Herself a Study (Six Sentence Story), True to the Season (Good Fences), Hide the Photo, Please! (Sammy's Poetry Day), and Great Neighborhood Candy Exchange (Brian's Thankful Thursday)

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

       

"What are you studying?"

"Biology."

"And what will you do with that -- medicine?"

"No, I don't have enough patience with people for that.  I want to work with animals, beginning with an internship at a rescue in Florida that works with large felines.  Eventually I'd like to study whether or not climate change disrupts patterns of migration in large herd animals in Africa."

Linking up with Denise at Girlie On The Edge Blog, where she hosts Six Sentence Stories, and the cue is Migration.       

(The above is how Bigger Girl describes what she wants to do, at least in the near future; my baby who tested as autistic, dyslexic, and a whole host of other things, whom i was told would probably have to live in a group home and have menial jobs all her life, is graduating college and is a scientist!)

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

Gosia at 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 other blogs to see what interesting fences there are out in this big world.     gosiablogs.blogspot.com

A delightful holiday scene, nicely fenced:

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

It's Angel Sammy's Poetry Day!  This week's image and my poem:    

"Sissy, why are we dressed this way?"

"I'm not sure, I really can't say."

"Mom keeps saying 'Halloween.'"

"And Daddy says she's off her bean!"

"Grandma says we are cute as a bug."

"Aunt Lizzy says on her heart we tug."

"Well, whatever we are doing one thing I say,

I hope future boyfriends never see us this way!"

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

Brian of Brian's Home hosts the Thankful Thursday Blog Hop.   It's time to share something for which i am thankful.  

It's the day of The Great Neighborhood Candy Exchange, and we get to give out candy and see all the kids and parents.  Also, we have plenty of candy, and the candy bowl for which to be thankful.

Plenty of candy, including some for kids who can't have peanuts or gluten

  

Our Candy Bowl

Several years ago, i hit upon the idea of buying a small bag of candy with every trip to the store as soon as it appeared, in early September.  That way, i don't even notice it in the budget!  Another thankful, there's no more last minute panic of trying to find the money to go buy candy.

Happy Halloween!

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

Today is:

Admission Day -- Nevada, US

Allantide -- Cornwall, England

All Hallows Eve -- Christian

Apple and Candle Night -- Wales

Books for Treats Day -- San Jose, CA, US (give gently used books to kids, not candy -- feed their brains, not their cavities!)

Chiang Kai-Shek Day -- Taiwan

Day of the Seven Billion -- day in 2011 the UN declared the world population to have reached 7,000,000,000     

Dia de las Iglesias Evangelicas y Protestantes -- Chile (Day of Evangelical and Protestant Churches/Reformation Day)

Dias de los Muertos -- Mexico, esp. Michoacan and Oaxaca (through Nov. 2; ceremonies, sand sculptures, decorated altars, and parties through the nights in the cemetaries)

Dookie Apple Night -- Newcastle, England

Duck Apple Night -- Liverpool, England

Feast of Sekhmet Bast Ra -- Ancient Egyptian Calendar (date approximate)

Festival of Inner Worlds -- Pagan (fight between the old and new year)

Founder's Day -- Girl Scouts of the USA (Juliette Gordon Low's birth anniversary)

Ghostwriter's Day

Hallowe'en or Beggar's Night

Increase Your Psychic Powers Day -- originated in England in the 19th century, some celebrated on the 30th

King Father Nordom Sihanouk's Birthday -- Cambodia

National Candy Apple Day

National Knock-Knock Joke Day

    Knock, Knock

    Who's There?

    Police.

    Police who?

    Police stop telling knock-knock jokes!

National Magic Day -- Society of American Magicians (in honor of Harry Houdini, who died on this day in 1926, and who was president of the SoAM)   

National UNICEF Day

Nut-Crack Night -- England; Scotland

Old Celtic New Year's Eve

Out of the Broom Closet Day -- Pagan, Heathen, and all earth-based and ethnic religions

Punkie Night -- Hinton St George, Somerset, England (a celebration for children and adults who carry candle-lit punkies -- the best one wins a prize -- made out of mangel-wurzels, a type of beet, and sing old punkie songs asking for money or treats)

Reformation Day -- Protestant Christian (trad.)

