How ’bout this for a whiz-gidget:   In 1877,  the catcher for Harvard’s baseball team, James Tyng (pronounce TING), wore a modified fencing mask behind home plate. It is believed to be the first time a catcher’s mask was used during a game.  I, as a former fast pitch catcher, can say that I am honestly grateful to Jimmy Tyng for thinking this one up.

While in college I had to read The Catcher in the Rye.  And boy, oh boy, do I ever love rye bread.  Needless to say,  I was also crazy about softball…. but I’m not sure what catching has to do with any kind of bread.

I went to Butler University.  They are the bulldogs…. that makes me a bulldog.  Incidentally, bulldogs will eat any kind of bread. Some will even play catch.   But back to the point of all of this…..

J. D. Salinger wrote The Catcher in the Rye.  Salinger’s Dad sold Kosher Cheese in New York.  I love Kosher Cheese on Rye Bread in New York.  I had it on a Tuesday, much like today.  J.D.  also wrote an acclaimed series of short stories, one of which was entitled The Blue Melody of Officer Tinger.  In Ice Hockey, a “tinger” is a shot that hits off the cross bar of the goal, and makes a “ting” noise.  I have never played ice hockey…. but the “Ting” thing brings us right back to James Tyng…. the fencing mask dude at Harvard.

He went on to play for the Boston Red Caps and the Philadelphia Quakers.  Wasn’t much of a pro ball player… a couple of games in 1879, and then a four-inning appearance in 1888.   He did, however, make a fortune inventing “Party Rye Bread” the kind that is perfect for Kosher Cheeses.

But, back to the point of all of this:  There is absolutely no point to any of this.

“All philosophies, if you ride them home, are nonsense, but some are greater nonsense than others.”  -Samuel Butler

===================================
James Tyng’s Philadelphia Quakers Baseball Card (he’s listed as a pitcher….. not a catcher…. see?  He invented the mask and then didn’t even get to use one in the show…..)

Tomorrow marks the 150th Anniversary of the start of the American Civil War.  The first shots were fired at Fort Sumter, which is just out in the waters off Charleston, South Carolina’s shores.  It is a pretty dang big deal in these parts….. this “Observance” of these events.  People have come from all over the world for this.

In remembrance of the “Official” commencement, there is a ceremony tomorrow morning, down at the Battery, beginning at 4:30 a.m.  That’s right down the street a couple of blocks from here.

South Carolina was the first state to secede.  People in these parts have lots of stories.  Some of our “neighbors” have cannon balls and the like, still lodged in their attics from this war that occurred  a century and a half ago.  For real.

But here is the deal.  About 620,000 Americans died in the Civil War.  Cities were destroyed.  Charleston was one, of many, that suffered heavily.

Tonight we went to a lecture on the causes of the war.  If I will remember ONE thing from the speakers tonight, it is this…..

“We act based on our experiences…….  That is why history is important.”

If only we could learn the right lessons.

Kaboodles of things happened on this date in history.  But, one of the snap-happiest is this…….  On April 10th, in 1866, the American Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals was incorporated.   How about them whiskers?

So tonight, I would like to visit “The Story of a Fabulous Feline”….

He was born a common farm cat…..  his cat mom named him “Beautiful Boy”…..  BeauBo for short.  At a young age, with hope in his heart, BeauBo packed his bags, moved off the chicken farm and ventured to the big city… where he found a nice lady named Annabel.  They became amazing pals.   She changed his name to Felix.  Felix the Great.

Annabel passed away a few years later and Felix came to live with us.  A promise was made to Annabel, that we would be good stewards for her kitty-pal, and provide a safe a loving home.  So we did.

But it turns out Felix is deathly afraid of dogs (except for George-Butchie…. his stuffed bulldog toy).  As it happens…. we have dogs (which are my constant companions and amazing pals).  For two years, Mr. BeauBo-Felix has had a “sanctuary area” in our home…. but not much human-interaction because of the dog-presence.  Definitely not as much human attention as he needs and deserves.

It seems……. the Cat Gods were looking out for the boy….or a Cat Angel…. and now, Felix has found a new Mom.  Her name is Sharon.  Sharon the Great.  Felix and Sharon have become amazing pals and fast friends.  And for the first time since Annabel died, Felix is happy.  He’s even on a diet….. and has his own screened in porch!  Purrrrrfect.

He calls his new home Purrsia.  He says his new Mom is Pawsome!

Not “The End”….. but……..  “The Beginning”  …..and there you have it.

The most beautiful thing we can experience is the mysterious. It is the source of all true art and all science. He to whom this emotion is a stranger, who can no longer pause to wonder and stand rapt in awe, is as good as dead: his eyes are closed. – Albert Einstein

Today was a profoundly happy day, and also a profoundly sad day.  Well….. “profoundly” is a bit on the strong-worded side.  Maybe “uncommonly” would be better.  Mulligan.

Today was an uncommonly happy day, and also an uncommonly sad day.  Better.

First the happy.  For the first time in my entire life…. in all 29 years………….
………………..  ………………………….. OK.  “Twenty-Nine” is a bit on the strong-worded side.  Let’s just say I’ve been around the block a few times.

Back to it.  The happy part.  For the first time in all my days of blue-yondering, a young man showed up at my door with a paper bag filled with piping hot Chinese Food.  Yes, RIGHT to my door.  Delivered.  A miracle, I think.  What a concept.  A container of ‘Happy Family’, ‘Steamed Rice’, ‘Spring Rolls’, and more…. right on my stoop.  As one of the oldest and most prolific men in history once proclaimed:  “Yabba Dabba DOO!!!”  This was Christmas-Morning good.  I did a little happy-dance in the foyer!  I kissed the dog.  Chinese Food delivered to the house…Call it what you will,  but I say it is sensational and marvelous…. yes, phenomenal.  Somewhat mind-boggling, and yet totally, out of this world.  Much bigger than the “World’s Largest Ball of Yarn” in Cawker, Kansas.

This will happen again, that much I will tell right here and now.  I mean…. we EVEN got Chopsticks (which I put up my nose and acted like a Walrus.  That’s what a Crazy-Good night this was…..)

Now…. to the sad.  Sit down.  Please.

Charles M. Fenaoui un-friended me on Facebook.  I am not sure when it happened, but I just found out today.  Remember Chuck?  I discovered his name badge on the street corner, all-miseralby-abandoned.  So, of course,  I was worried sick about him… and then I was lucky enough to FIND him on Facebook.  From there, I asked him to be my friend, and he “friended” me right there on the spot.  Be that as it may….. somehow, our relationship has dwindled over time. Soured.  Maybe we no longer had the same interests…… or maybe it was because I was “poking” him too often…. or that I have WAY more BFF’s than he ….. or, I don’t play Farmville, and Charles does….relentlessly.  Or, perhaps, we just fell out of “Facebook Friendship”…. but whatever the reason…. HE ended it.  Yeah……. I told you to sit down. So there it is.  Out in the open.  Everyone knows….  and I cried.  I cried right in the foyer.  I did little a sad-shuffle.  I kissed the dog.
The highest mountain…. and the valley…. so very low.

As I write this installment of 368… it is April the 7th.  A cool date.  4+7=11  That’s a good one in that number-crunching-brain of mine….  This marks the birth date of a really special person I knew… who went on to have a wonderful child…  and I am thankful for both of them.  Happy Birthday AF.

Today is also the birthday of Will Keith Kellogg.  He was the  American cereal manufacturer and  was born way back in 1860.  As a very young boy, Will knew he had a strong dislike for eggs and bacon.  He grew up on a chicken farm in Battle Creek, Michigan.  A rooster pecked him violently when he was five years old.

So young will went on to promote cereals, especially corn flakes, as a healthy breakfast food. He started the Sanitas Food Company around 1897, focusing on whole grains… specifically… the Toasted Corn Flake. (Sanita, by the way, it the Portuguese word for toilet.  He had wet his pants when the rooster attacked him….  seriously.)

But back to the cereal thriller: At the time, the standard breakfast for the “rich” and well-to-do, was eggs and meat…… and the poor ate porridge, farina, gruel and other boiled grains.  While many of you may not be able to resist a hot bowl of gruel…. ol’ Willy got the nillies about THAT too.  So it all started with the Kellog’s Corn Flake!  Ironically enough, Will wanted to use the iconic rooster head on the box as a reminder of his grass roots.  And so it goes.  Toilets and Rooster-Heads.

Since that time there have been a boat-load of Kellogg’s Cereals on the market, some of which include Apple Jacks, Raisin Bran, Honey Loops, Corn Pops, Coco Pops, Mini-Wheats, Rice Krispies….. and of course… my favorite…… Special K.

Some that didn’t work out were….Moonie Slivers, Powerpuff Girls, Mr. T’s Muscle Crunch, C3PO’s and Concentrate.  Seriously.

I, for one, eat more “gruel-type” food than I’d like to admit.  Bowls and bowls of it.  I am a fan of white-pasty foods.  Eggs and bacon too.  I’ve never been pecked by a chicken though.  Or a pig, for that matter.  Cock-A-Doodle-Do.  They’re great.

Tub and Lerky had set out on their big adventure.  Yes, yes.  Off they were….. to find the  Ends of the Earth.   Their knapsack filled with ginger ale, nutter-butter peanut butter cookies, and sardines.   But back to the beginning.   It had all started when they overheard Humphrey Bogart whistle through his teethy snare… “I will follow you to the ends of the earth Rose.”  Maybe it was his hat.   Or it could have been the trench coat.  But neither Tub nor Lerky could ignore the challenge that this particular statement had proposed. They both knew they really had to quit staying up late and watching The Movie Channel.  But the duo had taken his words to heart… and now…. and NOW…. THIS.

