1883 – First meeting of the Boys’ Brigade in Glasgow, Scotland.
The Boys’ Brigade (BB) is an interdenominational Christian youth organisation, conceived by Sir William Alexander Smith to combine drill and fun activities with Christian values.[2] Following its inception in Glasgow in 1883, the BB quickly spread across the United Kingdom and became a worldwide organisation by the early 1890s.[3] As of 2003, there were 500,000 Boys’ Brigade members in 60 countries.[4]
1876 – Florence Eliza Allen, American mathematician and suffrage activist (d. 1960)
Florence Eliza Allen (October 4, 1876 – December 31, 1960) was an American mathematician and women’s suffrage activist.[1][2] In 1907 she became the second woman to receive a Ph.D. in mathematics at the University of Wisconsin–Madison, and the fourth Ph.D. overall from that department.
Biography
Allen was born in Horicon, Wisconsin. She had an older brother and her father was a lawyer.
Florence Allen got her Bachelor’s degree in Mathematics from the University of Wisconsin–Madison in 1900. She was a member of Phi Beta Kappa as an undergrad, and Delta Delta Delta as a Ph.D.[1][2] She held leadership positions in a fine arts and literary society for women. She stayed at UW–Madison as a resident and achieved her Master’s degree in 1901.[3]
Florence Allen continued to work at UW–Madison as an assistant and became an instructor in 1902. She attained her doctorate in 1907 in geometry,[4] after which she remained at UW–Madison; she became an assistant professor in 1945, and retired in 1947.[3] She died at the age of 84 in 1960 in Madison, Wisconsin.[3]
Picture of the day Khone Phapheng Falls, Si Phan Don, Laos. Located on the Mekong River near the border with Cambodia, at 10.7 kilometres (6.6 mi) wide, it is the widest waterfall in the world.
1574 – The Siege of Leiden is lifted by the Watergeuzen.
The Siege of Leiden occurred during the Eighty Years’ War and the Anglo–Spanish War in 1573 and 1574, when the Spanish under Francisco de Valdez attempted to capture the rebellious city of Leiden, South Holland, the Netherlands. In the end the siege failed when the city was successfully relieved in October 1574.[1]
Aftermath:
In 1575, the Spanish treasury ran dry, so that the Spanish army could not be paid anymore and it mutinied. After the pillaging of Antwerp, the whole of the Netherlands rebelled against Spain. Leiden was once again safe.
The Leiden University was founded by William of Orange in recognition of the city’s sacrifice in the siege. According to the ironical fiction still maintained by the Prince, that he was acting in behalf of his master Philip of Spain, against whom he was in fact in open rebellion, the university was endowed in the King’s name.
The 3 October Festival is celebrated every year in Leiden. It is a festival, with a funfair and a dozen open air discos in the night.[6] The municipality gives free herring and white bread to the citizens of Leiden.
1292 – Eleanor de Clare, English noblewoman (d. 1337)
Eleanor de Clare, suo jure 6th Lady of Glamorgan (3 October 1292-30 June 1337) was a powerful English noblewoman who married Hugh Despenser the Younger and was a granddaughter of Edward I of England.[2][3] With her sisters, Elizabeth de Clare and Margaret de Clare, she inherited her father’s estates after the death of her brother, Gilbert de Clare, 8th Earl of Gloucester, 7th Earl of Hereford at the Battle of Bannockburn in 1314.[1][2][3] She was born in 1292 at Caerphilly Castle in Glamorgan, Wales and was the eldest daughter of Gilbert de Clare, 6th Earl of Hertford, 7th Earl of Gloucester, 5th Lord of Glamorgan and Princess Joan of Acre.
I understand his thoughts. I believe the way he is going about it will do more harm than good. By CBS News: Democrat says he will boycott moment of silence for Las Vegas shooting
“I just thought at some point, [a moment of silence] is perfectly emblematic of Congress’ complete negligence on doing a bunch of things that we should do to try to reduce the bloody mayhem that happens in this country as a result of it being awash in guns,” Himes told NPR at the time.
Army Sgt. 1st Class Randy Shughart received the Medal of Honor for his actions while serving as a sniper team member with Army Special Operations Command in Mogadishu, Somalia, Oct. 3, 1993.
Grace Hopper Celebration October 04, 2017
Want to experience GHC from the comfort of your home? Watch the recordings of our main stage speakers! We’ll stream all keynote sessions on Livestream so you can watch in real time. You can also watch the recordings even after the keynote session is over. Learn more about our main stage speakers here.
Picture of the day Khone Phapheng Falls, Si Phan Don, Laos. Located on the Mekong River near the border with Cambodia, at 10.7 kilometres (6.6 mi) wide, it is the widest waterfall in the world.
In 1831, Mexican authorities gave the settlers of Gonzales a small cannon to help protect them from frequent Comanche raids. Over the next four years, the political situation in Mexico deteriorated, and in 1835 several states revolted. As the unrest spread, Colonel Domingo de Ugartechea, the commander of all Mexican troops in Texas, felt it unwise to leave the residents of Gonzales with a weapon and requested the return of the cannon.
When the initial request was refused, Ugartechea sent 100 dragoons to retrieve the cannon. The soldiers neared Gonzales on September 29, but the colonists used a variety of excuses to keep them from the town, while secretly sending messengers to request assistance from nearby communities. Within two days, up to 140 Texians gathered in Gonzales, all determined not to give up the cannon. On October 1, settlers voted to initiate a fight. Mexican soldiers opened fire as Texians approached their camp in the early hours of October 2. After several hours of desultory firing, the Mexican soldiers withdrew.[1]
Although the skirmish had little military significance, it marked a clear break between the colonists and the Mexican government and is considered to have been the start of the Texas Revolution. News of the skirmish spread throughout the United States, where it was often referred to as the “Lexington of Texas”. The cannon’s fate is disputed. It may have been buried and rediscovered in 1936, or it may have been seized by Mexican troops after the Battle of the Alamo.
Biography
Hutcheson was born in New York City as Martha Brookes Brown, and as a child spent her summers on a family farm near Burlington, Vermont. From 1893-1895 she studied at the New York School of Applied Design for Women, and in the late 1890s toured Europe where she studied gardens in England, France, and Italy. As Hutcheson later wrote in The Spirit of the Garden:
About 1898, one day I saw the grounds of Bellevue Hospital in New York, on which nothing was planted, and was overcome with the terrible waste of opportunity for beauty which was not being given to the hundreds of patients who could see it or go to it, in convalescence. In trying to find out how I could get in touch with such authorities as those who might allow me to plant the area of ground, I stumbled upon the fact that my aim would be politically impossible, but that there was a course in Landscape Architecture being formed at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, the first course which America had ever held.
In 1900 she entered MIT’s new landscape architecture program at age 29, where she studied for two years before leaving without degree in 1902. She subsequently designed the grounds of several residential estates near Boston, most notably Frederick Moseley’s large Newburyport estate, 1904-1906 (now Maudslay State Park), and the garden at Alice Mary Longfellow’s house (now the Longfellow House–Washington’s Headquarters National Historic Site) in Cambridge.
After Hutcheson’s marriage in 1911, she retired from commercial practice but she began to landscape her own garden (5 acres) on the couple’s 100-acre (0.40 km2) farm in Gladstone, New Jersey. Its overall design was influenced by classical Italian gardens, featuring a pond enclosed by native plants, vegetable garden, flower borders, orchards, allées, and farm buildings. This farm, with garden, is now preserved as the Bamboo Brook Outdoor Education Center.
