When Sweetie went to college, he majored in archaeology. He helped dig up an early French fort, among other things. He has mapped Indian mounds in the swamps, and helped bring back coprolite (fossilized dinosaur poop) to museums. He curates part time, as part of his current job.
The kids take after him, in that they love to dig in other people's garbage. That is really most of what archaeology is, digging through people's garbage. As Sweetie says, Indiana Jones only lives in the movies, it isn't nearly that glam and it doesn't pay much.
#2 Son came in with a piece of pottery he found at the creek, and had the girls go try to help him find the rest. It looks like the spout for a water pitcher, and has what appear to be stylized Indian figures on it. They are obviously not Native, but it looks very old, and we know this area has been "settled" for some time. It could be several decades old, at least.
So #2 Son is wanting his dad to send a picture of it to his old mentor, his head professor. That will be done next week. Meanwhile, he is not letting the disappointment of not finding more right away deter him. Louisiana Jones is on it, and will be digging in the creek, cold feet notwithstanding, over the next few days.
He needs to remember the pay is lousy, but at this point, it really doesn't matter.
Today is:
Day of Bruma -- Ancient Roman Calendar
Fete de l'Escalade -- Geneva, Switzerland (Scaling Day)
International Mountain Day -- UN
National Noodle Ring Day
Nose-Scrambling and Hair-Hiking Events -- Fairy Calendar
One of the four Agonalia, this day in honor of Sol Indiges; also the Septimontium festival -- Roman Empire
Pampanga Day -- Pampanga Province, the Philippines
Remembrance Day of Llywelyn II -- Wales
Republic Day -- Burkina Faso
St. Damasus' Day
St. Daniel's Day
St. Gentian's Day
Tango Day, the birthday of Julio de Caro and Carlos Gardel -- Buenos Aires
UNICEF Day -- UN
Anniversaries Today:
Indiana becomes the 19th US State, 1816
Birthdays Today:
Rider Strong, 1979
Jermaine Jackson, 1954
Teri Garr, 1949
Brenda Lee, 1944
John Kerry, 1943
Donna Mills, 1942
Rita Moreno, 1931
Aleksandr Solzhenitsyn, 1918
Carlo Ponti, 1913
Fiorello LaGuardia, 1882
Today in History:
Honoratus, the first known Prefect of the City of Constantinople, takes office, 359
Llywelyn the Last (born c. 1228) the last native Prince of Wales, is killed at Cimeri, 1282
The Aurora Borealis is seen from New England by English settlers for the first time, 1719
The first newspaper on Curacao is published, the Curacao Gazette & Commercial Advertiser, 1812
Nitrous oxide is used in dental work for the first time in Hartford, Connecticut, 1844
Boston's Bijou Theatre becomes the first American theater lit exclusively by electricity, premiering Gilbert and Sullivan's "Iolanthe" as its first performance, 1882
The New Zealand Parliament Buildings are almost completely destroyed by fire, 1907
Color moving pictures are demonstrated in Madison Square Garden, 1909
The Boll Weevil Monument is dedicated in Enterprise, Alabama, 1919
The British Parliament enacts the Statute of Westminster 1931, establishing legislative equality between the self-governing dominions of the Commonwealth of Australia, the Dominion of Canada, the Irish Free State, Dominion of Newfoundland, the Dominion of New Zealand, and the Union of South Africa, 1931
Bill Wilson, co-founder of Alcoholics Anonymous, takes his last drink and enters treatment for the last time, 1934
Arthur Lucas, convicted of murder, is the last person to be executed in Canada, 1962
Apollo 17 becomes the sixth and last Apollo mission to land on the Moon, 1972
The Kyoto Protocol opens for signature, 1997
The People's Republic of China joins the World Trade Organization, 2001
"Mom, you've got to hear this!" #2 Son came in bursting with something important to impart.
"Guess what?"
Do I have to?
"I got kicked out of Home Depot!"
They let you back in after last time?
"No, that was Lowe's, this is different."
Really. The sarcasm of my comment was lost on him, as usual.
"I was there with Sammy and his dad, and we were just in the aisle with the sledgehammers and stuff, and we were picking them up, trying to decide if we wanted to buy one, and this guy came along and told us to get out of the store, that we weren't allowed to be in there without parental supervision. And we tried to tell him that Sammy's dad was outside tying the Christmas tree on the car, and we were only going to be in there for about 5 minutes while he did that, and the guy said we had to leave. So we said we would go to another aisle, and he grabbed us by the backs of our coat collars and hauled us out of there. It was annoying!"
