IN CASE YOU WONDERED...

Or, even if you didn't wonder . . . today we're going to explore a phrase that seems to be in regular use in our country: OLD SCHOOL.

Know how long it's been around? Go ahead, have a guess--10 years? 20 years? Mid-to-late 20th Century?

Nope, all wrong. My Oxford Dictionary & English Usage lists 1749 as the first use. That's right--not a typo--1749. That's more than two and a half centuries ago!

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Now, in case you never figured out what Old School means--and even if you don't really care (I have a lot of things like that in my life)--here are a couple of definitions/usages:

1: adhering to traditional policies or practices--an old-school coach

2: characteristic or evocative of an earlier or original style, manner, or form--old-school music

Old School is also used to describe "adherents of traditional policies and practices."

I sense you're muttering to yourself--why is she going on about this, anyway? Well, I'll tell you why.

As an example, some time ago I finished reading a mystery by Alan Hunter, a Brit, who wrote the George Gently series. In the very first book in the series the term "old school" was used to describe Chief Inspector Gently's methods--he thinks of himself as a traditionalist, following prescribed protocols for detection. The out-of-town police force he's been sent to assist have their own tried-and-true methods--you can almost hear them saying, "That's not the way we do things down/up/over/out here." So he's branded "old school." (Incidentally, he isn't unduly bothered by their opinions of him. Good thing, too, because he later uncovers the true villain.) (Not only that, he isn't a "letter of the law" kind of detective; he uses what he has, mainly his brain and his intuition. He says police work isn't only science, it's an art, too.)

Alan Hunter's debut in the crime novel genre was in 1955. When I came to "old school" in a book as old as that (admittedly, I am older than that myself), I was intrigued. Really? Used in 1955?

That's what sent me off to look in whatever reference books I own to see if there was any chance the term was around longer ago. 

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I'm not sure why you need to know about a 270-plus-year-old phrase. Not sure why I need to know either.

Could it all boil down to how we view ourselves? If it's a new word, a new phrase, or simply a new way of using that word/phrase, did we just invent it, say in the past few years? Did we hear it on TV, or read it in a printed work, or come across it on the Internet (that repository of practically everything you'd ever want to know, or not)?

Are we so vain that we think all "new" things are really new? Wouldn't surprise me a bit.

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But we might remember the following:

     That which has been is what will be, That which is done is 

     what will be done, And there is nothing new under the sun. 

          Ecclesiastes 1:9 (New King James Version)

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While you ponder and mull this week, enjoy our shift into the month of May--springtime is moving right along! 

Til next time,

Blessings!

Thursday's Child

APRIL 23RD...

I have a thing about the 23rd day of the month--any month. Probably, it all stems from my birthday, which is the 23rd day of a winter month.

Today is April 23rd. Here's what I gleaned from a short trawl of the Internet:

 

Know who this handsome devil is? Born in 1654, and so far as is known, also died on this day in 1616. If you guessed William Shakespeare, you're a winner!

You probably know the Bard's work from high school English classes. Or from well-known (or well-worn) phrases that have made their home in our everyday language. "To be or not to be," is one of his (from Hamlet).

Other birthday folks you might know:

Max Planck, 1858 - German theoretical physicist, known for his work in quantum theory

Shirley Temple, 1928 - American child actor; then later Shirley Temple Black, former Chief of Protocol of the United States

Roy Orbison, 1936 - singer, songwriter, guitarist, pioneered new music styles in the age of rock 'n' roll

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Here are some interesting happenings on April 23rd:

• 1789: George Washington moved into the Franklin House (New York) which was the first presidential residence
• 1914: Wrigley Field saw its first Major League Baseball game
• 1954: Hank Aaron hit the first home run in his MLB career
• 1984: Discovery of the virus causing AIDS was announced
• 2005: First video uploaded to YouTube, "Met at the zoo"

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If April 23rd didn't ring your chimes, do a quick search of your own favorite date. Just type in, "what happened on _____ in history?"

See how easy that was? And fun! You never know what you'll have show up on your screen. And besides, it's cheap entertainment, no shipping costs, and nobody has to know (if you keep it to yourself).

Blessings,

Thursday's Child

  In Just-

spring

[A re-posting you've seen before. . . I'm going through a rough patch (it's a spring thing) at present and I'm a little distracted. April is the month my mother died, and to this day, 70 years later, I recall those last days and weeks. They fade a little, but they never go away. And I'm okay with that. Re-reading this post has helped me--I can now begin to celebrate the opening-up of another spring.]

This is what I call the e e cummings season, "mud-luscious" and "puddle-wonderful."

Just-spring here in Northeast Indiana comes with a full basket of tulips and dandelions, mowed yards, birds courting, bushes in red and green and yellow, trees in pink and white and magenta and yellow-green.

