Showing posts with label Jonathan. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Jonathan. Show all posts

Thursday, December 14, 2017

Dance to the Tune (Six Sentence Story) and Good Snowy Fences



“Well, think about it,” Buddy continued, “the money that Professor Denarius spent for those instruments should be part of your inheritance, and I know from the look on his face that Jonathan agrees with me when I say I’d feel like a heel if I kept it, as much as I would like to.”

“Didn’t you hear what mom said,” Julia piped up, “Grandpa invested some of the money through a broker, and left me his house and any of the contents he didn’t specifically give my mother, and he left her some money, too.”

“Julia’s right,” Diane interjected, “my Dad was odd, but he picked a good investment advisor; even if it was weird to build a secret room and put half of Mom’s jewelry in it so I’d have to wait for you so I could find it all, he left plenty to us without those two instruments.”

“Grandpa thought the world of several of his students, and he left instructions to his lawyer to send items to many of them, but only you two got this puzzle that helped us find the things we were missing as well, and he wanted you to each have an investment quality instrument,” Julia went on.

“Buddy, like you, I am torn about it, but I think it would be bad form to refuse the gifts Denarius left us, especially as these two lovely ladies are insisting we keep them,” Jonathan spoke up for the first time, then raised his glass and added, “to Denarius!”

“I know when to dance to the tune I’m played,” Buddy laughed and they all drank that toast.


Linking up with Zoe's Uncharted Blog, where she hosts Six Sentence Stories, and the cue is Tune.

This is the final segment of a continuing story, if you wish to read the previous installments please click on the Jonathan page linked above.


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Gosia, of Looking for Identity, has taken over Good Fences, and it's now Good Fences Around The World.  Post a picture of a fence or gate, link back to her blog, and go visit others to see what interesting fences there are out in this big world.

While we were having the biggest snowfall i've ever seen in the swamps, i had to snap these photos of snow building up on the fences:







Today is:

Ako Gishi sai -- Ako, Japan (traditional dances and warrior parades honoring the 47 Ronin)

Buy a Tree Day / Deck the Halls Day -- internet generated, and if you are going to decorate, why did you wait this long?

Christmas Bird Count begins -- sponsored by the National Audubon Society (through Jan. 5; since 1900, the longest-running wildlife census to assess the health of bird populations)

Halcyon Days begin -- a time of calm and tranquility (beginning seven days before the winter solstice, lasting until December 28, seven days after the solstice; named for an ancient fabled kingfisher bird [or halcyon], which hatches and raise her young during this time)

Icelandic Yuletide Lad of the Day, Stufur -- Shorty, who is also known as Ponneskefill, the pan-scraper, who will scrape food scraps from the pans left out

Khoiak Ceremony for Ploughing the Earth -- Ancient Egyptian Calendar (date approximate)

Monkey Day -- unofficial, by animal groups, to draw attention to the plights of simians kept in labs and as pets 

National Bouillabaisse Day

National Energy Conservation Day -- India

Play An Old Song That You Didn't Like To See If You Still Don't Like It Day -- internet generated, and don't bother, bad songs don't improve with age

Precalentines Day -- an unofficial holiday for math lovers begun by a precalculus class at a Nova Scotia high school

South Pole Discovery Day -- thank you, Roald Amundsen

St. John of the Cross' Day (Patron of contemplative life, contemplatives, mystical theology, mystics, Spanish poets; Ta' Xbiex, Malta)

St. Spyridon's Day (Patron of Corfu, Greece, and potters)

Thomasville's Victorian Christmas -- Thomasville, GA, US (relive Christmas past all through the downtown area; through tomorrow)


Anniversaries Today:

Alabama becomes the 22nd US State, 1819
Princess Mary Stuart is crowned Mary, Queen of Scots, 1542


Birthdays Today:

Samantha Peszek, 1991
Vanessa Hudgens, 1988
Paul "Beakman" Zaloom, 1951
Bill Buckner, 1949
Dee Wallace Stone, 1948
Patty Duke, 1946
Jane Birkin, 1946
Ernie Davis, 1939
Leonardo Boff, 1938
Lee Remick, 1935
Charlie Rich, 1932
Don Hewitt, 1922
Shirley Jackson, 1919
Morey Amsterdam, 1914
Spike Jones, 1911
Margaret Madeline Chase Smith, 1897
James Harold Doolittle, 1896


Debuting/Premiering Today:

Saturday Night Fever(Film), 1977
Diamonds are Forever(Film), 1971
"Il Trittico"(Puccini opera), 1918


Today in History:

Osman ibn Affan is appointed the third kalief of Islam, 644
The Zuider Zee seawall collapses, 50,000 lives are lost in the floods that follow, 1287
The first artificial pearls, made of gypsum pellets covered with fish scales, are manufactured by M Jacquin in Paris, 1656
The Montgolfier brothers' first balloon lifts off on its first test flight, 1782
David Wilkinson of Rhode Island patents a machine that cuts nuts and bolts, 1798
The American Academy of Political and Social Science is organized in Philadelphia, 1889
The Commercial Pacific Cable Company lays the first Pacific telegraph cable, from Ocean Beach, San Francisco to Honolulu, Hawaii, 1902
Norwegian Roald Amundsen becomes the first to reach the South Pole, 1911
Albania, Austria, Bulgaria, Cambodia, Finland, Hungary, Ireland, Italy, Jordan, Laos, Libya,Nepal, Portugal, Romania, Spain and Sri Lanka join the United Nations, 1955
The United Republic of Tanzania joins the United Nations. 1961
NASA's Mariner 2 becomes the first spacecraft to fly by Venus, 1962
Kiribati, Nauru and Tonga join the United Nations, 1999
The Millau viaduct, the tallest bridge in the world, near Millau, France is officially opened, 2004
China's first lunar rover, the Yutu, lands successfully on the Moon, 2013

Thursday, December 7, 2017

A Sticky Wicket (Six Sentence Story) and Good Fences



"So, Diane," Jonathan began after they were seated at the restaurant and had placed their order, "how do you think your father was able to collect valuable instruments and build a secret room for them?" 

"It really goes back to the time when Dad lost Mom in that horrible accident when I was barely more than a baby.  He was always eccentric, and from her diary I think she was the stabilizing influence in his life and I know she loved him, craziness and all.

"There was a large insurance settlement from the accident and a life insurance policy, and it was when I got old enough to start asking what he'd done with all that money that he and I began to argue.  While he did put a lot of it into investments that he used to pay for my college and that he left to Julia, now I see he was also trying to invest in the only things he really understood, valuable musical instruments."

"Which will stick us in the middle," Buddy said, and Diane asked, "What do you mean?" 


Linking up with Zoe's Uncharted Blog, where she hosts Six Sentence Stories, and the cue is Stick.

This is a continuing story, if you wish to read the previous entries they are on the Jonathan page linked above.


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Gosia, of Looking for Identity, has taken over Good Fences, and it's now Good Fences Around The World.  Post a picture of a fence or gate, link back to her blog, and go visit others to see what interesting fences there are out in this big world.

The ivy seems to be a bit out of hand here:

Yes. there's a fence under there somewhere.



Today is:

Armed Forces Flag Day -- India

Clute's Christmas in the Park -- Clute, TX, US (food and fun; through Sunday)

Day of Mourning for Dingle-Fritter, Gooseberry-Humple, Tiger-Get-By, LoneFolding, But Not Zimber-Quattor -- Fairy Calendar

Día de las Velitas -- Columbia (Day of the Little Candles, a celebration on the eve of the Feast of the Immaculate Conception)

Electric Light Parade -- Lovington, MN, US (over 60 entries, all decorated with Christmas lights)

Feast of Osiris in Abydos -- Ancient Egyptian Calendar (date approximate)

Hang a Wreath Day -- after all, by now it's about time

International Civil Aviation Day -- UN

Letter Writing Day -- no origin info found, but think of how happy someone will be to get a letter if you write one!

National Cotton Candy Day

National Heroes' Day -- East Timor

Pearl Harbor Remembrance Day  -- US

Quema del Diablo -- Guatemala (Burning of the Devil, to cast out impurities before the Feast of the Immaculate Conception)

St. Ambrose of Milan's Day (Patron of bee keepers, bees, candle makers/chandlers, domestic animals, learning, schoolchildren/students, wax refiners; French Commissariat; Milan, Italy)

Students' Day -- Iran

Spitak Remembrance Day -- Armenia


Anniversaries Today:

National Fire Safety Council founded, 1979
Delaware becomes the first US State, 1787


Birthdays Today:

Aaron Carter, 1987
Tino Martinez, 1967
C. Thomas Howell, 1966
Edd Hall, 1958
Larry Bird, 1956
Tom Waits, 1949
Johnny Bench, 1947
Harry Chapin, 1942
Ellen Burstyn, 1932
Ted Knight, 1923
Eli Wallach, 1915
Louis Prima, 1910
Willa Cather, 1873


Debuting/Premiering Today:

