As you can see by Itzl's concerned look, this group is for us to check in at to let people know we are alive, doing OK, and not affected by such things as heat, blizzards, floods, wild fires, hurricanes, tornadoes, power outages, or other such things that could keep us off DKos. It's also so we can find other Kossacks nearby for in-person checks when other methods of communication fail - a buddy system. Members come here to check in. If you're not here, or anywhere else on DKos, and there are adverse conditions in your area (floods, heatwaves, hurricanes, etc.), we and your buddy are going to check up on you. If you are going to be away from your computer for a day or a week, let us know here. We care!
IAN is a great group to join, and a good place to learn to write diaries. Drop one of us a PM to be added to the Itzl Alert Network anytime! We all share the publishing duties, and we welcome everyone who reads IAN to write diaries for the group! Every member is an editor, so anyone can take a turn when they have something to say, photos and music to share, a cause to promote or news!
Ok, we do have a diary schedule. But, when you are ready to write that diary, either post in thread or send FloridaSNMOM a Kosmail with the date. If you need someone to fill in, ditto. FloridaSNMOM is here on and off through the day usually from around 9:30 or 10 am eastern to around 11 pm eastern.
Monday:
BadKitties
Tuesday:
ejoanna
Wednesday:
Caedy
Thursday:
art ah zen
Friday:
FloridaSNMOM
Saturday:
Dave in Northridge
Sunday:
loggersbrat
Flag Day. Yes, and so an app on my phone said on Monday (I've deleted it since). How did we get this holiday? It's apparently just a couple of months older than I am, although its origins are much older than that. Not surprisingly, there are a number of websites devoted to this, so some copying and pasting is in order.
From the National Flag Day Foundation: A teacher in Wisconsin decided the flag needed its own day in the wake of the Civil War.
In Waubeka, Wisconsin, in 1885 Bernard John Cigrand a nineteen year old school teacher in a one room school placed a 10” 38 star flag in an inkwell and had his students write essays on what the flag meant to them. He called June 14th the flag’s birthday. Stony Hill School is now a historical site. From that day on Bernard J. Cigrand dedicated himself to inspire not only his students but also all Americans in the real meaning and majesty of our flag.
There's a parade in Waubeka, Wisconsin, every year to commemorate this; Waubeka is an unincorporated part of the town of Fredonia, in Ozaukee County, one of the counties in Wisconsin which is not offering marriage licences to same-sex couples.
From a website dedicated to the Flag of the United States: New York and Pennsylvania adopted the holiday by 1984, as did the city of Chicago. Formal recognition had two steps:
Inspired by these three decades of state and local celebrations, Flag Day - the anniversary of the Flag Resolution of 1777 - was officially established by the Proclamation of President Woodrow Wilson on May 30th, 1916. While Flag Day was celebrated in various communities for years after Wilson's proclamation, it was not until August 3rd, 1949, that President Truman signed an Act of Congress designating June 14th of each year as National Flag Day.
I think we can see this as one of the public post-World War II expressions of anti-Communism.
How do we celebrate? Wikihow has a seven-step process. "Display the flag" is pretty obvious, but step seven,
Attend a flag burning ceremony. Most Boy Scout troops or other community organizations conduct a flag burning ceremony
might be an eye-opener. Yes, that's what you do with flags that you're retiring, and you're not supposed to do it yourself. Let a boy scout or a girl scout troop retire your old flags for you. Just not this one
That would be the flag Francis Scott Key was looking at when he wrote our national anthem. It's in the collection of the Smithsonian Institution in Washington, D.C.
I'm happy to be your new Saturday diarist. I have to warn you that I'm traveling a LOT this summer and at least four of these between next week and the middle of August will be queued in advance for publication. Next week and probably the week after, in fact. Happy Saturday, whatever you're doing.