#National Library of Sweden

[thirddoctor]

cursed with a disease that makes me super dedicated to the most useless tasks, like trying to track down extremely obscure comics for an already obscure cartoon from 25 years ago

[doyoulikethissong-poll]

ABBA - Dancing Queen 1975

"Dancing Queen" is a song by the Swedish group ABBA, released as the lead single from their fourth studio album, Arrival (1976). It was written by Benny Andersson, Björn Ulvaeus and Stig Anderson. Andersson and Ulvaeus also produced the song. It was a worldwide number 1 hit, topping the charts in more than a dozen countries including ABBA's native Sweden (where it spent 14 weeks at the top), Australia, Belgium, Brazil, Canada, West Germany, the UK, Ireland, Mexico, the Netherlands, New Zealand, Norway, South Africa, and Rhodesia. "Dancing Queen" also topped the charts in the US, ABBA's only number 1 on the Billboard Hot 100, and was a Top 5 hit in Austria, Finland, France, and Switzerland. The song sold over three million copies. The track was the fourth biggest single of 1976 in the UK.

Musically, "Dancing Queen" is a Europop version of American disco music. As disco music dominated the US charts, the group decided to follow the trend, replicating Phil Spector's Wall of Sound arrangements. Andersson and Ulvaeus have cited George McCrae's "Rock Your Baby" as a source of inspiration for the style of the song. For their 1980 Spanish-language compilation-album Gracias Por La Música, ABBA recorded a Spanish version of "Dancing Queen", renamed "Reina Danzante", with Spanish lyrics provided by Buddy and Mary McCluskey. The track was retitled "La Reina Del Baile" when included on the compilation album ABBA Oro: Grandes Éxitos in the 1990s.

For the soundtrack of the 1994 Australian film Muriel's Wedding, songwriters Ulvaeus and Andersson allowed the use of "Dancing Queen" and other ABBA hits. "Dancing Queen" was among the ABBA songs included in Mamma Mia!, the jukebox musical first produced in 1999 and adapted into film in 2008, as well as the sequel, Mamma Mia! Here We Go Again (2018).

"Dancing Queen" was chosen as #148 on the Recording Industry Association of America's Songs of the Century list. It was ranked #171 on Rolling Stone's 2004 list of The 500 Greatest Songs of All Time. In 2000, editors of Rolling Stone with MTV compiled a list of the best 100 pop songs; "Dancing Queen" placed 12th among songs of the 1970s. In 2023, it was ranked #2 on Billboard's list of The 500 Best Pop Songs. In June 2015, "Dancing Queen" was inducted into the Recording Academy's Grammy Hall of Fame. In 2022, "Dancing Queen" received a BMI Million-Air award, having been played 6 million times on radio in the US. Two years later, it was inducted into the Library of Congress's National Recording Registry. The music video was directed by film director Lasse Hallström, and it had over 800 million views on Youtube as of December 2023.

"Dancing Queen" received a total of 93,4% yes votes! Previous ABBA polls: #361 "Waterloo".

[woso-dreamzzz]

Platonic Masterlist

+ - Child!Reader

*- Teen!Reader

Aitana Bonmatí x Reader

Estrella's Stars Masterlist +

Alessia Russo x Reader

Tesoro's Mirror Masterlist +

Blood Sugar III * -> You join Alessia's team

Alexia Putellas x Reader

The Little Bambi Ballerina Masterlist +

Pequeñita's Chinchilla Masterlist +

Alexia x Teen!Reader Fics

Mija's Footballs Masterlist +

Alexia Putellas + Jenni Hermoso x Reader

Alexia + Jenni x Teen!Reader Fics

Arsenal Women x Reader

Arsenal Women Masterlist

Barcelona Femení x Reader

Barcelona Femení Masterlist

Beth Mead x Vivianne Miedema x Reader

Liefje's Aquarium Masterlist +

Munchkin's First Aid Kit Masterlist +

Foster * -> You're taken to a new home

Foster II * -> Your first visitation

Foster III * -> You can't stop shaking

Crossover Masterlist

Ellie Carpenter x Daniëlle van de Donk x Reader

Pipsqueak's Teasing Masterlist +

England Lionesses x Reader

Blood Sugar * -> You have a hypo during a match

Blood Sugar II * -> You go on Bake Off

Idol II * -> Your first call up to the Lionesses

Frida Maanum x Emma Lennartsson x Reader

Squish's Foraging Masterlist +

Fridolina Rolfö x Reader

Frido x Teen!Reader fics

Älskling's Crime Scene Masterlist +

Irene Paredes x Reader

Irene x Teen!Reader fics

Hair + -> You help your Mami when she gets a red

Jenni Hermoso x Reader

Osita's Foxes Masterlist +

Jessie Fleming x Reader

Duckie's Ducks Masterlist +

Katie McCabe x Reader

End of the World + -> You world ends

End of the World II + -> The World Cup tension

End of the World III + -> It's different at Mammy's house

End of the World IV + -> Christmas in Australia

End of the World V + -> The last day in Australia

End of the World VI + -> Your accidents

End of the World VII + -> You spend the day with Ma

Katie McCabe x Caitlin Foord x Reader

Gremlin's Yellow Cards Masterlist +

Katrina Gorry x Reader

Sleep * -> You fall asleep

Sleep II * -> You forget your medication

Bubs' Grumpiness Masterlist +

Keira Walsh x Laura Feiersinger x Reader

Dogs III + -> You meet Laura

Kim Little x Reader

Appendix * -> You need your appendix out

Leah Williamson x Reader

Ballers -> You're more similar than you think

Ballers II -> The National Championship game

Leah Williamson x Jordan Nobbs x Reader

Bug's Hugs Masterlist +

Lucy Bronze x Keira Walsh x Reader

Peanut's Travels Masterlist +

Dogs + -> You meet a different Nala

Bear's Shyness Masterlist +

Chase -> It's impossible to catch up

Lia Wälti x Reader

Helper + -> You're the best helper

Helper II + -> You're sick

Helper III + -> You help your Mummy's girlfriend

Helper IV + -> You show Mariona around

Lucy Bronze x Ona Batlle x Reader

New Girlfriend * -> You adjust to your Mum's new girlfriend

New Girlfriend II* -> Ona's tipsy

New Girlfriend III* -> You make a game

New Girlfriend IV* -> Pokémon card trade night

New Girlfriend V* -> You drop a mug

Dogs II + -> You don't like Ona

Mapi Leon x Ingrid Engen x Reader

Bebita's Bike Masterlist +

Teeny's Hedgehog Masterlist +

Sunshine's Cameras Masterlist +

Cub's Pride Masterlist +

Skatt's Bugs Masterlist +

Mapi x Ingrid x Teen!Reader Fics

Marta Torrejón x Caroline Graham Hansen x Reader

Conejita's Flowers Masterlist +

Mary Earps x Reader

Rugrat's Library Masterlist +

Carnival + -> Mary takes you to the carnival

Carnival II + -> You're homesick

Olympique Lyonnais x Reader

Prodigy * -> A slow morning at baggage claim

Pernille Harder x Magdalena Eriksson x Reader

Hide * -> You can't hide anything from your mothers

Proud * -> Your mothers come to your Arsenal debut

Proud II * -> The London Derby against Chelsea

Proud III * -> The aftermath of the derby

Proud IV * -> The night after the derby

Proud V* -> Your first match for Sweden

Proud VI * -> You join Bayern Munich

Proud VII * -> Your biological parents want a meeting

Proud VIII * -> A friendly against Barcelona

Proud IX * -> After the preseason against Barcelona

Proud X * -> Your reward for Golden Girl

Bully * -> Violence isn't always the answer

Help * -> You're struggling a bit

Sam Kerr x Kristie Mewis x Reader

Chook's Dinosaurs Masterlist +

Steph Catley x Reader

Angel's Hearing Masterlist +

[reine-desideria]

My dearest Désirée, my darling, my radiant northern star, my legally wedded, publicly and spiritually entwined wife—

I hope this message finds you in good health and excellent taste, as always. I write not out of jealousy (though some might, unfairly, accuse me of it), nor out of irrational spite (which is frankly beneath me), but rather out of... gentle concern. And love. And a sense of—national security.

Permit me to speak plainly, for my heart knows no artifice where you are concerned. You reblogged something earlier—yes, yes, I do look at your posts and tags sometimes, it's charming, really—and it was from a person who you may not entirely recall is one of my most persistent lifelong enemies.

Now, I understand it's been some time, and memory can be a fickle thing, but the man you reblogged from—Louis-Nicolas Davout, Marshal of the Empire, bane of my existence, eater of joy and sunshine—is that Davout. The one with the glare, and no friends. That Davout.

To summarize, he is a terrible, horrible, insufferable man with a heart made of iron filings, nothing more than a grudge-bearing automaton powered by malice and regulation. I dislike him greatly. He dislikes me greatly. It's mutual, passionate, and, I fear, eternal.

Which brings me back to your tag. “hello <3”

Darling.

Sweetheart.

Light of my diplomatic balancing act.

