Things We Learned on Twitter Today- Endangered Elephant in DC

There is apparently endangered elephant from the Tarheel State, but it is not one that you would see on a trip to the North Carolina Zoo in Asheboro.

Rather, it appears that Sen. Richard Burr (R-NC) is the only sitting GOP senator in Washington, DC, who might well be in danger of losing his seat.

His challenger is current (North Carolina) Secretary of State Elaine Marshall (D), not to be confused with Supreme Court nominee Elana Kagan or Elaine from "Seinfeld."

Marshall tweeted today that according to the famed Rasmussen Poll, the race between Burr and Marshall is a toss-up.

Upon further examination, I found that Rasmussen is also reporting that the Democrats in the Senate are virtually guaranteed of having 49 seats after all the recounts and recounts are settled, while the God, Guns and Country Party is assured of maintaining at least 41 seats.

According to Rasmussen, the North Carolina race is one of ten U.S. Senate races that could go either way.

In other domestic political news, "The Pittsburgh Post-Gazette" tweeted that current West Virginia Gov. Joe Manchin (D) is thinking about pursuing the late Sen. Robert Byrd's seat. It's interesting that a Steel City paper reported this because Pittsburgh is not in West Virginia!

Lastly, in international matters, the Twitter site United4Iran tweeted that Canada has called for a stop to executions and stonings in Iran, which should please the Persian diaspora in Bluefield, WVa (that is a joke since it's a very small town near the Virginia border, but perhaps there is, by chance, an Iranian family residing there!).

Silly Photo to Fill Space- Orbit

Ay Karamba!

I have like five minutes to post this entry dedicated to Orbit, the mascot of the Akron Aeros in Akron, Ohio.

Akron is also the hometown of the '80s New Wave band Devo, which is actually performing in Ann Arbor, Mich., tonight before playing concerts in Buffalo, Pittsburgh and Louisville later in the week. I guess they will play "Whip It."

As for the Aeros, they beat the visiting Trenton thunder 9-3 last night in Canal Park. Tonight, they face the same team at 7:00 p.m. with Aeros pitcher Scott Barnes taking the mound.

Gazooks!

We better get moving.........

Quote of the Day- Walt Whitman

I'm sure if the late poet Walt Whitman (1819-1892) were alive today, he would be both delighted that we are quoting him today and that a high school in Bethesda, Md., is named after him!

We are quoting famous Americans all this month on July for the 4th of July, but to show that we are internationally-minded, we will also be quoting famous French people on Wednesdays in honor of Bastille Day, which will be on July 14.

Here is our quote from Whitman:

"There is no trade of employment but the young man following it may become a hero."

SIDEBAR: My friend Jason Garnett once again has a terrific lineup for The Shadowbox Cinema in Roanoke, Va., this month. Among the scheduled events is a screening of the 1953 film "Salt of the Earth," a liberal docudrama about labor injustices in California made by then-blacklisted actors which was effectively one of the first films banned in America for political reasons. It will show on July 12 at 8:00 p.m.

Other films in the lineup for Shadowbox include "The Goonies" on July 10, the soft-core Italian cult film "Chatterbox" on July 12 (I guess the ninth grade teachers at WWHS will never show this one in class!) and "Pee-Wee's Big Adventure" on July 17.

The Lyric Theatre in nearby Blacksburg, Va., will be showing the new Oliver Stone film "Solitary Man" with Michael Douglas and Susan Sarandon that a friend of mine in Washington, DC, was raving about starting on July 16.

Happy Fourth of July from Speedy Gonzales!

Everyone from El Paso, Tex., to Belfast, Maine, seems to be having a great Fourth of July so far, and one such person is Olympic figure skater Johnny Weir who tweeted the following about an hour ago:

"I saw the entire NYC fireworks from my patio. Stunning and so inspiring."

Sitcom star Rainn Wilson of "The Office" expressed similar sentiments on his latest tweet:

"Happy Birthday America. Have another chilli cheese dog with curly fries and a 64oz Mountain Dew on me!"

For those of you venturing near the hamlet of Floyd, Va. (about 20 miles from the college-town of Blacksburg, Va., where Virginia Tech is), we highly recommend El Charro Mexican Grill located at 320 South Locust Street (phone 540-745-5303). An internet poster who is originally from Houston, Tex., said it was the best Mexican food he or she had tasted in the Roanoke-Blacksburg area. We couldn't agree more!

