Random Musings from Alaska
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FYI March 21-27, 2023
On This Day
630 – Emperor Heraclius returns the True Cross, one of the holiest Christian relics, to Jerusalem.
The True Cross is a term used for the cross upon which Jesus was said to have been crucified, particularly as an object of religious veneration. There are no early accounts that the apostles or early Christians preserved the physical cross themselves, although protective use of the sign of the cross was common by at least the 2nd century. Post-Nicene historians such as Socrates of Constantinople relate that Helena, the mother of the Roman emperor Constantine I, travelled to the Holy Land in the years 326–328, founding churches and establishing relief agencies for the poor. The late 4th-century historians Gelasius of Caesarea and Tyrannius Rufinus claimed that while there she discovered the hiding place of three crosses that were believed to have been used at the crucifixion of Jesus and the two thieves, St. Dismas and Gestas, executed with him. To one cross was affixed the titulus bearing Jesus’s name, but according to Rufinus, Helena was not sure until a miracle revealed that this was the True Cross.[a]
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106 – Start of the Bostran era, the calendar of the province of Arabia Petraea.
The Bostran era (also called the era of Bostra, the Arabian era or provincial era[1]) was a calendar era (year numbering) with an epoch (start date) corresponding to 22 March 106 AD. It was the official era of the Roman province of Arabia Petraea, introduced to replace dating by regnal years after the Roman annexation of the Nabataean Kingdom.[2] It is named after the city of Bostra, which became the headquarters of the Sixth Legion stationed in the province.[3]
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1400 – The Trần dynasty of Vietnam is deposed, after one hundred and seventy-five years of rule, by Hồ Quý Ly, a court official.
The Trần dynasty,[a] (Vietnamese: Nhà Trần, chữ Nôm: 茹陳)also known as the House of Trần, was a Vietnamese dynasty that ruled over Đại Việt from 1225 to 1400. The dynasty was founded when emperor Trần Thái Tông ascended to the throne after his uncle Trần Thủ Độ orchestrated the overthrow of the Lý dynasty. The Trần dynasty defeated two Mongol invasions, most notably during the decisive Battle of Bạch Đằng River in 1288.[6] The final emperor of the dynasty was Thiếu Đế, who was forced to abdicate the throne in 1400, at the age of five years old in favor of his maternal grandfather, Hồ Quý Ly.
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1199 – King Richard I of England is wounded by a crossbow bolt while fighting in France, leading to his death on April 6.[1][2][3]
Richard I (8 September 1157 – 6 April 1199) was King of England from 1189 until his death in 1199. He also ruled as Duke of Normandy, Aquitaine and Gascony, Lord of Cyprus, and Count of Poitiers, Anjou, Maine, and Nantes, and was overlord of Brittany at various times during the same period. He was the third of five sons of King Henry II of England and Eleanor of Aquitaine and seemed unlikely to become king, but all his brothers except the youngest, John, predeceased their father. Richard is known as Richard Cœur de Lion (Norman French: Le quor de lion) or Richard the Lionheart because of his reputation as a great military leader and warrior.[1] The troubadour Bertran de Born also called him Richard Oc-e-Non (Occitan for Yes and No), possibly from a reputation for terseness.[2]
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708 – Pope Constantine becomes the 88th pope. He would be the last pope to visit Constantinople until 1967.
Pope Constantine (Latin: Constantinus; 664 – 9 April 715) was the bishop of Rome from 25 March 708 to his death.[1] One of the last popes of the Byzantine Papacy, the defining moment of Constantine’s pontificate was his 710/711 visit to Constantinople where he compromised with Justinian II on the Trullan canons of the Quinisext Council. Constantine’s was the last papal visit to Constantinople until 1967.
