(If you have any comments or questions, please contact the editor)
END OF THE DECADE ISSUE
DECEMBER 21, 2019
NEWS-NOTES-NONSENSE
SONGS OF THE SEASON
MarkV introduced the elementary school choir from the Mississippi Valley Christian School in Alton. They sang several Christmas carols and left everyone in a happy place. The kids were then off to Shogun to watch their lunch being sliced and diced.
We were served the "meal of the decade" on Thursday. Our protein options included filet mignon and chicken teriyaki. Rotary g-beans made their final appearance of the year, accompanied by whipped potatoes. Salad, rolls, Cheesecake Factory cheesecake and pecan pie finished the fine and memorable meal.
Well, that was fast. Lori was nominated for another two year term as club secretary and Alex accepted the nomination as club Prez for the 2021-22 Rotary year. We thank both of these fine members for accepting the mantle of leadership.
Early arrivals included, Allen, Prez Brad, Bill and Sandy. Last of the 24 members in the house included Rhonda, Rod, Dave and BradP. No meeting next week, see you on January 2nd. Be safe and enjoy your Christmas and New Year's holidays.
It looks like Lori and MarkA are leading the conga line to Florida.
Rhonda will be doing a lot of studying this coming year "to get smarter". Please don't bother her.
It seems as though everyone loves "Big Papa G" music trivia event. Rhonda is working with Wood River's Jean to find an available date/location to co-host the trivia event. Sometime in April is the target.
ChrisH thanked everyone for their support of our adopted family. Thanks to Chris for coordinating.
Wood River's Tommie was our only visiting Rotarian.
Opening duties were performed by Paul, ChrisH and Rodney.
According to our Prez, soldiers swim more than sailors. Your thoughts?
ChrisL is seeking a new date for our basketball tournament. Perhaps the afternoon of Jan 26th?
SAA Chris and buckmeister Alex fined those not in the house last week. Announcements were forthcoming from Dave and Joe. We correctly answered three out of four Christmas trivia Q's.
Keep an eye on Sandy as she makes change from the 50-50 box.
Even though Dick showed up in hopes of getting a chance to draw the joker from one of the eight remaining cards, Cory wound up claiming the $165 jackpot. His children are delighted. We are down to a final Bank of Edwardsville "collectable" deck of cards.
That's it, have a fine and dry weekend. Ciao!
See you next decade!
FLASHIN' THE CASH
YOU'RE A MEAN ONE...
TRIVIA
Scientists said flatter seams on baseballs explained 60% of this year's record-setting major league home run total. what got credit for the other 40%?
A-The wide adoption of a home-run oriented swing
B-Climate change
C-The advent of Chinese manufacturing
D-A switch to hides from faster horses
Today is National Flashlight Day
What major European port is around 70 miles inland?
Port of Helsinki
Port of Bristol
Port of Hamburg
Port of Dublin
Germany’s Port of Hamburg is the third largest container port in Europe (and 19th in the world) — which is perhaps surprising, considering it lies around 70 miles inland. South of the North Sea, the seaport on the river Elbe serves 2,300 freight trains per week and 8,000 ships per year on its 26 miles of quay. It also features three cruise terminals, which handle the world’s largest cruise liners. But the port serves cargo more often than tourists, with 135.1 million tons of it passing the quay walls in 2018.
On This Date-
1620 – Plymouth Colony: William Bradford and the Mayflower Pilgrims land on what is now known as Plymouth Rock in Plymouth, Massachusetts.
1861 – Medal of Honor: Public Resolution 82, containing a provision for a Navy Medal of Valor, is signed into law by President Abraham Lincoln.
1879 – World premiere of Henrik Ibsen's A Doll's House at the Royal Theatre in Copenhagen, Denmark.
1913 – Arthur Wynne's "word-cross", the first crossword puzzle, is published in the New York World.
1937 – Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs, the world's first full-length animated feature, premieres at the Carthay Circle Theatre.
1967 – Louis Washkansky, the first man to undergo a human-to-human heart transplant, dies in Cape Town, South Africa, having lived for 18 days after the transplant.
1968 – Apollo program: Apollo 8 is launched from the Kennedy Space Center, placing its crew on a lunar trajectory for the first visit to another celestial body by humans.
