...are there dried beans on the carpet?
"Because the vacuum cleaner bag is full," Little Girl responded.
Well, that certainly makes sense, at least around here. Turns out, when the bag is full, the vacuum cleaner doesn't pick up as much.
This, of course, doesn't answer why the beans, which should be in a bag in the kitchen awaiting their turn in the crock pot, ended up on the carpet in the hallway.
On second thought, i'm not sure i want to know the rest of the answers to "why," at least not in my house.
In other news, i note with sadness the passing of Andy Williams a few days ago. The young rockers who are ruining their voices with their screaming will never compare, and their pipes will give out long before age 84.
Rest in Peace, Mr. Williams.
Today is:
Battle of Boqueron Day -- Paraguay
Cabrillo Festival -- San Diego, CA, US (reenactment of Cabrillo's landing, a Spanish soldier and sailor encampment, Native Kumeyaay demonstrations, dances, crafts, and food; through tomorrow)
Chusok -- South Korea (Harvest Moon Festival, lasts several days)
Constitution Day -- Brunei
Eldon Turkey Festival -- Eldon, MO, US (top producer of turkeys has the top turkey festival in the world)
Everybody's Day Festival -- Thomasville, NC, US (and they do mean there's fun for everybody)
Family Health and Fitness Day USA
Festifall -- Friendship Hill National Historic Site, Point Marion, PA, US (celebrating traditions of the Allegheny Plateau; through tomorrow)
Festival of Tezcatzonctl -- Ancient Aztec Calendar (chief god of intoxication; date approximate)
Fukuro Matsuri -- Ikebukuro, Tokyo, Japan (a fun-for-tourists way to learn about Japanese culture, through tomorrow, and next weekend)
Full Harvest Moon a/k/a Full Corn Moon/Indigo Moon/Wise-Crone Moon (with so much food ripe for gathering, harvesting can go on well into the night by the light of the hugely full Harvest Moon)
Binara Full Moon Poya Day -- Sri Lanka
Taw Thalin Full Moon -- Myanmar
Geneva Area Grape Jamboree -- Geneva, OH, US (grapes, wine tasting, entertainment, rides, and food; through tomorrow)
Gwynn ap Nudd's Fest -- Celtic Calendar (god of the underworld; date approximate)
Indra Jatra -- Kathmandu Valley, Nepal
Inventors Day -- Argentina
Make a List of the Top Ten Happiest Days in Your Life Day -- must have been started by an optimist
Marion County Country Ham Days -- Marion, KY, US (for those who love ham, and a PIGasus parade, and a Pokey Pig 5k, among other events; through tomorrow)
National Attend Your Grandchild's Birth Day -- attendingthebirth.com; a day to remind grandparents to be active in their grandchildren's lives (and if you need a reminder, i wonder about you; if you aren't allowed by bitter parents, i feel badly for you)
National Coffee Day -- what!?! this isn't every day!?
National Public Lands Day -- US (Helping Hands for America's Lands -- a day to volunteer on America's Public Lands)
National Mocha Day
Navajo Sing Festival -- Navajo Native Americans festival in thanksgiving for the harvest (through Oct. 7)
Quick Draw Day -- debut of Quick Draw McGraw and his side kick, Baba Looey, in 1959
Sts. Michael, Gabriel, Raphael, and All Angels' Day (Michaelmas)
Archangel Gabriel, Patron of broadcasters, clergy, communication workers, diplomats, messengers, philatelists/stamp collectors, post offices and postal workers, radio and radio workers, secular clergy, telecommunication workers, telgraphers, telephones, television and television workers; Argentinian ambassadors; Seattle, Washington
Archangel Michael, Patron of artists, bakers, bankers and banking, barrel makers/coopers, battle, boatmen/mariners/sailors/watermen, dying people, emergency medical technicians/paramedics/ambulance drivers, fencers and fencing, grocers and greengrocers, haberdashers and hatmakers, knights, milleners, paratroopers, police officers, radiologists and radiotherapists, security guards, sick people, soldiers, swordsmiths; for a holy death and safety at sea; England, Germany, and over 25 cities around the world; against danger at sea and temptation
Archangel Raphael, Patron of apothecaries/druggists/pharmacists, blind people, doctors/physicians, guardian angels, happy meetings, love and lovers, mentally ill people, nurses, shepherdesses/shepherds, sick people, travelers, young people; Dubuque, Iowa; MacKenzie-Fort Smith, Northwest Territories; Seattle, Washington; against bodily ills, eye diseases/eye problems, insanity/mental illness, nightmares, sickness
related observances:
National Day of Remembrance for Policemen Killed -- Australia (St. Michael, Patron of police officers)
Payment of Quit Rent by London Royal Courts of Justice -- Michaelmas is a traditional English "Quarter Day", when rents come due
Taste of Morgan Hill -- Morgan Hill, CA, US (fine arts, entertainment, and plenty for the kids to do, too; through tomorrow)
Tri-State Band Festival -- Luverne, MI, US (high school bands from Minnesota, South Dakota, and Iowa compete in four categories)
Wild West Show and Bullwhacker Days -- Olathe, KS, US (celebrate the Santa Fe Trail; through tomorrow)
World Heart Day -- International (to raise awareness of the signs and dangers of cardiovascular disease)
Birthdays Today:
Bryant Gumbel, 1948
Lech Walesa, 1943
