aN ePistle oF mAnners

Famous First Words: Is this the real life? Is this just fantasy? --Freddie Mercury Bohemian Rhapsody

Celebrate Bring Your Manners At Work Day! I don't know whether it's still good manners to open a door for a lady, but I have discovered it does not apply to airplane doors. ++ MAGA Manners: Good manners, like public transportation, were designed to be used by others, not us.

Love...is quiet understanding, mutual confidence, sharing and forgiving. It is loyalty through good and bad times. It settles for less than perfection and makes allowances for human weaknesses. --Ann Landers

..........Here we go 'round again..........Kingston Trio …..Molly Dee

...the nature of peace-whether peace will simply mean that the guns are silenced, that the bombs no longer fall, that the tanks cease to roll, or whether it will mean that the nations of the Middle East can deal with each other as neighbors and as equals and as friends, with a full range of diplomatic and cultural and economic and human relations between them. --Jimmy Carter Report on the Camp David Conference, 1978

It is a chilly Friday morning. The sky is a slate gray without texture, without darker gray areas, and without a light spot where the sun must be. The 60°F is comfortable when the wind takes a breath and only slightly cold when it exhales again. Tree limbs move slowly giving the wall of foliage a psychedelic feel. The birds and squirrels and even mama rabbit have been to the patio for breakfast. The bluejays yell what I assume are warnings. And the squirrels sometimes fuss squeakily at the birds or the other squirrels and always at the cat. This morning is relatively quiet. The crows don't come at all anymore. I am drinking decaf – properly doctored – and Puck is asleep under my desk. I can hear his gentle snoring as I type. Veronica has spent some time in the doorway playing “protect the bird seed”. Tomorrow, Kirsten, my daughter, will be in town; always a wonderful time. So, it is a gentle, pleasant morning and now I get to make it better by writing to you.

Hope your weekend matters no matter its manners, ePistliers

First Funniest Thing I Read of the Week: Infinity is just the universe's way of saying “Scroll down”. --Submitted by Club42

For lunch we went to an Indian restaurant for some curry. After the waitress took our order, a little old lady came to our table and said, “What a nice looking group of people, so well dressed and with such good manners. We found out later that it was the complimentary nan. ++ You can tell if an American has been well brought up; they use silencers at school shootings.

Everything that I understand, I understand only because I love. --Leo Tolstoy

..........He whistled and he sang till the greenwoods rang..........Kingston Trio …..The Whistling Gypsy

Trivia Questions:

1. How many people in the US were food insecure in 2023?

1. How many food banks are there in the US?

2. How much food passes through the banks per year?

3. About how many people work for and/or support the banks?

4. Do you know where the closest food bank is to you?

Big Hello: ¡hola! - Spanish https://www.omniglot.com/language/phrases/hello.htm

Second Funniest Thing I Read of the Week: I already told you I am not turning your water into pumpkin spice latte.

Image of the Week: Our house with its new paint job.

Insult of the Week: He's not human; he's an empty space disguised as a human. --John Fowles The Collector

If it is bad manners to talk with your mouth full, is it bad manners for a deaf person to talk with food in their hands? ++ Throwing the bouquet to see who's next: good manners at a wedding, bad manners at a funeral.

Life is the first gift, love is the second, and understanding the third. --Marge Piercy

..........His candle just at twelve o'clock began to burn quite palely..........Kingston Trio …..The Unfortunate Miss Bailey

Moonbeam: You shouldn't get too close to the truth, because then maybe you stop being funny. --Bob Newhart

Blasphemy of the Week: God: I do not send hurricanes to punish you. That's what Christian rock is for. --Submitted by Wittenburg Door

Coffee Joke of the Week: So, is the Starbucks Computer System programmed in JavaScript?

Next Funniest Thing I Read of the Week: The future is just the past dressed in shinier packaging. --Submitted by Club42

When Obi Wan was teaching at the Tatooine Finishing School he was known for saying “Use the forks”. ++ Quote from the not so great pumpkin: I raised the best kids. So polite. Already today Don Jr has said, “Pardon me, dad” at least 20 time. He has such great manners.

If you understand each other you will be kind to each other. --John Steinbeck

..........Tell me what were their names..........Kingston Trio …..Reuben James

1) In 2023, an estimated 47.4 million Americans lived in food-insecure households. This was 13.5% of households. And included 13.8 million children

Almanac: It is Friday, September 5, 2025. The moon will be full (Harvest or Corn) on Sunday (9/9) and is in Sagittarius. Today is Acme Positivity Day, Be Late for Something Day, International Day Of Charity, Jury Rights Day, and National Cheese Pizza Day. Because it is the first Friday in September it is also Bring Your Manners to Work Day, National Dog Walker Appreciation Day, National Food Bank Day, National Lazy Mom's Day, and Stand Up To Cancer Day.

Among those born on this day were Louis VIII (1187), Louis XIV (1638), Giacomo Meyerbeer (1791), Jesse James (1847), Darryl F. Zanuck (1902), John Cage (1912), Jack Valenti (1921), Bob Newhart (1929), Carol Lawrence (1934), John Stewart (1939, Kingston Trio member and songwriter, Daydream Believer), Raquel Welch (1940), Al Stewart (1945), Freddie Mercury (1946), Dweezil Zappa (1969), and Tina Yothers (1973).

