What Would Jimmy Do?

Well, we’ve kicked off the busy month of May around here — today is the fifth and it’s Cinco de Mayo, a holiday that celebrates the date of the Mexican Army’s May 5, 1862 victory over France at the Battle of Puebla during the Franco-Mexican War. As we’ve talked about before, it is a relatively minor holiday in Mexico. In many places is simply known as the Battle of Puebla Day. 

Since we’re all still staying at home, this is a good opportunity to talk about today and maybe learn a little history… 
Today commemorates a single battle. First, a little background — in 1861, Benito Juárez, a lawyer and member of the indigenous Zapotec tribe, was elected president of Mexico. At the time, the country was in financial ruin after years of internal strife, and the new president was forced to default on debt payments to European governments. In response, France, Britain and Spain sent naval forces to Veracruz, Mexico, demanding payment. Britain and Spain negotiated with Mexico and withdrew their forces. But France, ruled by Napoleon III, saw this as an opportunity to carve an empire out of Mexican territory. Late in 1861, a well-armed French fleet stormed Veracruz and landed a large force of troops — that drove President Juárez and his government into retreat.

The French were certain that victory would come swiftly and General Charles Latrille de Lorencez led 6,000 French troops to attack Puebla de Los Angeles, a small town in east-central Mexico. Juárez rounded up a ragtag force of 2,000 men — many of them either indigenous Mexicans or of mixed ancestry — and sent them to Puebla. The vastly outnumbered and poorly supplied Mexicans, led by Texas-born General Ignacio Zaragoza, fortified the town and prepared for the French assault. On May 5, 1862, Lorencez gathered his army — supported by heavy artillery, and led an assault on the city of Puebla. The battle lasted from daybreak to early evening, and when the French finally retreated they had lost nearly 500 soldiers. Fewer than 100 Mexicans had been killed in the skirmish.

The Battle of Puebla wasn’t a major strategic win in the overall war against the French, but it was a great symbolic victory for the Mexican government and bolstered the resistance movement.
 In 1867, partly because of military support and political pressure from the United States, France finally withdrew. 

As you probably know, Cinco de Mayo is a bigger deal here than in Mexico. Cinco de May is primarily observed in the state of Puebla in Mexico, although other parts of the country also take part in the celebration. For many/most Mexicans, May 5 is a “regular” day — it isn’t a federal holiday, so offices, banks and stores are open for business. 

In the United States, Cinco de Mayo began to become popular in the 1960s… initially, many in the US thought it was a celebration of Mexican independence — it’s not, of course, Mexican Independence Day is September 16. Today, other than a good excuse to drink margaritas, the day is thought of as a day to celebrate Mexican culture and heritage. Some of the largest Cinco de Mayo festivals are held in Los Angeles, Chicago and Houston. 

I guess it shouldn’t come as any surprise that 47% of all drinks ordered on Cinco de Mayo are margaritas… I’m sure tequila sales go up around this time of year, too. My extensive research uncovered an interesting fact about tequila. Centuries ago, tequila couldn’t be enjoyed by all Mexican people. Aztec priests used to make a milky beer-like drink from the agave plant called pulque. Only the priests could consume this precursor of tequila. 

I probably should mention that Carnegie Music Hall originally opened on May 5h and this date also marks the launch of the first American-manned space flight (in 1961.) But whatever day you’re celebrating, it seems like a good occasion for a margarita…..
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The Blue angels and the Thunderbirds conducted a flyover in DC, Northern Virginia and Maryland today in a display of national unity and support for front-line health care workers. It’s one of a series of flyovers the squadrons are making around the country. We weren’t able to see the flyover from here in Shepherdstown, but a few years ago we had a front row seat when the Thunderbirds performed at an air show in Martinsburg. The picture was taken from our back yard.
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Goodbye  April — hello May! I can’t say April was a “bad” month, but it was certainly different and it never got warm around here, so it loses points for that. But anyhow, here it is May — and so far, so good. Not as warm as I’d like, but warmer than April

Shepherdstown is one of the very few places in the United States that still has a formal May Day celebration. Of course that won’t happen this year — no dancing around the May Pole or any of the other activities that aren’t allowed with social distancing. Cinco de Mayo will be carry out and we’ll have to get creative with our anniversary plans…. but May is a good month — weather is getting warmer and the trees have leaves.
Lots of family events to celebrate this month, so you know what the theme will be here on “What Would Jimmy Do?” Happy May!
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From what I’ve read, and keep hearing, there’s not much of a chance that we can all return to the “old normal” until a Coronavirus vaccine is developed. Optimistic estimates think it might happen in a year, but it’ll probably take longer. 

I guess if we’ve ever needed an Edward Jenner, we need one now. Jenner is generally acknowledged as the first person to have created a vaccine. He “invented” the smallpox vaccine (in 1796) that saved countless lives and earned him the title of Father of Immunology. Strictly speaking he didn’t discover vaccination but he was the first to confer scientific status on the procedure and to pursue its scientific investigation. 

