Famous First Words: Resolved, That Donald John Trump, President... Impeachment Articles 2019 ~~The trial began 11/13/19
It's Childrens Book Week (9-15). Ernest Hemingway: The Old Man and the Guppy Sparsely worded, stoic, and devastatingly earnest about a very small fish. !! Rejected Children's Book Titles: Strangers Have the Best Candy
..........They grow up in the most delightful way.........Honoré …..Thank Heaven For Little Girls
If we desire respect for the law, we must first make the law respectable. --Louis D Brandeis
It is a cold Friday morning. When I got up a couple of hours ago, it was 26°F, now it's up to 29. Frost has painted the grass and is waiting for the sun to actually shine down on it to melt away its winter makeup. I hear no bird song. In fact I do not even hear the sound of motor cars or airplanes. It is a cold and silent morning. Veronica the cat declined to go out after the open door hit her in the face with a cold blast; and Puck the dog is still asleep where he spent the night. The sky is clear and very blue. The trees are wearing colorful fall leaves but lack real wind to show them off properly. I am sipping my doctored decaf and listening...the crows are coming. I can hear their joyous cawing getting nearer. What a lovely first frosty morning of fall. Stay warm!
Hope your weekend is colored in kindness, wherever you are.
First Funniest Thing I Read of the Week: Reading Plato so I can understand Aristotle so I can understand Kant so I can understand Hegel so I can understand Marx so I can argue online. --wolfgang --Submitted by Philosopher Games
Edgar Allan Poe: The Tell-Tale Toddler Gothic suspense over everyday nursery crimes (like who hid the green crayon behind the wainscoting. !! Rejected Children's Book Titles: Curious George Plays Freeway Chicken
..........No more confusion No morning-after surprise.........Honoré …..I'm Glad I'm Not Young Anymore
Trivia Questions: Happy Sandwich Day!
Who is credited with inventing the sandwich?
What and/or where was the largest sandwich made?
What is the most popular sandwich in the US?
As a matter of law, is a taco a sandwich?
What was Elvis Presley's favorite sandwich?
Big Hello: Cэлam - Adyghe (Russia) https://www.omniglot.com/language/phrases/hello.htm
Second Funniest Thing I Read of the Week: Basically as a writer I try hard to put words on the page that are so good they make you hallucinate the story and emotions. Like a drug dealer, but not paid nearly as well. --Submitted by Laughing Librarian
Image of the Week: Throwback - Puck in 2015
Whatever This Is of the Week: Lots of world leaders are old, not just the US congress. Why, then, hasn't someone built an airport outdoor elevator that could be wheeled up to VIP planes and the celebrities could walk onto/into the elevator, wave for the camera, and get whisked to the ground. It would be safer for everyone. Best of all, it would eliminate all those news videos showing the walk down the steps. Everybody waddles when they come down rickety metal stairs, not just old people. The exit looks like penguins headed for the water. If we can go to the moon, we can get fat, old people to the ground without destroying their dignity.
William Shakespeare: The Tragedy of Humbug and the Terrible Nap Iambic pentameter tantrums and high-drama refusals to eat green vegetables. !! Rejected Children's Book Titles: Bob the Builder and the Falling Tower
..........Why caterpillars smile and summertime has wings.........Gigi …..The Earth and Other Minor Things
Moonbeam: ...but baseball is still baseball. --Buck O'Neil
Blasphemy of the Week: Imagine dying, getting reincarnated, and finding out you have to work retail again. --Submitted by Blasphemy Memes ~~My mother used to say that when she died, St Peter would say, “Mrs Bray, hey, you're over in yardgoods.”
Coffee Joke of the Week: Coffee makes everything okayer. https://www.facebook.com/search/top/?q=maythecoffeebewithyou
Next Funniest Thing I Read of the Week: I am starting a petition to no longer refer to AI “art” as AI art but instead as Computer-Rendered Artificial Pictures (CRAP). @bireeves95.bsky.social
Jane Austen: Suten and Prejudice (Against Bedtime) Utterly civil, passive-aggressive social maneuvering in the backyard sandbox. !! Rejected Children's Book Titles: Running With Scissors
..........She's so gracious So vivacious.........Gaston …..She's Not Thinking of Me
John Montague, the 4th Earl of Sandwich, is said to order meat between bread while he spent hours betting on cards. Others doubt this story, however, and claim he ordered it from his work desk.
Almanac: It is Friday, November 13. The moon was new last Monday (11/9) and is in Capricorn. Today is Sandwich Day and World Kindness Day.
Among those born on this day were Robert Louis Stevenson (1850), Louis Brandeis (1856), Bennie Moten (1893), Buck O'Neil (1911), Madeleine Sherwood (1922), Oskar Werner (1922), Richard Mulligan (1932), Garry Marshall (1934), Jean Seberg (1938), Toy Caldwell (1947), Joe Mantegna (1947), Merrick Garland (1952), Chris Noth (1954), Whoppi Goldberg (1954), Greg Abbott (1957), Neil Flynn (1960), Jimmy Kimmel (1967), and Steve Zahn (1967).