In 1935 she was named a fellow in the American Society of Landscape Architects, the third woman to receive this distinction. Although Hutcheson executed dozens of commissions, including gardens at Bennington College and Billings Farm (now the Marsh-Billings-Rockefeller National Historical Park), most of her works have been lost.
Selected works
The Spirit of the Garden, 1923, reprinted by University of Massachusetts Press, 2001. ISBN 1-55849-272-0.
By Bryan Menegus: Couple Grifts Amazon Out of $1.2 Million in Electronics
The husband and wife duo scored “GoPro digital cameras, Microsoft Xboxes, Samsung smartwatches, and Microsoft Surface tablets” according to a Department of Justice press release from when they (and an alleged “fence” named Danijel Glumac) were charged in May. More recently, the Finans pleaded guilty, and now each face a maximum sentence of 20 years in prison.
Picture of the day Khone Phapheng Falls, Si Phan Don, Laos. Located on the Mekong River near the border with Cambodia, at 10.7 kilometres (6.6 mi) wide, it is the widest waterfall in the world.
The school was founded in 1555 by Sir John Gresham as a free grammar school for forty boys, following King Henry VIII’s dissolution of the Augustinian priory at Beeston Regis. The founder left the school’s endowments in the hands of the Worshipful Company of Fishmongers of the City of London, who are still the school’s trustees.
In the 1890s, an increase in the rental income of property in the City of London led to a major expansion of the school, which built many new buildings on land it owned on the eastern edge of Holt, including several new boarding houses as well as new teaching buildings, library and chapel.
Gresham’s began to admit girls in the mid-1970s and is now fully co-educational. As well as its senior school, it operates a preparatory and a Pre-Prep school, the latter now in the Old School House, the original senior school. Altogether, the three schools teach about eight hundred children.
1832 – Ann Jarvis, American activist, co-founded Mother’s Day (d. 1905)
Ann Maria Reeves Jarvis (September 30, 1832 in Culpeper, Virginia – May 9, 1905 in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania) was a social activist and community organizer during the American Civil War era. She is recognized as the mother who inspired Mother’s Day and as a founder of Mother’s Day movements, and her daughter, Anna Marie Jarvis (1864–1948), is recognized as the founder of the Mother’s Day holiday in the United States.
Biography
Ann Marie Reeves Jarvis was born in Culpeper, Virginia, on September 30, 1832, the daughter of Josiah Washington Reeves and Nancy Kemper Reeves.[1] Ann Reeves Jarvis moved to Philippi, Barbour County, (West) Virginia with her family when her father, a Methodist minister, was transferred to a church in that town.[2] In 1850, Ann Reeves married Granville Jarvis, the son of a Baptist minister, who became a successful merchant in nearby Taylor County.[3] Two years later, in 1852, the couple moved to Webster, where Granville Jarvis established a mercantile business.[4]
The Jarvis family, like many families during the mid-1800s, experienced frequent tragedy and loss. Jarvis bore between eleven and thirteen children over the course of seventeen years. Of these children, only four survived to adulthood. The others died of diseases such as the measles, typhoid fever, and diphtheria epidemics common in Appalachian communities in Taylor County. These losses inspired Jarvis to take action to help her community combat childhood diseases and unsanitary conditions.[5]
Mrs. Jarvis was a dynamic woman who saw needs in her community and found ways to meet them. In 1858, while pregnant with her sixth child, Jarvis began Mothers’ Day Work Clubs in the towns of Grafton, Pruntytown, Philippi, Fetterman, and Webster to improve health and sanitary conditions. She and other area women joined a growing public health movement in the United States.[6] Jarvis’ clubs sought to provide assistance and education to families in order to reduce disease and infant mortality. These clubs raised money to buy medicine and to hire women to work in families where the mother suffered from tuberculosis or other health problems. They developed programs to inspect milk long before there were state requirements. Club members visited households to educate mothers and their families about improving sanitation and overall health. The clubs benefited from the advice of Jarvis’ brother, Dr. James Reeves, who was known for his work in the typhoid fever epidemics in northwestern Virginia.[7]
During the American Civil War (1861-1865), sentiment in western Virginia was sharply divided between north and south. In 1863, this culminated when the western part of the state broke away from Virginia and formed the new state of West Virginia, which was loyal to the Union. Western Virginia became the location of some of the first conflicts of the Civil War. Jarvis’ Mothers’ Day Work Clubs altered their mission to meet the changing demands brought about by war. Ann Jarvis urged the clubs to declare neutrality and to provide aid to both Confederate and Union soldiers.[8] Jarvis illustrated her resolve to remain neutral and aid both sides by refusing to support a proposed division of the Methodist Church into a northern and southern branch.[9] Additionally, she reportedly offered a lone prayer for Thornsbury Bailey Brown, the first Union soldier killed by a Confederate in the area, when others refused.[10] Under her guidance, the clubs fed and clothed soldiers from both sides who were stationed in the area. When typhoid fever and measles broke out in the military camps, Jarvis and her club members nursed the suffering soldiers from both sides at the request of a commander.[11]
Jarvis’ efforts to keep the community together continued after the Civil War ended. After the fighting concluded, public officials seeking ways to eliminate post-war strife called on Jarvis to help. She and her club members planned a “Mothers Friendship Day” for soldiers from both sides and their families at the Taylor County Courthouse in Pruntytown to help the healing process. Despite threats of violence, Jarvis successfully staged the event in 1868. She shared with the veterans a message of unity and reconciliation. Bands played “Dixie” and the “Star Spangled Banner” and the event ended with everyone, north and south, joining together to sing “Auld Lang Syne.” This effective and emotional event reduced many to tears. It showed the community that old animosities were destructive and must end.[12]
Near the end of the Civil War, in 1864, the Jarvis family moved to Grafton in order to aid Granville Jarvis’ business ventures as an inn-keeper and land speculator. Ann Reeves Jarvis continued her social activist work. Throughout her life, Jarvis taught Sunday School and was very involved with the Methodist church. In Grafton, Jarvis was involved in the Andrews Methodist Episcopal Church’s construction and subsequently taught Sunday School classes there. She served as superintendent of the Primary Sunday School Department at the church for twenty five years.[13] Jarvis also was a popular speaker and often lectured on subjects ranging from religion, public health, and literature for audiences at local churches and organizations. Her lectures included, “Literature as a Source of Culture and Refinement,” “Great Mothers of the Bible,” “Great Value of Hygiene for Women and Children,” and “The Importance of Supervised Recreational Centers for Boys and Girls.” [14]
Ann Jarvis remained in Grafton until after the death of her husband, Granville, in 1902. After his death, Jarvis moved to Philadelphia to live near her sons and two daughters. Anna Jarvis, her daughter, cared for Ann Reeves Jarvis, whose health steadily declined due to heart problems. Ann Reeves Jarvis died in Philadelphia on May 8, 1905, surrounded by her four surviving children.[15]
Throughout her life, Jarvis strived to honor and help mothers. Her daughter, Anna Marie Jarvis, recalled her praying for someone to start a day to memorialize and honor mothers during a Sunday school lesson in 1876.[16] On the first anniversary of Ann Jarvis’ death, Anna Jarvis met with friends and announced plans for a memorial service remembering her mother for the next year. In May 1907, a private service was held in honor of Ann Jarvis.[17] The following year, in 1908, Anna Jarvis organized the first official observance of Mother’s Day, coming near the anniversary of her mother’s death. Andrews Methodist Church, where Ann Reeves Jarvis taught Sunday School for 25 years, held the first public service on the morning of May 10, 1908. Anna Jarvis did not attend the service, but sent a donation of 500 white carnations for all of those in attendance. In the afternoon, 15,000 people attended another service that Anna Jarvis organized in Philadelphia, held at the Wanamaker Store Auditorium.[18]
In the years following the initial ceremonies, Anna Jarvis’ new holiday gained recognition in many states and spread to a number of foreign countries.[19] Anna Jarvis also embarked on a mission to make Mother’s Day an officially recognized holiday in the United States. She succeeded when, in 1914, President Woodrow Wilson signed a congressional resolution officially making the second Sunday in May the national Mother’s Day and calling for Americans to recognize it by displaying the flag.[20]
Similar programs for women where you live? Game design special interest group hosts Halloween game night
The Center of Excellence for Women in Technology’s game design special interest group is hosting a Halloween game night from 5:30-8 p.m. Friday, Oct. 27, at CEWiT House (501 N. Park Ave.). There will be pizza, board games and spooky video games.
