Howdy, folks! Today is Juneteenth, which celebrates the anniversary of the order by Major General Gordon Granger proclaiming freedom for slaves in Texas on June 19, 1865, two and a half years after Abraham Lincoln issued the Emancipation Proclamation. Originating in Galveston, Juneteenth has since been observed annually in various parts of the United States and has been recognized as a federal holiday since 2021.

Sorry for posting this late, folks. Happy Father’s Day to all the other dads out there!

Well folks, today is National Fudge Day. We had some really good fudge in Fredericksburg this week (Rocky Road for me and Butterfinger for her), which we enjoyed along with all the leftover wine from the wedding reception. Today is also National Richard Day, probably because it would be kinda off-color to call it “National Dick Day.” Lastly, today The Flash comes out in theaters, and I’m pretty excited about it.

Howdy, mofos! It’s been a great few days. I looked back on the earlier threads and saw all the “congrats!” messages, so thanks for all that. The wedding went great and we had a lot of fun, and then yesterday we got back home from our relaxing honeymoon out in the Texas hill country, which involved a lot of drinking, eating, antique shopping, sitting around in a hot tub watching the sunset, sleeping late with no noisy kids to wake us up, and… other stuff too. Our photographer already sent us a couple of wedding photos, which I’ve posted on Twitter right HERE.

I’ve scheduled these next few daily threads in advance, since I’m on my honeymoon. Y’all be good while I’m gone.

I won’t be around at all this weekend. Obviously.

I’m getting married tomorrow, so today will be my final post about the origins of various wedding traditions:

FACT: The bachelor party dates back as early as the 5th century B.C., when the ancient Spartans celebrated the groom’s last night as a single man by holding a dinner and making toasts on his behalf. The term “bachelor,” originally meaning “a young knight-in-training,” was first mentioned in the 14th century to refer to an unmarried man in Geoffrey Chaucer’s The Canterbury Tales.

Hey, wanna hear the bizarre origin of another well-known wedding tradition? I thought so:

FACT: Rather than carrying flowers, brides in the Middle Ages would carry a bouquet of pungent herbs and spices in an effort to ward off evil spirits. Dill was especially common, as it was not only thought to drive away negative energy, but it was also known as the herb of lust — its inclusion was expected to stimulate sexual desire as the newlyweds prepared to consummate their marriage. The bridal bouquet as we know it was born when Queen Victoria held a small clutch of flowers at her wedding to Prince Albert in 1840.