1988 – A bomb explodes on board Pan Am Flight 103 over Lockerbie, Dumfries and Galloway, Scotland, killing 270. This is to date the deadliest air disaster to occur in British soil.
1995 – The city of Bethlehem passes from Israeli to Palestinian control
FROM THE ARCHIVES
DECEMBER 27, 2011
Club officials included: Prez Dave, Lori, Cory, Paul, BradL, MarkA, Rod, Rhonda and Rick
Pat handled the pledge and Paul took care of the four-way test
Paul Maley was on hand to sell pecans for the Alton-Godfrey club
BradL and Rhonda were on the list of candidates for Prez Elect
Jerry McRae won the Columbian emerald that Wendell was auctioning
The Lawn and Garden Show date was tentatively set for April 7th
OCTOBER 2011
DATELINE:RI
JAPANESE SCHOLARSHIP PROGRAM
PAYS DIVIDENDS
By Masa Kato
As a regional communications specialist for Rotary International, I get excited when I hear stories about students who have had their lives changed by Rotary scholarships. Lasitha Eriyawa, a Sri Lankan, came to Japan in 2001 to pursue his college education. During his senior year, he received a scholarship from the Rotary Yoneyama Memorial Foundation, a program administered by an independent foundation named after Umekichi Yoneyama, the Father of Rotary in Japan.
Through this program, Rotarians in Japan have supported more than 20,000 international students in the past half-century. More than half of them are from China, South Korea, and Taiwan. But the foundation has accepted students from around the world. One thing that is unique is that a Rotary club in Japan is assigned as the “sewa club” (host club) for each scholar and that club members provide comprehensive support so that the students can focus on their studies.
Today, Yoneyama alumni are taking leadership roles in various fields. Many of them participating in Rotary service. Lasitha is one of them. While working as a team leader in the software engineering division of a semiconductor manufacturing company in Japan, he started a project to support a government hospital in a remote area of Sri Lanka. To collect the funds, he served tea made from top-grade leafs rarely available anywhere but in Sri Lanka and asked for donations at Rotary meetings in Japan. To continue reading, link herehttps://bit.ly/390PWQa
AND I QUOTE
"I couldn't wait for success, so I went ahead without it."-Jonathan Miller
"Tension is who you think you should be, relaxation is who you are."-Chinese Proverb
"Heaven goes by favor; If it went by merit, you would stay out and your dog would go in."-Mark Twain
"It is an ironic habit of human beings to run faster when they have lost their way."-Rollo May
SMILE
Two tips for Christmas: 1-Forget the past. You can't change it. 2-Forget the present, I didn't get you one.
Managing your weight around the holidays just requires a little planning...for example, I took the batteries out of my scale on Wednesday.
Why do Dasher and Dancer love coffee? Because they are Santa's star bucks.
Four stages of a man's life: 1-You believe in Santa, 2-You don't believe in Santa, 3-You are Santa, 4-You look like Santa.
Which of Santa's reindeer do dinosaurs dislike the most? Comet!
Police: Why didn't you report your stolen credit card? Man: The thief was spending less than my wife.
You know you are old when your knees give you a more accurate weather forecast than the guy on TV.
BY THE NUMBERS
From November 2017 to this August, the share of Amazon packages being offered for one-day shipping increased to 35.6% from 12.4%-Rakuten Intelligence
71% of U.S. adults feel financially secure today vs 47% in 2009-Northwest Mutual Planning and Progress Study
Delivery companies are expected to carry more than 2.4 billion global packages between Thanksgiving and the end of the year, or twice as many parcels as they handled in 2013-SJ Consulting Group
More than 40% of manufacturing workers have a college degree, up from 22% in 1991
The value of U.S. dollars in circulation hot about $1.7 trillion last year (about $1.3 trillion is $100 bills), up from $1.2 trillion in 2012. About 60% of all U.S. currency is held outside the United States-Federal Reserve
Roughly 93% of all new private student loan dollars extended to undergraduate students during the current academic year also included parent or other adults’ signatures on them, up from 74% in the 2008-09 school year-MeasureOne
.jpeg)
