Happy Mother's Day to my Mom, who has been my biggest champion (and caregiver) throughout this ordeal. And she's a breast cancer survivor herself!
May 13, 2012
November 05, 2010
November 5th
November 5th has always been a big day in my family, because it marks my parents' wedding anniversary. They tied the knot on November 5, 1955, which means today is their 55th. How amazing is that?!
(Incidentally, November 5, 1955 is also the day that Marty McFly went back to in Back to the Future.)
But November 5th has additional historical significance, as I learned recently in a Boston Public Library newsletter: it marks the date of a major holiday formerly celebrated in Boston, Pope Night.
In the years prior to the American Revolution, this day was traditionally marked by political upheaval. Young men carrying "giant effigies of the Devil, the Pope, and current political scapegoats" paraded through the streets, harrassing passersby. At nightfall rival gangs from the North and South Ends brawled in the streets. It was the New World version of Guy Fawkes Day in Britain, which celebrated the November 5th anniversary of an attempted plot by Catholic conspirators to overthrow the Protestant King James.
According to historians,
"Part of the appeal of “Pope-Night” in New England, with its strict Puritan traditions, was that it allowed youths to go wild for one day—to make noise, demand money, and have a feast of their own. They could get away with that behavior on the 5th of November because it was patriotic disorder, aimed at the enemies of their country and religion."
Pope Night became an occasion to protest Crown officials, the epitome of the political movement that eventually led to the American Revolution (after which, the tradition died away).
So, whether you are celebrating an Anniversary, a moment in SciFi history, or your own political convictions, Happy November 5th.
June 21, 2009
Happy Father's Day
...to my dear old Dad...
...fishing as a teen:
...playing baseball (September, 1952):
...and in the Navy (oops) Air Force:
May 10, 2009
Happy Mother's Day
Happy Mother's Day to my Mom (pictured here on her wedding day nearly 54 years ago with her mom)... and to all the other moms out there!
November 27, 2008
Happy Thanksgiving
I've had an inordinate amount of traffic to this post from 2 years ago, so I thought I'd repost the picture again today.
Happy Thanksgiving!
May 06, 2006
Happy Birthday
Happy Birthday to my Dad, who is celebrating today.
April 17, 2006
January 30, 2006
Birthday Greetings
Happy Birthday to my brother, Shawn!
December 14, 2005
December 13, 2005
Bulldog Love
Our friends over at VivyLand have created a 4-minute long Flash video called, "Why I love my bulldog" that is just adorable...especially because it has tons of pictures of our own Howie throughout!
VivyLand is the brainchild of Jan Oswald, a still-life photographer that acquired her own lovable bully (Vivy) in 1994. Vivy soon became the subject of Jan's photos, and thus began her quest to "capture the unique character and personality of the bulldog breed as expressed through Vivy." Today, Jan runs a popular website on which many of her Vivy images are available for sale - in the form of greeting cards, books, t-shirts and more. The site also has a wealth of information on the breed, and a link to Jan's bulldog blog.
Jan recently sent out an appeal to all of the bulldog-lovers that subscribe to her email list, asking what we love about our bulldogs. The resulting images and words were then compiled in this video. Check it out (the "slower processor" version works just fine if you're having trouble) and see Howie at the airport the day we brought him home, asleep on the couch, sunning his rear-end up against the window, and playing outdoors - plus tons of other great photos and comments from other bully owners.
Thank you for this wonderful video, Jan!
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