I seem to have missed the memo wherein it says that Presidents Day means all mattresses in the country MUST be on sale. wtf? What do dead heroic Presidents have to do with mattresses? How does selling mattresses at a discount show respect for Honest Abe? I don't get it.
Here is another question: What kind of mattresses did George Washington and Abraham Lincoln use? Were down/feather beds en vogue? Were they poor and made of corn husks? You always hear "Washington slept here", but do you ever hear what he actually slept on? Not me. I have never once heard about mattresses in regard to the Presidents. I have frequently heard about the wooden false teeth Washington had, but that's it.
I read recently that there was a DNA geneology quest to find the closest living relation to George Washington and it ended up being some guy right here in San Antonio Texas. And if I remember right his name was George. He didn't look a thing like the likeness on the quarters.
There has been lots and lots of talk about Lincoln with the past year being an election year and so much about Obama trying to emulate Lincoln. As a matter of fact, I saw an article today that had general public ratings of all the American Presidents and most people now rank Lincoln #1.
I know Presidents Day is a lame made-up holiday because they couldn't stand having Washington's and Lincoln's birthdays so close together and giving people both days off work, but it was also recently Rutherford B. Hayes birthday as well. No one knows that, do they? Believe it or don't, I learned a LOT about him while living in Argentina. He is the most beloved person in Paraguay because of his being asked to be an impartial arbitrator in a border dispute between Paraguay and Argentina. They presented all the facts to him and he pondered and perused and voted Paraguay the winner. So Paraguay went and named a district after him, a city after him, a soccer team after him and I think even a river or lake or something. And every year they have Rutherford B. Hayes day and commemorate this event. Does it strike you as odd that a whole country of people in South America know more about this U.S. President than most of the U.S. does? It did me! What's even cuter is the way they say "Ah-jes" for Hayes. I love it! Here is a link to an article that was published about this year's celebrations: http://www.freep.com/article/20090215/NEWS07/90215007
Another little known fact about George Washington is that the absolute biggest, grandest, most exciting Washington Birthday events are held each year in Laredo, Texas. I know. Digest THAT for a minute. We know good and well he never slept THERE! But yes, they love GW over in Laredo. Here is a link to the annual GW Birthday celebration:
http://www.wbcalaredo.org/home/
So Happy Presidents Day! Whichever President you are celebrating and whatever kind of mattress you end up buying! :)
Mattress stores (and furniture stores, in general) definitely pull out their calendar at the start of each year and circle any/every holiday that they can take advantage of to create annoying commercials/promotions.
ReplyDeletePresidential mattresses...I feel like I saw the bed that Lincoln died on at some point, on some tour I went on as a child. I don't think Mattress Firm carries that particular model anymore.
Really interesting presidential trivia! Thanks for the links.
FYI-Lincoln died on the floor of the box at Ford's Theater, being craddled in the arms of Laura Keene, who was a featured actress in "Our American Cousin", the play the Lincolns where attending that evening. He died shortly after being shot and never left the theater alive. I know all this because the American Flag(that was draped on the presidential theater box that night)she folded under his head as he lay dying is in the collection of the Pike County Historical Society in the little town we lived for 14 yrs., Milford PA. The stage manager at the theater took the flag after Lincoln was moved across the street and gave it to his daughter before his death, who settled in Milford pa & then passed it down to her son(who also settled in Milford). He donated it to the Historical Society in the 1950's along with it's oral history.
ReplyDeleteThat is quite interesting about Hayes. Thanks for the info!
Have you ever heard about Los Confederados in Brazil?
Man, that city in TX does love 'em some Washington, huh?lol
We are partial to Washington in my family, as #2 son was born on Washington's birthday. ;-)