Putting the In in National

We are becoming a nation of
Intolerance
Intentional misinformation
Inability to see past our own needs and wants
Inaction when the majority want some signs of progress
Ineptness when attempting almost any problem solving like reasonable gun control
Incompatible behavior when dealing with anything we don't like
Incomparable damage to one of our greatest legacies, peaceful transfer of power 

Don’t Review My Books, Ban Them Please

I owe this idea to Roybackontherock.wordpress.com when he commented about the ALA Top 10 Books Banned in 2023 “Love this annual entertainment and the giving of free publicity to authors. I wish someone would ban a few of my books 🙂”

If you really want to help me out
Don't review my books, please ban them
It will stir up a lot more sales
flame of controversy fans them.

Goodreads and other reviewers 
may bring me some new readers
but it is a banning controversy
that gets me on news feeders.

And if my books get publicly burned
then more  book pages will later be turned
by folks to only want to hear and see
the very latest controversy.



Searching for Truth on Ascension Day

Candle light flickered on faces
dancing shadows of changing
highlights and lowlights
perhaps reflecting thoughts
that flitted behind downcast eyes
of the truth seekers

People further
cloaked themselves
in the invisibility of  
muted computer cameras
as they turned 
attentions inward to 
contemplate what
had been seen and heard

What was truth?
How did it apply to them,
filtered by each unique
experiences and expectations
egos and education
emotions and impulses.

Was it the sand on the soles of the
feet of the Son 
as he ascended into heaven?
Was this the uniting of heaven and earth?

May 14 is National Dance Like a Chicken Day

The man credited with writing the first version of ‘The Chicken Dance song,’ which today is an almost universal cultural phenomenon, was a young Swiss accordionist named Werner Thomas. It was in the late 1950s that he strung together the hit tune on his Swiss accordion when he was only in his 20s. The song was originally named ‘Der Ententanz,’ or ‘The Duck Dance,’ which we can only assume was due to the fact that he tended a flock of ducks and geese. Some say it was written for Oktoberfest, and modeled after a popular German drinking song.

‘The Duck Dance’ debuted at Thomas’s restaurant in 1963 when people began to bring to life the duck-inspired dance moves we all know today. It was as though they couldn’t help but move to the music! In the 1970s, Thomas renamed the song ‘Tchirp-Tchirp,’ which was even more evocative of the animals he tended. For over a decade, the first Chicken Dance song existed only in a tiny Swiss resort town.

After hearing Thomas’ song in a resort, Belgian music producer Louis Van Rymenant had lyrics added and released it to the public. Of course, it took off. By the 1970s, ‘The Duck Dance’ had spread to America, with the signature dance moves attached. In the U.S., September Music Corporation acquired the rights, and changed the name to ‘Dance Little Bird.’ Stanley Mills, the publisher in charge of the song, actually tried to add lyrics in English, but they never caught on.

In the 1980s, multiple renditions of the tune were born, from bands like De Electronica, a Dutch band that released an instrumental version, and another polka band — the song was placed on their album called “Hooked on Polkas!” Despite Mills’ best efforts to make the song a chart-topper, it simply didn’t happen in the early 1980s. 

May 10th is Trust Your Intuition Day (and more)

Shall I appreciate
Clean Your Room Day,
probably not

Shall I appreciate
National Receptionist's Day,
I used to be one
and now am not sure
they even exist

Shall I appreciate
Root Canal Day,
Sounds like a pain
to both 
wallet and mouth

So I shall appreciate
Trust Your Intuition Day,
by celebrating none of the above
because my Intuition suggested
that I don't.

The ability to gain knowledge without using conscious reasoning is referred to as intuition. The term ‘intuition’ is used in a variety of contexts, including full access to unconscious understanding; unconscious cognition; internal detection; inner understanding of unconscious pattern recognition; as well as the ability to understand something instinctively, without the need for conscious reasoning. The word is derived from the Latin verb ‘intueri,’ which means “to consider,” or from the mid-late English word ‘intuit,’ which means “to ponder.”


