Tuesday Coffee Chat: Catchphrase

Rory Bore at Ink Interrupted hosts the Tuesday Coffee Chat, and this week's discussion topic is,  Create a phrase or statement that you would like to carry with you throughout the coming year.    






A phrase or statement to carry through the coming year.

How do you go about creating such a thing?  It's a rather tall order, since you never know what a year will bring and you never know what kind of a statement you might need.

"Be patient" is a statement i will always need, especially with the traffic, but it's not exactly the kind of thing i think most people have in mind when they think about a statement for the year.

"Spend less" is something i can use, too.  Again, it's too specific to a certain time and place, not very general and broad and covering a whole year's worth of philosophy.  And it wouldn't move certain people around here who are not given to economy anyway, they know who they are.

Don't ask the cats' advice on what such a statement should be, they would just say, "Feed the cats!"  Or maybe "Serve the cats!" since they also need their litter changed.

If i really wanted to, i could create several statements to serve different purposes.  For example, a statement for my business, "It will be clean!"  A statement to cover volunteer work, "It's worth every moment."  One for my choice of recreation, "So many books, so little time."

It's probably no surprise to anyone that i keep coming back to the deepest and most meaningful things as i think about this chat.  Those depths come from my spiritual beliefs, of course.

The only phrase i can think of that will always apply, will always work, will always help, is "Pray first and always."

There is nothing i can face this year that cannot go better if covered with prayer.



Today is:

Backward Day -- no info on the origin, but if you want to do something backward, go ahead

Eat Brussels Sprouts Day --  saute in olive oil with some garlic, they are worth it!

Eve of Brigantia -- Ireland (St. Bridget's Eve, the night when she crosses the countryside and bestows blessings)

Feast of Great Typos -- another that no one will claim inventing, but since we've all made them, we may as well celebrate them

Feast of Isis -- Ancient Egyptian Calendar (date approximate)

H&ll is Freezing Over Day -- internet generated day to review the list of things you said you would do when h*ll freezes over

Independence Day -- Nauru(1968)

Inspire Your Heart With the Arts Day -- begun by Rev Jayne Howard Feldman as a day to use art to feed your soul

National Brandy Alexander Day

National Bug Busting Day -- UK (this is one idea that needs export to the whole world! the aim is to have every child checked for head lice on the same day, and thus get rid of them in one fell swoop, so they don't circulate endlessly) 

National Gorilla Suit Day -- Mad Magazine's Maddest Artist, Don Martin, says this is the day to pull that gorilla suit out of the closet and step out in style.

Phlegm-Green, Moldy-Grey, and Gazzard Day -- Fairy Calendar (don't ask what color Gazzard is, it doesn't exist in the human world, and you don't want it to)

Play An Old Game You Haven’t Played in Years Night -- internet generated, and a great idea

Scotch Tape Day -- it hit the market this day in 1928

St. John Bosco's Day (Patron of apprentices, boys, editors, laborers, schoolchildren, students, young people-especially youth of Mexican descent)

Up-Helly-AA Day -- Lerwick, Shetland (the largest fire festival in Europe, with tomorrow as a day off so everyone can recover)



Birthdays Today:

Justin Timberlake, 1981
Kerry Washington, 1977
Portia de Rossi, 1973
Minnie Driver, 1971
Kelly Lynch, 1959
Jhn Lydon, 1956
Nolan Ryan, 1947
Charlie Musselwhite, 1944
Richard Gephardt, 1941
Jessica Walter, 1941
Stuart Margolin, 1940
Queen Beatrix, 1938
suzanne Pleshette, 1937
Philip Glass, 1937
James Franciscus, 1934
Ernie Banks, 1931
Jean Simmons, 1929
Carol Channing, 1923
Norman Mailer, 1923
Mario Lanza, 1921
Jackie Robinson, 1919
Thomas Merton, 1915
Garry Moore, 1915
Tallulah Bankhead, 1903
Eddie Cantor, 1892
Zane Grey, 1872
Franz Schubert, 1797
Robert Morris, 1734
Tokugawa Ieyasu, Shogun of Japan, 1543


Debuting/Premiering Today:

"These Are My Children"(TV), 1949 (first daytime TV Soap Opera)
"The Green Hornet"(Radio), 1936
"The Lone Ranger"(Radio), 1933
"Three Sisters"(Chekhov Play), 1901
"Hedda Gabler"(Ibsen Play), 1891


Today in History:

Guy Fawkes is executed for his plotting against Parliament and James I of England, 1606
The first venereal diseases clinic opens at London Lock Hospital, 1747
The Corn Laws (tariffs on imported grains) are abolished in Britain, paving the way for more free trade, 1849
The United States orders all Native Americans to move into reservations, 1876
The Bulletin of Sydney is founded, publishes for 128 years, 1880
An automobile exceeds 100 mph (161 kph) for the first time, at Daytona Beach, driven by A. G. MacDonald, 1905
The Soviet Union exiles Leon Trotsky, 1929
Scotch tape is first marketed by the 3M Company, 1930
Ida May Fuller of Ludlow, Vermont, US receives the first US Social Security monthly payment check, for $22.54, 1940
President Harry S. Truman announces a program to develop the hydrogen bomb, 1950
A North Sea flood causes over 1,800 deaths in the Netherlands, 1953
Explorer 1 – The first successful launch of an American satellite into orbit, 1958
James Van Allen discovers the Van Allen radiation belt, 1958
Mercury-Redstone 2 – Ham the Chimp travels into outer space, 1961
The Soviet Union launches the unmanned Luna 9 spacecraft as part of the Luna program, 1966
Astronauts Alan Shepard, Stuart Roosa, and Edgar Mitchell, aboard a Saturn V, lift off for a mission to the Fra Mauro Highlands on the Moon, 1971
The first McDonald's in the Soviet Union opens in Moscow, 1990
Comet Hyakutake is discovered by Japanese amateur astronomer Yuji Hyakutake, 1996
NASA reveals the Regolith Advanced Surface Systems Operations Robot (RASSOR), a lunar mining robot which could be used to produce fuel and water directly on the Moon, 2013

Awww Monday: Heads and Tails

Awww Monday is hosted by Sandee, of Comedy Plus.

