It’s a wonderful weekend! I know that many of us have 3 days off – though Hubby is fortunate enough to be off through Tuesday! In between times of resting my leg, I’ll be helping get the kitchen set up in our new motorhome (new to us anyway), so we can plan our first camping trip in it. Once we get it all together we’ll plan our inaugural voyage! This late in the season it’s always interesting to see what sorts of camping spaces we’ll find without reserving a long time ahead. So far we’ve been pretty fortunate to find something fun every time. I’m sure we will keep finding great locations as we enjoy the summer.
Wherever you are, whatever you are doing this weekend, please enjoy your time with family and friends, and stay safe. Through all of that, please remember the real reason for this holiday weekend.
Verse of the Day
May 26, 2018
God did not send his Son into the world to condemn the world, but to save the world through him.
Thoughts on the Verse of the Day
How do you view God? Is he someone looking for a way to condemn you? Is he an out of touch old man who doesn’t really know what it’s like in our modern world? Is he too holy to soil himself with the concerns of mere mortals and has left it up to us to work everything out for ourselves? No. NO. NO! God chose to enter our world and experience it from the side of mortality. God chose to enter our world, not to condemn us, or it, but to redeem it and each of us. Jesus is the great reminder that God longs to save us, not condemn us. Thank God for God! Thank God for Jesus who was and is God with us.
May 27, 2018
I consider my life worth nothing to me, if only I may finish the race and complete the task the Lord Jesus has given to me — the task of testifying to the gospel of God’s grace.
Thoughts on the Verse of the Day
How important is grace? Paul said that telling about that grace was more important to him than his life! In fact, that was his life after his conversion to Jesus!
May 28, 2018
Rejoice with those who rejoice; mourn with those who mourn.
Thoughts on the Verse of the Day
We are not alone. God has given us each other to live our lives for him and get us back home to him. Along the way, we want to share each others burdens, soar on each others joys, and love each others hurts. There is no such thing as a solo Christian.
Memorial Day
Throughout the history of this great nation of ours men and women have fought for the luxuries we enjoy each day, the luxuries born of freedom. Freedom does not come without great price and great sacrifice. These brave soldiers have taken up arms and gone wherever they were needed, wherever they were directed to go, and have done so selflessly, without question. They willingly put their lives on the line each and every day so that you and I can worship God in our own way, choose where to live, what to wear, how we make our living, and travel freely from one place to another. They live, serve and often times are wounded and changed for life, and many die, so that we can pray, read our Bibles, protest against injustice, eat whatever we want from the menu at whatever restaurant we choose to frequent, and vote our choice for the people who attempt – often times not too successfully – to run the government to which they pledge their service. Ultimately though, WE are the ones they pledge their service to – each of us, the citizens of the United States of America.
In exchange for this sacrifice take some time out of your oh-so-busy schedule, and remember. You can put down that hot dog, take a second out of your camping trip, stop mowing your lawn, or watching that movie for a few minutes, to remember all of the lives that have been lost over the years, in conflicts near and far, for causes we may or may not agree with. Remember that they willingly gave all of themselves for each and every one of you, and they would do it all again for the privilege, the honor, of serving this country they loved so much that it was worth giving their lives. Remember that not only have soldiers died for our freedoms, they have given their health and well being and live day to day now reliving in their minds and hearts the moments when their lives were irrevocably changed, so that you and I can enjoy our existence as free citizens. Remember that there are soldiers, brave men and women, currently serving all over the world, sacrificing watching their children grow up, giving up the simple things we take for granted – like waking up next to the one they love, a drive-through trip to McDonald’s, or air conditioning – so that they can serve this nation they love with every patriotic breath they draw. Remember them, honor them, thank them. Without them your lives would be dramatically different in every way.
To the men and women who serve at home, the police officers, fire fighters, EMT’s – brave men and women who put their lives on the line for the every day life here at home – you may not be currently serving in our military, but you are serving our country, our citizens and enhancing our lives. You are remembered and appreciated each and every day. Your service, your sacrifices, your love for our nation – all is appreciated.
May this nation and its future generations never forget.