Madeline Kahn, 1942
Jerry Lee Lewis, 1935
Anita Ekberg, 1931
Lizabeth Scott, 1922
Stanley Kramer, 1913
Greer Garson, 1908
Gene Autry, 1907
Enrico Fermi, 1901
Horatio Nelson, 1758
Miguel de Cervantes, 1547
Pompey the Great, BC106
Today in History:
Darius I of Persia kills the Magian usurper Gaumata, securing his hold as king of the Persian Empire, BC522
Battle of Salamis, at which the Greek fleet under Themistocles defeats the Persian fleet under Xerxes I, BC480
Pompey the Great Celebrates ending the Mithridatic Wars on his 45th birthday, BC61
Saladin's army marches into Jerusalem, 1187
The First Congress of the US adjourns, 1789
"Scotland Yard", London's Metropolitan Police Force, goes on duty, 1829
The first practical public electric tramway ever opens in Blackpool, England, 1885
John D. Rockefeller becomes the first billionaire, 1916
The convention establishing CERN (the European Organization for Nuclear Research) is signed, 1954
Alouette 1, the first Canadian satellite, is launched, 1962
WGPR in Detroit, Michigan, becomes the world's first black-owned-and-operated television station, 1975
Pope John Paul II becomes the first pope to set foot on Irish soil with his pastoral visit to the Republic of Ireland, 1979
The asteroid 4179 Toutatis passes within four lunar distances of Earth, 2004
The Dow Jones Industrial Average falls 777.68 points, the largest single-day point loss in its history, 2008
An 8.0 magnitude earthquake near the Samoan Islands causes a tsunami, 2009
You know you are back in the swing of things when the texts start flying.
They came from Cindy, fast and furious. How close is Link to being big enough to neuter? (He's on the schedule for next Wednesday.) When did your babies have their last shots? (August 25, and i'll do another one today, getting the doses when i go in to clean the shelter.)
Then there was the typical, Can you take more babies? (What a silly question!)
This time it was a doozy. Acme Company. A name i have always loved, ever since Wile E. Coyote started getting stuff from that company to aid in his pursuit of the Road Runner. (Although i don't ever remember him ordering kittens.) They got a shipment of copper tubing in from Texas on Wednesday. It comes in the kind of boxes that have a coil of tubing in a square box with a square hole in the middle.
Thursday, while unloading the pallet, the workers heard cries coming from the middle of the boxes. Down in there, warm and snug and hungry as could be, were four kittens.
Mama apparently thought it a great place to have babies; she could not have been more wrong.
So these little ones. about 4-5 days old, hadn't eaten since Texas the day before. When i got there, i could hear them yelling in the warehouse from all the way up front in the main shop. It was a good thing i came prepared with a bottle, they went crazy eating. The warehouse workers, bless their hearts, gathered around and grinned as the babies ate and got settled into a carrier for the ride home.
Now they are snug in their carrier over a heating pad (they were a bit on the cold side, even in the non-air-conditioned warehouse), with a bottle ready for them every 2 hours.
It looks like we have 2 tortoiseshell females, a tabby female, and a dark, marbled tabby male.
Today is:
Ask A Stupid Question Day -- teachers wanted to get students asking more questions, so they did, even if the questions were stupid; now, it's a holiday!
Baltimore Book Festival -- Baltimore, MD, US (the mid-Atlantic’s premier celebration of literary arts; through Sunday)
Celtic Classic Highland Games & Festival -- Bethlehem, PA, US (US's largest highland games and Celtic Festival; through Sunday)
Chili Cook-Off and Fall Festival of the Arts -- Washington, MO, US (chili Friday night, juried art festival through the weekend, beer, specialty foods, music and fun; through Sunday)
Czech Statehood Day -- Czech Republic
Drink Beer Day
Fabulous 1890's Weekend -- Mansfield, PA, US (celebration of the first ever night football game in Mansfield in 1892; through tomorrow)
Feast of Hapi and Creation of the Nile -- Ancient Egyptian Calendar (date approximate)
Frances Willard Day -- Minnesota
Hug a Vegetarian Day -- i'm open!
Literally, A Haunted House -- Culbertson Mansion, New Albany, IN, US (each weekend through Hallowe'en; a haunted house in a literal haunted house with a history of some very weird stuff)
Love Note Day -- take pen and paper and send that special someone a love note today
Manit Day -- Marshall Islands (Culture Day)
Menkhet Festival -- Ancient Egyptian Calendar (date approximate)
Michaelmas Eve -- Celtic celebration, bake your bannock bread tonight for eating on St. Michael and All Angel's Day tomorrow; tonight, build a bonfire and dine on roast lamb, and make sure the menfolk protect the horses, for anyone is allowed to "borrow" one for the celebration tomorrow
Mount Pleasant Glass and Ethnic Festival -- Mount Pleasant, PA, US (a "front porch neighborhood" festival; through Sunday)
National Day of Awareness and Unity against Child Pornography -- Philippines
National Good Neighbor Day -- US (begun when Mrs. Becky Mattson from Lakeside, Montana, campaigned for this National Day in the 1970's; go greet the neighbors, and be a good neighbor yourself!)
