8 Crazy Facts About the Washington Monument

History 6 Minutes

In honor of George Washington’s birthday, I am bringing an article, written by Dave Roos, called 8 Crazy Facts About the Washington Monument. Enjoy!

The National Park Service calls the original design plan “audacious, ambitious and expensive,” which explains why all but the obelisk was eventually scrapped.

On Sept.19, 2019, the Washington Monument reopened to the public after a three-year renovation. Eager tourists got in line early to experience the zippy new elevator and take in one of the best views East of the Mississippi.

The Washington Monument is an impressive structure dedicated to an American icon, but its construction was less than smooth (it was actually derailed for decades by a political coup). Here are eight surprising facts about America’s favorite obelisk.

A Memorial for Washington Was Planned Way Before He Died

It’s hard to overstate how much Americans loved George Washington. As early as 1783, when Washington was very much alive, plans were in the works for erecting a large statue of the first president on horseback near the Capitol building. In fact, the architect of Washington, D.C., the French landscape engineer Charles Pierre L’Enfant, left an open place for the statue in his drawings. And that’s almost exactly where the Washington Monument sits today.

Congress failed to act on the equestrian statue, and even after Washington died in 1799, legislators couldn’t agree on what kind of monument best suited the national hero. Frustrated with congressional feet-dragging, a private organization called the Washington National Monument Society was formed in 1833 to raise money and solicit designs for a large-scale homage to America’s beloved first president.

The Original Design Was a Mashup

In 1836, the Washington National Monument Society announced a design contest for the future Washington Monument and the winning sketch was submitted by 29-year-old architect Robert Mills, who would go on to design the U.S. Post Office, the Patent Office and the Treasury Building.

Mills’ original design was a mashup of architectural references. First, there was to be a 600-foot obelisk with a flattened top, a nod to the Egyptomania that had captured the early 19th-century imagination. (Note that soon after Washington’s death, the House of Representatives proposed the construction of a marble pyramid, 100 feet on each side, to serve as the first president’s mausoleum. The pharaohs would have approved, but Congress didn’t.)

In Mills’ original sketch, the giant Egyptian obelisk was to be encircled at its base by a neoclassical temple with 30 towering columns. On top of the circular temple would be a statue of Washington on a chariot, and in between each of the 30 columns would stand statues of 30 different revolutionary war heroes.

The National Park Service called Mills’ original plan “audacious, ambitious and expensive,” which explains why all but the obelisk was eventually scrapped.

There’s a Zinc Time Capsule in the Cornerstone

An estimated 15,000 to 20,000 crowded the National Mall to witness the laying of the Washington Monument’s cornerstone on July 4, 1848. But first the 24,500-pound hunk of pure white marble had to be dragged through the streets on a cart with bystanders grabbing lengths of rope to help the cause.

After a droning two-hour speech by the Speaker of the House, the assembled dignitaries placed mementos in a zinc box that would be sealed in the monument’s cornerstone for eternity (or until an alien race plucks it from the ruins of Western civilization). Included in the zinc time capsule were copies of the Declaration of Independence and the Constitution, a portrait of Washington, an American flag, all the coins in circulation and newspapers from 14 states. The laying of the cornerstone was performed by a grandmaster of the masonic lodges and its actual location apparently is still a mystery.

Construction Was Stalled by the Pope’s Stone Saga

The unfinished stump of the Washington Monument, as it looked for over 25 years. During the U.S. Civil War, the site was used for the grazing and slaughtering of government cattle, earning it the nickname Beef Depot Monument.

By 1856, after eight years of slow and painstaking construction, the obelisk stood 156 feet high and would remain that way — an unfinished eyesore that Mark Twain called “a hollow, oversized chimney” — for the next 21 years. The reason, weirdly enough, had to do with the Pope.

In 1853, the Washington National Monument Society was dangerously low on funds, so they came up with a scheme whereby large donors could have a commemorative stone placed in the interior of the obelisk. One of those donors ended up being Pope Pius IX, who shipped over a 3-foot piece of marble from the Temple of Concord in Rome.

The Pope’s gift really ticked off members of the new “Know-Nothing” party, who were virulently anti-immigrant and anti-Catholic. On the night of March 6, 1854, a gang of men locked the night watchman in his shed and stole the Pope’s stone, allegedly tossing it in the Potomac.

The controversy over the stolen stone brought donations to a standstill. But even worse was what happened next; a contingent of Know-Nothings staged a coup and overthrew the leadership of the Monument Society. Donations dried up entirely and the Know-Nothings only managed to add 20 more feet to the obelisk by the outbreak of the Civil War, when construction was halted altogether.

Yes, the Monument is Three Different Colors

After the Civil War, during which the grounds of the stubby Washington Monument were used as a cattle yard and slaughterhouse, Congress finally decided to take over. On July 5, 1876, in time for the centennial celebration of the Declaration of Independence, Congress appropriated $2 million for the completion of the monument and construction resumed in 1877.

The first task of the new chief engineer, Thomas L. Casey, was to reduce the total height of the obelisk to 555 feet, exactly 10 times the width of the structure, and to spend years reinforcing the foundation with concrete.

The next issue was the masonry. The original quarry in Baltimore had shut down, so Casey tried shipping down rock from Massachusetts. But after placing only a few layers of this stone, it was clear that it was a different color and of poorer quality than the original. So, the builders changed tack yet again and brought in stone from another Baltimore quarry, which was used to finish the final two-thirds of the obelisk.

The result is that the Washington Monument is nearly white on the bottom, a tannish-pink on the top with a thin belt of light brown in the middle. Classy, Casey.

The Priceless Capstone Would Cost a Few Bucks Today

Construction of the obelisk was finally completed on Dec. 6, 1884, more than 36 years after the first cornerstone was laid, with the ceremonial setting of the capstone. When you think of precious metals befitting the capstone of a 555-foot monument dedicated to the nation’s greatest hero, you think of gold, maybe silver, but certainly not aluminum.

