Saturday, July 31, 2010

THE WEEK IN REVIEW: JULY 25-31, 2010

As usual, we begin with the latest from the Gulf of Mexico.
*It has been over 100 days since the start of the oil spill crisis. Not an anniversary I wanted to celebrate.
*Current British Petroleum Executive Tony Hayward is scheduled to resign soon, but don't worry about his future. He is getting a nice severance package.
*Meanwhile Bob Dudley, the man overseeing BP's involvement with clean up efforts in the Gulf, will be taking over from Hayward. Dudley's first action is (allegedly) contemplating scaling back clean up efforts in the Gulf of Mexico.
*About 70% of Louisiana's coast is open to commercial shipping again, although Mississippi and Alabama's coasts remain closed.
*Environmentalists are still uncertain about the long term damages and effects on sea life and the Gulf itself because of the oil spill.
*British Petroleum is also reporting its first quarter of loss in over 18 months.

Elsewhere...
*The economy is actually up 2.4% from last month! It may not seem like much, but at least it went in the RIGHT direction!
*A federal judge ruled parts of Arizona's controversial immigration law illegal the day before it was to go into effect. Arizona Governor Jan Brewer (Republican) is promising to appeal the decision. Meanwhile the new immigration law has gone into affect, although some local authorities are vowing to enforce the full measure despite the federal court ruling.

Milestones recently celebrated include:
*Washington, DC (District of Columbia) is 220 years old this month.
*Both Bugs Bunny and Kentucky Fried Chicken celebrate their 70th anniversaries month, although it should be noted that the wascally wabbit's is based upon his first appearance by name in A Wild Hare from 1940 and not his first true appearance in Porky's Hare Hunt from 1938.
*The comedy classic Caddyshack with Chevy Chase, Rodney Dangerfield, and Chuck Rodent (the gopher's offical name) is 30 years old this week, and the comic strip Arlo and Janis by Jimmy Johnson celebrates its 25th anniversary this week.

For more news at any time, just scroll down to the IN OTHER NEWS feature at the bottom of your screen.

THE PUZZLE CORNER: JULY 31, 2010

A few people have commented about the math problem from last weekend, so I promise to take it easy on you...
This time.

COMMON BONDS
The following subgroup have something in common. Do you know what it is?

{John Lennon, Michael Crawford}

REBUS
Who or what is represented in the following image?

timberjustlake

We'll have the results next weekend. But for now, let's peek into THE ANSWERS BOX for the Puzzle Corner from July 24.

TRIVIA TIME
Although The Beatles are in the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame collectively, Ringo Starr is not a member of that august body as a solo act. The other three members (John Lennon, Paul McCartney, and George Harrison) are.

A MATH PROBLEM
Barbie might have once said "Math is hard," and apparently a few Free Choice readers agreed.
But as Hercule Poirot would say, "It is good exercise for the little grey cells."
The math problem was:
"As I was going to Saint Ives
I met a man with seven wives.
Each wife had seven sacks.
Each sack had seven cats.
Each cat had seven kittens.
Kits, cats, sacks, and wives, how many were COMING from Saint Ives?"

The answer is 2752. Follow:
7 cats between 7 sacks is 49 cats. Each cat had 7 kittens, equalling 343 baby felines.
Multiply this by seven wives and add in the mates and one odd husband. Or in other words:
1 (wife) x 7 (cats) = 7 (cats) x 7 (sacks) = 49 (cats).
49 (cats) x 7 (kittens per cat) = 343 baby felines.
343 (kittens) + 49 (cats) = 392 total felines.
392 (all cats) x 7 (wives, since all have amount of sacks, cats, and kittens) = 2744 total felines, which is a heck of a lot of cats!
2744 (felines) + 7 (wives) + 1 (husband) = 2752.

Monday, July 26, 2010

PRO SE PRODUCTIONS' PREMIERES!

I am not one who usually toots their own horn, but this is just too good to go unnoticed!

For the past few months, I have been writing for a new company called Pro Se Productions. They are part of the growing movement to revive the classic pulp genres of the past to a more modern audience.

