Zillions, Ship Shape (Cajun Joke), and Sunday Selections, an A to Z Post

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To enjoy more blogs participating in the A to Z Challenge, click here.     

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Just because Sandee of Comedy Plus is no longer hosting a Silly Sunday blog hop, do not expect me to quit telling Cajun jokes, especially as it has now become a habit.

My final A to Z Post always has Zillions as part of the title because it is Little Girl's Birthday and we love her zillions.

She's looking for summer work in addition to her military duties, and has only the fall semester left in nursing school.

While there are a few things she's unsure of, such as whether she wants to go into psychiatric nursing or NICU, or whether to stay in the military after school, she knows she's chosen a good career path for her and she's never one to let the grass grow under her feet.

Happy Birthday, Little Girl!

Boudreaux an' Clothile done be talkin' 'bout Aline, dey daughter, an' how she be workin' hard an' de firs' in de fam'ly to get to college.

"Dat girl's ship goin' come in one day!" Clothile say.

Boudreaux done shook hims head.  "I be so proud o' her.  Mais, when my ship come in, I'm pro'ly gonna be at de airport!"

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Sunday Selections was started as a way for bloggers to use photos that might otherwise just languish in their files.  The rules have been relaxed, and it is now simply a showcase for your photos, new or old, good or bad, although nothing rude, please.  It was hosted by River, who still participates, and is now hosted by Elephant's Child.       

These geese were very loud in warning us to stay away from them last week when Becca and i were walking Mr. Cal.  I managed to catch a few photos of flowers on the way, too.

Mr. BA likes to let his lawn grow a bit wild, and since Ms. GA started feeding the birds, there are sunflowers taking root.  He is also working on the fountain with a friend who does it for a living.

Skyscapes.

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Today is:

Armed Forces Day -- Georgia

Birthday of the King / Konungens födelsedag -- Sweden (HM King Carl XVI Gustav; an official flag day)

Bugs Bunny Day -- while some consider his debut to have been in "A Wild Hare," released in July two years later, other say that Bugs was the rabbit in "Porky's Hare Hunt," released this date in 1938

Bulldogs Are Beautiful Day -- this one has its own Facebook page 

Camarón Day -- French Foreign Legion

Consumer Protection Day -- Thailand

Díá De Los Niños/Díá De Los Libros -- American Library Association (Children Day/Book Day; a celebration that emphasizes the importance of literacy for children of all linguistic and cultural backgrounds)

Dia de Rincon -- Rincon, Bonaire

El Dia del Nino -- Mexico (Children's Day)

Fairy Queen's Birthday -- Fairy Calendar

Faeriae Latinae -- Ancient Roman Calendar (Feast of the Latin League, a festival to honor Jupiter)

Mother, Father Deaf Day -- to honor deaf parents and recognize the gifts of culture and language they give to their hearing children; sponsored by CODA (Children of Deaf Adults International) 

International Jazz Day -- UNESCO (originated with the New Jersey Jazz Society and sanctioned by the United Nations Jazz Society, the American Federation of Jazz Societies, and the Sacramento Traditional Jazz Society; this year's International Jazz Day Global Concert will be an All-Star Webcast)

Landsgemeinde -- Appenzell, Inner Rhoden Canton, Switzerland (one of the last examples of direct democracy left; the final Sunday of each April all voters in the canton age 18 and older, wearing traditional swords, gather for a church service and then vote directly on all affairs of the canton for the year; no secret ballots, all raise their hands to vote yea or nay; festival follows.  This tradition dates back to the 14th century.)