On September fifth the first Continental Congress assembled (1774), The United States signed a peace treaty with Algiers (1795), Houston was elected president of the Republic of Texas (1836), the first Labor Day parade was held in NYC (10,000 marched, (1882), France seized Chad (1900), the Camp David Peace Conference opened (1978),

Night Sky, 9/5: The waxing gibbous Moon shines in the south-southeast this evening, on a line between Altair and Fomalhaut. Altair is the bright star three or four fists above the Moon and maybe somewhat to the right. Fomalhaut, the Autumn Star, rises a little after dark depending on your latitude. Imagine a line from Altair down through the Moon and continuing on. The line will hit either Fomalhaut or the place on your horizon to watch for Fomalhaut to rise. http://www.skyandtelescope.com/observing/sky-at-a-glance/

Fraternal Picture of the Week: Playing … ?Hulk Hogan vs Gorgeous George ?Anteaus & Hercules

Extra Funniest Thing I Read of the Week: Having cats in the house is like living with art that sometimes throws up on the carpet.

This Week: Saturday, September 6 – National Play Outside Day & National Tailgating Day & World Beard Day

Sunday, September 7 – Grandma Moses Day & Grateful Patient Day & Pet Rock Day

Night Sky, 9/7: Full Moon (1:09 pm CDT) in Pisces. Saturn follows about 8° or 10° behind it across the sky tonight. There is a total lunar eclipse which is not visible in either of the American continents.

Monday, September 8 – Iguana Awareness Day & Star Trek Day & World Physical Therapy Day

Tuesday, September 9 – Ants On A Log Day & National Teddy Bear Day & Wonderful Weirdos Day

Night Sky, 9/9: Epsilon Perseids (ε-Perseids) won’t put on much of a show this year coming just two days after the Full Moon, so the moonlight will wash out all but the brightest meteors

Wednesday, September 10 – Swap Ideas Day & World Suicide Prevention Day

Night Sky, 8/10: Uranus (magnitude 5.7, in Taurus near the Pleiades) rises around 10 or 11 pm and gets high in the east in the early morning hours. In a telescope it's a tiny but definitely non-stellar dot 3.6 arcseconds wide.

Thursday, September 11 – Libraries Remember Day & Remember Freedom Day

Little Known Fact: The dinosaur with the best manners was the Pleaseiosaur. ++ What can you do with crude oil? Teach it manners.

In the end, we will conserve only what we love, we will love only what we understand, and we will understand only what we are taught. --Baba Dioum

..........A fight for the winnin' I'll be there..........Kingston Trio …..One More Town

2) There are more than 200 food banks in the US that are part of the Feeding America Network. Additionally there are thousands of independent food banks and other charitable organizations (food pantries, meal programs, etc.).

Preantepenultimate Funniest Thing I Read of the Week: The problem is, everyone is looking for unconditional love carrying a bag full of conditions. --Prince Ea

Moonbeam: I can't understand why people are frightened of new ideas. I'm frightened of the old ones. --John Cage

Fun Fact of the Week: National Be Late For Something Day! The Procrastinators' Club of America was founded in 1956 by Les Waas. Shortly after the club's beginning, the committee designated September 5th as Be Late for Something

Video of the Week: For Jury Rights Day – a courtroom scene from Night Court featuring Brent Spiner as the defendant. https://youtu.be/gfSyhQqeLBg ~~The Wheelers were going to become regular cast members by buying the newsstand. However, Brent got the role of Data

...secure and recognized boundaries, the end of military occupation, and the granting of self-government or else the return to other nations of territories which have been occupied by Israel since the 1967 conflict. --Jimmy Carter

True love is born from understanding. --Gautama Buddha

Is it considered bad manners to eat fried chicken with your fingers? Yes, eat your fingers separately. ++ Good manners sometimes means simply putting up with other people's bad manners. --H Jackson Brown Jr

..........The anchor is weighed..........Kingston Trio …..Away Rio

3) It is estimated that 6.24 billion pounds of food is distributed annually through food banks and meal prep charities.

Antepenultimate Funniest Thing I Read of the Week: When gardeners quit, do they throw in the trowel?

Weird Word of the Week: Nihilarian: A person who deals with things lacking in substance or meaning, often in a philosophical sense. https://word-lists.com/word-lists/100-rare-words-with-beautiful-meanings/

Dragon of the Week:

Wacky Uses for Common Products: Clean the inside of a washing machine. If your whites are coming out gray, clean the washing machines by filling it with hot water and adding one quart clorox bleach. Run the machine through the longest cycle, and immediately upon completion of that cycle, repeat with one quart Heinz White Vinegar (instead of the bleach). https://www.wackyuses.com/wacky/clorox.html

Even the simplest act of understanding, love, and attention can produce the biggest results. --Alicia Keys

Clara was such a polite clown, always making a nice jester. ++ Don't believe that song. The red nosed reindeer was so obnoxious they renamed him RUDEolph.

...........Doin' what I think I should..........Kingston Trio …..Greenback Dollar

4) About 136,000 people in the US are paid to operate food pantries and soup kitchens. However over 2 million volunteers serve each month. (2014)

Penultimate Funniest Thing I Read of the Week: The Golden Deceiver goes half a weekend without committing an impeachable offense, and we all just assume he's dead. --Submitted by USDS

Science Fiction Convention of the Week: Scare-A-Con 2025 (5-7, Syracuse, NY) The ultimate horror and pop culture gathering https://scareacon.com/

Skewed Quote of the Week: This isn't just plain corruption; this is fancy corruption. This is corruption with raisins in it. --with thanks to Dorothy Parker

Spark of Joy of the Week: Image of a young man at the arrival gate in an airport. He stands alone and holds a sign with a single word. - Godot

Understanding is the essence of love. --Thich Nhat Hanh

Simply being a parent does not give you an excuse for bad manners. --Rosalind Wiseman ++ MAGA Manners: 1) Never take beer to a job interview. 2) Identify the person in your yard before shooting at them. 3) It is considered poor taste to take a cooler to church.