Yet back in the late 19th-century, pure aluminum was a very rare commodity, and it was chosen for this important feature, as the metal would not tarnish. (In 1884, aluminum cost $1.10 per ounce or $26 per ounce in 2019 dollars; in 2019, aluminum cost around 78 cents per pound.) The 100-ounce aluminum capstone for the Washington Monument was the largest single piece of cast aluminum in the world. The final cost of the Washington Monument was $1.18 million in 1884 or nearly $30 million in 2019 dollars.

Before the capstone was shipped to Washington, D.C., it went on exhibit on the showroom floor of Tiffany & Co. in New York City, where visitors could say they “jumped over the Washington Monument.” Yay!

For Five Glorious Years, It Was the World’s Tallest Manmade Structure

And then Eiffel built his silly tower in 1789, which at 1,063 feet is nearly twice as tall as the Washington Monument.

But the Washington Monument is — and probably always will be — the tallest structure by far in Washington, D.C., although not for the reasons you might have heard. It has nothing to do with city planners who didn’t want any building to block the view of the Capitol Building or the Washington Monument. That’s actually a myth.

The height limits on buildings in the District of Columbia were established by the Height of Buildings Acts of 1899 and 1910, which were primarily concerned with the fire safety of new construction methods that allowed buildings to be raised to incredible new heights. The laws, which are still on the books in D.C., restrict the height of buildings to the width of the street in front of them, which is 130 feet in most places and 160 feet on Pennsylvania Avenue.

Half a Million Tourists Ride Up the Monument Every Year

The Washington Monument is one of the most popular tourist destinations in Washington, D.C., and untold millions of people visit the monument grounds every year. But given that there’s only one elevator that zips people to the observation deck, only 55 people can be admitted into the monument every half hour. That means that around 500,000 people enjoy the spectacular view from the top of the Washington Monument every year.

The newly installed elevator system will only take 70 seconds to carry visitors to the 51-story observation deck, where they will take in panoramic views of the National Mall, the Capitol Building, the White House and the wilds (suburbs, actually) of Virginia and Maryland up to 25 miles in all directions on a clear day.

Now That’s Cool

The first tourist elevator was installed in the Washington Monument in 1889, just five years after its completion.

SOURCE: https://adventure.howstuffworks.com/destinations/landmarks/places-of-interest/washington-monument.htm

Happy Birthday George!!

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Published by pat frederick

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306 thoughts on “8 Crazy Facts About the Washington Monument”

  1. Morning All!
    frosty start to the morning so far.
    hubby and I will be driving down the driveway this morning to leave his truck parked at the bottom. tomorrow morning is supposed to be icy and miserable and he has to get into work to meet with auditors. (he’ll take the tractor down tomorrow morning and we can retrieve it tomorrow afternoon since the weather is supposed to be warmer by then. who knows with this goofy weather?)

    Liked by 2 people

  3. Good morning! Fascinating details about the Washington Monument. When I was much younger, I climbed up the steps of both the Washington Monument and the Statue of Liberty. Wonder if I could do it today?

    Here is George Washington’s Prayer for America….

    This prayer is actually read aloud each and every day at Mount Vernon’s public wreath laying ceremony at Washington’s tomb. Is that awesome or what? Washington’s heart and passion still pours out for his country as ours does even now as we pray what he penned 240 years ago:

    I now make it my earnest prayer, that God would have the United States in his holy protection, that he would incline the hearts of the citizens to cultivate a spirit of subordination and obedience to government, to entertain a brotherly affection and love for one another, for their fellow citizens of the United States at large, and particularly for their brethren who have served in the field, and finally, that he would most graciously be pleased to dispose us all, to do justice, to love mercy, and to demean ourselves with that charity, humility and pacific temper of mind, which were the characteristics of the Divine Author of our blessed Religion, and without an humble imitation of whose example in these things, we can never hope to be a happy Nation. Amen.

    https://www.wnd.com/2023/02/prayer-america-george-washington/

    Liked by 2 people

        1. I think so too, but i don’t think the liberals in dc look at it that way honestly.
          they are power hungry.
          they are not the same virtuous men who fought and bled for this country.

          Liked by 2 people

          1. Another problem with obeying the government – our country and most other Western nations have forged laws that enable us to break all of GOD’s Commandments and some that would force us to do so.

            There is a Higher Law than our man-made laws, which is unbreakable, eternal, unchanging, cannot be repealed, and when we try to break it – we only break ourselves and others.

            Liked by 1 person

        1. OK, in that case, it is a new security extension I added yesterday from DDG. I can no longer use the Brave search engine – it finds NOTHING! I’ll hold off on cancelling that change since I can always open them in a new tab and at least I can read them this way. It is also interfering with some of my normal log-on’s to other sites. We’ll see what other changes come to light before I make that final decision.

          Liked by 1 person

            1. Very interesting, Piper! Been checking them out – they even have an e-mail program. Based in The Netherlands, you can also choose to have your data saved on European servers. I am definitely going to do a little more research and, at this point, will keep this on my to-do list. My first priority right now is changing banks. Mine was just sold to a banking group based in Montreal! Yeah, like I want to be with a bank based in Canada!!! NOT!!!

              Liked by 1 person

  8. repubs trying to push back…present bill that who accord must be called a treaty and passed by senate

    Liked by 2 people

  9. everyone thinks if they “copy” his policies, they can BE Trump. they can’t. it’s not JUST the policies…it’s the BALLS to see them thru!

    Liked by 1 person

  11. Liked by 2 people

  12. Liked by 3 people

      1. agreed…i posted the story from american thinker. we gave $$ so ukrainian pensions could rise 20%!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
        when the last time americans got a 20% increase!???

        Liked by 1 person

  17. Liked by 2 people

  18. R Green
    R Green
    February 22, 2023 7:20 am

    Donald Trump spent $10MILLION of donor money on his own legal bills: Ex-president wrote checks to for his tax fraud, election interference, and classified documents cases using from funds raised through Save America
    https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-11779109/Donald-Trump-spent-10MILLION-donor-money-legal-bills.html

    “Trump channeled the money from his Save America PAC into the pockets of his lawyers, who are still working to battle multiple cases.”

