Holland and Karma

I don't know, but I certainly think I am going to start believing in karma. Saturday after the picnic going away party for my nieces, we all went over to VV for some thrift shopping. Mr. M was with us and spent his time browsing through VV's magazine and book stands. He found an old, dusty book on learning Dutch. Today I get my travel email on Holland. Am I meant to visit Holland? Yes! Jamie - we need to seriously plan a trip to the land of the windmills.

What is it called? Holland or the Netherlands?

The Netherlands is often called Holland, because of the role the two western provinces North and South Holland played in its history. This region encompasses Amsterdam, Rotterdam, The Hague and other well-known Dutch cities such as Delft, Leiden and Haarlem. However, officially, it is the Kingdom of the Netherlands, consisting of three parts: the Netherlands itself in Western Europe and the Netherlands Antilles and Aruba in the Caribbean (Linda - we all know about Aruba now, unfortunately).

OMG!

• The Dutch are the tallest people in Europe!
• People in Holland eat raw herring with onions on top!

Some toilet paper news, too:


1750 Holland- the first mechanical rag beater was developed called the Hollander. It was a tube with a revolving roller inside that passed over knives. This cut the rags up for pulping.



Where did Piggy Banks come from?

An old custom in Holland explains why we have piggy banks. At the beginning of the year, children were given pig shaped earthenware containers (known as "feast pigs") to save their pennies in. The following Christmas, they got to open them up.

Speciality Museum in Amsterdam: Piggy Bank Museum

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Click here for Quizes about Holland. Jamie we will have to brush up!

From my travel newsletter:

Unusual Exhibition of Chinese Ice Art
Miniature city Madurodam will be hosting a spectacular exhibition called ‘Magic Ice, consisting of a city of ice sculptures with characteristic Chinese and Dutch buildings. Within the framework of the 400th anniversary of Rembrandt, a life-sized Night Watch will be carved out of ice. (Linda - do Chinese and Dutch buildings have arcitectural concepts in common?)

A similar exhibition has been realized very successfully in the years 2000 and 2001.

The ice sculptures will once again be made by a team of eighteen Chinese artists. This team will build a city out of enormous blocks of ice of about 441,000 pounds in total, originating from Great Britain. The sculptures will be exposed in an a 11,000 sq. foot freezer, where big cooling generators will maintain the temperature at a permanent 14 degrees Fahrenheit.

Exhibition from February 16 – May 7, 2006. Opening hours: daily from February 16 until March 22 from 9am - 6pm; daily from March 23 until May 7 from 9am – 8 pm. (Ice blue text color, did you notice?)

Medieval Knights’ Hall, The HagueSeptember 20, 2005

On every third Tuesday of September the head of state of the Netherlands, presently Queen Beatrix, is driven to the medieval Knights’ Hall ('Ridderzaal') in a gilded horse-drawn coach to give the 'Speech from the Throne' (in Dutch, the 'Troonrede'). The 'Speech from the Throne' contains the government’s plans for the coming year. It is not written by Her Majesty herself, but jointly by the ministers. This special day is called 'Prinsjesdag' and has marked the opening of the Dutch parliament since 1887.

THE ROYAL CORTAGET
he Royal cortage will be going from the palace Noordeinde to the medieval Knights’ Hall at ('Ridderzaal') about 13:00 hours. Along the route the cortage will be applauded by thousands of people. Almost everyone is coming to The Hague to catch a glimpse of Queen Beatrix in her gilded horse-drawn coach and the other members of the Royal family.

The Queen reads 'the speech from the Throne' around 13:30 hours after she has finished, they strike up the song 'Long live the Queen'. At 14:00 hours the royal cortage returns to the palace Noordeinde and makes it's traditional appearance on the balcony.

