It is now the 14th day of December 2022. As long as I don’t watch the news, everything is as it should be in my world. I watched a hugging puppy video yesterday that was worth more than a dozen ‘live report’ from the latest bombed out village in the Ukraine. When you control what you think about the days seems to go better. We have a short list of celebratory events today: Roast Chestnuts Day, Monkey Day, and National Bouillabaisse Day. I do love a good bouillabaisse. Now the history part of the post: On this day in 1287 during the St. Lucia’s flood in the Netherlands, the Zuiderzee seawall collapsed drowning 50,000. On this day in 1542 Princess Mary Stuart succeeded her father and became Queen Mary of Scotland. She was 6 days old. In 1793 on this day the 1st state road was authorized (Frankfort, Kentucky to Cincinnati). On this day in 1812 the French invasion of Russia led by Napoleon ended. The French lost 530,000 soldiers. In 1836 on this day the Toledo War ended. This was a border dispute between Ohio and Michigan. They are still fighting. This is the day in 1903 that the Wright brothers attempted to fly their plane at Kitty Hawk, North Carolina. In 1927 on this day Iraq gained independence from Britain. This is the day in 1947 that the National Association for Stock Car Auto Racing (NASCAR) was founded in Daytona Beach, Florida. On this day in 1961 Jimmy Dean’s “Big Bad John” became the first country song to get a gold record. Today we visit the grave of George Washington who died in 1799 at the age of 67. George said, “A pack of jackasses led by a lion is superior to a pack of lions led by a jackass.” “Occupants of public offices love power and are prone to abuse it.” “Be courteous to all but intimate with few and let those few be well tried before you give them your confidence.” The last one is “Happiness depends more upon the internal frame of a person’s own mind, than on the externals in the world.” George and I agree on that last one. Abide.