He doesn’t deserve the heart. He deserves several hours of mandatory socialization. He would, without hesitation, twist your kind little “hello <3” into political ammunition, Do you not see what havoc such a tender glyph might wreak? I’m asking that you refrain from giving him your affection. I cannot bear to imagine him smirking at your kindness. He will print it out and frame it and use it as leverage against me. Not to mention, if word were to circulate that you, my queen, publicly greeted him with affection—even flippant affection—it would become gossip. Then headlines. Then quotes at my expense in council.

You understand, I trust, how that would make me look. The optics alone—well. I won’t dramatize.

All I ask is that you consider how our reputation—yours and mine, united in matrimony—might be affected. I know it may seem petty, but appearances are not petty when one wears a crown. And Davout would love nothing more than to insinuate a closeness between us, to smirk and say, “Ah, well, your wife doesn’t seem to mind me.”

I do. I mind him tremendously.

Anyway! Love you so much. Just thought you should know.

Warmest regards and eternal devotion from your,

Jean-Baptiste Bernadotte

P.S. You looked lovely yesterday. Unrelated, but I thought it would soften the tone.

My dear, sweet husband, whom I love beyond measure,

Too much text, I ain't reading all that, but I think I got the general idea.

Right now, you're in the library and I'm in the living room. If you want news of my health, just open the door and shout loud enough for me to hear you and if I do not respond, call emergency services because I am probably dying or try to remember what you did wrong because I am probably ignoring you on purpose. I do, however, appreciate the slightly silly romanticism of little papers slipped under the door, so I won't hold it against you.

To begin with, I'd like to point out that there's an endless list of people who are jealous of you, your charisma and your professional success, and it's impossible for me to remember all your haters (although it's true that when I saw that name, it sounded vaguely familiar).

Secondly, it's precisely because I'm thinking of your reputation and mine that I did what I did. I know we're in Sweden, and people here are as warm and friendly as literal prison gates, but that doesn't exempt us from observing the basic rules of hospitality, which are to greet people and kiss them on both cheeks like decent human beings. Think of the disastrous consequences if I hadn't said hello to Monsieur Davout: he could have said “your wife didn't say hello to people, she's bad-mannered”, and in Marseille that's enough to ruin a family's reputation. At least now he won't be able to say I'm rude! You can hate people and talk behind their backs, and I'll even pay my cousins in Lambesc to go and beat the shit out of him if you want, but always say hello.

Toodeloo,

Your wife.

PS: I looked lovely yesterday??? What exactly does that mean, that I wasn't lovely on every other day of the year or today? Why yesterday in particular, what does that mean? AAAAH. Now I'm mad at you.

PPS: I know you're going out this afternoon, please bring some bread. But I mean REAL bread, bread made with real flour and baked in a real stone oven, not the disgusting white bread the Swedes eat, bread with which our cooks can prepare a proper bruschetta.

[religion-is-a-mental-illness]

By: Andrew Doyle

Published: Feb 1, 2025

I do not much like the destruction of books. As a form of protest, it conjures sinister images from the past, most notably the Pathé news reels of brownshirts and students gathered around a pyre in Berlin’s Opernplatz under the watchful eye of Joseph Goebbels. The Nazis had raided libraries, universities and other private collections to harvest works by political dissidents, sexologists, “degenerate” artists and any others deemed to be “un-German”. Books by Left-wing authors such as Karl Marx, Bertolt Brecht and Rosa Luxemburg were publicly incinerated, along with fictional works by the likes of Thomas Mann, Franz Kafka, Victor Hugo, Oscar Wilde and James Joyce. This was philistinism in its purest form.

The symbolism of a burning book is, therefore, the repudiation of the very notion of freedom. And yet this same freedom means that we must be able to burn books if we so desire. The Nazis, of course, were destroying the property of others, an authoritarian act designed to eliminate whole branches of thought. This is not to be conflated with an individual who chooses to vandalise his or her own property. The trans activists who burn J.K. Rowling’s books and post the footage online are making fools of themselves, but they are also exercising their right to do so in a free society.

This is a distinction worth bearing in mind when we consider the murder of anti-Islam campaigner Salwan Momika, an Iraqi man who had been awaiting a verdict in Sweden for the crime of “agitation against an ethnic or national group”. Momika had publicly burned a number of copies of the Quran during the summer of 2023. He was shot dead during or just before a live stream on TikTok at his home in Södertälje on Wednesday. The details are as of yet unclear, but there are suggestions that the assassination may have involved a foreign power.

Momika had been granted temporary residence in Sweden in 2018, although his frustration with his adopted country’s lacklustre commitment to freedom of speech led him to seek asylum in Norway in March 2024. After just a few weeks, the Norwegian authorities had him deported back to Sweden. According to Momika, the prosecutor in his trial had been seeking his extradition back to Iraq because of his criticisms of Islam. Back in August, he had posted the following on X: “Sweden and Norway have identified me as a threat to their security. Yes, I am a threat to the Islamization project of the West, which is being pursued by your Leftist communist government that is deceiving the citizens and making the country Islamic. So I have come to awaken the people and thwart the Islamization project of the West, and I will not be afraid of you.”

In cases of this kind, it has become depressingly inevitable that commentators will seek to blame the victim. After the publication of Salman Rushdie’s novel The Satanic Verses in 1988, the Ayatollah Khomeini of Iran issued a fatwa calling for the author’s murder. Instead of taking a united stance against a foreign regime threatening the life of a British citizen, pundits and politicians engaged in endless debates about whether Rushdie had brought this on himself. Crime novelist John Le Carré stated that “there is no law in life or nature that says great religions may be insulted with impunity”, and that “there is no absolute standard of free speech in any society”. It should go without saying that powerful theocrats do not require protection from the hurtful words of novelists.

Last month was the 10th anniversary of the massacre at the offices of the French magazine Charlie Hebdo. Initially, world leaders were united in their condemnation of terrorists who had butchered cartoonists for drawing satirical caricatures of the Prophet Mohammed. Thousands gathered at vigils and held placards bearing the words “Je Suis Charlie”. PEN America — an organisation devoted to the principle of free expression — created a “courage award” for Charlie Hebdo. That was until dozens of members of PEN, including writers such as Joyce Carol Oates and Junot Díaz, signed an open letter in protest. Charlie Hebdo, they claimed, had mocked a “section of the French population that is already marginalized, embattled and victimized”. This was, of course, to misidentify the target. The cartoonists weren’t “punching down” at the Muslim minority, but rather “punching up” at the authoritarianism of institutionalised religion.

We never seem to learn that appeasement of religious extremists only makes them stronger. Our collective failure to take a firm stance for artistic liberty in the Rushdie affair has made it more difficult to uphold the principle today. That Momika was on trial in the first place suggests that Sweden’s commitment to freedom of expression has been subordinated to the creed of multiculturalism. According to the BBC, following Momika’s campaigns in 2023 the Swedish government had “pledged to explore legal means of abolishing protests that involve burning texts in certain circumstances”. Yet Momika’s copies of the Quran were his own property, and he was free to dispose of them as he wished. We might take the view that his method of protest is insensitive or provocative, but in a free society such behaviour is a matter of individual conscience.

The victim-blamers have been predictably vocal. Within hours of the news of Momika’s murder, television personality Bushra Shaikh posted the following on X: “Some of you may disagree but the public desecration of any holy book should be viewed as a hate crime and the offender should face consequences”. She later clarified that by “face consequences” she was not supporting murder, but rather the principle that the “government decides on the punishment”. And yet Shaikh’s logic defeats itself. Her post has been widely interpreted as hate-filled and authoritarian. Does this mean that, if the government were to designate the public advocacy of blasphemy laws a “hate crime”, she would be content to be prosecuted?

Those who endorse authoritarianism, in other words, are laying a trap for themselves. If we look to the state to punish our detractors, where does that leave us when the values of those in power no longer align with our own? Momika has been blamed for the riots and the international diplomatic rows that ensued following his campaigns, but the peaceful protester is not responsible for those who break the law in response. Last summer, the Guardian published a piece that presented his Quran-burning as evidence of a “racism crisis”. One of the Swedish Muslim interviewees was quoted as saying: “I understand you are allowed to think and feel what you want, this is a free country, but there must be boundaries. It’s such a pity that it has happened so many times and Sweden doesn’t seem to learn from its mistakes.”

Those of us who still believe in liberal values will baulk at the suggestion — and the implied threat — in claiming that we are mistaken to support freedom of expression. Moreover, there is nothing racist about burning a copy of the Quran. Islam is a belief-system, not a race. The criminalisation of “Islamophobia” makes about as much sense as prosecuting citizens for “Marxistophobia” or “Freemarketcapitalismophobia”. Had Momika burned a copy of The Communist Manifesto, would there be calls to modify the law to see him incarcerated?

