Happy Thursday, as it’s that day of the week, and also July 6, 2017.  It’s National Fried Chicken Day, one of the great contributions of America to world gastronomy. (I know other countries have equivalents, but I’m talking about good Southern fried chicken with biscuits, mashed potatoes, fresh tomatoes, collards, and all the trimmings).And in Ukraine, Belarus, Lithuania, Poland, and Russia, it’s a strange holiday that’s a hybrid between Christianity and paganism:  Kupala Night. People jump over bonfires and put flowers into rivers.

On July 6, 1189, Richard I, better known as “The Lionheart” became King of England. He reigned nearly 10 years, dying from an infected crossbow wound at the age of 41. On this day in 1415, Jan Hus was burned at the stake, and in 1535 Thomas More was beheaded for committing treason against Henry VIII. In 1885, Louis Pasteur successfully used his rabies vaccine on Joseph Meister, a boy bitten by a rabid dog. This is a bit of a bittersweet tale: as Wikipedia reports: “As an adult, Meister served as a caretaker at the Pasteur Institute until his death in 1940 at age 64. On 24 June 1940, ten days after the German army invaded Paris during World War II, Meister committed suicide with his gas furnace.” On this day in 1917, T. E. Lawrence (of Arabia) and his Arab troops captured the port city of Aqaba from the Ottomans after a surprise approach through the desert (you’ll remember that from the movie “Lawrence of Arabia.” What a great movie! Remember this bit?

In 1942, Anne Frank and her family went into hiding from the Germans in the “secret annexe” above her father’s office. Her father survived; the rest of the family died in the camps. On July 6, 1957, Althea Gibson became the first black woman to win the Wimbledon singles title. On that very same day, and not too far away, John Lennon met Paul McCartney for the first time at a music festival in Liverpool.

Notables born on this day include William Hooker (1785), Marc Chagall (1887), Frida Kahlo (1907), Nancy Reagan (1921), Bill Haley (1925), George W. Bush, Sylvester Stallone, and Peter Singer (all three in 1946), and Eva Green (1980). Those who died on this day include John Marshall (1835), Odilon Redon (1916), George Grosz (1959), Louis Armstrong (1971), and Roy Rogers (1998). A date on which two great artists were born and two died; here are paintings from all four. Do you discern a common theme?

Meanwhile in Dobrzyn, Ms. Hili is instructing Andrzej about intellectual pursuits:

A: Independence of thought is not easy.

Hili: Follow the example of cats.

Ja: Niezależność myślenia nie jest łatwa.
Hili: Bierz przykład z kotów.

Leon’s keeping watch as his staff prepares the grounds for their future home; the wooden house has still not arrived from southern Poland. The house will be only a few miles from where Hili and her staff live.

Leon: Well, somebody has to supervise the progress of this work.

And in Winnipeg, Gus is being his usual cute self:

Finally, if you haven’t had enough cats, Matthew sent a tweet featuring the famous “Cat, watermelon, and sea” photo that’s become a meme:

A story told in 3 parts pic.twitter.com/Ii9qi2Ybqr

— Jeff Durst (@SSB_Aaron) July 4, 2017

Good morning; it’s June 20, 2017, and the first FULL day of summer in the Northern Hemisphere (it began at 6:28 a.m EDT yesterday). It’s also National Vanilla Milkshake Day, celebrating a drink I don’t understand. And it’s World Refugee Day.  And thanks to the many readers who told me about the article on genetics and cat dispersal published in Nature. I forgot to bring it home with me last night (and can’t read science in a computer screen), but will post on it tomorrow.

On this day in 1248, the University of Oxford got its official Royal Charter; it’s been going nearly 8 centuries! In 1837, Victoria became Queen of England, and in 1900 the Boxer Rebellion began. On June 20, 1972, Rose Mary Woods discovered the dubious 18.5-minute gap in the White House tapes recording a conversation between between Richard “I am not a crook” Nixon and H. R. Haldeman. Finally, on this day in 1975, the blockbuster film “Jaws” was released in the U.S.

