The Monday After

The Monday After Vacation is when it always hits, and i should expect it.

The teacher told me the kids would start summer school on the 10th.  So, the 20 mile drive out there and back, and it turns out it's today, the 11th.  They will only go on Tuesday - Friday.  On a positive note, they don't have to wear the uniform during the summer session.

Bigger Girl went back to work, and that went well, they were relieved to have their favorite student worker back.  She stopped after to get reading material at the library, and came home with more philosophy books.  She's got a set up so that she can read as she washes the equipment and rinses each piece 25 times as per protocol before putting it in the autoclave.  If she didn't have the set up, i think she would go crazy.

Sweetie went back to work to find that not one person had done any of the errands he normally does in any given week, so everything was a week behind, even deposits at the bank!  It also took him hours to clear out the hundreds of emails.  On a positive note, the boss is relieved he is back.

The thing i always miss the most in the first week after vacation is the dishwasher.  Ever since ours caught fire, all dishes have to be washed by hand, and it's one of those never-ending chores.  There will always be another cup or plate out there somewhere.  At least with a dishwasher, there's a place that's out of sight to store them and all i have to do is put them away, the machine does the rest of the work.  If you have one, be glad.

Monday was also strange in that i kept getting text messages from the power company saying my electricity was out and they were working on it.  It turned out to be someplace else in the neighborhood, but they text everyone who is on that particular area of the grid who has signed up for such texts, which seems weird to me.  It took me a while to figure it out.

Since coming back, i have learned that there are two rules for success.  #1. Don't tell everything you know.


Today is

Arrephoria -- Ancient Greek Calendar (ceremony for the two girls chosen to weave the new robe for Athena's Statue and care for her sacred olive tree during the next year; date approximate)

Birthday of Prince Henrik -- Denmark

Corn on the Cob Day

Fandens Fodselsdag(The Devil's Birthday) -- Denmark (traditional date when contracts between masters and servants expired, making them free to renew or renegotiate or sever ties; it was also considered The Devil's Birthday because taxes and rents came due!)

Holiday of the Happy Gnomes -- Fairy Calendar (grumpy Gnomes are not allowed to attend this holiday!)

Hug Holiday -- some internet sites have this one, and since hugs are good for mental health, indulge!

King Kamehameha Day -- Hawaii, US

National German Chocolate Cake Day

Rites of Matralia -- Ancient Roman Calendar (honoring of Mater Matua, goddess of dawn and childbirth, by women who had been married once) related observance:
     Day Sacred to Fortuna Virgo (Fortune the Virgin, the day marriage robes of girls were dedicated to this goddess)

St. Barnabas the Apostle's Day (Patron of Antioch; Cyprus; Marbelia, Costa del Sol, Spain; Marino, Italy; invoked as a peacemaker; against hailstorms) a/k/a Barnaby Bright Day or Long Barnaby*


*Under the Julian calendar, June 11, St. Barnabas' Day, was the longest day of the year --
Barnaby Bright, Barnaby Bright,
The longest day
And the shortest night


Anniversaries Today:

Henry VIII married Catherine of Aragon, 1509


Birthdays Today:

Shia LeBeouf, 1986
Caroline Quentin, 1961
Dr. Mehmet Oz, 1960
Hugh Laurie, 1959
Joe Montana, 1956
Adrienne Barbeau, 1945
Chad Everett, 1936
Gene Wilder, 1933
Vince Lombardi, 1913
Jacques Cousteau, 1910


Today in History:

Troy is sacked and burned, according to calculations by Eratosthenes, BC1184
Philip II recognizes the rights and privileges of the local nobles and chieftains in the Philippines, which paves way to the creation of the Principalía, 1594
The Continental Congress appoints Thomas Jefferson, John Adams, Benjamin Franklin, Roger Sherman, and Robert R. Livingston to the Committee of Five to draft a declaration of independence, 1776
Russian  explorer Gerasim Izmailov reaches Alaska, 1788
The first American stove patent is granted to Robert Haeterick, 1793
The Limelight Department, one of the world's first film studios, is officially established in Melbourne, Australia, 1892
New Zealand annexes the Cook Islands, 1901
Sir Barton wins the Belmont Stakes, becoming the first horse to win the Triple Crown, 1919
Frank Morris, John Anglin and Clarence Anglin become the only prisoners to escape from the prison on Alcatraz Island, 1962
Anna Mae Hays and Elizabeth P. Hoisington become the first women to receive the rank of general in the U.S. Army, 1970
Cassini-Huygens makes its closest flyby of the Saturn moon Phoebe, 200
Canadian Prime Minister Stephen Harper makes an official apology to Canada's First Nations for residential school abuse that isolated native children from their homes, families, and cultures for a century, 2008