The SAMS Lyceum of Martial and Societal Antediluvian Chronicles An addendum to The SAMS Sporran July- 2021 July is the Dog Days of Summer -Month July 3 - August There is something to celebrate everyday of the month ! July 1- Creative Ice Cream Flavors Day I can only tremble July 2- World UFO Day Keep an eye out for Mulder and Scully July 3- International Cherry Pit Spitting Day. Do I really need to explain? July 4- Sidewalk Egg Frying Day- also Independence Day July 5- National Bikini Day July 6- International Kissing Day Great excuse not to wear a mask July 7- National Strawberry Sundae Day July 8- National Blueberry Day July 9- National Sugar Cookie Day July 10- Teddy Bear Picnic Day Don’t go out into the woods alone July 11- Don’t Step On A Bee Day July 12- Pecan Pie Day It’s not just a Southern thing now. July 13- Fool's Paradise Day listen to a Buddy Holly record July 14- Pandemonium Day kind of reminds me of work July 15- Cow Appreciation Day Go out and give a cow a hug, just don’t tip her July 16- Fresh Spinach Day or read a Popeye cartoon. July 17- Peach Ice Cream Day July18 - National Caviar Day July 19- National Daiquiri Day July 20- National Lollipop Day July 21- National Hot Dog Day July 22- Hammock Day It’s the middle of the Dog Days time to relax July 23- Vanilla Ice Cream Day The world’s favorite July 24- National Day of the Cowboy My heroes always were cowboys July 25- National Chili Dog Day July 26- All or Nothing Day the name says it all July 27-Walk on Stilts Day a day to stand tall amidst your peers, July 28- National Milk Chocolate Day July 29- National Lasagna Day July 30- National Cheesecake Day July 31- Mutt's Day 8 out of 10 dogs are mutts. A Brief History Of The 4th of July It might come as a surprise to you but the 4th of July has only been a national holiday since 1941.(Asin paid vacation day) But the tradition of the celebration can be traced back to the American Revolution, however, there were no barbecues or hamburgers or hotdogs, pizza or even steamed crabs. Actually, none of those had been invented yet. Fireworks were around but they weren’t part of the celebration either. In the years prior to the revolution the colonists had held annual celebrations of the king’s birthday, which traditionally included the ringing of bells, bonfires, processions and naturally, speechmaking. When the initial battles of the Revolutionary war occurred few colonists wanted a complete break with Great Britain. They only wanted recognition of their status and limited self government. However, Britain’s ham-fisted handling of the situation weighed heavily on the colonists' minds. Then in the summer of 1776 some of the colonists held a mock funeral for King George III signifying the end of his hold over the colonies. That sort of got the ball rolling as it were. The First Continental Congress met in Philadelphia (there was no Washington, The District of Columbia yet) and Richard Henry Lee introduced a motion proposing independence from Britain. Considering the state of the collective colonists' minds it was not met with overwhelming support. So naturally, a committee was formed. This is congress after all. So Ben Franklin, Tommy Jefferson, Johnny Adams, Roger Sherman and Bobby Livingston were charged with composing a rationale for justifying a break with The King and his Parliament. The committee actually wrote one and it was met with grudgingly overwhelming support. Johnny wrote to his wife Abigail that July 2nd “will be celebrated, by succeeding Generations, as the great anniversary Festival” and that the celebration should include “Pomp and Parade… Games, Sports, Guns, Bells, Bonfires and Illuminations from one End of this Continent to the other.” Pretty prescient for an old guy from Massachusetts. Festivities were indeed held. They included concerts, bonfires, parades, the firing of cannons and muskets and instead of speeches, the first public readings of the Declaration of Independence. Philadelphia held the first annual Commemoration of Independence on July 4, 1777. Taking a more practical approach, George Washington issued double rations of rum to all his soldiers to mark the anniversary of independence in 1778, and in 1781. So now we had almost all of the trappings of a typical 4th of July celebration except for fireworks and parades. The tradition of setting off fireworks on the 4 of July began in Philadelphia on July 4, 1777, during the first organized celebration of Independence Day. The Pennsylvania Evening Post reported: “at night there was a grand exhibition of fireworks (which began and