This Is An Important Day In Our Lives
12 years without cancer, yeah!!! Our dancing friends are so very nice. When we arrived they had gotten a big chocolate cake which we shared with everybody there... Thanks all!
Before Donna and her magic ball point pen
Did you know? - László Bíró, a Hungarian newspaper editor, was frustrated by the amount of time that he wasted in filling up fountain pens and cleaning up smudged pages, and the sharp tip of his fountain pen often tore his pages of newsprint. Bíró had noticed that the type of ink used in newspaper printing dried quickly, leaving the paper dry and smudge free. He decided to create a pen using the same type of ink. Since, when tried, this viscous ink would not flow into a regular fountain pen nib, Bíró, with the help of his brother George, a chemist, began to work on designing new types of pens. Bíró fitted this pen with a tiny ball in its tip that was free to turn in a socket. As the pen moved along the paper, the ball rotated, picking up ink from the ink cartridge and leaving it on the paper. Bíró filed a British patent on 15 June 1938.
Earlier pens leaked or clogged due to improper viscosity of the ink, and depended on gravity to deliver the ink to the ball. Depending on gravity caused difficulties with the flow and required that the pen be held nearly vertically. The Biro pen both pressurized the ink column and used capillary action for ink delivery, solving the flow problems
After Donna... A work of...... well... err.... art???
Did you know? - Styrofoam is a trademark of Dow Chemical Company for extruded polystyrene foam presently made for thermal insulation and craft applications.
In 1941, researchers in Dow's Chemical Physics Lab found a way to make foamed polystyrene. Led by Ray McIntire, they had "rediscovered" a method first discovered by Swedish inventor Carl Georg Munters. Dow acquired exclusive rights to use Munter's patents and found ways to make large quantities of extruded polystyrene as a closed cell foam that resists moisture. Because of its insulating properties, buoyancy and "unsinkability," it was adopted in 1942 by the U.S. Coast Guard for use in a six-person life raft. Styrofoam can be used for building materials, including insulated sheathing, pipe insulation and floral and craft products. Styrofoam insulation has been used in many notable buildings and facilities in North America. The Dow insulation product can be identified by its distinctive blue color; Styrofoam for craft applications is available in white and green.
In the United States, the word styrofoam is often used as a generic term for expanded polystyrene foam, such as disposable coffee cups, coolers or packaging material, which are typically white and are made of expanded polystyrene beads. This is different from the extruded polystyrene used for Styrofoam insulation. The polystyrene foam used for craft applications, which can be identified by its roughness and by the fact that it "crunches" when cut, is moderately soluble in many organic solvents, cyanoacrylate and the propellants and solvents of spray paint, is not specifically identified as expanded or extruded.
Opening a cake can be tricky... Leon and Marsha will figure it out!
Success
Twelve wonderful years
Did you know? - An anniversary (from the Latin anniversarius, from the words for year and to turn, meaning (re)turning yearly; known in English since c. 1230) is a day that commemorates and/or celebrates a past event that occurred on the same day of the year as the initial event. For example, the first event is the initial occurrence or, if planned, the inaugural of the event. One year later would be the first anniversary of that event. The word was first used for Catholic feasts to commemorate saints.
For monthly recurrences, one might say mensiversary, from the Latin word mensis, for month, and versus, meaning to (re)turn. Mensiversary was used in a 1925 Time magazine article, titled 18th Mensiversary.
Now this is a real picture!!!
Donna and Sue do the obligatory toast
Did you know? - The custom of touching glasses is often believed to have evolved from concerns about poisoning, since clinking glasses together would cause each drink to spill over into the others. This, however, is not true.
The word 'toast' became associated with the custom in the 17th century, based on a custom of flavoring drinks with spiced toast. The word originally referred to the lady in whose honor the drink was proposed, her name being seen as figuratively flavoring the drink.
The act of toasting consists of three parts: The verbal toast, the agreement, and imbibing a drink.
- Verbal: In the verbal part, one person states a reason for the toast. This can be as simple as "Cheers!", or "Here's to good friends!", or as complex as a conveying an anecdote followed by a statement of goodwill such as "Wishing both of you a marriage that lasts forever".
- Agreement: People joining in the toast signify their agreement by lifting their drinks into the air, often accompanied by shouted or murmured sounds of agreement, either repeating the toast word (e.g., "Cheers!") or confirming the sentiment with terms such as "Hear! Hear!", and often followed by touching one's drinkware against those of everyone else within reach.
The principal part of this agreement, that of raising glasses, actually precedes the verbal element in many cases. This is the case when someone announces "raise your glass for a toast" and people do so. The person contributing the verbal element may then wait until everyone is in position before making a statement.
- Imbibing: Imbibing a drink "seals" the toast. This can be a quick sip or a long draft, with no particular emphasis indicated either way in most cultures. However, in some cases (such as toasting with small glasses of vodka in Russia or certain Scandinavian countries) there is an expectation that one drain the glass. In Japan, Korea, and China, traditional liquors like gaoliang and soju are consumed from small glasses, and it is common to toast with "Kampai" (Japan), "Gunbae" (Korea) or "Ganbei" (China and Taiwan) which literally means "dry glass." Thus downing the entire drink is appropriate after these toasts.
Placing one's glass down without drinking or holding one's glass without drinking while becoming distracted by some other activity is impolite. If a person does this willfully, it demonstrates that they do not agree with the toast for some reason (e.g., it was inappropriately ribald or advocated a political cause with which the person strongly disagrees). This negates the agreement previously indicated by the having one's glass raised.
Sandy Helped Serve The Cake
Empty glasses, Paul is around here somewhere!!
Ah ha... Caught in th act!
When We Got Home Sarge Was Busy Protecting The House
Both folklore and archeological finds show that the breed originated in Mexico. The most common theory and most likely is that Chihuahuas are descended from the Techichi, a companion dog favored by the Toltec civilization in Mexico.
Sarge actually turns colors when protecting the house
Did you know? - Being naturally territorial and protective, Chihuahuas can be easily provoked to attack, and are therefore generally unsuitable for homes with small children, but not in all cases.[9] The AKC describes the breed as, "A graceful, alert, swift-moving little dog with saucy expression, compact, and with terrier-like qualities of temperament." The breed tends to be fiercely loyal to one particular owner, but may be attached to more.