Wednesday, August 29, 2007

 

Spotlight: Tomato fight!! Today's the day to get out your aggressions in Buñol, Spain — and, if you have no aggressions, to stay off the streets! Each year, on the last Wednesday in August, the key event in a weeklong festival takes place: La Tomatina, a tomato-throwing free-for-all. Nearly 140 tons of ripe tomatoes are trucked in to the town. A rocket is fired and the barrage begins. It ends an hour later, when another rocket is fired and the cleanup starts. The origins of the festival are unclear, but the crowds thronging to the small town near Valencia grow every year.

Quote: "It's difficult to think anything but pleasant thoughts while eating a homegrown tomato. " — Lewis Grizzard

Word of the day: open outcry
A method of trading on a commodity exchange that uses verbal bids and offers in the trading pits.
Investopedia Says: A contract is made if one trader cries out that he wants to sell at a certain price and then another trader yells out that he will buy at that same price. (© Investopedia Inc.)

Today's News:

• Mississippi: Magnolia State residents are the heaviest in the US (story)
• perfect pitch: may be a gift given by one gene (story)
• Miss Teen USA: South Carolina's contestant has another try at answering question about locating US on a map (story)

Today's History:

• chop suey: was introduced in NYC by a chef for visiting Chinese diplomat Li Hongzhang (1896)
• The Beatles: gave their last paid concert, at San Francisco's Candlestick Park (now Monster Park) (1966)
• Communist Party: was disbanded by the Supreme Soviet after 74 years of ruling the USSR (1991)

Today's Birthdays:

• John Locke (1632-1704): English empiricist philosopher who influenced the American and French revolutions
• Ingrid Bergman (1915-1982): actress, Casablanca
• John McCain (71): US senator from Arizona
• Michael Jackson (49): androgynous pop superstar