December 19th is here. We are in the count down to Christmas. It’s a day best lived when you’re young. Not bad when you’re old but not as special. It was better when I believed in Santa. I don’t remember exactly when I figured out that Santa wasn’t real, but I remember how the truth felt. It wasn’t a good feeling. That was long ago and long gone. Today is where I’m at and it’s Holly Day, Look for an Evergreen Day, National Emo Day, National Hard Candy Day, National Oatmeal Muffin Day, and The Start of Hanukkah. On this day in 1487 the opening ceremony of the 6th Great Temple of Tenochtitlan (now Mexico City) began with the sacrifice of 4,000 prisoners to the Aztec Gods over the next 4 days. On this day in 1776 Thomas Paine published the “American Crisis” which began with “These are the times that try men’s souls”. On this day in 1842 the US recognized the independence of Hawaii. We overthrew the monarchy is 1893 and made Hawaii a US territory in 1900. This is the day in 1843 that “A Christmas Carol” by Charles Dickens was published and 6,000 copies were sold. On this day in 1904 the Dawson City hockey team began a 9 day walk to get to a boat bound for Seattle to catch a train headed for Ottawa to play in the Stanley Cup tournament of 1905. On this day in 1950 the Chinese invasion of Tibet forces the Dalai Lama to flee to India. This is the day in 1998 that the House of Representatives votes to impeach President Clinton and forwards the articles to the Senate for a trail. The first dead person for today is Norman Thomas who ran for President from the Socialist Party and said, “I am not a champion of lost causes, but the champion of causes not yet won.” Next is the songwriter musician Phil Ochs because it’s his birthday. Phil said, “Show me the prison, show me the jail, show me the prisoner whose life has gone stale. And I’ll show you a young man with so many reasons why and there, but for fortune, go you or I.” The last for today is from country singer little Jimmy Dickens who knew how to throw an insult. He said, “May the bird of paradise fly up your nose, may an elephant caress you with his toes, may your wife be plagued with runners in her hose.” Enough. Abide.