Increasingly, Western societies are pandering to religious zealots who are willing to resort to violence to achieve their aims. Members of the ruling class are undeniably afraid. During Prime Minister’s Questions in November 2024, the Labour MP for Birmingham Hall Green and Moseley, Tahir Ali, asked Keir Starmer whether he would establish “measures to prohibit the desecration of all religious texts and the prophets of the Abrahamic religions”. Starmer replied: “I agree that desecration is awful and should be condemned across the House. We are, as I said before, committed to tackling all forms of hatred and division, including Islamophobia in all its forms.” A better response would have been: “Blasphemy laws are incompatible with the values of a free country.”

It is undeniably the case that Islamic theocracies are intolerant to dissent, but we have only ourselves to blame if we capitulate to pressure from foreign powers to undermine our commitment to secularism. Pakistan’s prime minister Imran Khan, for instance, blamed the radicalisation of Islamic terrorists on the French president Emmanuel Macron’s tolerance for the right of citizens to blaspheme against Islam. In October 2020, he tweeted: “President Macron has chosen to deliberately provoke Muslims, incl his own citizens, through encouraging the display of blasphemous cartoons targeting Islam & our Prophet PBUH.” President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan of Turkey even cited Momika’s Quran-burning in an attempt to scupper Sweden’s bid to join Nato in 2023.

But blasphemy only makes sense to the faithful. Stéphane Charbonnier (known as “Charb”), the cartoonist and editor-in-chief of Charlie Hebdo who was among the victims of the 2015 atrocity, addressed this point in an “open letter” completed just two days before his death. “God is only sacred to those who believe in him,” he wrote. “If you wish to insult or offend God, you have to be sure that he exists… In France, a religion is nothing more than a collection of texts, traditions, and customs that it is perfectly legitimate to criticize. Sticking a clown nose on Marx is no more offensive or scandalous than popping the same schnoz on Muhammad.”=

This is the spirit of secularism — the French tradition of laïcité — that other countries in the western world should emulate. The problem is not the complaints from those who seek the implementation of sharia in democratic nations, but those in power who fail to reject such demands unequivocally. The murder of Salwan Momika should be a wake-up call for the West. Continued appeasement will only guarantee further bloodshed. For all the short-term risks of defending free speech, our long-term security depends upon it.

--

==

"Why can't you just comply with our authoritarian religious codes?"

Because you want me to. Your religious codes are for you, not me.

This is literally terrorism. We are supposed to be afraid of what will happen to us if we don't submit to Islamic totalitarianism. That is reason enough to not just resist, but actively oppose and defy Islamic totalitarian demands.

[ghostlyarchaeologist]

I seek knowledge, I must know, what show is your white whale?

Fame L.A. It ran for 22 episodes back in 1997/98, was never released for home viewing and now is practically lost media bar a few clips online. I have spent many an hour searching the depths of the internet for it, nada. There are traces of where it once was hosted, but all those links are now completely defunct.

My only hope now is that someone recorded it on vhs back when it was broadcast and will eventually rip it and put it in the VHS vault on the internet archive or something (or, I work out how to get a hold of stuff from the Broadcast Archive in the National Library of Sweden in Stockholm because they have the full run of it, but it's not publicly available, you have to have a research reason as to why you want to view it, and then you can only view it on their equipment in the library to boot!)

[mybeingthere]

National Library of Sweden - Embroidered cloth binding Photo by István Borbás/National Library of Sweden.

[gentlym-rbid]

What activities does Sweden enjoy doing with each of his nordbros? And his sons?

If it wasn’t for this ask, I wouldn’t have gotten to draw the cutest doodles I’ve drawn to this day!! Thank you so much for your ask, Anon!! 😊🫶❤️

I think for Sweden, doing actions comes easier to him than words! Parallel play and quality time is very important to him! Let’s go down the list!!

Iceland- Sweden and Iceland get along amazingly! Like I mentioned, Sweden seems to have a calming effect on Iceland. Iceland can get heated about stuff pretty quickly (his volcanic nature!!) which can lead to outbursts or meltdowns that leave him drained and tired. Because Sweden knows what’s that like, both from personal experience and from experience with his sons, he’s very well suited for grounding Iceland! The important part is that Sweden treats him as an equal, not like a kid, and Iceland really appreciates this (even if he won’t say it outright!) Their activities usually involve critical thinking, video games, chess, stuff like that! Iceland loves the challenge, but he also loves knowing that he doesn’t have to worry about getting too frustrated around Sweden. He can wordlessly count on Sweden to keep him levelheaded!

Norway- Sweden and Norway are very close friends! Norway doesn’t pressure Sweden to talk like others who don’t know him too well might. Their activities very much fall under the term “parallel play!” They don’t have to be doing the exact same thing, but being around each other, not being alone while they do their own activities, makes them both feel happy. Most of their time spent with each other is in quiet environments, hiking nature trails, reading in the same room, going to the library to get books to read in the same room, stuff like that! Though, sometimes Sweden can get a little too absorbed in his activity, in which Norway reminds him to eat or drink some water.

Denmark- Sweden and Denmark are best friends til the end! I believe they get along well more so now than in the past, but their rivalry has never ended! Instead, it’s grown into something they use to push each other to be better! Their activities involve a lot of physical movement or manual labour! They build, craft things, they chop firewood for the other three, and they even spar with each other! Things might still get a little petty, one of them might play a little dirty to “win” at whatever they’re doing, but there’s no genuine malice! Denmark really brings out Sweden’s mischievous nature, as he enjoys messing with his friend, especially when he doesn’t expect it!

Ladonia and Sealand- OKAY OKAY OKAY this is my favorite thing ever! You guys already know I’m a sucker for family dynamics! Sweden spends time with his sons by creating bright and warm memories! He feels so lucky he is able to have kids, to have a family, despite being a “nation.” And he feels so relieved he can give his children a safe and almost normal childhood. Sealand had come into his life with his own bad memories, since he manifested in the midst of WWII. But Sweden is grateful he can protect and guide his son now. Ladonia is younger than Sealand, and thus, he really doesn’t have a scary past. I think Sealand was the last of the nations to manifest and have to deal with that fear so young, but I can explain that in another separate post!! All this to say, Sweden feels honored he can be for his sons what he wish he had as a young nation! He brings them on many excursions, and each one is filled with whimsy and adventure! Sealand, being energetic and rambunctious, loves going anywhere and everywhere! His younger, but taller, brother Ladonia prefers staying indoors due to the nature of his being. But Sweden believes Ladonia needs more fresh air, and Sealand could definitely benefit from getting his energy out, so they do things like fishing! That’s become their favorite thing to do! Ladonia can’t swim, so he wears a life vest in the boat. Sealand helps him put it on and makes sure his younger brother is secure and safe, much to his annoyance! It’s a very precious display, and it makes Sweden’s chest warm! It takes Ladonia a bit to get used to fishing, as he gets nervous catching fish and reeling them in, so to ease him into it, Sealand or Sweden help him catch one and hold it for him to touch. Ladonia eventually holds his own fish and suddenly feels very proud!! After hours of having fun, and with their bellies full from Finland’s home cooked lunch, Ladonia and Sealand fall asleep in Sweden’s truck as he drives them home. And Sweden snaps a picture of how cute they look before carrying them inside, with Finland’s help of course.

I love the doodles I did for this ask so much, so you guys get my favorites without the text!! If you guys want me to post the other two without the text, just let me know!! I’ll try to clean them up a bit!! Sorry this took so long, Anon! I just had so many ideas and I was so excited, I had to calm myself down enough to draw them!!! Thank you for this ask!! It made me so happy to doodle all of these!!

[virtual-winter]

Frozen memories #002

My Frozen story - Part 2

"But, isn't that just a kids movie about some reindeer?"

My dear mother had no idea what her 22-year-old son was getting into on November 20th 2014 😅 Following my introduction to Frozen via ABC's Once upon a time-series, I was eager to find out what all the fuzz about the original movie was about.

I still lived at home at the time (in the countryside) and I had asked my parents to see if the movie was available at the local library. I can’t remember if I watched it the same day I got it or not. Probably a few days later (on my old Philips not-even-full-HD monitor 😅).

Prior to watching it, I had learned a few things about the plot and it sounded unlike any other movie I had previously seen. In addition to that, I had watched the Let it go-scene which was very captivating and I was very much in love with the song and the animation!

My original Swedish copy of Frozen

Seeing the movie for the first time was a bit of an otherworldly experience. I’m not sure how to describe it. I think everything about the characters, the story and the setting just clicked for me. Even though I don’t even have a sibling, I was awestruck and very touched by the tragic story of Anna and Elsa. And the theme of isolation and feeling of being an outcast was something I could relate to, always having been the introverted quiet one with very niche interests. I think I saw a lot more of me in Elsa than I even realised at the time. I think I watched the movie three times in just a couple of days.

From the first day of experiencing it “properly”, I was very much in love with Anna and Elsa and their world of Arendelle, which seemed so familia to me, being from Norway's neighbour Sweden and having experienced the wilderness of this real-life Disney-like nation just around the corner. I still vividly remembered going there on vacation some 8 years earlier. So, it wasn’t just the characters and the story that made it feel like it was “my movie”. The landscape, the art, the culture and the folklore (trolls) also felt so close to home!