May 26 –
Julia Pierpont Day – Julia Augusta Robertson Pierpont (1828-1886) of Fairmont, WV is credited with being an originator of this nation’s Decoration Day, which was renamed Memorial Day in 1882. In May of 1866, following the end of the war and while living in the Virginia Governor’s Mansion, Julia and a Miss Woolsey – decided to decorate the graves of the Union soldiers buried in Hollywood Cemetery in Richmond, VA. The graves were dismal and neglected. Julia, Miss Woolsey and a number of the children Miss Woolsey taught, relatives and fellow teachers, bravely “paraded” to the cemetery to decorate the graves. Some approved of the gestures, some condemned it, but news spread of the event. A few weeks later a similar Decoration Day was done in Richmond, and thousands came from all over the state to decorate the Confederate graves. Throughout the nation the news spread and more events followed. What Julia and the others had done inspired others. There are records of other Decoration Days before and after that one in Richmond, but many historians feel that Julia Pierpont was in great part responsible for the creation of an annual Decoration Day ordered for May 30th. In 1987 a project by WVU’S Public History Program, with financial assistance from the Humanities Foundation of WV, and supported by the WVU Center for Women’s Studies, WV Women’s Commission and the WV Historic Preservation Unit established Julia Pierpont as the originator of our annual celebration of Memorial Day.
National Paper Airplane Day – How many of us folded up paper into an airplane and flew it across the classroom to annoy our teachers when we were in school? I’m sure many of us did. I admit, I was a bit of a goody-goody, but I did chuckle when other kids did things like this. Where did the practice of making paper airplanes start though? I bet many of us haven’t given that much thought. Paper was created in 500 BC, and an art form called Origami was created in Asia. Nobody really knows when the first paper airplane was actually made, but for the next 1000 years after paper was invented things were made and sent flying through the air. Paper airplanes, while being toys to most of us, were the inspiration behind the Wright Brothers creating their first amazing flight in a real aircraft. Hm, maybe all of those class clowns were onto something?
Sally Ride Day – Dr. Sally Ride was the first American woman to go into space. She was a mission specialist aboard STS-7, the second flight of the Space Shuttle Challenger. STS-7 was launched from Kennedy Space Center, Florida, on June 18th, 1983 honors the first American woman to go into space. Dr. Ride accomplished this feat as a mission specialist aboard STS-7, the second flight of the Space Shuttle “Challenger”. STS-7 was launched from Kennedy Space Center, Florida, on June 18, 1983. Today we celebrate on her birthday – May 26, 1951. Happy Birthday Sally!
World Lindy Hop Day – This is so much fun! Today people from all walks of life, all ages and from all around the world are invited to experience the exuberance that is the social dance, the Lindy Hop. This dance originated in Harlem, New York City in the 1920s and 1930s. it is danced to the big band jazz of that era. Many people know about swing dancing, the goal of this celebration is to spread the dance around the globe. The language of the Lindy Hop (or swing dancing/jitterbug) is universal, featuring creating and energetic movements that let people dance together in a way that lifts the spirit, brings people together and makes everyone participating happy! Can you think of a more positive, happy way to get together with other people and have some fun?
May 27 –
Cellophane Tape Day – Richard Gurley Drew (June 22, 1899 – December 14, 1980) was an American inventor who worked for Johnson and Johnson Permacel Co 3M in St. Paul, Minnesota, where he invented masking tape and cellophane tape. When Mr. Drew began working at 3M in S. Paul in 1924 it was a manufacturer of sandpaper. While he was testing their new Wetordy sandpaper at auto shops, Drew was intrigued to learn that the two-tone auto paint jobs so popular in the roaring 20s were difficult to manage at the border between the two colors. He worked for two years in the labs, and invented the first masking tape, a two-inch-wide tan paper strip backed with a light, pressure sensitive adhesive. The first tape had adhesive along its edges, but not in the middle. In its first trial run it fell off the car and frustrated the auto painter. “Take this tape back to those Scotch bosses of yours and tell them to shove it” the painter growled at Drew. (By Scotch he meant parsimonious). The nickname stuck, both to Drew’s improved masking tape, and to his 1930 invention, Scotch brand cellulose tape, the first transparent cellophane adhesive tape. In the aftermath of the Wall Street Crash of 1929 people began using tape to repair items instead of replacing them, which was the beginning of 3M’s diversification into all manner of marketplaces and helped them to flourish in spite of the Great Depression. Richard Drew passed away in 1980 in Santa Barbara, California.
Indianapolis 500 – The Indianapolis 500 is a race held each year at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway in Speedway, Indiana. It is held over Memorial Day weekend, which is usually the last weekend in May. It is considered to be part of the Triple Crown of Motor Sport, which is made up of three of the most prestigious motorsports events in the world. Though official attendance is not disclosed by Speedway management, the permanent seating capacity is upwards of 250,000 and infield patrons raise the race-day numbers to about 300,000. I can’t help myself, I wonder how they’d handle the stampede should there be some sort of threat or disaster and need to get all of those people out of there . . . but I digress. If you are an Indy 500 fan then I am guessing you are already involved with watching the race. We don’t typically watch races where the cars just drive around in circles . . . but right now we do have the Formula One races on . . . that’s a different post though.
