Friday, September 11, 2026

9/11 25 Years Later (AKA Patriot Day)

 

Because it's Friday, I'm joining Nicole for Friday Face-Off.  Sadly, there is no Art For Fun today.  This is all about loss, sadness, and hope. 

https://metro.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2026/09/coverimages55989679-de93.jpg?quality=90&strip=all&w=646  The horror of that day still haunts me, even though I didn't know anyone who died in the Twin Towers. 

https://metro.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2026/09/SEI_310634432-2e95.jpg?quality=90&strip=all&w=646  I watched for days on end as the fire brigades and NYC volunteers sifted through the rubble desperately searching for even one living soul.

I can't fathom anyone reading my blog doesn't remember 9/11 and where they were that day.

I write a post every year on 9/11 because we must

 

https://www.dailynews.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/09/sb091017dapr.jpg?w=780 

 

https://www.dailynews.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/09/184618_600.jpg?w=600 

 

  

 9/11 ~ NEVER FORGET | Religio-Political Talk (RPT)  

Taken by Richard Drew via Associated Press ("wikipedia":http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Falling_Man)  

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 Remember 9 11 Drawing by Yasha Harari

Gary Varvel's 9-11 cartoons  

 9/11 Scars, Bush remarks: Darcy cartoons - cleveland.com 

Gary Varvel's 9-11 cartoons 

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Statistics provided by CNN in 2017 (found here)

19: Hijackers of four fuel-loaded U.S. commercial airplanes bound for West Coast destinations

2,977: People killed in New York City, Washington, D.C., and outside Shanksville, Pa.

2,753: People killed at the World Trade Center (WTC) site in Lower Manhattan

343: New York City firefighters who died in the initial attacks and subsequent collapse of the WTC towers

23: New York City police officers who died

37: Port Authority officers who died

2: Age of youngest victim

85: Age of oldest victim

184: People killed when hijacked American Airlines Flight 77 crashed into the Pentagon

40: Passengers and crew killed when United Flight 93 crashed near Shanksville, Pa.

1,641: WTC victims’ remains positively identified as of August 2017

$500,000: Estimated amount of money it cost to plan and execute the attacks

$123 billion: Estimated economic loss during the first two to four weeks after the WTC towers collapsed in New York City, as well as decline in airline travel over next few years

$60 billion: Estimated cost of the WTC site damage, including surrounding buildings, infrastructure and subway facilities

3.1 million: Hours of labor to clean up 1.8 million tons of debris

$750 million: Total cost of cleanup

22: Governmental agencies rolled into a single Department of Homeland Security, including the Customs Service, the Immigration and Naturalization Service, the Coast Guard and the Federal Emergency Management Agency, after 9/11

Statistics provided by NY Magazine on the anniversary in 2002 (for NYC only)

The initial numbers are indelible: 8:46 a.m. and 9:02 a.m. Time the burning towers stood: 56 minutes and 102 minutes. Time they took to fall: 12 seconds. 

  • Total number killed in attacks in New York: 2,753

  • Number of firefighters and paramedics killed: 343

  • Number of NYPD officers: 23

  • Number of Port Authority police officers: 37

  • Number of WTC companies in the towers that lost people: 128

  • Number of employees who died in Tower One: 1,402

  • Number of employees who died in Tower Two: 614

  • Number of employees lost at Cantor Fitzgerald: 658

  • Number of U.S. troops killed in Operation Enduring Freedom: 2,343

  • Number of nations whose citizens were killed in attacks: 115

  • Ratio of men to women who died: 3:1

  • Age of the greatest number who died: between 35 and 39

  • Bodies found "intact": 291

  • Remains found: 21,906

  • Number of families who got no remains: 1,717

  • Estimated units of blood donated to the New York Blood Center: 36,000

  • Total units of donated blood actually used: 258

  • Number of people who lost a spouse or partner in the attacks: 1,609

  • Estimated number of children who lost a parent: 3,051

  • Percentage of Americans who knew someone hurt or killed in the attacks: 20

  • FDNY retirements, January–July 2001: 274

  • FDNY retirements, January–July 2002: 661

  • Number of firefighters on leave for respiratory problems by January 2002: 300

  • Number of funerals attended by Rudy Giuliani in 2001: 200

  • Number of FDNY vehicles destroyed: 98

  • Tons of debris removed from site: 1.8 million

  • Days fires continued to burn after the attack: 99

  • Jobs lost in New York owing to the attacks: 146,100

  • Days the New York Stock Exchange was closed: 6

  • Point drop in the Dow Jones industrial average when the NYSE reopened: 684.81

  • Days after 9/11 that the U.S. began bombing Afghanistan: 26

  • Total number of civil rights complaints reported to the Council on American-Islamic Relations nationwide from 2002 to 2008: 12,962

