Kaitlyn's Reading Salon

March 17, 2019
Dearest Readers,

A good Sunday morning to you, and thank you for stopping by.

Today On This Date takes you to the American Revolution and to Israel while Top of the Charts visits the top songs and albums of 1962. Philosophy 101 discusses success not demanding a price.

Many thanks for reading,
xoxoxo
Kaitlyn

On This Date:
In 1776 – The Siege of Boston ends after the British army evacuates sets sail for Nova Scotia. The siege had begun in April 1775 after the battles of Lexington and Concord, the opening salvos in the American War of Independence, after American militiamen had blocked land access to Boston. Though Boston ceased to be a target of the British afterward, the city retained its preeminent place in revolutionary activities. Today is still known in some cities and towns as Evacuation Day.

In 1969 – Golda Meir becomes the first female prime minister in the history of Israel. Previously, she had been both the Labor and Foreign ministers and would serve until June 1974. Among the highlights of her tenure, was her ordering Israeli agents to identify and kill those responsible for murdering eleven Israeli athletes at the 1972 Munich Summer Olympics.

Top of the Charts
#1 songs on this date in 1962:
Hot 100 – Hey! Baby…Bruce Channel (2nd of three weeks)
Soul Chart – Duke of Earl…Gene Chandler (5th of five weeks)
Country Chart – That’s My Pa…Sheb Wooley (only week)
Album Chart (Mono) – Blue Hawaii…Elvis Presley (14th of 20 weeks )
Album Chart (Stereo) – Breakfast at Tiffany’s Soundtrack…Henry Mancini (6th of 12 non-consecutive weeks)
– Chart data courtesy of Billboard.

Numbers Racket
10,676: the continuous number of days the US has been at war.
22.130: the number of dollars, in trillions, of America’s national debt. – Source: usdebtclock.org
605: days until Election Day 2020.

Philosophy 101
But in truth, success doesn’t demand a price. Every step forward pays a dividend.
Dr. David J. Schwartz
The Magic of Thinking Big

The first sentence in this paragraph might raise some eyebrows. After all, you hear people of accomplishment frequently talking about the sacrifice involved in scaling a mountain. And perhaps they’re right to a small extent: you set out on your path and you shed some things like tired old habits that were not producing a dividend and people will come and go from your life, too. It’s the way the world is built.

Really, though, every day spent on your path, every day spent maximizing your talents, every day spent making your time serve you instead of serving time on this planet is a day well-spent. Once you have committed to following your heart (which will tell you where to go) and following your instincts (which will tell you how to get there) good days will come. Enough good days and you have a good year and enough good years and the next thing you know you have built a good life for yourself. Every day on your path is a step forward and every step forward pays a dividend.

The only time a price is paid is when we decide not to follow our hearts, trust our instincts and follow our path, and the price for this is a little bit of us dying every day we are not doing these things. All of us were put here for a purpose, and our best lives are lived when we are living that purpose.

Dr David J Schwartz (1927-87) was an American writer.  

March 16, 2019
Dearest Readers,

Good morning. Today, On This Date makes trips to Vietnam and Beirut, and Top of the Charts investigates 1985 and in today’s episode of Philosophy 101, we chat you and me being the only thing new in the long progression of days.

Many thanks for reading,
xoxoxo
Kaitlyn

On This Date:
In 1968 – What History refers to as the Mai Lai Massacre occurs in northern South Vietnam when between 350 nad 500 Vietnamese civilians are slaughtered by elements of US Army’s 23rd Infantry Division. The cover-up, of course, began immediately and the story was not broken until November 1969 in an Associated Press story by Seymour Hersh. 26 soldiers would ultimately be charged though only Lt. William Calley would be convicted. His life sentence was eventually reduced to twenty years to life and then, in 1974, time served.

In 1985 – Associated Press reporter Terry Anderson is taken hostage in Beirut after, kidnapped on the street and thrown into the trunk of a car following a game of tennis. Anderson was held captive for six years and nine months, released on December 4, 1991. He was captured by militants attempting to urge the United States to stop butting in in the Lebanese Civil War.

Top of the Charts
#1 songs on this date in 1985:
Hot 100 – Can’t Fight This Feeling…REO Speedwagon (2nd of three weeks)
Soul Chart – Nightshift…The Commodores (1st of four weeks)
Country Chart – Crazy for Your Love…Exile (only week)
Album Chart – Make It Big…Wham! (3rd and final week)
– Chart data courtesy of Billboard.

