My Second Substack Post

In a recent post here on Blogger, I announced the fact that I had published my first post on Substack. 

Yesterday I uploaded my second post to that venue. It is titled, Memorial Day: A Historical and Personal Account. You can view it by clicking here.

Memorial Day 2021

I've featured copies of the Bramhall cartoon (atop this entry) in a number of my prior Memorial Day blog posts and because I really think it says all there is to say about this solemn day, I'm featuring it again today in honor of  2021's somber holiday. 

If you are interested in facts re this holiday's orgin and practices, please allow me to refer you to a page within This Day in History.

#ClapBecauseWeCare's 3 Month Anniversary (Saturday 6/27/2020)

GIUSEPPE AND TERESA AFTER PARTICIPATING ON 6/27/2020

I'd like to begin this entry by saying that three months ago yesterday (Saturday June 27th 2020) marked the date #ClapBecauseWeCare sessions began (3/27/2020) in NYC.

I initially learned about the tribute a few days after the fact and subsequently began participating on a nightly basis two days later on March 29th, 2020 so my three month anniversary of doing this is tomorrow. June 29, 2020.

As I've been discussing within a number of posts here on Blogger, my participation and cyber "coverage" of these tributes is a small way to pay homage to first responders, healthcare professionals and essential workers who are keep working tirelessly (through all kinds of weather) for everyone during this COVID-19 (coronavirus) pandemic.

During the course of these nightly sessions, I've become aquatinted with a few people I'd never met, such as Giuseppe and Teresa, seen in the image atop this entry. They posed for me after the session last night which was the eighty-ninth one.

Facts re Decoration Day

CARTOON BY JOHN T. McCUTCHEON

The cartoon by John T. McCutcheon which is posted atop this Blogger entry, is featured within prior entries here on Blogger. It was initially published in the year of 1900, with a caption accompanying it stating: "You bet I'm goin' to be a soldier, too, like my Uncle David, when I grow up."

As most of you probably know, the 2020 Memorial Day holiday took place (in the United States) this past Monday, May 25th, as it is currently celebrated on the last Monday in May. Prior to it being celebrated on the last Monday in May, the traditional date for Memorial Day was May 30th.

Memorial Day Evening 2020: Session 56

On this Memorial Day Evening at the fifty-sixth session of #ClapBecauseWeCare (a nightly event to honor first responders, health care professionals or essential workers who are keeping everyone safe during the coronavirus pandemic), there were a number of participants (a few of them can be seen in the following images).

#CLAPBECAUSEWECAREPARTICIPANT

#CLAPBECAUSEWECAREPARTICIPANTS

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I heard someone playing "TAPS" in the distance, presumably doing so honor of the Memorial Day observance coinciding with a #ClapBecauseWeCare session, helping me to feel in spite of all that is going on, I LOVE NY MORE THAN EVER!

Memorial Day 2020

A BRAMHALL CARTOON

As many know, Memorial Day (which is being celebrated today), was first widely observed on May 30, 1868 to commemorate the sacrifices of Civil War soldiers, by proclamation of Gen. John A. Logan of the Grand Army of the Republic, an organization of former Union sailors and soldiers.

But in 1968 Congress passed the Uniform Monday Holiday Act, which established Memorial Day as the last Monday in May in order to create a three-day weekend for federal employees; the change went into effect in 1971.

According to Wikipedia, "The law took effect at the federal level in 1971. After some initial confusion and unwillingness to comply, all 50 states adopted Congress' change of date within a few years.

"Memorial Day endures as a holiday which most businesses observe because it marks the unofficial beginning of summer. The Veterans of Foreign Wars (VFW) and Sons of Union Veterans of the Civil War (SUVCW) advocate returning to the original date, although the significance of the date is tenuous. The VFW stated in a 2002 Memorial Day Address:

"Changing the date merely to create three-day weekends has undermined the very meaning of the day. No doubt, this has contributed a lot to the general public's nonchalant observance of Memorial Day.

"Starting in 1987 Hawaii's Senator Daniel Inouye, a World War II veteran, introduced a measure to return Memorial Day to its traditional date. Inouye continued introducing the resolution until his death in 2012."

