Essay of the week/month/year

There is a very interesting opinion essay by Bari Weiss in the March issue of The Deseret News that I hope every one of you will read. Ms. Weiss is a former editor for The New York Times, but don't let that throw you. She has also been an editor at The Wall Street Journal.

Here's the link:

The self-silencing majority

Now that we've heard Ms. Weiss's opinion (which probably solidified her decision to leave The New York Times), share with us (but only if you want to) your opinion in the comments section.

Sorry or Not Sorry?

A few years ago Howie Mandel hosted a television game show based on greed called Deal Or No Deal? but that has nothing to do with this post. The inspiration for this post comes straight from one of today's headlines.

Here's the headline:

NY Governor Cuomo Makes Pitiful Plea -- 'Truly Sorry' If Words, Actions Were 'Misinterpreted'

and here is the article that followed:

NY Governor Andrew Cuomo said he was 'truly sorry' if "some of the things I have said have been misinterpreted as an unwanted flirtation."

"To be clear I never inappropriately touched anybody and I never propositioned anybody and I never intended to make anyone feel uncomfortable," Cuomo said.

"I now understand that my interactions may have been insensitive or too personal and that some of my comments, given my position, made others feel in ways I never intended. I acknowledge some of the things I have said have been misinterpreted as an unwanted flirtation. To the extent anyone felt that way, I am truly sorry about that," he said.

The article continued.

White House press secretary Jen Psaki said, "There should be an independent review of these allegations. They're serious. It was hard to read that story as a woman. And that process should move forward as quickly as possible and that's something we all support and the president supports."

Also, she said Joe Biden believes [two former state staffers who accused Cuomo of sexual harrassment on the job] "should be treated with respect and dignity."

Well, that's enough of that.

Today a third woman who has never been employed by the governor or the state of New York came forward with another allegation.

Things are not looking good for Andrew Cuomo, the 63-year-old governor of the State of New York and the son of former New York Governor Mario Cuomo.

I am not here to add to his woes, to discuss his guilt or innocence (that's for a jury to decide after examining the evidence), or to throw him under the bus. He is 63, not 21, so he is certainly old enough to know better, especially in today's climate. Maybe he will turn out to have been just another dirty old man. That is for others to decide.

I am here to analyze his apology.

My position (and I hope you agree) is that when someone says, "I'm sorry if..." it is not an apology at all. "I'm sorry that..." may not be an apology either; it depends on the words one says after that. Both are attempts to divert attention from oneself and put blame on the offended person.

I'm sorry if I offended you is not an apology.
I'm sorry if you got your feelings hurt is not an apology.
I'm sorry if you took it the wrong way is not an apology.
I'm sorry that you feel that way is not an apology.
I'm truly sorry that some of the things I have said have been misinterpreted is not an apology.

Do you agree or disagree?

Since there are many examples online of true apologies, I am not going to show you any. You can look them up yourself if you think you need to, and maybe even if you think you don't.

A few more long livers

...somehow fell off my personal radar and weren't included in my list a couple of posts back. They include Louise H. (94), Gertrude H. (93), Phyllis M. (91), Alma S. (89), Paul W. (89), Elaine G. (88), Peggy N. (87), Bill S. (87), and Sally H. (87).

The last name on the list, Sally H., actually missed my personally-imposed threshold of 87 years by two days, but I have included her because she was an important influence in my life. Born on October 14, 1904, she died on October 12, 1991, two days before her 87th birthday. She became very much my "other mother" after my mother died. About a year after Mrs. H. died, we learned that I had been included in her will when we received from the executor of her estate (we didn't even know she had an estate) a totally unexpected check for several thousand dollars. It arrived at the best possible moment, helping to pay for our daughter's wedding. God moves in a mysterious way His wonders to perform.

In other news, March came in like a lamb in this part of the world, and Jeopardy! answers that drew blank stares from all contestants this week included:

What is "The Ballad of Reading Gaol"?
What is distemper?
What is the Po?

For the geographically challenged among you, the Po is a river in Italy.

