November 2016
Sarah Hale: Mother of Thanksgiving
Secretary of State William Seward wrote it and
Abraham Lincoln issued it, but much of the credit for
the proclamation should probably go to a woman named
Sarah Josepha Hale. A prominent writer and editor,
Hale had written the children’s poem “Mary Had a
Little Lamb,” originally known as “Mary’s Lamb,” in
1830 and helped found the American Ladies Magazine,
which she used a platform to promote women’s issues.
In addition to her publishing work, Hale was a
committed advocate for women’s education (including
the creation of Vassar College in Poughkeepsie, New
York), and raised funds to construct Massachusetts’s
Bunker Hill Monument and save George Washington’s
Mount Vernon estate.
The New Hampshire-born Hale had grown up regularly
celebrating an annual Thanksgiving holiday, and in
1827 published a novel, “Northwood: A Tale of New
England,” that included an entire chapter about the fall
tradition, already popular in parts of the nation. While at
“Godey’s,” Hale often wrote editorials and articles
about the holiday and she lobbied state and federal
officials to pass legislation creating a fixed, national day
of thanks on the last Thursday of November—a
unifying measure, she believed that could help ease
growing tensions and divisions between the northern
and southern parts of the country. Her efforts paid off:
By 1854, more than 30 states and U.S. territories had a
Thanksgiving celebration on the books, but Hale’s
vision of a national holiday remained unfulfilled.
After more than three decades of lobbying, Sarah
Josepha Hale (and the United States) had a national
holiday, though some changes remained in store. In
1939, President Franklin Roosevelt briefly moved
Thanksgiving up a week, in an effort to extend the
already important shopping period before Christmas and
spur economic activity during the Great Depression.
While several states followed FDR’s lead, others
balked, with 16 states refusing to honor the calendar
shift, leaving the country with dueling Thanksgivings.
Faced with increasing opposition, Roosevelt reversed
course just two years later, and in the fall of 1941, the
U.S. Congress passed a resolution returning the holiday
to the fourth Thursday of November.
NOVEMBER 2016
November Birthdays
Those born between November 1 and 21 are Scorpios.
Scorpios are passionate and assertive leaders who
value honesty and fairness above all. Betray a Scorpio
and suffer the scorpion sting, but befriend a Scorpio,
and you will have a friend for life. Those born between
November 22 and 30 are Archers of Sagittarius.
Archers are both confident and lucky and so often find
success. Their infectious enthusiasm attracts friends
to help them achieve their ambitious and lofty goals.
BRISTOL HOME Happenings
November Fun Facts for Turkeys

1500 Main Street Buffalo, NY 14209
Marie Antoinette (queen) – Nov. 2, 1755
Art Carney (actor) – Nov. 4, 1918
John Philip Sousa (conductor) – Nov. 6, 1854
Carl Sagan (astronomer) – Nov. 9, 1934
Jonathan Winters (actor) – Nov. 11, 1925
Petula Clark (singer) – Nov. 15, 1932
Mickey Mouse (cartoon) – Nov. 18, 1928
Boris Karloff (actor) – Nov. 23, 1887
Tina Turner (singer) – Nov. 26, 1939
Jimi Hendrix (musician) – Nov. 27, 1942
Mandy Patinkin (actor) – Nov. 30, 1952
“Serving WNY Women since 1868”
vol. 148 issue 11
Celebrating November
Memoir-Writing Month


Diabetes Month
Inspirational Role Models
Month
Hockey Mask Day
November 1
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Happy November Birthdays
Susan Trott - November 14th
Terese Blaskiewicz - Nov. 17th
Minervadel Alonzo Lozano -Nov. 21st
Wanda Barlow - November 25th
Use Your Common Sense
Day
November 4
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Fill Our Staplers Day
November 7
Dear Santa Letter Week
November 7–13
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Apple Cider Day
November 18
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Thanksgiving Day (U.S.)
November 24
World Day of Giving
November 26
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In 1953, Swanson overestimated the number frozen
turkeys that it would sell on Thanksgiving by 26
tons. The company decided to slice up the extra
meat and repackage it--creating the first ever TV
dinner.
Black Friday is the busiest day for Roto-Rooter, a
major plumbing service. They are called in to clean
up “overwhelmed” sewer systems.
