“It is what you read when you don’t have to that determines what you will be when you can’t help it.”
― Oscar Wilde
Remember when the kids went away for college and then moved on with their lives, never to return again? Well not any more! With the unbelievably high cost of life these days, more and more of our big “little ones” are returning to the “empty nest.” And sometimes with a significant other too! So today’s the day to bring awareness to this phenomenon, as well as to offer support for those suffering parents. Today is Crowded Nest Awareness Day. Crowded Nest Awareness Day recognizes the condition of Crowded Nest Syndrome (affectionately referred to as CNS by many blogs and web articles) where you have children who have moved out of the house and you’ve gone through Empty Nest Syndrome only to have your children (and possibly their children) come back home again and/or having your parents or in-laws move in with you so you can care for them. The best Crowded Nest Awareness Day gift people can give each other is personal space. Parents and adult children need the privacy to think to think their own thoughts and the freedom to look at the world from their own points of view, even while surrounded by all the people they love.
On June 12, 1967, the United States Supreme Court in Loving v. Virginia declared all U.S. state laws which prohibit interracial marriage to be unconstitutional. Loving Day is an annual celebration held on June 12, the anniversary of the decision which struck down all anti-miscegenation laws remaining in sixteen U.S. states citing “There can be no doubt that restricting the freedom to marry solely because of racial classifications violates the central meaning of the equal protection clause.” Loving Day is not yet an official recognized holiday by the U.S. government, but there is a movement to persuade U.S. President Barack Obama to make it as such. The “Loving” side of the U.S. Supreme Court case consisted of Mildred and Richard Loving. They first met when she was 11 and he was 17. He was a family friend and over the years they started courting. After she became pregnant, they got married in Washington in 1958, when she was 18. Reportedly, Mildred didn’t realize interracial marriage was illegal, and they were arrested a few weeks after they returned to their hometown north of Richmond. They pleaded guilty to charges of “cohabiting as man and wife, against the peace and dignity of the Commonwealth,” and avoided jail time by agreeing to leave Virginia. They moved to Washington, D.C. and began legal action by writing to Attorney General Robert F. Kennedy. Kennedy referred the case to the American Civil Liberties Union. After the Warren Court unanimously ruled in favor of the young couple, they returned to Virginia, where they lived with their three children. Mildred Loving died May 5, 2008 at the age of 68. Richard Loving died about thirty-three years earlier in a car accident. Each June 12, the anniversary of the ruling, Loving Day events around the country mark the advances of mixed-race couples. Many organizations sponsor annual parties across the country, with Lovingday.org providing an online legal map, courtroom history of anti-miscegenation laws, as well as offering testimonials by and resources for interracial couples.
Red Rose Day is a time to enjoy and appreciate America’s favorite flower…..the red rose. A red rose signifies love. A June setting for Red Rose Day is very appropriate, as this is by far the most popular month for weddings. And, they are in bloom in the gardens across America this month. In addition to being the most popular cut flower, roses are also the most popular flower in flower beds and around foundation of houses, garages and sheds. They are easy to grow, producing a bounty of sweet scented flowers from June up to the first frost.
The World Day Against Child Labour is an International Labour Organization–sanctioned holiday for the purpose of raising awareness and activism to prevent child labour in both economic and military fields. It is currently held each June 12. The ILO created this observance in 2002 and it has been held annually since then.
Peanut Butter has been a household favorite for generations since the early 1900s and current estimates say 90 percent of American households have a jar of peanut butter on their pantry shelves. Today is Peanut Butter Cookie Day. Peanut butter cookies became a popular treat sometime in the early 1900s. The first recipe is actually found in George Washington Carver’s cookbook. His cookie recipe calls for cutting peanuts into chunks and placing them in the cookie batter instead of using peanut butter. The peanut butter cookie we are used to having on a regular basis became popular in kitchens around America in the 1930s. These cookies were served rolled out and cut into shapes. Today you can find several different variations of peanut butter cookies. In the 1890s peanut butter was originally touted as an alternative to cow’s butter, by none other than vegetarian Harvey Kellogg (yes, the cereal guy). By the 1900s the creamy mixture found its way into salads and main courses at restaurants, and sandwiches made at home according to “The Oxford Companion to American Food and Drink.” By the 1930s peanut butter also found its way into desserts, prior to this, whole nuts were reserved as toppings.
June 12, 2012 marked the inaugural National Jerky Day, celebrating the rich history, immense popularity and nutritional benefits of dried meat snacks. The fourth highest-grossing sector within the overall salty snack universe, meat snacks — including jerky — outsell other popular salty snacks, including popcorn and pretzels. Jerky is naturally packed with protein and will help to keep you satiated between meals. It is low in fat, calories, and carbs, according to the marketing director at Jack Link’s®, the No. 1 U.S. meat snack brand. Jerky has a proud heritage. In the U.S., the practice of drying meat dates back to the Native Americans and earliest European settlers who sought highly portable, satiating foods that required no refrigeration. Beef jerky is the most commonly know type, but there are more than 100 varities made from cuts of beef, turkey, chicken, and pork available.
The Baseball Hall of Fame opened on June 12, 1939, in Cooperstown, New York. Exactly a century before that Baseball itself was invented.