But denial is not a river in Egypt.

This is a short post, but if I have already told you about Jeopardy! I must be through.

Without looking it up, can you name two other rivers in Italy?

Try to remember, and if you remember, then follow

Attempting to create a post about songs with the word "Moon" in the title has revealed a giant hole in my knowledge banks (details later in the post).

First, I wrote down all the "moon" songs I could think of on my own and made an alphabetic list. (Note. Song titles are normally enclosed in quotation marks, but I have decided to dispense with quotation marks in this post so as to avoid a plethora of, you guessed it, quotation marks.) Here's the list:

Allegheny Moon
Blah, Blah, Blah, Blah Moon
Blue Moon
By The Light Of The Silvery Moon
Carolina Moon
Fly Me To The Moon
Full Moon and Empty Arms
Moonlight Bay
Moonlight Becomes You
Moonlight In Vermont
Moonlight Serenade
Moon Over Miami
Moon River
Racing With The Moon
Shine On, Harvest Moon
The Man In The Moon Is A Lady
When The Moon Comes Over The Mountain

I thought of including When The Moon Hits Your Eye Like A Big Pizza Pie but I realized at once that that is the first line of a well-known song but it isn't the title. The title is That's Amore.

Then I realized that one of the songs I did include is also just the first line of a song and not its title:

Fly me to the moon and let me play among the stars
Let me see what spring is like on Jupiter and Mars
In other words, hold my hand
In other words, darlng, kiss me

Fill my heart with song and let me sing forevermore
You are all I long for, all I worship and adore
In other words, please be true
In other words, I love you.

If you're extremely slow and haven't figured out the title of that song yet, let me just spill the beans (British, enlighten you) without further ado. The title of that song is (or was, originally) In Other Words.

So I was left with 16 titles of mostly what I would call "old standards". I was feeling pretty good about myself.

Then I decided to use a search engine to see what else I might find. Perhaps you've heard of it. It's called Google.

Gott in Himmel, Sacre Bleu, and other expressions of surprise, exasperation, and dismay. I was shocked. There were over 100 songs with the word "moon" in the title, many of them in the "classic rock" category. A few artists' names I recognized, like Pink Floyd and Cat Stevens (even though I know nothing about them except their names), but I have never heard of the vast majority of the artists or the song titles. I could not begin to tell you which artists are better known than others or if one song was more popular than another. I cannot bring myself to provide you with a link. You can look them up for yourself if you care to, and if you do, tell me which ones were so pooular that I ought to have been aware of them.

It is depressing, but I will soldier on.

I will console myself concerning my great ignorance in certain areas by telling you that two musical compositions that have no words at all have "moon" in their titles. They are Moonlight Sonata by Beethoven and Clair de Lune (which means moonlight in French) by Claude Debussy. Not only that, the song Full Moon and Empty Arms is based on a theme from Piano Concerto No. 2 by Sergei Rachmaninoff.

It takes all kinds, and I am one of them.

And so are you.

P,S. -- Today is the birthday of my cousin Philip, who died in 2016 at rhe age of 81. Had he lived, he would have turned 86 today.

P.P.S. - The title of this post is from a song that did not have the word "moon" in it from The Fantasticks.

I have moons, you have moons, all God's children have moons

...and lest there be any confusion concerning what I am talking about, I'm talking about the moon that orbits our Earth, the moon up in the sky.

I noticed in my reading that the moons in different months have different names, and that according to The Old Farmer's Almanac these names were mostly first used by Native Americans. It set me to wondering if other parts of the world use the same names we do here in Ye Olde United States of America. Read this post first, then tell me in the comments how your moons differ from mine.

The information in the rest of this post is from an article entitled "Traditional Full Moon Names" by Vigdis Hocken and Aparna Khera on a website called timeanddate.com.

Full Moons had given names in many ancient cultures. The Full Moon names we use today often reflect the changing seasons and nature, like Harvest Moon, Strawberry Moon, or Snow Moon.

Full Moon names have roots in nature.

