More You Know #2

I’ve decided to not repost FYI starting December 1, 2021. You will still find new MYK in my blog.

11/30/21: MORE YOU KNOW: TOP 20 DISASTERS BY COST AND FATALITIES

List of the top 20 disasters by cost in billions based on 2021 inflation (source: Wikipedia)

1. 1986 Chernobyl with radioactive contamination in Soviet Union cost 774 billion
2. 2011 Tōhoku earthquake and tsunami with radioactive contamination in Japan cost 423 billion
3. 1995 Great Hanshin earthquake in Japan cost 344 billion
4. 2021 North American winter storm in U.S., Mexico, Canada cost 196 billion
5. 2001 U.S. terrorist attack cost 32 to 199 billion
6. 2008 Sichuan earthquake in China cost 179 billion
7. 2005 Hurricane Katrina in U.S. cost 167 billion
8. 2017 Hurricane Harvey in U.S. cost 133 billion
9. 2010 Deepwater Horizon with oil contamination cost 72 to 120 billion
10. 1988 and 1989 North American drought in U.S and Canada cost 115 billion
11. 2017 Hurricane Maria in Puerto Rico, Dominica, Guadeloupe cost 97 billion
12. 1994 Northridge earthquake in U.S. cost 88 billion
13. 2019 and 2020 Bushfire in Australia cost 71 billion
14. 2012 Hurricane Sandy in Haiti, U.S., Cuba cost 78 billion
15. 2019 and 2020 bushfire in Australia cost 71 billion
16. 2017 Hurricane Irma in U.S., Sint Maarten, Saint Martin cost 69 billion
17. 2021 Hurricane Ida in U.S., Cuba cost 65 billion
18. 2012 and 2013 North American drought in U.S and Canada cost 56 to 64 billion
19. 2011 Flood in Thailand cost 53 billion
20. 1992 Hurricane Andrew in U.S. cost 51 billion

List of top 20 natural disasters by fatalities (source: Wikipedia and Inspirich)

1. 1931 China floods killed around 1 to 4 million
2. 1887 Yellow River flood killed around 2 million
3. 1556 Shaanxi Province in China earthquake killed around 830,000
4. 1976 Tangshan China earthquake killed around 242,000 to 655,000
5. 1970 Bhola East Pakistan (now Bangladesh) cyclone killed around 450,000 to 500,000
6. 365 Crete earthquake and tsunami in Greece killed 300,000 to 500,000
7. 2010 Haiti earthquake killed around 160,000 to 316,000
8. 526 Antioch Byzantine Empire (now Turkey and Syria) earthquake killed around 250,00 to 300,000
9. 1881 Haiphong Typhoon in Philippines and Vietnam killed 30,000 to 300,000
10. 1839 Andhra Pradesh India cyclone killed around 300,000
11. 1737 Calcutta Cyclone in India killed around 300,000
12. 2004 Indian Ocean earthquake and tsunami in Indonesia, Sri Lanka, Thailand killed around 275,000 to 280,000
13. 1920 Haiyuan China earthquake killed around 273,400
14. 1138 Aleppo Earthquake in Syria killed around 230,000
15. 1975 Typhoon Nina in Taiwan and China killed around 229,000
16. 1935 Yangtze River Flood killed around 145,000
17. 1991 Bangladesh Cyclone killed around 138,866
18. 1553 St. Felix’s Flood in Netherlands killed 100,000
19. 1815 Mount Tambora volcanic eruption in Indonesia killed 92,000
20. 2003 North European heat wave killed around 70,000

11/28/21: MORE YOU KNOW: ENGINEERING DISASTERS

Engineering disasters takes place all over the world. Infrastructure such as bridges, aeronautics such space shuttles, and vessels such as ships have all had moments of glory and failure. Whether it be the fault of the operator or a combination with the design, these are some of the worst disasters in the history of the world. The two sources are Engineering Clicks and Interesting Engineering from the internet.

·         Hindenburg disaster was an airship that caught fire and killed 35 people in 1937.

·         Quebec Bridge in Canada collapsing in 1907 that killed 75 workers and in 1916 that killed 12 people.

·         Titanic ship that hit an iceberg and sank in 1912 that killed about 1,500 people.

·         Chernobyl nuclear plant explosion in Russia caught fire in 1986 that resulted in between 9,000 to 16,000 people dying.

·         Charles De Gaulle airport terminal 2E collapsed in 2004 and killed four people.

·         St. Francis Dam failure in 1928 killed 431 people in Los Angeles, Calfornia.

·         SS Sultana steamboat’s boilers burst into flames in 1865 that killed around 1,238 people.

·         Air France Concorde airplane that crashed in 2000 and killed 113 people in Paris.

·         Gretna Green Rail disaster in 1915 that killed over 200 people in Scotland.

·         Hyatt Regency Hotel when two floors collapsed that killed 114 people in 1981 in Kansas City.

·         Banqiao Dam failure in 1975 where 62 dams collapsing killed between 85,000 to 240,000 people in China.

·         American Airlines flight in 1979 that killed everyone on board because one of the engines separated from the wing.

·         Hyatt Regency Hotel in Kansas City, Missouri in 1981 that killed 114 people on a walkway.

·         Vasa warship in 1628 that killed 30 people onboard shortly after taking off in Stockholm, Sweden.

·         Boston Molasses Flood in 1919 that killed 21 people when a storage tank burst and flooded the streets.

·         Deepwater Horizon killed 11 people when an offshore drilling rig exploded in 2010.

·         Challenger space shuttle exploded shortly after takeoff in 1986 that killed all 7 crew members.

·         Great Flood of 1889 when a dam broke in Johnstown, Pennsylvania killed more than 2,200 people.

·         The Bhopal disaster in 1984 when toxic gas was released from a pesticide plant that killed around 11,000 people.

11/20/21: MORE YOU KNOW: TOP TV SHOWS AND NETWORKS FROM 2021

Since Hollywood has ushered in the new best actor and actress to their movies, the older actors and actresses have often found a new home in television shows. This is a good and bad thing. Good in that TV has gotten better. Bad in that there is less variety in movies being made as well as smaller budget made movies. Gone are the days of the indie movie being a big success. Here are the top 10 rates shows and networks according to Nielsen. It’s not surprising American football dominates the screens in living rooms. I’m a little surprised NCIS and Blue Bloods still rakes in the viewers. They are comfort shows like macaroni and cheese is a comfort food. They even brought back CSI but to me it’s not the same. Bring back Warrick from the dead and Nick from Seattle and then I might watch it again.

Top 10 rated series of 2020-2021 with adults aged 18 to 49 (May 2021 Nielsen)

NFL on NBC

NFL on Fox/NFL network

NCIS on CBS

Equalizer on CBS

NFL Monday Night Football on ESPN

FBI on CBS

60 Minutes on CBS

Chicago Fire on NBC

Blue Bloods on CBS

Chicago Med on NBC

Top 10 rated broadcast networks of 2020-2021 with adults aged 18 to 49 (May 2021 Nielsen)

FOX

NBC

CBS

ABC

Univision

Telemundo

Ion

The CW

Unimas

Me TV

Top 10 rated broadcast networks of 2020-2021 with all adults (May 2021 Nielsen)

CBS

NBC

ABC

Fox

Univision

Ion

Telemundo

The CW

Me TV

Unimas

11/12/2021: Money Sorta Matters

This is the list of the best paying jobs according to the U.S. News & World Report in 2021. These are the jobs where you need a lot of schooling and pay more than 100,000 dollars a year. The other jobs include dentists, petroleum engineers, IT managers, pilots, marketing managers, financial managers, lawyers, podiatrists, sales managers, pharmacists, business operations manager, optometrists, actuaries, political scientists, and the lowest paid of the highest paid job are the financial advisors.

1. Anesthesiologist gets paid a median salary of 208,000 dollars a year.
2. Surgeons gets paid a median salary of 208,000 dollars a year.
3. Oral and Maxillofacial Surgeon gets paid a median salary of 208,000 dollars a year.
4. Obstetrician and Gynecologist gets paid a median salary of 208,000 dollars a year.
5. Orthodontist gets paid a median salary of 208,000 dollars a year.
6. Prosthodontist gets paid a median salary of 208,000 dollars a year.
7. Psychiatrist gets paid a median salary 208,000 dollars a year.
8. Physician gets paid a median salary of 206,500 dollars a year.
9. Pediatrician gets paid a median salary 175,310 dollars a year.
10. Nurse Anesthetist gets paid a median salary of 174,790 dollars a year.

Here is the list of the highest paid athletes in the world in 2021 from Forbes.   

1. Conor McGregor in MMA from Ireland has 180 million dollars.
2. Lionel Messi in football/soccer from Argentina has 130 million dollars.
3. Cristiano Ronaldo in football/soccer from Portugal has 120 million dollars.
4. Dak Prescott in football/football from U.S. has 107.5 million dollars.
5. LeBron James in basketball from U.S. has 96.5 million dollars.
6. Neymar in football/soccer from Brazil has 95 million dollars.
7. Roger Federer in tennis from Switzerland has 90 million dollars.
8. Lewis Hamilton in auto racing from U.K. has 82 million dollars.
9. Tom Brady in football/football from U.S. has 76 million dollars.
10. Kevin Durant in basketball from U.S. has 75 million dollars.

If you think having 100,000 or 200,000 dollars is nothing and a million dollars is last decade, here are the richest billionaires in the world.

1. Jeff Bezos has 177 billion dollars from Amazon.
2. Elon Musk has 151 billion dollars from Tesla.
3. Bernard Arnault has 150 billion dollars from LVMH/Louis Vuitton.
4. Bill Gates has 124 billion dollars from Microsoft.
5. Mark Zuckerberg has 97 billion dollars from Facebook/Metaverse.
6. Warren Buffett has 97 billion dollars from Berkshire Hathaway.
7. Larry Ellison has 93 billion from Oracle.
8. Larry Page has 91.5 billion dollars from Google.
9. Sergey Brin has 89 billion dollars from Google.
10. Mukesh Ambani has 84.5 billion dollars from Reliance Industries.

Let’s face it, having 1 billion dollars is still rich compared to most of us so here are the poorest billionaires in the world (what a contradiction in terms).

1. Santo Domingo has 3 billion dollars from beer.
2. Mortimer Zuckerman has 3 billion dollars from real estate.
3. Riley Bechtel has 2 .9 billion dollars from construction.
4. Baiju Bhatt has 2.9 billion dollars from stock trading app.
5. Jim Breyer has 2.9 billion dollars from venture capital.
6. Bennett Dorrance has 2.9 billion dollars from Campbell’s soup.
7. Joseph Edelman has 2.9 billion dollars from hedge funds.
8. John Fisher has 2.9 billion dollars from Gap clothing.
9. Joseph Grendys has 2.9 billion dollars from poultry processing.
10. W. Herbert Hunt has 2.9 billion dollars from oil.
11. Paul Sciarra has 2.9 billion dollars from Pinterest.
12. Warren Stephens has 2.9 billion dollars from investment banking.

