Saturday, May 13, 2017

There's always at least ten things.

Ten Things of Thankful

After a long week, which included helping one client pack to move as the movers were in the house grabbing it as fast as we got it ready, it's time to stop and count my thankfuls!

Let's start with that client and that situation, i'm glad Sweetie noticed that the movers forgot her safe and that he was there to help me load it into the Jalopy.

She also gave us everything that was left in her refrigerator, which was mostly soft drinks i could bring to rEcess, and i'm thankful for that because it meant i didn't have to buy more.

Speaking of which we had rEcess night last night.  Sweet Erin, the special needs child i'm assigned to assist, always comes to a point in the evening where she is overwhelmed and starts to cry.  Last night, i noticed we had root beer for the volunteers among the soft drinks that were given to us by my client, and i remembered how much Erin loves root beer.  It turns out to be a magic elixir that stops tears.  Now i'm thankful for root beer, and will make sure i always have some available when rEcess starts up again in the fall.

Sweetie braved the terrible traffic (several traffic lights out, most of the city locked up) to bring the meal for the rEcess volunteers, and i can't thank him enough for that.

Grandpa is coming to town to take Bigger Girl, #2 Son, Daughter-in-Law Becky, and Little Girl to a baseball game today, and i am so grateful he is still able to do this, and that they love to go with him.  (The kids, age 19-26, still think Grandma and Grandpa are the coolest people on the planet!)

The first veterinarian visit for well pet check-ups is over, and i'm counting that as a blessing for now (and ignoring that i have to do the rest of the animals next month).

Mangos and avocados.  Best breakfast ever.

My heating pad is one of my best friends, and i'm thankful i found the ones that don't shut themselves off after a certain amount of time at the CVS.  (Packing and moving stuff and then deep cleaning an empty house all in the same day means sore muscles, and heat helps.)

There was a tornado touch-down here yesterday.  It mostly damaged traffic lights, and i'm thankful because it touched down two blocks from the cat shelter, went up a block, jumped over the block the shelter is on, touched down again for a short distance, and was done.  Because of how it happened, the shelter was not only untouched, the electricity there didn't even go out so they didn't even have a chance to check out if the new generator works.  (That's a pleasure we can defer to another day, thankyouverymuch!)

Our generator is in good condition, it was serviced this week, and i'm so glad to know it's good for another year.

Count your blessings, everyone!  It's good for you.  Then list them and come join up at Ten Things of Thankful.


Today is:

Albany Tulip Festival -- Albany, NY, US (celebrate spring and Albany's Dutch heritage; through tomorrow)

Arlington National Cemetary Day -- US (the first serviceman to be interred here was Private William Henry Christman, on this date in 1964

Armed Forces/Amateur Radio Crossband Test Day -- US (today and tomorrow, ham operators and the US military team up to test ham operators ability and expertise in contacting appropriate military radio stations in an emergency) 

Birth Mother's Day -- the day before Mother's Day, for all the women who have made an adoption plan for their babies

Bun Bung Fai (Rocket Festival) -- Yasothon, Thailand (through the 14th, teams compete to build the highest flier, with no regard for safety!)

Celtic Tree Month Huath (hawthorn) commences

Cornelia de Lange Syndrome Awareness Day -- shedding light on this rare genetic condition 

Fairy King and Queen Jumping Competition -- Fairy Calendar

Frog Jumping Day -- original date for celebrating Twain's short story

Garland Day -- Abbotsbury, Dorset, England

International Migratory Bird Day -- original date second Saturday in May, but the IMBD organization encourages you to celebrate when birds are migrating in your area; this year's theme is "Stopover Sites:  Helping Birds Along the Way"; one celebration that is on this date:
     International Migratory Bird Celebration -- Chincoteague, VA, US (walks, talks, tours, art, and children's activities, all outdoors with the birds)

Jamestown Day -- Jamestown, Williamsburg, VA, US (special demonstrations and programs for the anniversary of the founding of Jamestown, America's first permanent English colony)

King Norodom Sihamoni's Birthday -- Cambodia

Lag B'Omer -- Judaism (begins at sunset)

Lemuralia -- Ancient Roman Empire (third day)

Leprechaun Day -- spread around the internet, presumably by the little people themselves, as since St. Patrick gets a day, so should they!