Amongst those efforts are three brand new magazines:
Masked Gun Mystery, featuring crime, detective, and mystery tales galore.
Fantasy and Fear, which offers stories within what genres the name implies, and
Peculiar Adventures, a catchall title lead by an interesting character called Peculiar Oddfellow, created by Pro Se's founder Tommy Hancock, who has several writing credits within the pulp revival movement already.

Other writers include: Aric Mitchell, Ken Janssens, Aaron Smith, Fuller Bumpers, Don Thomas, Nancy Hansen, Megan Smith, Derrick Ferguson, C. William Russette, and yours truly; who has a story in the first issue of all three titles.

And as you can see by the illustration below, there is an interesting cast of characters that will appear within the magazines including:
Sherringford Bell, Roshanna the Huntress, Peculiar Oddfellow, Gary Wooten, The Song of Heroes, The Sky Riders, The Cerberus Clan, Perry Lell, Lazlo Dragon, The Rapier; and my contributions to all this fun: Wylde World and Hugh Monn, Private Detective.

You can order the first issue of each title now within its E-format (PDF) through the publisher's website at www.proseproductions.com
And yes, print copies will be coming soon.

Pro Se Productions is also publicly accessible through both Facebook and Twitter.

I hope you enjoy everyone's hard work in these and all the future issues to come.

Sunday, July 25, 2010

THE SUNDAY FUNNIES: JULY 25, 2010


Hello Everybody. Ms. Waxy Dragon here.
Now recently, Autumn the Puppy used this column to talk about something very serious. If you don't mind, I would like to do the same today. After all, it's not like comics haven't tackled more serious topics outside of the editorial section.
I'm sure everyone is has heard about the British Petroleum oil spill that has been plaguing the Gulf of Mexico for over three months now. It's been in all the news between the papers, TV, radio, etc.
Lately, the subject has also been touched upon in the comics section. Doonesbury (no surprise there), Mutts!, Pearls Before Swine, and even B.C. have featured it in their strips. Now it comes as no surprise to me that there are times when we (and I'm talking the collective "we" here to include humans, puppies, dragons, etc.;) are able to laugh in the face of adversity.
But let me tell you something right now folks: all this talk about what has happened, what is happening now, and what might happen in the future because of the past events is a little scary at times. I'm just a four year old baby dragon (unless you believe that story about me being just one of many avatars of an avid Internet user who contributes to this e-zine); but there are times when I hear some of this stuff and just want to crawl back into my egg shell and forget I was ever hatched! And I don't even live on the Gulf Coast! So imagine how the children who DO live along the affect areas might be feeling right now.
Parents: if you haven't done so already, please talk to your children if they have any concerns or questions about the oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico. Their teachers will hopefully be doing so this fall when school resumes for the new term, but why wait? Events now DO affect their future!
Thank you for your time, and hopefully we'll be back next weekend with something actually funny for the Sunday Funnies!-wd.

Saturday, July 24, 2010

THE WEEK IN REVIEW: JULY 18-24, 2010

Starting, as we have since the beginning of the spill, with the latest from the Gulf of Mexico:
*Although there is no (immediate?) concern of it becoming a hurricane, Tropical Storm Bonnie has halted recovery and clean up efforts around the damaged British Petroleum oil well.
*Meanwhile, seepage has been detected after the latest capping attempt, but it is uncertain whether it is coming from the new cap or the surrounding area.

Elsewhere...
*North Korea is vowing (nuclear?) military action if the United States and South Korea do conduct a joint military exercise in international waters off their coastal shores this weekend.
*After Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack fired USDA official Shirley Sherrod over comments taken out of context, new debate has arisen over whether or not the issue of racism is still a concern in this modern world. President Barack Obama even went as far as calling Sherrod to apologize and offer her job back, but she is uncertain what her future plans will be at this time.
*Constance McMillien, the senior who could not take her female date to the prom, has received an apology from the Itawamba County school district, a cash settlement that includes the costs of her legal fees, and a promise from the school district that they will end the discrimination and be more tolerant of same sex couples in the future; in exchange for dropping her legal action against the district.
*Although Wal*Mart claims that they are just for inventory control purposes, consumers are concerned about privacy issues over the use of "smart tags" being attached to the retailer's clothing.
*The annual San Diego Comic Con, the entertainment convention event of the season for fans of comic books and other things, is in full swing this weekend.