Now if that makes you feel sad, happy, or angry, just know that the chances of you being a billionaire let alone a millionaire is slim to none. At least you’re living your life to the fullest (I hope) or trying to or having others to help you when you need it. I could so say so much but I won’t.

11/05/2021: MORE YOU KNOW: POPULAR COSTUMES FROM 1950 TO 2005

Now that Halloween is over, why not list the most popular costumes from years past according to Reader’s Digest. I’m not sure how they came up with the answers, but here is the list. It starts with the year 1950 and ends with the year 2005. This might be a good thing it stopped in 2005 because as we all know 2021 is about as great as 2020 and from 2006 to 2019, it was much to be desired for many. A lot of these costumes are related to movies.

1950: Cowboy

1951: Tarzan

1952: Don Lockwood from Singin’ in the Rain movie

1953: Mickey Mouse

1954: Batman

1955: Davy Crockett

1956: Anna Leonowens from The King and I movie

1957: Frankenstein as in not the doctor in the book by Mary Shelley

1958: Zorro from Zorro movie

1959: Marilyn Monroe

1960: Hula girl from Hawaii

1961: Holly Golightly from Breakfast at Tiffany’s movie

1962: Rocky and Bullwinkle

1963: Cleopatra

1964: The Beatles

1965: Sonny and Cher

1966: Barbie

1967: Morticia Addams

1968: Rosemary Woodhouse from Rosemary’s Baby movie

1969: Astronaut

1970: Elvis Presley

1971: Willy Wonka

1972: Don Corleone

1973: Marcia Brady

1975: Dr. Frank-N-Furter from The Rocky Horror Picture Show movie

1976: Any of the Charlie’s Angels

1977: Luke Skywalker, Princess Leia, Han Solo, and Darth Vader

1978: Michael Myers

1979: Rocky Balboa

1980: John Travolta

1981: Indiana Jones

1982: E.T.

1983: Michael Jackson

1984: Madonna

1985: Freddy Krueger

1986: California Raisin

1987: Alf as in Alien Life Form

1988: Beetlejuice

1989: Any Ghostbuster

1990: Marty McFly from Back to the Future 

1991: Terminator

1992: Barney the purple dinosaur

1993: Any Power Ranger

1994: Bart Simpson

1995: Lloyd Christmas and Harry Dunne from Dumb and Dumber 

1996: Any Spice Girl

1997: Austin Powers

1998: Ghostface from Scream

1999: Neo from The Matrix 

2001: Harry Potter and Hermione Granger

2002: Spider-Man

2003: Captain Jack Sparrow

2004: SpongeBob SquarePants

2005: Darth Vader

October 10, 2021: Most Popular Cities Visited in the World and the U.S.

Here are the top countries people visit from around the world in 2019 according to World Atlas. Those on the list isn’t that surprising as they are countries that rake in a lot of money in terms of tourism (obviously pre-covid). Then, I will move onto the most visited cities in the U.S. This shouldn’t be a surprise either.

10. United Kingdom had 36 million tourists in 2019. The most popular cities are London, Edinburgh, Birmingham, and Manchester. The most popular attractions include Big Ben, the Tower of London and Stonehenge.

9. Thailand had 38 million tourists in 2019. The most popular attractions include Railay Beach, Koh Phi Phi and The Grand Palace of Bangkok. The big draw are the 1,430 islands that has many visitors each year.

8. Germany had 39 million tourists in 2019. The most popular city is Berlin. The most popular attractions include castles, beer, and food.

7. Mexico had 41 million tourists in 2019. The most popular cities are Cancun, Mexico City, and Playa del Carmen. 

6. Turkey had 46 million tourists in 2019. The most popular cities Ankara and Antalya. The most popular attractions include Blue Mosque, Topkapi Palace, and Hagia Sofia Museum.

5. Italy had 62 million tourists in 2019. The most popular cities are Rome, Naples and Florence. The most popular attractions include the Leaning Tower of Pisa, the Colosseum, and the Pantheon.

4. China had 63 million tourists in 2019. The big draw of China is its landscapes, history, and food. The most popular attractions include The Great Wall of China, the Forbidden City, and Tiananmen Square.

3. United States had 80 million tourists in 2019. The most popular cities are New York, Las Vegas, and Los Angeles

2. Spain had 83 million tourists in 2019. The big draw of Spain is its warm weather and pristine beaches. The most popular attractions include La Sagrada Familia, Park Güell, and Alhambra.

1. France had 89 million tourists in 2019. The most popular city is Paris. The most popular attractions include the Louvre, the Notre Dame Cathedral, and Disneyland.

*******

10: Chicago had 1.4 million visitors in 2019. The most popular attractions include the Navy Pier, Millenium Park, and the Art Institute of Chicago.

9. Boston had 1.5 million visitors in 2019. The most popular attractions include Fenway Stadium, the Museum of Fine Art, the Freedom Trail walk, the Boston Public Garden, and the Boston Tea Party museum.

8. Washington D.C. had 1.9 million visitors in 2019. The most popular attractions include the Lincoln Memorial, Capitol Hill, the White House, and the Washington Monument.

7. Honolulu had 2.7 million visitors in 2019. The most popular attractions include the beaches, islands, sea life, volcanoes, wildlife, and Pearl Harbor.

6. Las Vegas had 2.9 million visitors in 2019. The most popular attractions include the Las Vegas sign, shows, lights, and nightclubs. 

5. San Francisco had 3.3 million visitors in 2019. The most popular attractions include the Golden Gate Bridge. Fisherman’s Wharf, Alcatraz, and cable cars.

4. Orlando had 4.4 million visitors in 2019. The most popular attractions include Walt Disney World, Universal Studios, Epcot, and the Kennedy Space Center.

3. Los Angeles had 4.6 million visitors in 2019. The most popular attractions include Hollywood, Santa Monica Pier, Disneyland, and art museums.

2. Miami had 5.2 million visitors in 2019. The most popular attractions include Miami Beach, Vizcaya Museum and Gardens, Little Havana, the Everglades National Park, and the Miami Zoo.

1. New York City had 10.2 million visitors in 2019. The most popular attractions include the Statue of Liberty, the Empire State Building, Brooklyn Bridge, Central Park, and Broadway.

9/19/2021: Wimbledon Single Player Title Winners

Australian, French, and US Open started in 1905, 1891, and 1881 respectively. The longest running competition is Wimbledon that started in 1877 for men only and 1884 for men and women. The top three countries with the most titles for male players is UK with 37, USA with 33, and Australia with 21. The top three male players to win the most titles of all time is Roger Federer (SUI) with 8, William Renshaw (BRI) with 7, and Pete Sampras (USA) with 7. The top three countries with the most titles for female players is USA with 57, UK with 36, and GER with 9. The top three female players to win the most titles of all time is Martina Navratilova (USA) with 9, Helen Wills Moody (USA) with 8, and Dorothea Lambert Chambers (UK), Steffi Graf (GER), and Serena Williams (USA) each with 7. Lastly, here is the list of Wimbledon tennis champions for men from 1877 to 2021 and women from 1884 to 2021.

9/18/21: THE SEVEN CONTINENTS

When I researched how many countries are in each continent, I grew more tired of compiling a list only a handful would read. Therefore, I said screw it and focused on a few things stats from each continent. I understand each of these continents can be broken down like Eastern and Western Europe, Central and South America, South and East Asia, Middle and Northern Africa, etc. I encourage everyone to look at the world map and learn more about it because no one knows where every country resides unless you’re an expert in geography.

Asia has the largest land size and population. Africa is the second largest for land size and population. Europe is the third largest for population but sixth in land size. North and South America are fourth and fifth for population but third and fourth in land size. Australia is the seventh largest for land size but sixth for population. Antarctica is the fifth largest in land size and last for population for obvious reasons. The consensus seems to be 54 countries in Africa, 48 countries in Asia, 44 countries in Europe, 23 countries in North America, and 12 countries in South America. There is less consensus about Australia/Oceania and again nobody lives in Antarctica for very long.

Asia has around 4.6 billion people living there. This isn’t really a surprise since China and India have many cities with millions of people. Besides China being one of the richest countries, the Middle Eastern are rich in minerals and oil reserves. Due to the billions of people living there, Asia has the largest number of languages spoken. Asia makes up about 60% of the total population.

Africa has around 1.3 billion people living there. The largest cities are in Nigeria, Congo, and Egypt. The Nile river, the longest in the world, is in northern Africa and is around 6,650 kilometers or 4,130 miles. All living humans have common ancestry as the first humans originated from this continent and branched out. Africa makes up about 17% of the total population.

Europe has around 750 million people living there. There is a difference between the rich and poor as the western countries are considered richer than the eastern countries. Some of the smallest countries is in Europe such as San Marino, Liechtenstein, Vatican City, Monaco, and Malta. Europe makes up about 10% of the total population.

North America has around 580 million people living there. English is the language most spoken as a first or second language. The largest cities are New York City, Los Angeles, and Chicago. Christianity is the predominant religion practiced due to the large numbers of Catholics and Protestants. North America makes up about 8% of the total population.

South America has around 430 million people living there. The oldest civilization is in Central America with the Mayans. South America has the largest mountain range, highest waterfalls, and driest place in the world with the Andes, Angel Falls, and Atacama Desert. South America makes up about 5.6% of the total population.

Australia/Oceania has around 43 million people living there. The most notable regions/countries are New Zealand, Vanuatu, Australasia, Polynesia, Micronesia, and Melanesia. The largest cities are Melbourne, Perth, Sydney, and Brisbane. It is the smallest in size of all the continents and also has islands. Australia/Oceania make up about .5% of the total population.

Antarctica has zero people living there permanently because no one would want to live there all the time. It is covered with ice and makes up around 60% of the water for humans to drink. This isn’t surprising since most of the ice is located there. Antarctica makes up 0% of the total population.

The world has around 8.7 billion people. The projections are 9.7 billion by 2050 and 10.8 billion by 2100. I will probably still be alive by 2050 and hopefully in retirement. I give myself the latest of 2070 before I die. While this FYI/MYK puts things in perspective, I really hope it’s not during another pandemic. Then again, history often repeats a version of itself. I’ll leave my future possibilities and lives for another day.

08/30/2021: U.S. BUSIEST AIRPORTS

Many of the busiest 20 top airports are located all over the world. Think tourist cities like Beijing, Tokyo, New York City, Dubai, San Francisco and London. Here are the top 20 busiest airports in the U.S.

