~★~♥~♥~★~ El Morno! ♥~★~★~♥ ~
February 11

★~ Today’s Quote: “Be courageous. I have seen many depressions in business. Always America has emerged from these stronger and more prosperous. Be brave as your fathers before you. Have faith! Go forward!”  Thomas A. Edison

★~ Pro Sports Wives Day:  

This national day of observance acknowledges that behind every great jock is usually a spouse, or a girlfriend or boyfriend. These behind-the-scenes team members do not just eat bonbons, shop, and go out to lunch; they keep their favorite athletes motivated, focused, and determined to win!

★~ Satisfied Staying Single Day:

How appropriate is it that three days before Valentine’s Day there is a day for singles. Today is a great day to celebrate your own awesomeness! Buy candy or flowers for yourself — live it up!

★~ Make a Friend(’s) Day:

You know what my sweet mom always says . . . wait . . . you don’t know. You know my great grandmother always said that you can get used to hanging if you hang long enough, but I may not have shared that. My sweet mom always says, “To have a friend, you must be a friend.” OK, now that we’ve straightened that out. Today is Make a Friend’s Day, but not everyone is in agreement. Some people say that today is Make a Friend Day (the ‘s at the end of friend is really pivotal to grasping the meaning). OK, here is what we’ll do — today you may either go out there and make a new friend (but remember to keep the old ones — we will need them for make an Old Friend(‘s) Day), or you may make a friends day by calling them, sending a card, buying them a Starbucks . . . I am sure you can figure this part out since I already did the hard part.

★~ White T-Shirt Day:

Some say that today is White Shirt Day, while others say it is White T-Shirt Day. Do I look like I care if you wear a white t-shirt or a white turtleneck?  Of course I care!  I live for you to celebrate the holidays as they were intended to be celebrated. It’s 11:34 p.m., the eve of White T Shirt Day, or White Shirt Day, and I’m totally angst ridden. (Deep breath.) OK, here is what I found out: This holiday commemorates the General Motors strike of 1937. As a result, General Motors recognized the United Auto Workers Union. As a symbol of their unity, the autoworkers all wore white shirts or blouses. Over time, the type of shirt included a white t-shirt, which means the appropriate dress for today is a white shirt, white blouse, or white t-shirt.

★~ Don’t Cry Over Spilled Milk Day: 

Cry over spilled grape juice — because that stain is never coming out — but there is no reason to get yourself all worked up over a glass of milk. The saying “don’t cry over spilled milk” is an age-old proverb that has been around for hundreds of years. The first historical reference to the phrase appears in a document written by British historian James Howell in 1659. The saying most likely comes from European folklore. According to the old tales, fairies were particularly fond of milk and would drink up any spills left behind.

To celebrate Don’t Cry Over Spilled Milk Day, let bygones be bygones. Don’t worry; be Happy! Focus on the wonderful things that are headed your way!

★~ Peppermint Patty Day:

Low in fat and calories, Peppermint Patties are fabulously tasty, especially after dinner with a cup of coffee.

A Peppermint Patty is a chocolatey piece of perfection: peppermint confectionery candy covered in dark chocolate. Hersey Foods Corporation made the Peppermint Patty famous in 1940 when they marketed them under the name The York Peppermint Patty. Peppermint Patties also gained notoriety after the debut of Charles M. Schultz’s famous comic strip, Peanuts, in 1966. They were chosen as the nickname for Peanuts character Patricia “Peppermint Patty” Reichardt.

Happy Peppermint Patty Day!

★~ Today in History:

♥~ 1808 – Judge Jesse Fell experimented by burning anthracite coal to keep his house warm on this winter day in Wilkes-Barre, PA. He successfully showed how clean the coal burned and how cheaply it could be used as a heating fuel. As a result, that area of northeast Pennsylvania became an important coal mining area for generations. Those who settled in the area to work the coal mines were referred to as ‘coal crackers’

♥~ 1861 – President-elect Abraham Lincoln and his wife left Springfield, IL by train for Washington, DC (and their new gigs as president and first lady). About 400 miles into the trip, Mary Lincoln reportedly turned to the new President and said, “Did you lock the back door, Abe?” and “I think I left my makeup bag on the counter…”

♥~ 1905 –  James Blackstone of Seattle set a world record by bowling 299½. On the last roll, one pin broke in half and half of it remained standing. Honest.

♥~ 1942 – The Archie comic book debuted, featuring Riverdale High’s Archie Andrews, Jughead, Betty, Veronica, and the rich, conniving Reggie. Archie had debuted two months earlier in Pep comics. Spinoffs included a long-time radio show, two TV cartoon series, and a rock group called The Archies.

