HAPPY THANKSGIVING

 

Happy  Thanksgiving!

This morning the turkeys are in the oven, pies cooling, the children watching the Macy Thanksgiving Parade, families getting together. A good day! A thank you God day.

A quick  history of Thanksgiving.

The gathering of Pilgrims and Indians in 1621 is considered the first Thanksgiving. It was not. It was called a “gathering.”

There were no more thanksgivings/gatherings till 1776. George Washington called for a day of thanksgiving. The first time the word was actually used. The Revolution was in full swing. The colonies had separated from Great Britain.

The day was enjoyed. Washington wanted to continue it every year. The politicians of the day said no. Even Thomas Jefferson. It had to do with Pilgrims, Puritans, and satanic beliefs. A hot potato.

There was not another thanksgiving till 1864. Abraham Lincoln was happy with the way the Civil war was going. He had a new general by the name of Ulysses Grant who had won several battles, The Emancipation Proclamation was law. Lincoln decreed the fourth thursday of November was hence forth to be celebrated as a day of thanksgiving.

It so continued till 1941. It became a legal holiday at that time. Thanks to Franklin Delano Roosevelt.

That’s the story.

Lunch yesterday was at Goldman’s Deli with Robert and Ally. Business appeared to be half of what it normally was. I attribute it to the competition of the nearby new Five Guys and the boulevard construction.

The grandkids and I talked about Thanksgiving and Christmas. Had Santa Claus telephoned me yet this year? No, not yet. He’s busy. Soon, however.

Oh, how they believe!

Before going out last night, I had to deliver the turkey from my refrigerator to Lisa. It was heavy! Robert and Ally were excitedly waiting for me. They took the turkey from me to carry inside.

My evening out was Don’s Place. A good  crowd. Including Don, David, Herschel, Stan, Erika, Toni, Bebe, Rob, and others. The holiday spirit was in the air.

I read an article this morning that the second biggest drinking night in the U.S. is Thanksgiving Eve. The first of course is New Year’s Eve.

I stopped at Publix for a few things on the way home. The new one. The place was crowded. I was surprised. Apparently most people had waited till the last minute to shop.

Two Thanksgiving dinners for me today! With Lisa and family at 1. With friends at 6. A heavy day!

Donna emailed me yesterday. She forwarded a You Tube video of Terri made in Dusseldorf,  Germany. Terri recently appeared with the Symphony there.

The video is less than six minutes. Well done. I recommend you take a look at it.

www.youtube.com/watch?=BJsTyKKxu8o&sns=em.

Tomorrow is friday. Friday is The Key West Lou Legal Hour. Please watch. Ten o’clock in the morning my time. Available on TV throughout the Keys and Miami-Dade County. Comcast Channel 87 and U-Verse Channel 19. Available world wide via internet. www.tvchannel19.com.

You will enjoy!

Enjoy your Thanksgiving holiday, also!

 

JOE BTFSPLK

I am beginning to feel like Joe Btfsplk. The Li’l Abner character that walked around with a black cloud over his head. He seemed to have bad luck. His endeavors jinxed.

My television debut yesterday had a sense of Joe Btfsplk about it. I lasted 4 minutes. Then taken off the air. No, I did not say anything bad. There was no audio. It took several hours to determine the cause. A cable problem some where in the back room.

So there was no first television show for me!

Watch again next week. Please.

There is humor in all this. I moved to the TV station because my previous internet show did not always work. Some weeks, no voice. Others, no picture. Some weeks, nothing at all. I figured that was all behind me. I was going to be broadcasting live from a for real TV station.

Such is life!

While the tragedy was unfolding yesterday, I asked Jenna if she knew who Li’l Abner was. I knew I was in a Joe Btfsplk moment. She did not. Too young.

Al Capp was a cartoonist. From the mid 1930s to the mid 1970s, he drew the Li’l Abner cartoon. It was syndicated world wide.

The setting for the cartoon was the imaginary Dogpatch in the hills of Kentucky. Li’l Abner was a young hillbilly. His girl friend was Daisey Mae.

Joe Btfsplk was a part of the Dogpatch community. He appeared in the cartoon about once a month. Seldom because Joe was considered bad luck. He was a small runty appearing guy. Wore a big flappy hat. Always had that black cloud over him.

I visted with Lisa after the show. She lamented with me. Larry Smith telephoned several times with his critique of the 4 minutes.

I would be lying if I said I was not disappointed. There was a need to drown my sorrows. I knew the perfect place.

I headed over to Blossoms for a Cuban cheese toast with tomato and a large cup of Cuban coffee. I felt better afterwards.

My afternoon was committed to writing next week’s KONK Life article. It’s called Honor Killing. The subject matter concerns Pakistani parents who threw acid over their 15 year old daughter because she was looking at boys. It took two days of agonizing pain before the girl died. It is questionable whether she received medical attention.

Honor killings are common place in Pakistan. Last year there were 943 such deaths. Young girls killed by family members. Acid was used in each instance. Of the 943, only 20 received medical attention

To further compound these heinous deaths, most of the girls were first subjected to gang rape.

Honor killings are tied into religion. My article explores the subject, including the religious aspect.

I got involved in a two hour telephone call around 5. By the time it was over, I was not in the mood to go out last night. I stayed home and watched TV.

A brief comment regarding General Petraeus’ resignation.

The man had an extramarital affair. That in and off itself would not justify resignation in my opinion. His problem was his girl friend had obtained access to his personal emails. Cannot have a girl friend sneaking around and reading emails of any kind written and received by the head of the CIA.

Had it not been for the intrusion into his personal emails, Petraeus hopefully would have stayed on the job.

The United States is no longer the puritanical society it once was. Most of our churches and places of worship are empty. The moral wrongs of yesterday are the rights of today. Let he who is without sin cast the first stoned should prevail. People who live in glass houses likewise should not throw stones.

Enjoy your Saturday!