DayStrider: Tales from a Time Traveler

Nov 27th: "X" Marks the Spot

• Truman Pastworthy • Episode 3

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November 27th is a day that celebrates many wonderful treasures!  Sometimes, these gems are like the gift that keeps on giving, while others are out there taunting us to come take hold!  Make time to explore the richness that occurred on this day in history: 

  • The “birth” of a wonderful American Thanksgiving tradition,
  • The “birth” of an enlightening and inspiring annual institution, and
  • The discovery of the greatest sunken treasure / shipwreck of all time.   

If it's a special day for you or for someone you care about, make time to learn a little more about today by listening to some fun, engaging stories.  AND, if you need some great gift ideas, we have those too (and we’ve made it easy to find them with some Amazon links down below).

If you’d like to know more about the Parade or the Prize, you can get “official” here (these links worked in late 2023 - not sure how long they will remain available):


Gift ideas for folks who celebrate November 27th for any reason:

  • There are several coffee table books celebrating the Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade with pictures and stories
  • Keeping with the book theme, there are books by folks who have won the Nobel Prize and then others by folks who did not.
  • Last book suggestion, I promise!  There’s books about the San Jose that are fascinating!
  • November 27th is Bavarian Cream Pie Day - but making that cream filling can be challenging.  You can save time by buying some to be delivered.
  • It’s also Adopt A Turtle Day.  Maybe a real live turtle isn’t ideal, but how ‘bout turtle jewelry, turtle stuffed animals, turtle decor or some fun turtle t-shirts!

Full disclosure:  If you use these gift idea links and make a purchase, I will make a small commission.

My promise:  Every penny will be reinvested into this podcast to help it grow and flourish . . . or perhaps even to help spawn new podcasts.

~~~   DayStrider Fun   ~~~

Text me your favorite time travel movie!!!


~~~ DayStrider Fun ~~~


Do you want to be mentioned here in the podcast? Or do you want me to do a shout-out for a loved one? All you need to do is send me an e-mail: daystriderstories@gmail.com


Better yet, you can record your own shout-out by leaving me a voice message using this SpeakPipe link


Do you have a story that you wish to share? Join me as a guest and let’s tell the world together! Once again, just send me an e-mail or find me here on Facebook: Truman Pastworthy


If you had as much fun listening as I did creating this episode, please click "follow" in your favorite podcast platform . . . oh . . . and even better - why not share it with a friend (or three)! I’m betting you know just the perfect person who would enjoy today’s stories!


If you feel adventurous, how 'bout writing a great review? :-)



SPEAKER_02:

Hey, Knowledge Seeker! What does exploding dynamite, sunken Spanish gold, and giant floating cartoon characters all have in common? Hmm? Well, they're all part of an extraordinary day that changed the world, November 27th. Yeah, you want to hear some tales about how today is ground zero for some annual traditions that enrich our lives? Well, come stride through history with me. We'll kick off our journey in New York City, where the Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade transforms the streets into a carnival of giant balloons and marching bands, culminating in the arrival of the one and only Santa Claus. Then brace yourself as we stride across the Atlantic to hear how an inventor... haunted by his own deadly creation of dynamite, sought redemption by creating something far more explosive, the Nobel Prize. And then, batten down the hatches, you scallywags, because we're setting sail for Cartagena, where the holy grail of all sunken treasure rests at the bottom of the sea. Just waiting. Yep, and we'll return you to your normal self with a bit more knowledge and some great stories to share with others. And by the end of our journey, you'll see how November 27th isn't just another date on the calendar. It's a showcase of humanity's ability to create, celebrate, and uncover the wonders around us. The portal's humming. History's waiting, and we've got some stories that need to be told. So, let's get to it. Welcome, seekers, to the enchanting world of Daystrider, a podcast where we embark on a daily journey through history. I'm your travel guide, Truman Pastworthy, and together, we'll explore some fascinating stories that happened on this exact day but from some time in the past. From groundbreaking inventions to remarkable birthdays and extraordinary events to quirky national holidays, we've got it all. So kick back, relax, and open your mind for some lighthearted stories that'll leave you saying, huh, I never knew that happened on this day. Alrighty then, let's get to it. On Thanksgiving morning, when you're either preparing that big huge meal or waiting around for Grandma to prepare it, hopefully you have the TV turned on. And if you do, hopefully you're tuned in to the great American holiday tradition. If you have no idea what I'm talking about, then maybe you should turn on the Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade and join in the fun. The very first Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade took place today, November 27, 1924, almost 100 years ago. And not surprisingly, it was called the Christmas Parade at that time, and why not, since Macy's is a department store and they're trying to drive holiday spending. In 1924, they finished the expansion of their Herald Square store, which took up the entire city block in New York City, and they were claiming it as the world's largest store at the time. And so they wanted to celebrate. And they asked the store's employees, who were first-generation employee immigrants, many of them, to join in and participate in that very first parade. And they wanted to evoke that street festival feel that many of those European immigrants celebrated in their home countries. So that first parade also had live animals from the Central Park Zoo, such as lions, monkeys, and camels. True. And also it had two bears in cages wrestling with clowns. It was a huge success, and about 100,000 viewers motivated Macy's to say, hey, we're going to do this every year, especially as they saw many of the parade watchers join in behind Santa's sleigh at the end, making it a huge spectacle. Today's Macy's Parade runs along a two-and-a-half-mile route through New York City. It includes over 8,000 Macy's employees and performers. Along with them are 12 marching bands, the cast of multiple Broadway shows, and of course the Rockettes. More than 3.5 million people line up along the parade route to watch the spectacle. And more than 50 million people actually watch it on TV. That's pretty crazy. Quick note about those marching bands. So they come from all around the nation. They could be high school, college, or otherwise. They submit their applications in February, and by May of each year, they're selected for the following year. So back in May of 2023, the bands that were selected, they won't get to participate in the Macy's Day Parade until next year, 2024. That's pretty crazy. So let's talk a little bit about the stars of the show, other than Santa, of course. Those are the Macy's Day balloons. In that very first parade, the balloons were filled with air, regular normal oxygen, and held up by poles above the crowd. But they quickly pivoted to helium the next year so they'd get them to float. And in those early years, they actually released the helium-filled balloons at the end of the parade and let them just float around New York City until they landed, you know, ran out of helium and landed, and then the people who found them were rewarded with Macy's gift cards. But this foolishness only lasted five years, and they canceled it in 1932. When deflated, the balloons weigh over 400 pounds, so that's going to need a lot of helium to get those things floating. Macy's is the second largest stockpile of helium in the entire world, after the U.S. government. Can you believe that? And of course, the larger balloons take almost 90 minutes to inflate. One interesting note for the engineers in the crowd, SpongeBob was actually the very first square balloon. He's a feat of engineering because most balloons are spherical shaped, and so there must be some rigging inside to keep SpongeBob's sides and top flat. exactly in the shape of a rectangle. They would not share how they did that. The person in charge of each balloon is called its pilot, and they walk the entire parade route backwards. And the pilot leads between 45 to 90 handlers. That's the folks helping with the balloon, depending on the size of the balloon. And as you can imagine, from time to time, the wind can be a factor. And the balloons could either get canceled, or in some years, it's not bad enough to cancel the balloons, but that some balloons get injured by bumping into or scraping against lampposts along the parade route. And then finally, Macy's actually owns every single one of those balloons, and they have a special place where they make them and a special place where they store them. So the parade has been running for 96 years as of this podcast. The 97th annual parade occurs in 2023. That means several of those parades would have occurred also on this day, November 27th. There were actually nine of them. Some trivia from some of those on the 26th annual, which is