=WSJ_latestheadlines

In the hope of ending its reputation for Fortress America-style embassies, the State Department yesterday selected a Philadelphia architecture firm known for its thoughtful and environmentally rigorous work to design a new, more welcoming U.S. Embassy in London. The firm, KieranTimberlake, beat out three better-known finalists in a lengthy competition whose jury included top design-world figures, the State Department announced. This is only the fourth time the foreign service has held such a competition to select an embassy architect. This one was organized with the intention of making a statement about America's democratic and environmental aspirations, even while it struggles to accommodate the intense security demands of a post-9/11 world.
Read story and see picture at: http://www.philly.com/inquirer/magazine/20100224_Phila__firm_will_design_U_S__Embassy_in_London.html


What's the difference between a bill and a law? Learn through lyrics:
I'm just a bill
Yes, I'm only a bill
And if they vote for me on Capitol Hill
Well, then I'm off to the White House
Where I'll wait in a line
With a lot of other bills
For the president to sign
And if he signs me, then I'll be a law.
How I hope and pray that he will,
But today I am still just a bill.
See the rest of the words and links to YouTube for this and other rock songs at:
http://www.schoolhouserock.tv/Bill.html Thanks, Julie

The 50 State Capitals Song Tune: Turkey in the Straw
Baton Rouge, Louisiana; Indianapolis, Indiana;
And Columbus is the capital of Ohio
There's Montgomery, Alabama south of Helena, Montana
Then there's Denver, Colorado under Boise, Idaho.

Texas has Austin, then we go north to
Massachusetts, Boston; and Albany, New York
Tallahassee, Florida; and Washington, D.C.
Santa Fe, New Mexico; and Nashville, Tennessee
(Elvis used to hang out there a lot, ya know)

Trenton's in New Jersey north of Jefferson, Missouri
You got Richmond in Virginia, South Dakota has Pierre
Harrisburg's in Pennsylvania and Augusta's up in Maine
And here is Providence, Rhode Island next to Dover, Delaware.

Concord, New Hampshire, just a quick jaunt to
Montpelier which is up in Vermont
Hartford's in Connecticut, so pretty in the fall
And Kansas has Topeka, Minnesota has St. Paul

Juneau's in Alaska and there's Lincoln in Nebraska
And it's Raleigh out in North Carolina
And then there's Madison, Wisconsin and Olympia in Washington
Phoenix, Arizona and Lansing, Michigan

Here's Honolulu, Hawaii's a joy
Jackson, Mississippi and Springfield, Illinois
South Carolina with Columbia down the way
And Annapolis in Maryland on the Chesapeake Bay
(They have wonderful clam chowder.)

Cheyenne is in Wyoming and perhaps you make your home in
Salt Lake City out in Utah where the buffalo roam
Atlanta's down in Georgia and there's Bismarck, North Dakota
And you can live in Frankfort in your old Kentucky home.

Salem in Oregon, from there we join
Little Rock in Arkansas, Iowa's got Des Moines
Sacramento, California; Oklahoma and its city
Charleston, West Virginia and Nevada, Carson City.

That's all the capitals there are!
http://www.mrsjonesroom.com/songs/50capitals.html
Hear the song or visit about a dozen linked sites with information on state capitals.

The safety and aesthetics of commercial electronic variable message signing were reviewed by the Federal Highway Administration in 1980 . Read about types of electronic billboards, state regulations, distractions and safety at: http://www.fhwa.dot.gov/REALESTATE/elecbbrd/chap2.htm

Blog Carnival from Northern Colorado Writers (NCW)
Eat Like the Doc Does
I’ve enjoyed Michael Pollan’s books, especially The Omnivore’s Dilemna and In Defense of Food. Both of those won James Beard Awards, often termed “the Oscars of Food.” Now Pollan, who is the Knight Professor of Journalism at UC Berkeley, has published a slender volume of sixty-four “Food Rules” designed to help us get off the “Western Diet.” He defines that as lots of processed foods and meat, lots of added fat and sugar, lots of refined grains, lots of everything except vegetables, fruits, and whole grains and associates it with high rates of chronic diseases. http://peterdspringbergmdfacp.com/blog/
Hearth Cricket Mysteries, writing, recipes and musings on traditional domestic arts http://www.hearthcricket.com/
Emerald City commentary, rantings, inspiration, blatherings, quips, witticisms, jargon, pleasantries, wisecracks, wordplay, whatnot and all that jazz.
http://www.emeraldcity48.blogspot.com/
Words by Bob use, misuse and humor of words
http://wordsbybob.wordpress.com/

Quote Do not condemn the judgment of another because it differs from your own. You may both be wrong. -Dandamis, Indian philosopher (4c BCE)

The National Law Journal has published its annual ranking of schools based on which sent the highest percentage of graduates to first-year jobs at the country's largest firms. Forget faculty-student ratios, student satisfaction, a school's reputation or any other measure of greatness. What counts most these days is a school's ability to deliver the bacon.
Here are the Top 10 in the NLJ ranking followed by the percentage of grads who landed first-year positions at the nation's largest firms.
1. Northwestern University School of Law - 55.9 percent
2. Columbia Law School - 54.4 percent
3. Stanford Law School - 54.1 percent
4. University of Chicago Law School - 53.1 percent
5. University of Virginia School of Law - 52.8 percent
6. University of Michigan Law School - 51 percent
7. University of Pennsylvania Law School - 50.8 percent
8. New York University School of Law - 50.1
9. UC Berkeley School of Law - 50 percent
10. Duke Law School - 49.8 percent
WSJ Law Blog February 22, 2010

GPO and Cornell University Law School Open Government Initiative Project
News release: The U.S. Government Printing Office (GPO) and Cornell University Law School are beginning a year-long pilot project to evaluate a conversion process of The Code of Federal Regulations(CFR) in XML (extensible markup language) format. The CFR is the codification of the general and permanent rules published in the Federal Register by the executive departments and agencies of the federal government. The Cornell Legal Information Institute will convert various titles into XML and place them on the university’s Web site for students to research. GPO and Cornell will apply lessons learned from this pilot project and share the information with members of the Federal Depository Library Program (FDLP) to find ways of providing the public openness to government documents...GPO recently announced the conversion of the CFR into XML and placed online at GPO’s Federal Digital System and the Government’s site for Government data. Initially the CFR’s from 2007 to present are available and those dating back to 2000 will be added over the next few months.

Google Book Search Legal Saga Continues in NY District Court
Follow up to postings on Google Book Search resources and related litigation, the latest news from The Laboratorium - GBS: Fairness Hearing Report [held February 18, 2010, U.s. District Court, Southern District of New York], with Part I here and Part II here. These report cover the arguments of settlement supporters and opponents; and the arguments made by the Department of Justice and the parties, along with a few brief comments of Law Professor James Grimmelmann.

EPA Great Lakes Restoration Initiative
News release: "U.S. Environmental Protection Agency Administrator Lisa P. Jackson has released an action plan to guide the Obama Administration’s historic efforts to restore the Great Lakes . The action plan, which the administrator unveiled at a Sunday meeting with governors from the Great Lakes states, lays out the most urgent threats facing the Great Lakes and sets out goals, objectives and key actions over the next five years to help restore the lakes."
• FY2010 – FY2014 Great Lakes Restoration Initiative Action Plan

Q. What is the longest river in Europe?
A. The Volga [Russia] is the largest river in Europe in terms of length, discharge, and watershed. Longest river in EU is Danube [Germany-Black Sea] River Volga empties into the Caspian sea. Its basin forms about one third of European Russia. It rises in the Valday Hills with an altitude of 742 ft (226m), flows eastwards. Oka, Sura, Vetluga, Kama, and Samara are its major tributaries. http://wiki.answers.com/Q/What_is_the_longest_river_in_Europe
John Charles Olmsted (1852-1920), the nephew and adopted son of Frederick Law Olmsted, was an American landscape architect. With his brother, Frederick Law Olmsted, Jr., he founded Olmsted Brothers, a landscape design firm in Brookline, Massachusetts. The firm is famous for designing many public places, including Central Park. John Olmsted's body of work from over 40 years as a landscape architect has left its mark on the American urban landscape. John Olmsted continued the park planning begun by his father. He carried his design philosophy of integrated park systems into new cities such as Portland, Maine; Portland, Oregon; Seattle, Spokane, Dayton, and Charleston. In these cities, he pioneered his comprehensive planning philosophy of integrating civic buildings, roads, parks, and greenspaces into livable urban areas. Olmsted also designed individual parks in New Orleans, Watertown, New York; and Chicago. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/John_Charles_Olmsted
Recipes from Saveur, Special Issue "Los Angeles"
http://www.saveur.com/in_this_issue.jsp?issueId=201002
includes Korean Fried Chicken, Cobb Salad, Beet and Goat Cheese Napoleons, Kale and Avocado Salad, Winter Salad with Buttermilk Dressing
Find out about jackfruit in A Taste of Asia and Pizzeria Mozza where you book a table a month in advance in Mighty Fine Pie at:
http://www.saveur.com/in_this_issue.jsp?page=1&order=2&subcat=&issueId=201002

Read about Leon Salad and Marinated Octopus Salad at:
http://www.saveur.com/in_this_issue.jsp?page=1&order=3&subcat=&issueId=201002

Exotic tropical fruits
breadfruit = panapen = pana de pepita This is the plant that the H.M.S. Bounty was carrying in the South Pacific when its crew mutinied.
durian = stinky fruit The weird and smelly durian has attracted a cult-like following. It's called the King of Fruits by aficionados in Southeast Asia. The boiled seeds of the durian are called betons.
jackfruit = jakfruit = jak = nankga This is the largest tree-borne fruit in the world--it weighs up to 100 pounds. It's hard to find fresh in the United States, but Asian markets sometimes stock canned jackfruit. The yellowish pulp tastes a bit like banana. The seeds can be boiled and eaten.
Read about many more exotic fruits at: http://www.foodsubs.com/Fruittroex.html

Filibuster n.
The use of obstructionist tactics, especially prolonged speechmaking, for the purpose of delaying legislative action.
An instance of the use of this delaying tactic.
An adventurer who engages in a private military action in a foreign country.
v., -tered, -ter•ing, -ters.
v.intr.
To use obstructionist tactics in a legislative body.
To take part in a private military action in a foreign country.
v.tr.
To use a filibuster against (a legislative measure, for example).
http://www.answers.com/topic/filibuster