National Strawberry Cream Pie Day
National Youth Day -- Turks and Caicos Islands
Neptune Festival -- Virginia Beach, Virginia (a Boardwalk Weekend; through Sunday)
New York Film Festival -- NY, NY, US (50th Annual, through Oct. 15)
North American Sand Sculpting Championship -- Virginia Beach, Virginia, US
Runic Half Month Gyfu begins (gift)
St. Wenceslaus' Day (Patron of brewers; Bohemia; Czech Republic; Moravia; Prague, Czech Republic)
Taca Fall Craft Fair -- Nashville, TN, US (the state's premier outdoor showcaswe for American fine crafts; through Sunday)
Tales of Kelp-Koli's Second Visit -- Fairy Calendar (through the 30th)
Teacher's Day -- Taiwan (on the traditional Western date of Confucius' birthday, of course)
Warrens Cranberry Festival -- Warrens, WI, US (tour a cranberry bog, enjoy the festival and food; through Sunday)
World Rabies Day
Birthdays Today:
Hilary Duff, 1987
Naomi Watts, 1968
Mira Sorvino, 1967
Janeane Garofalo, 1964
Koko Taylor, 1935
Brigitte Bardot, 1934
Arnold Stang, 1925
Marcello Mastroianni, 1924
Al Capp, 1909
Ed Sullivan, 1901
Confucius, BC551
Today in History:
Pompey the Great, member of the Triumvirate, is assassinated by order of King Ptolemy of Egypt upon landing in that country, BC48
King/Saint Wenceslas murdered by his brother, 935
William the Conqueror invades England, 1066
Sinking of the Spanish fleet during a hurricane off the coast of Florida, 1528
Juan Rodriguez Cabrillo becomes the first European to reach San Diego Bay, 1542
Publication of "Pilgrim's Progress", 1678
Divorce is legalized in Maryland, 1701
American and French forces begin the siege of Yorktown, 1781
Napoleon Bonaparte, age 16, graduates from the Military Academy of Paris -- 42nd in a class of 51, 1785
Donati's comet becomes the first to be photographed, 1858
Toronto becomes the capital of Ontario, 1867
Sir Alexander Fleming notices a bacteria-killing mould growing in his laboratory, discovering what later became known as penicillin, 1928
Indonesia joins the United Nations, 1950
Mali and Senegal join the United Nations, 1960
SpaceX launches the first ever private spacecraft, the Falcon 1 into orbit, 2008
Whereas once i believed there is nothing so over as Christmas, i now add that there is also nothing so over as S-fest.
Time to start planning for next year. Already there is talk, but it's just ideas being kicked around. Can't kick them into place quite fast enough for me.
Meanwhile, there is laundry and ironing and meals and dishes and the minutia of daily life to be dealt with.
Also, bank stuff. That's bad enough, but worse is that i take my head out of the clouds just in time to get slammed with all of the political jargon.
Gads, it's enough to make you want to hibernate permanently, having to listen to all of the blather, and that's on every side. Please, somebody, talk in something besides a partisan sound bite, something that shows you've been thinking.
Yes, i've been thinking, and my thinking would offend everyone from every side of every issue, most likely. That's one reason i don't discuss my views in polite company. Nor in impolite company where i would probably receive a sock in the nose for some of what i would say.
Let's hope that, very soon, there will be nothing so over as political campaigns.
Today is:
Ancestor Appreciation Day -- sponsored by the Ancestor Appreciation Day Association of Ann Arbor, MI, US
Barnesville Pumpkin Festival -- Barnesville, OH, US (pumpkins are just the start of the fun; through Sunday)
Crush a Can Day -- internet generated, so have fun seeing how many (safe) ways you can crush a can, and how flat you can get it!
Fairmount Museum Days/Remembering James Dean Festival -- Fairmont, IN, US (celebrating Dean and other famous people from Fairmont; through Sunday)
Feast of MashÃyyat (Will) -- Baha'i
French Community Holiday -- French community of Belgium
Haustmanuour -- Iceland (beginning of traditional Autumn Month, during which all the summer chores are finished, including livestock rounded up, before winter begins)
Meskel -- Ethiopian/Eritrian Orthodox Christian (True Cross Day)
National Milk Chocolate Day
National Corned Beef Hash Day
Preston County Buckwheat Festival -- Kingwood, WV, US (something for everyone at this fun annual event; through Sunday)
Shut Up and Let Somebody Else Talk Day -- begun by someone with an overly verbose spouse, perhaps?