THE GILDED HORSE-DRAWN COACH
The gilded horse-drawn coach, the official statecarriage of the Dutch Royal house, was given by the people of Amsterdam to Queen Wilhelmina on the occasion of her accession to the throne. Queen Wilhelmina had the explicit wish that she would be able to stand up in her coach. That’s why the cornice has round shapes

he he he sweet youth

	This photo was taken by my late sister Nancy - when she fancied herself a photographer - I have to agree with her, she certainly caught the Princess's dimples.

Sorry, Monkeys!

Library of Congress and Po

The Turks - don't know what Po means ...

Baby Beepster

Memories of when the Beepster was a wee one.

Stem Cell News

From the Boston Globe:

Harvard scientists advance cell work
Technique doesn't destroy embryos
By Gareth Cook and Carey Goldberg, Boston Globe Staff
August 22, 2005

"Harvard scientists have created cells similar to human embryonic
stem cells without destroying embryos, a major step toward someday
possibly defusing the central objection to stem cell research."

. . .

The Harvard researchers cautioned that the fusion technique,
described in this week's issue of the journal Science, is
inefficient and deeply flawed at this point, and emphasized that it
should not deter embryonic stem-cell research that involves embryos,
nor diminish support for such research.

''Our technology is not ready for prime-time yet," said Kevin Eggan,
the paper's senior author and an assistant professor at
Harvard. ''Our results do not offer an alternative now."

. . .

But for now, gigantic obstacles remain. The most crucial flaw in the
fused cell was that it contained twice the genetic material that
cells usually carry, and there is no known way to return it to
normal. Such cells would be extremely risky to use for therapies in
humans, though they could be valuable for research.

Beepster

Some Polar Humor

A Polar Bear goes into a bar and says, "Can I have a gin and....
(Several minutes later) ..tonic please?"
The barman serves him and says,
"Sure, but why the large pause?"
Polar Bear says, "Don't know, I've always had them."


Large padded feet are covered with hair so that the bear can grip as it runs across the ice and snow.

Q: What did the polar bear cub say to its mother at mealtime?
A: "Aw, no! Not SEALS again!"

Q: What's a balanced diet for a polar bear?
A: A seal in each paw!

Q: What did the polar bear say when it saw the igloo?
A: "Oooo! I LOVE these things! Crunchy on the outside - with a nice chewy center!"

Q: Why shouldn't you take a polar bear to the zoo?
A: Because they'd rather go to the movies.

Q: What did the polar bear eat after the dentist fixed its tooth?
A: The dentist.

Q: What did the polar bears say when they saw tourists in sleeping bags?
A: "Sandwiches!"

Q: Why do polar bears have fur coats?
A: Because the seals laughed at them when they wore parkas!

Q: What's another reason polar bears have fur coats?
A: Because they would freeze in Hawaiian shirts!

Q: What do you get when you cross a polar bear with a seal?
A: A polar bear.

Q: What did the polar bear say to the tourist who left the tundra buggy?
A: "Why don't you just have a good scream and get it over with."

Q: What are polar bears called when they get caught in the rain?
A: Drizzly bears.

Q: What has four legs and a flipper?
A: A happy polar bear!

Q: How does a polar bear stop a VCR?A:
It just presses the "paws" button.

Q: How do you keep a polar bear from charging?
A: Insist that it pay cash!

Q: What did the polar bear put on the sign when seals were very scarce?
A: "Tourists Welcome!"

Q: What's white, furry, rides a walrus, and knocks a ball around the ice?
A: A polo bear!

Q: What's white, furry, smokes cigars, and stays up all night playing cards?
A: A poker bear!

Q: What's white, furry, likes to dance, and wears short leather pants?
A: A polka bear!

Q: What are white, furry, and have wheels on their paws?
A: Roller bears!

Q: What do you call a dream in which polar bears are attacking you?
A: A bitemare!

Q: What do polar bears like to eat in the cold?
A: A "brrr"-"grrr"!

Q: What did the polar bear say after a winter of feeding on seals?
A: "I think I'd like a salad!"

