Today is Sunday, July 30 and there are only 154 days until New Year’s Eve.  That should give you enough time to get to Times Square and stake out a good spot to watch the ball drop (preferably near a bathroom).Today we celebrate the birthdays of Emily Bronte, Sid Kroft and Peter Bogdanovich.  On this day in 1729 the city of Baltimore was founded, in 1836 the first newspaper in English was published in Hawaii and in 1956 the US motto “In God We Trust” was authorized.  In France it is Marseillaise Day, in Thailand it is Asalha Puja, in Virginia it is Crater Day and in the US it is National Cheesecake Day.

As I mentioned, this is the day that the motto “In God We Trust” was authorized.  The phrase appears to have originated in “The Star Spangled Banner.”  The fourth stanza includes the phrase, “And this be our motto: ‘In God is our trust.’”  In 1861 The Reverend MR Watkinson petitioned the Treasury Department to add a statement recognizing “Almighty God in some form in our coins.”

Treasury Secretary Salmon P. Chase acted on the proposal and ultimately selected the phrase, “In God We Trust” for coins.  The motto disappeared from the five-cent coin in 1883.  In 1908, Congress made it mandatory that the phrase be printed on all coins.

The 84^th Congress passed a joint resolution “declaring IN GOD WE TRUST the national motto of the United States.”  The law was signed by President Eisenhower on July 30, 1956.  So now you can use that information to dazzle your friends.

I am sitting here writing this after having driven 11 or so hours home from North Myrtle Beach, South Carolina.  Why is it that after having been sitting in the car for 11 hours, the first thing you want to do when you come into the house is sit down and … but I digress.  I had been down there with Barbara and some of her family and friends.  Each year they spend a week there and we drove down last Saturday.  It was a nice experience.  I had the opportunity to meet some of her friends and to spend time getting to know everyone better.  One of the things I found interesting was that there were a number of people walking the beach looking for shark teeth.  In New Jersey, when we walk the beach, we look for body parts and hospital refuse.

I enjoyed sitting on the beach there.  The house they rented was oceanfront, so we had the convenience of being able to walk to and from the house without a long trek or having to cross streets.  I also got the chance to actually swim in the ocean.  The water temperature was great and it was nice to be able to swim without body parts getting numb.  Being close to the beach also made it easier to go out in the morning and walk.  

I will admit that I was a bit unkind during one walk.  The person involved didn’t hear me, fortunately.  As we were walking along one morning, I saw a young woman sitting on the beach letting the waves come up and wash over her.  She was a bit on the big side, the kind of person I crudely refer to as a land whale, and I suggested to Barbara that we try and roll her back into the water so she could survive.  During the week, I had the opportunity to see other “beached” ones.  I thought about reporting them to a life guard, but was pretty sure he would not see the humor.

On our trip down, we had an opportunity to stop at a fast food place to obtain sustenance.  We were hungry and it was one of the few places that didn’t take us too far from our route.  Just before we got out of the car I noted that the outside temperature, according to my dashboard, was 94.  When we got into the restaurant, we discovered that the AC was not working and it was oppressive in there.  We ordered our food, sat down, ate and got out of there quicker than I have ever done before.  You know it was hot in there when 94 outside, with a slight breeze was refreshing.

Travelling through one state I noticed signs that said, “Speed Limits Enforced By Aircraft.”  I was doing the speed limit and cars were going by me all the time.  I kept waiting for a missile to hit one of them or at least see a car hit by a strafing run, but no-o-o-o-o!  There is nothing worse than having expectations of seeing cars being shot at by airplanes for speeding and then not even seeing them get pulled over and ticketed.  What a letdown!

This week our fact tells us that it is illegal for men to wear strapless dresses in Miami, Florida.  Why?  And why only in Miami?  What happens if you are at a party in another town and happen to pass through Miami on the way home?  I think men should be allowed to wear whatever kind of dress they want.  I am sure that there are people in Miami who are wearing outfits that don’t look good on them, but no one is passing legislation to prevent women from wearing tube tops. 

Whatever you are wearing, don’t forget to have some cheesecake today.