This is the third piece in our series Monthly Latin – one Latin phrase or quotation a month. Our fascination of this old language may very well keep it alive for centuries to come. This one must be one of the most well-known Latin phrases, one that everyone should know. And one that has bearing in anyone’s life at one point or another. Alea iacta est Uttered of course by Julius Caesar as he was crossing the river Rubicon with his army in Northern Italy on January 10th, 49 B. Continue reading

A career as a stand-up comedian must be pretty hard. Having to find good material for a live audience, and to do that on a constant basis. Yet there are hundreds of people doing that for living, at least part of their professional lives. The list below shows some of them. If there is a name missing that you would like to have added, please leave a comment. Having said that, the list is being updated from time to time. Continue reading

This is one in the series of articles titled _First Names First _and it is all for pure entertainment! We present a chronological list of persons with their first name here, and your task is to pick one. Then follow the Wikipedia link to read about that person, and to see what if anything he or she could contribute your life with. Inspiration, passion, enlightenment, encouragement, empathy, etc. Spend a couple of minutes of your life with this. Continue reading

The metric system is still spreading Napoleon authorizes the usage of Mesures usuelles, the basis of the metric system (Feb 12), the capital of Finland is moved from Turku to Helsinki (Apr 8), the War of 1812 between United States, Canada and the United Kingdom begins (Jun 18), Napoleon’s troops enter Moscow, which is deliberately set on fire by Muscovites (Sep 14), the unsuccessful French invasion of Russia comes to an end (Dec 14), the first volume of Grimm’s Fairy Tales is published in Germany (Dec 20) - and all these fine people were born: Continue reading

Let’s have another article in our series Streets and Squares - a fun way to learn about the history and culture of the cities you visit or even live in! This time we go through London. You would expect a lot of royal names here - queens and kings etc - and so it is too. But let’s have a nice mix of those and some other interesting names, shall we. Continue reading

In the year 1827, the first African-American owned newspaper in the U.S., Freedom’s Journal, is founded (Mar 16), Beethoven dies in Vienna (Mar 26), the first fountain pen with replaceable ink cartridge is patented in France (May 25), 3/4 of Turku in Finland is destroyed by fire (Sep 4), the Mormon leader Joseph Smith claims to have found the golden plates - central in the Mormon religion - this date (Sep 22), the term socialist is coined by Robert Owen in his London periodical (Nov), the Greek War of Independence goes on - and all these fine people were born: Continue reading

Siamese King Naresuan, in combat on elephant back, kills Burmese Crown Prince Minchit Sra, leading to Burmese forces leaving Siam (Jan 25), the Roman Inquisition opens the seven-year trial of scholar Giordano Bruno (Jan 27), the struggle between the Protestant Reformation (with break from the Roman Catholic Church) and the failed attempt to bring back Catholic liturgy concludes in Uppsala, Sweden (Feb 25), the Habsburgs defeat Ottoman Empire in Croatia (Jun 22) - and all these fine people were born: Continue reading

Here’s another good quote in the series Who Said That! These pieces are there to brighten your day, put a smile on your face, increase your tolerance of fellow human beings - or just give you a temporary relief from whatever you were doing a moment ago. Remember to scroll down s l o w l y so as not to reveal too early who said that. Who said: “LIFE IS WHAT HAPPENS TO US Continue reading

Pick one year or decade between 1301 and 1400! If you have ancestors born during this century that you know of, you can have them added in the list by simply leaving a comment in the box below the year or decade in question. The decades for the 14th century will have links by and by. The individual years will be few and far between unless we will get plenty of requests from genealogists, but here down below will be a few. Continue reading

In the year 1865, John Deere receives a patent for plows (Feb 21), Abraham Lincoln is sworn in for a second term (Mar 4), the German company BASF is founded (Apr 6), Lincoln is assassinated in Washington, D.C. (Apr 14), the Confederate Government is officially dissolved (May 5), the Mimosa sets sail with Welsh emigrants to Patagonia (May 28), Salvation Army is founded (Jul 2), the U.S. Secret Service is founded (Jul 5), Wild Bill Hickok shoots a man over a poker debt in what is regarded as the first true western fast draw showdown (Jul 21), slavery is legally outlawed in the last two slave states of Kentucky and Delaware (Dec 18), Ku Klux Klan is founded (Dec 24), the American Civil War (1861-1865) ends - and all these fine people were born: Continue reading

In the year 1493, Christopher Columbus returns to Spain from his first trip to Americas (Mar 15), Ottoman forces defeat those of the Kingdom of Croatia in southern Croatia (Sep 9), Christopher Columbus sets off for his second voyage (Sep 29) and lands on the coast of the island of Borinquen (today’s Puerto Rico), and renames it San Juan (Nov 19), Leonardo da Vinci draws first known helicopter - and all these fine people were born: Continue reading