  • Economic loss to New York in month following the attacks: $105 billion

  • Estimated cost of cleanup: $600 million

  • Total FEMA money spent on the emergency: $970 million

  • Estimated amount donated to 9/11 charities: $1.4 billion

  • Estimated amount of insurance paid worldwide related to 9/11: $40.2 billion

  • Estimated amount of money needed to overhaul lower-Manhattan subways: $7.5 billion

  • Amount of money granted by U.S. government to overhaul lower-Manhattan subways: $4.55 billion

  • Estimated amount of money raised for funds dedicated to NYPD and FDNY families: $500 million

  • Percentage of total charity money raised going to FDNY and NYPD families: 25

  • Average benefit already received by each FDNY and NYPD widow: $1 million

  • Percentage increase in law-school applications from 2001 to 2002: 17.9

  • Percentage increase in Peace Corps applications from 2001 to 2002: 40

  • Percentage increase in CIA applications from 2001 to 2002: 50

  • Number of songs Clear Channel Radio considered "inappropriate" to play after 9/11: 150

  • Number of mentions of 9/11 at the 2002 Oscars: 26

  • Apartments in lower Manhattan eligible for asbestos cleanup: 23,000

  • Number of apartments whose residents have requested cleanup and testing: 4,167

  • Number of Americans who changed their 2001 holiday-travel plans from plane to train or car: 1.4 million

  • Estimated number of New Yorkers suffering from post-traumatic-stress disorder as a result of 9/11: 422,000 
  •  22: Governmental agencies rolled into a single Department of Homeland Security, including the Customs Service, the Immigration and Naturalization Service, the Coast Guard and the Federal Emergency Management Agency, after 9/11 

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Patriot Day 2026 is observed on September 11 to remember those who were injured or died during the terrorist attacks in the United States on September 11, 2001. It is not a public holiday, but many people participate in ceremonies and moments of silence to honor the victims.

I'm also joining Nicole at Friday Face OFF

Friday Face OFF

I will never forget and I hope you will share your experience, too. 


Monday, September 7, 2026

T Stands For Two Croissants

 

 

Please join me at my dining room table for T.  I'll begin with my drink which is orange juice from Sam's.
 

I made a ton of tuna salad using ranch dressing instead of mayonnaise.  
 
I decided to fill two croissants purchased recently at Sam's, with the homemade albacore tuna salad.  Now I have one for later (probably tomorrow) and one to eat right away.
 
It's your turn to share your own drink related post.  It can be gifts you received, photos, a place you visited, movies, postcards, mail art, junk mail, catalogs, books, sketches, mixed media, drawings, paintings, tags, scrapbooking, or other art that is digital, hybrid, or traditional, as long as it in some way relates back to a drink, any drink.  Regardless, please share below and Bleubeard and I, along with the rest of the T gang will be by to visit.   Please link only your T post and not your blog in general.  Bleubeard would like to remind you that old photos are acceptable because they may be taken any time, not just on Tuesday and most assuredly not just this year.   

 

 

 

Happy Labor Day to everyone in the USA

 

Labor Day is a federal holiday in the United States.  There is no set day for the event, other than it is celebrated on the first Monday in September.  

https://external-content.duckduckgo.com/iu/?u=https%3A%2F%2Ftse4.mm.bing.net%2Fth%2Fid%2FOIP.u4C_W5xKaZn0g0Mh8BN6jQHaEK%3Fr%3D0%26pid%3DApi&f=1&ipt=ac7d399d27f8c97a0bf4ed18ce93387eb8eeaee19b0950982021ac8e867fa1cb&ipo=images  Canada's Labour Day is also celebrated on the first Monday of September  

Labor Day originated in the late 19th century during the rise of the labor movement. It was created to celebrate the achievements and contributions of workers.  The holiday became an official federal holiday in 1894, following a period of labor unrest and strikes that highlighted the need for better working conditions.

https://external-content.duckduckgo.com/iu/?u=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.publicdomainpictures.net%2Fpictures%2F530000%2Fnahled%2Fimage-16932120293qh.jpg&f=1&nofb=1&ipt=fd8e21f3dd4a2cc375fb83ff2d1995b1db9b0962596ba97ab2622c147cda72e2  The holiday symbolizes the contributions of workers to the development and achievements of the United States, making it a significant day in our American culture.  It's a celebration of the social and economic achievements of U.S. workers. 

Vintage Labor Day Nostalgia A Tribute to Hard Work and Dedication ... 

