You would think that the stone for February would be something
pinkish, or red, like the ruby (which is for July) in honor of St.
Valentine's Day. But it is not. It is a beautiful violet to purple
stone called "amethyst" (which I can't pronounce). The name comes
from the German for "non-drunkenness", probably because in the 15th
century it was thought that either wearing an amethyst while drinking or
drinking from an amethyst cup (darn, I lost mine in the last move),
would prevent intoxication. One of the other uses for amethyst is
as a love charm, so it seems it is an acceptable gem for this month.
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February 22 is the birthday of President George
Washington (remember we used to get out of school on
that day, remember?).
February 12 is the birthday of President Abraham
Lincoln. In fact it is his 200th birthday. (We
used to get out for that day
too).
Galileo was born on February 15, 1564. That is
about all the birthdays I know, except for the ones
near the bottom of the page.
Also on February 15, quite a bit later, in 1903, the
Teddy Bear was introduced.
From Bill Swank I got this bit of history:
What were the burning issues in America 100 years
ago?
On February 9, 1909, the Supreme Court of Kansas
ruled that it was not immoral to play baseball on
Sunday. Ernest Prather had been found guilty of
playing ball on the Sabbath. He appealed his
conviction. Justice Proter ordered his release from
custody "on the grounds that baseball is a national
sport and has no immoral tendencies."
Still on the subject of baseball, on February
9, 1971, pitcher Leroy "Satchel" Paige became the
first Negro League veteran to be nominated to the
Baseball Hall of Fame.
On February 12, 1941 the first Gold Record was
awarded to Glenn Miller for Chattanoga Choo Choo.
Mardi Gras is on February 24 this year, and Lent
begins on Ash Wednesday, February 25.
February is Responsible Pet Owners Month, And
February 17th is Random Acts of Kindness Day. Hope
you are all inspired.


!!!!WARNING!!!!
I received a
really authentic looking e-mail a
few days ago. The sender address was
<stimulus at
irs.gov> (I didn't put the
@ sign as it would make the
address into a link, and I don't
want anyone to click on it). Since
irs.gov is a legitimate address,
the letter looks real. And
since "stimulus" is in the news all
the time, and it is tax paying time,
it is easy to accept this as
genuine;
IT IS NOT!!!
This is the text of the letter,
which also included an attachment at
the bottom to download:
After the last annual
calculations of your fiscal activity
we have determined that
you are eligible to receive a
Stimulus Payment.
Please submit the Stimulus Payment
Online Form in order to process it.
A Stimulus Payment can be delayed
for a variety of reasons.
For example submitting invalid
records or applying after the
deadline.
To submit your Stimulus Payment
form, please download the document
attached to your email.
<<<<
Note: If filing or preparation fees
were deducted from your 2008 Refund
or you
received a refund anticipation loan,
you will be receiving a check
instead of a
direct deposit.
Regards,
Internal Revenue Service
I thought it
looked
a little "bare" since it
didn't say "Dear Mr. (or
Mrs.) Davila, and didn't
seem to have anything to
make it look really official
-just seemed a little
"off". So I checked with
www.snopes.com (urban
legend/rumor site).
I won't write all that they
said here, but they did say
it was a "phishing" scheme,
and a good one because most
people are dealing with the
irs at this time of year.
If you got one of these
e-mails, I urge you to check
out this (click on it)
http://www.snopes.com/fraud/phishing/irsrefund.asp
for
the information you need.
Do not download the form; do
not click on any thing that
might be on the e-mail
(including the "sent by"
address at the top).
You are asked to forward the
letter to
phishing@irs.gov.
I did that and got a reply
from them, with a thank you,
and a mention that the
irs does
not
contact individuals by
e-mail.
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Photos from
Yesteryear
Karen Young
Bowling sent
these
pictures;
they had
been sent to
her by Terry
Brandt, who
also
attended our
50th
Reunion.
They had
been next
door
neighbors in
a Pacific
Beach
project
between 1941
and 1955.
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Terry and
Karen
Karen, her
mom, and her
sister,
LaDona |
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First
Saturday
Breakfast
Bunch
February 7,
2009
everybody
welcome everyone
welcome
Next Breakfast- March 7, 2009 |
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9 A.M.
5955 Balboa Ave. (at Mt. Alifan/Mt. Abernathy)
There was an almost overflow crowd this time at Coco's, 32 of us! I don't think I need to say anything more about that, except that it was great to see everyone, especially on a rainy cold day like it was.
Here we are:
Class of 1956: Betty Minga Brown; Joan Fredericks Hacecky & husband, Ray A. Hacecky; LuAnn Easterly Giegler & hubby, Don (Ill. class of '54); David Castle
Class of 1958: Marie Gilmour Davila and hubby, Bob (Tex. class of 1955); Sheila Mura; Pat Defore Barr; Aline Minga Brown & husband Don; Bill Swank & wife, Jeri Lynne (class of '66); Bill Lansville; Orpha Higley; Judi Michael Shacklett & hubby, John (class of '57, Grossmont); Wayne Lollis & Pam Priest Lollis; Walter Andersen & wife, Jody (class of '62); Linda Moreno Robertson; Alice Clune Spakes; Larry Beyersdorf & wife, Kimberly
Class of 1959: Christiana Hughes Wagner; Bill Curtis & wife, Mary Lynn Dudley Curtis (class of 1962); Barbara Grayson Bell; Rosemary Pleger Jackson; Carolyn Clune

Linda, Pam & Wayne, Alice, Bill Swank Carolyn Clune, Alice, Linda |
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Betty Minga Brown in green shirt Aline Minga Brown; Joan Fredericks Hacecky;
LuAnn Giegler; Ray A. Hacecky
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Mary Curtis talking behind her husband's back to Christiana Wagner, while Bill visits with Pam Priest Lollis
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Glad to have Kimberly & Larry Beyersdorf back Bob jokes with Jody & Walter Andersen.
and "All-timers, Don Geigler & David Castle Mary & Chrissy still at it!
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Clockwise, visible: Bill & Mary Curtis; Sheila Mura; Pat DeFore Barr; Jeri Lynne Swank; Aline Minga Brown & Don; Judi Michael Shacklett; Wayne Lollis (turned away) & wife, Pam Priest Lollis-still talking to Bill; Linda Moreno Robertson in back of Mary-top left.
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