1	Hartsfield-Jackson International Airport
2	Dallas/Fort Worth International Airport
3	Denver International Airport
4	O’Hare International Airport
5	Los Angeles International Airport
6	Charlotte Douglas International Airport
7	McCarran International Airport
8	Phoenix Sky Harbor International Airport
9	Orlando International Airport
10	Seattle/Tacoma International Airport
11	Miami International Airport
12	George Bush Intercontinental Airport
13	John F. Kennedy International Airport
14	Fort Lauderdale/Hollywood International Airport
15	San Francisco International Airport
16	Newark Liberty International Airport
17	Minneapolis–Saint Paul International Airport
18	Detroit Metropolitan Airport
19	Logan International Airport
20	Salt Lake City International Airport

08/07/2021: SWIMMING AND TRACK/FIELD OLYMPIC RECORDS

There were a few Olympic records set at Tokyo. The two most exciting races to watch when it comes to tight races, for me, is track and field and swimming. It is in these sports where tenths of a second can mean the difference between gold or silver or bronze. The same happens in track and field although with athletes like Usain Bolt, it tends to occur less, although there have been some tight races. This is what I found, so in terms of world records. I am focusing less on individual athletes and more on the year the OR was set and how many records have survived in each year. Some are surprising as no one yet has beat Jackie Joyner Kersee from the U.S. since 1988 in certain track and field events and no one has beat Michael Phelps from the U.S. since 2008 in certain swimming events. The longest record is from 1968 in long jump by Bob Beamon who is 74 years old now. Here is the breakdown of the Olympic years where records were set and remain until the next summer Olympics in Paris in 2024.

Swimming Olympic Records

2020 Tokyo has 17 OR

2016 Rio has 6 OR

2012 London has 2 OR

2008 Beijing has 5 OR

Track and Field Olympic Records

2020 Tokyo has 9 OR

2016 Rio has 6 OR

2012 London has 6 OR

2008 Beijing has 8 OR

2004 Athens has 4 OR

1996 Atlanta has 3 OR

1988 Seoul has 4 OR

1980 Moscow has 3 OR

1968 Mexico City has 1 OR

08/07/2021: TOKYO OLYMPIC GAMES (ALMOST DONE, NO REDO)

I was going to do three blogs to the Tokyo Games. It seems since the closing ceremony is tomorrow that I will only be doing one more blog. I haven’t been watching as much Olympic competitions as I should. After Simone Biles dropped out of the team competition, all-around, and most of the individual competitions in gymnastics, it was a big bummer for me. This was officially the Olympic year for the most unusual circumstances and memorable for many reasons. It seems the events I watched, well the U.S. wasn’t doing so well, but it wasn’t for lack of trying. The U.S. will end with the most medals (not that it be the only thing that matters). There were many firsts, upsets, wins, losses as well as records broken and medals won after many years of absence. I should’ve watched more events so I could report on them. China has the most Gold medals (so far) with 38, U.S. is second with 37, and Japan is third with 27. Accounting for all medals, U.S. has the most with 109, China is second with 87, and ROC is third with 70. Here are some of the major highlights although definitely not all of them.

1. The U.S. women’s gymnastics team won Silver. Members Sunisa Lee won Gold in all-around, Jade Carey won Gold on floor, MyKayla Skinner won Silver on vault, and Simone Biles won Bronze on balance beam.
2. The men’s triathlon had to restart the race due to a boat preventing swimmers from diving into the water for the first leg of the race. Kristian Blummenfelt from Norway won Gold with a time of 1:45:04.
3. Eliud Kipchoge from Kenya defended his Gold in the men’s marathon. He won with a time of 2:08:38.
4. Ariarne Titmus won Gold in the 200 and 400-meter freestyle. Siobhan Haughey won Silver from Hong Kong and Penny Oleksiak won Bronze in 200. Katie Ledecky won Silver from U.S. and Li Bingjie from China won Bronze in the 400.
5. U.S. won Gold in men’s basketball for the fourth time in a row. France got Silver fourth time in a row as well and Australia got Bronze this Olympic year.
6. Sajad Ganjzadeh from Iran was knocked out by Tareg Hamedi from Saudia Arabia in karate men’s kumite +75. Due to a penalty from a knock out, Hamedi got Silver where Ganjzadeh got Gold. Ugur Aktas from Turkey and Ryutaro Araga from Japan got Bronze.
7. Jessica Fox from Australia threw up before winning Gold in women’s canoe slalom.
8. The U.S. men’s and women’s 4x400m teams won Gold. The men”s team consisted of Kaylin Whitney, Wadeline Jonathas, Kendall Ellis, and Lynna Irby and the women’s team consisted of Allyson Felix, Sydney McLaughlin, Dalilah Muhammad, and Athing Mu. This also makes Felix the athlete with the most track adn field medals of 11.
9. Peres Jepchirchir and Brigid Kosgei from Kenya won Gold/Silver in women’s marathon. Their times were 2:27:20 and 2:27:36.
10. China won seven weightlifting Gold’s out of 14 weightlifting competitions.
11. Jessica Springsteen, yes the daughter of Bruce, won Silver in team equestrian for the U.S.
12. Lydia Jacoby from U.S. won Gold in women’s 100-meter breaststroke at the age of 17, beating Lilly King also from the U.S.
13. Faith Kipyegon from Kenya set an Olympic record and won Gold in the women’s 1500m.
14. Robert Finke from the U.S. won Gold in men’s 800-meter freestyle race.
15. ROC won Gold, China won Silver, and Ukraine won Bronze in both the duet and team free routine in artistic swimming.

And there you have it, the Olympics came and went like the rest of 2021. I would love to say 2022 will be better, but that’s what I said about 2021 about 2020. I hope there won’t be as many issues or problems as the winter Olympics in China. I’m sure some countries and viewers will protest by not participating or watching in 2022. One thing the athletes won’t have to deal with is the humidity and high temperatures. Then again, dealing with chilly temperatures isn’t great either. Either way, Japan was robbed in a big way of their opening ceremony and closing as well. They did the best they could and here’s to the future Olympics where COVID will be behind us (I hope) and the world is back to not wearing masks.

07/25/2021: THINGS THAT DIDN’T EXIST 30 YEARS AGO

Here are some things that have become common place in this technological world that did not exist 30 years ago. I bring this up because I sometimes think of animals, professions, and businesses that no longer exist. Dinosaurs are a thing in the way past. I thought Blockbuster would never go out of business. With scientific advancements, body snatchers have no purpose to the medical field. While some use them all the time, others know about them but won’t ever use them. Here they are in no particular order.

1. Netflix original content

2. Online grocery store delivery

3. Tablets to read books and magazines

4. Streaming music and TV shows

5. Instagram

6. Airbnb

7. Invisible braces

8. Pinterest

9. Online banking

10. 4K TVs

11. Uber and Lyft

12. Smartphones

13.  Gender reveal parties

14.  Wikipedia

15.  Video calling

07/25/2021: Allergies

I luckily don’t have too many allergies although the ones I do have been debilitating me for about 25 years now. I’m allergic to dust mites like no one’s business as well as some pollens and probably mold too. I’m not allergic to any foods that I know of although some foods can severely upset my stomach to the point of no return. Common allergies include pet dander, latex, and the ones I mentioned above. Food allergies are common too such as diary, eggs, peanuts, fish, and wheat. Here are some of the less common allergies although some appear a little whacky as in allergy to vibrations or microwaves which speak for themselves, I guess.

1. tattoos
2. insect waste
3. sulfites in wine
4. smell of fish
5. pollinated fruit
6. nickel in phones
7. sun exposure
8. soybeans in beanbags
9. laundry detergent
10. ticks

07/24/2021: 2021 Tokyo Olympics

I was looking forward to writing all about the Tokyo Olympics after the 2018 Olympics. Then, COVID appeared and never left. This is going to be known as the freak Olympics of the 21st century. The fact it was postponed for a year and the verdict is still up for debate if the Olympics should’ve been postponed for another year due to the Delta strain spreading all over the U.S. and the world. Let’s just say not enough people are vaccinated and all the progress the U.S. has made seems like yesterday. Different cities and counties and countries are becoming hot spots again including Nevada. The Games went on with or without the COVID virus. I don’t know. It wasn’t my decision. I’m not a part of IOC or the Tokyo government.

On that note, I watched the opening ceremony and probably what a third of it should’ve been. It was plagued with lack of spectators, controversy, and athletes getting sick. I read the beds aren’t that comfortable either. This will be the fourth time Japan has hosted the Olympics. This Summer Olympics started on July 23rd and will end on August 8th. Without going into too much depth because I have other blogs to write, I will recap a few facts and highlights, so far. Looking to the future, the 2022 Olympics will be in Beijing, China from February 4 to 20, the 2024 Olympics will be in Paris, France from July 26 to August 11, the 2026 Olympics will be in Milan-Cortina, Italy from February 6 to 22, and the 2028 Olympics will be in Los Angeles, CA, USA from July 21 to August 6.

1. There are 33 different events and 50 sports in the 2020/2021 Summer Olympics.
2. The U.S. failed to medal on the first day of competition.
3. The host team, Japan, has one gold medal, so far.
4. Karate, surfing, rock climbing, and skateboarding were added to the competition.
5. This is the first time the Olympics have been postponed.
6. There are over 11,000 athletes competing in the Tokyo Olympics.
7. The performers in white and blue suits representing the sports in the Olympics were the best.
8. It took 1,842 drones to create the moving globe in the sky in the opening ceremony.
9. India sent 127 athletes to Tokyo. It is the largest delegation for the country, so far.
10. Naomi Osaka carried the torch to light the Olympic cauldron in the opening ceremony.
11. This is the 32nd modern Olympics since 1896 that was held in Athens, Greece.
12. North Korea is not participating in the Olympics.
13. The motto of this Summer Olympics is “United by Emotion.”
14. There is a total of 37 Olympic venues.
15. BMX freestyle has the fewest athletes competing and track and field as the highest athletes competing.
16. 18-year-old Ahmed Hafnaoui of Tunisia won gold in 400m freestyle, beating Australia and the U.S.
17. Kohei Uchimura (gymnastics) and Daiya Seto (swimming) failed to quality for a medal.
18. The heat and humidity has made it harder for the athletes to perform.

07/09/2021: Scripps Spelling Bee Winners

Some years have one winner and others have more than one. This year of 2021, Zaila Avant-garde, won the competition. She is the first African-American to win this award. She won by spelling the word murraya correctly, which is a flowering plant. She’s all in the Guinness Book of World Records.

