Bethel Daily Briefing: January 13, 2012

Today Is Friday the 13th of January, 2012; the 13th day of the year.

"Legend has it: If 13 people sit down to dinner together, one will die within the year. The Turks so disliked the number 13 that it was practically expunged from their vocabulary (Brewer, 1894). Many cities do not have a 13th Street or a 13th Avenue. Many buildings don't have a 13th floor. If you have 13 letters in your name, you will have the devil's luck (Jack the Ripper, Charles Manson, Jeffrey Dahmer, Theodore Bundy and Albert De Salvo all have 13 letters in their names)." Read the rest of the story at Urban Legends.

Garden Hints for January from the Old Farmer's Almanac

Avoid walking over the same areas of your frozen lawn or you may find bald spots in the spring. Order seed catalogs early in the month. Research plants. Consider edible varieties that are drought-tolerant or disease-resistant.

Municipal Meetings

There are no municipal meetings tonight.

Today's Weather

Friday: Occasional snow and rain showers, highs at 41 degrees, lows at 34 degrees.

Today in History from On This Day

1128 - Pope Honorius II granted a papal sanction to the military order known as the Knights Templar. He declared it to be an army of God.

 1794 - U.S. President Washington approved a measure adding two stars and two stripes to the American flag, following the admission of Vermont and Kentucky to the union.

 1854 - Anthony Faas of Philadelphia, PA, patented the accordion.

 1893 - Britain's Independent Labor Party, a precursor to the current Labor Party, met for the first time.

 1898 - Emile Zola's "J'accuse" was published in Paris.

 1906 - Hugh Gernsback, of the Electro Importing Company, advertised radio receivers for sale for the price of just $7.50 in "Scientific American" magazine.

 1928 - Ernst F. W. Alexanderson gave the first public demonstration of television.

 1942 - Henry Ford patented the plastic automobile, which allowed for a 30% decrease in car weight.

 1966 - Elizabeth Montgomery’s character, Samantha, on "Bewitched," had a baby. The baby's name was Tabitha.

 1966 - Robert C. Weaver became the first black Cabinet member when he was appointed Secretary of Housing and Urban Development by U.S. President Johnson.

 1982 - An Air Florida 737 crashed into the capital's 14th Street Bridge after takeoff and fell into the Potomac River. 78 people were killed.

 1984 - Wayne Gretzky extended his NHL consecutive scoring streak to 45 games.

 1986 - The NCAA adopted the controversial "Proposal 48," which set standards for Division 1 freshman eligibility.

 1986 - "The Wall Street Journal" printed a real picture on its front page. The journal had not done this in nearly 10 years. The story was about artist, O. Winston Link and featured one of his works.

 1989 - Bernhard H. Goetz was sentenced to one year in prison for possession of an unlicensed gun that he used to shoot four youths he claimed were about to rob him. He was freed the following September.

 1990 - L. Douglas Wilder of Virginia, the nation's first elected black governor, took the oath of office in Richmond.

 1997 - Debbie Reynolds received a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame. 

1998 - NBC agreed to pay almost $13 million for each episode of the TV show E.R. It was the highest amount ever paid for a TV show.

 1998 - ABC and ESPN negotiated to keep "Monday Night Football" for $1.15 billion a season.

 1999 - Michael Jordan (Chicago Bulls) announced his retirement from the NBA.

 2002 - The exhibit "In the Spirit of Martin: The Living Legacy of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr." opened at the Charles H. Wright Museum of African American History. More than 100 artists supplied the collection of 120 works of art.