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

"Hey, mom!  You've got to see this!  Your grocery bag grew a tail!" #1 Son said.

That looks suspiciously orange, like Dansig!

Link had to have his turn, too!

Today is:

Auckland Province Anniversary -- Auckland, New Zealand

Cash Register Day -- James Ritty and John Birch were granted a patent on this day in 1883 for an early mechanical cash register

Congressional Brawl Day -- marking the first ever all out brawl in the US Congress in 1798

National Cowboy Poetry Gathering -- Elko, NV, US (the nation's greatest celebration of the American West, with working cowboys, this year including butteri from Italy, attend workshops, jam sessions, performances, and enjoy art and exhibits; through Saturday)

Draw A Dinosaur Day -- and post it to the web site 

Feast of King Charles the Martyr -- Anglican

Inane Answering Message Day -- the day to change those annoying messages, sponsored by Wellcat Holidays

King's Birthday -- Jordan

Martyrs' Day -- India (assassination anniversary of Gandhi)

National Croissant Day

Nelson Provincial Anniversary Day -- Nelson, New Zealand

Pax -- Ancient Roman Calendar (Festival of Peace)

Puce and Ochre Day -- Fairy Calendar

School Day of Nonviolence and Peace -- sponsored by DENIP 

Shiretoko Fantasia -- Shiretoko, Hokkaido, Japan (laser lights and music illuminate the drift ice and waves of the Okhotsk Sea each night through Feb. 29)

St. Aldegund's Day (Patron of cancer patients; against cancer, childhood diseases, sudden death, wounds)

St. Bathilde's Day (Patron of children, sick people, widows; against bodily ills and sickness)

St. Martina of Rome's Day (Patron of nursing mothers; Rome, Italy)

Three Archbishops' Day -- Eastern Orthodox (a/k/a Holy Hierarchs' Day)

Yodel For Your Neighbors Day -- Why?  Do you hate your neighbors?


Birthdays Today:

Johnathan Lee Iverson, 1976
Christian Bale, 1974
Brett Butler, 1958
Phil Collins, 1951
Charles Dutton, 1951
Steve Marriott, 1947
Marty Balin, 1942
Dick Cheney, 1941
Vanessa Redgrave, 1937
Boris spassky, 1937
Tammy Grimes, 1934
Louis Ruckeyser, 1933
Gene Hackman, 1930
Dorothy Malone, 1925
Dick Martin, 1922
Barbara W. Tuchman, 1912
Franklin D. Roosevelt, 1882
Isaiah Thomas, 1749
Thomas Rolfe, 1615 (Only child of John Rolfe and Pocahontas.)


Debuting/Premiering Today:

"The Yogi Bear Show"(TV), 1958
"Robert Montgomery Presents"(TV), 1950
"City Lights"(Chaplin Movie), 1931


Today in History:

The Jews of Freilsburg, Germany, are massacred, 1349
King Charles I of England is beheaded, 1649
Oliver Cromwell, Lord Protector of the Commonwealth of England, is ritually executed after having been dead for two years, 1661
The Forty-seven Ronin, under the command of Oishi Kuranosuke, avenge the death of their master, 1703
Henry Greathead tests the first boat intended to be specialized as a lifeboat for rescue purposes, which he invented, on the River Tyne in England, 1790
The burned Library of Congress is reestablished, with Thomas Jefferson contributing, 1815
Edward Bransfield sights the Trinity Peninsula and claims the discovery of Antarctica, 1820
The Menai Suspension Bridge, considered the world's first modern suspension bridge, connecting the Isle of Anglesey to the north West coast of Wales is opened, 1826
A fire destroys two-thirds of Mayagüez, Puerto Rico, 1841
The city of Yerba Buena is renamed San Francisco, for the nearby mission of the same name, 1847
William Wells Brown publishes the first Black drama, "Leap to Freedom," 1858
The US Navy's first ironclad warship, the Monitor, is launched, 1862
The pneumatic hammer is patented by Charles King of Detroit, 1894
The Canadian Naval Service becomes the Royal Canadian Navy, 1911
The House of Lords rejects the Irish Home Rule Bill, 1913
"The Lone Ranger" begins a 21 year run on ABC radio, 1933
Indian pacifist and leader Mohandas Karamchand Gandhi is assassinated by Pandit Nathuram Godse, a Hindu extremist, 1948
American civil rights leader Martin Luther King, Jr.'s home is bombed in retaliation for the Montgomery Bus Boycott, 1956
The Beatles' last public performance, on the roof of Apple Records in London. The impromptu concert is broken up by the police, 1969
Carole King's Tapestry album is released, it would become the longest charting album by a female solo artist and sell 24 million copies worldwide, 1971
Pakistan withdraws from the Commonwealth of Nations, 1972
The Monitor National Marine Sanctuary was established as the first United States National Marine Sanctuary, 1975
Richard Skrenta writes the first PC virus code, which is 400 lines long and disguised as an Apple boot program called "Elk Cloner", 1982
Peter Leko of Hungary becomes the world's youngest chess grand master at age 14, 1994
Workers from the National Institutes of Health announce the success of clinical trials testing the first preventive treatment for sickle-cell disease, 1995
Over half a million people participate in the world's largest wildlife survey after extreme cold drives exotic birds into Britain's back gardens, 2011

Silly Sunday: No Substitutions!

