How Old Are You Now, Pollyanna?

Tomorrow is my birthday. 

Birthdays are a time of reflection for me. I look back on my life, and basically can't believe that I'm still here. I've been kind of a pessimist, and have lived a bit of a "wild" life from time to time. (Stop laughing, friends and family; "kind of" is NOT denial. I'm making light of my past insanity for blog purposes). 

I've always felt that I had a black cloud hanging over my head, as I seem to have had some crazy stuff happen TO me. I never thought I'd live to see 21, let alone 47. How did I get to be here this long? My logic has always said that someone "up there" has made a mistake.

I have a wonderful life-long friend, Ellen, who, every year, sends me a list from "THIS DAY IN HISTORY" on my birthday. I always love when she sends this, because, really, so much BAD stuff happened on this date through the ages, it proved I had reason to be "Nancy Negative" by birth alone, and  I was sure that because I was born on this date I was historically doomed to live a life filled with "black clouds" and "Murphy's Law."

I went to on-this-day.com tonight, and as you will see, April 19th is quite infamous. I will now give you a few "lowlights" of my birth date through history:

April 19

1012 - Aelfheah was murdered by Danes who had been ravaging the south of England. Aelfhear became the 29th Archbishop of Canterbury in 1005.

1587 - English admiral Sir Francis Drake entered Cadiz harbor and sank the Spanish fleet.

1689 - Residents of Boston ousted their governor, Edmond Andros.

1764 - The English Parliament banned the American colonies from printing paper money.

1775 - The American Revolution began as fighting broke out at Lexington, MA.

1861 - The Baltimore riots resulted in four Union soldiers and nine civilians killed.

1927 - In China, Hankow communists declared war on Chaing Kai-shek. 

1964 - Maureen born. Doomed to a life of klutziness and bad-decision making, with a penchant for drinking too much of anything and hiding chocolate mints in dresser so as not to have to share them, ever.


1981 - In Davao, Philippines, thirteen people were killed when members of the New People's Army threw hand grenades into the Roman Catholic cathedral during Easter services.

1982 - The U.S. announced a ban on U.S. tourist and business traval to Cuba. The U.S. charged the Cuban government with subversion in Central America.

1989 - A gun turret exploded aboard the USS Iowa. 47 sailors were killed.

1993 - The Branch-Davidian’s compound in Waco, TX, burned to the ground. It was the end of a 51-day standoff between the cult and U.S. federal agents. 86 people were killed including 17 children. Nine of the Branch Davidians escaped the fire. 

1995 - The Alfred P. Murrah Federal Building in Oklahoma City, OK, was destroyed by a bomb. It was the worst bombing on U.S. territory. 168 people were killed including 19 children, and 500 were injured. Timothy McVeigh was found guilty of the bombing on June 2, 1997. 

1997 – The Red River Flood of 1997 overwhelms the city of Grand Forks, North Dakota. Fire breaks out and spreads in downtown Grand Forks, but high water levels hamper efforts to reach the fire, leading to the destruction of 11 buildings.

2000 - In the Philippines, Air Philippines GAP 541 crashed while preparing to land. 131 people were killed.

Wow. I'm too tired to look and see if there is a WORSE day in history. April 19th is enough for me.

Last year, I began, after a horrible divorce "ordeal" ("Jerry Springer-worthy" is a good description), to learn that being optimistic, when your life is in the barrel, might bring about some positive changes. Heck, what could happen if I was wrong about optimism? Might I be struck by lightning? "Huh!" I'd yell to the heavens, "I knew it! No surprise here!" So, I started thinking and realized that if you look on the bright side like Pollyanna, life is nothing but a barrel of monkeys and a bed of roses and all that stuff! Who knew?

First, to prove that I am right, I am going to show that there are also good things that happened in history on my birthday. Here are some highlights:

1689 - Residents of Boston ousted their governor, Edmond Andros.

1713 - Holy Roman Emperor Charles VI issued the Pragmatic Sanction, which gave women the rights of succession to Hapsburg possessions.