Comments on delivery issues where you live (city and state)? Reporter rides along with food bank delivery truck, examines one rural county’s food insecurity
“We’ve had three different rushes: First the gold rush, second the timber rush, and now the marijuana rush which is called the green rush,” Corrigan told Morehouse. “The focus has been on other industries and not a food sustainable industry.”
By Sara Benincasa: Real Artists Have Day Jobs
When I was 23, I decided to become a high school teacher in order to support myself as a writer. And so I taught high school in the Southwest and no one published anything I wrote, though I tried to convince them it was a good idea.
I was a real writer then.
I was also a real writer when I was a paralegal working at a law firm in Chelsea specializing in immigration for fashion models. I was a real writer when I worked at a publishing company in the South Bronx, in a neighborhood so violent we were required to sign out of work no later than 4 p.m. so that we could reach the subway before nightfall (there had been an assault and a murder a few years back, so the company was cautious). I was a real writer when I worked at a fancy pet boutique on the Upper East Side, where customers spent upwards of $300 on luxurious cat beds and eccentric women came into the shop pushing puppies in prams. I was a real writer when I worked at Planned Parenthood HQ. I was a real writer when I hosted a satellite radio talk show about sex and love and dating five nights a week from 8 to 11 East, 5 to 8 Pacific. I was a real writer when the show got cancelled and I collected unemployment. I was a real writer when I worked at a start-up and I was a real writer when I quit the start-up to write full-time.
I am a real writer now, and I will be a real writer until I die, whether or not I always do this as my full-time job. I have had day jobs in the past and I have no reason to believe I will not have day jobs in the future.
Picture of the day Khone Phapheng Falls, Si Phan Don, Laos. Located on the Mekong River near the border with Cambodia, at 10.7 kilometres (6.6 mi) wide, it is the widest waterfall in the world.
1864 – American Civil War: The Battle of Chaffin’s Farm is fought.
The Battle of Chaffin’s Farm and New Market Heights, also known as Laurel Hill and combats at Forts Harrison, Johnson, and Gilmer, was fought in Virginia on September 29–30, 1864, as part of the Siege of Petersburg in the American Civil War.
Background
From the very beginning of the war, Confederate engineers and slave laborers had constructed permanent defenses around Richmond. By 1864, they had created a system anchored south of the capital on the James River at Chaffin’s Farm, a large open area at Chaffin’s Bluff, both named for a local landowner. This outer line was supported by an intermediate and inner system of fortifications much closer to the capital. In July and August 1864, these lines were tested by Union Lt. Gen. Ulysses S. Grant in offensives designed to attack simultaneously north and south of the James.[5]
On July 27–29, the Army of the Potomac’s II Corps under Maj. Gen. Winfield S. Hancock and cavalry under Maj. Gen. Philip Sheridan attacked New Market Heights and Fussell’s Mill in the First Battle of Deep Bottom (named for the section of the James River used for the Union crossing). The attacks failed to break through to threaten Richmond or its railroads, but they did cause Confederate Gen. Robert E. Lee to transfer men from the Petersburg fortifications in preparation for the Battle of the Crater on July 31. The Second Battle of Deep Bottom was conducted by Hancock on August 14–20, attacking in almost the same areas once again to draw Confederate troops away from south of the James, where the Battle of Globe Tavern (also known as the Second Battle of the Weldon Railroad) was an attempt to cut the railroad supply lines to Petersburg. The second battle was also a Confederate victory, but it forced Lee to weaken his Petersburg defenses and abandon plans to reinforce his men in the Shenandoah Valley.[6]
In late September, Grant planned another dual offensive. Historians sometimes enumerate Grant’s offensives during the Richmond–Petersburg Campaign. Richard J. Sommers, John Horn, and Noah Andre Trudeau call these operations “Grant’s Fifth Offensive”.[7] Grant’s primary objective was to cut the railroad supply lines to the south of Petersburg, which would likely cause the fall of both Petersburg and Richmond. He planned to use a cavalry division under Brig. Gen. David McM. Gregg and four infantry divisions from the V and IX Corps of the Army of the Potomac to sever the South Side Railroad, an operation that would result in the Battle of Peebles’ Farm from September 30 to October 2. Once again hoping to distract Robert E. Lee and draw Confederate troops north of the river, Grant ordered the Army of the James under Maj. Gen. Benjamin F. Butler to attack toward Richmond.[8]
Butler devised a plan that historian John Horn called his “best performance of the war.”[9] Rather than repeat the efforts of July and August to turn the Confederate left, Butler planned surprise attacks on the Confederate right and center. His XVIII Corps under Maj. Gen. Edward O. C. Ord, would cross the James River to Aiken’s Landing by a newly constructed pontoon bridge. At the original Deep Bottom pontoon bridge, his X Corps under Maj. Gen. David B. Birney would cross, followed by his cavalry under Brig. Gen. August V. Kautz. In a two-pronged attack, the right wing (Birney’s X Corps, augmented by a United States Colored Troops division under Brig. Gen. Charles J. Paine from the XVIII Corps) would assault the Confederate lines at New Market Road and drive on to capture the artillery positions behind it on New Market Heights. This action would protect the flank of the left wing (the remainder of Ord’s XVIII Corps), which would attack Fort Harrison from the south-east, neutralizing the strongest point of the entire Confederate line. Then, the right wing would assist the left by attacking Fort Gregg and Fort Gilmer, both north of Fort Harrison. Kautz’s cavalry would exploit Birney’s capture of the New Market Road by driving for Richmond.[10]
1803 – Mercator Cooper, American captain and explorer (d. 1872)
Mercator Cooper (September 29, 1803 – spring 1872) was a ship’s captain who is credited with the first formal American visit to Tokyo, Japan and the first formal landing on the mainland East Antarctica.
Both events occurred while sailing ships out of Sag Harbor, New York, where he was born.