on this day in 1952, that happened to be the last Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade not telecast. So NBC started telecasting the parades the following year and every year since. The 32nd annual, which is on this day in 1958, there was a helium shortage that year, and so the balloons were filled with regular air, and they were just carried along by very tall wheeled towers, like the cherry pickers things. And this was also the first year the Rockettes made their very first appearance, and then they've kept their special spot in the lineup ever since. Some other items of note, Macy's won't release how much the parade cost at stage every year. Experts estimate that it's close to$15 million to pull that parade off. And of course, we also have no idea what the ad revenues come in from the parade. The parade was suspended for three years during World War II. Due to the demand for rubber and helium, Macy's elected not to put the parade on. But COVID didn't stop the parade. No way. The parade still happened even during COVID. Once the parade became televised, they changed the parade route to make it more TV-friendly. That shouldn't shock anyone. And of course, as it should be, Santa is always the very last person in the parade. Ho, ho, ho! Merry Christmas! Sometimes, great things have very weird beginnings. For example, one of the most prestigious awards given in the world today was sparked by a very unusual mistake. An inventor of many different facets of explosives, culminating with the invention of dynamite, is our main character in this story. His invention was made and sold around the world, leading to a successful and very profitable business. But of course, dynamite was also very dangerous, and when mishandled, could accidentally explode and injure many, if not everybody, who's in the nearby area. So dynamite is a great tool, but it also has a very bad reputation. So one day, soon after the inventor's brother died, he was sitting there reading the paper and saw the obituary, and it said, the merchant of death is dead. So apparently the newspaper got the wrong brother, and they were writing about our inventor. Imagine what that must have felt like if you're sitting there reading the paper, and you come across your own scathing obituary calling you the merchant of death. This might have contributed to what our inventor did next. He's very wealthy. He had no wife or children and no other major family members to speak of. And he was also inspired by people like his former secretary and office manager, who was a leading peace activist. And he decided he wanted to leave a lasting legacy for the world, not just his circle of friends and family or employees, but for the entire world. So on this day in 1895, He signed his last will and testament and left the bulk of his fortune to be awarded annually to folks who changed the world in some positive way. So rather than just lecture you about the inventor and what followed, let's pretend we're going to watch a movie simply called The Nobel Prize. Our movie will start with some orchestra sounds, you know, big, like Star Wars-type orchestra music to get you all energized, and then the words start floating on the screen, a la Star Wars. Long ago, in a country far, far away, a great inventor passed and left his fortune to the most brave and brainy souls of the galaxy. So on this day in 1895, Alfred Nobel signed his last will and testament and left about$160 million in today's money to the Norwegian parliament. And it was to be awarded annually to folks who changed the world in some positive way. Now, after his death, about a year later, the will made its way to Parliament, and the Parliament formed the Norwegian Nobel Committee, and it was their job to nominate the winners and award this pile of moolah. Of course, Alfred Nobel also left them a set of rules to be followed for this Nobel Prize. So our movie would have 575 stops along the way. There are different types of Nobel Prizes that can be awarded in science and literature and Peace Prize. But we're going to get out our TiVo remote and skip through to some of the great parts over the last 122 years. And then maybe someday you can go back and watch the entire movie. So the most notable early discovery was radioactive. Literally, radiation. So the scene features Marie Curie. who was shared a quest for knowledge, an unyielding spirit as she discovered radioactivity. And her work did revolutionize the atomic world. And oh, by the way, she was the first woman to win a Nobel Prize. And oh, by the way, she was also in the elite club of people who won a second Nobel Prize. She won it eight years after that first one. Now, our movie has some glitches during the 1920s and again during the 1940s, as the events of World War I and II made it difficult for people to, quote-unquote, make the world a better place. But in an unusual plot twist, our movie is going to land us in jail, in a jail cell alongside Nelson Mandela, as he was struggling to make strides peacefully to end apartheid, which is official segregation in South Africa. And he was successfully able to do so. Our movie's next drive takes us to Pakistan, where Malala Yousafzai was fighting for girls' rights to get an education. Now, at that time, she was 17 and the youngest person to ever win a Nobel Prize. And believe it or not, as part of her efforts to try to get rights of education for young women, she was actually shot in the head on a bus by a Taliban member in a failed assassination attempt because they didn't want females to have an education. Fortunately, Malala still continues to write books and is making a movie currently to inspire young activists all around the world. Now, since the Nobel Prize committee still has lots of money to give away, our movie is going to end now with a To Be Continued. And I know, that was a really quick jaunt through the many winners that included some very famous other names, such as Einstein, Mother Teresa, Hemingway, Pavlov, that's the one with the dogs, Thank you for watching. Come on, selection committee, get it right. Almost one-third of the winners were from the United States, which is pretty impressive if you're an American. And of course, the youngest winner I already mentioned was 17, and the oldest winner was 97, proving that you can still make a difference no matter how old you are. If you're like me, you're sitting at the movie, waiting for all the credits to go by and see what happens. Well, you're in luck. Your wait was worth it. After the credits, we have a cameo from Barack Obama, a Nobel Peace Prize winner as well, to inspire the world to make changing efforts.