Silly Sunday is hosted by Sandee, of Comedy Plus.

Silly Sunday is the place to come for weekly laughs.  The rules are simple, just have fun.

This is a great opportunity to get to know other bloggers and have a laugh or two in the process.

Here is how it works: Laugh and Link Up!
1. Post a joke.
2. Link Up with the URL to your joke in the Linky Tools Widget.
3. Read my joke.
4. Leave a comment to tell me how much you enjoyed my joke.
5. Try and visit a few others participating in Silly Sunday.
7. Go to Sandee's site, linked above, and get the Silly Sunday code for your blog, too!

Grandma had me run her on errands yesterday.  There are certain specific things she likes to get at specific stores, so running her on errands can take time.  If you get to a store and they are out of the specific thing she wants, well, let's just hope you never have to know what happens then.

Boudreaux be knowin' how dat be.  Clothile done get to likin' a certain kind o' ham when dey was on vacation, an' now, when Boudreaux be on de road an' be going pass de place where dey sell it, he gots to stop an' get some.

One time, he be runnin' late an' he know de place wit' dat ham be goin' close soon, so he be goin' just a li'l too fas' on de highway.  Right across from de shop de police done pull him over, an' he say, "Please, can you give me de ticket in de parkin' lot dere?  I got's to go buy my wife a ham!  I can't go back home wit'out a ham!"

An' de police say, "What be wrong?  Don't dey got ham where you come from?"

An' Boudreaux say, "Mais oui, dey gots ham, but do you got a wife?"







Today is:

Blue and Pink Day -- Fairy Calendar

Bubblegum Sculpture Day -- commonly listed on ecard sites, and not to be confused with National Bubble Gum Day, coming in February

Carnation Day -- in honor of William McKinley; also on the date of his assassination each year, Sept. 14

Curmudgeons' Day -- W.C. Field's birth anniversary

Ka Moloka'i Makahiki -- Molokai, Hawaii (traditional ceremonial end of the harvest festival, a time of peace; still celebrated with ceremonies and sporting events)

Lowcountry Oyster Festival -- Mt. Pleasant, SC, US (80,000lbs. of oysters, come have some fun!)

National Corn Chip Day

National Puzzle Day -- because puzzles are just fun

Sahid Diwash -- Nepal (Martyrs' Day)

St. Constantius of Perugia (Patron of Perugia, Italy)

St. Gildas the Wise's Day (one of the earliest British historians)

Thomas Paine Day/Freethinkers' Day -- birth anniversary of Thomas Paine

World Leprosy Day -- International



Anniversaries Today:

Establishment of The Seeing Eye, 1929 (first US guide dog school)
Kansas becomes the 34th US state, 1861


Birthdays Today:

Adam Lambert, 1982
Jonny Lang, 1981
Andrew Keegan, 1979
Sara Gilbert, 1975
Heather Graham, 1970
Bobby Phillips, 1968
Nick Turturro, 1962
Greg Louganis, 1960
Oprah Winfrey, 1954
Teresa Teng, 1953
Ann Jillian, 1950
Tom Selleck, 1945
Katharine Ross, 1942
Germaine Greer, 1939
John Forsythe, 1918
Victor Mature, 1913
Huddie William "Leadbelly" Ledbetter, 1885
W.C. Fields, 1880
Anton Chekhov, 1860
William McKinley, 1843
Henry Morton Stanley, 1841
Thomas Paine, 1737
Emanuel Swedenborg, 1688


Debuting/Premiering Today:

"Sweet Charity"(Musical), 1966
Dr. Strangelove(Film), 1964
Sleeping Beauty(Disney cartoon movie), 1959
"The Potting Shed"(Play), 1957
"All My Sons"(Play), 1947
"The Raven"(publication date), 1845
"Idomeneo"(Mozart Opera), 1781
"The Beggar's Opera"(Gay Ballad Opera), 1728


Today in History:

The first performance of Shakespeare's Romeo and Juliet, 1595
John Beckley of Virginia is appointed the first Librarian of Congress, 1802
Edgar Allen Poe's "The Raven" is first published, 1845
The Victoria Cross is established to acknowledge bravery, 1856
Karl Benz patents the first successful gasoline-driven automobile, 1886
Liliuokalani is proclaimed Queen of Hawaii, its last monarch, 1891
Walt Disney starts his first job as an artist, earning $40/week with the KC Slide Co, 1920
North America's first guide dog school, The Seeing Eye, is incorporated in Nashville, Tennessee, 1929
The first inductees into the Baseball Hall of Fame are announced, 1936
The first inductees into the Pro Football Hall of Fame are announced, 1963
Hungary establishes diplomatic relations with South Korea, making it the first Eastern Bloc nation to do so, 1989
President Jacques Chirac announces a "definitive end" to French nuclear weapons testing, 1996
La Fenice, Venice's opera house, is destroyed by fire, 1996
The first direct commercial flights from mainland China (from Guangzhou) to Taiwan since 1949 arrived in Taipei. Shortly afterwards, a China Airlines flight lands in Beijing, 2005

On Human Nature and Finding What's Not There!

Today i am full of conflicting thoughts, so if you continue to read, you will be subject to my blank verse, which is very blank indeed.

Of course I'm sad!
They want to amputate another of my toes!
My diabetes is out of control,
And I'm depressed.
Pass me a donut.

