RenoVous

  However you choose to celebrate, I hope you enjoy yourself. We have the dinner obligations today, but tomorrow we're taking ourselves camping. We are thankful for public lands as well as those who respect and protect them. And I'm thankful for you, another year of us hanging out here together, learning and sharing. ❤️ Cheers, dears!!

 I've been looking at this poster my whole life. It hung in my parents' room growing up, and after their divorce, they still each had one. I kept my dad's, and it hangs in my office now.  Along with the 80th anniversary ticket stub. Today it celebrates 83 years from its premiere date in New York City. Release had been slated for 1943, but following the capture of Casablanca in Operation Torch (the Allied invasion of French North Africa), the studios decided to capitalize. The movie won three Oscars - Best Picture, Best Director, and Best Adapted Screenplay.  It was the first movie to be selected by the Library of Congress for preservation in the National Film Registry. "Here's looking at you, kid."

 10 years, Pa. A fan of Peanuts - and music, of course. I'm off today with Seester, to hit the record store and pick what we think he might have added to his own collection. I need to go through the vinyls though.  I know some of what he has, and things I expect that he has, but they're not in alphabetical order like the CDs are. The shelves may be static, but we keep his hobby alive. ❤️ I'll be back tomorrow before the Thanksgiving holiday. Share a song or two.

  Kerry Washington Finn Wolfhard Chase Infiniti Ariana Grande Kristen Stewart Jessie Buckley Lindsay Lohan Ali Larter Kate Hudson Cynthia Erivo

 A new modeling study has traced the act of kissing back 21 million years, from a shared ancestor of humans and other large apes. Researchers concluded that Neanderthals likely kissed, and may even have kissed modern humans. Since there are other animal behaviors that include mouth-to-mouth engagement, the scientists defined kissing as "non-aggressive mouth-to-mouth contact that did not involve food transfer." Bonobos, orangutans, gorillas, chimpanzees, macaques and baboons have all been observed in a kiss. Scientists used Bayesian statistical methods to reconstruct the evolutionary history of kissing.  Treated as a biological trait, they tested many possible ways this behavior could have evolved.  They propose that kissing may have come from the act of sharing food, a bonding activity in itself.

  We all poop. But billions of people still live without access to a safe toilet. Today, the UN is looking at investing in "future ready" sanitation. Observance *Ha, just realized it was actually yesterday. A friend of mine was recently Jeeping in the backcountry and shared a beautifully painted outhouse.  It was a video, so I don't have a copy, but there was also a guide for when you need to go and there is no restroom nearby.... Rule #1 is to be 200 feet away from a water source and the trail or camp. Dig at least 6 inches.  Pack out your TP.  Bury your waste. Of course, you could also carry WAG bags. We have a small seat stand that a bag attaches to, when we're out in the nowhere desert.

 On this day in 1863, President Lincoln delivered the Gettysburg Address. The Civil War was still ongoing, and the Battle of Gettysburg had been one of the bloodiest battles. It was a dedication to a military cemetery on the site. "Four score and seven years ago...." Full Text As I stated with regards to FDR's "Day of Infamy" speech, this is one of the most famous openers in American history.  In fact, it's considered one of the greatest speeches in American history. While Lincoln supposed "the world will little note, nor long remember, what we say here," there is a particular sentiment that resonates to this day, and is certainly worth remembering: "Government of the people, by the people, for the people, shall not perish from the earth." A Pennsylvania attorney, tasked by the governor, had purchased 17 acres of pasture to bury the more than 7,500 who fell in battle. The Soldiers' Cemetery is now a National Park.

  The Silver Belle, from the Humboldt-Toiyabe National Forest here in Nevada. "Starry skies to neon lights." For 55 years, a tree from American public land has been selected for the Capitol.  This is the first time one has come from Nevada.  The red fir was blessed by the Washoe tribes before it was harvested. As it travels across the country, it stops for various parades and events.  The Kenworth truck carrying it has a tracker. Almost There! Once in D.C. it will be adorned with 10,000 handmade ornaments. Lighting will take place December 3rd.

