♫Deck the Halls…Fa la la…♫

December 20, 2016 at 12:01 am | Posted in Today's Reasons To Celebrate | Leave a comment

Good morning carolers. Today is Tuesday, December 20th. The holidays today are:

Go Caroling Day

No one can pinpoint the origins of Christmas caroling, but the most accepted version seems to be that poor people would go door to door around the holidays singing Christmas songs to earn extra money to buy gifts for their children.
Regardless of how caroling got its start, it is still practiced as a way to warm the hearts and souls of people around the world at Christmastime. Though declining in popularity, caroling is still an important part of the holiday season.
There is even a Guinness World Record for the largest group of Christmas carolers going door to door. On December 12, 2012, a group called “One Voice,” representing the Unitarian Church in Westport, CT established the record when 502 of their members organized an event to benefit local charities. Since there was no previous category for caroling door to door, Guinness had to establish a few criteria which had to be met.

1) There had to be at least 250 participants.

2) A minimum of 10 houses had to be visited.

3) At least 4 different streets had to be part of the route.

4) A 5-minute time limit was allowed between houses.

5) All carolers had to be in place before the caroling could begin.

Another interesting factoid. The record for most Christmas carolers assembled in one place was set at an event organized on December 25, 2010, in South Korea by the Hong Myung-bo Foundation during a charity soccer match. During halftime, 15111 people sang 8 different carols for 15-minutes.
However, you needn’t go to such elaborate lengths to celebrate this holiday. Simply join a group of carolers, or organize your own group, and go caroling tonight. If you don’t want to “brave the elements,” just sing a few carols with your family tonight at home.

Mudd Day

This holiday remembers Dr. Samuel A. Mudd, who was sentenced to life imprisonment for unknowingly giving medical aid to a disguised John Wilkes Booth – the fleeing assassin of Abraham Lincoln. Dr. Mudd was imprisoned four years before being pardoned by President Andrew Johnson. Dr. Mudd was born on this date in 1833 and died on January 10, 1883.

Dot Your I’s Day

The old idiom, “Dot your I’s and cross your T’s” means that you should pay attention to details. With that in mind, Dot Your I’s Day urges us to pay attention to the “small stuff” during this hectic Holiday season. Don’t let the hustle-bustle distract you from the things you need to attend to on a daily basis – like housework and caring for your family. It’s the little things in life that matter the most.

Cathode-Ray Tube Day

Before Plasma TV’s and LCD’s, there were cathode-ray tubes, and where would we be without them? There would be no “old school” computer monitors, video monitors, or even televisions.
Cathode-Ray Tube Day is set aside to honor those pioneers who created cathode-ray tubes and paved the way for the technology we take for granted today.

National Sangria Day

There are thousands of different variations of sangria that combine wine such ingredients as sliced fruit, juice, or carbonated soda, and sometimes honey, sugar, and other alcohols. Each combination changes the flavor, alcohol content, and carbonation of the sangria. Sangria aficionados agree that it is best to use fruits that are in season and at the peak of flavor.
Sangria is a beverage made with wine and sweetened with fresh fruit and fruit juices. Once mixed, sangria should be chilled and the fruits allowed to marinate a few hours or overnight. Sangria made with white wine is called Sangria Blanca.
Since the combinations of fruit and wine are endless, this fruity punch is quite versatile. Sangria has a place at in the cocktail rotation year round. Refreshing and light during hot summer months, bright and sparkling during the winter.
To celebrate National Sangria Day, make a batch of this refreshing, fruity adult beverage. Be creative and make your own version of this refreshing treat.
Interesting factoids:

1. At one point, it was illegal to serve sangria in the state of Virginia. It violated an obscure 75-year-old law that did not allow the mixing of wine or beer with spirits. Violators of this law could be charged with a misdemeanor, a hefty fine, and up to a year in jail. It was not until 2008 that the Virginia General Assembly finally legalized the serving of sangria.
2. The word sangria is derived from the Spanish word sangre, (meaning blood) due to its dark red color.
3. Sangria was created because the Roman conquerors of Spain thought that the water there was impure and thought that mixing it with wine would kill the bacteria.