World Cup Players Worth Remembering

Today, we have two special blog entries dedicated to 12 memorable players from The 2010 World Cup in South Africa. The other six players on our other blog "The Daily Vampire," which for some reason gets six times as much traffic as this blog!

1. Mesut Ozil (pictured here). Germany. Age 21. Wears # 11. Plays for Werder Bremen (German team which finished third in Bundasliga). Scored two goals in 14 international games, one of which included goal in 2-1 World Cup win over Ghana. He also set up fourth goal in devastating 4-1 victory over England. Dubbed a 'polite young man' by the German press, Ozil was caught up in 'custody battle' between Germany and Turkey, the country of his parents. Though he was scorned by Turkish nationalists in the motherland, Turkish-German parliamentarian Cem Ozdemir praised his decision because it showed the friendship between the two nations. Germany has a large Turkish minority, and Ozil was the center of a story which aired on the NPR show "The World" which aired this week about that unique diaspora.

2. Wesley Sneijder.The Netherlands (Holland). Age 26. Born in large Dutch city of Utrecht. One of my favorite players. He plays for Internazionale (Italian team based in Milan). His club teammates include Brazilian goalie Julio Cesar and star Cameroon player Samuel Eto'o (profiled here on Monday). Wears number 10. Ironically, he scored the game-winning goal against Cesar in Holland's brilliant 2-1 win over Brazil which was a minor upset. Also scored in World Cup play against Japan and Slovakia.

3. Luis Suarez. Uruguay. Age 23. Plays for Ajax Amsterdam (Holland). Has been named Dutch Footballer of the Year. Got red-carded in controversial play where he hand-balled to prevent a game-winning goal by Ghana in the 121st minute of play yesterday. Scorned by international media as a result, but he has been hailed as a hero in Uruguay. Will not play in the semi-finals against Holland. Scored both goals in 2-1 win over Mexico in the first knock-out round.

4. Kaka. Brazil. Age 28. Plays for Real Madrid. Has scored 27 goals in 82 international games. Known for humanitarian work, and is an ambassador for the U.N. Food Program.

5. Keisuke Honda. Japan. Age 24. Plays for CSKA Moscow. Has scored an impressive six goals in just 19 international appearances, including World Cup goals versus Cameroon and Denmark.

6. Park Ji-sung. South Korea. Age 29. Plays for Manchester United. Played in third straight World Cup. Scored in team's 2-0 win over Greece. Is first Asian player to score in three consecutive World Cups.

Friday Geo Quiz (July 2010 Only)

Well, we're tired kids.

But, we thought we'd post this entry for ninth grade students at William Byrd High School in Vinton, Va., near Roanoke, where my mother reportedly taught in 1968 (two years before I was born).

We are focusing on countries who have played in the current World Cup in South Africa with special geography quiz entries through the month of July. Ok, so we should have come up with it last month as The World Cup got away....

Anyway, here is our question. If you get it right, I may have to send you this Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtle action figure that I got at an estate sale in Floyd, Va., which is sitting next to the computer, this past fall except for the fact that I've become quite attached to it!:

"What is the capital of Cameroon?" If it helps, an image of this particular city is pictured above:


A) Yaounde
B) Accra
C) Abijan
D) Abuja


For those of you who may have actually flunked geography, Cameroon is central Africa. They actually speak French over there- zut alors!

PSA- Save the Brown Pelican

Yesterday evening, I had a chance to listen to a segment on the NPR interview show "Fresh Air" about the brown pelicans which along with sea turtles have been greatly affected by the huge BP Oil Spill afflicting the coasts of Louisiana, Alabama, Florida and Mississippi.

Anyone who wishes to help with the National Wildlife Federation's efforts to help the birds, which up until very recently, were an endangered species (as are the sea turtles) can go to the organization's web site at nfw.org

In other happier news, The Myrtle Beach Pelicans in Myrtle Beach, SC, have a Fouth of July homestand this weekend. Last night, they beat the Kinston Indians 2-1 thanks to an outstanding effort from their pitcher Paul Clemens.

The Pelicans will host the Salem Red Sox from Salem, Va. (my hometown) starting on July 3rd.

The Akron Aeros from Akron, Ohio, another minor league baseball team, is now taking the field in Bowie, Md., to face the Bowie Baysox. Scott Barnes will take the mound for Akron while Ryohei Tanaka will be the starting pitcher for Bowie. Last night, the Aeros beat the Richmond Flying Squirrels 8-6 in another road game. We take it that someone in that organization takes a liking to "Rocky and Bullwinkle!"