    Official Holiday -- Germany; Slovenia

Samhain (northern hemisphere) / Beltane (southern hemisphere) -- Druids, Gaels, Welsh peoples, Neopagans, Wiccans (begins at sunset)

Scare a Friend Day -- just not so much that he/she isn't a friend any more

Senior Absurdity Day -- Horace Mann School, Bronx, NY, US (a day the kids look forward to each year)

Sneak Some of the Candy Yourself Before the Kids Start Knocking Day

St. Quentin's Day (Patron against coughs)

St. Wolfgang of Ratisbon's Day (Patron of apoplexics, carpenters, paralysed people, stroke victims; Regensburg, Germany; against apoplexy, paralysis, stomach diseases, strokes)

Thump-the-Door Night -- Isle of Mann

Trick or Treat Night

Vetmaetr -- Norse Calendar (Winter Nights; beginning of winter, the New Year, and the start of Odin leading the Wild Hunt)

Youth Honor Day -- Iowa, US

Anniversaries Today:

Mt. Rushmore is completed, 1941

Nevada becomes the 36th US State, 1864

Birthdays Today:

Robert "Vanilla Ice" Van Winkle, 1967

Adam Horovitz, 1966

Dermot Mulroney, 1963

Rob Schneider, 1963

Peter Jackson, 1961

Larry Mullen, Jr., 1961

John Candy, 1950

Jane Pauley, 1950

Deidre Hall, 1947

Stephen Rea, 1943

David Ogden Stiers, 1942

Ron Rifkin, 1939

Michael Landon, 1936

Dan Rather, 1931

Michael Collins, 1930

Barbara Bel Geddes, 1922

Dale Evans, 1912

Ethel Waters, 1896

Chaing Kai-shek, 1887

Juliette Gordon Low, 1860

John Keats, 1795

William Paca, 1740

Jan Vermeer, 1632

Debuting/Premiering Today:

"Car Talk"(Radio), 1987 (national debut, ten years after their start as a local show in Boston)

"Jamaica"(Musical), 1957

"Capricio Espagnol"(Rimsky-Korsakov Op. 34), 1887

"Tamerlano"(Handel opera, HWV 18), 1724

Today in History:

Ezra reads the Book of the Law to the Israelites after their return to Jerusalem from exile, BC445

First All Hallows Eve observed to honor all the saints, 834

Martin Luther posts his 95 Theses on the Wittenberg church door, marks the beginning of the Protestant Reformation, 1517

Georg Ludwig van Hannover is crowned as the English King George I, 1714

Execution of Girondins at Paris during the Reign of Terror, 1793

Sir Humphrey Davy of London patents the miner's safety lamp, 1815

A standard uniform is approved for US Postal workers, 1868

A tropical cyclone hits Bengal, about 200,000 die, 1876

John Boyd Dunlop patents the pneumatic bicycle tire, 1888

Arthur Conan Doyle publishes "The Adventures of Sherlock Holmes", 1892

Dedication of the Lincoln Highway, the first automobile road across United States, 1913

The Battle of Beersheba of WWI marks the last successful cavalry charge in history, 1917

The first of 160 consecutive days of 100°F + temps at Marble Bar, Australia, 1923

World Savings Day is announced in Milan, Italy by the Members of the Association at the 1st International Savings Bank Congress, 1924

Mt. Rushmore sculptures are completed, 1941

The United Kingdom and France begin bombing Egypt to force the reopening of the Suez Canal, 1956

Indian Prime Minister Indira Gandhi is assassinated by two security guards, 1984

EgyptAir Flight 990 traveling from New York City to Cairo crashes off the coast of Nantucket, Massachusetts, killing all 217 on-board, 1999

Yachtsman Jesse Martin returns to Melbourne after 11 months of circumnavigating the world, solo, non-stop and unassisted, 1999

Soyuz TM-31 launches, carrying the first resident crew to the International Space Station, which has been continually crewed since, 2000

Surfer Bethany Hamilton loses her left arm and 3 liters of blood in a tiger shark attack; within a month she would be back on her board, and competing again within the year, 2003

The NYSE reopens after its first weather related shut down since the late 19th century; the two-day closure was due to Hurricane Sandy, 2012

In a landmark verdict, the Pakistani Supreme Court acquits a Christian woman of blasphemy against the prophet Mohammed after eight years on death row, 2018

Pictures of the Season (Wordless Wednesday), Words for Wednesday, and No Tricks, Just Treats for Shelters Bloghop (LLB In Our Backyard)

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

      

Linking up with Wordless Wednesday and Sandee at Comedy Plus.      

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

Words for Wednesday was begun by Delores and has become a moveable feast of word or picture or music prompts that encourages us to write stories, poems, or whatever strikes our fancy.    

This month, the prompts are being provided by Elephant's Child.  