Son, when an adult asks you to do something, and it isn't illegal or immoral, you do as you are told.
"Awww, but mom, we wanted to buy a sledgehammer or something!"
Son, the last thing I need around here is the headache you would cause with a sledgehammer. You cause enough headaches with a regular one, thank you.
At that point, he humphed and walked out. Christmas break is coming up soon. I'm very afraid.
Today is:Constitution Day -- ThailandInternational Animal Rights DayInternational Human Rights DayLux Mundi -- Ancient Roman Calendar (honoring Libertas as the bringer of light into the world)National Lager DayNobeldagen -- Sweden (Alfred Nobel's Day, presentation of the Nobel Prize)St. Eulalia's Day (patron of Barcelona, childbirth, sailors, travelers, calm waters; against miscarriage)Anniversaries Today:Mississippi becomes the 20th US State, 1817Birthdays Today:Raven-Symone, 1985Bobby Flay, 1964Kenneth Branach, 1960Susan Dey, 1952Dan Blocker, 1928Dorothy Lamour, 1914Chet Huntley, 1911Emily Dickinson, 1830Today in History:Martin Luther publicly burns the papal edict demanding that he recant, 1520Isaac Newton's paper De Motu Corporum in Gyrum, containing the derivation of Kepler's laws from his theory of gravity, is read to the Royal Society by Edmund Halley, 1684The Massachusetts Bay Colony becomes the first American Colonial government to borrow money, 1690The metric system is formally established in France, 1799The first traffic lights are installed outside the Palace of Westminster in London, 1868Women's suffrage is granted in Wyoming Territory, the first in the US, 1869Women are granted suffrage in Tasmania, 1902The 10,000,000th Model T Ford is assembled, 1915The Grand Ole Opry makes its radio debut, in Nashville, Tn, 1927UN General Assembly adopts the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, 1948Ralph J Bunche becomes the first black to receive the Nobel Peace Prize, 1950The United Nations General Assembly approves Pakistan's proposal for establishing nuclear free-zone in South Asia, 1981The last shift leaves Wearmouth Colliery in Sunderland; the closure of the 156-year-old pit marks the end of the old County Durham coalfield, which had been in operation since the Middle Ages, 1993
#2 Son is having a bonfire party on the night of the equinox, which is also the full moon, the 21st. There will be about 20 kids gathered around out there, making s'mores and drinking soda and generally being rambunctious teens.
They will need an extension cord, too, because they want to have their music out there as well, of course.
So I will be checking the fire extinguishers and making sure the hose is still hooked up and working.
Then, stepping into the hall this morning, I saw a sign hung from a ribbon crossing the back corner of the hall, blocking off Little Girl's door.
The note read: I have only had 6 hours sleep in the last two days, so anyone who wakes me up had better have a good reason!
Well, in both cases, I will consider myself as having been put on notice.
Today is:
Anna's Day -- Sweden and Finland (commemorates the conception of the Virgin Mary by St. Anne, celebration for all females named Anne or Anna, and the day to start the processing of the Christmas Eve lutefisk.)
Christmas Card Day (the first commercial card went on sale on this day in 1843)
Day of Remembrance for Egil Skallagrimsson -- Asatru religion (modern vikings)
End of Days of Reckoning -- Fairy Calendar
Feast of the Conception of the Most Holy Theotokos by St. Anne -- Orthodox Church
Home Made Gift Day
Independence Day -- Tanzania
International Anti-Corruption Day
National Heroes Day -- Antigua and Barbuda
National Pastry Day
St. Leocadia's Day
Weary Willie Day (Emmet Kelley, Sr.'s Birthday)
Yuri's Day in the Autumn -- Russian Orthodox Church
Birthdays Today:
David Kersh, 1970
Jakob Dylan, 1969
Kurt Angle, 1968
Felicity Huffman, 1962
Donny Osmond, 1957
John Malkovich, 1953
Dick Butkus, 1942
Beau Bridges, 1941
Judy Dench, 1934
Buck Henry, 1930
Dick Van Patten, 1928
Dina Merrill, 1925
Redd Foxx, 1922
Kirk Douglas, 1916
Douglas Fairbanks, Jr., 1909
Margaret Hamilton, 1902
Emmet Kelley, Sr., 1898
John Milton, 1608
Today in History:
The Byzantine General Belisarius enters Rome while the Ostrogothic garrison peacefully leaves the city, returning the old capital to its empire, 536
New York City's first daily newspaper, the American Minerva, is established by Noah Webster, 1793
The Republic of Texas captures San Antonio, Texas, 1835
The first Young Men's Christian Association in the Americas is founded, in Montreal, 1851
Pinckney Benton Stewart Pinchback becomes governor of Louisiana for 35 days, becoming the first black US governor, 1872
Levant Richardson patents the ball-bearing skate, 1884
Statistician Herman Hollerith installs his computing device at the United States War Department, 1888
The Norwegian parliament vote unanimously for female suffrage, 1903
The first broadcast of "Coronation Street" on British ITV, 1960
Barbados joins the United Nations, 1966
NLS (a system for which hypertext and the computer mouse were developed) is publicly demonstrated for the first time in San Francisco, 1968
The United Arab Emirates join the United Nations, 1971
The eradication of the smallpox virus is certified, 1979
It was the last day for co-op for this semester. No classes for most of us, except the piano students, who needed to practice their pieces for performance day, and a couple of the for credit high school classes.