SPEAKER_01:

Well, you know, it's a fascinating question we're facing today. Not long after Alfred Nobel set aside his funds for a prize, Joseph Pulitzer did the same thing, and, well, he created the Pulitzer Prize. Now, in today's society, We've got some incredibly wealthy folks out there, folks like Bill Gates, Warren Buffett, Elon Musk, who have amassed substantial wealth. The question is, what will they do with that wealth to make the world a better place as we move further into the 21st century? Could we perhaps envision the Gates Prize, the Buffett Prize, or even the Musk Prize It's a thought that's been on my mind, and it's something we should all be considering as we drift into the rest of this century. These individuals have the means to make a significant impact, and I believe it's important for them to step up and contribute to the betterment of our world.

SPEAKER_02:

Now, full transparency here, that is Barack Obama's voice, but I cloned it using an 11 Labs software tool. Thank you for watching. the battle that caused the treasure to go missing in the first place. Well, sit down and enjoy the makings of the Holy Grail of all shipwrecks and the largest treasure hunt in history. Our story begins in the Caribbean Sea off the coast of Cartagena, Colombia and the surrounding waters. Our hero, Captain Charles Wager, is stationed off the coast of Jamaica in his fine ship called the Expedition. He's been a skilled captain for 16 years and at the age of 42, he's been thinking about calling it a career as a sailor. He's got his network of spies out gathering intelligence, and he learned that a French squadron of ten ships is stalking the waters near Havana, Cuba, north of Jamaica. And they are believed to be waiting there for the Spanish galleons that normally port in Havana before heading overseas to Spain with loads of gold, silver, and jewels. Captain Wager, his crew, and the two ships in his fleet, the Kingston and the Portland, Haven't seen action in some time. Everybody's getting a little edgy. They want some action. One of his spy ships just berthed alongside the expedition, and the messenger walked up to the captain with some news that they finally got eyes on a small Spanish fleet of maybe a dozen ships pulling into Cartagena. It's about a three-day sail. Wager grabbed the messenger and hugged him heartily. Finally, someone got eyes on those ships. Surely it includes the San Jose, the biggest hauler of loot and booty of all time. You see, the Spanish conquistadors have been spreading out up and down the New Americas and mining gold and silver all throughout the countryside, or stealing it from local tribes. Depends on who you ask, right? To bring it back to King Felipe V and the mother country. But they've been elusive, and they travel in small flotillas, and then eventually they group together in Havana, Cuba, where they form a large armada, and then they sail safely across the Atlantic. Captain Wager was excited and he quickly assembled the captains and lieutenants and they discussed their options. After some debate, they decided to depart at first light and make haste south to cut off the Rapscallions on their way north before the French could do anything about it. If the wind was with them, they could be in position by Thursday night so that on Friday they could surprise the Spaniards once they were far enough out to sea and that would prevent them from turning back to the stronghold fort at Cartagena. All day Tuesday and Wednesday and Thursday as the ships were sailing, the crew readied themselves for battle. They hadn't had a battle in a while. Cannonballs were stacked, gunpowder was readied, firing implements were all set up beside the cannons, and the cannons were oiled and ready to go. This was going to be the big one. Captain Charles even ordered that all alcohol be rationed. He didn't want any drunkenness on this voyage or hangovers that Friday morning. He wanted everyone ready for a fight. Now, based on the navigator's readings, all was going to be ready. And that Thursday night, they put in the anchor and they waited. Eve of battle. Everyone was excited. Wager felt confident that tomorrow would be the day. But if the Spanish slipped past him without a trace, it wouldn't be the first time. So anxiety was building. And then, of course, it started raining. And at dawn it was still raining, but they brought up the anchors and the three ships fanned out and started searching in the rain. The winds weren't great, but it was in the British favor. It wasn't long until sighting was called down. Ship ahoy! This was it, finally some action. The three-ship fleet took chase and the Spanish flotilla of 17 ships changed course immediately to head back to Cartagena. They only had three warships, and the rest were all smaller merchant ships, so they were no match for Wager's fleet of cannons. Also, it was clear that several in the flotilla were loaded down with cargo, and so they were very slow in the water. And Wager's fleet caught up quickly, and by late afternoon, it was clear to the Spaniards that they would have to stop running and turn for the fight. By now, they were off the coast of Beru, but there just wasn't enough time to make it to safety. Wager piloted the expedition into position, passed some of the smaller merchant ships to attack the San Jose first, like I said, the biggest ship in the flotilla and likely the one with the most loot. His gunners were experts, and he turned his ship in such a way to take advantage of the rolling seas and