Landscaping is newly mulched. Gardeners grow antsy waiting for the frost-warnings to lift so they can be the first kid on their block with annuals shoving each other aside in hanging baskets and flower boxes and any little patch of soil that doesn’t have anything in it.

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Spring returns every year (March 20th or 21^st in the northern hemisphere), with new growth in the earth; with hope for new beginnings (Easter is a spring festival, you know); with beauty so abundant you feel it will run right over you.

It’s overflowing and everywhere. And it’s for everyone.

Spring (with apologies to Janne Robinson for her lovely poem) doesn’t care: whether you’re black, white, Hispanic, or other. If you’re super-sensitive to pollen or criticism or penicillin. If you’re grieving or rejoicing. If you’re too old to, too young to, or don’t give a damn. If your income exceeds your outgo or you have no income worth talking about. Spring breathes on us, whether we like it or not.

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All the therapy in the world won’t take away Spring. All the fervent prayers, tears, threats, tantrums—no effect on Spring.

We’ll have to deal with Spring--endure it, embrace it; enjoy it, avoid it. Spring doesn’t care.

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If you see a white-haired woman in a black sweatshirt and New Balance walking shoes, carrying a box of Kleenex, that’s probably me. I’ll sneeze from car to grocery store and back again.

Spring doesn’t care.

But I do.

Celebrate Spring! And I hope you enjoy what She has to offer.

  ATTITUDES & GRATITUDES

When I was young, long before I could drive a car, I rode with my parents. If we wanted to get somewhere quickly, we took what my dad called "hard roads"--meaning, the surface of the road was probably concrete, or maybe asphalt. We called asphalt "the black top" because that's what it looked like.

If it didn't matter how long the trip took, or if the people we were going to visit lived 'way off from civilization (or so it seemed to  my young mind), we drove on gravel roads. These were supposedly maintained by the township where the roads were located. Sometimes they were.

I bring this up because whenever we found ourselves on the lesser improved roads, we often hit a rough place. Literally. The road might be deeply rutted, due to heavy rains followed by vehicles, trucks or wagons, that sank down in the mire. Somehow or other, we always got through.

Right now, a lot of folks are going through a rough place. The way ahead is uncertain, though we hope there's no detour or sliding off the road into a water-filled ditch. Metaphorically speaking, you understand.

I don't recall my parents and I ever had a bad outcome to our jaunts. Somehow or other, we always came through--maybe a little muddy on the outside, or possibly with a flat tire out of the ordeal. Overall, though, not so bad. Maybe that's the genesis of my basically positive attitude--we always came through.

So today, in case you're in, or nearing, a rough place, I'm sharing some thoughts that may make the going a little easier.

First, Attitude:

• You cannot control what happens to you, but you can control your attitude toward what happens to you, and in that, you will be mastering change rather than allowing it to master you.( Brian Tracy)

• The secret of genius is to carry the spirit of the child into old age, which means never losing your enthusiasm. (Aldous Huxley)

And now, Gratitude:

• Gratitude makes sense of our past, brings peace for today, and creates a vision for tomorrow. (Melody Beattie)
• As we express our gratitude, we must never forget that the highest appreciation is not to utter words, but to live by them. (John F. Kennedy)

I'll give Winston Churchill the last word:

Until next time,

Blessings

Thursday's Child

 SPRING ALBUM!

Tomorrow will be two full weeks of Spring! Some years there's not much to cheer about in our yard . . . a too-cold or too-warm winter can influence the new growth. But this year--! WOW!

I'm sharing my pics of the yard with you--not because it's a prize-winner, but because--well, just because I can. In a mere two weeks (which included rain, wind, more rain, even more wind, sun, no sun--you name it, we had it)--as I say, in two weeks, shrubs and bushes and flowers came out and greeted us. Enjoy!

Resurrection Lilies - leaves only at this time. The leaves die down and stems--with lilies--arrive in August. Stay tuned!

Lilac Buds - outside my kitchen window

This Lilac was given to me by my son several years ago; it had to be transplanted from its former location, and now seems quite happy mixed up with an old-fashioned rose and some formerly disruptive peppermint. The three of them appear to enjoy companionship--I never saw it coming, but I'm all for it!

Recognize this one? Baby rhubarb . . . in a few weeks we'll be cutting back the red stalks for freezing. They make a wonderful fruit crisp, mixed with blueberries and chopped apple. Pretty, too.

The only blooming flowers at the moment are daffodils and narcissus. They're not long-lasting, but they do make a pretty addition to the green of spring.

What I like most about the flowers, shrubs, and trees that bud out and eventually bloom is that they show us what patience is all about. They don't show up in full dress--they go through the processes they are born to do. I could use a little more patience (sometimes). I'll have to pay more attention to my garden.

Blessings,

Thursday's Child