Verna and Bob's Weblog

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Happy New Year!

I’ve been fooling around with some AI lately and I understand that some users have been using AI to write code. So, I tried my hand at asking it to write a script for a countdown to the new year. I asked for JavaScript to be embedded in HTML and it produced the result seen below. The AI (Google Gemini) produced JavaScript, HTML and the Style Script (CSS). All I had to do was provide the HTML Header and Body and, voila, the counter worked right off the bat. Link to Gemini Code.

If you see “Happy New Year” instead of the counter, then It is already (MST) 2026.

I’m posting this some 29 hours or so before the new year so visitors to the site can see the counter. I may (just for grins) change the code to countdown to 2027 after the new year.

So, from both Verna and I, we wish you all a very happy and prosperous New Year in 2026!

UPDATE: I changed the target to St. Valentine’s Day 2026!

December 30, 2025 by Culture Holidays Nerdliness 0

Happy Columbus Day!

From Gemini AI:

Columbus Day, observed annually on the second Monday of October, is a national holiday in the United States commemorating the arrival of Christopher Columbus in the Americas on October 12, 1492. It is traditionally celebrated to honor the explorer and the beginning of European settlement in the Western Hemisphere. The holiday serves as a moment to recognize the historical voyage that opened a new chapter of global interaction. Despite the observance by many states and cities of alternative commemorations, Columbus Day remains a federal holiday, marking its place on the national calendar.

Image and Text courtesy of Gemini AI.

October 13, 2025 by Culture Holidays

Happy Thanksgiving 2024

Happy Thanksgiving!

As we gather around the table today, we are reminded of the countless blessings in our lives—our families, friends, and the love that surrounds us. May we take this time to reflect on God’s grace and the many gifts He has given us.

Let us give thanks for the strength of our bonds, the beauty of shared moments, and the joy that comes from loving one another. May this season of gratitude inspire us to live with compassion, generosity, and faith.

Wishing you all a blessed Thanksgiving filled with love, peace, and happiness!

Enter His gates with thanksgiving, and His courts with praise. Give thanks to Him and praise His name. For the LORD is good and His love endures forever; His faithfulness continues through all generations.

— Psalm 100:4-5

November 28, 2024 by Culture Family Food and Dining Holidays

Samhain – Cross-Quarter Feast

OK – We’re both descendants of the Irish/Celtic stock and we observe their cross-quarter feasts because – well, just because. This particular feast – Samhain – is the gathering of the harvests and stocking provisions away for the winter months ahead.

We will be celebrating this year with a feast of our own, namely a traditional Corned Beef and Cabbage Dinner with Low Carb Veggies. You can see the results of the feast on our Food Blog.

November 3, 2024 by Culture Holidays

All Saints Day

Tutti Santi is Italian for “All Saints.” Today is the celebration of All Saints in some churches. Verna and I happened to be in Rome, Italy, on November 1, 2000 where we watched Pope John Paul celebrate a special Tutti Santi mass from St. Peter’s Basilica on television in our hotel room.

Today, we’re celebrating by having Lasagna Soup later today. Happy All Saints Day to you all.

November 1, 2024 by Culture Food and Dining Religion

Avalon 1998

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