Using the filibuster to delay or block legislative action has a long history. The term filibuster -- from a Dutch word meaning "pirate" -- became popular in the 1850s, when it was applied to efforts to hold the Senate floor in order to prevent a vote on a bill. In the early years of Congress, representatives as well as senators could filibuster. As the House of Representatives grew in numbers, however, revisions to the House rules limited debate n the smaller Senate, unlimited debate continued on the grounds that any senator should have the right to speak as long as necessary on any issue. In 1841, when the Democratic minority hoped to block a bank bill promoted by Kentucky Senator Henry Clay, he threatened to change Senate rules to allow the majority to close debate. Missouri Senator Thomas Hart Benton rebuked Clay for trying to stifle the Senate's right to unlimited debate. Three quarters of a century later, in 1917, senators adopted a rule (Rule 22), at the urging of President Woodrow Wilson, that allowed the Senate to end a debate with a two-thirds majority vote, a device known as "cloture."
http://www.senate.gov/artandhistory/history/common/briefing/Filibuster_Cloture.htm

One of the first known practitioners of the filibuster was the Roman senator
Cato the Younger.
In debates over legislation he especially opposed, Cato would often obstruct the measure by speaking continuously until nightfall. As the Roman Senate had a rule requiring all business to conclude by dusk, Cato's purposefully long-winded speeches were an effective device to forestall a vote. Cato attempted to use the filibuster at least twice to frustrate the political objectives of Julius Caesar. http://www.absoluteastronomy.com/topics/Filibuster

The hula is a rich tradition of Hawaii and has gone through many stages in its history. Its origins are shrouded in legend and according to one of them, the hula originated when the goddess of fire, Pele, commanded her younger sister, Laka to dance. Another legend says that Hi'iaka danced to appease her sister, Pele. A lot of the present day dances are based on this Hi'iaka epic and schools were begun to honor Laka as well as temples that were dedicated to her. Until the early twentieth century, ritual and prayer surrounded all aspects of hula. http://www.alohamagazine.com/en/hula.htm

Savannah noun
1 : a port in eastern Georgia near the mouth of the Savannah river
2: a river in South Carolina that flows southeast to the Atlantic [syn: Savannah River]
3 : a flat grassland in tropical or subtropical regions [syn: savanna]
Source: WordNet (r) 2.0 http://www.dictionary.net/savannah

Nestled in the Austrian Alps, Salzburg is a beautiful, scenic city with a unique attraction hidden within those mountains. Salzburg, translated salt mountain, got its name from its ancient salt mines. http://www.ehow.com/how_2039337_visit-salt-mine-salzburg.html

affranchise (uh-FRAN-chyz) verb tr.
To make or set free.
From Old French franchise, from franche, feminine of franc (free), from Latin francus (free). Franchise and enfranchise are synonyms of this word.
Star Chamber (star CHAYM-buhr) noun
A court or group marked by arbitrary, oppressive, and secretive procedures.
After the Star Chamber in the Palace of Westminster in London. It was the site of a closed-door court appointed by King Henry VII of England in the 15th century. Notorious for its abuse of power -- rulings made in secret, no appeal -- it was abolished by the Long Parliament in 1641. The chamber was so named because its ceiling was decorated with stars.
Grub Street (grub street) noun
The world of impoverished journalists and literary hacks.
After Grub Street in London where such writers lived. In 17th century London, Grub Street near Moorfields was the place to find impoverished writers. Even though this street was renamed Milton Street in 1830, the world of hack writers is still known as Grub Street. A.Word.A.Day with Anu Garg

Typo found by muse reader in Sherlock Holmes color plates:
It should say Copper Beeches, not Cooper Beeches. The title refers to copper beech trees.

Q: How many Americans are killed by lightning?
A: Lightning killed an average of 58 people each year from 1979 to 2008.
Documented injuries average about 300 per year, although undocumented injuries are likely to be much higher. -- National Weather Service.
If you're even a little curious, then just ask by e-mail to justask@thecourier.com, by fax to 419-427-8480, or by mail to Just Ask, The Courier, P.O. Box 609, Findlay, OH 45839.

A muse reader has found a document with an article from the magazine section of the Toledo Blade dated July 15, 1984. The article is about Fuller & Henry and Shumaker, Loop & Kendrick law firms. There are pictures of six attorneys many readers will recognize. Let me know if you want a copy of it. Thanks, Ed. Thanks, Darla for alerting me.

SUMMARY “THE CREDIT CARD ACCOUNTABILITY RESPONSIBILITY AND DISCLOSURE ACT”
Prevents Unfair Increases in Interest Rates and Changes in Terms
Prohibits arbitrary interest rate increases and universal default on existing balances;
Requires a credit card issuer who increases a cardholder’s interest rate to periodically review and decrease the rate if indicated by the review;
Prohibits credit card issuers from increasing rates on a cardholder in the first year after a credit card account is opened;
Requires promotional rates to last at least 6 months. See the complete summary at: http://banking.senate.gov/public/_files/051909_CreditCardSummaryFinalPassage.pdf The bill was signed on May 22, 2009 and goes into effect February 22, 2010.

Deloitte’s 2010 Industry Outlook – U.S. State Government: "State governments will face a number of significant and continuing challenges in 2010. From budget deficits to runaway Medicaid costs to infrastructure challenges, the new year is shaping up to be perhaps one of the most difficult in recent history. But there is some light at the end of the tunnel. 2010 is a significant election year, with 36 states and two territories holding elections – the greatest number in decades. This gubernatorial turnover will invariably bring new agendas representing change, and change creates opportunities. Deloitte’s 2010 Industry Outlook for State Government looks ahead at the coming year and the most significant changes and opportunities state governments are likely to face."

PBS FRONTLINE Investigation: Flying Cheap
Flying Cheap - Introduction: "Last February, Continental Flight 3407 crashed outside of Buffalo, N.Y., killing 49 people onboard and one on the ground. Although 3407 was painted in the colors of Continental Connection, it was actually operated by Colgan Air, a regional airline that flies routes under contract for US Airways, United and Continental. The crash and subsequent investigation revealed a little-known trend in the airline industry: Major airlines have outsourced more and more of their flights to obscure regional carriers. Today, with regional airlines accounting for more than half of all scheduled domestic flights in the United States and responsible for the last six fatal commercial airline accidents, FRONTLINE producer Rick Young and correspondent Miles O'Brien investigate the safety issues associated with outsourcing in Flying Cheap."
MAP: See the regionals flying out of top U.S. airports--and their safety record
Interviews: Regional pilots, industry reps, gov't regulators, aviation watchdogs
Safety and Regional Airlines: Code-share agreements, regulation/liability issues, Washington's response
Continental Flight #3704 Families: Inside their crusade to improve airline safety
Watch the Full Program Online

A prime number is one that can only be divided by itself and one. Two is the only even prime number.

ruth•ful (ro̵̅o̅t̸h′fəl) adjective
NOW RARE full of ruth; feeling, showing, or arousing pity or sorrow
Etymology: ME reuthful http://www.yourdictionary.com/ruthful

What is the origin of the phrasing, "starting from scratch"?
Most English language experts agree that the traditional phrase, "starting from scratch," began with racing sports. Before a race (biking, boating, driving, running or swimming), a starting line is traditionally marked out for competitors. In a handicapped race, some participants may be allowed to begin ahead (with either an advance start or a forward starting line). In a scratch race, however, all participants must start at the same line, with no advantages allowed, commencing the race at the get-go. With prevalent usage, starting from scratch has come to refer to any form of beginning all over again. Used more loosely, starting from scratch may mean beginning and completing any project (even a first-time effort) with no previous preparation and with the most basic of materials. http://www.associatedcontent.com/article/2639431/idioms_unpacked_starting_from_scratch.html?cat=37

French officials confirmed on February 18 the purchase of Venetian Giacamo Casanova's handwritten autobiography, The Story of My Life. The French library — with the financial assistance of an anonymous patron — purchased the journal, which is believed to be the last surviving manuscript by Casanova. It had previously been owned by the heirs of the Germany publishing house Brockhaus, which acquired the manuscript in the 19th century. The purchase price was not disclosed, but experts believe it could likely be the highest price ever paid for an original manuscript.
Read more: http://www.cbc.ca/arts/books/story/2010/02/18/casanova-memoir-france.html#ixzz0fv4ipn9y

Quote
I have lived in this world just long enough to look carefully the second time into things that I am most certain of the first time.
Josh Billings, columnist and humorist (1818-1885)

Screenwriter Dan Turkewitz, back in 2006, shot off a note to the nine Supreme Court justices, reporting that “There are parts of the story that deal with the legality of [Maine joining Canada] and, of course, a big showdown in the Supreme Court is part of the story.” Continued Dan: At the moment my story is a 12 page treatment. As an architect turned screenwriter, it is fair to say that I come up a bit short in the art of Supreme Court advocacy. If you could spare a few moments on a serious subject that is treated in a comedic way, I would greatly appreciate your thoughts. I'm sure you'll find the story very entertaining. According to Dan's brother Eric, Justice Scalia was the only justice to respond. His brief letter read: I am afraid I cannot be of much help with your problem, principally because I cannot imagine that such a question could ever reach the Supreme Court. To begin with, the answer is clear. If there was any constitutional issue resolved by the Civil War, it is that there is no right to secede. (Hence, in the Pledge of Allegiance, “one Nation, indivisible.”) Secondly, I find it difficult to envision who the parties to this lawsuit might be. Is the State suing the United States for a declaratory judgment? But the United States cannot be sued without its consent, and it has not consented to this sort of suit. I am sure that poetic license can overcome all that - but you do not need legal advice for that. Good luck with your screenplay.
WSJ Law Blog February 17, 2010

Three things must happen for you to see a rainbow's colors. First, the sun must be shining. Second, the sun must be behind you, and third, there must be water drops in the air in front of you. Sunlight shines into the water drops, which act as tiny prisms that bend or "refract" the light and separate it into colors. Rainbows have no end. We usually don't see the full circle because the horizon of the Earth is in the way. But if the sun is very low in the sky, either just before sunset or just after sunrise, we can see a half circle. The higher the sun is in the sky, the less we see of the rainbow. The only way to see the full circle of a rainbow in the sky is to be above the raindrops and have the sun behind you. You would have to look down on the drops from an airplane. http://www.wxdude.com/Rainbows.html

