It is now the 15th day of October in the year 2022. I’m happy to be here to enjoy it. Take a minute just to appreciate who you are and what you have. I think that’s hard for most of us. We’d rather be someone else with lots more stuff. Thinner, smarter, better looking, richer, sexier, etc…. Instead of thinking about what you’re not, appreciated who you are. Today we have a long list of celebratory suggestions: I Love Lucy Day, Bridge Day, I Love Yarn Day, International Sloth Day, National Cheese Curd Day, National Chicken Cacciatore Day, National Grouch Day, National Mushroom Day, National Pub Day, National Roast Pheasant Day, National Shawarma Day, and Sweetest Day. It’s been years since I’ve eaten a shawarma which is a middle eastern sandwich. Yum. On this day in 1520 King Henry the 8th of England ordered the construction of bowling lanes at Whitehall. On this day in 1674 the Torsaker witch trials in Sweden began. 71 people would be beheaded and burned. None of them were witches. On this day in 1860 11-year-old Grace Bedell wrote to Abraham Lincoln telling him he should grow a beard. This is the day in 1878 that the Edison Electric Light Company was incorporated. On this day in 1883 the Supreme Court ruled that the Civil Rights Act of 1875 was unconstitutional. The reason the Civil Rights Act of 1875 was written and became law was to suppress election related violence against blacks. Today is the birthday of the German philosopher Friedrich Nietzsche who died in 1900. Lots of quotes attributed to him. Here are a few of them: “I was in darkness, but I took three stops and found myself in paradise. The first step was a good thought, the second, a good word, and the third, a good deed.” “There are two different types of people in the world, those who want to know, and those who want to believe.” “And those who were seen dancing were thought to be insane by those who could not hear the music.” “Enjoy life. This is not a dress rehearsal.” Last one for today is “In every real man a child is hidden that wants to play.” At least for me, that’s a true observation. Abide.
