Happy Special 18th July Day!

Gemstone of the Month

Ruby

Flower of the Month: Larkspur

The Great Fire of Rome started on this day in 64 AD. The jury is still out on who or what caused the fire, ranging from the Emperor Nero sending out men to start the fire, to the Christians being responsible for starting it. Whoever or whatever started the fire one thing is without doubt, the Christians were blamed for it and suffered the consequences. The legend that Nero, who was a bit OTT, “fiddled” whilst the fire was raging is not strictly correct as the violin was not invented for another 1,000 years! However he did play the lyre and fancied himself as a bit of a performer so maybe he did strike up a tune on his instrument of choice. Nero did come up trumps after it was all over by opening his palace to the homeless and rebuilding the city so it was much better protected against future fires. Oh, and whilst he was about it he built himself a nice new spanking palace reputed to be between 100 – 300 acres grand! Nice work if you can get it!

On fire in a different way on this day in 1896 was the Australian cricket all rounder George Giffen (1859 – 1927) who became the first to complete the double of 1,000 Test runs and 100 Test wickets playing in his 30th Test Match. His career statistics are quite remarkable scoring a total of 1,238 test runs and 103 test wickets in 31 Test Matches. He was also the first Australian to score 10,000 runs and take 500 wickets in first class cricket!

Setting his record as the first black man to win a major golf championship on this day in 1959 was William Wright who won the Amateur Public Links Championship on the Wellshire Golf Course at Denver, Colorado. It was a sign of things to come and the world’s #1 today is of course Tiger Woods. It’s a pity he will not be competing in this year’s Open but we wish him well and look forward to seeing his golfing magic again soon.

Whizzing around France at high speed on this day in 1971 the Belgian Eddie Merckx won his third Tour de France title. He is regarded as the best cyclist of all time and some of his world records still remain. Having retired from the sport he now runs a very successful factory making ……bicycles, of course! Nomanda’s met this legend and he is a very nice guy!

If you’ve got a nice little business knocking out millions of pens and pencils to the world what can you do to improve it? Well Crayola came up with the revolutionary idea on this day in 1994 to make “smelly” crayons! They are actually marketed under the term “scented crayons” but when you see the smells / flavours they offer, “Soda Burp” and “Alien Armpit” to name but two, I think “smelly” is more correct. Despite pleading my editor has deleted all Nomanda’s new name / smell suggestions! One name was “Cat ****” and rhymes with trap, another was “French ****” and rhymes with heart! I like a bit of alliteration with my crayons!

First up for birthday honours today is the indomitable Victorian cricketer W G Grace. He had his opponents shaking in their boots when he strode out bat in hand to take guard. His career spanned an amazing 44 years and despite poorer performances in his latter playing years his First Class statistics are 54,896 runs and 2,976 wickets. A remarkable man with a remarkable beard!

Another remarkable man, Nelson Mandela (1918) will be celebrating his 90th birthday.




A fairly scary rocker, “Screamin” Jay Hawkins (1929 – 2000) was born on this day. He could certainly put a spell on his audiences and his rendition of “Constipation Blues” just scares me ********!


A couple of Nomanda’s sporting heroes, Dennis Lillee (1947), and the current captain of this year’s Ryder Cup Team, Nic Faldo (1957), share their birthdays today. Have a drink on Nomanda boys!




Our final birthday wishes go to the larger than life English businessman Richard Branson (1950). His “Virgin” trade name is recognised all over the world and his businesses go from strength to strength. The daughter of one of Nomanda’s friends used to work for the great man himself so we feel as though he’s part of the family! Cheers, Richard!



Happy Special Day to one and all!!



If you know someone who is celebrating their birthday, anniversary or a special day today or sometime soon why not send them a nice e-card so they get it as soon as they log on! Even better, why not send this page to your friend!
Don’t know what to get for a present? Think about what your special person enjoys doing and the things they like.


For Girls, I know that flowers and chocolates are a bit cliché but nevertheless they always seem to work! Of course, if your budget stretches that far, jewellery, watches, perfume and fashion items are always appreciated!

For Boys, all boys like toys! It’s just as they get older the toys get more expensive. So gadgets and gimmicky things work. Again, if you have the budget then car accessories, sporting equipment and clothes, and man type jewellery like watches and gold chains will go down very well!

And, if all else fails, you could always send them a gift voucher and they can choose whatever they want!

If you are celebrating a birthday, anniversary or other special event today I hope you got lots of cards and presents and that there is someone special in your life who will make this day a very happy and special day for you.



Happy celebrations to you from the Happy Special Day Blog!!