On This Day
1209 – Massacre at Béziers: The first major military action of the Albigensian Crusade.
The Massacre at Béziers occurred on 22 July 1209 during the sack of Béziers by crusaders. It was the first major military action of the Albigensian Crusade.[dubious – discuss]
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Born On This Day
1476 – Zhu Youyuan, Ming Dynasty politician (d. 1519)
Zhu Youyuan (Chinese: 朱祐杬; pinyin: Zhū Yòuyuán; 22 July 1476 – 13 July 1519), was a prince of the Ming dynasty of China. He was the fourth son of the Chenghua Emperor.
Created Prince of Xing (興王), his fief was near today’s Zhongxiang, in Hubei Province. He and his wife were posthumously honored by his son after he became the Jiajing Emperor in 1521.
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Word Genius: Word of the Day
NCHV Honors the Life and Legacy of John Driscoll
John Driscoll passed away on June 17, 2024, at the age of 72. Born on July 25, 1951, John joined the staff of the National Coalition for Homeless Veterans (NCHV) in January 2002, where his contributions had a lasting impact on the lives of countless veterans and served as President and CEO for 5 years.
John served in the U.S. Army from 1970 to 1980, with a notable tour as an air-evac medic and platoon sergeant with the 575th Medical Detachment during the Vietnam War. For his service, he was awarded the Bronze Star Medal, two Army Commendation Medals, and the Expert Combat Medic Insignia. After returning from Vietnam, he worked as the senior clinical specialist on the Surgical Intensive Care Unit at the Walter Reed Army Medical Center in Washington, D.C., from 1973 to 1980. He remained a certified medevac specialist for both fixed-wing and helicopter aircraft until his discharge from the service.
John graduated from the University of Maryland with a Bachelor of Arts degree in journalism in 1988. He spent 13 years as a group newspaper editor for the Chesapeake Publishing Corporation. As a journalism student intern in 1987, he wrote a series on homeless veterans living on the streets of the nation’s capital, which was submitted for Pulitzer Prize consideration in two categories by Chesapeake Publishing.
During his tenure with NCHV, John made significant contributions to veteran assistance programs. In partnership with the Department of Labor-Veterans Employment and Training Service (DOL-VETS), he authored “Planning for Your Release, A Guide for Incarcerated Veterans,” which was distributed to more than 40,000 employment specialists, transition assistance counselors, and incarcerated veterans.
This guide was later adapted by the Department of Veterans Affairs for its state-specific transition resource guides. He also wrote the “Assistance Guide for Employment Specialists Helping Homeless Veterans,” used by DOL-VETS as a training resource for homeless assistance providers, and the “HVRP Best Practices Project,” a study of 36 community-based programs noted for exemplary performance in helping formerly homeless veterans obtain steady employment.
John was instrumental in developing the NCHV website (www.nchv.org) into the most comprehensive online resource for homeless veteran assistance in the nation, serving over 85,000 visitors each month.
His work led to the creation of the nation’s first Veteran Homelessness Prevention Platform in 2006, which has been crucial in shaping initiatives to reduce the risk of homelessness for veterans of the wars in Afghanistan and Iraq, and their families. Eleven of the 18 recommendations in that document have been signed into law or are in various stages of development.
John’s advocacy extended to Capitol Hill, where he prepared and delivered testimony before both the U.S. House of Representatives and U.S. Senate on numerous landmark homeless veteran assistance initiatives since 2005. He regularly met with leaders of Federal agencies involved in homeless veteran services and was frequently invited to speak as a subject matter expert at conferences and symposia nationwide.
Beyond his professional achievements, John served on the Charles County (Maryland) Special Olympics Committee for 14 years, was a guest lecturer on journalism ethics at the College of Southern Maryland, and sat on the Charles County Sheriff’s Disability Review Commission.
John Driscoll’s dedication, compassion, and tireless efforts have left an indelible mark on the lives of many. He will be deeply missed by his family, friends, colleagues, and the countless veterans whose lives he touched.
Science Friday: Do Birds Sing In Their Dreams?
The Marginalian by Maria Popova: Let the last thing be song; what birds dream about and how it illuminates the role of dreams in our lives; Wendell Berry on the cure for conflict
The Marginalian by Maria Popova: Albert Camus on how to live whole in a broken world, Anne Morrow Lindbergh on the beach and the soul, an illustrated celebration of the changing light
The Marginalian by Maria Popova: Befriending a blackbird, Terry Tempest Williams on change and denial, an illustrated celebration of how John Cage revolutionized music through silence
By Colin Marshall, Open Culture: The Page That Changed Comics Forever: Discover the Innovative 1950s Comic Book That Almost Went Unpublished
By Colin Marshall, Open Culture: When Slavoj Žižek and Jordan Peterson Debated Capitalism Versus Marxism
Happy Deal Happy Day: How to Easily Clean Stained Mugs and Scruffed Plates!
By Ron Hart, AV Club: An underrated John Lennon album finally gets its due Inside the six-disc ultimate edition of 1973’s Mind Games
Mia McPherson, On The Wing Photography: Common Eastern Velvet Ant Images
Mia McPherson, On The Wing Photography: Carolina Wren Photos: Conquering A Nemesis
Mia McPherson, On The Wing Photography: Young Northern Cardinal Photos From Summer
Mia McPherson, On The Wing Photography: Hatch Year Tufted Titmouse On Driftwood
They jail shoplifters!!
Polk Sheriff: Morning Briefing July 19, 2024 – Stanley cup stealers
NSFW
BarrrNone: GFSF
“The Intenet is a ‘Get F’d, Stay F’d zone, and it is undefeated.”
Cleared Hot Podcast: Mike Glover – Solitary Confinement
Recipes
Little House Big Alaska: Slow Cooker Pinto Beans
Two Cloves Kitchen: Blackened Redfish Tacos with Cilantro Lime Crema
Simply Recipes: Bang Bang Shrimp Tacos
Simply Recipes: Cheesy Baked Tacos
Simply Recipes: Slow Cooker Honey Chipotle Chicken Tacos
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
- Easy Slow Cooker BBQ Shredded Beef June 16, 2026Slow Cooker BBQ Shredded Beef is what you make when you want a big batch of crowd-pleasing food with relatively little effort. The succulent pulled beef is smothered in an incredible homemade barbecue sauce, and there’s so many ways to serve it – pile into sliders, heap onto plates or stuff into baked potatoes! Easy... […]Nagi
- Coffee Cake with Cinnamon Streusel June 12, 2026Firstly, thank you for the Jaffle love. 🥰 Hit the Jaffle button above to see what he got up to today! Secondly – cake. Specifically, Coffee Cake! A classic crumb cake with a jammy cinnamon ribbon, loaded with lots and lots of nubbly, extra crunchy cinnamon streusel. Outrageously good. Coffee Cake with Cinnamon Streusel This... […]Nagi
wikimedia
- Wikimedia Commons picture of the day for June 18 June 18, 2026Picture of the day Red-headed weaver (Anaplectes rubriceps leuconotus) male building nest in the Soysambu Conservancy, Kenya.
- Wikimedia Commons picture of the day for June 17 June 17, 2026Picture of the day Lt. Col. Nick Rutgers preparing his F-15 Eagle for flight
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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?