1770 - Captain James Cook discovered New South Wales, Australia. Cook originally named the land Point Hicks.

1775 - The American Revolution began as fighting broke out at Lexington, MA. **Patriot's Day in Boston!!!

1782 - The Netherlands recognized the new United States. **Thank Goodness!

1802 - The Spanish reopened the New Orleans port to American merchants. **Where would we be without Mardi Gras and drinking in public all night?

1839 - The Kingdom of Belgium was recognized by all the states of Europe when the Treaty of London was signed.

1852 - The California Historical Society was founded. **Note from Maureen - So????? (Guess you have to be from California).

1861 - Thaddeus S. C. Lowe sailed 900 miles in nine hours in a hot air balloon from Cincinnati, OH, to Unionville, SC. **Why didn't he go to Maui? (Just a question).

1861 - U.S. President Lincoln ordered a blockade of Confederate ports. **Sorry, Southern pals. I know some of you still think we're at war, but we (Yankees) won.

1892 - The Duryea gasoline buggy was introduced in the U.S. by Charles and Frank Duryea.

1897 - The first annual Boston Marathon was held. It was the first of its type in the U.S.**An event for anyone who likes running for a long, long, time!

1939 - Connecticut approved the Bill of Rights for the U.S. Constitution after 148 years. **I'm from there. It takes a long time to figure stuff out there. Like I-95 for instance. NOT ENOUGH LANES - STILL -  in New England. Thank goodness this happened when it did!

1943 - The Warsaw Ghetto uprising against Nazi rule began. The Jews were able to fight off the Germans for 28 days.

1951 - General Douglas MacArthur gave his "Old Soldiers" speech before the U.S. Congress. In the address General MacArthur said that "Old soldiers never die, they just fade away."

1951 - Shigeki Tanaka won the Boston Marathon. Tanaka had survived the atomic blast at Hiroshima, Japan during World War II.

1956 - Actress Grace Kelly became Princess Grace of Monaco when she married Prince Rainier III of Monaco. The civil ceremony took place on April 18. **And this is listed on April 19th WHY???

1958 - The San Francisco Giants and the Los Angeles Dodgers played the first major league baseball game on the West Coast.

1960 - Baseball uniforms began displaying player's names on their backs.**Hence franchising and confusion in Seattle because I thought everyone here had the last name of "Ichiro."

1967 - Surveyor 3 landed on the moon and began sending photos back to the U.S.

1971 - Russia launched the Salyut into orbit around Earth. It was the first space station.

1975 - India launched its first satellite with aid from the USSR.

1977 - Alex Haley received a special Pulitzer Prize for his book "Roots." **JEEZ, remember when that came on TV as a miniseries that lasted, I dunno, from the time I was 12 til the time I was, 16, I think?

1982 - NASA named Sally Ride to be first woman astronaut. **Chicks in space! Gave me permission to be a chick who is a space cadet!

1982 - NASA named Guion S. Bluford Jr. as the first African-American astronaut.

1987 - In Phoenix, AZ, skydiver Gregory Robertson went into a 200-mph free-fall to save an unconscious colleague 3,500 feet from the ground. **This is bravery!!!!

1987 - The last California condor known to be in the wild was captured and placed in a breeding program at the San Diego Wild Animal Park.

1989 - A giant asteroid passed within 500,000 miles of Earth. **The new optimist in me says, "Wow! That could have been bad! Thank goodness it missed us!"

1994 - A Los Angeles jury awarded $3.8 million to Rodney King for violation of his civil rights.  **Can't we all just get along? (For $3.8 mil I'd like anyone, really).

1998 - Wang Dan, a leader of 1989 Tienanmen Square pro democracy protests, was freed by the Chinese government.

2000 - The Oklahoma City National Memorial was dedicated on the fifth anniversary of the bombing in Oklahoma that killed 168 people.

2000 - Letters written by Greta Garbo were put on exhibit. The letters were made public ten years after Garbo's death.

2002 - The USS Cole was relaunched. 