Notables born on this day include Errol Flynn (1909), Chet Atkins (1924), Audie Murphy (1925), Eric Dolphy (1928), Brian Wilson (1942), Anne Murray (1945), Lionel Richie (1949), and Nicole Kidman (1967). In honor of Mr. Atkins, here he is playing a favorite, “Mr. Sandman,” in 1954:

Those who died on June 20 include Josef Breuer (1925), Bugsy Siegel (1947), and Bernard Baruch (1965). Meanwhile in Dobrzyn, Hili faces a mystery:

Hili: Something is eating the leaves of the quince.

A: Do you see what it is?

Hili: No, it’s already gone away.

Hili: Coś zjada liście pigwy.
Ja: Widzisz co?
Hili: Nie, już sobie poszło.

Leon is again out in the garden at the site of  his future home, and is hankering for dinner:

Leon: Have you managed to hunt something for supper or shall I show you how to do it?

And in Winnipeg, Gus has been doing a bit of hunting himself. His staff reports:

Gus had just been attempting to catch a fly. He missed.

Good morning; it’s the Day After Father’s Day, meaning it’s June 19, 2017, and I hope all dads got presents and good noms yesterday. I have just heard on the news that one person is dead and eight injured after a van plowed into a crowd, apparently largely Muslims, in London. CNN says the police are treating it as a terrorist attack, and I fear this was perpetrated by some bigot as a horrible reprisal against recent Islamist terrorist attacks. I can’t seem to find any more information, as the police have released nothing about the person arrested save he’s a 48 year old man.

It’s National Martini Day, an estimable drink so long as it’s made with gin and not vodka, which is simply alcohol and water. It’s also Juneteenth, marking the abolition of slavery in Texas in 1865, a day widely celebrated in the U.S. as a holiday of freedom.

On June 19, 1846, according to Wikipedia, “The first officially recorded, organized baseball game is played under Alexander Cartwright‘s rules on Hoboken, New Jersey’s Elysian Fields with the New York Base Ball Club defeating the Knickerbockers 23–1. Cartwright umpired.” 23 to 1: what a debacle! On this day in 1910, the first Father’s Day in America was celebrated in Spokane, Washington. In 1964, the Civil Rights Act of 1964 was approved by the Senate after a long filibuster. The story of how LBJ wrangled it through the Senate is recounted in volumes 3 and 4 of Robert Caro’s brilliant biography, The Years of Lyndon Johnson (please read it!). Johnson signed the bill into law on July 2 of that year. Finally, on this day in 2012, Wikileaks founder Julian Assange, fleeing U.S. extradition for publishing classified documents, took refuge in the embassy of Ecuador in London. And, exactly five years later, he’s still there.

Notables born on this day include Moe Howard of the Three Stooges (1897; real name Moses Harry Horowitz), Lou Gehrig (1903), Lester Flatt (1914), Aung San Suu Kyi (1945, who used to be my hero but is showing clay feet), Salman Rushdie (1947), and Boris Johnson (1964). Those who died on this day include botanist Joseph Banks (1820), and Ethen and Julius Rosenberg, executed in 1953 for espionage. In honor of Flatt’s birthday, here he is with his constant musical companion Earl Scruggs—on several episodes of The Beverly Hillbillies. How many of you are old enough to remember that show? Be sure to see Jed Clampett (Buddy Ebsen) do some fine country stomping in the second number.

Meanwhile in Dobrzyn, Hili suspects that Cyrus is two-timing her! She looks distraught.

Hili: I suspect that Cyrus is seeing another dog.

A: How can you tell?

Hili: He is staring and wagging his tail.

Hili: Podejrzewam, że Cyrus widzi jakiegoś psa.
Ja: Po czym to poznajesz?
Hili: Patrzy i macha ogonem.

In nearby Wloclawek, Leon’s in the car, returning to his flat after a day on the future site of his new home (still no sign of the house that was ordered!)

Leon: At last I’m going back to normality on the sofa.

