Words Of Wisdom From T-Shirts

For the most part, T-shirts seem to have a lot to say.  They tell us where their owner went on vacation, what school he or she attended, what kind of car they drive, where they work, what organizations they belong to, what causes they support, and a multitude of other miscellaneous information.  Some are serious and others are just fun.  I've collected several interesting T-shirt sayings, including some from just a few weeks ago, and I'd like to share them with you.

I don't like to brag about expensive trips, but I did just return from the grocery store.

It's weird being the same age as old people.

I wish I could drop my body off at the gym and pick it up when it was ready.

I wonder what the part of my brain that memorized phone numbers is doing nowadays.

Theiyr're—take that grammar police.

I thought I saw a spider, but it was just a piece of yarn. It's dead yarn now.

Etc.—End of Thinking Capacity

I thought growing old would take longer

My alone time is for everyone's safety

BOOKS—helping introverts avoid conversation since 1454

You matter.  Unless you multiply yourself by the speed of light…then you energy.

I'm not arguing, I'm explaining why I'm right.

In my defense, I was left unsupervised

Interested in time travel?  Meet me here last Thursday at 6pm

"To be, or not to be" William Shakespeare, "To be is to do" Jean-Paul Sartre, "To do is to be" Bertrand Russell, "Doo be doo be doo" Frank Sinatra

Hand over the chocolate and no one will get hurt.

At what age am I old enough to know better?

When spelling, it's the letter I before E except after C…weird?

Wine improves with age.  I improve with wine.

Everyone has to believe in something.  I believe I'll have another glass of wine.

I love to cook with wine.  Sometimes I even use it in the food.

If we knew what we were doing, it wouldn't be called research.

If I'm talking, you should be taking notes.

Why can't I be rich instead of good looking?

To err is human, to arrrrrgh is pirate.

Searching for the meaning of life, but will settle for my car keys.

I'm often confused with my evil twin.

Flying is the 2^nd greatest thrill known to man.  Landing is the 1^st.

I'd be a vegetarian if bacon grew on trees.

Disheveled…not just a look, it's a lifestyle.

I used to care, but I take a pill for that now.

I'm confused…wait, maybe I'm not.

Where's the switch that turns you off?

Inside every older person is a younger person wondering what the hell happened.

Don't worry about what people think.  They don't do it very often.

Everything I say can be fully substantiated by my own opinion.

I'm always late.  My ancestors arrived on the Juneflower.

Nostalgia isn't what it used to be.

Old age comes at an inconvenient time.

Irony.  The opposite of wrinkly.

Raisin cookies that look like chocolate chip cookies are the main reason I have trust issues.

I'm not weird, I'm a limited edition.

I have CDO—it's like OCD but with the letters in alphabetical order, as they should be.

Sometimes I need to put on my crown just to remind people who they're dealing with.

The past, the present, and the future walk into a bar.  It was tense.

I talk to myself whenever I need expert advice.

And that's my list for now. Have any of you come across any fun or interesting T-shirt sayings you'd like to share? 

Important Historical Event in Each State—part 5 of 5

This is the final installment of my 5 part blog series presenting one important historical event in each of the 50 states. This week covers South Dakota through Wyoming.

41. South Dakota

Event: Mount Rushmore

Year: 1941

Location: Keystone

One of America's iconic images is among the newest. Mount Rushmore National Memorial was opened in 1941. The 60-foot high stone images of Abraham Lincoln, George Washington, Theodore Roosevelt, and Thomas Jefferson are framed against the Black Hills of South Dakota. Sculptor Gutzon Borglum selected Mount Rushmore in the early 1920s because of the site's dimensions—1,000 feet long and 440 feet wide. Work started on the project in 1927. The original plans from Borglum called for all four presidents to be shown from the waist up, but there was not enough funding to realize his vision.