Numbers Racket
10,675: the continuous number of days the US has been at war.
22.127: the number of dollars, in trillions, of America’s national debt. – Source: usdebtclock.org
606: days until Election Day 2020.

Philosophy 101
In this old world, there is nothing new but ourselves.
Gore Vidal
Creation

It may seem that life is merely a long progression of days that tend to look an awful lot alike, but the good news is we can make a new version of ourselves every day. We all have 24 hours every day, the only commodity every human is issued in equal measure, and what we get out of our lives depends on how we spend those 24 hours. Do we spend them in activities that yield a dividend, or do we squander them doing things that provide no long-term benefit?

Those that get on in this world put their 24 hours to work for them, taking advantage of what nature and circumstance put in front of them and making their time serve them. Those that spend their lives marking time squander their 24 hours.

Which are you? Are you looking back on and forward to time well spent, or are you not entirely pleased

If the former is your answer, good work and carry on.

If your answer, however, is the latter, don’t fret, because a new you is there for the taking. All that is required is to take some time to look inside yourself, inventory your talents and ambitions and know what you are about. Then all you need is the courage to maximize these talents and the patience and diligence to do this every single day. When you do this, you will be on your path, living the life you were meant to live, life’s great prize.

Both you, your loved ones and this old world will benefit.

Gore Vidal (1925-2012) was an American was an American writer. He is quoted regularly in this feature. 

March 15, 2019
Dearest Readers,

It’s tough to be the king today, as On This Date features both an assassination and an abdication, while Top of the Charts looks at 1971. Philosophy 101 features a quote from Will Durant, about not depending too much on external factors.  

Cordially,
xoxoxo
Kaitlyn

On This Date:
In 44 BC – Roman Dictator Julius Caesar is assassinated by some malcontents in the Roman Senate, who he had been bickering with for a while. Though able to stave off the initial attack, he was unable to fend off reinforcements and Caesar has stabbed a total of 23 times, though an autopsy, the earliest one on record, said only the second one, which severed his aorta, was fatal.

In 1917 – The Emperor of Russia Nicholas II is forced to abdicate, ending over 300 years of rule by his family. He and other family members were immediately imprisoned and would be executed the following year.

Top of the Charts
#1 songs on this date in 1975:
Hot 100 – Black Water…The Doobie Brothers (only week)
Soul Chart – Supernatural Thing (Part 1)…Ben E. King (only week)
Country Chart – Before the Next Teardrop Falls…Freddy Fender (1st of two weeks)
Album Chart – Have You Never Been Mellow…Olivia Newton-John (only week)
– Chart data courtesy of Billboard.

Numbers Racket
10,674: the continuous number of days the US has been at war.
22.126: the number of dollars, in trillions, of America’s national debt. – Source: usdebtclock.org
607: days until Election Day 2020.

Philosophy 101
The essence of the matter is that a man should so mold his life and conduct so that his happiness shall depend as little as possible upon external things.
Will Durant
The Story of Civilization, Volume III: Caesar to Christ.

It’s inevitable that we are influenced by external factors. Family and friends provide demands on our time and us humans tend to spend a lot of time being entertained, from our homes to the palms of our hands. Distractions from the life we were meant to lead are everywhere.

If we are spending all of our time being influenced by external forces we are ignoring the forces that compel us from deep inside. When we ignore these forces we are actually ignoring the very core of our being, the reason we were put in this planet. We are a half-step off the path we are meant to be taking and this doesn’t do anybody any good.

All of us were issued certain talents and ambitions at birth and those that get on in this life are those who spend their lives on a path that leads to maximizing these talents. They have the wisdom to know what they are about, the courage to follow their path, and the patience to see their path through till the very end. It doesn’t matter what these talents are, either. It doesn’t matter if they cause us to live down the ages or barely be noticed. What does matter is that we get the most out of them.

This is both easy and hard. Easy, because when we commit to maximizing our talents we are doing things we enjoy and have a knack for. It’s difficult, supremely difficult at times, because we must do it every day. We can’t commit to our path some days and not others, some years and not others. Those that get on in this life pursue their path with diligence and courage.

The only way to build a satisfying life, a life looked back on with pleasure, is to be on your path every day, from the day you commit to it until the day you die. When we do that, when we commit to maximizing the talents we were born with, we will be living the life we were meant to live, life’s great prize

Will Durant (1885-1981) was an American historian, philosopher and writer. though his wife Ariel collaborated with him, she did not always get credit. 

