exPlosive ePistle

 Famous First Words: Be it known... American Library Association Charter of 1879

It's National Popcorn Poppin' Month. Pete Popcorn asked to be cremated which in hindsight was probably a bad idea. / Popcorn for breakfast. Why not? It's a grain. It's like grits, but with high self esteem. --James Patterson

..........Can't be bad to feel so good.........Jim, Ted, Lila, and the Ensemble …..Steppin' Out With My Baby

A democracy thrives on diversity. Tyranny oppresses it. --Sam Brownback

It is a gray Friday morning. A pale blue sky is crowded with clouds – white & fluffy to gray & smooth. The rising sun leaks out in streaks and pools that somehow make the morning seem even grayer. 49°F is chilly and demands that jacket that has shuffled itself to the back of the closet. Wind of 10 mph from the northwest encourages the feel of coolness and autumn. Willow branches are nearly horizontal and waving gaily. Even the mulberry seems happy with the fall breeze. It smells of autumn, a mixture of dried leaves blowing around the lawn and dry soil preparing for a winter's nap. But no smell of pumpkin spices or of mulled cider. There is no birdsong nor bird flights into the constantly moving leaves and branches; the only sounds are motors racing and Puck snoring. I am eating a blueberry muffin and watching the morning blow past my window. And now, I get to write to you. Perfect.

I hope your weekend really pops, ePistlers

First Funniest Thing I Read of the Week: You know in High School if you didn't believe in Science or History, it was just called failing. --Michelle Wolf --Submitted by bc of tx

It's hard raising popcorn. If it grows too high, its ears pop. / You can always burn 400 calories, just leave the popcorn in the microwave too long.

..........A little rain, a little sun, a little work, a little fun.........Jim …..The Little Things In Life

Trivia Questions: Happy World Smile Day !

• ^ Why is smiling such a pleasant activity?
• ^^ How many types of smiles are there?
• ^^^ Who smiles most adults or children?
• ^^^^ Is it really easier to smile than to frown?
• ^^^^^ Are there other species that smile?

Big Hello: Gegacginas – Laz (Turkey & Georgia) https://www.omniglot.com/language/phrases/hello.htm

Second Funniest Thing I Read of the Week: We should be able to call in healthy. “Look, I'm not coming into the office today. I feel really good and I don't want to waste it on being at work.” --Bob Kostic --Submitted by gr of oh

Image of the Week: from the University of Kansas Monarch Watch

Fake Library Statistics of the Week: 5 out of 5 dentists and librarians agree that it is just plain gross to chew on those little library pencils. https://www.facebook.com/FakeLibStats/?fref=ts

Paula Popcorn joined the army and they immediately made her a kernel. / Cora Cow broke into the movie theater and ate all the snacks she could find. It was popcorned beef.

..........I'd be happy to be doing it with you.........Jim, Lila, and Louise …..It's A Lovely Day Today

Moonbeam: Progress is man' s ability to complicate simplicity. --Thor Heyerdahl

Reader Response of the Week: So, the joke around here is that at a convention the decaf was labeled “Sad Brown Water”. --Submitted by kys of wa

Puzzle of the Week: From Sid Sivakumar, who's one of the top crossword contributors for the New York Times. Name a major U.S. city in two words. Change the first letter of the first word and the next-to-last letter of the second word. Then rearrange all the letters to name the people who live in this city. What city was it? NPR Sunday Puzzle 10/1/23

Next Funniest Thing I Read of the Week: What I'm fighting for in the Senate right now: Calling out Republican BS, Protecting SNAP benefits for hungry families, Ending the racist war on drugs and legalizing weed...And I'm doing it all in short. --John Fetterman

There was a courthouse in upstate Idaho that used to serve popcorn to everyone involved in a trial: the judge, the defendant, the lawyers, the staff, and the jurors. It was special popcorn that ensured justice was served. They were kernels of truth. / Should we pop some corn right now? Maize well.

..........It's been a hell of a wonderful day.........Linda …..Nothing More To Say

^ Endorphins are released when you smile. Endorphins are chemicals released into the brain. They are a natural painkiller and help your mood. Keep smiling because when you do, endorphins are released into your brain!

Almanac: It is Friday, October 6, 2023. The moon goes into the last quarter today and is in Cancer. It is American Libraries Day, Mad Hatter Day, National German-American Day, and World Smile Day. Because it is the first Friday it is also Lee's National Denim Day, Manufacturing Day, and National Diversity Day.

Among those born on this day were Jenny Lind, the Swedish Nightingale (1820), Richard Chadwick (1824), Richard Dedekind (1831), George Westinghouse (1846), Martin Luis Guzm (1887), Janet Gaynor (1906), Carol Lombard (1909), Thor Heyerdahl (1914), Hafez al Assad (1930), and Britt Ekland (1942).