Visit of the Manhattan to Tokyo
On November 9, 1843, Cooper left Sag Harbor as captain of the 440-ton ship Manhattan on a whaling voyage. On March 14–15, 1845 the Manhattan picked up 11 Japanese sailors[1] in the southern Japanese islands.[2]
Outside of Tokyo Bay four of the survivors took a Japanese boat with a message that Cooper wanted to deliver the remainder to the harbor.[3] The Japanese normally wanted to avoid contact with outsiders because of the Tokugawa Shogunate policy of Sakoku.
However, on April 18, 1845, an emissary from the shogun gave the ship permission to proceed – accompanied by “about three hundred Japanese boats with about 15 men in each took the ship in tow” according to Cooper’s log. “They took all our arms out to keep till we left. There were several of the nobility came on board to see the ship. They appeared very friendly.”
The Japanese examined his ship and took particular note of Pyrrhus Concer, a crewman from Southampton who was the only African American on board, and a Shinnecock Native American named Eleazar – the first dark skinned men the Japanese had seen and they wanted to touch their skin.
The Japanese refused payment for provisions and gave them water, 20 sacks of rice, two sacks of wheat, a box of flour, 11 sacks of sweet potatoes, 50 fowl, two cords of wood, radishes and 10 pounds of tea, thanked them for returning their sailors, and told them to never return.
On April 21, the 300 boats towed the Manhattan 20 miles out to sea.
Cooper took with him a map that charted the islands of Japan that had been found on the disabled Japanese ship. He was to turn the map over to the United States government when the ship returned to Sag Harbor on October 14, 1846. Matthew Perry was said to have used the map on his visit with four U.S. warships on July 8, 1853.
Cooper’s home in Southampton (village), New York is now owned by the Rogers Memorial Library. Pyrrhus Concer is buried in the North End Cemetery in Southampton across from Cooper’s home.
First visitor to Antarctica
In August 1851, Cooper again left Sag Harbor, this time as captain of the 382-ton ship Levant[4] on a mixed whaling and sealing voyage.[5] Making a quick passage through the belt of pack ice in the Ross Sea, on January 26, 1853, he sighted land, an ice shelf backed by a high mountain some 70 to 100 miles distant. The next morning, the ice shelf still in sight, with high mountains looming behind it, he sailed the ship close inshore and ordered a boat to be lowered. They made a landing on the ice shelf, reportedly seeing numerous penguins, but no seals – their chief objective. The landing occurred on what is now known as the Oates Coast of Victoria Land, in East Antarctica. It is arguably “the first adequately documented continental landing” in not only this area, but on the mainland of Antarctica itself. They stayed within sight of land for several days, sighting the Balleny Islands on February 2.[6][7][8] At the conclusion of the voyage the Levant was sold in China.
The logbook from the voyage is in the Long Island Room of the East Hampton Library in East Hampton (village), New York.
Cooper died in Barranquilla, Colombia, South America. His date of death is sometimes reported as March 23, 1872[9] or April 24, 1872.[10]
By Adam Feil: Why Most Writers Fail
I like to compare writing to exercising. Almost everybody who exercises doesn’t become Mr. Olympia or a fitness model, but everybody who exercises benefits from it. In the same way, you’ll be very lucky if your writing ever brings you money or fame, but even so, you will still be better off for doing it.
Picture of the day Khone Phapheng Falls, Si Phan Don, Laos. Located on the Mekong River near the border with Cambodia, at 10.7 kilometres (6.6 mi) wide, it is the widest waterfall in the world.
1791 – France becomes the first country to emancipate its Jewish population.
Jewish emancipation was the external (and internal) process in various nations in Europe of eliminating Jewish disabilities, e.g. Jewish quotas, to which Jewish people were then subject, and the recognition of Jews as entitled to equality and citizenship rights on a communal, not merely individual, basis.[1][not in citation given] It included efforts within the community to integrate into their societies as citizens. It occurred gradually between the late 18th century and the early 20th century. Jewish emancipation followed the Age of Enlightenment and the concurrent Jewish enlightenment.[2] Various nations repealed or superseded previous discriminatory laws applied specifically against Jews where they resided. Before the emancipation, most Jews were isolated in residential areas from the rest of the society; emancipation was a major goal of European Jews of that time, who worked within their communities to achieve integration in the majority societies and broader education. Many became active politically and culturally within wider European civil society as Jews gained full citizenship. They emigrated to countries offering better social and economic opportunities, such as the Russian Empire and France. Some European Jews turned to Socialism, others to Jewish nationalism: Zionism.
1819 – Narcís Monturiol, Spanish engineer and publisher (d. 1885)
Narcís Monturiol i Estarriol (Catalan pronunciation: [nərˈsiz muntuɾiˈɔɫ i əstəriˈɔɫ]; 28 September 1819 – 6 September 1885) was a Spanish artist and engineer. He was the inventor of the first air-independent and combustion-engine-driven submarine.
Biography
Monturiol i Estarriol was born in the city of Madrid, Madrid, Spain. He was the son of a cooper. Monturiol went to high school in Cervera and got a law degree in Modtoles in 1845. He solved the fundamental problems of underwater navigation. In effect, Monturiol invented the first fully functional engine-driven submarine.[1][2]
Monturiol never practiced law, instead turning his talents to writing and publishing, setting up a publishing company in 1846, the same year he married his wife Emilia. He produced a series of journals and pamphlets espousing his radical beliefs in feminism, pacifism, and utopian communism. He also founded the newspaper La Madre de Familia, in which he promised “to defend women from the tyranny of men” and La Fraternidad, Spain’s first communist newspaper.
Monturiol’s friendship with Abdó Terrades led him to join the Republican Party and his circle of friends included such names as musician Josep Anselm Clavé, and engineer and reformist Ildefons Cerdà. Monturiol also became an enthusiastic follower of the utopian thinker and socialist Étienne Cabet; he popularised Cabet’s ideas through La Fraternidad and produced a Spanish translation of his novel Voyage en Icarie. A circle formed round La Fraternidad raised enough money for one of them to travel to Cabet’s utopian community, Icaria.
Following the revolutions of 1848, one of his publications was suppressed by the government and he was forced into a brief exile in France. When he returned to Barcelona in 1849, the government curtailed his publishing activities, and he turned his attention to science and engineering instead.
A stay in Cadaqués allowed him to observe the dangerous job of coral harvesters where he even witnessed the death of a man who drowned while performing this job. This prompted him to think of submarine navigation and in September 1857 he went back to Barcelona and organized the first commercial society in Catalonia and Spain dedicated to the exploration of submarine navigation with the name of Monturiol, Font, Altadill y Cia. and a capital of 10,000 pesetas.
In 1858 Monturiol presented his project in a scientific thesis, titled The Ictineo or fish-ship. The first dive of his first submarine, Ictineo I, took place in September 1859 in the harbour of Barcelona.
Ictineo I
Main article:Ictineo I
Ictineo I was 7 m (23 ft) long with a beam of 2.5 m (8 ft 2 in) and draft of 3.5 m (11 ft). Her intended use was to ease the harvest of coral. It is likely she was inspired by the prototype Brandtaucher of Wilhelm Bauer, completed in 1851, as Monturiol studied all the available science of submersibles. Ictineo’s prow was equipped with a set of tools suited to the harvest of coral. During the summer of 1859, Monturiol performed more than 20 dives in Ictineo, with his business partner and shipbuilder as crew. Ictineo I possessed good handling, but her top speed was disappointing, as it was limited by the power of human muscles.
