May 12 2024 - Which countries like each other

 

Which countries like each other?   It is easy to find out who/what is Britain's favourite country? It is New Zealand.  That seems interesting as there are few British immigrants or citizens  in New Zealand compared to the U.S., Australia and Canada.  Only 3 million British immigrants in New Zealand compared to 109 million in the U.S. 19 million in Australia and 17 million in Canada.  In return who might New Zealand like the most?  They aren't saying or surveying.  It seems there is no favourite country that New Zealand has identified.   Nearby, the favourite countries of the U.S. are Canada and Great Britain.   What country does Canada like the best?  It likes Britain and Japan.   Which country does Japan like the most?  One article says Brazil - It is home to the largest number of expats outside Japan - over 1.6 million.  Another one says Hawaii - as a travel destination.   Around the globe, the most popular destinations for travel seem to be France, Spain and the U.S.   But if you want to move somewhere, it is the U.S., Germany and Saudi Arabia that are the top countries for immigration.  Today's not the day for travel or immigration.  It is Mother's Day.  This would be the day to go out for Brunch or Lunch.

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May 14 2023 - Mothering vs Nurturing

 

Here we are at Mother's Day. Who knows where Mother's Day will end up.  There was contention this year over the "Mother" part.  What about gay fathers raising children? What about transgender men who have given birth?     Services Australia, which runs Medicare, has previously provided data showing 22 transgender men gave birth in 2018-19. This made them among the 228 who had been pregnant during that decade.   Can you imagine 100 years ago - there would be no consideration to collect the gender of the person giving birth. This discussion was in the Daily Mail article:  "Last month Brendan Murphy, the secretary of the federal Department of Health, was unable to answer a question from Liberal senator Alex Antic about the definition of a woman. 'No, well there a variety – it's a very, it's a very … it's a very contested space at the moment, Senator,' Dr Murphy said. 'I mean there are obviously biological definitions but there are definitions in terms of how people identify themselves, so we're happy to provide our working definition on notice.'" Wikipedia has lots of information about transgender pregnancy. I can't imagine how complicated this will make the anti-abortionists in the US who are using Mother's Day as an opportunity to have protests.  And the alternative name that's been proposed?  "Nurturing Day" or "Nurturer's Day". A Mother's Day wish today.  Enjoy the special day. Read more daily posts here: marilyncornwellblogspot.com Purchase works here: Fine Art America- marilyncornwell.com Redbubble - marilyncornwellart.ca

May 12 2023 - Mother's Day Weekend

 

We're coming up to Mother's Day weekend.  I think of this as the start of spring ending.  Victoria Day for me is the start of summer.  Somehow milestone days signal the season rather than science.  There are Mother's Jokes that come out for Mother's Day. Q: Why is a computer so smart?  A: It listens to its motherboard. Q: What did the mother rope say to her child?   A: “Don’t be knotty.” Q: What did the digital clock say to its mother?  A: “Look, Ma! No hands! Q: What do you call a small mother? / A: A Minimum But where are the Mother's Day jokes?   Q: Why was the house so neat on Mother’s Day? A: Because Mom spent all day Saturday cleaning it Q: What did the kittens give their mom for Mother’s Day? A: A subscription to Good Mousekeeping. What about the Guinness Book of Records.  What do they consider the record mother?  It is the person who gave birth to the most children.  And who is it?  Barbara Stratzmann (c. 1448 – 1503) of Bönnigheim, Germany, gave birth to 53 children (38 sons and 15 daughters) in a total of 29 births by 1498. She had one set of septuplets, one set of sextuplets, four sets of triplets and five sets of twins. I wasn't really thinking of that as a Mother's Day record.  Wouldn't we really want records about Mother's Day?  There are just a few retrieved - it is hard to retrieve on one's topic these days.  Here are two that are on topic: On May 11, 2012, Pete Moyer and 72 members of Zion Lutheran Church became the largest group, according to RecordSetter.com, to sing "Happy Mother's Day," a little known and rarely sung holiday ditty.   More than 18-thousand sticky notes were left by students and adults around Jordan on Mother’s Day, breaking a Guinness World Record. Thousands of jordanians came together to celebrate the holiday, which falls on March 21st in the arab world.Participants broke a Guinness World Record of the largest sticky notes poster full of messages of love to mothers.The notes were collected on a large poster, which was put on display for the Guinness World Records judge to assess.  That was in 2019.   A Mother's Day Card today. Read more daily posts here: marilyncornwellblogspot.com Purchase works here: Fine Art America- marilyncornwell.com Redbubble - marilyncornwellart.ca