That is what came to me the other day in response to a real life situation of someone at church.  She is depressed.  She is probably going to lose another toe.  She wants to be cured, she doesn't want to do what it takes to properly take care of herself.  As one doctor said (not her doctor but it seems to fit), "They come to me wanting a pill to cure them so they can go back out and do the same things that made them sick in the first place."

This is one of those situations where i am sympathetic and angry at the same time.

So, on to another thought.  Yesterday i cleaned for Ms. GA.  She and her husband were leaving town, so i had instructions to give one of the cats his medicine before i left.  That was an adventure, as i had to follow him into the attic closet, among other places, but he finally got his meds and i got my hissing at and we both left feeling glad it was over.

The cat sitter was going to take over where i left off.

After they left, though, i got a text from Ms. GA.  "We forgot to bring some plants in.   Could you bring in the ones on the patio table?  And the fern that doesn't much look like a fern that's by where we used to keep the water bucket.  Also the fern that's where the bird house used to be."

Yes, i had to laugh, and i figured out where the bird house and the water bucket used to be, and got the ferns.

Today i'm heading back to Grandma and Grandpa's house in NOLA.  Grandma is talking about painting the living room.  We may only get to some prep work, like buying supplies, today, but it's going to be an adventure.


Today is:

Afrma Fancy Rat and Mouse Annual Show -- Riverside, CA (don't laugh, rats and mice make great pets!)

Amherst Railway Society Railroad Hobby Show -- West Springfield, MA, US (8 1/2 acres of hobby train fun; through tomorrow)

Army Day -- Armenia

Big Garden Birdwatch -- UK (sponsored by the Royal Society for the Protection of Birds; through Monday) 

Brookfield Ice Harvest and Winter Carnival -- Brookfield, VT, US (demonstrating traditional ice harvesting using original equipment near the Brookfield Floating Bridge, one of only two such bridges still extant)

Data Privacy Day -- International

Festival of the Lenaia to Dionysus -- Ancient Greek Calendar, end January through early February

Gasparilla Pirate Fest -- Tampa, FL (reenactment of the invasion of Tampa by pirates, this is the adult version of last weekend's celebration for kids)

Greater Springfield Garage Sale -- Springfield, MO, US (if you want to find it used, you can probably find it here at the Ozark Empire Fairgrounds; through tomorrow)

Great Fruitcake Toss -- Manitou Springs, CO, US (what to do with leftover fruitcake?  toss, hurl, or launch it for fun and prizes)

Hoggetowne Medieval Faire -- Gainesville, FL, US (jousting, birds of prey, medieval arts, food, entertainment; through tomorrow, and again next weekend)

Jackhammer Day -- US (the pneumatic jackhammer was patented this day in 1894 by Charles Brady King of Detroit, MI)

Kumquat Festival -- Dade City, FL, US (because kumquats are not just funny, they are delicious!)

Lunar New Year/Chinese New Year/Lhosar/Seol-Nal/Tet -- celebrations throughout Asia are held both before and after this "official" Western date, some for up to a month; there are Confucian, Taoist and Buddhist celebrations
     Sonam Lhosar -- Nepal (Tamang New Year)

National Blueberry Pancake Day

National Kazoo Day -- because anyone can play one!

National Seed Swap Day -- find or set one up in your area, so you can expand your garden, and help others expand theirs

National Spieling Day -- internet generated, and whatever your area of expertise, spiel about it today

National Storytelling Week -- UK (the Society for Storytelling encourages you to celebrate one of the most ancient art forms)

Orange City Blue Spring Manatee Festival -- Orange City, FL, US (learn about the manatee and have fun doing it; through tomorrow)

Polar Bear Festival/Polar Bear Jump -- Seward, AK, US (lots of fun, if you want to freeze!)

Rinkydinks Annual Snowball Fight -- Fairy Calendar

Runic Half-month Elhaz (elk) commences

St. Charlemagne's Day (Patron of the University of Paris)

St. Thomas Aquinas's Day (Patron of academics, apologists, book sellers, chastity, colleges, learning, pencil makers, philosophers, publishers, scholars, schools, students, theologians, universities; Aquino, Italy; Belcastro, Italy; Falerna, Italy; University of Vigo; all Catholic academies, schools, and universities; against lightning, storms)

Swamp Buggy Races -- Naples, Florida (the world famous swamp buggy races; through tomorrow)

Telephone Exchange Day -- US (the first telephone exchange was set up in New Haven, CT with 22 subscribers on this day in 1878)

Traditional Day of Offering -- Bhutan (first day of 12th month of Tibetan calendar)

Wakakusa Yamayaki -- Nara, Japan (Grass Burning on Mt. Wakakusayama, and fireworks; an annual New Year tradition)


Anniversary Today:

Adoption of the Great Seal of the United States, 1782


Birthdays Today:

Elijah Wood, 1981
Nick Carter, 1980
Joey Fatone, Jr. 1977
Kathryn Morris, 1969
Sarah McLachlan, 1968
Harley Jane Kozak, 1957
Nicolas Sarkozy, 1955
Rick Warren, 1954
John Beck, 1943
Susan Howard, 1943
Alan Alda, 1936
Susan Sontag, 1933
Claes Oldenburg, 1929
Jackson Pollack, 1912
Robert Stroud, 1890 (The Birdman of Alcatraz)
Arthur Rubenstein, 1887
Auguste Piccard, 1884
Jean Felix Piccard, 1884
Colette, 1873
Jose' Marti, 1853
Henry Morton Stanley, 1841
Alexander Mackenzie, 1822
Peter the Great of Russia, 1775
St. Thomas Aquinas, 1225


Debuting/Premiering Today:

"Fantasy Island"(TV), 1978
"Barnaby Jones"(TV), 1973
"Symphony No. 1/Jeremiah"(Bernstein), 1944


Today in History:

The Walk to Canossa: The excommunication of Henry IV, Holy Roman Emperor is lifted by Pope Gregory VIII, 1077
The first Crusaders begins siege of Hosn-el-Akrad Syria, 1099
Pope Alexander VI gives his son Cesare Borgia as hostage to Charles VIII of France, 1495
Edward VI, age nine, succeeds his father Henry VIII as king of England, 1547
By the Edict of Orleans, the persecution of French Huguenots is suspended, 1561
Articles of the Warsaw Confederation are signed, sanctioning freedom of religion in Poland, 1573
Sir Thomas Warner found the first British colony in the Caribbean, on St. Kitts, 1624
The Russian Academy of Sciences was founded in St. Petersburg by Peter the Great, and implemented in the Senate decree (it was called St. Petersburg Academy of Sciences until 1917), 1724
Horace Walpole, in a letter to Horace Mann, coins the word serendipity, 1754
London's Pall Mall is the first street lit by gaslight, 1807
Pride and Prejudice is first published in the United Kingdom, 1813
The first locomotive runs from the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific Ocean on the Panama Railway, 1855
In a snowstorm at Fort Keogh, Montana, the world's largest snowflakes are reported, being 15 inches (38 cm) wide and 8 inches (20 cm) thick, 1887
Walter Arnold of East Peckham, Kent became the first person to be convicted of speeding in an automobile. He is fined 1 shilling, plus costs, for speeding at 8 mph (13 km/h), thus exceeding the contemporary speed limit of 2 mph (3.2 km/h), 1896
The Carnegie Institution is founded in Washington, D.C. with a $10 million gift from Andrew Carnegie, 1902
An act of the U.S. Congress creates the United States Coast Guard, 1915
The first Jewish  US Supreme Court justice, Louis Brandeis, appointed by Wilson, 1916
A symbolic Tomb of the Unknown Soldier is installed beneath the Arc de Triomphe in Paris to honor the unknown dead of World War I, 1921
The name Pakistan is coined by Choudhary Rehmat Ali Khan and is accepted by the Indian Muslims who then thereby adopted it further for the Pakistan Movement seeking independence, 1933
The Lego company patents the design of its Lego bricks, still compatible with bricks produced today, 1958
The current design of the Flag of Canada is chosen by an act of Parliament, 1965
Tropical Storm Domoina makes landfall in southern Mozambique, eventually causing 214 deaths and some of the most severe flooding so far recorded in the region, 1984
Supergroup USA for Africa (United Support of Artists for Africa) records the hit single We Are the World, to help raise funds for Ethiopian famine relief, 1985
Space Shuttle Challenger breaks apart after liftoff killing all seven astronauts on board, 1986
Hundreds of thousands of protesters filled up the Egyptian's streets in demonstrations referred to as "Friday of Anger" against the Mubarak regime, 2011

Sphynx Cats and Friendly Fill-ins

Feline Friday is usually hosted by Steve, The Burnt Food Dude, but he had surgery recently.  Sandee of Comedy Plus has agreed to step in and host until he's recovered.

Feline Friday is simple to join. All you have to do is..

1) post a picture, drawing, cartoon or video of a cat (They may be silly or cute)

2) go to Sandee's page, linked above, then on the menu bar click on the Feline Friday tab to get the code

3) paste the code under your cat picture

4) add your name and link


That’s all there is to it! Be sure to check back every so often and visit all the Feline Friday bloggers. Also, please leave a nice comment on their blogs. Nasty comments will be deleted!

We had two very temporary residents at the cat shelter this week: 

Sphynx cats, a brother and sister,.  

Their owner couldn't care for them, so she gave them to a relative who decided they were too much trouble (they require a lot of special care for their skin) and took them to the pound.  We have a great relationship with our local pound, they try to rehome as many animals as they can working with us and other organizations.  They called us, we got them and took them in for a check-up the next day, and the vet's receptionist adopted them immediately!

Their skin is soft and, as you can see up close, very wrinkly.

************************************************************

Friendly Fill-Ins are easy to do. There are four statements: the first two statements are provided by Ellen of 15AndMeowing, and the final two are offered by McGuffy Ann Morris of McGuffy's Reader. They try to make sure the statements will be fun to both answer and share. The linky will be posted at or about 12:00 AM on Friday. Please head over to one of their sites, link up, and share your thoughts! 

My fill-ins for the statements are underlined:

Week 38: January 27, 2017

1. I have seen _______________________ on Broadway.

2. My Chinese zodiac sign is ___________________.

3. Celebrities _____________________.

4. A ______________ day is _______________.


1. I have seen Whoopee! and Children of a Lesser God on Broadway.

2. My Chinese zodiac sign is the rabbit.  No, i'm not sure what that means, if anything.  Astrology of any sort has never interested me.

3. Celebrities are just people.  It would be nice if they'd all work to be good examples, but they are subject to the same foibles and follies as the rest of us.  No, i wouldn't want to trade places with any of them.