How could global warming be driving our massive snowstorm pattern? One word: moisture. A warmer atmosphere holds more water. Plus, warmer surface temperatures are triggering more evaporation of ocean water worldwide. That water goes up, up, up into that atmosphere. And what goes up must sooner or later come down. This is precisely what scientific studies are now documenting. Water vapor in the global atmosphere jumped by about 5 percent in the 20th century, P.Y. Groisman and his colleagues reported in 2004. This while there has been an observed, significant uptick in heavy winter precipitation events in the Northeastern U.S., according to a 2006 study. And all the while, global temperatures have risen sharply, including an average warming of 4 degrees Fahrenheit in the Northeastern U.S.
http://www.baltimoresun.com/news/opinion/oped/bal-op.warming14feb14,0,6844763.story

No red, white or blue in six flags? Muse reader continues: Turns out there are only three flags (this from my daughter) without R, W or B in them: Jamaica, Mauritania and Libya. ;-)

What ten countries have four letters in their names?
You may search and find the list through a search engine--one answer gives twelve countries--or you may play the game at: http://www.sporcle.com/games/4letter_countries.php

Think “Lincoln” and “New York,” and the juxtaposition would most likely conjure up the tunnel or the performing arts center. Until this year, it might have also evoked the majestic Lincoln Building at 60 East 42nd Street. With barely a nod to the former president, the owners of the 53-story tower, which opened 80 years ago, changed the name to One Grand Central Place, removed the bronze plaques on which the Gettysburg Address and his second Inaugural Address were immortalized, and evicted Daniel Chester French’s sculpture of the “seated Lincoln,” the model for the Lincoln Memorial, from the lobby. The Lincoln statue was apparently purchased by Lawrence A. Wein, who bought the building in the early 1950s. He was the father-in-law of Peter L. Malkin, the chairman of W & H Properties, which now owns it. Anthony E. Malkin, president of W & H, said the statue was moved to improve traffic flow and installed in the building’s law library off the lobby “in respect of a president who was himself a lawyer, and as a more befitting spot in our building for a noted work of art.” http://www.nytimes.com/2010/02/13/nyregion/13lincoln.html

Walter Fredrick Morrison, who at 17 sent the lid of a popcorn tin skimming through the air of a California backyard and as an adult remade the lid in plastic, in the process inventing the simple, elegant flying disc known today as the Frisbee, died February 9 at his home in Monroe, Utah. He was 90. Beloved of man and dog, the Frisbee has for more than half a century been the signature product of Wham-O, a toy and sporting-goods manufacturer based in Emeryville, Calif. The company has sold more than 200 million of the discs since acquiring the rights to Mr. Morrison’s Pluto Platter, as it was then known, in 1957. At least since antiquity, mankind has been hurling flat, round objects — or flying discs, as they are known in aficionados’ parlance — aloft. But Mr. Morrison is widely credited as having designed the first commercial flying disc expressly manufactured and marketed as such. Wham-O changed the name to Frisbee in 1958, influenced by the Frisbie Pie Company in Connecticut, whose tins Yale students hurled for sport. http://www.nytimes.com/2010/02/13/us/13morrison.html

At the opera
There's a memorable scene in the 1935 comedy classic A Night at the Opera, in which Groucho Marx interrupts a deadly serious operatic aria with the astute commentary, "Boogie-Boogie-Boogie!" The opera on stage in that scene is among the most popular of all time, Giuseppe Verdi's Il Trovatore. The aria is sung by Azucena, one of the most complex and compelling characters in any opera. Naturally, in the film, the highbrow audience is aghast at Groucho's rude behavior. Il Trovatore is an easy mark, an opera ripe for parody The opera has a complicated, basically unsavory and highly implausible story. Plus, to have any chance at all of understanding it, you first have to learn a background story that's even more complex and unlikely. http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=112934663

Mozart composed "The Opera of Operas" - Don Giovanni - especially for Prague and he personally conducted its world first performance in 1787 at the Prague Estates Theatre (Stavovské Theatre). National Marionette Theatre presents this brilliant opera in the unique version using the classical marionettes. Tall marionettes as well as the stylish period costumes and original stage effects can be seen in the performance. It lasts about two hours, and a shortened version can be arranged. http://www.mozart.cz/gb/giovanni_gb.html
Note: We saw this in Prague, and orchestra members as well as singers are marionettes.

When the curtain falls on Richard Wagner's "Goetterdaemmerung," conducted by Sir Simon Rattle, in Salzburg at the end of March, the audience will be released into a dark world of greed and trickery. After what's been going on behind the scenes ahead of the opening of the Salzburg Easter Festival, Wagner will seem like deja vu. Since the festival's executive director Michael Dewitte was dismissed indefinitely in December following accusations of fraud, the organization's efforts to save face have become increasingly difficult. Dewitte was allegedly involved in rerouting sponsors' funds to a secret foreign bank account, cheating on expense accounts and paying for services that may not have been rendered to the festival. According to Audit Services Austria, the financial damage caused by Dewitte could amount to as much as 2 million euros (nearly $2.8 million). In one particular case, he is accused of siphoning 300,000 euros from a donation and transferring it to an apparently non-existent Caribbean-based company with a bank account in northern Cyprus. http://www.dw-world.de/dw/article/0,,5220087,00.html

Sometimes, the hardest part of writing is writing the third word. You know, the one right after "Chapter One." Recently, as I chugged into the day's writing, the first thing I did was delete the beginning. By that time, I was about 13,000 words into the manuscript, and I didn't need them anymore. I've used that same basic opening at least two or three times, and it always gets cut. But you have to start somewhere, and as has been said over and over: "You can't fix a blank page." But what about that last page? The one where you can't turn any more pages. It's been said that your first page sells the book. Your last page sells the next book. Guest post by Terry Odell The Writing Bug February 17, 2010

News release: The American Psychiatric Association has released the proposed draft diagnostic criteria for the fifth edition of Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (DSM). The draft criteria represent content changes under consideration for DSM, which is the standard classification of mental disorders used by mental health and other health professionals, and is used for diagnostic and research purposes...Public Review of Proposed Revisions - The resulting recommendations for revisions to the current DSM are being posted on the APA’s Web site for the manual, for public review and written comment. These comments will be reviewed and considered by the relevant DSM-5 Work Groups...The American Psychiatric Association is a national medical specialty society whose physician members specialize in the diagnosis, treatment, prevention and research of mental illnesses, including substance use disorders. Visit the APA at www.psych.org and www.healthyminds.org."

Take a "virtual tour" of the little house on Arch Street in Philadelphia that is a shrine to Betsy Ross and the American Flag. See images and view a flag history timeline at: http://www.ushistory.org/betsy/

Read about color symbolism and flag types here: http://www.enchantedlearning.com/geography/flags/colors.shtml

Colors, symbols, proportions and design of flags are here:
http://www.crwflags.com/fotw/Flags/xf-colx.html
Note: A muse reader thinks that there may be six world flags not using the colors red, white and blue. I'm still trying to find some information on that.

Jerry Seinfeld loves city life, and when asked why, in a word, he says without hesitation, “Compression.” While he strolls, his eyes are always searching. “It’s a nonstop circus,” he says. Seinfeld also believes that it is best to teach children by example. “Kids are not going to do what you tell them to do or think like you tell them to think,” he says. “Kids are watching how you deal with that waiter or that handyman, and they are probably more likely to imitate you.” “I tend to accept life as it is,” he says. “I’m not one of these ‘Life isn’t fair’ people. I tend to accept whatever the limits are, whatever the rules are.” from an interview conducted by Harlan Coben See the whole interview plus pictures at: http://www.parade.com/celebrity/2010/02/jerry-seinfeld.html

Fictional character: Sherlock Holmes
"My name is Sherlock Holmes. It is my business to know what other people don't know."
The Adventure of the Blue Carbuncle
"My life is spent in one long effort to escape from the commonplaces of existence. These little problems help me to do so."
The Red-headed League
Holmes, upon meeting Dr. Watson, says: "You have been in Afghanistan, I perceive."
He deduced this, calling him a medical man with a military air, with a tan from the tropics, haggard from hardship and sickness, left arm held stiffly to indicate injury. Clearly this man was an English army doctor in Afghanistan.
A Study in Scarlet

Author of Sherlock Holmes: Sir Arthur Conan Doyle (1859-1930)
Doyle, a doctor with lack of patients, spent a great deal of time writing. His first story, A Study in Scarlet, was serialized by Beeton's Christmas Annual in December 1887. The public could not get enough, and in 1891, Sherlock Holmes was a regular feature in The Strand magazine. When Doyle got tired of the character, he hurled him to his death from the top of a Swiss waterfall. Protesting readers lobbied, sending angry letters to Doyle and his editors. Some formed Let's Keep Holmes Alive clubs. Doyle conceded, and restored Holmes to life in The Adventures of the Empty House in 1902.
Later Doyle pursued his long-held fascination with spiritualism and worked with Harry Houdini investigating the claims of several well-known mediums.
Source: Great Cases of Sherlock Holmes

kith and kin
1. One's acquaintances and relatives.
2. One's relatives.
Kith is obsolete except in the alliterative phrase kith and kin, which originally meant "native land and people" and first appeared about 1377 in Piers Plowman. Kith comes from the Old English noun c th, "knowledge; known, familiar country;
http://www.thefreedictionary.com/kith+and+kin

chimera
(Greek mythology) fire-breathing female monster with a lion's head and a goat's body and a serpent's tail; daughter of Typhon
a grotesque product of the imagination
See many other definitions at: http://www.google.com/search?hl=en&defl=en&q=define:chimera&ei=TQ10S5aILIzgNaTKlMgK&sa=X&oi=glossary_definition&ct=title&ved=0CAcQkAE

A storm petrel is any of various small petrels having dark plumage with paler parts underneath. A stormy petrel is another name for storm petrel or a person who brings or portends trouble.