Liberation/Reunification Day -- Vietnam

May Eve -- eve of the first day of summer in many traditions, including

     Beltane/Samhain Eve -- Pagan traditions

     Carodejnice -- Czech Republic; Slovakia

     Maitag Vorabend -- Switzerland 

     Mange les Morts -- Haiti (festival of the dead)

     Salus -- Portugal; Spain (festival of the dead)

     Valborgsmässoafton -- Sweden

     Walpurgis Night -- Ancient Celtic/Nordic Calendars

Mr. Potato Head Day -- the classic toy went on sale this day in 1952, and you used your own potato

National Adopt a Shelter Pet Day -- US (can't find a sponsoring organization, but it's not a bad idea)  

National Honesty Day -- including Honest Abe Awards (Abies) and dishonorable mentions for those who have been particularly publicly egregious; celebrated today because we began the month with April Fooling and lies, so today is to celebrate the opposite*

National Military Brats Day -- US (Military Brats, Inc., wants the US Congress to set aside a day to recognize the sacrifices of the children of military service men and women)   

National Oatmeal Cookie Day

National Raisin Day

National Tabby Cat Day

National Therapy Animal Day

Pet Parent's Day -- honoring those who consider pets a part of the family

St. Adjutor of Vernon's Day (Patron of drowning victims, sailors, swimmers, yachtsmen; Vernon, France; against drowning)

St. James the Great's Day -- Orthodox Christian

Teacher's Day -- Paraguay

Tortie Cat Appreciation Day

Turkmen Racing Horse Festival -- Turkmenistan

Worldwide Pinhole Photography Day -- anyone, anywhere in the world who makes a pinhole photograph today may upload it to the world-wide online gallery    

Zhabdrung Kuchhoe -- Bhutan (death anniversary of Zhabdrung)

*to nominate someone for an Abie or a dishonorable mention, contact M. Hirsh Goldberg, founder and author of The Book of Lies, mhgoldberg@comcast.net)

Anniversaries Today:

Pele marries Assiria Seixas Lemos, 1994

The Organization of American States is founded, 1948

Louisiana becomes the 18th US state, 1812

Birthdays Today:

Dianna Agron, 1986

Kirsten Dunst, 1982

Johnny Galecki, 1975

Jeff Timmons, 1973

Carolyn Dawn Johnson, 1971

Adrian Pasdar, 1965

Michael Waltrip, 1963

Isiah Thomas, 1961

Stuart Mathis, 1960

Stephen Harper, 1959

Jane Campion, 1954

Perry King, 1948

Carl XVI Gustav, King of Sweden, 1946

Michael J. Smith, 1945

Jill Clayburgh, 1944

Burt Young, 1940

Gary Collins, 1938

Willie Nelson, 1933

Cloris Leachman, 1926

Queen Juliana of the Netherlands, 1909

Eve Arden, 1908

Ellis Wilson, 1899

Louise Dilworth Beatty Homer, 1871

Debuting/Premiering Today:

"Barnum"(Musical), 1980

"The Dresser"(Play), 1980

"Inside U.S.A."(Musical revue), 1948

"Arthur Godfrey Time"(Radio), 1945

"Pelleas et Melisande"(Opera), 1902

"Dmitri Donskoi"(Opera), 1852

"Love for Love"(Play), 1695

Today in History:

Supernova  SN 1006, the brightest supernova in recorded history, appears in the constellation  Lupus, 1006

Orbital calculations suggest that on this day, Pluto moved inside Neptune's orbit until July 23, 1503, 1483

Columbus is given a royal commission to equip his fleet, 1492

On the balcony of Federal Hall on Wall Street in New York City, George Washington takes the oath of office to become the first elected President of the United States, 1789

The United States purchases the Louisiana Territory from France, 1803

Nicaragua  declares independence from the Central American Federation, 1838

Casey Jones dies in a train wreck in Vaughn, Mississippi, while trying to 

make up time on the Cannonball Express, 1900

Honolulu, Hawaii becomes an independent city, 1907

Peru becomes a signatory to the Buenos Aires copyright treaty, 1920

Douglas Fairbanks and Mary Pickford become the first celebrities to leave their footprints in concrete at Grauman's Chinese Theater in Hollywood, 1927

The animated cartoon short Porky's Hare Hunt debuts in movie theaters, introducing Happy Rabbit (a prototype of Bugs Bunny, 1938

