Category Archives: happy holidays
Surprising Facts You Never Knew About Thanksgiving
Thanksgiving is generally a celebration of family, friends, and food; a time to be thankful for the blessings in our lives. The real history of Thanksgiving is a bit more complicated than mashed potatoes and gravy and pumpkin pies. If you’ve ever wondered why we celebrate Thanksgiving, or where some of our Thanksgiving traditions come from, you’re about to find out.
A woman named Sarah Josepha Hale lobbied Congress for years to make Thanksgiving an official holiday. If it wasn’t for this very determined woman, Thanksgiving wouldn’t exist today. She lobbied Congress for many years to make this holiday official. She wanted to make this a permanent American custom based on national pride. It wasn’t until 1863 that President Lincoln finally declared Thanksgiving a national holiday. Thanksgiving is considered by many people to be an attempt to bring some peace back to the country after the Civil War. Lincoln made the holiday on the last Thursday in November.
Franklin D. Roosevelt attempted to change it to one week earlier. Franklin thought the turkey should be the United States’ official bird rather than the bald eagle. By 1941, Franklin D. Roosevelt signed a bill making the fourth Thursday in November the official date for Thanksgiving nationwide to help alleviate the effects of the Great Depression.
The first Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade was in 1924 and featured animals from the Central Park Zoo – live bears, elephants, camels and monkeys, unlike the huge balloons we have today. They did have floats, celebrities, bands, and Macy’s employees in costumes, as well as Santa Claus. About 3.5 million people attend the parade, and nearly 50 million watch it on their televisions at home.
Did you know that TV dinners came about because of Thanksgiving? In 1953, the Swanson Food Corporation got creative with leftover turkey as a result of overestimating how much turkey would be eaten on Thanksgiving Day. They used aluminum trays and created a complete Thanksgiving meal which sold for around ninety-eight cents. They sold ten million TV dinners and started the prepackaged frozen meal industry.
People have been cooking pumpkin pies since the 1600’s. The dessert has been an important part of Thanksgiving meals since the 1700s. One Connecticut town even postponed the holiday in 1705 due to a molasses shortage that prevented people from making pies.
The “pardoning” of the turkey has been an annual White House tradition. President John F. Kennedy was the first to pardon a turkey and President George H. W. Bush was the first to make pardoning a turkey an annual event in 1989, after he noticed the 50-pound bird at his official Thanksgiving proclamation looked nervous. Every president has upheld the tradition ever since.
In the 1870’s Thanksgiving Day football games began, although they were not on television yet. In 1876, Yale played Princeton in the very first Thanksgiving Day game. In 1920 when the National Football League was founded it began hosting games every year.
Here is an interesting fact: The day after Thanksgiving is amazingly busy for plumbers, according to a very well-known plumbing company. So, we need to be extra careful with turkey grease, potato peels, rice, and stuffing as they can clog your kitchen drain or garbage disposal.
The British have an unusual take on Thanksgiving Day, as they call it Britts-giving. Whatever they want to call it, it still represents the spirit of thankfulness and giving.
How many places in the United States have the name “Turkey?” Texas, Louisiana and North Carolina.
How many turkeys are prepared for Thanksgiving each year in the United States? 46 million
Have a blessed Thanksgiving Day everyone!
Solitaire
Christmas Movies that were Based on Books!
There are so many Christmas movies out right now that you can hardly watch them all. The streaming services are chocked full of every kind imaginable. If you are a Christmas or Holiday fan it’s interesting to know which movies were based on books. There are some that I already knew, but there were many of which I was not aware. So, if you are a fan of Christmas or the Holidays in general, you might want to grab some popcorn and watch some of these entertaining and often thought provoking movies and it might be fun to find the books and read them as well. You will often find that the original books contain information that isn’t revealed in the movie which can be interesting.
- The Nutcracker – From the 1816 short story by German author E.T.A. Hoffmann, The Nutcracker and the Mouse King, a fantasy set on Christmas Eve in the early 1800s and centered around the excitement and anticipation of Christmas gifts.
- A Christmas Story – 9-year-old Ralphie Parker gets his ideal Christmas gift (the Red Rider air rifle), (you’ll shoot your eye out). If you liked the movie you’ll probably like to read author Jean Shepherd’s In God We Trust: All Others Pay Cash, a collection of short stories upon which the movie was based.