4. A good day is one where i still have energy at the end of the day.  A great day is when i get a good nap!



Today is:

Arizona Musicfest -- North Scottsdale, AZ, US (a winter classical music festival; through Mar. 10)

Big Snow Day -- remembering the 15 inch snowflakes that fell on in Fort Keough, Montana, on this date in 1887

Black Hills Stock Show and Rodeo -- Rapid City, SD, US (everything you could want in such an event, including the stockman banquet and ball; through Feb. 5)

Carnaval de Quebec -- Quebec City, Canada (a vigorous winter celebration, where they have the cold around long enough to need it; through Feb. 12)

Chocolate Cake Day

Day of Remembrance for Victims of Nazism -- Germany (anniversary of the liberation of Auschwitz)

Day the Netjers of Heaven Receive Ra -- Ancient Egyptian Calendar (date approximate)

Dinagyang -- Iloilo, Philippines (huge religious and cultural festival, this year's theme is "Bringing More Fun to the World"; through the weekend)

Eagles Etcetera Festival -- Bismarck, AR, US (bald eagles in the wild, birds of prey demonstrations, and lots of outdoor fun; through Sunday)

Family Literacy Day -- Canada

Fun At Work Day -- inject laughter and fun into your workplace (if you dare); some sites have this as a national or international day, and dates given vary, but my warning stands if you decide to celebrate this at all

International Day of Commemoration in Memory of the Victims of the Holocaust

Iroquois Mid-Winter Ceremony -- Iroquois Native Americans (for the continuation of all life-sustaining things; a multi-day ceremony and feast that begins around this time of year)

Listen to Classical Music During Lunch Day -- in honor of Mozart

Mozart Day

National Preschool Fitness Day -- get them loving moving and staying fit while they are still young 

Punch the Clock Day -- internet generated, and no reason for it given; this has to be one of the more baffling ones

St. Angela Merici's Day (Founder of the Sisters of the Order of St. Ursula; Patron of the disabled and ill; against bodily ills and the death of parents)

St. Devota's Day (Patron of Corsica; Monaco)

St. Moritz Polo World Cup on Snow -- St. Moritz, Switzerland (winter polo on the frozen lake of St. Moritz; through Sunday)

Tapati Festival -- Rapa Nui (Easter Island; a unique and exotic Polynesian festival, showcasing the island's culture and traditions; through Feb. 12)

Thomas Crapper Day -- death date, in 1910, of the perfector of the flush toilet mechanism


Anniversaries Today:

Founding of the National Geographic Society, 1888
The first sorority, Kappa Alpha Theta, is founded at DePauw University in Greencastle, Indiana, 1870
The University of Georgia is chartered, the first state university in the US, 1785


Birthdays Today:

Julie Foudy, 1971
Jennifer LB Leese, 1970
Patton Oswalt, 1969
Alan Cumming, 1965
Bridget Fonda,1964
Cris Collinsworth, 1959
Mimi Rogers, 1956
Mikhail Baryshnikov, 1948
Nick Mason, 1944
Mairead Corrigan, 1944
James Cromwell, 1942
Troy Donahue, 1936
Donna Reed, 1921
David Seville, 1919
Skitch Henderson, 1918
Hyman George Rickover, 1900
Jerome Kern, 1885
Samuel Gompers, 1850
Lewis Carroll (Charles Dodgson), 1832
Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart, 1756


Debuting/Premiering Today:

"Laverne and Shirley"(TV), 1976
Tarzan of the Apes(Film), 1918


Today in History:

Trajan becomes Roman Emperor, 98
The Rashidun Caliphate ends with the death of Ali, 661
Song Dynasty General Yue Fei is wrongfully executed, 1142
Dante Alighieri becomes a Florentine political exile, 1302
The trial of Guy Fawkes and other conspirators begins, ending with their execution on January 31, 1606
The first American lime kiln begins operation in Providence, Rhode Island, 1662
Mustafa II becomes the Ottoman sultan in Instanbul, 1695
Czar Peter the Great sets the first Russian state budget, 1710
Abdication of Stanislas, the last king of Poland, 1736
The US Congress approves the opening of Indian Territory for settlement, which led to the forced relocation of Native Americans on the "Trail of Tears," 1825
Manitoba and the Northwest Territories are incorporated, 1870
Thomas Edison is granted a patent for the electric incandescent lamp, 1880
The National Geographic Society is organized, in Washington, D.C., 1888
"Tarzan of the Apes," the first Tarzan movie, premiers, 1918
Apollo 1 – Astronauts Gus Grissom, Edward White and Roger Chaffee are killed in a fire during a test of their spacecraft at the Kennedy Space Center, 1967
More than sixty nations sign the Outer Space Treaty banning nuclear weapons in space, 1967
Through cooperation between the U.S. and Canadian governments, six American diplomats secretly escape hostilities in Iran in the culmination of the Canadian caper, 1980
The pilot shaft of the Seikan Tunnel, the world's longest sub-aqueous tunnel (53.85 km) between the Japanese islands of Honshu and Hokkaido, breaks through, 1983
American-born sumo wrestler Akebono Taro becomes the first foreigner to be promoted to the sport's highest rank of yokozuna, 1993
Germany first observes International Holocaust Remembrance Day, 1996
Western Union discontinues its Telegram and Commercial Messaging services, 2006

Consequences and Fences (No, i didn't intend to rhyme today.)

"Wishing that your grandparents had never found me plays havoc with the time stream," the Djinn answered his query with a very sharp look.  "You probably could wish that right now, but it's a given that you have no guarantees where it would leave you, or anyone else in your family, including whether or not your children would even exist."

"As awful as that would be, I'm going to keep it in mind as a possibility," he said.  "After all, if they'd never found you, everything would be undone from the time I was a child, so by this age, I'd never know I could have had a different life."

"It's still not something I think you want to try," the Djinn cautioned him, "it could have unintended consequences."

"As I've seen with my own family story, all wishes have unintended consequences," he answered, "and if it comes down to wishing that and taking the consequences or committing a murder, I think I'd  prefer the former!"


Linking up with Uncharted Blog and Six Sentence Stories, where the cue is Given.


