Famous
First Words: BE IT ENACED by the Senate … Indian
Citizenship Act, 1924
Welcome
to National Hermit Week (June 13-20): This
world is so full of hypocrisy, the only way you can be honest is to
be a hermit. --Pete Seeger
/ Hermits have no peer pressure.
--Steven Wright
..........You're
always shining brighter than a star.........Waylon Jennings …..Good
Morning, John
Give
us a peace that is not cheaply used,
A
peace that is no clever scheme,
A
people's peace for which men can enthuse,
A
peace that brings reality to our dream. --Langston Hughes
It
is a warm (76°F) Friday morning. The sky is asmear with humidity
that can't be seen looking straight at it but gathers in dreamy
mounds on the horizons. It makes the sky look white instead of blue.
A light breeze blows around the leaves of trees and bushes so that
the world resembles an early cartoon of dancing foliage repeated in a
loop. The wind kisses the cheek and gifts the nose with a faint
floral of unknown source. Birdsong is varied and surrounds the yard
– the inverse of theater in the round … here close, the
never-ending cheeping of baby birds in the upper birdhouse … to the
south hoots of a mourning dove surveying the little wood across the
street from the crest of our roof … the east has a quarrel of
sparrows some in the nearby redbud tree others further back … and
to the north the skree sound of a fast flying passer-by … ever
moving, ever varied. This is the universe's cover of Matins Prayers.
It is apparent that there is humidity in the air and it holds a
Kansas summer a sultry afternoon; but for now it is quiet wonderful.
Still, coffee calls me and I do want to get this morning on its way,
so I return to the cool, dry indoors and my artificially sweetened
but really creamed cup of decaf – Mmm mMM – and you.
Ah,
ePistliers, I hope your weekend parties hardy.
If
I wasn't in the theater, I would be a hermit. --Richard Foreman /
Despite being a hermit crab, Alan enjoyed staying connected by
posting the occasional “shellfie”.
..........I
guess that 's just the way the story goes.........Harry Nilsson
…..Without You
Trivia
Questions: Happy Birthday, Magna Carta – one of the earliest
declaration of the the rights of rich, white guys.
^
Which king was forced to sign the Magna Carta?
^^
What was the rank of the men doing the forcing?
^^^
In what language was the original document written?
^^^^
And for the 2 or 3 Lawyer ePistliers, what monument did the American
Bar Association build to celebrate the Magna Carta?
^^^^^
Would you like to guess the dollar value of the actual document?
Funniest
Thing I Read of the Week: I picked up a
hitchhiker last night. He seemed surprised that I'd pick up a
stranger and asked, “Thanks, but why would you pick me up? How do
you know I'm not a serial killer?” I told him the chances of two
serials killers being in one car would be astronomical. --David
McElroy
Fake
Library Statistic of the Week:
32%
of library break room conversations are about everyone's kitty litter
preferences. https://www.facebook.com/FakeLibStats/?fref=ts
When
the devil grows old he turns hermit. --Ludovico Ariosto / Birds
gotta fly, hermits gotta herm.
..........to
warm the frozen feelin' that was eatin' at my soul.........Waylon
Jennings …..To Beat The Devil
Moonbeam:
Stupidity trumps Machiavelli almost every time when you are looking
for an explanation. --Robert Russell
Bennett
Something
to Think About of the Week:
Big
Hello:
Dumȇlang – Northern Sotho (South Africa)
https://www.omniglot.com/language/phrases/hello.htm
Next
Funniest Thing I Read of the Week:
So...we're in a feud...with CANADA... Am I the only one kinda hoping
they conquer us and bring maple syrup and healthcare? --Kimberly
Janise ---Submitted by ra of ks
Week
of the Week: National Flag Week (June 10
- 16) How is the flag like Santa Claus? They both hang out at the
pole. / If you crossed the stars and stripes with a cookie it would
be a flag newton.
If
you want to talk to me on the phone, I need at least three days
notice. / Ain't no party like a hermit crab party cause a hermit crab
party is just me alone forever.
..........Sing
a song of long ago when thing were green and movin'
slow.........Harry
Nilsson …..Dayton
, Ohio 1903
^
The
ancestry of every US president (except Martin Van Buren) has been
traced back to King John of England, meaning they're all distantly
related to the King who was forced to sign the Magna Carta (and to
each other). But will we ever know who President Van Buren is related
to? ~~I think this page was written about 2000, but I'm not sure.