Games Day

International Human Solidarity Day

Sacagawea Day

 On this date in

• 1606 – The ships “Susan Constant,” “Godspeed” and “Discovery” set sail from London. Their landing at Jamestown, VA, was the start of the first permanent English settlement in America.
• 1699 – Peter the Great ordered that the Russian New Year be changed from September 1 to January 1.
• 1790 – The first successful cotton mill in the United States began operating at Pawtucket, RI.
• 1803 – The United States Senate ratified a treaty that included purchasing the Louisiana Territories from France for $15 million. The transfer was completed with formal ceremonies in New Orleans.
• 1820 – The state of Missouri enacted legislation to tax bachelors between the ages of 21-50 for being unmarried. The tax was $1 a year.
• 1860 – South Carolina became the first state to secede from the American Union.
• 1864 – Confederate forces evacuated Savannah, GA as Union Gen. William T. Sherman continued his “March to the Sea.”
• 1879 – Thomas A. Edison privately demonstrated his incandescent light at Menlo Park, NJ.
• 1892 – Alexander T. Brown and George Stillman patented the pneumatic tire.
• 1928 – Mail delivery by dog sled began in Lewiston, ME.
• 1946 – The Frank Capra film “It’s A Wonderful Life” had a preview showing for charity at New York City’s Globe Theatre, a day before its “official” world premiere. James Stewart and Donna Reed star in the film.
• 1946 – In Indochina (Vietnam), full-scale guerrilla warfare between Vietnam partisans and French troops began.
• 1954 – Buick Motor Company signed Jackie Gleason to one of the largest contracts ever entered into with an entertainer. Gleason agreed to produce 78 half-hour shows over a two-year period for $6,142,500.
• 1963 – The Berlin Wall was opened for the first time to West Berliners. It was only for the holiday season. It closed again on January 6, 1964.
• 1987 – More than 3,000 people were killed when the Dona Paz, a Philippine passenger ship, collided with the tanker Vector off Mindoro island, setting off a double explosion.
• 1989 – General Noriega, Panama’s former dictator, was overthrown by a United States invasion force invited by the new civilian government. The project was known as Operation Just Cause.
• 1994 – Marcelino Corniel, a homeless man, was shot and mortally wounded by White House security officers. He had brandished a knife near the executive mansion.
• 1995 – An American Airlines Boeing 757 en route to Cali, Colombia, crashed into a mountain, killing all but four of the 163 people aboard.
• 1999 – The Vermont Supreme Court ruled that homosexual couples were entitled to the same benefits and protections as wedded couples of the opposite sex.
• 1999 – Sovereignty over the colony of Macao was transferred from Portugal to China.
• 2001 – Congress passed a $20 billion package to finance the war against terrorism taking place in Afghanistan.
• 2001 – The first British peacekeepers arrived in Afghanistan to help the nation heal after decades of war.

Noteworthy Birthdays

• Harvey Firestone 1868 – Entrepreneur. (Firestone Tire & Rubber Co.)
• Walter Adams 1876 – Astronomer.
• Branch Rickey 1881 – Baseball executive.
• Susanne Langer 1895 – Philosopher.
• Gabby Harnett  1900 – Baseball catcher, coach, manager.
• Irene Dunne 1901 – Actress, singer.
• Max Lerner 1902 – Columnist, journalist, educator.
• Sidney Hook 1902 – Philosopher.
• Audrey Totter 1918 – Actress.
• George Roy Hill 1922 – Director.
• James Leasor 1923 – Author.
• David Levine 1926 – Artist, illustrator.
• John Hillerman 1932 – Actor.
• Kim Weston 1939 – Singer.
• Bob Hayes 1942 – Olympic sprinter, football wide receiver.
• Angel Tompkins 1943 – Actress.
• Bobby Colomby 1944 – Musician.  (Blood, Sweat & Tears)
• Peter Criss 1945 – Musician. (KISS)
• Uri Geller 1946 – Illusionist, psychic.
• John Spencer 1946 – Actor.
• Oscar Gamble 1949 – Baseball outfielder.
• Cecil Cooper 1949 – Baseball first baseman.
• Jenny Agutter 1952 – Actress.
• Michael Badalucco 1954 – Actor.
• Blanche Baker 1956 – Actress.
• Chris Robinson 1966 – Musician.  (The Black Crowes)