    Good – He spent the money on what I expected him to when contributing. It’s as if they expect his donors to be pissed…or something.

    Liked by 2 people

    1. We are all aware of Democrat – Leftist weapon – Lawfare – how they try to break opponents by flooding them with multiple lawsuits.

      It’s what they did to Sarah Palin.

      Liked by 2 people

  19. epa wants NS to pay for cleanup and compensate residents
    entire article
    US authorities have said Norfolk Southern, whose toxin-laden train derailed in an Ohio town, must pay for the clean-up or face tough penalties.

    The train, which derailed in East Palestine on 3 February, was carrying vinyl chloride and other potentially hazardous substances.

    Norfolk Southern is now facing multiple lawsuits filed on behalf of residents, many of whom were forced to evacuate their homes.

    It has apologised for the incident.

    The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), which has the power to fine or sanction firms over environmental concerns, said Norfolk Southern would “pay for cleaning up the mess they created and for the trauma they’ve inflicted on this community”.

    Speaking at a news conference in East Palestine, the head of the EPA Michael Regan said the company would have to find and clean contaminated soil and water supplies and pay back the EPA for its own cleaning efforts, provide information online for residents and take part in public meetings at the EPA’s request.

    Train firm pulls out of Ohio toxic fallout meeting
    ‘It’s wrecked us’ – life after Ohio rail crash

    If Norfolk Southern failed to comply, the EPA would “immediately” carry out the work itself, charge them triple the cost of the clean-up operations and fine the firm up to an additional $70,000 (£58,000) a day.

    In the aftermath of the derailment, residents of East Palestine have reported ailments including headaches and nausea, and expressed fears that local water supplies are potentially harmful despite the repeated assurances of state, local and federal officials that the water is safe. Earlier on Tuesday, the Ohio Health Department opened a health clinic for concerned residents.

    Authorities in both Ohio and Pennsylvania have also suggested that further legal actions may follow.

    https://www.bbc.com/news/world-us-canada-64722765

    Liked by 1 person

    1. Ya’ know – here’s the problem with this claim that they can drink the water, “it’s all ok!” BS is that the company NS uses to DO their testing is an in-house, long-term company that they have used for years and THEY are equally corrupt, as has been proven by their past behavior of getting things wrong. They need to bring in an outside, clearly non-prejudiced company – and NOT the EPA, since they can’t be trusted either!

      Liked by 1 person

        1. Well, TBH, I really don’t think the majority of the residents would be qualified to make that selection. But the Mayor should certainly be able to run-down a reputable firm that is not directly connected to any of the players involved. Of course, the pissant Governor DeWine (who looks like a Troll dwarf to me!) certainly won’t do it. His nose is stuck so far up NS’s ass, he inhales shit every time he breathes!

          Liked by 1 person

  20. farmer, more than a mile away from “controlled burn” finds an undetonated blasting cap in is field–and his property has ash all over it.
    FTA
    “I was at unified command, and I can tell you that the governors of Ohio and Pennsylvania, [East Palestine] Mayor [Trent] Conaway, [East Palestine] Fire Chief [Keith] Drabick, the National Guard, and Norfolk Southern were aligned,” Shaw said. “The controlled burn—controlled release was the safest course of action for the citizens of East Palestine.”

    Jerry Corbin found ash scattered all around his property and an undetonated blasting cap after Norfolk Southern’s controlled burn. (Courtesy of Jerry Corbin)

    The ash scattered around his yard, and the undetonated blasting cap, show the recklessness of the controlled burn, Corbin said.

    A neighbor showed Corbin the undetonated blasting cap, he explained.

    “I put it in a bucket, and put that bucket in another bucket, and then put it in a shed in my backyard,” Corbin said. “This, and the ash, are proof that the controlled burn wasn’t as safe as they are saying it was.

    “I want to know what’s in the ash, and if my soil is contaminated, and I want it off my property,” Corbin added. “I didn’t put it there. Norfolk Southern put it there. They should remove it. We shouldn’t have to live in these conditions, wondering whether or not we can breathe the air, plant our garden, or even take a shower.”

    Corbin is a radio personality for WXED 107.3 FM in Ellwood City, Pennsylvania, and the author of “Family Gold,” a book that chronicles a Civil War story.

    “My headaches, sore throat, coughing, and nerves have been such that I have not been able to write since the train explosion,” Corbin added. “Many of us have been unable to work, so it costs us money. The anxiety of dealing with this on a daily basis is frustrating, and we need help.”

    Derailment cleanup work around East Palestine is producing “a lot of dust in the air, which could be contaminated,” Corbin said.

    “In the evenings, many of us smell smoke from the wreckage. We don’t know what they are doing, but it is concerning,” he added.

    Corbin believes Norfolk Southern can offer a solution if the ground is found to be contaminated with toxic chemicals.

    “They keep telling us the water and the air are safe, but people all around here are feeling sick,” Corbin added. “They have not given us answers about the soil or even tested our soil. If the ground is contaminated here, we deserve to know. If that’s the case, they should buy our property so we can relocate to somewhere safe.”

    https://www.theepochtimes.com/man-finds-undetonated-blasting-cap-on-property-1-4-miles-from-norfolk-southerns-controlled-toxic-chemical-burn_5074428.html?utm_source=partner&utm_campaign=TheLibertyDaily

    Liked by 1 person

  21. well I for one am happy to increase ukrainian pensions by 20%…said NO AMERICAN EVER!!!!
    FTA
    As American taxpayers paying into Social Security today stare down the barrel toward substantial cuts to their own benefits, estimated to take place in 2034, they can at least take solace in knowing that all categories of Ukrainian pensioners will get a 20% raise in March 2023. “As early as this March,” says Ukrainian Prime Minister Denys Shmyhal, “the government will index pensions by 20%” for about 10 million Ukrainians.