1021 – The death of the Fatimid caliph al-Hakim bi-Amr Allah, kept secret for six weeks, is announced, along with the succession of his son, al-Zahir li-i’zaz Din Allah.[2]
Abū ʿAlī Manṣūr (13 August 985 – 13 February 1021), better known by his regnal name al-Ḥākim bi-Amr Allāh (Arabic: الحاكم بأمر الله, lit. ’The Ruler by the Order of God'[1]), was the sixth Fatimid caliph[2] and 16th Ismaili[3] imam (996–1021). Al-Hakim is an important figure in a number of Shia Ismaili sects, such as the world’s 15 million Nizaris and 1–2 million Musta’lis, in addition to the 2 million Druze of the Levant.[4][5]
In Ferrara, which was taken into the Papal States to the exclusion of the Este family, papal armies clashed with the Republic of Venice and its populace. When excommunication and interdict failed to have their intended effect, Clement V preached a crusade against the Venetians in May 1309, declaring that Venetians captured abroad might be sold into slavery, like non-Christians.[16]
Born On This Day
1501 – Anne Brooke, Baroness Cobham, English noble (d. 1558)
Anne Brooke, Baroness Cobham (née Braye; 21 March 1501 – 1 November 1558) was the wife of Sir George Brooke, 9th Baron Cobham. She was the attendant horsewoman at Anne Boleyn’s coronation as Queen Consort on 1 June 1533,[1] and she was allegedly one of the first accusers of Queen Anne in 1536.[2] Anne Braye was Baroness Cobham from 1529 until her death in 1558.[3]
841 – Bernard Plantapilosa, Frankish son of Bernard of Septimania (d. 885)
Bernard Plantapilosa or Bernard II of Auvergne (22 March 841-886[1]), or Plantevelue, son of Bernard of Septimania and Dhuoda, was the Count of Auvergne (as Bernard II) from 872 to his death. The Emperor Charles the Fat granted him the title of Margrave of Aquitaine in 885.
His mother’s Liber Manualis mentions that he was born at Uzès in the year following the death of Louis the Pious. He was appointed Margrave of Septimania (or Gothia) before 868. He was the lay abbot of Brioude between 857 and 868 and Count of Autun and from 864 to 869. He was deposed before 876 and replaced by Bernard of Gothia in that year. He returned to favour under Charles the Fat. In the war against Boso of Provence, he obtained the county of Mâcon.
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1338 – Emperor Go-Kōgon of Japan (d. 1374)
Emperor Go-Kōgon (後光厳天皇, Go-Kōgon-tennō, 23 March 1338 – 12 March 1374) was the 4th of the Emperors of Northern Court during the Period of the Northern and Southern Courts. According to pre-Meiji scholars, his reign spanned the years from 1352 through 1371.[1]
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1103 – Yue Fei, Chinese military general (d. 1142)[85]
Yue Fei (Chinese: 岳飛; March 24, 1103 – January 28, 1142),[1] courtesy name Pengju (鵬舉) was a Chinese military general who lived during the Southern Song dynasty and considered a national hero of China, known for leading Southern Song forces in the wars in the 12th century between Southern Song and the Jurchen-ruled Jin dynasty in northern China. Because of his warlike stance, he was put to death by the Southern Song government in 1142 under a concocted charge, after a negotiated peace was achieved with the Jurchens.[2] Yue Fei is depicted in the Wu Shuang Pu (無雙譜, Table of Peerless Heroes) by Jin Guliang.
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1259 – Andronikos II Palaiologos, Byzantine emperor (d. 1332)
Andronikos II Palaiologos (Greek: Ἀνδρόνικος Δούκας Ἄγγελος Κομνηνὸς Παλαιολόγος, romanized: Andrónikos Doúkās Ángelos Komnēnós Palaiologos; 25 March 1259 – 13 February 1332),[1] Latinized as Andronicus II Palaeologus, reigned as Byzantine emperor from 1282 to 1328. Andronikos’ reign marked the beginning of the recently-restored empire’s final decline. The Turks conquered most of its remaining Anatolian territories and, during the last years of his reign, he also had to fight his own grandson in the First Palaiologan Civil War. The war ended in Andronikos’ forced abdication in 1328 after which he retired to a monastery for the remainder of his life.
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1554 – Charles of Lorraine, duke of Mayenne (d. 1611)
Charles de Lorraine, duc de Mayenne (26 March 1554 –3 October 1611)[1] was a French noble, governor, military commander and rebel during the latter French Wars of Religion. Born in 1554, the second son of François de Lorraine, duke of Guise and Anne d’Este, Mayenne inherited his fathers’ position of Grand Chambellan in 1563 upon his death. He fought at the siege of Poitiers for the crown in 1569, and crusaded against the Ottomans in 1572. He served under the command of the king’s brother Anjou during the siege of La Rochelle in the fourth war of religion, during which he was wounded. While the siege progressed, his uncle was killed by a cannonball, and he inherited his position as governor of Bourgogne. That same year, his marquisate of Mayenne was elevated to a duché pairie. He travelled with Anjou when he was elected as king of the Commonwealth and was a member of his court there until early 1574 when he departed on crusade again. Returning to France, he served in the fifth war of religion for Anjou, now king Henri III of France, but his badly underfunded army was unable to seriously impede the Protestant mercenary force under Casimir. He aligned himself with the Catholic Ligue that rose up in opposition to the generous Peace of Monsieur and fought in the sixth war of religion that resulted, serving at the sieges of La Charité-sur-Loire and Issoire. During 1576, he married Henriette de Savoie-Villars, securing a sizable inheritance in the south west, and the title of Admiral on the death of her father in 1578. Mayenne was granted full command of a royal army during the seventh war of religion in 1580, besieging the Protestant stronghold of La Mure successfully, and clearing several holdout towns after the peace. In 1582 he was obliged to surrender his title of Admiral to Joyeuse, a favourite of Henri. The following year he was involved in an abortive plan to invade England, though it came to nothing due to lack of funds.