Q: What did the Polar Bear say when it saw a seal on a skateboard?
A: "Meals on Wheels!"

Q: What do you call a big mean polar bear?
A: Don't call it anything - just RUN!

Q: What do you call a polar bear wearing earmuffs?
A: Call it anything you want - it can't hear you.

Q: Why are polar bears big and furry?
A: Because if they were small and smooth, they'd be aspirins.

Q: When is a polar bear not a polar bear?
A: When it's in a "grizzly" mood.

Q: Why would polar bears be cheap to keep as pets?
A: They live on ice!

Q: What's the difference between a polar bear and a mailbox?
A: You don't know? Well, I'm not asking you to post MY letters!

Q: What do you get when you cross a polar bear with a rose?
A: I'm not sure - but I wouldn't try smelling it!

Q: What's white, furry, and throws balls of ice at igloos?
A: A bowler bear!

Q: What's white, furry, wears sunglasses, and lazes in the sun all summer long?
A: A solar bear!

Q: Polar bear cubs are born wet, naked, and in an icy cave. Then what happens?
A: Things get worse!

Q: What is white and goes RRRRG! RRRRG!?
A: A polar bear walking backwards.

Q: Where do you find polar bears?
A: It depends on where you left them.

Q: Why do polar bears like bald men?
A: Because they have a great, white, bear place!

Q: What do you get if you cross a polar bear and a harp seal?
A: A bear faced lyre!

An arctic explorer came face to face with a polar bear. Afraid of being eaten, he fell to his knees and started praying. When the polar bear knelt down beside him and started praying too, the man shouted, "It's a miracle!" The polar bear opened one eye and said "Don't talk while I'm saying grace."

Polar Bears and Dogs

On a final note, several sources, including Leonard Maltin's Of Mice and Magic and the official Woody Woodpecker website, have identified Smedley as a polar bear even though this is obviously not true.

Smedley is a dog, and played the role of a dog in several cartoons, such as A Chilly Reception, I'm Cold, Hot and Cold Penguin, and Fish Hooked.

Why anyone, let alone the company that owns the character, would think Smedley is a polar bear is a mystery to me. Chilly Willy did have a polar bear friend in later cartoons named Maxie, and this may be where the confusion comes from.

http://lantz.goldenagecartoons.com/profiles/chilly/

BEDTIME POEMS --For BIG Kids

Mary had a little pig, She kept it fat and plastered; And when the price
of pork went up, She shot the little bastard.

MARY HAD A LITTLE LAMB Her father shot it dead. Now it goes to school with her, Between two hunks of bread.

SIMPLE SIMON met a Pie man going to the fair. Said Simple Simon to the Pie man, "What have you got there?" Said the Pie man unto Simon, "Pies, you dumb #$%!"

HUMPTY DUMPTY sat on a wall, Humpty Dumpty had a great fall. All the kings' horses, And all the kings' men. Had scrambled eggs, For breakfast again.

HEY DIDDLE, DIDDLE the cat took a piddle, All over the bedside clock. The little dog laughed to see such fun. Then died of electric
shock.

GEORGIE PORGY Pudding and Pie, Kissed the girls and made them cry. And when the boys came out to play, He kissed them too 'cause he was gay.

There was a little girl who had a little curl Right in the middle of her forehead. When she was good, she was very, very good. But when she was bad........ She got a fur coat, jewels, a waterfront condo, and a sports car

Oh! Alaska! Calling to my Heart!

I've signed up to a list serve for Alaska travel. It's been a long time since I got an email from this list serve, but today one arrived. Coincidentally, this morning I received an email from one of the Alaska women I met in DC - another Linda Marie.

Anyway, I was looking at some of the FAQs in the Alaska Travel guide. Jamie, I guess Jenn and I are not so naive (ok, dumb!) after all when we asked you if you lived in a 'regular' house.