There was standing room only for the showing of the movies the film making classes had done. One was How to be Perfect in Three Days, and the other was Freckle Juice. The kids adapted the scripts, acted, directed, and made their own props. Pure hilarity.
Then the gift exchange. The kids are divided into separate rooms by ages, so that there are no more than 20 in a room. Then all the boys put their gifts in one pile, the girls in another. Each child chooses a number from a bowl, and they go pick a gift in that order from their respective pile. It is supposed to take up about half an hour of the morning. It takes about 5 minutes. When kids want to open a present, there is no waste of time.
Finally, off to the fellowship hall for displays of art, photography, the K'nex projects, and the performances. Choir angels sang again, this time without their costumes. The dancers repeated their dance. Public speaking students, piano, violin, amen.
Good-bye, all, until next semester. I have a few weeks to decide on recipes to come.
Today is:
Astraea's Day -- Ancient Greek Calendar (goddess of justice)
Beach Day and Blessing of the Waters -- Uruguay
Bodhi Day (Rohatsu) -- Buddhism in Japan
CAROCOM-Cuba Day
Constitution Day -- Romania; Uzbekistan
Day of the National Army of Spain
Feast of the Immaculate Conception -- Roman Catholic Holy Day of Obligation
Festa da Conceição da Praia -- Salvador da Bahia, Brazil (celebrating Yemanjá, Queen of the Ocean)
Festival of Lights -- Lyon
Mother's Day -- Panama
National Brownie Day
National Students' Day -- Bulgaria
Take It In the Ear Day
Winter Flowers Day
Birthdays Today:
Teri Hatcher, 1964
Kim Basinger, 1953
Sam Kinison, 1953
Gregg Allman, 1947
Jim Morrison, 1943
James Galway, 1939
David Carradine, 1936
Flip Wilson, 1933
Maximilian Schell, 1930
Sammy Davis, Jr. 1925
Richard Fleischer, 1916
Lee J. Cobb, 1911
James Thurber, 1894
Diego Rivera, 1886
Jean Sibelius, 1865
Mary, Queen of Scots, 1542
Horace (Quintus Horatius Flaccus), Roman writer, BC65
Today in History
Daitokuji temple, Rinzai line, established in Kyoto by Daito Kokushi, 1326
Biblioteca Ambrosiana opens its reading room, the second public library of Europe, 1609
The Mexican border town Ciudad Juárez is founded by Fray García de San Francisco, 1659
Margaret Hughes becomes the first actress to appear on an English public stage, playing the role of Desdemona in a production of Shakespeare's play Othello, 1660
Vienna's Ring Theater is destroyed by fire, killing over 600, 1881
The American Federation of Labor is formed by 26 individual craft unions, and Samuel Gompers is elected its first president, 1886
The Japanese military police launch a violent suppression of the religious sect Oomoto, 1935
The Chinese Nationalist government moves from mainland China to Formosa, 1949
John Lennon is murdered, 1980
The leaders of Russia, Belarus and Ukraine sign an agreement dissolving the Soviet Union and establishing the Commonwealth of Independent States, 1991
The Cuzco Declaration is signed in Cuzco, Peru, establishing the South American Community of Nations, 2004
Kirsty Williams is elected the first female leader of a political party in Wales, the Welsh Liberal Democrats, 2008
...to err is human, but to really fowl things up requires technology.
