We’ve made it through another week, as it’s Friday, March 23, 2018. Some snow is predicted for Chicago tonight, although it may barely miss us. Snowfall in the area is predicted to be between 6 and 10 inches. It’s National Chips and Dip Day, and unless I miss my guess this is an explicitly American contribution to world cuisine.
On this day in 1775, Patrick Henry delivered his famous “Give me liberty, or give me death!” speech at St. John’s Episcopal Church, Richmond, Virginia. This speech is credited with helping deliver Virginia’s troops to the American Continental Army (George Washington and Thomas Jefferson were in the audience: what a group that was!). On March 23, 1806, Lewis and Clark, having reached the Pacific Ocean with their “Corps of Discovery”, turned around and started trekking back home. They reached St. Louis on September 23 after 2½ years of exploring the West at the behest of Thomas Jefferson. On this day in 1919, Mussolini founded the Italian Fascist movement in Milan. And, on March 23, 1933, the Reichstag of Germany passed the Enabling Act of 1933, which made Adolf Hitler the absolute dictator of Germany. Finally, on March 23, 1956, Pakistan became the world’s first Islamic Republic (before that it was a “dominion”).
Notables born on this day include Pierre-Simon Laplace (1749), Emmy Noether (1882), Juan Gris (1887), Eric Fromm (1900), Joan Crawford (1906), Wernher von Braun (1912), Roger Bannister (1929, died recently), and Rex Tillerson (1952, now fired by Trump). Those who expired on March 23 include Stendahl (1842), Raoul Dufy (1953), Peter Lorre (1964), Elizabeth Taylor (2011). Can you name how many times Taylor was married?
Here’s a Dufy drawing, “Le Chat”, from 1920:
I found a better version of my own “Whistler’s Mother” picture: an Amish or Mennonite woman I photographed on the train back from Madison. I love natural window light from the side.
Here’s the original by James McNeill Whistler, which I’ve flipped horizontally for comparison:
Hili: It all looks different from my point of view.A: Everybody has his own vision.
Hili: Z mojego punktu widzenia to wszystko inaczej wygląda.
Ja: Każdy ma swoją iluzję.
In nearby Wloclawek, the Dark Tabby Leon is nomming the flowers, though he shouldn’t:
Leon: Tulips have a more pronounced taste.
Gus went to the vet yesterday; his staff Taskin reported: “The funniest thing was that his nose, ears and foot pads went really bright pink from the stress. As pink as if he’d been out in the cold for a long time. Here are a few pics.” The captions are Taskin’s interpretations of Gus’s thoughts:
This can’t be good…
That sounds like a BIG dog…
That’s a BIG needle…
What a strange dream I had…
Gus is fine; he’s healthy, got two shots in the tuchas, and is going on a new wet food to keep his weight down.
From Matthew: a trailcam shows a puma (cougar) and her two kittens:
On #IntlForestDay, we celebrate the treed places that #bigcats like these #pumas call home–and call for renewed efforts to conserve the incredibly biodiverse #habitats they sustain. #mountainlions #cougars #wildlife @UNDESA pic.twitter.com/kmFsXJ5pqF
— PantheraCats (@PantheraCats) March 21, 2018
From Grania; read the news link and you’ll see that this is true. Yep, the Jews made the snow fall!
The scandal here is not just that an elected Democrat, the youngest on Washington DC's council, blamed Jews for controlling the weather. It's that he exists in an information bubble where this sort of thing clearly is both common and not considered crazy. https://t.co/1yd2aQe9y1
— Yair Rosenberg (@Yair_Rosenberg) March 19, 2018
If you want a Cat in a Hat, this Japanese vending machine is happy to oblige:
OMG I FOUND A VENDING MACHINE THAT SELLS HATS FOR CATS!!! pic.twitter.com/ORTnQ3PiRN
— Generikb (@generikb) March 22, 2018
That photo of the older woman on the train is incredibly beautiful Jerry.
It reminds me of Gerhard Richter’s work.
Amish or Mennonite woman, my Aunt Fanny! I know Alfred Hitchcock when I see him.
🙂
Oh, well spotted!
cr
Gus, you are not alone. Our Emma goes to the Vet today for a checkup.
I hope everyone in America has their seat belts on tight. Your ride is about to get much wilder.
Good luck Emma! 😀
Seems like Gus could use one of those cat hats in winter.
Also, perhaps he could use one of these novel and extremely simple cat carriers: https://www.cat-in-the-bag.com/. I don’t have a cat now, but if I did, I’d get one of these.
Is that a cat almost peeking around the window-curtain in the portrait of Whistler’s Granddaughter?
I must report, since we are pretty sure PCC does not follow any of this – Last night Loyola beat Nevada and Kansas State beat Kentucky so look out. Tonight U of Kansas plays.
Loyola keeps winning only because of Sister Jean’s prayers. A college basketball team has proven what Stephen Hawking’s small mind could not. Father de Souza must be pleased.
*Snicker*
I think Liz made seven trips down the aisle. Twice with Richard Burton, plus Mike Todd and Eddie Fisher — those are the only ones I can recall off the top of my head.
I think it is counted as 8 times with Burton being two of the count.
So eight page hits by seven unique visitors, as they say on the internet? 🙂
Yep!
In the UK it is #NationalPuppyDay whatever that is!
Also there is a biography of Whistler’s mother – a remarkable lady – just out –
https://yalebooks.yale.edu/book/9780300229684/whistlers-mother
Who knew?! Most intriguing. 🙂
Wonderful photo of the Amish woman!
It’s really beautiful isn’t it?
I am lucky enough who has a vet who makes housecalls. I don’t drive, and the housecall surcharge is considerably less than the cab fare to and from her office. Her name is Katharine Christenson, and the name of her practice is The Cat Doctor. It is far less stressful for cats to be seen in the home, and for routine care it’s an ideal solution for my landladies and their staff (me).
And, of course, everybody knows that the real title of that painting is
Arrangement in Grey and Black No.1.
Give me liberty or give me chips and dip!
I love that photograph. And I whispered to myself ‘Whistler’, before I saw the second picture. Apparently an obvious parallel.
It is a bit uncanny. I’m sure the photographer thought of that painting too. And also a much better ‘reproduction’ than Rowan Atkinson’s (Mr Bean’s) one.
The photographer was PCC(E) himself.
On Chips and Dip,
Wikipedia reports “Chips and dip gained significant popularity in the United States during the 1950s, in part due to a Lipton advertising campaign for their French onion dip recipe”
The flower that Leon’s munching on looks like a daffodil rather than a tulip.
Welp, time to add weather control to the Jewish superpowers list.
Why are these cat-hat vegetables?