This week's prompts are:

1.   mild
2.   uncertainty
3.   haircut
4.   consultation
5.   mystery
6. movie
   
   

And/or

1.   joy
2.   surface
3.   agreement
4.   freckle
5.   fixture
6.   solo

The first time he had stepped into the new barber shop, it had been with UNCERTAINTY.  He'd suddenly needed a HAIRCUT for business reasons and his own barber had been out of town.  Knowing that, until a new barber has given you a cut it is a MYSTERY whether you will like what you see and whether the two of you will get along, he'd discovered he liked this barber as well as, if not better than, his original.

The barber himself was MILD in his mannerisms and, in spite of great loss, seemed to radiate quiet JOY.  Upon finding out the man's widowed daughter-in-law took in sewing to make a living, he'd brought her a favorite pair of pants to have a seam repaired.  What was supposed to be a SOLO visit soon became a FIXTURE in his world.

He found that CONSULTATION with this barber on many different matters always resulted in some point of view being shared that shed light and wisdom on the subject.  One pair of pants to be mended by the seamstress had become anything that needed tailoring finding its way into her hands, and by unspoken AGREEMENT, much more time spent with her and her son.

The boy loved his barber grandfather, his mama, and was overjoyed with the time now being spent with this new friend he was learning to love, also.  His daddy, the barber's son who had died in Iraq, was a fading memory to him, living only in pictures and stories.  This man was real time, and took him to the park with his mama, and did lots of other fun things, too.  "Child, you have a FRECKLE for every inch" he would say, and they would both grin.  In fact, the boy's smile became so constant it was almost like it would have to be surgically removed if you wanted to see him without it.

The SURFACE of his life seemed to go on the same, but the deeps were stirred as this tiny, fractured family made its way into his heart.

I feel like I'm living in a cheesy romance MOVIE, he thought to himself as he stopped for a bouquet of fresh flowers on the way to take her out to dinner.

Such a change simply because once his own barber was out of town.  Who would have thought it could lead this way, but every day, he was more glad that it did.

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

LLB in Our Backyard is having their annual No Tricks, Just Treats for Shelters Blog Hop. This is a fund raiser to help various shelters.  The LLB Gang will be donating $1 per hop entry and 50¢ for each comment, and our friend Sandee of Comedy Plus will be matching them this year!

From the LLB blog:

This year we will be holding our Fifth Annual Blog Hop/Fundraiser October 30th thru October 31st(Wednesday and Thursday). Publish a Halloween post letting us know some way you plan to/or have helped a shelter or pet in need, and link up to the hop. We will be donating $1 per hop entry AND 50 cents  for each comment we receive on the 30th and 31st(including duplicates)! The money raised will be split between three Blogville "Helping Hands", you can find out more by heading over and leave a comment, and help shelter pets!     

As for us, today is our usual day to do a morning shift at the cat shelter near here.  Sweetie and i will be there at 6am to feed, water, and change litter boxes for all cats and kittens that are in cages, the intake room, the offices, or the upper respiratory infection room (that one gets done last, of course.  This shelter has been open about 10 years, and i have done one or two shifts per week almost since it opened!

We go on Fridays, too, in the evenings, just to do food and water, and to clean toilets and sinks and the kitchen because somebody needs to take care of the people there, too, and who better than a janitor?

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

Today is:

Africa Day for Food and Nutrition Security

Anniversary of the Declaration of the Slovak Nation -- Slovakia

Buy A Doughnut Day -- any wonder who started this one? (insert eye-roll here)

Checklists Day -- prevent tragedy, create great checklists; in honor of the development of the first well known checklist following a B-17 prototype's crash due to pilot error

Create a Great Funeral Day -- don't make your family choose the plans in the midst of grief, plan your sending away party now, it's more fun when it's done -- in advance!

Day of Remembrance of the Victims of Political Repressions -- most former Soviet Republics

Fort Lauderdale International Boat Show -- Ft. Lauderdale, FL, US (hosted at the "Yachting Capital of the World"; through Sunday)

Hawaiki Nui Va'a Race -- French Polynesia (spectacular three-day open water outrigger canoe race from Huahine to Raiatea to Tahaa to Bora Bora; through Friday)

Look in the Back of Your Refrigerator Day / Haunted Refrigerator Night (And hope the old hamburger isn't grazing on the moldy salad.)

