Post about 5 favorite things from the past week. It can be anything that tickled your fancy: favorite quotes, posts, happenings, scriptures, recipes, pictures, great internet finds, etc., etc. Be as detailed as you like, the more detail the more fun for those of us visiting. Susanne, the hostess, just asks that it be kept family friendly. To see entries from other participants or to play along, click here.



1. Jokes from friends always make my day.

Bob Hill and his new wife Betty were vacationing in Europe... as it happens, near Transylvania. They were driving in a rental car along a rather deserted highway. It was late and raining very hard. Bob could barely see the road in front of the car. Suddenly the car skids out of control! Bob attempts to control the car, but to no avail! The car swerves and smashes into a tree.


Moments later, Bob shakes his head to clear the fog. Dazed, he looks over at the passenger seat and sees his wife unconscious, with her head bleeding! Despite the rain and unfamiliar countryside, Bob knows he has to get her medical assistance.

Bob carefully picks his wife up and begins trudging down the road. After a short while, he sees a light. He heads towards the lig ht, which is coming from a large, old house. He approaches the door and knocks.

A minute passes. A small, hunched man opens the door. Bob immediately blurts, "Hello, my name is Bob Hill, and this is my wife Betty. We've been in a terrible accident, and my wife has been seriously hurt. Can I please use your phone?"


"I'm sorry," replied the hunchback, "but we don't have a phone. My master is a doctor; come in and I will get him!" Bob brings his wife in.

An older man comes down the stairs. "I'm afraid my assistant may have misled you. I am not a medical doctor; I am a scientist.. However, it is many miles to the nearest clinic, and I have had a basic medical training. I will see what I can do. Igor, bring them down to the laboratory"



With that, Igor picks up Betty and carries her downstairs, with Bob following closely. Igor places Betty on a table in the lab. Bob collapses from exhaustion and his own injuries, so Igor places Bob on an adjoining table.

After a brief examination, Igor's master looks worried. "Things are serious, Igor. Prepare a transfusion." Igor and his master work feverishly, but to no avail. Bob and Betty Hill are no more.

The Hills' deaths upset Igor's master greatly. Wearily, he climbs the steps to his conservatory, which houses his grand piano. For it is here that he has always found solace. He begins to play, and a stirring, almost haunting melody fills the house.

Meanwhile, Igor is still in the lab tidying up. His eyes catch movement, and he notices the fingers on Betty's hand twitch, keeping time with the haunting piano music.. Stunned, he watches as Bob's arm begins to rise, marking the beat! He is further amazed as Betty and Bob both sit up straight!

Unable to contain himself, he dashes up the stairs to the conservatory.

He bursts in and shouts to his master:



3. In the midst of all the animosity and ugliness that permeates our nation these days, I have been thinking a lot about Abraham Lincoln and Franklin D. Roosevelt. Both of these amazing leaders, one Republican and one Democrat, saw our country through its two roughest periods: the Civil War and the Great Depression and World War II. In rereading several of their speeches, I find inspiration for these troubling times:

"The probability that we may fall in the struggle ought not to deter us from the support of a cause we believe to be just; it shall not deter me." -- Abraham Lincoln ("Speech on the Sub-Treasury" delivered in the Illinois House of Representatives, December 26, 1839)

"The country needs and, unless I mistake its temper, the country demands bold, persistent experimentation. It is common sense to take a method and try it: If it fails, admit it frankly and try another. But above all, try something." -- Franklin D. Roosevelt, 1932

4. Because I hope for a brighter tomorrow, this song has been stuck in my head for a few days.



5. Last, but not least, I am grateful to have survived what has turned out to be a very, very rough week.


Happy Friday, everyone!

The tapestry of American patriotic music is as rich and varied as her people. Hymns, marches, national songs, poetry, military themes, and music from the theater, television, and radio combine to reflect the pride and hope embodied in the American Experience. With the celebration of our independence just two days away, my list is about American Patriotic Music. I hope that you enjoy it as much as I enjoyed researching and writing it.