St. Vincent De Paul's Day (Patron of charitable societies/charitable workers, charities, horses, hospital workers, hospitals, lepers, prisoners, spiritual help, volunteers; Brothers of Charity; Saint Vincent de Paul Societies; Sisters of Charity; Vincentian Service Corps; Madagascar; Richmond, Virginia; for finding lost objects; against leprosy)
Thanksgiving Day for Disappearance of Kelp-Koli Again -- Fairy Calendar
Virginia Peanut Festival -- Emporia, VA, US (and you thought all peanuts came from Georgia! come enjoy peanuts and carnival, quilt show and fireworks, the Virgina way; through Sunday)
World Maritime Day -- UN (this year's theme is “IMO: One hundred years after the Titanic”, remembering the reason the International Maritime Organization and its emphasis on safety was founded)
World Tourism Day -- World Tourism Organization, www.unwto.org
Birthdays Today:
Avril Lavigne, 1984
Gwyneth Paltrow, 1972
Sophia Milos, 1965
Shaun Cassidy, 1958
Mike Schmidt, 1949
Wilford Brimley, 1934
Greg Morris, 1934
Arthur Penn, 1922
William Conrad, 1920
Jayne Meadows, 1920
Thomas Nast, 1840
George Muller, 1805
Samuel Adams, 1722
Today in History:
Severe earthquake in the Gulf of Chili, China; reports of 100,000 killed, 1290
Jesuits founded by Ignatius Loyola, 1540
John Adams negotiates peace terms with Britain, 1779
Constitution submitted to the states for ratification, 1787
Jean-Francois Champollion announces that he has deciphered the Rosetta Stone, 1822
The Stockton and Darlington Railway opens, and begins operation of the world's first service of locomotive-hauled passenger trains, 1825
The physics journal Annalen der Physik published Albert Einstein's paper "Does the Inertia of a Body Depend Upon Its Energy Content?", introducing the equation E=mc²,1905
The first production of a Ford Model T automobile rolls off the line at the Piquette Plant in Detroit, Michigan, 1908
First test of a twin engine airplane, in France, 1910
Native American Day is first celebrated, 1916
Democratic National Committee votes to allow female members, 1919
The first Santa Clause Training School opens in Albion, NY, 1937
The Balinese tiger is declared to be an extinct species, 1937
Sierra Leone joins the United Nations, 1961
Richard Stallman announces the GNU project to develop a free Unix-like operating system, 1983
Google is founded, 1998
East Timor joins the United Nations, 2002
CNSA astronaut Zhai Zhigang becomes the first Chinese person to perform a spacewalk while flying on Shenzhou 7, 2008
That was my first thought.
Yes, it really was Tuesday. Script and Ninja went to the airport from their hotels very early, and only WSS was still here. She wanted to explore on her own.
That morning saw the dishes and laundry piled, every litter box needing cleaning, leftover gumbo and cake and cold drinks cramming the fridge, and only one serving of kitten formula left in the house. First things first, kitten milk. You can't work with kittens screaming for food and climbing your legs. The trip took a bit longer than it should have from the accident on the interstate, but i was blessed with two back roads no one else had thought of using and made it around the mess.
While WSS enjoyed her time out and about, i puttered around, got kids to school, laundry done, leftovers frozen, dishes washed (multiple times), ironing, dinner, litter boxes, and the computer restarted about 10X. Ol' Bessy was being as cranky as Kida having an asthma attack.
It turned out that WSS got to see and learn a lot while she was out, and had a great time doing some things i wish i had thought to do with everyone else. Maybe next time, if there is a next time.
Scratch that. Whether i have to travel, or host here myself every year, there will be a next time.
Today is:
Black Walnut Festival -- Stockton, MO, US (tours of the world's largest black walnut processing plant, plus parade, crafts, carnival and entertainment; through Saturday)
Bureflux -- Discordian Calendar
Cobweb Pie Making Day -- Fairy Calendar
Davidson Fellowship Scholarship Award Reception -- Washington, D.C., US (students under 18 who have completed prodigious works in science, mathematics, technology, music, literature, philosophy, or "outside the box" are made Davidson Fellows and given large scholarships for college)
Dia de la Bandera Nacional -- Ecuador (Day of the National Flag)
Dominion Day -- New Zealand (trad.)
