Tidbits, July 26

How about this calm summer weather? Nothin' but sunny skies and temperatures from the mid- to high-80s forecasted through next Tuesday, according to the National Weather Service. The storms cleared out just in time for Saturday's Apple Pie Jamboree in Pateros, which was by all accounts a big hit with the crowds.

Annie Amerika update

On a quest to spread patriotism across the country via free flags, Annie Amerika made it all the way to the east coast before encountering her first rejection - albeit a polite one.

"My sister Maureen and I headed into Florida to see if we could give away some flags, but didn't find any needing replacement in the areas we drove around," Annie - the persona of Gale Wilkison of Bridgeport - wrote on her Facebook page Saturday. "On our way back to Spanish Fort AL I spotted a tattered flag in the Point Clear area. I went and knocked on the door and explained to the gentleman my mission, he said no thank you. I asked if he saw me on TV last night and he said no and no thank you. I asked if he wanted my card to check me out on the internet and he said no thank you. I left his home feeling a bit defeated, but also amazed that I have because I have traveled 6,411 miles before I received my first rejection. I honored his right to reject my flag, after all this is America!"

Annie spent her birthday July 18 as she has every day since June 9 - on the road in her red, white and blue 1985 Chevy camper van. She entered Yellow Pine, Ala. and met a woman named Azalea and her family. After the new flag was raised and the Pledge of Allegiance recited, Azalea shared that she flies the flag to honor her late husband, who always flew it.

Up next was a visit to American Legion Post 164 in Citronette, Ala., and a short stay with her sister, Maureen, in Mobile. The next day, July 19, Annie stopped in Spanish Fort, Ala., to retire 34 tattered flags with Boy Scout Troop 177. The next flag given out July 20 was to Steve and Janeen of Daphne, Ala.

On Sunday, Annie began her day with a new Facebook entry: "6,439.5 miles. 23 states. my 44th day on the road. 78 degrees at 6:15 AM. sunrise was at 6:04 AM. and I headed out early..." She drove an additional 546 miles that day, stopping to give flags to James of Alsatia, La.; Bill and Carol Smith of McGehee, Ark.; and to the Smiths' neighbor, Raymond.

"I almost gave away a fourth flag today but a dog chased me back into my van," Annie noted.

Two flags were distributed Monday in Enid, Okla., to Greg and MariEtta and their neighbor, Carol. Before press time on Tuesday, Annie quoted Lynyrd Skynyrd - "Ooh, that smell, can't you smell that smell?" and joked that southwest Kansas should be the cattle capitol of the world.

Follow along online with Annie's adventures as she makes her way back to Washington state: www.facebook.com/AnnieAmerika2012 or www.AnnieAmerika2012.blogspot.com.

Behind the scenes: the Foster Creek Fire

While firefighters from area districts and departments worked with state crews to battle the 1,291-acre Foster Creek Fire, which ignited July 12 about two miles outside Bridgeport, citizen volunteers provided nourishment for those on the front lines.

Nell's Cafe in Bridgeport closed for two days to support the firefighters through working with the American Red Cross to provide meals, said resident and Red Cross volunteer Neil Jacobson.

When someone from the Department of Natural Resources showed up in the restaurant to request sandwiches, the Nell's crew whipped up 55 of them in 30 minutes, said Jacobson, who had been in Nell's at the time with his wife, Sherilyn.

"We said, 'That's the Red Cross' job!'" Jacobson said he told the DNR worker. "'Go fight the fire; we'll feed you.'"

In addition to the sandwiches taken to the firefighters that afternoon, another 75 were prepared and served for dinner.

The Foster Creek Fire was fully contained July 18, along with the Douglas County Complex Fire that began July 15 and burned 2,184 acres, primarily near Mansfield. They were the largest wildland fires to date this year in the Quad Cities.

This day in history - July 26

1775: A postal system was established by the Second Continental Congress of the United States. The first Postmaster General was Benjamin Franklin.

1788: New York became the 11th state to ratify the U.S. Constitution.

1881: Thomas Edison and Patrick Kenny execute a patent application for a facsimile telegraph.

1907: The Chester was launched. It was the first turbine-propelled ship.

1908: The Office of the Chief Examiner, which in 1935 became the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI), was created.

1945: Winston Churchill resigned as Britain's prime minister.

1947: U.S. President Truman signed The National Security Act. The act created the National Security Council, the Department of Defense, the Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) and the Joint Chiefs of Staff.

1948: U.S. President Truman signed executive orders that prohibited discrimination in the U.S. armed forces and federal employment.

1953: Fidel Castro began his revolt against Fulgencio Batista with an unsuccessful attack on an army barracks in eastern Cuba. Castro eventually ousted Batista six years later.

1971: Apollo 15 was launched from Cape Kennedy, Fla.