We arrived to a flurry of activity, and the director calling for her lime green scissors. Of course, they weren't found until after the play -- under all the flower bouquets. I headed straight for the kitchen to organize the refreshments that were being brought, and located a spare pair of scissors while in there.
More running, lots of activity, and lots of, "Do you have a bowl for these chips" and "Do you have something to serve this on?" Of course I did, and I arranged them all, too. Ah, the joys of being the cooking teacher. It means you're the only one who knows what's where in the kitchen. It also means you're the only one who knows how to set the ovens to warm, where to stash the cold stuff in those fridges, and how the cranky garbage disposer works. I guess I should think of it as job security.
Little Girl had disappeared into the back to get ready, and #2 Son was having a grand reunion with his friends, and meeting new kids who have joined the co-op since he's been gone. They had all heard about him, and Bernie stayed totally and completely away from him. That, trust me, is a good thing.
Costumed children ran around with excitement, and their brothers, sisters, and cousins egged them on. As the time drew nearer, I stood in the kitchen doorway where I could see the stage, and a few other things as well.
They had hung curtains so there would be an offstage area. From the center of the room, this worked well. From the angle at which I stood, you could see them leaving the offstage area and ducking into the back rooms when they needed to, giggling, pushing, and being typical kids.
Also from back there, I had the unique privilege of being among the baby brigade. The moms with small children stand back there with the kids, so they can make a quick exit when needed, into the kitchen to quiet a squalling little one. I armed myself with crackers and a few cookies, and stood prepared to pop them in the mouths of any who opened wide with intent to roar. It worked.
Everything grew quiet, they were about to start. The director made her speech, and cued the sound guy. The next thing we heard was the noise of Windows restarting. Oops. Technical difficulties. A few minutes later it was all put to right, and the first actors made their entrance.
We began with the poor, the lame, the elderly tottering in to sit in the city gate and complain about the taxes. The Romans, cruel oppressors, came in demanding people either pay up or become tax collectors themselves. One takes them up on the offer, and the rest get upset with him and exit, stage right, forgetting that they are supposed to be lame and elderly and such and skipping away.
Cue the angel chorus. They missed the cue. They came in. They had gotten mixed up in line and had to rearrange themselves. They sing beautifully, then sit for the next scenes, two of the littlest angels playing with the bows in each other's hair. They would miss their cue 3 times total, but it's all good. When they finally sing, they sing. You know they mean it.
A scene in which Isaiah the prophet tells what he knows about how this is all supposed to play out, and then in comes Mary for her encounter with the angel Gabriel. Little Girl got all of her lines, and actually acted, instead of pretending not to care what she was doing.
Now an encounter for Joseph with -- his best friend, who is trying to talk him out of his pre-wedding jitters. They ended the talk with Joseph agreeing to pray and then sleep on it, and high fived each other with a "Later, dude!" Only then did Joseph get to have his angel dream.
Next, Elizabeth, cousin of Mary, gives a monologue about her part in the story, and the birth of John the Baptist. The young lady who gave that speech is a fabulous little actress. Even knowing the story you wanted to hear what she was going to say next.
Mary, obviously pregnant (soccer ball under the costume) comes in with Joseph, and for the first time I noticed she is a good inch taller than he is. They talk about how they are going to get to Bethlehem, and the neighbors comment that they are crazy to be traveling with her so far along.
Off they go, though, stage left, with Joseph following his supposed beloved in a very lackadaisical fashion, as though not much concerned about what will happen next. There is a discussion between two men about how if they had known it was the Savior being born, they would have found them room. Mary and Joseph come back in and knock on each door, cleverly represented by actors in black clothing, who stand with hands up to repulse them, and refuse to allow them past. They finally get told to go into the stable out back, of course, and exit again.
Next up are the shepherds, one even carrying a (stuffed) sheep. The angel appears, and the angel chorus gives us another round. Mary and Joseph come back with the baby, a real, live baby. This is the one that behaves, she tells me. The shepherds ask to hold him, and Mary says, "Of course, he has come for all of us." A quick game of pass the baby, during which the child was miraculously not dropped, and all exit.
Meanwhile, groups of actors who have to come back in through the audience are running outside, around the building, to the other entrance. I am standing where I am not only tending stuff in the kitchen and plying babies with rocket fuel (sugar), I can see and hear the patter of little feet outside as they run past, squealing because it is so cold out there. Each time I go in the kitchen, I lean over to look in the foyer and tell them what a good job they are doing.
