messymimi's meanderings

As i stand here trying to decide what to write about Veterans' Day that hasn't been written before, and much better than i could ever do it, i'm torn.

My mind keeps straying back, my eyes drawn to the images, of the typhoon.

Then i start remembering the hurricanes.

This area gets hit hard, but we have resources. We go a few weeks without electricity, we live off of canned goods and use bottled water if we have to, and we go on, usually with insurance money to help us if we had a devastating loss.

The Philippinos were hit by a storm as big as, if not bigger than, anything that's ever hit the US, and they've lost more people than we ever have. There's nothing left to rebuild in some places, and the looting has begun as people get desperate for water and food.

The typhoon isn't through, either -- it's heading toward the mainland, and has already started to batter Vietnam.

Then there's the new storm brewing that might take the exact same path. We had people here who managed to escape with only minor damage to their homes from Hurricane Katrina, only to have Hurricane Rita follow three weeks later and finish the job. It's looking to be the same scene there, only worse.

It's a day to honor and remember those who have served in the military, and i don't want to minimize it.

It's just hard for me to concentrate on that when the scenes in the news play to some of the worst memories i have.

While you are remembering veterans today, if you have time, and want to, remember the people who are suffering from devastating loss in the Philippines and Asia. If you have resources to share, there are a good many groups already trying to bring aid. (Be careful there. Scum come out of the woodwork with stuff like this, trying to divert your hard earned money that you want to use to do good into their own pockets because they are slime that cannot properly earn their own living. Give to charities you know and recognize, and on their websites that you type directly into the address bar on your browser, not from a link in an email.)

Today is:

Armistice Day/Poppy Day/Remembrance Day/Veterans Day

Bonza Bottler Day™

Canadian Western Agribition -- IPSCO Place, Regina, SK, Canada (Canada's premier agriculture showcase; through Saturday)

Constitution Day and King's Birthday -- Bhutan

Day of Remembrance of the Volhvs/Einherjar Feast -- Asatru/Slavic Pagan Calendar (Norse "Feast of the Fallen")

Death/Duty Day

Fasching/Karneval -- Germany; Netherlands (official beginning of next year's pre-lent celebration starts on 11/11 at 11:11, when the Council of Eleven, in colorful fools caps, meet to plan the upcoming festivities)

Four Ones Day -- it is 11/11, after all

Heir to the Throne Day -- Tuvalu (Prince of Wales birth anniversary celebration)

Hollantide Day a/k/a Hallow-tide -- Isle of Mann (season of All Saints, first day of Winter, celebrated in conjunction with Martintide, the Feast of St. Martin of Tours)

Independence Day -- Angola(1975); Poland(1918)

Independence of Cartagena City -- Colombia

Lacplesis -- Latvia (Remembrance Day)

Lunantishees Day -- Ireland (Fairies who guard the blackthorn trees, cutting a branch today, the old calendar's November 1, means bad luck.)

National Sundae Day

National Young Readers' Week -- US, sponsored by Pizza Hut's BookIt! Program and the Library of Congress

Old November Eve -- In the old calendar, this was actually All Hallows Eve

Origami Day -- Japan

Pepero Day -- South Korea (similar to a Valentine's Day, when couples exchange Pepero brand cookie sticks)

Pocky and Pretz Day -- Japan (see Pepero day, but substitute the Japanese brand cookie sticks)

Republic Day -- Maldives

Singles Day -- China (Guang Gun Jie, literally "bare sticks day", celebrating the single life on the calendar date that has the most 1's)

St. Martin's Day a/k/a St. Martin of Tours's Day (Western), Martinmas (Old England) (Patron of beggars, cavalry, equestrians, geese, horses, innkeepers, Pontifical Swiss Guards, quartermasters, reformed alcoholics, riders, soldiers, tailors, vintners/wine growers and makers; against alcoholism, impoverishment; highly celebrated through Sweden, Switzerland, and the island of St. Martin/St. Maarten and Patron of over 25 diocese, cities, and countries around the world)
     Beggar's Day -- Netherlands (children act as beggars on St. Martin's Day, similar to trick-or-treat in English speaking countries)
     Martinigians -- Sursee, Switzerland (a celebration of the day in front of Town Hall)
     St. Maarten Day -- Sint Maarten

St. Menas of Egypt's Day (Patron of falsely accused people, peddlers, traveling merchants)

Veterans of Foreign Wars Day -- Federated States of Micronesia

World Orphans Day -- originally an initiative of The Stars Foundation; cannot find a current sponsor, although there is a Facebook page for this day

Anniversaries Today:

Vietnam Women's Memorial is dedicated, 1993
Route 66 is established by the US Highway System, 1926
The Tomb of the Unknown Soldier at Arlington National Cemetery is dedicated, 1921
Washington becomes the 42nd US State, 1889

Birthdays Today:

Leonardo DiCaprio, 1974
Peta Wilson, 1970
Calista Flockhart, 1964
Demi Moore, 1962
Marc Summers, 1951
Bibi Andersson, 1935
Jonathan Winters, 1925
Kurt Vonnegut, Jr., 1922
Alger Hiss, 1904
Pat O'Brien, 1899
George Patton, 1885
Fyodor Mikhailovich Dostoyevsky, 1821
Abigail Smith Adams,1744

Debuting/Premiering Today:

First public performance of "God Bless America", 1938

Today in History:

The Congress of Carnuntum: Attempting to keep peace within the Roman Empire, the leaders of the Tetrarchy declare Maxentius and Licinius to be Augusti, while rival contender Constantine I is declared Caesar of Britain and Gaul, 308
41 pilgrims land in Massachusetts, sign Mayflower Compact, 1620
Massachusetts passes 1st US compulsory school attendance law, 1647
Gottfried Leibniz demonstrates integral calculus for the first time to find the area under the graph of y = ƒ(x), 1675
The F.H.C. Society, also known as the Flat Hat Club, is formed at Raleigh Tavern, Williamsburg, Virginia, as the first college society in the US, 1750
Chrysanthemums are introduced into England from China, 1790
British and Canadian forces defeat a larger American force, causing the Americans to abandon their Saint Lawrence campaign, 1813
Mary Edward Walker, the 1st Army female surgeon, is awarded the Medal of Honor, 1865
The Victorian Aboriginal Protection Act is enacted in Australia, giving the government control of indigenous people's wages, their terms of employment, where they could live, and of their children, effectively leading to the Stolen Generations, 1869
The 11/11/11 cold wave: Many cities in the U.S. Midwest broke their record highs and lows on the same day as a strong cold front rolled through, 1911
The Tomb of the Unknowns is dedicated by US President Warren G. Harding at Arlington National Cemetery, 1921
Prime Minister Alexandros Papanastasiou proclaims the first recognized Greek Republic, 1924
U.S. Route 66 is established, 1926
Patent number US1781541 is awarded to Albert Einstein and Leó Szilárd for their invention, the Einstein refrigerator, 1930
The Shrine of Remembrance in Melbourne, Australia is opened, 1934
Kuwait's National Assembly ratifies the Constitution of Kuwait, 1962
NASA launches Gemini 12, 1966
Antigua and Barbuda joins the United Nations, 1981
The General Synod of the Church of England votes to allow women to become priests, 1992
New Zealand Tomb of the Unknown Warrior is dedicated at the National War Memorial, Wellington, 2004
Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II unveils the New Zealand War Memorial in London, United Kingdom, commemorating the loss of soldiers from the New Zealand Army and the British Army, 2006
The RMS Queen Elizabeth 2 (QE2) sets sail on her final voyage to Dubai, 2008

"Hey, mom, have you seen that picture of a sun that's about to go supernova that they took with one of those space telescopes? It's amazing, and so beautiful! Come look!" Little Girl was eager to show the picture, and then continued.

"They focused a telescope on a dark area of space near the moon, and left it focused there for a long time and took pictures, and it turns out the area is full of almost more galaxies than they can count!"

"Then there are the pictures of galaxies colliding, have you ever seen those?" #1 Son walked in and added to the conversation. "They swirl around each other and combine, and it's really neat looking."

"Did you know the Andromeda Galaxy is going to collide with ours someday?" Bigger Girl added.

So i heard, i noted.

"Yeah, but isn't it so many light years away that the light we are seeing from it is actually what was happening there a million or so years ago?" #1 Son asked.

That's my understanding, i said.

"And there's no way to get galaxy insurance," Bigger Girl grinned. "No one would underwrite it!"

As we laughed, Little Girl continued. "Have you heard about how many planets that may have life they are finding?"

"Yeah, there has to be at least bacteria out there somewhere, even if there isn't anything advanced. There's no way there can't be," #1 Son said.

As long as i don't catch that bacteria, i grinned.

"And even if we never see it because it's so far away, there probably is intelligent life out there," #1 Son continued. "We may never meet them."

There is, i said, and like Calvin told Hobbes, i believe they have proven their intelligence by never coming here. Besides, as Asimov said, the intelligent life out there someday may end up being humans in generational ships that get so far out there they lose the ability to communicate back to us and become their own species.

"That makes sense," #1 Son said. "After all, that Pioneer craft has finally left the solar system, or will leave it within a couple of months. They are still debating that.. It's amazing that we can actually make things that can leave our solar system now>'

"What are we talking about now?" Sweetie walked in from work and asked, as he had just caught a little of the last statement.

"Intelligent life on other planets," Little Girl said.

"We need the intelligent life here, to figure out how to solve our problems, like what to do with all of our garbage," he said.

"Well, don't send it to Mars!" Bigger Girl exclaimed.

"How about we blast it to the sun to be incinerated?" he said.

"Except it's too expensive now," Bigger Girl said.

"Well, I know what to do with mine!" Little Girl said.

"What's that?" Sweetie asked.

"Hold out your hand!" she said, and when he did, she put her orange peel into his hand and ran off laughing as he threw it back at her. They ran and chased each other, throwing that peel back and forth until it finally ended up in the garbage can.

That's another odd conversation in my lovely looney bin.

Today is:

A&W Rootbeer Mug Day -- see if you can frost your mug like they did

Birth of Baha'u'llah -- Baha'i

Birth of Sun Yat-Sen, Doctors Day, and Cultural Renaissance Day -- Taiwan

Chicken Soup for the Soul Day -- "Changing the world, one story at a time."

Constitution Day -- Azerbaijan

Dia del Cartero -- Mexico (Postman's Day; postal carriers are shown appreciation with small gifts left in mailboxes)

Journee Nationale Maore -- Comoros (Admission to the UN Day)

Khalkeia -- Ancient Greek Calendar (festival of smiths, associated with Hephaists and Athena; date approximate)

National Pizza with the Works Except Anchovies Day

National Youth Day -- East Timor

St. Emillian's Day (Patron of Spain, finding lost objects)

St. Josaphat's Day (Patron of Edmonton, Alberta; Toronto, Ontario; Ukraine)

Tewa Buffalo Dance -- Native American Tewa of the Tesuque Pueblo rites on the feast day of their Patron, San Diego, to honor Mother Earth, Father Sky, the four directions, and the elements; through the 15th

Triple Crown of Surfing -- Oahu, HI, US (3 separate events, through Dec. 20)

Anniversaries Today:

The Arches National Park established, 1971
Ellis Island closes, 1954

Birthdays Today:

Anne Hathaway, 1982
Sammy Sosa, 1968
Michael Moorer, 1967
David Schwimmer, 1966
Nadia Comaneci, 1961
Neil Young, 1945
Al Michaels, 1944
Wallace Shawn, 1943
Grace Kelly, 1929
Jo Stafford, 1918
Sun Yat-sen, 1866
Auguste Rodin, 1840
Elizabeth Cady Stanton, 1815

Debuting/Premiering Today:

The first Sunday American-style football game is held in Philadelphia, 1933

Today in History:

Tibetan troops occupy Chang'an, the capital of the Chinese Tang Dynasty, for fifteen days starting today, 764
Plymouth, England, becomes the first town incorporated by the English Parliament, 1439
Sir James Young Simpson, a British physician, is the first to use chloroform as an anaesthetic, 1847
Jules Leotard performs 1st Flying Trapeze circus act (Paris); he also designed garment that bears his name, 1859
World's Fair in Paris opens, 1900
The first movie stunt: man jumps into Hudson river from a burning balloon, 1910
Norway holds a referendum in favor of monarchy over republic, 1905
Robert Scott's diary & body are found in Antarctica, 1912
Austria becomes a republic, 1918
The first underwater tunnel, the Holland Tunnel connecting NY to NJ opens, 1927
The first photo of whatever is in Loch Ness is taken, 1933
Morocco, Sudan and Tunisia join the United Nations, 1956
Equatorial Guinea joins the United Nations, 1968
The Comoros joins the United Nations, 1975
The NASA space probe Voyager I makes its closest approach to Saturn and takes the first images of its rings, 1980
The Space Shuttle Columbia becomes the first time a manned spacecraft launched into space twice, 1981
Crown Prince Akihito is formally installed as Emperor Akihito of Japan, becoming the 125th Japanese monarch, 1990
Tim Berners-Lee publishes a formal proposal for the World Wide Web, 1990
Shanghai Transrapid sets up a new world speed record (501 kilometres per hour (311 mph)) for commercial railway systems, 2003
The Comparative Toxicogenomics Database is launched on the web and revolutionizes chemical-gene-disease information for research scientists, 2004

...that if you don't use corn syrup often, and you end up with a little left in the bottom of a bottle in the back of the pantry, and if that little bit is left there long enough, it becomes so hard it's almost impermeable to water?

Neither did i.

The water doesn't really dissolve it!

The other thing i didn't know was that it would get so hard you could barely stick a knife in it, and you could use the knife, once you jammed it in there, to lift the bottle.

Suspended like magic.

Honey doesn't do that. If it crystalizes, just warm it up a bit, and it's fine. This stuff becomes fossilized, like Twinkies, i guess.

This, i guess, means i need to get into the very back of the pantry closet more often and check that those things i use only every once in a while, are still good.

That's what i do with the refrigerator and freezer. They get emptied out pretty regularly, so i can be sure there's no old bacon grazing on the moldy lettuce and that there isn't intelligent life developing in the leftovers behind the mayonnaise.

