Tin Sign Info

Coffee is a brewed beverage prepared from roasted seeds, commonly called coffee beans, of the coffee plant. Due to its caffeine content, coffee has a stimulating effect in humans. Today, coffee is one of the most popular beverages worldwide.

Coffee was first consumed in the ninth century, when it was discovered in the highlands of Ethiopia. From there, it spread to Egypt and Yemen, and by the 15th century, had reached Azerbaijan, Persia, Turkey, and northern Africa. From the Muslim world, coffee spread to Italy, then to the rest of Europe, to Indonesia, and to the Americas.

Coffee berries, which contain the coffee bean, are produced by several species of small evergreen bush of the genus Coffea. The two most commonly grown species are Coffea canephora (also known as Coffea robusta) and Coffea arabica. These are cultivated in Latin America, Southeast Asia, and Africa. Once ripe, coffee berries are picked, processed, and dried. The seeds are then roasted, undergoing several physical and chemical changes. They are roasted to varying degrees, depending on the desired flavor. They are then ground and brewed to create coffee. Coffee can be prepared and presented in a variety of ways.

Coffee has played an important role in many societies throughout modern history. In Africa and Yemen, it was used in religious ceremonies. As a result, the Ethiopian Church banned its secular consumption until the reign of Emperor Menelik II of Ethiopia. It was banned in Ottoman Turkey in the 17th century for political reasons, and was associated with rebellious political activities in Europe.

Coffee is an important export commodity. In 2004, coffee was the top agricultural export for 12 countries, and in 2005, it was the world’s seventh-largest legal agricultural export by value.

Some controversy is associated with coffee cultivation and its impact on the environment. Many studies have examined the relationship between coffee consumption and certain medical conditions; whether the overall effects of coffee are positive or negative is still disputed.

After a long court battle, Ali was convicted of draft evasion and sentenced to five years in jail and fined $10,000 fine, but  in another lawsuit in 1970, a judge ruled that Ali could still box professionally.  The new heavyweight champion was Joe Frazier, and a match was scheduled et for 8 March 1971. Newspapers called it “The Fight of the Century.” In the fifteenth round, Frazier knocked Ali down. Ali got back up, but all the judges named Frazier the winner.
 
That same year, Ali won his legal battle when the U.S. Supreme Court said he was not guilty of draft evasion–He should not have been drafted at all. Ali spent the next three years fighting other champions, including Jerry Quarry, Floyd Patterson (making a brief comeback attempt), Joe Bugner and Ken Norton, winning all but one fight to Ken Norton. He also won a unanimous decision over Frazier on 28 January 1974, but Frazier had lost the heavyweight title to George Foreman.  So Ali next had to fight Foreman.
 
Millions of people sat before their televisions to watch the fight between Ali and Foreman, staged as “The Rumble in the Jungle.” Sixty thousand fans gathered at the stadium in Kinshasa in Zaire on 30 October 1974. People favored Foreman, who was seven years younger than the 32-year-old Ali, but Ali fought brilliantly, tiring his opponent using “rope-a-dope” tactics. In round eight, Ali knocked out Foreman. He could still “float like a butterfly and sting like a bee,” as he liked to say.  Ali had regained the undisputed world heavyweight title.
 
After defending his heavyweight title six times–including a third fight with Joe Frazier–Ali lost it to Leon Spinks on 15 February 1978 in a split decision. He regained the WBA title from Spinks seven months later in a unanimous decision, becoming the first boxer to win the heavyweight championship three times. In 1979 Ali announced his retirement, at that point having lost only three times in 59 fights, but he returned to fight World Boxing Council champion Larry Holmes in 1980 and Trevor Berbick of Canada in 1981, losing both.  Ali then retired permanently.
 
As Ali entered his forties, he looked ill. In 1984 it was assumed that he was suffering from a series of symptoms variously known as “punch drunk” syndrome, or chronic encephalopathy of boxers, but Ali had Parkinson’s disease, an illness of the nervous system for which he was taking medication. “I feel fine,” he insisted. “I’m older and fatter, but we all change.”
 
Ali was selected to light the Olympic flame at the 1996 summer games in Atlanta, Georgia. Muhammad Ali is one of the all time greats in boxing and you can have one of his famous tin signs for your collection.

