Peeking In the Organ Loft (Wordless Wednesday) and Words for Wednesday

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Linking up with Wordless Wednesday and Sandee at Comedy Plus.     

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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 Cindi.   

Rewrite some of these commonly used idioms to make them more interesting, or maybe use them to start a story:  "Pardon my French."  "My mind is in a fog."  "You are on thin ice." 

“If you’ll pardon my French,” he said at the end of his tirade, which he hoped no passers by had heard.

That hope was dashed as a very well dressed woman walking past stopped short at that moment, turned and looked daggers at him, and with an obvious accent said, “I beg your pardon, I am French, and we do not talk that way!”

As the lady stalked away, his companion stifled a laugh and whispered to him, “I think you are thin ice with that particular lady!”

“Yeah, I shouldn’t lose my religion like that.  I'm sorry, everything is in such a jumble this time of year, and my mind is in such a fog.  One more breakdown was all it took to push me over the edge, and I am really sorry about that."

"It's okay, we're all on that ragged edge of disaster.  We all just have to tie a knot in the rope we're at the end of and hang on a few more weeks."

"Thanks for understanding, and for sticking with me."

"Hey,  it was worth it just to hear what that lady said!"

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Today is:

Christmas on the River -- Demopolis, AL, US (celebrations Southern style, including a Barbecue Cook-off; through Saturday)

Day of Shango -- Yoruba/Santería religion (various Carribean islands; ceremony for the Defender against Evil)

Day of the Artisans -- internet generated day to honor all who work

Extraordinary Work Team Recognition Day -- created in 2000 by QPC Inc., encouraging recognition of teams that "consistently work extraordinarily well together to produce significant results for their companies or organizations." 

Festival for Minerva -- Ancient Roman Calendar

Grange Day -- US Grange (Order of the Patrons of Husbandry) founded, 1887

Holiday Ale Festival -- Portland, OR, US (beer, outdoors, in the cold, in December, but it is seriously good beer and worth it; through Sunday)

National Cookie Day

National Dice Day -- get together with friends and play a game today (instructions are here)     

Navy Day -- India; Italy

Rake Leaves into the World's Largest Pile Day -- just so you can jump in, of course

Ribbons and Wrap Day -- according to the Elf Forum, which no longer has an online presence as too many of us were getting in on elf secrets, i guess; i'd suggest making sure you have enough ribbons and wrap now, anyway

Rockefeller Center Christmas Tree Lighting -- NY, NY, US

Santa's List Day -- he completes the lists today, according to some people; which one are you on?

Special Kids Day -- a day to make sure special needs kids get to visit Santa with whatever accomodations they require     

St. Barbara's Day (Patron of ammunition workers/bomb technicians/explosives workers/ordnance workers, architects, armourers, artillerymen, boatment/mariners/sailors/waterman, brass workers, brewers, builders, carpenters, construction workers, dying people, firefighters/fire prevention, fireworks, fireworks manufacturers, fortifications, foundry workers, geologists, gravediggers, gunners, hatmakers/hatters/milliners, martyrs, masons, mathematicians, military engineers, miners, prisoners, safety from storms, saltpetre workers, smelters, stone masons, tilers, warehouses; Amaroni, Italy; Barbara, Italy; Colleferro, Italy; Montecatini Terme, Italy; Paterno, Sicily; Rieti, Italy; Santa Barbara, CA; Syria; Toa Alto, Puerto Rico; against death by artillery, explosions, fire, impenitence, lightning, mine collapse, storms, sudden death)

    A young woman may place the twig of a cherry tree in a glass of water today. If it blooms by Christmas Eve, the girl is certain to marry in the following year.

    Barborka -- Poland (where Barbara is best known as Patron of Miners, thus "Miners' Day)

    Eid il-Burbara -- Lebanon; Palestine; Syria (where Barbara is celebrated with a holiday similar to Western Halloween)

St. Maruthas' Day (Patron of Iran; Persia)

Thai Environment Day -- Thailand

Wear A Beard of Bees Today Day -- a supremely silly internet generated one, if you ask me, and only for the bold and fearless, and not allergic!

Wear Brown Shoes Day -- internet generated, by someone tired of wearing black shoes all the time most likely

Wildlife Conservation Day -- US

Wind Whirling Bacchanalia -- Fairy Calendar

Anniversary Today:

Mission Santa Barbara is founded as a Franciscan Mission in California, 1786

Birthdays Today:

Tyra Banks, 1973

Fred Armisen, 1966

Marisa Tomei, 1964

Jozef Sabovcik, 1963

Cassandra Wilson, 1955

Patricia Wettig, 1951

Jeff Bridges, 1949

Dennis Wilson, 1944

Chris Hillman, 1942

Max Baer, Jr., 1937

Stewart Rawlings Mott, 1937

Wink Martindale, 1934

Victor French, 1934

Helen M. Chase, 1924

Deanna Durbin, 1921

Francisco Franco, 1892

Lillian Russel, 1861

Crazy Horse, 1840

Samuel Butler, 1835

Thomas Carlyle, 1795

Debuting/Premiering Today:

"Broadway Bound"(Simon play), 1986

"Falcon Crest"(TV), 1981

"Beatles for Sale"(Album), 1964

"Tobacco Road"(Play), 1933

"Whoopee"(Musical), 1928

"Ten Commandments"(Film), 1923*

Today in History:

Upon the death of Carloman, Karel the Great (Charlemagne), his brother, becomes king of all France, 771

The Syrian harbor city of Saida (Sidon) surrenders to the Crusaders, 1110

After 18 years, the Council of Trent holds its final session, 1563

Father Marquette begins to build the first dwelling in what is now Chicago, 1674

Britain's Observer, oldest Sunday newspaper in world, first published, 1791

Britain abolishes the practice of the "suttee" in India, 1829

The American Anti-Slavery Society is founded in Philadelphia by Arthur Tappen and William Lloyd Garrison, 1833

Oliver Hudson Kelley founds The National Grange of the Order of Patrons of Husbandry, (the Grange), 1867

"Boss" Tweed escapes from jail, 1875

The first edition of the Los Angeles Times is published, 1881

Lucille Atcherson becomes the first woman legation secretary in the US Foreign sService, 1922

Cecil B. DeMille's first version of "The Ten Commandments" (the one in which he flooded Hollywood Blvd. without permit 3 times to get the Red Sea Scene right, and had to bail his crew out of jail 3 times, too!) premiers, 1923

The first Burger King is opened in Miami, Florida, United States, 1954

Suriname joins the United Nations, 1975

The Unity Module, the second module of the International Space Station, is launched, 1998

An adult giant squid is caught on video for the first time by Tsunemi Kubodera near the Ogasawara Islands, 1,000 km (620 miles) south of Tokyo, 2006

Political pressure and cyber attacks against WikiLeaks are condemned by Reporters Without Borders

In Koblenz, Germany, nearly 45,000 people wait to return home while bomb squads defuse WWII bombs still hidden under the Rhine River, 2011

In Egypt, a hundred thousand people gather to protest President Morsi's proposed constitutional amendments, 2012

A new island is discovered in the Arctic Ocean's Laptev Sea and initially called Yaya, 2013

French couture house Chanel ends its use of fur and exotic skins following bans by other companies, 2018

*This was Cecile B. DeMille's first version, the one in which he asked for permission to flood Hollywood Boulevard for the Crossing of the Red Sea scene.  He didn't get permission, but he did it anyway, three times, and all three times, he had to bail his film crew out of jail for it.  He still got the scene the way he wanted it.