Friday Fun Facts and FYIs?

Just because it's Friday (although does it really matter what day of the week it is any more?), I thought I'd post some fun facts and general FYIs.  You might know some of this trivia, but maybe you'll learn something!  Who knows?  

• Starting off with a fun fact about me:  I've lived in the same town for all my 54 years (even though I went away to college; I still was a resident here and lived here during breaks).  I've lived on the same street since 1972, but not in the same house.
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• George Washington, the first Commander in Chief lost more battles than he won (Source:  You Never Forget Your First: A Biography of George Washington by Alexis Cole)
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• Charles Drew's research in the preservation of life-saving blood plasma saved thousands of lives during WWII and he is considered the Father of Blood Banks (Source:  American Chemical Society)
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• In 1897 surgeons Johann Mikulicz (of Poland) and Paul Berger began using face masks which covered the mouth AND nose during surgery  (Source:  The Lancet)
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• General Robert E. Lee surrendered to Ulysses S. Grant on April 9th 1865, but President Andrew Johnson did not officially declare the end of the war until August of 1866. (Source:  History.com)
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• Playwright and actor, Harvey Fierstein might be known for his distinct gravelly voice was a soprano in a professional boys choir before his voice changed.  (Source:  CBS News, CBS Sunday Morning)
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• Neil Armstrong, the first person to walk on the moon (July 20, 1969), when asked about the footprints he left on the moon said: "I kind of hope that somebody goes up there one of these days and cleans them up"  (Source:  Space.com)
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• Alice Stebbins Well was the first woman police officer with the authority to make arrests. (There had been female officers in the US prior, but she was the first with the ability to make an arrests.) She was appointed on September 12, 1910 in Los Angeles (Source:  Los Angeles Almanac)
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• The Beatles (my favorite band, but that's not the fun fact for today) refused to perform  to a segregated audience at Gator Bowl in Jacksonville, Florida in 1964.  As a result, officials were pressured to allow desegregation during the show.  A clause was written into all  their future concert contracts stating that they would not play to segregated audiences. (Source:  Far Out Magazine)
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• Walt Disney World (one of my favorite places, but again, that's not the fun fact for the day) covers nearly 39 square miles. Of the nearly 25,000 acres, a third is designated as a wilderness preserve.(Source:  Walt Disney World News)
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• One final personal fact about me:  on Saturday, June 13th (13 is actually one of my favorite numbers, but that's not the fun fact!) I plan on attending my first rally for justice.  Why?
• Black Lives Matter

I believe ALL lives matter, but it has become apparent to me that is not reality. It may be my naivety, my idealistic views, or my white privilege (or most likely a combination of all of these)  but I thought we had learned from history and that we KNEW how to treat our fellow man.  I was wrong.  ALL LIVES SHOULD matter;  they don't.  As a nation and as a world, we STILL do not recognize that all men (people) are created equal.  We can says it, but we don't ACT it.  ALL lives DO NOT matter; ALL lives CANNOT Matter until Black Lives Matter.

I want to live in a world where TRULY ALL lives matter.  To move towards that reality, I will work with people of all colors, shapes and sizes.  I will listen and I will act.  Now is the time; Black Lives Matter.