December Already?

You know it is December when:

#1 Son begins looking worried about what he will get for his girlfriend for the holiday.

Bigger Girl puts together her "hottest elf costume yet!" for the animal pictures with Santa at the pet store. We do it every year to raise money for the cat rescue, and this year she wants to look good for that nice young clerk there.

#2 Son comes out with a wish list that includes a neon sign for his room that says, Nude Dancing Here.

Little Girl digs out the one and only jacket she will consent to wear, no matter what the weather conditions.

Sweetie starts hinting that the office Christmas party is getting close, and what am I making for him to take, they have requested more banana pudding thankyouverymuch.

One day the temperature is 80F, the next it is 45F.

I pull out my favorite t-shirt, Santa building a snowman and saying, "All my friends are flakes."

The adult cats get chummier with us, wanting to sleep on us instead of at the foot of the bed or in the nice, cool bathtub.

The kittens form mosh pit heaps in front of the fridge where the warm air comes out, and don't move all night.

A happy last month of the year to all.


Today is:

Barbes Diena -- Ancient Latvian Calendar (celebrates the fertility of sheep)

Becky Thatcher Day (birthday of Laura Hawkins, in 1836, who inspired the character in The Adventures of Tom Sawyer)

Bifocals at the Monitor Liberation Day -- If you can't see, feel free! Indulge in those bifocals you need, no shame.

Calends of December -- Ancient Roman Calendar

Carnival of Celendonia -- Fairy Calendar (Celendonia is the Fairy City all Fairies want to retire to, by the way.)

Civil Air Patrol Day -- US, date of establishment in 1941

Damrong Rajanubhab Day -- Thailand

Eat A Red Apple Day

Festival of Poseidon -- Ancient Greek Calendar (Greek God of Sea & Rebirth)

International Prisoners for Peace Day

Military Abolition Day -- Costa Rica

National Day -- Myanmar

National Pie Day

National Transit Tribute to Rosa Parks Day -- American Public Transportation Association

Restoration of Independence -- Portugal

St. Eligius' Day (patron of sick horses, stables, and, as most of us don't use stables any more, garages and gas stations, their modern equivalent)

Union Day -- Romania

World AIDS Day -- International


Anniversaries Today

Napoleon weds Josephine, 1804


Birthdays Today:

Bette Midler, 1945
John Densmore, 1944
Richard Pryor, 1940
Lee Trevino, 1939
Woody Allen, 1935
Lou Rawls, 1933
David Doyle, 1925
Mary Martin, 1913
Charles Finney, 1905
Robert Welch, 1899
Cyril Ritchard, 1897
Rex Stout, 1886
Oliver Wolcott, 1726
Louis VI of France, 1081


Today in History:

Henry V of England enters Paris, 1420
Pasha Muhammad ibn Farukh, governor, driven out of Jerusalem, 1626
Portugal regains independence from Spain, 1640
Massachusetts becomes first colony to give Statutory recognition to slavery, 1641
The first American school to offer manual training courses opens in Maryland, 1750
Charles and M.N. Roberts ascend 2,000' in a hydrogen balloon, 1783
Erie Canal closes for a month due to cold weather, 1831
Hans Christian Andersen publishes his first book of fairy tales, 1835
The first chartered mutual life insurance company opens, 1843
First appearance of Sherlock Holmes in print, in "Study in Scarlet", 1887
The first certified public accountants receive their certificates in New York, 1896
The first Western film, "The Great Train Robbery," released, 1903
The first Israeli kibbutz is founded, Deganya Alef, 1909
Ford Motor Company introduces the first moving assembly line, 1913
The first drive-up gasoline station opens in Pittsburg, Pennsylvania, 1913
Lady Nancy Astor is sworn in as the first female member of the British Parliament, 1919
The New York Daily News reports the news of Christine Jorgenson, the first notable case of sexual reassignment surgery, 1952
Opening date for signature of the Antarctic Treaty, which sets aside Antarctica as a scientific preserve and bans military activity on the continent, 1959
Malawi, Malta and Zambia join the United Nations, 1964
Lambda Theta Phi is established as the first Latino fraternity, in New Jersey, 1975
Angola joins the United Nations, 1976
The AIDS virus is officially recognized, 1981
At the University of Utah, Barney Clark becomes the first person to receive a permanent artificial heart, 1982
Channel Tunnel sections started from the United Kingdom and France meet 40 metres beneath the seabed, 1990