In Bogotá, Colombia, the Organization of American States is established, 1948

The Bristol Bus Boycott is held in Bristol to protest the Bristol Omnibus Company's refusal to employ Black or Asian bus crews, drawing national attention to racial discrimination in the United Kingdom, 1963

Communist forces gain control of Saigon and the Vietnam War formally ends, 1975

Accession of Queen Beatrix of the Netherlands, 1980

CERN announces World Wide Web protocols will be free, 1993

Cambodia joins the Association of Southeast Asian Nations, 1999

Two skeletal remains found near Ekaterinburg, Russia are confirmed by Russian scientists to be the remains of Alexei Nikolaevich, Tsarevich of Russia and one of his sisters, 2008

Chrysler automobile company files for Chapter 11 bankruptcy, 2009

Hailed as the largest World's Fair in history, Expo 2010 opens in Shanghai, China, 2010

Born without a trachea, a 2-year-old Korean-Canadian child is the youngest patient in history to receive a bioengineered organ made from stem cells; she received the transplanted organ at the Children's Hospital of Illinois, 2013

Willem-Alexander becomes the first male Monarch of Netherlands in 123 years, following the abdication of his mother, Queen Beatrix, 2013

The MESSENGER spacecraft is intentionally deorbited and destroyed, 2015

A new species of water beetle from the Malaysian Borneo’s Maliau Basin is named after actor Leonardo DiCaprio, 2018

The world's oldest known spider, a female trapdoor in Western Australia, dies at the age of 43 after being stung by a wasp, 2018 

Japan’s Emperor Akihito declares his abdication, effective the next day, 2019

Captain Tom Moore, who raised more £30 million for the National Health Service by walking in his garden, turns 100 and is made an honorary colonel by the Queen, 2020

After surviving Ewing's sarcoma and receiving a prosthetic leg, Jacky Hunt-Broersma sets a world record by running 104 consecutive marathons in 104 days, 2022

Yes, I'm Thankful, a Ten Things of Thankful A to Z Post

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Yes, there is always a reason to be thankful.

Laughter is a good one, and i had reasons to laugh this week.

Saturday, Grandma lost her balance and sat down hard and bumped her back on the back of the chair she was getting out of.  It startled her more than anything, and she was afraid she'd been hurt again, but she wasn't.  I was thankful for the excuse to spend extra time with her and by the time i left, we were laughing and telling stories from years gone by.

A couple of times a year, our church hosts a dinner for those who are thinking of becoming members.  It's been years since i attended, and when i did, i felt like it was rushed as the pastor was doing it alone, the assistant was out of town and half the staff as well.  I asked if i could attend again and did.  I sat at a table with a member of our Circle who is thinking of joining and all of us laughed our way through the dinner part of the evening, it was a good time.

Ms. G was out of town part of the time (she's leaving again this next week) and by the last day i was over there i was laughing at myself as i forgot the scoop when i went to the bird food bin, had to retrace my steps to care for Angel, and etc.  Sometimes you just have to laugh at your own silliness.

Tuesday we were having a ladies' circle meeting and supper, and i'd agreed to bring both a salad and my own vegan entree.  I made the salad and accidentally left the entree on the counter.

On the way out to our meeting, i called Sweetie as i was stopping at a local grocer to buy a frozen something-or-other, whatever they had that i could eat (i was thankful there was a store, this is further in the country and i knew not to expect a miracle).

When i asked him to put the entree back in the freezer, he said, "Why, is it no good any more?"

I laughed and said, "It's fine, but do you expect me to eat it through the telephone line since it's not with me?"

He laughed at himself, too, and i was thankful for that.

Both of the boys stopped by for a visit!  #1 Son came to get mail and we laughed and joked about nothing and everything.  #2 Son came to get pictures from his childhood so he could make a memory book for the wedding, and we laughed over some of the memories the pictures brought up.  I'm thankful for both of them.

Ms. G was running around like her hair was on fire after coming back into town on Monday evening and planning to leave again this coming Monday morning.  Several times she was doing things so fast she stopped and said, "C'mon, G,  you're getting ahead of yourself, slow down and do it right!"  Then she and i would laugh and start up again with whatever it was.  She's going on vacation and she needs it.