Here's the source:
https://www.shmoop.com/historical-texts/magna-carta/trivia.html
Almanac:
It is Friday, June 15, 2018. The moon was new yesterday and is in
Cancer. The UN
has declared this World Elder Abuse Awareness Day (A/RES/66/127). In
addition it is Eid-Al-Fitr,
Global Wind Day, Magna Carta Day, Native American Citizenship Day,
Nature Photography Day, National Day of Prayer for Law Enforcement
Officers, Prune Day, World Elder Abuse Awareness Day, and Worldwide
Day of Giving. In Denmark it is Flag Day aka Valdemar Day (1219).
While in Idaho it is Pioneer Day (1910), in Korea it is Farmer's Day
(a day to transplant rice seeds) and in Oregon it is Treaty
Day
(1846). Finally, because it is the third Friday, it is National Flip
Flop Day – the shoes
not the political maneuver.
Among
those born on this day were Edvard Grieg (1843), Robert Russell
Bennett (1894), Max Rudolf (1902), Morris Udall (1922), Mario Cuomo
(1932), Waylon Jennings (1937), Harry Nilsson (1941), Xaviera
Hollander (1942), Jim Varney (1946), Jim Belushi (1954), Helen Hunt
(1963), Courtney Cox (1964), and Neil Patrick Harris (1973).
On
June Fifteenth the Magna Carta was signed (1215), New Jersey was
established (1664), Washington was appointed commander of the army
(1775), the 12th amendment to the US constitution was ratified
(1804), Arkansas became the 25th state (1836), Goodyear patented the
vulcanization of rubber (1844), Robert E Lee's home in Arlington, Va
became a military cemetery (1864), Henry O Flipper became the first
black to graduate from West Point (1877), the 2nd Hague Peace
Conference opened (1907), the 10 millionth automobile rolled off the
Ford Motor Company line (1924), native Americans were granted US
citizenship (1924), John Lennon met Paul McCartney (1956), Hee Haw
premiered (1969), American Graffiti
opened (1973), Spain held its first free elections since 1936 (1977),
and Queen Elizabeth knighted Ronald Reagan (1989).
Night
Sky, 6/15:
Look
west after sunset to see the brightest planet, Venus, making a line
with the Gemini stars, Castor
&
Pollux
,
on our sky’s dome.
http://www.skyandtelescope.com/observing/sky-at-a-glance/
Science
Fiction Convention of the Week:
Fur-eh 2018 – Viva Paws Vegas (June 14-18, Edmonton, AB). A
Fursuiters Convention. http://www.fureh.ca/
Actual
Science Convention of the Week:
2018 International Conference on Air Pollution and Water Treatment
(June 15-17, Shanghai, China) ...to foster communication among
researchers...
https://www.nature.com/natureevents/science/events/66685-2018_International_Conference_on_Air_Pollution_and_Water_Treatment_APWT_2018
This
Week: Saturday, June 16 –
Bloomsday & World Juggling Day
Night
Sky, 6/16: Uranus is barely emerging from the glow of dawn.
Neptune is up in the east before the beginning of dawn.
Sunday,
June 17
– Eat Your Vegetables Day & National Garbage Man Day &
World
Tessellation Day
Monday,
June 18 – Autistic Pride Day & Clark Kent's Birthday &
Ride to Work on a Motorcycle Day
Night
Sky, 6/18: Mars rises around midnight lower left of Saturn.
Tuesday,
June 19 – Juenteenth & Garfield the Cat Day &
International Day for the Elimination of Sexual Violence in Conflict
Wednesday,
June 20 – American Eagle Day & World Refugee Day
Night
Sky, 6/20: Mercury is pretty well hidden in the sunset.
Jupiter shines in the south-southeast as twilight fades.
Thursday,
June 21 – Atheists Solidarity Day & Dump the Pump Day &
International Day of Yoga
There
is never enough time to do all the nothing you want. --Calvin &
Hobbes / I'm developing a new anti-social media.
..........Now
they say Hank Jr. has strayed away.........Waylon Jennings …..Leave
Them Boys Alone
^^
If
you can prove that you descended from one of the twenty-five barons
elected to serve under the Magna Carta's security clause, then you
can join the National Society of Magna Charta Dames and Barons, which
you can rub in the face of all the decedents of the loyal barons who
don't have a special club.
'Nother
Funniest Thing I Read of the Week: How many people work at
your plant? About half of them.