In ancient times, it was common to track the changing seasons by following the lunar month rather than the solar year, which our modern calendar is based on.

Ancient Month Names

For millennia, people across Europe, as well as Native American tribes, named the months after features they associated with the seasons in the Northern Hemisphere, and many of these names are very similar or identical. Some Native names are often attributed to tribes who lived in a vast area stretching from New England to Lake Superior, and whose languages are related. They are sometimes called Algonquian or Algonkian peoples, but they are not to be confused with the Algonquin tribe who lives in Canada. However, other sources list completely different Native American Moon names.

January: Wolf Moon

The Full Moon in January is the Wolf Moon named after howling wolves, which may stem from the Anglo-Saxon lunar calendar. Other names: Moon After Yule, Old Moon, Ice Moon, and Snow Moon.

February: Snow Moon

The Snow Moon is the Full Moon in February, named after the snowy conditions. Some North American tribes named it the Hunger Moon due to the scarce food sources during mid-winter, while other names are Storm Moon and Chaste Moon, but the last name is more common for the March Full Moon.

March: Worm Moon

The last Full Moon of the winter season in March is the Worm Moon because of the earthworms that come out at the end of winter. It is also known as the Crow Moon, Crust Moon, Sap Moon, Sugar Moon, and Chaste Moon. The Old English/Anglo-Saxon name is Lenten Moon.

April: Pink Moon

The Full Moon in April is the Pink Moon, from the pink flowers – phlox – that bloom in the early spring. Other names for this Full Moon include Sprouting Grass Moon, Fish Moon, Hare Moon, and the Old English/Anglo-Saxon name is Egg Moon. It is also known as the Paschal Moon because it is used to calculate the date for Easter.

May: Flower Moon

The May Full Moon is known as Flower Moon to signify the flowers that bloom during this month. Other names for the Full Moon in May are Corn Planting Moon, and Milk Moon from Old English/Anglo-Saxon.

June: Strawberry Moon

June’s Full Moon is the Strawberry Moon as these little red berries ripen at this time. Other names are Hot Moon, Mead Moon, and Rose Moon.

July: Buck Moon

The Full Moon for the month of July is called Buck Moon to signify the new antlers that emerge on deer buck's foreheads around this time. This Full Moon is also known as Thunder Moon, Wort Moon, and Hay Moon from Old English/Anglo-Saxon.

August: Sturgeon Moon

The Full Moon for August is called Sturgeon Moon because of the large number of fish in the lakes where the Algonquin tribes fished. Other names for this Full Moon include Green Corn Moon, Barley Moon, Fruit Moon, and Grain Moon from Old English/Anglo-Saxon.

September / October: Harvest Moon

Technically, the Harvest Moon is the Full Moon closest to the September equinox around September 22. Most years it is in September, but around every three years, it is in October. The Harvest Moon is the only Full Moon name which is determined by the equinox rather than a month.

September: Corn Moon

The Full Moon in the month of September in the Old Farmer's Almanac is called Harvest Moon, which corresponds with the Old English/Anglo-Saxon name, while other names are Corn Moon or Full Corn Moon or Barley Moon.

October: Hunter's Moon

Every three years, the Hunter's Moon is also the Harvest Moon. Traditionally, people in the Northern Hemisphere spent the month of October preparing for the coming winter by hunting, slaughtering and preserving meats for use as food. This led to October’s Full Moon being called the Hunter’s Moon, Dying Grass Moon, and Blood Moon or Sanguine Moon. However, this should not be confused with a Total Lunar Eclipse – Blood Moon.

November: Beaver Moon

According to folklore, the Full Moon in November is named after beavers who become active while preparing for the winter. It is also known as Frosty Moon, and along with the December Full Moon some called it Oak Moon. Traditionally, if the Beaver Moon is the last Full Moon before the winter solstice, it is also called the Mourning Moon.

December: Cold Moon

December is the month when winter begins for most of the Northern Hemisphere, and the Full Moon is called the Cold Moon. The Old English/Anglo-Saxon name is the Moon Before Yule, while another name is Wolf Moon, however, this is more common for the January Full Moon.