European Day of Languages -- European Union
Festival of Venus Genetrix -- Ancient Roman Calendar
International Tool Day -- internet generated, now gladly embraced by toolmakers
Johnny Appleseed Day
National Pancake Day
National Women's Health and Fitness Day -- www.fitnessday.com
Old Holy Rood Day -- OS calendar (the day blackberries become unsafe for picking) related observance
Mid-Autumn Day -- Scottish Highlands (traditional; considered the day harts begin to mate and a weather prognostication day)
Search for Your Baseball Cards Again Day -- on lots of trivia sites; recommended because you never know
September Revolution Day -- Yemen
Sts. Cosmas and Damian's Day (Patrons of apothecaries/druggists/pharmacists, barbers, blind people, chemical industry/manufacturers, doctors/physicians/surgeons, hairdressers, midwives, people with hernias; Alberobello, Italy; Ossimo, Italy; against blindness and pestilence) related observance:
Begin now to lay in supplies for your Michaelmas supper on the 29th
Yom Kippur -- Judaism (began sundown yesterday)
Birthdays Today:
Lawrence Leritz, 1962
Linda Hamilton, 1956
Olivia Newton-John, 1948
Anne Robinson, 1944
Kent McCord, 1942
Julie London, 1926
Jack LaLanne, 1914
George Gershwin, 1898
T.S. Eliot, 1888
Edmund Gwenn, 1877
John "Johnny Appleseed" Chapman, 1774
St. Francis of Assisi, 1181
Today in History:
In keeping a vow he made at the Battle of Pharsalus, Julius Caesar dedicates a temple to his mythical ancestor Venus Genetrix, BC 46
Sir Francis Drake returns to England with Spanish treasure, 1580
In a battle between Venetians and Turks in Athens, the Parthenon and Acropolis are seriously damaged, 1687
New Jersey passes a bill requiring a license to practice medicine, 1772
Thomas Jefferson is appointed the first Secretary of State of the US, 1789
Colonel Robert Gibbon Johnson proved tomatoes weren't poisonous by eating several on the steps of the courthouse in Salem, New Jersey, 1820
The Diamond Match Company patents book matches, 1892
New Zealand and Newfoundland each become dominions within the British Empire, 1907
Indonesia is admitted to the United Nations, 1950
Concorde makes its first non-stop crossing of the Atlantic in record-breaking time, 1973
The United Kingdom agrees to the handover of Hong Kong, 1984
An earthquake strikes the Italian regions of Umbria and the Marche, causing part of the Basilica of St. Francis at Assisi to collapse, 1997
Swiss pilot and inventor Yves Rossy becomes first person to fly a jet engine-powered wing across the English Channel, 2008
We booked a swamp tour. It was quite comical, figuring out which one, but it turned out for the best that we went with the best in the business.
Monday morning's plan was easy: meet up for breakfast at 7am at Eagle's hotel. She had breakfast tickets from her stay that she had never used, enough for each of us. It would be the last time eight of us would be together for this trip, so we made the most of it.
Eagle left at the end of it to head to visit her son and granddaughter in Texas. Di went off to see her cousin who lives locally and then head back down to the coast where she lives. Ninja went back to her hotel to rest and decompress, and so WSS, Script, Grace, CanDo and i headed to the Atchafalaya River and its surrounding bayous and swamps.
Our guide was a man of 60 who looked no more than 40, but had grown up on the bayous with his father, who runs the business with him. He not only knew his way, his birds, his spots to find alligators, and his special spots in the spring to see the nesting birds, he also spots and picks up every bit of trash out there, along with his buddies. They call themselves the keepers of the area, and they do a great job.
We paid him only $50 for a two hour tour. He loves his work so much, and has so much to explain and teach about the area, that he kept us out there for almost 4 hours for no extra charge. He showed us the usual great blue herons and great egrets and kingfishers, but also ospreys, coots, ibis, cormorants, and roseate spoonbills. There were a couple of others as well, some juvenile of one species i can't remember, and the gators.
Oh, the gators. When he showed us a gator slide up to a nest, a sharp-eyed CanDo spotted a 1-year-old baby gator in the water nearby. He netted it and brought it up for us to hold and touch. That's a good thing, too, because it teaches them the fear of men and boats, so they are more likely to survive.
He also showed us the horrors of the invasive plants that have been dumped out there. People who dump their aquariums in the local waterways have unleashed what may some day destroy the very places they claim to love.
By the time we got back to the dock, we were hot, tired, and grateful beyond measure for the glimpse into the interior he had shown us. The TV shows, which overhype it all for dramatic effect and are actually torturing the animals to make them behave the way they do have nothing on this man and his buddies, who truly know and love the land.
While we wanted to make it all last forever, Grace had a plane to catch, so we all went back to respective abodes with plans for four of us to catch up again for supper.
What a supper it was. Thai again, at a different restaurant with lots of vegan options and it was wonderful, although all this cooked food is already making itself felt in the mornings (my diet is 98% raw vegan and 2% coffee, which is part of the state religion). We talked and laughed and had a beautiful time, and saying good-bye was hard.
When WSS and i headed back to my house after dropping off Ninja and Script, it began to hit me that our time together doesn't last long enough.
WSS will be in the area until Wednesday, and she has her rental now so she can wander to her heart's content. She is like me, and sometimes enjoys just being off by herself, discovering new things.
Today i get to start playing catch up with the laundry, dishes, cooking, and etc., that all got put on hold for several days.
The aftermath is worth the wonderful memories and good times.