For more news at any time, feel free to scroll down to the IN OTHER NEWS feature at the bottom of your screen.

THE PUZZLE CORNER: JULY 24, 2010

Another weekend is upon us and I think I have a couple of complicated conundrums to occupy your time.
Ready?

TRIVIA TIME
Collectively, The Beatles are in the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, but only three currently are for their individual achievements. Which one is still not?

A MATH PUZZLE
As I was going to Saint Ives
I met a man with seven wives
Each wife had seven sacks
Each sack had seven cats
Each cat had seven kittens
Kits, cats, sacks, and wives
How many were COMING from Saint Ives?

All will be revealed next weekend. But for now, let's look inside THE ANSWERS BOX for the results from July 17's Puzzle Corner.

THE FIFTY/FIFTY CHANCE
Yes, there IS a real song entitled "Drop Kick Me Jesus Through The Goal Post of Life"! It was first recorded by Bobby Bare in 1976.

REBUS
& represents The Red Badge of Courage, a novel by Stephen Crane.

Tuesday, July 20, 2010

A WORD TO VOTERS

An editorial.

This fall maybe one of the most important elections within your living history. The 2010 midterm elections, so named because they fall within the middle of Barack Obama's current term as President of the United States are being closely observed and analyzed from every conceivable angle as pundits wonder if the Democrats will still have the majority in Congress come 2011. Similar situations are taking place within a lot of the state governments as well.

The Republicans are saying all kinds of things in regards to current events and the alleged (in)action of certain people and the results afterwards.

Now The Free Choice E-zine cannot examine every individual situation, since we prefer to report the news and not contribute to it. But we can offer some free advice.

If you are considering voting a specific way because nothing seems to be getting done by the incumbents, ask yourself this:

Is there genuinely no progress on a specific issue because there is true disagreement about how your (local) government should proceed on the matter, OR is there no progress because one side/party is intentionally stonewalling/stalling/filibustering/delaying things to make the other side look bad and themselves appear to be good?

A public service editorial of The Free Choice E-zine.

Sunday, July 18, 2010

THE SUNDAY FUNNIES: JULY 18, 2010


Hello Everybody! Ms. Waxy Dragon here!
Boy, this is turning out to be one hot summer, isn't it.
Why... just the other day I saw a tree actually thank a dog for its restroom visit.
In any event, let's take a look at how to beat the heat!
01. Stay in the shade.
This goes without saying. It's always cooler in the shade. If you can't find any regular shade like from a tall tree or from the side of a building, just stand beside someone taller than you are.
02. You know the old saying about how "If you can't stand the heat, stay out of the kitchen"? Take the advice and let someone else fix your meals for you!
03. Go somewhere cool, like maybe the beach!
What did the pig say at the beach on a hot summer's day?
"Do you smell bacon?"
04. If you do go out, use plenty of sun screen.
Unfortunately they don't make SPF 1000, but do the best you can.
05. Drink plenty of liquids. You don't want to dehydrate.
A bus of tourists was driving cross country and started to pass through the desert. While doing so, a woman turned to her husband and said "Now do you see why I always nag you to water the yard!"
You know how some people open lemonade stands during the summer? I saw a kid asking if he could open a hot dog stand.
His mother asked, "Do you know how to make a hot dog stand?"
The kid replied, "Sure. Take its chair away!"
Okay, I hope everyone manages to beat the heat and stays cool!
And we'll be back next weekend with more Sunday Funnies!-wd.

Saturday, July 17, 2010

THE WEEK IN REVIEW: JULY 11-17, 2010

The latest from the Gulf of Mexico:
*British Petroleum has successfully replaced the busted cap on the leaking oil well and it has passed its initial tests. Now the company hopes it will hold while relief efforts to remove the oil still underground begin in earnest.
*Meanwhile, after protesting the extra oil allowed into the Gulf during the cap's testing phase, environmentalists project at least a couple of years of recovery after clean up efforts conclude before the fishing industry can safely resume operations, let alone hope to have a good season.

