Sewing Machine Day
Sewing Machine Day celebrates a very important invention —– the sewing machine. The first sewing machines were made in France in the 1830s. It wasn’t until 1846, that they were patented in the U.S. What a great invention. Prior to it’s creation, clothes items were sewn together by hand…stitch by stitch.
People who know how to use a sewing machine are dwindling in number. Our mothers and grandmothers had a sewing machine in the house. They used it, too. But, look around your house. Do you have a sewing machine? Chance are, the answers is no.
If you have a sewing machine, enjoy today making things with it. If not, consider picking up sewing as a hobby.
Today’s Thought Provoking Saying:
“A stitch in time saves nine.”
…Saves nine “what”?
Red Rose Day
Red Rose Day is a time to enjoy and appreciate America’s favourite flower – the red rose. A red rose signifies love. A June setting for Red Rose Day is very appropriate, as this is by far the most popular month for weddings. And, they are in bloom in the gardens across North America this month.
In addition to being the most popular cut flower, roses are also the most popular flower in flower beds and around foundation of houses, garages and sheds. They are easy to grow, producing a bounty of sweet scented flowers from June up to the first frost.
Did you know? Each rose color sends a different meaning to the recipient. Make sure you send the right message.
Celebrate Red Rose Day by:
Buying red roses for someone special or for yourself.
Planting roses around your yard. Buy Rose Bushes
Learn more on how to grow roses
What No Holiday? So What Happened On June 11th???
There is no Obscure Holiday for Today. Let’s see what else happened on this day in history –
1346 – Charles IV of Luxembourg was elected Holy Roman Emperor in Germany.
1509 – King Henry VIII married his first of six wives, Catherine of Aragon.
1770 – Captain James Cook discovered the Great Barrier Reef off of Australia when he ran aground.
1776 – In America, the Continental Congress formed a committee to draft a Declaration of Independence from Britain.
1798 – Napoleon Bonaparte took the island of Malta.
1880 – Jeanette Rankin was born. She became the first woman elected to the U.S. Congress.
1889 – The Washington Business High School opened in Washington, DC. It was the first school devoted to business in the U.S.
1895 – Charles E. Duryea received the first U.S. patent granted to an American inventor for a gasoline-driven automobile.
1910 – Jacques-Yves Cousteau was born. He was the French underwater explorer that invented the Aqua-Lung diving apparatus.
1912 – Silas Christoferson became the first pilot to take off from the roof of a hotel.
1915 – British troops took Cameroon in Africa.
1919 – Sir Barton became the first horse to capture the Triple Crown when he won the Belmont Stakes in New York City.
1927 – Charles A. Lindberg was presented the first Distinguished Flying Cross.
1930 – William Beebe dove to a record-setting depth of 1,426 feet off the coast of Bermuda. He used a diving chamber called a bathysphere.
1934 – The Disarmament Conference in Geneva ended in failure.
1936 – The Presbyterian Church of America was formed in Philadelphia, PA.
1937 – Soviet leader Josef Stalin began a purge of Red Army generals.
1940 – The Italian Air Force bombed the British fortress at Malta in the Mediterranean.
1942 – The U.S. and the Soviet Union signed a lend lease agreement to aid the Soviets in their effort in World War II.
1943 – During World War II, the Italian island of Pantelleria surrendered after a heavy air bombardment.
1947 – The U.S. government announced an end to sugar rationing.
1950 – Ben Hogan returned to tournament play after a near fatal car accident. He won the U.S. Open.
1963 – Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. was arrested in Florida for trying to integrate restaurants.
1963 – Alabama Gov. George Wallace allowed two black students to enroll at the University of Alabama.
1967 – Israel and Syria accepted a U.N. cease-fire.
1972 – Hank Aaron tied the National League record for 14 grand-slam home runs in a career.
1973 – After a ruling by the Justice Department of the State of Pennsylvania, women were licensed to box or wrestle.
1977 – In the Netherlands, a 19-day hostage situation came to an end when Dutch marines stormed a train and a school being held by South Moluccan extremist. Two hostages and the six terrorists were killed.
1981 – The first major league baseball player’s strike began. It would last for two months.
1982 – Steven Spielberg’s movie “E.T.” opened.
1987 – Margaret Thatcher became the first British prime minister in 160 years to win a third consecutive term of office.
1990 – The U.S. Supreme Court struck down a law that would prohibit the desecration of the American Flag.
1991 – Mount Pinatubo in the Philippines erupted. The eruption of ash and gas could be seen for more than 60 miles.
1993 – The U.S. Supreme Court ruled that people who commit “hate crimes” could be sentenced to extra punishment. The court also ruled in favor of religious groups saying that they indeed had a constitutional right to sacrifice animals during worship services.
1993 – Steven Spielberg’s movie “Jurassic Park” opened.
1998 – Mitsubishi of America agreed to pay $34 million to end the largest sexual harassment case filed by the U.S. government. The federal lawsuit claimed that hundreds of women at a plant in Normal, IL, had endured groping and crude jokes from male workers.