Moonbeam:
The more we exploit nature, the more our options are reduced, until
we have only one: to fight for survival. --Morris Udall
Late
Night Snacks: The Tony Awards was last night —
or as I call it, the Super Bowl — and it was absolutely wonderful.
The moment everyone was buzzing about was when Robert De Niro had to
be censored for saying on stage "f*** Drumpf." And today,
angry Drumpf supporters everywhere are pretending that they actually
watch the Tony Awards. --James Corden / President Drumpf told
reporters he'll know if the Kim Jong Un meeting is going well by
"touch" and "feel." In other words, Drumpf's
lawyer is going to have to pay Kim Jong Un $130,000. --Conan O'Brien
/ There’s a lot riding on this meeting. Last night, Kim spent hours
preparing, while at the same time Drumpf was in bed waiting for
SpongeBob to perform at the Tonys. --Jimmy Fallon / President Drumpf
and North Korean leader Kim Jong Un met tonight in Singapore after we
taped our show. So if you're watching this on TV right now, either it
went well, or you have a TV in your fallout shelter. --Seth Meyers /
After a brief one-on-one meeting, the two leaders got down to the
most important item on the agenda: lunch! Including, ‘Korean
stuffed cucumber.’ Well, there’s your headline: ‘DRUMPF ATE A
VEGETABLE.’ Wow! They said it couldn’t be done! They scoffed! By
the way, Korean stuffed cucumber is stuffed with Koreans. Kim is a
monster. --Stephen Colbert
Not
So Late Night Snacks: Peter Sagal: Here we go. Peter, true or
false? Scott Pruitt spent $1,500 of government funds to get fountain
pens engraved with his signature. Peter Grosz: I'm going to say
true. Sagal: It is true. It is not true, however, that the ink is the
blood of endangered animals. --Wait, Wait, Don't Tell Me
Give
us a peace that will produce great schools --
As
the war produced great armament,
A
peace that will wipe out our slums --
As
war wiped out our foes on evil bent. --Langston Hughes
I'm
a Social Vegan – I avoid meet. / I deleted my facebook account,
signed off all social media, left the US, lived in a cave in the
Himalayas for 3 years. Then one day a pigeon came with a note that
turned out to be a Candy Crush Request.
..........warm
and tender.........Harry Nilsson …..Sweet Surrender
^^^
The
Magna Carta was originally written in Latin (the language of the
Church) and then translated into French (the language of the
nobility). So the most important document in English history wasn't
translated into English for about three hundred years.
Worthless
Fact of the Week: The
Twelfth Amendment (Election of President and Vice President~) cannot
be understood outside of the Electoral College, which was set out in
the 1787 Constitution as the mechanism by which Americans select
their presidents. ~Passed
12/9/1803, ratified 6/15/1804.
Wicked
Funniest Thing I Read of the Week: I
keep trying to make protein shakes but they keep coming out as
margaritas. --Submitted by mja of ks
Weird
Word of the Week:
Nosopoetic – causing disease (nosos – disease + poietikos –
creative or productive) supplanted by pathogenic.
http://www.worldwidewords.org/weirdwords/ww-nos2.htm
Wacky
Uses for Common Products:
Prevent car battery corrosion. Smear Vaseline Petroleum Jelly on
clean car battery terminals.
http://www.wackyuses.com/wacky/vaseline.html
I
don't have a welcome mat at my door because I'm not a liar. / Hermit:
a person whose vices and follies are not sociable. --Ambrose Bierce
...........I'm
gotta quit this drinkin'. It's been messin' up my head.........Waylon
Jennings …..One Of My Bad Habits
^^^^
In
1957 the American Bar Association (that's an important group of
lawyers) built the Magna Carta Monument at Runnymede, although it's
probably not in the exact location where the signing/stamping took
place. But, when it really is just a swampy patch next to a river,
does it matter where the monument is?
Dead
Joke of the Week: I was feeling quite good about the doctor
saying my complaints were normal for my age until I realized that at
some age “normal” is dead.
Penultimate
Funniest Thing I Read of the Week: on
HGTV they can flip a house in a month and I've been “getting ready
to dust” for the past two weeks.
Rant
of the Week: Has
anyone considered that war with Canada may be the 21st
century of The
Mouse That Roared.
We lose to Canada, we get healthcare and infrastructure rebuild and
a new government that knows how to pay for them.