Today is:
Armed Forces Day -- Mozambique
Join a Cabal of International Bankers Today Day -- internet generated, and only for people without a conscience
Kamarampaka Day -- Rwanda (Republic Day, marks the 1961 abolition of the monarchy)
National Comic Book Day -- internet generated, but go read one, they are fun
National Crabmeat Newberg Day
National Day of Remembrance for Murder Victims -- US
National One-Hit Wonder Day -- US, remembering those who had only one hit on the rock charts
National Youth Day -- Nauru
Old Holy Rood Eve -- OS calendar Holy Cross Eve, the last day to pick blackberries (after this, the devil poisons them because when he fell from heaven, he landed in a blackberry bush)
St. Cadoc's Day (Patron of the deaf; against cramps, deafness, glandular disorders, scrofula)
St. Finbarr's Day (Patron of Barra, Scotland; Cork, Ireland)
Thimphu Tsechu -- Thimphu, Bhutan (Drukpa Buddhism festival; through Friday)
Toad Tempting Day -- Fairy Calendar
World Ataxia Awareness Day
Yom Kippur -- Judaism (Day of Atonement; begins at sunset)
Birthdays Today:
Catherine Zeta-Jones, 1969
Will Smith, 1968
Scottie Pippen, 1965
Aida Turturro, 1962
Heather Locklear, 1961
Christopher Reeve, 1952
Mark Hamill, 1951
Cheryl Tiegs, 1947
Michael Douglas, 1944
Juliet Prowse, 1936
Glenn Gould, 1932
Barbara Walters, 1931
Shel Silverstein, 1930
Phil Rizzuto, 1918
Dmitri Shostakovich, 1906
William Faulkner, 1897
Ashikaga Yoshimitsu, 1358 (Japanese Shogun)
Today in History:
St. Ferment is beheaded in Amiens, France, after voyaging there to preach the gospel, 303
The Battle of Stamford Bridge marks the end of the Anglo-Saxon era, 1066
Columbus begins his second voyage, with 17 ships, 1493
Vasco Nunez de Balboa becomes the first European to see the Pacific Ocean from the west coast of the Americas, 1513
The first printing press in the Americas begins operations, 1639
Old Style date; two very accurate clocks are set in motion at the Royal Observatory at Greenwich, England, the start of Greenwich Mean Time, 1676
Ethan Allan, American Revolutionary War hero, is captured, 1775
Benedict Arnold joins the British, 1780
The first all-black university in the US, Howard University, is created by Congress, 1867
Yosemite National Park is established by Congress, 1890
Charles Follis becomes the first black to play professional American football, 1904
Birth of the remote control -- Leonardo Torres Quevedo successfully demonstrates the invention of the "Telekino" and guides a boat from the shore in the port of Bilbao, 1906
Jimmy Doolittle performs the first blind flight from Mitchel Field proving that full instrument flying from take off to landing is possible, 1929*
Central High School in Little Rock, Arkansas, is integrated by the use of United States Army troops, 1957
In a referendum, the people of Norway reject membership of the European Community, 1972
Belize joins the United Nations, 1981
The last of the Magdalene Asylums closes in Ireland, 1996
The Vitim event, a possible bolide (comet nucleus) impact in Siberia, Russia, 2002
China launches the spacecraft Shenzhou 7, 2008
*Personal family history: He was a great man, and taught my brothers to hunt dove.
The Jazz was lots of misunderstandings, and a great time anyway. As someone pointed out later, trying to organize us is like trying to herd cats.
Three of us made the early service at church. Grace, Di and i had coffee and a good sermon. When the collection plate was passed, Grace told me that she had no cash left, and that she had thought about waking up her roomie, CanDo, but didn't because she would feel awful about waking up her Jewish friend to ask for cash to throw in the plate at a Christian church! We inappropriately giggled right during the service over that one, especially since, CanDo being the sweet person she is, she would have turned her purse inside out to help. But we did stop after church where Grace could find an ATM and i could get more bottled water and ice for us to pack along on our trip.
We got back just in time to say goodbye to Dayeanu, who had to get back because of the animals and needing to help with her grandson.
As the rest of us gathered later and started to pull out of the driveway in two vehicles, Script was stung by a wasp inside the car. Our vehicle stopped, but CanDo had already pulled out and was around the corner and actually way ahead before she realized. A quick call and it was decided for them to go on ahead while we applied first aid. We would catch up in NOLA itself.
The drive fascinated Script and Eagle. They liked the "scenery," which is so common to me. Especially impressive to them was the 10 mile bridge over Lake Ponchartrain and the Bonnet Carre Spillway. Funny how what is to me so very common, to them is something to be exclaimed over.
Once we got down there, we knew it was time for lunch, so we decided on Franks. That was a bit of a trick, all of us catching up to each other. We try to meet at one place, but someone sees another interesting place to stop first, and anyway by the time we settled in at Franks all of us were more than ready to just plain sit. It was a good choice, as they accommodated us with regular, vegetarian, and vegan muffalettas.
After eating, we just walked, each of us heading out to see what we wanted to see most that was nearby. At one point i found myself in the Cathedral explaining some Catholic practices to Ninja, and at another in a rundown daiquiri shop so a couple of us could wet our whistles (not me, i fall asleep after half a glass of wine, so i don't bother). Right before we were to meet at Cafe du Monde, i ran up the street to the French Market Produce Stand for some real food -- fresh fruit.
The coffee and beignets were as good as usual, and it was nice to sit in the shade and have another nice talk with everyone. Dayeanu sent a text while i was there to say she had gotten home safely.
