Today is my daughter’s 27th birthday! We will celebrate with her later in the week since her wonderful husband has taken her on a romantic getaway. Thinking about the various ways we have celebrated Emily’s birthday over the years inspired me to jot a few notes here on customs and...
My guess is that most reading this blog post today have already packed up their Christmas decorations and kicked the shriveled tree to the curb for disposal. Am I right? What is Sharon thinking to write a post about Christmas on January 6? Ah! Bear with me my dear friends,...
Those of you who read the second novel of the Darcy Saga – Loving Mr. Darcy – may recall that Darcy and Elizabeth ended their sightseeing of Derbyshire with a visit to Bolsover Castle. It was a rather dramatic conclusion to their holiday, which was fitting considering the colorful history...
Last Friday I posted a blog with assorted trivia about Thanksgiving. That post can be read here: Did you know THIS about Thanksgiving? Now for a random selection of additional statistics and factoids about this special American holiday. The traditional cornucopia is a curved goat’s horn filled to brim...
Want to impress your guests on Thanksgiving? Or, maybe a brain twisting trivia game to pass the hours while the bird cooks is on the planned entertainment agenda. Here are random bits of holiday-related minutia to help ya out. Sarah Josepha Hale (1788-1879), who tirelessly worked to establish Thanksgiving as...
Mary Darby was born on November 27, 1758, the third of five children born to John Darby and his wife Hester Seys. Her father deserted the family when Mary was seven, uncertain finances causing the struggling family to relocate frequently and Mary’s formal education to suffer. Eventually Mrs Darby starting her own...
For my final post on Halloween I am going to lighten up a bit. As noted in the previous blog posts, Halloween origins are a jumbled collage, so in most cases pinning a particular ritual to where it came from is a shot in the dark. Holidays don’t show up fully formed,...
Following up on the previous posts on this bizarre holiday taking place, the next question is: How did Halloween become so popular? One note I must make is that despite serious study that contradicts the direct, complete link to the Celts and Samhain celebrations, most commentaries maintain this as the...
The origins of “Halloween” are steeped in mystery, vague references, superstitions, and suppositions. Personally I am not a fan of Halloween due to the death, terror, and general nastiness are at the center of the day. Enmeshing myself into that sort of stuff is not high on my list! Despite...
In the early years when the Roman Empire persecuted Christians, many martyrs died for their faith. Christians have been honoring these martyrs since at least the second century AD. The Martyrdom of Polycarp, probably written near the middle of the second century, attests to this reality: Accordingly, we afterwards took up...
Imagine it is 1817. You are in a theatre usually reserved for opera performances and ballets. It is pitch black with eerie music rising from the orchestra pit. You are clutching onto the armrests, or your companion, while witnessing a marvel never seen before. Ghostly visions mysteriously projected from hidden...
The word “Gothic” conjures a host of imagery to us these days. For the moment let’s set aside visions of head-to-toe black painted and garbed Marilyn Manson. LOL! Instead, let’s delve into the history so as to learn what the term meant in the Regency Era, specifically in relation to...
It is October so we are approaching Halloween. That brings topics of death to mind, whether we like it or not. LOL! I know this may sound odd, but I have always thought old graveyards peaceful, in a way. The cemetery in Mississippi where my grandparents and many other relatives are laid to rest is...
We all know the legendary story of Robin Hood. In the time of Richard the Lionheart a minor noble of Nottinghamshire, one Robin of Loxley, was outlawed for poaching deer. At that time the deer in a royal forest belonged to the king, and killing one of the king’s deer was therefore...
How does a used-candle seller establish one of the most successful and prestigious businesses in British history? Well, if your name is William Fortnum and the candles in question belonged to the royal family, you are well on your way to business success. It all came about like this. William Fortnum...
