April 16, 2016 Ridley's Believe It Or Not Emancipation Day

 Ridley’s Believe It Or Not For April 16, 2016. Unfortunately still 279 days to go in President Obama’s pathetic lame duck term but political theater is alive and well as Sanders takes a hiatus from campaigning in New York to meet with the Pope while Cruz with his knowledge of the convention rules appears set to sweep the Wyoming delegate convention. In a threat Saudi Arabia, our “ally” threatened to dispose of $750 billion of U.S. assets it holds if legislation is passed making it liable in part for the 911 attacks; this is the “ally” that has put pedal to the metal in an attempt to destroy our nascent fracking industry and managed to behead 157 people last year. With “allies” like this no wonder Trump has appeal. I trust your Saturday is proving to be a great one; and as always, I hope  you enjoy today’s holidays and observances,  music links to Tony Orlando and Dawn and Selena, factoids of interest, a  relevant quote from Jim Morrison while looking forward to enjoying some mushrooms, blessed with a positive attitude and  secure in  the knowledge that if you want to find a gift for any memorable events like birthdays, weddings, or  anniversaries, you know that the Alaskanpoet can provide you with a unique customized poem  at a great price  tailored to the event and the recipient. You need only contact me for details.

1. Emancipation Day—commemorating in 1862 of the enactment of the District of Columbia Compensation Emancipation Act which freed 3100 slaves residing in the District of Columbia and which led to the much broader Emancipation Proclamation nine months later.

2. Husband Appreciation Day—commemorating another one of these observances that should be observed only once a year—today if a woman and married tell by acts and words that you appreciate your husband.                                 

3. 1973 Number One Song—celebrating the number one song in 1973 on a run of four weeks in that position Tie A Yellow Ribbon Round The Ole Oak Tree by Tony Orlando and Dawn. Here is a link to Tony Orlando and Dawn performing Tie A Yellow Ribbon Round The Ole Oak Tree: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wWn1Oj2V7Xw

4. National Day of the Mushroom—celebrating the vast number of delicious fungi that spice up any dish from beech mushrooms to wood ear mushrooms but if you are  out in the woods looking for wild mushrooms make sure you have a great understanding of mycology as many types of mushrooms are poisonous. Here is a photo of the wood ear mushroom which is often found in Asian dishes:

                                                             

5. Firing Can Be Hazardous to Your Health—celebrating the birthday on this day in 1971 of Selena Quintanilla an up and coming singer who had just started to expand beyond her Hispanic fan base when she was murdered at the age of 23 by the former president of her fan club whom she had recently fired for embezzlement. Explaining why George W. Bush has been popular in the Hispanic community, he proclaimed April 16 to be Selena Day in Texas two weeks after her death. Here is a link to one of her most famous hits Dreaming Of You: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VRU2qs82DAgEEe

On this day in:

a. 73 Masada fell to the Romans after a siege of several months when the defenders committed suicide rather than be taken prisoner and then be crucified; the fall of Masada ended the Great Jewish Revolt.

b. 1810 the oldest indoor arena used for hockey, the Boston Arena, was opened; it is still in use today. 

c. 1940 Bob Feller of the Cleveland Indians threw the first no-hitter pitched on Opening Day in Major League Baseball.     

d. 1943 Albert Hoffman, a Swiss chemist who was the first person to synthesize the compounds found in psychedelic mushrooms accidentally discovered the hallucinogenic properties of LSD which he must have found pleasing as he took it on purpose three days later. The experience did not slow him down and he lived to be a ripe old 102 years.

e. 2013 in a bad case of writers’ block, the Pulitzer Prize winners were announced but for the first time since 1977, no award was announced in the fiction category.  

Reflections on acid: "In the beginning we were creating our music, ourselves, every night . . . starting with a few outlines, maybe a few words for a song. Sometimes we worked out in Venice, looking at the surf. We were together a lot and it was good times for all of us. Acid, sun, friends, the ocean, and poetry and music." Jim Morrison In the beginning it may have been all fun and games but in the end when addiction took over, it was a fatal overdose at the age of 27 and the music stopped.

Please enjoy the poems on events of interest on my twitter account below (if you like them, retweet and follow me) and follow my blogs. Always good, incisive and entertaining poems on my blogs—click on the links below. Go to www.alaskanpoet.blogspot.com for Ridley’s Believe It Or Not—This Day In History, poems to inspire, touch, emote, elate and enjoy and poems on breaking news items of importance or go to Ridley's Believe It Or Not for just This Day In History.

© April 165, 2016, Michael P. Ridley aka the Alaskanpoet 
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