On This Day
758 – Guangzhou was sacked by Arab and Persian pirates.
Guangzhou,[note 1] also known as Canton[7] (/kænˈtɒn/; and alternatively romanized as Kwongchow or Kwangchow),[8] is the capital and largest city of Guangdong province in southern China.[9] Located on the Pearl River about 120 km (75 mi) north-northwest of Hong Kong and 145 km (90 mi) north of Macau, Guangzhou has a history of over 2,200 years and was a major terminus of the maritime Silk Road;[10] it continues to serve as a major port and transportation hub as well as being one of China’s three largest cities.[11] For a long time it was the only Chinese port accessible to most foreign traders. Guangzhou was captured by the British during the First Opium War and no longer enjoyed a monopoly after the war; consequently it lost trade to other ports such as Hong Kong and Shanghai, but continued to serve as a major transshipment port. Due to a high urban population and large volumes of port traffic, Guangzhou is classified as a Large-Port Megacity, the largest type of port city in the world.[12] Due to worldwide travel restrictions at the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic, Guangzhou Baiyun International Airport, the major airport of Guangzhou, briefly became the world’s busiest airport by passenger traffic in 2020.[13]
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932 – Abbasid caliph al-Muqtadir is killed while fighting against the forces of general Mu’nis al-Muzaffar. Al-Muqtadir’s brother al-Qahir is chosen to succeed him.
Abu’l-Faḍl Jaʿfar ibn Ahmad al-Muʿtaḍid (Arabic: أبو الفضل جعفر بن أحمد المعتضد) (895 – 31 October 932 AD), better known by his regnal name al-Muqtadir bi-llāh (Arabic: المقتدر بالله, “Mighty in God”[2]), was the eighteenth caliph of the Abbasid Caliphate from 908 to 932 AD (295–320 AH), with the exception of a brief deposition in favour of al-Qahir in 928.
Born On This Day
1218 – Emperor Chūkyō of Japan (d. 1234)
Emperor Chūkyō (仲恭天皇, Chūkyō-tennō) (October 30, 1218 – June 18, 1234) was the 85th emperor of Japan, according to the traditional order of succession. His reign spanned only two months in 1221, and he was not officially listed amongst the emperors until 1870 because of doubts caused by the length of his reign.[1] The Imperial Household Agency recognizes Kujō no misasagi (九條陵) near Tōfuku-ji in Fushimi-ku, Kyoto as his tomb.
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1345 – Ferdinand I, king of Portugal (d. 1383)
Ferdinand I (Portuguese: Fernando;[1] 31 October 1345 – 22 October 1383), sometimes called the Handsome (o Formoso) or occasionally the Inconstant (o Inconstante), was the King of Portugal from 1367 until his death in 1383. He was also briefly made King of Galicia, in 1369 (a claim which he would maintain until 1373). Facing a lack of legitimate male heirs, his death led to the 1383–85 crisis, also known as the Portuguese interregnum.
FYI
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Interesting Facts
Word Genius: Word of the Day
The Hustle: The business of candy corn and more ->
By Colin Marshall, Open Culture: How the CIA Secretly Used Jackson Pollock & Other Abstract Expressionists to Fight the Cold War
By Colin Marshall, Open Culture: Jerry Garcia Explains How Abbott and Costello Meet Frankenstein Changed His Life (1995)
By Ayun Halliday, Open Culture: Meet the Man Who Created the Iconic Emblem of the Day of the Dead: José Guadalupe Posada
By David Nield, Wired: How To Clear Out Your Zombie Apps and Online Accounts
All those services you signed up for but forgot about? They’re a security risk. Here’s how to get rid of them.
geobeats animals: Neglected elderly cockatoo is finally happy
Sheriff Grady Judd: 3 arrested in Polk County after deputies recover ‘enough fentanyl to kill 5 million’
Cleared Hot Podcast: Transition and Fostering Resilience – with Chris Gill and Michael Anthony
Recipes
By Peggy Woodward, RDN, Taste of Home: 20 Diabetic-Friendly Oatmeal Recipes
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
RecipeTinEats
- 2024 Ultimate Christmas menu planning guide December 12, 2024Here’s a handy list of my Christmas recipes, organised by make-ahead and reheating suitability, and those best made fresh. Perfect for menu planning, especially alongside the new Christmas recipe index! I thrive on holiday menu planning. It’s like the Olympics of cooking – except less athleticism and more butter! The goal, as always, is a... […]Nagi
- Easy Christmas Cheesecake Slab – no bake! December 6, 2024This no bake Christmas cheesecake is designed for sizzling Aussie summers – no sweating over a hot oven! Designed to serve a crowd, it’s the easiest cheesecake recipe I know yet it still captures all the hallmarks of a beautiful classic baked cheesecake. Decorate with whipped cream, berries and rosemary sprigs for an effortless, pretty... […]Nagi
wikimedia
- Wikimedia Commons picture of the day for December 25 December 25, 2024Picture of the day Nativity of Christ scene from the Kefermarkt Altarpiece. Today is Christmas.
- Wikimedia Commons picture of the day for December 24 December 24, 2024Picture of the day Silhouettes at the Fort of Santo Antônio da Barra, Salvador, Bahia, Brazil. It was constructed to guard the entrance to the Bay of All Saints, during the time of the Portuguese Empire.
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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?