And out in Winnipeg, Gus is playing. Last night he had his nails trimmed while he was napping.  Staff Taskin says this:

Here are a couple of Gus pics. I was given this hummingbird ornament as a gift and Gus felt it made a good cat toy.

Today is Wednesday, June 14, 2017. Let us spare a thought for those killed in the terrible high-rise fire in London last night, which killed at least six and probably many more. The cause has not been determined.

It’s National Strawberry Shortcake Day, celebrating a much beloved treat in the U.S. It’s also our Flag Day, celebrating the adoption of the Stars and Stripes in 1777.

On this day the Continental Army was established in the U.S., which grew into the United States Army (and defeated the British).  On June 14, 1822, Charles Babbage described his “difference engine” to the Royal Astronomical Society, often seen as the world’s first computer.  The first Henley Regatta was staged in 1839, and in 1900 Hawaii became a U.S. Territory. On June 14, 1907, women got the right to vote in Norway, and 33 years later to the day, a group of Poles became the first occupants of the Auschwitz concentration camp. On this day in 1941, UNIVAC I, the first commercial computer, began operation for the U.S. Census Bureau. In 1966, the Vatical finally  deep-sixed the Index Librorum Prohibitorum, the list of books prohibited for Catholics to read: a form of censorship that began  in 1557. Finally, on this day in 1882 the Argentinian forces surrendered to Britain, ending the Falklands War.

Notables born on this day include Harriet Beecher Stowe (1811), Burl Ives (1909), Pierre Salinger (1925), Junior Walker (1931), Rowan Williams (1950), and Steffi Graf (1969). Although Junior’s gone, let’s wake up with his greatest hit, “What does it take” (1968), performed here on the Letterman show. That’s some sax work: “I’ve gotta blow for you.”

Notables who died on this day include Edward FitzGeralnd (1883), Mary Cassatt (1926),  and Jorge Luis Borges and Alan Jay Lerner (both 1986). Here’s one of Cassatt’s paintings from 1908, “Sara holding a cat”:

Meanwhile in Dobrzyn, Hili is hankering for cream (yes, she gets some from time to time):

Hili: Do you remember what we had to do after returning home?

A: Remind me.

Hili: We had to give me some cream.

In Polish:

Hili: Pamiętasz co mieliśmy zrobić po powrocie?
Ja: Przypomnij mi.
Hili: Mieliśmy dać mi trochę śmietanki.

Our in Winnipet, Gus got catnip (he gets one leaf several times a day):

And in Wloclawek, Leon, still waiting for his wooden house to be shipped from southern Poland, demands noms in the garden:

Leon: I’m resting. Will you bring me a sausage, please?

Here’s a tweet, but it looks suspicious to me. . .

Guess who got woken by the rain pic.twitter.com/fyY4tSIJPM

— HUMOROUS ANIMALS (@CUTEFUNNYANIMAL) June 13, 2017

It’s June 2, 2017, and I’m off to Toronto! It will be good to be in Canada again, and I hope I’ll get the chance to have a good poutine, though the meeting is in a hotel at the Toronto airport, and I don’t know whether there’s any poutine in that area. Perhaps readers can tell me. Posting will be light until Tuesday, though Grania will handle the Hilis and Caturday felids.

It’s National Rocky Road Day, and if you are unfamiliar with that, it’s ice cream mixed with peanuts, marshmallows, and chocolate: not too shabby.

On this day in 1692, Bridget Bishop was the first person tried in the the Salem, Massachusetts witch trials. Like 20 of the 72 ultimately accused, she was convicted and hanged. On this day in 1924, Calvin Coolidge signed the Indian Citizenship Act, making all native Americans born within the U.S. citizens (seriously? that late?). On this day in 1953, Queen Elizabeth II was crowned, making today the 64th anniversary of her reign. And on June 2, 1967, the Beatles released their Sergeant Pepper album in the U.S., the album that made me an atheist. It was a great album, though I prefer Revolver, but don’t listen to the misguided critics who claim that Sergeant Pepper was somehow anti-feminist. Hooray for its 50th anniversary (am I that old?)!

