13: The Devil's Dozen
I'm seeing a bad day ahead for all you paraskevidekatriaphobics (people afflicted with a morbid, irrational fear of Friday the 13th). It's Friday the 13th. Don't do anything rash. Stay away from ladders and black cats.
It is said: If 13 people sit down to dinner together, all 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). There are 13 witches in a coven. (From the Web site Urban Legends and Folklore.)
Garden Watch
The Sweeping Influence of UPD
Catherine Higgins, who works in community relations and public information in the Attorney General’s Office, wrote UPD recently to suggest that cyber-safety issues (like child pornography, identify theft, predators, etc.) should be included in our list of Utah’s Top Issues. It was an excellent suggestion.
Then Higgins added: “You know, you really inspired me to be a gardener, so I'm going to give you a quick garden report: I have six productive peach trees and have also grown tomatoes, peppers, herbs, beans, peas, zucchini, honeydew, acorn squash, cucumbers, raspberries, strawberries and rhubarb — mostly in large quantities. I have only recently cast my shadow in the produce section at Dicks/Costco. I love my garden so much that my boyfriend is jealous.”
Political advice. Gardening advice. You get it all here. (I vaguely remember writing a Casual Friday essay on the joys of gardening.) As for the boyfriend, here’s some relationship advice: Tell him that gardening is romantic and give him an ultimatum: garden with me or get out!
USU’s Innovation Campus
This week’s edition of EDCUTAH's newsletter, the Economic Review, features the economic development benefits of Utah State University’s research park, called the Innovation Campus. Next week the newsletter is featuring the Research Park at the U. Nationwide, there are nearly 200 individual research parks occupying more than 41,000 acres with about 2,900 tenant companies. They range in size and notoriety from Silicon Valley in Northern California and Route 128 outside of Boston to a small pad site in South Dakota. Utah is fortunate to have two such research parks, which provide a place to put companies created through the USTAR initiative.
Blog Watch
At Out of Context, Heather May says: "Rep. Jim Matheson hasn't endorsed plans to give him a safe Democratic seat as Utah tries to add a fourth U.S. House district. He insists politicians shouldn't be drawing up such districts. But could there be another reason? Could it be that he knows Salt Lake City Mayor Rocky Anderson probably could carry that new district? The new seat would include northern Salt Lake County (including Utah's liberal-leaning capital) and Summit and Morgan counties -- a territory far more blue than Matheson's current constituency. Anderson has stepped up criticism of Matheson for not being a true Democrat. But the mayor, who ran for Congress in 1996 and lost to maverick Republican Merrill Cook, isn't interested in taking Matheson's place. 'No, I don't intend ever to run for Congress,' Anderson said recently. 'I can get a lot more done with what I have in mind than being one of 435 congressmen.' The capital's liberal mayor announced in August he wouldn't seek a third term and instead would work on global-warming and human-rights issues"... Utah Taxpayer says: "Most Utahns read ... newspaper reports and think that the Legislature is not increasing education spending, or at least not significantly. However, the Legislature significantly increased education funding for FY2007. While many will argue that one year of significant increases does not negate the fact that other states spend more than Utah, the fact remains that the Legislature significantly increased education spending for FY2007, but the spending lobby won't admit it"... Jeff Bell has "a couple of small things to point out to" UPD's LaVarr Webb about the difference between negative campaigning and opposition research... Jesse Harris says he wrongly criticized House District 48 candidate Sylvia Andersen in this post Wednesday... Paul Rolly says: "Hopefuls know it will take several thousand dollars to run an effective campaign for the Utah House of Representatives. But running for leadership in the House apparently isn't cheap either, and it looks as though at least one representative is willing to grease quite a few palms to become House majority leader next month. Rep. Steve Urquhart, R-St. George, the House majority whip, has collected $28,000 so far this year for his campaign, a hefty amount for someone whose seat is so safe nobody gives his Democratic opponent a chance. A look at Urquhart's campaign expenditures indicated he has given $1,500 each to Republican candidates Sylvia Anders[e]n, Tom Wright, Jim Bird, Mark Walker, Phil Conder, Sandy Thackeray and George Froerer. He has given $500 each to GOP hopefuls -- some of whom don't even have an opponent -- Kay McKiff, Keith Grover, Ken Sumsion, and Stephen Sandstrom. That's a total of $12,500 Urquhart has given to other Republican hopefuls for the House. ... Meanwhile, Rep. David Clark, R-Santa Clara, who also is running for majority leader against his fellow Washington Countyite, Urquhart, held a fund-raiser at the Fiddler's Elbow in Salt Lake City recently, even though Clark's seat is safe as well"... Hotline On Call says: "If Woody Allen was right, and '80 percent of success is showing up,' then MA Gov. Mitt Romney (R) did himself a big favor by appearing [Wednesday night] at National Review Online's 10th Anniversary party in Washington. Romney was the only '08 contender to woo the hundreds of prominent conservatives who packed the dining room of Charlie Palmer's steakhouse. He was also the only non-National Review staffer who got a turn at the mic. In very brief remarks, Romney paid tribute to the venerable magazine's internet site, describing it as a welcome tonic for people like him whose hearts are in red America but whose homes are in blue. Boston, the Bay State governor explained, has two types of media outlets: the 'Kennedy apologists' and 'the liberals.' The line was good enough for a few chuckles, but it was his mere presence that said it all; that and the fact that two of the evening's sponsors had the word 'Mitt' in their titles. Both the Ann D. and Mitt Romney Foundation and 'Evangelicals for Mitt' helped underwrite the shindig -- a fact that was pointed out by NR editor Rich Lowry in his remarks. As Romney stuck around after speaking to shake hands and take pictures with an audience that included such bold-faced names as Krauthammer, Blankley, Comstock, Matalin, Libby (!) and Bonjean, the buzz was almost audible: McCain alternative" (see also here).