This fact re switching the date of the holiday may be the reason that a number of Americans seem to have forgotten the true meaning of this solemn day; as poignantly illustrated in the cartoon by Bramhall, seen in the image atop this entry.

Memorial Day Eve and Session 55

A RESIDENT HONORS MEMORIAL DAY 

Tomorrow is Memorial Day and someone who lives across the courtyard and who is a regular participant in #ClapBecauseWeCare sessions (tributes to healthcare professionals, first responders and essential workers who keep people safe during the coronavirus pandemic), has put up an American flag, presumably to commemorate the solemn holiday.

Remembering the Dearly Departed

IMAGE CREDIT

The cartoon by John T. McCutcheon which is posted atop this Blogger entry, is featured within prior entries here on Blogger. It was initially published in the year of 1900, with a caption accompanying it stating: "You bet I'm goin' to be a soldier, too, like my Uncle David, when I grow up."

As most of you know, the 2019 Memorial Day holiday took place (in the United States) this past Monday; as it is currently celebrated on the last Monday in May. Prior to it being celebrated on the last Monday in May, the traditional date for Memorial Day was May 30th.

May 30th 1954 when Memorial Day was celebrated is also the day Warren Tangorra was born and he died on March 8, 2010. I never met the man but he was a friend of my dear friend, Donna DeSolis (DD) and at her request (in 2010) after he passed from this life; I produced the video posted below as a favor to her.

Five years later DD died.

MEMORIAL DAY 2019

A BRAMHALL CARTOON

I have written about Memorial Day many times here on Blogger; but none of my musings come close to Bramhall's (seen above) and on this Memorial lDay for 2019, l am thinking of how those who lost their lives through war made it possible for me to enjoy the simple pleasures and so-called “little things” in life.

Memorial Day 2018

Another Memorial Day is upon us. As you may know, it was once celebrated on May 30th, no matter what day of the week that date occurred but The Uniform Holiday Act changed all that.

The Uniform Monday Holiday Act (Pub.L. 90–363) "is an Act of Congress that amended the federal holiday provisions of the United States Code to establish the observance of certain holidays on Mondays. The Act was signed into law on June 28, 1968, and took effect on January 1, 1971."

I appreciate long weekends just like anyone else, but unfortunately, the solemnity of holidays such as Memorial Day can be lost in what has become "the unofficial start of summer."

"Uncle Sam's a reminder of the great risks & personal sacrifices endured by generations of Americans in the quest for liberty." (Wednesday's Wisdom)

An exhibit at The New York Historical Society which paid homage to the history of iconic Uncle Sam ended ten days ago on September 3rd 2017. Banners announcing the exhibit, such as the one seen in the image atop this entry, are still flying from street lamps on NYC's Upper Westside.

A web-page for The New York Historical Society states that "since the 19th century, the familiar figure of “Uncle Sam,” with his beard and stovepipe hat, has represented the U.S. in recruitment posters, political cartoons, and advertisements. But long before he first appeared, artists drew upon a visual tradition stretching back centuries to depict America as an evocative woman."

FRIDAY FLASHBACK

The awesome photographs atop this entry of a Peregrine Falcon, were taken by Reggie Williams. He is a technician who I met at an Imaging Center a little over a month ago. I had gone to that Xray facility at the urging of my doctor, who upon examining me for injuries I sustained on the Saturday prior to this past Memorial Day, urged me to have a specific Xray.

I had asked Reggie (who was supervising my particular technician) to take a couple photos of the equipment that was being used to diagnosis the extent of my injury because I was so grateful to be able to avail myself of Xrays that would pinpoint the extent of my injury. The pictures he took on that day can be seen in the next set of images (and you might recognize them from as they are nearly identical to images used in one of my previous posts).

I explained to him that my reason for requesting this, was because on a few occasions I had participated in rescuing wild birds who had ultimately passed away; and their dying was attributed to the fact that the bird rehab place where I had taken them did not have proper Xray equipment due to lack of funding. I also confided that whenever my book series becomes financially successful, it's my goal to help the rehab facility procure proper Xray equipment. Upon hearing my motives, Reggie shared with me his appreciation of wild birds.

