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.

February 25, 2019
Dearest Readers,

Welcome aboard, friends. Today On This Date visits the last time Britain was invaded on land and the first black to serve in Congress, Top of the Charts reviews 1984 and Philosophy 101 has a quote from The Lord of the Rings for you.

Cheers!

xoxoxo
Kaitlyn

THE ALMANAC
On This Date:
In 1797 – The Battle of Fishguard, part of the War of the First Coalition, ends after two days, a decisive British victory over France, the last time Britain was invaded by land. The War of the First Coalition was fought between 1792-97 throughout Europe and ultimately resulted in a French victory. The losers didn’t take this very well and the Second War of the First Coalition began the following year.

In 1870 – Hiram Revels becomes the first black to serve in the United States Congress, when he is sworn in, after much debate, to the United States Senate. Revels was elected by the Mississippi legislature to complete an unexpired term of a seat that had been unfilled since the Civil War. Revels would serve until the following March 3 after being defeated for election and went on to serve as president of Alcorn A&M College, now Alcorn State University.

Top of the Charts
#1 songs on this date in 1984:
Hot 100 – Jump…Van Halen (1st of five weeks)
Soul Chart – Encore…Cheryl Lynn (only week)
Country Chart – Stay Young…Don Williams (only week)
Album Chart – Thriller…Michael Jackson (30th of 37 non-consecutive weeks)
– Chart data courtesy of Billboard.

Numbers Racket
10,657: 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
624: days until Election Day 2020.

Philosophy 101
Do not trouble your hearts with thought of the road tonight. Maybe the paths that you each shall tread are already laid before your feet, though you do not see them.
J.R.R. Tolkien
The Lord of the Rings

One of the questions that has confounded us humans from time immemorial is whether our lives are predetermined, whether or not we have control of our destinies. Quotes like this don’t really help either, because some could interpret the ‘laid before your feet’ line as referring to predestination. It also doesn’t help that religions are fond of saying this diety or that one has a plan for our lives.

We don’t believe The Fates predetermine what is going to happen in our lives: we make our own fate, more than we know. When we look inside for the life we were meant to live and go and live that life, we make good things happen for ourselves. When we are off our path we feel out of sorts and out of touch with the life we should be living.

Maybe the paths that you each shall tread are already laid before your feet…

More than anything, this line means our path is there for the taking. It does not require fretting or worrying on our part, but it does require work, work that is worth doing because it leads to the life we were meant to live, life’s great prize. All that is required is following our hearts and trusting our instincts because they will tell us where to go and how to get there. It frees us to make our time serve us and ensures what is meant to happen in our lives generally does happen.

All we have to do is let it.

J.R.R. Tolkien  (1892-1973) was an English writer and poet.   

February 24, 2019
Dearest Readers,

Good morning and thank you for joining us. We hope winter is treating you well.

The Gregorian Calendar and the US Supreme Court star on On This Date, while Roberta Flack headlines Top of the Charts and Philosophy 101 talks about doing things so people remember them for the rest of their lives.

xoxoxo
Kaitlyn

THE ALMANAC
On This Date:
In 1582 – Changes to the Julian calendar – in effect since 45BC – are promulgated by Pope Gregory XIII. The order was issued because the Julian calendar was out of step with seasons. It took ten days off the current calendar and, among other things, eliminated leap years in century years unless the year was divisible by 400. Though originally issued as a correction to the Julian calendar, the changes eventually became known as the Gregorian Calendar and it is now the standard for reckoning days, weeks, months and years in most of the world.

In 1803 – The United States Supreme court establishes the precedent known as judicial review in the case of Marbury v. Madison. The actual case had to do with the delivery of the judicial commission of one William Marbury, which had not been delivered by Secretary of State James Madison, who was acting under orders from new President Thomas Jefferson. Though the case itself is not particularly relevant now, the precedent of the Supreme Court passing judgment on the actions of Congress and the executive branch went a long way to establishing the roles of the branches of America government.

Top of the Charts
#1 songs on this date in 1973:
Hot 100 – Killing Me Softly With His Song…Roberta Flack (1st of five non-consecutive weeks)
Soul Chart – Love Train…The O’Jays (2nd of four weeks)
Country Chart – Rated X…Loretta Lynn (only week)
Album Chart – The World is a Ghetto…War (2nd of two weeks)
– Chart data courtesy of Billboard.