..........Born to the task to keep us free..........Kingston Trio …..The New Frontier

5) Search “food pantries City, State” OR check with your local library. They usually maintain lists of resources. Also churches can be helpful too.

Protest Sign of the Week: Resist Much – Obey Little --Walt Whitman

Better Protest Sign of the Week: Republicans For Voldemort

Quote of the Week: As Christians, we must be guided not by political vagaries, but by the sure and certain knowledge that the kingdom of God is revealed to us in the struggles of those on the margins. --Rev. Sean Rowe

Final Funniest Thing I Read of the Week: Every atom in your body used to be somewhere far more interesting. --Submitted by Club42

Today's Peace of History: September 5, 1882: Well over 10,000 workers demanding the 8-hour day marched to protest working conditions in the first-ever US Labor Day parade, held in New York City. About a quarter million New Yorkers turned out to watch.

People who talk about revolution and class struggle without referring explicitly to everyday life, without understanding what is subversive about love and what is positive in the refusal of constraints, such people have a corpse in their mouth. --Raoul Vaneigem

Manners is the noise you don't make while eating soup. ++ MAGA Manners: Yes, it is still considered tacky to drive a uhaul to a funeral.

..........I gotta walk that lonesome valley..........Kingston Trio …..Reverend Mr Black

Masthead of the Week: Friday ePistle, September 5, 2025: aN ePistle oF mAnners. Online at: http://fridayepistle.blogspot.com/ Exclusive editor: Christine Smith. Lawrence, KS.

Moonbeam: You can't fake listening. It shows. --Rachel Welch

Cost of War:

As of 09/04/25 State Department Costs: $273,972,300,412

As of 08/28/25 State Department Costs: $273,406,653,236

As of 09/04/25 Homeland Security: $1,209,297,529,439

As of 08/28/25 Homeland Security: $1,208,683,123,912

As of 09/04/25 Interest on War Debt: $1,324,336,879,246

As of 08/28/25 Interest on War Debt: $1,322,756,685,821

As of 09/04/25 Military Costs: $3,165,200,131,803

As of 08/28/25 Military Costs: $3,164,000,527,146

As of 09/04/25 Veterans Care: $4,464,071,884,545

As of 08/28/25 Veterans Care: $4,452,095,003,912

As of 09/04/25 Total Cost of Wars: $10,436,880,715,286

As of 08/28/25 Total Cost of Wars: $10,420,944,508,947

https://www.nationalpriorities.org/cost-of/

...there is the painful human question of the fate of the Palestinians who live or who have lived in these disputed regions. --Jimmy Carter

Famous Last Words: Nothing really matters to me. --Freddie Mercury Bohemian Rhapsody

..........And we're comin' one by one..........Kingston Trio …..Road To Freedom

When people need love and understanding and support the most is when they deserve it the least. --Lou Holtz

Politeness is half good manners and half good lying. ++ The hardest job kids face today is learning good manners without seeing any. --Fred Astaire ++ You can't be truly rude until you understand good manners. --Rita Mae Brown

May Peace inhabit your mind

And Joy animate your soul

prairie mama

christine

Last Laugh:

gAmey ePistle

Famous First Words: Wind's in the east... Mary Poppins – the movie

Welcome to According To Hoyle Day! Poker: The game isn't over until the rent money's gone. ++ If you can't spot the sucker at the table – it's you.

To forgive is to set a prisoner free and discover that the prisoner was you. --Lewis B Smedes

..........I got no kick against modern jazz.........The Beatles …..Rock And Roll Music ~~Today's songs are from the Beatles final public concert, San Francisco, 1966

The end of law is not to abolish or restrain, but to preserve and enlarge freedom. For in all the states of created beings capable of law, where there is no law, there is no freedom. --John Locke

It is a beautiful Friday morning. The sky is a pale, pale blue without a cloud for contrast. A 59°F temperature makes it feel beautiful as well. There is no breeze so the only movements in the trees are made by moving birds which contribute small flits of color among the green branches. Squirrels and birds come and go from the peanuts and birdseed on the patio. Puck has gone out and returned; now he sleeps in the other room. Veronica has gone out and returned and disappeared into the house somewhere. I am sipping creamy, sweetened decaf; I lift it to my face and breath in the steam and that wonderful smell of ambition. The screech of a bluejay announces the arrival of the family. Must be time to get on with the day.

Hope your weekend is a winning hand, Luck Dragons

First Funniest Thing I Read of the Week: I have a very vivid imagination. Mostly I use it to make myself anxious. https://www.facebook.com/groups/229761791287211

Work is for people who don't know how to play bridge. ++ Well, the salary seems right and the pension is good, but I'm a little disappointed to hear that there aren't any noon bridge games.

To err is human; to forgive, divine. --Alexander Pope

..........You know she's happy as can be.........The Beatles …..She's A Woman

Trivia Questions: Today is National College Colors Day! Can you name the last five years of College Basketball Champions from their college colors?