March 14, 2019
Dearest Readers,

Good morning. Today we have visits to 1757 and 1903 awaiting you on On This Date, while Top of the Charts visits 1981 and Philosophy 101 talks about not being afraid to sniff what is on our path.

Thank you for reading.

Cordially,
xoxoxo
Kaitlyn

On This Date:
In 1757 – British Admiral Sir John Byng is executed by firing squad on HMS Monarch, then anchored off the coast of England. Admiral Byng had been condemned for returning to England for repairs to his fleet rather render aid to other British ships during the Battle of Minorca in the Mediterranean. After clemency by King George II was denied, Admiral Byng was taken to the quarterdeck of the Monarch, knelt on a pillow and was shot after dropping his handkerchief, indicating he was prepared to die. His execution was later satirized by Voltaire and was the inspiration for the line  “…it is good to kill an admiral from time to time, in order to encourage the others”.

In 1903 – The United States Senate ratifies a treaty with Colombia to build a canal in their province of Panama. The treaty would have no effect because it was later rejected by the Senate of Colombia. The US was unwilling to renegotiate the treaty and later planned the uprising in Panama that led to it declaring its independence from Colombia, which led to a US treaty with the new nation to build a canal.

Top of the Charts
#1 songs on this date in 1981:
Hot 100 – 9 to 5…Dolly Parton (2nd of two non-consecutive weeks)
Soul Chart – Don’t Stop the Music…Yarbrough and Peoples (3rd of five weeks)
Country Chart – Guitar Man…Elvis Presley (only week)
Album Chart – Hi Infidelity…REO Speedwagon (4th of 15 non-consecutive weeks)
– Chart data courtesy of Billboard.

Numbers Racket
10,674: the continuous number of days the US has been at war.
22.123: the number of dollars, in trillions, of America’s national debt. – Source: usdebtclock.org
607: days until Election Day 2020.

Philosophy 101
The man who finds the smell is the one who sniffs.
Nicholas Monsarrat
Smith and Jones

We must be active participants in our own lives. We must sniff until we find the smell we were meant to find. We can’t be afraid of sniffing along different trails and see where they lead us. We can’t spend our lives sitting on proverbial hind legs waiting for life to come to us. We must go out and aggressively pursue the path we were meant to take.

Now, it is important to note our sniffing will not always take us to rose gardens. sometimes it will take us to the dump, but that’s OK; sniffing many trails is necessary because they teach us the lessons life has for us while sharpening our instincts.

How do we know which trails to sniff and which to avoid? Easy: we live the life we were meant to live; we put nature and circumstance to work for us, instead of fighting these two useful elements. We spend our time doing things we have a knack for, therefore maximizing the talents we were born with. We trust our instincts to show us the path to where we were meant to go. We show the patience to see our path through to the very end. We can’t follow our path some days and not others, some years and not others. We must live the life we were meant to live every day, from the day we step on our path until the day we die.

We cannot be afraid of the smells on our path. We must have the courage to sniff the ones that interest us, the courage to go where our hearts tell us to go. . Only then will we live the life we were meant to live.

Nicholas Monsarrat (1910-79) was a British writer, known primarily for novels about the sea and those who sail it. 

March 13, 2019
Dearest Readers,

Today On This Date visits Harvard and the Krakow Jewish ghetto and Top of the Charts reviews the #1 songs and album today in 1965. Philosophy 101 has some drivel on living your very best life.

Cordially, and with many thanks for reading,

xoxoxo
Kaitlyn

On This Date:
In 1639 – New College in Cambridge, Massachusetts, adopts the name Harvard College, in honor of the late Rev. John Harvard, who game the college his library and half his estate when he died. Founded in 1636, Harvard would graduate its first class in 1642 and would remain the only college in the American colonies until the establishment of William and Mary in 1693.

In 1943 – The remaining 10,000 Jews are deported from their ghetto in Krakow, Poland. About 80 percent, those deemed fit to work, are sent to a nearby labor camp while those deemed unfit for work are killed. Any stragglers were sent to the Auschwitz concentration camp. The Krakow labor camp was liberated by the Soviet Red Army in January 1945.