    Indexing the payments “is not mandatory according to the Law of Ukraine on the State Budget for 2023,” but benevolent President Zelensky has instructed them to reprice the benefits upwards anyway.

    And why wouldn’t he? His government is swimming in American cash.

    Americans have spent more than $100 billion on aid to Ukraine. And, as the notoriously corrupt Ukrainian government is undoubtedly well aware, money is fungible.

    This is an example of a common shell game that politicians love to play with the rubes when it comes to government spending. The Ukrainian government could have certainly diverted government spending from its pension outlays toward its own national defense in a time of war while calling for foreign aid to support its pension program, and the fiscal effect might have largely been the same. It’s just more politically defensible for Ukraine to continue paying uninterrupted pensions while demanding that massive amounts of foreign aid are needed to finance its national defense. And now, because Ukraine’s government no longer has to spend its own money on its own national defense, it has plenty of money to give generous raises to Ukrainian pensioners.

    But we all know that few Americans would have signed on to billions in foreign aid if the impetus was to preserve Ukraine’s pension infrastructure. What’s truly amazing, though, is that Joe Biden and the media are just coming right out and saying exactly that — the government is using your money to pay Ukraine’s obligations to ten million of its pensioners. American aid to Ukraine, Biden says, is “going to allow pensions and social support to be paid to the Ukrainian people.”

    https://www.americanthinker.com/articles/2023/02/social_security_is_broke_but_american_taxpayers_just_gave_ukrainian_pensioners_a_doubledigit_raise.html

    Liked by 2 people

  22. another wealth transfer–maybe not as apparent to most though. nyc opening ANOTHER migrant hotel–this one in Long Island where you and I would spend $600 A NIGHT to stay in. but it’s the little businesses around those hotels that are losing $$ because instead of tourists staying there who would visit and send $$ at these small businesses, there are indigent migrants–who get free food and do not use their $$ to buy from those business. they buy booze or drugs–AND they rob retail stores. so the $$ goes to wealthy real estate companies and food vendors.
    FTA
    But that largesse leaves the migrants in no need to use the local cafes and other businesses, which had been havens for full-price paying tourists formerly at the hotels before the migrant surge. They’re not there now, because the migrants are there. Some of the migrants, in any case, are poor and can’t afford them, some are spending what they have on booze and drugs, and some are out getting a little extra from flash-mobbing the local Nordstroms in a group robbery, as a group of them were caught doing recently, and yes, some had been housed in these big-dollar Manhattan hotels at the expense of the city.

    What is one to make of this unfair economic set-up? It’s obviously a wealth-transfer from the little guy to the big guy, same as happened during the COVID lockdowns, when the big box retailers were permitted to stay open, but the little retailers were shut down and told to apply for COVID relief, which many didn’t get or got in quantities so small it was meaningless.

    Now we have the migrant rackets, being used by Democrats to drive small businesses out of business and fatten big business, which will in the end benefit Democrat campaign donation coffers. That’s one heck of a redistribution scheme, replayed again and again with only the little guy getting squeezed.

    It’s time to call it out now that the small businesses are onto it and at least some of the press is reporting it. It’s a fundamentally unfair policy that benefits one sector at the expense of another, even as the public is being fed sob stories about single moms with kid with medical needs coming into the country illegally which only a heel could oppose.

    Actually, migrants are big money and it turns out it’s not just the Mexican cartels that are benefiting from it. A whole lot of other businesses are, too. The only losers are the small businesses and the taxpayers.

    https://www.americanthinker.com/blog/2023/02/migrant_hotels_fatten_manhattans_real_estate_interests__and_crush_its_small_businesses.html

    Liked by 1 person

  23. fraud, fraud, fraud
    entire article
    Is there anything that green guru Al Gore does that’s actually green?

    We know he’s an energy hog, using way more than his “fair share” of energy to heat his mansions. We know he flies around on carbon-spewing private jets.

    Turns out he doesn’t even invest green, even though he would like you to think he does.

    According to the New York Post:

    The “green-friendly” investment firm co-founded and run by former Vice President Al Gore, 74, owns a portfolio of more than $26 billion worth of shares in nearly two dozen companies that were found to have increased greenhouse gas emissions in recent years, according to a report.

    Gore, whose Oscar-winning film “An Inconvenient Truth” cemented his status as the most prominent doomsayer on climate change, chairs the London-based Generation Investment Management, which touts a “stated emphasis on sustainable investment options.”

    But a recent analysis by Bloomberg News found that Generation’s Global Equity fund, which numbers a total of 42 companies, includes 18 firms which emitted increasingly more greenhouse gases annually between 2015 and 2021.

    Bloomberg ranked Generation, which has $40.4 billion worth of assets under its management, as among the companies that owned the greatest share of greenhouse gas-emitting firms when compared to other funds that placed a priority on so-called ESG — environmental, social and governance — investing.

    So in other words, he wants you to invest green, buying into those ESG funds that virtue-signal their clean, green credentials, same as he wants you to freeze in winter on that frozen wind turbine power nonproduction, take the bus, and eat bugs, but don’t dare ask him to do those things.

    What’s loathsome here is the reality that these greenie ESG funds aren’t nearly as profitable as normal funds that rely on profit-loss metrics and seek to give the customer the best possible return. They are less profitable because they limit their investment choices, and the greenie field is full of outfits that wouldn’t be profitable at all were it not for federal subsidies. That’s, to use a favorite greenie word, unsustainable. There’s a reason Florida’s Gov. Ron DeSantis banned ESG requirements from public pension funds just recently — he didn’t want to be dealing with empty pension funds at some time in the future as a result of such absurd rules.

    But here Gore’s fund was, investing in non-green big-carbon-emission enterprises, turning a profit, and then claiming that green is the way to go for profit. He also may have profited himself, based on whatever assets he may have himself in the fund, if not the company ownership.