make the most of his cannons. A little after 3 p.m., boom, the first shot of wager's action was fired. The English fleet all attacked the San Jose relentlessly, one after another, as they sailed past, cannons booming, smell of gunpowder in the air, and smoke floating everywhere. Now, this fighting lasted for hours because shooting ships from a moving ship using not-so-accurate cannons takes a long time to actually get hits and then make those hits be worth the damage that they're making. So just as the nighttime was falling, one of Wager's gunners fired what turned out to be a fatal blow and the one that would cause the ship to elude being captured. That shot burst into the San Jose's gunpowder stores and a huge blast, boom, lit up the evening sky. And in mere minutes, the San Jose was sinking along with piles of gold and silver coins and crates of jewels lost to the sea. Also lost were 589 crew members on that ship. Only 11 people survived the blast and the sinking. Wager was frustrated and disappointed. The mother of all treasure ships just gurgled its way to the bottom of the seafloor with all of its booty. But Wager was determined to overcome this disappointment, so he and his crew set sights on the next largest ship as the sea battle raged into the night. Eventually, they were able to capture the ship called the Santa Cruz using grapplings and ropes. and they almost blew it to pieces with cannonball fire. Although it wasn't the San Jose, it was still a good prize. After dividing up the spoils, Wager returned to England a very rich man. His share was 60,000 pounds of silver coins, which amounts to about$17 million in today's money. He was promoted to admiral, he got knighted, and he was regarded as an all-around hero at the time. A couple decades later, They even Christianed a ship, the HMS Wager, after Captain Charles. But that's a whole different story to tell. So sometime after all the dust settled, Charles was sitting back on his deck in Plymouth, England, reflecting on his experience, perhaps smoking a stogie. And he was thinking, no one would ever know what happened to the San Jose. Well, it turns out he was dead wrong. On this day in 2015, the Colombian Navy, with the help of a private research organization out of Massachusetts, found the San Jose. It was their second attempt. They were out in the water searching everywhere near the expected area of the wreck, and they had a Remus 6000 autonomous underwater vehicle searching and searching, and finally they were able to find it on this day in 2015. So when they found it, you'd expect, okay, where's all this treasure? What happened? How did they get it? They haven't. The legal battle has raged ever since. No one's been able to get this treasure out of the water. Why? Well, the lawyers from Colombia claim that it's in their waters and therefore it's their heritage and they should get it. And of course, the lawyers for Spain, they claim that the ship was commissioned by them. So it's Spain's treasure. And then, why not have some more lawyers join in? The Bolivian indigenous group, Cora Cora, claims that it is their gold because the conquistadors mined it out of their lands and stole it from their people. So right now, thanks to the lawyer, all this gold, silver, and jewels sit at the bottom of the ocean, slowly rusting away. It's estimated that this total treasure is$18 billion. How frustrating is that to know that the greatest treasure ship of all time sits at the bottom of the sea? And the only thing we can see are pictures taken by these unmanned underwater vehicles. And there you have it. Let's recap the amazing stories that you can share with your someone special to celebrate November 27th. the breathtaking balloons and the holiday magic of the Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade, Nobel's journey from dynamite to redemption, leaving a legacy that celebrates humanity's best, and the Holy Grail of all shipwrecks, the San Jose, which is actually still hiding its treasure from us all. And if you love today's stories, why not keep the good times rolling? For example, If parade anticipation gives you a festive buzz, then be sure to check out March 17th and get buzzed again on the Paddy's Day parades celebrated all around the world. Feeling inspired by humanity's big wins? You'll love May 21st and the founding of the Red Cross. And for adventure-seeking conquistadors, don't miss September 25th when Vasco de Balboa takes us on a high-stakes journey you won't want to miss. Oh yeah, every day has a story and they're so much fun. We'll stride through them all until we're done. Feedback is a blessing and sometimes a curse. Other times feedback is peculiar. For example, after publishing this episode in 2023, I asked for feedback specifically about Obama's speech during the Nobel prize segment. And I was worried at that time that people would think it was actually Barack Obama and I'd get into trouble. So I made a point to include a disclaimer right at the end of his speech. I mentioned that I had cloned his voice and then used it to deliver a message that I felt passionate about. I thought it was a fun way to play with AI tools. But apparently, I was the only one who was enjoying it. Most folks couldn't even tell that was Obama's voice, even though if you go back and listen, it sounds exactly like him, including his pause-and-go speaking pattern and how he draws out words to make a point. It was crazy to me that no one could tell it was him. Some listeners thought it was me imitating Obama.