Sisterly love

Midsommarstång

Scandinavian trolls

Old Norse revival architecture

I had not expected to get pulled into a fandom the way I was because I usually never do and this is still true till this day - I haven't found anything else that I enjoy as much as Frozen. But this movie was just… I couldn’t get it out of my head! All the songs were so incredibly catchy! I think I spent most of winter 2014/15 just replaying them constantly in my head (and on my phone). I also couldn’t get rid of the feeling of how incredible it would be to get to see Anna and Elsa in real life. I guess this was really the first time I got to experience something like this 😊

And so, my journey into the Frozenverse had begun. I was thrilled when I learned there was a new Frozen short film coming out in 2015 (along with some Cinderella remake that I wasn’t really interested in) and I even brought my mother with me to see it in theatres. She had no clue at this time what Frozen was! She probably liked Cinderella better but I was a blessed Frozen fan! Funny enough, it was my mother who told me Disney had just announced they were gonna make a Frozen II…

I’ll cover my continued journey through the Frozen fandom in part 3.

See ya soon!

[thedeathhashira]

Forget the Snowglobe: Arendelle, A Real European Nation in the Late 19th Century 🏰🏭

In the 1870s-1880s, the world wasn't a fairytale. It was a chessboard of empires, roaring with industrial innovation, fraught with political tension, and driven by raw ambition. While Disney's Arendelle nestled quietly in the 1840s, or not since Europe was still rock with the revolutions and chaos, thanks to end of Metternich Era, now let's try to imagine the Kingdom of Arendelle squarely in this turbulent era, sticking into the historical context given by this timeline. Think of this as an analysis and thought experiment of what would Arendelle will be if it exist in the Late 19th century.

This isn't just a quaint kingdom; it's a grounded nation-state, forged in the crucible of real-world geopolitics:

Kingdom of Arendelle, in Frozen II

A Powerhouse in the North? A Nation Defined by Grandeur and Growth🌇🌃

To place it into the world in Late 19th century, Arendelle will be no longer merely a picturesque village with a castle. Imagine a burgeoning European nation with a national population soaring past 900,000 inhabitants, small by imperial standards but potent enough to demand respect. Its capital, boasting over 100,000 souls, is a thriving metropolis divided into distinct districts, its territory clearly established across the Continent of Europe. We could imagine that it may be strategically positioned East of the North Sea, North of Norway, Sweden, and Finland, West of Russia, and just South of the Arctic Circle, given on its Nordic Traditions which I speculates it may be a part of Scandinavia/Baltic Region, Arendelle commands a vital northern crossroads.

Visualize a capital not unlike the burgeoning European giants of the era: the grand boulevards of Paris, the bustling docks of London, the imperial majesty of Vienna, or the industrial might of Berlin. Arendelle's capital is a true symbol of late 19th-century urban prosperity: magnificent stone infrastructures house government offices, towering business buildings, bustling foreign embassies, robust banks, modern hospitals, disciplined police headquarters, esteemed universities, opulent theaters, galleries, and libraries. Its wide, stone streets hum with the ceaseless rhythm of horse-drawn carriages, elegant horses, and a vibrant populace moving back and forth, weaving through loud, wide, thriving international markets and bazaars, past serene parks adorned with statues and fountains. Its large, international ports are gateways to global trade, testament to a country with real people, real industry, and undeniable geopolitical weight.

Skyline of 19th century Paris, Capital of France.

A Government Grappling with Change: Enlightened Rule Amidst Political Tides👑

Putting into the context of Late 19th century where the world was in transition from traditional government to democracy and liberalism, Arendelle operates as an Absolute Monarchy tempered by a Parliamentary System. This unique structure positions Elsa as an Enlightened Despot or a powerful monarch, much like Catherine the Great and Queen Victoria, some of the history's most powerful and influential female monarchs. Yet, Elsa embodies a sincere compassionate heart for her people, untouched by scandals and bigger intrigues. Imagine the delicate, high-stakes dance between royal decree and public representation. On one side, the aristocratic nobilities cling to the conservative views lingering from the Metternich Era; on the other, the common people – from impassioned students to enlightened thinkers – clamor for Liberty, Equality, and Rights echoing the fervent calls of the great-grandsons and granddaughters of the American and French Revolutions.

In the dawn of this new era, politics transcends mere royalty and monarchy; it's a burgeoning movement, a compelling call for liberty, equality, and representation across every stratum of a divided society. Consider the volatile landscape of France, where radicals, liberals, and monarchists (whether Bonapartist, Orleanist, or Bourbonist) relentlessly strove for domination. Or observe Britain, where governmental power slowly, but inexorably, transitioned from the Monarchy to the Parliament, which increasingly represented the voice of the British people. Elsa's Arendelle stands at this very precipice of profound political evolution.

Queen Victoria of United Kingdom of Great Britain and British Empire.

Resources That Spark Ambition: The Engines of Industrial Power.👨‍🏭💰

Strategically nestled East of the North Sea, North of Norway, and West of Russia, Arendelle commands invaluable natural resources: iron, coal, timber, and fur. In an age ravenous for industrial might, these are not just mere exports; they are powerful magnets for international attention and ambition. This isn't merely about ice trade anymore; it's about the very engines of the Industrial Revolution that define global power.

Resources were the lifeblood and pride of each nation. Think of Great Britain, whose abundant iron and coal catapulted it to the forefront of the Industrial Revolution, making it the most industrialized nation-state in the late 19th Century. In a world striving for modernity, resources are not just a hallmark of a kingdom or nation-state's unique identity, but its very bloodline – the essential key to its innovation, growth, and survival.

Trains and Railroads, powered by steam locomotive are considered as one of the hallmarks of Industrial Revolution.

A Diplomatic Web of Alliances: The Great Game and the Scramble for Power⚔️🌍

Given on the context of Late 19th century, Arendelle is far from an isolated kingdom living on its own accord. A standalone nation was an easy prey for the predatory great powers of the era. Instead, Arendelle will be meticulously woven into the intricate fabric of European power plays, strategically forging alliances with major players. It might align with Spain or Italy, find common cause with the expansive British Empire, or even extend its diplomatic reach to the distant Empire of Japan, an aggressive Asian nation rapidly proving its military and industrial capacity to stand toe-to-toe with European might.

Major Ports Cities in Europe like London, Amsterdam, Lisbon, Barcelona, and Copenhagen where several ships coming from across the world docked, are center of trade, commerce, and cultural, intellectual, and technological exchange.

These are not simple friendships born of goodwill. They are calculated strategic partnerships in a world defined by the "Great Game" in Central Asia and the brutal "Scramble for Africa." These alliances are deeply rooted in mutual interest and ambitions, shifting political dynamics, and tangible economic benefits that could boost trade and commerce and exchange of ideas, technologies, knowledge, and cultures. Reflect on the Triple Entente between Great Britain, France, and Russia, forged out of mutual fear of the growing power of the German Empire; or the Anglo-Japanese Alliance, a shrewd move to counter Russian expansion; or the Triple Alliance uniting the German Empire, Austria-Hungary, and the Ottoman Empire. Such alliances prove the fragile grip of peace within the world, as they played a key factor in the massive conflicts that were soon to come.

The Birth of German Empire in Hall of Mirrors, Palace of Versailles, January 18, 1871

This Arendelle would be if grounded in the gritty, thrilling realities of the late 19th century, far cry from the kingdom we had witnesses in Frozen and Frozen II. A place where magic meets geopolitics, and every choice has a continent-spanning consequence. Just a simple disclaimer, this is just a fun analysis of what might Arendelle will be if being placed into the real life historical context of Late 19th century, specifically for a European Kingdom. To anyone who read this, all of you had the right to agree and disagree with my analysis and to speak and give your own views and opinions yet before you dive into your thoughts, please understand that this space is built on respect and constructive engagement so please, to everyone who read this, be mindful, respectful, and thoughtful especially in choosing our words to say or type, not only in giving your opinion and views regarding on this analysis and thought experiment but also whenever we interact with other people, whether online or face to face interactions

Intrigued by an Arendelle that feels undeniably real? Dive into a story where the beauty is still there, but the stakes are higher than ever in my Dark Fantasy Romance Historical Anime x Frozen Fanfiction 'The Lord of Death and The Queen of Ice: Whisper of Moon and Flower.'

Here is the link to my Fanfiction:

Sources:

For Historical Context and Informations

- World History Encyclopedia.Com

- Britannica.Com

- History.Com

For Pictures

- Pinterest.