In any event, today Reggie Williams and the date of my aforementioned Xrays are on my mind today because it was only a few days ago that I discovered the pictures of the falcon atop this entry which he evidently had emailed me on June 14th! I'm not sure why I only recently discovered the correspondence, but, I'm truly thankful that I did. With his magnificent photographs, Reggie included the following message:

"Hi Patricia, 

It was a pleasure meeting and speaking with you in addition to providing your medical imaging at Lenox Hill Radiology last week. I attached a few pictures of the raptor that I took while I lived in Boston. I left out the more grotesque ones where the bird was actually feeding :-). Your blog is great and I will look in more often for a good read. 

It is truly amazing, the people we meet, in our day to day travels and such. I'd be remiss not to mention how thankful I am to have met you. I took a look at your blog and it inspired me to continue writing and taking pictures. Things that I have enjoyed doing all my life but have let get away from me. You have a very pleasant aura. Thank you for chatting with me and I look forward to speaking with you soon!

Have a blessed day!"

My discovery of Reggie Williams' email to me came at an opportune time, as I'm on shaky ground these days, and as a result, I often experience discouragement, even despair re my circumstances.

Thank you, Reggie Williams, for sharing your awesome photographs and heartfelt words with me!

Tuesday's Truths WK 43: Honoring the Original Date of Memorial Day

Hello, and welcome to week forty-three of my Tuesday's Truths series, with a post dedicated to the initial day Memorial Day was once celebrated (May 30th, no matter what day of the week that date occurred).

As you undoubtedly know, dear reader, folks (including yours truly) living in the United States celebrated the holiday yesterday, as it is currently revered on the last Monday in the month of May. The celebration I attended took place in The Bronx, in which one of the guests happened to be a thirty-five year old parrot.

Composting Day

Today, May the 29th, Memorial Day is being celebrated in the U.S.A., because it's the last Monday in May. As you most likely know, the date for a given Memorial Day varies from year to year. I have written about this fact in a number of prior entries here on Blogger. But, there is another holiday occurring today that is always honored on this day.

The holiday I'm referring to is Learn About Composting Day. Holiday Insights (HI) created this special day in 2011. HI proclaims to be "strong advocates of the 'Go Green' environmental movement." And they state "Composting is easy. We believe everyone can practice composting, to leave a better world for our children." 

The Sunday Before Memorial Day 2017

IMAGE CREDIT

The cartoon by John T. McCutcheon which is posted atop this Blogger entry, was published in the year of 1900, with a caption accompanying it stating: "You bet I'm goin' to be a soldier, too, like my Uncle David, when I grow up."

As most of you probably know, the upcoming holiday taking place (in the United States) tomorrow, is Memorial Day, as it is currently celebrated on the last Monday in May. Prior to it being celebrated on the last Monday in May, the traditional date was May 30th.

The Start of 2017's Memorial Day Weekend

A BRAMHALL CARTOON

The cartoon (by Bramhall) that's posted atop today's blog entry might look familiar to you, dear reader, as I've featured it at the start of the Memorial Day weekend (which is today), in bygone years.

This cartoon is so poignant, that it bears repeating as we embark upon another Memorial Day holiday.

Memorial Day 2016

Another Memorial Day is upon us. In bygone years, I've written a number of posts about this solemn day here on Blogger. Please click on the aforementioned cyber-venue to refer to my Memorial Day musings.

A Turtle Takes A Stroll

Yesterday, May 29th, which was the Saturday of the 2016 Memorial Day Weekend, a lone turtle took a stroll on a sidewalk in NYC's Central Park! Click here to view the story on TLLG's Facebook Page.

Memorial Day Weekend 2016

A BRAMHALL CARTOON

As I mentioned (on Fb) yesterday, which was the onset of Memorial Day weekend for 2016, Bramhall's cartoon/mini comic strip,  (above) has always been one of my favorite Memorial Day commemorations. In bygone years, I've written about this solemn holiday here on Blogger, and you may refer to my musings by clicking here.

Memorial Day 2013

In honor of Memorial Day, the American Flag on the Verrazano-Narrows Bride (in NYC), seemed to be saluting all who have died while in the military service. Some of TLLG's Memorial Day refection's can be found by clicking here.