United States Postal Service 2010 stamp program Click on link to see images and information: http://www.usps.com/communications/newsroom/2009/pr09_118.htm

YouTube Blog: "Diversity of content is one of the great things about YouTube. But we know that some of you want a more controlled experience. That's why we're announcing Safety Mode, an opt-in setting that helps screen out potentially objectionable content that you may prefer not to see or don't want others in your family to stumble across while enjoying YouTube. An example of this type of content might be a newsworthy video that contains graphic violence such as a political protest or war coverage. While no filter is 100% perfect, Safety Mode is another step in our ongoing desire to give you greater control over the content you see on the site. It's easy to opt in to Safety Mode: Just click on the link at the bottom of any video page. You can even lock your choice on that browser with your YouTube password..."

Dick Francis dies at 89 Best-selling author Dick Francis was also champion jockey in the 1950s and the Queen Mother's jockey. He wrote more than 40 best-selling novels during his career, selling some 60 million books worldwide. He first published his autobiography in 1957, and his first thriller, Dead Cert, followed five years later. The Queen Mother was reputedly one of his most enthusiastic readers, and Buckingham Palace said the Queen would be saddened to learn of his death. The next novel co-written with Felix Francis is due to be published in the autumn. http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/entertainment/arts_and_culture/8515642.stm

2010 Olympics schedule and results http://www.vancouver2010.com/olympic-schedule-results/

This year, the Year Of The Tiger, is only the third time since 1900 that Chinese New Year has fallen on the same day (February 14) as Valentine’s Day. http://www.kidzworld.com/article/22812-february-14-2010-valentines-day-and-chinese-new-year

Q: Why is our state flag a pennant?
A: It looks like a pennant, but it's really a burgee. (Pronounced BER-jee.)
Architect John Eisenmann designed it in 1901 for the Ohio Building at the Pan-American Exposition in Buffalo, N.Y. The Legislature adopted it May 9, 1902. Eisenmann described the flag's symbolism: "The triangles formed by the main lines of the flag represent the hills and valleys as typified in the state seal, and the stripes the roads and waterways. "The stars, indicating the 13 original states of the Union, are grouped about the circle which represents the Northwest Territory; and that Ohio was the 17th state admitted into the Union is shown by adding four more stars. "The white circle with its red center, not only represents the initial letter of Ohio, but is suggestive of its being the Buckeye State." -- Ohio Historical Society.

Q: What's the new guideline for using windshield wipers in Ohio?
A: It's simple: If you're using your windshield wipers, then you must have your headlights on, too. But vehicles cannot be stopped solely for this and a citation is a minor misdemeanor . Fines will vary by court district. -- Ohio State Highway Patrol.
See more at: http://www.thecourier.com/Opinion/columns/2010/Feb/JU/ar_JU_021510.asp?d=021510,2010,Feb,15&c=c_13

The flag of Nepal is red with a blue border around the unique shape of two overlapping right triangles; the smaller, upper triangle bears a white stylized moon and the larger, lower triangle bears a white 12-pointed sun. http://www.appliedlanguage.com/flags_of_the_world/flag_of_nepal.shtml

A flag is a piece of fabric, often flown from a pole or mast, generally used symbolically for signaling or identification. It is most commonly used to symbolize a country. The term flag is also used to refer to the graphic design employed by a flag, or to its depiction in another medium. The first flags were used to assist military coordination on battlefields, and flags have since evolved into a general tool for rudimentary signaling and identification, especially in environments where communication is similarly challenging (such as the maritime environment where semaphore is used).
See more information, including oldest flag, largest flag, and pictures of flags at: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Flag#Shapes_and_designs

The flag of Tampa, Florida combines elements of the Stars and Stripes, the flag of Spain, the British Union Jack, the flag of Italy, and the French tricolor, as all of these countries had a hand in development of what eventually became the city of Tampa and/or the state of Florida. The prominent use of red and gold symbolizes Spain’s role in the development of Tampa, from the first European exploration of the Tampa Bay area in 1528 to the later influx of Spanish and Cuban immigrants. Many Italians came to Tampa at the same time, inspiring a field of green from the colors of the Italian flag. The "H" symbolizes Hillsborough County. The official Seal of the City of Tampa, superimposed on a blue "T", symbolizes the incorporation of Tampa in 1855.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Flag_of_Tampa,_Florida

The island of Hispaniola is the second largest island in the Caribbean, at 29,273 sq miles, (75,843 sq km). Haiti occupies about 1/3 of the island, while the Dominican Republic controls the balance of land. Columbus claimed Hispaniola in 1492, declaring it (Isla Espanola,) "the most beautiful island in the world." It later became the major launching base for the Spanish conquest of the Caribbean, as well as the American mainland. http://www.worldatlas.com/webimage/countrys/namerica/caribb/hispnola.htm

Charlie Wilson, the fun-loving Texas congressman whose 1980s campaign to rid Afghanistan of Soviet influence was memorably captured in a Hollywood film that bore his name, died February 10. "Good-Time Charlie" was 76.the congressman from a rural East Texas district almost single-handedly engineered a flow of federal funds to support Afghan resistance fighters against the occupying forces of the Soviet Union during the 1980s. That legacy grew more complicated as the Muslim freedom fighters that Wilson tirelessly championed evolved into the Taliban, which would ultimately give haven to Al Qaeda. Afghanistan became his passion after the Soviet Union invaded the country in 1979. During a fact-finding visit to Pakistan in 1982 -- and at the urging of a wealthy Houston benefactor, Joanne Herring -- he embraced the cause of the Muslim rebels he found there. Wilson later said that he was inspired by visiting child victims of Soviet bombs in Pakistani hospitals near the Afghan border. Using his seat on the powerful House Appropriations Defense subcommittee and taking advantage of the secrecy of the budgets for U.S. covert operations, Wilson -- later with the assistance of the Central Intelligence Agency -- funneled billions of dollars in weapons to the resistance. They included shoulder-fired Stinger missiles, which were used to shoot down Soviet helicopters. The Soviet Union ultimately abandoned Afghanistan in 1989, and Wilson was decorated by the CIA.
http://www.chicagotribune.com/news/obituaries/la-me-charlie-wilson11-2010feb11,0,5019951.story

Outstanding Business Reference Sources: The 2009 Selection of Recent Titles
The Business of Sports. Ed. Brad R. Humphreys and Dennis R. Howard. Westport, Conn.: Praeger, 2008. 3 vols.
Encyclopedia of Alternative Investments. Ed. Greg N. Gregoriou. Boca Raton, Fla.: Chapman & Hall/CRC, 2008.
Encyclopedia of Business in Today’s World. Ed. Charles Wankel. Thousand Oaks, Calif.: Sage, 2009.
Handbook of Finance. Ed. Frank J. Fabozzi. Hoboken, N.J.: Wiley, 2008. 3 vols.
See descriptions and other titles in this four-page article at: http://www.rusq.org/2010/01/03/outstanding-business-reference-sources-the-2009-selection-of-recent-titles/

Book Group Favorites
From the more than 900 people who answered this survey question, most gave multiple favorites, resulting in a list of more than 1,100 unique titles. However, some titles appeared again and again as people’s favorites:
The Kite Runner by Khaled Husseini
Water for Elephants by Sara Gruen
The Glass Castle by Jeannette Walls
The Secret Life of Bees by Sue Monk Kidd
Snow Flower and the Secret Fan by Lisa See
My Sister’s Keeper by Jodi Picoult
A Thousand Splendid Suns by Khaled Husseini
The Red Tent by Anita Diamant
The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-time by Mark Haddon
The Poisonwood Bible by Barbara Kingsolver
Devil in the White City by Erik Larson
Time Traveler’s Wife by Audrey Niffenegger
Life of Pi by Yann Martel
Bel Canto by Ann Patchett
Memory Keeper’s Daughter by Kim Edwards
Atonement by Ian McEwan
Memoirs of a Geisha by Arthur Golden
Three Cups of Tea by Greg Mortenson
To Kill a Mockingbird by Harper Lee
Middlesex by Jeffrey Eugenides
Article discussing the ins and outs of book groups has the above list on page 3:
http://www.rusq.org/2010/01/03/book-group-therapy-a-survey-reveals-some-truths-about-why-some-book-groups-work-and-others-may-need-some-time-on-the-couch/

Hetty Green, the richest woman of her era and a pioneering value investor often goes by the title the "Witch of Wall Street". Born Henrietta Howland Robinson (November 21, 1834), she showed an early aptitude for finance. She opened her first bank account at eight and received much of her education reading the financial pages to her near-blind grandfather, discussing each stock and bond in detail. Green's father, Edward Robinson, was believed to have married her mother, the bed-ridden heiress of the Howland fortune, for the seed money needed to build up a whaling business. Robinson was a ruthless businessman and Hetty was his bookkeeper, as well as his companion, as he strolled the docks making deals. Edward Robinson kept Green from receiving her inheritance upon the death of her mother, so it was not until his death in 1864 that thirty-year-old Green received the family fortune of $7.5 million. On his deathbed, Edward Robinson told her that he had been poisoned by conspirators and warned her that they would come for her. Not surprisingly, Green came out of her childhood and early years with a certain amount of eccentricity that later events only reinforced. http://www.investopedia.com/articles/financialcareers/09/hetty-green-witch-wall-street.asp

John Simmons Barth (born May 27, 1930) is an American novelist and short-story writer, known for the postmodernist and metafictive quality of his work. John Barth was born in Cambridge, Maryland, and briefly studied "Elementary Theory and Advanced Orchestration" at Juilliard before attending Johns Hopkins University, receiving a B.A. in 1951 and an M.A. in 1952 (for which he wrote a thesis novel, The Shirt of Nessus). He was a professor at Penn State University (1953–1965), SUNY Buffalo (1965–1973), Boston University (visiting professor, 1972–1973), and Johns Hopkins University (1973–1995) before he retired in 1995. See more about him and a list of his selected works at: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/John_Barth

Metafiction is fiction about fiction; or more especially a kind of fiction that openly comments on its own fictional status. In a weak sense, many modern novels about novelists having problems writing their novels may be called metafictional in so far as they discuss the nature of fiction; but the term is normally used for works that involve a significant degree of self‐consciousness about themselves as fictions, in ways that go beyond occasional apologetic addresses to the reader. The most celebrated case is Sterne's Tristram Shandy (1760–7), which makes a continuous joke of its own digressive form. A notable modern example is John Fowles's The French Lieutenant's Woman (1969), in which Fowles interrupts the narrative to explain his procedures, and offers the readeralternative endings. Perhaps the finest of modern metafictions is Italo Calvino's Se una notte d'inverno un viaggatore (If on a winter's night atraveler, 1979), which begins ‘You are about to begin reading Italo Calvino's new novel, If on a winter's night a traveler. ee also mise‐en‐abyme, postmodernism, self‐reflexive. For a fuller account, consult Patricia Waugh, Metafiction (1984). http://www.answers.com/topic/metafiction

No-one knows for certain, but that wonderful word balderdash for “rubbish; nonsense; senseless words” may derive from the Welsh word baldorddu; certainly flummery, originally a sort of sweet food made with eggs, flour and milk but now usually having the meaning “nonsense; humbug; idle flattery”, comes from the Welsh llymru. http://www.worldwidewords.org/articles/welsh.htm

balderdash senseless, stupid, or exaggerated talk or writing; nonsense.
Obsolete. a muddled mixture of liquors.
http://dictionary.reference.com/browse/balderdash

Waste not, want not
Save leftover sauces in freezer, adding to the container as you get more. When needed, serve on bread, noodles, rice, potatoes, or add to soups or other sauces.