Year	Scripps Spelling Bee Winner(s)
1925	Frank Neuhauser
1926	Pauline Bell
1927	Dean Lucas
1928	Betty Robinson
1929	Virginia Hogan
1930	Helen Jensen
1931	Ward Randall
1932	Dorothy Greenwald
1933	Alma Roach
1934	Sarah Wilson
1935	Clara Mohler
1936	Jean Trowbridge
1937	Waneeta Beckley
1938	Marian Richardson
1939	Elizabeth Ann Rice
1940	Laurel Kuykendall
1941	Louis Edward Sissman
1942	Richard Earnhart
1946	John McKinney
1947	Mattie Lou Pollard
1948	Jean Chappelear
1949	Kim Calvin
1950	Diana Reynard/Colquitt Dean
1951	Irving Belz
1952	Doris Ann Hall
1953	Elizabeth Hess
1954	William Cashore
1955	Sandra Sloss
1956	Melody Sachko
1957	Dana Bennett/Sandra Owen
1958	Jolitta Schlehuber
1959	Joel Montgomery
1960	Henry Feldman
1961	John Capehart
1962	Nettie Crawford/Michael Day
1963	Glen Van Slyke III
1964	William Kerek
1965	Michael Kerpan Jr.
1966	Robert A. Wake
1967	Jennifer Reinke
1968	Robert L. Walters
1969	Susan Yoachum
1970	Libby Childress
1971	Jonathan Knisely
1972	Robin Kral
1973	Barrie Trinkle
1974	Julie Ann Junkin
1975	Hugh Tosteson García
1976	Tim Kneale
1977	John Paola
1978	Peg McCarthy
1979	Katie Kerwin
1980	Jacques Bailly
1981	Paige Pipkin
1982	Molly Dieveney
1983	Blake Giddens
1984	Daniel Greenblatt
1985	Balu Natarajan
1986	Jon Pennington
1987	Stephanie Petit
1988	Rageshree Ramachandran
1989	Scott Isaacs
1990	Amy Marie Dimak
1991	Joanne Lagatta
1992	Amanda Goad
1993	Geoff Hooper
1994	Ned G. Andrews
1995	Justin Tyler Carroll
1996	Wendy Guey
1997	Rebecca Sealfon
1998	Jody-Anne Maxwell
1999	Nupur Lala
2000	George Thampy
2001	Sean Conley
2002	Pratyush Buddiga
2003	Sai Gunturi
2004	David Tidmarsh
2005	Anurag Kashyap
2006	Kerry Close
2007	Evan O’Dorney
2008	Sameer Mishra
2009	Kavya Shivashankar
2010	Anamika Veeramani
2011	Sukanya Roy
2012	Snigdha Nandipati
2013	Arvind Mahankali
2014	Sriram J. Hathwar/Ansun Sujoe
2015	Vanya Shivashankar/Gokul Venkatachalam
2016	Jangam Hathwar/Nihar Saireddy Janga
2017	Ananya Vinay
2018	Karthik Nemmani
2019	Rishik Gandhasri/Erin Howard/Saketh Sundar/ Shruthika Padhy/Sohum Sukhatankar/Abhijay Kodali/Christopher Serrao/Rohan Raja
2021	Zaila Avant-garde

6/17/2021: WRITING INTROS (FOR WRITERS)

• This is more for writers but it’s for everyone who wants to remind themselves they probably need clarification on the differences of what comes before the meat of any story or after. They are also known as a preface, foreword, prologue, introduction in the beginning and epilogue and afterward at the end. Let’s start with the beginning of a book.
• The preface is written to tell how the writer came upon the story. It’s basically the nuts and bolts of what the writer did to successfully write the book. It probably isn’t necessary to write about the process of writing a fiction book because we all know it is hard (to an extent) and it takes time (for some) to write a novel, it’s more geared toward non-fiction writers.
• The foreword is written by anyone else but the author and usually is done to endorse the book. If anyone knows how to get in touch with Stephen King, let me know. I would love for him to endorse my book. Skip the New York Times Best Seller List. Just get me a respected famous person who reads that gives a good recommendation.
• The prologue is written as a precursor to the story and basically sets the tone of the story. This is basically geared toward fiction where it should include a few characters and events that leads and adds to the original story.
• Now to move to the end of a book. There is the epilogue and afterword.
• The epilogue is written to tie up any unraveled ends in the story. I originally had an epilogue in my love story but took it out. Some may consider it sloppy writing and used as a crutch. I don’t see a problem with it as long as it is right. It’s also a way to reaffirm the ending.
• The afterword is similar to a preface where it discusses how the origins of the story and how the process occurred. Again, most of us know the difficulties of writing a book. Maybe, if I include this I will write about the positive aspects of writing. Okay, maybe not. You get the point, I hope.
• After writing this, I think the beginning is more important than the end of a book. The last chapter is important as it brings the story to a close, but the beginning is what hooks the reader. If you don’t have a good/great beginning, there is more of a chance the reader will put down the book and pick up another one. On that note, onto more blogging and writing and reading.

6/24/2021: Acronyms

I plan on incorporating this in one of my stories. I don’t understand the revolution that has taken place with abbreviations. I seriously need a cheat sheet to tell me what these mean. I don’t use twitter nor do I use these acronyms except in occasional LOL, but really am I laughing out loud? The answer is no. So why use it? I should more use LI as in laughing inside. I find most of these acronyms as pure laziness. Just spell out the damn words. Is it so hard? I grew up in a different time. Some of them were so stupid, I refused to include them such as SFW as in safe for work. Huh? Enjoy the list and learn something new. I did.

ADIH – Another day in hell

AFAIK – As far as I know

AFAICT – As far as I can tell

AFAIR – As far as I remember

AFAIC – As far as I’m concerned

ASL – Age, sex, location

AAMOF – As a matter of fact

AYOR – At your own risk

AFK – Away from keyboard

BSAAW – Big smile and a wink

BAE – Before anyone else

BWL – Bursting with laughter

B4N – Bye for now

B@U – Back at you

BUMP – Bring up my post

BBBG – Bye bye be good

BBIAS – Be back in a sec

CSL – Can’t stop laughing

CWOT – Complete waste of time

CS – Career suicide

DWH – During work hours

DAE – Does anyone else?

DM – Direct message

DBMIB – Don’t bother me I’m busy

E123 – Easy as one, two, three

EMBM – Early morning business meeting

FTW – For the win

FTL – For the loss

FWIW – For what it’s worth

FAWC – For anyone who cares

GMTA – Great minds think alike

GAHOY – Get a hold of yourself

GFN – Gone for now

GRAS – Generally recognized as safe

GOI – Get over it

IMO – In my opinion

IMHO –In my humble opinion

IFYP – I feel your pain

ILY – I love you

IDC – I don’t care

IMU – I miss you

ICYMI – In case you missed it

IDC – I don’t care

IIRC – If I remember correctly

IRL – In real life

J4F – Just for fun

JSYK – Just so you know

JIC – Just in case

KPC –Keeping parents clueless

MFW – My face when

MRW – My reaction when

NFS – Not for sale

NTH – Nice to have

NAGI – Not a good idea

NSFW – Not safe for work

NBD – Not big deal

OMW – On my way

OMDB – Over my dead body

OC – Original content

OP – Original poster

OH – Overheard

POV – Point of View

PPL – People

PAW –Parents are watching

PRT – Please retweet

PITR –Parent in the room

PBB – Parent behind back

POMS – Parent over my shoulder

PTB – Please text back

RUOK – Are you OK?

RBTL – Read between the lines

RLRT – Real life retweet

SSDD – Same stuff, different day

SOML – Story of my life

TMB – Tweet me back

TIA – Thanks in advance

TTYL – Talk to you later

TFW – That feeling when

TIME – Tears in my eyes

TNTL – Trying not to laugh

TL – Too long

TIL – Today I learned

TBH – To be honest

W8 – Wait

WTPA – Where the party at?

WYWH – Wish you were here

YNK – You never know

5/20/2021: CELEBRATIONS FROM AROUND THE WORLD

Most of us have heard of St. Patty’s day and Fourth of July but there are other celebrations, festivals, and traditions not so widespread. Here are some of them from the around the world.

*******

Beltane Fire Festival in Scotland celebrates the coming of summer with bonfires, nudity, and paint.

El Colacho Baby Jumping Festival in Spain celebrates Corpus Christi by men dressed as devils jumping over babies to protect them from evil.

Monkey Buffet Festival in Thailand celebrates the monkey by having a feast for them.

Songkran Festival in Thailand celebrates the beginning of a new year where water washes away negativity, bad luck, and sins of the past year.

Takanakuy Festival in Peru celebrates the resolution of conflicts every Christmas by hitting each other.

Yadnya Kasada in East Java celebrates getting rid of disease by dropping their possessions into a volcano.

La Tomatina in Spain celebrates tomatoes by throwing them at each other.

Busojaras Festival in Hungary celebrates the end of winter by dressing up in traditional masks and woolly cloaks while dancing to folk music.

Frozen Dead Guy Days in USA (Colorado) celebrates the frozen corpse of Bredo Morstol with music and coffin races.

Night of The Radishes in Mexico is where amateurs and professionals celebrate radishes by carving huge radishes to win money.

Up Helly Aa in Shetland Islands celebrates the end of the Yule season where locals marching through the streets dressed in Viking costumes with lit torches.

Nyepi Festival in Bali celebrates New Year with silence, no traffic, work, and little electricity.

La Pourcailhade in France celebrates the pig with eating pork, piglet racing, intimation contests.

Underwater Music Festival in USA (Florida) celebrates music where people dressed in nautical costumes mime to music using specially sculpted underwater musical instruments.

International Hair Freezing Contest in Canada (Yukon) celebrate frozen hair where people freeze their hair in unusual shapes.

5/1/2021: THE NEXT IN LINE

Whatever country and government one might be speaking about, there are usually rules about what happens when a country’s leader dies or can’t do his or her duties. This leaves others to take his or her place and contingency plans are in order long before any one incident occurs. I decided to choose three countries with different forms of governments. The first is the U.S. with a semi-democracy. The second is the U.K. with a monarchy. The third is North Korea with an autocracy.

The order of succession has less to do with familial ties and more to do with title in the U.S. After the President comes the Vice President and Speaker of the House. The third in line is the President pro Tempore of the Senate (whoever is the majority in the Senate). The fourth, fifth, sixth in line is the Secretary of State, Treasury, and Defense. The seventh in line is the Attorney General. It continues through the list of the Cabinet members and only applicable to those who were born in the U.S. There have been nine Vice Presidents who took over the role as President due to death or resignation: John Tyler, Millard Fillmore, Andrew Johnson, Chester Arthur, Theodore Roosevelt, Calvin Coolidge, Harry Truman, Lyndon Johnson, and Gerald Ford. Out of these nine, four of them were re-elected: Roosevelt, Coolidge, Truman, and Johnson.

Merrick Garland (seventh in line)

Lloyd Austin

Janet Yellen

Antony Blinken

Patrick Leahy

Nancy Pelosi

Kamala Harris (first in line)

The order of succession has more do with family order than anything else in the U.K. After the King or Queen dies or abdicates the throne, the next in line is usually next sibling or child. When King Edward VIII left to marry Simpson Wallis, his brother King George VI became the next king. When he died, Queen Elizabeth II was crowned and therefore her children in order of birth became the rightful heirs: Prince Charles, Andrew, Edward, and Anne. When Prince Charles had children, Prince William and Prince Harry jumped in front of Prince Charles’ siblings. The only difference now is Prince William’s daughter Charlotte doesn’t have to be behind Prince Louis. Despite Prince Harry stepping away from royal duties, he is still in line to become king.