Muhammad Ali (Cassius Marcellus Clay) was born 17 January 1942 in Louisville, Kentucky to parents of modest circumstances.  He started boxing in junior high, when he learned boxing from a policeman at a local gym. By the time that Ali had reached high school, he already intended to be a prizefighter and hoped to box in the Olympics.  As an amateur boxer, Ali attracted notice in 1960 by winning the Amateur Athletic Union light heavyweight and Golden Gloves heavyweight championships. At the Rome Olympics in 1960, Ali crushed his opponents to win a gold medal in the light heavyweight division.
 
After turning pro, Ali defeated his first opponents.  Then on 25 February 1964, he fought, and knocked out, Sonny Liston in seven rounds, thus becoming the new heavyweight world champion.  Ali defended his title nine times from 1965 to 1967 and became universally recognized as world heavyweight champion after outpointing World Boxing Association (WBA) champion Ernie Terrell in fifteen rounds on 6 February 1967. Ali often proclaimed his invincibility in verse and boasted, “I am the greatest!”
 
Soon after becoming heavyweight champion, Ali decided to change his religion and joined the Nation of Islam (Black Muslims), taking the Muslim name “Muhammad Ali.”  The Vietnam War then interrupted Ali’s career.  In 1967, he was inducted into the military, but he refused to serve, saying his religious beliefs forbade him to fight. While some Americans praised Ali for risking prison to stand up for his beliefs, others called him a draft dodger and traitor.  The government charged him with violating the Selective Service Act; his titles were taken from him; and he was not allowed to box.

Any big sports fan would love to have this tin sign for his man cave.
 
.

Jimmie Kenneth Johnson (born September 17, 1975 in El Cajon, California) is a current NASCAR Sprint Cup race car driver who drives the #48 Lowe’s Chevrolet Impala SS co-owned by Rick Hendrick and his teammate Jeff Gordon and operated by Hendrick Motorsports. Johnson is the reigning three-time NASCAR Sprint Cup champion. In 2008 he became only the second driver to win three consecutive Sprint Cup Series Championships (Cale Yarborough won in 1976, ‘77, and ‘78).
Johnson began his racing career on 50cc motorcycles at the age of five years old. Johnson was successful on motorcycles at an early age. By the time he was eight, he won the 60cc class championship despite injuring his knee with several races left in the season. From motorcycle racing he made the move onto four wheels and competed in several off-road leagues including SODA, SCORE International and Mickey Thompson Entertainment Group. He accumulated over 25 wins, 100 top-three finishes, six championships, and received Rookie of the Year honors in all three leagues. Johnson raced with Herzog Motorsports in the 1996 and 1997 SODA series. Johnson was a field reporter for ESPN in the SODA series.

 
Jimmie Johnson qualifying at Auto Club SpeedwayIn 1998, Johnson joined the American Speed Association (ASA) circuit, finishing fourth in the season while picking up Rookie of the Year honors. During this time, Johnson also began racing in the NASCAR Busch Series, driving in three events. In 1999, Johnson continued to run in both the ASA and the Busch Series, winning twice and finishing third in the ASA point race. By 2000, Johnson became a Busch Series driver with Herzog Motorsports, finished 10th in the points standings and third in the Rookie of the Year standings. He won his only Busch Series race in 2001 at the Hills Brothers Coffee 300 at Chicagoland Speedway in his 81st series event.

During the 2000 Season, Johnson was left in a tight spot while racing in the NASCAR Busch Series. Herzog Motorsports, which had fielded Johnson’s cars for much of his career, was in a dilemma after losing their sponsor, Alltel to Penske Racing shortly after Roger Penske’s son Greg was named to Alltel’s Board of Directors. During the driver’s meeting before the Busch Series race at Michigan International Speedway, Johnson asked fellow NASCAR driver Jeff Gordon for advice. Gordon kept in touch with Johnson after the incident, and a few months later, Hendrick Motorsports, on Gordon’s recommendation, offered him a driver development deal with the potential of advancing in 2002.

Johnson’s pre-Sprint Cup career is also noted for a crash that occurred at Watkins Glen when the brakes on his car failed heading into turn one. With his car running almost at full-speed, Johnson crashed head-on into the Styrofoam insulation and guardrail. Surprisingly Johnson emerged from the car uninjured, pumping his fists in the air in excitement.

