A Brief History On January 30, 2018, we celebrate National Croissant Day in honor of that great “French” pastry roll prevalent among breakfast bars in hotels across the country. Flaky, buttery, soft and delicious, Croissants are great as they are, with butter and/or jelly, or as the basis for a light sandwich, including breakfast sandwiches (as Burger King so deftly demonstrates). For all the terrible things people say about bread and its supposedly negative impact on health, the fact is bread keeps people alive and has done so for centuries. Today we list 10 of our favorite types of bread…
Author: Major Dan
Major Dan
Major Daniel Zar is a retired veteran of the United States Marine Corps. He served during the Cold War and has traveled to many countries around the world. Prior to his military service, he graduated from Cleveland State University, having majored in sociology. Following his military service, he worked as a police officer eventually earning the rank of captain prior to his retirement.
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A Brief History On January 29, 1845, Edgar Allan Poe, the Baltimore writer of such classics as “The Telltale Heart,” “The Pit and the Pendulum,” and “The Goldbug,” published his famous poem, “The Raven,” certainly one of if not the most renowned poem in American literature, and ranks among the most famous of poems. Today we list 10 great works of American Literature that feature a bird in the title. Digging Deeper 1. “The Raven,” Edgar Allan Poe, 1845. This poem is the work that got Poe widespread fame and acclaim, although unfortunately that fame never translated into wealth. The…
A Brief History On January 28, 1956, Elvis Aron Presley, all-American boy from Tupelo, Mississippi, made his first television appearance on CBS’s Stage Show, the day after “Heartbreak Hotel” was released as a single. Elvis would quickly become “The King” of rock and roll, and the best selling single artist of all time. On the other hand, many great records were made by people that had only one major success, known as “one hit wonders.” Today we list our “greatest” (our favorites) list of those one hit wonders that came to our shores from artists in other countries. Digging Deeper…
A Brief History On January 27, 98 AD, Trajan became Emperor of Rome, succeeding his (adoptive) father Nerva as Emperor. Trajan ruled until his death in 117, a time when Rome saw its greatest military and territorial success. Digging Deeper Many readers may immediately think of Gaius Julius Caesar when the subject of “greatest Roman emperors” comes up, but in fact, Julius Caesar was not emperor, as that office did not exist at that time. The first person to be considered Emperor of Rome was Augustus, the great nephew (and adopted son) of Julius Caesar. Born Gaius Octavius, Augustus was…
A Brief History On January 26, 1965, the Constitution of India was amended to make Hindi the official language of Government in India, with English relegated to a “subsidiary official language.” Although the Indian constitution recognizes 22 “scheduled” languages, there are actually many more dialects spoken throughout the country, about 780, perhaps the second most linguistically diverse nation on Earth (after new Guinea with over 800 languages). Digging Deeper According to the official census of India, there are 122 “major” languages and an additional 1599 languages spoken there (presumably dialects). At least 30 of the languages are spoken by a…