Author's posts
Apr 16
Culloden
The Battle of Culloden was the final confrontation of the Jacobite rising of 1745. On this date, 16 April 1746, the Jacobite army of Charles Edward Stuart was decisively defeated by a British government force under Prince William Augustus, Duke of Cumberland, on Drummossie Moor near Inverness in the Scottish Highlands. 1250 Jacobites died at …
Apr 06
Today is National Tartan Day
We were in NYC April 6, 2019 for our daughter-in-law’s birthday and the Tartan Day Parade. Look who the Grand Marshall was! I am so sorry we missed 2015 when Sean Connery was Grand Marshall Get ready to don your kilts and play the bagpipes – National Tartan Day is here, and it’s a whirlwind …
Apr 04
It’s National School Librarian Day!
I spent many years helping the school librarian in my son’s elementary school. They do fantastic things! April 4th is National School Librarian Day. It is set aside to honor all school librarians. School librarians spend long hours keeping the library organized, helping our children find the resources they need to keep learning and …
Apr 01
It’s April Fools Day!
Q: How many critics does it take to change a light bulb? A: Critics can’t change a light bulb. But they’ll watch you do it and tell you a hundred ways you could have done it better.
Mar 27
Happy Birthday, Harold Nicholas!
I know that I promised in Major Excitement to post about the Nicholas Brothers and this is it! I can’t remember the first time I saw the Nicholas Brothers in a movie but I’ve sought them out ever since. I even bought their biography in 2010, Brotherhood In Rhythm: The Jazz Tap Dancing of the Nicholas Brothers. Tap dancing …
Mar 22
What A Perfect Holiday!
Today is known as International Goof Off Day. It is a day to relax, enjoy and goof off. Do something fun and leave the work until tomorrow. Even though I have 5 (yes, five!) part-time jobs, I seem to be able to do them all and manage to have lots of nap time. Except for …
Mar 19
Happy First Day of Spring!
Spring has sprung, the grass has riz, I wonder where the birdies is. Some say the birds is on the wing, but that’s absurd, the wing is on the bird. That’s how I learned this little ditty. A quick internet search shows that some wonder where the flowers is and other variations. …
Mar 18
It All Started With a Train
I was reading this great article at https://www.thrillist.com/travel/nation/best-scenic-train-rides-us?wpsrc=thrillist and saw that the header image was a train we were on in 2007, the White Pass & Yukon Route out of Skagway, Alaska. The Thrillist folks said “As you cruise along the side of frighteningly sheer cliff-drops on this narrow-gauge railway, you can’t help but wonder who in …
Mar 17
Happy Saint Patrick’s Day!
Every year on March 17, the Irish and the Irish-at-heart across the globe observe St. Patrick’s Day. What began as a religious feast day for the patron saint of Ireland has become an international festival celebrating Irish culture with parades, dancing, special foods and a whole lot of green. When I was …
Music
- 🎭 Free Theatre Workshop for 4th – 8th graders, May 3During the workshop, you will play theatre games, take a tour of our auditorium including the lights and sound booth, props, and costumes, learn and perform a piece of choreography from the show, and have a Q&A with members of our cast and crew!
- 👩🏼🎤 Composers - LLamb Lanza Lehar Lennon Lerner Lerner and Loewe Lewis Liadov Liberace - 3 videos added 2/4/24 Ligeti Lipatti - video added 3/19/24 Liszt - video added 2/14/24 Lloyd Webber - video added 3/23/24 Locatelli Loewe - video added 2/14/24 Lully - video added 3/23/24 Lunceford - video added 4/26/24 Lutoslawski Find the list at https://oconnormusicstudio.com/composers-2/composers-l/
- 😎 Vacation Bible School (VBS) Registration is OpenHere, in this vibrant hub of heroism, young and old heroes alike answer the call of duty, joining forces to lend their extraordinary talents to Hero Teams across the globe. Whether it’s solving perplexing puzzles, battling dastardly villains, or rescuing those in peril, these superheroes are always ready to save the day with a dash […]
- 🪨 Junior Geologists Lab, TodayRocks and fossils get the spotlight in this STEM program. Bring in an interesting rock to identify and share, and explore the science of geology!
- 🤩 Seven Events happening tomorrow!- 11th Annual Kite Festival - Cub Run Stream Valley (Flint Lee Road) – Watershed Cleanup 2024 - Fairy Festival - Mosaic Festival - Festival Of Colors 2024 Holi DC - Seedling Tray Planting & Plant Swap - Brookfield Family Movie Night!
- 🎤 Live Concert: Oh, The Places You will Go!, April 28It’s a small and beautiful world! If you had the opportunity to travel anywhere you wanted, where would you go? Come fly with us to some of our favorite places!