1. America the Beautiful
Katharine Lee Bates wrote the lyrics for "America the Beautiful" while on a lecture trip to Colorado in 1893 after being inspired by a trek up Pike's Peak in a prairie wagon. Originally sung to any tune that fit the lyrics -- "Auld Lang Syne" was the most popular, "America the Beautiful" didn't have its own melody until 1882 when Samuel Augustus Ward, a New Jersey church organist, composed one for it. Thereafter, the song has been sung the way we recognize it now.


2. My Country 'Tis of Thee
While we know that Reverend Samuel Francis Smith wrote the lyrics for this song in 1831, the mystery surrounding the composition of its melody remains unsolved. The tune's first appearance in a verifiable form is in the 1744 tune book, Thesaurus Musicus, printed in England. It has been used mostly for songs honoring kings and became the national anthem in 6 countries before making its way across the ocean to America.


3. Battle Hymn of the Republic
Julia Ward Howe, a staunch abolitionist, rewrote the lyrics to a very popular song among the Union troops during the Civil War. The soldiers called the song "John Brown's Body" in honor of John Brown, the abolitionist killed at Harpers Ferry. But after visiting Washington, D.C. with her husband in 1861 and hearing Union soldiers marching to the tune, Julia determined to write lyrics that better suited the majesty of the music. The end result is the song that we now know and love.


4. When Johnny Comes Marching Home Again
The story of one of the most popular songs of the American Civil War is also the story of the Irish immigrant who wrote it. John Philip Sousa considered Patrick Sarsfield Gilmore, an 1848 Irish immigrant and author of the song, "The Father of the American Band." In 1861, Gilmore's band was attached to the 24th Massachusetts Infantry where they served as both musicians and stretcher bearers in some of the most significant Civil War battles including Bull Run, Antietam, Chancellorsville, Gettysburg, and Richmond. In 1863, when he was posted to occupied New Orleans, Louisiana, Gilmore composed "When Johnny Comes Marching Home." The song became popular with northerners and southerners alike.


5. You're a Grand Old Flag
I love the story of this song! Written for his stage musical, George Washington, Jr. in 1906, George M. Cohan's inspiration came from a random meeting he had had with a Civil War veteran who, like my great-great grandfather, had fought at Gettysburg. Cohan noticed that the old man was holding a carefully folded but ragged old flag and when the old man saw Cohan looking at it, he said, "She's a grand old rag." That old man's comment about a cherished battle-worn flag became the original title of the song; however, when people objected to the flag being called a "rag," he changed the word to "flag." Maybe if Cohan had explained why he titled the song the way he did, people would have reacted more positively to it because its meaning with the original title and lyric is much more powerful!


6. Hail to the Chief
Did you know that this song, which plays with every formal entrance made by an American president, actually has its origins in a poem written by a Scotsman? Sir Walter Scott's poem, "The Lady of the Lake," tells the story of a Highlands Scottish clan that loses its heritage and land to an imperalist invader (the Brits): "Hail to the Chief who in triumph advances!" The song first came to be associated with presidents when, on February 22, 1815, it was played honor both the deceased George Washington and the end of the War of 1812.


7. Marine's Hymn
The tune for this song actually came from Jacques Offenbach's comic opera Genevieve de Brabant, first staged in 1859. Nobody knows who added the lyrics or when, but at least one verse has been traced to Colonel Henry C. Davis who wrote it during the early part of the twentieth century.


8. Stars and Stripes Forever (check out the video for this one!)
John Philip Sousa was the greatest musical star of his era, combining the charisma and popularity of Leonard Bernstein and The Beatles. He wrote "Stars and Stripes Forever" in 1896, while grieving over the death of his manager. For 25 years, Sousa's band played this song at the end of every concert. "The Stars and Stripes Forever" was declared the National March of the United States in 1987.


