Memorial Day is celebrated in the United States each May to remember and honor military men and women who died while serving in the nation’s armed forces. This differs from Veterans Day, which is celebrated in September to honor everyone who served in the U.S. military, whether or not they died in service. From 1868 through 1970, Memorial Day was celebrated on May 30th each year. Since then, the official national Memorial Day holiday is traditionally celebrated on the last Monday in May.
Memorial Day began as a tribute to Civil War dead, and it was not until after World War I that the day was expanded to honor those who have died in all American wars. The origins of special services to honor those who die in war can be found in antiquity. The Athenian leader Pericles offered a tribute to the fallen heroes of the Peloponnesian War over 24 centuries ago that could be applied today to the 1.1 million Americans who have died in the nation’s wars: “Not only are they commemorated by columns and inscriptions, but there dwells also an unwritten memorial of them, graven not on stone but in the hearts of men.” What a fitting reminder to all of us to learn about and tell the stories of our military ancestors who died in service.
Peace to you and happy memories on this Memorial Day.
When Hanks got his first taste of success and offers became streaming in, that the actor says he learned an important lesson- one that can benefit entrepreneurs, freelancers, and other small business owners, as their work and reputations start to grow. He was speaking about how he got to a place where he could make the movies he really wanted to make. To do that, says Hanks, he needed to learn to say a very difficult word to people.
“The odd lesson for that is I figured out that’s how you end up making the favorable work you do,” said Hanks in an interview. “Saying yes, then you just work. But saying no means you made the choice of the type of story you wanted to tell and the type of character you want to play.”
There’s a lot of wisdom in these words. When it comes to my own work, they’ve helped teach me to set my own priorities and create a business that helps me to achieve my own personal goals.
I like to call this lesson, the “Tom Hanks Rule.”
Getting more out of work and life means learning to say no
The Tom Hanks rule helps you to develop self-management, a key facet of emotional intelligence. It states simply:
Every time you say yes to something you don’t really want, you’re actually saying no to the things you do.
It’s important to remember this, because it’s easy to get caught up in the moment. You might get in the habit of saying yes to everyone’s request for a favor, just because you want to be helpful. Or, you might accept whatever work comes your way-even if it prevents you from reaching your goals.
When you remember the Tom Hanks rule, you remind yourself that every decision has consequences, and that there is only a certain amount of hours in the day, days in the week, and weeks in the year.
This is especially important to remember as your business becomes more successful. As an owner, you might chafe at the idea of turning down sure work. But part of the beauty of running a successful business is that you can get more picky with how you choose to spend your time.
You don’t have to work with every client; you can focus on the clients you enjoy working with.
You don’t have to spend time on tasks you hate; you can hire others to care for these, and focus on aspects of the business that leverage your strengths.
You don’t have to work sixty or seventy hour weeks if you don’t want to; you can build your work schedule around other things that are just as important to you, if not more so.
Of course, you shouldn’t say no to everything. Part of relationship-building, and likely what helped you build a successful business in the first place, was helping when you can.
But every day, you will be faced with tough choices, about how you’re going to spend your time and energy. When you do, remember the Tom Hanks rule: Keep your emotions in check, and just say “no” to the things that aren’t important to you…so you have more time for the things that are.
The Normandy American Cemetery on a bluff overlooking Omaha Beach — the one featured so powerfully in “Saving Private Ryan” — is the most well-known and most visited ABMC cemetery.
But it’s one of only 25 monuments and cemeteries in France alone, and hardly the largest, among a global network of fields honoring America’s war dead.
The ABMC manages 26 beautifully manicured cemeteries around the world, located in Belgium, France, Italy, Luxembourg, Mexico, Netherlands, Panama, Philippines, Tunisia and the United Kingdom — plus an additional 32 war monuments as far away as the Marianas Islands and New Zealand. (ABMC)
Robert Dalessandro lives by the motto: “Time will not dim the glory of their deeds.”
The former U.S. Army officer — a historian, author and Gulf War veteran — is the deputy secretary and leader of the American Battle Monuments Commission (ABMC). He and his team around the world are responsible for preserving the memory of more than 200,000 American men and women either killed or missing in action in wars overseas.