May 9 2022 - Mother Teresa

 

Part way through Mother's Day, I realized that the woman who was famous for being a mother, was Mother Teresa.  She never was an actual mother.   We celebrate her on September 5th each year.  She herself left home at age 18 to join the Sisters of Loreto in Ireland to learn English, so that she could instruct at the Sisters of Loreto in India.  The Wikipedia entry says  she saw neither her mother nor her sister again.   Her life mission had an astonishingly large scope - "the hungry, the naked, the homeless, the crippled, the blind, the lepers, all those people who feel unwanted, unloved, uncared for throughout society, people that have become a burden to the society and are shunned by everyone".  This is what makes me think off her as the "greatest mother". She was bestowed with many awards including the Nobel Peace Prize. When Mother Teresa received the prize she was asked, "What can we do to promote world peace?" She answered, "Go home and love your family."   She was controversial - there are other views of her that are not at all favourable.  Take her stand on abortion and the role of the Mother.  "Mother Teresa singled out abortion as "the greatest destroyer of peace today. Because if a mother can kill her own child – what is left for me to kill you and you kill me – there is nothing between." "Barbara Smoker of the secular humanist magazine The Freethinker criticised Mother Teresa after the Peace Prize award, saying that her promotion of Catholic moral teachings on abortion and contraception diverted funds from effective methods to solve India's problems. At the Fourth World Conference on Women in Beijing, Mother Teresa said: "Yet we can destroy this gift of motherhood, especially by the evil of abortion, but also by thinking that other things like jobs or positions are more important than loving." Isn't is interesting that the seemingly simple notion of a day to celebrate Mothers can bring so much introspection and scrutiny into our social views and actions.  We live in complicated times. Given the sanctity that is bestowed on Mother Teresa, are there actually Mother Teresa jokes?  Yes, here's a silly one. A nun gets into a taxi... ... and the driver can't take his eyes off her. Finally, he says, "Sister, I must tell you something but I don’t want to offend you." She says, "My son, you won’t offend me. I've heard it all after so many years of being a nun." "Okay," says the driver, "Well I always had this fantasy of kissing a nun." "Alright, but you must be single and Catholic," says the nun. "No problem, I'm both!" "Okay then, so stop the car over there." He stops and the nun makes his dreams come true with the Mother Teresa of all kisses. But when they set off again, the driver starts crying. "I'm sorry Sister, " he says. "I lied. I'm married and I'm Jewish." "That's okay son," replied the nun. "I'm Steven and I'm on my way to a fancy dress party."   Here's an image that one could pair with a Mother Teresa quote - this one from New Zealand. Read more daily posts here: marilyncornwellblog.com Purchase works here: Fine Art America- marilyncornwellart.com Redbubble - marilyncornwellart.ca

MAY 8 2022 - 12 Famous Mothers Ruling the World

 