  The Governor's Awards Ariana Grande Sydney Sweeney Hailee Steinfield Ejae Jennifer Lawrence Lana Condor And elsewhere. Michelle Monaghan Michelle Yeoh Sadie Sink Ewan McGregor and David Tennant

  Perhaps you saw some aurora this week, thanks to a solar storm. But that caused a delay for the new Mars Mission launch, the Blue Origin New Glenn rocket. It was scheduled for November 12, but was able to go up yesterday instead.  It was originally supposed to launch in October of 2024, but a series of technical and scheduling issues brought us to November 2025. All this is for the ESCAPADE spacecraft - Escape and Plasma Acceleration and Dynamics Explorers - and it is meant to study the exact kind of space weather that delayed it. As the sun releases large clouds of plasma, known as coronal mass ejections, the electricity charged material triggers auroras when the particles interact with Earth's magnetic field lines and atmosphere. ESCAPADE will examine how this weather, as well as solar wind, previously stripped Mars of the thicker atmosphere the planet used to have.   Mission

  After finishing up those Poe readings from Halloween, I picked up something random again. Here One Moment I'm not all that far into it though, still in the setting things up stage. *** It is National Book Award Week but the winner won't be announced until November 19th. Nominees In the UK, the Booker Prize has just been awarded to David Szalay for Flesh. NPR So what have you got going this month?

 Have you ever been? Released October 16, 1968, it was the third and final studio album for The Jimi Hendrix Experience. Hendrix received sole credit for production, and it is considered one of the greatest albums of all time. On this day, a particular record store refused to display the album due to the sleeve. Originally a double album, it was then released as two albums with changed artwork. Jimi had initially requested a specific photo be taken by Linda Eastman (later McCartney) which was only used for later releases. By mid-November the album had reached number 1 in the US. "All Along the Watchtower" was the band's best-selling single. But what's your favorite song?

  Veteran's Memorial Wall in Henderson, NV. This holiday originated as Armistice Day, commemorating the end of World War I - "the 11th hour of the 11th day of the 11th month," 1918. In 1954, it was changed to Veteran's Day to honor all those who have served. This was following the end of the Korean War, which my grandfathers fought in - one as Navy and one in the Air Force. The Navy was founded October 13, 1775 when the Continental Congress purchased two armed ships during the Revolution. The Air Force was originally part of the US Signal Corps.  In 1926, it became part of the US Army Corps, known as Army Air Forces during World War II.  In 1947, it was designated its own department.

 Chappell Roan, channeling Cyndi Lauper Indya Moore Colman Domingo Jennifer Lawrence Rachel Zegler Saweetie Cynthia Erivo Teyana Taylor Michelle Yeoh Tracee Ellis Ross

 This is, of course, an artist's rendering, but astronomers did spot a record-breaking black hole eruption, brighter than 10 trillion suns. It may be consuming a star 30 times more massive than our sun. It is the most powerful and distant energy flare ever recorded.  Classified as TDE J2245+3743, this active galactic nucleus is 10 billion light years away, and yet its brightness was still clearly visible above the black hole's usual activity. The newly completed Vera C. Rubin Observatory should help researchers find more events like this.  It will conduct a 10 year survey of the sky, mapping the Milky Way. Rubin

  First, because Miss Universe has also been in the news, let's distinguish the two. Miss World was founded in 1951, emphasizing humanitarian efforts and the motto, "Beauty with a Purpose." Miss Universe was founded in 1952, focusing on global ambassadorship and the motto, "Confidently Beautiful." Each country holds its own national pageants in order to select the representative on the global stage. In Chile, contestant Ignacia Fernandez recently shared her talent. She is the lead singer of progressive death metal band, DECESSUS. Here's hoping she gets to represent Chile next year! The current Miss World was crowned in May, Suchata Chuangsri of Thailand. Recently, the Miss USA pageant was held here in Reno.  Miss Nebraska will compete for Miss Universe later this month.