9. Yankee Doodle
This is one of America's oldest, and most enduring, marching songs. It was written several years before the American Revolution, but like so many songs of old, its origins aren't clear. What we do know about it is that the song isn't really as patriotic as it seems: it is a British parody of the early American militiamen. "Yankee" comes from "Nankey," a word from a well-known not-so-nice song about Oliver Cromwell that later became the name for American colonists; "Doodle" means a fool or simpleton; "Dandy" is a word used to describe a gentleman of artificial manners, dress, and hairstyle -- in other words, a fake. Put these three words together, Yankee Doodle Dandy, and you have a foolish American colonist who puts on airs. At the battles of Lexington and Concord, the British troops sang the song to make fun of the rag-tag American militiamen.


10. This Land Is Your Land
Woody Guthrie, America's most influential folk musician, wrote "This Land Is Your Land" in 1940 after becoming annoyed with Irving Berlin's song, "God Bless America," which Guthrie thought glossed over the lop-sided distribution of land and wealth that he was observing during the Great Depression and had experienced as a child growing up in Oklahoma. Guthrie's observations accurately reflected the fact that, even in the depths of the Depression, nearly 20 percent of the nation's wealth rested with one percent of its population. Guthrie's personal and musical styles were deeply influenced by his childhood in rural Oklahoma during the Great Depression years, which led him to a hobo life-style, a powerful dislike of greed, and a deep appreciation for the diversity of America's everyday folk.


11. God Bless America
Shortly after becoming an American citizen in 1918, Irving Berlin, already a highly successful popular lyricist and composer, was inducted and stationed at Camp Upton in Yaphank, Long Island, New York. While stationed there, Berlin convinced his commanding officers to allow him to write a musical comedy that could be used to raise both funds and troop morale, and the original version of this song was part of this production. But after he heard the song, Berlin decided that it was too serious for a comedy and tucked it away for 25 years. On November 10, 1938, contralto Kate Smith introduced the song to America on her CBS radio show that was broadcast from the New York World's Fair. Timing is everything; the song became an instant hit. Berlin generously signed over his royalty money from the song to charity, and the revenues went to the Boy Scouts and the Girl Scouts of America.


12. God Bless the U.S.A.
Lee Greenwood, a country music artist, wrote "God Bless the USA" in 1983 as a patriotic song about his country. When it was originally released, it didn't top the charts; however, it quickly became Greenwood's signature song. When the Amazing Egyptian Dude was sworn in as a U.S. Citizen, this is the song that played in accompaniment to a video showing scenes of what it means to an American. We already knew the song because we have been fans of Greenwood's music for quite some time, so the AED was thrilled when the song blared out from the loudspeakers at the Los Angeles Convention Center on the day that he officially became an American in 1986. If you've never been lucky enough to witness the swearing in of a new American citizen, check out this video; the song & video we saw is at 8:05. I guarantee goosebumps!


13. The Star Spangled Banner
Francis Scott Key put new words to an old song when he wrote what would become the national anthem of the United States of America. In the mid-1760s, a London society of amateur musicians, the Anacreontic Society, commissioned a young church musician, John Stafford Smith, to compose music for material that its president, Ralph Tomlinson, had written. The result was a song called "Anacreon in Heav'n." Its metric difficulty was meant to be the vehicle through which the group's best bariton singer could display his virtuosity and vocal range. Its musical complexity has been compared to the famous "Toreador Song" in Bizet's opera Carmen. The tune appeared in North America before the end of the 18th century where the lyrics were rewritten to include references to Jefferson, Adams, and Liberty. Francis Scott Key was fascinated by the song's unique metrical structure, not found in any other song of the period. That explains why it's so difficult for the average person to sing!

So, how did it become our national anthem? While detained aboard a British ship during the bombardment of Ft. McHenry on September 14, 1814, Francis Scott Key witnessed at dawn the failure of the British attempt to take Baltimore. He used this experience to write a poem that asked the question "Oh, say does that Star-Spangled Banner yet wave?" or in modern American English, "Hey, Dude, is that flag still flying?"