1. 2025 Orange and Blue Gators (SEC)

2. 2024 Navy Blue and White and Grey Huskies (Big East)

3. 2023 Navy Blue and White and Grey Huskies (Big East)

4. 2022 Crimson and Blue Jayhawks (Big 12)

5. 2021 Green and Gold Bears (Big 12)

Big Hello: Southern Sámi – Buaregh (An endangered indigenous language spoken in central Norway and north-central Sweden, belonging to the Saamic branch of the Uralic language family.) https://www.omniglot.com/language/phrases/hello.htm

Second Funniest Thing I Read of the Week: Same Sh*t, Different A**hole. --Submitted by jm of ks

Image of the Week: Sunflowers at the Grinter House ~~Where I grew up, if we stood in our yard and looked north across the river valley and the river, we could see the Grinter house – but we couldn't see sunflowers.

Insult of the Week: He was a ...vicious gossip, with a vocabulary composed almost entirely of obscenities, guttural verbs, and the word “postmodernist”. --Donna Tartt...The Secret History

I wish life was like a bad hand of spades. No Trumps. ++ I have a few aces up my sleeve. In fact, I have them in Spades.

Never forget the three powerful resources you always have available to you: love, prayer, and forgiveness. --H Jackson Brown Jr.

..........Got a good reason for taking the easy way out.........The Beatles …..Day Tripper

Moonbeam: The young man knows the rules, but the old man knows the exceptions. --Oliver Wendell Holmes

Blasphemy of the Week: If I'm reading my Bible correctly, the gospel tends to be: Good news to the poor; Disruptive to the status quo; Offensive to the rich, and Terrifying to those in power. --Mark Charles --Submitted by MMS

Coffee Joke of the Week: Coffee: One cup will do, but I'll have four. Just to be safe

Next Funniest Thing I Read of the Week: You know what your problem is? You've got a few pages stuck together.

I like to play Whist with Democrats; they never have that trump card. ++ I saw a list of the top ten card games; Uno is number one.

There is no revenge so complete as forgiveness. --Josh Billings

..........Tell me, oh, what can I do.........The Beatles …..Baby's In Black

1) 2025 Orange and Blue University of Florida beat Houston (Scarlet and White Cougars) 65-63

Almanac: It is Friday, August 29, 2025. The moon will enter its first quarter on Sunday (8/31) and is in Scorpio. The United Nations has declared this International Day Against Nuclear Tests. It is also According to Hoyle Day, National College Colors Day, Individual Rights Day, More Herbs, Less Salt Day, National Sarcoidosis Awareness Day, National Whiskey Sour Day, and Qixi Festival (Chinese Valentine's Day).

Among those born on this day were John Locke (1632), Oliver Wendell Holmes (1809), Maurice Maeterlinck (1862), Charles Kettering (1876), Barry Sullivan (1912), Ingrid Bergman (1915), George Montgomery (1916), Dinah Washington (1924), Donald O'Connor (1925), Elliot Gould (1938), Michael Jackson (1958), and Rebecca De Mornay (1962).

On August twenty-ninth the first Indian reservation was established (1758), Shay and friends rebelled (1786), the US Bureau of Engraving & Printing began operation (1862), the first ship arrived in San Francisco via the Panama Canal (1916), US liberation troops marched down the Champs Elysees (1944), the Civil Rights Act of 1957 was passed (1957), Mary Poppins was released (1964), and the Beatles performed their last public concert (San Francisco, 1966),

Night Sky, 8/29: Saturn is the brightest dot low in the east right after dark. But as evening advances, it gets competition. Fomalhaut, the Autumn Star, makes its appearance above the southeast horizon some three fists to Saturn's lower right. Its rising time will depend on where you live. But by 11 pm now, you should have no trouble identifying Fomalhaut low in the southeast if you have a good view in that direction. No other 1st-magnitude star is anywhere near there. As dawn brightens on Saturday morning the 30th, Jupiter, Venus, and low Mercury form a tall, nearly equally spaced straight line in the east, as shown below. http://www.skyandtelescope.com/observing/sky-at-a-glance/

Fraternal Picture of the Week: At the Jurassic Park sandbox

Extra Funniest Thing I Read of the Week: I was bitten by a radioactive lawyer and ended up with the power of attorney. --Submitted by Heinlein Society

This Week: Saturday, August 30 – Burnt Ends Day & National Beach Day & National Grief Awareness Day

Night Sky, 8/30: First-quarter Moon (exactly so at 2:25 a.m. EDT tonight). The Moon shines in the southwest right after nightfall, in the head of Scorpius. Look for orange Antares about 5° to the Moon's upper left. Lesser Delta Scorpii, the second-brightest star in the area, is a similar distance to the Moon's upper right (for North America).

Sunday, August 31 - International Overdose Awareness Day & Pony Express Day & Trail Mix Day

Monday, September 1 – LABOR DAY & Mouth Guard Day & World Letter Writing Day

Tuesday, September 2 – Another Look Unlimited Day & World Coconut Day

Wednesday, September 3 – National Cinema Day & Pressed Pennies Day & Skyscraper Day

Night Sky, 9/3: Mercury is visible very low in the east-northeast as dawn grows bright. Its location is easy enough to find; Jupiter and Venus point down to it. Mercury continues to swell in brightness, from magnitude –0.5 to –1.2 this week.

