It’s Sunday, April 19, 2020. The paper will be bigger today and the crossword puzzle more difficult. Other than that, this day will be similar to yesterday and the day before. I’d really like to jump in the car and head for the beach but it’s a bad idea and not worth the risk. So I’ll just quietly celebrate at home. It is Bicycle Day, Go Fly A Kite Day, Garlic Day, Humorous Day, John Parker Day, National Amaretto Day and National Hanging Out Day. The hanging out is about drying your laundry outside. The reason John Parker gets a day is because on this day in 1775 the American Revolution begins in Lexington, Massachusetts. The “Shot Heard Round the World” took place in Concord later that day. John Parker commanded the Lexington colonial militia. In 1919, the French assembly decides on 8 hour work day. I thought that FDR was responsible for that but I now know the French did it first. This is the day in 1995 of the Oklahoma City bombing which kills 168 & injures 500. Finally, this is the day in 2011 that Fidel Castro resigns from the Communist Party of Cuba’s central committee after 45 years of holding the title. This is Dudley Moore’s birthday (1935). He said, “The best car safety device is a rear-view mirror with a cop in it.” We all know that’s true. This is the day that the poet Lord Byron in 1824 at the age of 36. He said, “Truth is always strange, stranger than fiction.” Now you know where that quote came from. That’s it for now. Have a good day and be safe. Be sure to Abide.
