According to the Old Farmer’s Almanac, the first Arbor Day occurred on April 10, 1872, in Nebraska City, Nebraska. It’s estimated that nearly one million trees were planted on that day.
Arbor Day is April 26th. What will you do? You could plant a tree, then take a picture of your children or grandchildren standing next to it each year on Arbor Day. Or a bigger job is to just plant a tree, don’t take pictures, but keep it watered and alive this summer. You could take kids or friends on a hike with nature. I remember taking a group of 7-year-old Cub Scouts on a hike just around my neighborhood. We found frogs, bones of animals, a tiny little skull (they loved that), flowers, rocks, ants, strings, plastic wrappers, insects, birds (lots of birds), a lake, animal tracks in the mud, squirrels, pretty leaves… there was so much to see and entertain them…and no electronics, yet every single thing was interesting to them. You could also do a family trash clean-up. Or make green Rice Krispie treats. But do something. The Earth needs you. I planted a Black Tupelo tree about three years ago. I named it Van Morrison and it is just now looking like it may live without me dragging water over the hill so often. I added another fertilizer stick to him this weekend. He should be beautiful in the fall when his leaves turn vibrant red, yellow, orange, and purple, but he is still only about three feet tall. I am patient as I admire him from my kitchen window.
Remember, someone is sitting in the shade today because someone planted a tree a long time ago.
The iconic Shiner brewery in South Texas is introducing a new line of spirits for our enjoyment. There is craft vodka, craft gin (8 botanicals including pecans, hmmm), and an unaged whiskey aka White Dog or Moonshine. And we all know that once unaged whiskey is thrown in an oak barrel for a couple of years, it becomes more famously known as BOURBON.
The Earth is a fine place and worth fighting for. Ernest Hemingway
Often, my coworkers have ideas for this column, which I readily accept. There is only so much reading one can do, and so many times, I can get through an entire article, then don’t really know how to put it into words what will make the subject sound interesting and appealing. Other times I can spend thirty minutes writing the paragraph, then just delete it. It just doesn’t work. This current suggestion was the “Dune” promotional sandworm shaped popcorn bucket available at the AMC concession counter on your way to watch the movie. Actually, it wasn’t an office suggestion, it was more like a warning; “You don’t want to… or you can’t write about the Dune promotional sandworm-shaped popcorn bucket.” Hmmm. So, now I’m curious. I looked it up. So far, I haven’t found a positive mention about the wasteful hard plastic, finger-grabbing, 80 tentacle, off-color looking, waste of your time, your reputation, and your money at $24.99. Just saying. It looks like just another item for our overflowing landfills.
Like the trees, we are visitors, guests of the Earth. Kim Stafford
RECENT BIRTHDAYS: Actor Julie Christie is 84. Remember her in Dr. Zhivago? Life magazine said 1965 was “The Year of Julie Christie.” She was and still is, a very beautiful woman, a contender for the role of Honey Ryder in the first James Bond film, Dr. No, but the producer thought her breasts were too small. The role went to Ursula Andress. Retired MLB Allstar Pete Rose is 83. Rock musician, and one of the greatest guitarists of all times, Ritchie Blackmore is 79. Co-founder of Deep Purple. Singer musician Iggy Pop is 77. Actor singer Patti LuPone is 75. Actor Tony Danza is 73. Actor Andie MacDowell is 66. Best hair in Hollywood. Singer Fabian is 81. News anchor Tom Brokaw is 84. Actor Lee Majors is 85. Singer Peter Frampton is 74. Actor Jack Nicholson is 87.
Louis Gossett Jr. died at 87. Fiddler in Roots, Gunnery Sergeant Emil Foley opposite Richard Gere in An Officer and a Gentleman, 2023’s Color Purple. Dickey Betts, guitarist, singer, and songwriter of classics like Ramblin’ Man, Blue Sky and Jessica, died of cancer and pulmonary disease at 80. With the death of Duane Allman in 1971, he took on the lead role in the Allman Brothers Band. It was said that when Dickey and Duane played, they became one on stage. British author Lynne Reid Banks, who wrote bestselling The L-Shaped Room and The Indian in the Cupboard, died at 94. Self-taught drummer, Albert “Tootie” Heath, who played with many jazz greats, died at 88. New Orleans singer and piano legend Clarence “Frogman” Henry who toured with the Beatles in the 60’s, died at 87.
We do not inherit the earth from our ancestors, we borrow it from our children. Native American Proverb
Squatters took over one of Gordon Ramsay’s restaurants and hotel in London, York & Albany, and are threatening legal action against trespassers…wait, aren’t they the trespassers? The business was temporarily closed while the celebrity chef finalized his lease. The squatters believe that the law allows them to be there. (2012 Legal Aid, Sentencing, and Punishment Offenders Act that states occupying a nonresidential building is not a crime.)
In a small Texas town, the mayor’s race includes a newcomer who helped lead the failed effort to pardon Tiger King Joe Exotic. His name is Eric “Big Juicy” Love. Actually, Big Juicy is the name of his English bulldog, but he wanted to pay homage to his dog by including it in his name. He is a private investigator who filmed Trump speaking on Jan. 6th but did not take part in storming the Capitol.
Words to Anything Goes written by Cole Porter for his 1934 musical.
The world has gone mad today,
And good’s bad today,
And black’s white today,
And day’s night today…
The city of Baltimore believes there was an incompetent crew on board the Dali, accusing them of negligence in the Francis Scott Key Bridge collapse, along with saying the ship was in unseaworthy condition before the collision. More than half the world’s population aged 5 and older (51% or about 4 billion people), are projected to be overweight or obese by 2035. With the blessings of sculptor David Adickes, Huntsville’s Sam Houston Statue, which stands on a 100-foot pedestal and rises 67 more feet into the air, will be wearing a Houston Texans City Edition Color Rush jersey until May 7th. The jersey weighs 200 pounds. The former mortician whose murder case inspired the movie “Bernie” (with Jack Black, Shirley MacLaine and Matthew McConaughey), said his life was in danger because there was no a/c in his prison cell. He has now been moved to an air-conditioned cell. Bernie Tiede is serving 99 years to life for killing Marjorie Nugent, a wealthy widow in Carthage, where he stored her body in a freezer for nine months. It’s a great movie.
A Peruvian Jumping Stick shed her exoskeleton as she was molting, creating a weak spot causing her head to flop back as she climbed upward, so The Houston Zoo created a neck brace from a sterile Q-tip and soft microspore tape. The brace provided support while its exoskeleton hardened, which took just a few days. A baby eaglet was knocked out of its nest when recent storms in Austin took down an entire branch of a large tree. The dehydrated and hungry baby was brought to the Texas Parks and Wildlife where those good people there were able to re-nest it. 25-30 feet high in the same tree, they attached a make-shift nest made out of a laundry basket, securing it with rope and zip ties. The eaglet’s parents were seen at the new nest caring for the baby. Awww. Baby gorilla Jameela is bonding with her surrogate mom and nursing at Cleveland Metroparks Zoo. She was born prematurely by emergency c-section at the Fort Worth Zoo, then her mother showed no interest in her.
Jason Kelce lost his coveted Super Bowl Championship ring during a chili pool diving competition. That’s when you jump into a pool full of chili, in case you didn’t know… (I didn’t know and would have never guessed that there was such a thing – and if I had guessed there was such a thing, I wouldn’t have guessed that anyone would actually do it.)
Remember to sell something…soon. Thank you for reading and shopping with us this week. Don’t forget to plant your tree.
LISA
Send comments to Lisa Baker at lisa@thesourceweekly.com
