Charlemagne
is considered the “Father of Europe.” His reign ushered in a cultural
renaissance in the midst of the Dark Ages. During his tenure, Charlemagne
fought the Muslims in Spain, protected the Papacy, and united Western Europe
for the first time since Rome’s collapse. In 800, Pope Leo III crowned him the
Holy Roman Emperor on Christmas Day. The act culminated Charlemagne’s life and
career. At the same time, it helped establish religious authority and control
over secular governments. 1000 years later, Napoleon crowned himself in the
pope’s presence to avoid any possibility that religious leaders could claim
dominance over his empire.
Tuesday, July 16, 2013
Saturday, July 13, 2013
Aurelio Lopez: 1984 Detroit Tigers timeline
Born:
September 21, 1948
1967: Began
pro career in Mexican League
1967-77:
Played in Mexican League with brief MLB stints mixed in
1974:
Purchased by Kansas City Royals
Debut:
September 1, 1974 (Royals)
1975:
Purchased by Mexico City Reds
1977:
Purchased by St. Louis Cardinals
1978:
Traded to Detroit Tigers
1984: 10-1
record, 2.94 ERA, 1.169 WHIP, 14 saves
1984: Won
Game 5 of the 1984 World Series
1984:
Tigers win World Series
1986:
Signed with Astros
1986: Lost
the Epic Game 6 of the NLCS against the Mets
1987:
Released by Astros
1990:
Elected major of Mexican town
Died:
September 22, 1992 (Car accident)
2005:
Detroit band The Electric Six named their album, Senior Smoke, after Lopez
Accomplishments:
1984 World
Champion
1977
Mexican League MVP
1983 All
Star
62-36
Record
3.56 ERA
1.266 WHIP
459 games
(9 starts)
93 Saves
910 IP
785 Hits
635
Strikeouts
367 Walks
Won 10+
Games: 3x
20+ saves:
2x
100+ IP: 4x
106
Strikeouts (1979)
Postseason:
2-1, 2.89 ERA, 9.1 IP, 12 Hits, 6 BB, 9 strikeouts, 1.929 WHIP (3 Series)
Thursday, July 11, 2013
History Shorts: The Viking Age begins (793 A.D.)
The Vikings
left Scandinavia for new lands. In 793, they raided the English monastery at
Lindesfarne ushering in the Viking Age. Europe seemed on the verge of exiting
the Dark Ages when the Vikings struck.
Viking raids over the next few centuries bankrupted kingdoms and tossed
the continent back into disarray. The Viking Age ended when the Earth entered
into the Little Ice Age.
Monday, July 8, 2013
Sci-Fi History: The Fantastic Four (1961)
The
Fantastic Four ushered in “The Marvel Age” of comic books. Stan Lee and Jack
Kirby brought a new level of character development and realism to their
subjects. The FF were exposed to radiation granting superpowers. Reed Richards
became hyper-elastic, Sue Richards could project force fields and become
invisible, Johnny Storm became the Human Torch, and Ben Grimm evolved into a
rock monster. Unlike other heroes, the quartet squabbled and at times fought.
On top of this, they did not keep secret identities like Batman or Superman.
Lee and Kirby’s human touch to the FF made Marvel unique in the comic world.
Instead of cardboard cutout heroes, the FF, and subsequent Marvel heroes, were
identifiable and relatable to readers.
Friday, July 5, 2013
Quotes of the Month: June 2013
Quote
of the Month: "It's like shearing a piglet: a lot of
squealing and little wool."
-Vladimir
Putin on Edward Snowden
Stupid
Quote of the Month: "Alex should just shut the (expletive)
up."
-Brian
Cashman to Alex Rodriguez
And
the rest…
"I've heard more from Bush, asking for my
advice, than I've heard from Obama," Klein stated from various sources
close to the Obama administration. "I have no relationship with the
president -- none whatsoever. Obama doesn't know how to be president. He
doesn't know how the world works. He's incompetent. He's an amateur!"
-Bill
Clinton
Seizing phone records of millions of innocent
people is excessive and un-American.”
-Representative
Jim Sensenbrenner, Republican of Wisconsin and author of the Patriot Act
“Is it just me, or is secret blanket
surveillance obscenely outrageous?”
-Al
Gore
“I’m uhhh….people….oh goodness….uhhhh...folks
are sweating back there right now.”
-Barack
Obama when his staff forgot his speech
“I didn’t want to be pope.”
-Pope
Francis I
“I will be made to suffer.”
-Edward
Snowden: Self-identified NSA surveillance program leaker.
"I don’t usually worry about someone’s
personal hygiene."
-Jim Leyland
"I just blasted away."
-72-year-old
Jan Cooper after shooting at an intruder at 12:30 A.M.
