Revelation

Age 49 is probably not a good time to start a career in construction.

I say this unequivocally after working parts of two different days screeding cement. And not only do I NOT desire this as a mid-life career move, but I'm wondering if anyone would mind terribly if I just crawled into bed and stayed there until March.

Late March.

Of 2010.

But at least the garage floor is halfway done.
_______________________

Hols of the Day

National Mincemeat Day (ugh)

Mule Day (conflict of dates....some sites claim April, some September...the controversy rages on)

And on one historical site I found a US holiday: Frances E. Willard Day (Temperance Day)

This was interesting to me because my mother has been involved in the WCTU for a number of years, and Frances Willard was the founder of that organization.

Now comes the tricky part. The part where I mention a certain word and run the very real risk of having any number of people keel over and die of shock. That word is, "feminism."

As in any movement, there is always the potential for good causes to be overshadowed by weird and off-the-wall people.

Frances was not one of those people. She was a modest woman who stood up for the family unit, encouraging women to dress like women, but also fighting for conditions that could only help their families.

Looking back, even though the word hadn't been coined yet, she was a feminist. She thought it might be nice if certain men didn't drink up most of their paycheck before coming home to the family at the end of the week. That way, certain children got to eat a little more and certain wives were beat a little less.

So in fighting for prohibition, Frances Willard was fighting for both economic justice and physical safety for the family.

Don't ask me to call that kind of feminism a bad thing.

Oh but there's more.

Frances also fought for women's suffrage or more simply, the right to vote.

There were a few other important tidbits, like changing the age of consent in some 20 states where it was set at 10 years of age, or trying to persuade governments to get out of the business of trafficking in narcotics.

(you have to wonder what some of the male legislators were thinking by approving those laws...)

I found a good article here that has a fair amount of biographical information.

Even though I do not entertain every conviction that Miss Willard held, there were many initiatives from this early "feminist" that were quite pro-family. To the extent that it might be time for Christians to better define what is meant by "feminism" today.

It actually could mean having a feminine character. Or it could mean advocating for equal social, economic, political etc. rights with men. Feminism could mean a lot of things.

There are surely many of the above causes that both men and women could support without compromising their beliefs, whether they be quite "liberal" or quite "conservative." (two more broad-brush labels that could use redefining or possibly even obliteration)

Well...best get off this tangent for today. Except, first a hearty "Hi Mom!" to my own mother who attended WCTU activities this year at age 89....*waves towards Indiana*...Way to go, Mom :-D

This Day in History:

--1825 Erie Canal between Hudson River & Lake Erie opened
--1863 Worldwide Red Cross organized in Geneva (the Red Cross emblem is the exact inversion of the Swiss flag, which is a white cross on a red field)
--1881 Shootout at the OK corral, in Tombstone, Az
--1949 Pres Truman increases minimum wage from 40¢ to 75¢
--1970 "Doonesbury" comic strip debuts in 28 newspapers (sorry, but I just love this comic strip...and that should start a few prayers on my behalf)
--1984 "Baby Fae" gets baboon heart transplant, lives 21 days
--1988 Donald Trump bills Mike Tyson $2,000,000 for 4 month advisory service

Ma's quote of the day, which also happens to be an historical event...

1769
Women have limited property rights
The colonies adopt the English system of property ownership for married women as stated by
Judge John Wilford Blackstone:

“By marriage, the husband and wife are one person in the law. The very being and legal existence of the woman is suspended during the marriage, or at least is incorporated into that of her husband under whose wing and protection she performs everything.” As a result women cannot own property in their own name nor keep their own earnings.

 

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