DIANE'S CORNER ...

Celebrate Weed Appreciation Day

Image result for Weed Appreciation Day gif

Weeds are flowers too, once you get to know them.
A. A. Milne

Is there anything more aggravating then working in your garden and finding yet another sprouting of weeds after you thought you got them all? Seriously, weeds are just so incredibly annoying and you’re right to rip them out. Then afterwards you can sit on your porch and enjoy the dandelions that grow in your front yard, their bright yellow eyes turned to the sun. Weed Appreciation Day reminds you that those dandelions are weeds too, along with numerous other plants that you don’t mind growing in the yard.

report this ad

History of Weed Appreciation Day

Weed Appreciation Day was established to remind people that a weed is just a plant growing where you don’t want it to grow. Blackberries are fantastic when you find them growing wild in the forest, but are perhaps less desirable when you find them growing in the middle of your rhododendron bushes. That’s basically the details of what makes a weed a weed, and there are hundreds of ‘weeds’ that are incredibly important in health, science, and culinary uses. After all, dandelion wine isn’t just a pretty name!

There’s also chickweed, which believe it or not is actually quite tasty and packed with vitamins, but most people just rip them out and throw them in the compost bin or burn them. Chicory is often considered to be a weed as well, though it’s a pretty little plant with bright blue flowers, but it’s a hugely popular drink in the south, especially in Louisiana. Certainly it’s the roots, but still, weeds are weeds only if you don’t want them where you find them!

Weed Appreciation Day reminds you to get out there and really look at your yard, and find out if perhaps what you once thought of us as a weed, is actually a wonderful new surprise living in your lawn.

Bryanna (Bry) Marie was born in Tucson, Arizona and painting quickly became her most sought out passion. As time passed with her self-education, she eventually chose smaller painting surfaces to hone her eye for composition and color. Today, Bryanna pushes the boundaries of her works by focusing on the importance of traditional landscapes while proving that minute things can hold an abundance of wonder and beauty. Bryanna exclusively paints with oils on coins, preferably pennies. 

Word of the Day

mesmerize

Franz Anton Mesmer, Meersburg, Germany

MEANING:

verb tr.:
1. To spellbind.
2. To hypnotize.

ETYMOLOGY:

After physician Franz Anton Mesmer (1734-1815) who discovered a way of inducing hypnosis through what he called animal magnetism. Earliest documented use: 1829.

USAGE:

“[Luke Spiller] recalls being mesmerized by Pentecostal preachers, whose sermons would ‘have people shaking on the ground and jumping out of wheelchairs’.”
Paul Moody; Bristolian Rhapsody; The Guardian (London, UK); Mar 7, 2019.

Idiom of the Day

Chase your tail:

Meaning - Spending a lot of time and energy doing a lot of things but actually achieving too little.

Example - He's been chasing his tail all week collecting data but the report is still not ready

This Day in History

1797 - Nathaniel Briggs patented a washing machine.

1885 - The Salvation Army was officially organized in the U.S.

1898 - The U.S. Supreme Court ruled that a child born in the U.S. to Chinese immigrants was a U.S. citizen. This meant that they could not be deported under the Chinese Exclusion Act.

1910 - The first seaplane took off from water at Martinques, France. The pilot was Henri Fabre.

1917 - During World War I the Women’s Army Auxiliary Corps (WAAC) was founded.

1921 - U.S. President Warren Harding named William Howard Taft as chief justice of the United States Supreme Court.

1963 - Sonny Werblin announced that the New York Titans of the American Football League was changing its name to the New York Jets. (NFL)

1964 - Madame Tussaud's Wax Museum in London announced the Beatles would be cast in wax.

1967 - Raymond Burr starred in a TV movie titled "Ironside." The movie was later turned into a television series.

1970 - Crosby, Stills, Nash and Young's "Woodstock" was released.

1972 - Elvis Presley recorded "Burning Love." It would turn out to be his last major hit.

1974 - A streaker ran onto the set of "The Tonight Show starring Johnny Carson."

1979 - A major accident occurred at Pennsylvania's Three Mile Island nuclear power plant. A nuclear power reactor overheated and suffered a partial meltdown.

1986 - More than 6,000 radio stations of all format varieties played "We are the World" simultaneously at 10:15 a.m. EST.

1990 - Jesse Owens received the Congressional Gold Medal from U.S. President George H.W. Bush.

2002 - The National Museum of American History put a cornet that had belonged to Louis Armstrong on display.

