Today in History: 12 June
1381 – Levying of the Poll Tax kicks off the Peasant Revolt in London. Needing to pay for the war against France, the rulers of England levied a new tax designed specifically to target the peasants. The peasants had seen some improvement in wages after the Black Plague ravaged the country from 1348 to 1350, meaning the workers who remained were more essential and thus had to be paid better. Two large groups of protesters were on their way to London to protest, when they were joined by Wat Tyler. Tyler had planned on sitting the riots out, until his daughter was sexually assaulted by a tax collector. Tyler killed the tax collector in a fit of rage, then joined, and went on to lead, the rebellion. Read the full article here .
1942 – Anne Frank gets a diary as a 13th birthday present in Amsterdam.
1964 – Nelson Mandela is sentenced to life in prison in South Africa.
Famous Birthdays!
1924 – George H. W. Bush
1929 – Anne Frank
1981 – Chris Evans (technically tomorrow, but you’ve gotta celebrate America’s @$$)
The Funnies:
On the Menu Today – Sometimes, I just search Google for a recipe of the day. Some days, I add an ingredient I want featured. Today is one of those days. Google search ‘recipe of the day bacon’ yielded this amazing sounding dish, Mississippi Mud Cheesy Potatoes. Attribution to this website , but be warned, it’s a mommy and me blog, so a) the recipe probably needs more seasoning and b) there’s all kinds of nonsense to scroll through before you get to the actual recipe.
Ingredients
- 8-10 Cups potatoes, diced finely
- 16 ounces cheddar cheese, cubed or shredded
- 1 Cup mayonnaise (real)
- 1 package bacon, cooked and torn into large bits
- 1/2 Cup green onions, chopped
Instructions
- In a 9x13 pan or 3 quart casserole dish, mix potatoes, cheddar cheese, bacon, and green onions.
- Stir in mayonnaise.
- Bake at 325 for an hour and a half or until potatoes are tender. Top with additional cheese if desired.
Quote of the Day
“ Progress , far from consisting in change , depends on retentiveness. When change is absolute there remains no being to improve and no direction is set for possible improvement: and when experience is not retained, as among savages, infancy is perpetual. Those who cannot remember the past are condemned to repeat it.” – George Santayana
Comic of the Day
Mouseover: “Oh, you’re using their Chrome APP, not their Chrome EXTENSION. They’re very similar but one handles window creation differently.” is a thing I hope I can stop saying soon.
2155: Swimming - explain xkcd Explain XKCD
Image Credit: XKCD
Inspirobot Sometimes Controversial Inspirational Quote of the Day:
Heavily Grounded InspiRobert of the Day:
Yesterday’s self-lifting Spark! by the ever delightful, comfortingly cuddly, twice weekly @jontydda can be found behind door number 2!
