TODAY is Thursday, May 18, the 138th day of 2006. There are 227 days left in the year.

ON THIS DATE:

In 1804, the French Senate proclaimed Napoleon Bonaparte emperor.

In 1969, astronauts Eugene A. Cernan, Thomas P. Stafford and John W. Young blasted off aboard Apollo 10.

In 1980, the Mount St. Helens volcano in Washington state exploded, leaving 57 people dead or missing.

In 1980, in the South Korean city of Kwangju, townspeople and students began a nine-day uprising that was finally put down by troops.

THOUGHT FOR TODAY:<$>

“People find life entirely too time-consuming.” — Stanislaw J. Lec, Polish writer (1909-1966).