"City of Angels"(Musical), 1989
"Band on the Run"(Album), 1973 (UK release date)
"The Gondoliers; or, The King of Barataria"(Savoy Opera), 1889


Today in History:

Marcus Tullius Cicero is assassinated, BC43
Chinese Emperor Lo-Yang makes notation of a supernova (MSH15-52), 185
Connecticut Route 108, one of the oldest highways in the US, is completed to Trumbull, 1696
The Royal Opera House opens at Covent Garden, London, 1732
Marquis de Lafayette attempts to enter the American military as a major general, 1776
The New York Philharmonic plays its first concert, 1842
Max Planck, in his house at Grunewald, on the outskirts of Berlin, discovers the law of black body emission, 1900
Leo Baekeland of Yonkers patents the first thermosetting plastic, Bakelite, 1911
The Japanese attack Pearl Harbor, 1941
Prince Rainier III of Monaco revises the principality's constitution, devolving some of his power to advisory and legislative councils, 1962
The first ever general election on the basis of direct adult franchise is held in Pakistan for 313 National Assembly seats, 1970
The final Apollo mission is launched, and takes the photo now called The Blue Marble as they take off, 1972
Yasser Arafat recognizes the right of Israel to exist, 1988
The Galileo spacecraft arrives at Jupiter, a little more than six years after it was launched, 1995
The Recording Industry Association of America files a lawsuit against the Napster file-sharing client alleging copyright infringement, 1999
The Conservative Party of Canada is officially recognized after the merger of the Canadian Alliance and Progressive Conservative Party of Canada, 2003
Scientists in Tanzania discover the oldest-known dinosaur fossil, and 243-million-year-old Nyasasaurus, 2012
NASA reports the GRAIL probes studying the moon reveal unexpectedly deep cracks, craters and tectonic structures, 2012

Thursday, November 30, 2017

That's Where (Six Sentence Story) and Good Fences



“Mom, when did you get here?” Julia asked, running to hug the figure in the doorway. 

“Just a few minutes ago, and why am I not surprised that my eccentric father built a hidden room to hold his treasures?  Will you look at this,” she noticed the shelves on the wall and walked over, continuing “there was only one of them in the jewelry box and I’ve been wondering where the mate was to my mom’s favorite pair of earrings!”

“I’m Diane, by the way, Denarius’ daughter,” she said after picking up the earring, turning to Jonathan and Buddy.

“Why would Grandpa have had one earring down here and the other in the jewelry box he gave you?” Julia asked.

“Tell you what,” Diane said, “it’s late, lets go out and get dinner and we can talk, I think I’ve put together enough for us to be able to figure it all out,” and Buddy yelled, “I second that motion, I’m starving!”


Linking up with Zoe's Uncharted Blog, where she hosts Six Sentence Stories, and the cue is Mate.

(This is part of a continuing story.  If you wish to read the previous installents, click on the Jonathan page.)

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Good Fences

Gosia, of Looking for Identity, has taken over Good Fences, and it's now Good Fences Around The World.  Post a picture of a fence or gate, link back to her blog, and go visit others to see what interesting fences there are out in this big world.

A gate in the fence around the reflection garden at church.


Today is:

Bizarre Bazaar -- Richmond, VA, US (Christmas shop until you drop; through Sunday)

Bonifacio Day -- Philippines

Christmas Festival at St. Olaf -- St. Olaf College, Northfield, MN, US (600 student musicians perform sacred and folk songs from around the world; through Sunday)

Cities for Life Day -- commemorates the abolition of the death penalty in many countries

Clear Up The Clutter Day -- internet generated, and what!?! in one day!

Computer Security Day -- International (sponsored by The Association for Computer Security Day; often held by some organizations/companies on another day of the week if it falls on a weekend)  

Feast of Hecate, Goddess of the Crossroads -- Ancient Roman Calendar (also revered by the Greeks, Egyptians, and came from the Carians of the Bronze Age)

Ham and Roast Beef Night -- internet generated, but a good idea for a make your own sandwich dinner

Independence Day -- Barbados(1966); Yemen(1967)

Mawlid an Nabi -- Islam/Muslim (Prophet's Birthday, celebration begins at sunset)

