Tuesday, September 1, 2026

Blast From the Past, a Random and Happy Tuesday Post

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It's time once again for a random and happy Tuesday, linking up with Stacy's Random Thoughts at Stacy Uncorked and Sandee at Comedy Plus.  



Arriving at Ms. V’s last Thursday, i was looking forward to seeing Carl.  They’d brought him home for a visit because of his birthday near the end of August.


Of course, everyone was asleep when i arrived.


Where Carl lives now, they get everyone up at 5:30am and he’s been there over 3 months, so it has truly become a habit for him to wake earlier.


He popped up before 7:30 wanting breakfast.  I didn’t have to wonder why there were two boxes of the same cereal open, and two of the same cartons of milk.


Carl looks good and it was good to see him.  I told him so, on both counts.


He said, “Went to church yesterday.”


I thought he would have, and then he said he misses people.  Ms. S, the neighbor across the street, told me as soon as he’d gotten home, he’d been in the car and gone, probably to go see friends, and Ms. V confirmed it.


I asked how things were going where he’s living now, and he told me he loves karaoke night.


Then he talked about music at a pool party, and dancing.  Later, Ms. V told me there was music and dancing at the pool party because he brought the music.


It sounds like him, he also says his favorite thing to do is go to the bowling alley and get on the dance floor there.


He danced in the talent competition the night before he came home, his mom and brother got to watch.  He was voted to go on to the next level.


I’ve always said the man loves to bust a move.


One of his other favorite things is all the golf carts they have for transporting residents around the facility, which is like a nice sized college campus.


What are you planning to do today? i asked him, and he said, “Maybe a workout, or...well, I could go to the library.”


Two favorite Carl places, but once he was done with breakfast (and he mostly tidied after himself, they really are training him well), he was in his room and came and asked me about where some things were.


I went out there and showed him how we’d arranged everything so he could decide what to take back with him, including his entire CD collection and the CD player.  He nodded and started putting a few things in his suitcase, and i reminded him it would be a few days before he went back.  Plus, as i told him, the containers the items were in could go back with him.


“Might be too much to take back,” he said, so i left him to it.


What did he do next?  He went back to bed for a couple of hours, naturally.


Later, after he was up for the day, Ms. V suggested he go see Ms. S and Mr. D across the street and he said, “Before lunch?”


Yep, some of his habits are being retrained, but he’s still the same Carl, naps and food come first, and he’ll never stop dancing.


The big take away, though, is overall he says he loves being there.  He looks and acts like he is thriving, and i believe he is.


How about some funnies.
















Have a blessed and beautiful Tuesday, everyone!






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Today is:


Bahti Meskerem -- Eritrea (Revolution Day)


Bonnat Pig Fair -- Bonnat, France


Building and Code Staff Appreciation Day


Chicken Boy's Day -- the mascot of the now defunct restaurant by that name, the 22-foot statue of a boy with a chicken's head was saved from destruction and is now a pop icon in L.A. on Route 66


Constitution Day/National Day -- Slovakia


Day of Knowledge -- Estonia (an official Flag Day); Russia


Disaster Prevention Day/Kanto Earthquake Memorial Day -- Japan


Ecclesiastical Year begins -- Orthodox Christian


Festival of Juno Regina and Jupiter Liber -- Ancient Roman Calendar


Ginger Cat Appreciation Day -- begun by Chris Roy, whose saving of a ginger kitten on this date in 1997 led to a life of animal welfare volunteer work


Hassaku Oshi-tsuki -- Tsuma, Oki Island, Japan (bull sumo, with bulls pushing each other out of the ring)


International Day of Awareness of the Dolphins of Taiji/Save Japan's Dolphins Day -- the drive and hunt begins today in Japan, and events are held around the world 


Mustaqillik Kuni -- Uzbekistan (Independence Day, 1991) 


National Cherry Popover Day


National No Rhyme (Nor Reason) Day -- the day to celebrate the amazing words in the English language that do not rhyme with any other words


Nutt Day -- for Emma M. Nutt, the first female telephone operator


Oyster Season begins


Partridge's Day -- partridge hunting season begins in UK


Presidential Message Day -- Mexico


Random Acts of Kindness Day -- New Zealand


Save the Koala Month -- anyone can help by "adopting" one    


Scottish Food and Drink September -- celebrating the food and drink of this beautiful land, through the month, as Every Bite Tells a Story 


St. Fiacre's Day -- Ireland and France (the rest of the church celebrates this Patron of gardeners on August 30)


St. Gideon the Judge's Day (Patron of Saint-Gedeon-de-Beauce, Canada)


St. Giles' Day (Patron of the beggars, blacksmiths, breast feeding, cancer patients, disabled/handicapped people, epileptics, forests, hermits, horses, lepers, mentally ill people, noctiphobics, paupers and the poor, rams, spur makers, woods; Edinburgh, Scotland; Toifa, Italy; against breast cancer, epilepsy, fear of the night, insanity, leprosy, mental illness, noctiphobia, sterility)