Here are a few famous folks who share this lucky day with me:

Eliot Ness 1903
Tommy Benford 1905 - Musician (Jelly Roll Morton’s Red Hot Peppers)
Frank Fontaine 1920
Hugh O'Brian 1930 - Actor ("The Life and Legend of Wyatt Earp")
Alex Webster 1931 - Football player
Jayne Mansfield (Vera Jane Palmer) 1932 - Actress ("It Takes a Thief")
Dick Sargent 1933 - Actor ("Bewitched", "Fantasy Island")
Dickie Goodman (Richard Dorian Goodman) 1934 - Entertainer (Buchanan and Goodman)
Dudley Moore 1935 - Actor ("Arthur", "Bedazzled")
Elinor Donahue 1937 - Actress ("Father Knows Best", "The Andy Griffith Show", "Pretty Woman")
Tim Curry 1946 - Actor ("Stephen King’s It", "Amadeus", "The Hunt for Red October")
Paloma Picasso 1949
Al Unser, Jr. 1962
Suge Knight 1965 - Record company executive (Tha Row)
Ashley Judd 1968 - Actress
James Franco 1978 - Actor ("Milk", "Spider-Man")
Kate Hudson 1979 - Actress
Hayden Christensen 1981 - Actor ("Life as a House", "Star Wars: Episode II - Attack of the Clones", "Star Wars: Episode III - Revent of the Sith")
Troy Polamalu 1981 - Football player 

Courtland Mead 1987
Maria Sharapova 1987 - Tennis player 

Wow. That list above is some good company, I'm thinking. Where would we be without Darren #2 on Bewitched? Seriously.

Really, though, I've had a wonderful life. What I've come to realize with age is that, in my opinion, youth IS wasted on the young. If I only knew then what I know now...I'd have been rich (and skinny and healthier and I never would have smoked and would not have put baby oil on my skin in order to get a better tan). Truly, I do believe that life is what you make it. If you have lemons and you don't make lemonade, you're gonna be very thirsty. 

I've never been a Pollyanna. As a matter of fact, I saw that Disney movie and wanted to strangle Hayley Mills for being so cheery even when she couldn't walk! I mean, come on, honey! Get a grip! And the "Glad Game?" Finding the good instead of focusing on the bad? Actually, what a concept!

Now I see, that you (we, I), are stuck in our bodies, but if we use our brains, we can climb or fight or laugh our way out of anything - if we want to. Everything I've gone through to get here has made me the person I am today. I am older, I believe I am wiser; yet I know I still, (if I am lucky enough to be here for another 40 or so years), have a lot to learn. Most of all, I know that today I have a choice in life to be happy or sad. Sure, there are bad times that make me cry and wail and hate myself, but because of the love of friends and family that remind me that I am loved and valued, I can get through anything. Today I know that not all bad things happen TO me. Most of my bad things happened BECAUSE of me and the choices I made. There were a few unlucky accidents in there, but still, in hindsight, I learned from every single thing that has ever come my way. I figure, if I keep going, being positive, and hoping for the best, I will raise children who look at life the same way, and I know this will save them from being known as "Debbie Downers." Nobody, and I mean nobody, I know can stand - for long - listening to "Nancy Negatives" day after day after day. Oh, the dull, dry, sound of someone with a mouth full of lemons! I've been her; I know of what I speak!

Today I know that there's nothing wrong with being a Pollyanna, or finding the "Glad" in life. I'm so glad my friend Ellen reminds me every year that I was born on a day that meant many things in history. Good and bad, because we learn from all of them.

In my next year, I'm going to be happy that I'm still here, happy that I get to blow "spit bubbles" with my kids, ride bikes, build snowmen and eat ice cream for breakfast sometimes. You know why? Because my mom always said, "When you're the mom, you can have dessert first!" Thanks, Mom. Ice Cream is so much better BEFORE the meatloaf. I'm so GLAD you taught me that when I thought you were being a meanie. 

Cheerth!

p.s. - Another "Glad" - the cake above was purchased by me from Fred Meyer bakery in Federal Way, WA. What's really cool about being single is that I get to pick out my own cake AND buy myself a present or two. That makes me soooo GLAD!