Easy and good Roasted vegetables with fruit
Parboil vegetables such as potatoes, carrots, beets, parsnips and turnips. Cutting all in like-sized pieces, add onions or leeks, pears or apples, thinly-sliced oranges or lemons, and mix with olive oil, salt and pepper. Arrange in baking pan and bake about 30 minutes at 350 degrees.

Sorting out names of fictional characters
We know that the Lone Ranger's last name is "Reid," because his brother who was killed in the ambush by the Cavendish Gang was named Dan Reid. (This is also the name of the Lone Ranger's nephew, although we do not know what his true first name was. His mother was killed in an Indian attack and the kindly woman who raised him got the name Dan from a locket that Dan's mother had worn.) No first name was given to the Lone Ranger during the radio and television program. Somehow, though, the name "John" appeared in the liner notes of a Lone Ranger record. (Wes Tom fills in this part: "The name John first appeared in the book Radio's Golden Age by Frank Buxton and Bill Owen in 1966 published by Easton Valley Press.") The name was used in the 1981 "Legend of the Lone Ranger" movie. Many, however, refuse to accept that name as the Ranger's true name. This is debatable. Britt Reid is the name of the alter-ego of the Green Hornet. He is the Lone Ranger's nephew's grandson. (Or son, depending on whether you're talking about the radio Green Hornet or the television Green Hornet.) http://www.endeavorcomics.com/largent/ranger/faq.html

Pepper , the master spice
Peppercorns (piper nigrum) ground for use on the table and in cooking originally only came from India, but is now also cultivated in Indonesia, Malaysia, China, Sri Lanka, Madagascar, and South America. India is still the major producer of this spice with over half of the product coming from there. A perennial bush, which often grows wild, is produced in mounds with trellises similar to grape vines. These mounds are usually about 8-feet tall but the bush itself can grow up to 33 feet in the proper climate. The bush has a round and smooth jointed stem; dark green leaves which are smooth, broad, and have seven nerves in them; and small white flowers. The flowers become the berries
which are harvested. The flowers grow in clusters of up to 150. Grown from cuttings, the bush bears fruit at three to four years until about fifteen years. Typically the pepper bush grows within about 20 degrees of the equator some believe the closer to the equator the hotter the peppercorn. Historically significant, pepper is the most common spice in use. Nutritionally beneficial and medicinally positive, pepper offers a unique flavor and a variety of uses. It is the third most common ingredient behind water and salt. http://whatscookingamerica.net/Information/Pepper.htm

During the Middle ages, pepper, as well as other spices and herbs, was commonly used as a monetary source. Eastern Europeans paid 10 pounds of pepper in order to gain access to trading with London merchants. Throughout Europe, peppercorns were accepted as a substitute for money (some landlords would get paid as a “peppercorn rent” (2). Peppercorns, counted out one by one, were accepted as currency to pay taxes, tolls, and rents (partly because of a coin shortage). Many European towns kept their accounts in pepper. Wealthy brides received pepper as a dowry. http://www.mccormickscienceinstitute.com/content.cfm?ID=10498

Cleveland, Ohio was named for General Moses Cleaveland, agent and chief surveyor for the Connecticut Land Co., who founded the city in 1796. The general was born at Canterbury, Conn., in 1754. He was the second son of Colonel Aaron Cleaveland and his wife Thankful. Their surname, of Saxon origin, was derived from the physical features of an estate in Yorkshire, England, that the family owned since before the Norman Conquest. The land was marked by deep crevices called "clefts" or "cleves" by the Saxons. It was variously written as Cleffland, Cliffland, Cleiveland, Cleveland and Cleaveland. The general preferred Cleaveland, and this was the original way name of the city was spelled. One story claims that an early newspaper, the Cleaveland Advertiser, was not quite large enough to accommodate the name in an identifying banner headline on the first page. The editor dropped the first "a" and the readers subsequently accepted the new spelling. http://www.lkwdpl.org/buckeye/buck05.htm

The highest city in the world is La Rinoconada, Peru at 5100 meters or 16,728 feet. See a list with pictures at: http://www.bootsnall.com/articles/09-03/highest-cities-world.html

The oldest city in the world still standing is Gaziantep, Turkey (3650 B.C.?). The capital city of Gaziantep Province (informally known as Antep) has a history dating back to the Hittites period. It was continually inhabited ever since the Paleolithic age, experiencing serious growth along with the Ottoman Empire. See a list with pictures at: http://blog.hotelclub.com/the-10-oldest-cities-on-earth/

John McPhee has been fishing for pickerel for more than thirty years, always in October in New Hampshire, with his friend George Hackl, whose wife owns an undeveloped island in Lake Winnipesaukee. http://www.newyorker.com/reporting/2010/02/08/100208fa_fact_mcphee#ixzz0eghhiT5k McPhee discusses an area of lily pads on Lake Winnipesaukee he calls The Patch and describes the voraciousness of pickerels: their stomachs are usually packed and distended. Pickerel that have been found in the stomachs of pickerel have in turn contained pickerel in their stomachs. A chain pickerel, on a good day, nails eighty per cent of the fish it goes after. http://www.newyorker.com/reporting/2010/02/08/100208fa_fact_mcphee#ixzz0eghYsDy7

On January 4, Dubai celebrated the opening of the new world’s tallest building with a spectacular fireworks show and the announcement that the skyscraper soars to a record-shattering height of 828 meters, or almost 2717 feet--more than 1,000 feet taller than the old record-holder in Taiwan. Yet in a stunning move, the tower--long known as the Burj Dubai--was renamed the Burj Khalifa in honor of the president of the neighboring emirate of oil-rich Abu Dhabi, which bailed Dubai out of its recent financial crisis. The $1.5 billion tower, designed by Chicago architects Skidmore, Owings & Merrill (SOM), is 160 stories.
http://featuresblogs.chicagotribune.com/theskyline/2010/01/trying-to-put-a-humbling-debt-crisis-behind-it-the-once-booming-city-state-of-dubai-on-monday-celebrated-the-opening-of-the.html
Comment: The photos you've been publishing have striking similarities to the "Illinois" drawn by Frank Lloyd Wright in 1956. I've attached a link to a comparison I found on the Web.
http://drupal02.nypl.org/files/15/Mile_High_Building_no_3.jpg

As of 9 a.m. on February 4, 1,771 earthquakes have been recorded at Yellowstone. The swarm began around 1 p.m. January 17, about 10 miles northwest of the Old Faithful area on the northwestern edge of the Yellowstone Caldera — and around 16 miles northeast of Island Park. Swarms have occurred in this area several times over the past two decades. This swarm has been longer in time and with more earthquakes than last year's swarm beneath Yellowstone Lake. However, the total seismic energy released is somewhat less. The largest recorded swarm at Yellowstone is the Fall 1985 swarm, also in the northwest corner of the Yellowstone Caldera.
http://www.islandparknews.com/atf.php?sid=7820¤t_edition=2010-02-04

Latest earthquakes in the world for the last seven days
http://earthquake.usgs.gov/earthquakes/recenteqsww/Quakes/quakes_all.php

A man died 4000 years ago on an offshore island of Greenland now called Qeqertasussuk - of what cause no one knows, but he left four tufts of his hair and a few bits of bone frozen into the permafrost, and now those thawed scraps tell a remarkable story through the updated alchemy of the Human Genome Project. For the first time, a team of 53 international scientists has sequenced the genes of an ancient human - a "Palaeo-Eskimo" - and learned more details about him than anyone might have expected. He belonged to a culture called the Saqqaq, a Greenland people whose forebears had apparently migrated to the huge glacier-capped western side of that island from far northeastern Siberia about 5,500 years ago. Archaeologists have found that the people ofhis culture became extinct many hundreds of years later, leaving only the name Saqqaq to denote a tiny, remote coastal village of 200 Greenlanders. By comparing Inuk's genes with those of indigenous people in many countries of northern Europe and Asia, the project's scientists determined that his ancestors were Siberia's Chukchi people, Greenland's earliest human settlers, who had migrated there from eastern Siberia by traveling more than 2,000 kilometers - about 1,250 miles - across the Bering Strait. http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/c/a/2010/02/10/MN411BV2EC.DTL

In a report that may bolster public policy efforts to get Americans to reduce the amount of salt in their diets, scientists writing in The New England Journal of Medicine conclude that lowering the amount of salt people eat by even a small amount could reduce cases of heart disease, stroke and heart attacks as much as reductions in smoking, obesity and cholesterol levels. If everyone consumed half a teaspoon less salt per day, there would be between 54,000 and 99,000 fewer heart attacks each year and between 44,000 and 92,000 fewer deaths, according to the study, which was conducted by scientists at University of California San Francisco, Stanford University Medical Center and Columbia University Medical Center. The report comes as health authorities at federal, state and municipal levels are considering policies that would have the effect of pressuring food companies to reduce salt in processed foods, which are considered to be the source of much of the salt Americans eat. New York City has announced an initiative to urge food manufacturers and restaurant chains to reduce salt in their products nationwide by 25 percent over the next five years.
http://www.nytimes.com/2010/01/21/health/nutrition/21salt.html