If your a big NASCAR fan you will want this Jimmie Johson tin sign for your collection.

The white-tailed deer (Odocoileus virginianus), also known as the Virginia deer, or simply as the whitetail, is a medium-sized deer native to all but five states in the United States, Canada, Mexico, Central America, and northern portions of South America as far south as Peru. It has also been introduced to New Zealand and some countries in Europe such as Finland and Czech Republic.

The species is most common east of the American cordillera, and is absent from much of the western United States, including Nevada, Utah, California, Hawaii, and Alaska (though its close relatives, the mule deer and black-tailed deer (Odocoileus hemionus), can be found there). It does, however, survive in aspen parklands and deciduous river bottomlands within the central and northern Great Plains, and in mixed deciduous riparian corridors, river valley bottomlands, and lower foothills of the Northern Rocky Mountain Regions from Wyoming to Southeastern British Columbia. The conversion of land adjacent to the Northern Rocky Mountains into agriculture use and partial clear-cutting of coniferous trees (resulting in widespread deciduous vegetation) has been favorable to the white-tailed deer and has pushed its distribution to as far north as Prince George, British Columbia. Populations of deer around the Great Lakes have also expanded their range northwards, due to conversion of land to agricultural uses favoring more deciduous vegetation, and local caribou and moose populations. The westernmost population of the species, known as the Columbian white-tailed deer, once was widespread in the mixed forests along the Willamette and Cowlitz River Valleys of Western Oregon and southwestern Washington, but today its numbers have been considerably reduced, and it is classified as near-threatened.

White-tailed deer are generalists and can adapt to a wide variety of habitats. The largest deer occur in the temperate regions of Canada and United States. The Northern white-tailed deer (borealis), Dakota white-tailed deer (dacotensis), and Northwest white-tailed deer (ochrourus) are some of the largest animals with large antlers. The smallest deer occur in the Florida Keys and much of Central America and in South America. Deer from Central and South America generally have smaller tails and antlers.

Although most often thought of as forest animals depending on relatively small openings and edges, white-tailed deer can equally adapt themselves to life in more open prairie, savanna woodlands, and sage communities as in the Southwestern United States, Northern Mexico, and Colombia and Venezuela. These savanna-adapted deer have relatively large antlers in proportion to their body size and large tails. Also, there is a noticeable difference in size between male and female deer of the savannas. The Texas white-tailed deer (texanus) of the prairies and oak savannas of Texas and parts of Mexico, are the largest savanna-adapted deer in the Southwest with impressive antlers that may rival deer found in Canada and Northern United States. There are also populations of Arizona (couesi) and Carmen Mountains (carminis) white-tailed deer that inhabit montane mixed oak and pine woodland communities that are surrounded by lowland deserts. The Arizona and Carmen Mountains deer are smaller but may also have impressive antlers, considering their size. The white-tailed deer of the Llanos region of Colombia and Venezuela (apurensis and gymnotis) have antler dimensions that are similar to the Arizona white-tailed deer.

Any hunter would love to have this deer tin sign hanging from his wall. It makes a great gift for any hunter.

Indianapolis 500-Mile Race, often shortened to Indianapolis 500 or Indy 500 or commonly known simply as The 500, is an American automobile race, held annually over the Memorial Day weekend at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway in Speedway, Indiana. The event lends its name to the IndyCar class of formula, or open-wheel, race cars that have competed in it.

The event, billed as “The Greatest Spectacle in Racing”, is one of the oldest motorsport events, and is considered one of the three most significant motor racing events in the world. While the official attendance is not disclosed by Speedway management, with a permanent seating capacity for more than 257,000 people and infield seating that raises capacity further to an approximate 400,000, it is the largest single-day sporting event in the world.

The race has been broadcast live on the radio in its entirety by the Indianapolis Motor Speedway Radio Network since 1953. It was televised live from 1949-1950 on WFBM-TV. During parts of the 60’s and 70’s the race was broadcast on closed-circuit TV for viewing in theaters and sports venues. From 1965-1985, ABC Sports, now known as “ESPN on ABC”, broadcast the race via tape delay. Since 1986, ABC has televised the race live in its entirety (although live coverage is blacked out in the Indianapolis market). In 2007, the race was first broadcast in HD.

