Growing up in the 70s, we did many activities with little to no adult superision. It taught you an important lesson on balancing risks versus reward.
You also learned alot about cause & effect and natural/stupid consequences 🙂
I never wore a helmet or knee pads while riding a bike, would sled down the biggest hill in our neighborhood with no helmet, and did back spins on the playground bars with no hands! Oh those were fun times!
Do these bring back any memories for you?
And when you came home with a scratch/bruise you know what was mom’s cure? The following:
Hummingbirds apparently can remember feeding locations and will return to the best feeders. The food is a simple recipe: refined sugar and water (don’t add the red dye!). See easy recipes here or here.
There are more than 325 unique hummingbird species in the world. Only eight species regularly breed in the United States, though up to two dozen species may visit the country.
Hummingbirds do not suck nectar through their long bills, instead they lick it with fringed, forked tongues.
Hummingbirds cannot walk or hop, though their feet can be used to scoot sideways while they are perched.
A hummingbird’s wings beat between 50 and 200 flaps per second depending on the direction of flight, the purpose of their flight, and the surrounding air conditions.
Carol from the “Hummingbird Spot” has a great YouTube channel with tons of videos that are all things hummingbirds. Check out how many hummingbirds she attracts to her patio:
See all of the Hummingbird Spot videos here for more tricks and their amazing videos of hummingbirds!
The Gateway Arch (or St. Louis Arch, as many call it) is a magnificent structure located in St. Louis, Missouri. It is also called the “Gateway to the West.”
It was built in 1963-65 and is a monument to Thomas Jefferson and his ideas for America’s westward expansion. The Arch is the tallest man-made structure in the Western Hemisphere, standing 630 feet high. It was designed by Finnish-American architect Eero Saarinen in 1947 and cost $13 million. The monument opened to the public on June 10, 1967. It is located at the site of St. Louis’s founding on the west bank of the Mississippi River.
The arch’s two legs were built separately, and if their measurements were off by as little as 1/64th of an inch, they would not have been able to join at the top.
The arch is tall as it is wide.
The insurance company for the project predicted that 13 workers would die during construction. No one died during construcction.
Due to security concerns, presidents aren’t allowed to go to the top—except President Eisenhower (who signed the order for construction of the monument).
I visited the Gateway Arch back in the 90s. I’m not a big fan of heights yet you have to visit this monument if you go to St. Louis! The scariest part? The tram to the top.
The tram is a “one-of-a-kind” invention created by Dick Bowser. You step (and duck your head) into what looks like an egg shell design (they call it a capsule). If you are not a fan of tight spaces this is not for you! Read about the design of the tram system here and see what the ride up to the top of the arch looks like:
When you get to the top, here’s the spectacular views: (start at 4:50 mark; there’s more tram ride up before that, if interested):
If you haven’t been there, enjoy the virtual visit!
