1 July - Historical Events and Special Celebrations

Gemstone of the Month

Ruby

Flower of the Month: Larkspur

First of all Nomanda would like to thank all our new readers! We have been getting more and more of you every day and we really appreciate you! If you are enjoying Nomanda’s blog please pass it on to your friends. And if you would like to make a comment or get your own special mention on your own special day just send us the details through the comments section and we’ll make sure we don’t forget you! Nomanda’s Happy Special Day blog is a celebration of events and anniversaries that have touched our lives. If today is your special day join us in looking at a few other events that have occurred on your day. Enjoy!

Summer has arrived at last! Roll out the sun lounges, raise the parasol, get a couple of cool beers from the fridge, don the sunglasses and chill out! Great times but spare a thought for the person who invented those sunglasses. They were first seen on this day in China in 1200. Surprisingly they were not first of all used to prevent the glare from the sun, but, inscrutably, they were worn by Chinese judges so the members of the court couldn’t see their eyes. A custom continued by Mr Gadaffi and others! Nomanda wears them because I think they make me look cool! Isn’t that why everyone wears them?



If you’re off on your summer holidays and staying in a hotel the chances are that there will be a little red bible left in your room for you by the Gideon Society, that is if the previous occupant hasn’t nicked it! It was in this day in 1899 that the three founder members of the society decided that leaving bibles in hotel rooms was the best way to get the message across to fellow commercial travellers. Nomanda has known a few travelling salesmen in his time and to this day has never seen one with a bible in his hand! Lots of other stuff, but never a bible!



Another thing Nomanda has noticed about travelling salesmen is that generally they don’t eat too healthily when on the road. A few beers at the bar and if they remember a stale sandwich at the end of the session is about as healthy as it gets! The cartoon character with the healthy lifestyle, Popeye, was created on this day in 1929 by Elzie Segar. He has done so much for spinach growers that they have even erected a statue to him in Crystal City, Texas. In its own words Crystal describes itself as “The Spinach Capital of the World”! POOP! POOP!



Popeye always had a few friends and villains around him so he never got lonely, unlike poor old Sergeant Pepper who’s Lonely Hearts Club Band by the Beatles went to #1 on this day in 1967 and stayed at the top for another 15 weeks.




The public vote with their feet and showing the theatre world what they really really wanted the musical “Hair” closed on this day in 1972 after 1750 performances, whereas the musical “Jesus Christ Superstar” closed on this day in 1973 after just 711 performances. So nudity is more popular than religion, whatever next! Nevertheless they were both great musicals and I think we can indulge ourselves in a little “Aquarius” from Hair and the title song from JCS!



It was on this day in 1982 day when 2100 couples and members of the Unification Church (aka “Moonies”) said “I do” and all got married together under the watchful eye of their spiritual leader the Reverend Sun Myung Moon. Nomanda hopes they all had a lovely honey moonie!




Worthy of a very brief mention it was in this day in 1993 that a second was added to the clock!





First up for birthday honours today is Estee Lauder (1908 – 2004) the co-founder with her husband of the famous cosmetic company.





Our next celebrity is the renowned actress of the ‘40’s and ‘50’s, Olivia de Havilland (1916). Still going strong and living in Paris. Santé!





The “People’s Favourite Princess”, Diana (1961 – 1996) was born on this day. Despite the rumours surrounding her death and personal life Nomanda still believes she was a lovely lady with a big heart.



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!!

17 August - Historical Events and Special Celebrations

Gemstone of the Month

Agate

Flower of the Month: Gladiolus

Nomanda’s Happy Special Day blog is a celebration of events and anniversaries that have touched our lives. If today is your special day join us in looking at a few other events that have occurred on your day. Enjoy!



Cesare Borgia, having been made a cardinal at the tender age of 18 (the fact that his father was the pope may have helped the appointment!), proved that love conquers all and gave up his vows and office to marry a French Princess on this day in 1498. Given his family’s reputation, Nomanda suspects there was more to it than that! Indeed there was. Following his marriage he went on to conquer Romagna with the aid of the French army and continued his success by conquering Urbino and Camerino in 1502. However his luck ran out on the death of his father in 1503 and he found himself without friends or support. Ferdinand of Spain, an ally of the new pope, Pope Julius II, captured and imprisoned him in 1504. He eventually got lucky and escaped to France in 1506 where he worked for his brother in law the King of Navarre only to die in a minor battle the following year. Interesting family the Borgias!

When you jump in your car in the mornings and switch on the engine spare a thought for the guy who patented the electric self starter motor for cars on this day in 1891. Imagine if we still had to get the old crank handle out and wind the engine up! It’s raining, there’s thunder and lightning and it’s blowing a gale, just doesn’t bear thinking about!