Thursday, September 4 – Mawlid Al Nabi & National Wildlife Day & Newspaper Carrier Day

During WW2, a Rabbi, a Priest and a Minister were sharing a deserted hut in the woods. It was a quiet time in the conflict so they decided to play cards to pass the time. Their game was reported to a general who decided to break up the game but he was seen approaching the hut and the cards were hidden. The general entered the hut thinking he would catch them playing cards but no card game was going on. He decided to question the men of G-d individually so he first asked the Priest, have you been playing cards and the Priest said no sir! Then he asked the Minister, have you been playing cards and the Minister said no sir! Lastly he asked the Rabbi, have you been playing cards and the Rabbi answered, “with who”???

Forgiveness is an act of the will, and the will can function regardless of the temperature of the heart. --Corrie Ten Boom

..........You know, she said so..........The Beatles …..I Feel Fine

2) 2024 University of Connecticut beat Purdue (Black and Gold Boilermakers) 75-60

Preantepenultimate Funniest Thing I Read of the Week: Went to visit my friend and she said make yourself at home. So I started yelling at her kids. --Submitted by Pow Wow Nation

Moonbeam: Remember that happiness is as contagious as gloom. It should be the first duty of those who are happy to let others know of their gladness. --Maurice Maeterlinck

Fun Facts of the Week: Shays' Rebellion was an armed protest by economically distressed farmers, led by former Continental Army Captain Daniel Shays, in Massachusetts from 1786-1787. Protesters opposed harsh taxes and debt collection practices, which were a result of post-Revolutionary War debt and a weak national government under the Articles of Confederation. The rebellion highlighted the government's inability to maintain order, prompting many to call for a stronger national government, which ultimately led to the creation of the U.S. Constitution.

Video of the Week: One of my high school celebrity crushes was Russ Tamblyn. Here he is doing his amazing “shovel dance”. (3:16) https://youtu.be/EsimdPNbifc

Things of this world are in so constant a flux, that nothing remains long in the same state. --John Locke

Forgiveness is a virtue of the brave. --Indira Gandhi

Gay Poker: Where Queens are wild and Straights don't count. ++ My wife told me that she would leave me if I didn't stop cheating on her. Damn, I didn't realize she took card games that seriously. ++ I was going to join the local Cribbage club but they were practicing peggin' rituals.

..........All my troubles seemed so far away.........The Beatles …..Yesterday

3) 2025 University of Connecticut Huskies beat San Diego State (Red and Black Aztecs) 76-59

Antepenultimate Funniest Thing I Read of the Week: I was at a minor league ball game when the announcer asked if there was a doctor in the crowd. With my PhD in Graphic Design, I wondered if I saved the patient to a pdf file, would that help?

Weird Word of the Week Sialoquent – spit while talking https://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/sialoquent

Dragon of the Week: Yevaud, Dragon of Pendor Wizard of Earthsea by Ursula Le Guin

Wacky Uses for Common Products: Clean solid white patio furniture cushions. Mix three-quarters cup Clorox bleach and one gallon of water, scrub the cushions with the solution, and rinse clean with the garden hose then air dry. https://www.wackyuses.com/wacky/clorox.html

Forgiveness is the needle that knows how to mend. --Jewel

The teacher was asking her first graders about their numbers. “Susie, what comes after 3?” “Four.
“Very good. Johnny, what comes after 7?” “Eight,” “That's right. Judy, what comes after ten?” “Jack.” ++

...........Let me understand.........The Beatles …..I Wanna Be Your Man

4) Crimson and Blue Kansas University beat North Carolina (Carolina blue Tarheels) University 72-69

Penultimate Funniest Thing I Read of the Week: If you smoke pot, you're a pothead. If you eat edibles you're a weed eater. --Submitted by Hippy Hour

Science Fiction Convention of the Week: Dragon Con 2025 (8/28-9/1, Atlanta, GA) multimedia, popular culture convention... https://www.dragoncon.org/

Science of the Week: The smell of the rain is an evocative fragrance called petrichor. It is a blend of mood-boosting compounds from plant oils, soil, and rocks that are released in response to moisture hitting the earth. --Submitted by WWRWM

Spark of Joy of the Week: Piedmont Raging Grannies singing Trump Is In The Files https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oWw8ilOOMg4

Forgiveness is a gift you give yourself. --Suzanne Somers

The only reason they didn't play pinochle on Noah's ark is because the elephants were sitting on the deck. ++ Well, I make my coffee out of the tears of my Pinochle opponents.

..........Doesn't have a point of view.........The Beatles …..Nowhere Man

5) 2021 Green and Gold Baylor beat Gonzaga (Navy, Red, and White bulldogs aka Zags) 86-70.

Protest Sign of the Week: Be The Sand In The Fascist Machine

Guest Protest Sign of the Week: USA Is A Bad Ally --from Copenhagen, Denmark

Quote of the Week: Serve the people at the bottom. The people at the top don't need your help. --Yuri Kochiyama

Final Funniest Thing I Read of the Week: Dear Great Pumpkin, Please do something about your evil cousin. --Linus

Today's Peace of History: August 29, 1957: The U.S. Congress passed the Civil Rights Act, the first such law since reconstruction. The bill established a Civil Rights Commission which was given the authority to investigate discriminatory conditions.

The practice of forgiveness is our most important contribution to the healing of the world. --Marianne Williamson

My third grader lost her lunch money playing high stakes Slapjack at recess. ++ Jimmy Fallon and Kevin Hart played Slapjack on The Tonight Show. It was like Blackjack except the winner of each hand got to slap the loser.

..........It's a thousand pages, give or take a few.........The Beatles …..Paperback Writer

Masthead of the Week: Friday ePistle, August 29, 2025: gAmey ePistle . Online at: http://fridayepistle.blogspot.com/ Exclusive editor: Christine Smith. Lawrence, KS.