St. Simeon Stylites' Day -- Eastern Orthodox Christian


Teacher's Day -- Singapore


Wattle Day -- Australia





Anniversary Today:


Benjamin Franklin marries Deborah Read, 1730



Birthdays Today:


Timothy Duane "Tim" Hardaway, 1966

Gloria Estefan, 1957

Dr. Phil McGraw, 1950

Barry Gibb, 1946

Lily Tomlin, 1939

Alan Dershowitz, 1938

Don Stroud, 1937

Seiji Ozawa, 1935

Conway Twitty, 1933

"Boxcar" Willie, 1931

Rocky Marciano, 1923

Yvonne DeCarlo, 1922

Vittorio Gassman, 1922

Walter Philip Reuther, 1907

Edgar Rice Burroughs, 1875

Englebert Humperdinck. 1854 (composer, esp of opera Hansel and Gretel)

Johann Pachelbel, 1653



Debuting/Premiering Today:


"Art Linkletter's House Party"(TV), 1952

"Androcles and the Lion"(Play), 1913



Today in History:


Rabbi Moses Ben Nachman establishes a Jewish community in Jerusalem, 1267

Adi Granth, now known as Guru Granth Sahib, the holy scripture of Sikhs, was first installed at Harmandir Sahib, 1601

The first yacht race is held, between England's King Charles I and his brother James, 1661

Mission San Luis Obispo de Tolosa forms in California, 1772

Juno, one of the largest main belt asteroids, is discovered by German astronomer Karl Ludwig Harding, 1804

Narcissa Whitman, one of the first white women to settle west of the 

Rocky Mountains, arrives at Walla Walla, Washington, 1836

The first Pullman sleeping car is put into service, 1859

The Solar Superstorm/Carrington Event: a huge solar sunspot and solar flare storm that disrupted telegraphy and allowed the Aurora Borealis to be seen as far south as the Caribbean occurs, 1859

Joseph Lister performs the first antiseptic surgery, 1865

Robert T. Freeman becomes the first African American to graduate from the Harvard Dental School, 1867

The first underground rapid transit system in North America, the Boston Subway, opens, 1897

One of the first science fiction films ever, A Trip To The Moon, opens in France, 1902

Alberta and Saskatchewan become the 8th and 9th Canadian provinces, 1905

Martha, the last passenger pigeon, dies at the Cincinnati Zoo, 1914

The United States, Australia and New Zealand sign a mutual defense pact, called the ANZUS Treaty, 1951

In ReykjavΓ­k, Iceland, American Bobby Fischer beats Russian Boris Spassky and becomes the world chess champion, 1972

Canada adopts the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms as part of its Constitution, 1982

A joint French-American expedition locates the wreckage of the RMS Titanic, 1985

Luxembourg becomes the first nation to complete the transition to all digital tv broadcasting, 2006

After four Israeli settlers are shot at the Israeli settlement Beit Hagai, the Palestinian Authority arrested 250 members of Hamas, 2010

To avoid further fighting, Libya's Transitional Council extends the deadline to surrender for tribal leaders in Sirte, 2011

U.S. National Park officials notify 3,100 recent visitors of an outbreak of Hantavirus sourced to tent cabins in Yosemite National Park, 2012

In southwestern China, at least four people are killed by a 5.9-magnitude earthquake, 2013

Stock markets around the world fall after China reports a low value for its purchasing managers' index, suggesting that the nation's economy is slowing, 2015

Hurricane Dorian makes landfall on Elbow Cay in the Abaco Islands, northern Bahamas, as a category five storm with winds of 180mph (285km/h), 2019

Mongolians protest against moves to teach school subjects in Mandarin instead of Mongolian in their schools, 2020

South America's second-longest river, the ParanΓ‘, hits its lowest levels in 77 years due to drought, 2021

Record rain is recorded in Central Park, New York (7.13 inches) and Newark, New Jersey (8.41 inches) from remnants of Hurricane Ida, 2021

Afghanistan suffers a 6.0 magnitude earthquake centered near Jalalabad, 2025

Monday, August 31, 2026

My Hat! (Awww Monday), Inspiring Quote of the Week, and Poetry Monday, Xerophyte

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Awww Monday is hosted by Sandee at Comedy Plus.


Join us every Monday for Awww...Mondays.  Post a picture that makes you say Awww... and that's it.


Make sure you get the code from Sandee's site, linked above, and leave a link to your post so we can visit you.  What better way to start the week than with a smile!


Even in the hottest of hot summer, somebody loves her snow hat.  She walks in with a smile and even says, "My snow hat!"  Maybe she thinks dressing for winter will bring it sooner, who knows.











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Sparks is the brainchild of Annie of McGuffy's Reader, who wanted us to post something positive and uplifting at the start of the week.  While she no longer blogs, i like to post an Inspiring Quote of the Week in her honor.     