By this time, the sun was setting and we knew it was time to head home. One car was heading for the Garden District for a bit, the other to the airport to let WSS rent a car. My mistake was going to the Garden District because, at the airport, WSS got separated from everyone else. Di knows NOLA, but not the airport, as she drives in. So they couldn't find short term parking, and stopped on the highway to wait for her to rent her car and head back that way. After waiting quite a while, and lots of calls to her phone, they headed back, knowing that she could call me for directions.
She never called, and never answered, even though all of us tried many times to reach her. About an hour after i got home, she popped back up, having seen all of the scenery of our town trying to find my exit! She said she had fun going all over by herself, but it still makes me kick myself that i wasn't with her to make it easier.
Plans for Monday were finalized, and all of us settled down in our respective hotels or my abode, to eat and get some rest.
Today is:
Armed Forces Day -- Peru
Bicentenario de la Batalla de Tucuman -- Argentina
Constitution Day/Recoronation of King Norodom Sihanouk -- Cambodia
Do Impressions of Famous People Around the Office Day -- again, i wonder about the intentions of those who start these things
Family Day - A Day to Eat Dinner with Your Children(TM) -- sponsored by The National Center on Addiction and Substance Abuse at Columbia University
Feast of Our Lady of Mercy -- Catholic Christian
Lady of Mercedes Day -- Dominican Republic
La Merce -- Barcelona, Spain
Festival of the Latest Novelties -- an internet generated holiday to celebrate everything from traditional whoopie cushions to some of the more modern and weird novelty gifts out there; a great day for practical jokers
Going Forth of Isis -- Ancient Egyptian Calendar (date approximate)
Heritage Day -- South Africa
Independence Day/National Day -- Guinea-Bissau(1973)
International Women's Ecommerce Days -- through Friday (celebrating women's buying power)
Mahidol Day -- Thailand (commemorates the passing of Prince Father Mahidol Adulyadej, the "Father of Thai Modern Medicine")
Moose Day -- the day Bullwinkle J. Moose, from Frostbite Falls, MN, US, and his pal Rocky the Flying Squirrel debuted in 1959
National Bluebird of Happiness Day -- US (and no one knows why, but it's supposed to be a day to go spread some happiness)
National Cherries Jubilee Day
New Caledonia Day -- New Caledonia
Punctuation Day -- make sure you are using those punctuation marks correctly!
Republic Day -- Trinidad and Tobago
Santa Cruz Day -- Santa Cruz de la Sierra, Bolivia
Schwenkfelder Thanksgiving -- Pennsylvania Dutch followers of Silesian Reformation theology
St. Gerard's Day (Patron of Hungary)
St. Rupert's Day (Patron of Salzburg, Austria)
Birthdays Today:
Nia Vardalos, 1962
Phil Hartman, 1948
Linda McCartney, 1941
Jim Henson, 1936
Anthony Newley, 1931
Sheila MacRae, 1924
Jim McKay, 1921
F. Scott Fitzgerald, 1896
Horace Walpole, 1717
Today in History:
Prophet Muhammad completes his hijra from Mecca to Medina, 622
The last Emperor of the Komnenian restoration of the Byzantine Empire, Manuel I Komnenos, dies; the empire slips into terminal decline, 1180
The Dutch Republic surrenders New Amsterdam to England, 1664
The first autopsy and coroner's jury verdict is recorded in the state of Maryland, 1657
John Jay is appointed by George Washington as the first Chief Justice of the then six-person Supreme Court, which was instituted by the Federal Judiciary Act passed that same day, 1789
US Attorney General Office is created, 1789
The Northern Daily Times becomes the first provincial daily newspaper in London, 1853
Alexander Dey patents a dial time recorder, 1889
The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints officially renounces polygamy, 1890
U.S. President Theodore Roosevelt proclaims Devils Tower in Wyoming as the nation's first National Monument, 1906
Cathay Pacific Airways is founded in Hong Kong, 1946
The Honda Motor Company is founded, 1948
Forest fires black out the sun over portions of Canada and New England, and a Blue moon (in the astronomical sense) is seen as far away as Europe, 1950
Camp Nou, the largest stadium in Europe, is opened in Barcelona, 1957
President Dwight D. Eisenhower sends 101st Airborne Division troops to Little Rock, Arkansas, to enforce desegregation, 1957
The United States court of appeals orders the University of Mississippi to admit James Meredith, 1962
Swaziland joins the United Nations, 1968
Compu-Serve launches the first consumer internet service, which features the first public electronic mail service, 1979
Periodic Great White Spot observed on Saturn, 1990
Hurricane Rita devastates Beaumont, Texas, southwest Louisiana, and finishing off some of the parts of New Orleans and southeast Louisiana that Katrina missed, 2005
The G20 Summit in Pittsburgh, PA, US, marks the first use of LRAD for crowd control in the US, 2009
Three plantations in one day make for a wonderful day, but getting home from them after a fabulous restaurant meal at almost 11pm makes for not much time to blog.
Early is as early does, and i early got up and found directions everyplace and went and bought cold drinks and made a picnic lunch for all of us.