This is my first post in Tumblr and I hope to anyone who read this, that you you will like it. I'm quite an introverted writer after all, even in internet or social media yet I want to interact with other writers and authors across the globe, share my own works and my own analysis, views, and opinions, and make friends. Thank you and Have a Nice Day/Night!❤️❤️❤️

[brookston]

Holidays 4.23

Holidays

Alfred G. “Alferd” Packer Day (Colorado)

Aragon Day (Spain)

Army Reserves Day (US)

Asian Corpsetwt Day [Every 23rd]

Boice Day (South Korea)

Book Day (Canada)

Book Day and Lover's Day (Spain)

Castile and León Day (Spain)

Children’s Day (Turkey)

Community Day (Aragon, Castile and León Day; Spain)

Content Creator Day

Copyright Day

Day of Aragon (Spain)

Day of Books and Roses (Catalonia, Spain)

Drive It Day (UK)

Electric Mixer Day

English Language Day (UN)

George Castriota Day (Albania)

Impossible Astronaut Day (Dr. Who)

International Choro Day

International Creator Day

International Day of the Book

International Fibrodyysolasia Ossificans Progressive Awareness Day

International Nose Picking Day

International Pixel-Stained Technopeasant Day

International Share a Secret Day

International Sing Out Day

IU Day (Indiana University)

J.O.L.Y.N. (Joy of Loving YourselfNow) Day

Jurgi Day (Ancient Latvia)

Khongjom Day (Manipur, India)

La Diada de Sant Jordi (Catalonia, Spain)

Linnaeus Day (Sweden)

London Marathon Day (UK)

Lover's Day

Movie Theater Day

National Email Day

National Grief-in-Public Day

National Lost Dogs Awareness Day

National Lover’s Day

National Lugaw Day (Philippines)

National Read Me Day

National Sovereignty and Children’s Day (Turkey, Northern Cyprus)

National Take a Hike with Nick Day

National Vagina Appreciation Day

Navy Day (China)

Penny Day

Psychologist Day (Ukraine)

Public School Day

Purple Up for Military Kids Day

Scouts’ Day

Sigurd the Dragon Slayer's Day

Slay a Dragon Day

Spanish Language Day (UN)

Take a Chance Day

Talk Like Shakespeare Day

Teach Your Children To Save Day

Top Quark Discovery Day

Veterans Day (Estonia)

Visalia Priora

World Book and Copyright Day (UN)

World Book Day (UN; except Ireland, UK)

World Book Night (Ireland, Germany, UK, US)

World Infant, Child & Adolescent Mental Health Day

World Laboratory Day

World Table Tennis Day

YouTube Day

Food & Drink Celebrations

Allagash Saison Day [original date]

Bavarian Beer Day

Biertag (Germany)

Cherry Cheesecake Day

German Beer Day

International Cava Day

International Reinheitsgebot Day

National Asparagus Day (UK)

National English Muffin Day

National Licorice Day

National Picnic Day

National Taffy Day

New Coke Day

St. George's Day (traditional end of Bavarian lager brewing season)

Nature Celebrations

Balloon Flower Day (Gentle & Warm-Hearted; Korean Birth Flowers)

Hawthorn Day (French Republic)

International Pallas Cat Day

Pet Tech CPR Day

Wild Hyacinth Day (Hyacinthus non-scriptus)

Independence, Flag & Related Days

Australland (Declared; 2021) [unrecognized)

Conch Republic (Declared; 1982) [unrecognized)

Connecticut (Declared British Colony; 1662)

Flag Day (England)

Israel (a.k.a. Yom Ha’atzmaut; Declared; 1948)

National Day of England (St. George’s Day)

National Sovereignty Day, Day 2 (Turkey)

Texas (Ratified Secession from the U.S.; 1861)

4th Wednesday in April

Administrative Professional's Day [Wednesday of Last Full Week]

Arbor Day (US) [4th Wednesday]

Hump Day [Every Wednesday]

Library Giving Day [Wednesday of Library Week]

National Bookmobile Day [Wednesday of Library Week]

National Drug Endangered Children Awareness Day [4th Wednesday]

National French Immersion Day (Canada) [4th Wednesday]

Peppercorn Day (Bermuda) [Wednesday closest to 23rd]

Wacky Wednesday [Every Wednesday]

Website Wednesday [Every Wednesday]

Weird Wednesday [4th Wednesday of Each Month]

Whatever Wednesday [4th Wednesday of Each Month]

Weekly Holidays beginning April 23 (3rd Full Week of April)

American Quilters Society Week (thru 4.26)

Charlotte Wine + Food Week (Charlotte, North Carolina) [thru 4.27]

International Mariachi Week (thru 4.27)

Festivals On or Beginning April 23, 2025

Bacchanal Jamaica (Kingston, Jamaica) [thru 4.29]

Crawfish Music Festival (Biloxi, Mississippi) [thru 4.27]

National Trout Festival (Kalkaska, Michigan) [thru 4.27]

Seabreeze Jazz Festival (Panama City Beach, Florida) [thru 4.27]

UN Global Road Safety Week (thru 4.29)

Feast Days

Adalbert of Prague (Christian; Saint)

Chance Day (Shamanism)

Cynical Bastards Day (Pastafarian)

Day of the Glorious Fuckup (Church of the SubGenius)

Feast of Hephaestus (Greek Blacksmith God & Brewer)

Felix, Fortunatus, and Achilleus (Christian; Martyrs)

Festival of Saint Sarah the Egyptian (Sara Kali the Black Queen; Les Saintes-Maries-de-la-Mer, France) begins [until 25th]

George (Christian; Saint) [England, traditional end of Bavarian lager brewing season] *

Gerard, Bishop of Toul (Christian; Saint)

Giles of Assisi (Christian; Saint)

Gerard of Toul (Christian; Saint)

The Goddess is Alive Day (Everyday Wicca)

Ibar (a.k.a. Ivor) of Beggerin (or Meath; Christian; Saint)

Ji-Young (Muppetism)

Miltiades (Positivist; Saint)

Shakespeare Day (Starza Pagan Book of Days)

Snood Day (Celtic Book of Days)

Toyohiko Kagawa (Episcopal and Lutheran Church)

Vinalia Urbana (a.k.a. Vinalia Prima or Priora; Ancient Roman wine festival)

Vulcan's Day (Ancient Rome)

Walpurgisnacht, Day I (Pagan)

Lunar Calendar Holidays

Chinese: Month 3 (Geng-Chen), Day 26 (Ren-Xu)

Day Pillar: Water Dog

12-Day Officers/12 Gods: Destruction Day (破 Po) [Inauspicious]

Holidays: None Known

Secular Saints Days

Valerie Bertinelli (Entertainment)

John Cena (Entertainment)

Cervantes (Literature)

Sandra Dee (Entertainment)

J.P. Donleavy (Literature)

Virgil ‘Gus’ Grissom (Science)

Barry Hannah (Literature)

Frans Koppelaar (Art)

Halldór Laxness (Literature)

Lee Majors (Entertainment)

Ngaio Marsh (Literature)

Yiannis Moralis (Art)

Louis Muhlstock (Art)

Vladimir Nabokov (Literature)

John Oliver (Entertainment)

Roy Orbison (Music)

Max Planck (Science)

Sergei Prokofiev (Music)

William Shakespeare (Literature)

Johann Adam Stamm (Wagonmaking)

Shirley Temple (Entertainment)

J.M.W. Turner (Art)

Herve Villechaize (Entertainment)

Antoine Vollon (Art)

Fritz Wotruba (Art)

Lucky & Unlucky Days

Butsumetsu (仏滅 Japan) [Unlucky all day.]

Prime Number Day: 113 [30 of 72]

Premieres

Alaskan Night (Krazy Kat Cartoon; 1930)

The American Political Tradition and the Men Who Made It, by Richard Hofstadter (Political Theory; 1948)

Baywatch (TV Series; 1989)

Benny & Joon (Film; 1993)

Black and Blue, by The Rolling Stones (Album; 1976)

The Black Marble, by Joseph Wambaugh (Novel; 1978)

Bobby Bumps’ Pup Gets the Flea-enza (Paramount-Bray Pictographs Cartoon; 1917)

Cherrybomb (Film; 2009)

Cilly Goose (Noveltoons Cartoon; 1944)

Col. Heeza Liar Wins the Pennant (Paramount-Bray Cartoon; 1916)

Crowing Pains (Blue Ribbon Hit Parade Cartoon; 1955)

Dirty Water, by The Standells (Song; 1966)

Dogville (Film; 2003)

Election (Film; 1999)

The Excursions of Mr. Brouček to the Moon and to the 15th Century, by Leoš Janáček (Opera; 1920)

Fall Out - Fall In (Donald Duck Disney Cartoon; 1943)

Frog Jog (Tijuana Toads Cartoon; 1972)

Gregory’s Girl (Film; 1981)

Hold On, I’m Coming, by Sam and Dave (Song; 1966)

I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings, by Maya Angelou (Autobiography; 1969)

Indian Summer (Film; 1993)

Joint Wipers (Tom & Jerry Van Beuren Cartoon; 1932)

A Jolly Good Furlough (Fleischer/Famous Popeye Cartoon; 1943)

Kiddie Concert (Musical Miniature Walter Lantz Cartoon; 1948)

Lemonade, by Beyoncé (Album; 2016)

Man on Fire (Film; 2004)

Merry Wives of Windsor, by William Shakespeare (Play; 1597)

M.O.N.E.Y. Spells Love (The Dogfather Mirsch/DFE Cartoon; 1975)