On October sixth the American Chess Association was organized (1857), the first US train was robbed (1866), the American Library Association was organized (1876), the Mormon Church outlawed polygamy (1890), Chiang Kai-Shek became president of China (1928), the San Francisco zoo opened (1940), Barbra Streisand appeared on the Judy Garland Show (1963), the US 67th staffed space mission (Discovery 11) was launched (1990), Elizabeth Taylor wed Larry Fortensky (her 8th, 1991 -Michael Jackson gave her away ), Glenn Frey underwent colon surgery (1994), and Holiday Inn opened at Studio 54 (2016).

Night Sky, 10/6: The Great Square of Pegasus balances on its corner high in the east at nightfall. For your location, when will it be exactly balanced? That is, when will the Square's top corner be exactly above its bottom corner? This will be sometime in the evening depending on your latitude. Try lining up the stars with the vertical edge of a building as a measuring tool. The line's tilt changes very slowly. http://www.skyandtelescope.com/observing/sky-at-a-glance/

Fraternal Picture of the Week: Grandpa Brault and his pool

This Week: Saturday, October 7 – Kids Music Day & National Forgiveness Day & World Cotton Day

Sunday, October 8 – Clergy Appreciation Day & National Salmon Day & World Octopus Day

Night Sky, 10/8: Draconid Meteor Shower; Peaks around 8^th or 9^th. Best seen in the evening just after nightfall. The rate per hour is listed as variable.

Monday, October 9 – Indigenous Peoples' Day & National Kick Butt Day & World Postcard Day

Tuesday, October 10 – Hug A Drummer Day & National Metric Day & World Homeless Day

Wednesday, October 11 – Bullying Prevention Day & National Coming Out Day & National Bring Your Teddy Bear to Work (or School) Day

Night Sky, 10/11: Mercury is low around dawn this week. About 30 or 40 minutes before sunrise, look for it due east three fists at arm's length or more to the lower left of high Venus, as shown above. Mercury remains a bright magnitude –1.0.

Thursday, October 12 – Drink Local Wine Day & World Arthritis Day

Are you popcorn? Well, I sure wanna take you to a movie. / Hearing nuns' confessions is like being stoned to death with popcorn. --Fulton Sheen

..........Telling the blues to go.........Louise, Jim, and the Ensemble …..Shaking The Blues Away

^^ There are 18 kinds of smiles: 1) The fixed polite smile 2) The embarrassed smile (I don’t know anyone) 3) The tight-lipped relieved smile (oops, that was a close call) 4) The exhausted smile (that of happiness after a long race) 5) The sadistic smile (it particularly exudes jealousy) 6) The exasperated smile (expresses our annoyance) 7) The compliant smile (takes bad news with resignation; it will be over soon) 8) The diplomatic smile (a “professional” smile) 9) The ecstatic smile (life is wonderful) 10) The exaggerated smile (imitation of joy, a little forced) 11) The worried smile (the situation is really awkward) 12) The contemptuous smile (one is secretly a bit spiteful) 13) The ironic smile (welcome to sarcasm) 14) The fake smile (to hide an emotion of weakness) 15) The delighted smile (in front of a baby) 16) The warm smile (that of a mother encouraging her child) 17) The meditative smile (Buddha-like, filled with compassion) 18) The amorous smile (the most communicative)

Preantepenultimate Funniest Thing I Read of the Week: The mine owners do not find the gold, they do not mine the gold, they do not mill the gold, but by some weird alchemy all the gold belongs to them. --Big Bill Haywood --Submitted by rib of ks

Moonbeam: I don't believe in war as a solution to any kind of conflict, nor do I believe in heroism on the battlefield because I have never seen any. --Thor Heyerdahl

Video of the Week: Barbra Streisand on the Judy Garland Show (1963 3:27) singing Happy Days Are Here Again and Go On Get Happy

Not So Late Night Snacks of the Week: New Phone Etiquette Rules: So, what is the most important rule about leaving voicemails? --Peter Sagal Don't --Jessi Klein Don't ever leave a voicemail. --Peter Sagal Wait Wait Don't Tell Me 9/30/23

You don't have true freedom until you allow a diversity of opinion and a diversity of voices. --Don Lemon

Perry Popcorn's last words were, “More oil, please”. / Pirate popcorn goes for a buck an ear.

..........One minute to go..........Linda and the Ensemble …..Let's Start The New Year Right

^^^ Research shows that children smile an average of 400 times per day, compared to the average happy adult who smiles 40-50 times per day and the typical adult who smiles only 20 times per day

Antepenultimate Funniest Thing I Read of the Week: Sorry, I'm never going to research the nuances of any labor dispute. The side with the obscene amounts of money is wrong. --Submitted by Sb of ar

Weird Word of the Week: Deasil – to move righthandwards, in the direction of the sun, clockwise. http://www.worldwidewords.org/weirdwords/ww-dea1.htm

Dragon of the Week: The Popcorn Dragon

Wacky Uses for Common Products: Make cushioned pads for shoes. Cut foot pads from Bubble Wrap and slip them into your shoes. They'll cushion your feet for up to six hours. https://www.wackyuses.com/wacky/bubblewrap.html

The popcorn crop was so plentiful this year the farmers are grinning from ear to ear. / To make their savory popcorn, Topsy's uses a little garlic salt and poprika.