Puck
the Brave
Episode of the Week:
Here's our fearless Puck watching Tom fix the deck in the case of the
Hammering Harrier.
Yeah,
so what if I'd rather read than go to a bar? Deal with it. / What
lives in the ocean, is grouchy, and hates neighbors? A hermit crab /
Last year I joined a support group for
anti-social people. We haven't met yet.
..........Only
the echoes of my mind.........Harry Nilsson …..Everybody's Talkin'
^^^^^
A
privately owned copy of the Magna Carta was sold at auction in 2007
for $21.3 million, the most ever paid for a single page of writing.
And it wasn't even an original copy; it was from 1297
Month
of the Week: June is Candy Month – If
you dip a kitten into carefully tempered chocolate you get a kitty
cat bar / An upside-down kernel of candy corn looks exactly like
Donald Trump.
Final
Funniest Thing I Read of the Week:
School Sign: Dear Parents, Tag, You're it! Love, Teachers
Most
Beautiful Thing in US Virgin Islands:
National Marine Sanctuary of American Samoa - The
National Marine Sanctuary of American Samoa is located in the cradle
of Polynesia’s oldest culture and is thought to support the
greatest diversity of marine life in the National Marine Sanctuary
System, including a wide variety of coral and other invertebrates,
fishes, turtles, marine mammals and marine plants.
https://americansamoa.noaa.gov/
Today's
Peaces of History, June 15:
(1942) The Congress of Racial Equality (CORE) was founded in Chicago
by a group of students including James Farmer and Bayard Rustin and
(1970) the US Supreme Court ruled in US
v. Sisson that conscientious objectors, those who refuse military
service or to bear arms for moral or religious reasons, need not base
their beliefs on the tenets of an organized religion.
Today's
Peaces of Women's History, June 15:
(1871) Phoebe Couzins
became the first woman to graduate from a US collegiate law school
and (1877) Sara Spencer became the first woman to address a US
presidential convention.
Hermits
United. We meet up every ten years and swap stories about caves.
It's good fund...for a hermit. --David Tennent / I know I've been a
dreadful friend lately, but I have been an awesome hermit.
..........And
when I awoke, I was alone.........Waylon Jennings …..Norwegian
Wood
Masthead
of the Week:
Friday ePistle June 15, 2018, Ascetic ePistle. Online at:
http://fridayepistle.blogspot.com/
Peace, Jokes, and Loners. Exclusive editor: Christine Smith. 1800
Goodell Ct. Lawrence, KS 66046
Moonbeam:
In America you can get away with murder, but not with sex. --
Xaviera Hollander
Cost
of War:
As
of 6/14/18 Military Costs of War since 2001: $2,829,362,609,200.
As
of 6/7/18 Military Costs of War since 2001: $2,827,387,570,822.
As
of 6/14/18 Homeland Security Costs since 2001: $832,178,550,931.
As
of 6/7/18 Homeland Security Costs since 2001: $830,836,301,188.
As
of 6/14/18 Interest on War Debt since 2001: $595,824,571,739.
As
of 6/7/18 Interest on War Debt since 2001: $594,137,150,208.
As
of 6/14/18 Veterans Care since 2001: $291,051,058,248.
As
of 6/7/18 Veterans Care since 2001: $290,667,553,120.
As
of 6/14/18 Total Cost of Wars since 2001: $4,548,417,643,042.
As
of 6/7/18 Total Cost of Wars since 2001: $4,543,029,404,125.
Give
us a peace that will enlist
A
mighty army serving human kind,
Not
just an army geared to kill,
But
trained to help the living mind.
An
army trained to shape our common good
And
bring about a world of brotherhood. --Langston Hughes Give
Us Our Peace
..........I'll
leave my things behind for all to see.........Harry Nilsson …..I
Said Goodbye To Me
Three
hermits move into a cave together and for the first seven years they
don’t speak to each other. Then one morning a horse runs by the
mouth of the cave. Seven years later the first hermit says, “That
was a pretty white horse that ran by.” Seven more years go by and
the second hermit says, “That horse wasn’t white, he was black.”
Yet another seven years go by and the third hermit starts packing
his bags. The other two look at him and he says, “If all you two
are going to do is argue, then I’m leaving.”
Famous
Last Words: ...to the contracting Powers. --Acta Second
Hague Peace Conference
May
Peace fill you cave
And
Joy fill your heart
prairie
mama
christine
Last
Laugh:
