Tuesday, September 30, 2014

What I Learned in September

1. The custom of a bride wearing a veil at her wedding has a Biblical origin.  There is nothing as beautiful as a bride in all of her finery.  In my study of the Patriarchs this month, I was led to Genesis 24: 65, where Rebekah covered herself with a veil when she first saw Isaac.

2. Harry Houdini died from peritonitis when a strong man punched him in the stomach.... not trapped in a trunk under water chained and  handcuffed, as I always imagined him to be.  It was thought that he already had a ruptured appendix, and that the blow to his stomach was too much for his body and caused him to go into shock.  Apparently he would allow people to randomly punch him to show that he was tough?

3. Happy Birthday, Star Spangled Banner!  Our national anthem turned 200 years old this month. Composed by lawyer Francis Scott Key as he observed Fort McHenry after a battle, the song is inspired by the flag that hung over the fort. That flag is on display at the Museum of American History, a museum in the Smithsonian. I was reminded of the poignancy of the National Anthem as I walked the kickoff to the 2014 season of the NFL.  While I was on the treadmill, the thought went through my mind that there is nothing like hearing the National Anthem while standing amongst a crowd full of people like a professional football game, or the semi-finals of the NCAA tournament.  So touching...and it makes me want to break out in the "U-S-A" chant.  Long live the Star Spangled Banner, and God bless the USA.

4. NPH insulin stands for neutral protamine Hagedorn.  In all my years of nursing/teaching, I  had never thought of what NPH stood for.... but trust a student to ask a question that you don't know the answer for.  Now I do...

5. Elderly Woman Behind the Counter in a Small Town's title is excessively long...  purposefully so.  Apparently Eddie Vedder was tired of how short the titles of their songs were, so here you go... and I don't know that it ever talks about an elderly woman behind a counter... but it's one of my favorite songs ever.

6. You don't have to hit a volleyball with your hands to put it into play.  You can hit it with your foot, your face... anything is fair game as long as it doesn't hit the floor. I've saw some pretty awesome volleyball playing this month.

7. Melissa Gilbert from Little House on the Prairie and Sara Gilbert from Roseanne are sisters. 

8. Micki Demoss, former UT assistant, UK head coach, and current assistant coach at the University of Texas was a Showcase Showdown winner on the Price is Right. She won a trip, a bedroom suite, and a variety of other prizes during a trip to California with the University of Tennessee women's basketball team.

Linking up with the monthly post at www.chattingatthesky.com.  Love doing this every month!

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