Moonbeam: You can't have a better tomorrow if you're thinking about yesterday all the time. --Charles Kettering

Cost of War:

As of 08/28/25 State Department Costs: $273,406,653,236

As of 08/21/25 State Department Costs: $272,869,533,392

As of 08/28/25 Homeland Security: $1,208,683,123,912

As of 08/21/25 Homeland Security: $1,208,099,743,133

As of 08/28/25 Interest on War Debt: $1,322,756,685,821

As of 08/21/25 Interest on War Debt: $1,321,256,637,904

As of 08/28/25 Military Costs: $3,164,000,527,146

As of 08/21/25 Military Costs: $3,162,861,644,941

As of 08/28/25 Veterans Care: $4,452,095,003,912

As of 08/21/25 Veterans Care: $4,440,725,431,168

As of 08/28/25 Total Cost of Wars: $10,420,944,508,947

As of 08/21/25 Total Cost of Wars: $10,405,815,154,292

https://www.nationalpriorities.org/cost-of/

It is one thing to show a man that he is in an error, and another to put him in possession of the truth. --John Locke

Famous Last Words: Joseph, Joseph, Joseph. --Brigham Young who died on August 29, 1877 of pneumonia

..........Well, we're gonna have some fun tonight.........The Beatles …..Long Tall Sally

Acceptance and tolerance and forgiveness, those are life-altering lessons. --Jessica Lange

I challenged my roommate to a game of strip poker. Of course, I won his whole outfit and I laundered it before I gave it back. ++ My best friend keeps insisting on skipping through flowery meadows. I think she has a gamboling problem. ++ Gambling doesn't have to be illegal in China; they all just hate Tibet.

May Peace be your Dharma

And Joy be your Karma

prairie mama

christine

Last Laugh:

dOrothy's ePistle

 Famous First Words: The morn returns... --James K Paulding Canto 5: The Burning

The most powerful weapon on earth is the human soul on fire with love. --Ferdinand Foch

Happy Birthday, Dorothy Parker. Time may be a great healer, but it's a lousy beautician. ^^ If you don't have anything nice to say, come sit by me. --Dorothy Parker

..........Nighttime is the right time to be with the one you love.........John Lee Hooker …..I'm In The Mood

You don't have to burn books to destroy a culture. Just get people to stop reading them. --Ray Bradbury

It is a cool (62°F) Friday morning. The sky is a pale blue and the sun has just begun to light the tops of the tallest willow trees. Birds and squirrels and the bunny from under the shed are all munching away at sunflower seeds and peanuts. The air is shrill with blue jays (the republicans of the backyard) telling everyone else just how it should be done. Everyone else, by the way, is ignoring them which is the proper response, I think. There is no discernable breeze; even the willow branches are still. The crows no longer come to the patio. But I still hear them in the neighborhood now and then. The loudest critter at the moment is the squirrel hissing and fussing about Veronica the cat sitting in the crack of the open door. That squirrel can make enough noise for me to get up and close the door...even on a cool morning. Puck has been out and is now under my desk coughing. I breathe with him when this happens. Sigh, sigh, sigh... I am sipping decaf and thinking about you...what a pleasant morning.

Hope your weekend is angelic, my beloved cherubs.

First Funniest Thing I Read of the Week: Shadrach, Meshach & ABEANTOGO! Coffee Roasters. Master Roasted, Never Burnt.

Love can transform the most commonplace into beauty and splendor and sweetness and grace. --Anne Sullivan

I like to have a martini. Two at the very most. After three I'm under the table. After four I'm under my host. ^^ Of course I talk to myself, I like a good speaker, and I appreciate an intelligent audience. --Dorothy Parker

..........I didn't care what she didn't 'llow.........John Lee Hooker …..Boogie Chillen

Trivia Questions: Happy National Tooth Fairy Day!

1. What does the Tooth Fairy look like?

2. How old in the Tooth Fairy

3. What do you know about the Fairy's changing rates?

4. Where is the Tooth Fairy Museum?

5. How many teeth do you figure she collects in one night?:

Big Hello: Doroby džeń – Upper Sorbian https://www.omniglot.com/language/phrases/hello.htm ~~I got it wrong last week. Lower Sorbian is Dorby žeń – not whatever I said it was. They are both spoken in Germany.

Second Funniest Thing I Read of the Week: How do I get a hurricane named after me? I've been a disaster my whole life. I feel like I meet the requirements.

Image of the Week: Ollie among the Daleks

Insult of the Week: If you had been silent, you would have remained a philosopher. --Boethius

Love has the power to transform people into better versions of themselves, to see the world through a lens of compassion and understanding. --Deepak Chopra

Three be the things I shall never attain: Envy, content, and sufficient champagne. ^^ If you want to know what God thinks about money, just look at the people He gives it to. --Dorothy Parker

..........Every night I sing the blues.........John Lee Hooker …..Dimples

Moonbeam: It doesn't matter if a cat is black or white, so long as it catches mice. --Deng Xiaoping

Blasphemy of the Week: The difference between you and Jesus is you use scripture to determine what love means and Jesus used love to determine what scripture means. --Submitted by NakedPastor

Coffee Joke of the Week: I will start working when my coffee does.