The dancers come in next, so the angel chorus has to exit, to give them room. They push and giggle their way off the stage, and the dance begins. Beautiful girls doing a ribbon dance, and one, bless her heart, was always one step or half a circle behind all the others. There's one in every dance class.
As the dancers leave the stage, to run outside and back into the other end of the building, you hear the crying begin. Yep, there he is, the little one who played "toddler Jesus". Kid was wailing before they even got to the stage, and Mary and Joseph had to lead him out. Little Girl had said he was annoying, and why they didn't use a child without separation anxiety I cannot understand for the life of me.
Cue the wise men. Then, the rest of the cast come forth to present gifts, too. Nothing phased him, until the girl who had played Elizabeth came up. That happened to be his own sister. She sat down between Mary and Joseph and took him in her lap, and instant quiet. I had thought about bringing him a cookie, like I did with the rest of the little ones, but this worked better.
So the play ends with Elizabeth, cousin of Mary, holding Jesus, because he didn't want his "mama". Curtain.
Of course, there are the bows, and the flowers, and the flurry of activity in the kitchen. The children in the audience were so famished they hardly waited for us to set up the tables. We rushed the food out as quickly as we could, and when it was all said and done, there were about half a dozen cookies left from 4 tables of snacks and goodies. The mini hot dog plate never even made it to the table.
Little Girl got back into her street clothes and came to the kitchen with lightning speed, asking what she could do to help. So she took over at the sink, washing the serving dishes. I couldn't get her to stop, she insisted. As I ran food out and brought empty dishes and bowls back in, she stood and washed. By the time people were ready to leave, all of the church kitchen items were back in place, and everyone's personal serving dishes and bowls were cleaned and on the counter ready to be claimed.
All in all, a good, fun evening, and great performances that we will reminisce about for years to come.
Today is:
Armed Forces Flag Day -- India
Día de las Velitas -- Columbia
Enlightenment Day -- Buddhist
Haloia of Demeter -- Ancient Roman Calendar
Hang a Wreath Day
International Civil Aviation Day
Letter Writing Day
National Cotton Candy Day
Pearl Harbor Remembrance Day -- US
Quema del Diablo, Guatemala (burning of the devil)
St. Ambrose's Day
Spitak Remembrance Day -- Armenia
Anniversaries Today:
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
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
Tonight is the Christmas play, and Little Girl is playing Mary.
They are not using a doll for the baby, they are using two of the many nursery kids that happen to be the right ages. One is a small baby, only a couple of months old, and she is terrified of it. The other is a toddler for the scene with the Magi, where the Child was supposed to be a bit older, or so it seems. Apparently that one screams a lot when his mom leaves him on stage, and she is slightly repulsed by all the ick that pours from every orifice.
I am so looking forward to this. That screaming laughter, followed by the enjoyment of cookies and punch, will be yet another rendition of the Christmas story that leaves everyone smiling and with a great story to tell.
Best two I've heard so far is the one where the baby spit up on Joseph, who just turned to the audience and said, "What do you expect, he's a baby!" and the one in which one of the tiny angels finally noticed, during the play, that the doll was hers from home, and started saying, "My baby! My baby!" in the middle of it all.
We'll see if this one ranks up there, and if so, I'll provide gory details tomorrow.
On the kitten front, they are all eating, and leaving nasty messes all over the floor. Beats the alternative by a mile.
Today is:
Christkind -- Central and Southern Europe (traditional gift giving day)
Constitution Day -- Spain
Day of Quito -- Ecuador (founding of the city in 1534)
Give a Secret Gift Day (Obviously in honor of the original St. Nicholas.)