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1509 – Wolrad II, Count of Waldeck-Eisenberg, German nobleman (d. 1578)[13][14]
Count Wolrad II ‘the Scholar’ of Waldeck-Eisenberg (27 March 1509 – 15 April 1578), German: Wolrad II. ‘der Gelehrte’ Graf von Waldeck-Eisenberg, was since 1539 Count of Waldeck-Eisenberg.
By Wolrad and his relatives from the cadet branches, the Reformation in the County of Waldeck was almost completed. They defied the Emperor, had to fight for pardon, but remained Protestant and enforced the Reformation in their county. In the process, Wolrad took a leading position in the spiritual field.[1]
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FYI
NASA: Astronomy Picture of the Day
EarthSky News
This Day in Tech History
Interesting Facts
Word Genius: Word of the Day
By messyNessy 13 Things I Found on the Internet Today (Vol. DCXLII): This was Casa Requena; The mother of all Swiss Army Knives ca.1880s; Hangover Cures of Yore; Amélie reimagined as a KGB Spy, a short film red-edited by the original film’s director and more ->
Christopher Robert Fowler (26 March 1953 – 3 March 2023) was an English thriller writer. While working in the British film industry he became the author of fifty novels and short-story collections, including the Bryant & May mysteries, which record the adventures of two Golden Age detectives in modern-day London. His awards include the 2015 CWA Dagger in the Library (for his entire body of work), The Last Laugh Award (twice) and the British Fantasy Award (multiple times), the Edge Hill Prize and the inaugural Green Carnation Award. His other works include screenplays, video games, graphic novels, audio and stage plays.
Oh I love this story!! Lol
I know I shouldn’t have done this, but I am 83 years old and I was in the McDonald’s drive-through this morning and the young lady behind me leaned on her horn and started mouthing something because I was taking too long to place my order. So when I got to the first window
I paid for her order along with my own. The cashier must have told her what I’d done because as we moved up she leaned out her window and waved to me and mouthed “Thank you.”, obviously embarrassed that I had repaid her rudeness with kindness.
When I got to the second window I showed them both receipts and took her food too. Now she has to go back to the end of the queue and start all over again,
Don’t blow your horn at old people, they have been around a long time.
Viktor Posnov: Umnak – Aleutian Islands
Zeuss the Cockatoo lost his home. A kind family has given him another chance.
CrowdStrike | Troy Extended Version
Recipes
By In The Kitchen With Matt: How to Make Brown Sugar With 2 Ingredients
Just the Recipe: Paste the URL to any recipe, click submit, and it’ll return literally JUST the recipe- no ads, no life story of the writer, no nothing EXCEPT the recipe.
DamnDelicious
E-book Deals:
The Book Junction: Where Readers Go To Discover Great New Fiction!
Mystery & Thriller Most Wanted
Book Blogs & Websites:
Welcome to the Stump the Bookseller blog!
Stump the Bookseller is a service offered by Loganberry Books to reconnect people to the books they love but can’t quite remember. In brief (for more detailed information see our About page), people can post their memories here, and the hivemind goes to work. After all, the collective mind of bibliophiles, readers, parents and librarians around the world is much better than just a few of us thinking. Together with these wonderful Stumper Magicians, we have a nearly 50% success rate in finding these long lost but treasured books. The more concrete the book description, the better the success rate, of course. It is a labor of love to keep it going, and there is a modest fee. Please see the How To page to find price information and details on how to submit your Book Stumper and payment.
Thanks to everyone involved to keep this forum going: our blogging team, the well-read Stumper Magicians, the many referrals, and of course to everyone who fondly remembers the wonder of books from their childhood and wants to share or revisit that wonder. Isn’t it amazing, the magic of a book?
Quotes March 27, 2023
THE ONLY SUBJECT I KNOW ANYTHING ABOUT IS MYSELF, AND I DON’T KNOW THAT TOO CLEARLY.
WILLIAM SHATNER.
I’m going to enjoy what I’ve got as long as it lasts.
Though all we have known is only a beginning.
Patricia Highsmith,
writer
March is Women’s History Month
Success is the sum of small efforts, repeated day in and day out.
