So instead of working on news stories for the week, I got swept up writing Facebook updates of little fun facts about our nation’s presidents. I’ve compiled them below for your amusement. Happy President’s Day everyone!
- Thomas Jefferson was the first president to shake hands with guests. Previously, people bowed. We can all thank him for religious freedom, the Library of Congress, and our increased risk of swine flu.
- James Monroe bought Florida. He was also the first president to ride around in a steamboat. Then he told Europe that the US had dibs on all the Americas, and any claim opposing that would be met with a karate chop. Essentially, James Monroe was America’s first Steven Seagall.
- James Madison was the first president to wear pants. Before him, they wore knee breeches. Strangely, schools baring his name have trouble employing people who can keep their pants on.
- James Polk is the only president to score seven states in a single treaty.
- President Lincoln’s wife, Mary Todd, had brothers who fought in the Confederate Army, reminding us that it’s okay to hate your in-laws now and then.
- While president, Ulysses S. Grant was arrested for driving his horse too fast and was fined $20. I’m not sure on this, but I think he muttered “F’ing Bloomberg.”
- President Chester Arthur was a man-about-town. He entertained lavishly and often, and enjoyed going to nightclubs. Arthur told a prohibition group that called on him at the White House, “I may be President of the United States, but my private life is my own damn business.” Apparently, Arthur may have been the last president to have balls.
- President Taft weighed 332 lbs and got stuck in the White House bathtub. He was also the first to authorize federal income taxes. The second fact makes it okay for us to make fun of him for the first fact.
- President Coolidge was once punched in the eye by the mayor of Boston, reconfirming the fact that the people from that city are a bunch of asses.
- President Truman’s mother, a Confederate sympathizer, refused to sleep in Lincoln’s bed during a White House visit. The ghost of Lincoln didn’t mind one bit.
- Dwight David Eisenhower was actually born David Dwight Eisenhower. He changed it to sound more ethnic.
- Jimmy Carter was the first president born in a hospital, spurring the long-standing political maxim: “The public doesn’t like presidents born in hospitals.”
- George W. Bush lost the popular vote to Al Gore by 500,000 votes. This one isn’t funny, sorry.
All factual information courtesy of Little Known Facts. All humor courtesy of my funny bone.
BIG President Steve Barrison with Vince Martell and other performers (Photo courtesy of Clare)
Despite bitter cold, roughly 100 people joined Bay Improvement Group organizers at St. Mark’s Catholic School last night for their annual Holiday Caroling and Toy Drive and Celebrity Concert. President Steve Barrison said approximately 180 kids benefited from this year’s drive, with more than 205 toys collected last night. An additional 40 to 50 had been delivered on December 20, after their original date was delayed because of the snowstorm. All the recipients this year were under 10 years old, he added. (More photos to come.)
We interrupt this holiday vacation to bring you news of a very special event.
Bay Improvement Group’s 19th Annual Holiday Caroling and Toy Drive is holding it’s rain/snow date today! The group originally planned to have the event December 19, but snow pushed it back to post-holiday times. As a result, they’ve dropped the “caroling” from the title and added “celebrity concert.” But most importantly, they need your donations.
From BIG:
The snow storm really hurt this special annual event and we really need your help here.
PLEASE help promote, publish, PSA’s, etc. to get the word out for the few hundred needy children mostly under 10 years old that are counting on us to come through this year.
We will be there for a Special New Year’s snow date Toy Drive Celebrity Concert!
Please tell people we need toys this year for the needy, battered woman’s shelter and terminally ill children at our southern end of Brooklyn, in the Sheepshead Bay area.
St Mark, RC School Auditorium, Jerome Av & East 19th St,
Parking enter on Ave Z…
JUST Bring a NEW UNWRAPPED TOY and get a GREAT FREE Celebrity Holiday Concert and Toy Drive!
BIG adds that 200 kids under 10 years old stand to benefit from the event.
The info, one more time:
When: Tonight, January 3 @ 5 p.m.
Where: St. Marks RC Church; East 19th Street and Jerome Avenue
Cost: Free! Just bring an unwrapped gift for the kiddos!
St. Mark's Nativity Scene From 2008 (Courtesy of Puzzler4879 via Flickr)
Growing up, the holidays held a little more weight than they do as an adult.
By the time you’re in your 20s, it’s something you’ve been trying to get out of for a while. By your 40s, it runs the risk of just being something you keep up for the kids. Beyond that, your mileage may vary.
No matter what’s going on in the world, good or bad, the holidays have always acted as an intangible placebo – we know it’s just another day, but somehow it still makes us feel better.
Continue Reading »
This is an update on the Bay Improvement Group’s 19th Annual Holiday Caroling & Toy Drive that was originally scheduled for Sunday, December 20, 2009 from 5-7 p.m. at St. Mark’s School:
Weather update…BIG Celebrity/Toy Drive featuring Vanilla Fudge’s Vince Martell and other friends is RESCHEDULED FOR Sunday January 3, 2010!