"If you refuse to act and you cause a
calamity, the one thing you cannot say when all the eggs have been broken is,
'Oh my god, two years ago there was a poll that said 80 percent of you were
against it, you look like a total fool."
-Bill
Clinton on Obama’s handling of Syria
"So long as nuclear weapons exist, we are
not truly safe."
-Barack
Obama
“The IRS has ruled Obama can write off the
first half of his second term as a total loss.”
-Jay
Leno
"American popular music is our only art
form. It's our most important export, period. And since time began, it's been
handled not as an art form but as a commodity.”
-Huey
Lewis.
“I’m
not going to be scrambling jets to get a 29-year-old hacker”
-Barack
Obama
Thursday, July 4, 2013
Beverly Crusher: Star Trek Timeline
Born:
October 13, 2324 (maiden name Howard)
2328: Her
parents died when she was very young. Beverly was raised by her grandmother.
2342-50:
Starfleet Academy (Likely SF Medical as well)
2347:
Married Jack Crusher
2348: Son,
Wesley, is born
2350:
Graduated SF Academy
Early
2350s: Served on Stargazer (conjecture)
2352:
Interned on Delos IV
2354: Jack
died
2354: CMO
Starbase 32
2354-60:
Private Practice
2362: Promoted
to commander
2364:
Assigned to USS Enterprise-D
2364:
Modified Leonard McCoy’s polywater intoxication remedy to rescue crew
2364: Cured
disease on Quazulu VIII
2365: Head
of SF Medical
2366:
Returned to Enterprise
2366:
Kidnapped by terrorists
2367:
Removed Borg implants from Picard
2367:
Caught in a warp bubble, but escaped
2367:
Helped deliver a large space lifeform
2367: Cured
Tarchannen III Syndrome
2368:
Travelled to 19th century to help stop Devidians from preying on
humans
2368:
Helped Worf walk again using experimental procedure
2369: Sent
on secret mission to spy on Cardassians; Picard is captured
2369:
Discovered ancient message from humanoids that spread DNA throughout the galaxy
2370:
Unleashed Barclay’s Protomorphosis Syndrome
2370: Assumed
command during Lore-Borg Crisis
2370:
Attended her grandmother’s funeral on Arvada III. She encountered an alien that
controlled the Howard women.
2371:
Enterprise destroyed
2372:
Assigned to USS Enterprise-E
2375: Ba’ku
incident
2379:
Shinzon Incident on Romulus
2379: Head
Starfleet Medical
2380: Borg
Incident
2380:
Married Picard
2381: Borg
attempts to destroy Federation; stopped and assimilated by Caeliar
2382: Son
born
2387:
Romulus explodes
Monday, July 1, 2013
Kenny Lofton: Cleveland Indians Timeline
Born: May
31, 1967
1988:
Played basketball for Arizona Wildcats
1988:
Wildcats made Final Four
1988:
Drafted by Astros
Debut:
September 14, 1991 (Astros)
1991:
Traded to Indians
1992: Broke
rookie SB record with 66 steals
1992:
Finished second in ROY voting
1995:
Indians lose World Series
1996:
Indians lose ALDS
1997:
Traded to Atlanta
1997:
Braves lose NLCS
1998:
Signed with Indians
1998:
Indians lose ALCS
1999:
Indians lose ALDS to Pedro Martinez
2000:
Scored in 18 consecutive games
2001:
Indians lose ALDS
2002:
Signed with White Sox
2002:
Traded to Giants
2002:
Giants lose World Series
2003:
Signed with Pirates
2003:
Traded to Cubs
2003: Cubs
lose NLCS
2004:
Signed with Yankees
2004:
Yankees lose ALCS after leading 3-0
2004:
Traded to Phillies
2005:
Signed with Dodgers
2006:
Dodgers lose NLDS
2006:
Signed with Rangers
2007:
Traded to Indians
2007:
Indians lose ALCS
2007:
Breaks record for postseason steals
2008:
Qualified for American Golf Classic
2011:
Spring Training coach for Indians
2013: 3.2%
of Hall of Fame vote; dropped off ballot
Accomplishments:
6x All Star
4x Gold
Glove
5x SB champ
All Time
Postseason SB leader (34)
.299
average
130 HR
781 RBI
622 SB
116 triples
.794 OPS
1528 runs
100+ runs:
6x
210 hits
(1996)
Led league
in hits (160): 1994
30+
doubles: 5x
10+
triples: 7x
20+ SB: 14x
30+ SB: 9x
40+ SB: 6x
50+ SB: 6x
60+ SB: 4x
70+ SB: 2x
Hit .300: 8x
.400 OBP:
4x
Postseason:
.247, 7 HR, 34 RBI, 34 SB, .667 OPS (20 Series)
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