1998 – Pakistan announced moratorium on nuclear testing and offered to talk with India over disputed Kashmir.
…interesting!!!!
National Iced Tea Day –
With the official start of summer just a few days away, the timing is perfect for National Iced Tea Day.
Chances are, it is already hot in your area. Today may serve as a good reminder to make and enjoy your first (of many) Iced Tea drink of the season. Have it plain, add a little lemon, or sweeten it with sugar. Iced Tea is certainly a favourite summer cooler of millions of North Americans. And best of all, tea is good for your health!
It takes no imagination to decide how to enjoy this great day: Grab an Iced Tea and head out to the hammock strung under a shady tree.
Medicinal value:
Since ancient times, people have believed that tea has a wide range of medicinal uses. Modern research has given credibility to many of these beliefs and identified more. In some cases research is not conclusive. Regardless of the final determination as to its value over time, drink and enjoy because there is no research to suggest that it can hurt you and it just tastes good.
Here are some of the known or suspected medicinal applications:
Avoidance of heart disease
Cancer and tumors
Stomach ailments
Sore throats and colds(often flavoured with honey)
Soothing, relaxing
The Origin of Iced Tea:
In 1904, English tea plantation owner Richard Blechynden set up a booth to sell hot tea at the St. Louis World Fair. It was a sizzler of a day, and fair visitors didn’t want anything hot. Rather, they needed something to quench their thirst… something cold. He dumped some of his hot tea into ice and served it cold. It was an immediate hit. This was the first known use of iced tea.
Learn About Composting Day
Learn About Composting Day is a great opportunity to “Go Green” and help the environment. Composting is easy. It makes you feel good, knowing you are doing your part to keep our environment a little bit cleaner. You may be surprised at how easy it is to compost. And, everyone can compost.
What to compost- As you learn about composting, you will be surprised at all the things you can compost. It is common knowledge, that you can compost garden and yard vegetation, as well as kitchen (vegetable) scraps. But, you can also recycle many other things, including papers, untreated wood, and cardboard. Cardboard paper towel and toilet paper holders are great items to compost.
You can use compost around your plants, to feed them, keep the weeds down, and to help retain soil moisture. If you don’t have a yard, you can give it away to family and friends that do. Your reward will be flowers, vegetables or herbs from thankful gardeners.
Did you Know? You can make Compost Tea with your compost materials to feed your indoor and outdoor plants! It will save you $$$.
Find more about Compost Materials
As you learn about composting today, you will also see the wide array of ways you can compost. You can start a simple compost pile in your back yard. Or, you can select a range of composters, from compost bins and compost barrels, to compost tumblers. You can even use an indoor compost pail. More on Composters and Compost Tumblers.
Sally Ride Day
Sally Ride Day honours the first American woman to go into space. Dr. Ride accomplished this feat as a mission specialist aboard STS-7, the second flight of the Space Shuttle Challenger. STS-7 was launched from Kennedy Space Center, Florida, on June 18, 1983.
Celebrate Sally Ride Day by learning more about the U.S. space program and NASA. Better yet, we encourage everyone to push for a more active and dedicated U.S. space program and policy.
If any of you young ladies (and young gentlemen) have thought about becoming an astronaut, we encourage you to follow your dream of going into space. Exploration and taming of the frontier made America what it is today. As a famous trekkie one said. “Space is the final frontier”.
Origin of Sally Ride Day:
Sally Ride Day was created in honor of the birth date of Sally Ride, the first American woman in space. Sally Ride was born on May 26, 1951, in Los Angeles, California.
Lucky Penny Day
It’s Lucky Penny Day. Perhaps a Lucky Penny will be lucky for you today. These days you’d be lucky to find a penny at all in Canada.
Taken at face value, a penny doesn’t buy you much, if anything. It used to. During your parents’ and grandparents’ days, a penny bought a lot of things. Most notably, Penny Candy got its name because a piece of candy cost a penny. Inflation year after year after year, eroded the penny’s value. And now it is gone from circulation in Canada for good!
The penny still serves a very useful purpose… at least some of them are lucky pennies. Lucky pennies are found on the ground. Not all of the pennies you find will be lucky. But, it will only take one lucky penny used to scratch off the mega winner on a a scratch-off ticket.
Are you superstitious? Superstition has it that you should only pick up a penny that is lying face up.
Here are some other uses for pennies:
- A penny for your thoughts.
- To put your “two cents” in.
- A necessity for penny pinchers
- A handy screwdriver when nothing else is available.
Thought: for Today: “A penny for your thoughts.”
Buy a Musical Instrument Day
Isn’t it obvious how to celebrate Buy a Musical Instrument Day? If you are a musician in need of a new instrument, today could be a very good day indeed! If you have been considering taking up a musical instrument, today can be your starting point. And, the good news is you’re never too old to begin playing a musical instrument. Many senior citizens pick up musical instruments as a hobby. They even form senior bands, often playing in public.
Okay….. Just in case you haven’t figured out how to participate in this day………..
Go out and buy a musical instrument!