Mouse Wreckers (WB LT Concert; 1949)

Nexus, by Henry Miller (Novel; 1959) [Rosy Crucifixion #3]

The Penguin Parade (WB MM Cartoon; 1938)

Quacky Doodles Soldiering for Fair (Paramount-Bray Pictographs Cartoon; 1919)

Ramones, by Ramones (Album; 1976)

Return to Paradise, by James A. Michener (Novel; 1951)

Rock-a-By Maybe (The Dogfather Mirsch/DFE Cartoon; 1975)

Rocky Mountain News (Colorado Daily Newspaper; 1859)

Shadow and Bone (TV Series; 2021)

Sita Sings the Blues (Animated Film; 2010)

Snow Place Like Home (Chilly Willy Cartoon; 1966)

Sticky Fingers, by The Rolling Stones (Album; 1971)

The Stories of John Cheever, by John Cheever (Short Story Collection; 1979)

Symphony No. 1 in C Major, by Mily Balakirev (Symphony; 1898)

Symphony No. 2 in D Minor, by Mily Balakirev (Symphony; 1909)

Teen Titans Go! (Animated Film; 2013)

There’s Good Boos To-Night (Noveltoons Cartoon; 1948)

13 Going on 30 (Film; 2004)

Touch of Evil (Film; 1958)

20,000 Feats Under the Sea (Terry Cartoon Burlesque Cartoon; 1917)

Two for the Record (Disney Cartoon; 1954)

When I Was Cruel, by Elvis Costello (Album; 2002)

Who Scent You? (WB LT Cartoon; 1960)

Today’s Name Days

Adalbert, Georg, Jörg, Jürgen (Austria)

Toma, Tomislav, Tomislava (Bulgaria)

Adalbert, Đurđica, Đuro, Juraj (Croatia)

Vojtěch (Czech Republic)

Georgius (Denmark)

Georg, Jürgen, Jürgo, Jüri, Jürjo, Jürnas, Jüts, Ürjo (Estonia)

Jiri, Jori, Jyri, Jyrki, Yrjänä, Yrjö (Finland)

Georges (France)

Georg, Gerhard, Jörg, Jürgen (Germany)

Georgios, Giorgos, Thomas, Yorgos (Greece)

Béla (Hungary)

Giorgio (Italy)

Georgs, Jorens, Jurģis, Juris (Latvia)

Adalbertas, Daugaudas, Jurgis, Vygailė (Lithuania)

Georg, Jørgen, Jørn (Norway)

Adalbert, Gerard, Gerarda, Gerhard, Helena, Jerzy, Wojciech (Poland)

Gheorghe (Romania)

Vojtech (Slovakia)

Jorge (Spain)

Georg, Göran (Sweden)

George (Ukraine)

Brayan, Breana, Breanna, Breanne, Brian, Briana, Brianna, Brianne, Brielle, Brien, Briona, Bryan, Bryana, Bryanna, Bryant, Brynn, Bryon, Shirlee, Shirleen, Shirley (USA)

Today’s National Name Days

National Bryan Day

National Roy Day

National Virgil Day

Today is Also…

Day of Year: Day 113 of 2025; 252 days remaining in the year

ISO Week: Day 3 of Week 17 of 2025

Celtic Tree Calendar: Saille (Willow) [Day 9 of 28]

Chinese: Month 3 (Geng-Chen), Day 26 (Ren-Xu)

Chinese Year of the: Snake 4723 (until February 17, 2026) [Ding-Chou]

Coptic: 15 Barmundah 1741

Druid Tree Calendar: Walnut (April 21-30) [Day 3 of 10]

Hebrew: 25 Nisan 5785

Islamic: 24 Shawwal 1446

Julian: 10 April 2025

Moon: 23%: Waning Crescent

Positivist: 1 Caesar (5th Month) [Miltiades]

Runic Half Month: Man (Humanity) [Day 10 of 15] (thru 4.28)

Season: Spring (Day 34 of 92)

SUn Calendar: 24 Cyan; Threesday [24 of 30]

Week: 3rd Full Week of April

Zodiac:

Tropical (Typical) Zodiac: Taurus (Day 4 of 31)

Sidereal Zodiac: Aries (Day 10 of 31)

Schmidt Zodiac: Aries (Day 8 of 31)

IAU Boundaries (Current) Zodiac: Aries (Day 5 of 25)

IAU Boundaries (1977) Zodiac: Aries (Day 5 of 25)

Calendar Changes

Caesar (Military Civilization) [Month 5 of 13; Positivist]

[brookstonalmanac]

Holidays 4.23

Holidays

Alfred G. “Alferd” Packer Day (Colorado)

Aragon Day (Spain)

Army Reserves Day (US)

Asian Corpsetwt Day [Every 23rd]

Boice Day (South Korea)

Book Day (Canada)

Book Day and Lover's Day (Spain)

Castile and León Day (Spain)

Children’s Day (Turkey)

Community Day (Aragon, Castile and León Day; Spain)

Content Creator Day

Copyright Day

Day of Aragon (Spain)

Day of Books and Roses (Catalonia, Spain)

Drive It Day (UK)

Electric Mixer Day

English Language Day (UN)

George Castriota Day (Albania)

Impossible Astronaut Day (Dr. Who)

International Choro Day

International Creator Day

International Day of the Book

International Fibrodyysolasia Ossificans Progressive Awareness Day

International Nose Picking Day

International Pixel-Stained Technopeasant Day

International Share a Secret Day

International Sing Out Day

IU Day (Indiana University)

J.O.L.Y.N. (Joy of Loving YourselfNow) Day

Jurgi Day (Ancient Latvia)

Khongjom Day (Manipur, India)

La Diada de Sant Jordi (Catalonia, Spain)

Linnaeus Day (Sweden)

London Marathon Day (UK)

Lover's Day

Movie Theater Day

National Email Day

National Grief-in-Public Day

National Lost Dogs Awareness Day

National Lover’s Day

National Lugaw Day (Philippines)

National Read Me Day

National Sovereignty and Children’s Day (Turkey, Northern Cyprus)

National Take a Hike with Nick Day

National Vagina Appreciation Day

Navy Day (China)

Penny Day

Psychologist Day (Ukraine)

Public School Day

Purple Up for Military Kids Day

Scouts’ Day

Sigurd the Dragon Slayer's Day

Slay a Dragon Day

Spanish Language Day (UN)

Take a Chance Day

Talk Like Shakespeare Day

Teach Your Children To Save Day

Top Quark Discovery Day

Veterans Day (Estonia)

Visalia Priora

World Book and Copyright Day (UN)

World Book Day (UN; except Ireland, UK)

World Book Night (Ireland, Germany, UK, US)

World Infant, Child & Adolescent Mental Health Day

World Laboratory Day

World Table Tennis Day

YouTube Day

Food & Drink Celebrations

Allagash Saison Day [original date]

Bavarian Beer Day

Biertag (Germany)

Cherry Cheesecake Day

German Beer Day

International Cava Day

International Reinheitsgebot Day

National Asparagus Day (UK)

National English Muffin Day

National Licorice Day

National Picnic Day

National Taffy Day

New Coke Day

St. George's Day (traditional end of Bavarian lager brewing season)

Nature Celebrations

Balloon Flower Day (Gentle & Warm-Hearted; Korean Birth Flowers)

Hawthorn Day (French Republic)

International Pallas Cat Day

Pet Tech CPR Day

Wild Hyacinth Day (Hyacinthus non-scriptus)

Independence, Flag & Related Days

Australland (Declared; 2021) [unrecognized)

Conch Republic (Declared; 1982) [unrecognized)

Connecticut (Declared British Colony; 1662)

Flag Day (England)

Israel (a.k.a. Yom Ha’atzmaut; Declared; 1948)

National Day of England (St. George’s Day)

National Sovereignty Day, Day 2 (Turkey)

Texas (Ratified Secession from the U.S.; 1861)

4th Wednesday in April

Administrative Professional's Day [Wednesday of Last Full Week]

Arbor Day (US) [4th Wednesday]

Hump Day [Every Wednesday]

Library Giving Day [Wednesday of Library Week]

National Bookmobile Day [Wednesday of Library Week]

National Drug Endangered Children Awareness Day [4th Wednesday]

National French Immersion Day (Canada) [4th Wednesday]

Peppercorn Day (Bermuda) [Wednesday closest to 23rd]

Wacky Wednesday [Every Wednesday]

Website Wednesday [Every Wednesday]

Weird Wednesday [4th Wednesday of Each Month]

Whatever Wednesday [4th Wednesday of Each Month]

Weekly Holidays beginning April 23 (3rd Full Week of April)

American Quilters Society Week (thru 4.26)

Charlotte Wine + Food Week (Charlotte, North Carolina) [thru 4.27]

International Mariachi Week (thru 4.27)

Festivals On or Beginning April 23, 2025

Bacchanal Jamaica (Kingston, Jamaica) [thru 4.29]

Crawfish Music Festival (Biloxi, Mississippi) [thru 4.27]