Full Moons with No Name

Some years have 13 Full Moons, which makes at least one of them a Blue Moon, as it doesn't quite fit in with the traditional Full Moon naming system. However, this is not the only definition of a Blue Moon.

About every 19 years, there is no Full Moon in February. This is one of several definitions of the term Black Moon. The other definitions refer to a New Moon which does not fit in with the equinoxes or solstices, similar to a Blue Moon.

Latin Names Took Over

When the Julian calendar was introduced in 45 BCE, Latin month names gradually became more common in Europe. However, the ancient Pagan names were not forgotten. Old High German month names were introduced by Charlemagne (Charles the Great) who ruled as King of the Franks and later Emperor of the Romans from 774 to 814. And Old English or pre-Christian Anglo-Saxon month names were collected by the English Monk Venerable Bede in 725.

Adopted as Full Moon Names

Today, many of these ancient month names have been adopted as names for the Full Moon of each month. A common explanation, published in the Old Farmer's Almanac, is that Colonial Americans adopted Native American names and incorporated them into the modern calendar. However, it seems that the Full Moon names we use today also have Anglo-Saxon and Germanic roots.

(End of article)

That's a lot to take in, so let's recap:

Here are the traditional Full Moon Names:

Wolf Moon – January
Snow Moon – February
Worm Moon – March
Pink Moon – April
Flower Moon – May
Strawberry Moon – June
Buck Moon – July
Sturgeon Moon – August
Harvest Moon – September or October
Full Corn Moon (Harvest) – September
Hunter's Moon (Harvest) – October
Beaver Moon – November
Cold Moon – December

Finally, I have figured out (wouldn't you know it?) that the reason every third year has 13 full moons is that, using generally accurate numbers, a year has 365.25 days and the moon's trip around the earth takes 29.5 days. So in every year (do the math, 365.25 divided by 29.5) there are 12.38 lunar orbits of the earth. Rounding off to 1/3, in one year there are 12 and 1/3 moons, in two years there are 24 and 2/3 moons, and in three years there are -- voila! -- 36 and 3/3 moons, or 37 full moons.

Finally, the definition of a Blue Moon that I am familiar with is a calendar month that contains two full moons, which is of course possible because the lunar orbit is 29.5 days and every month but one has either 30 or 31 days.

Finally, and I really mean it this time, let's all listen to Kate Smith sing, as only she could, "When the moon comes over the mountain, every beam brings a dream. dear, of you" (3:13).

Long livers on my personal radar

Although my mother died young at age 47 and my dad died at 60, Mrs. RWP and I have had some long livers in our family and among our friends. I have listed them below in descending order by age:

Clark H., our friend F.M.'s brother-in-law, was born on February 25, 1906, and died on November 13, 2008. He lived 102 years, 8 months, 18 days.

Audrey G., mother of my childhood friend John G., was born on February 20, 1905 and died on August 23, 2004. She lived 99 years, 6 months, 3 days.

Ruth C., mother of our friend Becky R., was born in 1917 and died on February 24, 2018. She lived 99 years and some months.

Our friend for more than 50 years, Len G., was born on February 2, 1923, and is still alive. He is 98 years, 20 days.

My fourth-grade teacher, Charlotte A., who taught me how to do long division, was born on November 25, 1897, and died on December 10, 1995. She lived 98 years, 15 days.

My mother's father, Nathan S., was born on March 21, 1875, and died on December 20, 1970. He lived 95 years, 8 months, 29 days.

Our friend F.M.'s sister, Mildred H. (she was married to Clark) was born on March 5, 1912 and died on October 1, 2007. She lived 95 years, 6 months, 30 days.

A friend from church, Rosemary L., was born on February 8, 1918. and died on January 19, 2013. She lived 94 years, 11 months, 11 days.

Dr. Torrey J., our pastor when we lived in Florida in the 1960s and 1970s, was born on March 15, 1909, and died on May 15, 2002. He lived 93 years, 2 months.