Next Funniest Thing I Read of the Week: The ICE agent struck by sandwich seeks counseling' says he can't even walk through the deli without fearing for his life and has been diagnosed with BLTSD. --Submitted by LaughingInDisbelief

Where there is great love, there are always miracles. --Willa Cather

Four be the things I am wiser to know: Idleness, sorrow, a friend, and a foe. ^^ Four be the things I'd been better without: Love, curiosity, freckles, and doubt. --Dorothy Parker

..........Just like it like that.........John Lee Hooker …..Boom Boom

1) The Tooth Fairy is not always a fairy in a pretty dress. Worldwide, the Tooth Fairy varies in appearance. Here in the U.S. we usually picture her as a dainty girl that gently flutters under the pillow. In places like France, Belgium, and many Spanish-speaking countries, the Tooth Fairy is a friendly, furry mouse.

Almanac: It is Friday, August 22, 2025. The moon will be new tomorrow (8/23) and is in Leo. Today is Be an Angel Day, International Day Commemorating the Victims of Acts of Violence Based on Religion or Belief, National Bao Day, National Surgical Oncologist Day, National Tooth Fairy Day, Never Bean Better Day, Southern Hemisphere Hoodie Hoo Day, Take Your Cat to The Vet Day, World Daffodil Day, and World Plant Milk Day.

Among those born on this day were Archibald M. Willard (1836), Debussy (1962), Dorothy Parker (1893), Deng Xiaoping (1904), John Lee Hooker (1917), Ray Bradbury (1920), Norman Schwartzkopf (1934), Valerie Harper (1940), and Cindy Williams (1947).

On August twenty-second the Loch Ness monster was first sighted (565), Ann Franklin became the first female newspaper editor (1762), the first Victrola was manufactured (1906), the Mona Lisa was stolen from the Louvre (1911), Althea Gibson became the first black tennis pro (1950), Maris hit his 50th homer (1961), and Nolan Ryan struck out his 5,000th batter (1989).

Night Sky, 8/22: As summer wanes and Arcturus moves down the western sky, the kite pattern of Boötes that sprouts from Arcturus leans over to the right. The kite is narrow, slightly bent, and 23° long: about two fists at arm's length. Arcturus is its bottom point from which the stubby tail hangs down. The Big Dipper poses to its right in the northwest at about the same height. http://www.skyandtelescope.com/observing/sky-at-a-glance/

Fraternal Picture of the Week: Mom, Max and Ollie at WorldCon Seattle, 2025 ~~I don't know why they are eating their badges? Perhaps there is a famine in Seattle.

Extra Funniest Thing I Read of the Week: Your brain: 3 pounds of meat trying to understand the infinite. Also your brain: Forgot why it walked into the kitchen. --Submitted by Neil DeGrass Tyson

This Week: Saturday, August 23 – Cuban Sandwich Day & Find Your Inner Nerd Day & Ride The Wind Day

Sunday, August 24 – International Strange Music Day & Knife Day & National Waffle Iron Day

Night Sky, 8/24: As August proceeds and nights begin to turn chilly, the Great Square of Pegasus looms up in the east, balancing on one corner. Its stars are only 2nd and 3rd magnitude. Your fist at arm's length fits inside it. Saturn glows down to its lower right.

Monday, August 25 – Kiss And Make Up Day & National Park Service Day

Tuesday, August 26 – Women's Equality Day & National Dog Day & National Toilet Paper Day

Wednesday, August 27 – Just Because Day & National Cinema Day

Night Sky, 8/27: The Little Dipper tipping over leftward in the north. It's only 40% as long as the Andromegasus Dipper, and most of it is much fainter. As always, you'll find that it's oriented more than 90° counterclockwise compared to Andromegasus. It's dumping its contents out.

Thursday, August 28 – National Bow Tie Day & National Weed Out Hate Day & Read Comics In Public Day

Love is the strongest force the world possesses, and yet it is the humblest imaginable. --Mahatma Gandhi

The cure for boredom is curiosity. There is no cure for curiosity, ^^ You can lead a horticulture, but you can't make her think. --Dorothy Parker

..........I was standing at my window.........John Lee Hooker …..Will The Circle Be Unbroken

2) She’s 109 years old! The first known mention of the Tooth Fairy was in the Chicago Daily Tribune in 1908.

Preantepenultimate Funniest Thing I Read of the Week: I aspire to be the kind of grandparent my grandchildren can differentiate from a wolf wearing a nightgown. --Submitted by Laughing Librarian

Moonbeam: The truth of the matter is that you always know the right thing to do. The hard part is doing it. --Norman Schwarzkopf

Fun Facts of the Week: Okay, let’s put that into perspective. Loch Ness is not the deepest loch in Scotland (Loch Morar), nor is it the largest by surface area (Loch Lomond). The whole ‘monster claim-to-fame’ just isn’t enough however, so Loch Ness has also bagged the title of 'largest body of water' in the whole of the UK! There is more water in Loch Ness, than in all the lakes in England and Wales put together.

Video of the Week: For when you go to Scotland to see Nessie, How to pronounce Loch: (1:12) https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cMkoHt73loQ Rated PG13

We need not to be let alone. We need to be really bothered once in a while. How long is it since you were really bothered? About something important, about something real. --Ray Bradbury

If you have any young friends who aspire to become writers, the second-greatest favor you can do them is to present them with copies of The Elements of Style. The first-greatest, of course, is to shoot them now, while they're happy. ^^ Never throw mud: you can miss the target, but your hands will remain dirty. --Dorothy Parker

Love is an act of endless forgiveness.. --Peter Ustinov

..........I'm living in the memory.........John Lee Hooker …..It Serves Me Right

3) The Tooth Fairy's rates fluctuate with the market. Dental insurance company Delta Dental has been researching the Tooth Fairy for years. They have found a correlation between the stock market and how much cash she was handing out. Who knew the Tooth Fairy followed the S&P 500 so closely?