42. Tennessee

Event: Scopes Monkey Trial

Year: 1925

Location: Dayton

John Thomas Scopes, a high school science teacher in Dayton, Tennessee, taught his students about evolution in 1925 to protest a new law that would fine anyone who taught a "theory that denies the story of the Divine Creation." Scopes was fined. He called on the American Civil Liberties Union to help prove the law was unconstitutional. Former presidential candidate William Jennings Bryan offered to help the prosecution. Clarence Darrow represented John Scopes. The case garnered so much attention that it was moved to the courthouse lawn over concerns the extra people in the court would cause the floor to collapse. The defense wasn't allowed to question the constitutionality of the law, so it called Bryan to the stand to defend his beliefs. But Bryan couldn't do it, instead making contradictory statements about his faith. The defense eventually requested a guilty verdict so it could later be appealed. Scopes was ordered to pay the minimum fine of $100, but that verdict was later overturned by the Supreme Court which was the ultimate goal of the defense. [For those of you who have never seen the 1960 movie, Inherit The Wind, starring Spencer Tracy as Clarence Darrow and Frederick March as William Jennings Bryan, it's an excellent film about the Scopes trial.]

43. Texas

Event: Kennedy Assassination

Year: 1963

Location: Dallas

Texas certainly has many notable events in its history, but there is one that certainly stands out above the others. Even though the campaign for the 1964 election had not yet started and President John F. Kennedy had not formally announced he was seeking re-election, the Democrat had come to Texas seeking early support for a re-election bid, hoping to garner support from staunchly conservative Texas. Kennedy's popularity was building and he was greeted by enthusiastic crowds in Dallas. Then the unthinkable happened when he was assassinated by Lee Harvey Oswald. Kennedy was prevented from being able to fulfill his ambitious goals for the country. The assassination of Kennedy traumatized the nation and has haunted the city of Dallas for many years. And even now, all these years later, conspiracy theories still run rampant.

44. Utah

Event: Transcontinental railroad completed

Year: 1869

Location: Promontory Point

On May 10, 1869, the transcontinental railroad finally connected both coasts of the United States at Promontory Point in Utah. The task was completed by rival railroads Central Pacific and Union Pacific. The Central Pacific, moving east from Sacramento, California, used mostly Chinese laborers, which was controversial at the time because they were looked down upon due to entrenched racism in the country. The Chinese persevered through terrible conditions in the Sierra Nevada mountains and proved to be indefatigable workers. The Union Pacific, which moved west from Omaha, Nebraska, used mostly Irish workers and Civil War veterans.

45. Vermont

Event: First state to ban slavery

Year: 1777

Location: Statewide

Nearly a century before the Civil War, Vermont became the first state to outlaw slavery, just after the Colonies declared their independence. Vermont was, at that point, an independent republic. The transatlantic slave trade had yet to reach its peak. Other states, such as Pennsylvania, followed suit within a few years, using laws that only gradually released current slaves while preventing any new ones from being brought to the state. Despite the 1777 law, there now appears to be evidence that some Vermonters still held slaves in the 19th century.

46. Virginia

Event: First English settlement in the United States

Year: 1607

Location: Jamestown

Early attempts by the English to establish a colony in the New World had failed, including the "lost colony" of Roanoke in 1587. The English tried again in 1606. King James I issued a charter to the Virginia Company to create a settlement in the New World. About 100 colonists in three ships reached a peninsula on the James River on May 14, 1607. The early settlers fought off hunger and illness, and council leader John Smith forged an understanding with Native American Chief Powhatan. More settlers and supplies came to support the colony to finally secure England's toehold in the New World.

