W.A. Kid Writer-in-Residence: Lego League Sectionals Recap

Hello and welcome to a cold, but happy, Saturday here at the Wannaskan Almanac. Today is January 19th.

Locals got a special winter treat this past week. For readers hailing from Hawaii, check out this glorious sundog right outside my front door. Usually a winter phenomenon, here's an article that explains what weather conditions are needed to pull one off in August.

According to the "Warroad And Area 1948, 1949, 1950" book compiled by Alvin (Ole) Swanson, "Famous people born on January 19th were, Willie Strieff, Rudy Hegstad, Buzzy Marvin and Patty Hickman. They all had big birthday parties." (p. 12)

Today we celebrate the birthdays of Edgar Allen Poe and Paul Cézanne, who said, "With an apple I will astonish Paris."

Still Life with Apples by Paul Cezanne, 1879

Today, we commemorate the passing of German poet, August Heinrich Hoffmann von Fallersleben, most famous for his contribution to the German national anthem (for more on that see below) and a last name that reminds me of the infamous tune, John Jacob Jingleheimerschmidt. Since we just consumed the last of our gingerbread house this past week, and have read three different versions of The Gingerbread Man story, also in the past week, I'd like to take a moment to share this poem by the aforementioned poet:

The Gingerbread Man

by August Heinrich Hoffmann von Fallersleben

I don't want any doll,

Dolls do nothing for me.

What can make me happy and delighted

is a gingerbread man.

Just a man with a body and clothes

completely made of candy.

More stately than a doll

is this honey guy.

A whole bunch of dolls

Cannot please me so.

But I look right at you,

And I pity you, dear man.

Because you are doomed to die -

I'm still so good to you,

Whether you've lost a leg.

Or if the other one hurts you,

Poor gingerbread man,

It doesn't help you, you cannot escape!

(Translation by Lisa Yannucci, Monique Palomares and Christina Weising)

Wait a minute...I'm starting to think maybe this poem isn't about the cookie man after all...

If you love presidential history, here's an appropriate book for this particular weekend. Three Days in January: Dwight Eisenhower's Final Mission is about "the period between Eisenhower’s now-prophetic farewell address on the evening of January 17, 1961, and Kennedy’s inauguration on the afternoon of January 20 as the closing act of one of modern America’s greatest leaders—during which Eisenhower urgently sought to prepare both the country and the next president for the challenges ahead."

If you're a skimmer, check out my book and film links in the History Highlights below. We aim to please, here at the Wannaskan Almanac.

Speaking of Wannaska, I made my way over their this past week. My apologies to the morning crew at the Highway 89 Diner. I really wanted to stop in for a chat, but then again, you might have found it mighty strange if a Warroadian (Ha! Here's a demonym per this week's Word Wednesday) had joined your daily kaffeeklatsch. (That sounds like the beginnings of a joke. A Wannaskan, a Warroadian and a...what do you call someone from Roseau?)

Here's the morning view from Chairman Joe's yard.

Wannaska Winterscape

To be fair, the afternoon was bright and sunny with a cheerful blue sky. But I don't mind gray. Even an optimist like me needs perspective once in a while.

I'm going to keep my section short today, folks, so that our esteemed W.A.K.W.I.R. (Wannaskan Almanac Kid Writer-in-Residence) can take the main stage. Enjoy his recount of Lego League Sectionals from last weekend.

Kids' Corner

Lego League Sectionals

So just last week, on Saturday, I went to the First Lego League Sectionals Tournament in St. Paul at the Capitol Hill Magnet School with a lot of different teams that had their own idea. I did a post about being at the FLL Regionals in Northome, but I'll do a recap anyway. This year's team theme was Into Orbit. The problem of this year's challenge for the project was to help the mental or physical aspects of an astronaut in space. Our team's solution for the mental health issue was sending handwritten letters instead of emails to improve mental health.

So, when my team got to the school where we were having the competition, it started out pretty nicely. Our first robot run got us 153 points; 3 points from our record number of points. Then we went through Core Values, which went pretty well, because we did the challenge with ease and seemed to meet the judges' standards. When we presented our project to the project judges, they seemed to be impressed because one of the professionals we mentioned in our skit, Christopher Mick, was present at our presentation. Our robot design and performance went extremely well because 

during that session our robot was working better than it had at the regionals competition.

Our other two robot runs, we got 81pts, and 121pts. Almost immediately after that, we had our head to head competition. Our team won the first round of head to head, but then lost in round two due to robot difficulties. It was sad that we didn't win, but it was fun.

Now to awards.  Our team had a gut feeling that we would win an award. Because our programming session went quite well, we thought we might get that one. And we did!

We were close to getting another award, but another team got it. And then it all came down to who's going to State, and who's not. It was a close call, but drum roll............ WE MADE IT TO STATE!!!!! 

Our team celebrated when we were announced. And then came the wildcards. A wildcard is chosen by the judges to choose a team that did not meet the correct standards to pass, but could improve and get better. Last year my team was chosen as wildcards twice. But this time, the other Warroad team Warbotics-- who went to the Worlds Competition last year, got chosen. 

So the overall good news is that both Warroad teams made it to state and that both teams have high hopes to going to Worlds.

From the W.A.K.W.I.R., 

David

On This Day

Historic Highlights (credits)

2007 - Turkish journalist Hrant Dink is assassinated
The murderer was a 17-year old Turkish nationalist who disagreed with Dink's view on the Turkish denial of the Armenian Genocide of 1915.
Book: Hrant Dink: An Armenian Voice of the Voiceless in Turkey (Armenian Studies) 1st Edition 

1983 - Nazi war criminal Klaus Barbie is arrested in Bolivia
Barbie was known as the “Butcher of Lyon”.
Book: Klaus Barbie: The Butcher of Lyons
Film: Hotel Terminus: The Life and Times of Klaus Barbie

1966 - Indira Gandhi becomes India's first female prime minister
She was assassinated on October 31, 1984.
Book: Indira: The Life of Indira Nehru Gandhi 
Film: 31st October

1915 - Georges Claude patents his neon discharge tube
Neon lighting soon became popular for outdoor advertising.
Book: Liquid Air, Oxygen, Nitrogen by Georges Claude
YouTube: 3rd December 1910: First neon light used at the Paris Motor Show by History Pod (a brief history on the neon tubes and Claude)

1829 - Goethe's “Faust” (Part 1) is premiered
The work is considered one of the greatest works of German literature.
Book: Faust, Part One (Oxford World's Classics) (Pt. 1) 1st Edition
Film: Faust (1926)
Film: Faust (2000)

Happy Birthday to You!🎶 

1839 - Paul Cézanne, French painter

1946 - Dolly Parton, American singer-songwriter, actress
"The way I see it, if you want the rainbow, you gotta put up with the rain."

1943 - Janis Joplin, American singer-songwriter
"Don't compromise yourself. You are all you've got."

1809 - Edgar Allan Poe, American author, poet
"Those who dream by day are cognizant of many things which escape those who dream only by night."

1807 - Robert E. Lee, American general
"It is well that war is so terrible, otherwise we should grow too fond of it."

Remembering You

1874 - August Heinrich Hoffmann von Fallersleben, German poet
He is best known for writing "Das Lied der Deutschen", its third stanza now being the national anthem of Germany, and a number of popular children's songs, considered part of the Young Germany movement.

Stay warm and make it a happy, happy Saturday!

Kim