♥~ 1975 – The movie, Shampoo, opened. Warren Beatty, Julie Christie, Goldie Hawn, Jack Warden, Lee Grant (who won an Oscar for Best Supporting Actress), Tony Bill, William Castle and Howard Hesseman starred. And, making her film debut a year before Star Wars made her famous: Carrie Fisher.

♥~ 1977 – History’s fattest lobster was caught off the Nova Scotia coast. It weighed 44 pounds 6 ounces and measured 3½ feet from claw tip to tail fan.

★~Born Today:

♥~ 1847 – Thomas Alva Edison inventor:  The man who gave us the phonograph, the light bulb, and the movie camera,  along with 1,097 patents.

♥~ 1909 – Max (Maximillian Adalbert) Baer:  ‘The Livermore Larruper’: boxer; father of Beverly Hillbillies’ actor Max Baer Jr.

♥ ~ 1917 – Sidney Sheldon author: Bloodline: The Doomsday Conspiracy, The Other Side of Midnight

♥~ 1919 – Eva Gabor actress: Green Acres, Gigi, The Last Time I Saw Paris; died July 4, 1995

♥~ 1934 – Mary Quant designer: renowned for her 1960s creations: ‘rib jumpers’, mini skirts, dresses, tights, ‘hipster’ belts, sleeveless crochet tops

♥~ 1936 – Burt Reynolds Emmy Award-winning actor: Evening Shade [1991], Gunsmoke, Deliverance, Smokey and the Bandit, Cannonball Run, The Longest Yard,The Best Little Whorehouse in Texas

♥~ 1969 – Jennifer Aniston actress: Friends, Microsoft Windows 95 Video Guide, ’Til There Was You, Waiting for Woody, Rock Star, The Good Girl

♥~ 1992 – Taylor Lautner actor: Twilight film series, Abduction, Valentine’s Day, The Adventures of Sharkboy and Lavagirl 3-D, Cheaper By the Dozen 2

★~ Did You Know: Famous Sport Divorces Settlements

♥~ Tiger Woods & Ellen Nordegren: Married: 5 years, Tiger’s Net Worth: $900 million (with an annual salary of $85 million), Divorce: Due to infidelity (over 10 women publicly admitted having an affair with Woods), Divorce Settlement: an estimated $100 million and the two will share custody of their children (neither Tiger nor Ellen will confirm this)

♥~ Michael Jordan and Juanita Vanoy: Married: 17 years, Michael’s Net Worth: $500 million, Divorce: Irreconcilable differences (including infidelity).Divorce Settlement: $168 million (largest ever divorce settlement publicly recorded)

♥~ Mike Tyson & Robin Givens, Married: 1 year, Mike’s Net Worth: $50 million (at the time he & Givens wed), Divorce: Irreconcilable differences (including infidelity). Divorce Settlement: $8 million

♥~ Vanessa Bryant  now  divorced from Kobe Bryant was awarded all three of the couple’s mansions in the Newport Beach, Calif., area,—the home they lived in, one her mother lived in and another that has been under construction for two years and $75 of the couples assets.

♥~  Frank and Jamie McCourt have reached a divorce settlement:  Jamie would get about $130 million and relinquish any claim to a share of the Dodgers.

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Last night I woke up from a bad dream about white t-shirts with my laptop in my lap and El Morno only half written. (I should never ever write El Morno at night.) So being somewhat obsessive about posting El Morno on Odd at 5:30 a.m. and El Morno on Facebook at 5:45 a.m., I set my alarm for 4:45 so I could finish the post, and went back to sleep. Can you believe I slept through the alarm?! I woke up at 7 a.m., screaming “WHAT THE WHAT!” and rushed to take care of our pups. A new camper was checking in at 9 a.m., and I could not meet and greet the potential camper and family with flyaway hair and yak breath, so I also had to take care of a few daily ablutions. On my way to the bathroom, I stabbed my toe on a deer antler and stepped in some poop. The good news is that it all happened on the same foot.

When I was finally able to return to writing El Morno—not all of you will understand this next part, so just hear my pain and angst—the title was 139 characters because of all the gosh-darn-dadgum-effen-holidays we are celebrating today. (A title should only be about 70 characters.) And then, to make matters worse, the short description was 190 characters when it should only be 150 characters. Thank God the post tags were the appropriate length.

Perhaps I’m spending a little too much time on the computer, enjoying a little too much of my own company. To test this theory, Cole and I are heading out to the Chicago Auto Show to mingle among other humans and flashy cars—and I am taking a deep breath and stepping away from my laptop. Of course, I will take my camera and my iPhone! I am a little distressed, but not crazy! Do you think I need my iPad?

I would love to hear about your morning…Odd Loves Company, and obviously I could use a little…

♥

P.S. I am starting a new “Great Idea” tomorrow. Those of you who know me STOP. You can run but you can NOT hide. . Nothing to buy, nothing to sponsor. Stop by Odd tomorrow and I will tell you all about it…..