Elsewhere:
*Despite the best efforts of its Republican membership, Congress passed the Financial Reform bill this week to overhaul bank regulations in hopes of preventing another economic crisis from occurring. Meanwhile, President Barack Obama is concerned about the Republicans attempt to stall extending unemployment benefits to those currently unemployed and increasing economic assistance to small businesses.
*A Swedish court denied an United States legal request to extradite director Roman Polanski. While not condoning Polanski's actions stemming from allegations of illegally being with a minor in 1977, the charge was not major enough to support the request.

In Sports:
*Spain defeated the Netherlands 1-0 in extra time to win the 2010 FIFA World Cup in soccer.
*In Major League Baseball, the National League won their first All Star Game since 1996; beating the American League 3-1 and obtaining home field advantage for the World Series this October.

In Memoriam:
Amongst those we have lost this week:
*Artist/raconteur Harvey Pekar, famous for his work American Splendor and Our Cancer Year.
*Bob Sheppard, long time stadium announcer for the New York Yankees and the New York Giants.
*Actor James Gammon, from the movie Major League, the TV series Nash Bridges, and other productions.
*New York Yankees owner George Steinbrenner.

For more news at any time, just scroll down to the IN OTHER NEWS feature at the bottom of your screen.

THE PUZZLE CORNER: JULY 17, 2010

It's the weekend, and time for some more conundrums.

THE FIFTY/FIFTY CHANCE
It's just like a regular trivia question, but there are only two possiblities, so you have half a chance to get it right. Ready?

True or false: Although it was a running gag during an episode of the sitcom Alice when the title character tried to be a chanteuse for guest star Morey Amsterdam, is there really a song entitled "Drop Kick Me Jesus Through The Goal Post Of Life"?

REBUS
Something familiar is represented by the image below, do you know what it is?

&


We'll reveal all next weekend. But for now, let's peek into THE ANSWERS BOX for the results of the Puzzle Corner from July 10.

LOONEY LYRICS
Although it sounds like "Whee! I'm on my way!", the lyric is actually Ee-e-e-um-um-a-weh from "The Lion Sleeps Tonight".

TRIVIA TIME
In 1858, Hyman Lipman started putting erasers at the end of pencils. Before then, they were two separate items upon one's desk.

Thursday, July 15, 2010

ALDINE SENIOR HIGH SCHOOL CLASS OF 1980

The alumni of Aldine Senior High School's graduating class from 1980 will be gathering this weekend for our thirtieth anniversary reunion.

Sadly, not all the 435 original members of that august body are still amongst us and unfortunately the attendance at this year's event will be one short, for I cannot be there.

Yet it is truly hard to imagine so much time has actually passed. When I started high school as a "lowly" freshman, America had just celebrated its bicentennial that summer, NASA's Space Shuttle program was in its infancy as the agency publicly presented the much heralded prototype that fans of a popular TV franchise successfully lobbied to have christened Enterprise, and the rock band U2 was just forming in Europe.

Ours was a more simpler era. Maybe not a complete time of innocence as seen through the rose colored glasses of yesteryear, but definitely a period without the worries of illegal drugs or weapons in school, where the biggest hassles of our day was completing our homework assignments and trying to "fit in".

Of course those latter concerns are eternal to all students, but the times certainly have changed. Things like CDs, DVDs, and cell phones were at best within the realm of science fiction back then, and who could have ever imagined a computer's hard drive being small enough to fit upon a desk top, let alone within the palm of your hand!

I could go down memory lane for hours about the local neighborhood haunts, attending Friday night football games, the various teachers and classes, friends, etc. The specific details would mean nothing to anyone who was not there, but I'm sure that all Free Choice E-zine readers have similar experiences and can relate to what I'm talking about.

So here's to the alumni of Aldine Senior High School circa 1980. You fine folks are always in my memories.
Hope you have a great time this weekend, and (of course) GO MUSTANGS!

Pictured below, the 1980 alumni in attendance at the 25th reunion. I'm in blue on the right.