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Good Fences

Gosia, of Looking for Identity, has taken over Good Fences, and it's now Good Fences Around The World.  Post a picture of a fence or gate, link back to her blog, and go visit others to see what interesting fences there are out in this big world.

The wreath is a nice addition to the driveway gate, i think.

Today is:

Australia Day -- Australia (National Day); Christmas Island; Cocos (Keeling) Islands; Norfolk Island; (Commemorates Captain Arthur Phillip's arrival at Sydney Cove with the First Fleet, on January 26, 1778.)
     Australia Day Cockroach Races -- Brisbane, Queensland (the greatest gathering of thoroughbred cockroaches anywhere, with competition proceeds going to charity)

Clashing Clothes Day -- "officially" (although i'm not sure who declared it) on the 4th Thursday of January, but some people seem to celebrate it every day

Dental Drill Day -- George F. Green, of Kalamazoo, MI, US, patents the electric dental drill, 1875

Duarte Day -- Dominican Republic

End of the Fifth Quarter of the Ninth Dozen of the Thirteenth Set -- Fairy Calendar

Get to Know Your Customers Day -- on the 4th Thursday of each quarter

Liberation Day -- Uganda

Lotus 1-2-3 Day -- released this day in 1983

Montana Winter Fair -- Lewistown, MT, US (from farm exhibits to a fiddler's contest, there's fun to be had here; through Sunday)

National Peanut Brittle Day

National Pistachio Day

Republic Day -- Delhi, India (pompous and splendid celebrations through the 29th)

Sailing of Anubis -- Ancient Egyptian Calendar (celebration of the god of the dead; date approximate)

Spouse's Day -- an internet generated reason to tell your SO how much he/she means to you

St. Paula's Day (Patron of widows)

St. Timothy's Day (Patron against stomach and intestinal disorders)

St. Titus' Day (Patron of Crete)

Toad Hollow Day of Encouragement -- begun at Toad Hollow School in Kalamazoo, Michigan in the 1800s, a day to encourage your friends

Winter Carnival -- St. Paul, MN, US (a tradition over 100 years in the making; through February 5)



Anniversaries Today:

Establishment of Rocky Mountain National Park, 1915
Michigan becomes the 26th US state, 1837



Birthdays Today:

Kherington Payne, 1990
Kirk Franklin, 1970
Andrew Ridgeley, 1963
Wayne Gretzky, 1961
Anita Baker, 1958
Ellen DeGeneres, 1958
Eddie Van Halen, 1955
Lucinda Williams, 1953
David Strathairn, 1950
Gene Siskel, 1946
Angela Davis, 1944
Scott Glenn, 1942
Bob Uecker, 1935
Father George Harold Clements, 1932
Jules Feiffer, 1929
Paul Newman, 1925
Anne Jeffreys, 1923
Jimmy Van Heusen, 1913
Maria Augusta von Trapp, 1905
Bessie Coleman, 1893
Douglas MacArthur, 1880
Mary Mapes Dodge, 1831
Julia Dent Grant, 1826
Emperor Go-Nara of Japan, 1497


Debuting/Premiering Today:

"Phantom of the Opera"(Musical), 1988
"The Dukes of Hazzard"(TV), 1979
"Duchess of Padua"(Oscar Wilde play), 1891
"Cosi Fan Tutte"(Mozart Opera), 1790
"Esther"(Racine play), 1689


Today in History:

The fifth recorded perihelion passage of Halley's Comet, 66
Vicente Yáñez Pinzón becomes the first European to set foot on Brazil, 1500
The Council of Trent issues its conclusions in the Tridentinum, establishing a distinction between Roman Catholicism and Protestantism, 1564
Isaac Newton receives Jean Bernoulli's 6 month time-limit problem, and solves the problem before going to bed that same night, 1697
The magnitude 9 Cascadia Earthquake took place off the west coast of the North America, as evidenced by Japanese records, 1700
The British First Fleet, led by Arthur Phillip, sails into Port Jackson (Sydney Harbour) to establish Sydney, the first permanent European settlement on the continent of Australia, 1788
The Rum Rebellion, the only successful (albeit short-lived) armed takeover of the government in Australia, 1808
Tennessee enacts the first prohibition law in the United States, 1838
Hong Kong is proclaimed a sovereign territory of Britain, 1841
The first US income tax, passed to raise funds for the Civil War, is repealed, 1871
Muhammad Ahmed ("Mahdi") rebels conquer Khartoum, Sudan, 1885
The World's largest diamond, the 3,106-carat Cullinan, is found, 1905
The Short Magazine Lee-Enfield Mk III is officially introduced into British Military Service, and remains the oldest military rifle still in official use, 1907
Glenn H. Curtiss flies the first successful American seaplane, 1911
Richard Strauss' opera Der Rosenkavalier receives its debut performance at the Dresden State Opera, 1911
Former Ford Motor Co. executive Henry Leland launches the Lincoln Motor Company which he later sold to his former employer, 1920
Rioters burn Cairo's central business district, targeting British and upper-class Egyptian businesses, 1952
Danny Heater sets a worldwide high school basketball scoring record when he records 135 points for Burnsville High School (West Virginia), 1960
Ranger 3 is launched to study the moon, but misses its target by 22,000 miles (35,400 km), 1962
Hindi becomes the official language of India, 1965
The Great Blizzard of 1978, a rare severe blizzard with the lowest non-tropical atmospheric pressure ever recorded in the US, strikes the Ohio – Great Lakes region with heavy snow and winds up to 100 mph (161 km/h), 1978
Israel and Egypt establish diplomatic relations, 1980
An earthquake hits Gujarat, India, causing more than 20,000 deaths, 2001
President Hamid Karzai signs the new constitution of Afghanistan. 2004
The 41st World Economic Forum convenes in Davos, Switzerland, 2011

Wordless Wednesday: And you thought i liked cats!