Notables born on June 2 include the Marquis de Sade (1740), Edward Elgar (1857), Johnny Weissmuller (1904), Sally Kellerman (1937; she’s 80 today), Charlie Watts (1941), Marvin Hamlisch (1944, deceased), Jerry Mathers (“as the Beaver”, 1948), Cornel West (1953), and Dana Carvey (1955). Those who died on this day include Giuseppi Garibaldi (1882), baseball great Lou Gehrig (1941, died of ALS, sometimes called “Lou Gehrig Disease”), Bunny Berigan (1942), Vita Sackville-West (1962), Rex Harrison (1990), and Bo Diddley (2008).

Lou Gehrig gave a moving speech on the day appointed to commemorate his greatness: July 4, 1939. As he stood before the microphone in Yankee Stadium with his number (4) retired, and with Gehrig and all the fans knowing his fatal diagnosis, he said these words:

“Fans, for the past two weeks, you’ve been reading about a bad break [pause] Today I consider myself the luckiest man on the face of the earth. I have been in ballparks for seventeen years and have never received anything but kindness and encouragement from you fans.

“When you look around, wouldn’t you consider it a privilege to associate yourself with such fine-looking men as are standing in uniform in this ballpark today?  Sure, I’m lucky. Who wouldn’t consider it an honor to have known Jacob Ruppert? Also, the builder of baseball’s greatest empire, Ed Barrow? To have spent six years with that wonderful little fellow, Miller Huggins? Then to have spent the next nine years with that outstanding leader, that smart student of psychology, the best manager in baseball today, Joe McCarthy? Sure, I’m lucky.

“When the New York Giants, a team you would give your right arm to beat, and vice versa, sends you a gift – that’s something. When everybody down to the groundskeepers and those boys in white coats remember you with trophies – that’s something. When you have a wonderful mother-in-law who takes sides with you in squabbles with her own daughter – that’s something. When you have a father and a mother who work all their lives so you can have an education and build your body – it’s a blessing. When you have a wife who has been a tower of strength and shown more courage than you dreamed existed – that’s the finest I know.

“So I close in saying that I might have been given a bad break, but I’ve got an awful lot to live for. – Thank you.”

Here are the only newsreel snippets of his speech:

Meanwhile in Dobrzyn, Hili, who spends most of these warm spring nights outdoors, wants to go for a walk through the cherry orchard in the afternoon. Isn’t she adorable?

Hili: The house isn’t going anywhere, I’m going with you.

A: You were out all night.

Hili: But without any company.

Hili: Dom nie ucieknie, idę z wami.
Ja: Całą noc byłaś na dworze.
Hili: Ale bez towarzystwa.

In nearby Wloclawek, Andrzej (the other Andrzej, who’s half of Leon’s staff) is mowing the grass on their future home (the wooden house to be moved from southern Poland hasn’t yet arrived!); and Leon enjoys the activity:

Leon: I’m rushing to haying.

The site of Leon and Staff’s future home:

Out in Winnipeg, Manitoba, Gus has just had a few leaves of a certain plant. Can you guess which plant it is?

And across the pond in London, Theo, the Cat Who Drinks Espresso, is being annoying. Staff member Laurie says this:

He hollers his head off, bounds about like a feline cannonball, vaults onto my head, screams undeviatingly into my ear and when he rejoices in the certainty that I have wholly awakened, he reposes thus.  Jerk.

Hello on a lovely (so far) Tuesday, May 16, 2017.  It’s National Barbecue Day, celebrating one of America’s great contributions to world cuisine (yes, I know other lands have simulacra of BBQ, but I’ve never had better examples of the genre than a good BBQ Texas brisket or Chicago-style rib tips).  In Iraq, it’s Mass Graves Day, a sad occasion.