Princess Anne and her children

Prince Edward, Earl of Wessex and his children

Prince Andrew, Duke of York and his children

Prince Harry, Duke of Sussex and his children

Prince Louis of Cambridge (fifth in line)

Prince Charlotte of Cambridge

Prince George of Cambridge

Prince William, Duke of Cambridge

Prince of Wales Charles (first in line)

The order of succession for North Korea is not as full proof. There is more jockeying for power and the ruthlessness that dominated England way back when is now a common theme in the Kim dynasty. When Kim Il-sung died, his son Kim Jong-il became the leader, and then when he died, his son Kim Jong-un became the leader. What about when Kim Jong-un dies? I’m not even going to predict because when Kim Jong Nam and Jang Song-thaek were killed by its current leader, it is anyone’s guess. Kim Yo-jong (Kim Jong-un’s sister) and Kim Pyong-il (Kim Il-sung’s son) seem to be two most viable people to replace Kim Jong-un. Basically, it’s anyone in the Kim family that will succeed the current leader.

Kim Pyong-il

Kim Yo-jong (maybe first in line)

04/18/2021: Top Billboard Single from Each Decade Starting at 1950

Pop

1950 single = “Goodnight, Irene” by Gordon Jenkins and The Weavers

1960 single = Theme from “A Summer Place” by Percy Faith

1970 single = “Bridge over Troubled Water” by Simon & Garfunkel

1980 single = “Call Me” by Blondie

1990 single = “Hold On” by Wilson Phillips

2000 single = “Breathe” by Faith Hill

2010 single = “Tik Tok” by Kesha

2020 single = “Blinding Lights” by The Weeknd

R&B/Soul/Hip-Hop

1950 single = “Pink Champagne” by Joe Liggins

1960 single = “Kiddio” by Brook Benton

1970 single = “I’ll Be There” by Jackson 5

1980 single = “Let’s Get Serious” by Jermaine Jackson

1990 single = “Hold On” by En Vogue

2000 single = “Let’s Get Married” by Jagged Edge

2010 single = “Un-Thinkable (I’m Ready)” by Alicia Keys

2020 single = “Blinding Lights” by The Weeknd

Country

1950 single = “I’m Movin’ On” by Hank Snow

1960 single = “Please Help Me I’m Falling” by Hank Locklin

1970 single = “Hello Darlin’” by Conway Twitty

1980 single = “My Heart”/”Silent Night (After the Fight)” by Ronnie Milsap

1990 single = “Nobody’s Home” by Clint Black

2000 single = How Do You Like Me Now?! by Toby Keith

2010 single = “Love Like Crazy” by Lee Brice

2020 single = “I Hope” by Gabby Barrett

April 11, 2021: LAS VEGAS, OTHER CITIES, AND VIOLENT CRIME

Before I moved to Nevada, I read that you don’t want to get housing anywhere near the strip for obvious reasons. People like to gamble and when they lose all their money, they like to break into apartments to find more money to spend. Since every major city that has a population of over 500,000 people usually has a seedy part or underbelly, Las Vegas is no different. Clark County which Las Vegas resides has a population of around 2.3 million people. This pales in comparison to Los Angeles County with 9.9 million people. Mind you since moving, Nevada drivers are ten times worse than California drivers.

When I lived in Los Angeles, I frequented the seedy parts of the city. The ones where tourists usually don’t go because they are labeled dangerous for crime and homelessness. Downtown LA, South LA, K-Town, Fashion District, Hollywood, and Central LA and West Adams are a few areas you should visit with someone and preferably in the daylight. There are some areas where it is advised not to go if you don’t look a certain way (advice given to someone I know) by another person on the subway. I heard enough gun shots on the 405 since I lived close to it before moving. Let’s just say I’m used to it. Sad but true.

Now that I live in Nevada, I learned more about the seedy areas of Las Vegas such as Naked City, East Las Vegas, West Las Vegas, Meadows Village, Rancho Charleston, and of course Downtown LV. I live far enough away that the chances of someone entering my apartment is slim but there are homeless people that show up once in a while. A few weeks ago, I heard what sounded like a gun shot. Again, I’m used to it and helicopters flying around trying to find people. I looked up some statistics about the most dangerous cities in the U.S. and the world because Naked City got me thinking. Amazingly, the LV casinos with the highest number of calls to the LV Metro police were located in the middle and south end of the strip. The Strat wasn’t even on the list which is basically the gateway casino to the actual strip, which starts with Sahara.

Top 10 U.S. cities with the highest rates of violent crime in 2019 by the FBI (posted on CBS News)

10. Milwaukee, Wisconsin

The violent crime rate in Milwaukee is 1,332 incidents per 100,000 residents. 

9. Albuquerque, New Mexico

The violent crime rate in Albuquerque is 1,352 per 100,000 residents. 

8. Stockton, California

The violent crime rate in Stockton is 1,397 per 100,000 residents. 

6 (TIE). Cleveland, Ohio

The violent crime rate in Cleveland is 1,517 per 100,000 residents.

6 (TIE). Little Rock, Arkansas

The violent crime rate in Little Rock is 1,517 per 100,000 residents. 

5. Springfield, Missouri

The violent crime rate in Springfield is 1,519 per 100,000 residents.

4. Baltimore, Maryland

The violent crime rate in Baltimore is 1,859 per 100,000 people. 

3. Memphis, Tennessee

The violent crime rate in Memphis is 1,901 per 100,000 residents. 

2. St. Louis, Missouri

St. Louis has a violent crime rate of 1,927 per 100,000 people.

1. Detroit, Michigan

Detroit’s violent crime rate is 1,965 incidents per 100,000 residents.

Top 10 world cities with the highest rates of violent crime in 2019 by World Atlas

10. Ciudad Bolivar, Venezuela

9.  Fortaleza, Brazil

8. Natal, Brazil

7.  Ciudad Guayana, Venezuela

6.  Irapuato, Mexico

5.  Ciudad Juárez, Mexico

4.  Ciudad Victoria, Mexico

3.  Caracas, Venezuela

2. Acapulco, Mexico

1. Tijuana, Mexico

Top 10 Casinos on the Las Vegas strip with the highest number of police calls in 2018 to LV Metro PD (posted on KTNV news)

10. Wynn with 1064 calls

9.  Mandalay Bay with 1120 calls

8.  Fashion Show Mall with 1125 calls

7.  Aria with 1133 calls

6.  Venetian with 1309 calls

5.  Planet Hollywood with 1312 calls

4.  Cosmopolitan with 1567 calls

3.  Bellagio with 1646 calls

2. Caesars Palace with 2094 calls

1. MGM Grand with 2492 calls

April 6, 2021: PONZI SCHEMES, PYRAMIDS, MULTI-LEVEL MARKETING, AND FRANCHISES

The one thing I noticed when looking for jobs were the various pyramid schemes and multi-level marketing opportunities. As much as I would love to be my own boss and sell my own products, I’m not the type of person who gets thrilled to sell products based solely on commission. There’s a saying: ” if it looks too good to be true, it probably isn’t.” I’m sure you’ve all heard of the Ponzi scheme. The Ponzi focuses on recruiting new members and involves no products but a return on investments. When all is said and done, hardly anyone profits except the top dog. Pyramid schemes is where people bring in their own people into the network and the profit comes from recruitments. Multi-level marketing is when there is a product to sell to the public. Franchises are those businesses where the franchisee sells the contents of the business and does not own it outright.

Famous Ponzi scheme – Bernie Madoff

Famous Pyramid scheme – Mary Kay Consulting

Famous MLM scheme – Equinox

Famous Franchise scheme – McDonald’s

There are many ways to earn money, legitimately and illegitimately, in this world. With the Internet and social media, pan handling is a thing of the past unless it’s your only option. Anybody and anyone can ask for money online. Pull at the heartstrings of countless people you will never meet. Based on my own life, I could never do that and luckily I don’t have to (knock on wood I will never have to). There is a great need for selfless monetary contributions to the others less fortunate than yourself, but sometimes I see grifters. I guess this is the new standard when it comes to trying to make ends meet. I continue to do it the normal way of having a 40 hour a week job with benefits and not much time off. This is the great capital dream, right? I end this with the mindset that the hardest thing for me is dealing with the unknown and trusting there is a plan for me, that life isn’t all bad, and it will be okay.

March 31, 2021: Largest Lawsuits and Settlements

LARGEST CLASS ACTION LAWSUITS AND SETTLEMENTS SINCE 2020 (SOURCE:ANDY GILLIN)

1. TOBACCO SETTLEMENTS FOR $206 BILLION IN 1998

2. BP GULF OF MEXICO OIL SPILL $20 BILLION IN 2016

3. VOLKSWAGEN EMISSIONS SCANDAL $14.7 BILLION IN 2016

4. ENRON SECURITIES FRAUD $7.2 BILLION IN 2008

5. WORLDCOM ACCOUNTING SCANDAL $6.1 BILLION IN 2005

6. FEN-PHEN DIET DRUGS $3.8 BILLION IN 2000

7. AMERICAN INDIAN TRUST $3.4 BILLION IN 2011

8. SILICONE BREAST IMPLANTS $3.4 BILLION IN 1990S

9. CENDANT ACCOUNTING FRAUD $3.2 BILLION IN 2000

10. TYCO ACCOUNTING SCANDAL $3.2 BILLION IN 2007

LARGEST MEDICAL MALPRACTICE LAWSUITS AND SETTLEMENTS SINCE 2019 (SOURCE: HM TEAM)

1.            NEGLIGENCE AND FALSIFIED MEDICAL RECORDS DURING A DELIVERY OF BABY IN

        CALIFORNIA $74.5 MILLION

2.            INFANT SUFFERED BRAIN DAMAGE DURING DELIVERY OF BABY IN CONNECTICUT

        $58.6 MILLION

3.            ETHICS VIOLATION OF UNNECESSARY PROCEDURES IN FLORIDA $38.5 MILLION

4.            OXYGEN DEPRIVATION DURING DELIVERY OF BABY IN FLORIDA $31 MILLION

5.            MISDIAGNOSIS OF HEART CONDITION IN VIRGINIA $25 MILLION

6.            OXYGEN DEPRIVATION DURING DELIVERY OF BABY IN MINNESOTA $23.2 MILLION

7.            BIRTH INJURY DURING DELIVERY OF BABY IN PENNSYLVANIA $20.5 MILLION

8.            BREAST CANCER MISDIAGNOSIS IN NEW YORK $15 MILLION

9.            BIRTH INJURY DURING DELIVERY OF BABY IN WISCONSIN $11.4 MILLION

10.          OBJECTS IN STOMACH DURING AUTOPOSY IN ARIZONA $11 MILLION

LARGEST LEGAL SETTLEMENTS AGAINST POLICE AND PRISON MISCONDUCT SINCE 2016 (SOURCE: HUFFPOST)

1.            CENTRAL PARK FIVE IN NEW YORK $41 MILLION (WRONGFULLY ACCUSED)

2.            JUSTINE RUSZCYK FAMILY IN MINNESOTA $20 MILLION (FIRED UPON AND DIED

        AFTER CALLING 911 FOR HELP)

3.        CHRISTINA EILMAN RELEASED WITHOUT ASSISTANCE IN ILLINOIS $10.2 MILLION

        (SEXUALLY ASSAULTED AND THROWN OUT WINDOW)

