International Kite Day - January 14, 2021

 DIANE'S CORNER .. Celebrate Int'l Kite Day

They’re pretty, they’re colorful, and they flutter and float in the air….what could they be? Kites, of course! Who could imagine a better way to spend time than with flocks of other people, every person with his or her own beautifully decorated kite? If you’re a fan of such happy, vibrant holidays, International Kite Day is not a holiday you’d like to miss.

The History of International Kite Day

International Kite Day originated in India, in the state of Gujarat, which is famous for the amount of festivals taking place there every year. The inhabitants of Gujarat begin manufacturing the kites months in advance so they can be sure to have enough, as millions of people visit Gujarat during it. The kite festival, called Uttarayan in Hindi, celebrates the day that winter ends and summer begins, as well as the upcoming harvest season, and the kites symbolize the spirits of the gods that are awaking from their deep winter sleep.

Originally, kite-flying was a sport practiced by royalty and the very wealthy, but in the recent years it has become a festival for all that people come from all over the country and even the world to take part in, especially people from Japan, Italy, the UK, Canada, Brazil, Indonesia, Australia, the USA, Malaysia, Singapore, France, and China.

thanks for the Ice Sculptures, Maria

Joke of the Day

Knock Knock 

Who's there? 

Snow 

Snow who? 

Snow business like show business!

Word of the Day

meech

MEANING:

verb intr.:
1. To move in a furtive manner.
2. To loiter.
3. To whine.

ETYMOLOGY:

A variant of mitch (to steal, hide, shirk), from Old French muchier (to hide). Earliest documented use: 1624.

USAGE:

“It never occurred to the legions of Allied intelligence agents meeching through the shadows of neutral Lisbon that he was a fellow operative.”
Howard Blum; Night of the Assassins; Harper; 2020.

“If I ever come right again, she won’t have anything to feel meeching about.”
William Dean Howells; The Rise of Silas Lapham; Penguin; 2014.

Idiom of the Day

What does 'Apples and oranges' mean?

'Apples and oranges' used when people compare or describe two totally different things. ('Apples to oranges' is also used.)

This Day in History

1878 - Alexander Graham Bell demonstrated the telephone for Britain's Queen Victoria.

1943 - U.S. President Franklin D. Roosevelt became the first U.S. President to fly in an airplane while in office. He flew from Miami, FL, to French Morocco where he met with British Prime Minister Winston Churchill to discuss World War II.

1952 - NBC's "Today" show premiered.

1954 - The Hudson Motor Car Company merged with Nash-Kelvinator. The new company was called the American Motors Corporation.

1967 - The first Human Be-in took place in Golden Gate Park, San Francisco.

1985 - Martina Navratilova won her 100th tournament. She joined Jimmy Connors and Chris Evert Lloyd as the only professional tennis players to win 100 tournaments.

2004 - In St. Louis, a Lewis and Clark Exhibition opened at the Missouri History Museum. The exhibit featured 500 rare and priceless objects used by the Corps of Discovery.

thanks, Joan

DAILY SQU-EEK

If You Were Born Today, January 14

You are success-oriented and generally good with money. Your character is strong and you are especially noticeable. You are aware that you can't please everyone, and this is something you accept. In fact, there will always be some people who are intimidated by your strong personality and one-track focus, but this doesn't concern you as much as it might others. You are organized and somewhat conservative. Highly attractive, in love, however, you can be a little contradictory and challenging to understand! Famous people born today: 

83 BC Mark Antony [Marcus Antonius], Roman politician and general (Battle of Actium), born in Rome (d. 30 BC)

1941 Faye Dunaway, American actress (Chinatown, Bonnie & Clyde), born in Bascom, Florida

1968 LL Cool J [James Todd Smith], American rapper (Bigger and Deffer), born in Bay Shore, New York

1969 Jason Bateman, American actor (Arrested Development, Ozark), born in Rye, New York

thanks, Wren

READERS INFO

1.

(Not So) Totally Useless Facts of The Day:

Though he is known more by one name, Picasso's full name is: Pablo Diego José Francisco de Paula Juan Nepomuceno María de los Remedios Cipriano de la Santísima Trinidad Martyr Patricio Clito Ruíz y Picasso.

The physical act of passing through a doorway is the reason why you often walk into a room and completely forget what you were doing. Because going through a door signifies the beginning or end of something, this creates an "event
boundary" within your mind. Basically, every time you walk through a doorway, your brain starts filing away thoughts from your previous location to make room for a new group of memories in the next.

