Shavuot begins at sundown on this day. Called the Feast of the Weeks in the Jewish calendar, Shavuot is a two-day holiday that was originally a harvest festival. It’s also a thanksgiving day to commemorate the Giving of the Law, the Torah, recalling when Moses and the Israelites received the Ten Commandments from God at Mount Sinai. Shavuot, which means weeks, always begins exactly seven weeks after Passover. Shavuot is known also as Yom Habikkurim, or “The Day of the First Fruits,” because Israel’s farmers would bring a bundle from their first harvest to the temple in Jerusalem as a token of thanksgiving to God. Spring harvests in Israel began with the barley crop at Passover. Each farmer would set aside the first of each type of fruit to ripen, tie it in ribbon, and all would be brought to the city, accompanied by a joyful, musical celebration.
Daily Calendar for Thursday, May 25, 2023
Question of the Day
How long does a cow stay in calf? And can a cow support more than one calf? If so, how many?
The gestation period for beef cows is 279 to 290 days and for dairy cows 262 to 300 days. In response to the second part of the question, it is not uncommon for cows to produce twins. We featured a story some years ago about a Hereford that produced quadruplets! So yes, a cow can support (we assume you mean “nurse”) more than one calf.
Advice of the Day
Once daffodils and tulips have gone by, add bonemeal to the soil for next year’s blooms.
Home Hint of the Day
The one tool that every person stripping paint should have is a Hyde molding scraper; it can be resharpened and the blades are interchangeable. The teardrop blade will get you into the few places that the triangle blade won’t reach.
Word of the Day
Ombrophobia
The fear of rain
Puzzle of the Day
What do you get when you cross a cocker spaniel, a French poodle and a rooster?
A cockerpoodledoo!
Born
- Ralph Waldo Emerson (poet) –
- Bill "Bojangles" Robinson (tap dancer) –
- Frank Oz (puppeteer, director) –
- Mike Myers (actor) –
- Demetri Martin (comedian) –
- Aly Raisman (Olympic gymnast) –
Died
- Rosa Bonheur (painter, sculptor) –
- Ismail Merchant (filmmaker) –
- Charles Nelson Reilly (actor) –
Events
- First formal meeting of the Constitutional Convention in Philadelphia, which, in the next few months, ended up writing a new constitution for the United States instead of revising the Articles of Confederation–
- Father Stephen Badin became first Catholic priest ordained in the U.S.–
- Grace Annie Lockhart became the first woman in the British Empire to receive a bachelor’s degree in science and English literature. She graduated from Mount Allison College (now University) in Sackville, New Brunswick–
- At Forbes Field in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, Babe Ruth hit the 714th, and last, home run of his career–
- Andrew Moyer patented method for mass production of penicillin–
- New York City’s Brooklyn-Battery Tunnel was formally opened to traffic–
- The first shave in space took place on Apollo 10–
- Star Wars was released in theaters–
- Daniel Goodwin climbed Chicago’s Sears Tower using suction cups–
- Nearly 5.5 million people joined hands to form a human chain across the U.S. The event, Hands Across America, was designed to raise funds for the poor and homeless–
- Gary Stewart of California set the record for consecutive pogo jumps at 177,737 in 20 hours, 20 minutes–
- Jay Leno officially replaced Johnny Carson as host of The Tonight Show–
- New York Yankees Mariano Rivera became the first major league pitcher to make 1,000 appearances with the same team–
Weather
- Tornado destroyed Udall, Kansas. 83 people died–
- A tornado tore through Blackwell, Oklahoma. One survivor claimed that it had an orange, glowing light in its center.–
- Record high temperatures gripped the Southwest, as Arizona had its 17th consecutive day of temperatures over 100 degrees F–