Here's one FAQ that made me chuckle:

Are there ATMs? Are credit cards accepted?
By Leon Unruh / Alaska.com

Banks in Alaska have the same features as they do in the Lower 48. In fact, most of the banks are part of national or regional chains.

Automated teller machines are found at many banks and savings and loan offices, as well as at grocery stores, gas stations and some hotels. Some ATMs have fees of $1 to $2, in addition to any charges from your home bank.Visa and MasterCard are accepted statewide.

Quite a few businesses also accept Discover and American Express. Traveler's checks are usually accepted. Canadian money may not be accepted at many businesses. Larger banks may be able to change currency.

Another chuckle:

What language do Alaskans speak?
By Leon Unruh / Alaska.com

Almost all Alaska residents speak English, but there are many languages here. For example, there are 21 Native languages spoken around the state.

Perched on the top of the Pacific Rim, Alaska also has a strong international flavor. In Anchorage, the school district reported that its student body speaks a total of 83 languages.

People at some tourism businesses converse with visitors in German, Japanese, Tagalog and Spanish.

More of a bittersweet chuckle:

What kind of shopping is available?
By Leon Unruh / Alaska.com

In the past decade, Alaska's cities have made great strides toward becoming like the cities of the Lower 48.

In addition to supporting locally owned stores, Alaska has chain stores. Wal-Mart, Costco, Fred Meyer, Safeway, Gap and other chains bring nationally known products to the parts of Alaska along the highway and ferry system.

In general, anything you can buy in the Lower 48 is also available in Alaska's larger towns.Well-known fast-food and sit-down chains -- McDonald's, Applebee's, Chili's, Taco Bell and Baskin-Robbins, to name a few -- compete with locally owned restaurants, especially in Anchorage.

Gasoline, sold under several brands (including Tesoro, Chevron and Shell), is made in the state from Cook Inlet and North Slope petroleum.

Air cargo companies such as UPS, Airborne Express and FedEx deliver here; indeed, FedEx's Pacific hub is in Anchorage. Internet commerce is popular.

There are also distinctly Alaska shops. Qiviut, in Anchorage, sells scarves and other clothing woven from ultrasoft musk ox hair; harness shops cater to dog mushers; and craft and souvenir shops sell Native-harvested walrus ivory and bowhead whale baleen.

Reassuring chuckle:

Where can I check my e-mail?
By Leon Unruh / Alaska.com

The Internet is available at public libraries all over the state.

Libraries provide the service for free, but users who drop off a buck or two at the desk "for the book fund" will get a nice thank you.

There may be a sign-in sheet and an assigned time period. Many towns on the tourist track have coffee shops and cafes with for-a-fee Internet service. In Southeast Alaska, look for Internet services near the cruise ship docks.

Finally, a plain phun chuckle:

What are Alaska's state flower and other symbols?
By Leon Unruh / Alaska.com

Alaska's state flower is the forget-me-not.
The state mammals are the moose (land) and the bowhead whale (sea).
The state bird is the willow ptarmigan.
The state song is "Alaska's Flag." (Click on the song's title if you'd like to hear it.)
The state flag shows the Big Dipper and North Star in gold on a field of blue.
The state fish is the king salmon.
The state gem is jade.
The state mineral is gold.
The state tree is the Sitka spruce.
The state fossil is the woolly mammoth.
The state insect is the four-spotted dragonfly.
The state sport is dog mushing.
The state motto is "North to the Future."

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The words to the song Alaska’s Flag were written by Marie Drake, a long-time employee of the Alaska Department of Education, and set to music composed by Elinor Dusenbury, whose husband was commander of Chilkoot Barracks at Haines from 1933 to 1936.

The Territorial Legislature adopted Alaska’s Flag as Alaska’s official song in 1955.

