Friends,

Variety awaits you on today’s edition of The Diary of a Nobody, as Sparrow has the latest from the yard at The Shire, plus he goes into town early to hunt for a pair of glasses, the kind that sit on the edge of your nose, because he thinks it will make him look distinguished…Sparrow also declines a used camping gear return at the retailer.

We declined to produce The Thought for the Day one or two years ago today, so today we offer one from King David. It comes from the Old Testament, from a book generally believed to have been written by David’s son Soloman, and concerns how us humans generally get what we expect out of ourselves.

On This Date:
In 1865 –  Mary Surratt, Lewis Powell, David Herold and George Atzerodt, conspirators in the assassination of President Abraham Lincoln, are hanged in Washington, D.C., then known as Washington City. Their trial had ended just a week earlier, had lasted seven weeks and was conducted by a military tribunal, which meant only a majority was needed to convict, three-quarters needed for a death sentence and the only appeal was to President Andrew Johnson.

In 1985 – Boris Becker defeats Kevin Curren 6-3, 6-7, 7-6, 6-4 to win Wimbledon. At 17 Becker is the youngest Wimbledon champion, the first German and the first unseeded player to win the title. The loss is Curren’s second and final loss in a Grand Slam singles final. He was a four-time Grand Slam doubles champion.

In 1973 – Billy Preston is at #1 on the Billboard Hot 100 for the first of two weeks with Will It Go Round In Circles. It was the second of three times Preston hit #1 as an artist. In 1969, as part of The Beatles with Billy Preston, he hit #1 with Get Back and in 1974 his Nothing From Nothing spent one week at #1.

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Gaylon

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What was scheduled to be a leisurely day off for Sparrow turned into a day of labor as he completely lost his mind and mowed and watered the lawn…Also, in his role as commander, Sparrow attends a Sons of the Legion meeting that has a low turnout and he realizes there is no way he is going to match last week’s total of 50 hours of sleep. All on today’s edition of The Diary of a Nobody.

Today’s Thought for the Day is from earlier this year, one of the few quotes we are actually present at when uttered. It comes from Dan Duffy, an old shipmate in the navy, and Dan talks about there not being any rewards without risks. The context of the quote is the card game Spades, which you play a lot in the US Navy, and Dan usually said it when I bid nil, which I was usually successful at.

On This Date: 
In 1865 – The Nation is published for the first time, in New York City. Still active today, it remains the oldest continuously published news magazine in America. It has bureaus in Washington, DC, London and South Africa, has decidedly liberal bent and continues to flourish despite losing money virtually every year thanks to a dedicated group of donors.

In 2005 – The Florida Marlins defeat the Milwaukee Brewers 5-4 in ten innings with five Marlin’s pitchers retiring the final 28 Brewers batters. It was only the 5th time in major league history a team or pitcher retired more than 27 consecutive batters in a game.

In 1946 – The Gypsy by the Ink Spots is #1 on Billboard’s Best Sellers in Stores chart (the Hot 100 didn’t appear until 1958) for the seventh of ten consecutive weeks. It was the first of two #1’s for the Ink Spots in 1946 (To Each His Own). In 1944 they had their first #1 song, I’m Making Believe with Ella Fitzgerald. The Ink Spots were inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 1999, though all the original members had already died.

Have a good day, and many thanks for reading,
Gaylon

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Valued Readers,

Typical for the 4th, Sparrow and company are completely slammed at the retailer, including Sparrow’s first ever PA announcement in Spanish and a certified Line of the Year candidate. At The Shire, the baby robins are starting to poke their cute little beaks above the top of the nest, all in today’s edition of The Diary of a Nobody.

On today’s Thought for the Day we have an encore from January of this year, from astronaut Gene Cernan. Cernan, commander of Apollo 17, remains the last human to set foot on the moon, something lamentable, because this means we haven’t been back to the moon since 1973, but not as lamentable as the fact there isn’t someone who can say they were the last human to set foot on Mars. Cernan talks about accomplishment and how today’s successes lay the foundation for tomorrow’s accomplishments.

On This Date:
In 1776 – Three days after declaring independence from Great Britain and one day after approving the Declaration of Independence, the Second Continental Congress of the United States of America settles down to the business of conducting a revolution. Congress was still adapting to independence, however, and still referring to the several states as colonies and they continued to set precedents that are followed to this day, approving some things, referring some matters to committee and putting some things off until ‘9 o’Clock  to morrow’.

In 2000 – Eric Cammack of the New York Mets goes 1-1 with a triple and an RBI as the Mets beat the Florida Marlins 11-2, making him one of only four players to triple in their only major league at-bat. Cammack, a pitcher, would pitch in eight games for the Mets in 2000, finishing without a decision and a 6.30 ERA.

In 1980 – Coming Up (Live at Glasgow) by Paul McCartney is #1 for the second of three consecutive weeks on the Billboard Hot 100. It was McCartney’s 27th #1 song as a performer, either with the Beatles, Wings or as a solo act. The live version was originally released at the B side of the studio version, but the live version ended up getting more airplay in the US.

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Gaylon
America’s Funniest Guy

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After only a few days at home, The Wife heads out to the big city for another stint at the retailer there on today’s The Diary of a Nobody. In other news from The Shire, Sparrow asks for a raise at the hotel, he takes The Wife to dinner before her departure and his left index finger laceration is healing and doesn’t figure to present any long-term health problems.

There wasn’t The Thought for the Day one or two years ago, so today we dug into the archives for one from Henry David Thoreau, a frequent contributor to this feature. Today, in a quote from Walden, HDT talks about wisdom.

And, as a bonus, we are pleased to feature The Daily Dose column from one year ago today, some thoughts on what our Founding Fathers might think of their country in the second decade of the 21st century. It’s a hell of a column, and we felt so good about it we put it in the Gaylon Hall of Fame.

On This Date:
In 1054 – A supernova – an exploding star – is witnessed by assorted civilizations across the planet. Written accounts of the event are found in both Chinese and Arab texts and less reliable accounts are credited to some European cultures. The Chinese accounts are rather detailed, with the event referred to in one account as a ‘guest star’ that only faded ‘after a year or more’. The remnants of the supernova are known as the Crab Nebula and can be seen in the Taurus constellation.

In 1925 – The New York Yankees defeat the Philadelphia A’s 1-0 in 15 innings at Yankee Stadium. Both Herb Pennock of the Yankees and Lefty Grove of the A’s pitch complete games, with Pennock, rather impressively, retired 18 of the first 19 batters he faced and the last 22 batters he faced. The Yankees won on a Steve O’Neil single which scored Bobby Veach.

In 1966 – The Beach Boys hit #1 for the first time as I Get Around reaches the top of Billboard’s Hot 100. It was the first of four #1’s for the Beach Boys (Help Me Rhonda, Good Vibrations, Kokomo). I Get Around also went to #1 in Canada and was Billboard’s 5th biggest song of 1966.

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Gaylon

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