Almost immediately Key's poem was published and set to the tune of the "Anacreontic Song." The Secretary of the Navy, on July 26, 1889, designated "The Star Spangled Banner" as the official tune to be played whenever the flag was raised, and Woodrow Wilson chose the song to be played whenever a national anthem was appropriate because we didn't have one yet. It wasn't until March 3, 1931, that the song was made our official anthem by President Herbert Hoover.

If you've been reading my blog for any length of time, you'll already know that I am a Geek who loves things that teach me something. As a result, I'm hooked on documentary films and now, podcasts. I had heard my students talking about podcasts but knew nothing about them until I got an iPhone two years ago. Now, I not only know about podcasts, but I subscribe to approximately 30 different ones! So this week, my list is for my Top 13 Educational Podcasts. Whenever possible, I've included a link to the RSS feed just in case you might be interested in listening, too. if you use iTunes, most of them are available there, too. Enjoy!

1. Stuff You Missed in History Class: In addition to hosts with pleasant voices and some really quirky topics, these brief (10-20 minutes long) podcasts make history lessons lots of fun! Some of the recent topics include things like

• Did Betsy Ross Really Make the First American Flag?
• Was There Reall a Pied Piper of Hamelin?
• How Hitler's Propaganda Machine Worked
• Will the World Really End in 2012?
• Does My Vote Count?

2. This American Life: Part of the Chicago Public Radio programming, This American Life offers mostly real stories from, by, and about real people. Some are funny, some are sad, some are poignant, all are good and offer a life lesson to be learned. Immensely popular, the radio show has become a television show; both have won numerous international awards.

3. PRI's The World: American Influence: The World's American Influence covers US foreign policy, from inside Washington to the far corners of the globe. I've learned a great deal about the way our government interacts with others from this podcast.

4. Bill Moyers Journal: Moyers' popular PBS show in podcast form. Topics range from politics to ethics to faith, and everything in between.

5. American Experience: Listen to introductory segments for new and upcoming American Experience programs, America's most-watched history series. This one doesn't really "teach" per se, but if you're a fan of this series, it's a great way to stay on top of upcoming episodes.

6. The News Hour with Jim Lehrer: Daily, in-depth news and analysis from the Web site of the NewsHour with Jim Lehrer.

7. 60 Minutes (Full Broadcast): I don't always remember to watch 60 Minutes when it airs on television, so this podcast is a godsend for me. It's the full show in audio form!

8. The Marketplace of Ideas: The Marketplace of Ideas is a radio show and podcast about books, culture, commerce and fascinating concepts.

9. President Obama's Weekly Radio Address: The weekly address to the nation by President Barack Obama.

10. Hunting Humbug 101: A crash course in shooting down bad arguments. Two skeptics examine poor reasoning - 1 fallacy each week - real fallacies from pseudoscience, science misconceptions, politics, philosophy and media. Learn how to argue using logic and reason instead of emotion.

11. Great Books -- A Chapter a Day: A free audio book podcast of the best books and poems ever written. Choose any book or poem from the online library and click to listen. A great book is labeled thus because its themes are universal and transcend time, language, country, and culture. The end result is that there's always something to learn from reading a great book.

12. Living Books for the Ears: This weekly podcast offers "old time radio" adaptations of great books and historic stories. These fully dramatized half hour audio programs are a terrific way to introduce kids to these classic tales. But everyone, young or old, will enjoy listening to these excellent, wholesome radio adaptations (in great sound quality).

13. Old Time Radio Thrillers: Old Time Radio Network Thrillers, thrilling mystery, espionage, and political intrigue. Step into the world of action and Psychological twist that will keep you on the edge of your seat.

Memorial Day, originally called Decoration Day, is a day of remembrance for those who have died in service to our country. Although celebrated in several places before it became official, the first military celebration of Memorial Day was on May 30, 1868, when flowers were placed on the graves of Union and Confederate soldiers at Arlington Cemetary.

