A Fist Full of Dollars Dunked into the Basket

On August 4th thirteen Rotarians and three guests met at the American Legion and partook of a meal of Caesar salad with chicken and cookies. Caroline started filling the coffers with two Happy Dollars: one for the presence of the Bullett family and one for ambivalent adventure on the family Iceland trip where they turned around on a volcanic ridge to avoid the possibility of a swim in the lava; and a Sad Dollar for her son’s car accident after driving for only two months. President Tony threw a Happy Dollar into the basket in celebration of a successful showing of Jurassic Park at Movie Night. Thank you Caroline. Karl proposed a fine of one-and-nine on Joe for loud music emanating from his car as he drove on the streets of Barre. Joe had no defense and paid the fine. Nicole passed out a flyer on Rotary After Dark and tossed a dollar in the basket. Bertil added two dollars to the coffers and provided us with a travelogue about the greatest country in the world, Sweden, where he spent three weeks visiting family and friends. Karl proposed a fine of one-and-nine on President Tony for using the phrase “darn family” when referring to the Bulletts. He used “being so excited to have them sitting at his table” as his defense, but that didn’t fly. Bianca, one of the family members (granddaughter), defended the use of darn over damn. Fine passed anyway. Afterall, it was Tony being fined. Nicole gave a Happy Dollar in recognition of Bianca’s contribution to the defense. Doug threw in three dollars for the attendance at the meeting of his family. Bob Blow added two Happy Dollars because he could see and talk to George Milne who was the District Governor when he was President of Barre Rotary.

Since Last We Met

Birthdays: Bob Pope  Aug. 6th

Wedding Anniversaries:

Karl and Charlene Rinker 52 years  Aug. 9th

On this day in history: 

1944 Anne Frank is captured.

1936 Jesse Owens wins the long jump and respect in Germany.

Getting to Know You

Karl presented two truths and a lie about Bruce:  He won 11 out of 14 Golden Gloves matches between 1954-1966. He was a chef from 1975-1979.He owned a lobster boat from 2015-2018. After questioning Bruce, members voted on which one was the lie. He never owned a lobster boat. Scratch lottery tickets were awarded to five winners.

Introducing the Bulletts

Tony asked Doug, our summertime resident Rotarian from Bon Air, Virginia, to introduce the Bullett family: he presented his wife Lenis of fifty-four years, his granddaughter Bianca and his son, our guest speaker, Bryan. Tony introduced Bryan, the CEO of Bit Digital Inc.

Bitcoins---Up Close and Personal

Bitcoin is a deflationary, decentralized, digital currency without a central bank or single administrator that can be sent from user to user without the need for intermediaries. This currency was invented in 2008 by an unknown person or group of people using the name Satoshi Nakamoto. 

Bitcoins are created as a reward for a process known as mining.  They can be exchanged for other currencies, products, and services, but the real-world value of the coins is extremely volatile. Increased use has led to a desire among governments for regulation in order to tax, facilitate legal use in trade and for other reasons, such as investigations for money laundering and price manipulation.money. There is a fixed number of 21 million that can be minted and that limit will be reached by 2024. The value of a bitcoin, as of today according to Eddie Rousse, is $38,331.00.

From his remarks and Bit Digital’s website here is a summary of the company’s purpose: 

Bitcoin mining refers to the work of verifying transactions on the bitcoin network. This work is central to the security built into the blockchain. A decentralized network of individual specialized computers, known as miners, independently verify transactions, making the network nearly impervious to hacking or manipulation. Confirmed transactions are added to the blockchain in the form of new blocks. For solving the network’s cryptographic puzzles, miners earn bitcoin rewards to incentivize this work. Mining is therefore a foundational component of the blockchain and the entire bitcoin system. Without Bitcoin miners, transactions could not be verified or secured in a decentralized manner without the need for a governing authority. It is also through mining that new bitcoins enter the market. For every problem a miner solves, they may be rewarded with newly-minted bitcoins and transaction fees.

While many of us are still not sure we understand all the nuances of the concept of bitcoins, our knowledge increased as a result of Bryan’s conversational style presentation. We showed our appreciation with a warm round of applause.

Until next time, that’s all folks…...

The BARRE ART SPLASH AUCTION & GALA is Saturday, September 18, 2021 at the Vermont Granite Museum of Barre.