Letter Carriers "Stamp Out Hunger" Food Drive -- US (place non-perishable food items by your mail box, and help stamp out hunger in your area)

Martin Z. Mollusk Day -- Ocean City, NJ (if the hermit crab sees his shadow, summer comes a week early)

National Apple Pie Day

National Babysitter's Day -- US, giving recognition to the babysitters who make your date nights possible

National Bake Sale Day -- US (recognizing the tradition of raising money and expanding waistlines through the old fashioned bake sale)

National Fruit Cocktail Day

National Miniature Golf Day -- this one should be in every country, mini golf is too much fun to hog!

National Train Day -- US (it used to be a day to explore why trains matter, with events sponsored by Amtrak, but budget cuts mean you have to celebrate this one on your own now)

O. Henry Pun-Off World Championships -- Austin, TX, US (presented by The P.U.N.Y. [Punsters United Nearly Yearly]) 

St Julian of Norwich's Day (Author of what is believed to be the first book written by a woman in the English language, Sixteen Revelations of Divine Love, around 1393)

St. Servatus' Day (3rd Ice Saint, Patron for success; against foot problems, lameness, leg problems, mice, rats, rheumatism, vermin)

Stay Up All Night Night -- as declared by George Mahood of Northampton, England, everyone needs to relive the excitement of staying up late like you always wanted to as a kid at least once a year

Sun Awareness Day -- like Melanoma Monday, a few days back, a day to remember the damage the sun can do to skin and stock up on sunscreen, if you haven't already

Windmill Day -- Netherlands (on the second Saturday of May each year, more than 600 windmills, including many that are now national monuments, are open to the public)

World Belly Dance`Day --  to celebrate the wonderful art of belly dance 

World Fair Trade Day -- sponsored by the World Fair Trade Organization; this year's theme is "Human Chains for Fair Trade and the Planet" 



Birthday Today:

Debby Ryan, 1993
Robert Pattinson, 1986
Samantha Morton, 1977
Darius Rucker, 1968
Darius Rucker, 1966
Stephen Colbert, 1964
Julianne Phillips, 1962
Dennis Rodman, 1961
Frances Barber, 1957
Stevie Wonder, 1950
Bobby Valentine, 1950
Franklyn Ajaye, 1949
Tim Pigott-Smith, 1946
Mary Wells, 1943
Ritchie Valens, 1941
Harvey Keitel, 1939
Beatrice Arthur, 1923
Joe Louis, 1914
Arthur Sullivan, 1842
Maria Theresa, 1717


Debuting/Premiering Today;

Let It Be(Film), 1970
"Paint It Black"(Single release), 1966
"The Pajama Game"(Musical), 1954
Schelomo: Rhapsodie Hébraïque for Violoncello and Orchestra (Bloch concerto), 1917
"Apollo et Hyacinthus"(opera, Mozart K 38), 1767


Today in History:

The forces of Mary, Queen of Scots, are defeated by a confederacy of Scottish Protestants under James Stewart, Earl of Moray, her half-brother, 1568
A major earthquake in Santiago, Chile, kills 1/3 of the population, 1643
Captain Arthur Phillip leaves Portsmouth, England  with eleven ships full of convicts (First Fleet) to establish a penal colony in Australia, 1787
Ecuador  gains its independence from Gran Colombia, 1830
The first performance of Finland's national anthem, 1848
Queen Victoria declares Britain neutral in the US Civil War, 1861
The Great Comet of 1861 is discovered by John Tebbutt of Windsor, New South Wales, Australia, 1861
Thomas Edison performs the first test of his electric railway, 1880
The Royal Flying Corps (now the Royal Air Force) is established in the United Kingdom, 1912
Igor Sikorsky becomes the first man to pilot a four-engine aircraft, 1913
The first commercial FM radio station in the United States (WDRC-FM) is launched in Bloomfield, Connecticut, 1939
Winston Churchill makes his "blood, toil, tears, and sweat" speech to the House of Commons, 1940
The trade mark Velcro is registered, 1958
The Free Speech Movement is born at UC Berkeley, 1960
Dr. Zakir Hussain becomes the third President  of India and the first Muslim President of Indian Union, 1967
Large groups of students occupy Tiananmen Square and begin a hunger strike, 1989
Johnny Carson makes his last television appearance on Late Show with David Letterman, 1994
A 33 years old British mother Alison Hargreaves, became the first woman to conquer Everest without oxygen or the help of sherpas, 1995
Star Trek: Enterprise broadcasts its final show in the U.S., 2005
Construction of the Calafat-Vidin Bridge between Romania and Bulgaria begins, 2007
In Belize, a construction company requiring road fill gravel destroys a 2,300 year-old Mayan pyramid, 2013

12 comments:

  1. Counting my blessings as you reminded me today.

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  2. Those are all wonderful things to be thankful for. That is amazing how the twister skipped over the shelter. I am thankful for people like you in this world that work hard and still find time to volunteer at rEcess and the shelter. Have a nice weekend!

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  3. I love your 10 things that you are thankful for Mimi. You are a very thoughtful person and caring. Oh by the way, how come my blog isn't in the total of those that you meander around? Just joking my friend. You are one of my friends that meander a great deal and I'm very thankful that you do. See ya and have a great Saturday.

    Cruisin Paul

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  4. That's is an amazing story of the tornado and the cat shelter. Divine intervention, I think. I'm glad you are all safe and life continues to be filled with positivity.

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  5. Wow, you have had a busy, eventful week, Mimi! I can guess that you are so ready for Sunday and a bit of rest time. I am amazed and so thankful that God kept the kittys safe during the tornado. I am also thankful there is a generator for the shelter and that you have your own ready to go, so do we, after learning how difficult it is to go without power.

    I can just imagine those movers grabbing boxes as fast as you could pack them, and then you had the house to deep clean yet, whew! Do you have to unpack her at the new place too?

    I know that Papa Bear would agree that root beer can cure all kinds of maladies and blues! :-)

    How sweet that your "kids" still love to spend time with Grandpa and Grandma, it shows that you raised them right! <3

    Have a beautiful Mother's Day, Mimi! XOXO

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  6. Baseball and miniature golf are both wonderful bonding activities for family.

    Mmmmm. Mango. I can't say the same about apple pie, though I love apples.

    First comes the cherry blossoms and now the tulips. Yay for warmer weather flowers.

    Happy Mother's Day to you.

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  7. Isn't it wonderful to have found the magical elixir for your special needs kiddo? Those heating pads sound terrific; I'll have to check out a local CVS. When I get to be a grandparent, I hope to be as special as the ones you described. How awesome that they play an important role in your family's life!

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  8. Busy week! Root Beer was always a favorite of mine growing up. For some reason, it was something of a rarity. There was soda in the house, but posting cokes and pepsi. The (very) rare trips to an A&W is totally something I'd like to remember better.
    Tornadoes! Two words: ayyieee
    way too specific and identifiable. Our weather disaster are hurricanes which can wreak havoc but are not nearly so... 'look! it's a tornado and it's coming right at us!'

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  9. Wow, how amazing and fortunate that the tornado didn't touch down at the shelter! Whenever someone mentions avocados I get such a craving, I love them!

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  10. A tornado is scary! They just show up without much warning and they do hop around. Very glad it hopped over the shelter.

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  11. I love that root beer is "the elixir to stop tears." Grandpa and Grandma taking the kids to a baseball game sounds like a fun time for all. Mangoes and avocados for breakfast would be welcomed here. Packing and moving stuff really does a number on the muscles. Glad you found another heating pad. Tornadoes touching down sounds so scary. We very rarely get them in our area.

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