Those things that i buy to only use for one recipe, and then the rest sits forever, though, i need to get rid of or give to someone who uses it or maybe just cook more of that recipe until i use it up.

And no more corn syrup -- i don't trust any food that is supposed to pour and instead gets stiff.

Today is:

Ashura -- Islam (optional day of fasting, local observances may vary)

Ides of November -- Ancient Roman Calendar; also
     Epulum Iovis -- Festival of Feronia, Juno, Minerva, and Jupiter
     Fortuna Primigenia -- Fortune of the Firstborn

National Indian Pudding Day

National Reread Old Letters and Magazines Day -- internet generated sentimentality

Pushkar Camel Fair -- Pushkar, India (through the 17th; lots of fun for camels and their two legged friends)

Runic Half Month Nyd begins (necessity)

St. Brice of Tours' Day (Patron against stomach diseases)

St. Homobonus' Day (Patron of business people, cloth workers/garment workers/tailors, cobblers/shoemakers, merchants)

St. Stanislaus Kostka's Day (Patron of aspirants to the Oblates of Saint Joseph, last sacraments; against broken bones)

Tooth Collection Days begin -- Fairy Calendar

World Kindness Day -- promoting a more compassionate world, on the anniversary of the first World Kindness Movement® conference
     Kindness Day UK

Anniversaries Today:
The Vietnam Veterans Memorial is dedicated, 1982
The Holland Tunnel opens, 1927

Birthdays Today:

Monique Coleman, 1980
Jimmy Kimmel, 1967
Whoopi Goldberg, 1955
Chris Noth, 1954
Jean Seberg, 1938
Oskar Werner, 1922
Nathaniel Benchley, 1915
Louis Brandeis, 1856
Robert Louis Stevenson, 1850

Today in History:

English king Æthelred II orders the killing of all Danes in England, known today as the St. Brice's Day massacre, 1002
Lady Jane Grey and Bishop Cranmer are accused of high treason, 1553
Patriot revolutionary forces under Col. Ethan Allen attack Montreal, Quebec, defended by British General Guy Carleton, 1775
Benjamin Franklin says, “Our new Constitution is now established, and has an appearance that promises permanency; but in this world nothing can be said to be certain, except death and taxes.” 1789
The first US anti-slavery party, the Liberty Party, convenes in New York, 1839
James Braid first sees a demonstration of animal magnetism, which leads him to study the subject and come up with what he later calls hypnosis, 1841
The Denny Party arrives at Alki Point, becoming the first settlers of what would become Seattle, Washington, 1851
The first shipment of canned pineapple leaves Hawai'i, 1895
French cyclist Paul Cornu flies the first helicopter, 1907
Russia completes development of the AK-47, one of the first proper assault rifles, 1947
A 150-mph tropical cyclone hits the densely populated Ganges Delta region of East Pakistan (now Bangladesh), killing an estimated 500,000 people in one night. This is regarded as the 20th century's worst natural disaster, 1970
The Double Eagle V becomes the first hot air balloon to make it across the Pacific Ocean, 1981
Xavier Suarez is sworn in as Miami, Florida's first Cuban-born mayor, 1985
The High Court of Australia rules in Dietrich v The Queen that although there is no absolute right to have publicly funded counsel, in most circumstances a judge should grant any request for an adjournment or stay when an accused is unrepresented, 1992
In a referendum voters in Sweden decide to join the European Union, 1994
NASA announces that water has been discoved on the moon, 2009

Little Girl walked downstairs while getting ready for school, and was laughing. She's usually rather quiet in the mornings, since she's not a morning person at all (i'm the only morning person in the house).

What's so funny? i asked.

"Well, yesterday, my friend Luke was playing with my phone during our lunch break at school. He thinks flip phones are so cute, so he was playing with it, and he put his number in. I told him if he did that, that I would send him terrible jokes in the middle of the night, and he didn't believe me. So last night, when I woke up to go to the bathroom, I sent him a text that said, 'How does Moses make his tea? He-brews it!' and he just texted me back and says 'Stop! You're killing me! I have to wake up to this!'"

Good one, i told her.

"That was funny," Bigger Girl said. "Hey, mom, I'm going to go to the school early this morning to get my math lab stuff done, but I'll be back in a jiffy and I'll scoop the litter boxes then."

"How long is a jiffy?" Little Girl asked.

"Just a bit longer than three shakes of a lamb's tail!" Bigger Girl answered on her way out.

"Ha, ha," Little Girl said, heading back upstairs to grab her P.E. clothes.

When she came back down, i asked, isn't Luke the friend who has missed a lot of school because he's got a chronic illness?

"Well, sort of a chronic illness. Actually, he's had to have a lot of surgeries because of some birth defects. They weren't sure when he was born if he was a boy or a girl, and he's had to have a lot of stuff done to correct all the problems, and a lot of the other kids won't hang with him, but I think he's cool. Anyway, if he thinks that joke was bad, wait until I tell him the rest of my jokes. Why shouldn't you write with a broken pencil? It's pointless! When is a fin not a fin? When it's a dol-phin! What do you call a book club that's been stuck on the same book for thousands of years?"

Church! i answered. That one i know, you've told me before.

"Yes, and everyone I tell it to laughs."

With that, we laughed our way out of the door for school, as being late isn't a laughing matter.

Today is:

Children's Day -- India

Day of the Colombian Woman -- Colombia

Equorum Probatio -- Ancient Roman Empire (official cavalry parade of the equites)

International Girls Day -- for info, see confidencecoalition.org

Leftover Trading Day -- internet generated; trade your leftovers for the much more interesting ones in your neighbor's fridge

Loosen up, Lighten Up Day -- to remind us of the benefits of joy and laughter, begun by Stephanie West Allen of Denver, CO, US

National Spicy Guacamole Day -- as opposed to National Guacamole Day back in September

National Pickle Day/Pickle Appreciation Day

Nativity Fast begins a/k/a Winter Lent (through Dec 24) -- Orthodox Christian

Operating Room Nurse Day -- US, but feel free to celebrate those dedicated nurses around the world

Readjustment Movement's Day -- Guinea-Bissau

Spirit of NSA Day -- members of the National Speakers Association are encouraged to focus on giving back and mentoringhttp://nsaspeaker.org/

St. Dubricus' Day (the saint who crowned King Arthur)

St. Lawrence O'Toole's Day (Patron of the Archdiocese of Dublin, Ireland)

Works Getting Into Championships -- Fairy Calendar (Gremlins)

World Diabetes Day -- UN

Anniversaries Today:

Princess Anne of the UK marries Captain Mark Phillips, 1973

Birthdays Today:

D.B. Sweeney, 1961
Condoleezza Rice, 1954
Yanni, 1954
Prince Charles, 1948
King Hussein of Jordan, 1935
McLean Stevenson, 1929
Brian Keith, 1921
Veronica Lake, 1919
Barbara Hutton, 1912
Rosemary DeCamp, 1910
Joseph McCarthy, 1909
Dick Powell, 1904
Aaron Copland, 1900
Mamie Dowd Eisenhower, 1896
Jawaharlal Nehru, 1889
Claude Monet, 1840
Robert Fulton, 1765

Debuting/Premiering Today:

Murphy Brown, 1988

Today in History:

Conquistadors from Spain under the leadership of Francisco Pizarro arrive in Cajamarca, Inca empire, 1533
Samuel Pepys reports on the first blood transfusion (between dogs), 1666
Loius Timothee is hired in Philadelphia to be the first professional librarian in the US, 1732
Captain George Vancouver is the first Englishman to enter San Francisco Bay, 1792
John Mason debuts the first horse-drawn streetcar in NYC, with a route between Prince and 14th on 4th Ave., 1832
Herman Melville publishes "Moby Dick", 1851
The St. Andrews Golf Club, in Yonkers, NY, opens with 6 holes, 1888
New York World reporter Nellie Bly (Elizabeth Cochrane) began her attempt to surpass fictitious journey of Jules Verne's Phileas Fogg by traveling around world in less than 80 days; She succeeded, finishing the trip in January in 72 days and 6 hours, 1889
Albert Einstein presents his quantum theory of light, 1908
The first airplane flight from the deck of a ship takes place in Norfolk, Virginia, 1910
The BBC begins radio service in the United Kingdom, 1922
The first regular UK singles chart published by the New Musical Express, 1952
NASA launches Apollo 12, the second manned mission to the surface of the Moon, 1969
After German reunification, the Federal Republic of Germany and the Republic of Poland sign a treaty confirming the Oder-Neisse line as the border between Germany and Poland, 1990
The last direct-current electrical distribution system in the United States is shut down in New York City by Con Edison, 2007

Feline Friday was begun by Steve, The Burnt Food Dude, and i'm going to believe it's because he likes cats.

Kida, our aging, asthmatic Siamese, isn't much of a fan of the foster kittens in the summer.

In winter, she knows where the warmth is.

We know how to stay warm!

Today is:

American Enterprise Day -- US (a project of Future Business Leaders of America, Phi Beta Lambda Chapter)

America Recycles Day -- US

Canterbury Provincial Anniversary Day -- Canterbury, New Zealand

Changeling Restitution Day -- Fairy Calendar (Goblins)

Children in Need Day -- UK and Ireland (telethon begins)

Christchurch Show Day -- Canterbury, NZ

Clean Out Your Refrigerator Day -- this reminder comes from the folks at CooksInfo.com, where they think you need to get rid of USO's (unidentified shriveled objects)

Day of the German-speaking Community of Belgium -- German-speaking Community of Belgium

Don't Try To Do Everything At Once Day -- internet generated, and a blow to us multitaskers

Ennead Feast in the House of Ra, Horus, and Osiris -- Ancient Egyptian Calendar (date approximate)

George Spelvin Day -- date of first use, in 1886, of this name for an actor playing two roles in one play; George/Georgette Spelvin have since acted in over 10,000 roles on Broadway

I Love to Write Day -- encouraging everyone to write something, begun by John Riddle; this is the perfect time for it, really, in the middle of NaNoWriMo

Inasa Puppet Festival -- Hamamatsu, Japan (a rarity in Japan, 3 days of performances by professional puppeteers from around Japan)

King's Feast / Dynasty Day -- Belgium

National Bundt Pan Day -- yes, really, celebrating the pan itself

National Donor Sabbath Weekend -- through Sunday, an initiative to encourage people of all faiths to consider organ donation; www.organdonor.gov

National Peace Day -- Cote d'Ivoire

National Philanthropy Day® -- Association of Fundraising Professionals

National Raisin Bran Cereal Day

National Spicy Hermit Christmas Cookie Day

Pack Your Mom's Lunch Day -- in honor of all the times she packed yours; combine it with I Love to Write Day and include a note telling her how special she is

Republic Day -- Turkish Republic of North Cyprus

Republic Proclamation Day -- Brazil

Safety Razor Day -- King Gillette was granted the patent for his style of safety razor on this day in 1904, changing how men shaved each day

Salt Lake's Family Christmas Show -- Sandy, UT, US (through Sunday)

Shichi-Go-San (Shrine Visiting Day)/Seven-Five-Three Festival -- Japan (picturesque festival in which 3-year-old children of either sex, five-year-old boys, and seven-year-old girls go to shrines dressed in their best; guardian spirits are thanked for the health of the children and prayers said for their future to be equally bright)

Sing in Your Car Day -- they need a day for this?

St. Albertus Magnus' Day (Patron of medical technicians, natural sciences, philosophers, schoolchildren, scientists, students, theology students; Cincinnati, Ohio)

St. Leopold's Day (King Leopold III, Patron of dying children, large families, step-parents; Austria)
Leopoldstag/Goose Day -- Austria (the start of the heurigen, the new wine season)

Surin Elephant Round Up -- Surin, Thailand (includes elephant football, elephant tugs-of-war, and parades; through Sunday)

Tori No Ichi -- Japan (a "rooster day" in which to wish good luck and prosperity at temple and shrine ceremonies around the country)

Birthdays Today:

Kevin Eubanks, 1957
Sam Waterston, 1940
Petula Clark, 1932
Ed Asner, 1929
Bill "C.W. McCall" Fries, 1928
Joseph Wapner, 1919
Erwin Rommel, 1891
Georgia O'Keeffe, 1887
F. William Herschel, 1738
William Pitt the Elder, 1708

Today in History:

Christopher Columbus notes the first recorded reference to tobacco, 1492
The NY General Assembly permits Jews to omit the phrase "Upon the faith of a Christian" from adjuration oaths, 1727
Charles Mason and Jeremiah Dixon begin surveying the Mason-Dixon Line between Pennsylvania and Maryland, 1763
The Articles of Confederation are adopted by the Continental Congress, 1777
Georgetown University, the first Catholic college in the US, opens, 1791
Zebulon Pike gets his first sight of Pike's Peak, Colorado, 1806
Isaac Pitman introduces his steno/shorthand system of writing, 1832
Union Major General Sherman burns Atlanta, Georgia, 1864
King C. Gillette patents the Gillette razor blade, 1904
The first telecast of an unscheduled event, a fire, takes place on W2XBT, in NY, 1938
In Columbus, Ohio, Dave Thomas opens the first Wendy's restaurant, 1969
Intel releases world's first commercial single-chip microprocessor, 1971
René Lévesque and the Parti Québécois take power to become the first Quebec government of the 20th century clearly in favour of independence, 1976
The Anglo-Irish Agreement is signed at Hillsborough Castle by British Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher and Irish Taoiseach Garret FitzGerald, 1985
An independent State of Palestine is proclaimed by the Palestinian National Council, 1988
The first Fairtrade label, Max Havelaar, is launched in the Netherlands, 1988
Cyclone Sidr hit Bangladesh, killing an estimated 5000 people and destroyed the world's largest mangrove forest, Sundarbans, 2007

"Mom, if there was a group of people who lived in total isolation from the outside world, and they had a written historical record about their people, but it was totally false, and a person in their society was an expert on that history, would he still be considered a smart person? I mean, someone who knew all there was to know about something that was false, had written treatises on it and studied it and taught it to others and everything, would that still be a smart person?"

Sometimes Bigger Girl's philosophical questions catch me a bit off, so i thought about this one for a few minutes before i noted that intelligence, and the ability to memorize facts, are not the same things.

"So you would say that person is smart?" she asked.

