Today Is . . .

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Inauguration Day

Every 4 years on the 20th of January the peaceful transition of presidential power takes place in our Nation's Capital, that is unless the incumbent wins, and then it's just a big "hooray it's our second term" party.


The next inauguration will, of course, be January 20, 2013. Because January 20th falls on a Sunday that year, it will be interesting to see if the inaugural is actually moved to the day after, as it was for the inaugurations of Presidents Eisenhower and Reagan  who each gave their addresses on Monday, January 21.


You might not know that from 1793 until 1933 Inauguration Day was held on March 4  (prior to that it was held in April).  But the ratification of the 20th amendment changed that and since then Inauguration Day has occurred on January 20th. Thomas Jefferson in 1801 was the first President to be inaugurated in Washington, D.C. (thanks again, Wikipedia). 


Despite my affinity for politics and Washington and all things Presidential (a heads up for the Presidents' Day blog entry),  I have only ever been to one inauguration.  In 1989, shortly after college, my roommates and I lived several metro stops from the Capitol and decided to make the short trip to the historic event.  I'm so glad we did.


Per usual, I did a pathetic job preserving the memories of the occasion.  Here are the only two photos I have of the inauguration of George H.W. Bush.

A crowd starting to gather -- not exactly the best vantage point. 

Me and my roommate Mary in the cheap, ok, the free seats.

I do remember, we had a little bi-partisan get-together afterwards which included a toast (with Busch beer) and we wished our friends "on the other side of the aisle" better luck next time (but not really).

An Apple A Day

The Apple Lisa.  Check out that mouse!

Twenty-eight years ago today the Apple Lisa (an acronym for “Local Integrated Software Architecture” and also the name of Steve Jobs' daughter), the first commercial computer from Apple, Inc., debuted. 


It had graphical user interface (not sure what that is) and a computer mouse (do know what that is).  At the time, the purchase price was $10,000 (present day value - $21,000).


My first experience with an Apple computer was in 1984.  A guy name Larry in my Sociology of Business class charged me a dollar per page to type my papers.  As an English major, I made Larry rich (or I should say richer, because as the owner of one of the initial  Apple computers, he probably already had plenty of money).  

Fifteen or twenty dollars a week was a lot of money to a struggling college student but my Brother Typewriter and that little white pencil/brush eraser were far,  far inferior to his preliminary Macintosh and dot-matrix printer. 


Today, I’m a complete Apple convert.  

My 5 year-old iBook, my MacBook, my iPhone and my old Shuffle.  I have a new shuffle, but can't bring myself to part with this one either. 

My daughter calls Steve Jobs an" Evil Genius" and means it only as the highest of compliments.  "Evil" in that his company's products inspire a remarkable kind of acquisitiveness.


If you want to know more, here's an interesting article from Wired about it. Come to think of it, I think I'll access it on my iPhone!

Happy Birthday A.A. Milne!

Mr. Milne

Alan Alexander Milne was born in London on January 18, 1882.  He is perhaps the best known author of childrens' books,  which include Winnie the Pooh and House at Pooh Corner. He created endearing and enduring characters.

Until I started researching it, I had no idea that Milne's son's name was Christopher Robin (though the book's character's last name is Robbin).  His son's stuffed bear, Winnie the Pooh, was named after a bear, albeit at a black one, at the London Zoo.


Who doesn't love Tigger, Piglet, Kanga and Roo and, of course, Pooh and his relentless quest for Hunny?  Perhaps because I'm cynical and sometimes called a pessimist, I'm drawn to lovable Eeyore.

When my daughter was about 4 or 5, we would sometimes read a Pooh story at night.  One evening, I read a sentence that ended  "Eeyore said glumly. " Confused by the placement of the adverb, she began to call the character, "Glumly" - and we still do to this day.

At Epcot in 1991, I took this photo of my husband, decidedly not a pessimist, with Eeyore (later aka Glumly).

So, Happy Birthday, Mr. Milne and thank you for your wonderful perspective on how children see the world and thanks for Glumly, too!

A Founder's Birthday

If you ask me, Benjamin Franklin born 305 years ago today is the Rodney Dangerfield of the Founding Fathers.

Sure, his contribution to our nation’s history is acknowledged some.  After all,  his face is on the one hundred dollar bill, but how often do you pull one of those out of your wallet?


Still, he doesn’t seem to get  quite as much respect as other American statesmen like Washington, Jefferson, Adams or Madison; this despite the fact that his vocations and avocations included printer, librarian, journalist and inventor, in addition to politician.


Did you know, for example, that Benjamin Franklin was the only Founding Father to sign all five documents that established American independence: the Declaration of Independence, the Treaty of Amity and Commerce with France, the Treaty of Alliance with France, the Treaty of Peace with Great Britain, and the Constitution of the United States of America?


So, how sad is it then that when our family made the trip to Philadelphia a couple of summers ago, we failed to really focus on Mr. Franklin? Instead we were taken by some of the other sites and famous figures.


Like

The Liberty Bell, of course.

and

My daughter and niece "contemplating" The Signers. 

Of course, we went to Independence Hall and the National Constitution Center and we did stop to pause at his burial site at Christ Church, but regrettably I didn’t take a photo of that.  (And as an aside, might I add that there’s nothing like starting a blog to realize how poorly you have documented your family’s life).


Today I say, thank you for your service to our fledgling country, Mr. Franklin.  Where would would be without you and Happy Belated Birthday!