Then we hit the river, first to Evergreen Plantation. It is the best preserved plantation in the country, with almost all of the original buildings still extant and in situ. The owner only recently opened it to the public, and it is still a working plantation, with sugar cane grown on about 400 acres if i'm remembering correctly.
Oak Alley came next. It is one of the more "commercial", touristy sites, but the double column of oaks out front and behind are magnificent. Oaks were planted that way, facing the river, so that they would act as a wind tunnel, funneling the cooling river breezes right to the house, which was kept opened up most of the time. We had our picnic on the grounds there, and very much admired the costumes of the tour guides.
Finally we went to Houmas House. Wow. We bought tickets, went in, and since the next tour was in 5 minutes, a nice gentleman in a golf cart offered us a ride. After we got to our tour guide, who was also in a period dress, she asked if we realized that man was the owner of the plantation! He loves this place, has restored it so fabulously it's amazing, and hangs around the grounds when he's not in his office.
He also lives there, and his bedroom, with the period furnishings like the rest of the house, is part of the tour. The tour guide told us that on this particular morning, he had overslept, and she had walked in around 9am and he said he thought it was around six. She informed him it was nine and she was on her way to get her first tour group and he needed to get out of there! He smiled and got up and was gone by the time the tour got to his room.
Houmas House is also the home of one of Esquire Magazines' 20 best restaurants in the country, and that's where we had dinner. We talked, and laughed, and had a blast, and as i said, by the time i got home it was late.
Of course, i walked in to hungry kittens and a messy kitchen, but a couple of hard looks from me and the kids helped out, so i could write.
Today, NOLA is on the docket, after those of us who feel the need to tend to our souls attend church.
Today is
Al-Yaom Al-Watany -- Saudi Arabia (National Day/Founding of the Kingdom)
Augustalia -- Roman Empire (birthday of Caesar Augustus, still the traditional New Year's Day in Constantinople and in the Eastern Orthodox Church)
Bunster Winding -- Fairy Calendar
Checkers Day/Dogs in Politics Day -- thanks to Mr. Nixon; and i'm tempted t further comment, but this one is too easy
Citua -- Ancient Inca Empire (feast to the Moon, and to banish disease, in the month of Coyaraimi, date approximate)
Clypping the Church Ceremony -- Painswick, Gloucestershire, England (since 1321, surrounding the church hand in hand for the Clypping Hymn and an open air ceremony)
El Grito de Lares -- Lares, Puerto Rico (anniversary of the first uprising against Spanish rule in 1868)
Innergize Day -- the day to take time for yourself!
National White Chocolate Day
Neptune Day -- planet discovered this day in 1846 by Johann Galle of Germany
St. Adamnan's Day (Patron of Donegal, Ireland; Raphoe, Ireland)
St. Padre Pio's Day
XTERRA Trail Run Nationals -- Ogden/Snowbasin, UT, US (finale of the series of extreme runs held across the country through the year, featuring 21k of extreme, off-road trail runs)
Anniversaries Today:
The University of Alberta in Alberta, Canada, is founded, 1908
Birthdays Today:
Jason Alexander, 1959
Bruce Springsteen, 1949
Mary Kay Place, 1947
Paul Petersen, 1945
Julio Iglesias, 1943
Tom Lester, 1938
Ray Charles, 1930
John Coltrane, 1926
Mickey Rooney, 1920
Walter Pigeon, 1897
William H. McGuffey, 1800
Kublai Khan, 1215
Gaius Julius Caesar Augustus, BC63
Euripides, BC480
Today in History:
Concord of Worms, 1122
The first major battle of the Wars of the Roses, at Blore Heath in Staffordshire, 1459
First commencement exercises of Harvard College in Cambridge, Mass., 1642
Liechtenstein declares its independence from the German Empire, 1719
John Paul Jones' "Bon Homme Richard" defeats the HMS Serepis, 1779
Lewis and Clark arrive back in St. Louis from their explorations, 1806
The Knickerbockers Baseball Club, the first baseball team to play under the modern rules, is founded in New York, 1845
Neptune is discovered by French astronomer Urbain Jean Joseph Le Verrier and British astronomer John Couch Adams, 1846
Nintendo Koppai, later known as Nintendo Company, Limited, is founded by Fusajiro Yamauchi; it produces and markets the playing card game Hanafuda, 1889
The Phantom of the Opera (original title: Le Fantome de l'Opera), a novel by French writer Gaston Leroux, was first published, 1909
The MS Princess of Tasmania, Australia’s first passenger roll-on/roll-off diesel ferry, makes her maiden voyage across Bass Strait, 1959
Philippine President Ferdinand Marcos announces over television and radio the implementation of martial law, 1972
Juan Perón returns to power in Argentina, 1973
Saint Kitts and Nevis joins the United Nations, 1983
Qantas Flight 1 overruns the runway in Bangkok during a storm; some passengers only receive minor injuries, it is still the worst crash in Qantas's history, 1991
The first public version of the web browser Mozilla Firefox ("Phoenix 0.1") is released, 2002
Hurricane Jeanne strikes Haiti and leaves at least 1,070 dead, 2004
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