Eight stars of gold on a field of blue,
Alaska's Flag, may it mean to you
The blue of the sea, the evening sky,
The mountain lakes and the flow'rs nearby,
The gold of the early sourdough dreams,
The precious gold of the hills and streams,
The brilliant stars in the northern sky,
The Bear, the Dipper, and shining high,
The great North star with its steady light.
O'er land and sea a beacon bright,
Alaska's Flag to Alaskans dear,
The simple flag of a last frontier.

A Very Happy Welcome

Congratulations Andrea and James. Tristan is a cutie!




















Born: 08-12-2005Birth Time: 7:44 pm
Weight: 8 lbs 9 ozLength: 12.5 in

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia.
Tristan (Latin/Brythonic: Drustanus; Welsh: Trystan; also known as Tristran, Tristram etc), was a Cornish hero from folklore, and one of the Knights of the Round Table whose story is told in the Matter of Britain. He was the nephew of King Mark of Cornwall, sent to fetch Isolde back from Ireland to wed the king. However, they fall in love en route (perhaps under the influence of a love potion meant for Isolde and Mark), and Tristan fights off a series of attempts to take Isolde back.

Fun Facts:

Storks and Babies

The number of storks in a certain region of a Dutch village was found to be closely correlated with the number of babies that were born in that region. This might support the conclusion that storks bring babies. But the truth was more mundane. When the harvest was good, families were more likely to have another child and more storks came to the region to take advantage of the available food and nestable roofs.

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Helpful Newborn URLs:

http://www.newborn.com/

http://www.fisher-price.com/us/ms3/baby-advice.asp

http://www.parents.com/age/newborns.jsp

http://www.google.com/Top/Home/Family/Babies/

Grant Quiz for you History Buffs

After reading the blog on U.S. Grant, take the quiz.

Is this true?

President Ulysses S. Grant was once arrested during his term of office. He was convicted of exceeding the Washington speed limit on his horse and was fined $20.

Oh Canada!

Relations between Canada and the United States were dicey at best in those days because the U.S. president, Ulysses S. Grant, firmly believed that Canada should be annexed by the United States. Macdonald, who was Canada's first prime minister, and many other Canadians were vehemently opposed to such an idea.

The Civil War.
Ulysses S. Grant was the victorious Union commander of the Civil War. He received General Lee’s sword at Appomattox Court House on April 9, 1865.•

The always lucrative memoirs.
Grant finished his memoirs in 1885, a few weeks before his death from throat cancer. The book earned over $450,000 for his family after his death.

First National Park!
Ulysses S. Grant established Yellowstone as the nation's first national park on March 1, 1872.

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I know this is true as Little A knew it so, as she was lusting over the claw foot tub in Galena.

President William Howard Taft, weighing 325 pounds at the time, had a special bathtub installed at the White House which was big enough to hold four men.

Ulysses S. Grant and Galena IL.

Ulysses S. Grant - Bio from the White House

Late in the administration of Andrew Johnson, Gen. Ulysses S. Grant quarreled with the President and aligned himself with the Radical Republicans. He was, as the symbol of Union victory during the Civil War, their logical candidate for President in 1868.

When he was elected, the American people hoped for an end to turmoil. Grant provided neither vigor nor reform. Looking to Congress for direction, he seemed bewildered. One visitor to the White House noted "a puzzled pathos, as of a man with a problem before him of which he does not understand the terms."

Born in 1822, Grant was the son of an Ohio tanner. He went to West Point rather against his will and graduated in the middle of his class. In the Mexican War he fought under Gen. Zachary Taylor.

At the outbreak of the Civil War, Grant was working in his father's leather store in Galena, Illinois. He was appointed by the Governor to command an unruly volunteer regiment. Grant whipped it into shape and by September 1861 he had risen to the rank of brigadier general of volunteers.

He sought to win control of the Mississippi Valley. In February 1862 he took Fort Henry and attacked Fort Donelson. When the Confederate commander asked for terms, Grant replied, "No terms except an unconditional and immediate surrender can be accepted." The Confederates surrendered, and President Lincoln promoted Grant to major general of volunteers

At Shiloh in April, Grant fought one of the bloodiest battles in the West and came out less well. President Lincoln fended off demands for his removal by saying, "I can't spare this man--he fights."

