Marked This Day

On this day in 1809, Boston put the kibosh on masquerade balls because they promoted free mingling and loose morals. And America in the 19th Century was not all about free mingling and loose morals. More like restricted, segregated mingling and stringent, tight morals. If limited mingling and strict morals are what you’re after then I understand the whole banning of masques. Have you seen Eyes Wide Shut ? I haven't but I'm pretty sure the basic premise was that things get freaky when masks are involved. Look at horror movies. The killer is usually wearing a mask. Not sure if stabbing people was what Boston was worried about back in 1809, but it would probably classify as “loose morals.” The whole current issue with people dressed in clown masks? Masks can make people a bit nutter. That anonymity can make people believe they can do whatever they please. Not to completely bag on masks. That liberation can be a good thing too. I can think of a few people who need a bit of a masque...

Next time you are feeling like you can’t do something, like life is hard, or there are too many obstacles standing in the way of your dreams remember Kitty O’ Neil. Kitty became deaf shortly after her birth. Didn’t stop her. She became a champion diver with Olympic hopes. Until spinal meningitis flared up. On top of that she had two bouts of cancer treatments to deal with. All before she turned 28. No crying. No moping. No woe is me. Instead, Kitty became a Hollywood stunt woman performing for a plethora of hit shows and popular movies. And on this day in 1976 she crushed the land-speed record for female drivers at the Alvord Desert in Oregon. Because people like Kitty O’ Neil are bad-asses. They don’t see problems as things that cannot be overcome. They see obstacles that make them work harder and get better. They live life full speed ahead, only looking in the rearview to see if anybody is gaining on them. This, of course, doesn’t mean that things come easy. Deaf. Spinal meningitis. ...

Most Americans understand how important the day of November 8th is in an election year. Tis when our country decides who shall lead us through the end of the decade. But being as our choices last year were, um, less than desirable, I have chosen to focus on another reason why November 8th is important. You see, on this day in 1789, Elijah Craig 1st distilled Bourbon Whiskey in Woodford County, Kentucky. Of course there are disputes as to whether this was the invention of Bourbon Whiskey or was only recorded as such. In any case, I don’t think I have to espouse the wonderments of bourbon whiskey. In fact, I’m guessing the vast majority of this country may be enjoying the virtues of bourbon whiskey at this very moment. Because bourbon whiskey is a good friend. It will help you celebrate, if say, you are extremely excited at the dunce-cap who was elected President. But Bourbon Whiskey isn’t just there for good times. No fair-weather friend is it. It will also commiserate, say, if you ar...

On this day in 2011, Saul Perlmutter, Brian P. Schmidt, and Adam Riess were awarded the Nobel Prize for Physics for determining that the rate of universal expansion was accelerating. They used super-duper fancy supernova called type Ia supernova to determine through sup-duper fancy science that the universe’s expansion was actually accelerating. It’s mind-numbing to actually think about. The universe is infinite. That in itself is a mind bender. Like no one can actually comprehend how big the universe is. But guess what? Not only is it infinite but it’s getting bigger. Bigger than infinite. Whaaaat? And then just to top it all off, to completely melt your mind, the infinite universe that is getting bigger is doing so faster as time goes by. Whhha-whaaaaat? That’s some Keyser Soze, end of Usual Suspects stuff right there. Of course, I sometimes get awed by watching a butterfly. It used to be a weird, slug-like bug, and it turned into a beautiful flying piece of art. So contemplating th...

On this day in 2004, Oprah Winfrey had her iconic “You get a car” show. Almost 300 cars she gave away. One of the cooler things anyone has ever done on television, and certainly one of the best days for those nearly 300 people who were lucky enough to be in Oprah’s audience that day. But I always wonder how the people who were at Oprah’s show on the 12th felt. How bad does that suck? I’m sure she gave them something pretty cool (though nobody seems to remember what). But then the next day everyone gets a Pontiac G6? It’s like that prank where you’re in line at the grocery store and someone asks to cut in front of you, and you oblige, and then he is the 1,000,000th customer and wins all kinds of cool stuff. Shows that life is all about timing. And sometimes timing is all about luck. You could be one of the lucky 276 who got a nice, new Pontiac. Or you could one of those who got whatever people got on September 12th. So as Baz Luhrmann says in “Everybody’s Free to Wear Sunscreen” based o...

This day in 1987 began the Harmonic Convergence, a campaign launched by Jose Arguelles to unleash peace and prosperity during the final 26 years of 5,125 year Mayan Great Cycle. There were sun dancers. And coordinated prayers. Meditation. And there is nothing inherently wrong with any of this. I love a good Sun Dancer as much as the next Joe. But I’ve always questioned looking to the Mayans for calendar advice. They were an undeniably a great civilization. They gave us many things. Temples. Human Sacrifice. Chocolate. Gold. Crystal Skulls. Skimpy loincloths that actors still use to be “movie naked.” You’re welcome Channing Tatum. And all of that stuff is great (you could talk me into thinking Human Sacrifice is not the most productive way to get things done, but I don’t judge). So yeah, the Mayans were great. But calendars? December 21, 2012 was the end of the Mayan calendar and the 1987 Harmonic Convergence was to “unlock the doors” to these finals years. But notice that I didn’t pu...

Jobs are pretty much like anything else in this life. There are pros. There are cons. Some more than others. Don’t think many people are lining up for septic tank disposal, but perhaps people’s bullshit seems less annoying when you deal with actual shit all day. Which brings me to Steven Slater and this day in 2010. Slater was a JetBlue flight attendant. Had been for 20 years. And Steven Slater was fed up with people’s bullshit. So much so that after being disrespected by a passenger (according to him) he went on a profanity-filled tirade over the intercom, quitting his job before grabbing two beers, deploying the emergency exit chute, and sliding into infamy. Pretty much the most epic “I quit” circumstance I can remember. Of course, he had to deal with all the legal matters. Apparently emergency chutes are quite pricey. But almost everybody has thought about doing the equivalent. Not saying Slater was right. It’s true that people can suck. And they can suck even more when dealing with...