Saturday, January 4, 2025

Starting the Year Right, a Ten Things of Thankful Post

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It's time to start the year off right, with the first Thankful Post.


Last Saturday, rain was predicted, so i'm thankful we got an early start heading to NOLA as well as thankful the rains didn't actually show up until that evening, long after we were home.


All of Becca's extended family had gone home, so i was thankful to be able to go over as per usual although we only had one church service that day.  Ms. A, however, had caught a cold and decided to stay home and kept Becca with her.  This meant, after our walk with Mr. Cal and playing some games, i went to church by myself.


Sunday afternoon and Monday, i was thankful to get several end-of-year things wrapped up.


I was also thankful Ms. S didn't fuss about the Christmas present i'd bought (because she'd told me not to, but i knew she wanted it, so i did and she was happy).


#2 Son and His Bride both had work Tuesday, so i was thankful i got to babysit and after they were done, they took little Annie with them to a family party (her side of the family) and i got to go home and rest and do more catching up.





Ms. G is out of town visiting family for a late holiday gathering, i'm thankful for some extra income from cat-sitting.


I'm also thankful the cat shelter was almost empty when i went Wednesday, so i got done early, went and did Ms. G's, and was home early for a work day.


Mr. L was feeling very good on Thursday, for which we are all thankful.  The house got cleaned with little fuss, always a plus, and Ms. V, out of the blue, has given me a raise for which i am very thankful indeed!


It was a mixed up day Friday but i'm thankful everything worked out, from being able to make phone calls for friends who had forgotten their phones (thankful i had the phone numbers on my phone) to being able to get to the cat shelter.


There had been 4 adoptions that day, and there were 3 more while i was there with extra volunteers, we're always thankful for adoptions and volunteers.


While i was at the shelter i got a most unexpected call from someone i'd not talked to in quite a while.  There's a website where i have some friends, and before Covid we used to try to get together every year, coming from different parts of the country.


One of the friends has been ill for several years, and had not posted for the last couple of years.  I still sent her and her husband a Christmas card each year.


The call was from her husband,  He'd lost my contact information, but from the return address on the card, he was able to track down my phone number and call me to let me know his wife had died last August.


I'm very sad to know she's gone, she was loving and determined and talented and funny.  I'm thankful for the joy she brought to my life and the times we got to visit, online and in person.


I'm very thankful her husband was able to track down my info and let me know, so now i can inform the rest of our friends on the website.  Fivecat, you will be missed.



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






You are invited to the Inlinkz link party!

Click here to enter


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Today is:


Day of the Fallen against the Colonial Repression -- Angola


Day To Mourn Racism -- anniversary of the day ethnic discrimination was outlawed worldwide in 1969


Dimpled Chad Day -- if you have to ask, you wouldn't understand; sponsored by Wellcat Holidays


Earth at Perihelion -- 1:28pm UTC (closest point to the Sun)


Eleventh Day of Christmas


Feast of St. Elizabeth Ann Seton (1st US-born Saint; Patron of Apostleship of the Sea, people ridiculed for their piety, widows; Shreveport, LA; against in-law problems, the death of children, the death of parents)


Festival of Fufluns -- Etruscan (god of wine, also of spring and rebirth; date approximate)


Independence Day -- Myanmar(1948)


Martyrs' Day -- Democratic Republic of the Congo


National Spaghetti Day


Ogoni Day -- Movement for the Survival of the Ogoni People of the Niger River


Pop Music Chart Day -- Billboard magazine published the first one today in 1936


St. Pharaildis' Day (Patron of difficult marriages, victims of abuse, widows; Bruay, France; Ghent, Belgium; against childhood diseases)


Trivia Day -- celebration of those who have a doctorate in uselessology, sponsored by PunsCorp


World Braille Day -- birth anniversary of Louis Braille


World Hypnotism Day -- to remove myth and misconception, and promote the truths and benefits of hypnotism 



Anniversaries Today:


Utah becomes the 45th US state, 1896



Birthdays Today:


Julia Ormond, 1965

Dave Roley, 1962

Michael Stipe, 1960

Matt Frewer, 1958

Ann Magnuson, 1956

Grace Bumbry, 1937

Dyan Cannon, 1937

Floyd Patterson, 1935

Don Shula, 1930

Barbara Rush, 1927

Jesse White, 1917

Jane Wyman, 1914

Sterling Holloway, 1905

Charles "Tom Thumb" Stratton, 1838

Louis Braille, 1809

Jakob Grimm, 1785

Benjamin Rush, 1746



Debuting/Premiering Today:


"Night Court"(TV), 1984

"Blondie"(TV), 1957

The Pop Music Charts in Billboard Magazine, 1936

"Academic Festival Overture"(Johannes Brahms Op. 80), 1881



Today in History:


Titus Labienus is defeated by Julius Caesar in the Battle of Ruspina, BC 46

Columbus leaves the "New World" on return from his first voyage, 1493

Spanish viceroy Alva banishes Zutphen City's only physician, Joost Sweiter, "because he is a Jew", 1570