For his next major objective, Grant maneuvered and fought skillfully to win Vicksburg, the key city on the Mississippi, and thus cut the Confederacy in two. Then he broke the Confederate hold on Chattanooga.

Lincoln appointed him General-in-Chief in March 1864. Grant directed Sherman to drive through the South while he himself, with the Army of the Potomac, pinned down Gen. Robert E. Lee's Army of Northern Virginia.

Finally, on April 9, 1865, at Appomattox Court House, Lee surrendered. Grant wrote out magnanimous terms of surrender that would prevent treason trials.

As President, Grant presided over the Government much as he had run the Army. Indeed he brought part of his Army staff to the White House.

Although a man of scrupulous honesty, Grant as President accepted handsome presents from admirers. Worse, he allowed himself to be seen with two speculators, Jay Gould and James Fisk. When Grant realized their scheme to corner the market in gold, he authorized the Secretary of the Treasury to sell enough gold to wreck their plans, but the speculation had already wrought havoc with business.

During his campaign for re-election in 1872, Grant was attacked by Liberal Republican reformers. He called them "narrow-headed men," their eyes so close together that "they can look out of the same gimlet hole without winking." The General's friends in the Republican Party came to be known proudly as "the Old Guard."

Grant allowed Radical Reconstruction to run its course in the South, bolstering it at times with military force.

After retiring from the Presidency, Grant became a partner in a financial firm, which went bankrupt. About that time he learned that he had cancer of the throat. He started writing his recollections to pay off his debts and provide for his family, racing against death to produce a memoir that ultimately earned nearly $450,000. Soon after completing the last page, in 1885, he died.

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How easy to change identities:

MAY 29, 1839. Ulysses arrived at West Point and discovered that the congressman who appointed him, in doubt about his name, had used his middle name first and had used his mother's maiden name (Simpson) for a middle name. Officers insisted that Ulysses S. Grant had been appointed to West Point, Ulysses Hiram Grant had not. In time, Ulysses accepted U. S. Grant as his true name, insisting that his middle initial stood for "nothing." His family and Ohio friends continued to call him Ulysses; the other cadets nicknamed him "Uncle Sam" for his initials, soon shortened it to "Sam."

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Even a pome for General Grant by America's famous poet, Walt Whitman

Death of General Grant.
As one by one withdraw the lofty actors,
From that great play on history's stage eterne,
That lurid, partial act of war and peace--of old and new contending,

Fought out through wrath, fears, dark dismays, and many a long suspense;

All past--and since, in countless graves receding, mellowing,
Victor's and vanquish'd--Lincoln's and Lee's--now thou with them,

Man of the mighty days--and equal to the days!
Thou from the prairies!--tangled and many-vein'd and hard has been thy part,

To admiration has it been enacted!

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From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia.
Ulysses S. Grant

Order: 18th President
Vice President: Schuyler Colfax (1869–1873); Henry Wilson (1873–1875)
Term of office: March 4, 1869 – March 4, 1877

Preceded by: Andrew Johnson
Succeeded by: Rutherford B. Hayes

Date of birth: April 27, 1822
Place of birth: Point Pleasant, Ohio
Date of death: July 23, 1885
Place of death: Mount McGregor, New York

First Lady: Julia Grant
Political party: Republican

Ulysses S. Grant (April 27, 1822 – July 23, 1885) was a Union general in the American Civil War and the 18th President of the United States (1869–1877).

Grant has been described by military historian J. F. C. Fuller as "the greatest general of his age and one of the greatest strategists of any age." He won many important battles, rose to become general-in-chief of all Union armies, and is credited with winning the war.

