Daily Calendar for Thursday, October 10, 2024
Question of the Day
What’s the best way to propagate African violets?
Cuttings from African violets are fragile. Place a cutting on peat pellets that have been well soaked in water, then squeezed to remove excess moisture. Put the cutting and pellets in a small plastic bag, but use a stick or hard plastic tab to keep the bag from touching the cutting. Seal the bag tightly and place it in bright light. When the cutting grows a healthy clump of roots, transfer the pellets to a small pot that is about one-third the diameter of the cutting and its roots. African violets need plenty of light to bloom, and they often do well under fluorescent lights.
Advice of the Day
Keep your feet warm, your back straight, and your head cool. —The Old Farmer’s Almanac, 1942
Home Hint of the Day
Hairbrushes and combs can be cleaned by soaking them in water with a splash of ammonia. Let them sit for about 15 minutes, then rinse thoroughly before using.
Word of the Day
Moon’s phases
The continually changing appearance of the Moon, caused by the different angles at which it is illuminated by the Sun. First Quarter: The right half of the Moon is illuminated, as seen from the Northern Hemisphere. Full: The Sun and the Moon are in opposition; the entire disk of the Moon is illuminated as viewed from Earth. Last Quarter: The left half of the Moon is illuminated, as seen from the Northern Hemisphere. New: The Sun and the Moon are in conjunction; the entire disk of the Moon is darkened as viewed from Earth.
Puzzle of the Day
How does a pig write home?
With a pig pen filled with oink.
Born
- Henry Cavendish (chemist) –
- Benjamin West (painter) –
- The Viscount Monck (first Governor General of Canada 1867 - 1868.) –
- Cassie Chadwick (con artist, also known as Elizabeth Bigley, Emily Heathcliff, and Lydia DeVere) –
- Helen Hayes (actress) –
- Claude Simon (author) –
- Thelonious Monk (jazz pianist) –
- James Clavell (author) –
- Ed Wood (filmmaker) –
- Ben Vereen (actor) –
- David Lee Roth (singer) –
- Tanya Tucker (country music singer) –
- Jodi Benson (singer, voice of Ariel in The Little Mermaid) –
- Brett Favre (football player) –
- Dale Earnhardt Jr. (race car driver) –
- Mya (singer) –
Died
- Cassie Chadwick (con artist) –
- Yul Brynner (actor) –
- Orson Welles (actor & director) –
- Joseph Cates (director & producer) –
- Christopher Reeve (actor) –
- Ken Caminiti (baseball player) –
- Alex Karras (football player & actor) –
Events
- The United States Naval Academy (then named the Naval School) is founded in Annapolis, Maryland. –
- Tobacco heir Griswold Lorillard shocked his contemporaries by showing up to the autumn ball in a tailless dinner jacket, thus making the Tuxedo known –
- Sir Robert Borden became the 8th prime minister of Canada –
- In Washington, D.C., President Woodrow Wilson pushed the button that relayed the signal to blow up the center of the Gamboa Dike that was keeping Atlantic waters from Pacific waters in the Panama Canal –
- The American opera Porgy and Bess opened on Broadway –
- The movie Lassie Come Home premiered –
- The Red Baron first appeared in Peanuts comic strip –
- The Supremes appeared on the Ed Sullivan Show –
- London Bridge dedicated, Lake Havasu City, Arizona –
- Soyuz 25 mission scrapped after docking troubles –
- President Jimmy Carter signed a bill authorizing the minting of the Susan B. Anthony dollar coin –
- Asteroid Cruithne (quasi-satellite of Earth) discovered –
- The New England Patriots set an NFL record for consecutive victories with their 19th straight win –
- An unidentified boom was heard in parts of New Hampshire, Massachusetts, and Maine around 11:30 am. In some areas, shaking was also felt. An earthquake or military plane sonic boom were ruled out as possible causes. –
Weather
- Washington, D.C., had its earliest measurable snow of the 20th century –
- Worcester, Massachusetts, was blanketed with 7.5 inches of snow. –