Yes, you would have to be smart to become an expert at something, able to analyze it. Whether the facts it contains are truthful or not doesn't change whether you have intelligence. It's a separate measure.

"Okay, I think so, too. But what about a person who doesn't read, but can take engines apart and fix them, without even being taught how, just figuring them out for themselves?"

That's another kind of intelligence, and that person would probably be able to learn to read if he wanted to put his mind to it, i noted.

"Yeah, probably. Anyway, i've just been thinking about the definitions of intelligence, and with that, I'm going to go do something totally frivolous and meet up with my friends to see Thor II."

Just what you need to do to rest your mind, i thought.

Today is:

Birth of the Blues Day -- birth anniversary of W.C. Handy, "Father of the Blues"

Bonn Om Touk -- Cambodia (a/k/a The Water Festival, it is Cambodia's largest party, always held for two days around the time of the full moon in November)

Button Day -- internet generated; a day to collect, or reminisce about collecting, buttons

Dagur Islenskrar tungu -- Iceland (Icelandic Language Day)

Day of Declaration of Sovereignty / Day of National Rebirth -- Estonia

Family Volunteer Day -- to get families working together to better their communities and the world

Famous San Diego Chicken Day -- a day to celebrate anyone who has ever slugged a purple dinosaur

Flag Day/Statia and America Day -- St. Eustatius

Have a Party with Your Bear Day -- no comment, it's too obvious

Hecate Night -- Ancient Greek Calendar (date approximate; celebrated still by some Wiccans)

International Day for Tolerance - UN

Kalamazoo Russian Festival -- Kalamazoo, MI, US

National Fast Food Day -- why?

National Hunger and Homelessness Awareness Week -- US (remembering those who have little or nothing during the upcoming holiday celebrations, and making time to share our bounty with them; through the 24th)
co-sponsors National Coalition for the Homeless and National Student Campaign Against Hunger & Homelessness

PCS and Homeplace Festival -- Waretown, NJ, US (a family affair with country, bluegrass, and traditional music)

St. Gertrude the Great's Day (Patron of nuns; Naples, Italy; West Indies)

St. Margaret of Scotland's Day (Patron of learning, parents of large families, queens, widows; Scotland; against the death of children)

St. Matthew the Evangelist's Day (Eastern Churches)

Anniversaries Today:

Oklahoma becomes the 46th US State, 1907

Birthdays Today:

Oksana Baiul, 1977
Lisa Bonet, 1967
Dwight Gooden, 1964
Shigeru Miyamoto, 1952
Daws Butler, 1916
Burgess Meredith, 1908
W.C. Handy, 1873
Tiberius, Roman Emperor, BC42

Debuting/Premiering Today:

The Roman Catholic Church issues the first new Universal Catechism since 1563, to address modern issues, 1992

Today in History:

The second and final revision of the Codex Justinianus is published, 534
Francisco Pizarro captures the Incan emperor Atahualpa after the victory at Cajamarca, 1532
The first colonial prison is organized, in Nantucket, Massachussetts, 1676
Kentucky becomes the first state to nullify an act of Congress, 1798
The New York Evening Post publishes its first edition, 1801
An earthquake in Missouri causes the Mississippi River to flow backwards, 1811
Missouri trader William Becknell arrives in Santa Fe, New Mexico over a route that became known as the Santa Fe Trail, 1821
Napoleon Guerin of NYC patents a cork life preserver, 1841
Fyodor Dostoevsky is sentenced to death for anti-government activities; sentence is commuted to hard labor, 1849
Amsterdam post office at Nieuwezijds Voorburgwal opens, 1856
William Bonwill patents dental mallet to impact gold into cavities, 1875
6,000 Armenians massacred by Turks in Kurdistan, 1894
Arturo Tuscanini begins conducting NY's Metropolitan Opera, 1908
US Federal Reserve System formally opens, 1914
LSD is first synthesized by Swiss chemist Dr. Albert Hofmann at the Sandoz Laboratories in Basel, Switzerland, 1938
UNESCO is founded, 1945
NASA launches Skylab 4 with a crew of three astronauts from Cape Canaveral, Florida for an 84-day mission, 1973
The Hoxne Hoard is discovered by metal detectorist Eric Lawes in Hoxne, Suffolk, 1992
After nearly 18 years of incarceration, the People's Republic of China releases Wei Jingsheng, a pro-democracy dissident, from jail for medical reasons, 1997
The People's Republic of China begins to implement the "Great Firewall," filters which make it impossible to connect to internet sites the government deems illegal or unhelpful to the communist ideal, 2006

If you listen you can hear some funny conversations, especially when people are on their phones and aren't paying attention to who might be listening.

"If there's that many overweight people in the world, maybe the oceans aren't rising, but the land is sinking!"

"When I want to get rid of people calling to sell me something, I ask them to come help me move furniture. If they are selling carpet cleaning services, I ask them if they can get bloodstains out and keep their mouths shut about it. Makes them hang up on me every time!"

"That cat! She's so picky. I think I'm going to give her something for Boss's Day next year! She's earned it!"

A parent commented to a child who was yawning mightily, "You need to go to bed earlier tonight." Responded the little girl, "It's not that I go to bed too late, it's that you wake me up too early!"

A little girl and her family were waiting for their grandmother to meet them at a restaurant. As grandma drove up in her convertible, the child turned heads with the comment, "Here comes Grandma! And she's topless!"

At the oil change place, one of the nice workers came in to tell a lady her oil change was done. He listed everything they done, saying, "We changed the oil and filter, vacuumed the carpet, and checked all your fluids, your transmission and brake fluid, it's all fine." She smiled mischievously and answered, "That's okay, I already have break fluid!" as she raised her cup of the complimentary coffee the business provides..

Today is:

Alascattalo Day -- Anchorage, Alaska (A salute to Alaskan humor, a parade in honor of the "alascattalo", a cross between a moose and a walrus; the longest running, shortest parade in the world, held in the alley behind Club Paris from 12:03 to 12:07 pm. A prize is given to the smallest and ugliest float -- yes, it must be both small and ugly. An anonymous queen will be crowned, if she has the bad sense to show up.)

Army Day -- Democratic Republic of the Congo

Birthday of Guru Nanak Dev Sahib -- Sikh

Coping With Uncertainty Day -- of uncertain origin, as it should be

Electronic Greeting Card Day -- internet generated, and of course probably started by the electronic greeting card websites

Full Beaver Moon / Full Frosty Moon
     Bonn Om Touk -- Cambodia (Water Festival continues)
     Il Full Moon Poya Day -- Sri Lanka
     Palden Lhamo Festival -- Tibet (protectress of Tibet, celebrated mostly by women)
     Loy Krathong -- Thailand (Floating of the Lamps festival; to appease the water spirits, dedicated to Mae Kongkha, Goddess of Rivers)
     Tazaugmone/Thasaung Mong Full Moon -- Myanmar (Festival of Lights begins)
     That Luang Festival -- Laos (Ventiane's most important Theravada Buddhist festival)

Guru Nanak Jayanti -- India; Nepal (birth anniversary of Guru Nanak)

Homemade Bread Day -- use the bread machine, it's fun and easy, i promise! sponsored by the Homemade Bread Day Committee of Ann Arbor, MI, US

International Students Day -- International (meant to celebrate all students around the world, not specifically students studying in countries other than their own; anniversary of the Nazi storming and closing of the University of Prague)

John Peter Zenger Day -- marking his arrest in 1734 for libel; he continued to edit his newspaper from jail and was acquitted, an early victory for freedom of the press

National Baklava Day

National Farm Joke Day

National Unfriend Day -- all those people on Facebook you regret accepting as friends? Jimmy Kimmel suggests you unfriend them today!

Polytechneio -- Greece (anniversary of the 1973 student protests against the junta)

Presidential Election Day -- Chile

Presidents' Day -- Marshall Islands

Public Restroom Hand Dryer Appreciation Day -- internet generated, and why? they've been proven less sanitary, blowing germs everywhere; i will not appreciate this one

Shogi Day -- Japan (celebrating shogi, a chess-like game)

St. Elizabeth of Hungary's Day (Patron of bakers, beggars, brides, charitable societies, charitable workers, countesses, exiles, falsely accused people, hoboes, homeless people, hospitals, lace makers/lace workers, nursing homes, nursing services, people in exile, people ridiculed for their piety, tertiaries, tramps, widows; Sisters of Mercy; Teutonic Knights; Erfurt, Germany; Jaro, Philippines; against in-law problems, the death of children, toothache)

St. Hilda's Day (Patron of learning and culture)

St. Hugh of Lincoln's Day (Patron of sick children, sick people, swans)

Struggle for Freedom and Democracy Day -- Czech Republic; Slovakia

Take A Hike Day -- internet generated, and some websites say it's actually "Tell Your Boss to Take a Hike Day", but i don't recommend that unless you've recently inherited a fortune or won the Lotto

Volkstrauertag -- Germany (National Day of Mourning for all victims of National Socialism and the dead of both world wars)

Winter Welcome Quadrilles and Dainty-Sixes -- Fairy Calendar

World Day of Remembrance for Road Traffic Victims -- UN

World Prematurity Day -- because one in 10 babies is born prematurely, facing a very hard start in life

Birthdays Today:

Laura Wilkinson, 1977
Daisy Fuentes, 1966
Danny DeVito, 1944
Lorne Michaels, 1944
Tom Seaver, 1944
Lauren Hutton, 1943
Martin Scorsese, 1942
Gordon Lightfoot, 1938
Rock Hudson, 1925
Lee Strassberg, 1901
Atahualpa, last Emperor of the Inca, 1502
Flavius Claudius Julianus, Roman Emperor, 331
Vespian, Roman Emperor, 9

Today in History:

Diocletian is proclaimed emperor by his soldiers, 284
England and Spain sign an anti-French covenant/treaty, 1511
Elizabeth I ascends the English throne, 1558
France and Spain sign the Peace of the Pyrenees treaty, 1659
The Church of England organizes in New England, 1785
Congress holds its first session in the still incomplete Capitol Building of Washington, D.C., 1800
The Delta Phi fraternity, America's oldest continuous social fraternity, is founded at Union College in Schenectady, New York, 1827
Ecuador and Venezuela separate from Greater Colombia, 1831
Street signs are first authorized at San Francisco intersections, 1853
David Livingstone becomes the first European to see Victoria Falls, 1855
Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky's Slavonic March is given its première performance in Moscow, 1876
Japan and Korea sign The Eulsa Treaty, 1905
The first US dental hygienist course is formed, in Bridgeport, Connecticut, 1913
US declares the Panama Canal Zone to be neutral, 1914
Lenin defends the "temporary" removal of freedom of the press, 1917
American scientists John Bardeen and Walter Brattain observe the basic principles of the transistor, a key element for the electronics revolution of the 20th Century, 1947
Douglas Engelbart receives the patent for the first computer mouse, 1970
In Czechoslovakia, the Velvet Revolution that would overthrow the communist government begins when student protests in Prague are quelled by riot police, 1989
Brian May of the rock band Queen was appointed Chancellor of Liverpool John Moores University, 2007

What's this for, mommy? May i sleep in it?

It is kind of small for a bed, but what else is it for?

Until they learn to eat dry food, they just aren't sure what the bowls are for.

Today is:

Constitution Day -- South Africa (the 1993 Constitution, granting blacks the right to vote, was approved)

Day of Ardvi Sura (Aredvi Sura Anahita), Mother of the Stars -- Ancient Persian Calendar (date approximate)

Feast of the Virgen de Chiquinquirá -- Maracaibo, Venezuela

Hap-Dancing and Tiger-Tuning -- Fairy Calendar

Independence Day -- Morocco(1956); Western Saraha(1975)

Married to a Scorpio Support Day -- remembering those married to Scorpios (like me!) and suffering because of it, and encouraging them too hide the flow charts and assert themselves today; sponsored by Wellcat Holidays

National Day -- Oman (trad.; will be observed Nov. 27)

National French Vichyssoise Day

Ned Ludd Memorial Machine-Smashing Day -- internet generated, but enjoy! i know this first-cousin-to-a-Luddite will

Proclamation of the Republic -- Latvia (1918)

Push-Button Phone Day -- launched this day in 1963

Revolution Day -- Mexico

St. Odo of Cluny's Day (Patron of needed rain)

Total Disregard for Taste Day -- marking the debut of Howard Stern's radio show on this day in 1985

Vertieres Day -- Haiti (Army Day)

William Tell Day -- the famed apple-off-his-son's-head-shot was today in 1307

Birthdays Today:

Owen Wilson, 1968
Elizabeth Perkins, 1960
Sinbad, 1956
Katy Sagal, 1956
Wilma Mankiller, 1945
Linda Evans, 1942
Brenda Vaccaro, 1939
Mickey Mouse, 1928
Alan Shepard, Jr., 1923
John Herndon (Johnny) Mercer, 1909
Imogene Coca, 1908
George Gallup, 1901
Eugene Ormandy, 1899
Clarence Shepard Day, 1874
Dorothy Dix (Elizabeth Meriwether Gilmer), 1861
Ignacy Jan Paderewski, 1860
Sir William Schwenck Gilbert, 1836
Louis-Jacques Daguerre, 1787
Sojourner Truth, 1787

Debuting/Premiering Today:

Calvin and Hobbes, 1985 (in this first strip, Calvin catches Hobbes in a tiger trap baited with a tuna sandwich)
See It Now, 1951
Steamboat Willie (a/k/a Mickey Mouse), 1928
US Uniform Time Zone Plan, 1883 (on this date, the railroads adopted the current uniform time zone plan; it wasn't legally mandated until 1918)

Today in History:

Old St. Peter's Basilica is consecrated, 326
The Japanese Emperor Kammy relocates the residence of Nara to Kioto, 794
William Tell shoots the apple off his son's head, 1307
The Holland/Zealand dikes break during a storm, resulting in thousands of deaths, 1421
The first English printed book, "Dictes & Sayengis of the Phylosophers", is published, 1477
Christopher Columbus first sights the island now known as Puerto Rico, 1493
Vasco da Gama reaches the Cape of Good Hope, 1497
The worst earthquake in Massachusetts Bay/Boston area, 1755
The first Unitarian Minister in the US is ordained in Boston, 1787
30 women meet at Mrs Silas Lee's home in Wiscasset Maine, to organize the Female Charitable Society, first woman's club in America, 1805
Mark Twain's story The Celebrated Jumping Frog of Calaveras County is published in the New York Saturday Press, 1865
National Woman's Christian Temperance Union organizes in Cleveland, 1874
Standard time zones are formed by railroads in the US and Canada, 1883
The first newspaper Sunday color comic strip is printed, in the NY World, 1894
Britain flies its first sea plane, 1911
Lincoln Deachey performs the first airplane loop-the-loop, over San Diego, 1913
Sigma Alpha Rho, a Jewish high school fraternity, is founded in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, 1917
Release of the animated short Steamboat Willie, the first fully synchronized sound cartoon, directed by Walt Disney and Ub Iwerks, featuring the third appearances of cartoon characters Mickey Mouse and Minnie Mouse, 1928
Off the south coast of Newfoundland in the Atlantic Ocean, a Richter magnitude 7.2 submarine earthquake, centered on Grand Banks, breaks 12 submarine transatlantic telegraph cables and triggers a tsunami that destroys many south coast communities in the Burin Peninsula, 1929
New York City's Mad Bomber places his first bomb at a Manhattan office building used by Consolidated Edison, 1940
In the United States, the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA) is ratified, 1993
HIP 13044 b, a planet that was formed in another galaxy, is discovered in the Helmi Stream, 2010

Okay, maybe i'm rushing to judgment here. Maybe i need to practice being more open minded. But gosh this looks an awful lot like one of those times when i'd have to leave my mind so open my brains would fall out.