The 93rd running will be held on Sunday May 24, 2009, marking the 64th consecutive year of uninterrupted occurrence.  If you have a NASCAR fan they will want one of these Indy 500 tin signs for their collection.

The American Bison (Bison bison) is a North American species of bison, also commonly known as the American buffalo. “Buffalo” is somewhat of a misnomer for this animal, as it is only distantly related to either of the two “true buffaloes”, the Asian buffalo (or “water buffalo”) and the African buffalo. However, “bison” is a Greek word meaning ox-like animal, while “buffalo” originated with the French fur trappers who called these massive beasts boeufs, meaning ox or bullock. So both names, “bison” and “buffalo,” have a similar meaning. The American Bison is more closely related to the Wisent or European Buffalo.

The bison once inhabited the grasslands of North America and Asia in massive herds, ranging from the Great Slave Lake in Canada’s far north, through the United States to Mexico in the south, and from eastern Oregon almost to the Atlantic Ocean, taking its subspecies into account. Its two subspecies are the Plains Bison (Bison bison bison), distinguished by its smaller size and more rounded hump, and the Wood Bison (Bison bison athabascae), distinguished by its larger size and taller square hump. Wood Bison are one of the largest species of cattle in the world, surpassed in size only by the massive Asian gaur and Wild Asian Water Buffalo, both of which are found mainly in India and Southeast Asia. It is also the largest extant land animal in North America.

Smokey Bear (often unofficially referred to as Smokey the Bear) is a mascot of the United States Forest Service created to educate the public on the dangers of forest fires. Smokey Bear’s message “Only You Can Prevent Forest Fires” was created in 1944 by the Ad Council. In a recent study, 95% of those surveyed could finish the sentence when given the first words. In April 2001, Smokey’s message was updated to “Only You Can Prevent Wildfires.”

Smokey’s correct full name is Smokey Bear. In 1952, songwriters Steve Nelson and Jack Rollins had a hit with “Smokey the Bear”. The pair said that “the” was added to Smokey’s name to keep the song’s rhythm. This small change has caused confusion among Smokey fans ever since. Note that, from the beginning, Smokey’s name was intentionally spelled differently from the adjective smoky. The Forest Service emphatically denies that the name was ever “Smokey the Bear”; however, in the 1950s, that variant of the name became very widespread both in the popular imagination and in print, including at least one standard encyclopedia. The campaign to remind the public of the correct version of the name is almost as old as the Smokey Bear campaign itself.

As kids we all remember Smokey the Bear, and know we can have that back with this Smokey the Bear tin sign.

The Labrador Retriever (also Labrador, Labby, or Lab for short) is one of several kinds of retriever, a type of gun dog. The Labrador is the most popular breed of dog (by registered ownership) in the world, and is by a large margin the most popular breed by registration in the United States (since 1991), and the United Kingdom It is also the most popular breed of assistance dog in the United States, Australia, and many other countries, as well as being widely used by police and other official bodies for their detection and working abilities. They are exceptionally affable, gentle, intelligent, energetic and good natured, and Labradors are generally considered good companions for people of all ages (including a high level of patience and tolerance for children), making them both excellent companions and working dogs. With training, the Labrador is one of the most dependable, obedient and multi-talented breeds in the world.

If your a big Labrador reriever dog fan you just have to have this tin sign for your wall.

Speed Racer is the adventures of a young racer car driver, his fabulous car, and his close-knit group of family and friends. Originally a Japanese comic strip called “Mach Go Go Go”, the animated series Speed Racer has now become a cult classic and one of the most popular “Japanimated” series to hit the U.S. airwaves. Featuring Speed and his ultimate driving machine the Mach 5, Speed Racer combines racing with intrigue. Joining Speed is an unforgettable cast of characters, including Mom and Pops Racer, girlfriend Trixie, little brother Spritle and his pet monkey Chim Chim, mechanic Sparky, and the mysterious Racer X.

Speed Racer began as a Japanese “Manga” entitled Mach Go Go Go created by Tatsunoko Productions in 1966. In 1967, the 52 episodes of the series were dubbed into English and syndicated nationally on television. For nearly 20 years, Speed Racer ran in the afternoons five days a week. During this time the world of Speed Racer was deeply etched into the memories of millions of youngsters who would rush home from school to see the show.

I remember going home as a kid and watching speed racer on television know you can have a tin sign to bring back all those old memories to share with your kids.