Mischief Night, a/k/a Goosey Night, Devil's Night, Cabbage Night -- US

National Candy Corn Day

Practice Winter Snuggling Night -- when it gets really cold, you'll be glad you practiced

Rosh Chodesh Cheshvan -- Beginning of the Hebrew month of Cheshvan, Hebrew Year 5780, at sundown today

St. Dorothy of Montau's Day (Patron of brides, difficult marriages, dying children, parents of large families, widows; Pomerania; Prussia)

St. Marcellus' Day  (as a Roman centurion who threw down his armor and refused to take part in pagan worship, he is Patron of conscientious objectors)

The Rhyne Toll -- Chetwode Manor, UK (through Nov 7) -- the Lord of the Manor may tax any cattle he finds on his Liberty (free pasture) on these days

Try on Your Halloween Costume Early Day -- to see how goofy you look, and make sure you have everything you need

Will Rogers' Days -- Claremore and Oologah, OK, US (celebrating the man's wit and humor at his birthplace and the museum dedicated to him; through Monday)

Birthdays Today:

Nastia Liukin, 1989

Matthew Morrison, 1978

Gavin Rossdale, 1967

Diego Armando Maradona, 1960

Kevin Pollack, 1958

Charles Martin Smith, 1953

Harry Hamlin, 1951

Andrea Mitchell, 1946

Henry Winkler, 1945

Ed Lauter, 1940

Grace Slick, 1939

Claude Lelouch, 1937

Dick Gautier, 1937

Dick Vermeil, 1936

Robert Caro, 1935

Louis Malle, 1932

Ruth Gordon, 1896

Charles Atlas, 1893

Ezra Pound, 1885

William "Bull" Halsey, 1882

Emily Post, 1872

Alfred Sisley, 1839

Fyodor Dostoevsky, 1821

Richard Sheridan, 1751

John Adams, 1735

Debuting/Premiering Today:

Symphony No. 11 in G minor(Shostakovich Op. 103), 1957

"Panama Hattie"(Musical), 1940

"War of the Worlds"(Radio), 1938

Today in History:

Antioch surrenders to Rashidun Caliphate and his Muslim forces after the Battle of the Iron Bridge, 637

End of the 8th Crusade, 1270

King Henry VII, Tudor, crowned, 1485

Queen Isabella bans violence against Indians, 1503

The first Methodist church in the US is initiated (Wesley Chapel, NYC), 1768

Dr. Richard Gatling patents the machine gun, 1862

Founding of Helena, Montana (capital city), 1864

John Willis Menard, of Louisiana, becomes the first black elected to the US Congress (by special election, he was challenged by the loser, but was allowed to address Congress from the lectern), 1868

Daniel Cooper patents the time clock, 1894

Martha Hughes Cannon of Utah becomes the first woman US Senator, 1896

The first US Automobile Show opens in Madison Square Garden, NYC, 1900

Czar Nicholas II of Russia grants Russia's first constitution, creating a legislative assembly, 1905

Benito Mussolini is made Prime Minister of Italy, 1922

John Logie Baird creates Britain's first television transmitter, 1925

Orson Welles broadcasts his radio play of H. G. Wells's The War of the Worlds, causing anxiety in some of the audience in the United States, 1938

Anne Frank and sister Margot Frank are deported from Auschwitz to the Bergen-Belsen concentration camp, 1944

Jackie Robinson of the Kansas City Monarchs signs a contract for the Brooklyn Dodgers to break the baseball color barrier, 1945

Michael Woodruff performs the first successful kidney transplant in the United Kingdom at the Edinburgh Royal Infirmary, 1960

The Soviet Union detonates the hydrogen bomb Tsar Bomba over Novaya Zemlya; at 58 megatons of yield, it is still the largest explosive device ever detonated, nuclear or otherwise, 1961

The Bosporus Bridge in Istanbul, Turkey is completed, connecting the continents of Europe and Asia over the Bosporus for the first time, 1973

The Rumble in the Jungle boxing match between Muhammad Ali and George Foreman takes place in Kinshasa, Zaire, 1974

Prince Juan Carlos becomes Spain's acting head of state, taking over for the country's ailing dictator, Gen. Francisco Franco, 1975

In Japan, NEC releases the first 16-bit home entertainment system, the TurboGrafx-16, known as PC Engine, 1987

Quebec sovereignists narrowly lose a referendum for a mandate to negotiate independence from Canada (vote is 50.6% to 49.4%), 1995

The last Multics (Multiplexed Information and Computing Service) early time-sharing operating system is shut down at the Canadian Department of National Defense in Halifax, Nova Scotia, Canada, 2000

George Lucas sells Lucasfilm, Ltd., to the Walt Disney Company, 2012

Canada and the EU sign a free trade deal, 2016