International Jazz Day – (Saturday of Memorial Day weekend) – Today we celebrate Jazz music and history, as well as Jazz musicians. Jazz was born in America in the 1800’s and over the years it has become popular throughout the world. The articles I found on the subject insisted that EVERYONE loves, or at least likes, Jazz music. I beg to differ, as it is one of my least favorite genres of music, however apparently enough people do like it that I appear to be in the minority. New Orleans, LA is the birthplace and home of Jazz music, and I hear you can’t fully appreciate the great style and culture of this music until you’ve seen it in an authentic setting in New Orleans. I will admit though, that one of the funniest movies I have ever seen was Undercover Blues, which was set in New Orleans, and in one scene there was a parade with Jazz musicians dancing and playing as they went down the street. If THAT is the type of Jazz we are talking about, then perhaps I can concede I like it. The Jazz ensembles in clubs . . . I’ll pass, but I’m sure there are plenty who won’t agree with me.
Sunscreen Day – If you’re anything like me, you burn easily when out in the sun, turn a lovely lobster red, then peel once the excruciating pain is gone, and turn white again. If you’re REALLY lucky, whatever color you DO get has those white little spots that I have heard called chicken skin. It’s not so lovely, and I’ve long envied people who tan a beautiful golden shade – the one so many of us equate with a healthy glow. Truth is that the exposure time it takes to get that “glow” isn’t so healthy, and the UV rays we absorb can lead to a number of health problems, the main one being skin cancer. It can lead to early aging too – wrinkling and sun spots mainly. Sun Screen Day is held today on purpose – with it being just ahead of summer and vacation season, it’s a good reminder to protect ourselves from the dangerous rays by using sunscreen of at last an SPF of 15 before you go out – even when it’s cloudy, and when you swim. They make waterproof sunscreens for swimming and people who sweat heavily. We do need to get Vitamin D from exposure to the sun, but keep it in short doses and not at the hottest time of the day. *** lately I have been seeing articles that are saying that the chemical IN the sunscreen can actually have contributed to the increase in skin cancer, so as an alternative to using them, get your dose of Vitamin D, then cover up or go inside. Good to know! ***
May 28 –
Menstrual Hygiene Day – My first thought when I saw this one was “Seriously? We need a celebration for this one?” After reading about it my thoughts are “Are they serious?” Unfortunately they are and I won’t dignify this one with any more commentary. We all, as women, learn what we need to learn to keep ourselves clean and everything in place from our mothers, grandmothers, sometimes fathers or sisters, teachers, or the school nurse. If we don’t have anyone to do that, information is at everyone’s fingertips through the internet or books and public libraries are still free. We don’t need a rah-rah session about it. Geez people, this is worse than participation trophies.
Slugs Return from Capistrano Day – According to the folks at www.wellcat.com, slugs spend the winters Capistrano, and make the spring pilgrimage back to our lawns, gardens and patios each year. I must add my own two cents worth to what they are saying . . . the slugs that make their trip to my yard have caused me to throw up my hands in despair at EVER having a decent garden . . . it’s like they just know I can’t use poison on them because I’m afraid of hurting my dog. It’s terrible! Just terrible! Couple quick slug stories . . . When I was growing up my Mom had a daycare. When I was about 13 years old there were two little girls in the daycare who could not have been more polar opposite if they tried. One was always in frills and lace, perfectly combed and clean all the time. The other was the quintessential tomboy through and through, always into something mucky and messy and loving every moment of it. One sunny afternoon the kids were playing in the back yard. Mom was tending to a younger child and I was around the corner. We suddenly heard this ear drum piercing screaming going on and both raced to where it was coming from, only to find that Tomboy had Miss Frills backed into the blackberry bushes by holding a handful of slugs in her face. It was funny, I won’t lie. I never did like Miss Frills much – she was OK, but seriously far too prissy. Tomboy on the other hand was always a lot of fun to be around and was up for anything. We had to force her to drop the slugs and while Mom tended to the hysterics of Miss Frills, I had to take Tomboy into the house and try to clean her up. If you’ve never had to clean slug slime out from between 10 fingers, well, you just haven’t lived! That stuff is like glue! And . . . when my kids were about 3 and 7 our church was having a harvest festival. They were to dress up like animals of their choice, and there was going to be a contest in each age group. My daughter, always wanting to be cute, decided to be a delicate butterfly, complete with sparkly wings. When I asked my son what he wanted to be he screwed up his face, deep in thought, then popped out with “I want to be a Washington Slug!” Well, hm . . . that’s different. So we cut a face hole out of a green garbage bag for a face hole, cut out arm holes, put green face paint on him, made antenna out of coat hangars, and trailed a long strip of Handiwrap behind him for slime. He won!!! You have never seen a more disgruntled butterfly in your life. Best (and least expensive) costume either of my kids EVER did!