It seems that the up until now unthinkable is going to happen -- someone out there is planning to make a sequel to It's a Wonderful Life.

A moment, please, while i regain my composure (and thank heaven it isn't a remake, which would have me apoplectic).

Again, maybe i'm rushing to judge what i don't understand, and maybe it's going to be a wonderful movie. But, Jiminy Crickets, how do you improve upon, and have a sequel to, the best Christmas movie ever?

Especially as, in this one, George's grandson is to be shown by an angel, played by Karolyn Grimes (the original Zuzu), how much better life would be for everyone if he hadn't been born.

Now, i don't usually consider myself a Grinch, although i do get peeved about over-commercialism and trying to expand the season beyond a reasonable boundary. This is just rubbing me the wrong way right now.

The movie is set to open in theaters in time for the holidays in 2015.

Meanwhile, the original will air twice this season (much better than in the years past when it was on daily, sometimes more than once!), on December 14 and again on Christmas Eve, both times on NBC.

It's a good thing it's going to be at least a year, it's going to probably take me that long to calm my mind and maybe give this one a shot. And what's the worst that could happen? The worst is that it's a bomb and forgotten almost as soon as it leaves the theaters. It can't contaminate the joy and love and sheer greatness of the original.

Well, i'm going to go try to think of something pleasant now.

Today is:

Alligator Wrestling Day -- internet generated, and i wonder if a cat that doesn't want its meds counts?

Ashi Vanguhi -- Ancient Persian Calendar/Zoroastrian (celebration of Ashi Vanguhi, or Holy Blessing; date approximate, but always two days after a full moon around this time of year)

Automatic Toll Collection Day -- the first machine went into use on New Jersey’s Garden State Parkway on this day in 1954

Discovery Day -- Puerto Rico

Equal Opportunity Day / Dedication Day / Remembrance Day -- anniversary of the Gettysburg Address

Fete de S.A.S. le Prince Souverain -- Monaco (National Day)

Flag Day -- Brazil

Garifuna Day/Carib Settlement Day -- Belize

"Have a Bad Day" Day -- for the hidden, or not so hidden, grouch in all of us; sponsored by Wellcat Holidays

International Men's Day -- Australia; Canada; Ghana; Hungary; India; Ireland; Jamaica; Malta; Singapore; South Africa; Trinidad and Tobago; United Kingdom; United States

Liberation Day -- Mali

National Carbonated Beverage with Caffeine Day

Please Maintain Your Focus Today Day -- internet generated, but a good idea

School Pride Day -- US (always on the Tuesday of American Education Week)

St. Obadiah's Day (Obadiah the Prophet)

"What Ever Happened to Gary Pucket?" Day -- internet generated, and a fun question to research

World Prematurity Day -- International (raising awareness about premature birth, the leading cause of newborn death each year, and what can be done to prevent it)

World Toilet Day -- sponsored by the World Toilet Organization (yes, really, to raise awareness of the 2.5 billion people who don't have access to proper sanitation)

Anniversaries Today:

Zion National Park is established, 1919
Women's Christian Temperance Union is founded, 1874

Birthdays Today:

McCaughey Septuplets, 1997
Kerri Strug, 1977
Jodie Foster, 1962
Meg Ryan, 1961
Calvin Klein, 1942
Ted Turner, 1938
Dick Cavett, 1936
Larry King, 1933
Roy Campanella, 1921
Indira Gandhi, 1917
Tommy Dorsey, 1905
Billy Sunday, 1862
James Garfield, 1831

Debuting/Premiering Today:

Rocky and His Friends (Rocky and Bullwinkle), 1959

Today in History:

The Council of Clermont, called by Pope Urban II to discuss sending the First Crusade to the Holy Land, begins, 1095
Rabbi Isaiah b Abraham aha-Levi Horowitz arrives in Isreal, 1621
The Jakobinen club forms in Paris, 1794
The Jay Treaty, the first US extradition treaty, is signed with Great Britain, 1794
Lewis and Clark reach the Pacific Ocean, becoming the first European Americans to cross the continent, 1805
Warsaw University is established, 1816
The St. Petersburg flood, caused by storms, kills 10,000, 1824
The second Canadian railway line, the Montreal and Lachine Railway, is opened, 1847
Lincoln delivers his Gettysburg Address, 1863
Boss Tweed is convicted, sentenced to 12 years, 1874
Carrie Nation attempts to address the US Senate, 1903
NY receives the first Marconi wireless transmission from Italy, 1911
Samuel Goldwyn and Edgar Selwyn establish Goldwyn Pictures (anybody want to guess what this eventually became?), 1916
The first issue of Time Magazine is published, with Emperor Hirohito on the cover, 1928
Télé Monte Carlo, Europe's oldest private television channel, is launched by Prince Rainier III, 1954
The first automatic toll collection machine is introduced on New Jersey's Garden State Parkway, 1954
Ford cancels the Edsel, 1959
Apollo 12 astronauts Pete Conrad and Alan Bean land at Oceanus Procellarum (the "Ocean of Storms") and become the third and fourth humans to walk on the Moon, 1960
Egyptian President Anwar Sadat becomes the first Arab leader to officially visit Israel, when he meets Israeli prime minister Menachem Begin and speaks before the Knesset in Jerusalem, seeking a permanent peace settlement, 1977
Lt. Gen. Maurice Baril of Canada arrives in Africa to lead a multi-national policing force in Zaire, 1996
Vincent van Gogh's Portrait of the Artist Without Beard sells at auction for $71.5 million USD, 1998
The People's Republic of China launches its first Shenzhou spacecraft, 1999
Claudia Castillo has a successful trachea transplant from stem-cell created organ, 2008
Many nations urge lower fishing rates on the Atlantic bluefin tuna; quota limits on the critically endangered fish are discussed by major fishing nations in Paris, 2010

Ol' Bessy, my aging, ailing laptop, also called Old Crankypants, is getting crabbier and crabbier. Yesterday, i wrote out a post, and she wouldn't save it for anything. All the time went for nothing as blogger supposedly autosaves, and i found out the hard way, it doesn't where Ol' Bessy is concerned.

After hitting publish, and shutting her down again for not responding, i finally get back in, and the whole thing was gone. It not only hadn't published, it hadn't even saved during any of that time.

So, i will have to start over, which makes me almost as cranky as my very old computer. Meanwhile, i decided to have a bit of a whine, but no cheese. After all, i am a vegan.

This got me wondering if there's anything else i can while about while i'm at it. After all, might as well get it all over with at once. There was one lady who, when she was a girl and wanted to whine and complain, would be told by her mother that she had 15 minutes, to have at it. She would usually find herself laughing by the time her mother's timer went off. From that i learned, just get it all out, with a time limit, and it all seems better by the end. Or at least funnier.

But all that thinking hasn't brought up too much else to whine about. Really, i can't complain, although i could wish Ol' Bessy would get over herself a bit.

That reminds me of the one older man who, when asked how he was doing, would always answer, "Oh, can't complain, can't complain. The wife won't let me!" Much to the amusement of all who asked him, he would laugh, too.

It used to be, when i was asked for identification for any reason, i would get it out with a smile and say, Don't worry, it's really me -- no one else would want my life!

Since then, though, i've realized i have a pretty good life.

Ol' Bessy might be the death of me yet, you never know. Meanwhile, there's not much else to fuss about.

Today is:

Absurdity Day -- an internet generated absurd holiday

Africa Industrialization Day -- UN

Air Your Dirty Laundry Day -- internet generated, and be careful with this one!

Beautiful Day -- Fairy Calendar

Clean the Cat Hair Out of the Vacuum Cleaner Day -- internet generated, and always tops on my chore list

Day of Sekhmet and the Purifying Flame -- Ancient Egyptian Calendar (date approximate)

Day of National Sovereignty -- Argentina (commemorates the Battle of Vuelta de Obligado)

Dia da Consciencia Negra -- Brazil (Black Consciousness Day)

Geographic Information Systems Day -- information here

Globally Organized Hug A Runner Day aka G.O.H.A.R.D

Name Your PC Day -- mine is Ol' Bessy, a/k/a Old Crankypants; sponsored by Wellcat Holidays

National Educational Support Professionals Day -- US

National Peanut Butter Fudge Day

Praetextatus and Paulina's Day -- Ancient Roman Calendar (Guardians of the Eleusinian Mysteries, pagan activists and devotees who tried to save Roman religions; date approximate)

Repentance Day -- Saxony, Germany (Day of Prayer and Repentance [Buss und Bettag])
Buss und Bettag -- German speaking Lutheran, Reformed, and United Protestants (Day of Repentance and Prayer)

Revolution Day -- Mexico (traditional)

Scottish International Badminton Championship -- Glasgow, Scotland (through Sunday)

St. Edmund the Martyr's Day (Patron of kings, torture victims, wolves; East Anglia, England; against plagues)

Teachers' Day -- Vietnam

Transgender Day of Remembrance -- memorial for those who have been killed because of transphobia

Universal Children's Day -- UN

Zumbi Day -- Brazil (death anniversary of Zumbi dos Palmares, a day of Afro-Brazilian consciousness, as he was a hero and freedom fighter)

Anniversaries Today:

The Princess Elizabeth (now Queen Elizabeth II) marries Lieutenant Philip Mountbatten at Westminster Abbey in London, 1947
The first municipal airport in the US opens, in Tuscon, AZ, 1919

Birthdays Today:

Bo Derek, 1956
Duane Allman, 1946
Veronica Hamal, 1943
Joe Biden, 1942
Dick Smothers, 1939
Richard Dawson, 1932
Estelle Parsons, 1927
Kaye Ballard, 1926
Robert F. Kennedy, 1925
Robert Byrd, 1917
Alistair Cooke, 1908
Edwin Hubble, 1889
Susanna Wesley, 1669 (mother of John, Charles, and 17 other children)
Peregrine White, 1620 (born on the Mayflower)
Maximinus, Roman Emperor, 270

Debuting/Premiering Today:

The Sheik (with Rudolph Valentino), 1921

Today in History:

Bögü, Khan of the Uyghurs, conquers Lo-Yang, capital of the Chinese Empire, 762
Zumbi, the last leader of the Quilombo dos Palmares of Brazil, is executed, 1695
New Jersey becomes the first state to ratify the US Bill of Rights, 1789
Curacao's government forbids slave work on Sunday, 1795
Howard University is founded in Washington, D.C., 1866
US State Department starts requiring photographs for passports, 1914
The first municipally owned airport in US opens, in Tucson Az, 1919
In response to the Soviet Union agreeing to remove its missiles from Cuba, U.S. President John F. Kennedy ends the quarantine of the Caribbean nation, 1962
The SETI Institute is founded, 1984
Microsoft Windows 1.0 is released, 1985
The number of protesters assembled in Prague, Czechoslovakia swells from 200,000 the day before to an estimated half-million, 1989
In England, a fire breaks out in Windsor Castle, badly damaging the castle and causing over £50 million worth of damage, 1992
The first module of the International Space Station, Zarya, is launched, 1998
The Dow Jones Industrial Average reaches its lowest level in eleven years, 2008

"Mom, I woke up to the scariest thing this morning!" #1Son told me as he came to hunt for his brother. "I could hear a rustling of a plastic bag, and I didn't know where it was coming from, and when I opened my eyes there was Mikey, with his head through the handles of a grocery bag. I mean it was wrapped around his head! It scared me, and I yelled at him to come to me, and he did, and I got it away, but it really, really scared me."

Yes, that is scary, i noted.

"The thing is, I didn't know where he had gotten it, so I put him and Sissy in my room with food and water and litter until I can go figure it out. I don't want that to happen again."

That's right, i said, you don't. Animals have died from that.

He didn't answer, and i noticed he was looking past me, where sweeping had kicked up the dust motes into the sunshine streaming in.

"Wow, look at that!" he said. "That always looks neat."

"It looks like a universe, like galaxies!" Little Girl had walked up behind us and was seeing it, too.

"Yeah, like stars spinning around each other, galaxies circling the center of the universe, or stars spinning around the center of the galaxy and each other," #1 Son said.

"But there aren't any supernovas in it!" Little Girl said with a grin.

"Let's hope not!" he said. "But really, it's like a galaxy. What's really neat is that our galaxy spins around a black hole. Not all galaxies do, you know."

No, i didn't realize that some do and some don't, i said.

"Yeah, ours does. It would be really neat to go to the center of the galaxy and see the black hole. As long as you stay far enough away from the event horizon, you're okay. And did you know that if you watched a person go into a black hole, the person would appear to freeze at the point of entry? He would stay frozen there until you look away, then when you look back, you wouldn't see him any more. Is that weird, or what?" #1 Son must have been reading up on this stuff, or something, and i asked.