National Trout Festival (Kalkaska, Michigan) [thru 4.27]

Seabreeze Jazz Festival (Panama City Beach, Florida) [thru 4.27]

UN Global Road Safety Week (thru 4.29)

Feast Days

Adalbert of Prague (Christian; Saint)

Chance Day (Shamanism)

Cynical Bastards Day (Pastafarian)

Day of the Glorious Fuckup (Church of the SubGenius)

Feast of Hephaestus (Greek Blacksmith God & Brewer)

Felix, Fortunatus, and Achilleus (Christian; Martyrs)

Festival of Saint Sarah the Egyptian (Sara Kali the Black Queen; Les Saintes-Maries-de-la-Mer, France) begins [until 25th]

George (Christian; Saint) [England, traditional end of Bavarian lager brewing season] *

Gerard, Bishop of Toul (Christian; Saint)

Giles of Assisi (Christian; Saint)

Gerard of Toul (Christian; Saint)

The Goddess is Alive Day (Everyday Wicca)

Ibar (a.k.a. Ivor) of Beggerin (or Meath; Christian; Saint)

Ji-Young (Muppetism)

Miltiades (Positivist; Saint)

Shakespeare Day (Starza Pagan Book of Days)

Snood Day (Celtic Book of Days)

Toyohiko Kagawa (Episcopal and Lutheran Church)

Vinalia Urbana (a.k.a. Vinalia Prima or Priora; Ancient Roman wine festival)

Vulcan's Day (Ancient Rome)

Walpurgisnacht, Day I (Pagan)

Lunar Calendar Holidays

Chinese: Month 3 (Geng-Chen), Day 26 (Ren-Xu)

Day Pillar: Water Dog

12-Day Officers/12 Gods: Destruction Day (破 Po) [Inauspicious]

Holidays: None Known

Secular Saints Days

Valerie Bertinelli (Entertainment)

John Cena (Entertainment)

Cervantes (Literature)

Sandra Dee (Entertainment)

J.P. Donleavy (Literature)

Virgil ‘Gus’ Grissom (Science)

Barry Hannah (Literature)

Frans Koppelaar (Art)

Halldór Laxness (Literature)

Lee Majors (Entertainment)

Ngaio Marsh (Literature)

Yiannis Moralis (Art)

Louis Muhlstock (Art)

Vladimir Nabokov (Literature)

John Oliver (Entertainment)

Roy Orbison (Music)

Max Planck (Science)

Sergei Prokofiev (Music)

William Shakespeare (Literature)

Johann Adam Stamm (Wagonmaking)

Shirley Temple (Entertainment)

J.M.W. Turner (Art)

Herve Villechaize (Entertainment)

Antoine Vollon (Art)

Fritz Wotruba (Art)

Lucky & Unlucky Days

Butsumetsu (仏滅 Japan) [Unlucky all day.]

Prime Number Day: 113 [30 of 72]

Premieres

Alaskan Night (Krazy Kat Cartoon; 1930)

The American Political Tradition and the Men Who Made It, by Richard Hofstadter (Political Theory; 1948)

Baywatch (TV Series; 1989)

Benny & Joon (Film; 1993)

Black and Blue, by The Rolling Stones (Album; 1976)

The Black Marble, by Joseph Wambaugh (Novel; 1978)

Bobby Bumps’ Pup Gets the Flea-enza (Paramount-Bray Pictographs Cartoon; 1917)

Cherrybomb (Film; 2009)

Cilly Goose (Noveltoons Cartoon; 1944)

Col. Heeza Liar Wins the Pennant (Paramount-Bray Cartoon; 1916)

Crowing Pains (Blue Ribbon Hit Parade Cartoon; 1955)

Dirty Water, by The Standells (Song; 1966)

Dogville (Film; 2003)

Election (Film; 1999)

The Excursions of Mr. Brouček to the Moon and to the 15th Century, by Leoš Janáček (Opera; 1920)

Fall Out - Fall In (Donald Duck Disney Cartoon; 1943)

Frog Jog (Tijuana Toads Cartoon; 1972)

Gregory’s Girl (Film; 1981)

Hold On, I’m Coming, by Sam and Dave (Song; 1966)

I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings, by Maya Angelou (Autobiography; 1969)

Indian Summer (Film; 1993)

Joint Wipers (Tom & Jerry Van Beuren Cartoon; 1932)

A Jolly Good Furlough (Fleischer/Famous Popeye Cartoon; 1943)

Kiddie Concert (Musical Miniature Walter Lantz Cartoon; 1948)

Lemonade, by Beyoncé (Album; 2016)

Man on Fire (Film; 2004)

Merry Wives of Windsor, by William Shakespeare (Play; 1597)

M.O.N.E.Y. Spells Love (The Dogfather Mirsch/DFE Cartoon; 1975)

Mouse Wreckers (WB LT Concert; 1949)

Nexus, by Henry Miller (Novel; 1959) [Rosy Crucifixion #3]

The Penguin Parade (WB MM Cartoon; 1938)

Quacky Doodles Soldiering for Fair (Paramount-Bray Pictographs Cartoon; 1919)

Ramones, by Ramones (Album; 1976)

Return to Paradise, by James A. Michener (Novel; 1951)

Rock-a-By Maybe (The Dogfather Mirsch/DFE Cartoon; 1975)

Rocky Mountain News (Colorado Daily Newspaper; 1859)

Shadow and Bone (TV Series; 2021)

Sita Sings the Blues (Animated Film; 2010)

Snow Place Like Home (Chilly Willy Cartoon; 1966)

Sticky Fingers, by The Rolling Stones (Album; 1971)

The Stories of John Cheever, by John Cheever (Short Story Collection; 1979)

Symphony No. 1 in C Major, by Mily Balakirev (Symphony; 1898)

Symphony No. 2 in D Minor, by Mily Balakirev (Symphony; 1909)

Teen Titans Go! (Animated Film; 2013)

There’s Good Boos To-Night (Noveltoons Cartoon; 1948)

13 Going on 30 (Film; 2004)

Touch of Evil (Film; 1958)

20,000 Feats Under the Sea (Terry Cartoon Burlesque Cartoon; 1917)

Two for the Record (Disney Cartoon; 1954)

When I Was Cruel, by Elvis Costello (Album; 2002)

Who Scent You? (WB LT Cartoon; 1960)

Today’s Name Days

Adalbert, Georg, Jörg, Jürgen (Austria)

Toma, Tomislav, Tomislava (Bulgaria)

Adalbert, Đurđica, Đuro, Juraj (Croatia)

Vojtěch (Czech Republic)

Georgius (Denmark)

Georg, Jürgen, Jürgo, Jüri, Jürjo, Jürnas, Jüts, Ürjo (Estonia)

Jiri, Jori, Jyri, Jyrki, Yrjänä, Yrjö (Finland)

Georges (France)

Georg, Gerhard, Jörg, Jürgen (Germany)

Georgios, Giorgos, Thomas, Yorgos (Greece)

Béla (Hungary)

Giorgio (Italy)

Georgs, Jorens, Jurģis, Juris (Latvia)

Adalbertas, Daugaudas, Jurgis, Vygailė (Lithuania)

Georg, Jørgen, Jørn (Norway)

Adalbert, Gerard, Gerarda, Gerhard, Helena, Jerzy, Wojciech (Poland)

Gheorghe (Romania)

Vojtech (Slovakia)

Jorge (Spain)

Georg, Göran (Sweden)

George (Ukraine)

Brayan, Breana, Breanna, Breanne, Brian, Briana, Brianna, Brianne, Brielle, Brien, Briona, Bryan, Bryana, Bryanna, Bryant, Brynn, Bryon, Shirlee, Shirleen, Shirley (USA)

Today’s National Name Days

National Bryan Day

National Roy Day

National Virgil Day

Today is Also…

Day of Year: Day 113 of 2025; 252 days remaining in the year

ISO Week: Day 3 of Week 17 of 2025

Celtic Tree Calendar: Saille (Willow) [Day 9 of 28]

Chinese: Month 3 (Geng-Chen), Day 26 (Ren-Xu)

Chinese Year of the: Snake 4723 (until February 17, 2026) [Ding-Chou]

Coptic: 15 Barmundah 1741

Druid Tree Calendar: Walnut (April 21-30) [Day 3 of 10]

Hebrew: 25 Nisan 5785

Islamic: 24 Shawwal 1446

Julian: 10 April 2025

Moon: 23%: Waning Crescent

Positivist: 1 Caesar (5th Month) [Miltiades]

Runic Half Month: Man (Humanity) [Day 10 of 15] (thru 4.28)

Season: Spring (Day 34 of 92)

SUn Calendar: 24 Cyan; Threesday [24 of 30]

Week: 3rd Full Week of April

Zodiac:

Tropical (Typical) Zodiac: Taurus (Day 4 of 31)

Sidereal Zodiac: Aries (Day 10 of 31)

Schmidt Zodiac: Aries (Day 8 of 31)

IAU Boundaries (Current) Zodiac: Aries (Day 5 of 25)

IAU Boundaries (1977) Zodiac: Aries (Day 5 of 25)

Calendar Changes

Caesar (Military Civilization) [Month 5 of 13; Positivist]

[doyoulikethissong-poll]

Cliff Edwards - When You Wish Upon a Star 1940

"When You Wish Upon a Star" is a song written by Leigh Harline and Ned Washington for the 1940 Disney animated film Pinocchio. It was sung by Cliff Edwards in the character of Jiminy Cricket, and is heard over the opening credits and in the final scene of the film. It won the 1940 Academy Award for Best Original Song, and was therefore the first Disney song to win an Oscar. "When You Wish Upon a Star" is widely considered as the signature song of The Walt Disney Company and is often used as such in the production logos at the beginning of many Disney films since the 1980s.