On the thirteenth of November Christopher Wren was appointed architect for St Paul's Cathedral in London (1673), the Liberty Party convened (US first anti-slavery party, 1839), Mt, Rainier erupted (1843), Big Ben chimed for the first time (1856), the National Bowling Association was organized (1875), Hattie Caraway (D-AK) was appointed the first US female senator (1931), the first modern "sit down" strike in the US (Hormel, 1933), the supreme court struck down segregation on public transportation (1956), Pope Paul VI gave up the jewel-encrusted, gold papal crown, donating it to the poor (1964), the Vietnam War Memorial was dedicated (DC, 1982). Armengaud discovered 2^1398269-1 (35th known Mersenne prime, 1996), Barbie first wore a hijab (2017), and Trump's first impeachment trial began (2019).
Night Sky, 11/13: The Northern Taurid meteor shower is just past peak but still active, very bright, slow-moving fireballs. The Moon is c. 15% illuminated.
Fraternal Picture of the Week: The Flying Velcro Brothers
This Week: Saturday, November 14 – Loosen Up, Lighten Up Day & National Pickle Day & Operating Room Nurses Day
Sunday, November 15 – America Recycles Day & I Love to Write Day & National Clean Out Your Refrigerator Day
Night Sky, 11/15: Evening Planets: Saturn in the south, Neptune (best with binoculars) Morning Planets: Jupiter & Mars close together in Leo
Monday, November 16 – International Day for Tolerance & National Button Day & Breaking Free From Nicotine Day
Tuesday, November 17 – Homemade Bread Day & Take A Hike Day & National Butter Day
Wednesday, November 18 – Mickey Mouse Day & International Day of Islamic Art & Push-Button Phone Day
Night Sky, 11/18: Sunrise: 7:01 am Sunset: 5:09 pm 10 hours and 8 minutes of daylight. Moonrise: 10:52 am Moonset 9:15 pm
Thursday, November 19 – Rocky and Bullwinkle Day & Use Less Stuff Day & Equal Opportunity Day
Franz Kafka: The Metamorphosis of Morning Routine Waking up to discover you have turned into a giant, uncooperative pajama-clad beetle who cannot find his left velcro sneaker. !! Rejected Children's Book Titles: The Illustrated H P Lovecraft
..........Don't you marvel at the power of the mighty Eiffel Tower.........Gaston & Honoré …..It's A Bore
2) Wild Woody's Chill and Grill in Roseville, Michigan made a sandwich weighing 5,440 pounds. It was made in 2005 and was 12 ft long and 12 ft wide by 17.5 in tall. It consisted of bread, corned beef, lettuce, cheese, and mustard.
Preantepenultimate Funniest Thing I Read of the Week: Don't tell me energy is low around voting. Just received a report out of Kansas that a voter was told she couldn't vote while wearing her partisan t-shirt. So she took it off and voted in her bra. --SairaForGeorgia --Submitted by bu of ks
Moonbeam: You can give without loving, but you can never love without giving. --Robert Louis Stevenson
Fun Fact of the Week: Rep Josh Hawley (MO) is shocked by the blue wave and calls for a (sic) “historic response”. “I'm going to host a time of fasting and prayer for the nation on Tuesday, December 06 from 12 to 1 at the Capitol.” That's the fact. ~~This is the fun part...fasting for one hour is not very impressive.
Video of the Week: Big Ben chiming (1:17) Since its first chime it has marked well over a million and a half hours.
They tell you in Washington that if you want a friend, get a dog. That is not true. Get a family. This is a hard place to be. --Merrick Garland
Charles Dickens: Oliver Asks for More … Tater Tots Bleak Victorian melodrama applied to minor playground injustices. !! Rejected Children's Book Titles: Laws Are Only For Grownups
..........A paradise where romance blooms.........?? …..The Contract
3) The grilled cheese sandwich is the most popular sandwich in the US. It gets a 79% approval rate. The next three are Chicken Sandwich, Turkey Sandwich, and Peanut Butter and Jelly.
Antepenultimate Funniest Thing I Read of the Week: I'd be lying if I said that I didn't regret not paying a bit more attention at my first rodeo. --Styx --Submitted by Writers, Readers and General Tomfoolery
Weird Word of the Week: Irenic: Promoting peace or reconciliation, often used to describe a personality or a peaceful solution to conflict. https://dictionary.cambridge.org/us/dictionary/english/irenic
Dragon of the Week:
Wacky Uses for Common Products: Roast a succulent turkey. Wash the turkey, place it in a plastic oven bag, pour one-half can of Coke over the turkey, and close the bag as directed. Before the last half hour, split the bag open to give the turkey a nice caramel brown. The Coke provides the salt, so there is no need to add any. https://www.wackyuses.com/wacky/cocacola4.html ~~Doesn't it also add sweetness? Ugh.