The technical success of this submersible created popular enthusiasm but no support from the government. As a result, Monturiol wrote a “letter to the nation”, asking the people of Spain to support his project. The fund raising was a great success, bringing in 300,000 pesetas from the people of Spain and Cuba.
Ictineo I was eventually destroyed by accident in January 1862, after completing some fifty dives, when a cargo vessel ran into her at her berth. With the money obtained from the subscription, the company La Navegación Submarina was formed with the objective of developing Ictineo II.
A modern replica of Ictineo I stands in the garden entrance to the Marine Museum in Barcelona.
By Eillie Anzilotti: This App Gives Middle Schoolers Real Talk About Sex From The Comfort Of Their Phones
That explains the format of the app: When teens open it, they can select a topic they’re wondering about–anything from acne to crushes to STIs–and a confessional story will unfold, text-message-style, explaining some common concerns around the issue; the app also tailors responses by gender identification, inclusive of transgender and gender non-binary teens. The Real Talk cofounders sourced these stories through their focus groups with teens, and many have contributed in response to an ad placed on Instagram in the leadup to the app’s launch.
Picture of the day Khone Phapheng Falls, Si Phan Don, Laos. Located on the Mekong River near the border with Cambodia, at 10.7 kilometres (6.6 mi) wide, it is the widest waterfall in the world.
Background
Liberty ships initially had a poor public image and to try to assuage public opinion, September 27, 1941 was designated Liberty Fleet Day, and the first 14 “Emergency” vessels were launched that day. The first of these (with MC hull number 14) was Patrick Henry, launched by President Franklin D. Roosevelt.[3] Other “Emergency” vessels launched that day, in various yards around the country included: SS John C. Fremont, SS Louise Lykes, SS Ocean Venture, SS Ocean Voice, SS Star of Oregon, and SS Steel Artisan.[4]
Launching
In the speech delivered at the launching, Roosevelt referred to Patrick Henry’s “Give me Liberty, or give me Death!” speech of 23 March 1775. Roosevelt said that this new class of ships would bring liberty to Europe, which gave rise to the name “Liberty ship”. Patrick Henry was sponsored by Ilo Browne Wallace, wife of Vice President Henry A. Wallace, with Mrs. Robert H. Jackson, wife of the Associate Justice of the Supreme Court of the United States, and Madame Bruggmann, wife of the Minister of Switzerland Karl Bruggmann and sister of the vice president. Ilo Wallace christened the ship. The ship’s fitting was completed on December 30, 1941.[4]
Service history
Her maiden voyage was to the Middle East. During World War II she made 12 voyages to ports including Murmansk (as part of Convoy PQ 18[5]), Trinidad, Cape Town, Naples, and Dakar.[4]
She survived the war, but was seriously damaged when she went aground on a reef off the coast of Florida in July 1946. The ship was laid up at Mobile, Alabama, and was scrapped at Baltimore in 1958.[6][7]
1818 – Hermann Kolbe, German chemist and academic (d. 1884)
Hermann Kolbe (Adolph Wilhelm Hermann Kolbe, 27 September 1818 – 25 November 1884), was a seminal contributor in the birth of modern organic chemistry. He was a Professor at Marburg and Leipzig. Kolbe coined the term synthesis and contributed to the philosophical demise of vitalism through synthesis of the organic substance acetic acid from carbon disulfide, and also contributed to the development of structural theory. This was done via modifications to the idea of “radicals” and accurate prediction of the existence of secondary and tertiary alcohols, and to the emerging array of organic reactions through his Kolbe electrolysis of carboxylate salts, the Kolbe-Schmitt reaction in the preparation of aspirin and the Kolbe nitrile synthesis. After studies with Wöhler and Bunsen, Kolbe was involved with the early internationalization of chemistry through overseas work in London (with Frankland), and rose through the ranks of his field to edit the Journal für Praktische Chemie. As such, he was elected to the Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences won the Royal Society of London’s Davy Medal in the year of his death. Despite these accomplishments and his training, by a storied next generation of chemists (including Zaitsev, Curtius, Beckmann, Graebe, Markovnikov, etc.), Kolbe is remembered for editing the Journal for more than a decade, where his rejection of Kekulé’s structure of benzene, van’t Hoff’s theory on the origin of chirality and von Baeyer’s reforms of nomenclature were personally critical and linguistically violent. Kolbe died of a heart attack in Leipzig at age 68, six years after the death of his wife, Charlotte. He was survived by four children.
Logo Crunch
Logo Crunch is a multi-resolution logo maker, it uses computer vision to make your high-res logo legible at lower resolutions. Use it for a website favicon, iOS app icon or Android app icon.
Picture of the day Khone Phapheng Falls, Si Phan Don, Laos. Located on the Mekong River near the border with Cambodia, at 10.7 kilometres (6.6 mi) wide, it is the widest waterfall in the world.
1969 – Abbey Road, the last recorded album by The Beatles, is released.
Abbey Road is the eleventh studio album by English rock band the Beatles, released on 26 September 1969 by Apple Records. The recording sessions for the album were the last in which all four Beatles participated. Although Let It Be was the final album that the Beatles completed before the band’s dissolution in April 1970, most of the album had been recorded before the Abbey Road sessions began.[1] A double A-side single from the album, “Something”/”Come Together”, released in October, topped the Billboard chart in the US.
1774 – Johnny Appleseed, American gardener and environmentalist (d. 1845)
John Chapman (September 26, 1774 – March 18, 1845), called Johnny Appleseed, was an American pioneer nurseryman who introduced apple trees to large parts of Pennsylvania, Ontario, Ohio, Indiana, and Illinois, as well as the northern counties of present-day West Virginia. He became an American legend while still alive, due to his kind, generous ways, his leadership in conservation, and the symbolic importance he attributed to apples. He was also a missionary for The New Church (Swedenborgian)[1] and the inspiration for many museums and historical sites such as the Johnny Appleseed Museum[2] in Urbana, Ohio, and the Johnny Appleseed Heritage Center[3] in between Lucas, Ohio, and Mifflin, Ohio. The TinCaps, a minor league baseball team in Fort Wayne, Indiana, which is where Chapman spent his final years, is named in his honor.[4]
Family
John Chapman was born on September 26, 1774, in Leominster, Massachusetts,[5] the second child (after his sister Elizabeth) of Nathaniel and Elizabeth Chapman (née Simonds, married February 8, 1770) of Massachusetts. His birthplace has a granite marker, and the street is called Johnny Appleseed Lane.
While Nathaniel was in military service, his wife died (July 18, 1776) shortly after giving birth to a second son, Nathaniel. The baby died about two weeks after his mother. Nathaniel Chapman ended his military service and returned home in 1780 to Longmeadow, Massachusetts. In the summer of 1780 he married Lucy Cooley of Longmeadow, Massachusetts, and they had 10 children.[1][6]
According to some accounts, an 18-year-old John persuaded his 11-year-old half-brother Nathaniel to go west with him in 1792. The duo apparently lived a nomadic life until their father brought his large family west in 1805 and met up with them in Ohio. The younger Nathaniel decided to stay and help their father farm the land.
Shortly after the brothers parted ways, John began his apprenticeship as an orchardist under a Mr. Crawford, who had apple orchards, thus inspiring his life’s journey of planting apple trees.[7]
By Joui Turandot: 3 Ways to Decide Whose Opinion of You Matters
I first came upon the idea in Brené Brown’s book Daring Greatly. She says that the work that scares us makes us most alive. But the more public and vocal you get, the more vulnerable you can become to outside input.