Our daughter-in-law's grandmother, Lillian W., was born on November 27, 1911 and died on December 10, 2004. She lived 93 years, 13 days.

Evelyn J., wife of Dr. Torrey J., was born on October 1, 1909, and died on May 15, 2002. She lived 92 years, 7 months, 14 days. You may note that she died one day after her husband. They both died of natural causes..

My stepmother's brother's wife, Dorothy W., was born on January 4, 1929, and is still alive. She is 92 years, 1 month, 19 days old.

Another friend from church, Amalfi C., whom we have known for more than 40 years, was born January 23, 1930, and is still alive. She is 91 years, 1 month old.

My father's oldest brother's daughter, Peggy Brague P., was born on January 16, 1931, and is still alive. She is 90 years, 1 month, 6 days old.

My stepmother, Mildred F., was born on March 30, 1915, and died on November 27, 2004. She lived 89 years, 7 months, 28 days.

Leona M., our friend F.M.'s mother, was born on July 11, 1894, and died on January 21, 1984. She lived 89 years, 6 months, 10 days.

Lawanda W., who was married to another of my stepmother's brothers, was born on April 11 1930, and died on May 11, 2019. She lived 89 years, 1 month.

My mother's sister, Marion C., was born on January 29, 1899, and died on November 3, 1987. She lived 88 years, 9 months, 4 days.

My stepmother's brother, Russ W., the one who married Dorothy, was born December 15, 1921, and died on August 14, 2010. He lived 88 years, 7 months, 30 days. He was the last survivor among 10 siblings, and everyone in the family called him Junior because he was named after his father.

My wife's father, James C., was born on February 15, 1895, and died on August 28, 1983. He lived 88 years, 6 months, 13 days.

Our son-in-law's father, John S., was born on September 30, 1932, and is still alive. He is 88 years, 4 months, 22 days old.

Our pastor's mother, Rita R., was born on March 3, 1933, and died on February 2, 2021. She lived 87 years, 10 months, 29 days.

Another friend from church, Audrey L., whom we have known for over 45 years, was born on April 24, 1933, and is still alive. She is 87 years, 9 months, 29 days old.

Speaking of our friend F.M., he was born on October 1, 1932, and died on June 16, 2020. He lived 87 years, 9 months, 15 days. We knew him for 45 years.

A friend in Florida whom we have known for more than 50 years, Ruth C, was born on July 27, 1933, and is still alive. She is 87 years, 6 months, 25 days old.

I think that's everybody on my radar. I hope I haven't forgotten anybody. Anybody younger is not yet old enough to qualify for my list.

I don't know if learning about our family and friends bores you to tears, but I enjoyed putting this post together.

I used to say that I hoped to live as long as my grandfather, but I have changed my mind. I want to outlive Clark H.

Oh, one more thing. If any of you can think of a better way than "long livers" to describe these people, please let me know!

P.S. -- Today, February 22nd, is what used to be known as Washington's Birthday in the United States. Not the city. Not the state. George. It should be noted for the record that since he was born in 1732 and died in 1799, by no stretch of the imagination could he be considered a long liver.

plus ça change, plus c’est la même chose

Last night's "Say whaaat?" moment on Jeopardy!: Even though the clue included the name "Bruce Catton" and the phrase "A Stillness At ___________", two of the contestants didn't buzz in at all. The third one guessed, "What is the O.K. Corral?" but I was yelling "What is Appomattox?"

On tonight's program (British, programme) there were only blank stares from all three contestants when someone besides me should have said, "Who is Samuel Barber?" The clue mentioned "Adagio For Strings" but also included a fact that was new to me, that his life partner (that's the term that was used) was Gian-Carlo Menotti.

I will remember that from now on.

Of what use is that particular piece of information? As far as I know, it is of no use whatever.

In the words of Joe Hamilton, Carol Burnett's husband:

I'm so glad we had this time together
Just to have a laugh or sing a song
Seems we just get started and before you know it
Comes the time we have to say, "So long".

Which reminds me, who said, "So long, and thanks for all the fish"? and it wasn't Douglas Adams.