The night before Thanksgiving is the biggest
drinking night of the year, even bigger than St.
Patrick's Day or New Year's Eve.
Pilgrims did not wear buckled hats or dress only in
black and white. Buckles did not come into fashion
until later in the 17th century, and the pilgrims
usually saved their formal black and white colors for
Sunday.
The average American will consume about 4,500
calories on Thanksgiving Day, or about 3,000 for
the meal and an additional 1,500 for snacking.
The song "Jingle Bells" was originally written as a
Thanksgiving song.
The famous pilgrim celebration at Plymouth Colony
Massachusetts in 1621 is traditionally regarded as
the first American Thanksgiving. However, there are
actually 12 claims to where the “first” Thanksgiving
took place: two in Texas, two in Florida, one in
Maine, two in Virginia, and five in Massachusetts.
President Jefferson called a federal Thanksgiving
proclamation “the most ridiculous idea ever
conceived.
The first Thanksgiving in America actually occurred
in 1541, when Francisco Vasquez de Coronado and
his expedition held a thanksgiving celebration in
Palo Duro Canyon in the Texas panhandle.
The turkeys typically depicted in Thanksgiving
pictures are not the same as the domestic turkeys
most people eat at Thanksgiving. Domestic turkeys
usually weigh twice as much and are too large to
fly.
Continued on Page 2
November 2016
November 2016
November Fun Facts for Turkeys
Continued for page 1
 Since Abraham Lincoln proclaimed a national
Thanksgiving holiday in 1863, Thanksgiving has been
observed annually. However, various earlier
presidents--including George Washington, John
Adams, and James Madison--all urged Americans to
observe various periods of thanksgiving.
 The Pilgrim’s thanksgiving feast in 1621 occurred
sometime between September 21 and November 1. It
lasted three days and included 50 surviving pilgrims
and approximately 90 Wampanoag Indians, including
Chief Massasoit. Their menu differed from modern
Thanksgiving dinners and included berries, shellfish,
boiled pumpkin, and deer.
 Even though President Madison declared that
Thanksgiving should be held twice in 1815, none of
the celebrations occurred in the autumn.
 Now a Thanksgiving dinner staple, cranberries were
actually used by Native Americans to treat arrow
wounds and to dye clothes.
 In 2007, George W. Bush granted a pardon to two
turkeys named May and Flower. The tradition of
pardoning Thanksgiving turkeys began in 1947,
though Abraham Lincoln is said to have informally
started the practice when he pardoned his son’s pet
turkey.
 Americans eat roughly 535 million pounds of
turkey on Thanksgiving.
 When President Franklin D. Roosevelt moved
Thanksgiving to the next-to-last Thursday in
November to prolong the holiday shopping season,
many Republicans rebelled. The holiday was
temporarily celebrated on different dates: November
30 became the “Republican Thanksgiving” and
November 23 was “Franksgiving” or “Democrat
Thanksgiving.”
 Not all states were eager to adopt Thanksgiving
because some thought the national government was
exercising too much power in declaring a national
holiday. Additionally, southern states were hesitant to
observe what was largely a New England practice.[5]
 The pilgrims most likely would not have survived
without the help of Tisquantum, or Squanto (c. 15801622). Squanto knew English and had already been
back and forth across the ocean to England three times
(most often as a captured slave). Some historians have
suggested that he was later poisoned by the
Wampanoag.
 Baby turkeys are called poults. Only male turkeys
gobble and, therefore, are called gobblers.
 In 2001, the U.S. Postal Service issued a
Thanksgiving stamp to honor the tradition “of being
thankful for the abundance of goods we enjoy in
America.”
 Long before the Pilgrims, native Hawaiians
celebrated the longest thanksgiving in the world—
Makahiki, which lasted four months, approximately
from November through February. During this time,
both work and war were forbidden.
 Forefather’s Day also celebrates the pilgrims, but it
celebrates their landing at Plymouth Rock on December
21, 1620 rather than the plentiful harvest in 1621. It is
celebrated on December 21 and usually only in New
England. Forefather’s Day was first celebrated in 1769
among a group of pilgrim descendants.
 The people of the Virgin Islands, a United States
territory in the Caribbean Sea, celebrate two
thanksgivings, the national holiday and Hurricane
Thanksgiving Day. Every Oct 19, if there have been no
hurricanes, Hurricane Day is held and the islanders give
thanks that they have been spared.