"I've been watching "How the Universe Works," he said, with a grin. "It's amazing stuff."

"It is," Little Girl agreed. "And have you seen the pictures they have now of the sun that's about to go supernova? It's beautiful."

"Well, our sun isn't big enough to go supernova," #1 Son said. "But you're right, those are pretty amazing."

"Atoms are a center, with electrons in orbit around it. The solar system is a sun with planets in orbit around, the galaxy a black hole with suns in orbit around it, the universe some center with everything else in orbit around it -- it's all like universes within universes," Little Girl said.

That it is, i thought. And all that from watching dust motes dance in a sunbeam.

Today is:

Armed Forces Day -- Bangladesh

Beaujolais Nouveau Release -- France

Catholic School Principal Appreciation Day -- designated by the National Catholic Education Associationhttp://www.ncea.org/

False Confessions Day -- internet generated, and not for the faint of heart

Fast for an Abundant World Harvest -- sponsored by Oxfam America
Feast of the Presentation of the Blessed Virgin -- Eastern and Roman Catholic Christian (those following the Gregorian Calendar)

Festival of Madonna della Salute -- Venice, Italy

Furniture Memory Day -- an internet generated test of your memory; see if you remember where you got each piece of furniture you own, how much it cost, and how its most precious scratch came to be; you are also encouraged to dust if you want to

General Framework Agreement Day -- RS, Bosnia and Herzegovina

Gerard d'Aboville Day -- marking the day, in 1991, he arrived in Ilwaco, WA, US, after departing Japan 4 months earlier in a rowboat!

Gingerbread Day

Great American Smokeout -- save money and your life, try not to smoke today; started by the American Cancer Society

National Stuffing Day -- various dates given on many sites, so if you enjoy stuffing, celebrate them all

No Music Day -- www.nomusicday.com for the explanation

St. Gelasius' Day

Ugly Day -- Fairy Calendar

Use Less Stuff Day -- a great idea!

World Hello Day -- recognizing the importance of communication in world peace, say hello to people you don't usually greet today

World Television Day -- UN

Anniversaries Today:

South Carolina becomes the 12 US State, 1789

Birthdays Today:

Ken Griffey, Jr., 1969
Troy Aikman, 1966
Bjork, 1965
Cherry Jones, 1956
Goldie Hawn, 1945
Harold Ramis, 1944
Tweety Bird, 1942
Juliet Mills, 1941
Marlo Thomas, 1938
Joseph Campanella, 1927
Stan Musial, 1920
Coleman Hawkins, 1904
Rene Magritte, 1898
Hetty Green, 1834
William Beaumont, 1785
Voltaire, 1694

Today in History:

Judas Maccabaeus, son of Mattathias of the Hasmonean family, restores the Temple in Jerusalem; this is the event commemorated each year by the festival of Hanukkah, BC164
The Pilgrims, aboard the Mayflower, reach what is now called Provincetown Harbor, Massachusetts, and sign the Mayflower Compact, 1620
Richard Johnson, a free black, is granted 550 acres in Virginia, 1654
In Paris, Jean-François Pilâtre de Rozier and François Laurent, Marquis d'Arlandes, make the first untethered hot air balloon flight, 1783
Colonel Napoléon Bonaparte is promoted to full general and appointed Commander-in-Chief of the Armies of the French Republic, 1791
First Jewish Reform congregation in US forms, Charleston, SC, 1824
Moses F Gale patents a cigar lighter, 1871
Tom Edison announces his "talking machine" invention (phonograph), 1877
Rebecca Latimer Felton of Georgia takes the oath of office, becoming the first female United States Senator, 1922
First commercial crossing of Pacific by plane (China Clipper), 1935
The Alcan Highway is completed, 1942*
The British Natural History Museum announces that the "Piltdown Man" skull is a hoax, 1953
The first permanent ARPANET link is established between UCLA and SRI, 1969
Gerard d'Aboville completes his four-month solo journey to row across the Pacific Ocean, 1991
The Dayton Peace Agreement is initialed at the Wright Patterson Air Force Base, near Dayton, Ohio, ending three and a half years of war in Bosnia and Herzegovina, 1995
NATO invites Bulgaria, Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania, Romania, Slovakia and Slovenia to become members, 2002

*Not opened to general vehicular traffic until the next year

Steve, The Burnt Food Dude, started Feline Friday, and i'm going to believe it's because he likes cats.

i'z hit teh jackpot!

Buzz tries to climb into the food bin.

Today is:

Colorado River Crossing Balloon Festival -- Yuma, AZ, US (through Sunday)

Dispute-Settling Assizes -- Fairy Calendar (no, they won't tell us what kind of disputes)

Dita e Alfabetit -- Albania and Ethnic Albanians (Day of the Albanian Alphabet)

Go for a Ride Day -- internet generated; during the crazy holiday season, go out for a relaxing sleigh ride or something

Grand Illumination Celebration and Gingerbread House Competition & Display -- Lahaska, PA, US (the holiday fun begins at the Peddler's Village)

Greater Pittsburgh Arts and Crafts Show -- Monroeville, PA, US (through Sunday)

Holiday Folk Fair International -- Milwaukee, WI, US (featuring costumes, dancing, entertainment, exhibits, and more from 65 cultures; through Sunday)

Holiday Lights on the Lake -- Altoona, PA, US (51 acres of lights, animations, gift shops, food, model train displays, and more; through the Sunday after New Year's Day)

Independence Day -- Lebanon(1943)

National Cashew Day -- some sites have this on the 23rd, i celebrate both as i love cashews

National Stop the Violence Day -- a call by US radio and TV stations for a cease fire on American streets, on the anniversary of John Kennedy's assassination; observed with white ribbons and driving with headlights on during the day

Phonograph Day -- Edison publicly demonstrated his new music playing device on this day in 1877

Start Your Own Country Day -- begun at the 1939 World's Fair in New York

St. Cecilia's Day (Patron of composers, luthiers, martyrs, music, musicians, musical instrument makers, poets, singers; Academy of Music, Rome, Italy; Albi, France; Omaha, Nebraska; Valleyfield, Quebec)

Silver Bells in the City -- Lansing, MI, US (the capital city sparkles as the business district lights up for the holidays)

Substitute Educators Day -- US (the NEA encourages everyone to recognize those hard working substitute teachers, especially the ones who work most or all of the school year)

Ydalir -- Ancient Norse Calendar (Celebration of the wintertime god of skiing and archery, Ullr; date approximate)

York International Postcard Fair -- York, PA, US (over 100 international dealers in post cards show, sell, and trade their finest cards; through tomorrow)

Anniversary Today:

The Humane Society of the United States is founded, 1954

Birthdays Today:

Scarlett Johansson, 1984
Scott Robinson, 1979
Mariel Hemingway, 1961
Jamie Lee Curtis, 1958
Billie Jean King, 1943
Robert Vaughn, 1932
Rodney Dangerfield, 1921
Benjamin Britten, 1913
Hoagy Carmichael, 1899
Wiley Post, 1898
Charles de Gaulle, 1890
John Nance Garner, 1868
George Eliot (Mary A. Evans), 1819
Abigail Adams, 1744

Debuting/Premiering Today:

On the Origin of Species published, 1859

Today in History:

The first Duke of all Brittany, Nominoe defeats the Frankish king Charles the Bald at the Battle of Ballon near Redon, 845
Spain delegates "New Laws" against slavery in America, 1542
Dutch colonial forces on Taiwan launch a pacification campaign against native villages, resulting in Dutch control of the middle and south of the island, 1635
Off the coast of North Carolina, British pirate Edward Teach (best known as "Blackbeard") is killed in battle with a boarding party led by Lieutenant Robert Maynard, 1718
Peregrine Williamson of Baltimore patents a steel pen, 1809
Canadian journalist and politician William Lyon Mackenzie called for a rebellion against Great Britain, 1837
In Dumbarton, Scotland, the clipper Cutty Sark is launched – one of the last clippers ever to be built, and the only one still surviving to this day, 1869
Victoria Street Cable Tram route begins in Melbourne, Australia, 1886
The Congress of Manastir establishes the Albanian alphabet, 1908
1st snowmobile patent granted to Carl Eliason of Sayner Wisconsin, 1927
The premier performance of Ravel's Boléro takes place in Paris, 1928
Gasoline pump patented that computes quantity & price delivered, 1932
"Santa Claus Is Comin' to Town" first heard on Eddie Cantor's show, 1934
The Humane Society of the United States is founded, 1954
US President John F. Kennedy is killed and Texas Governor John B. Connally is seriously wounded by Lee Harvey Oswald, 1963
The United Nations General Assembly grants the Palestine Liberation Organization observer status, 1974
Juan Carlos is declared King of Spain following the death of Francisco Franco, 1975
In Palmdale, California, the first prototype B-2 Spirit stealth bomber is revealed, 1988
Toy Story is released as the first feature-length film created completely using computer-generated imagery, 1995
Angela Merkel becomes the first female Chancellor of Germany, 2005

Since i recently recounted conversations i've overheard, i thought i'd also recount he following recent conversations in which i or my family have participated.

Grandma and Grandpa, laughing at each other and us laughing at them the whole time, were heard to say:

Grandma: Are you ready? Get over here!

Grandpa: What are you yelling at me for? (Looking over at us) Do you kids hear this? She's always yelling at me! She doesn't like me.

Grandma: Of course I don't like you! Do I have to tell you Happy Birthday tomorrow?

Grandpa: No, because you'll just yell it at me!

Grandma, talking about great grandma:

She was so funny! She would eat entire loaves of bread by herself. And pass gas all the time. She would just be walking along and passing gas, it was hysterical! It was like she never even noticed.

#2 Son and me (with him grinning the whole time):

#2 Son: Hey, mom, you don't have to come pick Little Girl up from school today! I went in and checked her out early! I just told them I was her brother, showed them my ID, and said it was Grandpa's birthday and I needed to get her and they let her go!

me: You did what!

#2 Son: I checked her out of school early. No need to thank me!

me: Be glad if i don't kill you! You aren't supposed to do that, they aren't supposed to give her to anyone under 18 or who isn't on the list! Besides, she had a test and projects due!

#2 Son: She was done with all that. You're welcome.

Little Girl and me:

me: Who broke this glass? It's all in the grass!

Little Girl: Oh, Festus. We told him he could. We thought the thing had a back to it! The cabinet used to have a back to it!

me: Well, it didn't have a back, it's now in the grass! Do you realize what that means? Those pieces of glass will become missiles the next time the grass is mowed, this is dangerous!

Little Girl: Yeah, well, that glass was hard to break. It took him a long time to do it, but he had fun. Anyway, we'll pick it up.

me: What is it with him having to break stuff?

Little Girl: No one knows. He loves to build computers and break stuff. It's just him.

me: Valedictorian or not, there's something the matter with that boy!

Festus and me:

me (leaning my head out of the window after hearing the unmistakable voice of Festus and the sound of something being destroyed): Festus, what are you breaking at my house now?

Festus: This old grill that broke most of the way two years ago.

me (after a moment to digest that fact, and knowing we have a newer, better one anyway): Well, please throw it away when you are finished with it.

Festus: Yes, Ma'am!

Little Girl and me:

me (after stepping back and tripping over Little Girl's steel-toed boots): Oh, i'm sorry!

Little Girl: No, it's okay, I'm sorry. I shouldn't have been standing right behind you while you were trying to get something out of the car. It's my big ol' boots, too. But I love them. They are very convenient, especially when you have to kick someone. You have no idea how good it feels to know you have steel-toes when someone is really asking for a good kick!

me: You better not be kicking anyone.

Little Girl (with a grin): Well, only once, and he was asking for it, poking me over and over, and i didn't kick hard enough to hurt him, and he didn't poke me that hard, either. We were just teasing each other, me and Tyrell, and we ended up laughing about it. It's just that, knowing you have steel-toes makes you feel much better when somebody is really asking for it! Not that I'd use them unless I was in fear of my life, but knowing they are there is nice.

Today is:

Can You Find Your Old Rubik's Cube and Still Work It Day -- internet generated, and why would you bother?

