So, I just got back from the Gold exhibit at the museum of natural science; I went with momma sue (my grandmother, who felt "grand" made her sound old...even the great grandkids are supposed to call her momma sue). It was very interesting. Did you know that from 1933 to 1971 it was illegal for US banks, companies or individuals to own gold coins, bullion or the like that was associated with currency rather than jewelry or decadence? Roosevelt, in 1933, declared that all banks, companies and individuals had to return gold to the federal reserve in exchange for paper currency, to prevent the federal reserve from running out of gold. This was Not taking the dollar off a gold standard. Foreign countries, companies and individuals were still paid in gold, when it was requested. However, the federal reserve still began to run out of gold, and so in 1971, Nixon declared that no longer would debts be paid in gold, and the dollar was taken off a gold standard, and it became legal again for individuals to own gold coins, bullion and the like. Also, interesting to know, gold can be beaten into leaf plate 1/16 of a millimeter thick, so that a gold coin the size of a half dollar can be beaten into plate to cover 300 square feet of surface, or every surface of a room approximately 6 feet square and 8 feet high.

Anyway, I need to increase my vocabulary, so I'm going to start looking things up via thesaurus and simply reading the dictionary. Right now I have to leave, but I've started researching colors. It's very interesting, re-discovering the definitions of colors that no one ever uses!