4.            ALTON LOGAN IN ILLINOIS $10.2 MILLION (FALSE IMPRISONMENT)

5.            ABNER LOUIMA IN NEW YORK $8.75 MILLION (MISTREATMENT IN JAIL)

6.            DAVID RANTA IN NEW YORK $6.4 MILLION (FALSE IMPRISONMENT)

7.            ERIC GARNER FAMILY IN NEW YORK $5.9 MILLION (DIED DURING ARREST)

8.            REKIA BOYD FAMILY IN MASSACHUSETTS $4.5 MILLION (INNOCENT BYSTANDER

        FIRED UPON AND DIED)

9.            TWO WOMEN WHO WERE FIRED UPON DURING MANHUNT IN

        CALIFORNIA $4.2 MILLION (TRUCK HAD 100 BULLETS IN IT)

10.   DAVID WOODMAN FAMILY IN MASSACHUSETTS $3 MILLION (DIED IN CUSTODY)

AND GEORGE FLOYD IN MINNESOTA $27 MILLION (DIED DURING ARREST)

March 27, 2021: 10 Random Facts

James K. Polk and Warren G. Harding were both born on the same day of November 2, 1795. (Source: National Constitution Center)

The wombat forms their cube-shaped feces in the lower intestine. (Source: CNN World)

A mash-up of two words to make a new word is called a portmanteau. (Source: Merriam-Webster)

The Flintstones became the first-ever animated show to air during primetime in 1960. (Source: Wikipedia)

Strawberry, grape, and raspberry are the three most popular jams in the U.S. (Source: Statistica)

It takes 570 gallons of white paint to cover the exterior of the residence portion of the White House and occurs every 4-6 years. (Source: White House History)

Dexter Holland of Offspring has a doctorate in Molecular Biology, hot sauce entrepreneur, and licensed aircraft pilot. (Source: vh1)

Witwatersrand Basin in Johannesburg, South Africa and Carlin Trend in Nevada, USA are the two locations with the best gold mining. (Source: CMI)

The youngest popes were Pope Benedict IX at age 11-20 starting in 1032, Pope John XII at age 18 in 937, and Pope John XI at age 20 in 931. The oldest pope was Clement X at age 79 in 16709, and the longest Pope served was Leo XIII for 25 years and elected at age 67. (Source: World Atlas)

The human hand is controlled by muscles of the forearm and hand. The skeleton is the carpus, metacarpus, and phalanges or wrist, palm, and phalanges. (Source: Healthline)

March 24, 2021: What is the Best Book Genre?

I decided to look up what is the most profitable book genres. More women probably gravitate toward romance than men. More men probably gravitate toward cars and motorcycles. I don’t know who in their right mind would want to read a book about bowling or fishing. I consider both boring in most cases although between the two I’d rather bowl than fish even though I’ve done both in the past. So, what is the consensus floating around the Internet? The top five were as follows.

1. Romance and Erotica because it’s pretty self-explanatory. Women and some men want to fill their heads with romance and the freaky sexual encounters they don’t have in their own lives.
2. Crime and Mystery because men and women have an interest in crime especially solving murders.
3. Religious and Inspirational because people want to have a reason to live. They want purpose and meaning in their lives. They want to believe in something and gives people inspiration to do good things. On the flip side, religion offers bad things too. All the more important to know which is which.
4. Science Fiction and Fantasy because men and women love to be known as sci-fi geeks, fantasy nerds, and attend conventions.
5. Horror because people have an affinity for feeling scared while being safe in their own bed.

With this information, you are probably asking yourself so why am I writing a book about dogs? That is if you are a writer and you love dogs! The more important question is are you offering more than just facts and details of great breeding like I’m doing with my blog. Add some humor into it. You know that one time your chug (chihuahua and pug) pooped on the carpet that you stepped and walked all over your living room for a minute before realizing what you did. Maybe not the best example but you get my drift.

Here are the most competitive genres to write and sell on Kindle. There’s a pattern here where people like to read a combination of sorts. Few people want to read Moby Dick. I can attest to it. I’m still trying to finish it since 1994.

1. Romance/Contemporary
2. Literature and Fiction/Contemporary Fiction/Women
3. Romance/New Adult and College
4. Literature and Fiction/Contemporary Fiction/Romance
5. Literature and Fiction/Women/Romance
6. Literature and Fiction/Genre Fiction/Coming of Age
7. Romance/Mystery and Suspense/Suspense
8. Science Fiction/Fantasy/Paranormal and Urban
9. Literature and Fiction/Genre Fiction/Erotica
10. Literature and Fiction/Women/Mystery, Thriller, and Suspense/Women Sleuths

There’s also different genres regarding hard cover books and e-books. The top genres that sell the most in both are memoirs and biographies, self help, religion and spirituality, health/fitness/dieting, politics and social science, business and money, and cookbooks/food/wine.

Hardcover books

1. Memoirs and Biographies
2. Self Help
3. Religion and Spirituality
4. Health, Fitness, and Dieting
5. Politics and Social Science

E-books

1. Religion and Spirituality
2. Biographies and Memoirs
3. Business and Money
4. Self Help
5. Cookbooks, Food, and Wine

The bottom line is write what you know or do adequate research so you know what you’re writing about. There’s nothing more frustrating for the writer and reader if someone comes across as not believable. You can make an unbelievable world believable but it’s hard to make an established world unestablished, if you know what I mean. Sometimes, creativity gets a hold of you and doesn’t let go. This is fine but besides being a blog about random facts and information, it’s also a blog about being true to yourself. I have my own reasons for wanting to writing all of my book ideas. Some are challenges, some are needs, some are wants, and some are creative. Whatever anyone is writing, it should come from somewhere inside and not outside. I revamped my writing goals, yet again, and look forward to what is next because there’s always a next time and one after that.

So what is the best book genre? For me it’s become less of what genre it is and more does it keep me engaged? Yet, I gravitate toward historical fiction, social science, politics, horror, crime, self help, and autobiography.

March 22, 2021: Richest Countries in the World

It’s interesting to look at the richest countries in the world in terms of GDP Nominal (unadjusted for the effects of inflation) and GDP Per Capita (in thousands) in 2020. The countries in the top ten list have little change within the last year. Information for top ten richest countries is from Investopedia.

1. United States at $21.43 trillion ($65,298 Per Capita)
2. China at $14.34 trillion ($10,262)
3. Japan at 5.08 trillion ($40,247)
4. Germany at 3.86 trillion ($46,445)
5. India at 2.87 trillion ($2,100)
6. United Kingdom at $2.83 trillion ($42,330)
7. France at 2.72 trillion ($40,493)
8. Italy at 2.00 trillion ($33,228)
9. Brazil at 1.84 trillion ($8,717)
10. Canada at 1.74 trillion ($46,195)

It will be interesting to see the status of the world 25 years from now, but as of today the breakdown of the global economy is as follows. Information for the breakdown is from The World Bank. It says 168 countries outside the top 25 richest make up less than one fifth of the total global economy. As you can see below, the percentage are staggering.

1. United States makes up 24.41%
2. China makes up 16.34%
3. Japan makes up 5.79%
4. Germany makes up 4.4%
5. U.K, France, Italy, Brazil, and Canada make up 12.67%
6. Russia, South Korea, Australia, Spain, Mexico make up 8.43%
7. Indonesia, Netherlands, Saudia Arabia, Turkey, Switzerland, Poland, Thailand, Sweden, Belgium, Nigeria make up 7.9%
8. The 168 remaining countries make up 16.8

The countries change radically when you measure GDP at PPP (purchasing power parity) value of goods and services divided by the average population of any country. The numbers are 2020 estimates by International Monetary Fund.

1. Luxembourg at $112,875
2. Singapore at $95,603
3. Qatar at $91,897
4. Ireland at $89,383
5. Switzerland at $68,340
6. Norway at $64,856
7. United States at $63,051
8. Brunei at $61,816/(Macau at $58,931)
9. United Arab Emirates at $58,466/(Hong Kong at $58,165)
10. Denmark at $57, 781

March 17, 2021: Richest Writers in the World Still Alive

France - Elisabeth Badinter               

United Kingdom - J.K. Rowling

United States - James Patterson

United States - Stephen King

United States - Nora Roberts

United States - Danielle Steel

United Kingdom - Barbara Taylor Bradford

United Kingdom - Nigel Blackwell

United States - R.L. Stine

United States - John Grisham

United Kingdom - Jeffrey Archer

United States - Dan Brown

Nigeria - David Oyedepo

United States - Dean Koontz

United States - Stephanie Meyer

United Kingdom - Paul McKenna

United Kingdom - Christopher Little 

United Kingdom - Jack Higgins 

United States - Deepak Chopra

United States - Janet Evanovich

United States - Suzanne Collins

United States - Clive Cussler

United States - Meg Cabot

United Kingdom - E.L. James

United Kingdom - Ken Follett

March 6, 2021: Populations of Sub-Continents and Continents

According to the world population review, Asia accounts for the most of the population at basically 60%. It’s not surprising since China has over a billion plus people living in their country. For its land mass, Africa and Europe coming second and third is not surprising either. North America and South America are fourth and fifth. Australia/Oceania is sixth and Antarctica is seventh with zero. I mean who wants to live in Antarctica besides scientists? The further breakdown of populations is equally interesting. As of today, according to the world population clock, there was a change in population since January 1st of 14,231,100 with 382, 865 births per day and 163,925 deaths per day. This is my More You Know for today.

Name/Continent	2021 Population	World’s Population
Asia	4,678,445,024	59.41%
Africa	1,373,480,428	17.44%
Europe	748,787,739	9.51%
North America	596,564,730	7.58%
South America	434,260,151	5.51%
Australia/Oceania	43,219,970	0.55%
Name/Subcontinent and Region	2021 Population	World’s Population
World	7,874,965,825	100.00%
Southern Asia	1,962,272,405	24.92%
South Central Asia	1,933,675,316	24.55%
Eastern Asia	1,682,854,641	21.37%
Sub-Saharan Africa	1,122,845,156	14.26%
South-Eastern Asia	675,118,472	8.57%
Latin America	616,805,553	7.83%
The Middle East	456,104,310	5.79%
Eastern Africa	445,671,871	5.66%
South America	434,260,151	5.51%
Western Africa	412,453,951	5.24%
Northern America	371,107,709	4.71%
Eastern Europe	293,702,191	3.73%
Western Asia	282,772,874	3.59%
Northern Africa	250,635,272	3.18%
Western Europe	196,603,216	2.50%
Middle Africa	196,361,314	2.49%
Central America	181,721,496	2.31%
Southern Europe	151,945,051	1.93%
Northern Europe	106,537,281	1.35%
Central Asia	75,426,632	0.96%
Southern Africa	68,358,020	0.87%
Caribbean	43,735,525	0.56%
Australia/New Zealand	30,648,858	0.39%
Melanesia	11,328,594	0.14%
Polynesia	688,121	0.01%
Micronesia	554,397	0.01%

February 28, 2021: Time Magazine Person(s) of the Year

Every year Time magazine puts a person or group of people on the cover. Here is the list so far from when it began in 1927 up to 2020. Most of them are politicians and people who have contributed or influenced the world in positive and negative ways. My guess the cover of 2021 will be the U.S. Capitol insurrectionists but who knows.