Lee Houston, Junior
Editor-In-Chief, the Free Choice E-zine
Graduate: Aldine Senior High 1980

Sunday, July 11, 2010

THE SUNDAY FUNNIES: JULY 11, 2010


Hello Everyone. Autumn the puppy here.
Today I'd like to take a moment to talk about a little more serious topic than some of the things I've barked about in the past.
I got fixed.
Now I know what some of you folks out there are thinking. That I'm living with some responsible pet owners.
But personally, I don't get it.
First off, I felt fine. Nothing was broken, so what was there to fix?
Secondly, to get "fixed", I had to go to the vet. Now any pet will have mixed feelings about seeing theirs. In my case, I do like my vet. Betsy is a nice lady. But she does have some weird ideas about where the thermometer should go when she needs to take my temperature. I keep telling her, "Betsy, if you need to know my temperature, just ask. I'll be glad to tell you."
Now then, thankfully I was asleep for the actual "fixing", so I can't say what they actually did when they did it. But I'm not sure they did it right. Besides being a little sore for a while afterwards, I've got the strangest feeling that I came back home with less parts than I went to the vet with. Could that be true? If so, what did they fix?
And I have a nice bare patch on my belly where fur should be right now. This is a mixed blessing with summer upon us. On one hand I'm definitely able to keep my cool a little better than I normally would, but where did Betsy get her stylist from? When they said they needed to cut my fur, I only asked for a little trim, not to look like Yul Brenner or Telly Savalas upside down.
And then, after every thing I've been through, all I've got to show for it is something called a dog license. Why do I need a license? I know how to be a dog.
But does this license mean I can drive now? I'm not sure I can afford the insurance, but I can't wait for my chance to get behind the wheel. There's this dog park I've been wanting to visit, and I would love to check out the pet food choices at the grocery store for myself. Not that every thing I've eaten has tasted bad, but there were times when I wondered about what exactly was in my bowl. After all, this dog deserves nothing but the best!
Yet the first thing I've got to do is figure out how to keep my head above the steering wheel and get my feet to reach the pedals on the floor at the same time.
Atp
Hello folks. Editor-In-Chief Lee Houston, Junior here.
Now I could hop on my soap box and go on and on about the situation, but the truth is that there are unfortunately some irresponsible pet owners in the world. If you don't want excess kittens or puppies, please have your pet spayed or neutered (fixed).
A public service announcement from The Free Choice E-zine.

Saturday, July 10, 2010

THE WEEK IN REVIEW: JULY 4-10, 2010

Starting off with the latest news from the Gulf of Mexico...
*In the wake of Hurricane Alex, tar balls from the oil spill have washed up on the Texas coastline when environmentalists were previously uncertain whether the Lone Star State would be immediately affected by the spill.
*Meanwhile, British Petroleum hopes that new equipment on its way to the site will take and hopefully at least slow down the leak, if not stop it completely, by next weekend.

Elsewhere...
*David Crisp of England found a buried cache of Roman Empire coins with a historical value of over one million dollars. The discovery is currently at the British Museum.
*In a move to cash in on the video game market created by the Nintendo Wii system, Playstation's Move! and the Xbox 360's Kinect are both scheduled for initial release soon. But not to be outdone, Nintendo's fall/winter line up of releases includes new video games featuring their classic characters: Mario and his brother Luigi, Link in the latest Zelda adventure quest, and Donkey Kong in his first solo Wii title.
*Both Idaho and Wyoming celebrate 120 years of being members of the United States of America this month.

In entertainment news...
*Ringo Starr, the oldest surviving Beatle, turned 70 this week amidst continuing well wishes of "Peace and Love" for the world.
*Lindsay Lohan MUST serve a ninety day jail term for failing to complete the mandatory alcohol education term that was part of her probation agreement stemming from a 2007 court situation.
*Steve Carell has announced that this coming season will be his last within The Office.
*The 2010 Emmy Award nominations were announced this week. But while a lot of programs deserving of recognition failed to receive any nominations, Conan O'Brien was nominated for his brief stint hosting The Tonight Show, reopening the debate over NBC's actions of recent months.

In Sports...
*National Basketball Association veteran LeBron James has decided to sign with the Miami Heat, leading to a lot of (fan) criticism about his "lack of honor".
*Major League Baseball's annual All Star Game is scheduled to be played Tuesday night, July 13. But fans are wondering about the line up since some of the potential players are currently on the disabled lists of their respective teams.
*Meanwhile, Boston Red Sox manager Terry Francona was accredited with his 900th career win as a coach Friday night as the Red Sox beat the Toronto Blue Jays in Canada.