Independence Day -- Finland
Miner's Day -- West Virginia, US
National Day of Remembrance and Action on Violence Against Women -- Canada
National Gazpacho Day
National Mitten Tree Day
National Pawn Broker's Day
Sindhi Topi and Ajrak Day -- Sindh, Pakistan
St. Nicholas of Myra's Day (patron of bakers, barrel makers, bootblacks, brides, brewers, children, dockworkers, fishermen, Greece, pawnbrokers, perfumers, Russia, Sicily, spinsters, thieves, travelers)
Thor's Day
Birthdays Today:
Andrew J. Howard, 1969
Andrew Cuomo, 1957
Peter Buck, 1956
Randy Rhoads, 1956
Steven Wright, 1955
Tom Hulce, 1953
David Ossman, 1936
Wally Cox, 1924
Dave Brubeck, 1920
Agnes Moorehead, 1906
Ira Gershwim, 1896
Lynn Fontanne, 1887
Joyce Kilmer, 1886
William S. Hard, 1870
John Singleton Mosby, 1833
Today in History:
The Mongols under Batu Khan occupy and destroy Kiev, 1240
Don Alfonso V of Aragon grants Barcelona the right to exclude Jews, 1424
The first edition of the Encyclopedia Brittanica is published, in Scotland, 1768
Harriet Tubman escapes slavery, 1849
The 13th Amendment to the US Constitution is ratified, abolishing slavery, 1865
The first crematorium in the Us begins operation, in Washington, Pennsylvania, 1876
London becomes the first city to license taxicabs, 1897
One year to the day after the signing of the Anglo-Irish Treaty, the Irish Free State comes into existence, 1922
U.S. federal judge John M. Woolsey rules that the James Joyce's novel Ulysses is not obscene, 1933
The Vanguard rocket, the first US attempt to launch a satellite, fails, 1957
The Canadian province of Newfoundland is renamed Newfoundland and Labrador, 2001
NASA reveals photographs taken by Mars Global Surveyor suggesting the presence of liquid water on Mars, 2006
Good news/Bad news day.
Bad news. Not a single adoption from the adoption event I had to run my 3 boys to. That after juggling to get their microchips done at the vet's where one of the microchips came back out and had to be sterilized and reinserted and that made us late and then getting them there, and no one was expecting them even though I had been assigned to that store so we had to set up an extra cage. Whew. Three adoptions at the other store. Figures.
Good news. All the kittens are still hanging in there, and Ashfur is eating voluntarily again. I have them all on reglan and biomox and fortiflora and that is all I can do. The rest is up to them, and since they are eating they have a shot.
Today is:
AFL-CIO Day (date of merger in 1955)
Bathtub Party Day
Bonhomme Noel -- France
Day of the Ninja -- sponsored by Ninja Burger!
Discovery Day -- Haiti
Faunalia -- Roman Empirical Calendar (festival of Faunus, through the 8th)
International Volunteer Day for Economic and Social Development
King's Birthday -- Thailand, also National Day and Father's Day
Krampus -- Austria (St. Nicholas celebration)
National Sacher Torte Day
Nones of December -- Ancient Roman Calendar
Repeal Day, celebrating the repeal of Prohibition -- US
Skywarn Recognition Day
St. Clement of Alexandria's Day
St. Nicholas' Eve -- Belgium; Czech Republic; Hungary; Netherlands; Romania; Slovakia; parts of the UK
St. Saba's Day
Birthdays Today:
Gary Allan, 1967
John Rzeznik, 1965
Morgan Brittany, 1951
Jim Messina, 1947
J.J. Cale, 1938
Little Richard, 1932
Otto Preminger, 1906
Strom Thurmond, 1902
Walt Disney, 1901
George Armstrong Custer, 1839
Martin Van Buren, 1782
Today in History:
Cicero reads the last of his Catiline Orations, BC63
An earthquake in Naples leave about 35,000 dead, 1465
All Jews are expelled from Portugal by order of King Manuel I, 1496
London auctioneers Christie's hold their first sale, 1766
Henry Knox begins the transport of Fort Ticonderoga artillery to Cambridge, Massachusetts, a key to later forcing the British Fleet out of Boston Harbor, 1775
C F Schoenbein obtains patent for cellulose nitrate explosive, 1846
President Polk confirms that gold has been discovered in California, triggering the next year's "Gold Rush", 1848
Daniel Stillson of Massachusetts patents the first practical pipe wrench, 1876
The first automated telephone switching system is patented, 1879
The first electric car makes its debut; it could go 15 miles between charges, 1893
University of Pittsburgh makes the first use of numbers on football jerseys, 1908
The American League for Physical Culture is founded in NYC, the first US nudist organization, 1929
The 21st Amendment, which repealed Prohibition, is ratified, 1933
Sister Elizabeth Kenny's new treatment for infantile paralysis receives approval, 1941
A cold fog descends upon London, combining with air pollution and killing at least 12,000 in the weeks and months that follow, 1952
The United Nations General Assembly adopts Pakistan's resolution on security of non-Nuclear States, 1976
The Civil Partnership Act comes into effect in the United Kingdom, and the first civil partnership is registered there, 2005