Top of the Charts
#1 songs on this date in 1965:
Hot 100 – Eight Days a Week…The Beatles (1st of two weeks)
Soul Chart – Shotgun…Junior Walker and the All-Stars (1st of four non-consecutive weeks)
Country Chart – I’ve Got a Tiger by the Tail…Buck Owens (4th of five weeks)
Album Chart – Mary Poppins Soundtrack…Various Artists (1st of 14 non-consecutive weeks)
– Chart data courtesy of Billboard.

Numbers Racket
10,673: the continuous number of days the US has been at war.
22.122: the number of dollars, in trillions, of America’s national debt. – Source: usdebtclock.org
608: days until Election Day 2020.

Philosophy 101
The whole pursuit of this dream has allowed me to live my best life, that makes me hopefully the best version of me.
Alex Honnold

In June 2017 Mr Honnold climbed a very large rock in Yellowstone National Park known as El Capitan, which is a 3,000 foot wall of sheer granite, without any human or mechanical aid – known as free soloing in the sport. By any measure, this is a supreme accomplishment, a landmark achievement in human adventure, a complete triumph of human spirit and will. Today’s quote regards that feat. Like any person who accomplishes anything of merit, he was completely focused on what he wanted to do and put whatever time and effort was required to accomplish his goal.

It’s a lesson us mortals can serve us mortals well, too. The pursuit of our very best life, the pursuit of the very best versions of us, must show the same diligence and courage.

Now, as we are fond of saying here, it really doesn’t matter what that pursuit is. Mr Honnold free solos 3,000 feet of sheer, perpendicular granite because that is what he is compelled to do from deep inside. It didn’t matter that success was not guaranteed, and perhaps not even likely, and that failure meant a rather messy death. His marching orders from Mother Nature were clear: attempt to climb this rock. So he did.

We can be no less focused in the pursuit of our very best life and it doesn’t really what it is we are pursuing, either. All that matters is that we are answering to whatever summons us from deep inside. Like Honnold, we, too, can have the wisdom to know what we are about and the courage to go and live the life we were meant to live and the patience to see it through to the very end. When we do these things, what is meant to happen in our life does happen.

Our very best life may not be documented by a film crew or cause us to live down the ages. Or it might, you never know. But whether it does or not is of no consequence. All that matters is that we follow our hearts and trust our instincts because our heart will tell us where to go and our instincts will show us how to get there. When we do that, the life we are meant to live is there for the taking.

Alex Honnold is 33 and originally from Sacramento. He has spent no small portion of his adult life living out of a van. 

March 10, 2019
Dearest Readers,

And a good Sunday morning to you. We’re glad you’re here.

Today in On This Date the US takes possession of what it had bought in the Louisiana Purchase and James Earl Ray pleads guilty to shooting Martin Luther King, Jr. Top of the Charts reviews this date in 1979 and Philosophy 101 talks about serenity.

Many thanks for reading,

Cheers!
xoxoxo
Kaitlyn

On This Date:
In 1804 – A formal ceremony ceding of control of territory sold in the Louisiana Purchase ends in St Louis with the raising of the American flag. The ceremony had begun the previous day when Spain, who still administered the Territory, lowered their flag, which was replaced by the French flag. The United States had purchased the Territory from France the previous year for $15 million in cash and debt assumption. Today the territory that made up the Louisiana Purchases makes up all or part of 15 states and two Canadian provinces.

In 1969 – James Earl Ray, pleads guilty to assassinating Martin Luther King, Jr. at a Memphis hotel on April 4, 1968. He had been arrested in June in London, traveling on a fake Canadian passport and was sentenced to 99 years in prison. Ray and some others escaped in 1977 and were captured two weeks later and Ray died in 1998.

Top of the Charts
#1 songs on this date in 1979:
Hot 100 – I Will Survive…Gloria Gaynor (1st of three non-consecutive weeks)
Soul Chart – Bustin’ Loose (Part 1)…Chuck Brown & the Soul Searchers (4th and final week)
Country Chart – Golden Tears…Dave and Sugar (2nd of three weeks)
Album Chart – Spirits Having Flown…The Bee Gees (2nd of six non-consecutive weeks)
– Chart data courtesy of Billboard.

Numbers Racket
10,670: the continuous number of days the US has been at war.
22.116: the number of dollars, in trillions, of America’s national debt. – Source: usdebtclock.org
611: days until Election Day 2020.

