Tuesday, May 3, 2011

March weather

 
 
In Like A Lion, Out Like A Lamb
by Lorie Hill
March roars in like a lion
So fierce,
The wind so cold,
It seems to pierce.

The month rolls on
And Spring draws near,
And March goes out
Like a lamb so dear.
 

Too much time on my hands


Daylight Savings Time 2010, the setting forward of clocks occurs at 2 a.m. on Sunday, March 14. By Federal law, daylight savings time changes are set for the second Sunday in March and the first Sunday in November.
George Vernon Hudson, a New Zealand entomologist, first proposed daylight saving time in 1895 as an effort to reduce the use of incandescent lighting.
Prior to 2007, the dates were the first Sunday in April and the and the last Sunday in October.  The change to March and November, lengthening daylight saving by about a month, was part of an energy bill passed in 2005 to reduce energy consumption.
States are not required to follow the daylight saving law, Arizona and Hawaii stay with standard time year round, as does Puerto Rico, the Virgin Islands, American Samoa and Guam.
If you cannot remember whether to set your clocks ahead or back, remember "spring ahead, fall back"!

Saint Patrick's Day

Saint Patrick the Patron saint

Saint Patrick was the patron saint and national apostle of Ireland who is credited with bringing christianity to Ireland. Most of what is known about him comes from his two works, the Confessio, a spiritual autobiography, and his Epistola, a denunciation of British mistreatment of Irish christians. Saint Patrick described himself as a "most humble-minded man, pouring forth a continuous paean of thanks to his Maker for having chosen him as the instrument whereby multitudes who had worshipped idols and unclean things had become the people of God."
Saint Patrick is most known for driving the snakes from Ireland. It is true there are no snakes in Ireland, but there probably never have been - the island was separated from the rest of the continent at the end of the Ice Age. As in many old pagan religions, serpent symbols were common and often worshipped. Driving the snakes from Ireland was probably symbolic of putting an end to that pagan practice. While not the first to bring christianity to Ireland, it is Patrick who is said to have encountered the Druids at Tara and abolished their pagan rites. The story holds that he converted the warrior chiefs and princes, baptizing them and thousands of their subjects in the "Holy Wells" that still bear this name.

There are several accounts of Saint Patrick's death. One says that Patrick died at Saul, Downpatrick, Ireland, on March 17, 460 A.D. His jawbone was preserved in a silver shrine and was often requested in times of childbirth, epileptic fits, and as a preservative against the "evil eye." Another account says that St. Patrick ended his days at Glastonbury, England and was buried there. The Chapel of St. Patrick still exists as part of Glastonbury Abbey. Today, many Catholic places of worship all around the world are named after St. Patrick, including cathedrals in New York and Dublin city

Why Saint Patrick's Day?
Saint Patrick's Day has come to be associated with everything Irish: anything green and gold, shamrocks and luck. Most importantly, to those who celebrate its intended meaning, St. Patrick's Day is a traditional day for spiritual renewal and offering prayers for missionaries worldwide.

So, why is it celebrated on March 17th? One theory is that that is the day that St. Patrick died. Since the holiday began in Ireland, it is believed that as the Irish spread out around the world, they took with them their history and celebrations. The biggest observance of all is, of course, in Ireland. With the exception of restaurants and pubs, almost all businesses close on March 17th. Being a religious holiday as well, many Irish attend mass, where March 17th is the traditional day for offering prayers for missionaries worldwide before the serious celebrating begins.

In American cities with a large Irish population, St. Patrick's Day is a very big deal. Big cities and small towns alike celebrate with parades, "wearing of the green," music and songs, Irish food and drink, and activities for kids such as crafts, coloring and games. Some communities even go so far as to dye rivers or streams green!

St. Patrick's Day is celebrated on March 17, his religious feast day and the anniversary of his death in the fifth century. The Irish have observed this day as a religious holiday for over a thousand years. On St. Patrick's Day, which falls during the Christian season of Lent, Irish families would traditionally attend church in the morning and celebrate in the afternoon. Lenten prohibitions against the consumption of meat were waived and people would dance, drink and feast—on the traditional meal of Irish bacon and cabbage. 

A Verse from the Wolfman:

Even the man who is pure in heart

And says his prayers by night

May become a wolf when the wolf bane blows.

And the moon is pure and bright.

The Monster Words for Tad - Stephen King's Cujo

Monsters, stay out of this room!
You have no business here.
 N0 monsters under the bed!
 You can't fit under there.
 No monsters hiding in the closet!
 It's too small in there.
 No monsters outside of the windows!
 You can't hold on out there.
 No vampires, no werewolves, no things that bite.
 You have no business here.
 Nothing will touch you, or hurt you, all this night.
 You have no business here.

 -------- Stephen King's  Cujo