National Christmas Tree Lighting -- Washington, D.C., US

National Day -- Benin

National Meth Awareness Day

National Mousse Day 

Perpetual Youth Day -- Dick Clark's birth anniversary

Regina Mundi Day -- South Africa

Saint Andrew the Apostle's Day (Patron of anglers/fishermen, fish dealers/fish mongers, maidens, old maids/spinsters, single lay women, singers, women who wish to become mothers; Spanish armed forces; Achaia; Greece; Russia; Scotland; Amalfi, Italy; Antey-Saint-Andre, Italy; Berchtesgaden, Germany; Burgundy, France; Cartosio, Italy; Confienti, Italy; Constantinople, Turkey; Encinasola, Huelva, Spain; Grand Rapids, Michigan; Grongnardo, Italy; Lampertheim, Germany; Luqa, Malta; Patras, Greece; Plymouth, England; Samolaco, Italy; San Andreas, California; Victoria, British Columbia; against gout, sore throats) related observances:
    Argyle Day
    National Day -- Scotland
    Sfantul Andrei -- Romania

Stay Home Because You're Well Day -- sponsored by the Wellness Permission League -- if you get in trouble with the boss, make sure they will take the fall!

Tori No Ichi -- Japan (the third and final "rooster day" of November, so called because it is held on the three days of the rooster this month, in which to wish good luck and prosperity at temple and shrine ceremonies around the country, and celebrate with a fair)

Whisp and Thread Fair -- Fairy Calendar


Anniversaries Today:

Lucille Ball marries Desi Arnaz, 1940


Birthdays Today:

Elisha Cuthbert, 1982
Clay Aiken, 1978
Jessalyn Gilsig, 1971
Sandra Oh, 1970
Amy Ryan, 1969
Ben Stiller, 1965
Bo Jackson, 1962
Colin Mochrie, 1957
Billy Idol, 1955
Shuggie Otis, 1953
Mandy Patinkin, 1952
David Mamet, 1947
Noel Paul Stookey, 1937
Ridley Scott, 1937
Abbie Hoffman, 1936
G. Gordon Liddy, 1930
Dick Clark, 1929
Joan Ganz Cooney, 1929
Robert Guillaume, 1927
Richard Crenna, 1926
Shirley Chisholm, 1924
Efrem Zimbalist, Jr., 1923
Gordon Parks, 1912
Winston Churchill, 1874
L(ucy) M(aude) Montgomery, 1874 (Anne of Green Gables)
Mark Twain, 1835
Oliver Winchester, 1810
Jonathan Swift, 1667
Philip Sydney, 1554


Debuting/Premiering Today:

"Thriller"(Michael Jackson Album), 1982
"The Wall"(Pink Floyd album), 1979
Brian's Song(TV movie), 1971
Bwana Devil(Film, first 3-D movie), 1952
The Joy of Cooking(Publication date), 1931
"Le Cid"(Opera), 1885


Today in History:

Amsterdam bans assembly of heretics, 1523
Death count by plague in Venice is officially set at 16,000, 1630
Beijing earthquake causes 100,000+ deaths, 1731
Britain signs agreement recognizing US independence, 1782
Peter Leopold Joseph of Habsburg-Lorraine, Grand Duke of Tuscany, promulgates a penal reform making his country the first state to abolish the death penalty. November 30 is therefore commemorated by 300 cities around the world as Cities for Life Day, 1786
Spain cedes her claims to Louisiana Territory to France, 1803
First ground is broken at Allenburg for the building of the original Welland Canal, 1824
First Welland Canal opens for a trial run, 5 years to the day from the ground breaking, 1829
Work begins on the first US underwater highway tunnel, in Chicago, 1866
The first international soccer football game is held, in Glasgow; Scotland-England 0-0, 1872
The first commercially successful AC electric power plant opens, Buffalo, NY, 1886
A German engineer patents front-wheel drive for automobiles, 1900
American Old West: Second-in-command of Butch Cassidy's Wild Bunch gang, Kid Curry Logan, is sentenced to 20 years imprisonment with hard labor, 1902
Pike Place Market is dedicated in Seattle, Washington, 1907
The Crystal Palace in Hyde Park London destroyed by fire, 1936
Baseball's Negro National League disbands, two years after major league baseball integrated, 1948
In Sylacauga, Alabama, United States, the Hodges Meteorite crashes through a roof and hits a woman taking an afternoon nap in the only documented case of a human being hit by a rock from space, 1954
Exxon and Mobil sign a $73.7 billion USD agreement to merge, thus creating Exxon-Mobil, the world's largest company, 1998
Longtime Jeopardy! champion Ken Jennings of Salt Lake City, Utah finally loses, leaving him with US$2,520,700, television's biggest game show winnings, 2004
John Sentamu becomes the first black archbishop in the Church of England with his enthronement as the 97th Archbishop of York, 2005
The first human face transplant takes place in France, 2005
Enzo di Fabrizio, physics professor at Magna Graecia University in Catanzaro, Italy, successfully takes the first photograph of DNA, 2012