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Snow Day and a Free Glass Vase
It’s been kind of a crazy week here. It’s the third day in a row that my kids have had a snow day declared and haven’t gone to school. This is because we have received a grand total of very nearly two...
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Every Day is Book Day
In 1930 King Alfonso XIII declared April 23 to be National Book Day in Spain. This proclamation changed the date from the previously celebrated Book Day on October 7, the alleged birthday of Don...
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Celebrating the Not Quite Right Just Yet
So, we’re about to celebrate a pretty big holiday here in the United States. We will follow in the footsteps of John Adams who wrote to his wife Abigail that Independence Day should be recognized with...
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The Naked Truth About Pirates
In April of 1716, the crew of the French vessel Ste. Marie got a strange and probably pretty scary surprise. Off the coast of Cuba, the ship, carrying at least 30,000 pieces of eight, was flanked by...
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The State of Christmas Puke
I don’t know about you, but I’m glad December is finally here. The last half of November is a little bit of a blur to me. It included two memorial services, lots of family visiting, many houseguests,...
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Who Really Wrote this Blog Post?
On December 23, 1823, The Sentinel newspaper in Troy, New York published an anonymous little Christmas poem called “A Visit from St. Nicholas.” The poem contained charming imagery, a memorable rhyming...
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A Blog Post for the Rest of Us
I am a big fan of holiday tradition. My family has a lot of them, from watching Christmas Vacation on the day after Thanksgiving to eating cinnamon rolls for breakfast on Christmas day. Some of them...
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A Day for Heroes
When at the age of ten, Christopher Walker began serving as ship-boy to his father’s merchant vessel, he could not have known how dramatically it would affect his wardrobe choices. Christopher’s...
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Thankful for a Kick in the Pants
On October 3, 1789, then president of the newly established nation of the United States George Washington issued a proclamation declaring November 26th “a day of public thanksgiving and prayer.” He...
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A Little More Magical
During the season of Advent in about 1880 or so, the mother of Gerhard Lang made her young son a cardboard calendar featuring twenty-four sweets, one per day, with which to mark off the time until...
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Rockefeller Around the Christmas Tree
On December 24,1931 a construction crew was hard at work on a twenty-two-acre building site between 48th and 51st Streets in Midtown Manhattan. Two hundred twenty-eight buildings had been razed,...
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Advice for Avoiding Goblins and Drummers
A few days ago, on January first, I took down my Christmas decorations. I did this for a few reasons. First, as much as I love the holiday season, after six weeks of it, I do get tired. And it really...
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Piece by Stupid Piece
You may not be aware of this, but this is a very big week in the life of United States puzzlers, because this coming Sunday, January 29th is National Puzzle Day, which has been going strong since...
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Keeping Eggstra Busy
Lately I have discovered that life as the mother of a burgeoning adult about to graduate from high school and head off to college is busy. It involves college visits and research into housing options...
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Please Accept My Sincerest Apology for What You are About to Read
Happy Bad Poetry Day! Feel free to put your own awful attempt in the comments.
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Happy Thanksgiving
Today I am thankful for many things, including: A loving family. A comfortable home. Turkey. International readers who don’t mind being wished a happy Thanksgiving today even though they are not...
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Lemons for Christmas
I’m a big fan of lemons. I don’t mean that I cut them open and suck on them like a crazy person. I acknowledge that they are sour and, on their own, pretty gross. But I do use lemons quite a bit when...
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Irrelevant to Mental Development
On December 21, 1913, a journalist by the name of Arthur Wynne started a fad and angered a lot of librarians. Wynne worked for the New York World where he served as editor of the “Fun” section of the...
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Chocolate, Vinegar, and Ashes
And another hint! As we slide down the backside of February we draw ever closer to a new historical mystery. Ten more weeks until publication! Public Domain, via the Missouri History Museum. We’ve...
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Hollow Inside
On December 5, 1942 the Easter Bunny went to war. That’s when the United States War Production Board issued Conservation Order M-145, banning the production of novelty chocolate, including those...
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