To the ends of the earth.  It has sounded like such a good idea.  Even the curbside Prophet had hollered something at them on Tuesday, as they ate their hamburgers and donuts outside Spiggly’s Cafe.  Tub liked extra pickles.  A lot.  But that is neither here nor there.  Yes, that Soap-Box Oracle had yammered something about the “ends of the earth”, or the ends of the world… something along those lines, they thought.  And then……..Bogie.

But now they faced peril.   Too, too, far away from home, and Tub had eaten the breadcrumb trail as they went.  This was big trouble indeed.  Pumpernickel would have been much  better, but Lerky brought whole grain crumbs instead.  The whole grains were working on little Tub… and now he HAD to go.  Curses, how he had to go.  And we are not talking number one.

And… and….. and…. wouldn’t you know it!  There’s never a john around when you need one.  Except for my cousin John.  He is the kind of guy you can always count on to be around when you need him….  But back to the story….  there they were.   In search of a different kind of john….  And to make things worse…. Lerky was starting to miss Scarlett, their pet bulldog.

On their way to the ends of the earth. They only hoped there’d be a White Castle there.  The kind with sliders.  And extra pickles.  Yes, a big White Castle…..

But first, they had to figure a way to get out of this pickle.  (….to be continued……..  )

---

irritable |ˈiritəbəl|
adjective
having or showing a tendency to be easily annoyed or made angry : she was tired and irritable.

---

I really don’t like it when I am irritable.  But, from time to time, it happens.  Call it what you will……short-tempered, tetchy, testy, touchy, grumpy, grouchy, moody, crotchety,  cantankerous,  curmudgeonly, ill-tempered, annoyed, cross, peevish, pettish, crabby, bitchy, waspish, prickly, on a short fuse, or even sore-headed.  Crankster.

Sometimes I can be a REAL fuss-budget.  I am truly sorry for those times.

So……..Today I have a proposal for everyone.  I think it will be kinda’ cool…. especially if I have your help.

Here’s my proposition:  Be compassionate once today…. just once… to someone you normally wouldn’t have had the time or patience for.

A slow waitress.  The blue-haired driver that just pulled out in front of you.  The person who let their dog poop on your lawn.  Or perhaps someone who is hungry, or lonely… or down on their luck.  Or someone you just don’t care for, period.  Maybe just cut that person a little break today, somehow.  Let’s call it ……… “Long-Distance-Tag-Kindness”

If you can remember to do it today, and we all do it…. well……….. collectively we’ve made the world a slightly better place.      Just once.

.

.

Tag.  We’re IT!

Low tide came in at 3:14 p.m. here today.   I think I prefer low tide to high tide…. and I’m not quite sure why.  Maybe I feel sorry for low tide, somehow.  But the times of the tide change every day.   For instance, on April 4th….say…. 1964…… the low tide came in at 6:44 p.m.  Seriously.

So, what’s my point?  Wellllllll…it IS that sometimes I can’t holy-crapping believe WE can FIND these kind of whiz-digits and jim-jams on the internet.  Just like magic.

I mean, this is the perfect example of the masses of information which is available right at our very finger tips, in our current place in society and time.  It is Hallelujah-AMAZING to me…..it’s… it’s…..  better than a little puppy on Christmas morning.

Okay, not that good…. but good.

Like finding out… Mrs. Butterworth Syrup came around on February 18, 1969.  She looks much older than that to me.

Beethoven was Catholic.  Understood Latin.  Who knew?  He probably died from accidental lead poisoning by his very own physician.  He was only 57.

Wilma Flintstone’s maiden name was Wilma Slaghoopal, and Betty Rubble’s Maiden name was Betty Jean Mcbricker.  I like the name Mcbricker.  (McDonald’s could come up with a new sandwich maybe.  The “McBricker”)

Virgina Woolf wrote all her books standing.  Strong legged woman, I’ll tell you that much right now.  All brains and gams. (And I am afraid of her.)

There are 293 ways to make change for a dollar.  I can only come up with 291……dang it.

The ground wire in electrical circuitry is typically green.  Obviously, filled with envy of the hot wire and the neutral wire…. but who wouldn’t be?

Yep. Low tide came in at 3:14 p.m. today….. just like magic.

I thought I would post some of my favorite, and most profound “sayings” that I’ve come across.  Here are a few….  (Some I know the authors, some I do not.)  But, they are thought provoking… and they are good for me to live by.

“Whatever you do, do it as totally as possible” – Osho

“If you understand, things are just as they are; if you do not understand, things are just as they are.” – Zen Proverb

“Don’t cry because it is over.  Smile because it happened.” – Dr. Seuss

“We are all in the gutter.  But some of us are looking at the stars.”

“To live a creative life, we must lose our fear of being wrong.”

“To laugh often and much; to win the respect of intelligent people and the affection of children…to leave the world a better place…to know even one life has breathed easier because you have lived. This is to have succeeded.” – Ralph Waldo Emerson

“I’m only driving this fast.. because I have to poop.”