Philosophy 101
(His) manner was so serene that I could not tell if he was serious or not, always a sign of the highest breeding.
Gore Vidal
Creation

Serenity allows us to present the same face to the imposters known as success and failure. They are imposters because both success and failure are subjective and relative. Subjective because people are different and one’s failure may well be another’s success. Relative because neither exists without the other. You take success away and there is no failure. Those that get on in this life realize this and ay putting themselves beyond success and failure are serene in both tranquility and tumult.

Serenity, though, is not reserved for those who come from privilege and breeding; it is there for everyone: you, me, and your aunt in Reno. It takes work, though. Serenity is the direct result of a calm mind and calm minds are reserved for those who know what they are about and who are living the life they were meant to live and anyone of us can do that. All that is required is knowing what we are about, knowing the talents we were issued at birth and a commitment to getting the most out of them.

Serenity is literally there for the taking. All we need is the wisdom to know what we are about, the courage to live the life we are meant to live and the patience to see it through to the very end.

Gore Vidal (1925-2012) was an American writer. 

March 9, 2019
Dearest Readers,

Welcome and many thanks for stopping by today. On This Date features visits to this date in 1556 and 1862, while Top of the Charts visits 1959 and, among other people, Frankie Avalon and Johnny Cash.

Philosophy 101 has some drivel about trusting your instincts.

Many thanks for reading,

Cheers!
xoxoxo
Kaitlyn

THE ALMANAC
On This Date:
In 1556 – David Rizzio, the private secretary to Mary, Queen of Scots, is murdered, apparently on orders from Mary’s jealous husband, Lord Darnley. Darnley was in league with those zany Protestant nobles and confronted Rizzio at dinner in Mary’s private dining room. Hiding behind the monarch didn’t help Rizzio, who was stabbed several dozen times before being tossed down the stairs and stripped of his jewels and robes. Darnley himself would be murdered the following year, while Mary ruled until she was forced to abdicate in 1567.

In 1862 – History’s first battle between two ironclad warships ends in a draw as the USS Monitor and CSS Virginia – formerly the USS Merrimack – fight to a standstill in the Battle of Hampton Roads in the American Civil War. Though the Union Suffered far more casualties than the Confederacy and lost two frigates, they were still able to maintain their blockade of Chesapeake Bay, though the Confederate navy remained intact.

Top of the Charts
#1 songs on this date in 1959:
Hot 100 – Venus…Frankie Avalon (1st of five weeks)
Soul Chart – It’s Just a Matter of Time…Brook Benton (1st of nine weeks)
Country Chart – Don’t Take Your Guns To Town…Johnny Cash (3rd of six weeks)
Album Chart – The Music From Peter Gunn…Henry Mancini and his Orchestra (3rd of ten weeks)
– Chart data courtesy of Billboard.

Numbers Racket
10,669: the continuous number of days the US has been at war.
22.112: the number of dollars, in trillions, of America’s national debt. – Source: usdebtclock.org
612: days until Election Day 2020.

Philosophy 101
This is the moment of embarking
All auspicious signs are in place.
Deng Ming-Dao
365 Tao

We talk a lot here about being on our paths and living the lives we were meant to live because it is life’s great prize. However, only we can decide if we are doing that. You can’t do it for me and I certainly can’t do it for you. Your instincts will tell you. All you have to do is listen to them. As you go about your days, are your insides calm? Are you at peace because they are telling you are living the life you are meant to live? Or are your insides in conflict, leading you to feel out of step with life and out of touch with what you were meant to accomplish here?

These are your instincts talking to you. Those that get on in this world listen to these instincts. Those whose lives are not what they imagined or want are probably ignoring them.

If this is you, make this your moment of embarking because it is never too late to start life on your path. Once you’ve decided to follow your heart and trust your instincts, all signs are auspicious and every moment is positive because our hearts will tell us where to go and our instincts will tell us how to get there.

All we have to do is let them.

Deng Ming-Dao is an American writer and 365 Tao is a book of daily meditations. 

March 6, 2019
Dearest Readers,

Never, ever let me take this many days off in a row again! Every apology is issued.

Let’s get back to work.

Many thanks for reading,

Cheers!
xoxoxo
Kaitlyn

THE ALMANAC
On This Date:
In 1857 – The United States Supreme Court issues its ruling in Dred Scott v. Sanford. The case was brought by a slave named Dred Scott who sued for his freedom after his master John Sanford had taken him to free states and territories. Among other things, the court’s ruling said blacks whose ancestors were slaves could not be citizens of the United States whether they were free or not. It also held, among other things, that the federal government could regulate slavery in territories acquired after the creation of the US. The decision would be superseded by both the Civil Rights Act of 1866 and the 14th Amendment to the Constitution. Scott and his family would be given their freedom in 1857, and he worked a hotel porter in St Louis while is wife took in laundry.

