History Lesson: Iwo Jima

Today is Iwo Jima Memorial Dedication Day.  In 1954, the Iwo Jima Memorial, which commemorates one of the most stirring events of World War II (the raising of the flag at Iwo Jima), was dedicated at Arlington Cemetery.  The iconic image is well-known to most of us.  But, how much of the actual history of this moment do you remember?   

Invasion Beach

The invasion of Iwo Jima began on February 19, 1945, and continued to March 26, 1945. The battle was a major initiative of the Pacific Campaign of World War II. The Marine invasion, known as Operation Detachment,  was charged with the mission of capturing on the island.  Once the bases were secured, they could then be used in the impending invasion of the Japanese mainland.


The battle was marked by some of the fiercest fighting of the War. The Imperial Japanese Army positions on the island were heavily fortified with bunkers and hidden artillery and 18 Km (11 mi) of tunnels. The battle was the first U.S. attack on the Japanese Home Islands and the Imperial soldiers defended their positions tenaciously. Of the 21,000 Japanese soldiers present at the beginning of the battle, over 20,000 were killed and only 1,083 taken prisoner.

According to the United States Navy "the 36-day (Iwo Jima) assault resulted in more than 26,000 American casualties, including 6,800 dead."

Mount Suribachi

One of the first objectives after landing on the beachhead was the taking of Mount Suribachi.


 At the second raising of a flag on the peak, Joe Rosenthal photographed six Marines:  Ira Hayes, Mike Strank, Rene Gagnon, Harlon Block, Franking Sousley and U.S. Navy corpsman John Bradley raising the U.S. flag on the fourth day of the battle (February 23). The photograph won the Pulitzer Prize in Photography that same year, and ultimately came to be regarded as one of the most significant and recognizable images of the war, and possibly the most reproduced photograph of all time.

Within the next month of fighting, three of the Marines raising the flag were killed: Strank, Block and Sousley. Contrary to popular belief, the famous picture of the six men raising the flag, was not the first time they raised it. The raised it about twenty minutes before hand, and then the photographer got there. The photographer had them take it down so he could get a famous picture of them putting it up "for the first time."

National Diabetes Awareness Month

November is National Diabetes Awareness Month       




With nearly 26 million children and adults in American living with diabetes, and another 79 million at high risk for developing type 2 diabetes, the disease is taking a devastating physical, emotional and financial toll on our country. Yet, most Americans don’t consider diabetes a serious matter. They feel it is someone else’s responsibility; someone else’s problem.
Recent numbers by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention paint a desperate situation of where we are at, and where we are headed:

• Every 17 seconds, someone is diagnosed with diabetes.
• Diabetes kills more people each year than breast cancer and AIDS combined.
• Recent estimates project that as many as 1 in 3 American adults will have diabetes in 2050 unless we take steps to Stop Diabetes.

Now is the time to act.
Become Involved in American Diabetes Month® 2011
November is American Diabetes Month, a time to rally individuals, communities and families to Join the Millions^SM in the movement to Stop Diabetes®. This year, the American Diabetes Association is asking individuals to take a pledge and raise their hand to Stop Diabetes.

)from the American Diabetes Association website)

Rare and Precious....

"Growing into your future with health and grace and beauty doesn't have to take all your time. It rather requires a dedication to caring for yourself as if you were rare and precious, which you are, and regarding all life around you as equally so, which it is." —Victoria Moran

November 6th is "I LOVE NACHOS DAY" !!

Nachos are a popular snack food, originating in Mexico. In their simplest form, nachos are usually tortilla chips covered in melted cheese. First created circa 1943 by Ignacio "Nacho" Anaya, the original nachos consisted of fried tortilla chips covered with melted cheese and jalapeño peppers. The International Day of the Nacho is celebrated on 11th September with the International Nacho Festival held at Piedras Negras, Coahuila, Mexico.

Origin of Nachos

Nachos originated in the city of Piedras Negras, Coahuila, Mexico, just over the border from Eagle Pass, Texas, around 1943 at a restaurant called the Victory Club. The account goes that the wives of several U.S. soldiers from nearby Eagle Pass, who were in Piedras Negras on a shopping trip, arrived at the restaurant after it had closed for the day, so chef Ignacio "Nacho" Anaya invented a new dish for them with what little he had available in the kitchen: tortillas and cheese. Anaya cut the tortillas into triangles and fried them, then added yellow Wisconsin cheese, calling the dish nachos especiales, or "Nacho's Specialty". The Moderno Restaurant in Piedras Negras uses the original recipe.

The popularity of the "nacho" spread throughout Texas, but did not become well known outside of Texas until the 1970s, when Howard Cosell was given a plate of nachos during a taping of Monday Night Football at Arlington Stadium in Arlington, Texas. Cosell enjoyed the dish, and was amused by the unusual name. He talked about them throughout the game, and for several weeks following it.

Long Time No Posts....

Dear Faithful Blog Followers

I know, I know... Long time no posts here at Lee and Her Muse Make the Most of Each Day. 

I've wanted to be here - really I have!  But, life has somehow gotten in the way of that for far too long.
My muse threatened to find a new mentee if I didn't get back on track... but I promised her she didn't need to move on - I'd buckle down and start posting in November.  So, even though we're five days into the month, here I am - posting and begging for your understanding and forgiveness for my long absence.

Sometimes making the most of each day is more of a challenge than one would think.  Even when I really really tried to get here sooner, my muse and I got railroaded by the situations at hand.  Some of those situations may or may not make their way into my blogging in the days and weeks to come.  But in the meantime, I am here now and am planning on trying to revive the daily posting energies that once flowed freely here on this site!

Thanks for still checking the site and remaining a friend even during my silent periods.

Time to Turn Back Time

It's that time again!  A return to Eastern Standard Time...
That's right.  Tonight, we turn our clocks back. 

When I was growing up, Daddy used to always say that we neither gained nor lost an hour when the clocks changed.  He argued that there were still 24 hours in every day and it was silly to say that we'd lost or gained one.

Scientifically I suppose he was right, but no matter how I look at it, the changing of the clocks before I go to bed tonight means that I will GAIN an hour of allowable sleep time! 

For me, it's always sad when the clocks are turned back and the days grow shorter.  It signals a time for going to and from work in the dark, fewer hours to spend outside on days off, and the fast-approaching end of my favorite season of the year:  Autumn.

Ice Cream Trivia x 2

1.) Today is the birthday of Cherry Garcia.   In 1987,  lawyers for Ben & Jerry's Ice Cream and Jerry Garcia of the Grateful Dead came to an agreement that would allow Ben & Jerry to create a new flavor of ice cream: Cherry Garcia.

2.) Can you name one famous person who chooses Ben & Jerry's Cherry Garcia as his/her favorite ice cream? ** (see below) 

What's your favorite ice cream flavor?  

Jerry Garcia



(Mine is Pralines and Cream)

And on that note, I think I'll have some right now!!   Yummy Yum !!

**Former President Bill Clinton enjoys an ice cream cone. 
Perhaps it is his favorite flavor:  Ben & Jerry's Cherry Garcia!