Kittens! (Feline Friday)

(Because some people like Blogger and some like WordPress, i am putting the same content at both.  If you would prefer to read this on the other site, it is linked here.) 

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Feline Friday was started by Steve, The Burnt Food Dude, and i'm going to believe it's because he likes cats.

He has handed hosting duties off to Sandee, of Comedy Plus, and it's simple to join, just follow the link to Sandee's page for the rules and the code.

This is the sight that greets me in the mornings -- kittens wanting mama to come feed them:

Is she there yet?  Is mama there yet?

It's not a great picture, but they move fast, so i have to snap it when i can.

Also, a bonus, here's a picture of how they often sleep:

Pile-up!

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Today is:

Bird Day -- anniversary of the first Bird Day declared in 1894 by the Superintendant of Schools in Oil City, PA, Charles Babcock

Cassinga Day -- Namibia

Cinco de Mayo Fiesta -- Portland, Oregon (the sister city to Guadalajara, Mexico, has a multicultural party; through Sunday)

Compliment Someone's Smile Day

Dandelion May Fest -- Dover, Ohio (if food or drink can be made from dandelion, you will find it here, and if you've ever wanted to celebrate dandelion wine, this is the place to be; through tomorrow)

Declaration of Independence Day -- Latvia

Dodenherdenking -- Netherlands (Remembrance of those in the armed forces who have died in war or peacekeeping missions.)

Fairy Ring Day (Giving) -- Fairy Calendar

Festival of Nations -- St. Paul, MN, US (cultural exhibits, food, dance, and folk art from 90 ethnic groups in a celebration held each year since 1932; through Sunday)

Frustrating the Fairies Day -- Ireland (a day to confuse the fairies so they may not cause any mischief, although i can't find any details about how to frustrate them)

Giro D'Italia -- San Lorenzo Al Mare to Milan, Italy (one of cycling's three Grand Tours; through May 27)

Hug Your Cat Day -- sponsored by Apricat 

International Firefighters' Day    

International Space Day -- UN 

International Tuba Day     

Isle of Eight Flags Shrimp Festival -- Fernandina Beach, FL, US (celebrating the birthplace of the modern shrimping industry; through Sunday)

Kentucky Derby & Oaks -- Churchill Downs, Louisville, KY, US (the Oaks is today; the Derby tomorrow is the longest continually held sporting event in the US)

Magic Dragon Street Meet -- Historic Bagnell Dam Strip and Prewitt's Point, MO, US (if you like car shows, this is the place for you! through Sunday)

May Day Fairie Festival -- Spoutwood Farm, Glen Rock, PA, US (celebrate the beginning of spring and the return of all the nature spirits to the warm world with musicians, dancers, storytellers, a Maypole dance, fairie arts and crafts activities and vendors, education about healthy eating and organic farming, fairie and gnome habitat tours, fairie tea parties, and guest appearances by the Green Man, the Mossmen, Sweet Pea, and others; through Sunday)

May Fourth Movement

    Literary Day -- Republic of China

    Youth Day -- People's Republic of China

Memorial Day -- Curacao (military ceremonies to honor victims of WWII, not a government holiday)

Midori no hi -- Japan (Greenery Day/Arbor Day)

National Candied Orange Peel Day

National Kids Fitness Day -- this one doesn't seem to have any particular sponsor or organization behind it, but please get those kids outdoors to do something fun, any time you can!

National Orange Juice Day

National Weather Observers Day -- another fun day that doesn't seem to be sponsored by anyone, but Family Crafts has suggestions for how to celebrate   

No Pants Day -- first Friday in May, and not to be confused with the annual No Pants Subway Ride in NYC

Orangeburg Festival of Roses -- Orangeburg, SC, US (celebrating flowers on the banks of the Edisto River, the longest black water river in the world; through Sunday)

Petite and Proud Day -- i've never heard of this one until now, but it's the one for me!

Relationship Renewal Day -- because someone, somewhere, wants you to stop taking the ones you love for granted

Remembrance Day for Martyrs and the Disabled -- Afghanistan

Respect for Chickens Day -- International (United Poultry Concerns) 

Sagami Giant Kite Festival -- Sagami, Japan (through tomorrow; giant kite that requires a team of 100 people is flown on the banks of the Sagami River)

St. Florian's Day (Patron of brewers, chimney sweeps, coopers, drowning victims, fire prevention, firefighters, harvests, soap-boilers; Austria; Chur, Switzerland; Linz, Austria; Poland; against battle, drowning, fire, and flood)

    a recognized holiday in Austria

St. Venerius of Milan's Day (Patron of lighthouse keepers)

Star Wars Day -- greet others with "May the 4th be with you!"

Toad Suck Daze -- Conway, AR, US (toad-jumping contests, carnival, parade, concerts, arts and crafts, softball tournament, and more; through Sunday)

Upper Canada Village -- Morrisburg, ON, Canada (through early October, various programs that let visitors and students enter the world of the 1860s)

Youth Day -- China

Birthdays Today:

Erin Andrews, 1978

Dawn Stanley, 1970

Randy Travis, 1959

Pia Zadora, 1956

David Guttersn, 1956

Jackie Jackson, 1951

Richard Jenkins, 1947

Nicholas Ashford, 1942

George F. Will, 1941

Roberta Peters, 1930

Audrey Hepburn, 1929

Heloise Bowles Cruse, 1919

Horace Mann, 1796

Bartolomeo Cristofori, 1655

Debuting/Premiering Today:

"Beatles at Hollywood Bowl"(Album), 1977

"Another World"(TV), 1964

"New Girl in Town"(Musical), 1957

Today in History:

Religious reformers John Wycliffe and Jan Hus are condemned as heretics at the Council of Constance, 1415

Peter Minuit becomes director-general of New Netherlands, 1626

A French manufacturer debuts the first folding umbrella, 1715

Rhode Island becomes the first American colony to renounce allegiance to King George III, 1776

Mary Dixon Kies becomes the first woman in the US to obtain a patent, for a method of weaving hats with straw, silk, and thread, 1809

Napoleon arrives at Portoferraio on the island of Elba to begin his exile, 1814

The Haymarket Square Riot takes place in Chicago, 1886

The United States begins construction of the Panama Canal, 1904

The Royal Canadian Navy is created, 1910

May Fourth Movement: Student demonstrations take place in Tiananmen Square in Beijing, China, protesting the Treaty of Versailles, 1919

Al Capone begins serving an eleven-year prison sentence for tax evasion, 1932

Ernest Hemingway is awarded the Pulitzer Prize for The Old Man and the Sea, 1953

The "Freedom Riders" begin a bus trip through the South, 1961

The Don't Make A Wave Committee, a fledgling environmental organization founded in Canada in 1971, officially changes its name to "Greenpeace Foundation", 1972

An all-female Japanese team reaches the summit of Manaslu, becoming the first women to climb an 8,000-meter peak, 1974

Margaret Thatcher becomes the first female Prime Minister of the United Kingdom, 1979

Latvia proclaims the renewal of its independence after the Soviet occupation, 1990

The Scottish National Party wins the Scottish general election and becomes the largest party in the Scottish Parliament for the first time ever, 2007

The last nuclear reactor in Japan is shut down, leaving the country without nuclear power for the first time since 1970, 2012