Although Grant was a successful general, he is considered by historians to be one of America's least successful presidents, who led an administration plagued by scandal and corruption. They agree that Grant was not personally corrupt; it was his subordinates in the executive branch who were at fault. He is instead mostly criticized for not taking a strong stance against the corruption, and not acting to stop it.

More recent treatments have emphasized the accomplishments of his administration, including his struggle to preserve Reconstruction. His support for the legal rights of blacks to vote and hold public office were unpopular at the time, but have gained him more respect in modern times.

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In World War II, the British Army produced an armored vehicle known as the Grant tank (a version of the American M3 model, which was ironically nicknamed the "Lee").



Grant's portrait appears on the U.S. $50 bill.

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And of course, the old joke: "Who is buried in Grant's Tomb?"

Ulysses S. Grant died at 8:06 a.m. on Thursday July 23, 1885, at Mount McGregor, Saratoga County, New York. His body lies in New York City, beside that of his wife, in Grant's Tomb, the largest mausoleum in North America.

Everyone sending me Quotes today

The President explains his Social Security Reform Proposal:

WOMAN IN AUDIENCE: I don't really understand. How is it the new plan is going to fix the problem?

Exact verbatim response:

PRESIDENT BUSH: "Because the -- all which is on the table begins to address the big cost drivers. For example, how benefits are calculated, for example, is on the table. Whether or not benefits rise based upon wage increases or price increases. There's a series of parts of the formula that are being considered. And when you couple that, those different cost drivers, affecting those -- changing those with personal accounts, the idea is to get what has been promised more likely to be -- or closer delivered to that has been promised. Does that make any sense to you? It's kind of muddled.

Look, there's a series of things that cause the -- like, for example, benefits are calculated based upon the increase of wages, as opposed to the increase of prices. Some have suggested that we calculate -- he benefits will rise based upon inflation, supposed to wage increases. There is a reform that would help solve the red if that were put into effect. In other words, how fast benefits grow, how fast the promised benefits grow, if those -- if that growth is affected, it will help on the red."

Linda says: Confused? http://www.medicarerights.org/

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One Well-Written Sentence...
from the Sunday Portland Oregonian:

"Other than telling us how to live, think, marry, pray, vote, invest, educate our children and, now, die, I think the current Republicans have done a fine job of getting government off our backs and out of our personal lives."

Ha Ha for Moms and Daughters

"My mom is very possessive. She calls me up and says things like, 'You weren't home last night. Is something gong on?' I say, 'Yeah Mom, I'm cheating on you with another mother.'" --Heidi Joyce

Galena Illinois

We spent the past weekend in Galena Illinois.

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From From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia.

Galena is a city located in Jo Daviess County, Illinois. As of the 2000 census, the city had a total population of 3,460. It is the county seat of Jo Daviess County6

Galena is located at 42°25'5" North, 90°25'53" West (42.418171, -90.431472)1.
According to the United States Census Bureau, the city has a total area of 9.7 km² (3.7 mi²). 9.7 km² (3.7 mi²) of it is land and none of it is covered by water.

Tax Free Week in NYC

August 10, 2005

Tax Free Shopping Weeks in New York City

From August 30 - September 5, New York City residents and visitors alike can enjoy significant savings on clothing and footwear items under $110 during the Tax Free Week. With sales tax of 8.625%, the savings during the tax free week can really add up.

Items included in the tax-exemption: clothing, footwear, fabric, thread, yarn, buttons, zippers, neckties, scarves, hats, uniforms, athletic clothing, and diapers.

Items excluded from the tax-exemption: jewelry and watches, handbags, umbrellas, pet clothing, and sports equipment. There will be a winter tax-free week in New York from January 30-February 5, 2006.

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Other states have tax free weeks too! Check out this URL http://gonyc.about.com/gi/dynamic/offsite.htm?site=http://www.taxadmin.org/fta/rate/sales%5Fholiday.html

Just some Random Thoughts

Photos have alternative text, so just hover mouse over photo to see what they are.

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