Washington Watch
Matheson Praises Downwinder Research
Rep. Jim Matheson praises "the tireless work by a team of University of Utah scientists [that helped] confirm the long-term health risks caused by exposure to radioactive fallout from nuclear weapons testing." Says Matheson: "Dr. Joseph Lyon and his associates have spent 40 years researching danger to those who were 'downwind' of nuclear testing in Nevada. The more we look, the more damage we uncover from this era, even as the federal government was telling us it was safe" (see press release).
Weedend Events & Outdoors Report
Outdoors Report
-- For the latest wildlife news and information and the fishing report visit the DWR website
-- Morning News’ overview of the deer hunt across Utah
-- Utah skiers featured in latest Warren Miller film in the Tribune
-- Learn to ski or snowbird with the Morning News’ ski school program
-- Tribune article touts local in ski racing spotlight
-- California study in the Morning News reports teens’ interest in the outdoors declining
-- Find out about upcoming events in the Morning News’ Outdoor Notes
-- Check out the Tribune’s Outdoor Notes and Recreation Roundup for sports and recreation activities this week
-- Use the Morning News’ interactive map of Utah to plan your outdoor pursuits across the state
New Films
-- Man of the Year: Rotten Tomatoes
Concerts
-- “An Evening of Opera and Broadway,” Friday, 7:30 p.m., Assembly Hall on Temple Square, free
-- Choral Arts Society Fall Concert, Friday, 8 p.m., Rose Wagner Center
-- SummerArts Piano Concerto Winners, Friday and Saturday, 7:30 p.m., Libby Gardner Concert Hall
-- The Orchestra and Chorus of Sandy City’s Autumn Concert, Saturday, 7:30 p.m., Good Shepherd Church, 8600 S. 700 E., Sandy
-- Sterling Singers, Saturday, 7:30 p.m., Assembly Hall on Temple Square, free
-- Eccles Organ Festival, Sundays at 8 p.m. through October 22, Cathedral of the Madeleine
Theater
-- “Chicago” through October 14, Pioneer Theatre Company
-- “Fat Pig” through October 14, Pygmalion Productions
-- “Footloose” through October 16, Hale Center Theater Orem
-- “Cats” through October 21, Tuacahn Amphitheatre
-- “Seussical the Musical” through October 21, Draper Historic Theatre
-- “La Traviata” through October 22, Capitol Theatre
-- “Peg o’ My Heart” through October 27, Utah Shakespearean Festival
-- “Dracula vs. Jekyll & Hyde” through October 28, Off Broadway Theatre
-- “Johnny Guitar” through October 28, Utah Shakespearean Festival
-- “The Merchant of Venice” October 28, Utah Shakespearean Festival
-- “Wiley and the Hairy Man” through October 28, Egyptian Theatre Company
-- “Bed ... or Dead” through October 31, Gardner Village
-- “Frankenstein” through October 31, Academy of Performing Arts
-- “Insane Asylum” through October 31, Academy of Performing Arts
-- “Murder Room” through October 31, Bountiful Performing Arts Center
-- “Little Shop of Horrors” through November 4, Desert Star Theatre
--“The Pajama Game” through November 9, Rodgers Memorial Theatre
-- “Confessions of a Mormon Boy” through November 11, Rose Wagner Center
-- “Mission: Incredibles,” Desert Star Theatre
-- “The Scarlet Pimpernel” through November 11, Terrace Plaza Playhouse
-- “Man of La Mancha” through November 25, Hale Centre Theatre
Museum Exhibits
-- Looking Back: 75 Years at the Salt Lake Art Center Exhibition through October 14, Salt Lake Art Center
-- Rooted In Tradition: Art Quilts from the Rocky Mountain Quilt Museum through October 15, Utah Museum of Fine Art
-- Ancient Threads, Newly Woven Exhibition through October 17, Utah Cultural Celebration Center
-- Sweetwater Rescue: the Willie and Martin Handcart Story Exhibition through October 31, Museum of Utah Art and History
-- Sideshow through January 28, Utah Museum of Fine Art
Et Cetera
-- Downtown Farmers’ Market/ Downtown Art & Craft Market, Saturdays through October 21, 8 a.m.–1 p.m., Pioneer Park
-- The Organ Loft Fall Silent Movie Series through November 16 |