Robert Collier – 1885-1950 – Author
Positive thinking will let you do everything better than negative thinking will.
Zig Ziglar – 1926-2012 – Author-Salesman-Motivational Speaker
“A writer should have this little voice inside of you saying, ‘Tell the truth. Reveal a few secrets here.'”
Quentin Tarantino
“I love sleep. My life has the tendency to fall apart when I’m awake, you know?”
Ernest Hemingway
“A wise man can learn more from a foolish question than a fool can learn from a wise answer.”
Bruce Lee
“It is better to keep your mouth closed and let people think you are a fool than to open it and remove all doubt.”
Mark Twain
“If you set out to be liked, you would be prepared to compromise on anything at any time, and you would achieve nothing.”
Margaret Thatcher
“He is happiest, be he king or peasant, who finds peace in his home.”
Johann Wolfgang von Goethe
Quotes March 25, 2023
We cannot solve a problem with the same mentality that created it.
Albert Einstein – 1879-1955 – Physicist-Nobel Prize Winner
“A man dies when he refuses to stand up for that which is right. A man dies when he refuses to stand up for justice. A man dies when he refuses to take a stand for that which is true.”
Martin Luther King Jr.
“There is a very fine line between success and failure. Just one ingredient can make the difference.”
Andrew Lloyd Webber
“There is no deodorant like success.”
Elizabeth Taylor
“Greatness is not measured by what a man or woman accomplishes, but by the opposition, he or she has overcome to reach his [or her] goals.”
Dorothy Height
“It’s the rough side of the mountain that’s the easiest to climb; the smooth side doesn’t have anything for you to hang on to.”
Aretha Franklin
Music March 25, 2023
Railroad Earth plays Lovin You at the Hillberry Music Festival in Eureka Springs AR on 10/11/2021
The Hillbenders play Love Reign O’er Me at Hillberry Music Festival Eureka Springs AR on 10/07/2021
Flirtin’ with Disaster (Molly Hatchet) | Lexington Lab Band
Have You Ever Seen The Rain? – Southern Raised
0:37 / 5:44 Hootie & the Blowfish Let her Cry live Raleigh NC 2/17/23
Quotes March 24, 2023
I may not have been the best combat commander, but I always strove to be. My men depended on me to carefully analyze every tactical situation, to maximize the resources that I had at my disposal, to think under pressure, and then to lead them by personal example.
Major Dick Winters
“These Marines left their home–all these great Americans left their home–signed up during a time of war and said, ‘I wanna do that.’ And we owe them so much gratitude. I am so, so proud. And they understand that in our profession there can be no second place. There can be no losing. Because the weight of our nation rests on their shoulders.”
Sergeant Major Bradley Kasal
t is the pride of my heart to have been one of the earliest adopted sons of America.
Marquis de Lafayette
Liberty has never come from Government. Liberty has always come from the subjects of it. The history of liberty is a history of limitations of governmental power, not the increase of it.
Woodrow Wilson
Never in the field of human conflict was so much owed by so many to so few.
Winston Churchill
Take patriotism away, and the nation’s soul has fled.
Edward Mark Deems
Quotes March 21-23, 2024
If you’re going to come at me, come at me respectfully, and I will respond respectfully.
Sometimes you have to say, ‘No. This is my space.’
Lance Reddick,
actor, musician
1962-2023
You get whatever accomplishment you are willing to declare.
Georgia O’Keeffe,
artist
March is Women’s History Month
Don’t it always seem to go, that you don’t know what you’ve got till it’s gone.
So many things I would have done, but clouds got in my way.
Joni Mitchell,
singer-songwriter, musician, producer
March is Women’s History Month
If you can make the reader laugh, he is apt to get careless and go on reading.
Henry Green,
writer
The more you leave out, the more you highlight what you leave in.
Henry Green
I have learned not to allow rejection to move me.
Cicely Tyson – 1924-2021 – Actress-Humanitarian
Champions keep playing until they get it right.
Billie Jean King – Former Tennis Player-Advocate
I think and think and think, I’ve thought myself out of happiness one million times, but never once into it.
Jonathan Safran Foer – Novelist
Let us be grateful to the people who make us happy; they are the charming gardeners who make our souls blossom.
Marcel Proust – 1871-1922 – Novelist-Critic-Essayist
I must learn to be content with being happier than I deserve.
Jane Austen – 1775-1817 – Novelist
I scorched the earth with my talent and I let my light shine.
André Leon Talley – 1948-2022 – Fashion Journalist-Stylist-Editor
Education is the most powerful weapon which you can use to change the world.
Nelson Mandela – 1918-2013 – Political Leader – Philanthropist – Former President of South Africa