    Gore just can’t seem to help himself. He’s a pious expounder of virtue-signaling to others on climate change matters, but as for himself, raking bucks comes first.

    https://www.americanthinker.com/blog/2023/02/al_gores_greenie_investment_fund_caught_buying_stock_in_polluters.html

    Liked by 2 people

          1. last summer we had a gorgeous rainbow over the mountain in front of us and i had an excellent view. but my photos never captured the vibrancy of the colors

            Liked by 1 person

            1. Exactly! That’s what is missing and no amount of editing seems to help. So it has to be settings WITHIN the camera with which I am unfamiliar. And, as usual, the instruction booklet is substantially lacking in detail.

              Liked by 1 person

  25. Sliding down to say good morning! It was warm, 31, until the wee hours; when I got up @ 6:00, it was 15. We’ve had occasional gusty winds but not steady yet; and the snow has now begun falling. I’m tucked up safe and warm as a bug in a rug!

    As for the Washington monument, he was a member of the Free Masons. The pyramid would have taken it one step further into the esoteric aspects of the Free Masons, which, IMO, would NOT have been appropriate at all! Then again, it is on our money so…..

    The info on L’Enfant – now I know why it is called “L’Enfant Plaza.” I always kind of figured it was something like that. 15-20K in those days was a LOT of people! Of all the many times I saw the Monument, I never once noted the color differences! Lacking attention to detail, clearly! And I never went inside.

    Liked by 1 person

      1. There was a snafu with meeting up with Glen so I spent some time with Michael having a delightful discussion on some wide-ranging topics. I so wish we lived closer to each other. And that pissant NEVER comes up to visit me, dang it! LOL He wants me to take a PT job at AutoZone, where he is one of the managers. Some day, when all of this BS with my sinuses and teeth are over, I just might consider that. I think it would be kinda fun, actually. Very, very flexible hours and he says the Manager of the store is great – he gets along with her beautifully. He’s even worse than me in some ways with his harsh pronouncements (I know, hard to believe but that’s probably one reason we synch up so well) and she really likes him so I should be good to go. They are hurting bigly for dependable help – just had to fire a guy who has been stealing from the company for a couple of years now.

        Liked by 1 person

          1. I think it would be! Heaven knows, I’ve got plenty of experience with hands-on minor mechanical work having changed my own oil and spark plugs, changing my own tires, etc. The extra $$$ would certainly be welcome, but I’d have the expense of the gas driving back and forth to consider, as well as the wear-and-tear on my truck. I do enjoy meeting and chatting with people – did it yesterday again at WM. In one case, the guy really reminded me of Michael! Very sweet guy. I’ll repeatedly run into someone I just saw in another aisle with a quip of “Well, hello again!” I go out of my way to be cheerful and considerate, watching to make sure my own movements don’t interfere with their progress, offer to help people who are clearly looking for something, etc., etc. Many people on the net would be quite surprised at how friendly and cheerful I am on a regular basis. But, then, I let it all out on-line so…..people don’t get a true, complete picture of my personality. As M puts it: I’m “misunderstood!” ROFL

            Liked by 1 person

              1. You can often see the change in their faces – that is soooo satisfying!!! To know you just might have given them the only pick-me-up they will get that day! Considering the attitude of still far too many around here about “foreigners,” I always try to help those who are obviously lost, don’t know the store, can’t read all the English, etc., etc.

                Liked by 1 person

              2. there is always a group of 4 men (spanish speaking foreigners) who shop together when we go to walmart. they are dressed nicely–cargo pants, jackets, and are very helpful to a lot of shorter people i have noticed. without saying much, they reach for things on higher shelves if they see someone struggling (okay me) and nod when i smile and say think you!

                Liked by 1 person

      1. LOL…
        at the bottom of the carboy is always a bottle or two that he hates to throw out, but doesn’t think is good enough to serve to anyone else. so those 2 bottles go into the fridge unlabeled and he will enjoy them himself.

        Liked by 1 person

  27. R Green
    R Green
    February 22, 2023 8:53 am

    Arkansas cops rule suicide in death of Clinton aide linked to Jeffrey Epstein – who was found shot and tied to a tree with an electrical cord around his neck – despite no sign of weapon

    https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-11759771/Mystery-Bill-Clinton-advisor-dead-gunshot-wound-no-gun.html

    Bill Clinton’s special advisor Mark Middleton, who signed Jeffrey Epstein into the White House several times, killed himself in May 2022
    According to the police report, Middleton was found with a gunshot wound to his chest and an extension cord tied around his neck and attached to a tree
    His body and car were found at the Heifer Ranch in Perryville, Arkansas

    1
    Reply
    Charles Dodgson
    Charles Dodgson
    February 22, 2023 9:24 am
    Reply to R Green

    It’s amazing the way Clinton associates are able to shoot themselves with no gun.

    Liked by 2 people

    1. yesterday was like armageddon here…for about 15-20 minutes.
      the temp dropped 10* rapidly, the sky got black, gusty gusty winds came and snow/sleet fell. I watched tree limbs falling in the woods. then it stopped and within another 15 minutes, the sun was back out and temps went back up. weird!

      Liked by 1 person

  30. Michael gave me another book series to read – “The Asylum Series.” Small books, each of which I could finish in one sitting, if it is riveting enough – I have been an unconscious speed-reader for most of my life, not recognizing that is what I was doing until much later in life.

    I finished a JA Jance book yesterday – not a riveting book at all, very milquetoast – not the kind of book that keeps you glued to the pages. He and I also have similar reading preferences, altho his d’ruthers lean towards the darker side of sci/fi. HUGE Stephen King fan. These are along those lines, about a group of young teens who are housed in a run-down facility for summer school that used to be an insane asylum. Eeery, strange happenings commence.

    Michael is the one who introduced me to Preston & Childs’ Pendergast series – one of my all-time favs so far. I have to go back and figure out where I left off so I can read the subsequent books. One day…..

    Liked by 1 person

      1. I like SOME of his books but not many. And I’ve not read anything recent – Michael has them ALL in his library – he buys every single new book when it comes out. I think I’ve mentioned before – every front room in his house from dining area to living room to music room, and one wall in his bedroom, are covered in book shelves with 90% of them full to the brim. Many signed first editions. He is such an intelligent man…really genius level and also on the autism spectrum.