Did you know that Memorial Day actually began as a military edict meant to honor specifically the Civil War dead? New York was the first state to officially recognize the holiday in 1873, and by 1890, all of the Northern states were on board. The Southern states wanted no part of a day honoring all the Civil War dead and opted to honor only the Confederate dead. The Southern states had no unifying date for this memorial, though, so for many years they remembered on various days from one state to another. After World War I, when Memorial Day became a time to honor all fallen soldiers and not just those from the Civil War, the Southern states acquiesced and once again joined the Union. Finally, in 1971, Memorial Day became a national holiday celebrated on the last Monday in May.

Sadly, not many Americans know the significance of Memorial Day, its rich history, or the traditions associated with it. What the average person knows is that Memorial Day is a 3-day weekend, a time for barbeques, camping, heading off to the beach, picnics, and general fun to kick off the summer. Instead of cleaning, maintaining, and placing flowers on the graves of America's fallen soldiers, the ones for whom this day was intended, we've turned a day of remembrance into the penultimate of selfish holidays.

Today, I want to honor the service of my family members. We've been really lucky in that, to the best of my knowledge, although plenty of the men have served, we haven't suffered a war casualty that I know of.


My parents met because my dad was in the Navy and stationed in California, where my mom's family had recently moved from New York. In fact, my dad and both of his brothers were all in the Navy at the same time but because of the law passed after the attack on Pearl Harbor, they were not allowed to serve on the same ship at the same time. The photo on the left shows the Willett boys in their uniforms. They are, from left to right and youngest to oldest, my dad, Bill, Uncle Jerry, and Uncle Ronnie (he's the uncle I wrote about on Blogging Against Disablism Day). I think my dad was 18 at the time. There are probably lots of other family members on my dad's side who served in the military and perhaps now that I am retired, I can start investigating that side of my family to see what long-lost information I can uncover.


My mom's family came to America in 1621. They settled in New York and Pennsylvania. I know more about the miliary service of this side of my family because of my fascination with the Civil War, thanks to my maternal Grandfather. Papa took a great deal of pride in the knowledge that his great grandfather's name is on the Pennsylvania monument in Gettysburg and nearly every time we went back East on vacation, he would take me there. The plaque with his name, William R. Van Cise, is on the right. If you click here, you can see the full plaque and my g-g-grandfather's name listed under Company D. As if this weren't cool enough, William and his 8 brothers earned a special honor, called the Most Notable Record, from the government because all 8 of them served simultaneously in the Union army. How cool is that? If I wanted to, I could be a member of the Daughters of the American Revolution based on my maternal grandfather's ancestry:

John Cornelius Vancise was born in Holland, 1756. When about 8 years of age, his parents being dead, he and a brother were brought to America by friends. His early life was spent in the vicinity of Schoharie. Upon the breaking out of the Revolutionary war, he immediately joined the American army and served seven years in the struggle for Independence. He fought at Bunker Hill, Trenton, Princeton, Monmouth, crossed the Delaware with Washington and was present at the surrender of Cornwallis at Yorktown. At the battle of Monmouth he was badly wounded in the right leg below the knee. In his old age he enjoyed recounting his war experiences, always speaking of Washington with the greatest reverence. Mr. Vancise was a weaver by occupation, skilled in the art and wove many fancy articles. He married Deborah Murray, an Irish woman, and removed to Masonville, N.Y. They had six children, John, Simon, Samuel, Abraham, Peggy and Nancy. John and Simon were soldiers in the War of 1812. Samuel and Abraham settled in Sheshequin, where the father came also and spent his last days. As the result of his wounds, he lost nearly all use of his legs and went about on crutches. The government gave him a pension of $96 per year. He died Oct. 30, 1849, aged 93 years and his remains rest in the Sheshequin cemetery. In the Civil War, nine sons of Abraham and three sons of Samuel served the Union--the former being the most notable record in the county. (Source)

Next Memorial Day, instead of making it about picnics and potato salad, do some research and learn what we ought to be doing on this day. Volunteer to clean up the gravesite of a soldier in your town, or place some flowers on the grave of a soldier. Remember what they have done for you and your family.

P.S. I'm sorry if this post seems more disjointed than usual. It's been one of those days when The Brain has decided to let me know who's really in charge, and staying focused on anything has been challenging at best.