It is said that lightning doesn’t strike in the same place twice. However the same cannot be said for baseballs. It was on this day in 1957 that the famous Richie Ashburn playing for the Mets hit fan Alice Roth in the face breaking her nose. The medics rushed out and carried her off on a stretcher. Play restarted and the next ball Richie hit struck the luckless Alice again whilst she was being carried from the ground! Did he not like that lady?

There was another person not blessed with a lot of luck, Brian. Monty Python’s film depicting his misfortunes the “Life of Brian” premiered on this day in 1979. Whatever else he may have been Brian was the consummate optimist “Always Looking On The Bright Side Of Life”. Let’s hear it from him!

The mascot of Seattle’s Pike Place Market, “Rachael” a bronze pig, was unveiled on this day in 1986. In fact “Rachael” is a large piggy bank and collects around 9,000 dollars a year from the markets customers who also give her snout a caress for luck! This item is especially for our Aussie fans!

One of the heroes of the “Wild West”, Davy Crockett (1786 – 1836) was born on this day. As well as being a frontiersman, adventurer and politician he also sported a great line in headgear! Big John Wayne made a great film immortalising the Battle of the Alamo where Crockett was killed.

The famous actress and sex symbol Mae West (1892 – 1980) is our next birthday celebrity. Of the many quotes attributed to her Nomanda’s favourite is, “Between two evils, I always pick the one I haven’t tried before.”



One of the greatest actors of all time Robert de Niro (1943) knows how the throw a party and will no doubt be having a real bash today!


“What You See Is What You Get” with Glen Goldsmith (1965) so let’s hear from him as we wish him a happy birthday today.



The prolific French goal scorer Thierry Henry (1977) will be having a quiet drink with his mates at his birthday bash. And why not!




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!!

16 August - Historical Events and Celebrations

Flower of the Month

Gladiolus

Gemstone of the Month: Agate

Nomanda’s Happy Special Day blog is a celebration of events and anniversaries that have touched our lives. If today is your special day join us in looking at a few other events that have occurred on your day. Enjoy!



Religion is a very personal thing, you either have it or you don’t, and usually no matter what side of the fence you are most people defend their position with vigour. The Indian Chiefs of both the Sioux and Onondaga tribes felt pretty strongly about their old Indian faiths. They met their people on this day in 1894 to try and persuade them to renounce Christianity and return to the “old ways”. It reminds me of the SG1 episode where an Indian tribe (on another planet of course!) were “looked after” by their ancient spirits, appearing as wolves, birds etc only to discover, thanks to Jack and his team’s efforts, that the animal “spirits” were in fact aliens dressed in silver lame sheets and looked so ugly that they took on their animal forms! Jack O’Neill (with two l’s) got them together and they all lived happily ever after! Pretty innocent stuff really!

The early 1900’s were high season for the building of railway stations. Just a couple of days ago we had the start of building Antwerp’s Central Station and it was on this day in 1904 that New York City started building Grand Central Station. I guess they had to wait for the trains to catch on before there was a need for stations!

Yesterday we had David Simmons going up to almost 31,000 metres in his balloon and today in 1960 we have Joseph Kittinger parachuting out of one at 31,330 metres! What is wrong with these guys? Couldn’t he just have waited until it descended to earth normally! Talk about leaps of faith, you wouldn’t get Nomanda on that sort of lark! Quit whilst you’re ahead is Nomanda’s motto!

It seems as if this particular day in history has been a popular one for quitting. On this day in 1975 Peter Gabriel quit Genesis. And in a flurry of quitting on this day in 1981 Jools Holland quit Squeeze, Cozy Powell quit Rainbow and Bill Ward quit the Black Sabbath. What’s the matter with you all? Let’s hear from one of you!

Madonna was to celebrate her 27th birthday today by marrying Sean Penn on this day in 1985. I’m sure it wasn’t her first kiss but let’s hear from her anyway.The 16th August was a good day for Madonna as “Papa Don’t Preach” went to #1 on this day in 1986.



The mobile Rugby lock forward Nigel Redman is our birthday celebrity today (1964). He played most of his career for Bath Rugby Club and won 20 caps for his country. I’m sure he knows how to throw as good a party as he does a rugby ball! Cheers, Nigel!



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!!

15 August - Historical Events and Celebrations

Gemstone of the Month

Agate

Flower of the Month: Gladiolus

Nomanda’s Happy Special Day blog is a celebration of events and anniversaries that have touched our lives. If today is your special day join us in looking at a few other events that have occurred on your day. Enjoy!



As usual Nomanda is always impressed with great feats of endurance and it was on this day in 1931 that Ernest Lassy completed his canoe journey of a staggering 6,102 miles without portage. Of course there’s always someone else who will go the extra mile and Don Starkell and his son Dana completed a canoe journey of 12,181 miles in 1982. Actually that’s an extra 6,000 miles! Absolutely amazing!

