Barbed Wire Festival
May 5, 2016: The 50th Annual Barbed Wire Festival kicks off this evening in La Crosse, Kansas. The first convention for collectors of barbed wire was hosted there in 1967. According to the festival’s website, 2,000 people attended, earning La Crosse, described by Wikipedia as a “city” of 1,342, the title of “Barbed Wire Capital of the World™.”
The site is a bit sparing with details about today’s festivities, stating only, “The ceremony will begin at 5:00 pm with an olympic-style opening ceremony for the 50th Annual Festival.” (We’re guessing that in this case, the eternal flame will be represented by two books of matches and a can of Sterno.)
Next, a monument to departed supporters will be unveiled at its location by the sidewalk in front of the Kansas Barbed Wire Museum. The dedication will be followed by a meeting of the Antique Barbed Wire Society, the only international organization devoted to the collection, preservation, exhibition and cultural appreciation of barbed wire.
Friday’s program features an exhibition of vintage military garb; displays of wire fence and collectibles will be judged. (Note to newbies: Don’t collect wire under 18 inches long. Anything shorter is worthless.) The evening will be capped off with the “Kansas Barbed Wire Museum Casino Night and Mexican & More Buffet.” Proceeds will benefit the Museum Operating Fund.
Saturday’s main event is the 50th annual “World Champion Barbed Wire Splicing Contest™. ” Contestants begin with double strand, two-point galvanized barbed wire and must splice in a third strand, twisting it using only their hands. (Gloves are allowed.) Finished wires must be able to support a 75-pound weight. There’s a Powder Puff version for women. All the requirements are the same but the gender bias is thrown in for free.
Attendees who are plumb tuckered out can look forward to the Golden Memories Candlelight Banquet, a gourmet meal “featuring the finest cuts of beef, fabulous trimmings, salad, and dessert.” (In this context, “trimmings” sounds suspiciously like “fixins.”) Following the meal, there will be a short awards ceremony. The site promises, “This will be our finest banquet yet. Black tie optional.” A sigh of relief goes up from those who forgot to pack their tuxedos. Or their special Sunday-go-to-meeting shorts.
Five more shows are scheduled this year in California, Texas, Colorado, Nebraska and Kansas. In the autumn, La Crosse will host the “Miss Barbed Wire Capital Pageant & Variety Show.” The first Barbed Wire Collector magazine was issued in 1983. It is published six times a year by the Antique Barbed Wire Society to inform and entertain barbed wire aficionados between functions.
Happy Barbed Wire Festival!
National Hairball Awareness Day
Today is National Hairball Awareness Day, observed annually on the last Friday of April.
Hairballs are a nuisance and just plain gross, as anyone who’s stepped on one in bare feet can attest. They’re no fun for cats, either, causing discomfort and irritation. In some cases, they can be an indicator of serious illness. Talk to your veterinarian to learn more, and be sure to brush your pets often and keep your home clean to prevent dust and other particles from adhering to their fur, where they can be ingested.
P.S.: We’re not advocating the nuclear option you see above for every pet. Rocky, the cat shown here, hated to be brushed but for some reason enjoyed the shearing process. His groomers always remarked on how mellow he was and charged much less for his visits. Despite his dyspeptic look, Rocky loved his lion cut. We’d even say he rocked it!
Have a safe and happy National Hairball Awareness Day!
More cat holidays:
Respect Your Cat Day – March 28
Cat Herders’ Day – December 15
National Cat Day – October 29
April 26 is Alien Day
Today is Alien Day. The date 4/26 pays homage to LV-426, the planet where Ripley and her expendable crew set down and take on a stowaway that no amount of Pepcid-AC can overcome. By the time the monster surprises Dallas with a gesture that looks suspiciously like jazz hands, it’s clear that the entire crew will indeed be expended.
Ripley and Jonesy, the luckiest cat in the universe, escape after a run-in with the alien, who has hidden in a shuttle so inefficiently designed that it has wasted space in the exact proportions of a slavering hell creature.
In the sequel, Aliens, Ripley returns to LV-426–as an advisor, that’s all–with the Colonial Marines and Burke, Carter J., a company man and (spoiler alert) not an okay guy, after contact is lost with the Weyland-Yutani employees working there. Suffice it to say there are problems and a few deaths are involved.
Alien³ and Alien: Resurrection take place on a penal planet and the USM Auriga spaceship, respectively. Prequel Prometheus occurs on LV-223, another moon in the same star system.
Director Ridley Scott’s sequel to his prequel will be called Alien: Covenant and is scheduled for release October 6, 2017. Scott has issued this description:
Bound for a remote planet on the far side of the galaxy, the crew of the colony ship Covenant discovers what they think is an uncharted paradise, but is actually a dark, dangerous world — whose sole inhabitant is the “synthetic” David (Michael Fassbender), survivor of the doomed Prometheus expedition.
At the end of Prometheus, David and Elizabeth (Noomi Rapace) survived. What’s happened to her? The films have always had a strong female lead. We hope Scott’s planning to keep it that way.
Meanwhile, Neill Blomkamp has been working on Alien 5, but that’s only the working title, since it appears that he plans to dropkick Alien³ and Alien: Resurrection and pick up where Aliens left off.
Many fans of the early movies are happy about this prospect. Unfortunately, Scott has “asked” Blomkamp to delay his movie until after Alien: Covenant opens.
Blomkamp has been sharing concept art since last year which shows Hicks and Ripley very much alive. He released this pic of Newt this morning in honor of Alien Day.
Can fans trust him to bring the series back to life? Will we get the director of District 9 or the one who made Chappie? Will Scott’s wishes put Blomkamp’s plans into permanent hypersleep? Stay tuned and have a happy Alien Day!
April 26 is National Pretzel Day
Today is National Pretzel Day. In 2003, Pennsylvania governor Ed Rendell dedicated April 26th to the snack food that continues to be a major contributor to the state’s economy.
By the 18th century, when German immigrants introduced them to the people of Pennsylvania, pretzels already had a long history. One popular origin story states that an Italian monk invented them in 610 AD to reward children who learned their prayers. He fashioned them to look like arms crossing the chest, which was supposedly the pose used to pray. There is no evidence to support any part of that but the legend persists.
The Hortus deliciarum, a 12th-century medieval encyclopedia compiled in an abbey in the German Alsace region, which is now part of France, contains the earliest known depiction of a pretzel.
A prayer book commissioned in the 15th century by Catherine of Cleves is considered a Dutch masterpiece. In this portrait, St. Bartholomew is surrounded by pretzels.
The next time you grab a pretzel, take a moment to appreciate its design and heritage before chomping into it. Have a happy National Pretzel Day!