Most of the Palace of Whitehall in London, the main residence of the English monarchs, is destroyed by fire, 1698

Andre Méchain discovers M80, the globular cluster in Scorpio, 1781

Samuel Colt sells his first revolver pistol to the United States government, 1847

4 wheeled roller skates patented by James Plimpton of NY, 1863

The New York Stock Exchange opens its first permanent headquarters at 10-12 Broad near Wall Street in New York City, 1865

Sofia is emancipated from Ottoman rule, 1878

The last known sighting of an eastern cougar, in Ontario, 1884

Dr W W Grant of Iowa, performs the first appendectomy (on Mary Gartside, 22), 1885

Thomas Stevens is the first man to bicycle around the world (SF-SF); his itinerary accounts "DISTANCE ACTUALLY WHEELED, ABOUT 13,500 MILES", 1887

The Scout Association is incorporated throughout the British Commonwealth by Royal Charter, 1912

The first elected Jewish governor, Moses Alexander, takes office in Idaho, 1915

Sputnik 1 reenters the atmosphere and burns up, 1958

Luna 1 becomes the first spacecraft to reach the vicinity of the Moon, 1959

Rose Heilbron becomes the first female judge to sit at the Old Bailey in London, 1972

Elizabeth Ann Seton becomes the first American-born saint, 1975

Spirit, a NASA Mars Rover, lands successfully on Mars at 04:35 UTC, 2004

The 110th United States Congress convenes, electing Nancy Pelosi as the first female Speaker of the House in U.S. history, 2007

The Burj Khalifa, the world's tallest building is officially opened, 2010

Eleven-year-old Kathryn Gray, of Canada, becomes the youngest person in the world to discover a supernova, 2011

The world's largest ever blue star sapphire at 1404.49 carats, found in a Sri Lankan mine in August 2015, is finally certified by Colombo's Gemology Institute, 2016

South Korea, the country with world's lowest birth rate, records more deaths than births for the first time, 2021

The Canadian government announces a settlement to compensate for the Indigenous child welfare system, 2022

Friday, January 3, 2025

Cindy (Feline Friday), Friendly Fill-Ins and Nature Friday

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Feline Friday was originally started by Steve, The Burnt Food Dude (may he rest in peace), and i'm going to believe it's because he liked cats.

He handed hosting duties off to Sandee at Comedy Plus, and now she's entrusting it to me.


Feline Friday is simple to join.  All you have to do is: Post a picture, drawing, cartoon or video of a cat (they may be silly or cute).  Then add your link!


One thing for sure is this is a fun and easy meme to do.  So come and join us in Feline Friday.


What better way to start the weekend than with a feline!


Cindy eats so very, very fast she gets sick and then it doesn't do her skinny minnie self any good at all.


One of the animal care workers gave her the food in a slow feeder bowl, but made a critical error and put it on the counter.


Cindy, being a smart girl, knocked it to the floor so most of it would be in a pile on the floor where she could eat faster and i found her at it and scooped it back into the slow feeder, leaving it on the floor instead to prevent a repeat episode.


Trying to eat out of the feeder after i picked up the food.





Giving me "the look" for spoiling her fun.




She really is a sweetheart, and very forgiving.









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Friendly Fill-Ins are easy to do. There are four statements: the first two statements are provided by Ellen of 15AndMeowing, and the final two are offered by Lorianne The Menagerie Mom of Four-Legged Furballs. They try to make sure the statements will be fun to both answer and share. The linky will be posted at or about 12:00 AM on Friday. Please head over to one of their sites, link up, and share your thoughts!      


Here are this week's statements with my responses underlined:


1. My guide word for 2025 is _________.


2. I am counting the days to _________.


3. 2025 is the year that I will _________.


4. I need to better organize _________.



1. My guide word for 2025 is   Look, as in, see beyond the past and look to the future.


2. I am counting the days to _________.   I really can't think of anything, no vacation this year.


3. 2025 is the year that I will   very possibly get all the unsecured debt paid off.  It's looking more likely, anyway.


4. I need to better organize   how i store my notes for when i facilitate/lead at the ladies' circle meeting.



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Nature Friday is hosted by LLB in Our Backyard Simply post a picture of the natural world, and link up!   