In 1967 – Svetlana Alliluyeva, the daughter of former Soviet Premier Joseph Stalin, defects to the United States after entering the US embassy in New Dehli, India. She was immediately flown to Rome and then to Geneva, ultimately arriving in the United States in April. She became a US citizen in 1978 and later returned to the Soviet Union and reclaimed her Soviet citizenship. She later became a British citizen, but returned to the United States, dying in southern Wisconsin in 2011.

Top of the Charts
#1 songs on this date in 1976:
Hot 100 – Love Machine (Part 1)…The Miracles (only week)
Soul Chart – Boogie Fever…The Sylvers (only week)
Country Chart – Good Hearted Woman…Waylon and Willie (3rd of three weeks)
Album Chart – Desire…Bob Dylan (5th of five weeks)
– Chart data courtesy of Billboard.

Numbers Racket
10,667: the continuous number of days the US has been at war.
22.107: the number of dollars, in trillions, of America’s national debt. – Source: usdebtclock.org
614: days until Election Day 2020.

Philosophy 101
Niagara will witness the passing of the human species…Such ceaselessness had its parallel in his own life…the inner demand to make something of himself…to swim upstream against formidable obstacles.
Fred Kaplan
Lincoln: The Biography of a Writer

Abraham Lincoln is a good example of a lot of things, but more than anything he is a good example of someone who knew what he wanted from life and then went out and tried to get it. He had and answered the inner demand to make something of himself.

I believe all of us have this demand. Those that get on in this life, those who at the end are looking back at time well spent yield to that demand. Those that are looking back on time squandered, at a life that is less than what they wanted, ignore that demand.

Those that do get on in this world do not have any special powers or any greater luck than we have. They merely have the commitment to make their time serve them. They wake up every morning, determine what they should be doing that day and then go and do it.

We should have that same commitment. If we are going to look back at time well spent we must have the wisdom to know the life we are meant to live, the courage to go and live that life and the patience to see the road through until the day we die. When we do, we will live the life we are meant to live, life’s great prize.

Fred Kaplan is an American writer.
Abraham Lincoln was the 16th president of the United States. 

February 27, 2019
Dearest Readers,

Yay! It’s Morning Coffee time. We’re glad you stopped by.

Today On This Date visits 1951 and 2010 and Top of the Charts visits, well, the top of the charts on this date in 1971 and Philosophy 101 takes up the matter of our most profound aspirations.

Many thanks for reading,

Cheers!
xoxoxo
Kaitlyn

THE ALMANAC
On This Date:
In 1951 – The 22nd Amendment to the United States Constitution – limiting presidents of the United States to two elected terms – comes into force after being ratified by the Minnesota legislature.  The amendment had been sent to the several states in 1947 when everybody crapped their pants after Franklin Delano Roosevelt was elected to four terms. It remains the only term limit on an elected federal official.

In 2010 – An earthquake measuring 8.8 on the Richter scale hits the coast of central Chile, killing 525 people with 25 reported missing.  Aftershocks measuring 6.2, 5.4 and 5.6 – themselves sizeable earthquakes – hit with an hour with tsunami warning issues throughout North America an Oceania, though such damage was minor. The quake was so strong a NASA scientist said it was likely the earth’s axis shifted three inches, shortening the length of a day by a bit more than one-millionth of a second.

Top of the Charts
#1 songs on this date in 1971:
Hot 100 – One Bad Apple…The Osmonds (3rd of five weeks)
Soul Chart – Jody’s Got Your Girl And Gone…Johnnie Taylor (2nd of two weeks)
Country Chart – Help Me Make It Through the Night…Sammi Smith (3rd of three weeks)
Album Chart – Pearl…Janis Joplin (1st of nine weeks)
– Chart data courtesy of Billboard.

Numbers Racket
10,660: the continuous number of days the US has been at war.
22.061: the number of dollars, in trillions, of America’s national debt. – Source: usdebtclock.org
621: days until Election Day 2020.

