June 6, 1944: The Beginning of the End

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On this day seventy-nine years ago, Allied Forces crossed the English Channel and stormed the beaches of France in order to bring about the end of Adolf Hitler’s madness. Thousands of brave young men lost their lives that day so that millions of people could live in freedom.

May we never forget their sacrifice:

Soldiers, Sailors and Airmen of the Allied Expeditionary Force!

You are about to embark upon a great crusade, toward which we have striven these many months. The eyes of the world are upon you. The hopes and prayers of liberty loving people everywhere march with you. In company with our brave Allies and brothers in arms on other fronts, you will bring about the destruction of the German war machine, the elimination of Nazi tyranny over the oppressed peoples of Europe, and security for ourselves in a free world.

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Hello, June!

"Flaming June" by Frederic Lord Leighton, c. 1895

“Flaming June” by Frederic Lord Leighton, c. 1895

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It’s the first day of June – what better way to start out the month than with this classic number from Rodgers and Hammerstein’s “Carousel” ?

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Wasn’t that fun? Hope you enjoyed it!
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Happy Cinco de Mayo!

Tequila Cat
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Today is Cinco de Mayo – a day when a lot of people drink a lot of beer and/or tequila.

So what better YouTube clip to show than Jim Breuer’s classic “Party in Your Stomach”? If you haven’t seen it before, be prepared to laugh:
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Have a great day!
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Softly Call The Muster….

Muster 9.
On April 21, 2009, I answered “Here” for my sister, Beverly Suzanne Hamilton ’84.

In 2018, Paul and I answered “Here” for our beloved daughter, Michelle Elise Koch ’13.

One day our children will answer “Here” for both Paul and me. It is the last thing that the family of an Aggie is called to do for their loved one. It is our sworn duty to do so.

Softly call the Muster,
Let comrade answer, “Here!”
Their spirits hover ‘round us
As if to bring us cheer!

Mark them ‘present’ in our hearts.
We’ll meet some other day
There is no death, but life etern
For our old friends such as they!

– from “Roll Call for the Absent“, by Dr. John Ashton ’06

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He.Is.Risen.

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Good Friday – “Were You There?”

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Then the soldiers of the governor took Jesus into the common hall, and gathered unto him the whole band of soldiers.

And they stripped him, and put on him a scarlet robe.

And when they had platted a crown of thorns, they put it upon his head, and a reed in his right hand: and they bowed the knee before him, and mocked him, saying, Hail, King of the Jews!

And they spit upon him, and took the reed, and smote him on the head.

And after that they had mocked him, they took the robe off from him, and put his own raiment on him, and led him away to crucify him.

Matthew 27:27-31 KJV

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=b-0xzU0qMe4&feature=player_detailpage
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Play Ball! (Opening Day, 2026)

Baseball 25 - Coco Crisp

A** over Teakettle – typical around this place….

I don’t follow baseball all that closely (I’m a football kind of a gal), but I’ve always wanted to see a YouTube video with one of my favorite “baseball” songs – “What A Game!” from the musical Ragtime, mixed with pictures from baseball games/players/fans. I just love the humor in the lyrics (even though some of the words used are less than politically correct in this day and age), and it always seemed like a song that would be ripe for such a video treatment.

I missed Opening Day by a couple of weeks back in 2013, but I still wanted to pay tribute to America’s Pastime. I had a lot of fun putting this together – I hope you like it (click on the icon in the lower right corner if you want to view it full-screen):

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When I saw this, I knew I had to include it for my friend Liesel:

Baseball Art 6

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Saint Patrick’s Day meets Sesame Street meets “Danny Boy”

I tried to find this version of “Danny Boy” (Garrett Morris, SNL, 03/18/78), but it’s behind a paywall at Hulu…

One of the reasons that I love Saint Patrick’s Day is because it gives me an excuse to listen to one of my all-time favorite songs, “Danny Boy“.

If there were ever any doubt about my ancestry (I’ve got some “Kelly” and “Carroll” in my family tree), the way that this tune makes me feel like I’ve “come home” puts that to rest – there is no denying that music from the British Isles is the kind of music that stirs my soul.

In putting this post together, I listened to a LOT of different versions of the song, and I ran across one that surprised me. You see, I’ve only ever known Bob McGrath as a performer on “Sesame Street” – I didn’t have a CLUE that he had such an amazing voice!

When I heard this version, I knew that I had found “the one”:
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Happy Pi Day (03/14) [w/Buttermilk Pie recipe included!]

Yes, I’m a geek – I bought this for Rachel several years ago.
She’s a geek, too – she loved it….
(Okay, I bought myself one as well – couldn’t be letting her have all the fun!)

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It wouldn’t be Pi day without a recipe to fill that cool Pi plate, so here is my absolute, all-time favorite pie recipe, courtesy of my dear, sweet mother-in-law (you will definitely want to double it, because it is just that good!):
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Buttermilk Pie

(Makes 1 pie)

1 C. Sugar
3 Tbsp. Flour
3 Egg Yolks ***
2 Tbsp. Butter, melted
1 tsp. Lemon Extract
2 C. Buttermilk
1 pie crust

Mix all ingredients together and pour into an unbaked pie shell.
Bake at 350 degrees until firm (approximately 45 – 50 minutes).

Easy AND delicious – does it get any better than that?
Bon Appetit!
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*** The original recipe calls for meringue on top – I assume that the egg whites were held in reserve to make it. Other recipes for Buttermilk Pie that I have seen call for the entire egg to be used in the filling. While I have not tried this personally, I would imagine including the whole egg would not be a problem – this recipe is a little “runnier” than most; adding the egg whites would probably help firm the filling up a bit.
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47 Years Later – The Best (Belated) Valentine’s Day Ever (a.k.a. “Boy Meets Girl”)

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Just a couple of kids…..

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It all started in a lecture hall at Texas A&M University in January, 1979. Yours truly was a freshman who started out in Pre-Med, but after one semester – and a tearful call home – I had decided to change my major to one which involved more math – Civil Engineering.

Well, the powers that be in the Engineering department told me that the Calculus class that I had placed out of as a Science major wasn’t really “the same as” the one they wanted Engineering majors to take, so I had to start all over again. I hadn’t changed my major until the spring semester started, so I missed the first “official” day of that class.

The next time that class met, I was sitting in a seat in the lecture hall, feeling quite lost since I didn’t know the professor’s name, office hours, etc. Some guy came in a little late to the class, looking all harried, and sat down in one of the few empty seats – right next to me.

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