 Thanksgiving is often considered the site of the first
cultural war because it contains both a narrative of the
birth of freedom and democracy as well as an account
of racism, mistreatment of Native Americans, and
conflict.
Taken from : http://www.factretriever.com/thanksgiving-facts
Here’s Looking at You
One of the most famous movies of
all time, Casablanca premiered in
New York City on November 26,
1942. The World War II drama
boasted many Hollywood stars,
including Humphrey Bogart and
Ingrid Bergman. It was nominated
for eight Academy awards and
won three, including Best Picture. But Casablanca
was more than an award-winning movie. In
November of 1942, Allied forces staged
“Operation Torch,” an invasion of Northern Africa
that captured Casablanca, the very same setting
as the film. Many consider Casablanca a
propaganda film, with Bogart’s character Rick
symbolizing American freedom, liberty, and
equality.
Computer-Generated Innovation
A Prime Holiday
In 1995, no one had heard of
Pixar or the acronym CGI
(computer-generated imagery).
But after the release of Toy
Story on November 22, 1995,
everyone would be aware of a
tremendous achievement in
cinematic special effects. For
80 years, animated movies had
employed vast teams of artists to hand-draw
cartoons, but this was the first movie made
entirely with CGI. The Pixar company used only
27 computer animators to make Toy Story.
November 1 is a holiday celebrating an
invisible line. Well, at the Royal Observatory in
Greenwich, England, that line, known as the
prime meridian, is actually a strip of brass
running down the sidewalk. Prime Meridian
Day commemorates the meeting of 25 nations
in 1884 to establish the International Date Line
and the time zones of the world. This line
represents the start of a new day. Technically,
standing with a foot on either side means that
you are standing with one foot in the western
hemisphere and one foot in the eastern. More
importantly, if you straddle the line at midnight,
you’re standing both in today and in yesterday.
The story of toys coming to life was simple,
delightful, and a box office smash. But long
before Woody and Buzz, there was a little
character named Luxo Jr., a living, hopping desk
lamp. In 1986, Steve Jobs, of Apple computer
fame, purchased the small computer graphics
company that would become Pixar from none
other than George Lucas, the world famous
creator of Star Wars. The budding company
employed a young director named John
Lasseter, and it was Lasseter who came up with
the animated film Luxo Jr. The film was very
short—only two minutes long—but it was a
marvelous achievement in the world of 3D
computer-generated animation. Not only was it
nominated for an Oscar, but the little desk lamp
would go on to become Pixar’s logo and mascot.
While Pixar’s history boasts famous names like
Jobs, Lucas, and Lasseter, it took a number of
unsung heroes to develop innovation after
innovation in computer-generated imagery.
2001’s Monsters, Inc. revolutionized the
generation of realistic-looking fur. 2003’s Finding
Nemo required advancements in realistic-looking
underwater worlds, with currents and bubbles.
Quality and realism continued to improve from
2006’s Cars, to 2007’s Ratatouille, to 2008’s
Wall-E. Today, there may be no greater
animation studio than Pixar. Of course, CGI has
never been limited to animated children’s
movies, but often the greatest innovations in this
digital medium have come from these
lighthearted, family-friendly films.
Cold Clean
Poor refrigerators. They
are one of the most
important parts of the
kitchen—they keep our
food fresh, after all—
but they are never
noticed until something goes wrong. They
suffer spills, odors, and endless overcrowding.
With the Thanksgiving holiday just days away,
it makes sense that November 15 is Clean Out
Your Refrigerator Day.
It’s not too early to start making room for all
those leftovers. According to homemaking
guru Martha Stewart, the best way to clean the
fridge is to turn off the fridge’s power at the
breaker. Throw away all spoiled or longunused items, and put the remainder in a
cooler. Let the interior of the fridge come to
room temperature before removing shelves
and drawers for washing. A solution of two
tablespoons of baking soda per quart of hot
water will both clean and deodorize. Don’t use
soap. It may leave behind odors that your food
will absorb. When finished, turn the power
back on, give it a few hours to chill, and
restock the fridge. Does your fridge still smell?
Add an opened box of baking soda or even
add a small tray of fresh coffee grounds for a
couple of days to improve the smell.