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Our dear friend Diane is taking a break

accommodations we must make

we miss her poetry and wit

so carry on as Poetry Monday's a hit!


Poetry Monday was started by Diane at On The Alberta/Montana Border.  Charlotte/Mother Owl and i are keeping it going while she takes a blog break, we hope temporarily.  Anyone else is welcome to join in the fun, just let us know.


This week the theme is Xerophyte.



Xerophyte is a rather

funny name to say,

it is a plant and you might

have or meet one someday.

It's a plant needs little water,

grows out the desert way.

If you have a plant cactus,

next time you see it, say,

"Hello, Xerophyte!" your greeting

just might make its day!



Future themes are:


Aug 31 Xerophyte (Today!)

Sept 7 My Culture

Sept 14 Beach Huts

Sept 21 Solstice

Sept 28 Bonfire


(All themes are from the 365 Days of Drawing Prompts and Other Arts Facebook group.)


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Today is:


Araw ng mga Bayahi -- Philippines (National Heroes' Day)


August / Summer Bank Holiday -- UK


Be Kind to Humankind Week:  Motorist Consideration Monday BK2HK.org


Day of Solidarity and Freedom -- Poland (Anniversary of the 1980 August Agreement)


Eat Outside Day -- as long as you won't pass out from the heat


Eleusinia Games -- Ancient Greek Calendar (date approximate; 3 days of games with grain as prizes)


Festal Day -- Order of the Eastern Star


Independence Day -- Kyrgyzstan(1991); Malaysia (Hari Kebangsaan/Freedom Day, 1957); Trinidad & Tobago(1962)


International Day of Blogs and Bloggers -- www.blogday.org


International Overdose Awareness Day -- prevention and remembrance


Invent A New Sandwich Day -- spread around the internet like good mayo; go ahead, have fun with this


Liberation Day -- Hong Kong (from Japan in 1945; no longer an official holiday, but still acknowledged by many)


Limba Noastra -- Moldova (Day of Our Language)


Love Litigating Lawyers Day -- yes, G-d tells us to love everybody, even litigation attorneys but He never said doing it would be easy; sponsored by Wellcat Holidays


National Trail Mix Day


St. Raymond Nonnatus' Day (Patron of babies, childbirth, children, expectant mothers, falsely accused people, infants, midwives, newborn babies, obstetricians, and pregnant women; Baltoa, Dominican Republic; against fever)


Umhlanga -- Eswatini (Swaziland) (Reed Dance Public Holiday and final day, culmination of the Reed Dance Celebration begun last week and sponsored



Birthdays Today:


Jeff Hardy, 1977

Chris Tucker, 1972

Debbie Gibson, 1970

Glenn Tilbrook, 1957

Edwin Corley Moses, 1955

Richard Gere, 1949

Itzhak Perlman, 1945

Van Morrison, 1945

Jack Thompson, 1940

Marva Collins, 1936

Frank Robinson, 1935

James Coburn, 1928

Buddy Hackett, 1924

G.D. Spradlin, 1920

Alan Jay Lerner, 1918

William Saroyan, 1908

William Shawn, 1907

Arthur Godfrey, 1903

Maria Montessori, 1870



Debuting/Premiering Today:


"Alice"(TV), 1976

"The Great Gildersleeve"(Radio), 1941

"The Threepenny Opera/Die Dreigroschenoper"(Play), 1928



Today in History:


Traditional date upon which Ayonwentah (Haiwatha) and Deganawidah (The Great Peacemaker) assist the Iroquois tribes in establishing the Confederation of the Haudenosaunee (Iroquois Confederacy, or League of Five Nations), 1142

Lewis and Clark begin their expedition, 1803

A nuts and bolts machine is patented by Micah Rugg, 1842

The first professional football game is played in Latrobe, Pennsylvania, 1895

Edison patents the Kinetograph, 1897

Mrs. Adolph Landenburg, a horse rider, debuts the split skirt, 1902

Debut of Foghorn Leghorn, 1946

Solidarity Labor Union forms in Poland, 1980

Diana, Princess of Wales, her companion Dodi Al-Fayed and driver Henri Paul die in a car crash in Paris, 1997

Stolen on August 22, 2004, Edvard Munch's famous painting The Scream is recovered in a raid by Norwegian police, 2006

In Sudan, the People's Liberation Army announces it will demobilize its child soldiers by the end of the year, 2010

A 19-year-old Indonesian man is rescued after 49 days at sea on his floating fishing trap, 2018

Mary Peltola becomes the first Alaskan Native to be elected to US Congress, 2022 

US life expectancy falls to its lowest level since 1996 (76.1 years vs. 79 years in 2019), with COVID-19 thought to be the main contributing factor, 2022

A major landslide in western Sudan destroys entire village of Tarasin in the Marrah Mountains, 2025