        He has a new non-fiction book about one of the first expeditions to Alaska in the mid-1850’s that he showed me and we got into a discussion of history and how interesting it was to study it. He periodically paints the interior of his house, just to change things up and keep it interesting. He said he was thinking of painting a timeline, going back to pre-historic days all around the rooms on the wall, high enough to stand and read it, in a normal timeline fashion. With pictures and definitions, etc., etc., along with the dates.

        I’m thinking this would keep him busy for weeks, if not months, so I asked how long he thought it would take him….6-8 hours! ROFLMAO

        Liked by 1 person

        1. he sounds like an excellent companion…capable of having conversations and sharing ideas.
          I used to buy sk novels when they came out. a few years ago, i gave all the hard cover books to my flea market friend…she was thrilled to have them. I was thrilled to get rid of them

          Liked by 1 person

          1. I had 6 wooden stands in my BR – rough, cheap, screw together wooden shelving units really more appropriate for a storage shed since I had to leave my cherry bookcases in VA. They were filled, some with double rows of books. Then HB died and SIL started wholesale GIVING everything away! He wouldn’t even go to the effort of having a garage sale!!!

            When I discovered he planned on doing that with my a-Mom’s dining room table, china closet, hutch, and bedroom set, I said, “OH FUCK NO!!!!” OMG! You wanna talk pissed??!!?? Hoo, boy! They weren’t absolute top of the line but on the higher end of medium quality and solid wood. So, I had to make room.

            I gave boxes and boxes to the library, boxes and boxes to the senior living center here, and here and there, wherever I could find someone who wanted them. I took all the paper backs to Salvation Army.

            I had over 20 medium-size boxes filled with books that I moved probably at least 15 times thru the years, sometimes more, culminating in the trip here. Now they are gone…..but I have Mom’s furniture, except for the dining room table! There was just no way I could fit that in here. I might yet be able to pass them on the Piper, if things continue to go well….if she will appreciate them.

            Liked by 1 person

            1. i still have 3 bookcases of book myself. now there are some mysteries in there, some cozy mystery paperbacks and some weird one-off books. but mostly i have nature books, craft books and how to books. love to learn to do new things

              Liked by 1 person

  32. R Green
    February 22, 2023 10:06 am

    Pelosi Secures $400M for Golden Gate Bridge

    https://www.realclearinvestigations.com/articles/2023/02/22/pelosi_secures_400m_for_golden_gate_bridge_882488.html

    “The Golden Gate Bridge is getting a $400 million grant, former Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi and Secretary of Transportation Pete Buttigieg announced, according to Fox News.”

    I wonder how the poor people of Palestine, Ohio will feel about this? I know how I feel and I’m not even coughing up blood under a chemical cloud while surrounded by dead animal carcasses

    Liked by 1 person

  34. Heads-up: Becker used to work for Hannity…..odd that he doesn’t specify that here, eh? Or the fact it was Fox? Yes, he does say “most watched…” but not everyone knows that. Hmmm…. As with everyone these days, he needs a good editor! SMH

    Becker Brief: Morning Report for 2-22-23
    “World War 3 ahead? Chinese and Russian leaders meet up, Ohio train derailment fallout, a new 2024 presidential contender, J6 tapes hysteria and more!”

    Kyle Becker
    2 hr ago

    EXCERPT: “Welcome to the first installment of the Becker Brief, a daily rundown of the hottest and most important news you can find. So, why Subscribe to the Becker Brief?

    [NF: As with all of these substacks, I only subscribe for the free edition – if they send too many pleas to switch to a paid plan, I promptly unsubscribe. I don’t mind ’em now and then – I understand they do need to monetize to a certain extent – but too many and you’re gone!]

    If you become a subscriber, you will get full access to breaking news, rundowns, and short-form video reports hosted by me, Kyle Becker, a former writer and producer for one of the top primetime cable news shows, a former chief editor, and a viral media editor for an award-winning online publication.

    One of my jobs for the most-watched cable news network on television was to prepare rundowns of the hottest news and most impactful current events for top primetime cable news executives. Now, you can have that same kind of news and analysis delivered to you! So with that in mind, let’s get to the morning brief.

    WORLD WAR 3 AHEAD?
    Top Republican says ‘all options must be on the table’ after Russia pulls out of nuclear treaty

    Russia pulled out of the New START treaty on Tuesday
    https://www.foxnews.com/politics/top-republican-says-all-options-on-table-after-russia-pulls-out-nuclear-treaty?intcmp=tw_fnc

    China’s Xi Jinping Plans Russia Visit as Putin Wages War in Ukraine
    https://www.wsj.com/articles/chinas-xi-jinping-plans-russia-visit-as-putin-wages-war-in-ukraine-e2d9c762

    Putin meets top Chinese diplomat Wang in the Kremlin — Russian President Vladimir Putin is meeting top Chinese diplomat Wang Yi in the Kremlin, television pictures show.
    https://www.cnn.com/webview/europe/live-news/russia-ukraine-war-news-2-22-23/h_6ae3a24a6e011e6f157f4aad22328325

    DiscloseTV: “China-Russia relations are strong and will withstand changes in the international environment, says China’s top diplomat Wang Yi during his visit to Moscow today.” Russian ICBM test failed while Biden was in Ukraine: report; Russia tested an intercontinental ballistic missile Monday while President Biden was in Ukraine that appears to have failed, according to a report.

    https://nypost.com/2023/02/21/russian-icbm-test-failed-while-biden-was-in-ukraine-report/

    Trump Issues Dire New Warning; “World War 3 Has Never Been Closer Than It Is Right Now”
    https://trendingpoliticsnews.com/breaking-trump-issues-dire-new-warning-world-war-3-has-never-been-closer-than-it-is-right-now-mace/

    Trump just publicly confirmed the US State Dept was behind the Maidan Uprising in Ukraine

    Many more links to articles: https://beckerbrief.substack.com/p/becker-brief-morning-report-for-2

    Liked by 1 person

  36. have not vetted these facts. this is supposedly about the newest guy to declare his presidency hopes

    sunrei
    February 22, 2023 10:51 am

    Vivek Ramaswamy 2024 GOP presidential candidate — I knew Vivek came out of the bio-tech industry and for the heck of it did I did a quick check to see what exactly his businesses do.

