Conversation 24

The first sign of real obsession with music 🎶 was with an old wind-up gramophone that mum had thrown out into the garage.
My parents gave me three old 45s—two Supremes records and one Tom Jones record—and I used to come home from school literally every day, go out to the garage, wind this thing up, and play them.”
*GEORGE MICHAEL*

Ah, no 😎

Light My Fire – Jim Morrison and the Doors

Somewhere Over The Rainbow – Judy Garland

NATIONAL YELLOW BAT DAY

April 21st honors National Yellow Bat Day. On this day in 1967, the Army activated the 265th Army Security Agency Company (Airborne) with the 101st Airborne Division at Fort Campbell, Kentucky.

The official insignia of the 265th is a bat with outstretched wings on a full moon rising with the motto Through the Night below. Symbolically, the bat represents mystery and secrecy due to its nocturnal nature. The bat fittingly describes the intelligence support provided by the Army Security Agency Battalion.

Before deploying, the personnel painted all the military vehicles and equipment with a yellow bat. The symbol made the equipment clearly visible from a distance and aided in identifying all unit equipment.

On November 19th of the same year, they deployed to Vietnam with the designation 265th Radio Research Company (Airborne) to provide intelligence support to the 101st Airborne Division. Arriving a few weeks ahead of the Viet Cong Tet Offensive, they soon learned of the North Vietnamese campaign. However, few commanders would believe the intelligence.

NATIONAL CHOCOLATE-COVERED CASHEWS DAY

National Chocolate-Covered Cashews Day is observed each year on April 21st. Not unlike other nuts, cashews and chocolate get along well together. Of course, chocolate lovers savor the combination of nutty crunch and creamy, rich chocolate.

The cashew is a tree from the family Anacardiaceae. Its English name comes from Portuguese for the fruit of the cashew tree “caju.” Originally native to Northeastern Brazil, cashew trees are now widely grown in tropical climates for their cashew fruit and nuts.

With leaves arranged spirally and a leathery texture, the evergreen cashew tree grows up to 32 feet tall. It also often grows with an irregularly shaped trunk. The buds produce small flowers that start pale green and turn reddish, each having five slender, acute petals.

Surprisingly, the cashew nutshell is toxic, so producers shell the cashew before selling it to consumers. While many people enjoy the cashew nut for its delicious buttery flavor on its own, adding chocolate makes it even more enjoyable. It makes a great gift during the winter holidays. However, people enjoy chocolate-covered cashews all year long.

NATIONAL KINDERGARTEN DAY

Each year on April 21st, National Kindergarten Day honors the birthday of the man who started the first Kindergarten. Friedrich Wilhelm August Fröbel (April 21, 1782 – June 21, 1852) is credited with starting the very first Kindergarten in Germany in 1837. Frobel was a German teacher and a student of Johann Pestalozzi. Frobel laid a foundation for modern education, recognizing that children learn through play and experience.

The first kindergarten (which means garden for the children) was developed in Blankenburg, Germany, in 1837. The kindergarten fostered Frobel’s social experience for children. It also allowed them to smoothly transition from home to school.

Eventually, the Prussian government banned Frobel’s unorthodox methods. However, the rest of the world was eager to accept Frobel’s idea of kindergarten, including the United States.

In 1856, Watertown, Wisconsin, opened the first kindergarten in the United States. Founded by Margarethe Schurz, this kindergarten was a German-language class, as were many in this region. Kindergarten found its way into private English-speaking institutions across the country. However, it wasn’t until 1873 that it became part of any public school system.

National Kindergarten Day offers an opportunity to thank a kindergarten teacher you know. There are several ways to celebrate the day, too!