Friday, January 31, 2014

Ridley's Believe It Or Not-This Day In History-January 31, 2014-Chinese New Year


Ridley's Believe It Or Not--January 31, 2014:  Slow day for U.S. holidays today but managed to pull these out of the lapin hat along with my favorite week ending with the final stanza of The Quitter delivered in the Burma Shave format today.
             1.
Chinese New Year--celebrating the Year of the Horse and, if having lunch or dinner in Little Saigon or Chinatown of any metropolitan area, long lines.  

             2. National Cowboy Poetry Gathering Week (1/27-2/2)--celebrated in Elko, Nevada; grab your hat and enjoy a unique American art form, e.g. last stanza today from my favorite poet whose works taught me how to read at an early age--Robert Service--The Quitter: "  And though you come out of each grueling bout, All broken and battered and scarred, Just have one more try — it’s dead easy to die, It’s the keeping-on-living that’s hard."  Worth reading as are most of his works--after listening to the State of the Union and ending ovations for Cory Remsburg, I think our President to his credit reads Service also. If you would like the lyrics on one page e-mail me and I will send out a copy.
             3. Appreciate Social Security Check Day--Given the number of Baby Boomers retiring each year, not sure how many of these you will be able to celebrate or if in your 40's whether you will be able to celebrate ever at all.
             4.  Have Fun At Work Day--great concept but woe to one who is not having fun the other days of the month while at work--life is too short to be stuck in a job you despise.
On this day in:
             a. 1930 3M began marketing Scotch Tape--how could we survive without it especially when wrapping gifts.
             b. 1990 the Golden Arches could be seen next to the Hammer and Sickle in Moscow as the first MacDonald’s there was opened...vodka not served with the fries. 
             c. 2011 Avatar became the first film to gross over $2 billion in worldwide ticket sales.
Another reason for the young to save as much as they possibly can: "More young people believe they will see a U.F.O. than that they will see their own Social Security benefits." Mitch McConnell, Senate Minority Leader. Hopefully, with immigration reform he may be proved wrong.
As we approach Super Bowl XLVIII which may be played in sub freezing temps with snow falling, it is not who wins or loses, but the quality not of the play but of the Super Bowl ads! Please enjoy the 140 character poems on events of interest on my twitter account below (if you like them, retweet and join almost 140 growing followers and please follow me) and follow my blogs. Always good, incisive and entertaining poems on my blogs--click on links below. www.alaskanpoet.blogspot.com for an original poem to honor Cory Remsburg, and original poem honor Martin Luther King, Jr. and an original in poem honoring a 17 year young Progeria victim who died on the eve of becoming an honorary captain for the Patriots  (have tissues handy). Just posted for your enjoyment on www.alaskanpoetcommentary.blogspot.com poem on the growing Imperial Presidency; the promotion of Charlene Lamb, the woman in charge of no security at Benghazi; and the retirement of Henry Waxman after 40 years in the U.S. Congress.

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