    One of Vivek’s companies, Genevant, is in the Covid vaccine business.

    Vivek’s company Genevant’s offers lipid nanotechnology: Lipid nanoparticles have been in increasingly high demand as more and more RNA therapeutics hit the market…LNPs are cucial for delivering those vaccines because the help protect often volatile mRNA as it makes its way into human cells.
    .

    “In Jan 2021, one of Vivek’s companies, Genevant reached a deal with Gritstone Oncology to license out its LNP (lipid nanotechnology) for a suite of ‘self-amplifying RNA’ vaccines for Covid-19.”
    https://www.nasdaq.com/articles/gritstone-grts-to-begin-coronavirus-vaccine-study-stock-up-2021-01-20
    .
    The next generation of mRNA — Self-Amplifying RNA

    Self-amplifying vaccines allow for a lower vaccine dose because they are designed to copy themselves once inside the body resulting in greater spike protein production within the body
    https://portlandpress.com/biochemist/article/43/4/14/229206/The-next-generation-of-RNA-vaccines-self

    https://endpts.com/vivek-ramaswamys-lnp-delivery-tech-play-genevant-scores-600m-licensing-deal-from-takeda-for-nucleic-acid-therapies/

    On another note, Genevant is listed as one of BioNTech’s collaborators. (reminder: the Pfizer vax is actually the Pfizer-BioN-Tech vax)
    .
    https://www.biontech.com/int/en/home/about/collaborators.html

    “Our Collaborators”

    Genevant

    In July 2018, we formed a strategic partnership with Genevant for the development of certain mRNA-based protein replacement therapies. The collaboration also includes certain exclusive licenses to Genevant’s lipid nanoparticle (LNP) drug delivery technology for mRNA-based products directed to specified oncology targets.

    And another one of Vivek’s companies, Datavant, helps healthcare institutions share data per Wikipedia. Curious to know the details of that.

    I am not suicidal.

    Liked by 1 person

  37. “Satanic Convention Requires Proof of COVID Vaccination — I might support that one!”

    Igor Chudov
    6 min ago

    ENTIRE ARTICLE: “A Satanic convention is scheduled for Apr 28 and will be held in Boston.

    Many activities are planned. The convention is for 18+. The thing is, the convention requires attendees to be COVID vaccinated.

    Should we protest the vaccination requirement? Or would you recommend that the visitors also have the latest boosters? A hard decision!”

    Liked by 1 person

  39. Gaetz wants to vote on military force in syria, since congress never authorized it
    fta
    On the other hand, Rep. Gaetz is described as “worried” Biden “does not have a cognitive grasp” on the full nature of our deployment and actions in Syria.

    Similarly, our continued involvement in Syria, first initiated under President Obama; could potentially serve as a “powder keg for very dangerous escalation,” due to Russian, Turkish, and Iranian interests remaining active in the region.

    Rep. Gaetz’s resolution will force Congress to vote on the matter no more than 18 days after its introduction. Should it pass, all US forces are to be removed within 15 days of its adoption.

    In his press release, Gaetz says “Congress has never authorized the use of military force in Syria.”

    “Congress has never authorized the use of military force in Syria. The United States is currently not in a war with or against Syria, so why are we conducting dangerous military operations there? President Biden must remove all U.S. Armed Forces from Syria. America First means actually putting the people of our country first — not the interests of the Military Industrial Complex.”

    https://floridianpress.com/2023/02/gaetz-intros-war-powers-resolution-pull-us-syria/

    Liked by 1 person

  40. LOVE IT…even tho it’s not going anywhere…
    FTA

    An Illinois Republican state senator has introduced a bill mocking a law signed by Democrat Gov. J.B. Pritzker that removes local control over wind and solar power facility zoning — while leaving it intact in Democrat-dominated Chicago.

    State Sen. Chapin Rose told Just the News that he introduced the “If This Is Such A Good Idea, Let’s Start With You Act” not as legislation intended to pass but as “political sarcasm designed to shine light on the hypocrisy of the left.”

    The parody legislation proposed turning Chicago tourist mecca Millenium Park into a solar energy facility, with the exception of the park’s iconic Cloud Gate sculpture, on which the city “must mount one wind energy turbine.” The bill would also require every Cook County forest preserve to have multiple wind energy facilities.

    Rose introduced the legislation after Pritzker signed a bill last month stripping county governments of authority over renewable energy zoning. Before he was reelected in November, Pritzker had said local governments should be in control of zoning decisions.

    “They’ve exempted Chicago from this law,” Rose said. “They’re going to throw these up [and] take away the rights of local communities to … make their own decisions.”

    Under the new law, if a person does not agree to have a solar farm on their property, the nearest solar facility can be placed 50 feet off their property line or 150 feet from their home. A person who does not agree to have a wind farm on or near their property under the law can have a wind tower placed “2.1 times the maximum blade tip height of the wind tower to the nearest point on the outside wall of the structure.”

    The average height of a turbine, including the wind blades, is just under 500 feet, according to the U.S. Energy Department. The regulations mean that a wind turbine could be placed about 1,000 feet from someone’s home or even closer if a smaller turbine is used. The turbine could also be placed about 500 feet from a property line.

    Both solar and wind energy are linked to bird and bat deaths, The Atlantic reported. Bats are apparently attracted to wind turbines and sometimes are struck by the blades. Birds are known to swoop down and crash into solar panels, likely thinking that the glass is water. The solar panels can also singe birds flying too close.

