Sioux City, Iowa was the hometown of twin sisters, Esther Pauline Friedman and Pauline Esther Friedman.  They were born on July 4, 1918.  I’m sure you’ve heard of them.  Both were newspaper columnists and are better known for their pen names:  Ann Landers (Esther) and Dear Abby (Pauline).  At the beginning of their journalistic careers, they… Read More »

If there was an award for the most detested, reviled President of the United States, it would surely go to our 10th President, John Tyler.  Historians seem to agree, putting him in the list with Warren Harding, Franklin Pierce, Andrew Johnson and James Buchanan.  Granted, these listings are arbitrary and slanted according to the bias… Read More »

On this day in 1859, a biologist named Charles Darwin submitted the first three chapters of his infamous On The Origin of Species book to his publishers.  The book formed the treatise for evolutionary biology and became the standard for many years. Though brought up with a strict religious background, Darwin began to doubt all… Read More »

In 2007, the American Heart Association established the first Wednesday of April as National Walking Day.  Somewhere between 10 to 18 months, we started our journey walking.  However, the older we get, the less we want to walk and must be encouraged to get in those steps every day. Mayo Clinic offers many reasons why… Read More »

Wouldn’t it be a wonderful sight to look out your window and see horses and riders speeding by with mail delivery?  If we were alive on this day in 1860, we might have caught a glimpse of this as the Pony Express debuted. The idea of this mail delivery system was devised by William H.… Read More »

Today is National DIY Day.  Those who are a DIYer, you don’t need it explained.  For others, DIY means Do It Yourself.  It’s the day to celebrate the person who is the “jack of all trades” who would rather do a project themselves rather than hiring it done.   In the process, the DIYer learns a… Read More »

If you can’t stand pranks, jokes, and “gotcha” moments, this is not your day.  In fact, you might want to just stay home and avoid contact with anyone.  While you’re at it, don’t turn on the television, answer the phone, or read the newspaper.  This is a day that panics the paranoid, harasses the humorless,… Read More »

We are rapidly approaching the time of year where vegetable and flower gardens will be planted.  With diligence and care, the ground is tilled and prepared to receive the seeds, starter plants, or bulbs.  It won’t be long before little green shoots break through the ground and satisfaction fills your heart as your work blooms… Read More »

Today in history, one political event spawned a National Day Calendar event.  Historically, this is the day in 1981 when President Ronald Reagan was shot outside of a Washington, DC hotel by John Hinckley Jr.  The .22 caliber bullet pierced the president’s chest, barely missing his heart.  “In an impressive feat for a 70-year-old man… Read More »

Terrorism.  That’s a word that most of us didn’t associate with the United States until 9/11.  However, there have been acts of terrorism all throughout history, though the terminology may not have been the same.  Following WWII, President Harry S. Truman signed a series of policies that restructured our military and intelligence departments.  By 1947,… Read More »