“I believe we have the most sacred mission of any government agency,” Dalessandro, 63, said in an interview this week with Fox News Digital.
The ABMC, headquartered in Arlington, Va., outside Washington, D.C., has been preparing this week for Memorial Day ceremonies at 26 American military cemeteries around the world, from France to the Philippines.
Fewer than 1,600 Americans, mostly from World War I, rest at the small Suresnes American Cemetery.
It stands on a hill that offers sweeping views of Paris below and the Eiffel Tower in the distance.
The largest ABMC cemetery is in the Philippines, on a crest overlooking the skyline of Manila.
There rests 16,859 military dead who were killed in the Pacific in World War II. The cemetery also honors 36,286 individuals missing in action.
Dalessandro’s organization also cares for cemeteries in Belgium, Italy, Luxembourg, Mexico, Netherlands, Panama, Tunisia and the United Kingdom. Each is hauntingly beautiful.
The ABMC was created in 1923, in the aftermath of the slaughter of World War I, in which 117,000 Americans were killed in just a few short months of combat.
Families whose loved ones were killed in combat were given the option of having the body repatriated to the United States, or having the remains interred, overseas, at an American military cemetery, where they [would] be cared for, in perpetuity, by the United States government.
To the surprise of many, 40% of American families chose to have their sons and daughters buried in Europe.
Gravestones throughout the network contain the remains of men and women who were never identified.
“Every day, we make sure that those cemeteries are perfectly maintained, perfectly operated and ready at any moment for visitation by anyone,” Dalessandro said.
“And we do that to honor those who rest there. It is a tremendous responsibility.
Source: Meet the American who honors the memory of 200,000 fallen war heroes | Fox News
Ray Liotta, the actor known for his roles in “Field of Dreams” and the Martin Scorsese mob classic “Goodfellas,” has died.
He was 67.
“Ray was working on a project in the Dominican Republic called ‘Dangerous Waters’ when he passed. He passed in his sleep. He is survived by his daughter, Karsen, and his fiancée, Jacy Nittolo,” his publicist Jennifer Allen told CNN.
Liotta’s many film and television credits include “John Q,” “Blow,” “Operation Dumbo Drop,” “Hannibal,” “Wild Hogs” and “Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt.”
More recently, Liotta narrated the TV docuseries “The Making of the Mob” and starred in “The Many Saints of Newark,” the prequel film to the hit television mob series “The Sopranos.”
He played plenty of tough guys, but that was not Liotta’s true persona.
How, after the critical and commercial success of Goodfellas, did the industry fail to make Liotta a successful leading man? In interviews, he seemed to suggest he’d gotten in his own way, passing up some good roles in an understandable effort to avoid typecasting. And though he was strikingly handsome, he didn’t have the kind of generic beauty Hollywood looks for (especially during Liotta’s generation) in a hero.
Liverpool will try to pull off the first treble since 1999 when it squares off against Real Madrid in the 2022 UEFA Champions League final on Saturday at Stade de France in Paris.
The Memorial Day holiday weekend is typically a great reason for people to kickstart their summer with a backyard BBQ, a trip to the beach or a day at the park.
Americans from coast to coast will especially relish some downtime and relaxation this year after struggling in recent times with the coronavirus pandemic, higher crime, economic challenges and very high prices — including for food and for gas — to name just a few issues.
Yet no matter what we do this Memorial Day weekend and on Memorial Day itself, the holiday offers a chance for the solemn remembrance of those who served our country and are no longer here on Earth with us but who are forever in our hearts.
Here is an easy word search to kickstart your 3-day weekend.
Source: Memorial Day Wordsearch, Crossword Puzzle, and More (thoughtco.com)
Memorial Day, formerly Decoration Day, in the United States, holiday (last Monday in May) honoring those who have died in the nation’s wars.
history.com
Let’s learn about this federal holiday in America. It’s a 3-day weekend with parades, marching bands, and remembrances. There is a short quiz at the end of the reading.