- 🥁 Fun with Music for Preschoolers, MondaysStep into a world of giggles and song with “Fun “with Music at Pender! This is not just any music class – it's a journey through sound and imagination designed especially for preschoolers and their favorite grown-ups. Since 2013, Jim and Roberta Pont have been creating a space where tiny toes tap, and little voices […]
- 🏃🏼 Feed Fairfax 5K May 4Are you ready to lace up your sneakers for a cause that hits close to home? Join us for the Feed Fairfax 5k, a family-friendly event that’s more than just a race—it’s a chance to make a tangible difference in the lives of Fairfax County students facing food insecurity. Mark your calendars for Saturday, May […]
- 🐑 Spring Farm Day, May 4Ages 2-Adult. Watch sheep shearing and antique farm equipment demonstrations. See cow and goat milking demos and participate in hands-on farm activities.
- 🇩🇪 German Conversation Group, April 30Practice your German language conversation skills with a skilled instructor.
Little Free Library
- Dying To Date: Love, betrayal, murder—a great first dateBy a good friend of mine! When dying to date Mr. Right leads to finding Mr. Wrong—it’s deadly. Relationship expert Kristina Truly has a proven track record of dating the wrong men. However, her highly publicized romantic failures don’t stop her fans from attending her Finding Mr. Right, Not Mr. Perfect seminars and reading her […]
- The Poisoned PeerThe 99-year-old Earl of Middlemop has had his future cruelly snatched from him. Who could have poisoned the richest man in Wessex? The answer lies within the walls of Gripedown Hall where family secrets and bitter rivalries prevail. Senior sleuths Churchill and Pemberley investigate on the behest of their friend Tryphena Ridley-Balls. However, another friend […]
- Murder in the ManorMURDER IN THE MANOR (A LACEY DOYLE COZY MYSTERY—BOOK 1) is the debut novel in a charming new cozy mystery series by Fiona Grace. Lacey Doyle, 39 years old and freshly divorced, needs a drastic change. She needs to quit her job, leave her horrendous boss and New York City, and walk away from the […]
- Murder on a Midnight ClearA snowbound country mansion, a missing butler, and a Christmas case . . . Olive and Jasper have never been closer—except in one area. Jasper is still reticent about his frequent disappearances from polite society. With the holidays approaching and no paying client on the books, Olive decides to shadow Jasper when he’s unexpectedly called […]
- Discerning GraceAs the first full-length novel in The White Sails Series, DISCERNING GRACE captures the spirit of an independent woman whose feminine lens blows the ordered patriarchal decks of a 19th century tall ship to smithereens. Wilful Grace Baxter, will not marry old Lord Silverton with his salivary incontinence and dead-mouse stink. Discovering she is a […]
- The Thursday Murder Club: A Novel (A Thursday Murder Club Mystery Book 1)A New York Times bestseller | Soon to be a major motion picture from Steven Spielberg at Amblin Entertainment “Witty, endearing and greatly entertaining.” —Wall Street Journal “Don’t trust anyone, including the four septuagenarian sleuths in Osman’s own laugh-out-loud whodunit.” —Parade Four septuagenarians with a few tricks up their sleeves A female cop with her […]
- Body on Baker Street (A Sherlock Holmes Bookshop Mystery Book 2)The amateur sleuths at the Sherlock Holmes Bookshop must call upon the powers of deduction in order to rid Baker Street of a ruthless killer Gemma Doyle and Jayne Wilson are busy managing the Sherlock Holmes Bookshop and Emporium on Baker Street and adjoining Mrs. Hudson’s Tea Room in anticipation of the store’s upcoming book […]
- The Devil and the Dark Water (A Locked-Room Historical Mystery)A murder on the high seas. A remarkable detective duo. A demon who may or may not exist. It's 1634, and Samuel Pipps, the world's greatest detective, is being transported to Amsterdam to be executed for a crime he may, or may not, have committed. Traveling with him is his loyal bodyguard, Arent Hayes, who […]
- Too Many WomenAh, sweet mystery, when Nero Wolfe and Archie Goodwin plunge into a case of murder brimming with luscious, lethal ladies. Who murdered Waldo Wilmot Moore? Well, there were five hundred female employees at the Wall Street firm where poor Waldo had worked. Any one of them might have done it. And there was also the […]
- Christmas Cupcake MurderAs December turns Lake Eden, Minnesota, into the North Pole, the heat is on in Hannah Swensen’s kitchen to honor two Christmas promises: baking irresistible holiday cupcakes and preventing an attempted murderer from succeeding the second time around! While Hannah speeds through a lengthy holiday checklist, drama in town grows like Santa’s waistline on Christmas […]