According to the Department of Labor

Before it was a federal holiday, Labor Day was recognized by labor activists and individual states. After municipal ordinances were passed in 1885 and 1886, a movement developed to secure state legislation. New York was the first state to introduce a bill, but Oregon was the first to pass a law recognizing Labor Day, on February 21, 1887. During 1887, four more states – Colorado, Massachusetts, New Jersey and New York – passed laws creating a Labor Day holiday. By the end of the decade Connecticut, Nebraska and Pennsylvania had followed suit. By 1894, 23 more states had adopted the holiday, and on June 28, 1894, Congress passed an act making the first Monday in September of each year a legal holiday. 

https://www.dol.gov/sites/dolgov/files/general/images/FirstLaborDay-large.jpg   The day is often celebrated with parades, speeches, and parties.

 

Sunday, September 6, 2026

If it's Sunday, it's Rocking Horses

 

If you live in the States, my comments won't publish.  I suspect you have noticed that, too.  Nicole was the one who clued me in to the problem.  Please be aware, I visit, regardless.  It appears the only people able to publish their comments live outside the states.  It appears this problem has been corrected.

It's time for me to share a few more rocking horses.  Today I'm joining Nicole for Sunday in the Art Room or SITAR, and Gillena with Sunday Smiles

As I explained the last time we visited my guest bedroom, there are over 100 rocking horses in this room.  The first week I showed pillows, the second I showed stuffed rocking horses.  Today I have a mixed bag.
 

Speaking of bags, how about this one with a rocking horse and beaded handles.
 

This is my heaviest and most expensive.  This is solid brass and weighs a ton.  This horse cost $465.00 (USD), but all I paid was the first $45.00.  I placed it on layaway about a month before Christmas right before I moved to Wichita, KS.  When friends asked what I wanted for Christmas, I told them to put whatever they liked to the layaway.  I told the company holding the rocking horse to take the person's name, but not what they donated to the horse.  I had put the entire amount away to buy it, just in case no one left any money.  Nearly a week before I planned to pick up the horse, I got a call from the company telling me to come pick up the horse.  It had been paid in full.  I had the names of the people who contributed money to the horse.  They were all friends I already had gifts picked out and wrapped for them.  I was truly blown away!!!  This was the gift of a lifetime.
 
We are now back to this hand towel.  As you can see, my rocking horses come in all shapes and sizes.  BTW, all my wood is quartersawn oak.
 
Thanks for visiting today.  Also, please join me at 
 
 and  
 

 

 

Friday, September 4, 2026

The visit


Because it's Friday, I'm joining Nicole for Friday Face-Off and Gillena for Art For Fun Friday. 

Friends were in town over the Labor Day weekend.  I was thrilled they stopped by.  We spent about three hours catching up.  It was as they were leaving I thought to take photos of their visit.
 


I didn't realize how cluttered my house (walls) looked until I saw these photos.
 
I'm also joining Nicole at Friday Face OFF, and Gillena at Art For Fun Friday.
 

Friday Face OFF   

Please visit Bleubeard and me today at these two art blogs. 

 
 

Wednesday, September 2, 2026

Second on the 2nd: Autumn

 

As most of you know, whenever possible, I like my Second Look to somehow reflect what our current host at Art Journal Journey is featuring.  That means I had to look for something that reflected Hello Autumn as requested by Sharon Fritchman who is known as That Girl Fritchey.  This second look is from October 1, 2024 and was also an AJJ entry.

Autumn has arrived in all its glory and that means the leaves are changing.  The hot colors of summer are giving way to the yellows, oranges, and browns of autumn.  I have a few detail images below.







I began by spritzing and painting yellow spray mist onto 110 lb cardstock.  When dry, I laid real leaves I had dried onto the page.  I then spritzed with copper, but the color was not what I expected.  That's when I used colors called Raisin and Cranberry over the leaves, which by this time had become rather colorful.  
 
I then scrunched a small tag and sprayed it with one of my blue/green shimmering mists.  When dry, I added the image of Eleanor of Aquitaine to the tag.  I then positioned the tag to the background and added the real leaves to the page.

Now it's time to share your own Second on the 2nd.  The rules are quite simple and everyone is welcome to join the fun look back.  All you have to do is bring back a post that you are especially proud of, or perhaps one you shared before anyone knew your blog existed.  It could even be one that holds special meaning.  Any post, any genre, any artistic endeavor is acceptable, as long as it's been published sometime in the past.  Then link below (direct links only, please) and Bleubeard and I, along with other Second on the 2nd friends, will be by to visit. 
 

You are invited to the Inlinkz link party!

Click here to enter