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Today is:


American Historical Association Annual Meeting -- San Francisco, CA, US (137th annual, with over 300 sessions covering a wide range of scholarly topics; through Sunday)


Day of Remembrance for Princess Olga -- Slavic Pagan Calendar


Hakozakigu Tamaseseri -- Fukuoka, Japan (ceremony of the red ball which brings good luck to the team which catches it)


Humiliation Day -- drawing attention to the fact that it's okay to be humble, but not to humiliate others


J.R.R. Tolkien Day -- birth anniversary


Memento Mori / "Remember You Die" Day -- Wellcat Holidays suggests putting these words where you can see them often, to remind you to cherish what you have today


National Chocolate Covered Filled Cherry Day


National Write to Congress Day -- US (the new session begins today or, if the 3rd is on a weekend, the following Monday; write your Congress-persons and Senators and tell them what you think)


Revolution Day -- Burkina Faso


Shigoto-hajime -- Japan (first work day of the New Year; work begun well today will prosper)


St. Genevieve's Day (Patron of females in the military; Paris, France; against plague, disasters, fevers)


Tamaseseri Festival -- Hakozaki Shrine, Fukuoka, Japan (men in fundoshi - loincloths - compete for the ball; if the winning team is from a seaside town, it will be an auspicious year for fishermen, if the land team wins, there will be a good harvest)


Tenth Day of Christmas



Anniversaries Today:


Alaska becomes the 49th US State, 1959

Establishment of Wind Cave National Park, SD, US, 1903



Birthdays Today


Eli Manning, 1981

Danica McKellar, 1975

Joan Chen, 1960

Mel Gibson, 1956

Victoria Principal, 1950

John Paul Jones, 1946

Stephen Stills, 1945

Van Dyke Parks, 1943

Dabney Coleman, 1932

Robert Loggia, 1930

George Martin, 1926

Jan Walsh Anglund, 1926

Maxine Andrews, 1918

John Sturges, 1911

Victor Borge, 1909

Ray Milland, 1905

Zasu Pitts, 1898

Marion Davies, 1897

Clement Richard Attlee, 1883

J.R.R. Tolkien, 1892

Father Joseph Damien, 1840

Lucretia Coffin Mott,  1793

William Tucker, 1624 (first African American child born in North America)

Cicero, BC106



Debuting/Premiering Today:


"The Arsenio Hall Show"(TV), 1989

"Queen for a Day"(TV), 1956

"Look Up and Live"(TV), 1954

"Symphonic Dances"(Rachmaninoff, Op. 45), 1941

"An Ideal Husband"(Play), 1895



Today in History:


Joan of Arc is handed over to the bishop for trial, 1431

Leonardo da Vinci unsuccessfully tests a flying machine, 1496

Martin Luther is formally excommunicated from the Roman Catholic Church, 1521

The first theater in Amsterdam, the Schouwburg, opens, 1638

Benning Wentworth issues the first of the New Hampshire Grants, leading to the establishment of Vermont as a separate state, 1749

Stephen F. Austin receives a grant of land in Texas from the government of Mexico, 1823

Joseph Jenkins Roberts is sworn in as the first president of the independent African Republic of Liberia, 1848

The Meiji Restoration returns authority to Japan's emperors, 1868

Oleomargarine is patented by Henry Bradley, Binghamton, NY, 1871

The wax drinking straw is patented, by Marvin C Stone in Washington DC, 1888

The refracting telescope at the Lick Observatory, then the largest in the world, is put into use, 1888

The first known use of the word automobile was seen in an editorial in The New York Times, 1899

British explorer Howard Carter discovers the sarcophagus of Tutankhamen in the Valley of the Kings, near Luxor, Egypt, 1924

Benito Mussolini announces he is taking dictatorial powers over Italy, dissolves the Italian parliament, 1925

Minnie D. Craig becomes the first female elected as Speaker of the North Dakota House of Representatives, the first female to hold a Speaker position anywhere in the United States, 1933

Frances Bolton and her son, Oliver from Ohio, become the first mother and son to serve simultaneously in the U.S. Congress, 1953

Edmund Hillary reaches South Pole overland, 1958

The West Indies Federation is formed, 1958

Apple Computer is incorporated, 1977

Margaret Thatcher becomes the longest-serving British Prime Minister in the 20th Century, 1988

In Moscow, George H. W. Bush and Boris Yeltsin sign the second Strategic Arms Reduction Treaty (START), 1993

More than seven million people from the former Apartheid Homelands, receives South African citizenship, 1994

The People's Republic of China announces it will spend fight erosion and pollution in the Yangtze and Yellow river valleys, 1977

The Mars Polar Lander is launched, 1999

Australian researchers discover the 1912 plane that was the first taken to Antarctica, 2010

The Ezadeen, an abandoned ship carrying 450 Syrians, is rescued from choppy waters and brought safely to shore in Italy; the ship is the second to be abandoned by human traffickers off the nation's coast in the last four days, 2015

Scientists in Rome unveil the first bionic hand with a sense of touch that can be used outside of a laboratory, 2018

Archaeologists in Mexico announce the discovery of a pre-Aztec (around 900-1150AD) temple to god Xipe Tótec in Puebla state, 2019

The Chinese Chang'e-4 spacecraft becomes the first ever to touch down on the far side of the Moon, 2019

Apple becomes the first US company to be worth $3 trillion, 2022

Lowest January temperature recorded in Sweden for 25 years in Kvikkjokk-Årrenjarka, Swedish Lapland, of -43.6 C (minus 46.5 F), comes amid a very cold spell across Scandinavia, 2024