So I don’t know who will get the credit for a vaccine for COVID-19, but I’m grateful for all the people working on it right now. Fortunately, not everyone needs the recognition of the president… they’re just doing it for humankind. 
In science, credit goes to the person who convinces the world, not the person whom the idea first occurs….
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Back on April 7, we celebrated Beer Day, so before the month of April gets away, it’s appropriate we celebrate pretzels — and — today’s the day. April 26th, National Pretzel Day. This day of celebration began in 2003 when Pennsylvania Governor Ed Rendell declared April 26 “National Pretzel Day.” This was a gesture to acknowledge the importance of the pretzel to state’s history and economy. 

The Pennsylvania Dutch immigrants introduced pretzels to North America in the 19th century. Many handmade pretzel bakeries were located throughout central Pennsylvania and were very popular. Later, soft pretzels became very popular in areas such as Philadelphia, Chicago and New York.

Today, the average Philadelphian consumes about twelve times as many pretzels as the national average. As you may have guessed, Pennsylvania is the center of American pretzel production for both hard and soft pretzels — producing 80% of the nations’s pretzels. Philadelphia opened a privately run Pretzel Museum in 1993.

Like most things that have been around a long time, the true origin of pretzels is hard to pin down. Most “experts” do agree that the pretzel has Christian origins. The most popular story, or legend, is that the pretzel was invented by an Italian monk in the year 610 A.D., to reward young children for learning their prayers. He supposedly folded strips of bread dough to resemble the crossed arms of praying children. He called his creation pretiola, which meant “little rewards.”

In the Catholic church, pretzels held religious significance because of their ingredients. When made with a simple recipe of only flour and water, they could be eaten during Lent. According to my extensive research — over time, pretzels became associated with both Lent and Easter. In fact, pretzels were often hunted on Easter morning just like kids hut eggs today. 

It wasn’t until pretzels were introduced to America that hard pretzels came into existence. The first commercial hard pretzel bakery opened in Lititz, Pennsylvania in 1850. We visited the bakery and I became an official pretzel twister — as you can see from the picture.
Happy Pretzel Day to all….
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These days a lot of people are “working from home.” This was beginning to become a trend for some people even before the mandate to shelter in place came along. Kelly and Chris have always told Emily that Chris had a job and Kelly had a job — and Emily’s job was to “go to school.” 

Well, of course, she can’t really “go” to school these days, so she’s “working from home” just like everyone else. I’m not sure how this electronic on-line learning is going to work out, but Emily seems to be handling it pretty well. Here’s a couple of pictures that I thought were pretty cute. I’m pretty sure you’re supposed to do your own work, so I don’t know how the school system is going to react to the help she seems to be getting from Kona….
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The first Earth Day in 1970 mobilized millions of Americans for the protection of the planet. On April 22, 1970, 20 million Americans — 10% of the U.S. population at the time — took to the streets, college campuses and hundreds of cities to protest environmental ignorance and demand a new way forward for our planet.

Boy, how times have changed… as you may have gathered, today is Earth day. Actually, it’s the 50th Anniversary of Earth Day. It’s intent was, and is, the goal of raising awareness about mankind’s role in protecting our natural world. 

I never intended that this blog would become, even a little bit, political. That’s still my intent, but it seems that everything is becoming politicalized these days. Earth Day brings to mind a number of things proposed or endorsed or enacted by the current administration that will absolutely impact America’s land, air, water and wildlife. I’m certainly not aware of all that is going on in Washington, but  it appears that the tone for this administrations approach to the environment was set when the U.S. pulled out of the Paris Climate Agreement.

The Clean Power Plan (an environmental policy of the previous administration) required the energy sector to cut carbon emissions by 32 percent by 2030. In 2017, it was rolled back by the EPA because of unfair burdens on the power sector and a “war on coal.”

Five companies have been approved to use seismic air gun blasts to search for underwater oil and gas deposits. There were a lot of concern about the deafening blasts, including the fear that they disorient marine mammals that use sonar to communicate… they were approved after NOAA found that they wouldn’t violate the Marine Mammal Protection Act.

When the current President took office, cars made after 2012, would, on average, have to get 54 miles per gallon by 2025. In August, 2018, the Department of Transportation and EPA capped the target at 34 miles per gallon by 2021. (This has created legal conflicts with states like California that have higher emission caps.)

Companies installing large wind turbines, construction power lines, or leaving oil exposed are no longer violating the Migratory Bird Treaty Act if their activities kill birds. 

Unlike national parks, national monuments can be created by an executive order and don’t have to be approved by Congress. The President’s says this means they can be dismantled just as easily. He opened Bears Ears and Grand Staircase Escalante in Utah for mining and drilling companies.