I'm cat sitting for Ms. GA and Mr. BA over the weekend, and as usual i told the granddaughter who lives there as well i'm going to be in very early in the mornings.  "If you hear a noise," i always tell her, "it's me, and if you ask, 'who's there,' and i'm not smart enough to answer right away, it's my fault if you get the home-made flame thrower!"  We both laugh about that, as she does keep a lighter and some hairspray, although not on purpose for that.

The cat shelter is always good for a laugh or two or more.  We're thankful we sometimes run out of categories for signing in on the computer as volunteers, if all the "caretaker" slots are filled, we go with "helper" and when those fill up, we can sign up for "special events."  When there are that many of us, we're tripping on each other and having a lot of fun.

Of course, there are kittens, too.  Squeee!  We've got plenty of them, and they are fun and funny.

Please write up your own list and link up to Ten Things of Thankful, where Dyanne and her co-hosts always have a warm welcome waiting.   

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Today is:

Arita Ceramic Fair -- Arita, Japan (finest porcelain in Japan; during Golden Week until May 5)

Astronomy Day 2023 / Spring Astronomy Day -- Saturday at or before the first quarter moon between mid-April and mid-May 

     sponsored by The Astronomical League; find out what your local astronomy society is doing today, and go enjoy

Cheng Cheng Kung Landing Day -- Taiwan (anniversary of the landing in Taiwan of Ming Dynasty loyalist Cheng Cheng Kung to oust the Dutch colonists)

Feast of the Secret Masters -- can't find any real info on this one, and why should i if it's such a secret, but it is fun to think about

Fish Cleaning Night -- sponsored by David Letterman (it's okay if you don't have an audience, or Mariel Hemingway)

Gio to Hung Vuong Day -- Vietnam (National Day; celebrating the founding of the nation by Emperor Hung Vuong some three millennia ago)

International Dance Day -- International Dance Committee of the International Theatre Institute (ITI), a UNESCO partner

Milk-Curdling Sunday -- Fairy Calendar (Gremlins)

National Adult Public Skipping Day -- because somebody out there either wants you to feel like a kid again, or make a fool of you

National Go Birding Day -- US (but feel free to participate wherever you are, birding is fun!)

National Herb Day -- different from the HerbDay in May, and unsponsored

National Sense of Smell Day -- US (sponsored by the Sense of Smell Institute, encouraging museums and science centers to focus on how the sense of smell plays an important role in daily life and how it interacts with other senses; While celebrating, remember those with anosmia [diminished ability or totally inability to smell])

National Shrimp Scampi Day

"Peace" Rose Day -- an explanation of this name for the Rosa 'Madame A. Meilland varietyhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rosa_Peace

Penguin Day -- originated by a different group from World Penguin Day, but you can't have enough days dedicated to these cute guys, can you?   

Remembrance of Victims of Chemical Weapons -- on the day chemical weapons were outlawed in 1997

Ridvan, Ninth Day -- Baha'i (one of the festival days on which work and school should be suspended)

Runic Half Month of Lagu (water) begins

Save the Frogs Day -- Save The Frogs Day is the world's largest day of amphibian education and conservation action 

Showa No Hi -- Japan (Showa Day, the birth anniversary of Emperor Showa, begins the Golden Week holiday period of four major national days, through May 5)

Solar Alignment at Teotihuacan, City of the Gods -- Teotihuacan, Mexico (the ritual cave opening aligns to the sunset on Aug. 12 and Apr. 29, the same horizon position of the setting of the Pleiades)

St. Catherine of Siena's Day (Patron of fire prevention, firefighter, nurses, nursing services, people ridiculed for piety, sick people; Europe; Italy; Theta Phi Alpha Sorority; Allentown, PA, US; Siena, Italy; Verazze, Italy; against bodily ills/sickness, fire, miscarriages, sexual temptation)

