Big-Shot birthdays and Special Events for the weekend:
SATURDAY, JUNE 15 _ Chinese leader Xi Jinping is 71 (in 2024) • Jim Belushi is 70 (in 2024) • Julie Hagerty (Airplane) is 69 (in 2024) • Helen Hunt is 61 (in 2024) • Courteney Cox is 60 (in 2024) • Rapper-actor Ice Cube is 55 (in 2024) • Leah Remini (King of Queens) is 54 (in 2024) • Neil Patrick Harris is 51 (in 2024) • Sterling Jerins (The Conjuring films) is 20 (in 2024) • Celebrity kid North West is 11 (in 2024)
SPECIAL EVENTS _ Fly a Kite Day • Dog Dad’s Day • Global Wind Day • Justice for Janitors Day • Magna Carta Day • Electricity Day • Juggling Day • Kiss a Wookie Day • Lobster Day • Megalodon Day • Smile Power Day • Native American Citizenship Day • Photography Day • World Elder Abuse Day • Worldwide Day of Giving
SUNDAY, JUNE 16 _ Joan Van Ark (Knots Landing) is 81 (in 2024) • Laurie Metcalf (Roseanne, The Conners) is 69 (in 2024) • Golfer Phil Mickelson is 54 (in 2024) • Eddie Cibrian (Third Watch) is 51 (in 2024) • Daniel Bruhl (Captain America: Civil War, Inglourious Basterds) is 46 (in 2024) • Missy Peregrym (FBI, Rookie Blue) is 42 (in 2024) • Broadway actress Ali Stroker is 37 (in 2024)
SPECIAL EVENTS _ Father’s Day • Fresh Veggies Day • Husband Caregiver Day • Cannoli Day • Fudge Day • Tortilla Day • Turkey Lovers Day • Vinegar Day • No Orange Clothes Day • Wish Fulfillment Day • World Refill Day • World Sea Turtle Day • Captain Picard Day
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Today, we celebrate the Birthday of the U.S. Army. It was on June 14, 1775, that “the Continental Congress authorized enlistment of expert riflemen to serve the United Colonies for one year.To mark this occasion, let’s look at some interesting facts about the US Army (Courtesy of the American Legion):
1. Before World War II, 45th Infantry Division members wore a swastika patch on their left shoulder in honor of Native Americans. It was changed to a thunderbird in the 1930s. (via USO)
2. The Army was tasked with mapping America, including the Lewis & Clark expedition. Army officers were some of the first American citizens to see Pikes Peak and the Grand Canyon. (via USO)
3. The Army was the last service branch to adopt an official song. On Veterans Day 1956, “The Army Goes Rolling Along†was so declared. (via USO)
4. Twenty-four U.S. presidents served in the Army, including in state militias that supported it during the American Revolution and the Civil War. (via Mental Floss)
5. And two of them are connected: in the famous painting “Washington Crossing the Delaware†by Emanuel Gottlieb Leutze, the man holding the flag alongside future president George Washington is future president James Monroe. (via Mental Floss)
6. There are Army astronauts, who wear astronaut wings. One is retired Col. Douglas Wheelock, who logged 178 days in space after serving as the first active-duty soldier to command the International Space Station. (via Mental Floss)
7. If the Army was a city, it would be the 10th-largest in the United States. (via We Are the Mighty)
8. And it owns so much land that if it was a state, it would be larger than Hawaii and Massachusetts combined. (via We Are the Mighty)
9. In 2011, each soldier required 22 gallons of fuel per day on average; a soldier during World War II only required 1 gallon of fuel per day on average. (via Fact Retriever)
10. The oldest active-duty infantry unit is the famous 3rd U.S. Infantry Regiment, also known as “The Old Guard.” Stood up in 1784, the 3rd is an official ceremonial unit and escort to the president of the United States, and is also in charge of the “Changing of the Guard Ceremony” at the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier. The Old Guard received The American Legion’s Distinguished Service Medal in 2016. (via Fact Retriever)
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With Father’s Day this Sunday, I thought I should include some of the MOST RIDICULOUS LIES DADS TOLD THEIR KIDS
• Even before “smart†toothbrushes, I told my son that his toothbrush was connected to my phone, and that it told me how long he brushed his teeth.
• I used to tell my kids that wheat bread is brown because it’s made with chocolate. They would ask why they couldn’t taste the chocolate, and I just told them that the bread only used a little bit.
• I told him that, if he swallowed his gum instead of throwing it out, his poops would bounce back into his butt and be stuck there forever.
• I told my son that his breath got really bad when he lied. So, I would notice him chewing gum, or brushing his teeth at weird times and, sure enough, it was usually before he knew we’d have to talk.