47. Washington

Event: Mount St. Helens eruption

Year: 1980

Location: Mount St. Helens

The 1980 eruption of Mount St. Helens remains the largest volcanic event in U.S. history. The explosion was triggered by an earthquake underneath the mountain. It caused huge clouds of ash and pyroclastic flows. It also triggered the largest landslide in recorded history. The volcano, located in the Cascade Mountains, tossed more than 500 million tons of ash into the air and blotted out the sun hundreds of miles away. All told, 57 people were killed as a result of the eruption. [I visited Mt. St. Helens in May of 1990, 10 years after the eruption. On the 2 lane highway to the eruption site, I drove through lush forests and beautiful scenery. Then as I drove around a curve in the road, it was like passing through a portal into another dimension of space and time. Everything instantly—not leading up to or gradually changing, rather an instant blink of the eye—changed from lush green forest to ash gray devastation devoid of any other color. Tree trunks flattened against the ground, all pointing in one direction rather than random, signaling the direction the blast traveled. A few dead trees trunks still standing resembling a ghost forest. I pulled over to the side of the road and got out of my car. I was greeted by an eerie silence—not a cry from a single bird, not a whisper of the breeze rustling through the leaves, nothing but an eerie silence. I continued on to Spirit Lake. The sparkling water of a beautiful mountain lake no longer existed.

Mt. St. Helens before and after

In its place, I saw a body of gray-brown water covered by floating splintered tree trunks. The feelings, the intense sensations, the emotional roller coaster of that drive, has remained embedded in my memory for all these years.]

48. West Virginia

Event: John Brown's raid on Harper's Ferry

Year: 1859

Location: Harper's Ferry

John Brown's raid on Harper's Ferry was one of the key incidents leading up to the Civil War. Brown, an abolitionist, came to Harper's Ferry to seize the federal armory and arsenal. His plan was for slaves to rise up in rebellion. The local militia resisted and U.S. Marines, led by Colonel Robert E. Lee, arrived and killed many of the raiders and captured Brown. He was tried for treason, murder, and slave insurrection against the state of Virginia (West Virginia was not its own state yet) and hanged.

49. Wisconsin

Event: Peshtigo Fire

Year: 1871

Location: Northeastern Wisconsin

The most destructive and deadly fire in U.S. history took place in Wisconsin and Michigan in 1871. The Peshtigo Fire killed at least 1,200 people, though some estimates place the death toll at over 2,000. The area around Peshtigo was largely supported by logging, so sawdust and branches littered the surrounding forest. That summer had been unusually dry, putting the area at huge risk of fire. The blaze started on Oct. 8 and moved so quickly that many people were unable to outrun the flames. Coincidently, the Peshtigo Fire took place on the same day as the Great Chicago Fire. Recovery efforts of the American people, including Wisconsin's governor, were initially focused on Chicago. Peshtigo never recovered. The event is largely forgotten to this day.

50. Wyoming

Event: Establishment of Yellowstone National Park

Year: 1872

Location: Northwestern Wyoming

Yellowstone National Park isn't just the first national park in the U.S., but also in the world. According to legend, explorers came to Madison Plateau in 1870. Struck by the beauty of the place, they decided Yellowstone needed to be preserved. It's unclear if that story is true, but President Ulysses S. Grant did sign a law establishing the park in 1872. Yellowstone stretches well over 3,000 square miles, almost all of it in Wyoming. It's also home to Old Faithful, a world famous geyser. [Note: Yellowstone is technically the first national park, but not the first time the federal government set aside land to be protected for all time. In 1864, Abraham Lincoln took time from the Civil War to set aside Yosemite Valley and the Mariposa Grove of Giant Sequoia Trees. The National Park Service did not exist and the federal government had no means of administrating this. California was a state, so the federal government deeded the land to the state to be protected for all time. In 1872, when the federal government set aside Yellowstone, Wyoming was not a state—no governing authority existed to take it over. So, the National Park Service was created. California returned Yosemite Valley and the Mariposa Grove to the federal government when the surrounding area was set aside as Yosemite National Park.]

As I said at the beginning of part 1 of this series, the important historical event for each state is a list I came across. I did not compile it [with the exception of the occasional comment of my own that I inserted into the text].

I thought the list would make interesting information for my blog. I hope you've enjoyed it.