For more news at any time, just scroll down to the IN OTHER NEWS feature at the bottom of your screen.

THE PUZZLE CORNER: JULY 10, 2010

Another weekend is upon us, and you puzzle fans know what that means!

LOONEY LYRICS
Although the line is actually something else, what famous song contains the verse that sounds like "Whee! I'm on my way!" ?

TRIVIA TIME
In 1858, what did Hyman Lipman do that we still use today?

We'll reveal all next weekend, but for now, let's peek into THE ANSWERS BOX for the results of July 3's Puzzle Corner.

FAMOUS FIRSTS
"It was an odd-looking vine." is the first line from Wizard's First Rule, the opening book in The Sword of Truth saga by Terry Goodkind.

THE LETTER SHUFFLE
From the letters in the word INDEPENDENCE, you can spell: Cede, Deed, Deep, Deepen, Den, Depend, Die, Din, Dine, End, In, Inn, Need, Needed, Nine, Nip, Pen, Pin, (and) Pine.
Other words besides the 19 above might be possible.

Wednesday, July 7, 2010

THE POETRY CORNER: JULY 6, 2010

Sadly, it's been quite a while since we've had any poetry to post, especially any from such a talented writer, but now our dry spell is over as The Free Choice E-zine is proud to present

"Just Old Folks" by Nancy A. Hansen

Will you recall for me
Who I was long ago
What surprises life once held?
For I have forgotten again
No matter how many times
The story is told
It is always as new now
As it was back then
When I first lived it…

As their shaking hands reach out
Their hearts are in their eyes
Some have forgotten speech
Or even how to cry
Some can’t walk anymore
Some don’t remember a thing
No name or place
Not much at all
It would seem, nothing
Of who and what they were
Survived the journey
From youth to here
Who they loved and what they did
For all those lost years
Now gone…

When we were just kids
Oblivious to the idea
That this is life’s reward
At the end of days
To lose the self
In an endless maze
Of clinical sameness
We forgot to tell anyone
Who were all the names and faces
In the decaying photo albums
And of the fun we had then
The faith that sustained us
Now all is lost…
So as I walk by
I smile and pat a graying head here
A thin and bony shoulder there
Any small kindness bestowed
To those in walkers and wheelchairs
Comes back one-hundred-fold
In a toothless smile or three
Where some see just old folks
Sitting in the halls
I look around
And I see us all…

I see you and me

Sunday, July 4, 2010

JULY 4, 2010

An editorial.

There is a lot that has been, and can be said about this date.
For those living in the United States of America, it is a moment to pause and remember our forefathers, who one day decided that they no longer wanted to oppressed by another and sought out their freedom.

America is not the only country that has been in this situation. There are many places around the world now whose citizens were not as free then.

Enjoy those freedoms! The right to life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness is inalienable to ALL, regardless of where you live.


THE SUNDAY FUNNIES: JULY 4, 2010


Hello Everyone. Your humble Editor-In-Chief Lee Houston, Junior here. Both Ms. Waxy Dragon and Autumn the Puppy have the weekend off.

It is the Fourth of July here in America, a subject I discuss in more detail within the post above this one. Suffice to say that there is a lot of aspects to this holiday covered throughout not only the comics within your local newspaper, but elsewhere today.

Google has an interactive logo today to not only celebrate the Fourth, but also to commemorate the life of comedic inventor Rube Goldberg, who was born upon this date in 1883.

Both a cartoonist and a degreed engineer, Goldberg became famous for creating complex machines do perform simplistic tasks that became known as Rube Goldberg machines.

Like in the example image above, the Rube Goldberg device pictured contains 13 steps just to operate a napkin without the diner using their own hands.
And that's one of the smaller ones!

Besides the aforementioned Google logo, if you've every played the board game Mousetrap, or been a fan of any of the inventions within the various Wallace and Gromit features, those are examples of a Goldberg machine.

Just another slice of Americana to share with our world wide audience this weekend.

(Image copyrighted by the Rube Goldberg Estate and found on the Internet.)