Here is the assignment. Match the phrases below to the article. There are 2 sets of phrases for the 2 paragraphs. The correct answers can be found by rereading the article. Good luck!
What would you do if suddenly you lost all access to the internet? This happened to me last Saturday. Ok I freaked out a bit, but fortunately, I have an ethernet connection that was up and working. So, what happened to my laptop?
silicophilic.com
Not seeing this symbol can really mess up one’s day, so what did I do to solve the problem. I turned to Microsoft’s troubleshooter that was installed on my laptop. It said to touch Fn+F3 to enable Wi-Fi. I tried it…nothing. Tried it again…nothing. Digging further into the details, the troubleshooter said that the radio HW switch was turned off. Thanks, but no mention of how to turn it on.
You won’t believe what caused the loss of my Wi-Fi, or how many days and unsuccessful fixes it took to solve. Long story short. I stumbled upon the Acer Community Forum and started looking for an answer to the problem. No luck, but someone suggested uninstalling the latest Windows update (occurred the morning of my outage). I didn’t realize that an update could be uninstalled. Guess what? As soon as I did that, the orange Wi-Fi light came on. And stayed on.
The MS troubleshooter never mentioned that its own company could itself be the source of the problem and the solution could be uninstalling the update. So one week later, I know, and now so do you.
One day we are trucking along enjoying our youth. And then one day we wake up in our 50s, and we find creaks, cracks, and other feelings that we never experienced before.
Unfortunately, as our age increases, our risk for developing certain health conditions like osteoporosis, cancer, and hypertension increase as well. In other words, a 50-year-old body is very different than a 20-year-old body. And because of this, taking certain supplements may result in some surprising effects once we reach a certain age.
Many of us have jumped on the vitamin D supplementation bandwagon over the past few years. This supplement has become so popular that it is now the second most common supplement consumed by Americans.
Vitamin D is unique because, when exposed to the sun, the human body can make this nutrient. But since most of us are not baking in the sun like we used to, the opportunity to produce this key vitamin gets diminished.
If you are over 50 and you fall into the category of “vitamin D supplement taker”, here are some side effects that you may experience.
1. You may have stronger bones.
As people age, their risk of osteoporosis increases. Approximately 10 million adults, over the age of 50, suffer from osteoporosis and 34 million have reduced bone mass or osteopenia. Fortunately, supplementation with vitamin D has been liked to higher bone mineral density and a reduced risk of developing osteoporosis (weaker bones).
Especially in the case of women who are post-menopausal, focusing on bone health is key, as the risk of fracture is increased. And who wants to deal with a bone fracture when you don’t have to?
2. You may experience less depression.
Over half of depression cases manifest later in life. And late-onset depression is associated with increased risk of morbidity, increased risk of suicide, decreased physical, cognitive and social functioning, and greater self-neglect, all of which are in turn associated with increased mortality.
Several vitamin D receptors have been identified in the brain that affect mood, suggesting that low vitamin D levels may be associated with cognitive decline and symptoms of depression.
There are direct links between low levels of serum vitamin D higher late-life depression risk. Taking vitamin D supplements can help support healthy vitamin D levels, possibly combatting depression risk.
3. You may have a lower cancer risk.
Results from a study published in BMJ suggest that high levels of vitamin D are associated with a 20% lower risk of certain cancers in both men and women compared with those with low vitamin D levels. If you are taking vitamin D supplements and end up having levels on the higher side, you may notice a reduced risk of certain cancers too.
4. You may have a healthy blood pressure.
Observational data have shown an association between low vitamin D levels and an increased incidence of high blood pressure as well as risk for hypertension. So, one surprising side effect you may experience if you regularly take vitamin D supplements is healthy blood pressure, although that doesn’t mean you can’t neglect following an overall healthy diet.
5. You may have a healthy immune system.
As a person ages, their immune system gradually deteriorates. An association between low levels of serum vitamin D and increased risk of developing several immune-related diseases and disorders (including COVID-19) has been seen. Along with washing your hands and following all of the CDC recommendations, making sure your vitamin D levels are in check may help you keep the ick away.
