eXtraordinary Day with Mr. Cal (Awww Monday), Inspiring Quote of the Week and Poetry Monday, Jam, 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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Awww Monday is hosted by Sandee at Comedy Plus.

Join us every Monday for Awww...Mondays.  Post a picture that makes you say Awww... and that's it.

Make sure you get the code from Sandee's site, linked above, and leave a link to your post so we can visit you.  What better way to start the week than with a smile!

Mr. Cal did something eXtraordinary yesterday, something he’s never done before.

After Becca was up and dressed and we were ready to go on our walk, i got out his leash and called him.

He was eating.

I asked him if he wanted to eat, or to walk now and eat later.  He ignored me and kept eating.

He’s never refused a walk before.

I put the leash on his collar and told him it was walk time, he continued to munch contentedly.  I took the leash off, put it away, and told Becca it was just us on the walk.

As soon as the little scamp heard my key in the lock to open the front door, he came running like he’d been scalded!

Laughing, i went back for the leash and we had our walk.

Then treats.

Two treats?  Is that all?

And he went back to his bowls.

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Sparks is the brainchild of Annie of McGuffy's Reader, who wanted us to post something positive and uplifting at the start of the week.  While she no longer blogs, i like to post an Inspiring Quote of the Week in her honor.     

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Our dear friend Diane is taking a break

accommodations we must make

we miss her poetry and wit

so carry on as Poetry Monday's a hit!

Poetry Monday was started by Diane at On The Alberta/Montana Border.  Charlotte/Mother Owl and i are keeping it going while she takes a blog break, we hope temporarily.  Anyone else is welcome to join in the fun, just let us know!

This week the theme is Jam.  I wrote a haiku and three short poems.                       

Musicians must jam

in order to keep their skill

always well preserved

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I want breakfast toast with jam,

just butter is too mainstream,

but jam makes for a grape day

which goes by like a dream.

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My wifi has gotten slow,

my inbox is getting crammed,

I know what the problem is,

my connection is jammed.

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My schedule’s always packed,

i spread myself too thin,

and you don’t want to know

the jam i’ve got myself in!

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Future themes are:

Apr. 28 Jam (Today!)

May 5 Competition

May 12 Shape

May 19 Stem

May 26 Lead

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Today is:

Ancestors' Day -- Russian Christians; Belarus (Radunitsa, a Slavic tradition after Thomas Sunday)

Biological Clock Day -- the "biological clock gene" that governs the circadian rhythm in mice was isolated on this day in 1994

Cubicle Day -- because if you can't beat 'em, join 'em

Feast of Jamal(Beauty) -- Baha'i

Festival of Floralia -- Ancient Roman Calendar (three day festival to Flora, goddess of flowers and vegetation)

Great Poetry Reading Day -- make sure you read some great poetry today, before National Poetry Month is over.

Hidaka Hibuse Matsuri -- Mizusawa, Iwate Prefecture, Japan (through the 29th; floats, child musicians, traditional costumes, and fun)

James Monroe Birthday Celebration -- Charlottesville, VA, US (at his home, Ash Lawn-Highland)

Kiss Your Mate Day -- guys, do not forget this one, in case she reads it somewhere on the internet; kiss her, then read her a great poem

National Blueberry Pie Day

National Kids and Pets Day

National Day of Mourning -- Canada (In conjunction with Workers' Memorial Day and World Day for Safety and Health at Work, honoring those injured or killed on the job)

National Heroes Day -- Barbados

Paştele Blăjinilor -- Moldova (Memory/Parent's Day)

Pay It Forward Day -- International (begun in the US as National Pay It Forward Day, it is now observed in over 80 countries; this year the global initiative wants to inspire over 10 million acts of kindness around the world!)    

Rip Cord Day -- the first successful jump with a parachute that used a rip cord was this day in 1919 by Leslie Erwin of the U.S. Army Air Corps

Sa die de sa Sardinia -- Sardinia, Italy (Sardinia Day, celebrating the uprising of 1794)

St. Peter Chanel's Day (Patron of Oceania)

     Saint Pierre-Chanel Day -- Wallis and Fortuna

Sts. Vitalis and Valeria's Day (Patrons of Thibodaux, Louisiana)

Workers Memorial Day / World Day for Safety and Health at Work -- International (remembering all who have lost their lives or been injured on the job)

Yom HaZiKaron -- Israel (Memorial Day; begins at sunset, through nightfall tomorrow)

Anniversaries Today:

William Randolph Hearst marries Millicent Veronica Wilson, 1903

Maryland becomes the 7th US State, 1788

Birthdays Today:

Jenna Ushkowitz, 1986

Jessica Alba, 1981

Penelope Cruz, 1974

Jorge Garcia, 1973

Nicklas Lidstrom, 1970

John Daly, 1966

Elena Kagan, 1960

Ian Rankin, 1960

Nancy Lee Grahn, 1958

Mary McDonnell, 1952

Jay Leno, 1950

Marcia Strassman, 1948

Ann-Margaret, 1941

Harper Lee, 1926

Oskar Schindler, 1908

Erich Salomon, 1886

Lionel Barrymore, 1878

Mifflin Wister Gibbs, 1828

James Monroe, 1758

Debuting/Premiering Today:

"One Man's Family"(Radio), 1932

Today in History:

Newly elected King of Jerusalem Conrad of Montferrat is assassinated in Tyre, 1192

Nichiren Buddhism is founded, 1253

Virginia governor John Harvey is accused of treason and removed from office, 1635

Female English Pirate Mary Read, who operated throughout the Caribbean, died in prison (she was pregnant at the time), 1721

Captain William Bligh and 18 crewmen from the HMS Bounty are set adrift, 1789

Chinese and Irish laborers for the Central Pacific Railroad working on the First Transcontinental Railroad lay 10 miles of track in one day, a feat which has never been matched, 1869

Azerbaijan  is added to the Soviet Union., 1920

The first night game in organized baseball  history takes place in Independence, Kansas, 1930

A vaccine  for yellow fever is announced for use on humans, 1932

Thor Heyerdahl and five crew mates set out from Peru on the Kon-Tiki, 1947

The Sino-Japanese Peace Treaty (Treaty of Taipei) is signed in Taipei, Taiwan between Japan and the Republic of China to officially end the Second Sino-Japanese War, 1952

Charles de Gaulle resigns as President of France, 1969

The Budapest Treaty on the International Recognition of the Deposit of Microorganisms for the Purposes of Patent Procedure is signed, 1977

Millionaire Dennis Tito becomes the world's first space tourist, 2001

According to the WHO, leading causes of death in the world include chronic illnesses such as heart disease, cancer and diabetes, 2011

In recognition of democratic reforms, the European Union opens an office in Burma, 2012

The government of India announces that electricity has now reached every Indian village, 2018 

American diver Victor Vescovo makes the deepest dive ever to the bottom of the Mariana trench at 10,927m (35,849ft), discovering three new marine species and finding plastic waste, 2019

NASA's Parker Solar Probe becomes the first spacecraft to cross the Alfvén critical boundary, the outer atmosphere of the Sun, 2021

Six new indigenous land reserves covering 620,000 hectares (1.5m acres) where mining is banned and commercial farming is restricted are set up by Brazilian President Lula da Silva, 2023