The American Discovery Trail crosses the middle of our country from coast to coast. See a map at: http://www.discoverytrail.org/states/index.html
The American Discovery Trail (ADT) is a new breed of national trail — part city, part small town, part forest, part mountains, part desert — all in one trail. Its 6,800+ miles of continuous, multi-use trail stretches from Cape Henlopen State Park, Delaware, to Pt. Reyes National Seashore, California . It reaches across America, linking community to community in the first coast to coast, non-motorized trail. The ADT provides trail users the opportunity to journey into the heart of all that is uniquely American — its culture, heritage, landscape and spirit. http://www.discoverytrail.org/about/index.html

Homes built before 1776
Savannah's oldest house is two bedrooms with four fireplaces, built-in bookshelves, carriage house and a formal garden.
http://elaineseabolt.harrynorman.com/GA/Savannah/31401/homes-for-sale/122-E-Oglethorpe-Ave-40666736
Moses Cleaveland bought the house next to the one where he was born and raised in Canterbury, Conn., in 1796, shortly after returning from his expedition to "New Connecticut" (Northeast Ohio), where he surveyed his namesake city and surrounding lands. He paid $4,300 for the two-story house built in 1740. The sturdy post-and-beam construction outlived Cleaveland and successive owners for another 183 years but by 1979 had fallen into disrepair -- its "residents" including a dead cow in one room and motorcycle in another -- and was slated for demolition. A couple in Hudson, Ohio heard about the house, bought and dismantled the structure, then had it shipped in pieces by railroad for reassembly in 1980 on Stow Road in Hudson. http://blog.cleveland.com/pdextra/2009/06/moses_cleavelands_restored_174.html
Listed on the National Register of Historic Places, Medway Plantation is rich in history and offers a unique and elegant lifestyle. Dating to 1686, the main house is the oldest masonry structure in South Carolina. It was rebuilt in 1704, had substantial additions made in 1855, and was completely renovated in 1929. http://www.christiesgreatestates.com/properties/view_4685/
Source: The Week Magazine February 12, 2010

New on LLRX.com - Business Intelligence Online Resources
Business Intelligence Online Resources: This extensive guide by search expert Marcus P. Zillman includes a wide range of sources designed to serve as a foundation for knowledge discovery specific to business intelligence resources on the Internet.

PBS - Digital Nation: Life on the Virtual Frontier
"Within a single generation, digital media and the World Wide Web have transformed virtually every aspect of modern culture, from the way we learn and work to the ways in which we socialize and even conduct war. But is the technology moving faster than we can adapt to it? And is our 24/7 wired world causing us to lose as much as we've gained? In Digital Nation: Life on the Virtual Frontier, FRONTLINE presents an in-depth exploration of what it means to be human in a 21st-century digital world. Continuing a line of investigation she began with the 2008 FRONTLINE report Growing Up Online, award-winning producer Rachel Dretzin embarks on a journey to understand the implications of living in a world consumed by technology and the impact that this constant connectivity may have on future generations. "I'm amazed at the things my kids are able to do online, but I'm also a little bit panicked when I realize that no one seems to know where all this technology is taking us, or its long-term effects," says Dretzin."

Neanderthals lived in Europe for hundreds of thousands of years but eventually were replaced by modern humans from Africa, who apparently were smarter. Scientists working in Spain say they've got evidence of some pretty sophisticated Neanderthal inventions — body ornaments and cosmetics. Read more and see related NPR stories at: http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=122466430
The Arctic tern, a sea bird famous for its long-distance migrations between the North and South Poles makes the equivalent of three round trips to the Moon in its lifetime, scientists have found. The Arctic tern makes a return trip of around 44,000 miles from pole to pole each year, flying between its breeding grounds in Greenland in the north and the Weddell Sea on the shores of Antarctica in the far south, in a lifetime spent in perpetual summer. http://www.independent.co.uk/environment/nature/pole-to-pole-the-extraordinary-migration-of-the-arctic-tern-1864824.html

Lost crops of the Andes
naranjilla-lulo http://www.nap.edu/openbook.php?record_id=1398&page=266
passion fruit http://www.nap.edu/openbook.php?record_id=1398&page=286
potatoes http://www.nap.edu/openbook.php?record_id=1398&page=92#
Each entry has several pages of detailed drawings--many other foods are listed.

LYNNE'S TIPS
• I've said it many times but it's worth repeating: if you have an Asian market in your area, lucky you. Take advantage of all it offers. You'll find many of the ingredients for this salad there: fish sauce, noodles, Thai basil and other greens.
• Asian fish sauce keeps a year or more in the refrigerator. I like the brand with 3 crabs on the label, but others are fine, too. Since fish sauce is loaded with umami, that substance that lifts every flavor it comes in contact with, try a few drops in salad dressings and anything else that will end up on your plate. Incongruous as it sounds, a few drops (maybe a 1/4 teaspoon) in a pot of Italian tomato sauce or a French stew makes a difference.
• Napa cabbage (also called Chinese cabbage) has crinkly, pale green leaves tightly packed into an oblong head. Its mild, sweet flavor make it a versatile choice for soups, salads, and stir-fries. You could substitute bok choy if napa cabbage isn't available. The Splendid Table February 3, 2010

Camera is the Latin word for a chamber, in particular the judge’s private chamber as opposed to the public courtroom; in modern times it has taken on a figurative sense relating to the quality of privacy itself, losing its literal link to the room. Originally camera meant any vaulted or arched space, but in the Romance languages derived from Latin (such as the Italian camera or the French chambre) it became a general word for any habitable space (the English chamber comes from the same root via French). Ever since classical times it had been known that it was possible to project an image of an outdoors scene on the wall of a darkened room through a pinhole in a shutter. Such a room was called in Latin a camera obscura, literally a “dark room”. http://www.worldwidewords.org/topicalwords/tw-cam1.htm

See more on Super Bowl 44/XLIV at: http://www.nfl.com/superbowl/44
The word “virtue” is rooted in “manliness.” “Virtue” comes from the Latin virtus, which in turn is derived from vir, Latin for “manliness.” Cicero, a famous Roman statesman and writer, enumerated the cardinal virtues that every man should try to live up to. They included justice, prudence, courage, and temperance. In order to have honor, a Roman man had to live each of the four virtues. When Aristotle encouraged men in the ancient world to live “the virtuous life,” it was really a call to man up. Benjamin Franklin developed and committed himself to a personal improvement program that consisted of living 13 virtues. The 13 virtues were:
1. “TEMPERANCE. Eat not to dullness; drink not to elevation.”
2. “SILENCE. Speak not but what may benefit others or yourself; avoid trifling conversation.”
3. “ORDER. Let all your things have their places; let each part of your business have its time.”
4. “RESOLUTION. Resolve to perform what you ought; perform without fail what you resolve.”
5. “FRUGALITY. Make no expense but to do good to others or yourself; i.e., waste nothing.”
6. “INDUSTRY. Lose no time; be always employ’d in something useful; cut off all unnecessary actions.”
7. “SINCERITY. Use no hurtful deceit; think innocently and justly, and, if you speak, speak accordingly.”
8. “JUSTICE. Wrong none by doing injuries, or omitting the benefits that are your duty.”
9. “MODERATION. Avoid extremes; forbear resenting injuries so much as you think they deserve.”
10. “CLEANLINESS. Tolerate no uncleanliness in body, cloaths, or habitation.”
11. “TRANQUILLITY. Be not disturbed at trifles, or at accidents common or unavoidable.”
12. “CHASTITY. Rarely use venery but for health or offspring, never to dullness, weakness, or the injury of your own or another’s peace or reputation.”
13. “HUMILITY. Imitate Jesus and Socrates.”
In order to keep track of his adherence to these virtues, Franklin carried around a small book of 13 charts. The charts consisted of a column for each day of the week and 13 rows marked with the first letter of his 13 virtues. Franklin evaluated himself at the end of each day. http://artofmanliness.com/2008/02/24/lessons-in-manliness-benjamin-franklins-pursuit-of-the-virtuous-life/
Authors on writing
Katherine Anne Porter, in her Paris Review interview, talks about the event of a story being like a stone thrown in water. She says it’s not the event itself that is interesting, but rather the ripples the event creates in the lives of characters.

Substitute “damn” every time you’re inclined to write “very;” your editor will delete it and the writing will be just as it should be. —Mark Twain http://the-writing-bug.blogspot.com/2008/08/writing-wisdom.html

Author on authors
Writer Kim Edwards is winner of the Whiting Award and the Nelson Algren Award. She is the author of a collection of short stories, The Secrets of a Fire King, which was an alternate for the 1998 PEN/Hemingway Award and a Barnes and Noble Discovery book. She is a graduate of the Iowa Writers' Workshop. Three favorite authors of Edwards are: Alice Munroe, William Trevor and Marilynne Robinson. She also enjoys Pablo Neruda, Ursula Hegi, Sue Monk Kidd, Thomas Mann, Feodor Dostoevsky and Nathaniel Hawthorne.

Pseudonyms of authors--thousands of them; click on a letter to get started.
http://www.trussel.com/books/pseudo.htm

Pseudonyms of artists
"Rrose Sélavy", also spelled Rose Sélavy, was one of Marcel Duchamp's pseudonyms. The name, a pun, sounds like the French phrase "Eros, c'est la vie", which may be translated as "Eros, such is life". It has also been read as "arroser la vie" ("to make a toast to life"). Sélavy emerged in 1921 in a series of photographs by Man Ray showing Duchamp dressed as a woman. Through the 1920s Man Ray and Duchamp collaborated on more photos of Sélavy. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Marcel_Duchamp#Rrose_S.C3.A9lavy
Man Ray was the pseudonym of Emmanuel Radnitsky.

