Today In World History: August 6th

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Lucille Ball, still from Best Foot Forward trailer, 1943.
Lucille Ball, still from Best Foot Forward trailer, 1943.

And now, Today In World History for August 6th!

1809 – Poet Alfred Lord Tennyson is born in Somersby, United Kingdom

1911 – Actress and comedian Lucille Ball is born in Jamestown, NY

1945 – The United States drops the atom bomb on Hiroshima

1980 – Mary Fons is born in Winterset, IA

Today has been a great day, breakfast to dinnertime. It could take a turn but I’m rolling those dice that it’s going to be good till I go to sleep tonight. Two highlights:

My metro card was getting really low on funds. When you swipe your card for the exit fare in the D.C. metro, you see your card balance. This morning it was down to ten bucks. Yikes! I have an automatic, pre-load thing that extracts money from my bank account each month. Well, what do you suppose happened later today when I rode the subway again? Why, my card reloaded today! This is my money! Not a gift! But it was nice to see that card’s value shoot up to forty bucks again.

The second highlight has to do with those events in world history. My dear friend Richard and I had a terrific conversation on the phone this morning. When I told him about these things that I know about August 6th, he gave me a great compliment:

“Poet, comedian, atomic bomb? That’s about right for you.”

I’m going to the airport to meet Claus in about 30 minutes. Until that time, I will enjoy an adult beverage. Thank you all for the birthday cards and wishes. Amazing!