The gift Sweetie and i brought for the "white elephant" gift exchange with our church small group:

Made in Scotland, bought at a yard sale.

The gift Sweetie picked and held on to for dear life:

They have cats.  They are made in Scotland.  Some things never change.

Linking up with Wordless Wednesday.


Today is:

A Room of One's Own Day -- sponsored by Wellcat Holidays, for all of those who just want a space to call their own; on the birth anniversary of Virginia Woolf

Around the World in 72 Days -- this date in 1890, Nellie Bly broke the fictional Phileas Fogg's record and went around the world in 72 days, 6 hours, 11 minutes and 14 seconds

Big Rock Day -- discovery of the Cullinan diamond (3,106 carets) this day in 1905

Conversion of St. Paul -- Christian
     Observe the Weather Day -- a beautiful St. Paul's Conversion day means a prosperous year, precipitation means an expensive year, clouds mean much loss of livestock, and wind means war looms in the year ahead

Dydd Santes Dwynwen -- Wales (For St. Dwynwen, Patron of lovers, especially Welsh lovers, and sick animals; the Welsh Valentines Day)

Feriae Sementivae -- Ancient Roman Calendar (a Feast of Spring, asking protection for seeds sown in the fall, and those to be sown in spring)

Festival of Constructive Energy -- another internet generated day with no explanations

G. F. Betico Croes Day -- Aruba

IV Nurse Day -- US (sponsored by the Infusion Nurses Society) 

January 25 Revolution Day -- Egypt

Luanda City Day -- Luanda City, Angola

Macintosh Computer Day -- debuted this day in 1984

National Irish Coffee Day

National Voters' Day -- India

Old Disting -- Norse Calendar (date approximate; a market day held at the same time as a sacrifice to the female powers.)

Robert Burns' Night -- Scotland; Newfoundland (celebrated with a Burns' Supper and reciting poetry)
     Dinner Party Day -- for Bobby Burns, of course

Sounkyo Ice Festival -- Hokkaido, Japan (snow and ice sculptures that are almost too good to be true, through March 20)

St. Ananias of Damascus' Day (Saint who baptized St. Paul)

Winter-een-mas -- a holiday for gamers, begun by Tim Buckley; through the 31st

Zehnder's Snowfest, Ice Carving, and State of Michigan Snow Sculpting Competition -- Frankenmuth, MI, US (fun for the whole family; through Monday)


Anniversaries Today:

Henry VIII marries Anne Boleyn, 1533 (secret wedding)
Moscow University is established, to coincide with St. Tatiana's Day, 1755


Birthdays Today:

Alicia Keys, 1981
Ana Ortiz, 1971
China Kantner, 1971
Dinah Manoff, 1958
Leigh Taylr-Young, 1945
Etta James, 1938
Corazon Aquino, 1933
Dean Jones, 1931
Edwin Newman, 1919
Florence Mills, 1896
Virginia Woolf, 1882
William Somerset Maugham, 1874
Robert Burns, 1759
Robert Boyle, 1627 (O.S. date)


Debuting/Premiering Today:

"Rent"(Musical), 1996
M*A*S*H*(Film), 1970
"One Hundred and One Dalmatians"(Cartoon film), 1961
"Metamorphosen, Study for 23 Solo Strings"(Strauss composition), 1946
"The Guiding Light"(Radio), 1937
"R.U.R./Rossum's Universal Robots"(Play), 1921 (the word "robot" enters the world lexicon)
"Wedding March"(Mendelssohn, Op. 61), 1858
"La Cenerentola"(Rossini Opera), 1817


Today in History:

Founding of Sao Paulo, Brazil, 1554
Battle of Mikatagahara, in Japan; Takeda Shingen defeats Tokugawa Ieyasu, 1573
The Treaty of Utrecht marks the beginning of the Dutch Republic, 1579
Eliakam Spooner of Vermont patents the first seeding machine in the US, 1799
The first US engineering college opens, Rensselaer Polytechnic, Troy, NY, 1825
Sojourner Truth addresses the First Black Women's Rights Convention, in Akron, Ohio, 1851
Mendelssohn's "Wedding March" is first played, at the wedding of Queen Victoria's daughter Princess Victoria, to crown prince of Prussia, 1858
The soda fountain is patented by Gustavus Dows, 1870
Thomas Edison and Alexander Graham Bell form the Oriental Telephone Company, 1881
Bilu, a Russian Zionist organization, forms, 1882
Nellie Bly beats Phileas Fogg's time around world by 8 days (72 days), 1890
The first US transcontinental telephone call is made when Alexander Graham Bell in NY calls Thomas Watson in SF, 1915
The League of Nations is founded, 1919
The 1924 Winter Olympics opens in Chamonix, France (in the French Alps), inaugurating the Winter Olympic Games, 1924
At the Hollywood Athletic Club the first Emmy Awards are presented, 1949
The first scheduled transcontinental flight in the US takes place, an American Airlines flight from California to New York, 1959
The Clementine space probe launches, 1994
Russia almost launches a nuclear attack after it mistakes Black Brant XII, a Norwegian research rocket, for a US Trident missile, 1995
During a historic visit to Cuba, Pope John Paul II demands the release of political prisoners and political reforms while condemning US attempts to isolate the country, 1998
Three independent observing campaigns announce the discovery of OGLE-2005-BLG-390Lb through gravitational microlensing, the first cool rocky/icy extrasolar planet around a main-sequence star, 2006