Q: In the past, you had the entire month of your birthday to renew your licenses, plates and stickers. But, because the Ohio State Highway Patrol is running a huge deficit, they changed the law so that you must renew prior to your birthday. They intentionally did not inform anyone so they can attach a $20 late fee to every person in Ohio who doesn't know about the change! -- K.N., Columbus Grove.
A: Yes and no. Yes, a law passed last spring included motor vehicle fee increases to support the highway patrol. They began Oct. 1. No, it's not a secret. The Bureau of Motor Vehicles says it began telling people of the new fees on July 1 in the regular mailed renewal notices. Yes, this included a new $20 fee "for all late license and vehicle registration renewals." No, said bureau spokeswoman Lindsey Bohrer, there was never an "entire month" grace period. There just was no penalty for sending a payment late.
Driver's licenses and license plates are invalid or expired if not renewed by the driver or owner's birthday, she said. After that, a person always has been at risk for a citation.
The new late fee is charged only if the renewal is more than seven days overdue, she said.
By the way, the bureau also issued a news release on Sept. 18 to remind people of the fees beginning Oct. 1. But it is questionable how many media outlets used it. The Courier did not. -- Peter Mattiace.
Q: What are the longest interstate highways?
A: According to the Federal Highway Administration:
• Interstate 90, 3,021 miles between Seattle and Boston.
• Interstate 80, 2,900 miles between San Francisco and Ridgefield Park, N.J., near New York City.
• Interstate 40, 2,555 miles between Barstow, Calif., and Wilmington, N.C.
• Interstate 20, 2,460 miles between Los Angeles and Jacksonville, Fla.
• Interstate 70, 2,153 miles between Cove Fort, Utah, and Baltimore.
See more at: http://www.thecourier.com/Opinion/columns/2010/Feb/JU/ar_JU_020810.asp?d=020810,2010,Feb,08&c=c_13

I am currently subscribing to two law e-mails (Wall Street Journal Law Blog, beSpacific) and two language e-mails (A.Word.A.Day, The-Writing-Bug). I get ideas for the muse there, and also from reading and feedback from muse readers.

Reader response to Lancaster County article
Strasburg Railroad and Pennsylvania Railroad Museum in Lancaster County. http://www.strasburgrailroad.com/
Known as "Train Town USA," historic Strasburg is the home of numerous rail-based attractions. Take a 45-minute ride on the nation's oldest short-line railroad or wander through the halls of The National Toy Train Museum or The Railroad Museum of Pennsylvania. Strasburg. http://www.tripadvisor.com/Tourism-g53772-Strasburg_Pennsylvania-Vacations.html

Gross Domestic Product release, Fourth Quarter 2009 (Advance Estimate). Note - includes highlights, technical note, and associated tables.
• "Real gross domestic product - the output of goods and services produced by labor and property located in the United States -- increased at an annual rate of 5.7 percent in the fourth quarter of 2009, (that is, from the third quarter to the fourth quarter), according to the "advance" estimate released by the Bureau of Economic Analysis. In the third quarter, real GDP increased 2.2 percent. The Bureau emphasized that the fourth-quarter advance estimate released today is based on source data that are incomplete or subject to further revision by the source agency. The increase in real GDP in the fourth quarter primarily reflected positive contributions from private inventory investment, exports, and personal consumption expenditures (PCE). Imports, which are a subtraction in the calculation of GDP, increased."

Smishing is a form of criminal activity using social engineering techniques similar to phishing. The name is derived from "SMs phISHING". SMS (Short Message Service) is the technology used for text messages on cell phones. Similar to phishing, smishing uses cell phone text messages to deliver the "bait" to get you to divulge your personal information. The "hook" (the method used to actually "capture" your information) in the text message may be a web site URL, however it has become more common to see a phone number that connects to automated voice response system.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/SMiShing

Vishing is the criminal practice of using social engineering over the telephone system, most often using features facilitated by Voice over IP (VoIP), to gain access to private personal and financial information from the public for the purpose of financial reward. The term is a combination of "voice" and phishing. Vishing exploits the public's trust in landline telephone services, which have traditionally terminated in physical locations which are known to the telephone company, and associated with a bill-payer. The victim is often unaware that VoIP makes formerly difficult-to-abuse tools/features of caller ID spoofing, complex automated systems (IVR), low cost, and anonymity for the bill-payer widely available. Vishing is typically used to steal credit card numbers or other information used in identity theft schemes from individuals. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Vishing

Lancaster County, Pennsylvania has thrived over the years and now is home to people who speak over 26 different languages. Lititz is nestled in the heart land of rich farming country in Lancaster County. The earliest settlers were Swiss-German Mennonites in 1710 who fled religious persecution in Europe. They were quickly followed by the Moravians and Amish. They built old stone mills, wooden covered bridges and log homes. Many 18th Century town buildings have been wonderfully restored and can be enjoyed as you walk through town. Numerous local farms have been owned perpetually by the same families for 200 years. http://www.venturelititz.com/about.html

I recommend beautiful, historic Lancaster County to you as a destination. http://www.padutchcountry.com/Event
We have visited it from time to time when heading east to visit family. In fact, that's where we first saw the LEGO® art of Nathan Sawaya. See list of locations for his 2010 and 2011 exhibits at: http://brickartist.com/museum.html
See more of his brickwork at: http://abduzeedo.com/amazing-lego-art-nathan-sawaya

Eponyms
John Bull (jon bul) noun
1. A personification of England or the English people.
2. A typical Englishman.
After John Bull, a character in John Arbuthnot's satire, Law Is a Bottomless Pit (1712).
Maginot line (MAZH-uh-no lyn) noun
An ineffective line of defense that is relied upon with undue confidence.
After André Maginot (1877-1932), French Minister of War, who proposed a line of defense along France's border with Germany. Believed to be impregnable, the barrier proved to be of little use when Germans attacked through Belgium in 1940.
daltonism (DAWL-tuh-niz-em) noun
Color blindness, especially the inability to distinguish between red and green.
After John Dalton (1766-1844), chemist and physicist, who gave us Dalton's Law of Partial Pressures. He studied his own color blindness as well.
A.Word.A.Day with Anu Garg

From Buffalo, With Love
Chicken wings have evolved from being used to make stock to being one of America's favorite finger foods. The transition is said to have started on Oct. 30, 1964, at the Anchor Bar in Buffalo, N.Y. Bar owner Teressa Bellissimo was faced with feeding her son and a group of his friends a late night snack. Having an excess of chicken wings on hand, she fried them until done and crisp, dipped them in a mixture of butter and bottled hot sauce, and served them with crisp celery sticks and blue cheese salad dressing. The spontaneously invented snack was a smash hit and soon became a staple and signature item at the bar. Today the Anchor Bar cooks and serves 70 thousand pounds of chicken wings a month. The popularity of the chicken wings at the Anchor Bar could not be ignored by other eateries in the area. Local eateries picked up on the wing craze and soon their popularity spread regionally and nationally. Today the once lowly regarded chicken wing is a driving force in the national poultry market.
http://www.publicopiniononline.com/living/ci_14321920

Groundhog.org the official web site of Punxsutawney Phil was overwhelmed with a 4 fold increase in visits with 3.641 million unique visitors, 6.5 million visits and 14.4 pages viewed on Febuary 2, 2010. Phil's fans have more than doubled thier visits yearly and 2010 was a greater increase than ever. Coupled with our 10,000 visitors to Punxsutawney and the great interest from media outlets of all types Phil, the Inner Circle and Punxsutawney thanks you.

Groundhog cookies contain:
2 Cups sifted flour
1/2 tsp. salt
1/2 tsp. baking soda
1 tsp. baking powder
1 tsp. powdered ginger
1 tsp. ground cloves
1 1/2 tsp. cinnamon
1/2 Cup butter, softened
1 Cup sugar
1/2 Cup molasses
1 egg yolk
1 egg, slightly beaten
currants or cut up raisins See directions at:
http://www.penzeysone.com/cgi-bin/one/GroundhogR1.html

Chocolate groundhog cookies contain:
• 1/2 cup semi-sweet chocolate chips
• 1 14 oz. can sweetened condensed milk
• 1 teaspoon almond extract
• 1/2 cup sliced almonds, coarsely chopped
• 14 ounces chocolate sandwich cookies (such as Oreo), finely crushed
• 2 cups coconut, (approximately)
• semi-sweet chocolate chips, for eyes
Read more at Suite101: Chocolate Groundhog Cookie Recipe: Not Only Quick & Easy, These Chewy Chocolate Cookies Are Decadent! http://seasonalcooking.suite101.com/article.cfm/chocolate_groundhog_cookie_recipe#ixzz0eaNYJNzB

Budget of the United States Government - FY11: Contains the budget message of the President, information about the President's budget proposals for a given fiscal year, and other budgetary publications. "See the White House FY 2011 Budget website for details about different departments, terminations and reductions, or to learn how the budget will affect your state.
New York Times: Huge Deficits May Alter U.S. Politics and Global Power - "By President Obama’s own optimistic projections, American deficits will not return to what are widely considered sustainable levels over the next 10 years."
WSJ: White House Unveils $3.8 Trillion Budget - includes charts - "Budget Crunching: A look at how the Obama administration is counting on bringing in revenue and spending it in fiscal 2010."

Two congressional members from Missouri said on February 2 that they plan to file legislation blocking the Environmental Protection Agency from developing its own greenhouse gas rules. U.S. Reps. Ike Skelton, a Democrat, and Jo Ann Emerson, a Republican, sharply criticized federal environmental regulators and warned that because EPA officials are not elected, the agency is not accountable to the farmers, business owners and other Missouri residents who could be hurt. The EPA had concluded in December that that emissions of carbon dioxide and other greenhouse gases represent a danger to public health, which allows it to consider rules limiting them. That decision stems from a 2007 U.S. Supreme Court ruling that found greenhouse gases are air pollutants under federal clean-air laws. But the two Missouri lawmakers say Congress did not intend to give the EPA the authority to regulate greenhouse gases through the Clean Air Act. ''The EPA is controlled by bureaucrats who are not elected and are responsible only to the head of the EPA who is from New Jersey,'' said Skelton, who represents central and western Missouri. '' And I doubt that they understand mid-America, the Midwest, agriculture and what our farmers need to continue to do a good job for our country.'' http://www.nytimes.com/aponline/2010/02/02/us/AP-MO-Energy-Missouri.html

USGS Releases New One-Stop Source for Scientific Information about U.S. Oceans and Waters News release: "A one-stop source for biogeographic information collected from U.S. waters and oceanic regions is now available from the National Biological Information Infrastructure (NBII) Program. The OBIS-USA website offers a unique combination of tools, resources, and biodiversity information to aide scientists, resource managers and decision makers in the research and analyses critical to sustaining the nation’s valued marine ecosystems. OBIS-USA is a one-stop source for biogeographic data collected from U.S. waters and oceanic regions--the Arctic, the Atlantic and Pacific oceans, the Caribbean Sea, the Gulf of Mexico, and the Great Lakes. It provides access to highly distributed data sets from a multitude of partners documenting where and when species were observed or collected. The site allows one to examine each data set to assess its applicability for a variety of uses. Current functionality allows the user to view the data and FGDC compliant metadata as well as to view geographic, temporal or spatial extent; the taxonomic depth and richness.