...........They'll be sold out of popcorn.........Jim and Linda …..Let's Take An Old Fashioned Walk

^^^^ It really does take more muscles to frown, about 47 of them. And for smiling, we only use about 13. So it's true, it really does take more muscles to frown than it does to smile.

Penultimate Funniest Thing I Read of the Week: I'll take the old guy who needs another nap over the old guy who needs another defense attorney any day. --Submitted by jm or ks

Science Fiction Convention of the Week: Pax Australia 2023 aka Pax Aus (6-8, Melbourne) A place to uncover that hidden indie gem... https://aus.paxsite.com/en-us.html

Worthless Fact of the Week: There is White Popcorn - which comes in Lady Finger, Gourmet White, Gourmet Red, Baby White, Sweet Baby Blue, Tender & White. Yellow Popcorn - which comes in Baby Yellow, Gourmet Yellow (popular with theaters), Gourmet Mushroom "Brains", Big & Yellow, and Extra Large Caramel. Hulless Popcorn - Gourmet White, Gourmet Red, Baby WHite, Baby Yellow, Lady Finger, Midnight Blue, Vintage Red, and Tender & White.

Actual Science Conference of the Week: Association of Science and Technology Centers Annual Conference (7-10, Charlotte, NC) ...Dedicated to increasing the understanding of and engagement with science and technology among all people. https://www.astc.org/about/

Answer to Puzzle of the Week: San Francisco →> Californians

Can popcorn have too much butter on it? Discuss. / Gloria Gourmet Yellow was so excited because she'd just won the corntest.

..........Heaven, I'm in heaven.........Ted, Linda, and the Ensemble

^^^^^ We’re not the only ones who smile! Smiling is a human expression which comes naturally to us. Apes, monkeys and chimpanzees smile too! When they are tickled they have been known to laugh.

Saying of the Jewish Buddha of the Week: Deep inside you are ten thousand flowers. Each flower blossoms ten thousand times. Each blossom has ten thousand petals. You might want to see a specialist. https://www.tikkun.org/sayings-of-the-jewish-buddhist/

Quote of the Week: I'm innocent. What's wrong you guys? --Senator Menendez

Final Funniest Thing I Read of the Week: Huge plot hole in reality: Every person carries around a device with access to the totality of human knowledge and yet people are constantly wrong about everything. --Dice Funk --Submitted by MMS

Today's Peace of History: October 6, 1955: Poet Allen Ginsberg read his poem "Howl" for the first time at Six Gallery in San Francisco. The poem was an immediate success that rocked the Beat literary world and set the tone for confessional poetry of the 1960s and later. "Howl and Other Poems" was printed in England, but its second edition was seized by customs officials as it entered the U.S. City Lights, a San Francisco bookstore, published the book itself to avoid customs problems, and store owner (and poet) Lawrence Ferlinghetti was arrested and tried for obscenity, but defended by the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU).

Popcorn is sow a-maize-ing. / Our chemistry is like popcorn – it can't be contained.

..........It's more than a valentine.........Jim and Linda …..It's My Heart

Masthead of the Week: Friday ePistle, October 6, 2023, exPlosive ePistle. Online at: http://fridayepistle.blogspot.com/ Exclusive editor: Christine Smith. Lawrence, KS.

Moonbeam: In my experience, it is rarer to find a really happy person in a circle of millionaires than among vagabonds. --Thor Heyerdahl

Cost of War:

• As of 10/05/23 State Department War Costs since 2001: $218,364,241,913.
• As of 09/28/23 State Department War Costs since 2001: $217,807,136,029.
• As of 10/05/23 Interest on War Debt since 2001: $1,169,017,480,923.
• As of 09/28/23 Interest on War Debt since 2001: $1,167,461,444,632.
• As of 10/05/23 Homeland Security since 2001: $1,148,895,719,848.
• As of 09/28/23 Homeland Security since 2001: $1,148,290,607,793.
• As of 10/05/23 Veterans Care since 2001: $3,285,713,953,245.
• As of 09/28/23 Veterans Care since 2001:$3,274,920,363,384.
• As of 10/05/23 Military Costs since 2001: $3,047,272,744,163.
• As of 09/28/23 Military Costs since 2001: $3,046,091,450,219.
• As of 10/05/23 Total Cost of Wars since 2001: $8,870,268,096,807.
• As of 09/28/23 Total Cost of Wars since 2001: $8,854,573,085,174.

https://www.nationalpriorities.org/cost-of/

A diverse mix of voices leads to better discussions, decisions, and outcomes for everyone. --Sundar Pichai

Famous Last Words: ...in the western night. --Allen Ginsberg Howl

..........While the merry bells keep ringing.........Jim, Louise, and the Ensemble ,,,,,Happy Holidays ~~All of today's songs are from the musical, Holiday Inn, featuring the songs of Irving Berlin

What's the subtle difference between popcorn and pea soup? You can pop corn but you can't pee soup. / I'm so glad you popped into my life.

May Peace wrap you in its arms
And Joy whisper comfort in your ear
prairie mama
christine

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