OK - that headline got my attention.  That there are 12 mothers ruling the world.   That seems a dream.  I compare that to the place where we are:  Trump, Putin, Elon Musk and Xi Jinping rampaging through the social, economic, and political realms of the entire planet.  Trump is often considered the most dangerous in political commentaries.  And that's in comparison to Putin and Kim Jong-un.  Xi Jinping came in last in a German poll.  I wonder who they would say is the most dangerous now?  So back to the feel-good article on the 12 mothers who are "ruling the world".  Would you consider Michelle Obama up for the challenge of taking on our super-foes?  Can Beyoncé solve the war in Ukraine?  Would you consider f"amous mom Madonna - an icon and also a loving mother," ready to take on Putin right now?  So I got to realizing that these are articles are about famous women who are mothers.  It doesn't look like anyone is  famous for being a mother?  And ask the same question about men - there aren't articles about men famous for being fathers.   So we likely should focus on simple family pleasures for the celebration day.  What to do?  Cook a meal for your mom, plan a picnic in the park and make your mom a gift.  And here are two jokes that fit nicely into Mother's Day. Daughter: Mum, what’s it like to have the greatest daughter in the world? Mum: I don’t know dear, you’d have to ask Grandma. A kid asks his dad, “What’s a man?” The dad says, “A man is someone who is responsible and cares for their family.” The kid says, “I hope one day I can be a man just like mom!”    There seem to always be Magnolias in bloom on Mother's Day.   Read more daily posts here: marilyncornwellblog.com Purchase works here: Fine Art America- marilyncornwellart.com Redbubble - marilyncornwellart.ca

May 9 2021 - Mother's Day Flowers

 

It is Mother's Day and  a traditional day to give flowers. The New York Times Style Magazine has a guide to what they consider the most exciting florists working today - they had an article on this in November with six different cities compared.  The cities in today's article are  Chicago, Miami, Mexico City, Berlin, Seoul and Sydney.   The articles are HERE and HERE. The photography of most flower arrangements make them all look wonderful to me, so I wouldn't be the person to judge who is the best.  They organize them by styles such as unusual, earthy, classic, and so on.  Here's their overview chart, which is itself very artistic.  they categorize bouquet prices - starting at $75, $75 - $150 and starting at $150.  Seems like the price of a restaurant meal.  Some of the arrangements sound like food - Slipper orchid and pomegranate, Anthurium  and lotus pods, wild grape and delphinium.  All lots of fun for a Monday's Day. Is there a top floral designer in the world?  One list has it to be  Leopoldo Gomez is a renowned international floristry teacher, based in Mexico City. He focuses on the use of color and emotions in his work. In 2019, he won a gold medal in the floral competition in Huis Ten Bosch (Japan).  Any of the articles on this topic have extraordinary floral displays.  Here's an example.   All so much fun.  Here's the pretty guide to today's NY Times florists. Isn't that a nice sighting on John Street?  A touring car checking out the orchards earlier in the week. Purchase at: FAA - marilyncornwellart.com Redbubble - marilyncornwellart.ca

What Every Mother Wants

I often find funny jokes in Boys' Life Magazine.  They seem to get all the jokes.  Girls' Life Magazine is an American teen magazine similar to other magazines directed to women - advice about friends and familiars, stories on popular culture, fashion, and celebrities.  Boys' Life is the monthly magazine of the Boy Scouts of America for boys from 7 - 17. It began in 1911 and when it started was edited by 18-year-old Joe Lane.  Fast forward to today and Boys' Life is targeted towards older boys and features buying guides, video games, things to do, sports,  and still features scouting activities.  It still contains jokes in every issue.  I looked through the Boys' Life Mother's Day jokes.  And then I found this one - it is NOT in the Boys' Life Compendium of Mother's Day Jokes. Boys' Life Magazine remains a general interest and wholesome magazine - it describes its style as crisp, punchy writing in relatively short, straight-forward sentences.  So as you read this joke, it would clearly not appear in Boys' Life Magazine. Three sons left home, went out on their own and prospered. Getting back together, they discussed the gifts they were able to give their elderly mother.  The first said, "I built a big house for our mother."  The second said," I sent her a Mercedes with a driver."  The third smiled and said, "I've got you, both beat. You know how Mom enjoys the Bible, and you know she can't see very well. I sent her a brown parrot that can recite the entire Bible. It took 20 monks in a monastery 12 years to teach him. I had to pledge to contribute $100,000.00 a year for 10 years, but it was worth it. Mom just has to name the chapter and verse, and the parrot will recite it."  Soon thereafter, Mom sent out her letters of thanks: "Milton," she wrote the first son, "The house you built is so huge. I live in only one room, but I have to clean the whole house."  "Marvin," she wrote to another, "I am too old to travel. I stay home all the time, so I never use the Mercedes. And the driver is so rude!"  "Dearest Melvin," she wrote to her third son, "You were the only son to have the good sense to know what your mother likes. That chicken was delicious." I stopped at Sunnybrook Winery on the Lakeshore in NOTL, and took this picture of the orchard on Lake Ontario. Our second picture is the Weeping Cherry tree on Niagara Street.

