Five Things to Start Your Day: Feb. 22

1. FORECAST:

Friday: Fantastic winter day with tons of sunshine & no wind. Highs in the upper 30s.

Saturday: Early sun fades behind afternoon clouds. Some snow likely by day's end. Mixes with rain along the coast. More likely at night. Highs in the upper 30s.

Sunday: Snowy start, perhaps some rain mixed in near the coast, or over SE Mass early in the morning. Heavy snow is likely for the first part of the day! Highs in the low 30s.

2. MODERN JAZZ: The Acton Jazz Cafe presents award-winning modern jazz by Spider Records recording artists E.S.P. today at 7 p.m. It's real jazz, but you won't need a GPS to follow it.

3. FOOD COLLECTION FOR PET SHELTERS: When families fall on hard times pets are often one of the casualties of household budget cutting. This is especially difficult as pets are a source of comfort and affection. But vet bills and pet food are expensive, and as a last resort some pets are delivered to a shelter or even abandoned. 

As a way of helping those who are worried about the pets they had to give up, and the volunteers who work at pet shelters, HOPEsudbury is supporting local animal shelters through a pet food drive. 

Shelters have requested:

• Low cost dry cat food—any size bag
• Canned cat food—tall Purina cans are the best
• Small size bags of puppy and adult dog Science Diet dry food
• Canned dog food: Science Diet, Natural Balance, or Halo

Collections will be delivered to the Buddy Dog Humane Society, the Neponset Valley Humane Society and the Forever Home Rescue of New England. 

The collection will run from Friday February 22 through Friday March 8, and collection bins will be at the Goodnow Library, the Grange Hall (326 Concord Road), and the Longfellow Club (524 Boston Post Road—Route 20—on the Sudbury/Wayland line).

4. WHAT TO CELEBRATE TODAY: Today is George Washington's birthday. The "Father of His Country", George Washington was born on Feb. 22, 1732. He became commander in chief of the Continental Army in 1775 and  fought a long and arduous war for freedom from British rule. The war was finally over in 1781 when the Continental Army with the help of the French, forced Cornwallis to surrender at Yorktown. In 1787, Washington was unanimously elected president by the Constitutional Convention in Philadelphia and took the oath of office in 1789. He served two terms of office from 1789 until 1797.

5. THIS DAY IN HISTORY:

• 1879 — Frank Winfield Woolworth opened his first "Five Cent Store" in Utica, New York.
• 1924 — Calvin Coolidge made the first presidential radio broadcast from the White House.
• 1935 — Airplanes were no longer permitted to fly over the White House.
• 1980 — In a major upset, the U.S. Olympic hockey team defeated the Soviets 4–3 at Lake Placid, N.Y.