Color Photos Day -- anniversary of the Kodak introduction of modern color film in 1935

Eat A Cranberry Day -- just to see why you add sugar, i guess

Feast of Qawl(Speech) -- Baha'i

Fibonacci Day -- celebrating the mathematical Fibonacci Series, which begins as 1,1,2,3

Giorgoba -- Georgia (St. George's Day; they celebrate their patron saint twice a year, today and May 6, his feast day on the OS calendar)

Hadakambo Festival -- Hofu, Japan (men dressed only in loincloths brave the cold carrying floats to the shrine)

Holidays in the City Grand Illumination Parade -- Norfolk, VA, US (to kick off Thanksgiving and the upcoming holidays)

Holodomor Remembrance Day -- international commemoration of the Death By Hunger Genocide in Ukraine

International Aura Awareness Day -- to increase the awareness of the human energy body, or aura

Jukebox Day -- many days compete for this title, but the first known nickel-in-the-slot record machine went into service on this day in 1889 in San Francisco, CA, US

Kinro Kansha no Hi -- Japan (Labour Day Thanksgiving, when people express gratitude to each other for their work through the year)

La Posada de Kingsville: a Celebration of Lights -- Kingsville, TX, US (many holiday events from now until Dec. 31, focusing on the joy and spirit of the season)

Natchitoches Festival of Lights -- Natchitoches, LA, US (over 350,000 lights go on every night from now until Jan, 6, with carolers on Friday and Saturday evenings downtown, festivals and events every weekend; come celebrate the season in the Oldest Settlement in the Louisiana Purchase)

National Adoption Day -- US (encouraging us to find a home for every child; many courts finalize thousands of adoptions of children from foster care on this day each year)

National Cashew Day -- some sites list it on the 22nd, i'm celebrating both as i love cashews

National Espresso Day

National Family Volunteer Day -- Points of Light started this, and now several groups work together to provide volunteer opportunities for families; here and here for information

National Survivors of Suicide Day -- US (remembering those who have lost loved ones to suicide, especially as Thanksgiving and the holidays are coming)

Nordic Yulefest -- Nordic Museum, Seattle, WA, US (a Scandinavian holiday extravaganza; through tomorrow)

Pencil Sharpener Day -- John Love of Massachusetts patented the first one this day in 1897

Ranch Hand Breakfast -- King Ranch, Kingsville, TX, US (a real ranch hand meal, cooked and served outdoors, on a working cattle ranch where you can watch cowboys round up longhorns)
part of La Posada de Kingsville, with special holiday celebrations through December

Repudiation Day -- Maryland, US (anniversary of the Franklin County Court refusal to cooperate with Britain's Stamp Tax Act)

Rudolf Maister Day -- Slovenia

St. Clement's Day (Patron of boatmen/mariners/sailors/watermen, marble workers/stonecutters, sick children; Dundee, Scotland; Velletri, Italy)

St. Columbanus's Day (Patron of motorcyclists; Bobbio, Italy; against floods)

St. Felicity's Day (Patron of martyrs, widows; against the death of children, sterility)

World's Champion Duck-Calling Contest and Festival -- Stuttgart, AR, US (pageants for Queen Mallard and Junior Queen Mallard, carnival, and the best duck calling possible; through Nov. 30)

Birthdays Today:

Miley Cyrus, 1992
Salli Richardson, 1967
Bruce Hornsby, 1954
Johnny Mandel, 1925
Harpo Marx, 1888
Boris Karloff, 1887
Billy the Kidd (William H. Bonney), 1859
Franklin Pierce, 1804

Debuting/Premiering Today:

Dr. Who, 1963
Life Magazine, 1936
First play-by-play American style football game radio broadcast, 1919 (Texas A&M beat University of Texas, 7-0)

Today in History:

Thespis of Icaria becomes the first actor to portray a character onstage, BC534
Charlemagne arrives at Rome to investigate the alleged crimes of Pope Leo III, 800
Conquest of Seville by the Christian troops under King Ferdinand III of Castile. 1248
Areopagitica, a pamphlet decrying censorship, and written by John Milton is published, 1644
People of Frederick County Md refuse to pay England's Stamp tax, 1765
Henry Burden patents Horseshoe manufacturing machine, 1835
Patent granted for a process of making color photographs, 1863
The first jukebox goes into operation at the Palais Royale Saloon in San Francisco, 1889
King William III of the Netherlands dies without a male heir and a special law is passed to allow his daughter Princess Wilhelmina to become his heir, 1890
Andrew J Beard invents "jerry coupler," to connect railroad cars, 1897
Pencil sharpener patented by J L Love, 1897
Enrico Caruso makes his US debut at the Metropolitan Opera House, NY in "Rigoletto", 1903
Wright Brothers forms million dollar corporation to manufacture airplanes, 1909
Life Magazine publishes its first issue, 1936
The Cocos Islands are transferred from the control of the United Kingdom to Australia, 1955
The BBC broadcasts the first ever episode of Doctor Who (starring William Hartnell) which is the world's longest running science fiction drama, 1963
Representatives of the People's Republic of China attend the United Nations, including the United Nations Security Council, for the first time, 1971
A series of earthquakes in southern Italy kills approximately 4,800 people, 1980
The first all woman expedition to the south pole (3 Americans, 1 Japanese and 12 Russians), sets off from Antarctica on the 1st leg of a 70 day, 1287 kilometre ski trek, 1990
Convention on Cybercrime is signed in Budapest, Hungary, 2001
Ellen Johnson Sirleaf is elected president of Liberia and becomes the first woman to lead an African country, 2005

To do list for Thanksgiving week:

1. Get out the meat grinder and learn to finally make that home made sausage for the stuffing.

2. Make special name place cards for the meal, as a festive touch.

3. Have head examined.

*******

A young boy greets the Thanksgiving guests as they come through the door with, "You might not want to expect much. When we went to church last Sunday, and my dad told the pastor that my mom is a pagan. He says she serves burnt offerings for dinner!"

*******

As the family gathers at the Thanksgiving table, one young boy barely sits down before he begins shoveling food in with great gusto.

"Son! Stop!" says his father. "Don't you know we have to pray first?"

"No, we don't!" the youngster answers. "Remember, it's not like we're at home. Grandma knows how to cook!"

Today is:

Banquet for Monkeys / Monkey Buffet Festival -- Khmer Ruins of Lop Buri, Thailand (600 monkeys are served lunch while humans get to watch; some describe it as a riot but without the police)

Brumalia -- Byzantine Empire celebration of Dyonisus and New Wine Festival; until the solstice

Celebrate Your Unique Talent Day -- there used to be a website associated with this day, but it closed; that's no reason for you not to celebrate your uniqueness!

Celebration of Christ The King -- Christian (final Sunday of the Ecclesiastical Year) related observance
Stir Up Sunday -- the day to get your Christmas plum pudding started

Celtic Tree Month Ruish (Elder) begins

D.B. Cooper Day -- anniversary of the 1971 hijacking

Discovery Day -- Tasmania (by Abel Tasman in 1642)

Evolution Day -- On the Origin of Species published this day in 1859

Feast of the Martyrs of Vietnam -- Roman Catholic Church

Guru Tegh Bahadur Martyrdom - Sikh

Handel's Messiah Sing-Along -- East Room of the Nixon Library, Yorba Linda, CA, US (two seatings available for this beautiful and enjoyable event, singing along with a master choir and orchestra)

John F. Kennedy Day -- MA, US

Lachit Divas -- Assam, India

Mother Goose Parade Day -- El Cajon, CA, US (kicking off the holiday season with good, family fun)

National Farm-City Week -- US (on the week of Thanksgiving, remember that it's the farmers who supply your celebratory foods)

National Sardines Day -- wonder how this would go over next to the turkey today?

Persephone Day (a/k/a Kore -- Ancient Greek Calendar (celebration of her as wheel goddess of the underworld; date approximate, but she is often associated with St. Catherine)

Ragtime Day -- birth anniversary of Scott Joplin

St. Colman of Cloyne's Day (Patron of Cloyne, Ireland)

St. Joachim Ho's Day -- a Martyr of China

St. Mary of Cordoba's Day (Patron of martyrs)

Teacher's Day -- Turkey

Third Bash of the Tree-Toppers -- Fairy Calendar (fairy creatures who don't believe in "one" or "two", so start counting at three)

Totensonntag/Ewigkeitssonntag -- Germany (Sunday of the Dead/Eternity Sunday; a general celebration and memorial of all who have died, decreed to be celebrated in Lutheran Churches by King Frederick William III of Prussia in 1816)

Use Even If Seal is Broken Day -- internet generated; observe at your own risk, always!

XTERRA Trail Run Series World Championship -- Kualoa Ranch, Oahu, HI, US (the crown jewel of the XTERRA Trail Run series of 60 rigorous, off road races, the world championship run)

Birthdays Today:

Katherine Heigl, 1978
Dwight Schultz, 1947
William F. Buckley, Jr., 1925
Charles "Lucky" Luciano, 1897
Dale Carnegie, 1888
Scott Joplin, 1868
Henri de Toulouse-Lautrec, 1864
Bat Masterson, 1853
Frances Hodgson Burnett, 1849
Bram Stoker, 1847
Zachary Taylor, 1784
Charles Theodore Pachelbel, 1690

Debuting/Premiering Today:

Softball, as a sport, invented this day as a spur of the moment game at the Farragut Boat Club in Chicago, IL, US, 1887

Today in History:

Theodosius I makes his formal entry into Constantinople, 380
Rabbi Nathan ben Yehiel of Rome completes his Talmudic dictionary, 1105
The Thames River freezes, 1434
First observation of transit of Venus occurred (only 2, record event), 1639
Abel Janzoon Tasman becomes the first European to see Van Damien's Land, later renamed Tasmania, 1642
First Lutheran pastor ordained in America, Justus Falckner at Philadelphia, 1703
Mt. Vesuvius erupts, 1759
Charles Darwin publishes "On the Origin of Species", 1859
Luik-Visé-Maastricht railway opens, 1861
Joseph F Glidden patents his improved barbed wire, 1874
The first US absentee voting law enacted by Vermont, 1896
Clyde Coleman of NYC patents automobile electric starter, 1903
Radio Belgium makes its first transmission, 1923
The first woman pilot on a transcontinental air flight, Miss Ruth Nichols (Mineola, NY to Calif), in a Lockheed-Vega, took 7 days, 1930
In Washington, D.C., the FBI Scientific Crime Detection Laboratory (better known as the FBI Crime Lab) officially opens, 1932
Lee Harvey Oswald is murdered by Jack Ruby, 1963
During a severe thunderstorm over Washington state, a hijacker calling himself Dan Cooper (AKA D. B. Cooper) parachutes from a Northwest Orient Airlines plane with $200,000 in ransom money, and is never seen again, 1971
A national speed limit is imposed on the Autobahn in Germany due to the 1973 oil crisis; it lasts only four months, 1973
The communist party resigns in Czechoslovakia, 1989
By a margin of only 50.28% t 49.72%, Ireland votes to end the 70 year old ban on divorce, 1995

...before the holiday even begins, i'm scared to see how the rest of the week is going to go.

Anyway. Last Thursday and Friday, Grandma and Grandpa were in town. Friday was Grandpa's birthday, and i had prepared two batches of the fried, sweet flatbreads called hojaldras that he loves for his gift. Most of those two days were spent entertaining Grandma while Grandpa had meetings and dinners and luncheons and the interminable discussions that go into doing work on Boards of AnythingAndEverything.

By the time they left Friday afternoon, Little Girl and i went and took care of the cats at the shelter, then i dropped her and some friends off for a movie. A couple of hours after that, a friend of mine came into town to stay with us.

She had expressed interest in seeing a home football game, and, since #1 Son was going to be working, i invited her. She drove down in her daughter the lawyer's Mercedes convertible, the one that still has some damage from a bullet hole in it. Note for those who want to be lawyers -- be careful which type of law you decide to practice. Divorces get messy, and sometimes the lawyer for the other side gets in the way.

Having her here was a breath of fresh air. We stayed up later than we should have, then i got up crazy early as i generally do. The game was a highlight, but absolutely cold. Not just a bit of autumn chill, the highest temp for the day was mid-50's and dropped from the time the game started. It's a good thing the team won, or it would have been insufferable. As it was, the inside areas were so crowded with us Southern hothouse flowers who don't do cold well that there wasn't room to breathe deeply.

Sunday morning the plan was to attend the very early service, then my friend Di would go toodle around the town a bit and meet me at noon when my nursery shift was over. Only problem: perfume.

People, i'm not a meanie, and i'm not against you wearing your favorite perfume, cologne, aftershave, whatever. What i am against is having to say, "Nice scent. Must you marinate in it?" Seriously, when your perfume is so strong that a person can't stay for a church service because her throat is closing up, you have used way too much. Take a tip from Miss Manners (Judith Martin) and make sure your scent is not so strong that it will stay in the room even when you are no longer present!

Anyway, Di had to leave the service, and she did toodle around the town a bit, and found her dog, The Terrorist Terrier, a Christmas outfit at the BigBoxStore. Meanwhile, Little Girl played with the 2-year-olds and i sat with crying babies in my lap. She and i met up again for lunch and talk and more talk.

Little Girl, by the way, deserves great kudos for giving up her room so my friend could stay. The child slept on the couch downstairs for two nights without complaint, and in fact, she had offered.

After Di left, extracting a promise from me that i would come visit her during the Christmas break, and i will, it was time for me to get ready for the annual ecumenical Thanksgiving service that several area churches take turns hosting each year. It was a lovely service, at the Methodist Church this year. They have a wonderful choir, and the speaker was from a local outreach ministry for the homeless that all of these churches band together to support.

So Sunday evening saw me ready for bed in earnest, and hoping for a break. Even though there is no school this week, there's no rest for the weary. Little Girl took her driving classes, the classroom instruction portion, in August. She has been waiting ever since to be called to do the 8 hours of behind the wheel instruction. They finally called, and that starts today, 8am sharp.

That, and the fact that we are again out of toilet paper, meaning i have no further excuses to put off grocery shopping, and the fact that we have so much to do for the holiday week, is going to keep us jumping.

Today is:

Anniversary of Moquegua City -- Peru (founded this date in 1541)

Cat-Napping Convention -- Fairy Calendar

Day Sacred to Proserpina -- Ancient Roman Calendar (also Persephone, of the Greeks, the Wheel goddess of the Underworld, often associated with St. Catherine; see below)

Dia de la Soberania Nacional -- Argentina (Sovereignty Day)

Evacuation Day -- 19th Century New York City (withdrawal of British troops in 1783)

Hari Guru -- Indonesia (Teacher's Day)

Icelandic Calendar Month Ylir (Whiner) begins -- named after the whining winter winds

International Day for the Elimination of Violence against Women -- UN

Learn When To Start Thawing the Turkey Day -- US (USDA "Let's Talk Turkey" hotline 800-535-4555; Butterball "Turkey Talk-Line" 800-323-4848)

Mangé Yam -- Haiti (fete de la moisson; a yam harvest festival)

National Day -- Bosnia and Herzegovina (commemorates the 1943 declaration of statehood within Yugoslavia)

National Don't Utter A Word Day -- internet generated, and variously listed as the 25th of November, February, or May; pick one if you want

National Military Families Recognition Day -- US (by Presidential Proclamation in 1993, the Monday before Thanksgiving Day)http://www.militaryfamily.org/

National Parfait Day

Persephone Day (a/k/a Kore) -- Ancient Greek Calendar (celebration of her as wheel goddess of the underworld; date approximate, but she is often associated with St. Catherine; see below)

Saint Catherine of Alexandria's Day -- of the Catherine Wheel, sometimes associated with the Wheel of Karma and the Hindu Kali; one of the Fourteen Holy Helpers (Patron of apologists, archivists, attorneys, barristers, craftsmen who work with wheels of any sort, dying people, educators, girls, jurists, knife grinders and sharpeners, lawyers, librarians, libraries, maidens, mechanics, millers, nurses, old maids, philosophers, potters, preachers, scholars, schoolchildren, scribes, secretaries, spinners, spinsters, stenographers, students, tanners, teachers, theologians, turners, University of Paris, unmarried girls, and wheelwrights; Aalsum, Netherlands; Bertinoro, Italy; Camerata Picena, Italy; Dumaguete, Philippines; Heidesheim am Rhein, Germany; Kuldiga, Latvia; Mähring, Germany; Saint Catharines, Ontario; Zejtun, Malta; Zurrieq, Malta) related observance
Women's Merrymaking Day -- Women go 'Cath'rining' and have a good time (in some places, especially France, women may propose marriage on this day)

Shopping Reminder Day -- exactly a month until Christmas

Srefidensi -- Suriname (Republic Day/Independence Day)

Statehood Day -- FBiH, Bosnia and Herzegovina

Strange Names Day -- in honor of all the celebrity -- and other -- kids with "unique" names; sponsored the last Tuesday in November by Marlar in the Morning at 101QFL in Rockford, IL, US

Vajiravudh Day -- Thailand

Zibelemarit -- Bern, Switzerland (Onion Market Festival, in front of the Federal Palace, one of the country's best known and most popular autumn markets, always on the fourth Monday in November to commemorate the granting of market right to people after great fire of Berne in 1405.)