And so she created criteria for her own feedback “force field,” so to speak. Brown says “If you are not in the arena and also getting your arse kicked, I am not interested in your feedback.”
Picture of the day Khone Phapheng Falls, Si Phan Don, Laos. Located on the Mekong River near the border with Cambodia, at 10.7 kilometres (6.6 mi) wide, it is the widest waterfall in the world.
Skipped to:
Radio control: the Telekino
In 1903, Torres presented the Telekino at the Paris Academy of Science, accompanied by a brief, and making an experimental demonstration. In the same year, he obtained a patent in France, Spain, Great Britain, and the United States. The Telekino consisted of a robot that executed commands transmitted by electromagnetic waves. It constituted the world’s second publicly demonstrated apparatus for radio control, after Nikola Tesla’s Patented “Teleautomaton”, and was a pioneer in the field of remote control. In 1906, in the presence of the king and before a great crowd, Torres successfully demonstrated the invention in the port of Bilbao, guiding a boat from the shore. Later, he would try to apply the Telekino to projectiles and torpedoes but had to abandon the project for lack of financing. In 2007, the prestigious Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers (IEEE) dedicated a Milestone in Electrical Engineering and Computing[6] to the Telekino, based on the research work developed at Technical University of Madrid by Prof. Antonio Pérez Yuste, who was the driving force behind the Milestone nomination.
1764 – Fletcher Christian, English sailor (d. 1793)
Fletcher Christian (25 September 1764 – 20 September 1793) was master’s mate on board HMS Bounty during Lieutenant William Bligh’s voyage to Tahiti for breadfruit plants. In the mutiny on the Bounty, Christian seized command of the ship from Bligh on 28 April 1789.[1]
Early life
Christian was born on 25 September 1764, at his family home of Moorland Close, Eaglesfield, near Cockermouth in Cumberland, England. Fletcher’s father’s side had originated from the Isle of Man and most of his paternal great-grandfathers were historic Deemsters, their original family surname McCrystyn.
Fletcher was the brother to Edward and Humphrey, being the three sons of Charles Christian of Moorland Close and of the large Ewanrigg Hall estate in Dearham, Cumberland, an attorney-at-law descended from Manx gentry, and his wife Ann Dixon.[2][3]
Charles’s marriage to Ann brought with it the small property of Moorland Close, “a quadrangle pile of buildings … half castle, half farmstead.” The property can be seen to the north of the Cockermouth to Egremont A5086 road.[4] Charles died in 1768 when Fletcher was not yet four. Ann proved herself grossly irresponsible with money. By 1779, when Fletcher was fifteen, Ann had run up a debt of nearly £6,500 (equal to £787,835 today),[4] and faced the prospect of debtors’ prison. Moorland Close was lost and Ann and her three younger children were forced to flee to the Isle of Man, to their relative’s estate, where English creditors had no power.
The three elder Christian sons managed to arrange a £40 (equal to £4,848 today) per year annuity for their mother, allowing the family to live in genteel poverty. Christian spent seven years at the Cockermouth Free School from the age of nine. One of his younger contemporaries there was Cockermouth native William Wordsworth. It is commonly misconceived that the two were ‘school friends’; Christian was six years the senior of the future Poet Laureate. His mother Ann died on the Isle of Man in 1819.[5]
Obama Foundation Fellowship
The Obama Foundation Fellowship program seeks to support outstanding civic innovators from around the world in order to amplify the impact of their work and to inspire a wave of civic innovation.
By Vanessa Grigoriadis: The Vanderbilt Rape Convictions Bucked The Status Quo
After two guilty verdicts and one mistrial, the Nashville judge, an elderly black man with a reputation for even-keeled verdicts, sentenced Batey to 15 years in prison without the possibility of parole. Because Vandenburg incited the crime, he received 17 years. “It is one of the saddest cases that I have ever encountered,” the judge said. “And I have been in the legal business for 32 years.” In a highly unusual move unsuccessfully challenged by a media coalition that included the Tennessean and the Associated Press, certain records related to the case were sealed. No one needed to know anything more about that terrible night.
By Patrick Redford: Stop Using Pat Tillman
Everybody who thought he’d enlisted purely out of patriotism, they missed reality by a half mile. Sure, he loved America and felt compelled to fight for it after more than 2,600 people at the World Trade Center were turned to dust. But his decision sprang from soil so much richer than that. The foisting of all the dirty work onto people less fortunate than an NFL safety clawed at his ethics. He had uncles and grandfathers on both sides who’d fought in World War II and the Korean War, one who’d taken a bullet in his chest, another who’d lost a finger and one who’d been the last to leap out of a plane shot from the sky. On a level deeper than almost any other American, he’d reaped the reward of those sacrifices: the chance his country afforded him to be himself, all of himself.
Picture of the day Khone Phapheng Falls, Si Phan Don, Laos. Located on the Mekong River near the border with Cambodia, at 10.7 kilometres (6.6 mi) wide, it is the widest waterfall in the world.
1. Long before Tesla, Electric Cars were all the rage in 1905For a brief period in the early 20th century in the United States, the electric car was high society’s hottest commodity, sought after by socialites and businessmen alike. Electric cars might seem like the vehicles of the future, but t
Today's encore selection -- from Tell Me Why by Tim Riley. With more than 2,200 cover versions, Paul McCartney’s “Yesterday” is one of the most covered songs in the history of recorded music: "If ‘Yesterday’ isn't the most esteemed recording the Beatles ever made, it certainly is the most celebrated song they ever produced. Its […]
Today's selection-- from Paris in Ruins by Sebastian Smee. In early 1871, economic measures and controversial decisions by the National Assembly deepen the crisis, fueling public anger and unrest. “Shuttling between Bordeaux and Versailles in early 1871, a distracted Adolphe Thiers was consumed by multiplying responsibilities. He had an entire nation to run. Jules Favre, […]
I was looking forward to this series based on the classic book. After all, Earth Abides was partly the inspiration for Stephen King’s The Stand. I liked it so much I use the title in my Area 51 series for the most recent book. The first episode starts slow, very slow. Especially in this day […]
Our students have compiled research in three topic areas. Below are the links to their research tables that can be downloaded for searching and viewing. For a state-by-state review of Mandatory Reporter laws, click here. For a state-by-state review of Background Check laws, click...
Our students spend the summer working on the research project of the LDICP. Through their extensive research, massive databases of information on state statutes regarding the abuse of children have been created and will be posted here as their work is finalized. Here are...
Myself, along with my 4 daughters, daughter-in-law, and one of my granddaughters formed a book club in January to see who could read the most books in 2024. We stay in touch with a group text every day and Goodreads. As an incentive we all agreed to put $1 a week into a kitty and […]
It’s time for the 14th Annual Positively Present Gratitude Challenge! I love focusing on gratitude throughout November, and doing this Challenge is one of my year’s highlights. If you’re new… The post The 14th Annual Gratitude Challenge! appeared first on Positively Present - Dani DiPirro.
Hark, the herald angels sing! Glory to the newborn king. Peace on earth and mercy mild...Wishing everyone a Christmas filled with Love, Peace, and Joy.TAKEAWAY TRUTHMerry Christmas!