February 2010 Petroleum Marketing Monthly With Data for November 2009— Feb 1, 2010:" "Monthly price and volume statistics on crude oil and petroleum products at a national, regional and state level.
Natural Gas Monthly — Jan 29, 2010: "Monthly natural and supplemental gas production, supply, consumption, disposition, storage, imports, exports, and prices in the United States.
Monthly Energy Review — Jan 29, 2010: "EIA's primary report of recent energy statistics: total energy production, consumption, and trade; energy prices; overviews of petroleum, natural gas, coal, electricity, nuclear energy, renewable energy, and international petroleum; carbon dioxide emissions; and data unit conversions. MER data show that in the first 10 months of 2009, total energy consumed by the industrial sector fell to 23 quadrillion Btu, down 11% from the first 10 months of 2008. See What's New in the Monthly Energy Review for a record of changes."

Back-formation is the process of forming a new word (a neologism) by extracting actual or supposed affixes from another word; shortened words created from longer words. Verb: back-form (itself a back-formation). "Stripping the in- from inchoate is known as back-formation, the same process that has given us words like peeve (from peevish), surveil (from surveillance) and enthuse (from enthusiasm). There’s a long linguistic tradition of removing parts of words that look like prefixes and suffixes to come up with “roots” that weren’t there to begin with." (Ben Zimmer, "Choate." The New York Times, Jan. 3, 2010) http://grammar.about.com/od/ab/g/backformterm.htm

Quote
In questions of science, the authority of a thousand is not worth the humble reasoning of a single individual. -Galileo Galilei, physicist and astronomer (1564-1642)

Tips from Cook's Illustrated, March & April 2010
• Poke holes in meat to allow marinades or seasonings to penetrate more deeply.
• Sprinkle sugar on fish fillet for faster browning before fish dries out.
• Soak dried beans overnight in brine of two teaspoons salt per quart of water.
• Make light brown sugar by adding 1 tbsp. molasses to 1 c. granulated sugar.
• Make dark brown sugar by adding 2 tbsp. molasses to 1 c. granulated sugar.
• Substitute half the amount called for fresh herbs if using dried herbs.
• Make 1 c. cake flour using 2 tbsp. cornstarch and 7/8 c. all-purpose flour.

On February 1, I followed a reader's link to www.groundhog.org that led me to a groundhog cookie recipe. On February 2, I put the link to the recipe in the muse, and a reader said her family had made them for years and brought some to lunch. Thanks, Peter. Thanks, Julie

If you missed out on the chance to bid on Alberto Giacometti's bronze sculpture, "Walking Man I," which sold for a world record $104 million in London on February 3, there's good news: The sculptor made another one just like it, and it's in Chicago. "Walking Man II" isn't for sale, but you can see it at the Art Institute of Chicago. The life-size sculpture -- which looks a bit like spaghetti slathered in mud -- is one of seven sculptures made by Giacometti, a Swiss surrealist who died in 1966.
http://www.suntimes.com/news/metro/2029391,CST-NWS-manwalk04.article
See images at: http://images.google.com/images?gbv=2&hl=en&sa=1&q=%22walking+man+II%22&aq=f&oq=&aqi=&start=0

The term "monetary policy" refers to the actions undertaken by a central bank, such as the Federal Reserve, to influence the availability and cost of money and credit to help promote national economic goals. The Federal Reserve Act of 1913 gave the Federal Reserve responsibility for setting monetary policy. The Federal Reserve controls the three tools of monetary policy--open market operations, the discount rate, and reserve requirements. The Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System is responsible for the discount rate and reserve requirements, and the Federal Open Market Committee is responsible for open market operations . Using the three tools, the Federal Reserve influences the demand for, and supply of, balances that depository institutions hold at Federal Reserve Banks and in this way alters the federal funds rate. The federal funds rate is the interest rate at which depository institutions lend balances at the Federal Reserve to other depository institutions overnight. Changes in the federal funds rate trigger a chain of events that affect other short-term interest rates, foreign exchange rates, long-term interest rates, the amount of money and credit, and, ultimately, a range of economic variables, including employment, output, and prices of goods and services.
http://www.federalreserve.gov/monetarypolicy/fomc.htm

The Federal Reserve Act of 1913 - A Legislative History
http://www.llsdc.org/FRA-LH/

FDA Pet Food Recall Products List Now Has Almost 1,000 Entries
Follow up to posting, FDA Pet Food Recall Website Updated and Expanded, see Pet Food Recall Products List - "Information current as of noon January 11, 2010. 973 entries in list - Recalls & Withdrawals for Animal & Veterinary Products."

Louis Auchincloss, a Wall Street lawyer from a prominent old New York family who became a durable and prolific chronicler of Manhattan’s old-money elite, died on January 26 night in Manhattan. He was 92. Although he practiced law full time until 1987, Mr. Auchincloss published more than 60 books of fiction, biography and literary criticism in a writing career of more than a half-century. http://www.nytimes.com/2010/01/28/nyregion/28auchincloss.html

Feedback from A.Word.A.Day with Anu Garg
From: Ron Frazier (ronfraz@verizon.net)
Subject: Lego artwork
See what else you can do with Lego blocks, besides build words!: Nathan Sawaya, a 36-year-old former lawyer, has stunned the world with his incredible LEGO artworks.
From: Sarah Festger (sarahfestger@q.com)
Subject: artiodactyl
Def: Having an even number of toes on each foot.
Since I lost two toes on one foot (even number) and three toes (odd number) on the other, I figure I am ambidactyl!
From: James Miller (millnjam@yahoo.com)
Subject: artiodactyl
He had four toes, useful and tactile;
He was cool with it, 's a matter of fact he'll
Often proclaim
"Tho' Arthur's my name,
Call me Artie--Artie O'Dactyl."

Q. Is it fount of knowledge or font of knowledge?
A. Strictly speaking, 'fountain of all knowledge' is correct rather than 'fount' or 'font'. All three are used nowadays, but the original fountain version was a 17th century quote and the other two are just more modern variants of that original. The quote is from 'An Essay Concerning Human Understanding' by the philosopher, John Locke, published in 1690. Clearly, in it he was referring to God. "Reason is natural revelation, whereby the eternal father of light, and fountain of all knowledge, communicates to mankind that portion of truth which he has laid within the reach of their natural facilities." In a 14th century book, God was referred to as "the fountain of all goodness" and in the 16th century Book of Common Prayer there is a reference to "Almighty God, the fountain of all wisdom". http://www.theanswerbank.co.uk/Phrases-and-Sayings/Question325997.html

More critters are challenging Punxsutawney Phil for the crown of Groundhog Day prognosticator. In his home state of Pennsylvania, he has rivals including Octorara Orphie of the Slumbering Groundhog Lodge in Quarryville, and Sammi II of Monroe County, who was pressed into service after Sammi I died of heatstroke after riding in a parade. Last year, Mel, a groundhog in Milltown, N.J., got into the act. http://online.wsj.com/article/SB20001424052748703762504575037220986428274.html

Groundhog cookies
http://www.penzeysone.com/cgi-bin/one/GroundhogR1.html

A proposal put forth by the National Association for Legal Placemen to push back the law-firm hiring process by a few months seemed at first fairly uncontroversial. But that was then. More recently, at least one firm, Jones Day, has lodged vociferous objection to the plan. Late last week, its hiring partner, Gregory Shumaker, fired off this seven-page letter to NALP, arguing that the proposed plan was not only unnecessary, but also potentially illegal. The National Association for Law Placement proposed adoption of a nationwide “offer kickoff date” in January for 2Ls hoping to land jobs for the following summer. Under the new policy, law firms would not be able to extend any summer associate offers until that time Click here for a recent National Law Journal story on the NALP move. The plan has its advocates. “I think NALP has taken a very thoughtful approach, and I think it's a step in the right direction,” Mark Webber, assistant dean for career services at Harvard Law School told the NLJ. “It slows down the frenzy quite a bit, and it gives the employers a chance to see the entire applicant pool.”
News Corp. has agreed to pay $500 million to settle four years of antitrust litigation over the company's practices in selling newspaper coupons and other marketing materials. Marketing-services firm Valassis had sued a unit of News Corp., News America Marketing, which sells coupon inserts in Sunday newspapers and in grocery-store displays. Valassis had alleged that the unit unfairly used its power with customers to gain advantages over competitors. Last year, a jury in a Michigan state court last year awarded $300 million to Valassis in related litigation, and a similar case has been pending in California. A federal-court trial was slated to begin on Tuesday.
The University of California San Diego has reportedly revived a decades-old plan to establish a law school through a partnership with San Diego-based California Western School of Law. Click here for the story, from the San Diego Union Tribune. The arrangement could range from a strengthened affiliation between the downtown San Diego private law school and the La Jolla public university to a full merger. Among the models being considered for UCSD and California Western are the law schools at Michigan State University and Pennsylvania State University. Penn State did not have a law school until 2000, when it merged with Dickinson School of Law, a private institution about 100 miles away. Since then, the school has been able to recruit distinguished scholars, increase the number of student applicants and broaden student diversity. Michigan State characterizes its partnership with the former Detroit College of Law as an affiliation. The private school, renamed Michigan State University College of Law, has merged its academic policies and faculty governance with the public university. It remains financially independent and does not take any state funding. In other new-law-school news, we're just a week away from a pivotal vote on whether to create the first public law school in Massachusetts. Under the proposal, the University of Massachusetts, Dartmouth would acquire the now private Southern New England School of Law.
WSJ Law Blog January 29, 2010