86

the 10th of April

‎"A grave blockhead should always go about w/ a lively one; they show one another off to the best advantage."

"As is our confidence, so is our capacity"

English writer, William Hazlitt, b. 1778

Wm. shares his birthday with Commodore Matthew Perry, Lew Wallace [Civil War veteran, author of the saga of Ben Hur], Joseph Pulitzer, that snotty, ambitious, clever Claire Boothe Luce, 96-yr-old actor Harry Morgan who was in about 2 million movies, labor activists Frances Perkins, the 1st female Cabinet Sec'y [of Labor] & Dolores Huerta, Omar Sharif; and my sister.

It was 49 years ago last night. I sat up on the stairs watching Mom, in her robe (pin-wale corduroy, it was. bright turquoise, her best color), pacing past our pink wall phone, over in the next block @ 715 N. Cottage...fixing to call Dad or the doctor, go to the hospital. They let me name the new baby. Laura [after Laura Ingalls Wilder] Jeanne Harness. My sad-dork 11-yr-old self didn't much like her. Jealous.

I do now.