Friday JohnKu – AKA – TGIF

~ John W. Howell

 

“What’s going on you two?”
“I want the chipmunk toy and Twiggy won’t share.”
“Um-hum. Twiggy?”
“Well, I guess.”
“It’s Friday Ladies. Time for fun.”
“Chipmunk is fun.”

It is Friday and hopefully, you are as glad as Twiggy. We can now look forward to a couple of days to recharge. At least that’s what I do.

Not too much going on this week. We have increasing cases of Rona (I believe I know her well enough to call her by her nickname) and our county just upped the severity level to four. That means restaurants and bars need to go back to 50% occupancy and large gatherings discouraged. The parks remain open so mostly it is business as usual.

This weekend is the anniversary of the assassination of John F. Kennedy. It was over fifty years ago but to those of us who were in college at the time will never forget those days. The country came to a standstill as we mourned the death of the man we considered as “Our President.” Now the event has passed into history and those of us who were there are relics as well.

Today’s John KU talks about history. I hope you all have a great weekend.

Events by John W. Howell © 2020

We live through events,

That remain with us always . . .

History are us.

55 thoughts on “Friday JohnKu – AKA – TGIF”

  3. My mom always talks about JFK’s assassination as a seminal moment in her life. Two days that stand out in my history are the Challenger explosion and, of course, 911. You look back on those moments and time stands still. Enjoy a chill weekend, John….

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  6. Thank you for the reflection and the haiku, John. I was in high school when President Kennedy was killed, and I remember the announcement clearly. His death shook the nation, but we survived with grieving hearts, and we will survive 2020 as well.

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  8. When the announcement of President Kennedy’s death was made, I was in my mother’s bedroom, picking out a brooch to go with my first formal; it was the weekend of the ROTC military ball at Drake University in Des Moines, and I was looking forward to spending the weekend there with my boyfriend. I was a senior in high school; he was a sophomore at Drake. Everything came to an immediate halt, of course. What’s odd is that I don’t remember whether the event was rescheduled or cancelled. Everything that wasn’t related to Kennedy’s death faded into insignificance.

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  9. I remember exactly where I was standing when I heard that news. You could feel the mood change.

    I hope you have a nice relaxing weekend, John. Head pats to the girls from our girls.

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  13. Nicely said, John! Isn’t it interesting how certain historical events define whole generations? I wonder what the people who survived the 1918 pandemic would say about how the world today is handling Rona?? Have a super weekend!

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  14. Speak for yourself, John. I prefer not to think of myself as a relic. I like Senior Citizen. I remember that day well. I came out of the college library and heard about it in my next class. That class was a TV lecture and Walter Cronkite came on and reported it. We were all sent home. It was very quiet. I spent the weekend watching the events that followed on TV. —- Suzanne

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  16. Same thing here, except there’s a curfew too. We do live through events and carry that history forward. Hopefully this is almost over.

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  17. So true, dear John! History is made with human deeds. If we ponder, the current affair of Roma will become history soon as well.
    Lucy is so funny! Is it Mr. Whale next to her? Is a chipmunk a newcomer of the Friday committee? It looks fun indeed.

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    1. Chipmunk has been in the family for about a year. Not too popular but just happened to be pulled from the toy box and then both wanted to play with it. Yes. That is Mr. Whale next to Lucy. Also that Y shaped thing is a Bennie Bone.

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      1. I say, dear John! What a wonderful first night performance by little Chipmunk. Once forgotten, he returns back to the family! A Bennie Bone looks very naughty! Perfect for jolly Friday.

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  20. I was in junior high school when Kennedy was shot. They closed the schools and sent all the kids home. I cried and cried, even though I was too young to really understand. My parents were very upset, having put all their faith in this man fixing things that were broken. You are right. When we live through history, history lives through us! The girls are adorable as always!

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  21. Poignant words, John. “History are us” for sure, though I was only 2 years old on that fateful day. But events stay with us whether we were “there” in present time or having learned about them later. The profound effects definitely trickle into the future. As to Friday, I am just as happy as Twiggy! Unfortunately, Copper would chew those toys up in seconds. He’s part T-Rex or Great White, not sure which one, but he’s got powerful choppers for proof. 🙂 Anyway, Happy weekend!

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      1. Oh, I couldn’t tell it was a kong. Those are usually pretty strong. Copper loves his stuffed with peanut butter and once he’s licked the kong clean, it manages to survive. And Wow! Twiggy is a little ball of tenacity! 🐶😄

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  22. That happened less than five months before I was born and yet, it feels like It’s party of my history, too. That’s how huge an impact it was.
    Have a fantabulous weekend, John!

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  23. Love it John. Those moments when you can place yourself exactly when you heard the news. There’s a line I love in a play by Alan Bennett, one of our national treasures. Its called appropriately The History Boys about an inspiring if flawed teacher. One of the students is asked to define History and pauses. ‘History? It’s just one f****** thing after another.’ Sums it up really.

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  24. Yes, history are us. I can remember where I was in high school when the president was killed, looking up at the loud speaker on the wall. Rona – that’s a good one, John!

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  25. Hahaha, I love that image of the girls. They look so grumpy 🙂
    We took a hard response to Rona in Australia. My state in particular has been in harsh lockdown for months, however, that means we now have zero cases in the state, and only about 12 in the country. I guess the harsh lockdowns do really work.

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  26. Happy Friday, from a week ago, John! And you know if you got two chipmunk toys one of them would have an unnoticeable difference and the other would be the preferred one. Better that Twiggy and Lucy learn to share.

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