UNKNOWN:

Nope.

SPEAKER_02:

Well, that was a year ago. And I wonder if I repeated the experiment, what would happen with today's AI tools? Would it be better? Probably. Anyway, I'd love to get your feedback if you have time. Perhaps you could go back and listen to it again. The timestamp on that would be 15 minutes and nine seconds, roughly. Start there and you'll hear his speech. Anyway, here's the thing about feedback. It teaches us not just how to improve, but how to listen. Sometimes it's not how others perceive us. Instead, it's about what we're willing to learn from their perspective. And me, I've learned that creativity is sometimes a gamble. And guess what? Most of the time, for me, it's a gamble worth taking. After you share these special stories, you can also mention the following famous folks who celebrate their birthdays today. Bill Nye the Science Guy tops our list, and I have no idea where to begin. Fun fact, his mom was a codebreaker during World War II. That's pretty neat. Bill was a Boeing engineer who decided to try comedy, and eventually he got the chance to do short science skits that became popular. And then the rest is history. My favorite Bill Nye experience, his three-year stint working with BattleBots in the early 2000s. That was fun. Robin Givens blows out the candles today. You may remember her roles in Head of the Class, The Woman of Brewster Place, or The Family That Prays. Or you may know of her from her high-profile marriage to Mike Tyson. Some famous people from history? Anders Celsius celebrated today, back in the day. You'll recognize his last name as the temperature scale. And also born today, Jimi Hendrix, the famous guitarist, and Bruce Lee, the famous martial artist and actor. And our 50th most famous person, according to famousbirthdays.com today, it's a weird one. It's Chassie Coffey. What? Well, she happens to be the mother of three children, all of which have their own sort of fame, either on TikTok, Insta, YouTube, or other social media platforms. Peyton Coffey, her daughter, makes hilarious videos. Caleb Coffey, her son, does pranks and lip sync videos on TikTok. And Isaac Coffey is a Vine star with short dancing clips. And apparently they all invite their mom, Chassie, on screen. And so she's been on there enough to become the 50th most famous person born today. How about that? And today is Bavarian Cream Pie Day. This custard-based dessert dates back to the 1600s when French chefs made it for the Princes of Bavaria, which is part of Southeast Germany. Fun fact, the pie wasn't always served in pie crusts like we eat it today. Instead, it was poured into highly decorative molds, which were made of copper or ceramic. And these molds were designed to create visually stunning desserts, such as flowers or heraldic symbols like crowns and coats of arms. That's pretty neat. Today is also Electric Guitar Day. And at first, I thought this was odd. since the first electrical guitar premiered on a different day in history. But then I learned that they selected this day because it's Jimi Hendrix's birthday, as I mentioned. And that now helps because he was famous as an electric guitar player. And you want to hear something really neat? Hendrix strung his right-handed Fender Stratocaster guitars upside down. He flipped them around to play left-handed. So this unconventional approach gave him a unique tone because the string tension and the pickup positions were reversed, producing a sound that no other guitarist could replicate. How about that? November 27th is also Turtle Adoption Day, which is a noble cause for sure. Today celebrates supporting marine life, especially the turtle, to help injured sea turtles as well as protecting their habitats, all those things. And speaking of the sea turtle, when my family was in Maui a while back, our favorite find while snorkeling was the sea turtle. And let me tell you, they might look slow and awkward on land, but in the