Nobody likes meEverybody hates meThis is also the origin of the Beatle's song, "I'm a Loser," which was originally as follows:
I'm going to eat some worms
Big ones, fat ones,
Juicy, juicy, juicy ones
Oh, how the little ones squirm.
I'm-a Luther!
Martin Luther!
And I'm not guilty of heresy!
Of all the battles the I've won or I've lost
There is one war where lines had been crossed.
They sold forgiveness for money, my friend.
I could not grant them my indulgences.
Ninety-five Theses I nailed to the door
Leo the Tenth said he won't take no more!
Told Charles the Fifth, had enough of your lies!
So here I stand, I can't do otherwise!
I'm-a Luther!Continuing in the Protestant vein, in 1547 another inadvertent reformer, Henry VIII, died. His 9 year old son became the first Protestant ruler of England. And in 1573, the Polish gained religious freedom with the signing of the Articles of the Warsaw Confederation.
And I'm not guilty of heresy!
I'm-a Luther!
And I'm not what they think I should be!
In 1624, Sir Thomas Warner founded St. Kitts (Christopher), the first British colony in the Caribbean. 130 years later, Horace Walpole coined the word serendipity in a letter to Horace Mann. He said he formed it from the Persian fairy tale The Three Princes of Serendip, whose heroes "were always making discoveries, by accidents and sagacity, of things they were not in quest of." The name is from Serendip, an old name for Ceylon (modern Sri Lanka), from Arabic Sarandib, from Skt. Simhaladvipa "Dwelling-Place-of-Lions Island." Aren't you glad you know that, now?
In 1813, Pride and Prejudice was first published in the United Kingdom. This is primarily important for creating the opportunity for someone to write Pride, Prejudice and Zombies. And, as Google celebrates, today is the 125th anniversary of the largest snowflake ... 15" wide and 8" think.
The first speeding ticket was handed out on this day in 1896 to Walter Arnold of East Peckham. He was fined 1 shilling for driving 8mph in a 2mph zone. It is significant that the cabby caught up with Mr. Arnold on foot.
In 1909, U.S. troops left Cuba with the exception of Guantanamo Bay. Then President Woodrow Wilson (fan of the KKK) promised to close the base when he was elected, but was distracted by WWI. Then FDR said he would close it, but was distracted by the economy and then WWII. I'm just kidding about those guys. How horrible would it be to be a president who ran for office promising to close GTMO, and then back out on the promise? What kind of president would do that? Speaking of bricks in the wall, the Lego company patented their product on this day in 1958.
In empty gesture history, supergroup USA for Africa recorded We Are the World to help raise funds for Ethiopian famine relief. One year later, the Space Shuttle Challenger broke apart after liftoff, killing all seven astronauts. John Denver, who attempted to be the civilian passenger chosen for the mission, wrote Flying for Me about Sally Ride, the teacher who was selected. Now THAT'S a good song. Returning to Africa, this day last year was the Friday of Anger, beginning the Egyptian protests against the Mubarak regime.
Several persons of import were born on this day. St. Thomas Aquinas, the official philosopher of the Roman Catholic Church, was born in 1225, just before the Renaissance. Chesterton quotes a "highly pagan poet" who said:
The Reformation happened because people hadn't the brains to understand Aquinas.Chesterton continues, saying:
St. Thomas exalted God without lowering Man; he exalted Man without lowering Nature. Therefore, he made a cosmos of common sense; terra viventium; a land of the living.His philosophy, like his theology, is that of common sense. He does not torture the brain with desperate attempts to explain existence by explaining it away. The first steps of his mind are the first steps of any honest mind; just as the first virtues of his creed could be those of any honest peasant.Now, Aquinas isn't my favorite of philosophers (although Chesterton is ... so maybe I should revisit him). He did write some truly amazing Eucharistic/Communion hymns. My family used to sing a Protestantized version of his Panis Angelicus:
| Latin text | An English translation |
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However, my favorite thing Aquinas ever wrote happened late in his life. While celebrating the Feast of St. Nicholas, Christ spoke to him, asking what he desired. Aquinas responded, "Only You." Christ then showed him something of which he never spoke. His clerk, Reginald, begged him to continue his work, to which Aquinas responded
I cannot, because all that I have written seems like straw to me.I find it simultaneously depressing, hopeful and ironic that, after a lifetime working on his massive Summa Theologica, along with many other works of theology and philosophy, when Christ revealed himself to him, he considered all his best efforts straw. And this straw, by the admission of the man who wrote it, is hailed authoritative by the Roman church. Were I to start now, I could never attain what Aquinas did ... and yet even if I did, it would be straw. I also like this excerpt from a longer prayer of his:
O Lord my God, make mesubmissive without protest,poor without discouragement,chaste without regret,patient without complaint,humble without posturing,cheerful without frivolity,mature without gloom,and quick-witted without flippancyJackson Pollock was born on this day in 1912. If you don't remember his work, put multicolored paint in your nose and sneeze on a canvas. Remember, now?
Finally, on this day in 814, Carolus Magnus (better known as Charlemagne), the Holy Roman Emperor, died. He was a pretty amazing monarch, among other things attempting to implement universal edudcation. Here is his signature (Karolus ... or Charles), his burial shroud and the Planctus de obitu Karoli (Lament on the Death of Charlemagne).
But he is not forgotten. With Burger King's new delivery service, you can bring Charlemagne to your door.
