Greatest American President

Posted on November 6, 2015 by Chronicles of a Blogaholic

“In the end, it’s not the years in your life that count.
It’s the life in your years.”
Abraham Lincoln

On this day in 1860, Abraham Lincoln was elected the 16th president of the United States. He won the election over a deeply divided Democratic Party, becoming the first Republican to win the presidency.

Although Lincoln received only 40 percent of the popular vote, he defeated the three other candidates: Southern Democrat John C. Breckinridge, Constitutional Union candidate John Bell, and Northern Democrat Stephen Douglas, a U.S. senator for Illinois.

President Lincoln is best known for ending slavery. However, Lincoln’s service as president is also notable for the day of thanksgiving he proclaimed on the last Thursday of November 1864. America’s modern Thanksgiving holiday dates from that first national observation.

I believe President Lincoln will forever be remembered as one of the greatest American presidents.

Shine On

Gray Whales Return to Redondo

Posted on November 4, 2015 by Chronicles of a Blogaholic

“The sea, the great unifier, is man’s only hope.
Now, as never before, the old phrase has a literal meaning:
we are all in the same boat.”
Jacques Yves Cousteau

Photo from our local paper.

For the past few days, my husband and I have watched as several Gray whales play in the waters off Redondo Beach.

First you see them leap out of the water extending their massive bodies into the air and then slamming back down on to the water which is known as breaching. A few seconds later, their distinctive V-shaped blow can be seen as they travel southward for their fall migration.

Gray whales make one of the longest migrations of any mammal on earth. Every year they swim more than 10,000 miles roundtrip, between nursery lagoons in Mexico to feeding grounds in the Arctic. This Southward migration is led by pregnant females in a hurry to reach the warm birthing and nursery lagoons in Mexico. The whales usually travel within 2 miles off shore and makes this one of the few whale migrations that can be seen from shore.

For me, this is such an astonishing sight to behold when the Gray whales return to Redondo.

Shine On

Rain Must Fall

Posted on November 3, 2015 by Chronicles of a Blogaholic

“Thy fate is the common fate of all;
Into each life some rain must fall.”
Henry Wadsworth Longfellow

Rain Must Fall

People associate the rain with tears, depression, and sadness. But, I like to associate the rain with a more positive feeling. Sort of like a good cleansing. After the rain, I feel great with the sunshine and rainbows that follow.

All good things usually have to end as well as do the bad things. We can’t avoid a little rain in our life without experiencing the sunshine.

It really comes down to your attitude and that you should always look for the silver lining. Just as there are areas of land with excess rain and droughts, there are also people who experience more or less down times.

That’s why I like Longfellow’s line from his poem, The Rainy Day:

Thy fate is the common fate of all;
Into each life some rain must fall.

Shine On

First Week of November

Posted on November 2, 2015 by Chronicles of a Blogaholic

“California is a fine place to live – if you happen to be an orange.”
Fred Allen

October came and went
Without a whimper
Still no rain in sight
The temperatures are in the eighties
Everyone east of California
Is either flooded or freezing

Just eight short weeks until
The New Year arrives
Time flies and life goes on
Here in Southern California
We remain with summer weather
On this first week of November

By: J R

A Horse of a Lifetime

Posted on November 1, 2015 by Chronicles of a Blogaholic

“Such an amazing horse.”
American Pharoah’s jockey
Victor Espinoza

Yesterday I watched the Breeders’ Cup Classic, the final big race of the year. When American Pharoah broke from the starting gate, his ears were forward through most of the race. If you’ve ever watched horse racing, normally horses ears are flat back, listening and concentrating on the job they need to get done.

Maybe American Pharoah’s ears were forward because of his ear plugs they use on him to drown out all the noise from the crowd. I like to believe he was running his heart out to the end of that finish line, lookin’ to make history in horse racing.

I watched the Kentucky Derby, the Preakness Stakes, and the Belmont Stakes this year. I watched in awe as American Pharaoh won all these famous races with ease. With this Breeders’ Cup Classic victory, American Pharoah ended his racing life as the winner of 9 of 11 career starts and is the first horse to sweep the “Grand Slam” of racing. American Pharoah, galloping into history as a horse of a lifetime.

Shine On