Yet another piece in the series of articles titled First Names First. Below is a chronological list of persons with their first name here. Your task is to pick one, then follow the Wikipedia link to read about that person, and to see what if anything he or she could contribute your life with. Give a couple of minutes of your life to this. Lives lived all have something to tell us - let them! Continue reading

[caption id=“attachment_4239” align=“alignleft” width=“152”]Thomas Jefferson (1743-1826)[/caption] [caption id=“attachment_4241” align=“alignright” width=“151”]John Adams (1735-1826)[/caption] In the year 1826, The French newspaper Le Figaro begins publication (Jan 15), internal combustion engine is patented (Apr 1), former U.S. Presidents Thomas Jefferson (born 1743, 3usp) and John Adams (born 1735, 2usp) both die, on the 50th anniversary of the signing of the Declaration of Independence (Jul 4), American settlers in Mexican Texas make the first attempt to secede from Mexico (Dec 21) - and all these fine people were born: Continue reading

In the year 1748, Afghan leader Ahmad Shah Durrani captures Lahore (Jan 12), a fire in the city of London causes massive damages (Mar 28), Britain obtains Madras in India from France in exchange for the fortress of Louisbourg in Canada (Oct 18), the ruins of Pompeii are rediscovered after the first discovery in 1599, construction of the Sveaborg fortress begins in order to defend Finland against Russian attacks – and all these fine people were born: Continue reading

This page will show you all the existing article series in Journeys of Life. The list is in alphabetical order and will expand as time goes by. Clicking at a link will open up the initial page of that series. In this page are also listed all the miscellaneous articles of Journeys of Life. That list is updated any time another miscellaneous article is published. But you can access the articles of course in the front page by clicking there at Articles. Continue reading

[caption id=“attachment_3048” align=“alignleft” width=“227”]Golda Meir at age 16 in 1914[/caption] Golda Meir (1898-1978), the fourth Prime Minister of Israel, attending the Fourth Street Grade School in Milwaukee, Wisconsin (now called Golda Meir School) organised a fund raiser to pay for her classmates' textbooks? A future leader. Or that she lived all her formative years in the United States before moving to Palestine in 1921? And that she strongly identified with Judaism culturally, but when it came to her religious beliefs, she was actually an atheist. Continue reading

In the year 2004, the largest ocean liner ever built, RMS Queen Mary 2, is christened (Jan 8), Facebook is created (Feb 8), NATO expands by seven European countries (Mar 29), the European Union expands by ten member states (May 1), SpaceShipOne becomes the first privately funded spacecraft to achieve spaceflight (Jun 21), the Cassini-Huygens spacecraft arrives at Saturn (Jul 1), the Orange Revolution begins in Ukraine (Nov 22), tsunami 2004 kills an estimated 227,898 people in Thailand and Indonesia (Dec 26) - and all these fine people were born: Continue reading

[caption id=“attachment_3295” align=“alignleft” width=“238”]Sapling of the original Newton apple tree in Cambridge, England[/caption] In the year 1666, the English court returns to London with the Great Plague of London subsiding (Feb 1), Isaac Newton witnesses the falling of an apple which leads him to discover gravity (May 3), the Great Fire of London occurs (Sep 2-5), Newton uses a prism to split sunlight, contributing to the scientific understanding of light, the first census in North America is completed - and all these fine people were born: Continue reading

This time in our series Who Said That! a little longer quotation. But as always, remember to scroll down s l o w l y so as not to reveal ahead of time who said that. Who said: “IMPERFECTION IS BEAUTY, MADNESS IS GENIUS AND IT’S BETTER TO BE ABSOLUTELY RIDICULOUS THAN ABSOLUTELY BORING” A hint: part of her charm for sure! [caption id=“attachment_3023” align=“alignnone” width=“1280”]Scene from the movie “The Shape of Water”[/caption] And the answer is: * * * Marilyn Monroe. Continue reading

Seventh Avenue & Madison Square Garden The Commissioners' Plan for Manhattan is presented (Mar 22), Paraguay and Venezuela declare their independence from the Spanish Empire (May 14&Jul 5), Jane Austen’s _Sense and Sensibility _is published - anonymously “By A Lady” - for the first time, at her own expense (Oct 30), the Mexican War on Independence goes on until 1821 - and all these fine people were born: 1811-xxxx Isaac Baker Brown* gynaecologist/obstetrical surgeon - Colne Engaine, Essex, England (1873/c. Continue reading