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Wednesday, January 1, 2020

Fun Highway Sign (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 to encourage us to write stories, poems, or whatever strikes our fancy.    

This month, the prompts are being provided by Mark Koopmans, and are being posted by Elephant’s Child.       


This week's prompts are:

  1. Koozie
  2. Porche
  3. Dinosaur
  4. Watergate
  5. Douglas
  6. Soften

· And/or 


  1. Castrated
  2. Chateau
  3. Lego
  4. Router
  5. Suncream
  6. Freudian


“Who would have thought,” shaking his head at the DINOSAUR themed drink KOOZIE on his soda bottle, “that having kids would change our lives this much?”

“Any parent would have thought and could have told us and did so,” she said.  “Pass the SUNCREAM, it’s time to slather more on them all, if we can get them out of the water long enough.”

“Are you joking?  Once in the kiddie pool, these tykes of ours are slipperier than Nixon in the WATERGATE hearings.  Look at what our life has become!  Instead of a CHATEAU in the countryside and a PORCHE in the garage we practically support the LEGO company by ourselves.  We need a new ROUTER for the house, but first we have to budget for the pediatrician bills.  And don’t go making me feel CASTRATED again for my fussing, you know I don’t really mean it.”

Looking at him sideways and trying not to laugh, she said, “Let’s hope that was a FREUDIAN slip and you mean ‘castigated’ not ‘castrated.’”

He looked up and turned red as he realized what he’d said, and they both laughed.

“What’s really behind this mini-tirade?” she asked.

He tried not to look down at his phone, but was unsuccessful at hiding it, she knew where his glance would have gone had he let it.

“Let me guess.  DOUGLAS?”

“He’s off on another adventure, he and his latest girl.  I do not envy him a different relationship every few months, never have, never will.  Sometimes I do envy his ability to move from his summer home to his winter hideaway, his ability to consult only what he wants to do, living that high of a life.  Sometimes.”

Her look began to SOFTEN, as did her voice.  “We will have our adventures.  Someday.”

“I know it,” he said.  “Meanwhile, we take the kids with us, and make most of our own adventures in our own back yard.”

“Like rebuilding the shed, so you can finally fix that car you bought all those years ago?”

“That will be fun,” he mused.  “I wonder if Sam is big enough to use a hammer yet?”

“Just don’t let him experiment in the house, okay?”

“Deal!”


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Today is:

Apple Gifting Day

Bad Hangover Day -- but only for some (she says, trying not to look too virtuous)

Birth of Moonhopper -- Fairy Calendar

Black Nazarene Fiesta -- Philippines (through the 9th)

Bonza Bottler Day™

Buckle-Up Day -- the first US mandatory seat belt law went into effect in New York on this day in 1985

Carnival Day/Grand Parade of Troupes -- Saint Kitts and Nevis

Constitution Day  -- Italy

Daydreamers' Day -- take time out today to dream, on paper, what you want this year to hold

Day of the Establishment of the Slovak Republic -- Slovakia

Days of Volos -- Slavic Pagan Calendar (a time to be thankful to the god Volos for pets and farm animals; through the 6th)

Eighth Day of Christmas

Feast of the Circumcision of Christ -- Eastern Orthodox Church

Feast of the Holy Name of Jesus - Orthodox Christian; Lutheran

First-Foot Day -- make sure an auspicious or good person is the first to set foot in your home for the New Year

Foundation Days -- Taiwan (a/k/a Republic Day, celebrated through tomorrow)

Gantan-sai (New Years) -- Shinto

Get A Life Day -- now even the internet is urging you to use the New Year wisely

Grandfather Frost Day -- Russia; Ukraine (Ded Moroz; an equivalent of Santa Claus who visits on New Year's Day and delivers the gifts in person with his granddaughter, the Snow Maiden, and fighting off Baba Yaga the witch who tries to steal them; in some areas, he comes on "Old Christmas Day", in about a week)

Hangover Handicap Run -- Couer d'Alene, ID, US (an early morning run, saluting the night before by giving out beer can trophies)

Horan Enya -- Bungo Takada City, Japan (ceremony for safety at sea and large catches)

Independence Day -- Haiti(1804); Sudan

International Get Over It Month -- urging you to let the past go and move forward

Kaapse Klopse -- Cape Town, South Africa (Minstrel Carnival, with parties and parades through February; main parade is tomorrow at midday)

Kalends of January -- Ancient Roman Calendar; also
    Agonalia (giving dates, figs, and honey to Janus, and gifts to family members)
    Day Sacred to Janus, Juno, and Jupiter
    Festival for Aesculapius (god of healing)
    Festival for Vedovus (god of the spirits of ancestors)
    Sacrifice to Fortuna Day (Sacrifice something to the goddess of Fortune so she will give you a good year.)