Hello everyone, my name is Stewart F. Brennan. I’m the creator of this, the World United Music blog. Over the past two decades, I’ve juggled my time and energy populating five different blogs containing alternative news, music, economics, political activism and creative passions while also supporting hundreds of artists, activists and alternative news journalists. I […]
All-American patriot, artist, designer, entrepreneur, flower arranger, chef, and joyful servant, Sunny Lou Starling, was carried on the wings of angels to the arms of her savior, Jesus Christ, on Friday, January 6, 2023. She once said her mission was to “Gather and feed all you can, as often as you can, because you never know if […]
WASP Deanie Bishop Parrish, 44-W-4"Failure isn't failure unless you let it be. It's simply a change in direction. Just count your many blessings move on. With God's help, anything is possible!"Deanie Bishop Parrish passed away peacefully in her home in Waco, Texas, on February 24, 2022, just one day shy of her 100th birthday. She met every challenge […]
Editors Note: After posting over five thousand features and twenty five thousand images over the last thirteen years, the time has come to end posting weekly features here on The Old Motor. At this point, the site’s future hasn’t been decided, although it will remain online for the foreseeable future. There may be future updates...
In this weekly series, we ask our readers to tell us the year, make, and model of all of these vehicles along with the location where the image was taken and anything else you find of interest in the photos. You can look back on all the earlier parts of this series here. The photos are via Americar....
Under the Mistletoe Collection | Audiobook Review The Under The Mistletoe Collection is a collection of 5 Amazon original short stories about Christmas. They are included in KU in both the Kindle and audible versions. The narration was fantastic on all of them, and they all have open door spice. Cruel Winter With You by […]
On this Christmas Eve, we travel back 80 years for a visit with the First Lady of Shorpy, Iola Swinnerton. Some two decades after her bathing-pageant days, she is still radiating beauty and cheer. Scroll down to the comments for more of Iola's life story. View full size. "STONE WOMAN" ENJOYS CHRISTMAS PREPAREDNESS […]
"Dickey Christmas tree, 1922." Our annual holiday visit with the family of Washington lawyer Raymond Dickey, who has a decade's worth of Christmas portraits in the archives of the National Photo Company. Some of which turned out better than others. View full size.
Occupied Germany at the U.S.-Soviet sector The East/West German border circa 1951, ten years before the Berlin Wall was built. U.S. Army soldiers Harry Manville, Dave Crosson, and Ray Kwapil (my dad). I have the Agfa Karat 35mm and Rolleicord 6x6cm Dad is dangling. Nice cameras, they are still working. Location: "Untersuhl by Eisenach, Germany, […]
In reply to Festive Us: 1922: So why are the grandparents having to squat under the tree? As a geezer/boomer grandfather I am not amused! What happened to respect for your elders? I tell ya it started going downhill after 1900. [Grandparents?? These are Raymond and Rose Dickey and their children Granville, John, Alice and […]
Of those accessories that have been mainly linked to stylish menswear garments, the dinner jacket – also known as tuxedo – has due to its cut and use of luxurious … The post The Dinner Jacket: A Timeless Piece of Elegance appeared first on Shopping Kim.
Here’s an old Italian recipe for canning peppers, one of my husband’s favorites. Searching the internet, you’ll come across many variations — all probably good — but here’s a basic recipe to start you on your course. The kids and I canned these using the boiling method, though pressure canners might make the process easier. Not sure how, […]
Microgreens seem to be all the rage these days and for good reason: they are packed with nutrients and easy to grow! The USDA and University of Maryland found that leaves from microgreens had more nutrients than the mature leaves of the same plants. And great flavor. Plus, you don’t need a lot of space […]
Merriam-Webster's Word of the Day for December 26, 2024 is: menorah \muh-NOR-uh\ noun A menorah is a candelabra with seven or nine lights that is used in Jewish worship. // At sundown on the first night of Hanukkah, Elliott's father helped him light the first candle on the menorah. See the entry > […]
This post may contain affiliate links. Please see our privacy policy for details. Can’t decide between red or green enchilada sauce? Now you can have both and have the best of both worlds! Sometimes you need red enchiladas, and sometimes you need green. This is where I have you completely covered. Called divorciadas or […]
This post may contain affiliate links. Please see our privacy policy for details. Creamy, garlicky, mushroom fettuccine that’s oh-so-fancy (and so stinking easy). An absolute weeknight staple here! Need a fancy dinner in? For company/friends/family/spouse/kids/all of the above? We have you covered with the creamiest mushroom fettuccine here, whipped up in no time, of […]
Welcome back to Daufuskie Island, where every corner tells a story. This island is off the coast of South Carolina and is a 1 hour ferry ride from Hilton Head Island. Today I’m sharing how to make a sweetgrass basket: Materials: Coiled rope or raffia Colored yarn or embroidery thread Large-eye needle Scissors Instructions: Start […]
Welcome to Daufuskie Island, where time slows down and the rhythms of Gullah culture come to life. This inviting getaway off the South Carolina coast is more than an island; it’s a testament to the resilience and creativity of the Gullah people, descendants of West African slaves. These people were brought to work on the […]
Once again, the Pentagon has acknowledged that its footprint in the Middle East is bigger than it has claimed for years. In fact, after years of claiming that the total number of service members deployed to Iraq and Syria was about 3,400, the Pentagon acknowledged this week that 4,500 U.S. troops are in the two […]
An entry in a Marine’s service record from 1926 shows that even though the Corps has come a long way in 100 years, Marines are always gonna Marine. A currently serving Marine recently shared a disciplinary record for his great-grandfather on Reddit. He asked that his name not be included in the story because he […]
A couple of days ago, after a test fill, there was still water splashing out of the black water tank's top side. It was time to take the tank off to see what was going on. Dammit.First though, I removed the toilet to see what could be seen from within the VRRV:This black fitting secures the […]
...those memorable Christmases of our childhood? I’m not convinced that they were perfect either. I think they exist as a composite, like “Christmas's Greatest Hits” in our memory.
If you’re not familiar with Noam Chomsky’s insights into the real causes and consequences of US foreign policy, The Myth of American Idealism is an excellent introduction. If you are familiar, it’s a great refresher. IMO, the biggest, high-level takeaways:1. Rulers have far more in common with and concern for each other than regard for the people […]
There is no way to read Annie Jacobsen's Nuclear War: A Scenario and conclude other than that nuclear abolition should be a top priority for all world leaders. Nothing could be worth the risk to humanity of a highly emotional species, given to miscalculations, mistakes, and misunderstandings, possessing tens of thousands of the instruments of […]
Long before we were a sailing family, Alisa and I were a young couple in love with adventuring in Alaska. The opportunity to introduce Eric and Elias to the delights of outdoor living in the Great Land was one of the big bright sides of our return to Alaska. Earlier this winter, the boys and […]
So...this beautiful island is our home. See the barky? The boys just had their spring break. A week off from school and nothing to keep us from buggering off in Galactic. The weather was generally poor - nothing like the pics above for the most part - so we just snuck off to the west […]
Here is a link to a story about my struggle to draw with Parkinson's Disease. the story is from "The Daily Cartoonist" a Web journal concerning the world of professional cartooning. It was occasioned by the release of the documentary "Matters of Mind, My Parkinson's" which follows three families and their efforts to cope […]
Here is a short trailer for the PBS documentary "Matter of Mind, My Parkinson's. It follows the attempts of three people and their families to cope with the progressive, disabling and incurable neurological condition. The film won the Audience Choice Award for documentaries at the recent San Francisco Film Festival, possibly due to a scenery-chewing […]
Meet the Hedgehog Dryer. It’s the latest in power-drying for all of your soggy accoutrements: boots, gloves, hats and such. Special Correspondent Cassandra Raun put the Hedgehog to the ultimate ... The post Good gear = great. Good, DRY gear = essential appeared first on Alaska Travelgram.
