The Battle of Gettysburg - 150 Year Anniversary

 

The Civil War forever changed the United States of America. In January 1861, South Carolina seceeded from the Union, followed by Mississippi, Florida, Alabama, Georgia, Louisiana, and Texas -- and the threat of secession by four more -- Virginia, Arkansas, Tennessee, and North Carolina. These eleven states eventually formed the Confederate States of America.

 

Lincoln was inaugurated in March 4, 1861, and he had hoped to bring the states together without war. This was not to happen. Hostilities began on April 12, 1861, when Confederate forces fired upon Fort Sumter. The war was long and bloody. 

 

After his success at Chancellorsville in Virginia in May of 1863, General Lee led his army North for the second time. Lincoln prodded Major General Hooker into pursuit, relieving him with General Meade three days before the battle. 

 

Elements of the the two armies initially collided at Gettysburg PA on July 1, 1863. The battle lasted three days, ending with Lee making a difficult retreat back to Virginia. Between 46,000 and 51,000 soldiers from both armies were casualties in the three-day battle. 

 

The Battle of Gettysburg is often thought to be the turning point of the war. 

 

The following November, President Lincoln used the dedication ceremony for the Gettysburg National Cemetery to honor the fallen Union soldiers. He redefined the purpose of the war in his historic Gettysburg Address. 

 

Our favorite time to visit the park is in the fall - the weather is beautiful and not as hot as when the battle was fought. 

 

On one of our visits, we took a private tour given by a Park Ranger and it was incredible - he was so knowledgible. And the town itself  can feel a bit like an open-air museum, with people walking its streets in period garb.


 

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Sharpen Your Brain With Jigsaw Puzzles

                                                             

Are you getting on in age?  Are you looking for a fun way to keep your brain sharp? Putting jigsaw puzzles together is a fun activity that will challenge you and help keep your brain young.

Our brains have two lobes - the left lobe thinks logically and follows sequences while the right brain is creative, intuitive and emotional. When you work on a jigsaw puzzle, you are using both lobes of your brain.

This intense work increases the brain cells' efficiency and capacity.  

The MacArthur Study has found that people who do jigsaw puzzles and crosswords and are active live longer and have fewer incidences of Alzheimer's, memory loss, dementia and other old age problems. 

Jigsaw puzzles are also a great family and rainy day activity. Puzzles are readily available for any age and interest. You can also glue them together and frame for a pretty wall treatment. 

You can find these and more jigsaw puzzles in my Addoway store:

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Don't Forget Father's Day!

What does Father's Day mean to you? It's bittersweet for me - I miss my Dad so much. And my children's dad died when they were very young. But David has been a wonderful father to them. And I couldn't ask for my son and son-in-law to be better father's than they are!

There is an old saying 'Anyone can be a Dad, but it takes a special man to be a Father!'  So here's to all the Father's out there - have a wonderful day as your family honors you.

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What Is Memorial Day?

                                         

Memorial Day is a Federal Holiday in the United States  which occurs every year on the final Monday of May. It was originally known as Decoration Day - a time to honor the Union and Confederate Soldiers that died during the Civil War. It is now a day to remember all the men and women who died while in military service.

As you go about your holiday weekend celebrating with your family or shopping the sales, don't forget the men and women who have sacrificed so much so that you can have this holiday weekend. The picture above was taken at Arlington National Cemetary. If you ever get to DC, it is an inspiring place of remembrance. Be sure to visit.

Have a safe and happy holiday. Don't drink and drive or text while driving. Have fun, but don't forget what we are really celebrating!

Tell Congress to Oppose the So-Called Marketplace Fairness Act!

I am writing today to express my disapproval of the proposed Internet Sales Tax. The internet tax would force many small business owners to become tax collectors for every state across America and open them up to audits and litigation in states hundreds of miles away from where they live and work.

How many State tax forms do you fill out? How would you feel if you had to fill out one for every state that has a sales tax? Even with software to figure out how much is owed in about
9600 jurisdictions, it is still time consuming.

Senator Durbin stated Monday that "If you don't wish to sell to residents in IL, then don't". Sellers on ebay and Amazon are not allowed to do that. And many of them are Mom & Pop type businesses that operate out of their home.

