It's a Stretch (Ten Things of Thankful)

(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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Sometimes it's a stretch.

A good stretch in the morning is something for which i am thankful, but i'm talking about when it is a stretch in itself to find those thankful things.

Yes, sometimes i have to reach, and it's good for me to do so.

Thursday and Friday were stretch days.

Thursday, was cold.  The heater was working in Lunceford the Land Yacht again, Sweetie got me to work on time, Carl got out the door on time, that's a trifecta there.

Work was going well, Sweetie got an errand run for Grandpa and got his hair cut, more thanks.

Lunceford suddenly quit wanting to go forward.  When he finally moved, Sweetie went to Kevin and Lenny's "immediately if not sooner" as Grandpa puts it.

Brake calipers were locking up, there was a leaking gasket and the short version is another big repair bill.

The gratitude continues, though, as we didn't have to have Lunceford towed and the loaner car the garage keeps was available.

No work was missed.

The friends of the library book sale was attended (and i was very frugal, and will go back today after work for the last two hours when everything is half price and see if a few items i passed up are still there).

We did not miss out on our shelter work, and as a bonus, a dear friend from church turned out to be the person adopting the kitten who had needed a bath on Wednesday morning.

Once again, Kevin and Lenny not only worked to keep the cost down, but i was able to  "rob Peter to pay Paul" and give them a good start on it.

Jalopy is still waiting for another battery (if that's the problem), thus we are very thankful the Land Yacht was fixable and will pass inspection.

Even when "2019 so far has been difficult," there are thankful things, and i hope to continue to count them, day by day, week by week.

Please join us and our gracious and wonderful hostess Kristi from ThankfulMe, write up your own list and link up to Ten Things of Thankful.  

   

    An InLinkz Link-up

   

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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)

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)

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)

Cordova IceWorm Festival -- Cordova, AK, US (one of Alaska's zaniest festivals, and you have to be a bit zany to survive the winter here, this year's theme is "Out of This World"; through Saturday)

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

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)

Ice Fest -- Ligonier, PA, US (ice sculpture contest and lots of family fun; through tomorrow)

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

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

Liberation Day -- Uganda

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

National Peanut Brittle Day

National Pistachio Day

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

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!)

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)

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

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

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

Zora Neale Hurston Festival of the Arts and Humanities -- Eatonville, FL, US (celebrating Hurston's work, hometown, and cultural contributions, and the contributions of all Africa-descended people; through the 28th)

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

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

Libby Lane is ordained as the first female bishop of the Church of England, 2015