Important Historical Event in Each State—part 4 of 5

This week, part 4 of my 5 part blog series about historical events in the states covers New Mexico to South Carolina

31. New Mexico

Event: Atomic bomb testing

Year: 1945

Location: Alamogordo

Scientists detonated the first atomic bomb on July 16, 1945, in the New Mexico desert, and from that moment on the world would never be the same. The nuclear test was code-named "Trinity." The following month atomic weapons were used against the Japanese cities of Hiroshima and Nagasaki with such devastating results that the Japanese surrendered shortly after. The Soviet Union set off its first atomic bomb in 1949, ratcheting up Cold War tensions.

32. New York

Event: Sept. 11 terrorist attacks

Year: 2001

Location: New York City

On September 11, 2001, two hijacked commercial airplanes hit the Twin Towers of the World Trade Center in New York City. The skyscrapers collapsed trapping thousands of people and first responders. In all, close to 3,000 people died in the attacks. Another hijacked plane hit the Pentagon and another was brought down in a field in Pennsylvania by the passengers, sacrificing their lives to stop the attack. The destination of the hijackers of the downed plane was believed to be Washington, D.C.—either the White House or the Capitol building.

33. North Carolina

Event: Manned flight

Year: 1903

Location: Kitty Hawk

Though the Wright Brothers grew up in Ohio, they found the perfect place for their flying machine experiments in Kitty Hawk, North Carolina. The brothers pored over weather records before determining that North Carolina would suit their needs. The first flight lasted just 12 seconds and covered 120 feet. By the end of the day, the world's first airplane stayed in the air for nearly one minute.

34. North Dakota

Event: Standing Rock protest

Year: 2016

Location: Standing Rock reservation

In 2016 and 2017, a protest against a proposed oil pipeline grabbed the nation's attention. The Dakota Access Pipeline route in North Dakota ran through Standing Rock Sioux Reservation and under the Missouri River, the reservation's source for drinking water. Residents protested, fearing the oil would contaminate the water. Hundreds of Native American activists and their allies descended on the reservation to protest what reservation residents believed was an encroachment on their sacred lands and a threat to their crucial water supply. Dozens of protesters were arrested, and the Obama administration blocked the project. Though the Trump administration has since reversed the decision and construction of the pipeline was completed, the company responsible for the pipeline is facing a litany of lawsuits that claim its security officers used unnecessary force on those protesting.

35. Ohio

Event: Ohio and Erie canal opened

Year: 1833

Location: Ohio and Erie Canal

During the early days of Ohio's history, the area was tough to access from much the country due to its geography and lack of infrastructure. An ambitious construction project which became known as the Ohio and Erie Canal sought to change that. The canal, which took nearly seven years to build, now serves as a 110-mile link between the Ohio River and Lake Erie. In addition to connecting two sides of Ohio, the canal provided an important link between the Midwest and the East Coast. Before the canal, it cost $125 to ship a ton of goods between the Ohio and the east coast. After the canal became functional, the price dropped to $25 per ton.

36. Oklahoma

Event: Federal Building bombing

Year: 1995

Location: Oklahoma City

Before the Twin Towers attack on Sept. 11, 2001, the worst terror attack on American soil was committed by domestic terrorists. The attack killed 168 people, injured about 650 others, and damaged some 300 buildings. Anti-government militant Timothy McVeigh loaded a truck with explosive materials and detonated it outside the Alfred Murrah Federal Building in Oklahoma City. He chose that building because it contained the offices of federal agencies—the Drug Enforcement Agency, Secret Service, and the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco and Firearms and Explosives. McVeigh was captured and eventually executed. Co-conspirator Terry Nichols was sentenced to life in prison.