Kwanzaa, Day 7, Imani (faith)

Liberation Day -- Cuba (a/k/a Triumph of the Revolution)

London New Year's Day Parade -- London, England (one of the best New Year parties in the world)

Mary, Mother of God -- Catholic Christian (Feast of the Solemnity of Mary, Octave Day of Christmas)

Mummer's Parade -- Philadelphia, PA, US

National Bloody Mary Day -- um, didn't you get enough of that last night?!! (or do you need the hair of the dog?)

National Tree Planting Day -- Tanzania

New Year's Day

New Year's Dishonor List Day -- Lake Superior State University announces the misused and overused words from the previous year which should be banished from the Queen's English

Polar Swim Day / Polar Bear Swim / Polar Bear Plunge -- various locations throughout Canada, Netherlands, and US

Restoration Day of the Independent Czech State -- Czech Republic

Sacrifices to the Wind Gods -- Ancient Greek Calendar (date approximate)

Scout's Day -- Burma (celebration of Boy Scouts and Girl Guides in Burma)

Shogatsu -- Japan (New Year, most important holiday of the year)

Shusho-e Matsuri -- Buddists in Japan go to temple on the first day of the year for a special ceremony

Snake Eyes Day -- no, i won't, it's too obvious

Sovereignty Day -- Iraq

St. Basil's Day / Basil the Great -- Eastern Orthodox (Patron of education, exorcisms, hospital administrators, Liturgists, monks, reformers, and of Russia and Cappadocia; bringer of gifts and inspector of livestock in Greece)

St. Clarus' Day  (Patron of tailors)

St. Zedislava Berka's Day  (Patron of difficult marriages, people ridiculed for piety)

Tewa Turtle Dance -- Tewa Native Americans (celebration of life and the first Creation; through the 4th)

Tournament of Roses Parade -- Pasadena, CA, US

Vienna New Year's Concert -- Vienna, Austria

Year of Coasts and Waters -- Scotland (a year of celebrating the World Heritage Sites, ancient monuments, historic battlefields, listed buildings, cultural traditions, myths and legends that proudly tell the history of Scotland!)

Z Day -- for all the people whose names begin with Z and always have to wait to be last; sponsored by Tom Zager


Anniversary Today:

Establishment of Bryce Canyon National Monument, UT, US, 1923
Ellis Island opens, 1892


Birthdays Today:

James McAvoy, 1979
Verne "Mini-Me" Troyer, 1969
Michael Imperioli, 1966
Kathleen Casey, 1946
Don Novello, 1943
Helmut Jahn, 1940
Frank Langella, 1940
B. Kliban, 1935
J. D. Salinger, 1919
Hank Greenberg, 1911
Barry Goldwater, 1909
Xavier Cugat, 1900
J. Edgar Hoover, 1895
E.M. Forster, 1879
Betsy Ross, 1752(O.S.)
"Mad Anthony" Wayne, 1745(O.S.)
Paul Revere, 1735


Debuting/Premiering Today:

Profiles in Courage(publication date), 1956
"Modern Times"(Film), 1936
Traveler's Checks(first issued by the London Exchange Banking Company), 1772


Today in History:

The Julian Calendar takes effect for the first time, BC45
Origin of the Christian Era, 1
The last gladiator competition in Rome, 404
Muhammad sets out toward Mecca with his army, 630
Jews of Sicily are no longer required to attend conversionist services, 1430
Portuguese navigators become the first Europeans to see the Guanabara Bay, which they thought was the mouth of a river and first called Rio de Janeiro (River of January), 1502
Scotland begins its numbered year on January 1 instead of March 25, 1600  
German astronomer Simon Marius first sees Jupiter's moons (he did not report them, though, Galileo did, on July 10 of the same year), 1610
Samuel Pepys makes his first diary entry, 1660
The first traveler's cheques go on sale in London, for use in 90 European cities, 1772
The Irish Parliament votes to join the Kingdom of Great Britain, forming the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland, 1801
The dwarf planet Ceres is discovered by Giuseppe Piazzi, 1801
Emperor Gia Long orders all bronze wares of the Tay San Dynasty to be collected and melted into nine cannons for the Royal Citadel in Hue, Vietnam, 1803
Haiti gains independence from France (National Day), 1804
Import of slaves into the US is banned, 1808
The first homestead under the Homestead Act claimed, near Beatrice, Nebraska, 1863
Japan begins using the Gregorian Calendar, 1873
England's Queen Victoria proclaimed empress of India, 1877
Twenty-five nations adopt Sanford Fleming's proposal for Standard Time and Time Zones, 1885
The first Tournament of Roses is held, 1900
The British colonies of New South Wales, Queensland, Victoria, South Australia, Tasmania and Western Australia federate as the Commonwealth of Australia, 1901
Vancouver, BC starts driving on the right side of road, 1922
Turkey adopts the Gregorian calendar: December 18, 1926 (Julian), is immediately followed by January 1, 1927 (Gregorian), 1927
Emperor Hirohito of Japan announces he is not a god, 1946
The European Community is established, 1958
United States Navy SEALs established, 1962
The Internet's Domain Name System is created, 1985
The first British mobile phone call is made by Ernie Wise to Vodafone, 1985
A single market within the European Community is introduced, 1993
The North American Free Trade Agreement comes into effect 1994
The World Trade Organization goes into effect, 1995
The European Central Bank is established, 1998
The Euro currency is introduced in 11 countries, 1999
Euro banknotes and coins become legal tender in twelve of the European Union's member states, 2002
Taiwan officially joins the World Trade Organization, as Chinese Taipei, 2002
The Open Skies mutual surveillance treaty officially comes into force, 2002
Sydney, Australia swelters through its hottest New Years Day on record. The thermometer peaked at 45 °C (113 °F), sparking bushfires and power outages, 2006
Bulgaria and Romania officially join the European Union. Also, Bulgarian, Romanian, and Irish become official languages of the European Union, 2007
Malta and Cyprus officially adopt the Euro currency and become the fourteenth and fifteenth Eurozone countries, 2008
Estonia officially adopts the Euro currency and becomes the seventeenth eurozone country, 2011
Lithuania adopts the euro as its currency, replacing the litas and becoming the 19th member of the Eurozone, 2015
Portuguese politician and diplomat Antonio Guterres becomes United Nations Secretary General, replacing South Korean Ban Ki-Moon, 2017 
Qatar withdraws from the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) after 57 years of membership, 2019 

15 comments:

  1. Love your story - and hope they do have their adventures - sooner than they expect. In the meantime they have love and laughter (who can ask for more).

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  2. Lovely story, and good use of the challenging prompts.

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  3. I enjoyed your prompts story. I always enjoy all your facts too and was amazed that the euro has been in circulation for 21 years (but not here!)
    Happy New Year and a great 2020 to you!

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  4. I just don't have the patience (or skill) to use all the words. Fun to read someone who does. :)

    Z day ... always last if you name started with Z.
    A day ... always first. (I can testify to that.)Vaccinations were given at school when I was in elementary. I was always the first in line. And the first to faint while standing there.
    I even married an "A" man. lol

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  5. We like the highway signs they put up these days. Mom doesn't to out on New Years because of all the drunk drivers, and she wants to be in bed early anyway. Happy New Year! Wishing you health and happiness!

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  6. Exorcisms, hospital administrators, and inspector of livestock??
    That one's gonna take some time to puzzle out!

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  7. Every married couples go through the same as this couple. Real life exciting adventures as parents bringing up their kids. Happy New Year to you and yours.

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  8. Thank you for joining the Wordless Wednesday Blog Hop.

    Have a fabulous Wordless Wednesday.

    ☆¸.•°*”˜˜”*°•.¸☆ ★ ☆¸.•°*”˜˜”*°•.¸☆
    ╔╗╔╦══╦═╦═╦╗╔╗ ★ ★ ★
    ║╚╝║══║═║═║╚╝║ ☆¸.•°*”˜˜”*°•.¸☆
    ║╔╗║╔╗║╔╣╔╩╗╔╝ ★ NEW YEAR ☆
    ╚╝╚╩╝╚╩╝╚╝═╚╝ ♥¥☆★☆★☆¥♥ ★☆ ♥♥♥

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  9. A good sign and a terrific story. Happy New Year from all of us!!!

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  10. Wishing you all the best and more in 2020.

    God bless.

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  11. That is a funny sign. Great story too. Wishing you and your family a happy and healthy 2020! XO

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  12. Great use of the words. We sure wish you a very Happy New Year.

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  13. I love your story which rings so true I felt like I was eavesdropping from the other side of the fence.
    At one time I would have agreed with that road sign, but not now, after fireworks here in Adelaide set off a small fire which was quickly put out; a tiny spark was blown by the breeze into some dry grass.

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  14. Fun highway sign and neat story ~ ^_^

    Happy Moments to You,
    A ShutterBug Explores,
    aka (A Creative Harbor)

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  15. Wonderful, wonderful story for the Wednesday words! You really caught the emotion of a hard-working couple doing the very best they can do... wow.

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