1927                                       Charles Lindbergh

1928                                       Walter Chrysler

1929                                       Owen D. Young

1930                                       Mahatma Gandhi

1931                                       Pierre Laval

1932                                       Franklin D.  Roosevelt

1933                                       Hugh S. Johnson

1934                                       Franklin D.  Roosevelt’s

1935                                       Hailie Selassie

1936                                       Wallis Simpson

1937                                       Chiang Kai-shek and Soong Mei-ling

1938                                       Adolf Hitler

1939                                       Joseph Stalin

1940                                       Winston Churchill

1941                                       Franklin D.  Roosevelt

1942                                       Joseph Stalin

1943                                       George Marshall

1944                                       Dwight D. Eisenhower

1945                                       Harry S. Truman

1946                                       James F. Byrnes

1947                                       George Marshall

1948                                       Harry S. Truman

1949                                       Winston Churchill

1950                                       The American fighting-man/U.S. troops in the Korean War

1951                                       Mohammad Mossadegh

1952                                       Queen Elizabeth II

1953                                       Konrad Adenauer

1954                                       John Foster Dulles

1955                                       Harlow Curtice

1956                                       The Hungarian freedom fighter/revoluntionaries

1957                                       Nikita Khrushchev

1958                                       Charles de Gaulle

1959                                       Dwight D. Eisenhower

1960                                       The U.S. Scientists

1961                                       John F. Kennedy

1962                                       Pope John XXIII

1963                                       Martin Luther King Jr.

1964                                       Lyndon B. Johnson

1965                                       William Westmoreland

1966                                       The Inheritor of Americans aged 25 and under

1967                                       Lyndon B. Johnson

1968                                       The Apollo 8 of William Anders, Frank Borman, and Jim Lovell

1969                                       The Middle Americans/silent majority

1970                                       Willy Brandt

1971                                       Richard Nixon

1972                                       Henry Kissinger

1973                                       John Sirica

1974                                       King Faisal

1975                                       American Women including Billie Jean King, Betty Ford, and others

1976                                       Jimmy Carter

1977                                       Amwar Sadat

1978                                       Deng Xiaoping

1979                                       Ruhollah Khomeini

1980                                       Ronald Reagan

1981                                       Lech Walesa

1982                                       The Computer/Machine of the Year

1983                                       Ronald Reagan and Yuri Andropov

1984                                       Peter Ueberroth

1985                                       Deng Xiaoping

1986                                       Corazon Aquino

1987                                       Mikhail Gorbachev

1988                                       The Endangered Earth/Planet of the Year

1989                                       Mikhail Gorbachev

1990                                       George H.W. Bush

1991                                       Ted Turner

1992                                       Bill Clinton

1993                                       The Peacemakers of Nelson Mandela and others        

1994                                       Pope John Paul II

1995                                       Newt Gingrich

1996                                       David Ho

1997                                       Andrew Grove

1998                                       Bill Clinton and Ken Starr

1999                                       Jeff Bezos

2000                                       George W. Bush

2001                                       Rudy Giuliani

2002                                       The Whistleblowers

2003                                       The American soldier especially during the Iraq War

2004                                       George W. Bush

2005                                       The Good Samaritans of Bono, Bill Gates, and Melinda Gates

2006                                       You/individual content creators of the web

2007                                       Vladimir Putin

2008                                       Barack Obama

2009                                       Ben Bernanke

2010                                       Mark Zuckerberg

2011                                      The Protester/global protests

2012                                       Barack Obama

2013                                       Pope Francis

2014                                       Ebola fighters/health care workers

2015                                       Angela Merkel

2016                                       Donald Trump

2017                                       The Silence Breakers

2018                                       Guardians/journalists including Jamal Khashoggi and others

2019                                       Greta Thunberg

2020                                       Joe Biden and Kamala Harris

February 10, 2021: List of Superbowl Winners

I’ve never watched a football game in my life. The same goes for any Super Bowl or commercials. Despite this, I made a list of the Super Bowl winners from 1967 to 2021. The teams that have won the most Super Bowls are the Pittsburgh Steelers and New England Patriots with six each. The Dallas Cowboys, San Francisco 49ers won five each and Green Pay Packers and New York Giants won four each. The next Super Bowl will be at the Los Angeles Stadium in California on February 6, 2022. The sources are ESPN and World Atlas.

Number	Date/Year	Location/City	Winner/Result
I	Jan. 15, 1967	Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum	Green Bay 35, Kansas City 10
II	Jan. 14, 1968	Orange Bowl (Miami)	Green Bay 33, Oakland 14
III	Jan. 12, 1969	Orange Bowl (Miami)	New York Jets 16, Baltimore 7
IV	Jan. 11, 1970	Tulane Stadium (New Orleans)	Kansas City 23, Minnesota 7
V	Jan. 17, 1971	Orange Bowl (Miami)	Baltimore 16, Dallas 13
VI	Jan. 16, 1972	Tulane Stadium (New Orleans)	Dallas 24, Miami 3
VII	Jan. 14, 1973	Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum	Miami 14, Washington 7
VIII	Jan. 13, 1974	Rice Stadium (Houston)	Miami 24, Minnesota 7
IX	Jan. 12, 1975	Tulane Stadium (New Orleans)	Pittsburgh 16, Minnesota 6
X	Jan. 18, 1976	Orange Bowl (Miami)	Pittsburgh 21, Dallas 17
XI	Jan. 9, 1977	Rose Bowl (Pasadena, Calif.)	Oakland 32, Minnesota 14
XII	Jan. 15, 1978	Superdome (New Orleans)	Dallas 27, Denver 10
XIII	Jan. 21, 1979	Orange Bowl (Miami)	Pittsburgh 35, Dallas 31
XIV	Jan. 20, 1980	Rose Bowl (Pasadena, Calif.)	Pittsburgh 31, Los Angeles Rams 19
XV	Jan. 25, 1981	Superdome (New Orleans)	Oakland 27, Philadelphia 10
XVI	Jan. 24, 1982	Silverdome (Pontiac, Mich.)	San Francisco 26, Cincinnati 21
XVII	Jan. 30, 1983	Rose Bowl (Pasadena, Calif.)	Washington 27, Miami 17
XVIII	Jan. 22, 1984	Tampa (Fla.) Stadium	Los Angeles Raiders 38, Washington 9
XIX	Jan. 20, 1985	Stanford (Calif.) Stadium	San Francisco 38, Miami 16
XX	Jan. 26, 1986	Superdome (New Orleans)	Chicago 46, New England 10
XXI	Jan. 25, 1987	Rose Bowl (Pasadena, Calif.)	New York Giants 39, Denver 20
XXII	Jan. 31, 1988	Jack Murphy Stadium (San Diego)	Washington 42, Denver 10
XXIII	Jan. 22, 1989	Joe Robbie Stadium (Miami)	San Francisco 20, Cincinnati 16
XXIV	Jan. 28, 1990	Superdome (New Orleans)	San Francisco 55, Denver 10
XXV	Jan. 27, 1991	Tampa (Fla.) Stadium	New York Giants 20, Buffalo 19
XXVI	Jan. 26, 1992	Metrodome (Minneapolis)	Washington 37, Buffalo 24
XXVII	Jan. 31, 1993	Rose Bowl (Pasadena, Calif.)	Dallas 52, Buffalo 17
XXVIII	Jan. 30, 1994	Georgia Dome (Atlanta)	Dallas 30, Buffalo 13
XXIX	Jan. 29, 1995	Joe Robbie Stadium (Miami)	San Francisco 49, San Diego 26
XXX	Jan. 28, 1996	Sun Devil Stadium (Tempe, Ariz.)	Dallas 27, Pittsburgh 17
XXXI	Jan. 26, 1997	Superdome (New Orleans)	Green Bay 35, New England 21
XXXII	Jan. 25, 1998	Qualcomm Stadium (San Diego)	Denver 31, Green Bay 24
XXXIII	Jan. 31, 1999	Pro Player Stadium (Miami)	Denver 34, Atlanta 19
XXXIV	Jan. 30, 2000	Georgia Dome (Atlanta)	St. Louis 23, Tennessee 16
XXXV	Jan. 28, 2001	Raymond James Stadium (Tampa, Fla.)	Baltimore 34, New York Giants 7
XXXVI	Feb. 3, 2002	Superdome (New Orleans)	New England 20, St. Louis 17
XXXVII	Jan. 26, 2003	Qualcomm Stadium (San Diego)	Tampa Bay 48, Oakland 21
XXXVIII	Feb. 1, 2004	Reliant Stadium (Houston)	New England 32, Carolina 29
XXXIX	Feb. 6, 2005	Alltel Stadium (Jacksonville, Fla.)	New England 24, Philadelphia 21
XL	Feb. 5, 2006	Ford Field (Detroit)	Pittsburgh 21, Seattle 10
XLI	Feb. 4, 2007	Dolphin Stadium (Miami)	Indianapolis 29, Chicago 17
XLII	Feb. 3, 2008	University of Phoenix Stadium (Glendale, Ariz.)	New York Giants 17, New England 14
XLIII	Feb. 1, 2009	Raymond James Stadium (Tampa, Fla.)	Pittsburgh 27, Arizona 23
XLIV	Feb. 7, 2010	Sun Life Stadium (Miami)	New Orleans 31, Indianapolis 17
XLV	Feb. 6, 2011	Cowboys Stadium (Arlington, Texas)	Green Bay 31, Pittsburgh 25
XLVI	Feb. 5, 2012	Lucas Oil Stadium (Indianapolis)	New York Giants 21, New England 17
XLVII	Feb. 3, 2013	Mercedes-Benz Superdome (New Orleans)	Baltimore 34, San Francisco 31
XLVIII	Feb. 2, 2014	MetLife Stadium (East Rutherford, N.J.)	Seattle 43, Denver 8
XLIX	Feb. 1, 2015	University of Phoenix Stadium (Glendale, Ariz.)	New England 28, Seattle 24
50	Feb. 7, 2016	Levi’s Stadium (Santa Clara, Calif.)	Denver 24, Carolina 10
LI	Feb. 5, 2017	NRG Stadium (Houston)	New England 34, Atlanta 28
LII	Feb. 4, 2018	U.S. Bank Stadium (Minneapolis)	Philadelphia 41, New England 33
LIII	Feb. 3, 2019	Mercedes-Benz Stadium (Atlanta)	New England 13, Los Angeles Rams 3
LIV	Feb. 2, 2020	Hard Rock Stadium (Miami)	Kansas City 31, San Francisco 20
LV	Feb. 7, 2021	Raymond James Stadium (Tampa, Fla.)	Tampa Bay 31, Kansas City 9

January 26, 2021: List of Presidential Pets

U.S. Presidents came with various pets when they occupied the White House.  The most common were various dog and cat breeds.  There were other animals roaming the grounds from ponies and horses, different birds such as parrots, parakeets, mockingbirds, macaws, and canaries.  There were also grizzly and black bears, goats, rabbits, racoons, and opossums, silkworms, tigers, cows, eagles, turkeys, white mice, alligators, roosters, rams, owls, hyenas, squirrels, donkeys, ducks, hamsters, guinea pigs, hens, garter snakes, sheep, lizards, badger, and rats.  Some of the more exotic animals were gifts and often donated to Zoos. 