Numbers Racket
10,656: the continuous number of days the US has been at war.
22.033: the number of dollars, in trillions, of America’s national debt. – Source: usdebtclock.org
625: days until Election Day 2020.

Philosophy 101
We are going to sing so that they will remember this for the rest of their lives. There is no other reason to do it, folks, none.
Garrison Keillor
Love Me

One of the things we talk about regularly here is that we are all born with certain talents, that each of us can do something well. We also talk a lot about maximizing those talents

It doesn’t matter what it is: singing, writing, building a chair, raising a kid, what is of no consequence. If we are going to do something there is no other reason to do it except for doing it the very best we know how. Anything less and we are wasting our time and everyone else’s because we are merely marking time while on this planet.

This isn’t always easy. We must be sufficiently in tune with ourselves so that we know what we are about, that we know the life we are meant to live. Then we must have the courage to go and live that life and have the patience to see our paths through to the very end and it should be noted courage and patience are required in no small measure.

We should try to live a life that others will remember. We do this by living our lives well, by setting an example for others about making our time serve us and putting nature and circumstance to work for us.

When we do this, we will pass a life we will find worth remembering, too.

Garrison Keillor is an American writer. 

February 23, 2019
Dearest Readers,

Thank you for indulging us in our day off yesterday.

Good wishes for a good day, and many thanks for stopping by.
xoxoxo
Kaitlyn

THE ALMANAC
On This Date:
In 1903 – Cuba leases land that will become the Guantanamo Bay Naval Base to the United States in perpetuity. Originally a coaling station for US Navy ships, it is used as a detention facility in addition to accomdating ships. The US sends Cuba an annual check, now for $4,085, but Cuba has not deposited one since 1959, which Fidel Castro always maintained was by accident. It remains the oldest foreign US military installation and is the only one in a Communist country.

In 1945 – One of mankind’s most iconic photographs is taken when Associated Press photographer Joe Rosenthal photographs six United States Marines raising a flat on Mount Suribachi, on the island of Iwo Jima in the western Pacific. Rosenthal would later say he saw activity out of the corner of his eye and turned to take a picture and wasn’t sure if he got anything decent until later. The photograph first appeared in newspapers two days later, a Sunday, and later that year won the Pulitzer Prize for Photography. \

Top of the Charts
#1 songs on this date in 1980:
Hot 100 – Crazy Little Thing Called Love…Queen (1st of four weeks)
Soul Chart – Special Lady…Ray, Goodman & Brown (only week)
Country Chart – Years…Barbara Mandrell (only week)
Album Chart – The Wall…Pink Floyd (6th of 15 weeks)
– Chart data courtesy of Billboard.

Numbers Racket
10,655: the continuous number of days the US has been at war.
22.032: the number of dollars, in trillions, of America’s national debt. – Source: usdebtclock.org
626: days until Election Day 2020.

Philosophy 101
…to live life well one must live with awareness.
Louis L’Amour
Education of a Wandering Man

Everyone on this planet lives, but not everyone actually lives. This is too bad, because unless you born with no chance, living well is within the reach of all us.

Awareness helps. We must be aware of many things: the world around us, what our government is doing to us, and, more than anything, we must be aware of what we are doing to ourselves. Are making our time serve us, or are we merely marking time while on this planet? Are putting nature and circumstance to work for us, or are fighting nature and circumstance? Are we on our path, or are we living a life we are not completely in step with?

Yes, circumstances can overcome us at times, but by and large, we get out of this life what we put into it. Those that pursue the lives they were meant to live with diligence and courage end up living the lives they were meant to live. Those who squander their time and talent may very well end up wondering where the years, decades, went and looking back at what might have been.

Nothing is worse than that. Fortunately, all of us have it within our power to make good things happen for ourselves. All we need is the wisdom to know what we are about and to recognize the talents we were born with. Then we need the courage to maximize those talents and go out and live the life we were meant to live. Then we need the patience to live this life every day. Not some days and not others, not some weeks or years and not others. We must do it every day.

When we do this, we are living with awareness and at an appropriate time will be looking back at time well spent and a life well spent.

Louis L’Amour (1908-88) was an American writer.