Devil’s Club is a common wild plant in Alaska that’s large & covered in hidden sharp thorns, growing everywhere from remote forests to even well-groomed Anchorage city trails. Just because you’re “in town” doesn’t mean you won’t run into devil’s club. It’s smart to stay on the trails, particularly if you’re not confident spotting it. […]
Here’s a delicious fall-time spin on classic blueberry muffins. If you’re a solo adult who likes good food, this recipe is for you. Or if you’ve got extra kitchen “helpers” around (read: kids who need entertainment), turn baking these Halloween muffins into a fun toddler snacktivity. Pumpkin BOO-berry Muffin Recipe Ingredients: 2 boxes Jiffy brand […]
These gluten-free pumpkin cookies are the softest, most delectable cookies you’ll ever eat! They are remarkably light in texture and are topped with a luscious, dairy-free brown sugar frosting. They are quick and easy, and the cookie dough requires no refrigeration. They will quickly become one of your favorite pumpkin desserts! I don't know about you,... […]
I’m home now. I’m looking at the flea market couch I brought up from California; I had cushions made three times over the years till I got it just right. Now it’s just right. It’s been in my life 42 years. Tim has been in my life 34 years, but he had to be out of […]
I’m saying my goodbyes to Toronto. I’ve seen my last Hot Docs Festival film, and I’m just back from my last author program. I’ve probably had my last roti, checked out my last book at my local branch library, gone to my last art workshop. Horror of horrors, I’ve even watched my last play. The thing […]
The pedestrians are not the killers The mayor of Alaska’s largest wants to stiffen the so-called crime of “jaywalking” in the name of saving lives, and nobody seems to have asked […]
Industrial-scale, ocean farming all good – state officials Only weeks after a Seattle biologist warned Canadians that salmon numbers in the North Pacific Ocean have reached the point where ocean-farmed fish threaten […]
It’s here. The big day. My memoir, the one I spent 15 years struggling over, launches today from Raised Voice Press. I’m feeling very exposed, very vulnerable. This is not at all similar to when Dolls Behaving Badly launched from Hachette Book Group. That was a novel, and while some of it was based on… […]
I had had Alaska writer Dan Walker’s YA novel SECONDHAND SUMMER on my list for a long time, and two weeks ago finally had the chance to dive in. I wasn’t disappointed. Walker’s book, geared for middle school readers (but still immensely enjoyable for adults), follows 14-year-old Sam’s move to Anchorage from the small fishing… […]
I set out to "invent" a great and unique "kid pudding". I collected all of the pudding recipes from my recipe box and started combining and tweaking them .... I wanted the richness from this one ...the consistency from that one ...the sweetness from yet another one... and went to work with my picky-picky husband as my Guinea pig taste […]
My list of 10 Best Gifts for Cooks and Food Lovers helps last minute shoppers buy great presents for the food obsessed; most of the items on the list I’ve used and loved for years. Most importantly, if you act quickly, there’s still time to order most of my recommended gifts and have them arrive […]
Do'inta? Se uzra Shala Kerrigan.How are you? My name is Shala Kerrigan. I only have a handful of words in my language, which is Lower Tanana Athabascan. This coloring page is based off the style of bead embroidery done by Athabascans up here in Alaska. I hope you enjoy it! Click the images below for larger versions to download/print/color. Small […]
All about insects is the theme for the next session of Sitka Sprouts on Tuesday, April 30. This is the last Sitka Sprouts session before summer. “We’re going to wrap up Sprouts this spring with a program about insects,” Sitka … Continue reading →
I LOVE my grandmother’s navy bean soup, but it takes forever to make with soaking the beans overnight and then slow cooking the soup all day. I decided to try it in my Instant Pot and it was a success! Not only that, but my kids loved it…score! Ingredients: 1-2 Tbs. olive oil 1 onion, diced 3 […]
Download Radio Show The August 25th show featured a conversation with Kitty Labounty. We talked about the transition to fall here in Sitka, and some of the things it brings. Among the gifts of fall is the peak of mushroom season in our area. Kitty shared about here interest in fungi, including practical uses and […]
Download Radio Show The August 11th show featured a conversation with Patrick Webster. He shared how a fascination with sea otters when young led to a career as a ship-based naturalist and underwater photographer. He is particularly passionate about inspiring appreciation for species that aren’t so often included among the charismatic megafauna. Check out Pat’s […]
At the end of July we took the boat over to Halibut Cove to hike the Saddle Trail with the kids to picnic at Grewingk Glacier Lake. It's a great trail for kids to master themselves, and Riggs hiked the whole way himself. Raina was in the backpack, but more because we wanted to hike […]
A man who just moved to Homer about a year ago from Chicago has started a podcast interviewing people from the Homer community. He called up my husband a few months ago and asked him if he would be willing to be interviewed. My husband said sure, so the second episode of Alex's podcast features […]
Well, 2017 was not a good garden year in my area, even for those of us with greenhouses/high tunnels. I'm sure I didn't help my chances at all; we had a month between returning home from the States and getting the roof on the high tunnel, and I didn't start any seeds or work the […]
Christmas is the perfect time to indulge in sweet treats that bring joy to every gathering. Whether you’re hosting a party or enjoying a quiet evening at home, these desserts add a festive touch to your celebrations. From classic pies to new holiday favorites, there’s something for every taste. Rich flavors, warm spices, and comforting... […]
Mountain View is in for a treat — a whole new store full of treats, in fact. Packed with dozens of varieties of handmade custom candies, classic favorites, and assorted other sweets, Sweet Creations Lollipop Boutique is one of the latest businesses to open doors in the neighborhood. Owner Missy Simms made it for the […]
During our time in Washington we also took some time to drive over to Kennewick to visit some of my family in that area. We camped in my aunt and uncle's driveway and visited them and some of my cousins. The highlight for the girls was the nerf war for sure (pictures here). It was […]
INGREDIENTS3-1/4 cups all-purpose flour1 teaspoon active yeast (not rapid or instant)1-1/2 teaspoons kosher salt1-1/2 cups slightly warm water (tepid)--2 teaspoons canola oil (For top and bottom of dough ball so it doesn't stick or form crust while rising)-2 TB butter melted in ramekin, with brush (set aside)--10” Seasoned Cast Iron SkilletMETHODAdd flour to bowl. Add yeast […]
My husband loves this cakeso much he had two pieces 'after' eating lunch...Ingredients2 Eggs1 ½ cup Canola Oil2 cups Granulated Sugar3 cups A-P Flour2 teaspoons Ground Cinnamon½ teaspoon Ground Nutmeg½ teaspoon Kosher Salt1 ½ teaspoons Baking Soda4 cups Chopped Apples (peeled and cored): measure after chopping1 cup chopped Pecans: measure after chopping1 teaspoon Vanilla Extract⅔ […]
Picture of the day Khone Phapheng Falls, Si Phan Don, Laos. Located on the Mekong River near the border with Cambodia, at 10.7 kilometres (6.6 mi) wide, it is the widest waterfall in the world.