 The last president not to have any pets in the WH: Donald Trump

 The last president with hypoallergenic dogs in the WH: Barack Obama

 The last president to have a cow at the WH: William Taft

 The last president to have a horse at the WH: John F. Kennedy

 The last president to have a bobcat in the WH: Calvin Coolidge

 The last president to have a cat in the WH: George W. Bush until Joe Biden officially

 adopts a cat.

 Last of all, the list of Presidents and their dogs although not all had dogs.

 President Joe Biden

 Champ, German Shepard

 Major, German Shepard

 President Donald Trump

 NA

 President Barack Obama

 Bo, Portuguese water dog

 Sunny, also a Portuguese water dog

 President George W. Bush,

 Miss Beazley, Scottish terrier

 Spot, English springer spaniel,

 Barney, Scottish terrier

 President Bill Clinton

 Buddy, Labrador retriever

 President George H.W. Bush

 Millie, English springer spaniel

 Ranger, one of Millie’s puppies

 President Ronald Reagan

 Lucky, Bouvier des Flandres

 Rex, Cavalier King Charles spaniel

 Victory, golden retriever

 Peggy, Irish setter

 Taca, Siberian husky

 Fuzzy, Belgian sheepdog

 President Jimmy Carter

 Grits, border collie

 Lewis Brown, Afghan hound

 President Gerald Ford

 Liberty, golden retriever

 Misty, one of Liberty’s puppies

 Lucky, dog

 President Richard Nixon

 Checkers, Nixon’s dog while vice president

 Vicky, poodle

 Pasha, terrier

 King Timahoe, Irish setter

 President Lyndon B. Johnson

 Him and Her, beagles

 Edgar and Freckles, beagles

 Blanco, collie

 Yuki, mixed-breed dog

 President John F. Kennedy

 Charlie, Welsh terrier

 Gaullie, French poodle

 Pushinka, mixed-breed dog (gift from Soviet Premier Nikita Khruschev)

 Shannon, cocker spaniel

 Wolf, Irish wolfhound

 Clipper, German shepherd

 Butterfly, White Tips, Blackie, Streaker (Pushinka and Charlie’s puppies)

 President Dwight D. Eisenhower

 Heidi, Weimaraner

 President Harry S. Truman

 Feller, the unwanted dog, cocker spaniel

 Mike, Margaret Truman’s Irish setter

 President Franklin Delano Roosevelt

 Major, German shepherd

 Meggie, Scottish terrier

 Winks, Llewellyn setter

 Tiny, Old English sheepdog

 President, Great Dane

 Fala, famed Scottish terrier

 Blaze, Elliott Roosevelt’s English bullmastiff

 President Herbert Hoover

 King Tut, Belgian shepherd

 Pat, German shepherd

 Big Ben, fox terrier

 Sonny, fox terrier

 Glen, Scottish collie

 Yukon, Siberian husky

 Patrick, wolfhound

 Eaglehurst Gillette, setter

 Weejie, elkhound

 President Calvin Coolidge

 Prudence Prim, female white collie

 Rob Roy, male white collie

 Peter Pan, terrier

 Paul Pry, an Airedale terrier

 Calamity Jane, Shetland sheepdog

 Tiny Tim, chow

 Blackberry, also a chow

 Ruby Rouch, brown collie

 Bessie, collie

 Boston Beans, bulldog

 King Cole, Belgian shepherd

 Palo Alto, bird dog

 President Warren Harding

 Laddie Boy, Airedale terrier

 Old Boy, English bulldog

 President Woodrow Wilson

 Davie, Airedale terrier

 Mountain Boy, greyhound

 Bruce, bull terrier

 President William Taft

 Caruso, dog

 President Theodore Roosevelt

 Pete, a bull terrier, was a favorite pet

 Rollo, Saint Bernard

 Sailor Boy, Chesapeake Bay retriever

 Blackjack, Kermit Roosevelt’s Manchester terrier

 Skip, mixed-breed dog

 Manchu, Alice Roosevelt’s Pekingese

 President William McKinley

 He had pets but no dogs.

 President Benjamin Harrison

 Dogs including Dash, a collie

 President Grover Cleveland

 Cocker spaniel

 Collie

 St. Bernard

 Dachshunds

 Foxhounds

 French poodle, Hector

 President Chester A. Arthur

 He had pets but no dogs.

 President James Garfield

 A Newfoundland dog named Veto

 President Rutherford B. Hayes

 Hector, Newfoundland dog

 Duke, possibly an English mastiff

 Grim, greyhound

 Otis, miniature schnauzer

 Dot, cocker spaniel

 Juno and Shep, two hunting dogs

 Jet, dog

 President Ulysses S. Grant

 Faithful, Jesse Grant’s Newfoundland dog

 Rosie, dog

 President Andrew Johnson

 NA

 President Abraham Lincoln

 Family’s beloved dog, Fido (who stayed home in Springfield, Ill.)

 Jip, Lincoln’s dog

 President James Buchanan

 Lara, a Newfoundland

 President Franklin Pierce

 Seven small dogs

 President Millard Fillmore

 He had pets but no dogs.

 President Zachary Taylor

 He had pets but no dogs.

 President James K. Polk

 NA

 President John Tyler

 A pair of wolfhounds that President Tyler imported for his wife, Julia

 Le Beau, an Italian greyhound

 President William Henry Harrison

 He had pets but no dogs.

 President Martin Van Buren

 He was given cubs as a gift but gave to a zoo.

 President Andrew Jackson

 He had pets but no dogs.

 President John Quincy Adams

 He had pets but no dogs.

 President James Monroe

 Spaniel belonging to Maria Monroe

 President James Madison

 He had pets but no dogs.

 President Thomas Jefferson

 He had pets but no dogs.

 President John Adams

 Juno and Satan, Abigail Adams’ two mixed-breed dogs

 President George Washington

 Drunkard, Mopsey, Taster, Cloe, Tipsy, Tipler, Forester, Captain, Lady Rover, Vulcan,

 Sweet Lips, and Searcher, all hounds

 Five French hounds

                              (Source: Presidential Pet Museum)

January 12, 2021: Presidential Inauguration Facts

In tradition, I tend to post information that is relevant to what is occurring in the world. The Presidential inauguration will occur next week in the U.S. What are some of the past inauguration facts? Here they are and sources are from Politifact, Wikipedia, and Britannia.

1. In 1789, George Washington had the shorted inaugural address of 135 words.
2. In 1801, Thomas Jefferson was the first inaugural address to be printed in the newspaper.
3. In 1809, James Madison was the first have an inaugural ball not sponsored.
4. In 1829, Andrew Jackson had around 10,000 people at his inauguration.
5. In 1841, William Henry Harrison had the longest inaugural address of 8,460 words.
6. In 1853, Franklin Pierce was the first not to have any inaugural balls.
7. In 1857, James Buchanan was the first inauguration to be photographed.
8. In 1897, William McKinley was the first inauguration to be recorded on film.
9. In 1925, Calvin Coolidge was the first inauguration to be broadcast nationally on public radio.
10. In 1937, Franklin D. Roosevelt was the first to be sworn in on January 20th.
11. In 1949, Harry S. Truman was the first inauguration to be televised in black and white.
12. In 1953, Dwight D. Eisenhower was the first to be lassoed by a cowboy.
13. In 1961, John F. Kennedy was the first inauguration to be televised in color.
14. In 1977, Jimmy Carter was the first president to walk in the inaugural parade.
15. In 1981, Ronald Reagan was the first inauguration to be televised for the deaf and hard of hearing.
16. In 1981, Ronald Reagan had the coldest (7 degrees) and warmest (55 degrees) inauguration.
17. In 1997, Bill Clinton was the first inauguration to be streamed live on the Internet.
18. In 2001, George Bush was the first inauguration to be 100+ million dollars.
19. In 2009, Barack Obama had the highest inaugural attendance with around 1.8 million people.
20. In 2021, Joseph R. Biden will be the first to have a virtual parade.

January 5, 2021: Top 100 U.S. Cities Keeping NY Resolutions

Rank	City
1	Scottsdale, AZ
2	Salt Lake City, UT
3	Seattle, WA
4	Irvine, CA
5	San Diego, CA
6	Overland Park, KS
7	San Francisco, CA
8	Fremont, CA
9	Raleigh, NC
10	San Jose, CA
10	Plano, TX
12	Atlanta, GA
13	Huntington Beach, CA
14	Austin, TX
15	Columbia, MD
16	Virginia Beach, VA
17	Chandler, AZ
18	Charleston, SC
19	Tempe, AZ
20	Madison, WI
21	Boise, ID
22	Portland, ME
23	Orlando, FL
24	Minneapolis, MN
25	Gilbert, AZ
26	Tampa, FL
27	Portland, OR
28	Charlotte, NC
29	Colorado Springs, CO
30	Lincoln, NE
31	Omaha, NE
32	Denver, CO
33	Honolulu, HI
34	Fargo, ND
35	Durham, NC
36	Sioux Falls, SD
37	St. Petersburg, FL
38	South Burlington, VT
39	Fort Lauderdale, FL
40	Washington, DC
41	Peoria, AZ
42	Jacksonville, FL
43	Grand Rapids, MI
44	Phoenix, AZ
45	Pittsburgh, PA
46	Las Vegas, NV
47	Sacramento, CA
48	Nashua, NH
49	Bismarck, ND
50	Houston, TX
51	Chesapeake, VA
52	Los Angeles, CA
53	Glendale, AZ
54	Pembroke Pines, FL
55	Mesa, AZ
56	West Valley City, UT
57	Cape Coral, FL
58	Oceanside, CA
59	Boston, MA
60	Henderson, NV
61	Fort Worth, TX
62	Rancho Cucamonga, CA
63	Pearl City, HI
64	Cedar Rapids, IA
65	Lexington-Fayette, KY
66	Chicago, IL
67	Tucson, AZ
68	Miami, FL
69	Burlington, VT
70	Albuquerque, NM
71	San Antonio, TX
72	Nashville, TN
73	Chula Vista, CA
74	Reno, NV
75	Dallas, TX
76	Santa Rosa, CA
77	Rapid City, SD
78	Kansas City, MO
79	Des Moines, IA
80	Columbus, OH
81	Santa Clarita, CA
82	Arlington, TX
83	St. Paul, MN
84	Oklahoma City, OK
85	Vancouver, WA
86	Oakland, CA
87	Spokane, WA
88	Cheyenne, WY
89	El Paso, TX
90	Billings, MT
91	Modesto, CA
92	Cincinnati, OH
93	Tacoma, WA
94	St. Louis, MO
95	Greensboro, NC
96	New York, NY
97	Huntsville, AL
98	Garden Grove, CA
99	Aurora, CO
100	Anaheim, CA