Bans

Why is it ok
to ban books
and abortions
but not guns?

Since when
did pro-life
mean 
conception to
birth,
after that
you are on your own?

Cut healthcare
cut childcare
cut food assistance
then tell
people they
are doing a
crappy job
of raising the kids
you insisted they
must have.

April 26 is National Pretzel Day

Are you a fan of the smaller, crispier pretzel or the larger softer pretzel? How about cheese or peanut butter stuffed pretzels? Do you like you pretzel dipped in cheese, mustard, or cinnamon sugar?

Pretzels, somewhat surprisingly, got their start in the Catholic Church. Sometime around the 7th Century A.D., monks presented their students with treats of baked dough twisted in the shape of crossed arms. At the time, crossing one’s arms was the traditional posture for prayer. Not only that, but pretzels, made from water, flour and salt, were also the perfect food for Lent — when meat, dairy and eggs were prohibited.

The unique knotted shape of pretzels became a symbol of union in Switzerland in 1614, with weddings of royal couples featuring pretzels to represent the bond of matrimony. According to legend, this may also be where we get the phrase “tying the knot” from.  The shape of a pretzel is also thought to signify joined hands during prayer.





$550 million — the annual worth of the pretzel industry in the United States. 

1.5 pounds — the average consumption of pretzels by the average American per year. 

1993 — the year when Philadelphia opened a privately run Pretzel Museum.

1850 — The year when hard pretzels were first introduced in the United States. 

12 — the number of times more that pretzels are consumed by the average Philadelphian as opposed to the national average. 

  • Pretzels without salt are called baldies.
  • An 1859 parade in New Orleans featured a float carrying a pretzel-baking machine.
  • An average pretzel has 3.5 grams of fat and 260 calories.
  • German kids wear pretzels around their neck for good luck on New Year’s. Pretzels top some Christmas trees in Austria.
  • A page in the prayer book used by Catharine of Cleves depicts St. Bartholomew surrounded by pretzels which were thought to bring good luck, prosperity and spiritual wholeness.

April 24–Right to Read Day

Who decides what you should read?
Who besides you knows your need
for the books you choose and those you don't?
Should they decide the books you won't?

When it come to guns, they know their rights
But not when books are in their sights.
They are intent to make the choices
Ignoring the sounds of opposing voices.

Freedom of speech
includes freedom to read
It shouldn't be a partisan screed.




Thanks to Michele Lee, myinspiredlife.org for sharing this video in comments. https://www.cbsnews.com/video/the-fight-over-banning-books/#x

Presenting the Donkey Family (Finally)

We were passing the Wyant Store on Friday afternoon and thought we spotted a donkey in the front pasture. We pulled into the parking lot, got out of the car, looked, then hee-hawed. We saw no donkeys. David was driving a small tractor, dragging an attached mower behind, but whatever we thought we saw, seemed to have disappeared.

We hee-hawed a few more times before a much trimmer Holly slowly appeared, trailed by Vroman. Buddy was tail end Charlie.

The variety in the lush pastures must at least be as appealing as our cooked sweet potatoes, since neither Holly or Buddy seemed that interested in eating them. Vroman is still too young to be interested other than anything but his mother’s milk.

However, pasture greenery can not compete with chocolate chip cookies from the store. The donkeys definitely have a sweet tooth.

Buddy and Vroman

Earth Day 2023-22 April

How well do you know Earth Day? Test your knowledge with some Earth Day quizzes.

  • Compost
  • Pick-up Litter
  • Create pollinator friendly gardens
  • Walk, Bike, Take public transportation
  • Turn off unused lights
  • Don’t run water mindlessly while you are brushing your teeth or rinsing dishes
  • Combine errands
  • Recycle as much as possible.

The glaciers are melting 
faster than ever.
Maybe we can fix this
if we are clever
If we each does our part
rather than they doing theirs
We're in this together
Please act like you care.