37. Oregon

Event: Lewis and Clark Expedition

Year: 1806

Location: Clatsop County

Shortly after the Louisiana Purchase, President Thomas Jefferson asked Meriwether Lewis to lead an expedition to explore the new land west of the Mississippi River. Lewis was joined by William Clark as co-commander and other adventurers who became known as the Corps of Discovery. In 1804, they set out from St. Louis in what is now Missouri. More than a year later, they arrived at the northwestern tip of what is now Oregon where the Columbia River meets the Pacific Ocean. There they constructed Fort Clatsop to ride out the winter. In 1806, they returned to St. Louis to complete their nearly 8,000-mile round trip journey.

38. Pennsylvania

Event: Signing of Declaration of Independence

Year: 1776

Location: Philadelphia

The Declaration of Independence was approved by the Continental Congress in Philadelphia and expressed the ideals of the new nation and why it chose to separate from Great Britain. The document put forth the assertion that all men are created equal, the creator endows men with "certain unalienable rights," and that governments derive their power from the people they govern. Philadelphia, the largest city in the Colonies at the time the Declaration of Independence was approved, was also where the Constitution was adopted.

39. Rhode Island

Event: King Philip's War

Year: 1675

Location: Statewide

King Philip's War, also known as the Great Narragansett War, marked a turning point in the relationship between natives and white settlers. While there had been simmering resentment and some violent skirmishes between natives and settlers for decades, the war became one of the largest conflicts since European settlers arrived. Tribal leader Metacom, called King Philip by the settlers, led a revolt against the Europeans following the execution of three of his warriors who were found guilty of murdering a native who converted to puritanism. During the 14-month conflict, colonial militias attacked and destroyed native villages, with much of the fighting taking place in Rhode Island.

40. South Carolina

Event: Attack on Fort Sumter

Year: 1861

Location: Charleston Harbor

Seven states seceded from the Union, throwing the new Confederate government and existing U.S. government were at odds over who owned what in the South. President Abraham Lincoln wanted to resupply Union forces at South Carolina's Fort Sumter, but Confederate forces turned the supplies away. Months later, in April 1861, Confederate General P.G.T. Beauregard ordered his men to fire on the fort. Union troops quickly ran out of ammunition and were forced to surrender Fort Sumter. Though no people were killed in the fighting, the battle marks the beginning of the Civil War.

Next week is the last of my 5 part series highlighting an important historical event in each of the 50 states. Part 5 covers South Dakota to Wyoming. 

Important Historical Event in Each State—part 3 of 5

This week I'm covering Massachusetts through New Jersey in part 3 of my 5 part blog series showing an important historical event from each state.

21. Massachusetts

Event: Battle of Lexington

Year: 1775

Location: Lexington

Resentment toward the English crown was very intense in Lexington and that was where the militiamen from Massachusetts chose to stand their ground against the British Empire. As battles go, the Battle of Lexington was little more than a skirmish. The British killed eight militiamen and wounded nine others at Lexington, then they continued on to Concord to destroy munitions stored there. But when the British tried to return to Boston, more colonists attacked them, killing or wounding 250 British soldiers. The American Revolution had begun.

22. Michigan

Event: Model T built

Year: 1908

Location: Detroit

The Model T built by Henry Ford revolutionized travel in the United States. It was constructed to make car ownership affordable to average American workers. Ford built more than 15 million of the vehicles, also called the "Tin Lizzie," from 1908 to 1927. Most models were started by a hand crank and reached top speeds of 45 miles an hour. Ford and others decided to build cars in Michigan because of the availability of iron ore and timber, and the rail and water routes made it convenient to ship cars to large cities such as Chicago and New York City.

23. Minnesota

Event: Mayo Clinic founded

Year: 1864

Location: Rochester

The Mayo Clinic has become the standard by which all hospitals are measured. The institution was chosen as the best hospital in the nation by U.S. News and World Report. The Mayo Clinic has its roots in immigrant founders Dr. William Worrall Mayo and Mother Alfred Moes, each of whom took separate routes to Rochester before they founded the hospital. Their visions of hospital care and teams of specialists have been realized today. In 1919, the institution became a not-for-profit organization.