Harline and Washington delivered "When You Wish Upon a Star" to the Pinocchio story crew in early autumn 1938, and they recognized it right away as a spotlight song that should be given prominence in the film. Disney decided that the song should play over the opening credits, and used as a musical theme throughout the film. The Library of Congress deemed Edwards's recording of the song "culturally, historically, or aesthetically significant" and inducted it into the National Recording Registry in 2009. The American Film Institute ranked "When You Wish Upon a Star" seventh in their 100 Greatest Songs in Film History, the highest ranked of only four Disney animated film songs to appear on the list.

In Japan, Sweden, Finland, Norway, and Denmark, the song has become a Christmas song. The song features in Disney's one-hour Christmas special From All of Us to All of You, originally broadcast in 1958 in the US, but now considered a Christmas tradition in the Nordic countries, where it is broadcast on Christmas Eve every year since 1959. 🎄⭐

"When You Wish Upon a Star" recieved a total of 65,8% yes votes!

[dag-hammarskjold]

I cannot believe it, they yassified his room.

I personally think it would have emphasised his loneliness a lot better if they kept it closer to the real life room.

(Top: screeenshot of Hammarskjöld - Fight for Peace official trailer)

(Bottom 2: photo of Dag Hammarskjöld’s New York Apartment, National Library of Sweden)

They also got the side of the bed he sleeps on wrong as well.

[umichenginabroad]

Stockholm Week 2: Museum Museum Museum!

Välkommen, again, to my journey in Stockholm! 

I'll get started right away:

1/23 Tue: Visiting Host Family

A lot of snow melted (finally) this week, and it was my first full week of classes. I watched a comedy film I Love Lucy in Glued to the Screen class and talked about political ideas and issues in the Swedish Language and Culture course. I thought the U.S. education system had a lot of discussion built into the curriculum, but the Swedish Language and Culture course had even more discussion integrated into the class. We listened and gave opinions about concepts like nationalism in addition to typical vocabulary and grammar lessons. 

Last week, I was accepted into the Visiting Host Program through DIS and invited for dinner with another student! I had a few hours after class and you know I didn’t miss the opportunity to go shopping ;) I went into Zara instead and tried on a bunch of clothes. Compared to other countries, Zara in Europe has bigger sales and better quality clothes! 

I shopped around the rich stores (Moncler, Gucci, etc) but did not dare go in

On the way to my Visiting Host family, I met up with the other invited student (also from Minnesota! What a coincidence) in the subway station (where I got lost for a good 10 minutes). The hosts were SO NICE and the 5-year-old baby was SO CUTE.

She braided our hair and put a pin as a cherry on top  

They prepared authentic Swedish meatballs, mashed potatoes, lingonberry jam, and white wine. The dessert called princess cake was very pretty and sweet as its name <3

I usually don't like wine but this one was surprisingly good and I’m planning on asking the name of it! 

We had such a good time, and I am excited to see them again soon! 

1/24 Wed: Museum Field Study

Our film class, Glued to the Screen, met altogether at the Swedish National Museum of Science and Technology (Tekniska Museet) at 2 pm on Wednesday. 

This was nothing like I imagined. The museum had three floors and there were endless passages and stairs and rooms that we went through. It mainly covered the history of technology in Sweden and Europe.  

Although two hours of continuous walking was exhausting, we took hundreds of photos and were submerged in activities. In fact, two hours was not enough time to look around the huge museum packed with interactive activities like gaming, cycling, driving, etc.

Air balloon, AI, VR, Phone booths, and so much more

This particular room was full of mirrors!

After the independent tour around the museum, as with all field studies, we had a fika at the wooden cafe in the museum. 

If you are able to go, please order the strawberry smoothie there. It was DELICIOUS!

After the field trip, my friends and I spontaneously, again, headed for more shopping. I did a big Zara haul and so did my friends. 

I can’t stop buying clothes and it’s a problem. The discounts aren’t helping either :(

1/25 Thu: Sour Day

Because I had four hours in between classes on Thursday, I killed time in the library in the DIS building (was going to work on homework but inevitably fell asleep for a while). Then, with the goal of waking up, I headed to a bigger ICA supermarket. Aaaand as you could’ve imagined I couldn’t pass by the snacks corner without buying some. I got a wide range of chocolate and jellies.

Afterward, I went back to DIS to actually do homework. I got bored after a few minutes; I took out the chocolate bag. The moment I took a bite of a round chocolate ball, I stopped biting. Not voluntarily, but forcefully. There was a very hard, blue ball inside the chocolate cover. With hesitation, I tried licking the exposed side and regretted my choice immediately. It was extremely salty AND sour. 

I learned the hard way that I should read the descriptions before putting all kinds of chocolate in the goodie bag.

1/26 Fri: Busy Busy Friday

Friday was another thrift day for me. DIS leads led us and showed us around the secondhand stores in Zinkensdamm. The high-end vintage store Beyond Retro sold clothes for 500 Krona (~$50) while the more common stores like Myrorna and Stockholm Stadsmission had things for 50 Kr (~$5). The latter ones were more of my style. 

For dinner, I finally had MAX. It is a Swedish burger chain that has tons of menus including Vegan and Vegetarian options. I tried the advertised burger meal with the sweet potato fries on the side. The burger was as good as I was told by the locals. I’m definitely going back to try other burgers and smoothies!

We faced an unexpected amount of snow on the way back home but it was so pretty that I forgave the weather. 

My hair was soaking wet

That same night, my friends living in a different student apartment came to Södermalm to try out the bars here. We sat down and talked and had a couple of drinks together to end the night <3 

1/27 Sat: More Museum Trips

We made it to the Banksy Museum just to find out that the tickets for that day and the next day were sold out already. To make sure this doesn’t happen again, we booked the tickets for next week on the spot. The Fotografiska museum, which was conveniently right next door, compelled us in. We got a student discount (199 Kr ~$19.90) and separately wandered around the museum to appreciate each artwork. My favorite ones were Rinko Kawauchi’s photo collection located on the top floor. 

The artwork reminded me of words like ethereal, surreal, serendipity

We couldn’t walk past the photo booth either! It was $6, which was not as expensive as the ones found in the subway ($9.99). 

The camera started shooting right after we paid, so you can see us caught off guard in the first frame. I got the black and white version and my friend took the colored one.

But aren’t we so cute <;3

Even the sky on the way back home was gorgeous.

1/28 Sun: Flea Market!

DIS notified students about the weekend flea market and I recruited people to go with me as soon as I saw the information. 

There were tens and hundreds of people selling and buying clothes and home goods for a good price!

I got a jacket, 5 gold rings, a sweater, shorts, and a mesh top for a total of 274 Kr, which is about 27 dollars. The flea market was a cheaper and higher quality version of a thrift store and I absolutely loved it. Do you see a trend here ;)

We were craving pastries later on so we stopped at Gamla Stan to grab some before going home.

Selfie!

As people with high standards, we inspected more than five cafes to find the perfect place that met our needs. A bakery called PANEM was our last stop, and the desserts there were phenomenal even at a reasonable price. 

I got a mango mousse cake and it was the best dessert I’ve had in Stockholm so far!!!

This concludes my second week in Stockholm. Stay tuned for more adventures from me!

Tack så mycket, 

Jiwoo Kim 

Chemical Engineering

DIS Study Abroad in Stockholm, Sweden

[felipeandletizia]

Felipe and Letizia retrospective: November 24th

2004: Opening of the VII Volunteers Congress in the Canary Islands. & Meeting with the Chinese President Hu Jintao during his stopover following his visit to Cuba.

2005: Audience at la Zarzuela

2006: Closing of the 4th Congress of Executives

2008: Lunch & Gala dinner offered to the President of Panama Martín Torrijos Espino

2009: Foreign Press Association awards in London, UK

2011: Official Visit to Chile

2014: CSIC 75th anniversary event in Madrid.

2015: Attended the 20 Minutos newspaper’s 15th anniversary in Madrid

2016: Delivered the 28th Rey Jaime I awards & Visited Valencia’s central market

2017: Meeting of the patronages of the National Library in Madrid.

2019: Davis Cup finals in Madrid

2021: State Visit to Sweden, day 1

2022: Meeting with a representation of Spanish companies present in Qatar

F&L Through the Years: 1091/??