PLEASE DON”T FORGET THESE KIDS> BRING THE TOYS Jan 3rd same time 5-7pm!
Councilman Lew Fidler and the 41st Assembly District Democrats Club are presenting the Community First Chapter of Toys for Tots’ 9th annual holiday toy drive this Thursday, December 17.
For three years now, the Community First Chapter of Toys for Tots has dominated New York City’s toy drive scene, collecting more than any other Toys for Tots chapter in the boroughs. Last year alone, they brought in more than 4,000 toys. Help make this year even bigger.
Kicking off at 7:30 p.m. at the Dems Club (2952 Avenue R), organizers will start collecting and tallying contributions, and Fidler and the Dems are inviting the community to come join them. Subway sandwiches and kosher food will be served.
If you’d like to bring a toy – which is kind of the point – it needs to be new and unwrapped. Alternatively, you can mail a check for the organization to purchase toys, made payable to “Community First Toy Drive” and mailed to:
Community First Toy Drive – 41st A.D. Dems Club
c/o Bryan Lee, Executive Director
585 Mayfair Drive South
Brooklyn, NY 11234
The Metropolitan Council on Jewish Poverty, a charitable organization that works to reduce the burden on the poor and needy around the city, is organizing a greeting card design team. They would like volunteers to help them design and send greeting cards to senior citizens who are homebound. Remember, Hanukah begins at sundown on Friday, December 11, 2009, so if you’ve got a Hanukah card you’ve been dreaming of, you’ll need to hurry.
Here is the blurb from the Media-Newswire:
Metropolitan Council on Jewish Poverty
Design greeting cards for birthdays, holidays, and friendly greetings to be sent to homebound seniors. There are currently 83,000 Jewish seniors in the New York region that live alone, 25,000 of them have no adult children living in the area.
You can contact the main office of the Met Council at (212) 453-9500 or (212) 453-9619. Through its office at 1707 Avenue M, the Council has been helping lower income Southern Brooklyn residents with various needs. You may want to get involved with local volunteer opportunities (i.e., visit a senior, soup kitchen, contributions) where you can help out in Sheepshead Bay, Midwood, Madison, etc.
The Sheepshead Bay/Plumb Beach Civic Association is holding their annual holiday get together tonight. Kicking off at 7:30 p.m., members of the civic association invite residents of the area to the Baron DeKalb – Knights of Columbus to celebrate the December holidays. They’ll be serving up free grub to all in attendance, and all who come will be entered into a free raffle for a specially prepared holiday basket and prizes donated by local businesses. So come and get your groove on with SB/PB!
There will also be a meeting with a light agenda.
When: Tonight @ 7:30 p.m.
Where: Baron DeKalb – Knights of Columbus
3000 Emmons Avenue (intersection of Nostrand Avenue)
Today’s 2 p.m. Succos (a.k.a. Sukkot, Sukkos, סוכות, or סֻכּוֹת) cruise from Sheepshead Bay sets sail with a full house. But worry not, you can still get on another boat set to sail today, tomorrow, or Thursday.
Sukkos – or any of its alternative names – is a week-long Jewish holiday, connected to the harvesting season. Sukkot – the plural of Sukkos – is the name of those huts, which are reminiscent of the fragile dwellings ancient Israelites used during their 40 years of wandering in Exodus. Observant Jews make the Sukkot the center of the household, eating all their meals there. Traditionally, Sukkos is also a pilgrimage holiday, when Jews are supposed to visit the Temple of Jerusalem – but in place of that, one group is offering a party succos cruise departing from our ‘hood.
Here is a listing of the details or check the Life of Rubin website for the original listing.
Succos Cruise:
A scenic cruise around Coney Island and the Statue of Liberty – 3 hours. Rain or Shine * Refreshments * Sukkah on Board * Music & Dancing * No reservations necessary. 347-326-4546.
@ Departs Sheepshead Bay, Brooklyn, almost opposite Loehman’s
Sailings set for 3 days:
Tuesday, October 6, 2009
Wednesday, October 7, 2009
Thursday, October 9, 2009
Sails at:
2 p.m. (Sold out for 10/6/09)
5 p.m.
Price: $25 adults, $15 for children under 12
The pier is located on Emmons Avenue (near Ocean Avenue).
This sign was spotted at Citibank (1528 Sheepshead Bay Road) a couple of days after National Arbor Day last month, so we thought it was put up in its honor.
But, the customer service agent at the help desk wasn’t aware of any such connection, furrowing her brow at the mention of the strange words. She did say that it was not a Citibank-wide project, and that the artwork was done by someone at the branch.
While it’s not exactly a fruit-bearing tree — so long as this Citibank branch can stay rooted in its central location on Sheepshead Bay Road, then I suppose we can use banking features as a substitute for orchard fruit.