At 3.9 seconds, JamesOn Curry holds the distinction of having the shortest career in the history of the NBA (National Basketball Association. Curry was drafted by the Chicago Bulls during the summer of 2007 but never played a minute for them. It wasn’t till January 2010, as a member of the Los Angeles Clippers, that he took the court. He only played in one professional game and was only on the court for 3.9 seconds

2.

thanks for the Offbeat Holiday, Patty

14th January – Dress Up Your Pet Day.

Put a fedora on your pooch, or go all out and dress the cat in a bumble-bee costume. Today is the perfect day for it!

3.

Coronavirus Style by Sylvia, CAN DO Correspondent

Something rich for an elegant occasion!

Pictures of the Day

A selection of Alaskan wild berries from Innoko National Wildlife Refuge. This selection of woodland berries, including raspberries and blueberries are actually false berries. The common use of the word berry, simply refers to any small, sweet, fleshy fruit. The botanical use of the word is based on which part of the plant's ovary develop into the fruit.

Near Lyon, France

A bird flies above Poleymieux au Mont d'Or.

knit
thanks, Emma

Chrysantheme pattern by Sabine Naumann

knit
thanks, Charlotte

Esquina Cowl pattern by Lisa R. Myers

knit

Penguin Pullover

knit

Carpenter's Run Scarf pattern by Jocelyn Tunney

knit, translate

Коралловые кружевные следки спицами

Crochet Patterns of the Day: 

thanks, Valerie, Canadian Correspondent

The Staycation Women's Crochet Cardigan

The Staycation Free Crochet Cardigan Pattern With Plus Sizes (S-3X)

crochet
thanks, Marge

The Coco Sweater

crochet
thanks, Stella

Mini Amigurumi Pig

crochet

On the Town Shawl

crochet

Triangles – geometric pillow

crochet

Primrose and Proper Cowl

RECIPE

thanks, Shelley, New York Food Correspondent

Warm Crab Dip

Quarantine Cooking Recipes

thanks, Debbie

Lemon-Shallot Scallops

CROCKPOT RECIPE

Contest-Winning Chicken Cacciatore

VEGAN/ VEGETARIAN RECIPE

Both vegetarian and vegan diets may provide health benefits, including reduced body weight, lower cholesterol levels, and decreased risk of cardiovascular disease. However, it is important for vegetarians and vegans to ensure that they are meeting all of their nutritional requirements.

thanks, Alice

Black Bean Hummus Dip

COPYCAT RECIPE 

thanks, Jenny

Melting Pot Copycat Beer Cheese Fondue Recipes

RETRO

thanks, Ann

Healthy, Southern-Style Biscuit Recipe

SWEETS

thanks, Patsy

Lemon Bliss Cake

ADULT COLORING

FUN

Two fathers and two sons are in a car, yet there are only three people in the car. How?

Answer: They are a grandfather, father and son.

CRAFTS .. Valentine's Day

thanks, Ellie

Easy Valentine's Bag

CHILDREN'S CORNER .. Valentine's Day

thanks, Sonja

DIY Heart Stamp Art

PUZZLE

Polo Mallets Jigsaw Puzzle

WORD SEARCH

autumn ballerina beef behind bets bogus breeze bright

cares chord comet core emir escape essence excursion flower

honey justice maybe motor neutral never nook nuisance

paper queer reach relax shadow shame shine

sight sneer softly summative that toes track water

SUDOKU .. hard

answer:

ICE BREAKER ..

thanks, Kris

You can use 'ice breaker questions' to build a rapport, enabling strangers to engage in back and forth conversion. With a little practice and possibly a beer or two, you’ll be breaking more ice than the Titanic. 

If You Were A Vegetable, What Would You Be?

QUOTE

thanks, Lily

CLEVER 

thanks, Susie, West Coast Correspondent

5 books to enjoy this winter

EYE OPENER 

thanks, Ina

The English Word That Hasn’t Changed in Sound or Meaning in 8,000 Years

A THOUGHT FOR TODAY:

Compassion, in which all ethics must take root, can only attain its full breadth and depth if it embraces all living creatures and does not limit itself to mankind. -Albert Schweitzer, philosopher, physician, musician, Nobel laureate (14 Jan 1875-1965)

OPTICAL ILLUSION

Curvature blindness illusion

Most people, looking at the grey-background section of the above image, will see sets of parallel lines, alternating between gently wavy and jagged zig-zags. But - they're all wavy. Every last one of them.

This is called curvature blindness, and it requires a very specific set of conditions. If you look at the corners with the white background and the black background, you'll see that all the lines appear wavy.

If you look more closely at the zig-zag lines in the grey section, you'll see that the dark and light sections fall neatly exactly between the peaks and troughs, while the wavy lines have darker and lighter sections directly over the peaks and troughs.

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