This Day in History –
May 25, 1927 – Ford ceases production of the Model “T”.
May 25, 1978 – The movie blockbuster “Star Wars” is released.
May 26, 1994 – Michael Jackson marries Elvis Presley’s daughter Lisa Marie Presley.
May 27, 1647 – Achsah Young is the first woman to be executed as a witch in Massachusetts.
May 27, 1919 – The pop-up toaster is patented.
May 27, 1941 – German battleship Bismarck sunk by British navy.
May 28, 1937 – President Franklin D. Roosevelt pushes a button that opens San Francisco’s Golden Gate Bridge.
Food Celebration of the Day –
May 26 –
National Blueberry Cheesecake Day – Cheesecake has existed for centuries, but blueberry cheesecake is a true slice of Americana & it stars our native berries and a local invention, cream cheese! What you might not know is that cheesecake – no matter the topping – is a near perfect keto/low-carb treat when made with natural sugar alternatives like erythritol or stevia! Hm. . . I have all of the ingredients – I may need to make a cheesecake today.
National Cherry Dessert Day – Cherries were brought to the United States in the 1600s by early settlers. I didn’t know that! Pretty interesting stuff! Today, Michigan provides about 75% of the supply of cherries in the U.S. So how should we celebrate? Well, with a dessert that has cherries in it, of course. My favorites are cherry pie and cheesecake with cherries on top. Yum! If I make cheesecake I may cheat a little on the low-carb aspect and make a cherry topping. Cherries are pretty high in sugar, but seriously, doesn’t that sound good?
May 27 –
National Grape Popsicle Day – In 1905 there was an 11 year old boy, Frank Epperson, who was sitting outside the house on his porch mixing water with a powdered white flavoring to make soda. He left it outside on the porch when he went into the house with the stick still in it. Overnight the temperature dropped to a record low and when he got up in the morning his drink had frozen to the stick. When he grew up he introduced this treat at a fireman’s ball – this was in 1922 – and it was a big success! The following year he made his treat and sold it at an amusement park in California and it did so well that he applied for a patent in 1924 – calling it an Epsicle Ice Pop – it was later renamed Popsicle. Today they are one of the favorite frozen treats for kids of all ages when the weather gets hot, and today we honor one of the most popular flavors. I make low-carb, delicious grape popsicles using Zevia grape soda. They are pretty yummy!
May 28 –
National Brisket Day – One of the nine prime cuts of beef, brisket is best slow-cooked until it’s fallin’-off-the-bone tender. Hubby does a really good job smoking brisket in our smoker – oh my – that does sound good.
National Hamburger Day – Hamburgers are amazing, aren’t they? Putting a grilled meat patty onto a bun is pretty easy and you can find them in just about any restaurant, but everyone has a favorite way to enjoy them. Some like them with cheese, some without. Some with bacon, some without (I don’t understand those people) They can be made with a variety of meats, or even no meat at all and covered in a variety of sauces, vegetables and condiments. Historically, it is most likely that the very first hamburger made its appearance in the late 19th or early 20th centuries, but there is some question about its exact start. Over the years though, the burger has become so popular that it is a culinary American icon! The other day I was watching a few episodes of Guy’s Grocery Games on the Food Network and t hey were having hamburger/cheeseburger competitions between the contestants. I am pretty amazed by the creativity of some of the chefs that were on there and really want to try some of their ideas. Put your imagination to good work and come up with something wonderful and come back to share it with me! No matter what it is, this is the perfect weekend to enjoy a burger on the grill.
Well, I managed to do it again. After having this mostly ready to go, we headed to town and by the time we got home I was pretty late getting here. But the good news is we are set until Tuesday, so have some great family time, spend some special moments honoring those who have died in service to our nation and never forget that others have gone before us so we can be here today. God bless you and I’ll see you on Tuesday.
Celebration lists and information are sourced from the following websites:
www.brownielocks.com; www.holidayinsights.com; www.thenibble.com; www.foodimentary.com and www.verseoftheday.com