Saturday, July 3, 2010

THE WEEK IN REVIEW: JUNE 27-JULY 3, 2010

And now, the latest from the Gulf of Mexico:
*Hurricane Alex made landfall in Tamarslipas, Mexico with the last tally indicating twenty-three dead.
*Alex's presence in the Gulf of Mexico forced the suspension of efforts to cap and clean up the oil spill. Relief crews are starting up operations again now.
*The prototype giant oil skimmer "A Whale" is moored off the coast of Mississippi, awaiting word for when it can begin contributing to clean up efforts.
*Meanwhile, British Petroleum is now being sued by animal welfare groups for the oil spill's damage to the native sea turtle and other animals affected by the situation.

ELSEWHERE...
*President Barack Obama has set aside $2 billion for increasing the country's use of solar power wherever possible and looks forward to the new jobs this industry will generate.
*Senator Robert Byrd, Democratic representative of West Virgina, passed away Monday at the age of 92.
*After being relieved of his command in Afghanistan, General Stanley A. McChrystal has announced his retirement.
*Former first daughter Chelsea Clinton plans to wed her fiance Marc Mezvinsky July 31.

IN SPORTS...
*The World Cut Futboll (soccer) Tournament has entered the Quarter Finals.
*The Tour De France bicycle race begins in Europe.
*Serena Williams swept Vera Zvonareva to win the Woman's Singles Division of the 2010 Wimbledon Tennis Championship.

For more news at any time, just scroll down to the IN OTHER NEWS feature at the bottom of your screen.

THE PUZZLE CORNER: JULY 3, 2010

It's a holiday weekend in the United States of America as we celebrate our Independence as a free country, but hopefully our minds are not on vacation as we ponder these conundrums.

FAMOUS FIRSTS
The following is the first line from a well known book. Do you know what it is?

"It was an odd-looking vine."

THE LETTER SHUFFLE
Since we in America are celebrating it this weekend, how many words can you make out of the letters in INDEPENDENCE?

We'll have the results next weekend.
But for now, let's kick back and enjoy the season as we peek into THE ANSWERS BOX and reveal the results of our SUMMER SONG QUIZ from the June 26 Puzzle Corner, and each title DOES have the word Summer in it.

01. The air is so heavy and dry>"Cruel Summer", Bananarama, 1984
02. Blowing through the jasmine in my mind>"Summer Breeze", Seals and Croft, 1972
03. Back of my neck's getting burnt and pretty>"Summer In The City", The Lovin' Spoonful, 1966
04. My time of year>"Summer", War, 1976
05. I'm gonnna raise a fuss...>"Summertime Blues", Eddie Cochran, 1958
06. Bob-bop-a-bop-bop when I want to...>"Hot Fun In The Summertime", Sly and the Family Stone, 1969
07. When the weather's fine...>"In The Summer Time", Mongo Jerry, 1970
08. We went strolling, drank lemonade>"Summer Nights", from the Grease soundtrack
09. Dust off the sun and the moon and sing a song of cheer>"Those Lazy, Hazy, Crazy Days Of Summer", Nat King Cole, 1963
10. It's the simple things in life>"All Summer Long", Kid Rock, 2008
11. Strolling through the shady lanes...>"In The Good Ol' Summertime", title song of 1949 MGM movie
12. The more things change, the more they stay the same>"Summertime", Kenny Chesney, 2007
13. Those were the best days of my life.>"Summer of '69", Bryan Adams, 1985.

Enjoy the summer!

Thursday, July 1, 2010

HURRICANE ALEX

Hopefully everyone has done this by now, but
FOR THOSE ALONG THE TEXAS/MEXICO GULF SIDE OF THE COUNTRY:

HURRICANE ALEX IS BEARING DOWN UPON THE TEXAS/MEXICO GULF AREA!
ALTHOUGH THE EXACT POINT OF LANDFALL IS UNKNOWN AT THIS TIME, HOPEFULLY EVERYONE WITHIN THAT REGION BY NOW SHOULD HAVE TAKEN THE APPROPRIATE PRECAUTIONS!

Alex, of course, is also making a mess of the ongoing oil spill clean up efforts in Gulf.

More on this story as it develops.