water, they can really move. I'm talking amazingly fast. All right, so do you need a gift idea for your loved one? Well, in addition to retelling the stories you just learned about on This Day in History, You can have them open up a gift that is customized to their birthday. And I have several great ideas for you. And as always, you can find links to these in the show notes. Often, I mention you can get a unique gift for the person who has everything. And once again, today is no exception. Starting with the Macy's Parade, which has such a rich tradition. And there are some amazing coffee table books that would be a pleasant surprise. I wish you could actually get one of those Macy's balloons. Man, if you had a half a million dollars burning a hole in your pocket, you could afford one. But guess what? They deflate them and crate them. And then they store them away and you can't buy them. Sorry. If your loved one is into human achievement in any way, there are some really great options featuring the Nobel Prize that would be ideal. Now, this wouldn't be your normal picture coffee table book. Now, it would have fantastic reading. So it's actually for people who are into reading the stories instead of looking at the pictures. And then there's the San Jose. There are some cool gifts you can get related to the story about the Holy Grail shipwrecks. Not only books, but actual pirate ship models and all kinds of things. The famous folks that were born today also have some neat gift ideas related to them. Similarly, today's special holidays are ripe with gift ideas. Links to all those can be found in the show notes. And if you really want to up your gift-giving game, you have the chance to make someone's birthday special. You could dedicate a personalized shout-out right here on this podcast, and they'll be memorialized forever. I can do the shout-out for you like I did when I originally published this episode. And here it is. For example, happy birthday, Jen. As in, do you know who I am? I'm Jen FNL, that's who. Or you can do your own shout out using the speak pipe link that's available in the show notes. And you can do that even after the fact. And I'll put it here just like this one.

SPEAKER_00:

Hi, mom. Happy birthday. I just wanted to say that I'm so glad I get to be home to celebrate with you as well as celebrating the holidays. I love you so, so much. And I wouldn't be who I am or where I am without you. Love you.

SPEAKER_02:

Alright, that's a good one. Of course, hopefully her mom knows whose voice that is to be able to recognize it. Anyway, as always, if you have a story that just needs to be shared about any day in the past, send me an email and let's connect. Now as we wrap up, if you couldn't tell, I came back and re-recorded this famous birthday segment about a year after the initial episode was published. And in theory, when you were listening, the intro and this segment have a bit more energy and emotion than the three stories you just heard. So if you've listened to this episode and you've also listened to any episodes published in late 2024 or early 2025, you can probably tell the difference in the stories too, right? The pacing and the energy, all that stuff. And so the trivia question of the day is, should I go back and re-record these stories Maybe brush up the narrative a little? Or should I just let them stand as the original recordings? I'd love to hear your thoughts. Either way, this journey has been loads of fun, and I definitely want to thank you for listening. Your one little download has made my day, whether you know it or not. So thanks so much for listening. I hope you had half as much fun listening as I did creating this episode. Ha ha! Thanks so much for listening. Until next time, this is Truman Pastworthy reminding you that every day has a great story. And we'll be striding through them all to find some more goodies for you. Now get out there and make your own great story today.