DAILY SQU-EEK

If You Were Born Today, March 28

You are determined, independent, and possess a style you can truly call your own. Seemingly fearless, you find your own way in life and determinedly achieve what you set out to do. Your sincerity wins you respect, and your spontaneity and enthusiasm are infectious. You are a pioneer and your vision is big. Insecurities and worries are often well hidden. Famous people born today:

1868 Maxim Gorky [Alexei Maximovich Peshkov], Russian playwright and author (Mother and The Lower Depths), born in Nizhny Novgorod, Russia (d. 1936)

1935 Michael Parkinson, English broadcaster and talkshow host (Parkinson), born in Cudworth, West Riding

1970 Vince Vaughn, American actor (Swingers, Wedding Crashers), born in Minneapolis, Minnesota

1981 Julia Stiles, American actress (Bourne series, Save the Last Dance), born in NYC, New York

1986 Lady Gaga [Stefani Germanotta], American singer-songwriter and actress (Bad Romance, A Star is Born), born in NYC, New York

READERS INFO

1.

1969 -

Dwight D. Eisenhower died of congestive heart failure. Eisenhower had a distinguished military career and served as the 34th president of the United States from 1953 until 1961.

Eisenhower had a long history of military service, beginning with his graduation from West Point in 1915. During World War I, he served stateside training troops for combat. After the war, Eisenhower served on a variety of military assignments under several military generals including Fox Conner in the Panama Canal Zone and Douglas MacArthur in the Philippines. Between these assignments, Eisenhower attended the United States Army Command and General Staff College where he graduated first in his class in 1926.

After Pearl Harbor and the United States' entrance into World War II, he served at the War Department working on military plans for the Pacific and against Germany. Eisenhower played an important role in several key military operations during World War II including Operation Torch in North Africa, the invasion of Sicily and Operation Overlord on the beaches of Normandy. In December 1943, Eisenhower was named the supreme allied commander in Europe. He launched the Normandy beach invasion on June 6, 1944, which lasted until August. On Dec. 20, 1944, he was promoted to general of the Army, a rank equal to field marshal, which is used in many European countries. After the war, Eisenhower was appointed to be the military governor of the U.S. Occupation Zone in Allied-occupied Germany. In 1945, he took the position of chief of staff of the Army in Washington, D.C., and served in that role until 1948. Later, he served as president of Columbia University and, in 1951, as the first supreme commander of NATO forces in Europe.

On May 31, 1952, he retired from active military service. He then ran for president using the famous slogan "I like Ike," and was elected to two terms as president. During his presidency, Eisenhower authorized the Interstate Highway System and NASA, signed the armistice to end the Korean War, and he sent troops to Little Rock, Ark., to enforce school desegregation following the Supreme Court's decision in Brown v. Board of Education. Eisenhower created the official White House chief of staff position, and Camp David is named after his grandson. Eisenhower died at the age of 78 and was interred in a small chapel on the grounds of his presidential library in Abilene, Kan.

2.

VCU French Film Festival 2019

Mar 28-31, 2019 | Richmond, VA

The Byrd Theatre, 2908 W Cary St

The popularity of French cinema continues to flourish thanks to the VCU French Film Festival in Richmond, Virginia. The largest of its kind in the United States, the festival brings a potpourri of French-language feature films, shorts and documentaries to promote international cinema. The audience is treated to a Q&A session with the French filmmakers after watching their films; they can also attend a variety of masterclasses that each touch on a specific topic related to the speaker’s career.

further information: http://frenchfilmfestival.us/

3.

CelticFest Mississippi 2019

Mar 29-30, 2019 | Jackson, MS

Mississippi Agriculture & Forestry Museum

CelticFest Mississippi is the main outgrowth of the Celtic Heritage Society’s mission to promote awareness and appreciation of the Celtic nations music, dance, and culture in Mississippi and the region. It features Traditional Celtic performers, a Whisky Tasting, Highland Games Demonstrations, plenty of Vendors and the massive Céilí Mor Dance (pronounced ‘kay-lee’) on Saturday night with live music and tonnes of fun! Full of opportunities to participate and learn at one of the many free music, dance, or cultural workshops, as well as full access to the Ag Museum exhibits.

further information: March 29-30, 2019 – On the grounds of the MS Agriculture & Forestry Museum * Located at I-55 & Lakeland Drive

Pictures of the day

Lyriothemis acigastra is a species of dragonfly in the family Libellulidae, found in India. Until 2013 it was thought to be restricted to the northeastern states of Assam and West Bengal, but it has now also been recorded in the southern state of Kerala. It is a small dragonfly with brown-capped greenish-yellow eyes and a blackish-brown thorax marked with yellow. Laterally there are three stripes. Its wings are transparent, palely tinted with yellow at the base. The female is similar to the male but the abdomen cylindrical instead of tapered from base to end and reddish yellow instead of blood red.

JACKSONVILLE, FL.