Anne Frank was born June 12, 1929. On her thirteenth birthday in 1942 she received a diary.
It was on this day in 1994 when Nicole Brown Simpson and Ronald Goldman were murdered outside her home in Los Angeles, California. This led to “the trial of the century” in which O.J. Simpson was eventually acquitted of the killings, but was held liable in a wrongful death civil suit.
Some of the writers born June 12th include:
Harriet Martineau (1802), Charles Kingsley (1819), Johanna Spyri (1827), Oliver Lodge (1851), Harry Hamilton Johnston (1858), Djuna Barnes (1892), Sandro Penna (1906), Bill Naughton (1910), Luis García Berlanga (1921), Christopher Derrick (1921), James Archibald Houston (1921), Margherita Hack (1922), Jaime Montestrela (1925), Brigid Brophy (1929), Anne Frank (1929), Jameel Jalibi (1929), Rona Jaffe (1931), Trevanian (1931), Roy Harper (1941), Tess Gerritsen (1953), Jim Goad (1961), Paul Clark (1962), Kent Jones (1964), Icíar Bollaín (1967), Arman Alizad (1971), Finesse Mitchell (1972), Richard Ayoade (1977), Shiloh Strong (1978), Ben Blackwell (1982), Diem Brown (1982), and Kendra Wilkinson (1985).
Also celebrating a birthday today is George H.W. Bush. The 41st President of the United States turns 89 today. George Herbert Walker Bush served as the 43rd Vice President of the United States just before his term as President. He was a congressman, an ambassador and Director of Central Intelligence. Enlisted in the U.S. Navy on his 18th birthday, and became the youngest aviator in the U.S. Navy at the time. After graduating from Yale University in 1948, he moved his family to West Texas and entered the oil business, becoming a millionaire by the age of 40. He became involved in politics soon after founding his own oil company, serving as a member of the House of Representatives, among other positions. He ran unsuccessfully for president of the United States in 1980, but was chosen by party nominee Ronald Reagan to be the vice presidential nominee, and the two were subsequently elected. He launched a successful campaign in 1988 to succeed Reagan as President. Foreign policy drove the Bush presidency; military operations were conducted in Panama and the Persian Gulf at a time of world change; the Berlin Wall fell in 1989 and the Soviet Union dissolved two years later. Domestically, Bush reneged on a 1988 campaign promise and after a struggle with Congress, signed an increase in taxes that Congress had passed. Bush is the father of George W. Bush, the 43rd President of the United States, and Jeb Bush, former Governor of Florida. Until the election of his son George W. Bush to the presidency in 2000, Bush was commonly referred to simply as “George Bush”; since that time, the forms “George H. W. Bush”, “Bush 41”, “Bush the Elder”, and “George Bush, Sr.” have come into common use as a way to distinguish the father from the son. Bush the Elder’s marriage to Barbara Pierece has produced six children: George Walker Bush (born 1946), Pauline Robinson Bush (“Robin”, 1949–1953, died of leukemia), John Ellis “Jeb” Bush (born 1953), Neil Mallon Bush (born 1955), Marvin Pierce Bush (born 1956), and Dorothy Bush Koch (born 1959). As Vice President, Bush generally took on a low profile while recognizing the constitutional limits of the office; he avoided decision-making or criticizing Reagan in any way. As had become customary, he and his wife moved into the Vice President’s residence at Number One Observatory Circle, about two miles from the White House. Bush became the first Vice President to serve as Acting President when, on July 13, 1985, Reagan underwent surgery to remove polyps from his colon making Bush Acting President for approximately eight hours. Bush became the first serving Vice President to be elected President since Martin Van Buren in 1836 as well as the first person to succeed someone from his own party to the Presidency via election to the office in his own right since Herbert Hoover in 1929. Bush signed a number of major laws in his presidency, including the Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990; this was one of the most pro-civil rights bills in decades. However, he is also the only President to successfully veto a civil rights act, having vetoed the job-discrimination protection Civil Rights Act of 1990. He worked to increase federal spending for education, childcare, and advanced technology research. In dealing with the environment, Bush reauthorized the Clean Air Act, requiring cleaner burning fuels. President Bush devoted attention to voluntary service as a means of solving some of America’s most serious social problems. He often used the “thousand points of light” theme to describe the power of citizens to solve community problems. In 1990, the Points of Light Foundation was created as a nonprofit organization in Washington to promote this spirit of volunteerism. In 2007, the Points of Light Foundation merged with the Hands On Network with the goal of strengthening volunteerism, streamlining costs and services and deepening impact. On January 10, 1999, the Bushes became the longest-married Presidential couple in history, outlasting John and Abigail Adams, who were married for 54 years and 3 days. At 68 years as of January 2013, they still hold the record, by a year and a half, over Jimmy and Rosalynn Carter. Bush suffers from a form of Parkinson’s disease which has forced him to use a motorized scooter or wheelchair to get around, since at least 2012.
From today until next Wednesday we are lowing the price of the hardcover book Today in History by DK Publishing. This book is based on the highly successful “This Week in History” television series from the History Channel. It offers a day-by-day account of the most significant events in world history, entertainment, industry, technology, and more. This 700 page book is easy to use and full of fascinating details. Fans of this blog should enjoy this book immensely.
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