24. Mississippi

Event: Lynching of Emmett Till

Year: 1955

Location: Money

The lynching of 14-year-old African American Emmett Till shocked the nation and served as a catalyst for the civil rights movement. Till, a Chicago resident, was visiting relatives in Mississippi. He was kidnapped and killed after white residents in the town of Money claimed he whistled at a white woman. When Till's body was found, it had been grotesquely disfigured. His mother chose to have an open casket at his wake to show the world the horror of the crime. There was a trial and the accused murders were acquitted by an all-white, male jury. In January 2017, Timothy Tyson, author of The Blood of Emmett Till, said the woman whom Till allegedly made advances toward told him she lied about the incident.

25. Missouri

Event: Admitted as slave state

Year: 1820

Location: Statewide

Tensions between slave states and free states were rising in the United States in the early 19th century, particularly over the issue of whether the expanding nation should admit new states as free or slave states. In 1820, Congress passed legislation known as the Missouri Compromise that maintained the balance of power between free states and slave states. The compromise allowed the admission of Missouri as a slave state and Maine as a free state. Neither the North nor the South was happy with the compromise, but the Union managed to hold together for another 41 years before it finally erupted into the Civil Wal.

26. Montana

Event: Battle of the Little Bighorn

Year: 1876

Location: Little Big Horn

We've all heard the story of Custer's Last Stand. In 1876, George Armstrong Custer led U.S. Army soldiers to forcibly relocate members of the Sioux and Cheyenne tribes after gold was discovered on their lands. Thousands of Native Americans, led by Sitting Bull and Crazy Horse, rallied at the Little Bighorn River. Custer was ordered to wait for reinforcements, but he attacked the main encampment of the tribes. Custer and his soldiers were overwhelmed and all killed within an hour. That would be the last decisive victory of indigenous tribes against the Army, as the government increased the use of force to put down any rebellions.

27. Nebraska

Event: Kansas-Nebraska Act

Year: 1854

Location: Statewide

The Kansas-Nebraska Act allowed people in the territories of Kansas and Nebraska to decide if the state would be a slave state or a free state. The legislation prompted settlers on each side of the slavery issue to pour into Kansas to affect the outcome of the first election after the law had passed. The election results produced violence, earning the state the name "Bleeding Kansas." A pro-slavery legislature was chosen amid charges of fraud. Because of this, Congress refused to admit Kansas as a state. Anti-slavery settlers eventually outnumbered pro-slavery supporters and Kansas was admitted as a free state just before the Civil War.

28. Nevada

Event: Gambling legalized

Year: 1931

Location: Statewide

With the nation in the throes of the Great Depression, Nevada became the first state to legalize gambling in 1931 as a mean of creating a revenue source. The decision would have profound consequences for the state and the nation. At the time, Las Vegas was nothing more than a desert stopover. The construction of nearby Hoover Dam gave the area a big boost. Gambling and casinos, run by organized crime, turned Las Vegas into an entertainment colossus.

29. New Hampshire

Event: First government independent from England

Year: 1776

Location: Statewide

New Hampshire's state motto is "Live Free or Die," so it shouldn't be surprising that the state was the first to declare itself independent from England. The state set up its own government away from colonial rule in January 1776, months before the Continental Congress. In 1778, it was also the first state to hold a constitutional convention.

30. New Jersey

Event: Battle of Trenton

Year: 1776

Location: Trenton

By the end of 1776, the Continental Army was in trouble. It had been beaten in New York and chased across New Jersey into Pennsylvania by the British Army. General George Washington needed a victory to lift the hopes of the budding nation. He took a risk by crossing an ice-choked Delaware River the day after Christmas to surprise the Hessian troops billeted at Trenton. The Army killed or captured the entire force of 1,400 Hessians. The victory boosted Americans' belief in the cause of fighting to liberate themselves from British rule.

Next week is part 4 of 5 covering New Mexico through South Carolina.