Virginia Woolf: Mrs Monarchy Innovative stream of consciousness, a butterfly remembers hijinks of her milkweed nursery. !! Rejected Children's Book Titles: Street Hockey for Toddlers
...........I was on time. No, you were late..........Honoré and Mamita …..I Remember It Well
4) On May 13, 2024, a judge in the Allen Superior Court in Indiana issued an order concluding that tacos and burritos are sandwiches in the eyes of the law. The case, Quintana v. Fort Wayne Plan Commission, arose from a zoning dispute.
Penultimate Funniest Thing I Read of the Week: Naming Stephen Miller chief of staff is like looking at a five-alarm fire and deciding the problem is a shortage of gasoline. --A.W. --Submitted by 98%
Science Fiction Convention of the Week: Cosmic Realms 2026 (13-15, Philippi, WV) Battlers Knob https://fancons.com/events/info/28897/cosmic-realms-2026
Hats off the Washington State of the Week: Washington has selected Jimi Hendrix for the 2029 US Mint coin program. More
Spark of Joy of the Week: 28 years as a flight attendant, and I swear I've never felt an energy like this on an airplane. People are smiling, joking, and talking to strangers. It's like the entire country just exhaled at the same time and is currently walking around high as shit. Midterm energy is something else. --JF --Submitted by 98%
Alfred Bester: The Backyard My Destination Fast paced adventures of a tattooed boy learning to walk. !! Rejected Children's Book Titles: Santa Looks Into Your Window At Night
..........Stars on their beat looking down on the sweet..........Honoré …..Paris Is Paris Again
5) Elvis favored a peanut butter, banana, and bacon sandwich.
Protest Sign of the Week: Si le texas peut le faire nous aussi (from France) If Texas can do it, so can we”
Quote of the Week: We must especially beware of that small group of selfish men who would clip the wings of the American Eagle in order to feather their own nests. --Franklin D Roosevelt
Final Funniest Thing I Read of the Week: Note to Stephen Miller: While Richard Nixon never saw jail time, his Chief of Staff did. --ts
Today's Peace of History: November 13, 1956: The U.S. Supreme Court ruled segregation unconstitutional in public transportation. The case, Browder v. Gayle, was brought by four women, Aurelia Browder, Susie McDonald, Claudette Colvin and Mary Louise Smith, who had refused to surrender their bus seats to whites in Montgomery (months before Rosa Parks had done so), and had been arrested for violating Alabama law which required segregation on public buses.
John Barth: Goat Boy Grills A massive postmodern, metafictional satirical picture book about a faun at Harvard. !! Rejected Children's Book Titles: Home Explosives Made Easy
..........They thought of you and me.........Gigi and Gaston …..The Night They Invented Champagne
Masthead of the Week: Friday ePistle, November 13, 2026: a Child's ePistle. Online at: http://fridayepistle.blogspot.com/ Exclusive editor: Christine Smith. Lawrence, KS.
Moonbeam: The idea that you would not only exercise but that you would enjoy it is very difficult for me to understand. --Jimmy Kimmel
Cost of War: Pentagon Spending 11/12/26: $1,138,988,850,265
Twenty billion, two hundred and fifty-nine million, two hundred and ninety-six thousand, three hundred and sixty-four dollars spent this week on war.
Pentagon Spending 11/05/26: $1,118,729,553,901
Peace cannot be bullied into existence. --Ali Jarbawi
Pentagon Spending in October 2026: $85,210,317,032
Pentagon Spending in September 2026: $83,835,546,693
Pentagon Spending in August 2026: $89,089,647,361
Pentagon Spending in July 2026: $85,053,017,282
Pentagon Spending in June 2026: $82,621,957,422
Pentagon Spending in May 2026: $87,601,145,719
Pentagon Spending in April 2026: $81,264,897,194
https://www.nationalpriorities.org/cost-of/
Measles in the US 2026: November: 5,182 confirmed cases (1,102 new cases)
October: 4,080 September: 3.294 August: 2,566 July: 2,231 June: 2,073 May: 1,842 April: 1,748
There have been 4 deaths from measles in 2026. In 2010 we had 63 cases and 0 deaths. https://www.cdc.gov/measles/data-research/index.html
America is ready for livable communities. America is ready for high-speed rail. --Greg Abbott
Famous Last Words: ...disqualification to hold and enjoy any office of honor, trust, or profit under the United States. House Resolution 755, 116th Congress, first Session Articles of Impeachement Against Donald John Trump 2019
..........Something buried inside I can no longer hide.........Gigi …..In This Wide Wide World ~~Gigi opened on Broadway November 13, 1973 with Karin Wolfe, Daniel Massey, Alfred Drake, and Maria Karnilova
Agatha Christie: Ten Little Iguanas Proper English suspense when the lead forward for the Intense Iguanas cricket team went missing. !! Rejected Children's Book Titles: Nightmare On Sesame Street
May Peace keep your sleep
And Joy fill your waking hours
prairie mama
christine
Last Laugh:
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