    Turbines may have adverse effects on human health as well. Some people living or working in close proximity to wind turbines report experiencing sleep problems, headaches, anxiety, depression and similar issues, also known as “wind turbine syndrome.”

    Some researchers believe the disease is a sociological phenomenon, but in 2021, a French couple won nearly $120,000 in compensation for turbine syndrome. They said they experienced health issues after six wind turbines were constructed about 2,300 feet from their home, The Guardian reported at the time.

    “We’ve got plenty of wind in downstate Illinois,” Rose said. “That’s not the issue. We’ve got plenty. The local county boards were siting wind farms, they were. They’re just doing it in places where people could live with them.”

    https://justthenews.com/government/state-houses/illinois-republican-introduces-lets-start-you-act-ridiculing-democrat-wind

    Like

  44. GOYA to donate food and beverages to East Palestine

    Hopespringseternal202
    Hopespringseternal202
    February 22, 2023 12:07 pm

    Goya is donating food and beverages to E Palestine Ohio.

    “Hearing that these people were forgotten kind of upset me because they may be to some a community of deplorables, but to us, they’re important,” Unanue said. “The heartland of America is where we get up every day with a purpose: God, family, work.

    “These people wake up every day with a purpose, and, unfortunately, they’re forgotten. This administration has not given them their due.”

    Unanue said he is grateful former President Donald Trump will be visiting East Palestine on Wednesday, even before Biden administration officials such as Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg or even President Joe Biden.

    “[Trump] is a man and a leader who we are very blessed, I said this before [and] I got boycotted for, but very blessed to have a president who holds those values of God, family, work. You know, we were doing very well. We should not be in Ukraine now. We should not have all these issues. We have showed so much weakness around the world.

    “If we are in good times, and we show weakness, there are hard times ahead. We have to work. We have to love, respect and build and bring this country back to the greatness that it once had.”

    https://www.newsmax.com/newsmax-tv/bob-unanue-goya-foods-east-palestine/2023/02/21/id/1109573/

    Liked by 1 person

      1. Nothing more than the same-old/same-old: sinuses, primarily, complicated by almost no teeth, bad smell/taste. I have no appetite – I can’t smell most things at all and if I can, it’s tainted – and have to force myself to eat….it’s difficult for me to do that w/o some “assistance,” if you know what I mean.

        In truth, that is another area where I’ve always been different that most people. No doubt some psychobabble freak would have diagnosed me with an eating disorder had I ever given them the chance. There are some times I just don’t want to eat; for instance, I CANNOT eat first thing after I get up in the morning. Even as a child, it was difficult because my a-Mom was, of course, one who insisted that you must have food in your stomach at the beginning of the school day. She always made me eat some kind of cereal or eggs on toast or something every morning.

        I’ve always put it off to the fact that I have been fortunate my entire life and have never had to go hungry. I don’t know what it means not to have food at least available.

        Liked by 1 person

        1. gees, I’m sorry!
          I have to eat when i get up. I am a breakfast person–raisin bran every morning. when i visit someone (overnight) I bring my own…lol

          Liked by 1 person

          1. It’s that 3-sided cage I’m stuck in the middle of: no VA dental care (not service-related), corporate medicine and corporate dentistry – medicine won’t do anything about the polyps in my sinuses until I get my teeth out – they are blaming that, even tho it was on the scan that I have sinus polyps. Doesn’t matter – bottom line is all they care about – they only get paid medicare rates. Dentist charge overall was $7K. Nothing to do but get thru it as best I can until I can get most of the teeth pulled myself. One molar is really ready to go but I’m trying to hold out because of how much less I’ll be able to chew. There are a couple that are broken off just above the gum line that they will have to dig out but at least it will only be 2 teeth – $600 right there, plus the O/H expense.

            Liked by 1 person

              1. That it is! The VA would take care of my sinuses – IDK whether they would also use my teeth as an excuse – but I’d have to drive back and forth to Omaha – a 2.5 hour trip one way – multiple times. Can’t do that. So, yeah, I’m stuck in a no-win-situation.

                Liked by 1 person

              3. Again, truth to be told, I could stay with my Sis, who lives about an hour away from Omaha….but I don’t think I could endure the smell and the filth. Her daughter simply refuses to step foot inside the house any more. Sis can’t smell when the cat boxes are over-full, nor can she smell hardly anything else, except lavender, lilac, etc., as a result of nerves cut during her extensive back surgeries. And people think I’m a bad housekeeper??? Oh, you ain’t seen nothing until you’ve seen HER house. Yeah, it’s bad. At a minimum, I make sure to keep both bath rooms and my kitchen clean, for the most part, altho I don’t worry much about my floors.

                Liked by 1 person

              5. Well, there’s Jake….and TBH, re: that aspect, it’s just as much about the principle of the matter. I shouldn’t BE required to go all the way to Omaha when there are doctors right there in Norfolk who could take care of it. Again, it’s only because the VA will only pay Medicare rates and it’s all about the $$$ and the bottom-line: stock price!

                Liked by 1 person

              7. I promise, I will think about it but don’t hold your breath, OK? For that matter, I could probably afford a cheap hotel room myself and I’m sure they have hotels that are associated with the VA, perhaps with a discount. I’ll keep it in mind. So far, I’m finding ways to survive at least.

                Liked by 1 person

              9. I will do that – thank you – I truly appreciate your willingness to help but it’s just not my way. It almost killed me to accept Patty’s offer for the $$$ for my PPT when I only mentioned it in a joking manner, not really serious.

                Liked by 1 person

              13. no, I totally get it.
                but just cuz you live alone doesn’t mean you ARE alone.
                that’s the only takeaway i want you to, well, take away…lol
                it’s a heartfelt offer.

                Liked by 1 person

  47. President Trump is wheels up – en route to East Palestine, OH.

    This is the only dedicated link to coverage of his visit that I could find:

    Fox LiveNow

    I’d rather have RSBN, OANN or RAV – to be sure it’s not slanted.

    They might cover it – but so far, I don’t have a link.

    Liked by 2 people

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