- Christmas with the Kranks – Tim Allen and Jamie Lee Curtis live in the suburbs and are a couple new to empty nesting who decide to skip Christmas and go on a cruise. Upon finding out that their daughter will be home for Christmas after all, it turns into a hilarious disaster that you won’t want to miss. This 2004 modern classic is based off John Grisham’s 2001 novel titled Skipping Christmas.
- National Lampoon’s Christmas Vacation – This hilarious 1989 Christmas movie was based on a short story by John Hughes titled Christmas ’59 that was published in National Lampoon magazine in December 1980.
- Miracle on 34th Street – This 1947 Christmas classic is about a department store Santa, a single mom, and her 6-year-old daughter who doesn’t believe in Santa Claus. Miracle on 34th Street by American author Valentine Davies was also a best-selling novella in 1947.
- It’s a Wonderful Life – George Bailey showed us what a difference one life can make for those around us during James Stewart’s Christmas classic. The Greatest Gift by Philip Van Doren Stern was originally written in 1938, self-published, and mailed to around 200 people as a holiday newsletter.
- The Bishop’s Wife -This movie from 1947 tells of one clergyman’s prayers being answered in unexpected ways. The Bishop’s Wife is based on the 1928 novella by author Robert Nathan. A book that has charm, wit and wisdom that makes it a classic.
- Meet me in St. Louis – This is a 1944 Christmas classic/musical that was originally published as a series of short stories in The New Yorker magazine (titled The Kensington Stories) before it was published as a novel in 1942 by author Sally Benson.
- A Christmas Carol – Charles Dickens’ legendary novella, A Christmas Carol , was first published on December 19th, 1843. By Christmas Eve of that same year, the novella was sold out. The book has been republished many times and there have been countless screen adaptions.
- How the Grinch Stole Christmas – A beloved Dr. Seuss children’s book before it was adapted for the big screen multiple times, How the Grinch Stole Christmas was first published in 1957 and written in Dr. Seuss’s iconic rhymed verses. Despite being for children, the book was notable for criticizing the commercialization of Christmas.
- The Polar Express – A children’s book by Chris Van Allsburg, The Polar Express was published in 1985. It tells the story of a young skeptical boy who takes a life-changing trip on the Polar Express where he receives the first gift from Santa Claus.
- You’ll also find dozens of Hallmark Christmas movies that were adapted from books.
I hope you enjoy the many movies and books of the Holiday Season with all your friends and family. Have a very Merry Christmas!
Solitaire
Making Thanksgiving Special
Thanksgiving is a special time of year when families and friends get together and enjoy a delicious meal and spend time with each other. We’re all so busy most of the time that making that extra effort to come together is important and doesn’t have to only include the traditional food. Here are some ideas to give your day an added boost of fun and tradition.
Participate in a turkey trot or just go for a walk and enjoy a leisurely stroll around your neighborhood or a local park.
Tune in to the annual Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade.
Watch the National Dog Show.
Start decorating for the holidays.
Football is another tradition, along with appetizers.
At the Thanksgiving table, let everyone say what they’re thankful for.
Thanksgiving movies are always a fun way to gather, either at home or the movie theater.
Play charades or bring out the board games.
Reminisce over family photo books.
Serve breakfast at a local soup kitchen or help deliver Thanksgiving dinners to the community.
Call relatives that may not have been able to come to your gathering and let them know you’re thinking of them.
Take an after dinner or evening stroll.
Most of all, remember to be grateful for the people in your life and for all your blessings!
Happy Thanksgiving to everyone!
Solitaire
SMASHWORDS 2022 End of Year Sale!!!
Welcome to the 6th annual Smashwords end of year sale! From December 15th 2022 through January 1st 2023 – Join thousands of readers – find great book titles from your favorite authors and discover new authors in your preferred genres.
Books are discounted from 25% – 50% – 75% – and even FREE!
You can locate the Dragomeir Series (adventures with dragons), Vengeance of the Wolf (a horror/thriller), Tinker Smith and the Conspiracy of Oz (the children and wizard of Oz), Tapestry (book of poetry), and The Atrium (a psychological adventure in science fiction) at Smashwords.
Check out my website for other books – The Larger World Series and extras
I hope you’ll visit Smashwords 2022 end of year sale. Enjoy the holidays – MERRY CHRISTMAS to everyone!
Solitaire
Solitaire Parke - Sci-Fi/Fantasy Books 