Weather ~ Family Brunch in Jacksonville ~ Picture of the Day ~ United States National Parks ~ Cheesy Mozzarella Stuffed Meatballs ~ National Lineman Appreciation Day

  

 

Good 32º lightly clouded morning. 

Yesterday we stayed dark cloudy and topped at 62º.

 

Yesterday Brian picked me up and we drove to Jacksonville to the Bella Union for lunch with his Jen, Tucker, Sami, Grandma Jean, and Brian's friend Carl.

 

 

 

 

Picture of the Day

 

 

 

Interesting about National Parks...

 

The United States has 63 national parks, which are Congressionally-designated protected areas operated by the National Park Service, an agency of the Department of the Interior. National parks are designated for their natural beauty, unique geological features, diverse ecosystems, and recreational opportunities. While legislatively all units of the National Park System are considered equal with the same mission, national parks are generally larger and more of a destination, and hunting and extractive activities are prohibited. National monuments, on the other hand, are also frequently protected for their historical or archaeological significance. Eight national parks (including six in Alaska) are paired with a national preserve, areas with different levels of protection that are administered together but considered separate units and whose areas are not included in the figures below. The 423 units of the National Park System can be broadly referred to as national parks, but most have other formal designations.

 

A bill creating the first national park, Yellowstone, was signed into law by President Ulysses S. Grant in 1872, followed by Mackinac National Park in 1875 (decommissioned in 1895), and then Rock Creek Park (later merged into National Capital Parks), Sequoia and Yosemite in 1890. The Organic Act of 1916 created the National Park Service "to conserve the scenery and the natural and historic objects and wildlife therein, and to provide for the enjoyment of the same in such manner and by such means as will leave them unimpaired for the enjoyment of future generations." Many current national parks had been previously protected as national monuments by the president under the Antiquities Act or as other designations created by Congress before being redesignated by Congress; the newest national park is New River Gorge, previously a National River, and the most recent entirely new park is National Park of American Samoa. A few former national parks are no longer designated as such, or have been disbanded. Fourteen national parks are designated UNESCO World Heritage Sites (WHS), and 21 national parks are named UNESCO Biosphere Reserves (BR), with eight national parks in both programs.

 

Thirty states have national parks, as do the territories of American Samoa and the U.S. Virgin Islands. The state with the most national parks is California with nine, followed by Alaska with eight, Utah with five, and Colorado with four. The largest national park is Wrangell–St. Elias in Alaska: at over 8 million acres, it is larger than each of the nine smallest states. The next three largest parks are also in Alaska. The smallest park is Gateway Arch National Park, Missouri, at 192.83 acres. The total area protected by national parks is approximately 52.2 million acres, for an average of 829 thousand acres but a median of only 208 thousand acres

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The national parks set a visitation record in 2017, with more than 84 million visitors and set a further record in 2018 with a 0.1% increase. Great Smoky Mountains National Park in North Carolina and Tennessee has been the most-visited park since 1944, and had over 14 million visitors in 2021. In contrast, only about 7,000 people visited the remote Gates of the Arctic National Park and Preserve in Alaska in 2021.

 