On this day in 1770, Marie Antoinette, only 14, married Louis-Auguste, just a year older, and who later became King Louis XVI. In 1868, President Andrew Johnson’s impeachment trial ended, with Johnson narrowly escaping conviction (by one vote) in the Senate. On this day in 1929, the first Academy Awards ceremony took place, with Wings (featuring Gary Cooper and Clara Bow) winning best picture. Here’s the trailer:

On May 16, 1943, the Warsaw Ghetto Uprising ended, with nearly ever Jew captured or killed (13,000 of the latter); most of the survivors died in concentration camps. Here are some of the doomed survivors:

Notables born on this day include Henry Fonda (1905), Studs Terkel (1912), Liberace (1919), and Adrienne Rich (1929). Those who died on this day include Django Reinhardt (1953), James Agee (1955), Andy Kaufman (1984), and both Sammy Davis, Jr, and Jim Henson (1990). Meanwhile in Dobrzyn, Hili shows her obsessive interests in birds as she goes for walkies with Cyrus and Malgorzata:

Hili: Do you hear birds singing?

Malgorzata: Yes, I do.

Hili: Interesting.

Hili: Słyszysz ten śpiew ptaków?
Małgorzata: Słyszę.
Hili: Interesujący.

In Wloclawek, Leon and staff have gone for a hike; apparently there are beavers near!

Leon: Let’s go and see how our beavers are.

Good morning; it’s May 4, and Spring is pretty much here in Chicago after a terribly rainy weekend. It’s another triple food holiday: National Candied Orange Peel Day, National Homebrew Day, and National Hoagie Day. I like all of those, and love candied orange peel, on which you can find good deals on Amazon. It’s also Star Wars Day, and though many readers are fans, I must confess I’ve never seen any of the television episodes or movies.

On this day in 1886, the Haymarket Affair occurred in Chicago, with a bomb tossed into a group of police officers during a labor demonstration, killing one cop and wounding six; eight anarchists were convicted and four were hanged. It also brought crackdowns on immigrants and the labor movement. On May 4, 1904, the digging of the Panama Canal began, and in 1932 Al Capone began serving an 11-year prison sentence for evading federal taxes, the only crime they could pin on him. In 1953, Ernest Hemingway was awarded a Pulitzer Prize for his short novel The Old Man and the Sea, a book I think is overrated (I like his short stories and The Sun Also Rises  better). The next year he won the Nobel Prize for Literature, but didn’t accept it in person as he was suffering from the aftermath of a plane crash. On May 4, 1961, the “Freedom Riders” began their pro-civil-rights bus odyssey through the South. In 1979, Margaret Thatcher became Britain’s first woman Prime Minister, and in 1998 “Unabomber” Ted Kaczynski received four life sentences plus 30 years in a plea deal (he’s still alive and in jail).

Notables born on this day include Alice Liddell (1852, the model for Lewis Carroll’s Alice in Wonderland). Here’s her photo:

Also born on this day were Eugenie Clark, shark biologist and my former colleague and Maryland (1922), Audrey Hepburn (1929), George Will (1941), and Randy Travis (1959). Those who died on this day Moe Howard of the Three Stooges (1975, real name Moses Harry Horwitz), Dom DeLuise (2009), and biologist Christian de Duve (2013). Meanwhile in Dobrzyn, Hili is engaged in food-centered philosophy:

A: What are you thinking about?

Hili: About the problem of memory.

A: And?

Hili: Nothing, just that yesterday I had beef.

Ja: Nad czym myślisz?
Hili: Nad problemem pamięci.
Ja: I co?
Hili: Nic tylko wczorajsza wołowina.

Leon’s hiking in the woods near Wloclawek and bonding with his staff:

Leon: How many roads we passed together? How many paths we walked?

How many roads can a cat walk down before you call him a cat?

Spring is coming to Winnipeg, too, and Gus is hunting rodents, though he’s not allowed to get them. His staff’s notes:

Here are a few pics of mouse hunting this afternoon. Gus was certain there was a mouse behind these rocks and he spent a good portion of the day just staring at them. Good old Gus.