Birthdays Today:

Barbara and Jenna Bush, 1981
Donovan McNabb, 1976
Christina Applegate, 1971
Jill Hennessy, 1968
Amy Grant, 1960
John F. Kennedy, Jr., 1960
John Larroquette, 1947
Paul Desmond, 1924
Ricardo Montalban, 1920
Joe DiMaggio, 1914
Solanus Casey, 1870
Carry Nation, 1846
Karl F. Benz, 1844
Andrew Carnegie, 1835

Today in History:

A tsunami, caused by the earthquake in the Tyrrhenian Sea, devastates Naples (Italy) and the Maritime Republic of Amalfi, among other places, 1343
The siege of Granada, the last Moorish stronghold in Spain, begins, 1491
A deadly earthquake rocks Shemakha, in the Caucasus, killing 80,000 people, 1667
The Great Storm of 1703, the greatest windstorm ever recorded in the southern part of Great Britain, reaches its peak intensity which it maintains through November 27. Winds gust up to 120 mph, and 9,000 people died, 1703
First English patent granted to an American, for processing corn, 1715
Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania is founded, 1758
Farmer's Almanac first published, 1792
The Greek frigate Hellas arrives in Nafplion to become the first flagship of the Hellenic Navy, 1826
A cyclone slams India with high winds and a 40 foot storm surge, destroying the port city of Coringa (never to be entirely rebuilt again); the storm wave sweeps inland, taking with it 20,000 ships and thousands of people. An estimated 300,000 deaths result from the disaster, 1839
Alfred Nobel patents dynamite, 1867
John B Meyenberg of St Louis patents evaporated milk, 1884
American College of Surgeons incorporates in Springield, Illinois, 1912
First Thanksgiving Day Parade is held in Philadelphia, 1920
690 earthquake shocks recorded in 1 day in Ito, Japan, 1930
The first Soviet liquid fuel rocket attains altitude of 261' (80m), 1933
Woody Woodpecker debuts with release of Walter Lantz's "Knock Knock", 1940
New Zealand ratifies the Statute of Westminster and thus becomes independent of legislative control by the United Kingdom, 1947
Agatha Christie's murder-mystery play The Mousetrap opens at the Ambassadors Theatre in London later becoming the longest continuously-running play in history, 1952
The Minneapolis Thanksgiving Day Fire destroys an entire city block, 1982
The United Nations establishes the International Day for the Elimination of Violence against Women to commemorate the murder of three Mirabal Sisters for resistance against the Rafael Trujillo dictatorship in Dominican Republic, 1999
Powerful storm brings 3 years worth of rain in 4 hours to Jeddah, Saudi Arabia, sparking terrible floods, 2009

"Ugh!" Little Girl came into the kitchen as i was listening to a talk radio show i catch each day (The Dave Ramsey Show, i can highly recommend it), and they were playing the news.

Or what passes for news on our local station. (The show is not responsible for the news the carrying stations play, by the way.) It was about the upcoming Black Friday.

What's ugh? i asked her.

"Black Friday! It's awful. Do you know why the call it Black Friday?" she asked.

Because they claim it's the day they finally make a profit and go from being in the red to being in the black, i said, citing what so many of them say and which i'm not so sure i believe.

She leaned over next to me and whispered, as if we would be overheard, even though there was no one else in the room. "No! It's because it is evil! Secretly, it is evil and they don't want you to know it!"

Then at a normal volume she added, "Besides, don't people realize they don't need all that stuff! They really don't."

You're right, i told her, but that doesn't seem to stop a lot of people. There was one guy in the nursery this past Sunday, talking about going to get a big screen TV on a Black Friday deal.

"I'm sure he already has a perfectly good Tv," she said. "He doesn't need a new one, he just wants it. And there's nothing wrong with wanting nice stuff, or wanting something new when something old is not working right any more, but it's silly to be buying tons of stuff you don't need."

Well, i agree, i told her. It's nice to be able to buy something for family and friends, but we go over the top.

"It's secretly evil, that's why it's Black Friday," she said again, with a grin. She also had a look in her eyes that let me know that on some levels, she's not joking in that opinion.

Can you tell that not only will we not be shopping on Thanksgiving, but we will also not be battling crowds the day after?

It's not because we have all the stuff already, either. We don't own a TV except the small one Sweetie sometimes watches DVDs on, the kids have one old game system that hooks up to a monitor and speakers, and a few older games. We have old computers, no smartphones (or desire to get those), no dishwasher any more since it caught fire, a hot water heater that heats when it feels up to the task, a microwave that is probably about on its last legs (it's got the dial controls, if that tells you anything), and old cars.

Yet, we have enough. We don't need the newest, the latest, the greatest. We're glad for what we have, and my kids know that the holidays aren't about getting a bunch of stuff.

Maybe she's right. Maybe it's not exactly evil, but unsettling. It stresses the wrong things, i do believe that. There's nothing wrong with having some nice stuff. It's wrong when the stuff has you, has your heart, has your loyalty, takes you away from what your life should be about, your higher purpose.

Maybe that's the dark secret.

Today is:

Brotherhood of Goat Meat Eaters Festival -- Bellegarde-en-Marche, France (a festival that dates back, supposedly, to a battle with the English where the people of this town used sharpened goat horns to fight; goat meat is served to any and all and the whole town celebrates this outdoor occasion)

Constitution Day of the Republic of Abkhazia -- Abkhazia

Day of the Covenant -- Baha'i

Day of the Tan-Wallopers -- Fairy Calendar

Good Grief Day -- birth anniversary of Charles Schultz

Independence Day -- Mongolia(1924)

National Cake Day

Sojourner Truth Day -- died this day in 1883

St. John Berchmans' Day (Patron of alter servers, Oblate novices, young people)

Anniversaries Today:

Founding of Sigma Alpha Mu in the City College of New York, by 8 Jewish young men, 1909
The first official Thanksgiving in the US, by presidential proclamation, 1789
Founding of the University of Notre Dame, 1842
Founding of Kappa Alpha Society, the oldest surviving US college fraternity, 1825

Birthdays Today:

Natasha Bedingfield, 1981
Tina Turner, 1939
Rich Little, 1938
Robert Goulet, 1933
Charles Schultz, 1922
Eugene Ionesco, 1912
Eric Sevareid, 1912
John Harvard, 1607
Emperor Go-Daigo of Japan, 1288

Debuting/Premiering Today:

The Price is Right(TV), 1956
Twenty Questions(TV), 1949
Casablanca(Movie), 1942
Alice in Wonderland(Book), 1865

Today in History:

The Second Triumvirate alliance of Gaius Julius Caesar Octavianus ("Octavian", later "Caesar Augustus"), Marcus Aemilius Lepidus, and Mark Antony is formed, BC43
Vlad III Dracula (Vlad the Impaler)defeats Basarab Laiota with the help of Stephen the Great and Stephen V Bathory and becomes the ruler of Wallachia for the third time, 1476
The first lion exhibited in the US makes his debut in Boston, 1716
Captain James Cook becomes the first European to visit Maui, 1778
The Catholic Apostolic Prefecture of the United States established, 1784
The first national US Thanksgiving is celebrated, 1789
The first streetcar railway in the US begins operation in NYC, fare 12 cents, 1832
The refrigerated railway car is patented by J.B. Sutherland of Detroit, Michigan, 1867
The first photograph of a meteor is taken, 1885
The National Hockey League is formed, with the Montreal Canadiens, Montreal Wanderers, Ottawa Senators, Quebec Bulldogs, and Toronto Arenas as its first teams, 1917
King Tut's tomb is opened by English archaeologist Howard Carter, 1922
Four young lads from Liverpool have their first recording session under the interesting name "The Beatles", 1962
Tony Blair becomes the first Prime Minister of the United Kingdom to address the Republic of Ireland's parliament, 1998
Concorde makes its final flight, over Bristol, England, 2003
A male Po'ouli (Black-faced honeycreeper) dies of Avian malaria in the Maui Bird Conservation Center in Olinda, Hawaii before it could breed, making the species in all probability extinct, 2004

Clank!

The sound told me that something, most likely a fork, had hit the floor. Turning, i could see where #2 Son was serving up an extra plate of rice and tomato gravy from where i had put the leftovers in the fridge. He had dropped his fork on while trying to balance that with the Nutella sandwich he was making.

He picked the fork up and wiped it on his pants. "Ten second rule!" he grinned at me.

No way! i said. The kittens run all over this floor, and even if i do mop it, their paws have been in the litter box and then all over the floor! Go clean it.

"Nah, ten second rule!" He was still grinning. "I'll be fine. I've been known to eat pizza that's so old it's almost petrified! Young Jacob, didn't we eat petrified pizza?"

"Yes, we did," Young Jacob confirmed, sitting at the counter with his own plate of leftovers. "It was yummy, too!"

Well, i don't care, wash the fork! i said, laughing along with them as #2 Son was already heading for the sink and the soap.

Besides, i added, there's no such thing as an any second rule. Studies show that items pick up germs the very second they hit the floor.

"Oh, well," #2 Son said as he finished rinsing the now clean fork.

The things you survive in your youth, when you still have that cast iron stomach, shouldn't include germs picked up where kittens roam free.

Today is:

Anniversary of Cerro de Pasco -- Peru (founding of the city and its silver mine)

Bargle Day -- Fairy Calendar (a fairy day with no human equivalent)

Electric Guitar Day -- birth anniversary of Jimi Hendrix

Feast of Ullr and Skadi -- Asatru/Norse Pagan (celebrating craftsmen)

Freckle Pride Day -- show your spots, you are beautiful!

Get the Giggles and Give One Away Day -- internet generated, and great if your a preteen girl

Hanukkah -- Judaism (Festival of Lights; begins at sundown, through sundown Dec. 5)

Khoiak Ceremonies -- Ancient Egyptian Calendar (ceremonies surrounding the stories of the death of Osiris, date approximate)

Lancashire Day -- Lancashire, England (celebrating their first elected representative in Parliament in 1295)

Maaverar Naal -- Tamil Eelam, Sri Lanka (Tamil Heroes' Day)

National Bavarian Cream Pie Day

National Day -- Myanmar

National Family Caregivers' Day -- US (if you are a caregiver who needs support, you can get it here or here)

Pie in the Face Day -- internet generated, and supposed to be a virtual one, so no mess to clean

Pins and Needles Day -- celebrating the 1937 opening of the Pins and Needles Music Revue

St. Virgilius of Salzburg's Day (Patron of Salzburg, Austria; Slovenes)

St. James Intercisus' Day (Patron of lost vocations, torture victims)

Thanksgiving Day -- Norfolk Island

Tie One On Day -- an apron! on US Thanksgiving eve, write a note of encouragement or prayer, tuck it in the pocket of an apron, and wrap the apron around a good home or bakery made loaf of bread, then deliver it to someone who needs a kind gesture

Tori No Ichi -- Japan (a "rooster day" in which to wish good luck and prosperity at temple and shrine ceremonies around the country)

Weihnachtsmarkt auf dem Romerberg -- Frankfurt, Germany (Frankfurt Christmas Market, including glockenspiels, trumpets, and bells rung from 9 churches at regular intervals; through Dec. 22)

Wonderland of Lights -- Marshall, TX, US (through Dec. 31, includes parades, candlelight home tours, and more)

Anniversaries Today:

William Shakespeare marries Anne Hathaway, 1582

Birthdays Today:

Jaleel White, 1976
Brooke Langton, 1970
Robin Givens, 1964
Caroline Kennedy, 1957
Rick Rockwell, 1956
Jimi Hendrix, 1942
Eddie Rabbit, 1941
Bruce Lee, 1940
"Buffalo" Bob Smith, 1917
Chick Hearn, 1916
James Agee, 1909
L. Sprague de Camp, 1907
Forrest Shaklee, 1894
Chaim Weizmann, 1874
Charles A. Beard, 1874
Bat Masterson, 1853
Robert R. Livingston, 1746 (O.S. date)
Anders Celcius, 1701
Emperor Xiaozong of China, 1127

Debuting/Premiering Today:

The Dinah Shore Show(TV), 1951

Today in History:

The first elected representatives from Lancashire were called to Westminster by King Edward I to attend what later became known as "The Model Parliament", 1295
The first Eddystone Lighthouse is destroyed in the Great Storm of 1703
The Portuguese Royal Family leaves Lisbon to escape from Napoleonic troops, 1807
Adoption of Constitution of the Kingdom of Poland, 1815
NY Times dubs baseball "The National Game", 1870
Alfred Nobel establishes the Nobel Prize, 1895
In New York City, the first Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade is held, 1924
The Soviet space program's Mars 2 orbiter releases a descent module; it crashes, but still becomes the first man-made object to be on Mars, 1971
The left-wing Labour Party takes control of the New Zealand government with leader Helen Clark becoming the first elected female Prime Minister in New Zealand's history, 1999
A hydrogen atmosphere is discovered on the extrasolar planet Osiris by the Hubble Space Telescope, the first atmosphere detected on an extrasolar planet, 2001
The Canadian House of Commons endorses Prime Minister Stephen Harper's motion to declare Quebec a nation within a unified Canada, 2006

Something for which i am grateful on this US Thanksgiving Day is that i still wake up to get notes like this one from #2 Son:

Hey, mom, I need to use the van around 10:00am if possible. Also, I lost my phone so could you try to wake me up around 9:45 if you can, thanks. P.S. I'll be in the tent with Festus. P.P.S. Never mind, it got too cold, I'm in my room, and Festus is on the couch.

A second thing is that #1 Son is back in town, and i am grateful he's planning to go back to school. He has actually wormed his way back into living in the garage room, and it's good that he is here and has a job.

Third, Bigger Girl is still coming up with her unique, and sometimes wacky and weird, takes on life, and i'm grateful to be hearing such things as "It's a crime to donate high heels to the thrift store! It's safer to ride a Clydesdale bareback than to wear them!"

A fourth item of gratitude is for Little Girl. She is 15, and just finished the driving portion of Driver's Ed. She was such a good driver, being so careful and doing so well, they passed her early!

Sweetie and i still haven't killed each other after over 28 years, and we are both grateful for that. (Insert crazy grin here, because we make each other nuts, but that's another story.)

Grandma and Grandpa are still with us, and i am over the moon about that. So many people my age don't have their parents around.

There's a lot more, too many things to list.

Happy Thanksgiving. Remember that being grateful makes you smile, and when you smile, you are beautiful.

Today is:

Ascension of 'Abdu'l-Baha -- Baha'i

Daytona Turkey Run -- Daytona International Speedway, Daytona Beach, FL, US (collector car show, swap meet, and craft sale; through Sunday)

Decorate Your Dog Day -- supposedly to get him/her into the holiday spirit; but please, don't

Feast of the Holy Sovereigns -- Episcopal Diocese of Hawaii (in honor of King Kamehama IV and Queen Emma, the founders of the Anglican Church of Hawaii

Flag Day -- Kosovo

Foods & Feasts of Colonial Virginia -- Jamestown Settlement, Williamsburg, VA, US (exploring the 17th- and 18th-century culinary practices of Virginia; through Saturday)

Hanukkah -- Judaism (began sundown yesterday; through sundown Dec. 5)

Independence Day -- Albania(1912); East Timor(1975); Mauritania(1960)

Make Your Own Head Day -- meaning an art project model or drawing, in any medium; have fun with this one!

National Family History Day -- US (a call from the Department of Health and Human Services to get info about your family, especially health history, while everyone is together for the holiday)

National French Toast Day

Red Planet Day -- on the anniversary of the 1964 liftoff of Mariner 4, the first successful mission to Mars

Republic Day -- Chad; Republic of the Congo

Royal Society Day -- one of the world's oldest scientific academies, established this day in 1660

Runic Half Month of Is begins (stasis)

Saint Catherine Laboure's Day -- promulgator of the Miraculous Medal

St. Stephen the Younger's Day` (Patron of coin collectors, numismatists, smelters)

Thanksgiving Day -- Interfaith, US and Territories

Turkey-Free Thanksgiving -- sponsored by the Vegetarian Awareness Network

Birthdays Today:

Anna Nicole Smith, 1967
Jon Stewart, 1962
Judd Nelson, 1959
Ed Harris, 1950
Alexander Godunov, 1949
Paul Shaffer, 1949
Joe Dante, 1946
Randy Newman, 1943
Berry Gordy, Jr., 1929
Claude Lévi-Strauss, 1908
Brooks Atkinson, 1894
William Blake, 1757
John Bunyan, 1628

Debuting/Premiering Today:

"Hopalong Cassidy"(TV), 1948
Skywriting(as an advertising medium), 1922*

Today in History:

Skanderbeg and his forces liberate Kruja in Middle Albania and raise the Albanian flag, 1443
Ferdinand Magellan and his men become the first Europeans to sail from the Atlantic into the Pacific Ocean, 1520
The Times in London is for the first time printed by automatic, steam powered presses built by the German inventors Friedrich Koenig and Andreas Friedrich Bauer, signaling the beginning of the availability of newspapers to a mass audience, 1814
Ka Lahui: Hawaiian Independence Day - The Kingdom of Hawaii is officially recognized by the United Kingdom and France as an independent nation, 1843
Women vote in a national election for the first time in the New Zealand general election, 1893
US-born Lady Astor becomes the first female member of British Parliament, 1919
*Capt Cyril Turner of the RAF gives 1st skywriting exhibition in NYC; Turner spelled out "Hello USA. Call Vanderbilt 7200." 47,000 called, 1922
The first Polaroid Camera is sold, 1948
Chad, the Republic of the Congo, and Gabon become autonomous republics within the French Community, 1958
The first pulsar star is discovered by Jocelyn Bell Burnell and Antony Hewish, 1968
Norway votes against joining the European Union, 1994
Wikileaks releases 250,000 classified documents and sensitive national security information sent by U.S. embassies, 2010

What's left after the feast.

After Thanksgiving dinner is eaten, and some meat is put away for sandwiches and for the turkey and sausage gumbo, what you have left is pictured above: bones, skin, innards, and some broth that didn't get used for gravy. All of that is poured into the crock pot with water added and boiled for hours and hours, until it makes the thick, good stock that will be used for soups and the aforementioned gumbo.

Photo-Finish Friday is the brainchild of Leah at The Goat's Lunch Pail.

Today is:

Belsnickel Craft Show -- Boyertown, PA, US (through tomorrow)

Black Friday or Buy Nothing Day -- i will observe the latter

Christmas Candlelight Tour -- My Old Kentucky Home State Park, Bardstown, KY, US (Christmas as it was in the 1800s; Fridays and Saturdays the first three weekends after Thanksgiving)

Christmas Traditions Celebration -- St. Charles, MO, US (the fun includes authentically costumed Santas from around the world; through Christmas Eve)

Dita e Clirimit -- Albania (Liberation Day)

Electronic Greetings Day -- sponsored by Wellcat Holidays

Fairy Flute Fantasy -- Fairy Calendar

Family Day -- Nevada, US

Festival of Saturnia -- Ancient Roman Calendar (for the Sons of Saturn; Jupiter, Neptune, and Pluto)

Gettysburg Holiday Festival -- Gettysburg, PA, US (fun holiday events weekends through the New Year's Eve Bash)

International Day of Solidarity with the Palestinian People -- UN

Jule Fest -- Elk Horn, IA, US (a true Danish Christmas festival; through Sunday)

National Chocolates Day -- yes, another one

National Day of Listening -- sponsored by StoryCorps, encouraging sharing family stories during the holidays

National Flossing Day -- help spread peace of mouth!

National Lemon Creme Pie Day

National Unity Day -- Vanuatu

Native American Heritage Day -- US; related observance
Maize Day -- US; celebrating the First Nations of the Americas and the role maize/corn played in their cultures

Plan Your Dagwood Sandwich Day -- admit you've always wanted to, so build one with your Thanksgiving leftovers!

Rally of the Tall Pines -- Bancroft, ON, Canada (an event on the Canadian Rally Car Race Circuit; through the tomorrow)

Sinkie Day -- sponsored by SINKIE, The International Association Of People Who Dine Over The Kitchen Sink, which urges you to combine your Christmas shopping with enjoying a quick meal of Thanksgiving leftovers and become a SINKIE convert!

St. Andrew's Eve -- in many traditions, a night to foretell the future, especially whom you will marry

St. Saturnius of Toulouse's Day (Patron of Toulouse, France)

Square Dance Day -- internet generated, and fun to do

Tree Lighting at Anchorage -- Anchorage, AK, US (Santa and 9 real reindeer help celebrate the annual lighting of the holiday tree, with free cocoa and cookies for all)

William Tubman's Birthday -- Liberia (it's longest serving President)

World Famous Fish House Parade -- Aitkin, MN, US (sounds better than shopping to me!)

You're Welcomegiving Day -- US, the day after Thanksgiving, started by Richard Ankli to give everyone a reason for a 4-day weekend

Anniversaries Today:

Erwin Rommel marries Lucie "Lu" Mollin, 1916

Birthdays Today:

Jon Knight, 1968
Don Cheadle, 1964
Andrew McCarthy, 1962
Kim Delaney, 1961
Cathy Moriarty, 1960
Jeff Fahey, 1956
Howie Mandel, 1955
Garry Shandling, 1949
Petra Kelly, 1947
Chuck Mangione, 1940
Peter Bergman, 1939
John Mayall, 1933
Jacques Rene Chirac, 1932
Diane Ladd, 1932
Vin Scully, 1927
Madeline L'Engle, 1918
Adam Clayton Powell, Jr., 1908
C.S. Lewis, 1898
Busby Berkeley, 1895
Nellie Tayloe Ross, 1876
Louisa May Alcott, 1832
Wendell Phillips, 1811
Christian Doppler, 1803
Charles Thomson, 1729

Debuting/Premiering Today:

Tatort(TV), 1970
Kukla, Fran, and Ollie(TV), 1948

Today in History:

Jews of Augsburg, Germany, are massacred, 1349 (Sometimes, it seems, the more things change...)
King Philip II devalues Spanish currency, 1596 (See above...)
Sir James Jay invents invisible ink, 1775
San Jose, California, is founded as el Pueblo de San José de Guadalupe, 1777
Dessalines & Christophe declare St Domingue (Haiti) independent, 1803
First Italian opera in US, "Barber of Seville" premieres (NYC), 1825
Thomas Edison demonstrates hand-cranked phonograph, 1877
The first motorcycle race ever is held in Surrey, England; the distance was one mile and the winner was Charles Jarrot in a time of 2 minutes, 8 seconds, 1897
The first US patent for inventing the traffic lights system is issued to Ernest Sirrine. 1910
Fire destroys most of the buildings on Santa Catalina Island, California, 1915
Howard Carter opens the tomb of Pharaoh Tutankhamun to the public, 1922
Richard Byrd becomes the first person to fly over the South Pole, 1929
The first surgery (on a human) to correct blue baby syndrome is performed by Alfred Blalock and Vivien Thomas, 1944
The United Nations General Assembly votes to partition Palestine, 1947
Mercury-Atlas 5 Mission – Enos, a chimpanzee, is launched into space, orbits earth twice, and is successfully recovered after splashdown, 1961
Canadian Space Agency launches the satellite Alouette 2, 1965
Nolan Bushnell (co-founder of Atari) releases Pong (the first commercially successful video game) in Andy Capp’s Tavern in Sunnyvale, California, 1972
The United Nations General Assembly passes a resolution stating that Soviet Union forces should withdraw from Afghanistan, 1983
The Czechoslovakian Parliament votes to end Communist rule, 1989
The United Nations Security Council passes two resolutions to restore international peace and security if Iraq did not withdraw its forces from Kuwait and free all foreign hostages by the following January 15, 1990
A 7.4 magnitude earthquake occurs off the northern coast of Martinique, 2007

In my continual quest to lower expenses, one thing i have wanted to do for a long time is quit using a stove top, or range, for cooking. They pull 220, instead of the 120 of a regular socket, and so use a lot more energy.

The problem, of course, is that, while i love using the crock pot for some things, a lot of what i cook i do in cast iron. Food just tastes better when i cook it in cast iron, my Sweetie says, especially when i'm using the iron that my grandmother MawMaw used to feed her own family. My kids are the fourth generation to be eating foods prepared in these pots and pans.

So for a while i've been looking at induction cooking. There's no way we could afford an entire new induction stove, but they do have the individual "burners" that you simply plug in. Many times i have looked at them and wished i could get one or more, but as is usual around here, if you save up money for something, the cars hear about it and decide they want that money spent on them, because you aren't paying them enough attention. Or whatever it is that has cars break down as soon as they know you have money in the bank.

Then we went to Grandma and Grandpa's house for Thanksgiving, and Grandpa mentioned that he had seen the induction cookers on one of those infomercials, and he looked them up online, and he decided to get one, and since it was buy one get the second only for the cost of shipping, he got two, and he did this months ago, and he had been thinking about giving me the second one that he's never used, but he wasn't really sure if i'd want one.

After i picked my jaw up off the floor, and told him i'd been wanting them for quite a while, he gave me the second one he had ordered, still in the wrapper, and then the crazy man got online and ordered two more for me!

So, i have something Nu -- a Nuwave, that is.

And the best part is, they work perfectly with cast iron!

Today is:

Bonifacio Day -- Philippines

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

ClauWau: Santa Claus World Championship -- Samnaun, Switzerland (Santa Claus aspirants compete in in such things as the chimney climb with toys, a geography bee, and the sledge race with timed gift giving to be crowned the world champion Santa)

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

Coats and Toys for Kids Day -- ME, US (charity drive across the state; even if you aren't in that state, there is probably a charity near you that would love to have your help)

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)

Guadalajara International Book Fair -- Guadalajara, Mexico (through Dec. 4)

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

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

Lantern Light Tours begin -- Mystic Seaport, CT, US (walking tour of performances showing Christmas past, on various dates through the month)

Light of the World Christmas Pageant -- Minden, DE, US (pageant and lighting up the downtown square; also tomorrow and next Sunday)

Mungabareena Ngan-Girra Festival -- Albury area, NSW, Australia (Bogong Moth Festival, now an indigenous cultural showcase)

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!

Swine Time Festival -- Climax, Georgia, US (Come on out and join the fun, the first Saturday after Thanksgiving. Contests & Events include best dressed pig, corn shucking, hog calling, eating chitterlings, pig racing, syrup making, baby crawling and the greased pig chase!)

Whisp and Thread Fair -- Fairy Calendar

Anniversaries Today:

Lucille Ball marries Desi Arnaz, 1940

Birthdays Today:

Clay Aiken, 1978
Ben Stiller, 1965
Bo Jackson, 1962
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
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:

Michael Jackson's Thriller Album, 1982
The Joy of Cooking published, 1931

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

Divided

Lovely Looney Bin

Did you know...

Pass the Tea

Feline Friday: Keeping Cozy

Define Smart

Overheard

Awww Monday: What's this for?

Noooo!

A Wednesday Whine

Universes

Feline Friday: i'z hit teh jackpot!

Closer to Home

Holiday Humor

If i'm going to be this tired...

Black Secret

Cast Iron Stomach

Attitude of Gratitude

Photo-Finish Friday: Plenty

Something Nu