These are only a few things that readily come to mind… there are many, many more actions that pose serious damage to the Earth. Franklin Roosevelt said, “A nation that destroys its soils destroys itself. Forests are the lungs of our land, purging the air and giving fresh strength to our people.”
The Earth moves without us and it’s apparent that it would be better off without us. Even as the coronavirus invades our world, we can still walk into nature and see the spirit of new life among the old life all around us. We should breathe in the air and ask how we can save this glorious space. Then we should just do it. Maybe Gandhi said it best — “The good man is the friend of all living things.”
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Not much happening here today. I didn’t listen to the presidential “update” yesterday. Probably won’t listen today… as of Sunday, I think about one or two a week is all I can handle.
Sunday was painful — here’s a couple of exact quotes:

“But a lot of good things are happening. Some very good negotiations. I just got off the phone with the Secretary of the Treasury, and we have some very good negotiations going on right now. And I think you could have a nice answer tomorrow, but we’ll see.”
And…
“That’s — somebody said to me, ‘President, you look tired.’ I said, ‘I should be tired.’”
And
“We continue to procure millions of swabs, test collectors. I have something here. Just happen to have it. It’s a swab. It looks innocent. Not very complicated. Anybody like to see what it looks like? Should I open it? Does everybody? I will. I will. This is what it’s about. Right? Is it — does it remind you of something? It reminds you of this, right? One is a swab and one is a Q-tip. It’s actually different. It’s very sophisticated, actually. But it’s a little bit like — so this is the swab.”
Actual quotes from the President….

Reminds me of another quote…. ” I think there is only one quality worse than hardness of heart and that is softness of head.”
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Yesterday, Claire asked for help with a spreadsheet that someone had sent her. It may not have been the worst spreadsheet I’ve ever seen, but it was easily in the top two. It was written in some version of Excel — the acknowledged “king” of spreadsheets for personal computers. I personally never liked Excel — since I’ve retired, I like it even less. When I was working, I had to use it fairly often and I tolerated it then. Since I’ve been retired, I’ve used Numbers — a Mac spreadsheet. For my purposes, it far exceeds Excel — in every way that matters to me. 

But that’s not what this blog is about. After a lot of work to make the spreadsheet Claire received useable for her, I got to thinking…. Electronic spreadsheets are relatively new — a spread sheet was probably the first “useful” program that I remember for a personal computer. 

As far as I know, VisiCalc was the first spreadsheet computer program for PCs. It was originally released to run on the Apple II computer. (VisiCalc got it’s name because it acted like a “visible calculator.”)

Dan Bricklin dreamed up ViciCalc while watching a presentation at Harvard Business school. Dan teamed up with Bob Frankston and they formed the Software Arts company. Together, they developed the VisiCalc program in two months — during the winter of 1978-79. Both Dan and Bob were familiar with many row/column financial programs. These programs were really no more than report generators — some of the better known were Business Planning Language (BPL) and Foresight. However, none of the programs were completely interactive and they were used prior to the personal computer era.

VisiCalc was marketed as “a magic sheet of paper that can perform calculations and recalculations and allows the user to just solve the problem using familiar tools and concepts.”

VisiCalc hit the market in mid-1979 and sold for under $100. It required an Apple II computer with 32K of RAM and supported saving files to a magnetic tape cassette or to Apple’s Disk II floppy disk system.
The program was unusually easy to use and came with excellent documentation. By 1982, VisiCalc’s price had risen from under $100 to $250 and competitors, like Super Calc and Multiplan had come on the market. 

In 1983, Lotus Development Corporation came up with Lotus 1-2-3. It was designed to be as compatible as possible with VisiCalc, including the menu structure — to allow VisiCalc users to easily migrate to 1-2-3.

Lotus 1-2-3 was more powerful than VisiCalc and was almost immediately successful. By 1984, sales of VisiCalc were declining rapidly. The magazine InfoWorld wrote that VisiCalc was the first successful software product to have gone through a complete life cycle, from conception in 1978 to introduction in 1979 to peak success in 1982 to decline in 1983 to a probable death in 1984.
By 1985, Lotus Development acquired Software Arts and ended sales of VisiCalc.

So another trip down memory lane… after struggling with Claire’s spreadsheet, I guess I was longing for the good old “simpler” days. Of course remembrance of things past is not necessarily the remembrance of things as they were….
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For better or worse, in sickness and in health… these are the things you say when you get married. Today is Husband Appreciation Day. Now you may be asking, What?? Do men really need to be told they’re wonderful? Most of us think we’re wonderful… or maybe all the bluster is just a smoke screen masking a super sensitive, needy human being? 

Anyhow, today is Husband Appreciation Day — celebrated every year on the third Saturday of April. I suppose wives should appreciate their husbands every day — just like husbands should appreciate their wives. But what the heck — seems like Husband Appreciation Day is a day worth celebrating. (Yes, there is a Wives Appreciation Day, too.)

The role of husbands (like everything else) has changed over the years. Years ago, the husband was probably the only one of the family to earn money to put food on the table… today, the husband and wife typically both work to meet the family’s needs.

For all our shortcomings, wives apparently think their husband do some stuff right. A recent survey listed the top 5 things that wives appreciate about their husbands: being a hard worker, making their partners feel comfortable around them, making them laugh, being smart, and supporting their partner’s goals and desires. 

It’s interesting that reasons connected to money or household duties were far down on the list. So I guess that means that it’s most important for us to just be smart and funny…. and work hard.
Anyhow, I’m sure Claire has a big celebration planned for me tonight….
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