2309 – Conrad of Megenberg (also known in Latin, as Conradus Megenbergensis), German writer, meteorologist, entomologist, and Catholic scholar. 1536 – Scévole de Sainte-Marthe, French writer, poet, and politician. 1551 – Nicolaus Reimers, German astronomer, writer, grammarian, tutor, mathematician, and university teacher who was imperial astronomer and mathematician to the court of Emperor Rudolf II.Continue reading “February 2 Writer Birthdays”
Author Archives: petrini1
February 1 Writer Birthdays
1506 – George Buchanan, Scottish historian, writer, poet, playwright, philosopher, linguist, translator, and humanist scholar who has been called, “the most profound intellectual sixteenth century Scotland produced.” 1550 – Charlotte Duplessis-Mornay (née Arbaleste de la Borde) French writer of the Reformation, known for her first-person account of the St. Bartholomew’s Day massacre and for authoringContinue reading “February 1 Writer Birthdays”
Phone Faux Pas
I dreamed that I was at a theater, attending a play for the first time since the pandemic began. In the middle of the performance, my phone started making loud noises for some kind of notification, and I knew I had forgotten to turn it off. Usually there is an announcement before a play, butContinue reading “Phone Faux Pas”
January 31 Writer Birthdays
1559 – Maximiliaan de Vriendt, Flemish poet who was arrested and tortured for his opposition to the Calvinist regime, but later, after a change in administration, became a civic office-holder and New Latin poet and speechwriter. 1585 – Daniel Schwenter, German poet, mathematician, librarian, inventor, Orientalist, and linguist. 1624 – Arnold Geulincx, controversial Flemish authorContinue reading “January 31 Writer Birthdays”
52 Ancestors, Week 5: Oops, Wrong Village
It’s Week 5 of the 52 Ancestors in 52 Weeks project, created by genealogist Amy Johnson Crow. The theme this week: Oops. My “Oops” moment is about the process of uncovering the past. My grandmother had always told us her family was from Serravalle, a village in Marche, Italy. By the time I first visitedContinue reading “52 Ancestors, Week 5: Oops, Wrong Village”
January 30 Writer Birthdays
1590 – Lady Anne Clifford, English diarist, letter writer, patron of the arts, women’s rights activist, and High Sheriff of Westmoreland; poet John Donne said of her that she could “discourse of all things from Predestination to Slea-silk.” 1628 – George Villiers (2nd Duke of Buckingham), English politician and writer of restoration comedies. 1661 – CharlesContinue reading “January 30 Writer Birthdays”
A Day for Grouches
Are you feeling particularly grumpy today? Go ahead and express your Inner Grouch. January 29, the birthday of celebrated grouch W.C. Fields, is National Curmudgeons Day! Read more about it here.
January 29 Writer Birthdays
1455 – Johann Reuchlin, German writer, translator, philosopher, jurist, theologian, classical scholar, and university teacher whose work centered on advancing German knowledge of Greek and Hebrew. 1737 – Thomas Paine, influential English and Colonial American political activist, writer, philosopher, and revolutionary, best known for his pamphlets, “Common Sense,” which demanded the American colonies’ independence fromContinue reading “January 29 Writer Birthdays”
Klutzy
We came in from the farmer’s market this morning, my foot caught the edge of a box in the living room, and I tripped, slamming my right knee into the hardwood floor. I scraped off some skin, and a huge purple bruise began almost immediately spreading across my knee. And it really, really hurt. IContinue reading “Klutzy”
January 28 Writer Birthdays
1582 – John Barclay, French-born Scottish writer, satirist, and neo-Latin poet. 1608 – Giovanni Alfonso Borelli, Italian physiologist, physicist, mathematician, and author; Father of Biomechanics; and first person to design a self-contained underwater breathing apparatus; he became head of Mathematics at the University of Pisa, though Galileo recommended against hiring him. 1841 – Sir HenryContinue reading “January 28 Writer Birthdays”
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