Antepenultimate Funniest Thing I Read of the Week: The meeting with Putin was so disastrous for The Pedophile in Chief he may have to bring up the Epstein files as a distraction.

Weird Word of the Week: Glabella (n) The smooth part of the forehead between the eyebrows. https://www.busuu.com/en/english/funny-words

Dragon of the Week:

Fake Word of the Week: Furalysis (n): the condition in which a person is unable to move due to the presence of a cat on his or her lap. --Submitted by UUHS

Wacky Uses for Common Products: Bail a boat. Cap an empty, clean Clorox bleach bottle, cut diagonally across the bottom, and scoop out the water. https://www.wackyuses.com/wacky/clorox.html ~~I find that I almost always have an empty beach bottle on board when I go boating.

The first thing I do in the morning is brush my teeth and sharpen my tongue. ^^ The only dependable law of life – everything is always worse than you thought it was going to be. --Dorothy Parker

Love does not dominate; it cultivates. --Johnn Wolfgang von Goethe

...........Done messed around and fell in love.........John Lee Hooker …..This Is Hip

4) The Tooth Fairy had her own museum. Located in a split level home in Deerfield, IL, the Tooth Fairy Museum showcases art, books, dolls, and other Tooth Fairy memorabilia.

Penultimate Funniest Thing I Read of the Week: I asked for inner peace but all I got was a vague sense of apathy and a side of fries. --with thanks to 42Club

Science Fiction Convention of the Week: LI Who 2025 (22-24, Holtsville, NY) Gallifreyan events... https://longislanddoctorwho.com/

Math Joke of the Week: Parallel lines must be vegan because they never meat.

If love is blind, why is lingerie so popular? ^^ This is not a novel to be tossed aside lightly. It should be thrown with great force. --Dorothy Parker

The way you alchemize a soulless world into a sacred world is to treat everyone as if they are sacred until the sacred in them remembers. --Submitted by MMS

..........One of these days things gonna change.........John Lee Hooker …..Chill Out

5) She collects A LOT of teeth. The Tooth Fairy collects about 300,000 teeth from children all over the world every night.

Protest Sign of the Week: Cruelty Is The Point

Better Protest Sign of the Week: Don't Bread On Me (Picture of a sandwich)

Best Protest Sign of the Week: It Was The Fuckaroudiest Of Times. It Was The Findoutiest Of Times.

Quote of the Week: It's in that convergence of spiritual people becoming active and active people becoming spiritual that the hope of humanity now rests. --Van Jones

Final Funniest Thing I Read of the Week: Sugar and spice and all things nice is so yesterday. Instead be salty, defiant and extremely noncompliant. --Submitted by Laughing Librarian

Today's Peace of History: August 22, 1964: Fannie Lou Hamer, leader of the Mississippi Freedom Democratic Party (MFDP), testified in front of the Credentials Committee at the Democratic National Convention. She was challenging the all-white delegation that the segregated regular Mississippi Democrats had sent to the presidential nominating convention.

A hangover is the wrath of grapes. ^^ Honesty means nothing until you are tested under circumstances where you are sure you could get away with dishonesty. --Dorothy Parker

Love is the ultimate force that makes us human. It has the power to awaken our souls, heal our wounds, and ignite a fire within us. --Maya Angelou

..........The best thing is life is free.........John Lee Hooker …..I Need Money

Masthead of the Week: Friday ePistle, , 2025: dOrothy's ePistle . Online at: http://fridayepistle.blogspot.com/ Exclusive editor: Christine Smith. Lawrence, KS.

Moonbeam: The more you sweat in peace, the less you bleed in war. --Norman Swarzkopf

Cost of War:

As of 08/21/25 State Department Costs: $272,869,533,392

As of 08/14/25 State Department Costs: $272,310,664,593

As of 08/21/25 Homeland Security: $1,208,099,743,133

As of 08/14/25 Homeland Security: $1,207,492,651,789

As of 08/21/25 Interest on War Debt: $1,321,256,637,904

As of 08/14/25 Interest on War Debt: $1,319,695,510,318

As of 08/21/25 Military Costs: $3,162,861,644,941

As of 08/14/25 Military Costs: $3,161,676,284,334

As of 08/21/25 Veterans Care: $4,440,725,431,168

As of 08/14/25 Veterans Care: $4,428,891,247,938

As of 08/21/25 Total Cost of Wars: $10,405,815,154,292

As of 08/14/25 Total Cost of Wars: $10,390,068,494,953

https://www.nationalpriorities.org/cost-of/

There is more than one way to burn a book. And the world is full of people running about with lit matches. --Ray Bradbury

Famous Last Words: You can kill my body, and you can take my life, but you can never kill my soul. My soul will live forever. --Huey P Newton who died of a gunshot wound August 22, 1989.

..........I believe I'll go back in the ground.........John Lee Hooker …..Ground Hog

Heterosexuality is not normal, it's just common. ^^ If all the girls who attended the Yale prom were laid end to end, I wouldn't be a bit surprised. --Dorothy Parker

When we choose to love unconditionally, we create an environment where personal growth and evolution can flourish. --Anon

May Peace cool your mind

And Joy warm your heart

prairie mama

christine

Last Laugh: --Submitted by ky of wa