It’s Monday June 13th, 2022. Most days, I start by reminding myself, and you, that our primary purpose here are earth is to have fun and enjoy ourselves. I don’t need to do that today. All I need to do is look at what’s planned for today and I know it’s going to be a fun day. I start by playing pool this morning, then a nap, and then a bar crawl topped off with listening to the Caribbean Chillers at the Brownwood Square. I love my life. This is National Kitchen Klutzes of America Day, Random Acts of Light Day, Sewing Machine Day, Weed Your Garden Day, and World Softball Day. No food, no alcohol, no fun days. Ah well. Now some history: On this day in 1774 Rhode Island became the first colony to prohibit the importation of slaves. This is the day in 1865 that President Andrew Johnson proclaimed the reconstruction of the confederate states. This was a bold move at the time and not a popular one in the North. On this day in 1866 the US House of representatives passed the 14th Amendment which granted citizenship and equal civil and legal rights to African Americans and slaves who had been emancipated after the American Civil War. On this day in 1920 the US Post Office banned shipping babies by parcel post. The rule was necessary because a few people did. On this day in 1933 the Federal Home Owners Loan Corporation was authorized. During the Great Depression we had a government capable of passing laws to fix problems, in this case foreclosures and homelessness. The HOLC was established to stabilize the housing market. Today we visit the grave of Tim Russert, who was the moderator of Meet the Press for 16 years. Tim said, “The best exercise for the human heart is reaching down to lift someone else up.” “The older I get, the smarter my father seems to get.” Last one: “Learn to love people for who they are and forgive them for who they are not.” Abide.