The Bright Side of Mother's Day

Here in Niagara, Mother's Day is also a blossom day.  Where it is the Niagara orchards or the ornamental crab apples, there are always blossoms on Mother's Day. The next picture is what a garden club/horticultural society plant sale looks like 5 minutes before 200 people descend in a feeding frenzy.  There were about 1,200 plants from member gardens and wholesale donations.   One may think of all the member hours that go into a plant sale.  But there are a lot of Dollarama products that go into it too.  The pretty green table clothes,  the metal sign stands, the dots on the pots that indicate the price point, the popsicle sticks with the plant names.  Perhaps Plant Sale day is our Dollarama appreciation day too. We've traced the roots of Mother's Day in previous years.  Anna Jarvis., the founder, had to work hard to get it established.  The U.S. created it with a bill that was signed in both houses in 1914.  President Woodrow Wilson was given credit for the idea of the official Mother's Day at the time. How did the commercialization happen?  Hallmark Cards and their greeting cards, made it happen.  Where are we now with this commercialization? Sign onto Google today and see the Google Doogle:  a series story of a pregnant cactus and her journey as a mother from giving birth to her baby cacti, to taking care of it and finally living a settled life with the grown up babies.  I consider this one a bit weird. Enjoy your family gathering today!

Did You Go A-Mothering?

We haven't left Mother's Day yet.  We found out about Mother's Day in the US. It is very different from Mothering Day in England.  In England it is celebrated far earlier in the year.  From Wikipedia: Mothering Sunday is a holiday celebrated by Catholic and Protestant Christians in some parts of Europe. It falls on the fourth Sunday in Lent (For Orthodox Christians in Europe and elsewhere, the fourth Sunday in Lent remembers St. John of the Ladder). Secularly, it became an occasion for honouring the mothers of children and giving them presents.  During the sixteenth century, people returned to their mother church, the main church or cathedral of the area, for a service to be held on Laetare Sunday. This was either a large local church, or more often the nearest cathedral. Anyone who did this was commonly said to have gone "a-mothering", although whether this term preceded the observance of Mothering Sunday is unclear. In later times, Mothering Sunday became a day when domestic servants were given a day off to visit their mother church, usually with their own mothers and other family members. It was often the only time that whole families could gather together, since on other days they were prevented by conflicting working hours, and servants were not given free days on other occasions. By the 1920s the custom of keeping Mothering Sunday had tended to lapse in Ireland and in continental Europe. In 1914, inspired by Anne Jarvis's efforts in the United States, Constance Penswick-Smith created the Mothering Sunday Movement, and in 1921 she wrote a book asking for the revival of the festival; Its widescale revival was through the influence of American and Canadian soldiers serving abroad during World War II ; the traditions of Mothering Sunday, still practised by the Church of England and Church of Ireland were merged with the newly imported traditions and celebrated in the wider Catholic and secular society. UK-based merchants saw the commercial opportunity in the holiday and relentlessly promoted it in the UK; by the 1950s, it was celebrated across all the UK. The Wisteria are showing colour on Yates Street in St. Catharines so will be blooming in the 2 weeks.