concluded with thirteen rockets) on the Commons, and the city was beautifully illuminated.” That same night, the Sons of Liberty set off fireworks over Boston Common. The tradition remained confined to those cities and local environs. However it became more widespread after the War of 1812. That’s the one where Baltimore saved the country from becoming British again. Fireworks were once again in favor mainly because of Franky Key and his “rockets red glare”. Over the years, the political importance of the holiday faded but Independence Day continued to be a cause for celebration. The major focus was one of leisure activities and for family get-togethers, often involving fireworks and outdoor barbecues and of course parades. Parades had been around probably since some of the first cavemen carried home their kills tied to poles and were greeted with cheers and adulations now that the entire tribe could eat. (Barbecues came into being when politicians held “feasts” of cooked pigs and oxen for their constituents.There is probably some kind of connection there.) Parades were usually held as celebrations, usually of holidays. Nobody threw better parades than the Romans. They called them Triumphs. Triumphs usually honored some general for winning a war. It wandered through the streets of Roman so all of the citizens could come out and cheer (free wine helped a little) Triumphs were hours long with musicians, soldiers, captives, soldiers, musicians, wild animals, more musicians and soldiers. Finally, a procession young maidens throwing flower petals on the road paving the way for the hero. The general riding in a golden chariot pulled by four white horses with a slave holding a laurel wreath over his head while the people of Rome cheered. The slave also whispered into the general’s ear, “Sic transit gloria mundi.” “The glory of the world is fleeting”. Now, that is what I call a parade. Most parades since have been of the military variety with marching bands but without the wild animals and young maidens. The first 4th of July Parade was held in Bristol, Rhode Island in 1785. A Wee Bit O’ 4th of July Trivia On the 4th we consume about 150 million hot dogs including Nathan’s Annual Hot Dog eating contest. We also wash it down with beer, The National Beer Wholesalers Asso. calls it the number one holiday for beer sales. Just don’t eat spoiled fruit. In 1850,President Zachary Taylor did and died. Americans consume about 700 million lbs of chicken on the 4th. Calvin Coolidge was the only president born on the 4th of July. Thomas Jefferson and John Adams both died on The 4th of July 1826, James Monroe died July 4th 1831. We spend over 1 billion dollars a year on fireworks. Macy’s is the largest and it takes about 8,000 hours to prepare for it. Independence Day was once celebrated on July 5th. In 1779 the 4th fell on a Sunday so they celebrated the next day. On July 4th 1776 the population of the colonies was about 2.5 million, now it's about 325.7 million. The Liberty Bell did not crack because it was rung too hard on July 4th. It cracked on George Washington’s birthday in 1846. The Liberty Bell is Tapped 13 times on Independence Day to honor the13 original colonies. The word Pennsylvania is misspelled on the Liberty Bell. It’s missing the second ‘n’. Places and Things to Avoid on your next Visit to Scotland Last month we explored some of the caves of Scotland. This month we will take a glimpse of some of the inhabitants in and around those caves. Undoubtedly you have heard of or seen a motion picture about The Loch Ness Monster. You are also probably well aware that the three witches Macbeth met were Scottish. I mean the play was set in Scotland after all. However, you might not be aware of some of the fierce creatures that also inhabit Scotland. So if you do venture forth to Auld Alba anytime soon be on the lookout for one or more of these Scottish inhabitants. The Wulver is a form of werewolf that stalks the lands of Shetland but unlike the common myth, this creature was never human. It has the body of a man but the head of a wolf, and is not seen as aggressive if left to his own devices. He will occasionally leave fish on the windowsills of the poor to ensure that people don’t starve too. The Bean Nighe is described as a form of banshee, but otherwise known as the washer woman. She can be spotted at the edge of isolated streams washing blood from the clothes of those about to die! The appearance of the Bean Nighe is normally that of a hag, however she can change her appearance to that of a beautiful woman if she so decides.