Philosophy 101
Michelangelo insisted the purpose of art, at least when practiced at the highest levels, was to channel the most profound aspirations of the human spirit.
Miles Unger
Michelangelo: A Life in Six Masterpieces

One of the great things about the arts is their diversity: what moves you might bore me and vice-versa. Sure, there are some works that are universally acclaimed as masterpieces, but a lot of music and books, paintings and sculpture is subjective. The very bests works, however, move us deeply, their influence on us profound and lasting.

It’s the same with life: when practiced at the highest level we are channeling our most profound aspirations. The good news is we do not have to be a guru or a monk to do this. We are all born with assorted talents and those that get on this world are those that spend their time cultivating and maximizing those talents. It doesn’t matter what those aspirations are, either. You’re reading this because we like to write. But, as the saying goes, there are a billion Chinese who couldn’t care less about today’s column, just like there are a billion Chinese who couldn’t care less about how you are going to spend your day. All that matters is that we spend our days making our time serve us, that we follow the path we were meant to take with diligence and courage. All that matters is that we have the wisdom to know what we are about, the courage to live the life we were meant to live and the patience to see it through to the end.

Our aspirations do not have to make us rich or cause us to live down the ages, though there is the danger of that happening. All that matters is that they come from deep inside.

Miles Unger is an American writer, writing on the arts, books, and culture.
Michelangelo (1475-1564) was an Italian sculptor and painter. 

February 26, 2019
Dearest Readers,

Welcome! Lots of great stuff for you today, including On This Date visiting Galileo and Trayvon Martin, both of whom are now dead. Top of the Charts visits 1966 and Henry David Thoreau provides the text for Philosophy 101, a quote about money not being able to buy happiness.

Thank you for visiting,

Cheers!
xoxoxo
Kaitlyn

THE ALMANAC
On This Date:
In 1616 – Galileo Galilei is banned by the Catholic Church from teaching or defending the nonsense that the earth orbits the sun, known as heliocentrism. Galileo’s troubles began in 1610 when he had the nerve to observe the stars and planets with his newfangled telescope, which led him the ideas that contradicted Church teachings and doctrine. Galileo would never completely comply with this directive and stood trial in 1633, was found guilty and spent his remaining eleven years under house arrest.

In 2012 – Trayvon Martin, 17 and black, is shot to death by George Zimmerman in Sanford, Florida. Zimmerman had confronted Martin who was walking on a street after having the temerity to be visiting relatives in the gated community Zimmerman served as a neighborhood watch officer. Zimmerman would be arrested in April and stood trial for murder and was acquited.

Top of the Charts
#1 songs on this date in 1966:
Hot 100 – These Boots Are Made For Walkin’…Nancy Sinatra (only week)
Soul Chart – Baby Scratch My Back…Slim Harpo (1st of two weeks)
Country Chart – Waitin’ in Your Welfare Line…Buck Owens (2nd of seven weeks)
Album Chart – Whipped Cream and Other Delights…Herb Alpert’s Tijuana Brass (8th of eight non-consecutive weeks)
– Chart data courtesy of Billboard.

Numbers Racket
10,659: the continuous number of days the US has been at war.
22.034: the number of dollars, in trillions, of America’s national debt. – Source: usdebtclock.org
622: days until Election Day 2020.

Philosophy 101
Superfluous wealth can buy superfluities only. Money is not required to buy one necessary of the soul.
Henry David Thoreau
Walden

We are conditioned to want and appreciate money from an early age. Whether we got what we wanted for Christmas depended in large measure on how much money mom and dad had. Indeed, most of the circumstances of our youth was dependent on this. As adults we’re bombarded with revels and advertisements that either requires money or reinforce how important it is.

But how important is it? Does a large bank account make us happy? Is our sole purpose on this planet the wholesale acquisition of money? For some, of course, it is. Since time immemorial there have been those who have had a knack for making and keeping and investing money. Bully for them and good for them because an economy needs people like that. Some of us work for them.

For most of us though, making enormously large sums of money is not the purpose of our existence. Of course, we do need money to provide for ourselves and too little money causes problems, just like too much money can, but no amount of money can buy what our soul truly needs: a life that is useful to others and to ourselves, a life that utilizes the 24 hours each of us is issued each day – the only commodity each of us has in equal measure –  and maximizes our talents. Money cannot provide any of these things. Only going where our hearts tell us to go and following the instincts that are telling us how to get there will provide what our soul requires.

Henry David Thoreau (1817-62) was, among other things, an American writer, naturalist and philosopher.