World Healing Day / World Tai Chi and Qigong Day   

World Veterinary Day -- World Veterinary Association       

World Wish Day -- from the Make-A-Wish Foundation, marking the date in 1980 that local police let seven-year-old leukemia patient Chris Grecicius be an officer for a day, sparking the idea of the Make-a-Wish Foundation

Zipper Day -- while i can't confirm it, the modern zipper was supposedly patented on this day in 1913

Anniversaries Today:

Prince William, Duke of Cambridge, marries Catherine "Kate" Middleton, 2011

Mike Nichols marries Diane Sawyer, 1988

Princess Irene marries Prince Carel Hugo de Bourbon Parma, 1964

Birthdays Today:

Andre Agassi, 1970

Uma Thurman, 1970

Carnie Wilson, 1968

Eve Plumb, 1958

Michelle Pfeiffer, 1958

Daniel Day-Lewis, 1957

Kate Mulgrew, 1955

Jerry Seinfeld, 1954

Nora Dunn, 1952

Dale Earnhardt, 1951

Johnny Miller, 1947

Zubin Mehta, 1936

Lane Smith, 1936

Rod McKuen, 1933

Robert Gottlieb, 1931

Celeste Holm, 1919

Tom Ewell, 1909

Hirohito, 1901

Duke Ellington, 1899

William Randolph Hearst, 1863

Oliver Ellsworth, 1745

Debuting/Premiering Today:

"Hair"(Musical), 1968

"ABC's Wide World of Sports"(TV), 1961

"Young Dr. Malone"(Radio), 1940

"There Shall be No Night"(Play), 1940

Roget's Thesaurus(Publication date), 1852

Violin Sonata No. 32 in B-flat major(Mozart K. 454), 1784

Today in History:

The Moors arrive at Gibraltar to begin their invasion of the Iberian Peninsula, 711

Joan of Arc arrives at Orleans to relieve the siege, 1492

Francis Drake leads a raid in the Bay of Cádiz, sinking at least 23 ships of the Spanish fleet, 1587

Eleven Dutch ships depart for the conquest of Peru, 1623

The Ming Dynasty occupies Taiwan, 1661

James Cook arrives at and names Botany Bay, Australia, 1770

The French Fleet prevents Britain from seizing the Cape of Good Hope, 1781

Peter Roget publishes the first edition of his Thesaurus, 1852

The "Elektromote" – forerunner of the trolleybus  – is tested by Ernst Werner von Siemens in Berlin, 1882

Gideon Sundbach of Hoboken, NJ, receives a patent for the zipper, 1913

The North Sea floodgate at Ijmuiden, the biggest in world, officially opens, 1930

The telephone connection of England-Australia goes into service, 1930

The first U.S. experimental 3D-TV broadcast airs, and episode of "Space Patrol" shown over ABC affiliate KECA in Los Angeles, 1953

The first military nuclear power plant opens, in Ft. Belvoir 1957

A cyclone strikes the Chittagong  district of southeastern Bangladesh with winds of around 155 mph, killing at least 138,000 people and leaving as many as 10 million homeless, 1991

Oldsmobile  builds its final car ending 107 years of production, 2004

Syria completes withdrawal from Lebanon, ending 29 years of occupation, 2005

Economic losses mount and class action lawsuits are filed as the U.S. Coast Guard plans a controlled burn to remove spilled oil from the Deepwater Horizon disaster, 2010

The International Chemical Weapons Convention deadline for chemical weapon stockpiles comes into effect, 2012

German Measles is declared eradicated from North and South America, the first world regions to do so, 2015

The animated series “The Simpsons” surpasses "Gunsmoke"'s 635-episode count to have highest episode count of any series on TV, 2018

A mile-wide asteroid, 1998 OR2, passes within 3.9 million miles of Earth, 2020

The world's longest pedestrian bridge (516 metres / 1,700 feet) opens inside northern Portugal's Arouca Geopark, 2021

The Bach Long (White Dragon) bridge opens in Moc Chau Island mountain park and resort, Vietnam, becoming the world's longest glass-bottom bridge, 2022