Alaska

Denali National Park, Alaska

Gates of the Arctic National Park, Alaska

Glacier Bay National Park, Alaska

Katmai National Park, Alaska

Kenai Fjords National Park, Alaska

Kobuk Valley National Park, Alaska

Lake Clark National Park, Alaska

Wrangell-St. Elias National Park, Alaska

American Samoa

National Park of American Samoa, American Samoa

Arizona

Grand Canyon National Park, Arizona

Petrified Forest National Park, Arizona

Saguaro National Park, Arizona

Arkansas

Hot Springs National Park, Arkansas

California

Channel Islands National Park, California

Death Valley National Park, California and Nevada

Joshua Tree National Park, California

Kings Canyon National Park, California

Lassen Volcanic National Park, California

Pinnacles National Park, California

Redwood National Park, California

Sequoia National Park, California

Yosemite National Park, California

Colorado

Black Canyon of the Gunnison National Park, Colorado

Great Sand Dunes National Park, Colorado

Mesa Verde National Park, Colorado

Rocky Mountain National Park, Colorado

Florida

Biscayne National Park, Florida

Dry Tortugas National Park, Florida

Everglades National Park, Florida

Hawaii

Haleakala National Park, Hawaii

Hawai’i Volcanoes National Park, Hawaii

Idaho

Yellowstone National Park, Idaho, Montana, and Wyoming

Kentucky

Mammoth Cave National Park, Kentucky

Indiana

Indiana Dunes National Park

Maine

Acadia National Park, Maine

Michigan

Isle Royale National Park, Michigan

Minnesota

Voyageurs National Park, Minnesota

Missouri

Gateway Arch National Park, Missouri

Montana

Glacier National Park, Montana

Yellowstone National Park, Idaho, Montana, and Wyoming

Nevada

Death Valley National Park, California and Nevada

Great Basin National Park, Nevada

New Mexico

Carlsbad Caverns National Park, New Mexico

White Sands National Park, New Mexico

North Dakota

Theodore Roosevelt National Park, North Dakota

North Carolina

Great Smoky Mountains National Park, North Carolina and Tennessee

Ohio

Cuyahoga Valley National Park, Ohio

Oregon

Crater Lake National Park, Oregon

South Carolina

Congaree National Park, South Carolina

South Dakota

Badlands National Park, South Dakota

Wind Cave National Park, South Dakota

Tennessee

Great Smoky Mountains National Park, North Carolina and Tennessee

Texas

Big Bend National Park, Texas

Guadalupe Mountains National Park, Texas

Utah

Arches National Park, Utah

Bryce Canyon National Park, Utah

Canyonlands National Park, Utah

Capitol Reef National Park, Utah

Zion National Park, Utah

Virgin Islands

Virgin Islands National Park, Virgin Islands

Virginia

Shenandoah National Park, Virginia

Washington

Mount Rainier National Park, Washington

North Cascades National Park, Washington

Olympic National Park, Washington

West Virginia

New River Gorge National Park, West Virginia

Wyoming

Grand Teton National Park, Wyoming

Yellowstone National Park, Idaho, Montana, and Wyoming

 

 

 

Cheesy Mozzarella Stuffed Meatballs

 

Triple Cheesy Mozzarella Stuffed Meatballs feature 3 fabulous cheeses and are so delicious they will knock your socks off. Make a double batch of this simple recipe and freeze half.

 

 

• 2 pounds 93% lean beef
• 1 cup Italian seasoned breadcrumbs
• 1/2 cup Parmesan cheese, fresh grated
• 1/2 cup Pecorino Romano cheese, fresh grated
• 1/2 tablespoon garlic powder
• 1 teaspoon onion powder
• 1 teaspoon kosher salt
• 1 tablespoon Italian seasoning
• 1 tablespoon fresh rosemary, chopped finely
• 1/2 cup 2% milk
• 1/4 cup Oven Roasted Tomato Sauce or your choice of a tomato sauce
• 2 large eggs, lightly beaten
• 8 ounce block mozzarella cheese, cut into 32 - 1/2" squares (cut into 4 longways and 8 across)

 

1. Preheat oven to 400°.  Line 2 baking sheets with parchment paper and set aside.
2. Place all ingredients in a large bowl, except the mozzarella cheese.  With clean hands, mix ingredients without overworking your meatballs.  Working them too much can cause tough meatballs.
3. Using a 4 tablespoon scoop, scoop out meat and place on a baking sheet or plate.  After all meatballs have been scooped onto tray, with damp hands roll them into balls.  Place balls back on tray or plate.  One at a time place meatball in the palm of your cupped hand.  Press mozzarella cube into meatball and roll back into a ball.
4. Place meatballs on baking sheets, not touching.  Bake for 35 minutes, rotating trays half way through cook time.
5. Remove from oven and place meatballs into your sauce and allow to simmer for 30 minutes.  Some of your mozzarella cheese may have tried to make a run for it.  Just scoop up the meatballs and cook it in the sauce.

Serve and enjoy!

 

 

Historically this date....

 

Historically this date.....

1881 – Billy the Kid escapes from the Lincoln County jail in Mesilla, New Mexico.

 

1906 – An earthquake and fire destroy much of San Francisco, California.

1923 – Yankee Stadium, "The House that Ruth Built", opens.

1983 – A suicide bomber destroys the United States embassy in Beirut, Lebanon, killing 63 people.

1997 – The Red River flood begins and soon overwhelms the city of Grand Forks, North Dakota. Fire breaks out and spreads in downtown Grand Forks, but high water levels hamper efforts to reach the fire, leading to the destruction of 11 buildings.

 

 

And births this date include....

1922 – Barbara Hale, American actress (d.2017)

... one of those Hollyweird miracle marriages!

 

 

1946 – Hayley Mills, English actress

 

1947 – James Woods, American actor

1956 – Eric Roberts, American actor

.... brother to Julia and with a common doper arrest record!

Possession, resisting, wife beater! Nice. 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

1961 – Jane Leeves, British actress

 

 

 

All I know. Nuff said. Have a good Monday. Ciao.

xo Sue Mom Bobo

 

National Lineman Appreciation Day on April 18th honors the men and women who work around the clock to keep the power going.  If the power is on where you are reading this article, you likely have a lineman to thank.

From the power plant, the grid crisscrossing the country both above and underground and right up to the meters on our homes, these men and women build and maintain the system that keeps our nation running.

Regardless of the source, the electricity has to be transported by employing transformers and other equipment. Due to the dangerous conditions power poses, safety is of utmost importance for both the lineman and the consumer.

When mother nature destroys what our linemen have built up, they are on call to build it back up again as quickly as possible. These men and women work tirelessly to get emergency systems back in working order and urgently return service to remaining areas.

Even when there is no crisis, they work under dangerous conditions on a daily basis. Whether they are working in trenches, near water or on high towers, the risks are extreme.

 

NATIONAL LINEMAN APPRECIATION DAY HISTORY

On April 10, 2013, U.S. Senate Resolution 95 recognized linemen across the country by setting April 18th as National Lineman Appreciation Day.