It's Ash Wednesday

Memento homo, quia pulvis es, et in pulverem reverteris (Remember that you are dust, and unto dust you shall return.)

Tip of the day - don't embarrass yourself by calling attention to the smudge mark on your friend's forehead today

February 6, 1911 -
That great American, Ronald Reagan, who appeared in such films as Jap Zero, Girls on Probation, and Bedtime for Bonzo, is born in Tampico IL. It should be a national holiday.




February 6, 1917 -
Zsa Zsa Gabor, Queen of Outer Space is born in Budapest. Party girls everywhere are celebrating their patron saint's day. Enough said.




It was on this date in 1919 that the German constituent assembly met in Weimar for the first time to declare itself The Official German Government For The Time Being.

This "Weimar Republic," as it came to be known, should not be confused with the "Weimar Republic" fashion clothing outlet found in many American malls. The former caused an economic depression, Hitler, and the horrors of the second World War. The latter caused a slight dip in sales at Benneton and The Limited.


February 6, 1943 -
Actor Errol Flynn acquitted of raping an adolescent. The woman had actually tried this shakedown with other celebrities and wasn't quite an adolescent despite her testifying with pigtails and a lollypop. Flynn had just finished a film called "Gentleman Jim" and at the end of the film when he says to Maureen O'Hara: "I never said I was a Gentleman." Peals of knowing laughter rang out from audiences. In like Flynn.


Today is Waitangi Day in New Zealand. This celebrates the February 6, 1840 signing of "The Treaty of Waitangi" by representatives of the British Crown and leading Maori chiefs in Waitangi. The treaty preserved many Maori rights while making New Zealand a British Colony.

Given the confused and confusing state of things, I must recommends that America join her Kiwi friends in celebrating Waitangi Day. There's no particular logic to this, but it's fun to say "Happy Waitangi Day." We could all wear funny hats and buy each other Waitangi presents.

Sound silly?

Just four days ago we were all waiting for a stupid rodent to crawl out of a hole and look for his shadow.


Today is exactly halfway between the winter solstice and spring equinox, which is the scientifically correct way of saying it's the middle of freakin' winter. Bottoms up: it only gets better from here.

(Except, of course, in the Southern Hemisphere, where it only gets worse, which might have something to do with why it's Waitangi Day down there.)


And so it goes.