Two bizarre altitude feats were performed on this day in 1957. The first was USAF Captain Joe B Jordan reaching a height of 31,513 metres in an F-104 jet fighter. The second was David Simmons reaching 30,942 metres in a balloon. Now call me silly if you like but Nomanda’s vote goes to good old David! Come on Joe, you can do better than that in a jet fighter plane!

Another amazing feat of team endurance occurred on this day in 1974 when a trampoline team of 6 bounced up and down for 52 days! Nomanda has had a bit of experience on a trampoline in his day but I don’t think I ever made more than about 5 or 6 jumps before I either fell off or mistimed the bounce and didn’t go up again! I bet their legs were a bit wobbly at the end of 52 days! Don’t these people have a day job?

One of Nomanda’s favourite Frenchmen, Napoleon Bonaparte (1769 – 1821) is our first birthday celebrity today. In his short but chequered lifetime he changed shape of Europe, gave France and most of the rest of Europe the “Napoleonic Code” and died in exile on the remote island of St Helena. Great man, sad end!

The first independent Labour MP, L Kier Hardie (1865 – 1915) is our next birthday boy. He won his seat for West Ham in 1892 and 7 years later founded the Labour Party. He was an advocate for graduated income tax, free schooling, pensions, the abolition of the House of Lords and women’s right to vote. I wonder what he would think of the present lot of New Labour and all their cronies! Not much would be my guess!


Bobby Helms (1933 – 1997) the rock vocalist will be remembered for his rendition of “Jingle Bells Rock” so let’s hear it!



Let’s all send our birthday wishes to HRH Princess Anne (1950). She is a great lady who does a lot of work for charity and is the only member of the royal family to have represented Great Britain in the Olympic Games which she did at Montreal in 1976. She also managed to pick up the prestigious “Sports Personality of the Year” in 1971. Well don Ma’am!


The superb English wicket keeper Jack Russell (1963) will be making sure he doesn’t spill his drinks today! It will probably be several cups of tea made from the same tea bag if his reputation is merited!


Mikey Graham (1972) from the Irish group Boyzone will no doubt prefer a glass of the black stuff at his birthday bash! Let’s hear it from him!




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!!

14 August - Historical Events and Celebrations

Flower of the Month

Gladiolus

Gemstone of the Month: Agate

Nomanda’s Happy Special Day blog is a celebration of events and anniversaries that have touched our lives. If today is your special day join us in looking at a few other events that have occurred on your day. Enjoy!



Great Cathedrals are impressive works of architecture and take many years to complete but the completion of Cologne Cathedral took quite an inordinate amount of time. The works started on this day in 1248 were completed on its anniversary in 1880. That’s over 600 years! It seems to have been a lucky building as it was one of the few buildings untouched by the bombing raids on Cologne during WWII.

Most of us tend to think that “continental” drivers are not as good as we are so it may come a surprise that they do in fact take the same required driving tests that we do. For example it was on this day in 1893 that France started issuing their first driving licenses after the successful completion of the required test. Maybe they are still using the same test!

The occasion of Bradman’s last Test match for his country on this day in 1948 may have been the cause of some encouragement for the English cricket team but sadly it didn’t seem to work out that way as on the same day they were all out for 52 against Australia! Nomanda congratulates Kevin Pietersen on his recent appointment to captain of the English cricket team and hopes that will motivate his country to better performances!

The TV commentators were saying that the first time the English team were out with their new captain that they were all in love with each other so just for the English team here is Sonny and Cher’s “I Got You Babe” that hit the #1 spot on this day in 1965!


On this day in 1980 when the Democratic Party nominated Jimmy Carter to run for the presidency 17,000 workers went on strike at the Lenin shipyard in Gdansk. The leader of the strike at Gdansk, Lech Walesa, formed the “Solidarity” party and went on to be awarded the Nobel Peace Prize in 1983. Carter was to be awarded the Nobel Peace Prize in 2002 for his humanitarian work undertaken after the presidency. Two good men!

The celebrated novelist and playwright John Galsworthy (1867 – 1933) gets our first birthday honours today. His best remembered work is the “Forsyth Saga” and he won the Nobel Prize for literature in 1932.



Antonio Fargas (1946) gets our next birthday wishes. He played “Huggy Bear” in the “Starsky and Hutch” TV series and was very cool!



One of Britain’s best known singers, Sarah Brightman (1961) is our next birthday celebrity. She started life as a sexy dancer with the group Hot Gossip and sings both classical and pop music. Nomanda will always remember her wonderful performance and singing in the “Phantom of the Opera”.

Today seems to have been a popular birthday for beautiful ladies so our very best birthday wishes to; Emmanuelle Beart (1965) French actress, Catherine Bell (1968) British model, Halle Berry (1968) American actress, Romane Bohringer (1973) French actress, and Mila Kunis (1983) American actress.




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!!