Good Morning All!
Happy Birthday to our friend Curt, musical theater actor extraordinaire in New York City who hails from Butte, Montana! Here’s to you, Curt! And Happy Birthday to singer Merald “Bubba” Knight of “Gladys Knight & The Pips” fame, who is 77 today; and to golfer extraordinaire Tom Watson, who turns 70 today! Here’s to all of you!
We’re enjoying a visit by our dear friend, Sheryl, from Salt Lake City. She brought a treasure trove of original documents pertaining to the life of my paternal grandfather, Ammon Morris Newbold. She really knows how to dig for information and it’s a great gift she gave to me yesterday. We’ll be spending this week visiting our family…she especially wants to see the newest addition to our family, little Izzak (“Ike”). It’s always great to have Sheryl with us!
One thing I didn’t realize about Iceland is that they still hunt whales there. However, there’s been a lack of any real market for whale meat, so this has prompted Icleand’s whalers to forego the hunt this season, for the first time since 2003. I guess they still hunt the endangered fin whale and the more plentiful minke whale. Who would have thought that whale hunting continues? Perhaps the law of supply & demand will put an end to this practice. It’s hard to see the worth of decimating what remains of the world’s whale population…This brings to mind one of my favorite Gordon Lightfoot songs that he penned in the 1970s…”Ode To Big Blue.”
Evidently, there are calls in Iceland to enact a “sugar tax.” According to a 2013 report from the Directorate of Health, about 21% of adult Icelanders have a BMI of 30 or greater, and 5% of children are overweight. This, among other findings, the Directorate says, leads them to the conclusion that greater measures must be taken to get Icelanders to eat healthier. A higher tax on foods high in sugar—such as candy and soft drinks—has been one proposed way to do that. According to an article in “The Reykjavik Grapvine”, “The last time this was tried, the price of soft drinks only went up by about 5 Icelandic Kronos per litre, while at the same time the price of chocolate decreased,” assistant director Kjartan Hrelnn Njalsson told reporters. “Now we are proposing a 20% increase, which consumers would actually feel the effects of, while the 5% hike did not in any way go far enough.” It will be interesting to see where this goes…
One last thing about Iceland, the U.S. has a fairly large naval base in Keflavik, just outside Reykjavik. Evidently, the U.S. military plans to spend some $57 million to upgrade the base’s airfield to better handle the loading and unloading of explosives and other hazardous cargo and to improve the launching pads for aircraft and to expand the parking apron. I found it interesting that the Icelandic government may repurpose some 300 million Icelandic Kronos (ISK) from the 600 million ISK it originally allotted for international aid and direct it instead towards helping the U.S. build up the base. The U.S. base must be pretty important to Iceland’s economy!
I came across the 1969 Topps Football Card for Kermit Alexander, former San Francisco 49ers star. He was born in 1941 and raised in the Los Angeles inner-city neighborhood of Watts, a pretty tough place to grow up in the 1950s & 1960s. He was the oldest boy in a large family…his father was a horse trainer. His mother, Ebora, was an inspiration to Kermit, as she took in many children from the neighborhood and nurtured and mentored them. He won a scholarship to UCLA after playing high school football at Mount Carmel High School in Los Angeles. He was a first round draft pick in the 1963 NFL draft by the San Francisco 49ers. He played most of his career with the 49ers as a defensive back and punt/kickoff returner. His 1969 football card says that “this athlete has great speed and quick reactions.” He was responsible for the rolling tackle on Chicago Bear great Gale Sayers that resulted in a serious knee injury that ended Sayers’ career. He was known for his hard-hitting style of play. On August 31, 1984, Alexander’s mother, sister and two nephews were in south central Los Angeles during a home invasion by members of the Rollin 60’s Neighborhood Grips Gang, whose intended victims lived two doors away. Their murders had a devastating effect on Kermit Alexander for the rest of his life, until he was fortunate to meet a woman who he married. She had a heart for orphans and convinced Kermit that they should adopt a child from Haiti. They learned that this child had four other siblings without parents, so they decided to adopt all five children. During the time they were in the process of adopting the children, Haiti experienced a devastating earthquake in 2010. Miraculously, all five children survived and they were able to come to the U.S. to live with the Alexanders. Kermit is now active raising his children (he’s 78 now!) and is one of the Directors of the “Lott IMPACT Trophy” program, named in honor of 49ers defensive back Ronnie Lott. The award honors the best defensive player of the year in college football. Here’s to Kermit Alexander for his ability to overcome adversity and make our world a better place!
Here’s the silly question for the day:
Q: What is the longest word in the dictionary?
A: “SMILES”, because there is a mile between the “S”.
Here are the thoughts for the day:
“For the King, once lifted high to cries of rage, of “crucify,”
endured the cross as ev’ry sin was laid on the Son.
To the King who conquered death, to free the poor and the oppressed
for lasting peace, for life and liberty in the Son.
—Keith & Kristyn Getty and Stuart Townsend, “For The Cause”
“Those who love greatly are near to God.
But of course it is “nearness by likeness.”
—C.S. Lewis, “The Four Loves” as quoted “C.S. Lewis’ Little Book of Wisdom (2018)
Here’s to a great Wednesday and lots of love always!
Press on,
Papa ‘a (Dad, Uncle Mark, etc.)