Whoa!

The 3 younger kids and i were in the family minivan on the way somewhere, when #2 Son did a double take.

He was so obvious about it that Little Girl looked back, too, as the seemi,ngly innocent looking lawn service truck we had pulled up near at the red light. It had some plants in the back, and the equipment for mowing and lawn care on the trailer it towed.

After locking eyes with each other, #2 Son looked back one more time and blurted, "Holy moley, that guy has weed, cannabis, the peeva, Sweet Mary Jane! Right there, those plants in the back of his truck!"

Bigger Girl and i tried to crane our heads for a closer look, but the angle was wrong from the front seat.

Are you sure, i asked him.

Little Girl chimed in, "Oh, he's sure mom, and he's right. One of those is an orange tree, and the other three are weed."

Right out in the open? i asked.

"Yeah, and it's really dumb, considering we just passed a police car a little way back!" #2 Son was still astonished, as admittedly was i.

When the light changed, since we were in a far turn lane and he was not, he passed right by us when the light was green and our turn lane signal was still red. There was still a lane of cars between us and him, but we all got a look, and sure enough, it was suspiciously like marijuana plants i've seen pictures of.

Of all the crazy stuff that you might see on the way home from school, that certainly qualifies as most deserving of a double take, for certain.


Today is:

Armed Forces Day -- Taiwan

Braemar Royal Highland Gathering -- Braemar, Scotland (one of the largest gatherings and Highland Games)

Cromwell's Day

Day to Mourn All Manifestations of Sexism -- various Native American tribes, in honor of passage of the UN Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination Against Women

Day of Universal Alarm -- Fairy Calendar (no one remembers what to be alarmed about, which is what is so alarming, at least to the Fairies)

Feast of San Marino and the Republic -- San Marino

Flag Day -- Australia

Festival of Children -- Costa Mesa, CA (weekends through Sept.)

Independence Day -- Qatar

International Bacon Day -- good day for a double decker BLT with grilled onions and Swiss cheese

Japanese Festival -- St. Louis, MO (through the 5th)

Macchina di Santa Rosa -- Viterbo, Italy (St. Rose, patron of the city, celebration begins this evening at 9pm sharp)

Memorial Day -- Tunisia

Merchant Navy Remembrance Day -- Canada

National Welsh Rarebit Day

Skyscraper Day

St. Gregory the Great's Day (invented Gregorian Chant; patron of music, popes, singers, teachers, school children; against plague)

St. Marinus' Day


Birthdays Today:

Charlie Sheen, 1965
Mort Walker, 1923
Kitty Carlisle Hart, 1914
Alan Ladd, 1913
Anna, Duchess of Bedford, 1783 (in 1840, she began the tradition of afternoon tea)
Nicolo Amati, 1596


Today in History:

Sextus Pompeius, son of Pompey, is defeated in the Battle of Naulochus by Marcus Vipsanius Agrippa, admiral of Octavian, which ends the resistance to the Second Triumvirate, BC36
Saint Marinus founds San Marino, one of the smallest nations in the world and the world's oldest republic still in existence, 301
Consecration of Pope Gregory the Great, 590
King Richard I (the Lionheart) crowned, and 30 Jews are massacred as part of the celebration, 1189
Richard Cromwell becomes Lord Protector of England, 1658
The first large group of Swiss and German colonists reach the shores of North and South Carolina areas, 1709
The Flag of the United States is flown in battle for the first time, 1777
Signing of the Treaty of Paris, end of the US Revolutionary War, 1783
John Dalton, English scientist begins using symbols to represent different atomic elements, 1803
The first daily newspaper, a "penny paper", that actually succeeded, The Sun (New York), begins publication, as well as employing the first paper boys, 1833
Outbreak of the Greek revolution against the autocratic rule of King Otto, 1843
William, Prince of Albania, leaves the country after six months because of opposition to his rule, 1914
Sir Malcolm Campbell reaches a speed of 304.331 miles per hour on the Bonneville Salt Flats in Utah, becoming the first person to drive an automobile over 300 mph, 1935
68th and final transport of Dutch Jews, including Anne Frank and her family/friends, leaves for Auschwitz, 1944
Wally Gator premiers, 1962
Dagen H in Sweden: traffic changes from driving on the left to driving on the right overnight, 1967
The Viking 2 spacecraft lands at Utopia Planitia on Mars, 1976
Russia and the People's Republic of China agree not to target each other with nuclear weapons, 1994
An 87-automobile pile-up happens on Highway 401 freeway just East of Windsor, Ontario, Canada after an unusually thick fog from Lake St. Clair, 1999