States have some crazy laws out there. Currently in New Jersey, bottled water and cookies are exempt from sales tax, but bottled soda and candy are taxable. In Rhode Island, buying a mink handbag is taxed but a mink fur coat is not. In Pennsylvania, baby bottles are taxed, but baby bottle nipples are not. Complying with an internet sales tax is not as easy as it sounds!

Foreign sellers are not included in this bill, and there would be no way to enforce it if it were. So instead of shifting sales from online to brick and mortar retail stores, it might suceed in shifting them from US online merchants to foreign ones!

This proposal also raises privacy concerns. In order to collect the proposed remote sales tax, businesses would be forced to send personal information about their businesses to a host of state revenue departments, instead of just the one in their home state. And in the case of an audit, businesses would have to demonstrate where purchases came from, which affects customers' privacy.

I have many other concerns about this proposed legislation, but bottom line it is a bad idea, a bad bill and it will harm small businesses. The 1 million dollar threshold is way too low, and as it stands now is not tied to inflation. It encourages bigger government and more intrusion into our lives.

Please take a few minutes to go to http://www.house.gov/ and contact your representative and tell them to  oppose the Marketplace Fairness Act.

If you are on Facebook, consider joining these groups:

https://www.facebook.com/groups/548418721863077/ and https://www.facebook.com/groups/stop.sales.tax.fees.now/

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Space Memorabelia For Collectors

                                     
Recently there has been increased interest in Space Memorabelia. Possible reasons include the desire of Baby Boomers wanting to relive the excitement of the early days of Space Exploration starting with the Space Race of the 1960's.



Bonhams auction house in New York had a "Space History Sale" on March 25, 2013 with flight plans and approximately 300 other items. Some items were expected to sell for thousands of dollars!


Space related collectibles are astronaut autographs, NASA patches, pieces of real space vehicle hardware, stamps, toys, movies and items flown in space.


This First Day Postal Cover  was actually flown in space aboard the Challenger!





Promotional items from movies are also collected by those who love Space! Star Trek, Star Wars, etc are all popular with collectors.



                             

Every item pictured in this blog is currently available in my Addoway store.
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A Review - It's Nothing Personal by Kate O'Reilley

If you have read all my blogs, you have discovered I love to read! I read almost every genre, usually alternating between fiction and non-fiction. I have just finished reading Kate O'Reilly's first novel, and I loved it. One thing that indicates a riviting read is how fast I go through it - and this was a very good read.

I first discovered Kate through her blog - Kate vs World. You can read her latest blog at http://katevsworld.com. You can also follow her Twitter @sherrygmd.

This book is the story of an anesthesiologist, Dr. Jenna Reiner, who is being sued for medical malpractice after a drug addict with Hepatitis C injects herself with a controlled substance from the operating room and replaces the contaminated syringe with saline solution, leaving it to be used by an unsuspecting doctor. The lawsuit is filed by a ruthless attorney, Allison Anders, and the deposition scene is incredible. The lawsuit devastates Dr. Reiner, and affects everyone around her.

Dr. Reiner is totally believable and likeable. She has a supportive husband and beautiful daughter. The book is not overloaded with medical or legal terms as is sometimes the case. I highly recommend this book and I am looking forward to her next book.

From Amazon -

Publication Date: January 18, 2013

Anesthesiologist, Dr. Jenna Reiner, was blindsided on a January morning by an incident that would forever change her life. A scrub technician at her hospital was stealing narcotics from anesthesiologists, injecting those same narcotics into her veins, and returning the contaminated syringes, knowing they would be used on patients. The scrub tech was infected with hepatitis C, a deadly virus.

Unknowingly, anesthesiologists at St. Augustine Hospital were injecting their patients with hepatitis C laden syringes. When Dr. Jenna Reiner administered anesthesia, she was holding a murder weapon in her hands. Dr. Reiner was about to find out that not only was her hospital at risk, but her entire life was about to be turned upside down. A scrub tech’s addiction evolves into a public health scare, potentially affecting thousands. Unfortunately, on that fateful day, Dr. Reiner and her patient fell victim to an addict.

The ensuing medical malpractice suit filed by Allison Anders, a ruthless attorney, becomes a battle for survival for Jenna and her family. For Dr. Reiner, the lawsuit is personal. Jenna Reiner faces more demons than she thought imaginable as she fights against greed, brutality, accusations, and a corrupt legal system. Will Dr. Reiner prevail? Or will the system win? Inspired by true events, IT’S NOTHING PERSONAL is a story of endurance and pain beyond imagination.

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